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The Lord of hosts is upon my side; the God of Jacob is my defence. Oh so strongly as this binds and obliges me to suffer, and count all joy now to go up this ladder! And I had occasion to be at several other meetings, I bless the Lord for it; I bless the Lord, that ever He made choice of me, who was a miserable sinner, to lay down my life for His cause. And so I die not by constraint or force; but willingly at His command.

"There is another clause in my indictment, and sentence of death. They say, 'That I walked up and down the country, murdering, destroying, and oppressing the subjects:' But I say, I did never mind [i.e., intend] the like. And so they have, as they have done to many an one, assized and sentenced me wrongously; for I did never mind to murder or rob any man. Therefore I am clear to charge them guilty of my blood, and to give my testimony against them, as murderers of the servants and people of God, in their being about the service and worship of God; as I was.

"In the next place—

"I. I believe that all the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are the word of the eternal and ever living God, given by divine inspiration; and that every duty commanded therein ought to be obeyed and performed upon the greatest peril and hazard; and that every crooked and false way should be avoided and guarded against, whatever be the seeming advantages which may accompany the embracing of it; under the pain of being led forth with the workers of iniquity, when He shall pronounce peace on His Israel.

"2. I give my witness, and join my adherence to the Confession of Faith, the Larger and Shorter Catechisms, National and Solemn League and Covenant, with our Solemn Acknowledgment of sins and Engagement to duties.

"3. I adhere to the Church government by General Assemblies, Synods, Presbyteries, and Kirk Sessions, according as it was established in the year 1648.

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'4. I give my testimony to that faithful declaration at Rutherglen, the 29th of May 1679.

"5. I adhere and give my testimony to the Declaration at Sanquhar, June 22, 1680, together with the paper gotten at the Queensferry upon Henry Hall, June 3, 1680.

"6. I give my testimony, and set to my seal, to all the former testimonies sealed by the blood of them who have been murdered on scaffolds, in the fields, and in the sea, from the year 1660, to this

day; by all the imprisonments and banishments of exiled and wandering ones; and by all the spoilings and robbings, oppression, stigmatizing, scourging, and booting, and other horrid cruelties, which have been committed by the enemies of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"On the other hand

" I.

I enter my protestation before the Judge of all, both living and dead, before whom I am to appear within a little time, against all the encroachments made upon the prerogatives of our Lord Jesus Christ, particularly against Popery, Quakerism, and Prelacy, and all their underlings and the joiners with them; and against all Supremacy, which is contrary to the word of God; and against all Erastianism; and against both the Indulgences, first and last; and all the joiners with, connivers at, and supporters of it; and against the silence in watchmen at this day, in not giving faithful warning, according to that in Isaiah lviii. 1: Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins;' and against their ambiguous and dark applications, so that the sin of the times is not touched, lest they irritate the magistrate, and bring themselves in hazard of our Lord's cross; which was an evil, creeping in long ago, which the Assembly condemned in the ministers, and ordered them to be suspended, if they did not amend, and, seeing no humiliation for such a great sin, they were to be deposed.

"2. I enter my protestation against all those who have declared themselves opposite to our Lord Jesus Christ, and have displayed a banner for Satan; not only tolerating, but acting and committing all manner of abominations, and horrid cruelties in things civil and ecclesiastical.

"3. I enter my protestation against all declarations, proclamations, bonds, cess, and militia money, for keeping standing forces with a displayed banner against our Lord; and against all profanity, looseness, and lukewarmness, and all the backslidings of the Church of Scotland, since our entering into covenant with God, to this day.

"Now, sirs, I have given you but a short hint of my faith and principles, and also of the motives which moved me to join with the serious seekers of God, and also the grounds of my indictment, and sentence of death; also some little glance at the corruptions of the times. I have here joined my testimony to the sufferings of the people of God, and I have entered my protestation against some open sins, which are obvious to all who have not willingly yielded

themselves to work wickedness. Oh! It is but little that I can say ; it would take a long summer day to rank them up, and not win [i.e., get] at them all. For my part, I am but ignorant; my capacity can but reach little things. It may be, ye will take but little notice of what the like of me says, but I cannot help it. Now, as a dying man, I leave all these things to your consideration; if this prelatic and indulged party be the party to be meddled with and owned, pleaded for and defended, what think ye of them that have gone before us? What think ye of Argyle, and Mr Guthrie, that were men of understanding? What think ye of Mr Kid, and Mr King, and that gentleman that suffered last at the cross [Hackston of Rathillet]? Nay, what think ye of religion and the cost of it? What think ye of heaven and glory, that is at the back of the cross? The hope of this makes me look upon pale death as a lovely messenger to me. I bless the Lord for my lot this day.

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"I shall come shortly to a close, only I beg leave to speak a word or two to three sorts of folks; and, I think all may be comprehended under these three. I entreat you, take heed; I wish I may not be a stumbling-block to any one that is looking on me this day. Blessed is he,' says Christ, 'that shall not be offended in Me and my followers.' "I. To the seekers of God. I have a word to you. Ye have Kirk and State upon your top [i.e., seeking your ruin]; ye get leave to weep a long night, and have none to comfort you. And if you cry, Watchman, what of the night?' the watchmen are drunk and fallen asleep; they cannot tell. Can these dry bones live? Lord, thou knowest. Ye are seeing the godly cut off, one way and another. Ye are hearing them, that have the root of the matter in them, crying up a sinful union, and ministers will not tell you what is your duty or danger. Oh! my dear friends, cast not away your confidence. Ye must come through many tribulations; but there is a begun heaven for you at night. Seek ye the Lord, ye meek of the earth; ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger. There is no persecution in heaven, where your Lord's enemies shall never come. I shall not take upon me to say, who of them will not come to heaven; but this I may say; if they come, it will be more than ordinary humiliation they must have; as it is said of Manasseh, that 'he humbled himself greatly before the Lord God of his fathers.' Friends, give our Lord credit; He is aye [i.e., always] good; but oh! He is good in a day of trial, and He will be sweet company through the ages of eternity. There is none like the God of

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