the mother of his judgments, and his troubles but little deaths and he to be delivered of my birth, that I who commandeth the great castle might paint him out in his beauty to commandeth the little also. 2. I men, as I can, 5. I wondered once see a hardened face, and two skins at Providence, and called white Proupon our brows, against the winter vidence black and unjust, that I hail and stormy wind, is meetest for a should be smothered in a town where poor traveller in a winter journey to no soul will take Christ off my hand; heaven. O what art is it to learn to but providence hath another lustre endure hardness, and to learn to with God than with my bleared eyes. go barefooted either through the de- I proclaim myself a blind body, who vil's fiery coals or his frozen waters! knows not black and white, in the 3. I am persuaded a sea-venture with uncouth course of God's providence. Christ maketh great riches: is not Suppose Christ would set hell where our King Jesus his ship coming heaven is, and devils up in glory behome, and shall not we get part of side the elect angels, (which yet canthe gold? Alas! we fools miscount not be) I would I had a heart to acour gain when we seem losers. Be- quiesce in his way, without further lieve me, I have no challenges against dispute. I see, infinite wisdom is this well born cross; for it is come of Christ's house, and is honourable, and his propine; to you it is given to suffer; O what fools are we, to undervalue his gifts, and to lightly that which is true honour! for if we could be faithful, our tackling shall not loose, nor our mast break, nor our you. sails blow into the sea. The bastard crosses, the kinless and base-born Aberdeen, Sept. 12, 1637. crosses of worldlings for evil doing, must be heavy and grievous; but our afflictions are light and momentary. 4. I think myself happy that I have lost credit with Christ, and that in To ROBERT LENNOX of Disdove. this bargain I am Christ's sworn dy- Worthy and dear Brother, vour, to whom he will lippen nothing, I FORGOT you not in my bonds; I no, not one pin in the work of my know ye are looking to Christ; and salvation let me stand in black and I beseech you, follow your look. I white in the dyvour-book before can say more of Christ now by exChrist. I am happy that my salva-perience, though he be infinitely ation is concredited to Christ's medi-bove and beyond all that can be said ation: Christ oweth no faith to me, of him, than when I saw you. I am to lippen any thing to me; but O drowned over head and ears in his what faith and credit I owe to him! love. Sell, sell, sell all things for Let my name fall, and let Christ's Christ. If this whole world were the name stand in honour with men and balk of a balance, it should not be angels. Alas! I have no room to able to bear the weight of Christ's spread out my affection before God's love; men and angels have short people and I see not how I can arms to fathom it; set your feet upshout out and cry out the loveliness, on this piece blue and base clay of the high honour, and the glory of an over-gilded and fair-plaistered my fairest Lord Jesus. Oh that he world; an hour's kissing of Christ would let me have a bed to lye on, is worth a world of worlds. Sir, Your's in his sweet Lord Jesus, LETTER LXXXII. S. R. Your's in his sweet Lord Jesus, Aberdeen, Sept. 13, 1637. LETTER LXXXIII. S. R. make sure work of your salvation: | ray, and her daughter; I desire her, build not upon sand; lay the foun- in the edge of her evening, to wait dation upon the rock in Zion; strive a little, the king is coming, and he to be dead to this world, and to your hath something, that she never saw wills and lusts; let Christ have a with him; heaven is no dream; commanding power and a King's come and see, will teach her best. throne in you; walk with Christ, Grace, grace be with you. howbeit the world should take the skin off your face: I promise you Christ will win the field. Your pastors cause you to err; except you see Christ's word, go not one foot with them; countenance not the To MARION M NAUGHT. reading of that Rome service-book; keep your garments clean, as ye Dearest in our Lord Jesus, would walk with the Lamb cloathed COUNT it your honour, that Christ in white. The wrongs I suffer are hath begun at you, to fine you first. recorded in heaven; our great Mas- Fear not, saith the Amen, the true ter and Judge will be upon us all, and faithful witness: I write to you, and bring us before the sun in our As my Master liveth, upon the word blacks and whites: blessed are they of my royal King, continue in praywho watch and keep themselves in er and in watching, and your glori God's love. Learn to discern the ous deliverance is coming: Christ is Bridegroom's tongue, and to give not far off; a fig, a straw for all the yourself to prayer and reading. Ye bits of clay that are risen against us. were often a hearer of me, I would Ye shall thresh the mountains, and put my heart's blood on the doctrine fan them like chaff. Isa. xli. If ye I taught, as the only way to salva- slack your hands at your meetings, tion; go not from it, my dear bro- and your watching to prayer, then ther. What I write to you, I write it would seem our Rock hath sold to your wife also. Mind heaven and us; but be diligent, and be not disChrist, and keep the spark of the couraged. I charge you in Christ, love of Christ you have gotten; rejoice, give thanks, believe, be Christ shall blow on it