17ó Mg THOMAS BOSTON. 187 exchange pulpits for a day with him on that occafion, and fo declined it. Now it was brought into Scotland by means of the Union, as feveral otherfnares have been. Having hitherto had a lorry habitation in the old manfe, it was this rummer razed, and a new one built ; I and nay family, in the mean time, Jiving in the ftable and.barn ; in the former of which were made a chimney and, partition. And there, on Wedneti1ay Aug. 4. about eleven o'clock in the forenoon, was born to me a fon, whom, -baptized on the 9th d ;- by Mr John Rutherford miniflèrof Yarrow, I did, after no thrall ftrugglewith myfeft, adventure to call Eben -ezer. But it pealed the Lord, that he alfo was removed from me,`,,dying on the U1 of October. It fell feafonably in our ordinary, that morning he was born, at family-duties, to fing Pfal. lxxii. 1 t.-14. How to call him, was nn fmall exercife to me. I went,to God, and was laid open to his determination in that point. I flry'it was no fmall exer- cife :- for when I confidered, how that, after the death of Eben- ezer, my foul had often fáid to the Lord, How will this lots be made up? and my prayer had full been, that God would give me another pillar to fet up, and if he would do fo, he would d ermine me thereto by his call ; for I always thought I durit rrft do it without a particular call thereto; and now that God had 1h far heard my prayer, in giving me another boy, this feemed to call me to fet up my pillar again. . On the other hand, it racked me to think, What ifhe die too? To this, the experience I had at the fecond winter-façrament, gave a hopeful anfwer. Then I remembered how this had been reafbned inmy own mind after the deathof Ebenezer, and was this lame way anfwered. His mother fell very ill after the was delivered ; and my per- plexity in this point continued ; befides my trouble about 'her cafe, which being fo very bad; I could not yet fend for one to baptize,the child. - On Friday night; I earneftlyentreated of the Lord a token, wlkereby I might know my duty ; and I thought I would take it as a token if his mother recovered ; and the did recover on the morrow : and the fame day I lent to Yarrow to Mr Rutherford to come and baptize the child. This recovery, fo feafonable, Teemed to be fpeaking, as to the point t was con- cerued about ; yet did my perplexity not remove thereby. Wherefore,I afked my own confcíence, as before the Lord, whe- ther I durft, call him otherwife or not ?. And I found I durft not, léeing_God had lb anfwered my prayers, left it fhould be found a mockingof God. Wherefore Eben-ezer I called him ; and when I was holdin laim up, I thought I faw my aótion was a ftruggle of faith, agai t fenfe, and the fìream ofProvidence, that had run fo crofs to me and impetuoufly here. But the clouds did fo re- turn after the rain for a long time after that, that I endeavoured to keep loofe gripes of him: 00. 1. Friday. About two hours before day he died. On the Monday after he fell lick, I. thought to fpead fonfe time in
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