Obligations the least I can expect is to know by what Authority this is broken To this I got no Answer they declined further Questioning causing and commanding the Jury to be called and after they had asked if I had any thing to say against them they swore them desiring me that if I had any thing to say to the Jury to proceed I said my Lords its hard to devolve me upon a Jury before I be heard for which I charge you all to make ready to Answer before my Great Master at the Great Day and this Jurie also as to what ye do in this Affair Then they desired me to speak to the Jury for the Advocat was to have the last word then I thinking I should have occasion to have Reasoned with the Advocat anent my Lyble told the Jury That the Principle I held in my Declaration was of such a Nature as I durst not if I had as many Lives as there are Pickles of Sand on the Sea Shoar to redeem them all with the quitting of the least hair-breadth thereof Then I pressed the Obligation of the Covenant expecting the Advocat's Answer They asked if I had done I answered Yes as to this Then the Advocat began his Course wherein he did little more than Repeat my Declaration without offering any thing against any Article therein except against that of Defensive Arms his Defence against which was this that he had read of Defensive Arms betwixt two single Men But for multitudes he knew no Defensive Arms against standing Laws Then did I offer to Reply but they would not suffer me but recommended me to the Jury strictly Tying them that the Condemners should put it to after their Name and Assizers likewise Then I came conveyed to the Outter-House by the Guard where my Father came to me within a little and told me he had been dealing with the Lords for a Delay but had not got it so long as he expected I told him that whatever my good Lord's will was I was satisfied but I'le speak nothing of that my self He says well I knew that and so he leaves mâ— I am called in again within half an Hour and my Sentence intimated to be Hanged at the Grass-Mercat upon the 26th instant I said my Lords without a Hearing either before the Justices or Jurors this Practice was never parallel'd among Heathens and further my Lords and Jurors I declare and that upon good grounds that if upon this Sentence you Hang me you shall not be innocent of Crucifying the Lord afresh in me his poor and insignificant Member They called suffer him to speak no more This is the sâ—me so far as my brittle Memory will allow and I am confident there wants little or nothing of Moment Now for satisfaction both to Friends and Foes I have Judged it my Duty to add what follows My blessed Lord and Master hath determined mine Heart in all this my my Tryal next to his own Glory to have my Eye upon the Edification and Confirmation of his poor Distrest and Opprest People my Companions in Trâ—bulation as also to design as much as possible the Conviction of hâ—s and our profest and avowed Enemies moved me without any previous Deliberation to assert these Principles and â—ractices contained in my Indictment and to add that other assertion which I did before my Sentence before the Justices and Assize I say my blessed Lord having thus determined and moved me for which I bless his Name has not left me in the Dark as to Grounds and Warrants for what in and through such a poor and empty Reed as I am he hath done which Grounds while I offered to the Justices and Assizes for my Vindication I am contrare to all Law Equity and Reason refused that Privilege a Privilege granted even by the Heathens These Grounds I have thought fit to leave under my Hand for the comfort of the Lords People and if not the conviction the Terror of his and ours for his sake Proud insolent Enemies as follows You Remember that before I offered any Defence I Demanded of the Justices that they would grant me the these two Principles to wit First that the Almighty God Jehovah was Supreame Lord and Master over all in Heaven and in Earth and that all Kings and other Rulers in the Earth are his Deputes and Servants this they granted The second is that all Laws in the Earth must strike-Sail and Vail their Caps to the Supream Law the Word of God and be Regulate by it this they refuse to grant which I lookt upon as most Horrid Blasphemy and took Instruments on the Refusal thereof which I know stands Recorded in Heaven to be produced against the Denyers at the Great Day of the Lord I doubt not if that Young Noble Man who Refused me this had been present when Mr. John Paterson Proposed the Question to me if our King was Comptable to any to whom I Answered he was He asked to whom I said to these by whom he was Intrusted He Answered then he could not be Soveraign Intimating that there could be no Soveraign but one whom we Presbyterians hold to be the Almighty God Jehovah to whom alone indeed it is high Treason for any Mortall to say what doest thou It being lawful de jure to ask any Mortall King an Account of his doings as need Requires though de facto in the case of Cruel Tyrany this be Dangerous I say if this Noble Man had heard this he had not so rashly