EMORY UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
MEMOIRS
OF THE LATE I
CONTAINING
A JOURN^
OF THE
MOST INTERESTING PARTS OF HIS LIFE,
TOGETHER WITH
EXTRACTS FROM HIS WRITINGS, IN
POETRY AND PROSE,
AND A FEW
jSJVECDOTES,
ILLUSTRATIVE OF HIS CHARACTER.
BV HIS SON,
JABEZ P. MARSHALL, A. M.
PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR, AT
MOUNT ZION, HANCOCK COUNTY, GEORGIA.
1824.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
Address to the Reader, G
Chapter I.—Abraham'^ Nativity, &c. - - - 7
Chapter II.—His Conversion, .... 9
Chapter III.—His first Attempt in the Ministry, - - 11
Chapter IV,—His Ordination, ... 13
Chapter V.—His Call as Pastor to the Kiokee Church, &c. 15
Chapter VI.—His Tour to New Eugland, 17
Chapter VII.—Ilis Travels, &c. continued, 20
Chapter VIII.—His Journal continued, 22
Chapter IX.—Journal continued, ----- 25
Chapter X.—His Travels continued, 28
Chapter XI.—Peregrinations continued, 31
Chapter XII.—His Journal, &c. continued, 36
Chapter XIII.—His Preaching, &c. in New England, - 40
Chapter XIV.—Flis Preaching Tour, &c. 48
Chapter XF".—*His Return Home, ----- 53
Chapter XVI.— His remaining at Ilome, &c. 65
Chapter XVII.— His Marriage, See. 66
Chapter XVIII.—His Death, Funeral, &c. - - - 74
His Notes on particular Passages of Scripture, 80
His Sermon on " The Iron did swim," .... 108
His Poetical Pieces—1, On the Turkey Buzzard, - - 119
2, The Lazy Student's Apology, - - - - - 119
3, An Encomium on Big Hominy, - 120
4, A Lampoon on Tea, - - - - - - -120
5, A Satire on Grog, - - - - - - -121
6, An Eclogue—On the Plough, - , - - - - 122
7, The Whig's Song, - 123
8, Lines on the Death of Abraham Waller Wiglesworth
Marshall, - 124
9, Elegy on the Death of the Rev. Daniel Marshall, - 125
10, Lines on the Death of Mr. Pratt, .... 126
Anecdotes of the Rev. A. Marshall, ... - 127
The Undertaker's Address to Children, Soldiers, Politicians,
Christians, Sinners and Ministers, - - - - 131
TO THE READER.
Unavoidable circumstances have prevented an earlier
appearance of the Biography of my deceased father.
Declining to have it published on the subscription plan, 1
have ventured to put it forth with the following prefato*
ry remarks:
Biography is admirably calculated to command the at¬
tention of the young and old. How far the present at¬
tempt will prove successful, cannot yet be determined.
The Undertaker has a wish to perpetuate the memory of
his father. Perhaps the present general appearance of
this memoir may have a tendency rather to excite disgust
(with some) than encourage friendly perpetuity. Be
this as it may, I have only attempted faithfully to bring to
•view some of the many interesting circumstances which
might otherwise be lost in oblivion. With some, the ac¬
counts may be considered too egotistick and enthusiastick ;
but those who perhaps were better acquainted with my
father than 1 was, know, that so far from claiming self-
mprit, his chief excellency consisted in attempting to
spoil the pride of human glory, and exalt the sufficiency
of the adorable Redeemer. And as I have put down the
good and the bad (in bis tour to New England) it is hoped
that no one will be so unkind as to think that I bad a dis¬
position to uncover his nakedness on the one hand, or make
him out to be more than he really was, on the other.
He has left a sufficiency of papers, &c. &c. to author¬
ize what is said of him, and many have expressed a wish
to see and have an account of him, so, that although " he
is dead, he may yet speak" to them.
Again—Some have egregiously misrepresented bis life,
and especially his death ; and as his character is drawn
by another, I feel an humble pride in that, that it will be
the most likely to appear as it should.
6
Although his Notes on particular passages of Scripture,
original and selected, may not suit the ideas of many, yet
I have thought proper to put them down as they are,
believing that if he erred, he did not do it wilfully. They
may at least be of some service to the Christian and the
preacher, who are not above endeavouring to collect
knowledge. I am conscious there are many defects, for
" Humanum est errare."
But truth is aimed at, and Zion'e welfare is desired. The
whole is submitted (under Divine Providence) to the pub-
lick, and especially to Christians; and may he who re¬
ceives the widow's mite, as well as the rich man's treas¬
ure, bless the reader, the performance and Undertaker,
is the prayer of
J. P. MARSHALL.
Kiokee, Columbia County, Georgia,
Feb. 1824.
MEMOIRS
oe the latk
REV. ABRAHAM MARSHALL, &c.
CHAP. I.
His Nativity and Education.
The Rev. Abraham Marshall was born in
the town of Windsor, in the State of Connec¬
ticut, on the 23d day of April, A. D. 1743. His
venerable father was the Rev. Daniel Mar¬
shall, a sketch of whose life may be found in
Dr. II. Ilvlcumb's " Repository," Semple's
" History of the Virginia Baptists," and Bene¬
dict's History of the Baptists in general. His
pious mother's maiden name was Starnes; sis¬
ter to the celebrated Shubael Starnes, one of
the first founders of the " Separates" in North
Carolina and Virginia. His religious ancestors
were under strong impressions that the latter
day glory with all its divine and benign advan¬
tages would dawn upon the world when the
stubborn Jew, with the untutored gentile, should
hail the sceptre and bow to the gentle and
8
easy reign of the Redeemer. Impelled by
this influence, they sold part, gave away part,
and left the remainder of lands and possessions,
and without conferring with " flesh and blood,"
moved forthwith to the head of Susquehannah
river among the Mohawk Indians, to a town
called Onequaggy. Great must have been
their zeal, when, without any earthly emolu¬
ments in view, they exchanged their fertile
fields, loaded orchards, beautiful gardens, the
essentials and dainties of the table, delightful
city, numerous and pleasant friends, for a bar¬
ren wilderness, empty wigwam, scanty and
coarse fare, and ferocious savages, whose high¬
est glory was the scalping knife, the glittering
tomahawk, and the Indian yell or war-whoop.
Here his zealous parents located themselves
with their three eldest sons, Daniel, John, and
Abraham, without the means of living, or the
utensils to provide. Abraham, in after times,
often pleasantly apologised for his coarseness
of manners and ignorance, with, " He was born
a Yankee, and raised a Mohawk." He never
received forty days education in his life, from
a school-master; but here was the place where
he obtained hi&Tudimemsr of learning, and the_
first impressions of a religious nature were felt
in this abject state. Here Zaccheus was born.
After teaching, preaching and exhorting the
Indians, with some good appearances of effect,
about eighteen months, Daniel Marshall and
Martha, his wife, together with their family,
removed to Virginia, near the town of Win¬
chester. His parents were of the Presbyte¬
rian order, under the "New England New-
Light stir." But here they were convinced
within their minds, and became Baptists.
9
CHAP. II.
His Conversion, &c.
In the year 1753, those religious impressions
which he felt among the Mohawks, became
more powerful and lasting. Here Abraham
began to call on the name of the Lord. Re¬
flections on the world to come, and solemn
thoughts on the awful Day of Judgement bore
heavy on his mind, and distressed his youthful
soul. One night, going to bed under solemn
meditations of this kind, he saw in his sleep,
the elements part asunder, and " the heavens
tolled together as a mighty scroll," the Judge
of all worlds erecting his u great white throne"
in the east, mankind in distress, he in an awful
agony, expecting every moment to hear and re¬
ceive his final doom. The perturbation of his
mind, was not to be described. But who can
tell the agitation of his wondering soul when
he awoke with the thought that these visions
■would shortly be realized. These scenes took
place when he was between five and six years
of age.
After this, his worthy parents,removed to
several places, and at length located on Horse
Creek, South Carolina, a few miles north of
Atfgusta, when a glorious revival commenced.
A number of young persons became seriously
concerned about the welfare of their immortal
souls. Abraham had gone on sinning and pray¬
ing, and praying and sinning, with a tender con¬
science, until the arrows of the Lord were
made fast in his soul. His iniquities went over
his head as a " burden too heavy for bin49
2
10
bear." One evening he had retired to a lone¬
ly grove some distance from home, sitting m
the listening woods late in the night, while
peaceful silence hushed the earth, when the
words in Jeremiah's Lamentations, " He shall
bear the joke in his youth, he sitteth alone,"
awakened his attention. If there may be hope,
the words afforded him a little relief. But the
word of the Lord bore heavy again on his
mind, Jeremiah xvii. 1—"The sin of Judah is
written with the pen of iron, and the point of
a diamond, it is engraven upon the table of
their hearts." And again, these words in He¬
brews; "There remaineth no more sacrifice
for sin, but they shall be given over to a hard
heart, a fearful looking for of judgement to
come, and a fiery indignation." On Sabbath
morning he took his Bible, retired to spend the
day in fasting and prayer, and at a moment
when he most expected hell, and most desired
forgiveness, the Lord was pleased to make
that juncture of extremity his favouring oppor¬
tunity. He opened the sacred volume. He
cast his eyes upon Isaiah xli. 10: "Fear not,
for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I
am thy God; I will strengthen thee, yea I will
help thee, yea I will uphold thee by the right
hand of my righteousness." His youthful soul
melted into softness, and his eyes into tears.
His released spirit rejoiced in God his Saviour.
His faith laid hold on the precious promises,
and he claimed the " Strength of Israel" as the
portion of his soul forever. Shortly after he
joined the church, and was baptized with oth¬
ers in Savannah river. This (probably) took
place in the year of our Lord 1770, when he
was about 2'2 years of age.
11
No wonder (to those with whom he labour¬
ed) that he delighted to dwell upon experimen¬
tal religion. No wonder the briny, tear should
crystallize upon his time-furrowed checks, and
fall upon his expanding bosom, while he so of¬
ten 44 lifted up his voice like a trumpet," and as
an encouragement to others, particularly the
weak and feeble, he declared what great things
the Lord had done for his soul. And may we
not firmly believe that it was naught else but
that fervent charity which 44 believeth all things,
endureth all things, and hopeth all things," that
actuated him to cry aloud and spare not, and
invite sinners of every age, colour and nation,
(where he was permitted to go) to flee from
the wrath to come and accept of the Lord on
gospel terms, that they might have in their en¬
joyment "pure and undefiled religion" here,
and eventually, an 44 abundant admittance" into
the everlasting kingdom of his Lord and Mas¬
ter.
CHAP. Ill
His first Attempts in the Ministry.
Abraham soon began to exercise in publick
with some advantage and considerable appro¬
bation, both with those in the church and
-among them without.
In the year 1771, on the first day of Janua¬
ry, his affectionate father and beloved mother,
with all their family, came and settled on the
Big Kiokee Creek, where they lived in credit
until Daniel Marshall reached his 78th, and
Martha Marshall her 77th year of age, when
12
both, like ripe sheaves, arose from this earth to
heaven, and went to their eternal home, bear¬
ing their burdens heavenwards rejoicing. Abra¬
ham had made a few small tours, preaching
with some of his senior brethren. Some little
time after he had moved into the State of Geor¬
gia, a gentleman from Long Cane, high up in
South Carolina, heard him preach. He was
much taken with the discourse, and pressed him
for an appointment. He was favoured with
one at a month's distance. The time soon rol¬
led round when he was to comply. Abraham
regretted the engagement. He was to travel
forty miles through a country inhabited by the
untutored savage, a waste, howling wilderness,
"with here and there a wigwam. Lik» Jonah,
he would have deserted the cause. He wish¬
ed himself sick. No excuse would satisfy his
troubled mind, while he reflected that it was a
dreary country, the road was seldom travelled,
and then not without a way-bill. He then re¬
collected that he had none; and yet he must go,
without the prospect of one stable at any house
of entertainment, or one solitary pasture.
While trying to pacify himself with this, as an
excuse, he was aroused as if he had been spo¬
ken to—" 1 will find you a bill." Filled with
doubts and fears and unbelief, he commenced
his journey, and crossed Little River. When
he had travelled about fifteen miles through
this desert land, it struck his mind, " It is high
time you had looked for your way bill.'* Cast¬
ing his eyes on the side of the Indian trading
f>ath, about two or three rods, lo, there it lay!
nstantly he seized his prize, mounted his horse
again, these words saluting him forcibly—
J When I sent you without scrip or purse, lack-
13
ed you any thing ?" No, was his answer, and
he went on his way strengthened in faith.
When he arrived at his destined place, on
the Lord's Day, a mixed multitude of Indians,
Indian traders,. Irish, and the uncultivated of.
all sorts, some who had never heard a sermon
before, had collected together. To them he
published the word of life. Some gazed, some
wondered, and some felt the power of the
word, were deeply affected, moved down a
little lower in {he settlements,' and shortly af¬
ter became useful members of a flourishing
church.
CHAP. IV.
His Ordination, Sic.
In 1772, the Baptist Church of Christ at
Kiokee was constituted. The Rev. Daniel
Marshall was its pastor until the 2d of Novem¬
ber, 1784. It was formed by the uniting to¬
gether of a number of members on both sides
of the Savannah river. It has since been like
the Hill described by the evangelical prophet,
on the which the mattock had passed. It was
famous for sending forth oxen and lesser cattle,
or ministers and materials for other churches.
Among these were the Rev. Messrs. Sanders
Walker, Silas Mercer, Charles Bussey, and
John Boyd, beside about fifteen more among
the ablest and most orthodox divines in the
State. This church continued to "lengthen
her cords and strengthen her stakes, breaking
forth on the right hand and on the left," until
the years 1775—6, when Georgia became the
14
field of blood. Britons, Tories and Savages
constantly invaded the upper parts. Yet ru¬
ined, murdered and distressed as many were,
publick worship was generally kept up, and
prayer for church and state constantly made.
Their numbers were reduced in the long and
bloody war; some were driven away, and oth¬
ers fell in the field.
In the year 1775, Abraham Marshall had
continued to make such proficiency in theology,
and because such an " excellent spirit was found
in him," it was thought proper, and deemed
^expedient, that he should be examined, and if
approved, set apart for the ministry. Accor¬
dingly, on the 20th of May, 1775, the Rev.
Sanders Walker and Daniel Marshall were
chosen as a presbytery to perform his ordina¬
tion, and favour him with credentials, which
read as follows:
"We, the subscribers, having examined into
the call and qualifications of our beloved bro¬
ther Marshal], (upon a recommendation of his
doctrine and manner of life, from the church he
is a member of,) have publickly set him apart
to the work of the ministry by imposition of
hands; and he is duly authorized to preach
the word, administer baptism and the Lord's
Supper, and to exercise himself in the several
parts of the ministerial functions in any church,
when properly called upon, either statedly or
occasionally.
(Signed) DANIEL MARSHALL.
SANDERS WALKER.
20th May, 1775.
13
CHAP. V;
His Call as Pastor to the Church at Ktokeb, and Pre«-
parations for travelling to the north.
The Church at Kiokee has been famous for
its Catholicism. When the Presbyterians first
came in its vicinity, its doors were opened for
their labours. The Methodists met with a
kind reception here, and since then, it has been
willing, and has received the orderly among
Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Qua¬
kers and Baptists.
After the departure of the Rev. Daniel
Marshall, Abraham, his son, was called to offici¬
ate in his parochial office, in the year 1784 or 5.
He continued as pastor, discharging his '•sa¬
cred functions with considerable satisfaction
and fidelity as long as he lived. He was fond
of travelling. The first part of his Christian
career, (at least 13 years) was spent in itine¬
rant preaching. In this ne was sigtially blest.
It is to be wished that the reader will grant
permission for his Journal to New England to
be introduced here. It is of some length, but
contains matter enough to entertain the curious,
and warm the heart of the Christian: An am¬
nesty would be desired on account of the ec¬
centricities abundant in it, and the writer. But
as it will be detailed mostly in his own words,
and words of truth, (and truth needs no apolo¬
gy)—-will you read it ?
A SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF BENEVOLUS PHILAN-
THROPOS.
He was of the posterity of Japhet, and was
early persuaded to dwdl in the tents of Shem,
16
until, Jabez-like, his coasts were enlarged to
the ends of the earth; and being determined
to enjoy his religious liberty, he has continued
in the itinerant way thirteen years, proclaim¬
ing his Royal Master's cause throughout four of
the States. He is now determined to visit his
brethren, the adopted Children of Israel in
the North Country, and will keep a just and
true account of wnat should be to the glory of
God and to the comfort and advantage of the
people of his charge.
Before his journal is commenced, he attends
an Association in Wilkes county, Georgia. He
sat as a member. There were present ten
clergymen and one thousand people. Some
wept, and some rejoiced. Well knowing the
prejudices of people, and the disadvantages of
travelling at that time, he made publick his
intention, and sought a letter of recommenda¬
tion. It was granted, and reads as follows—
"Georgia. Our reverend brother, Abra¬
ham Marshall, being about to travel into some
of the Northern States, (particularly Connec¬
ticut) has applied to us for a letter recommen¬
datory. His praise is in all the churches, and
where he has laboured in the Gospel, (which
has been to a considerable extent) he needs
no "epistle of commendation," having many
w epistles not written with ink, but with the
Spirit of the living God."
* Given under our hands this 8th day of May.
1786. 1
PETER SMITH, Cl'k jlss'n.
SANDERS WALKER,
SILAS MERCER,
Ministers
*7
CHAP. F/.
His Tour to New England.
Wednesday, May 10, 1786. After singing .
and praying with a few of his connexions, who
had met on the serious occasion, he hade his
mother, brothers and sisters an affectionate
farewell," at twelve o'clock. Rode twenty-five
miles. Came to, and was kindly received at
his old stage, B. Ryan's, S. C. Tarried and
had evening lecture.
11. Travelled thirty miles, lodged at Mr.
Norris's, and had family wor^Jiip.
12. Rode forty miles in the heat, through
the scorching sand-hills. Seemed much fa¬
tigued, but found his soul enlarged to admire
the Great Parent of the universe, who so gra^*
ciously spread his pavilion over the innumera¬
ble host of the Israelites while in like condi¬
tion, in the deserts of Arabia. Surely, said he,
" The Lord is good, and his mercies endure
forever." Hospitably received at Mr. Taylor's.
13. Rode forty miles. Caught in a terri¬
ble storm of thunder, lightning, wind, rain and
hail. If this small engagement of only a part
of the elements, was so alarming, good heavens t
what an awful and tremendous scene will it be,
when all, like contending armies in fierce array,
display their power until they expire in " the
wreck af matter and the crush of worlds."
Courteously entertained in Camden, at Mr.
Reed's, and spent the evening very agreeably.
Sunday, 14. Wa9 under the disagreeable
necessity of travelling in order to attend an As¬
sociation. Rode thirty miles. This was the
3
i a
third Sabbath he allowed himself to break in
that sort. Abode with Mr. Perkins, Lentio
Creek.
15. Travelled late in the night to Mrs.
RatclifF's, forty miles. Rode thirty-five miles
on Tuesday, and caught in a second storm of
thunder^ lightning, rain and wind, which rent
the lofty pines and snapt the stubborn oaks,
hurling their branches through the air like
hailstones, while those swift messengers of
death threatened destruction on every side.
Amidst the hifrricane he fled to the Munition
of Rocks, and said,
u Let mountains from their seats be hurl'd
Down to the deep, and buried there— 1
Convulsions shake the solid world ;
My faith shall never yield to fear."
Tarried at Mr. Grimes's in the Scotch Settle¬
ment.
17. Aimed to shoot the gulf of the Scotch.
Rode forty-five miles. Met with hospitable
treatment at Mrs. Moore's. On a retrospec¬
tive view, he thought—What rueful aspects
have I seen these few days past. People in
huts, on sand-hills as barren as Arabia, at cards,
games, &c. &c. They appear neither to toil
nor spin, abject and poor; and yet it is to be
doubted whether Croesus, in all his riches, was
happier than they.
18. Rode forty miles. Intended to reach
brother Stansel's, on Little River. Got lost;
night and rain came on; felt very disconsolate,
expecting to lie in the woods, without house or
fire. After wandering some time, came to a
house; was denied admittance ; called at ano¬
ther and obtained permission to spend the
night.
19
" The trials that those men befall,
Who are obedient to the heavenly call,
Are terrible, and fitted to the fleah,
Afld come, and come, and come again afresh."
19. Rode forty miles. Kindly received at
Mr. Sinson's on Tar River, near Tarborough.
20. Travelled forty miles to Mr. Sholder's.
He is an old, rigid Quaker, who accosted Phi¬
lanthropes in the most abrupt manner he ever
met with ,in his life ; telling him " he was de¬
luded, and deceived by the Devil, and that he
had no business to preach." He was an ageel
man and a stranger. Benevolus was put to his
trumps. He begged a hearing before he was
condemned, and at last brought him to terms ;
but was frighted out of his prayers. Oh, fie,
fie, fie, fie!—said he to himself—I have been a
soldier almost twenty-seven years, and no more
of a hero in the faith.
Sunday, 21. . Travelled sixteen miles, which
brought me to Mr. Freeman's just as Israel
were rallying their forces, two thousand in num¬
ber. Their watchmen were mounting the
walls in order to sound a dread alarm in God's
Holy Mount, l^enevolus was called upon to
"lift up his voice with their voices." Saints
shouted victory; fearfulness seized sinners; the
whole was solemn, awful and affecting. Oh,
that Israel's God may have all the praise.
On Monday, 22d, he was admitted as a
help in the Association until 3 P. M. He then
retired to a stage and preached with great
freedom to six hundred. The shout of w the
King was in the camp, and he will reign on his
holy hill of Zion. Selah."
20
chap, vii:
His Travels, &c. Continued.
Tuesdayj JWay 23. Rested at Mr. Free¬
man's, a man ot large possessions, who fears
God and hates covetousness.
24* Travelled twelve miles and preached
a funeral sermon to a hundred. Hearers wept
aloud. Lodged at Mr Briton's. Had family
lecture.
25. Rode thirty miles in a powerful rain
for the chief of the day, and was received by,
and tarried with the Rev* Mr. MrCabe, and
preached at his meeting-house on Friday, 26th,
to a hundred people, with freedom. No migh-
>ne, " because of their unbelief."
had made a feast like a princes.
I called it a love-feast. Indeed, every* thing
appeared decent and in order. We ate and
drank, and praised the name of the Lord.
27. Travelled sixteen miles, preached at
Rev. Mr. Barrows' and assisted in constituting
his Church. "Zion's cords are lengthening,
and her stakes Strengthening, and she is break¬
ing forth on the right hand and on the left."
Tarried at said Barrows'.
Sunday, 28. By reason of the heavy rains,
waters were exceeding high. Through much
difficulty got to the meeting-house; preached
with great freedom to two hundred hearers,
who appeared 'warmly affected. Oh, that" it
may produce a " hundred, sixty, or thirty fold."
Continued at Barrows' until
30. With much ado crossed Black River:
was invited home with Mr.
21
rode twenty-five miles. On account of high
waters every place locked like death. Met a
gentleman on the way. Finding Benevolus a
stranger, he took him in; was hungry, and he
fed him; was thirsty, and he gave him drink.
Then said he, May the good Lord reward the
gentleman" for his favours to one "less than the
least.'' Passed on and was received with hos¬
pitality in the evening, by Mr. Barlow, the fa¬
ther of the celebrated Joel Barlow.
31. Travelled twelve miles and came to-
the banks of James River, near to the place
where our ancestors, about two hundred years
ago, made their first plantations. Went four
miles up, into the vicinity of the place where
the traitor Arnold landed his seditious, refrac¬
tory crew. The new discovery brought to his
.mind the following lines :
" When Britain, mov'd by Rome and hell,
Did saint and subject slay,
We fled from them, came here to dwell,
In North America.1'
The river is four miles wide. The wind was
raging, and so exceedingly high that Philan-
thropos was prevented his passage, and tarried
at Captain Hardy's.
Thursday, June 1, being the eleventh day of
what is called bad weather, or storm, he resol¬
ved early in the morning, if possible, to cross
the river. Embarked with Kev. John Asp-
land, who had been acquainted with great wa¬
ters, wind and tide. Though they were oppo¬
site, or contrary, we encountered the difficulty
with a becoming fortitude for the space of one
hour and thirty minutes; advanced a mile and
a quarter^, just entering the edge of the gulf or
channel, when, Agag-like, we began to think
the u bitterness of death was past." 'All o» a.
22
sudden the clouds looked angry, the heavens
began to darken, the rain descended in delug¬
ing torrents, the winds blew boisterously, the
waters were tempestuous and dashed oyer our
heads; we nlounted on the waves aloft, then
plunged anon into the awful, gaping chasm.
The whole crew were brought to their wits'
end, and urged a retreat; Philanthropos, an
advance to the distant shore, and lent his
hand to the oar; but to no purpose. After
being in " perils in the deep," tossed to and fro
between the two contending elements, till we
reeled like a " drunken man," the storm still
increasing, we found it impracticable to prose¬
cute our design, and were obliged to secure a
retreat, to our great mortification, after toiling
two hours and thirty-three minutes, when we
landed safe on the shore from which we de-
panted. Philanthropos expressed his courage
and confidence amidst all the danger: yea, ne
said he had a secret satisfaction that compensa¬
ted him for his trouble, in beholding the won¬
drous Works of God. He said he believed that
that God who measured the flood in the hollow
of his hand, and held the rushing wind in his
fist, would let neither hurt nor injure him.
Tarried that night at Captain Hardy's, and
comforted himself with believing that "all
things would work together for his good."
CHAP. VIII. '
His Journal Continued.
Friday, June 2. Arose very early in the
morning. The wind and water raged and roar¬
ed aloud} as if the elements conspired to pre-
23
vent a passage. The rowers were exceeding
loth to attempt it with so little prospect of suc¬
cess.' A reward was promised them if they
would exert themselves, and we embarked
with all the fortitude we were masters of, de¬
termined, if possible, to reach the distant shore.
After being tost from wave to wave, two hours
and twenty-nine minutes, we landed at the de¬
sired port, rode twelve miles and came to Y ork-
town, on the river of the same name. This is
the place where the "God of war" wrought
salvation for his American Israel. Here are
still remaining many signs of the grand con¬
test. Here artificial lightning flashed; thun¬
dering cannons, fraught with destruction, roar¬
ed aloud; the earth trembled; the heavens
darkened ; hundreds of heroick warriours,
wrapt in reeking streams of purple gore, in
awful agonyj bade the world farewell. Shall
we ever trifle with our lives and our civil and
religious liberty, when blood—blood is the
price of both ? May the Great Governour of all
worlds forbid. Crossed the river one mile and
a quarter in width; one hour and nineteen
minutes on the passage, and rode thirty-five
miles in the rain. This is the nineteenth day
of wet; and this part of the country being very
level and flat, you may judge that travelling
was attended with great difficulty, especially
for a stranger. Kindly entertained that even¬
ing by Mr. Tabs, on North River.
