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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/34191-8.txt b/34191-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f845640 --- /dev/null +++ b/34191-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,6427 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Knox, by Wm. M. Taylor + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: John Knox + +Author: Wm. M. Taylor + +Release Date: November 1, 2010 [EBook #34191] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN KNOX *** + + + + +Produced by Al Haines + + + + + + + + + + +[Frontispiece: John Knox. Engraved by B. Holl, from a Picture in the +Posession of Lord Somerville.] + + + + + + +JOHN KNOX. + + +BY + +WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D., LL.D., + + +_Author of "Limitations of Life," etc._ + + + + + WITH STEEL PORTRAIT ENGRAVED BY B. HOLL, FROM + A PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF + LORD SOMERVILLE. + + + + +NEW YORK: + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, + +714 BROADWAY. + +1885 + + + + +COPYRIGHT, 1885, + +BY A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON. + + + + +{v} + +PREFACE. + +The sources from which the following narrative has been derived are (1) +the splendidly edited and complete edition of Knox's Works in six +volumes, by Dr. David Laing; (2) the Memoir of the Reformer, by Dr. +Thomas McCrie, forming the first volume of the collected works of that +eminent theologian; (3) the monograph by the late Professor Lorimer, +D.D., entitled "John Knox and the Church of England"; and (4) the +Histories of the Period, more especially that of Scotland, by John Hill +Burton, vols. iii. and iv., and that of England, by J. A. Froude, vols. +v. and vi. Some assistance also has been derived from "The Scottish +Reformation," by Professor Lorimer; and the two sketches by Carlyle, +the one in his "Heroes and Hero Worship," and the other in his essay on +the Portraits {vi} of John Knox, have been both helpful and suggestive. +Quotations have been generally indicated, but this acknowledgment must +cover any accidental omission to give to each author his due; and for +the rest the reader may be assured that while no material fact has been +omitted, nothing has been recorded for which ample authority could not +be given. The figure has been felt to be too large for the canvas to +which we have been restricted, but we have sought to reproduce, as +faithfully as possible the man as he was, and if we may succeed in +removing any of the unreasonable prejudice, with which many still +regard the Scottish Reformer, the story of his life will not be retold +by us in vain. + +W. M. T. + NEW YORK. + + + + +{vii} + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I. + + PAGE + +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547 . . . . . . . . 1 + + +CHAPTER II. + +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 + + +CHAPTER III. + +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550 . . . . . . . . . . . 29 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553 . . . . 42 + + +CHAPTER V. + +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +FIRST DAYS IN EXILE, 1554 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 + + +{viii} + +CHAPTER IX. + +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560 . . . . . . . 136 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563 . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 + + +CHAPTER XII. + +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + + + + +{1} + +CHAPTER I. + +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547. + +On the sixteenth day of January, 1546, George Wishart delivered a +remarkable sermon in the church of Haddington. Two things had combined +to produce special depression in his heart. Shortly before he entered +the pulpit a boy had put into his hands a letter informing him that his +friends in Kyle would not be able to keep an appointment which they had +made to meet him in Edinburgh. This news so saddened him that he +expressed himself as "weary of the world," because he perceived that +"men began to be weary of God." Nor was his despondency removed when +he rose to preach, for instead of the crowds that used to assemble to +hear him in that church, there were not more than a hundred persons +present. It was thus made apparent to him that the efforts of his +enemies for his overthrow were now to be successful, and so instead of +treating the second table of the law as he had been expected to do, he +poured forth a torrent of warning and denunciation, not unlike some of +the fervid {2} utterances of the old Hebrew prophets. The effect +produced was all the more solemn, because he evidently felt that he was +bearing his last public testimony against the evils of his times. + +When he had concluded he bade his friends farewell, and to John Knox, +who throughout his sojourn in Lothian had attended him, armed with a +two-handed sword, as a protection against the assassination with which +he had twice been threatened, and who had pressed to be allowed to +accompany him to Ormiston, where he was to spend the night, he said, +"Nay, return to your bairns" (pupils), "and God bless you! One is +sufficient for one sacrifice." + +The good man's presentiment was all too surely realized. Before +midnight the house in which he slept was surrounded by a band of which +the Earl of Bothwell was the head, and he was given up by his host to +that nobleman, only however on the receipt of a pledge, over which +"hands" were "struck," to the effect that his personal safety should be +secured, and he should not be delivered into his enemies' power. But +promises in these days were not of much account, and Bothwell was +easily prevailed upon to give him up to Cardinal Beaton, who took him +first to Edinburgh Castle, and afterwards to St. Andrews. There, in +defiance of the protest of the Regent, he was hurriedly subjected to +the form of a trial by the cardinal, and being, of course, found +guilty, he was executed at the stake on the first of March. + +{3} + +Thus it is, as the body-guard of Wishart, that we get our first glimpse +of John Knox in history; and very characteristic of the man this first +appearance was. He comes upon the scene as unheralded as Elijah, and, +like him too, he is seen from the first to be set for the defence of +the truth. He was a sword-bearer all through; only when he laid aside +the two-handed brand which he carried before Wishart, he took in its +stead "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." + +Before proceeding to tell the stirring story of his life, however, it +may be well to take a brief survey of the condition of Scotland at the +moment when he stepped into the arena of its national strife. + +Little more than three years before the date of Wishart's execution, +the Queen of Scotland had given birth to that Mary Stuart, whose +character has been the puzzle of historians, and whose chequered career +has been the theme of poets almost ever since. Her father, James V., +broken-hearted by the utter defeat of his army by the English at the +battle of Solway Moss, died only a few days after his daughter's birth. +Thus it came about, that in a critical time which tested the +statesmanship of the world's strongest rulers, alike in England, +France, Germany, and Spain, Scotland had a baby sovereign, and the +controlling of its affairs became an object of keen competition between +contending parties. The queen-mother, Mary of Guise, a woman of marked +ability, of much cunning, and of little principle, was, both from +national and religious leanings, on {4} the side of the Catholic party. +Of that party the head at this time was David Beaton, Archbishop of St. +Andrews, and a Cardinal of the Church. This artful prelate, "the +nephew of his uncle," was possessed of eminent talents, but was +characterized by cruelty, licentiousness, and unscrupulousness. He had +prevailed on James V. to violate the promise which he had made to his +uncle, Henry VIII., to meet him at Newcastle. The haughty Tudor had +now broken with the Romish see, and was anxious, if possible, to induce +his nephew to follow his example. But the cardinal, as great a master +of intrigue as was the English king himself, had succeeded in keeping +the Scottish monarch from putting himself under the spell of his +uncle's influence, and Henry, exasperated at his defeat, sent into +Scotland an army, whose success at Solway Moss led indirectly, as we +have seen, to the death of James. When that event occurred, Beaton +produced a forged will, purporting to be the last testament of the +king, and nominating him as Regent with three of the nobles as his +assistants. On the strength of that document he had himself proclaimed +as Regent at the Cross of Edinburgh. But the validity of the +instrument was annulled by the Scottish Parliament; and in the spring +of 1543, James, Earl of Arran, heir presumptive of the crown, was +appointed to the dignity which the cardinal had so eagerly, and so +unrighteously sought to make his own. + +This nobleman, "notorious," as Burton says, "for fickleness," had been +at first on the side of the Reformation, {5} and was then assiduously +courted by Henry VIII. He had even consented to the marriage of the +baby queen to the young English Prince Edward. But the influence of +the queen-mother and the cardinal, backed by that of his own natural +brother, the Abbot of Paisley, together with the unjust and impolitic +demands of the English monarch himself, combined to turn him from his +original leanings. He publicly abjured the Protestant faith, and was +received into the bosom of the Catholic Church. He broke off all +negotiations for a matrimonial alliance between the royal houses of +England and Scotland, and ultimately consented to the betrothal of Mary +to the Dauphin of France. The result of these proceedings was a +protracted war with England, during which Scotland was repeatedly +invaded, and portions of it devastated by the southern forces. + +But while these political and international intrigues, in which it must +be confessed that there was little scrupulousness on either side, were +going on, a great spiritual movement was making quiet progress among +the people. The Reformation from Popery had begun in Scotland also. +Patrick Hamilton, its protomartyr, had been put to death in 1528; but +the smoke of his burning, to borrow the well-known words of one of the +elder Beaton's own servants, "had infected all on whom it blew"; and +the books of the German Reformers, together with the English Testaments +of William Tyndale, had wrought like hidden leaven, especially among +the more intelligent of the community. {6} Thus we account for the +fact that, in spite of legal prohibitions and public executions, the +knowledge of evangelical truth was diffused, even when there was no +living voice to proclaim it publicly in the hearing of the multitudes; +so that when a man like Wishart did make his appearance, he found +crowds to listen to him appreciatively both in Dundee and Ayr. The +Lollards of Kyle had still worthy descendants in that historic +district; and the merchants in towns like that of Leith, whose commerce +brought them into contact with men from Hamburg, Antwerp, and the +cities of the Rhine, were disposed to welcome the new doctrines. Among +the nobles, men like Glencairn and Errol and Ruthven ranged themselves +on the side of the Reformers; while the influence of a satirist like +Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, and a scholar like Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, was given heartily to their cause. + +But next only to the diffusion of the Scriptures among the people, the +greatest factor in the production of the Reformation in Scotland was +the degraded condition into which in that country the Church of Rome +itself had sunk. "That which decayeth is ready to vanish away." There +were no longer in it the elements of vitality. It was past purifying, +and had to be swept clean out. Its corruptions were too open to be +denied, and too gross to be defended. The grasping selfishness and +shameless licentiousness of the upper clergy were equalled only by the +ignorance and general incompetence of the lower, so that there had +sprung up among the people generally a {7} hatred of the order to which +both belonged. This was deepened and intensified by the spirit in +which the first efforts of the Reformers had been met, for in Scotland +as elsewhere the prison and the stake were the short and easy answers +made by papal intolerance to all the arguments which the preachers +brought against the errors of Romanism. But these were answers which +only turned more general attention to the statements of the Reformers, +and gave wider circulation to their words. The storm of contrary wind +unfurls the banner, and makes thereby its inscription the more legible, +and in the same way the persecution of those who proclaimed the truth +only fell out to the furtherance of that which it was designed to +arrest. + +But Cardinal Beaton's conscience was too hard to feel the crime, and +his eye was too dim to see the blunder which he was committing in +putting Wishart to death. He looked only at immediate results, and +thought perhaps that by silencing the preacher he could arrest the +influence of the words which had already gone from him. But in reality +he was himself standing above a mine which before long exploded for his +own destruction. His checkmating of Henry VIII. so exasperated that +monarch that he entered into correspondence, through his agent Sir +Robert Sadler, with certain Scotsmen whose disaffection to the cardinal +was well known, and who, at his suggestion, or at least with his +concurrence and approval, perhaps also with his reward, entered into a +conspiracy to "take him out of the way." {8} Accordingly on the morning +of the 29th of May, just three months after the martyrdom of Wishart, +Cardinal Beaton was assassinated by a company of men headed by Norman +Leslie. That the wily priest had himself been guilty of attempts to +get rid of his adversaries by the same unscrupulous means is not to be +denied. It is equally certain that, as things then were, it would have +been impossible to bring him to trial for any of his enormities. But +still the manner of his "taking off" is not only utterly indefensible, +but also worthy of the deepest reprobation, and it is too true, as Dr. +Lorimer has said, that "the exasperation of feeling called forth by a +deed so daring and criminal gave rise to proceedings against the +conspirators which, being extended to all their abettors real or +supposed, had the effect of retarding the progress of the Reformation +for many years, and of weighing it down with a load of opprobrium from +the effects of which it could only slowly recover."[1] + +Foreseeing that they would be the objects of bitter attack, the +conspirators, after they had done their bloody work, resolved to keep +possession of the Castle of St. Andrews which they had so unexpectedly +seized, and there they were speedily joined by at least one hundred and +forty persons, numbering among them Kirkaldy of Grange, Melville of +Raith, Balfour of Mount-quhany, and many gentlemen of Fife and the +neighbouring {9} counties. They put the castle into a state of +defence, and were besieged by an army under command of the Regent +Arran, against whom they held out, more perhaps from the incompetence +of the besiegers than from the skill or strength of the besieged, until +the end of January, 1547. At that date the siege was suspended under +an agreement which stipulated that the Castle was still to remain in +the hands of its defenders, on the conditions that they should hold it +for the Regent and not deliver it to England; and that they should not +be required to surrender it even to the Regent until he had obtained +from Rome absolution for those who had been implicated in the murder of +the cardinal. Upon his side the Regent agreed to withdraw his forces +to the south of the Forth, and from the beginning of the year on till +the following June the inmates of the Castle were permitted to go out +and in at their pleasure, and to receive all that came to them. + +Thus the Castle of St. Andrews became for the time a kind of sanctuary +for all who were seeking relief or refuge from the oppression of the +rulers in Church and State; and at the following Easter, which fell +that year on the 10th of April, John Knox entered its gates under +circumstances which he himself has thus described: "At the Pasch after, +came to the Castle of St. Andrews John Knox, who, wearied of removing +from place to place by reason of the persecution that came upon him by +this Bishop of St. Andrews, was determined to have left Scotland and to +have visited the schools of Germany {10} (of England then he had no +pleasure by reason that the Pope's name being suppressed, his laws and +corruptions remained in full vigour). But because he had the care of +some gentlemen's children, whom certain years he had nourished in +godliness, their fathers solicited him to go to St. Andrews, that +himself might have the benefit of the castle, and their children the +benefit of his doctrine, and so (we say) came he the time foresaid, to +the said place, and having in his company Francis Douglas of +Longniddry, George his brother, and Alexander Cockburn, eldest son to +the laird of Ormiston, began to exercise them after his accustomed +manner."[2] + +Knox was at this time in the prime and vigour of his manhood, being +forty-two years of age. He was born in 1505 at Gifford-gate, a suburb +connected with Haddington by the old stone bridge across the Tyne. His +parents were not distinguished either for rank or fortune, for one of +his adversaries affirms that he was "obscuris natus parentibus" (born +of obscure parents), and even one of his admirers says that "he +descended but of lineage small." His father was William Knox, and his +mother's name was Sinclair. Both of them apparently belonged to +families that were in some way feudatories to the Earls of Bothwell, +for at the Reformer's first interview with that earl, whose name is so +tragically {11} coupled with Queen Mary's, he said, "Albeit that to +this hour it hath not chanced me to speak to your lordship face to +face, yet have I borne a good mind to your house; ... for, my lord, my +grandfather, goodschir (_i.e._, according to Mr. Laing, maternal +grandfather) and father have served your lordship's predecessors, and +some of them have died under their standards." He received his +earliest education at the Grammar School of Haddington, and passed when +he was about sixteen years of age to the University of Glasgow, in the +register of which his name appears among those of the students who were +incorporated on the 25th October, 1522. + +At that time and for a year later John Major, or Mair, Doctor of the +Sorbonne, was Principal of the Glasgow University and Professor of +Divinity in the same. He had some opinions, both ecclesiastical and +political, which were considerably in advance of his age, and it has +been supposed that Knox may have received from him some of those +principles which he afterwards so ably advocated. But perhaps too much +has been made of this by the Reformer's biographers, for Major remained +only one year in Glasgow after Knox had been registered as a student at +the University; and though he held some liberal notions in politics, he +was in theology to the last a rigid scholastic. Moreover, he was so +far from being a zealous promoter of the cause of the Reformation that +his name appears as a judge on several of the tribunals at which the +early Scottish {12} confessors were condemned to banishment or death. +Taking these things into consideration along with the youth of Knox +when he first entered college, it will appear hardly likely that he +received from Major anything more than a general impulse in the +direction of liberty and liberality, which prepared him to look with +favour on the efforts of those who, though they might be called +innovators, were in reality only seeking to get back to the original +simplicity of the gospel, and the primitive purity of the Church. + +Knox left Glasgow without taking the degree of Master of Arts, and +there is no evidence whatever for the statement sometimes made that he +was afterwards connected with the University of St. Andrews. In fact +we lose sight of him entirely for a period of eighteen years from the +time of his leaving Glasgow. During that interval he was ordained a +priest, though by whom, or at what precise date, it is now impossible +to determine; but his signature has been found,[3] as notary, to an +instrument in the charter-room at Tyninghame, bearing date March 27, +1543, a fact which establishes that up till that time he retained his +character as a priest and had the papal authority to act as a notary. +With these functions he seems to have combined that of a teacher of +youth, for at the time we come upon him in connection with Wishart, he +had under his charge some young men of good family in the land. + +{13} + +We have no details concerning his conversion from the Romish to the +Protestant faith. According to one authority it was Thomas Guillaume +who was "the first to give Mr. Knox a taste of the truth." That +eloquent preacher,--a native of East Lothian, who had risen to a high +place in the order of the Dominicans,--had through the influence of the +party of progress been appointed chaplain to the Regent Arran at the +time when that weak ruler was favouring the Reformers. Knox himself +has described him as "a man of solid judgment, reasonable letters (as +for that age), and of prompt and good utterance; his doctrine was +wholesome without great vehemency against superstition." It does not +appear, however, from anything he says that he ever came personally +into contact with him, though it is possible that some of those clear +expositions of Scripture for which Guillaume was so esteemed may have +been heard by him, and may have produced a deep impression on his mind. +But beyond all question George Wishart was the true spiritual father of +John Knox. The preaching and companionship of that earnest man during +that journey through the Lothians, which ended in his apprehension at +Ormiston, did more for Knox than any other human instrumentality +whatever. They wrought conviction in him, and brought him out into +decision, so that from the moment when these two men parted from each +other for the last time at the church of Haddington, it was no longer +possible for Knox to return into the position of comparative obscurity +from which he had {14} emerged to become the body-guard of Wishart. He +had come prominently out on the side of the Reformation, and the +martyrdom of his teacher would only deepen his determination that he +should not go back. + +But there was no need for him to throw his life away as a gratuitous +sacrifice, and therefore, when he was compelled to seek safety from his +persecutors by removing from place to place, and out of weariness was +minded to go to Germany, he consented, at the earnest solicitations of +the parents of his pupils, to find protection in the Castle of St. +Andrews. Let it be noted, however, that he did not enter that +stronghold until the 10th of April, 1547, that is, more than ten months +after Beaton's murder, and therefore he is not to be reckoned among +those who had concocted and carried out the assassination of that +prelate. He was at that date in too obscure a station to be in any +way, even the most remote, associated with those who had committed that +foul murder, and he went to St. Andrews simply that he might be able to +carry on uninterruptedly the education of his pupils. Accordingly, so +soon as he was fairly settled there, he resumed the regular routine of +his work with them. What that was he has himself informed us in these +words: "Besides their grammar and other humane authors" (that is, +authors in what were then called the humanity classes) "he read unto +them a catechism, an account whereof he caused them to give publicly in +the parish church of St. Andrews. He read moreover unto them the +Gospel of John proceeding where he" (had) {15} "left" (off) "at his +departing from Longniddry where before his residence was, and that +lecture he read in the chapel within the castle at a certain hour." +These public exercises attracted to them a large number of those who +were then sojourning in the castle, among whom were Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, a distinguished jurist, who had been already, and was to be +again, one of the judges of the court of session, and John Rough, who +was the stated preacher to the congregation within the castle. These +men were greatly impressed alike with the matter, the method, and the +manner of delivery of the lectures, and seeing his fitness for the +work, they earnestly entreated Knox to enter at once upon the office of +the ministry. But he declared that "he would not run where God had not +called him," and peremptorily refused to accede to their request. Upon +this they took counsel with Sir David Lindsay, of the Mount, and +others, and ultimately agreed that Rough, without giving any formal +warning that he was about to do anything of the kind, should address to +Knox a special public call in the name and before the face of the +congregation. Accordingly, in the presence of the people, and after +having preached a sermon on the election of ministers, Rough turned to +Knox and said, "Brother, ye shall not be offended, albeit that 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 of His Son Jesus Christ, +and in the name of these that presently call you by my mouth, I charge +you that ye refuse {16} not this holy vocation, but that, as ye tender +the glory of God, the increase of Christ's kingdom, the edification of +your brethren, and the comfort of me whom you understand well enough to +be oppressed by the multitude of labours, that ye take upon you the +public office and charge of preaching even as ye look to avoid God's +heavy displeasure, and desire that He shall multiply His graces with +you." Then turning to the congregation he said, "Was not this your +charge to me?" They answered, "It was, and we approve it." The +combined suddenness and solemnity of this appeal completely unmanned +Knox. He burst into tears and hastened to his closet, where we may +well believe that he sought light from God; and the result Was that he +was led to take up that ministry which he laid down only with his life. +Not from the impulse of caprice, or because he desired the position of +a preacher, but because he could not otherwise meet the responsibility +which God had laid upon him, did he enter upon that high and honourable +vocation. He was to do a work for his countrymen not unlike that which +Moses did for his kinsmen, and so like Moses he was called to it in the +full maturity of his powers, and entered upon it with the conviction +that God had given him his commission, and he dared not disobey. + +Nor did he tarry long before he began to preach, for the call of +Providence came almost simultaneously with that of the church. It +happened just then that Mr. Rough was engaged in a controversy with a +popish {17} dean named Annand. For such a discussion Rough was but +poorly furnished, since, as McCrie says, though he was sound in +doctrine, his literary acquirements were only moderate. In his +emergency he had been much assisted by Knox, who made such good use of +the pen that he beat back his adversary from all his defences. As a +last resort Annand took refuge in the authority of the Church, upon +which Knox at once exclaimed, in the hearing of those who were present +at the discussion, that a distinction must be drawn between the true +spouse of Christ and the Church of Rome, and offered to prove by word +or writing that the Papal Church had degenerated from that of primitive +times more than the Jews who crucified the Saviour had fallen from the +ordinances of Moses. On hearing this, the people alleged that they +could not all read his writings, but could all listen to his preaching, +and therefore insisted, in the name of God, that he would let them hear +his proof of the assertion which he had made. Such an appeal was not +to be resisted, and therefore on the very next Sunday Knox entered the +pulpit, and preached (from the text Daniel vii. 24, 25) a sermon, in +which, after having given the true marks of the Church, he went on to +expose the corruptions of the Romish clergy in their lives, the +erroneous doctrine taught by them, especially in the matter of +justification, and the enslaving laws enjoined by them in regard to +days, and meats, and marriage. In particular he inveighed against the +blasphemies of popery. He identified the Papal {18} Church with the +Babylonian harlot in the book of the Revelation, and concluded by +demanding the most thorough investigation of all the statements which +he had made, and the most minute examination of the authorities whom he +had cited. This discourse was listened to by a large assembly, among +whom was John Major, his old Glasgow principal, and it produced a great +effect upon all. Some said, "Others lopped off the branches of the +papistry, but he strikes at the root to destroy the whole." Others +predicted that he would meet the fate of Wishart, who had never spoken +quite so plainly as Knox had done that day. The new archbishop of St. +Andrews, not yet consecrated to his office, expostulated with the +vicar-general of the diocese for allowing such heretical doctrines to +be promulgated without opposition, and that led to the calling of a +convention of the learned men of the abbey and the university, before +which Rough and Knox were summoned to make answer to nine articles, +involving heresies, which had been drawn from their sermons. But +nothing more serious resulted from that meeting than a debate between +Knox and a friar named Arbuckle, whose arguments Knox easily refuted, +and that too with a considerable mixture of the grim humour which ever +and anon laughs outright in the pages of his history. Clearly, +therefore, it would be a perilous thing for the Church to let such a +man do all the preaching to the people; and so orders were issued that +each of the learned men in the abbey and university should preach {19} +in his own turn on the Sundays in the parish church. This deprived +Knox of the opportunity of addressing the congregation on those days +when the greatest numbers were in attendance; but he continued his +ministry on the other days of the week, and that with such success that +although it lasted in all at this time not more than three months, many +of the inhabitants of the town renounced popery, and made confession of +the Protestant faith by partaking of the Lord's Supper in the reformed +manner, the first occasion on which the ordinance was publicly +administered in Scotland after that fashion. + +Thus the beginning of Knox's work marks a distinct stage in the history +of the Scottish Reformation. At first, and under what has been called +by Lorimer the Hamilton period, peculiar emphasis was laid upon the +truths which were revived in the teaching of Luther; under the Wishart +period the doctrine of the sacraments came into prominence, and then +first the influence of Switzerland began to be felt by Scotland; but +under Knox attention was directed especially to the nature and +constitution of the church, and the first sermon which he preached, and +of which we have given the barest outline, had already in it "the +promise and the potency" of the great work which he was yet to +accomplish for his native land. + + + +[1] "The Scottish Reformation." A Historical Sketch by Peter Lorimer, +D.D. London: R. Griffin & Co., 1860, p. 157. + +[2] "The Works of John Knox," collected and edited by Dr. David Laing, +vol. i. p. 185. Once for all let it be said that in making these +quotations the spelling is modernized, but otherwise no alteration is +made. + +[3] By Dr. David Laing: see "Knox's Works," vol. vi. pp. xxii. xxiii. + + + + +{20} + +CHAPTER II. + +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549. + +During the months which had elapsed since the time when the Castle of +St. Andrews had become a refuge for those who had so summarily and +unscrupulously murdered Beaton, changes had occurred both in England +and in France which deeply affected their interests. Henry VIII. died +on the 28th January, 1547, and for a short time during the minority of +Edward the reins of government had been virtually given into the hands +of the Duke of Somerset, under the name of Protector. This deprived +the besieged of their most powerful friend, for although after Henry's +decease the Privy Council fulfilled his directions and voted money to +Leslie and others as individuals, together with a certain sum for the +maintenance of a garrison in the castle, yet Somerset took little +further care of those who remained within its shelter, and left them +virtually to their own resources. The death of Francis I. of France, +which took place on the 31st of March in the same year, added to their +danger, for he was succeeded by Henry II., who as Dauphin had been the +leader of the party {21} most opposed to England, and who was therefore +by no means indisposed to do anything that would tend to widen the +breach between that country and his own. When therefore Somerset, +unwisely insisting on reviving the pretensions of feudal superiority +over Scotland which had been put forth by Edward I., permitted the +Borders to be wasted by fire and sword, and urged the French to abstain +from interference, he was met with the reply that their king "might not +suffer the old friends of France to be oppressed and alienated from +him." In France, therefore, the Regent Arran and the queen-mother +found a willing ally, and in the beginning of June Leo Strozzi, prior +of Capua, appeared with a fleet of French galleys in sight of the +Castle of St. Andrews, and demanded the surrender of its inmates. +According to agreement this was conditioned on the reception from Rome +of absolution for the murderers of Beaton. But although Strozzi +brought absolution with him, it was expressed in such an equivocal +form,--"Remittimus irremissibile," we pardon that which is +unpardonable,--that the persons interested refused to accept it, and +the siege was renewed. Arran, hearing of the arrival of his allies, +hastened from the west country to co-operate with them, and the result +was such as might have been expected. For this time the defenders had +to contend with skilled gunners, before whose batteries, as Knox had +forewarned them would be the case, "their walls were no better than +eggshells." From the steeple of St. Salvador's College and the towers +of the Abbey, as well as from the galleys in {22} the bay, the cannon +of their assailants poured shot in upon them, while within the walls +the plague broke out with virulence. So in the end of July Kirkcaldy +of Grange went forth with a flag of truce to make the best possible +terms with the victors. The conditions obtained were that the lives of +all within the castle, whether English or Scotch, should be spared; +that they should be safely transported to France; and that in case, +upon conditions that by the king of France should be offered unto them, +they could not be content to remain in service and freedom there, they +should, at the expense of the king of France, be safely conveyed to +what country they would require, other than Scotland. These promises, +however, were shamefully broken, for the vanquished were taken on board +the vessels which had been plentifully loaded with the spoils of the +castle, and carried to France, where they were held in bondage for many +months. One detachment of them was taken to Cherbourg, and another to +Mount St. Michael. Knox himself was reduced to the condition of a +galley-slave. + +We have no connected account of his experiences in this time of trial, +but here and there in his works he has dropped incidental hints which +give us glimpses of his sufferings, and of the manner in which they +were endured by him. In his history of the Reformation, in connection +with the account of an effort made by some of his friends to dissuade +him in the year 1559 from preaching in St. Andrews, we have a report of +the answer which he gave to them, and in that occurs the following +passage: {23} "In this town and church began God first to call me to +the dignity of a preacher, from, the which I was reft by the tyranny of +France by procurement of the bishops as ye all well enough know. How +long I continued prisoner, _what torment I sustained in the galleys, +and what were the sobs of my heart_, is now no time to consider." An +equally pathetic reference to his misery during this season of bondage, +and to his solace under it, is to be found in his treatise on the true +nature and object of prayer, in which after having referred to the +words, (Ps. vii. 16, 17) "His mischief shall return upon his own head, +and his violent dealings shall come down upon his own pate. I will +praise the Lord according to His righteousness, and will sing praise to +the name of the Lord most high," he goes on to say, "This is not +written for David only, but for all such as shall suffer tribulation to +the end of the world. For I, the writer hereof (let this be said to +the laud and praise of God alone), in _anguish of mind and vehement +tribulation and affliction_, called to the Lord, when not only the +ungodly, but even my faithful brethren, yea and mine own self, that is +all natural understanding in me, judged my cause to be irremediable; +and yet in my greatest calamity, and when my pains were most cruel, +would His eternal wisdom that I should write far contrary to the +judgment of carnal wisdom, which His mercy has proved true. Blessed be +His holy name! And therefore I dare be bold, in the verity of God's +word to promise that notwithstanding the vehemence of trouble, the long +continuance thereof, the {24} dispersion of all men, the fearfulness, +danger, dolor, and anguish of our hearts; yet if we call constantly to +God, that beyond expectation of all men, He shall deliver." There can +be little doubt, as Dr. Laing remarks in a foot-note to this passage, +that Knox here refers to his bodily and mental sufferings during his +confinement on board the French galley, and so we see that his faith +was not a mere sentimental thing, that, as he has himself elsewhere +expressed it, he was no mere "speculative theologue," but indeed a +steadfast believer, who had proved God's faithfulness to His promise +even in the sorest tribulation. + +Again in the epistle to the congregation of the Castle of St. Andrews +prefixed by him to the tract on Justification by Faith, which his +friend Henry Balnaves had written during his imprisonment at Rouen, we +find among other allusions to his support under his sufferings the +following words: "I exhort that ye read diligently this treatise, not +only with earnest prayer that ye may understand the same aright, but +also with humble and due thanksgiving unto our most merciful Father, +who of His infinite power hath so strengthened the hearts of His +prisoners, that in despite of Satan they desist not yet to work, but in +the most vehemency of tribulation seek the utility and salvation of +others." + +And in a letter written in December, 1559, he speaks of "all the +torments of the galleys" in such a way as to lead us to conclude that +he was subjected to the greatest hardships. Once more, and perhaps +most pathetically of {25} all, in that letter to the congregation of +Berwick which Dr. Lorimer first printed in his "John Knox and the +Church of England," and to which we shall have to make fuller reference +by-and-by, he thus writes: "This day I am more vile and of low +reputation in my own eyes than I was either that day that _my feet were +chained in the prison of dolor_ (the galleys I mean), or yet that day +that I was delivered by His only providence from the same." + +It is clear, therefore, that his sufferings were severe, and while he +endured them with a fortitude that was sustained by his faith in God, +he was careful also to maintain always a conscience void of offence. +He tells us that those who were in the galleys "were threatened with +torments if they would not give reverence to the mass, but they could +never make the poorest of that company to give reverence to that idol." +He adds the following narrative, and from the ironic humour that plays +about his style as he recites it, we cannot doubt that he was himself +the hero of the story. "Soon after the arrival at Nantes, their great +salve was sung, and a glorious (gaudy) painted board was brought in to +be kissed, and amongst others was presented to one of the Scotchmen +then chained. He gently said, 'Trouble me not; such an idol is +accursed, and therefore I will not touch it.' The patron and the +arguesyn (_i.e._ sergeant who commanded the forçats) with two officers, +having the chief charge of all such matters, said, 'Thou shalt handle +it,' and so they violently thrust it to his face, and put it betwixt +his hands, who seeing the extremity, taking the {26} idol, and +advisedly looking about, he cast it into the river, and said, 'Let our +lady now save herself; she is light enough; let her learn to swim.' +After that was no Scotchman urged with that idolatry." + +But sorely bestead as he was in his captivity, he would not sanction +any attempt to escape which should savour of violence. Though himself +innocent of all complicity in Beaton's murder, he had seen the cause +which he had at heart so greatly hindered by the consequences of that +evil deed, and he was withal so utterly opposed to everything which he +believed that God had forbidden, that he would be no party to doing +evil that good might come. Accordingly when Kirkcaldy and two other +friends who were confined with him at Mount St. Michael wrote to him to +inquire whether they might with safe conscience break their prison, he +replied, that if without the shedding of any blood they could set +themselves at liberty, they might do so without sin, but that he would +never consent to their slaying of others in order to obtain +deliverance. He added the expression of his own assurance that God +Himself would work out their enlargement in such a way that "the praise +thereof should redound to His glory alone." Nor was that with him a +mere temporary or intermittent sentiment. It was the settled +conviction of his soul; for from the very beginning of his captivity +when one of his fellow-prisoners would often ask him if he thought that +they should ever be delivered, his invariable answer was that "God +would deliver them from that bondage {27} to His glory, even in this +life." Nor did he falter, even when his own strength seemed ebbing +out, for when the galleys had returned to Scotland in the summer of +1548, and were lying between Dundee and St. Andrews, while he himself +was so reduced by illness that his life was despaired of, the same +companion bidding him look to the land, asked him if he knew it, +whereupon he made reply, "Yes, I know it well, for I see the steeple of +that place where God first opened my mouth 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 holy name in the same +place." He tells this almost as if he believed that the Spirit of +prophecy spoke through him at the moment; but it is not necessary for +us, while admitting the full truth of the narrative, to accept any such +explanation. If his anticipation had not been verified, his words +might have been entirely forgotten; and the probability is that his +conviction rested rather upon his general apprehension of the +principles of the Divine administration, than upon any supernatural +communication of a special sort. The Psalmist writes that "the secret +of the Lord is with them that fear Him;" and this gracious +illumination, which is the heritage of all in the proportion in which +they possess the character with which it is associated, is sufficient +to account for the correctness of his impression, without having +recourse to the theory of prophetic inspiration. That even Knox +himself would have thus regarded this matter, seems clear from a +passage in {28} his "Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which Dr. Lorimer thinks is of standard authority as +giving the principle of interpretation for all those places in which he +speaks in what may be called a prophetic tone and manner; and in which +it has sometimes been thought that he spoke not without some endowment +of supernatural insight and foreknowledge. We quote the following +sentences: "But ye would know the grounds of my certitude. God grant +that hearing them, ye may understand and steadfastly believe the same. +My assurances are not marvels of Merlin, nor yet the dark sentences of +profane prophecies; but (1) the plain truth of God's word, (2) the +invincible justice of the everlasting God, and (3) the ordinary course +of His punishments and plagues from the beginning, are my assurances +and grounds" (p. 85). + +But however we may account for the assurance which he felt, his +forecast of the future was certainly remarkably fulfilled; and there +are few contrasts in history more striking and suggestive than that +between the weak and apparently dying galley-slave looking longingly on +the shores of his native land; and the energetic Reformer of a later +date, of whom the English ambassador wrote to Cecil saying: "I assure +you the voice of one man is able in an hour to put more life in us than +six hundred trumpets continually blustering in our ears." + + + + +{29} + +CHAPTER III. + +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550. + +By what means Knox obtained his release from the galling servitude in +which he had been held by the French, we have not been able to +discover; but it is believed that he was indebted for it to the +intercession of England, and it is certain that in the early part of +the year 1549, he was employed by the Privy Council of that country as +one of the ministers whom its members commissioned to preach the +doctrines of the Reformation throughout the kingdom. The probability +is that he arrived in London about the month of February, and it is +conjectured that as Henry Balnaves was in that city as a commissioner +from the besieged in St. Andrews, at the time of the death of Henry +VIII., Knox, who had just then entered upon his ministry, may have been +beholden to his friend for bringing his name to the favourable notice +of the English Reformers. But however that may have been, we come upon +authentic and reliable information, when we find in the register of the +Privy Council, under date April 7th, 1549, an entry authorizing the +payment of five pounds "to {30} John Knox, preacher, by way of reward." +Besides this, his name occurs as the sixty-fourth in a list of eighty +who obtained licence to preach in England during the reign of Edward +the Sixth. He himself informs us in his History, that "he was first +appointed preacher to Berwick, then to Newcastle; last he was called to +London and to the southern parts of England, where he remained till the +death of Edward the Sixth." This is all that he has said directly in +that work concerning his residence in England; but so much new light +has been shed on this part of the Reformer's career by the painstaking +and elaborate monogram of Dr. Lorimer, that we are now able to follow +his steps with something like minuteness. + +He was settled first at the border town of Berwick-on-Tweed, which in +those days was "the focus of a long and bloody war between the two +kingdoms, which had begun with the tremendous slaughter of the Scots at +Pinkey in the autumn of 1547, and in which the Scots, having received +large assistance from France, were still able to maintain so vigorous a +defence that there was no near prospect of a return of peace."[1] Thus +it happened that its garrison was larger than ordinary, and everything +about the place was volcanic. Quarrels among the soldiers were common, +and the civilians themselves were not over peaceful, so that the +chronic state of the town was one of disorder. John Brende, "master of +the musters," reports to the Protector Somerset concerning {31} it: +"There is better order among the Tartars than in this town; the whole +picture of the place is one of social disorder and the worst +police."[2] Besides all this, the great majority of the people were as +yet probably papists, for the doctrines of the Reformation had made +little progress thus far in the northern counties, and matters +ecclesiastical were very unsettled. In March of that year the first +Prayer-Book of Edward VI. was sanctioned by Parliament and published +for the use of the Church. The new liturgy still retained much of the +leaven of sacerdotalism and sacramentarianism, but it was decidedly in +advance of anything which could have been issued in the days of Henry +VIII. It was thoroughly approved by but a portion of the bishops, and +there were several counties in the remoter parts of the kingdom where +it was never introduced at all. Tunstall, then Bishop of Durham, who +was no friend to the cause of reform, was in no haste to give effect to +the new legislation; and the council of the north, to which was +committed the care of public affairs in that then distant corner of the +realm, probably thought it advisable to refrain from enforcing it upon +the people, until they were prepared, by the instructions of some +eminent preacher, for receiving and obeying it. Thus we account for +the fact that, all the time he was in Berwick, Knox was left very much +to his own discretion as to the doctrines which he preached, and the +methods {32} which he adopted for the conduct of Divine service and the +administration of the sacraments. + +Already in his preface to Balnaves's treatise on Justification, the +first of his printed productions so far as can be traced, he had +written a summary of his belief on that great central doctrine; and in +his disputation with Arbuckle in St. Andrews, he had been truly charged +with holding the following opinions--viz. first, man may neither make +nor devise a religion that is acceptable to God, but is bound to +observe and keep the religion that from God is received without +chopping or changing thereof; second, the sacraments of the New +Testament ought to be ministered as they were instituted by Christ +Jesus and practised by the apostles, nothing ought to be added to them, +nothing ought to be diminished from them; third, the mass is abominable +idolatry, blasphemous to the death of Christ, and a profanation of the +Lord's Supper. When therefore he began his labours at Berwick he set +himself to the proclamation of the great truths which radiate from the +priesthood of Christ; and in his dispensation of the supper he followed +an order of his own, which was not improbably the same as he had +adopted in the Castle of St. Andrews. This is put beyond dispute by +his letter to the congregation of Berwick, written probably about the +close of 1552, and the fragment entitled "The Practice of the Lord's +Supper used in Berwick-upon-Tweed by John Knox, preacher to the +congregation of the Church there," both of which are to be found in +{33} Dr. Lorimer's Appendix. The matter is of more than mere +antiquarian interest, and we may therefore make one or two extracts +from the more important of these documents. + +In regard to his preaching he thus writes: "As for the variety and +diversity of opinions touching the doctrine and chief points of +religion which ye have received, God I take to witness, and the Lord +Jesus Christ, before whom at once shall all flesh appear, that I never +taught unto you, nor unto any others my auditory, that doctrine as +necessary to be believed which I did not find written in God's holy law +and testament. And, therefore, in that case with Paul I will say, 'If +an angel from heaven shall teach unto you another gospel than ye have +heard and externally received, let him be accursed.'" Then after +stating in a positive form what he understands by the gospel he adds: +"If in any of these chief and principal points any man vary from that +doctrine which ye have professed, let him be accursed:[3] (1) as if any +man teach any other cause moving God to elect and choose us than His +own infinite goodness and mere mercy; (2) any other name in heaven or +under the heaven wherein salvation stands, but only the name of Jesus; +(3) any other means whereby we are justified and absolved from wrath +and damnation that our sins deserve, than by faith only; (4) any other +cause or end of good works than that first we are made good trees, and +thereafter bring {34} forth fruits accordingly, to witness that we are +lively members of Christ's holy and most sanctified body, prepared +vessels to the honour and praise of our Father's glory; (5) if any +teach prayers to be made to other than God above; (6) if any Mediator +betwixt God and man, but only our Lord Jesus; (7) if more or other +sacraments be affirmed or required to be used than Christ Jesus left +ordinary in His Church, to wit, Baptism and the Lord's Table, or +mystical supper; (8) if any deny remission of sins, resurrection of the +flesh and life everlasting to appertain to us in Christ's blood, which, +sprinkled in our hearts by faith, doth purge us from all sin; so that +we need no more nor other sacrifices than that oblation once offered +for all, by the which God's elect be fully sanctified and made perfect; +if any I say, require any other sacrifice to be made for sins than +Christ's death, which once He suffered, or any other manner whereby +Christ's death may be applied to man, than by faith only, which also is +the gift of God, so that man hath no cause to glory in works; and yet, +if any deny good works to be profitable as not necessary to a true +Christian profession, let the affirmers, teachers, or maintainers of +such a doctrine be accursed of you, as they are of God unless they +repent." In these articles we are struck with the absence of all +reference to the Holy Spirit and regeneration; but we have many +allusions to these subjects elsewhere, some, indeed, in this very +document, and we may suppose that as it was specifically the +mediatorial work of Christ that was then in controversy, {35} he +designedly restricted himself to that. But from this summary, brief as +it is, we learn that even at this early date, long before he had +visited Geneva, or met Calvin, Knox had found his own way by the study +of the Scriptures to those views of gospel truth which are now +associated with the name of the great Frenchman; and that they formed +the chief themes of his public discourse at Berwick is evident from the +solemn words with which he has here introduced their enumeration. + +Nor was his proclamation of them there in vain; for in his vindication +of himself, at a later date before Queen Mary of Scotland, from the +charge of causing great sedition and slaughter in England, and securing +his ends by necromancy, he said among other things, "I shame not +further to affirm that God so blessed my weak labours, that in Berwick, +where commonly before there used to be slaughter by reason of quarrels +that used to arise among the soldiers, there was as great quietness all +the time that I remained there, as there is this day in Edinburgh."[4] +Besides this, there is in the letter from which we have quoted abundant +evidence that his biographer was not wrong when he affirmed that during +his two years in Berwick numbers were converted and a visible +reformation was produced upon the soldiers of the garrison who had been +notorious for turbulence and licentiousness. + +But his procedure in regard to the Lord's Supper was even more +remarkable for its independence, than {36} the tenour of his discourses +was for its adherence to the Pauline theology. In the Book of Common +Prayer issued by the joint authorization of Convocation and Parliament +in 1549, the rubric for the Lord's Supper provided that bread +"unleavened and round as it was afore" should be used. But in regard +to that Knox took the bold course of ignoring the authoritative +rubrics. He substituted common bread for the wafer, and he +administered the "elements" to the people while they sat, according to +the form still followed in the nonconforming churches of England, and +the Presbyterian churches in all parts of the world. It may seem to +some that this was a defiance of the law; and perhaps in strictest +construction so it was; but it is to be remembered that, as yet, the +law had not become operative in the district to which Berwick belonged, +and that therefore it was open meanwhile for Knox to take the course +which he believed to be best. Thus he writes:[5] "Kneeling at the +Lord's Supper I have proved by doctrine (teaching) to be no convenient +gesture for a table; (a gesture) which hath been given in that action +to such a presence of Christ, as no place of God's Scripture doth teach +unto us. And therefore, _kneeling in that action_, appearing to be +joined with certain dangers, no less in maintaining superstition than +in using Christ's holy institution with other gestures than either He +used or commanded to be used, _I thought good amongst you to avoid and +to {37} use sitting at the Lord's Table_; which ye did not refuse, but +with all reverence and thanksgiving to God for His truth knowing, as I +suppose, ye confirmed the doctrine with your gestures and confession." +The order which he observed[6] began with a sermon on the benefits +given us by God through Jesus Christ; this was followed by prayer, +after which was read the account of the institution of the ordinance +from 1 Corinthians xi. 20-30. Then a declaration of "what persons be +unworthy to be partakers" was made; after which "common prayer was +offered in the form of confession." At the conclusion of this prayer, +some notable passage in which God's mercy is most evidently declared +was read from the gospel, and thereafter the minister pronounced +absolution to such as unfeignedly repent and believe in Jesus Christ. +After this came prayer for the congregation and for the sovereign. + +At this point the fragment which we have been following breaks off, but +there is every reason to believe that the remainder of the service was +the same as that afterwards adopted in Scotland; and any one at all +conversant with the ecclesiastical ritual of the Presbyterian churches +in that country may see in the portion which we have given the origin +of the "action" sermon, the "fencing of the tables;" and the frequent +if not invariable use of the passage from first Corinthians as the +"warrant" for the observance of the Supper, {38} which characterize a +communion "occasion" in that country. But the singular thing about the +matter is that this Puritan and Presbyterian form of administering the +ordinance of the Lord's Supper was observed in England by John Knox +when he was labouring at Berwick as a recognised minister of the Church +of England, and acting under the authority, or perhaps, to put it more +correctly, with the permission, of the government. This was at a date +anterior by ten years to the time when it was introduced into Scotland +with the sanction of its Parliament. + +But it deserves notice that although Knox was thus conscientiously +opposed to kneeling at the Lord's Table, he was not so intolerant as to +declare that the taking of that posture at that table was necessarily +sinful. The reader of the letter addressed to the congregation at +Berwick cannot fail to be struck with the broad Pauline spirit +manifested by the Reformer in his treatment of this subject. He is +advising his friends as to what they should do if, now that he had +ceased to have the oversight of them, the practice of kneeling at the +communion table should be insisted upon; and he affirms that he neither +recants nor repents his former teaching, but still prefers sitting to +any other posture; yet he adds[7] "because I am but one having in my +contrair, magistrates, common order, and judgments of many learned, I +am not minded for maintenance of that one thing to gainstand the +magistrates in all and {39} other chief points of religion agreeing +with Christ, and His true doctrine, nor yet to break nor trouble common +Order, thought meet to be kept for unity and peace in the congregations +for a time. And least of all do I intend to condemn or lightly regard +the grave judgments of such men as unfeignedly I fear (reverence), love +and will obey, in all things judged expedient to promote God's glory, +_these subsequents granted to me_." Then follow three conditions which +may be summarized thus,--first, that the magistrates make known that +kneeling is not required for any superstitious reasons or for any +adoration of Christ's natural body believed to be there present, but +only for the sake of uniform Order and that for a time; second, that +kneeling is not imposed as a thing essential to the right observance of +the ordinance, or required by Christ, but enjoined only as a ceremony +thought seemly by men; and third, that the brethren shall have regard +to his conscience, and not bring any uncharitable accusation against +him, because he seeks to follow what Christ has commanded rather than +what men have required. With these concessions granted, he declares +that he would be satisfied; and that there may be no breach of charity, +he recommends his former flock, should these conditions be complied +with, to conform to the requirements of the Prayer-Book if those in +authority should insist on their so doing. We have been the more +particular in bringing out this fact at this particular time, because +of its bearing on his conduct in connection with the {40} issue of the +revised Prayer-Book in 1552, of which we shall have to speak more +particularly by-and-by. + +So much for the Reformer's public work in Berwick; but before we +accompany him to Newcastle, we must pause to mention that it was during +his residence at this time in the border town that he made the +acquaintance of and was engaged to the lady who afterwards became his +wife. Her name was Marjory Bowes, and she was the daughter of Richard +Bowes, youngest son of Sir Ralph Bowes, of Streatham. Her mother was +Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Robert Aske, of Aske. The father, probably +on account of Knox's religious opinions, was opposed to the marriage, +and so the union was deferred for some years. But the mother was +friendly to the Reformer, and with her he kept up a constant +correspondence in which many of the softer traits of his character come +beautifully out. Mrs. Bowes was subject to religious melancholy, and +the tender manner in which he often seeks in his letters to bind up her +bruised spirit shows that, when occasion needed, he could be a "son of +consolation" as well as a "son of thunder." Sometimes too, as when his +heart was stirred with solicitude for the spiritual interests of those +among whom he had laboured, or when he was required to confront the +possible issue of his uncompromising adherence to what he believed to +be right, he rises to a strain of heroism which reminds us of the +greatest of the apostles. One example of this occurs in his letter to +his Berwick friends, and we may fitly {41} close this chapter by +reproducing it here. "If any man be offended with me that I, willing +to avoid God's wrath and vengeance threatened against such as having no +necessity despise His ordinances, do purpose and intend to obey God, +embracing such as He has offered unto me (rather) than to please and +flatter man that unjustly held the same from me; if any, I say, for +this cause be offended and will seek my displeasure or trouble, let the +same understand, that as I have a body, which only they may hurt, and +not unless God so permit; so have they bodies and souls which both +shall God punish in fire inextinguishably with the devil and his +angels, unless suddenly they repent and cease to malign against God and +His holy ordinance. With life and death, dear brethren, I am at +point,--they before me in equal balances. Transitory life is not so +sweet to me that for defence thereof I will jeopard to lose the life +everlasting. Nor yet is corporeal death to me so fearful that albeit +most certainly I understood the same shortly to follow my godly +purpose, I would therefore depone myself to die in God's wrath and +anger for ever and ever, which no doubt I should do, if for man's +pleasure I refused God's perfect ordinance."[8] There is no mistaking +the ring of such words as these; and lie who wrote them takes his place +in the honourable company of the heroes of conscience to whom the world +no less than the Church has owed so much. + + + +[1] Lorimer, p. 17. + +[2] Lorimer, p. 18 + +[3] Lorimer, pp. 257-8. + +[4] Lorimer, p. 16. + +[5] Lorimer, p. 261. + +[6] Lorimer, p. 290. + +[7] Lorimer, pp. 261-2. + +[8] Lorimer, p. 260. + + + + +{42} + +CHAPTER IV. + +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553. + +From Berwick Knox was removed, in the early summer of 1551, to +Newcastle-on-Tyne, where he laboured, with occasional absences, for +nearly two years. Already, in the spring of 1550, he had made a public +discourse of great importance there, and perhaps the impression +produced by his words then, may have led to his being ultimately +transferred thither. There is extant among his writings "A Vindication +of the Doctrine that the Sacrifice of the Mass is Idolatry," to which +this note is prefixed: "The fourth of April, in the year 1550, was +appointed to John Knox, preacher of the Holy Evangel of Jesus Christ, +to give his confession why he affirmed the mass idolatry; which day, in +presence of the Council, and congregation, amongst whom was also +present the Bishop of Durham, in this manner he beginneth." This has +been supposed by some to indicate that he was under accusation of +heresy, and had been called to Newcastle to make his defence. But +though it is not unlikely that his {43} doctrine had been objected to +by Tunstall, yet the Council of the North was not an ecclesiastical +tribunal, and there is nothing in the whole address to imply that the +speaker was upon his trial. The truth seems rather to have been that +the members of the Council invited him to declare and enforce his +opinions concerning the mass before an audience which filled the great +church of St. Nicholas. + +The argument of his discourse on this occasion was an amplification of +the following syllogism: "all worshipping, honouring, or service, +invented by the brain of man, in the religion of God, without His +express commandment is idolatry: the mass is invented by the brain of +man without any commandment of God; therefore, the mass is idolatry." +The ground here taken was identical with that which he had defended +against Arbuckle, and is distinctively different from the position +which, in the very same year, was taken by Cranmer in his "Defence of +the true Catholic Doctrine of the Sacrament." The Anglican primate +meant by idolatry the substitution of a false God for the true, as in +the adoration of the host, for the real body, blood, soul and divinity +of the Lord Jesus Christ. But by the same term, as his major premise +makes abundantly evident, Knox designated that which we should call now +constructive idolatry, namely, "the invention of strange worshippings +of God, introduced without any warrant from His word;" or what the +Westminster divines meant, when in their Shorter Catechism in answer to +the {44} question, "What is forbidden in the second commandment?" they +reply, "The worshipping of God by images, _or any other way not +appointed in His word_." With Cranmer the word meant the worshipping +as God of that which is no God; with Knox it denoted the worshipping of +God in a manner invented by men and unauthorized by God. Cranmer was +the father of the Anglican churchmen; Knox was the earliest, and by no +means the least noteworthy, of the Puritans, for the principle which he +advocated was one which he was as ready to apply to ceremonies in the +reformed churches as to the idolatries of the Romish worship. The +utterance of these sentiments by him at this time marks the beginning +of that movement which has continued even until now, and which in its +progress, among other less conspicuous results, called into existence +the various nonconforming churches of England; inspired the covenanters +of Scotland to begin and carry through their long and painful struggle +with the second Charles; widened the civil liberties of Great Britain; +and planted the seed from which the American Republic has grown into +stateliness and strength. + +Its more immediate personal effect, as we have conjectured, was the +transference of Knox from Berwick to Newcastle, where he continued to +administer word and sacraments in the same manner as he had been +accustomed to follow. On the banks of the Tyne he was as faithful and +fearless in his pulpit utterances, and as simple in his ritual +observances, as he had been on the {45} banks of the Tweed. "God is +witness," said he in a letter to his Newcastle friends, written by him +from the continent in 1558; "and I refuse not your own judgments, how +simply and uprightly I conversed and walked among you, that neither for +fear did I spare to speak the simple truth unto you; neither for hope +of worldly promotion, dignity, or honour, did I wittingly adulterate +any part of God's Scriptures, whether it were in exposition, in +preaching, contention, or writing; but that simply and plainly, as it +pleased the merciful goodness of my God to give unto me the utterance, +understanding, and spirit, I did distribute the bread of life, as of +Christ Jesus I had received it;"[1] and again, "How oft have ye +assisted to baptism? How oft have ye been partakers of the Lord's +Table prepared, and used, and ministered, in all simplicity, not as a +man had devised, neither as the king's proceedings did allow, but as +Christ Jesus did institute, and as it is evident that Saint Paul did +practise?"[2] How it came that he was permitted to administer the +sacrament in that manner does not appear; but the fact that he did so +is incontrovertible, and that he did not stand quite alone in taking +such a course is evident from these words in Becon's "Displaying of the +Mass," written in the reign of Queen Mary: "How oft have I seen here, +in England, people sitting at the Lord's Table!" It is well known also +that the opinions of Hooper, on this subject, were in full accord with +those of Knox; and though we have not been able {46} to find any +distinct statement that he had actually reduced them to practice, yet +it is all but certain that he did so. + +But in any case his nonconformity in the matter of kneeling did not +keep Knox from attaining a prominent place among the leaders of his +time, for in December, 1551, six months after he had been stationed at +Newcastle, he was appointed one of King Edward the Sixth's chaplains, +who were six in number, and all of whom were selected because they were +"accounted the most zealous and ready preachers of that time." This +preferment was a recognition of the ability which Knox had shown. It +added much to his consideration and weight in the social scale, while +it gave him an opportunity of making his influence felt in +ecclesiastical affairs in a manner which has left its mark on the +English Prayer-Book even until the present day. To understand how this +came about, it is needful to bear in mind that the Second or Revised +Book of Common Prayer was completed at the press in August, 1552, and +had been appointed by the Parliament of that year to come into use in +the churches on the first day of November. Into that book had been +reintroduced from the "order of communion," published in 1548,[3] {47} +the injunction that the people should receive the bread and wine +"kneeling." That had, indeed, been the accustomed posture before, but +no instruction for its observance had been contained in the First +Prayer-Book published in 1549. There the directions are thus given: +"Then shall the priest first receive the communion in both kinds +himself, and next deliver it to other ministers, if any be there +present (that they may be ready to help the chief minister), and after +to the people." But in the two years immediately following the +publication of that First Prayer-Book, discussion on the posture at the +Lord's Table had been brought up, and as Cranmer, Ridley, and the most +of the other Reforming Bishops were opposed to the views and practices +of Knox, Hooper, and others, they deemed it advisable to foreclose +debate and put an end to diversity of order by an authoritative +injunction. For this purpose, in the Prayer-Book in 1552 the rubric +was made to read thus: "Then shall the minister first receive the +communion in both kinds himself, and next deliver it to the other {48} +ministers, if any be there present (that they may help the chief +minister), and after to the people, in their hands, kneeling." Thus it +came about that what had been left undefined in the former book was +expressly limited in the new one; and, therefore, though in other +respects the latter was much more in harmony with the sentiments of +Knox, it was in this less tolerant than the former. When, therefore, +Knox was appointed to preach before the king in the autumn of that +year, having probably seen one of the first-issued copies of the book, +he took occasion to enter fully into the discussion of the mode of +administering the communion, and his discourse was not without +immediate effect, for in a letter of John Utenhovius to Henry +Bullinger, dated October 12, 1552, the writer says:[4] "Some disputes +have arisen among the bishops, within these few days, in consequence of +a sermon by a pious preacher, chaplain to the Duke of Northumberland, +preached by him, before the king and Council, in which he inveighed +with great freedom against kneeling at the Lord's Supper, which is +still retained here in England. This good man, however, a Scotsman by +nation, has so wrought upon the minds of many that we may hope some +good to the church will at length arise from it, which I earnestly +implore the Lord to grant." Now there can be no doubt that the +preacher here referred to was Knox, who as having been in contact with +Northumberland as Warden-General of the border counties, might easily +be {49} mistaken by a foreigner for the chaplain of that nobleman. +Other facts to be taken in connection with the information furnished by +Utenhovius are the following:[5] In the Record of the Privy Council, +under date 26th September, 1552, there is an order to Grafton, the +printer, forbidding him to issue any copies of the new Prayer-Book; and +commanding that if any had been already distributed to his +fellow-publishers they should "not be put abroad until certain faults +therein had been corrected." Clearly therefore, as copies of the book +had been sold, it was possible for Knox to have obtained one, and as +Lorimer says, "none would be more eager purchasers than those ministers +of the Church who were most zealous for reform." Meetings of the +Council were held on October 4th and 6th, at one or other of which +objections to the rubric seem to have been made, probably as the result +of Knox's sermon, and to have been referred to Cranmer for his review. +On October 7th, Cranmer wrote to the Council in vindication of the +rubric on kneeling, a letter which purports to be a reply to certain +objections against it which had been forwarded to him by its members. +On the _agenda_ paper of the business to be transacted at the meeting +of the Council on the 20th of October, and which still exists in the +handwriting of Cecil, there is a line to this effect: "Mr. Knocks--b of +Cat|rb|--ye book in ye B of Durh|m|," and at that very meeting, as we +learn from the Record, "a letter was directed to Messrs. Harley, Bill, +Horn, {50} Grindal, Pern, and Knox, to consider certain articles +exhibited to the King's Majesty, to be subscribed by all such as shall +be admitted to be preachers or ministers in any part of the realm, and +to make report of their opinions touching the same." These articles, +therefore, must have come at this time into Knox's hands, and, though +many of them must have received his cordial endorsement, there was one +of them which he could not have approved; that, namely, which contained +this clause: "and as to the character of the ceremonies, they are +repugnant in nothing to the wholesome liberty of the gospel, if they +are judged from their own nature, but very well agree with it, and in +very many respects further the same in a high degree." How could Knox, +after his recent sermon on kneeling in the Lord's Supper, give his +sanction to that article? Manifestly he would feel that he must +protest against such an assertion as it contained; and then, as Lorimer +says, "the thought would seem to have flashed upon him that he had now +another and quite an unexpected opportunity of making a fresh appeal to +the king and Council on that very question of the rubric on kneeling, +which was still apparently in dependence. There was still time to make +one more attempt. In addition to his judgment upon the articles at +large, which need not go to the Council so quickly, what if he should +single out this 38th Article and make it the subject of a separate +representation, and distinguishing between the ceremony of kneeling and +all the rest; what if he should confine the bulk {51} of his +representations to this single point, which was now the only one in +which it was feasible to look for any immediate alteration?" That at +least was done by the memorial, which by its authors is called their +confession in regard to the 38th Article, and which Lorimer has printed +for the first time in his appendix. No names are subscribed to the +document, but the first portion of it bears strong internal evidence of +having been the production of Knox; and though in other parts there are +traces, as the painstaking editor thinks, of the hands of Thomas Becon +and Roger Hutchinson, we agree with him in believing that every one who +examines the whole statement with care will conclude "that whatever +Englishman may have joined him in the memorial, and whatever they may +have contributed to its substance of thought, it was Knox himself who +held the pen." This memorial could have been of no use after the final +action of the Council on the matter of "kneeling;" and it was evidently +called forth by the reference of the articles to the royal chaplains, +therefore it must have been prepared between the 20th and 27th October, +and must have been presented to the meeting of the Council on the +latter of these two dates, on which also, and we may conclude as the +result of the arguments contained in the memorial, the "Declaration on +Kneeling," which has all the marks of the style of Cranmer, and which +therefore had probably been sent by him to the Council as a suggested +compromise, was adopted, and ordered to be {52} inserted in the +forthcoming book. This accounts for the circumstance mentioned by the +editor of "The Two Liturgies" in a note, that the paragraph in question +"is printed on a separate leaf in some copies, and as is evident from +the signatures, was added afterwards." In one copy, "the leaf is +pasted in after the copy was bound, and several copies are without it." +Now putting all these things together, the conclusion is not only +legitimate but inevitable, that the insertion of the declaration on +kneeling in the Prayer-Book was due to the agency of Knox, more +probably than to that of any other man. As Lorimer writes (p. 121), +"The compromise prevailed, but apparently there would not have been so +much as a compromise obtained if the 'confession' had not been thrown +into the scale at the very last moment.... His last blow had the +effect of overcoming the resistance to all further change which a +majority of the Council had hitherto maintained." Hence, though we may +not approve of the spirit in which Weston uttered the words, or accept +either his description of Knox or his designation of the doctrine on +which he insisted, yet he was correct as to the matter of fact when he +said, "a renegade Scot did take away the adoration and worshipping of +Christ in the sacrament, by whose procurement that heresy was put into +the last communion book; so much prevailed that one man's authority at +that time." + +The Declaration itself was in the following words:--"Although no order +can be so perfectly devised, but it {53} may be of some, either for +their ignorance and infirmity, or else of malice and obstinacy, +misconstrued, depraved, and interpreted in a wrong part: And yet, +because brotherly charity willeth, that so much as conveniently may be, +offences should be taken away; therefore we willing to do the same: +Whereas it is ordained in the Book of Common Prayer, in the +administration of the Lord's Supper, that the communicants kneeling +should receive the Holy Communion: which thing being well meant, for a +signification of the humble and grateful acknowledging of the benefits +of Christ, given unto the worthy receiver, and to avoid the profanation +and disorder, which about the Holy Communion might else ensue: lest yet +the same kneeling might be thought or taken otherwise, we do declare +that it is not meant thereby, that any adoration is done, or ought to +be done, either unto the sacramental bread and wine there bodily +received, or to any real and essential presence there being of Christ's +natural flesh and blood. For as concerning the sacramental bread and +wine, they remain still in their very natural substances, and therefore +may not be adored, for that were Idolatry to be abhorred of all +faithful Christians. And as concerning the natural body and blood of +our Saviour Christ they are in heaven and not here. For it is against +the truth of Christ's true natural body, to be in more places than in +one at one time." Opinions will of course differ as to whether in this +matter the influence of Knox was beneficial or the reverse. We are +writing biography, not a treatise on {54} theology, and what we have +been seeking to show is the share that Knox had in the English +Reformation. Sacramentarians generally will agree in styling the +Declaration which we have quoted "the black rubric," but for ourselves +we have no hesitation in avowing our agreement with Lorimer that "there +is nothing in the whole English Liturgy which is, to say the least, +more Protestant;" and it may be well, to give completeness to our +reference to the subject, that we should add that author's very +condensed summary of the subsequent history of this famous rubric. "At +the accession of Elizabeth it was dropped out of the Prayer-Book, along +with that portion of the 35th Article upon which it rested; and it +remained outside the Liturgy for a hundred years. And why? Simply +because its omission was judged as important by the Church's leaders +then as its insertion had been at first. Elizabeth's church policy was +a comprehensive policy, and neither James I. nor Charles I. had any +wish to depart from it. She wished, and so did her council and first +Parliament, to make it as easy as possible for the "Roman party to +continue in the National Church, but she and they knew that such a +comprehension was impossible as long as the "Declaration on Kneeling" +remained in the Prayer-Book. Its insertion had taken place in order to +"comprehend" the Puritan party, to the exclusion of the Romanists; and +now its omission took place in order to comprehend the Romanists, at +the risk of driving out the Puritans. But why do we now {55} find the +"Declaration" restored to its old place? What was the motive of so +remarkable a rehabilitation in 1662? It is easy to discern it. The +circle of church evolution and change had then returned into itself. +In 1662 the old policy of conciliating and comprehending the Puritans +instead of the Catholics was again in season--was again the key of the +situation. To this policy the "Declaration on Kneeling" was again +indispensable, and again, therefore, this most remarkable rubric was +restored, in substantially the same form, to its vacant place. Nor has +its history yet exhausted itself. It has retained its recovered place +through all the changes of the last two centuries only to come forward +into new significance and importance in our own day. The last chapter +of its history was written only the other day in the long discussion +and the fateful decision of the Bennett case. Its simple but trenchant +language was often quoted in the pleadings, and passed into the body of +the judgment itself: "As concerning the natural body and blood of our +Saviour Christ they are in heaven, not here: for it is against the +truth of Christ's true natural body to be in more places than in one at +one time." + +But the memorial to the Privy Council, which we have traced to Knox, +prevailed also so far as to secure a modification of the article on +ceremonies, which, originally numbered as the 38th, came out owing to +some minor condensations as the 35th, and took this ultimate shape--(we +give Lorimer's translation from {56} the Latin)--"The book which of +very late time was given to the Church of England by the king's +authority and the Parliament, containing the manner and form of praying +and ministering the sacraments in the Church of England, likewise also +the book of ordering ministers of the Church set forth by the foresaid +authority, are godly, and in no point repugnant to the wholesome +doctrine of the gospel, but agreeable thereunto, furthering and +beautifying the same not a little; and therefore of all faithful +members of the Church of England, and chiefly of the ministers of the +Lord, they ought to be received and allowed with all readiness of mind +and thanksgiving, and to be commended to the people of God."[6] When +this is compared with the clause formerly given it will be seen that +what before was said of the "ceremonies" is here restricted to the +"doctrine," and that everything to which the memorial had taken +exception is omitted. + +But though the insertion of the Declaration on Kneeling into the +Prayer-Book satisfied one of the conditions which, in his letter to his +Berwick friends, Knox had laid down as essential to his conforming to +"common Order": it did not meet the others, and so he steadily refused +to accept a formal charge in the Church of England. At the very time +when the Council was {57} engaged in the discussions which we have just +mentioned, the Duke of Northumberland wrote from Chelsea, under date +October 27th, 1552, to Secretary Cecil, in these words:[7] "I would to +God it might please the King's majesty to appoint Mr. Knox to the +office of Rochester bishopric, which for three reasons would be very +well. First: he would not only be a whetstone to quicken and sharp the +Bishop of Canterbury, whereof he hath need, but also would be a great +confounder of the Anabaptists lately sprung up in Kent. Secondly, he +should not continue the ministration in the north, contrary to this set +forth here" (meaning to the usual form prescribed at this time). +"Thirdly, the family of the Scots now inhabiting in Newcastle, chiefly +for his fellowship, would not continue there, wherein many resort to +them out of Scotland, which is not requisite." These are certainly +rather strange reasons why Knox should be promoted to a bishopric, but +they prove not only that he had acted an independent part in Newcastle, +but also that his fame had gone so widely over Scotland that multitudes +of his fellow-countrymen were attracted to that place for the sake of +enjoying his ministrations. But he would not be made a bishop, and he +must have expressed his refusal with all his wonted plainness of +speech, for a few weeks later, on the 7th December, Northumberland +writes to the same correspondent: "Master Knox's being here to speak +with me, saying he was so willed by you; I do return him again, {58} +because I love not to have to do with men which be neither grateful nor +pleasable."[8] So his grace is minded to put the case; but with his +former letter in our hands we can see that gratitude in his vocabulary +meant falling in with his individual plans, and "pleasableness" was +with him a synonym for "squeezeableness." + +In the following February (1553) Knox was offered the Vicarage of All +Hallows in Bread Street (London); but that also he declined, and we +have from the pen of Calderwood an account of what occurred in +connection with that.