when taking farewell of his wife, children, and fervants, "Here is a demonftration of the reality of religion, that I, a poor, weak, timorous man, as much afraid of death as any, am now enabled, by the power of grace, compofedly, and with joy, to look death in the face. I dare look it in the face in its most ghaftly fhape, and hope within a little to have the victory. I cannot but commend the Lord Jefus. As far as my words will go, I muft proclaim it, he is the best Mafter that ever I faw." To his fon, who was a child, he faid, "if I had as many fons as there are hairs in your head, I would bestow them all on God." To fome present he said, "O firs, I dread mightily that a rational fort of religion is coming in among us; I mean by it, a religion that confifts in a bare attendance on outward duties and ordinances, without the power of godlinefs; and thence people fhall fall into a way of ferving God, which is mere Deifm, having no relation to Chrift Jefus and the Spirit of God." He exprefled his fears of a ftorm coming on the church of Scotland; but he said, the day will break, and the Lord would arife, and he hoped the church would be made a wonder, and the Lord will fay, "Lo this people have I formed for myself; he can make a nation to be born at once." He cried often with the spouse in the Song: "When fhall the day break, and the fhadows fly away? Turn my beloved, and be thou as a roe or a young hart on the mountains of Bether."

He faid, "Shall I forget Zion? Nay, let my right hand forget her cunning, if I prefer not Jerufalem to my chiefeft joy. O to have God returning to this church, and his work going on in this world! if every drop of my blood, every bit of my body, every hair of my head, were all men; they fhould all go to the fire to have this going on."He said, "If I fhould fay that I would fpeak no more in the name of the Lord, it would be like a fire within me. I am calling you to fee a miracle, God is melting me down into corruption and duft, and yet he is keeping me in a caln.. I could not believe that I would have borne, and borne cheerfully, this rod fo long; this is a miracle,

pain without pain; and this is not a fancy of a man difordered in his brain, but of one lying in full compofure. O bleffed be God, that ever I was born. I have a father and a mother, and ten brethren and fifters in heaven, and I thall be the eleventh. I fhall fhortly be at that glory I have been long expecting though I come not near Mr Shield's glory, nor Mr Anderfon's, yet I will be well enough if I get in. Worthy is the Lamb to receive glory."

23. Mr Hugh Mackaill, in his fpeech before his death, faid, "I have esteemed the folemn engagements of this nation to the Lord's pregnant performances of that promife, Ifa. xliv. v. where it is evident, that where church-reformations come to any maturity, they arrive at this degree of faying, I am the Lord's, and fubfcribing with the hand unto the Lord. So was it in the days of the reforming kings of Judah, and after the restoration from the captivity of Babylon, in the days of Nehemiah. This fame purpofe did the Lord Jefus make yea and Amen to us, when he redeemed us from fpiritual Babylon.I glorify him that he hath called me forth to suffer for his name and ordinances, and the folemn engagement of the land to him. Hereafter I will not walk with flesh and blood, nor think on the world's confolations. Farewell all my friends, whofe company hath been refreshful to me in my pilgrimage. I have done with the light of the fun and moon. Welcome, eternal life, everlasting love, everlafting praise, everlasting glory. Praise to him that fits upon the throne, and to the Lamb for ever."

24. The famous Mr Durham being visited by a minifter in his laft fickness, which was long and lingering, who faid to him, Sir, I hope you have fet all in order, and that you have nothing eife to do but die. "I blefs God (fajd Mr Durham) I have not had that to do neither thefe many years."

25. Mr Rowland Nevat his dying prayer for his children was, that the Mediator's blething might be the portion of every one of them. Adding to them, I charge you all, fee to it, that you meet me on the right

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hand of Christ at the great day. When he was fometimes much spent with his labours, he would appeal to God, that, though he might be wearied in his fervice, he would never be weary of it. Being often diftempered in his body, he would fay, he was never better than in the pulpit, and that it was the best place he could wifh to die in.

26. Mr Philip Henry, when a dying, his pains were very fharp; he faid to his neighbours who came in to fec him, O make fure work for your fouls, by getting an intereft in Chrift, while you are in health; or if I had that work to do now, what would become of me. A little before his laft illness he wrote to a reverend brother, "Methinks it is ftrange, that it fhould be your lot and mine to abide fo long on earth by the ftuff, when fo many of our friends are dividing the spoil above; but God will have it fo; and to be willing to live in obedience to his holy will, is as true an act of grace, as to be willing to die when he calls." One afking him how he did, he answered, “I find the chips fly off apace, the tree will be down fhortly." He was fometimes taken with fainting fits, which when he recovered from, he would fay, "Dying is but a little more." Once he said, after a little recovery, "Well, I thought I had been putting into the harbour, but I find I must go to fea again."