3. Rested at Mr. Tabs', a wealthy gentle¬
man, given to hospitality.
Sunday, 4. Crossed the river, one mile over,
preached with ease and freedom to five hun¬
dred people. The word was attended with
power. Returned to Tabs'.
24
5. At Tabs'. Preached to three hundred
hearers, who were as warm as ever I met
with. Had to stop several times in the dis¬
course, to let the people cry, " Hosannah to
the Son of David." Embarked in the evening
with some friends in a pleasure-boat. to take
the air in the bay. Went back to Mr. Tabs',
and spent the evening very agreeably.
6. Preached (at the meeting-house Rev-
Mr. Finsley used to occupy) to three hundred.
■Well behaved. The power of the Lord ac¬
companied the word. Returned to Tabs'. *
7. Preached at Mr. Tabs' to one hundred
and fifty, with equal effect.
3. Preached at the meeting-house again to
two hundred, who were very orderly, and re¬
turned again to Mr. Tabs'. This is the sixth
day I have been at his house, feasting on the
dainties of tl)e three elements—fowl, flesh, fish,
oysters, crabs, cockles, &c. &c. Then sang
Philanthropos—
" The Lord my shepherd is,
Want therefore shall not I:
Oh may tny work be his,
And in him let me die."
9. Crossed Chesapeake Bay, forty miles
over. Set sail in Rev. John Gales' vessel, at
six, A. M. and landed at three, P. M. being nine
hours among the waves of great waters. Made
Benevolus Philanthropos a little sick; yet the
new adventures, and discoveries of the great
works of God, drowned the pain amidst the
pleasure. Here could be seen old ocean wal¬
lowing in its tremendous chasm, which by or¬
ders from Heaven, in one general inundation,
deluged millions of the antediluvians, now bound
by the mandate of the great Jehovah, " Hither¬
to, and bo further."
tl'J
41 Here larger monsters of the deep,
In silver scales they shine;
Here they obey their Maker, God,
And lash the foaming brine."
Landed safe and was genteelly treated by a
gentleman on the eastern shore. Dined and
spent the evening with him; made prayers
and retired to rest.
CHAP. IX.
Journal Continued.
Saturday, 10. Met a second Association at
Mr. Baker's, where we were jcined bj Rev.
Hughes, Mims, Armstead, &c. After hearing
Mr, Gales, Philanthropos spoke with great
freedom, to six or eight of the clergy and three
hundred people. Tarried with a wealthy,
generous friend by the name of Rispy.
Sunday, 11. Hughes and Armstead preach¬
ed ; afterwards, Philanthropos, to fifteen h»p-
dred, who gave great attention to the word of
the Lord. May the " Master of assemblies
make it as a nail in a sure place."
12. Sat in the Association till two o'clock;
then spoke to four hundred, who were atten¬
tive. Oh that the word dropped may be as
" the snow and the rain that watereth the earth
that it linay bring forth seed to the sower and
bread to the eater." Lodged with several of
the clergy at Mr. Gofegon's. At this place
heard an Ethiopian preach from Joshua—Ye
cannot serve the Lord." He first shewed who
could not serve him; second, why j third, who
could, and how. His reasoning was masterly.
4
20
It was a dispute whether a minister (under
his disadvantages) at the Association could
have exceeded him. Surety, this is the Lord's
doinfr, and it is " marvellous in our ey es." Res¬
ted on Tuesday with Rev. Baker, who appears
to be a very pious man of God, whose labours
have been greatly owned and blessed of the
Lord.
34. Preached at Wm. Jarvis's to one hun*.
dred and twenty. Spent the evening very
agreeably at Mr. Rispy's; lectured, and went
to bed. *
15. Rode twelve miles, and preached in
N. Hampton Court-house to three hundred and
eighty. Well behaved. Benevolus Philan-
thropos was remarkably assisted to speak with
liberty and clearness ; invited to dine with Dr.
Fulwell; lodged at Mr. Jones's.
16. Rode sixteen miles, and preached at
TVir. Scott's to three hundred hearers. Had
great enlargement of mind; people uncommon¬
ly attentive. Oh that some good may be done
in the name " of the Holy Child Jesus." Amen.
17. Heard Hughes preach, and Philanthro-
pos closed with a lecture and exhortation with
life and liberty. At Mr. Robinson's, in the
evening, the word was made powerful in the
hearts of hearers.
Sunday, 18. Travelled twenty miles, prea-
Glied at a gentleman's house to two hundred,
treated in a most hospitable manner, and spent
the evening very sociably with several friends.
At a late hour committed ourselves to God and
retired to rest. Said Philanthropos, " I will lay
me down in sleep, for the Lord keepeth me in
safety."
19. Rode sixteen miles and laboured to
27
ninety. Spent the evening at Rev. Lafield's,.
who lives on the sea side. We took a small
voyage at sea in a pleasure-boat with three of
the clergy, and bathed in the ocean. The sur¬
ges rolled high. " Here go the ships." Here
is the leviathan that God has made to play
therein. How great and marvellous are thy
works in this vast world of waters, O Lord!
20. Went with Lafield to his meeting and
preached to three hundred as warm as any he
met with oti his way. Preaching is easy to such
a people, especially with the Divine Influence.
21. A constant rain prevented travelling
until evening; then rode twelve miles and
rested at Mr. Dickinson's. Here is household
religion. The old gentleman, his wife, and all
their children have been baptized on profes¬
sion of their faith, and appear zealously bound
for " Mount Zion."
t* i came Salisbury,
John Nelors, and had family lecture*
23. Rested, and gave notice of a Saturday-
and Sunday meeting. Taught them morning'
and evening, and was treated genteelly.
24. Attended meeting in Hughes' meeting¬
house, irr Salisbury. Was surprised that the
news of a preacher who had come six hundred
miles, brought only forty-six hearers together.
They appeared to have neither curiosity nor
Christianity. Oh that these " foolish virgins'*
Would awake, lest at midnight,.
From tenfold darkness, sudden as the spark-
From smitten steel. Then the day will break
Which never more shall close.
Above, beneath, around, amazement all;
Our God in grandeur, and our world on flaniest
And consternation turn them pale."
■u The pomp shoold burst
Sunday, 25. At the same place, in the same
town, to the same people (with about a hun¬
dred more,) the same person attempted to
preach. " But as were the people, so was the
priest." He made the most insipid declamation
he ever heard himself—-calculated no more to
awaken sinners than the report of a pop-gun
would be to alarm the dead. " O wretched
man that 1 am! who shall deliver me from this-
body of sin and death?" Rode twelve miles
after sermon and lodged at a stranger's.
o o
CHAP. X.
His Travels Continued.
Monday,- 26. Travelled thirty-five miles.
Just as Philanthropos had arrived near the
Rev. Davis*, where he meant to quarter, he
asked a matron the way to the Parsons? She
answered, " You have left him behind." u But
is there not one in advance ?" " Oh, you mean
the preacher ?" " Pray, Madam, what is the
difference ?" " A great deal," said she. " Don't
the parson preach?" " Yes." "And the preach¬
er too ?" " Yes, but" said she, " the parson is
properly sent." By what could be learnt, the
parson had been a school-master, and was now
clothed with authority, by a bishop, to shew
the way to heaven. His talents were brilliant
at ditties and gambling. The other was a pi¬
ous man of God, who had the hands of tne
Presbytery. Yet one was a despicable prea¬
cher, and the other a venerable clergyman.
Oh Lord! how long shall superstitious igno¬
rance make the people cry out, "Great is Di¬
ana of the" Episcopalians.
29
27. Rode twenty-five miles, which brought
me to Duck Creek, and was kindly received by
Dr. Jones, in Delaware. Had family lecture
and reposed.
28. Travelled thirty miles, through seve¬
ral towns, came toWilhamstown, flourishing and
elegant, the largest in the state, where there-
are a number of the brethren who have shewn
their zeal for the Lord of hosts in building a
large brick meeting-house, the best in the town.
Lodged at Mr. Caleb Way's.
29. Visited, and lectured to a hundred in
the evening with unusual freedom. The word
commanded strict attention. If it is obeyed, it
will and shall be blest. Lodged at Mr. An¬
gers', This is the second Baptist household.
Oh that the Lord would turn his hand to the
little ones and gather in the Lambs of the flock,
that our families may be churches for God.
30. Entered Pennsylvania, and preached in
the court-house in Chestertown, to two minis¬
ters and thirteen others. Two of the thirteen
were seriously alarmed, and hopefully convert¬
ed at his return. Rode twenty miles and cros¬
sed the Schuylkill on a floating bridge. Came
to Philadelphia, the most elegant and magni¬
ficent city on the continent. Entering between
Schuylkill and Delaware, three miles the
streets were paved with stone; the houses
were of hewn stone and brick, six and seven
stories high including the cellars, which are
occupied for kitchens, shops, &c. &c. Kindly
received by the Rev. Mr. Ustick. Introduced
to Rev. Messrs. Wra. Rodgers and Staneliff.
July 1. Had the curiosity to walk with the
Rev. Ustick tq (it is supposed) the best
market in the universe, extending more than
30
a quarter of a mile, and so crowded with
men, and women, and children, that it is
With difficulty a person can pass. Here
may be seen almost all manner of flesh, fowl,
fish, fruits, herbs, roots, &c. &c. &c. &c. At
the Rev. Stancliff's, in the evening, lectured to
thirty, who appeared serious.
Sunday, 2. Heard Mr. Ustick in the morn¬
ing, and Philanthropos preached at two P. M.
and 6 o'clock, in the city, to four hundred.
Nothing extraordinary. Little appearance of
religion. Oh Lord, make Philadelphia answer
its name.
3. Walked with Rev. Ustick, to the Uni¬
versity, attended on the Commencement, heard
nine orations from the students and saw them
receive their degrees. Had evening lecture at ~
Mr. Walker's.
4. This is the first day that wheat has been
seen cut this year. Brother Ustick gave a let¬
ter recommendatory as follows:
" Brother Abraham Marshall is travelling to
New England, has preached in Philadelphia,
io my satisfaction, and the comfort of others.
His character is worthy in our southern chur¬
ches, and do therefore cheerfully request my
Christian friends to receive him kindly in the
Lord. THOMAS USTICK."
"July 4, 1786."
Rode today twenty-five miles, crossed the
Delaware River, one mile over, came to Bor-
dentown, New Jersey, kindly received by Rev.
B. Allison, who has an academy and a number
of students, very promising indeed. Had an
opportunity of seeing his philosophical and
other apparatus, telescope, microscope, &c.
Very agreeably spent the evening in company
'31
with Messrs. Allison and Wilson; had family
lecture, committed ourselves to God, and re¬
tired to rest.
CHAP. XI.
Peregrinations Continued.
Wednesday, 5. Rode twenty miles. Affec¬
tionately received by Oliver Hart, in Hopewell.
He is a father in Israel. Spent the evening
in religious conversation.
6. Breakfasted at Mr. Stout's, father of
Mrs. Smith; rode twenty-five miles; kindly
treated and taken in by Smith, sire of the Rev.
Peter Smith. Notice was given for preaching
and forty attended; spoke with freedom.
7. Rested and perused Backus' 2d volume
of the History of the Baptists in New England.
The number collected by him is 7783. Lec¬
tured in the evening to one hundred and fifty,
rather insipidly, but hope the Lord will bid him
launch out and let down the net on the right
side next time, and enclose a multitude.
8. Called at the Sabbatarian meeting-house.
Mr. Rogers invited Benevolus to preach, who
readily complied. Had a happy morning sea¬
son. They urged a second sermon—received
the Spirit—the word appeared to be accom¬
panied with the Divine Energy to the hearts of
almost all (three hundred in number) who
were present. Rode six miles -and tarried at
Mr. Randolph's, a zealous advocate for tlie
seventh day.
Sunday, 9. Rode ten miles, which brought
Philanthropos to the Rev. Varihorn's, in the
Scotch Plains, where he preached to six hun-
32
drcd; exceedingly well-behaved. After ser¬
mon, iVfVs. Vanhorn and nine more submitted
to the ordinance of baptism. Here is a very
great revival of religion. People run t<5 and
fro to hear the word, and listen as for their
lives. Preached a second sermon four miles
below, to five hundred, in a large barn. Was
more enlarged than in the morning. Surely,
said Philanthropos to himself, "The God of
my fathers hath sent his angel before me to
prepare my way." " Not unto me, not unto
me, but unto thy name, O Lord, be the praise."
Abode with Vanhorn.
10. R e.«ted the fore part of the day. Be¬
ing near the valley of dry bones, took a melan¬
choly walk among the mansions of the dead:
read the epitaph of the Rev. and pious Benja¬
min Miller. He was formerly pastor here.
"If grace, and worth, and usefulness,
Could mortal? screen from death's arrest,
Miller had never lain in dust ;
Hence, characters inferiour, must."
Preached at five o'clock at Deacon Brooks',
with liberty. The congregation was unusually
solemn and attentive; several remained weep¬
ing after sermon, and seemed loth to depart
until they had seen the Lord's Christ. Tarri¬
ed all night in company with the Rev. Van¬
horn, and drunk cider seven years old.
11. Travelled twenty-two miles, and cross¬
ed Hackensack river, two miles over—TNorth
river one and a quarter mile wide. Came
to New York, and lectured in the evening to
a small society of about sixty. Staid with the
Rev. John Gano, in company with Rev. Man¬
ning, D. D. and President of the Baptist Col¬
lege in Rhode Island. Both appear to be
great men of God.
33
12. Remained in the city; went to the
Continental Congress; saw the Georgia Dele-
ates; preached at five, P. M. to about one
undred of the prisoners and poor in the work¬
house ; lectured again at seven, in Rev. John
Gano's meeting-house, to a hundred and fifty,
with freedom. Tarried at Gano's with the
President.
13. Benevolus rode thirty-five miles through
the most romantick part of the world he ever
saw inhabited; stones, rocks,, hills, mountains,
rivers, seas, &c. &c. Met three beggars in the
day; of a little, gave a little. Tarried at Dr.
Dage's.
14. Entered the land of my nativity, i. e.
New England. Passed through Horse-neck
Town, travelled twelve miles and came to
Stanford Town. Here is a meeting-house which
the Rev. Davenport formerly occupied, eighty-
three years old, of wood, without repairing.
Here also is a stone fence, or wall, three miles
in length. Hospitably treated by Rev. Ebei>
ezer Faris.
15. Rested, and perused Dr. Gill's Body of
Divinity. Abode at the same place.
Sunday, 16. Preached twice at the meet¬
ing-house of said Farish to one hundred. One
zealous Presbyterian lady was disarmed, and
declared she never would fight the Baptists
any more. Lectured in the town, at five, r. M.
to one hundred, and tarried there.
17. Rode thirty miles, through several
towns, and put up at Milford ? the people ex¬
pecting they had a Presbyterian minister.
18. Rode thirty miles, through several
towns, and came to the city of New Haven.
Courteously entertained by the father of Mrr
s
34
Abraham Baldwin; breakfasted and dined with
him. In this part of the world, in travelling
forty miles, not one pannel of fence is to be
seen, though there is the best of timber, seem¬
ingly, for rails, being seven or eight feet in cir¬
cumference. Yet scarce as timber is, (ironi¬
cally speaking) they yoke their horses, cattle,
sheep, geese and hogs; hopping, lowing, squal¬
ling, squealing, under their fettering yokes, they
feed surrounded by stone fences. Called m
the evening for entertainment—was denied—
hallooed a second—No! was the answer. Be-
nevolus plead he was a stranger, 1100 miles
from home; was lost; it was in the night, dark
and rainy. No!—I must!—and got off my horse.
The man did not seem to have the least idea
of risking a stanger in hopes of " an angel una¬
wares."
19. Rode thirty miles, through Wethers-
field and Hartford, and came to the town of
Windsor, in which he was born. Here he was
kindly received by his cousin, the Rev. Eliakim
Marshall, a man of great reasoning faculties
and sound judgement. He has had seven hun¬
dred votes for Governoiir of Connecticut, has
had a seat in the Legislature five years, has
been a Presbyterian minister thirty years, and
a great opposer of the apostolick ordinance of
baptism. They told each other what God had
done for their souls the first evening they met,
and expressed Christian fellowship. Near to
this town are to be seen forty acres in onions.
20. Walked into the middle of the town to
see where his. grandfather and father chose
their habitations, and the house where he first
drew his breath. " Surely their lines were in
a pleasant place, and verily they had a goodly
35
heritage," an elegant structure and a fertile
soil. Lectured to a Presbyterian society- that
was reared in my grandfather's day, and atten¬
ded by his father, and now continues ■ Lec¬
tured again at candle-light, at the house of
aunt Eunice Enos to one hundred. Had great
happines in speaking to his kindred. Abode
at her house.
21. Arose early in the morning, had pray¬
ers, and visited in the fore part of the day.
Was then more than one thousand miles from
home; had need of the " wisdom of serpents
and the innocence of doves," to win the affeo
tions and alarm the consciences of a people
who were much imposed on by readers, instead
- of preachers of the Gospel. Spoke with liber¬
ty and freedom, at five, P. M. to sixty. The
word seemed to kindle the forty years old
spark in their breasts, and there appeared
some hopes, through rich, free, and sovereign
grace, that it would raise a flame. Lodged at
E. Marshall's, and shaved in a China shaving-
box once belonging to his great-great-grandfa¬
ther, one hundred and twenty-three years old,
and yet good.
22. Visited again in town, read, prayed, &C.
and prepared for the Lord's day. Tarried at
the same place*
Sunday, 23. Preached in Pocomack meet¬
ing-house, at ten olclock A. M. with considera¬
ble ease, to three hundred; at two P. M. to
four hundred, and at six P. M. in Broad-street,
to four hundred and fifty, with great freedom,
boldness and courage, as one having authority,
and not as the scribes, " themselves being
judges."
24. Preached again on the east side of the
S6
river, in Windsor. Although a busy time, one
hundred came, and expressed a great desire to
hear the word. It appeared to reach from
heart to heart.
CHAP. XII.
His Journal, &c. Continued.
Tuesday, 25. Set out for Canaan to see his
cousin, Rev. Jos. Marshall. Preached an eve¬
ning lecture at his cousin Enos's to a hundred,
who were very attentive to the word of the
Lord. Being about the middle of summer, the
nights exceedingly short, and the inhabitants
work amazingly hard, yet they complained he
preached too* short. He replied he had rather
near that, than an opposite complaint. Was
iDvited, and tarried with Mr. King.
26. Travelled fifteen miles and came to
Granville in the State of Massachusetts. Al¬
though it is the last of July, the people are in
the midst of harvest; yet in the space of two
hours one hundred collected and opened the
meeting-house for him and heard the word
gladly. Their minister attended and behaved
genteelly, asked him home, &c. &c. This is
the eleventh State Philanthropos has preached
in, and yet how far has he come short of obey¬
ing his Royal Master's commission—" To all
the world."
27. Preached again in the same town to
«x hundred hearers. After sermon one woman
and two Presbyterian Ministers bore testimo¬
ny to the truth they heard, so that the word
yvas confirmed by three witnesses beside the
37
speaker. Oh that the people may not be faith*
less but believing. Amen. Tarried at Dea¬
con Ross's with the two Ministers ; had some
conversation on baptism; both parties kept
their ground.
28. Rode thirty miles and came to Rev.
Joseph Marshall's m Canaan, with his cousin
E. Marshall—three Ministers, all Marshalls.
Spent the evening in religious conversation.
29. Visited in the town, and prayed with a
lad twelve years old, worn down with the con¬
sumption. He seemed sensible that his disso¬
lution was near, and of his need of a Saviour.
A few days previous, called to see a young la¬
dy in the morning of her years bidding the
world farewell. The weather is uncomforta¬
bly cold, and the wheat, oats and rye are green
as a leek at this season. The phthisis pulmo-
nalisor consumption, abounds more in the
North than in the South. It baffles the phy¬
sician and mocks the power of medicine.
Sundyy, 30. Had a happy season in the
morning lecture. His soul was made " like the
chariots of Aminadaball on the run for hea*
ven, while at worship with his two cousins.
Heard Eliakim Marshall preach, A. M. In the
afternoon Benevolus Philanthropos preached
with uncommon freedom and liberty. This is
the thirteenth time the Lord has assisted him
in a special manner to preach to his country¬
men. Said Benevolus to himself, " Shall I ev¬
er doubt God's aid again ? The Lord forbid*"
" Here I'll raise my Ebenezer»
Hither by thy grace I've come,
And I hope by thy good favour,
Safely to arrive at home."
Had evening society at Rev. J. Marshall's.
The good Lord was pleased to visit Abraham's
• »
38
soul this evening in such a peculiar manner,
that holiness appeared pleasant and desirable.
Oh, how did he long to be more holy, and cry,
jioly, holy, holy Lord God Almighty! fill the
earth with thy glory—Amen and Amen.
31. Preached at said Marshall's to three
ministers, and one hundred people, found his
heart much enlarged; several struck under
powerful concern about their souls, asking what
the 1 n i - * ^aved.
freedom to two hundred, who paid extraordina¬
ry attention to the stranger. He is now con¬
vinced that the Lord owns itinerant preaching.
Oh, what a glorious privilege it is to be a pil¬
grim and servant of the Lord.
2. Preached at Dr. Gilo's to three of the
clergy and three hundred people, who appear¬
ed much engaged to hear the word of the
Lord. Oh, how good is the Father of Mer¬
cies to such a worthless reptile of the earth.
Tarried at the Doctor's, and was treated with
hospitality. Had great happiness in family lec¬
ture.
3. Had a Presbyterian meeting-house open¬
ed for him in town and preached to four of
their ministers and twenty hearers; had great
freedom in speaking; abode with Col. Thomas
Marshall. Heard Rev. J. Marshall give an
evening lecture; Philanthropos gave a family
one.
4. Rev. Mr. Mills opened his meeting-house;
heard two others; attended on his congrega¬
tion, consisting of two hundred; cramped a lit¬
tle, but kept the line of truth. After sermon,
was invited to see an old acquaintance of his
parents, a pious saint on the verge of eternitv.
Preached with great
39
wishing for her departure and longing for glory.
Sang and prayed with her, and took leave of
her till we meet in a world of spirits. Was in¬
vited, and tarried with said Mills and two other
ministers. Spent the evening in religious con¬
versation. In the morning they rallied their
forces, and all as one made a sortie on Philan¬
thropes as a Baptist. He told them to give
him fair play and meet him one at a time, and
he was ready for them. Rev. Mills first drew
his sword, but soon put it in the scabbard, say¬
ing, " he had not proved it on that occasion."
The other two seemed willing to secure a re¬
treat ; time failed; the duel ended.
5. Preached at Wintonbury; three Pres¬
byterian and one Baptist minister attended with
two hundred and fifty hearers; the power of
the Lord was present; "The King's arrows
were made fast in the hearts of his enemies."
Oh, how they groaned to the Good Physician
of souls, to heal the wounds He had made.
The saints read their title clear to heaven, and
rejoiced in hopes of eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Oh that the name of the
Lord may have all the praise. Amen.
Sunday, 6. Preached at Pocomoke meet¬
ing-house at ten o'clock, A. M. with remarka¬
ble freedom to one hundred; and at one, P. M.
•with greater elargement, to fifteen hundred
It was supposed that the house had not been
thronged so since the Rev. George Whitefield
occupied the desk. People attended from five
towns, twenty miles distant. Had the third
sermon to deliver at five, P. M. in Broad-street,
in Windsor;, hastened down with numbers of
his congregation to evening sacrifice; waa re-
enforced by numbers of every rank, so that the
40
whole multitude consisted of about two thou¬
sand. It was agreed to do that day what
might be termed a miracle : i. e. to open one
of the largest meeting-houses in the State, six¬
ty feet by fifty-five, which had been shut and
barred against the Dissenters for thirty years.
After some consultation, they broke their own
law, and opened the " sanctum sanctorum" for
unhallowed feet to tread (i. e. the desk.) Here,
I thought, Philanthropos forgot himself, and
acted the Boanerges in the town of his nativi¬
ty. Ear-gates gave way, and there appeared
a glorious prospect of the Great King Emman-
uel*s swaying the sceptre over hundreds, and
sweetly subjecting them to his easy "reign.
Who would nave thought a lad eleven hundred
miles from home, among the most rigid people
in the world, would have met with sucn a re¬
ception? But what cannot a God do? Oh that
his name may have the praise forever and ever!
Amen, and Amen.
CHAP. XIII.
His Preaching, &c. in New England.
Monday, 7. Was very poorly. Rested and
heard Rev. J. Marshall lecture at Mrs. Enos's,
and spent the evening there.
8. Preached in the city of Hartford, in the
State-house, the seat of .government of that
State, to about fifteen hundred; in general,
good behaviour; was enabled to keep the line
©f truth, though no particular power seemed
to accompany the word. " Oh, my leanness,
toy leanness!" May a sense of it force me to
41
the fountain. Amen. 9. Preached at Weatli-
ersfield, to two hundred and fifty, with remark¬
able liberty ; the word was attended with the
power of the Lord." The congregation seem*
ed generally conquered by the King's arrows
making fast in the enemies' Hearts: It appears
as if God meant Philanthropos' visit like Mo¬
ses', for the spiritual emancipation of his breth¬
ren and kindred according to the flesh. Tar¬
ried in town at Mr. Flowers'.
10. Abode with Mr. Marshall, in Windsor.
11. Preached in the east of the town to two
hundred; a little cramped. Says I to myself,
it is good for me to bear the cross, that I may
be like a bullock accustomed to the yoke.
12. Saw E. Allen on business of a temporal
nature.
Sunday, 13. Preached in a Presbyterian
meeting-house in the town of Simsbury, at ten
A. M. to twelve hundred with extraordinary
freedom; the people were uncommonly atten*
tive to the word. Attended again at two, P.
M. to twenty-four hundred. They would not
content themselves to hear at a distance, but
crowded the pews, aisles and galleries in such
an amazing manner, that just as the speaker
was about to rise, (his breast fraught and glow¬
ing with divine truths, while his secret cries
were addressing the Father of Mercies for his
assistance, the congregation solemn and atten¬
tive, anxiously waiting to hear the word) when
lo! in a moment, the greatest order was thrown
into wild confusion—The galleries, through the
enormous weight, gave way over the broad
aisle; a few saw the danger and made their
escape; the rest, seeing them leap out at the
door, took a surprise, not knowing what was
6
42
the matter. Some supposed the house was
falling; the major part thought the end of the
world was come. To describe the distraction,
confusion, disorder, pale faces, sighs, screams
and wringing of hands, would be impossible;
some jumping ov^r the pews, men and women
breaking through glass windows, making their
escape with great risk, (they being six or eight
feet high,) the rest crowding out at the
doors in a rapid manner, trampling one another
under feet, without distinction or regard to
sexes. (The last account received was that two
women were very ill. on account of their wounds
received that day.) To bring them to order,
would have been like contending with a tem¬
pest, or arguing with a hurricane. In a few
moments Philanthropos had the naked walls to
preach to. Retired from thence to the fields;
made use of a wagon as a pulpit; the sky was
a sounding-board; lifted up his voice like a
trumpet, and sounded an alarm in God's holy
mount. In the sequel, or close of the sermon,
took leave to observe—If the crack of a galle¬
ry would surprise so many hundreds,what an aw¬
ful alarm would seize the guilty sons and daugh¬
ters of Adam, when the long established laws
of nature break; the lasting foundations of the
world give way; the earth reel to and fro, like
a drunken man; the heavens rack at an unusu¬
al rate; the vast expanse of the skies wrapt
together as a scroll! Divine energy attended
the word; it spread like peals of thunder, and
the congregation appeared to take the second
alarm. God grant that they may never flatter
themselves with safety, until' they get into " the
city of refuge." All turned out to the further¬
ance of the Gospel. The news of the break-
43
j'ngof the galleries brought Benevolus Philan~
tbropos hundreds of hearers. Some said he
was " a Whitefieldsome, " a flying angel
and others, " an intruding beggar."