[9] "In a letter, dated the 14th of April, 1553, +and written with his own hand, I find," says that author, "that he was +called before the Council of England for kneeling, who demanded of him +three questions. First, why he refused the benefice provided for him? +secondly, whether he thought that no Christian might serve in the +ecclesiastical ministration according to the rites and laws of the +realm of England? thirdly, if kneeling at the Lord's Table was not +indifferent? To the first he answered, that his conscience did witness +that he might profit more in some other place than in London; and +therefore had no pleasure to accept any office in the same. Howbeit, +he might have answered otherwise, that he refused that parsonage +because of my Lord of Northumberland's command. To the second, that +many things were worthy of reformation in the ministry of England, +without the reformation whereof no minister {59} did discharge, or +could discharge, his conscience before God; for no minister in England +had authority to divide and separate the lepers from the whole, which +was a chief point of his office; yet did he not refuse such office as +might appear to promote God's glory in utterance of Christ's gospel in +a mean degree, where more he might edify by preaching of the true word +than hinder by sufferance of manifest iniquity, seeing that reformation +of manners did not appertain to all ministers. To the third he +answered, that Christ's action in itself was most perfect, and Christ's +action was done without kneeling; that kneeling was man's addition or +imagination; that it was most sure to follow the example of Christ, +whose action was done sitting and not kneeling. In this last question +there was great contention betwixt the whole table of the lords and +him. There were present there the Bishops of Canterbury and Ely, my +Lord Treasurer, the Marquis of Northampton, the Earl of Bedford, the +Earl of Shrewsbury, Master Comptroller, my Lord Chamberlain, both the +Secretaries, and other inferior lords. After long reasoning, it was +said unto him that he was not called of any evil mind; that they were +sorry to know him of a contrary mind to the common Order. He answered +that he was more sorry that a common Order should be contrary to +Christ's institution. With some gentle speeches he was dismissed, and +willed to advise with himself if he would communicate after that +Order." But, unlike Hooper, who, after a long controversy about +vestments and a brief {60} imprisonment for his refusal to wear them, +accepted the bishopric of Gloucester, vestments and all, only however +to suffer martyrdom at last under Queen Mary, Knox remained steadfast +to the position which he had taken up; and, refusing a permanent +charge, which would have required him to give his assent and consent to +the Articles, and to conform to the common Order, he was sent in June, +1553, as one of the itinerary preachers into Buckinghamshire, where he +laboured with great zeal and assiduity for some weeks. + +In the interval between October, 1552, and March, 1553, we find that +Knox had been back at Newcastle, where he was bitterly opposed by Sir +Robert Brandling, the Mayor, whose zeal was checked, however, by the +agency of Lord Wharton, then Lord Warden of the North, at the +suggestion of Northumberland; and there are some interesting letters +belonging to this portion of his life which give us delightful glimpses +into his heart and habits. In one we see him "sitting at his book," +and contemplating Matthew's Gospel by the help of "some most godly +expositions, and among the rest Chrysostom." In another he writes, +"This day ye know to be the day of my study and prayer to God." And in +a third, written to Mrs. Bowes from London, whither he had been +summoned in haste before the Privy Council, we have this record: "The +very instant hour that your letters were presented unto me was I +talking of you, by reason that three honest poor women were come to me, +and were complaining their great infirmity, and were {61} showing unto +me the great assaults of the enemy, and I was opening the causes and +commodities thereof, whereby all our eyes wept at once; and I was +praying unto God that you and some others had been there with me for +the space of two hours, and even at that instant came your letters to +my hands, whereof the part I read unto them; and one of them said, 'Oh +would to God I might speak with that person, for I perceive there be +more tempted than I.'" Thus amid the multiplicity and weight of his +public labours he did not neglect either the study or the closet; and +the weeping Knox, seeking to comfort those that were cast down, is a +picture that must seem strange to many who know little more about him +than that his fortitude made Mary Stuart shed tears of wounded pride +and disappointed ambition. + +In April he preached in the Chapel Royal before the young king, and +inveighed in the strongest terms against Northumberland and Paulet, +finishing one of his scathing passages in this way: "Was David and +Hezekiah, princes of great and godly gifts and experience, abused by +crafty counsellors and dissembling hypocrites? What wonder is it, +then, that a young and innocent king be deceived by crafty, covetous, +wicked, and ungodly counsellors? I am greatly afraid that Ahithophel +be councillor, that Judas bear the purse, and that Shebna be scribe, +comptroller and treasurer." The pulpit in those days had to discharge +the duties of public criticism on politics and morals, which are now +much more appropriately performed by the press; and so, as Froude {62} +remarks, "since discipline could not be restored, Knox, and those who +felt with him the enormities of the times, established, by their own +authority, this second form of excommunication." It was then perhaps a +necessity, but it is always, more or less, a dangerous thing for a +minister to do; and it must be admitted that Knox was not always just +in such philippics. But he was always conscientious, and he was always +brave; and he well knew at the moment the risk which he was running. +In the present case, if little good came out of it to the country, no +harm resulted from it to himself; for, as we have seen, he was shortly +afterwards engaged to preach in Buckinghamshire. And there he laboured +on, like another Jeremiah, forecasting evils which none of his hearers +would believe could happen, until at the death of Edward the Sixth, on +the 6th of July, 1553, they were rudely awakened from their sleep of +security. + +Such was Knox's share in the working out of the English Reformation; +and we have dwelt thus long upon it because the facts which we have +stated have only recently been brought to light; and because we wished +to set forth with as much clearness as condensation would allow the +opinions which were held, and the mode of worship which was observed, +by him, even at this early stage in his history. If Knox did something +for England, England did much also for him. If he was instrumental in +keeping the Church of that country from greater affinity with Romanism +than it might otherwise have shown, there can be no doubt that the evil +effects {63} of compromise as witnessed by him there helped to make him +more thorough in his later work in Scotland; while it is also most true +that during his residence there his contact with the Christian people +whom he met did something to soften and sweeten his piety, and to make +it more inward and sympathising. Most of all, God was preparing him by +it for the great work which he was afterwards to perform in his native +land; and his years of service in England were blessed in securing for +him the friendship and confidence of her ablest statesmen, without +whose assistance, humanly speaking, Scotland might have been lost to +Protestantism in the very crisis of her history. + + + +[1] Lorimer, p. 73. + +[2] Ibid., p. 74. + +[3] Dr. Lorimer has said (p. 31) that "in both the formularies recently +set forth," the Order of Communion in 1548 and the "Book of Common +Prayer" in 1549, the practice of kneeling in the Lord's Supper had been +retained; and on a subsequent page (112) that "in the Second +Prayer-Book of King Edward VI. a rubric had _for the first time_ been +inserted appointing the Lord's Supper to be administered to the +communicants in a kneeling posture." But these statements are not made +with that author's usual accuracy. For the "Order of Communion" reads +thus: "Then shall the priest rise, the people still reverently +kneeling, and the priest shall deliver the communion, first to the +ministers, if any be there present, that they may help the chief +minister, and after to the others." But in the "Book" of 1549, the +rubric is as we give it in the text. What the motive was for the +omission of kneeling in the Book of 1549 it is not easy to say, but the +fact of its omission is undoubted. (See "The Two Liturgies," by Rev. +Joseph Kelley, p. 92.) + +[4] Lorimer, p. 98. + +[5] Lorimer, p. 109. + +[6] For the full discussion of this subject we refer to Dr. Lorimer's +monograph, "John Knox and the Church of England," a most valuable and +original contribution to English Ecclesiastical history, though the +absence of an index makes it less serviceable to the student than such +a work should be. + +[7] Lorimer, pp. 149-150. + +[8] Lorimer, p. 151. + +[9] See Laing: "Knox's Works," vol. iii. pp. 86-7. + + + + +{64} + +CHAPTER V. + +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553. + +During the last illness of the young King Edward, Knox, as we have +seen, received a commission to go upon a preaching tour in the county +of Buckingham, where, like an old Hebrew prophet, he warned his hearers +of the coming crisis. He was back in London, however, as we learn from +the date of the first of his published letters, on the 23rd of June +(1553); but before the death of his majesty, which happened on the 6th +of July, he had returned to Buckinghamshire, and there, at Amersham, on +the 16th of that month, he preached a sermon suited to the times in the +very thick of the turmoil caused by the dispute as to the succession to +the crown. The Duke of Northumberland had presumed to set the Lady +Jane Dudley on the throne, but Mary Tudor's adherents could not brook +such disloyalty to their mistress, and had already entered on that +struggle which ended in the collapse of the reign of "the twelfth-day +Queen." The county of Bucks, as Froude tells us, "both Catholic and +Protestant," was "arming to the teeth." Sir Edward Hastings had called +{65} out its musters, in Mary's name, and had been joined by Peckham, +the cofferer of the royal household, who had gone off with the treasure +under his charge, so that the Reformer was speaking "at the peril of +his life among the troopers of Hastings." Nevertheless, nothing +daunted, he thus apostrophised the land:[1] "O England! now is God's +wrath kindled against thee. Now hath He begun to punish as He hath +threatened a long while by His true prophets and messengers. He hath +taken from thee the crown of thy glory, and hath left thee without +honour as a body without a head. And this appeareth to be only the +beginning of sorrows, which appeareth to increase. For I perceive that +the heart, the tongue, and the hand of one Englishman is bent against +another, and division to be in the whole realm, which is an assured +sign of desolation to come. O England! England! dost thou not +consider that thy commonwealth is like a ship sailing on the sea; if +thy mariners and governors shall one consume another, shalt thou not +suffer shipwreck in short process of time? O England! England! alas +these plagues are poured upon thee, for that thou wouldest not know the +most happy time of thy gentle visitation. But wilt thou yet obey the +voice of thy God and submit thyself to His holy words? Truly if thou +wilt, thou shalt find mercy in His sight, and the estate of thy +commonwealth shall be preserved. But if thou obstinately wilt return +into Egypt, that is, if thou contract marriage, confederacy, and league +with such {66} princes as do maintain and advance idolatry (such as the +Emperor, which is no less enemy unto Christ than ever was Nero); if for +the pleasure and friendship (I say) of such princes them return to +thine old abominations, before used under the papistry, then assuredly, +O England, thou shall be plagued and brought to desolation by the means +of those whose favour thou seekest, and by whom thou art procured to +fall from Christ and to serve Antichrist." These were bold words. +Some of them, indeed, might be called rash, and, as we shall see, +furnished a weapon for his adversaries at a future day; but there was +no quailing in the heart of him who uttered them, and the sting of them +after all was in their truth. + +From Amersham he went up to London, where on the 19th of July he was a +witness of the great outburst of popular enthusiasm with which Mary was +welcomed to the throne; but he could not share in the wild delight of +the multitude, for as he tells us himself, "in London, in more places +than one, when fires of joy and riotous banqueting were at the +proclamation of Mary," his tongue was vehement in declaring his +forebodings of the storm which was so soon to break. On the 26th of +July he wrote to Mrs. Bowes from Carlisle, and again on the 25th of +September we find him writing to her on his return to London from Kent, +where he seems to have been labouring for some weeks. The dates +indicate that he was both "in labours abundant" and "in journeyings +often," and show that he had little reason to {67} upbraid himself, as +in one of his writings referring to this time he does, for "allowing +the love of friends and carnal affection for some men more than others +to allure him to make more residence in one place than another, thus +having more respect to the pleasure of a few than to the necessity of +many, and not sufficiently considering how many hungry souls were in +other places to whom none took pains to break and distribute the bread +of life." But he was ere long to be "in peril" as well as labour. +From the first he had augured nothing but evil from the accession of +Mary, and it is to his honour that with such misgivings in his heart, +he was at this very time in the habit of using in the pulpit a prayer +of singular beauty and comprehensiveness, in which we find this +petition: "Illuminate the heart of our Sovereign Lady Queen Mary with +pregnant gifts of the Holy Ghost, and influence the hearts of her +council with Thy true fear and love." As the months rolled round, +however, it became only too apparent that England would no longer be a +safe place for him. The door of opportunity which Edward had opened +was speedily closed by Mary. In August, indeed, she issued a +proclamation giving toleration to all meanwhile, forbidding her +Protestant and Catholic subjects to interrupt each other's services, +yet prohibiting all preaching on either side without licence from +herself. But in November, under the influence of the violent reaction +which had set in, and in obedience to the opinion of the people, +three-fourths of whom were still attached to the old religion, the {68} +Commons, by a vote of 350 to 80, enacted that from the 20th December +following there should be no other form of service in the churches but +what had been used in the last year of Henry the Eighth, and leaving it +free to all up till that date to use either of the books appointed by +Edward or the old one at their pleasure. Up till the day thus +specified, therefore, Knox was comparatively safe, and during that time +he was probably in London a guest in the families of the Lockes and the +Hickmans, with whose members he afterwards corresponded. It was in +this interval also, as seems most probable, that he began to prepare +his exposition of the sixth Psalm, and his "godly letter to the +faithful in London, Newcastle, Berwick, and all others within the realm +of England that love the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," both of +which were afterwards finished in France. + +From London he went to Newcastle, whence on the 22nd of December he +wrote to Mrs. Bowes a letter which contains a postscript to this +effect: "I may not answer the places of Scripture, nor yet write the +exposition of the sixth Psalm, for every day of this week must I +preach, if this wicked carcase will permit." But dangers began to +thicken around him; for in the end of December or beginning of January, +his servant was seized as he carried letters from him to Mrs. Bowes and +her daughter, in the expectation of finding something in them that +might furnish matter of accusation against him. They contained nothing +but religious advices and such things as he was prepared to avow before +any {69} tribunal in the country, but fearing that the report of the +matter might cause uneasiness to his friends at Berwick, he set out to +visit them in person. On the way, however, he was met by some of the +relatives of his betrothed, who prevailed on him to relinquish his +intention, and to retire to a place of safety on the coast, from which, +if necessary, he might escape out of the country by sea. From this +retreat he wrote to his friends, saying that "his brethren had, partly +by tears and partly by admonition, 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," yet promising if Providence prepared the way to +do as his counsellors advised, and "give place to the fury and rage of +Satan for a time." So when he became satisfied that the apprehensions +of his friends were, well founded, he procured a vessel which landed +him safely at Dieppe on the 20th of January, 1554. What his pecuniary +circumstances at this time were may be inferred from these words in a +letter to his future mother-in-law: "I will not make you privy how rich +I am, but off (_i.e._ from) London I departed with less money than ten +groats; but God has since provided, and will provide I doubt not +hereafter abundantly for this life. Either the Queen's Majesty or some +treasurer will be forty pounds richer by me, for so much lack I of duty +of my patents (that is, salary as Royal Chaplain), but that little +troubles me." And more interesting even than that glimpse {70} into +his poverty is the recital of his feelings toward England in a letter +to the same correspondent written just before his embarkation: "My +daily prayer is for the sore afflicted in those quarters. Some time I +have thought that it had been impossible so to have removed my +affection from Scotland that any realm or nation could have been +equally dear unto me; but I take God to record in my conscience that +the troubles present and appearing to be in the realm of England are +doubly more dolorous unto my heart than ever were the troubles of +Scotland." + +Thus Knox parted from the realm of England. Had he remained much +longer in it, he would most probably have shared the fate of Cranmer, +Ridley, Latimer, and the "noble army," whom Mary's intolerance "chased +up to heaven." But God had other work for him to do, and it was well +for Scotland that he listened to the entreaty of those who counselled +him when he was "persecuted in one country" to "flee to another"; so it +came about that for a brief season he found refuge in that land wherein +only a few years before he had been a galley-slave. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 308-9. + + + + +{71} + +CHAPTER VI. + +FIRST DAYS OF EXILE, 1554. + +From England Knox went to Dieppe, where he sojourned at this time for a +month, and finished his exposition of the sixth Psalm, the first +instalment of which he had sent to Mrs. Bowes just before leaving the +shores of Britain. This production was primarily designed for the +consolation and encouragement of that lady, who, as we have already +hinted, seems to have been afflicted with religious melancholy. +Apparently she was one of those, of whom every pastor has had some +experience, who believe that God has cast them off, and who while +"fearing the Lord," yet "walk in darkness and have no light." Her life +was one constant wrestle with spiritual depression, by which her +intimate friends were afflicted almost as much as she was herself. +Knox dealt with her most tenderly, and under the influence of his wise +words she regained her comfort for a time, but after a little she was +in the depths again, and the whole process had to be gone over with her +anew. Had she lived in modern days, a prudent friend would have +counselled her to consult a skilful physician, {72} and would have +sought to combine medical treatment with religious advice. We cannot +wonder, however, that we have nothing in this tractate bearing on that +aspect of the matter. The writer deals throughout with the malady as +spiritual, but he treats it most wisely, and the great well of +tenderness in his heart reveals itself to the reader in such a passage +as the following:[1] "These things put I you in mind of, beloved +mother, that albeit your pains sometimes be so horrible that no release +nor comfort ye find neither in spirit nor yet in body, yet if the heart +can only _sob unto_ God, despair not, you shall obtain your heart's +desire, and destitute you are not of faith. For at such time as the +flesh, natural reason, the law of God, the present torment, and the +devil at once do cry God is angry, and therefore is there neither help +nor remedy to be hoped for at His hands; at such time, I say, to sob +unto God is the demonstration of the secret seed of God which is hid in +God's elect children, and that only sob is unto God a more acceptable +sacrifice than, without this cross, to give our bodies to be burned +even for the truth's sake." Very comprehensive also is this expansion +of the second petition of the Lord's Prayer in the same treatise.[2] +"We are commanded daily to pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' which petition +asketh that sin may cease, that death may be devoured, that transitory +troubles may have an end, that Satan may be trodden under our feet, +that the whole {73} body of Christ may be restored to life, liberty, +and joy, that the powers and kingdoms of this earth may be dissolved +and destroyed, and that God the Father may be all in all things, after +that His Son Christ Jesus, the Saviour, hath rendered up the kingdom +for ever." And in these days when so much is written, both wise and +otherwise, on the subject of eschatology, some interest may be felt in +the following "bit" of exposition. "'For there is no remembrance of +Thee in death; who laudeth Thee in the pit?' As (if) David would say, +'O Lord, how shall I pray and declare Thy goodness when I am dead, and +gone into the grave? It is not the ordinary course to have Thy +miracles and wondrous works preached unto men by those that are buried +and gone down into the pit. Those that are dead make no mention of +Thee in the earth, and therefore, O Lord, spare Thy servant, that yet +for a time I may show and witness Thy wondrous works unto mankind.' +These most godly affections in David did engender in him a vehement +horror and fear of death, besides that which is natural and common to +all men, because he perfectly understood that by death he shall be +lettit (hindered) any further to advance the glory of God. Of the same +he complaineth most vehemently in the 88th Psalm, where apparently he +taketh from them that are dead, sense, remembrance, feeling, and +understanding, alleging that God worketh no miracles by the dead, that +the goodness of God cannot be preached in the grave, nor His faith in +perdition, and that His marvellous works {74} are not known in +darkness. By which speeches we may not understand that David taketh +all sense and feeling from the dead, neither yet that they who are dead +in Christ are in such estate that by God they have not consolation and +life. No; Christ Himself doth witness the contrary. But David so +vehemently depresses their estate and condition, because that after +death they are deprived from (of) all ordinary ministration in the Kirk +of God. None of those that are departed are appointed to be preachers +of God's glory unto mankind. But after death they cease any more to +advance God's holy name here among the living on earth, and so shall +even they in that behalf be unprofitable to the congregation as +touching anything that they can do, either in body or soul after death. +And therefore most earnestly desired David to live in Israel for the +further manifestation of God's glory."[3] + +Appended to this tract there is the date "upon the very point of my +journey, the last of February, 1553(4), so that Knox left Dieppe about +the beginning of March, but before his departure he finished and +transmitted the first of that series of admonitions and consolatory +epistles which during his exile on the continent he addressed to his +friends in England, and from which we have already quoted so many +passages throwing light upon his labours among them. This earliest of +the series is entitled "A Godly Letter of Warning or Admonition to the +Faithful in London, Newcastle, and Berwick," {75} and is written in a +strain of burning and impassioned expostulation. It is mainly founded +on the sermon preached by Jeremiah to the princes and all the people of +Judah in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, as recorded in the +26th chapter of his prophecies. Knox runs a skilful parallel between +the circumstances of the Jews before the destruction of their capital +by Nebuchadnezzar, and those of the people of England under Mary, and +with the presage of coming judgment darkening his spirit, he exhorts +the "remnant" to fidelity and earnestness. One extract will give the +reader some slight idea of its style and purport. [4]"Hitherto have I +recited the estate of Judah before the destruction of Jerusalem and +subversion of that commonwealth. Now I appeal to the conscience of any +indifferent (_i.e._ impartial) man in what one point differ the +manners, estate and regiment (_i.e._ government) of England this day +from the abuse and estate rehearsed of Judah in these days, except that +they had a king, a man of his own nature (as appeared), more facile +than cruel, who sometimes was entreated in the prophet's favour, and +also in some cases heard his counsel; and ye have a queen, a woman of a +stout stomach (_i.e._ of a haughty spirit), more stiff in opinion than +flexible to the truth, who no wise may abide the presence of God's +prophets. In this one thing you disagree; in all other things as like +as one bean or nut is like to another, (1) Their king was led by +pestilent priests; who guides your queen, it is not {76} unknown. (2) +Under Zedekiah and his council the idolatry which by Josiah was +suppressed, came to light again; but more abominable idolatry was never +in the earth than is that which of late is now set up again by your +pestilent papists among you. (3) In Jerusalem was Jeremiah persecuted +and cast into prison for speaking the truth and rebuking their +idolatry; what prison in London tormenteth not some true prophet of God +for the same causes? And O thou dungeon of darkness, where that +abominable idol of late days was first erected (thou Tower of London, I +mean), in thee are tormented more Jeremiahs than one, whom God shall +comfort according to His promise, and shall reward their persecutors +even as they have deserved; in which day also shalt thou tremble for +fear, and such as pretend to defend thee shall perish with thee, +because thou wast first defiled with that abominable idol." + +The letter concludes with the following touching sentences:--"The peace +of God rest with you all. From one sore troubled heart upon my +departure from Dieppe--1553(4)--whither God knoweth. In God is my +trust, through Jesus Christ His Son; and therefore I fear not the +tyranny of man, neither yet what the devil can invent against me. +Rejoice, ye faithful, for in joy shall we meet where death may not +dissever us." + +At the time when he wrote these words he seems to have had no definite +purpose as to his immediate destination, but we have now no difficulty +in tracing his movements, for in a letter addressed to his afflicted +{77} brethren in England, and dated Dieppe, 10th May, 1554, we find the +following words:--"My own estate is this: since the 28th of January I +have travelled through all the congregations of Helvetia (Switzerland), +and have reasoned with all the pastors and many other excellent learned +men upon such matters as now I cannot commit to writing; gladly I would +by tongue or by pen utter the same to God's glory." What these things +were may perhaps be inferred from the words of Bullinger to Calvin in a +letter dated 26th March, 1554, to this effect: "I have enclosed in this +letter the answer I made to the Scotsman whom you commended to me; you +will return it to me when you have opportunity."[5] Now as Knox +visited Geneva in that month of March, and obtained from Calvin a +letter of introduction to Bullinger, there can be no doubt, as Dr. +Laing has shown, that the reference is to him. The questions which he +submitted to Bullinger were the following, and we give them entire, +with a brief summary of the answer to each, that we may make plain the +gravity and importance of the matters which were at this time +engrossing his attention:--(1) "Whether the son of a king, upon his +father's death, though unable by reason of his tender age to conduct +the government of the kingdom, is nevertheless by right of inheritance +to be regarded as a lawful magistrate, and as such to be obeyed as of +Divine right?" This, illustrating his statement by a reference to King +Edward the Sixth of England, Bullinger answers in the {78} affirmative. +(2) "Whether a female can preside over and rule a kingdom by Divine +right, and so transfer the right of sovereignty to her husband?" To +this Bullinger replies, that, though the law of God ordains the woman +to be in subjection, yet as it is a hazardous thing for godly persons +to set themselves up in opposition to political regulations, and in the +gospel does not seem to unsettle hereditary rights, the people of God +may rejoice in a female sovereign if she be like Deborah; and if she be +of a different character, they may have an example and consolation in +the case of Athaliah; but with respect to the right of transferring the +government to her husband, only those persons who are acquainted with +the laws and customs of the realm can give a proper answer. (3) +"Whether obedience is to be rendered to a magistrate who enforces +idolatry and condemns true religion; and whether those authorities who +are still in military occupations of towns and fortresses are permitted +to repel this ungodly violence from themselves and their friends?" No +definite or categorical answer is given to this inquiry, on the ground +that it is difficult to pronounce on every particular case; but while +there is need of wisdom, lest by rashness and corruption much mischief +may be occasioned to many worthy persons, it is unequivocally asserted +that death itself is far preferable to the admission of idolatry. (4) +"To which party must godly persons attach themselves in the case of a +religious nobility resisting an idolatrous sovereign?" This is left by +the Swiss Reformer to the judgment of the individual {79} conscience. +Between the lines of these questions we can easily read that Knox was +pondering questions which lie near the foundation of civil and +religious liberty; and that, foreseeing the occasion which he might +soon have for dealing practically with them, he availed himself of the +opportunity furnished by his exile for consulting the most eminent +Swiss Protestant divines regarding them. + +He returned to Dieppe in May, 1554, and remained there until the end of +July in order that he might gain accurate information concerning his +brethren in England, and might learn whether he could do anything in +their behalf. To these weeks must be assigned the preparation and +transmission of his "Faithful Admonition unto the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which caused him so much trouble in the Frankfort +episode of his history. For that reason, therefore, it may be well to +give a brief account of this trenchant production. It is evidently the +expansion of a discourse formerly preached by him on the experience of +the disciples in the storm, when they "toiled in rowing" because "the +wind was contrary unto them," with a pungent and sometimes not very +prudent, application of its lessons to the circumstances which then +existed in England. It was his habit to preach his sermons before he +wrote them, and indeed, so far as appears, he did not often write them +out, even after they had been delivered, but usually contented himself +with speaking from a few notes, which were made in the margin of his +Bible, and which remained the sole {80} memoranda of the discourse. In +the present case the note was to the effect "_Videat Anglia_"--"Let +England beware!" and the matter written in his book in Latin was this: +"Seldom it is that God worketh any notable work to the comfort of His +Church but that trouble, fear, and labour cometh upon such as God hath +used for His servants and His workmen; and also tribulation most +commonly followeth that Church where Christ Jesus is most truly +preached." In his exposition he goes on to explain why, after the +miracle of the feeding of the multitude, Christ sent both the people at +large and His disciples away; and dwells on the danger to which the +apostles were exposed, the manner of their deliverance through the +coming and the word of Christ, the zeal of Peter in seeking to meet the +Lord on the waves, and his fear in sinking in the waters, and the mercy +of the Master in permitting neither Peter nor the rest of the disciples +to perish, but gloriously delivering them all. Into his treatment of +these several things he introduces plentiful allusions to the state of +affairs in England, and the object which he has before him as a whole +is two-fold--first, to encourage those who had made a profession of the +Reformed Faith to maintain the beginning of their confidence steadfast +unto the end; and second, to give warning of the dangers which were to +be apprehended if the kingdom should come under the dominion of +strangers, as it would infallibly do when Mary became the wife of +Philip of Spain. The admonition bears the imprint "20th day of July, +1554." Now the marriage {81} of Mary to Philip was celebrated on the +25th day of that same month, and it was provided by the treaty for that +alliance, and confirmed by Act of Parliament, that Philip, as the +husband of Mary, "should have and enjoy, jointly with the Queen his +wife, the style, honour, and kingly name of the realm and dominions +unto the said Queen appertaining, and shall aid her Highness, being his +wife, in the happy administration of her realm and dominions." This +helps us to understand one of the questions which Knox had proposed to +Bullinger, and explains at least, if it cannot justify, the vehemence +of his feelings and the violence of his words in the "admonition." He +speaks of "Stephen Gardiner and his black brood;" calls the wafer of +the host "the round clipped God;" declares that "the devil rageth in +his obedient servants, wily Winchester, dreaming Durham, and bloody +Bonner, with the rest of their bloody, butcherly brood;" avers that +Jezebel "never erected half so many gallows in all Israel as +mischievous Mary hath done within London alone;" denounces Mary as a +"breaker of promises;" calls her that most unhappy and wicked woman;" +and foretells evil for England if she--_i.e._ England--contract +marriage, confederacy, or league with such princes as do maintain and +advance idolatry (such as the Emperor, which is no less an enemy here +to Christ than ever was Nero)." All this is dreadful enough. But let +us bear in mind that Mary, on her accession, had publicly declared that +she "meant graciously not to compel or strain other men's consciences +otherwise than God should, as she trusted, {82} put in their hearts a +persuasion of the truth, through the opening of His word unto them," +and that, by her subsequent conduct she had utterly falsified that +word; let it be remembered that at the very time of Knox's writing, +Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer had been prisoners for seven or eight +months in the Tower, first under the charge of treason, and latterly +under that of heresy; let it be considered that reports were +continually coming to Knox's ears of the daily increasing sufferings of +the Protestants in England, and then some allowance will be made for +the outburst of his indignation in these passionate utterances. Still, +when we have made all such allowance, we must admit that a more +cautious man would have foreseen that a probable effect of such a +bitter onslaught would be the increase of the persecutor's fury, and +would not have gone out of his way to irritate the German Emperor by +comparing him with Nero. But caution never was one of Knox's +distinctive excellences. If it had, he would not have become a +Reformer, for your merely cautious men are of very little service +either to their generation or to the world. Boldness is necessary for +progress, and where the boldness is, we must reconcile ourselves as +best we may to its attendant shadow. In the present instance Knox paid +dearly enough for his imprudence, as we shall shortly see, and we may +therefore content ourselves with this simple reference to it. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. iii. p. 137. + +[2] Ibid., p. 128. + +[3] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 151-2. + +[4] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 187-8. + +[5] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 219, 226. + + + + +{83} + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555. + +From Dieppe, after having launched across the channel the thunderbolt +of the "Faithful Admonition," Knox retired to Geneva, where he enjoyed +the friendship of John Calvin and other Swiss divines, and where, +though he was now bordering on fifty years of age, he applied himself +to the study of Hebrew with all the ardour of youth. But such a man +could not long be permitted to enjoy learned leisure. Accordingly we +find that in the end of September, 1554, he was called to be one of the +pastors of a congregation of English exiles who had found an asylum in +Frankfort-on-the-Maine, a city whose inhabitants had early embraced the +principles of the Reformation, and befriended refugees from all +countries so far as that could be done by them without coming to an +open breach with the Emperor. Already a church of French Protestants +was in existence there, and on application to the authorities the +English exiles obtained the joint use of the place of worship allotted +to that congregation, on condition that they should in their {84} +service conform as nearly as possible to the forms observed by the +French. This was thankfully accepted by the English, who agreed among +themselves, be it observed before Knox appeared among them, to give up +the audible responses, the Litany, the surplice, and other things which +"in these reformed churches would seem more than strange." It is added +in the "Brief Discourse of the Troubles begun at Frankfort" which lies +before us as we write, that "as touching the ministration of the +sacraments, sundry things were also by common consent omitted as +superstitious and superfluous;" and that "after that the congregation +had thus concluded and agreed, and had chosen their minister and +deacons to serve for a time, they entered their church on the 29th of +July." + +Having thus secured for themselves religious privileges, the Frankfort +exiles by a circular letter invited their brethren in other continental +cities to come and share the blessing with them. To this the English +residents at Strasburg replied recommending certain persons as well +qualified to fill the offices of superintendent or bishop, and pastors, +but before receiving that communication the brethren at Frankfort had +already chosen three persons, one of whom was Knox, to be their +pastors, and to be invested with co-ordinate authority. The invitation +was not specially attractive to Knox, both because he was loth to +sacrifice the advantages for study which he was enjoying at Geneva, and +because he feared the outbreak of such a {85} controversy as ultimately +arose. But moved by what McCrie has styled "the powerful intercession +of Calvin," he accepted the call and went to Frankfort about the end of +October or the beginning of November. Before his arrival there, +however, the harmony of the congregation had been disturbed by the +reception of a letter from the English residents at Zurich, who +declined to come to Frankfort unless they obtained security that the +Church would use the Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., on the ground that +the rejection or alteration of that form of service would give occasion +for the charge against them of fickleness in their religion, and would +be a virtual condemnation of those who at that very time were suffering +persecution on its account. To this the members of the church at +Frankfort replied that they had obtained permission to use their place +of worship on the condition of their conforming as closely as possible +to the French ritual; that there were some things in the English book +which would give offence to the Protestants of the place whose +hospitality they were enjoying; that certain ceremonies in that book +had been occasion of scruple to conscientious persons at home; that +they were very far indeed from pronouncing condemnation of those who +had drawn up that book, since they themselves had altered many things; +and that the sufferers in England were testifying for more important +matters than rites of mere human appointment. This answer, while it +somewhat abated the confidence of the friends at Zurich, did not {86} +drive them from their purpose, for they instigated their brethren at +Strasburg to make the same request both by letter and by deputation, +and thus widened the area of the controversy. + +This was the state of things when Knox appeared upon the scene, and +although his convictions were strongly on the side of those who opposed +the adoption of the Book of Common Prayer, he strove to act the part of +a peacemaker, as far as he consistently could. For when the +congregation agreed to adopt the order of worship followed in Calvin's +Church at Geneva, he declined to carry out that determination until +their learned brethren in other places should be consulted. He +confessed that he could not conscientiously administer the sacraments +according to the English book, but he offered to restrict himself +solely to the preaching of the word, and let some one else administer +the sacraments; and if that freedom could not be granted to him, he +desired that he might be altogether released from the pastorate to +which he had been chosen. But the congregation would not consent to +give him up, and in the hope of preventing future controversy, Knox, +who was joined by Whittingham, afterwards Dean of Durham, and others, +drew up a fair summary and description of the English Prayer-Book, +which they sent to Calvin for his inspection and advice. In his reply +the Genevese Reformer bewailed the existence of unseemly contentions +among them; claimed that he had always counselled moderation respecting +external {87} ceremonies, yet condemned the obstinacy of those who +would consent to no change of old customs; declared that in the English +liturgy he had found many "_tolerabiles ineptias_,"--tolerable +fooleries,--which might be borne with in the beginning of the +Reformation, but ought to be removed as soon as possible; gave it as +his opinion that the circumstances of the exiles in Frankfort warranted +them to attempt the removal of such blemishes; and rather caustically +remarked that "he could not tell what they meant who so greatly +delighted in the leavings of popish dregs." + +This letter produced considerable effect, and a committee, of which +Knox was one, was appointed to draw up a form which might harmonize all +parties. When this committee met, Knox acknowledging that there was no +hope of peace unless "one party something relented," indicated how far +he was willing to go in the direction of compromise; and the result was +the drawing up of a form of which "some part was taken from the English +Prayer-Book, and other things put to, as the state of the Church +required." By the consent of the congregation this order was to +continue until the month of April; and if any contention should +meanwhile arise, the matter was to be referred for decision to these +five learned men, namely, Calvin, Musculus, Martyr, Bullinger, and +Vyret. This agreement was put in writing, and subscribed by the +members of the congregation amid the joy of all. "Thanks were given to +God, brotherly reconciliation followed, great familiarity (was) used, +and the former {88} grudges forgotten; yea, the Holy Communion was upon +this happy agreement also ministered." + +But this peace was not of long continuance, for on the 13th of March +Dr. Richard Cox, who had been the preceptor of Edward VI., and who was +afterwards a bishop under Queen Elizabeth, arrived in Frankfort with a +company like-minded with himself; and on the very first day on which +they attended public worship, they broke the _concordat_ by indulging +in audible responses. When they were expostulated with by some of the +seniors, or elders, of the congregation for their disorderly conduct, +they replied that "they would do as they had done in England, and that +they would have the face of an English Church;" and on the following +Sunday one of their number, without the knowledge or consent of the +congregation, entered the pulpit and read the Litany, while the rest +answered aloud. This was a still more flagrant breach of the +agreement, for Knox and his friends specially objected to the Litany; +and therefore on the afternoon, it being his turn to preach, Knox made +a public protest against such procedure. He showed how after long +trouble and contention among them, a godly agreement had been made, and +how it had been ungodly broken, "which thing it became not the proudest +of them all to have attempted." He further alleged that as we must +seek our warrant for the establishing of religion from the word of God, +and without that nothing should be thrust into any Christian +congregation; and as in the English Prayer Book there {89} were, as he +was prepared to prove, things both superstitious, impure, and +imperfect, he would not consent that it should be received in that +Church; and he declared that if the attempt should be made, he would +not fail to speak against it from that place, as his text might furnish +occasion. He also affirmed that, among other things which provoked +God's anger against England, slackness to reform religion when time and +opportunity were granted was one; and as an instance of that slackness +he specified, to the sore wounding of some then present, the allowing +of one man to have three, four, or five benefices, to the slander of +the gospel, and the defrauding of the people. + +This remonstrance brought things to a crisis, and on the following +Tuesday the congregation met to take the whole matter into +consideration. Cox and his company claimed the right of sitting and +voting with the rest, but it was contended that they should not be +admitted until they had subscribed the discipline of the Church. This +objection would have prevailed, but on the intercession of Knox they +were received, and they rewarded his magnanimity by outvoting him, and, +at the instigation of Cox, discharging him from preaching and from all +interference in the affairs of the congregation. This, however, only +made matters worse; and to prevent a disgraceful tumult, the whole case +was referred to the senate of the city, from whom they had obtained +permission to use the place of worship in which they assembled. That +body, after in vain recommending a {90} private accommodation, issued +an order requiring the congregation to conform exactly to the French +ritual, and threatening if that were disobeyed to shut up the church. +With this injunction Cox and his party outwardly complied for the time; +but seeing the influence which Knox possessed, and having no hope of +carrying their point so long as he should remain among them, they took +means of the basest sort to get him out of the way. For two of them +went privately to the magistrates of the city and accused Knox of high +treason against the emperor, and against Mary, Queen of England, +putting forth as the ground of their charge those passages from the +Faithful Admonition which we have already quoted. On receipt of this +charge the magistrates sent for Whittingham, and asked him concerning +the character of Knox, whom he described in his reply as "a learned, +grave, and godly man." They then informed him of the charge which had +been preferred against him, and requested that he would furnish them +with an exact Latin translation of the sentences of his tract, nine in +number, which had been brought to their particular attention. They +gave orders also that meanwhile Knox should desist from preaching until +their pleasure should be known. With this command Knox loyally +complied; but when he appeared next day in the church as an ordinary +hearer, not thinking that any would be offended at his presence, "some +departed from the sermon, protesting with great vehemence that they +would not tarry where he was." + +{91} + +The action of the informers was most embarrassing to the magistrates, +who abhorred the malice by which they were evidently actuated, but at +the same time feared that the matter might come to the ears of the +emperor's council then sitting at Augsburg, and that they might be +compelled to give Knox up to them or to the Queen of England; and as +the best means of extricating themselves from the difficulty, they +suggested that he should privately withdraw from the city. Accordingly +on the evening of the 25th of March, 1555, he delivered a most +consolatory address to about fifty of the members of the Church in his +own lodgings; and "the next day," to borrow the words of the author of +the Brief Discourse, "he was brought three or four miles on his way by +some of these unto whom the night before he had made that exhortation, +who, with great heaviness of heart and plenty of tears, committed him +to the Lord." + +The sequel is soon told. Cox, by falsely representing that the +congregation was now unanimous, obtained an order from the senate for +the unrestricted use of the English Prayer-Book, and then procured in +the Church the abrogation of the code of discipline, and the +appointment of a superintendent or bishop over the other pastors. The +result was that a considerable number of the members left the city, and +the remainder continued a prey to strife, which Cox and his friends did +not stay to compose, for they also soon took their departure to other +places. The Church was thus virtually broken {92} up; and it is not +without significance that, in seeking afterwards to be excused from +performing service before a crucifix in the chapel of Queen Elizabeth, +Cox employed the very argument which Knox had urged without effect upon +himself, for he said, "I ought to do nothing touching religion which +may appear doubtful, whether it pleaseth God or not; for our religion +ought to be certain, and grounded upon God's word and will." + +We have gone thus fully into the "Frankfort troubles," not so much +because, as McCrie says, they present in miniature a striking picture +of that contentious scene which was afterwards exhibited on a larger +scale in England, or because it would not be difficult to find similar +divisions on precisely similar points in the days in which we live, but +because of the insight which the history gives us into the character of +Knox himself. The controversy was keen and bitter; but throughout it +all our Reformer shows to great advantage,--evincing what Carlyle has +called "a great and unexpected patience," by which we suppose he means +a patience which those who know nothing more about him than the usual +caricature of his character, which too many have accepted, would hardly +have expected. But the readers of his letter to his Berwick friends, +on which we have already commented, could have looked for nothing else +at his hands; and we commend the study of this episode in his history +to all those who have been accustomed to regard him as a dogmatic, +domineering, impracticable {93} man, who was determined always to have +his way in the scorn of every consequence. The offer to restrict +himself solely to preaching, or, if that should not be granted, to go +quietly away, stands out to his lasting honour, and shows how eager he +was to prevent all strife; while the simple mention by the chronicler +of the "plenty of tears" shed by those who accompanied him out of the +city, witnesses to the tenderness of his friendship; and by both alike +we are reminded of the great apostle whose words were so constantly +upon his lips. In reviewing the whole case, he cannot help recalling +that his opponents had brought against him the old cry, "He is not +Caesar's friend;" but he prays for them thus, "O Lord God, open their +hearts that they may see their wickedness, and forgive them for Thy +manifold mercies; and I forgive them, O Lord, from the bottom of my +heart. But that Thy message sent by my mouth should not be slandered, +I am compelled to declare the cause of my departing, and so to utter +their folly, to their amendment I trust, and the example of others who, +in the same banishment, can have so cruel hearts to persecute their +brethren." His opponents tried to excuse themselves, and in a letter +to Calvin put the best possible construction on their case; but nothing +said by them altered the opinion of the great Reformer, in which we are +persuaded all fair-minded men, whatever may be their ecclesiastical +opinions will agree, to this effect:--"But certainly this one thing I +cannot keep secret, that Mr. Knox was, in my judgment, neither godly +nor {94} brotherly dealt withal." It was a hard and bitter experience, +and no doubt it had its influence in determining him, when he came to +deal with the Reformation of Scotland, to make more thorough work of it +than they had done in England. + + + + +{95} + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559. + +On his departure from Frankfort Knox made his way to Geneva, whither he +was followed by a considerable number of those who had adhered to him +in the former city. There it seems evident that he was invited by +them, and probably also by others who had joined them, to resume his +pastoral labours; for at the solicitation of Calvin, the Lesser Council +of Geneva granted for the joint use of the English and Italian +congregations the church called the Temple de Nostre Dame la Nove; and +it is recorded that on the first of November, 1555, when the English +Church was formed, Christopher Goodman and Arthur Gilby were "appointed +to preach the word, _in the absence of John Knox_." This indicates +that Knox was already recognised as one of the permanent pastors of the +Church, and that just at that time he was for some reason or other, +away for a long season from the scene of his labours. + +Where he was and what he was doing we have ample means of tracing, for +in the September of that {96} year we find him back again in Scotland, +for the first time since he had been taken prisoner by the French. But +much as he cared for the spiritual interests of his native land, it is +probable that his return to Great Britain at this time was more +immediately prompted by feelings of a personal nature. We have already +referred to his attachment to Marjory Bowes, daughter of Richard Bowes, +and of Elizabeth Aske, of Aske, near Berwick, and Dr. Laing has given +strong reasons for believing that he came now for the purpose of making +her his wife. The precise date of his marriage, indeed, is uncertain. +Dr. McCrie has put it in 1553, before he left England on the ground +that after that date Knox invariably addressed Mrs. Bowes as his +"mother" and spoke of Marjory as his "wife." The truth, however, seems +to have been that owing to the strong opposition of her father and +other relatives to the alliance, and also, perhaps, to the very +uncertain position of the Reformer himself, in these times of +unsettlement and peril, they contented themselves in 1553 with formally +pledging themselves to each other "before witnesses." But now, +immediately on his landing, at a point on the east shore not far from +the boundary between England and Scotland, he repaired to Berwick, +where he found Marjory and her mother enjoying the happiness of +religious society. After this, he visited Scotland, where he laboured +for some months, and the marriage may not have taken place until the +time when, preparatory to their setting out for Geneva, Mrs. Bowes {97} +resolved to leave all her relatives and cast in her lot with her +son-in-law. + +The visit of Knox to Scotland, at this juncture, was of immense service +to the cause of the Reformation. The clergy, unable or unwilling to +discern the signs of the times, had sunk into supineness, under the +belief that what they called heresy had been well-nigh banished from +the land. Arran, now Duke of Chatellerault, had given place as Regent +to Mary, the mother of Mary Queen of Scots, whose policy it was just +then to temporize with the Protestant nobles, and to disguise for a +season her deep-rooted and undying hatred of their cause. In the good +providence of God, also, a number of the leading adherents of the new +faith, like Erskine of Dun, Maitland of Lethington, and others, had +come to Edinburgh to confer with and enjoy the ministrations of John +Willock, who had been sent over by the Duchess of East Friesland, +ostensibly on a commercial mission to the Scottish court, but really to +see "what good work God would do by him to his native land;" and the +private meetings which he held with the Protestants in Edinburgh for +prayer and the exposition of the word, may have suggested to Knox that +he should follow a similar plan. That at least was the course which he +determined to pursue. He was received into the houses of certain +burgesses whose names he has enshrined in his history, and though the +number of meetings and the necessity of holding them in secret kept him +busy night and day, he was greatly {98} encouraged by the results. +Writing to Mrs. Bowes, he says that "the fervent thirst of his +brethren, night and day, sobbing and groaning for the bread of life, +was such, that if he had not seen it with his own eyes he could not +have believed it;" and again that "the fervency here did far exceed all +others that he had seen;" and "did so ravish him, that he could not but +accuse and condemn his slothful coldness." + +The news of his arrival spread among the Reformers in all parts of the +country, and his presence was so eagerly desired everywhere that he was +obliged to postpone his return to Berwick, and enter upon a series of +evangelistic journeys through different districts of the land. But we +will allow him to describe his work at this time himself. Thus he +writes in his "History": "John Knox, at the request of the Laird of +Dun, followed him to his place of Dun, where he remained a month, daily +exercised in doctrine, whereunto resorted the principal men of that +country. After his returning, his residence was most in Calder, where +repaired unto him the Lord Erskine, the Lord Lorn, and Lord James +Stuart, Prior of St. Andrews (half-brother to Mary Stuart), where they +heard and so approved his doctrine, that they wished it to have been +public. That same winter he taught commonly in Edinburgh; and after +the Yule (Christmas) by the conduct of the Laird of Barr, and Robert +Campbell of Kinzeancleugh, he came to Kyle, and taught in the Barr, in +the house of the Carnell, in the Kinzeancleugh, in the town of Ayr, +{99} and in the houses of Ochiltree and Gadgirth, and in some of them +ministered the Lord's Table. Before the Pasch (Easter) the Earl of +Glencairn sent for him to his place of Finlaston, where, after +doctrine, he likewise ministered the Lord's Table; whereof, besides +himself, were partakers his lady, two of his sons, and certain of his +friends. And so returned he to Calder, where divers from Edinburgh, +and from the country about, convened as well for the doctrine as for +the right use of the Lord's Table, which before they had never +practised. From thence he departed the second time to the Laird of +Dun, and teaching them in greater liberty, the gentlemen required that +he should minister likewise unto them the Table of the Lord Jesus; +whereof were partakers the most part of the gentlemen of the Mearns, +who professed that they refused all society with idolatry and bound +themselves to the uttermost of their power to maintain the true +preaching of the Evangel of Jesus Christ, as God should offer to them +preachers and opportunity." Well done, ye men of the Mearns, and ye +worthy descendants of the Lollards of Kyle! Often in the history of +Scotland have the dwellers in these parts stood up manfully for the +truth, but never was a nobler thing done in either locality, than when +ye thus received and welcomed the apostle of your country's Reformation! + +Such labours were sure sooner or later to attract the attention of the +bishops; and accordingly while he was in the Mearns he was summoned to +appear {100} before them at Edinburgh, in the Church of the +Blackfriars, on the 15th May, 1556. They probably imagined that this +mere "show of force" on their part would suffice to frighten him into +silence. If they did, they reckoned without their host; for encouraged +by his friends he came to Edinburgh to meet and face his accusers. But +when it came to the pinch, they shrank from the encounter; and so it +was that on the very day on which he had been summoned to stand before +them, he preached, of all places, in the very lodging of the Bishop of +Dunkeld, to a greater audience than he had hitherto addressed in +Edinburgh. For ten days he continued morning and afternoon at this +work, and so thoroughly was his heart refreshed by it that he writes of +it thus to Mrs. Bowes: "O sweet were the death that should follow such +forty days in Edinburgh as here I have had three." + +But the boldest, if we should not call it the most audacious thing, +which he did in this visit, was to address a letter to the Queen +Regent, wherein he vindicated himself from the charges made by his +enemies against him, and exhorted her to hear the word of God, and +regulate her government by its principles. The suggestion to send such +an epistle came from the Earl Mareschal and Henry Drummond, who had +been brought to hear him by Lord Glencairn, and who declared, on what +they said they knew of the queen's mind, that she was in a mood to be +propitious. But though the letter is correctly described by Lorimer as +one "which for its {101} courtesy of phrase, and faithfulness of +counsel, was equally suitable to her dignity as a queen, and to his +character as a minister of God," it met with only a mocking reception. +"Please you, my lord, to read a pasquil," said Mary of Guise, after it +had been put into her hands, and while she was giving it to the +Archbishop of Glasgow, and that was all the notice of it which she +condescended to take. This treatment of his expostulation being +reported to Knox, revealed to him how little he had to expect from Mary +of Guise; and as just at this time letters arrived from Geneva +"commanding him, in God's name, as he that was their chosen pastor, to +repair unto them for their comfort," he made immediate preparations for +his departure thither. He took leave of the several congregations to +whom he had preached, and sent on his wife and his mother-in-law to +Dieppe before him, there to await his arrival. He reached them in the +month of July, and shortly after went with them to Geneva; for in the +"Livre des Anglois" there is an entry to the effect that on the 13th of +September, 1556, John Knox; Marjory, his wife; Elizabeth, her mother; +James ----, his servant; and Patrick, his pupil, were received and +admitted members of the English Church and congregation there. + +The reception of Mrs. Bowes into his household, especially with his +knowledge of her deep-seated melancholia, says much for the kindliness +of Knox's heart; and contrasts strongly with the spirit manifested on a +similar matter by that other Scotsman whose {102} correspondence has so +recently been given to the world. We know not if the cheap sneer +indulged in by so many at the expense of the mother-in-law were as +common in his days as it is in ours, but, in any case, Knox in all this +was thoughtfully tender, and though he admits that the desponding habit +of Mrs. Bowes was often a great trial to him, yet he never withdrew his +regard from her. The following sentences of Dr. Laing express all that +needs to be said more on this subject: "Her husband, I presume, was a +bigoted adherent of the Roman Catholic faith, and this may serve as the +key both to his opposition to Knox's marriage with his daughter, and to +the mother's attachment to her son-in-law. It cannot at least be said +that Knox was actuated by the expectation of wealth. In his last will +and testament he states that all the money he received from the +mother's succession for the benefit of his two sons was one hundred +marks sterling, which he, 'out of his poverty,' had increased to five +hundred pounds Scots, and had paid through Mr. Randolph to their uncle, +Mr. Robert Bowes, for their use. The comparative value of money at +this time was very variable; but we may reckon (that) the hundred +marks, or £66 13s. 4d., were increased by Knox to £100 sterling."[1] + +After Knox left Scotland the courage of the bishops revived, for they +actually summoned him again, and on his failure to put in an appearance +they were bold enough to burn him in effigy at the Cross of Edinburgh! +{103} But this _brutum fulmen_ of theirs could not undo the work which +he had wrought. For by his labours at this time, especially in +exposing the evil of the Protestants' any longer countenancing, papal +worship, he detached from the Romish communion the nucleus round which +the Church of Scotland, in a reformed state, was ultimately to form +itself. Hitherto there had been no separate organization of the +adherents to the Protestant faith; and no formal observance by them of +the ordinance of the Supper. But now they had, to some extent at +least, committed themselves to ultimate separation from the Church of +Rome. As Lorimer says, "They were now a "Congregation" or community of +Evangelical Christians, as much bound to one another as they were +dissevered from the Church of the popes." And Knox's leaving of them +in that condition was as much for their good as his arrival among them +some months before had been. Had he remained longer in Scotland at +this time, his presence would have undoubtedly provoked an outburst of +persecuting fury on the part of the bishops and their friends; while as +it was, the seed which he sowed had opportunity to root itself in the +hearts of those who had received it at his hands; and this it would +assuredly do if they followed the directions which he had left behind +him. For before his departure he drew up a letter of wholesome counsel +addressed to his brethren in Scotland, in which he exhorts them to give +themselves to the daily study of the Bible and worship of God in their +homes, and gives them {104} directions as to the holding and conducting +of assemblies for public worship and mutual conference and prayer, +recommending them to observe a regular course in their reading, and +cautioning those who should speak, to do so with modesty, avoiding +"multiplication of words, perplexed interpretation, and wilfulness in +reasoning." If anything occurred in the text which they could not +resolve for themselves, he advised them to apply for assistance to the +more learned, and offered if they should refer it to him, to give them +such help as he could render, saying, "I will more gladly spend fifteen +hours in communicating my judgment with you, in explaining as God +pleases to open to me any place of Scripture, than half an hour in any +matter beside." + +To the same period belong his "Answers to some Questions concerning +Baptism," etc., which had been proposed to him by some inquirers, and +which are of a sort that have often troubled young converts in similar +cases. They are, whether baptism administered by the popish priests +was valid and did not require repetition? Whether the decree of the +apostles and elders at Jerusalem be still in all its points binding on +believers? Whether the prohibition in 2 John 10 extended to the common +salutation of those who taught erroneous doctrine? How the directions +respecting dress in 1 Peter iii. 3 are to be obeyed? and the like. And +with them all he deals in a spirit of wisdom for which multitudes +unacquainted with his works would hardly give him credit. We need not +enter into details regarding them; {105} but as the first mentioned of +the above subjects was debated a few years ago in the Assembly of the +Presbyterian Church (North) of the United States, it may not be +uninteresting to state that, while Knox declares unequivocally that it +would be wrong for Protestant believers to seek baptism for their +children from popish priests, he yet as plainly affirms that a man who +had been baptized in infancy in papistry ought not to be rebaptized +when he cometh to knowledge, because Christ's institution could not be +utterly abolished by the malice of Satan or by the abuse of man. + +From September, 1556, to September, 1557, Knox laboured in Geneva, +delighting in his work and rejoicing in the fellowship of congenial +friends. Indeed, these halcyon months seem to have been the most +peaceful of his chequered life, and we do not wonder that he wrote +regarding Geneva: "I neither fear nor shame to say, it is the most +perfect school of Christ that ever was in the earth since the days of +the apostles." In the public services of the Church he used the form +of prayer which had been drawn up by himself and others for the English +congregation, and which was the groundwork of the "Book of Common +Order" that was received by the Church of Scotland in 1565. But as +that will come up for description in its proper place, we need not +dwell upon it here. The harmony of the Geneva Church was sweet after +the controversies of Frankfort, and the intercourse of the brethren +from England, who were then engaged in the preparation of that version +of the {106} Scriptures which continued to be for nearly a hundred +years the favourite Bible of the Puritans, must have been a constant +joy. + +But this happiness did not last long; for in the month of May (1557) +James Syme and James Barron, two burgesses of Edinburgh, and his own +very devoted friends, arrived with a letter from Glencairn, Lorn, +Erskine, and Lord James Stuart, beseeching "in the name of the Lord," +that he would return to his native land; and affirming that he would +find all the faithful whom he had left behind him, not only glad to +hear his doctrine, but also ready to jeopardise their lives and goods +for the setting forward of the glory of God. The opinion of Calvin and +other friends to whom he submitted this request, was that he could not +refuse such a call "without declaring himself rebellious unto God and +unmerciful to his country"; and no doubt his own heart had already +given a similar response. Accordingly, after making all due +arrangements for the leaving of his charge, and for the care of his +family in his absence, he set out from Geneva in the end of September, +and arrived at Dieppe on the 24th October. He was met there, however, +with letters which gave him the impression that those who had invited +him to return to Scotland had repented of their action in that regard; +and that many of the professed adherents of the truth had drawn back +and became faint-hearted in the cause. This brought him to a stand, +and he determined to go no farther until his way should be more clear. +He {107} immediately wrote to his correspondents, explaining how he +came to be at Dieppe, upbraiding them for their fear and fickleness; +admonishing them of the great importance of the enterprise to which +they had committed themselves; and alleging that they ought to hazard +their lives and fortunes to deliver themselves and their brethren from +spiritual bondage. This letter is dated October 27th, 1557, and was +followed by another of a more general tenour to his brethren in +Scotland, which appears to have been written in the same place on the +1st of December. + +In the expectation of receiving some definite information from +Scotland, Knox lingered in Dieppe for some considerable time, and +officiated as temporary preacher to a Protestant Church which had +recently been formed there. But when no answer came to his appeal to +his countrymen, he set his face again toward Geneva, to which, after +visiting Lyons, Rochelle, and other towns, he returned in the spring of +1558. + +But though he had heard nothing from Scotland, matters there had been +making steady progress. There may have been just enough of wavering on +the part of some to give occasion for the desponding letters which had +arrested him at Dieppe, yet there had been no great reaction. For on +the 3rd December, perhaps after the receipt of Knox's letter of the +preceding October, there had been a conference of the leading +Protestants as to what was best to be done, and as the result a Common +Bond or Band--the earliest of those {108} covenants which have had so +conspicuous a place in the church history of Scotland--was drawn up and +subscribed by Argyle, Glencairn, Morton, Lorn, Erskine of Dun, and many +others. By this "engagement" they pledged themselves in the most +solemn manner "to strive in their Master's cause even unto death;" "to +maintain, set forward, and establish the most blessed word of God, and +His congregation;" with their "whole power, substance, and their very +lives; and to labour to the utmost of their possibility, to have +faithful ministers purely and truly to preach Christ's gospel, and +minister His sacraments to His people." + +This was brave and hopeful in the highest degree. But Knox knew +nothing of it meanwhile, and in his despondency composed and issued +that tract which must be pronounced the greatest mistake of his life. +We refer, of course, to "The First Blast of the Trumpet against the +monstrous Regiment (_i.e._ government) of Women," which is an elaborate +argument designed to establish the proposition that "to promote a woman +to bear rule, superiority, dominion, or empire, above any realm, +nation, or city, is repugnant to nature, contumely to God, a thing most +contrarious to His revealed will and approved ordinance; and finally it +is the subversion of good order, of all equality and justice." We have +already seen from the questions which he put to Bullinger, that he had +been pondering this subject for some time; and there is evidence in the +tract itself, that he had diligently consulted what we should now {109} +call "the literature of the subject," for he refers to Aristotle's +politics; to the Books of the Digests; to such Fathers of the Church as +Tertullian, Augustine, Ambrose, Chrysostom, etc. But it was clearly +prompted by the fact that Mary Tudor was on the throne of England; and +there is throughout a strong undercurrent of application to her +character and cruelties. Whatever opinion may be taken on the main +question, however,--and the very existence of the Salic law in some +states still proves that there _are_ two sides to it, there can be no +doubt that Knox's treatment of it at all, not to speak of the sort of +treatment which he gave it, was at this time impolitic and imprudent. +In his preface he intimates that he is prepared to be condemned by +multitudes, and even for being accused by some of high treason; and +doubtless, he thought that he had counted the cost before he built his +tower. But the publication brought such a storm about his head, that +though he had purposed to follow his first blast with a second and a +third, the two latter were never blown. His friend and colleague, +Christopher Goodman, put himself by his side in a work entitled "How +Superior Powers ought to be Obeyed of their Subjects;" and at a later +day John Milton, in quoting from Goodman, and referring to him and +others, in his "Tenure of Kings and Magistrates" says, "These were the +pastors of those saints and confessors, who, flying from the bloody +persecution of Queen Mary, gathered up at length their scattered +members into {110} many congregations ... _These were the true +Protestant divines of England_, our fathers in the faith we hold."[2] +But such laudations were exceptional. Foxe, the martyrologist, wrote a +long and friendly letter to Knox, in which he expostulated with him on +the impropriety of its publication; and even his friend John Calvin, in +a letter to Cecil, felt compelled to deny all complicity with its +production. Mary Tudor did not live long to resent it; but her sister +Elizabeth never either forgot or forgave it; and it prejudiced the mind +of Mary Stuart against him long before she looked upon his face. Not +many months after its publication he was constrained to say "My first +Blast hath blown from me all my friends in England," and could he have +foreseen what the alliance of Elizabeth was ultimately to do for +Scotland in the very climax of her Reformation agony, we may safely say +that the work would neither have been written nor published. + +But his excuse (_valeat quantum_) is not far to seek, and we cannot do +better than give it in the words of Carlyle.[3] "It is written with +very great vehemency; the excuse for which, so far as it may really +need excuse, is to be found in the fact that it was written while the +fires of Smithfield were still blazing, on best of bloody Mary, and not +long after Mary of Guise had been raised to the Regency of +Scotland--maleficent crowned women these two--covering poor England and +poor Scotland {111} with mere ruin and horror, in Knox's judgment, and +may we not still say to a considerable extent, in that of all candid +persons? The book is by no means without merit; has in it various +little traits unconsciously autobiographic, and others which are +illuminative and interesting. One ought to add withal, that Knox was +no despiser of women, far the reverse in fact; his behaviour to good +and pious women is full of respect; and his tenderness, his filial +helpfulness in their suffering and infirmities (see the letters to his +mother-in-law and others) are beautifully conspicuous. For the rest +his poor book testifies to many high intellectual qualities in Knox, +and especially to far more of learning than has ever been ascribed to +him, or is anywhere traceable in his other writings." + +To this time also belongs his treatise on Predestination, in answer to +an anonymous writer who called his work "The Careless of Necessity." +It is the most elaborate of all the Reformer's productions, and goes +into the Augustinian controversy, on the side of the great +ecclesiastical father, with much vigour of logic, great clearness of +language, and apt and extended references to Scripture. Nowhere else, +as it seems to us, does Knox indulge in such closely compacted +argument, or write in such a nervous style. He is very careful to keep +himself from misrepresentation, and all he states may be accepted as +true; but there is another side to the shield to which he rarely +refers, and which must be admitted as implicitly as that to which he +has restricted {112} his attention. It is not, of course, equal to the +great work of Mozley on the same subject; but they who would master the +literature of the controversy cannot afford to overlook this valuable +contribution to its documents. + +Knox continued at Geneva until the month of January, 1559, when, in +response to a request sent to him by those who had signed the "Godly +Band," which was backed by letters of a more recent date, informing him +of the state of things in Scotland, he left his wife and family behind +him and set out for his native land. Mary, the English queen, had now +gone to her account, and her sister Elizabeth had succeeded to the +throne, so that the Protestant refugees on the continent could safely +return to their own country, and it was, therefore, no longer necessary +for him to retain his position as pastor. Before the breaking up of +the congregation, however, its members met to give thanks to God, and +agreed to send one of their number with letters to their brethren in +Frankfort and other places, congratulating them on the happy change +which had come about at home, and requesting them to forget all past +unpleasantness, while they co-operated as brethren to procure such a +settlement of religion in England as would be well-pleasing to all the +friends of the Reformation. Having received favourable replies to +these letters, they went in a body to the council of the city, and +William Whittingham, in their name, expressed to the seigneurie the +gratitude which they felt for the good reception given to them during +{113} their exile, presenting them at the same time as a lasting +memorial of their names the "Livre des Anglois," which is still +preserved among the archives of Geneva, and from which we have quoted +an interesting entry. They then left the city in which they had found +so safe an asylum, and Knox sent letters with them to some of his +former acquaintances in England, desiring that they would obtain +permission for him to travel through England on his way to Scotland. +Naturally enough he wished to see some of those among whom he had +formerly laboured; but there is reason to believe that his principal +motive in asking this favour, at this time, was that he might disclose +to Cecil the existence of a plan which had been formed by the Princes +of Lorraine, with which somehow he had become acquainted, and which had +for its objects the setting up of the claim of Mary Stuart to the +throne of England, the dethronement of Elizabeth under pretence that +she was a bastard and a heretic, the union of England and Scotland +under one crown, and the suppression of the Reformation in both by +bringing the whole island under the virtual control of France. But the +indignation of Elizabeth at his "First Blast" was such that his request +was indignantly refused, and it was with difficulty that those who +presented his letters escaped imprisonment. He did not learn this +result of his application until his arrival in Dieppe; and even then, +impressed with the importance of the information which he had to +communicate, he himself wrote to Cecil, seeking to remove all +difficulties, and desiring a personal {114} interview. But this +overture met with no better success; and so, determined to wait no +longer for that which seemed to be hopeless, he sailed from Dieppe on +the 22nd of April, and arrived at Leith on the 2nd of May, 1559. From +this time up till his decease, with the exception of a brief visit +which he made to England, Scotland was the sole scene of his labours; +and during these thirteen years the incidents of his public life became +part and parcel of the history of his country. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. vi. p. lxvi. + +[2] "Knox's Works," by Laing, vol. iv. p. 359. + +[3] Carlyle's Works, vol. xii. p. 137. + + + + +{115} + +CHAPTER IX. + +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559. + +The landing of Knox in Scotland was almost dramatic in its timeliness; +and though we cannot here undertake to rewrite the annals of the +period, we must as briefly as possible outline the situation. The +Queen Regent, who had so far succeeded in her temporizing policy as +even at one time to have secured the commendation of Knox, had now +openly declared herself as the enemy of the Reformation; and, at that +very moment, four of its preachers were under summons, at her instance, +to stand trial before the justiciary court at Stirling on the 10th of +May, for "administering without the consent of the ordinaries the +sacrament of the altar in a manner different from that of the Catholic +Church, during three several days of the late feast of Easter, in the +burghs and boundaries of Dundee, Montrose, and various other places in +the sheriffdoms of Forfar and Kincardine, and for convening the +subjects in these places, preaching to them, seducing them to their +erroneous doctrines, and exciting seditions and tumults." How things +had come to this crisis it is not hard to tell. {116} At the +consultation at which the "Godly Band" was adopted, the Reformers +agreed besides on these two things, viz. first, that prayers and the +lessons of the Old and New Testaments should be read in English, +according to the Book of Common Prayer, in every parish on Sundays and +festival days by the curates, or, if they refused, by such persons +within the bounds as were best qualified; and second, that the Reformed +preachers should teach in private houses only, until the government +should allow them to do so in public. In accordance with the latter of +these resolutions, the Protestant noblemen took preachers as private +chaplains into their homes, kept them under their protection, and +encouraged them in informal and domestic meetings to expound the word +of God. This soon came to the knowledge of the bishops, and the +primate, presuming on his influence with some of Argyle's friends, +wrote to that earl, expostulating with him for having John Douglas +under his care. Such interference provoked a very smart and stinging +retort; and the archbishop, falling back on the old tactics of +persecution, thought he would strike terror into the hearts of the +Protestants by another execution. He found a victim in Walter Mill, a +venerable old man, who, though condemned years before as a heretic by +Cardinal Beaton, had escaped the stake at that time, but was now +discovered and consigned to the flames, in the midst of which he +expired, with these pathetic and prophetic words upon his lips, "As for +me, I am four-score and two years old, and cannot live long by the +{117} course of nature, but a hundred better shall arise out of the +ashes of my bones. I trust in God I shall be the last to suffer death +in Scotland in this cause." This horrible deed--done on the 28th +August, 1558--thrilled the people into earnestness in a moment, and +determined them to make open profession of their adherence to the +Reformed worship, so that their ministers were emboldened to preach and +administer the sacraments in public, even without the permission of the +government, for which until then they had waited. + +Meanwhile, in the month of July, a formal petition had been presented +to the Regent by the Protestant barons, requesting her to restrain the +violence of the clergy, and asking liberty of worship according to a +restricted plan, to which they were willing to conform until their +grievances should be examined and redressed. To this she replied after +her usual plausible fashion, in such a way as to make them believe that +she was friendly to their proposals. But the hollowness of her words +is apparent from the fact that in the very same month she was in +consultation with the archbishop of St. Andrews, as to the course which +should be adopted for checking the Reformation; yet, as she needed the +help of the Protestants at the meeting of the Parliament in November +for the carrying of certain measures on which her heart was set, +nothing was done openly by her against them until after that date. In +December, however, she gave the primate such assurances of her support, +that he summoned the Reformed preachers to {118} appear before him at +St. Andrews on the and of February following, to answer the charges of +usurping the sacred office and of disseminating heresy. This +proceeding on his part stirred up the Protestant nobles, so that they +informed the Regent that if the trial went on they would be present to +see justice done, and she, fearing the consequences, prevailed upon the +archbishop to prorogue the trial. At the same time she summoned a +convention of the nobility to meet at Edinburgh on the 7th of March, +and induced the archbishop to call a provincial council of the clergy +to meet in the city on the first of the same month. + +When the clergy met, two representations were laid before them, one +from the Protestants, asking what they felt to be needed, and another +from persons still attached to the Roman Catholic faith, praying for +the redress of certain grievances in ecclesiastical administration; but +both were treated with indifference. A secret treaty had been entered +into by them with the Queen Regent, wherein they had promised to raise +a large sum of money to enable her to put down all heresy, and so in +the most uncompromising confidence they confirmed all the doctrines and +practices of the Church, and declared that both the preachers who +administered the sacraments after the Reformed manner, and those who +received them at their hands should be excommunicated. + +This action of theirs convinced the Reformers that nothing was to be +hoped for from the clergy, and the {119} treaty to which we have +referred having somehow come to their knowledge revealed to them that +they had just as little to hope for from the court; so they broke off +all further negotiations and left the city. But they had scarcely gone +when a proclamation was made at the Market Cross, by order of the +Regent, prohibiting any person from preaching or administering the +sacraments without authority from the bishops; and it was because they +had disregarded that injunction that Paul Methven, John Christison, +William Harlow, and John Willock were now summoned to appear at +Stirling on the 10th of May, before the Court of Justiciary. When, +therefore, Knox arrived at Leith on the 2nd of that month, he could +truly say that he had come "even in the brunt of the battle." Nor was +he dismayed thereat. Rather like the war-horse of the sacred poet, he +said among the trumpets Aha! and went forth rejoicing in his strength +to mingle in the fray. + +The next morning the announcement of his arrival to the provincial +council of the clergy which was still in session in Edinburgh broke up +that assembly in haste, but not before its members had despatched a +messenger with the news to the Queen Regent who was then at Glasgow, +and who a few days later proclaimed Knox as a rebel and an outlaw in +virtue of the sentence formerly pronounced against him in his absence +by the bishops. But all this counted for little with him, for after +waiting only a few hours at Edinburgh, he had already gone to Dundee, +where he found the Protestants of Angus and {120} neighbourhood +gathered in great numbers and determined to attend their ministers to +Stirling. Lest, however, they should do harm, when they only intended +to do good, they determined to halt at Perth, from which place they +sent forward Erskine of Dun to inform the Regent at Stirling of the +peaceable object of their approach. As usual, when she heard what he +had to say, she sought to gain time by temporizing. She authorized him +to promise in her name that the trial should not go on, and prevailed +on him to persuade them to give up their purpose. Accordingly the +larger number of them returned to their homes. But when the day +appointed for the trial came, the summons was called by the Regent's +orders, the ministers were outlawed for non-appearance, and all persons +were prohibited, under pain of being treated as rebels, from harbouring +or assisting them. Erskine, finding that he had been grievously +befooled, escaped from Stirling and carried the news to Perth, where on +the day of his arrival Knox preached a sermon in which he denounced the +idolatry of the mass, and on which consequences followed which he did +not at the moment anticipate. For after his discourse had been +concluded a priest "in contempt" uncovered a rich altar-piece and +prepared to celebrate mass, whereupon a youth uttered an exclamation of +indignation. This provoked the priest to strike him "a great blow," +and he retaliated "in anger" by throwing a stone at the priest, which +hit the altar and broke one of the images. This was the spark to which +the people were {121} as tow, and in the course of a few minutes +everything in the church that savoured of idolatry--altar, images, +ornaments and the like--was thrown down and demolished. The report of +this outbreak soon gathered a mob described by Knox as "not of the +gentlemen, neither of them that were earnest professors, but of the +rascal multitude," who finding nothing more to be done in the church +rushed to the monasteries of the Black and Grey Friars and to the +Charterhouse and laid them all in ruins. + +This was the beginning of that demolition of Roman Catholic edifices +for which Knox has been so grievously assailed. But, without entering +minutely into the merits of the question, and cheerfully admitting +that--owing to human imperfection--a work like that in which our +Reformer was engaged could not be carried through without the doing of +some things of which men in less troublous times must disapprove, we +must be permitted to advance the following considerations. First, the +outbreak at Perth was in a manner accidental, and was not either +premeditated or instigated by Knox. Second, when the work of purifying +the churches was systematically entered upon, special instructions were +given to those entrusted with it to guard against any injury to the +fabrics themselves; for in a document enjoining the purgation of the +Cathedral of Dunkeld and subscribed by Argyle and Ruthven on the 12th +August, 1560, the parties commissioned are thus addressed: "Fail not +ye, but that ye take good heed that neither the desks, {122} windows, +nor doors be anywise burnt or broken, either glass-work or iron-work." +Third, the work of absolute destruction was reserved for the +monasteries. Now we can clearly see the reason for such a distinction. +The churches were the property of the people, and after being cleansed +were preserved for the people's use; but the monasteries, as Burton +candidly admits, were in a manner "fortresses of the enemy," and as +such were demolished. Yet even for the destruction of them Knox and +his brethren are not solely to be blamed; for as the historian just +named has said[1]: "In the history of the invasions directed by King +Henry and Somerset we have seen enough to account for large items in +the ruin that overcame ecclesiastical buildings in Scotland. For +Melrose, Kelso, Jedburgh, and the many other buildings torn down in +these inroads, the Scots Reformers have no censure beyond that of +neutrality or passiveness. The ruined edifices were not restored as +they naturally would have been had the old Church remained +predominant." When all these things are taken into account, it will be +seen that there is very little foundation for the common outcry against +Knox in this matter. + +In the present instance the demolition of the monasteries by the mob in +Perth seriously complicated the situation, and gave the Regent an +advantage which she was not slow to improve. For in an address to the +nobility in Stirling, she so employed it as to succeed in getting their +assistance in advancing against Perth", _with {123} an army_, for the +purpose of putting down what she chose to call a dangerous rebellion. +The Reformers wrote to her disclaiming all such intention; but finding +her inflexible, they prepared to defend themselves, and were assisted +by the opportune arrival of Glencairn from Ayrshire, with 2,500 +volunteers. When therefore she reached Perth she discovered that her +force was greatly outnumbered by theirs, and she was obliged to accept +an "appointment," by which she engaged to leave the citizens unmolested +in the exercise of their religion, and they pledged themselves to +return to their homes. This agreement she violated in many ways, and +so finally lost the confidence and support of Argyle and Lord James +Stuart, both of whom had been thus far politically on her side, but now +cast in their lot whole-heartedly with the congregation. After this +experience the leaders determined to take a step in advance and set up +Protestant worship in those places where their own personal influence +or the adherence of the people promised success, and it was resolved to +begin at St. Andrews. They therefore set a day for Knox to meet them +in that city, where he arrived on the 9th of July. When the archbishop +learned that he intended to preach in the cathedral he sent a message +to his friends to the effect that, "In case John Knox presented himself +at the preaching-place in his town and principal church, he should make +him be saluted with a dozen of culverings, whereof the most part would +light upon his nose." This threat somewhat daunted those by whom he +was {124} accompanied, and they endeavoured to dissuade him from +preaching; but the reply of the Reformer takes its place beside +Luther's words on the way to Worms, for he said, "As for the fear of +danger that may come to me let no man be solicitous, for my life is in +the custody of Him whose glory I seek, and therefore I cannot so fear +their boast or tyranny that I will cease from doing my duty, when of +His mercy He offereth me the occasion. I desire the hand or weapon of +no man to defend me. I only crave audience, which if it be denied me +here I must seek further where I may have it." There was no resisting +such a determination, and the result justified his courage, for +remembering doubtless his own words years before, while a slave in the +French galley, he preached on the Sunday, nor on that day alone, but +also on the four next following, without seeing anything either of the +archbishop or his culverings; and such was the effect of his discourses +that the provost, magistrates, and inhabitants agreed to set up the +Reformed worship forthwith, and proceeded at once to strip the church +of its images and to pull down the monasteries. + +The report of all this taken to the Queen Regent in the palace of +Falkland by the archbishop, led to the affair of Cupar Muir, which +Carlyle has thus described after his own manner: "Not itself a fight, +but the prologue or foreshadow of all the fighting that followed. The +Queen Regent and her Frenchmen had marched in triumphant humour out of +Falkland, with their artillery ahead, soon after midnight, trusting to +find at St. Andrews {125} the two chief lords of the congregation, the +Earl of Argyle and Lord James Stuart (afterwards Regent Murray), with +scarcely a hundred men about them,--found suddenly that the hundred +men, by good industry over-night, had risen to an army; and that the +congregation itself, under these two lords, was here, as if by _tryst_, +at mid-distance, skilfully posted, and ready for battle either in the +way of cannon or of spear. Sudden halt of the triumphant Falklanders +in consequence; and after that a multifarious manoeuvring, circling, +and wheeling, now in clear light, now hidden in clouds of mist; Scots +standing steadfast on their ground, and answering message-trumpets in +an inflexible manner, till, after many hours, the thing had to end in +an 'appointment,' truce, or offer of peace, and a retreat to Falkland +of the Queen Regent and her Frenchmen, as from an enterprise +unexpectedly impossible."