AN INFORMATION to all good Christians within the Kingdom of ENGLAND, from the Noblemen, Barons, Borrows, Ministers, and Commons of the Kingdom of SCOTLAND, for vindicating their intentions and actions from the unjust calumnies of their enemies.  
EDINBURGH, Printed by JAMES BRYSON, ANNO DOM. 1639.   

AN INFORMATION To all good Christians, etc.  
THE work of reformation now renewed, and fare advanced in this Kingdom, hath in the whole progress, met with all the opposition which the subtle malice of Rome's emissaries our adversaries could plot. But God hath hitherto disappointed all their intentions, and turned Achitophel's wisdom into folly: And now when they cannot beat down the walls of JERUSALEM, they labour to undermine it with calumnies, according to the damnable maxim, & calumniare audacter, semper aliquid haerebit, & like Tobias, Sanballat, and such like, will not be wanting to oppose mightily the building of Ezra and Nehemiah, by saying to the King, Why is the rebellious city builded? The same steps are now traced by the authors of novations, in this Church, who taking the advantage of their opportunity (which we want to our great regrate) and being greatly assisted and stirred up by some of their own coat, perniciously and popishly affected, do there-upon presume to whisper unto his sacred Majesty, and spread abroad in the neighbour Kingdom of England, most untrue, and damnable aspersions, (by and attover the particulars laid to our charge, in the Proclamation, 18 of December, which are largely answered in our Protestation already published) venting with equal impudence and malice, that we do only pretend religion, but do intent to shake off the most lawful yoke of authority, by changing the form of civil government; to invade our neighbour kingdom of England, and enrich ourselves by the spoils thereof. Although our conscience bear us testimony against these untruths, and make us think charitably, that no men understanding rightly Religion and Policy, will grant belief unto these aspersions, forged against the body of a Church and Kingdom; yet being certainly informed, that the authors of our novations and the arch-enemies of reformation, have laboured to poison his Majesty's sacred Ears with those imputations, and dispersed the same with open mouth among the subjects of England, we were forced to vindicat our innocence and wyp away all impressions which those challenges might make in the belief of any, first by our Supplication given into the Lords of secret Council 31 of january, and now by this our answer and public declaration to the world: whereby we take GOD to witness, that Religion is the only subject, conscience the motive, and reformation the aim of our designs: For attaining whereof, we have never strayed from the humble and loyal way of petitioning his Majesty for legal redress; but do yet, according to our bond duty, beg the consummation of our happy beginnings, by the holding of the Parliament, for the ratification of the acts of the Assembly indicted by his royal authority; and as we have often hereto-fore professed in our Supplications, religiligiously sworn in our solemn Covenant with GOD Almighty, and publicly declared before GOD and men in all our Protestations, made in the view of heaven and earth, that we had never the least intention to cast off our dutiful obedience unto his Majesty's most lawful authority; So we do hereby renew the same, and solemnly declare, that our loyal breasts have never harboured any thought against our gracious Sovereign, his Person, and government, to whom we daily and earnestly pray the KING of Kings, to grant long and happy reign over us; and when he shall be crowned with immortality, that there may not want one of his Seed rightly to rule us, and to sit upon his throne, so long as the Sun and Moon endureth. For we acknowledge that he is the Lords Vicegerent, swaying the Sceptre of this Land, transmitted to him, by succession, of so many royal Ancestors, as none other King in the world can parallel the same, and none other Nation compare with us in the glory of Antiquity, under that lawful subjection, to one Line of native borne Princes: which we will never deface, by any unnatural and impious cogitation against the Lords Anointed; but hearty wish that shame and confusion may be printed upon the face of his enemies, and that we might be happy in the occasion to expose our lives and fortunes to the greatest hazard, for maintenance of the Person and authority of our dread Sovereign, and increase of his honour. Let mercy and truth preserve the King.  