14. Preached in Suffield, in the Rev. Has¬
tings's meeting-house. It proved a rainy day j
notwithstanding the powerful rain, three Bap¬
tist and three Presbyterian ministers with four
hundred people, attended the word. The
Lord removed the fear of man from the speak¬
er and enabled him to speak with as much
boldness, freedom and clearness as ever he did
in his life. The house of the Lord appeared
glorious and desirable, sweet and awful. Spent
the evening in a very agreeable manner, at
Rev. Hastings's, with three of the Presbyteri¬
an clergy.
15. Agreeably to an appointment made by
a committee, attended at a meeting-house in
Wintonbury. Although the doors had been
seen open the day before, some unfortunate
mortal had nailed them fast while men slept—
but to no purpose. Notwithstanding it was the
beginning of the week and a busy season,
Jive hundred came running together, women
and men, rushed in at the windows, tore away
the bars, removed the bolts, opened the doors
and pulpit. Philanthropos told the people he
was fond of field preaching, fcmd would not wish
to give offence. They replied, " the house is
our own, and we will enjoy it; if the doctrine
should contaminate the house, the doors and
windows might be opened, and it would be pu¬
rified in six or seven days." Complied with
the request, and was more established in the
Lord's designing the visit as a blessing to New
England.
44
16. Visited in Windsor, and had evening lec¬
ture at a relation's. Tarried with Eliakim
Marshall.
17. Spent the day in trying to Settle some
concern's of my deceased father's estate.
18. On the same business, but found my
" kingdom was riot of this world." Lord, what
ti troublesome trifle is this world! Oh that
men's affections may be placed on the invisible
realities of the vast inheritance that wastetll
not away.
19. Preached in a Presbyterian meetings
house to nine hundred; very attentive and
well-behaved. Was enabled to speak with
great freedom and power. " The name of the
Lord was as ointment poure<l forth, therefore
the virgins love him."
Sunday, 20. Crossed Connecticut River and
preached in a Presbyterian meeting-house.
The minister and thirteen hundred others wTere
present and behaved with great seriousness in
the forenoon. The power of the Lord atten¬
ded the word. At 2, P. M. fifteen hundred
waited on the word. It being an exceedingly
sultry day, the doors and windows were filled,
and Philanthropos was enabled to speak wTith
more engagement than in the former part of
the day; the zeal of the Lord's house almost
ate him up; nearly fainted in the pulpit. Af¬
ter sermon some told him he would destroy
himself before his time ; he said, like General
Joab, he preferred dying at the horns of the
altar." Was invited home by Mr. Palmer, a,
wealthy gentleman of deistical principles, who
had attended on every sermon, when conveni-
nient, from the first Sabbath Philanthropos
preached in Windsor. He seriously confessed
43
he was convinced that his way would not do?
that he must serve God, and was concerned
about his soul. Oh that the Lord God of hosts
would display his power and put a stop to the
awful inundations of vice and infidelity.
21. Remained at E. Marshall's.
22. At the same place; had an evening lec¬
ture.
23. A Presbyterian woman of very good
sense, having been some time convinced of the
great duty of baptism, appointed that day to
comply with it in the midst of the Presbyteri¬
ans, near their meeting-house. About five
hundred attended; a stage was erected, and
Philanthropos preached a sermon on the occa¬
sion from these words, " I praise you, brethren,
that you have kept the ordinances as I deliver¬
ed them unto you—In which was considered,
1st, The authority of Baptism as an ordinance;
2d, The subjects; 3d, The mode; 4th* An¬
swered objections against it. Ip the close, she
and three more related their experience and
were baptized, and by some wondered at.
24. Had great happiness in morning lec¬
ture; rode twelve miles to Simsbury; preach¬
ed on a stage to three of the clergy, and five
hundred others; well-behaved; composed and
intent to listen; the season was awful and af¬
fecting. Was kindly invited home by the Rev.
Hillock, and to preach in his meeting-house if
possible. The neighbours came together; had
evening lecture; spent the time agreeably; re¬
tired to rest.
25. Rev. Hillock accompanied Philanthro¬
pos several miles. He had his scruples about
raedobaptism; raised a discourse, and was al¬
most persuaded to be baptized. (Philanthro-
4(5
os believed he would have been, if there had
een a fair opportunity.) They however part"
ed in an affectionate manner. Called in a town
for refreshment; people saw him; they came
running together as hungry sheep wanting a
shepherd; they urged; Philanthropos preached
with warmth three quarters of an hour; bade
them farewell. Rode twelve miles to Rev.
Mills's in Torrenton. Met him and a thousand
people in his meeting-house. Although they
cavilled before, Philanthropos was invited ana
spoke clearly and boldly, insomuch that the
wide mouths of gainsayers were stopped. Then
said he, " How good is the Lord, to own the
labours and support the tottering, clayey tab¬
ernacle of such a worthless worm!" Surely sal¬
vation is of the Lord.
26. Preached with freedom in a Presby~
terian meeting-house in Torrenton, occupied
by Mr. Haynes. Himself and three hundred
came through a heavy rain; attended with so¬
lemnity; rode to Canaan, 14 miles; spent the
evening very agreeably at Rev. J. Marshall's.
Sunday, 27. Received an invitation from
Mr. Robins and Rev. Thompson, to preach in
their meeting-houses. Agreed to their request.
Met three hundred that day at Rev. J. Mar¬
shall's meeting-house. Spoke twice in the day
on a stage. The temple of God was opened,
and the ark seen, thundering, or law heard,
and lightning blazed, and a great earthquake, •
or trembling in the hearts of sinners. May
Jehovah have all the praise. Had evening
meeting at J. Marshall's.
28. Attended a church-meeting of Rev. J.
Marshall's. Much disputing; little done; woe
to him by whom offences come! Q, that the
47
bands of charity may forever keep saints "in
union. Amen.
29. Was enabled to speak with freedom in
Rev. Robins's meeting-house before him, three
more ministers, and five hundred hearers.
They appeared exceedingly well satisfied with
the word. Was invited home by Mr. Robins,
dined, and treated genteelly. Tarried at Da*
vid Remarton's. The people observed where
he tarried, came together, and requested a lec¬
ture. Although Philanthropos was almost
tsrorn out, the Lord stood by and gave a
door of utterance and entrance into the hearts
of hearers. Let God have the praise, for the
man is a sinner. Cold weather; frost draws
us to the fife, and Philanthropos, to think of a
warmer climate.
30. Rode twelve miles; had a Presbyteri¬
an meeting-house opened for him in Torrenton;
met the Rev. Cornwall and Hawes, with six
hundred hearers. This day the Great AH in
all was pleased to shew me that without Him
nothing could be done—yea, worse than noth¬
ing rather undo that which I had done by
making so lame an out, that the people might
think if he had done better, it was an accident
and not divine aid. Then said he, O Lord, let
the pill of mortification taken by thy servant
kill his old man and make him cautious never
to fight the Philistines without carrying the
Ark of the Lord into the field of action.
31. Without knowledge or consent, the
Rev. Mr. Nay had appointed meeting at his
meeting-house; way-laid Philanthropos and
piloted him to the place, and urged him to
preach. Thq merciful Lord was pleased to
givQ him "new threshing instruments, having
4u
teeth f and several of the King's enemies were
grievously (if not mortally) wounded—in par¬
ticular, old Ignorance, with three of his sons^
Partiality, Superstition and Prejudice. What
a singular blessing would it be to New England
if those above-mentioned three sons were hung
on Haman's fifty feet gallows! But blessed be
the Lord, He will reign until his enemies are
under his feet. His time is the best time.
Amen.* Rode twelve miles and staid with X
Marshall.
CHAP. XIV;
His preacning Tour, &c.
Friday, September 1. Philanthropos preach¬
ed at Rev. J. Mills's, in Canaan; three minis¬
ters and three hundred people attended; was
very poorly. Spent the evening in conversa¬
tion with the three clergymen, had prayers and
went to bed at one o'clock.
2. Visited and prayed with a few families.
Tarried at Rev. J. Mills's. After family wor-
. ship enjoyed my rest.
3. Preached in Mr. Thompson's meeting¬
house in Canaan at ten, A. M. from Heb. xi. 16:
' "But now have they desired a better country, that
is an heavenly.'''' Was enabled to speak freely,
clearly, and boldly. Preached again at two,
P. M. from Mat. xxiii. 33: " Ye serpents&c.
From these two passages in holy writ, in a
scriptural light set forth hell, earth and heaven
before more than three thousand as attentive
hearers as (perhaps) ever were spoken to, who
49
came from three States, New York, Connecti¬
cut, Massachusetts, and six towns. Numbers
appeared seriously alarmed. Received an in¬
vitation from the Rev. Mr. Fain's, to preach at
six P, M. in his meeting-house in an adjacent
town; but finding strength exhausting, returned
to Jos. Marshall's; prayed with a dying woman
on the way; had evening meeting." If appoint¬
ments would have admitted his tarrying one
day longer, he would have avenged himself on
his cousin J. Marshall, made a slaughter among
the Canaanites, and buried the slain in a liquid
grave; and on his brother Jos. Marshall, for
his paedo-baptismal attacks he made on his
antipsedo-baptist brethren.
4. After lecturing and praying, took leave
and an affectionate farewell of his Canaan con¬
nexions ; rode ten miles to a town in Massa¬
chusetts. A Presbyterian meeting-house was
opened ; four ministers and eight hundred peo¬
ple collected from three States and several
towns; very Solemnly attended on the word.
One of the Shaking Quakers, a man of sense
and property, hearing of a foreigner, came
from New York thro.ugh Connecticut into Mas¬
sachusetts, followed Philanthropos to his lodg¬
ing, opened his heart and told of his prophesy¬
ing, speaking with tongues, singing, dancing, con¬
fessions, &c. Philanthropos endeavoured by
scripture and reason to reclaim him, and in a
good measure effected the laudable design.
Had evening and morning lecture; harvest not
over.. #
Massachusetts, Tuesday, 5. Preached in a
Presbyterian meeting-house in Granville to six
ministers and nine Hundred people. Had an
extraordinary freedom an4 happiness ih speak-
7
50
mg. The word was accompanied with power,
and'fastened conviction on the hearts of num¬
bers. Heard the Rev. Hamilton in the even¬
ing, ancl tarried at E. Phelps's.
6. Preached again in a Presbyterian meet¬
ing-house in Southwick at nine A. M. to four
ministers and one thousand hearers. The
Lord was pleased in his unbounded grace to
take us on Mount Pisgah, to the top of Nebo,
where we had a glorious discovery of the pro¬
mised land, and of the inheritance of the saints
in light. Our souls were made to leap, and
wish, and wish for wings. Oh, how soon would
we have left Pisgah for New Jerusalem.
Rode seven miles "to Westfield. Preached a
second sermon at two P. M. to five ministers
and one thousand hearers. A glorious power
attended the word. Then said Abraham, O
Lord, what am I! " Less than the least," thus
to be favoured with the Divine Presence, crow¬
ded with such numbers, and they bow before
the word. Oh that thy servant may renounce
,every pretension to merit or praise, and all the
glory give to thy great natne—Amen. Spent
the eyening with Rev. Hamilton.
7. preached at Suffield to five ministers
and one thousand hearers. Strict attention,
glorious solemnity, reverential awe, with the
power and love of God, made it a Bethel to our
souls. Let his name have the praise.
8. Preached in Windsor; the minister
chose not to attend; about three hundred of
his congregation opened the meeting-hoflse for
Benevolus Philanthropos and waited seriously
on the word of tlue Lord spoken. The Lord's
name be praised.
9. Rested at Eliakim Marshall's; his con*
51
liexions came to see him ; lectured to them in
the evening, and ietired to rest.
Sunday, 10. Preached in Pocomoke meet¬
ing-house, at ten A. M. on a stage, in a spacious
plain; far the largest congregation that ever
was seen in those parts on a religious occasion,
supposed to be thirty-five hundred. After ser¬
mon Eliakim Marshall mounted the stage and
gave a clear, striking and powerful account of
God's work on his soul, greatly to the satisfac¬
tion of the congregation. Also he told them
that he had been an advocate for infant sprink¬
ling, in opposition to the primitive order and
aposfolick mode; that he was now convinced
he had no warrant for it in the Bible, and that
he was about to comply with the baptism of
our Saviour, according to the manner it became
him and his followers; which, if they taught
and practised with other graces, He would be
with them to the end of the world. At two
P. M. preached a second sermon; people un¬
commonly attentive tp the word of the Lord;
He graced the assembly with his glorious and
awful presence; heaven began on earth. Then
we advanced through a clover pasture to a riv¬
er, where Benevolus Philanthropos preached
a third sermon on the ordinance of baptism,
and then baptized said Eliakim Marshall in the
presence of hundreds who had never seen the
ordinance administered according to the holy
pattern and example of the great Head and
jLawgiver, before. After hearing and seeing,
gome gave their witness that it was right, and
were determined to go and do^ likewise. Oth¬
ers, like the noble Bereans, searched the scrip-
tures to see if these things were so, and some
rejected the counsel of God against themselves,
52
not being baptized with the baptism of John.
Then returned with E. Marshall,"almost worn
out, yet rejoicing in the Lord. Preached the
fourth sermon in the' evening to some friends
who came to visit him. Had a happy meeting
and evening; said to himself, Oh Lord, "I am
tired in thy service, but blessed be God, not of
it." Amen.
11. itttended in Pocomoke meeting-house
according to appointment, on the ordination of
Rev. E. Marshall; the solemnity was profound.
It was as follows: Philanthropos made the first
prayer, and preached a serftion suitable to the
occasion, from Ezekiel i. 21 : " The spirit of
the living creature was in the wheels," to one
thousand, who watered the word with a flood
of tears; "some, most of 9.II, because they
should see his face no more." Mr. E. Marshall
gave a declaration of his faith in Christ, and
call to the work of the ministry. Rev. Hast¬
ings made the ordination prayer and gave the
charge. Rev. Hamilton gave the right hand
of fellowship. Mr. Robins made the conclud¬
ing prayer. Thanks be to God, it was a good
season. Returned to Rev. E. Marshall's, and
spent the evening very agreeably in company
with several friends who came to take one
more affectionate farewell of him whom they
expected not to see again till the heavens be no
more. Remark—One would have supposed
that such monuments of Abraham's? industry
and zeal (under the blessing of Heaven) would
have elated him to such a pitch of pride that
he could not have sustained it. But it is wor¬
thy of notice, that such circumstances encour¬
aged him to be still more assiduous and unwea¬
ried in well-doing; and to the day of his death,
53
lie was an example in being deaf to flatteries
and blind to reproaches. May the Lord gra¬
ciously enable the reader to go and do likewise,
so that every one that humbleth himself may
be exalted. Amen.
CHAP. XV.
Abraham's Return Home.
Early on Tuesday morning, the 32th, after
singing, prayer, &c. took leave of relations in
Windsor, until we meet in a world of spirits.
Rode to Weathersfield, twelve miles home¬
ward ; preached to three hundred; somewhat
cramped, but kept the line of truth. Tarried
at Mr. Flowers', had evening lecture and spoke
with great freedom. Salvation to the Lord
who maketh the tongue of the stammerer to
speak plainly.
13. Rode twelve miles, to Middletown
Meeting was appointed at Rev. Frothingham's
meeting-house; it proved far too small; he
had the largest in the town—sixty by fifty-five j
gallery three parts round; all crowded; sup¬
posed to be two thousand; six ministers. One
Mr. Frothingham, who baptized him as he
thought, but made a mistake and only sprink¬
led him, he kindly invited home, partly with a
view to reclaim him from his apostacy. 'No-*
tice was given; a number attended, and after
prayer the old pasdobaptist father began with
his anti-paedobaptist son. The controversy
continued reasonably warm for upwards of two
hours. Philanthropes' artillery was father
#heavy, and enabled him to cover and defend
54
all thd larger water-courses! what the others
will do in a close, long siege, is unknown; at
present, being an old soldier, although outdone,
he was determined not to yield. Upon which
Mr. Philanthropos borrowed Paul's policy, to
set the Pharisees and Sadducees at variance
among themselves. He asked the Rev. Jos.
Marshall, when he had sprinkled his children,
where were they ? In the church, said he*
No, out! said Frothingham. The skinning be¬
tween them was very warm. Several miuisters
fearing the sword that devoured forever would
be bitterness in the end, Philanthropos told
them they were cither in, or out; that the Bi¬
ble knew of no purgatory, pails, &c.; that Zi-
on's walls were balvation. Ended with prayer
and retired to rest; not without Rev. J. Mar¬
shall's being convinced of his errour; but for
fear of hurting his tender brethren, concluded
he would still remain a Presbyterian.
14. Breakfasted at Rev. Parsons's, and
preached in a Presbyterian meeting-house at
ten A. M. to six ministers and eight hundred
people, who had heard jthat he was to pass
that way, and had appointed the meeting with¬
out his leave or knowledge. Blessed be God,
it was a glorious season. Rode ten miles and
preached at two P. M. in Rev. Waterman's
meeting-house to six ministers and six hundred
people, with freedom. Waterman kindly ask¬
ed nim home, (saw ten feet posts of fencing, of
whalebone) and spent the evening pleasa ntly
in company with him and Rev. Mr. Backus, a
distant relation of the writer of the History of
the Baptists. They dragged him into the field
of contention, and exchanged a few shots; Phi¬
lanthropos received no damage: how the op¬
posite party came off, is unknown.
55
15. Travelled thirty-five miles through the
city of New Haven; called; rang the bell;
collected one hundred and fifty in a large new
meeting-house; they were disorderly; found
that the root which had been so long sweet*
began to be bitter. It is not the Jbest for disci¬
ples to be always on the mount; was now in
the valley trying to cast out dumb devils. Rode
until ten at night; came to the Rev. Higbee's,
almost worn out, having preached twelve ser¬
mons in six days.
16. With freedom taught thirty hearers.
Lodged at the same place.
17. Spoke with liberty at the same place;
it is hoped not in vain.
18. Rode ten miles; s'poke the word to
one hundred; they appeared exceedingly warm.
Rode six miles and preached a second sermon}
the power of the Lord attended the word.
19. Rose early in the morning; kneeled
down by the sea-side and prayed for his church,
connexions, and himself. Rode ten miles, and
preached two sermons at Rev. Farish's meet-
mg-house, to three hundred and fifty people;
there was a stir among the dry bones. May
the name of the Lord have all the praise*
Amen. Lodged at Farish's.
20. Rode ten miles to Dr. Doge's in New
York; dined, and married a beautiful pair.
They had fled front Connecticut to this State,
where people catch and marry without licen¬
ses. The Dr. told me the circumstances.
Perhaps they had tasted the grapes before
they were ripe. Received a fee. Walked
one mile back to Connecticut, in company with
the Doctor. Preached with freedom to two
hundred people and three clergymen; came to
the Doctor's and bade New England farewell.,
56
21. Travelled thirty-five miles and came to
the City of New York. Lodged at the cele¬
brated John Gano's,. in the city; heard him
give an evening lecture. Abode there on the
22. Lectured in the evening to about three
hundred.
23. Travelled ten miles to Lion's Farm;
spoke with ease to about one hundred; rode
ten miles; called on to preach, and did, to
about two hundred, in the Scotch Plains.
24. Attended in Rev. Vanhorn's meeting¬
house to one thousand. Left the house and
preached in the yard with much freedom and
high attenlion; rode two miles to a neighbour*
ing village ; spoke again* P. M.; returned to
the Rev. Vanhorn's, Lord what am I or any
of my father's house, to be thus attended. • Oh
Lord, take all the glory, for the man is a sinner.
£5. Travelled six miles; came to Samp-
town; nine hundred people and six clergymen
were present; there were one hundred carri¬
ages ; great enlargement in speaking; had.
evening lecture to fifty who came; people flock
as doves to their windows. Tarried at Mr.
Drake's; had an agreeable night's conversa¬
tion until nearly twelve o'clock; then commit¬
ted our souls to God and retired to rest.
26. Rose early'in the morning; people
came running together, insomuch that we had
a congregation and preaching by an hour by
sun in the morning, to take an affectionate fare¬
well. Breakfasted at Rev. Rungan's; preach¬
ed at Piscataway, at eleven A. M. tp about a
thousand people who came running together
in a most violent manner; the power of the
Lord was present; many rejoiced in God their
Saviour.. Weak in body but supported by the
07
Lord. Lodged at Mr. Smith's; rode out two
miles and heard him; came back to said Smith's
and lodged?
27. Came to Bromswick; preached in the
Presbyterian meeting-house. The minister,
the Lutheran clergy and two others, with
about nine hundred people, attended. A great
door of utterance and entrance appeared.
Bless the Lord, O my soul. Dined at Col.
Donin's; rode twenty-five miles and came to
Hopewell, in New Jersey, to Mr. Stout's;'cal¬
led to see a second family of the same name;
had lecture and prayers; a woman sick. Came
to Rev. O. Hart's; dined with him and prea¬
ched in his meeting-house to three hundred;
somewhat cramped; found again that without
the Lord nothing could be done. Lodged at
said Harfs; had evening lecture ; retired to
rest.
29. Rose early, took leave of that worthy
family, and breakfasted at M. Hart's. Rode
thirty-two miles; saw an old man at work on
the way-side and asked him how old he was?
He said, one hundred and three years of age.
Have you lived long enough to die ? He said he
waited for God to call, and the country people
made a damned mistake. It brought to mind
a passage in the prophet—" A sinner living an
hundred years old is accursed." Came to Bur¬
lington; preached in Rev. Ellison's meeting¬
house to one hundred, the evening after the
invitation was given. Evening lecture; bed.
30. Rose early—five o'clock; crossed a
river one mile over; rode sixteen miles; came
to P<5nepie; preached in the presence of Dr.
Jones, in his meeting-house, to about sixty, with
8
58
freedom; spent the evening with him very
agreeably.
Sunday, October 1. Rode twelve miles to
Philadelphia; heard Rev. Elesong in the morn¬
ing; preached at Medadon; the fear of man
brought a gnare ;t Oh JLord, must I 'always be
mortified with my own folly. Called on Dr.
Rogers; saw Rev. Ustick marry a pair;
called to see Rev» Stancliffj Lodged at Mr.
Walker's; retired to rest.
2. Travelled ten miles, and came to Ches-
tertown; met some of the fruits of my labour j
two out of twelve who heard me as I passed
on to the North, joyfully met me, calling me ,
Father in the Gospel bonds, were awakened
and hopefully converted; the husband was bap¬
tized, the woman waiting an opportunity.
Preached in the court-house to thirty people
and four clergymen. Dined with my young
son and daughter; took leave and left them in
a flood of tears; rode twelve miles; came to
Winton, in Delaware; kindly received by the
brethren; spoke to about two hundred and
fifty with liberty; lodged at Mr. Stone's.
3. Preached in said town to one hundred
with ease; assisted a beggar much afflicted.
Oh that the Lord would prosper the word..
Dined at Mr. Wayne's ; took leave; left them
in tears; rode eight miles and lodged at An¬
drew Moul ton's.
4. Travelled twenty-six miles to Duck
Creek Town, to Dr. Jones's; had an evening
lecture to about sixty attentive hearers. May
the Lord bless the word to them all. ' Amen.
7. Rode ten miles to Dorchester county,
Maryland, to an Association; met Rev. Hughes,
Baker, and a number of the clergy; called on
59
the stage; spoke with freedom to about two
hundred; spent the evening in Christian con¬
versation.
• Sunday, ] 8. On the stage; one thousand
hearers; had great enlargement of mind;
saints rejoiced, and sinners took the alarm; the
word run and was glorified ; returned to Mr.
Smith's; attended on the ordinance of bap¬
tism. .
19. Sat in the Association; exceedingly
poorly; rode twenty miles; late in the night
came to Salisbury, in company with several of
the clergy; lodged at Mr. Nelson's.
20. Travelled sixteen miles; preached
with freedom to sixty; afterwards rode twelve
miles; spoke again with ease to eighty; peo¬
ple rejoiced, and wept aloud.
21. Went six miles; spoke with freedom
at Rev. Layfield's meeting-house to two hun¬
dred and fifty; rode six miles; lodged at Capt.
Benton's; evening and morning lectures.
22. Rode thirty-five miles ; a few gather¬
ed in the name of the Lord; he met them.
Lodged at Capt Roberts's ; lectured to about
fifty.
23. Rose early, kneeled down and prayed
for friends in Georgia; rode twelve* miles;
preached at Mr. Scott's to two hundred and
sixty. The Ldrd enlarged' Philanthropos*
Ueart; rode six miles to Sheriff Jones'; had
evening lecture. *
24. Travelled twenty miles to brother Ba¬
ker's ; preached with freedom to two hundred;
lodged at Mr. Respy's.
Sunday, 25. At the same place; spoke with •
great facility to five hundred. Dined at Res¬
py's ; rode six miles, and lodged at Northing-
ham's.
60
26. Rode six miles and came to Chesa¬
peake Bay early in the morning; put my horse
on board; waited with impatience for the
wind, ,t being perfectly calm, and had near¬
ly thirty meetings to attend in rotation, the
til st, eighty miles off, sixty by water and twen¬
ty by laud ; Philanthropos in distress, retired
to the Bay, up and down the bar; finally know¬
ing the Lord held thg wind in his fist, and con¬
trolled it at his pleasure, he called on the Lord
in distress; asked him to bid the north wind
blow ; He commanded the wind and it obeyed.
Philanthropos, one gentleman and two ladies'
embarked late in the afternoon ; raised anchor
and left the shore ; moved slowly until about
midnight. Now in the cabin, about to close
my eyes, overpowered with sleep and fatigue,
when lo! all on a sudden a stiff gale drove us
on the other side of the channel; struck a bar
with such violence that it appeared to wreck
the vessel from bow to stern. As in the case
of Jonah, every one awoke and called on his
God, and wished for day, being in mighty wa¬
ters and midnight darkness, until at last the
lingering orb of day made his appearance, and
all was joy and gladness. But alas I how mo¬
mentary are all the enjoyments of time. On a
sudden, the east wind blew; the clouds gather¬
ed, darkened and blackened the heavens:
the sun was obscured; the vessel was seP
luted with a tremendous tempest of rain;
it split the mainsail and snapt the jib; the poor
sailors reefed and furled the sails; stood by
the halyards in the storm. The vessel was
tost on waves and driven at the mercy of the
tide. The wind turned in our favour and we
61
ran at the rate of nine miles an hour. After
being twenty-three hours in perils on the deep,
landed at Norfolk, sixty miles distant from
Hungary, where we embarked. Passage came
to forty-three dollars. Travelled sixteen miles
to Capt. Dobbins'; fatigued, and disappointed
meeting.
