But while these pretended Presbyterians, who all along loved peace better than truth, and preferred their own ease before the concerns of their Master's glory, were thus sheltering themselves under this refuge of lies; true Presbyterians, who kept by presbyterian principles, and acted a faithful part for CHRIST, refusing to bow down to the idol of supremacy, which the tyrant had set up, or pay any regard to his blasphemous toleration, were pursued, persecuted, and slain, without pity or compassion, all the engines of the court being leveled against them for their destruction, because they would still reserve to themselves the liberty wherewith CHRIST had made his people free, and not exchange it for one from Antichrist, restricted with his reserves and limitations; so that (as Mr. Shields tells us in his account of Mr. James Renwick's life), in less than five months after the toleration, there were fifteen most desperate searches particularly for him, both of foot and horse: and, that all encouragement might be given to any who would apprehend him, a proclamation was issued, dated October 18th, "Authorizing all officers, civil and military, to apprehend and secure in firmance his person, with some others; and for encouragement, insuring the sum of 100£ sterling for taking him, or them, dead or alive." In the midst of all these hazards, this unwearied and faithful laborer did notwithstanding continue at his work, in preaching, catechising, &c., and the Lord still preserved him from falling into the enemy's hand, until he had finished that piece of generation work, in drawing up a full and faithful testimony against York's toleration, and for the covenants and work of reformation, &c., which he gave in to a meeting of Presbyterian ministers at Edinburgh, on the 17th January, 1688; and going thence to Fife, whither he was called to preach, in his return, was apprehended at Edinburgh, and called to seal his above testimony, with all his other contendings against Popery, Prelacy, Erastianism, and all defection from the land's attainments in reformation, with his blood, which he did in the Grass market of Edinburgh, 17th of February, 1688, with a remarkable and extraordinary measure of the Lord's gracious presence and spirit, not only in this part of his sufferings, but all the time of his imprisonment. The Lord hereby bearing witness, both to the truth of that cause for which he suffered, and also testifying his gracious acceptance of his sufferings, and of the free-will-offering of his life, which he laid down for his sake. And as neither the violence nor flattery of enemies could prevail with this faithful confessor and martyr himself, to quit with one hair or hoof of what belonged to Christ, so he recommended to the poor scattered remnant which he left, as part of his dying counsel, to keep their ground, and not to quit nor forego one of these despised truths, which he was assured the Lord, when he returned to bind up the breach of his people, and heal them of their wound, would make glorious in the earth. Thus that worthy minister, and now glorified martyr of Jesus, through a chain of sufferings, and train of enemies, fought his way unto an incorruptible and immortal crown of endless glory. He was the last that sealed the testimony for religion and liberty, and the covenanted work of reformation, against Popery, Prelacy, Erastianism, and tyranny, in a public manner, on the scaffold, with his blood. After the death of this renowned martyr, he was succeeded by the eminent Mr. Alexander Shields, who carried on, and maintained, the testimony, as it was stated, in all the heads and clauses thereof, continuing to preach in the fields. On which account, he, and the people who attended his ministry, were exposed for some time longer to the fury and resentment of their enemies. But their power, which they had so long perverted and abused, quickly came to a period. For in a few months, God, in his righteous judgment and adorable providence, overturned that throne of iniquity on which they depended, and expelled that inhuman, cruel monster, from his tyrannical and usurped power, upon the prince of Orange's coming over into England, in the beginning of November that same year. But, although the Lord at this juncture, and by this means, rescued and delivered our natural and civil rights and privileges in a national way from under the oppression and bondage of anti-christian tyranny, arbitrary and absolute power, yet the Revolution, at this time, brought no real deliverance to the church of God. But Christ's rights,[1] formerly acquired for him by his faithful servants, lay still buried under the rubbish of that anti-christian building of Prelacy, erected on the ruins of his work in this land; and the spiritual liberties and privileges of his house remained, and do still remain under the bondage of Erastianism, supremacy, toleration, &c. For it is well known, that although this man, Jehu-like, "destroyed Baal out of Israel, yet he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, wherewith he made Israel to sin."
