TWENTY
Remarkable Passages
IN THE
LIFE AND PROPHECIES
OF
Mr. Alexander Peden,
Late Minister of the Gospel at New Glenluce, in Galloway.
And his Remarkable Letter
To the Prisoners in Dunnotar-Castle, July 1685.
FALKIRK:
PRINTED BY T JOHNSTON:
1815.
THE
LIFE AND PROPHESIES
OF
ALEXANDER PEDEN
———000000oooooo———
MR. Alexander Peden was born in the parish of Sorn, in the Sheriffdom of Air. After that he past his course at the College, he was employed for some time to be School-master, Prescenter and Session-clerk to Mr. John Guthrie, minister of the Gospel at Tarbolton.
1. When he was about to enter on the Ministry, a young woman fell with child, in adultery, to a servant in the house where he stayed; when she found herself to be so, she told the father thereof, who said, I'll run for it, and go to Ireland, father it upon Mr. Peden, he has more to help you to, bring it up (he having a small heritage) than I have. The same day that he was to get his licence, she came in before the Presbytery and said, I hear you are going to licence Mr. Peden to be a Minister; but do it not, for I am with child to him. He being without at the time, was called in by the Moderator; and being questioned about it, he said, I am surprised, I cannot speak! but let none entertain an ill thought of me, for I am utterly free of it, and God will vindicate me in his own time and way. He went home, and walked at a water-side upwards of 24 hours, and would neither eat nor drink, but said, I have got what I was seeking, and I will be vindicated; and that poor unhappy lass will pay dear for it in her life, and will make a dismal end! And for this surfeit of grief that she hath given me, there shall never one of her sex come into my bosom. And, accordingly, he never married.-There are various reports of the way that he was vindicated: Some say the time she was in child-birth, Mr. Guthrie charged her to give account who was the father of that child; and discharged the women to be helpful to her, until she did it. Some say, that she confessed; others, that she remained obstinate. Some of the people, when I made enquiry about it in that country-side, affirmed, that after the Presbytery had been at all pains about it, and could get no satisfaction, they appointed Mr. Guthrie to give a full relation of the whole before the congregation, which he did; and the same day the father of the child being present, when he heard Mr. Guthrie begin to read, he stood up, and desired him to halt, and said. "I am the father of that child; and I desired her to father it on Mr. Peden, whiah has been a great trouble of conscience to me; and and I could not get rest till I came home to declare it." However, it is certain, that after she was married, every thing went cross with them, and they went from place to place, and were reduced to great poverty. At last she came to that same spot of ground where he stayed upwards of 24 hours, and made away with herself.
2. After this, he was three years settled Minister at New Glenluce in Galloway; and when he was obliged, by the violence and tyranny of that time, to leave that parish, he lectured upon Acts xx. 17. to the end; and preached upon Verse 31st. in the forenoon, "Therefore watch, and remember, that for the space of three years, I ceased not to warn every one, night and day, with tears.” Asserting, that he had declared the whole counsel of God, and had kept nothing back; and protested that he was free of the blood of all souls. And, in the afternoon, he preached on the 32d verse, "And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them that are sanctified." Which was a weeping day in that Kirk; the greatest part could not contain themselves, he many times requested them to be silent; but they sorrowed most of all, when he told them, that they should never see his face in that pulpit again.-He continued until night; and when he closed the pulpit-door, he knocked hard upon it three times with his Bible, saying three times over, I arrest in my Master's name, that never one enter there, but such as come in by the door, as I did. Accordingly, neither Curate nor Indulged Minister never entered that pulpit, until after the Revolution, that a Presbyterian Minister opened it.
I had this account from old persons in that parish, who were witnesses to it, and worthy of all credit.
3. After this he joined with that honest and zealous handful in the year 1666, that was broken at Pentland-hills, and came the length of Clyde with them, where he had a melancholy view of their end, and parted with them there. James Cubson, of Paluchbeauties, my informer, to whom he told this, he said to him, "Sir, you did well that parted with them, seeing you was persuaded they would fall and flee before the enemy.-Glory, glory to God, that he sent me not to hell immediately: for I should have stayed with them, tho' I should have been cut all in pieces."
