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Epift. 33 reign King. At my first coming hither, I was in great heaviness, wrestling with challenges, being burdened in heart (as I am yet) for my filent fabbaths, and for a bereft people, young ones, newborn, plucked from the breafts, and the childrens table drawn. I thought I was a dry tree caft over the dike of the vineyard: but my fecret conceptions of Chrift's love, at his fweet and long-desired return to my foul, were found to be a lie of Chrift's love, forged by the tempter, and my own heart; and I am perfuaded it was fo. Now there is greater peace and fecurity within than before; the court is raised and difmiffed, for it was not fenced in God's name. I was far miftaken who fhould have fummoned Chrift for unkindnefs; mifted faith, and my fever conceived amifs of him: now, now, he is pleafed to feast a poor prifoner, and to refresh me with unfpeakable and glorious; fo as the Holy Spirit is witness, that my fufferings are for Chrift's truth; and God forbid I fhould deny the teftimony of the Holy Spirit, and make him a falfe witnefs. Now I teftify under my hand, out of fome small experience, that Christ's caufe (even with the cross) is better than the king's crown; and that his reproaches are fweet, his crofs perfumed, the walls of my prifon fair and large, my loffes gain. I defire you, my dear brother, help me to praise, and remember me in your prayer to God. Grace, grace be with you.

Aberdeen, March 14.

1637.

Miftrefs,

Yours in his fweet Lord
Jefus, S. R.

33. To the Lady EARLSTOUN.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you: I long to hear how your

foul profpereth. exhort you to go on in your journey: your day is fhort, and your afternoon fun will foon go down: make an end of your accounts with your Lord; for death and judgment are tides that bide no man: falvation is fuppofed to be at the door, and Chriftianity is thought an eafy tafk; but I find it hard, and the way ftrait and narrow, were it not that my guide is content to wait on me, and to care for a tired traveller. Hurt not your conscience with any known fin. Let your children be as fo many flowers, borrowed from God: if the flowers die or wither, thank God for a fummer's loan of them, and keep good neighbourhood, to borrow and lend with him. Set your heart upon heaven, and trouble not your fpirit with this clay-idol of the world, which is but vanity, and hath but the luftre of the rain bow in the air, which cometh and goeth with a flying March-flower: clay is the idol of baftards, not the inheritance of the children. My Lord hath been pleased to make many unknown faces laugh upon me, and hath made me well content of a borrowed fire-fide, and a borrowed

rowed bed: I am feafted with the joys of the Holy Ghoft, and my royal King beareth my charges honourably. I love the fmell of Christ's fweet breath, better than the world's gold. I would I had help to praise him The great meffenger of the covenant, the Son of God, eftablish you on your Rock, and keep you to the day of his coming.

Aberdeen, March 7,

1637.

Tours in his fweet Lord

Jefus, S. R.

34. To CARLETOUN.

Worthy and much honoured,

GRace, mercy and peace be to you. I received your letter from

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my brother, to the which I now answer particularly. I confefs two. things of myfelfs 1ft, Wo, wo is me that men fhould think there is any thing in me! He is my witness, before whom I am as chrystal, that the fecret houfe-devils, that bear me too often company, that this fink of corruption which I find within, maketh me go with low fails; and if others faw what I fee, they would look by me, but not to me. 2d. I know this shower of his free grace behoved to be on me, otherways I would have withered. I know alfo that I have need of a buffeting tempter, that grace may be put to exercife, and I kept low. Worthy and dear brother in our Lord Jefus, I write that from my heart which ye now read: ift, I vouch that Christ, and sweating and fighing under his cross, Is fweeter to me by far than all the kingdoms in the world could poffibly be. 2d, If you, and my dearest acquaintance in Christ, reap any fruit by my fuffering. let me be weighed in God's even balance, if my joy be not fulfilled. What am I to carry the marks of fuch a great King? But howbeit I am a fink and finful mass, wretched captive of fin, my Lord Jefus can hew heaven out of worle timber than I am (if worse can be.) 3d, I now rejoice with joy unfpeakable and glorious, that I never purposed to bring Chrift, not the least hoof or hair-breadth of truth under tryfting: I defired to have and keep Chrift all alone, and that he should never rub clothes with that black-skinned harlot of Rome. I am now fully paid home, so that nothing aileth me for the prefent, but lovefickness for a real poffeffion of my faireft Well-beloved. I would give him my bond under my faith and hand, to frift heaven an hundred years longer, fo being he would lay his holy face to my fometimes wet cheeks. Oh, who would not pity me, to know how fain I would have the King shaking the tree of of life upon me, or letting me into the well of life with my old difh, that I might be drunken with the fountain here in the house of my pilgrimage! I cannot, nay, I would not be quit of Christ's love. hath left the mark behind where he gripped: he goeth away, and leaverh

