Letters in Two Parts, Title page – To the reader 2

Letters in Two Parts · Title page – To the reader 2

JOSHUA REDIVIVUS, OR M^R RUTHERFOORD'S LETTERS, Divided in two Parts.

THE FIRST, Containing these which were written from Aberdeen, where he was confined by a sentence of the High Commission, drawn forth against him, partly upon the account of his declining them, partly upon the account of his Non-Conformitie.

THE SECOND, Containing, some which were written from Anwoth, before he was by the Prelats persecution thrust from his Ministery; & others upon diverse occasions afterward, from St Andrews, London, &c.

Now published, for the use of all the people of God; but more particularly, for those, who now are, or afterward may be put to suffering for Christ & his cause; By A wellwisher to the work, & people of God.

JOH. 16. 2. They shall put you out of the synagogues: Yea, the time cometh that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doeth God service. V. 3. And these things will they doe unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.

2 THESS. 1: 6. Seeing it is a righteous thing with God, to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you. V. 7. And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Iesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty Angels, &c.

Printed in the Yeer M DC LXIIII.

CHRISTIAN READER.

I Intended at first, to have given thee, the trouble of a larger Preface to these Epistles; but I perceived upon second thoughts, that as thou shouldest be at a loss in being thereby kept up too long a… the entry, so I should gain but little by following my first look; & therefore I have on purpose foreborn what I intended: Wherein as I have pleased my self no worse; so I am sure I have pleased thee much better, then if I had followed forth a designe, whereby thou couldest have reaped so little advantage: And therefore leaving & laying it aside, I shall confine my self to what doth more peculiarly relat to this great, little book.

In the entry give me leave to tell thee, that as there are many of the Authors Papers, both polemick and practicall, which he intended for publike use & advantage, that will never see the light; because (being like Appelles picture which was either to be perfected by his own pencil or wholly laid aside) he carried his pen away with himself, leaving few in the generation that would undertake to follow his notion and finish it, or if they should essay it, it would be in the issue; humano capit… cervicem jungere equinam: upon which account the Church of God may lament the loss of such a Master in Israel: as the world (I say) is, at no small loss, by being robbed of so rich a treasure, which was intended for them; so, these few, which the Author did not at all intend for publike use, are here sent abroad: he did violence to the desires of many in refusing to publish them (howbeit he was known to consult the satisfaction and advantage of the truely godly, more then his own contentment or ease) not because he thought them unworthy of a scholler, as not being stuffed with a great many sterril notions: If any alledge this, it's non Causa pro Causa; but the true reason why he endeavoured to suppress & conceal them from the world, was, lest any man should think of him above what was meet; because (if not of the abundance of revelation, which yet God did indeed give his suffering servant, as will be clear by comparing what he foresaw, both as to the work in generall, and as to some particular persons, with the event; yet) of the abundance of soul-refreshing manifestations that he had: This was the true reason which made him inexorable and kept him from listening to the most pressing & assiduous entreaties of his friends: he had many things which commended him to the people of God; but his covering his great attainments as a Christian, and the pregnancie of his parts as a scholler, with the vail of humility (which is the chief ornament of a gracious spirit) as it did render him peculiarly & deservedly dear to them; so it made both the one and the other shine more brightly, & did besids their native and intrinseck beauty, give an adventitious brightness and lustre to all that great stock of grace, and store of Parts, which were found (rara avis interris) joyntly in him. It was manifest to all who were but a little acquaint with him, that his modestie and humility was such, that in all his most eminent appearances for God, he studied to disappear, lest he should by standing up, be guilty of intercepting any part of that glory, which belongs to him alone; of whom are all things, & for whom are all things: neither was he at any loss hereby; for thus he became great in the Kingdom of God: his growing downward, in that high and Gospel-adorning grace of humility, made him grow upward in favour with God and all Good men; and thus by denying himself, and seeking God alone; he both found what he sought, and got what he was not willing to take, nor would owne as his due.

