be Serviceable to God therein And after said GOD is a strong Refuge I have found him so indeed The next opportunity was at Dorcester where they were both carried and put in Prison and by reason of their strait Confinement our Converse was much interrupted but this I found from them that they had still the same presence and support from God as formerly no ways being discouraged at the near approach of their Tryal nor of the issue of it though it might appear to Flesh and Blood to be terrible The 6th of September my Brother Benjamin was ordered at Taunton to be Tryed then taking my leave of him he chearfully said Blessed be God for Afflictions I have found such happy Effects of them that I would not have been without them for all this World I remaining still at Dorcester to see the issue of my Brother William to whom after he was Tryed before his Sentence I had free Liberty to go to whose Mouth was filled with Admiration of the Grace of God in Christ Jesus that had been manifested unto him in calling him out of his natural Estate suddenly seizing on his Heart when he thought not of it in his Abode in Holland finding secret Whisperings in his Heart to seek the Face of God who enabled him to answer his Gracious Call and to reflect upon his own Soul whereby he came to see the Evil of Sin and his need of Christ from that time carrying him on to a sensible Adherence to Christ for Pardon and Peace of Soul where he said He found a Spring of Joy and Sweetness beyond all the Comfort of the whole Earth He further said He could not but admire the wonderful goodness of God in preparing him for what he was bringing him unto which then he thought not of giving hope of Eternal Life before he call'd him to look Death in the Face So that he did Chearfully resign his Life to God before he came having sought his Guidance in it and that the Cause did appear to him both then and now very Glorious notwithstanding all that which he had suffer'd in it or further might although God had with-held those good things from us As to himself he said God had carried on his Work in his Soul in and by all sufferings and whatever the will of God were Life or Death he knew it would be best for him After he had received his Sentence when he return'd to Prison he said Methinks I find my Comfort in God increase since my Sentence there is no Condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus it is God that Justifieth who shall condemn When I came to him the next morning when he had received News of the time of his Execution and in order to it was to be carried to Lyme that day I found him in a most excellent Spiritual Frame more then ever before he was in he said He was satisfied God had done best for him he knew what the Temptation of Life might be I might have lived and forgotten God but now I am going where I shall Sin no more O it it is a Blessed thing to be free from Sin and to be with Christ O how great were the Sufferings of Christ for us beyond all that I can undergo How great is that Glory to which I am going It will now swallow up Sorrow here When he was at Dinner just before his going from Dorcester to Lyme he dropt many Expressions of his inward Joy such as these O the Grace of God the Love of Christ O the Blessed Supper of the Lamb to be for ever with the Lord He further said When he went to Holland You knew not what Snares Sins and Miscarriages I might have fallen into or whether we might ever meet again Now you know whether I am going and that we shall certainly have a most joyful meeting and never part more for ever He said Pray give my Recommendations to all Relations with Acknowledgments for all their Kindness I advise them all to make sure of an Interest in Christ for he is the only Comfort when we come to dye One of the Prisoners seemed to be troubled at the manner of Death they were to dye to whom he replyed I bless God I am Reconciled unto it all Just at his going he writ these few Lines to his Mother being hardly suffered to stay so long I am going to Lanch into Eternity I hope and trust into the Arms of my Blessed Redeemer to whom I commit you and all my Relations My Love to my Dear Sister and the rest of my Friends William Hewling As they passed through the Town of Dorcester to Lyme multitudes of People beheld them with great Lamentation and bitter Cryes admiring at his Carriage and Behaviour at his parting with his Sister As they passed along the Road betwixt Lyme and Dorcester his Discourse was exceeding Heavenly and Spiritual as those present have since declared taking occasion from every thing to speak of the Journey they were going looking out upon the Country as they passed along he said This is a Glorious Creation but what then is the Paradice of God to which we are going When he was come to Lyme one reading the 14. of John and the 18 Verse I will not leave you Comfortless I will come to you said Christ will come unto us he will be with us to the very last At Lyme that morning he was Executed one taking Leave of him he said Fare-well till we meet in Heaven presently I shall be with Christ I would not change Conditions with any I would not stay behind for Ten Thousand Worlds To another that ask'd him how he did he said Very well I Bless God and farther ask'd him if he could look Death in the Face with Comfort now it approached so near He answered I can I bless God with Comfort God hath made this a good Night to me my Comforts are much increased since I left Dorcester Then taking leave of him said Farewell I shall see you no more To which he repiyed How see me no more Yes I hope to meet you in Glory To another which was by him to the last he said Pray Remember my Love to my Dear Brother and Sister and tell them I would desire them to Comfort themselves that I am gone to Christ and we shall quickly meet in the Glorious Mount Zion above Afterwards he Prayed for about three quarters of an hour with the greatest Fervency exceedingly blessing God for Christ Jesus Adoring the Riches of his Grace in all the Glorious Fruits of it towards him Praying for the Peace of the Church of God and for this Nation in particular with such Eminent Assistance of the Spirit of God that it Astonished Convinct and Melted the most Malitious Adversaries forcing Tears and Expressions of Sorrow from them some saying They knew not what would become of them after Death but it was evident he was going to great Happiness When he was just going
