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 BX 9223 .M33 1839 
 M'Crie, Thomas, 1772-1835. 
 The life of John Knox, the 
 Scottish reformer 
 
-^mi'^v/^^^ 
 
 LIFE 
 
 OF 
 
 JOHN K N OX, 
 
 THE 
 
 SCOTTISH REFORMER, 
 
 ABRIDGED FROM McCRIE'S LIFE OF KNOX, 
 
 PHILADELPHIA : 
 PRESBYTER L\N BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 WILLIAM S. MARTIEN, PUBLISHING AGENT. 
 1839. 
 

 Entered according- to the act of Congress, in the year 
 1839, by A. W, Mitchell, in the office of the Clerk 
 of the District Court, for the Eastern District of Penn- 
 sylvania. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 Period I. 
 
 From his birth, in 1505, to his embracing the 
 Reformed Religion, in 1542, . . 1 
 
 Period II. 
 
 From his embracing the Reformed Religion, 
 in 1542, to his release from the French gal- 
 leys in 1549, 20 
 
 Period III. 
 
 From his release from the French galleys in 
 1 549, to his departure from England in 1 554, 44 
 
 Period IV. 
 
 PVom his departure from England, to his in- 
 vitation to Scotland by the Protestant nobi- 
 lity in 1557, ..... 71 
 
 Period V. 
 
 From his invitation into Scotland in 1557, to 
 his settlement as minister of Edinburg, upon 
 the establishment of the Reformation in 
 1560, 106 
 
4 CONTENTS. 
 
 Period VI, 
 
 From his settlement as a minister at Edin- 
 burg, to his acquittal from a charge of trea- 
 son, by the Privy Council, in 1563, 157 
 
 Period VII. 
 
 From his acquittal from a charge of treason, 
 by the Privy Council, to his being struck 
 with apoplexy in 1570, . . . 200 
 
 Period VIII. 
 
 From his being struck with apoplexy in 1570, 
 to his death in 1 572, . , 233 
 
 Prayer of John Knox, . . . 279 
 
 His last will and words, . . . 282 
 
THE LIFE 
 
 OF 
 
 JOHN KNOX. 
 
 John Knox was born at a village in East 
 Lothian, in the year 1505 ; or as the common 
 tradition is, at Haddington, the principal town 
 of the county. His parents were respectable, 
 and in good circumstances, for they were able 
 to give their son a liberal education. In his 
 youth he was put to the grammar school of 
 Haddington, and when he had acquired the 
 rudiments of the Latin, he was sent to the 
 University of St. Andrews, at that time the 
 most celebrated seminary in the kingdom. 
 The revival of learning in Italy and France, 
 had not at this period reached Scotland, in 
 any considerable degree: most of those who 
 became learned, received their education in 
 foreign countries. But the Latin was com- 
 monly taught in her schools to such an extent 
 as to enable her priests to perform their pub- 
 lic service in the church, but the Greek was 
 
 2 
 
6 THE LIFE OF 
 
 not taught in the schools, commonly, and the 
 Hebrew was unknown, until after the com- 
 mencement of the Reformation. Knox ac- 
 quired a knowledge of the Greek language 
 before he reached middle age ; but he remain- 
 ed ignorant of the Hebrew, until he resided 
 on the continent ; when he had the opportu- 
 nity of supplying that deficiency in his educa- 
 tion. 
 
 Often the character and attainments of a 
 pupil depend very much on the ability and 
 skill of the teacher to whose tuition he is first 
 committed. It was peculiarly favourable to 
 the improvement of Knox, that, at this time 
 John Mair, or Major, as he was called on the 
 continent, was a professor of philosophy at 
 St. Andrews. This man was considered an 
 oracle in the sciences which he taught, and was 
 the preceptor of Knox, and of the celebrated 
 George Buchanan. Major, though a minister 
 of the Catholic church, had imbibed many 
 opinions, which were afterwards maintained 
 by the Protestants. His sentiments were also 
 favourable to civil liberty, and in opposition 
 to the prescriptive right of kings. But, judg- 
 ing from his writings, this man was very little 
 
JOHN KNOX. 7 
 
 capable of communicating much valuable in- 
 formation: most of the questions which he dis- 
 cussed are of the most trifling kind. It is not 
 wonderful, therefore, that such minds as those 
 of Knox and Buchanan, became disgusted with 
 the studies to which their attention had been 
 directed, and overleaping the boundaries pre- 
 scribed by their timid conductor, engaged, 
 each according to the bent of his genius, in 
 exploring the extensive fields of literature. 
 And while Buchanan ranged through the de- 
 lightful fields of classical learning, and particu- 
 larly poetry, Knox directed his chief attention 
 to divine truth. 
 
 It must not be supposed, however, that 
 Knox was able at once to free himself from 
 the trammels of that scholastic theology, in 
 which he was instructed: light did not burst 
 upon his mind at once, but, for some time, he 
 was held enchained in the mazy labyrinth of 
 scholastic logic. After he was created Master 
 of Arts, he taught philosophy in the univer- 
 sity, as an assistant, or private lecturer ; and 
 he acquired so much celebrity in teaching, 
 that he was considered to equal, if not excel 
 his preceptor. In consequence of his rapid 
 
8 THE LIFE OF 
 
 progress and high attainments in the literature 
 in vogue, he was admitted to priest's orders, 
 before he had attained the canonical age. 
 
 His studies now received a new direction; 
 for, not satisfied with mere excerpts from an- 
 cient authors, which he found in the writings 
 of scholastic divines, he resolved to have 
 recourse to the original works. In them 
 he found a method of investigating truth, 
 to which he had hitherto been a stranger. 
 Among the fathers of the Christian Church, 
 Jerome and Augustine, attracted his particu- 
 lar attention. By the writings of the former, 
 he was led to the Scriptures as the only pure 
 fountain of divine truth, and was instructed in 
 the utility of studying them in the original 
 languages. In the works of the latter, he 
 found religious sentiments, very opposite to 
 those taught in the Romish church. From 
 this time he renounced the study of scholastic 
 theology ; and although not yet completely 
 emancipated from superstition, his mind was 
 fitted for improving the means which Provi- 
 dence had prepared for leading him to a fuller 
 and more comprehensive view of the system 
 of evangelical religion. This favourable change 
 
JOHN KNOX. 
 
 of his sentiments and course of study, took 
 place about the year 1535; but he did not 
 avow himself a Protestant, until the year 
 1542. 
 
 It will be necessary, before proceeding fur- 
 ther, to take a comprehensive survey of the 
 state of religion in Scotland at this time ; 
 without some knowledge of which, the abso- 
 lute necessity of a reformation, cannot be fully 
 understood. 
 
 The corruptions by which Christianity was 
 universally depraved, had grown to a greater 
 height in Scotland, than in any other nation 
 within the pale of the western church. Super- 
 stition and religious imposture, in their grossest 
 forms, gained an easy admission among a rude 
 and ignorant people. By means of these, the 
 clergy attained to an exorbitant degree of 
 power and opulence ; which were accompa- 
 nied, as they always have been, with the cor- 
 ruption of their Order, and of the whole sys- 
 tem of religion. 
 
 The full half of the wealth of the nation 
 belonged to the clergy ; and the greater part 
 of this was in the hands of a few of their num- 
 ber, who had the control of the whole body 
 
10 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Avarice, ambition, and the love of secular 
 pomp, reigned among the superior orders. 
 Bishops and abbots, rivalled the first nobility 
 in magnificence, and maintained the precedence 
 of them in honours. They were privy coun- 
 sellors, and Lords of session, as well as of par- 
 liament, and had lo!ig engrossed the principal 
 offices of state. A vacant bishopric or abbacy 
 called forth powerful competitors, who con- 
 tended for it as for a principality, or petty 
 kingdom ; and it was obtained by similar 
 acts, and not unfrequently taken possession 
 of, by the same weapons. Inferior benefices 
 were openly put to sale, or bestowed on the 
 illiterate and unworthy minions of courtiers; 
 on dice players, strolling bards, and the illegi- 
 timate children of bishops. Pluralities were 
 multiplied without bounds, and patrons kept 
 benefices for favourites until they should be 
 of a suitable age to enter on their possession ; 
 so that sometimes whole parishes were de- 
 prived of all the mepns of religious instruction 
 and public worship for years together. There 
 was no such thing known, as' for a bishop to 
 preach : indeed, in all the history of the Scot- 
 tish Church, from the time of the establish- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 11 
 
 ment of episcopacy to the reformation, no 
 instance of the kind can be found. The prac- 
 tice was gone into disuse among all the se- 
 cular clergy, and preaching was wholly de- 
 volved on the secular monks, who employed it 
 for the most mercenary purposes. As might 
 be expected, the lives of the clergy were far 
 from being pure ; but, corrupted by wealth 
 and idleness, they were a scandal to religion, 
 and an outrage on decency. Bishops, though 
 under a vow of chastity, kept their mistresses, 
 and provided their illegitimate sons with bene- 
 fices in the church, and gave their daughters 
 in marriage to the sons of the nobility and 
 principal gentry. 
 
 Through the blind devotion of princes and 
 nobles, m.onasteries, those nurseries of super- 
 stition and idleness, had greatly multiplied in 
 the nation; and although they had universally 
 degenerated, and had become the haunts of 
 lewdness and debauchery, it was deemed im- 
 pious and sacrilegous to reduce their number, 
 abridge their privileges, or alienate their funds. 
 Swarms of monks, like locusts, devoured the 
 fruits of the land, and filled the air w4th pesti- 
 lential infection. 
 
12 THE LIFE OF 
 
 The ignorance of the clergy respecting reli- 
 gion, was as gross as the dissoluteness of their 
 morals. Even bishops were not ashamed to 
 confess that they were unacquainted with the 
 canon of their faith; and that they had never 
 read any part of the sacred Scriptures, except 
 what they met with in their missals. Under 
 such pastors the people could not but perish 
 for lack of knowledge. The book which was 
 able to make them wise unto salvation was 
 locked up from them, and the use of it in their 
 own tongue prohibited, under the heaviest pe- 
 nalties. The religious service was mumbled 
 over in a dead language, which many of the 
 priests themselves did not understand, and 
 some of them could scarcely read; and the 
 greatest pains were taken to keep the people 
 in profound ignorance, by shutting up every 
 avenue of Christian instruction. Of the doc- 
 trines of Christianity scarcely any thing re- 
 mained but the name. The people, instead of 
 being taught to offer up their adorations to 
 God, were directed to divide them among an 
 innumerable company of inferior objects. A 
 plurality of mediators, too, shared the honour 
 of procuring the divine favour with the one 
 
JOHN KNOX. 13 
 
 " Mediator between God and man;" and more 
 petitions were presented to the virgin Mary, 
 than to Him "whom the Father heareth al- 
 ways." The sacrifice of the mass was repre- 
 sented as procuring forgiveness for the living 
 and the dead, to the infinite disparagement of 
 that sacrifice by which Jesus Christ expiated sin 
 and procured everlasting redemption; and the 
 consciences of men were withdrawn from faith 
 in the merits of the Saviour, to a delusive reli- 
 ance upon priestly absolutions, papal pardons, 
 and voluntary penances. Instead of the pure, 
 spiritual worship enjoined in the Scriptures, 
 the people were taught that if they repeated 
 their Latin prayers, and abstained from flesh 
 on Fridays, and punctually paid their tithes 
 and other church dues, their salvation would 
 be certainly secured. It is hardly possible to 
 conceive how empty and ridiculous those har- 
 angues were which the monks delivered for 
 sermons. Legendary tales, concerning the 
 founder of some religious order, his wonderful 
 sanctity, the miracles which he wrought, his 
 combats with the devil, his watchings, fast- 
 ings, and flagellations; the virtues of holy 
 water, chrism, crossing, and exorcism; the 
 
14 THE LIFE OF 
 
 horrors of purgatory with the number released, 
 from it by tlie intercession of some powerful 
 saint; these, with low jests, table-talk, and fire- 
 side scandal, formed the favourite topics of 
 their preachers; and were served up to the 
 people instead of the pure, solid, and sublime 
 doctrines of the Bible. 
 
 The beds of the dying were besieged, and 
 their last moments disturbed by avaricious 
 priests, who laboured to extort bequests to 
 themselves or to the church. And claims for 
 tithes, &:c., were always ready to be laid in 
 against the deceased, which if they were not 
 quickly discharged, the thunders of ecclesiasti- 
 cal censures were brought to bear upon the 
 superstitious fears of survivors. Divine ser- 
 vice was neglected, and the churches deserted, 
 except on a few festival days, and served 
 chiefly as an asylum for malefactors, places of 
 traffic, or resorts for pastime. 
 
 From this imperfect sketch of the state of 
 religion in Scotland, we may see how false 
 the representation is, which some persons 
 would impose on us, as though popery were 
 a system, erroneous indeed, but purely specu- 
 lative; superstitious, but harmless; provided 
 
JOHN KNOX. 15 
 
 it had not accidentally been accompanied with 
 intolerance and cruelty. The very reverse is 
 the truth. It may be safely said, that there is 
 not one of its erroneous tenets, or of its super- 
 stitious practices, which was not either origi- 
 nally contrived, or artfully accommodated, to 
 advance and support some practical abuse, to 
 aggrandize the ecclesiastical order, secure to 
 them immunity from civil jurisdiction, sanc- 
 tion their encroachments upon secular authori- 
 ties, vindicate their usurpations on the con- 
 sciences of men, cherish implicit obedience to 
 the decisions of the church, and extinguish 
 free inquiry and liberal science. 
 
 To the revival of the primitive doctrines 
 and institutions of Christianity, by the preach- 
 ing and writing of the reformers, and to those 
 controversies by which popish errors were 
 confuted from Scripture, we are chiefly in- 
 debted for the overthrow of superstition, igno- 
 rance, and despotism; and for the blessings, 
 political and religious, which we enjoy, we 
 are indebted to the reformation from po- 
 pery. 
 
 How grateful should we be to divine pro- 
 vidence for this happy revolution ! For those 
 
16 THE LIFE OF 
 
 persons do but " sport with their own imagi- 
 nations/' who flatter themselves that it must 
 have taken place in the ordinary course- of 
 human affairs, and overlook the many convin- 
 cing proofs of the superintending direction of 
 superior wisdom, in the whole combination of 
 circumstances which contributed to bring about 
 the reformation in this countrv, as well as 
 throughout Europe. How much are we in- 
 debted to those men, who under God, were 
 the instruments in effecting it; who cheerfully 
 jeoparded their lives, to achieve a design 
 which involved the happiness of millions un- 
 born; boldly attacked the system of error and 
 corruption, fortified by popular credulity, cus- 
 tom, and laws, fenced with the most dreadful 
 penalties, and having forced the strong hold of 
 superstition^ and penetrated into the recesses 
 of its temple, tore away the veil which con- 
 cealed the monstrous idol which the whole 
 world had so long worshipped, and dissolving 
 the magic spell by which the human mind was 
 bound, and restored it to liberty! How cri- 
 minal must they be, who, sitting at ease under 
 their vines and figtrees, planted by the un- 
 wearied labours, and watered by the blood of 
 
JOHN KNOX. 17 
 
 these patriots, disown or disesteem the invalu- 
 able privileges which they inherit; or mani- 
 fest their ignorance of the expense at which 
 they were purchased^ by the most unworthy 
 treatment of those to whom they owe them; 
 misrepresent their actions, calumniate their 
 motives, and cruelly lacerate their memories. 
 
 The reformed doctrine had made consid- 
 erable progress in Scotland, before it was 
 embraced by Knox. Patrick Hamilton, a 
 youth of noble descent, obtained the honour, 
 not conferred on many of his rank, of first an 
 nouncing its glad tidings to his countrymen, 
 and sealing them with his blood. 
 
 As early as the year 1526, a gleam of light 
 was, by some unknown means, imparted to 
 the mind of that noble youth, amidst the dark- 
 ness which brooded around him. Guided by 
 this, he directed his course to Wittemberg; 
 and after conferring with the German reform- 
 ers, went to prosecute the study of the Scrip- 
 tures in the Protestant University of Marpurg, 
 under the direction of Francis Lambert of 
 Avignon. In that retreat, he was seized with 
 such an irresistible desire to communicate to 
 his countrymen the knowledge which he had 
 
18 THE LIFE OF 
 
 received, that he left Marpurg, contrary to the 
 remonstrances of his acquaintance, and re- 
 turned to Scotland. His freedom in exposing 
 the reigning corruptions, soon drew upon him 
 the jealousy of the popish clergy, who decoyed 
 him to St. Andrews; where, on the last day 
 of February, 1528, he obtained the crown of 
 martyrdom, by the hands of Archbishop Bea- 
 toun. The murder of Hamilton was after- 
 wards avenged in the blood of the nephew and 
 successor of his persecutor, and according to 
 the young martyr's prediction, "the flames in 
 which he expired, were, in the course of one 
 generation to enlighten all Scotland; and to 
 consume with avenging fury the Catholic su- 
 perstition, the papal power, and the hierarchy 
 itself." 
 
 The execution of Hamilton excited the at- 
 tention of all classes of persons at St. Andrews, 
 to inquire into his opinions; and the conse- 
 quence was, the secret spreading of these opin- 
 ions. And there were not wanting instru- 
 ments within the university, who successfully 
 instilled the evangelical doctrine into the 
 minds of their pupils. Among these was 
 Gawin Logie, rector of St. Leonard's college; 
 
JOHN KNOX. 19 
 
 SO that it became proverbial to say of one sus- 
 pected of Lutheranism, that he had drunk of 
 St. Leonard's well. 
 
 The clergy alarmed at the progress of the 
 new opinions, were on the alert, and made 
 diligent inquisition after heretics: and a num- 
 ber of excellent men suffered a cruel death 
 between 1530 and 1540. Several persons, 
 however, purchased their lives by a recanta- 
 tion. Numbers made their escape to England 
 and the continent, among whom were Gawin 
 Logie, Alexander Seatoun, Alexander Aless, 
 John McBee, John Fife, John Macdowal, 
 John Mackbray, George Buchanan, James 
 Harrison, and Robert Richardson. These vi- 
 olent proceedings could not arrest the progress 
 of truth. By merchants, by tracts, and by 
 copies of Tindall's version of the Bible, the 
 light continued to increase and spread, so that 
 in the year 1540, the reformed doctrine could 
 reckon among its converts, besides a multitude 
 of common people, many persons of rank and 
 respectability. From the year 1540 to 1542, 
 the number of the reformed rapidly increased. 
 Twice did the clergy attempt to cut them off 
 by one desperate blow. They presented to 
 
20 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the king a list, containing the names of some 
 hundreds, whom they denounced as heretics, 
 and endeavoured to procure his consent to 
 their condemnation, by flattering him with the 
 prospect of the immense riches which would 
 accrue to him from their forfeiture. The first 
 time the proposal was made, James V. rejected 
 it with strong marks of displeasure; but so 
 violent at last, was the antipathy which he 
 conceived against his nobility, and so much 
 had he fallen under the influence of the clergy, 
 that it is highly probable that he would have 
 yielded to their solicitation had not the disas- 
 ter happened which put an end to his unhappy 
 life. 
 
 PERIOD II. 
 
 FROM HIS EMBRACING THE REFORMED RELIGION IN 1542, TO 
 HIS RELEASE FROM THE FRENCH GALLEYS IN 1549. 
 
 Knox's change of sentiments could not long 
 be concealed; it was soon rendered manifest 
 by the altered tone of his lectures, and by the 
 freedom with which he denounced the cor- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 21 
 
 ruptions and superstitions of the Romish 
 Church. 
 
 It was impossible, therefore, for him to re- 
 main in safety, at St. Andrews, where Cardi- 
 nal Beatoun had undisputed sway. He there- 
 fore, left the place, and retired to the South, 
 where, in a short time, he avowed his full be- 
 lief of the Protestant doctrine. The clergy, 
 with the Cardinal at their head, were alarmed 
 at Knox's open defection, and not only pro- 
 ceeded to degrade him from the priesthood, 
 but employed assassins to way-lay him, by 
 whose hands he must have fallen, had it not 
 been for the protection of the laird of Lang- 
 niddrie. 
 
 Thomas Williams, a friar of eminence, was 
 very serviceable in leading Knox to a more 
 perfect knowledge of evangelical truth, as was 
 also, John Rough, a monk of Stirling, who 
 had twice visited Rome, and had his eyes 
 opened to see the incurable corruptions of that 
 " mother of harlots," and had been led to 
 reverence the Holy Scriptures, as the foun- 
 tain of truth. But the person to whom our 
 reformer was most indebted, was George 
 Wishart, a young gentleman of good family, 
 
 3* 
 
22 THE LIFE OF 
 
 who had been banished from the country by- 
 Cardinal Beatoun, for teaching the Greek Tes- 
 tament. This young man, after his banish- 
 ment, having resided some time at the univer- 
 sity of Cambridge, returned to his native 
 country, in the year 1544, in company with 
 the commissioners, who had been sent to ne- 
 gotiate a treaty with Henry VIII. of England. 
 Few persons mentioned in ecclesiastical 
 history ever possessed more shining and use- 
 ful qualities, than Wishart. Excelling the 
 rest of his countrymen in learning, of the most 
 persuasive eloquence, irreproachable life, cour- 
 teous and aflfable in manners, he was more- 
 over, animated by a spirit of fervent piety, 
 zeal, and courage in the cause of truth, and 
 these tempered with uncommon meekness, 
 modesty, patience, prudence, and charity. In 
 his tour of preaching, through Scotland, he 
 was usually accompanied by some of the prin- 
 cipal gentry; and the people who flocked to 
 hear him, were delighted with his discourses. 
 To this eminent preacher, Knox attached 
 himself, and profited greatly by his sermons 
 and private instructions. Wishart was highly 
 pleased with the zeal and talents of Knox, and 
 
JOHN KNOX. 23 
 
 seems to have presaged his future usefulness; 
 at the same time, he entertained a strong pre- 
 sentiment of his own approaching martyrdom. 
 
 Knox, having relinquished all thoughts of 
 officiating in that church which had invested 
 him with clerical orders, had entered, in the 
 capacity of tutor, into the family of Hugh 
 Douglas, of Long Niddrie, a gentleman in 
 East Lothian, who had embraced the re- 
 formed doctrine. He had also put under his 
 instruction, the son of John Cockburn, of Or- 
 miston, a neighbouring gentleman, of the same 
 persuasion. These young men were instructed 
 by him in the principles of religion, as well as 
 in the learned languages. And he so con- 
 ducted their religious instruction, that the 
 family and neighbours might profit by the 
 lessons given to his pupils; for at stated times 
 he expounded to them a chapter in the Bible, 
 and catechised them publicly in a chapel, at 
 Long Niddrie; the memory of which is still 
 preserved, and the ruins of the chapel still 
 visible, which to this day is called John 
 Knox^s Kirk. 
 
 In the year 1546, a conspiracy having been 
 formed against the life of that cruel and deter- 
 
24 THE LIFE OF 
 
 mined persecutor, Cardinal Beatoun, the cas- 
 tle of St. Andrews, in which he resided, was 
 seized upon, by a small but determined band, 
 a part of whom instigated by resentment for 
 private injuries, and others, by a desire to re- 
 venge his cruelties; and the Cardinal was put 
 to death. 
 
 The death of Beatoun, however, did not 
 free Knox from danger, for his life was sought 
 after by John Hamilton, who was nominated 
 to the vacant bishopric, with as great eager- 
 ness as by his predecessor. He was, therefore, 
 obliged to conceal himself, and to remove 
 from place to place, to provide for his safety. 
 Wearied with these persecutions, he came to 
 the resolution to leave his native country; 
 and his purpose was to visit Germany; but 
 the fathers of his pupils were very reluctant 
 to part with such a tutor, and persuaded him, 
 with their sons, to take refuge in the castle of 
 St. Andrews. 
 
 The enemies of Knox have taken occasion 
 from this circumstance, to charge him as being 
 among the conspirators who assassinated the 
 Cardinal, which is contrary to all testimony. 
 Others have accused him of joining them and 
 
JOHN KNOX. 25 
 
 giving them his countenance, after the deed 
 was perpetrated; but neither has this any 
 foundation. The only thing which can be 
 plausibly laid to his charge, in relation to this 
 matter is, that in his writings he justified the 
 act. He does, indeed, chiefly speak of it as a 
 judgment of God, and an act of Providence 
 for the safety of his servants; but it is true, 
 that he vindicated the putting this cruel per- 
 secutor to death, as a righteous and praisewor- 
 thy deed, and well pleasing to God. He 
 held the opinion, that persons, who by the 
 commission of flagrant crimes had forfeited 
 their lives, according to the law of God, and 
 the just laws of society, such as notorious 
 murderers, and tyrants, might warrantably be 
 put to death by private individuals; provided 
 all redress, in the ordinary course of justice 
 was rendered impossible^ in consequence of 
 the ofiender having usurped the executive au- 
 thority, or being systematically protected by 
 oppressive rulers. The same opinion was 
 defended by Buchanan, in his treatise '^ De 
 jure regni apud Scotos;^' and held by many 
 eminent men of that age. It must be confess- 
 ed, that however just it may appear to be in 
 
26 THE LIFE OF 
 
 theory, it is of dangerous application, ex- 
 tremely liable to abuse by the factious, fanati- 
 cal, and desperate, as a pretext for the most 
 nefarious deeds. 
 
 Knox entered the castle of St. Andrews, at 
 the time of Easter, in the year 1547, and 
 conducted the education of his pupils in his 
 accustomed manner; expounding to them the 
 Scriptures in order, and catechising them in 
 the parish church, belonging to the city. A 
 number of persons attended both these exer- 
 cises. Among those who had taken refuge in 
 the castle, were John Rough, Sir David Lind- 
 say, and Henry Balnaves. These persons 
 were so much pleased with Knox's doctrine 
 and mode of instruction, that they urged him 
 to preach publicly to the people, and to be- 
 come colleague to Rough, who acted as chap- 
 lain to the garrison. • But he resisted all their 
 solicitations, alleging that he did not consider 
 himself as having a call to this employment. 
 They, however, did not desist from their pur- 
 pose ; but consulted the brethren, came to a 
 resolution, without his knowledge, that a call 
 should be publicly given to him, in the name 
 of the whole, to become one of their minis- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 27 
 
 ters. Accordingly, on a day fixed for the 
 purpose, Rough preached a sermon on the 
 election of ministers, in which he declared 
 the power which a congregation, however 
 small, had over any one in whom they per- 
 ceived gifts suited to the office; and how 
 dangerous it was for any one to reject the call 
 of those, who desired instruction. Sermon 
 being ended, the preacher turned towards 
 Knox, who was present, and addressed him in 
 these words; "Brother, you will not be of- 
 fended, although I speak unto you, that which 
 I have in charge, even from all those that are 
 here present, which is this ; In the name of 
 God, and his Son Jesus Christ, and in the 
 name of all that now call you by my mouth, 
 I charge you, that you refuse not this holy 
 vocation, but as you tender the glory of God, 
 the increase of Christ's kingdom, and the edi- 
 fication of your brethren, and the comfort of 
 me, whom you know, well enough, to be op- 
 pressed by the multitude of labours, that you 
 take upon you the public office and charge of 
 preaching, even as you look to avoid God's 
 heavy displeasure, and desire that he shall 
 multiply his grace unto you.'^ Then addres- 
 
28 THE LIFE OF 
 
 sing himself to the congregation, he said, 
 " Was not this your charge unto me? and do 
 ye not approve this vocation ? They all an- 
 swered " It was, and we approve it." Abashed 
 and overwhelmed by this unexpected and 
 solemn charge, Knox was unable to speak, but 
 burst into tears, retired from the assembly, 
 and shut himself up in his chamber. " His 
 countenance and behaviour from that day^ 
 until the day he was compelled to present 
 himself in the public place of preaching, did 
 sufficiently declare the grief and trouble of his 
 heart ; for no man saw any sign of mirth from 
 him; neither had he pleasure to accompany 
 any man, for many days together." 
 
 In this transaction we see how the most 
 eminent, in the beginning of the Reformation, 
 felt the awful responsibility of the ministerial 
 office, and with what difficulty they were in- 
 duced to take upon them that sacred office, 
 which they had long desired, and for which 
 they had laboured to qualify themselves. The 
 behaviour of Knox, on this occasion, reproves 
 those who become preachers of their own ac- 
 cord: who from vague and enthusiastic desires 
 of doing good, or a fond conceit of their own 
 
JOHN KNOX. 29 
 
 gifts, trample upon good order, and thrust 
 themselves into a sacred employment, without 
 any regular call. The similarity of this case 
 to that of John Calvin, at Geneva not long be- 
 fore, must strike every intelligent reader. 
 
 Knox's distress of mind, and his reluctance 
 to comply with the call which he now receiv- 
 ed, did not proceed from any conviction of its 
 invalidity, by reason of the defect of certain 
 formalities which had been usual in the church, 
 and which in ordinary cases might be observ- 
 ed with propriety in the installation of per- 
 sons into sacred offices. These, as far as 
 warranted by Scripture, or conducive to the 
 preservation of decent order, he did not con- 
 temn ; his judgment respecting these matters 
 may be learned from the e,arly practice of the 
 Scottish Reformed Church, in the organization 
 of which he had so active a share. In com- 
 mon with all the original reformers, he reject- 
 ed the necessity of episcopal ordination, as 
 totally unauthorized by the laws of Christ: 
 nor did he regard the imposition of the hands 
 of Presbyters, as a rite essential to the validity 
 of orders; or of necessary observance in all 
 circumstances of the church. The papists, 
 
 4 
 
30 THE LIFE OF 
 
 indeed, did not fail to declaim on this topic, 
 representing Knox, and other reformed minis- 
 ters, as destitute of all lawful vocation. In 
 the same strain did many hierarchical writers 
 of the English Church, afterwards learn to 
 talk ; not scrupling, by their extravagant doc- 
 trine of the absolute necessity of ordination 
 by the hands of a bishop, who derived his 
 powers by uninterrupted succession from the 
 apostles, to invalidate and nullify the orders 
 of all the reformed churches, except their 
 own: a doctrine which has been revived in 
 the present enlightened age, and unblushingly 
 avowed and defended with the greater part of 
 its absurd, illiberal and horrid consequences. 
 Whether Knox paid any respect whatever, to 
 his early ordination in the popish church, can- 
 not now be determined ; yet there can be lit- 
 tle doubt that he looked upon the charge 
 which he received at St. Andrews, as princi- 
 pally constituting his call to the ministry. 
 The fathers of the English reformation enter- 
 tained no such narrow views, as those refer- 
 red to, as held by some of their successors. 
 Knox's call to the ministry was never ques- 
 tioned, but his services readily accepted, when 
 
JOHN KNOX. 31 
 
 he afterwards went to England. Archbishop 
 Cranmer, in the reign of Edward VI. and all 
 the bishops, in the beginning of Elizabeth's 
 reign, corresponded with, and cheerfully 
 owned the foreign, reformed divines, as breth- 
 ren and fellow labourers in the ministry of 
 the Gospel. And in the year 15S2, arch- 
 bishop Grindall, by a formal deed, declared 
 the validity of the orders of Mr. John Mor- 
 rison, who had been ordained by the Synod of 
 Lothian ; " according to the laudable form 
 and rite of the Reformed Church of Scotland.'' 
 The true reason of Knox's distress of mind 
 on receiving this call to undertake the work 
 of the ministry, was, the awful importance of 
 the sacred office, the weight of the care of im- 
 mortal souls, of whom he knew he must give 
 an account, and the difficulty of the duty of 
 declaring " the whole counsel of God, and 
 keeping nothing back," however ungrateful it 
 might be to his hearers — of preaching "in 
 season and out of season," and maintaining 
 that exemplary holiness of life, and fortitude 
 and patience under afflictions and persecutions, 
 requisite in the ministers of the Gospel, at this 
 period, when they were constantly exposed to 
 
32 THE LIFE OP 
 
 imprisonment, exile, and a violent death. At 
 length, however, satisfied that he had the call 
 of God to engage in this work, he composed 
 his mind to a reliance on Him who had en- 
 gaged to make his " strength perfect in the 
 weakness"j]of his servants ; and resolved, with 
 the apostles '^ not to count his life dear, that 
 he might finish with joy the ministry which 
 he received of the Lord, to testify the Gospel 
 of the grace of God." Often did he after- 
 wards reflect with lively emotion on this very 
 interesting step of his life, and never, in the 
 midst of his greatest sufferings, did he see 
 reason to repent of the choice which he had 
 so deliberately made. 
 
 John Rough, though sound in doctrine, and 
 of exemplary behaviour, was not a man of 
 much learning, the want of which he now sen- 
 sibly felt; for some persons in the university 
 and abbey, and among the rest, one Annan, 
 made objections to the doctrine which he 
 preached, and endeavoured to vex and entan- 
 gle him with their sophisms and garbled quo- 
 tations from the fathers. The value of his col- 
 league was now also felt, for he, by his supe- 
 rior skill in logic, and his acquaintance with 
 
JOHN KNOX. 33 
 
 the writings of the fathers, was able to detect 
 Annan's fallacies, and confute his popish er- 
 rors. 
 
 One day at a public disputation, in the par- 
 ish church, in the presence of a great number 
 of people, Annan being beat from all his defen- 
 ces, had recourse, as his last resort, to the 
 infallibility of the church, which having con- 
 demned the tenets of the Lutherans as hereti- 
 cal, all farther disputation, he alleged, was 
 unnecessary. Knox replied, that it was first 
 requisite to ascertain the true church, by the 
 marks given in Scripture, lest they should 
 receive as their spiritual mother a harlot, 
 instead of the immaculate spouse of Jesus 
 Christ; ^^ For," said he, " as for your Roman 
 church, as it is now corrupted, wherein stands 
 the hope of your victory, I no more doubt 
 that it is the synagogue of Satan, and the head 
 thereof called the pope, to be the man of sin, 
 of whom the apostle speaks, than I doubt that 
 Jesus Christ suffered by the procurement of 
 the visible church at Jerusalem. Yea, I offer 
 myself, by word or writing, to prove the Ro- 
 man church this day, farther degenerate, than 
 
 even the church of the Jews, from the ordi- 
 
 4* 
 
34 THE LIFE OP 
 
 nances given by Moses, when they consented 
 to the innocent death of Jesus Christ." This 
 was a bold charge, but the minds of the peo- 
 ple came prepared to listen to the proof. They 
 exclaimed, that if this were true, they had 
 been miserably deceived; and insisted, as they 
 could not all read his writings, that he should 
 ascend the pulpit and give them an opportu- 
 nity of hearing the proof of what he had so 
 confidently affirmed. The challenge was not 
 retracted, and the request was reasonable; 
 therefore, the following Sunday was fixed on 
 for making good his promise. 
 
 On the day appointed, Knox appeared in 
 the pulpit of the parish church, and gave out 
 for his text, Dan. vii. 24, 25. After explain- 
 ing the vision and showing that the four king- 
 doms of Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome, 
 were emblematically represented by the four 
 animals, seen in vision by David; he pro- 
 ceeded to show, that out of the ruins of the 
 last of these empires arose the power described 
 in the text, which could be no other than the 
 degenerate church of Rome. He compared 
 the parallel passages in the New Testament, 
 and showed that the king mentioned in the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 35 
 
 text was the person called the man of sin, the 
 antichrist, the Babylonian harlot; and that 
 this did not mean any single person, but a 
 multitude or body under a wicked head, inclu- 
 ding a succession of persons occupying the 
 same station. To show that the papal power 
 was anti-christ, he described it under the three 
 heads, of life, doctrine, and laws. The lives 
 of the popes he depicted from ecclesiastical 
 history, their doctrine he contrasted with that 
 of the New Testament, and their laws with 
 the institutions of Christ. He cited from the 
 Canon law the blasphemous titles and preroga- 
 tives, ascribed to the pope, as the additional 
 proof that he was described in the text. In 
 conclusion, he invited any, who might think 
 that his quotations produced from Scripture, 
 history, or the writings of the fathers and doc- 
 tors of the church, were unfairly made, to 
 come to him, and in the presence of witnesses 
 he would give them satisfaction. Among his 
 auditors on this occasion, were John Mair, his 
 old preceptor, the members of the university, 
 the sub-prior of the abbey, and a great number 
 of canons and friars of different orders. 
 
 This sermon, delivered with a good degree 
 
36 THE LIFE OF 
 
 of that fervid eloquence for which Knox was 
 so distinguished, made a great noise, and exci- 
 ted much speculation among all classes. The 
 former preachers of reformed doctrine, not 
 excepting Wishart, had contented themselves 
 with rejecting some of the grosser errors of 
 the established religion j but Knox struck, at 
 once, at the root of popery, boldly pronoun- 
 cing the pope to be anti-christ, and the whole 
 system erroneous and unscriptural. 
 
 It was impossible for such a sermon to 
 escape animadversion. By the order of the 
 Bishop of St. Andrews, Winram, the sub- 
 prior, summoned Knox to appear before him; 
 when nine articles drawn from his sermon 
 were exhibited. Knox knew that in heart, 
 Winram, the sub-prior, was favourable to the 
 Reformation; he therefore appealed solemnly 
 to him to declare, whether any thing which he 
 had said was contrary to the Scriptures; and 
 if he thought that the doctrine preached was 
 true, it was his duty to give it t\}e sanction of 
 his authority. Winram answered with great 
 caution, saying, that he did not come there as 
 a judge, and would neither approve nor con- 
 demn; he wished for a free conference, and if 
 
JOHN KNOX. 37 
 
 Knox pleased, -would reason with him a little. 
 He then proceeded to state some objections to 
 one of the propositions maintained by Knox, 
 but soon devolved the dispute on a grey head- 
 ed friar who was present; who, though he 
 took it up with great confidence, was soon 
 forced to yield with disgrace. For having 
 rashly engaged to prove the institution of the 
 popish ceremonies, and being pushed by his 
 antagonist from the Gospels and Acts to the 
 Epistles, and from one epistle to another; he 
 was driven at last to affirm " That the apostles 
 had not received the Holy Ghost, when they 
 wrote the epistles, but that they afterwards 
 received Him, and then ordained the ceremo- 
 nies of the church." Here, the sub-prior in- 
 terposed and said, " Father, what say you ? 
 God forbid that you say that\ for then, fare- 
 well the ground of our faith. The friar, 
 abashed and confounded, attempted to correct 
 his error, but in vain. Knox could not after- 
 wards bring him up to the argument upon any 
 of the articles; but henceforth he resolved all 
 into the authority of the church. 
 
