wishes to you and all that is yours, I sincerely am, with great esteem, your most affectionate Brother,

JAMES OGILVIE.

Attestation by Mr. James Young, preacher of the gospel, who hath been at Falkirk and in other parishes of the neighbourhood since the beginning of this work, and was greatly helpful in carrying it on, both by preaching and conversing with the distressed.

Falkirk, 1st October, 1742.

Rev. Sir, In answer to your demand, I send you an account of my plain sentiments upon the work that has appeared in Kilsyth and neighbourhood for some months past, which, after many trials and converses I have had with those awakened persons, I cannot but consider as a great and glorious appearance of God in his sanctuary, and look on these places as a field which the Lord has blessed, and plentifully rained down divine influences upon: which charitable judgment I have formed upon many instances, some of which I shall run over, so far as I can recollect them at the time.

The most part of these persons have appeared in great distress and agony of soul, under a sense of their sins and fears of the wrath to come; and have been deeply struck with the malignity and demerit and the number and aggravations of their actual sins, as abominable to God and deserving his endless indignation. They have been led into a deep view of their original guilt and pollution, and abased themselves and repented in dust and ashes when they have "looked to the rock whence they were hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence they were digged;" but especially of unbelief in Christ, and neglecting the great salvation, the chief of all their sins, as "crucifying the Lord of glory afresh, and putting him to an open shame." And upon this account their sorrows have been great and their complaints melting, looking "to him whom they have pierced and mourning." To them under such exercises Christ Jesus has seemed as "the chief among ten thousand, and altogether lovely,” and

the complete salvation, through his atoning blood and righteousness and by his sanctifying Spirit, "as the one thing needful, and all their desire"-to save not only from hell and wrath, but also from sin; to purify their defiled natures, and justify their guilty souls; to form them after the image of God, as well as to advance them to the privileges of his children; and to make them pure and holy in all manner of conversation, and meet for the heavenly inheritance, as well as to raise them to this blessed hope, and receive them at last into eternal life. And how anxious have their concerns been, and panting their supplications-"Lord, I believe; help mine unbelief" I am stout-hearted and far from righteousness, cause me to incline mine ear, give me a heart to come to thee, "that I may have life" and "make us a willing people in the day of thy power."

Some have been very ignorant under the first awakenings, and afterwards, through the blessing of God, have made a good proficiency in the knowledge of Christ and the mysteries of his gospel: such have been evidently taught of God, and instructed by the great Apostle and High Priest, "who has compassion on the ignorant and them that have gone out of the way."

Others, through the piercing impressions of their sins, and shocking terrors of the Divine wrath, set in array against them, disturbing their minds and disordering their bodies, could not at first, but afterwards have given very rational and distinct accounts of the grounds and methods of their awakenings, such as distinguish them from being the result of mechanism or diabolical influence, who since have been settled in the faith of Jesus, and arrived at strong consolation. Nay, some that could not read, nor had been taught to read, being now in old age, have upon the first convictions applied to the means of instruction, and with remarkable success do grow in the knowledge of Christ, as they have come to the faith of him.

I have seen some filled with all joy and peace in believing, and abounding in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost, and when asked a reason of the hope that is within them, have been able to give it with mcekness and fear, upon distinct scripture characters,

and rejoicing in Christ Jesus. They have no confidence in the flesh, and rejoice with fear and trembling, "remembering that they are yet in the body," disturbed with indwelling sin, and exposed to manifold temptations: to such the mortification as well as the pardon of sin, and the brightenings of the Divine image, as well as the uplifting of the Divine favour upon their souls, and holiness and joy in the Holy Ghost, are the equally sure springs of their assured peace and strong consolation with some of such I have spoken at other times, who after such blessed attainments have sunk into spiritual despondencies, through the hidings of the Divine favour and the fresh impressions of their guilt; and while they have been ready to acknowledge the justice of the dispensation, and confess and lament their own sins as the provoking causes of it, have sung both of mercy and judgment, and come to this good assurance of faith in God their Saviour, to trust in him though he should slay them, to trust in the name of the Lord, and stay themselves on their God, from whom comes all their expectation, and in whom all their salvation lies."