if ye enter- strong in the Lord: that burning tain it, and your end shall be peace. bush in Galloway and Kirkcudbright There is a fire in our Zion, but our shall not be burnt to ashes, for the Lord is but seeking a new bride re. Lord is in the bush. Be not disfined and purified out of the furnace; couraged, that banishment is to be I assure you, howbeit we be nick-procured by the king's warrant to the named Puritans, all the powers of council, against me; the earth is my the world shall not prevail against Lord's; I am filled with his sweet us; remember, though a sinful man love and running over. I rejoice to write to you, these people shall be hear you are on your journey: such in Scotland as a green olive-tree, news as I hear, of all your faith and and a field blessed of the Lord; and love, rejoice my sad heart. Pray for it shall be proclaimed-Up, up with me, for they seek my hurt; but I Christ, and down, down with all con- give myself to prayer. The blessing trary powers. Sir, pray for me, I of my Lord, and the blessing of a name you to the Lord, for further prisoner of Christ be with you. evil is determined against me. Re- chosen and greatly beloved woman, member my love to Christian Mur-faint not. Fy, fy, if ye faint now, ye lose a good cause: double your meetings; cease not for Zion's sake, and hold not your peace till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Your's in Christ Jesus his Lord, Aberdeen, 1637. ye S. R. O how joyful should my soul be, to I upon මම Christ. Follow on, LETTER LXXXV. S. R. I FORGET you not; it shall be my joy, that ye follow after Christ till find him; my conscience is a feast of joy to me, that I sought in single-hang on, and quit him not. The ness of heart, for Christ's love, to Lord Jesus be with your spirit. put you upon the King's highway to our Bridegroom, and our Father's Your affectionate Brother in our Lord house: thrice blessed are ye, my Jesus, dear brother, if Aberdeen, 1636. hold the ye way; I believe, ye and Christ once met, I hope ye will not sunder with him; follow the counsel of the man of God, Mr. William Dalglish. If ye To ALEXANDER GORDON, of Earlstoun. depart from what I taught you in a Much honoured Sir, hair-breadth, for fear or favour of GRACE, mercy, and peace be to you. men, or desire of ease in this world, I received your letter, which refreshI take heaven and earth to witness, ed me. Except from your son and that ill shall come upon you in end. my brother, I have seen few letters Build not your nest here; this world from my acquaintance in that counis a hard ill-made bed, no rest in it try, which maketh me heavy; but I for your soul; awake, awake, and have the company of a Lord, who make haste to seek that pearl, Christ, can teach us all to be kind, and hath that this world seeth not. Your the right gait of it; for though, for night, and your master Christ will the present, I have seen ups and be upon you within a clap; your downs every day, yet I am abundhand-breadth of time will not bide antly comforted and feasted with my you; take Christ, howbeit a storm King and Well-beloved daily; it follow him; howbeit this day be not pleaseth him to come and dine with your's and Christ's, the morrow will a sad prisoner, and a solitary stranbe your's and his. I would not ex-ger; his spikenard casteth a smell change the joy of my bonds and im- yet my sweet hath some sour mixed prisonment for Christ, for all the joy with it, wherein I must acquiesce; of this dirty and foul-skinned world. for there is no reason that his com I have a love-bed with Christ, and forts be too cheap, seeing they are am filled with his love. I desire your delicates; why should he not make wife to do what I write to you; let them so to his own? But I verily her remember how dear Christ would think now, Christ hath led me up to a be to her, when her breath turneth nick in Christianity that I was never cold, and the eye-strings shall break. at before; I think all before was but ; childhood and children's play. Since | name of Christ, that ye tell all ye I departed from you, I have been come to of it; and yet it is above scalded, while the smoke of hell's telling and understanding. Oh, if fire went in at my throat, and I all the kingdom were as I am, exwould have bought peace with a cept my bonds! they know not the thousand years torment in hell; and love-kisses that my only Lord Jesus I have been up also, after these deep wasteth on a dawted prisoner. On down-castings and sorrows, before my salvation, this is the only way to the Lamb's white throne, in my Fa- the new city. I know Christ hath ther's inner-court, the great King's no dumb seals; would he put his dining-hall; and Christ did cast a privy-seal upon blank paper? he covering of love on me; he hath hath sealed my sufferings with his casten a coal into my soul, and it is comforts. I write this to confirm smoking among the straw, and keep-you. I write now, what I have seen, ing the hearth warm: I look back as well as heard. Now and then to what I was before, and I laugh to my silence burneth up my spirit; see the sand-houses I built when I but Christ hath said, Thy stipend is was a child. At first, the remem- running up with interest in heaven, brance of the many fair feast-days as if thou wert preaching; and this with my Lord Jesus in public, which from a King's mouth rejoiceth my are now changed into silent sabbaths, heart: at other times, I am sad, raised a great