have often made me to cry unto my God, who doth all things for me, that he would raife up inftruments for the work. And now, Sir, that, after difappointments and difcouragements from feveral hands, whence I looked for encouragement, it hath pleafed the Lord, there where I could have no expectation, to raise me up a friend, by inclining your heart to take notice of and comfort me, and to beftir yourself to act in favour of that and me; May not I be allowed to fay unto you, though I have never with mine eyes feen your face, and it is likely never will in this world, "I have feen thy face as if I had feen the face of "God?" A perfon of honour, learning, and piety, ftirred up to befriend me. The acceptablenefs of the Fourfold State to you, notwithstanding of its homely drefs, gave me an inexpreffible pleature. Your tranfmitting the fpecimen, title, and index, and friendly writing along therewith, to Mr Gowan and Mr Loftus, in Holland, was a most charitable action; and the fending therewith the Fourfold State, was fuch an encou raging token of your regard for it, as I could not have expected, more than I could have dreamed of what else you did in favour of it. Mr Gowan's return, concerning the fpecimen, which you was pleafed to dictate to my worthy friend Mr Grant, coming unto my hand, was as cold waters to a thir"ity foul.". And your generofity, preventing the remoteft thought in me, is quite furprifing; having received at your hand ten guineas, a gift in that kind, of fuch value in itself, that it was new to me, and therefore received with proportionable thankfulness; the which value is yet but a very fmall thing, in comparison of the value I put upon it, as a token of the regard you are pleased to have for me, and pledge of your readiness to lay cut yourfelf to encourage any work of mine. What remains on my part is, on your account to bless the Lord, who hath given you wealth and honour, and, which is more rare, a heart and wifdom to improve them to the honour of his name; and to pray, that he fo multiply his bleffings on you and your confort, as you may plainly perceive, that what you have done, and are difpofed to do, in this matter, is a good work, acceptable unto God, through our Lord Jefus Christ. And I am not without confidence in the Lord, upon the ground of his own word, Prov. xi. 25. "He that water"eth, fhall be watered alfo himself," that it fhall be even fo unto you in due time; the view being carried, but without limiting of fovereignty, towards the particular trial it hath pleafed God to exercife you and my Lady Eilys with; the which, fince it came to my knowledge fome feveral months ago, hath been much on my heart, continuing in a difpofition to wait on the Lord's hand in that matter; having alfo recommended it to the prayers of two godly minifiers, my intimate friends. No 14. friends. Herein I am the more encouraged, that as we learn from the word, I have learned alfo by forty years experience, and upwards, that the more fignal and eminent mercies defigned for one in the way of the covenant, are ufually brought through iron gates; which for a time making their accefs apparently hopeless, for the exercise and trial of faith, hope, and patience, do yet, in the Lord's own time, open of their own accord. However, other kinds of mercies may fall into the lap of the receiver fitting at eafe. The MS on the covenant of grace is not as yet returned to me, but expected fhortly. I will greedily embrace an opportunity of putting it into your hand, how foon I can; being exceedingly refreshed with the accounts of your favour and relish of the doctrine of the free grace of God in Chrift Jefus, the foundation of all our hopes. I own the great civility of your Honour's noticing your not writing me; though I think the circumftantiate cafe leaves not an apology to be neceffary. If at any time I fhall have the honour of a few lines at your hand, it will be very acceptable ; but while you fhew fuch a warm concern otherwife, I can be in no pain about it. If you have had any leifure to glance the MSS. your judgement and remarks thereon would be an additional favour. I hope you will pardon the prolixnefs of this, fince it is occafioned by the multiplicity of your favours, and the warm fenfe your Honour's moft oblis of them had by, Honoured Sir, -- ged, and most obedient humble fervant, T. BOSTON. N° 15. A third letter from the Author to Sir Richard Ellys, mentioned p. 488. l. 11. at Sir Richard. Etterick-manfe, Jan. 2. 