Refused my Assertion But whatever our Rulers do I do and I hope with me all that has the least Smattering of Religion will both grant and firmly in his strength hold both these Principles for to me to grant the former and refuse the Latter implys a Contradiction now laying these for two sure and inviolable Foundations I go on as if I were before the Justices and Jury to deliver my own grounds which my God laid to my Hand and answer any thing of Objections I meet with either before the Secret Council or Justices Now my Lords of Justicary and you Jurers taken these Principles for granted my first Assertion I have to Vindicate is this that I own the work of Reformation as the same is contained in the Confesion of Faith and Catechisms conform to the Covenant against Popery Prelacy and Erastianisme and am Resolved by the Lords Strength to bide by the same and seing that it is Lawful for any Man to Weild his Arms for his best Advantage to this I Subjoin the Involable Obligation of the Covenant to adhere to these Principles and Practices Now my Lords this work of Reformation these Principles and Practices being such as I find Warranted from the practice of Christ and his Apostles and not only I but his Majesty and all under him in theâ—â— Nations being by the Oath of God which shall never be Disolved by any Humane Power the least I can expect of your Lordships is that
Britain and Ireland imitating this Laudable example when ever they perceived that Dreadfull Plague of a more dangerous Nature then Leprosie and yet more Infectious which I take to have been the reason of their Separation I mean our Kings horrible Adulteries Perjuries publick and Private Oppositions to the Almighty with that Abominable endeavour to introduce Popery anent which you may see more in my now Glorified Brother John Wilson his Testimony I say what if they had by a Sentance of Excommunication set him apart by himself And what if the People had owned them by so doing Sure I know none that has the least smack of Religion would have Condemned this and I pray God the Ministery yet living may be brought to the Sense of their guilt in omitting this but whatever be in this sure I am the people Violented for not Concurring in these Abominations cannot be Condemned for standing to their own Defence This will be yet further clear to any who considers what I have offered by the Enemies of our Blessed Lord for my Satisfaction in this matter And first Having made use of our Blessed Lords Precept to his Disciples when about to leave them in a Persecuting World to wit But now he that has no Sword let him Sell his Coat and Buy one Sir William Paterâ—on told me the same that he told my abovementioned Brother to wit that there was meant the Sword of the Spirit to which I Answered were these two Swords of the Spirit Produced by the Disciples saying here are two were these two Swords of the Spirit To this he replys no more then the Stone of the Wall behind him And now further I would advise that Gentleman as he tenders his Souls Eternall Well-being that he seek Repentance of God for this so horridly Blasphemous Expression which is no other then to Charge our Blessed Lord with Commanding of Simon how Hainous a Sin this is I leave to any tender Conscience to consider Next that Gentleman Mr. Banerman who they said Represented the Kings Advocat there of whom eâ—re I proceed further I must tell you my thoughts I thought indeed he there Represented the Devil I think not Groundlesly for the Devil you know is stiled the Accuser of the Bretheren how near he Resembled him I leave to the Readers consideration Another thing said of the Devils is they Believe and Tremble whether this Gentleman Believes or not I shall not Determine but sure I am he he Trembled and so Repeating my Concessions offers this Defence a good self Defence that he has heard of self Defence betwixt single Men but there was no self Defence by Multitudes against Law I think indeed to Repeat this vain Defence Refutation Sufficient but confuting the Advantage of others I shall divide it it is in it self in two parts the first is this Man seems to yeeld that one Man may Legally Defend himself against another and what if he be not able to prove that two or three of us were still against one I hope if he prove not this against all he must Liberate all that were not Chargeable with this and so was bound to have Defended me conform to his own concession I think this Gentleman should have Condecended who these priviledged Persons are that they may Defend themselves and who not But to the Second Branch that there is no self Defence by Multitudes against Law Justifiable where was this Mans Memory that he will have my Innocent and just self Defence against Law Did I not tell him Immediately before that there could be no Law against express Texts of Scripture And that I might the better prove this Desired they would grant to me that the Word of God was the Supream Law to which all other Laws behoved to strike and vail now this being Refused me and nothing in the least offered for my Satisfaction I hope none will Doubt but these Men