mercy but only in the Free Grace of God by the Application of the Blood of Jesus my dearest and only Saviour to my poor sinful Soul my Distresses have been exceeding great as to my eternal State but through the infinite Goodness of God tho I have many sins to answer for yet I hope and trust as to my particular that Christ came for this very end and purpose to relieve the Oppressed and to be a Physitian to the sick I come unto thee O blessed Jesus refuse me not but wash me in thine own Blood and then present me to thy Father as righteous What tho my sins be as Crimson and of a Scarlet dye yet thou canst make them as white as Snow I see nothing in my self but what must utterly ruine and condemn me I cannot answer for one action of my whole Life but I cast my self wholly upon thee who art the Fountain of Mercy in whom God is reconciling himself to the World the greatest of Sins and Sinners may find an All-sufficiency in thy Blood to cleanse them from all sin O dearest Father of Mercy look upon me as righteous in and through the imputed righteousness of thy Son he hath payed the debt by his own offering up himself for sin and in that thy Justice is satisfied and thy Mercy is magnified Grant me thy love O dearest Father assist me and stand by me in the needful hour of Death give thy Angels charge over my poor Soul that the Evil One may not touch nor hurt it Defend me from his power deliver me from his rage and receive me into thine Eternal Kingdom in and through the alone Merits of my dearest Redeemer for whom I praise thee To whom with thy self and Holy Spirit be ascribed all Glory Honour Power Might and Dominion for ever and for ever Amen Dear Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen R. Nelthrope Newgate October 29. 1685. Mrs. Gaunt's Speech written the day before her Sufferings NOT knowing whether I should be suffer'd or able because of weaknesses that are upon me through my hard and close Imprisonment to speak at the place of Execution I writ these few lines to signifie That I am well reconciled to the way of my God towards me though it be in ways I looked not for and by terrible things yet in righteousness having given me Life he ought to have the disposing of it when and how he pleases to call for it and I desire to offer up my All to him it being but my reasonable Service and also the first Terms that Jesus Christ offers that he that will be his Disciple must forsake all and follow him and therefore let none think hard or be discouraged at what hath happened unto me for he doth nothing without cause in all he hath done unto us he being holy in all his wayes and righteous in all his works and 't is but my lot in common with poor desolate Sion at this day Neither do I find in my heart the least regret for what I have done in the service of my Lord and Master Jesus Christ in succouring and securing and of his poor Sufferers that have shewed favour to his righteous Cause which Cause though now it be fallen and trampled upon as if it had not been annointed yet it shall revive and God will plead it at another rate than ever he hath done yet and reckon with all its opposers and malitious haters and therefore let all that love and fear him not omit the least Duty that comes to hand or lies before them knowing that now it hath need of them and expects they shall serve him And I desire to bless his holy Name that he hath made me useful in my generation to the comfort and relief of many desolate ones and the blessing of those that are ready to perish has come upon me and being helpt to make the Heart of the Widdow to sing And I bless his holy Name that in all this together with what I was Charged with I can approve my Heart to him that I have done his Will though it does cross Man's Will and the Scriptures that satisfie me are Isa. 16. 4. Hide the Outcasts bewray not him that wandereth And Obad. 13 14. Thou shouldst not have given up those of his that did escape in the day of his distress But Man says you shall give them up or you shall dye for it now who to Obey Judge ye So that I have cause to rejoyce and be exceeding glad in that I suffer for righteousness sake and that I am accounted worthy to suffer for well doing and that God has accepted any service from me which has been done in sincerity though mixed with manifold infirmities which he hath been pleased for Christ's sake to cover and forgive And now as concerning my Fact as it is called alas it was but a little one and might well become a Prince to forgive but he that shews no Mercy shall find none And I may say of it in the language of Jonathan I did but tast a little honey and lo I must dye for it I did but relieve an unworthy poor distressed Family and so I must dye for it Well I desire in the Lamb-like Gospel spirit to forgive all that are concerned and to say Lord lay it not to their Charge but I fear he will not nay I believe when he comes to make inquisition for Blood it will be found at the door of the furious Judge who because I could not remember things through my dauntedness at Burden's Wife and Daughters vileness and my ignorance took advantage thereat and would not hear me when I had called to mind that which I am sure would have invalidated their evidence though he granted something of the same kind to another at that time yet denyed it unto me My Blood will also be found at the door of the unrighteous Jury who found me guilty upon the single