tempest, and (if I may dwelling in Kedar's tents. There speak so) made the devil ado in my are none, that I yet know of, but soul: the devil came in, and would two persons in this town that I dare prompt me to make a plea with give my word for; and the Lord Christ, and to lay the blame on him hath removed my brethren and my as a hard master; but now these acquaintance far from me; and it mists are blown away, and I am not may be, I be forgotten in the place, only silenced as to all quarrelling, where the Lord made me the instrubut fully satisfied. Now, I wonder ment to do some good. But I see that any man living can laugh upon this is vanity in me; let him make the world, or give it a hearty good- of me what he pleaseth, if he make day. The Lord Jesus hath handled salvation out of it to me: I am me so, that, as I am now disposed, tempted and troubled, that all the I think never to be in this world's fourteen prelates should have been common again for a night's lodging. armed of God against me only, while Christ beareth me good company; the rest of my brethren are still he hath eased me, when I saw it not, preaching; but I dare not say one lifting the cross off my shoulders, so word but this-It is good, Lord Jethat I think it to be but a feather, sus, because thou hast done it. Wo because underneath are everlasting is me for the virgin daughter! wo God forbid it come to bar is me for the desolation of the vir tering or niffering of crosses; for I gin daughter of Scotland! O if my think my cross so sweet, that I know eyes were a fountain of tears, to not where I would get the like of it. weep day and night for that poor Christ's honey-combs drop so abun-widow-kirk, that poor miserable hardantly, that they sweeten my gall. lot! Alas, that my Father hath put Nothing breaketh my heart, but that to the door my poor harlot mother! I cannot get the daughters of Jeru- Oh for that cloud of black wrath, salem, to tell them of my Bride- and fury of the indignation of the groom's glory: I charge you in the Lord, that is hanging over the land. arms. Sir, write to me, I beseech you: I burnt ashes: for he will see to his pray you also, be kind to my afflict-own gold, and save that from being ed brother. Remember my love to consumed with the fire. O what your wife; and the prayer and bles- owe I to the file, to the hammer, sing of the prisoner of Christ be on to the furnace, of my Lord "Jesyou. Frequent your meetings for us! who hath now let me prayer and communion with God; they would be sweet meetings to me. Your's in his sweet Lord Jesus, Aberdeen, Feb. 16, 1637. LETTER LXXXVI. S. R. see how good the wheat of Christ is, that goeth through his mill and his oven, to be made bread for his own table. Grace tried is better than grace, and it is more than grace, it is glory in its infancy. I now see, godliness is more than the outside, and this world's passments and To ROBERT GORDON of Knockbrex. buskings: who knoweth the truth of My Dear Brother, grace without a trial? O how little GRACE, mercy, and peace be multi-getteth Christ of us, but that which plied upon you: I am almost weary.he winneth, to speak so, with much ing, yea, wondering, that ye write toil and pains! And how soon would not to me: though I know it is not faith freeze without a cross! How getfulness. As for myself, I am many dumb crosses have been laid every way well, all glory to God. I upon my back, that had never a was before at a plea with Christ, but tongue to speak the sweetness of it was bought by me, and unlawful; Christ, as this hath? when Christ because his whole providence was blesseth his own crosses with a not yea and nay to my yea and nay, tongue, they breathe out Christ's and because I believed Christ's out- love, wisdom, kindness, and care of ward look better than his faithful pro- us, Why should I start at the mise: yet he hath in patience waited plough of my Lord, that maketh on, while I be come to myself, and deep furrows on my soul? I know hath not taken advantage of my weak he is no idle husband, he purposeth apprehensions of his goodness, great a crop. O that this white withered and holy is his name! he looketh to ley-ground were made fertile to bear what I desire to be, and not to what a crop for him, by whom it is so painOne thing I have learned, if fully dressed; and that this fallowI had been in Christ, by way of ad- ground were broken up? Why was I, hesion only, as many branches are, a fool, grieved that he put his garland I should have been burnt to ashes, and his rose upon my head, the glory and this world should have seen a and honour of his faithful witnesses? suffering minister of Christ turned I desire now to make no more pleas (of something once in shew) into with Christ: verily he hath not put unsavoury salt. But my Lord Jesus me to a loss by what I suffer, he ow had a good eye, that the tempter eth me nothing for in my bonds should not play foul play, and blow how sweet and comfortable have the out Christ's candle. He took no thoughts of him been to me, wherethought of my stomach, and fretting in I find a sufficient recompence of and grudging humour, but of his own reward! How blind are my adversagrace: when he burnt the house, he rics, who sent me to a banquetingsaved his own goods. And I be- house, to a house of wine, to my lieve, the devil, and the persecuting lovely Lord Jesus his lovely feasts, world, shall reap no fruit of me, but and not to a prison or place of exile! I am. |