[2] + +From this place Knox accompanied the forces of the congregation to +Perth, and thence to Edinburgh, where on the 7th of July the +Protestants of the city chose him to be their minister, and then for +the first time his voice sounded through the cathedral of St. Giles in +ringing notes of trumpet power. But soon after the lords of the +congregation, having been compelled to conclude a treaty with the +Regent, by the terms of which they agreed to quit Edinburgh and deliver +it up to her, judged it unsafe that he, being so obnoxious to her, +{126} should remain there without their protection, and so, putting the +less objectionable John Willock for the time into his place, they set +him free for a preaching excursion through different parts of the +kingdom. + +How he wrought on that occasion, and where, he has himself described in +one of his letters thus: "I have been in continual travel since the day +of appointment (_i.e._ the treaty with the Regent), and notwithstanding +the fevers have vexed me the space of a month, yet have I travelled +through the most part of this realm, where all praise be to his blessed +Majesty, men of all sorts and conditions embrace the truth. Enemies we +have many, by reason of the Frenchmen who are lately arrived, of whom +all parties hope golden hills and such support as we are not able to +resist. We do nothing but go about Jericho, blowing with trumpets as +God giveth strength, hoping victory by His laws alone. Christ Jesus is +preached even in Edinburgh, and His blessed sacraments rightly +ministered in all congregations where the ministry is established; and +they be these, Edinburgh, St. Andrews, Dundee, Perth, Brechin, +Montrose, Stirling, and Ayr. And now Christ Jesus is begun to be +preached upon the south borders in Jedburgh and Kelso, so that the +trumpet soundeth over all, blessed be our God." + +This was written on the 2nd September, 1559, and on the 20th, his wife, +having obtained through the influence of Throckmorton, the English +ambassador at Paris, that permission to pass through England which had +been denied to her husband, reached Scotland in safety. Her {127} +mother came with her as far as Northumberland, and after remaining a +short time with her friends there, took up her abode in Knox's +household, and continued a member of his family, at least till the +death of her daughter, though some believe that even after that she +remained with him, with but a brief interval, till her own decease. +Mrs. Knox was accompanied by Christopher Goodman, who had been the +colleague of her husband in Geneva, and who continued to labour in +Scotland, first at Ayr and afterwards at St. Andrews, until his return +to England in 1565. + +But the work in Scotland was too great to be successfully carried out +by its own people, even if they had been united among themselves, +which, unhappily, they were not. The Reformers there had to contend +not only with the adherents of the papacy in their own land, but also +with the power and diplomacy of France, and therefore it was of the +utmost consequence that assistance from England should be secured. It +was, fortunately, also quite important for England that France should +be prevented from securing a permanent hold on Scotland; but it was +some time before the English queen could be induced to commit herself +in any way to the cause of the Scottish congregation; and many +negotiations were required before that result was obtained. Neither +into the details of these, nor into the particulars of the civil war, +which lasted at this time in Scotland for about a year, can we enter +here. They will be found at length in the pages of the historians; and +it may suffice in this {128} place to say that at last, as the fruit of +the mission of the younger Maitland to the English Court, Elizabeth +consented to send a fleet into the Firth of Forth, and an array across +the border; and that the ultimate issue was a treaty entered upon +during the siege of Leith, on the 7th July, 1560, which secured that +the French troops should be immediately removed from Scotland; that an +amnesty should be granted to all who had been engaged in the late +resistance to the Queen Regent; that the principal grievances in the +civil administration should be redressed; and that a Free Parliament +should be held to settle the affairs of the kingdom. + +Before this turn was given to matters, and at midnight between the 10th +and 11th of June, the Queen Regent, Mary of Lorraine, the mother of the +Queen of Scots, had passed away from the earth, and thus the stage was +as it were cleared for the important things which were so soon to be +achieved. The one Mary had gone to her account; the other had not yet +come from France to take personal possession of the throne of her +native land, and in the interval many things otherwise--humanly +speaking at least--unattainable were obtained. "The stars in their +courses" were fighting for the Reformation; the providence of God was +on its side, and blind indeed must the historian be who sees no +indication of that fact. But because we fully recognise His hand, it +is the more important that we distinctly note also the obliquities +which characterized the conduct of many of the human actors in these +transactions; and it is with a {129} sense of something like +mortification that we confess that even Knox did not stand the ordeal +without deterioration. He was, as Laing remarks, "a chief instigator +and agent" in the negotiations with England; and, for the most part, he +manifested the strictest integrity. But there is one letter extant +which prevents us from being able to say that he never lent his +countenance to deceit. He is writing to Sir James Croft requesting +that men should be sent by him to the help of the Reformers; and in +answer to the objection that the league between England and France made +it impossible to do that without offending France, he says,[3] "If ye +list to craft with them, the sending of a thousand men to us can break +no league nor point of peace contracted between you and France; for it +is free for your subjects to serve in war any prince or nation for +their wages; and if you fear that such excuses shall not prevail, you +may declare them rebels to your realm, when ye shall be assured that +they are in our company." We mention it that we may not be accused of +concealing any portion of the truth concerning him. We do not +extenuate it; we cannot vindicate it. We say only that it is, so far +as we know, the solitary instance of the kind in the extensive +correspondence of our Reformer; that it is a clear exception to the +general outspoken, and in some cases even indiscreet, frankness by +which he was characterized; and that, perhaps, he caught the infection +from those with whom he was treating, for Froude says of Elizabeth at +{130} this time, "It is certain only that on the one hand she was +distinctly doing, what as distinctly she said she was not doing; and on +the other, that she was holding out hopes which, if she could help it, +she never meant to fulfil;"[4] and even Cecil, as the same author +proves, was a master in the same kind of craft, so that his indignant +reference to Knox's proposal reads to us now like an illustration of +"Satan reproving sin." It was in truth, as Laing has said, "an age of +dissimulation;" but Knox knew better; he was before his age in other +things, and should have been above it in this. + +But enough, we gladly turn from censure to praise, and wish to direct +attention at this point to Knox's views concerning civil government. +There was an assembly of nobles, barons, and representatives of burghs +held at Edinburgh on the 21st of October, 1559, at which the propriety +or lawfulness of depriving the Queen Regent of her authority (which was +afterwards resolved upon) was debated; and before which John Willock +and Knox were asked to give their opinion on the question. Willock +alleged that the power of rulers is limited, that they might be +deprived of it on valid grounds; and that the fortification of Leith, +and the introduction of foreign troops into the kingdom, was a good +reason why the Regent should be divested of her authority. Knox, while +agreeing with what he had said, added that the assembly might safely +proceed on these principles, provided only that they did not suffer the +misconduct of {131} the Regent to alienate them from their allegiance +to their own proper sovereigns, Francis and Mary; that they were not +actuated by any private hatred of the Regent herself; and that any +sentence which they should now pronounce should not preclude her +re-admission to office if she afterwards acknowledged her error, and +agreed to submit to the estates of the realm. These sentiments, +considering the circumstances in which the Reformers were then placed, +were moderate and wise. They show how very far from revolutionary Knox +and his associates were; and it is no small praise to him to say that +in a struggle which strained everything to the utmost, he sought to +maintain law while striving after liberty, and was careful to +discriminate between condemnation of the manner in which an office was +filled, and repudiation of the office itself. The relation of the +Reformation from popery to civil liberty is a theme which might furnish +materials for a goodly volume, and space will not allow us to enlarge +upon it here; but it might be well in these days if more attention were +directed to the opinions of the Reformers regarding political +government, and the share which these have had in laying the foundation +of freedom, as it is now enjoyed in Great Britain and the United +States. So far as Knox is concerned, we could have no better summary +of his views on the subject than that which is given by his great +biographer, from which we quote the following sentence,[5] each clause +of which is amply confirmed by {132} McCrie in the learned and +elaborate note which he has appended to his statement:--"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 anything +contrary to the Divine law, natural or revealed; that in every free and +well-constituted government, the law of the land was superior to the +will of the prince; 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; that every +nation is entitled to provide and require that they shall be ruled by +laws which are agreeable to the Divine law, and calculated 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 violate this, employ that power for the +destruction of the commonwealth which was committed to them for its +preservation and benefit, or, in one word, if they shall become +habitual tyrants and notorious oppressors, that the people are absolved +from allegiance, and have a right to resist them, formally to depose +them from their place, and to elect others in their room." It may +surprise some of our readers to discover how fully Knox in these +particulars was abreast of many of the views of the most enlightened +Liberals of our generation; but even Major, the principal of the {133} +Glasgow University when Knox became a student, had struck out in the +same direction, and in one of his works[6] has declared that "a free +people first gives strength to a king, whose power depends on the whole +people;" and that "a people can discard or depose a king and his +children for misconduct just as it appointed him at first;" and similar +sentiments might be cited from the pages of Buchanan. Major taught +them in the class, and Buchanan wrote them in his works; but Knox gave +them utterance, and that too with such force, that they were widely +diffused among the people, so that in due season the divine-right +nonsense of the Stuarts was exploded, and the beginning of a new order +of things introduced. + +But even in this matter, advanced as he was, Knox was not entirely +above the narrowness of his age. In common with all the Reformers, and +the most of the Puritans, he held that the theocracy of the Jews was +the ideal state, and as a consequence, that it was the duty of the +civil government to punish idolatry with death, to set up and maintain +the true religion by all the means at its disposal, and to put down +heresy as rebellion. {134} Neither the statesmen nor the divines of +that age seem to have perceived that the true analogue to the Jewish +theocracy is the spiritual Church of Christ, and so we account for the +fact that they continually referred to the Old Testament as their +warrant for seeking to advance what they believed to be the truth, and +to put down what they considered to be error by force. They did not +remember that in the Jewish state God was in no mere figurative sense, +but really and absolutely the King, so that in it to fear God and to +honour the king was virtually the same thing, and sin in every form was +also _ipso facto_ crime, was indeed treason, as committed against the +head of the government, and so was punishable by civil pains and +penalties. Forgetting or not perceiving _that_, the Reformers took the +Jewish for the model constitution. In all the states which they sought +to remodel, they lost sight of the distinction between a theocracy and +an ordinary government, and confounded crime with sin, and sin with +crime. More especially they made the crime of crimes to be, the +resisting or not conforming to what they themselves believed to be the +true religion as revealed by God, and as such they punished that with +all severity. There is no instance indeed on record of Knox himself +being in any way mixed up with persecution, understanding by that word +merely the putting of one to death for religious practices or opinions. +No such controversy can be raised over him as that which has been held +regarding Calvin and the prosecution of Servetus. But they all alike +held {135} that it was the duty of the government to establish and +maintain, as a government, and that means by enactments enforced by +penalties, the true religion; and from that persecution follows; rather +let us say, in that persecution is involved. To this error, which, +however, was the common opinion of their times, may be traced most of +the difficulties in which they were involved in the prosecution of +their work. The world has been slow to come to it, but no perfect +liberty either in Church or in state is possible save through the +separation of the one from the other, and the restriction of each to +its own proper domain. When this shall be attained in Scotland and +England, then shall be the beginning of another era, as strongly marked +as that which began in the overthrow of the Papal Church three hundred +years ago. The course of our narrative takes us now into parliamentary +debates, and royal closets, fully as often as into assemblies of the +Church, and therefore before we enter upon this section of the history, +we deem it right to indicate once for all the views which we ourselves +hold upon the subject. It is the province of the biographer to +narrate, and he must not be held as endorsing everything which he +records. + + + +[1] "History of Scotland," vol. iii. p. 354. + +[2] "An Essay on the Portraits of John Knox," pp. 139-140. "Works," +vol. xii. + +[3] "Works," vol. vi. p. 90. + +[4] Froude's "History of England," vol. vi. p. 273. + +[5] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. p. 149. + +[6] "De Historia Gentis Scotorum," book iv. chap. 22. I am indebted +for these citations to my late friend, Dr. J. M. Ross, whose researches +into the literature of Scotland have been recently published, and whose +early death is mourned by all who knew his worth. His work on the +Pre-reformation Literature of Scotland is a perfect thesaurus of +precious things, and has attracted the widest attention. + + + + +{136} + +CHAPTER X. + +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560. + +The meeting of Parliament, provided for in the Treaty of Leith, was +opened with great ceremony on the 1st of August, 1560, and was attended +by an unusually large number of members. Knox "improved" the occasion +by preaching from the cathedral pulpit a series of expository sermons +on the prophecies of Haggai, with special application to the +circumstances of the country at the time. On his own showing he was +"vehement," and as he inveighed strongly against those who had been +enriched with the revenues of the Church, his words gave great offence +to many. Maitland sneeringly said, "What! we must now forget ourselves +and bear the barrow to build the house of God,"--words which already +showed that spirit of insincerity which afterwards took him into the +opposite camp. The great matter before this Parliament, after it had +approved the articles of the treaty, was the settlement of religion, +and as a preliminary to that the ministers were requested to draw up a +summary statement of "that doctrine which they would maintain as +wholesome and true, and only {137} necessary to be believed." This +work was done by them in four days, at the end of which they produced +the Confession which Knox has given at full length in his history. It +is all but certain that he had a considerable hand in its preparation, +and it has been described by the younger McCrie as "remarkably free +from metaphysical distinctions and minutiae," and as "running in an +easy style, and in fact reading like a good sermon in old Scotch." It +is, of course, Calvinistic, but in the article on election, there is +nothing of either reprobation or preterition. In that on the Lord's +Supper it repudiates alike the doctrine of transubstantiation, and that +of those who believe it to be "nothing else but a naked and bare sign," +insisting on some mystical influence as connected with it, but yet +confessing that such influence is given "neither at that only time, nor +yet by the proper power of the sacraments only," so that it is +exceedingly difficult to get from it a definite statement of what +precisely the "grace" in the sacrament is; but that difficulty is felt, +in our judgment, as seriously by those who desire to reduce to plain +language the words of the Westminster standards on the same subject. +In the section which treats of the authority of Scripture, there is no +attempt to formulate any theory of inspiration, but simply a +declaration that "in those books which of the ancients have been +reputed canonical, all things necessary to be believed for the +salvation of mankind are sufficiently expressed," and an affirmation +that "such as allege the Scriptures to have no other authority, but +that which is received from {138} the Kirk (Church) are blasphemous +against God, and injurious to the true Kirk, which always heareth and +obeyeth the voice of her own spouse and pastor, and taketh not on her +to be mistress of the same." On the subject of the civil magistrate +its words run thus: "That to kings, princes, rulers, and magistrates, +we affirm that chiefly and most principally the reformation and +purgation of the religion appertains; so that not only they are +appointed for civil policy, but also for maintenance of the true +religion, and for suppressing of idolatry and superstition, as in +David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah, and others highly commended for +their zeal, in that case may be espied," a statement which amply +confirms what we have just said regarding the position taken by the +Reformers on this matter. We ought to add, however, that according to +Randolph, the representative of the English Court, who was present on +the occasion of the ratification of the Confession, the section on the +civil magistrate had been expunged by Maitland, to whose revision, as +well as that of the Lord James Stuart, it had been submitted, and by +whom certain strong phrases in other parts of the document had been +softened. In Knox's history we have no word of anything like that, but +simply the Confession as it was actually ratified, and in that a +paragraph on the civil magistrate stands with the rest. But as there +is in that paragraph a good deal about the prerogatives of rulers, and +the duty of obedience to them, while there is no word of the limits of +allegiance to them, and the right of {139} resisting them when they +violate either the laws of the realm or the dictates of conscience, on +both of which points we know that Knox and his brethren held strong +convictions, it is probable that at first the article contained some +things on these aspects of the question, which were afterwards stricken +out, by the two men whom we have named, as being likely if retained to +imperil the acceptance of the document as a whole. This is only a +conjecture of our own, but it is not inherently improbable, and it +serves to harmonize the statement of Randolph with the appearance in +Knox's history of a chapter on the civil magistrate in the Confession +as adopted. + +This summary of doctrine was laid before Parliament, and carefully read +over article by article. Then, that no one should have a pretext for +complaining of undue haste, its further consideration was adjourned to +another day, the 17th of August, on which it was almost unanimously +accepted, and "ratified by the three estates of the realm." This was +followed on the 24th of the same month by the passing of Acts +abolishing the jurisdiction of the Pope in Scotland, repealing all +former statutes passed in favour of the Roman Catholic Church, and +ordaining that all who said mass, or heard mass, should for the first +offence be punished with confiscation of goods, for the second with +banishment, and for the third with death. Thus on the very threshold +of their undertaking they manifested the same intolerance from which +they had themselves suffered so much. + +{140} + +With a view to the proper organization of the Protestant Church, the +Lords of the Privy Council appointed Knox, along with five other +ministers, to draw up a plan of reconstruction which in their judgment +should be both agreeable to Scripture and practicable in the +circumstances of the country at the time. The outcome of their labours +was that scheme of Church government and order, which is known in +Scottish ecclesiastical history as "The First Book of Discipline." It +specifies the officers of the Church, permanent and temporary, +describes the manner of their election and appointment, particularizes +their duties, and gives principles for guidance as to general +discipline, while it also furnishes directions as to the celebration of +marriages and the conducting of funerals. At the same time it outlines +with great fulness a magnificent system of national education, such as +Scotland is only now beginning to realize, though for centuries it has +enjoyed something of an approximation to it. + +This "Book" is one of extreme interest, and is worthy of far more +attention from the mass of the people in these days than it has +received, or perhaps is likely to receive; but to whet the appetites of +our readers for the enjoyment of the work itself, we shall give some +general notion of its contents. The permanent officers in the Church +were ministers, elders, and deacons. The ministers were to be elected +by the people, but in case they neglected to do that duty within forty +days the Church of the superintendent with his council was to {141} +"present" to them a man whom they judged apt to feed the flock, yet it +was always to be avoided "that any man be violently intruded or thrust +in upon any congregation." Thus Knox and his brethren were +"non-intrusionists;" yet we doubt if in the famous controversy which +ended in 1843, they would have come up to the party standard, for the +"Book" says: "But violent intrusion we call not, when the council of +the Kirk, in the fear of God, and for the salvation of the people, +offereth unto them a sufficient man to instruct them, whom they shall +not be forced to admit before examination." Then elsewhere it is said, +"If his doctrine is wholesome and able to instruct the simple, and if +the Kirk can justly reprehend nothing in his life, doctrine, or +utterance, then we judge the Kirk which before was destitute +unreasonable if they refuse him whom the Kirk did offer, and _they +should be compelled by the censure of the council and Kirk_, to receive +the person appointed and approved by the judgment of the godly and +learned." Where was "the veto without reasons" then? And on whose +side was the First Book of Discipline? or was it on both sides? The +minister so chosen or appointed was to give proof of his gifts by +interpreting before the men of soundest judgment in the neighbourhood, +some place of Scripture selected by his brethren in office. He was +also to be examined openly "before all that list to hear," by the +ministers and elders of the Kirk, "in all the chief points that now lie +in controversy betwixt us and the Papists, {142} Anabaptists, Arians, +or other such enemies of the Christian religion." Next he was to +preach to the congregation calling him, that in open audience of his +flock he might give confession of his faith in full. Then public +"edict" was to be proclaimed, not only in the church where he was to +serve, but also in other places, especially in those in which he had +formerly lived, that if there was known any reason why he should not be +appointed to the ministry it should be shown. If everything were +satisfactory, the manner of his installation to office was to consist +in the consent of the people to whom he was appointed and the +approbation of the learned ministers by whom he was examined. The +admission was to be "in open audience." After a sermon by some +"especial minister" on the duty and office of ministers, exhortations +were to be given to minister and people, and this paragraph follows: +"Other ceremony than the public approbation of the people and +declaration of the chief minister, that the person there presented is +appointed to serve that Kirk, we cannot approve; for albeit the +apostles used the imposition of hands, yet seeing the miracle is +ceased, the using of the ceremony we judge is not necessary." Most +evidently John Knox believed in "_order_," but just as evidently he did +not believe in "_orders_," and there is no place here for the doctrine +of "succession." + +The elders and deacons were to be chosen by the people _annually_, from +among a list given by the minister, and if Churches be of smaller +number than that such {143} office-bearers can be chosen from among +them, they may be joined to the next adjacent Church. We have here +therefore the "rotatory" eldership, as it has been called by some in +America, recognised in principle, and the reason given for it is "lest +that by long continuance of such officials men presume upon the liberty +of the Church." Those holding the office were eligible for +re-election, but they must be appointed yearly "by common and free +election." In another place he says: "This order has been ever +observed since that time in the Kirk of Edinburgh, that is that the old +session before their departure nominate twenty-four in election for +elders, of whom twelve are to be chosen, and thirty-two for deacons, of +whom sixteen are to be elected, which persons are publicly proclaimed +in the audience of the whole Kirk, upon a Sunday before noon, after +sermon, with admonition to the Kirk, that if any man know any notorious +crime or cause that might unfit any of these persons to enter in such +vocation they should notify the same unto the session the next +Thursday; or if any know any persons more able for that charge, they +should notify the same unto the session, to the end that no man, either +present or absent, being one of the Kirk, should complain that he was +spoiled of his liberty in election." The duty of the elders was to +assist the minister in the oversight and discipline of the flock; and +that of the deacons was to superintend the revenues of the Church and +to take care of the poor. + +Besides these permanent offices, two others were {144} recommended for +the meeting of present emergencies. There were first a class of men +called Readers, whose duty it was to read the Common Prayers and the +Scriptures, in places still destitute of properly qualified ministers, +and which otherwise would have had no service of any sort for public +worship or instruction. They were restricted to the function of +reading, and hence their name; but they were encouraged to prosecute +their studies, and if they advanced satisfactorily they were permitted, +after examination, to append some exhortations to their readings, and +then they were called Exhorters. In addition to these, and at the +other end of the scale, the Book recommended the appointment of ten +Superintendents, each of whom was to have the supervision of a district +over which he was required regularly to travel for the purpose of +preaching, planting Churches, and inspecting the conduct of ministers, +exhorters, and readers. Some have maintained that in this there was a +recognition of Episcopacy, but as Dr. Laing has shown, the office was +merely temporary, and the number never exceeded the five who were first +appointed. Like other ministers the superintendent was subject to the +Assembly, and might be censured, superseded, or deprived of his office +by its decision. These office-bearers were to be appointed in the +first instance by the Privy Council, or by a commission appointed by +that body for the purpose; but, afterwards, by the whole ministers of +the district to be superintended, from a list of names already +proclaimed by the ministers, elders, {145} and deacons with the +magistrates and council of the chief town in the province; and for his +installation a form is given, with a list of the questions to be +proposed to him, and the answers to be given by him. It is added that +"the superintendent being elected and appointed to his charge, must be +subjected to the censure and correction of the ministers and elders, +not only of his chief town, but also of the whole province over the +which he is appointed overseer." + +It may be added here, that "The Book of Common Order" makes mention of +still another class of office-bearers, called Teachers or Doctors, who +were to be men of learning for the exposition of God's word, and whose +nearest modern equivalent seems to us to be the professors in +theological seminaries, but it is said "for lack of opportunity we +cannot well have the use thereof." + +In regard to the sacraments the "Book of Discipline" lays down that the +Lord's Supper should be observed after the manner already described by +us when we were treating of Knox's ministry in Berwick. In great towns +it was recommended that it should be observed four times in the year, +and in order to keep off Easter, the first Sundays in March, June, +September, and December are suggested, because "we study to suppress +superstition." It was also specified that in large towns there should +be daily sermon, or else common prayer, with some exercise of reading +the Scriptures; and in smaller places there should be at least one day +besides the {146} Sunday appointed for sermon and prayer. Baptism +might be administered wherever the word was preached, but it is alleged +to be more expedient that it be on the Sunday, and never in private +unless accompanied by the preaching of the word; for as the Book of +Common Order says, "The sacraments are not ordained of God to be used +in private corners as charms or sorceries, but left to the congregation +and necessarily annexed to God's word as seals of the same." We admit +the clause about "charms," but with the household baptisms of the +Scriptures before us, and the other baptisms, which were +administered--as it were "extempore"--by the apostles in the house of +the jailer and the house of Cornelius, we are not quite so sure about +the rest of "the rubric." Marriages were not to be entered into +secretly, but in open face and audience of the church; the place for +their celebration, therefore, was the church, and the time recommended +was Sunday before sermon. It was suggested that there should be no +service of any sort at funerals; but it is added, "Yet we are not so +precise but that we are content that particular kirks use services in +that behalf, with the consent of the ministry of the same, as they +shall answer to God, and to the assembly of the Church gathered within +the realm." + +But the most interesting portion of the Book of Discipline, perhaps, to +us in these days, is that which refers to education, contemplating as +it did the erection of a school in every parish for the instruction of +the {147} young in the grammar of their own language, in the Latin +tongue, and in the principles of religion; the setting up in every +notable town of a "college" for the teaching of "the arts, at least, +logic and rhetoric, and the tongues;" and finally the establishment in +the "towns accustomed,"--that is Aberdeen, St. Andrews, and +Glasgow,--of Universities with full appointments which are minutely +described. These were to be supported, stipends were to be furnished +for the superintendents, ministers, and readers, and suitable provision +made for ministers' widows, and orphan children, out of the confiscated +revenues of the Church, the bishops, and the cathedral establishments, +together with the rents arising from the endowments of monasteries and +other religious foundations. + +The "Common Prayer" so frequently referred to was no doubt "the order +of Geneva which is now used in some of our kirks," as the words within +inverted commas quoted from the Book of Discipline make clear. That +book had been prepared for the English congregation of Geneva during +Knox's pastorate there; and with such changes as the difference of +circumstances made necessary, it came to be adopted by the Scottish +General Assembly in 1564. Our reference to it here, therefore, is a +little premature, as we are now writing of events that occurred in +1560; but it may be convenient, as we are treating of the organization +of the Scottish Church, to dispose of the matter, once for all, in this +place. As we have already incidentally {148} recorded, it was agreed +by those who entered into the "Godly Band," that "common prayers" be +read in the parish churches on Sundays by the curates if they +consented, or if they refused, by such persons within the bounds as +were best qualified to do so. This probably was meant to specify the +second Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., yet as Dr. Laing remarks, and +the reasoning of Dr. McCrie on the subject tends to confirm his +statement, "the adoption of that book could only have been to a partial +extent, and of no long continuance." He proceeds thus: "But this, +after all, is a question of very little importance, although it has +been keenly disputed, for it is well to remember that at this period +there were no settled parish churches, and as there were no special +congregations either in Edinburgh or in any of the principal towns +throughout the country, no ministers had been appointed. The lords of +the congregation and their adherents were much too seriously concerned +in defending themselves from the Queen Regent and her French +auxiliaries, and more intent for that purpose on obtaining the +necessary aid from England, than to be at all concerned about points of +ritual importance. In the following year, when the French troops were +expelled from Scotland, and the Protestant cause was ultimately +triumphant, we may conjecture that, in some measure swayed by the +avowed dislike of Knox to the English service book, the preference was +given to the forms of Geneva. We hear at least no more word of the +English Prayer-Book, and {149} in the "Book of Discipline," prepared in +December, 1560, the only form mentioned is "Our Book of Common Order," +and "The Book of our Common Order, called the Order of Geneva." There +is also in existence a copy of an edition of that book printed in +Edinburgh in 1562, which shows its actual use at that time. Afterwards +it was found needful to have it enlarged, and the metrical version of +the Psalms, taken in large proportion from Sternhold and Hopkins, and +accompanied with appropriate tunes, was appended to it. We cannot go +into all the details of each part of the service here, but will content +ourselves with giving the order which it follows. It begins with a +confession of faith of considerable extent, but following the lines of +the Apostles' Creed of which it is an expansion; then come sections in +the order in which we name them, and respectively entitled--Of the +Ministers and their Election, Of the Elders and as Touching their +Office and Election; Of the Weekly Assembly of the Ministers, Elders +and Deacons; Of the Interpretation of the Scriptures. After these +comes the sanctuary service proper, consisting first of a prayer of +confession, of which a choice of one or other of three forms is given, +or perhaps it may have been intended that all three should be used, for +the book is not so explicit here as elsewhere; second, a psalm to a +plain tune sung by the people; third, a prayer by the minister for the +assistance of God's Holy Spirit, for which no form is given, and the +minister is to offer it as the Holy Spirit shall move his heart; +fourth, the {150} sermon; fifth, a prayer for the whole state of +Christ's Church, and for the Queen and her council, and the whole body +of the commonwealth; sixth, the Apostles' Creed; seventh, a psalm sung +by the people; eighth, the Benediction, after one or other of two +forms, to wit, that of Aaron and his sons, or that of the apostle at +the end of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, but in both instances +"us" is substituted for "you;" and so the congregation departeth. To +this are appended the Genevan form of prayer after sermon; and another +form to be used after sermon, on the week-day appointed for common +prayer; prayers used in the churches of Scotland during the time of +their persecution by the French; the thanksgiving after their +departure; and a prayer for the general assemblies of the Church. It +will be observed that nothing is here said of the reading of the +Scriptures, but this was not because that was under-valued, but because +the reader, who was in many cases the minister's assistant, had +already, before the commencement of the service proper, attended to +that duty in the hearing of the people. So far were Knox and his +friends from slurring over that exercise, that in the Book of +Discipline this characteristic passage occurs: "Further, we think it a +thing most expedient and necessary that every church have a Bible in +English, and that the people be commanded to convene to hear the plain +reading or interpretation of the Scriptures as the Church shall +appoint, that by frequent reading this gross ignorance, which in the +{151} accursed papistry hath overflown all, may partly be removed. We +think it most expedient that the Scriptures be read in order, that is, +that some one book of the Old and the New Testament be begun and +orderly read to the end. And the same we judge of preaching, where the +minister for the most part remaineth in one place; for this skipping +and divagation from place to place, be it in reading, be it in +preaching, we judge not so profitable to edify the Church, as the +continual following of one text." + +The order for baptism follows: the father, or in his absence the +godfather, is to rehearse the articles of his faith (this mention of +the godfather is interesting, and some may be surprised to learn, that +at the baptisms in Geneva of Knox's two sons, who were born there, +Whittingham was godfather to the one and Miles Coverdale to the other); +the minister follows with an exposition of the Creed; after that comes +a prayer; then the minister taketh water in his hand, layeth it on the +child's forehead, repeating the words of the formula of baptism, and +closes with an offering of thanks. The Book of Discipline had already +disallowed the sign of the cross, all anointings, and the like. This +is followed by "the manner of the Lord's Supper," into which we need +not go, as that has been already described. Then there is a single +sentence on burial, discouraging services at the grave; but after +burial "the minister, if he be present and required, goeth to the +church if it be not far off, and maketh some comfortable exhortation to +the {152} people touching death and resurrection." The book concludes +with "The Order of Ecclesiastical Discipline," pointing out the three +causes of discipline--the two kinds of discipline private and public, +and the like. There is in it no form for marriage; but that could be +supplied from the "Order of Geneva," which in this respect follows the +lines of other ecclesiastical books. + +This "Book of Common Order" has often been called "John Knox's +Liturgy," and within due limitations it is not inaccurately so +denominated; but the term is apt to be misleading, and it needs to be +added that the forms contained in it are not prescribed for constant +and exclusive use, but are given more in the way of a directory to +ministers as to the conduct of the service. The "Readers" of course +were restricted to them; but ministers were left free to use them or +not at their discretion. Thus we find in what we may call the +"rubrics" such expressions as these: "When the congregation is +assembled at the hour appointed, the minister useth one of these two +confessions, _or like in effect_;" "the minister after the sermon useth +this prayer following, or _such like_." Similar liberty is given as to +the prayers in the forms for baptism and the Lord's Supper; and at the +end of the form for the service on the Sunday we have this general +statement: "It shall not be necessary for the minister daily to repeat +all these things before mentioned; but beginning with some manner of +confession, to proceed to the sermon, which ended, he useth either the +prayer for all estates before mentioned, or else {153} prayeth as the +Spirit of God shall move his heart, framing the same according to the +time and manner which he hath entreated of." Thus the position of the +book, as concerns the debate between liturgy proper and free prayer, is +one of liberty, furnishing forms to those who wished to use them, and +leaving those who did not to pray as the Spirit moved them; but showing +to both alike what order was to be observed in the service as a whole, +what subjects were to be introduced into the prayers, and in what order +and connection they were to be brought into them. It ought to be noted +also that this book gave a great impulse to congregational singing of +psalms, which was adopted instead of that of choral anthems; and the +fashion now so universal, of printing the tunes in connection with the +Psalms, was followed, if not indeed introduced, so far as Scotland is +concerned by it. But though Knox had undoubtedly a hand in the +preparation and sanction of this so-called Liturgy, Dr. Laing has +unqualifiedly affirmed "that in no instance do we find himself using +set forms of prayer." The importance of the subject in itself, and the +general interest now felt in it by most of the Presbyterian and +Congregational Churches alike in Great Britain and America, must be our +apology for going so fully into this interesting history, and for +setting, as far as we may, the exact truth about it before the reader. + +But we must now resume the thread of our narrative. The Book of +Discipline never was so ratified as to become the law of the land. Its +general outlines, {154} indeed, were followed in the organization of +the Church; but though it received the signatures of many members of +the Privy Council, it was bitterly opposed by others--by some because +they were unwilling to disgorge the share of the Church's patrimony of +which they had taken possession, and by others because of their +aversion to the strict moral _surveillance_ to which it would have +subjected them. Knox puts the matter in a nutshell when he says: +"Everything that impugned to their corrupt affections was called in +their mockage a 'devout imagination.' The cause we have already +declared: some were licentious; some had greedily gripped to the +possessions of the Kirk; and others thought that they would not lack +their part of Christ's coat, and that before ever He was hanged, as by +the preachers they were oft rebuked." The final arrangement of the +temporalities was made later, when the ecclesiastical revenues were +divided into three parts, two of which were given to the ejected popish +clergy for their lives; and the other was divided between the court and +the Protestant ministers. + +As to the conduct of public worship the General Assembly of the Church +passed an Act in December, 1562, which enacted that "one uniform order +shall be taken in the administration of the sacraments, solemnization +of marriages, and burial of the dead, according to the Book of Geneva"; +and in December, 1564, it was ordained by the same body "that minister, +exhorter, and reader shall have one of the psalm books lately printed +in Edinburgh and use the order contained {155} therein, in prayers, +marriage, and ministration of the sacraments." + +In the latter part of 1560 Knox entered upon his ministry in Edinburgh, +with the Cathedral of St. Giles as his parish church, and John Cairns +as his assistant or reader. The city council provided for his lodging +a house at the Netherbow Port, which had been that of the Abbot of +Dunfermline, and which is now the property of the Free Church of +Scotland, by whom it is preserved as a memorial of the Reformer. The +council assigned him at first a stipend of £200, besides discharging +his house rent. After the settlement by the Privy Council above +alluded to, he received at least a part of his stipend from the common +fund of the ministers--for there was an "equal dividend" of the portion +given to the Protestant clergy--and the city council added to that what +was necessary to bring it up to the sum originally given. An +interesting illustration of their care for his comfort is furnished in +the Act of council of date 30th October, 1561, which runs thus: "The +same day the provost, bailies, and council ordains the Dean of Guild +with all diligence to make a warm study of deals to the minister John +Knox, within his house above the hall of the same, with light and +windows thereunto, and all other necessaries." But before that time a +dark shadow had fallen upon his dwelling, for toward the end of +December, 1560, his wife died, leaving him with his two boys to mourn +her loss. + +Public affairs just then also had a threatening aspect. {156} Mary and +her husband, the King of France, persistently refused either to ratify +the Treaty of Leith, or to confirm the settlement of the Reformed +Church, and were preparing a French army for the invasion of Scotland; +while agents of the Roman Catholic Church were sent over to rally the +adherents of the old faith. But "man proposes and God disposes," for +before the projected invasion could be carried out Francis II. died (on +December 5th, 1560), and Lord James Stuart was sent by a convention of +the nobility to France, not, as some have alleged, to invite Mary to +Scotland, but as Lord James himself wrote to Cecil, "for declaration of +our duty and devotion to her highness." Before his departure he +was--we quote from Knox's "History"'--"plainly premonished that if ever +he condescended that she should have mass publicly or privately said +within the realm of Scotland, that then betrayed he the cause of God, +and exposed the religion even to the uttermost danger that he could do. +That she should have mass publicly, he affirmed that he never should +consent, but to have it secretly in her chamber, who could stop her? +The danger was shown, and so he departed." He left Edinburgh on the +18th of March, and on the 19th of August, 1561, Mary arrived in +Scotland, where she was received with every demonstration of +enthusiastic welcome. + + + + +{157} + +CHAPTER XI. + +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563. + +Beautiful in person, attractive in manner, able, acute, brilliant even, +in intellect, Mary Stuart had many qualities which might have been +turned to good account for the welfare of her country. But, brought up +in a French court, her moral code was neither of the highest nor the +purest; educated under the supervision of her uncles of Lorraine, she +was taught to believe that the one great object of her life was to +advance the interests of the Roman Catholic Church; and sister-in-law +to him whose name is for ever blackened by the massacre of St. +Bartholomew, she was not likely to be over scrupulous as to the means +which she would employ to gain her end. So far as she had shaped a +policy to herself, when she came to Scotland, it would seem to have +been to temporize with the Protestants, until she had time either to +fascinate them by the spell of her personal magnetism or to crush them +by her power; then to make the throne of Scotland a stepping-stone to +that of England, to which she claimed to be the lawful heir, and so to +bring that realm also back {158} to its allegiance to the Pope. This +made her and Elizabeth implacable enemies. They were neighbours; they +were cousins; they were queens, these two, and the struggle between +them was to the death. One or other must go down. Each played a deep +and deceitful game, but Elizabeth was moved by ambition for herself, +while Mary was devoted to a cause, and so it is that as she lays her +head upon the block at Fotheringay it is encircled with the halo of a +kind of martyrdom, and the eye of the sternest judge is for the moment +blinded to the guilt of her life by the tear of pity which dims it as +he looks upon the manner of its close. + +Knox and she from the very first seem to have singled each other out +for a conflict hand to hand. He saw that everything which he counted +dear depended on the manner in which she was dealt with; and she +perceived that he was the moving spirit in that religious revolt which +it was her mission to put down. He feared the effect of her +blandishments upon others, and she recognised the magnitude of his +influence upon the people. He saw that if she could be baffled in her +efforts to re-establish popery in the land, the victory would be +finally won; and she felt that so long as he had the opportunity of +swaying the multitude by the fervour of his eloquence, there was no +hope of gaining the end on which her heart was fixed. He was afraid of +the effect of what his friend Campbell of Kingzeancleugh called "the +sprinkling of the holy water of the court" upon the less reliable of +his adherents; and she feared the fervour of {159} his prayers to God, +and the power of his appeals to his fellow-men. So there came to be +for some time a kind of duel between them, and the issue was at last a +victory for Knox. We need not approve unqualifiedly of everything +which he did or said in the course of the struggle, yet we must rejoice +in the result, for Knox "builded better than he knew," and secured, not +immediately but ultimately, the triumph of a larger liberty than that +which he at the time believed in; while she was the representative of +absolute power, and of a feudalism which looked upon the common people +as existing for her convenience and aggrandisement rather than upon +herself as the servant of the state. "What are you in this +commonwealth?" was her haughty question to him on one occasion. "A +subject born within the same," was his ever-memorable answer, and the +outcome of it has been that now in the land he loved the sovereign is +for the subjects, and not the subjects for the sovereign; it is a +little difference verbally, but in reality the gulf between the two is +that which divides freedom from slavery. + +The first collision between them occurred a few days after her landing. +Naturally enough, as some may think, she gave orders for the +celebration of a solemn mass in the chapel of Holyrood on the first +Sabbath after her arrival. She knew of the law passed by the +Parliament in 1560; she had probably heard from Lord James Stuart the +warning which had been given to him when he went to France, and +therefore this act on her {160} part was a virtual throwing down of the +gauge of battle at the feet of the Protestants. And thus they +themselves interpreted it. Some may imagine that they attached undue +importance to it; yet as Protestantism is still insisted on as a _sine +quâ non_ to succession to the British throne, those who approve the +continuance of the Revolution settlement cannot consistently condemn +them. Moreover, it is not to be forgotten that to the Reformers the +mass was more than even an idolatrous service. It was a sign of many +other things: thumbscrews, racks, galley chains, gibbets and the like, +which were inseparably connected with papal supremacy, and in truth, as +one has said, "A man sent to row in French galleys and such like for +teaching the truth in his own land, cannot always be in the mildest +humour." When therefore her purpose became known, great excitement was +created among the Protestants, and some spoke of preventing her by +force from carrying it out; but Knox used his influence in private, +against such a proposal. On the following Sunday, however, from his +pulpit he showed his sense of the gravity of the crisis, when, after +exposing the idolatry that was in the mass, he alleged that "one mass +was more fearful unto him than if ten thousand armed enemies were +landed in any part of our realm of purpose to suppress the whole +religion." Hearing of this outburst Mary sent for him to the palace, +whether of her own motive or at the suggestion of others is not known, +and he had then, in the presence of Lord James Stuart, the first of +{161} those interviews which have been so harped upon by his +vituperators. We must refer our readers for the details to Knox's own +account in his "History," which has been little more than simply +modernised by McCrie, and must content ourselves with a mere summary of +what occurred. She began by attacking him for the writing of the +"First Blast," and after he had vindicated himself as best he could for +that, she charged him with having taught the people to receive a +religion different from that which was allowed by their princes. This +brought out his views as to the limits of obedience to civil rulers, +and on her interpreting his words to mean that her subjects should obey +him and not her, he vehemently repudiated that misapprehension, and +alleged that both rulers and subjects should obey God, and that kings +should be foster-fathers, and queens nursing-mothers to His Church. +That elicited the question from her which is the Church of God? and for +answer thereto he referred her to the Scriptures. This in its turn +raised the inquiry whose interpretation of Scripture was to be +accepted? which he answered by laying down the duty of private judgment +and of the comparing of one part of Scripture with another. At length +she very humbly remarked that she was not able to contend with him, but +that if she had those present with her whom she had heard they could +answer him, and he expressed his readiness to meet before her in +argument "the learnedest papist in Europe." To this she somewhat +tartly retorted, "You may perchance get that sooner {162} than you +believe," and he replied a little sarcastically to the effect that if +he ever got it, then indeed it would be sooner than he believed. He +took his leave in this courtly yet scriptural fashion, "Madame, I pray +God that you may be as blessed within the commonwealth of Scotland as +ever Deborah was in the commonwealth of Israel." + +Thus for the first time they measured their strength, and the result +was, in common speech, a draw. Mary found that Knox was made of more +unyielding stuff than those whom heretofore she had been in the habit +of meeting; and John formed an estimate of Mary's ability which his +subsequent experience only served to confirm. It was to be no child's +play between them. He could not afford to give so subtle and ready an +adversary the least advantage. Writing to Cecil after this interview +he says, "The Queen neither is, neither shall be of our opinion, and in +very deed her whole proceedings do declare that the cardinal's lessons +are so deeply printed in her heart that the substance and the quality +are like to perish together. I would be glad to be deceived, but I +fear I shall not. In communication with her I espied such craft as I +have not found in such age." + +Matters went on after this with tolerable quietness for months, and +Knox kept up his stated labours as the minister of Edinburgh. What +these were seem now to be surprising. He preached twice every Sunday, +and thrice besides during the week on other days. He met regularly +once a week with his elders for the oversight of {163} the flock; and +attended weekly the assembly of the ministers, for what was called "the +exercise on the Scriptures." These stated and constant labours, with +the addition of frequent journeyings by appointment of the General +Assembly to perform in distant parts of the country very much the duty +of a superintendent for the time, were exceedingly exhausting; and the +city council, wishing to relieve him of some of his duties, came (in +April, 1562) to a resolution to call the minister of the Canongate to +undertake the half of his charge; but their object was not accomplished +till June of the following year, when John Craig became his colleague. + +Meanwhile the Reformer came again into collision with the court. In +the beginning of March, 1562, the Duke of Guise and the Cardinal +Lorraine made that assault on a peaceable and defenceless congregation +of Huguenots, which is known in French history as the Massacre of +Vassy; and when the report of that was received by Mary, she was so +delighted that she gave in honour of the occasion a splendid ball in +the palace to her foreign servants, by whom dancing was kept up to a +very late hour. This act of hers was exceedingly painful to Knox, for +he had many warm friends among the Protestants of France, and his heart +was saddened by the tidings of the treatment to which they had been +subjected. Accordingly he gave vent to his feelings in his pulpit on +the following Sunday, when he preached from the text, "Be wise now, ye +kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth." After discoursing on +the dignity {164} of magistrates and the obedience which was due to +them, he lamented and condemned the vices to which they were too +commonly addicted, and made some severe strictures on their conduct, +affirming, among other things, "that they were more exercised in +fiddling and flinging, than in reading or hearing God's word," and that +"fiddlers and flatterers" (John was evidently fond of alliteration) +"were more precious in their eyes than men of wisdom and gravity." The +report of his discourse was carried by some one to Mary; and though he +had made no direct assault upon her, he was summoned on the next day to +the palace. Introduced to a chamber in which she sat, surrounded by +her maids of honour and principal courtiers, he was treated to a long +"harangue," as he calls it (but it was no doubt a proper scolding), on +the enormity of his conduct. Very wisely he heard that out without +interruption; then, when his "innings" came, he complained that he had +evidently been misreported to her, and craved leave to repeat to her +precisely what he had said, thus adroitly contriving that for that time +at least she should listen to a sermon. Beginning with the text, he +went over the main points of his discourse, which, among other things, +had in it this piece of sound sense: "And of dancing, madame, I said +that albeit in Scripture I find no praise of it, and in profane writers +that it is termed the gesture rather of those that are mad and in +frenzy than of sober men; yet do I not utterly condemn it, providing +that two vices be avoided: the former, that the principal {165} +vocation of those that use that exercise be not neglected for the +pleasure of dancing; and the second, that they dance not as the +Philistines their fathers, for the pleasure they take in the +displeasure of God's people." The accuracy of his rehearsal of his +sermon having been confirmed by those who had heard it when it was +originally given, the Queen said it was bad enough, but admitted that +it had not been so reported to her; and then very naively asked, that +if he heard anything of her that "misliked" him, he would come to +herself and speak of it to her privately. But Knox believed that +publicity was one great means of securing the vigilance, and through +that the safety, of the people, and therefore he declined to accede to +her request, on the ostensible ground that with the multiplicity of his +labours he had not the time for running about the court and his +congregation individually to deal with them for what he saw amiss. On +this occasion Knox was the champion of "free speech," and "scored" a +victory, so that he departed "with a reasonable merry countenance;" and +when some of the bystanders said, "He is not afraid," he made reply, +"Why should the pleasing face of a gentle woman affray me? I have +looked on the faces of many angry men, and yet have not been afraid +above measure," and so he left the Queen and the court for that time. + +The Romanists, encouraged by the hope of success, began now to put +forth strenuous exertions, both military and controversial, to recover +their lost ground; but the {166} rising of the Earl of Huntly in the +north was put down by the vigour of Lord James Stuart, who was now +known as the Earl of Murray; and the success of the abbot of +Crossraguel, in debate with Knox, was not such as to encourage others +to follow in his footsteps. That dignitary, in his chapel in +Kirkoswald, had, on August 30th, 1562, read a series of articles on the +mass and kindred subjects, which he offered to defend against all +comers; and on the following Sunday Knox, who happened to be in the +neighbourhood and heard of the challenge, came to the church to meet +him. But though he had courteously intimated to the abbot that he +would be present, that dignitary did not put in an appearance, and Knox +himself preached in the chapel. At the close of the service a letter +from the abbot was put into his hand; and, after negotiations, they met +on the 28th of September in the house of the provost of Maybole, where +forty persons on each side were admitted as witnesses. The debate +lasted for three days, and strangely enough was made by the abbot to +turn mainly on the significance of the act of Melchizedek in bringing +forth bread and wine when he went out to meet Abraham returning from +his victories over the five kings, which Knox averred "appertained +nothing to the purpose." At the end of the third day Knox, on the +ground of the scanty accommodation at Maybole, proposed that they +should adjourn to Ayr to finish the discussion; but this was declined +by the abbot, who promised to come to Edinburgh and resume it there if +the Queen would permit. {167} But he never came to the metropolis, +though Knox alleges that he himself had applied to the Privy Council +for the necessary permission. As usual in such cases, the victory was +claimed for each by his own partisans; but to counteract the false +reports that were circulated, Knox prepared and published the curious +tract, purporting to be an accurate account of the debate, which Dr. +Laing has reprinted in the sixth volume of the Reformer's works; and +though the discussion itself was on an entirely irrelevant issue, Knox +dealt with the very heart of the question in the prologue of his +pamphlet, which is written in his most vigorous and trenchant style. +One extract will show how sarcastic he could sometimes be, and with +what grim humour he could occasionally treat even the most sacred +subjects. He has been comparing the making of the "wafer-god" to that +of the idols so witheringly described by Isaiah in the 40th and 41st +chapters of his prophecies, and then proceeds as follows: "These are +the artificers and workmen that travail in making of this god, I think +as many in number as the prophet reciteth to have travailed in making +of the idols; and if the power of both shall be compared, I think they +shall be found in all things equal, except that the god of bread is +subject unto more dangers than were the idols of the Gentiles. Men +made them: men make it. They were deaf and dumb: it cannot speak, +hear, or see. Briefly, in infirmity they wholly agree, except that (as +I have said) the poor god of bread is most miserable of all other +idols; for according to their {168} matter whereof they are made, they +will remain without corruption for many years; but within one year that +god will putrefy, and then he must be burned. They can abide the +vehemency of the wind, frost, rain, or snow; but the wind will blow +that god to sea, the rain or the snow will make it dough again; yea, +which is most of all to be feared, that god is a prey (if he be not +well kept) to rats and mice; for they will desire no better dinner than +white round gods enow. But, oh then, what becometh of Christ's natural +body? By miracle it flies to heaven again, if the papists teach truly; +for how soon soever the mouse takes hold, so soon flieth Christ away, +and letteth her gnaw the bread. A bold and puissant mouse! but a +feeble and miserable god! Yet would I ask a question: 'Whether hath +the priest or the mouse greater power?' By his words it is made a god; +by her teeth it ceaseth to be a god: let them advise and answer." +Truly there is a ring of honest old Hugh Latimer in all this; and if +there were many such passages in Knox's sermons, it is not difficult to +explain how it was that "the common people heard him gladly." + +In the May of the following year (1563), Knox was sent for by Mary to +Loch Leven, where she was at the time residing, and treated to another +"interview," in which she endeavoured to induce him to use his +influence to put a stop to the prosecution of certain parties for their +celebration or countenancing of the mass. But nothing of importance +resulted, though from his own showing it is apparent that on this +occasion he was very {169} nearly thrown off his guard by the skill of +her acting and the "glamour" of her presence. + +In this same month Parliament met for the first time since Mary's +arrival in Scotland, and Knox confidently expected that the Treaty of +Leith would be ratified, and the establishment of religion by the +Parliament of 1560 would be put beyond all question by its action. But +he was doomed to disappointment. The "holy water of the court" had not +been without effect; the Protestant leaders had slackened in their +enthusiasm, and what he regarded as a great opportunity was lost. He +expostulated with many of the principal men of the party on the +subject, but his efforts were in vain; and the "contention" between him +and Murray over it was "so sharp" that there was a breach of friendship +between them which lasted for more than a year. The effect of all this +upon him was exceeding depressing; and on a Sunday before the +dissolution of Parliament he took occasion to unburden his soul to his +congregation. He expressed his sadness at the thought that those who +had in their hands the opportunity to establish God's cause had +actually betrayed it; he affirmed that the Parliament by which the +Protestant Confession was adopted and the Church reformed was as free +and lawful as any ever held in Scotland; and as reports of the Queen's +marriage were now in circulation, he warned them of the consequences +that would ensue if she should marry a papist. His words gave great +offence to many Protestants as well as Romanists; and when the Queen +heard of them {170} he was again summoned into her presence. This was +the occasion on which the much talked of "tears" were so plentifully +shed, and therefore we may reproduce the account of it given by McCrie, +which is itself only a condensation into the language of to-day of the +narrative given by Knox in his History. + +"Her Majesty received him in a very different manner from what she had +done at Loch Leven. Never had prince been handled (she passionately +exclaimed) as she was: she had borne with him in all his rigorous +speeches against herself and her uncles; she had offered unto him +audience whenever 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 +pronouncing these words with great violence she burst into a flood of +tears which interrupted her speech. When the Queen had composed +herself, he proceeded calmly to make his defence. Her grace and he had +(he said) at different times been engaged in controversy, and he never +before perceived her offended with him. When it should please God to +deliver her from the bondage of error in which she had been trained, +through want of instruction in the truth, he trusted that her Majesty +would not find the liberty of his tongue offensive. Out of the pulpit, +he thought, few had occasion to be offended with him; but there he was +not master of himself, but bound to obey Him who commanded him to speak +plainly, and to flatter no flesh on the face of the earth. + +"'But what have you do with my marriage?' said the {171} Queen. He was +proceeding to state the extent of his commission as a preacher, and the +reasons which led him to touch on that delicate subject; but she +interrupted him by repeating her question: 'What have ye to do with my +marriage? Or what are you in this commonwealth?' 'A subject born +within the same, madame,' replied the Reformer, piqued by the last +question, and the contemptuous tone in which it was proposed. 'And +albeit I be neither earl, lord, nor baron in it, yet has God made me +(how abject that ever I be in your eyes) a profitable member within the +same. Yea, madame, to me it appertains no less to forewarn of such +things as may hurt it, if I foresee them, than it doth to any of the +nobility; for both my vocation and conscience requires plainness of me. +And therefore, madame, to yourself I say that which I spake in 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 lieth to +renounce Christ, to banish His truth from them, to betray the freedom +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 (Erskine of Dun, who was +present), who was a man of mild and gentle spirit, tried to mitigate +her grief and resentment: he praised her beauty and her +accomplishments, and told her that there was not a prince in Europe who +would not reckon himself happy in gaining her hand. During this scene, +the severe and inflexible mind of the Reformer displayed {172} itself. +He continued silent, and with unaltered countenance, 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 +that he could see his own boys weep when he corrected them for their +faults, far less could he rejoice in her Majesty's tears; but seeing he +had given her no just reason of offence, and had only discharged his +duty, he was constrained, though unwillingly, to sustain her tears, +rather than hurt his conscience and betray the commonwealth through his +silence. + +"This apology inflamed the Queen still more: she ordered him +immediately to leave her presence, and wait the signification of her +pleasure in the adjoining 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 sat in their richest dress in the +chamber. 'O fair ladies, how pleasing were this life of yours, if it +should ever abide, and then, in the end, that we might pass to heaven +with all this gay gear! But fie upon that knave Death, that will come +whether we will or not!' Having engaged them in a conversation, he +passed the time till Erskine came and informed him that he was allowed +to go home until her Majesty had taken further advice. The Queen +insisted to have the judgment of the Lords of Articles, whether the +words he had used in the pulpit were not actionable; but she was +persuaded to desist from a {173} prosecution. 'And so that storm +quieted in appearance, but never in the heart.'"[1] + +At this time, when many of his friends were cold toward him, an effort +was made by some of his enemies to blacken his moral character by +accusing him of a vile offence, but the lie had nothing in it to make +it formidable. It was "a lie that was all a lie," and so it could be +"met and fought with outright." The vindication was so complete that +now very few remember that the allegation was ever made, and we refer +to it here only to show that he too was made an illustration of the +poet's words: "Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt +not escape calumny." + +Much more serious was the attempt made about this same time to convict +him of high treason. During the absence of Mary in Stirling, and on +the day of the observance of the communion in the Protestant churches, +her servants at Holyrood had taken measures for having the mass +celebrated with more than usual publicity and splendour. The result +was a scene of confusion and "brawling," almost indeed of riot, which +was caused by the interference of some Protestants who were present. +Two of these were afterwards indicted for their offence, which was +called in the technical language of the country and the time, +"forethought felony, hame-sucken, and invasion of the palace." Knox +had been empowered by a general commission from the Church to ask the +presence of the Protestant leaders in Edinburgh for {174} consultation +and assistance in any emergency which in his judgment might require the +same; and believing that the prosecution of these men might issue in +very serious consequences, he drew up under the advice of the friends +with whom he usually acted a circular letter, which he sent to the +principal gentlemen of the "congregation," stating the circumstances, +and asking them without fail to come to Edinburgh for the trial. A +copy of this letter found its way into the hands of Mary, who laid it +before the Privy Council, by whom it was pronounced to be treasonable. +The Queen was exultant. Now was her opportunity, and she resolved to +turn it to the best advantage. An extraordinary meeting of the +councillors and other noblemen was convened to be held at Edinburgh +about the middle of December, 1563, to try the cause. Some urged Knox +to acknowledge that he had done wrong, and cast himself on the Queen's +mercy, but that he absolutely refused to do, because he did not believe +that he had committed an offence; and when Secretary Maitland and +Murray called upon him, and somewhat ungenerously sought to get out of +him the nature of the defence which he meant to set up, he very wisely +put an end to the conversation with them, and resolved to keep his own +counsel until he was actually called to vindicate his conduct. + +When the day came, he stood forth as the champion of the liberty of +assembly, as before he had appeared in vindication of free speech; and +so admirably did he plead his cause that he was acquitted, if not +unanimously {175} at least _nem. con._, of the charge which had been +brought against him. + +Much has been said of the bearing of Knox towards Queen Mary, and said, +as we believe, most unjustly, for though he felt himself constrained to +oppose her course, and would not yield to her wishes, yet he was never +rude, or irreverent, or ungentlemanly. As Carlyle says, "he was never +in the least ill-tempered with her Majesty;" and most of those who +accuse him in this matter, we shrewdly suspect, have never read the +accounts of his interviews with her, but have simply accepted the +common babblement which has been so long current regarding them. No +candid student of the rehearsal of these interviews in Knox's History, +we are sure, could refuse to endorse the accuracy of Carlyle's +statement of the case when he says "Mary often enough bursts into +tears, oftener than once into passionate long continued fits of +weeping, Knox standing with mild and pitying visage, but without the +least hair's-breadth of recanting or recoiling, waiting till the fit +pass, and then with all softness but with all inexorability taking up +his theme again." + +But while Knox's manner toward her Majesty has been most +microscopically examined, very little attention has been given to +Mary's manner toward Knox; and on this particular occasion, in the +presence of the council and the nobles, sitting too as a kind of court +before which he was on trial for high treason, it was flippant and +unmannerly in the extreme, and was besides entirely {176} incompatible +with the presence in her of a judicial spirit. When she entered the +chamber and took her seat, she first smiled, and then burst into a loud +guffaw, saying, "This is a good beginning, but wot you whereat I laugh? +That man made me weep, and shed never a tear himself. I will see now +if I can make him weep." Then after his letter had been read, and he +was defending himself, she cried, "What is this? Methinks you trifle +with him. Who gave him authority to make convocation of my lieges? Is +not that treason?" There spake the despot, for beneath the velvet of +her glove there was always a hand of iron; but she touched a chord that +vibrated to a note which she had not thought to sound when she used +these words, for Ruthven said boldly and categorically, "No, madame!" +The gruff nobleman was immediately commanded by her Majesty to "hold +his peace," and Knox went on with his defence in such a way that he +successfully vindicated his right to call and hold a meeting of his +friends for any lawful purpose when and where he chose. He was next +questioned about the statement in his letter to the effect that he +feared the prosecution of these men would open a door for the +infliction of cruelty upon a greater number; and as he was proceeding +to enlarge upon the deeds of the papists in France, and denouncing +those who had done them, he was interrupted by the ejaculation of one +of the nobles, "You forget yourself; you are not in the pulpit." This +called forth the often quoted words, "I am in the place where I am +demanded of my {177} conscience to speak the truth; and, therefore, the +truth I speak; impugn it who so list." The Queen now felt that a +defeat was imminent, and as a last resort, she tried to work on the +sympathy of her lords by referring once more, but this time in another +fashion, to the fact that Knox had made her weep. That, however, only +gave him an opportunity of rehearsing all that had occurred on the +occasion to which she had referred, and thereby made his victory the +more sure. But what is to be said of her conduct throughout on this +trial? "Heard you ever, my lords, a more despiteful and treasonable +letter?" "You shall not escape so." "Is it not treason to accuse a +prince of cruelty?" "Lo! what say you to all that?" These are a few +of her expressions when she was sitting as a judge, and with these, and +others already quoted, before us, is it not idle to speak of justice, +far less of mannerliness or gentlewomanliness in the case? +Ungentlemanliness is bad enough,--though even of that we maintain that +there was nothing in Knox's treatment of his queen,--but to seek to +overbear a court as Mary did at this time, by the manifestation of her +eagerness to have the accused condemned, either by fair means or foul, +is infinitely worse. The spirit of Mary here was that of Jeffreys long +after. It was indeed far from being so coarsely and brutally +expressed, but it is worthy of all reprobation, and in view of the +facts which we have here presented, it is little wonder that Hume, in +writing to the historian Robertson, should have said, "I am afraid that +you, as well as myself, have drawn Mary's character {178} with too +great softenings. She was undoubtedly _a violent woman at all times_." +But he never altered his representation in his work, and to him, +perhaps, more than to all others, the prevalent misconception of our +Reformer's character, manner, and motives is to be traced. + +The result of this trial was announced by Secretary Maitland, when he +said to Knox that he was at liberty to return home for that night. But +though his voice was smooth, his soul was full of wrath, and Mary's +mortification vented itself in taunting the very man who had given her +the letter, for voting for the acquittal of him who wrote it. Thus +again the Reformer triumphed, and it is with a glow of satisfaction +akin to that with which Nehemiah recounts his escape from Sanballat, +that he finishes the record thus: "That night was neither dancing nor +fiddling in the court, for madame was disappointed of her purpose, +which was to have had John Knox in her will, by vote of her nobility." + + + +[1] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. pp. 206-8. + + + + +{179} + +CHAPTER XII. + +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570. + +In the month of March, 1564, Knox, who had been a widower for now +rather more than three years, was united in marriage to Margaret +Stewart, daughter of Lord Ochiltree, and the room in the old baronial +residence where the ceremony was performed is still pointed out to +visitors. Despite their dissimilarity in age, the union seems to have +been a very happy one, and such as brightened the last days of the +Reformer's home life. This year passed with little to make it +memorable save a long discussion between Knox and Secretary Maitland, +which originated in an attempt to restrain the freedom of the +Reformer's utterances on public questions in the pulpit, and wandered +over a great variety of topics, touching, among others, the duties of +magistrates and their subjects, but led to no immediate practical +result. The calm, however, was not of long continuance, for we come +now to those troublous times and dark doings which have made the reign +of Mary Queen of Scots the great debating ground of modern history. +She determined to marry Lord {180} Henry Darnley, the son of the Earl +of Lennox, a Catholic and an empty-headed fool. The knowledge of her +purpose provoked the project of an insurrection among some of her +nobles, who were headed by the Earl of Murray; but though they had the +promise of assistance from Elizabeth, she failed them when it came to +the point, and the result was that all who had been concerned in it +were proclaimed as outlaws and banished from the kingdom. In this +affair Knox took no part whatever, though Lord Ochiltree, his +father-in-law, was implicated in it, and was one of the exiles. But +though he did not compromise himself by proposing to join in the +meditated appeal to arms, he was as strongly opposed to Mary's marriage +as any of them, and as was his wont he liberated his conscience in the +pulpit, but it was not until after the nuptials had been consummated +that his words were especially regarded. The marriage was celebrated +on the 29th of July, 1565, and on the 19th of August, Darnley, for some +reason, chose to attend the public services in St. Giles' Cathedral, +where a great throne had been prepared for his reception. Whether Knox +had received any intimation of his intention to be present we are +unable to say, but in his sermon there were two things which gave great +offence to this prominent hearer. The first was his quotation of the +passage, "I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall +rule over them; children are their oppressors, and women rule over +them"; and the second, his declaration that "God had punished Ahab +because {181} he did not correct his idolatrous wife Jezebel." Darnley +believed that these words were meant for him, and went home in the +sulks, making his likeness to Ahab only the more striking by refusing +to eat his dinner. The preacher was immediately summoned before the +Privy Council, by whom he was told that he must desist from preaching +as long as their majesties were in the city. For his own exoneration +Knox printed the sermon for the preaching of which he was thus +condemned, and it remains the only specimen of his pulpit work proper +which has come down to us. It is founded on Isaiah xxvi. 13-21, and is +of the nature of an expository discourse, bringing out the primary +signification and reference of the words, and making application of the +principles evolved by that process to the characters and circumstances +of his hearers. It gives evidence of considerable scholarship, of +immense familiarity with Scripture, of good acquaintance with ancient +history, and of great fervour of spirit. It is neither a hasty nor ill +digested production, and it impresses us a good deal more by its +solidity than by its invective. Indeed, there are in it no passages +that one could put into comparison for that with others which have been +already mentioned by us; and it is a little difficult for the modern +reader to wed in his imagination a style so calm and weighty as that +which he finds here, with a manner so vehement as the Reformer's is +usually described to have been. But no printer can reproduce the man, +or the surroundings; here are the wood and the lamb indeed; but in +these {182} others were the fire--from heaven too in a sense--which +flamed forth with its energizing and consuming power, and made his +discourse a thing of might. Such difference as there is between a +bugle, and a bugle blown by a living martial musician, there is between +a printed sermon and the same discourse preached by its author with the +glow of spiritual enthusiasm in his heart and on his face. The one is +a thing of curious study to the professional man, the other is a +trumpet call which puts heart and heroism into hundreds in a moment. + +Knox showed his law-abiding spirit by obeying the injunction of the +authorities. His biographer, indeed, says that "it does not appear +that he continued any time suspended from preaching," but Dr. Laing +believes that he did not resume his usual ministrations at Edinburgh, +unless at occasional intervals, until after Queen Mary had been +deprived of her authority. He was not idle, however, in those months, +for he was employed not only in the preparation of his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," but also in the visitation of churches in the +south of Scotland, and in a journey into England, specially undertaken +to look after his two boys whom he had sent thither for education. + +In this interval occurred the murder of David Rizzio, on the 9th March, +1566, in the palace of Holyrood. That wretched man was an Italian +adventurer, whose knowledge of foreign languages made him useful to +Mary in her correspondence with the other members of the +Anti-Protestant League to which she belonged. {183} His acquaintance +with her political designs thence derived opened the way for his +becoming one of the most confidential of her advisers. That roused +against him the enmity of the Scottish nobles, and Darnley became +jealous of his intimacy with the Queen; so with his assistance and +approval David was foully slain almost before the eyes of his mistress. +Attempts have been made to implicate Knox with this affair, but though +he does not conceal his satisfaction at David's "removal," he was in no +wise accessory to his death. The very next day after this tragedy the +exiled lords returned to Edinburgh, and then followed thick and fast +upon each other events of great and lasting importance to the land. +These were the birth of James VI. on the 19th of June, 1566; the murder +of Darnley, on the night between the 9th and 10th of February, 1567, a +deed which was planned and carried out by Bothwell and his agents, not +without dark grounds for the suspicion, to say the very least, that he +and they were acting with the knowledge and consent of Mary herself; +the marriage on the 15th May, 1567, of Mary to Bothwell, that +black-hearted villain who was the evil genius of her life; the +surrender of Mary to the opposing Lords at Carberry Hill on the 15th of +June; the imprisonment of Mary in Loch Leven Castle, where, on the 24th +of July, she signed a deed abdicating the crown in favour of her infant +son, and appointing Murray regent during his minority; the escape of +Mary from her place of confinement on the 2nd of May, 1568; and the +defeat on May 13th of her {184} forces at Langside, whence she fled to +seek from Elizabeth refuge in England, with the Fotheringay block as +the ultimate result. For full details regarding all of these we must +refer our readers to the Scottish histories, and we content ourselves +with mentioning them thus in a group in order that we may carry in our +hands the clue for the intelligent following out of our Reformer's +career. + +When the infant James was crowned in the parish church of Stirling, on +the 29th of July, 1567, the sermon on the occasion was preached by +Knox, though he objected to perform the ceremony of anointing, which +accordingly was done by another. In the month of December following he +preached at the opening of Parliament, and had the satisfaction of +seeing an Act passed which ratified all that had been done in the way +of Reformation by the Parliament of 1560; while an additional statute +was now made providing that no prince should afterwards be admitted to +exercise authority in the kingdom without taking an oath to maintain +the Protestant religion. + +During the regency of Murray everything went well, but his +assassination (what terrible times these were!) at Linlithgow, by +Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh, on the 23rd of January, 1569, was a terrible +blow to Knox. Indeed, it may be said that he was never quite the same +man afterwards. Knox and Murray loved and trusted each other +thoroughly--perhaps all the more from the additional insight into each +other's hearts {185} which their temporary estrangement gave them, and +when the Regent was stricken down the Reformer felt as if his chief +human helper had been taken from him. Murray was a genuine patriot, +and in the main a sincere and noble man. He had his faults, and on +exceptional occasions like that described by Froude,[1] when he was +made the tool of Elizabeth, he was constrained to be, at least by his +silence, a party to deceit which in his heart he abhorred; but that +historian has not hesitated to call him "a noble gentleman of stainless +honour,"[2] and to affirm that "his noble nature had no taint of self +in it";[3] and though Robertson has done his best to belittle him, the +verdict of history we think will settle in the acceptance of +Spottiswood's eulogy: "a man truly good, and worthy to be ranked among +the best governors that this kingdom hath enjoyed, and therefore to +this day honoured with the title of 'the good Regent.'" On the Sunday +after this irreparable loss, Knox poured out his heart to God before +the congregation in a prayer which showed how deeply the bereavement +had depressed his spirit, and on the day of the funeral he preached a +sermon from the text, "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord," in +which he sketched the character and career of his friend with such +effect that three thousand persons were moved to tears by his words. +The blow fell sorely on the country; and it nearly crushed the {186} +Reformer. The loss preyed upon his spirit and enfeebled his strength, +so that in the month of October following he was stricken with +paralysis or apoplexy, which laid him aside altogether for a season +from his work, and gave warning of the approaching end. His enemies +exulted over his illness, and could not refrain from congratulating +themselves on the prospect that he would never preach again; but after +some weeks he so far regained his vigour as to resume, in part at +least, those labours in which he had found so much of his joy. +Throughout the winter and the spring he continued to bear testimony +from his pulpit to the principles which he had so long proclaimed, and +to expose and rebuke the evil-doers who were once more at work in the +land. For though the murder of Murray brought no permanent advantage +to the party of reaction, it brought back again, for a while at least, +the chaos and contentions out of which he had begun to bring order and +peace. Lennox, as the grandfather of the infant king, was put into the +place of Murray, but within a comparatively brief period he was +mortally wounded in an assault made upon the adherents of the king at +Stirling, by a force led by Huntly in the interests of Mary, and +Erskine of Mar was chosen as his successor. This was in September, +1571. Meanwhile Kirkaldy, of Grange, who had been appointed governor +of the Castle of Edinburgh by Murray, had turned his back upon the +professions and promise of his life, by avowing himself a partisan of +the Queen. He held that fortress for her {187} behoof, and gave its +protection to Secretary Maitland, who was working earnestly in her +cause. By Maitland's influence Kirkaldy was encouraged in a course +which was exceedingly painful to Knox. The Laird of Grange and he had +been fellow-sufferers in the French galleys, and to the last the heart +of the Reformer yearned after him. Yet he could not permit his conduct +as governor of the Castle to go unreproved. On two occasions, in +particular, he was constrained to take public notice of his doings. +The first was briefly this. There had been a scuffle in Dunfermline +between a cousin of Kirkaldy and his relatives, and some of the Duries, +a family with whom the Kirkaldys had a feud; and one of the latter +having been seen shortly afterwards in the streets of Edinburgh, was by +Kirkaldy's orders followed to Leith by some of his tools, that they +might chastise him with a cudgel. But they took the sword instead and +left him dead. In the attempt to escape, one of the assailants was +arrested and committed to the Tolbooth, but Grange and his men attacked +the building, violently forced it open, and marched off with their +liberated comrade to the Castle, the guns of which they fired, either +in token of triumph or for the purpose of striking terror into the +citizens. In his sermon on the following Sunday Knox protested against +this interference with the course of justice, using language which +seems to us both temperate and kindly: "Had it been done," he said, "by +the authority of a bloodthirsty man, or one who had no fear of God, he +would not have been so much {188} moved; but he was affected to think +that one, of whom all good men had formed so great expectations, should +have fallen so low as to act such a part, one too who, when formerly in +prison, had refused to purchase his own liberty by the shedding of +blood." An utter misrepresentation of this statement was carried to +Kirkaldy, who complained to John Craig, the Reformer's colleague, by +whom he was referred to the elders of the Church of which Kirkaldy +still professed to be a member. Knox himself, as soon as he had the +matter brought before him, denied that he had used the words imputed to +him, and took the first opportunity of correcting the false report, by +repeating and vindicating what he had really said. + +The other occasion was that of the appearance shortly after, in the +church, of Kirkaldy, accompanied by a strong armed escort, composed of +those who had been most conspicuous in the recent outrages. He had not +attended the public services for nearly a year, and Knox looked upon +his presence so surrounded as an attempt to overawe him. But he was +not the man to be thus intimidated, and so, as his good servant +Ballantyne tells us, he took occasion then and there to inveigh +"against all such as forget God's benefits received, and in treating of +God's great mercies bestowed upon penitents, according to his common +manner, he forewarned proud contemners that God's mercy appertained not +to such as with knowledge proudly transgressed, and after, more proudly +maintained the same." Kirkaldy was greatly {189} enraged at these +words, and even in the church he gave vent to his anger so loudly as to +be heard by a great part of the congregation. The report went out in +consequence that he meant to kill the preacher; but Knox held on his +way, dealing defiantly with the anonymous libels that were sent him, +and publicly declaring in words that have become proverbial, that "from +Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other inspired writers, he had learned to call a +fig a fig, and a spade a spade." + +But when, in 1571, Kirkaldy received the Hamiltons and their forces +into the Castle, the friends of Knox became seriously alarmed for his +safety. They proposed to form a guard who should constantly accompany +him for his protection; but he would not accept the offer, and even if +he had accepted it Kirkaldy would not have permitted it to be carried +out. It was according to military etiquette that he should suppress or +prevent all such outrages, and he expressed his willingness to provide +a guard for Knox from the soldiers of his garrison. He even tried to +get the Hamiltons to guarantee the safety of the Reformer, but they +declared that they could not enter into any such engagement, "because +there were many rascals and others among them who loved him not, who +might do him harm without their knowledge." One evening a musket was +fired into his window, and had he not been sitting in a place different +from that which he usually occupied, the ball must have struck him, and +would in all probability have mortally wounded him. After that he +{190} was importuned by his friends to seek a place of safety +elsewhere, but he refused to leave his post until they told him that +they had made up their minds to defend him, if need be, with their +lives, and that if blood was shed they would leave it on his head. +This argument prevailed, and he consented to remove to St. Andrews, +whither he went by easy stages, and where he arrived in the month of +May, 1571. In his absence his pulpit in St. Giles was filled for a +while by Alexander Gordon, Bishop of Galloway, who pleased the Queen's +party but displeased the vast majority of the Protestants, so that the +Church of Edinburgh was for a time dissolved, while disorder reigned in +the city, and what was virtually a civil war was raging in the country. + + + +[1] "History," vol. vii. pp. 345-7. + +[2] Vol. vii. p. 340. + +[3] Vol. iii. p. 355. + + + + +{191} + +CHAPTER XIII. + +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572. + +At St. Andrews Knox was free from personal danger, and resumed the work +of preaching. In the pulpit of the parish church he discoursed almost +regularly, with a vigour which triumphed for the time over his physical +weakness. We have a most graphic portrait of him at this time from the +pen of James Melville who was then a student at the University, and who +writes thus in his diary: (We are constrained to modernize the words +that they may be generally understood by English and American readers, +but we know how much they must lose thereby in expressiveness, to those +who understand the vernacular) "Of all the benefits that I had that +year (1571), was the coming of that most notable prophet and apostle of +our nation, Mr. John Knox, to St. Andrews, who by the faction of the +Queen occupying the castle and town of Edinburgh, was compelled to +remove therefrom, with a number of the best, and chose to come to St. +Andrews. I heard him teach there the prophecies of Daniel that summer +and the winter following. I had my pen and my little {192} book, and +took away such things as I could comprehend. In the opening up of his +text he was moderate for the space of half an hour; but when he entered +on application, he made me so to shudder (_scottice_, 'grue') and +tremble, that I could not hold my pen to write. He was very weak. I +saw him every day of his teaching, go slowly and warily, with a fur of +martens about his neck, a staff in the one hand, and good, godly +Richard Ballantyne, his servant, holding up the other armpit +(_scottice_, 'oxter'), from the abbey to the parish kirk, and by the +said Robert and another servant lifted up to the pulpit, where he +behoved to lean at his first entrance; but before he had done with his +sermon, he was so active and vigorous, that it seemed as if he would +beat the pulpit in pieces (_scottice_, 'ding the pulpit in blads') and +fly out of it." Nor must we omit this other trait, evincing as it does +the interest taken by the aged warrior in the young soldiers who were +then just girding on their armour. "He would sometimes come in and +rest in our college yard, and call us scholars unto him, and bless us, +and exhort us to know God, and His work in our country, and stand by +the good cause, to use our time well, and learn the good instructions +and follow the good example of our masters." + +In St. Andrews too, at this time, he published his "Answer to the +Letter of a Jesuit named Tyrie," which was the last work that he gave +to the world. It had been composed years before, in the haste which +was incident to his numerous occupations, but it was now {193} revised +and enlarged, and gives expression in a vigorous manner to his maturest +views on faith, religion, and the Catholic, or true and Universal +Church. Here is a nugget from it, not without its pertinence to some +popular notions current in the days in which we live. "We find that +Christ sends not His afflicted Church to seek a lineal succession of +any persons, before He will receive them; but He with all gentleness +calleth His sheep unto Himself, saying, 'Come unto Me all ye that +labour and are laden, and I will ease you.'" Truly a golden sentence, +touching the very quick of all Church controversies, and emphasizing +the principle never to be forgotten, that we must find our way to the +Church through Christ, and not to Christ through the Church. + +In public questions he did not cease to take an interest, although the +state of his health unfitted him for active leadership. Still, that he +was no unconcerned spectator of what was going forward is apparent from +the following statement, which, because of its faithfulness and +fairness, we take from the article by Dr. Mitchell on "The Last Days of +John Knox."