4. That night the Lord's people fell, and fled before the enemy at Pentland-hills, he was in a friend's house in Garrick, sixty miles from Edinburgh; his landlord seeing him mightily troubled, enquired how it was with him? He said, "Tomorrow I will speak with you;" and desired him to bring a candle. That night he went to bed; the next morning calling early to his landlord, said, "I have sad news to tell you, our friends that were together in arms, appearing for Christ's interest, are now broken, killed, taken, and fled every man." He said, "Why do you speak so? There is a great part of our friends prisoners in Edinburgh." About 48 hours thereafter, they were fully confirmed in the truth of it.
5. After this, in June 1673, he was taken by Major Cockburn, in the house of Knockdow, in Carri k, who constrained him to tarry all night. Mr. Peden told him, that it would be a dear night's quarters to them both. Accordingly they were both carried prisoners to Edinburgh.-Hugh Ferguson was fined in a thousand merks, for resetting, harbouring, and conversing with him. The Councll ordered 50 pounds sterling to be paid to the Major out of the fines, and ordained him to divide 25 pounds sterling among the party that apprehended him. Some time after examination, he was sent prisoner to the Bass, where, and at Edinburgh, he remained until December 1668, that he was banished.
6. While prisoner in the Bass, one Sabbath-morning being about the public worship of God, a young lass, about 13 or 14 years of age, 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 surprising judgment on thee, that shall stay thy laughing, end thou shalt not escape it."-Very shortly after, she was walking on the rock, and there came a blast of wind and sweeped her into the sea, where she perished.
7. One day, when Mr Peden was taking the air upon the rock, some soldiers passing by him, one of them said, "Devil take him." "Fy, fy. poor man, said Mr. Peden, thou knowest not what thou art saying; but thou wilt repent that." At which words the soldier stood astonished, and went to the guard-house distracted, crying aloud for Mr. Peden, saying, the Devil would immediately take him away! But when Mr. Peden came him, he found him in his right mind, under deep convictions of great guilt. The guard being to change, they desired him to go to his arms; which he refused to do, and said, he would lift no arms against Jesus Christ and his cause, to persecute his people; he had done that too long. The Governor threatened him with death to-morrow about ten of the clock; but he confidently said, three times, tho' he should tear all his body in pieces, he should never lift arms that way. About three days after, the Governor put him out of the garrison, and set him a-shore. He having a wife and children, took a house in East Lothian where he became a singular Christian. Mr. Peden told these astonishing passages to the foresaid John Cubison and others, who informed me.
8. When brought from the Bass to Edinburgh, and sentence of banishment passed upon him in Dec. 1678. and sixty more fellow prisoners, for the same cause, to go to America, never to be seen in Scotland again, under the pain of death; after this sentence was passed, he several times said, that the ship was not yet built that should take him and these prisoners to Virginia, or any other of the English plantations in America.
9. One James Kay, a solid and grave Christian, one of the above prisoners, who lives in or about the Water of Leith, told me, that Mr. Peden said to him, "James, when your wife comes in, let me see her." Which he did. After some discourse, he called for a drink; and when he sought a blessing, he said, "Good Lord, let not James Kay's wife miss her husband, till thou return him to her in peace and safety; which we are sure will be sooner than either he or she is looking for.” Accordingly, the same day-month that he parted with her at Leith, he came home to her at the Water of Leith.