But, besids this true account I have given, why the world was deprived of so usefull & edifying a peice to this day; I think it should not pass without a remarke, that God in his good providence, hath reserved the publication thereof, for such a time as this, wherein it seems to promise a singular advantage, beyond & above, what was probably attainable at any other season: First as to the suffering people of God, who while they are deprived of these things in publike, for the most part, which comforted them over all their sorrowes, & while the songs of the Sanctuary (because the Philistims have stopped most of these wells out of which they used to draw & drinke with joy, that, which was sweter to the taste, then honey to the mouth; or they have thrown that into them, which hath not onelyonly made them lose their former relish & sweetness; but hath rendred them so bitter, that they are now become gall and wormewood) are turned into howling & bitter lamentation; while it is thus I say, with the people of God, that in stead of being made glad in his house of prayer as formerly, they are sighing for the ceasing of these solemne assemblies: they may in their sad hours commune with this sufferer, who not being willing to eat his morsell his alone, speaks to them good words and comfortable: he telleth you, beloved sufferers, what a heaven is to be had in Christ's company, even when ye are put to bear the cross, & to have shame & suffering for his sake, as your inseperable companion: Neither is his discourse upon this subject, an empty or idle speculation; nay, he speaks what he knoweth: the God for whose Cause he suffered, comforted him in the like tribulation, & so he is in case to comfort you, by the comforts, wherewith he himself was comforted of God. Next, as to these of the Ministers of the Gospel, who by the violence of their Adversaries are driven from their flocks [which to a godly Minister is the greatest of afflictions] such I say, may see for strengthning of their hands, while they are put to contend with these that are too strong for them; how this noble witness, who suffered for the same cause, carried, how he acquit himself, & overcame: the Archers shot sore at him, but his bow abod in it's strength… The armes of his hands were made so strong, by the hand of the mighty God of Jacob, that he was too hard for all that entered the lists with him, & when they thought they had done sufficient, either to force him to a compliance, or to make him faint under the effects of their fury, by depriving him of his ministery, which was dearer to him then his life; he was not by all this, so much put to suffering (to speak properly) as he was for a season, a little removed from the noise & distraction that is abroad in the world, to be alone with God. O blessed solitude! O sweet societie!) he was taken out of the clamour & confusion that is here below, up to the mount, where he was admitted to a neer familiarity, & experienced the sweetness of that fellowship with God, which he had preached unto others: Though he was not taken from the earth; yet he was not onelyonly keeped from the evill that was then, and is now, in the world; but he injoyed such a heaven under his heavy pressurs, that if the being about of his Master's business, had not been prized by him, as preferable to his own consolation, he would have been in hazard of forgetting the troubles of Zion, and of saying, it's good for me to be here; but he was such a servant, as made is his meat & drink to doe his Masters will, he had so learned Christ, as to prefer his concernments to his Chief joy: & therefore, ye will finde him often in these Epistles, feasting upon the consolations of God, with the tear in his eye, while he remembers Zion, & calls to mind the desolat condition of the flocks of Christ [particularly his own] for whom nothing was prepared. He found in his solitude such a measure of presence, as could hardly have been expected, out of the chamber of presence, where there is fulnesse of joy & pleasures for evermore: he know more in this happy retirement, of the excercise of them who are above (who being made Kings unto God, have crowns upon their head, & being made priests also, sacrifice these to the giver) then he could have learned, by revolving all the volumes that are written in many ages, amidst the greatest outward calme & tranquillity: This is the summer fruit which grew out of the hard tree of the cross of Christ that he was put to bear, which was so sweet to his taste, that it made him disdain the dainties of his Adversaries, & disrelish these sowre & unsavoury delights of the sons of men, which however they may at first seem to have some petty sweet in them; yet they quickly set the teeth of the eater on edge, & are found bitter in the belly & of a bad digestion: These were the quiet fruits of ighteousness that his servant reaped by hi sufferings for Christ, & that in such plenty, that out of his abundance, he sends some baskets of these sweet fruits abroad amongst his friends, both to bring up a good report upon his liberall Lord & Master, who allowes on his followers, while they are pinched with penury of other comforts, full measure, heaped up, running over, & shaken together: And upon the cross of Christ also, to the end it might appear, that this burden is so far from imbittering the life of a suffering saint, that by the contrary, as the sufferings of Christ abound in him, so his consolation also aboundeth by Jesus Christ. The publication then, I say, of these Epistles, seems in providence to be trysted on purpose, with the sufferings of his servants at this time, that we may be encouraged by his example, to a Zealous faithfulnesse, & a cheerfull suffering, & may wax bold by his bonds, under, & in which, he did experience, much of the glorious liberty of the sons of God: How oft doe we finde him preferring his confinement, to all the sublunary contentments of his persecurers? here did he feed upon these pure & unmixed delights, which put such gladness in the heart, as expells all the Latent & lurking griefs that are there, and causeth the soul, while surrounded with all outward trouble to sing; while they feed upon ashes, & fill their belly with the east wind, who feast upon the tears of the people of God, and seem to have nothing else to interrupt their tranquillity, but how they may trouble the children of peace: It was under this restraint, & in this house of his bondage, when being shut up from, and spoiled of all creatur-comforts, that he found the surpassing sweetness of the consolations of God, which taste best, when they are most free of the mud, & mixture of other injoyments: there it was where he found the truth of that saying of Augustin, Tanta est dulcedo caelestis gaudii, ut si una guttula difflueret in infernum; totam amaritudinem infer…i absorberet: If one drop of heavenly joy should fall into hell, it would swallow up, or sweeten, all th… bitterness of that place of torment: The love of God and the joy of the Holy Ghost, was so abundantly shed abroad in his heart, while he was in the furnace, that his cross was not onelyonly made there by light & easie, & his life pleasant; but ye have him often saying (because he found by these foretasts what inconceivable consolation must be, in the immediat vision and full fruition of God) that if there were no other way, to come at the possession of that blessedness, he would, not onelyonly chuse to swime through a sea of outward troubles; but he would wade through the lake of fire & brimstone, to be possessed of God himself: and there is none, who knew the gracious sobriety of this holy man, that will judge he complemented in saying so: nay, there are none, who have found what a cool refreshing shade & aboundant consolation the soul finds, in the company of the son of man, while they walk with him amdist the flames of the most scorching fiery trials; but they would think strange, if he spake otherwise. Let us then be ashamed, to scare at the cross, or at Christ's company, because of it; since it bears the man, who bears it: Let us resolve to take joyfully the …os of all things, life it self not being excepted, in the service of such a Master, who maks us gainers by our loses, and then in a speciall way maks up all our wants, according to his riches in glory, when we have forsaken all to follow him: Let us study to carry in the sight of Adversaries, as men who cannot be made miserable by affliction; for if we be but indeed faithfull to him, we are more happy at our worst, then we know; or rather we are onelyonly in so far miserable, as we know not how happy we are: he who is admitted to know that he hath a place in the heart of God, needs but care little what he meet with from the hand of man: this may wipe all teares from his eyes, even while he sighes out that sad word, I am poor and needy, that he knoweth, and is in case to adde that other, yet the Lord thinketh upon me, & doth earnestly remember me still: And by the way (though it's neither far out of my way nor thine, nor eccentrick to my present purpose) let me say, that if the question were moved, how it cometh to pass, that he found so much, and other worthy sufferers also before him, that these things seem almost dreams, & incredible to us? truely (without speaking any thing of the absolut soveraignty of God, who may doe with his own what he will, and dispense as he pleaseth, both as to measure & time) the reason may seem to be very obvious: his, & their witnessbearing for Jesus Christ, did every way, & in all respects, exceed our's: They gave to God as Kings [though it was of his own they served him] their Testimonies, against the corruptions of their times, whither in King, or Parliament, or Churchmen, had so much of ministeriall faithfulness, so much of freedom, so much of grave & Gospel-becoming boldness in them, so much holy zeal, even for the least of these concernments of the Kingdom of Christ [upon which we are loath to state our sufferings, or for the keeping whereof, we are unwilling to hazard the loss of any thing] that it was apparent, they loved him so well, that they loved not their lives unto the death, and that Christ could require nothing of them, as a signification of their zeal for his interests, which they were not at a point to part with, & were not ready to give away: And he upon the other hand, to make it appear, that they could not serve the Lord for nothing, and to evidence his speciall complacency in such a zealous frame of spirit, did, not onelyonly extraordinarily support them under their trouble, so that they did not sink, even when they seemed to others, to be pressed out of measure, & beyond strength; but did manifest himself in a most familiar manner unto them, so that when they were almost at this, that they had not whereupon to lay their head, they had then free accesse, to lean it & lay it on his bosome: in a word, God did declare, that he thought nothing too great, nor too good for them, who gave themselves away so intirely to him: so that if the question were asked at God, whence is it, that there is so vaste a difference, betwixt his dealing with his former witnesses, & these who now give some kinde of testimony to his name? He could quickly silence & put to shame the movers of that question, by sending us back, to see what a difference there is, betwixt what these worthies did & suffered for him, & what we have done; though under moe obligations, at least subjective, under moe oaths, Covenants, ingagements, protestations, & these often reiterat, then many of them were: He met them, as men whose hearts wer listed up in the wayes of the Lord, as men who rejoyced & wrought righteousnesse, & could neither be flattered nor frowned out of their fidelitie & freedom; & he hids himself from us, as it were ashamed of such witnesses, whose very testimony, is so unworthy of such a Master, & so far short of what it ought to be, as if indeed we were ashamed of him & his truth, or thought the torne & the lame, a sufficient sacrifice for him. It was not the maine question of these men, in a suffering time, how much they might let goe, & yet keep the substantialls of religion, or how long they should be silent, out of fear, lest while they endeavoured to acquit themselves faithfully, they should both be reput rash & imp…udent, & provoke the Magistrat, by venting their needless jealousies, to doe what he intended not: They did not think it enough to give some oblique intimation of their dislike, or half signification of their detestation of these courses, whereby they conceived their Master's interests wronged, his prerogative incroched upon, & the whole indangered: Nay, nay, these men of God who knew the times & what Israel had to doe, thought such a carriage unworthy of the Ambassadours of Christ, who are set for the defence of the Gospel, & upon the matter but as a couching of Asses under the burden: they would sooner have parted with their lives, then with one hoof of what belonged to their Master: They thought it more worthy of a watchman, to put all on their guard, upon the Least appearance of the approach of an enemy, then suffer themselves to be shamefully surprised in their security: And they thought it more like the good souldiers of Jesus Christ, to cover the ground where they stood with their dead bodies; then, as afraid or terrified by their adversaries in any thing, to make a dishonourable retreat: He who would have put them from witnessing a good confession, when the danger of the work of God, called them to cry aloud & not to spare; behov…d, not onelyonly to have threatned them (for that would not have done the businesse, they being men of such mettall, as could have looked death out of countenance in it's most formidable shape, & carryed in the face of all opposition, as these whom no affliction could make miserable) but to silence them perfectly, he behoved to have sent them into the other world; whith could not be terrible to them, who had the certain expectation, that if so dismissed, they should take up their place amongst the soul under the Altar, slain for the word of God, & their testimony that they held: And I may say particularly, to the commendation of the grace of God, in this his faithfull servant (who having served his generation according to the will of God, is now fallen asleep) that to the observation of all, he never was afraid of the face of man, in appearing for the interests of Christ; neither knew he what it was to be silent, when he saw these in hazard; nay, he was such a son of Levi, as knew neither friend nor brother in the matters of God: Which blessed disposition did accompany him to his grave; for though such was the indulgence of his Master to so faithfull a servant, that he would have him to die in peace (though he denied him not the honour of a martyr, dying under a sentence of confinement to his own house] plucking him out of the jaws of a bloody death, wherewith he was threatned, & which was intended for him, by them whose indignation had almost come to that hight, as to say upon the matter, bring him hither upon the bed that we may kill …im: for not being satisfied with the testimony of the Physicans, nor the Magistrats, nor the Ministers of the place, certifying, that he was not able to travell to Edinburgh [as by the s…quel was too sadly confirmed] he was confined in his own house, when he was not able to goe a broad, & put to shame in that place, where he had deservedly gained the reput of one of the most learned & succesfully laborious Doctors, that ever had filled that chair, & of one of the most faithfull & diligent Minister that ever watched over, or laboured amongst a people. Ah Scotland, Scotland whither hast thou caused thy shame to goe? If it had been an enemy who had sought to deal thus with thy Secrs & faithfull Prophets, it had become thee better, to have hide these by fifties in caves, from the fury of their enemi…s, or if thou couldest not have preserved the lives of such worthies; either to have died with them, or to have made it appear, thou onelyonly lived, to lament the loss of a greater treasure, then if thou hadst lost all the gold of Indie and Ophir; but for thy own sword to devour thy own Prophets, & that under the colour of law, what canst thou say for this that will satisfie? what Apology canst thou make to God, for misusing his Prophets & shedding the blood of the just in the midst of thee? What canst thou say for satisfying the Nations, who have heard of the renown of these men, these precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, who have been dashed in pieces in the midst of thee, & delt with, as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter? wilt thou not be speechlesse, & not have wherewith to Answer him that reproveth & reprocheth thee? Canst thou look fordward, & not blush to think, what succeeding generations will say of thee? What wilt thou say, when it shall be asked, by one whom thou must Answer, what manner of men were these whose blood thou didst had? (however thou hast represented them now as malefactors, that thou mightest deal so with them; yet then must thou say) all of them were as the sons of Kings. Ah Scotland, Scotland, the most solemnly ingaged to God, & the most guilty & ungrate of