 Instructed by the issue of this convention, 
 the papists avoided, for the future, all dispu- 
 
38 THE LIFE OF 
 
 tation, which they found tended only to the 
 injury of their cause. Had. the castle of St. 
 Andrews been in their power, they would 
 soon have silenced these troublesome preach- 
 ers; but as matters stood, more moderate and 
 crafty measures were necessary. The plan 
 which they adopted was, that all the learned 
 men in the abbey and university should preach 
 in their turn, and thus Knox and Rough would 
 seldom have the opportunity of addressing the 
 people in public; but they made it a rule, not 
 to touch on any of the points in dispute. 
 Knox said, that he only wished that they 
 could be induced to be as industrious in their 
 vocation through the week — but he declared, 
 that he would rejoice that the gospel was 
 preached, and that no opposition was given in 
 their discourses to evangelical truth. 
 
 In the few months that Knox preached at 
 St. Andrews, a great number of the inhabi- 
 tants of the town, besides those in the castle, 
 were induced to renounce popery, and make 
 profession of the Protestant faith, by partici- 
 pating of the Lord's Supper, which he admin- 
 istered to them, in the form afterwards prac- 
 tised in the Reformed Church of Scotland. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 39 
 
 But while he enjoyed the gratification arising 
 from these first fruits of his ministry, he was 
 troubled on account of the disorderly and li- 
 centious conduct of some of the soldiers under 
 his charge. From the time that he was cho- 
 sen to be their preacher he openly rebuked 
 these disorders, and when he perceived that 
 his admonitions failed of putting a stop to 
 them, he did not conceal his apprehensions of 
 the issue of the enterprize in which they were 
 engaged. 
 
 In the end of June, 1547, a French fleet, 
 with a considerable body of land forces, ap- 
 peared before St. Andrews; and the besieged, 
 disappointed in aid from England, capitulated 
 on honourable terms. All that were in the 
 castle were to be transported to France, and if 
 they did not choose to enter the service of the 
 French king, they were to be conveyed to 
 any place to which they wished to go, except 
 to Scotland. Rough had left the castle before 
 it was taken ; but Knox, although he foresaw 
 that it could not long hold out against such a 
 besieging force by sea, and land, yet would 
 not forsake his charge. He was, accordingly, 
 conveyed with the rest of the garrison on 
 
40 THE LIFE OF 
 
 board of the French fleets which, in a few 
 days, set sail for France; and going up the 
 Seine, anchored at Rouen. At the request of 
 the pope and the Scotch clergy, the capitula- 
 tion was violated, and they were all detained 
 prisoners of war. The principal gentlemen 
 were incarcerated at Rouen, Cherburg, Brest, 
 and Mont St. Michel; but Knox, with some 
 others, was confined on board the galleys, 
 bound with chains, and treated with all the 
 indignity usually offered to heretics, in addi- 
 tion to the ordinary rigors of captivity. 
 
 From Rouen, they sailed to Nantes, and 
 lay upon the Noire during the following win- 
 ter. Solicitations, threatenings, and violence, 
 were all employed to make the prisoners re- 
 cant their religion, and countenance the popish 
 worship. But so great was their abhorrence 
 of idolatry, that not an individual could be in- 
 duced to symbolize with idolatrous rites, in 
 the smallest degree. While they lay in the 
 Noire, they were often brought out on deck 
 to witness the celebration of mass on shore, 
 and were required to give the usual signs of 
 reverence; but this they uniformly refused, 
 and always covered their heads. One day, a 
 
JOHN KNOX. 41 
 
 fine image of the Virgin Mary was brought 
 into one of the galleys, and presented to a 
 Scottish prisoner, to kiss. He desired the 
 bearer to desist, for such images were accur- 
 sed; and he would not touch it. The officer 
 roughly declared that he should, and put it to 
 his face, and thrust it into his hands. Upon 
 this, he took hold of the image, and watching 
 his opportunity, threw it into the river, say- 
 ing, " Lat our lady now save hirself; she is 
 lycht anoughe, lat Mr leirne to swyme?^ 
 After this, they were no more troubled in that 
 way. 
 
 In the summer of 1548, the galleys returned 
 to the coast of Scotland, and continued for 
 some time, watching for English vessels. 
 Knox's health was now greatly impaired by 
 the severity of his confinement; and he was 
 seized with a fever, so that for a while, his life 
 was despaired of: but even in this state, his 
 fortitude remained unsubdued, and he com- 
 forted his fellow prisoners with the hopes of 
 release. His uniform answer, when they in- 
 quired if he thought they would ever gain 
 their liberty, was, " God will deliver us, even 
 
 5 
 
42 THE LIFE OF 
 
 in this life to his glory." While on the coast 
 of Dundee, Mr. James Balfour asked him if 
 he knew the land? Though very sick at the 
 time, yet he replied, " Yes, I know it well, 
 for I see the steeple of that place where God 
 first opened my mouth in public to his glory; 
 and I am fully persuaded, how weak soever I 
 now appear, that I shall not depart this life, 
 till that my tongue shall glorify his godly 
 name in the same place." This striking re- 
 ply. Sir James repeated before many witness- 
 es, long before Knox returned to Scotland, 
 and when there was very little prospect of his 
 words ever being verified. He was not, how- 
 ever, at all times free from painful conflicts, 
 and depression of mind. But his constant re- 
 sort was to prayer, the never failing refuge of 
 the afflicted and oppressed, by which he was 
 relieved from all his fears, and reposing on 
 the promises and providence of God whom he 
 served, attained " the confidence and rejoicing 
 of hope." When free from fever, he relieved 
 the tedium of his captivity in composing a 
 confession of his faith, being the substance of 
 what he had preached at St. Andrews, with a 
 
JOHN KNOX. 43 
 
 particular account of the dispute in which he 
 was engaged at St. Leonard's Yards. This 
 paper he found means to convey to his friends 
 in Scotland, which he accompanied with an 
 earnest exhortation to them to be steadfast in 
 their adherence to the truth. 
 
 At length, Knox, after enduring a severe 
 imprisonment of nineteen months, obtained 
 his liberty. This occurred in February 1549; 
 but by what means his deliverance was effect- 
 ed cannot now be certainly ascertained. Some 
 say, that the galley in which he was confined 
 was taken in the channel, by the English. 
 According to another account, he was libera- 
 ted by the king of France; because, on exami- 
 nation it appeared, that he was not concerned 
 in the murder of cardinal Beatoun; nor acces- 
 sory to other crimes committed by those who 
 held the castle of St. Andrews. Others, again, 
 say, that his friends purchased his liberty, in- 
 duced by the hopes which they cherished of 
 great things to be accomplished by him. It 
 is not improbable, however, that he owed his 
 liberty to the fact, that the French court had 
 now accomplished their purpose, in regard to 
 Scotland, having got the young queen into 
 
44 THE LIFE OF 
 
 their possession, and having married her to 
 the Dauphin, so that they now felt less inclin- 
 ed to revenge the quarrels of the Scottish 
 clergy. 
 
 PERIOD III. 
 
 FROM HIS RELEASE FROM THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1549, TO HIS 
 DEPARTURE FROM ENGLAND, 1554. 
 
 Knox, as soon as he was at liberty, resorted to 
 England, where the need of faithful, evangeli- 
 cal preachers was very great; and as his repu- 
 tation as a powerful preacher was not unknown 
 in that kingdom, he was immediately employ- 
 ed in the work in which above all others he 
 delighted. As it was found impracticable to 
 supply every parish with a capable and faith- 
 ful pastor, Cranmer adopted the plan of send- 
 ing able preachers to itinerate in the counties 
 which were most destitute. Knox was there- 
 fore sent down from London to Berwick, a 
 situation the more acceptable to him, because 
 it aflforded him, from its proximity to his na- 
 tive land, the opportunity of ascertaining the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 45 
 
 state of religion there, and to correspond with 
 his friends, and impart to them his advice. 
 In the execution of his oflSce he spared neither 
 time nor bodily strength, and so fulfilled his 
 duty, as to give great satisfaction to those who 
 employed him. Regarding the worship of 
 the popish church as grossly idolatrous, and 
 its doctrine as damnable, he attacked both 
 with the utmost fervour, and exerted himself 
 to withdraw his hearers from them, with as 
 much eagerness as he would to save their 
 lives from a devouring fire or flood. Nor 
 were his labours fruitless: during the two 
 years that he continued in Berwick, num- 
 bers were, by his ministry, converted from 
 error and ignorance, and a general reforma- 
 tion of manners became visible among the 
 soldiers of the garrison, who had before been 
 noted for turbulence and licentiousness. 
 
 Berwick was situated within the diocese of 
 Tonstal, a time-serving prelate, who, though 
 he concurred in the first steps taken in the 
 English reformation ; yet, afterwards, set him- 
 self against all further change. Knox's preach- 
 ing and success could not but be very disa- 
 greeable to this man, and his clergy, who 
 
 5* 
 
46 THE LIFE OF 
 
 were all bi go tied papists: but as he had been 
 sent there by Cranmer and the council, they 
 dared not reject him, unless some ground of 
 accusation could be found in the doctrines 
 which he preached. To men predisposed to 
 censure the pure doctrines of the reformation, 
 the bold denunciations of popish error and 
 superstition by Knox, soon furnished occasion 
 for an accusation. A charge was exhibited 
 against him, before the bishop, for teaching 
 " that the sacrifice of the mass was idolatrous;" 
 and a day was assigned him to offer reasons 
 in defence of this opinion. Accordingly, on 
 on the 4th of April, 1550, a great assembly 
 was convened at Newcastle, among whom 
 were the members of the council residing in 
 the north, the bishop of Durham, and the 
 learned men of his cathedral. Knox delivered 
 an ample defence of the doctrine against which 
 complaints had been made. After an appro- 
 priate exordium, in which he endeavoured to 
 obviate their prejudices, he proceeded to his 
 vindication. As his audience was composed 
 of the unlearned as well as the learned, he 
 endeavoured to accommodate his discourse to 
 them also. His arguments were proposed in 
 
JOHN KNOX. 47 
 
 the syllogistic form, according to the custom 
 of the age, but he illustrated them with a 
 plainness, level to the meanest capacity. His 
 defence was written, and the manuscript is still 
 preserved, and the substance of it is given by 
 Dr. McCrie, in the notes appended to his Life 
 of Knox. The effect of this defence was to ex- 
 tend the fame of Knox through the north of 
 England, while it completely silenced the bish- 
 op and his suffragans. He continued to preach 
 at Berwick, through the remainder of the year: 
 but in the following year, he had the sphere of 
 his usefulness greatly enlarged, by being re- 
 manded to Newcastle. In December, 1551, 
 the Privy Council conferred on him a special 
 mark of their favour, by appointing him one 
 of king Edward's chaplains, in ordinary. 
 
 In the course of the year, he was consulted 
 respecting the liturgy, which was undergoing 
 a review, and on this occasion, probably visit- 
 ed London. Although the persons who had 
 the chief direction of ecclesiastical affairs, did 
 not think it expedient to introduce that tho- 
 rough reform which he wished ; yet he ob- 
 tained some important alterations to be made, 
 especially in the communion service, by 
 
48 THE LIFE OF 
 
 which the notion of the corporeal presence of 
 Christ in the sacrament, was excluded, and 
 the countenance given to the adoration of the 
 elements by the custom of kneeling, was re- 
 moved. Knox, in his ^' Admonition to the 
 Professors of the Truth in England," speaks 
 of these alterations in the book of common 
 prayer, with much satisfaction. And Dr. 
 Weston, in his dispute with Latimer in Queen 
 Mary's time, complains of the influence which 
 he had in procuring these alterations, saying, 
 " A runnagate Scot did take away the adora- 
 tion or worshipping of Christ, in the sacra- 
 ment, by whose procurement, that heresy was 
 put into the last communion book ; so much 
 prevailed that one man's authority at that 
 time." In the following year, he was em- 
 ployed in revising the articles of religion 
 previous to their ratification by parliament. 
 While a resident at Berwick, Knox became 
 acquainted with Miss Marjory Bowes, a young 
 lady of an honourable family, to whom he 
 paid his addresses, and meeting with a favour- 
 able reception, he entered into a solemn en- 
 gagement to marry her; but owing to some 
 obstruction, the connexion was not now form- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 49 
 
 ed; but henceforth, he considered himself as 
 sacredly bound, and always addressed Mrs. 
 Bowes, in his letters by the name of mother. 
 
 Knox was eager to redeem time, and inde- 
 fatigable in his labours while stationed in the 
 North of England; for he seems to have had 
 a presage, that this golden opportunity of use- 
 fulness would not be of long duration. In 
 addition to his ordinary services on the Sab- 
 bath, he preached regularly on week days, 
 and frequently on every day of the week. 
 Besides the portion of time allotted to study, 
 he was often employed in conversing with 
 people who applied to him for advice on reli- 
 gious subjects. The Council were so sensible 
 of the value of his services, that they wrote 
 letters to the governors and principal inhabi- 
 tants of the places where he preached, recom- 
 mending him to their notice and protection; 
 and secured him the regular payment of his 
 salary, until such time as he should be provi- 
 ded with a benefice. 
 
 But far different was the feeling towards 
 him, of the majority of the people in the coun- 
 try where he laboured. They were generally 
 superstitious papists, who submitted impa- 
 
50 THE LIFE OF 
 
 tiently to the Protestant government of the 
 country, and longed for the restoration of their 
 ancient religion. And when Somerset, the 
 protector was overthrown, their feelings of 
 satisfaction could not be concealed. These 
 things excited the ardent spirit of Knox, and 
 about Christmas, 1552, he gave vent to his 
 feelings, and lamenting the obstinacy of the 
 papists, asserted, " that such were enemies to 
 the Gospel then preached in England, were 
 secret traitors to the crown and common- 
 wealth, and cared not who should reign over 
 them, provided they got their idolatry erected 
 again. ^' This freedom of speech was imme- 
 diately laid hold on by his enemies, and trans- 
 mitted with many aggravations, to some great 
 men about the court, who preferred a charge 
 against him before the privy council for high 
 offences. In taking this step they were not a 
 little encouraged by the knowledge of the sen- 
 timents of the Duke of Northumberland, who 
 had lately come down as Warden General of 
 the northern marches. This ambitious and 
 unprincipled nobleman had made use of the 
 Reformation, merely as a stepping stone to the 
 highest preferments in the state, which he had 
 
JOHN KNOX. 51 
 
 recently secured by the fall of the Duke of 
 Somerset, the protector of the kingdom. Knox 
 had offended him by lamenting the fall of So- 
 merset, as detrimental to the Reformation; nor 
 could his freedom, in reproving from the pul- 
 pit, the vices of great and small, be otherwise 
 than offensive to a man of Northumberland's 
 character. He was solicitous, therefore, to 
 have Knox removed from those parts, and had 
 applied to the council for this purpose, before 
 the occurrence just mentioned, alleging as a 
 reason, the great influx of Scotchmen into the 
 country. 
 
 In consequence of the charges brought 
 against him, Knox was now cited to repair 
 immediately to London, to answer for his 
 conduct. In this emergency his courage did 
 not forsake him, as appears by a letter to his 
 sister immediately after receiving the sum- 
 mons. Upon reaching London, he found that 
 his enemies had been uncommonly industrious 
 in exciting prejudices against him, by trans- 
 mitting the most false and calumnious infor- 
 mation. But the council, after hearing his 
 defence, were convinced of the malice of the 
 accusation, and honourably acquitted him. 
 
52 THE LIFE OF 
 
 While in London he preached before the 
 court, and gave great satisfaction, particularly 
 to the young King, who contracted a liking to 
 him, and was very desirous to have him pro- 
 moted in the church. It was now determined 
 by the council, that Knox, during the year 
 1553, should preach in London and the south- 
 ern counties; but he was permitted to return 
 to Newcastle for a short time, to settle his 
 affairs, or as a public testimony of his inno- 
 cence. 
 
 His health had been greatly impaired by his 
 long confinement in the galleys, and also by his 
 incessant labours in the north of England; so 
 that in the year 1553, he was much afflicted 
 with the gravel, which was accompanied by 
 severe pains in t-he head and stomach. But 
 although his bodily sufferings were great, his 
 fortitude never failed, as appears by his letters, 
 written while labouring under the severe pain 
 of disease. 
 
 After his return from Newcastle to London, 
 the council requested the archbishop to present 
 him to the living of All-Hallows, in that city. 
 This was done at the suggestion of the young 
 King, who, as we have seen, entertained 
 
JOHN KNOX. 53 
 
 great favour towards Knox. Against this 
 measure, the Duke of Northumberland exerted 
 all his influence; but it was unnecessary, for 
 when the offer was made to Knox, he declined 
 it, and assigned as a reason, that in the present 
 state of the English Church, he could not ac- 
 cept a fixed charge. This answer gave no 
 small offence, so that in consequence of it, he 
 was again called before the Privy Council. 
 At this meeting the archbishop and several of 
 the bishops were present, as well as the Lord 
 Chancellor and other noblemen, who were 
 members of this body. He was asked why he 
 had refused the benefice provided for him in 
 London? He answered, that he was fully 
 satisfied, that he could be more useful to the 
 Church in another situation. Being further 
 interrogated, whether it was his opinion, that 
 no person could lawfully serve in ecclesiastical 
 ministrations, according to the present laws of 
 the realm ? He frankly replied, " that there 
 were many things which needed reformation, 
 without which, ministers could not, in his 
 opinion, discharge their ofiice conscientiously 
 in the sight of God; for according to the ex- 
 isting laws, no minister had power to prevent 
 
 6 
 
54 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the unworthy from partaking of the sacra-, 
 ments, which was a chief point of his office." 
 He was asked, if kneeling at the Lord's table 
 was not indifferent? HercDlied, "that Christ's 
 action was most perfect, and in it no such pos- 
 ture was used J that it was most safe to follow 
 his example; and that kneeling was an addi- 
 tion and invention of men." On this point 
 one of the council entered into a long dispute 
 with him; and after long reasoning, he was 
 informed that he had not been sent for with 
 any bad design; but they were sorry to under- 
 stand that he was of a contrary judgment to 
 the common order. He said, that he was 
 sorry that the common order was contrary to 
 Christ's institution. They dismissed him with 
 soft speeches, advising him to endeavour to 
 bring his mind to communicate according to 
 the established rites. 
 
 If honours and emoluments could have influ- 
 enced the mind of our conscientious reformer, 
 he would have conformed to the rites and 
 ceremonies of the Church of England; for at 
 the special request of Edward VI., and with 
 the concurrence of the council, he received the 
 offer of a bishopric; but the same reasons pre- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 55 
 
 vented him from accepting this offer, which 
 had influenced him to decline the living of 
 All-Hallows. The fact is attested by Beza, 
 who adds, that his refusal was accompanied 
 with a censure of the Episcopal office, as des- 
 titute of divine authority, and not exercised 
 in England according to the ecclesiastical ca- 
 nons. Knox himself, also speaks of the high 
 promotions offered to him by Edward; and in 
 a later period of his life we find him expressly 
 asserting that he had refused a bishopric. 
 
 Here, it will not be irrelevant to observe, 
 that the reformation in England, was con- 
 ducted on very different principles from that 
 of Scotland, and most of the reformed churches 
 on the continent. The supremacy before pos- 
 sessed by the pope, was transferred to the king 
 the hierarchy being subjected to the civil 
 power was suffered to remain, together with 
 jnany of the forms of the ancient worship, 
 after removing the grosser superstitions; but 
 in Scotland all these were discarded as desti- 
 tute of divine authority, unprofitable, burden- 
 some, or savouring of popery; and the wor- 
 ship and government of the church were re- 
 duced to the primitive standard of Scriptural 
 
56 THE LIFE OF 
 
 simplicity. The influence of Knox, in mo- 
 delling and regulating ecclesiastical affairs in 
 Scotland, is universally admitted; but it has 
 been alleged, that while he officiated in the 
 English church, he was entirely pleased with 
 its order and institutions, and that his preju- 
 dice against it was imbibed during his resi- 
 dence at Geneva. This statement is inaccu- 
 rate. It is true, his objections to the English 
 liturgy were increased and strengthened by 
 his residence on the continent; but it is cer- 
 tain, that they existed before that time. His 
 judgment respecting ecclesiastical government 
 and discipline, were nurtured during that pe- 
 riod, but his radical sentiments on these heads, 
 were formed long before he ever saw Calvin, 
 or had anv intercourse with foreign reformers. 
 As early as the year 1547, Knox taught at 
 St. Andrew's, that no mortal man could be the 
 head of the church, and that there were no 
 true bishops, but such as preached personally 
 without a substitute; that in religion, men are 
 bound to regulate themselves by divine laws; 
 and that the sacrament ought to be adminis- 
 tered exactly according to the institution and 
 example of Christ. And in a solemn disputa- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 57 
 
 tlon in that place, of which an account has 
 been given, he maintained that the church has 
 no authority to devise ceremonies and rites. 
 The same position he also defended at New- 
 castle in 1550, and in his appearance before 
 the council in London. It was impossible 
 that the English Church in any of the shapes 
 which it assumed, could stand the test of these 
 principles. The ecclesiastical supremacy, the 
 various orders and dependencies of the hier- 
 archy, crossing in baptism, and kneeling in the 
 eucharist, with other ceremonies; the theatri- 
 cal dress, the mimical gestures, the vain repe- 
 titions used in religious service, were all cash- 
 iered and repudiated by the cardinal principle 
 to which he adhered, that in the Church of 
 Christ, and especially in the acts of worship, 
 every thing ought to be arranged and con- 
 ducted, not by the pleasure and appointment 
 of men, but by the dictates of inspired wisdom 
 and authority. Yet he rejoiced in the pro- 
 gress of the reformation in England, and espe- 
 cially in the liberty which was given to preach 
 the pure word of God throughout that exten- 
 sive realm; that idolatry and gross supersti- 
 tion were suppressed, and that the rulers were 
 
 6* 
 
58 THE LIFE OP 
 
 disposed to support the reformation which had 
 been commenced, and even to carry it further 
 than had been done. And on account of the 
 extreme paucity of evangelical preachers, when 
 the harvest was so extensive, he willingly la- 
 boured under the direction of the council, and 
 for the sake of assisting the men who were 
 striving to suppress popery and to introduce 
 the Reformation, he acquiesced in the authority 
 exercised by the bishops, in the places where 
 he was appointed to preach. But he never 
 could be induced to contradict or conceal his 
 decided sentiments; and he cautiously avoided 
 coming under any engagements, by which he 
 would have approved what he deemed unlaw- 
 ful, or injurious to the interests of religion. 
 Upon these principles he never submitted to 
 the unlimited use of the liturgy during his re- 
 sidence in England; declined to accept of a 
 valuable living in London, and finally refused 
 the offer of a bishopric. Among other things 
 which he censured in the English ecclesiasti- 
 cal establishment, was the continuing to em- 
 ploy so many ignorant and incompetent priests, 
 who had been accustomed to nothing but say- 
 ing mass and singing the litany; the general 
 
JOHN KNOX. 59 
 
 substitution of the reading of the homilies, the 
 mumbling of prayers, or the chaunting of 
 matins, and even-song in the place of preach- 
 ing. He also objected to the formal celebra- 
 tion of the sacraments, unaccompanied with 
 instructions to the people; the scandalous pre- 
 valence of pluralities, and the total want of 
 ecclesiastical discipline. He was of opinion, 
 that the clergy ought not to be entangled and 
 diverted from the duties of their office by 
 secular employments, and thought that the 
 bishops ought to lay aside their civil titles and 
 dignities; that the bishoprics should be divi- 
 ded, so that in every city or large town there 
 might be placed a godly and learned man, 
 with others joined with him for the manage- 
 ment of ecclesiastical affairs; and that schools 
 for the education of youth should be univer- 
 sally erected through the nation. 
 
 Nor did the principal persons, who were 
 active in effecting the English reformation, 
 differ widely from Knox in these sentiments, 
 although they might not have the same con- 
 viction of their importance, and the expe- 
 diency of reducing them to practice. It 
 would be a great mistake to suppose that they 
 
60 THE LIFE OP 
 
 were men of the same principles and temper 
 with many of their successors: or that they 
 were satisfied with the extent to which they 
 had carried the reformation of the English 
 Church, or that they regarded her as a paragon 
 and perfect pattern to other churches. They 
 were strangers to those extravagant and illi- 
 beral notions which were afterwards adopted 
 by the fond admirers of the hierarchy and 
 liturgy. They would have laughed at the 
 man who should have said, the ceremonies 
 constituted " the beauties of holiness,'^ or that 
 the imposition of the hands of a bishop was 
 essential to the validity of ordination. They 
 would not have owned that man as a Protes- 
 tant, who should have ventured to insinuate, 
 that where this was wanting there was no 
 Christian ministry, no ordinances, no church, 
 and perhaps no salvation. Many things their 
 successors have applauded, they only tolera- 
 ted; and they would have rejoiced if the cir- 
 cumstances of their times would have per- 
 mitted them to introduce alterations, which 
 have since been cried down as puritanical 
 innovations. There is sufficient evidence to 
 authorize the assertion, that if the first English 
 
JOHN KNOX. 61 
 
 reformers had been left to their own choice, 
 they would have brought the government and 
 worship of the Church of England nearly to 
 the pattern of the other reformed churches. 
 Such, in particular, was the earnest wish of 
 Edward VI., a prince, who besides his other 
 rare qualities^ had an unfeigned reverence for 
 the word of God, and a disposition to comply 
 with its prescriptions, in preference to custom 
 and established usages; who uniformly shov/ed 
 himself inclined to give relief to his conscien- 
 tious subjects, and sincerely bent on promoting 
 the union of all the friends of the reformed 
 religion at home and abroad. Had his life 
 been spared, there is every reason to think 
 that he would have accomplished the rectifica- 
 tion of the evils in the English Church, which 
 the most steady and enlightened Protestants 
 have lamented. 
 
 During the time that Knox was in London, 
 he had full opportunity of observing the state 
 of the court; and the observations which he 
 made, filled his mind with the most anxious 
 forebodings. Of the piety and sincerity of 
 the young King, he entertained not the small- 
 est doubt. Personal acquaintance heightened 
 
62 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the idea which he had formed of his character 
 from report, and enabled him to add his testi- 
 mony to the tribute of praise, which all who 
 knew the prince have so cheerfully paid to 
 his uncommon endowments and virtues. But 
 the principal courtiers, by whom he was at 
 that time surrounded, were persons of a very 
 different description ; and gave proofs, too 
 unequivocal to be mistaken, of indifference to 
 all religion, and readiness to fall in with and 
 forward the re-establishment of the ancient 
 superstition, whenever a change of rulers 
 might render such a course expedient. The 
 royal chaplains, however, were men of a very 
 different stamp from those who have usually 
 occupied that office, in the courts of princes. 
 They were no time-serving, supple, smooth- 
 tongued parasites. They were not afraid of 
 wounding the delicate ears of their royal and 
 noble auditors, by denouncing the vices which 
 they committed, and the judgments of hea- 
 ven to which they exposed themselves. The 
 freedom used by the venerable Latimer, is 
 well known from his printed^sermons, which, 
 for their humility, honesty, artless simplicity, 
 native humour, and genuine pictures of the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 63 
 
 manners of the age, continue still to be read 
 with interest. 
 
 Grindal, Lever, and Bradford, who were 
 superior to him in learning, evinced the same 
 fidelity and courage. They censured the am- 
 bition, avarice, luxury, oppression, and irreli- 
 gion, which reigned in the court. As long as 
 their sovereign was able to give personal 
 attendance on their sermons, the preachers 
 were treated with exterior decency, but after 
 he was confined to his chamber, the resentment 
 of the courtiers vented itself openly, in the 
 most contumelious speeches, and' insolent be- 
 haviour. From the character of Knox, no one 
 can doubt, that he was not behind his brethren 
 in the boldness of his discourses, and the 
 sharpness of his rebukes. Indeed, we have 
 convincing evidence of it in the last sermon 
 which he preached in the presence of the 
 court. 
 
 On the 6th of July, 1553, that event occurred, 
 which the pious had for some time feared, and 
 which, for a time, seemed to extinguish the 
 lamp of truth in England. On that day, 
 Edward the VI., breathed his last, to the un- 
 speakable grief of all the lovers of learning, 
 
64 THE LIFE OF 
 
 virtue, and evangelical piety. A black cloud 
 now spread over England, which, after hover- 
 ing awhile, burst into a dreadful hurricane, 
 and raged during five years with the most 
 destructive fury! 
 
 Knox was at this time in London, and receiv- 
 ed the afflicting tidings with becoming fortitude 
 and resignation to the sovereign will of heaven. 
 The event did not come upon him unprepared; 
 for a considerable time he had anticipated it, 
 and foresaw its probable consequences. The 
 prospect had produced the keenest anguish in 
 his breast, and had often drawn tears from his 
 eyes. He had frequently introduced the sub- 
 ject into his public discourses, and into his 
 confidential conversations with his friends. 
 He remained in London until the 9th of July, 
 when Mary was proclaimed queen, only nine 
 days after the same ceremony had been per- 
 formed in that city, for the amiable and 
 accomplished, but unfortunate, Jane Gray. 
 
 Knox felt strong indignation at the demon- 
 strations of joy, given by the inhabitants of 
 London, and could not refrain from publicly 
 testifying his displeasure, in his sermons, and 
 warning the people of the approaching cala- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 55 
 
 mities. Very soon, however, he seems to 
 have withdrawn from London, and to have 
 retired to the north; being justly apprehensive 
 of the measures which would be pursued by 
 the new government. 
 
 To induce the Protestants to submit peace- 
 ably to her government, Mary amused them, 
 for some time, with proclamations, in which 
 she promised to do no violence to their con- 
 sciences. The Protestant ministers thought 
 it their duty to improve this favourable respite; 
 and Knox was induced to return again to 
 the south and resume his labours. While 
 he itinerated through Buckinghamshire, his 
 preaching was attended by large audiences, 
 which his popularity, and the alarming crisis, 
 drew together. And in no place was his 
 preaching more eagerly heard, than at Amer- 
 sham, a borough formerly noted for the general 
 reception of the doctrines of Wickliffe, the 
 precursor of the reformation in England, and 
 from which the seed sown by his followers 
 had never been altogether eradicated. Where- 
 ever he preached, he earnestly exhorted the 
 people to repentance, under the threatening 
 tokens of divine displeasure, and to a steady 
 
 7 
 
66 THE LIFE OF 
 
 adherence to the faith which they had em- 
 braced. After preaching for some time in 
 Buckinghamshire and Kent, Knox returned 
 to London, where he lodged in the houses 
 of a Mr. Locke and a Mr. Hickman, two 
 respectable merchants of his acquaintance. 
 Thence he proceeded to Berwick, where was 
 the residence of Miss Bowes, with whom it 
 was judged proper now to consummate the 
 union which had been long contemplated. 
 But here he was subjected to a new trial. 
 Strong opposition was made to the marriage 
 by Mr. Bowes, the father of the young lady. 
 This has commonly been attributed to family 
 pride; but was probably influenced also by 
 religious considerations. Still, however, the 
 marriage took place ; and Mrs. Bowes, for 
 whom he entertained a high esteem, and his 
 wife, were very anxious for him to settle 
 in Berwick, or its vicinity, where it was 
 thought he might be permitted to reside 
 peaceably, though in a more private way, than 
 formerly. But for this some pecuniary pro- 
 vision would be necessary, for since the 
 accession of queen Mary, his allowance from 
 the government had been stopped. Indeed 
 
JOHN KNOX. 67 
 
 he had received no part of his salary for the 
 last twelve months. His wife's relations were 
 abundantly able to give him a sujfficient esta- 
 blishment, but their dissatisfaction with the 
 marriage rendered them averse. By the im- 
 portunity of his mother-in-law, he was induced 
 to solicit the patronage of Sir Robert Bowes, 
 of London, who was the uncle of his wife, but in 
 this application he was disappointed; for, as 
 appears by a letter to his mother, giving an 
 account of this matter, he says, " You shall 
 understand, that this 6th of November, I spake 
 with Sir Robert Bowes, on the matter you 
 know, according to your request, whose dis- 
 dainful, yea, despiteful, words have so pierced 
 my heart, that my life is bitter unto me. I 
 bear a good countenance with a sore troubled 
 heart; while he that ought to consider matters 
 with a deep judgment, is become not only a 
 despiser, but a taunter of God's messengers. 
 God be merciful unto him. Among other, 
 his most unpleasing words, while that I was 
 about to declare my part in the whole matter, 
 he said, ' away with your rhetorical reasons, 
 for I will not be persuaded by them.' God 
 knows, I did use no rhetoric or coloured speech. 
 
68 THE LIFE OF 
 
 but would have spoken the truth, and that in 
 a most simple manner. I am not a good 
 orator in my own cause. But what he would 
 not be content to hear of me. God shall declare 
 unto him, one day, to his displeasure, unless 
 he repent. It is supposed, that all the matter 
 comes by you and me. I pray God that your 
 conscience were quiet and at peace, and I 
 regard not what country consumes this my 
 wicked carcass. And were it not that no 
 man's unthankfulness shall move me, (God 
 supporting my infirmity,) to cease to do profit 
 unto Christ's congregation, those days should 
 be but few that England would give me 
 bread. And I fear that, when all is done, I 
 shall be driven to that end; for I cannot abide 
 the disdainful hatred of those of whom not 
 only I thought I might crave kindness, but 
 also to whom God hath been by me more 
 liberal, than they be thankful," &c. 
 
 We find, in another letter to the same per- 
 son, the same indication of strong, indignant 
 feeling, here manifested. These extracts show 
 the mind of the writer, more clearly than the 
 strongest description. We see here the quick 
 sensibility of his temper, the keenness of his 
 
JOHN KNOX. 69 
 
 feelings, and his pride and independence of 
 spirit, struggling with afifection to his relations, 
 and a sense of duty. 
 
 About the end of November, he returned 
 from the south to Newcastle. By this time, 
 the parliament had repealed all the laws in 
 favour of the Reformation, but indulgence was 
 given to attend on Protestant worship, until 
 December. After this time, they were thrown 
 out of the protection of the law, and exposed 
 to all the penalties decreed against heretics. 
 Already many of the bishops and clergy were 
 committed to prison; others escaped beyond 
 sea. Knox, however, could not -prevail on 
 himself to flee, or to desist from preaching. 
 Three days after the expiration of the time 
 of indulgence, he writes to one, " I cannot 
 answer your places of Scripture, nor yet write 
 the exposition of the 6th Psalm, for every day 
 of this week must I preach, if this wicked 
 carcass will permit.^' 
 
 His enemies had now the most favourable 
 opportunity of accomplishing their designs 
 against him, as the government was as favour- 
 able to them as they could desire, and they 
 were not backward in availing themselves of 
 
70 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the opportunity. At the close of December, 
 1553, or beginning of January 1554, his ser- 
 vant, whom he had sent to convey letters to 
 his wife, and her mother, was seized and the 
 letters taken from him, in the expectation of 
 finding in them some ground of accusation, 
 but they contained only pious exhortation, &c. 
 He now set out with the view of visiting his 
 friends at Berwick, accompanied by some of 
 his w^ife's relations, who believing that he was 
 in imminent danger, prevailed on him, but 
 strongly against his own inclination, to defer 
 going to Berwick, and seek a safe retreat on 
 the coast. From this place he wrote to his 
 wife and mother, informing them of the rea- 
 sons of his absconding, and the little prospect, 
 which he had at that time of seeing them. 
 
 " His brethren," he said, '^ had partly by 
 admonition, and partly by tears, compelled 
 him to obey, somewhat contrary to his own 
 mind, " for never could he die in a more 
 honest quarrel, than by suffering as a witness 
 for that truth of which God had made him a 
 messenger." Still he promised to yield to the 
 voice of his brethren, and give place to the 
 rage and fury of Satan, for a time. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 71 
 
 Having ascertained that the apprehensions 
 of his friends were too well founded, and that 
 he could not elude the pursuit of his enemies, 
 if he remained in England, he procured a 
 vessel, which on the 2Sth of January landed 
 him safely in Dieppe, a port of Normandy in 
 France. 
 
 PERIOD IV. 
 
 FROM HIS DEPAr^TURE FROM ENGLAND, TO HIS INVITATION TO 
 SCOTLAND, BY THE PROTESTANT NOBILITY, IN 1557. 
 
 The flight of Knox from the scene of danger 
 and persecution, in England, though in con- 
 formity with the direction of Christ, to his 
 disciples, ** when they persecute you in one 
 city, flee ye to another ;" yet upon reflexion, 
 was far from being satisfactory to his own 
 mind; especially when he thought upon the 
 case of his imprisoned and persecuted breth- 
 ren, whom he had left to bear the violence of 
 the bursting storm. In a letter to Mrs. 
 Bowes, he expresses his feelings in strong 
 language, and mingled with evident regret for 
 
72 'i'HE LIFE OF 
 
 the course which he, in compliance with the 
 urgent importunity of his friends, had been 
 induced to pursue. " Some will ask," says 
 he in this letter, *^ why then did I flee? As- 
 suredly, I cannot tell. But of one thing I am 
 sure, the fear of death was not the cause of 
 my fleeing. I trust that one cause hath been, 
 to let me see with my corporal eyes, that all 
 had not a true heart to Christ Jesus, that in 
 the day of rest and peace, bare a fair face. 
 But my fleeing is no matter; by God's grace 
 I may come to battle before that all the con- 
 flict be ended. And, haste the time, Lord! 
 at thy good pleasure, that once again my 
 tongue may praise thy holy name before the 
 congregation, if it were in the very hour of 
 death.'' — " And albeit, that I have, in the be- 
 ginning, appeared to play the faint-hearted 
 and feeble soldier; yet my prayer is, that I 
 may be restored to the battle again. And 
 blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, I am not left so bare without comfort, 
 but my hope is to attain such mercy, that if a 
 short end be not made of all my miseries, by 
 final death, which were to me no small ad- 
 vantage, that yet by him, who never despiseth 
 
JOHN KNOX. 73 
 
 the sobs of Ihe sore afflicted, I shall be so en- 
 couraged to fight, that England and Scotland 
 shall both know, that I am ready to suffer 
 more than either poverty or exile, for the 
 possession of that doctrine, and that heavenly 
 religion, whereof it has pleased his merciful 
 providence, to make me, among others, a 
 simple soldier, and witness- bearer, unto men." 
 
 During his retirement at Dieppe, he em- 
 ployed his time, in entering into a strict scru- 
 tiny and solemn examination of his past con- 
 duct, the result of which he has, with many 
 expressions of humility and penitence, on 
 account of his many deficiencies, recorded in 
 his private papers. His deepest contrition 
 seems to have been, on account of a want of 
 sufficient diligence and fidelity in preaching 
 the precious Gospel, which had been commit- 
 ted to him as a minister of Jesus Christ. 
 
