to fuch a cloud of witneffes; and have their remembrance made everlafting as honoured Martyrs for Chrift, and the defence of the gospel: that when they had provoked God by their fintul lufting after a malignant to be their king, they thould be dignified to contend for the kingly prerogatives of fuch a glorious and good fovereign, as the King of kings. And as they had a good understanding in the doctrine of the crois, fo likewife in the prolife of the crown, that is upon the back of the crofs; they had their eyes at the recompence of reward, and therefore endured, becaufe by faith they faw him who is invilible. "It was their looking unt Jefus, who endured fuch "contradiction of finners against himself," that made thei bear all their reproaches, flanders, fcoffs and jeers from enemies and profeffed friends, with fuch invincible patience.

Thou haft here, Chriftian Reader, the dying Speeches of fome of those noble heroes, and as the Speeches of dying men are remarkable, the Speeches of dying Chriftians more remarkable; How remarkable muff the Speeches of dying Witneffs for Chrift be? It is reafonably expected, that dying men much more dying Chriftians, and moft of all, dying Martyrs fhould fpeak beft at laft. They are immediately to give in their lalt account, they are difinterested from all the worldly views, that use to darken our understandings, and byafs our affections, while living in health and profperity: They are upon the borders of eternity; and as the motions of nature are the ftronger the nearer they are to the center, fo faints are moit lively and heavenly, when nearest heaven. Martyrs have a fpecial, promife," That it fhould be given "them in that hour, what they fhall fpeak" The laft Specchies of Chrift's dying witneffes have extorted even from heathens acknowledgments to the honour of God; Vere magnus eft Deus Chriftianorum, " Truly great is the Chriftians "God" They have been made the means of converfion to many thoufands of finners; as Juftin Martyr teftifies of himfelf, that the dying words of the Chriftians, made him fall in love with the life of Chriftianity.

I own, they are not bedecked with the embellishment of oratory and fine language: who can expect that from people of fo me n education?. But they are full of the language of heaven, which is many degrees more forcible than all our artificial rhetoric. One will find feveral miftakes in Grammar, no doubt, in them; but they were never intended for the reflections of critics, but for the inftruction of Chriftians; and their plain rude difcourfes may, thro God's blefling, do more good to the latter, than the most elaborate compofures can do to the former. They may ferve both as a comfort and encou

ragement to fufferers, and as an inftruction and example to faints Herein, as in a glass, we may both fe our blemishes, wherein we come fhort of them, and learn to dress ourselves with the like Chriftian ornaments of zeal, holinefs, ftedfaftpefs, meekness, patience, humility, and other graces.

But alas! How can the beft of us read thefe feftimonies, without blufhing for our low attainments and fmall proficiency in the School of Chrift? how unlike are we to them, how zealous were they for the honour of Chrift? how lukewarm are we, of whatever profeflion or denomination? how burning was their love to him, his truths, ordinances and people? How cold is ours? How felf-denied and crucified to the world were they? How felfish, and worldly are we? How willing were they to part with all for Chrift, and what an honour did thev esteem it to fuffer for him, to be chained, whipped, haltered, ftaked, imprifoned, banished, wounded, killed for him? How unwilling are we to part with a very little for him; much lefs to endure fuch hardthips, and account them our glory? Alas! are we not ashamed of what they accounted their ornament and account that our glory, which they lookt upon as a difgrace? How eafy was it for them to chufe the greatest fufferings rather than the leaft fin? How hard is it for us not to chufe the greateft fin, before the leaft fuffering? Oh that their Chriftian virtues could upbraid us out of our lethargy of fupine fecurity! That their humility, meeknefs and patience could fhame us out of our pride, haughtiness and impatience! They were fympathizing Chriftians, active for the glory of God and good of fouls, diligent to have their evidences for heaven clear, and having obtained affurance of God's love to their perfons, and approbation of their caufe. they went chearfully on their way, fearless of men," who can only kill the body," and ready to die the most violent death at God's call: But oh! how little fellow-feeling is there now among Chriftians? But instead thereof, bitterness, emulation, wrath, envy, contentions and divifions How little concern for the work and cause of Christ? how dark are the most part, both as to their fpiritmal state, and their proper and pertinent duty? And how much is the fear of man prevailing above zeal for the glory of God?

I know 'tis objected by fome, that they much wanted that virtue which is the greatest ornament of Christians, and trueft character of Martyrs, namely a forgiving difpofition; because they lay their blood, at the door of the pri cipal contrivers and executers of their death, which the objectors suppose not to have been done by any of the former tufferers for Christ. But to this I oppone, () Granting for argument's fake, that they had exprcft chemielves with fome more fervency on that

head, than others formerly have done, and that this was a piece of their infirmity; it will not follow that we should prefenty admit the invidious inference, that therefore, they were no Martyrs for Chrift: For as neither the many grofs failings of the old Teftament faints, nor the mistakes of the primitive Christians, about the truths for which they fuffered, could deprive either of the honour of the Saint-fhip or Martyrdom, fo neither ought any infirmity of theirs to be improven against them for that end. Solomon tells us, that oppreffion makes a wife man mad; And they met with it in the highest degree, and that not from the hands of Pagans, Turks or Papifts, but of those who had been their covenanted brethren by profes fion; and when a holy felf-refigned David had much ado to bear reproaches from the hand of one, that had been his equal, guide and acquaintance, with whom he had formerly fweet fellowship: it was not to be wondered, if they were put upon fome vehemency of expreffion by their fevere fufferings from fuch hands; and thould rather be favourably constructed of "Si quid

"Intumuit Pietas, fi quid flagrantius actum eft.

