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The act of the committe of eftates of parliament, for renewing the Solemn League and Covenant.

Edinburgh, October 14. 1648.

A

THE committee of eftates, being very fenfible of the grievous backflidings of this land, in the manifold breaches of the folemn league and covenant,made and fworn to the most high God; do therefore unanimously and heartily approve the seasonable and pious refolution of the commiffion of the general aflembly, for a folemn acknowledgment of public fins and provocations, efpecially the breaches of the covenant, and a folemn engagement to a more confcionable performance of the duties therein contained, and for renewing the folemn league and covenant; and do require and ordain, That the directions of the faid commiffion of Affembly, in their act of the fixth of this month, for a public, acknowledgment of fins, and engagement to duties, be carefully followed; that the faft and humiliation, appointed by them, be religiously obferved; and that the folemn league and covenant be fincerely and cordially renewed and fubfcribed, in the manner they haye prefcribed in their faid act, Extractum,

Mr. THO. HENDERSON,

Solemn ACKNOWLEDGMENT of public fins, and breaches of the COVENANT;

AND A

Solemn ENGAGMENT to all the DUTIES contained therein, namely thofe which do in a more special way relate unto the dangers of thefe times.

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noblemen, barons, gentlemen, burgeffes, minifters of the gofpel, and commons of all forts within this kingdom, by the good hand of God upon us, taking into ferious confideration the many fad afflictions and deep diftreffes wherewith we have been exercised for a long time paft; and that the land, after it hath been fore wafted with the fword and the peftilence, and threatned with famine; and that fhame and contempt hath been poured out from the Lord againft many thousands of our nation, who did in a finful way make war upon the kingdom of England, contrary to the teftimony of his fervants, and defires of his people; and that the remnants of that army, returning to this land, have fpoiled and oppreffed many of our brethren; and that the malignant party is ftill numerous, and retaining their former principles, wait for an opportunity to raife a new and dangerous war, not only unto the rending of the bowels of this kingdom, but unto the dividing us from England, and overturning of the work of God in all the three kingdoms; And confidering alfo, that a cloud of calamities doth ftill hang over our heads, and threaten us with fad things to come, we cannot but look upon these things as from the Lord, who is righteous in all his ways, feeding us with the bread of tears, and making us to drink the waters of afflictions, until we be taught to

know

know how evil and bitter a thing it is to depart away from him, by breaking the oath and covenant which we have made with him; and that we may be humbled before him, by con feffing our fins, and forfaking the evil of our ways.

Therefore being preffed with fo great neceffities and ftraits, and warranted by the word of God, and having the example of God's people of old, who in the time of their troubles, and when they were to feek delivery and a right way for themfelves, that the Lord might be with them to profper them, did humble themselves before him, and make a free and par ticular confeffion of the fins of their princes, their rulers, their captains, their priests and their people; and did engage themselves to do no more fo,but to reform their ways, and be ftedfaft in his covenant: And remembring the practice of our predeceffors in the year 1 596, wherein the general affembly, and all the kirk-judicatories, with the concurrence of many of the nobility, gentry and burgeffes, did with many tears, acknowledge before God the breach of the national covenant, and engaged themfelves to a reformation; even as our predeceffors and theirs had before done, in the general affembly and convention of eftates, in the year 1567: And perceiving that this duty, when gone about out of confcience and in fin cerity, hath always been attented with a reviving out of troubles, and with a bleffing and fuccefs from heaven; We do humbly and fincerely, as in his fight, who is the fearcher of hearts, acknowledge the many fins and great tranfgreffions of the land; We have done wickedly, our kings, our princes, our nobles, our judges, our officers, our teachers, and our people. Albeit the Lord hath long and clearly spoken unto us, we have not hearkned to his voice; albeit he hath followed us with tender mercies, we have not been allured to wait upon him, and walk in his way; and tho' he hath ftricken us, yet we have not grieved; Nay, tho' he hath confumed us,we have refused to receive correction, we have not remembred to render unto the Lord according to his goodnefs, and according to our own vows and promises,but have gone away backward by a continued course of backfliding,and have broken all the articles of that folemn league and covenant, which we fwore before God, angels and men. Albeit there be in the land many of all ranks, who be for a teftimony unto the truth, and for a name of joy and praise

