were destroyed. 4, From the Lord's hiding his face from his poor people, and from his servants the ministers. 5, From the stedfastness of all parties to their own way, 6, These are like to be the last times. Lord, keep his soul from distrust, or rashness, or unbelief. Heal the distempers in his spirit, and in the spirits of thy people in the land; and shew us what our distemper is, and what a right frame is; and let me and thine in the land be fitted for suffering, if that shall be our lot, as indeed it is given me to expect, that we may not be forsaken. After prayer again upon that passage, 2 Cor. i. 9, 10, the Lord discovered his natural sin of carnal confidence, and the necessity which the Lord found to beat it down. His spirit is undertaking, and apt to undergo greater things than he is able ; therefore it is meet he should be humbled, and that [he] have ilk day a sentence of death in himself, that he might not trust in himself, but in God, which raises the dead. Oh firm ground of faith! He believed and prayed that the good Lord would not use his servants worse than man would do his. He will not bid them go on an employment that may be their ruin. He will never leave his business undone.

Object.-But they will go without his bidding.

prayed for his

R. Then will the Lord as a father pull him back. If they be climbing trees, or venturing on rocks, he will reprove and reclaim. If he would do so to a servant, much more to a son that fears him. He family, and to be letten build a tabernacle in it for the Lord. choice and desire; but he submits to the will of God. His mine, be done. Oh the rich treasures that are in thy word! could retain, use, and live by them, as thou pourest them in. not be lost.

This was his will, and not

If his soul
Let them

11th September, the Lord's Day.-He wrestled with much deadness and corruption. In the evening, the great rain, which did, like a deluge, overflow the land, especially at the Greiship,a that did bear down the piers and defences made against it, which we thought very strong; and at the same time the English were requiring straw and corn to be carried twenty miles from beyond Elgine to Calder. Much corn was destroyed. He desired to look into this Providence, and to be humbled: it did represent to him the general flood of corruption and sin that was upon the land; much ignorance

Greiship or Grieshope, now Greeshop, a property in the parish and neighbourhood

of Forres, which belonged, at that time, to the Laird of Brodie.

of God, formality, uncleanness, secret wickedness, unbelief, and contempt of God; and yet none laying it to heart, or saying, What have I done? but rather each of us content with ourselves, and seeing, neither in the land, nor in our own hearts, cause of mourning or humiliation. For this cause, he desired to set himself to seek the Lord on the next Lord's Day with all his heart, to enquire into the causes of the Lord's anger, and breaking forth of judgment. Oh Lord! lead him; for there is a vail on thy works and his mind: until, thro' Jesus Christ, it be removed, he can never perceive any thing, or interprete any work or word of thine aright.

13th. He was much exercised with unclean thoughts and abominations, however, the Lord did keep his spirit in the conflict. He examined William Brodie's Son, and exhorted him; but, after he caused him pray, he found weakness, much weakness, and was convinced of sin and mistake in shaping out persons to the Lord and his ministry without him, in thinking conversion to God easy, or in man's power. Lord! direct him in this how to walk, and teach and humble him.

16th. He received letters from London, and from the Earl of Cassils; he ador'd and bless'd the Lord, that had hitherto delivered him from the snare and temptation of the public employments, and had in some measure heard him, and he promised not to forget it, only that it may be in mercy to his poor soul, and to the land. He was much cast down under the differences and variances of his people; some charging perjury on others, and others corruption, mistake, malignancy, formality on them. And, among all these, he sees men of every opinion far more righteous, and of more sanctification and sincerity than he, who is compassed about with multitude of sins, which they are free of. Lord! this may humble his soul meikle.

18th, being the Lord's Day.-He desired to be cast down under the Lord's judgments on the land, both on former rulers and people, and the sins of present rulers, and the aptness of people to forget the Lord, grow formal, and make defection from [him]: we need the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left. He desired to be humbled under the Lord's hand in the divided, imbittered, implacable spirits of his people; and his hand upon his family, his brother, his children; on the fruits of the earth, which are, like his fruit to God, never like to ripe or be worth any thing under the extreme floods of rain, and especially the town of Grieship and thereabout, and here also, where God was much dishonoured; therefore

judgment was breaking out. That he may be kept from slighting these rods and beginnings of evil; that the Lord would correct the inordinateness of his earthly desires and projects in prices of corn and victual, would stir up to more tenderness in every part of his conversation, and would give a more free, obedient spirit to thy word. Turn away the wrath, and forgive our iniquity, and shew mercy to his soul, and to the family -and others, and to these lands, and to thy people.

Mr. William Falconer this day preached on Isa. lviii. 8., and said, The Lord's promises were conditional: this did beget exercise and trouble to him; and, if the Covenant of Grace were not absolute, he were undone, and the land, and his seed for evermore. Now, this is the promise, that we shall fear thee; and thou will put thy law in our hearts. Lord, what is the condition of this promise? If the condition be not included in the promise, it were hard with us. Oh Lord! all thy promises of Grace, and thy Covenant of Grace and more Grace, is free. This day he is dealing with the Lord for mercy to himself and his seed, and to the land, and to thy people, and is confessing his and their sin to thee. Oh be thou perswaded, and turn away thy wrath, and impute not iniquity to us; circumcise our hearts, and the hearts of our seed and our seed's seed, for thy name's sake. We tremble at the signs of thy anger, which appear against thy people, and these lands, and himself, and his family and his seed; and desires to stand up this day, that the judgment proceed not: and, if thou wilt exercise with more trouble, then sanctify the trial for thy own name's sake, and correct not in thy displeasure; tho' thou chastnest sore (as thou hast done formerly) yet give us not over unto death, Psal. cxviii. 18.