all the nations under the heaven: Doest thou not fear after all this, the cry of the souls under the Altar? Saying with a loud voice, how long O Lord, holy and true, doest thou not judge & avenge our blood, on them that dwel on the earth? Thou was once made use of as a Carpenter, to f…ay the hornes of them, who did push the in heritance of the Lord; but now the spirit of the hornes hath entered into the Carpenters: & doest thou think thy self secure after all this? It's true their is no visible power or party upon earth, of whom thou hast much reason to be a afraid; but remember that he who is higher then the highest regardeth, who will mak inquisition for the blood of his saints which thou hast shed & his interests: If thou wilt feare nothing else, let me recommend the Scythian fear unto thee, of whom it is reported, that they fear nothing, but that the heavens should fall upon them: Alas▪ if thy enemy be above thee, how wilt thou guard thy head, o… secure thy heart, when he gives the blow, & recompences thy way upon thine own head? but if thou wilt still goe on, & in stead of smiting on thy thigh, & saying what have I done? harden thy self, & think to prosper, I shall desire Grace to have such a frame of soul, as to weep for thee in secret: But to returne to my purpose from which this sad meditation hath a little withdrawn me: though such I say, was the tenderness of his master to this servant; yet when he had nothing else to complain of (being for many dayes together before his death, filled with as much joy of the Holy Ghost as he could hold) he went away regrating this (though with a sweet submission to his Master's will) that he died not in that bed of honour, and was not brought forth, to breath out his life & last upon a scaffold; since his Master was dealing such favours amongst his followers (for to some (and blessed be he eternally who carried them honourably through) it was given, not onelyonly to beleeve; but also to suffer, and to the conviction of their enemies, as men who seemed rather to triumph over that King of terrours, then to de daunted by it's dreadfull aspect) & since he was taking such proofs of the fidelitie & affection of some of his followers. It will not be amiss, for this purpose, to insert his own words, which were taken from his mouth, not once but often reiterat: Now [said that faithfull servant, even when he was upon the threshold of glory, ready to receive the immortall crown] my tabernacle is weak, & I would think it a more glorions way of going hence, to lay down my life for the cause, at the Cross of Edinburgh or St Andrews; but I submit to my Master's will. Is it any wonder then I say, since he, & these other worthy mens way in witnessing for God, was so unlike ours & so far beyond what is to be found in our faint appearances for him, as the one keeps no proportion with the other; that there should be so remarkable a difference, betwixt his bearing witness to; & testifying his complacencie in what they did, & what we doe: if there be, for the most part; some proportion, betwixt the dispensation of God, & the disposition of men; What wonder; that he who admitted them to the nearest familiarity with himself, deal thus with us, & so let us know his breach of promise… nay, if there be any thing strange, & to be wondered at in this? It is rather, that he hath not been more terrible to us, by writting his displeasure against our lukwarmness in greater Characters; then that we have not been more indulgently dealt with. It is exceedingly of all our concernments, to lay this to heart, & seriously to consider, whether this be not the very thing that maks him keep a distance from us? I suppose, upon a very overly search, & survey of our way, it will be found, that by our unworthy carriage in his matters, we have rewarded this evil to our own souls: Our suffering [if it deserve that name] is with less edification & advantage to the Church, and less comfort to our own souls; because of our testimony be weighed in the ballance of the sanctuary, it will be found light, and to want many pounds, not onelyonly of what it ought to have, but what theirs had, whose work was found perfect, before God. But if we be really desireous, to be dealt with as they were [& what is so desirable, next to heaven, & the coming of the Kingdom of the son of God upon the earth] let us endeavour to carry as they did: were they not men of the like passions & infirmities with us? why then, should not we aime, to be men of the like faithfullness & zeal with them: then is it, that we may hope to have sweet and halcyon dayes in his service; such as will make us the envy of our enemyes, a comfort to our friends, & an ornament to our profession: hereby shall a good report be brought up upon the wayes of God, & we shall be living witnesses, that Godliness with all disadvantages, & when accompanied with the fiery trial, is great gain, & hath it's hundred fold in this life, even with persecution. Let us study to be like them in going about our Master's work, and then we have rationall ground to hope, that he who shewed by his dealing with the cloud of witnesses that went before us [& doe still compass us about, & call us to follow on] that he was not unrighteous, to forget their zeal in doing, their patience in suffering, their work & labour of love; will also remember us, with the favour that he bore to these who went before us: then may we expect that he will say to our soul in secret, when we have faithfully acquit our selves for him in publike, goe your way now, & eat your bread, though it be brown, with joy, & drinke your drink, though it be not wine, with a merry heart; for I have accepted your works, & these are come up in remembrance with me. O but one of these hours, which … Rutherfoord had in God's company, were worth many years suffering, & sweating in the heat of the day! I know the Pre…us & their Party, will think themselves at a loss, to heare of it, or have it said, that God did admit to such familiarity with himself, his faithfull witness against the wickedness of their way [… grant indeed, it is a special prejudice to them, for though it b… …range, yet they who persecut his favourits & followers, would even he thought to doe God good service] but lest I should seem to say, that there was some singularity in God's dealing with him [which I know would grat the eare of some of them, who pretend to be chief amongst the rest, that had a particular splen agai… this eminent servant of Jesus Christ, I need not trouble the world in telling them who he is, that being no secret, though I know not, whether he would blush to have it said, he hated & persecuted a man, so greatly beloved of God, & dear to all his people, or if he would not rather boast of it, I owe him the charity that the latter of the two will be his choice, and that for fear of being charmed he will stop his eare from hearing that, why persecutest thou me? & will essay to justifie himself, & satisfie others, by saying (according to his accustomed candor & conscience) that he was a ring-leader amongst the Phanaticks: it will sound harsh also I know, in the ears of them, who, in joyning with him, have served themselves heirs, to these, who went before them, in persecuting him, & such faith full men as he was: For as they have come in their places, so they persist in ther practices, onelyonly with this difference, that in making havock of the Church of God, they out doe all that ever made Apostasie to that way, & run at that rate, in endeavouring the ruine of the work of Reformation, as if they were afraid to be out-run by any who should come after them, or have it said, that there had ever been men, who with more malice did persecut, & stretch forth their hands, not against certain of the disciples, but against the whole Church of God: Reader Pardon I pray thee, that I now and then digress in a parenthesis, while these men come my way, for thou knowest very well according to the proverb, that the devil should have his due & I desire to doe them justice, & here I close it) If they should take it ill I say, to have so much said to the advantage of this worthy man, If it will be acceptable to them to heare it, I have a mind to gratifie them so far, as to say, that Mr Rutherfoord was not alone in this; as his practice in that opposition, was not peculiar to himself (for he but wakled in the way of them who left him an example, to continue with Christ in his temptations) so, his priviledges wer not so peculiar to himself, that he had none to share with him: And therefore I say [if they can reap any satisfaction by having it said, or if they have a mind still to quarrel, see if there be any of them in case to convince me of a falshood] that God mad it known, not onelyonly to themselves but to the world, how highly he esteemed the fidelity of others also before him, who were his constant witnesses against introducing & est bl…hing of Prelacy in Scotland, he not onelyonly made themselves finde what favourits they, were by putting them (if I may say so) upon his secrets: (for Mr Davidson, Mr Welsh, Mr Bruce & many others of the valiant souldiers of Christ & worthy witnesses in their time, were known to have been Prophets (which I could evince by many particular passages, but they deserve a more honourable mention, & it may be some will undertake it, then to be shut up within the limits of a parenthesis) particularly renowned Mr Welsh, who at home, & a broad in France, was taken notice of, as an extraordinary man, as a servant from whom his! Master did not conceal what he was about to doe: not one word hath fallen to the ground, of all that, which by that Seer was foretold, concerning the trouble of Scotland: Hath not the sword of strangers, according to his prediction, been made drunk with the blood of the slain? Is not Christ crucified this day in Scotland, which he foresaw would follow? Yea, & buried too; & for fear that he should …ise again, there is by the procurment of the chief Priests, a watch set, the great stone rolled to the mouth of the s…pulchre is sealed, & all made as sure as they can: because if he rise upon them again, this last errour will prove worse then the first by far: the Lord I say hath fullfilled in every circumstance the word of his servant hithe…to; onelyonly the last part of it is not vet accomplished, wherein he foretelleth of the glorious resurrection of Christ crucified & buried in Scotland; but the exact accomplishment of the former, puts us in expectation of the latter, not…ithstanding that the great stone of an Act res…ssary, & many subsequent Acts suitable to that sad One, is rolled to the mouth of the s…pulehre, & not withstanding that the Priests (the Prelats I should say) have by their importunity, procured an order from the Magistrate to make it as sure as they can, & being now clothed with the for mality of that law whereby he was crucified (for alas we have a law now, by which law he must die!) they are most diligent in setting their watches & making all fast: This is the thing I say, that his sad hearted disciples are in expectation of; notwithstanding of all the endeavours of his enemies to the contrary, & then Prelacy in Scotland will breath out it's life & last togither: for between Christ's rising & reigning, & their falling, there hath ever been seen amongst us, a certain connection: And truely for as great an enemie as they may think me, I would make a very friendly overture unto them (I grant I come to counsel uncalled, & I hope also, that my soul shall never enter into their secrets) & this is the advice I have to give them, that they would even look so far before their nose, as to make their Testament, so long as they are in case to goe to Kirk & market; but I fear I lose my labour; for ere ever Iudas will part with his pieces, he is in the next door to hang himself, & who can help it) God not onelyonly dealt thus with them, I say, as to put them upon his secrets; but he made their very enemies take notice of them oftimes, as men that had been with Jesus. Hath it not been a heart-staying, & hand-strengthening, remarke amongst the servants & people of God in our native Land, especially in a declining time, that God did singularly shine from heaven upon, & shew his satisfaction in the way, & towards the persons of these of his servants, who stood firme in their opposition to Prelacy; and that he did as signally, one way or other, either sooner or latter, give significations of his dislike of the way & persons of them who turned aside to these crooked courses: And was it ever more visible (as to the latter part) then at this day: It may be that they will think it sufficent to convince me of a…ly, that their greatness & grandure is such, as if they had monopolized to themselves all the riches & honour of the Nation; but if they will have patience to heare me to Amen, I may possibly convince them of a truth they, are not willing to hear; for I not onelyonly grant, that they have forgotten their Master's directions, inhibiting them, to to lift up themselves above their brethren; but I will grant them this also [for they most have much given them] that they have carryed away the primacy, & precedency from the Nobility, on whose necks they now trample; but when all this is granted them, yet they have not convinced me of telling an untruth: they must have leave to put out mine & other mens eyes besids, (which we are not willing to give them; though if any man would gratifie his Grace, & their Lordships, he must part with these in the first place; for an implicit faith is the basis & foundation of their Kingdom of darkness, without which, it would fall about their cars, & but overwhelme them in the rubbish, & that would be very sad to them, for I suspect they have no great minde to die) before this come so much as under debat, almost with indifferent men, whither God be angry at their way? His very giving of them up, to persecute his people & servants, sayes nothing, if it say not this; that what ever be their outward prosperity, he hath classed them with Pharaoh, in pouring out his plagues upon their heart: Is not this seen, that so soon as a man becoms serious in seeking of God; he becoms the butt of their malice, & the mark against which they bend their bow, & shoot the arrowes of their indignation? And so soon as any begins to mind seriously the concernments of his soul, then, sine monitore, he falls in a dislike with them, & their way: I doe not say, that all who hate the Prelats are Saints, for their is sufficient in their way to make them odious to others; but is not this known, that these who once begin to set their face towards God, turn their back upon them: I am sure this observation does seldome fail, or can be proved false in our native Land: And then on the other hand, since these men were exalted, doe not the wicked walk on every side? Is there not a profane spirit (the constant attendant of Episcopacy in Scotland) broken loose in the land? Is there not such a flood of impiety running through the land, that carryes most men down the current, as hath hardly been seen? hath not this leprousie spread it self over the whole land? So, that we are an abomination & talk to all about us: And if any would endeavour to accomplish a diligent search, to finde out the fountain that casts forth this mire & dirt, to the defiling of the Land, & defacing of congregations, he would it may befind it, where it ought lest to be expected: These streams of impety & impurity run from the sanctuary, hence is it, that profanity goes forth through the whole land; & can it be otherwise when so many faithfull Ministers are driven away, & men put in their places to handle the law, of most of whom without breach of Charitie, it may be said, that they know not God, & care not for the souls of his people: It's under the shaddow of this plant (which because it is not of our heavenly father's planting, we live under the expectation, &, though our eyes should be shut before we see it, we hope to die in the faith of it's being pluckt up) that these weeds have grown up, so that alas! The vineyard of the Lord of hosts, is now no more like his inclosure, it bringeth forth briers & thorns in stead of good fruit: He planted the church of Scotland a noble vine; Wholly a right seed, but since it became a seminary for Prelats, the conversation of the generalitie proclaims this, that we are turned into the degenerat plant of a strange vine unto him: This is the Prelaticall reformation, which is sutable to it self all along; for having purged out of the church, the faithfull Ministers of Christ [& the few who are yet remaining, being in expectation of the same lot) what can follow among the people; but, that the Land should be drowned with a deluge of profanity: And are we not for the most part [Oh if with a suitable measure of sorrow I could make mention of it] as the children of the Ethiopians to him? Are not our spots, unlike the spots of his people? This observation I say, as it was a very heart-staying consideration in former times, & was in stead of many arguments amongst them who where no great disputants; so I hope: [since it was never more evident) it will still prove a heart-establishing consideration in the faith once delivered to the saints.