[1] "In March, 1572, the General Assembly was held in St. +Andrews, in the schools of St. Leonard's College. This place was no +doubt chosen, in part at least, for the convenience of the aged +Reformer, whose counsel in that time of trouble was specially needed. +It was the last Assembly at which he was able to be present, and +probably the first witnessed by Davidson and Melville. 'There,' the +{194} latter narrates, 'was motioned the making of bishops, to the +which Mr. Knox opposed himself directly and zealously.' ... Some months +before this a convention at Leith had given its sanction to a sort of +mongrel episcopacy, nominally to secure the tithes more completely to +the Church, but really to secure the bulk of them by a more regular +title to certain covetous noblemen, who sought in this way to reimburse +themselves for their services in the cause." (The noblemen presented +to the bishoprics men who had first covenanted to give by far the +larger portion of the revenues to the patrons, and with a truly +Scottish humour, the people called these dignitaries "tulchan bishops," +a "tulchan" being the name which was given to a calf's skin stuffed +with straw, which was set up to make the cow give her milk more +willingly.) "First among these noblemen was the Earl of Morton, then +one of the chief supporters of the young prince, and soon after Regent +of the kingdom. Having secured a presentation to the Archbishopric of +St. Andrews, for Mr. John Douglas, he came over to the city, had him +elected in terms of the convention, and on the 10th of February +inaugurated into his office. This was performed by Winram, +superintendent of Fife, according to the order followed in the +admission of superintendents, save that the Bishops of Caithness, the +Superintendent of Lothian, and Mr. David Lindsay, who sat beside +Douglas, laid their hands on his head. Knox had preached that day as +usual, but, as Ballantyne is careful to tell us, "had {195} refused to +inaugurate the said bishop"; and, as others add, had denounced +"anathema to the giver, and anathema to the receiver," who, as rector +and principal, "had already far more to do than such an aged man could +hope to overtake." In the face of such a fact, it is idle for +historians to insinuate, as Burton does, that Knox gave in his closing +days even a _quasi_ sanction to episcopacy. + +In the month of July, 1572, a cessation of hostilities for a time was +agreed upon between the Regent's party and that of the Queen, so that +the city of Edinburgh was again delivered from annoyance, either at the +hands of the garrison or of "the lewd fellows of the baser sort" who +made its streets unsafe. As Melville says, "the good and honest men +thereof returned to their homes, and earnestly implored their pastor, +if he could without injury of his health, to do the same; and so Mr. +Knox and his family passed home to Edinburgh," where he arrived on the +23rd of August. On the following Sunday he preached in his old pulpit; +but as in his weakness he could not make himself heard in the large +cathedral, the western part of the nave, known as the Tolbooth Church, +was fitted up for his use; and that was the scene of his latest +ministrations. He preached as often as he was able, delivering a +course of sermons on the Redeemer's Passion, which he had always wished +to be the theme of his last discourses. But in his debilitated +condition, his ancient power had well-nigh departed. Only once during +this period of decadence {196} did the "wonted fires" flame forth out +of "their ashes." When he heard of the massacre of St. Bartholomew he +had himself assisted into the pulpit, and there, moved at once by the +tender recollections of the many friends of his own who had been among +the victims, and by his life-long antagonism to the system which was +identified with that horrible cruelty, he thundered forth the vengeance +of Heaven against "that cruel murderer the king of France;" and turning +to Le Croc, the French ambassador, he said, like another Elijah: "Go +tell your master that sentence is pronounced against him; that the +Divine vengeance shall never depart from him or from his house, except +they repent; but his name shall remain an execration to posterity, and +none proceeding from his loins shall enjoy his kingdom in peace." + +His closing work was the installation of his own successor. During his +absence from Edinburgh, Mr. John Craig, his colleague, had gone to +another sphere of labour, and his flock had now no other shepherd than +himself. He was, therefore, very naturally anxious to see some true +and earnest man set over them in the Lord, and accordingly obtained +permission from the General Assembly to induct any minister who might +be chosen by himself, the Superintendent of Lothian, and the Church of +Edinburgh, to take his place. They agreed to nominate James Lawson, of +Aberdeen, who, being urged by Knox to repair immediately to Edinburgh, +in a touching letter, with a still more touching postscript,--"Haste, +lest ye come too late!"--came to {197} the metropolis, gave such +evidence of his gifts as satisfied all parties concerned, and was +installed on the 9th of November. Knox preached the sermon on the +occasion in the Tolbooth Church, and after that removed with the +congregation to the larger area of the cathedral, where he went through +the form of admission by proposing the usual questions, and giving +exhortation first to the pastor and then to the people. He concluded +with prayer and the benediction; "then leaning upon his staff and the +arm of an attendant, he crept down the street, which was lined with the +audience, who, as if anxious to take the last sight of their beloved +pastor, followed him until he entered his house, from which he never +again came out alive." + +The next day he was seized with a violent cough, and he gradually +declined until the 24th of November, when, at the age of sixty-seven, +he breathed his last. His faithful servant, Richard Ballantyne, has +left a minute description of his death-bed experiences and sayings, +which Dr. McCrie has reproduced the main features of in his biography. +We select those which seem to us to give most insight into the +character of the man. Visited, a few days after his last sickness +began, by two of his personal friends, he "for their cause came to the +table," for it was the hour of dinner, and caused an hogshead of wine +in the cellar to be pierced for their entertainment, at the same time +playfully desiring one of them to send for some of it as long as it +lasted, for he would not tarry until it was all drunk." To the elders +of his Church who {198} came in a body to his room at his request, he +said, "I profess before God and His holy angels that I never made +merchandise of the sacred word of God; never studied to please men; +never indulged my own private passions or those of others, but +faithfully distributed the talents entrusted to me for the edification +of the Church over which I watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may +cast upon me respecting this point, I rejoice in the testimony of a +good conscience." As they were leaving, he detained his colleague and +the minister of Leith to give them a message to Kirkaldy of Grange, +adding to it these words: "That man's soul is dear to me, and I would +not have it perish, if I could save it." When they returned and told +him that they had met with a rude reception, he was much grieved, and +said, "that he had been earnest in prayer for that man, and still +trusted that his soul would be saved, although his body should come to +a miserable end." Such petitions as these dropped from his lips at +intervals, "Come, Lord Jesus. Be merciful to Thy Church which Thou +hast redeemed. Give peace to this afflicted commonwealth. Raise up +faithful pastors who will take the charge of Thy Church. Grant us, +Lord, the perfect hatred of sin, both by the evidences of Thy wrath and +mercy." To his friend Fairley, of Braid, he said: "Every one bids me +good-night, but when will you do it? I have been greatly indebted to +you, for which I shall never be able to recompense you, but I commit +you to one who can, to the eternal God." To Campbell of Kingzeancleugh +{199} he said, "I must leave the care of my wife and children to you, +to whom you must be a husband in my room." A few hours before his +death he said to his wife, "Go read where I first cast my anchor," and +she understanding his reference, read to him the 17th chapter of John's +Gospel, and afterwards a part of Calvin's "Sermons on the Ephesians." +Shortly after, seeing that death was fast approaching, and when he was +unable to speak, his servant said to him, "Now, sir, the time that you +have long called to God for, the end of your battle, is come; and +seeing all natural power now fails you, remember the comfortable +promises of our Saviour Jesus Christ, which ofttimes you have shown us. +And that we may understand and know that you hear us, give us some +sign." And "so he lifted up one of his hands, and incontinent +thereafter rendered up his spirit, apparently without pain or movement, +so that he seemed rather to fall asleep than to die." + +He was buried on the 26th of November, his body being accompanied to +the grave by a large concourse of people, among whom were the Earl of +Morton, newly-appointed Regent, and other noblemen. According to the +rubric of his own Book of Common Order, there was no religious service +at the funeral, but when the body was lowered to its place Calderwood +tells us that the Regent Morton uttered these words: "HERE LIETH A MAN +WHO IN HIS LIFE NEVER FEARED THE FACE OF MAN; WHO HATH BEEN OFTEN +THREATENED WITH DAGGE AND DAGGER, BUT YET HATH ENDED HIS DAYS IN PEACE +{200} AND HONOUR." The precise site of his grave cannot now be +identified. It was in the churchyard of St. Giles, which extended from +the church down the slope of the hill till it reached the Colgate, and +was wholly obliterated in 1633 when the Parliament House and other +buildings were erected. If any stone ever marked the spot, it was +probably then removed or destroyed. Tradition points out as the place +that which is now marked with the letters "I.K., 1572," a few feet to +the west of the statue of Charles II. in the Parliament Square. What +Charles ever did for Scotland to deserve any such memorial, it would +puzzle the wisest man to say, unless perhaps on the principle that it +was his intolerance which most of all provoked the Revolution; but many +will agree with Dr. Laing in thinking, that "a more appropriate +monument for such a locality would be a statue of the great Reformer." + +Knox, we are told, was of small stature, and his constitution never +recovered from the effects of the exposure to which he was subjected in +the French galleys, so that his frame was not well fitted for hardship +and fatigue. He too had his "thorn in the flesh," and that he did so +much in spite of that is a proof of the dominating power of his +spiritual earnestness over his physical weakness. Of the five +portraits reproduced and criticised so characteristically by Carlyle in +his "Brochure" on the subject, we give our verdict in favour of that +which he calls the Somerville portrait, and of which he says that it is +"the only probable likeness anywhere known to {201} exist." It is that +of a true Scottish face--sharp, wedge-like in its contour, surmounted +by a bald dome-like head fringed with scanty hair, the beard short and +not very profuse, the lips firmly set, with the slightest curl of scorn +in their expression, and the eyes small, clear, penetrating, and quick; +altogether "a physiognomy worth looking at," and far more in keeping +with the character and history of the Reformer, than the long-bearded +timber-looking figure-head, surmounted by a Genevan cap, which has been +made so long to represent him to posterity, and which Carlyle has shown +to have no claim to authenticity. + +His children were five in number. His two sons by his first wife +became students in St. John's College, Cambridge, where Nathanael, the +elder, died in 1580. Eleazar, the younger, after finishing his +studies, became Vicar of Clacton Magna, and died in 1591. He too was +buried at Cambridge; and, by the death of both, the family of the +Reformer in the male line became extinct. His three daughters by his +second wife were Martha, Margaret, and Elizabeth. Martha became the +wife of Alexander Fairley, eldest son of Robert Fairley, of Braid, whom +we have just seen at the Reformer's death-bed. Margaret married +Zachary Pont, one of the Lords of Session, and latterly minister of St. +Cuthbert's, Edinburgh. Elizabeth wedded John Welsh, best known as +Minister of Ayr, who was banished for the part which he took in the +holding of the General Assembly at Aberdeen in July, 1605, and spent +many years as pastor of a {202} Protestant Church in France. It is of +this daughter that the well-known story is told to the effect that when +her husband's health failed she came over to London, and, having +through the influence of friends obtained audience of King James I., +requested the royal permission for his return to his native land. +After some coarse pleasantry, which need not here be repeated, the king +told her that if she would persuade her husband to submit to the +bishops he would allow him to go back to Scotland, whereupon, lifting +her apron and holding it out toward the king, she answered, like a true +daughter of her father, "Please your Majesty, I'd rather kep his head +(_i.e._ receive it from the block) there!" + + +Of the writings of Knox we have spoken incidentally in the course of +our narrative, and need not therefore enter now into any minute +criticism of their character and merits. They were struck out of him +almost extemporaneously by emergencies that arose, and, like all +similar productions, they were mainly ephemeral in their nature, so +that they are studied now, for the most part, only by those who wish to +gain some insight into the man, his times, and his work. He was not +what might properly be called literary. He would not have described +himself as another of his countrymen did, as "a writer of books." On +the contrary, in the preface to the only sermon which he published, he +affirmed that "he considered himself rather called of {203} God to +instruct the ignorant, comfort the sorrowful, confirm the weak, and +rebuke the proud by tongue and living voice in these most corrupt +times, than to compose books for the age to come; seeing that so much +is written (and that by men of most singular condition) and yet so +little well observed, he decreed to contain himself within the bounds +of that vocation whereunto he felt himself specially called." An +exception to this may perhaps be found in his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," to which throughout we have been so much +indebted, and which is one of the raciest, clearest, and most +trustworthy records of the heroic struggle in which he was virtually +the leader of the victorious side. It has been stigmatized by Burton +as egotistical; but Carlyle more justly notices how on one occasion, +when his personal merit far excelled all possible description, "he +hardly names himself at all"; and where he could not be truthful +without speaking of himself, he invariably does so in the third person, +and without any attempt to glorify the work of which he might have +said, "_cujus pars magna fui_." For the rest, as Carlyle says, "His +account of every event he was present in is that of a well-discerning +eye-witness. Things he did not himself see, but had reasonable cause +and abundant means to inquire into--battles even, and sieges--are +described with something of a Homeric vigour and simplicity." It is +unfortunate for modern readers that it is written in the old Scottish +dialect; but if some competent scholar would only honestly modernize +and faithfully edit it, a {204} great boon would be conferred upon the +present generation, for it has in it many elements of popular interest. + +His special vocation was that of the preacher rather than of the +author. The pulpit was the throne of his peculiar and pre-eminent +power. Other men might equal or surpass him elsewhere, but _there_ he +was supreme. Different excellences might come out in himself on +different occasions; but in the pulpit all his abilities were +conspicuous, and there they were always at their best. It was the +glass which focussed all his powers into a point, and quickened their +exercise into a burning intensity which kindled everything it touched. +It brightened his intellect, enlivened his imagination, clarified his +judgment, inflamed his courage, and gave fiery energy to his utterance. +He was never elsewhere so great in any one of these particulars, as he +was, when in the pulpit, in them all; for there, over and above the +"_præfervidum ingenium_" which he had in common with so many of his +countrymen, and the glow of animation which fills the soul of the +orator when he looks upon an audience, he had the feeling that he was +called of God to be faithful, and that made him almost like another +Paul. Behind him was the cross of his Lord; before him was the throne +at which he was to be accountable, and between these two he stood +"watching for souls as one that must give account." He began his +discourse most commonly with Biblical exposition, and spent a little +time in calmly, clearly, and fully explaining the meaning of the +passage on which he was engaged. In this {205} portion of his sermon, +if we may judge from the published tracts which were apparently founded +on pulpit utterances, he was clear, simple, convincing; not making a +parade of learning, yet bringing out withal the true significance of +the sacred text. Then having cleared away all doubt from that, he made +it the foundation of a battery, whereon he erected a swivel gun, and +with that he swept the whole horizon, firing at every evil which came +within his view. Nor were the shots mere random things. They were +deliberately aimed, and they commonly did most effective work. No +matter who might be the evil-doer, the exposure was sure to be made, +and the expostulation, usually ending in denunciation, unless the +sinner should repent, was sure to follow. Whatever he might do +elsewhere, he could neither shut his eyes nor keep back his utterance +when he was, as he called it, "in public place." He was "set as a +watchman" to the people of Scotland, and he would watch with wakeful +vigilance, and give honest warning of everything which he saw wrong; +for the wrong with him was always fraught with danger, and the +wrongness was enough to evoke his protest. He used no soft words. He +was no maker of polite phrases. He spoke in order to be understood, +and therefore he "called a fig a fig, and a spade a spade." He went +into the pulpit not because he had to say something, but because there +was something in him which was compelling itself to be said. He spoke +because he "could not but" speak. That irrepressibility gave {206} +volcanic energy to his manner and fiery force to his words, so that the +effects produced by his sermons were not merely superficial. Like +those modern missiles which burst in the wounds which they have made, +his words exploded within the hearts of those who had received them, +and set them on fire with convictions that flamed forth in their +conduct. It was apparently impossible for any one to listen to him +without being deeply moved, either to antagonism, or to enthusiastic +agreement, or--for he could be tender also--to tears. + +It may be said indeed that he allowed himself too great liberty in +commenting on public men and national affairs; and we may readily admit +that in ordinary times, and especially in our altered circumstances, it +would be unwise in most preachers to use the pulpit precisely as he +did. But we have to bear in mind that the crisis through which his +country was passing at the time, was as much religious as political, +and that the pulpit was the only organ at his command. To his credit +be it recorded, that he was, if not the first, at least one of the very +first to perceive the importance of making and guiding public opinion +aright. He saw that the people were to be the virtual rulers in the +coming time; nay, he recognised in them the ultimate arbiters for the +decision of the great matters which were then in debate, and therefore +he would not take time to go to royal closets or noblemen's studies, +but made his appeal to the people as a body, and the pulpit was the +only place in which he could do that. The daily press was not then +born; the {207} public meeting had not yet come into vogue; but what is +now done by our editors in their columns, and by our statesmen in +Midlothian campaigns, and such like, he did by his five weekly sermons +in Edinburgh, and by his various preaching journeys in the south and +west and north divisions of the kingdom. He informed and aroused +public opinion. He appealed to the people, speaking to them as one +under oath to the King of kings the while; and when we put the matter +in that light, we have at once the defence of his procedure and the +explanation of his success. + +He was not always wise; neither was he always discriminating in his +utterances. Who is? who especially when surrounded by the difficulties +with which he had to contend? and we may well forgive him his +occasional indiscretions, when we think of the work which, in spite of +these, he was honoured to accomplish. By that work he has earned the +gratitude of posterity, and deserved a place among the men who are most +worthy to be remembered in these times. By that work the entire face +and future of Scotland were changed. She has made great progress in +many directions since his day, and outgrown many of the limitations +within which he would have restricted her; but the success of his work +made it possible for her to become what she is to-day. The liberty, +the literature, the philosophy, as well as the religion of Scotland, +could not have developed into what they became without the Reformation; +and without Knox, humanly speaking, the Reformation would not {208} +have been at all, or at least would not have been what it actually +became. He had not the lyric thrill of genius that vibrates in the +songs of Robert Burns; but in his own way and to his own tune he sang, +"A man's a man for a' that," two hundred years before the Ayrshire bard +was born. He laid the foundation of that national popular education +which has made Scotland at home so intelligent, and carried Scotsmen +with honour abroad into all the countries under heaven; and though he +would have protested very vehemently against the scepticism of Hume and +others, yet the men who have made the Scottish school of philosophy +illustrious, received, consciously or unconsciously, much of their +impulse from his work. Add to this, that wherever Presbyterianism has +found a foothold, its votaries name Knox side by side with Calvin, as +one of its foremost leaders and organizers. But when we consider the +shortness of the time within which Knox did his work for Scotland, the +greatness of the man becomes still more conspicuous. He was forty-two +years of age when he was called to preach in the Castle of St. Andrews, +and he died at sixty-seven. Within these twenty-five years therefore +his reformation work was done; and yet of these nearly two were spent +as a galley-slave in French captivity, five were passed in England, +three on the continent, and for the last year and a half of his life he +was disabled by paralysis, so that his active labours in his native +land were virtually condensed within little more than fourteen years. +During these, also, he had to contend, save in the brief season {209} +of Murray's regency, with the greatest difficulties, but through them +all he held on, and over them all he secured an ultimate triumph. His +energy was consuming, his zeal untiring, and his vigilance +unslumbering. With the eye of a statesman he looked into the future, +while at the same time he keenly scrutinized the movements of the +present. He had the near sight which sees what is closest to it with +admirable distinctness, and the far sight which descries with equal +accuracy what is distant, and with these he combined the philosophic +spirit which marked very correctly the connection between the two. He +was a true patriot, and ever willing to sacrifice himself in the +welfare of his country. And all these qualities in him were raised to +the white heat of enthusiasm, and fused into the unity of holiness by +his devotion to the God and Father of his Saviour the Lord Jesus +Christ. He spoke, and wrote, and acted as ever in His sight. This was +the secret of his courage, the root of his inflexibility, and the +source of his power. As a Reformer he had in him the boldness of +Luther, combined with some of the qualities of Calvin, and though as a +whole he was inferior to both, yet more than either he reminds us of a +Hebrew prophet. When we see him before Queen Mary, we think at once of +Elijah before Ahab, and more appropriately perhaps than any other man +in modern history he might have taken for the motto of his life the +oft-repeated asseveration of the Tishbite, "As the Lord God of Israel +liveth, _before whom I stand_." + +{210} + +And yet, though sternly uttering in the highest places what he believed +to be the word of God, there were not wanting in his character other +traits of gentleness and geniality. As Carlyle has truly said, "Tumult +was not his element, it was the tragic feature of his life that he was +forced to dwell in that." He too, like the granite mountains of his +native land, had in him fountains of tenderness, and valleys laughing +with cheerfulness. He was not the heartless Stoic that many have +ignorantly painted him, for have we not seen him weeping with those who +were "sobbing unto God"? And though it may seem strange to those who +have not made themselves acquainted with his history, there was in him +a vein of humour, yea even, as Carlyle says, of "drollery," that makes +him excellent company. This humour of his, as the writer just named +has admirably diagnosed it, was "not mockery, scorn, bitterness, alone, +though there is enough of that too, but a true, loving, illuminating +laugh mounts up over the earnest visage; not a loud laugh; you would +say a laugh in the _eyes_ most of all." + +But now our task is done. We have tried to show honestly the man as he +was, and to describe dispassionately the work which he did. He is, if +not pre-eminently the Scotchman of history,--though we think a good +claim might be established for him as such,--yet certainly one of "the +three mightiest," or of "the first three" of his nation; and like the +vine whose branches spread over the wall, his influence has gone in +blessing to other lands, for in his work we have the root of the +English {211} Revolution, and some of the seeds that were carried +westward in the _Mayflower_, and sown in New England fields, had fallen +from his hands. It is not inappropriate therefore that one whose +labours in the ministry of the gospel have closely connected him alike +with Scotland, England, and America, should pay this willing tribute to +his name and work. + + + +[1] "Catholic Presbyterian," vol. vi. p. 265. + + + + +{212} + +INDEX. + +NDX +Annand, Dean, Controversy of Knox with, 17. + +Answers to some questions concerning Baptism, etc., by Knox, 17. + +Arbuckle, Friar, Controversy of, with Knox, concerning the Mass, 18, 32. + +Arran, Earl of, appointed Regent of Scotland, 4; character of, 5. + +Argyle, Earl of, 108, 116, 125. + + +Balfour of Mount Quarry, 8. + +Balnaves, Henry, 6, 15, 24, 29. + +Band, or Bond, Godly, 107, 112, 116. + +Beaton, Cardinal, executes George Wishart, 2; character of, 4; produces +a forged will in order to obtain the Regency of Scotland, 4; murder of, +8; condemnation of Walter Mill by, 116. + +Becon's Displaying of the Mass, 45. + +Berwick on Tweed, Knox appointed to, 30; condition of, at that time, +31; practice of Knox at, in the matter of the Lord's Supper, 32, 36; +preaching of Knox at, 33. + +Blast, First, of the Trumpet against the monstrous Regiment of Women, +by Knox, 108. + +Book of Common Prayer (English), 31, 36, 46, 47. + +Book of Common Order (Scottish), 105, 147. + +Book of Discipline, First, 140-147, 153; not ratified, 154. + +Bothwell, Earl of, apprehends George Wishart, 2; connection of, with +the family of Knox, 10; part of, in Darnley's murder, 183; marriage of, +to Queen Mary, 183. + +Bowes, Marjory, betrothed to Knox, 40; marriage of, to Knox, 96; joins +her husband in Scotland, 126; death of, 155; sons of, 151, 201. + +Bowes, Elizabeth, mother-in-law of Knox, 40, 60, 66; character of, 71, +98, 100, 101; kindness of Knox to, 102. + +Brandling, Sir Robert, 60, 68. + +Bullinger, Henry, 48, 77; questions of Knox to, 77, 81, 108. + +Burton's History of Scotland quoted from or referred to, 4, 122, 195, +203. + + +Cairns, John, appointed reader to Knox in Edinburgh, 155. + +Calvin, John, 77, 82; opinion of, on English Prayer Book, 86; criticism +of Knox's treatment at Frankfort by, 93, 106, 110. + +Campbell, Robert, of Kingzeaucleuch, 98, 158, 198. + +Carlyle, Thomas, Opinions of, on Knox's conduct at Frankfort, 92; on +the First Blast, 110; on Knox's treatment of Queen Mary, 175; on the +portraits of Knox, 200; on Knox's History of the Reformation, 203; on +Knox's tenderness and humor, 210; description of the affair at Cupar +Muir by, 124. + +Cecil, Secretary, 49, 113, 130, 162. + +Clergy of Scotland, General character of, before the Reformation, 6. + +Confession of Faith, Scottish, 137; ratified by Parliament, 139. + +Conversion of Knox to Protestantism, 13. + +Coverdale, Miles, godfather to one of Knox's sons, 151. + +Cox, Dr. Richard, Relation of, to the troubles at Frankfort, 88, 91. + +Craig, John, colleague of Knox, 163, 188, 196. + +Cranmer, Archbishop, on the Mass, 43; letter of, to English Council, +49; probable author of Declaration on Kneeling, 51; sufferings of, 82. + +Crossraguel, Abbot of, Controversy with Knox, 166-168. + +Cupar Muir, Affair of, 124. + + +Darnley, Lord Henry, Marriage of, to Queen Mary Stuart, 180; offended +at sermon by Knox, 180; part of, in murder of Rizzio, 183; murder of, +183. + +Deacons, Office of, in First Book of Discipline, 143. + +Declaration of Prayer Book on Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, History +of, 48-55. + +Demolition of Roman Catholic edifices, Relation of Knox to, 121. + +Dieppe, Knox in, 71-76, 79, 113. + +Doctors, Office of, in Scottish Church, 145. + +Douglas, John, Chaplain to Earl of Argyle, 116. + + +Edinburgh, Knox chosen minister of, 125; Knox's house in, 155; labors +of Knox in, 163. + +Education, Book of Discipline on, 146. + +Edward VI., First Prayer Book of, 31, 36, 46, 47; Second Prayer Book +of, 46, 47; order of Communion under, 46; death of, 62. + +Elders, Office of, under First Book of Discipline, 142. + +Elizabeth, Queen of England, accession to the throne, 112; refuses +Knox's request for permission to travel through England, 113; relation +of, to Mary Stuart, 158; deceitfulness of, 130. + +England, Feelings of Knox in regard to, 70; influence of, on Knox, 62. + +Erskine, Lord, 98, 106. + +Erskine of Dun, 97, 98, 108, 120, 171. + +Exposition of the Sixth Psalm by Knox, 71-74. + + +Faithful Admonition, by Knox, 79-82. + +Fairley, Robert, of Braid, 198. + +Francis I., of France, Death of, 20. + +Francis II., Death of, 156. + +Frankfort on the Maine, History of Knox's troubles at, 83-94; departure +of Knox from, 91. + +First Blast of the Trumpet against the Monstrous Regiment of Women, by +Knox, 108, 113, 161; Carlyle on, 110. + +Froude, J. A., History of England, 64, 127, 139, 185. + + +Galleys, French, Knox's experiences in, 23-25. + +Geneva, Knox at, 83; pastor of English congregation in, 95; arrival of +Knox and family at, 101; labors of Knox at, 105, 107; thanks of English +refugees to the council of, 112. + +Gilby, Arthur, colleague of Knox at Geneva, 95. + +Glasgow University, Knox a student at, 11. + +Glencairn, Earl of, 106, 108. + +Godly Band or Bond, 107, 112, 116. + +Godly Letter of Warning, by Knox, 74-76. + +Guillaume, Thomas, Connection of Knox with, 13. + + +Haddington, George Wishart preaching at, 1; birthplace of Knox, 10. + +Hamilton, Patrick, 5. + +Henry VIII., Dispute of, with James V., 4; connection of, with +conspirators against Beaton, 7; Death of, 20. + +Hooper, Bishop, 45, 59. + +Hume, David, Letter of, to Dr. Robertson, on character of Mary Stuart, +177. + + +James V., Death of, 3; dispute with Henry VIII., 3. + +James VI., Birth of, 183; coronation of, 184. + + +Kirkaldy of Grange, 9; makes terms for surrender of the castle of St. +Andrews, 22; dissuaded by Knox from the shedding of blood to escape +from prison, 26; controversy of with Knox, 187; message of Knox to, 198. + +Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, Knox's opinions and practice in regard +10, 35, 37, 39; declaration of English Prayer Book on, 62. + +Knox, John, First appearance of, as body-guard of Wishart, 2; enters +the castle of St. Andrews, 9, 14; early history of, 10; conversion of, +to Protestantism, 13; within the castle of St. Andrews, 14; called to +the ministry, 15; controversy with Dean Annand, 17; sermon at St. +Andrews, 17; controversy with Friar Arbuckle, 18, 32; made a galley +slave, 22; feelings of, on sight of St. Andrews from the galley, 27; +released from the galleys, 30; preaching of, at Berwick, 33; +administration of Lord's Supper at Berwick, 36; opinions of, on Lord's +Supper, 39; heroism of, 40; removal to Newcastle, 42; discourse on the +Mass, 43; preaching of, at Newcastle, 45; practice in regard to the +Lord's Supper at Newcastle, 45; appointed a Royal Chaplain, 46; +preaches before Edward VI., 48, 61; influence of, on English Book of +Common Prayer, 48-52; relation of, to Duke of Northumberland, 48, 56; +offered a bishopric, 57; offered the vicarage of All Hallows, London, +58; before the English council, 58; in the county of Bucks, 65; sermon +at Amersham, 65; Exposition of Sixth Psalm, 68, 72; leaves England for +France, 69; love of, for England, 70; writes Godly Letter of Warning, +74; first visit of, to Switzerland, 77; returns to Dieppe, 79; writes +"Faithful Admonition", 79; goes to Frankfort on the Maine, 83; history +of troubles there, 84; leaves Frankfort, 91; pastor of English Church +at Geneva, 95; brief visit of, to Scotland, 95; marriage of to Marjory +Bowes, 96; work in Scotland at this time, 97-99; summoned to appear +before the bishops, 100; writes to the Queen Regent, 100; returns to +Geneva 102, labors at, 105; called to return to Scotland, 106; at +Dieppe, 106; returns to Geneva, 107; leaves Geneva for Scotland, 112; +arrives in Scotland, 114; preaches at Perth, 120; and at St. Andrews, +124; chosen minister of St. Giles, Edinburgh, 125; travels through +Scotland, 126; negotiations with Sir James Croft, 129; views of, on +civil government, 130; imperfect understanding of the relation of +Church and State, 133; residence of, in Edinburgh, 155; first interview +with Queen Mary Stuart, 159; second interview, 163; debate of, with +Abbot of Crossraguel, 166; breach between, and Earl of Murray, 169; +third interview with Queen Mary, 168; fourth interview with Mary, 170; +accused falsely of immorality, 175; before the Scottish council, 175; +marriage of, to Margaret Stewart, 179; preaches at coronation of James +VI., 185; mourns over the death of Murray, 185; stricken with +paralysis, 186; controversy with Kirkaldy of Grange, 187; danger of, in +Edinburgh, 189; goes to St. Andrews, 190; Melville's description of, at +this time, 191; publishes "Answer to the Letter of a Jesuit", 192; +returns to Edinburgh, 195; last sermon of, 197; last illness of, 197; +death of, 199; personal appearance of, 200; children of, 201; portraits +of, 200; writings of, 202; preaching of, 204; effect of work on +Scotland, 207; tenderness and humor of, 210. + +Knox's History of the Reformation, 9, 22, 25, 27, 35, 98, 121, 124, +138, 156, 161, 170; described by Carlyle, 203. + + +Laing, David, LL.D., Edition of Knox's Works quoted from or referred +to, 11, 12, 58, 65, 72, 74, 75, 77, 102, 110, 129, 130, 144, 148, 153, +182, 201. + +Lawson, John, Induction of, as Knox's successor, 197. + +Leslie, Norman, 8, 20. + +Lindsay, Sir David, 6, 15. + +Liturgy of Knox, 152. + +Lollards of Kyle, 99. + +Lorimer, Rev. Peter, D.D., Works on Knox quoted from or referred to, 8, +25, 28, 30, 31, 33, 36, 37, 41, 45, 46, 48, 49, 51, 52, 54, 55, 103. + +Lorn, Lord, 58, 106. + +Lorraine, Princes of, 113. + +Lord's Supper, first administered after reformed fashion, 19; practice +followed by Knox regarding at Berwick, 32-34, 36; kneeling in, opposed +by Knox, 38; influence of Knox on English Prayer Book regarding, 46-52; +declaration of Prayer Book on kneeling in, 52. + +Lyons, Knox visits, 107. + + +Major, John, Principal of Glasgow University, 11; opinions of, 11, 133; +present at Knox's sermon at St. Andrews, 18. + +McCrie's "Life of Knox" quoted from or referred to, 17, 85, 92, 96, +132, 161, 170, 193, 197. + +Maitland of Lethington, 97; the younger, 128, 136, 174, 178, 179. + +Marriage, Solemnization of, according to Book of Discipline, 146. + +Mary of Guise, character of, 3; Queen Regent of Scotland, 97; policy +of, 97; letter of Knox to, 100; declared enemy of Reformation, 114; +petition of Protestant barons to, 117; prohibits preaching or +administration of the sacrament without authority of bishops, 119; +proclaims Knox a rebel, 119; death of, 128. + +Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, 3; betrothed to the Dauphin of France, +5; reply of Knox to, on the charge of necromancy, 35; death of first +husband of, 156; character of, 157; arrival of, in Scotland, 156; +interviews with Knox, 159, 163, 168, 170, 173, 175; marries Lord Henry +Darnley, 180; marriage of, to Bothwell, 183; abdicates in favor of her +son, 183; defeat of, at Langside, 183; imprisonment of, by Elizabeth, +184. + +Mary Tudor, Accession of, to English throne, 66; prayer of Knox for, +67; first proclamation of, 67; marriage of, to Philip of Spain, 81; +attacked by Knox in First Blast, 109. + +Mass, Opinions of Knox on the, 32, 43, 107; Becon's Displaying of the, +45. + +Melville of Raith, 9. + +Melville, James, Description of Knox at St. Andrews by, 191. + +Mill, Walter, Martyrdom of, 116. + +Milton, John, quoted from, 109. + +Ministers, Office of, in Book of Discipline, 141. + +Mitchell, Dr., A. F., quoted from, 193. + +Morton, Earl of, 108; burial eulogy of, on Knox, 199. + +Murray, Earl of (See Lord James Stuart). + + +Newcastle on Tyne, Removal of Knox to, 42; preaching of Knox at, 45; +practice of Knox at, in regard to the Lord's Supper, 45. + +Northumberland, Duke of, 48, 57, 60, 61, 64. + + +Ochiltree, Lord, 172; father-in-law of Knox, 179, 180. + +Ormiston, Laird of, 10. + + +Prayer Books of Edward VI., First, 31, 36, 46; Second, 46, 47, 49, 52, +56, 85; opinion of Calvin on, 86. + +Perth, John Knox at, 121. + +Preaching, Knox's habit of preparation for, 79; effect of Knox's, at +Perth, 120; in Edinburgh, 136; before Darnley, 181; Knox's +characterized, 204. + +Predestination, Knox's Dissertation on, 111. + +Privy Council of England, name of Knox in register of, 29; memorial of +Knox to, on Lord's Supper, 49; appearance of Knox before, 58. + +Portraits of Knox, 200. + + +Randolph, English Ambassador at Edinburgh, 28, 138. + +Readers, Office of, in Scottish Church, 140. + +Reformation, Beginning of, in Scotland, 5; Hamilton period of, 19; +Wishart period of, 19; Knox period of, 19. + +Rizzio, David, character of, 182; murder of, 183. + +Robertson, William, D.D., character of Murray in History of Scotland, +185. + +Rochelle, Knox visits, 107. + +Ross, Dr. John M., quoted from, 133. + + +Sacraments, Scottish Confession of Faith on, 137; administration of +the, according to Book of Discipline, 145; according to the Book of +Common Order, 151. + +Scotland, Condition of, before Reformation, 7; visit of Knox to, in +1555, 97; arrival of Knox at, in 1559, 114; condition of, at that time, +115; labors of Knox in, 126; negotiations of, with England, 127. + +St. Andrews, Castle of, an asylum for Protestants, 8; siege of, by +Arran, 9; arrival of Knox in, 9; work of Knox in, 14; Knox called to +the ministry in, 15; Knox preaches in, 17; attacked by Leo Strozzi, 21; +visited by Knox, 123; the scene of Knox's all but latest labors, 191. + +Scottish Confession of Faith, 137. + +Scottish Parliament, Meeting of, in 1560, 136; in 1563, 169. + +Solway Moss, Battle of, 3, 4. + +Somerset, Duke of, Protector of England, 20. + +Stewart, Margaret, married to Knox, 179. + +Stuart, Lord James, Earl of Murray, 98, 106, 125, 138, 156, 166, 169, +174, 180, 184, 185. + +Strozzi, Leo, attacks the castle of St. Andrews, 21. + +Superintendents, Office of, in Scottish Church, 149. + +Switzerland, First visit of Knox to, 77. + + +Throckmorton, English Ambassador at Paris, 126. + +Tulchan Bishops, 194. + +Tunstall, Bishop of Durham, 31. + +Tyninghame Charter Room, Instrument in, signed by Knox, 12. + + +Utenhovius, Letter of, to Bullinger, 48. + + +Whittingham, Dean, with Knox at Frankfort, 86; gives thanks to council +at Geneva for hospitality to English refugees, 112; godfather to one of +Knox's sons, 151. + +Willock, John, 97, 126, 130. + +Wishart, George, at Haddington, 1; apprehension of, 2; attended by +Knox, 2; executed at St. Andrews, 3; influence of, on Knox, 13. + +Writings of Knox, 202. +ENDX + + + * * * * * + + + +REV. DR. WM. M. TAYLOR'S WORKS. + + +Contrary Winds and Other Sermons. + +Crown 8vo Volume, Cloth. $1.75. 3d Edition. + +"This work touches on numerous phases of life and thought and +experience, showing that the author has lived through a vast deal and +has been made the richer and stronger by it. It leaves the impression +of wisdom that comes from actual experience, dealing with life rather +than speculations, and so comes home to the heart and conscience. IT +SHOWS A WIDE RANGE OF READING AND CLOSE GRAPPLE WITH THE DIFFICULT +PROBLEMS OF OUR TIME. Such preaching is tonic and invigorating. It +strengthens the heart and fortifies the will to overcome trials and +conquer temptations and achieve victory."--_N. Y. 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RALEIGH. + +_And many others_. + + + +OUTLINES OF SERMONS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT. + +_AUTHORS OF SERMONS._ + + G. S. BARRETT, B.A. + Dean E. BICKERSTETH. + Bishop E. H. BROWNE. + J. BALD. BROWN, B.A. + T. P. BOULTBEE, LL.D. + J. P. CHOWN. + Dean R. W. CHURCH. + E. R. COUDER, D.D. + T. L. CUYLER, D.D. + A. B. DAVIDSON, D.D. + ROBERT RAINY, D.D. + ALEX'R RALEIGH, D.D. + C. P. REICHEL, D.D. + CHAS. STANFORD, D.D. + Dean A. P. STANLEY. + W. M. STRATHAM, B.A. + + J. OSWALD DYKES, D.D. + E. HERBER EVANS. + Canon F. W. FARRAR. + DONALD FRASER, D.D. + J. G. GREENHOUGH, B.A. + W. F. HOOK, D.D. + Bishop W. BASIL JONES. + JOHN KERR, D.D. + Canon EDWARD KING. + Bp. J. B. LIGHTFOOT. + WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D. + S. A. TIPPLE, B.A. + H. J. VANDYKE, D.D. + Dean C. J. VAUGHAN. + JAMES VAUGHAN, B.A. + + Canon LIDDON. + J. A. MACFAYDEN, D.D. + ALEX. MACLAREN, D.D. + Bishop W. C. MAGEE. + THEODORE MONOD. + ARTHUR MURSELL. + JOSEPH PARKER, D.D. + Dean E. H. PLUMPTRE. + JOHN PULSFORD. + W. MORLEY PUNSHON, D.D. + M. R. VINCENT, D.D. + W. J. WOODS, B.A. + C. WADSWORTH, D.D. + G. H. WILKINSON. + Bp. C. WORDSWORTH. + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. + + + * * * * * + + +THE CLERICAL LIBRARY--(Continued). + + +OUTLINES OF SERMONS TO CHILDREN + +With numerous Anecdotes. Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 3d vol. +of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +"_These sermons are by men of acknowledged eminence in possessing the +happy faculty of preaching interestingly to the young. As an evidence +of this, as well as of the character of the teaching, it is only +necessary to mention such names as those of WILLIAM ARNOT, THE BONARS, +PRINCIPAL CAIRNS, JOHN EDMOND, D.D., Drs. OSWALD DYKES and MARSHALL +LANG, besides many others."--Canada Presbyterian_. + +"This book contains a very high grade of thinking, with enough +illustrations and anecdotes to stock the average preacher for many +years of children's sermons."--_Episcopal Register_. + +"They are full of suggestions which will be found exceedingly helpful; +the habit of using apt and simple illustrations, and of repeating good +anecdotes, begets a faculty and power which are of value. This volume +is a treasure which a hundred pastors will find exceedingly convenient +to draw upon."--_N. Y. Evangelist_. + + + +PULPIT PRAYERS BY EMINENT PREACHERS. + +Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 4th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +_The British Quarterly_ says: "_These prayers are fresh and strong; the +ordinary ruts of conventional forms are left and the fresh thoughts of +living hearts are uttered. The excitement of emotional thought and +sympathy must be great in the offering of such prayers, especially +when, as here, spiritual intensity and devoutness are as marked as +freshness and strength. Such prayers have their characteristic +advantages._" + +_London Literary World_: "Used aright, this volume is likely to be of +great service to ministers. It will show them how to put variety, +freshness and literary beauty, as well as spirituality of tone, into +their extemporaneous prayers." + + + +Anecdotes Illustrative of New Testament Texts. + +With 600 Anecdotes. Crown 8vo, 400 pages. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the +5th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +_London Christian Leader_ says: "_This is one of the most valuable +looks of anecdote that we have ever seen. There is hardly one anecdote +that is not of first-rate quality. They have been selected by one who +has breadth and vigor of mind as well as keen spiritual insight, and +some of the most effective illustrations of Scripture texts have a rich +vein of humor of exquisite quality_." + +_The London Church Bells_: "The anecdotes are given in the order of the +texts which they illustrate. There is an ample index. The book is one +which those who have to prepare sermons and addresses will do well to +have at their elbow." + +_N. Y. Christian at Work_: "AS AN APT ILLUSTRATION OFTEN PROVES THE +NAIL WHICH FASTENS THE TRUTH IN THE MIND, THIS VOLUME WILL PROVE AN +ADMIRABLE AND VALUABLE AID, NOT ONLY TO CLERGYMEN, BUT TO SUNDAY-SCHOOL +TEACHERS AND CHRISTIAN WORKERS GENERALLY." + +_N. Y. Observer_: "A book replete with incident and suggestion +applicable to every occasion." + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. 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M Taylor +</TITLE> + +<STYLE TYPE="text/css"> +BODY { color: Black; + background: White; + margin-right: 10%; + margin-left: 10%; + font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; + text-align: justify } + +P {text-indent: 4% } + +P.noindent {text-indent: 0% } + +P.poem {text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10%; } + +P.letter {text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10% ; + margin-right: 10% } + +P.footnote {text-indent: 0% ; + font-size: 80%; + margin-left: 10% ; + margin-right: 10% } + +P.transnote {text-indent: 0% ; + margin-left: 10% ; + margin-right: 10% } + +P.index {text-indent: -5% ; + margin-left: 5% ; + margin-top: 0% ; + margin-bottom: 0% ; + margin-right: 0% } + +P.finis { font-size: larger ; + text-align: center ; + text-indent: 0% ; + margin-left: 0% ; + margin-right: 0% } + +H4.h4center { margin-left: 0; + margin-right: 0 ; + margin-bottom: .5% ; + margin-top: 0; + float: none ; + clear: both ; + text-align: center } + +IMG.imgcenter { margin-left: auto; + margin-bottom: 0; + margin-top: 1%; + margin-right: auto; } + +.pagenum { position: absolute; + left: 1%; + font-size: 95%; + text-align: left; + text-indent: 0; + font-style: normal; + font-weight: normal; + font-variant: normal; } + +</STYLE> + +</HEAD> + +<BODY> + + +<pre> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Knox, by Wm. M. Taylor + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: John Knox + +Author: Wm. M. Taylor + +Release Date: November 1, 2010 [EBook #34191] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN KNOX *** + + + + +Produced by Al Haines + + + + + +</pre> + + +<BR><BR> + +<A NAME="img-front"></A> +<CENTER> +<IMG CLASS="imgcenter" SRC="images/img-front.jpg" ALT="John Knox. Engraved by B. Holl, from a Picture in the Posession of Lord Somerville." BORDER="2" WIDTH="400" HEIGHT="512"> +<H4 CLASS="h4center" STYLE="width: 400px"> +John Knox. Engraved by B. Holl, from a Picture in the Posession of Lord Somerville. +</H4> +</CENTER> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<H1 ALIGN="center"> +JOHN KNOX. +</H1> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +BY +</H4> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D., LL.D., +</H3> + +<BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Author of "Limitations of Life," etc.</I> +</H5> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +WITH STEEL PORTRAIT ENGRAVED BY B. HOLL, FROM<BR> +A PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF<BR> +LORD SOMERVILLE.<BR> +</H5> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +NEW YORK: +<BR> +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, +<BR> +714 BROADWAY. +<BR> +1885 +</H4> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +COPYRIGHT, 1885, +<BR> +BY A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON. +</H5> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="Pv"></A>v}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +PREFACE. +</H3> + +<P> +The sources from which the following narrative has been derived are (1) +the splendidly edited and complete edition of Knox's Works in six +volumes, by Dr. David Laing; (2) the Memoir of the Reformer, by Dr. +Thomas McCrie, forming the first volume of the collected works of that +eminent theologian; (3) the monograph by the late Professor Lorimer, +D.D., entitled "John Knox and the Church of England"; and (4) the +Histories of the Period, more especially that of Scotland, by John Hill +Burton, vols. iii. and iv., and that of England, by J. A. Froude, vols. +v. and vi. Some assistance also has been derived from "The Scottish +Reformation," by Professor Lorimer; and the two sketches by Carlyle, +the one in his "Heroes and Hero Worship," and the other in his essay on +the Portraits +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="Pvi"></A>vi}</SPAN> +of John Knox, have been both helpful and suggestive. +Quotations have been generally indicated, but this acknowledgment must +cover any accidental omission to give to each author his due; and for +the rest the reader may be assured that while no material fact has been +omitted, nothing has been recorded for which ample authority could not +be given. The figure has been felt to be too large for the canvas to +which we have been restricted, but we have sought to reproduce, as +faithfully as possible the man as he was, and if we may succeed in +removing any of the unreasonable prejudice, with which many still +regard the Scottish Reformer, the story of his life will not be retold +by us in vain. +</P> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +W. M. T.<BR> + NEW YORK.<BR> +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="Pvii"></A>vii}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CONTENTS. +</H3> + +<PRE STYLE="margin-left: 10%"> +<A HREF="#chap01">CHAPTER I.</A> + + PAGE + +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547 . . . . . . . . 1 + + +<A HREF="#chap02">CHAPTER II.</A> + +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 + + +<A HREF="#chap03">CHAPTER III.</A> + +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550 . . . . . . . . . . . 29 + + +<A HREF="#chap04">CHAPTER IV.</A> + +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553 . . . . 42 + + +<A HREF="#chap05">CHAPTER V.</A> + +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 + + +<A HREF="#chap06">CHAPTER VI.</A> + +FIRST DAYS IN EXILE, 1554 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 + + +<A HREF="#chap07">CHAPTER VII.</A> + +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 + + +<A HREF="#chap08">CHAPTER VIII.</A> + +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 + +</PRE> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="Pviii"></A>viii}</SPAN> + +<PRE STYLE="margin-left: 10%"> +<A HREF="#chap09">CHAPTER IX.</A> + +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 + + +<A HREF="#chap10">CHAPTER X.</A> + +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560 . . . . . . . 136 + + +<A HREF="#chap11">CHAPTER XI.</A> + +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563 . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 + + +<A HREF="#chap12">CHAPTER XII.</A> + +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + + +<A HREF="#chap13">CHAPTER XIII.</A> + +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 +</PRE> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap01"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P1"></A>1}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER I. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547. +</H4> + +<P> +On the sixteenth day of January, 1546, George Wishart delivered a +remarkable sermon in the church of Haddington. Two things had combined +to produce special depression in his heart. Shortly before he entered +the pulpit a boy had put into his hands a letter informing him that his +friends in Kyle would not be able to keep an appointment which they had +made to meet him in Edinburgh. This news so saddened him that he +expressed himself as "weary of the world," because he perceived that +"men began to be weary of God." Nor was his despondency removed when +he rose to preach, for instead of the crowds that used to assemble to +hear him in that church, there were not more than a hundred persons +present. It was thus made apparent to him that the efforts of his +enemies for his overthrow were now to be successful, and so instead of +treating the second table of the law as he had been expected to do, he +poured forth a torrent of warning and denunciation, not unlike some of +the fervid +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P2"></A>2}</SPAN> +utterances of the old Hebrew prophets. The effect +produced was all the more solemn, because he evidently felt that he was +bearing his last public testimony against the evils of his times. +</P> + +<P> +When he had concluded he bade his friends farewell, and to John Knox, +who throughout his sojourn in Lothian had attended him, armed with a +two-handed sword, as a protection against the assassination with which +he had twice been threatened, and who had pressed to be allowed to +accompany him to Ormiston, where he was to spend the night, he said, +"Nay, return to your bairns" (pupils), "and God bless you! One is +sufficient for one sacrifice." +</P> + +<P> +The good man's presentiment was all too surely realized. Before +midnight the house in which he slept was surrounded by a band of which +the Earl of Bothwell was the head, and he was given up by his host to +that nobleman, only however on the receipt of a pledge, over which +"hands" were "struck," to the effect that his personal safety should be +secured, and he should not be delivered into his enemies' power. But +promises in these days were not of much account, and Bothwell was +easily prevailed upon to give him up to Cardinal Beaton, who took him +first to Edinburgh Castle, and afterwards to St. Andrews. There, in +defiance of the protest of the Regent, he was hurriedly subjected to +the form of a trial by the cardinal, and being, of course, found +guilty, he was executed at the stake on the first of March. +</P> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P3"></A>3}</SPAN> + +<P> +Thus it is, as the body-guard of Wishart, that we get our first glimpse +of John Knox in history; and very characteristic of the man this first +appearance was. He comes upon the scene as unheralded as Elijah, and, +like him too, he is seen from the first to be set for the defence of +the truth. He was a sword-bearer all through; only when he laid aside +the two-handed brand which he carried before Wishart, he took in its +stead "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." +</P> + +<P> +Before proceeding to tell the stirring story of his life, however, it +may be well to take a brief survey of the condition of Scotland at the +moment when he stepped into the arena of its national strife. +</P> + +<P> +Little more than three years before the date of Wishart's execution, +the Queen of Scotland had given birth to that Mary Stuart, whose +character has been the puzzle of historians, and whose chequered career +has been the theme of poets almost ever since. Her father, James V., +broken-hearted by the utter defeat of his army by the English at the +battle of Solway Moss, died only a few days after his daughter's birth. +Thus it came about, that in a critical time which tested the +statesmanship of the world's strongest rulers, alike in England, +France, Germany, and Spain, Scotland had a baby sovereign, and the +controlling of its affairs became an object of keen competition between +contending parties. The queen-mother, Mary of Guise, a woman of marked +ability, of much cunning, and of little principle, was, both from +national and religious leanings, on +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P4"></A>4}</SPAN> +the side of the Catholic party. +Of that party the head at this time was David Beaton, Archbishop of St. +Andrews, and a Cardinal of the Church. This artful prelate, "the +nephew of his uncle," was possessed of eminent talents, but was +characterized by cruelty, licentiousness, and unscrupulousness. He had +prevailed on James V. to violate the promise which he had made to his +uncle, Henry VIII., to meet him at Newcastle. The haughty Tudor had +now broken with the Romish see, and was anxious, if possible, to induce +his nephew to follow his example. But the cardinal, as great a master +of intrigue as was the English king himself, had succeeded in keeping +the Scottish monarch from putting himself under the spell of his +uncle's influence, and Henry, exasperated at his defeat, sent into +Scotland an army, whose success at Solway Moss led indirectly, as we +have seen, to the death of James. When that event occurred, Beaton +produced a forged will, purporting to be the last testament of the +king, and nominating him as Regent with three of the nobles as his +assistants. On the strength of that document he had himself proclaimed +as Regent at the Cross of Edinburgh. But the validity of the +instrument was annulled by the Scottish Parliament; and in the spring +of 1543, James, Earl of Arran, heir presumptive of the crown, was +appointed to the dignity which the cardinal had so eagerly, and so +unrighteously sought to make his own. +</P> + +<P> +This nobleman, "notorious," as Burton says, "for fickleness," had been +at first on the side of the Reformation, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P5"></A>5}</SPAN> +and was then assiduously +courted by Henry VIII. He had even consented to the marriage of the +baby queen to the young English Prince Edward. But the influence of +the queen-mother and the cardinal, backed by that of his own natural +brother, the Abbot of Paisley, together with the unjust and impolitic +demands of the English monarch himself, combined to turn him from his +original leanings. He publicly abjured the Protestant faith, and was +received into the bosom of the Catholic Church. He broke off all +negotiations for a matrimonial alliance between the royal houses of +England and Scotland, and ultimately consented to the betrothal of Mary +to the Dauphin of France. The result of these proceedings was a +protracted war with England, during which Scotland was repeatedly +invaded, and portions of it devastated by the southern forces. +</P> + +<P> +But while these political and international intrigues, in which it must +be confessed that there was little scrupulousness on either side, were +going on, a great spiritual movement was making quiet progress among +the people. The Reformation from Popery had begun in Scotland also. +Patrick Hamilton, its protomartyr, had been put to death in 1528; but +the smoke of his burning, to borrow the well-known words of one of the +elder Beaton's own servants, "had infected all on whom it blew"; and +the books of the German Reformers, together with the English Testaments +of William Tyndale, had wrought like hidden leaven, especially among +the more intelligent of the community. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P6"></A>6}</SPAN> +Thus we account for the +fact that, in spite of legal prohibitions and public executions, the +knowledge of evangelical truth was diffused, even when there was no +living voice to proclaim it publicly in the hearing of the multitudes; +so that when a man like Wishart did make his appearance, he found +crowds to listen to him appreciatively both in Dundee and Ayr. The +Lollards of Kyle had still worthy descendants in that historic +district; and the merchants in towns like that of Leith, whose commerce +brought them into contact with men from Hamburg, Antwerp, and the +cities of the Rhine, were disposed to welcome the new doctrines. Among +the nobles, men like Glencairn and Errol and Ruthven ranged themselves +on the side of the Reformers; while the influence of a satirist like +Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, and a scholar like Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, was given heartily to their cause. +</P> + +<P> +But next only to the diffusion of the Scriptures among the people, the +greatest factor in the production of the Reformation in Scotland was +the degraded condition into which in that country the Church of Rome +itself had sunk. "That which decayeth is ready to vanish away." There +were no longer in it the elements of vitality. It was past purifying, +and had to be swept clean out. Its corruptions were too open to be +denied, and too gross to be defended. The grasping selfishness and +shameless licentiousness of the upper clergy were equalled only by the +ignorance and general incompetence of the lower, so that there had +sprung up among the people generally a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P7"></A>7}</SPAN> +hatred of the order to which +both belonged. This was deepened and intensified by the spirit in +which the first efforts of the Reformers had been met, for in Scotland +as elsewhere the prison and the stake were the short and easy answers +made by papal intolerance to all the arguments which the preachers +brought against the errors of Romanism. But these were answers which +only turned more general attention to the statements of the Reformers, +and gave wider circulation to their words. The storm of contrary wind +unfurls the banner, and makes thereby its inscription the more legible, +and in the same way the persecution of those who proclaimed the truth +only fell out to the furtherance of that which it was designed to +arrest. +</P> + +<P> +But Cardinal Beaton's conscience was too hard to feel the crime, and +his eye was too dim to see the blunder which he was committing in +putting Wishart to death. He looked only at immediate results, and +thought perhaps that by silencing the preacher he could arrest the +influence of the words which had already gone from him. But in reality +he was himself standing above a mine which before long exploded for his +own destruction. His checkmating of Henry VIII. so exasperated that +monarch that he entered into correspondence, through his agent Sir +Robert Sadler, with certain Scotsmen whose disaffection to the cardinal +was well known, and who, at his suggestion, or at least with his +concurrence and approval, perhaps also with his reward, entered into a +conspiracy to "take him out of the way." +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P8"></A>8}</SPAN> +Accordingly on the morning +of the 29th of May, just three months after the martyrdom of Wishart, +Cardinal Beaton was assassinated by a company of men headed by Norman +Leslie. That the wily priest had himself been guilty of attempts to +get rid of his adversaries by the same unscrupulous means is not to be +denied. It is equally certain that, as things then were, it would have +been impossible to bring him to trial for any of his enormities. But +still the manner of his "taking off" is not only utterly indefensible, +but also worthy of the deepest reprobation, and it is too true, as Dr. +Lorimer has said, that "the exasperation of feeling called forth by a +deed so daring and criminal gave rise to proceedings against the +conspirators which, being extended to all their abettors real or +supposed, had the effect of retarding the progress of the Reformation +for many years, and of weighing it down with a load of opprobrium from +the effects of which it could only slowly recover."[<A NAME="chap01fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap01fn1">1</A>] +</P> + +<P> +Foreseeing that they would be the objects of bitter attack, the +conspirators, after they had done their bloody work, resolved to keep +possession of the Castle of St. Andrews which they had so unexpectedly +seized, and there they were speedily joined by at least one hundred and +forty persons, numbering among them Kirkaldy of Grange, Melville of +Raith, Balfour of Mount-quhany, and many gentlemen of Fife and the +neighbouring +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P9"></A>9}</SPAN> +counties. They put the castle into a state of +defence, and were besieged by an army under command of the Regent +Arran, against whom they held out, more perhaps from the incompetence +of the besiegers than from the skill or strength of the besieged, until +the end of January, 1547. At that date the siege was suspended under +an agreement which stipulated that the Castle was still to remain in +the hands of its defenders, on the conditions that they should hold it +for the Regent and not deliver it to England; and that they should not +be required to surrender it even to the Regent until he had obtained +from Rome absolution for those who had been implicated in the murder of +the cardinal. Upon his side the Regent agreed to withdraw his forces +to the south of the Forth, and from the beginning of the year on till +the following June the inmates of the Castle were permitted to go out +and in at their pleasure, and to receive all that came to them. +</P> + +<P> +Thus the Castle of St. Andrews became for the time a kind of sanctuary +for all who were seeking relief or refuge from the oppression of the +rulers in Church and State; and at the following Easter, which fell +that year on the 10th of April, John Knox entered its gates under +circumstances which he himself has thus described: "At the Pasch after, +came to the Castle of St. Andrews John Knox, who, wearied of removing +from place to place by reason of the persecution that came upon him by +this Bishop of St. Andrews, was determined to have left Scotland and to +have visited the schools of Germany +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P10"></A>10}</SPAN> +(of England then he had no +pleasure by reason that the Pope's name being suppressed, his laws and +corruptions remained in full vigour). But because he had the care of +some gentlemen's children, whom certain years he had nourished in +godliness, their fathers solicited him to go to St. Andrews, that +himself might have the benefit of the castle, and their children the +benefit of his doctrine, and so (we say) came he the time foresaid, to +the said place, and having in his company Francis Douglas of +Longniddry, George his brother, and Alexander Cockburn, eldest son to +the laird of Ormiston, began to exercise them after his accustomed +manner."[<A NAME="chap01fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap01fn2">2</A>] +</P> + +<P> +Knox was at this time in the prime and vigour of his manhood, being +forty-two years of age. He was born in 1505 at Gifford-gate, a suburb +connected with Haddington by the old stone bridge across the Tyne. His +parents were not distinguished either for rank or fortune, for one of +his adversaries affirms that he was "obscuris natus parentibus" (born +of obscure parents), and even one of his admirers says that "he +descended but of lineage small." His father was William Knox, and his +mother's name was Sinclair. Both of them apparently belonged to +families that were in some way feudatories to the Earls of Bothwell, +for at the Reformer's first interview with that earl, whose name is so +tragically +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P11"></A>11}</SPAN> +coupled with Queen Mary's, he said, "Albeit that to +this hour it hath not chanced me to speak to your lordship face to +face, yet have I borne a good mind to your house; ... for, my lord, my +grandfather, goodschir (<I>i.e.</I>, according to Mr. Laing, maternal +grandfather) and father have served your lordship's predecessors, and +some of them have died under their standards." He received his +earliest education at the Grammar School of Haddington, and passed when +he was about sixteen years of age to the University of Glasgow, in the +register of which his name appears among those of the students who were +incorporated on the 25th October, 1522. +</P> + +<P> +At that time and for a year later John Major, or Mair, Doctor of the +Sorbonne, was Principal of the Glasgow University and Professor of +Divinity in the same. He had some opinions, both ecclesiastical and +political, which were considerably in advance of his age, and it has +been supposed that Knox may have received from him some of those +principles which he afterwards so ably advocated. But perhaps too much +has been made of this by the Reformer's biographers, for Major remained +only one year in Glasgow after Knox had been registered as a student at +the University; and though he held some liberal notions in politics, he +was in theology to the last a rigid scholastic. Moreover, he was so +far from being a zealous promoter of the cause of the Reformation that +his name appears as a judge on several of the tribunals at which the +early Scottish +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P12"></A>12}</SPAN> +confessors were condemned to banishment or death. +Taking these things into consideration along with the youth of Knox +when he first entered college, it will appear hardly likely that he +received from Major anything more than a general impulse in the +direction of liberty and liberality, which prepared him to look with +favour on the efforts of those who, though they might be called +innovators, were in reality only seeking to get back to the original +simplicity of the gospel, and the primitive purity of the Church. +</P> + +<P> +Knox left Glasgow without taking the degree of Master of Arts, and +there is no evidence whatever for the statement sometimes made that he +was afterwards connected with the University of St. Andrews. In fact +we lose sight of him entirely for a period of eighteen years from the +time of his leaving Glasgow. During that interval he was ordained a +priest, though by whom, or at what precise date, it is now impossible +to determine; but his signature has been found,[<A NAME="chap01fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap01fn3">3</A>] as notary, to an +instrument in the charter-room at Tyninghame, bearing date March 27, +1543, a fact which establishes that up till that time he retained his +character as a priest and had the papal authority to act as a notary. +With these functions he seems to have combined that of a teacher of +youth, for at the time we come upon him in connection with Wishart, he +had under his charge some young men of good family in the land. +</P> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P13"></A>13}</SPAN> + +<P> +We have no details concerning his conversion from the Romish to the +Protestant faith. According to one authority it was Thomas Guillaume +who was "the first to give Mr. Knox a taste of the truth." That +eloquent preacher,—a native of East Lothian, who had risen to a high +place in the order of the Dominicans,—had through the influence of the +party of progress been appointed chaplain to the Regent Arran at the +time when that weak ruler was favouring the Reformers. Knox himself +has described him as "a man of solid judgment, reasonable letters (as +for that age), and of prompt and good utterance; his doctrine was +wholesome without great vehemency against superstition." It does not +appear, however, from anything he says that he ever came personally +into contact with him, though it is possible that some of those clear +expositions of Scripture for which Guillaume was so esteemed may have +been heard by him, and may have produced a deep impression on his mind. +But beyond all question George Wishart was the true spiritual father of +John Knox. The preaching and companionship of that earnest man during +that journey through the Lothians, which ended in his apprehension at +Ormiston, did more for Knox than any other human instrumentality +whatever. They wrought conviction in him, and brought him out into +decision, so that from the moment when these two men parted from each +other for the last time at the church of Haddington, it was no longer +possible for Knox to return into the position of comparative obscurity +from which he had +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P14"></A>14}</SPAN> +emerged to become the body-guard of Wishart. He +had come prominently out on the side of the Reformation, and the +martyrdom of his teacher would only deepen his determination that he +should not go back. +</P> + +<P> +But there was no need for him to throw his life away as a gratuitous +sacrifice, and therefore, when he was compelled to seek safety from his +persecutors by removing from place to place, and out of weariness was +minded to go to Germany, he consented, at the earnest solicitations of +the parents of his pupils, to find protection in the Castle of St. +Andrews. Let it be noted, however, that he did not enter that +stronghold until the 10th of April, 1547, that is, more than ten months +after Beaton's murder, and therefore he is not to be reckoned among +those who had concocted and carried out the assassination of that +prelate. He was at that date in too obscure a station to be in any +way, even the most remote, associated with those who had committed that +foul murder, and he went to St. Andrews simply that he might be able to +carry on uninterruptedly the education of his pupils. Accordingly, so +soon as he was fairly settled there, he resumed the regular routine of +his work with them. What that was he has himself informed us in these +words: "Besides their grammar and other humane authors" (that is, +authors in what were then called the humanity classes) "he read unto +them a catechism, an account whereof he caused them to give publicly in +the parish church of St. Andrews. He read moreover unto them the +Gospel of John proceeding where he" (had) +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P15"></A>15}</SPAN> +"left" (off) "at his +departing from Longniddry where before his residence was, and that +lecture he read in the chapel within the castle at a certain hour." +These public exercises attracted to them a large number of those who +were then sojourning in the castle, among whom were Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, a distinguished jurist, who had been already, and was to be +again, one of the judges of the court of session, and John Rough, who +was the stated preacher to the congregation within the castle. These +men were greatly impressed alike with the matter, the method, and the +manner of delivery of the lectures, and seeing his fitness for the +work, they earnestly entreated Knox to enter at once upon the office of +the ministry. But he declared that "he would not run where God had not +called him," and peremptorily refused to accede to their request. Upon +this they took counsel with Sir David Lindsay, of the Mount, and +others, and ultimately agreed that Rough, without giving any formal +warning that he was about to do anything of the kind, should address to +Knox a special public call in the name and before the face of the +congregation. Accordingly, in the presence of the people, and after +having preached a sermon on the election of ministers, Rough turned to +Knox and said, "Brother, ye shall not be offended, albeit that 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 of His Son Jesus Christ, +and in the name of these that presently call you by my mouth, I charge +you that ye refuse +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P16"></A>16}</SPAN> +not this holy vocation, but that, as ye tender +the glory of God, the increase of Christ's kingdom, the edification of +your brethren, and the comfort of me whom you understand well enough to +be oppressed by the multitude of labours, that ye take upon you the +public office and charge of preaching even as ye look to avoid God's +heavy displeasure, and desire that He shall multiply His graces with +you." Then turning to the congregation he said, "Was not this your +charge to me?" They answered, "It was, and we approve it." The +combined suddenness and solemnity of this appeal completely unmanned +Knox. He burst into tears and hastened to his closet, where we may +well believe that he sought light from God; and the result Was that he +was led to take up that ministry which he laid down only with his life. +Not from the impulse of caprice, or because he desired the position of +a preacher, but because he could not otherwise meet the responsibility +which God had laid upon him, did he enter upon that high and honourable +vocation. He was to do a work for his countrymen not unlike that which +Moses did for his kinsmen, and so like Moses he was called to it in the +full maturity of his powers, and entered upon it with the conviction +that God had given him his commission, and he dared not disobey. +</P> + +<P> +Nor did he tarry long before he began to preach, for the call of +Providence came almost simultaneously with that of the church. It +happened just then that Mr. Rough was engaged in a controversy with a +popish +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P17"></A>17}</SPAN> +dean named Annand. For such a discussion Rough was but +poorly furnished, since, as McCrie says, though he was sound in +doctrine, his literary acquirements were only moderate. In his +emergency he had been much assisted by Knox, who made such good use of +the pen that he beat back his adversary from all his defences. As a +last resort Annand took refuge in the authority of the Church, upon +which Knox at once exclaimed, in the hearing of those who were present +at the discussion, that a distinction must be drawn between the true +spouse of Christ and the Church of Rome, and offered to prove by word +or writing that the Papal Church had degenerated from that of primitive +times more than the Jews who crucified the Saviour had fallen from the +ordinances of Moses. On hearing this, the people alleged that they +could not all read his writings, but could all listen to his preaching, +and therefore insisted, in the name of God, that he would let them hear +his proof of the assertion which he had made. Such an appeal was not +to be resisted, and therefore on the very next Sunday Knox entered the +pulpit, and preached (from the text Daniel vii. 24, 25) a sermon, in +which, after having given the true marks of the Church, he went on to +expose the corruptions of the Romish clergy in their lives, the +erroneous doctrine taught by them, especially in the matter of +justification, and the enslaving laws enjoined by them in regard to +days, and meats, and marriage. In particular he inveighed against the +blasphemies of popery. He identified the Papal +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P18"></A>18}</SPAN> +Church with the +Babylonian harlot in the book of the Revelation, and concluded by +demanding the most thorough investigation of all the statements which +he had made, and the most minute examination of the authorities whom he +had cited. This discourse was listened to by a large assembly, among +whom was John Major, his old Glasgow principal, and it produced a great +effect upon all. Some said, "Others lopped off the branches of the +papistry, but he strikes at the root to destroy the whole." Others +predicted that he would meet the fate of Wishart, who had never spoken +quite so plainly as Knox had done that day. The new archbishop of St. +Andrews, not yet consecrated to his office, expostulated with the +vicar-general of the diocese for allowing such heretical doctrines to +be promulgated without opposition, and that led to the calling of a +convention of the learned men of the abbey and the university, before +which Rough and Knox were summoned to make answer to nine articles, +involving heresies, which had been drawn from their sermons. But +nothing more serious resulted from that meeting than a debate between +Knox and a friar named Arbuckle, whose arguments Knox easily refuted, +and that too with a considerable mixture of the grim humour which ever +and anon laughs outright in the pages of his history. Clearly, +therefore, it would be a perilous thing for the Church to let such a +man do all the preaching to the people; and so orders were issued that +each of the learned men in the abbey and university should preach +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P19"></A>19}</SPAN> +in his own turn on the Sundays in the parish church. This deprived +Knox of the opportunity of addressing the congregation on those days +when the greatest numbers were in attendance; but he continued his +ministry on the other days of the week, and that with such success that +although it lasted in all at this time not more than three months, many +of the inhabitants of the town renounced popery, and made confession of +the Protestant faith by partaking of the Lord's Supper in the reformed +manner, the first occasion on which the ordinance was publicly +administered in Scotland after that fashion. +</P> + +<P> +Thus the beginning of Knox's work marks a distinct stage in the history +of the Scottish Reformation. At first, and under what has been called +by Lorimer the Hamilton period, peculiar emphasis was laid upon the +truths which were revived in the teaching of Luther; under the Wishart +period the doctrine of the sacraments came into prominence, and then +first the influence of Switzerland began to be felt by Scotland; but +under Knox attention was directed especially to the nature and +constitution of the church, and the first sermon which he preached, and +of which we have given the barest outline, had already in it "the +promise and the potency" of the great work which he was yet to +accomplish for his native land. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap01fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap01fn1text">1</A>] "The Scottish Reformation." A Historical Sketch by Peter Lorimer, +D.D. London: R. Griffin & Co., 1860, p. 157. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap01fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap01fn2text">2</A>] "The Works of John Knox," collected and edited by Dr. David Laing, +vol. i. p. 185. Once for all let it be said that in making these +quotations the spelling is modernized, but otherwise no alteration is +made. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap01fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap01fn3text">3</A>] By Dr. David Laing: see "Knox's Works," vol. vi. pp. xxii. xxiii. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap02"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P20"></A>20}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER II. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549. +</H4> + +<P> +During the months which had elapsed since the time when the Castle of +St. Andrews had become a refuge for those who had so summarily and +unscrupulously murdered Beaton, changes had occurred both in England +and in France which deeply affected their interests. Henry VIII. died +on the 28th January, 1547, and for a short time during the minority of +Edward the reins of government had been virtually given into the hands +of the Duke of Somerset, under the name of Protector. This deprived +the besieged of their most powerful friend, for although after Henry's +decease the Privy Council fulfilled his directions and voted money to +Leslie and others as individuals, together with a certain sum for the +maintenance of a garrison in the castle, yet Somerset took little +further care of those who remained within its shelter, and left them +virtually to their own resources. The death of Francis I. of France, +which took place on the 31st of March in the same year, added to their +danger, for he was succeeded by Henry II., who as Dauphin had been the +leader of the party +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P21"></A>21}</SPAN> +most opposed to England, and who was therefore +by no means indisposed to do anything that would tend to widen the +breach between that country and his own. When therefore Somerset, +unwisely insisting on reviving the pretensions of feudal superiority +over Scotland which had been put forth by Edward I., permitted the +Borders to be wasted by fire and sword, and urged the French to abstain +from interference, he was met with the reply that their king "might not +suffer the old friends of France to be oppressed and alienated from +him." In France, therefore, the Regent Arran and the queen-mother +found a willing ally, and in the beginning of June Leo Strozzi, prior +of Capua, appeared with a fleet of French galleys in sight of the +Castle of St. Andrews, and demanded the surrender of its inmates. +According to agreement this was conditioned on the reception from Rome +of absolution for the murderers of Beaton. But although Strozzi +brought absolution with him, it was expressed in such an equivocal +form,—"Remittimus irremissibile," we pardon that which is +unpardonable,—that the persons interested refused to accept it, and +the siege was renewed. Arran, hearing of the arrival of his allies, +hastened from the west country to co-operate with them, and the result +was such as might have been expected. For this time the defenders had +to contend with skilled gunners, before whose batteries, as Knox had +forewarned them would be the case, "their walls were no better than +eggshells." From the steeple of St. Salvador's College and the towers +of the Abbey, as well as from the galleys in +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P22"></A>22}</SPAN> +the bay, the cannon +of their assailants poured shot in upon them, while within the walls +the plague broke out with virulence. So in the end of July Kirkcaldy +of Grange went forth with a flag of truce to make the best possible +terms with the victors. The conditions obtained were that the lives of +all within the castle, whether English or Scotch, should be spared; +that they should be safely transported to France; and that in case, +upon conditions that by the king of France should be offered unto them, +they could not be content to remain in service and freedom there, they +should, at the expense of the king of France, be safely conveyed to +what country they would require, other than Scotland. These promises, +however, were shamefully broken, for the vanquished were taken on board +the vessels which had been plentifully loaded with the spoils of the +castle, and carried to France, where they were held in bondage for many +months. One detachment of them was taken to Cherbourg, and another to +Mount St. Michael. Knox himself was reduced to the condition of a +galley-slave. +</P> + +<P> +We have no connected account of his experiences in this time of trial, +but here and there in his works he has dropped incidental hints which +give us glimpses of his sufferings, and of the manner in which they +were endured by him. In his history of the Reformation, in connection +with the account of an effort made by some of his friends to dissuade +him in the year 1559 from preaching in St. Andrews, we have a report of +the answer which he gave to them, and in that occurs the following +passage: +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P23"></A>23}</SPAN> +"In this town and church began God first to call me to +the dignity of a preacher, from, the which I was reft by the tyranny of +France by procurement of the bishops as ye all well enough know. How +long I continued prisoner, <I>what torment I sustained in the galleys, +and what were the sobs of my heart</I>, is now no time to consider." An +equally pathetic reference to his misery during this season of bondage, +and to his solace under it, is to be found in his treatise on the true +nature and object of prayer, in which after having referred to the +words, (Ps. vii. 16, 17) "His mischief shall return upon his own head, +and his violent dealings shall come down upon his own pate. I will +praise the Lord according to His righteousness, and will sing praise to +the name of the Lord most high," he goes on to say, "This is not +written for David only, but for all such as shall suffer tribulation to +the end of the world. For I, the writer hereof (let this be said to +the laud and praise of God alone), in <I>anguish of mind and vehement +tribulation and affliction</I>, called to the Lord, when not only the +ungodly, but even my faithful brethren, yea and mine own self, that is +all natural understanding in me, judged my cause to be irremediable; +and yet in my greatest calamity, and when my pains were most cruel, +would His eternal wisdom that I should write far contrary to the +judgment of carnal wisdom, which His mercy has proved true. Blessed be +His holy name! And therefore I dare be bold, in the verity of God's +word to promise that notwithstanding the vehemence of trouble, the long +continuance thereof, the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P24"></A>24}</SPAN> +dispersion of all men, the fearfulness, +danger, dolor, and anguish of our hearts; yet if we call constantly to +God, that beyond expectation of all men, He shall deliver." There can +be little doubt, as Dr. Laing remarks in a foot-note to this passage, +that Knox here refers to his bodily and mental sufferings during his +confinement on board the French galley, and so we see that his faith +was not a mere sentimental thing, that, as he has himself elsewhere +expressed it, he was no mere "speculative theologue," but indeed a +steadfast believer, who had proved God's faithfulness to His promise +even in the sorest tribulation. +</P> + +<P> +Again in the epistle to the congregation of the Castle of St. Andrews +prefixed by him to the tract on Justification by Faith, which his +friend Henry Balnaves had written during his imprisonment at Rouen, we +find among other allusions to his support under his sufferings the +following words: "I exhort that ye read diligently this treatise, not +only with earnest prayer that ye may understand the same aright, but +also with humble and due thanksgiving unto our most merciful Father, +who of His infinite power hath so strengthened the hearts of His +prisoners, that in despite of Satan they desist not yet to work, but in +the most vehemency of tribulation seek the utility and salvation of +others." +</P> + +<P> +And in a letter written in December, 1559, he speaks of "all the +torments of the galleys" in such a way as to lead us to conclude that +he was subjected to the greatest hardships. Once more, and perhaps +most pathetically of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P25"></A>25}</SPAN> +all, in that letter to the congregation of +Berwick which Dr. Lorimer first printed in his "John Knox and the +Church of England," and to which we shall have to make fuller reference +by-and-by, he thus writes: "This day I am more vile and of low +reputation in my own eyes than I was either that day that <I>my feet were +chained in the prison of dolor</I> (the galleys I mean), or yet that day +that I was delivered by His only providence from the same." +</P> + +<P> +It is clear, therefore, that his sufferings were severe, and while he +endured them with a fortitude that was sustained by his faith in God, +he was careful also to maintain always a conscience void of offence. +He tells us that those who were in the galleys "were threatened with +torments if they would not give reverence to the mass, but they could +never make the poorest of that company to give reverence to that idol." +He adds the following narrative, and from the ironic humour that plays +about his style as he recites it, we cannot doubt that he was himself +the hero of the story. "Soon after the arrival at Nantes, their great +salve was sung, and a glorious (gaudy) painted board was brought in to +be kissed, and amongst others was presented to one of the Scotchmen +then chained. He gently said, 'Trouble me not; such an idol is +accursed, and therefore I will not touch it.' The patron and the +arguesyn (<I>i.e.</I> sergeant who commanded the forçats) with two officers, +having the chief charge of all such matters, said, 'Thou shalt handle +it,' and so they violently thrust it to his face, and put it betwixt +his hands, who seeing the extremity, taking the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P26"></A>26}</SPAN> +idol, and +advisedly looking about, he cast it into the river, and said, 'Let our +lady now save herself; she is light enough; let her learn to swim.' +After that was no Scotchman urged with that idolatry." +</P> + +<P> +But sorely bestead as he was in his captivity, he would not sanction +any attempt to escape which should savour of violence. Though himself +innocent of all complicity in Beaton's murder, he had seen the cause +which he had at heart so greatly hindered by the consequences of that +evil deed, and he was withal so utterly opposed to everything which he +believed that God had forbidden, that he would be no party to doing +evil that good might come. Accordingly when Kirkcaldy and two other +friends who were confined with him at Mount St. Michael wrote to him to +inquire whether they might with safe conscience break their prison, he +replied, that if without the shedding of any blood they could set +themselves at liberty, they might do so without sin, but that he would +never consent to their slaying of others in order to obtain +deliverance. He added the expression of his own assurance that God +Himself would work out their enlargement in such a way that "the praise +thereof should redound to His glory alone." Nor was that with him a +mere temporary or intermittent sentiment. It was the settled +conviction of his soul; for from the very beginning of his captivity +when one of his fellow-prisoners would often ask him if he thought that +they should ever be delivered, his invariable answer was that "God +would deliver them from that bondage +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P27"></A>27}</SPAN> +to His glory, even in this +life." Nor did he falter, even when his own strength seemed ebbing +out, for when the galleys had returned to Scotland in the summer of +1548, and were lying between Dundee and St. Andrews, while he himself +was so reduced by illness that his life was despaired of, the same +companion bidding him look to the land, asked him if he knew it, +whereupon he made reply, "Yes, I know it well, for I see the steeple of +that place where God first opened my mouth 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 holy name in the same +place." He tells this almost as if he believed that the Spirit of +prophecy spoke through him at the moment; but it is not necessary for +us, while admitting the full truth of the narrative, to accept any such +explanation. If his anticipation had not been verified, his words +might have been entirely forgotten; and the probability is that his +conviction rested rather upon his general apprehension of the +principles of the Divine administration, than upon any supernatural +communication of a special sort. The Psalmist writes that "the secret +of the Lord is with them that fear Him;" and this gracious +illumination, which is the heritage of all in the proportion in which +they possess the character with which it is associated, is sufficient +to account for the correctness of his impression, without having +recourse to the theory of prophetic inspiration. That even Knox +himself would have thus regarded this matter, seems clear from a +passage in +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P28"></A>28}</SPAN> +his "Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which Dr. Lorimer thinks is of standard authority as +giving the principle of interpretation for all those places in which he +speaks in what may be called a prophetic tone and manner; and in which +it has sometimes been thought that he spoke not without some endowment +of supernatural insight and foreknowledge. We quote the following +sentences: "But ye would know the grounds of my certitude. God grant +that hearing them, ye may understand and steadfastly believe the same. +My assurances are not marvels of Merlin, nor yet the dark sentences of +profane prophecies; but (1) the plain truth of God's word, (2) the +invincible justice of the everlasting God, and (3) the ordinary course +of His punishments and plagues from the beginning, are my assurances +and grounds" (p. 85). +</P> + +<P> +But however we may account for the assurance which he felt, his +forecast of the future was certainly remarkably fulfilled; and there +are few contrasts in history more striking and suggestive than that +between the weak and apparently dying galley-slave looking longingly on +the shores of his native land; and the energetic Reformer of a later +date, of whom the English ambassador wrote to Cecil saying: "I assure +you the voice of one man is able in an hour to put more life in us than +six hundred trumpets continually blustering in our ears." +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap03"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P29"></A>29}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER III. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550. +</H4> + +<P> +By what means Knox obtained his release from the galling servitude in +which he had been held by the French, we have not been able to +discover; but it is believed that he was indebted for it to the +intercession of England, and it is certain that in the early part of +the year 1549, he was employed by the Privy Council of that country as +one of the ministers whom its members commissioned to preach the +doctrines of the Reformation throughout the kingdom. The probability +is that he arrived in London about the month of February, and it is +conjectured that as Henry Balnaves was in that city as a commissioner +from the besieged in St. Andrews, at the time of the death of Henry +VIII., Knox, who had just then entered upon his ministry, may have been +beholden to his friend for bringing his name to the favourable notice +of the English Reformers. But however that may have been, we come upon +authentic and reliable information, when we find in the register of the +Privy Council, under date April 7th, 1549, an entry authorizing the +payment of five pounds "to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P30"></A>30}</SPAN> +John Knox, preacher, by way of reward." +Besides this, his name occurs as the sixty-fourth in a list of eighty +who obtained licence to preach in England during the reign of Edward +the Sixth. He himself informs us in his History, that "he was first +appointed preacher to Berwick, then to Newcastle; last he was called to +London and to the southern parts of England, where he remained till the +death of Edward the Sixth." This is all that he has said directly in +that work concerning his residence in England; but so much new light +has been shed on this part of the Reformer's career by the painstaking +and elaborate monogram of Dr. Lorimer, that we are now able to follow +his steps with something like minuteness. +</P> + +<P> +He was settled first at the border town of Berwick-on-Tweed, which in +those days was "the focus of a long and bloody war between the two +kingdoms, which had begun with the tremendous slaughter of the Scots at +Pinkey in the autumn of 1547, and in which the Scots, having received +large assistance from France, were still able to maintain so vigorous a +defence that there was no near prospect of a return of peace."[<A NAME="chap03fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn1">1</A>] Thus +it happened that its garrison was larger than ordinary, and everything +about the place was volcanic. Quarrels among the soldiers were common, +and the civilians themselves were not over peaceful, so that the +chronic state of the town was one of disorder. John Brende, "master of +the musters," reports to the Protector Somerset concerning +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P31"></A>31}</SPAN> +it: +"There is better order among the Tartars than in this town; the whole +picture of the place is one of social disorder and the worst +police."[<A NAME="chap03fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn2">2</A>] Besides all this, the great majority of the people were as +yet probably papists, for the doctrines of the Reformation had made +little progress thus far in the northern counties, and matters +ecclesiastical were very unsettled. In March of that year the first +Prayer-Book of Edward VI. was sanctioned by Parliament and published +for the use of the Church. The new liturgy still retained much of the +leaven of sacerdotalism and sacramentarianism, but it was decidedly in +advance of anything which could have been issued in the days of Henry +VIII. It was thoroughly approved by but a portion of the bishops, and +there were several counties in the remoter parts of the kingdom where +it was never introduced at all. Tunstall, then Bishop of Durham, who +was no friend to the cause of reform, was in no haste to give effect to +the new legislation; and the council of the north, to which was +committed the care of public affairs in that then distant corner of the +realm, probably thought it advisable to refrain from enforcing it upon +the people, until they were prepared, by the instructions of some +eminent preacher, for receiving and obeying it. Thus we account for +the fact that, all the time he was in Berwick, Knox was left very much +to his own discretion as to the doctrines which he preached, and the +methods +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P32"></A>32}</SPAN> +which he adopted for the conduct of Divine service and the +administration of the sacraments. +</P> + +<P> +Already in his preface to Balnaves's treatise on Justification, the +first of his printed productions so far as can be traced, he had +written a summary of his belief on that great central doctrine; and in +his disputation with Arbuckle in St. Andrews, he had been truly charged +with holding the following opinions—viz. first, man may neither make +nor devise a religion that is acceptable to God, but is bound to +observe and keep the religion that from God is received without +chopping or changing thereof; second, the sacraments of the New +Testament ought to be ministered as they were instituted by Christ +Jesus and practised by the apostles, nothing ought to be added to them, +nothing ought to be diminished from them; third, the mass is abominable +idolatry, blasphemous to the death of Christ, and a profanation of the +Lord's Supper. When therefore he began his labours at Berwick he set +himself to the proclamation of the great truths which radiate from the +priesthood of Christ; and in his dispensation of the supper he followed +an order of his own, which was not improbably the same as he had +adopted in the Castle of St. Andrews. This is put beyond dispute by +his letter to the congregation of Berwick, written probably about the +close of 1552, and the fragment entitled "The Practice of the Lord's +Supper used in Berwick-upon-Tweed by John Knox, preacher to the +congregation of the Church there," both of which are to be found in +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P33"></A>33}</SPAN> +Dr. Lorimer's Appendix. The matter is of more than mere +antiquarian interest, and we may therefore make one or two extracts +from the more important of these documents. +</P> + +<P> +In regard to his preaching he thus writes: "As for the variety and +diversity of opinions touching the doctrine and chief points of +religion which ye have received, God I take to witness, and the Lord +Jesus Christ, before whom at once shall all flesh appear, that I never +taught unto you, nor unto any others my auditory, that doctrine as +necessary to be believed which I did not find written in God's holy law +and testament. And, therefore, in that case with Paul I will say, 'If +an angel from heaven shall teach unto you another gospel than ye have +heard and externally received, let him be accursed.'" Then after +stating in a positive form what he understands by the gospel he adds: +"If in any of these chief and principal points any man vary from that +doctrine which ye have professed, let him be accursed:[<A NAME="chap03fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn3">3</A>] (1) as if any +man teach any other cause moving God to elect and choose us than His +own infinite goodness and mere mercy; (2) any other name in heaven or +under the heaven wherein salvation stands, but only the name of Jesus; +(3) any other means whereby we are justified and absolved from wrath +and damnation that our sins deserve, than by faith only; (4) any other +cause or end of good works than that first we are made good trees, and +thereafter bring +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P34"></A>34}</SPAN> +forth fruits accordingly, to witness that we are +lively members of Christ's holy and most sanctified body, prepared +vessels to the honour and praise of our Father's glory; (5) if any +teach prayers to be made to other than God above; (6) if any Mediator +betwixt God and man, but only our Lord Jesus; (7) if more or other +sacraments be affirmed or required to be used than Christ Jesus left +ordinary in His Church, to wit, Baptism and the Lord's Table, or +mystical supper; (8) if any deny remission of sins, resurrection of the +flesh and life everlasting to appertain to us in Christ's blood, which, +sprinkled in our hearts by faith, doth purge us from all sin; so that +we need no more nor other sacrifices than that oblation once offered +for all, by the which God's elect be fully sanctified and made perfect; +if any I say, require any other sacrifice to be made for sins than +Christ's death, which once He suffered, or any other manner whereby +Christ's death may be applied to man, than by faith only, which also is +the gift of God, so that man hath no cause to glory in works; and yet, +if any deny good works to be profitable as not necessary to a true +Christian profession, let the affirmers, teachers, or maintainers of +such a doctrine be accursed of you, as they are of God unless they +repent." In these articles we are struck with the absence of all +reference to the Holy Spirit and regeneration; but we have many +allusions to these subjects elsewhere, some, indeed, in this very +document, and we may suppose that as it was specifically the +mediatorial work of Christ that was then in controversy, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P35"></A>35}</SPAN> +he +designedly restricted himself to that. But from this summary, brief as +it is, we learn that even at this early date, long before he had +visited Geneva, or met Calvin, Knox had found his own way by the study +of the Scriptures to those views of gospel truth which are now +associated with the name of the great Frenchman; and that they formed +the chief themes of his public discourse at Berwick is evident from the +solemn words with which he has here introduced their enumeration. +</P> + +<P> +Nor was his proclamation of them there in vain; for in his vindication +of himself, at a later date before Queen Mary of Scotland, from the +charge of causing great sedition and slaughter in England, and securing +his ends by necromancy, he said among other things, "I shame not +further to affirm that God so blessed my weak labours, that in Berwick, +where commonly before there used to be slaughter by reason of quarrels +that used to arise among the soldiers, there was as great quietness all +the time that I remained there, as there is this day in Edinburgh."[<A NAME="chap03fn4text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn4">4</A>] +Besides this, there is in the letter from which we have quoted abundant +evidence that his biographer was not wrong when he affirmed that during +his two years in Berwick numbers were converted and a visible +reformation was produced upon the soldiers of the garrison who had been +notorious for turbulence and licentiousness. +</P> + +<P> +But his procedure in regard to the Lord's Supper was even more +remarkable for its independence, than +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P36"></A>36}</SPAN> +the tenour of his discourses +was for its adherence to the Pauline theology. In the Book of Common +Prayer issued by the joint authorization of Convocation and Parliament +in 1549, the rubric for the Lord's Supper provided that bread +"unleavened and round as it was afore" should be used. But in regard +to that Knox took the bold course of ignoring the authoritative +rubrics. He substituted common bread for the wafer, and he +administered the "elements" to the people while they sat, according to +the form still followed in the nonconforming churches of England, and +the Presbyterian churches in all parts of the world. It may seem to +some that this was a defiance of the law; and perhaps in strictest +construction so it was; but it is to be remembered that, as yet, the +law had not become operative in the district to which Berwick belonged, +and that therefore it was open meanwhile for Knox to take the course +which he believed to be best. Thus he writes:[<A NAME="chap03fn5text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn5">5</A>] "Kneeling at the +Lord's Supper I have proved by doctrine (teaching) to be no convenient +gesture for a table; (a gesture) which hath been given in that action +to such a presence of Christ, as no place of God's Scripture doth teach +unto us. And therefore, <I>kneeling in that action</I>, appearing to be +joined with certain dangers, no less in maintaining superstition than +in using Christ's holy institution with other gestures than either He +used or commanded to be used, <I>I thought good amongst you to avoid and +to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P37"></A>37}</SPAN> +use sitting at the Lord's Table</I>; which ye did not refuse, but +with all reverence and thanksgiving to God for His truth knowing, as I +suppose, ye confirmed the doctrine with your gestures and confession." +The order which he observed[<A NAME="chap03fn6text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn6">6</A>] began with a sermon on the benefits +given us by God through Jesus Christ; this was followed by prayer, +after which was read the account of the institution of the ordinance +from 1 Corinthians xi. 20-30. Then a declaration of "what persons be +unworthy to be partakers" was made; after which "common prayer was +offered in the form of confession." At the conclusion of this prayer, +some notable passage in which God's mercy is most evidently declared +was read from the gospel, and thereafter the minister pronounced +absolution to such as unfeignedly repent and believe in Jesus Christ. +After this came prayer for the congregation and for the sovereign. +</P> + +<P> +At this point the fragment which we have been following breaks off, but +there is every reason to believe that the remainder of the service was +the same as that afterwards adopted in Scotland; and any one at all +conversant with the ecclesiastical ritual of the Presbyterian churches +in that country may see in the portion which we have given the origin +of the "action" sermon, the "fencing of the tables;" and the frequent +if not invariable use of the passage from first Corinthians as the +"warrant" for the observance of the Supper, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P38"></A>38}</SPAN> +which characterize a +communion "occasion" in that country. But the singular thing about the +matter is that this Puritan and Presbyterian form of administering the +ordinance of the Lord's Supper was observed in England by John Knox +when he was labouring at Berwick as a recognised minister of the Church +of England, and acting under the authority, or perhaps, to put it more +correctly, with the permission, of the government. This was at a date +anterior by ten years to the time when it was introduced into Scotland +with the sanction of its Parliament. +</P> + +<P> +But it deserves notice that although Knox was thus conscientiously +opposed to kneeling at the Lord's Table, he was not so intolerant as to +declare that the taking of that posture at that table was necessarily +sinful. The reader of the letter addressed to the congregation at +Berwick cannot fail to be struck with the broad Pauline spirit +manifested by the Reformer in his treatment of this subject. He is +advising his friends as to what they should do if, now that he had +ceased to have the oversight of them, the practice of kneeling at the +communion table should be insisted upon; and he affirms that he neither +recants nor repents his former teaching, but still prefers sitting to +any other posture; yet he adds[<A NAME="chap03fn7text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn7">7</A>] "because I am but one having in my +contrair, magistrates, common order, and judgments of many learned, I +am not minded for maintenance of that one thing to gainstand the +magistrates in all and +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P39"></A>39}</SPAN> +other chief points of religion agreeing +with Christ, and His true doctrine, nor yet to break nor trouble common +Order, thought meet to be kept for unity and peace in the congregations +for a time. And least of all do I intend to condemn or lightly regard +the grave judgments of such men as unfeignedly I fear (reverence), love +and will obey, in all things judged expedient to promote God's glory, +<I>these subsequents granted to me</I>." Then follow three conditions which +may be summarized thus,—first, that the magistrates make known that +kneeling is not required for any superstitious reasons or for any +adoration of Christ's natural body believed to be there present, but +only for the sake of uniform Order and that for a time; second, that +kneeling is not imposed as a thing essential to the right observance of +the ordinance, or required by Christ, but enjoined only as a ceremony +thought seemly by men; and third, that the brethren shall have regard +to his conscience, and not bring any uncharitable accusation against +him, because he seeks to follow what Christ has commanded rather than +what men have required. With these concessions granted, he declares +that he would be satisfied; and that there may be no breach of charity, +he recommends his former flock, should these conditions be complied +with, to conform to the requirements of the Prayer-Book if those in +authority should insist on their so doing. We have been the more +particular in bringing out this fact at this particular time, because +of its bearing on his conduct in connection with the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P40"></A>40}</SPAN> +issue of the +revised Prayer-Book in 1552, of which we shall have to speak more +particularly by-and-by. +</P> + +<P> +So much for the Reformer's public work in Berwick; but before we +accompany him to Newcastle, we must pause to mention that it was during +his residence at this time in the border town that he made the +acquaintance of and was engaged to the lady who afterwards became his +wife. Her name was Marjory Bowes, and she was the daughter of Richard +Bowes, youngest son of Sir Ralph Bowes, of Streatham. Her mother was +Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Robert Aske, of Aske. The father, probably +on account of Knox's religious opinions, was opposed to the marriage, +and so the union was deferred for some years. But the mother was +friendly to the Reformer, and with her he kept up a constant +correspondence in which many of the softer traits of his character come +beautifully out. Mrs. Bowes was subject to religious melancholy, and +the tender manner in which he often seeks in his letters to bind up her +bruised spirit shows that, when occasion needed, he could be a "son of +consolation" as well as a "son of thunder." Sometimes too, as when his +heart was stirred with solicitude for the spiritual interests of those +among whom he had laboured, or when he was required to confront the +possible issue of his uncompromising adherence to what he believed to +be right, he rises to a strain of heroism which reminds us of the +greatest of the apostles. One example of this occurs in his letter to +his Berwick friends, and we may fitly +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P41"></A>41}</SPAN> +close this chapter by +reproducing it here. "If any man be offended with me that I, willing +to avoid God's wrath and vengeance threatened against such as having no +necessity despise His ordinances, do purpose and intend to obey God, +embracing such as He has offered unto me (rather) than to please and +flatter man that unjustly held the same from me; if any, I say, for +this cause be offended and will seek my displeasure or trouble, let the +same understand, that as I have a body, which only they may hurt, and +not unless God so permit; so have they bodies and souls which both +shall God punish in fire inextinguishably with the devil and his +angels, unless suddenly they repent and cease to malign against God and +His holy ordinance. With life and death, dear brethren, I am at +point,—they before me in equal balances. Transitory life is not so +sweet to me that for defence thereof I will jeopard to lose the life +everlasting. Nor yet is corporeal death to me so fearful that albeit +most certainly I understood the same shortly to follow my godly +purpose, I would therefore depone myself to die in God's wrath and +anger for ever and ever, which no doubt I should do, if for man's +pleasure I refused God's perfect ordinance."[<A NAME="chap03fn8text"></A><A HREF="#chap03fn8">8</A>] There is no mistaking +the ring of such words as these; and lie who wrote them takes his place +in the honourable company of the heroes of conscience to whom the world +no less than the Church has owed so much. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn1text">1</A>] Lorimer, p. 17. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn2text">2</A>] Lorimer, p. 18 +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn3text">3</A>] Lorimer, pp. 257-8. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn4"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn4text">4</A>] Lorimer, p. 16. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn5"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn5text">5</A>] Lorimer, p. 261. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn6"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn6text">6</A>] Lorimer, p. 290. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn7"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn7text">7</A>] Lorimer, pp. 261-2. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap03fn8"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap03fn8text">8</A>] Lorimer, p. 260. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap04"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P42"></A>42}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER IV. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553. +</H4> + +<P> +From Berwick Knox was removed, in the early summer of 1551, to +Newcastle-on-Tyne, where he laboured, with occasional absences, for +nearly two years. Already, in the spring of 1550, he had made a public +discourse of great importance there, and perhaps the impression +produced by his words then, may have led to his being ultimately +transferred thither. There is extant among his writings "A Vindication +of the Doctrine that the Sacrifice of the Mass is Idolatry," to which +this note is prefixed: "The fourth of April, in the year 1550, was +appointed to John Knox, preacher of the Holy Evangel of Jesus Christ, +to give his confession why he affirmed the mass idolatry; which day, in +presence of the Council, and congregation, amongst whom was also +present the Bishop of Durham, in this manner he beginneth." This has +been supposed by some to indicate that he was under accusation of +heresy, and had been called to Newcastle to make his defence. But +though it is not unlikely that his +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P43"></A>43}</SPAN> +doctrine had been objected to +by Tunstall, yet the Council of the North was not an ecclesiastical +tribunal, and there is nothing in the whole address to imply that the +speaker was upon his trial. The truth seems rather to have been that +the members of the Council invited him to declare and enforce his +opinions concerning the mass before an audience which filled the great +church of St. Nicholas. +</P> + +<P> +The argument of his discourse on this occasion was an amplification of +the following syllogism: "all worshipping, honouring, or service, +invented by the brain of man, in the religion of God, without His +express commandment is idolatry: the mass is invented by the brain of +man without any commandment of God; therefore, the mass is idolatry." +The ground here taken was identical with that which he had defended +against Arbuckle, and is distinctively different from the position +which, in the very same year, was taken by Cranmer in his "Defence of +the true Catholic Doctrine of the Sacrament." The Anglican primate +meant by idolatry the substitution of a false God for the true, as in +the adoration of the host, for the real body, blood, soul and divinity +of the Lord Jesus Christ. But by the same term, as his major premise +makes abundantly evident, Knox designated that which we should call now +constructive idolatry, namely, "the invention of strange worshippings +of God, introduced without any warrant from His word;" or what the +Westminster divines meant, when in their Shorter Catechism in answer to +the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P44"></A>44}</SPAN> +question, "What is forbidden in the second commandment?" they +reply, "The worshipping of God by images, <I>or any other way not +appointed in His word</I>." With Cranmer the word meant the worshipping +as God of that which is no God; with Knox it denoted the worshipping of +God in a manner invented by men and unauthorized by God. Cranmer was +the father of the Anglican churchmen; Knox was the earliest, and by no +means the least noteworthy, of the Puritans, for the principle which he +advocated was one which he was as ready to apply to ceremonies in the +reformed churches as to the idolatries of the Romish worship. The +utterance of these sentiments by him at this time marks the beginning +of that movement which has continued even until now, and which in its +progress, among other less conspicuous results, called into existence +the various nonconforming churches of England; inspired the covenanters +of Scotland to begin and carry through their long and painful struggle +with the second Charles; widened the civil liberties of Great Britain; +and planted the seed from which the American Republic has grown into +stateliness and strength. +</P> + +<P> +Its more immediate personal effect, as we have conjectured, was the +transference of Knox from Berwick to Newcastle, where he continued to +administer word and sacraments in the same manner as he had been +accustomed to follow. On the banks of the Tyne he was as faithful and +fearless in his pulpit utterances, and as simple in his ritual +observances, as he had been on the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P45"></A>45}</SPAN> +banks of the Tweed. "God is +witness," said he in a letter to his Newcastle friends, written by him +from the continent in 1558; "and I refuse not your own judgments, how +simply and uprightly I conversed and walked among you, that neither for +fear did I spare to speak the simple truth unto you; neither for hope +of worldly promotion, dignity, or honour, did I wittingly adulterate +any part of God's Scriptures, whether it were in exposition, in +preaching, contention, or writing; but that simply and plainly, as it +pleased the merciful goodness of my God to give unto me the utterance, +understanding, and spirit, I did distribute the bread of life, as of +Christ Jesus I had received it;"[<A NAME="chap04fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn1">1</A>] and again, "How oft have ye +assisted to baptism? How oft have ye been partakers of the Lord's +Table prepared, and used, and ministered, in all simplicity, not as a +man had devised, neither as the king's proceedings did allow, but as +Christ Jesus did institute, and as it is evident that Saint Paul did +practise?"[<A NAME="chap04fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn2">2</A>] How it came that he was permitted to administer the +sacrament in that manner does not appear; but the fact that he did so +is incontrovertible, and that he did not stand quite alone in taking +such a course is evident from these words in Becon's "Displaying of the +Mass," written in the reign of Queen Mary: "How oft have I seen here, +in England, people sitting at the Lord's Table!" It is well known also +that the opinions of Hooper, on this subject, were in full accord with +those of Knox; and though we have not been able +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P46"></A>46}</SPAN> +to find any +distinct statement that he had actually reduced them to practice, yet +it is all but certain that he did so. +</P> + +<P> +But in any case his nonconformity in the matter of kneeling did not +keep Knox from attaining a prominent place among the leaders of his +time, for in December, 1551, six months after he had been stationed at +Newcastle, he was appointed one of King Edward the Sixth's chaplains, +who were six in number, and all of whom were selected because they were +"accounted the most zealous and ready preachers of that time." This +preferment was a recognition of the ability which Knox had shown. It +added much to his consideration and weight in the social scale, while +it gave him an opportunity of making his influence felt in +ecclesiastical affairs in a manner which has left its mark on the +English Prayer-Book even until the present day. To understand how this +came about, it is needful to bear in mind that the Second or Revised +Book of Common Prayer was completed at the press in August, 1552, and +had been appointed by the Parliament of that year to come into use in +the churches on the first day of November. Into that book had been +reintroduced from the "order of communion," published in 1548,[<A NAME="chap04fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn3">3</A>] +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P47"></A>47}</SPAN> +the injunction that the people should receive the bread and wine +"kneeling." That had, indeed, been the accustomed posture before, but +no instruction for its observance had been contained in the First +Prayer-Book published in 1549. There the directions are thus given: +"Then shall the priest first receive the communion in both kinds +himself, and next deliver it to other ministers, if any be there +present (that they may be ready to help the chief minister), and after +to the people." But in the two years immediately following the +publication of that First Prayer-Book, discussion on the posture at the +Lord's Table had been brought up, and as Cranmer, Ridley, and the most +of the other Reforming Bishops were opposed to the views and practices +of Knox, Hooper, and others, they deemed it advisable to foreclose +debate and put an end to diversity of order by an authoritative +injunction. For this purpose, in the Prayer-Book in 1552 the rubric +was made to read thus: "Then shall the minister first receive the +communion in both kinds himself, and next deliver it to the other +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P48"></A>48}</SPAN> +ministers, if any be there present (that they may help the chief +minister), and after to the people, in their hands, kneeling." Thus it +came about that what had been left undefined in the former book was +expressly limited in the new one; and, therefore, though in other +respects the latter was much more in harmony with the sentiments of +Knox, it was in this less tolerant than the former. When, therefore, +Knox was appointed to preach before the king in the autumn of that +year, having probably seen one of the first-issued copies of the book, +he took occasion to enter fully into the discussion of the mode of +administering the communion, and his discourse was not without +immediate effect, for in a letter of John Utenhovius to Henry +Bullinger, dated October 12, 1552, the writer says:[<A NAME="chap04fn4text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn4">4</A>] "Some disputes +have arisen among the bishops, within these few days, in consequence of +a sermon by a pious preacher, chaplain to the Duke of Northumberland, +preached by him, before the king and Council, in which he inveighed +with great freedom against kneeling at the Lord's Supper, which is +still retained here in England. This good man, however, a Scotsman by +nation, has so wrought upon the minds of many that we may hope some +good to the church will at length arise from it, which I earnestly +implore the Lord to grant." Now there can be no doubt that the +preacher here referred to was Knox, who as having been in contact with +Northumberland as Warden-General of the border counties, might easily +be +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P49"></A>49}</SPAN> +mistaken by a foreigner for the chaplain of that nobleman. +Other facts to be taken in connection with the information furnished by +Utenhovius are the following:[<A NAME="chap04fn5text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn5">5</A>] In the Record of the Privy Council, +under date 26th September, 1552, there is an order to Grafton, the +printer, forbidding him to issue any copies of the new Prayer-Book; and +commanding that if any had been already distributed to his +fellow-publishers they should "not be put abroad until certain faults +therein had been corrected." Clearly therefore, as copies of the book +had been sold, it was possible for Knox to have obtained one, and as +Lorimer says, "none would be more eager purchasers than those ministers +of the Church who were most zealous for reform." Meetings of the +Council were held on October 4th and 6th, at one or other of which +objections to the rubric seem to have been made, probably as the result +of Knox's sermon, and to have been referred to Cranmer for his review. +On October 7th, Cranmer wrote to the Council in vindication of the +rubric on kneeling, a letter which purports to be a reply to certain +objections against it which had been forwarded to him by its members. +On the <I>agenda</I> paper of the business to be transacted at the meeting +of the Council on the 20th of October, and which still exists in the +handwriting of Cecil, there is a line to this effect: "Mr. Knocks—b of +Cat<SUP>rb</SUP>—ye book in ye B of Durh<SUP>m</SUP>," and at that very meeting, as we +learn from the Record, "a letter was directed to Messrs. Harley, Bill, +Horn, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P50"></A>50}</SPAN> +Grindal, Pern, and Knox, to consider certain articles +exhibited to the King's Majesty, to be subscribed by all such as shall +be admitted to be preachers or ministers in any part of the realm, and +to make report of their opinions touching the same." These articles, +therefore, must have come at this time into Knox's hands, and, though +many of them must have received his cordial endorsement, there was one +of them which he could not have approved; that, namely, which contained +this clause: "and as to the character of the ceremonies, they are +repugnant in nothing to the wholesome liberty of the gospel, if they +are judged from their own nature, but very well agree with it, and in +very many respects further the same in a high degree." How could Knox, +after his recent sermon on kneeling in the Lord's Supper, give his +sanction to that article? Manifestly he would feel that he must +protest against such an assertion as it contained; and then, as Lorimer +says, "the thought would seem to have flashed upon him that he had now +another and quite an unexpected opportunity of making a fresh appeal to +the king and Council on that very question of the rubric on kneeling, +which was still apparently in dependence. There was still time to make +one more attempt. In addition to his judgment upon the articles at +large, which need not go to the Council so quickly, what if he should +single out this 38th Article and make it the subject of a separate +representation, and distinguishing between the ceremony of kneeling and +all the rest; what if he should confine the bulk +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P51"></A>51}</SPAN> +of his +representations to this single point, which was now the only one in +which it was feasible to look for any immediate alteration?" That at +least was done by the memorial, which by its authors is called their +confession in regard to the 38th Article, and which Lorimer has printed +for the first time in his appendix. No names are subscribed to the +document, but the first portion of it bears strong internal evidence of +having been the production of Knox; and though in other parts there are +traces, as the painstaking editor thinks, of the hands of Thomas Becon +and Roger Hutchinson, we agree with him in believing that every one who +examines the whole statement with care will conclude "that whatever +Englishman may have joined him in the memorial, and whatever they may +have contributed to its substance of thought, it was Knox himself who +held the pen." This memorial could have been of no use after the final +action of the Council on the matter of "kneeling;" and it was evidently +called forth by the reference of the articles to the royal chaplains, +therefore it must have been prepared between the 20th and 27th October, +and must have been presented to the meeting of the Council on the +latter of these two dates, on which also, and we may conclude as the +result of the arguments contained in the memorial, the "Declaration on +Kneeling," which has all the marks of the style of Cranmer, and which +therefore had probably been sent by him to the Council as a suggested +compromise, was adopted, and ordered to be +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P52"></A>52}</SPAN> +inserted in the +forthcoming book. This accounts for the circumstance mentioned by the +editor of "The Two Liturgies" in a note, that the paragraph in question +"is printed on a separate leaf in some copies, and as is evident from +the signatures, was added afterwards." In one copy, "the leaf is +pasted in after the copy was bound, and several copies are without it." +Now putting all these things together, the conclusion is not only +legitimate but inevitable, that the insertion of the declaration on +kneeling in the Prayer-Book was due to the agency of Knox, more +probably than to that of any other man. As Lorimer writes (p. 121), +"The compromise prevailed, but apparently there would not have been so +much as a compromise obtained if the 'confession' had not been thrown +into the scale at the very last moment.... His last blow had the +effect of overcoming the resistance to all further change which a +majority of the Council had hitherto maintained." Hence, though we may +not approve of the spirit in which Weston uttered the words, or accept +either his description of Knox or his designation of the doctrine on +which he insisted, yet he was correct as to the matter of fact when he +said, "a renegade Scot did take away the adoration and worshipping of +Christ in the sacrament, by whose procurement that heresy was put into +the last communion book; so much prevailed that one man's authority at +that time." +</P> + +<P> +The Declaration itself was in the following words:—"Although no order +can be so perfectly devised, but it +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P53"></A>53}</SPAN> +may be of some, either for +their ignorance and infirmity, or else of malice and obstinacy, +misconstrued, depraved, and interpreted in a wrong part: And yet, +because brotherly charity willeth, that so much as conveniently may be, +offences should be taken away; therefore we willing to do the same: +Whereas it is ordained in the Book of Common Prayer, in the +administration of the Lord's Supper, that the communicants kneeling +should receive the Holy Communion: which thing being well meant, for a +signification of the humble and grateful acknowledging of the benefits +of Christ, given unto the worthy receiver, and to avoid the profanation +and disorder, which about the Holy Communion might else ensue: lest yet +the same kneeling might be thought or taken otherwise, we do declare +that it is not meant thereby, that any adoration is done, or ought to +be done, either unto the sacramental bread and wine there bodily +received, or to any real and essential presence there being of Christ's +natural flesh and blood. For as concerning the sacramental bread and +wine, they remain still in their very natural substances, and therefore +may not be adored, for that were Idolatry to be abhorred of all +faithful Christians. And as concerning the natural body and blood of +our Saviour Christ they are in heaven and not here. For it is against +the truth of Christ's true natural body, to be in more places than in +one at one time." Opinions will of course differ as to whether in this +matter the influence of Knox was beneficial or the reverse. We are +writing biography, not a treatise on +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P54"></A>54}</SPAN> +theology, and what we have +been seeking to show is the share that Knox had in the English +Reformation. Sacramentarians generally will agree in styling the +Declaration which we have quoted "the black rubric," but for ourselves +we have no hesitation in avowing our agreement with Lorimer that "there +is nothing in the whole English Liturgy which is, to say the least, +more Protestant;" and it may be well, to give completeness to our +reference to the subject, that we should add that author's very +condensed summary of the subsequent history of this famous rubric. "At +the accession of Elizabeth it was dropped out of the Prayer-Book, along +with that portion of the 35th Article upon which it rested; and it +remained outside the Liturgy for a hundred years. And why? Simply +because its omission was judged as important by the Church's leaders +then as its insertion had been at first. Elizabeth's church policy was +a comprehensive policy, and neither James I. nor Charles I. had any +wish to depart from it. She wished, and so did her council and first +Parliament, to make it as easy as possible for the "Roman party to +continue in the National Church, but she and they knew that such a +comprehension was impossible as long as the "Declaration on Kneeling" +remained in the Prayer-Book. Its insertion had taken place in order to +"comprehend" the Puritan party, to the exclusion of the Romanists; and +now its omission took place in order to comprehend the Romanists, at +the risk of driving out the Puritans. But why do we now +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P55"></A>55}</SPAN> +find the +"Declaration" restored to its old place? What was the motive of so +remarkable a rehabilitation in 1662? It is easy to discern it. The +circle of church evolution and change had then returned into itself. +In 1662 the old policy of conciliating and comprehending the Puritans +instead of the Catholics was again in season—was again the key of the +situation. To this policy the "Declaration on Kneeling" was again +indispensable, and again, therefore, this most remarkable rubric was +restored, in substantially the same form, to its vacant place. Nor has +its history yet exhausted itself. It has retained its recovered place +through all the changes of the last two centuries only to come forward +into new significance and importance in our own day. The last chapter +of its history was written only the other day in the long discussion +and the fateful decision of the Bennett case. Its simple but trenchant +language was often quoted in the pleadings, and passed into the body of +the judgment itself: "As concerning the natural body and blood of our +Saviour Christ they are in heaven, not here: for it is against the +truth of Christ's true natural body to be in more places than in one at +one time." +</P> + +<P> +But the memorial to the Privy Council, which we have traced to Knox, +prevailed also so far as to secure a modification of the article on +ceremonies, which, originally numbered as the 38th, came out owing to +some minor condensations as the 35th, and took this ultimate shape—(we +give Lorimer's translation from +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P56"></A>56}</SPAN> +the Latin)—"The book which of +very late time was given to the Church of England by the king's +authority and the Parliament, containing the manner and form of praying +and ministering the sacraments in the Church of England, likewise also +the book of ordering ministers of the Church set forth by the foresaid +authority, are godly, and in no point repugnant to the wholesome +doctrine of the gospel, but agreeable thereunto, furthering and +beautifying the same not a little; and therefore of all faithful +members of the Church of England, and chiefly of the ministers of the +Lord, they ought to be received and allowed with all readiness of mind +and thanksgiving, and to be commended to the people of God."[<A NAME="chap04fn6text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn6">6</A>] When +this is compared with the clause formerly given it will be seen that +what before was said of the "ceremonies" is here restricted to the +"doctrine," and that everything to which the memorial had taken +exception is omitted. +</P> + +<P> +But though the insertion of the Declaration on Kneeling into the +Prayer-Book satisfied one of the conditions which, in his letter to his +Berwick friends, Knox had laid down as essential to his conforming to +"common Order": it did not meet the others, and so he steadily refused +to accept a formal charge in the Church of England. At the very time +when the Council was +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P57"></A>57}</SPAN> +engaged in the discussions which we have just +mentioned, the Duke of Northumberland wrote from Chelsea, under date +October 27th, 1552, to Secretary Cecil, in these words:[<A NAME="chap04fn7text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn7">7</A>] "I would to +God it might please the King's majesty to appoint Mr. Knox to the +office of Rochester bishopric, which for three reasons would be very +well. First: he would not only be a whetstone to quicken and sharp the +Bishop of Canterbury, whereof he hath need, but also would be a great +confounder of the Anabaptists lately sprung up in Kent. Secondly, he +should not continue the ministration in the north, contrary to this set +forth here" (meaning to the usual form prescribed at this time). +"Thirdly, the family of the Scots now inhabiting in Newcastle, chiefly +for his fellowship, would not continue there, wherein many resort to +them out of Scotland, which is not requisite." These are certainly +rather strange reasons why Knox should be promoted to a bishopric, but +they prove not only that he had acted an independent part in Newcastle, +but also that his fame had gone so widely over Scotland that multitudes +of his fellow-countrymen were attracted to that place for the sake of +enjoying his ministrations. But he would not be made a bishop, and he +must have expressed his refusal with all his wonted plainness of +speech, for a few weeks later, on the 7th December, Northumberland +writes to the same correspondent: "Master Knox's being here to speak +with me, saying he was so willed by you; I do return him again, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P58"></A>58}</SPAN> +because I love not to have to do with men which be neither grateful nor +pleasable."[<A NAME="chap04fn8text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn8">8</A>] So his grace is minded to put the case; but with his +former letter in our hands we can see that gratitude in his vocabulary +meant falling in with his individual plans, and "pleasableness" was +with him a synonym for "squeezeableness." +</P> + +<P> +In the following February (1553) Knox was offered the Vicarage of All +Hallows in Bread Street (London); but that also he declined, and we +have from the pen of Calderwood an account of what occurred in +connection with that.[<A NAME="chap04fn9text"></A><A HREF="#chap04fn9">9</A>] "In a letter, dated the 14th of April, 1553, +and written with his own hand, I find," says that author, "that he was +called before the Council of England for kneeling, who demanded of him +three questions. First, why he refused the benefice provided for him? +secondly, whether he thought that no Christian might serve in the +ecclesiastical ministration according to the rites and laws of the +realm of England? thirdly, if kneeling at the Lord's Table was not +indifferent? To the first he answered, that his conscience did witness +that he might profit more in some other place than in London; and +therefore had no pleasure to accept any office in the same. Howbeit, +he might have answered otherwise, that he refused that parsonage +because of my Lord of Northumberland's command. To the second, that +many things were worthy of reformation in the ministry of England, +without the reformation whereof no minister +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P59"></A>59}</SPAN> +did discharge, or +could discharge, his conscience before God; for no minister in England +had authority to divide and separate the lepers from the whole, which +was a chief point of his office; yet did he not refuse such office as +might appear to promote God's glory in utterance of Christ's gospel in +a mean degree, where more he might edify by preaching of the true word +than hinder by sufferance of manifest iniquity, seeing that reformation +of manners did not appertain to all ministers. To the third he +answered, that Christ's action in itself was most perfect, and Christ's +action was done without kneeling; that kneeling was man's addition or +imagination; that it was most sure to follow the example of Christ, +whose action was done sitting and not kneeling. In this last question +there was great contention betwixt the whole table of the lords and +him. There were present there the Bishops of Canterbury and Ely, my +Lord Treasurer, the Marquis of Northampton, the Earl of Bedford, the +Earl of Shrewsbury, Master Comptroller, my Lord Chamberlain, both the +Secretaries, and other inferior lords. After long reasoning, it was +said unto him that he was not called of any evil mind; that they were +sorry to know him of a contrary mind to the common Order. He answered +that he was more sorry that a common Order should be contrary to +Christ's institution. With some gentle speeches he was dismissed, and +willed to advise with himself if he would communicate after that +Order." But, unlike Hooper, who, after a long controversy about +vestments and a brief +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P60"></A>60}</SPAN> +imprisonment for his refusal to wear them, +accepted the bishopric of Gloucester, vestments and all, only however +to suffer martyrdom at last under Queen Mary, Knox remained steadfast +to the position which he had taken up; and, refusing a permanent +charge, which would have required him to give his assent and consent to +the Articles, and to conform to the common Order, he was sent in June, +1553, as one of the itinerary preachers into Buckinghamshire, where he +laboured with great zeal and assiduity for some weeks. +</P> + +<P> +In the interval between October, 1552, and March, 1553, we find that +Knox had been back at Newcastle, where he was bitterly opposed by Sir +Robert Brandling, the Mayor, whose zeal was checked, however, by the +agency of Lord Wharton, then Lord Warden of the North, at the +suggestion of Northumberland; and there are some interesting letters +belonging to this portion of his life which give us delightful glimpses +into his heart and habits. In one we see him "sitting at his book," +and contemplating Matthew's Gospel by the help of "some most godly +expositions, and among the rest Chrysostom." In another he writes, +"This day ye know to be the day of my study and prayer to God." And in +a third, written to Mrs. Bowes from London, whither he had been +summoned in haste before the Privy Council, we have this record: "The +very instant hour that your letters were presented unto me was I +talking of you, by reason that three honest poor women were come to me, +and were complaining their great infirmity, and were +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P61"></A>61}</SPAN> +showing unto +me the great assaults of the enemy, and I was opening the causes and +commodities thereof, whereby all our eyes wept at once; and I was +praying unto God that you and some others had been there with me for +the space of two hours, and even at that instant came your letters to +my hands, whereof the part I read unto them; and one of them said, 'Oh +would to God I might speak with that person, for I perceive there be +more tempted than I.'" Thus amid the multiplicity and weight of his +public labours he did not neglect either the study or the closet; and +the weeping Knox, seeking to comfort those that were cast down, is a +picture that must seem strange to many who know little more about him +than that his fortitude made Mary Stuart shed tears of wounded pride +and disappointed ambition. +</P> + +<P> +In April he preached in the Chapel Royal before the young king, and +inveighed in the strongest terms against Northumberland and Paulet, +finishing one of his scathing passages in this way: "Was David and +Hezekiah, princes of great and godly gifts and experience, abused by +crafty counsellors and dissembling hypocrites? What wonder is it, +then, that a young and innocent king be deceived by crafty, covetous, +wicked, and ungodly counsellors? I am greatly afraid that Ahithophel +be councillor, that Judas bear the purse, and that Shebna be scribe, +comptroller and treasurer." The pulpit in those days had to discharge +the duties of public criticism on politics and morals, which are now +much more appropriately performed by the press; and so, as Froude +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P62"></A>62}</SPAN> +remarks, "since discipline could not be restored, Knox, and those who +felt with him the enormities of the times, established, by their own +authority, this second form of excommunication." It was then perhaps a +necessity, but it is always, more or less, a dangerous thing for a +minister to do; and it must be admitted that Knox was not always just +in such philippics. But he was always conscientious, and he was always +brave; and he well knew at the moment the risk which he was running. +In the present case, if little good came out of it to the country, no +harm resulted from it to himself; for, as we have seen, he was shortly +afterwards engaged to preach in Buckinghamshire. And there he laboured +on, like another Jeremiah, forecasting evils which none of his hearers +would believe could happen, until at the death of Edward the Sixth, on +the 6th of July, 1553, they were rudely awakened from their sleep of +security. +</P> + +<P> +Such was Knox's share in the working out of the English Reformation; +and we have dwelt thus long upon it because the facts which we have +stated have only recently been brought to light; and because we wished +to set forth with as much clearness as condensation would allow the +opinions which were held, and the mode of worship which was observed, +by him, even at this early stage in his history. If Knox did something +for England, England did much also for him. If he was instrumental in +keeping the Church of that country from greater affinity with Romanism +than it might otherwise have shown, there can be no doubt that the evil +effects +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P63"></A>63}</SPAN> +of compromise as witnessed by him there helped to make him +more thorough in his later work in Scotland; while it is also most true +that during his residence there his contact with the Christian people +whom he met did something to soften and sweeten his piety, and to make +it more inward and sympathising. Most of all, God was preparing him by +it for the great work which he was afterwards to perform in his native +land; and his years of service in England were blessed in securing for +him the friendship and confidence of her ablest statesmen, without +whose assistance, humanly speaking, Scotland might have been lost to +Protestantism in the very crisis of her history. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn1text">1</A>] Lorimer, p. 73. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn2text">2</A>] Ibid., p. 74. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn3text">3</A>] Dr. Lorimer has said (p. 31) that "in both the formularies recently +set forth," the Order of Communion in 1548 and the "Book of Common +Prayer" in 1549, the practice of kneeling in the Lord's Supper had been +retained; and on a subsequent page (112) that "in the Second +Prayer-Book of King Edward VI. a rubric had <I>for the first time</I> been +inserted appointing the Lord's Supper to be administered to the +communicants in a kneeling posture." But these statements are not made +with that author's usual accuracy. For the "Order of Communion" reads +thus: "Then shall the priest rise, the people still reverently +kneeling, and the priest shall deliver the communion, first to the +ministers, if any be there present, that they may help the chief +minister, and after to the others." But in the "Book" of 1549, the +rubric is as we give it in the text. What the motive was for the +omission of kneeling in the Book of 1549 it is not easy to say, but the +fact of its omission is undoubted. (See "The Two Liturgies," by Rev. +Joseph Kelley, p. 92.) +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn4"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn4text">4</A>] Lorimer, p. 98. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn5"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn5text">5</A>] Lorimer, p. 109. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn6"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn6text">6</A>] For the full discussion of this subject we refer to Dr. Lorimer's +monograph, "John Knox and the Church of England," a most valuable and +original contribution to English Ecclesiastical history, though the +absence of an index makes it less serviceable to the student than such +a work should be. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn7"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn7text">7</A>] Lorimer, pp. 149-150. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn8"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn8text">8</A>] Lorimer, p. 151. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap04fn9"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap04fn9text">9</A>] See Laing: "Knox's Works," vol. iii. pp. 86-7. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap05"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P64"></A>64}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER V. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553. +</H4> + +<P> +During the last illness of the young King Edward, Knox, as we have +seen, received a commission to go upon a preaching tour in the county +of Buckingham, where, like an old Hebrew prophet, he warned his hearers +of the coming crisis. He was back in London, however, as we learn from +the date of the first of his published letters, on the 23rd of June +(1553); but before the death of his majesty, which happened on the 6th +of July, he had returned to Buckinghamshire, and there, at Amersham, on +the 16th of that month, he preached a sermon suited to the times in the +very thick of the turmoil caused by the dispute as to the succession to +the crown. The Duke of Northumberland had presumed to set the Lady +Jane Dudley on the throne, but Mary Tudor's adherents could not brook +such disloyalty to their mistress, and had already entered on that +struggle which ended in the collapse of the reign of "the twelfth-day +Queen." The county of Bucks, as Froude tells us, "both Catholic and +Protestant," was "arming to the teeth." Sir Edward Hastings had called +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P65"></A>65}</SPAN> +out its musters, in Mary's name, and had been joined by Peckham, +the cofferer of the royal household, who had gone off with the treasure +under his charge, so that the Reformer was speaking "at the peril of +his life among the troopers of Hastings." Nevertheless, nothing +daunted, he thus apostrophised the land:[<A NAME="chap05fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap05fn1">1</A>] "O England! now is God's +wrath kindled against thee. Now hath He begun to punish as He hath +threatened a long while by His true prophets and messengers. He hath +taken from thee the crown of thy glory, and hath left thee without +honour as a body without a head. And this appeareth to be only the +beginning of sorrows, which appeareth to increase. For I perceive that +the heart, the tongue, and the hand of one Englishman is bent against +another, and division to be in the whole realm, which is an assured +sign of desolation to come. O England! England! dost thou not +consider that thy commonwealth is like a ship sailing on the sea; if +thy mariners and governors shall one consume another, shalt thou not +suffer shipwreck in short process of time? O England! England! alas +these plagues are poured upon thee, for that thou wouldest not know the +most happy time of thy gentle visitation. But wilt thou yet obey the +voice of thy God and submit thyself to His holy words? Truly if thou +wilt, thou shalt find mercy in His sight, and the estate of thy +commonwealth shall be preserved. But if thou obstinately wilt return +into Egypt, that is, if thou contract marriage, confederacy, and league +with such +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P66"></A>66}</SPAN> +princes as do maintain and advance idolatry (such as the +Emperor, which is no less enemy unto Christ than ever was Nero); if for +the pleasure and friendship (I say) of such princes them return to +thine old abominations, before used under the papistry, then assuredly, +O England, thou shall be plagued and brought to desolation by the means +of those whose favour thou seekest, and by whom thou art procured to +fall from Christ and to serve Antichrist." These were bold words. +Some of them, indeed, might be called rash, and, as we shall see, +furnished a weapon for his adversaries at a future day; but there was +no quailing in the heart of him who uttered them, and the sting of them +after all was in their truth. +</P> + +<P> +From Amersham he went up to London, where on the 19th of July he was a +witness of the great outburst of popular enthusiasm with which Mary was +welcomed to the throne; but he could not share in the wild delight of +the multitude, for as he tells us himself, "in London, in more places +than one, when fires of joy and riotous banqueting were at the +proclamation of Mary," his tongue was vehement in declaring his +forebodings of the storm which was so soon to break. On the 26th of +July he wrote to Mrs. Bowes from Carlisle, and again on the 25th of +September we find him writing to her on his return to London from Kent, +where he seems to have been labouring for some weeks. The dates +indicate that he was both "in labours abundant" and "in journeyings +often," and show that he had little reason to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P67"></A>67}</SPAN> +upbraid himself, as +in one of his writings referring to this time he does, for "allowing +the love of friends and carnal affection for some men more than others +to allure him to make more residence in one place than another, thus +having more respect to the pleasure of a few than to the necessity of +many, and not sufficiently considering how many hungry souls were in +other places to whom none took pains to break and distribute the bread +of life." But he was ere long to be "in peril" as well as labour. +From the first he had augured nothing but evil from the accession of +Mary, and it is to his honour that with such misgivings in his heart, +he was at this very time in the habit of using in the pulpit a prayer +of singular beauty and comprehensiveness, in which we find this +petition: "Illuminate the heart of our Sovereign Lady Queen Mary with +pregnant gifts of the Holy Ghost, and influence the hearts of her +council with Thy true fear and love." As the months rolled round, +however, it became only too apparent that England would no longer be a +safe place for him. The door of opportunity which Edward had opened +was speedily closed by Mary. In August, indeed, she issued a +proclamation giving toleration to all meanwhile, forbidding her +Protestant and Catholic subjects to interrupt each other's services, +yet prohibiting all preaching on either side without licence from +herself. But in November, under the influence of the violent reaction +which had set in, and in obedience to the opinion of the people, +three-fourths of whom were still attached to the old religion, the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P68"></A>68}</SPAN> +Commons, by a vote of 350 to 80, enacted that from the 20th December +following there should be no other form of service in the churches but +what had been used in the last year of Henry the Eighth, and leaving it +free to all up till that date to use either of the books appointed by +Edward or the old one at their pleasure. Up till the day thus +specified, therefore, Knox was comparatively safe, and during that time +he was probably in London a guest in the families of the Lockes and the +Hickmans, with whose members he afterwards corresponded. It was in +this interval also, as seems most probable, that he began to prepare +his exposition of the sixth Psalm, and his "godly letter to the +faithful in London, Newcastle, Berwick, and all others within the realm +of England that love the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," both of +which were afterwards finished in France. +</P> + +<P> +From London he went to Newcastle, whence on the 22nd of December he +wrote to Mrs. Bowes a letter which contains a postscript to this +effect: "I may not answer the places of Scripture, nor yet write the +exposition of the sixth Psalm, for every day of this week must I +preach, if this wicked carcase will permit." But dangers began to +thicken around him; for in the end of December or beginning of January, +his servant was seized as he carried letters from him to Mrs. Bowes and +her daughter, in the expectation of finding something in them that +might furnish matter of accusation against him. They contained nothing +but religious advices and such things as he was prepared to avow before +any +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P69"></A>69}</SPAN> +tribunal in the country, but fearing that the report of the +matter might cause uneasiness to his friends at Berwick, he set out to +visit them in person. On the way, however, he was met by some of the +relatives of his betrothed, who prevailed on him to relinquish his +intention, and to retire to a place of safety on the coast, from which, +if necessary, he might escape out of the country by sea. From this +retreat he wrote to his friends, saying that "his brethren had, partly +by tears and partly by admonition, 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," yet promising if Providence prepared the way to +do as his counsellors advised, and "give place to the fury and rage of +Satan for a time." So when he became satisfied that the apprehensions +of his friends were, well founded, he procured a vessel which landed +him safely at Dieppe on the 20th of January, 1554. What his pecuniary +circumstances at this time were may be inferred from these words in a +letter to his future mother-in-law: "I will not make you privy how rich +I am, but off (<I>i.e.</I> from) London I departed with less money than ten +groats; but God has since provided, and will provide I doubt not +hereafter abundantly for this life. Either the Queen's Majesty or some +treasurer will be forty pounds richer by me, for so much lack I of duty +of my patents (that is, salary as Royal Chaplain), but that little +troubles me." And more interesting even than that glimpse +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P70"></A>70}</SPAN> +into +his poverty is the recital of his feelings toward England in a letter +to the same correspondent written just before his embarkation: "My +daily prayer is for the sore afflicted in those quarters. Some time I +have thought that it had been impossible so to have removed my +affection from Scotland that any realm or nation could have been +equally dear unto me; but I take God to record in my conscience that +the troubles present and appearing to be in the realm of England are +doubly more dolorous unto my heart than ever were the troubles of +Scotland." +</P> + +<P> +Thus Knox parted from the realm of England. Had he remained much +longer in it, he would most probably have shared the fate of Cranmer, +Ridley, Latimer, and the "noble army," whom Mary's intolerance "chased +up to heaven." But God had other work for him to do, and it was well +for Scotland that he listened to the entreaty of those who counselled +him when he was "persecuted in one country" to "flee to another"; so it +came about that for a brief season he found refuge in that land wherein +only a few years before he had been a galley-slave. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap05fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap05fn1text">1</A>] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 308-9. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap06"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P71"></A>71}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER VI. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +FIRST DAYS OF EXILE, 1554. +</H4> + +<P> +From England Knox went to Dieppe, where he sojourned at this time for a +month, and finished his exposition of the sixth Psalm, the first +instalment of which he had sent to Mrs. Bowes just before leaving the +shores of Britain. This production was primarily designed for the +consolation and encouragement of that lady, who, as we have already +hinted, seems to have been afflicted with religious melancholy. +Apparently she was one of those, of whom every pastor has had some +experience, who believe that God has cast them off, and who while +"fearing the Lord," yet "walk in darkness and have no light." Her life +was one constant wrestle with spiritual depression, by which her +intimate friends were afflicted almost as much as she was herself. +Knox dealt with her most tenderly, and under the influence of his wise +words she regained her comfort for a time, but after a little she was +in the depths again, and the whole process had to be gone over with her +anew. Had she lived in modern days, a prudent friend would have +counselled her to consult a skilful physician, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P72"></A>72}</SPAN> +and would have +sought to combine medical treatment with religious advice. We cannot +wonder, however, that we have nothing in this tractate bearing on that +aspect of the matter. The writer deals throughout with the malady as +spiritual, but he treats it most wisely, and the great well of +tenderness in his heart reveals itself to the reader in such a passage +as the following:[<A NAME="chap06fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap06fn1">1</A>] "These things put I you in mind of, beloved +mother, that albeit your pains sometimes be so horrible that no release +nor comfort ye find neither in spirit nor yet in body, yet if the heart +can only <I>sob unto</I> God, despair not, you shall obtain your heart's +desire, and destitute you are not of faith. For at such time as the +flesh, natural reason, the law of God, the present torment, and the +devil at once do cry God is angry, and therefore is there neither help +nor remedy to be hoped for at His hands; at such time, I say, to sob +unto God is the demonstration of the secret seed of God which is hid in +God's elect children, and that only sob is unto God a more acceptable +sacrifice than, without this cross, to give our bodies to be burned +even for the truth's sake." Very comprehensive also is this expansion +of the second petition of the Lord's Prayer in the same treatise.[<A NAME="chap06fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap06fn2">2</A>] +"We are commanded daily to pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' which petition +asketh that sin may cease, that death may be devoured, that transitory +troubles may have an end, that Satan may be trodden under our feet, +that the whole +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P73"></A>73}</SPAN> +body of Christ may be restored to life, liberty, +and joy, that the powers and kingdoms of this earth may be dissolved +and destroyed, and that God the Father may be all in all things, after +that His Son Christ Jesus, the Saviour, hath rendered up the kingdom +for ever." And in these days when so much is written, both wise and +otherwise, on the subject of eschatology, some interest may be felt in +the following "bit" of exposition. "'For there is no remembrance of +Thee in death; who laudeth Thee in the pit?' As (if) David would say, +'O Lord, how shall I pray and declare Thy goodness when I am dead, and +gone into the grave? It is not the ordinary course to have Thy +miracles and wondrous works preached unto men by those that are buried +and gone down into the pit. Those that are dead make no mention of +Thee in the earth, and therefore, O Lord, spare Thy servant, that yet +for a time I may show and witness Thy wondrous works unto mankind.' +These most godly affections in David did engender in him a vehement +horror and fear of death, besides that which is natural and common to +all men, because he perfectly understood that by death he shall be +lettit (hindered) any further to advance the glory of God. Of the same +he complaineth most vehemently in the 88th Psalm, where apparently he +taketh from them that are dead, sense, remembrance, feeling, and +understanding, alleging that God worketh no miracles by the dead, that +the goodness of God cannot be preached in the grave, nor His faith in +perdition, and that His marvellous works +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P74"></A>74}</SPAN> +are not known in +darkness. By which speeches we may not understand that David taketh +all sense and feeling from the dead, neither yet that they who are dead +in Christ are in such estate that by God they have not consolation and +life. No; Christ Himself doth witness the contrary. But David so +vehemently depresses their estate and condition, because that after +death they are deprived from (of) all ordinary ministration in the Kirk +of God. None of those that are departed are appointed to be preachers +of God's glory unto mankind. But after death they cease any more to +advance God's holy name here among the living on earth, and so shall +even they in that behalf be unprofitable to the congregation as +touching anything that they can do, either in body or soul after death. +And therefore most earnestly desired David to live in Israel for the +further manifestation of God's glory."[<A NAME="chap06fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap06fn3">3</A>] +</P> + +<P> +Appended to this tract there is the date "upon the very point of my +journey, the last of February, 1553(4), so that Knox left Dieppe about +the beginning of March, but before his departure he finished and +transmitted the first of that series of admonitions and consolatory +epistles which during his exile on the continent he addressed to his +friends in England, and from which we have already quoted so many +passages throwing light upon his labours among them. This earliest of +the series is entitled "A Godly Letter of Warning or Admonition to the +Faithful in London, Newcastle, and Berwick," +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P75"></A>75}</SPAN> +and is written in a +strain of burning and impassioned expostulation. It is mainly founded +on the sermon preached by Jeremiah to the princes and all the people of +Judah in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, as recorded in the +26th chapter of his prophecies. Knox runs a skilful parallel between +the circumstances of the Jews before the destruction of their capital +by Nebuchadnezzar, and those of the people of England under Mary, and +with the presage of coming judgment darkening his spirit, he exhorts +the "remnant" to fidelity and earnestness. One extract will give the +reader some slight idea of its style and purport. [<A NAME="chap06fn4text"></A><A HREF="#chap06fn4">4</A>]"Hitherto have I +recited the estate of Judah before the destruction of Jerusalem and +subversion of that commonwealth. Now I appeal to the conscience of any +indifferent (<I>i.e.</I> impartial) man in what one point differ the +manners, estate and regiment (<I>i.e.</I> government) of England this day +from the abuse and estate rehearsed of Judah in these days, except that +they had a king, a man of his own nature (as appeared), more facile +than cruel, who sometimes was entreated in the prophet's favour, and +also in some cases heard his counsel; and ye have a queen, a woman of a +stout stomach (<I>i.e.</I> of a haughty spirit), more stiff in opinion than +flexible to the truth, who no wise may abide the presence of God's +prophets. In this one thing you disagree; in all other things as like +as one bean or nut is like to another, (1) Their king was led by +pestilent priests; who guides your queen, it is not +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P76"></A>76}</SPAN> +unknown. (2) +Under Zedekiah and his council the idolatry which by Josiah was +suppressed, came to light again; but more abominable idolatry was never +in the earth than is that which of late is now set up again by your +pestilent papists among you. (3) In Jerusalem was Jeremiah persecuted +and cast into prison for speaking the truth and rebuking their +idolatry; what prison in London tormenteth not some true prophet of God +for the same causes? And O thou dungeon of darkness, where that +abominable idol of late days was first erected (thou Tower of London, I +mean), in thee are tormented more Jeremiahs than one, whom God shall +comfort according to His promise, and shall reward their persecutors +even as they have deserved; in which day also shalt thou tremble for +fear, and such as pretend to defend thee shall perish with thee, +because thou wast first defiled with that abominable idol." +</P> + +<P> +The letter concludes with the following touching sentences:—"The peace +of God rest with you all. From one sore troubled heart upon my +departure from Dieppe—1553(4)—whither God knoweth. In God is my +trust, through Jesus Christ His Son; and therefore I fear not the +tyranny of man, neither yet what the devil can invent against me. +Rejoice, ye faithful, for in joy shall we meet where death may not +dissever us." +</P> + +<P> +At the time when he wrote these words he seems to have had no definite +purpose as to his immediate destination, but we have now no difficulty +in tracing his movements, for in a letter addressed to his afflicted +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P77"></A>77}</SPAN> +brethren in England, and dated Dieppe, 10th May, 1554, we find the +following words:—"My own estate is this: since the 28th of January I +have travelled through all the congregations of Helvetia (Switzerland), +and have reasoned with all the pastors and many other excellent learned +men upon such matters as now I cannot commit to writing; gladly I would +by tongue or by pen utter the same to God's glory." What these things +were may perhaps be inferred from the words of Bullinger to Calvin in a +letter dated 26th March, 1554, to this effect: "I have enclosed in this +letter the answer I made to the Scotsman whom you commended to me; you +will return it to me when you have opportunity."[<A NAME="chap06fn5text"></A><A HREF="#chap06fn5">5</A>] Now as Knox +visited Geneva in that month of March, and obtained from Calvin a +letter of introduction to Bullinger, there can be no doubt, as Dr. +Laing has shown, that the reference is to him. The questions which he +submitted to Bullinger were the following, and we give them entire, +with a brief summary of the answer to each, that we may make plain the +gravity and importance of the matters which were at this time +engrossing his attention:—(1) "Whether the son of a king, upon his +father's death, though unable by reason of his tender age to conduct +the government of the kingdom, is nevertheless by right of inheritance +to be regarded as a lawful magistrate, and as such to be obeyed as of +Divine right?" This, illustrating his statement by a reference to King +Edward the Sixth of England, Bullinger answers in the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P78"></A>78}</SPAN> +affirmative. +(2) "Whether a female can preside over and rule a kingdom by Divine +right, and so transfer the right of sovereignty to her husband?" To +this Bullinger replies, that, though the law of God ordains the woman +to be in subjection, yet as it is a hazardous thing for godly persons +to set themselves up in opposition to political regulations, and in the +gospel does not seem to unsettle hereditary rights, the people of God +may rejoice in a female sovereign if she be like Deborah; and if she be +of a different character, they may have an example and consolation in +the case of Athaliah; but with respect to the right of transferring the +government to her husband, only those persons who are acquainted with +the laws and customs of the realm can give a proper answer. (3) +"Whether obedience is to be rendered to a magistrate who enforces +idolatry and condemns true religion; and whether those authorities who +are still in military occupations of towns and fortresses are permitted +to repel this ungodly violence from themselves and their friends?" No +definite or categorical answer is given to this inquiry, on the ground +that it is difficult to pronounce on every particular case; but while +there is need of wisdom, lest by rashness and corruption much mischief +may be occasioned to many worthy persons, it is unequivocally asserted +that death itself is far preferable to the admission of idolatry. (4) +"To which party must godly persons attach themselves in the case of a +religious nobility resisting an idolatrous sovereign?" This is left by +the Swiss Reformer to the judgment of the individual +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P79"></A>79}</SPAN> +conscience. +Between the lines of these questions we can easily read that Knox was +pondering questions which lie near the foundation of civil and +religious liberty; and that, foreseeing the occasion which he might +soon have for dealing practically with them, he availed himself of the +opportunity furnished by his exile for consulting the most eminent +Swiss Protestant divines regarding them. +</P> + +<P> +He returned to Dieppe in May, 1554, and remained there until the end of +July in order that he might gain accurate information concerning his +brethren in England, and might learn whether he could do anything in +their behalf. To these weeks must be assigned the preparation and +transmission of his "Faithful Admonition unto the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which caused him so much trouble in the Frankfort +episode of his history. For that reason, therefore, it may be well to +give a brief account of this trenchant production. It is evidently the +expansion of a discourse formerly preached by him on the experience of +the disciples in the storm, when they "toiled in rowing" because "the +wind was contrary unto them," with a pungent and sometimes not very +prudent, application of its lessons to the circumstances which then +existed in England. It was his habit to preach his sermons before he +wrote them, and indeed, so far as appears, he did not often write them +out, even after they had been delivered, but usually contented himself +with speaking from a few notes, which were made in the margin of his +Bible, and which remained the sole +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P80"></A>80}</SPAN> +memoranda of the discourse. In +the present case the note was to the effect "<I>Videat Anglia</I>"—"Let +England beware!" and the matter written in his book in Latin was this: +"Seldom it is that God worketh any notable work to the comfort of His +Church but that trouble, fear, and labour cometh upon such as God hath +used for His servants and His workmen; and also tribulation most +commonly followeth that Church where Christ Jesus is most truly +preached." In his exposition he goes on to explain why, after the +miracle of the feeding of the multitude, Christ sent both the people at +large and His disciples away; and dwells on the danger to which the +apostles were exposed, the manner of their deliverance through the +coming and the word of Christ, the zeal of Peter in seeking to meet the +Lord on the waves, and his fear in sinking in the waters, and the mercy +of the Master in permitting neither Peter nor the rest of the disciples +to perish, but gloriously delivering them all. Into his treatment of +these several things he introduces plentiful allusions to the state of +affairs in England, and the object which he has before him as a whole +is two-fold—first, to encourage those who had made a profession of the +Reformed Faith to maintain the beginning of their confidence steadfast +unto the end; and second, to give warning of the dangers which were to +be apprehended if the kingdom should come under the dominion of +strangers, as it would infallibly do when Mary became the wife of +Philip of Spain. The admonition bears the imprint "20th day of July, +1554." Now the marriage +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P81"></A>81}</SPAN> +of Mary to Philip was celebrated on the +25th day of that same month, and it was provided by the treaty for that +alliance, and confirmed by Act of Parliament, that Philip, as the +husband of Mary, "should have and enjoy, jointly with the Queen his +wife, the style, honour, and kingly name of the realm and dominions +unto the said Queen appertaining, and shall aid her Highness, being his +wife, in the happy administration of her realm and dominions." This +helps us to understand one of the questions which Knox had proposed to +Bullinger, and explains at least, if it cannot justify, the vehemence +of his feelings and the violence of his words in the "admonition." He +speaks of "Stephen Gardiner and his black brood;" calls the wafer of +the host "the round clipped God;" declares that "the devil rageth in +his obedient servants, wily Winchester, dreaming Durham, and bloody +Bonner, with the rest of their bloody, butcherly brood;" avers that +Jezebel "never erected half so many gallows in all Israel as +mischievous Mary hath done within London alone;" denounces Mary as a +"breaker of promises;" calls her that most unhappy and wicked woman;" +and foretells evil for England if she—<I>i.e.