10. When they were on shipboard at the Water of Leith, there was a report, that the enemies were to send down thumkins to keep them from rebelling. Hearing this, they were discouraged. Mr. Peden came on deck, and said, "Why are you discouraged? You need not fear, there will neither thumbkins nor bootkins come here. Lift up your hearts and heads, for the day of your redemption draweth near. If we were once at London, we will be all set at liberty." And when sailing on their voyage, praying publicly, he said, "Lord, such is the enemies hatred at thee, and malice at us, for thy sake, that they will not let us stay in thy land of Scotland, to serve thee, though some of us have nothing but the canopy of thy heavens above us, and thy earth to tread upon; but Lord, we bless thy name, that will cut short our voyage, and frustrate thy enemies of their wicked design, that they will not get us where they intend; and some of us shall go richer home than we came away." James Pride, who lived in Fife, an honest man, being one of them, he said many times, he could assert the truth of this, for he came safely home; and, beside other things, he bought two cows; and before that he never had one. I had these accounts both from the foresaid James Kay and Robert Punton, a known public man, worthy of all credit, who was also under the same sentence, who lived in the parish of Dalmeny, near the Queensferry.
11. When they arrived at London, the Skipper who received them at Leith, was to carry them no further. The Skipper who was to receive them there, and carry them to Virginia, came to see them, they being represented to him as thieves, robbers, and evil doers; but when he found they were all grave Christian men, banished for Presbyterian principles, he said, he would sail the sea with none such. In this confusion, that the one Skipper would not receive them, and the other would keep them no longer, being expensive to maintain them, they were all set at liberty. It was reported, that both the Skippers got compliments from friends at London; however, it is certain they were safely set free, without any imposition of bonds or oaths; and their friends at London, and on their way homewards through England, shewed much kindness unto them.
12. That dismal day, June 22d. 1679, at Bothwel-bridge, that the Lord’s people fell, and fled before the enemy, he was forty miles distant, near the border, and kept himself retired until the middle of the day, that some friends said to him, "Sir the people are waiting for sermon." He said, "Let the people go to their prayers; for me, I neither can nor will preach any this day; for our friends are fallen and fled before the enemy at Hamilton; and they are hapging and hashing them down, and their blood is running like water."
13 After this, he was preaching in Galloway: In the afternoon he prayed earnestly for the prisoners taken at and about Bothwel; but in the afternoon, when he began to pray for them, he halted and said, "Our friends at Edinburgh, the prisoners have done somewhat to save their lives that shall not do them any good; for the sea billows shall be many of their winding-sheets; and the few of them that escape, shall not be useful to God in their generation." Which was sadly verified thereafter. That which the greatest part of these prisoners did, was the taking of that Bond, commonly called the Black-Bond, after Bothwel, whereiu they acknowledged their appearance in arms, for the defence of the Gospel and their own lives, to be rebellion; and engaged themselves never to make any more opposition: upon the doing of which, these perfidious enemies promised them life and liberty; which much grieved Mr. Peden.
14. After the public murdering of these two worthy women-martyrs, Isobel Allison, and Marion Harvie, in tho Grass-market of Edinburgh, January 1681. he was in Galloway; a professor of some note, who had more carnal wit and policy than to suffer him to be honest and faithful, after reasoning upon the grounds of their sufferings, affirmed that they would never be reckoned among the number of the martyrs. Mr. Peden said, after musing a little, "Let alone, you'll never be honoured with such a death: and for what you have said against these two worthy lasses, your death will be both sudden and surprising." Which was shortly thereafter; the man standing before the fire, smocking his pipe, dropt down dead, without speaking more.