As for our intention to invade England, we attest the everliving GOD, who is conscious of our most secret thoughts, that we never had any such design or motion, to offend or wrong in the smallest measure any other Nation, much less our neighbour Kingdom, living in one Isle, under one King, with as li●le controversy, and as much affection, as hath been betwixt two Nations once at variance, but now happily reconciled, and tied together by most straight bands, which we desire rather to increase then diminish by any act of unjust hostility. And albeit we be confident that the inprobabilitie of this challenge, will stop the way of all credit to it; yet to confound these reporters in their malice, we will shortly relate our regrats and fears, our desires and resolutions, with that freedom and sincerity, which may evidence our brotherly respect to the subjects of England, and control the false surmises of intentions against them: we regrate together with our dear Christian brethren of our neighbour Nation, that we should have so evident and sensible experiences of the dangerous plots set afoot, and entertained by the Churchmen of greatest power in England, for introducing novations in Religion, by corrupting the Doctrine, changing the Discipline, daily innovating the externalworship of GOD, preaching publicly, and maintaining points of Arminianism, and heads of popery, defending and advancing preachers and professors of that judgement, and allowing books stuffed with that doctrine, fyning, confining, and banishing all such as in conscience of their duty to GOD, labour to oppose the doctrine, discipline, or worship of the Kirk of Rome, by their encroaching and usurping upon the King's Majesty's prerogative, tyrannising over the conscience, goods, and estates, of persons of all qualities within that Kingdom: And not being content to keep within their own precinct, did induce, assist, and encourage the pretended Archbishops, and Bishops of this Kingdom, to press not only a conformity of this Church, with that of England, in matter of ceremony, but also with the church of Rome, in the points most substantially erroneous, as appeareth by these books of common prayer and canons, found to be a mass of popish superstition, doctrine, and tyranny, which was confessed to have been first plotted, then corrected and interlined in England, sent down to their associates the pretended Archbishops, and Bishoips of this Kingdom, to be printed and pressed upon the whole Church here, without order or consent, as the only form of divine worship and government of the Church, to make us a leading case to England: required by their letters, Stars-men, Noblemen, and burgh's, to further the advancement thereof, persuaded his gracious Majesty, to declare these books, full of popish superstition, yet to be free of it, and to be fit means of edifying this Church: caused his Majesty prohibit the lawful meetings, and humble supplications of his Subjects, under pain of treason, and to esteem of his good Subjects as of traituors and rebels, for discovering this wicked plot, complaining thereof, and for their renewing of their national Covenant with GOD, and their alledgance to his Majesty, to threaten them by public proclamation, with utter exterminion, and ruin, hath by their calumnies, moved his Majesty to discharge under the pain of treason, the sitting of our free general Assembly, indicted by his Majesty, after so many supplications, and to engaged his royal word of a Prince, to defend all disobeyers of the Church, to threaten and prepare for an invasive war against his most ancient loyal native Kingdom; to distrust all our supplications, oaths, and declarations, ingenuously and humbly made, and thereby they have endeavoured so fare as in them lies to alienate his Majesty's heart from his people, and estrange their due bound affections from him, if it were possible; and in end for the full accomplishment of their wickedness (as we are informed) have made his Majesty follow the advice & counsel of professed papists, and to intrust them with the chiefest charges of the arms and armies now preparing for the threatened invasion of this Kingdom, and still intent to raise jealousies in the body of the one Kingdom against the other, and so to commit them together, which we beseech GOD to prevent, and hope it shall be above their malice: The LORD opening the eyes of our Sovereign, and of our neighbour nation, to discover that treachery, whereby nothing is intended but to join the two Kingdoms in bloody war, that so reformed Religion may be extinguished and popery introduced, which then may be easily effectuate, when both sides are weakened, and so may be the more easily suppressed by the papists, having all power and charge ●n their hand, being already too strong in England, and encouraged with the expectation of foreign help, ready to accept that advantage, so much prejudicial to his Majesty's honour, power and manifold declarations, for the maintenance of the reformed Religion, whereof he is the defender. We have also reason to regrate, that any within that Kingdom should give more credit to false calumnies, cunningly invented to foment their jealousies, and make them prepare for invading us their brethren, then unto our solemn Protestations, Supplications, Declarations, and Covenant with GOD himself. Yet we are fully confident, that such are only drawn there-unto, partly through the misinformation of our adversaries, and partly for lack of clear information, concerning our most loyal and Christian proceed: And therefore do most hearty wish, they may with wisdom and charity, suspend any further giving credit to things of that kind, till they may have occasion to receive full information of the truth And we regrate that any should think the standing of Episcopacy in the Church of Scotland an just ground for invading of, and making war against this Nation, and consequently to raise up the old natiotionall bloodshed and quarrels, which are now happily changed into a sweet peaceable conjunction of hearts and affections, seeing Episcopacy in this Church, is contrary to our ancient reformation, confession of Faith, and oath of this Church and Kingdom, whereby that government was abjured which cannot reasonably offend any other state or Church, who may be ruled by their own laws and warrant, but as in every matter which falleth in deliberation to be put in execution, justice should be the mover and efficient, and benefit either in profit or honour useth to be the end; So especially in this weighty business, it should be well pondered, if this act of invading us by war, for keeping our oath to GOD, and obeying the lawful constitutions of our Church and Kingdom, be just upon the part of the invader, or if the benefit of re-establishng Bishops upon us will recompense the loss of so much Christian blood, & hazard of dissension & war, whereof the event dependeth upon the LORD of hosts: but it is obvious to every man's consideration, that this war is by our adversaries intended for another end, & hath a more deep dangerous reach: other wise the Prelates if either good Christians or patriots would rather quit their Minion ambition, and worldly pomp, then engaged two Kingdoms, with the hazard of true Religion.  