28. Rose early and rode sixteen miles;
came to Pongo, to Rev. Laurence's meeting¬
house, and preached to one hundred and fifty;
began very dull; the sacred flame kindled be¬
fore the close; Christians seemed to be refresh¬
ed ; a happy meeting. Lodged at Mr. White¬
head's in company with Rev. Laurence and
some others. Spent the evening agreeably;
family lecture and prayers; retired to rest.
19. Crossed Pongo Bay; came to Black
Water meeting-house; preached to two hun¬
dred and fifty; felt ray soul enlarged to speak
to the people; congregation much moved un¬
der the word. Oh that they may be doers and
not hearers of the word only. Rode two miles ;
tarried at Wm. Padon's; had morning and ev¬
ening lecture.
20. Rode twelve miles to Northwest meet¬
ing-house; met Rev» Armstead and Eunage^:
heard the former preach: had a glorious sea¬
son after him in speaking; felt my heart much
enlarged; many tears shed; one hundred and
fifty people; rode eight miles ift the borders
of North Carolina; tarried at Mr. Wilson's.
21. Travelled twenty-two miles through a
powerful day's rain. Preached at Conjock
with freedom to sixteen, who ventured the rain
and gloried in the cross. God grant they may
wear the crown. Tarried at Kev. Abbot's, ir^
Pasquotank.
62
. Sunday, 22. Preached in the 'meeting-house
to seven hundred. In the first sermon, cramp¬
ed ; had freedom in the afternoon; many tears
to water the word. Oh that it may prove as
savour of life unto all who heard. Amen.
23. Rode ten miles; preached with free¬
dom at Nob's Creek to two, hundred and eigh¬
ty; saw baptism administered; preached on
the subject with clearness; tarried at James
Picket's and had a third sermon to thirty, who
came together without notice. The Lord en¬
larged my heart to speak with freedom. To
his name be all the praise. Amen.
24. Travelled twenty-three miles ; preach¬
ed in the court-house in Nixonton, to two hun¬
dred and eighty, with much freedom and hap¬
piness. Tarried at Aaron Burr's; he a Bap
tist and his wife a Quaker preacher. Had
some conversation about principles, but to little
satisfaction. Read an account of the plague
in England, in 1665. Foi • several moaths, ac¬
cording to. the bills of mortality, there died no
less than one thousand a day. From the mid¬
dle of August to the middle of September, the
distemper spread with such irresistible fury-
it was thought 1600 died in a day. Surely
death is the king of terrors and a terror to
kings. He is the last enemy; but thanks be
to God that giveth us the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
25. Rose early, and set off before break¬
fast; rode twenty miles to Rev. David Welsh's;
met him at his meeting-house; had a blessed
season; Zion arose and shook herself, and put
on her beautiful garments. Oh* how pleasant
#are the ways of wisdom, anil all her paths are
peace. Dined at Mr. Scott's, on Chowan Riv-
63
er; took leave of him and brother Welsh;-
crossed the river four miles over; came ten
miles after sermon; tarried at Amos Rayner's.
25. Travelled twenty miles; preached at
Winton; met Kev. McCabe and Head, with
three hundred people ; had a glorious season %
the power of the Lord was present, and made
known in the court-house; saints were like the
bowls at the corners of the altar, filled with
the fatness of Christ's house; sinners greatly-
concerned; the scene was solemn and awful.
Tarried at Mr. Bushry's. People came running
together. Had evening lecture to fitty, who
seemed warm under the word.
26. Travelled ten miles; preached in St.
John's Chapel to three hundred. The Lord
enlarged my heart in ail extraordinary manner.
Saints rejoiced aloud in the Lord. Oh, what a
refreshing season we experienced in the courts
of our God! Came to Rev. Brewst's; he and
family very poorly ; had evening and morning
lecture to a few friends that came to see me,
with Rev. Jesse Reed. Spent the evening
very agreeably.
27. Arose at the break of day; was takeii
with an ague and fever, very severe; yet rode
twenty miles with them on; they seemed as if
^hey would shake his tabernacle to the dust,
the fever raging on him in a distressing man¬
ner. Preached to fifteen, who gave great at¬
tention and seemed much affected with the
word. Had to stop twice in the sermon to
puke ; with great difficulty spoke three-quar¬
ters of an hour; tarried at Rev. Mims'; very
sick all night.
Sunday, 28. Proceeded twenty-eight miles
tc* Rocky Swamp, to Rev. Reed's meeting-
64
house; preached with freedom (though weak¬
ness in body prevailed) to six hundred ; re¬
turned to Reed's; taken with an ague and
burning fever; had evening lecture.
29. Arose early; rode twelve miles; puk¬
ed six times on the way; met a large congre¬
gation, gave out a psalm and spoke about six¬
teen words hy way of excuse, and was so very
poorly, was obliged to lie down. Mr. Reed
pleached. Travelled seventeen miles after
the sermon, to Mr. Battle's, as sick as I could
well live.
31. Travelled twenty-one miles; preached
to three hundred people, on the falls of Tar
River, with great freedom, considering tbp fe¬
ver raged so severely. Tarried at Mr. Vivit's.
Wednesduy, November 1. Went eighteen
miles; had a meeting on little river; so very
ill could neither attend nor preach. Tarried
at Mr. Kerley's; so sick, began to despair of
ever seeing home.
2, 3. Travelled as long as I could sit on my
horse; took up at Col. Smith's.
4. Travelled thirty-eight miles to Camp¬
bell's, in the Scotch Settlement. This is the
fourth day I have not ate a mouthful; drank
a little, and puked nineteen times in the day.
Sunday, 5. Travelled nineteen miles to
Smith's. Very poor man ; hard usage ; noth¬
ing to eat or drink, nor a place to sleep ; they
seemed generous.
6. Travelled seventeen miles to Pedee.
7. Travelled twenty-four miles.
8. Travelled twenty-one miles; very sick.
9. Stopt, land mended a little.
10. Attended meeting; about forty people
came through the rain; exceedingly weak; taught
65
the people with sotne freedom; very attentive
to the word of the Lord.
11. Travelled thirty miles to Camden, S.
C.; meeting disappointed—not published. Ve¬
ry weak; rode twelve miles down to Mr.
Oguin's; had prayers; morning and evening lec¬
ture; his wife very sick.
13. Rode thirty miles; found myself dek
bilitated; reached Col. Taylor's and had con¬
versation with him concerning the Holy Scrip¬
tures. He thought there were men enough
now-a-days as good as David. Rested there
the 14th.
15. Travelled forty miles. .Very poorly.
Kindly received at Mr. Norris's. Met several
friends and taught the people, fifty in number;
so worn out by sickness and the day's ride, could
scarcely speak. Committed my soul to God
and retired to rest.
November 16 and 17,1786. Travelled six¬
ty miles, and reached home amid the Congrats
lations, tears, joys and prayers of friends. Be¬
gan to mend. Thank the Lord that Benevo-
lufr Philanthropos has reached his seat in Geor¬
gia, and may he spend his days there in th»e
service of the Lord. Amen.
. CHAP. XVI
hls REMAINING AT home, &c.
Soon after Abraham returned, he visited va¬
rious parts of the State, preaching the word,,
administering baptism, &rdaining ministers and
constituting churches. This was his business,
this ivas bis trade. (The writer is sorry he
9
could not find out how many ministers and
churches were ordained and constituted by
him.) In .the same Spring after his return,
1787, a revival of religion began. It spread
over the State of Georgia. Thousands attend¬
ed on the word. The description of .the Di¬
vine was abundantly verified—" He that sat on
the white horse had a bow, and a crown was
given him, and he went forth conquering and
to conquer. Abraham's church at Kiokee was
not forgotten of her God, among the thousands
of Israel. He baptized upwards of a hundred
that year, and the church shortly after increas¬
ed to more than three hundred in number.
Perhaps it would not be amiss to mention here,
the preachers that sprung from her, in addi¬
tion to those above mentioned, viz: Elder Si¬
las Mercer, the father of the Rev. J. Mercer,
whose fame is in all the churches; John Boyd;
H. A. Boyd; James N. Brown; John Stanford;
D. W. Marshall; Samuel Cartledge, James
Simms, and many others unknown and known,
whose goings forth havf been under the foster¬
ing care of Almighty God.
CHAP. XVII.
His Marriage, &e.
Abraham arrived to his forty-fourth year be¬
fore he married. Well knowing that it was
not good to be alone, that a single life was a
dangerous life, and that he who w'ould not en¬
gage in matrimony was not worthy the name
of a man, and none but a fool would refuse the
^advantages of the same, he resoj^ed to marry,
67
For this purpose he prepared to take another
journey to New England. Previous to his de¬
parture, he made his wants known to Heaven.
These were the principal: Having heard it
said, that women would first view the man,
and then his horse, as he had but an indifferent
one, he asked the Lord for one ; also, when
he had received it, to have a prosperous jour¬
ney, and in his route somewhere, that he might
meet with an helpmate, a wife,
" To divide the sorrows and double the joys of life."
Accordingly he made preparations, and about
the first of March, 1792, left his home on the
Big Kiokee, Columbia County, for Connecticut,
again. In his travels, he called at a Presbyte¬
rian's, to stay all nighthe was about to grant
him admittance; but as Eve was first in trans¬
gression, so are her daughters;—his wife ob¬
stinately denied. He passed on and tarried
with a Deist, with little comfort. After contin¬
uing his tour, he reached one Dr. Crowder's^
who made one Mr. Minter an eunuch for the
kingdom of heaven's sake. Put up with the
Doctor; had a congregation collected ; was in
hopes of joining the Methodists in a meeting ;
hut the preacher "was Madcap by name, and
the same by nature, for he had neither polite¬
ness nor charity to say, How c}'ye do—or,
Come, preach. Oh, fie, fie, upon such a nar*
row spirit! Does the religion of Jesus lead to
such contraction of spirit ? far to the contrary.
It softens the lion to a lamb, the raven to a
dove. How different were those characters
from others who treated me with kindness,
charity and benevolence. Abraham met with
his first request at Mr. Dinkins's; swopt horses
with him as follows: Dinkin.s—Here, Mr. Mar-
68
shall, is as good a horse as was ever straddled;
yours is an indifferent one, I will keep it until
you return; you have mine, and if I never see
you again, " Well." Abraham mounted his
Heaven-sent horse, and went on his way rejoi¬
cing, full in the belief that as Heaven had fa¬
voured him with his first request, the others
would be succedaneous. So it happened; and
notwithstanding he passed through several stor¬
my days and high waters, somehow he was di¬
rected to the Rev. John Waller's, in Spottsyl-
vania, Virginia, where he had the first view of
his beloved wife, (as she turned out to be) Miss
Ann Waller. As soon as she shewed herself,
Abraham said to himself, "You are mine if I
can get you." The same was agitated in her
mind. He made known his intentions; passed
on to New England; returned as soon as was
convenient, to said Waller's, and upon six days'
acquaintance, five hundred and fifty miles from
home, was joined in wedlock to the above-
mentioned character.
" Sure some courteous angel shew'd him where,
What distant lands the unknown fair,
What distant climes detain—
Swift as the wheel of nature rolls,
O may they meet and mingle souls,
And wear the jojful chain."
His courtship, &c. follows, as he used to tell
it, with unusual pleasure and jocundity—
The day after I returned from New Eng¬
land, it was rainy. I once was so poor, I had
to maul for. a sevei>pence ; thresh barley until
ten o'clock at night for a scanty repast, and
pull hay. By this means I became in posses¬
sion of this adage: " Make hay while the sun
shines." But I will reverse it. As I cannot
travel, and have to lie by, I will get me a wife.
69
while it rains. Accordingly I renewed the en¬
gagement with Miss Ann Waller. Darts flew
as in the Trojan war; several wounds receiv¬
ed ; like to have proved mortal; both parties
concluded it was better policy to surrender at
discretion, not knowing but a long engagement
might prove bitter in the end. Three days
after, renewed the battle ground; held a se¬
cond council, and resolved that Cupid's cap¬
tives should be delivered into the custody of
gentle Hymen, to bind secure in loving chains
till death.
Tuesday, A'pril 3, 1792. Made a generdus
and fair proposal to Miss Ann Waller, (after¬
wards my dear Mrs. Philanthropos, or, Ann
Marshall) assuring her that she had my warm-
est'affections and highest esteem on earth, and
I lay a captive at her feet. Yet for the love
and good will I have for you, seeing you have
numerous friends, civil and religious, together
with the most cementing ties that bind you to¬
gether, which would render your parting with
them like the pointed dagger in the throbbing
breast, I will relinquish my firmest intentions
and submit it to your discretion. She "probably
concluded that a bird in the hand was worth
two in the bush, and with an innocent blush,
intimated that she would not wish to reverse
the mandates of Heaven. Both concluded
they had the consent of the "Father of worlds,"
and resolved with unshaken minds to proceed.
At seven o'clock in the evening the nuptial rites
were solemnized in presence of a small, gen¬
teel, and well-behaved assembly. Then were
we tied together by a knot that our teeth can¬
not unloose. Then 1
70
** Two kindred souls appear1d to meet
And friendship made the union sweet,
Ana fed the mutual loves.
Bo Veuus on her rolling throne,
Is drawn by gentlest birds along,
While Cupitfyoked the doves."
It continued rainy weather several days af¬
terwards ; attended several meetings; two
young ladies baptized. Oh, how charming to
see youth, beautyy virtue and religion in one !
It far exceeds the blooming rose, exhibiting its
fragrancy to the morning sun. Was attendant
on the Communion, when some appeared to
get a tolerable draught of the "new and best
wine," towards the last. Mrs. Philanthropos
(my bride) being about to leave the Church,
kneeled down and asked her blessings on us.
It was petitioned in a warm and affectionate
manner. Intended to return to Georgia and
thitherwards, in a week after I was married;
but found the essence of the following, perti¬
nent and advantageous—"A young preacher
just starting into the world, asked- the advice
of his senior; the old prelate refused to grant
the request; the young one became importu¬
nate ; so much so, that (instead of hearing a
long lockram of advice, admonition, &c.) the
old man coolly replied to the younger—Jet this
be your guidance through life: " When it rains,
let it rain." Even so, say I. At length the
rain passed away and the time for setting out
for home arrived. It was on
Friday, the 13th. It was a striking scene-
it was a serious time—to see the indulgent fa¬
ther, the tender and loving mother, the kind
and friendly brethren and sisters folding their
arras in sweet embrace about each others necks,
while all the soft and manly emotions of the
mind struggled in parting pangs. The tjirob-
71
bing heart, the hearing breast, with the stream¬
ing1 tears, easily discovered' the binding cords
that had so long united them. After a little
reflection, reason obtained the ascendency oyer
their passions, and they committed each other
to the kind care of Heaven. Mrs Philanthro-
pos bore up under all with a becoming magna¬
nimity and fortitude. The good Lord give
her grace equal to her day. Took an affec¬
tionate farewell and pursued our journey with
great satisfaction—now and then having a riv¬
er or a creek to swim, horses getting loose, ly¬
ing out of doors, rainy days and dark nights,
and ever and anon meeting with excellent
friends among the Methodists, Presbyterians,
&c. and Baptists—until three months absence
to a day, found us at home amid the tears, joys
and gratulations of friends, on Big Kiokee.
Thank the Lord for it! Bless the Lord, O my
soul, and forget not all his loving kindness to
thee, and if we have experienced adverse cir¬
cumstances no doubt but they are " Blessings
in disguise."
By his consort, Ann Marshall, he had four
sons—Abraham Waller Wiglesworth, Jabez
Pleiades, and two by the name of Jubal Orion.
Abraham lived to be seven years of age ; he
was interesting and uncommonly beautiful—
Absalom like, with long, black hair—dutiful,
teachable, serious, and astonishingly inquisitive
in mysterious and religious matters. He was
his father's Delilah and his mother's Isaac, his
relations' comfort. But the rose-bud was nip¬
ped in its germ; alas ! he sickened and he died.
His father exclaimed, " Why live so long, why
die so soon ?" His grand-father, the Rev. John
Waller, of South Carolina, composed the fol-
72
lowing lines on the occasion, when he preach—
ed the funeral:—
" The Lord puts Abra'm's faith to test,
And, Abra'm's love to try,
Required for sacrifice the best,
And Isaac, he must die.
Die Isaac must, by Abra'm's hand^
His son he lov'd so well;
On Mount Moriah's distant land,
In Abra'm's heart, he fell.
But Oh ! the scene before us now!—»
No substitute vjras found !
Young Abra'm's head did lately bow,
And lies beneath the ground.
Abra'm received his son again,
A figure from the dead:
But our-dear son grim Death has slain,
His soul from us has fled.
Parental cries and tears were vain,
And doctors' skill did fail;
No antidote against the pain,
When Abra'm's face grew pale.
Heaven's high decree had fix'd in prime*-
For such a charming boy
To make his exit quick from time,
And slay his kindred's joy.
Did not so promising a youth
Bid fair among the great
To stand Columbia's sou of truth",
A prop in Church or State ?
Before he died, they heard him say,
" To the Good Lord I go
Then who dare murmur, or say nay—
His words shall ease our woe.
w Whate'er is order'd by the Lord
Is always best and right,
For he will joy and strength afford
To all who walk in light."
Jubal Orion lived five months, and was
caught up into the arms of Him who blesseth
such, and declares, Of such is the kingdom of
heaven. The other two, Jubal Orion and the
-ftwriter of this, are still left upon " these low
grounds where little else but sorrows grow.'*
n
In the fall of 1815, Mrs. Ann Marshall was
removed from this earthly house of her taber¬
nacle to the possession of a mansion in that
house not made with hands, eternal in the hea¬
vens. She was sick nine days with a bilious
inflammatory fever. She was in her fifty-fourth
year. She had made a profession of the reli¬
gion of Jesus, according to the Baptist order,
forty-one years. Through the whole of her
life she was exemplarily pious; subject to
doubts and infirmities; a tried Christian. Of¬
ten, when her husband was travelling and prea¬
ching the glad tidings of great joy to perishing
sinners, would she collect her little family at
home, her children and servants, and teach
them and instruct them in the ways of truth,
cause her sons by turns to read a sermon from
Burder or Davies or Jarrall, or a suitable por¬
tion of Scripture, or some book of a religious
nature. Often would she sing with them, and
collect them around her upon her bended
knees, and supplicate the God in whom she had
trusted, to bless her rising family. Often has
she poured the crystal tear over her ungodly
sons and servants. The writer of this full well
remembers and full well can tell of her secret
devotions, and the admonitions which he then
dreaded from her more than the lash. Her
hand was stretched out to the needy and her
heart sympathized in others' woes. She died
on Tuesday, November 14th, at 4 o'clock P. M.
1815.
The verdant sod adorns her low laid head,
While her enraptured soul to CJod has fled:
I'll raise no stone her mem'ry to retain,
Since my sore loss is her " eternal gain."
10
74
CHAP. XVIII.
The Death Sic. of Abraham Marshall.
It becomes the undertaker's business to re¬
cord the death of his aged and venerable fa¬
ther. He was not present when the solemn
scene occurred. Though at a distance, the
wound was felt. He hopes that his readers
will permit him to transcribe a Letter from
the Kiokee Church to "The Georgia Baptist
Association." It was the effusion of the pious
and sterling friend of my deceased father, the
Rev. John Boyd, who used frequently to visit
him in his last illness. It reads as follows—
" Beloved Brethren,
"We have truly a painful, distressing, and
melancholy communication to make to you this
year. Our dearly beloved brother and father
in the Gospel, Abraham Marshall, was taken
with a violent illness (a diarrhoea) under which
he languished about seven weeks—and at our
quarterly and communion meeting, on the third
Lord's day in August, the Church having at¬
tended, $nd the Ministers present having prea¬
ched the several days with faithfulness and zeal
to a larger and more attentive congregation
than usual, about the close of the celebration
of the Lord's Supper, a messenger informed
the Church that our dear brother was then
about to depart this life. The Ministers pre¬
sent, and many of the Church and friends, re¬
paired to the house of our dear Minister, and
found him in the agonies of death, not able to
speak or raise his hand, though composed and
in possession of his senses. He seemed to no-
tice with great tenderness and love those that
came to his bedside—would attempt to raise
his hand as if he wished to give his last and
parting token of friendship. About 4 o'clock
the same evening, like Jacob of old, he gather¬
ed his feet up in his bed and fell asleep in Je¬
sus. The sighs, groans and tears on so mourn¬
ful a sight, are unutterable; and the more so,
because we were to see his lovely face and
hear his charming voice no more. Our dear
brother in his last sickness had several inter¬
esting and joyful communications of God's love
to him. His faith was strong and animated j
his hope seemed to change into sight, and his
evidence of future happiness was conclusive.
He realized to himself that grace and blessed¬
ness which he had so often and so faithfully re¬
commended to others. He enjoyed that com¬
posure of mind and calm resignation to the Di¬
vine Will, with the pleasing pr6spect of a hap¬
py reception in the kingdom of glory, that are
experienced by but few of the most eminent
Christians. Our dear brother, through his life
as well as at his death, gave, by his orderly de¬
portment, strong and conclusive testimony that
the Spirit of the Lord had been his daily tea¬
cher. In his doctrine he was moderate and
s6und. In the Church he was ever present,
tender and submissive. To young Ministers
and doubting Christians he was a nursing father.
In the settlement he visited the sick and needy
with sweet encouragements and solemn prayer
to God for their present and future happiness.
In his family he was soft and indulgent. In
his- eating and drinking and apparel, he was
moderate through his life, and to the hour of
his death, even to an exception, The morning
76
of the day on which he died, he said to some
brethren present, that as he expected shortly
to change this for an eternal life, he had par¬
ticularly examined the principles of the religion
6n which he rested; and although he had for
the space of fifty years endeavoured faithfully
to improve and preach the word, and live con¬
sistent therewith, yet during that time he had
never lived one day, nor preached one sermon
clear of some imperfection; so that he had no
merit of his own, but rested on the merit of Je¬
sus his Mediator, He also said, from the best
judgement he could form, that the principles of
the Order of which he was a member, embra¬
ced the only apostolick plan and sure warrant
of the Gospel. He observed he had with pain
beheld intruders leading the simple and incau¬
tious in the way of self dependence. de¬
sired the brethren present to use their best en¬
deavours to influence the lovely youth of Co¬
lumbia to seek the favour of their gracious
Lord, that he might behold their faces in the
mansions of glory. His mind appeared to be
anxiously engaged for the welfare of his dear
sons and other relations. His fervent prayer
was, that, they might receive strong and lasting
p;inciples of true religion and the influence of
the Divine Spirit, and follow the examples of
their pious and faithful grandfathers and grand¬
mothers, whom he expected in a few hours to
meet in glory. And now he has gone; he has
ceased from his labours and his works do fol¬
low him.
" Dear Brethren—-While we are communi¬
cating to you our great distress for the loss of
so valuable a brother, no doubt you will bear a
part of our grief. When you remember his
77
usefulness in your association from its first com¬
mencement ; the thousands that have been fed
with the sincere milk of the word from his pre¬
cious lips; his regular attention as trustee to
the different churches and schools, and his un¬
changeable resolution for the interest of the
Gospel, you will be ready to say, why did not
the Lord spare him a few years longer, that
he might preach the word to perishing souls ?
The answer is implied in these his last words :
" The time of my departure is come; I have
fought a good fight, 1 have kept the faith;
therefore there is laid up for me a crown of
righteousness which my glorious Lord hath
prepared for me."
My flesh shall slumber in the ground
Till the last trumpet's joyful sound,
Then burst the tomb in sweet surprize,
And in my Saviour's image rise.
Shall rise, and soar, and sing, and tell
The wonders of Redeeming Grace,
That Jesus has done all things well,
I rise to sing my Saviour's praise.
" Is it a' virtue, or is it a crime to weep on
the present occasion? It is true we have cause
of grief for so sensible a loss; but when we
consider that our loss is his eternal gain, ought
we not in an humble submission to the Divine
Will, say, " The Lord gave, and the Lord takes
away; the will of the Lord be done."
"Thus it is evident a great man has fallen,
and the godly man ceaseth from among us.
Howl, fir-tree, for thy cedar is fallen. But in
his fall, he rises to joy, to paradise, to heaven,
to God."
The Rev. John Boyd was chosen to deliver
a suitable discourse on the solemn occasion.
He did so with faithfulness and zeal. He made
78
use of his last words as a foundation, and the
Spirit of Divine Truth enabled'him to speak
from the heart to the heart. The auditory
"were in tears, and good, we hope, was done in
the name of the Holy Child Jesus. Since
which time, ministers have been friendly to
Kiokee ; larger congregations attend; solemni¬
ty pervades; in some instances, shrieks for
mercy and shouts for joy, are known in the
great congregation. And since their former
pastor has been removed, about thirty have
been baptized as pious converts, mostly young,
with prospects ominous of approaching good.
May the 'Lord hasten it in his own good time,
and his name get the praise. Amen.
The Rev. Abraham Marshall departed this
life on Sunday, the 15th of August, 1819, at
4 o'clock, P. M. in the seventy-second year of
his age, and the fiftieth of his ministry: having
baptized, married, and buried in and about six
thousand of his fellow creatures, two thousand
of each. (This last is taken as probable, or
something like it, being heard from him and
friends.) He is gone, we are going. May we
all be ready and willing to go, and have nothing
to do but to die, when God shall call.
LINES
On the Death of the kev. Abraham Marshall,
by the undertaker.
Elegiack Muse, my mournful notes inspire;
Aid and assist me in my warm desire:
No more of wanton love? or raging wars I sing,
But doleful sounds through me perturbant ring.
Great Vlarshall's dead ! Ah, stop !—what hast thou said?
Yes—true it is, that Abraham now is dead!
The Everlasting Father gave the solemn call:—
"Abraham, Pvp need of thee ! before mc fall;
I've s**nt my angels to convey you here—
Oh finDif-, Oh come, make haste, do nut despair."
Behold, they struggle which of them should bear,
79
Obedient to the heavenly call: he gave his breath
Into the arms of bim who conquer'd death.
Come see him die, and while expiring says,
" The time is come that I must close my days ;
I've fought a Christian and a pleasing fight;
I've kept the faith on farth as my delight—
I now shall end my life to things below,
To heaven and everlasting bliss I go."
This said, he drew himself up in the bed—
Softly his disembodied spirit fled.
Behold, his wafted spirit climbs the ethereal road;
Cherubick angels bear him welcome to his God,
While he ascends the way his fathers trod.
