e of the shout of joy; shall
be louder then the noise of the weeping of the People. This we may say,
that not many years ago many of us would have been content to have losed
our lives, that we might have obtained that which the Lord, if not in a
miraculous, yet in a marvellous and merciful providence, hath brought to
passe in this Iland, in these dayes, which many before us, have desired to
see, & have not seen. God forbid that it should seeme a small thing in
your eyes which is done here already, as it is expressed in a Paper from
the Parliament, and Letters from the Assembly. Ye are best acquainted with
the tentations and difficulties which ye meet with there, which are also
very sensible unto us; And when we consider how the Lord hath carried on
his work here at the first taking of the Covenant, and since, against much
learning and contradiction, against much Policie, power, and all sorts of
opposition (such as Reformation useth to encounter) we are ravished with
admiration of the right hand of the Almighty. For our part, we may
confidently avouch in the sight of GOD and before you, whom next unto GOD
we do respect and reverence, and to whom as your servants we are
accomptable, that in all our proceedings we had first of all the word of
GOD before our eyes for the Rule; and for our Patern the Church of
_Scotland_, so much as was possible; and no lesse (if not more) then if
all this time since we parted from you, we had been sitting in a National
Assembly there, and debating matters with our Brethren at home: Where we
were not able to get every thing framed to our minde, we have endeavoured
as much as we could, to preserve our own Reformation and practice, of
which our Brethren will give you accompt in the particulars, we hope, to
your satisfaction. That an Uniformitie in every thing is not obtained in
the beginning, let it not seem strange; The levelling of the high Mountain
of Prelacie, The laying aside of the Book of Common Prayer, The Directory
of Worship concluded in both Houses of Parliament, and the principall
Propositions of Church-government passed in the Assembly, all of them
according to the solemne League and Covenant, the greatest of all, are
three or foure witnesses to prove, that the Lord hath done great things
for us, whereof we are glad, and which make us _like them that dream_: And
we are sure, that not onely the Reformed Kirks, but the Papists will say,
The Lord hath done great things for them.

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