Avowedly before the Face of the Sun set themselves and their Laws up above our God and his Laws so that all I have for the Ground of my Sentence upon the Matter is this though God himself hath said you are Right and though his Word which you call his Law say so too yet we have a Law and by this Law you most Dye who would not Rejoice in a sentence of this Nature that does so nearly Resemble that Blasphemous one passed upon his Blessed self Bless O my Soul the Lord thy God there is an Expression in my Subscribed Declaration which I know our Enemies upon Christs Account do not a litle startle at and I am Apprehensive may seem harsh to some of our reall Friends upon mistake the Expression is this that the Enemies invasion made at Pentland and Bothwell for the Adhering to their duty was Service done to the Devil and the Lords Peoples Innocent self Defence being so Assautled was Service done to God For Satisfaction both of Friends and Foes in this matter I shall offer to your Consideration what follows I hope our Enemies themselves will not deny the Presbyterian Ministers of the Church of Britain and Ireland to be Faithful Ministers of Christ Jesus if they do they should have done us the Justice to have intimate the same with the Grounds thereof Sure I am the behaviour of the grossest of them would seem to cry aloud the contrary when they come to a Death-Bed where rejecting these perjured Atheistical blasphemous Hirelings they call for a Presbyterian Minister witness Mr. John Elis and the last Chancellor with many others I hope none of our Friends doubt this so then we shall take this for granted Well then if they be Ministers as we most firmly hold especially having nothing from our Enemies to the the contrary but rather a firm Confirmation as I have said I hope ye will grant me also that they are bound to obey that Commission in the last of Matth. two last Verses Go ye therefore and teach all Nations baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you and lo I am with you always unto the end of the World Amen I hope I need use no Argument to reinforce this this being the Command and Commission of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ in it self sufficient to bind all and needing the sufferage of no Mortal Let it stand as a sure Truth then that our Ministers are Christ's Servants and that our blessed Lords Commission to them to Preach is still binding and shall be to the Worlds end I hope I shall need to be at little pains to prove that by that same Commission the Lords People are obliged to hear I hope none will doubt this whoever has Read that Word Rom. 10.14 How can they hear without a Preacher Now the case being thus that our Ministers are Ministers and by vertue af their Commission they are bound to Preach and consequently we bound to hear and that
Concerned might be put down off the Scaffold then he with a Smilling Countenance turns to the People and gives them all a Cowngie as he did when he went first up the Scaffold and turns to his Father who was also upon the Scaffold with him and Embracing him very Chearfully he gave several Kisses and Rounded some of his last Advises to him and so parted with him saying LORD be with you my Dear Father And then turned to his Brother who was also by him upon the Scaffold and after the same manner Embracing him Kissing so parted with him with Words to the same purpose that he had to his Father with an Exhortation that he should amend his Life and forbear his Idle Company But especially his ways with several others of that Nature telling him the Hazard thereof and encouraging him if he would follow his last Advices Then he turns to two Gentlemen which were also with him and after the same manner Embraced Saluted and parted with them and then he gave another Bow to the whole Multitude and so went up the Ladder and turning his Face to the North East he Cryed out saying I am come here to surprised nor terrified with Death or the manner of it And here I do declare would not Exchange my Lot with what the greatest King Prince or Emperor Enjoyments could afford me and what I Speak once I say it again I lay dowâ— my Life willingly and Chearfully for Christ and his truth Blessing him that evâ—â— I had a Life to lay it down for him yea I am now no more Troubled with or for Death then if I were to ly down in the Finest Bed that the Earth could afford with thâ— most Dear and Intimate Friend that the World could allow me and here I do Declare that I do Heartily and freely forgive all Men whatsoever they have done tâ— or against me and Prayes that the LORD would forgive them I forgive them that sentenced me to die here first and last and I forgive all that apprehended mâ— first and last or was any way accessory thereto and I forgive all that has broâ—ghâ— me here and are guarding me here and I forgive this Poor Man pointing with hiâ— hand behind him to the Hangman who is to be my Executioner Now I desire you all especially you who pretend to be righteous Study to be Sincere in the Way oâ— GOD and in working out of your Salvation for there are many who pretends to be Godly