15. In the month of June, 1682. he was in the house of James Brown, in Paddockholm, above Douglas, John Wilson in Lanerk, was with him, who suffered martyrdom, in the Grass-market of Edinburgh, the next year, May 1683 He lectured at night upon Amos viii. and repeated these words in the 9th verse three times. And I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. He laid his hands on the said John, and said, "John, have at the unhappy name of Stewarts! off the throne shall they go, if all the world should set side and shoulder to hold them on." Afterwards he broke out in a rapture about our Martyrs, saying, "They were going off the stage with with fresh gales and full sails, and now they are glancing in glory! Oif ye saw them! they would flee yo out of your wits." He again laid his hands upen the said John, and said, "Encourage yourself in the Lord, and hold him fast, John; for you'll win up yonder shortly, and get on your braws." That night he went to the fields. To-morrow, about six o'clock John went to seek him, and found him coming to the house. He said, "John, let us go from the house, for the devil is about it, and will take his prey with him." John said, "We will take breakfast ere we go, it is a question when we will get the offer again." He answered, "No no, I will not eat bread in this place; our landlord is an unhappy man; the devil will get him shortly, for he will hang himself." Which very shortly after came to pass; his daughter, Jean Brown, was the first that got him in her arms, hanging in the stable. She was reckoned by all, to be a grave Christian lass, but from that day never had her health, and died of a decay at last, after she had been some time in prison for her principles. This passage the same John Wilson reported several times to many.
16. In the year 1680, after the murdering of Mr. Cameron, and these worthless with him at Airdsmoss, Mr. Peden was near Machline in the shire of Ayr: one Robert Brown, of Cross-house, who lived near the New Mills. and one Hugh Pinaneve factor to the Earl of Lothian, stabled their horses in that house where he was, and went to the fair in Machline; and in the afternoon, when they came to take away their horses. they got a drink in the time of it. The said Hugh, a very wicked man, both in principle and practice, broke out in a railing against sufferers, particularly against Mr. Cameron: Mr. Peden being in another room overhearing all, was so grieved, that he came to the chamber-door, and said to the said Hugh, "Sir, hold your peace, e're twelve o'clock thou shalt know what-for a man Mr. Cameron was; God shall punish that blasphemous month and cursed tongue of yours in such a manner as shall oe astonishing to all that see you, and shall let you up as a beacon to all railing Rabshakehs."-Robert Brown knowing Mr. Peden, hasted to his horse, being persuaded Mr. Peden's words would not fall to the ground, and fearing that some mischief might befal him for being in the said Hugh's company, he rode hard home. Robert went to his own house, and Hugh to the Earl's house; and casting off his boots, he was struck with suck a sickness and pain through his body, with his mouth so wide, and his tongue hanging so far out in a fearful manner, that they sent for the said Robert; being used to take blood, he got some blood of him, but all in vain, for he died before midnight. The said Robert, an old man, told me this passage when we were both in prison together.
17. In the year 1682. he was in Kyle, and preached upon that text, The plowers plowed upon my back, they drew long their furrows. Where he said, "Would ye know who first yoked this plow! It was cursed Cain, when he drew his furrows so long and also deep, that he let out the heartblood of his brother Abel; and his cursed seed has, and will gang, summer and winter, frost and fresh weather, till the world's end; and at the sound of the last trumpet, when all are in a flame, their sheets will burn, and their swingle-trees will fall to the ground, the plowmen will lose their gripes of the plow, and the gadmen will throw away their gads; and then, O the yelling and shrieking that will be among all this cursed feed, clapping their hands, and crying to the hills and mountains to cover them from the face of the Lamb, and of Him that sits upon the Throne, for their hatred of Him, and malice at his people.”