Oath of an Out-lawed Man for there was none but his Oath about the Money who is no legal Witness though he be Pardoned his Outlawry not being recalled and also the Law requires two Witnesses in point of Life And then about my going with him to the place mentioned 't was by his own words before he was Outlawed for 't was two Months after his absconding and though in a Proclamation yet not High Treason as I have heard so that I am clearly Murdered by you And also bloody Mr. A. who has so unsatiably hunted after my Life and though it is no Profit to him through the ill will he bore me left no stone unturn'd as I have ground to believe 'till he brought it to this and shewed favour to Burton who ought to have dyed for his own fault and not bought his Life with mine and Capt. R. who is cruel and severe to all under my Circumstances and did at that time without all Mercy or Pity hasten my Sentence and held up my hand that it might be given
out of the World with a Joyful Countenance he said O now my Joy and Comfort is I have a Christ to go to and so sweetly Resigned his Spirit to Christ September the 12th 1685. An Officer who had shewed so Malicious a Spirit as to call the Prisoners Devils when he was Guarding them down was now so concerned that he after told a Person of Quality that he was never so Affected as by his Chearful Carriage and Fervent Prayer such as he believed never was heard especially from one so young and said he believed that had the Lord Chief Justice been there to see and hear what he did he could not have let him die The Sheriff having given his Body to be Buried although it was brought from the place of Execution without the knowledge of his Friends yet very many of the Town came to his Funeral to the number of about two hundred and several young Women of the best of the Town laid him in his Grave in Lyme Church-Yard September the 13th 1685. After which his Sister Writ this following Letter to her Mother ALthough I have nothing to Acquaint my Dear Mother withal but what is most Afflictive to Sense both as to the Determination of Gods Will and as to my present Apprehension concerning my Brother Benjamin yet remaining yet there is such abundant Consolation mixt in both that I only wanted an opportunity to pay this Duty God having wrought so Glorious a work on both their Souls revealing Christ in them that Death is become their Friend My Brother William having already with the greatest Joy declared to those that were with him to the last that he would not change Conditions with any that were to remain in this World and he desired that his Relations would comfort themselves that he is gone to Christ. My Brother Benjamin expects not long to continue in this World and is exceeding willing to leave it when God shall Call being fully satisfied that God will choose that which is best for him and us all by these things God doth greatly support me and I hope you also my Dear Mother which was and is my Brothers great desire there is still room for Prayer for one and God having so answered though not in kind we have encouragement still to wait on him Honoured Mother your Dutiful Daughter HANNAH HEWLING VVHen I came to Taunton my Brother Benjamin had received the News of my Brother William 's being gon tâ— die with so much Comfort and Joy and afterwards of the continuance of the goodness of God in increasing unto the end He Exprest himself to this effect We have no cause to fear Death if the Presence of God be with us there is no Evil in it the sting of it is taken away it is nothing but our Ignorance of the Glory that the Saints pass into by Death which makes it appear Dark to our selves or Relations if belonging to Christ what is this World that we should desire any Abode in it It is all Vanity and Vnsatisfying full of Sin and Misery Intimating also his own Cheerful expectation now to follow discovering then and all along great seriousness and sense of Spiritual things complaining of nothing in his present Circumstances but the want of a place of Retirement to Converse more Uninterruptedly with God and his own Soul saying That his little time in Newgate was the sweetest in his whole Life He said God having before struck his Heart when he thought of the hazard of his Life and the great Consequence of Death and Eternity shewing that they were the only happy Persons that had secur'd their Eternal Estate and the folly and madness of the ways of Sin and his own Thraldome therein with his utter Inability to deliver himself also the necessity of Christ to Salvation He said It was not without sorrow and amazement for some time the thoughts of Vnpardoned Sin with Eternity before him was a great surprize but God wonderfully open'd to him the Riches of his free Grace in Christ Jesus for poor Sinners to fly unto enabling him alone to look unto a Crucified Christ for Salvation He said That this Blessed Work was in some measure carried on upon his Soul under his business and hurry in the Army but never sprung forth so fully and sweetly till his close Confinement in Newgate then he saw an All-spiritual Object more clearly and imbraced it more strongly there he experienced the Blessedness of a Reconciled Estate the Excellency of the ways of Holiness of Communion with God which remained very deep and apparent impressions on his Soul which he frequently exprest with Admiration of the Grace of God to him He said Perhaps my Friends may think this some of the sadest time of my Life but I bless God it hath been the sweetest and most happy of all nay there is nothing else worth the name of happiness I have formerly but in vain sought happiness in the things of this World but I never found it but now I have found Rest for my Soul in God alone O how great is our blindness by nature that we can't see an Excellency in spiritual things we spend our pretious time in pursuing of shadows and are deaf to the Invitations of Grace and the