the laft Sabbath fave one before my removal. And this day I preached, out of one of the barn-doors, to a great multitude of people, my farewell-fermon, on John vii. 37. "In the last day, that great day of the feaft, Jefus ftood "and cried, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, " and drink." And as the Lord was with me in that place during my miniftry there, fo he left me not then, but was with me at that clofe of it, and much of God's power appeared in it. On the Tuesday we came away, and arrived at Etterick on the Thurfday thereafter. Thus I parted with a people whofe hearts were knit to me, and mine to them; nothing but the fenfe of God's command that took me there, making me to part with them. The three or four last years of my miniftry there were much bleffed, and very comfortable to me; not in refpect of my own handful only, who were ordinarily but about ninety examinable perfons, but others of the country-fide.

During the time of my ministry in Simprin, I had frequent occafions of affifting at facraments; infomuch that I obferved, for fome years I was still abroad three Sabbaths together, on fuch occafions, at one time; befides other occafions, which allowed fome intermiffion. Mean while I never liked to be even fo employed, but where there was need: and if I found none, I would either not have gone, or elfe returned home to my own charge; and that upon this principle, That though it was a small charge, yet it was my charge; and that I was not to look to be useful, according to the number of those I spoke to, but according to the call of God to speak unto them, whether many or few. And I never, that I know, had occation to rue that part of my conduct. I remember, I once came home, and left the communion at Fogo, on that principle and I got a feast in the pulpit of Simprin, in the evening-exercise, on the 23d pfalm, as I think. And upon occafion of my being urged on that head, that it would me more for my own edification to be prefent at fuch a folemnity, I was brought to take notice, that according to the fcripture, 1 Cor. xiv. 4. 5. one is to prefer the edification of the church to his own private edification.

Now by means of my going fo much abroad to facraments, and having that ordinance twice a-year at home, I had frequent occafion of converfe with perfons exercifed about their own fpiritual cafe; the which was a great

help

help to me in preaching. It was to fuch a converfation with a gentlewoman as the means, that I owed the fermon preached at Swinton, Sabbath afternoon, July 28. 1706, being the day of the communion there. The text being Lam. iii. 49. 50. "Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth 66 not, without any intermiffion: till the Lord look "down, and behold from heaven;" the fermon not only had more than ordinary weight on the people, but two minifters prefent made feeling acknowledgements of it. But the sweet scene of thefe days was quickly after turned into a gloomy one.

As I behoved to have fome Hebrew for my trials, both former and latter, fo in Simprin I made fome progrefs in the study thereof. Having always an inclination towards it, I believe I did feveral times, while there, attempt it; but with little fuccefs, having only an old Pfalter and Pagnin's Lexicon, that had been gifted to me by Andrew Elliot, my comrade at the college, till in the year 1704 I got Buxtorf's Epitome grammat. and his Lexicon. After which time, I reckon, I did with much difficulty make my way through the Pfalter. And, by fome notes I have on the Pfalms, I find I began it again, having Bethner's Lyra in loan. But ftill my ftudy of it was confined to the Pfalter.

Upon whatever occafion I understood there was any motion for, or eye to, the removing me out of that place to another, I was helped of God to be fcrupulously wary, that I might do nothing towards the advancing of the fame; being always perfuaded, that my fafety, welfare, and comfort, depended on my being found in the way, which the Lord himself should call me to go. The ftipend was indeed fmall; and toward the latter end, the victual was cheap to a degree: but then my house-rents in Dunfe, and the emoluments of the fynod-clerk's office, were confiderable towards the maintenance of the family. And in thefe days feveral came about us, and particularly fome students continued with us at times; fo that we ate not our morfel alone. But whatever was our manner, when we were alone, or only with thofe we counted not ftrangers, I obferved, that when occafionally we had company otherwife, things honeft in the fight of men were readily, by the kind disposal of Providence, laid to hand. And during the time of my continuance in that place, I knew little of anxiety for the provision of my family after me. And I am very fure, it was not a more liberal main

tenance,

tenance, but a sense of the divine call, that moved me to leave Simprin, and come to Etterick.

Thus paffed the first and most comfortable years of my miniftry in Simprin, as in a field which the Lord had bleffed. Removing from thence with my family, as I have related above, on Tuesday June 17. we came, on Thurfday the 19th, unto Etterick; where, through the mercy of God, I have continued unto this day. On the first Lord's day after the transportation of my family, being June 22, I preached on Acts x. 33. "Now are we all here prefent before God, to hear all things that are commanded "thee of God *."

PERIOD IX.

From my removal to Etterick, to the oath of abjuration refufed.