Reader, how desireous soever thou mayest be, to have dead Mr Rutherfoord live, in the hearts of the present and succeeding generations, by an account of his singularly gracious life, & answerably glorious death: yet, I shall not (for that would lead me a length beyond the just limits of an Epistle, where, contrary to my purpose, I finde my self almost arrived allready) be able to satisfie thy desire, nor answer thy expectation. It's not my present work to tell thee, that he was a Gentleman by extraction. That he was educat at Scholes & Colleges, where he was admired for the Pregnancy of his parts, & deservedly looked upon, even then, as a person of whom great things might be expected: Of his being pitched upon for a Profession of Philosophy by the College of Edinburgh (where he was educat) when he was yet very young: Of his being called thence to the Ministery in Anwoth (to which charge be entered, by the means of that worthy Noble-man my Lord Kenmur, without giving any engagment to the Bishop) where he laboured night & day with great success, the whole countrey being to him, & accounting themselves, as his particular flock: There it was, where he wrote that great Master-piece of Learning against the Arminians (wich yet was but a compend of what he then intended) his Exercitationes Apologeticae: Of his persecution by the Prelats, who were so sound in the faith, as to challenge and accuse him for writting that book: Being called before their high Commission court, he appeared & declined it, as none of the Courts of Christ [nor was there need of any thing else for a confirmation that it came not from on high, but from below, save it's procedor; for it's Acts had the very dy and visage of hell upon them: If they will plead that it is from above, they will be pusled to pitch upon a period, or fix upon any other time when it came down, except with the fallen Angels; but it may be, this please such Angells of the Church [so they will be called] for they boast much of Antiquity: And truely that which gives ground …or this conjecture, that it came down from heaven in that company, is, that it persecuts the saints, and servants of the most high; & if there were none such upon earth, it would have no work] & was by this high Commission put from his ministery, & sent to Aberdeen, where the Doctors found to their confusion, that the Puritans were Clergy-men aswell as they: Of his returning to his former Charge, upon that happy change of affairs, in the Yeer 1638: & his being shorthly after sent to the profession of Theology in the Vniversity of St Andrews by the Generall Assembly (where he was also called to be worthy Mr Blair's Collegue in the Ministery) which being the seat of the Arch-pre…ate, was the very Nursery of all superstition in worship, & Errour in Doctrine, & the sink of all Profanity in conversation amongst the Students: where God did so singularly second his servants indefatigable pains, both in teaching in the Schooles, & preaching in the Congregation, that it became forth with a Lebanon, out of which were taken Cedars for building the house of the Lord through the whole land: Not a few of whom are this day, amongst these, who have obtained mercy of the Lord, to be his faithfull witnesses, against Scotland's present, shamfull, & unparaleelled defection: Of his being sent with other worthy Ministers, by the Generall Assembly, to the famous Synod at London; where, during the time of his aboad, he published severall pieces: In a word of his unparaleelled painfullness, & holy Zeal in being about his Master's business; so that he seemed to pray Constantly, to preach constantly, to catechise constantly, to be still in visiting the sick, in exhorting from house to house, to teach as much in the schooles, & spend as much time with the young men, as if he had been sequestrat from all the world besids: & withall, to write as much, as if he had been constantly shut up in his closet [sufficient proof whereof, hath been given to the world, by the many pieces he hath published; but the great bulk of Manuscripts which he hath left behinde him, & must lie buried with himself, will put this further out of doubt] so that one Mr Rutherfoord seemed to be many able godly men in one, or one, who was furnished with the grace, and abilities of many. It is not I say my present purpose; to give any particular account to the world of these; or of the many things he had to wrestle with, especially towards the end of his dayes, & of his edifying death; that may be done herafter, by a more dexterous hand, & skillfull pen, with much advantage & edification to the Church of God: OnelyOnly I may say, that if amongst the heathens, Hercules was looked upon, as so far both above the applause of any, who undertook to commend him, & beyond the reach of the obloquie & reproach of any, who had so fallen out with his wits, as to derogat from his worth; that it was a Probleme amongst them, whether he who undertook to praise him, or he who vented any thing to his prejudice, did commit the greatest Soloecisme (though it was but Belluina gloria whereof he could boast) I suppose, with more reasō, among them who know better to make the true paralleel betwixt things that differ, & are more fit to judge of that, which is of true worth, & great price in the sight of God, I should seem more ridiculous to say much to the advantage of the Author, whose praise [without the help of my blunt pen] is in all the Churches of Christ; whose manner of life, in all Godliness & holy conversation, rendered him dear to the lovers of holmess, & who hath left his name for a blessing to the chosen of God: he was a true Iohn the Baptist indeed, totus, vox, a voice in habit, gesture, & conversation: in a word, in his life, & at his death, he obtained that mercy of the Lord, even when he said nothing, to preach to all who beheld his conversation (which was observed to be in heaven, while he conversed amongst men] that their was nothing good; but to draw near to God: And now being got up above, amongst these pages of honour, who wait upon the King's own person, & having taken up his place amongst the spirits of just men made perfect (after which this saint often panted & for which he prayed night & day) he doth by these Epistles, which he hath left behinde him [wherein thou wilt perceive how his soul was drawn forth in uncessant longings after that whereof he is now possessed] cry aloud to you his companions, the saints that are in the world, to come up hither & see, that, which cannot be seen while ye are there; that, which is onelyonly worth the seeing, that, which if it were known, would make you quarrel with death for delaying to shut your eyes upon other objects: Leave the dark world (doth he say) & come up hither to this blessed land of light, where all our childish thoughts of God are gone, & evanished in this noon-day-vision, where the understanding is fully illuminat, & there is no cloud to be-night or eclipse the soul in it's uptakings of God, where the will hath a through compliance with, & a perfect complacencie in the will of God, where the affections doe eternally run in a straight line towards him, & are for ever put beyond hazard of diverting towards any other thing, or of being enamoured with any other object. Though I have no purpose, to insist on the particulars of his life, or death I say, yet before I close this section, there are two things which I cannot, I ought not, for all the haste, to conceal or let pass without a remarke, because one was looked upon by many, as a thing very observable, & the other, will I know, be taken notice of, & welcomed by all the people of God: The first relats to the time when this faithfull labourer was removed to his rest, which was the night following that darke, & dismall day, wherein the Act Rescissorie was past; the Lord thereby shewing a special piece of indulgence to his servant, in not adding grief to his sorrow, but hiding it from these eyes, which had accoustomed themselves to trickle down without intermission, both for what he saw, & what he foresaw: Since the Parliament of Scotland, so solemnly engaged to God, would at once burst all these bonds, & cast away these Cords from them, which were neither our bondage nor our burden, but the badge of that glorious liberty, whereinto with a strong hand he had vindicat us: & upon the matter, they would needs say to the God, whose sworne subjects & servants they were, be gone from us; he would not let his faithfull servant (whose zeal to the work of God was such, that if the report of this shamefull revolt had not killed him at the first hearing outright; yet it alone without any other sicknesse, would have been more then enough, to have brought down his head with sorrow to the grave) see another sun arise upon that Land, out of which the sun of righteousness was banished by a law: And alas! Who would desire to dwell, where Christ may not reside, with freedom, honour, & safety? Who, that prefers Jerusalem to there chief joy, would love to out-live the departing of the glory? Might not Jesus Christ have said to our Parliament, for which of my good deeds is it, that ye stone me? Have I been a wildernesse or land of drought unto you? Were ye not honourable & renowned amongst the Churches abroad, after ye became precious in my sight? Did I not make your Adversaries sensible, that he who touched you, touched the apple of mine eye, so long as ye were stedfast in my Covenant; & even after ye had left your first love, & declined from the integrity of your espousalls, I onelyonly visited this transgression with the rod, & this iniquity with strips; nevertheless, my loving kindness did I not utterly take from you, nor suffered I my faithfulness to fail: though I punished you as a Nation, I dwelt amongst you as a Church; & I did not remove your teachers into corners, but your eyes did see these, & ye did still hear the joyfull sound, &, as if all that had been to little, I gave you the desire of your heart, restored you to your civill liberties, which ye had sinned away, & set you down in a free Parliament: And doe ye thus requit me? What, is this my entertainment, where I was once crowned & cryed up for a King? What a strange & astonishing change is this, that the very persons who swore unto me the Oath of alleagance, & did sing in my company, spreading their garments in the way with shouting, are now crying, Crucifie him, Crucifie him? Shall I not have whereupon to lay my head, except it be on a cold stone in a prison, amongst a people, who after a most solemne manner, had given themselves away unto me? Can these be the very men, who with hands lifted up to heaven, did so often, & so solemnly swear, before my father, & before his holy Angels, & in the sight of all the Nations, that they would be mine; and that I should have their lives & fortuns at my disposal? Is it possible that these are the men, who carryed, as if they would have pluckt out their very eyes, & given them unto me, who now plat a crown of thornes & put upon my head? Is this the Nation & Parliament, who swore that they would serve the Lord their God, & that according to the Paterne shewed them in the mount, & bound their soul to his obedience by an Oath, and as they should answer to him, or expect a comfortable appearance before the judge of quick and dead? Are they [might he say] the very same persons, or is it another generation, who have not heard of that solemne transaction betwixt me & the Nation, who have used me worse then the very Gaderens? though these were void of religion; yet they had so much civility, as to complement me out of their coasts, & pray me to be gone, without committing any other Act of hostility against me, or beating me out of their borders with tuck of drum; but now, shall it be by a law, sedition, & treason, to assert any obligation to me, from all these Oaths? Shall it be a Note of incapacity for any place of trust in Church or State, to say, that the land is under the Oath of God, & that no power on earth can loose themselves, or make void that obligation as to others; nay, that the formal abjuring of these engagments to me, shall be, if not the unum necessarium; yet the sine quo non, to qualify a man, for any publike employment: Ah! Scotland by dealing thus with thy Covenanted God, what hast thou done? may not God who was thy own God expostulat with thee, as he did with that people Jer. 2: 10, 11, 12. Goe abroad amongst the Nations, turne over all History sacred, & profane: Call for the records of the nations, & see, if in these thou caust finde any who have dealt with their God, as thou hast done? A precedent thou mayest possibly finde; but a paralleel in every respect thou canst not: Thou art singular, & by thy self, in committing these two evils (but such two, as are comprehensive of all others: such two, as a third is not possible) departing from the living God, & digging to thy self broken Cisterns that can hold no water: Thou wilt finde what folly is in this [I wish it be not too late] to pain thy self in digging an empty Cisterne & in forsaking the fountain of all consolation, & that a broke on too: as it hath nothing in it, so it can hold nothing if it had it: is not this to commit two such evils as makes a soul or nation truely miserably: And yet this hast thou done: O! may not the heavens be astonished & horribly afraid at this requital we have given unto Jesus Christ? yea, we were so bent to backsliding, & so hasty & head-strong in departing from him, that we seemed to have lost, togither with our loyalty to the son of God, all respect to our own reputation [as it often falls out, that men lose the better part of their reason, togither with their religion: He who Lets goe the one, does seldome retain the other] for by that very vote (never to be mentioned, without tears and detestation) whereby Christ was robbed of his prerogative, they did (besides their designe) divest themselves of their own priviledges, & while they un-king him, whom God hath made King in Zion, [or doe that which he will-account so] they un-parliament themselves [Dirum omen to them, & it may be, a token for good to the Nation] I nothing doubt, but some of the most sagacious amongst them saw this then (though the generality without considering either the ditch they were digging for themselves, by what they did; or the danger that would follow upon their falling into it, suffered themselves to be carryed down with the current, & did run as they were driven) or they have had time enough since, to think, in what capacity they could sit, & act, after that Vote; for all lawes being then repealed, which did exautorat the Prelats: & incapacitat them for sitting, as one of the Estats in Parliament, & these laws then, onelyonly being in force, which made them an integrall & essentiall part of the high court of Parliament, the third Estate was wanting, while they wer away; without which the other two were not in Capacity to Act as a Parliament; & if so, they may at their own leisure consider, whether, the precious blood that they did shed after that Vote, before the close of that session, may not be required at their hands as-they would doe well, to think what they would answer before men, if the question were asked, quo warranto did ye shed this blood? It may be, they would finde themselves further to seek, as to what to say for satisfying any, the they found these worthies in answering all the accusations of their accusers: But what shall I say? It were more fit, to weep over this, then to write it, & to cry unto him, against whom this is done, Wilt thou refrain thy self for these things O Lord? Wilt thou hold thy peace & afflict us very sore? Alas we made such haste, to pull down that beautifull house, wherein we & our fathers had praised him, & to overturne the very foundations of the dwelling place of his name to the ground; that in our precipitation to raze it, we have buried our selves under the rubbish; for they are blinde who doe not see the mē who have done this, snarred in the work of their own hands: & this till more come, should make the people of God Sing a Higgaion Selah. O if all who have had a hand in it, would in time bethink themselves! Sure, in that reflection, if they were serious, they would smit on their thigh, & say, Alas what have we done? The second thing that I have to acquaint the with, & wherein I know (if thou be one of them, who take pleasure in the dust of Zion's demolished walls) thou wilt have a special complacencie, is, that as his servant did with much sorrow of soul foresee, Scotland's shamefull revolt (which is plain by the last letter in this book) so, his Lord & Master, put him so far on this secrets, as to let him see a delivery to the church on the other side of it: Let us have but patience, there is a Plaudi…e for the saints & a song of praise for the most high, after this storme is over & ended: mourne we may & ought; but let us mourne in hope; for he is the Lord Iehovah who will hasten it in his time: Which as it cannot be antidated by us, so it shall not lie in the power of all that oppose themselves to postpone it: And to that purpose, besids what thou mayest see in the last letter of this book, I shall set down some of his own words without either comment, alteration, or addition. Upon the last of Februvary 1661. Which was about a monethmonth before he died, at the close of a large Testimony he gave to the work of Reformation: These were his words (after he had been speaking of suffering for Christ,) blessed soul (said he) who loves not his life to death; for on such rests the spirit of Glory & of God, 1 Pet. 4: 14. But we cannot say, but this is a day of darkness, & a day of blasphemy, & rebuke: The Lord hath covered himself with a cloud in his anger: we looked for peace but behold evil, our souls rejoyced when his Majesty did sware the Covenant of God, & put thereto his seal & subscription, & after confirmed it by his royall promise, so, that the subjects minde blessed the Lord, & rested upon the healing word of a Prince, but …ow Alas! The contrary is enacted by law, the carved work broken down, Ordinances defaced, so that we are brought to the former bondage, & Chaos of Prelaticall confusions, & Anarchy: And the royal prerogative due to Christ, pulled off his head: we havo seen dayes of sorrow, & have just cause to fear we be made to read, & eat that book, wherein is written, Lamentation, & mourning, & …e; but we are to believe, that Christ will not so depart from the land, but a remnant shall be saved, and he shall reigne a victorious conquering king to the ends of the earth: O! That there were Nations. Kinreds, tongues, & all the people of Christ's habitable world, encom passing his throne with cryes, & tears for the spirit of suppl…ation, promised to be poured upon the inhabitants of Iudah, for that effect. Thus he closed his Testimony: I shall onelyonly adde another passage to this purpose: About two hours & an half before he was removed: Amongst other things he spake, which did relish of heaven, & refreshed the souls of all that heard them, he had this expression: I doe no wayes doubt of it, but Christ will arise & wound his enemys in their …oins: This was onelyonly taken, but the observer saith, he had many to the same purpose. Now, this was that very night, wherein the Act Rescissorie was past: As if God who had taken notice of such an high affront done to him, would let his dying servant know, to the end he might communicat it to others, that he would not onelyonly repeal that Act, but that he would rescinde the rescinders: A wound in the loins, when the blow is given by the hand of him, who is God Almighty most prove mortall; If he wound them there, they most fall, though they were stronger then lions; for who may stand before him, when once he is angry? The men of might will not finde their hands, when the party they engage with, is the Omnipotent God: When men are become so high, that they are too hard a party for any on earth to deal with, if their way be contrary to him, then they fall directly in his hand, to deale with them; & it is a fearfull thing to fall into the hands of the living God: He is such a party, as thou canst neither fight nor flee: Oh Scotland, Scotland, if thou wouldest yet think on thy way & remember this, before he come to enter the lists with thee, who quickly puts his enemies out of a posture of defence! O, if thou would yet kneel before him, whom God had made King in Zion, & kisse the son lest he be angry! For if he be angry thou must perish, & there is no way to prevent this, but to remember from whence thou art fallen & repent & doe the first works.