 He was also occupied, during this leisure, 
 in writing suitable advices and exhortations to 
 his friends, whom he could no longer instruct 
 by his sermons and conversation. Among 
 these writings was an exposition of the 6th 
 Psalm, which at the request of Mrs. Bowes, 
 he had begun in England; and an " Address to 
 
74 THE LIFE OF 
 
 those in England among whom he had been 
 employed as a preacher." The main object 
 of this " address'^ was^, to warn the people, 
 who professed the reformed religion, against 
 defection from the truth, and against giving 
 countenance to the idolatrous worship now 
 restored among them. The conclusion is a 
 most impressive and eloquent exhortation, in 
 which he appeals to their consciences, their 
 hopes, their fears, their feelings, and in which 
 he adjures them, by all that is sacred and dear 
 to them, as men, as parents, and as Christians, 
 not to draw back from their good profession, 
 and plunge themselves and their posterity, 
 into the gulf of ignorance and idolatry. 
 
 This letter cannot but appear remarkable, 
 when the circumstances of the author are 
 duly considered. He was a forlorn exile in a 
 strange country, without a single acquaintance, 
 and ignorant where he should find a place of 
 abode, or the means of subsistence. 
 
 On the last day of February, 1554, Knox set 
 out from Dieppe, like the Hebrew patriarch 
 of old, not knowing whither he went; and, 
 committing his way to God, travelled through 
 France and came to Switzerland. A corres- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 75 
 
 pondence had been kept up between some of 
 the English Reformers, and some of the most 
 noted divines of the Helvetic church. The 
 latter had already heard, with the deepest sor- 
 row, of the recent overthrow of the refor- 
 mation in England. Upon making himself 
 known to them, Knox, with whose character 
 they were not unacquainted, was received in 
 the most cordial manner, and treated with the 
 kindest Christian hospitality. 
 
 After visiting the churches of Switzerland, 
 and conferring with the learned Reformers of 
 that country, about the state of affairs in Eng- 
 land, he returned in the month of May to 
 Dieppe, that he might receive intelligence 
 from England; and these visits he frequently 
 repeated, as long as he resided on the conti- 
 nent. 
 
 The effect produced on the susceptible mind 
 of Knox, by the kind and hospitable treatment 
 which he experienced from his Swiss brethren, 
 and the sweet Christian communion which he 
 held with them, after a season so forlorn and 
 melancholy, as that which he went through, 
 after leaving first his native country, will be 
 best understood by a short extract from one 
 
76 THE LIFE OF 
 
 of his letters. For having discoursed to his 
 afflicted brethren, to whom the letter was 
 addressed, respecting the situation of the dis- 
 ciples during that day which their Lord lay in 
 the grave, and the sudden transition which 
 they experienced from the depth of sorrow to 
 the summit of joy, upon the re-appearance of 
 their Master, he adds, " The remembrance, 
 thereof, is unto my heart great matter of con- 
 solation. For yet my good hope is, that, one 
 day or other, Christ Jesus that now is crucified 
 in England, shall rise again in despite of his 
 enemies, and shall appear to his weak and sore 
 troubled disciples; for yet some he hath in 
 that wretched and miserable realm, to whom 
 he shall say, 'Peace be unto you; it is I, be 
 not afraid.' " 
 
 Knox was also greatly refreshed by hearing 
 of the invincible constancy of his mother-in- 
 law, in adhering to the Protestant faith and 
 profession ; notwithstanding all the urgent 
 importunities of her husband, to induce her to 
 comply with the Roman Catholic religion. 
 
 At this time, he entertained some thoughts 
 of visiting Berwick; but he was dissuaded by 
 his friends, as it could not have been done 
 
JOHN KNOX. 77 
 
 without the imminent danger of his life, and 
 no good for the suffering church could have 
 been accomplished by such a visit. 
 
 On his return from Dieppe to Switzerland, 
 Knox revisited Geneva, and for the first time 
 became acquainted with Calvin; and they two 
 being of perfectly congenial minds, and agreed 
 in religious opinion, an intimate friendship 
 between them soon sprung up. They were 
 also nearly of the same age; and, in the pro- 
 minent traits of their characters there was a 
 striking resemblance. The Genevan reformer 
 was highly pleased with the piety and talents 
 of Knox, who, in his turn, entertained a higher 
 esteem and veneration for Calvin, than for 
 any other reformer. As Geneva furnished 
 many advantages for study, Knox determined 
 to make it the chief place of his residence 
 during his exile; especially, as he approved 
 highly of the religious order established there. 
 
 Still, however, his thoughts could not be 
 weaned from his own afflicted country; there- 
 fore, in July, he made another journey to 
 Dieppe, and there received the most distress- 
 ing intelligence, of the increased severities of 
 the government against all Protestants; and, 
 
 8 
 
78 THE LIFE OF 
 
 what wounded him more deeply, the apostasy . 
 of many who had been under his ministry. 
 While under the painful impressions produced 
 by this state of things, he composed his *^ Jid- 
 nionition to England^^ which was published 
 about the end of this year. The exasperation 
 of his ardent spirit, when he wrote this address, 
 will account for the severity of the language, 
 which has been so much used to his discredit, 
 by his enemies. We undertake not to justify 
 all the vehemence and bitterness which, on 
 this occasion, our reformer poured forth against 
 the civil persecutors of the unoffending chil- 
 dren of God. But, it may be asked, is there 
 no apology for his severity to be found in the 
 characters of the persons against whom he 
 wrote ? and in the state of his own feelings, 
 lacerated, not by personal sufferings, but by 
 sympathy with his persecuted brethren, who 
 were thrown into prisons by their inhuman 
 countrymen, " as sheep for the slaughter," to 
 be brought forth and barbarously immolated 
 to appease the Roman Moloch ? What terms 
 could be too strong for stigmatizing the exe- 
 crable system of persecution, coolly projected, 
 by the dissembling, vindictive Gardiner, the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 79 
 
 brutal barbarity of the bloody Bonner, and the 
 unrelenting, insatiable cruelty of Mary ? — 
 who, having extinguished the feelings of hu- 
 manity, and divested herself of the tenderness 
 which characterizes her sex, issued orders for 
 the murder of her subjects, until her own 
 husband, bigotted and unfeeling as he was 
 turned with disgust from the spectacle; and 
 who continued to urge to fresh severities, the 
 willing instruments of her cruelty, after they 
 were sated with blood. 
 
 Knox returned to Geneva, and applied him- 
 self to study with all the ardour of youth; 
 although his age now bordered on fifty. It 
 was during this period that he seems to have 
 acquired a competent knowledge of the Hebrew 
 language, of which he was before ignorant. 
 No doubt his expenses, during his exile, were 
 as small as frugality of living could make them; 
 but still it may reasonably be inquired, how 
 did he subsist? His mother-in-law, by reason 
 of the stern opposition of her husband, had it 
 in her power to afford him no assistance, and 
 he had come away with very small funds, 
 which his friends were able to put into his 
 hands; and his independent spirit would not 
 
80 THE LIFE OF 
 
 permit him to be burdensome to strangers, 
 who had kindly received him. It appears 
 from his letters, that remittances were made 
 to him from particular friends, in England 
 and Scotland, during his residence on the con- 
 tinent. 
 
 The persecution having become very hot in 
 England, many learned Protestants sought 
 safety by retreating to the continent. It was 
 computed that, towards the close of the year 
 1554, eight hundred learned and persecuted 
 Englishmen had taken refuge in various cities, 
 where they were, in general, received with 
 Christian hospitality. The places to which 
 the most of them resorted, and where they 
 obtained a settlement, were Zurich, Basle, 
 Geneva, Arrow, Embden, Wezel, Strasburg, 
 Duysburg, and Frankfort. 
 
 Frankfort on the Maine, a rich imperial city, 
 had early embraced the Reformation, and be- 
 friended Protestant refugees from all countries, 
 as far as this could be done without coming to 
 an open breach with the emperor, who watched 
 their conduct with a jealous eye. Already 
 there was a church of French Protestants 
 there; and on the 14th of July, 1554, the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 8X 
 
 English exiles obtained from the magistrates 
 the joint use of the place of worship allotted 
 to the French, with liberty to perform worship 
 in their own language. This was granted, 
 upon condition that they should conform, in 
 their public worship, as nearly as possible, to 
 the forms of the French Church. The offer 
 was gratefully accepted by the English, and it 
 was agreed, among themselves, that in the 
 use of the liturgy, they would omit the litany, 
 the audible responses, the surplice, and other 
 ceremonies; which, to the reformed churches 
 of the continent, could not but appear strange. 
 Having adopted their measures harmoniously, 
 and elected temporary deacons, they elected 
 also a pastor, and agreed upon some rules of 
 discipline. They then wrote a circular letter 
 to their brethren, scattered in different places, 
 to come to Frankfort, and join them in their 
 privileges, and unite their prayers for the af- 
 flicted Church of England. When the election 
 of pastors took place, Knox was one of those 
 chosen, who received information of his ap- 
 pointment, by a fraternal epistle, or call, in 
 which they say, " Whereupon, we, assembled 
 together in the Holy Ghost, (we hope,) have, 
 
 8* 
 
82 THE LIFE OF 
 
 with one voice and consent, chosen you to be 
 one of the ministers of our congregation here, 
 to preach unto us the most lively word of God, 
 according to the gift that God had given you; 
 forasmuch as we have here, through the mer- 
 ciful goodness of God, a church to be congre- 
 gated together in the name of Christ, and be 
 all of one body, one nation, tongue, and 
 country. And at this present having need of 
 such a one as you, we do desire you, and also 
 require you, in the name of God, not to deny 
 us, nor to refuse this our request; but that you 
 will aid, keep, and assist us, with your presence 
 in this our good and godly enterprise, which 
 we have taken in hand, to the glory of God, 
 and profit of his congregation, and the poor 
 sheep of Christ scattered abroad, who with your, 
 and like presences, would come hither and be 
 of one fold, whereas now they wander abroad 
 as lost sheep, without any guide. We mis- 
 trust not that you will joyfully accept this call. 
 Fare ye well. From Frankfort, this 24th of 
 September." This call was subscribed by 
 John Bale and twenty other persons. 
 
 Knox was averse to undertake this charge, 
 either from an unwillingness to relinquish his 
 
- JOHN KNOX. 83 
 
 studies at Geneva, or, because he apprehended 
 difficulties in the congregation at Frankfort. 
 By the persuasion of Calvin, however, he was 
 induced to comply with the call, and repairing 
 to Frankfort in November, commenced his 
 ministry with the universal consent and ap- 
 probation of the congregation. But before he 
 arrived the seeds of dissension were already 
 sown in the congregation; for the exiles at 
 Zurich, in answer to the circular received from 
 Frankfort, signified that they would not come 
 unless they received security that the worship 
 of God should be conducted, exactly, accord- 
 ing to the forms u«ed in England, last set forth 
 by King Edward. The brethren at Frank- 
 fort replied, that they had obtained liberty of 
 a plan of worship, upon condition of conform- 
 ing, as nearly as possible, to the service of the 
 French church, and that there was a number 
 of things in the English service book which 
 would be offensive to the Protestants, among 
 whom they resided, and which had been the 
 occasion of scruple to conscientious men at 
 home. Other things they alleged in regard to 
 the unessential nature of the ceremonies laid 
 aside; but their answer was not satisfactory to 
 
84 THE LIFE OP 
 
 the brethren at Zurich; and by letters to the 
 exiles at Strasburg, they endeavoured to bring 
 them to the sanie sentiments; and, moreover, 
 they fomented divisions in the congregation at 
 Frankfort. 
 
 Knox finding, on his arrival, that the con- 
 gregation was divided into two parties, endea- 
 voured to mediate between them, and to avoid 
 every thing which tended to widen or continue 
 the breach. Although the congregation had 
 adopted the Genevan form of administering 
 the sacraments, he would not proceed until he 
 had consulted the brethren residing in other 
 places; but, at the same time plainly signified, 
 that he could not administer the Lord's Sup- 
 per agreeably to the English liturgy. He 
 requested, therefore, that if he might not be 
 permitted to perform the service in a manner 
 more consonant to Scripture, some other per- 
 son might be employed in this duty, and he 
 would willingly confine himself to preaching. 
 But if neither of these could be granted, he 
 besought them to release him altogether from 
 his charge. To this they would by no means 
 consent. 
 
 Knox and some others, having been ap- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 85 
 
 pointed to draw up a summary of the book of 
 Common Prayer, they sent it to Calvin for 
 his opinion, and requesting his advice in the 
 whole matter. Calvin wrote them a letter, 
 dated January 20, 1555. He lamented their 
 unseemly contentions; said, that he had al- 
 ways recommended moderation respecting 
 ceremonies; censured those who would con- 
 sent to no change of old customs. He said, 
 that in the English liturgy he found many 
 tolerable fooleries, (tolerabiles ineptias,) i. e. 
 things which might be tolerated in the begin- 
 ning of a reformation, but ought afterwards to 
 be removed; and he thought, that the present 
 condition of the English warranted them to 
 attempt this, and to agree upon an order more 
 conducive to edification; and that for his part 
 he could not understand what those meant, who 
 discovered such fondness for popish dregs. 
 
 This letter being read to the congregation, 
 had the effect of repressing the keenest of those 
 who urged the unlimited use of the liturgy; 
 and a committee was appointed to draw up a 
 form, which might accommodate all differen- 
 ces. They accordingly brought in a form, in 
 which some things were taken from the Eng- 
 
86 THE LIFE OF 
 
 lish liturgy, and others addecl, which was to 
 continue in force until the next April; and if, 
 in the meantime, any dispute arose, it should 
 be referred to five of the most celebrated for- 
 eign divines. This agreement was subscribed 
 by the whole congregation, and thanks were 
 offered to God for this amicable adjustment of 
 their dissensions. 
 
 But this peace was of short duration; for on 
 the 13th of March, Dr. Cox, who had been 
 preceptor to Edward VI., arrived at Frankfort 
 from England, vi^ith some others in his com- 
 pany. The very first time these persons at- 
 tended public worship, they violated the agree- 
 ment into which the congregation had entered, 
 by answering aloud after the minister in the 
 time of divine service. And v/hen admon- 
 ished by some, they answered, that they 
 would do as they had done in England; and 
 they would have the face of an English church. 
 On the following Sabbath, one of them intru- 
 ded himself into the pulpit, without the con- 
 sent of the pastors or the congregation, and 
 read the litany; Cox, and the other accom- 
 plices, echoing the responses. 
 
 Such an outrage on all decency and order, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 87 
 
 and insult to the body, could not be passed 
 over in silence. It was Knox's turn to offici- 
 ate in the afternoon, and in the regular course 
 of lecturing on Genesis, he had come to the 
 behaviour of Ham to his father, Noah, as he 
 lay exposed in the tent. Having taken occa- 
 sion to speak of the infirmities of brethren 
 which ought to be concealed, he observed that 
 there were other things, which, as tending to 
 the dishonour of God and the disturbance of 
 his church, ought to be disclosed and publicly 
 rebuked. He then adverted to the dissension 
 which had existed, and which it had cost so 
 much pains to reconcile, and spoke of the joy 
 produced in all, by the happy agreement 
 which had taken place, but which had that 
 day, been flagrantly violated. This, he said, 
 it became not the proudest of them to have 
 attempted: that, nothing which was destitute 
 of a divine warrant, ought to be obtruded upon 
 any Christian church. In that book, for 
 which some entertained such an overweening 
 fondness, he would undertake to prove pub- 
 licly, that there were things imperfect, im- 
 pure, and superstitious; and if any would go 
 about to burden a free congregation with such 
 
88 THE LIFE OF 
 
 things, he would not fail, as often as he occu- 
 pied that place, (provided his text afforded 
 occasion,) to oppose their design. He then 
 observed, that he believed that slackness in 
 reforming religion, when time and opportunity 
 offered, was one cause of the divine displeasure 
 against England; and adverted to the trouble 
 which Hooper had suffered for refusing some 
 of the ceremonies. He adverted also, to the 
 want of discipline, and the shameful pluralities 
 tolerated in the English Church. 
 
 This reproof, as might be supposed gave 
 offence to the party of Cox, and a meeting of 
 the congregation was called in consequence of 
 it ; but when the people came together, noth- 
 ing was said about the sermon, but Cox and 
 his friends demanded to be enrolled among 
 the members of the congregation. This many 
 objected to, but Knox showed his magnani- 
 mity and moderation, by advocating their 
 motion, although he knew that they had noth- 
 ing less in view, than to exclude him from the 
 pulpit. But he trusted that the justice of his 
 cause would certainly disappoint them, and on 
 the occasion, addressed them in the following 
 words: " I know that your earnest desire to 
 
JOHN KNOX. 89 
 
 be received at this instant, within the number 
 of the congregation, is, that by the multitude 
 of your voices, ye may overthrow my cause ; 
 howbeit, the matter is so evident, ye shall not 
 be able to do it. I fear not your judgment, 
 and therefore do require, that ye might be ad- 
 mitted." But he was mistaken, for no sooner 
 were they admitted, and had gained a majo- 
 rity of votes in the congregation, than they 
 discharged him from preaching, and from all 
 interference in the affairs of the congregation. 
 This proceeding was received with indigna- 
 tion by the old congregation, and they made 
 a representation of the case to the magistrates 
 of Frankfort, who after attempting to bring 
 about an accommodation in vain, issued an 
 order, that the worship as used by the French 
 Church, should hereafter be exactly conformed 
 to, as nothing but confusion had ensued since 
 this was relinquished. The Coxian party, 
 pretended a cheerful submission to this order, 
 while they clandestinely concerted means for 
 its overthrow and the restoration of the whole 
 English liturgy. But Knox's influence with 
 the congregation still standing in their way, 
 they determined on a scheme to get rid of 
 
 9 
 
90 THE LIFE OF 
 
 him, the baseness of which cannot be too 
 strongly reprobated. Two of them, with the 
 concurrence of the others, went privately to 
 the magistrates, and accused him oi high trea- 
 son against the emperor of Germany, his son 
 Philip, and queen Mary of England; putting 
 into their hands a book upon which the charge 
 was founded. This was no other than the 
 book already mentioned, entitled '^Admoni- 
 tion to England,^^ and the passage on which 
 the accusation was founded, was one, spoken 
 by him at Amersham in Buckinghamshire, 
 when he heard the rumour of the marriage of 
 Mary, with Philip, the son and heir of Charles 
 V. The words are, " England, England, 
 thou obstinately wilt return unto Egypt, that 
 is, contract confederacy, league, or marriage 
 with such princes as do maintain and advance 
 idolatry, such as the emperor, (who is no less 
 an enemy to Christ, than ever was Nero) if 
 for the pleasure of such princes, thou return 
 to thy old abominations, before used under 
 papistry, then, England, thou shalt be 
 plagued and brought to desolation, by means 
 of those whose favour thou seekest." The 
 other passage related to the cruelties of queen 
 Mary, of England. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 91 
 
 Upon receiving this serious accusation, the 
 magistrates sent for Whittingham, a respectable 
 member of the English congregation, to learn 
 the true character of Knox, who told them, 
 that he was " a learned, grave, and godly 
 man." They then took measures to obtain 
 an exact Latin translation of the passages ; and 
 fearing, lest some report of the matter should 
 come to the emperor's council at Augsburg, 
 they first requested Knox to desist from 
 preaching there, and then desired his friend 
 Whittingham, to advise him privately to depart 
 from Frankfort. At the same time, they did 
 not conceal their abhorrence of the course 
 pursued by his enemies. 
 
 On the 25th of March, Knox delivered a 
 very consolatory discourse to about fifty mem- 
 bers of the congregation, assembled in the 
 evening, at his lodgings ; and the next day, 
 they accompanied him, some distance, on his 
 way, as he departed from Frankfort, and with 
 heavy hearts and many tears, committed him 
 to God ; and thus took their leave of their 
 esteemed pastor. 
 
 Upon retiring from Frankfort, Knox direct- 
 ed his course to Geneva, where he was cordi- 
 
92 THE LIFE OF 
 
 ally welcomed back by Calvin. As Knox 
 had accepted the call to Frankfort very much 
 under the influence of his advice, he felt much 
 hurt at the treatment which he had received ; 
 and in a letter to Dr. Cox, who had written an 
 apologetic epistle to him, he could not conceal 
 his opinion, that Knox had been used in an 
 unbrotherly and unchristian manner. 
 
 In the event, it appeared that Knox had 
 been removed from Frankfort, by Providence, 
 to be employed in a more important field of 
 usefulness. From the time of his leaving his 
 native country, he still entertained the hope of 
 being one day permitted to return thither to 
 preach the Gospel. After the surrender of 
 the castle of St. Andrews, and the banishment 
 of the Protestants, who had taken refuge in it, 
 an irrecoverable blow seemed to have been 
 given to the Reformation in Scotland. The 
 Romish clergy triumphed in their victory, 
 and flattered themselves that they had stifled 
 the voice of opposition. There were still 
 many Protestants, scattered through the king- 
 dom, but they satisfied themselves with re- 
 taining their sentiments, in secret, without 
 exposing their lives to certain destruction, by 
 
JOHN KNOX. 93 
 
 avowing them. An event which threatened 
 the extinction of the Reformation in England, 
 was the means of reviving it in Scotland ; for 
 several of those who fled from the persecution 
 of MarVj took refuge in that country. Tra- 
 velling from place to place, they disseminated 
 the seeds of evangelical doctrine. Among 
 these was William Harlow and John Wil- 
 lock, who afterwards became the chief co- 
 adjutor of Knox, in promoting the Reforma- 
 tion, who entertained the highest esteem and 
 affection for him. Willock was not inferior 
 to Knox in learning ; and although he did not 
 equal him in intrepidity and eloquence, sur- 
 passed him in affability* prudence, and address; 
 by which means he was sometimes able to 
 maintain his station and accomplish his pur- 
 poses, when his colleague could not act with 
 safety or success. He was a native of Scot- 
 land, but having at an early period embraced 
 the Reformation, fled into England. He was 
 afterwards chaplain to the Duke of Suffolk, 
 the father of Lady Jane Grey, and on the ac- 
 cession of Mary, retired into Holland. 
 
 After Knox's return to Geneva, his anxiety 
 to see his wife, and see how matters went in his 
 
 9* 
 
94 THE LIFE OF 
 
 native country, induced him, in despite of all 
 dangers, to sail from Dieppe, in August, 1555, 
 and landed near the borders of England and 
 Scotland. He repaired immediately to Ber- 
 wick, and had the satisfaction of finding his 
 wife and her mother in comfortable circum- 
 stances, and enjoying the comforts of religious 
 society with several individuals in that city; 
 who, like themselves, had not "bowed the 
 knee to the established idolatry." Having re- 
 mained there some time, he went to Edinburg, 
 secretly to visit the Protestants, and after a short 
 stay, to return again to Berwick. The friends 
 of the Reformation were much gratified at see- 
 ing Knox, and were delighted with his evangel- 
 ical discourses delivered in private houses, es- 
 pecially in that of Mr. James Syme, which was 
 the common resort of the friends of the re- 
 formed doctrine. The number who wished to 
 hear him so increased, that he was obliged to 
 address them in successive companies, so, that 
 he was almost unremittingly employed night 
 and day. Among the leading Protestants then 
 in Edinburg, besides Willock, who had return- 
 ed to his native country, were John Erskine of 
 Dun, and William Maitland. Knox, upon his 
 
JOHN KNOX. 95 
 
 arrival in Scotland, found to his great dissatis- 
 faction, that the friends of the Reformation 
 continued to attend on the popish worship, 
 and to be present at the mass. This course, 
 indeed, was ingeniously defended by Maitland, 
 at a meeting held for the discussion of the 
 point; but Knox so clearly demonstrated the 
 evil and unlawfulness of the practice, that all 
 were convinced, and agreed henceforward to 
 abstain from such temporizing conduct. 
 
 At the urgent request of John Erskine, 
 Knox accompanied him to his seat of Dun in 
 Angus, where, for a whole month, he remained 
 preaching the Gospel to the hungry people 
 every day. His sermons were attended by 
 the principal people in the neighbourhood. 
 When he returned to Edinburg he was attend- 
 ed by some of the chief nobility, as Lord 
 Lorn, afterwards Earl of Argyle; Mr. Mar, 
 afterwards Earl of Mar; James Stewart, natu- 
 ral son of James V., afterwards Earl of Mur- 
 ray; the two last of whom Knox lived to see 
 regents of Scotland. These noblemen were 
 highly pleased with the doctrine which he 
 taught. He was conducted by some of his 
 friends to Kyle, the ancient receptacle of the 
 
96 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Scottish Lollards, where he found a number of 
 adherents of the Refornried doctrine. He also 
 preached and dispensed the Lord's Supper in 
 several private houses in the town of Ayr. 
 He was also sent for by the Earl of Glencairn, 
 and preached and administered the Sacrament 
 at his manor of Finlayston, to the Earl, his 
 lady, two sons, and a few friends. Most of 
 the gentlemen of Mearns were adherents of 
 the reformed religion, and did now make a 
 public profession by sitting down at the Lord's 
 Supper; on which occasion they entered into 
 a solemn bond or league, to renounce the 
 popish religion, and to maintain the preaching 
 of the Gospel as Providence should favour 
 them with opportunities. 
 
 For a while these meetings were conducted 
 with so much caution and concealment, that 
 they were not known to the priests; but as 
 the number of hearers increased, it became 
 impracticable to prevent the knowledge of 
 them from transpiring. Interest was made by 
 the bishops for Knox's apprehension, but the 
 Queen Regent discouraged the application. At 
 length, however, the effects of his preaching 
 were so manifest, and the clamour against him 
 
JOHN KNOX. 97 
 
 SO great, that he was summoned to appear be- 
 fore a convention of the clergy in the church 
 of Black Friars in Edinburg. He determined 
 to attend, and with that view came, on the 
 day appointed, accompanied by Erskine of 
 Dun. The clergy had never dreamed of his 
 attendance, and not being assured of the sup- 
 port of the Regent, they pretended some in- 
 formality in the call, and deserted the diet. 
 On the very day on which he had been sum- 
 moned to appear, he preached in the Bishop of 
 Dunkeld's lodging, to a far greater audience 
 than had before attended him in Edinburg. 
 And during the ten following days he preached 
 in the same place, forenoon and afternoon; 
 none of the clergy making the smallest attempt 
 to disturb him. 
 
 About this time the Earl Marishal, at the 
 desire of the Earl of Glencairn, attended one 
 of Knox's evening discourses, and was so 
 much pleased, that he united with the Earl of 
 Glencairn in urging him to write a letter to 
 the Queen Regent, in the hope that she might 
 be induced to protect the reformed preachers. 
 This letter is characteristic of the man, and is 
 preserved, exactly as written, in McCrie^s 
 
98 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Life. But she received it carelessly, and 
 after glancing over it, put it mto the hands of 
 the archbishop of Glasgow with some expres- 
 sion of contempt. 
 
 While Knox was thus employed in Scot- 
 land, he received letters from the English con- 
 gregation at Geneva, stating, that they had 
 made choice of him as one of their pastors, 
 and urging him to come and take the inspec- 
 tion of them. With this call he thought it his 
 duty to comply, and began immediately to 
 prepare for the journey. His wife and mo- 
 ther-in-law had by this time joined him in 
 Edinburg; and the latter, now a widow, re- 
 solved to accompany her daughter to Geneva. 
 Knox after sending them before to Dieppe, 
 once more went round and visited his friends 
 at his several preaching places; and then, in the 
 month of July, 1556, left Scotland, and arri- 
 ving at Dieppe proceeded with his family to Ge- 
 neva, where he had Goodman for his colleague. 
 
 No sooner had Knox left Scotland, than his 
 dastardly enemies renewed their summons, 
 which they had deserted during his presence; 
 and, upon his non-appearance, passed sentence 
 against him, adjudging his body to the flames, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 99 
 
 and his soul to damnation. As his person 
 was out of their reach, they caused his effigy 
 to be ignominiously burnt, at the cross of 
 Edinburg. Against this sentence, he drew up 
 what he called his '' Jijipellation^^ which he 
 afterwards published, with a supplication and 
 exhortation, addressed to the nobility and 
 commonalty of Scotland. 
 
 The doctrines on which he dwelt, in his 
 preaching in Scotland, on this occasion, were, 
 "That there was no other name by which 
 man could be saved but the name of Christ 
 Jesus; that he having, by his own sacrifice, 
 sanctified and. reconciled to God, those who 
 should inherit the promised kingdom, all 
 other sacrifices, which men pretended to ofier 
 for sin, were blasphemous; that all men ought 
 to hate sin, which was so odious in the sight of 
 God, that no other sacrifice could satisfy for it 
 except the death of his Son; that they Ought 
 to magnify their heavenly Father, who did not 
 spare the substance of his glory, but gave him 
 up to sufier the ignominious and cruel death 
 of the cross, for lis; and that those who were 
 washed from their former sins were bound to 
 a new life, fighting against the lusts of the 
 
100 THE LIFE OF 
 
 flesh, and studying to glorify God by good 
 works; that Christ would deny and be ashamed 
 of those, who should deny and be ashamed of 
 him and his works, before a wicked generation; 
 that it was incumbent on those who hoped for 
 everlasting life, to avoid idolatry, superstition, 
 and all vain religion; in short, all worship 
 destitute of the authority of God's word," &c. 
 These were the doctrines which were by his 
 enemies pronounced heretical, and damnable; 
 and, on account of which, they had denounced 
 against him the sentence of death, from which 
 sentence he had appealed to a general council, 
 to be held agreeably to ancient laws and canons; 
 humbly requesting the nobility and commons 
 of Scotland, until such time as their controver- 
 sies were decided, to take him and others 
 accused and persecuted, under their protection. 
 This visit, of our reformer, to his native 
 land, was of unspeakable importance. On this 
 occasion, he laid the foundations of that noble 
 edifice, which he was afterwards instrumental 
 in rearing. Some may blame him for leaving 
 such an interesting field of labour; but he was 
 guided by a wisdom superior to that of man. 
 His absence was now no less conducive to the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 101 
 
 preservation of the cause, than his presence 
 and personal labour, had recently been. Mat- 
 ters were not yet ripe for a general reformation 
 in Scotland; and the clergy would never have 
 suffered so zealous and able a champion of the 
 new doctrines to live in the country. By 
 seasonably retiring, he not only preserved his 
 own life, but averted the storm of persecution 
 from the heads of his brethren. Deprived of 
 their leaders, their enemies became less jealous 
 of them, and they were permitted to carry on 
 their private meetings without observation; 
 by which means they were able to edify and 
 confirm one another in the truth which they 
 had embraced. Before taking his leave, Knox 
 was careful to leave particular instructions for 
 the brethren, which he not only communicated 
 orally, but left in writing, in the form of a letter; 
 in which he warmly recommended the exer- 
 cises of worship and religious instruction to be 
 kept up in every family. And he advised, 
 that those of different families, in the same 
 vicinity, should get together, if possible, once 
 a week; that in these meetings, they should 
 begin with the confession of sin, and invoca- 
 tion of the divine blessing; that a portion of 
 
 10 
 
102 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Scripture should be read, after which liberty 
 might be given, if any brother had a word of 
 exhortation, interpretation, or query, to speak; 
 but this ought to be done with modesty, and a 
 desire to edify, or be edified; multiplication of 
 words perplexed interpretation, and wilfulness 
 in reasoning, to be carefully avoided. He 
 advised that such difficulties as they were 
 unable to solve, they should write down, and 
 submit them to the judgment of the learned. 
 He signified his own readiness to give them 
 advice, and recommended that all their meet- 
 ings should be closed, as well as opened, with 
 prayer. These directions, there is reason to 
 believe, were punctually complied with. This 
 letter, therefore, may be considered as an im- 
 portant document, in the history of the Re- 
 formation in Scotland; and may be read entire 
 in the appendix to M'Crie's History of John 
 Knox. 
 
 Knox reached Geneva before the end of har- 
 vest, and took upon him the charge of the 
 English congregation, residing in that city; 
 among whom he laboured the two following 
 years. This was undoubtedly the most quiet 
 period of his life. In the bosom of his own 
 
JOHN KNOX. 103 
 
 family, he experienced that soothing care to 
 which he had hitherto been a stranger, and 
 which his frequent bodily ailment required. 
 And he had the happiness of administering to 
 a flock who had the strongest affection for him, 
 and the greatest cordiality among themselves. 
 With his colleague, Christopher Goodman, he 
 lived as a brother, and was favoured with the 
 friendship of Calvin, and the other pastors of 
 Geneva. 
 
 So much was Knox pleased with the purity 
 of religion as established in that city, that he 
 warmly recommended it to his religious ac- 
 quaintances in England, as the best Christian 
 asylum to which they could flee. In a letter 
 to his friend Locke, in London, he writes, " In 
 my heart I could wish, yea, and cannot cease 
 to wish, that it might please God, to guide and 
 conduct you to this place, where, I am neither 
 afraid nor ashamed to say, is the most perfect 
 school of Christ that ever was upon earth, since 
 the days of the apostles. In other places I 
 confess Christ to be truly preached; but man- 
 ners and religion to be so sincerely reformed, 
 I have not yet seen in any other place.^' 
 
 But neither the enjoyment of personal ac- 
 
104 THE LIFE OP 
 
 commodations, the pleasures of Christian and 
 literary society, nor the endearments of do- 
 mestic happiness, could subdue our reformer's 
 ruling passion, or change his determination to 
 return to Scotland as soon as an opportunity 
 should offer, for advancing the reformation 
 among his countrymen. In a letter written 
 March 16, 1557, we find him expressing him- 
 self thus: " My own motion and daily prayer 
 is, not only that I may visit you, but also that 
 I may with joy, end my battle among you. 
 And assure yourself of this, that whenever 
 greater numbers among you shall call upon 
 me, than now hath bound me to serve them, 
 by his grace it shall not be fear of punishment, 
 nor of temporal death, that shall impede my 
 coming to you." A certain heroical confi- 
 dence and assurance of ultimate success, have 
 often been displayed by those whom Provi- 
 dence has raised up to achieve great revolutions 
 in the world; by which they have been borne 
 up under discouragements which would have 
 overwhelmed men of ordinary spirits, and em- 
 boldened them to face dangers, from which 
 others would have shrunk appalled. This 
 enthusiastic heroism, often blazed forth in the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 105 
 
 conduct of the great German reformer. Knox 
 possessed no inconsiderable degree of the same 
 spirit. *^ Satan, I confess," says he, in one of 
 his letters, " rageth, but potent is he that pro- 
 mised to be with us in all such enterprises, as 
 we take in hand, at his commandment, for the 
 glory of his name and the maintenance of the 
 true religion. And, therefore, the less fear 
 we any contrary power; yea, in the boldness 
 of our God, we altogether contemn them, be 
 they kings, emperors, men, angels, or devils. 
 For they shall be never able to prevail against 
 the simple truth of God, which we openly 
 profess. By the permission of God, they may 
 appear to prevail against our bodies, but our 
 spirits shall triumph, in despite of Satan." 
 
 Soon after Knox had written the letter, last 
 quoted but one, James Syme, who had been 
 his host, at Edinburg, and James Barron, 
 arrived at Geneva, with a letter from the 
 earl of Glencairn, and lords Lorn, Erskine, 
 and James Stewart, informing him, that those 
 who had professed the Reformed doctrine, re- 
 mained steadfast; that his adversaries were 
 daily losing credit in the nation, and that those 
 who possessed the supreme authority, although 
 
 10* 
 
106 THE LIFE OF 
 
 they had not yet declared themselves friendly, 
 still refrained from persecution ; and inviting 
 him in their own name, and in that of their 
 brethren, to return to Scotland, where he 
 would find them all ready to receive him, and 
 to spend their lives and fortunes in advancing 
 the cause which they had espoused. 
 
 PERIOD V. 
 
 FROM HIS INVITATION INTO SCOTLAND, 1557, TO HIS SETTLK- 
 MENT AS MINISTER OF EDINBURG, UPON THE ESTABLISHMENT 
 OF THE REFORMATION, IN 1560. 
 
 After consultation with Calvin, and laying 
 the whole matter before his congregation, and 
 obtaining their consent to part with him, 
 Knox set ofi* for Dieppe, on his way to Scot- 
 land ; but when he arrived at that place, he 
 received other letters of rather a discouraging 
 nature, informing him that after forwarding 
 the invitation which he had received, some of 
 his friends seemed rather to repent, and that 
 the greater part appeared irresolute and faint- 
 hearted. This intelligence greatly disconcert- 
 ed him, for he had left his family in Geneva, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 107 
 
 unprovided for, and had resigned his pastoral 
 charge into the hands of another. He imme- 
 diately wrote a letter to the noblemen of Scot- 
 land, by whom he had been invited, in which 
 he expostulated with them, in strong and 
 pathetic language, representing to them, the 
 shame and reproach which must necessarily be 
 the consequence of his abandoning his journey, 
 and returning after having advised with the 
 learned and good, and after having so publicly 
 ^•md solemnly taken leave of his friends in 
 Geneva. After forwarding his letters to Scot- 
 land, he determined to spend some time in 
 the interior of France, hoping to receive more 
 favourable accounts from Scotland. The re- 
 formed religion had already been introduced 
 into the kingdom of France, and had already 
 been watered with the blood of many martyrs; 
 but all the violence which had been exercised, 
 had not been able to extirpate it, or prevent it 
 from spreading among all ranks. At this 
 very time, the Protestants of Paris were suf- 
 fering under the effects of one of those massa- 
 cres, which so often disgraced the Roman 
 Catholic religion in that country; and not con- 
 tented with pursuing them in their peaceable 
 
108 THE LIFE OF 
 
 meetings for retired worship, and treating 
 them with great barbarity, in imitation of the 
 Pagan persecutors of the primitive Christians, 
 they invented the foulest calumnies against 
 them: against which the Protestants publish- 
 lished a vindication, or apology, which Knox 
 translated into English, and wrote a preface to 
 accompany it. 
 
 As he passed through France, he preached 
 in several places to the Protestants having ac- 
 quired the French language so perfectly as to 
 be able to preach in it. 
 
 Having received no intelligence, of a fa- 
 vourable kind, from Scotland, Knox judged it 
 expedient to relinquish his journey for the 
 present. This resolution does not accord with 
 the usual firmness of the man ; for the invita- 
 tion of the nobles had not been withdrawn ; 
 but we are not possessed of all the reasons and 
 motives which influenced him on this occa- 
 sion. It appears, however, that the apprehen- 
 sion of the turmoil and civil discord, which 
 must necessarily attend the enterprise of at- 
 tempting to introduce the Reformation into 
 Scotland, did, at this time, produce an undue 
 influence on his mind ; and for his want of 
 
JOHN KNOX. 109 
 
 resolution and perseverance on this occasion, 
 he afterwards bitterly censured himself. But 
 whatever blame he felt that he deserved, noth- 
 ing is more evident, than that his course was 
 now wisely directed by divine Providence, so 
 that impediments were thrown in his way 
 from without, and unwonted discouragement 
 was permitted to affect his mind, in order that 
 his return might be protracted to a period be- 
 fore which it might have been injurious. 
 And thus his arrival in Scotland, was ordered 
 to take place, when it was calculated to be in 
 the highest degree useful to the great cause 
 which he had at heart. 
 
