After this he was chosen moderator in some subsequent assemblies of the church, in which several acts were made in favours of religion, as maintained in that period.
When the king brought home his queen from Denmark anno 1590, Mr. Melvil made an excellent oration, upon the occasion in Latin, which so pleased the king, that he publicly declared, he had therein both honoured him and his country, and that he should never be forgot; yet such was the instability of this prince, that, in a little after this, because Mr. Melvil opposed himself unto his arbitrary measures, in grasping after an absolute authority over the church[42], he conceived a daily hatred against him ever after, as will appear from the sequel.
When Mr. Melvil went, with some other ministers, to the convention of estates at Falkland anno 1596, (wherein they intended to bring home the excommunicated lords who were then in exile), and though he had a commission from last assembly, to watch against every imminent danger that might threaten the church, yet, whenever he appeared upon the head of the ministers, the king asked him, Who sent for him there? To which he resolutely answered, "Sire, I have a call to come here from Christ and his church, who have a special concern in what you are doing here, and in direct opposition to whom, ye are all here assembled; but be ye assured, that no counsel taken against him shall prosper, and I charge you, Sire, in his name, that you, nor your estates here conveened, favour not God's enemies whom he hateth." After he had said this, turning himself to the rest of the members, he told them, that they were assembled with a traiterous design against Christ, his church, and their native country. In the midst of this speech, he was commanded by the king to withdraw.
The commission of the general assembly was now sitting, and understanding how matters were going on at the convention, they sent some of their members, among whom Mr. Melvil was one, to expostulate with the king. When they came, he received them in his closet. Mr. James Melvil being first in the commission, told the king his errand, upon which he appeared angry, and charged them with sedition, &c. Mr. James being a man of cool passion and genteel behaviour, began to answer the king with great reverence and respect; but Mr. Andrew, interrupting him, said, "This is not a time to flatter, but to speak plainly, for our commission is from the living God, to whom the king is subject;" and then approaching the king, said, "Sire, we will always humbly reverence your majesty in public, but having opportunity of being with your majesty in private, we must discharge our duty or else be enemies to Christ: and now, Sire, I must tell you, that there are two kingdoms, the kingdom of Christ, which is the church, whose subject K. James VI. is, and of whose kingdom he is not a head, nor a lord, but a member, and they, whom Christ hath called, and commanded to watch over his church, and govern his spiritual kingdom, have sufficient authority and power from him so to do, which no Christian king nor prince should controul or discharge, but assist and support, otherwise they are not faithful subjects to Christ; and, Sire, when you was in your swaddling clothes, Christ reigned freely in this land; in spight of all his enemies, his officers and ministers were conveened for ruling his church, which was ever for your welfare, &c. Will you now challenge Christ's servants, your best and most faithful subjects, for conveening together, and for the care they have of their duty to Christ and you, &c. the wisdom of your council is, that you may be served with all sorts of men, that you may come to your purpose, and because the ministers and protestants of Scotland are strong, they must be weakened and brought low, by stirring up a party against them, but, Sire, this is not the wisdom of God, and his curse must light upon it, whereas, in cleaving to God, his servants shall be your true friends, and he shall compel the rest to serve you." There is little difficulty to conjecture how this discourse was relished by the king; however, he kept his temper, and promised fair things to them for the present, but it was the word of him whose standard maxim was, Qui nescit dissimulare, nescit regnare, "He who knows not how to dissemble, knows not how to reign:" In this sentiment, unworthy of the meanest among men, he gloried, and made it his constant rule of conduct; for in the assembly at Dundee anno 1598, Mr. Melvil being there, he discharged him from the assembly, and would not suffer business to go on till he was removed.
There are other instances of the magnanimity of this faithful witness of Christ, which are worthy of notice. In the year 1606, when he and seven of his brethren, who stood most in the way of having prelacy advanced in Scotland, were called up to England, under pretence of having a hearing granted them by the king, &c. with respect to religion, but rather to be kept out of the way, as the event afterwards proved, until episcopacy should be better established in this kingdom. Soon after their arrival they were examined by the king and council at Hampton-court on the 20th of September, concerning the lawfulness of the late assembly at Aberdeen. The king, in particular, asked Mr. Melvil, whether a few clergy, meeting without moderator or clerk, could make an assembly? He replied, there was no number limited by law; that fewness of number could be no argument against the legality of the court, especially when the promise was, in God's word, given to two or three conveened in the name of Christ; that the meeting was an ordinary established by his majesty's laws. The rest of the ministers delivered themselves to the same purpose; after which Mr. Melvil, with his usual freedom of speech, supported the conduct of his brethren at Aberdeen; recounted the wrongs done them at Linlithgow, whereof he was a witness himself; he blamed the king's advocate, Sir Thomas Hamilton, who was then present, for favouring popery, and mal-treating the ministers, so that the accuser of the brethren could not have done more against the saints of God than had been done; the prelatists were encouraged, though some of them were promoting the interest of Popery with all their might, and the faithful servants of Christ were shut up in prison; and addressing the advocate, personally, he added, "Still you think all this is enough, but continue to persecute the brethren with the same spirit you did in Scotland." After some conversation betwixt the king and arch-bishop of Canterbury, they were dismissed with the applause of many present, for their bold and steady defence of the cause of God and truth, for they had been much misrepresented to the English. They had scarce retired from before the king, until they received a charge not to return to Scotland, nor come near the king's, queen's or princes court, without special licence and being called for. A few days after, they were again called to court, and examined before a select number of the Scots nobility, where, after Mr. James Melvil's examination[43], Mr. Andrew being called, told them plainly, "That they knew not what they were doing; they had degenerated from the ancient nobility of Scotland, who were wont to hazard their lives and lands for the freedom of their country, and the gospel which they were betraying and overturning:" But night drawing on, they were dismissed.