Now in the worlds on high, array'd in shining bliss,
Methinks I see him in his growing happiness.
By faith I saw him enter the celestial gates,
Where his attendant angel ever waits;
I saw him blest, with Jubal in his arms,
And Abraham gazing on his new made charms.
Next, he forgets that joy, and meets his seraj>h'd wife,
And now begins the joy of an eternal life.
Quick from her heaven made arms with speed he flies,
And sees his sainted father with surprise,
And views his Christ bought mother with extatick eyes.
The waves of rapt'rous glory swell his soul,
While streams divine on him irradiate roll.
The scene so grand, e'en angels flock around,
While all their harps with praise to Christ resound.
Behold, they attend him as he mounts his shining way,
And soars, and rises higher ii? immortal day.
Now to the dazzling throne of God he comes,
While Christ's rich blood his happied soul perfumes;
Before the Great I Am, before him fall,
And crown Immanuel, Jesus, God of all.
Jehovah smiles, and pours forth floods of joy,
While he surrounds th* empyreal throne without annoy.
No more on parth we hear his charming voice,
When he encouraged saints in Jesus to rejoice;
No more he calls on sinners to repent,
And clasp a blessed Saviour God hath sent;
No more his family beholds his face,
No more his neighbourhood his footsteps trace,
No more his country views her patriot bold,
Nor can his State his fleeting breath control.
No more America, in listening crowds,
Attends her preacher, whom grinj Death enshrouds:
His cluy-cold corpse is carried to the tomb,
And sleeps in rest till God himself shall come
To judge the world and take his body home.
No flowery epitaphs nor polish'd stone,
Can ever make his excellencies known.
Let verdant sods adorn the lonely place,
And waving cedars tell where we may trace
This humble stone, erected o'er his face—
■M If sav'd at all, a tinner sav'd by Grace."
80
SCRIPTURE JJYJYOTJlTIONS.
I. Rom. Chap. i. Verse 16—lam not ashamed of the
Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.-
I. The Gospel.
I. Its doctrines, such as, I, God's everlasting love; 2,
the great atonement by the Redeemer; 3, justification
through him; 4, aanctiScation; 5, resurrection ; 6, glori¬
fication. II. The invitations of the gospel. III. The
promises. IV. The ordinances of the gospel. II. No
cause of shame in it, because, I, God was the author; 2,
Christ is the substance; 3, the Spirit is the revealer; 4,
angels admire it; 5, miracles confirmed it; 6, circum¬
stances and matters of fact proved it: 7, the greatest and
best of men have embraced and preached it; 8, only
wicked men and devils oppose it. 111. It is powerful, 1,
in bringing from darkness to light; 2, death to life; 3,
sorrow to joy; 4, changes the heart from hatred to love;
5, from serving sin and the devil,to God; 6, changes the
thoughts, words and actions of all who believe, and safes
therefrom guilt, from the love of sin, &,c.
II. Isaiah xxviii. 16—Behold, I lay in Zion a stone, 4*C.
1. Behold! a note of atteniion. II. A stone, (i. e. Je¬
sus Christ) 1, hard, the Hint, &c; 2, beautiful as dia¬
monds, 4"C.; 3, lasting a9 the marble ; 4, useful in build¬
ings. III. A tried stone, 1, by the devil's temptations;
2, world's persecutions and applause •, 3, by his Father in
bis sufferings; 4, by mourning sinners; 5, by rejoicing
saints. IV. A precious stone, 1, to the Father, being in
himself fine gold; 2, to angels; 3, to saints in life, death,
judgement and eternity. V. A corner stone, 1, bead of
the corner of all engravings ; 2, supports all worlds; 3r
unites all nations and denominations, heaven and earth.
VI. A sure foundation, 1, for reliance on him; 2, to trust
Ourselves to, in life, death or judgement; a sure founda¬
tion ; all else false—try them,see their votaries in honours,
pleasures and profits, infidelity and atheism. VII. He
that believeth—1, faith; 2, its origin; 3, nature and
quality; 4, object ; 5, advantages, for, VII!. Whosoever
believeth shall not make haste, (i. e.) 1, defeated, or run
wild, or too fa*t; 2, shall not be confounded or pat to con¬
fusion ; 3, or ashamed of the foundation.
81
III. 2 Cor. iv. 7—We have this treasure in earthen ve'st*
,sels, that the excellency of ihe jjotxer may be of God, and not
of us. I. Vessels—1, ornamental; 2, useful for all con¬
veniences ; earthen, coarse, not angels but men. 1, they
spring of the world; 2, they live of the world; 3, go to
the world ; God the potter, we the clay. He makes us
men and ministers, some large, some small, some coar.«e,
some fine, or polished. II. This treasure—1, God in his
perfections; 2, Christ in his offices; 3, waters of life ; 4,
bread; 5, meat; 6, milk; 7, wine; 8, balm; 9, raiment}
10, a few grapes from Canaan. III. The excellency of
the power in general—1, in conquering Jewish preju¬
dices; 2, Grecian policy; 3, Roman power, pagan and
papa); 4, atheists and deists of all sorts, devils, Manas-
sehs, Sauls and Magdalenes; subdues that enmity that ex¬
ists in man's heart, changes souls, lives and actions, and it
is an excellent power, 1, because other powers reach the
ontaide, this the inside; 2, others beget fear, this love ;
3, others force, this makes willingv&c.
IV. Genesis xix. 17—Escape for thy life, 4*c. 1, sig¬
nifies danger; 2, mercy ; 3, refuge. I. Look not behind,
1, after honour, 2, pleasure, 3, profit. II. Tarry not in
the plain—1, of morality; 2, reformation; 3, conviction;
4, hypocrisy. III. The mountain, Christ—I, firm and
solid; 2, a place of refuge ; 3, deliverance or safety.
V. Genesis xxiv. 49-—And now if ye -will deal kindly, -
4-c. I. The excellency of my master's son. 11. What is
meant by deaKng kindly and truly—1, he has a name, a
gobd name, a name above every other name ; 2, he is
wise ; 3, rich ; 4, beautiful ; 5, powerful; G, good natur-
ed. III. Deals kindly—1, in receiving the servant; 2,
hearing the message ; 3, leaving all; 4, going on the
way ; 5, taking Isaac for better and for worse, I was go¬
ing- to say ; €, to love him; 7, obey him ; 8, and prove
true until death.
VI Numbers x 29—Come thou with us, &c. I. Their
leaving Egypt. II. Their journey. Ill Where they
were going—Canaan. IV. What good we will do you—
1, Israel in bondage and prison; 2, willing; 3, God sent
Moses to call them ; 4, hard to get them to go; 5, brought
by the power of God; 6, left Egypt; 7, travelled three
days in the wilderness; 8, crossed the sea. II. They
sang God's praise; 2, led by a cloud; 3, drank of the
rock; 4, gathered manna; 5, had to fight. III. .They
were going to a place of peace, 2, rest, J, plenty, 4, hap¬
piness, 5, cities, houses, wells, in a word, every thing
IV. Do thee good—bow? 1, shew the way ; 2, encour-
11
82
•age; 3, help up; 4, help 6ght the devil j 5, pray for you;
6, bear (he cross; 7, shew kindnesses.
VII. 2 Kings, ix. 11—Is all well? 1, with the minis¬
ter; 2, deacons; 3, church; 4, Christiana out of the
church; 5, seekers; 6, sinners of all sorts.
VIII Joshua, v. 14—As captain of the host of the Lord
atn I now come. I. Ancient, 2 wise, 3 rich, 4 bold, 5 ten¬
der or merciful, 6 everlasting. II. How he make<? up his
army—1, sends out ministers, 2 enlists men, 3 compels,
4 gives bounty. III. He commands his arm)', 2 leads, 3
musters, 4 arms them, 5 pays them well, 6 uses them
well.
IX. Psalm Ixxxiv. 11—The Lord is a sun and a shield,
4*c. The Lord is a sun—1 light, 2 great, 3 free light,
4 gives light to all the lesser luminaries, 5 the heat there¬
of warms the heart and thaws the affections, 6 hardens
■clay, 7 softens wax, 8 shines when, where and bow he
pleases, 9 powerful, 10 gives life to every thing. II. A
shield—1 present, 2 large, 3 strong to defend. III. Gives
grace—1 enlightening, 2 convincing, 3 convicting, 4 con- •
verting, 5 sanctifying, 6 strengthening, 7 persevering
grace. IV. Glorj, 2 honour, 3 praise. No good thing
will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. 1, life
is given freely, 2 a crown, 3 throne, 4 a mansion, 5 a harp,
6 robe, 7 a heaven of everlasting happiness; all this giv¬
en to them that walk uprightly, agreeable to the word of
God. Consider what I say.
X. Psalm cxix. 60—I made haste and delayed not to
keep thy commandments. The commandments—-1 faith, 2
repentance, 3 love, 4 baptism, 5 Lord's Supper, 6 watch¬
fulness, 7 prayer, 8 perseverance, 9 washing the saints'
feet. II..Made haste—1 because God commands, 2 now
the gospel is preached, 3 now the Spirit strives, 4 before
death, 5 before judgement. III. A few examples of de«
laying—1 tbe old world, 2 Sodom, 3 foolish virgins.
XL Proverbs viii. 6—Hear, for I will speak of exceU
lent things. I. Why hear ? 1 because God commands, 2
there is life by bearing, 3 blessings, 4 death by not hear¬
ing. II How.hear? 1 decently, 2 attentively, 3 con¬
stantly, 4 prayingly, 5 gladly, 6 intending to obey, 7 re-
memberingly, 8 in faith. III. What these excellent
things are? 1 what God the Father has done to save sin¬
ners, 2 what God the Son has done, 3 what God the Holy
Spirit has done, 4 glorious things, treasures, &c. &c.
XII. Prov. viii. 17—I love them that love me, and those
that seek me early shall find me. I. God loves them—J
with an ancient love, 2 powerfully, 3 redeemiBgly, 4 un*
83
changeably, 5 everlastingly. II. Seek early—1 in the
morning, 2 in youth, 3 rightly, 4 constantly, 5 to the end,
in reading, meditation, prayer, &c. &c.
XIII. Prov. is. 6—Come, eat of my bread, and drink
of my wine, &c. I. The bread and wine, the body and
blood of Christ—1 because bread is planted, 2 cut down,
3 threshed, 4 ground, 5 baked, 6 broken, 7 eaten and sat¬
isfies the appetite, 8 strengthens, 9 slay of life. Wine—»•
1 cheers, 2 makes us forget our poverty, and we remem¬
ber misery no more, 2 emboldens and makes valiant, <£c.
11. Who are invited? 1 simple, 2 fools, 3poor publicans,
5 harlots. III. Come and eat—1 under a sense of want
and need, 2 fears removing, 3 hopes encouraging, 4 being
enlightened, <$>c. &c.
XIV. Prov. xxv. 25—As cool waters to a thirsty soul%
so is good news from a far country. I. The far country,
heaven—1 far, 2 good, 3 healthy, 4 pleasant, 5 rich, 6
lasting, if. Good news—1 covenant of grace, 2 Cbrififs
coming into the world, 3 his working out a righteousness,
4 receiving gifts from men, 5 a Mediator, 6 a heaven pre¬
pared, 7 a rest. III. Thirsty ; nothing but water, water
.—Honour, pleasure, profit, will not do for a thirsty soul;
nothing but water. Water, 1 |9 free, 2 clean, 3 plenty,
4 constant, 5 refreshing, &c. &c.
XV:\ Prov. vi. 6—The ant and Sluggard—Providing—.
SummeA 1. Summer—1 from the first promise of the
gospel, k life, 3 gospel, 4 youth, 5 the time of strivings of
the Spirit, 6 peace, 7 health, 8 when Zioa travails. II.
To learn wisdom—1 of God, 2 about yourself, 3 Christ, 4
law, 5 gospel, 6 the temptation of the devil, 7 gifts of
Christ, such as faith, 8 hope, 9 charity, 10 robe of right¬
eousness, 11 armour of God, breastplate, girdle, shield,
belmet, shoes, sword. III. Wise in considering, 2 under¬
taking, 3 taking pains, 4 foreseeing the evil, 5 laying in
So well, 6 in not fainting, 7 in gathering together rich pro¬
vision.
XVI. Solomon's Songs, i. 2—Let him kiss me, 4»c. I.
Who makes the request? The Church, under the char¬
acter of a woman—1 feeble, 2 cleanly, 3 industrious, 4
handsome, 5 lovely. II. To whom i9 the request direct¬
ed? 1 to the Desire of all nations, 2 a man among a thou¬
sand, 3 the chiefest among ten thousand. Ill- The re¬
quest, with the nature of it—1 the manifestation of Christ
in the flesh, 2 spiritually in the gospel, such as grace, 3
tbkens of love, 4 pledges of love, 5 kindles love, 6 implies
familiarity, 7 her love to bim, 8 her acquaintance with
him, 9 her satisfaction in him, 10 the reasons of the re>
84
^(UPsf—love is better than wine, 1 free, 2 From everlasting,
3 to everlasting, 4 incomparable, 5 it mak^s us forget oar
poverty, 6 remembering" misery no more, 7 bold, #
strong, 9 pleasant, 10 cheerful.
XVII Solomon's Songs, L 9—I have compared thee, O
my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariot. We
consider, I. The claim—My love, 1 by choice, 2 gift, 3
purchase, 4 power, 5 consent. II. The name, love—1
wife, 2 loved her, 3 privileged 89 man and wife, 4 love
eternal and unchangeable, everlasting, &c. &c. as above.
III. The companions ; horses in Pharaoh's chariot—1
choice ones, 2 high priced, 3 white, 4 strong, 5 free, 6
bold, 7 trained for war, 8 bearing equal parts, 9 .not at a
manger, in a chariot, 10 need whip sometimes, 11 check¬
ing. 12 had keepers, 13 beautiful.
XVIII. Isaiah v. 4—Vineyard of God. I. The Church
separate from the world—1 harren by nature, 2 enclosed,
3 digged, 4 planted, 5 productive, 6 wants rain and sun, 7
trees, vines, plants, #c. <$*c. II. What God has done for
bis church as a vineyard—1 given his son, 2 his word, 3
Spirit. 4 planted them in good land, 5 with religious lib¬
erties, 6 with ministprs of. all sorts, 7 with jndgpments
and mercies. III. The fruit—1 love, 2 joy, 3 peace, 4
long suffering, 5 humility, 6 holiness, 7 sanc'ific^tion.
XIX. Isaiah xxvi. 20—Hide in the chambers. 4"C. I..
My people—1 chosen, 2 redeemed, 3 sanctified, 4 love
the Lord, 5 follow him, 6 obey bim. II. Hide in the clo¬
set, or chambers—1 church, 2 providences, 3 promises, 4
wounds of Christ, III Hide—1 from the wrath of God,
2 judgements, 3 law, 4 devil. 5 persecutors, 6 hell and
damnation. IV. His indignation—1 sweeps the wicked,
2 war, 3 famine, 4 death, 5 judgements, 6 eternal damna¬
tion, Sic. &c.
XX. Isaiah xlv. 22—Look unto me and be ye saved, £c.
I. Christ a Saviour—1 ancient, 2 wise, 3 incomparable, 4
rich, 5 merciful, 6 everlasting. See what he has done—
1 covenanted, 2 fulfilled the law, 3 satisfied justice in suf¬
fering, 4 conquered the devil, 5 ascended upon high, 6
pleads above. II. Look unto him ; that is, depend upon
him for salvation and happiness, in—1 reformation, 2
tears, 3 baptism, 4 church, 5 comforts, 6 look to him
alone under a sense of misery and distress. III. He shall
save you—1 from trouble, 2 grief and love of sin, 3 the
dominion of it, 4 apostacy, 5 law, 6 wrath of God, 7 death,
8 devil, 9 damnation. IV. To heaven—1 happiness, 2
crowns, 3 thrones, &c. &c.
85
XXI Matthew xxii. 5—But they made light of it. I.
Vhat did they make light of? 1 God, 2 his wisdom in
onceiving and contriving, 3 power in preserving, 4 orer-
y, 5 Christ, 6 sufferings, 7 word, 8 Spirit, 9 minis-
er-s 10 gospel, 11 heaven, 12 hell, 13 judgement, 14
ternity. II. Why 1 1 because of ignorance, 2 unbelief,
• pride. 4 world,' 5 lazy- III. Consequences—1 hard
leart, 2 grieving nf the Spirit, 3 angers God, 4 stops the
ninist^rs, 5 pulU down judgements.
XXII. Lukexii 32—Fear not. little Jlock. $-c. I. The
lock—1 chosen, 2 called. 3 hunted, £ gathered, 5 obedi-
Jnt, 6 innocent, 7 fed, 8 profitable. II. Little—1 in com¬
parison of the world, 2 in the sight of it,"3 in comparison
of God, 4 in their oun sight. III. Their fears—1 that
they are hypocrites, 2 they are deceived, 3 they shall
not hold out, 4 Christians don't love them. IV. Consola¬
tion—for, 1 God has engaged for them, 2 Christ also, for
it is his good pleasure to give them the kingdom.
XXIII. Luke xxi. 36—Watch and pray. I. Watch—
1 against false teachers, 2 faUe doctrines, 3 world, hon¬
ours, pleasures and profits, 4 flesh, unbelief, pride, sloth,
5 the devil. II. Pray always—1 not say, but pray; and
not stop, but pray for Zion, 2 for yourselves, 3 ministers,
4 downfal of Dagon, &c.
XXIV. John x 14—Iam the Good Shepherd, and know
my sheep, and am known of mine. 1. The sheep—1 tame,
2 innocent, 3 clean, 4 patient under persecutions, 5 flock
together, 6 many enemies, 7 fruitful. II.—1 Knows all,
2 loves all, 3 watches all night and day, 4 washes, 5 ven¬
tures his life, 6 hunts them and brings them on his shoul¬
ders, 7 takes the lambs in his arms, 8 feeds and changes
them from pasture to pasture, 9 heals, 10 leads, 11 calls
them by name. III. Knows and is known—1 when he
chose them, 2 died, 3 ascended, 4 pleading, 5 by name, 6
in sorrows, 7 persecution, 8 poverty, 9 losses, 10 death,
11 judgement. IV. Am known—they know—1 his same,
2 his offices, 3 voice in law and gospel, 4 word and Spirit,
5 ordinances and example, 6 ministers and people.
XXV. 1 Cor. vii 29—The time is short. 1 the time
of infancy, 2 youth, 3 gospel, 4 the Spirit's striving, 5
righteous1 sorrow, 6 wicked sinning, 7 our being together,
8 the world which succeeds. 1 death, 2 judgement, 3
heaven, 4 hell. "
XXVI. 1 Cor. ix. 24—So run. How run ? 1 strip, 2
start at Go ! 3 start fair, 4 run straight, 5 do not fall, &
run fast, 7 do not faint, 8 nor go back* 9 look to Jesus
which is the prize—1 heaven, 2 crowns^ 3 thrones, 4
86
sceptres, 5 promises, 6 preachers, 7 all in heavfen aftd
iearth.
XXVII. 1 Cor. xiii. 13—Faith, hope, charity. Failb,
f. Its nature—Tru><t in the Lord. The cause—1 cause,
God, 2 efficient cause, Spirit, 3 instrumental cause, the
preaching of the word—acting1 on God, wisdom, power,
holiness, truth and mercy. Excellency of faith—1 peace
with God, 2 works bj' love, 3 purifies the heart, 4 gives
knowledge, 5 saves the soul. II. Hope—1 reasons, it
"saves from sin, some holiness, some to Zion, sanctification,
conversion, Christ's sufferings, new covenant, truth of
God, justice promise and oath of God. Objects of hope—
good, great, glorious things—God, Chmt, the victory
over the world, the flesh and the devil, saints', thrones,
crowns, &c. Benefits of it—for sailors, as an anchor; as
a warriour, a he'met; purifies the heart. 111. Charity
—1 love to God and mankind, to soul and body, saving
one and supporting the other. Love fo God as above—
Faith shall close in sight, hope in enjoyment when we
get to heaven, but love shall abide forever and ever.
XXVIII. 2 Tim. iv. 6—I am ready to be offered up.
I. Men are not ready, and this is proven by the nature
and actions of men—See Rom. iii. H. What is supposed
in being ready? See Paul's work—1 conviction, 2 faith,
3 repentance, 4 love, 5 holiness, 6 willingness. 111. Offer¬
ed—1 clean, 2 killed, 3 one part to heaven, the other
part to the dust or ashes, »$*c. IV. Departure good ; to
go3 1 from all vexations, temptations, evils, 2 to God and
angeb and seraphim; if bad, from all pleasure to all
pain—devil, hell, &c.
XXIX 2 Tim. iv. 7, 8—I have fought a good fight, fye.
The phrase is agonistical, and has reference to the
^Greeks' and Romans' fighting, running, &c. &c. 1. A
Christian is a soldier—See Timothy. Hardness as good
soldiers—He has to fight principalities, &c.—See Rev.
xii.; Michael and his angels vs. the dragon and his an¬
gels. 11. Good fight; the cause is of God—1 truth and
liberty of him, 2 equipage—See Eph. vi. 5, 3 food, 4
company, 5 victory. 111. Finished my course—1 as a
minister, 2 as a Christian—Pee the text, Run. IV. Kept
the faith—4 I have gotten faith, 2 lived in its exercise, 3
kept it as a shield to fight—Eph. vi. 4, 4 resolution or
oath, as a true soldier to the colours, 5 to the doctrines of
faith, &c. V. The reward—a crown, &,c.^-l of victory,
2 happiness, 3 of righteousness, (1 provided, 2 wrought
out, 3 received, 4 worn, 5 laid up; 1 precious, 2 sure)
4 given) 5 by the Lord of heaven and earth, 6 righteous
87
) do righteously. VI. Judge shall give—I. Judge of all
t that day—1 death, 2 judgement, &c. VII. And to all
bem that love his appearing, &c.
XXX Tim. iii. 16—The mystery of godliness, fyc. I.
lodiiness a mystery—1 long hid from age9 past—See
Jol. i. 2, 6, 27; revealed to Adam in Eve, or life to Eve
i Cain, that is possession or purchase; for I baveobtain-
d a roan from the Lord, or the Lord has become man ; 2
he incarnation of Christ; he the end of the law, con-
ounds the atheist, puzzles the deist and staggers the
^rian, 3 way of faith and works a mystery to this day, 4
he economy of the church, whether national or congre¬
gational, 5 ordinances—some say none, some say dip,
ome sprinkle, some believers, others children. II.
Sreat—1 a great author, 2 contriver, 3 great finisher, 4
great applier, 5 great effects, conquers, changes and re¬
news, 6 great promises, 7 great threatenings. 111. Mys¬
tery of godliness—1 the gospel gives the clearest descrip¬
tion of God and his attributes, 2 this great gospel mystery
gives clear light of the Trinity, 3 of God's way of saving
man by Christ, 4 of faith in him, 5 holiness or godliness
necessary, 6 by it we taste and see his goodness, 7 by it
we are changed to bis likeness, 8 by it we are brought
folly to enjoy him.
XXXI. Rom. xii. 1—The mercies of God, fyc. 1. Mer¬
cies—1 in keeping us iu the womb of time until the gos¬
pel, 2 born in its blaze, 3 properly in making all our
limbs, 4 mind, or soul, 5 food and raiment, 6 health and
life, 7 God's giving his Son a sacrifice to die, 8 Spirit and
ministers among us. His mercies more than the sand?,
hair, &c. 11. That you present or give yourselves to
the Lord, as, 1 the Jews did with their sacrifices, free,
living, active, serviceable—because of his mercies, 2 you
belong to him by creation and prefers ation, 3 to clear
yourselves of the illegal claim of the devil, 4 that God
inay be your keeper and saviour. HI. Holy—Think not
that God will accept of you, wilfully going on in sin. He
teaches us we ought to be holy in heart, life and conver¬
sation.' IV. Reasonable—1 there is more justice in serv¬
ing God than the devil, 2 God does all for ua, and the
devil alt against us, 3 easier, no fighting, drinking and
dancing, 4 more honourable ; the excellent ones of the
earth in the eyes of angels—See Tim.v.; more profitable,
prevents distresses, &c.; glory at the end ; more reason¬
able to study God's mysteries than the devil's; to go to
meetings than to grog phopa; to pray than to curse; to
be saved than to.be damned; -peace, joy, love, than hat»
red. malice, eevy.
88
XXXII. Luke ii. 14—Pecrce, &c. 1. God and man
once at variance—1 road rebelled against hist Maker, 2
and joined the devil, refusing the tribute of serving and
praising God; hence man is engaged against the Lord,
his work, his people, Spirit's motions, and God destroys
man. II. A mediator is provided in this peace, to make
up the breach, 2 he a messenger, 3 loves both, 4 wise to
contrive, 5 powerful to go through lo pay God his de¬
mand to satisfy law and justice. Next, reconciles man
to God, 1 by shewing bis injustice, 2 bis bad state when
in sin, without help, hope or God in thp world. III.
Peace with God and hi? attribute?, 2 peace of conscience,
3 one with the other, Jew and Gf n»ile, &c. &c.
XXXIII. Isaiah xxx 2—This is the way, fyc. I.
Word, not law—1 gospel «vord of love, 2 life, 3 power, 4
joy. 11. Behind—1 the Lord's rere-ward to threaten his
saints, 2 to halt sinners, to turn them, supposing they
were going directly wrong. 111. Way from earth to hea¬
ven—Gen *xxviii.—ladder, way, truth, life, no other way,
2 how get in the way ? 1 by faith ; 2 how obtain faith?
use means. IV. Way—1 good old waj-^Jer. vi.; 2 new
and living way—Heb.; 3 Straight, i. e. marked out, 4
broad—Josh. vi.; 5 pleasant—Prov. viii.; 6 sure, or safe^
walls of 6re—Zech. ii. : walk, i. e. advance, go on, &c.;
do not turn to the right nor left; either a wrong way—
towards the world, to death, &c.
XXXIV. Psalm xxi. 7—King of glory, <$-c* I. King
of glory—1 Lord, 2 mighty in battle, &c. II Everlast¬
ing door—1 heaven, & church, 3 heart—See Rev. iii.; 1
mind, 2 understanding, 3 reason, 4 judgement, 5 will, 6
affections, 7 conscience—1 enter by meditation, 2 prayer,
3 reading, 4 hearing, &c. III. Come in—1 with pardon,
2 peace, 3 joy, 4 love, 5 casts out devils, 6 adopted sons,
7 bears, and 8 opens to me, sups with me, &c.
XXXV. As it was in the days of Rot, #c. 1 Exceed¬
ingly wicked, 2 gluttony, 3 idleness, 4 wantonness, 5 God's
anger kindled, and told Lot to warn them, 6 mockery and
fdle tales, 7 some took the hint, and 8 escape, 9 not tar¬
ry in the plains, 10 flee to the mountain, Christ the moun¬
tain—rich, so is Christ—hiding place—strong, &,c.; 11
they safe, 12 looked back, 13 others at easp at midnight,
Itc. 14 unexpected, 15 unprepared, 16 fire, 17 brimstone,
18 rained down, 19 consumed—so shall it be at the com¬
ing of the Son of man.