18. In the beginning of May 1685, he came to the house of John Brown and Marion Weir, whom he married before he went to Ireland, where he stayed all night; and in the morning, when he took farewell, he came out at the door saying to himself, "Poor woman, a fearful morning, (twice over) a dark misty morning." The next morning, between five and six o'clock, the said John Brown, having performed the worship of God in his family, was going, with a spade in his hand, to put some peat-ground in order; the mist being thick and dark, he knew not until cruel and bloody Claverhouse compassed him with three troops of horse, brought him to his house, and there examined him; who, tho' he was a man of stammering speech, yet answered him distinctly and solidly; which made Claverhouse to ask at those whom he had taken to be his guides thro' the muirs, if ever they heard him preach? They answered, No, no, he was never a preacher. Claverhouse said, "If he has never preached, he has prayed." Then he said to John, "Go to your prayers, for you shall immediately die." When he was praying, Claverhouse interrupted him three times. One time that he stopt him, he was pleading that the Lord would spare a remnant, and not make a full end in the day of his anger. Claverhouse said, "I gave you time to pray, and ye are begun to preach." John turned about upon his knees, and said, "Sir, you know neither the nature of preaching nor praying, if you call this preaching." Then continued without confusion. When ended, Claverhouse said, "Take goodnight of your wife and children." His wife standing by, with a child in her arms, which she had to him, and another child of his first wife's, he came to her and said, "Now, Marion, the day is come that I told you would, come, when I spake first to you of marrying me." She said, "Indeed, John, I can willingly part with you." Then he said, "That is all I desire, I have no more to do but die." He then kissed his wife and bairns, and wished purchased and promised blessings to be multiplied upon them, and his own blessing. Claverhouse then ordered six o£ his soldiers to shoot, and the most part of the bullets came upon his head, which scattered his brains upon the ground!-Claverhouse said, to his wife, "What think ye of your husband now, woman?"-She said, "I thought ever much of him, and now as much as ever." He said, "It were justice to lay thee beside him." She answered, "If ye were permitted, I doubt not but your cruelty would go that length: But how will ye answer for this morning’s work?" He said, "To man I can be answerable, and for God, I will take him in my own hand." Claverhouse mounted his horse, and then marched, and left her with the dead corpse of her husband lying there. She set the bairn on the ground, gathered his brains, tied up his head, straighted his body, and covered him with her plaid, and sat down and wept over him. It being a very desart place, where victual never grew, and far from neighbours, it was some time before any friends came to her; the first that came was a very fit nand. that old singular woman in the Cummerhead, named Elizabeth Menzies, three miles distant, who had been tried with the violent death of her husband at Pentland, and afterwards of two worthy sons, Thomas Weir, who was killed at Drumclog, and David Steel, who was suddenly shot afterwards when taken. The said Marion Weir, sitting upon her husband's grave, told me, that before that, she could see no blood but she was in danger to faint, and yet she was helped to be a witness to all this, without either fainting or confusion, except when the shots were let off, her eyes dazzled. His corpse were buried at the end of his house, where he was slain, with this inscription on his grave-stone.
In earth's cold bed, the dusty part here lies,
Of one who did the earth as dust despise:
Here in this place, from earth he took departure;
Now he has got the garland of a Martyr.
This murder was committed betwixt six and seven in the morning, Mr. Peden was about ten or eleven miles distant.-Having been in the fields all night, he came to the house betwixt 7 and 8, and desired to call in the family, that he might pray amongst them; when praying he said, "Lord, when wilt thou avenge Brown's blood? Oh! let Brown's blood be precious in thy fight; and hasten the day when thou wilt avenge it, with Cameron's, Cargil's, (and many others of our martyr's names,) and, oh! for that day, when the Lord will avenge all their blood!"-When ended, John Muirhead enquired what he meant by Brown's blood? He said, twice over, "What do I mean? Claverhouse has been at the Preshil this morning, and has cruelly murdered John Brown; his corpse is lying at the end of his house, and his poor wife sitting weeping beside them, and not a soul to speak comfortably to her. This morning, after the sun-rising, I saw a strange apparition in the firmament; the appearance of a very bright, clear-shining star, fall from heaven to the earth; and indeed there is a clear-shining light fallen this day, the greatest Christian that ever I conversed with."
19. When the time of Mr. Peden's death drew near, and not being able to travel, he came to his brother's house, in the parish of Sorn, where he was born. He caused dig a cave, with a saughen bush covering the mouth of it, near to his brother's house. The enemies got notice, and searched the house narrowly many times. In the time that he was in this cave, he said to some friends, 1st. That God shall make Scotland a desolation.-2dly, There shall be a remnant in the land, whom God should spare and hide.-3dly, They should lie in holes and cavet of the earth, and be supplied with meat and drink; and when they come out of their holes, they shall not have freedom to walk, for stumbling on dead corpses.—4thly, A stone, cut out of a mountain, should come down, and God shall be avenged on the great ones of the earth, and the inhabitants of the land, for their wickedness; and then the church should come forth with a bonny bairn-time of young ones at her back. Giving them that for a sign, if he were but once buried, they might be in doubts; but if he were oftener buried than once, they might be persuaded that all he had said would come to pass.