About this time, the united societies (having no actual minister since Mr. Renwick's death, Mr. Shields being only preacher) sent over some commissioners from their general meeting to Embden, one of the United Provinces, to bring over Mr. Thomas Linning, a young man whom they had sent thither some years before in Mr. Renwick's time, to the university there, and for ordination. In consequence hereof, the said Mr. Linning came home, with testimonials of his ordination to the ministry by the classes at Embden; and in conjunction with Mr. Shields and Mr. William Boyd (another of their ministers, who had also come from Holland about this time), renewed the Covenants National and Solemn League, and dispensed the sacrament of the Lord's supper near Lesmahago, in Clydesdale, and continued to preach to the people for about four months, until the first General Assembly (so called) met at Edinburgh 1689-90. At which time, he, with his two brethren, in their own name, and the name of their people, presented a paper to that Assembly, bearing on what terms they and their people would join in communion with them; only craving that they might all join in humbling themselves before the Lord, and acknowledge and bewail their fathers', their own, and the land's many and heinous iniquities, and breaches of Covenant, before they proceeded to any other business, and so have their public sins and scandalous compliances washed away by repentance, and calling upon the name of the Lord Jesus. That they would purge out from among them, all ignorant, insufficient, heterodox, and notoriously scandalous ministers, such as, by information, accusation, or otherways, were guilty of the blood of the saints, &c. But these proposals were reckoned unseasonable and impracticable, tending rather to kindle contention, than compose division, and so were thrown over their bar. The generality of these men were so plunged and puddled in the ditch of defection and apostasy, that they could not think of the drudgery of cleansing themselves in God's way, by a particular and public confession of, and humiliation for their own and the land's public sins, but chose rather to sit down filthy and polluted as they were, and presume, in the midst of their abominations unrepented of, to approach God's holy things, which, how provoking to heaven, let God in his word be judge, Isa. lii, 11; Hag. ii, 13, 14; 2 Chr. xxx, 3; Ezek. xliv, 10. Nay, it is but too, too evident, that for this cause, God then laid them under that awful sentence, Rev. xxii, 11: "Him that is filthy, let him be filthy still;" or that, Isa. xxii, 14. For as their hearts were then hardened against God's call by his word and providence to that important and most necessary duty; so, ever since, they, have been so much the more so, and have gone on from evil to worse.
But to return to our purpose: the two brethren, Messrs. Linning and Boyd, upon the rejection of the above said paper of proposals, intending to unite with them at any rate, gave in another, importing their submission to the assembly; which paper, Mr. Shields also, through their influences, insinuations, and persuasions, was drawn in to subscribe and adhere to; which he had never done, had he not fallen by the means of these false brethren, and which, it is said, he sadly repented afterward. Thus, the poor people were again left destitute of ministers, and public gospel ordinances, until the Rev. Mr. John, McMillan acceded to them, from the public judicatories of the revolution church, in the year 1706. And their kind friend, Mr. Linning, to make amends for all his misdemeanors, and in return for the charges the societies were at about his education, at home and abroad, did them that good office, to write, and load them with calumnies and slanders, to the universities in the Netherlands, whither they had recourse formerly in like cases; so that all access for having their loss retrieved from that quarter, was blocked up.
What is thus briefly hinted above, may suffice to afford some cursory view of the rise and progress of religion and reformation in these lands, especially in Scotland; until, as a church and nation, our kingdom became the Lord's, by the strictest and most intimate federal alliance, and the name almost of every city, was, the Lord is there: together with the general state and condition of the church and land, from the fatal juncture of our woful decline, unto the end of the above mentioned bloody period; the faithfulness of some, in this time of trial and temptation: the defection and backsliding course of others; and the great and avowed wickedness of the rest, extended unto an exhorbitant hight of savage inhumanity, irreligion and impiety. Upon all which, the presbytery, in duty to God, the present and succeeding generations find themselves obliged to testify:
1, Their hearty approbation of the faithfulness of such ministers and others, who opposed, and faithfully testified against the public resolutions of church and state, framed in the year 1651, for receiving into places of power and trust, malignant enemies to the work of reformation, contrary to the word of God, Exod. xviii, 21; Deut. i, 13; 2 Chron. xix, 2; and to all acts of assembly and parliament in the reforming period; the assembly disclaiming the resolutions, as appears from their act, June 17th, 1646, session 14th, entitled, Act for censuring the compilers with the public enemies of this church and kingdom: and their seasonable and necessary warning June 27th, 1640, session 27th; where "they judge it a great and scandalous provocation, and grievous defection from the public cause, to comply with, these malignants, &c." As also, Act 11th, Triennial