1731. Honoured Sir, Yesterday I had the honour of yours, which added exccedingly to the fatisfaction I had before in your favours. I fincerely declare, that the friendlinefs and opennefs of it outdid any thing I had been able to expect, notwithstanding of the fignat proofs you had been pleased to give me of your kindnefs, and which were then frefli in my view. The regard you are pleafed to have for me, I accept with all humility and gratitude, imputing it to the Lord's touching of your heart on a particu lar defign. As to what concerns literature, I have a fecret pleasure and glorying in infirmities, that the power of Chrift may rest upon me, and more fatisfaction in the character of a little child leading, than if I were capable of fpeaking and writing on all the parts of learning. Your judgement of the valuablenefs of the defign or end aimed at in the MSS. which judgement speaks a, becoming regard to the very words of the D 2 Holy Holy Ghost, I am much strengthened with; and I need no more, Sir, than what I have, to affure me of your readiness to favour me in that matter which I have fo much at heart. I have long travailed as in pain about it, not without fears fometimes, that both it and I fhould be hiffed off the stage, tho' I dare not fay I ever altogether loft hopes in its behalf: how then could the judgement of Schultens and Gronovius upon the fpecimen mifs of affording me a very fingular comfort? And if what is expected from Mr Loftus fhould prove to be a balance to it, I will, through grace, fall down, and kifs the high hand that fends it. I wrote at large to your Honour t'other day, before yours came to my hand, in the which difpenfation I faw a beauty and I fhall not enlarge here. As to what you require of me, I fhall only add, that I think it will henceforth be natural to me to rejoice and weep with Sir Richard Ellys, in all his concerns; being, Honoured Sir,— your Honour's moft obliged, and moft obedient humble fervant, T. BOSTON. : No 16. Letters from the Author to bis correspondent in Edin burgh. (1) Dear Sir, October 8. 1720. Laft time I wrote to you, I was in a mind to have written you anent the matter I have now in hand; but that I was hurried, and time would not allow. The profpect of engaging in it, which is awful, whether I confider myself or the matter, and the proof I have had of your Chriftian friendship, natively led me to impart it you, as I have done to a very few others. The fubject is the accentuation of the Hebrew Bible, which in the depth of fovereign wisdom has been lefs cultivated by the learned than any thing else I know of relating to the facred volume. My acquaintance with books is very narrow; but I know no tranflations of the Bible in which the tranflators have not thought themfelves very much at liberty in pointing of the text. I am of their opinion who think the Hebrew text is most accurately pointed; and from my own obfervation, as well as from books, I am convinced the facred ftigmatology bears the fignature of a divine hand. The difficulty has been, and is, to affign the proper value to the feveral tops therein ufed. Now, if that divine pointing can be cleared, it is eafy to see what influence it must have on translations, and commentaries too, fixing the grammatical sense of the words. There have been but very few books written purpofely for that effect. I have but two of them, viz. Crofs's Taghmical Art, and Wafmuth's Inftitutiones accent. If either of them could have fatisfied me, they had faved me a confiderable labour. I have employed fome to get me o ther ther two; but they have not found them. I hope I have, through the bleffing of our gracious God, attained to fome infight into this matter. I will no longer fay, if it be a delufion; but feveral difficulties there are, which I fee, that I know not how to get through; befides others, which (it is like) I fee not. But, in dependence on the fame Father of lights, who, in other points of the fame kind, has been pleased to guide me through thickets, where I could difcern no outgate when I entered them, I defign to prefs forward in the study; and if any effay of mine on that fubject might prevail to awaken the learned to the further study of that point, it might be reckoned good fervice. I have fome materials prepared, though I fee I want fome others. I cannot obtain it of myfelf, to fall at this feafon in queft of them; but in regard my health and ftrength are not fo firm as before, and that I know not what may befal me, I defire (if the Lord will) this winter to begin to put in form what I have, that it may not be ufelefs to others, in cafe Providence do not allow me to finish it. As for