But 2dly, More directly, I am bold to deny the charge; for they every where diftinguish betwixt the injuries done to them, confidered fimply in themselves, and the injuries done to Christ, and to his image in them: The former they declare they forgive as they defire forgiveness of God themselves: the latter they leave to God's fovereign difpofal, withal withing, that God might give them repentance, nor is the thing unprecedented for befide the example of Jeremiah, who laid his innocent blood at the door of the Princes, if they fhould take his life, there might be feveral more recent paraliels adduc'd; it fhall fuffice to inftance one of our own nation, imprifoned for bearing witness to the fame truth, namely wor thy Mr. John Welsh, who, in his letter to Lady Fleming, hath thefe exprefs words, The guilt of our blood fhail ly upon Bishops, Counfellors and Commiffioners, who have 'ftirred up our prince against us; and fo upon the rest of our 'brethren, who either by filence approve, or by crying peace, peace, ftrengthen the arm of the wicked, that they cannot return; and in the mean time make the heart of the righte⚫ous fad. Next upon all them that fat in council, and did ⚫ not bear plain teftimony of Jefus Chrift and his truth, for which we fuffer: And next upon these that should have come and made open teftimony of Chrift faithfully, altho it had been to the hazard of their lives. Finally, all thefe that counfel, command, confent and allow, are guilty in the

fight of God' Sure I am, this is as full as any thing they have on his head, and proves, that what they did, was confiftent with a Chriftian and forgiving temper of Spirit.

And as they went off the ftage both with magnanimity and meeknefs, fo it has been obferved concerning many of their perfecutors, that they departed this world with vitible fymptoms of God's wrath and judgments, efpecially with hell in their fouls I mean, the horror of an awakened confcience, under the fenfe of God's indignation; than which there can be no greater torment in this life.

"

"Siculi no invenere Tyranni

"Tormentum majus.

Well, thefe Martyrs are now in Heaven, in Abraham's warm bofom, enjoying the crown laid up for them, confirmed in an uncangeable ftate of rest and bleffednefs; we are yet in the ftage of action and place of probation, we have our trials before us, let us imitate the Cloud of Witheffes, and contend for the faith once delivered to the faints. We, know not what forms are abiding us, The Canaanite and the Perizzite are yet in the land. A refilefs Popish and Jacobite party, projecting a new revolution of affairs; as fanguinary and cruel yet as ever, and retaining as much of the old malignity and enmity against the covenanted work of reformation as ever, only waiting an opportunity to exert it, and many things in the prefent afpect of affairs portending, that they may be our fcourge in the hand of our difpleafed Lord, for our mifimproving mercies and deliverances, fatisfying ourselves with our own things not minding the things of Chrift; chiefly for our undervaluing the offers of the bleffed Son of God in the gofpel, and visible breach of national obligations to be for him and his caufe. Seeing then fuch clouds are gathering, and threatning a dismal tempeft, let us arm ourselves with the fame mind. to ftand up for the truth upon all hazards, whether we be called of God to do, or to fuffer, for the joint interest of true religion and national liberty, for thefe, like Hypocrates's twins, weep or laugh, live or die together. Righteoufnefs exalteth a nation, faid the wife Solomon; and Theodofius the Emperor owned, That the eftablishment of a Christian state depends chiefly upon piety towards God. On the other hand civil liberty is an excellent bulwark to religion, without which its purity cannot long be preferved; for as the fame Emperor faid, "Mutua inter Ecclefiam & Rempublicam cognatio inter"cedere folet; ex fe invicem pendent, & utraque profperis, "alterius fucceffibus In Incrementa fumet." There is a great

fibnefs betwixt the church and the common-wealth: they de pend the one upon the other, and either is advanced by the profperity and fuccefs of the other.

'Tis to be feared, this time of cafe and outward peace has fo effeminated and fofined our fpirits, that we'll find it hard to face a ftorm; we may complain with Eufebius, Res noftrae "nimia libertate in mollitiem & fegnitiem degenerarunt," too much liberty has made us foft and fluggifh: The vigorous exercife of Chriftian difcipline, has been much intermitted, and therefore we have ground to expect fevere correction from the hand of God. Cyprian obferves, That this was the preceeding caufe of God's correcting the Church in his time;" Quid "traditam nobis divinitus Difciplinam pax longa corruperat, "jacentem fidem, & pene dixerim.dormientem, cenfura coc

leftis erexit." Becaufe long peace had corrupted the divinely-instituted difcipline, therefore, there needed heavenly chaftifement to awaken the faith of the church, which was ly ing low, and almoft faft afleep. All thefe dying witneffes, affure us of judgments abiding this church and nation, and our prefent condition feems to fay, That we are the people that are to meet with them; how much need then had we of the Chriftian armour, the divine Panoplia, which made thefe Chriftians proof againft all the fiery darts of Satan and the wicked and of the holy fubmiffion which made them bear the indignation of the Lord patiently, because they had finned against him.

Having thus briefly ufhered thee in to the following fheets, Chriftian and candid Reader, I thall detain thee no longer from perufing them, fave only by the way notice of these few to take advertisements.

1. It is not pretended, That here are all the fpeeches and teftimonies of those that fuffered in Scotland since the year 1680. For many of them, which no doubt are extant, have not come into the hands of the publifhers of this collection, and fome of them that were in their hands, did fo far coincide with other, in matter and phrafe, that they left them unpublished, with fome remark upon them, to keep up the memory of thefe honourable fufferers; being defirous that the book should not fwell to fuch a bulk, as might make it lefs ufeful to country people, who have not much money to buy, or leisure to read bulky volumes. And if encouragement be found in this attempt, there may more of them come to be published afterwards. Only, this the collectors of these teftimonies can fay, that they have left out none, which were in their hands, that they conceived might be for the benefit of the publick, upon any finiAtrous view or account: And if any shall find any alteration in

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