Parliament of, Charles I, entitled, Act for purging the army of disaffected persons to the Covenant and work of Reformation. And the faithful warnings, given by general assemblies and parliament, even against the admission of Charles II to the regal dignity, when so evidently discovering his disingenuity, until once he should give more satisfying proof of hid sincerity; see act of the commission at the West Kirk, August 13th, 1650, where the commission of the general assembly, considering, that there may be just ground of stumbling, from the king's majesty's refusing to emit the declaration offered him by the committee of estates, and the commission of the General Assembly, concerning his former carriage, and resolution for the future, in reference to the cause of God, and enemies and friends thereof; doth therefore declare "That this kirk and kingdom do not espouse any malignant party, quarrel, or interest, but that they fight merely upon their former grounds and principles, and in the defense of the cause of GOD, and of the kingdom, as they have done these twelve years past: and therefore as they disclaim all the sin and guilt of the king and of his house, so they will not own him nor his interest, otherwise than with a subordination to GOD, and so far as he owns and prosecutes the cause of GOD, and disclaims his, and his father's opposition to the work of GOD and to the covenant," &c. The which declaration being seen and considered by the committee of estates, was the same day approven by them. Thus, both church and state exerted themselves in the discharge of their duty, in order to obtain a settlement, according to the word of God, and the covenants, which were now become the magna charta of the privileges and liberties of the nations, both civil and religious; and therefore, were sworn to and subscribed by Charles II, as was also the coronation oath, for the security and preservation of the true religion, at his receipt of the royal power.
2. The presbytery testify and declare their approbation of the conduct of the faithful, before the restoration, who, adhering to the aforesaid fundamental constitutions of the nations, both refused subjection unto, and testified against, the usurpation of Oliver Cromwell and his accomplices, his invading the land, his anti-christian toleration of all sectarian errors and heresies, threatening the ruin and destruction of the true religion, as well as liberty. This was particularly testified against by the synod of Fife, and others in conjunction with them, as wicked and intolerable; as opposite unto, and condemned by, the Scriptures of truth, Job xxxiv, 17; Deut. xiii, 1-12; Zech. xiii, 3; contrary to acts of assembly and parliament, made against malignants, their being received into places of power and trust, with whom these sectarians were compliers, such as Act 16th, of Assemb. 1646, Sess. 13th; Act 26th, Sess. 2d, parliament Charles I, &c.
3. The presbytery do hereby heartily approve and homologate the testimony borne unto the truths and royal prerogatives of Christ, as King of Zion, by the witnesses and martyrs for the same, from the restoration, anno 1660, to the late revolution, by protestations, declarations, confiscation of goods, bonds, imprisonment, banishment, all kinds of cruelty and suffering, even unto the death (as noticed above), by the impious revolters from the righteous laws of God, and overturners of the just and equitable laws of men, both sacred and civil; to the maintenance whereof, the greatest part of these transgressors had bound themselves by the most sacred and inviolable obligations, which made their wickedness the more daring and aggravated, and the testimony of the saints against such as had made themselves so vile in the sight of God and all good men, the more justifiable. Psalm cxix, 139: "My zeal hath consumed me, because mine enemies have forgotten thy words." And as the doers of the law have the promise of justification by the great Legislator, Rom. ii, 13, so they ought to have the approbation of his people for doing his will.
And as the Spirit discovers the church's duty not to consist only in bearing witness unto the truth, and justifying Christ's confessors and martyrs, in their faithful adherence unto it, but also in testifying against sin, and condemning the wicked for their wickedness; for which, also, we have the precedent of the reformed and covenanted church of Scotland, both before and during the defection and wickedness of the forementioned period. Likeas, the presbytery did, and hereby do declare and testify particularly:
1. Against that prime and leading step of defection, the public resolutions, a scheme projected by that arch hypocrite and traitor to God, Charles II, for the reintroduction of men of the same wicked and malignant spirit with himself, into places of public trust in the nation—men, the most of whom had been formerly excommunicated by the church, and excluded from all office-bearing in the commonwealth, by the states, in their act of classes, as being avowed and obstinate enemies to God and to their country. Which scheme, approven of and put in execution, with the consent of a corrupt part of the ministry of the church, called afterward resolutioners, made way for that sad and bloody catastrophe, which after befel the poor church of Christ in this land.
2. They declare and testify against the usurpation of Oliver Cromwell, with those who subjected themselves unto, and owned, his authority; against his treacherous invasion of this land, contrary to the public oaths and vows, and covenant union of the nations; together with his sectarian principles, and wicked toleration, then obtruded upon them.