As for the letters themselves, I shall not offer to commend them, they had letters of recommendation deeply engraven on the hearts of all who have seen them, & can savour the things that are of God; this they had I say, amongst them who have their senses exercised to discern good & evil, long before they were made thus publike in the world; so they need not my commendation, nor will the detraction of any, who have a minde for that, blast their reput; as they are above the one, so they dispise the other; but sure I am, this may besaid, if thou hast any acquaintance with the sweet breathings of the spirit of God, if thou hast ever seen by tasting how good he is, or hast found what soul-anguish doth follow upon the hiding of his face from a person, who hath placed his satisfaction so entirly in the light of his countenance lifted up upon the soul, that the man cannot enjoy himself, when he doth not enjoy him, but carries as one deprived of all that, which made life more desirable then death; if thou be such I say, then thou wilt finde somwhat hereto take thee: here thou wilt perceive both these conditions set before thine eye, & examplified in an eminent saint: thou wilt both finde what a heaven the saints have, or is to be had in this side of glory & how, as a sensible presence maks them forget all their sorrowes, so, a felt absence doth imbitter a…l their other enjoyments.

In Generall I may say this of these Epistles [& it may be after thou hast perused them, thou wilt seal it] that thou hast many volumes wrapt up together in a few words, a great soul shut up in a little body, much of the marrow of real religion, inclosed in every line: If thou be onelyonly taken & delighted with obstruse & high-flown notions, which have not a native connexion with inflaming the heart, with love to God; but are rather the Ignis fatuus of the age, being for the most part, smoak for light, or at best, a dime flash, rising out of the darkned understanding of men, whose light, till they be illuminat from above; as it arises out of a darke dungeon; so, it leads to destruction, & in stead of directing the man who followes it, to a place of rest, it leads him to the pit, & leaves him there to perish. If thou be taken, I say with such kinde of stuffe; I shall not bide thee, but I know thou wilt goe else where; but if thou be one, who loves not to feed upon ashes, & hast no minde to fill thy belly with that east winde, which in stead of nourishment, produceth nothing but much torment in the inward parts, I know thou wilt welcome this piece, as that which hath both meat & medicine for thy soul in it: Here thou wilt meet with one warmed with the love of God, shining & reflecting heat upon all that are about him, letting thee know from his own experience, what is to be found in a fellowship with God, & desireous of nothing so much, as that thou & others may share with him in that same love, which is better then life, & be partakers of that same blessedness, which made him boast of God all the day & blesse him self in his afflicted lot: He would have thee taste of that, which made him cheerfull under the cross, & put him in case, not onelyonly to look, but to laugh all his troubles out of countenance: And if thou wilt but converse with him a little, it may be, thou finde thy heart burne within the while thou talkest with this warme soul, whose words seem as they drop, to cast fire in the affections, & set the heart in a flame. The Author in his other writtings (which have alwayes a special tincture of holyness; for even in following the most obstruse notion, & apparently remot from practice, thou wilt still perceive him spirare sanctitatem) he is much above many men; but in these (how low soever at the first look they may appear) he is above himself, being often, either as a man elevate above the pitch of mortality, & caught up allready into the Quire of Angels, or as an Angel come down amongst men, shewing the inhabitants of this lower world, somwhat of that, which will be still a great secret, while we are here, to wit, what a life they live, who see God as he is, & enjoy him.