BEing fettled here, I foon found I was come from home,

and that I was but beginning to be a minister of a parish. As for the people, the natives, generally speaking, were naturally fmart, and of an uncommon affurance; felf-conceited, and cenforious to a pitch, using an indecent freedom both with church and ftate. There were three parties in the place. One of diffenters, followers of Mr John Macmillan, a confiderable number; who have been all along unto this day a dead weight on my miniftry in the place; though not fo great now, by far, as in former years. Another was an heritor in the parifh, with two elders dependents of his. He himself deferted the ordinances, for about the space of the first ten years, viz. till the affair of Clofeburn. One of the elders having heard a little while, went off for altogether to the diffenters. The other, for ought I know, never heard me after I was fettled among them. The third was the congregation of my hearers, under the difadvantage of what influence thefe two parties could have upon them. Their appetite for the ordinances I did not find to be fharpened by the long faft they had got, for about the fpace of four years. Wherefore, foon perceiving the little

This fermon is inferted in the author's Body of Divinity, vol. 3. published in 1773.

2

value they had for occafions of hearing the gofpel, and having called a meeting for bufinefs, on a week-day, Aug. 19. I preached to them, that day, the fenfe I had of their cafe, from If. xliii. 22. "Thou hast been weary "of me, O Ifrael." I plainly faw, that a brother, who, at the fynod which tranfported me, was overheard to bid let me go, I would get preaching my fill there, was far out. On the contrary, I behoved to bid farewell to a pleasant part of my exercife of that nature before; and to have it miferably flighted and defpifed, where occafionally I was called to it. And for the Sabbaths fermons, they were but coldly enough received: but remarkable was the pricking up of ears, when any thing relative to the public fell in; which was a wounding obferve to me.

To the breeding and cherishing of this difpofition among them, feveral things concurred. There being little knowledge of religion among them, till the time of confufion and perfecution; fo that John Andison in Gamefcleugh told me of a time, when there was not a Bible in the church, but the minifter's, his father's, and another's; they drank in the principles of Prefbytery in the greateft height, with the principles of Chriftianity. The diffenters were in great reputation among them, and continually buzzing in their ears fomething to the difparagement of the church and the miniftry. Moreover, the union with England, which they were violently fet against, tryfted with my fettling among them, and brought in an unacceptable change of the ftate of affairs. And final ly, they lived alone.

A profeffion of religion generally obtained among them, through the preaching of the perfecuted minifters in and about the place. Before the Revolution, they were generally made Prefbyterians, praying perfons, and feve ral of them, I believe, good Chriftians. Often I obfer ved, that I had never seen in a country-kirk more Bibles than appeared in ours; nor more perfons giving in to the Sabbaths collection for the poor. And indeed they were, and are, very liberal to the poor, both their own, and ftrangers paffing among them; but very unkind to ftrangers fettling among them, and not very benevolent in neighbourhood among themfelves. But one thing I was particularly furprised with, viz. the prevalency of the fin of profane fwearing; and was amazed to find bleffing and. surfing proceeding out of the fame mouth praying per

fons,

fons, and praying in their families too, horrid fwearers at times: fo that by the month of November I behoved to fet myself to preach directly against that fin *.

The very next day after my preaching from Acts x. 33: as above related, Mr Macmillan came to Efkdale, and fome of my hearers went to him. This was what I got to begin with. On the morrow after I went up to S. to fee J. L.'s family and others: my defign was to endeavour to prevent their perverting others. When I came there, I went first into the houfe of one of my hearers; and there I was furprised with the news of Mr Macmillan's being in J. L.'s, and others with him. The old man came in to me. If. L. came into that houfe, but never noticed me; but I carried courteously to her, and told her I had a mind to have come and feen them. She told me, I should be welcome. When I went in, J. L. fhewed not common civility. I was fet down among three men, ftrangers, none of whom I knew. They were S. H. of H. Mr St. and Mr Sm. The laft I took for Mr Macmillan, having never feen the man. Being fet down, I was refolved to divert difputes, at least a while, with fome difcourfe of practical godlinefs. Wherefore being afked, What

news?' I faid, that news were hard to be got here, the place being fo far remote from towns; that it was like Jerufalem, Pfal. cxxv. 2.; which brought us at length to the difcourfe of communion with God; concerning which S. H. gave his opinion, that it confifted in doing the will of God, and keeping his commandments. I told him, that all communion was mutual, and therefore it could not confift in that; and fhewed, that actual communion with God, which we ordinarily call communion with God, confifts in the Lord's letting down the influences of his grace on the foul, and the foul's reacting the fame in the exercife of grace. O, fays he, that is extraordinary; wherewith 1 was stunned. I told him, it was that, without which neither he nor I would be faved. How will you prove hat? fays he. So I was put to prove it to him. Thereafter he brought in the matter of the feparation; told, that he understood I was an enemy to them,

* The text of thefe fermons was Matth v. 34-37. He afterwards preached on the fame fubject in 1714, from the third commandment, the explication of which is in his Body of Divinity, vol. 2.; and a third time in 1724, from James v 12. publifhed in his Diftinguifing characters of true believers, printed in 1773.

and