 After having made up his mind to return 
 to Geneva, he transmitted two long letters to 
 Scotland ; the one addressed to the Protes- 
 tants in general, and the other to the nobles ; 
 both dated in December, 1557. In these let- 
 ters he made no mention of his recent disap- 
 pointment, but gave them his advice respect- 
 ing many points, and also conveyed to them in 
 this way, the opinions of the learned divines 
 with whom he was conversant, respecting dif- 
 ficult cases on which they wished for counsel. 
 He also exhorted them to constancy and per- 
 
110 THE LIFE OF 
 
 severance, in the good cause which they had 
 undertaken. Besides, he strongly inculcated 
 purity of morals, and warned all who professed 
 the reformed religion against those irregulari- 
 ties of life which so much tended to bring 
 reproach upon their profession. And he par- 
 ticularly warned them against the new sect of 
 Anabaptists, who gave so much trouble to the 
 reformers in Germany and Switzerland, and 
 who were now creeping into Scotland. The 
 radical error of this sect, at this period, when 
 they had thrown off some of the grosser errors 
 which first marked their course, was a fond 
 conceit of a certain ideal perfection and spirit- 
 uality which belonged to Christians and the 
 Christian Church, by which they differed es- 
 sentially, and toto coelo from the Jewish 
 Church, which they looked upon as a carnal 
 and worldly society. This led them to slight 
 the Old Testament, and confine themselves 
 almost exclusively to .the New. They were 
 also generally infected with Arian and Pela- 
 gian errors, and were great enemies to the 
 doctrines of predestination and grace, as held 
 by the reformers. They also held some pecu- 
 liar opinions respecting the flesh of Christ, as 
 
JOHN KNOX. Ill 
 
 not having been derived from his mother, but 
 brought from Heaven, and also respecting 
 civil magistrates. 
 
 His letter to the Protestant Lords breathes 
 a spirit of ardent and noble piety. He endea- 
 voured to purify their minds from selfish and 
 worldly principles; to raise, sanctify, and 
 Christianize their motives, by exhibiting and 
 recommending to them the spirit and conduct 
 of the princes and heroes, celebrated, not in 
 profane, but sacred story. He taught them 
 that the glory of God, the advancement of the 
 kingdom of Jesus Christ, the salvation of them- 
 selves and their brethren, and the emancipa- 
 tion of their country from spiritual and civil 
 thraldom, and not their own honour and ag- 
 grandizement, ought to be the objects aimed 
 at by them. He also discussed, in this letter, 
 the delicate question of the right in certain 
 circumstances, of resistance to supreme rulers. 
 It seems that they had consulted him on this 
 point, and requested him to obtain also the 
 judgment of the learned on the continent, 
 which he had done, and now communicated 
 their common judgment. The opinion which 
 he delivered to them, was, that there was 
 
112 THE LIFE OF 
 
 a point beyond which obedience to earthly 
 rulers was no longer obligatory, and when 
 resistance became a duty; but he warned them 
 against a factious and rebellious spirit, to which 
 the Scottish nation had been too much inclined. 
 He exhorted them to yield a dutiful and cheer- 
 ful obedience to all lawful commands; and by 
 humble and repeated requests, to endeavour to 
 recommend themselves to the supreme autho- 
 rity, and to procure its favour in promoting, 
 at least not persecuting, the cause in which 
 they were embarked. But if all their efforts 
 should prove ineffectual, and the Regent re- 
 fused to consent to a public reformation, they 
 ought to provide, that the Gospel should be 
 preached and the sacraments administered to 
 themselves and their brethren; and if attempts 
 were made to crush them by tyrannical force, 
 it was lawful for them, nay it was a duty in- 
 cumbent on them in their high station, to 
 stand up in defence of their brethren. 
 
 Knox returned to Geneva at the close of the 
 year 1557. During the following year he was 
 engaged with some other learned men in trans- 
 lating the Holy Scriptures into English, which 
 version, from the place where it was made. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 113 
 
 obtained the name of " The Geneva Bible.'^ 
 It was at this tinie also, that he published his 
 " Appellation" and his " Exhortation," and 
 also his "letter to the Queen Regent." These 
 several publications were widely circulated 
 and had a powerful effect in promoting the 
 Reformation. But the most singular treatise 
 which Knox published this year, and that 
 which made the greatest noise, was entitled 
 " The First Blast of the Trumpet against 
 the monstrous regiment of Women;^^ in 
 which he attacked with great vehemence, the 
 practice of admitting females to the govern- 
 ment of nations. It is probable that these sen- 
 timents had occupied his mind from the acces- 
 sion of Queen Mary to the throne of England; 
 and this was probably one of the points on 
 which he consulted the Swiss divines in 1554. 
 It is certain, from a letter written in 1556, 
 that his opinions were then fixed and decided. 
 He continued, however, to keep them to him- 
 self, and for a considerable time refrained from 
 publishing them out of deference to the opin- 
 ions of others. His arguments need not now 
 be detailed; and they were not peculiar to 
 Knox. He could appeal not only to the free 
 
 U 
 
114 THE LIFE OF 
 
 states of antiquity, but also to the established law 
 of France, by which females are excluded from 
 the throne. And it is said, that Edward VI., 
 shortly before his decease, proposed to the 
 Privy Council to have this law introduced into 
 England. This publication, whatever may be 
 said of its theoretical principles, not only 
 failed to produce any eflfect, but exposed the 
 author to the resentment of two Queens, du- 
 ring whose reign it was his lot to live; the one 
 his native Princess, and the other exercising a 
 sway in Scotland scarcely inferior to that of 
 any of its monarchs. And what rendered the 
 publication more unfortunate, was, that Mary, 
 against whom it was particularly directed, died 
 soon after it saw the light, and was succeeded 
 by Elizabeth, a Protestant. As might have 
 been expected, a great outcry was raised 
 against the work, and it gave offence to many 
 of the zealous friends of the Reformation. 
 John Fox wrote a letter to the author, in 
 which he expostulated with him in a very 
 friendly manner on account of the impropriety 
 of the publication, and especially the severity 
 of its language. Knox, in his reply, did not 
 attempt to excuse the harsh expressions which 
 
JOHN KNOX. 115 
 
 he had used, but still insisted on the correct- 
 ness of his opinions. It was his original inten- 
 tion to have given three blasts of the trumpet, 
 and to have prefixed his name to the last; but 
 when Elizabeth succeeded to the throne, wish- 
 ing rather to strengthen than invalidate her 
 authority, he relinquished his purpose. He 
 retained his sentiments, however, to the last, 
 although he thought it expedient to make no 
 further publication of them. The question 
 has lost ail its interest in modern times, and 
 seems more fitly to be a question for politi- 
 cians than theologians. It may be proper, 
 however, to remark before dismissing the sub- 
 ject, that a defence of the right of females to 
 rule, was written by Aylmer, entitled " Har- 
 borowe for faithful subjects." This was in- 
 tended as an^answer to Knox, and was written 
 with much care; whereas Knox's treatise was 
 evidently written in haste, and the copies 
 commonly published with his history are very 
 inaccurate. 
 
 Knox's letter to the Protestant lords in 
 Scotland, produced its intended effect, in re- 
 animating their drooping courage. At a 
 meeting held in Edinburg, in December, 
 
116 THE LIFE OF 
 
 1557, they unanimously resolved to adhere to 
 one another, and exert themselves for the ad- 
 vancement of the Reformation. Havingsubscri- 
 bed a solemn bond of mutual assurance, they 
 renewed their invitation to Knox; and, afraid 
 that he might hesitate, in consequence of their 
 former irresolution, they wrote to Calvin, to 
 employ his influence to induce him to comply. 
 These letters did not reach Geneva until No- 
 vember, 1558. By the same conveyance, 
 Knox received from Scotland letters of a later 
 date, communicating the most favourable in- 
 telligence respecting the progress the Refor- 
 mation had made, and the flourishing appearance 
 which it continued to wear. In consequence 
 of Knox's labours in 1556, and in pursuance 
 of his advice, many small congregations were 
 formed, in various places, who met together 
 weekly for mutual instruction and encourage- 
 ment. Having no ordained ministers, they 
 could not have the sacraments administered 
 among them, but they appointed some of their 
 most grave and intelligent men to read the 
 Scriptures, exhort, and ofier up suitable praj^- 
 ers, in their assemblies. Wishing, however, 
 to have their congregations to proceed in an 
 
JOHN KNOX. X17 
 
 orderly manner, and to maintain discipline, 
 they proceeded to appoint ruling elders, to 
 exercise a supervision over them, to whom 
 they promised subjection in the Lord. They 
 also appointed deacons, for the collection and 
 distribution of alms for the assistance of the 
 poor. Edinburg was the first place in which 
 this order was established; but Dundee was 
 the first place, in Scotland, in which a reformed 
 church was completely organized, by being 
 provided with a regular minister, and the ad- 
 ministration of the sacraments. 
 
 When the violence of the persecution had 
 been suspended, by reason of the war in which 
 England was engaged, many who had fled to 
 the continent returned; among these were 
 William Harlow, John Douglass, Paul Meth- 
 ven, and John Willock, who had taken re- 
 fuge in Embden, but now returned to Scotland. 
 These now resumed their evangelical labours. 
 The popish clergy, however, were not wanting 
 in zeal and activity to obstruct their progress, 
 and applied to the Queen Regent, to summon 
 the Protestant preachers; but by the interpo- 
 sition of the gentlemen of the west country, 
 *^^he prosecution against them was relinquished. 
 
 11* 
 
118 THE LIFE OF 
 
 At length the clergy resolved to renew the 
 cruel measures which had been suspended, 
 since 1550, and, accordingly, a beginning was 
 made, by the archbishop of St. Andrews com- 
 mitting to the flames an aged priest, by the 
 name of Walter Milne, a man of the most 
 inoffensive manners; and others were sum- 
 moned to appear before a convention of the 
 clergy at Edinburg. The barbarous and ille- 
 gal execution of Milne, excited the horror of 
 the nation to an incredible pitch; and, as it 
 was believed that the regent was not accessary 
 to the deed, the public indignation was direct- 
 ed entirely against the clergy. 
 
 The people attached to the Protestant cause, 
 who had before held their m.eetings in secret, 
 now, laying aside all fear, assembled publicly, 
 and avowed their attachment to the reformed 
 religion . They also, in a respectful and formal 
 manner, laid their complaint before the Regent, 
 and earnestly petitioned that she would, by 
 the exercise of her authority and in concur- 
 rence with the parliament, restrain the tyran- 
 nical proceedings of the clergy; correct the 
 flagrant and intolerable abuses which prevailed 
 in the church, and grant to them and their 
 
JOHN KNOX. 119 
 
 brethren, the liberty of religious instruction 
 and worship; at least, according to a restricted 
 plan which they laid before her, and to which 
 they were willing to submit, until their griev- 
 ances were deliberately examined and redress- 
 ed. The reply of the Regent was as favourable 
 as they could expect; for she assured them of 
 her protection, as soon as it should be in her 
 power to grant it. 
 
 Knox was not long in coming to a conclu- 
 sion to comply with the pressing invitation he 
 had received to return to his native country; 
 but the affairs of the congregation which he 
 had served in Geneva, required his attention 
 for some time. In the meanwhile intelligence 
 was received of the death of queen Mary, and 
 the exiles prepared to return home. By them 
 Knox sent letters to some of his former ac- 
 quaintances, who were now in the court of 
 Elizabeth, requesting permission to travel 
 through England, on his way to Scotland. 
 
 In the month of January, 1559, he left Ge- 
 neva for the last time. When about to leave 
 the city, the republic, as a testimony of their 
 respect, conferred on him the freedom of their 
 city. He thought it prudent not to take his 
 
120 THE LIFE OF 
 
 ^vife and family with him, but to go alone, 
 that he might make preparation for them, if 
 no obstacle stood in the way of their return. 
 
 To his surprise and mortification, when he 
 arrived at Dieppe, he received intelligence 
 that the government of the new Queen had 
 absolutely refused him a passage through Eng- 
 land; and so fierce was the opposition to him, 
 that with difficulty they who presented the 
 request escaped imprisonment. This was en- 
 tirely owing to some of the exiles, who had not 
 forgotten the old quarrel at Frankfort, and 
 who accused of disloyalty, not only Knox, but 
 all who had been under his charge at Geneva; 
 and they availed themselves, especially, of 
 what he had published respecting female go- 
 vernment. Though Knox's book had been 
 written without the least reference to Eliza- 
 beth, yet, as its principles applied as much to 
 her as to her sister, it was not difficult to pre- 
 judice her mind strongly against Knox and all 
 his congregation. This refusal, and the harsh 
 treatment of his flock, touched to the quick 
 the irritable mind of our reformer, and it 
 caused him a severe struggle to suppress a 
 desire to renew the controversy, which he 
 
JOHN KNOX. 121 
 
 had resolved to abandon. But happily his 
 mind was occupied with matters of a nobler 
 kind. His object, in wishing to visit England, 
 was not of a selfish, nor, indeed, of a personal 
 kind ; for although he desired to see his old 
 acquaintances, yet his chief motive was to gain 
 accurate information, before he went to Scot- 
 land, of the real disposition of the Queen Regent 
 of that country. He had been led to entertain 
 strong suspicions, that her professions of favour 
 to the Protestants were not sincere; and these 
 suspicions were greatly confirmed by what he 
 heard in his journey through France. By 
 conversing with some persons acquainted with 
 the secret plans of the court, he learned that 
 the princes of Lorrain, brothers of the Queen 
 Regent, had nothing less in view than to setup 
 a claim to the crown of England, in favour of 
 the young queen of Scots; to attack Elizabeth, 
 and expel her from the throne as an illegitimate 
 child and as a heretic; and, as Scotland was 
 the only avenue through which they could 
 successfully attack England, it was a part of 
 their plan to begin by suppressing the Refor- 
 mation, and establishing their power in that 
 country. Knox was alarmed at this informa- 
 
122 THE LIFE OF 
 
 lion, for he was convinced that the reformers 
 of Scotland were wholly unable to resist the 
 powerof France, if it should be directed against 
 them; and, as it was the duty and interest of 
 the English court to afford them effectual sup- 
 port, he was anxious to call the attention of the 
 court to this subject, in season, to thwart the 
 deep laid scheme of ruin, which had been con- 
 trived against the government of that country. 
 And, in fact, the very policy which he wished 
 to suggest to the English court, was wisely 
 pursued by Elizabeth in the assistance which 
 she afforded to the Scottish Protestants, in 
 1559 and 1560. 
 
 Knox having already received two repulses 
 to his application to visit England, yet was 
 so impressed with the importance of the in- 
 telligence which he wished to communicate, 
 that he ventured to make a third application, 
 by writing a letter to secretary Cecil, in which 
 he took pains to exculpate his Geneva friends 
 from all participation in the sentiments of his 
 offensive book. He acknowledged that he 
 was its author, but solemnly averred that he 
 entertained no unfriendly feelings towards 
 Elizabeth, but the contrary j and that he had 
 
JOHN KNOX. 123 
 
 no desire to visit the court, nor to remain 
 long in the country ; but that he was desirous 
 to communicate to him, or some other trusty 
 person, matters of importance, which it was 
 not prudent to commit to writing, nor to en- 
 trust to an ordinary messenger. That if his 
 request was refused, it would turn out to the 
 disadvantage of England. This letter he found 
 it difficult to get a messenger to carry, so 
 strong was the prejudice in the English court 
 against him. Whether despairing of success 
 in his application, or influenced by intelligence 
 from Scotland, he sailed from Dieppe and 
 landed at Leith, in the beginning of May, 
 1559. 
 
 Upon his arrival in Scotland, he found mat- 
 ters in the most critical state. The Queen 
 Regent had thrown aside the disguise, which 
 she had so long worn with the most consum- 
 mate duplicity. As long as it was for her 
 purpose, she listened to all the plans of re- 
 form, and by flattering the leaders, and pro- 
 mising them protection and support, she had 
 been able to govern them, according to her 
 wishes. But now, disguise being no longer 
 necessary, she threw ofl" the mask, and told 
 
124 THE LIFE OF 
 
 them, " that they should all be banished from 
 Scotland ; although they preached as truly as 
 ever Paul did." And when they reminded 
 her of her repeated promises of protection, 
 she unblushingly replied, " that it became not 
 subjects to burden their princes with promises, 
 further than they pleased to keep them." 
 The Protestant leaders spoke plainly to her, 
 and alleged, that if the engagements of rulers 
 were not binding on them, of course the sub- 
 ject ought to be considered, as released from 
 his allegiance. They also warned her of the 
 consequence which would ensue, if she per- 
 sisted in the course now adopted. Upon which 
 she used milder language, and engaged to pre- 
 vent the trial of the preachers, who were 
 under civil process. But upon hearing that 
 the reformed religion had been introduced 
 into Perth, she renewed the process, and sum- 
 moned them all to appear at Stirling, on the 
 tenth of May, to undergo a trial. 
 
 Knox on finding the state of affairs, although 
 prejudged, and sentence already pronounced 
 against him, yet determined to appear at Stir- 
 ling, on the day appointed for the trial. 
 Having rested only a single day at Edin- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 125 
 
 burg, he hurried to Dundee, where he found 
 the principal Protestants of Angus and Mearns 
 already assembled, determined to attend the 
 ministers to the place of trial, and to avow 
 their adherence to the doctrines for which 
 they were accused. The providential arrival 
 of such an able champion of the cause, at this 
 crisis, must have been very encouraging to 
 the assembly ; and the liberty of accompany- 
 ing them which he requested, was readily 
 granted. 
 
 Lest the unexpected approach of such a 
 multitude, though unarmed, should alarm or 
 oflfend the Regent, the congregation (for so 
 the Protestants at this time began to be called) 
 agreed to stop at Perth, and sent Erskine of 
 Dun before them to Stirling, to acquaint her 
 with the peaceable object and manner of their 
 coming. Apprehensive that their presence 
 would disconcert her measures, she again had 
 recourse to dissimulation. She persuaded 
 Erskine to write to his brethren to desist from 
 their journey, and authorized him to say in 
 her name, that she would put a stop to the 
 trial. The congregation signified their pacific 
 intentions by a cheerful compliance with this 
 
 12 
 
126 THE LIFE OF 
 
 request, and the greater part, confiding in the 
 royal promise, returned home. But when 
 the day of trial came, the summons was called 
 by order of the Queen, the accused were out- 
 lawed for not appearing, and all were prohi- 
 bited, under pain of rebellion, from harbouring 
 or assisting them. 
 
 Escaping from Stirling, Erskine brought to 
 Perth the account of this disgraceful transaction ; 
 which could not fail to incense the Protestants. 
 On the very day on which the intelligence 
 arrived, Knox preached a sermon at Perth^ 
 against the idolatry of the mass, and of image 
 worship. Sermon being ended, and the au- 
 dience dismissed, a few idle persons still loit- 
 ered in the church, when an imprudent priest, 
 either to try the disposition of the people, or 
 in contempt of the doctrine Vv^hich had been 
 preached, uncovered a rich altar-piece, deco- 
 rated with images, and prepared to celebrate 
 mass. A boy, having expressed some words 
 of disapprobation, was struck by the priest. 
 He retaliated by throwing a stone at the ag- 
 gressor, which, falling on the altar, broke one 
 of the images. This operated as a signal to 
 the people present, who had taken part with 
 
JOHN KNOX. 127 
 
 the boy; and in a few minutes, the altar, 
 images, and all the ornaments of the church, 
 were torn down and trampled under foot. 
 The noise soon collected a mob, who finding 
 no employment in the church, by a sudden 
 and irresistible influence, flew upon the mon- 
 asteries; nor could they be restrained by the 
 authority of the magistrates, nor the persua- 
 sion of the preachers (who assembled as soon 
 as they heard of the riot) until the houses of 
 the grey and black friars, with the costly edi- 
 fice of the Carthusian monks, were laid in 
 ruins. None of the gentleman, or sober part 
 of the congregation were concerned in this un- 
 premeditated tumult. It was wholly confined 
 to the baser inhabitants; or as Knox calls 
 them, " the rascall multitude.^^ 
 
 As might be expected, this riot was very 
 unfavourable to the Reformation; and nothing 
 could have happened more opportunely for 
 the Queen Regent; for it enabled her to turn 
 the indignation from herself, and direct it 
 against the congregation. And she did not 
 fail to improve it with her usual address. 
 Having assembled the nobility, she magnified 
 the accidental tumult into a dangerous and 
 
128 THE LIFE OF 
 
 designed rebellion. To the Catholics she 
 dwelt upon the sacrilegious overthrow of those 
 venerable structures which their ancestors had 
 dedicated to the service of God. To the Pro- 
 testants, who had not joined the congregation 
 at Perth; she complained of the destruction of 
 the royal charter house; protested that she had 
 no intention of offering violence to their con- 
 sciences, and promised them protection, if they 
 would assist her in punishing those who had 
 been guilty of this violation of public order. 
 Having inflamed the minds of all against them, 
 she advanced to Perth with an army, threat- 
 ening to lay waste the town with fire and 
 sw^ord, and to inflict the most exemplary ven- 
 geance on all who had been instrumental in 
 producing this riot. The Protestants of the 
 north, finding that they could only evade the 
 danger of a general massacre by a bold resist- 
 ance, prepared themselves promptl|r to defend 
 the tower to the utmost. The Queen Regent 
 deemed it imprudent to attack them, and pro- 
 posed overtures of accommodation, to which 
 they readily acceded. While the armies were 
 before Perth, and negotiations were going on, 
 Knox obtained an interview with his old 
 
JOHN KNOX. 129 
 
 friends the Duke of Argyle and the Prior of 
 St. Andrews, who were now adhering to the 
 Regent. He solemnly and faithfully dealt with 
 them, for their violation of the engagements 
 into which they had entered in support of the 
 Reformation. They assured him that they 
 held their engagement sacred; that the Regent 
 had requested them to exert their influence to 
 bring the present differences to an amicable 
 termination; if, however, she violated the pre- 
 sent treaty _, they promised that they would no 
 longer adhere to her, but would openly take part 
 with the rest of the congregation. The Queen 
 was not long in affording them the opportu- 
 nity of verifying this promise. 
 
 All attempts to bring about a reformation of 
 gross abuses, by the Regent or the clergy, to 
 both of whom the most earnest supplications 
 for this purpose had been presented, the lords 
 of the congregation now resolved to introduce 
 a reformation in those places to which their 
 authority extended; and where the greater 
 part of the inhabitants were friendly, by abol- 
 ishing the popish superstition, and setting up 
 the Protestant worship. St. Andrews was the 
 place fixed on for beginning these operations. 
 
 12* 
 
130 THE LIFE OF 
 
 With this view the Lord James Stewart, who 
 was the prior of the abbey of St. Andrews, 
 and the Earl of Argyle, made an appointment 
 with Knox to meet them on a certain day in 
 that city. Knox, travelling along the coast of 
 Fife, preached at Anstruther and Crail, and on 
 the 9th of June came to St. Andrews. The 
 archbishop apprized of his design, to preach in 
 the Cathedral, assembled an armed force, and 
 sent information to him, that if he appeared in 
 the pulpit he would give orders to the soldiers 
 to fire upon him. The noblemen having met 
 to consult what was best to be done, were of 
 opinion, that Knox should desist from his de- 
 sign of preaching at that time. Their retinue 
 was very slender; they had not yet ascertained 
 the disposition of the town; the Queen, with 
 her army, lay at a small distance ready to 
 come to the bishop's assistance; and his ap- 
 pearance in the pulpit might lead to the sacri- 
 fice of his own life and the lives of those who 
 were determined to defend him from violence. 
 There are times, when the best course to 
 evade danger is to meet it, and when the ordi- 
 nary rules of prudence may wisely be disre- 
 garded. In the opinion of Knox, such an 
 
JOHN KNOX, 131 
 
 occasion had now occurred. Had the reform- 
 ers now suffered themselves to be intimida- 
 ted by the threats of their enemies, after an- 
 nouncing their intentions, their cause would at 
 the very outset have received a blow from 
 which it would not soon have recovered. But 
 Knox, by his firmness and intrepidity, pre- 
 vented the evil. Fired with the recollection 
 of the part which he had formerly acted on 
 that spot, and with the near prospect of reali- 
 zing the sanguine hopes which he had cher- 
 ished in his breast for many years, he replied 
 to the solicitations of his brethren, "that he 
 could take God to witness that he never 
 preached in contem.pt of any man, nor with 
 the design of hurting any earthly creature; 
 but to delay to preach next day, unless forci- 
 bly hindered^ he could not in conscience agree. 
 In that town and in that church, had God first 
 raised him to the dignity of a preacher*, and 
 from it he had been reft by French tyranny, 
 at the instigation of the Scottish bishops. The 
 length of his imprisonment and the tortures 
 which he had endured,'^ he said, " he would 
 not recite at present; but one thing he could 
 not conceal, that in the hearing of many yet 
 
132 THE LIFE OF 
 
 alive, he had expressed his confident hope of 
 preaching again in St. Andrews. Now, there- 
 fore, when Providence, beyond all men's ex- 
 pectations, had brought him to that place, he 
 besought them not to hinder him." " As for 
 the fear of danger that may come to me, let 
 no man be solicitous; for my life is in the cus- 
 tody of Him whose glory I seek. I desire the 
 hand or weapon of no man to defend me. I 
 only crave audience, which, if it be denied 
 unto me here at this time, I must seek where 
 I may have it." 
 
 This intrepid reply silenced all further re- 
 monstrance; and the next day Knox appeared 
 in the pulpit and preached to a numerous 
 assembly, without meeting with the slightest 
 opposition or interruption. The subject of his 
 discourse was our Saviour's expel] ing the pro- 
 fane trafficers from the temple; from which he 
 took occasion to expose the enormous corrup- 
 tions which had been introduced into the 
 church under the papacy, and to point out 
 what was incumbent on Christians, in their 
 different spheres, for removing them. On the 
 three following days he preached in the same 
 place; and, such was the influence of his doc- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 133 
 
 trine, that the provost, baillies, and inhabitants, 
 harmoniously agreed to set up the reformed 
 worship in the town. The church was stripped 
 of images and pictures and the monasteries 
 pulled down. The example of St. Andrews 
 was quickly followed in other parts of the 
 kingdom; and, in the course of a few weeks, 
 at Crail, at Cupar, at Lindores, at Stirling, at 
 Linlithgow, and at Edinburg, the houses of 
 the monks were overthrown, and all the in- 
 struments which had been used to foster ido- 
 latry and image-worship, were destroyed. 
 
 Great complaints have been made against 
 Knox, even by Protestant writers, for the 
 destruction of so many elegant models, of 
 gothic architecture ; but there were interests 
 at stake far more valuable than the preserva- 
 tion of those monuments of the fine arts, which 
 had been consecrated to idolatry. It was a 
 piece of good policy, and contributed mate- 
 rially to the overthrow of the Roman Catholic 
 religion in Scotland, and the prevention of its 
 re-establishment. It was chiefly by the mag- 
 nificence of temples, and the splendid apparatus 
 of its worship, that the popish church fascinated 
 the senses and imaginations of the people. 
 
134 THE LIFE OF 
 
 There could not, therefore, be a more success- 
 ful method of attacking it than by demolishing 
 these. There is more wisdom in the saying 
 of Knox, than many seem to perceive, " That 
 the best way to keep the rooks from returning, 
 was to destroy their nests.'^ In demolishing 
 or rendering uninhabitable all those buildings 
 which had served for the maintenance of the 
 ancient superstitions — except such as were 
 requisite for Protestant worship — the reform- 
 ers only acted on the principles of a prudent 
 general, who razes the castles and fortifications 
 which he is unable to keep, and which might 
 afterwards be seized and employed against him 
 by the enemy. Had they been allowed to re- 
 remain, the popish clergy would not have 
 ceased to indulge hopes, and to make efforts 
 to be restored to them. Occasions would have 
 been taken to tamper with the credulous, and 
 inflame the minds of the superstitious, and the 
 reformers might have soon found reason to re- 
 pent their ill judged forbearance. Besides, we 
 know that under the Old Testament, all the in- 
 struments and monuments of idolatry were ex- 
 pressly commanded to be destroyed; and that the 
 practice was sanctioned by the example of the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 135 
 
 early Christians. Still, however, much might 
 be said against making war on inanimate 
 buildings; and, perhaps, the justification of 
 Knox and his friends will not be complete 
 without taking into view, the fact, that the 
 manners of the nation were, at this time, far 
 from that refinement which in more modern 
 times has been attained. Knox was eminently 
 suited to the rough work which he was called 
 by providence to execute, a& was also Luther. 
 It is always unjust to judge of the conduct and 
 manners of a man of one age, by those of ano- 
 
 7 
 
 Iher, exceedingly different. 
 
 Our reformer continued at St. Andrews till 
 the end of June, when he came to Edinburg, 
 from which the Regent and her forces had re- 
 tired. The Protestants in that city had fixed 
 their eyes upon him, and chose him imme- 
 diately for their minister. He, accordingly, 
 entered upon that charge; but the congrega- 
 tion having, by a treaty with the Regent, de- 
 livered up Edinburg unto her, it was judged 
 by them unsafe for Knox to remain in a place 
 under the authority of the papist.s, whose hos- 
 tility to him knew no bounds. Willock was, 
 therefore, substituted in his place for that city; 
 
138 THE LIFE OP 
 
 and this was ordered in providence for his 
 greater usefuhiess, for he now undertook a 
 preaching tour through the kingdom, which 
 had great influence in extending the Reforma- 
 tion. The wide field which was before him, 
 the interesting situation in which he was 
 placed, the dangers by which he was surround- 
 ed, and the hopes which he cherished, increased 
 the ardour of his zeal, and stimulated him to 
 extraordinary exertions, both of body and 
 mind. Within less than two months he tra- 
 velled over the greater part of Scotland. He 
 visited Kelso, and Jedburgh, and Dumfries, 
 and Ayr, and Stirling, and Perth, and Brechin, 
 and Montrose, and Dundee, and then returned 
 again to St. Andrews. The attention of the 
 nation was aroused, their eyes were opened 
 to the errors by which they had been deluded, 
 and they panted for the word of life when they 
 had once tasted its sweetness. From his let- 
 ters, written at this time, it appears that his 
 success was far beyond his expectations, and 
 that, though he had to struggle with ill-health, 
 yet his labours were incessant, so that he 
 scarcely found time to take his necessary 
 food and rest. But his spiritual comforts 
 
JOHN KNOX. 137 
 
 appear to have abounded in proportion to his 
 labours. 
 
 Immediately after his arrival in Scotland, 
 Knox wrote to Geneva, for his wife and fa- 
 mily. When they arrived at Paris, they ap- 
 plied to. the English ambassador for a safe con- 
 duct to pass through England, on their way to 
 Scotland; who not only granted it, but wrote 
 to the Queen, begging her to pardon the oflfence 
 of Knox, as he believed him capable of render- 
 ing important service to her interests, by 
 promoting the reformation in Scotland; where 
 already a great change had taken place through 
 his instrumentality. Accordingly, Mrs. Knox 
 came into England, and being conveyed to 
 the borders by the directions of the court, 
 reached her husband in safety, on the 20th of 
 September. Her mother, after remaining a 
 short time in England, followed her to Scot- 
 land, where she remained until her death. 
 The pleasure of meeting his family once more, 
 was increased to our reformer by the arrival 
 with them of Christopher Goodman, his late 
 colleague at Geneva, for whom he had writ- 
 ten to come to his assistance, in the most 
 pressing manner. Goodman became minister 
 
 13 
 
138 THE LIFE OF 
 
 of St. Andrews. The settlement of Protes- 
 tant ministers, in various places, occurred 
 sooner than is stated in the common histories 
 of those times. As early as September, 1559, 
 eight towns were provided with reformed 
 pastors; while many remained destitute, on 
 account of the paucity of ministers. 
 
 It became every day more evident, that the 
 congregation would not be able, without 
 foreign aid, to maintain the struggle in which 
 they were engaged; since they had to contend, 
 not only against their domestic foes, but the 
 power of France. Knox, therefore, renewed 
 his exertions to obtain assistance from Eng- 
 land. The letters written, on this occasion^ 
 were favourably received, and the continuance 
 of correspondence encouraged by the English 
 court. But Knox, anxious to conciliate the 
 Queen, wrote to secretary Cecil, and inclosed 
 an apologetic epistle to her majesty ; but there 
 was nothing at which he was more awkward 
 than making apologies; and this letter, had it 
 been delivered, which it probably was not, 
 would only have served to increase the of- 
 fence. Cecil himself was favourable to the 
 plan of aiding the Scots, and endeavoured to 
 
JOHN KNOX. 139 
 
 bring the Queen and her council to adopt 
 measures for this end. But the British court 
 acted with much caution and hesitation in the 
 business. Their answer to the letters before 
 mentioned were of such a character^ as to dis- 
 courage the council; and it was only in conse- 
 quence of Knox's importunity, that they per- 
 mitted him to write to England again in his 
 own name, which he did with so much urgen- 
 cy, that a speedy reply was received, desiring 
 them to send a confidential messenger to Ber- 
 wick, who would receive a sum of money to 
 assist them in carrying on the war. About 
 the same time, Sir Ralph Sadler was sent to 
 Berwick as an accredited, but secret agent ; and 
 the correspondence was afterwards carried on 
 through him and Sir James Croft, until the 
 English auxiliary army entered Scotland. 
 
 Knox had no desire to meddle in political 
 affairs, but civil and ecclesiastical matters were 
 so mingled, at this time, and there was so lit- 
 tle learning among the nobility, that he v^'as 
 under the necessity of managing their corres- 
 pondence, in connexion with Balnaves. This 
 he did, out of a sense of duty and regard to 
 the common cause, but when the younger 
 
140 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Maitland joined their party, he expressed the 
 greatest satisfaction at the prospect of heing 
 relieved from this burden. Indeed, both from 
 disposition and habit, Knox was poorly fitted 
 for the intrigues of politics; and several cir- 
 cumstances occurred, sorely to vex his spirit. 
 The correspondence between the English 
 court and the congregation was by no means 
 entirely harmonious. The former wished 
 from the latter a more prompt and vigorous 
 action in opposition to the Queen Regent be- 
 fore the French troops arrived; and the latter 
 desired not merely aid in money, but a mili- 
 tary force to enable them to resist their ene- 
 mies with success. Knox, in a letter to Croft, 
 insisted on the employment of an armed forco 
 to enable the Protestants to carry on the siege 
 of Leith. His impetuosity was checked by 
 the answer of Croft, who alleged, that this 
 would be a violation of the existing treaty 
 with France. To which Knox replied, that 
 this was not contrary to the common practice 
 of courts, in such matters, and of the French 
 court in a recent instance. The reformer 
 has been verj'' much censured for the proposal 
 of such measures; and it is the only instance 
 
JOHN KNOX. 141 
 
 in the life of Knox, in which he recommended 
 any thing like dissimulation, which was a 
 thing exceedingly contrary to his disposition. 
 His own opinion was, that the English ought 
 to have done at first, what at last they were 
 obliged to do ; that is, they should have open- 
 ly declared their purpose to aid the congrega- 
 tion. 
 
 The very active and decided part which 
 Knox took in the affairs of the congregation, 
 exposed him to the deadly enmity of the 
 Queen Regent. A reward was publicly offered 
 to the person who should seize or kill him ; 
 and numbers, actuated by malice or avarice, 
 lay in wait for his apprehension. But this 
 did not deter him from travelling through the 
 country in the discharge of his duty. His ex- 
 ertions, at this period, were exceedingly great. 
 By day he was employed in preaching, and 
 by night in writing letters on public affairs. 
 He was the soul of the congregation; was al- 
 ways present at the post of danger; and by 
 his presence, his public discourses, and private 
 advices, animated the whole body, and defeat- 
 ed the schemes employed to corrupt and disu- 
 nite them. 
 
 13* 
 
142 THE LIFE OF 
 
 The congregation were now called upon to 
 act in a very delicate and difficult case. Hith- 
 erto they had acknowledged the authority of 
 the Queen Regent, and continued to prefer their 
 petitions to her for the redress of grievances ; 
 but now it began to be a matter of discuss»ion, 
 whether she had not forfeited all right to 
 rule over the nation, by bringing in foreign 
 troops to destroy the liberties of the people ; 
 and whether, as she had been created Re- 
 gent by the parliament, the same power could 
 not take away her power. A regular meet- 
 ing of parliament, it was true, could not be 
 now had, but the people and nobility who 
 were the constituents of parliament, and from 
 whom all power emanated, might meet and 
 act on this important subject. After much 
 deliberation, a numerous assembly of barons, 
 nobles, and representatives of boroughs rnet 
 at Edinburgh, on the 21st of October, to 
 bring the matter to a solemn issue. To this 
 assembly Knox and Willock were called, and 
 were required to deliver their opinions, as 
 to the lawfulness of the measure. Willock, 
 who officiated as minister of Edinburg, first 
 spoke, and said, that in his judgment, founded 
 
JOHN KNOX. 143 
 
 on reason and Scripture, the power of rulers 
 was limited ; and that they might be depriv- 
 ed of it on valid grounds, and that the Queen 
 Regent having by the fortification of Leith and 
 the introduction of foreign troops, evinced a 
 fixed determination to oppress and enslave the 
 people, might justly be deprived of her autho- 
 rity, by the nobles and barons, and the native 
 counsellors of the realm, whose petitions and 
 remonstrances, she had repeatedly rejected. 
 Knox assented to the opinion of his brother, 
 and added, that the assembly might with safe 
 consciences act upon it, provided, they attend- 
 ed to the three following things: first, that 
 they did not suffer their opposition to the 
 Regent, to alienate their affections and alle- 
 giance from their lawful sovereigns, Francis 
 and Mary ; second, that in this measure, they 
 were not actuated by private hatred to the 
 Regent, but by regard to the safety of the 
 commonwealth ; and third, that any sentence 
 which they might pronounce, should not pre- 
 clude the re-admission of the Regent, if she 
 afterwards discovered sorrow for her conduct, 
 and a disposition to submit to the advice of 
 the counsellors of the realm. The whole as- 
 
144 THE LIFE OF 
 
 sembly now delivered their opinions, in con- 
 formity with those of the ministers, and then 
 proceeded, by a solemn deed, to suspend the 
 Queen Dowager, from her authority as Regent 
 of the kingdom, until the meeting of a free 
 parliament^ and, in the interval, elected a 
 council for the management of public affairs. 
 