XXXVI. For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
1. Cause—1 support, 2 protector of anij>al life, 3 merito¬
rious cause of spiritual life, 4 by his Spirit's being the
89
icient cause of life, of peace, 5 glory. II. Example of
e, in faith, holiness, ordinances, &c. HI. End of his
e—Lives for him, preaches, prays, exhorts, talk" for
n. IV. Gain to die—,1 leave all devils, 2 s!d, 3 temp-
ion, losses, crosses, sickness, persecutions, &c. to go to
>d, Christ, angels, cherubim, saints, crowns, thrones,
rps, robes, rivers, trees, cities, &c.
XXXVII Isaiah xi. 1, &c. 1. Christ a Root, Stem,
>d, Branch, &c.—1 A root is despicable, so is Christ,
it bears the whole body, so Christ, 3 the branches,
wrist's believers, 4 supplies with sap, Christ with life.
. Branch for—1 spreading, 2 shading, 3 fruit. Hi. Rod
•1 to direct, 2 to correct, 3 to protect, or Staff to lean
pon—1 for beauty, 2 protection, 3 honour. IV. Ensign—
to gather, 2 peace, 3 war, 4 march, 5 victory. V. Ga-
lering at sound, to Christ by faith, rest in Christ in hea-
en. from sin, devil, world, &c. &c.
XXXVIII 1 Cor. xv 55—Oh death, sting, <£-c. I. It
ppears small, so sin—1 enters strangely where swords
ad balls cannot, so sin, 2 poisons, sin corrupts and infects
tie whole *nass of blood, 3 pains, sin does in this and the
ther world. II. Effect* of the sting—see above. III.
Victory over sin and law—1 by fulfilling the law, 2 be¬
soming sin, 3 bearing the sting, death, 4 by faith, 5 boli-
less, 6 resurrection.
XXXIX. Rev vi. 2—White horse, #c. I. The Gospel;
why ? because—1 powerful, 2 swift, 3 warlike, 4 strong
br burden; the Gospel bears all saints, 5 valuable, 6glo¬
rious—Solomon bad forty thousand stalls, 7 high priced.
II. White—1 light, 2 pure, 3 innocent, 4 joy, 5 peace.
III. He that sat on him, <$•<;. a bow and crown, Christ—1
on the Gospel, in Eden, 2 on the law, &c. IV. A bow—
1 covenant of grace, 2 power to do all things, &c. V.
Crown—1 victory, 2 digoity or crowns for all his. VI.
Conquering and to conquer—1 by law,2 Gospel—(1 death,
2 h**ll &c.)
Xb Judges xiv 14—Eater, <$»c. I. A kingly beast;
so is Christ a kiug—1 powerful, 2 bold, 3 eyes large and
open, 4 voice terrible, 5, resents injuries done to his
young, (see the story of the bear,) 6 retaliates kindness,
(see story of the man and lion,) 7 just, (see hear and dog,)
8 pardonB penitents, 9 keeps the prey, 10 its Wood eases
pain, 11 affords—11. Honey or sweetness—1 the Gospel
with all its benefits—1 peace with God, 2 pardon, 3 adop¬
tion, 4 justification, 5 sanctification, 6 victory over death,
7 resurrection, 8 glory. Honey—1 «weet, 2 sweetens
bitter, sorrows, sufferings, 3 purges, 4 medicine, 5 mgst
12 <
T)0
be sought for, 6 loathed. Are you an Israelite to keep
the riddle?
XLI Luke ix. 26—Plow, £c. 1 A oeat piece of
mechanism, 2 strong, 3 breaks tip ground, root9, &c. 4
nourishes corn--saints' grace, &c. 5 destroys sin, &c. 6
despicable, yet honourable, 7 supports all saints, &c. 8
drawn—by the Spirit, 9 followed, or held. II. Puts—1
as a minister, 2 professor, and looks back or baits. III.
Unfit——I for promises, 2 graces, 3 church, 4 heaven, &c.
XL1I. . Prov. vi. 5—Hunter, roe, 4'e- !• Hunter—1 is
an enemy to deer; so the devil, 2 mkes ail advantages, 3
wise, 4 active, 5 many after one, 6 change appearance,
green, &c. ia the summer, black in fall, while in snow, 4rc.
7 dress in a skin, or sheep clothing, 8 affected in voice,
9 cruel. II. Koe—1 clean, so saints, 2 loving food, 3
peaceable and sociable or fond of company, 4 no gall, 5
careful of their young servants and children, 6 entice oth¬
ers to the park, Christians try, 7 hates serpents, and 8
hides in rocks. III. Deliver thyself, #c. Take all ad¬
vantages—1 small track* 2 look, 3 hear, (long ear) 4
avoid the first appearance, 5 leave the meadow of sin and
escape, 6 kill the horn of it, 7 flee to the mountain of
Christ.
XLUI. Ezra i. 9—Nine and twenty knives. Inquire
I. What they were and are, use, &c. &c. They were the
weapons made use of in slaying the sacrifices. Our sins,
like those twenty-nine knives, slew the sacrifice, Jestrt
Christ; for be was bruised for our transgressions, and bj
bis 9tripes we are hpaled.
" Each of my crimes became a knife,
" And unbelief a spear."
Sin a transgression of the law. 1st knife, thou shalt have
no other god before me, 2 shall not have graven images
to have false worship, 3 shall not take God's name io
vain, 4 remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy, 5
honour thy father, &c. 6 shall not kill, 7 9hall not commit
adultery, 8 shall not steal, 9 shall not bear false witness,
10 shall not covet, 11 drunkenness, 12 pride, 13 unbelief,
14 carnality, 15 ignorance, 16 apoatacy, 17 hypocrisy,
18 witchcraft, 19 revilings, 20 maliciousness, 21 envy, 22
debate, 23 boasters, 24 inventors of evil, 25 covenant
breakers, 26 without natural affections, 27 implacable, 28
toDtnerciful, 29 unthankful. II. All these twenty-nine
knives were laid on tables of stone, viz. Jews' and Gen*
tiles' hearts; why ? 1 because the tables of stone were
beavy, bear to the earth, 2 insensible, 3 hard, 4 smooth
and glancing, 5 put great deal on them, 6 knives on them.
91
[II. Then taken to slay the Son of God, wound his head,
bis hands, his feet, his back and side. IV. Laid back
igain, in repentance, in sacrificing the members, &c.
XL IVi Genesis iii. 9—Adam, where art thou ? Adam—
[. Red, earthy, clayey. Oh earth, &c. Father of all
living, &c. II Where was he 1 1 in the favour of God,
jjjlorious and delightful, 2 parleying with Eve and the dev¬
il, 3 rebelling against God and obeying fools, 4 God calls,
he runs, tries to hide, eews fig-leaves, is arraigned, con¬
demned, his sins judged before, promises, wrapt in skin,
Christ's righteousness, Cain a man from the Lord, or the
Lord Man Immanuef, on the way to heaven, gets there—
where are the contrary ? death, bell, &c.
XLV. Romans xiii. 14—Put ye on the Lord Jesus
Christ. I. Garments for covering nakedness—1 some
careless about them, so they are about Christ, 2 defend
from cold, storm and beat, 3 for distinction of rank and na¬
tions, 4 beauty, 5 joy, so Christ. II. Put on—Lay off the
old, 1 devil, 2 sin, the outer robe, 3 under-jacket of self-
righteousness—put on by faith which will assimilate in bis
image. See Colossians. ill. The best robe. See Luke
xv. 1 in fashion, 2 like Israel's, don't wear out, 3 of
God's providing, &c. &c.
XLVI. Numbers xx. 11—Moses smote the rock, fyc.
I. Rock—1 firm for foundation, so is Christ, 2 to dwe'l in,
3 high for prospect, 4 deep, 5 strong for defence, 6 yield
honey, 7 oil, 8 riches, jewels, diamonds, &c. 9 shadow,
10 dangerous to stumble at, 11 yield waters, 12 smitten
by his Father, with the law, for our sins, &c. II. Waters
-—1 love of God, 2 Spirit, 3 Gospel, &c.
XLVIL Acts iv. 11—Head of the Corner. ! founda¬
tion, % bears all, 3 unites all, 4 defends all, 5 strengthens
all, 6 all deposited by it, 7 beautifies all. Sic.
XLV III. Exodus xx. 8—Remember the Sabbath day, &c.
I. The seventh part of our time to be devoted to the Dei-
ty, proved—I from the laws of nations, Jews, Turks and
Christians, 2 denominations—as Papists, Methodists, Pres¬
byterians, Baptists, &c. 3 from reason, 4 revelation, 5 du¬
ty H. Remember if— 1 not triflingly, 2 in thoughts. 3
words, 4 actions, 5 in private, 6 in pnblick. III. Why
the neglect of it? 1 it throws contempt on his worship, 2
an insult to the Deity, 3 provokes heaven, 4 tempts the
devil, 5 sears the conscience, 6 encourages idleness, 7 and
open** « floodgate to every vice, &<\
XLIX. Isaiah xxxiii. i — Who hath believed ouf report ?
I. The report—1 God's attributes, 2 ptfrsoo, 3 made man
upright in his own image, 4 he is fallen, & Jesu9 Christ en-
92
iered into covenant with the Father, fulfilled (he law*
brought in an everlasting righteousness, that is given to
and put upon all that believe, 6 that there is a resurrec¬
tion of the dead, and life everlasting. II. Those who
have believed, &c.—All whose internal evidences, and ex¬
ternal deportment correspond with the report. III. Wby
should we believe it ? 1 because it is a reasonable one to
hope for, 2 it is possible to attain. 3 written by men of dif¬
ferent ages, and harmonizes, 4 embraced by the brightest
geniuses on earth, such a« Locke, Milton, Young, Little¬
ton, Newton, Gill, Watts, &c. 5 hated by the worst of
men, 6 confirmed by tniraclea, 7 established by prophe¬
cies, 8 vindicated by martyrs, 9 its greatest and brightest
opposers receive their title from k. IV. Answer objec¬
tions—1 reason cannot comprehend it; No, neither can
it know the ray of the sun, its motion, location, stars, eb¬
bing* of the ocean, agitation of the winds, or motion of the
heart; 2 only the poor embrace. See reason 4.
L. Proverbs xiv. 34—Righteousness exalts a nation, 4fC.
I. Righteousness derived from right—I all wicked by na¬
ture, can't make ourselves righteous, 2 it means a righte¬
ousness adequate to the law, completed for those under
the law, 3 applied and apprehended, 4 imparted, 5 decla¬
rative. II. Exalts—1 above sin, 2 law, 3 death, 4 devil,
5 hell—I in the eyes of God, 2 angels, 3 saints, 4 world to
heaven. III. Sin—any want of conformity to God, and
transgression of his law. What has it done ? 1 turned
angels into devil?, 2 out of heaven, 3 man into the nature
of devils out of Eden, 4 destroyed the old world, 5 Sodom,
6 language of Babel, 7 Jews dispersed and slain, and
brings war, poverty, labour, losses, croaees, paius, &c. re¬
proaches, scandals—comes from the devil, carried on by
him, goes to him, ruins souls, body—one in this world, the
other in the next.
LI. Rev. xii. 1—Ji -wonder. 1. A woman the Church
—wby ? 1 of and from the Lord, 2 for man, 3 weak, 4
beautiful, 5 fruitful, 6 cheerly, 7 industrious. 11. Clothed
with the sun, i. e. Christ and his righteousness, and then
she shine9 like the sun. 111. The moon under her feet—
1 the world and its pomps, &c. 2 Jewish ordinances and
traditional ceremonies. IV. A crown of twelve 9tars upon
her head—1 the apostles, 2 their doctrines, 3 their joy
and reward, and V. That it wasii wonder—1 in the eyes
of Christ, 2 angels, 3 saints, 4 sinners, 5 devils. 1 in ap¬
parel, 2 in behaviour, 3 conquests, &c. &c.
LII. Mat. viii. 29—Son of God. I he has a name
above all, 2 heart and essence of all, 3 power over all) 4
Jove exceeds all, 5 beauty transcends all, &c.
93
LUI Rer. vi. 17—The grtat day of wrath,fyc. I.Will
come—The scripture teaches such a dav will come. See
Psalm 1. 1—6 ; Dan. vii. 9 ; Mai. iii. Mat- xxv. Rev. II.
The reason why it shall come—All forms of government
monarchical. A lion and ass, a knave and fool. An aris-
tocratical despotism and cruelty among all the Herods,
C®sars and Pharaoh*, shall close. HI. A great day. The
day of the feast—Jubilee of Ester, Jubilee of Jr»ho^, all
less than this—1 brighter actions, sun and stars, 2 longer,
3 events greater. 1 great trump, 2 God's descending,
3 all orders of angels, 4 all orders of saints, patriarchs,
prophets, apogtles, martyrs and saints in modern times, 5
devils, 6 damned spirits, sinners, 7 stars falling, 8 meteors
bursting, 9 lightnings flashing, 10 thunders I'oaring, 11
volcanoes belching, 12 earth quaking, 13 mountains mov¬
ing, 14 rocks melting, 15 seas burning, 16 the world ren¬
ovated, 17 the separation, 18 the rewards, 19 the pun¬
ishments. IV. Of wrath—1 against the devil, 2 angH«, 3
beast, 4 false prophet, 5 antichristiao powers or churches,
6 all who take an active part with the devil. V. Who
shall stand ? 1 penitent, 2 believers, 3 holy, 4 or partkeps
of the divine nature, 5 who love God, 6 are under the
influence of his religion, &c.
LIV. Luke xx. 34, v. 6—This world, and that world,
4-c. F. This world—1 accursed of God, 2 barren, 3 for¬
saken, 4 under the influence, and possessed of devils, 5
sin with all its evils, plagues, pestilences, war, famiue,
death, hell, &c. &c. II. That world—1 superiour to all
worlds. 2 the abode of God, 3 of angels of all orders, 4 of
saints of all orders, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, mar¬
tyrs, 5 plenty and happiness forever—1 singing, 2 pray¬
ing, 3 preaching, and feasting on the dainties of heaven
and beholding the glory of God. 111. Those that are
worthy—1 such as are made unworthy, (i. e. to feel so)
2 quickened, 3 enlightened, 4 reconciled to God and hea¬
ven, made partakers of the* nature of God and habits of
heaven—1 children of the resurrection, 2 of God, 3 sick
no more, 4 die no more, 5 equal to the angels of God, &c.
LV. Heb. i. 14—Are they not all ministering spirits,fyc.
I. In their name—1 angels messengers from heaven to
earth, 2 seraphim burn or shine, 3 cherubim 9inger9, 4
watchers; Dan. iv. 13, 5 morning stars, 6 sons of God, 7
living creatures. See Rev.; 8 thrones, 9 dominions, 10
principalities, 11 powers. II. As to their numbers—thou¬
sands of thousands and ten thousand times ten thousand and
thousands of thousands. Paul having viewed them says
they are innumerable, Heb. xii.—1 for their excellency
94
t>f spirit; not encumbered as men ; see birds—excel in
strength, Ps. ciii. 20—mighty ; see in the slaying the first¬
born in Egypt; see Senacherib's army, one hundred and
eighty five thousand slain by one in one night, 2 offering
themselves as God's agents in this world—1 shouted at
creation, 2 concerned—see Sampson and Messiah—warn¬
ed Lot of the overthrow of Sodom; fed Elijah under the
juniper tree; converted Paul and his crew; set Peter at
large from prison; rolled away the stone for Mary;
buked Balaam's ass; supporled Christ; attended at the
giving of the Law; watch the living; wait on the dying—
see Lazarus—gather and attend in the day of judgement.
111. Heirs of salvation. Those that—1 were of sin, mise¬
ry and hell, 2 delivered by Christ's merit and Spirit from
the love, guilt, power and misery of sin, to be heirs of
promises, graces, wealth of Israel, of God, of angels and
heaven; wait on them all (heir journey in their redemp¬
tion, sleeping, waking hours, in life and death.
LVI. Mat. vi. 9, 13—Our Father—1 by creation, 2
preservation; is he by redemption? Wbo art in heaven,
not coofined ; vi9iteth humble man, makes bis abode; 4
hallowed be thy name, holy and reverend, until the Pope
and Clergy robbed him ; ought to be still so in thoughts,
words and.actions; no profanation in oaths, &c. 5 thy
kingdom come; a, king over all; a kingdom of grace and
not of this world, but spiritual, called, sanctified, collect¬
ed; 6 come into our hearts, house*, churches, world; 7
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, as angels; 8
give us this, &c.—our temporal and spiritual blessings ;
give no more than enough; we cannot get them our¬
selves; 9 debts, &c.—sins of omission and commission;
forgive—there is no merit in us to balance with God ; 10
lead us not into temptation, nor suffer us to be l-'d, iu
our trials, affections, sin«; 11 but deliver us from all evils
of this and the other world; 12 (or thine is the kingdom
—thou art aD absolute king, and will be known; 13 as
king, the power in all worlds, heaven, earth and hell; 14
and glory in all worlds; 15 amen, so be it, or be it so—
the close of a prayer to true or false, to God. to sinneri,
to saints.
LVll. Isaiah xl. 1—Comfort my people I. God has a
people—1 they are described by th<-ir experience. See
Gen. xxx. 27. Rom. v. 4. By their mark* or characters;
all of tbem have an experience of sin, for Christ came not
to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. They
hav* experienced »in to be exceedingly sinful. The Spi¬
rit of God convinces them of sin; for when the command-
93
ment came, pin revived and I died. They have experi¬
enced the deficiency of their best performances, or right¬
eousness, they have experienced what i( is to hufiger and
third after righteousness, they hate experienced pardon
for sin, faith, repentance, love, joy, and principles of ho<-
liness; they obey his commands. Then are ye nay dis¬
ciples indeed, if ye do whatsoever I command you. They
keep his ordinance?, do justice, Jove mercy. They are
the Lord's people, as his choicp—Ye have not chosen
tne, bat I have chosen you. I have chosen you and or¬
dained you to bring forth fruit. 2, they were Christ's by
the gift of the Father- Psalm ii. Ask of me my Son, &c.
John xvii. Thine they were, but thou gavest them to me.
And of all those thou gavest me, <$*c. 3, they were once
embarrassed. Law and justice had a claim on them, and'
Christ answered all their claims. 4, they are stilt wild
and ungovernable, but made willing by his power. Ps.
In the day of my power. My people a willing people.
5, chosen fiim. Sol. Songs, My beloved is mine. Ps.
My portion—-Fear him, love him, honour him, obey him.
11. They are a sorrowful people ; Paul groaned, <$*c.; the
devil harasses with his temptations. Peter—Know ye
not that your adversary the devil walks about as a roar¬
ing lion, seeking whom he may devour 1 The world-~
The men of this world persecute ministers and people,
Say all manner of evil of them. Cares of this world—
Losses, crosses, &c. flesh and sin and its consequences,
death, &c. III. Comfort, comfort my people; say unto
Jerusalem her warfare is accomplished. By Christ. He
has fought the main battle ; (as in the case of Cornwalli*)
he has engaged for all the rest of the remaining tories, or
sins, and he will out them by little and little. Her ini¬
quity is pardoned, through Christ, &c. She shall receive
of the Lord's hand double pardon from him, or graces of
liim; for where sin has abounded, grace shall much more
abound, and glory shall crown the whole, &c.
LVIII. Mat. Xxiii. 21—Render unto Ccesar the things
that are Coesar's, but unto God the things that are God's.
Read Rom. xiii. All governments of God'* are penal.
They originate from the vices, and not from the virtues
of the people. The palaces of kings are erected on the
ruins of Paradise. Government is medicine to a disor¬
dered constitution. It is a necessary evil, and considered
as an antidote to worse, or greater evils, is a great good.
Render therefore unto Caesar (or government) the things,
£c. We shall mention four kinds of governments, thajfc
existed in the world.
$6
The first we shall name, is Monarchy, where the'
government or national power is vested in one man. Thi«
had its drigin in that mighty hunter, mentioned in holy
writ, Nimrod; and from that time to this, worms have
been climbing to sovereignty. See the thirty kings of
Canaats; Israel wanting to be like other nations that have
a monarchy. See Tom Paine's "Common Sense," pp. 10,
11. The reprehension of Gideon in refusing to be king,
or his sons. Also, Samuel shews the displeasure of the
Lf>rd against kingly authority: God disapproved of that
kind of government, as may be seen in Samuel, &c. Yet
a monarchy is better than no government. • Render
therefore unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's; or ren¬
der nnto government the things that are government's.
The second we 9hall mention, ia an Aristocracy ; where
the power is vested in a few men, king*, nobles, &c. And
this is worse than a monarchy ; for in the latter but one
oppresses, in the former, many. But yet this is better
than none. Render therefore, &c.
A third is a Theocracy, when God made and gave laws.
He was the great Legislator; elders and judges executed.
See a few of His laws relative to oxen, sheep, five and
four fold. See whip not more that thirty-nine stripes.
Thrs form therefore answered for whom it was intended.
Render, &c.
A fourth is a Democracy, or Republick : A government
existing by the suffrage of the people—"Vox populi."
They govern themselves; no hereditary succession, &c.
They turn out and put in, according to pleasure, who,
when, where, and how they please. Ours, a President,
Senate, and House ot Representatives; all chosen direct¬
ly or indirectly, by the people at large—The best gov¬
ernment in the world. Render therefore unto govern¬
ment what is due, but to God the things that are God's.
What are they? See Romans xii. 1. 1 bodies with all
their member?, 2 souls with all their faculties, 3 proper¬
ties, 4 lives, if called for. Why ? 1 because he made
them, 2 made them noble masters of the world,- 3 he pro¬
tects them from evils, sicknesses and the devil, 4 and pre-
* pares a heaven for all those that render praise. Render
unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, but unto God the
things that are God's.
LIX 11 Chron. i. 7, 8, 9. 10, —The Lord said un~
to Solomon, What shall I give thee ? And Solomon said. Give
me -wisdom, fyc. T.'ie saying pleased the Lord. I. Man¬
kind in an untutored, uncultivated ■Mate, are very igno¬
rant—See Blair's Lectures on Early Society. See Bu«
97
chanan's Researches in Asia. Id bis (ravels, &c.—bis ac¬
count of the great idol and temple of Juggernaut—thou¬
sands of victims, women and men. burnt alive, children
slain, or hung in baskets: hundreds cast into the conse¬
crated fords of the river Ganges. See the poor, sable
sons of Africa, without arms or ammunition or clothes,
become ea9y trophies to one another, and enslaved by
thousands. Look among the natives of America; the
tollected poKcy of nations and ages has not enabled them
to make a nail or form a hatchet—all teaching the neces¬
sity and importance of getting wisdom. Give me—I.
Dotoestick wisdom, that I may provide food and raiment
for family, poor, and friends. All parents ought to see to
that. U. Give me scientifick wisdom. The common
arts and sciences as they are generally taught, as far as
we are able to understand—Geography and Surveying, to
find out and settle our globe; Navigation, to exchange
trade with other nations; Mathematicks, to transact busi¬
ness among* ourselves; Astronomy, or an acquaintance
with the stars, &c. &c.; Languages, to collect the wisdom
of the ancients and other countries, &c. &c. ; Polity, that
we become acquainted with the constitution, laws, cus-
toms, habits, manners, <$>c. of the various nations that in<-
habit our earth—-and take care of oor estates, &c» &c.
III. Give me religious- wisdom—All other knowledge,
without morality and religion is vain. 1 ad acquaintance
with God and his perfections, 2 of ourselves and the worth
of our immortal part, 3 of Jesus Christ the son of God,
and the necessity of having him as our friend, 4 of the
Holy Spirit, to lead us into all truth, to teach us of sin,
righteousness and judgement to come, 5 of the sacred
Scriptures, as the will and testament of God, as the rule
of our life, as a lamp to our feet and a light to our path,
as the man of our counsel, 8tc.
A DREAM OF THE REV. A. MARSHALL'S,
When he was siekt in the year 1809.
He was very low, and expected to expire; but the
Lord appeared to him in a dream, and signified that per¬
haps he should survive. He dreamed that a large num¬
ber of people bad assembled at Jennings1 race paths, in
Columbia County, &c. They were drinking and carous¬
ing, and these words, Do thyself no harm, were presented,
to preach to them. " My waking dreams are best con¬
cealed," &c. See Joseph's two dreams—Pharaoh's twp
dreams. Job says, God Speaks once, yea, twice in tfret
night. Nebuchadnezzar's—See Joseph's, &
98
Paul was a ma'n of strong mind, and received a liberal
education—was converted or changed from a persecuting
Saul to a praying Paul—tried to reform the world—was
called before a council—was whipped—chained in a dun¬
geon—at midnight prayed and sang praises to God. Hea¬
ven heard, sent an angel; he shook the earth, sprung
the bolts, opened the gates and doors, broke the chains
and set the prisoners free. The jailer seeing the doors
all open, supposed the prisoners we-re gone. Frightened
half to death, and stricken with guilt, he drew his sword
and was about to kill himself. But Paul cried out to him,
(and 1 toyou) "Do thyself no harm"—1. Neither directly
nor indirectly; by no rude nor rash measure, custom or
habit that will primarily or secondarily shorten life.
Life Is short, sweet, precious, and ought to be preserved.
The preservation of it is the first law in nature. See the
word of Jehovah on the subject—Thou shalt do no murder,
directly or indirectly, on yourself or on another. Hear
the old De-vil, the father of lies, felling a notorious truth
—Skin for skin, all that a man hath will he give for bis
life. Life is not so tedious as to cause a man to be in
such a hurry to get out of the world. One rash action in
a mad paroxysm of temerity, may bring one of the best
of women, overladen with grief and borne down with sor¬
row, to the grave, and thus bereave a promising family of
all its support in life. u Self-murder ! name it not—our
continent's scandal! These huddle into hell, and devils
look on them as worse than tbey are." See the officer
in North Carolina, with a thousand others that could be
named.
As life is so precious—II. Do thyself no harm in put¬
ting yourself in the way of others that will do you harm—
in duelling. Do no murder, is the law of God; and man
will negative it. Duelling is more on account of false,
than real honour. It is an act of cowardice, not of bra¬
very. See Cae-ar, &c. It is an unfair way of settling in¬
sults and disputes. See a little bit of a fire-brand flashing
his brimstone in every assembly. He is about five feet
high. No family involved, sunk in debt, skilled in fenc¬
ing and murder—sends a challenge to his antagonist, a
man of corpulency, of character, of fortune, of a family.
How unequal the contest, how unfair the engagement I
III. Do thyself no harm, directly or indirectly, in put¬
ting yourself in the way of others, at fist and skull. Coun¬
ter to the laws of God and man, when they deprecate the
smiting with the fist of wickedness. Recollect the law-
Ac eve for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a member for a
member, life for life, 4^. See what barm there is receiv*
ed in fighting like bull-dogs—Loss of fingers, thumbs,
teeth, eyes, ears, noses, lips, testicles, blood, &c. long and
costly lawsuits, and often life itself.