</I> England—contract +marriage, confederacy, or league with such princes as do maintain and +advance idolatry (such as the Emperor, which is no less an enemy here +to Christ than ever was Nero)." All this is dreadful enough. But let +us bear in mind that Mary, on her accession, had publicly declared that +she "meant graciously not to compel or strain other men's consciences +otherwise than God should, as she trusted, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P82"></A>82}</SPAN> +put in their hearts a +persuasion of the truth, through the opening of His word unto them," +and that, by her subsequent conduct she had utterly falsified that +word; let it be remembered that at the very time of Knox's writing, +Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer had been prisoners for seven or eight +months in the Tower, first under the charge of treason, and latterly +under that of heresy; let it be considered that reports were +continually coming to Knox's ears of the daily increasing sufferings of +the Protestants in England, and then some allowance will be made for +the outburst of his indignation in these passionate utterances. Still, +when we have made all such allowance, we must admit that a more +cautious man would have foreseen that a probable effect of such a +bitter onslaught would be the increase of the persecutor's fury, and +would not have gone out of his way to irritate the German Emperor by +comparing him with Nero. But caution never was one of Knox's +distinctive excellences. If it had, he would not have become a +Reformer, for your merely cautious men are of very little service +either to their generation or to the world. Boldness is necessary for +progress, and where the boldness is, we must reconcile ourselves as +best we may to its attendant shadow. In the present instance Knox paid +dearly enough for his imprudence, as we shall shortly see, and we may +therefore content ourselves with this simple reference to it. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap06fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap06fn1text">1</A>] "Works," vol. iii. p. 137. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap06fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap06fn2text">2</A>] Ibid., p. 128. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap06fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap06fn3text">3</A>] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 151-2. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap06fn4"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap06fn4text">4</A>] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 187-8. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap06fn5"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap06fn5text">5</A>] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 219, 226. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap07"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P83"></A>83}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER VII. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555. +</H4> + +<P> +From Dieppe, after having launched across the channel the thunderbolt +of the "Faithful Admonition," Knox retired to Geneva, where he enjoyed +the friendship of John Calvin and other Swiss divines, and where, +though he was now bordering on fifty years of age, he applied himself +to the study of Hebrew with all the ardour of youth. But such a man +could not long be permitted to enjoy learned leisure. Accordingly we +find that in the end of September, 1554, he was called to be one of the +pastors of a congregation of English exiles who had found an asylum in +Frankfort-on-the-Maine, a city whose inhabitants had early embraced the +principles of the Reformation, and befriended refugees from all +countries so far as that could be done by them without coming to an +open breach with the Emperor. Already a church of French Protestants +was in existence there, and on application to the authorities the +English exiles obtained the joint use of the place of worship allotted +to that congregation, on condition that they should in their +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P84"></A>84}</SPAN> +service conform as nearly as possible to the forms observed by the +French. This was thankfully accepted by the English, who agreed among +themselves, be it observed before Knox appeared among them, to give up +the audible responses, the Litany, the surplice, and other things which +"in these reformed churches would seem more than strange." It is added +in the "Brief Discourse of the Troubles begun at Frankfort" which lies +before us as we write, that "as touching the ministration of the +sacraments, sundry things were also by common consent omitted as +superstitious and superfluous;" and that "after that the congregation +had thus concluded and agreed, and had chosen their minister and +deacons to serve for a time, they entered their church on the 29th of +July." +</P> + +<P> +Having thus secured for themselves religious privileges, the Frankfort +exiles by a circular letter invited their brethren in other continental +cities to come and share the blessing with them. To this the English +residents at Strasburg replied recommending certain persons as well +qualified to fill the offices of superintendent or bishop, and pastors, +but before receiving that communication the brethren at Frankfort had +already chosen three persons, one of whom was Knox, to be their +pastors, and to be invested with co-ordinate authority. The invitation +was not specially attractive to Knox, both because he was loth to +sacrifice the advantages for study which he was enjoying at Geneva, and +because he feared the outbreak of such a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P85"></A>85}</SPAN> +controversy as ultimately +arose. But moved by what McCrie has styled "the powerful intercession +of Calvin," he accepted the call and went to Frankfort about the end of +October or the beginning of November. Before his arrival there, +however, the harmony of the congregation had been disturbed by the +reception of a letter from the English residents at Zurich, who +declined to come to Frankfort unless they obtained security that the +Church would use the Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., on the ground that +the rejection or alteration of that form of service would give occasion +for the charge against them of fickleness in their religion, and would +be a virtual condemnation of those who at that very time were suffering +persecution on its account. To this the members of the church at +Frankfort replied that they had obtained permission to use their place +of worship on the condition of their conforming as closely as possible +to the French ritual; that there were some things in the English book +which would give offence to the Protestants of the place whose +hospitality they were enjoying; that certain ceremonies in that book +had been occasion of scruple to conscientious persons at home; that +they were very far indeed from pronouncing condemnation of those who +had drawn up that book, since they themselves had altered many things; +and that the sufferers in England were testifying for more important +matters than rites of mere human appointment. This answer, while it +somewhat abated the confidence of the friends at Zurich, did not +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P86"></A>86}</SPAN> +drive them from their purpose, for they instigated their brethren at +Strasburg to make the same request both by letter and by deputation, +and thus widened the area of the controversy. +</P> + +<P> +This was the state of things when Knox appeared upon the scene, and +although his convictions were strongly on the side of those who opposed +the adoption of the Book of Common Prayer, he strove to act the part of +a peacemaker, as far as he consistently could. For when the +congregation agreed to adopt the order of worship followed in Calvin's +Church at Geneva, he declined to carry out that determination until +their learned brethren in other places should be consulted. He +confessed that he could not conscientiously administer the sacraments +according to the English book, but he offered to restrict himself +solely to the preaching of the word, and let some one else administer +the sacraments; and if that freedom could not be granted to him, he +desired that he might be altogether released from the pastorate to +which he had been chosen. But the congregation would not consent to +give him up, and in the hope of preventing future controversy, Knox, +who was joined by Whittingham, afterwards Dean of Durham, and others, +drew up a fair summary and description of the English Prayer-Book, +which they sent to Calvin for his inspection and advice. In his reply +the Genevese Reformer bewailed the existence of unseemly contentions +among them; claimed that he had always counselled moderation respecting +external +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P87"></A>87}</SPAN> +ceremonies, yet condemned the obstinacy of those who +would consent to no change of old customs; declared that in the English +liturgy he had found many "<I>tolerabiles ineptias</I>,"—tolerable +fooleries,—which might be borne with in the beginning of the +Reformation, but ought to be removed as soon as possible; gave it as +his opinion that the circumstances of the exiles in Frankfort warranted +them to attempt the removal of such blemishes; and rather caustically +remarked that "he could not tell what they meant who so greatly +delighted in the leavings of popish dregs." +</P> + +<P> +This letter produced considerable effect, and a committee, of which +Knox was one, was appointed to draw up a form which might harmonize all +parties. When this committee met, Knox acknowledging that there was no +hope of peace unless "one party something relented," indicated how far +he was willing to go in the direction of compromise; and the result was +the drawing up of a form of which "some part was taken from the English +Prayer-Book, and other things put to, as the state of the Church +required." By the consent of the congregation this order was to +continue until the month of April; and if any contention should +meanwhile arise, the matter was to be referred for decision to these +five learned men, namely, Calvin, Musculus, Martyr, Bullinger, and +Vyret. This agreement was put in writing, and subscribed by the +members of the congregation amid the joy of all. "Thanks were given to +God, brotherly reconciliation followed, great familiarity (was) used, +and the former +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P88"></A>88}</SPAN> +grudges forgotten; yea, the Holy Communion was upon +this happy agreement also ministered." +</P> + +<P> +But this peace was not of long continuance, for on the 13th of March +Dr. Richard Cox, who had been the preceptor of Edward VI., and who was +afterwards a bishop under Queen Elizabeth, arrived in Frankfort with a +company like-minded with himself; and on the very first day on which +they attended public worship, they broke the <I>concordat</I> by indulging +in audible responses. When they were expostulated with by some of the +seniors, or elders, of the congregation for their disorderly conduct, +they replied that "they would do as they had done in England, and that +they would have the face of an English Church;" and on the following +Sunday one of their number, without the knowledge or consent of the +congregation, entered the pulpit and read the Litany, while the rest +answered aloud. This was a still more flagrant breach of the +agreement, for Knox and his friends specially objected to the Litany; +and therefore on the afternoon, it being his turn to preach, Knox made +a public protest against such procedure. He showed how after long +trouble and contention among them, a godly agreement had been made, and +how it had been ungodly broken, "which thing it became not the proudest +of them all to have attempted." He further alleged that as we must +seek our warrant for the establishing of religion from the word of God, +and without that nothing should be thrust into any Christian +congregation; and as in the English Prayer Book there +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P89"></A>89}</SPAN> +were, as he +was prepared to prove, things both superstitious, impure, and +imperfect, he would not consent that it should be received in that +Church; and he declared that if the attempt should be made, he would +not fail to speak against it from that place, as his text might furnish +occasion. He also affirmed that, among other things which provoked +God's anger against England, slackness to reform religion when time and +opportunity were granted was one; and as an instance of that slackness +he specified, to the sore wounding of some then present, the allowing +of one man to have three, four, or five benefices, to the slander of +the gospel, and the defrauding of the people. +</P> + +<P> +This remonstrance brought things to a crisis, and on the following +Tuesday the congregation met to take the whole matter into +consideration. Cox and his company claimed the right of sitting and +voting with the rest, but it was contended that they should not be +admitted until they had subscribed the discipline of the Church. This +objection would have prevailed, but on the intercession of Knox they +were received, and they rewarded his magnanimity by outvoting him, and, +at the instigation of Cox, discharging him from preaching and from all +interference in the affairs of the congregation. This, however, only +made matters worse; and to prevent a disgraceful tumult, the whole case +was referred to the senate of the city, from whom they had obtained +permission to use the place of worship in which they assembled. That +body, after in vain recommending a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P90"></A>90}</SPAN> +private accommodation, issued +an order requiring the congregation to conform exactly to the French +ritual, and threatening if that were disobeyed to shut up the church. +With this injunction Cox and his party outwardly complied for the time; +but seeing the influence which Knox possessed, and having no hope of +carrying their point so long as he should remain among them, they took +means of the basest sort to get him out of the way. For two of them +went privately to the magistrates of the city and accused Knox of high +treason against the emperor, and against Mary, Queen of England, +putting forth as the ground of their charge those passages from the +Faithful Admonition which we have already quoted. On receipt of this +charge the magistrates sent for Whittingham, and asked him concerning +the character of Knox, whom he described in his reply as "a learned, +grave, and godly man." They then informed him of the charge which had +been preferred against him, and requested that he would furnish them +with an exact Latin translation of the sentences of his tract, nine in +number, which had been brought to their particular attention. They +gave orders also that meanwhile Knox should desist from preaching until +their pleasure should be known. With this command Knox loyally +complied; but when he appeared next day in the church as an ordinary +hearer, not thinking that any would be offended at his presence, "some +departed from the sermon, protesting with great vehemence that they +would not tarry where he was." +</P> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P91"></A>91}</SPAN> + +<P> +The action of the informers was most embarrassing to the magistrates, +who abhorred the malice by which they were evidently actuated, but at +the same time feared that the matter might come to the ears of the +emperor's council then sitting at Augsburg, and that they might be +compelled to give Knox up to them or to the Queen of England; and as +the best means of extricating themselves from the difficulty, they +suggested that he should privately withdraw from the city. Accordingly +on the evening of the 25th of March, 1555, he delivered a most +consolatory address to about fifty of the members of the Church in his +own lodgings; and "the next day," to borrow the words of the author of +the Brief Discourse, "he was brought three or four miles on his way by +some of these unto whom the night before he had made that exhortation, +who, with great heaviness of heart and plenty of tears, committed him +to the Lord." +</P> + +<P> +The sequel is soon told. Cox, by falsely representing that the +congregation was now unanimous, obtained an order from the senate for +the unrestricted use of the English Prayer-Book, and then procured in +the Church the abrogation of the code of discipline, and the +appointment of a superintendent or bishop over the other pastors. The +result was that a considerable number of the members left the city, and +the remainder continued a prey to strife, which Cox and his friends did +not stay to compose, for they also soon took their departure to other +places. The Church was thus virtually broken +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P92"></A>92}</SPAN> +up; and it is not +without significance that, in seeking afterwards to be excused from +performing service before a crucifix in the chapel of Queen Elizabeth, +Cox employed the very argument which Knox had urged without effect upon +himself, for he said, "I ought to do nothing touching religion which +may appear doubtful, whether it pleaseth God or not; for our religion +ought to be certain, and grounded upon God's word and will." +</P> + +<P> +We have gone thus fully into the "Frankfort troubles," not so much +because, as McCrie says, they present in miniature a striking picture +of that contentious scene which was afterwards exhibited on a larger +scale in England, or because it would not be difficult to find similar +divisions on precisely similar points in the days in which we live, but +because of the insight which the history gives us into the character of +Knox himself. The controversy was keen and bitter; but throughout it +all our Reformer shows to great advantage,—evincing what Carlyle has +called "a great and unexpected patience," by which we suppose he means +a patience which those who know nothing more about him than the usual +caricature of his character, which too many have accepted, would hardly +have expected. But the readers of his letter to his Berwick friends, +on which we have already commented, could have looked for nothing else +at his hands; and we commend the study of this episode in his history +to all those who have been accustomed to regard him as a dogmatic, +domineering, impracticable +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P93"></A>93}</SPAN> +man, who was determined always to have +his way in the scorn of every consequence. The offer to restrict +himself solely to preaching, or, if that should not be granted, to go +quietly away, stands out to his lasting honour, and shows how eager he +was to prevent all strife; while the simple mention by the chronicler +of the "plenty of tears" shed by those who accompanied him out of the +city, witnesses to the tenderness of his friendship; and by both alike +we are reminded of the great apostle whose words were so constantly +upon his lips. In reviewing the whole case, he cannot help recalling +that his opponents had brought against him the old cry, "He is not +Caesar's friend;" but he prays for them thus, "O Lord God, open their +hearts that they may see their wickedness, and forgive them for Thy +manifold mercies; and I forgive them, O Lord, from the bottom of my +heart. But that Thy message sent by my mouth should not be slandered, +I am compelled to declare the cause of my departing, and so to utter +their folly, to their amendment I trust, and the example of others who, +in the same banishment, can have so cruel hearts to persecute their +brethren." His opponents tried to excuse themselves, and in a letter +to Calvin put the best possible construction on their case; but nothing +said by them altered the opinion of the great Reformer, in which we are +persuaded all fair-minded men, whatever may be their ecclesiastical +opinions will agree, to this effect:—"But certainly this one thing I +cannot keep secret, that Mr. Knox was, in my judgment, neither godly +nor +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P94"></A>94}</SPAN> +brotherly dealt withal." It was a hard and bitter experience, +and no doubt it had its influence in determining him, when he came to +deal with the Reformation of Scotland, to make more thorough work of it +than they had done in England. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap08"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P95"></A>95}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER VIII. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559. +</H4> + +<P> +On his departure from Frankfort Knox made his way to Geneva, whither he +was followed by a considerable number of those who had adhered to him +in the former city. There it seems evident that he was invited by +them, and probably also by others who had joined them, to resume his +pastoral labours; for at the solicitation of Calvin, the Lesser Council +of Geneva granted for the joint use of the English and Italian +congregations the church called the Temple de Nostre Dame la Nove; and +it is recorded that on the first of November, 1555, when the English +Church was formed, Christopher Goodman and Arthur Gilby were "appointed +to preach the word, <I>in the absence of John Knox</I>." This indicates +that Knox was already recognised as one of the permanent pastors of the +Church, and that just at that time he was for some reason or other, +away for a long season from the scene of his labours. +</P> + +<P> +Where he was and what he was doing we have ample means of tracing, for +in the September of that +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P96"></A>96}</SPAN> +year we find him back again in Scotland, +for the first time since he had been taken prisoner by the French. But +much as he cared for the spiritual interests of his native land, it is +probable that his return to Great Britain at this time was more +immediately prompted by feelings of a personal nature. We have already +referred to his attachment to Marjory Bowes, daughter of Richard Bowes, +and of Elizabeth Aske, of Aske, near Berwick, and Dr. Laing has given +strong reasons for believing that he came now for the purpose of making +her his wife. The precise date of his marriage, indeed, is uncertain. +Dr. McCrie has put it in 1553, before he left England on the ground +that after that date Knox invariably addressed Mrs. Bowes as his +"mother" and spoke of Marjory as his "wife." The truth, however, seems +to have been that owing to the strong opposition of her father and +other relatives to the alliance, and also, perhaps, to the very +uncertain position of the Reformer himself, in these times of +unsettlement and peril, they contented themselves in 1553 with formally +pledging themselves to each other "before witnesses." But now, +immediately on his landing, at a point on the east shore not far from +the boundary between England and Scotland, he repaired to Berwick, +where he found Marjory and her mother enjoying the happiness of +religious society. After this, he visited Scotland, where he laboured +for some months, and the marriage may not have taken place until the +time when, preparatory to their setting out for Geneva, Mrs. Bowes +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P97"></A>97}</SPAN> +resolved to leave all her relatives and cast in her lot with her +son-in-law. +</P> + +<P> +The visit of Knox to Scotland, at this juncture, was of immense service +to the cause of the Reformation. The clergy, unable or unwilling to +discern the signs of the times, had sunk into supineness, under the +belief that what they called heresy had been well-nigh banished from +the land. Arran, now Duke of Chatellerault, had given place as Regent +to Mary, the mother of Mary Queen of Scots, whose policy it was just +then to temporize with the Protestant nobles, and to disguise for a +season her deep-rooted and undying hatred of their cause. In the good +providence of God, also, a number of the leading adherents of the new +faith, like Erskine of Dun, Maitland of Lethington, and others, had +come to Edinburgh to confer with and enjoy the ministrations of John +Willock, who had been sent over by the Duchess of East Friesland, +ostensibly on a commercial mission to the Scottish court, but really to +see "what good work God would do by him to his native land;" and the +private meetings which he held with the Protestants in Edinburgh for +prayer and the exposition of the word, may have suggested to Knox that +he should follow a similar plan. That at least was the course which he +determined to pursue. He was received into the houses of certain +burgesses whose names he has enshrined in his history, and though the +number of meetings and the necessity of holding them in secret kept him +busy night and day, he was greatly +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P98"></A>98}</SPAN> +encouraged by the results. +Writing to Mrs. Bowes, he says that "the fervent thirst of his +brethren, night and day, sobbing and groaning for the bread of life, +was such, that if he had not seen it with his own eyes he could not +have believed it;" and again that "the fervency here did far exceed all +others that he had seen;" and "did so ravish him, that he could not but +accuse and condemn his slothful coldness." +</P> + +<P> +The news of his arrival spread among the Reformers in all parts of the +country, and his presence was so eagerly desired everywhere that he was +obliged to postpone his return to Berwick, and enter upon a series of +evangelistic journeys through different districts of the land. But we +will allow him to describe his work at this time himself. Thus he +writes in his "History": "John Knox, at the request of the Laird of +Dun, followed him to his place of Dun, where he remained a month, daily +exercised in doctrine, whereunto resorted the principal men of that +country. After his returning, his residence was most in Calder, where +repaired unto him the Lord Erskine, the Lord Lorn, and Lord James +Stuart, Prior of St. Andrews (half-brother to Mary Stuart), where they +heard and so approved his doctrine, that they wished it to have been +public. That same winter he taught commonly in Edinburgh; and after +the Yule (Christmas) by the conduct of the Laird of Barr, and Robert +Campbell of Kinzeancleugh, he came to Kyle, and taught in the Barr, in +the house of the Carnell, in the Kinzeancleugh, in the town of Ayr, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P99"></A>99}</SPAN> +and in the houses of Ochiltree and Gadgirth, and in some of them +ministered the Lord's Table. Before the Pasch (Easter) the Earl of +Glencairn sent for him to his place of Finlaston, where, after +doctrine, he likewise ministered the Lord's Table; whereof, besides +himself, were partakers his lady, two of his sons, and certain of his +friends. And so returned he to Calder, where divers from Edinburgh, +and from the country about, convened as well for the doctrine as for +the right use of the Lord's Table, which before they had never +practised. From thence he departed the second time to the Laird of +Dun, and teaching them in greater liberty, the gentlemen required that +he should minister likewise unto them the Table of the Lord Jesus; +whereof were partakers the most part of the gentlemen of the Mearns, +who professed that they refused all society with idolatry and bound +themselves to the uttermost of their power to maintain the true +preaching of the Evangel of Jesus Christ, as God should offer to them +preachers and opportunity." Well done, ye men of the Mearns, and ye +worthy descendants of the Lollards of Kyle! Often in the history of +Scotland have the dwellers in these parts stood up manfully for the +truth, but never was a nobler thing done in either locality, than when +ye thus received and welcomed the apostle of your country's Reformation! +</P> + +<P> +Such labours were sure sooner or later to attract the attention of the +bishops; and accordingly while he was in the Mearns he was summoned to +appear +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P100"></A>100}</SPAN> +before them at Edinburgh, in the Church of the +Blackfriars, on the 15th May, 1556. They probably imagined that this +mere "show of force" on their part would suffice to frighten him into +silence. If they did, they reckoned without their host; for encouraged +by his friends he came to Edinburgh to meet and face his accusers. But +when it came to the pinch, they shrank from the encounter; and so it +was that on the very day on which he had been summoned to stand before +them, he preached, of all places, in the very lodging of the Bishop of +Dunkeld, to a greater audience than he had hitherto addressed in +Edinburgh. For ten days he continued morning and afternoon at this +work, and so thoroughly was his heart refreshed by it that he writes of +it thus to Mrs. Bowes: "O sweet were the death that should follow such +forty days in Edinburgh as here I have had three." +</P> + +<P> +But the boldest, if we should not call it the most audacious thing, +which he did in this visit, was to address a letter to the Queen +Regent, wherein he vindicated himself from the charges made by his +enemies against him, and exhorted her to hear the word of God, and +regulate her government by its principles. The suggestion to send such +an epistle came from the Earl Mareschal and Henry Drummond, who had +been brought to hear him by Lord Glencairn, and who declared, on what +they said they knew of the queen's mind, that she was in a mood to be +propitious. But though the letter is correctly described by Lorimer as +one "which for its +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P101"></A>101}</SPAN> +courtesy of phrase, and faithfulness of +counsel, was equally suitable to her dignity as a queen, and to his +character as a minister of God," it met with only a mocking reception. +"Please you, my lord, to read a pasquil," said Mary of Guise, after it +had been put into her hands, and while she was giving it to the +Archbishop of Glasgow, and that was all the notice of it which she +condescended to take. This treatment of his expostulation being +reported to Knox, revealed to him how little he had to expect from Mary +of Guise; and as just at this time letters arrived from Geneva +"commanding him, in God's name, as he that was their chosen pastor, to +repair unto them for their comfort," he made immediate preparations for +his departure thither. He took leave of the several congregations to +whom he had preached, and sent on his wife and his mother-in-law to +Dieppe before him, there to await his arrival. He reached them in the +month of July, and shortly after went with them to Geneva; for in the +"Livre des Anglois" there is an entry to the effect that on the 13th of +September, 1556, John Knox; Marjory, his wife; Elizabeth, her mother; +James ——, his servant; and Patrick, his pupil, were received and +admitted members of the English Church and congregation there. +</P> + +<P> +The reception of Mrs. Bowes into his household, especially with his +knowledge of her deep-seated melancholia, says much for the kindliness +of Knox's heart; and contrasts strongly with the spirit manifested on a +similar matter by that other Scotsman whose +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P102"></A>102}</SPAN> +correspondence has so +recently been given to the world. We know not if the cheap sneer +indulged in by so many at the expense of the mother-in-law were as +common in his days as it is in ours, but, in any case, Knox in all this +was thoughtfully tender, and though he admits that the desponding habit +of Mrs. Bowes was often a great trial to him, yet he never withdrew his +regard from her. The following sentences of Dr. Laing express all that +needs to be said more on this subject: "Her husband, I presume, was a +bigoted adherent of the Roman Catholic faith, and this may serve as the +key both to his opposition to Knox's marriage with his daughter, and to +the mother's attachment to her son-in-law. It cannot at least be said +that Knox was actuated by the expectation of wealth. In his last will +and testament he states that all the money he received from the +mother's succession for the benefit of his two sons was one hundred +marks sterling, which he, 'out of his poverty,' had increased to five +hundred pounds Scots, and had paid through Mr. Randolph to their uncle, +Mr. Robert Bowes, for their use. The comparative value of money at +this time was very variable; but we may reckon (that) the hundred +marks, or £66 13s. 4d., were increased by Knox to £100 sterling."[<A NAME="chap08fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap08fn1">1</A>] +</P> + +<P> +After Knox left Scotland the courage of the bishops revived, for they +actually summoned him again, and on his failure to put in an appearance +they were bold enough to burn him in effigy at the Cross of Edinburgh! +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P103"></A>103}</SPAN> +But this <I>brutum fulmen</I> of theirs could not undo the work which +he had wrought. For by his labours at this time, especially in +exposing the evil of the Protestants' any longer countenancing, papal +worship, he detached from the Romish communion the nucleus round which +the Church of Scotland, in a reformed state, was ultimately to form +itself. Hitherto there had been no separate organization of the +adherents to the Protestant faith; and no formal observance by them of +the ordinance of the Supper. But now they had, to some extent at +least, committed themselves to ultimate separation from the Church of +Rome. As Lorimer says, "They were now a "Congregation" or community of +Evangelical Christians, as much bound to one another as they were +dissevered from the Church of the popes." And Knox's leaving of them +in that condition was as much for their good as his arrival among them +some months before had been. Had he remained longer in Scotland at +this time, his presence would have undoubtedly provoked an outburst of +persecuting fury on the part of the bishops and their friends; while as +it was, the seed which he sowed had opportunity to root itself in the +hearts of those who had received it at his hands; and this it would +assuredly do if they followed the directions which he had left behind +him. For before his departure he drew up a letter of wholesome counsel +addressed to his brethren in Scotland, in which he exhorts them to give +themselves to the daily study of the Bible and worship of God in their +homes, and gives them +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P104"></A>104}</SPAN> +directions as to the holding and conducting +of assemblies for public worship and mutual conference and prayer, +recommending them to observe a regular course in their reading, and +cautioning those who should speak, to do so with modesty, avoiding +"multiplication of words, perplexed interpretation, and wilfulness in +reasoning." If anything occurred in the text which they could not +resolve for themselves, he advised them to apply for assistance to the +more learned, and offered if they should refer it to him, to give them +such help as he could render, saying, "I will more gladly spend fifteen +hours in communicating my judgment with you, in explaining as God +pleases to open to me any place of Scripture, than half an hour in any +matter beside." +</P> + +<P> +To the same period belong his "Answers to some Questions concerning +Baptism," etc., which had been proposed to him by some inquirers, and +which are of a sort that have often troubled young converts in similar +cases. They are, whether baptism administered by the popish priests +was valid and did not require repetition? Whether the decree of the +apostles and elders at Jerusalem be still in all its points binding on +believers? Whether the prohibition in 2 John 10 extended to the common +salutation of those who taught erroneous doctrine? How the directions +respecting dress in 1 Peter iii. 3 are to be obeyed? and the like. And +with them all he deals in a spirit of wisdom for which multitudes +unacquainted with his works would hardly give him credit. We need not +enter into details regarding them; +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P105"></A>105}</SPAN> +but as the first mentioned of +the above subjects was debated a few years ago in the Assembly of the +Presbyterian Church (North) of the United States, it may not be +uninteresting to state that, while Knox declares unequivocally that it +would be wrong for Protestant believers to seek baptism for their +children from popish priests, he yet as plainly affirms that a man who +had been baptized in infancy in papistry ought not to be rebaptized +when he cometh to knowledge, because Christ's institution could not be +utterly abolished by the malice of Satan or by the abuse of man. +</P> + +<P> +From September, 1556, to September, 1557, Knox laboured in Geneva, +delighting in his work and rejoicing in the fellowship of congenial +friends. Indeed, these halcyon months seem to have been the most +peaceful of his chequered life, and we do not wonder that he wrote +regarding Geneva: "I neither fear nor shame to say, it is the most +perfect school of Christ that ever was in the earth since the days of +the apostles." In the public services of the Church he used the form +of prayer which had been drawn up by himself and others for the English +congregation, and which was the groundwork of the "Book of Common +Order" that was received by the Church of Scotland in 1565. But as +that will come up for description in its proper place, we need not +dwell upon it here. The harmony of the Geneva Church was sweet after +the controversies of Frankfort, and the intercourse of the brethren +from England, who were then engaged in the preparation of that version +of the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P106"></A>106}</SPAN> +Scriptures which continued to be for nearly a hundred +years the favourite Bible of the Puritans, must have been a constant +joy. +</P> + +<P> +But this happiness did not last long; for in the month of May (1557) +James Syme and James Barron, two burgesses of Edinburgh, and his own +very devoted friends, arrived with a letter from Glencairn, Lorn, +Erskine, and Lord James Stuart, beseeching "in the name of the Lord," +that he would return to his native land; and affirming that he would +find all the faithful whom he had left behind him, not only glad to +hear his doctrine, but also ready to jeopardise their lives and goods +for the setting forward of the glory of God. The opinion of Calvin and +other friends to whom he submitted this request, was that he could not +refuse such a call "without declaring himself rebellious unto God and +unmerciful to his country"; and no doubt his own heart had already +given a similar response. Accordingly, after making all due +arrangements for the leaving of his charge, and for the care of his +family in his absence, he set out from Geneva in the end of September, +and arrived at Dieppe on the 24th October. He was met there, however, +with letters which gave him the impression that those who had invited +him to return to Scotland had repented of their action in that regard; +and that many of the professed adherents of the truth had drawn back +and became faint-hearted in the cause. This brought him to a stand, +and he determined to go no farther until his way should be more clear. +He +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P107"></A>107}</SPAN> +immediately wrote to his correspondents, explaining how he +came to be at Dieppe, upbraiding them for their fear and fickleness; +admonishing them of the great importance of the enterprise to which +they had committed themselves; and alleging that they ought to hazard +their lives and fortunes to deliver themselves and their brethren from +spiritual bondage. This letter is dated October 27th, 1557, and was +followed by another of a more general tenour to his brethren in +Scotland, which appears to have been written in the same place on the +1st of December. +</P> + +<P> +In the expectation of receiving some definite information from +Scotland, Knox lingered in Dieppe for some considerable time, and +officiated as temporary preacher to a Protestant Church which had +recently been formed there. But when no answer came to his appeal to +his countrymen, he set his face again toward Geneva, to which, after +visiting Lyons, Rochelle, and other towns, he returned in the spring of +1558. +</P> + +<P> +But though he had heard nothing from Scotland, matters there had been +making steady progress. There may have been just enough of wavering on +the part of some to give occasion for the desponding letters which had +arrested him at Dieppe, yet there had been no great reaction. For on +the 3rd December, perhaps after the receipt of Knox's letter of the +preceding October, there had been a conference of the leading +Protestants as to what was best to be done, and as the result a Common +Bond or Band—the earliest of those +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P108"></A>108}</SPAN> +covenants which have had so +conspicuous a place in the church history of Scotland—was drawn up and +subscribed by Argyle, Glencairn, Morton, Lorn, Erskine of Dun, and many +others. By this "engagement" they pledged themselves in the most +solemn manner "to strive in their Master's cause even unto death;" "to +maintain, set forward, and establish the most blessed word of God, and +His congregation;" with their "whole power, substance, and their very +lives; and to labour to the utmost of their possibility, to have +faithful ministers purely and truly to preach Christ's gospel, and +minister His sacraments to His people." +</P> + +<P> +This was brave and hopeful in the highest degree. But Knox knew +nothing of it meanwhile, and in his despondency composed and issued +that tract which must be pronounced the greatest mistake of his life. +We refer, of course, to "The First Blast of the Trumpet against the +monstrous Regiment (<I>i.e.</I> government) of Women," which is an elaborate +argument designed to establish the proposition that "to promote a woman +to bear rule, superiority, dominion, or empire, above any realm, +nation, or city, is repugnant to nature, contumely to God, a thing most +contrarious to His revealed will and approved ordinance; and finally it +is the subversion of good order, of all equality and justice." We have +already seen from the questions which he put to Bullinger, that he had +been pondering this subject for some time; and there is evidence in the +tract itself, that he had diligently consulted what we should now +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P109"></A>109}</SPAN> +call "the literature of the subject," for he refers to Aristotle's +politics; to the Books of the Digests; to such Fathers of the Church as +Tertullian, Augustine, Ambrose, Chrysostom, etc. But it was clearly +prompted by the fact that Mary Tudor was on the throne of England; and +there is throughout a strong undercurrent of application to her +character and cruelties. Whatever opinion may be taken on the main +question, however,—and the very existence of the Salic law in some +states still proves that there <I>are</I> two sides to it, there can be no +doubt that Knox's treatment of it at all, not to speak of the sort of +treatment which he gave it, was at this time impolitic and imprudent. +In his preface he intimates that he is prepared to be condemned by +multitudes, and even for being accused by some of high treason; and +doubtless, he thought that he had counted the cost before he built his +tower. But the publication brought such a storm about his head, that +though he had purposed to follow his first blast with a second and a +third, the two latter were never blown. His friend and colleague, +Christopher Goodman, put himself by his side in a work entitled "How +Superior Powers ought to be Obeyed of their Subjects;" and at a later +day John Milton, in quoting from Goodman, and referring to him and +others, in his "Tenure of Kings and Magistrates" says, "These were the +pastors of those saints and confessors, who, flying from the bloody +persecution of Queen Mary, gathered up at length their scattered +members into +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P110"></A>110}</SPAN> +many congregations ... <I>These were the true +Protestant divines of England</I>, our fathers in the faith we hold."[<A NAME="chap08fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap08fn2">2</A>] +But such laudations were exceptional. Foxe, the martyrologist, wrote a +long and friendly letter to Knox, in which he expostulated with him on +the impropriety of its publication; and even his friend John Calvin, in +a letter to Cecil, felt compelled to deny all complicity with its +production. Mary Tudor did not live long to resent it; but her sister +Elizabeth never either forgot or forgave it; and it prejudiced the mind +of Mary Stuart against him long before she looked upon his face. Not +many months after its publication he was constrained to say "My first +Blast hath blown from me all my friends in England," and could he have +foreseen what the alliance of Elizabeth was ultimately to do for +Scotland in the very climax of her Reformation agony, we may safely say +that the work would neither have been written nor published. +</P> + +<P> +But his excuse (<I>valeat quantum</I>) is not far to seek, and we cannot do +better than give it in the words of Carlyle.[<A NAME="chap08fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap08fn3">3</A>] "It is written with +very great vehemency; the excuse for which, so far as it may really +need excuse, is to be found in the fact that it was written while the +fires of Smithfield were still blazing, on best of bloody Mary, and not +long after Mary of Guise had been raised to the Regency of +Scotland—maleficent crowned women these two—covering poor England and +poor Scotland +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P111"></A>111}</SPAN> +with mere ruin and horror, in Knox's judgment, and +may we not still say to a considerable extent, in that of all candid +persons? The book is by no means without merit; has in it various +little traits unconsciously autobiographic, and others which are +illuminative and interesting. One ought to add withal, that Knox was +no despiser of women, far the reverse in fact; his behaviour to good +and pious women is full of respect; and his tenderness, his filial +helpfulness in their suffering and infirmities (see the letters to his +mother-in-law and others) are beautifully conspicuous. For the rest +his poor book testifies to many high intellectual qualities in Knox, +and especially to far more of learning than has ever been ascribed to +him, or is anywhere traceable in his other writings." +</P> + +<P> +To this time also belongs his treatise on Predestination, in answer to +an anonymous writer who called his work "The Careless of Necessity." +It is the most elaborate of all the Reformer's productions, and goes +into the Augustinian controversy, on the side of the great +ecclesiastical father, with much vigour of logic, great clearness of +language, and apt and extended references to Scripture. Nowhere else, +as it seems to us, does Knox indulge in such closely compacted +argument, or write in such a nervous style. He is very careful to keep +himself from misrepresentation, and all he states may be accepted as +true; but there is another side to the shield to which he rarely +refers, and which must be admitted as implicitly as that to which he +has restricted +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P112"></A>112}</SPAN> +his attention. It is not, of course, equal to the +great work of Mozley on the same subject; but they who would master the +literature of the controversy cannot afford to overlook this valuable +contribution to its documents. +</P> + +<P> +Knox continued at Geneva until the month of January, 1559, when, in +response to a request sent to him by those who had signed the "Godly +Band," which was backed by letters of a more recent date, informing him +of the state of things in Scotland, he left his wife and family behind +him and set out for his native land. Mary, the English queen, had now +gone to her account, and her sister Elizabeth had succeeded to the +throne, so that the Protestant refugees on the continent could safely +return to their own country, and it was, therefore, no longer necessary +for him to retain his position as pastor. Before the breaking up of +the congregation, however, its members met to give thanks to God, and +agreed to send one of their number with letters to their brethren in +Frankfort and other places, congratulating them on the happy change +which had come about at home, and requesting them to forget all past +unpleasantness, while they co-operated as brethren to procure such a +settlement of religion in England as would be well-pleasing to all the +friends of the Reformation. Having received favourable replies to +these letters, they went in a body to the council of the city, and +William Whittingham, in their name, expressed to the seigneurie the +gratitude which they felt for the good reception given to them during +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P113"></A>113}</SPAN> +their exile, presenting them at the same time as a lasting +memorial of their names the "Livre des Anglois," which is still +preserved among the archives of Geneva, and from which we have quoted +an interesting entry. They then left the city in which they had found +so safe an asylum, and Knox sent letters with them to some of his +former acquaintances in England, desiring that they would obtain +permission for him to travel through England on his way to Scotland. +Naturally enough he wished to see some of those among whom he had +formerly laboured; but there is reason to believe that his principal +motive in asking this favour, at this time, was that he might disclose +to Cecil the existence of a plan which had been formed by the Princes +of Lorraine, with which somehow he had become acquainted, and which had +for its objects the setting up of the claim of Mary Stuart to the +throne of England, the dethronement of Elizabeth under pretence that +she was a bastard and a heretic, the union of England and Scotland +under one crown, and the suppression of the Reformation in both by +bringing the whole island under the virtual control of France. But the +indignation of Elizabeth at his "First Blast" was such that his request +was indignantly refused, and it was with difficulty that those who +presented his letters escaped imprisonment. He did not learn this +result of his application until his arrival in Dieppe; and even then, +impressed with the importance of the information which he had to +communicate, he himself wrote to Cecil, seeking to remove all +difficulties, and desiring a personal +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P114"></A>114}</SPAN> +interview. But this +overture met with no better success; and so, determined to wait no +longer for that which seemed to be hopeless, he sailed from Dieppe on +the 22nd of April, and arrived at Leith on the 2nd of May, 1559. From +this time up till his decease, with the exception of a brief visit +which he made to England, Scotland was the sole scene of his labours; +and during these thirteen years the incidents of his public life became +part and parcel of the history of his country. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap08fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap08fn1text">1</A>] "Works," vol. vi. p. lxvi. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap08fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap08fn2text">2</A>] "Knox's Works," by Laing, vol. iv. p. 359. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap08fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap08fn3text">3</A>] Carlyle's Works, vol. xii. p. 137. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap09"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P115"></A>115}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER IX. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559. +</H4> + +<P> +The landing of Knox in Scotland was almost dramatic in its timeliness; +and though we cannot here undertake to rewrite the annals of the +period, we must as briefly as possible outline the situation. The +Queen Regent, who had so far succeeded in her temporizing policy as +even at one time to have secured the commendation of Knox, had now +openly declared herself as the enemy of the Reformation; and, at that +very moment, four of its preachers were under summons, at her instance, +to stand trial before the justiciary court at Stirling on the 10th of +May, for "administering without the consent of the ordinaries the +sacrament of the altar in a manner different from that of the Catholic +Church, during three several days of the late feast of Easter, in the +burghs and boundaries of Dundee, Montrose, and various other places in +the sheriffdoms of Forfar and Kincardine, and for convening the +subjects in these places, preaching to them, seducing them to their +erroneous doctrines, and exciting seditions and tumults." How things +had come to this crisis it is not hard to tell. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P116"></A>116}</SPAN> +At the +consultation at which the "Godly Band" was adopted, the Reformers +agreed besides on these two things, viz. first, that prayers and the +lessons of the Old and New Testaments should be read in English, +according to the Book of Common Prayer, in every parish on Sundays and +festival days by the curates, or, if they refused, by such persons +within the bounds as were best qualified; and second, that the Reformed +preachers should teach in private houses only, until the government +should allow them to do so in public. In accordance with the latter of +these resolutions, the Protestant noblemen took preachers as private +chaplains into their homes, kept them under their protection, and +encouraged them in informal and domestic meetings to expound the word +of God. This soon came to the knowledge of the bishops, and the +primate, presuming on his influence with some of Argyle's friends, +wrote to that earl, expostulating with him for having John Douglas +under his care. Such interference provoked a very smart and stinging +retort; and the archbishop, falling back on the old tactics of +persecution, thought he would strike terror into the hearts of the +Protestants by another execution. He found a victim in Walter Mill, a +venerable old man, who, though condemned years before as a heretic by +Cardinal Beaton, had escaped the stake at that time, but was now +discovered and consigned to the flames, in the midst of which he +expired, with these pathetic and prophetic words upon his lips, "As for +me, I am four-score and two years old, and cannot live long by the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P117"></A>117}</SPAN> +course of nature, but a hundred better shall arise out of the +ashes of my bones. I trust in God I shall be the last to suffer death +in Scotland in this cause." This horrible deed—done on the 28th +August, 1558—thrilled the people into earnestness in a moment, and +determined them to make open profession of their adherence to the +Reformed worship, so that their ministers were emboldened to preach and +administer the sacraments in public, even without the permission of the +government, for which until then they had waited. +</P> + +<P> +Meanwhile, in the month of July, a formal petition had been presented +to the Regent by the Protestant barons, requesting her to restrain the +violence of the clergy, and asking liberty of worship according to a +restricted plan, to which they were willing to conform until their +grievances should be examined and redressed. To this she replied after +her usual plausible fashion, in such a way as to make them believe that +she was friendly to their proposals. But the hollowness of her words +is apparent from the fact that in the very same month she was in +consultation with the archbishop of St. Andrews, as to the course which +should be adopted for checking the Reformation; yet, as she needed the +help of the Protestants at the meeting of the Parliament in November +for the carrying of certain measures on which her heart was set, +nothing was done openly by her against them until after that date. In +December, however, she gave the primate such assurances of her support, +that he summoned the Reformed preachers to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P118"></A>118}</SPAN> +appear before him at +St. Andrews on the and of February following, to answer the charges of +usurping the sacred office and of disseminating heresy. This +proceeding on his part stirred up the Protestant nobles, so that they +informed the Regent that if the trial went on they would be present to +see justice done, and she, fearing the consequences, prevailed upon the +archbishop to prorogue the trial. At the same time she summoned a +convention of the nobility to meet at Edinburgh on the 7th of March, +and induced the archbishop to call a provincial council of the clergy +to meet in the city on the first of the same month. +</P> + +<P> +When the clergy met, two representations were laid before them, one +from the Protestants, asking what they felt to be needed, and another +from persons still attached to the Roman Catholic faith, praying for +the redress of certain grievances in ecclesiastical administration; but +both were treated with indifference. A secret treaty had been entered +into by them with the Queen Regent, wherein they had promised to raise +a large sum of money to enable her to put down all heresy, and so in +the most uncompromising confidence they confirmed all the doctrines and +practices of the Church, and declared that both the preachers who +administered the sacraments after the Reformed manner, and those who +received them at their hands should be excommunicated. +</P> + +<P> +This action of theirs convinced the Reformers that nothing was to be +hoped for from the clergy, and the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P119"></A>119}</SPAN> +treaty to which we have +referred having somehow come to their knowledge revealed to them that +they had just as little to hope for from the court; so they broke off +all further negotiations and left the city. But they had scarcely gone +when a proclamation was made at the Market Cross, by order of the +Regent, prohibiting any person from preaching or administering the +sacraments without authority from the bishops; and it was because they +had disregarded that injunction that Paul Methven, John Christison, +William Harlow, and John Willock were now summoned to appear at +Stirling on the 10th of May, before the Court of Justiciary. When, +therefore, Knox arrived at Leith on the 2nd of that month, he could +truly say that he had come "even in the brunt of the battle." Nor was +he dismayed thereat. Rather like the war-horse of the sacred poet, he +said among the trumpets Aha! and went forth rejoicing in his strength +to mingle in the fray. +</P> + +<P> +The next morning the announcement of his arrival to the provincial +council of the clergy which was still in session in Edinburgh broke up +that assembly in haste, but not before its members had despatched a +messenger with the news to the Queen Regent who was then at Glasgow, +and who a few days later proclaimed Knox as a rebel and an outlaw in +virtue of the sentence formerly pronounced against him in his absence +by the bishops. But all this counted for little with him, for after +waiting only a few hours at Edinburgh, he had already gone to Dundee, +where he found the Protestants of Angus and +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P120"></A>120}</SPAN> +neighbourhood +gathered in great numbers and determined to attend their ministers to +Stirling. Lest, however, they should do harm, when they only intended +to do good, they determined to halt at Perth, from which place they +sent forward Erskine of Dun to inform the Regent at Stirling of the +peaceable object of their approach. As usual, when she heard what he +had to say, she sought to gain time by temporizing. She authorized him +to promise in her name that the trial should not go on, and prevailed +on him to persuade them to give up their purpose. Accordingly the +larger number of them returned to their homes. But when the day +appointed for the trial came, the summons was called by the Regent's +orders, the ministers were outlawed for non-appearance, and all persons +were prohibited, under pain of being treated as rebels, from harbouring +or assisting them. Erskine, finding that he had been grievously +befooled, escaped from Stirling and carried the news to Perth, where on +the day of his arrival Knox preached a sermon in which he denounced the +idolatry of the mass, and on which consequences followed which he did +not at the moment anticipate. For after his discourse had been +concluded a priest "in contempt" uncovered a rich altar-piece and +prepared to celebrate mass, whereupon a youth uttered an exclamation of +indignation. This provoked the priest to strike him "a great blow," +and he retaliated "in anger" by throwing a stone at the priest, which +hit the altar and broke one of the images. This was the spark to which +the people were +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P121"></A>121}</SPAN> +as tow, and in the course of a few minutes +everything in the church that savoured of idolatry—altar, images, +ornaments and the like—was thrown down and demolished. The report of +this outbreak soon gathered a mob described by Knox as "not of the +gentlemen, neither of them that were earnest professors, but of the +rascal multitude," who finding nothing more to be done in the church +rushed to the monasteries of the Black and Grey Friars and to the +Charterhouse and laid them all in ruins. +</P> + +<P> +This was the beginning of that demolition of Roman Catholic edifices +for which Knox has been so grievously assailed. But, without entering +minutely into the merits of the question, and cheerfully admitting +that—owing to human imperfection—a work like that in which our +Reformer was engaged could not be carried through without the doing of +some things of which men in less troublous times must disapprove, we +must be permitted to advance the following considerations. First, the +outbreak at Perth was in a manner accidental, and was not either +premeditated or instigated by Knox. Second, when the work of purifying +the churches was systematically entered upon, special instructions were +given to those entrusted with it to guard against any injury to the +fabrics themselves; for in a document enjoining the purgation of the +Cathedral of Dunkeld and subscribed by Argyle and Ruthven on the 12th +August, 1560, the parties commissioned are thus addressed: "Fail not +ye, but that ye take good heed that neither the desks, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P122"></A>122}</SPAN> +windows, +nor doors be anywise burnt or broken, either glass-work or iron-work." +Third, the work of absolute destruction was reserved for the +monasteries. Now we can clearly see the reason for such a distinction. +The churches were the property of the people, and after being cleansed +were preserved for the people's use; but the monasteries, as Burton +candidly admits, were in a manner "fortresses of the enemy," and as +such were demolished. Yet even for the destruction of them Knox and +his brethren are not solely to be blamed; for as the historian just +named has said[<A NAME="chap09fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn1">1</A>]: "In the history of the invasions directed by King +Henry and Somerset we have seen enough to account for large items in +the ruin that overcame ecclesiastical buildings in Scotland. For +Melrose, Kelso, Jedburgh, and the many other buildings torn down in +these inroads, the Scots Reformers have no censure beyond that of +neutrality or passiveness. The ruined edifices were not restored as +they naturally would have been had the old Church remained +predominant." When all these things are taken into account, it will be +seen that there is very little foundation for the common outcry against +Knox in this matter. +</P> + +<P> +In the present instance the demolition of the monasteries by the mob in +Perth seriously complicated the situation, and gave the Regent an +advantage which she was not slow to improve. For in an address to the +nobility in Stirling, she so employed it as to succeed in getting their +assistance in advancing against Perth", <I>with +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P123"></A>123}</SPAN> +an army</I>, for the +purpose of putting down what she chose to call a dangerous rebellion. +The Reformers wrote to her disclaiming all such intention; but finding +her inflexible, they prepared to defend themselves, and were assisted +by the opportune arrival of Glencairn from Ayrshire, with 2,500 +volunteers. When therefore she reached Perth she discovered that her +force was greatly outnumbered by theirs, and she was obliged to accept +an "appointment," by which she engaged to leave the citizens unmolested +in the exercise of their religion, and they pledged themselves to +return to their homes. This agreement she violated in many ways, and +so finally lost the confidence and support of Argyle and Lord James +Stuart, both of whom had been thus far politically on her side, but now +cast in their lot whole-heartedly with the congregation. After this +experience the leaders determined to take a step in advance and set up +Protestant worship in those places where their own personal influence +or the adherence of the people promised success, and it was resolved to +begin at St. Andrews. They therefore set a day for Knox to meet them +in that city, where he arrived on the 9th of July. When the archbishop +learned that he intended to preach in the cathedral he sent a message +to his friends to the effect that, "In case John Knox presented himself +at the preaching-place in his town and principal church, he should make +him be saluted with a dozen of culverings, whereof the most part would +light upon his nose." This threat somewhat daunted those by whom he +was +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P124"></A>124}</SPAN> +accompanied, and they endeavoured to dissuade him from +preaching; but the reply of the Reformer takes its place beside +Luther's words on the way to Worms, for he said, "As for the fear of +danger that may come to me let no man be solicitous, for my life is in +the custody of Him whose glory I seek, and therefore I cannot so fear +their boast or tyranny that I will cease from doing my duty, when of +His mercy He offereth me the occasion. I desire the hand or weapon of +no man to defend me. I only crave audience, which if it be denied me +here I must seek further where I may have it." There was no resisting +such a determination, and the result justified his courage, for +remembering doubtless his own words years before, while a slave in the +French galley, he preached on the Sunday, nor on that day alone, but +also on the four next following, without seeing anything either of the +archbishop or his culverings; and such was the effect of his discourses +that the provost, magistrates, and inhabitants agreed to set up the +Reformed worship forthwith, and proceeded at once to strip the church +of its images and to pull down the monasteries. +</P> + +<P> +The report of all this taken to the Queen Regent in the palace of +Falkland by the archbishop, led to the affair of Cupar Muir, which +Carlyle has thus described after his own manner: "Not itself a fight, +but the prologue or foreshadow of all the fighting that followed. The +Queen Regent and her Frenchmen had marched in triumphant humour out of +Falkland, with their artillery ahead, soon after midnight, trusting to +find at St. Andrews +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P125"></A>125}</SPAN> +the two chief lords of the congregation, the +Earl of Argyle and Lord James Stuart (afterwards Regent Murray), with +scarcely a hundred men about them,—found suddenly that the hundred +men, by good industry over-night, had risen to an army; and that the +congregation itself, under these two lords, was here, as if by <I>tryst</I>, +at mid-distance, skilfully posted, and ready for battle either in the +way of cannon or of spear. Sudden halt of the triumphant Falklanders +in consequence; and after that a multifarious manoeuvring, circling, +and wheeling, now in clear light, now hidden in clouds of mist; Scots +standing steadfast on their ground, and answering message-trumpets in +an inflexible manner, till, after many hours, the thing had to end in +an 'appointment,' truce, or offer of peace, and a retreat to Falkland +of the Queen Regent and her Frenchmen, as from an enterprise +unexpectedly impossible."[<A NAME="chap09fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn2">2</A>] +</P> + +<P> +From this place Knox accompanied the forces of the congregation to +Perth, and thence to Edinburgh, where on the 7th of July the +Protestants of the city chose him to be their minister, and then for +the first time his voice sounded through the cathedral of St. Giles in +ringing notes of trumpet power. But soon after the lords of the +congregation, having been compelled to conclude a treaty with the +Regent, by the terms of which they agreed to quit Edinburgh and deliver +it up to her, judged it unsafe that he, being so obnoxious to her, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P126"></A>126}</SPAN> +should remain there without their protection, and so, putting the +less objectionable John Willock for the time into his place, they set +him free for a preaching excursion through different parts of the +kingdom. +</P> + +<P> +How he wrought on that occasion, and where, he has himself described in +one of his letters thus: "I have been in continual travel since the day +of appointment (<I>i.e.</I> the treaty with the Regent), and notwithstanding +the fevers have vexed me the space of a month, yet have I travelled +through the most part of this realm, where all praise be to his blessed +Majesty, men of all sorts and conditions embrace the truth. Enemies we +have many, by reason of the Frenchmen who are lately arrived, of whom +all parties hope golden hills and such support as we are not able to +resist. We do nothing but go about Jericho, blowing with trumpets as +God giveth strength, hoping victory by His laws alone. Christ Jesus is +preached even in Edinburgh, and His blessed sacraments rightly +ministered in all congregations where the ministry is established; and +they be these, Edinburgh, St. Andrews, Dundee, Perth, Brechin, +Montrose, Stirling, and Ayr. And now Christ Jesus is begun to be +preached upon the south borders in Jedburgh and Kelso, so that the +trumpet soundeth over all, blessed be our God." +</P> + +<P> +This was written on the 2nd September, 1559, and on the 20th, his wife, +having obtained through the influence of Throckmorton, the English +ambassador at Paris, that permission to pass through England which had +been denied to her husband, reached Scotland in safety. Her +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P127"></A>127}</SPAN> +mother came with her as far as Northumberland, and after remaining a +short time with her friends there, took up her abode in Knox's +household, and continued a member of his family, at least till the +death of her daughter, though some believe that even after that she +remained with him, with but a brief interval, till her own decease. +Mrs. Knox was accompanied by Christopher Goodman, who had been the +colleague of her husband in Geneva, and who continued to labour in +Scotland, first at Ayr and afterwards at St. Andrews, until his return +to England in 1565. +</P> + +<P> +But the work in Scotland was too great to be successfully carried out +by its own people, even if they had been united among themselves, +which, unhappily, they were not. The Reformers there had to contend +not only with the adherents of the papacy in their own land, but also +with the power and diplomacy of France, and therefore it was of the +utmost consequence that assistance from England should be secured. It +was, fortunately, also quite important for England that France should +be prevented from securing a permanent hold on Scotland; but it was +some time before the English queen could be induced to commit herself +in any way to the cause of the Scottish congregation; and many +negotiations were required before that result was obtained. Neither +into the details of these, nor into the particulars of the civil war, +which lasted at this time in Scotland for about a year, can we enter +here. They will be found at length in the pages of the historians; and +it may suffice in this +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P128"></A>128}</SPAN> +place to say that at last, as the fruit of +the mission of the younger Maitland to the English Court, Elizabeth +consented to send a fleet into the Firth of Forth, and an array across +the border; and that the ultimate issue was a treaty entered upon +during the siege of Leith, on the 7th July, 1560, which secured that +the French troops should be immediately removed from Scotland; that an +amnesty should be granted to all who had been engaged in the late +resistance to the Queen Regent; that the principal grievances in the +civil administration should be redressed; and that a Free Parliament +should be held to settle the affairs of the kingdom. +</P> + +<P> +Before this turn was given to matters, and at midnight between the 10th +and 11th of June, the Queen Regent, Mary of Lorraine, the mother of the +Queen of Scots, had passed away from the earth, and thus the stage was +as it were cleared for the important things which were so soon to be +achieved. The one Mary had gone to her account; the other had not yet +come from France to take personal possession of the throne of her +native land, and in the interval many things otherwise—humanly +speaking at least—unattainable were obtained. "The stars in their +courses" were fighting for the Reformation; the providence of God was +on its side, and blind indeed must the historian be who sees no +indication of that fact. But because we fully recognise His hand, it +is the more important that we distinctly note also the obliquities +which characterized the conduct of many of the human actors in these +transactions; and it is with a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P129"></A>129}</SPAN> +sense of something like +mortification that we confess that even Knox did not stand the ordeal +without deterioration. He was, as Laing remarks, "a chief instigator +and agent" in the negotiations with England; and, for the most part, he +manifested the strictest integrity. But there is one letter extant +which prevents us from being able to say that he never lent his +countenance to deceit. He is writing to Sir James Croft requesting +that men should be sent by him to the help of the Reformers; and in +answer to the objection that the league between England and France made +it impossible to do that without offending France, he says,[<A NAME="chap09fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn3">3</A>] "If ye +list to craft with them, the sending of a thousand men to us can break +no league nor point of peace contracted between you and France; for it +is free for your subjects to serve in war any prince or nation for +their wages; and if you fear that such excuses shall not prevail, you +may declare them rebels to your realm, when ye shall be assured that +they are in our company." We mention it that we may not be accused of +concealing any portion of the truth concerning him. We do not +extenuate it; we cannot vindicate it. We say only that it is, so far +as we know, the solitary instance of the kind in the extensive +correspondence of our Reformer; that it is a clear exception to the +general outspoken, and in some cases even indiscreet, frankness by +which he was characterized; and that, perhaps, he caught the infection +from those with whom he was treating, for Froude says of Elizabeth at +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P130"></A>130}</SPAN> +this time, "It is certain only that on the one hand she was +distinctly doing, what as distinctly she said she was not doing; and on +the other, that she was holding out hopes which, if she could help it, +she never meant to fulfil;"[<A NAME="chap09fn4text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn4">4</A>] and even Cecil, as the same author +proves, was a master in the same kind of craft, so that his indignant +reference to Knox's proposal reads to us now like an illustration of +"Satan reproving sin." It was in truth, as Laing has said, "an age of +dissimulation;" but Knox knew better; he was before his age in other +things, and should have been above it in this. +</P> + +<P> +But enough, we gladly turn from censure to praise, and wish to direct +attention at this point to Knox's views concerning civil government. +There was an assembly of nobles, barons, and representatives of burghs +held at Edinburgh on the 21st of October, 1559, at which the propriety +or lawfulness of depriving the Queen Regent of her authority (which was +afterwards resolved upon) was debated; and before which John Willock +and Knox were asked to give their opinion on the question. Willock +alleged that the power of rulers is limited, that they might be +deprived of it on valid grounds; and that the fortification of Leith, +and the introduction of foreign troops into the kingdom, was a good +reason why the Regent should be divested of her authority. Knox, while +agreeing with what he had said, added that the assembly might safely +proceed on these principles, provided only that they did not suffer the +misconduct of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P131"></A>131}</SPAN> +the Regent to alienate them from their allegiance +to their own proper sovereigns, Francis and Mary; that they were not +actuated by any private hatred of the Regent herself; and that any +sentence which they should now pronounce should not preclude her +re-admission to office if she afterwards acknowledged her error, and +agreed to submit to the estates of the realm. These sentiments, +considering the circumstances in which the Reformers were then placed, +were moderate and wise. They show how very far from revolutionary Knox +and his associates were; and it is no small praise to him to say that +in a struggle which strained everything to the utmost, he sought to +maintain law while striving after liberty, and was careful to +discriminate between condemnation of the manner in which an office was +filled, and repudiation of the office itself. The relation of the +Reformation from popery to civil liberty is a theme which might furnish +materials for a goodly volume, and space will not allow us to enlarge +upon it here; but it might be well in these days if more attention were +directed to the opinions of the Reformers regarding political +government, and the share which these have had in laying the foundation +of freedom, as it is now enjoyed in Great Britain and the United +States. So far as Knox is concerned, we could have no better summary +of his views on the subject than that which is given by his great +biographer, from which we quote the following sentence,[<A NAME="chap09fn5text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn5">5</A>] each clause +of which is amply confirmed by +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P132"></A>132}</SPAN> +McCrie in the learned and +elaborate note which he has appended to his statement:—"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 anything +contrary to the Divine law, natural or revealed; that in every free and +well-constituted government, the law of the land was superior to the +will of the prince; 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; that every +nation is entitled to provide and require that they shall be ruled by +laws which are agreeable to the Divine law, and calculated 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 violate this, employ that power for the +destruction of the commonwealth which was committed to them for its +preservation and benefit, or, in one word, if they shall become +habitual tyrants and notorious oppressors, that the people are absolved +from allegiance, and have a right to resist them, formally to depose +them from their place, and to elect others in their room." It may +surprise some of our readers to discover how fully Knox in these +particulars was abreast of many of the views of the most enlightened +Liberals of our generation; but even Major, the principal of the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P133"></A>133}</SPAN> +Glasgow University when Knox became a student, had struck out in the +same direction, and in one of his works[<A NAME="chap09fn6text"></A><A HREF="#chap09fn6">6</A>] has declared that "a free +people first gives strength to a king, whose power depends on the whole +people;" and that "a people can discard or depose a king and his +children for misconduct just as it appointed him at first;" and similar +sentiments might be cited from the pages of Buchanan. Major taught +them in the class, and Buchanan wrote them in his works; but Knox gave +them utterance, and that too with such force, that they were widely +diffused among the people, so that in due season the divine-right +nonsense of the Stuarts was exploded, and the beginning of a new order +of things introduced. +</P> + +<P> +But even in this matter, advanced as he was, Knox was not entirely +above the narrowness of his age. In common with all the Reformers, and +the most of the Puritans, he held that the theocracy of the Jews was +the ideal state, and as a consequence, that it was the duty of the +civil government to punish idolatry with death, to set up and maintain +the true religion by all the means at its disposal, and to put down +heresy as rebellion. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P134"></A>134}</SPAN> +Neither the statesmen nor the divines of +that age seem to have perceived that the true analogue to the Jewish +theocracy is the spiritual Church of Christ, and so we account for the +fact that they continually referred to the Old Testament as their +warrant for seeking to advance what they believed to be the truth, and +to put down what they considered to be error by force. They did not +remember that in the Jewish state God was in no mere figurative sense, +but really and absolutely the King, so that in it to fear God and to +honour the king was virtually the same thing, and sin in every form was +also <I>ipso facto</I> crime, was indeed treason, as committed against the +head of the government, and so was punishable by civil pains and +penalties. Forgetting or not perceiving <I>that</I>, the Reformers took the +Jewish for the model constitution. In all the states which they sought +to remodel, they lost sight of the distinction between a theocracy and +an ordinary government, and confounded crime with sin, and sin with +crime. More especially they made the crime of crimes to be, the +resisting or not conforming to what they themselves believed to be the +true religion as revealed by God, and as such they punished that with +all severity. There is no instance indeed on record of Knox himself +being in any way mixed up with persecution, understanding by that word +merely the putting of one to death for religious practices or opinions. +No such controversy can be raised over him as that which has been held +regarding Calvin and the prosecution of Servetus. But they all alike +held +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P135"></A>135}</SPAN> +that it was the duty of the government to establish and +maintain, as a government, and that means by enactments enforced by +penalties, the true religion; and from that persecution follows; rather +let us say, in that persecution is involved. To this error, which, +however, was the common opinion of their times, may be traced most of +the difficulties in which they were involved in the prosecution of +their work. The world has been slow to come to it, but no perfect +liberty either in Church or in state is possible save through the +separation of the one from the other, and the restriction of each to +its own proper domain. When this shall be attained in Scotland and +England, then shall be the beginning of another era, as strongly marked +as that which began in the overthrow of the Papal Church three hundred +years ago. The course of our narrative takes us now into parliamentary +debates, and royal closets, fully as often as into assemblies of the +Church, and therefore before we enter upon this section of the history, +we deem it right to indicate once for all the views which we ourselves +hold upon the subject. It is the province of the biographer to +narrate, and he must not be held as endorsing everything which he +records. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn1text">1</A>] "History of Scotland," vol. iii. p. 354. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn2text">2</A>] "An Essay on the Portraits of John Knox," pp. 139-140. "Works," +vol. xii. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn3text">3</A>] "Works," vol. vi. p. 90. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn4"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn4text">4</A>] Froude's "History of England," vol. vi. p. 273. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn5"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn5text">5</A>] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. p. 149. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap09fn6"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap09fn6text">6</A>] "De Historia Gentis Scotorum," book iv. chap. 22. I am indebted +for these citations to my late friend, Dr. J. M. Ross, whose researches +into the literature of Scotland have been recently published, and whose +early death is mourned by all who knew his worth. His work on the +Pre-reformation Literature of Scotland is a perfect thesaurus of +precious things, and has attracted the widest attention. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap10"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P136"></A>136}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER X. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560. +</H4> + +<P> +The meeting of Parliament, provided for in the Treaty of Leith, was +opened with great ceremony on the 1st of August, 1560, and was attended +by an unusually large number of members. Knox "improved" the occasion +by preaching from the cathedral pulpit a series of expository sermons +on the prophecies of Haggai, with special application to the +circumstances of the country at the time. On his own showing he was +"vehement," and as he inveighed strongly against those who had been +enriched with the revenues of the Church, his words gave great offence +to many. Maitland sneeringly said, "What! we must now forget ourselves +and bear the barrow to build the house of God,"—words which already +showed that spirit of insincerity which afterwards took him into the +opposite camp. The great matter before this Parliament, after it had +approved the articles of the treaty, was the settlement of religion, +and as a preliminary to that the ministers were requested to draw up a +summary statement of "that doctrine which they would maintain as +wholesome and true, and only +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P137"></A>137}</SPAN> +necessary to be believed." This +work was done by them in four days, at the end of which they produced +the Confession which Knox has given at full length in his history. It +is all but certain that he had a considerable hand in its preparation, +and it has been described by the younger McCrie as "remarkably free +from metaphysical distinctions and minutiae," and as "running in an +easy style, and in fact reading like a good sermon in old Scotch." It +is, of course, Calvinistic, but in the article on election, there is +nothing of either reprobation or preterition. In that on the Lord's +Supper it repudiates alike the doctrine of transubstantiation, and that +of those who believe it to be "nothing else but a naked and bare sign," +insisting on some mystical influence as connected with it, but yet +confessing that such influence is given "neither at that only time, nor +yet by the proper power of the sacraments only," so that it is +exceedingly difficult to get from it a definite statement of what +precisely the "grace" in the sacrament is; but that difficulty is felt, +in our judgment, as seriously by those who desire to reduce to plain +language the words of the Westminster standards on the same subject. +In the section which treats of the authority of Scripture, there is no +attempt to formulate any theory of inspiration, but simply a +declaration that "in those books which of the ancients have been +reputed canonical, all things necessary to be believed for the +salvation of mankind are sufficiently expressed," and an affirmation +that "such as allege the Scriptures to have no other authority, but +that which is received from +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P138"></A>138}</SPAN> +the Kirk (Church) are blasphemous +against God, and injurious to the true Kirk, which always heareth and +obeyeth the voice of her own spouse and pastor, and taketh not on her +to be mistress of the same." On the subject of the civil magistrate +its words run thus: "That to kings, princes, rulers, and magistrates, +we affirm that chiefly and most principally the reformation and +purgation of the religion appertains; so that not only they are +appointed for civil policy, but also for maintenance of the true +religion, and for suppressing of idolatry and superstition, as in +David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah, and others highly commended for +their zeal, in that case may be espied," a statement which amply +confirms what we have just said regarding the position taken by the +Reformers on this matter. We ought to add, however, that according to +Randolph, the representative of the English Court, who was present on +the occasion of the ratification of the Confession, the section on the +civil magistrate had been expunged by Maitland, to whose revision, as +well as that of the Lord James Stuart, it had been submitted, and by +whom certain strong phrases in other parts of the document had been +softened. In Knox's history we have no word of anything like that, but +simply the Confession as it was actually ratified, and in that a +paragraph on the civil magistrate stands with the rest. But as there +is in that paragraph a good deal about the prerogatives of rulers, and +the duty of obedience to them, while there is no word of the limits of +allegiance to them, and the right of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P139"></A>139}</SPAN> +resisting them when they +violate either the laws of the realm or the dictates of conscience, on +both of which points we know that Knox and his brethren held strong +convictions, it is probable that at first the article contained some +things on these aspects of the question, which were afterwards stricken +out, by the two men whom we have named, as being likely if retained to +imperil the acceptance of the document as a whole. This is only a +conjecture of our own, but it is not inherently improbable, and it +serves to harmonize the statement of Randolph with the appearance in +Knox's history of a chapter on the civil magistrate in the Confession +as adopted. +</P> + +<P> +This summary of doctrine was laid before Parliament, and carefully read +over article by article. Then, that no one should have a pretext for +complaining of undue haste, its further consideration was adjourned to +another day, the 17th of August, on which it was almost unanimously +accepted, and "ratified by the three estates of the realm." This was +followed on the 24th of the same month by the passing of Acts +abolishing the jurisdiction of the Pope in Scotland, repealing all +former statutes passed in favour of the Roman Catholic Church, and +ordaining that all who said mass, or heard mass, should for the first +offence be punished with confiscation of goods, for the second with +banishment, and for the third with death. Thus on the very threshold +of their undertaking they manifested the same intolerance from which +they had themselves suffered so much. +</P> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P140"></A>140}</SPAN> + +<P> +With a view to the proper organization of the Protestant Church, the +Lords of the Privy Council appointed Knox, along with five other +ministers, to draw up a plan of reconstruction which in their judgment +should be both agreeable to Scripture and practicable in the +circumstances of the country at the time. The outcome of their labours +was that scheme of Church government and order, which is known in +Scottish ecclesiastical history as "The First Book of Discipline." It +specifies the officers of the Church, permanent and temporary, +describes the manner of their election and appointment, particularizes +their duties, and gives principles for guidance as to general +discipline, while it also furnishes directions as to the celebration of +marriages and the conducting of funerals. At the same time it outlines +with great fulness a magnificent system of national education, such as +Scotland is only now beginning to realize, though for centuries it has +enjoyed something of an approximation to it. +</P> + +<P> +This "Book" is one of extreme interest, and is worthy of far more +attention from the mass of the people in these days than it has +received, or perhaps is likely to receive; but to whet the appetites of +our readers for the enjoyment of the work itself, we shall give some +general notion of its contents. The permanent officers in the Church +were ministers, elders, and deacons. The ministers were to be elected +by the people, but in case they neglected to do that duty within forty +days the Church of the superintendent with his council was to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P141"></A>141}</SPAN> +"present" to them a man whom they judged apt to feed the flock, yet it +was always to be avoided "that any man be violently intruded or thrust +in upon any congregation." Thus Knox and his brethren were +"non-intrusionists;" yet we doubt if in the famous controversy which +ended in 1843, they would have come up to the party standard, for the +"Book" says: "But violent intrusion we call not, when the council of +the Kirk, in the fear of God, and for the salvation of the people, +offereth unto them a sufficient man to instruct them, whom they shall +not be forced to admit before examination." Then elsewhere it is said, +"If his doctrine is wholesome and able to instruct the simple, and if +the Kirk can justly reprehend nothing in his life, doctrine, or +utterance, then we judge the Kirk which before was destitute +unreasonable if they refuse him whom the Kirk did offer, and <I>they +should be compelled by the censure of the council and Kirk</I>, to receive +the person appointed and approved by the judgment of the godly and +learned." Where was "the veto without reasons" then? And on whose +side was the First Book of Discipline? or was it on both sides? The +minister so chosen or appointed was to give proof of his gifts by +interpreting before the men of soundest judgment in the neighbourhood, +some place of Scripture selected by his brethren in office. He was +also to be examined openly "before all that list to hear," by the +ministers and elders of the Kirk, "in all the chief points that now lie +in controversy betwixt us and the Papists, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P142"></A>142}</SPAN> +Anabaptists, Arians, +or other such enemies of the Christian religion." Next he was to +preach to the congregation calling him, that in open audience of his +flock he might give confession of his faith in full. Then public +"edict" was to be proclaimed, not only in the church where he was to +serve, but also in other places, especially in those in which he had +formerly lived, that if there was known any reason why he should not be +appointed to the ministry it should be shown. If everything were +satisfactory, the manner of his installation to office was to consist +in the consent of the people to whom he was appointed and the +approbation of the learned ministers by whom he was examined. The +admission was to be "in open audience." After a sermon by some +"especial minister" on the duty and office of ministers, exhortations +were to be given to minister and people, and this paragraph follows: +"Other ceremony than the public approbation of the people and +declaration of the chief minister, that the person there presented is +appointed to serve that Kirk, we cannot approve; for albeit the +apostles used the imposition of hands, yet seeing the miracle is +ceased, the using of the ceremony we judge is not necessary." Most +evidently John Knox believed in "<I>order</I>," but just as evidently he did +not believe in "<I>orders</I>," and there is no place here for the doctrine +of "succession." +</P> + +<P> +The elders and deacons were to be chosen by the people <I>annually</I>, from +among a list given by the minister, and if Churches be of smaller +number than that such +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P143"></A>143}</SPAN> +office-bearers can be chosen from among +them, they may be joined to the next adjacent Church. We have here +therefore the "rotatory" eldership, as it has been called by some in +America, recognised in principle, and the reason given for it is "lest +that by long continuance of such officials men presume upon the liberty +of the Church." Those holding the office were eligible for +re-election, but they must be appointed yearly "by common and free +election." In another place he says: "This order has been ever +observed since that time in the Kirk of Edinburgh, that is that the old +session before their departure nominate twenty-four in election for +elders, of whom twelve are to be chosen, and thirty-two for deacons, of +whom sixteen are to be elected, which persons are publicly proclaimed +in the audience of the whole Kirk, upon a Sunday before noon, after +sermon, with admonition to the Kirk, that if any man know any notorious +crime or cause that might unfit any of these persons to enter in such +vocation they should notify the same unto the session the next +Thursday; or if any know any persons more able for that charge, they +should notify the same unto the session, to the end that no man, either +present or absent, being one of the Kirk, should complain that he was +spoiled of his liberty in election." The duty of the elders was to +assist the minister in the oversight and discipline of the flock; and +that of the deacons was to superintend the revenues of the Church and +to take care of the poor. +</P> + +<P> +Besides these permanent offices, two others were +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P144"></A>144}</SPAN> +recommended for +the meeting of present emergencies. There were first a class of men +called Readers, whose duty it was to read the Common Prayers and the +Scriptures, in places still destitute of properly qualified ministers, +and which otherwise would have had no service of any sort for public +worship or instruction. They were restricted to the function of +reading, and hence their name; but they were encouraged to prosecute +their studies, and if they advanced satisfactorily they were permitted, +after examination, to append some exhortations to their readings, and +then they were called Exhorters. In addition to these, and at the +other end of the scale, the Book recommended the appointment of ten +Superintendents, each of whom was to have the supervision of a district +over which he was required regularly to travel for the purpose of +preaching, planting Churches, and inspecting the conduct of ministers, +exhorters, and readers. Some have maintained that in this there was a +recognition of Episcopacy, but as Dr. Laing has shown, the office was +merely temporary, and the number never exceeded the five who were first +appointed. Like other ministers the superintendent was subject to the +Assembly, and might be censured, superseded, or deprived of his office +by its decision. These office-bearers were to be appointed in the +first instance by the Privy Council, or by a commission appointed by +that body for the purpose; but, afterwards, by the whole ministers of +the district to be superintended, from a list of names already +proclaimed by the ministers, elders, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P145"></A>145}</SPAN> +and deacons with the +magistrates and council of the chief town in the province; and for his +installation a form is given, with a list of the questions to be +proposed to him, and the answers to be given by him. It is added that +"the superintendent being elected and appointed to his charge, must be +subjected to the censure and correction of the ministers and elders, +not only of his chief town, but also of the whole province over the +which he is appointed overseer." +</P> + +<P> +It may be added here, that "The Book of Common Order" makes mention of +still another class of office-bearers, called Teachers or Doctors, who +were to be men of learning for the exposition of God's word, and whose +nearest modern equivalent seems to us to be the professors in +theological seminaries, but it is said "for lack of opportunity we +cannot well have the use thereof." +</P> + +<P> +In regard to the sacraments the "Book of Discipline" lays down that the +Lord's Supper should be observed after the manner already described by +us when we were treating of Knox's ministry in Berwick. In great towns +it was recommended that it should be observed four times in the year, +and in order to keep off Easter, the first Sundays in March, June, +September, and December are suggested, because "we study to suppress +superstition." It was also specified that in large towns there should +be daily sermon, or else common prayer, with some exercise of reading +the Scriptures; and in smaller places there should be at least one day +besides the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P146"></A>146}</SPAN> +Sunday appointed for sermon and prayer. Baptism +might be administered wherever the word was preached, but it is alleged +to be more expedient that it be on the Sunday, and never in private +unless accompanied by the preaching of the word; for as the Book of +Common Order says, "The sacraments are not ordained of God to be used +in private corners as charms or sorceries, but left to the congregation +and necessarily annexed to God's word as seals of the same." We admit +the clause about "charms," but with the household baptisms of the +Scriptures before us, and the other baptisms, which were +administered—as it were "extempore"—by the apostles in the house of +the jailer and the house of Cornelius, we are not quite so sure about +the rest of "the rubric." Marriages were not to be entered into +secretly, but in open face and audience of the church; the place for +their celebration, therefore, was the church, and the time recommended +was Sunday before sermon. It was suggested that there should be no +service of any sort at funerals; but it is added, "Yet we are not so +precise but that we are content that particular kirks use services in +that behalf, with the consent of the ministry of the same, as they +shall answer to God, and to the assembly of the Church gathered within +the realm." +</P> + +<P> +But the most interesting portion of the Book of Discipline, perhaps, to +us in these days, is that which refers to education, contemplating as +it did the erection of a school in every parish for the instruction of +the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P147"></A>147}</SPAN> +young in the grammar of their own language, in the Latin +tongue, and in the principles of religion; the setting up in every +notable town of a "college" for the teaching of "the arts, at least, +logic and rhetoric, and the tongues;" and finally the establishment in +the "towns accustomed,"—that is Aberdeen, St. Andrews, and +Glasgow,—of Universities with full appointments which are minutely +described. These were to be supported, stipends were to be furnished +for the superintendents, ministers, and readers, and suitable provision +made for ministers' widows, and orphan children, out of the confiscated +revenues of the Church, the bishops, and the cathedral establishments, +together with the rents arising from the endowments of monasteries and +other religious foundations. +</P> + +<P> +The "Common Prayer" so frequently referred to was no doubt "the order +of Geneva which is now used in some of our kirks," as the words within +inverted commas quoted from the Book of Discipline make clear. That +book had been prepared for the English congregation of Geneva during +Knox's pastorate there; and with such changes as the difference of +circumstances made necessary, it came to be adopted by the Scottish +General Assembly in 1564. Our reference to it here, therefore, is a +little premature, as we are now writing of events that occurred in +1560; but it may be convenient, as we are treating of the organization +of the Scottish Church, to dispose of the matter, once for all, in this +place. As we have already incidentally +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P148"></A>148}</SPAN> +recorded, it was agreed +by those who entered into the "Godly Band," that "common prayers" be +read in the parish churches on Sundays by the curates if they +consented, or if they refused, by such persons within the bounds as +were best qualified to do so. This probably was meant to specify the +second Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., yet as Dr. Laing remarks, and +the reasoning of Dr. McCrie on the subject tends to confirm his +statement, "the adoption of that book could only have been to a partial +extent, and of no long continuance." He proceeds thus: "But this, +after all, is a question of very little importance, although it has +been keenly disputed, for it is well to remember that at this period +there were no settled parish churches, and as there were no special +congregations either in Edinburgh or in any of the principal towns +throughout the country, no ministers had been appointed. The lords of +the congregation and their adherents were much too seriously concerned +in defending themselves from the Queen Regent and her French +auxiliaries, and more intent for that purpose on obtaining the +necessary aid from England, than to be at all concerned about points of +ritual importance. In the following year, when the French troops were +expelled from Scotland, and the Protestant cause was ultimately +triumphant, we may conjecture that, in some measure swayed by the +avowed dislike of Knox to the English service book, the preference was +given to the forms of Geneva. We hear at least no more word of the +English Prayer-Book, and +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P149"></A>149}</SPAN> +in the "Book of Discipline," prepared in +December, 1560, the only form mentioned is "Our Book of Common Order," +and "The Book of our Common Order, called the Order of Geneva." There +is also in existence a copy of an edition of that book printed in +Edinburgh in 1562, which shows its actual use at that time. Afterwards +it was found needful to have it enlarged, and the metrical version of +the Psalms, taken in large proportion from Sternhold and Hopkins, and +accompanied with appropriate tunes, was appended to it. We cannot go +into all the details of each part of the service here, but will content +ourselves with giving the order which it follows. It begins with a +confession of faith of considerable extent, but following the lines of +the Apostles' Creed of which it is an expansion; then come sections in +the order in which we name them, and respectively entitled—Of the +Ministers and their Election, Of the Elders and as Touching their +Office and Election; Of the Weekly Assembly of the Ministers, Elders +and Deacons; Of the Interpretation of the Scriptures. After these +comes the sanctuary service proper, consisting first of a prayer of +confession, of which a choice of one or other of three forms is given, +or perhaps it may have been intended that all three should be used, for +the book is not so explicit here as elsewhere; second, a psalm to a +plain tune sung by the people; third, a prayer by the minister for the +assistance of God's Holy Spirit, for which no form is given, and the +minister is to offer it as the Holy Spirit shall move his heart; +fourth, the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P150"></A>150}</SPAN> +sermon; fifth, a prayer for the whole state of +Christ's Church, and for the Queen and her council, and the whole body +of the commonwealth; sixth, the Apostles' Creed; seventh, a psalm sung +by the people; eighth, the Benediction, after one or other of two +forms, to wit, that of Aaron and his sons, or that of the apostle at +the end of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, but in both instances +"us" is substituted for "you;" and so the congregation departeth. To +this are appended the Genevan form of prayer after sermon; and another +form to be used after sermon, on the week-day appointed for common +prayer; prayers used in the churches of Scotland during the time of +their persecution by the French; the thanksgiving after their +departure; and a prayer for the general assemblies of the Church. It +will be observed that nothing is here said of the reading of the +Scriptures, but this was not because that was under-valued, but because +the reader, who was in many cases the minister's assistant, had +already, before the commencement of the service proper, attended to +that duty in the hearing of the people. So far were Knox and his +friends from slurring over that exercise, that in the Book of +Discipline this characteristic passage occurs: "Further, we think it a +thing most expedient and necessary that every church have a Bible in +English, and that the people be commanded to convene to hear the plain +reading or interpretation of the Scriptures as the Church shall +appoint, that by frequent reading this gross ignorance, which in the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P151"></A>151}</SPAN> +accursed papistry hath overflown all, may partly be removed. We +think it most expedient that the Scriptures be read in order, that is, +that some one book of the Old and the New Testament be begun and +orderly read to the end. And the same we judge of preaching, where the +minister for the most part remaineth in one place; for this skipping +and divagation from place to place, be it in reading, be it in +preaching, we judge not so profitable to edify the Church, as the +continual following of one text." +</P> + +<P> +The order for baptism follows: the father, or in his absence the +godfather, is to rehearse the articles of his faith (this mention of +the godfather is interesting, and some may be surprised to learn, that +at the baptisms in Geneva of Knox's two sons, who were born there, +Whittingham was godfather to the one and Miles Coverdale to the other); +the minister follows with an exposition of the Creed; after that comes +a prayer; then the minister taketh water in his hand, layeth it on the +child's forehead, repeating the words of the formula of baptism, and +closes with an offering of thanks. The Book of Discipline had already +disallowed the sign of the cross, all anointings, and the like. This +is followed by "the manner of the Lord's Supper," into which we need +not go, as that has been already described. Then there is a single +sentence on burial, discouraging services at the grave; but after +burial "the minister, if he be present and required, goeth to the +church if it be not far off, and maketh some comfortable exhortation to +the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P152"></A>152}</SPAN> +people touching death and resurrection." The book concludes +with "The Order of Ecclesiastical Discipline," pointing out the three +causes of discipline—the two kinds of discipline private and public, +and the like. There is in it no form for marriage; but that could be +supplied from the "Order of Geneva," which in this respect follows the +lines of other ecclesiastical books. +</P> + +<P> +This "Book of Common Order" has often been called "John Knox's +Liturgy," and within due limitations it is not inaccurately so +denominated; but the term is apt to be misleading, and it needs to be +added that the forms contained in it are not prescribed for constant +and exclusive use, but are given more in the way of a directory to +ministers as to the conduct of the service. The "Readers" of course +were restricted to them; but ministers were left free to use them or +not at their discretion. Thus we find in what we may call the +"rubrics" such expressions as these: "When the congregation is +assembled at the hour appointed, the minister useth one of these two +confessions, <I>or like in effect</I>;" "the minister after the sermon useth +this prayer following, or <I>such like</I>." Similar liberty is given as to +the prayers in the forms for baptism and the Lord's Supper; and at the +end of the form for the service on the Sunday we have this general +statement: "It shall not be necessary for the minister daily to repeat +all these things before mentioned; but beginning with some manner of +confession, to proceed to the sermon, which ended, he useth either the +prayer for all estates before mentioned, or else +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P153"></A>153}</SPAN> +prayeth as the +Spirit of God shall move his heart, framing the same according to the +time and manner which he hath entreated of." Thus the position of the +book, as concerns the debate between liturgy proper and free prayer, is +one of liberty, furnishing forms to those who wished to use them, and +leaving those who did not to pray as the Spirit moved them; but showing +to both alike what order was to be observed in the service as a whole, +what subjects were to be introduced into the prayers, and in what order +and connection they were to be brought into them. It ought to be noted +also that this book gave a great impulse to congregational singing of +psalms, which was adopted instead of that of choral anthems; and the +fashion now so universal, of printing the tunes in connection with the +Psalms, was followed, if not indeed introduced, so far as Scotland is +concerned by it. But though Knox had undoubtedly a hand in the +preparation and sanction of this so-called Liturgy, Dr. Laing has +unqualifiedly affirmed "that in no instance do we find himself using +set forms of prayer." The importance of the subject in itself, and the +general interest now felt in it by most of the Presbyterian and +Congregational Churches alike in Great Britain and America, must be our +apology for going so fully into this interesting history, and for +setting, as far as we may, the exact truth about it before the reader. +</P> + +<P> +But we must now resume the thread of our narrative. The Book of +Discipline never was so ratified as to become the law of the land. Its +general outlines, +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P154"></A>154}</SPAN> +indeed, were followed in the organization of +the Church; but though it received the signatures of many members of +the Privy Council, it was bitterly opposed by others—by some because +they were unwilling to disgorge the share of the Church's patrimony of +which they had taken possession, and by others because of their +aversion to the strict moral <I>surveillance</I> to which it would have +subjected them. Knox puts the matter in a nutshell when he says: +"Everything that impugned to their corrupt affections was called in +their mockage a 'devout imagination.' The cause we have already +declared: some were licentious; some had greedily gripped to the +possessions of the Kirk; and others thought that they would not lack +their part of Christ's coat, and that before ever He was hanged, as by +the preachers they were oft rebuked." The final arrangement of the +temporalities was made later, when the ecclesiastical revenues were +divided into three parts, two of which were given to the ejected popish +clergy for their lives; and the other was divided between the court and +the Protestant ministers. +</P> + +<P> +As to the conduct of public worship the General Assembly of the Church +passed an Act in December, 1562, which enacted that "one uniform order +shall be taken in the administration of the sacraments, solemnization +of marriages, and burial of the dead, according to the Book of Geneva"; +and in December, 1564, it was ordained by the same body "that minister, +exhorter, and reader shall have one of the psalm books lately printed +in Edinburgh and use the order contained +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P155"></A>155}</SPAN> +therein, in prayers, +marriage, and ministration of the sacraments." +</P> + +<P> +In the latter part of 1560 Knox entered upon his ministry in Edinburgh, +with the Cathedral of St. Giles as his parish church, and John Cairns +as his assistant or reader. The city council provided for his lodging +a house at the Netherbow Port, which had been that of the Abbot of +Dunfermline, and which is now the property of the Free Church of +Scotland, by whom it is preserved as a memorial of the Reformer. The +council assigned him at first a stipend of £200, besides discharging +his house rent. After the settlement by the Privy Council above +alluded to, he received at least a part of his stipend from the common +fund of the ministers—for there was an "equal dividend" of the portion +given to the Protestant clergy—and the city council added to that what +was necessary to bring it up to the sum originally given. An +interesting illustration of their care for his comfort is furnished in +the Act of council of date 30th October, 1561, which runs thus: "The +same day the provost, bailies, and council ordains the Dean of Guild +with all diligence to make a warm study of deals to the minister John +Knox, within his house above the hall of the same, with light and +windows thereunto, and all other necessaries." But before that time a +dark shadow had fallen upon his dwelling, for toward the end of +December, 1560, his wife died, leaving him with his two boys to mourn +her loss. +</P> + +<P> +Public affairs just then also had a threatening aspect. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P156"></A>156}</SPAN> +Mary and +her husband, the King of France, persistently refused either to ratify +the Treaty of Leith, or to confirm the settlement of the Reformed +Church, and were preparing a French army for the invasion of Scotland; +while agents of the Roman Catholic Church were sent over to rally the +adherents of the old faith. But "man proposes and God disposes," for +before the projected invasion could be carried out Francis II. died (on +December 5th, 1560), and Lord James Stuart was sent by a convention of +the nobility to France, not, as some have alleged, to invite Mary to +Scotland, but as Lord James himself wrote to Cecil, "for declaration of +our duty and devotion to her highness." Before his departure he +was—we quote from Knox's "History"'—"plainly premonished that if ever +he condescended that she should have mass publicly or privately said +within the realm of Scotland, that then betrayed he the cause of God, +and exposed the religion even to the uttermost danger that he could do. +That she should have mass publicly, he affirmed that he never should +consent, but to have it secretly in her chamber, who could stop her? +The danger was shown, and so he departed." He left Edinburgh on the +18th of March, and on the 19th of August, 1561, Mary arrived in +Scotland, where she was received with every demonstration of +enthusiastic welcome. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap11"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P157"></A>157}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER XI. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563. +</H4> + +<P> +Beautiful in person, attractive in manner, able, acute, brilliant even, +in intellect, Mary Stuart had many qualities which might have been +turned to good account for the welfare of her country. But, brought up +in a French court, her moral code was neither of the highest nor the +purest; educated under the supervision of her uncles of Lorraine, she +was taught to believe that the one great object of her life was to +advance the interests of the Roman Catholic Church; and sister-in-law +to him whose name is for ever blackened by the massacre of St. +Bartholomew, she was not likely to be over scrupulous as to the means +which she would employ to gain her end. So far as she had shaped a +policy to herself, when she came to Scotland, it would seem to have +been to temporize with the Protestants, until she had time either to +fascinate them by the spell of her personal magnetism or to crush them +by her power; then to make the throne of Scotland a stepping-stone to +that of England, to which she claimed to be the lawful heir, and so to +bring that realm also back +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P158"></A>158}</SPAN> +to its allegiance to the Pope. This +made her and Elizabeth implacable enemies. They were neighbours; they +were cousins; they were queens, these two, and the struggle between +them was to the death. One or other must go down. Each played a deep +and deceitful game, but Elizabeth was moved by ambition for herself, +while Mary was devoted to a cause, and so it is that as she lays her +head upon the block at Fotheringay it is encircled with the halo of a +kind of martyrdom, and the eye of the sternest judge is for the moment +blinded to the guilt of her life by the tear of pity which dims it as +he looks upon the manner of its close. +</P> + +<P> +Knox and she from the very first seem to have singled each other out +for a conflict hand to hand. He saw that everything which he counted +dear depended on the manner in which she was dealt with; and she +perceived that he was the moving spirit in that religious revolt which +it was her mission to put down. He feared the effect of her +blandishments upon others, and she recognised the magnitude of his +influence upon the people. He saw that if she could be baffled in her +efforts to re-establish popery in the land, the victory would be +finally won; and she felt that so long as he had the opportunity of +swaying the multitude by the fervour of his eloquence, there was no +hope of gaining the end on which her heart was fixed. He was afraid of +the effect of what his friend Campbell of Kingzeancleugh called "the +sprinkling of the holy water of the court" upon the less reliable of +his adherents; and she feared the fervour of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P159"></A>159}</SPAN> +his prayers to God, +and the power of his appeals to his fellow-men. So there came to be +for some time a kind of duel between them, and the issue was at last a +victory for Knox. We need not approve unqualifiedly of everything +which he did or said in the course of the struggle, yet we must rejoice +in the result, for Knox "builded better than he knew," and secured, not +immediately but ultimately, the triumph of a larger liberty than that +which he at the time believed in; while she was the representative of +absolute power, and of a feudalism which looked upon the common people +as existing for her convenience and aggrandisement rather than upon +herself as the servant of the state. "What are you in this +commonwealth?" was her haughty question to him on one occasion. "A +subject born within the same," was his ever-memorable answer, and the +outcome of it has been that now in the land he loved the sovereign is +for the subjects, and not the subjects for the sovereign; it is a +little difference verbally, but in reality the gulf between the two is +that which divides freedom from slavery. +</P> + +<P> +The first collision between them occurred a few days after her landing. +Naturally enough, as some may think, she gave orders for the +celebration of a solemn mass in the chapel of Holyrood on the first +Sabbath after her arrival. She knew of the law passed by the +Parliament in 1560; she had probably heard from Lord James Stuart the +warning which had been given to him when he went to France, and +therefore this act on her +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P160"></A>160}</SPAN> +part was a virtual throwing down of the +gauge of battle at the feet of the Protestants. And thus they +themselves interpreted it. Some may imagine that they attached undue +importance to it; yet as Protestantism is still insisted on as a <I>sine +quâ non</I> to succession to the British throne, those who approve the +continuance of the Revolution settlement cannot consistently condemn +them. Moreover, it is not to be forgotten that to the Reformers the +mass was more than even an idolatrous service. It was a sign of many +other things: thumbscrews, racks, galley chains, gibbets and the like, +which were inseparably connected with papal supremacy, and in truth, as +one has said, "A man sent to row in French galleys and such like for +teaching the truth in his own land, cannot always be in the mildest +humour." When therefore her purpose became known, great excitement was +created among the Protestants, and some spoke of preventing her by +force from carrying it out; but Knox used his influence in private, +against such a proposal. On the following Sunday, however, from his +pulpit he showed his sense of the gravity of the crisis, when, after +exposing the idolatry that was in the mass, he alleged that "one mass +was more fearful unto him than if ten thousand armed enemies were +landed in any part of our realm of purpose to suppress the whole +religion." Hearing of this outburst Mary sent for him to the palace, +whether of her own motive or at the suggestion of others is not known, +and he had then, in the presence of Lord James Stuart, the first of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P161"></A>161}</SPAN> +those interviews which have been so harped upon by his +vituperators. We must refer our readers for the details to Knox's own +account in his "History," which has been little more than simply +modernised by McCrie, and must content ourselves with a mere summary of +what occurred. She began by attacking him for the writing of the +"First Blast," and after he had vindicated himself as best he could for +that, she charged him with having taught the people to receive a +religion different from that which was allowed by their princes. This +brought out his views as to the limits of obedience to civil rulers, +and on her interpreting his words to mean that her subjects should obey +him and not her, he vehemently repudiated that misapprehension, and +alleged that both rulers and subjects should obey God, and that kings +should be foster-fathers, and queens nursing-mothers to His Church. +That elicited the question from her which is the Church of God? and for +answer thereto he referred her to the Scriptures. This in its turn +raised the inquiry whose interpretation of Scripture was to be +accepted? which he answered by laying down the duty of private judgment +and of the comparing of one part of Scripture with another. At length +she very humbly remarked that she was not able to contend with him, but +that if she had those present with her whom she had heard they could +answer him, and he expressed his readiness to meet before her in +argument "the learnedest papist in Europe." To this she somewhat +tartly retorted, "You may perchance get that sooner +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P162"></A>162}</SPAN> +than you +believe," and he replied a little sarcastically to the effect that if +he ever got it, then indeed it would be sooner than he believed. He +took his leave in this courtly yet scriptural fashion, "Madame, I pray +God that you may be as blessed within the commonwealth of Scotland as +ever Deborah was in the commonwealth of Israel." +</P> + +<P> +Thus for the first time they measured their strength, and the result +was, in common speech, a draw. Mary found that Knox was made of more +unyielding stuff than those whom heretofore she had been in the habit +of meeting; and John formed an estimate of Mary's ability which his +subsequent experience only served to confirm. It was to be no child's +play between them. He could not afford to give so subtle and ready an +adversary the least advantage. Writing to Cecil after this interview +he says, "The Queen neither is, neither shall be of our opinion, and in +very deed her whole proceedings do declare that the cardinal's lessons +are so deeply printed in her heart that the substance and the quality +are like to perish together. I would be glad to be deceived, but I +fear I shall not. In communication with her I espied such craft as I +have not found in such age." +</P> + +<P> +Matters went on after this with tolerable quietness for months, and +Knox kept up his stated labours as the minister of Edinburgh. What +these were seem now to be surprising. He preached twice every Sunday, +and thrice besides during the week on other days. He met regularly +once a week with his elders for the oversight of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P163"></A>163}</SPAN> +the flock; and +attended weekly the assembly of the ministers, for what was called "the +exercise on the Scriptures." These stated and constant labours, with +the addition of frequent journeyings by appointment of the General +Assembly to perform in distant parts of the country very much the duty +of a superintendent for the time, were exceedingly exhausting; and the +city council, wishing to relieve him of some of his duties, came (in +April, 1562) to a resolution to call the minister of the Canongate to +undertake the half of his charge; but their object was not accomplished +till June of the following year, when John Craig became his colleague. +</P> + +<P> +Meanwhile the Reformer came again into collision with the court. In +the beginning of March, 1562, the Duke of Guise and the Cardinal +Lorraine made that assault on a peaceable and defenceless congregation +of Huguenots, which is known in French history as the Massacre of +Vassy; and when the report of that was received by Mary, she was so +delighted that she gave in honour of the occasion a splendid ball in +the palace to her foreign servants, by whom dancing was kept up to a +very late hour. This act of hers was exceedingly painful to Knox, for +he had many warm friends among the Protestants of France, and his heart +was saddened by the tidings of the treatment to which they had been +subjected. Accordingly he gave vent to his feelings in his pulpit on +the following Sunday, when he preached from the text, "Be wise now, ye +kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth." After discoursing on +the dignity +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P164"></A>164}</SPAN> +of magistrates and the obedience which was due to +them, he lamented and condemned the vices to which they were too +commonly addicted, and made some severe strictures on their conduct, +affirming, among other things, "that they were more exercised in +fiddling and flinging, than in reading or hearing God's word," and that +"fiddlers and flatterers" (John was evidently fond of alliteration) +"were more precious in their eyes than men of wisdom and gravity." The +report of his discourse was carried by some one to Mary; and though he +had made no direct assault upon her, he was summoned on the next day to +the palace. Introduced to a chamber in which she sat, surrounded by +her maids of honour and principal courtiers, he was treated to a long +"harangue," as he calls it (but it was no doubt a proper scolding), on +the enormity of his conduct. Very wisely he heard that out without +interruption; then, when his "innings" came, he complained that he had +evidently been misreported to her, and craved leave to repeat to her +precisely what he had said, thus adroitly contriving that for that time +at least she should listen to a sermon. Beginning with the text, he +went over the main points of his discourse, which, among other things, +had in it this piece of sound sense: "And of dancing, madame, I said +that albeit in Scripture I find no praise of it, and in profane writers +that it is termed the gesture rather of those that are mad and in +frenzy than of sober men; yet do I not utterly condemn it, providing +that two vices be avoided: the former, that the principal +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P165"></A>165}</SPAN> +vocation of those that use that exercise be not neglected for the +pleasure of dancing; and the second, that they dance not as the +Philistines their fathers, for the pleasure they take in the +displeasure of God's people." The accuracy of his rehearsal of his +sermon having been confirmed by those who had heard it when it was +originally given, the Queen said it was bad enough, but admitted that +it had not been so reported to her; and then very naively asked, that +if he heard anything of her that "misliked" him, he would come to +herself and speak of it to her privately. But Knox believed that +publicity was one great means of securing the vigilance, and through +that the safety, of the people, and therefore he declined to accede to +her request, on the ostensible ground that with the multiplicity of his +labours he had not the time for running about the court and his +congregation individually to deal with them for what he saw amiss. On +this occasion Knox was the champion of "free speech," and "scored" a +victory, so that he departed "with a reasonable merry countenance;" and +when some of the bystanders said, "He is not afraid," he made reply, +"Why should the pleasing face of a gentle woman affray me? I have +looked on the faces of many angry men, and yet have not been afraid +above measure," and so he left the Queen and the court for that time. +</P> + +<P> +The Romanists, encouraged by the hope of success, began now to put +forth strenuous exertions, both military and controversial, to recover +their lost ground; but the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P166"></A>166}</SPAN> +rising of the Earl of Huntly in the +north was put down by the vigour of Lord James Stuart, who was now +known as the Earl of Murray; and the success of the abbot of +Crossraguel, in debate with Knox, was not such as to encourage others +to follow in his footsteps. That dignitary, in his chapel in +Kirkoswald, had, on August 30th, 1562, read a series of articles on the +mass and kindred subjects, which he offered to defend against all +comers; and on the following Sunday Knox, who happened to be in the +neighbourhood and heard of the challenge, came to the church to meet +him. But though he had courteously intimated to the abbot that he +would be present, that dignitary did not put in an appearance, and Knox +himself preached in the chapel. At the close of the service a letter +from the abbot was put into his hand; and, after negotiations, they met +on the 28th of September in the house of the provost of Maybole, where +forty persons on each side were admitted as witnesses. The debate +lasted for three days, and strangely enough was made by the abbot to +turn mainly on the significance of the act of Melchizedek in bringing +forth bread and wine when he went out to meet Abraham returning from +his victories over the five kings, which Knox averred "appertained +nothing to the purpose." At the end of the third day Knox, on the +ground of the scanty accommodation at Maybole, proposed that they +should adjourn to Ayr to finish the discussion; but this was declined +by the abbot, who promised to come to Edinburgh and resume it there if +the Queen would permit. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P167"></A>167}</SPAN> +But he never came to the metropolis, +though Knox alleges that he himself had applied to the Privy Council +for the necessary permission. As usual in such cases, the victory was +claimed for each by his own partisans; but to counteract the false +reports that were circulated, Knox prepared and published the curious +tract, purporting to be an accurate account of the debate, which Dr. +Laing has reprinted in the sixth volume of the Reformer's works; and +though the discussion itself was on an entirely irrelevant issue, Knox +dealt with the very heart of the question in the prologue of his +pamphlet, which is written in his most vigorous and trenchant style. +One extract will show how sarcastic he could sometimes be, and with +what grim humour he could occasionally treat even the most sacred +subjects. He has been comparing the making of the "wafer-god" to that +of the idols so witheringly described by Isaiah in the 40th and 41st +chapters of his prophecies, and then proceeds as follows: "These are +the artificers and workmen that travail in making of this god, I think +as many in number as the prophet reciteth to have travailed in making +of the idols; and if the power of both shall be compared, I think they +shall be found in all things equal, except that the god of bread is +subject unto more dangers than were the idols of the Gentiles. Men +made them: men make it. They were deaf and dumb: it cannot speak, +hear, or see. Briefly, in infirmity they wholly agree, except that (as +I have said) the poor god of bread is most miserable of all other +idols; for according to their +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P168"></A>168}</SPAN> +matter whereof they are made, they +will remain without corruption for many years; but within one year that +god will putrefy, and then he must be burned. They can abide the +vehemency of the wind, frost, rain, or snow; but the wind will blow +that god to sea, the rain or the snow will make it dough again; yea, +which is most of all to be feared, that god is a prey (if he be not +well kept) to rats and mice; for they will desire no better dinner than +white round gods enow. But, oh then, what becometh of Christ's natural +body? By miracle it flies to heaven again, if the papists teach truly; +for how soon soever the mouse takes hold, so soon flieth Christ away, +and letteth her gnaw the bread. A bold and puissant mouse! but a +feeble and miserable god! Yet would I ask a question: 'Whether hath +the priest or the mouse greater power?' By his words it is made a god; +by her teeth it ceaseth to be a god: let them advise and answer." +Truly there is a ring of honest old Hugh Latimer in all this; and if +there were many such passages in Knox's sermons, it is not difficult to +explain how it was that "the common people heard him gladly." +</P> + +<P> +In the May of the following year (1563), Knox was sent for by Mary to +Loch Leven, where she was at the time residing, and treated to another +"interview," in which she endeavoured to induce him to use his +influence to put a stop to the prosecution of certain parties for their +celebration or countenancing of the mass. But nothing of importance +resulted, though from his own showing it is apparent that on this +occasion he was very +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P169"></A>169}</SPAN> +nearly thrown off his guard by the skill of +her acting and the "glamour" of her presence. +</P> + +<P> +In this same month Parliament met for the first time since Mary's +arrival in Scotland, and Knox confidently expected that the Treaty of +Leith would be ratified, and the establishment of religion by the +Parliament of 1560 would be put beyond all question by its action. But +he was doomed to disappointment. The "holy water of the court" had not +been without effect; the Protestant leaders had slackened in their +enthusiasm, and what he regarded as a great opportunity was lost. He +expostulated with many of the principal men of the party on the +subject, but his efforts were in vain; and the "contention" between him +and Murray over it was "so sharp" that there was a breach of friendship +between them which lasted for more than a year. The effect of all this +upon him was exceeding depressing; and on a Sunday before the +dissolution of Parliament he took occasion to unburden his soul to his +congregation. He expressed his sadness at the thought that those who +had in their hands the opportunity to establish God's cause had +actually betrayed it; he affirmed that the Parliament by which the +Protestant Confession was adopted and the Church reformed was as free +and lawful as any ever held in Scotland; and as reports of the Queen's +marriage were now in circulation, he warned them of the consequences +that would ensue if she should marry a papist. His words gave great +offence to many Protestants as well as Romanists; and when the Queen +heard of them +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P170"></A>170}</SPAN> +he was again summoned into her presence. This was +the occasion on which the much talked of "tears" were so plentifully +shed, and therefore we may reproduce the account of it given by McCrie, +which is itself only a condensation into the language of to-day of the +narrative given by Knox in his History. +</P> + +<P> +"Her Majesty received him in a very different manner from what she had +done at Loch Leven. Never had prince been handled (she passionately +exclaimed) as she was: she had borne with him in all his rigorous +speeches against herself and her uncles; she had offered unto him +audience whenever 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 +pronouncing these words with great violence she burst into a flood of +tears which interrupted her speech. When the Queen had composed +herself, he proceeded calmly to make his defence. Her grace and he had +(he said) at different times been engaged in controversy, and he never +before perceived her offended with him. When it should please God to +deliver her from the bondage of error in which she had been trained, +through want of instruction in the truth, he trusted that her Majesty +would not find the liberty of his tongue offensive. Out of the pulpit, +he thought, few had occasion to be offended with him; but there he was +not master of himself, but bound to obey Him who commanded him to speak +plainly, and to flatter no flesh on the face of the earth. +</P> + +<P> +"'But what have you do with my marriage?' said the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P171"></A>171}</SPAN> +Queen. He was +proceeding to state the extent of his commission as a preacher, and the +reasons which led him to touch on that delicate subject; but she +interrupted him by repeating her question: 'What have ye to do with my +marriage? Or what are you in this commonwealth?' 'A subject born +within the same, madame,' replied the Reformer, piqued by the last +question, and the contemptuous tone in which it was proposed. 'And +albeit I be neither earl, lord, nor baron in it, yet has God made me +(how abject that ever I be in your eyes) a profitable member within the +same. Yea, madame, to me it appertains no less to forewarn of such +things as may hurt it, if I foresee them, than it doth to any of the +nobility; for both my vocation and conscience requires plainness of me. +And therefore, madame, to yourself I say that which I spake in 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 lieth to +renounce Christ, to banish His truth from them, to betray the freedom +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 (Erskine of Dun, who was +present), who was a man of mild and gentle spirit, tried to mitigate +her grief and resentment: he praised her beauty and her +accomplishments, and told her that there was not a prince in Europe who +would not reckon himself happy in gaining her hand. During this scene, +the severe and inflexible mind of the Reformer displayed +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P172"></A>172}</SPAN> +itself. +He continued silent, and with unaltered countenance, 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 +that he could see his own boys weep when he corrected them for their +faults, far less could he rejoice in her Majesty's tears; but seeing he +had given her no just reason of offence, and had only discharged his +duty, he was constrained, though unwillingly, to sustain her tears, +rather than hurt his conscience and betray the commonwealth through his +silence. +</P> + +<P> +"This apology inflamed the Queen still more: she ordered him +immediately to leave her presence, and wait the signification of her +pleasure in the adjoining 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 sat in their richest dress in the +chamber. 'O fair ladies, how pleasing were this life of yours, if it +should ever abide, and then, in the end, that we might pass to heaven +with all this gay gear! But fie upon that knave Death, that will come +whether we will or not!' Having engaged them in a conversation, he +passed the time till Erskine came and informed him that he was allowed +to go home until her Majesty had taken further advice. The Queen +insisted to have the judgment of the Lords of Articles, whether the +words he had used in the pulpit were not actionable; but she was +persuaded to desist from a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P173"></A>173}</SPAN> +prosecution. 'And so that storm +quieted in appearance, but never in the heart.'"[<A NAME="chap11fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap11fn1">1</A>] +</P> + +<P> +At this time, when many of his friends were cold toward him, an effort +was made by some of his enemies to blacken his moral character by +accusing him of a vile offence, but the lie had nothing in it to make +it formidable. It was "a lie that was all a lie," and so it could be +"met and fought with outright." The vindication was so complete that +now very few remember that the allegation was ever made, and we refer +to it here only to show that he too was made an illustration of the +poet's words: "Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt +not escape calumny." +</P> + +<P> +Much more serious was the attempt made about this same time to convict +him of high treason. During the absence of Mary in Stirling, and on +the day of the observance of the communion in the Protestant churches, +her servants at Holyrood had taken measures for having the mass +celebrated with more than usual publicity and splendour. The result +was a scene of confusion and "brawling," almost indeed of riot, which +was caused by the interference of some Protestants who were present. +Two of these were afterwards indicted for their offence, which was +called in the technical language of the country and the time, +"forethought felony, hame-sucken, and invasion of the palace." Knox +had been empowered by a general commission from the Church to ask the +presence of the Protestant leaders in Edinburgh for +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P174"></A>174}</SPAN> +consultation +and assistance in any emergency which in his judgment might require the +same; and believing that the prosecution of these men might issue in +very serious consequences, he drew up under the advice of the friends +with whom he usually acted a circular letter, which he sent to the +principal gentlemen of the "congregation," stating the circumstances, +and asking them without fail to come to Edinburgh for the trial. A +copy of this letter found its way into the hands of Mary, who laid it +before the Privy Council, by whom it was pronounced to be treasonable. +The Queen was exultant. Now was her opportunity, and she resolved to +turn it to the best advantage. An extraordinary meeting of the +councillors and other noblemen was convened to be held at Edinburgh +about the middle of December, 1563, to try the cause. Some urged Knox +to acknowledge that he had done wrong, and cast himself on the Queen's +mercy, but that he absolutely refused to do, because he did not believe +that he had committed an offence; and when Secretary Maitland and +Murray called upon him, and somewhat ungenerously sought to get out of +him the nature of the defence which he meant to set up, he very wisely +put an end to the conversation with them, and resolved to keep his own +counsel until he was actually called to vindicate his conduct. +</P> + +<P> +When the day came, he stood forth as the champion of the liberty of +assembly, as before he had appeared in vindication of free speech; and +so admirably did he plead his cause that he was acquitted, if not +unanimously +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P175"></A>175}</SPAN> +at least <I>nem. con.</I>, of the charge which had been +brought against him. +</P> + +<P> +Much has been said of the bearing of Knox towards Queen Mary, and said, +as we believe, most unjustly, for though he felt himself constrained to +oppose her course, and would not yield to her wishes, yet he was never +rude, or irreverent, or ungentlemanly. As Carlyle says, "he was never +in the least ill-tempered with her Majesty;" and most of those who +accuse him in this matter, we shrewdly suspect, have never read the +accounts of his interviews with her, but have simply accepted the +common babblement which has been so long current regarding them. No +candid student of the rehearsal of these interviews in Knox's History, +we are sure, could refuse to endorse the accuracy of Carlyle's +statement of the case when he says "Mary often enough bursts into +tears, oftener than once into passionate long continued fits of +weeping, Knox standing with mild and pitying visage, but without the +least hair's-breadth of recanting or recoiling, waiting till the fit +pass, and then with all softness but with all inexorability taking up +his theme again." +</P> + +<P> +But while Knox's manner toward her Majesty has been most +microscopically examined, very little attention has been given to +Mary's manner toward Knox; and on this particular occasion, in the +presence of the council and the nobles, sitting too as a kind of court +before which he was on trial for high treason, it was flippant and +unmannerly in the extreme, and was besides entirely +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P176"></A>176}</SPAN> +incompatible +with the presence in her of a judicial spirit. When she entered the +chamber and took her seat, she first smiled, and then burst into a loud +guffaw, saying, "This is a good beginning, but wot you whereat I laugh? +That man made me weep, and shed never a tear himself. I will see now +if I can make him weep." Then after his letter had been read, and he +was defending himself, she cried, "What is this? Methinks you trifle +with him. Who gave him authority to make convocation of my lieges? Is +not that treason?" There spake the despot, for beneath the velvet of +her glove there was always a hand of iron; but she touched a chord that +vibrated to a note which she had not thought to sound when she used +these words, for Ruthven said boldly and categorically, "No, madame!" +The gruff nobleman was immediately commanded by her Majesty to "hold +his peace," and Knox went on with his defence in such a way that he +successfully vindicated his right to call and hold a meeting of his +friends for any lawful purpose when and where he chose. He was next +questioned about the statement in his letter to the effect that he +feared the prosecution of these men would open a door for the +infliction of cruelty upon a greater number; and as he was proceeding +to enlarge upon the deeds of the papists in France, and denouncing +those who had done them, he was interrupted by the ejaculation of one +of the nobles, "You forget yourself; you are not in the pulpit." This +called forth the often quoted words, "I am in the place where I am +demanded of my +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P177"></A>177}</SPAN> +conscience to speak the truth; and, therefore, the +truth I speak; impugn it who so list." The Queen now felt that a +defeat was imminent, and as a last resort, she tried to work on the +sympathy of her lords by referring once more, but this time in another +fashion, to the fact that Knox had made her weep. That, however, only +gave him an opportunity of rehearsing all that had occurred on the +occasion to which she had referred, and thereby made his victory the +more sure. But what is to be said of her conduct throughout on this +trial? "Heard you ever, my lords, a more despiteful and treasonable +letter?" "You shall not escape so." "Is it not treason to accuse a +prince of cruelty?" "Lo! what say you to all that?" These are a few +of her expressions when she was sitting as a judge, and with these, and +others already quoted, before us, is it not idle to speak of justice, +far less of mannerliness or gentlewomanliness in the case? +Ungentlemanliness is bad enough,—though even of that we maintain that +there was nothing in Knox's treatment of his queen,—but to seek to +overbear a court as Mary did at this time, by the manifestation of her +eagerness to have the accused condemned, either by fair means or foul, +is infinitely worse. The spirit of Mary here was that of Jeffreys long +after. It was indeed far from being so coarsely and brutally +expressed, but it is worthy of all reprobation, and in view of the +facts which we have here presented, it is little wonder that Hume, in +writing to the historian Robertson, should have said, "I am afraid that +you, as well as myself, have drawn Mary's character +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P178"></A>178}</SPAN> +with too +great softenings. She was undoubtedly <I>a violent woman at all times</I>." +But he never altered his representation in his work, and to him, +perhaps, more than to all others, the prevalent misconception of our +Reformer's character, manner, and motives is to be traced. +</P> + +<P> +The result of this trial was announced by Secretary Maitland, when he +said to Knox that he was at liberty to return home for that night. But +though his voice was smooth, his soul was full of wrath, and Mary's +mortification vented itself in taunting the very man who had given her +the letter, for voting for the acquittal of him who wrote it. Thus +again the Reformer triumphed, and it is with a glow of satisfaction +akin to that with which Nehemiah recounts his escape from Sanballat, +that he finishes the record thus: "That night was neither dancing nor +fiddling in the court, for madame was disappointed of her purpose, +which was to have had John Knox in her will, by vote of her nobility." +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap11fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap11fn1text">1</A>] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. pp. 206-8. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap12"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P179"></A>179}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER XII. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570. +</H4> + +<P> +In the month of March, 1564, Knox, who had been a widower for now +rather more than three years, was united in marriage to Margaret +Stewart, daughter of Lord Ochiltree, and the room in the old baronial +residence where the ceremony was performed is still pointed out to +visitors. Despite their dissimilarity in age, the union seems to have +been a very happy one, and such as brightened the last days of the +Reformer's home life. This year passed with little to make it +memorable save a long discussion between Knox and Secretary Maitland, +which originated in an attempt to restrain the freedom of the +Reformer's utterances on public questions in the pulpit, and wandered +over a great variety of topics, touching, among others, the duties of +magistrates and their subjects, but led to no immediate practical +result. The calm, however, was not of long continuance, for we come +now to those troublous times and dark doings which have made the reign +of Mary Queen of Scots the great debating ground of modern history. +She determined to marry Lord +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P180"></A>180}</SPAN> +Henry Darnley, the son of the Earl +of Lennox, a Catholic and an empty-headed fool. The knowledge of her +purpose provoked the project of an insurrection among some of her +nobles, who were headed by the Earl of Murray; but though they had the +promise of assistance from Elizabeth, she failed them when it came to +the point, and the result was that all who had been concerned in it +were proclaimed as outlaws and banished from the kingdom. In this +affair Knox took no part whatever, though Lord Ochiltree, his +father-in-law, was implicated in it, and was one of the exiles. But +though he did not compromise himself by proposing to join in the +meditated appeal to arms, he was as strongly opposed to Mary's marriage +as any of them, and as was his wont he liberated his conscience in the +pulpit, but it was not until after the nuptials had been consummated +that his words were especially regarded. The marriage was celebrated +on the 29th of July, 1565, and on the 19th of August, Darnley, for some +reason, chose to attend the public services in St. Giles' Cathedral, +where a great throne had been prepared for his reception. Whether Knox +had received any intimation of his intention to be present we are +unable to say, but in his sermon there were two things which gave great +offence to this prominent hearer. The first was his quotation of the +passage, "I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall +rule over them; children are their oppressors, and women rule over +them"; and the second, his declaration that "God had punished Ahab +because +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P181"></A>181}</SPAN> +he did not correct his idolatrous wife Jezebel." Darnley +believed that these words were meant for him, and went home in the +sulks, making his likeness to Ahab only the more striking by refusing +to eat his dinner. The preacher was immediately summoned before the +Privy Council, by whom he was told that he must desist from preaching +as long as their majesties were in the city. For his own exoneration +Knox printed the sermon for the preaching of which he was thus +condemned, and it remains the only specimen of his pulpit work proper +which has come down to us. It is founded on Isaiah xxvi. 13-21, and is +of the nature of an expository discourse, bringing out the primary +signification and reference of the words, and making application of the +principles evolved by that process to the characters and circumstances +of his hearers. It gives evidence of considerable scholarship, of +immense familiarity with Scripture, of good acquaintance with ancient +history, and of great fervour of spirit. It is neither a hasty nor ill +digested production, and it impresses us a good deal more by its +solidity than by its invective. Indeed, there are in it no passages +that one could put into comparison for that with others which have been +already mentioned by us; and it is a little difficult for the modern +reader to wed in his imagination a style so calm and weighty as that +which he finds here, with a manner so vehement as the Reformer's is +usually described to have been. But no printer can reproduce the man, +or the surroundings; here are the wood and the lamb indeed; but in +these +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P182"></A>182}</SPAN> +others were the fire—from heaven too in a sense—which +flamed forth with its energizing and consuming power, and made his +discourse a thing of might. Such difference as there is between a +bugle, and a bugle blown by a living martial musician, there is between +a printed sermon and the same discourse preached by its author with the +glow of spiritual enthusiasm in his heart and on his face. The one is +a thing of curious study to the professional man, the other is a +trumpet call which puts heart and heroism into hundreds in a moment. +</P> + +<P> +Knox showed his law-abiding spirit by obeying the injunction of the +authorities. His biographer, indeed, says that "it does not appear +that he continued any time suspended from preaching," but Dr. Laing +believes that he did not resume his usual ministrations at Edinburgh, +unless at occasional intervals, until after Queen Mary had been +deprived of her authority. He was not idle, however, in those months, +for he was employed not only in the preparation of his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," but also in the visitation of churches in the +south of Scotland, and in a journey into England, specially undertaken +to look after his two boys whom he had sent thither for education. +</P> + +<P> +In this interval occurred the murder of David Rizzio, on the 9th March, +1566, in the palace of Holyrood. That wretched man was an Italian +adventurer, whose knowledge of foreign languages made him useful to +Mary in her correspondence with the other members of the +Anti-Protestant League to which she belonged. +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P183"></A>183}</SPAN> +His acquaintance +with her political designs thence derived opened the way for his +becoming one of the most confidential of her advisers. That roused +against him the enmity of the Scottish nobles, and Darnley became +jealous of his intimacy with the Queen; so with his assistance and +approval David was foully slain almost before the eyes of his mistress. +Attempts have been made to implicate Knox with this affair, but though +he does not conceal his satisfaction at David's "removal," he was in no +wise accessory to his death. The very next day after this tragedy the +exiled lords returned to Edinburgh, and then followed thick and fast +upon each other events of great and lasting importance to the land. +These were the birth of James VI. on the 19th of June, 1566; the murder +of Darnley, on the night between the 9th and 10th of February, 1567, a +deed which was planned and carried out by Bothwell and his agents, not +without dark grounds for the suspicion, to say the very least, that he +and they were acting with the knowledge and consent of Mary herself; +the marriage on the 15th May, 1567, of Mary to Bothwell, that +black-hearted villain who was the evil genius of her life; the +surrender of Mary to the opposing Lords at Carberry Hill on the 15th of +June; the imprisonment of Mary in Loch Leven Castle, where, on the 24th +of July, she signed a deed abdicating the crown in favour of her infant +son, and appointing Murray regent during his minority; the escape of +Mary from her place of confinement on the 2nd of May, 1568; and the +defeat on May 13th of her +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P184"></A>184}</SPAN> +forces at Langside, whence she fled to +seek from Elizabeth refuge in England, with the Fotheringay block as +the ultimate result. For full details regarding all of these we must +refer our readers to the Scottish histories, and we content ourselves +with mentioning them thus in a group in order that we may carry in our +hands the clue for the intelligent following out of our Reformer's +career. +</P> + +<P> +When the infant James was crowned in the parish church of Stirling, on +the 29th of July, 1567, the sermon on the occasion was preached by +Knox, though he objected to perform the ceremony of anointing, which +accordingly was done by another. In the month of December following he +preached at the opening of Parliament, and had the satisfaction of +seeing an Act passed which ratified all that had been done in the way +of Reformation by the Parliament of 1560; while an additional statute +was now made providing that no prince should afterwards be admitted to +exercise authority in the kingdom without taking an oath to maintain +the Protestant religion. +</P> + +<P> +During the regency of Murray everything went well, but his +assassination (what terrible times these were!) at Linlithgow, by +Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh, on the 23rd of January, 1569, was a terrible +blow to Knox. Indeed, it may be said that he was never quite the same +man afterwards. Knox and Murray loved and trusted each other +thoroughly—perhaps all the more from the additional insight into each +other's hearts +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P185"></A>185}</SPAN> +which their temporary estrangement gave them, and +when the Regent was stricken down the Reformer felt as if his chief +human helper had been taken from him. Murray was a genuine patriot, +and in the main a sincere and noble man. He had his faults, and on +exceptional occasions like that described by Froude,[<A NAME="chap12fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap12fn1">1</A>] when he was +made the tool of Elizabeth, he was constrained to be, at least by his +silence, a party to deceit which in his heart he abhorred; but that +historian has not hesitated to call him "a noble gentleman of stainless +honour,"[<A NAME="chap12fn2text"></A><A HREF="#chap12fn2">2</A>] and to affirm that "his noble nature had no taint of self +in it";[<A NAME="chap12fn3text"></A><A HREF="#chap12fn3">3</A>] and though Robertson has done his best to belittle him, the +verdict of history we think will settle in the acceptance of +Spottiswood's eulogy: "a man truly good, and worthy to be ranked among +the best governors that this kingdom hath enjoyed, and therefore to +this day honoured with the title of 'the good Regent.'" On the Sunday +after this irreparable loss, Knox poured out his heart to God before +the congregation in a prayer which showed how deeply the bereavement +had depressed his spirit, and on the day of the funeral he preached a +sermon from the text, "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord," in +which he sketched the character and career of his friend with such +effect that three thousand persons were moved to tears by his words. +The blow fell sorely on the country; and it nearly crushed the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P186"></A>186}</SPAN> +Reformer. The loss preyed upon his spirit and enfeebled his strength, +so that in the month of October following he was stricken with +paralysis or apoplexy, which laid him aside altogether for a season +from his work, and gave warning of the approaching end. His enemies +exulted over his illness, and could not refrain from congratulating +themselves on the prospect that he would never preach again; but after +some weeks he so far regained his vigour as to resume, in part at +least, those labours in which he had found so much of his joy. +Throughout the winter and the spring he continued to bear testimony +from his pulpit to the principles which he had so long proclaimed, and +to expose and rebuke the evil-doers who were once more at work in the +land. For though the murder of Murray brought no permanent advantage +to the party of reaction, it brought back again, for a while at least, +the chaos and contentions out of which he had begun to bring order and +peace. Lennox, as the grandfather of the infant king, was put into the +place of Murray, but within a comparatively brief period he was +mortally wounded in an assault made upon the adherents of the king at +Stirling, by a force led by Huntly in the interests of Mary, and +Erskine of Mar was chosen as his successor. This was in September, +1571. Meanwhile Kirkaldy, of Grange, who had been appointed governor +of the Castle of Edinburgh by Murray, had turned his back upon the +professions and promise of his life, by avowing himself a partisan of +the Queen. He held that fortress for her +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P187"></A>187}</SPAN> +behoof, and gave its +protection to Secretary Maitland, who was working earnestly in her +cause. By Maitland's influence Kirkaldy was encouraged in a course +which was exceedingly painful to Knox. The Laird of Grange and he had +been fellow-sufferers in the French galleys, and to the last the heart +of the Reformer yearned after him. Yet he could not permit his conduct +as governor of the Castle to go unreproved. On two occasions, in +particular, he was constrained to take public notice of his doings. +The first was briefly this. There had been a scuffle in Dunfermline +between a cousin of Kirkaldy and his relatives, and some of the Duries, +a family with whom the Kirkaldys had a feud; and one of the latter +having been seen shortly afterwards in the streets of Edinburgh, was by +Kirkaldy's orders followed to Leith by some of his tools, that they +might chastise him with a cudgel. But they took the sword instead and +left him dead. In the attempt to escape, one of the assailants was +arrested and committed to the Tolbooth, but Grange and his men attacked +the building, violently forced it open, and marched off with their +liberated comrade to the Castle, the guns of which they fired, either +in token of triumph or for the purpose of striking terror into the +citizens. In his sermon on the following Sunday Knox protested against +this interference with the course of justice, using language which +seems to us both temperate and kindly: "Had it been done," he said, "by +the authority of a bloodthirsty man, or one who had no fear of God, he +would not have been so much +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P188"></A>188}</SPAN> +moved; but he was affected to think +that one, of whom all good men had formed so great expectations, should +have fallen so low as to act such a part, one too who, when formerly in +prison, had refused to purchase his own liberty by the shedding of +blood." An utter misrepresentation of this statement was carried to +Kirkaldy, who complained to John Craig, the Reformer's colleague, by +whom he was referred to the elders of the Church of which Kirkaldy +still professed to be a member. Knox himself, as soon as he had the +matter brought before him, denied that he had used the words imputed to +him, and took the first opportunity of correcting the false report, by +repeating and vindicating what he had really said. +</P> + +<P> +The other occasion was that of the appearance shortly after, in the +church, of Kirkaldy, accompanied by a strong armed escort, composed of +those who had been most conspicuous in the recent outrages. He had not +attended the public services for nearly a year, and Knox looked upon +his presence so surrounded as an attempt to overawe him. But he was +not the man to be thus intimidated, and so, as his good servant +Ballantyne tells us, he took occasion then and there to inveigh +"against all such as forget God's benefits received, and in treating of +God's great mercies bestowed upon penitents, according to his common +manner, he forewarned proud contemners that God's mercy appertained not +to such as with knowledge proudly transgressed, and after, more proudly +maintained the same." Kirkaldy was greatly +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P189"></A>189}</SPAN> +enraged at these +words, and even in the church he gave vent to his anger so loudly as to +be heard by a great part of the congregation. The report went out in +consequence that he meant to kill the preacher; but Knox held on his +way, dealing defiantly with the anonymous libels that were sent him, +and publicly declaring in words that have become proverbial, that "from +Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other inspired writers, he had learned to call a +fig a fig, and a spade a spade." +</P> + +<P> +But when, in 1571, Kirkaldy received the Hamiltons and their forces +into the Castle, the friends of Knox became seriously alarmed for his +safety. They proposed to form a guard who should constantly accompany +him for his protection; but he would not accept the offer, and even if +he had accepted it Kirkaldy would not have permitted it to be carried +out. It was according to military etiquette that he should suppress or +prevent all such outrages, and he expressed his willingness to provide +a guard for Knox from the soldiers of his garrison. He even tried to +get the Hamiltons to guarantee the safety of the Reformer, but they +declared that they could not enter into any such engagement, "because +there were many rascals and others among them who loved him not, who +might do him harm without their knowledge." One evening a musket was +fired into his window, and had he not been sitting in a place different +from that which he usually occupied, the ball must have struck him, and +would in all probability have mortally wounded him. After that he +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P190"></A>190}</SPAN> +was importuned by his friends to seek a place of safety +elsewhere, but he refused to leave his post until they told him that +they had made up their minds to defend him, if need be, with their +lives, and that if blood was shed they would leave it on his head. +This argument prevailed, and he consented to remove to St. Andrews, +whither he went by easy stages, and where he arrived in the month of +May, 1571. In his absence his pulpit in St. Giles was filled for a +while by Alexander Gordon, Bishop of Galloway, who pleased the Queen's +party but displeased the vast majority of the Protestants, so that the +Church of Edinburgh was for a time dissolved, while disorder reigned in +the city, and what was virtually a civil war was raging in the country. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap12fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap12fn1text">1</A>] "History," vol. vii. pp. 345-7. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap12fn2"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap12fn2text">2</A>] Vol. vii. p. 340. +</P> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap12fn3"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap12fn3text">3</A>] Vol. iii. p. 355. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap13"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P191"></A>191}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +CHAPTER XIII. +</H3> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572. +</H4> + +<P> +At St. Andrews Knox was free from personal danger, and resumed the work +of preaching. In the pulpit of the parish church he discoursed almost +regularly, with a vigour which triumphed for the time over his physical +weakness. We have a most graphic portrait of him at this time from the +pen of James Melville who was then a student at the University, and who +writes thus in his diary: (We are constrained to modernize the words +that they may be generally understood by English and American readers, +but we know how much they must lose thereby in expressiveness, to those +who understand the vernacular) "Of all the benefits that I had that +year (1571), was the coming of that most notable prophet and apostle of +our nation, Mr. John Knox, to St. Andrews, who by the faction of the +Queen occupying the castle and town of Edinburgh, was compelled to +remove therefrom, with a number of the best, and chose to come to St. +Andrews. I heard him teach there the prophecies of Daniel that summer +and the winter following. I had my pen and my little +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P192"></A>192}</SPAN> +book, and +took away such things as I could comprehend. In the opening up of his +text he was moderate for the space of half an hour; but when he entered +on application, he made me so to shudder (<I>scottice</I>, 'grue') and +tremble, that I could not hold my pen to write. He was very weak. I +saw him every day of his teaching, go slowly and warily, with a fur of +martens about his neck, a staff in the one hand, and good, godly +Richard Ballantyne, his servant, holding up the other armpit +(<I>scottice</I>, 'oxter'), from the abbey to the parish kirk, and by the +said Robert and another servant lifted up to the pulpit, where he +behoved to lean at his first entrance; but before he had done with his +sermon, he was so active and vigorous, that it seemed as if he would +beat the pulpit in pieces (<I>scottice</I>, 'ding the pulpit in blads') and +fly out of it." Nor must we omit this other trait, evincing as it does +the interest taken by the aged warrior in the young soldiers who were +then just girding on their armour. "He would sometimes come in and +rest in our college yard, and call us scholars unto him, and bless us, +and exhort us to know God, and His work in our country, and stand by +the good cause, to use our time well, and learn the good instructions +and follow the good example of our masters." +</P> + +<P> +In St. Andrews too, at this time, he published his "Answer to the +Letter of a Jesuit named Tyrie," which was the last work that he gave +to the world. It had been composed years before, in the haste which +was incident to his numerous occupations, but it was now +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P193"></A>193}</SPAN> +revised +and enlarged, and gives expression in a vigorous manner to his maturest +views on faith, religion, and the Catholic, or true and Universal +Church. Here is a nugget from it, not without its pertinence to some +popular notions current in the days in which we live. "We find that +Christ sends not His afflicted Church to seek a lineal succession of +any persons, before He will receive them; but He with all gentleness +calleth His sheep unto Himself, saying, 'Come unto Me all ye that +labour and are laden, and I will ease you.'" Truly a golden sentence, +touching the very quick of all Church controversies, and emphasizing +the principle never to be forgotten, that we must find our way to the +Church through Christ, and not to Christ through the Church. +</P> + +<P> +In public questions he did not cease to take an interest, although the +state of his health unfitted him for active leadership. Still, that he +was no unconcerned spectator of what was going forward is apparent from +the following statement, which, because of its faithfulness and +fairness, we take from the article by Dr. Mitchell on "The Last Days of +John Knox."[<A NAME="chap13fn1text"></A><A HREF="#chap13fn1">1</A>] "In March, 1572, the General Assembly was held in St. +Andrews, in the schools of St. Leonard's College. This place was no +doubt chosen, in part at least, for the convenience of the aged +Reformer, whose counsel in that time of trouble was specially needed. +It was the last Assembly at which he was able to be present, and +probably the first witnessed by Davidson and Melville. 'There,' the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P194"></A>194}</SPAN> +latter narrates, 'was motioned the making of bishops, to the +which Mr. Knox opposed himself directly and zealously.' ... Some months +before this a convention at Leith had given its sanction to a sort of +mongrel episcopacy, nominally to secure the tithes more completely to +the Church, but really to secure the bulk of them by a more regular +title to certain covetous noblemen, who sought in this way to reimburse +themselves for their services in the cause." (The noblemen presented +to the bishoprics men who had first covenanted to give by far the +larger portion of the revenues to the patrons, and with a truly +Scottish humour, the people called these dignitaries "tulchan bishops," +a "tulchan" being the name which was given to a calf's skin stuffed +with straw, which was set up to make the cow give her milk more +willingly.) "First among these noblemen was the Earl of Morton, then +one of the chief supporters of the young prince, and soon after Regent +of the kingdom. Having secured a presentation to the Archbishopric of +St. Andrews, for Mr. John Douglas, he came over to the city, had him +elected in terms of the convention, and on the 10th of February +inaugurated into his office. This was performed by Winram, +superintendent of Fife, according to the order followed in the +admission of superintendents, save that the Bishops of Caithness, the +Superintendent of Lothian, and Mr. David Lindsay, who sat beside +Douglas, laid their hands on his head. Knox had preached that day as +usual, but, as Ballantyne is careful to tell us, "had +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P195"></A>195}</SPAN> +refused to +inaugurate the said bishop"; and, as others add, had denounced +"anathema to the giver, and anathema to the receiver," who, as rector +and principal, "had already far more to do than such an aged man could +hope to overtake." In the face of such a fact, it is idle for +historians to insinuate, as Burton does, that Knox gave in his closing +days even a <I>quasi</I> sanction to episcopacy. +</P> + +<P> +In the month of July, 1572, a cessation of hostilities for a time was +agreed upon between the Regent's party and that of the Queen, so that +the city of Edinburgh was again delivered from annoyance, either at the +hands of the garrison or of "the lewd fellows of the baser sort" who +made its streets unsafe. As Melville says, "the good and honest men +thereof returned to their homes, and earnestly implored their pastor, +if he could without injury of his health, to do the same; and so Mr. +Knox and his family passed home to Edinburgh," where he arrived on the +23rd of August. On the following Sunday he preached in his old pulpit; +but as in his weakness he could not make himself heard in the large +cathedral, the western part of the nave, known as the Tolbooth Church, +was fitted up for his use; and that was the scene of his latest +ministrations. He preached as often as he was able, delivering a +course of sermons on the Redeemer's Passion, which he had always wished +to be the theme of his last discourses. But in his debilitated +condition, his ancient power had well-nigh departed. Only once during +this period of decadence +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P196"></A>196}</SPAN> +did the "wonted fires" flame forth out +of "their ashes." When he heard of the massacre of St. Bartholomew he +had himself assisted into the pulpit, and there, moved at once by the +tender recollections of the many friends of his own who had been among +the victims, and by his life-long antagonism to the system which was +identified with that horrible cruelty, he thundered forth the vengeance +of Heaven against "that cruel murderer the king of France;" and turning +to Le Croc, the French ambassador, he said, like another Elijah: "Go +tell your master that sentence is pronounced against him; that the +Divine vengeance shall never depart from him or from his house, except +they repent; but his name shall remain an execration to posterity, and +none proceeding from his loins shall enjoy his kingdom in peace." +</P> + +<P> +His closing work was the installation of his own successor. During his +absence from Edinburgh, Mr. John Craig, his colleague, had gone to +another sphere of labour, and his flock had now no other shepherd than +himself. He was, therefore, very naturally anxious to see some true +and earnest man set over them in the Lord, and accordingly obtained +permission from the General Assembly to induct any minister who might +be chosen by himself, the Superintendent of Lothian, and the Church of +Edinburgh, to take his place. They agreed to nominate James Lawson, of +Aberdeen, who, being urged by Knox to repair immediately to Edinburgh, +in a touching letter, with a still more touching postscript,—"Haste, +lest ye come too late!"