 The preachers have been blamed for inter- 
 posing their advice on this great political ques- 
 tion; but there are critical periods in the his- 
 tory of nations, in which every man should be 
 ready to give his advice and aid; and minis- 
 ters have as deep a stake in the welfare of the 
 commonwealth as others, and by accepting the 
 sacred office do not disfranchise themselves, 
 or divest themselves of the obligation to per- 
 form the duties of good citizens. Moreover, 
 the question now to be decided, was not 
 merely political but involved a great moral 
 principle, touching the duty of subjects to 
 their rulers; and therefore, a fit question to be 
 discussed and decided by the official interpre- 
 ters of the law of God. 
 
 While popery held undisputed dominion in 
 Europe, every vestige of civil liberty was ex- 
 tinct. The ideas of the power of the pope 
 
JOHN KNOX. 145 
 
 were such, that kings and all civil authorities 
 were considered as subject to his power; and 
 this power was, in a number of instances, ex- 
 ercised over the haughtiest monarchs. The 
 first dawn of deliverance from this spiritual 
 tyranny arose out of the controversy between 
 the popes and general .councils; but by the 
 revival of letters in the west of Europe, new 
 ideas of liberty were produced from an ac- 
 quaintance with the Grecian and Roman repub- 
 lics; but these sentiments were confined to 
 comparatively few. The spirit infused by 
 philosophy and literature is too feeble and 
 contracted to produce a radical reform of es- 
 tablished abuses. It is to the religious spirit 
 excited, during the sixteenth century, which 
 spread rapidly through Europe and diffused 
 itself among all classes of m.en, that we are 
 chiefly indebted for the propagation of the 
 genuine principles of rational liberty, and the 
 consequent amelioration of government. In 
 effecting that memorable revolution, which 
 terminated in favour of religious and political 
 liberty, in so many nations of Europe, the 
 public teachers of the Protestant doctrine had 
 a principal influence. By their instructions 
 
146 THE LIFE OF 
 
 and exhortations, they roused the people to 
 consider their rights and exert their power. 
 They stimulated timid and wary politicians; 
 encouraged and animated princes, nobles, and 
 confederated states, with their armies, against 
 the most formidable opposition, and under the 
 most overwhelming difficulties, until their ex- 
 ertions were crowned with the most signal 
 success. These facts are now admitted, and 
 this honour at last, through the force of truth, 
 awarded to the religious leaders of the Pro- 
 testant Reformation, by philosophical writers,* 
 who had so long branded them as ignorant and 
 fanatical. 
 
 Our reformer had caught a large portion of 
 the spirit of civil liberty. We have already 
 adverted to circumstances which early directed 
 his attention to some of its principles. His sub- 
 sequent studies introduced him to an acquain- 
 tance with the maxims and modes of govern- 
 ment of the free states of antiquity; and it is 
 reasonable to suppose that his intercourse with 
 the republics of Switzerland and Geneva, had 
 some influence on his political creed. Having 
 formed his sentiments independently of the 
 
 * See Viller's Essay. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 147 
 
 prejudices arising from established laws, long 
 usage, and commonly received opinions, his 
 zeal and intrepidity prompted him to avow 
 and propagate them, when others less sanguine 
 and resolute, would have been restrained by 
 fear, or despair of success. Extensive obser- 
 vation had made him aware of the glaring per- 
 version of government, in most of the Euro- 
 pean kingdoms. But his principles led him 
 to desire their reform not their subversion. 
 He was perfectly sensible of the necessity of 
 regular government to the maintenance of 
 justice and order among mankind, and aware 
 of the danger of setting them free from its 
 salutary restraints. He uniformly inculcated 
 a conscientious obedience to the lawful com- 
 mands of rulers, and respect to their persons 
 as well as their authority; even when they 
 were chargeable with various mismanage- 
 ments; as long as they did not break through 
 all the restraints of law and justice, and cease 
 to perform the essential duties of their office. 
 But he held, that rulers, supreme as well as 
 subordinate, were invested with authority for 
 the public good; that obedience was not due 
 to them in any thing contrary to the divine 
 
148 THE LIFE OF 
 
 law; that in every free and well constituted 
 government, the law of the land was superior 
 to the will of the prince; and that inferior 
 magistrates and subjects might restrain the 
 supreme magistrate from particular illegal acts, 
 without throwing off their allegiance, or being 
 guilty of rebellion; that no class of men have 
 an original^ inherent, and indefeasible right to 
 rule over a people independently of their will 
 and consent; and that a nation have a right to 
 provide and require, that they be ruled by 
 laws agreeing with the divine law, and calcu- 
 lated to promote their welfare. That there is 
 a mutual compact, tacit and implied, if not 
 formal and explicit, between rulers and their 
 subjects; and if the former shall flagrantly vio- 
 late this, employ that power for the destruc- 
 tion of a commonwealth which was committed 
 to them for its preservation and benefit; in 
 one word, if they shall become habitual ty- 
 rants and notorious oppressors, that the people 
 are absolved from allegiance, have a right to 
 resist them, and to elect others in their room. 
 Such, in substance, were the political senti- 
 ments of our reformer. These principles were 
 strenuously inculcated by him, and acted upon 
 
JOHN KNOX. 149 
 
 in Scotland in more than one instance while 
 he lived. That they should have exposed 
 those who held them to the charge of treason, 
 from the despotic rulers of that day; and that 
 they should have been regarded with suspicion 
 by some of the learned, is not to be wondered 
 at. But it must excite both surprise and in- 
 dignation, to find writers in the present enlight- 
 ened age, and under the sunshine of British 
 liberty, expressing their abhorrence of these 
 sentiments, and exhausting upon their authors 
 all the invective and virulence of the former 
 advocates of passive obedience. 
 
 [Whatever may be thought of these princi- 
 ples now, in Great Britain they are precisely 
 such as are universally entertained in the Uni- 
 ted States of America; and on these all our 
 constitutions and laws are founded. Indeed, 
 they were all involved and carried out in the 
 revolution, by which these States became free 
 and independent; and to prevent all collision 
 between the civil and ecclesiastical authorities, 
 it is a principle undisputed and sacred among 
 us, that civil government has nothing to do 
 with religion except to protect its professors 
 in the full exercise of their opinions and wor- 
 
 14 
 
150 THE LIFE OF 
 
 ship, provided they do not directly militate 
 with the welfare and good order of civil soci- 
 ety. Perhaps, even Knox himself, would npt 
 have gone to this length in the assertion of 
 civil and religious liberty; but undoubtedly 
 his principles, fairly carried out, lead to all 
 that is received and adopted on this subject in 
 these United States.] 
 
 Those who judge of the propriety of any 
 measure by its success, will be disposed to 
 condemn the suspension of the Queen Regent. 
 Sooo after this step was taken, the affairs of 
 the congregation began to wear a gloomy ap- 
 pearance. The messenger, sent to Berwick to 
 receive a remittance from the English court, 
 was intercepted on his return and rifled of the 
 treasure: their soldiers mutinied for want of 
 pay; they were repulsed in a premature as- 
 sault on the fortifications of Leith, and worsted 
 in a skirmish with the French troops. The 
 secret emissaries of the Regent were also too 
 successful among them; their numbers daily 
 decreased; and the remainder disunited, dis- 
 pirited, and dismayed, came to the resolution 
 of abandoning Edinburg on the 5th of Novem- 
 ber, and retreated with precipitation and dis- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 151 
 
 grace to Stirling. Amidst the universal dejec- 
 tion produced by these disasters, the spirit of 
 Knox, alone, remained unsubdued. On the 
 day after their arrival at Stirling, he mounted 
 the pulpit and delivered a discourse which had 
 a wonderful effect in rekindling the zeal and 
 courage of the congregation. In this discourse 
 he took pains to guard them against the opin- 
 ion, that this discomfiture had overtaken them 
 as^ judgment of God, for taking up arms to 
 defend their rights and liberties; and then 
 pointed out what he considered blameable in 
 all classes; and after exhorting all to amend- 
 ment of life, prayers, and charity, he conclu- 
 ded with an animating address. " God," he 
 said, " often suffered the wicked to triumph 
 for a while, exposed his chosen congregation 
 to, mockery and apparent destruction, in order 
 to abase their self-confidence, and induce them 
 to look to him for deliverance and victory. 
 If they turned unfeignedly to the Eternal, he 
 no more doubted, that their present distress 
 would be converted into joy, and followed 
 with success, than he doubted that Israel was 
 victorious at last over the Benjamites; though 
 at first they were repulsed with ignominy. 
 
152 THE LIFE OF 
 
 The cause in which they were engaged, would, 
 in spite of all opposition, prevail in Scotland. 
 It was the eternal truth of the Eternal God 
 which they maintained; it might he oppressed 
 for a time, but would ultimately triumph." 
 The audience who had entered the church in 
 deep despondency, left it with renovated cou- 
 rage. 
 
 In the afternoon the council met, and after 
 prayer by Knox, unanimously agreed to dis- 
 patch Maitland to London to supplicate more 
 effectual assistance from Elizabeth. In the 
 mean time, as they were unable to keep the 
 field, they resolved to divide, and that the one 
 half of the council should remain at Glasgow, 
 and the other at St. Andrews. Knox was ap- 
 pointed to attend the latter. 
 
 According to Knox's public declaration in 
 his sermon at Stirling, their discomfiture at 
 Edinburg and consequent flight, did turn out 
 to the advantage of their cause. It obliged 
 the English court to abandon the line of cau- 
 tious policy which they had hitherto pursued. 
 On the 27th of February, 1560, they conclu- 
 ded a formal treaty with the lords of the con- 
 gregation; and in the beginning of April the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 153 
 
 English army entered Scotland. The French 
 troops retired within the fortifications of Leith, 
 and were invested by land and sea. The 
 Queen Regent died in the castle of Edinburg 
 during the siege, and the ambassadors of 
 France were forced to agree to a treaty, by 
 which it was provided, that the French troops 
 should be removed from Scotland; an amnesty 
 granted to all who had been engaged in the 
 late resistance to the measures of the Regent; 
 their principal grievances redressed; and a 
 free parliament called to settle the affairs of 
 the kingdom. This treaty which put an end 
 to hostilities, made no settlement respecting 
 religious differences; but on that very account 
 it was fatal to popery. The power was left in 
 the hands of the Protestants. The Roman 
 Catholic worship was almost universally sup' 
 pressed through the kingdom; except in those 
 places which had been occupied by the Re- 
 gent and her foreign auxiliaries. During the 
 war the Protestant preachers were active and 
 zealous in preaching, and met with little oppo- 
 sition from the priests, who placed their sole 
 reliance on the aid of the French. The firm 
 hold which the superstitions of popery had on 
 14* 
 
154 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the minds of the people, was completely 
 loosed, and they were now supported by force 
 alone; so that at the moment when the French 
 troops left Scotland, the fabric which had stood 
 for ages, fell to the ground. The feeble and 
 discouraged priesthood ceased, of their own 
 accord, from the celebration of its rites; and 
 the reformed service was peaceably set up 
 wherever ministers could be found to perform 
 it. When the parliament met, it had little else 
 to do respecting religion, than to sanction 
 what the nation had previously adopted. 
 
 Thus did the reformed religion advance in 
 Scotland, from small beginnings, and amidst 
 great opposition, until it attained a legal esta- 
 blishment. Besides, the secret benediction 
 which accompanied the labours of the preach- 
 ers and confessors of the truth, the serious 
 and inquisitive reader will trace the hand of 
 providence in that concatenation of events, 
 which contributed to its rise, preservation, 
 and increase, in the overruling of the caprice, 
 the ambition, avarice, and interested policy of 
 princes and cabinets, many of whom had no- 
 thing less in view, than to favour that cause, 
 which they were instrumental in promoting. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 155 
 
 The breach of Plenry VIII., of England, 
 with the Romish See, awakened the attention 
 of the northern inhabitants of the islawd, to a 
 controversy which had been hitherto carried 
 on at too great a distance to interest them^ 
 and led not a few to desire a reformation more 
 perfect, than the model which he held out to 
 them. 
 
 The premature death of James V., of Scot- 
 land, was favourable to these views ; and 
 during the short period in which they received 
 the countenance of the civil authority, at the 
 commencement of Arran's regency, the seeds 
 of the reformed doctrine were widely spread, 
 and had taken such deep root as to be able to 
 resist the violent measures which the Regent, 
 after his recantation, employed to extirpate 
 them. Those who were driven from the 
 country, found an asylum in England under 
 the decidedly Protestant government of Ed- 
 ward VI. After his death, the alliance of 
 England with Spain, and of Scotland with 
 France, the two great contending powers on 
 the continent, prevented any contest between 
 the two courts which might have proved fatal 
 to the Protestant religion in Britain. While 
 
156 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the cruelties of the English Queen drove evan- 
 gelical preachers into Scotland, the political 
 schemes of the Queen Regent, also, induced her 
 to favour the Protestants and connive at the 
 propagation of their opinions. At the critical 
 moment, when she had accomplished her fa- 
 vourite designs, and was preparing to crush 
 the reformation, Elizabeth ascended the throne 
 of England, who, from motives of policy, no 
 less than religion, was induced to support .the 
 Scottish reformers. The princes of Lorrain, 
 who, by the accession of Frances II., had ob- 
 tained the sole direction of the French court, 
 were resolutely bent on their suppression ; and 
 being at peace with Spain, seemed to have it 
 in their power to turn the whole force of the 
 empire against them. But at this very time 
 arose those dissensions, which continued so 
 long to desolate France, and forced them to 
 accede to that treaty which put an end to the 
 French influence and Roman Catholic religion 
 in Scotland. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 157 
 
 PERIOD VI. 
 
 FROM HIS SETTLEMENT AS A MINISTER, AT EDINBURG, TO HIS" 
 ACQUITTAL FROM A CHARGE OF TREASON, BY THE PRIVY 
 COUNCIL, 1563. 
 
 Immediately after the proclamation of peace, 
 Knox resumed his station as minister of Edin- 
 burg. During the month of August, he was 
 employed in composing the Protestant " Con- 
 fession of Faith/' which was presented to the 
 parliament who ratified it, and abolished the 
 papal jurisdiction of worship. The organiza- 
 tion of the reformed church was, however, 
 not yet complete. Hitherto, the " Book of 
 Common Prayer," agreed upon by the Eng- 
 lish Church at Geneva, had been chiefly fol- 
 lowed as a directory for worship and govern- 
 ment. But this having been compiled for a 
 single congregation, composed chiefly of men 
 of learning, was found inadequate for an ex- 
 tensive church, consisting of a multitude of 
 confederated congregations. Sensible of the 
 great importance of ecclesiastical polity, for 
 the maintenance of order, the preservation of 
 purity of doctrine and morals, and the general 
 
158 THE LIFE OF 
 
 prosperity of religion, our reformcrj at an 
 early period, called the attention of the Pro- 
 testants to this subject, and urged its speedy 
 settlement. In consequence of this, the lords 
 of the Privy Council appointed him and five 
 other ministers, to draw out a plan, such as they 
 should judge to be agreeable to Scripture and 
 conducive to the advancement of religion. 
 They met accordingly, and, with great pains 
 and much unanimity, formed the book, which 
 w^as afterwards called '^ The First Book of 
 Discipline. ^^ 
 
 As Knox had a chief hand in the compila- 
 tion of this book, some brief account of the 
 form and order of the Church of Scotland, at 
 the first establishment of the Reformation, will 
 not be out of place here. The ordinary and per- 
 manent officers of the church were of four kinds: 
 the minister or pastor to whom the preaching 
 of the gospel and administration of the sacra- 
 ments belonged; the doctor, or teacher, whose 
 province it was to interpret Scripture; the 
 ruling elder, who assisted the minister in ex- 
 ercising ecclesiastical discipline; and the dea- 
 con who had the especial oversight of the 
 revenues of the church, and the poor. But, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 159 
 
 besides these, it was found necessary, at that 
 time, to employ some persons in extraordinary 
 and temporary charges. 
 
 As the ministers were too few to supply all 
 the vacant churches, serious persons were ap- 
 pointed to read the Scriptures, and the com- 
 mon prayers. These were called, readers. 
 If they improved in knowledge, they were 
 encouraged to add a few plain exhortations, to 
 the reading of the Scriptures. In this case, 
 they were called exhorters. But they did 
 not enter on those duties, at discretion, but 
 were first examined and approved. The afore- 
 said state of things gave rise also to another 
 expedient, for the supply of destitute places. 
 Instead of fixing all ministers in particular 
 charges, it was judged proper, after suppl};ing 
 some of the principal towns, to assign to the 
 rest the superintendence of a large district, 
 over which they were appointed regularly to 
 itinerate, for the purpose of preaching, plant- 
 ing churches, and inspecting the conduct of 
 ministers, exhorters, and readers. These were 
 called, superintendents. The number origi- 
 nally proposed, was ten ; but owing to the 
 scarcity of suitable persons, or rather the want 
 
160 THE LIFE OF 
 
 of funds, there were never more than six ap- 
 pointed. The deficiency was supplied by 
 commissioners, or visiters, appointed by the 
 General Assembly. The mode of admission 
 to all these offices was, by the election of the 
 people, examination of the candidate, and pub- 
 lic recognition, accompanied with prayer and 
 exhortation. The affairs of each congregation 
 were managed by the minister, elders, and 
 deacons, who constituted the session, which 
 met once a week, or oftener. In every princi- 
 pal town, there was a meeting held, consisting 
 of the ministers, exhorters, and learned men 
 in the vicinity, for expounding the Scriptures. 
 As this was held weekly, it was called the 
 weekly exercise. This was afterwards con- 
 verted into the Presbytery or classical as- 
 sembly. The superintendents met with the 
 ministers and delegated elders, of his district, 
 twice a year, in the provincial Synod, which 
 took cognizance of ecclesiastical affairs, within 
 its bounds. And the General Assembly, 
 which was composed of ministers and elders, 
 commissioned from the different parts of the 
 kingdom, met twice, sometimes thrice, in the 
 year; and attended to the interests of the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 161 
 
 whole national church. Public worship was 
 conducted, according to the book of Common 
 Order, with a few variations. The compilers 
 of the first Book of Discipline, paid particular 
 attention to the education of the people. 
 They required that a school be erected in 
 every parish, for the instruction of the youth, 
 in the principles of religion, grammar, and the 
 Latin tongue. They proposed, that a college 
 should be erected in every notable town, in 
 which logic and rhetoric should be taught 
 along with the learned languages. They seem 
 to have had it in their eye, to revive the sys- 
 tem, adopted by some of the ancient republics, 
 in which the youth were considered the pro- 
 perty of the state, rather than of their parents, 
 by obliging the nobility and gentry to educate 
 their children, and providing at the public ex- 
 pense, for the education of the poor who dis- 
 covered talents for learning. Their regulations 
 for the three national universities, discovered 
 an enlightened regard to the interests of lite- 
 rature, which deserve attention in the present 
 age. That they were not carried into effect 
 was not the fault of the reformed ministers, 
 but of those persons, who, through avarice, 
 
 15 
 
162 THE LIFE OF 
 
 defeated the execution of their plans. But 
 under all discouragementSj learning made 
 great progress in Scotland, to the close of the 
 century. Very false notions are entertained 
 by many, of the rudeness and ignorance of 
 these times, as though there was very little 
 learning, even among the clergy. Let such 
 consider a single fact. In the house of Mr. 
 John Rowe, minister of Perth, the conversa- 
 tion in the family, and among the pupils, was 
 usually carried on in French ; and at family 
 worship, the Bible was read in Hebrew, 
 Greek, Latin, and French, by the boys. Many 
 of the nobility and gentry, placed their sons 
 in the family of this excellent minister, that 
 they might be instructed in Greek and He- 
 brew. When the Book of Discipline was 
 presented to the Privy Council, it was coldly 
 received, and its formal ratification evaded. 
 Not that they differed in opinion from the 
 ministers, respecting ecclesiastical government; 
 but partly from aversion to the strictness of 
 discipline against vice, here inculcated ; and, 
 partly, from reluctance to comply with its re- 
 quisition, for the appropriation of the revenues 
 of the popish church to the support of the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 163 
 
 new religious, and literary establishment. 
 However, it was subscribed by the majority 
 of the members of council, and carried into 
 effect, through the nation, in all its principal 
 ecclesiastical regulations. 
 
 The first GeneralJlssemhly of the Reform- 
 ed church of Scotland met in Edinburg, on 
 the 20th of December, 1560. It consisted of 
 forty members, only six of whom were min- 
 isters. Knox was one of these ; and he con- 
 tinued to sit in most of its meetings, until the 
 time of his death. It is a singular circum- 
 stance, that there were seven different meet- 
 ings of the Assembly, without a president, or 
 moderator. But as the number of members 
 increased, and business became more compli- 
 cated, a moderator was resolved to be chosen, 
 at every meeting. He was invested with 
 authority to maintain order; and regulations 
 were enacted, concerning the constituent mem- 
 bers of the court, the kind of cases which 
 should come before them, and the order of 
 procedure. 
 
 In the close of this year, our reformer suf- 
 fered a heavy domestic loss, by the death of 
 his valuable wife; who, after sharing in the 
 
164 THE LIFE OF 
 
 hardships of her husband^s exile, was removed 
 from him when he had obtained a comfortable 
 settlement for his family. He was left with 
 the charge of two young children, in addition 
 to his other cares. His mother-in-law, how- 
 ever, was still with him, but although he found 
 pleasure in her religious conversation, yet the 
 dejection of mind to which she was subject, 
 and which all his efibrts could never complete- 
 ly relieve, rather increased than lightened his 
 burden. His acute feelings were severely 
 wounded by this stroke; but he endeavoured 
 to moderate his grief by the consolations 
 which he administered to others, and by assi- 
 duous application to public duties. He had 
 the satisfaction of receiving on the occasion, 
 a letter from his much respected friend, Cal- 
 vin, in which expressions of great esteem for 
 his deceased partner, were mingled with con- 
 dolence for his loss. And here it may be 
 proper to remark, that Knox, with the consent 
 of his brethren, consulted the Genevan refor- 
 mer on several difficult questions which oc- 
 curred respecting the settlement of the Scottish 
 Reformation, and that a number of letters pass- 
 ed between them on this subject. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 165 
 
 Although the Reformation had gone on as 
 successfully as he could reasonably have hoped, 
 yet Knox saw that affairs were still in a criti- 
 cal situation. There was a large body of peo- 
 ple in the country, who were strongly opposed 
 to all that had been done, and only waited for 
 a favourable opportunity to endeavour to over- 
 throw the Reformation. The treaty by which 
 peace had been obtained, Mary and her hus- 
 band, the King of France, refused to ratify, 
 and dismissed the deputy sent by the parlia- 
 ment, with marks of the highest displeasure, 
 on account of the innovations which they had 
 introduced. A new army was preparing in 
 France, for the invasion of Scotland in the 
 spring. Emissaries were sent into the coun- 
 try to encourage and unite the Roman Catho- 
 lics. And it was doubtful whether the Queen 
 of England would subject herself to new ex- 
 pense and odium, by protecting them against 
 a second attack. The watchful mind of Knox 
 perceived the threatening danger, and endea- 
 voured to prepare the people for the contest; 
 especially, exciting them speedil}'^ to complete 
 the settlement of religion throughout the king- 
 dom, which he was persuaded would prove 
 
 15* 
 
166 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the principal bulwark against the assaults of 
 their adversaries. And many now listened to 
 his admonitions who formerly treated them 
 with indifference. 
 
 The threatened storm, however, blew over 
 in consequence of the death of the French 
 King. This led necessarily to a measure 
 which involved the Scottish Protestants in a 
 new struggle ; for now the Protestant nobility 
 gave an invitation to their young Queen to 
 come over, which she did on the 19th of Au- 
 gust, and assumed the reins of government 
 into her own hands. 
 
 The education which Mary had received in 
 France, whatever embellishments it added to 
 her person and manners, was the very worst 
 which can be conceived, for fitting her to rule 
 in her native country, in the present juncture. 
 Of a temper, naturally violent, and accustom- 
 ed as she was to flattery, she was incapable 
 of bearing contradiction. Habituated to the 
 splendour and gallantry of the most luxurious 
 court in Europe, she could not submit to those 
 restraints which the severe manners of her 
 subjects imposed. And while the freedom of 
 her manners gave offence to them, she could 
 
JOHN KNOX. X67 
 
 not conceal the antipathy and disgust which 
 she felt at theirs. Full of high notions of 
 royal prerogative, she regarded the late pro- 
 ceedings in Scotland, as a course of rebellion 
 against her authority. Every means had been 
 used before she left France, to strengthen her 
 attachment to the Roman Catholic religion, in 
 which she had been educated from her infancy, 
 and to inspire her with aversion to the reli- 
 gion which had been embraced by her sub- 
 jects. She was taught that it would be the 
 greatest glory of her reign, to reduce her king- 
 dom to obedience to the Romish See, and co- 
 operate with the popish princes on the conti- 
 nent in extirpating heresy. If she forsook 
 the religion in which she had been educated, 
 she would forfeit their powerful favour; but if 
 she persevered in it, she might depend on their 
 assistance to enable her to chastise her rebel- 
 lious subjects, and prosecute her claims to the 
 crown of England against a heretical usurper. 
 With these fixed prepossessions Mary came 
 into Scotland: and she adhered to them, with 
 singular pertinacity, to the end of her life. 
 As, however, the Protestants were in power, 
 she found it expedient to temporize; but she 
 
168 THE LIFE OP 
 
 resolved to withhold her ratification of the late 
 proceedings, and to embrace the first favoura- 
 ble opportunity to overturn them and to estab- 
 lish the ancient system. Her reception was 
 flattering; but an event soon occurred to damp 
 her joy, and which prognosticated future jea- 
 lousies and confusion. Resolved to let her 
 subjects know her determination to adhere to 
 the Roman Catholic religion, she directed pre- 
 parations to be made for the celebration of 
 mass in the chapel of Holyrood-house, on the 
 first Sunday after her arrival. The first ru- 
 mour of this spread such horror and alarm 
 among the people, that it was with the greatest 
 exertion that the Protestant leaders and minis- 
 ters were able to prevent a public tumult and 
 riot. Knox exerted his influence on the occa- 
 sion to prevent disorder, but he was not less 
 alarmed at the precedent than his brethren, 
 and on the very next Sabbath exposed the evil 
 of idolatry. 
 
 At this day the alarm and intolerant feelings 
 of the Protestants may appear strange and un- 
 reasonable; but they knew too well the cruelty 
 and persecuting spirit of the Romish Church 
 at that time, to be in any doubt what the con- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 159 
 
 sequences would be, if that religion should 
 gain the predominance again in Scotland. In 
 using every exertion, therefore, to oppose its 
 ascendancy, was no more than taking neces- 
 sary measures for their own preservation. 
 They had fresh in their memory, the cruelties 
 practised by Mary of England, against the 
 Protestants; and they had also before their 
 eyes, the severities against the Protestants in 
 every country on the continent, where the 
 government was under the influence of the 
 Roman Catholic religion. To expect a spirit 
 of toleration in such circumstances, is an un- 
 reasonable thing. It is therefore unnecessary 
 to apologize for the restrictions which the re- 
 formers were desirous of imposing on Queen 
 Mary, in regard to the public exercise of the 
 popish religion. Besides his fears for the 
 common cause, Knox had good reason to ap- 
 prehend danger to his own life. The Queen 
 was peculiarly incensed against him, on ac- 
 count of the active hand which he had in the 
 revolution. The popish clergy who had left 
 the kingdom, represented him as the ring- 
 leader of her factious subjects; and she hid, 
 before she left France, signified her determi- 
 
170 THE LIFE OF 
 
 nation that he should be punished. His book 
 against female rulers, was also remembered 
 against him by the Queen, as it had been by 
 Elizabeth. But although Knox knew that he 
 would probably be obnoxious to the displea- 
 sure of the Queen, yet he said not a word to 
 prevent her being invited into Scotland; on 
 the contrary, he concurred with his brethren 
 in this measure, and in defeating a scheme of 
 the Duke of Castleherault, under the direction 
 of the archbishop of St. Andrews, for exclu- 
 ding her from the government. And contrary 
 to the opinion of some, Knox was willing that 
 the Queen should have the liberty of having 
 mass celebrated in her own private chapel. 
 
 Soon after her arrival, Mary sent for Knox, 
 to the palace, and held a long conversation 
 with him, in the presence of her brother, the 
 prior of St. Andrews. She seems to have ex- 
 pected to awe him into submission by her 
 authority, if not to confound him by her argu- 
 ments. But the bold freedom with which he 
 replied to all her charges, and vindicated his 
 own conduct, convinced her that the one ex- 
 pectation was not more vain than the other; 
 and the impression which she wished to make 
 
JOHN KNOX. 171 
 
 on him, was left on her own mind. She 
 accused him of exciting her subjects against 
 her mother and herself; of writing a book 
 against her just authority; of being the cause 
 of sedition and bloodshed, when he was in 
 England; and of accomplishing his purposes 
 by magical arts. 
 
 To these heavy charges, Knox replied, that 
 if to teach the truth of God in sincerity, to re- 
 buke idolatry, and to teach the people to 
 worship God according to his word, were to 
 excite subjects to rise against their princes, 
 then he stood convicted of the charge; for it 
 had pleased God to employ him, among others, 
 to disclose unto that realm the vanity of the 
 papistical religion, with the deceits, pride, and 
 tyranny of the Roman antichrist. But if the 
 true knowledge of God, and his right worship, 
 were the most powerful inducements to sub- 
 jects cordially to obey their princes, (as they 
 certainly were,) then, he was innocent. Her 
 grace, he was persuaded, had at present, as 
 unfeigned obedience from the Protestants of 
 Scotland, as ever her father, or any of her 
 ancestors had from those called bishops. With 
 respect to what had been reported to her ma- 
 
172 THE LIFE OF 
 
 jesty, of the fruits of his preaching, in England, 
 he was glad that his enemies laid nothing to 
 his charge, but what the world would know to 
 be false. If any of them could prove that, in 
 any of the places where he had resided, there 
 was either sedition or mutiny, he would con- 
 fess himself to be a malefactor. So far from this 
 being the case, he was not ashamed to say, 
 that in Berwick, where bloodshed among the 
 soldiers had been common, God so blessed his 
 weak labours, that there was as great quietness, 
 during the time he resided there, as there was 
 at present in Edinburg. The slander of prac- 
 tising magic, (an art which he had condemned 
 wherever he preached,) he could more easily 
 bear, when he recollected that his Master, the 
 Lord Jesus, had been defamed as being in 
 league with Beelzebub. As to the book, which 
 seemed so highly to offend her majesty, he 
 owned that he wrote it, and was willing that 
 all the world should judge of it. He under- 
 stood that an Englishman had written an 
 answer, but he had not read it. If he had 
 sufficiently confuted his arguments, and esta- 
 blished the contrary propositions, he would 
 confess his error; but to that hour he consi- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 173 
 
 dered himself alone more able to sustain the 
 things affirmed in that book, than any ten in 
 Europe were to confute them. 
 
 " You think I have no authority/^ said the 
 Queen. " Please your majesty/^ replied he, 
 *'learned men, in all ages, have had their judg- 
 ments free, and most commonly disagreeing 
 from the common judgments of the world. 
 Such also have they published with pen and 
 tongue; notwithstanding they themselves have 
 lived in the common society with others, and 
 have borne patiently with the errors and im- 
 perfections which they could not amend. 
 Plato, the philosopher, wrote his book of the 
 " Commonwealth," in which he condemned 
 many things that were then maintained in the 
 world, and required many things to be reform- 
 ed; and yet he lived under such policies as 
 were then universally received, without fur- 
 ther troubling the state. Even so, madam, 
 am I content to do in uprightnessof heart, and 
 with the testimony of a good conscience." 
 He added, that his sentiments, on that subject, 
 should be confined to his own breast; and 
 that, if she refrained from persecution, her 
 authority would not be hurt by him, or his 
 
 16 
 
174 THE LIFE OF 
 
 book, " which was written most especially 
 against the wicked Jezebel of England." 
 *^But you speak of women in general," said 
 the Queen. " Most true it is, madam, it ap- 
 peareth to me, that wisdom should persuade 
 your grace never to raise trouble from that 
 which to this day has never troubled your 
 majesty, neither in person nor authority; for 
 of late, many things which before were stable, 
 have been called in doubt, yea, they have 
 been plainly impugned. But yet, madam, I 
 am assured, that neither Protestant nor papist 
 shall be able to prove, that any such quotation 
 was at any time made, either in public or 
 in secret. Now, madam, if I had intended to 
 trouble your estate, because you are a woman, 
 I would have chosen a thing more convenient 
 for that purpose, than I can now do, when 
 your presence is within the realm." 
 
 Changing the subject, she charged him with 
 having taught the people to receive a religion 
 different from that followed by their princes; 
 and asked him if this was not contrary to the 
 divine command, that subjects should obey 
 their rulers? He replied, that true religion 
 derived not its authority from princes, but 
 
JOHN KNOX. 175 
 
 from the eternal God ; that princes were often 
 most ignorant of the true religion; and that 
 subjects were not bound to frame their religion 
 according to the arbitrary will of their rulers, 
 else the Israelites would have been bound to 
 adopt the religion of Pharaoh; Daniel and his 
 associates that of Nebuchadnezzar, and Darius; 
 and the primitive Christians that of the Roman 
 emperors. " Yea," replied the Queen, " but 
 none of these men raised the sword against 
 princes.'^ " Yet you cannot deny," said he, 
 " that they resisted, for those who obey not 
 the commandments given them, do in some 
 sort resist." " But they resisted not with the 
 sword," rejoined the Queen, pressing home the 
 argument. " God had not given unto them 
 the power and the means." " Think you," 
 said the Queen, " that subjects, having the 
 power, may resist their princes?" "If princes, 
 madam, exceed their bounds, no doubt they 
 may be resisted, by power. For no greater 
 honour, and no greater obedience is to be 
 given to kings and princes, than God has 
 commanded to be given to father and mother. 
 But the father may be seized with a phrenzy, 
 in which he would slay his children. Now, 
 
176 THE LIFE OP 
 
 madam, if the children arise, join together, 
 apprehend the father, and take the sword from 
 him, bind his hands, and keep him in prison, 
 till the phrenzy be over, think you, madam, 
 that the children do any wrong ? Even so, 
 madam, is it with princes that would murder 
 the children of God, that are subject unto them. 
 Their blind zeal is nothing but a mad phrenzy; 
 therefore, to take the sword from them, to bind 
 their hands, and to cast them into prison, till 
 they be brought to a more sober mind, is no 
 disobedienceagairtstprinces,but just obedience, 
 because it agreeth with the will of God." 
 
 The Queen, who had hitherto maintained 
 her courage in reasoning, appeared to be con- 
 founded and overpowered by this bold answer ; 
 and for a while continued silent. At length 
 she said, " Well then, I perceive, that my 
 subjects shall obey you and not me, and will 
 do what they please and not what I command, 
 and so must I be subject to them, and not they 
 to me." "God forbid," answered Knox, that 
 I can take it upon me, to command any to 
 obey me, or to set subjects at liberty to do 
 whatever they please; but my meaning is, 
 that both princes and subjects should obey 
 
JOHN KNOX. 177 
 
 God. And think not, madam, that wrong is 
 done you, when you are required to be sub- 
 ject to God; for it is He, who subjects people 
 unto princes, and causes obedience to be given 
 unto them. He demands of kings that they 
 be as /osier fathers to his Church, and com- 
 mands queens, to be nurses to his people. 
 And this subjection unto God, madam, is the 
 best thing that flesh can get upon the face of 
 the earth, for it shall raise them to everlasting 
 glory.'^ " But you are not the church," said 
 the Queen, " that I will nourish. I will de- 
 fend the Church of Rome, for it is, I think, 
 the true church of God." " Your will, Madam, 
 is no reason; neither doth your thought make 
 the Roman harlot to be the true and immacu- 
 late spouse of Jesus Christ. Wonder not, 
 madam, that I call Rome a harlot, for that 
 church is altogether polluted with all kinds oi 
 spiritual fornication." He added, that he was 
 ready to prove, that the Romish Church had 
 departed farther from the purity of religion, 
 taught by the apostles, than the Jewish Church 
 had degenerated from the ordinances which 
 God gave them by Moses and Aaron, at the 
 time when they denied and crucified the Son 
 
 16* 
 
178 THE LIFE OP 
 
 of God. "My conscience is not so," said the 
 Queen. " Conscience, madam, requires know- 
 ledge; and I fear, that right knowledge you 
 have none." She said, she had both heard 
 and read. *^ So, madam, did the Jews, who 
 crucified Christ. They read the law and the 
 prophets, and heard them interpreted, after 
 their manner. Have you heard any teach, but 
 such as the pope and the cardinals allowed ? 
 And you may be assured that such will speak 
 nothing to offend their own estate." "You 
 interpret the Scriptures, one way," said the 
 Queen, warmly, " and they in another, whom 
 shall I believe and who will judge?" " You 
 should believe God, who speaketh plainly in 
 his word" replied the reformer. " And further, 
 the word teacheth you, that you shall believe 
 neither the one nor the other. The word of 
 God is plain in itself, and if there is any ob- 
 scurity in one place, the Holy Ghost who is 
 never contrary to himself, explains it more 
 clearly in other places, so that there can re- 
 main no doubt, but unto such as are obstinate- 
 ly ignorant." As an example he referred to 
 the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, to show 
 that the mass was destitute of all foundation. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 179 
 
 But the Queen, who was determined to avoid 
 all discussion of the articles of her faith, in- 
 terrupted him, saying that she was unable to 
 contend with him, in argument, but if she had 
 some of those present whom she had heard, 
 they would answer him. " Madam, replied 
 the reformer, " would to God that the learn- 
 edest papist in Europe, were present with 
 your grace to sustain the argument, and that 
 you would wait patiently to hear the matter 
 reasoned to the end, for I then doubt not you 
 would hear the vanity of the papistical religion, 
 and how little ground it hath in the word of 
 God. " Well" said she, " you may perchance, 
 get that sooner than you believe." " Assur- 
 redly, if I can get that in my life, I get it 
 sooner than I believe; for the ignorant papist 
 cannot patiently reason; and the learned and 
 crafty papist will never come in your pre- 
 sence, madam, to have the ground of their 
 religion searched out. When you shall let 
 me see the contrary, I shall grant myself to 
 have been deceived in that point." 
 
