Patrick Walker

“ First, A bloody sword, a bloody sword for thee, O Scotland, that shall tear the hearts of many. Secondly Many miles shall you travel, and shall see nothing but desolations and ruinous wastes in thee, O Scotland! Thirdly, The fertilest places in Scotland shall be as waste and desolate as the mountains. Fourthly, The women with child, shall be ript up, and dashed to pieces. Fifthly, Many a conventicle has God had in thee, O Scotland! but, ere long, God will have a conventicle that will make Scotland to tremble. ”

“ After this, the troop of dragoons came to quarter in the parish of Cambusnethen; two of them were quartered in the house of James Gary, my aquaintance; they being frighted in their sleep, started up and clapped their hands, crying, Peden, Peden! These two dragoons affirmed that out of their curiosity they opened his coffin to see his corpse, and yet he had no smell, though he had been forty days dead. ”

“ And exhorted us to pray for faithful ministers to ourselves, and never content ourselves without them; for we would not continue long sound in the faith and straight in the way, if we wanted faithful guides. And, for all the respect that these divided parties of dissenters, or rather schismatics and separatists, pretend to, Mr. Cargill, Cameron, Shields, and Renwick, and every one of them to be their successors, and maintaining the testimony which they sealed with, their blood: how little do they notice the sententious writings and sayings of these worthies? ”

“ After sermon when marrying a pair of folks, when the man had the woman by the hand, he said, Indeed man you have a bonny bride by the hand, I see a covetous devil in her; she is both a thief and a whore, let her go, you will be ashamed of her.—The man keeping fast her hand, he said, You will not take my advice, but it will tend to thy disgrace. ”

“ Good Lord, spread the lap of thy cloak and cover the poor lad. And in this he was heard and answered, in that there was a dark misty cloud parted him and them.
26. About this time there was an honest poor wife brought him and them some bread and milk; When seeking a blessing, he said, Now, in this bloody land, this poor Woman has endangered her life in bringing bread to support ours; we cannot pay her for it, but Lord, it is for thy sake she has brought it; and there is no need that she should be a looser at thy hand: Thou givest plenty of bread to many that are not so worthy of it. ”

“ He said, O sirs, ye will have a dreadful day by the French Monzies, and a set of wicked men in these lands, who will take part with them; the West of Scotland will pay dear for it; they will run thicker in the water of Ayr and Clyde than ever the Highlandmen did. I lay in that chamber about three years ago, and the said John Richman and his Wife told me, that these were his words. At other times to the same purpose, saying, O! the Monzies, the Monzies, will be through the breadth and length of the South and West of Scotland! ”

“ A little before his death he said, Ye shall be angry where I shall be buried at last, but I discharge you all, to lift my corpse again. At last, one morning early, he came to the door, and left his cave; his brother's wife said, Where are you going? the enemy will be here. He said, I know that. Alas! Sir, said she, what will become of you? You must go back to the cave again. He said, I have done with that, for it is discovered: but there is no matter, for, within forty eight hours, I will be beyond the reach of all the devil's temptations, and his instruments, in hell or on the earth ”

“ He stood up and said, Lord, we hear tell that thy enemies and ours are coming upon us, and thou hast hid thy hand of affliction on old John, have pity upon him, for thy enemies will have none; his blood will run where he lies! ”

“ And their own sad experience can testify, that since that time, being now forty-nine years since his death, more estates of hundred of years standing, have changed masters, than did for a hundred years before, almost in all corners of the land, Besides these lamentable holding reasons that he gave, several other reasons and ocurrences have fallen out since, to bring it to pass, such as, he always bear the name of the poor proud Scots, through the world; and, as our poverty increaseth, to our pride, vanity, prodigality, and ambition grow of airy fool stiles and titles. ”

“ While prisoner in the Bass one sabbath morning, being about the publick worship of God, a young lass about the age of 13 or 14 years, came to the chamber door mocking with loud laughter; he said, Poor thing, thou mocks and laughs at the worship of God, but ere long God shall write such a sudden surprizing judgment on thee, that shall stay thy Laughing, and thou shalt not escape it. ”