IV". Do thyself no harm directly nor indirectly, in tak¬
ing ardent spirits to excess. See laws of God—Be not
drunken, &c. Hear Dr. Rush, with Wesley and the fa-
-culty. See the thousands slain by spirituous liquors. It
is observed, that white the sword has slain its thousands,
wine has slain its tens of thousands. The sword destroys
from sixteen to sixty years of age, and those, men; but
spirits, all ages, sexes and sizes. The immoderate use of
spirits brings on s number of evils and diseases—agues,
fevers, dropsies, palsies and madness; ruins the senses,
renders the person petulant*, peevish and perverse, the
family all confusion; poverty assuredly ensues; every
thing goes to decay and ruin; baros without doors or co¬
ver; garden without paling; fields without fences ^ser¬
vants without clothing; children without education^ all
sunk to worse than nothing.
V. Do thyself no harm—in destroying your property..
It is loaned to you by the Lord, for his purposes and char¬
itable uses. It was not designed to be lost at hazard or
chance—all villany and roguery—in horse racing, to say
it improves the wind and speed, is wrong. God prohib¬
its the multiplying of horses. In quarter, &c. races, gam¬
blers take all advantages—nicknaming—Creeping Kate,
Burntfoot, old Plower,&c. Also, in shootrng matches, in the
loading of guns, &c. In cards, nothing else but cheating—
play falsely, stock, shuffle,deal, mark,cheat,lie,swear,steal,
fight and kill; wives of the best kind ruined; children having
the devil as their enemy; haters of God ; opposers of hia
Sabbath;—gamblers scarcely ever rich—if they become
so, their riches literally take wings and fly away."
VI. Do thyself no harm—in character, by keeping low
and base company. If sioners entice thee consent thou
not Be not a companion with vicious persons. A com¬
panion of fools shall be destroyed ; come out from among
them; walk with the wise and be wise. How many
thousands in their dying moments, and under their gal¬
lows, have declared that bad company became their ruin.
VII. Do thyself no barm—in base and low language;
cursing and swearing. Thou shalt not take the name of
the. Lord thy God in vain. Swear not at all, neither by
heaven, for it is Gt»d's throne, nor by the earth, for it is
his footstool; npither by the temple, nor by thy head;
for thou canst not by swearing, turn one hair white or
100
black. Above all things, swear not at all. It is a prao
tice easily learnt—often repeated, difficult to get clear of.
It borders on, and leads to all kinds of perjury : Break a
plantation oath, a court house oath, a Congress oath; and
hence state and national obligations are destroyed.
VIII. Do thyself no harm—in revelling, wasting of pro¬
perty arvd time at balls, barbecues, &c. &c.
IX. Do thyself no harm—in the profanation of the
Lord's Day. Exodus—" Remember the Sabbath Day to
keep it holy. Six days ehalt thou labour and do all thy
work. Not doing thy own pleasure." If we judge of
any of the charges or precepts, the day is not to be bro¬
ken. An old mongrel deist says, " How shall we spend
our time? I'll not be hindered from Sunday visiting by
preacher or Bible; for the Bible is of no force with me,
neither is the Church." But stop—ought not there to
be some relaxation ? But says some grum parent, " I'll go
to see my children, Bible or no Bible." Say a parcel of
profane children, raised from their infancy in disregard¬
ing this holy day, "We were always sent abroad on the
Sabbath, and we will not be hindered by Church nor
"State from our Sunday gossips"—and so says the mother.
Pray why must all this visiting be on Sundays? "For
want of time." Pray who gave you that time, and for
what purpose ?—to stroll, and eat, and drink, and riot, and
laugh, and murder your conscience, and violate the lawg
of God and man ? Poor children ! Poor father ! Poor mo¬
ther! Poor professor! Your religion may do to live on,
but when about to die, it will fail!—surrounded by grace¬
less children and servants; taught nothing in the week
but fretting, scolding and fighting, and on Sundays by
prer.ept9 and examples, profanation of the Lord's Day—
shooting, strolling, feasting, laughing, gambling, drinking,
&c. &£• Do thyself no harm directly nor indirectly, in
any of these ways; but be industrious, frugal and religious.
And may the Lord God have mercy oo you for Jesus
Christ's sake. Amen.
Romans viii. 38—Who shall separate us from—God's
Jove in Christ his beloved Son ? God regts in his love.
In him he is reconciled to the world. Through him we
are reconciled to God. He 13 the Christ, God, Man, Me¬
diator between God and man, laying hands on both par¬
ties—answering God's demands on one hand, as the Father
is >vell pleased in him, and conquering us on the other
hand, by quickening and shewing us our apostacy and re-
bellioQ; by the proclamation of peace in the Gospel; by
the energelick influences of bis Holy Spirit in slaying the.
101
loot of bitterness within ; by influencing us tfr love God
and Christ for loving us; sending his Son. w Whom have
I in heaven but thee; there is none on the earth.that 1
desire like unto thee " God loves us through Christ}
we love God through Christ ; he is all ioall; we love
him in his perfections ; his kingdom, people and interest;
his law, Gospel and ordinances. Who can or 9hall sepa¬
rate us ? we are persuaded that neither death in all its
forms, nor life with all its scenes, nor angels good or bad.
The former will not, the latter cannot; nor principali¬
ties good or bad; nor powers; nor things present, nor
things to come; heights of prosperity, depths of adverse
ty, nor any other creature.
Sol. Songs, v. 9—What i&^thy ltelxroed more than another
beloved, O thou fairest among -women ? I. The character
inquired of—thou fairest among women—i. e. the Church
of Christ. Why ? 1 because weak and feeble, 2 for man,
or Christ, 3 cleanly, 4 industrious, 5 beautiful or fair, fair-
est—not in herself, (but defiled) but in Christ; being
washed in bis blood, clothed in his righteousness, sanctifi¬
ed by his Spirit, adorned with his graces, walking in his
ordinances; a perfect beauty ; Ps. 1. 2, Out of Zion, thQ
perfection of beauty, God bathshined; all fair, my dove,
without spot or wrinkle; and who can lay any thing to
her charge ? II. The character inquired after-^-beloved.
Why beloved? 1 he loved her, 2 bought her, 3 married
her, 4 clothed her, 5 defends her from sin, law, death, 6
gives ber all be has—all is yours, ye are Christ's, and
Christ is God's. III. What more than others ? Wiser,
stronger, richer, more loving, more handsome, more lasU
ing, has happiness without ceasing, &c.
Mat. xxiv.—Christ's coming, and the end of the world,
1, See Enoch and the scriptures, &c, 2, Reasonable t<x
punish oppressors, Pharaoh, Alexander, Herod, Pagans,
Popes, &c. 3, Signs—Wars, See all Europe and Ameri¬
ca, and all the world, more than ever. Pestilence or
plague. As in the days of Noah, eating, drinking, gam¬
bling, 4*c. Earthquakes in divers places, subterranean
fires, eighteen mountains, four hundred comets, &c, Obi
atacles removed—1, Man of Sin removed; 2, prophecies
fulfilled, &c Manner of his coming—1 in the glory of
his Father, 2 clouds, 3 fire, 4 trumpet, 5 all orders of ant
gels, 6 devils of all orders, 7 saints of all orders, sinnerst
of all orders—-He in pomp—all solemn and awful. See'
Mat. xxiv. 44. Reason of his* coming—1 to assume bit
glory, 2 collect his saints, 3 condemn sinners.
102
Frov.—Am not I in sport ? Gambling, &c.—Arguments
against—I. A great waste of precious time. Our golden
moments are precious; a span, a moment, a vapour; full
short for all the duties of life, 1 to ourselves, 2 to God, 3
to society; therefore be wipe, redeeming the time be¬
cause the days are evil; not fools. II. Waste of money
and property. We are stewards under God; all we have
is loaned to us to be disposed of to gotJd purposes—1 to
God, 2 families, 3 society. Recollecting this, give an ac¬
count of thy stewardship, that thou mayest no longer be a
steward to mismanage. III. A great mixing with the ba¬
sest of company and vilest of the earth, contrary to what
Solomon and Paul say—Walk with the wise; come out
from amoug them. It is supported by, and connected
with the worst of habits or evils ; 1 cheating, in a variety
of instances, 2 drunkenness, 3 lying, 4 swearing. 5 fight¬
ing. IV It is destructive to families and societies—See
the slain brothers, murdered wives, weeping widows,
starving childreo, &c.
Sol. Songs, vi. 2—My beloved is gone down into his gar-
<?en, fyc. to gather lilies, fyc. Inquire, I. Why beloved?
1 on account of what Christ has done for his church, 1 in
life, 2 death, 3 resurrection, 4 intercession ; 2 his love, 3
loveliness. II. His garden—1 small, 2 wrought, 3 wall¬
ed, 4 planted with trees, flowers, herbs, &c. HI. Gone
down—1 his incarnation, or his condescending to visit his
people. See Solomon's garden, low, or down. IV. To
the beds of spices—believers. Their spices are either
works or graces. V. And to gather lilie«; beautiful as
lilies, &c.—By his Gospel to himself, in church, in com¬
munion, in death, in judgement. All that the believer
has in point of goodness, is from the Lord hi* righteous¬
ness.
Isaiah xl. 11—He shall feed, 4»c 1 He a shepherd.
See Ps. xxiii. Ezekiel xxxiv. 11, and John*. He is the
Great Shepherd of the world—1 he watches all, 2 pro¬
tects all, 3 and feeds all in u temporal point, and spiritual¬
ly speaking, has his sheep—1 designates theon, 2 calls
tbem, 3 domesticates them, lamps them, 4 the\ are clean
and chew the end, 5 they huddl» together. 6 they are in¬
nocent, very rarely devour other animals or each other,
as wolves, 7 have enemies, 8 profitable in their fleece
and young. U. His attributes stand—To guard and pro¬
tect, feed, bi» body is flpsb and meat, his blood drink, &c.
doctrine", promises, ordinances, gathers the lambs that
cannot walk nor suck—young believers staggering from
the world to him, to one another. See John and Paul—
103
My little children—Paul—children. Gathers thera by
his word from this world to his bosom, church, 4-c. and
gently leads those that are with young—1 those burdened
with sin, or under the beginnings of grace ; he shall not
quench the smoking flax, nor break the broised reed, and
he delights to look upon those who are contrite and trem¬
bling, and invites all those who are weary and heavy la¬
den to come unto bim and he will give them rest.
Mat xi. 28—Come unto me all ye that labour and are hea¬
vy laden and I will give yourest. Consider, I. The person
that invites: Jesus Christ, Lord of all worlds, of life and
glory ; has all power in heaven and on earth, to forgive
all sins; has lived and died to save sinners, and casts off
none that will come, unto him. II. The characters called,
the weary and heavy ladened—and labour—1 weary, 2
ladened, 3 heavy—1 after this world, happy in it, to fulfil
the law, all its demands, to cease to do evil and learn to
do well; forsake sin. See Isaiah Iv. Let the wicked man
forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return nnto the Lord, tor he will have mercy, and
to our God. for he will abundantly pardon. Read, hear,
pray, &c. Ladened with sins of omission and commission,
of youth, of age, ignorance and presumption. Ladened
with them, burdened, too heavy to be borne See David
•—His sins were too heavy for him to bear, and he roared
by reason of the disquietude within. And Pau!—Ob,
wretched man that 1 am, who shall deliver me from this
body of sin. Under the curses of the law, all its anather
mas, wrath of God, all heavy, sinking the sinner down.
Ill Come to Christ, to be his disciple from sin and sin¬
ners; come depending, relying; come believing, and
with will, affections, &c. resigned to bim, begging for mer¬
cy. IV And he will give you rest—That is opposed to
labour or burden; rest from sin and law ; rest with saints
on earth, and jtu heaven with God, Christ, angels, saints.
See Heb.—Now are ye come unto Mount Zion, to the city
of the living God, to the New Jerusalem, to the general
assembly and church of the first-born, whose names are
written in heaven ; to an innumerable company of angels
and spirits of just men made perfect—to Abraham's bo¬
som—a glorious rest forever and ever^_
Mat. xi. 30—My yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Sinners have a heavy yoke to bear; sin, gambling, fight'
ing, dancing, drinking, swearing, stealing. Moses1 yoke
heavy, ceremonial and moral, precepts and obediences.
But Christ has Imyoke of precepts and obediences—cross
—his is not abrogated by the law; his is not easy to cor-
104
rupt nature; neither is it easy to be a Christian ; neither
are Christians clear of trials in this life. But Christians'
trials are easy and light compared with Christ's two mar¬
tyrs and suffprers. See Heb. xi. 3. Compared with sin¬
ners they pray, yon pray; they meet at jockey clubs,
ball?, spending money in the service of the devil—you at
meeting, and lending your money to the Lord. And your
yoke is made easy by grace, for Christ gives it and makes-
it more than easy—delightful ; the joy and rejoicing of
the real believer.
Gen. xviii. 19—For I know him (i. e. Abraham) that he
will command his children and household after him. Shew
I. The great duty of family worship. II. Advantages.
III. Consider the objections. I. God's perfections call for
the day's homage, morning and evening sacrifice. 2, his
goodness, for his mercies are new every morning and re¬
peated every evening. His precepts—the morning and
evening lamb. See Psalm xcii. and cxxiii. Pray with
all manner of prayer, speakiDg to yourselves in psalms,
hymns, and spiritual songs. 3, examples of heathens, Ho¬
mer and Virgil strongly recommend morning and evening
sacrifice and worship. See Job, Abraham, Joshua, Da¬
vid three times a day ; see Daniel the same ; see Eph. vi.
and 18; Col. iv. 2. II. The advantages—It brings us
near to God, to an acquaintance with him—1 bis means
that he has appointed for us to receive blessings, 2 it has
a tendency to check us from sin, 3 harmonizes the family,
4 raises the mind above the world to God, &c. III. The
objections—1 Can't: You can; 2 no scripture for it:
There is ; 3 It does no good: It does ; 4 It does not merit
those blessings spoken of. Through Christ, God bestows
them, and Christ has merit, &c. &c.
Psalm Ixxxix. 15—Blessed is the people that know the
sound. See trumpets- 1. Sound of alarm or danger-
See when the law was given, Sinai trembled. A high
display of the majesty of God as opposed to sin. Joyful
sound—in Jubilee. See the figure—1 release to ser¬
vants, 2 exoneration to debtors, 3 rich inheritance to te¬
nants, to gospel,—Canaan, all free and rich in Christ, joy
indeed. Or, 4, sound over sacrifice, joy in duty—Wis¬
dom's ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are
peace. II. They shall walk in the light of thy counte¬
nance, or persevere in duty; approved by thy word,
which is a display of thy smiles or approbation. Tby
word is a light to my feet and a lamp to my path; Ps.
cxix. 105. III. In tby name shall they rejoice all the day
long; in thy name, nature, perfections, or attributes; shall
105
rejoice and be glad, pleased with the-glories of God ; a\l
day, or from day to day ; or all the days of life, long as it
may be. See Watts, Wesley, IV. And in thy right¬
eousness shall they be exalted. The righteousness of
the Lord given to and put upon them, and with it they
shall be exalted, 1 above the demands of the law, 2 de¬
mands of justice, devil or hell, over them all, into heaven
among the sanctified, &c. &c.
John iv. 19— We love him because he first laved us. I..
He first loved us in the formation of the world. This
was a general display—1 in the conveniences of life, 2 in
sending his Son, 3 word, 4 Spirit, 5 ministers, 6 spiritual
tokens of love, 7 chastening whom he loves; for whoqi
he loves he chastens; 8 in instructions, 9 in subduing the
root of bitterness, 10 in manifestations of love so as to en¬
joy him. II. The evidences of our loving him are, 1 in
our being reconciled to bim, 2 in breathing after him, 3
calling on him, 4 in loving his people, 5 ways, 6 cause,
7 sabbath, 8 ordinances, he.
Gal. vi. 9—Let us not be weary in well doing, 4*c. Why ?
Because, I. In doing well we answer the great end of
our creation. 1 do the will of God, serve him, enjoy
him, 2 or do his will according to his word, 3 forsake sin
and sinners, repent, believe, live holy, walk in his ordi*
nances and commands. II. Be not weary, argues opposi¬
tion, such as, 1 cares of the world, 2 flatteries, 3 riches,
4 of the devil, 5 evil heart, which is corrupt and base.
HI. Encouragements—1 God, 2 angels of all orders, 3
saints of all orders, 4 grace, 5 promises, 6 rewards equal
to all fatigue; whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he al-
90 reap; and if he sows of the Spirit, he shall of the Spirit
reap life everlasting.
Hosea, iv. 17—Ephraim is joined to his idols, let him
alone. I. Ephraim was one of the tribes that came out
of Egypt or slavery—1 numerous, 2 great and wealthy, 3
often addressed—see Jeremiah, Hosea—4 a cake unturn¬
ed, not baked, 5 a silly dove. II- He is joioed to idols.
1 he had forsaken his God, the fountain of living waters y
some people now wonder, and think it strange that the
ancient people, so highly favoured of the Lord, should
leave bim and be joined to the worship of idols, the work;
of their own bands, while they themselves are given t<*
covetousness, which is idolatry—2 always after the
world, so as to prefer it to religion, 3 honouring men.
more than God, 4 giving to the creature what belongs to
ihe Creator, 5 having pastimes, pleasure days, &c, in
14
106
higher esteem than the'worship of God—drinking, gam¬
bling, dancing, 4-c. &c. Ephraim is joined, i. e. prefers,
admires, is closely attached to, and very unwilling to part
with. III. Let him alone, let him go on in bis wicked¬
ness—1 ministers, let him alone, 2 saints, let him atone,
U holy word, let him alone, 4 Spirit, let him alone, 5 pro¬
vidences, let him alone, 6 conscience, let him alone, 7 an¬
gels, let him alone, 8 sinners, take him, 9 devils take
him.
John iii. 19—Light is come into the world, and men love
darkness rather than light, because their deeds ar& evil. J.
Light is come into the world—1 the light of reason, 2 the
Jight of literature, 3 the light of the gospel, 4 Jesus
Christ himself the great Light of the world. II. Men love
darkness; they are opposers of the light of reason, lite¬
rature, revelation and Christ. See their works of dark¬
ness ; if they were open to the face of the light, what a
black catalogue I III. The reason why men love dark¬
ness rather than light? 1 because their deeds are evil, 2:
habitually so, 3 they love ease to sin, and are at peace,
Ahab like, walking in darkness, stumbling on dark moun¬
tains, and land in the blackness of darkness forever.
Isaiah IxvL 2—To this man will I look. even to him that
is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at my word.
There are three kinds of poor in the world—1 the world's
poor, those that are contentedly poor and lazy, 2 the dev¬
il's poor; gamblers, drunkards, &c. &c. 3 the Lord's poor,
his cripples, Mephibosheths, subject to adverse provi¬
dences, Sic. 4 those that are poor in spirit, such as have
no stock originally, none in hand, cannot gain any, 3 in
debt a thousand talents, and naught to pay with, 4 all the
spiritual distress incident to the mind; contrite, beaten or
broken with all the curses of the law—See David's bro¬
ken bones—Trembles at my word; terrors of the law,
glories of the gospel, alarmed by (be former, and in doubts
of his interest in the latter. II. Looks, pities you labour¬
ing under sin and coming to bis Son for aid and assistance,
protection and happiness forever.
Gal. ii. 20—I am, crucified with Christ—or dead with
bits, for you are all dead and your life is hid with Christ.
J. Crucified, lingering—1 painful, 2 in union with Christ,
or connexion, dead to the love of sin, the power of the
law, as respects obtaining life from it, world, modes, forms,
fashions^ drinking, die. See Gal. vi. 22. II. I live—1 vi¬
tal life from vital principles—according to philosophy,
temporal life is a mystery; so is the spiritual life a great
mystery; 2 spiritual action, 3 vigour or animation in duties
107
and ordinances. III. Not I—I ! am not the immediate or
meritorious cause, 2 not the efficient cause. IV. But
Chriat that livetb in me—1 by the influences of the Spi¬
rit, in enabling me to believe, in his warrant of God, him¬
self, merits, promises, (hreatenings, rewards, #c. V*.
The life that I live in Christ is by faith in the Son of God
1 by faith or trust in God, 2 in the gospel, 3 in believing
his gospel and having hope9 of living to all eternity
through it.
Isaiah is. 6—Wonderful. Christ is a scene of wonders
—1 in covenanting with his Father for sinners, 2 in leaving
heaven, being rich and becoming poor for us, 3 taking not
the form of aogels, but of men, 4 in meekness, tempe¬
rance, compassion, courage, 5 in his baptism, 6 tempta¬
tions, 7 doctrines, 8 miracles, in laying down his life, sun
darkened for three hours, the earth quaked, temple and
vail rent, rocks burst, the dead arise, angels descend—•
when he arose going up with a shout, received gifts for
men; apostles, evangelists, pastors; the increase of his
kingdom, over Jews, Greeks, Romans, without arms, &c. j
in changing the vilest of the vile from death to life, from
darkness to light, hatred to love, from the lion to a lamb,
from a raven to a dove; in bis coming to judgement,
wonders attending, his raising the jkad; in separating
parties, in rewards and punishments, glories revealed,
attendance, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, martyrs, saints*
angels, devils, sinners, &,c.; duration forever and ever, as
long as eternity shall last, without cessation, interruption,
&c. &c. &c. &c.
It. is to be regretted that the Undertaker
could not be in possession of the interesting
sermons delivered by his beloved father.
They would have been entertaining, at least,
to those that heard many of them, and advan¬
tageous to thos6 who did not, (under the bles¬
sing of heaven.) But as he never wrote them
off for delivery, and none are to *be seen, his
Notes, Explanations, &c. of particular passages
of scripture, will be closed with a sermon
which ne preached before the Faculty and Stu¬
dents of Franklin College, the University of
Georgia, in the Summer of 1815. They desir*
108
ed to have it printed—he agreed to it—but ta*
king a tour to the Western Country shortly af¬
ter, it never has been exhibited to the publick.
It will now be introduced, hoping that it mqy
answer the end for which it was designed, viz.:
an encouragement to engage in and receive
_ o _ o o _ _ ix"#
the advantages of Literature, May the .Lord
bless every reader with the enjoyment of the
fruths therein contained, while ne reads.
A SBSLfilt&Xb
ON
il. KINGS VI. 6. " THE IRON DID SWIM."
THESE words embrace and exhibit an as¬
tonishing circumstance. Nature acting above
the powers of reason, in violating her own laws:
Or rather, the God of nature maifestmg his
power in counteracting the common laws of
nature, in effecting what Jews and Christians
commonly call a miracle—(for the iron did
swim.) But as there are a number in our de¬
generate age who have their doubts about the
doctrine of miracles, (which is one of the high¬
est evidences of our holy religion; for if we
give up miracles we abrogate law and gospel,
both of which were confirmed by signs, and
wonders, and miracles from heaven) I shall
therefore, in speaking from these words,
I. Make a few remarks on miracles in gene¬
ral.
II. Take notice of the one embraced in our
text, with the neighbouring ones.
III. Close with a few inferences on the
whole.
109
I. As I said, a miracle is an art of God, abovS
the powers of reason, in counteracting the long
established laws of nature, or overruling them
by his mighty power for purposes of his own
glory; as in the case of dividing the Arabian
Bay or Red Sea; the making old Jordan's ra-<
pid current stand still until his favourite people
marched over as upon dry land j or the deliv¬
ering the three Israelitish children, in not per¬
mitting the ail devouring element to injure
them; the healing of the sick ; the resurrec¬
tion of the dead, &.c. &C. That miracles of
this kind, and others equally beyond our con¬
ception, have been and are constantly perform¬
ed in our world, to me is very evident. Pray
what is our world but a theatre or scene of
past and present miraculous wonders ? Of what
was it formed ? Of the ruins of a senior ? From
whence came they? Or how is it supported in
unbounded ether or fluid ? Or, if according to
our system of astronomy, it regularly moves to
the sun, what has kept up its velocity for near
six thousand years, loaded with its millions of
inhabitants both rational and brutal, together
with villages, towns, cities, rapid currents, rol¬
ling oceans, lofty forests and enormous moun¬
tains, as the Alleghany, Alps, &c. &c. ? Surely,
that uncreated arm which first gave it action,
has, and does miraculously keep it in motion,
or else, according to the laws of nature, its pon¬
derous weight would have sunk it into a dor¬
mant state long ere now. Another scene of
miracles arrests my attention. I mean the
great orb of day. How was it made? of
what was it formed, or how has it been sup¬
ported for so many years, to dart its innumera¬
ble rays in every direction* millions of miles, to
110
remote worlds with their inhabitants, who all
lie basking in its refreshing and cheering
beams ? Are not all these wonders beyond the
power of reason ? Was it not much easier to
kindle the Chaldean prince's fiery furnace, than
to keep it alive upwards of two thousand years ?
Then, is not the present existence of the sun
•a greater miracle than its first formation ?
Purely it is. You have then a constant miracle
in view. What miraculous power calms the
fluid element so that the feeble constitution can
scarcely survive without its vivifying supplies,
and in a few moments rallies all its forces, and
moves in a thousand directions with awful vio¬
lence, leaving in ruinous heaps, fields, forests
and cities ? Or how does the crimsoned liquid
move at the rate of fifty feet in a minute, hi
every direction, refreshing the whole human
system, for ninety or an hundred years ? Pray
how does the wax or juice travel from one to
three hundred feet directly up the pine or cam¬
phor tree to the loftiest bough, resuscitating
the trunk with all its innumerable branches,
diametrically counter to the common laws of
nature, which would drive the enormous weight
downwards with violence ? Are not these, with
countless other wonders, as far beyond the
power of reason, as the dividing of the Arabian
Bay, or the commanding old Jordan's bold cur¬
rent to stand still ? Surely, that power which
formed the world and gave it motion, miracu¬
lously keeps up its velocity from century to cen¬
tury; and that Infinite Power which first kin¬
dled up the sun, still keeps it alive, over and
above all reason. These, and a thousand sim¬
ilar and astonishing events, constrain the Jew
$nd the Christian to exclaim with wonder and
in
amazement, "Great and marvellous are thy
works, O Lord God, thou King of saints*" The
result is obvious, that our world is a scene of
past and present wonders, and miracles.
II. We are to consider the miracle embraced
in our text, " The iron did swim," with the
neighbouring ones.
This surprising event appears to liave taken,
place in consequence of the strict attention and
benign influence the great Elisha had, While
he presided over the college at Dothan. The
pious young men and students increased until
they were too numerous for the building. A
motion was made and approved, to move to
Jordan and enlarge the edifice* While all were
industrious to effect the new and interesting de¬
sign, under the Presidents direction, one of his
pupils, famous for lifting up his axe on timber,
dropped it off his helve into the depth of the
river. The poor, honest fellow exclaimed,
"Alas, master I it was borrowed." The Pre¬
sident ordered a piece of timber to be cast into
the same plaee, and immediately the axe float¬
ed like a cork. For " the iron did swim." This
stupendous condescension in Deity was in fa¬
vour of the famous and increasing college then
under the direction of Elisha.