 The hour of dinner aflforded the occasion of 
 breaking off this singular conversation. The 
 papists were alarmed when they heard of this 
 
180 THE LIFE OF 
 
 long interview with Knox, lest his eloquence 
 should have shaken the faith of the Queen; 
 and the Protestants, on the contrary, were dis- 
 posed to indulge favourable anticipations of 
 the result. But Knox himself, saw clearly 
 that the Queen was deeply fixed in her errors, 
 and was not likely to be moved by any thing 
 which might be said in her hearing. And his 
 determination was, to watch her motions, and 
 to find out her plans of opposition to the Refor- 
 mation; so that he might have it in his power 
 to give seasonable warning of them to the 
 friends of the Reformation. 
 
 The sermons of Knox were very powerful, 
 though delivered in what, to many, appeared 
 harsh language. He was not ignorant that 
 some of his friends thought him too severe; 
 nor was he disposed to vindicate every expres- 
 sion which he used; but he was of opinion 
 that the times required great plainness oi 
 speech, and that under the smoothness anc' 
 sweetness of manner, recommended by some 
 that snares lurked. The abatement of zeal ir 
 many, through the influence of the court, be 
 came more and more manifest every day, and 
 extended to some of the Protestant leaders. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 181 
 
 The Queen was greatly opposed to the Ge- 
 neral Assembly, and at the first meeting, after 
 her arrival, the courtiers, through her influ- 
 ence, absented themselves; and when chal- 
 lenged for their delinquency, began to dispute 
 the propriety of such conventions without her 
 Majesty's pleasure. 
 
 Rnox was exceedingly indignant when he 
 heard of the management of the court, in re- 
 gard to settling a provision for the ministers. 
 Hitherto they had been supported by the vo- 
 luntary contributions of the people; but some 
 of them were almost left to starve. The Pri- 
 vy Council, in consequence of repeated com- 
 plaints on this subject, took up the matter and 
 agreed to divide the ecclesiastical revenues 
 into three parts, two of which were allotted to 
 the popish clergy, and the remaining third to be 
 divided between the court and the Protestant 
 ministers. The portion allowed to the minis- 
 ters being at the disposal of the Queen's offi- 
 cers, was as badly paid as it was paltry in 
 amount. Knox was open mouthed and vehe- 
 ment against this ungenerous management. 
 " If," said he, " this order, pretended to be for 
 the sustentation of the ministers, be happy in 
 
182 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the issue, my judgment fails me. I see two 
 parts freely given to the devil, and the third 
 may be divided betwixt God and the devil. 
 Who would have thought that when Joseph 
 ruled in Egypt, his brethren should have tra- 
 vellit, (suffered,) for victuals, and have re- 
 turned with empty sacks unto their families?" 
 "0 happy servants of the devil, and miserable 
 servants of Jesus Christ, if after this life, there 
 were not hell and heaven.'^ He did not com- 
 plain with any reference to his own case, for 
 in comparison with others, he was well pro- 
 vided for, having settled on him a salary of 
 two hundred pounds per annum, besides house- 
 rent free, and liberal presents from the people. 
 In the beginning of the year 1562, our re- 
 former went to Angus, to preside at the elec- 
 tion and admission of his old friend John Ers- 
 kine, of Dun, as superintendent of Angus and 
 Mearns. This pious and respectable baror- 
 was one, whom the General Assembly had 
 declared "apt and able to minister," and hav- 
 ing already contributed much aid to advance 
 the Reformation, he now devoted himself to 
 the service of the Church, in a laborious em- 
 ployment, at a time when she stood eminently 
 
JOHN KNOX. 183 
 
 in need of the assistance of all the learned and 
 pious. He had before this presided at the 
 installation of John Spottisvvood to the same 
 office in Lothian. 
 
 The influence which Knox had over all 
 classes of persons is evident, from the fact of 
 his having been frequently applied to, to settle 
 differences of a civil kind, among the leaders 
 of the Reformation. 
 
 In May, 1562, Knox was again called to 
 appear before tiie Queen, for a sermon, in 
 which he had spoken with severity against 
 the Duke of Guise, for attacking a Protestant 
 congregation in France, while at worship, and 
 murdering a number of the defenceless people. 
 When the news of this reached the Queen, 
 she gave a splendid ball to her foreign servants, 
 at which the dancing was prolonged to a late 
 hour. Knox took occasion to speak of the 
 vices of princes, and animadverted severely 
 on the cruelty of the French princes, of which 
 an exaggerated account was conveyed to the 
 Queen. 
 
 He appeared in her presence, without the 
 least dismay, and told her that, if she had 
 heard the discourse, he was persuaded she 
 
184 '^HE LIFE OF 
 
 could not have found fault with what was said, 
 and undertook to repeat to her, as nearly as 
 he , could, the very words spoken, which, she 
 admitted, were very different from those re- 
 ])orted to her. He told her, at this time, that 
 he could wish that she would be pleased to 
 come in person and hear what he preached; 
 or if that was reckoned unsuitable, if she would 
 appoint him a time, he would take pleasure in 
 communicating; to her the substance of the 
 doctrine which he preached. When he was 
 leaving the room, some of the popish courtiers 
 said in his hearing, "He is not afraid;" "Why 
 should the pleasing face of a gentlewoman 
 affray me? I have looked in the faces of many 
 angry men, and yet have not been afifrayed 
 above measure." 
 
 At this time, there was but one church in 
 Edinburg, St. Giles's, where Knox preached, 
 sometimes, to three thousand persons; and he 
 laboured here with no other assistance than 
 that of John Cairns, who acted as a reader. 
 His custom was to preach twice every Sabbath, 
 and three times during the week. He met 
 his session once every week, and also attended 
 the meetings for weekly exercise in, studying 
 
JOHN KNOX. 185 
 
 the Scriptures. He attended, besides, the 
 meetings of the Provincial Synod and General 
 Assembly; at almost every meeting of which, 
 he received an appointment to preach in some 
 distant part of the country. These labours 
 must have been oppressive to a constitution 
 already impaired; and his sermons were not 
 mere extemporaneous efifusions, but the fruit 
 of regular study, for he devoted a part of every 
 day to his books. His congregation became 
 sensible that his labours were too heavy for 
 his shoulders; and, therefore, in April, 1562 
 the town council came to a unanimous resolu- 
 tion to solicit John Craig, the minister of 
 Holyrood House, to undertake the half of the 
 charge. The ensuing General Assembly ap- 
 proved of the council's proposal, and translated 
 Craig to Edinburg. This, however, did not 
 take place until June, 1563, owing to some 
 difficulty in settling the stipend for his sup- 
 port. 
 
 The activity and energy of Knox, in con- 
 firming the minds of the Protestants in the 
 west, whither the General Assembly had sent 
 him, on occasion of the rising of the papists, 
 under Huntly, in the north, were attended 
 
 17 
 
186 THE LIFE OP 
 
 with the happiest effects, in composing the 
 minds of the people. 
 
 His dispute with Quintin Kennedy, respect- 
 ing the mass, is entertaining, and is very 
 particularly related by Dr. M'Crie, but is too 
 long for our purpose. Indeed, Knox himself 
 published an account of the controversy, taken 
 from the notaries who took down what was 
 spoken on one side and the other. It is the 
 substance of this pamphlet which Dr. M'Crie 
 has inserted in his ^' Life of Knox.'' The 
 brevity which we study in this compend, also 
 renders it necessary to omit several other 
 transactions in which Knox bore a conspicuous 
 part, but which cannot be narrated, without 
 going further into the Scottish history of those 
 times than would be suitable for our work. 
 
 The first parliament which met after the 
 arrival of the Queen in Scotland, although 
 they confirmed some of the acts of the former 
 parliament, yet they omitted to sanction the 
 treaty which had been entered into with the 
 French; and, indeed, passed some laws which 
 implied that that instrument was destitute of 
 validity. 
 
 Knox, upon being informed of these things, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 187 
 
 was thunderstruck, and could scarcely give cre- 
 dit to the report. He immediately procured an 
 interview with some of the principal members 
 of parliament, to whom he represented the 
 danger of allowing that meeting to dissolve, 
 without obtaining a ratification of the acts of 
 the preceding parliament; or at least those 
 acts which established the Reformation. They 
 alleged that the Queen would never have con- 
 sented to call this meeting, if they had per- 
 sisted in these demands; but there was a pros- 
 pect of her speedy marriage, and then they 
 would obtain all their wishes. In vain he 
 reminded them, that poets and painters had 
 represented occasion bald behind; in vain he 
 urged, that, the event to which they looked 
 forward would be attended with difficulties of 
 its own, which would require all their skill 
 and circumspection. Their determination was 
 fixed. He now perceived the full extent of 
 the Queen's dissimulation, and the selfishness 
 and servility of the Protestant leaders affected 
 him deeply. So hot was the altercation be- 
 tween him and the Earl of Murray on this 
 subject, that an open rupture ensued. He had 
 long looked upon that nobleman, as one of the 
 
188 THE LIFE OF 
 
 most steady and sincere adherents of the re- 
 formed cause, and therefore felt the greater 
 disappointment at his conduct. After parting 
 witii Murray, Knox wrote him a letter, in 
 which, after recounting various circumstances, 
 he solemnly renounced friendship with a man 
 who preferred his own interest, and the plea- 
 sure of his sister, the Queen, to the advance- 
 ment of religion. He left him henceforward 
 to the guidance of the new counsellors whom 
 he had chosen, and exonerated himself from 
 all future concern in his affairs. This variance, 
 which lasted for two years, was very gratify- 
 ing to the Queen, who disliked their former 
 familiarity, and failed not, as Knox says, " to 
 cast oil on the flame, until God did quench it 
 by the water of affliction." 
 
 Before the dissolution of the parliament, 
 Knox found an opportunity of disburdening 
 his mind in the presence of a large number of 
 the members who attended on his preaching. 
 In his sermon, he addressed himself particu- 
 larly to the nobility; and praised God, that he 
 had an opportunity of pouring out the sorrows 
 of his heart in their presence, who could attest 
 the truth of all which he said. He appealed 
 
JOHN KNOX. X89 
 
 to their consciences, whether he had not, in 
 their greatest extremities exhorted them to 
 depend on God; and assured them of preser- 
 vation and victory if they preferred his glory 
 to their own lives and secular interests. " I 
 have," said he, " been with you in your most 
 desperate temptations, and in your most ex- 
 treme dangers I have been with you. St. John- 
 ston, Cupar-Moor, and the Craggs of Edin- 
 burg, are yet recent in my heart; yea, the 
 dark and dolorous night wherein, all ye, my 
 lords, with shame and fear left this town, is 
 yet in my mind; and God forbid that I ever 
 forget it! What was, I say, my exhortation to 
 you, and what has fallen in vain of all that ever 
 God promised unto you by my mouth.'* Ye, 
 yourselves yet live to testify. There is not 
 one of you, against whom death and destruc- 
 tion was threatened, that has perished; and how 
 many of your enemies has God plagued before 
 your eyes? Shall this be the thankfulness that 
 ye shall render unto your God ? to betray his 
 cause when you have it in your hands to es- 
 tablish it as you please?" He saw nothing, he 
 said, but a cowardly desertion of Christ's stand- 
 ard. Some had even the effrontery to say, 
 
 17* 
 
190 THE LIFE OF 
 
 that they had neither law nor parliament for 
 their religion. They had the authority of 
 God for their religion, the truth of which was 
 independent of human laws; but it was also 
 accepted in this realm, in public parliament; 
 and that parliament, he would maintain, had 
 been as lawful as any ever held in the king- 
 dom. In the conclusion of his discourse, he 
 adverted to the marriage of the Queen, and 
 predicted the consequences to be dreaded if 
 the nobility consented that their sovereign 
 should marr}^ a papist. 
 
 Protestants, as well as papists, were offended 
 with the freedom of this discourse; and the 
 Queen was greatly incensed to think, after sur- 
 mounting so many obstacles, and subduing the 
 spirit of the barons, there should be one man 
 of obscure condition, who ventured to con- 
 demn her proceedings; and as she could not 
 tame his stubbornness, she determined to pun- 
 ish his temerity. Knox was ordered instantly 
 to appear before her. Lord Ochiltree and 
 several gentlemen accompanied him to the 
 palace, but Erskine of Dun, superintendent of 
 Angus, was alone permitted to go with him 
 into the royal presence. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 191 
 
 When he was last in her presence at Loch- 
 levin, she had treated him with great civility, 
 and even familiarity; but now her manner was 
 entirely changed. After he entered, her first 
 words were, "Never had any prince been 
 handled as she was.'^ And then spoke of his 
 severe censures of her and her uncles; saying, 
 that she had sought his favour by all means, 
 and had offered unto him an audience, when- 
 ever he pleased to admonish her. "And yet," 
 said she, " I cannot be quit of you; I vow to 
 God I shall be once revenged." On pronoun- 
 cing these words, she burst into a flood of 
 tears, which interrupted her speech. As soon 
 as she had composed herself, Knox proceeded 
 to make his defence. He remarked, that al- 
 though they had had frequent controversies, 
 he had never before perceived that she was 
 offended with him. He said, if she could only 
 be freed from those errors in which she had 
 been educated, he trusted that her majesty 
 would not find the liberty of his tongue offen- 
 sive. Out of the pulpit, he thought few had 
 occasion to be offended with him; but there 
 he was not his own master, but bound to obey 
 Him who commanded him to speak plainly, 
 
192 THE LIFE OP 
 
 and to flatter no flesh on the face of the earth. 
 " But," said she, " what have you to do with 
 my marriage ? Or what are you in this com- 
 monwealth?'^ "A subject, born within the 
 same, madam,'' replied the reformer; "and 
 although I am neither, earl, lord, nor baron in 
 it, yet has God made me, (how abject soever 
 in your eyes,) a profitable member of the same. 
 Yea, madam, to me it appertains no less to 
 forewarn of such things as may hurt it, than it 
 doth to any of the nobility; for both my voca- 
 tion and conscience require plainness of me. 
 And therefore, madam, to yourself I say, that 
 which I spake in a public place. Whensoever 
 the nobility of this realm shall consent that ye 
 be subject to an unfaithful husband, they do as 
 much as in them lies, to renounce Christ, to 
 banish his truth from them, to betray the free- 
 dom of this realm, and perchance shall in the 
 end, do small comfort to yourself" At these 
 words, the Queen began again to weep and sob 
 with great bitterness. The superintendent, 
 who was of a mild and gentle spirit, tried to 
 mitigate her grief and resentment. He praised 
 her beauty and accomplishments, and told her 
 that there was not a prince in Europe who 
 
JOHN KNOX. 193 
 
 would not reckon himself happy in having her 
 hand. During this scene, the severe and in- 
 flexible mind of the reformer displayed itself. 
 He continued silent, and with unaltered coun- 
 tenance, until the Queen had given vent to her 
 feelings. He then protested, that he never 
 took delight in the distress of any creature; it 
 was with great difficulty he could see. his own 
 boys weep when he corrected them for their 
 faults, far less could he rejoice in her Majes- 
 ty's tears; but since he had given her no just 
 reason of offence, he was constrained, though 
 unwillingly, to sustain her tears rather than 
 hurt his own conscience, and betray the com- 
 monwealth through his silence. This apology 
 inflamed the Queen still more, who ordered 
 him immediately to leave her presence, and 
 wait the signification of her pleasure in an ad- 
 joining room. There he stood as ^' one whom 
 men had never seen;" all his friends, Lord 
 Ochiltree excepted, being afraid to show him 
 the smallest countenance. In this situation he 
 addressed himself to the court ladies, who 
 were present: " ladies, how pleasing were 
 this life of yours if it should ever abide, and 
 that in the end you might pass into heaven 
 
194 THE LIFE OF 
 
 with all this gay gear." Thus he engaged 
 them in conversation until Erskine came and 
 informed him, that he was allowed to go home 
 until her Majesty had taken further advice. 
 
 The Queen insisted to know of the lords of 
 Articles, whether the words uttered in the ser- 
 mon were not actionable; but they persuaded 
 her to desist from a prosecution. The laconic 
 remark of Knox was, *^and so that storm was 
 quieted in appearance, but never in heart." 
 
 Nothing can exceed the severity of cen- 
 sure, which has been passed on Knox for his 
 insensibility and inhumanity, in remaining 
 unmoved, " while youth, beauty, and royal 
 dignity," were dissolved in tears before him. 
 But while it may be admitted, that the sensi- 
 bilities of our reformer were not of the most 
 delicate kind, yet who that knows the weak- 
 ness of most men, in such circumstances, can 
 withhold admiration and even veneration from 
 the man, whose stern integrity, not even the 
 tears of a young and beautiful Queen could 
 cause to swerve from the path of duty? 
 
 The Queen sought every opportunity now 
 to be revenged on Knox, and her sycophants 
 were not backward in seconding her malicious 
 
JOHN KNOX. 195 
 
 design to injure the reformer. At first, a base 
 calumny against the purity of his moral char- 
 acter was circulated, by a certain woman in 
 Edinburg; but when a committee of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly called her before them, she 
 utterly denied that she had ever vented any 
 such slander. The truth of her having done 
 so, was proved by many witnesses. This 
 having failed to injure his reputation, an oc- 
 currence took place, which laid the founda- 
 tion of a serious accusation against him. Some 
 Protestants being under accusation for a riotous 
 entrance into the royal chapel, while mass was 
 celebrated, Knox was requested to write a cir- 
 cular letter to the principal Protestant gentle- 
 men, to request their attendance, at the trial. 
 This letter came into the hands of Sinclair, 
 bishop of Ross, who sent it to the Queen at 
 Stirling. She communicated it to the Privy 
 Council, who, to her great satisfaction, pro- 
 nounced it treasonable; but to give greater 
 salemnity to the proceedings, it was resolved, 
 that an extraordinary meeting of the counsel- 
 lors and other noblemen, should be held at 
 Edinburg, in the end of December, to try the 
 
196 THE LIFE OF 
 
 cause. Before this convention the reformer 
 was summoned to appear. 
 
 Previous to the day of trial, great pains 
 were taken to intimidate him, and to induce 
 him to acknowledge his fault, and throw 
 himself upon the Queen's mercy. This he 
 peremptorily refused to do. The master of 
 Maxwell, afterwards lord Herries, with whom 
 he had long been intimate, threatened him 
 with the loss of his friendship, and told him 
 that he would repent of it, if he did not sub- 
 mit to the Queen, for men could not bear 
 with him as they had heretofore done. He 
 replied, that he did not understand such lan- 
 guage. He had never opposed her majesty, 
 except in the article of religion, and surely it 
 was not meant that he should bow to her in 
 that matter. If God stood by him, which he 
 was sure he would do as long as he confided 
 in him, and preferred his glory to his own 
 life, he regarded little how men should behave 
 towards him; nor did he know wherein they 
 had borne with him, unless in hearing the 
 word of God from his mouth, which if they 
 would reject, he would mourn for them, but 
 the danger should be their own. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 197 
 
 The Earl of Murray and Secretary Mait- 
 land, also laboured with him to the same end. 
 They represented the pains which they had 
 taken to mitigate the Queen's resentment; 
 and that nothing could save him, but a timely 
 submission. He gave them the same answer, 
 that he would never confess a fault when he 
 was conscious of none. That he had not 
 learned to call every thing treason, which was 
 so called by the multitude, nor to fear what 
 they feared. The wily secretary endeavoured 
 to involve him in a dispute, that he might 
 elicit the nature of the defence which he 
 meant to set up; but Knox was too discerning 
 to be thus caught, and told him plainly, that 
 it would be foolish to entrust with his defence 
 one who had already prejudged his cause. 
 
 On the day of trial, the public anxiety was 
 greatly excited, and all the avenues to the 
 palace were crowded with people who waited 
 to learn the result. The accused was conduct- 
 ed to the chamber, where the lords were 
 assembled. When the Queen had taken her 
 seat, and perceived Knox standing unmoved 
 at the foot of the table, she burst into a loud 
 fit of laughter. " That man," she said, " had 
 
 18 
 
19S THE LIFE OF 
 
 made her weep, and shed never a tear himself. 
 She would now see if she could make him 
 weep." The secretary opened the proceed- 
 ings, and a copy of the circular was produced, 
 to say whether he acknowledged that to be his 
 hand-writing. He looked at it, and said that 
 it was; and though he had subscribed a num- 
 ber of blanks, he had such confidence in the 
 fidelity of the scribe, that he was ready to ac- 
 knowledge both the subscription and contents. 
 The Queen took upon herself very much the 
 conducting of the trial, assisted by her secre- 
 tary Maitland. Every effort was made, to 
 bring the accused to a confession of some 
 fault, but he stood firm and unmoved, and de- 
 fended himself against all their charges, with 
 calmness and dignity. The fact was, that the 
 circular contained nothing, having the sem- 
 blance of treason. The only word in it which 
 furnished the least pretext for such an accusa- 
 tion, was, in the following sentence, " This 
 fearful summons is directed against them (the 
 two persons indicted) to make no doubt a pre- 
 parative on a few, to open a door to execute 
 cruelty on a greater multitude." But Knox 
 defended his attributing cruelty to the papists^ 
 
JOHN KNOX. 199 
 
 SO strongly, that the lords spoke out in confir- 
 mation of what he said. When the vote was 
 taken, all voted that the accused had violated 
 no law of that realm, except only the imme- 
 diate dependents of the Queen. 
 
 The secretary, who had assured the Queen 
 of his condemnation, was excessively chagrin- 
 ed and mortified upon hearing the sentence 
 of acquittal, and again brought her majesty 
 into the court, and proceeded to call the 
 votes a second time in her presence. This at- 
 tempt to overawe them, incensed the nobility. 
 What said they, " shall the laird of Lethington 
 have power to control us ? Or shall the pre- 
 sence of a woman, cause us to offend, and con- 
 demn an innocent man against our conscien- 
 ces?^^ With this they repeated their votes, 
 absolving him from all offence, and praising 
 his modest demeanour, and judicious defence. 
 
 Mary was unable to conceal her mortification 
 and displeasure, at this unexpected acquittal. 
 And nothing affected her more than to observe 
 that the Bishop of Ross, who had been the 
 informer, voted with the majority. She could 
 not refrain from reproaching him for his con- 
 duct. The Bishop replied, that she could not 
 
200 THE LIFE OF 
 
 but know that it was not partiality to the ac- 
 cused, which influenced his vote. 
 
 Thus ended this malign, but impotent pro- 
 secution, to the increased honour of the refor- 
 mer, and to the disgrace and confusion of his 
 enemies. 
 
 PERIOD VII. 
 
 FROM HIS ACQUITTAL FROM A CHARGE OF TREASON, BY THE 
 PRIVY COUNCIL, IN THE YEAR 1563, TO HIS BEING STRUCK 
 WITH APOPLEXY, 1570. 
 
 The indignation of the Queen, on account of 
 the acquittal of Knox, was not easily appeased, 
 and she caused her displeasure to be felt by 
 those who had taken any part in this business. 
 Murray and Maitland made another effort to 
 induce the reformer to make some kind of 
 submission to her, which might tend to pacify 
 her; but this he again positively refused. 
 Disappointed in this, they circulated rumours 
 to his disadvantage, as that he had written the 
 circular, before-mentioned, without being re- 
 quested to do so; and that he was endeavour- 
 ing to lord it over the Scottish Church, by 
 
JOHN KNOX. 201 
 
 exercising a kind of papal authority over his 
 brethren. No charge could have been more 
 groundless; for there never was, perhaps, any- 
 one, who had so much influence, that was more 
 careful of assuming authority, or acting by his 
 own authority in matters of public and common 
 concern. He, therefore, when the General 
 Assembly met, took no part in the discussions 
 of that body; but, when other matters were 
 disposed of, he asked liberty to make a state- 
 ment which concerned himself; when he gave 
 a particular account of all that he had done, 
 and requested their judgment in the case. The 
 courtiers opposed its being taken up, but the 
 Assembly determined to consider it; and, 
 after a full examination, gave it as their opi- 
 nion, that Knox had been commissioned to act 
 as he did, and that he had not, in any respect, 
 gone beyond the bounds of his commission. 
 
 Knox had now been a widower for three 
 years, when, in March 1564, he contracted 
 a second marriage with Margaret Stewart, 
 daughter of Lord Ochiltree, a nobleman of 
 amiable disposition; and who had adhered to 
 our reformer when he was forsaken by his 
 other friends. She continued to discharge 
 
 18* 
 
202 THE LIFE OF 
 
 the duties of a wife to him until the time of 
 his death. 
 
 During the year 1564, things remained at 
 peace in the country; but the jealousies be- 
 tween the court and the Protestant Church 
 continued. The Queen's prejudices against 
 the reformed religion were unabated, and she 
 maintained a correspondence with its sworn 
 enemies, on the continent, which did not alto- 
 gether escape the vigilance of her Protestant 
 subjects. The preachers, on their side, did 
 not relax in their zealous warnings against 
 popery. The court was uneasy under their 
 reproaches, and endeavoured to restrain the 
 license of the pulpit, and, by their persuasions, 
 gained over to their views some of the more 
 moderate. Having so far succeeded, they 
 ventured to propose the matter more publicly, 
 and to request the sanction of the leading 
 members of the Assembly. This matter was 
 discussed in conference with them, and a long 
 debate ensued between Maitland and Knox, 
 on the principal points of his doctrine, which 
 gave offence to the court. This controversy 
 has been recorded at large by Knox, in his 
 History of the Reformation, an abstract of 
 
JOHN KNOX. 203 
 
 which is 'given by Dr. M'Crie, in his " Life 
 of Knox." It will be sufficient for our pur- 
 pose, to remark, that the objections made to 
 him, related both to his prayers and preaching. 
 In the former, Maitland said, that he prayed 
 for the Queen's conversion conditionally, and 
 spoke of her as under the bondage of Satan. 
 The offence given by his preaching, related to 
 Knox's doctrine respecting the limited autho- 
 rity of princes. This controversy, however, 
 answered no valuable end; the sentiments of 
 the members being divided, they broke up 
 without coming to any determinate resolution. 
 
 In the month of August, Knox went, by the 
 appointment of the General Assembly, as visi- 
 ter of the churches in Aberdeen, and the north, 
 where he remained six or seven weeks. The 
 subsequent Assembly gave him a similar ap- 
 pointment for Fife and Perthshire. 
 
 Our reformer's predictions, at the last meet- 
 ing of parliament, were now fully verified. 
 Another parliament was held in 1564, but 
 nothing was done for the securing the free 
 exercise of the Protestant religion. The 
 Queen's marriage approached, and the lords 
 demanded this, on the condition of their con- 
 
204 THE LIFE OF 
 
 sent; but she artfully evaded the demand, and 
 accomplished her object. She sent for the 
 superintendents of Lothian, Glasgow, and 
 Fife, and amused them with fair words. She 
 was not yet persuaded, she said, of the truth of 
 their religion, but she was willing to hear con- 
 ference and reasoning on the subject. She was 
 even content to attend the public sermons of 
 some of them; and above all others, she would 
 gladly hear the superintendent of Angus, for 
 he was a mild and sweet natured man, with 
 true honesty and uprightness, Sir John Ers- 
 kine of Dun. But as soon as her marriage 
 with Lord Darnley was over, she told them, 
 in very plain and determined language, *^ her 
 majesty neither will nor may leave the religion 
 wherein she has been nourished and brought 
 up.^' And no more was heard about confer- 
 ence or hearing sermons. 
 
 In the beginning of the year 1565, the 
 friendship between the earl of Murray and 
 Knox was renewed. The latter was placed in 
 very delicate circumstances by the insurrec- 
 tion, under the former and the other lords 
 who opposed the Queen's marriage. His fa- 
 ther-in-law was one of the number. They 
 
JOHN KNOX. 205 
 
 professed that the security of the Protestant 
 religion was one of the principal grounds of 
 their taking arms; and they came to Edin- 
 burg to collect men for their standard. But 
 whatever favour our reformer might entertain 
 for them, he kept himself clear of all engage- 
 ments. If he had taken any part in this un- 
 successful revolt, no doubt the Queen would 
 have brought him to punishment, when all 
 his principal friends were obliged to flee the 
 kingdom. Indeed upon a far lighter charge 
 she proceeded against him ; for one day when 
 the King attended his ministry, at St. Giles' 
 church, the preacher happened in his dis- 
 course to cite that passage, " I will give chil- 
 dren to be their princes, and babes shall rule 
 over them; children are their oppressors, and 
 women rule over them." And in the same 
 discourse he mentioned, that God punished 
 Ahab because he did not correct his idolatrous 
 wife, Jezebel. Though no particular applica- 
 tion was made by the preacher, the King ap- 
 plied these passages to the Queen and himself; 
 and returning to the palace in great wrath, re- 
 fused to eat his dinner. The papists who at- 
 tended him, were not wanting in their efforts 
 
206 THE LIFE OF 
 
 to inflame his resentment, and that of the 
 Queen, by their representations. That very 
 afternoon, Knox was taken from his bed, and 
 carried before the Privy Council. Some re- 
 spectable persons accompanied him to the 
 palace. He was told that he had ofiended the 
 King, and must desist from preaching, as long 
 as their majesties were in Edinburg. He re- 
 plied, that he had spoken nothing but accord- 
 ing to his text; and if the Church would 
 command him to preach or abstain, he would 
 obey, so far as the word of God would per- 
 mit him. The report of this inhibition, laid 
 upon the reformer, created great agitation in 
 the city. His colleague, who was appointed 
 to supply his place during the suspension, 
 threatened to desist entirely from preaching. 
 The town council met, and appointed a depu- 
 tation to wait on their Majesties, and request 
 the removal of the inhibition; and in a second 
 meeting, on the same day, they came to a 
 unanimous resolution, that " they would in no 
 manner of way, consent, or grant that his 
 mouth be closed; but that he should be de- 
 sired, at his pleasure, and as God should move 
 his heart to proceed forward to true doctrine. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 207 
 
 as before, which doctrine they would approve 
 and abide at to their life's end/' This sus- 
 pension, however, was short, for the king and 
 queen left Edinbarg before the next Sabbath. 
 Upon their return, it is probable the court 
 judged it unadvisable to enforce an order 
 which had already created much discontent, 
 and might alienate the minds of the people 
 still further from the present administration. 
 And so he went on in the exercise of his 
 ministry, as before. 
 
 Christopher Goodman, who was minister of 
 St. Andrews, was induced by the solicitation 
 of his friends in England, to return, about this 
 time, to his native country. The commis- 
 sioners from St. Andrews were instructed to 
 petition the General Assembly, which met 
 in December of this year, that Knox should 
 be translated from Edinburg to their city. 
 They claimed a right to him, as he had com- 
 menced his ministry among them; and they 
 supposed that the dissensions between him 
 and the court would induce him to prefer a 
 more retired situation. But their petition 
 did not meet with success; for the Assembly 
 would not consent that he should leave Edin- 
 
208 THE LIFE OF 
 
 burg, where the attachment to his ministry 
 was exceedingly strong, and where his influ- 
 ence was most necessary to the Protestant 
 cause. 
 
 The General Assembly commissioned him, 
 this year, to visit the south of Scotland; and 
 he was directed to write a kind of pastoral 
 letter, exhorting the ministers, exhorters, and 
 readers, throughout the kingdom, to persevere 
 in the discharge of their functions, which many 
 of them were' threatening to throw up, on 
 account of the non-payment of their stipends; 
 and to excite the people to relieve their minis- 
 ters. Knox was also appointed to draw up 
 " The form of Excommunication," and ^'Pub- 
 lic Repentance;" and also a treatise on " Fast- 
 ing;." He and his colleagues were also in- 
 trusted with drawing up a statement relative 
 to a general fast to be kept through the king- 
 dom, in consideration of the troubles of the 
 country, and the dangers which threatened the 
 whole Protestant interest. This paper was 
 intended to explain the nature of the duty, 
 and the reasons which, at this time, called for 
 its solemn exercise, and to be a directory to 
 the ministers, in every part of the country 
 
JOHN KNOX. 209 
 
 This treatise is extant, and does credit to the 
 compilers, both as to matter and form. 
 
 Strong as their apprehensions were, the 
 danger was nearer than they imagined. The 
 most powerful and zealous Protestants being 
 exiled, the Queen determined to carry into 
 execution, the design which she had never lost 
 sight of; and while she amused the nation with 
 proclamations against altering the received 
 religion, and tantalized the clergy with pro- 
 mises of more adequate support, she was pre- 
 paring for the immediate restoration of the 
 Roman Catholic worship. The King openly 
 professed himself a papist and great efforts 
 were made to bring over the nobility. And 
 their success was alarming; for the Earls of 
 Lenox, Cassilis, and Caithness, with Lords 
 Montgomery and Seton, already declared them- 
 selves in favour of the Roman Catholic re- 
 ligion. The friars, to gain the favour of the 
 populace, began to imitate the manner of the 
 Protestant preachers; and some of them were 
 appointed to officiate, in this service, at Holy- 
 rood House. 
 
 In the month of February, 1566, a message 
 arrived from the Cardinal of Lorrain, with a 
 
 19 
 
210 THE LIFE OF 
 
 copy of the league for the general extirpation 
 of the Protestants, and instructions to obtain 
 the Queen's subscription to the same, and her 
 consent to proceed to extremities against the 
 exiled nobles. Mary scrupled not to set her 
 hand to this league; and the exiled noblemen 
 were summoned to appear before the parlia- 
 ment on the 12th of March. The lords of the 
 Articles were chosen, according to the Queen's 
 pleasure; the popish ecclesiastics were restored 
 to their place in parliament; and the altars to 
 be erected in St. Giles's for the Roman Catho- 
 lic worship, were prepared. But these mea- 
 sures were blasted, when ripe for execution, 
 by a secret engagement entered into by the 
 King, with the Protestant nobles. The first 
 effect of this engagement was, the assassination 
 of Rizio, an unworthy favourite of the Queen, 
 who was the principal instigator of the mea- 
 sures against the Protestant religion and the 
 banished lords; and had incurred the jealousy 
 of the King, the contempt of the nobility, and 
 the hatred of the people. The removal of this 
 minion from the counsels and favour of the 
 Queen, would have been a meritorious act; 
 but the manner in which it was accomplishetl, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 211 
 
 was marked with the barbarous manners of the 
 age, and cannot be justified. 
 
 A complete change now took place in the 
 court. The popish counsellors fled from the 
 palace; the banished lords returned from 
 England, and the parliament was prorogued, 
 without accomplishing any of the objects for 
 which it was convened. But the Queen soon 
 persuaded the weak and uxorious King to 
 desert the noblemen, and disown, by a pro- 
 clamation, his consent to the late attempt, and 
 to retire with her to Dunbar, by which he 
 exposed himself to the contempt of the nation, 
 without regaining her affections. Having col- 
 lected an army, she returned to Edinburg, 
 threatening vengeance to all who had been 
 accessary to the murder of her secretary, 
 and the indignity shown to her person. She 
 found herself unable, however, to carry on her 
 scheme for the alteration of the public religion; 
 and was forced, from policy, to pardon Murray 
 and the other lords, who had opposed her mar- 
 riage. 
 
 When the Queen came to Edinburg, Knox 
 left the place and went to Kyle. There is no 
 reason for supposing, that he had any know- 
 
212 THE LIFE OF 
 
 ledge of the conspiracy, which proved fatal to 
 Rizio. But it is not improbable that he had 
 expressed his satisfaction at an event whicli 
 signally contributed to the safety of religion 
 and the commonwealth, if not his approbation 
 of the conduct of the conspirators. However 
 this might be, he was, on other grounds, suffi- 
 ciently obnoxious to the displeasure of the 
 Queen; so that it was deemed prudent for him 
 to withdraw. The Queen now determied that 
 he should not return; and resisted all the im- 
 portunities of the town council and his people, 
 to obtain his restoration. She aimed, indeed, 
 at banishing him from the kingdom, and wrote 
 to a nobleman in the west, where he lodged, 
 to banish him from his house. And it does 
 not appear that he returned again to Edinburg, 
 until the Queen was deprived of her govern- 
 ment. Being thus banished from his flock, 
 he thought it would be a favourable opportu- 
 nity of visiting England, to which he was 
 strongly induced by parental affection; for his 
 two sons had been sent into that kingdom, to 
 obtain their education, in some of the English 
 seminaries. He obtained a safe conduct, and 
 a recommendation from the General Assem- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 213 
 
 bly, who gave their consent to his journey, 
 on condition that he should return before their 
 next meeting, in June. He was charged with 
 a letter from the Assembly, to the bishops 
 and ministers of England, interceding for lenity 
 to such of their brethren as scrupled to use the 
 sacerdotal dress, enjoined by the laws. At 
 this time, the controversy on this subject was 
 very warm among the English clergy. Knox 
 himself, was the writer of this letter^ and it is 
 probable that the measure was suggested by 
 himself; for he knew how to sympathize with 
 conscientious men who were sufifering on this 
 account; for he could not have forgotten the 
 trouble which he himself had suffered, on a 
 similar ground. This interposition did not 
 obtain for them any relief. Even if the supe- 
 rior clergy had been willing to relax, in this 
 particular, Elizabeth was inflexible, and would 
 listen neither to the supplications of her 
 bishops, nor the advice of her counsellors. 
 Knox's good opinion of the English Queen 
 was not improved, by his visit. 
 
 Before setting ©ff on his journey to Eng- 
 land, the Queen had, on the 23d of December, 
 granted a commission to the archbishop of St. 
 
 19* 
 
214 THE LIFE OF 
 
 Andrews, under the privy seal, restoring him 
 to his ancient jurisdiction, which had been 
 abolished in 1560, by act of parliament. The 
 Protestants could not but be alarmed at this 
 bold measure, evidently intended to be prepa- 
 ratory to the restoration of the popish reli- 
 gion; and to facilitate another dark design, 
 which was soon afterwards disclosed. The 
 reformer, upon hearing of this, moved as well 
 by his own zeal, as the advice of his brethren, 
 addressed a circular letter to the principal 
 Protestants, in the kingdom ; requesting their 
 immediate advice, on the measures proper to 
 be adopted, on this occasion, and inclosing a 
 copy of a supplication proposed to be present- 
 ed to the Queen. This letter discovers all the 
 ardour of the writer's spirit, called forth by 
 this alarming occurrence. The supplication 
 of the General Assembly to the lords of the 
 privy council, also bears the marks of the re- 
 former's pen. 
 
