This day he desired to lay before the Lord the case of his people, and to have a right view and sense of it on his own heart. Oh, the end of this day's drawing near to thee is, that he may receive the Lord Jesus in his heart as a King and Sovereign, as well as a Saviour: It is, that he may have the sense of his love; and the effect thereof may be this, that the poor creature, as he hath formally given up, so he may actually and effectually, really and thorowly be in, for, and to the Lord, in all the powers of the soul and mind within, in all his actions and thoughts, words, ways and enterprizes; that he may know him, nay, and none but him, and may be dead to all things else, and they to him. Oh, these things that are coming would require this! If thou hast a house or place in the land or in his heart, that thou wouldst lay in furnishing and arms, fortify and maintain that which is thine. Should the King be angry that he be wakened by his poor subjects, who desire to live under him, to fight and die for him, to hold out and resist for him, to renounce and deny obedience and service to any but him? Hearing of invasion, they tell him he knows how to defend, and manage the war better than we. Will he let his poor dove, his bride, his little ones, his temple, his heritage, fall into an enemy's hands and be lost? Will he sleep and keep silence? Oh, far be it from thee! Teach him what and how to ask!

21st August. He observed he was much straitned and deserted in worship when there were strangers present; which he took to arise from either the Lord's preventing vain-glory, or puffing up of his heart, or punishing unsavoury, graceless discourse and communication; and his soul desired to be cast down and afflicted under it, that he would help him to find out the cause and root of it. Oh L[ord]! Oh how little effect it seemed to have! Yet keep him from wearying, or ceasing from his duty. Lord! for these many days his soul has seemed to him to be without any sealed instruction. At present he feels much formality, deadness, loosness of spirit; and he desires to beseech the Lord in this matter, and to know the duty of this day. He read Gualter on 1 Cor. x., "Let him that stands take heed lest he fall." This is a sin incident to these that have received some knowledge, and have taken up resolutions and [a] profession, and think not to lay it down again. Oh the need that my unsound heart has to consider, be humbled, and believe in the Lord Jesus, and watch continually against these temptations; that I grow not remiss, careless, secure, indifferent, carnal, self-confident, insensi

ble, or forgetful of spiritual snares or dangers; that the judgment go not wrong, the affections cool not, deadness overtake not, and creep in upon the conscience! Oh so unstable a creature as he is!

This day the Lord by providence led his eye to read and his heart to consider that of Prov. xxviii. 20. "He that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent." And his soul was humbled within him, and he sought the Lord to give him the faith of this word, that he may be delivered from this sin and snare of hasting to be rich. The skill of thy hand can, through Jesus Christ, set the heart so far from the desire of these things, as not to become touched with, or consent to, that temptation; a sight of the vanity of these things, and a sight of better, would soon cool and quench the heat of his lust after so poor an object: but alas that they do not appear so little worth in his eye as they are indeed! The possession of them cannot make him or his children happy. "Shall not be innocent." Sin and snare are inseparable from this evil desire of making haste to be rich. Lord! in this is not one sin punished with another? Hastiness to be rich and immoderate desires of the world are punished with a giving up to other gross sins, of unrighteousness, oppression, unevenness, uncharitableness, crookedness, deceit, falshood, unjustice, rigour to tenants, straitned [ness] to the poor. Oh this is the punishment of covetousness, one sin with another! So the covetous person cannot be innocent. Lord! he adored thee this day in the reading of Job xxii. 23, where grace is promised as a reward of turning to the Almighty. Oh sweet reward! Oh sweet reward! "If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, and thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacle. For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face to God: thou shalt pray, and he shall hear; and thou shalt pay thy vows." Oh Lord! he desires to believe in thy name for the making good this word; he believes on it, and desires to feed on the hony of it. Oh what encouragement it affords to a poor soul that cannot get his delight in the Almighty, and cannot get iniquity far removed from his tabernacle, and cannot get his vows performed and his prayer heard! Lord! this is not the manner of men to make thy very command their exceeding great reward: Oh that I may preach thy truth and faithfulness, and I shall declare it unto the congregation!

b

a

24th.-The L. of Foulis told me that the English had loss at their last victory, where Trump was killed. Holland were preparing for the war again. The King was sick, and no life expected. My soul desired to be humbled and cast down under all this, and desired to understand. "Whoso is wise shall understand these things," Hos. xiv. 9. He heard the Ministers of Edinburgh were resolved to suffer, ere they desisted to pray for the King. Oh Lord! the desire of his soul is towards thee on the behalf of thy people, and of our ministers, and of his own heart; that we may be guided by thy spirit, and that is one, and be delivered and rid out of these differences and contradictions which arise from our own spirits.

his

25th.—He had a meeting with John Forbes and Thomas Chivish anent

27th. I was at Findhorn-water, and there he heard John Forsyth, &c. He found himself oft impatient to be denied or contradicted by these that are under him, or to have his commands slighted or disobeyed; and he storms proudly, passionately at it. Oh Lord! with how much more reason mayst thou be angry at the disobeying of thy pure and perfect will, at the slighting of thy commands? Hast not thou more reason to require obedience to thy commands, than he has to his? Would he punish disobedience; and mayst not thou much more punish it when thou art disobeyed? Oh Lord! abate his pride and impatiency, and turn his anger against the disobedience that's done to thy laws, and the dishonour that's done to thee; and to bear more patiently any disobedience done to his [own] commands, which are oft with little reason or consideration, and for his own good, without respect to the good of others; but thine are ever for the good of these that obey.