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Epift. 34 leaveth me and his burning love to wrestle together, and I can fcarce win my meat of his love, because of abfence: my Lord giveth me but hungry half-kiffes, which ferve to feed pain, and increase hunger, but do not fatisfy my defires; his dieting of my foul for this race maketh me lean. I have gotten the wail and choice of Chrift's croffes, even the tithe and the flower of the gold of all croffes, to bear witness to the truth; and herein find I liberty, joy, access, life, comfort, love, faith, fubmiffion, patience, and refolution to take delight in on-waiting; and withal in my race he hath come near me, and let me fee the gold and crown: what then want I, but fruition and real enjoyment, which is referved to my country? Let no man think he shall lofe at Chrift's hands in fuffering for him. 4th, For thefe prefent trials, they are most dangerous; for people fhall be ftolen off their feet with well-wafhen and white skinned pretences of indifferency; but it is the power of the great Antichrift working in this land. Wo, wo, wo to be apo ftate Scotland; there is wrath, and a cup of the red wine of the wrath of God Almighty in the Lord's hand, that they shall drink and fpue, and fall and not rife again. The ftar called wormwood and gall, is fallen in the fountains, and rivers, and hath made them bitter: the fword of the Lord is furnished against the idol-fhepherds of the land; women fhall bless the barren womb and mifcarrying breasts; all hearts fhall be faint, and all knees fhall tremble: an end is coming; the Leopard and the Lion fhall watch over our cities; houses great and fair fhall be defolate without an inhabitant: the Lord hath faid, Pray not for this people, for I have taken my peace from them :' yet the Lord's third part shall come through the fire, as refined gold for the treasure of the Lord, and the out-cafts of Scotland fhall be gathered together again, and the wildernefs fhall bloffom as the flower, and bud, and grom as the rofe of Sharon, and great thall be the glory of the Lord upon Scotland. 5th, I am here affaulted with the learned and pregnant wits of this kingdom; but, all honour be to my Lord, truth but laughs at bemifted and blind fcribes, and difputers of this world; and God's wifdom confoundeth them, and Chrift triumpheth in his own ftrong truth, that fpeaketh for itself. 6th, I doubt not but my Lord is preparing me for heavier trials: I am moft ready at the good pleasure of my Lord, in the ftrength of his grace, for any thing he shall be pleased to call me to: neither shall the laft blackfaced meffenger, death, be holden at the door, when it fhall knock. If my Lord will take honour of the like of me, how glad and joyful fhall my foul be! Let Christ come out with me to an hotter battle than this, and I fhall fear no flesh. I know that my Master will win the day, and that he hath taken the ordering of my fufferings in his own hand. 7th. As for my deliverance, that miscarrieth; I am here, by my Lord's grace, to lay my hand on