 Whilst Knox was in England, that tragedy, 
 so well known in Scottish history, was trans- 
 acted, which led to a complete revolution in the 
 government of the kingdom, and contrary to 
 the designs of the actors, threw the power 
 
JOHN KNOX. 215 
 
 into the hands of the Protestants. Mary's 
 affection for her husband, vvliich had cooled 
 soon after their marriage, after the death of 
 Rizio, was converted into a deadly hatred, 
 which she was at little pains to conceal. And 
 in proportion as her mind Vv^as alienated from 
 the King, the unprincipled earl of Bothwell 
 grew in her favour. He engrossed the whole 
 management of public affairs, and was treated 
 by her majesty with every mark of regard 
 and affection. In these circumstances, the 
 neglected unhappy King, was decoyed to 
 Edinburg, lodged in a solitary building, at the 
 extremity of the city, and murdered on the 
 night of February 9, 1567: the house in 
 which he lay being blown up with gunpow- 
 der. The dispute, respecting the real perpe- 
 trators of the deed, is not yet settled ; and it 
 would be foreign to our purpose to enter into 
 it. But that Bothwell was the contriver of 
 it, cannot admit of a doubt, with any impar- 
 tial and reasonable inquirer. And that the 
 Queen was in some way accessary to the deed, 
 needs no other proof, than the indecent haste 
 with which she admitted the murderer of her 
 husband to her bed. To which many other 
 
216 THE LIFE OP 
 
 proofs from letters and depositions, sufficient 
 to satisfy any candid mind, might be added. 
 
 Knox being absent from Edinburg, his col- 
 league was required to publish the bands of 
 matrimony between the Queen and Both well; 
 on which occasion, he gave an illustrious ex- 
 ample of his courage and integrity. For after 
 taking the advice of his session, he protested 
 from the pulpit, on three several days, that 
 the marriage was unlawful; and took heaven 
 and earth to witness, that he abhorred and de- 
 tested the intended marriage as unlawful and 
 scandalous; and solemnly charged the nobility 
 to use their influence to prevent the Queen 
 from taking a step, which would cover her 
 with infamy. Being called before the coun- 
 cil, and accused of having exceeded the bounds 
 of his commission, he boldly replied, that the 
 bounds of his commission were the word of 
 God, good laws, and natural reason, to all of 
 which the proposed marriage was contrary. 
 And Both well being present, he charged him 
 with the crime of adultery, and with the murder 
 of the king. This conduct of John Craig 
 was worthy of the intrepidity of Knox himself 
 and is a lasting monument to the honour of 
 
JOHN KNOX. 217 
 
 this distinguished man ; for, when he thus 
 boldly denounced the guilty in high places, 
 almost every other tongue was silent, through 
 fear. 
 
 Knox returned, at the time prescribed, and 
 was present at the General Assembly, which 
 met in June 1567, and was commissioned to 
 go into the west, to endeavour to bring over 
 the Hamiltons and others, to join with the 
 lords of the convention, and to attend a con- 
 vention of the delegates of the churches, to 
 be held in July. He was unsuccessful in his 
 mission, but the convention was held, and the 
 nobles, barons, and other commissioners who 
 were present, signed articles, with relation to 
 religion, and the state of the nation. 
 
 On the 29th of July, Knox preached the 
 sermon at the coronation of James VI., in the 
 parish church of Stirling : but he objected to 
 the ceremony of unction, and therefore this 
 ceremony was performed by the bishop of 
 Orkney. After the coronation, Knox and 
 some others requested authentic extracts of 
 the proceedings. 
 
 What ought to be done with the Queen, 
 now confined by the lords, in the castle of 
 
218 THE LIFE OP 
 
 Lochlevin, was a matter concerning which, 
 there were various opinions ; for while some 
 proposed that she should leave the kingdom ; 
 some that she should be imprisoned for life ; 
 others insisted, that she ought to suffer capital 
 punishment. Of this last opinion was Knox, 
 with almost all the ministers, and the great 
 body of the people. This opinion was ground- 
 ed on the belief, that she was really guilty of 
 murder and adultery, to both which the pun- 
 ishment of death was affixed by the law of 
 God, and of nations. From this penalty per- 
 sons of rank could plead no exemption. Knox 
 scrupled not publicly to maintain, that the 
 estates of the kingdom ought to bring Mary 
 to a trial, and if she was found guilty of the 
 murder of her husband, and an adulterous 
 connexion with Bothwell, that she ought to 
 be put to death. 
 
 The earl of Murray being now established 
 in the regency, directed his attention, at an 
 early period to the settlement of religion, and 
 redressing the principal grievances of which 
 the church had complained. At the meeting 
 of the parliament, in December, he nominated 
 certain barons, and commissioners of boroughs, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 219 
 
 to digest such overtures as were proper to be 
 laid before the parliament. With them, he 
 joined Knox, and four other ministers. This 
 committee met in December, and sat until the 
 opening of the parliament. The record of 
 their proceedings is preserved, both as to 
 civil and ecclesiastical affairs ; but as many of 
 their propositions were not adopted by parlia- 
 ment, the document is only useful as showing 
 the views entertained by a number of the 
 most serious and zealous men of that time. 
 
 On the 15th of December, Knox preached 
 at the opening of the parliament, and exhorted 
 them to begin with the affairs of religion, in 
 which case they would find better success with 
 their other business. This parliament ratified 
 all the acts which had been passed in 1560, in 
 favour of the Protestant religion and against 
 popery; and added new statutes of a similar 
 kind. In these it was provided, that no prince 
 should hereafter be admitted to the exercise of 
 authority in the kingdom, without taking an 
 oath to maintain the Protestant religion; and 
 that none but Protestants should be admitted 
 to any office, not hereditary, nor held for life. 
 The ecclesiastical jurisdiction exercised by the 
 
220 THE LIFE OF 
 
 different assemblies of the Church, was for- 
 mally ratified, and commissioners appointed to 
 define more exactly, the causes which properly 
 came within the sphere of their judgment. 
 Provision was also made for the more punc- 
 tual payment of the stipends of the ministers, 
 and funds appropriated for the maintenance of 
 poor scholars. 
 
 Knox was appointed one of the commission- 
 ers for ascertainino; and defining; the exact 
 limits of ecclesiastical jurisdiction. He was 
 also appointed by the General Assembly, with 
 others, to consult with the Regent and coun- 
 cil, on such ecclesiastical matters as might 
 require attention after the dissolution of the 
 Assembly. He was also appointed to assist 
 the superintendent of Lothian in his visitation; 
 and afterwards to visit the churches of Kyle, 
 Carrick, and Cunningham. 
 
 During the regency of Murray, there was 
 no collision between Church and State, nor 
 any complaints to the General Assembly, as 
 there had been before, and which were after- 
 wards renewed. It is true, that all the grie- 
 vances of which the}'- complained, were not 
 redressed; and the provision for such an ec- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 221 
 
 clesiastical establishment as the nation required, 
 was far from being adequate; but the Regent 
 paid a gracious attention to the petitions pre- 
 sented to him, and discovered a disposition to 
 grant their requests, as far as was in his power. 
 And if the parliament had always seconded his 
 efforts and adopted his plans, a sufficient pro- 
 vision would have been made, both for the 
 support of religion and learning. 
 
 It must have afforded unspeakable satisfac- 
 tion to the mind of this man of God, to see 
 matters in Scotland placed in that situation 
 which he desired, and for which he had inde- 
 fatigably laboured and patiently suffered for so 
 many years- Superstition and ignorance were 
 happily overthrown and dispelled; true reli- 
 gion was established ; the supreme government 
 of the nation was in the hands of one in whose 
 wisdom and integrity he had the greatest con- 
 fidence. The Church was freed from many 
 of those grievances under which she had hith- 
 erto groaned, and enjoyed the prospect of ob- 
 taining the redress of such as still remained. 
 The work on which his heart had been so ar- 
 dently set for so long a period, and for the 
 success of which he had so often trembled, had 
 
 20 
 
222 THE LIFE OF 
 
 prospered beyond his most sanguine expecta- 
 tion. He now congratulated himself on being 
 released from all burden of public affairs, and 
 spending the remainder of his days in religious 
 meditation, and in preparation for that event of 
 which his increasing infirmities admonished 
 him. He even secretly cherished the wish of 
 resigning his charge in Edinburg, and retir- 
 ing to that privacy, from which he had been 
 drawn at the commencement of the Scottish 
 Reform.ation. 
 
 But these halcyon days were not to be of 
 long continuance. New trials of a public 
 nature awaited him. He was yet to see the 
 security of the reformed religion endangered, 
 and the country involved in another civil war, 
 even more distressing than the former, inas- 
 much as the principal persons on each side 
 were Protestants by profession. 
 
 From the time that the government was 
 transferred from Mary to her infant son, and 
 the Earl of Murray appointed Regent, a num- 
 ber of the nobility, with the house of Hamil- 
 ton at their head, stood aloof and refused to 
 acknowledge his authority. Upon the escape 
 of the Queen from imprisonment, they rallied 
 
JOHN KNOX. 223 
 
 around her standard, and avowed the design of 
 restoring her to the full exercise of the royal 
 authority. In consequence of the defeat at 
 Langside, Mary was driven from the king- 
 dom, and .her party broken; and the Regent 
 reduced the whole kingdom to a state of obe- 
 dience to the King's authority. His enemies, 
 despairing of accomplishing their object while 
 he lived, resolved to cut him off by private 
 means. During the year 156S, two persons 
 were employed to assassinate the Regent; but 
 the design was discovered. This did not pre- 
 vent new machinations. Hamilton, nephew 
 of the bishop of St. Andrews, undertook to 
 perpetrate the deed. This man may be held 
 up to view as an extraordinary instance of in- 
 gratitude. He was among the prisoners taken 
 at the battle of Langside, and after being ar- 
 raigned, condemned, and brought out to exe- 
 cution, his life was given to him by the 
 Regent; and some time after he was set at 
 liberty with the other prisoners. It is said, 
 that he was actuated by revenge for a supposed 
 injury which he had received, by detaining 
 one of his forfeited estates. Whether this was 
 really the case, or was afterwards circulated to 
 
224 THE LIFE OF 
 
 diminish the odium of his crime, cannot now 
 be certainly known. But there is no evidence 
 that he ever suffered any thing from the Re- 
 gent, which could in any measure cancel the 
 debt of gratitude which he owed him. Having 
 concerted his plan with some of the leading 
 men of his party, he followed the Regent in 
 his progress to Stirling, Glasgow, and Lin- 
 lithgow; and finding an opportunity, in the 
 last of these places, he shot him through the 
 body with a musket-ball. The wound proved 
 mortal, and the Regent died the same evening. 
 While some of his friends who stood around 
 his bed, and lamented the excessive lenity 
 which he had shown to his enemies, and in 
 particular to his murderer, he replied, with a 
 truly noble and Christian spirit, " that nothing 
 should make him repent an act of clemency." 
 The distress occasioned by the fall of this 
 excellent man was deep and almost universal. 
 Many of those who envied or hated him du- 
 ring his life, were now forward to do justice 
 to his virtues. The common people who had 
 experienced the beneficial effects of his short 
 administration, to a degree altogether unprece- 
 dented in the country, felt as if each had lost a 
 
JOHN KNOX. 225 
 
 father, and loudly demanded vengeance against 
 the authors of the parricide. And even those 
 'who at first rejoiced at the intelligence of his 
 death, became ashamed of the exultation which 
 they had indecently expressed. The Hamil- 
 tons took pains to clear themselves from any 
 participation in a murder so universally de- 
 tested. The murderer was dismissed by them, 
 and was glad to conceal his ignominy and 
 avoid the vengeance of an incensed nation, by 
 condenining himself to perpetual banishment. 
 And the only crime for which his uncle, the 
 archbishop of St. Andrews, expressed any con- 
 trition before his execution, was his being ac- 
 cessary to the murder of the Regent. Nor 
 were these feelings of grief confined to Scot- 
 land; the sensation was general throughout 
 England; and the expressions of sorrow and 
 condolence from that kingdom evinced the 
 uncommon esteem in which he was held by all 
 ranks. 
 
 It was the happiness of the Regent, that in 
 his early years, he fell into the hands of men 
 who cultivated his vigorous intellect, and gave 
 a right direction to his activity, and instilled 
 into his mind the principles of religion and 
 20* 
 
226 THE LIFE OF 
 
 virtue. His early adoption of the reformed 
 religion, and his steady adherence to it in the 
 most trying times, as well as the uniform cor- 
 rectness of his morals, his integrity, sagacity, 
 and enterprising but cool courage, place him 
 in the first rank among the friends of the 
 reformation of religion, and of civil and re- 
 ligious liberty. Accordingly his worth was 
 duly appreciated by all who took a lead in this 
 glorious work, and secured to him their cor- 
 dial and unbounded confidence. Though often 
 placed in situations which would have tempted 
 the ambition of others, he never took any 
 steps to obtain for himself the supreme autho- 
 rity. When he accepted the Regency, it was 
 incompliance with the decided and uncorrupted 
 voice of the majority of the nation, pointing 
 him out as the fittest person to occupy that 
 high station. And his conduct in this most 
 delicate and embarrassing situation, showed 
 that his countrymen were not mistaken in their 
 choice. He united, in no ordinary degree, 
 those qualities which are rarely combined in 
 the same individual, and which make up the 
 character of an accomplished prince. Excel- 
 ling equally in the arts of war and peace, he 
 
JOHN KNOX. 227 
 
 reduced the country to universal obedience to 
 the King's authority by his military skill and 
 valour, and preserved it in a state of tranquil- 
 lity and order by the wise and impartial ad- 
 ministration of justice. Successful in all his 
 warlike enterprizes, he never tarnished the 
 laurels of victory by cruelty or unnecessary 
 rigour to the vanquished. His uncommon 
 liberality to his friends, to the learned, to his 
 servants, and his unostentatious charity to the 
 poor, have been celebrated by the distinguished 
 Scottish historian and poet, Buchanan, who had 
 the best opportunities of being acquainted with 
 him. As to his exemplary piety, it shone 
 forth with uniform, consistent, and brilliant 
 rays. His family was so regulated as to re- 
 semble a church rather than a court. Besides 
 the ordinary exercise of devotion, a chapter of 
 the Bible was always read at dinner, and ano- 
 ther at supper; and it was his custom on such 
 occasions, to require his chaplain or some other 
 learned man to expound the passage read for 
 his own instruction and that of his family. 
 "A man truly good,'' says Archbishop Spottis- 
 wood, " and worthy to be ranked among the 
 best governors that this kingdom hath en- 
 
228 THE LIFE OF 
 
 joyed, and therefore to this day honoured with 
 the title of ^ the good Regent.^ " 
 
 A very different character has been given of 
 this distinguished man by more than one of 
 our modern historians. All that I have at- 
 tempted is, to sketch the most prominent fea- 
 tures of his character. That he was without 
 faults is not pretended; but the principal char- 
 ges brought against him are false, irrelevant, 
 or greatly exaggerated. 
 
 The Regent died on the evening of Satur- 
 day, and the intelligence reached Edinburg 
 early next morning. It is impossible to de- 
 scribe the anguish which Knox felt on the occa- 
 sion. A long and intimate friendship had long 
 subsisted between them. Of all the Scottish 
 nobility, he placed the greatest confidence in 
 Murray's attachment to religion; and his con- 
 duct after his elevation to the Regency had 
 served to heighten the good opinion which he 
 had formerly entertained of him. He looked 
 upon his death as the greatest calamity which 
 could befall the nation, and the precursor of 
 other evils. After the tumult of his feelings 
 had in a measure subsided, the first thought 
 which rushed into his mind was, that he him- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 229 
 
 self had been the instrument of obtaining from 
 his clemency a pardon for the man who had 
 become his murderer; which, however, pro- 
 duced a very different impression on his mind 
 from what it did on the dying regent. In his 
 sermon that day, he introduced this subject; 
 and after saying, that God in his great mercy 
 raised up godly rulers, and took them away in 
 his displeasure on account of the sins of a na- 
 tion, he thus poured out the sorrows of his 
 heart in an address to God. " Lord in what 
 misery and confusion found he this realm! To 
 what rest and quietness now, by his labours he 
 suddenly brought the same, all estates, but 
 especially the poor can witness. Thy image, 
 Lord, did so clearly shine in that personage, 
 that the devil, and the wicked to whom he is 
 prince, could not abide it; and so to punish 
 our sins and our ingratitude, who did not 
 rightly esteem this precious gift, thou hast 
 permitted him to fall, to our great grief, in the 
 hands of cruel and traitorous murderers. He 
 is at rest, Lord, we are left in extreme mi- 
 sery." 
 
 Soon after the death of the Regent, in order 
 to lessen the odium which had devolved on 
 
230 THE LIFE OF 
 
 his enemies, an account of a pretended confe- 
 rence between him and certain leading noble- 
 men, was circulated. In which they were 
 represented as advising him to set aside the 
 young King, and place the crown on his own 
 head. This paper was ingeniously contrived, 
 for the peculiar modes of speech of each indi- 
 vidual were artfully imitated, and gave it a 
 greater air of probability. But it was uni- 
 versally regarded as a forgery, at once gross 
 and impudent. The author was Thomas Mait- 
 land, a young man of talents, and brother 
 of the Secretary, by whom, doubtless, he was 
 corrupted; for he was strongly suspected of 
 having a deep hand in the plot for cutting oflf 
 the Regent. This young man, also, at the 
 next meeting for weekly conference in Edin- 
 burg, handed up to the pulpit a note contain- 
 ing these words, "Take up now the man whom 
 you accounted as a God, and consider the end 
 to which his ambition has brought him." 
 Knox read the paper, supposing that it was a 
 request for prayer to be offered in behalf of 
 some person; but when he saw what it vTas, 
 he laid it aside; but when he had nearly fin- 
 ished his sermon, he deplored the loss which 
 
JOHN KNOX. 231 
 
 the Church had sustained, and also the eom- 
 monwealth, and declared that the account of a 
 pretended conference which had been circula- 
 ted, was false and calumnious. Then he pro- 
 ceeded to remark, " that there were persons 
 who rejoiced at the treasonable murder, and 
 scrupled not to make it the subject of their 
 merriment. Particularly," he said, " there 
 was one present, who had thrown in a writing 
 exulting over an event which was the cause of 
 grief to all good men." " That wicked man," 
 said he, " whosoever he be, shall not go unpun- 
 ished, and shall die where there shall be none 
 to lament him." Maitland, when he returned 
 home, said to his sister, that the preacher was 
 raving to speak in such a manner of one whom 
 he knew not; but she understanding that he 
 had written the line, reproved him, saying 
 with tears, " that none of that man's denuncia- 
 tions were wont to prove idle." Spottiswood, 
 who had this information from the mouth of 
 the lady herself, says, " that Maitland died in 
 Italy, having no known persons to attend him." 
 On Tuesday the 14th of February, 1569 
 the Regent's corpse was brought from the 
 palace of Holyrood-house, and interred in the 
 
232 THE LIFE OF 
 
 south aisle of the collegiate church of St. Giles. 
 Knox preached a sermon on the occasion, on 
 the words, ^^ Blessed are thedead who die 
 in the Lord.'^ Three thousand persons were 
 dissolved in tears before him, while he descri- 
 bed the Regent's virtues and bewailed his loss. 
 
 Buchanan paid his tribute to the memory 
 of the deceased by writing the inscription 
 placed on his monument, with that expressive 
 simplicity and brevity, which are dictated by 
 genuine grief. This inscription, engraved on 
 brass, is yet to be seen. A convention of the 
 nobility was held, after the funeral, in which 
 it was resolved to avenge his death ; but there 
 was a difference of opinion, as to the best 
 method of doing this. And the common peo- 
 ple complained loudly of the remissness with 
 which the resolution was carried into execution. 
 
 The General Assembly, at their first meet- 
 ing, after this event, testified their detestation 
 of the crime, by ordering the assassin to be 
 publicly excommunicated in all the chief 
 towns of the kingdom; and ordered the same 
 to be done towards all who should be convict- 
 ed of being accessary to the conspiracy. 
 
 Knox received a number of letters from 
 
JOHN KNOX. 233 
 
 England, expressive of the high regard which 
 was entertained for the character of the Re- 
 gent, and their sorrow at so grievous a loss. 
 One of his correspondents, Dr. Laurence 
 Humphrey, urged him to write a memoir of 
 the deceased. But the state of the Reformer's 
 health rendered it impracticable for him to 
 perform this service. 
 
 The grief which preyed on the feeling mind 
 of Knox in consequence of this mournful event, 
 and the confusion which followed it, preyed 
 on his spirit and injured his health. And in 
 the month of October, he had a stroke of 
 apoplexy, or paralysis, which affected his 
 speech considerably. Upon this occasion his 
 enemies exulted, and circulated the most ex- 
 aggerated stories. 
 
 PERIOD VIII. 
 
 FROM HIS PARALYTIC STROKE IN 1570, TO HIS DEATH IN 1572. 
 
 Those who flattered themselves that the re- 
 former's disorder was mortal were disappoint- 
 ed, for he convalesced, recovered the use of 
 his speech, and was able to resume preaching, 
 
 21 
 
234 THE LIFE OF 
 
 at least on the Sabbath ; he never, however, 
 recovered from the debility which was pro- 
 duced by the stroke. 
 
 Great confusion ensued upon the death of 
 the Regent. The country was divided into 
 two factions, one of which adhered to the 
 Queen, and the other, to which the Protestants 
 generally belonged, adhered to the interests of 
 the young King. Knox had about this time 
 a violent quarrel with Kircaldy of Grange, 
 the governor of the castle of Edinburg, who 
 had been a warm friend of the reformation, 
 but now took part with the queen. Knox 
 offended this nobleman by some remarks in a 
 sermon respecting a riot which his servants 
 had excited, and which Grange considered as 
 bearing hard upon him. One of his servants 
 had been imprisoned on the charge of murder, 
 and he sent and had the prison broken open, 
 and the prisoner rescued ; on which occasion 
 Knox made the remarks which gave offence. 
 And afterwards Grange, who had not been in 
 his church for a year, came with a number of 
 his friends to hear Knox ; who understanding 
 it to be a kind of bravado, and intended to in- 
 timidate him, went on to remark with severity 
 
JOHN KNOX. 235 
 
 on the sin of forgetting God's benefits, and 
 warned his hearers against confiding in the 
 divine mercy while they were knowingly 
 transgressing any of his commandments, or 
 proudly defending theirtransgressions. Grange 
 considering these remarks as pointed at him- 
 self, was much incensed, and in speaking of 
 the preacher, made use of ver}?- threatening 
 language. The report of this spread far 
 through the country, and the governor re- 
 ceived letters from noblemen of the west, 
 warning him not to do any thing to the injury 
 of a man, whom God had made the first plan- 
 ter and chief waterer of the church among; 
 them; and protested that his life was as dear 
 to them as their own. Knox was not to be in- 
 timidated from doing what he believed to be 
 his duty, and continued to warn his hearers 
 against all persons who supported the Queen's 
 pretensions, or prevented the punishment of 
 evil doers. When the General Assembly 
 met in 1571, many anonymous and threaten- 
 ing libels were throv^n into the house, direct- 
 ed against him, which his friends wished him 
 not to notice; but he took them into the pul- 
 pit, and distinctly answered every charge 
 
236 THE LIFE OF 
 
 which they contained. The Assembly noticed 
 the matter also, by intimating, that if any had 
 charges to bring against him, the}" would come 
 forward and accuse him, but none ventured to 
 appear; still the anonymous libels were contin- 
 ued. One of the principal things of which he 
 was accused was, that in his sermons he charged 
 the Queen with horrible crimes, and had railed 
 against her. As to the railing he denied it, 
 but admitted that he had charged the Queen 
 with the crimes which she had committed; 
 that he had learned plainly and boldly to call 
 wickedness by its own terms, '• a fig, a fig, and 
 a spade a spade." He had never called her a 
 reprobate, nor said that her repentance was 
 impossible; but he had said, that pride and 
 repentance could not remain long together in 
 one heart. He had prayed, he said, that God 
 would oppose his power to her pride, and con- 
 found her and her assistants in their impiety. 
 This prayer, let them call it imprecation or 
 execration, let them call it what they pleas- 
 ed, had stricken, and would strike whoever 
 supported her. To the charge of not praying 
 for her, he answered, " I am not bound to 
 pray for her in this place, for sovereign to me 
 
JOHN KNOX. 237 
 
 she is not, and I let them understand that I 
 am not a man of law, that has my tongue to 
 sell for silver, or favour of the world. What 
 title she now had, or ever had he would not 
 dispute: the estates deprived her of it, and it 
 belonged to them to answer for this. As for 
 himself he had hitherto lived in obedience 
 to all lawful authority within this kingdom." 
 
 After this, his enemies returned to the old 
 theme of his Blast, as the most vulnerable 
 point in his character, and accused him of in- 
 consistency in denying the right of females to 
 rule, and yet praying as he did, for Queen 
 Elizabeth. He took up this matter also in the 
 pulpit, and defended himself with great spirit. 
 
 The conduct of Knox, about this time, fur- 
 nishes striking evidence of the unextinguisha- 
 ble ardour of his mind. He was so debilitated 
 in body, that he never went abroad, except to 
 preach in the forenoon. He had given up at- 
 tendance on church courts. He withdrew his 
 attention also, from public affairs. But when- 
 ever he saw the welfare of the Church and 
 Commonwealth threatened, he forgot his reso- 
 lutions and infirmities, and entered into the 
 cause with all the vigour and keenness of his 
 
 21* 
 
238 THE LIFE OF 
 
 younger days. Or, whenever his own con- 
 duct was attacked, he convinced his enemies 
 that they could not accomplish their designs 
 without opposition, as long as he was able to 
 move a tongue. His situation in Edinburg be- 
 came very critical when Grange received the 
 Hamiltons into the castle of Edinburg; for 
 their inveteracy against him was so great, that 
 his friends w^ere obliged to watch his house 
 during the night. They wished also to form 
 a guard for him w^hen he went out, but the 
 governor of the castle forbade this. Intima- 
 tions were often given of designs against his 
 life; and one evening as he sat in his house, a 
 musket ball was fired in at the window, and 
 lodged in the ceiling of the room. It hap- 
 pened that he was sitting at this time in a dif- 
 ferent part of the room from that which he 
 usually occupied, or the ball would have struck 
 him. His friends, on this, urged him to re- 
 tire from Edinburg, but he refused to yield to 
 them, apprehending that his enemies wished 
 to intimidate him into flight, that they might 
 accuse him of cowardice. But at length they 
 had recourse to an argument which prevailed. 
 They told him that they were determined to 
 
JOHN KNOX. 239 
 
 defend him to the last, but that if blood were 
 shed, he must be answerable for it, as nothing 
 but his obstinacy rendered it necessary. On 
 this he consented, " sore against his will," to 
 leave the city. He chose St. Andrews, as the 
 place of his retreat; and his pulpit was sup- 
 plied by Alexander Gordon, who, though he 
 preached and prayed in such a manner as to 
 give no offence to the Queen's party, was des- 
 pised by the people for his weakness, and for 
 supplanting their favourite pastor. The church 
 of Edinburg was for a time dissolved. A great 
 number of the most respectable inhabitants 
 were driven away, or left in dissatisfaction. 
 Even the celebration of the Lord's Supper 
 was suspended. The adherents of the Queen 
 manifested their dislike to the reformer, in 
 every way which they could. They impious- 
 ly baptized one of the cannon on St. Giles' 
 steeple by the name of Knox, which they 
 were so fond of firing, that it burst, killed two 
 of the party, and wounded others. 
 
 Although free from personal danger at St. 
 Andrews, he did not find it as comfortable a 
 retreat as he had expected. His enemies had 
 a considerable party here, who were thorns in 
 
240 THE LIFE OF 
 
 his side, and made his situation nnoasy, as 
 long as he resided among them. He continued 
 to denounce the murderers of the late King 
 and Regent, and thus gave great offence to some 
 of their friends who resided at St. Andrews. 
 And they knowing his popularity dared not 
 attack him in public, but privately circulated 
 reports to his disadvantage; which, however, 
 being ridiculously false, were not credited. 
 And he did not refuse to appear before the 
 professors of the university to give an account 
 of his conduct; still reserving to himself the 
 right to vindicate himself in the pulpit. But 
 Knox was not only annoyed by the persecu- 
 tion of the adherents of the Queen, but the 
 course pursued by the courtiers among the 
 Protestants respecting the revenues of the 
 Church, gave him great dissatisfaction. The 
 judgment of the Church had uniformly been 
 that these revenues should be applied to the 
 support of learning and religion, to which ob- 
 jects they were originally consecrated; but the 
 courtiers formed the design of getting them 
 into their own hands. But as the immediate 
 secularization of them was deemed too bold a 
 step, tliey had incumbents selected, who be- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 241 
 
 fore their appointment agreed to make over 
 the principal part of the revenue to such no- 
 blemen as had obtained the patronage of them, 
 from the court. But as some of these benefi- 
 ces were attached to the office of Archbishop 
 and Bishop, it was resolved, at a meeting of 
 certain ministers and courtiers, held at Leith 
 in January, 1572, that qualified persons among 
 the ministers should be advanced to these offi- 
 ces, during the minority of the King; but that 
 no greater power should be given to them, 
 than to the superintendents, and that they 
 should be equally subject to the assemblies of 
 the Church. Such was the nature and origin 
 of that species of episcopacy, which was intro- 
 duced into the Reformed Church of Scotland, 
 in the minority of James VI. It does not ap- 
 pear to have proceeded in any measure, from 
 a predilection for hierarchical government; but 
 from the desire which the courtiers had to se- 
 cure to themselves the revenues of the Church. 
 These bishops, thus created, received the ap- 
 pellation of the Tulchan Bishops; a tulchan 
 is a calf-skin stuffed with straw, to make the 
 cow give her milk. 
 
 It has been insinuated, that Knox gave his 
 
242 THE LIFE OF 
 
 assent to the resolutions of the convention at 
 Leith, to restore the episcopal office: and the 
 articles sent by him to the General Assembly, 
 August 1572, have been appealed to as a proof 
 of this. But all that can be determined from 
 these articles is, that he desired the limitations 
 and restrictions agreed upon at this convention 
 to be strictly observed in the election of bish- 
 ops; in opposition to the appointment of lay- 
 men, which in one case had been done. If 
 one of his propositions to the Assembly had 
 been enforced, the revenues would have been 
 retained for the church, which was a thing he 
 had much at heart; but the nobles were able 
 to find in the ministr}'' a sufficient number of 
 pliant, needy, and cautious ministers, to be the 
 partners or the dupes of their avarice. 
 
 There is not the least reason to suppose that 
 Knox, had changed his opinion, on the sub- 
 ject of episcopacy, which he had heretofore, 
 so strenuously opposed. This very year, he 
 received a letter from Beza, expressing his 
 satisfaction, that they had banished the order 
 of bishops from the Scottish Church. And in 
 the General Assembly which met this year at 
 St. Andrews, he set himself directly in oppo- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 243 
 
 sition to the making of bishops. And when 
 old Mr. Douglas, the provost of the university- 
 was appointed archbishop of St. Andrews, he 
 disapproved of the thing greatly, and refused 
 to take any part in the ceremonies of his 
 inauguration; and pronounced an anathema 
 against the donor and the receiver. 
 
 While he was engaged in these contests, 
 his bodily strength was every day sensibly 
 decaying; yet he continued to preach although 
 he was unable to walk to the pulpit without 
 assistance. And when he became warmed 
 with his subject, he forgot his weakness, and 
 electrified his audience with his eloquence. 
 James Melville, then a student at St. An- 
 drews, says, that he considered, that one of the 
 richest benefits which he acquired by coming 
 to the university was, the hearing that most 
 notable prophet and apostle of our nation, 
 John Knox. I attended him with my note 
 book and pen. In the opening up of his text, 
 he was moderate, the space of half an hour; 
 but when he came to the application he made 
 me so thrill and tremble, I could not hold a 
 pen to write. He was very weak. I saw 
 him every day, go slowly and warily, with a 
 
244 THE LIFE OP 
 
 fur about his neck, a staff in one hand, and 
 good, godly Richard Ballanden, holding up 
 the other, from the abbey to the parish kirk: 
 and the said Richard Ballanden, and another 
 servant lifted him up to the pulpit, v/here he 
 behooved to lean at his first entrance; but 
 ere he had done with his sermon, he was so 
 active and vigorous that he was likely to beat 
 the pulpit in pieces, and fly out of it." 
 
 During his stay at St. Andrews, he publish- 
 ed a vindication of the reformed religion, 
 against a certain Jesuit, named Tyrie. He 
 had written it in 1568, but now sent it forth to 
 the public, with additions, as a farewell ad- 
 dress to the w^orld, and a dying testimony to 
 the truth which he had so long taught and de- 
 fended. He published also one of the reli- 
 gious letters which he had written to Mrs, 
 Bowes, who had lately departed this life, when 
 he acquaini-ed the public with the principal 
 cause of that intimate Christian friendship 
 which had subsisted between them. 
 
 From this time all his letters and writings 
 are full of ardent breathings after the heavenly 
 state. He professes himself weary of the 
 world, and desires to leave it; yet to the last, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 245 
 
 his concern for the church continued undimin- 
 ished; and he put up earnest prayers, that the 
 light of the Gospel might continue with it. 
 
 The General Assembly having appointed to 
 meet at Perth, in August, he took leave of 
 them in a letter, along with which he com- 
 municated certain articles and questions, which 
 he recommended to their consideration, to 
 which the Assembly returned an answer, ex- 
 pressing their approbation of his propositions, 
 and praying for his preservation and comfort. 
 
 The last public service which he performed 
 was examining and approving a sermon which 
 had been lately preached by David Ferguson, 
 minister of Dunfermline. His subscription 
 to this sermon was characteristic of the man, 
 and striking, as was all that he uttered about 
 this time. It is " John Knox, with my dead 
 hand, but glad heart, praising God, that of 
 his mercy, he leaves such light to his kirk in 
 this desolation." 
 
 When, in consequence of a cessation of 
 arms agreed upon between the Regent and the 
 adherents of the Queen, and the city of Edin- 
 burg was abandoned by the latter, and the 
 banished citizens returned, an urgent message 
 
 22 
 
248 THE LIFE OF 
 
 was sent for him to return to his people, 
 which he said he would willingly do, provi- 
 ded they would permit him to speak his mind 
 freely, respecting the traitorous conduct of the 
 party who had held the castle. Accordingly, 
 on the 17th of August, he left St. Andrews, 
 with his family, accompanied by a number 
 of his brethren and acquaintances. Being 
 obliged to travel slowly, it was the 23d of the 
 month before he reached Leith, whence, after 
 resting a day or two he came to Edinburg. 
 The inhabitants enjoyed the satisfaction of 
 seeing him again in the pulpit, but his voice 
 was so enfeebled, that he could not be heard 
 by more than one half of the congregation. 
 No one was more sensible of this than himself, 
 he therefore requested the session to provide 
 him with a smaller house, in which he could 
 be heard if it were only by a hundred persons; 
 for his voice even in his best time, was not 
 able to extend over the multitude which as- 
 sembled in the large church. This was done 
 according to his wishes. 
 
 During his absence a separation had taken 
 place between the congregation and his col- 
 league, John Craig, whom they blamed for 
 
JOHN KNOX. 247 
 
 temporizing during the time the Queen's fac- 
 tion retained possession of the castle. He 
 being now gone to another part of the king- 
 dom, Knox was exceedingly desirous to see 
 them supplied with a suitable minister, as a 
 successor; and the General Assembly having 
 given them permission to select a minister for 
 Edinburg from any place in the kingdom, 
 Perth and Dundee excepted, they chose Mr. 
 James Lawson, sub-principal of the college of 
 Aberdeen. This choice was entirely agreeable 
 to the mind of Knox, who wrote an earnest 
 letter to him urging him to accept the call. 
 
 About this time intelligence arrived in 
 Scotland of the horrible massacre of the Pro- 
 testants in Paris, when the pious Admiral Co- 
 ligni, and about seventy thousand other per- 
 sons, were murdered in cold blood, by a precon- 
 certed plan, by Charles IX. and his courtiers. 
 This event produced a shock in every Protes- 
 tant country; though at Rome, a solemn 
 thanksgiving was offered up by order of the 
 Pope. It inflicted a deep wound on the feel- 
 ings of the reformer, not only on account of 
 the public loss to the Church, but a number of 
 those massacred were his own personal ac- 
 
248 THE LIFE OF 
 
 quaintances. On the ensuing Sabbath he en- 
 tered the pulpit, and thundered the vengeance 
 of heaven against that cruel murderer, the 
 King of France; and desired his minister, Le 
 Croc, the French ambassador, to tell his mas- 
 ter, that sentence was pronounced against him 
 in Scotland, that the divine vengeance would 
 never depart from him, nor from his house, if 
 repentance did not ensue. The ambassador 
 complained to the Regent of the indignity of- 
 fered, and required the preacher to be silenced; 
 and when this was refused, he left Scotland. 
 
 Lawson having arrived, and preached to 
 the universal satisfaction of the people, Knox 
 presided at his installation. The sermon was 
 preached by him in Tolbooth church, which 
 had been fitted up for his use. When the 
 sermon was ended, they removed to the large 
 church, where the remainder of the service 
 was performed. On this occasion he appeared 
 to be raised above his infirmities, for on no 
 former occasion did he give more universal 
 satisfaction to his hearers. This was his last 
 public service. After proposing the appointed 
 questions to his colleague and successor, he 
 concluded with a most tender and solemn ex- 
 
JOHN KNOX.- 249 
 
 hortation. He protested in the presence of 
 him before whom he soon expected to appear, 
 that he had walked among them with a good 
 conscience, preaching the gospel of Christ 
 with all sincerity, not studying to please men, 
 nor to gratify his own feelings. He praised 
 God, that he had been pleased to give them a 
 pastor in his room, when he was now unable 
 to lead. He fervently prayed, that any gifts 
 which had been conferred on himself, might 
 be augmented a thousand fold in his successor. 
 And then in a most serious and impressive 
 manner, he exhorted and charged all present 
 to adhere steadfastly to the faith which they 
 had professed. Having finished the service 
 and pronounced the blessing, he came down 
 from the pulpit, and leaning on his staff, crept 
 down the street, which was lined with the au- 
 dience; who, as if wishing to take the last 
 look of their beloved pastor, followed him 
 until he entered his house, from which he 
 never came out again alive. 
 
 On the following Tuesday, he was seized 
 with a severe cough, which greatly affected 
 his breathing. When his friends proposed to 
 send for physicians, he readily acquiesced, 
 
250 THE LIFE OF 
 
 saying that he would not neglect the ordinary 
 means of health, though he was persuaded, 
 that the Lord would soon put an end to all his 
 troubles. 
 