20. Mr. Peden died January 28th, 1686, being past sixty years; and was buried in Lord Afflect's Isle. The enemies got notice of his death and burial, and sent a troop of dragoons, and lifted his corpse, and carried him to Camnock-gallows-foot, and buried him there (after being forty days in the grave) beside other martyrs. His friends thereafter laid a grave-stone above him, with this inscription,
Here lies
MR. ALEXANDER PEDEN,
A faithful Minister of the Gospel:Glenluce
Who departed this life January 28, 1686.
And was raised, after 6 weeks, out of his Grave
Add buried here out of contempt.
A
LETTER,
FROM
Mr. ALEXANDER PEDEN,
To the Prisoners in Dunnotar-Castle,
July 1685.
Dear Friends,
I Long to hear from you, how you spend your time; and how the grace of God grows in your hearts. I know ye, and other of the other of the Lord's people, by reason of the present trial, have got up a fashion of complaining upon Christ; but I defy you to speak an ill word of him, unless ye wrong him. Speak as you can, and spare not; only I request that your expressions of Christ be suitable to your experience of him. If ye think Christ's house be bare and ill-provided, and harder than ye looked for, assure yourselves Christ minds only to diet you, and not to hunger you: our Steward kens when to spend and when to spare. Christ knows well, whether heaping or straking agrees best with our narrow vessels for both are alike to him: Sparing will not enrich him, nor will spending impoverish him. He thinks it ill-won that is holden off his people.— Grace and glory comes out of Christ's lucky hand. Our vessels are but feckless, and contain little: His fulness is most strained when it wants a vent. 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. Everyday 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; he will sell goods cheap, that ye may spier for his shop again; and he draws all the sale to himself. I counsel you to go no farther than Christ. And now. when it is come to your door, either to sin or suffer, I counsel you to lay your account with suffering; for an out-gate coming from any other airth, will be prejudicial to your soul's interest. And for your encouragement, remember he sends none a warfare on their own charges. And blest is the man that gives Christ all his money. The fastest way to shift the shower, is to keep within God's doors, until the violence of the storm ebb; for it is not yet full tide. Christ deals tenderly with his young plants, and waters them oft, left they go back; be painful, and lose not life for the seeking. Grace, mercy and peace be with you.
EPITAPH
Upon the Martyrs' MONUMENT in the Grey-friars Church yard in Edinburgh.
HALT. passengers, take heed what you do see,
This Tomb doth shew for what some men did die;
Here lies interr'd the dust of those who stood
'Gainst perjury, resisting unto blood;
Adhering to the Covenants, and Laws
Establishing the same; which was the cause
Their lives were sacrific'd unto the lust
Of Prelatists abjur'd.—Tho' here their dust
Lies mix'd with murderers, and other crew,
Whom Justice justly did to death pursue;
But as for these, no cause in them was found
Worthy of death, but only they were found
Constant and stedfast, zealous, witnessing
For the. Prerogatives of Christ their King.
Which Truths were seal'd by famous Guthrie's head,
And all along to Mr. Reuwick's blood.
They did endure the wrath of enemies.
Reproaches, torments, deaths and injuries;
But yet they're these who from such trouble came,
And now triumph in glory with the Lamb.
From May 27th. 1661, that the noble Marquis of Argyle suffered, to Feb. 27th. 1688. that Mr. James Renwick suffered, 100 Noblemen, Gentlemen, Ministers, and others, were executed at Edinburgh, noble Martyrs for Jesus Christ. The most part of them lie here. It is also said, that 28,000 suffered in the late persecution in Scotland.
FINIS.
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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