Birth, Parentage, and Character of the reverend Mr. THOMAS HALYBURTON, with fome other Circumstances of his Life, and last Words on his Death-Bed.

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R. THOMAS HALYBURTON, profeffor of divinity in the New College of St. Andrew's, was born at Duplin, in the parish of Aberdalgy, Decem. 25th, 1674, of worthy and godly parents, Mr. George Halyburton, and Margaret Playfere. His father was defcended of the family of Pitcur, in the county of Angus; and was minifter of the parish of Aberdalgy in the Presbytery of Perth, out of which he was ejected by the then government, in the year 1662, as about 300 more ministers were alfo, fummarly without any legal procefs, fimply for non-conformity to Prelacy.

Mr. George Halyburton, who was then bifhop of Dunkeld, and had been a zealous covenanter, fuddenly became fo forward for the national defection, and fo cruel a perfecutor of his once fellow-presbyters, that he would not fpare him more than others, tho' he was his near kinfman, but turned him out of his charge: and yet that prelate was.. fcarce well warm in his neft, when the Lord

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fmote himself with fore fickness, of which he died, and went to his place.

Immediately after he was thus perfecuted, that choice and pious gentleman, the fole heretor of the faid parifh, who was one àmong a thoufand in fuch an evil time, and afterward fuffered much for non-conformity, gave him a houfe to dwell in at Duplin, befide himself, was his ordinary hearer, and, while he lived, fhewed no fmall kindness to him, which deferves a thankful rememberance from his relations.

His father never. repented his faithfulness in adhering to the covenanted work of reformation, but rejoiced that he had been honoured to fuffer on that account; and when he fell asleep in the Lord, in the year 1682, in the 55 year of hi age, he died in the faith of this, that God would deliver this church from the then fore perfecution it was under.

His mother was daughter to Mr. Andrew Playfere, the firft minifter of Aberdalgy parish after the reformation from Popery, to whom her husband fucceeded a little before the restoration of Prelacy. She was allied to fome of the best families in the kingdom, by the mother; of which here I fhall forbear a particular account: but, which was their far greater glory, both of them from their youth up, were truly religious.

His mother excelled many of her own fex for knowlege of the principles of religion,

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and an uncommon memory of the fcriptures;: fhe would have exactly repeated many of the choiceft chapters of the bible.

They had a numerous family, no lefs than eleven children, and very fickly; all of them died young, except their eldest daughter Janet, and this their fon Mr. Thomas; but to sweeten these trials, they had peculiar comfort in the death of their chil dren; fome, even of the youngest of them, gave fingular evidences of their dying in the Lord, which fome yet alive well mind.

When his father died, he was happy to be under the care of fuch a mother: the epifcopal perfecution for non-conformity daily growing, fhe, with her fon in-law, and daugh ter, were forced, for their fafety, to withdraw to Holland, took him along with them while he was very young: he quickly learned the Dutch, and went to Erafmus' fchool to learn the Latin: there they fojourned till August 1687, at which time they returned home, narrowly escaping fhipwrack.

At their return, he went to the school, and afterwards to the university, where he made great proficiency beyond many of his equals. When he had finished his course there, he entered chaplain to a noble family, where one that had been his fchool-fel. low, and had drunk in the principles of the Deifts, began to attack him on that fide, which obliged him, in the beginning of his a 3 ftudies,

ftudies, to read that controverfy carefully; and what progrefs he made in this, will appear from his book against the Deifts. He could not attend leffons of divinity in any of our colleges, while in that family; and tho he had read divinity only two years, the presbytery of Kirkaldie importuned him to enter on trials, and he was licensed by them to preach, June 22d, 1699.

He was fettled minifter in Ceres parish, May ift, 1700.

In 1701, he was married with Janet Watson, a virtuous and pious gentlewoman, daughter to Mr. David Watson, an heretor in the parish of St. Andrews, a zealous good man, and one that fuffered much in the late times for non-conformity. His relict furvived him, with fix children, one fon, and five daughters, befide two fons and a daughter that died.

Some few years after his fettlement at Ceres, his health broke, and his indifpofition daily increased, so that he was hardly able to go through his minifterial work in that large parish.

In April 1710, having received a patent from her majesty, and an invitation from the presbytery, he was tranfported by the fynod of Fife, to be profeffor of divinity in the New College of St. Andrew's.

Being admitted profeffor, he enjoyed not much found health in the exercife of that office; for in the beginning of April 1711,

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he was fuddenly feized with a dangerous ficknefs and pleurify, which obliged the physi cians, at feveral times, to take from him about 44 ounces of blood: he recovered and went abroad again, but his wafted body ne ver attained the finali ftrength he had before this fickness: fhortly after his arms and legs became a little benummed and infenfible, as alfo fwelled, which, at his death, increased greatly.

To his fucceffor in the parish he was tranf ported from, he faid, "I have this to fay, as to my congregation, That people were << my choife: with much peace and pleafure "I preached as I could, though not as I "fhould, the gospel of Jefus Chrift; though in all things I own myfelf to have finned "exceedingly before the Lord; yet I have peace, that I aimed, with concern, at leading them to the Lord Jefus; and another foundation can no man lay. I hope you "will build on that fame foundation: and " as you will in that way fave your own "foul, fo it is the way to fave them that " hear you. From experience I can fay,

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That the purfuing this fincerely is the

way to falvation. Signify to them, That "if it please the Lord to take me away, I "die rejoicing in the faith and profeffion of "what I oft preached to them under a low "state of body; and without this I could have no relief. I would have my folk

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