 It was his ordinary custom to read some 
 chapters in the Old and New Testaments, and 
 also several Psalms, the whole of which he 
 regularly read over once a month. On Thurs- 
 day, he was too sick to pursue his usual course 
 of reading; but he directed his wife, and Rich- 
 ard Bannatyne, his secretary, to read to him 
 every day, the xvii. Chapter of John, the liii. 
 of Isaiah, and a chapter of the Epistle to the 
 Ephesians. This was punctually complied 
 with during the whole time of his sickness. 
 He also selected certain Psalms, and some of 
 Calvin's French Sermons on Ephesians; and 
 when asked whether he heard, he would an- 
 swer, "I hear, and I praise God I understand 
 far better." These words he uttered, for the 
 last time, about four hours before his death. 
 
 The same day that he was seized, he direct- 
 ed his wife to pay the servants their wages, 
 except one to whom he gave twenty shillings 
 above his due; and then gave suitable exhor- 
 tations to them all. 
 
JOHN KNOX. 251 
 
 On the 14th of the month, he arose from 
 bed earlier than usual, and thinking that it 
 was the Sabbath, said, that he meant to go to 
 church, and preach on the resurrection of 
 Christ, upon which he had meditated through 
 the whole night. This was the subject on 
 which he would have preached, in his ordi- 
 nary course. But he was so weak, that it re- 
 quired two men to support him to a chair. 
 Next day, at noon, .Tohn Durie and Archibald 
 Steward came to see him, not knowing that 
 he was sick; he prevailed on them to stay to 
 dinner, and he sat for the last time at the 
 table. He ordered a hogshead of wine which 
 was in his cellar to be pierced; and with a 
 hilarity which he delighted to indulge, among 
 his friends, desired Archibald Steward to send 
 for some of it, as long as it lasted; for he 
 would not tarry until it was all drunk. 
 
 He was very anxious to meet once more 
 with his session, that he might leave them a 
 dying charge, and bid them a last farewell. 
 Accordingly, on Monday the 17th, he had 
 them, together with his colleague and David 
 Lindsay, minister of Leith, in his room. 
 When he addressed them in a manner so sol- 
 
252 THE LIFE OF 
 
 emn, that it left a deep impression on their 
 minds. He spoke to them in the following 
 strain: ^^ The day now approaches and is be- 
 fore the door, for which I hav^e frequently and 
 vehemently thirsted; when I shall be released 
 from my great labours and innumerable sor- 
 rows, and shall be with Christ. And now, 
 God is my witness, whom I have served in 
 spirit, in the Gospel of his Son, that I have 
 taught nothing but the true and solid doctrine 
 of the Gospel of the Son of God; and have 
 had it for my only object, to instruct the igno- 
 rant, to confirm the faithful, to comfort the 
 weak, the fearful, and the distressed, by the 
 promises of grace; and to fight against the 
 proud and rebellious, by the divine threaten- 
 ings. I know, that many have frequently and 
 loudly complained, and do yet complain, of 
 my too great severity; but God knows, that 
 my mind was always void of hatred to the 
 persons of those against whom I thundered the 
 severest judgments. I cannot deny, but that 
 I felt the greatest abhorrence of the sins which 
 they indulged, but I still kept this one thing 
 in view, that, if possible, I might gain them to 
 the Lord. What influenced me to utter so 
 
JOHN KNOX. 253 
 
 boldly what the Lord put into my mouth, 
 without respect of persons, was a reverend fear 
 of my God, who, of his grace, called and ap- 
 pointed me to be a steward of his divine mys- 
 teries; and a belief that he will demand of me 
 an account of the trust committed to me, when 
 I shall stand before his tribunal. I profess 
 before God and his holy angels, that I never 
 made merchandize of the word of God, never 
 studied to please men, never indulged my own 
 private passions, or those of others, but faith- 
 fully distributed the talent entrusted to me for 
 the edification of the Church over which I 
 watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may 
 cast on me respecting this point, I rejoice ia 
 the testimony of a good conscience. In the 
 mean time, my dearest brethren, do you perse- 
 vere in the eternal truth of the Gospel. Wait 
 diligently on the flock over which the Lord 
 hath set you, and which he redeemed with the 
 blood of his only begotten Son. And thou, 
 my brother Lavvson, fight the good fight of 
 faith, and do the work of the Lord joyfully 
 and resolutely. The Lord from on high bless 
 you and the whole Church of Edinburg, 
 against whom, as long as they persevere in the 
 
254 THE LIFE OF 
 
 word of truth, which they have heard of me, 
 the gates of hell shall not prevail. '^ 
 
 Having warned them against those who dis- 
 owned the King's authority, and made some 
 observations on the charge which Maitland 
 had lodged against him before the session, he 
 was so exhausted that he was obliged to desist 
 from speaking. Those present were filled 
 with both joy and grief by this affecting ad- 
 dress. After reminding him of the warfare 
 which he had endured, and the triumph which 
 awaited him, and joining in prayer, they took 
 their leave of him in tears. When they were 
 going out he desired his colleague and Lind- 
 say to remain behind, to whom he said, "There 
 is one thing that greatly grieves me. You 
 have been witnesses of the former courage and 
 constancy of Grange in the cause of God; but 
 now, alas, into what a gulf has he precipi- 
 tated himself! I entreat you not to refuse to 
 go and tell him from me, that John Knox re- 
 mains the same man now he is going to die, 
 that ever he knew him when able in body, 
 and wills him to consider what he was, and 
 the estate in which he now stands, which is a 
 great part of his trouble. Neither the craggy 
 
JOHN KNOX. 255 
 
 rock in which he miserably confides, nor the 
 carnal prudence of that man, (Maitland,) whom 
 he esteems a demi-god, nor the assistance of 
 strangers, shall preserve him; but he shall be 
 disgracefully dragged from his nest to punish- 
 ment, and hung on a gallows before the face of 
 the sun, unless he speedily amend his life, and 
 flee to the mercy of God. That man's soul is 
 dear to me, and 1 would not have it perish, if 
 I could save it.'' The ministers undertook to 
 execute this commission, and going up to the 
 castle, obtained an interview with the Gover- 
 nor and delivered their message. He, at 
 first, exhibited some symptoms of relenting, 
 but having consulted with Maitland, he re- 
 turned and gave them a very unpleasant an- 
 swer. This being reported to Knox, he was 
 much grieved, and said, that he had been 
 very earnest in prayer for that man, and he 
 still trusted that his soul would be saved, 
 although his body should come to a miserable 
 end. 
 
 After his interview with his session, his 
 complaint became worse, and his difficulty of 
 breathing was such, that he could not speak 
 but with much pain. Still he received all that 
 
256 THE LIFE OF 
 
 came, and addressed himself to his visiters 
 with wonderful suitableness and variety, ac- 
 cording to their respective characters. Among 
 these were some of the nobility, who had trea- 
 ted him badly, and now came to acknowledge 
 their faults and beg his pardon. Many of his 
 sayings and exhortations to particular persons 
 have been preserved, but it is not convenient 
 to insert them here. 
 
 On Friday, November 21st, he desired his 
 servant, Richard Bannatyne, to order his coffin 
 to be made. During that day he was much 
 engaged in meditation and prayer. These 
 words were often in his mouth, " Come Lord 
 Jesus. Sweet Jesus, into thy hands I commit 
 my spirit. Be merciful Lord to thy Church, 
 which thou hast redeemed. Give peace to 
 this afflicted commonwealth. Raise up faith- 
 ful pastors, who will take charge of thy 
 Church. Grant us. Lord, the perfect hatred 
 of sin, both by the evidences of thy wrath and 
 mercy." In the midst of his meditations, he 
 would often address those around in such sen- 
 tences as these, ^'0 serve the Lord in fear, 
 and death shall not be terrible to you. Nay, 
 blessed shall death be to those who have felt 
 
JOHN KNOX. 257 
 
 the power of the death of the only begotten 
 Son of God." 
 
 On the 23d, which was the Sabbath, he 
 broke out into the following rapturous expres- 
 sions: ^^ I have been these two nights in medi- 
 tation on the troubled state of the Church of 
 God, the spouse of Jesus Christ, despised of 
 the world, but precious in the sight of God. 
 I have called to God for her, I have committed 
 her to her head, Jesus Christ. I have fought 
 against spiritual wickedness in heavenl}'' things, 
 I have prevailed. I have been in heaven, I 
 have possession. I have tasted of heavenly 
 joys, where presently I am.'^ He then re- 
 peated the Lord's Prayer and Creed, interject- 
 ing some devout aspirations at the end of every 
 petition and article. 
 
 After sermon, many came to visit him; and 
 perceiving that he breathed with great diffi- 
 culty, some asked him if he felt much pain. 
 He answered, that he was willing to live there 
 for years, if God so pleased, and if he contin- 
 ued to shine on his soul through Jesus Christ. 
 When they thought him asleep, he was em- 
 ployed in meditation, and at intervals exhorted 
 and prayed. " Live in Christ, live in Christ,'' 
 
 23 
 
258 THE LIFE OF 
 
 said he, "and then flesh need not fear death. 
 Lord grant true pastors to thy Church, that 
 purity of doctrine may be retained. Restore 
 peace again to the commonwealth, and godly 
 rulers and magistrates. Once, Lord, make an 
 end of my trouble." Stretching his hands 
 towards heaven, he said, " Lord, I commend 
 my spirit, soul, and body, and all, into thy 
 hands. Thou knowest, Lord, my troubles, 
 I do not murmur against thee." But his pi- 
 ous ejaculations were so numerous that few of 
 them could be remembered. That night his 
 pain greatly increased. 
 
 Monday, the 24th of November, was the 
 last day that he spent on earth. That morn- 
 ing he could not be persuaded to lie in bed, 
 but by the help of others arose, and sat upon 
 a chair for the space of half an hour. In the 
 progress of the day it appeared, that his end 
 drew nigh. A number of his friends waited 
 around his bed. To one he said, " I must 
 leave the care of my wife and children to you, 
 to whom you must be a husband, in my room." 
 He desired his wife to read the fifteenth chap- 
 ter of 1st Corinthians; and then said_, "Is 
 not that a comfortable chapter ? what sweet 
 
JOHN KNOX. 259 
 
 and salutary consolation the Lord hath afford- 
 ed me, from that chapter." After some time, 
 he fell into a slumber, and uttered heavy 
 groans; and the attendants looked every mo- 
 ment for his dissolution. But he av/akened, 
 as if from sleep, and being asked what caused 
 him to groan so heavily, he said, ^' I have for- 
 merly, during my life, sustained many con- 
 tests, and many assaults of Satan; but, at pre- 
 sent, that roaring lion hath assailed me most 
 furiously, and put forth all his strength to de- 
 vour, and make an end of me at once. Often 
 before he has placed my sins before me, and 
 tempted me to despair, and often endeavoured 
 to ensnare me by the allurements of the 
 world; but resisted by the sword of the Spi- 
 rit, he could not prevail. Now, he has at- 
 tacked me in another way. The cunning ser- 
 pent has endeavoured to persuade me, that I 
 have merited heaven and eternal blessedness, 
 by the faithful discharge of my ministry. But, 
 blessed be God, who has enabled me to quench 
 the fiery dart, by suggesting, "What hast thou 
 that thou hast not received ? By the grace of 
 God I am what I am. Not I, but the grace of 
 God in me. Wherefore, I give thanks to God 
 
260 THE LIFE OF 
 
 through Jesus Christ, that he hath strength- 
 ened me, and has given me the victory." 
 And I am persuaded, the tempter shall not 
 again attack me, but within a short time, 
 I shall, without any great bodily pain, or an- 
 guish of mind, exchange this mortal and mise- 
 rable life, for a blessed immortality, through 
 Jesus Christ." 
 
 He lay now, for several hours, as though he 
 had been asleep. About ten in the evening, 
 prayers were offered, and Dr. Preston asked 
 him whether he heard. He answered, "I 
 would to God, that 3^ou and all men had heard 
 them as I have heard them. I praise God for 
 that heavenly sound." 
 
 At eleven o'clock, he gave a deep sigh and 
 said, 710W it is come. Richard Bannatyne im- 
 mediately drew near, and desired him to think 
 upon those comfortable promises of our Sa- 
 viour Jesus Christ, which he had so often de- 
 clared to others. But perceiving that he was 
 speechless, he desired him to give them a 
 sign that he heard, and died in peace. Where- 
 upon, he lifted up one of his hands, and sigh- 
 ing twice, expired without a struggle. 
 
 He died in the sixty-seventh year of his 
 
JOHN KNOX. 261 
 
 age; not so much oppressed with years, as 
 worn out and exhausted by his extraordinary 
 labours of body and mind. Few men were 
 ever exposed to more dangers, or underwent 
 such hardships. He only emerged from one 
 sea of troubles to plunge into another. 
 
 On Wednesday, the 26th of November, he 
 was interred in the church yard of St. Giles. 
 His funeral was attended by the newly elected 
 Regent, Morton; by the nobility who were in 
 the city, and a great concourse of people. 
 When his body was laid in the grave, the Re- 
 gent pronounced his eulogium in the well 
 known words — "There lies he, who never 
 
 FEARED the FACE OF MAN." 
 
 HIS CHARACTER. 
 
 John Knox, according to the acknowledg- 
 ment of all, was a very remarkable man. His 
 natural powers were undoubtedly great. In- 
 quisitive, ardent, acute; vigorous and bold in 
 his conceptions, he entered into all the sub- 
 tleties of the scholastic logic then in vogue; 
 yet disgusted with its barren results, sought 
 23* 
 
262 THE LIFE OF 
 
 out a new course of study, which gradually 
 led to a complete revolution in his sentiments. 
 His early education was not equal to that 
 afforded by the universities on the continent, 
 at that time; but his abilities and application, 
 made up, in a great measure, for these disad- 
 vantages. He remained a stranger to no 
 branch of learning, cultivated by men of his 
 profession. He united the love of study with 
 a disposition to active employment; qualities 
 seldom found in the same person. The truths 
 which he discovered, he felt an irresistible 
 impulse to impart to others; for which he was 
 qualified, by a bold and fervid eloquence, sin- 
 gularly adapted to arrest the attention, and 
 govern the minds of a fierce and unpolished 
 people. His zeal for the reformed doctrines 
 which he had embraced, made him willing, for 
 the sake of propagating them, to sacrifice his 
 ease, interest, reputation, and life itself. An 
 ardent attachment to civil liberty held the 
 next place in his breast, after the love of evan- 
 gelical truth. That his motives in prosecu- 
 ting these objects were of the most disinte- 
 rested kind, does not admit of a doubt, what- 
 ever opinion may be formed of some of the 
 
JOHN KNOX. 263 
 
 means made use of for that purpose. In fact, 
 he only thought of glorifying God, and pro- 
 moting the welfare of his country. By his 
 intrepidity, indefatigable activity, and invin- 
 cible constancy, he was admirably fitted for 
 the arduous work to which, in the providence 
 of God, he was called. His integrity was 
 above the suspicion of corruption; and his 
 firmness was proof, equally, against the solici- 
 tations of friends, and the threats of enemies. 
 Although his courage and impetuosity led 
 him frequently to expose himself to imminent 
 danger, yet we never find him inattentive to 
 those prudent precautions, which his safety 
 required. The confidence which his country- 
 men reposed in his sagacity, as well as hones- 
 ty, is evident from the whole history of those 
 times. All the measures adopted for advan- 
 cing the Reformation were at his suggestions, 
 or submitted to his advice; and it must be ad- 
 mitted, that they were as wisely planned, as 
 boldly executed. 
 
 His ministerial functions wese discharged 
 with the greatest assiduity, fidelity, and fer- 
 vour. No avocation or infirmity prevented 
 him from appearing in the pulpit. Preaching 
 
264 THE LIFE OF 
 
 was an employment in which he delighted, 
 and for which he was qualified, by an exten- 
 sive acquaintance with the Scriptures, and 
 the happy art of applying them in the most 
 happy manner, to the existing circumstances 
 of the church, and of his hearers. His power 
 of alarming the conscience, and arousing the 
 passions, have been frequently mentioned: but 
 he excelled also in opening up the consola- 
 tions of the Gospel, and calming the troubles 
 of those who were wounded with a sense of 
 their sins. And when he discoursed of the 
 griefs and joys, the conflicts and triumphs of 
 Christians, he declared what he himself had 
 experienced. 
 
 With his brethren in the ministry, he lived 
 in the utmost cordiality. We never read of 
 the slightest variance between him and any 
 of his colleagues. While he was an object of 
 hatred and terror to the licentious and profane, 
 he was venerated and loved by the religious 
 and sober part of his congregation. In private 
 life he was both loved and revered by his 
 friends and domestics. He was subject to oc- 
 casional fits of melancholy and depression of 
 spirits, arising partly from natural constitu- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 265 
 
 tlon, and partly from the diseases which had 
 long preyed upon his health. While these 
 continued, his temper was irritable, and his 
 conversation less affable than it was wont to 
 be. This he confessed, and begged the in- 
 dulgence of his friends, but his friendship was 
 sincere, affectionate, and constant. At other 
 times, he relished the pleasures of society, and 
 among; his friends, was accustomed to unbend 
 from severer cares, by indulging in innocent re- 
 creation and the sallies of wit and humour, to 
 to which he had a strong propensity, notwith- 
 standing the grave tone of his general character. 
 Most of his faults may be traced to his 
 natural temperament, and the character of 
 the age and country in which he lived. His 
 passions were strong. He felt with keen- 
 ness on every subject which interested him, 
 and what he felt he expressed without any 
 disguise or affectation. The warmth of his 
 zeal was apt to betray him into intempe- 
 rate language; and the inflexibility of his ad- 
 herence to opinions, once adopted, inclined 
 him to obstinacy: and this independence of 
 mind, occasionally assumed the appearance of 
 haughtiness and disdain. In administering de- 
 
266 THE LIFE OF 
 
 served reproofs, he regarded not the rank or 
 character of the offender; and he was prone 
 to utter his admonitions with an acrimony and 
 vehemence, more apt to irritate, than reclaim. 
 But in his sharpest reproofs, he protested? 
 that his hatred was not directed against the 
 persons, but the vices of those reproved. He 
 was stern, not savage; austere, not unfeeling. 
 He never employed his influence to obtain 
 revenge for a personal injury; and rigid as 
 were his notions of the execution of justice, 
 there are more instances of his interceding for 
 the pardon of criminals, than perhaps of any 
 man of his time. His conduct at Frankfort 
 demonstrates his moderation in religious dif- 
 ferences among brethren. The liberties which 
 he took in the pulpit of animadverting on the 
 actions of individuals, of the highest rank and 
 station, seems strange, to us but accorded with 
 the customs of that age. 
 
 Most would be ready to conclude, from the 
 labours he underwent, that he was of a robust 
 constitution. The fact, however, was not so. 
 He was of small stature, and of a weakly 
 habit of body; which circumstance gives us a 
 higher idea of the indomitable vigour of his 
 
JOHN KNOX. 267 
 
 mind. His portrait was taken more than once 
 during his life. He, according to the custom 
 of the times, wore his beard long, reaching to 
 his middle, which gave him a venerable ap- 
 pearance. 
 
 He has been accused of setting up for a 
 prophet, and pretending to enter into the se- 
 cret counsels of the Most High. To this he 
 answered, that he did no more than denounce 
 the just judgments of God against enormous 
 wickedness, as he found them in his word. 
 But there are some instances in which he 
 seems to have had a kind of prophetic fore- 
 sight, of the particular kind of judgments 
 which would be executed on certain public 
 oifenders against God and his people, as in the 
 case of Thomas Maitland, and Kircaldy of 
 Grange. For although the canon of our faith 
 has long been complete, and is comprehended 
 in the Old and New Testament; yet this does 
 not hinder, but that God may now sometimes 
 forewarn certain persons of events which will 
 happen, to testify his approbation of them, as 
 well as to encourage them to confide in him 
 in peculiar circumstances of difficulty and 
 danger; or for other purposes unknown to us. 
 
268 THE LIFE OF 
 
 And in this opinion there is nothing inconsis- 
 tent with natural or revealed religion. If this 
 is enthusiasm, it is an enthusiasm into which 
 some of the most enlightened and sober men, 
 in modern, as well as ancient times have fal- 
 len. The Reformers were men of extraordi- 
 nary piety. They walked with God, were 
 instant in prayer, were exposed to uncommon 
 opposition, and had uncommon services to 
 perform. They were, therefore, endued with 
 extraordinary gifts, and I am inclined to be- 
 lieve that some of them were occasionally 
 favoured with extraordinary premonitions, 
 with respect to certain events which concern- 
 ed themselves, other individuals, or the church 
 of God. But whatever intimations of this 
 kind they enjoyed, they did not rest the au- 
 thority of their mission upon them, nor appeal 
 to them as constituting any part of the evi- 
 dence of those doctrines which they preached 
 to the world. 
 
 That the memory of Knox should be loaded 
 with obloquy by the prejudiced writers of the 
 Romish communion, is in accordancee with 
 their treatment of Luther, Zuingle, Calvin, 
 and all the Reformers; for no one of these 
 
^ JOHN KNOX. 269 
 
 acted a more conspicuous and effective part in 
 overthrowing the religious establishment of 
 that corrupt and apostate church than our re- 
 former, as far as relates to his own country. 
 The calumnies and slanders vented against 
 him gained but little credit and have long 
 since sunk into oblivion. Knox was known 
 and esteemed by the principal persons among 
 the reformed, in France, Switzerland, and Ger- 
 many. Calvin was his intimate friend, and 
 esteemed him highly; as appears by his let- 
 ters addressed to him. Beza, the successor 
 of Calvin, was also personally acquainted with 
 him; and in the correspondence which he 
 kept up with him, expressed the warmest re- 
 gard and highest esteem for him; and in his 
 account of " Illustrious Men,^' gave an affec- 
 tionate tribute to his memory; as did also 
 Melchior Adam of Germany, Verheiden of 
 Holland, La Roque of P'rance. Senebier, the 
 late historian of Geneva, though entertaining 
 very different sentiments from our reformer, 
 says, " that he immortalized himself by his 
 courage against popery, and his firmness 
 against the tyranny of Mary." And though 
 
 24 
 
270 THE LIFE OF 
 
 violent, he was always an open and honour- 
 able enemy to the Catholics. 
 
 In Scotland, the affectionate veneration in 
 which Knox's memory was held after his 
 death, evinces the influence which he possessed 
 among his countrymen during his life. It is a 
 remarkable circumstance, that he had a servant 
 of so distinguished a character for piety and 
 intelligence, that he gave his character in the 
 General Assembly. This was John Banna- 
 tyne, of whom frequent mention has been made 
 already; but the word servant was, in those 
 days, so used as to include clerk or secretary; 
 or the person who attended to the business of 
 his master. This man lived long in the fa- 
 mily, and continued to serve this man of God, 
 more from an esteem of him than for emolu- 
 ment. Indeed, it appears that he was a man 
 of respectability and learning. Plis testimony 
 is, therefore, worthy of regard. After giving 
 an account of his last days, he says, " In this 
 manner departed this man of God; the light 
 of Scotland, the comfort of the Church within 
 the same: the mirror of godliness, and pattern 
 and example of all true ministers, in purity of 
 life, soundness of doctrine, and boldness in 
 
JOHN KNOX. 271 
 
 reproving wickedness: one that cared not for 
 the favour of men, how great soever they 
 were. What dexterity in teaching, what bold- 
 ness in reproving and hatred of wickedness 
 was in him, my ignorant duhiess is not able to 
 declare; and which if I could set out, it were 
 as one who would light a candle to let men 
 see the sun, seeing all his virtues are better 
 known to the world, a thousand fold, than I 
 am able to express. ^^ 
 
 Principal Smeton's character of him, while 
 it is less liable to the suspicion of partiality, is 
 equally honourable. " I know not," says he, 
 " if ever so much piety and genius were lodged 
 in such a frail and weak body. Certain I am, 
 that it will be difficult to find one in whom 
 the gifts of the Holy Spirit shone so bright to 
 the comfort of the Church of Scotland. None 
 spared himself less in enduring fatigues of body 
 and mind: none were more intent on dis- 
 charging the duties of the province assigned to 
 him.'^ 
 
 The divines of the Church of England, who 
 were contemporary with him, or who survived 
 him, entertained a great respect for his char- 
 acter. Some of the chief men among them 
 
272 THE LIFE OF 
 
 were personally acquainted with him during 
 his residence in England and on the continent. 
 Others corresponded with him by letters. His 
 writings were greatly esteemed by them, so 
 that they procured his manuscripts from Scot- 
 land, and published some of them. But to- 
 wards the close of the 16th century, there 
 arose a race of prelates of another spirit, who 
 began to inculcate the divine right of episco- 
 pacy, and the intrinsic excellency of a cere- 
 monious worship, and to adopt a new language 
 respecting other reformed churches. Dr. Ban- 
 croft, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, 
 was the first who spoke disrespectfully of 
 Knox; after whom it became fashionable 
 among the hierarchical party. This was re- 
 sented~ by the ministers of Scotland, who 
 warmly vindicated the character of their re- 
 former. James VI. said to Melville, "that 
 Knox, Buchanan, and the Regent Murray, 
 could be defended by none but traitors and 
 seditious theologues." Melville replied, "that 
 these were the men who set the crown on his 
 head, and deserved better of him than to be 
 thus traduced." 
 
 Spottiswood described him, "as a man en- 
 
JOHN KNOX. 273 
 
 dowed with rare gifts, and a chief instrument 
 of God for the work of those times/' 
 
 Our reformer was never a favourite with the 
 friends of absolute monarchy; and in later 
 times, since many have been infected with the 
 spirit of infidelity, and a spurious charity to- 
 wards the Roman Catholics has come into 
 vogue, the character of Knox has not been 
 appreciated as it was in better days. But 
 since the publication of Dr. McCrie's life of 
 him, of which this is a mere abridgment, the 
 attention of the public has been more impar- 
 tially directed to the subject; and, at least 
 among Presbyterians in America, who have 
 derived their Confession and Form of Govern- 
 ment from Scotland, the character of John 
 Knox will continue to be venerated as long as 
 these formularies shall be retained, and have 
 their due influence on the minds of the people. 
 
 Knox, as we have seen, was twice married. 
 He left behind him a widow and five children. 
 His two sons, Nathaniel and Eleazer, were the 
 children of his first wife, Mrs. Marjory Bowes. 
 In the year 1566, they went to England, 
 where their mother's relations resided. They 
 
 24* 
 
274 THE LIFE OF 
 
 received their education in St. John's College, 
 Cambridge; and after finishing it^ both died 
 in the prime of life. And as they died with- 
 out issue, the family of the reformer was ex- 
 tinct in the male line. His other three chil- 
 dren were daughters, by his second wife. His 
 widow was married to Sir Andrew Ker, a 
 strenuous supporter of the Reformation. One 
 of his daughters was married to Robert Pont, 
 minister of St. Cuthberts; another to James 
 Fleming, also a minister of the Church of Scot- 
 land; and Elizabeth, the third daughter, was 
 married to Mr. John Welch, minister of Ayr. 
 Mrs. Welch seems to have inherited some of 
 her father's spirit, and she had her share of 
 hardships similar to his. Her husband was 
 one of those who resisted the arbitrary mea- 
 sures pursued by James VI., for overturning 
 the government and liberties of the Presbyte- 
 rian Church of Scotland. For attending the 
 General Assembly of 1605 at Aberdeen, after 
 the King had directed it to be adjourned sine 
 die, he was imprisoned; and for afterwards de- 
 clining the Privy Council, as not proper judg- 
 es, he and four other ministers were arraigned, 
 
JOHN KNOX. 275 
 
 and by a packed jury condemned to death. 
 When informed of the sentence, their wives, 
 instead of lamenting their fate, praised God 
 who had given their husbands courage to stand 
 to the cause of their Master. The sentence 
 having been commuted to banishment, Mrs. 
 Welch accompanied her husband to France, 
 where they remained for sixteen years. Mr. 
 Welch's health having failed, the physicians ad- 
 vised a return to his native country, as affording 
 the only prospect of a cure. They arrived in 
 London in 1622, and she, by means of some 
 relations, petitioned for liberty to return to 
 Scotland. On this occasion she was admitted 
 to the royal presence, and the conversation 
 which passed between her and King James of 
 England, is truly characteristic of both these 
 personages. She showed that the spirit and 
 boldness of John Knox were full inherited. 
 
 Knox did not consider himself called so 
 much to enlighten posterity by his pen, as to 
 perform active labour for the existing genera- 
 tion. On this subject, he says, " For consider- 
 ing myself rather called of God to instruct the 
 ignorant, comfort the sorrowful, confirm the 
 
276 THE LIFE OP 
 
 weak, and rebuke the proud by tongue, and 
 lively voice, in these most corrupt days, than 
 to compose books for the age to come; seeing 
 that so much is written, and by men of most 
 singular erudition, yet so little well observed, 
 I decreed to contain myself within the bounds 
 of that vocation to which I found myself espe- 
 cially called. '^ When deprived of the oppor- 
 tunity of doing this during his exile, he pre- 
 pared letters, exhortations, and admonitions, 
 by which he called to the remembrance of the 
 people those truths, which they had already 
 received. These were circulated and read with 
 far more ease, and to a far greater extent, than 
 large treatises could have been. Of the many 
 sermons which he preached, he never publish- 
 ed more than one, which was extorted from 
 him by peculiar circumstances; and that one 
 aflfords a very favourable specimen of his 
 talents. If he had applied himself to writing, 
 he was qualified to excel in that department. 
 He had a ready command of language, and 
 expressed himself with perspicuity, and with 
 great animation and force. Though he des- 
 pised the tinsel of eloquence, yet when he 
 
JOHN KNOX. 277 
 
 had leisure and inclination to polish his style, 
 he showed that he was not unacquainted with 
 the principles of the rhetorical art. While 
 resident in England, he contracted the habit 
 of writing the language, according to the 
 usage of that country; and in all his publica- 
 tions, which appeared during his life time, 
 the English, and not the Scottish orthography 
 and mode of expression, are used. His tract 
 against female government, was a hasty pro- 
 duction, and written under exasperated feel- 
 ings, produced by hearing of the cruelties of 
 Mary. 
 
 His History of the Reformation was under- 
 taken during the confusions of the civil war, 
 and was afterwards continued, at intervals, 
 snatched from numerous avocations. The col- 
 lection of historical materials must be a work 
 of labour and time; but the digesting them 
 into a regular narrative, requires much leisure 
 and undivided attention. The want of them 
 sufficiently accounts for the confusion observa- 
 ble in many parts of that work; but notwith- 
 standing its defects, it continues to be the 
 principal source of information respecting the 
 ecclesiastical proceedings of that period. 
 
278 THE LIFE OF JOHN KNOX. 
 
 His only published theological work, is a 
 treatise on Predestination, which indicates 
 much controversial acuteness, composed with 
 becoming caution. 
 
279 
 
 PRAYER 
 
 Used by John Knox, after the Regent^s 
 death. 
 
 Lord, what shall we add to the former 
 petitions we know not; yea, alace, Lord, 
 our owne consciences bear us record that we 
 are unworthie that thou should either encreass 
 or yet continue thy graces with us, be reason 
 of our horrible ingratitude. In our extreme 
 miseries, we called, and thou in the multitude 
 of thy mercies heard us, and first thou deliver- 
 ed us from the tyrannie of merciless strangers, 
 next from the bondage of idolatry, and last 
 from the yoak of that wretched woman, the 
 mother of all mischife, and in her place thou 
 didst erect her sonne, and to supply his infan- 
 cie thou didst appoynt a Regent endued with 
 such graces as the divell himself cannot ac- 
 cuse or justly convict him this only excepted 
 that foolish pity did so farre prevaill in him, 
 concerning execution and punishment which 
 thou commanded to have been execute upon 
 
280 
 
 her, and upon her complices, the murtherers 
 of her husband. Lord, in what miserie and 
 confusion found he this realme! To what rest 
 and quietnesse now be his labours suddanlie 
 he brought the same, all estates, but speciallie 
 the poor commons, can witness. Thy image. 
 Lord, did so clearlie shyne in that personage, 
 that the divell, and the wicked to whom he is 
 prince, could not abyde it. And so to punish 
 our sinnes and ingratitude, who did not ryght- 
 lie esteem so pretious a gift, thou hes permit- 
 ted him to fall, to our great griefe, in the 
 hands of cruell and traterous murtherers. He 
 is at rest, Lord, and we are left in extreame 
 miserie. Be mercifull to us, and suffer not 
 Satan to prevaill against thy little flocke with- 
 in this Realme, neither yet Lord let bloode 
 thirsty men come to the end of their wicked 
 enterprises. Preserve, Lord, our young 
 king, although he be ane infant; give unto 
 him the spirit of sanctification, with encreasse 
 of the same as he groweth in years. Let his 
 raigne, Lord, be such as thou may be glori- 
 fied, and thy little flock comforted by it. 
 Seeing that we are now left as a flock without 
 a pastor, in civill policie, and as a shippe with- 
 
281 
 
 out a rudder in the midst of the storm, let thy 
 providence watch, Lord, and defend us in 
 these dangerous dayes, that the wicked of the 
 world may see that as weill without the help 
 of man, as with it, thou art able to rule, main- 
 tain and defend the little flock that dependeth 
 upon thee. And because, Lord, the shed- 
 ding of innocent bloode hes ever been, and 
 yet is odious in thy presence, yea, that it de- 
 fyleth the whole land where it is shed and not 
 punished, we crave of thee, for Christ thy 
 sonnes sake, that thou wilt so try and punish 
 the two treasonable and cruell murthers latelie 
 committed, that the inventars, devysers, au- 
 thors, and maintainers of treasonable crueltie, 
 may be either thoroughlie converted or con- 
 founded. Lord, if thy mercy prevent us 
 not, we cannot escape just condemnation, for 
 that Scotland hath spared, and England hath 
 maintained the lyfe of that most wicked 
 woman. Oppose thy power, Lord, to the 
 pryde of that cruel murtherer of her owne hus- 
 band; confound her faction and their subtile 
 enterprises of what estate and condition soever 
 they be; and let them and the world know 
 that thou art a God that can deprehend the 
 
 25 
 
282 
 
 wise in their own wisdomc, and the proudc 
 in the imagination of their wicked hearts, to 
 their everlasting confusion. Lord, retain us 
 that call upon thee in thy true fear. Let us 
 grow in the same. Give thou strength to us 
 to fight our battell, yea Lord, to fight it law- 
 fullie, and to end our lifes in the sanctification 
 of thy holie name. 
 
 The last will and words of John Knox min- 
 ister of the Evangell of Jesus Christ, put 
 in order at St. Andrews, the I3th May, 
 1572. 
 
 Lord Jesus, I commend my troubled spirit 
 in thy protection and defence, and thy troubled 
 kirk to thy mercie. 
 
 Because I have had to doe with diverse per- 
 sonages of the ministrie whereunto God of his 
 mercie directit me within this Realme, my 
 duty craveth that I shall leave unto them now 
 a testimonie of my mynd. And first to the 
 Papists, and to the unthankful world, I say, 
 that although my lyfe hath beene unto them 
 odious, and that often they have sought my 
 
283 
 
 destruction, and the destruction of the kirk 
 which God of his great mercie planted within 
 this Realme, and hath alvvise preserved and 
 keeped the same from their cruell interpryses, 
 yet to them I am compelled to say, that un- 
 lesse they speedilie repent, my departing of 
 this life shall be to them the greatest calamitie 
 that ever yet hath apprehended them. Some 
 small appearance they may have yet in my 
 life, if they had grace to see. A dead man I 
 have beene now almost these two years by- 
 past, and yet I would that they should rypelie 
 consider in what better estate they and their 
 maters stand than they have done before, and 
 they have heard of long tyme before threat- 
 ned. But, because they will not admit me 
 for admonisher, I give them over to the judg- 
 ment of him who knoweth the hearts of all, and 
 will disclose the secreets thereof in due time. 
 And this farre to the papists. To the faith- 
 full. Before God, before his sone Jesus Christ, 
 and before his holie angels, I protest that God 
 be my mouth (be I ever so abject) hath shew- 
 ed to you his truth in all simplicitie. None I 
 have corrupted, none I have defrauded, mer- 
 chandise I have not made (to God's glorie I 
 
284 
 
 write) of the glorious evangell of Jesus Christ, 
 but according to the measure of grace granted 
 unto me, I have devyded the sermon of truth 
 in just parts, beating down the rebellion of the 
 proud in all who did declare their rebellion 
 against God according as God in his law giv- 
 eth to me yet testimonie, and raising up the 
 consciences troubled with the knowledge of 
 their sinne, be declaring of Jesus Christ, the 
 strenth of his death, and mighty operation of 
 his resurrection, in the hearts of the faithfull. 
 Of this I say I have a testimonie this day in 
 my conscience before God, however the world 
 rage. Be constant therefor in the doctrine 
 which once publicklie you have professed. 
 Let not thir scandalous dayes draw you away 
 from Jesus Christ, neither let the prosperitie 
 of the wicked move you to follow it or them. 
 For howsoever that God appeareth to neglect 
 his owne for a season, yet his majestie remain- 
 eth a just God who neither can nor will justifie 
 the wicked. I am not ignorant that many 
 would that I should enter in particular deter- 
 mination of thir present troubles, to whom I 
 plainlie and simplie answer, that, as I never 
 exceed the bounds of God's scriptures, so will 
 
285 
 
 I not doe in this part be God's grace. But 
 hereof I am assured by him who neither can 
 deceive, nor be deceived that the castell of 
 Edinburg, in which all the murther, all the 
 trouble, and the whole destruction of this 
 poore commonwealth was invented, and, as 
 our owne eyes may witnesse, be them and 
 their maintainers where put in execution, shall 
 come to destruction, maintain it whosoevefj 
 the destruction I say of bodie and soule, ex- 
 cept they repent. I looke not to the momen- 
 tarie prosperitie of the wicked, yea, although 
 they should remaine conquerors to the coming 
 of our Lord Jesus, but I look to this sentence, 
 that whosoever sheddeth innocent blood de- 
 fyleth the land, and provoketh Gods wraith 
 against himself and the land, till his bloode be 
 shedd a^aine be order of law to satisfie God's 
 anger. This is not the first tyme that yee 
 have heard this sentence, although many at all 
 tymes have sturred at such severitie, I yet 
 affirme the same being readie to enter to give 
 an account before his majestic of the steward- 
 ship that he committed to me. I know in my 
 death, the rumours shall be strange. But be- 
 loved in the Lord Jesus, be yee not troubled 
 
28G 
 
 above measure^ but remainc constant, in the 
 truth, and he who of his mercie sent me, 
 conducted me, and prosper the worke in my 
 hand against Satan, will provyde for you 
 abundantlie, when either my bloode shall water 
 the doctrine taught be me, or he of his mercie 
 otherwise provyde to put an end to this my 
 battel. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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