Glorious Offers of Christ in the Gospel How just is God in depriving us of that we have so much slighted and abused O his infinite Patience and Goodness that after all he should yet take any method to bring a poor Sinner to himself O Electing Love Distinguishing Grace What cause have I to Admire and Adore it He said What an amazing Consideration is the Sufferings of Christ for Sin to bring us to God His sufferings were exceeding great but alas what was that to the dolours of his Soul under the infinite VVrath of God The great mystery of Grace and Love is enough to swallow up our thoughts to Eternity As to his own Death he would often say He saw no reason to expect any other I know God is infinitely able to deliver and I am sure will do it if it be for his Glory and my Good for which I bless God I am fully satisfied it is all my desire he would choose for me that I am sure will be best whatever it be for truly except God hath some work for me to do in this World for his Service and Glory I see nothing else to make Life desirable in this present state of things there is nothing to cast our Eye upon but Sin Sorrow and Misery and truly were things never so much according to our desire it is but the World still which will never be a Resting-place Heaven is the only state of Rest and Happiness where we shall be perfectly free from Sin and Temptation and enjoy God without Interruption for ever Speaking of the disappointment of their Expectation of the work they had undertaken he said with Reference to the Glory of God and Prosperity of the Gospel and
him in particular saying It was so sad a thing to see such excellent Persons so cut off they scarce knew how to â—ear it Some of the most malicious in the place from whom nothing but Railing was expected said as they were carried to their Graves in Taunton-Church Voluntarily accompanied by most of the Town That these Persons had given sufficient Evidence that they were Glorified Saints in Heaven A great Officer in the Kings Army hath been heard to say If you will learn to Die go to the Young Men in Taunton Much more was uttered by him shewing the Blessed and Gracious frame of his Soul but this is what occurs to Memory About two Hours before his Death he Wrote this following Letter which shewed the great Composure of his Mind Mr. Hewlings last Letter a little before his Execution THat News which I know you have a great while feared and we expected I must now acquaint you with that notwithstanding the hopes you gave in your last Letter Warrants are come down for my Execution and within these few hours I expect it to be performed Blessed be Almighty God that gives Comfort and Support in such a day how ought we to Magnifie his Holy Name for all his Mercies that when we were running on in a course of Sin he should stop us in our full Career and shew us that Christ whom we had pierced and out of his free Grace enabled us to look upon him with an Eye of Faith believing him able to save to the uttermost all that come to him O Admirable long Suffering and Patience of God! That when we were a dishonouring his Name he did not take that time to Glorifie himself by our Destruction for he delights not in the Death of a Sinner but had rather he should turn to him and Live. And he hath many ways of bringing his own to himself Blessed be his holy Name that through Affliction he hath taught my Heart to be in some measure conformable to his Will which worketh Patience Patience Experience Experience Hope which maketh not ashamed I Bless God I am not ashamed for the Cause for which I lay down my Life and as I have Ingaged in it and Fought for it so I am now going to Seal it with my Blood. The Lord carry on the same Cause that hath been so long on foot and though I die in it and for it I question not but in his own good time he will raise up other Instruments more worthy to carry it on for the Glory of his Name and the Advancement of his Church and People I know there hath been nothing left undone by you or the rest of my Friends for the saving of my Life for the which I return my hearty acknowledgments to your self and them all and it is my dying request to you and them to pardon all Undutifulness in every Relation pray give my Duty to every Relation and to every Friend a particular Recommendation pray tell them all how pretious an Interest in Christ is when we come to die and advise them never to rest in a Christless state for if we are his it is no matter what the World does with us they can but kill the Body and Blessed be God the Soul is out of their reach for I question not but their Malice wishes the Damnation of the Soul as well as the Destruction of the Body which hath evidently appeared by their deceitful flattering Promises I commit you all to the Care and Protection of God who hath promised to be a Father to the Eatherless and a Husband to the Widow and to supply the wants of every Relation the Lord God of Heaven be your comfort under these Sorrows and your Refuge from those Miseries which we may easily fore-see coming upon poor England and upon the poor distressed People of God in it The Lord carry you through this Vale of Tears with a resigning submissive Spirit and at last bring you to himself in Glory where I question not but you will meet Your Dying Relation and Friend Benjamin Hewling Executed at Taunton September 30th 1688. FINIS ADVERTISEMENT ☞ There will speedily be Publish'd a second Collection of the Dying Speeches Letters and Prayers c. of those Eminent Protestants who Dyed in the West of England and else-where under the Cruel Sentence of the late Lord Chancellour ☞ There is now Publish'd a very Vseful Book Entituled The Joy of Faith Or a Treatise opening the true nature of Faith it 's lowest Stature and Distinction from Assurance with a Preliminary Tract evidencing the Divinity of the Sacred Scriptures By Samuel Lee M. A. Both to be sold at the Black-Raven in the Poultrey