would. As this did not appear to be enough for his satanic majesty, he let fly another of his fiery darts, by tempting me to believe there was no God; but the old infernal foe to Christ and his Church did not prevail, for I was as sure there was a God, as I felt I was a sinner. I do not wonder at the enmity and craft of the devil; for as the Lord had translated me out of Satan's kingdom, the devil had lost a very useful and faithful servant, and therefore he did all a devil and his servants could do, to entrap me. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who held me and kept me amidst all these temptations; and now I desire to praise him with my whole heart for his goodness and mercy, "being confident of this one thing, that he that begun the good work, will perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. i. 6). But at that time I knew not that the Lord had made me alive, feeling as I did the sentence of death in me, and concluding that the Lord was about to banish me from his presence. As I was just on the borders of despair, labouring under a guilty conscience, I remember full well going to the methodist chapel to hear a woman preach. She read for her text, "Cut it down, why cumbereth it the ground?" (Luke xiii. 7.) As soon as the words were spoken, I said to myself, God hath sent her to point me out; and as she went on with her discourse, she appeared to level all her artillery against me, whilst the thunders of Mount Sinai and the devouring flame made me feel as one sinking into hell with the curse of the law upon me! She did not leave one of the commandments in the back ground; but enforced personal and perpetual obedience to all of them, or the threatening in the text would be fulfilled," Cut it down, why cumbereth it the ground?" This drop of bitters I got, in trying to satisfy my soul with the dry breast of Hagar and her feigned humility. I left the place worse in mind than when I went in, and was tempted to curse the woman for tormenting me so, for not one of the commandments could I keep or fulfil. I thought I

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was lost to all eternity; that damnation was my portion, and I only lived to be cut down as a cumberer of the ground.

At this time I appeared to be in a deep decline, nothing did me good, and I concluded that I must die; but death was not so great a terror to my mind as the day of judgment. Now, also, the Lord's hand was turned against me in providence; my business was going back, and my creditors' demands could not be paid, so that I could say with Jacob, "All these things are against me" (Gen. xlii. 36); but the state of my poor soul was my trouble and sore grief. I could say with David (though since I have seen a greater than David there), "Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps: thy wrath lieth hard upon me, thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves" (Ps. lxxxviii. 6, 7). But, in this my distress and anguish of soul, I bless the Lord he held me up, and kept me by his power according to his own purpose and grace; and he is my witness to the truth I have written, and also to what follows, "for he delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling (into hell); when the sorrows of death compassed me about, the pains of hell gat hold upon me, and I found trouble and sorrow" (Ps. cxvi. 3, 8). The last night of my anguish I could not lie in bed, I walked the room without any clothes on, firmly believing, according to my feelings, from the intense burning heat I was in, that I was in hell. My poor wife wondered what was the matter with me; she importuned me to tell her at last, in the bitterness of my poor soul, I said, If ever there was any one in hell, I am the man! And I now bless my ever dear and gracious Lord, there is no hell for me.

Between the hours of four and five in the morning of the fifteenth day of July, 1814, I got into bed; whether I fell asleep or not, I do not know, but before five o'clock I heard these words with such power in my soul, that I shall never forget them; "All are

yours, ye are Christ's, and Christ is God's" (1 Cor. iii. 22, 23). I knew not from whence they came, neither Idid I recollect I had ever seen them in the Bible.

Before I enter on the blessedness that took place in my soul, the reader will recollect what I was brought through in about ten months of bondage, guilt, terror, death, and sorrow; the Lord having quickened my soul-shown me the spirituality of his law-erected his tribunal in my conscience-with a testimony of the wrath of God revealed from heaven in a fiery law against my ungodliness; my own conscience bearing witness against me, so that I ate no pleasant bread. As hell appeared open to receive me, I have wondered many times at the long suffering of the Lord, that I was out of it. I must here observe, that I do not write these things as a standard for the experience of the Lord's dear children, but to testify of the Lord's grace, mercy, and loving-kindness towards me; for the Lord deals with his children as to him is right, to bring them to a knowledge of himself and his great salvation. And I further say, if the reader hath had a little of these bitter feelings, he can in a measure enter into mine. But to proceed, I now believe the Lord was dealing with me thus in much mercy, to break down my light and trifling spirit, and to bring down my lofty looks and vain thoughts, that the Lord alone might be exalted, as it is written, "And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day" (Isa. ii. 17).

By these things I learned how low a sinner may sink under a sense of sin, death, hell, and wrath, and yet the Lord deliver him out of all, and raise him to a throne of glory. The experience of these things brought me into the love of the truth of that precious scripture spoken by the Lord Jesus, "When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: but when a stronger than he shall come upon him,

and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils" (Luke xi. 21, 22). The strong man, I believe, meaneth the devil, that kept the house when I went on in peace with the world and self, and could sin without control; but when my blessed Lord dethroned him from my heart, and bound him, yea, turned him out, and spoiled his furniture, namely, death, the dominion of sin and unbelief, then war began, and a roaring tempest took place, until I was filled with horror and confusion, but my precious Lord Jesus not only bound the devil and turned him out, but kept him from enthroning himself in my heart again, though he hath tempted me sorely since, and endeavoured to get me back into his service again; and I speak it to my shame, that I felt sometimes an inclination to enlist again under his black banner, and turn traitor to my very best friend; but this was my infirmity. Nevertheless " grace reigns through righteousness, unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. v. 21), for to this day I have been "kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation" (1 Peter i. 5). Glory, honour, and praise to my precious Jesus!

I beg the reader to forgive me for this digression. I now return to tell him a little of the blessed effects wrought in my mind by that scripture which was spoken with power to my heart, when I was in blackness of darkness, and, as a guilty sinner according to my feelings, in hell; but language fails to describe the great change I felt. Guilt, misery, fear, dread, bondage, wrath, and hell, fled from me more quickly than the morning dew before the sun; for all were gone in a moment, while light, life, liberty, joy, and peace, sprang up in my soul. I got out of bed to see if any one was in the room who could have spoken the words; but I found no one there, so I began to consider the matter, and felt persuaded it was from the Lord. I sought for my old companions, namely, guilt, sin, &c. but they were all gone; I could not find one of them;

whereby that scripture was verified, "In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve" (Jer. 1. 20). I began to sing of the mercies of the Lord who had done so great things for me, by loosing my bonds (Ps. cxvi. 16): my burden and misery were removed; I lost all pain of body and mind; I had "peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. v. 1); I "rejoiced in Christ Jesus, and had no confidence in the flesh" (Phil. iii. 3); "I had joy in the Holy Ghost" (Rom. xiv. 17). I completely lost the remembrance of my sins and guilt; the terrors of God were removed: hell was eternally locked against me; and I rejoiced on the account of grace abounding to the chief of sinners. I knew not where to find the words that were spoken to me; but I searched the Bible, and rested not until I found them; and I can now say with the prophet, "Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts" (Jer. xv. 16).

The health of my body began to return, and I was soon restored to my wonted strength; "all things were new, the old things were passed away" (2 Cor. v. 17). All my thoughts, desires, and affections now centered in my dearest Lord Jesus, and I was as one unfit for the world. Before this I had no rest upon my bed for the anguish of my soul; now I had no sleep, neither did I want it, for I had all I needed, and that was Christ; "bless his precious name, Christ was all and in all" to me (Col. iii. 11). Thus I went on in peace, my soul melted down, and in humbleness of mind I walked with the Lord, whilst gratitude and thankfulness flowed forth from my heart, to my ever blessed though much abused Lord. I lived as if the Lord and I were constantly talking together face to face. The tempest was over (Isa. liv. 11), all was a delightful