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praise unto the Lord: by living godly, studying to keep their garments pure, and being ftedfaft in the covenant and caufe of God; yet we have reason to acknowledge, that most of us have not endeavoured, with that reality, fincerity and conftancy that did become us, to preferve the work of reformation in the Kirk of Scotland: Many have fatisfied themfelves with the purity of the ordinances,neglecting the power thereof; yea, fome have turned afide to crooked ways, deftructive to both. The profane, loofe and infolent cariage of many in our armies who went to the affiftance of our brethren in England, and the tamperings and unftraight dealing of fome of our commiffioners, and others of our nation, in London, the ifle of Weight, and other places of that kingdom, have proved great lets to the work of reformation, and fettling of Kirk government there, whereby Eerror and fchifm in that land, have been increased, and fectaries hardened in their way we have been fo far from endeavouring the extirpation of profaneness,and what is contrary to the power of Godliness, that profanity hath been much winked at,and profane perfons much countenanced,and many times employed, until iniquity and ungodlinefs have gone over the face of the land as a flood; nay, fufficient care hath not been had to feperate betwixt the precious and the vile, by debaring from the facrament all ignorant and fcandelous perfons, according to the ordinances of this kirk,

Neither have the privileges of the parliament, and liberties of the fubjects been duly tendered; but fome amongst ourfelves have laboured to put into the hands of our King an arbitrary and unlimited power, deftructive to both and many of us have been acceffory of late to those means and ways whereby the Freedom and priveleges of parlaments have been incroached upon, and the fubjects oppreffed in their confciences, perfons and eftates; neither hath it been our care to avoid these things which might harden the king in his evil way; but upon the contrary he hath not only been permitted but many of us have been inftrumental, to make him exercise his power, in many things tending to the prejudice of religion and of the covenant, and of the peace and fafety of thefe kingdoms: which is fo far from the right way of preferving his Majefty's perfon and authority, that it cannot but provoke the Lord against him, unto the hazard of both

Nay,

nay, under a pretence of relieving and doing for the king whilft he refufes to do what was neceffary for the house of God, fome have ranverfed and violated moft of all the articles of the covenant.

Our own confciences within, and God's judgment upon. us without, to convince us of the manifold wilful renewed breaches of the article, which concerneth the discovery and punishment of malignants, whofe crimes have not only been connived at,but difpenfed with and pardoned, and themselves received into intimate fellowship with ourfelves, and intrufted with our councils, admitted unto our parliaments, and put. in places of power & authority, for managing the public affairs of the kingdom; whereby,in God's juftice,they got at last into their hands the whole power and ftrength of the kingdom, both in judicatories and armies; and did employ the fame unto the enacting and profecuting an unlawful engagment in war against the kingdom of England, notwithstanding of the diffent of many confiderable members of parliament, who had given conftant proof of their integrity in the caufe from the beginning; of many faithful teftimonies, and free warnings of the fervants of God; of the fupplications of many fynods, presbyteries and fhires and of the declarations of the general affembly and their commiffioners to the contrary: which engagment, as it hath been the cause of much fin, fo alfo of much mifery and calamity unto this land; and holds forth to us the grievoufnefs of our fin, of complying with Malignants, in the greatnefs of our judgment, that we may be taught never to split again upon the fame rock, upon which the Lord hath fet fo remarkable a beacon. And after all that is come to pafs unto us, because of this our trespass; and after that grace hath been fhewed unto us from the Lord, our God, by breaking thefe mens yoke from of our necks, and putting us again into a capacity to act for the good of Religion, our own fafety, and the peace aud fafety of this kingdom, fhould we again break his commandment and covenant, by joining once more with the people of these abominations, and taking into our bofom thofe ferpents, which. had formerly ftung us almost unto death; this, as it would argue great madness and folly upon our part, fo no doubt, if it be not avoided, will provoke the Lord against us, to confume us, untill there be no remnant nor efcaping in the land

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