children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say, The place is too strait for me, give place to me that I may dwell:" with verse 21. Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these?" Behold I was left alone, these where had they been? Indeed it is true, the Lord is coming to make this land desolate, and ere long there will not be many men, women, or children in it; and the remnant that he will leave in it will be a poor afflicted people, and that small company and remnant will leaven the whole company and number, so that the number of the Presbyterians, of those who adhere to those who are despised and persecuted in Scotland, shall not get room to dwell in Scotland: and the reason will be, because all the nations about will come, as it were, to take a copy of the pattern of the doctrine, worship, discipline and government of the church of Scotland. Now you may say, how can that be? You have the word of God for it; I'll tell you, this word hath not been made out very much to any church, the rather it seems to have respect to Britain, and Scotland especially, Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far.
2. Now there is a second objection against it, which is this, the strength and power of enemies. Come away with that, make language of your case, or of the church's case; what would ye say of it? You will say, it is so sad that you cannot tell what to say of it; you will say that you are weighted with the church's case, and when you go to God you are tongue-taked and cannot get it expressed. There is a question propounded by the Lord himself, and it is just our language, at least, the language of such as would prefer Jerusalem to the world, and it is this, Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive be delivered?—Is not this our case?—In few words, we are a prey, and those that have us for a prey are mighty, and we are captives; and if you please to take lawful captives for the captivity of the just; or thus, we arein
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