Another instance of his resolution is, that, when called before the council for having made a Latin epigram[44], upon seeing the king and queen making an offering at the altar (whereon were two books, two basons, and two candlesticks with two unlighted candles, it being a day kept in honour of St. Michael); when he compeared, he avowed the verses, and said, "He was much moved with indignation at such vanity and superstition in a Christian church, under a Christian king, born and brought up under the pure light of the gospel, and especially before idolators, to confirm them in idolatry, and grieve the hears of true professors," The bishop of Canterbury began to speak, but Mr. Melvil charged him with a breach of the Lord's day, with imprisoning, silencing and bearing down of faithful ministers, and with upholding antichristian hierarchy and popish ceremonies; and, shaking the white sleeve of his rochet, he called them Romish, rags, and told him, That he was an avowed enemy to all the reformed churches in Europe, and therefore he (Mr. Melvil) would profess himself an enemy to him in all such proceedings, to the effusion of the last drop of his blood; and said, he was grieved to the heart to see such a man have the king's ear, and sit so high in that honourable council. He also charged bishop Barlow with having said, after the conference at Hampton-court, That the king had said, he was in the church of Scotland, but not of it; and wondered that he was suffered to go unpunished, for making the king of no religion. He refuted his sermon which had been preached before; and was at last removed, and order was given to Dr. Overwall dean of St. Pauls to receive him to his house, there to remain, with injunctions not to let any have access to him, till his majesty's pleasure was signified. Next year he was ordered from the dean's house to the bishop of Winchester's, where, not being so strictly guarded, he sometimes kept company with his brethren, but was at last committed to the tower of London, where he remained for the space of four years.
While he was in the tower, a gentleman of his acquaintance got access to him, and found him very pensive and melancholy concerning the prevailing defections amongst many of the ministers of Scotland, and, having lately got account of their proceedings at the general assembly held at Glasgow, anno 1610, where the earl of Dunbar had an active hand in corrupting many with money; the gentleman, desiring to know what word he had to send to his native country, got no answer at first, but, upon a second enquiry, he said, "I have no word to send, but am heavily grieved, that the glorious government of the church of Scotland should be so defaced, and a popish tyrannical one set up; and thou, Manderston, (for out of that family Dunbar had sprung), hadst thou no other thing to do, but to carry such commissions down to Scotland, whereby the poor church is wrecked, the Lord shall be avenged on thee; thou shalt never have that grace to set thy foot in that kingdom again." These last words impressed the gentleman to that degree, that he desired some who attended the court, to get some business, which was managing through Dunbar's interest, expeded without any delay, being persuaded that the word of that servant of Christ should not fall to the ground, which was the case, for that earl died at Whitehall a short time after, while he was building an elegant house at Berwick, and making grand preparations for his daughter's marriage with Lord Walden.
In 1611, after four years confinement, Mr. Melvil was, by the interest of the duke of Bolloigne, released, on condition that he would go with him to the university of Sedan, where he continued, enjoying that calm repose denied him in his own country, but maintaining his usual constancy and faithfulness in the service of Christ, which he had done through the whole of his life.
The reader will readily observe, that a high degree of fortitude and boldness appeared in all his actions; where the honour of his Lord and Master was concerned, the fear of man made no part of his character. He is by Spotswood styled the principal agent or apostle of the presbyterians in Scotland[45]. He did indeed assert the rights of presbytery to the utmost of his power against diocesan episcopacy; he possessed great presence of mind, and was superior to all the arts of flattery, that were sometimes tried with him; he was once blamed, as being too fiery in his temper, he replied, "If you see my fire go downward, set your foot upon it, but if it goes upward, let it go to its own place." He died at Sedan in France, in a few years after.