24th September.-I read 2 Cor. viii. 14-15, which did reprove his straitnedness, and coldness, and parsimony, and inordinate desires and affection to the world. Oh what a lively lesson was this Word! to mortify insolent, or light, carnal thoughts, in the possession of much; for they that gather'd meikle, had nothing to spare, or nothing over: as also to mortify distrust, and desire of great things, and insatiableness; for they that gather'd little had no lack. Print, print this on his heart, that he may learn more moderation in things below; in seeking, caring, or keeping, gathering, spending, using, having and wanting; and may look to him, v. 9, who, "though he was rich, for our sakes became poor; that we through his poverty may be rich."

M

on, and pray

25th September. It was the exercise of the day to believe on that word; and 2 Cor. ix. 6, "He that sows sparingly shall reap sparingly; and he that sows bountifully shall reap bountifully," and v. 8. Oh Lord! settle the faith of this in his heart, that not only in the matter of charity, but in bearing injuries, in believing, and in giving credit to thee, in dependence on thee, in self-denial, in giving himself to the Lord, in the crucifying of the world, and fleshly desires and earthly; he may not be sparing, distrustful, or narrow-hearted, but enlarged to do much in faith, and suffer much, and love much, in faith of a plentiful reaping

This day distractions humbled him: the coming of strangers with L. L. a letter from Innes, and a dispatch to Monaghty. He afterward read v. 8., "And God is able to make all Grace abound towards you; that ye always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound in every good work." Oh the riches that are contained in this promise or declaration! Could I open and enlarge my mouth wide to receive it! Oh it contains Grace, every Grace, and all good things! Oh the hainousness of distrust, having such a promise! Alas that he cannot cast himself upon it, rely on it, suck consolation and encouragement out of it, thro' the faith hereof to mortify all inordinate desires, deny himself, give himself wholly to the Lord, who is able to make Grace, nay, all Grace, abound towards me, that I may have, and always have, and in all things sufficiency, yea, all-sufficiency, to abound, even abound in good works, yea, every good work! Oh my Lord! let not all these gradations for ever be forgotten, or slip out of mind; nor suffer me to lose the faith, use and application of this, this, this word, which he desires to lay up in his heart, and to pray and believe upon it for Grace, all Grace, all-sufficiency at all times, that he may abound, abound in good works, nay, and in every good work.

28th. This morning Janet came to me, and told me that her brother seemed much affected with." My soul was cast down under this, and desired to worship and adore the Lord, whom he served and sought with his spirit in that matter: and intreated the Lord to bless that

a In this, and some subsequent passages, which the Editor in 1740 has left blank, we may conjecture there were reflections on

the irregular conduct of some of the Laird of Brodie's near relations; but the words may have been written in cypher.

I went this night to Inverness, and found the Lord visiting my spirit by the way, and received Waristoun's letters.

30th. I observed the Lord's Providence in the scarcity of—

2nd October.-Die Sab The extraordinary rain continued, and the overflowing of the waters. Let not his soul be barren under these tokens of thy wrath. He received letters from W. Dounie anent accepting of a Session employment, and to give my advice anent judges superior and inferior. Oh Lord! I am in darkness, and will depend on thee for light: I am afraid of snares; Lord! discover, and deliver his soul from them. Greenknow asked at me, 1st October, why I did not go to London. Oh Lord! that thy servants may walk in one spirit, even in these matters of Government!

3rd October.-I writ to Waristoun, W. Dounie; and I desire to look over all the letters that I have written, that my feet sleep not. I was this day humbled for my indiscreet, inconsiderate zeal and passion against Mr. John Brodie and Mr. Robert Gordon; albeit the matter might afford dislike, the manner was full of sin.

October 9th.-Sab. I read Gal. ii. 19-20. I desired to believe, and pray, and worship on that Word; that I might " through the law be dead to the law, that I might live to God; to be crucified with Christ, that not I, but Christ may live in me; that the life which now I live in the flesh may be through the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

This day he writ to Leathin anent David, that a Surgeon might come and cure him; and he sought the Lord in it, to bless the means so far as may be for his own glory and the soul's good of the poor creature, and our comfort; and that he would in mercy restore and deliver him, and not in wrath and judgment to himself or us. This held forth something of a duty in reference to public business; that the restitution or raising up of our native rulers may be in mercy, and not in wrath to the land or themselves: there

Greenknow.-Walter Pringle of Greenknow, Berwickshire. He wrote Memoirs of his own life and experiences, (1662-1666) first printed at Edinburgh, 1723, 12mo. "His Will to his Children," is dated at Elgin, 21st Nov., 1665. He died in 1667.

b William Downie, Writer in Edinburgh, was appointed one of the Clerks of Session, and was continued in that office by the English (1652-1658) when changes were made in the country for administration of justice. Nicol's Diary, pp. 95, 222. Baillie's Letters and Journals, vol. iii., p. 249.