For the subject matter thou wilt meet with in these Epistles, I shall not say much, there is a sweet & pleasant variety of purpose to be found in them, whereof thou canst onelyonly expect a just account by a perusall of the whole; but mostly thou wilt finde these things insisted upon. 1. What high spring-tides of joy & consolation, did fill & overflow the soul of this sufferer, so, as sometimes ye have him expressing himself as pained with a surcharge of love [O rare & blessed disease] & having nothing else to seek, there are earnest longings, after a more capacious soul, to contain more of that infinit Ocean, which hath neither brime nor bottome: This is the gain of one who can suffer the loss of all things for Christ: This is the cool refresing shade that they finde in the furnace, which not onelyonly keeps the fire of affliction from scorching them, or consuming them into ashes; but maks it a more desirable lot, then what others account the best of lives: the soul amidst these flames being admitted to such a neerness with God, as causeth joy to overflow all it's banks, & perfumes the heart with delight, is so far from complaining, because of the fiery triall, that the cross of Christ is more desirable to it, then a crown: and since it is there, where nex to heaven, his people enjoy most of himself, it maks them sing sweetly amidst all the outward sorrowes that befall them, & puts them in case to command a consort of Musick within, while others in their fool's paradise, laugh as they list, have sadness at their heart, & finde themselves peirced through with many sorrowes. 2. Ye have sometimes a felt emptiness (for this full feast, is not, or cannot be the ordinary diet, it may well be the extraordinary disert of the people of God, while they walk by faith & not by sight; the constancy of that joy, aswell as the fullness of it, is reserved for the chamber of presence, no saint how eminent soever, even in suffering for Christ, can expect, that all tears shall be wiped from his eyes, till he come to that land, where all the inhabitants have ever lasting joy upon their heads, and where he will be put beyond hazard of sinning, aswell as without the reach of suffering) there is somtimes a felt emptiness I say, that casts into a fever of desires: That river of God that is full of water, which did overflow & refresh the soul, running again into that sea whence it came; & in this low ebbe, ye see how the patient, is pained with absence; & what a panting there is for a sensible presence; the soul as it were is evapourate in such wishes as these, O when wilt thou come unto me! Or, O when shall I come & appear before thee, & be put once for all, & for ever beyond the fear of the arising of any cloud to eclipse the light of thy countenance! The soul in this absence, is scorched with the fever & flame of burning desires; but to keep it from being burnt up, there is hope, this holds the soul in life that it expire not; this saves from swooning & perserves from sinking into despondency: And though while hope is deferred, the heart be sick; yet there is ease in this very pain, for an unerring expectation of a future good, yeelds a present ease to the expectant, & maks the man give himself the Check thus, why art thou cast down O my soul? This sickness was never yet unto death, but ever to the glory of God, therefore hope thou in him, for I shall yet praise him: In a word that which is principally insisted upon, in these short summaries of a communion with God, is this on the one hand, how a hungry & longing soul is filled & feasted with the Consolations of God, & when in that posture, how pufled & non-plus'd, as to what to think, or say of God: It knowes not what to doe, or how to lay out it self for him, the satisfaction that it hath in him, & the obligation it sees it self under to him, making it look one very thing it doth for him, sayeth or thinketh of him, with a kinde of regrate & holy dissatisfaction: It doth not please it self in pleasing him, & though he accept what love offers, yet love desiderats so much in the offering, that it presents all with a blush: & suitable to this amiable & orderly confusion of spirit, it's greatest Oratory & Eloquence, is, a kinde of abrupt, concise, & broken discourse: It is most desireous to speake, but not knowing what to say, which is not unworthy of him, it falls into silent admiration, & yet some thing it must say; wherein though, it doe not please it self; yet it maks good sense before him, & is a most pleasent melody in his ears; it's then, when he seems to be so taken with that, wherein the soul finds so many failings & defects, that he says speak on, let me see that blushing countenance, …t me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice & thy countenance is comely. And truely thou mayest perceive much of this kinde of discourse in these Epistles, whereto the holy writter was so habituat in these soliloquies with God, which were ordinary to him in his retirement, that his pen, & preaching, did ever after keep the tincture, & had the relish of that: For while many preached notions, & so…e spake because they believed; he was perceived oftimes, not so much to speake as believing; as seeing: His being so long in the mount with God, made his face to shine ever thereafter in his publike appearances: And there was some peculiar sweetness in his Phrase [especially in crying up, and commending the love of Christ: In mentioning the joy of the Holy Ghost, or the Glory of the life to come] beyond what was to be found, even with other holy men: Neither was it amongst the dry School-men, nor at Arestotle his feet (though there were few in the age, so well acquaint with either) that he learned this; Nay, nay, flesh and blood did not, could not reveale it unto him, he was a student above the clouds, & there it was, where he learned these Metaphysicks. This I say i the thing upon the one hand which is insisted upon, & on the other, thou hast the sad condition of a soul deprived of these sweet injoyments: He who was just now taken in to the banquetting house, & had the banner of love for his canopy, hath that spiced wine which his soul was drinking with delight, snatcht out of his hand, & is panting for a drop of the rivers of his pleasure, wherein not long agoe he was bathing himself: Where upon followes a night of sorrow in the soul; because the sun that did illuminat & warme it, with his rayes, is set: Then, as if the soul would break forth at many passages togither, for hast to be after him, who hath withdrawn himself, it runs out at the eyes in tears, & at the mouth in complaints, because of his absence; yet faith sets downe the fainter, upon the brink of the river, & puts him under an arrest (that he run not away) till the sea flow again: And desire maks him look out with a watery eye as impatient of delay, the inward Echo of the heart, in the mean time, being still this, how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? How long? & while he is in thi… posture, ye would not know him to be the m…n, that a few minuts since he was & a few minut hence he ma… & will be: & no wonder, sinc… that is wanting & away, which wa the health of his countenance, that he look pale: As the weeping man's eye, being blinded with water, cannot take up objects as they are, especially if they be at any distance; so ye have this holy man in these heavy hours, venting his jealousies, & because of withdrawing, giving way to his sorrow: Now, as the joy of injoying God, is by the former, made clear to be of all the greatest (for under these full manifestations, the soul may be transported to such an extasy of delight that for the time, whether in the body, or out of the body, the man knowes not) so, the sorrow for being deprived of that, (the giver seeing it necessary, to withold & suspend these manifestations, knowing that heaviness for a season through manifold temptations, is fit for these, who are sons of consolation & who shall have a few dayes hence, an everlasting year of Jubile) is, of all sorrowes seen to bee the sorest & sharpest. This is soul anguish, & so l…st of any supportable: because it maks the very spirit, which if it were sound would sustain a man's infirmities, sink under it: While it is thus with him, ye may perceive that his bed cannot comfort him, nor his couch ease his complaint: And in this fever, there are some expressions dropped, which after the hight is over, he doth retract, as rash & unadvised, & upon more mature deliberation, i… mad… to say, this was my infirmity: And truely he who intendeth the advantage of the whole, in his way of dealing with every member of that body, whereof he is head, hath excellently ordered this matter, that they who have the fullest feasts of joy, & are admitted to the neerest fellowship upon earth, to the end, that pride may be hide from their eyes; have ordinarily the deepest downcastings: These warme hours & hot blenks of a sensible presence, are often followed with a sharpe showre & darke night of bitter desertion; so that if poor souls in reading these, should begin to think or say, Alas! We are sparingly dealt with, we are great strangers to such a favourit's feasts; let them consider also (besids that he was an Ambassadour now in bonds, & so his Master allowed liberally upon him) that their soul-anguish is short of his, & so, if they consider his condition well, they will see, that though he had much yet he had nothing over; & if they take notice of the mercy that is in their own, they will perceive also, that though they have little yet they have no lake; for he abounds towards his, in all wisdome & prudence. There is a third condition spoken frequently to in these Epistles also, which lies in the middle betwixt these two: And that is, such a communion with God, as consists in the soul's being well pleased with him & being most desireous to please him in all things, abstracting from these extraordinary transpotts of joy upon the one hand, & free likewise of these deep down-castings upon the other: And this is the more ordinary way of the saints, whose dayly excercise it is, to come & take out their directions from their Master, & endeavour to walk according to these, both as men who are still under their Masters eye & as these who must give an account of themselves to him: In which service, they want not their own sweet peace; for the way wherein they walk is a way of pleasantness, & all these paths are peace; though it be not such an overflowing peace, as amounts to a joy unspeakable & full of glory; for full joy is nothing else, but peace swelling without it's ordinary channel & overflowing all it's banks: And on the other hand, they want not their own checks & challenges, they are often before God with the tear in their eye, & knowes what it is, to sigh because of a body of death within them: Because of that law which is in their members warring against that law which is in their minde, & bringing them into Captivity to the law of sin, which is in their members; yet this is short of the sorrow of some dear to him, who are made to roar, by reason of the disquietness of their heart & to cry out of the arrowes of the Almighty sticking within them & the poison thereof drinking up their spirit; so that while they suffer this, they are with wi…e Heman almost distracted. These things I say, are mainly insisted upon, which according to an epistolar method, lie scattered in severall parcells, up & down the book: In reading whereof, thou wilt easily perceive also, that though the whole of these Epistles may be of singular use for a Christian in every condition, yet a great many of them have a more special reference, both to the comforts & the carriage of a Christian under the Cross (whether his affliction be outward trouble, or inward soul-Excercise & terrour) where he is most frequently to be found: Which is all I have to say for the matter. There are not a few in this generation I know, who will make i… their business, & think it of their interest, to derogat from the esteem which these Epistles doe justly challenge, & will readily get, from all who know how to prize things according to their worth; as knowing very well, that what respect these get & gain amongst readers, they lose; though I may truely say, & they will at last sinde it so, that if they get the thing they seek by this artifice, they lose by that getting: & I may asure my self also, if these either finde the a Christian or make thee such, they may well lose by this labour any esteem thou hadst for them, but they will not prosylite thee, to their profan contempt of so spirituall matter; yet I know they will essay it: First, somwhat to this purpose may be said & will be suggested by them, that here is a needless and nauseating repetition of the same thing; though it may be, they are not so displeased, that it is said often, as that it said at all; or if the frequenency of it offend them, it is out of a fear, that what is often said, be once listened to, & at ast learned. I grant that the same matter & purpose is diverse times touched & insisted upon; But consider 1. that thi… is to diverse persons, & is there either reason or religion in it, to envy him the Liberty of telling all the fearers of God, to whom he writs, what was done for his soul, or the people of God, the advantage of that relation? Was it not for the edification of the Church, that all who had heard of his persecution for the Gospel, should hear also, that the world, doe there worst, cannot make a sufferer truely miserable, while God maks him happy in a communion with himself: The heat of persecution may dry up, or imbitter all the nether springs, but then the soul hath free accesse to the upper, & is admitted to drink yea drink abundantly of these rivers of his pleasure: This is the spiced wine he drinks, & the meat the gets to eat in secret, which the world knoweth not of, & cannot take from him; & having found how sweet to the taste this bread of God, which comes down from heaven, is, he cannot forbeare to tell others, how he is feasted; to excite desires in all to come & share with him in these dainties, & forbeare to surffet themselves with the world's deceitfull meat 2. consider, that it is at diverse times, & surely, he finding the consolations of God new every morning, & abounding every moment, it had been a peece of base ingratitude in him, to have made mention of that but once, which God had given him often. 3. Consider, though the same matter be often mentioned; yet it is mostly with a sweet & taking variety of phrase; he brings forth the old & new togither, nay, there is ever so much new in it, as may contribute to kindle new desires in the, in order to the satisfaction of thy own soul, to seek what he found, & when thou hast fallen upon that, & art filled with it, thy practice in telling it over to others, will, without doubt, have such a coincidency with his, as will justify what he hath done, & thou wilt then judge, that an apology for publishing & frequent proclaming the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living is either wholly superfluous. Or it doeth suppose the reader not be a Christian, at least in case.