printing-expences, there is no occafion to speak of that he only knows whether ever I fhall have any thing of that nature prepared for the prefs, or not. But I Sir, I have imparted this matter to you out of an earnest defire that you would be concerned in prayer for me with refpect to that bufinefs of fo great importance, that, if it be his holy will, I may have life and health, and the light of his Spirit, to lead me into all truth; that he will make darknefs light before me, and crooked things ftraight, in this matter particularly. I do not defire it to be propaled, nor would it be prudent for me to do it, the matter not being ripe, and it remaining doubtful if ever it shall be so. am content you impart it to the Honourable Perfon you fpeak of, if you judge it proper. As for Buxtorf De punctis, I fhall be obliged to any who will get me a loan of it; but I would rather have it of my own; and I fuppofe you have correfpondents both in London and Holland; and if you could help me that way, I would defire the favour of you to do it; not only to that book, but to the other two I fpoke of before. I hope to hear from you by the bearer; and continue, dear Sir, yours, &c. Sept. 25. 1721. (2) D. Sir, I received yours with the inclofed letter and paper; the which laft, when I had confidered, I found my heart disposed to blefs the Lord, who had given you counsel wifely to manage this important affair. I had got the contrary paper before, which had come alfo from your hand; by the reading of which I was much confirmed in what we have done; but withal perceiving fo little regard to truth, (I mean not only gospel truths, byt but truth and ingenuity in converfation), I am made to think they can have little hope from that airth, whofe lot it is to fall into fuch hands. But I fhould account myself happy to get garments kept clean, whatever the Lord may fee meet otherwife to do; and I hope that through the fupply of the Spirit, and the prayers of the godly, whofe eyes are opened in this matter, it may be our mercy to find pity in the eyes of the Lord, to be carried cleanly through, which the Lord knows is that which I mainly defire. I heard nothing of the meeting you speak of, till I read it in yours; but I think I cannot be at it, nor do I think Mr Wilfon will, and perhaps not Mr D. neither, who is now in Nithfdale. As matters appear to me now, (whatever I might by conference be brought to), I do not think it proper, that any thing which is not to be publicly owned as the common deed of the whole, fhould undergo fo foJemn a trial; and if it was mine own cafe, I would expect more of a half, if not of a fourth part, their perufing the fame privately in their closets, than of the whole men together. As for myself, I hope our Dr B. to whom the Lord has given a quick wit, and a clear apprehenfion, needs not be be very folicitous about the matter of getting our thoughts of it. I long to fee it, but in fuch a manner as will be common to all; and heartily with that no time may be loft, that can be gained. You are still remembered by me in my moft folemn addresses; and the true reason why I have not written to you for fome time is, that my ftrength I find to be much abated; but work is laid to my hand, upon which all I have is laid out. So that when an occafion of conveying letters does offer, I am much out of cafe for writing; that time being to me the Saturday's night readily, because of our occafions on the Monday. I mult now have fome breathing-time wherein to do nothing, otherwife I must be quite laid afide; and any little thing I have to do cofts me much application; but I blefs the Lord for any thing he gives me upon diligence and application, and defire to be thankful to my bountiful God, who gives me for digging what others would find as it were lying above the ground. The best way that I know for keeping up religion in a hurry of bufinefs, is, to look on the business as a duty of the eighth command of our Sovereign Lord, Creator, and Redeemer; and fo going about it in compliance with his will, who has allotted to every man their ftation, and determined the duties of it; to make application to him ordinarily in your stated addreffes to the throne of grace, for wisdom to guide your affairs with discretion, and for the fuccefs of them according to his promifes thereanent; and actually to go about them in dependence on the Lord. Thus, while you ferved your lawful purposes in the world, you would ferve the Lord Chrift; the which I put you in remembrance of, albeit you know, and I doubt not aim at the fame. From the lit tle |