28th. Being the Sabbath, he read 1 Cor. xii., and there did see the Lord's manifold wisdom in the variety of gifts; that it should be for union and love, and edification of one another, and not for separation and taking us from one another.

29th. I read that excellent 1 Cor. xii. the similitude and allusion of the head and members, and ilk member with another; shadowing forth, as our

a Sir Hector Monro of Foulis having died in 1651, aged 17, was succeeded in the baronetcy and property by his cousin, Robert Monro of Obisdale, who died in 1668. An account of this ancient family

is contained in Douglase's Baronage of Scotland, p. 79-86.

Admiral Van Tromp, was slain 31st July, 1653.

communion and relation with Christ our head, so one with another. We could not live well without the poorest member; nay, these that are poorest or greater sinners have their own usefulness: he hath not made all the members' eye, or ear, or head. Oh that this were learned among us this day, while we are broken one from another, as if we had no relation one with another! There was never a generation wherein the Lord bestowed and poured forth more gifts; but, Oh! the abuse of them is great, unto pride, contempt of one another, separation, envy. Oh that the Lord would pour out of his spirit of sobriety and a sound mind on his people! Help me to strengthen the things that are ready to decay and die, and to hold fast.

September 4th, 1653.-A Presb. fast. Sabbath. 1, To acknowledge our own particular sins, and the sins of the land; for that end to search himself and to enquire at the Lord. 2, To be humbled under the manifest signs of his anger, in our bitter divisions and differences, and our darkness. 3, The appearances of new commotions and insurrections. 4, Unseasonableness of the weather. 5, Invasions by sea and land threatned. 6, Danger of religion by violence, and by creeping in of error, corruption in doctrine and worship, seducers, heresies. While matters are thus, while the lion rores, shall we not tremble? Is it time to be still? Shall we not meet the Lord, and beseech him for these things, and turn away his wrath? Oh let him forgive, and shew mercy for his own name's sake. He heard the King was sick; that Holland had a great fleet at sea, and the English were entred [in] much preparation for war. Oh that his people may be fitted for these times, and the trials that thou art bringing upon the earth! "Who is wise, shall understand these things; prudent, and he shall know them for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them but the transgressor shall fall therein." The text Isa. lviii. 5, 6. He was smitten that in this day of fast he loosed not the bonds of wickedness, broke not the heavy yoke, gave not his bread to the hungry, clothed not the naked, and took them not into his house, but was wholly addicted to himself; particularly, the price seemed too great this year. He besought the Lord to mortify the heart, and make way for the challenge, that it may not be the blunt, and ita eternity challenge. He sought a heart enlarged to trust the Lord much, and to be more apt and ready to distribute and to do good; to sow more liberally: want of faith in God is the cause of his spar

ingness. He resolved, in the strength of the Lord, to lay up the challenge, and to shew more mercy, and walk more tenderly; in particular, to extend mercy to the poor people under him, John Jenkin, John Fumister, William Alves, the poor widow in West-field, or any other that the Lord should lead him unto: but take thou all the praise; for, in a manner, it is thy forced work; thou wringest this from him. Now, Lord! guard; make him willing, prevent and hear him. And let the prayers of this day from the people come before thee: rid them out of their strait and distress; and lead us to our duty, that we deny thee not in these times, and may not be for ourselves, but for the Lord; and all in Jesus Christ.

and 10th September.-He believed and prayed on that word, Job v. 24, the rest of the chapter: "That thy tabernacle shall be in peace; and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt not sin." His soul was affected with the private family distractions, and cares, and disquiets, and he found that they arose from his corruptions, addictedness to the world, niggardliness, distrust, want of a provident governing faculty; he desired that the Lord would send his word, and heal him, even the word of direction and command, and the word of his truth and faithfulness, according to his promise, to heal the distemper and disease and evil of his corruption, which was the fountain of his anxiety. He was also cast down under publick distress and confusion, and the extraordinary burdens of the land; and in this he besought the Lord that the favour which we have had, or the trouble which we may feel and be brought unto by these men, may not darken or pre-judge his mind or understanding, or make his spirit bitter, and so raise misjudging: that his heart may be staid on God, and then will the Lord keep him in his perfect peace. He was humbled under his darkness; yet could not complain but that he was hitherto kept. But, alas! Lord, if he have no other security but his own determinations against employments, and to suffer ere he embrace, these are weak, and will afford little strength when a temptation comes; for he finds his judgment may be brangled with reasoning, and his purpose with trials of sequestration or favour. Lord, his mind is staid on thee; for there is no other help left him, and he has received a sentence of death in himself, and almost despairs of life. He is under sad apprehensions of judgment to these poor lands, both from our differences among the godly. 2, From the sin of these that rule. 3, And from the like case of the Lord's churches in Germany and beyond sea, before they