Secondly somthing will be said by malicious mutterers, (I know) against the apparent courseness of some phrases, and commonness of some words made use of by the Author; who all alongst sets himself, to make use of the most ordinary expressions, which are in use among the common sort of people. Something I say, of this kinde may probably be belched forth, by this carping, criticizing, profane, & prejudicat age: But If they would remember, what was said (by men much more knowing then themselves, & more able to discerne what ought to be spoken, both as to matter & words) to the commendation of Plautus, who made use of the most common words that were in use, amongst the most common sort of people in Rome, Si ipsae Musae loquerentur ore Plautino uterentur; they would see reason, rather to commend a dexterous making use of common phrases, in writing to people of no extraordinary capacity then take, because of this, any occasion to quarrel at, or cry down, that which is so usefull & excellent: And if in the opinion of men faithfull & famous in their generation, he be the best preacher to a people (and consequently writter too) Qui, quam maxime trivialiter, pueriliter, populariter docet, as to words, & phrases; I see no great reason such have to carpe, or necessity I have to make an Apology: But their is sufficient to be said, if not for silencing of bablers, whose tongue hath moe dimensions then their reason (which maks it not worth the while to take notice of their barking) yet for satisfying of the more sober minded. First, Consider that this disciple learned at his Master, both so to write & speak, as not to hide his purpose in a cloud of new coined words: He consulted his own reputation so little, while he sought his Master's honour, that he would rather seem a Babler to them, who minded nothing but words; then a Barbarian to the meanest, who was taken with spiritual matter: If Christ's example, who taught these high & heavenly mysteries of salvation, by plain & obvious similitudes, be not sufficient to silence such persons, who have habituat their tongue to drope satyrs against what is good, whether persons or things; yet it is enough to guard against the prejudice of what they take liberty to say. 2. Consider, that the most common word's & ordinary phrases, in use amongst a people, may, by the greatest Oratour, be very pertinently used, for illustrating & pressing his purpose: Nay, in some cases, these have a special emphasis, beyond what can be wrapt up, in a great many more compt words, & seemingly neat expressions, & then, they are so far from being a blemish to a discourse, that they seem to give a kinde of life, & adde a certain Iustre to the whole frame: & thou wilt finde it often fall out here, that the Author hath so happy a dexterity in making the most common (& somtimes contemptible-like) phrase, with a gracefull sweetness, subservient to his purpose, that let the greatest master of words, alter but one of these words, or change one of these expressions (which if they stood not there might almost seem a Barbarisme) he marres what he undertooke to mend, & while he endeavours to co…ct the Author, he leaves himself to be put in amongst the Errata. 3. Consider that a great many of the persons to whom he wrote, were no schollers, nay, had so little acquaintance With that, which passeth in the world for elegancy of speech, that he had as good have said nothing at all to them, as have made use of any other words then what are pitched upon, in expressing his purpose; & so his designe being to make affection, or to move it in the hearts of these to whom he wrote, there was a necessity to suit his stile to their capacity; which condescension in him, is yet managed with so much spirituall prudence & discretion, as it is without debasing high matter or giving the least rational ground to mock at spiritual mysteries: Yea I may say further, that there is so much majesty in the straine, as that the lowness of the stile is aboundantly thereby made up: And further, I might aske thee, if thou who maks the challenge doest pretend to be a Master of reason, whether he is the best Oratour, who can with the least noise, cast fire into the affections of these to whom he speaks or writs, & bring down the highest mysteries in religion, to the capacity of the meanest hearer & reader, or he who wraps up plain truths & obvious purposes, in such an obscurity of phrase, & perplexing intricacy of words, as carryes the matter quite beyond the reach of a vulgar capacity: without making any other impression upon the minde of the hearer, then that the man hath forgotten his message, & while he seeks himself, flights his Master's business: It often creats also a suspicion, that the writter or speaker either desires not to be understood, or, while he endeavours to sore too high above others, that is he hath fallen into such a confusion, as he knowes not where to finde himself? & if thou concede here, what with reason thou canst not deny, thou hast granted all against thy self, which I need seek, for putting thee to silence. 4. Consider, that though there be some here written to, of the greatest quality in the Nation, & a great many others, who are eminent for their understanding & parts, aswell as their grace; yet as these of the greatest quality & parts, may reap advantage, by what hath been written to the meanest & most obscure person; God in his providence led his servant to speak to these of understanding & parts, so, that what was particularly intended for them, might be of speciall use & advantage to every one: And thus all occasion of carping is taken away; unless, amongst the rest of the regularites of this time, Episcopall Authority be interposed, to make us read & understand that axiome backward, bonum quo communius eo melius, which if it be; I have no more to say, but that it is of a peece with the rest of their Reformation. I suppose by this time; it may be thought, I have said too much upon this head, since it would seem that something ought rather to be said, for making many things in them plain that are mysterious & darke; then to say so much for taking off prejudice, because of some common words & expressions; but as to that, I shall not undertake it: For there are many things in them, onelyonly intelligible by tasting: & he who wants that commentary, will never understand this text. I have no more to say, either for the one or the other, but if any dislike them, he may let them alone; for I intend to obtrude them upon none, who distasts them; yet I cannot for bear to advise even such, so far to consult their owne reputation, as, by speaking against what the Author hath here written, not to discover that secret to the world, that they are persons void of a gracious principle, to whom the things that are of God are unsavoury: The wind of thy mouth, though accompanied with all the venome thou canst vomit up, will not blast the Authors reputation, it will onelyonly be a blazing of thy own shame, & then thou wilt see thy self so unhappy, as to have hit the marke at which thou didst not aime: For without doing him any hurt, who is far above thy reach, thy tongue falls upon thy own head, & in striking at one whom thou canst not wound, thy sword rebounds back upon thy self, & enters into thine own bowells; but if thou remainest a man of imperswasion, & hast so much pleasure in publishing thine own shame, I cannot help it, it is sufficient for me, to have warned thee of thy hazard; nor shall I endeavour hence forth to deprive the world of their liberty (since thou wilt have it so) to look upon thee, according to the character which thou hast given of thy self, & that is, Deest aliquid intus, to make the a man & a Christian, & since this Brutish shape pleases thee, thou mayest goe eat grasse & let alone this bread, which is onelyonly designed for Children? And so I leave thee to make use of that liberty, of saying what thou pleases, which thou hast now purchased with the loss of thy own reputation.

If any think, it had been more convenient, to have concealed the names of these to whom the Author wrote, for some reasons obvious, in regard of the present Lamentable posture of affairs (when it is almost sufficent, to make a man guilty, that ever he was really zealous for God) I have onelyonly this to say for my self, that I designed their honour & not their prejudice nor hurt in prefixing their names: Neither can I well imagine (what ever others may apprehend) what prejudice they can sustain, by this; since none, or very few of them, come from the Author, as returns to any thing they had written to him; & there being no law, either discharging him to write, or any persons to receive his letters, there can be no transgression upon their part, & so nothing to ground a prejudice, or found a rational plea against them: And much less in that their names are prefixed; or if there be any thing in this blame worthy, I alone am in the transgression, who have done it without consulting themselves, or asking their consent; yet in order to the satisfaction of any, who may be offended at what is done, I have this to say for my self further, that I was induced to it, first, that thereby it might appear these were indeed the very Letters, which that faithfull sufferer & witness of Jesus Christ wrote (though there is sufficient in the stile & straine to put this beyond debat) & no forgeries 2. many of these worthy persons being removed (whereby the Church of God is at a seen & sad loss, in that she is deprived of so many, who would have weeped & made supplication on her behalfe in this day of her distress, when not a few of her friends have dealt treacherously with her, & are become her enemies) their Posterity might think themselves wronged, if I should have deprived their worthy Predecessors, by suppressing their names & smothering their affection to the work of God, of the honour, of making their faithfullness known to the world: And truely, I judged it the least that was due, to the memory of these, who ought to be had in everlasting remembrance, to erect this poor monument over their grave, wherby they may live amongst the posterity, when they are gone, as persons who obtained mercy of the Lord, to be faithfull in their generation: & that when the account of such comes to be taken, it may be said, this & that man was borne there. 3. I did it to encourage the posterity of such, to be followers of the faith & patience of their worthy proge…tors, and that the may not, without shame & horrour think of declining, or turning aside, either to the right or left hand, from the way of these dear relations, who by following the Lord fully, in an evil time, left them a noble Paterne, worthy of imitation. 4. As for such who are yet alive, I hope they will think, that God by this Providence, is making a honourable mention of their fidelity before the nations, & is remembring for them, the Love of their espousals, when they went after him; thereby to ingage them, to cleave more closely, & adhere more firmely to him, with full purpose of heart when the generality have gadded about to change their way, & many of his professed disciples have gone back, & are like to walk no more with him: And upon the other hand, God will have this to be a witness before the world, against any of them, who shall depart from the good way of the Lord, & be offended in him, because of persecution: I hope what ever hazard threaten these who abide in Christs company, that they will never forsake him, nor give him cause to say, what iniquity have ye found in me, that ye are gone far from me? But if it should prove otherwise, they may be sure, that he whose soul hath no pleasure in any man that draws back, & hats the work of such as turne aside, will count himself ingaged in a peculiar way to lead them forth with the workers of iniquity; but we hope for better things of them all, though we thus speak: If none of these reasons which moved me to doe this be strong enough then let it be judged my weakness, for it is more fit, that I should pass in the world as such (which is no great mistake) then these honourable & worthy persons, should suffer any prejudice, by a deed whereto they had not the least accession.