thâ—t know little of the Life and Power thereof therefore I entreat youâ— labour to know what is the Power and Life of Godliness for there are many if noâ— the most part who pretends to be righteous that knows least of it I say be noâ— satisfied with the Shell but labour for the Kernel and Marrow of Religion Now my Friends Remember I tell you here upon the Ladder and as a Dying Man steping out of Time to Eternity that notwithstanding all the Dark Clouds that has been and now are yet there are a thicker and darker coming and it is not far off yea it is at hand But I say Trust in GOD Trust in GOD and he will not disappoint you I say Trust in GOD whatever Afflictions befall you yet Trust in GOD and give him Credite At the hearing of these Words the Bailie calls to Beat the Drums and so they were Beat a little at which he looked down to the Bailie and said what Sir do ye Beat Drums because I desire the People to trust in GOD and the Drums were silenced Then he Cryed out again trust in GOD and ye shall be born through if once ye get in him and keep in him Then he said I will Sing a part of the twenty fifth Psalm from the sixteen Verse to the close for it has been many a time very sweet to me and so I will sing it as my last Song in Time I shall be immediatly where my Heart shall be so Tuned pointing with his Hand to his Breast that I shall never be able to stop the Melody and Harmony thereof then having Sung these Verses he Prayed in which among other things he had this Expression Lord take a Course with thine Enemies and these of them whom thou has a Purpose of Love to Lord bring them in and let them see the evil of their ways and these that are thine incorrigible Enemies make the Wheels of thy Chariots go over their Backs And now Lord leave me not and leave not thine to the evil of the Enemies hasten and return to thine Heritage that's now in reproach turn to thy Church and People for thy Glorious Names sake thou knowest I dare say before thee and in thy sight that I preferred thy Work and Interest to my very Life which I as I am a Rational Creature is as sweet to me as another Mans is Yet I durst not purchase at any Rate to the prejudice of thy Truth and so I lay it down freely and willingly So having called his Father to him a word with you Sir and so having spoken what he had to say to him he again took his Leave of him delivering him a Book to be given to another so parted with him And he perceiving his Brother who was on the Ladder with him trembling he said to him Smyling and Clapping him on the Cheek what Sir are you Trembiing for what Sir are you afraid do you perceive any thing like fear in me And so his Brother puts his Nâ—pkin on his 〈◊〉 and it being Tyed and his Brother offering to pull it over his Face he putting away his Hand with his said let alone I will draw it down my self so he put his Hâ—nds into his Pocket and takes out the Cover of his Bible and putting the same therein he gave it to his Brother Charging him straitly to give it to his Sister Then he looked round about him saying farewell all my Friends in CHRIST pointing with his Hand to some that he knew both in Windows and on the Street to one fixing his Eyes upon him he said my Dear Billie the Lord be with you the Lord be with you and having fixed himself upon a Step of the Ladder said I Remember a Passage of Abraham who was Commanded to Sacrifice his Son Isacc he having in Obedience to the Command brought his Son to offer him up a Sacrifice Reared up an Altar and Isaac says to him here is the Altar and there is the Wood but where is the Sacrifice and then he said Pointing to the Gibbet here is the Altar and then Pointing to the Ladder on which he Sat said here is the Wood and then he said laying his Hands on his Breast and Blessed be GOD here is a free will offering and I will give it willingly and Chearfuly yea I can say it here even upon the Brink of Eternity that these several Years I have Preferred the Glory of GOD the wellfare and Prosperity of the Work â—nd Interest of Christ and his People to my own Private and Particular Interest and I might have Shuned such a Death as this but GOD knows I durst not do it And now I know yea I am firmly perswaded That my Dear Lord even my Exalted and Glorified Lord Jesus Christ will carry me safely throw this Dark Valley and Saddow of Death and will receive my Soul immedatly after I go off this Ladder unto Glory where I shall ever be with him Then he said again crying with a Loud Voice now when I can Hardly get Speaking for the Rope about my Neck Farewell all Freinds and followers of Christ again I say Farewell and Adiew all Earthly Enjoyments and so having given the Hangman a Sign when he would be ready he Prayed alitle within himself and when he had done he gave the Sign and at the giving thereof he drew the Napkin over his Face and Cryed out Farewell all Friends in Christ into thy Hands O Lord do I Commit my Soul So he was Turned over And so ends the Life of this Faithful and now Glorified Martyr for Christ And to GOD the Father Son and Bessed Spirit be Eternal Praise and Glory for ever and ever Amen FINIS