And that none may suspect the sincerity of our intentions, the lawfulness of our proceed, or the truth of our declarations, and accusations against the enemies of our reformation and peace, we are able, and wish to have occasion to justify the same before the world: for unless we should have closed our own light, and resisted the known will of GOD, acknowledged, subscribed, and sworn by his Majesty, and our predecessors, in a solemn Covenant with GOD, and so often confirmed and ratified by acts of this church and kingdom, since the reformation, we could not omit any thing which we have done. And albeit we be an Church and Kingdom, as free, ancient, and independent, as any other in the world: yet for clearing the mind of our neighbour nation, from all misinformation, and misconstruction of our intentions and proceed, and to verify the lawfulness, and absolute necessity of our actions, and acts of the late Assembly, we do assure ourselves, that if the Estates and Parliament of England, were convened, and the whole progress of this business faithfully represented to them, they would without doubt be so fare from censuring or condemning what we do, that they would rather be moved to become petitioners to his sacred Majesty on our behalf, and approve of the equity and loyalty of all our proceed in this cause: And therefore in the mean time, we entreat that no true English heart entertain any jealousies of us, who are confident of the innocence of our proceed and intentions, free hitherto of all blemishes against our Sovereign or neighbour nation, as we do beg the occasion of manifesting the same to them, and to all the world, as we have upon the knowledge of these misreports of us, cleared ourselves of any such intention by our great oaths every one to another at our most frequent meetings.  
The obtaining of this our so peaceable and just desire, shall not only be comfortable to us, their Christian brethren, serving as a farther tie to unite our affections in time to come, and stir us up to pour our hearty prayers to GDO on their behalf, but without all question, the righteous judge of all the world, shall make you reap the fruit thereof one day, and who knoweth how soon.  
In the mean time our care shall be upon all occasions to make it appear clearly to all the world, how fare it hath always been (and by the grace of GOD ever shall be) from our intention first or last, to offer the least act of hostility to our neighbour Kingdom, except in so fare as we shall be nececessitat in our own defence: and though (as GOD forbidden) we should be forced thereunto, yet shall we remain unwilling to conceive things of that kind, to flow from the body of that Kingdom, with whom we intent no national quarrel, neither mind to wrangle with them, except in the case of invasion from them, but rather that this stir hath been contrived and set forward by some ill affected persons to both kingdoms, with whom only our question is, & to whom alone we may justly intent according to their desert, as men who are set to engaged both kingdoms in so bloody a war for their own base ends: and although a party raised from among ourselves, fomented, and maintained from abroad, from whence we find the sinews of that body within ourselves to be derived and maintained, may justly seem to irritate, yet the vanity and weakness of our intestine adversaries, even in this case of offence, is so fare from making us take fire, without manifest hostility offered, or ingadging us in any violent course that may interrupt the brotherly love and concord of these two Kingdoms, or blemish our holy profession in the least degree, as we are confident, no malicious misreports of our common adversaries, will induce our dear brethren to quarrel with us, for seeking to enjoy our Religion in purity and our laws and liberties, according to the fundamental constitutions of our Church and state, when we are so well affected to them, as we are truly sensible of their grievous burdens, & intolerable sufferings from the tyranny of their hierarchy, and the fearful bondage they underlye from the wicked counsel of their Clergy, suggested from Rome, and producing so dangerous innovations both in Religion and Policy.  
This sincere manifestation of our real intentions, we find ourselves obliged, to publish for satisfying all good Subjects in our neighbour nation, being confident they are as desirous to be confirmed in their good opinion of us, and so to be armed against all slanders and calumnies of those that endeavour the final overthrow and utter exterminion of the Kingdom of Christ jesus from this whole Island: whereof we pray God, to avert the danger, & to grant us peace and purity, which is the height of our desire: for procuring whereof we shall employ none other weapons (except we be enforced) but fasting and prayer to GOD Almighty and humble supplications to our gracious Sovereign.  
Revised according to the ordinance of the general Assembly, by me Mr. A. Ihonstoun Clerk thereto: Edinb. 4 of Feb. 1639.  
FINIS.