“ He will not let one sentence fall to the ground, but they will have a sad accomplishment, to the sad experience of many." In his prayer after sermon, he said, "Lord, thou hast been both good and kind to auld Sandy, through a long tract of time, and given him many years in thy service, which has been but as so many months; but now he is tired of thy world, and hath done all the good in it that he will do; let him win away with the honesty he has, for he will gather no more." ”

“ In the beginning of the year 1681, the devil began a new project at Borrowstounness upon a few of those whom he could not drive to left-hand defections, by injecting into them demented enthusiastical delusions, driving them upon wild unheard-of right-hand extremes, with a spirit of division and unwarrantable separation from all that would not or durst not go up with him in every jot; which began in Holland a year before, which I have already given a true account of; and which remains rampart in Scotland to this day, and I sadly fear will outlive me. ”

“ Peden stood still and said, Let us pray here; for, if the Lord hear not our prayers, and save us, we are dead men, and our blood will run like water: If we die, let the enemy kill us, let our blood fill up their cup, that the day of vengeance that is coming on them may be hastened. ”

“ But I greatly fear these wild tares of delusions and divisions will spring and grow, and never be rooted out in this land; which has sadly come to pass.
And this, in preaching and conference, he was most sententious and plain in discovering and giving warning of the snare, sin, and danger of these wild extremes: nevertheless, the indulged, silent, and unfaithful, lukewarm, complying ministers and professors, made no distinction betwixt him and Gibb, but made it their work by tongue and pen, to bury him, and his faithfulness in the ashes of these vile extremes ”

“ He wished that the Lord's people might ly hid in their caves, as if they were not in the world; for nothing would do it, until God appeared with his judgments, and they that wan through the bitter and sharp, short storm, by the sword of the Frenches, and a set of unhappy men, taking part with them, then there would be a spring-tide day of plenty, purity and power of the gospel ”

“ He said, my Lord Rothes, forbear to threaten me; for, die what death I will, your eyes will not see it: And it is well known to some yet alive, that he died that morning that Mr Cargill, and these worthies with him, suffered in the afternoon. Shortly after this compearance of Mr. Cargill before the council, Rothes was seized with sickness and pains: And when he found the pangs of death turning sharp upon him, he cried out for some of his wife's ministers, (she being a favourer of Presbyterian ministers) for his ministers were good to live with, but not to die with. ”

“ Coming near the coast one morning, John Muirhead came to him lying within a hedge: He said, Have ye any news, John? John said, There is great fear of the Irish rising. He said, No no, John; the time of their rising is not yet; but they will rise and dreadful will it be at last. He was long detained waiting for a lark, not daring to go to public ports, but to some remote creek of the sea. Alexander Gordon of Kinstuir, in Galloway, had agreed with one, but Mr. Peden would not sail the sea with him, having some foresight of what he did prove afterwards. ”

“ Shortly after that sad stroke at Bothwel, he went to Ireland, but did not stay long at that time; in his travels through Galloway, he came to a house, and looking in the goodman's face, he said, "They call you an honest man, but if you be so you look not like it, you will not long keep that name, but will discover yourself to be what you are." ”

“ It is easy for Christ to be holden busy in dividing the fulness of his Father's house to his poor friends: He delights not to keep mercy over-night. Every day brings new mercies to the people of God: He is the easiest merchant ever the people of God yoked with: If ye be pleased with the wares, what of his graces makes best for you, he and you will soon sort on the price ”

“ Only he remembered, he was once sent from the Societies in Galloway to Carrick, to call Mr. Peden to preach: When he told him for what end he was come, Mr. Peden went for some time alone; and when he came back, he said, I am sorry, Earlstoun, you are come so far in vain, for I cannot answer your desire; I can get nothing to say to your people: Nothing will convince this generation but judgments, and a surprising lump of them upon the West of Scotland. Earlstoun said, Sir, you was once legally ordained and authorised to preach the gospel, and the Lord's people's call is sufficient ”