Reader, much pains hath been taken, in collecting these together, that they might be in the hands of many (a thing greatly desired of a long time by the godly) which have been hitherto onelyonly in some broken & imperfect parcells, in the hands of a few: Severall of the most correct copies that could be had, have been carefully compared, & many fruits therby corrected, which were crept in, by their being often transcribed, & that by unskillfull hands. If it fall out so (as I suppose it shall not often be found) that they who have the Autographs by them, perceive any difference in a word or sentēce, betwixt this printed copy & these, let them imput it to my want of he principals; for though I had a good number of them, yet it was not possible for me to get the most part: In some very few places also, to the end that this book might be of more universall use, it may be, that a scottish word, which would have darkned the sense, or rendered the sentence wholly unintelligble to strangers, is either changed into some equivalent one, or a synonimous terme inserted by it; but in most places these words are retained, without any alteration; because either alteration, or addition, would have made them less taking with, & acceptable to them, for whom they were at first written, & to these for whom they are now principally intended; because the life & emphasis of the Phrase, is often found to lie, in that very word. But having kept thee under too long an arrest in the entry, I leave thee now to peruse these profitable Epistles, which are an account of the many sweet hours & comfortable soliloquies which that eminent saint & sufferer had with God in the furnace of his affliction: Wherein there is much to be seen, beyond the ordinary attainment of a Christian, even who hath made some remarkable progress, & is no small proficient in the wayes of God. I nothing doubt; but when thou perceivest, while thou readest, how much pure zeal to God, doth burne in these lines, thou wilt Lament the lose of such a blessed instrument, now, when the Church of God is brought so very low, & there are so few of all the sons whom she hath nourished & brought up, to take her by the hand. I grant it is both a rational & religious sorrow; for when we remember the many eminent lights (the removal of whom, hath brought a sad & darke night upon the Church) which did la…ly shine amongst us, & most say, they are gone who were our faithfull guids, it would almost seem pardonable, to abandon our selves to sorrow, & refuse to be comforted: Quis …alia fando tempere… a lachrimis? Yet give me leave to suggest these things (1) Let not the tear so blinde thine eye, as not to observe the goodness of God, who gave us such: It was a saying of an eminent & excercised Christian (worthy to be remembred in this present case & to be put upon record for posterity) perceiving many sorrowfull, upon the removal, of one of the most burning & shining lights, that Britain had to boast of (that great Interpreter Mr Durhame I mean) turne your tears & sighes for this loss (said that worthy person) though it seem to you almost irreeparable [an age hardly producing such an other] into songs of praises, & doe not so indulge your sorrow, because the Master hath called home an Ambassadour, who did so faithfully & successfully negotiat for him; as ye forget in the mean time to praise the Lord of the harvest, who thrust forth such a labourer into his vinyard: Let not the greatness of your grief, make you forget the riches of his goodness to the Church of Christ in Scotland, in that there was a Mr Durhame to die out of it: So I say, when in reading of these, thou remembers that the worthy Author is gone to his rest; yet be not guilty of so much ingratitude, through the excess of thy grief, as to froget God's care of, & kindness to the Church of Scotland, who amongst others gave her a Mr Rutherfoord: one who was not onelyonly famous at home & abroad for his great Learning; but such a Minister of the Gospel, as I suppose, there is not a godly Minister in the Nation, who knew his painfulness, his tenderness, his zeal, his shining, & Gospel adorning Conversation, that will think he wrongs himself, in giving the presence to him, whose watching & weeping & unwearied pains, to propagate the truth, & profite the souls of men, made him without a match or equal & Left deep convictions of shortcoming, even upon them, who may with a rational confidence, expect the approbation of well done good & faithfull servants, at the day of their appearance, & die in the faith of this, that when the great shepherd shall appear, they shall receive a crown of glory, that fadeth not away. (2) If no other consideration can d…y up thy tears, or divert thy sorrow, while thou doest remember thy own & the Churches loss; yet remember that this is sufficient to make the mourne in hope; that the resid…e of the spirit is with him. We cannot I grant weep back again (though it's like some would be content to weep themselves blinde, if that were lawfull & would doe it) our famous & faithfull Knoxes, Davidsons, Welshes, Bruces, Hendersons, Rutherfoords, Gil…spies, Guthries, with a great many … sids, of their brethren & companions, who did build & fight with them, & were the restorers of the breaches amongst us; whereby they obtained a good report, & are at this day of blessed memory indeed; but is there no hope to see them alive in other mens persons? I grant their is but little appearance of that, for the present: For Alas may we say, where is the…e a man of that spirit to be found? Yet let us not adde this to all the rest of our provocations in this wilderness-lot, to limit the holy one of Israel; since these had nothing but what they did receive; he can furnish the Church with men of the same parts & zeal: With men who will shine in light, so, that their enemies must lay their hand upon their mouth when they have spoken; & burne in love to God & his interests: & truely it concerns all the people of God, to be much in importuning him, that he would again give us such standard bearers, & that that he would remember us now, in our low estate, by raising up such, who may be as the Charets & horsemen of Israel, when the spirit of most is under such a faint, & the men of might doe not finde their hands: If we were up & doing in this, which is one great part of our work in such a sad time, & gave him no rest, who knowes, but he would yet breath upon many, who are now as dry bones, without life or motion, & make them stand up for him & plead his cause against them, who have lifted up their head against heaven, & their heel against his people? They who by falling asleep, till their hair was cut, that they were not in case to shake themselves as at other times, when their enemies were upon them, might yet spil their adversaries sport, & bring down their Babel about their ears, if the spirit of the Lord came upon them as at othertimes: Or if this were not to be expected, he could raise up a generation, who would serve him with more zeal & faithfulness, then we have done, & that in such a number, as should make his Church say, who hath begotten me all these? And where have they been? It my be that he who waits to be gracious, is waiting to be en…ated to doe this good thing for us: Surely if we were a people of prayer, & particularly for this Church & Nation-mercy, we might be surprised now, when we have scarce a tokenn for good, & when our lukwarme temper hath banished the faith of such a mercy almost out of the earth, with such a re…ur… a… that, I will clothethy Priests with salvation, & thy sai…s …all yet shout aloud for joy: I will pour down such a plentifull the …sure of the spirit upon them, that by their zeal & faithfulness, the years which thi… cankerworme & caterpillar of luke warness hath eaten up, shall be restored unto you seven fold; which would carry alongst with it, the accomplishment of that other great & Gospel promise, his enemies will I clothe with shame; but upon himself shall his crown flourish. Faxit Deus, & …es…ness should be the constant Echo of our hearts.

Reader there is one thing more I have to acquaint thee with, & so I have done, & that is to tell thee, that I have made bold for this once, to send these Epistles abroad into the world, without the Prelat's Imprimatur: If he please to take this for an Apology, that the Author sought not his permission to write them, which emboldned me to transmit them to thy hands, without his approbation, he may; for I am not in an humor to give him any other account of this action. I know it's very probable, that the fat of these may be the fire; for our late fulious Prelats (that Draco volans which being got upon the wing spouts down fire upon the Church, wherby the Tabernacles of God are burnt up through the land: For the appearance of this fiery meteor did alwayes portend somwhat fatall to the Church to follow upon it) are a little more hot then their predecessors: It's true, these went so high in their persecution, & drave so hard, that it was thought scarce possible, for any to out-doe them in persecuting, for they run them selves out of breath, & never drew bridle till they fell in the ditch, & we thought they had died their without succession; but Alas! The Church finds this day, that … respect of their successors, they were mere novices, & had scarce served their Aprentiship in the blake Art: And this puts me to think whether the people of God should not rather submit to be chastised even with this scourge of scorpions; then to wish that he would throw the …od in the fire, lest if they were gone, & we not fit for a delivery [as indeed we are not] it should fall out with us, according to the story of the old wife of Syracuse, who was afraid of Dyon sius his death, lest the devil should succeed him: but if any should say to me, what & if be allready come? For if the Holy Ghost call these men such Rev. 2: 10. Who did But cast in prison, & did but cast some in prison, may he not be said to be allready come down now having great wrath; when deposition, imprisonment, banishment, yea any thing less, then declared worthy to die, is thought a savour: If any should urge me with this, I say, I confess he would pose me into an absolut silence; or force an acknowledgment from me: If the Prelats themselves who are of age, be in case to make a reply, let them answer it: For the truth is, they are so hot upon their work, that if it be a heresy to think so of them, they who plead the necessity of their office, for preventing of schisme & heresy, are like to turne the better part of the world hereticks; but to my purpose I say, their is some reason to fear; that this be thought very sit fewel, to make a fire in Cajapcas his hall: However, though it should be so, yet this is not the first time, that some of the worthy Author's works, have got such entertainment: & truely their is so much zeal to the interests of Christ, so much love to God, & the salvation of men, burning in these lines; that, that spirit, whose element is fire, will endeavour to blow the bellowes, & seek this as a sacrifice at their hands, whose once professed sincerity, & personat zeal for God & his interests, is now broken out, in such high Acts of rebellion against him, & hatred against his servants; whereby the proverb is become plain Scottish, or Inglish, or both if ye will: Omnis Apostata secta suae Osor: But if the Prelats would take a poor Presbyter's advice, they wou… even let it alone, lest the smoak of that fire, wherein they burne this; kindle a flame of just indignation against them, in the hearts of all the lovers of God, as men who have a very perfect hatred against piety; but if they care not to be so looked upon, I have no more to say, be it so: It's like nothing that I can say, will hinder them, from puttingh this peece in his hands, to whom, as I heare, they have committed the revising of learned & worthy Mr. Wood's Testimony, &c. & who it seems, is made choice of by them, as Secretary in Chief, for fevising all such peeces, to …i…, Ioannes Dunmuraeus, cum Fratri…, & Collegis suis: And therefore I must leave them to their own liberty, which I onelyonly doe, because I cannot help it: & I am afraid besids, lest if I should work too hard, in carrying water to cool them, I over-heat my self, & leave them at last nothing, cooler then I found them: But as for thee Christian Reader; it will be a sufficent imprimatur, to tell thee, that these are MR. RUTHERFOORD'S LETTERS: Wherein he gives thee an account, of many a good day, & joyfull hour, he had in his Master's company; while his fellow-servants did beat & thrust him out of the vineyard: & he invits thee to take a share of his feast, & truely I wish that both of us would goe try & taste, since neither of us are like to have very good entertainment any where else.

I have but one word more to say, for I know it's long since thou expected I should have made an end, & it's onelyonly to crave the pardon that I have not done it sooner: when I wrote the first nes. I thought to have made the end & the beginning so contiguous, that I should neither have put thee to this trouble, nor my self to the necessity of an Apology; & in order to that, I did really forbear what (as I told thee) at first I intended, & am carryed this length besids my designe; but if the length of what is here offend thee, thou art in case without doing me any wrong, to give thy self the same satisfaction, as if I had said nothing, by passing it, as so much waste paper, & turning over to the Epistles themselves: If thy soul be profited by these (as I hope it shall) I have my designe, & all I seek of the be side, is, that thou wouldest wish his soul's welfare, who was at this little pains, in order to thine, & who desires to be reockened by thee, amongst the meanest & most unworthy of.

The favourers of the dust of Zion, And thy Well…kers.

AD LECTOREM IN EPISTOLAS.

QVOD Chebar & Patmos, divinis Vatibus olim,

Hoc, fuerant Sancto claustra Abredaea Viro:

Profuit ut quondam tibi plus Ecclesia carcer,

Libera quam patuli copia facta fort;

Hic tibi sic scriptis carcer plus profuit ist is,

Pulpita, quam raucâ quae sonuere tuba.

Pharmaca in hoc prostant, contritis corde, libello,

Hic crucis El…s…s, est via s…rata r…sis.

Hic Amor & Christi decor, hic coelestis et aulae

Gloria depicta est, horrida & ira Dei.

Ardua materies, sublimibus apta cothurnis,

Hic tenui & facilifusa, legenda stylo est.

Lividus at voces si carpat Zoilus ullas,

Non Divina sapit, Cor sine mente gerit.

Praesulibus celerem attulerant haec Scripta ruinam,

Impressa, extremum praestituuntque diem.