John xiv. 26. And as I went on things came fresh to my mind, which when I had time I wrote down, and the promife was fulfilled, "He fhall bring all things to your remembrance whatfoever I have faid unto you." Formerly when I was under heavy and grievous trials, I uted to look at them as coming in anger and in a vindictive way, which funk me very low: but now, bleffed be God, I am enabled to view them differently; "Thou shalt alfo confider in thine heart that, as a man chafteneth his fon, fo the Lord thy God chafteneth thee," Deut. viii. 5. And I believe the intention of the Moft High, in all the fufferings that I have had to this day, has been to humble me, to prove me, and to do me good my latter end; "all that I love," faith the Lord, "I rebuke and chaften." God will vifit fin with the rod; but he hath promifed, faying,

in

My lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor fuffer my faithfulness to fail; my covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips," Pfalm lxxxix. 33, 34.

I bless the Lord, and rejoice in my heart to hear of your fuccefs in bringing fouls to Chrift Jefus, the only friend of loft, helpless finners. "He that is our God is the God of falvation." God Almighty be with and bless my dear friend, more and more, whom he hath been pleafed to make the inftrument of bringing to my heart the glad tidings of his moft bleffed falvation.

Many I know have confulted to caft him down from his excellency; but in this they have failed, and brought ruin upon their own heads: none ever fought against God and profpered. "He that receiveth whomfoever I fend," faith the Saviour, "receiveth me." The Lord's hand is made known towards his fervants, and his indignation towards his enemies: the counfel of the wicked he bringeth to nought." So let all thine enemies perish, O Lord; but let them that love him be as the fun when he goeth forth in his might," Judges v. 31.

Moft affectionately yours,

JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN,

To Mrs. BERRY, Greek Street, Soho.

DEAR FRIEND,

By particular defire I take up my pen, though in a very unfit ftate, being weak in body, and dark, barren, and lifeless in soul, but hope it will not be fo long; for we are told that "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." I have been till within this laft month kept nearer to the Lord, and have had greater liberty with him in prayer, than I ever had before, which makes me more fenfibly feel my deadness; but believe I fhall foon be delivered from it. Hope, ere this, the Doctor is recovered of the illnefs you mentioned in your laft; not only for the good of God's church and people, but to expofe thofe heretics that write or preach against so faithful and valuable a fervant of the Lord as he is, of which we have had a recent witness in our own family. It is by the defire of my fifter Gardner, of Bodicott, that I now write to inform you of the dealings of God with her foul, thinking you might fometime or other communicate the fame to Mr. Huntington. Had it been in her power, fhe would have imme

diately fent him the whole account herself; but

H

fhe fays, that words cannot express the unutterable love the feels towards him. She has for many years been a fincere fecker of the Lord Jefus Christ, and almoft as long an admirer of Mr. H. and a conftant reader of his works; and very great establishment fhe has derived from them,, which he has often told me, and declared, that, if that dear man of God (meaning Mr. H.) was right, fo was fhe.

I was at Bodicott about a month before Christmas, when the appeared in great distress of foul, and complained that her temptations were very great, and of a different kind to any that she had ever experienced before; for,' continued fhe, 'I always from a child had very high and exalted thoughts of the Saviour; but now they are fo mean, fo bafe, and fo blafphemous, as to make my blood rankle in my veins.' And the wept like a child; it grieved me to the very foul to fee her in such a state.

At Christmas I faw her again, when the appeared more composed, as the temptation, though not removed, was much weakened, from the effects of a letter Mr. H. had fent to a Mr. Cort of Leicester, in the Second Part of The Love of Chrift,' where he is fpeaking of the agreement or bargain of the finner, under his firft conviction, with the Lord, and how Chrift makes and takes them at their word. She derived much comfort from it, and it was the conftant

H

language of her heart, for a long time, that this was true; and fhe feemed very impatient to fee a book entitled The Heavenly Workfolks,' faying fhe did not want any other entertainment during the Chriftmas than the reading of that book, having a firm perfuafion in her own mind that, if she could get a fight of it, the fhould be fet at liberty; in which, bleffed be God, he was not difappointed. When I vifited Banbury, finding the book was published, I took the earlieft opportunity of fending it to her. On the fabbath before I received your letter, I was with her again, when he gave me fuch a sweet account of her deliverance as it is not in my power to describe. In reading the latter part of the book her temptations, diftrefs of mind, hard thoughts of God, and fears of death and danination, all fled, and fuch love, joy, and liberty, flowed in as no tongue can exprefs, and fuch as fhe never expected to enjoy till within a few hours of death; and which, though fo long ago, ftill continue with her. She faid to me, Were I to die this moment, I have no more doubt of my fafe arrival in glory than if I was already there.' I faw her again the last Lord's day, when she told me that her joys were not fo great, but her affurance was ftill the fame; though Satan fuggefts to her that it is all a delufion, and that if Mr. H. was to fee her he would call her a hypocrite; but, finding this to have no effect, he tried to per