plish the end for which it is fent. We must dare to be fingular, and not fay-a confederacy. These combinations and connections confift, not of evangelifts, but fpies; and those who wish to be thought men of candour will not refift; so that the truth of the gospel continues with but few; nor are these kept in joints and bands by truth, love, and gospel fimplicity, but by policy; not in defence of the power of godliness, but against it; to eclipfe every heavenly ray, and quench every living coal that comes from the altar of burnt-offering. Our fouls must not come into their fecret, unto their affembly we must not be united. Singularity in our day is breaking through the bounds of the fear of man, which brings a fnare. We fhall not be drove to countenance this and that scheme, against light and confcience, to gratify Alexander the copperfmith; nor blunt the edge of God's fword for. fear of offending Diotrepbes, who fights for pre-eminence. We must know no man after the flesh. It is true, we fhall not pass for men of moderate principles, nor will our names be embalmed with the fweet perfumes of candour and lenity; yet we shall have the approbation of God, the power of his Spirit, the bleffings of the gospel of peace, the teftimony of an honeft confcience, and fhall be made manifest in the confciences of all good men, yea and wicked men too; and thefe are things that accompany falvation.

My fon, let me have joy of thee; give thy mind to reading and study, be much in private, watch the

hand of God upon thee, and the leadings of his providence with thee; compare fpiritual works within, with fpiritual words in the book; and take heed to, and cleanfe thy way by, that rule; indulge not fleep, left thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be fatisfied with bread; ftrive to enter in at the ftrait gate; that is the beft entrance that is attended with the greatest difficulties, and that which is the hardest to get is the most valued when obtained; every virtue that the hand of faith fetches from his fulness is an ineftimable gem, and an eternal trophy. My love to all that love our Lord Jefus Chrift in fincerity and truth; by all means the Lord be with thy fpirit.

W. H. S. S.

LETTER

LETTER XVII.

To the Rev. Mr. HUNTINGTON,

BELOVED FRIEND, AND COMPANION IN

TRIBULATION,

Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and our Lord Jefus Chrift the Saviour.

I RECEIVED your kind letter of

and

glad I am that you are recovered from your late indifpofition; for, had the Lord been pleased to lay you afide, the Philistines would have fhouted, but poor Zion would have fuffered a great lofs; the bond children would have rejoiced, but the children of God would have mourned; the proud would have been happy, but the children of the kingdom would have been afflicted. But bleffed be God, that doeth all things well, especially in that he has condefcended to restore you again to his beloved ones.

As I faid before, I received your kind letter, for which I would return you my warmeft thanks; it lays me under great obligations to you, but I hope you will excufe my not defcending to particulars at this time, for want of room; fuffice it to fay, it

gives me fome confolation to find that I fee in fome measure eye to eye with you. I found fatisfaction where you are speaking from the 145th Pfalm, that the faints are privileged to speak of the kingdom, and talk of the power, and to make known to the fons of men his mighty acts, &c. I was just at this time thinking that I was a bold, daring, prefumptuous wretch; I was taking a view of what had paffed in a late journey to S (which I fhall relate to you), with what boldness I fpake there, but, as I now thought, impudence; and, being dark in my foul, as I faid before, I concluded that I was a daring, bold rebel for thus doing: but thefe words gave me to fee that a private believer is privileged to fpeak of fuch things; and, as I had not attempted to speak from a text, which I never found myself capable of, therefore I could not charge myself with running as a preacher unfent of God; and it is my continual prayer that I never may, for whenever I look into myself the point is fettled at once. I have often wifhed in my mind that thefe things had never come out, for I have feen the people fometimes at G as if they were looking and expecting a bleffing through me as an inftrument, and even fome of them waiting for it with anxious defire, and I my felf dark, dead, lifelefs, and diftreffed; but I have comforted myself in this, that the Lord had not called me to preach to them, nor had I ever myfelf given them room to think fo; therefore I have thought with myfelf I would fit ftill and fay nothing,

in

nothing, and would watch; fo when we have come together, I have more than once observed, that we have all been filent for a season, as if there had been nobody in the room; this has made me very uneafy and troubled in fpirit concerning it. What! thought I, wont none of you speak? and have been pettish my mind at it. What! fhall I fpeak, and have got nothing on my mind? No, thought I, I wont; for the Lord has not called me to fpeak, and there is enough of those that have done that already, that have faid, and the Lord never faid by them, and it may therefore be a fnare of Satan, that I may be puffed up with my fleshly mind, and so at last fall into the condemnation of the devil; for I fometimes feel pride like a mountain of brass: befides, thought I, I have, in times that are paft, not been able to answer the charges that have been brought against me for speaking already, for upon trial I could not remember what I had been saying. I have reafoned with myself thus: perhaps I had been speaking lies, or leading the children of God into error, or bringing forth fome new doctrine or fome delusion, and that the whole of it arofe from nothing elfe but my own vanity. O! think I, how fhocking is this, if it is true! and judging, from my own weaknefs, it might be poffible, and with these things I have been quite confounded, and have wished I never had known them, but had remained a private Christian, in a corner, all the days of my life; and have begged of the Lord, fooner than this should

be