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27. Mr Matthew Henry his death was fomewhat fudden he said a little before it to fome about him, "You have been used to take notice of the sayings of dying men; this is mine, that a life spent in the fervice of God and communion with him, is the most comfortable and pleasant life, that any one can live in this world.

28. Holy and learned Mr Rutherford, a little before his death, left a written teftimony to our covenanted work of reformation; and therein he proves the warrantableness of nations entering into covenant with God under the New Teftament times, and fhews that this practice is the accomplishment of feveral Old Teftament prophecies, fuch as Jer. 1. 4, 5. Ifa. ii. 3

Eech.

Zech. viii. 2. Ifa. xix. 23, 24, 25. which relate to gofpel times. And when he was a dying, he fent feveral meffages to the prefbytery of St Andrew's, defiring them to adhere to God's cause and covenant. In his fickness he often broke out in facred raptures, extolling and commending the Lord Jefus, whom he often called his bleffed Mafter, his kingly King. When his death drew near, he faid, I fhall fhine, I fhall fee him as he is, I shall see him reign, and all his fair com pany with him, and I fhall have my large fhare: my eyes fhail fee my Redeemer, thofe very eyes of mine, and no other for me." When exhorting one to be diligent in feeking God, he faid, "it is no eafy thing to be a Chriftian; but for me, I have gotten the victory, and Chrift is holding out both his arms to embrace n.e." He was wonderfully ftrengthened against the fears of fuffering and of death; for, fays he, "I faid to the Lord, if he would flay me five thousand times, I would trust in him, and I fpoke it with much trembling, fearing I fhould not make my boaft good. But as really as ever he spoke to me by his Spirit, he witneffed unto my heart, that his grace fhould be fufficient for me." He faid to fome minifters that came to fee him, "My Lord and Master is the chief of ten thousand of thousands! none is comparable to him in heaven or in earth. Dear Brethren, do all for him, pray for Chrift, preach for Chrift, feed the flock committed to your charge for Chrift, vifit and catechife for Chrift; do all for Christ, and beware of man-pleafing. Feed the flock out of love, the chief fhepherd will appear fhortly." Once when he recovered from a fainting fit, he faid, I feel, I feel, i believe, I enjoy, I rejoice, I feed on manna As he took a little wine in a fpoon, Mr Robert Blair said to him, you feed on the dainties of heaven, and think nothing of our cordials on earth. He said, "they are all but dung, yet they are Chrift's creatures, and, in obedience to his command, I take them." After fome difcourse, Mr Blair faid to him, What think you now of Chrift? To which he replied, "I thall live and adore him: Glory, glory, to my Creator, and to my Redeemer for ever. Glory fhines in Emmanuel's land." Afterwards

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wards he faid, "O that all my brethren did know what a Master I have served, and what peace I have this day? I fhall fleep in Christ, and when I awake, I shall be fatisfied with his likeness" Then he faid, "This night fhall clofe the door, and put my anchor within the veil, I fhall go away in a fleep by five o'clock in the morning:" which exactly fell out. That night, though he was very weak, he often had this expreffion, O for arms to embrace him! O for a well-tuned harp!

When fome fpoke to him of his former painfulness and faithfulness in the work of God; he faid, " I difclaim all that; the port I would be in at, is redemption and forgiveness of fins through his blood." His laft words were," Glory, glory dwelleth in Emmanuel's land."

29. Hugh Kennedy, provost of Air, when he was a dying, a minifter faid to him, you have caufe, Sir, to be affured, that the angels of God are now waiting at the ftoops of this bed to convey your foul to Abraham's bofom; to whom his anfwer was, "I am fure thereof; and if the walls of this houfe could fpeak, they could tell how many fweet days I have had in fellowship with God, and how familiar he hath been with my foul." He was one of the greatest wrettlers with God that was in the age wherein he lived, and he had most remarkable returns of prayer. The great Mr Welth, in a letter from France, faid of him, "Happy is that city, yea, happy is that nation, that hath a Hugh Kennedy in it; I have myfelf certainly found the anfwers of his prayers from the Lord in my behalf."

30. The great Mr Robert Bruce, minifter of Edinburgh, when dying through weakness and old age, being asked by one of his friends, how matters stood now between God and his own foul? anfwered, "When I was young I was diligent, and iived by faith in the Son of God, but now I am old, and not able to do so much; yet he condefcends to feed me with lumps of tenfe." That morning before he died, he came to breakfast at his table, and having eat, as he ufed, one fingle egg; he faid to his daughter, I think I am yet hungry, you

may