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I have seen some young ones under deep and sharp convictions of their sinful and guilty state, which they have expressed in very feeling and melting language, and while they have been early seeking Wisdom and her ways, have found her and felt them to be " pleasantness and peace:" the love of their espousals has been richly recompensed with the consolations of God, which are not small; and, having first sought the kingdom of God, have felt it in their sweet experience to be "righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost:" "out of the mouths of babes and sucklings God has perfected praises" to himself, "to still the enemy and the avenger."

But not to enlarge on more instances, I shall only mention this, which I have all along observed to the honour of this work: While some have been awakened in reading the Scriptures or some devotional books; others by private conversing with others; others have by a particular recollection some time after of part of a sermon heard; others by being present at some Chris

tian fellowships for prayer and many have had a great and serious concern hanging on their minds for some time, before it has unavoidably broken forth into some public profession: Yet in the preaching of the gospel, the arrows of conviction have stuck deep and sharp in the hearts of the most part of them: and if awakenings have not first been produced by this mean, at least they have been increased and carried on to a sound conversion to God and the faith of Christ-this being the power of God to every one that believes.

Sir, I am glad to understand, from several good hands, that the goodness of their lives justifies the truth of their professions: that besides their punctual attendance on and serious application to the public institutions of divine worship, and their frequent and stated observance of Christian fellowship as they have opportunity, they likewise have a special care to have "a conscience void of offence, both towards God and man, and denying all ungodliness and worldly lusts, live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present evil world,' making conscience of observing their stational and relative duties, and attending to both tables of the divine law. I pray they may adorn the doctrine of God their Saviour in all things, and have a conversation becoming the gospel of Christ, being filled with all the fruits of the Spirit, which are in all goodness, righteousness, and truth; and being stedfast and unmovable, and always abounding therein to the end of their life, to give a more sensible and striking testimony to the word of his grace, convincing an infidel and thoughtless generation that there is a Holy Ghost attending this gospel, whence it is heard as the voice of God and not of man, and becomes "the power and wisdom of God to the salvation of those that believe," and silencing the clamours of others, who rashly speak evil of the right ways of the Lord, and disown the stately steps of his majesty in the sanctuaries of our Zion. May the Lord grant you many more seals of your ministry, that many may be your crowns of joy and rejoicing in the day of his coming; and spread this cloud of the divine influences far and wide, so that from the utmost ends of the earth songs of praise may be heard, even glory to the righteous Lord. JAMES YOUNG.

From the Rev. Mr. Blair, Minister at Brechin.

Brechin, 15th December, 1742.

Rev. and dear Sir,-The accounts of the extraordinary work in your congregation and neighbourhood having reached even unto us, I determined with myself to have all the satisfaction respecting an event so uncommon that the nature and circumstances of the thing could possibly admit of, and therefore, in October last, undertook a journey your length. What I saw and heard, and found upon the best inquiry I was able to make during my stay with you, I shall now relate honestly, and without any thing of party-zeal, which I am afraid too much influences the sentiments and conduct of many at this day, to the great prejudice of the common cause of Christianity.

As you was pleased to invite the Rev. Mr. Ogilvie and me, to preach both on the Lord's day and Monday thereafter, I could observe many hearing the word with such attention, tenderness, and so much of a melting frame, as I had never seen with such numbers, and scarcely with any, in all my life. Some on the Sabbath evening, when you was concluding the work of the day with an address to the audience, I heard utter the most bitter cries, and such as I own filled me with something of a horror and surprise, and seemed to bespeak a great deal of bitterness and remorse in the minds of those from whom they came. The same evening I saw many under bodily convulsions; but with these I saw more affected, and particularly a child about six or seven years of age, on the Monday, which did not a little raise my wonder.

On Monday, after sermons, I had a particular conversation with a good many of those who had been some way or other affected under the ministry of the word. Some of these I found under sharp convictions of sin, and of divine wrath due to them on account of it, and who seemed to walk in darkness and to see no light. Most of them could tell me the word that first reached them and awakened their guilty fears, and that an interest in Jesus Christ, as it was the only thing