The next miraculous display of Divine Pro*
vidence in favour of literature^ you will find in
2 Kings, rv. 38-—44, where we have a college
spoken of, with one hundred students, situated
at Gilgal. "And behold, there was a great
dearth," or drought in the land. This institui.
tion shared in the general distress. The mel¬
ancholy news reached the great Elisha, and
moved his generous mind to make them a visit.
On seeing their starving condition, he had com*
112
passion on them, and ordered on the big pot.
While one of the students, unskilled in the ve¬
getable world, (or hurried by hunger") gathered
poisoned gourds instead of squashes, in season¬
ing and tasting the pottage, he cried out, "There
is death in the pot." Pursuant to the prophet's
orders, there was a handful of meal flung into
the pot, which thickened the soup, and he cur¬
ed the poison In the mean time a " compli¬
ment" of twenty barley cakes, with a few ears
of corn, came to the man of God. He gave
his blessing on the whole. They had a deli¬
cious meal or repast, of corn, cakes, and soup.
The like they had not enjoyed for many
months. They all ate, drank, left, and praised
their God.
A third glorious wonder you may see, 2 Kings,
ii. 2, where you observe the two great pro¬
phets visiting the three colleges at Gilgal,
Bethel and Jericho. Elijah gave them his last
instructions, and benedictions. He then touched
Jordan with his mantle—the waters wheeled
to the right and left—then both passed be¬
tween the watery walls, now in high conversa¬
tion about the wonders God had wrought. All
©n' a sudden, at God's command, his angels
formed themselves in the likeness of a chariot
and horses of fire. Elijah was invited to a seat,
and ascended triumphantly to heaven, and
having no more use for his mantle, dropped it
for his spiritual son, Elisha, who exclaimed,
" My father, my father, the chariots of Israel
and the horsemen thereof!" He caught the
cloak and returned replete with a double por¬
tion of his father's spirit. A stroke of the
mantle made Jordan give way for the prophet's
retreat} he returned to the college at Jericho,
113
and lamented with them, his and their great
loss. In the mean time, perceiving the plea¬
santness of the situation, and the elegance of
the building, the pious young men. having re¬
turned from their search after the man of God,
besought him to confer a miraculous favour—
" For their water was naught, and their soil
was barren." He instantly called for a cruise
of salt, and cast it into the fountain, which im¬
mediately abounded with streams of living wa¬
ters. The soil was fertilized and covered with
growing corn. The gardens abounded with
roots and herbs of a medicinal and nutritious
quality, " While every flower vied with its fel¬
low plant in luxury of dress." All this by the
power of God, for the benefit of education
among their youths.
The next, and fourth manifestation of mira¬
culous power was in favour of the family of
one of the pious young students. See 2 Kings,
iv. 1. He had just graduated and received
holy orders. His sacred fear, burning zeal,
and ardent love influenced him to itinerate
through the different tribes of Israel to reform
the nation, until his constitution was worn out
and his property spent. Kind heaven had com¬
passion on him, and called him home. He cor¬
dially obeyed. No sooner had he ascended the
heavens, and his body laid in the grave, than
the creditors called on the poor widow to pay
the debts he had contracted in preaching the
everlasting gospel and reforming the world;
and were about to make slaves, without mer¬
cy, of his two charming orphans, for the debts
of their pious father. Their worthy mother,
drowned in tears and grief, and almost lost in
despair, hastened to the man of God, called to
114
his mind her husband's pious zeal and her own
distresses. He asked her about her circum¬
stances: She observed she had neither flocks
nor stocks, plate nor furniture, only one pot of
oil. He observed, if her neighbours would nei¬
ther give nor forgive, they might lend} and
that she should immediately send for empty
vessels, not a few: and behold, she quickly had
her house like a potter's shop, filled with jugs,
mugs, jars and firkins. She then, according to
order, shut her door, poured out her - soul i»
prayers to God for a blessing on herself, her
boys and her oil. Meantime her sweet little
lads forwarded the empty vessels, while her
officious hands poured the miraculously increas¬
ing oil, whilst the trickling tears of joy and gra¬
titude swelled the fountain until the last jar
was full, and the first not empty. This mighty
wonder was performed for the support of a
student's poor widow, and the raising and edu¬
cation of his orphans. "The righteous shall
not be forsaken, nor his seed beg bread."
The fifth and last neighbouring miracle may
be found _ in 2 Kings, ii. 23—25, at Bethel.
This college had engaged the attention of those
two great men of God. The former had gone
to heaven, and the latter was far advanced in
years. Few preachers visited the institutions
The tutors became relax, of course the scho¬
lars became profane. The good and great
Elisha was on his way to give them his last
blessing, and was met by forty-two of the stu¬
dents, who, seeing his age, and recollecting his
predecessor was carried to heaven in a fiery
car, either out of curiosity or mockery, (per¬
haps the latter) said, " Go up, thou bald head;
go up, thou bald head." The great man of
119
POETICAL PIECES.
THE TURKEY BUZZARD.
Wake up, my muse, and try to sing t
Stretch every tuneful, lofty string:
Say how the buzzard bears away
The nauseous carcass in decay.
"She gluttons down the offensive food,
Calls it delicious, sweet and good,
While birds and beasts despise her feast,„
And wonder at her sordid taste.
See how she mounts and soars .on high,
And cleaves the clouds and skims the sky,
Bearing from earth het putrid filth,
And thus preserves our bliss and healths
She spreads her wings and moves with ease,
Nor fears the earth nor dreads the seas r
None dare to run her dreadful hazzard—
There's nothing like the Turkey Buzzard.
THE LJIZY STUDENT'S APOLOGY.
Sir,
I'm call'd upon for composition,
For which I have no disposition;
For sure I am so wretched lazy,
The task does almost run me crazy.
My mind is barren to th' extreme \
I scarce can think, or talk, or dream 5
Fray can you pardon this my crime,
And call on me some other time }
But though my mind is very dull,
My fingers stiff, and thick my skull,
ni take my pen into my fist,
And mean to do my very best.
One high encomium, as a bounty,
I'll pass upon Columbia County.
Her schools and scholars, sure, wilj rate
Higher than any in the State.
They're eloquent upon the stage,
Equal to any of the age:
120
No doubt they'll shine in time to comfe;
Like Jefferson or Washington.
Their teachers too, are well refined,
With manners pure, and polish'd mind ;
May we the truth from them receive,
May they forever, ever live.
I now must close short of my task,
And do your gracious pardon ask:
Please to forgjve this lazy crime,
And call on me some other time.
The following Lines were composed and sent to a gentleman who
complimented Abraham with the first wooden mortar.
AN ENCOMIUM ON BIG HOMINY.
Hail Hominy! 'Tig the choicest dish!
Better than fowl, or flesh, or fish :
Beat it clean and boil it well,
A little will to plenty swell.
At breakfast 'tis a dish quite nice,
Better than coffee, tea or rice;
To dine upon, you'll find it good,
Substantial, fine and strengthening food..
At supper, too, you may it taste ;
'Tis sweet, and easy to digest;
The toothless father and the child
Admire the dish, both rich and mild.
The sick, the well, the rich, the poor,
Who taste this dish, they'll call for more:
'Tis bread, and meat, and ev'ry thing,
Fit for a lady or a king.
Its worth I never can display ;
Oh, let me have it ev'ry day !
Its fame 1 hear in ev'ry quarter,
Let ev'ry man, then, burn a mortar.
A LAMPOON ON TEA.
Oh, Tea! detested, wretched weed,
That made our nations fight and bleed'
121
A dish we all ought to despise,
Vastly beneath samp,«oup or rice.
And yet to see our ladies sit
And sweat and drink, and drink and sweat,
Gulping down the scalding water,
As if intent themselves to torture 1
Over their nerves it must prevail,
Which makes them sickly, weak and pale.
Hystericks, too, they may expect,
While richer diet they neglect¬
's et if you hint His dear or bad,
They'll " say" -or tv SWEAR,11 it must be had.
The boffing water flown they swallow,
Although an ounce should cost a dollar.
Sweetening and crock'ry they must have,
And run their husbands like a slave;
If not, you see them in their dumps,
Which keeps him at his longest jumps.
Thus broken crockery and tea,
His ruin most assured will be :
Their money spent, their credits fail,
Their husbands rot within a jail.
A SATIRE OJV GROG.
Oh, cruel Bacchus, god of wine,
Who changest men to brntes and swine-!
Thy force is numerous and grand—
Hum, gin, and grog at thy command.
By thee, the mighty are brought down
From dome to hut, from hut to throng.
The ladies, too, from first to last,
Seem much delighted with the taste j
Great masters of the healing art
Will cry it down, and drink their part;
Both priests and kings, high and renown'd,
Will pass the bowl a second round.
Their healths and toasts, and toasts and healths;
Murder their lives, consume their wealth;
Conscience and reason, all that's juBt,
Give way to this insatiate thirst.
16
322
In Boreas' reign 'tis good, they say,
To keep the snow and frost away:
In warmer climes they drink their fill,
And swear it will the heat repel.
In heat and cold, and wet and dry,
More grwgi more gfrog! they constant cry.
Indulging of a wild desTrS;
They kindle up the liquid fire,
Till ruin'd on Jamaica's coast,
Tbey fall by thousands in a host.
In awful groans they all expire,
And still the god of wine admire.
*4JV ECLOGUE—OX THE PLOUGH.
Wake up ray muse ! wake up my soul!
Survey the globe from pole to pole—■
To what employment shall I bow ?
Pursue the arts or hold the plough ?
Upon a just and strict attention,
The plough appears a high invention!
The great Messiah, when he wrought,
Made yokes and ploughs, as we are taught*
Mogul, renown'd of India's land,
First takes the plough into his hand ;
His millions then in honour toil
To pulverise the fertile soil.
The fara'd Elisha, you'll allow,
He drove the ox, or held the plough
The stubborn earth he rent and tore,
"With oxen number'd twenty-four.
Th' immortal Job, more rich and grand
Than any in the Eastern land.
He launch'd his ploughs—the earth gave Way,
His thousand oxen rend the clay.
Of all pursuits by men invented,
The ploughman is the best contented.
His calling's good, his profits high,
And on his labours all rely—
Mechnnicks all by him are fed,
Of him the merchants seek their bread -
12S
His hands give meat to ev'ry thing,
Up from the beggar to the king.
The milk and honey, corn and wheat
Are by his labours made complete.
Our clothes from him must first arise,
To deck the fop or dress the wise—»
We then by vote may justly state,
The ploughman ranks among the great t
More independent than them all,
That dwell upon this earthly ball.
All hail, ye farmers, young and oldf
Push on your ploughs with courage bold;
Your wealth arises from your clod,.
Your independence from your God.-
If then the plough supports the nation,
And men of rank in ev'ry station,
Let kings to farmers make a bow,
And ev'ry man procure a plough*
THE WHIG'S SONG
Composed in the Revolutionary War*
Oh, could I speak like thunders loud,
The truth I would impart;
The world in one promiscuous crowds
Should hear what I assert.
Once Britain, mov'd by Rome and hell,
Did saints and subjects slay ;
We fled from them, came here to dwell,
In North America.
So. then with them a league we made,
Taxation ne'er should be ;
They firmly swore, we boldly said,
America was free.
This league they broke to their disgrace,
And said they had a right
To tax us now in ev'ry case,
And we must pay or fight.
The French assist-—they say we sin j
They ne'er would join with us—
And then they brought tfae Hessians io.
124
And heathens ten times worse.
Thus Britons, Hessians, heathens join,
By George's rash command,
To enter in Upon our line,
And take away our land.
They murder'd men, and starv'd their wives,
And plunder'd ev'ry shore;
They scalp'd our babes and took their lives,
And roll'd them in their gore.
Poor matrons now, and virgins fair,
Were fill'd with great distress ;
They wrung their hands and tore their hair,
Their sorrows to express.
I wish great George, and Bute, and North*
Their folly they had seen,.
Before they were so vain and wroth,
To bring their armies in
To conquer our great Continent,
Which is five millions strong,
And near three thousand miles extent,.
While they are in the wrong.
Supported by an arm divine,
And Washington's command,
Though Britain, Hell, and Tory join,
Securely we shall stand.
LINES composed on the Death of Abraham Waller Wiglesworth
Marshall, eldest Son of Abraham Marshall, who departed this
life October 15, A. D. 1800.°
Come, heavenly muse, to my relief,
And aid me while I vent my grief 1
Abra'm, my son, my darling son,
Is from hia friends forever gone.
Seven years he liv'd, the pleasant child,
Sober and modest, meek and mild,
Belov'd by friends and neighbours all.
Who sore lament hi» awful fall.
Just nine days' illness from the first,
Reduc'd the dust unto the dust.
Come, see him close his eyes and die*.
Brothers and pdreats standing by.
125
Now to the tomb he 19 convey'd*
ir And by his brother- Jubal^ laid^
Til] Jesus gives the awful nod,
To call them forth ,and burn this clod.
But Oh, the soul that cannot die t
See how climbs the lofty sky y
From world to world he steers his course,
Conducted by a heavenly host—>
Ten thousand wonders now appear,
Beyond the reach of eye or ear.
Newton nor Gabriel can't descry
The glory that salutes his eyei.
Nest, see him join the lofty throngs
And thus begin the heavenly song ;-t
" Glory to God who brought me here*
From yon low world of grief and fear-
Through boundless seas of bliss I move,,
And rove o'er all the fields of love*
Taste deathless joys that suit the soul,
While I admire the mighty whole.1*
Now he receives an awful charge,
In rural 'steads to fly at large,
And guard his children on the way,
To seas of bliss and worlds of day.
Enough, I cried, my "Lord, my God!
I'll bow, and bless, and kiss the rod1;
Thy heavenly work on earth be done,
Till death restore me to my son.
ELEGY OJV THE DEATH OF THE REV. DANIEL
MARSHALL,
Who departed this life on the 2d day of November^ 1784, in the
78th year of his age.
No monumental pile or letter'd stone
His virtue to posterity reveals:
His name and character are better known
By holy truth and ministerial seals.
Witness, great Continent, bis fame !.
When, through thy States he hail'd aloud,
* Who died a little be/on*
126
The glories of Jehovah's name,
While list'ning thousands swell'd the crowd.
LIMES OJV THE DEATH OF MR. PRATT,
1 In solemn mourning, lo! I sing
The vict'ries of a mighty king—
He overwmes, and keeps his fame—
'Tis Death, the Conqueror, by name.
2 Pulaski bold, and Drayton wise,
With Ray and Walton, close their eyes*:
Kendrick, alas ! also is slain:
Next Pratt begins for to complain—
3 His fevers rage, his pains increase ;
They give him neither rest nor ease ;
His lace is bath'd in icy dew ;
His pulse is feeble, faint and few.
4 His tender spouse, his loving fair,
Is fill'd with grief and great despair;
But all in vain, alas! I grieve
To hear him take his final leave :—
6 " Farewell, my love, my dove, my dear,
Behold I die and leave y&u here ;
My children all I place with yon ;
Be father, then, and mother too.
6 " My sweetest babes and children dear,
I leave you in your mother's care ;
My death be pleas'd to bear in mind,
To her be dutiful and kind.
7 " My dying prayers, sure Gfid will hear,
And make you all his heavenly care :
Then seek his face and he will bless
The widow and the fatherless."
JB Low then he bow'd his fainting head,
Content to sleep among the dead.
His wife and children take their leave,
In sighs; and groans and tears they grieve.
9 Methinks I hear them thus complain—
v Our guide, our counsellor is stain,
127
And we are left alone you see,
A little helpless family,
10 w Expos'd to grief of every kind,.
Distracting sorrows of the mind :
Ye mourners all who're us'd to pine,
Come, mix your sorrows now with mine."
11 But why this grief, you mourning dove ?
Tour husband's gone to worlds above,
To join with saints, to praise his God,
Far from this little, barreu clod.
12 Could you but see his robes of bliss,
And hear him tell his happiness,
Methinks you would no more complain,
Nor wish him with you back again.
ANECDOTES
OF THE REV. A. MARSHALL.
A volume would not contain them. A few
will be introduced.
He was preaching to a drowsy congregation;
some were asleep in the house, others talking
out of it; he stops suddenly—" My friends, be
pleased not to talk quite so loud, out there, you
will disturb the repose of those that are asleep
in the house." The congregation took the
hint; the attentive were more engaged, the
sleeping ones awoke, gave heed, and the talk¬
ers ceased their vociferation.
At an Association, or large meeting, several
disorderly persons interrupted the congregation.
The preacher, in his usual, interesting manner,
dwelling on the capaciousness of the soul, at¬
tempted to engage their attention. He observ¬
ed, the mind of some men could wander from
" planets, suns and adamantine spheres, wheel-
128
;ng unshaken through the va>id immense;" yea,
enter into the highest heavens, purview God
and the Lamb, -and the dazzling thrones, and
the felicitous employments and enjoyments of
the beatified, and the next moment rove from
Paradise to the dark domains of everlasting
woe and misery. Yea, it could traverse the
old ocean from shore to shore, and wander from
J)ole to pole, and could not be satedr being so
arge and capacious; while the souls of other
men, (just like those standing talking, yonder)
were not larger than the end of his little finger.
The reproof was sufficient—they hid them¬
selves amid the promiscuous, waiting crowd.
During the Revolutionary War, on one of
his preaching tours, the Tories followed him
and made him get up and dance for them.
He arose, and was made to hop about as well
as he could.
At another time, about thirty were encamp¬
ed in the Kiokee Swamp. They sent for him;
(neither Tories nor W higs would hurt him, be¬
ing a man of God) coming sooner than they ex¬
pected, and seeing him with a hoe-helve in his
nand, (concluding it a sword in the hand of an
officer) cocked their guns, presented at him,
and were about to fire; but they dropped
their guns and ran off with violence, leaving
Tiim to reflect on his narrow escape and provi¬
dential deliverance.
He was small, but remarkably active and
strong. After he was a preacher, he would
sometimes jump and wrestle with his fellow
labourers, &c. He was once washing in Little
River; about a dozen were with him; it was
a beautiful and deep place in the stream ; a
rock elevated them naif way out of the water;
129
off of it was ten feet water; ^hey jumped off
and swam at pleasure, all of them except Abra¬
ham, (and an Irishman, who could not swim.)
The Preacher made his spring, the Irishman
after him, and upon him. Poor Abraham sunk
under the enormous weight of a man six feet
high; he began to suck water; he thought he
should die, and to die mad, he did not like it.
When he was about to give out all hopes of an
extrication, he bethought himself of this strat¬
agem—to squat down flat on the bottom. He
did so, arose and left the poor Irishman to help
himself; who perhaps came as near being
drowned as Abraham, who had escaped and
was glad of his delivery from so heavy a bur¬
den.
Preaching, otice, he took his text, " Adam,
where art thou ?" The man at whose house
he was preaching was named Adam; a notori¬
ously wicked, swearing, drinking man, and
scarcely ever went into a house to hear a ser¬
mon before. He placed himself behind his
door, concluding the preacher did not see him.
But the Lord saw, and Abraham's words reach¬
ed him. He thought the preacher called him.
After meeting, the words, " Adam, where art
thou?" continued with him at his plough and
on his bed, in such an effectual manner, that
Abraham had the pleasure of leading his new¬
ly made Dutchman convert down into the wa¬
ter and submit to baptism, as Jesus Christ did.
Go thou and do likewise.
Mr. Benedict styles him "The Friend of
Black People." He was once engaged in his
Master's service, going about doing good—pas¬
sed by Savannah—baptized forty-five people of
colour, in one cold, freezing day—constituted
17
130
tbem into a church—ordained them a minister.
They made up eight dollars for him in six and
a quarter, twenty-five and fifty cent pieces,
gave him two loaves of bread and a bottle of
wine, and bade him depart in peace. He did
so; but had not proceeded far before he began
to repine, be filled with unbelief, believing no¬
body like", and as bad as Abraham. In this
reverie of temptation, he saw a poor, almost
naked African boy skipping along with a skunk
or polecat, throwing it up and rejoicing in a
pleasant manner. The man of God rides up—
" How are you, my boy ? who do you belong
to?" To Mr. . "What have you got
there ?" A polecat. " And Avhat are you go¬
ing to do with it ?" Poor negur going to eata
him. " Don't your master feed and clothe
you, and why are you about to eat it ?" Ah,
massa! me poor negur, glad to get polecat.
Abraham left him with these reflections—Then
I hope my sins are pardoned, and the ministry
committed to me. I have eight dollars, two
loaves of bread and a bottle of wine, well clo¬
thed, and murmuring at the providences and
blessings of God, while the poor negro is glad
even of a polecat. I will not murmur; I will
bless the Lord ; I will go on my way rejoicing.
This small circumstance, which the atheist
would laugh at, was of advantage and service
to Abraham, temporally and spiritually, as long
as he lived. May all similar circumstances ad¬
vantage every reader of this short narrative.
131
THE UNDERTAKER'S ADDRESS
to children, soldiers, politicians, christians,
sinners and ministers.
* . "
And now that the Undertaker is about to
close this sketch, permit him- to observe—He
does not know how the performance will be
received, or answer the expectations of the
publick; but he has endeavoured to discharge
his duty, and knows no better way of sending
this history into the world with a close, than
a few remarks to his fellow creatures, as fol¬
lows :—
Children—Ye sons and daughters of man*
kind: Abraham was once young, florid, ten¬
der, religious; but now he is gone! He was
your friend; he earnestly desired your welfare.
He wished to see you clasped in the arms of
his Saviour; he wished to see you religious ;
he wished you happy. Oh, then, begin be¬
times to serve the Lord, by reading your cat¬
echism, good books, and above all, the Bible.
Shun the enticements of the age, the sins of the
world. The Lord loves the young; he wants
them; for " of such is the kingdom of heaven
and " Millions of tender souls compose the fam¬
ily above." He has encouraged you—" I love
them that love me, and those that seek me
early, shall find me. He has commanded you
—" Remember now thy Creator in the days of
thy youth." He has expostulated with you—
" Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me,
My Father, thou art the guide of my youth."
Your minds are tender, fit for instruction. Stu¬
dy to be wise ; study the ways of the Lord;
know your own selves. You have more en¬
couragements and incentives to goodness than
132
&ny other character. Oh, then, honour yout"
J parents, love your country, love one another,
ove your Creator: Then, when your heaven
prepared spirits shall be discharged from the
clayey house in which they are confined, your
characters shall be as sweet-scented ointment;
your names shall be remembered and immor¬
talized ; and though your damask cheeks shall
become food for the crawling worms, your souls
shall be happy and enter into "life eternal."
Soldiers and Politicians—Abraham was a
prisoner in the Revolutionary War. He was
at Brown's Fort, Augusta; at Burke Jail; he
could fight, he could pray, he could preach, and
say, Curse ye Miroz, &c. because ye fought not
the battles of the Lord. He was in the Con¬
vention which organized this respectable State;
and his whole life evidenced him a patriot and
a politician. But alas, he is no more ! H is ca¬
reer of three-score years and ten have come to
an end. Oh, then, love your country ! Contend
for freedom and liberty with spirit, with ener¬
gy, with magnanimity; be united in the sup¬
pression of vice and party faction; be diligent
in the promotion of virtue and your country's
good; shew yourselves worthy of the exten¬
sive trusts committed to your hands; desire
nothing better than your fellow citizens' thanks,
esteem and gratitude. They are the best boon,
the best reward, the best inheritance. Then,
when the places that knew you once, shall know
you no more—when your arm of strength shall
be palsied by death and sleeps in the grave-
when your syren tongue, with commanding
eloquence, shall cease to be heard with ap¬
plause and eulogium in the Senate Chamber,
House of Representatives, and elsewhere, your
133
names and worth today be " told to your chil¬
dren, and «they tell them to their children, and
their children to another generation."
Christians of every order—Believers in
Christ among the Baptists—Abraham early
had an acquaintance with God; early loved his
Lord and Master; early followed on to know
the Lord; fifty years he was a Christian and a
Preacher. Oh, then, remember him; remem¬
ber yourselves ; remember Calvary. The
meanest and most unworthy of you all, have
Christ for your friend and angels for your min¬
istering spirits. The strongest and most Peter¬
like, established in the faith, confirmed in hope,
have the same God, and Christ, and heaven.
Well, then, since ho has designed to be formed
within, the hope of glory, since he has cleansed
you by the washing of regeneration, since he
has given you " Beauty for ashes, the oil of joy
for mourning, the garment of praise for the
spirit of heaviness," and introduced his Spirit
within your hearts, enabling you to cry, " Abba,
Father," will you not love him and serve
him ? Oh, will you not " keep your garments
unspotted from the world ?" Oh, will you not
" cease to do evil and learn to do well ?" " have
no fellowship with the unfruitful works of dark¬
ness ?" Will you not have salt within your¬
selves, to be at peace among yourselye^?" Will
you not trust in the Lord forever, for in the
Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength." Will
you not " wait upon the Lord that he may re¬
new your strength so that you may mount up
on the wings of eagles, that you may run and
n«>t be weary, that you may walk and -not faint?"
And sinners, too, are invited to the same fouiv
tain in which Abraham was cleansed. There
134
is a fulness in Christ for all them that believe
in him. " Seek him while he may# be found,
call upon him while he is near." "Turn unto
the Lord, for he will have mercy, and to our
God, for he will abundantly pardon." Repent
and be converted. "Believe on the Lord Je¬
sus Christ, that your sins may be blotted out,"
that you may join Christians " as the ransomed
of the Lord, and return and come unto Zion,
that sorrow and sighing may flee away, that
joy and everlasting rejoicing may be upon your
heads;" that you may have a right to the tree
of life ; that you may not only scarcely be sa¬
ved, but have administered unto you an abun¬
dance of admittance into the everlasting king¬
dom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus, where there
is .fulness of joy, and pleasures for-ever-more.
Ye Preachers of every denomination, and
particularly among the Baptists—Ye Ministers
of the Gospel—Ye Ambassadors of the Most
High God—Ye Heralds of the skies—Ye An¬
gels of the Churches, who stand between (and
for) an offended God and an offending people!
—Abraham was among you. It was given un¬
to him also to preach the unsearchable richer
of Christ for near fifty years. His endeavours
were owned and blessed in this life. But he
is gone home to receive Jiis reward in- the
house «ot made with hands, eternal in the hea¬
vens. Be blameless as the stewards of God. ,
Be ye wise as serpents and harmless as doves.
Be not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it
is the power of God unto salvation. As much
as in you is, be ready to preach the Gospel.
Be determined to know nothing save Jesus
Christ and him crucified. Glory in nothing
more than in the cross of our Lord and Saviour
no i
you* congregations,« The Lord will require
||ood at your hands*" the account
jjjMyft of your standing the aw fulness of your
tarns
Be nothi
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lessons of ^H^ility at the feet of (Christ
throne of grace
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