my

my mouth, to be filent and wait on: my Lord Jefus is on his journey for my deliverance; I will not grudge that he runneth not fo faft as I would have him: on waiting till the fwelling rivers fall, and till my Lord arife as a mighty man after strong wine, fhall be my best: I have not yet refifted to blood. 8th. O how of ten am I laid in the dust, and urged by the tempter, (who can ride his own errands upon our lying apprehenfions) to fin against the unchangeable love of my Lord: when I think upon the fparrows and swallows, that build their nefts in the kirk of Anwoth, and of my dumb fabbaths, my forrowful blear'd eyes look afquint upon Chrift, and present him as angry. But in this trial, all honour to our princely and royal king: faith faileth fair before the wind, with top-fail up, and carrieth the poor paffenger through. I lay inhibitions upon my thoughts, that they receive no flanders of my only, only beloved: let him even fay out of his own mouth, There is no hope; yet I will die in that fweet beguile, It is not fo: I fhall fee the falvation of God. Let me be deceived really, and never win to dry land; it is my joy to believe under the water, and to die with faith in my hand gripping Chrift: let my conceptions of Chrift's love go to the grave with me, and to hell with me, I may not, I dare not quit them. I hope to keep Chrift's pawn: if he never come to loofe it, let him fee to his own promife. I know, prefumption, howbeit it be made of ftoutnefs, will not thus be wilful in heavy trials. Now, my dearest in Chrift, the great meffenger of the covenant, the only wife and all-fufficient Jehovah established you to the end. I hear the Lord hath been at your house, and hath called home your wife to her rest, I know, Sir, ye fee the Lord loofing the pins of your tabernacle, and wooing your love from this plaistered and over gilded world, and calling upon you to be making yourself ready to go to your Father's country, which fhall be a sweet fruit of that vifitation. Ye know, to fend the comforter, was a King's word when he afcended on high: ye have claim to, and intereft in that promise. Remember my love in Chrift to your father; fhew him it is late and black night with him; his long lying at the water fide is, that he may look his papers ere he take shipping, and be at a point for his laft anfwer before his Judge and Lord. All love, all mercy, all grace, and peace, all multiplied faving confolations, all joy and faith in Chrift, all stability and confirming ftrength grace, and the good will of him that dwelt in the bush be with you.

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Aberdeen, June 15, 1637.

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Your unworthy brother in his fweet Lord Jefus, S. R,

35. To

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35. TO MARION

Worthy and dearest in the Lord,

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M'NAUGHT.

Ever loved (fince I knew you) that little vineyard of the Lord's planting in Galloway, but now much more, fince I have heard that he, who hath his fire in Zion, and his furnace in Jerufalem, hath been pleased to fet up a furnace amongst you with the first in this kingdom: he who maketh old things new, feeing Scotland an old droffy and rufted kirk, is beginning to make a new clean bride of her, and to bring a young chafte wife to himself out of the fire. This fire fhall be quenched, fo foon as Chrift hath brought a clean fpoufe thorough the fire: therefore, my dearly beloved in the Lord, fear not a worm; fear not, worm Jacob: Chrift is in that plea, and fhall win the plea: charge un unbelieving heart, under the pain of treason against our great and royal King Jefus, to dependence by faith, and quiet on waiting on our Lord get you into your chambers, and shut the doors about you; in, in with speed to your ftrong hold, ye prifoners of hope: ye doses, flee unto Chrift's windows till the indignation be over, and the ftorm be paft: glorify the Lord in your sufferings, and take his banner of love and fpread over you; others will follow you if they tee you ftrong in the Lord; their courage shall take life from your Chriftian carriage: look up and fee who is coming, lift up your head, he is coming to fave, in garments dyed in blood, and travelling in the greatnefs of his strength. I laugh, I fmile, I leap for joy, to fee Chrift coming to fave you fo quickly. O fuch wide steps Christ taketh! three or four hills are but a step to him; he skippeth over the mountains, Chrift hath fet a battle betwixt his poor weak faints and his enemies, he wealeth the weapons for both parties, and faith to the enemies, take you a fword of fteel, law, authority, parliaments, and kings upon your fide, that is your armour: and he faith to his faints, I give you a fecklefs tree fword in your hand, and that is, fuffering, receiving of ftrokes, 1poiling of your goods; and with your tree-fword ye shall get and gain the victory. Was not Chrift dragged through the ditches of deep distresses, and great ftraits? and yet Christ, who is your head, hath win through with his life, howbeit not with a whole fkin. Ye are Chrift's members, and he is drawing his members thorough the thorny hedge up to heaven after him; Chrift one day will not have fo much as a pained toe; but there are great pieces and portions of Chrift's myftical body, nor yet within the gates of the great high city, the new Jerufalem: and the dragon will ftrike at Chrift, fo long as there is one bit or member of Chrift's body out of heaven I tell you, Chrift will make new work out of old forecaften Scotland, and gather the

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