—came to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P197"></A>197}</SPAN> +the metropolis, gave such +evidence of his gifts as satisfied all parties concerned, and was +installed on the 9th of November. Knox preached the sermon on the +occasion in the Tolbooth Church, and after that removed with the +congregation to the larger area of the cathedral, where he went through +the form of admission by proposing the usual questions, and giving +exhortation first to the pastor and then to the people. He concluded +with prayer and the benediction; "then leaning upon his staff and the +arm of an attendant, he crept down the street, which was lined with the +audience, who, as if anxious to take the last sight of their beloved +pastor, followed him until he entered his house, from which he never +again came out alive." +</P> + +<P> +The next day he was seized with a violent cough, and he gradually +declined until the 24th of November, when, at the age of sixty-seven, +he breathed his last. His faithful servant, Richard Ballantyne, has +left a minute description of his death-bed experiences and sayings, +which Dr. McCrie has reproduced the main features of in his biography. +We select those which seem to us to give most insight into the +character of the man. Visited, a few days after his last sickness +began, by two of his personal friends, he "for their cause came to the +table," for it was the hour of dinner, and caused an hogshead of wine +in the cellar to be pierced for their entertainment, at the same time +playfully desiring one of them to send for some of it as long as it +lasted, for he would not tarry until it was all drunk." To the elders +of his Church who +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P198"></A>198}</SPAN> +came in a body to his room at his request, he +said, "I profess before God and His holy angels that I never made +merchandise of the sacred word of God; never studied to please men; +never indulged my own private passions or those of others, but +faithfully distributed the talents entrusted to me for the edification +of the Church over which I watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may +cast upon me respecting this point, I rejoice in the testimony of a +good conscience." As they were leaving, he detained his colleague and +the minister of Leith to give them a message to Kirkaldy of Grange, +adding to it these words: "That man's soul is dear to me, and I would +not have it perish, if I could save it." When they returned and told +him that they had met with a rude reception, he was much grieved, and +said, "that he had been earnest in prayer for that man, and still +trusted that his soul would be saved, although his body should come to +a miserable end." Such petitions as these dropped from his lips at +intervals, "Come, Lord Jesus. Be merciful to Thy Church which Thou +hast redeemed. Give peace to this afflicted commonwealth. Raise up +faithful pastors who will take the charge of Thy Church. Grant us, +Lord, the perfect hatred of sin, both by the evidences of Thy wrath and +mercy." To his friend Fairley, of Braid, he said: "Every one bids me +good-night, but when will you do it? I have been greatly indebted to +you, for which I shall never be able to recompense you, but I commit +you to one who can, to the eternal God." To Campbell of Kingzeancleugh + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P199"></A>199}</SPAN> +he said, "I must leave the care of my wife and children to you, +to whom you must be a husband in my room." A few hours before his +death he said to his wife, "Go read where I first cast my anchor," and +she understanding his reference, read to him the 17th chapter of John's +Gospel, and afterwards a part of Calvin's "Sermons on the Ephesians." +Shortly after, seeing that death was fast approaching, and when he was +unable to speak, his servant said to him, "Now, sir, the time that you +have long called to God for, the end of your battle, is come; and +seeing all natural power now fails you, remember the comfortable +promises of our Saviour Jesus Christ, which ofttimes you have shown us. +And that we may understand and know that you hear us, give us some +sign." And "so he lifted up one of his hands, and incontinent +thereafter rendered up his spirit, apparently without pain or movement, +so that he seemed rather to fall asleep than to die." +</P> + +<P> +He was buried on the 26th of November, his body being accompanied to +the grave by a large concourse of people, among whom were the Earl of +Morton, newly-appointed Regent, and other noblemen. According to the +rubric of his own Book of Common Order, there was no religious service +at the funeral, but when the body was lowered to its place Calderwood +tells us that the Regent Morton uttered these words: "HERE LIETH A MAN +WHO IN HIS LIFE NEVER FEARED THE FACE OF MAN; WHO HATH BEEN OFTEN +THREATENED WITH DAGGE AND DAGGER, BUT YET HATH ENDED HIS DAYS IN PEACE +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P200"></A>200}</SPAN> +AND HONOUR." The precise site of his grave cannot now be +identified. It was in the churchyard of St. Giles, which extended from +the church down the slope of the hill till it reached the Colgate, and +was wholly obliterated in 1633 when the Parliament House and other +buildings were erected. If any stone ever marked the spot, it was +probably then removed or destroyed. Tradition points out as the place +that which is now marked with the letters "I.K., 1572," a few feet to +the west of the statue of Charles II. in the Parliament Square. What +Charles ever did for Scotland to deserve any such memorial, it would +puzzle the wisest man to say, unless perhaps on the principle that it +was his intolerance which most of all provoked the Revolution; but many +will agree with Dr. Laing in thinking, that "a more appropriate +monument for such a locality would be a statue of the great Reformer." +</P> + +<P> +Knox, we are told, was of small stature, and his constitution never +recovered from the effects of the exposure to which he was subjected in +the French galleys, so that his frame was not well fitted for hardship +and fatigue. He too had his "thorn in the flesh," and that he did so +much in spite of that is a proof of the dominating power of his +spiritual earnestness over his physical weakness. Of the five +portraits reproduced and criticised so characteristically by Carlyle in +his "Brochure" on the subject, we give our verdict in favour of that +which he calls the Somerville portrait, and of which he says that it is +"the only probable likeness anywhere known to +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P201"></A>201}</SPAN> +exist." It is that +of a true Scottish face—sharp, wedge-like in its contour, surmounted +by a bald dome-like head fringed with scanty hair, the beard short and +not very profuse, the lips firmly set, with the slightest curl of scorn +in their expression, and the eyes small, clear, penetrating, and quick; +altogether "a physiognomy worth looking at," and far more in keeping +with the character and history of the Reformer, than the long-bearded +timber-looking figure-head, surmounted by a Genevan cap, which has been +made so long to represent him to posterity, and which Carlyle has shown +to have no claim to authenticity. +</P> + +<P> +His children were five in number. His two sons by his first wife +became students in St. John's College, Cambridge, where Nathanael, the +elder, died in 1580. Eleazar, the younger, after finishing his +studies, became Vicar of Clacton Magna, and died in 1591. He too was +buried at Cambridge; and, by the death of both, the family of the +Reformer in the male line became extinct. His three daughters by his +second wife were Martha, Margaret, and Elizabeth. Martha became the +wife of Alexander Fairley, eldest son of Robert Fairley, of Braid, whom +we have just seen at the Reformer's death-bed. Margaret married +Zachary Pont, one of the Lords of Session, and latterly minister of St. +Cuthbert's, Edinburgh. Elizabeth wedded John Welsh, best known as +Minister of Ayr, who was banished for the part which he took in the +holding of the General Assembly at Aberdeen in July, 1605, and spent +many years as pastor of a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P202"></A>202}</SPAN> +Protestant Church in France. It is of +this daughter that the well-known story is told to the effect that when +her husband's health failed she came over to London, and, having +through the influence of friends obtained audience of King James I., +requested the royal permission for his return to his native land. +After some coarse pleasantry, which need not here be repeated, the king +told her that if she would persuade her husband to submit to the +bishops he would allow him to go back to Scotland, whereupon, lifting +her apron and holding it out toward the king, she answered, like a true +daughter of her father, "Please your Majesty, I'd rather kep his head +(<I>i.e.</I> receive it from the block) there!" +</P> + +<BR> + +<P> +Of the writings of Knox we have spoken incidentally in the course of +our narrative, and need not therefore enter now into any minute +criticism of their character and merits. They were struck out of him +almost extemporaneously by emergencies that arose, and, like all +similar productions, they were mainly ephemeral in their nature, so +that they are studied now, for the most part, only by those who wish to +gain some insight into the man, his times, and his work. He was not +what might properly be called literary. He would not have described +himself as another of his countrymen did, as "a writer of books." On +the contrary, in the preface to the only sermon which he published, he +affirmed that "he considered himself rather called of +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P203"></A>203}</SPAN> +God to +instruct the ignorant, comfort the sorrowful, confirm the weak, and +rebuke the proud by tongue and living voice in these most corrupt +times, than to compose books for the age to come; seeing that so much +is written (and that by men of most singular condition) and yet so +little well observed, he decreed to contain himself within the bounds +of that vocation whereunto he felt himself specially called." An +exception to this may perhaps be found in his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," to which throughout we have been so much +indebted, and which is one of the raciest, clearest, and most +trustworthy records of the heroic struggle in which he was virtually +the leader of the victorious side. It has been stigmatized by Burton +as egotistical; but Carlyle more justly notices how on one occasion, +when his personal merit far excelled all possible description, "he +hardly names himself at all"; and where he could not be truthful +without speaking of himself, he invariably does so in the third person, +and without any attempt to glorify the work of which he might have +said, "<I>cujus pars magna fui</I>." For the rest, as Carlyle says, "His +account of every event he was present in is that of a well-discerning +eye-witness. Things he did not himself see, but had reasonable cause +and abundant means to inquire into—battles even, and sieges—are +described with something of a Homeric vigour and simplicity." It is +unfortunate for modern readers that it is written in the old Scottish +dialect; but if some competent scholar would only honestly modernize +and faithfully edit it, a +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P204"></A>204}</SPAN> +great boon would be conferred upon the +present generation, for it has in it many elements of popular interest. +</P> + +<P> +His special vocation was that of the preacher rather than of the +author. The pulpit was the throne of his peculiar and pre-eminent +power. Other men might equal or surpass him elsewhere, but <I>there</I> he +was supreme. Different excellences might come out in himself on +different occasions; but in the pulpit all his abilities were +conspicuous, and there they were always at their best. It was the +glass which focussed all his powers into a point, and quickened their +exercise into a burning intensity which kindled everything it touched. +It brightened his intellect, enlivened his imagination, clarified his +judgment, inflamed his courage, and gave fiery energy to his utterance. +He was never elsewhere so great in any one of these particulars, as he +was, when in the pulpit, in them all; for there, over and above the +"<I>præfervidum ingenium</I>" which he had in common with so many of his +countrymen, and the glow of animation which fills the soul of the +orator when he looks upon an audience, he had the feeling that he was +called of God to be faithful, and that made him almost like another +Paul. Behind him was the cross of his Lord; before him was the throne +at which he was to be accountable, and between these two he stood +"watching for souls as one that must give account." He began his +discourse most commonly with Biblical exposition, and spent a little +time in calmly, clearly, and fully explaining the meaning of the +passage on which he was engaged. In this +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P205"></A>205}</SPAN> +portion of his sermon, +if we may judge from the published tracts which were apparently founded +on pulpit utterances, he was clear, simple, convincing; not making a +parade of learning, yet bringing out withal the true significance of +the sacred text. Then having cleared away all doubt from that, he made +it the foundation of a battery, whereon he erected a swivel gun, and +with that he swept the whole horizon, firing at every evil which came +within his view. Nor were the shots mere random things. They were +deliberately aimed, and they commonly did most effective work. No +matter who might be the evil-doer, the exposure was sure to be made, +and the expostulation, usually ending in denunciation, unless the +sinner should repent, was sure to follow. Whatever he might do +elsewhere, he could neither shut his eyes nor keep back his utterance +when he was, as he called it, "in public place." He was "set as a +watchman" to the people of Scotland, and he would watch with wakeful +vigilance, and give honest warning of everything which he saw wrong; +for the wrong with him was always fraught with danger, and the +wrongness was enough to evoke his protest. He used no soft words. He +was no maker of polite phrases. He spoke in order to be understood, +and therefore he "called a fig a fig, and a spade a spade." He went +into the pulpit not because he had to say something, but because there +was something in him which was compelling itself to be said. He spoke +because he "could not but" speak. That irrepressibility gave +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P206"></A>206}</SPAN> +volcanic energy to his manner and fiery force to his words, so that the +effects produced by his sermons were not merely superficial. Like +those modern missiles which burst in the wounds which they have made, +his words exploded within the hearts of those who had received them, +and set them on fire with convictions that flamed forth in their +conduct. It was apparently impossible for any one to listen to him +without being deeply moved, either to antagonism, or to enthusiastic +agreement, or—for he could be tender also—to tears. +</P> + +<P> +It may be said indeed that he allowed himself too great liberty in +commenting on public men and national affairs; and we may readily admit +that in ordinary times, and especially in our altered circumstances, it +would be unwise in most preachers to use the pulpit precisely as he +did. But we have to bear in mind that the crisis through which his +country was passing at the time, was as much religious as political, +and that the pulpit was the only organ at his command. To his credit +be it recorded, that he was, if not the first, at least one of the very +first to perceive the importance of making and guiding public opinion +aright. He saw that the people were to be the virtual rulers in the +coming time; nay, he recognised in them the ultimate arbiters for the +decision of the great matters which were then in debate, and therefore +he would not take time to go to royal closets or noblemen's studies, +but made his appeal to the people as a body, and the pulpit was the +only place in which he could do that. The daily press was not then +born; the +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P207"></A>207}</SPAN> +public meeting had not yet come into vogue; but what is +now done by our editors in their columns, and by our statesmen in +Midlothian campaigns, and such like, he did by his five weekly sermons +in Edinburgh, and by his various preaching journeys in the south and +west and north divisions of the kingdom. He informed and aroused +public opinion. He appealed to the people, speaking to them as one +under oath to the King of kings the while; and when we put the matter +in that light, we have at once the defence of his procedure and the +explanation of his success. +</P> + +<P> +He was not always wise; neither was he always discriminating in his +utterances. Who is? who especially when surrounded by the difficulties +with which he had to contend? and we may well forgive him his +occasional indiscretions, when we think of the work which, in spite of +these, he was honoured to accomplish. By that work he has earned the +gratitude of posterity, and deserved a place among the men who are most +worthy to be remembered in these times. By that work the entire face +and future of Scotland were changed. She has made great progress in +many directions since his day, and outgrown many of the limitations +within which he would have restricted her; but the success of his work +made it possible for her to become what she is to-day. The liberty, +the literature, the philosophy, as well as the religion of Scotland, +could not have developed into what they became without the Reformation; +and without Knox, humanly speaking, the Reformation would not +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P208"></A>208}</SPAN> +have been at all, or at least would not have been what it actually +became. He had not the lyric thrill of genius that vibrates in the +songs of Robert Burns; but in his own way and to his own tune he sang, +"A man's a man for a' that," two hundred years before the Ayrshire bard +was born. He laid the foundation of that national popular education +which has made Scotland at home so intelligent, and carried Scotsmen +with honour abroad into all the countries under heaven; and though he +would have protested very vehemently against the scepticism of Hume and +others, yet the men who have made the Scottish school of philosophy +illustrious, received, consciously or unconsciously, much of their +impulse from his work. Add to this, that wherever Presbyterianism has +found a foothold, its votaries name Knox side by side with Calvin, as +one of its foremost leaders and organizers. But when we consider the +shortness of the time within which Knox did his work for Scotland, the +greatness of the man becomes still more conspicuous. He was forty-two +years of age when he was called to preach in the Castle of St. Andrews, +and he died at sixty-seven. Within these twenty-five years therefore +his reformation work was done; and yet of these nearly two were spent +as a galley-slave in French captivity, five were passed in England, +three on the continent, and for the last year and a half of his life he +was disabled by paralysis, so that his active labours in his native +land were virtually condensed within little more than fourteen years. +During these, also, he had to contend, save in the brief season +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P209"></A>209}</SPAN> +of Murray's regency, with the greatest difficulties, but through them +all he held on, and over them all he secured an ultimate triumph. His +energy was consuming, his zeal untiring, and his vigilance +unslumbering. With the eye of a statesman he looked into the future, +while at the same time he keenly scrutinized the movements of the +present. He had the near sight which sees what is closest to it with +admirable distinctness, and the far sight which descries with equal +accuracy what is distant, and with these he combined the philosophic +spirit which marked very correctly the connection between the two. He +was a true patriot, and ever willing to sacrifice himself in the +welfare of his country. And all these qualities in him were raised to +the white heat of enthusiasm, and fused into the unity of holiness by +his devotion to the God and Father of his Saviour the Lord Jesus +Christ. He spoke, and wrote, and acted as ever in His sight. This was +the secret of his courage, the root of his inflexibility, and the +source of his power. As a Reformer he had in him the boldness of +Luther, combined with some of the qualities of Calvin, and though as a +whole he was inferior to both, yet more than either he reminds us of a +Hebrew prophet. When we see him before Queen Mary, we think at once of +Elijah before Ahab, and more appropriately perhaps than any other man +in modern history he might have taken for the motto of his life the +oft-repeated asseveration of the Tishbite, "As the Lord God of Israel +liveth, <I>before whom I stand</I>." +</P> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P210"></A>210}</SPAN> + +<P> +And yet, though sternly uttering in the highest places what he believed +to be the word of God, there were not wanting in his character other +traits of gentleness and geniality. As Carlyle has truly said, "Tumult +was not his element, it was the tragic feature of his life that he was +forced to dwell in that." He too, like the granite mountains of his +native land, had in him fountains of tenderness, and valleys laughing +with cheerfulness. He was not the heartless Stoic that many have +ignorantly painted him, for have we not seen him weeping with those who +were "sobbing unto God"? And though it may seem strange to those who +have not made themselves acquainted with his history, there was in him +a vein of humour, yea even, as Carlyle says, of "drollery," that makes +him excellent company. This humour of his, as the writer just named +has admirably diagnosed it, was "not mockery, scorn, bitterness, alone, +though there is enough of that too, but a true, loving, illuminating +laugh mounts up over the earnest visage; not a loud laugh; you would +say a laugh in the <I>eyes</I> most of all." +</P> + +<P> +But now our task is done. We have tried to show honestly the man as he +was, and to describe dispassionately the work which he did. He is, if +not pre-eminently the Scotchman of history,—though we think a good +claim might be established for him as such,—yet certainly one of "the +three mightiest," or of "the first three" of his nation; and like the +vine whose branches spread over the wall, his influence has gone in +blessing to other lands, for in his work we have the root of the +English +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P211"></A>211}</SPAN> +Revolution, and some of the seeds that were carried +westward in the <I>Mayflower</I>, and sown in New England fields, had fallen +from his hands. It is not inappropriate therefore that one whose +labours in the ministry of the gospel have closely connected him alike +with Scotland, England, and America, should pay this willing tribute to +his name and work. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="footnote"> +<A NAME="chap13fn1"></A> +[<A HREF="#chap13fn1text">1</A>] "Catholic Presbyterian," vol. vi. p. 265. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap14"></A> + +<SPAN CLASS="pagenum">{<A NAME="P212"></A>212}</SPAN> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +INDEX. +</H3> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Annand, Dean, Controversy of Knox with, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Answers to some questions concerning Baptism, etc., by Knox, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Arbuckle, Friar, Controversy of, with Knox, concerning the Mass, <A HREF="#P18">18</A>, <A HREF="#P32">32</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Arran, Earl of, appointed Regent of Scotland, <A HREF="#P4">4</A>; character of, <A HREF="#P5">5</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Argyle, Earl of, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>, <A HREF="#P125">125</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Balfour of Mount Quarry, <A HREF="#P8">8</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Balnaves, Henry, <A HREF="#P6">6</A>, <A HREF="#P15">15</A>, <A HREF="#P24">24</A>, <A HREF="#P29">29</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Band, or Bond, Godly, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Beaton, Cardinal, executes George Wishart, <A HREF="#P2">2</A>; character of, <A HREF="#P4">4</A>; produces +a forged will in order to obtain the Regency of Scotland, <A HREF="#P4">4</A>; murder of, +<A HREF="#P8">8</A>; condemnation of Walter Mill by, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Becon's Displaying of the Mass, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Berwick on Tweed, Knox appointed to, <A HREF="#P30">30</A>; condition of, at that time, +<A HREF="#P31">31</A>; practice of Knox at, in the matter of the Lord's Supper, <A HREF="#P32">32</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>; +preaching of Knox at, <A HREF="#P33">33</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Blast, First, of the Trumpet against the monstrous Regiment of Women, +by Knox, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Book of Common Prayer (English), <A HREF="#P31">31</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>, <A HREF="#P47">47</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Book of Common Order (Scottish), <A HREF="#P105">105</A>, <A HREF="#P147">147</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Book of Discipline, First, <A HREF="#P140">140-147</A>, <A HREF="#P153">153</A>; not ratified, <A HREF="#P154">154</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Bothwell, Earl of, apprehends George Wishart, <A HREF="#P2">2</A>; connection of, with +the family of Knox, <A HREF="#P10">10</A>; part of, in Darnley's murder, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; marriage of, +to Queen Mary, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Bowes, Marjory, betrothed to Knox, <A HREF="#P40">40</A>; marriage of, to Knox, <A HREF="#P96">96</A>; joins +her husband in Scotland, <A HREF="#P126">126</A>; death of, <A HREF="#P155">155</A>; sons of, <A HREF="#P151">151</A>, <A HREF="#P201">201</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Bowes, Elizabeth, mother-in-law of Knox, <A HREF="#P40">40</A>, <A HREF="#P60">60</A>, <A HREF="#P66">66</A>; character of, <A HREF="#P71">71</A>, +<A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P100">100</A>, <A HREF="#P101">101</A>; kindness of Knox to, <A HREF="#P102">102</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Brandling, Sir Robert, <A HREF="#P60">60</A>, <A HREF="#P68">68</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Bullinger, Henry, <A HREF="#P48">48</A>, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>; questions of Knox to, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>, <A HREF="#P81">81</A>, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Burton's History of Scotland quoted from or referred to, <A HREF="#P4">4</A>, <A HREF="#P122">122</A>, <A HREF="#P195">195</A>, +<A HREF="#P203">203</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Cairns, John, appointed reader to Knox in Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P155">155</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Calvin, John, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>, <A HREF="#P82">82</A>; opinion of, on English Prayer Book, <A HREF="#P86">86</A>; criticism +of Knox's treatment at Frankfort by, <A HREF="#P93">93</A>, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>, <A HREF="#P110">110</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Campbell, Robert, of Kingzeaucleuch, <A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P158">158</A>, <A HREF="#P198">198</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Carlyle, Thomas, Opinions of, on Knox's conduct at Frankfort, <A HREF="#P92">92</A>; on +the First Blast, <A HREF="#P110">110</A>; on Knox's treatment of Queen Mary, <A HREF="#P175">175</A>; on the +portraits of Knox, <A HREF="#P200">200</A>; on Knox's History of the Reformation, <A HREF="#P203">203</A>; on +Knox's tenderness and humor, <A HREF="#P210">210</A>; description of the affair at Cupar +Muir by, <A HREF="#P124">124</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Cecil, Secretary, <A HREF="#P49">49</A>, <A HREF="#P113">113</A>, <A HREF="#P130">130</A>, <A HREF="#P162">162</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Clergy of Scotland, General character of, before the Reformation, <A HREF="#P6">6</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Confession of Faith, Scottish, <A HREF="#P137">137</A>; ratified by Parliament, <A HREF="#P139">139</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Conversion of Knox to Protestantism, <A HREF="#P13">13</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Coverdale, Miles, godfather to one of Knox's sons, <A HREF="#P151">151</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Cox, Dr. Richard, Relation of, to the troubles at Frankfort, <A HREF="#P88">88</A>, <A HREF="#P91">91</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Craig, John, colleague of Knox, <A HREF="#P163">163</A>, <A HREF="#P188">188</A>, <A HREF="#P196">196</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Cranmer, Archbishop, on the Mass, <A HREF="#P43">43</A>; letter of, to English Council, +<A HREF="#P49">49</A>; probable author of Declaration on Kneeling, <A HREF="#P51">51</A>; sufferings of, <A HREF="#P82">82</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Crossraguel, Abbot of, Controversy with Knox, <A HREF="#P166">166-168</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Cupar Muir, Affair of, <A HREF="#P124">124</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Darnley, Lord Henry, Marriage of, to Queen Mary Stuart, <A HREF="#P180">180</A>; offended +at sermon by Knox, <A HREF="#P180">180</A>; part of, in murder of Rizzio, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; murder of, +<A HREF="#P183">183</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Deacons, Office of, in First Book of Discipline, <A HREF="#P143">143</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Declaration of Prayer Book on Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, History +of, <A HREF="#P48">48-55</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Demolition of Roman Catholic edifices, Relation of Knox to, <A HREF="#P121">121</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Dieppe, Knox in, <A HREF="#P71">71-76</A>, <A HREF="#P79">79</A>, <A HREF="#P113">113</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Doctors, Office of, in Scottish Church, <A HREF="#P145">145</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Douglas, John, Chaplain to Earl of Argyle, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Edinburgh, Knox chosen minister of, <A HREF="#P125">125</A>; Knox's house in, <A HREF="#P155">155</A>; labors +of Knox in, <A HREF="#P163">163</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Education, Book of Discipline on, <A HREF="#P146">146</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Edward VI., First Prayer Book of, <A HREF="#P31">31</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>, <A HREF="#P47">47</A>; Second Prayer Book +of, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>, <A HREF="#P47">47</A>; order of Communion under, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>; death of, <A HREF="#P62">62</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Elders, Office of, under First Book of Discipline, <A HREF="#P142">142</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Elizabeth, Queen of England, accession to the throne, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>; refuses +Knox's request for permission to travel through England, <A HREF="#P113">113</A>; relation +of, to Mary Stuart, <A HREF="#P158">158</A>; deceitfulness of, <A HREF="#P130">130</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +England, Feelings of Knox in regard to, <A HREF="#P70">70</A>; influence of, on Knox, <A HREF="#P62">62</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Erskine, Lord, <A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Erskine of Dun, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>, <A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>, <A HREF="#P120">120</A>, <A HREF="#P171">171</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Exposition of the Sixth Psalm by Knox, <A HREF="#P71">71-74</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Faithful Admonition, by Knox, <A HREF="#P79">79-82</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Fairley, Robert, of Braid, <A HREF="#P198">198</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Francis I., of France, Death of, <A HREF="#P20">20</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Francis II., Death of, <A HREF="#P156">156</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Frankfort on the Maine, History of Knox's troubles at, <A HREF="#P83">83-94</A>; departure +of Knox from, <A HREF="#P91">91</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +First Blast of the Trumpet against the Monstrous Regiment of Women, by +Knox, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>, <A HREF="#P113">113</A>, <A HREF="#P161">161</A>; Carlyle on, <A HREF="#P110">110</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Froude, J. A., History of England, <A HREF="#P64">64</A>, <A HREF="#P127">127</A>, <A HREF="#P139">139</A>, <A HREF="#P185">185</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Galleys, French, Knox's experiences in, <A HREF="#P23">23-25</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Geneva, Knox at, <A HREF="#P83">83</A>; pastor of English congregation in, <A HREF="#P95">95</A>; arrival of +Knox and family at, <A HREF="#P101">101</A>; labors of Knox at, <A HREF="#P105">105</A>, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>; thanks of English +refugees to the council of, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Gilby, Arthur, colleague of Knox at Geneva, <A HREF="#P95">95</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Glasgow University, Knox a student at, <A HREF="#P11">11</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Glencairn, Earl of, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Godly Band or Bond, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Godly Letter of Warning, by Knox, <A HREF="#P74">74-76</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Guillaume, Thomas, Connection of Knox with, <A HREF="#P13">13</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Haddington, George Wishart preaching at, <A HREF="#P1">1</A>; birthplace of Knox, <A HREF="#P10">10</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Hamilton, Patrick, <A HREF="#P5">5</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Henry VIII., Dispute of, with James V., <A HREF="#P4">4</A>; connection of, with +conspirators against Beaton, <A HREF="#P7">7</A>; Death of, <A HREF="#P20">20</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Hooper, Bishop, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>, <A HREF="#P59">59</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Hume, David, Letter of, to Dr. Robertson, on character of Mary Stuart, +<A HREF="#P177">177</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +James V., Death of, <A HREF="#P3">3</A>; dispute with Henry VIII., <A HREF="#P3">3</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +James VI., Birth of, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; coronation of, <A HREF="#P184">184</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Kirkaldy of Grange, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>; makes terms for surrender of the castle of St. +Andrews, <A HREF="#P22">22</A>; dissuaded by Knox from the shedding of blood to escape +from prison, <A HREF="#P26">26</A>; controversy of with Knox, <A HREF="#P187">187</A>; message of Knox to, <A HREF="#P198">198</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, Knox's opinions and practice in regard +<A HREF="#P10">10</A>, <A HREF="#P35">35</A>, <A HREF="#P37">37</A>, <A HREF="#P39">39</A>; declaration of English Prayer Book on, <A HREF="#P62">62</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Knox, John, First appearance of, as body-guard of Wishart, <A HREF="#P2">2</A>; enters +the castle of St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>, <A HREF="#P14">14</A>; early history of, <A HREF="#P10">10</A>; conversion of, +to Protestantism, <A HREF="#P13">13</A>; within the castle of St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P14">14</A>; called to +the ministry, <A HREF="#P15">15</A>; controversy with Dean Annand, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>; sermon at St. +Andrews, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>; controversy with Friar Arbuckle, <A HREF="#P18">18</A>, <A HREF="#P32">32</A>; made a galley +slave, <A HREF="#P22">22</A>; feelings of, on sight of St. Andrews from the galley, <A HREF="#P27">27</A>; +released from the galleys, <A HREF="#P30">30</A>; preaching of, at Berwick, <A HREF="#P33">33</A>; +administration of Lord's Supper at Berwick, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>; opinions of, on Lord's +Supper, <A HREF="#P39">39</A>; heroism of, <A HREF="#P40">40</A>; removal to Newcastle, <A HREF="#P42">42</A>; discourse on the +Mass, <A HREF="#P43">43</A>; preaching of, at Newcastle, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>; practice in regard to the +Lord's Supper at Newcastle, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>; appointed a Royal Chaplain, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>; +preaches before Edward VI., <A HREF="#P48">48</A>, <A HREF="#P61">61</A>; influence of, on English Book of +Common Prayer, <A HREF="#P48">48-52</A>; relation of, to Duke of Northumberland, <A HREF="#P48">48</A>, <A HREF="#P56">56</A>; +offered a bishopric, <A HREF="#P57">57</A>; offered the vicarage of All Hallows, London, +<A HREF="#P58">58</A>; before the English council, <A HREF="#P58">58</A>; in the county of Bucks, <A HREF="#P65">65</A>; sermon +at Amersham, <A HREF="#P65">65</A>; Exposition of Sixth Psalm, <A HREF="#P68">68</A>, <A HREF="#P72">72</A>; leaves England for +France, <A HREF="#P69">69</A>; love of, for England, <A HREF="#P70">70</A>; writes Godly Letter of Warning, +<A HREF="#P74">74</A>; first visit of, to Switzerland, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>; returns to Dieppe, <A HREF="#P79">79</A>; writes +"Faithful Admonition", <A HREF="#P79">79</A>; goes to Frankfort on the Maine, <A HREF="#P83">83</A>; history +of troubles there, <A HREF="#P84">84</A>; leaves Frankfort, <A HREF="#P91">91</A>; pastor of English Church +at Geneva, <A HREF="#P95">95</A>; brief visit of, to Scotland, <A HREF="#P95">95</A>; marriage of to Marjory +Bowes, <A HREF="#P96">96</A>; work in Scotland at this time, <A HREF="#P97">97-99</A>; summoned to appear +before the bishops, <A HREF="#P100">100</A>; writes to the Queen Regent, <A HREF="#P100">100</A>; returns to +Geneva <A HREF="#P102">102</A>, labors at, <A HREF="#P105">105</A>; called to return to Scotland, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>; at +Dieppe, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>; returns to Geneva, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>; leaves Geneva for Scotland, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>; +arrives in Scotland, <A HREF="#P114">114</A>; preaches at Perth, <A HREF="#P120">120</A>; and at St. Andrews, +<A HREF="#P124">124</A>; chosen minister of St. Giles, Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P125">125</A>; travels through +Scotland, <A HREF="#P126">126</A>; negotiations with Sir James Croft, <A HREF="#P129">129</A>; views of, on +civil government, <A HREF="#P130">130</A>; imperfect understanding of the relation of +Church and State, <A HREF="#P133">133</A>; residence of, in Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P155">155</A>; first interview +with Queen Mary Stuart, <A HREF="#P159">159</A>; second interview, <A HREF="#P163">163</A>; debate of, with +Abbot of Crossraguel, <A HREF="#P166">166</A>; breach between, and Earl of Murray, <A HREF="#P169">169</A>; +third interview with Queen Mary, <A HREF="#P168">168</A>; fourth interview with Mary, <A HREF="#P170">170</A>; +accused falsely of immorality, <A HREF="#P175">175</A>; before the Scottish council, <A HREF="#P175">175</A>; +marriage of, to Margaret Stewart, <A HREF="#P179">179</A>; preaches at coronation of James +VI., <A HREF="#P185">185</A>; mourns over the death of Murray, <A HREF="#P185">185</A>; stricken with +paralysis, <A HREF="#P186">186</A>; controversy with Kirkaldy of Grange, <A HREF="#P187">187</A>; danger of, in +Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P189">189</A>; goes to St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P190">190</A>; Melville's description of, at +this time, <A HREF="#P191">191</A>; publishes "Answer to the Letter of a Jesuit", <A HREF="#P192">192</A>; +returns to Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P195">195</A>; last sermon of, <A HREF="#P197">197</A>; last illness of, <A HREF="#P197">197</A>; +death of, <A HREF="#P199">199</A>; personal appearance of, <A HREF="#P200">200</A>; children of, <A HREF="#P201">201</A>; portraits +of, <A HREF="#P200">200</A>; writings of, <A HREF="#P202">202</A>; preaching of, <A HREF="#P204">204</A>; effect of work on +Scotland, <A HREF="#P207">207</A>; tenderness and humor of, <A HREF="#P210">210</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Knox's History of the Reformation, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>, <A HREF="#P22">22</A>, <A HREF="#P25">25</A>, <A HREF="#P27">27</A>, <A HREF="#P35">35</A>, <A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P121">121</A>, <A HREF="#P124">124</A>, +<A HREF="#P138">138</A>, <A HREF="#P156">156</A>, <A HREF="#P161">161</A>, <A HREF="#P170">170</A>; described by Carlyle, <A HREF="#P203">203</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Laing, David, LL.D., Edition of Knox's Works quoted from or referred +to, <A HREF="#P11">11</A>, <A HREF="#P12">12</A>, <A HREF="#P58">58</A>, <A HREF="#P65">65</A>, <A HREF="#P72">72</A>, <A HREF="#P74">74</A>, <A HREF="#P75">75</A>, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>, <A HREF="#P102">102</A>, <A HREF="#P110">110</A>, <A HREF="#P129">129</A>, <A HREF="#P130">130</A>, <A HREF="#P144">144</A>, <A HREF="#P148">148</A>, <A HREF="#P153">153</A>, +<A HREF="#P182">182</A>, <A HREF="#P201">201</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lawson, John, Induction of, as Knox's successor, <A HREF="#P197">197</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Leslie, Norman, <A HREF="#P8">8</A>, <A HREF="#P20">20</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lindsay, Sir David, <A HREF="#P6">6</A>, <A HREF="#P15">15</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Liturgy of Knox, <A HREF="#P152">152</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lollards of Kyle, <A HREF="#P99">99</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lorimer, Rev. Peter, D.D., Works on Knox quoted from or referred to, <A HREF="#P8">8</A>, +<A HREF="#P25">25</A>, <A HREF="#P28">28</A>, <A HREF="#P30">30</A>, <A HREF="#P31">31</A>, <A HREF="#P33">33</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>, <A HREF="#P37">37</A>, <A HREF="#P41">41</A>, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>, <A HREF="#P48">48</A>, <A HREF="#P49">49</A>, <A HREF="#P51">51</A>, <A HREF="#P52">52</A>, <A HREF="#P54">54</A>, <A HREF="#P55">55</A>, <A HREF="#P103">103</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lorn, Lord, <A HREF="#P58">58</A>, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lorraine, Princes of, <A HREF="#P113">113</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lord's Supper, first administered after reformed fashion, <A HREF="#P19">19</A>; practice +followed by Knox regarding at Berwick, <A HREF="#P32">32-34</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>; kneeling in, opposed +by Knox, <A HREF="#P38">38</A>; influence of Knox on English Prayer Book regarding, <A HREF="#P46">46-52</A>; +declaration of Prayer Book on kneeling in, <A HREF="#P52">52</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Lyons, Knox visits, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Major, John, Principal of Glasgow University, <A HREF="#P11">11</A>; opinions of, <A HREF="#P11">11</A>, <A HREF="#P133">133</A>; +present at Knox's sermon at St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P18">18</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +McCrie's "Life of Knox" quoted from or referred to, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>, <A HREF="#P85">85</A>, <A HREF="#P92">92</A>, <A HREF="#P96">96</A>, +<A HREF="#P132">132</A>, <A HREF="#P161">161</A>, <A HREF="#P170">170</A>, <A HREF="#P193">193</A>, <A HREF="#P197">197</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Maitland of Lethington, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>; the younger, <A HREF="#P128">128</A>, <A HREF="#P136">136</A>, <A HREF="#P174">174</A>, <A HREF="#P178">178</A>, <A HREF="#P179">179</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Marriage, Solemnization of, according to Book of Discipline, <A HREF="#P146">146</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mary of Guise, character of, <A HREF="#P3">3</A>; Queen Regent of Scotland, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>; policy +of, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>; letter of Knox to, <A HREF="#P100">100</A>; declared enemy of Reformation, <A HREF="#P114">114</A>; +petition of Protestant barons to, <A HREF="#P117">117</A>; prohibits preaching or +administration of the sacrament without authority of bishops, <A HREF="#P119">119</A>; +proclaims Knox a rebel, <A HREF="#P119">119</A>; death of, <A HREF="#P128">128</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, <A HREF="#P3">3</A>; betrothed to the Dauphin of France, +<A HREF="#P5">5</A>; reply of Knox to, on the charge of necromancy, <A HREF="#P35">35</A>; death of first +husband of, <A HREF="#P156">156</A>; character of, <A HREF="#P157">157</A>; arrival of, in Scotland, <A HREF="#P156">156</A>; +interviews with Knox, <A HREF="#P159">159</A>, <A HREF="#P163">163</A>, <A HREF="#P168">168</A>, <A HREF="#P170">170</A>, <A HREF="#P173">173</A>, <A HREF="#P175">175</A>; marries Lord Henry +Darnley, <A HREF="#P180">180</A>; marriage of, to Bothwell, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; abdicates in favor of her +son, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; defeat of, at Langside, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>; imprisonment of, by Elizabeth, +<A HREF="#P184">184</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mary Tudor, Accession of, to English throne, <A HREF="#P66">66</A>; prayer of Knox for, +<A HREF="#P67">67</A>; first proclamation of, <A HREF="#P67">67</A>; marriage of, to Philip of Spain, <A HREF="#P81">81</A>; +attacked by Knox in First Blast, <A HREF="#P109">109</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mass, Opinions of Knox on the, <A HREF="#P32">32</A>, <A HREF="#P43">43</A>, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>; Becon's Displaying of the, +<A HREF="#P45">45</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Melville of Raith, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Melville, James, Description of Knox at St. Andrews by, <A HREF="#P191">191</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mill, Walter, Martyrdom of, <A HREF="#P116">116</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Milton, John, quoted from, <A HREF="#P109">109</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Ministers, Office of, in Book of Discipline, <A HREF="#P141">141</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Mitchell, Dr., A. F., quoted from, <A HREF="#P193">193</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Morton, Earl of, <A HREF="#P108">108</A>; burial eulogy of, on Knox, <A HREF="#P199">199</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Murray, Earl of (See Lord James Stuart). +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Newcastle on Tyne, Removal of Knox to, <A HREF="#P42">42</A>; preaching of Knox at, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>; +practice of Knox at, in regard to the Lord's Supper, <A HREF="#P45">45</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Northumberland, Duke of, <A HREF="#P48">48</A>, <A HREF="#P57">57</A>, <A HREF="#P60">60</A>, <A HREF="#P61">61</A>, <A HREF="#P64">64</A>. +</P> + + +<P CLASS="index"> +Ochiltree, Lord, <A HREF="#P172">172</A>; father-in-law of Knox, <A HREF="#P179">179</A>, <A HREF="#P180">180</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Ormiston, Laird of, <A HREF="#P10">10</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Prayer Books of Edward VI., First, <A HREF="#P31">31</A>, <A HREF="#P36">36</A>, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>; Second, <A HREF="#P46">46</A>, <A HREF="#P47">47</A>, <A HREF="#P49">49</A>, <A HREF="#P52">52</A>, +<A HREF="#P56">56</A>, <A HREF="#P85">85</A>; opinion of Calvin on, <A HREF="#P86">86</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Perth, John Knox at, <A HREF="#P121">121</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Preaching, Knox's habit of preparation for, <A HREF="#P79">79</A>; effect of Knox's, at +Perth, <A HREF="#P120">120</A>; in Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P136">136</A>; before Darnley, <A HREF="#P181">181</A>; Knox's +characterized, <A HREF="#P204">204</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Predestination, Knox's Dissertation on, <A HREF="#P111">111</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Privy Council of England, name of Knox in register of, <A HREF="#P29">29</A>; memorial of +Knox to, on Lord's Supper, <A HREF="#P49">49</A>; appearance of Knox before, <A HREF="#P58">58</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Portraits of Knox, <A HREF="#P200">200</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Randolph, English Ambassador at Edinburgh, <A HREF="#P28">28</A>, <A HREF="#P138">138</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Readers, Office of, in Scottish Church, <A HREF="#P140">140</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Reformation, Beginning of, in Scotland, <A HREF="#P5">5</A>; Hamilton period of, <A HREF="#P19">19</A>; +Wishart period of, <A HREF="#P19">19</A>; Knox period of, <A HREF="#P19">19</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Rizzio, David, character of, <A HREF="#P182">182</A>; murder of, <A HREF="#P183">183</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Robertson, William, D.D., character of Murray in History of Scotland, +<A HREF="#P185">185</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Rochelle, Knox visits, <A HREF="#P107">107</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Ross, Dr. John M., quoted from, <A HREF="#P133">133</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Sacraments, Scottish Confession of Faith on, <A HREF="#P137">137</A>; administration of +the, according to Book of Discipline, <A HREF="#P145">145</A>; according to the Book of +Common Order, <A HREF="#P151">151</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Scotland, Condition of, before Reformation, <A HREF="#P7">7</A>; visit of Knox to, in +1555, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>; arrival of Knox at, in 1559, <A HREF="#P114">114</A>; condition of, at that time, +<A HREF="#P115">115</A>; labors of Knox in, <A HREF="#P126">126</A>; negotiations of, with England, <A HREF="#P127">127</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +St. Andrews, Castle of, an asylum for Protestants, <A HREF="#P8">8</A>; siege of, by +Arran, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>; arrival of Knox in, <A HREF="#P9">9</A>; work of Knox in, <A HREF="#P14">14</A>; Knox called to +the ministry in, <A HREF="#P15">15</A>; Knox preaches in, <A HREF="#P17">17</A>; attacked by Leo Strozzi, <A HREF="#P21">21</A>; +visited by Knox, <A HREF="#P123">123</A>; the scene of Knox's all but latest labors, <A HREF="#P191">191</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Scottish Confession of Faith, <A HREF="#P137">137</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Scottish Parliament, Meeting of, in 1560, <A HREF="#P136">136</A>; in 1563, <A HREF="#P169">169</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Solway Moss, Battle of, <A HREF="#P3">3</A>, <A HREF="#P4">4</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Somerset, Duke of, Protector of England, <A HREF="#P20">20</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Stewart, Margaret, married to Knox, <A HREF="#P179">179</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Stuart, Lord James, Earl of Murray, <A HREF="#P98">98</A>, <A HREF="#P106">106</A>, <A HREF="#P125">125</A>, <A HREF="#P138">138</A>, <A HREF="#P156">156</A>, <A HREF="#P166">166</A>, <A HREF="#P169">169</A>, +<A HREF="#P174">174</A>, <A HREF="#P180">180</A>, <A HREF="#P184">184</A>, <A HREF="#P185">185</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Strozzi, Leo, attacks the castle of St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P21">21</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Superintendents, Office of, in Scottish Church, <A HREF="#P149">149</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Switzerland, First visit of Knox to, <A HREF="#P77">77</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Throckmorton, English Ambassador at Paris, <A HREF="#P126">126</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Tulchan Bishops, <A HREF="#P194">194</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Tunstall, Bishop of Durham, <A HREF="#P31">31</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Tyninghame Charter Room, Instrument in, signed by Knox, <A HREF="#P12">12</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Utenhovius, Letter of, to Bullinger, <A HREF="#P48">48</A>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Whittingham, Dean, with Knox at Frankfort, <A HREF="#P86">86</A>; gives thanks to council +at Geneva for hospitality to English refugees, <A HREF="#P112">112</A>; godfather to one of +Knox's sons, <A HREF="#P151">151</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Willock, John, <A HREF="#P97">97</A>, <A HREF="#P126">126</A>, <A HREF="#P130">130</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Wishart, George, at Haddington, <A HREF="#P1">1</A>; apprehension of, <A HREF="#P2">2</A>; attended by +Knox, <A HREF="#P2">2</A>; executed at St. Andrews, <A HREF="#P3">3</A>; influence of, on Knox, <A HREF="#P13">13</A>. +</P> + +<P CLASS="index"> +Writings of Knox, <A HREF="#P202">202</A>. +</P> + +<BR><BR><HR> + +<BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap15"></A> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +REV. DR. WM. M. TAYLOR'S WORKS. +</H3> + +<H2 ALIGN="center"> +Contrary Winds and Other Sermons. +</H2> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +Crown 8vo Volume, Cloth. $1.75. 3d Edition. +</H5> + +<P> +"This work touches on numerous phases of life and thought and +experience, showing that the author has lived through a vast deal and +has been made the richer and stronger by it. It leaves the impression +of wisdom that comes from actual experience, dealing with life rather +than speculations, and so comes home to the heart and conscience. IT +SHOWS A WIDE RANGE OF READING AND CLOSE GRAPPLE WITH THE DIFFICULT +PROBLEMS OF OUR TIME. Such preaching is tonic and invigorating. It +strengthens the heart and fortifies the will to overcome trials and +conquer temptations and achieve victory."—<I>N. Y. 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STORRS says: "IT IS A BOOK THAT DESERVES THE VERY +WIDEST CIRCULATION FOR ITS CAREFULNESS AND CANDOR, ITS AMPLE LEARNING, +its just, discriminating analysis of historical movements as initiated +or governed, by moral forces, and for the fine spirit which pervades +it."</I> +</P> + +<P> +"The skill and industry with which Mr. Brace has gleaned and sorted the +vast accumulation of material here gathered together, the better to +show forth the power and influence, direct and indirect, of Christ's +teachings, is not only praise-worthy, but even in a certain sense +wonderful. He has a complete mastery of his subject, and many chapters +in the book are of exceeding value and interest."—<I>London Morning +Post</I>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%"> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A NEW and REVISED EDITION, with NEW MAPS and ILLUSTRATIONS, +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +OF +</H5> + +<H2 ALIGN="center"> +STANLEY'S SINAI AND PALESTINE. +</H2> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +In Connection with their History. By Dean A. P. STANLEY. +</H4> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +With 7 Elaborate and Beautifully Colored <BR> +Maps, and other Illustrations. +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Large Crown 8vo Vol., Cloth, 640 pp. Price reduced from $4 to $2.50.</I> +</H5> + +<P> +The late Dean Stanley published a new and revised edition of his "SINAI +AND PALESTINE." In it he made considerable editions and corrections, +giving the work the final impress of his scholarship, taste and +ability. This edition has been carefully conformed to the last English +edition—including the new maps and illustrations, and is herewith +commended anew AS THE MOST READABLE AS WELL AS THE MOST ACCURATE WORK +ON THE SUBJECT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. +</P> + +<P> +<I>Rev. Dr. H. M. Field, Editor of "N. Y. Evangelist," says of Stanley's +"Sinai and Palestine"</I>: "We had occasion for its constant use in +crossing the desert, and in journeying through the Holy Land, and can +bear witness at once to its accuracy and to the charm of its +descriptions. <I>Of all the helps we had it was by far the most +captivating</I>." +</P> + +<BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid.</I> +</H5> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%"> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +STANDARD RELIGIOUS BOOKS. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +The Clerical Library. +</H3> + +<P> +THIS SERIES of volumes is specially intended for the CLERGY, STUDENTS +AND SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS OF ALL DENOMINATIONS, and is meant to +furnish them with stimulus and suggestion in the various departments of +their work. Amongst the pulpit thinkers from whom these sermon +outlines have been drawn are leading men of almost every denomination +in Great Britain and America, the subjects treated of being of course +practical rather than controversial. The best thoughts of the best +religious writers of the day are here furnished in a condensed form and +at a moderate price. +</P> + +<P> +Five volumes in crown 8vo are now ready (<I>each volume complete in +itself</I>). Price, $1.50. +</P> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +NOW READY—FOURTH EDITION. +</H4> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +300 OUTLINES OF SERMONS ON THE NEW TESTAMENT. +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +By 72 ENGLISH and AMERICAN CLERGYMEN, including +</H5> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +Archbishop TAIT.<BR> +Bishop ALEXANDER.<BR> +Bishop BROWNE.<BR> +Bishop LIGHTFOOT.<BR> +Bishop MAGEE.<BR> +Bishop RYLE.<BR> +Dean CHURCH.<BR> +Dean VAUGHAN.<BR> +Canon FARRAR.<BR> +Canon KNOX-LITTLE.<BR> +<BR> +Canon LIDDON.<BR> +Canon WESTCOTT.<BR> +Rev. Prin. CAIRNS.<BR> +Rev. Dr. M. PUNSHON.<BR> +Rev. Dr. W. M. TAYLOR.<BR> +Rev. PHILLIPS BROOKS.<BR> +Rev. Dr. R. S. STORRS.<BR> +Rev. Dr. W. G. T. SHEDD.<BR> +Rev. Dr. T. L. CUYLER.<BR> +Rev. Dr. J. T. DURYEA.<BR> +<BR> +Rev. Dr. H. CROSBY.<BR> +Rev. Dr. Pres. McCOSH.<BR> +Rev. Dr. M. R. VINCENT.<BR> +Rev. Dr. JNO. PEDDIE.<BR> +Rev. Dr. C. T. DEEMS.<BR> +Rev. C. H. SPURGEON.<BR> +Rev. DEAN STANLEY.<BR> +Rev. Dr. A. RALEIGH.<BR> +<BR> +<I>And many others</I>. +</P> + +<BR><BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +OUTLINES OF SERMONS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT. +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>AUTHORS OF SERMONS.</I> +</H5> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +G. S. BARRETT, B.A.<BR> +Dean E. BICKERSTETH.<BR> +Bishop E. H. BROWNE.<BR> +J. BALD. BROWN, B.A.<BR> +T. P. BOULTBEE, LL.D.<BR> +J. P. CHOWN.<BR> +Dean R. W. CHURCH.<BR> +E. R. COUDER, D.D.<BR> +T. L. CUYLER, D.D.<BR> +A. B. DAVIDSON, D.D.<BR> +ROBERT RAINY, D.D.<BR> +ALEX'R RALEIGH, D.D.<BR> +C. P. REICHEL, D.D.<BR> +CHAS. STANFORD, D.D.<BR> +Dean A. P. STANLEY.<BR> +W. M. STRATHAM, B.A.<BR> +<BR> +J. OSWALD DYKES, D.D.<BR> +E. HERBER EVANS.<BR> +Canon F. W. FARRAR.<BR> +DONALD FRASER, D.D.<BR> +J. G. GREENHOUGH, B.A.<BR> +W. F. HOOK, D.D.<BR> +Bishop W. BASIL JONES.<BR> +JOHN KERR, D.D.<BR> +Canon EDWARD KING.<BR> +Bp. J. B. LIGHTFOOT.<BR> +WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D.<BR> +S. A. TIPPLE, B.A.<BR> +H. J. VANDYKE, D.D.<BR> +Dean C. J. VAUGHAN.<BR> +JAMES VAUGHAN, B.A.<BR> +<BR> +Canon LIDDON.<BR> +J. A. MACFAYDEN, D.D.<BR> +ALEX. MACLAREN, D.D.<BR> +Bishop W. C. MAGEE.<BR> +THEODORE MONOD.<BR> +ARTHUR MURSELL.<BR> +JOSEPH PARKER, D.D.<BR> +Dean E. H. PLUMPTRE.<BR> +JOHN PULSFORD.<BR> +W. MORLEY PUNSHON, D.D.<BR> +M. R. VINCENT, D.D.<BR> +W. J. WOODS, B.A.<BR> +C. WADSWORTH, D.D.<BR> +G. H. WILKINSON.<BR> +Bp. C. WORDSWORTH.<BR> +</P> + +<BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid.</I> +</H5> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%"> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +THE CLERICAL LIBRARY—(Continued). +</H4> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +OUTLINES OF SERMONS TO CHILDREN +</H4> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +With numerous Anecdotes. Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 3d vol. +of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) +</P> + +<P> +"<I>These sermons are by men of acknowledged eminence in possessing the +happy faculty of preaching interestingly to the young. As an evidence +of this, as well as of the character of the teaching, it is only +necessary to mention such names as those of WILLIAM ARNOT, THE BONARS, +PRINCIPAL CAIRNS, JOHN EDMOND, D.D., Drs. OSWALD DYKES and MARSHALL +LANG, besides many others."—Canada Presbyterian</I>. +</P> + +<P> +"This book contains a very high grade of thinking, with enough +illustrations and anecdotes to stock the average preacher for many +years of children's sermons."—<I>Episcopal Register</I>. +</P> + +<P> +"They are full of suggestions which will be found exceedingly helpful; +the habit of using apt and simple illustrations, and of repeating good +anecdotes, begets a faculty and power which are of value. This volume +is a treasure which a hundred pastors will find exceedingly convenient +to draw upon."—<I>N. Y. Evangelist</I>. +</P> + +<BR><BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +PULPIT PRAYERS BY EMINENT PREACHERS. +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 4th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) +</H5> + +<P> +<I>The British Quarterly</I> says: "<I>These prayers are fresh and strong; the +ordinary ruts of conventional forms are left and the fresh thoughts of +living hearts are uttered. The excitement of emotional thought and +sympathy must be great in the offering of such prayers, especially +when, as here, spiritual intensity and devoutness are as marked as +freshness and strength. Such prayers have their characteristic +advantages.</I>" +</P> + +<P> +<I>London Literary World</I>: "Used aright, this volume is likely to be of +great service to ministers. It will show them how to put variety, +freshness and literary beauty, as well as spirituality of tone, into +their extemporaneous prayers." +</P> + +<BR><BR> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Anecdotes Illustrative of New Testament Texts. +</H3> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +With 600 Anecdotes. Crown 8vo, 400 pages. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the +5th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) +</P> + +<P> +<I>London Christian Leader</I> says: "<I>This is one of the most valuable +looks of anecdote that we have ever seen. There is hardly one anecdote +that is not of first-rate quality. They have been selected by one who +has breadth and vigor of mind as well as keen spiritual insight, and +some of the most effective illustrations of Scripture texts have a rich +vein of humor of exquisite quality</I>." +</P> + +<P> +<I>The London Church Bells</I>: "The anecdotes are given in the order of the +texts which they illustrate. There is an ample index. The book is one +which those who have to prepare sermons and addresses will do well to +have at their elbow." +</P> + +<P> +<I>N. Y. Christian at Work</I>: "AS AN APT ILLUSTRATION OFTEN PROVES THE +NAIL WHICH FASTENS THE TRUTH IN THE MIND, THIS VOLUME WILL PROVE AN +ADMIRABLE AND VALUABLE AID, NOT ONLY TO CLERGYMEN, BUT TO SUNDAY-SCHOOL +TEACHERS AND CHRISTIAN WORKERS GENERALLY." +</P> + +<P> +<I>N. Y. Observer</I>: "A book replete with incident and suggestion +applicable to every occasion." +</P> + +<BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid.</I> +</H5> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<HR ALIGN="center" WIDTH="60%"> + +<BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +CHOICE POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<H2 ALIGN="center"> +HEROES OF CHRISTIAN HISTORY. +</H2> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A SERIES OF POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +BY +</H5> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +Eminent English and American Authors. +</H4> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +12mo Vols., bound in cloth. Price, 75c. each. +</H5> + +<P> +A series of biographies of men eminent in religious history, by writers +of recognized ability. Popular in style, trustworthy, and +comprehensive, and dealing with the most interesting characters and +events in the story of the Christian Church. The series condenses, in +entertaining form, the essential facts of the great body of religious +literature, and will have special value for the large class anxious for +information touching these great men, but unable, by reason of limited +leisure or means, to read more elaborate works. +</P> + +<BR><BR> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +<I>NOW READY.</I> +</H4> + +<P CLASS="noindent"> +WILLIAM WILBERFORCE. By REV. JNO. STOUGHTON, D.D.<BR> +HENRY MARTYN. By REV. CHAS. D. BELL, D.D.<BR> +PHILLIP DODDRIDGE. By REV. CHAS. STANFORD, D.D.<BR> +WILLIAM CAREY. By REV. JAS. CULROSS, D.D.<BR> +THOMAS CHALMERS. By REV. DONALD FRASER, D.D.<BR> +ROBERT HALL. By REV. E. PAXTON HOOD.<BR> +RICHARD BAXTER. By REV. G. D. BOYLE.<BR> +</P> + +<P> +"This series of books will be widely popular. It consists of compact, +popular biographies of men eminent in religious history, prepared by +English and American authors of repute. They are similar in size to +the <I>English Men of Letters Series</I>, trustworthy and sufficiently +comprehensive, while yet brief enough to satisfy the demand of a large +number of readers who earnestly desire to become acquainted with the +lives and work of eminent Christian heroes."—<I>N. Y. Evening Post</I>. +</P> + +<BR> + +<H5 ALIGN="center"> +<I>Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid.</I> +</H5> + +<H4 ALIGN="center"> +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. +</H4> + +<BR> + +<HR> + +<BR><BR><BR><BR> + + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Knox, by Wm. M. 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Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + + +</pre> + +</BODY> + +</HTML> + diff --git a/34191-h/images/img-front.jpg b/34191-h/images/img-front.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..506bc92 --- /dev/null +++ b/34191-h/images/img-front.jpg diff --git a/34191.txt b/34191.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f6618e7 --- /dev/null +++ b/34191.txt @@ -0,0 +1,6427 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Knox, by Wm. M. Taylor + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: John Knox + +Author: Wm. M. Taylor + +Release Date: November 1, 2010 [EBook #34191] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN KNOX *** + + + + +Produced by Al Haines + + + + + + + + + + +[Frontispiece: John Knox. Engraved by B. Holl, from a Picture in the +Posession of Lord Somerville.] + + + + + + +JOHN KNOX. + + +BY + +WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D., LL.D., + + +_Author of "Limitations of Life," etc._ + + + + + WITH STEEL PORTRAIT ENGRAVED BY B. HOLL, FROM + A PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF + LORD SOMERVILLE. + + + + +NEW YORK: + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, + +714 BROADWAY. + +1885 + + + + +COPYRIGHT, 1885, + +BY A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON. + + + + +{v} + +PREFACE. + +The sources from which the following narrative has been derived are (1) +the splendidly edited and complete edition of Knox's Works in six +volumes, by Dr. David Laing; (2) the Memoir of the Reformer, by Dr. +Thomas McCrie, forming the first volume of the collected works of that +eminent theologian; (3) the monograph by the late Professor Lorimer, +D.D., entitled "John Knox and the Church of England"; and (4) the +Histories of the Period, more especially that of Scotland, by John Hill +Burton, vols. iii. and iv., and that of England, by J. A. Froude, vols. +v. and vi. Some assistance also has been derived from "The Scottish +Reformation," by Professor Lorimer; and the two sketches by Carlyle, +the one in his "Heroes and Hero Worship," and the other in his essay on +the Portraits {vi} of John Knox, have been both helpful and suggestive. +Quotations have been generally indicated, but this acknowledgment must +cover any accidental omission to give to each author his due; and for +the rest the reader may be assured that while no material fact has been +omitted, nothing has been recorded for which ample authority could not +be given. The figure has been felt to be too large for the canvas to +which we have been restricted, but we have sought to reproduce, as +faithfully as possible the man as he was, and if we may succeed in +removing any of the unreasonable prejudice, with which many still +regard the Scottish Reformer, the story of his life will not be retold +by us in vain. + +W. M. T. + NEW YORK. + + + + +{vii} + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I. + + PAGE + +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547 . . . . . . . . 1 + + +CHAPTER II. + +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 + + +CHAPTER III. + +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550 . . . . . . . . . . . 29 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553 . . . . 42 + + +CHAPTER V. + +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +FIRST DAYS IN EXILE, 1554 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 + + +{viii} + +CHAPTER IX. + +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560 . . . . . . . 136 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563 . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 + + +CHAPTER XII. + +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + + + + +{1} + +CHAPTER I. + +EARLY LIFE AND CALL TO THE MINISTRY, 1505-1547. + +On the sixteenth day of January, 1546, George Wishart delivered a +remarkable sermon in the church of Haddington. Two things had combined +to produce special depression in his heart. Shortly before he entered +the pulpit a boy had put into his hands a letter informing him that his +friends in Kyle would not be able to keep an appointment which they had +made to meet him in Edinburgh. This news so saddened him that he +expressed himself as "weary of the world," because he perceived that +"men began to be weary of God." Nor was his despondency removed when +he rose to preach, for instead of the crowds that used to assemble to +hear him in that church, there were not more than a hundred persons +present. It was thus made apparent to him that the efforts of his +enemies for his overthrow were now to be successful, and so instead of +treating the second table of the law as he had been expected to do, he +poured forth a torrent of warning and denunciation, not unlike some of +the fervid {2} utterances of the old Hebrew prophets. The effect +produced was all the more solemn, because he evidently felt that he was +bearing his last public testimony against the evils of his times. + +When he had concluded he bade his friends farewell, and to John Knox, +who throughout his sojourn in Lothian had attended him, armed with a +two-handed sword, as a protection against the assassination with which +he had twice been threatened, and who had pressed to be allowed to +accompany him to Ormiston, where he was to spend the night, he said, +"Nay, return to your bairns" (pupils), "and God bless you! One is +sufficient for one sacrifice." + +The good man's presentiment was all too surely realized. Before +midnight the house in which he slept was surrounded by a band of which +the Earl of Bothwell was the head, and he was given up by his host to +that nobleman, only however on the receipt of a pledge, over which +"hands" were "struck," to the effect that his personal safety should be +secured, and he should not be delivered into his enemies' power. But +promises in these days were not of much account, and Bothwell was +easily prevailed upon to give him up to Cardinal Beaton, who took him +first to Edinburgh Castle, and afterwards to St. Andrews. There, in +defiance of the protest of the Regent, he was hurriedly subjected to +the form of a trial by the cardinal, and being, of course, found +guilty, he was executed at the stake on the first of March. + +{3} + +Thus it is, as the body-guard of Wishart, that we get our first glimpse +of John Knox in history; and very characteristic of the man this first +appearance was. He comes upon the scene as unheralded as Elijah, and, +like him too, he is seen from the first to be set for the defence of +the truth. He was a sword-bearer all through; only when he laid aside +the two-handed brand which he carried before Wishart, he took in its +stead "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." + +Before proceeding to tell the stirring story of his life, however, it +may be well to take a brief survey of the condition of Scotland at the +moment when he stepped into the arena of its national strife. + +Little more than three years before the date of Wishart's execution, +the Queen of Scotland had given birth to that Mary Stuart, whose +character has been the puzzle of historians, and whose chequered career +has been the theme of poets almost ever since. Her father, James V., +broken-hearted by the utter defeat of his army by the English at the +battle of Solway Moss, died only a few days after his daughter's birth. +Thus it came about, that in a critical time which tested the +statesmanship of the world's strongest rulers, alike in England, +France, Germany, and Spain, Scotland had a baby sovereign, and the +controlling of its affairs became an object of keen competition between +contending parties. The queen-mother, Mary of Guise, a woman of marked +ability, of much cunning, and of little principle, was, both from +national and religious leanings, on {4} the side of the Catholic party. +Of that party the head at this time was David Beaton, Archbishop of St. +Andrews, and a Cardinal of the Church. This artful prelate, "the +nephew of his uncle," was possessed of eminent talents, but was +characterized by cruelty, licentiousness, and unscrupulousness. He had +prevailed on James V. to violate the promise which he had made to his +uncle, Henry VIII., to meet him at Newcastle. The haughty Tudor had +now broken with the Romish see, and was anxious, if possible, to induce +his nephew to follow his example. But the cardinal, as great a master +of intrigue as was the English king himself, had succeeded in keeping +the Scottish monarch from putting himself under the spell of his +uncle's influence, and Henry, exasperated at his defeat, sent into +Scotland an army, whose success at Solway Moss led indirectly, as we +have seen, to the death of James. When that event occurred, Beaton +produced a forged will, purporting to be the last testament of the +king, and nominating him as Regent with three of the nobles as his +assistants. On the strength of that document he had himself proclaimed +as Regent at the Cross of Edinburgh. But the validity of the +instrument was annulled by the Scottish Parliament; and in the spring +of 1543, James, Earl of Arran, heir presumptive of the crown, was +appointed to the dignity which the cardinal had so eagerly, and so +unrighteously sought to make his own. + +This nobleman, "notorious," as Burton says, "for fickleness," had been +at first on the side of the Reformation, {5} and was then assiduously +courted by Henry VIII. He had even consented to the marriage of the +baby queen to the young English Prince Edward. But the influence of +the queen-mother and the cardinal, backed by that of his own natural +brother, the Abbot of Paisley, together with the unjust and impolitic +demands of the English monarch himself, combined to turn him from his +original leanings. He publicly abjured the Protestant faith, and was +received into the bosom of the Catholic Church. He broke off all +negotiations for a matrimonial alliance between the royal houses of +England and Scotland, and ultimately consented to the betrothal of Mary +to the Dauphin of France. The result of these proceedings was a +protracted war with England, during which Scotland was repeatedly +invaded, and portions of it devastated by the southern forces. + +But while these political and international intrigues, in which it must +be confessed that there was little scrupulousness on either side, were +going on, a great spiritual movement was making quiet progress among +the people. The Reformation from Popery had begun in Scotland also. +Patrick Hamilton, its protomartyr, had been put to death in 1528; but +the smoke of his burning, to borrow the well-known words of one of the +elder Beaton's own servants, "had infected all on whom it blew"; and +the books of the German Reformers, together with the English Testaments +of William Tyndale, had wrought like hidden leaven, especially among +the more intelligent of the community. {6} Thus we account for the +fact that, in spite of legal prohibitions and public executions, the +knowledge of evangelical truth was diffused, even when there was no +living voice to proclaim it publicly in the hearing of the multitudes; +so that when a man like Wishart did make his appearance, he found +crowds to listen to him appreciatively both in Dundee and Ayr. The +Lollards of Kyle had still worthy descendants in that historic +district; and the merchants in towns like that of Leith, whose commerce +brought them into contact with men from Hamburg, Antwerp, and the +cities of the Rhine, were disposed to welcome the new doctrines. Among +the nobles, men like Glencairn and Errol and Ruthven ranged themselves +on the side of the Reformers; while the influence of a satirist like +Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, and a scholar like Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, was given heartily to their cause. + +But next only to the diffusion of the Scriptures among the people, the +greatest factor in the production of the Reformation in Scotland was +the degraded condition into which in that country the Church of Rome +itself had sunk. "That which decayeth is ready to vanish away." There +were no longer in it the elements of vitality. It was past purifying, +and had to be swept clean out. Its corruptions were too open to be +denied, and too gross to be defended. The grasping selfishness and +shameless licentiousness of the upper clergy were equalled only by the +ignorance and general incompetence of the lower, so that there had +sprung up among the people generally a {7} hatred of the order to which +both belonged. This was deepened and intensified by the spirit in +which the first efforts of the Reformers had been met, for in Scotland +as elsewhere the prison and the stake were the short and easy answers +made by papal intolerance to all the arguments which the preachers +brought against the errors of Romanism. But these were answers which +only turned more general attention to the statements of the Reformers, +and gave wider circulation to their words. The storm of contrary wind +unfurls the banner, and makes thereby its inscription the more legible, +and in the same way the persecution of those who proclaimed the truth +only fell out to the furtherance of that which it was designed to +arrest. + +But Cardinal Beaton's conscience was too hard to feel the crime, and +his eye was too dim to see the blunder which he was committing in +putting Wishart to death. He looked only at immediate results, and +thought perhaps that by silencing the preacher he could arrest the +influence of the words which had already gone from him. But in reality +he was himself standing above a mine which before long exploded for his +own destruction. His checkmating of Henry VIII. so exasperated that +monarch that he entered into correspondence, through his agent Sir +Robert Sadler, with certain Scotsmen whose disaffection to the cardinal +was well known, and who, at his suggestion, or at least with his +concurrence and approval, perhaps also with his reward, entered into a +conspiracy to "take him out of the way." {8} Accordingly on the morning +of the 29th of May, just three months after the martyrdom of Wishart, +Cardinal Beaton was assassinated by a company of men headed by Norman +Leslie. That the wily priest had himself been guilty of attempts to +get rid of his adversaries by the same unscrupulous means is not to be +denied. It is equally certain that, as things then were, it would have +been impossible to bring him to trial for any of his enormities. But +still the manner of his "taking off" is not only utterly indefensible, +but also worthy of the deepest reprobation, and it is too true, as Dr. +Lorimer has said, that "the exasperation of feeling called forth by a +deed so daring and criminal gave rise to proceedings against the +conspirators which, being extended to all their abettors real or +supposed, had the effect of retarding the progress of the Reformation +for many years, and of weighing it down with a load of opprobrium from +the effects of which it could only slowly recover."[1] + +Foreseeing that they would be the objects of bitter attack, the +conspirators, after they had done their bloody work, resolved to keep +possession of the Castle of St. Andrews which they had so unexpectedly +seized, and there they were speedily joined by at least one hundred and +forty persons, numbering among them Kirkaldy of Grange, Melville of +Raith, Balfour of Mount-quhany, and many gentlemen of Fife and the +neighbouring {9} counties. They put the castle into a state of +defence, and were besieged by an army under command of the Regent +Arran, against whom they held out, more perhaps from the incompetence +of the besiegers than from the skill or strength of the besieged, until +the end of January, 1547. At that date the siege was suspended under +an agreement which stipulated that the Castle was still to remain in +the hands of its defenders, on the conditions that they should hold it +for the Regent and not deliver it to England; and that they should not +be required to surrender it even to the Regent until he had obtained +from Rome absolution for those who had been implicated in the murder of +the cardinal. Upon his side the Regent agreed to withdraw his forces +to the south of the Forth, and from the beginning of the year on till +the following June the inmates of the Castle were permitted to go out +and in at their pleasure, and to receive all that came to them. + +Thus the Castle of St. Andrews became for the time a kind of sanctuary +for all who were seeking relief or refuge from the oppression of the +rulers in Church and State; and at the following Easter, which fell +that year on the 10th of April, John Knox entered its gates under +circumstances which he himself has thus described: "At the Pasch after, +came to the Castle of St. Andrews John Knox, who, wearied of removing +from place to place by reason of the persecution that came upon him by +this Bishop of St. Andrews, was determined to have left Scotland and to +have visited the schools of Germany {10} (of England then he had no +pleasure by reason that the Pope's name being suppressed, his laws and +corruptions remained in full vigour). But because he had the care of +some gentlemen's children, whom certain years he had nourished in +godliness, their fathers solicited him to go to St. Andrews, that +himself might have the benefit of the castle, and their children the +benefit of his doctrine, and so (we say) came he the time foresaid, to +the said place, and having in his company Francis Douglas of +Longniddry, George his brother, and Alexander Cockburn, eldest son to +the laird of Ormiston, began to exercise them after his accustomed +manner."[2] + +Knox was at this time in the prime and vigour of his manhood, being +forty-two years of age. He was born in 1505 at Gifford-gate, a suburb +connected with Haddington by the old stone bridge across the Tyne. His +parents were not distinguished either for rank or fortune, for one of +his adversaries affirms that he was "obscuris natus parentibus" (born +of obscure parents), and even one of his admirers says that "he +descended but of lineage small." His father was William Knox, and his +mother's name was Sinclair. Both of them apparently belonged to +families that were in some way feudatories to the Earls of Bothwell, +for at the Reformer's first interview with that earl, whose name is so +tragically {11} coupled with Queen Mary's, he said, "Albeit that to +this hour it hath not chanced me to speak to your lordship face to +face, yet have I borne a good mind to your house; ... for, my lord, my +grandfather, goodschir (_i.e._, according to Mr. Laing, maternal +grandfather) and father have served your lordship's predecessors, and +some of them have died under their standards." He received his +earliest education at the Grammar School of Haddington, and passed when +he was about sixteen years of age to the University of Glasgow, in the +register of which his name appears among those of the students who were +incorporated on the 25th October, 1522. + +At that time and for a year later John Major, or Mair, Doctor of the +Sorbonne, was Principal of the Glasgow University and Professor of +Divinity in the same. He had some opinions, both ecclesiastical and +political, which were considerably in advance of his age, and it has +been supposed that Knox may have received from him some of those +principles which he afterwards so ably advocated. But perhaps too much +has been made of this by the Reformer's biographers, for Major remained +only one year in Glasgow after Knox had been registered as a student at +the University; and though he held some liberal notions in politics, he +was in theology to the last a rigid scholastic. Moreover, he was so +far from being a zealous promoter of the cause of the Reformation that +his name appears as a judge on several of the tribunals at which the +early Scottish {12} confessors were condemned to banishment or death. +Taking these things into consideration along with the youth of Knox +when he first entered college, it will appear hardly likely that he +received from Major anything more than a general impulse in the +direction of liberty and liberality, which prepared him to look with +favour on the efforts of those who, though they might be called +innovators, were in reality only seeking to get back to the original +simplicity of the gospel, and the primitive purity of the Church. + +Knox left Glasgow without taking the degree of Master of Arts, and +there is no evidence whatever for the statement sometimes made that he +was afterwards connected with the University of St. Andrews. In fact +we lose sight of him entirely for a period of eighteen years from the +time of his leaving Glasgow. During that interval he was ordained a +priest, though by whom, or at what precise date, it is now impossible +to determine; but his signature has been found,[3] as notary, to an +instrument in the charter-room at Tyninghame, bearing date March 27, +1543, a fact which establishes that up till that time he retained his +character as a priest and had the papal authority to act as a notary. +With these functions he seems to have combined that of a teacher of +youth, for at the time we come upon him in connection with Wishart, he +had under his charge some young men of good family in the land. + +{13} + +We have no details concerning his conversion from the Romish to the +Protestant faith. According to one authority it was Thomas Guillaume +who was "the first to give Mr. Knox a taste of the truth." That +eloquent preacher,--a native of East Lothian, who had risen to a high +place in the order of the Dominicans,--had through the influence of the +party of progress been appointed chaplain to the Regent Arran at the +time when that weak ruler was favouring the Reformers. Knox himself +has described him as "a man of solid judgment, reasonable letters (as +for that age), and of prompt and good utterance; his doctrine was +wholesome without great vehemency against superstition." It does not +appear, however, from anything he says that he ever came personally +into contact with him, though it is possible that some of those clear +expositions of Scripture for which Guillaume was so esteemed may have +been heard by him, and may have produced a deep impression on his mind. +But beyond all question George Wishart was the true spiritual father of +John Knox. The preaching and companionship of that earnest man during +that journey through the Lothians, which ended in his apprehension at +Ormiston, did more for Knox than any other human instrumentality +whatever. They wrought conviction in him, and brought him out into +decision, so that from the moment when these two men parted from each +other for the last time at the church of Haddington, it was no longer +possible for Knox to return into the position of comparative obscurity +from which he had {14} emerged to become the body-guard of Wishart. He +had come prominently out on the side of the Reformation, and the +martyrdom of his teacher would only deepen his determination that he +should not go back. + +But there was no need for him to throw his life away as a gratuitous +sacrifice, and therefore, when he was compelled to seek safety from his +persecutors by removing from place to place, and out of weariness was +minded to go to Germany, he consented, at the earnest solicitations of +the parents of his pupils, to find protection in the Castle of St. +Andrews. Let it be noted, however, that he did not enter that +stronghold until the 10th of April, 1547, that is, more than ten months +after Beaton's murder, and therefore he is not to be reckoned among +those who had concocted and carried out the assassination of that +prelate. He was at that date in too obscure a station to be in any +way, even the most remote, associated with those who had committed that +foul murder, and he went to St. Andrews simply that he might be able to +carry on uninterruptedly the education of his pupils. Accordingly, so +soon as he was fairly settled there, he resumed the regular routine of +his work with them. What that was he has himself informed us in these +words: "Besides their grammar and other humane authors" (that is, +authors in what were then called the humanity classes) "he read unto +them a catechism, an account whereof he caused them to give publicly in +the parish church of St. Andrews. He read moreover unto them the +Gospel of John proceeding where he" (had) {15} "left" (off) "at his +departing from Longniddry where before his residence was, and that +lecture he read in the chapel within the castle at a certain hour." +These public exercises attracted to them a large number of those who +were then sojourning in the castle, among whom were Henry Balnaves of +Halhill, a distinguished jurist, who had been already, and was to be +again, one of the judges of the court of session, and John Rough, who +was the stated preacher to the congregation within the castle. These +men were greatly impressed alike with the matter, the method, and the +manner of delivery of the lectures, and seeing his fitness for the +work, they earnestly entreated Knox to enter at once upon the office of +the ministry. But he declared that "he would not run where God had not +called him," and peremptorily refused to accede to their request. Upon +this they took counsel with Sir David Lindsay, of the Mount, and +others, and ultimately agreed that Rough, without giving any formal +warning that he was about to do anything of the kind, should address to +Knox a special public call in the name and before the face of the +congregation. Accordingly, in the presence of the people, and after +having preached a sermon on the election of ministers, Rough turned to +Knox and said, "Brother, ye shall not be offended, albeit that 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 of His Son Jesus Christ, +and in the name of these that presently call you by my mouth, I charge +you that ye refuse {16} not this holy vocation, but that, as ye tender +the glory of God, the increase of Christ's kingdom, the edification of +your brethren, and the comfort of me whom you understand well enough to +be oppressed by the multitude of labours, that ye take upon you the +public office and charge of preaching even as ye look to avoid God's +heavy displeasure, and desire that He shall multiply His graces with +you." Then turning to the congregation he said, "Was not this your +charge to me?" They answered, "It was, and we approve it." The +combined suddenness and solemnity of this appeal completely unmanned +Knox. He burst into tears and hastened to his closet, where we may +well believe that he sought light from God; and the result Was that he +was led to take up that ministry which he laid down only with his life. +Not from the impulse of caprice, or because he desired the position of +a preacher, but because he could not otherwise meet the responsibility +which God had laid upon him, did he enter upon that high and honourable +vocation. He was to do a work for his countrymen not unlike that which +Moses did for his kinsmen, and so like Moses he was called to it in the +full maturity of his powers, and entered upon it with the conviction +that God had given him his commission, and he dared not disobey. + +Nor did he tarry long before he began to preach, for the call of +Providence came almost simultaneously with that of the church. It +happened just then that Mr. Rough was engaged in a controversy with a +popish {17} dean named Annand. For such a discussion Rough was but +poorly furnished, since, as McCrie says, though he was sound in +doctrine, his literary acquirements were only moderate. In his +emergency he had been much assisted by Knox, who made such good use of +the pen that he beat back his adversary from all his defences. As a +last resort Annand took refuge in the authority of the Church, upon +which Knox at once exclaimed, in the hearing of those who were present +at the discussion, that a distinction must be drawn between the true +spouse of Christ and the Church of Rome, and offered to prove by word +or writing that the Papal Church had degenerated from that of primitive +times more than the Jews who crucified the Saviour had fallen from the +ordinances of Moses. On hearing this, the people alleged that they +could not all read his writings, but could all listen to his preaching, +and therefore insisted, in the name of God, that he would let them hear +his proof of the assertion which he had made. Such an appeal was not +to be resisted, and therefore on the very next Sunday Knox entered the +pulpit, and preached (from the text Daniel vii. 24, 25) a sermon, in +which, after having given the true marks of the Church, he went on to +expose the corruptions of the Romish clergy in their lives, the +erroneous doctrine taught by them, especially in the matter of +justification, and the enslaving laws enjoined by them in regard to +days, and meats, and marriage. In particular he inveighed against the +blasphemies of popery. He identified the Papal {18} Church with the +Babylonian harlot in the book of the Revelation, and concluded by +demanding the most thorough investigation of all the statements which +he had made, and the most minute examination of the authorities whom he +had cited. This discourse was listened to by a large assembly, among +whom was John Major, his old Glasgow principal, and it produced a great +effect upon all. Some said, "Others lopped off the branches of the +papistry, but he strikes at the root to destroy the whole." Others +predicted that he would meet the fate of Wishart, who had never spoken +quite so plainly as Knox had done that day. The new archbishop of St. +Andrews, not yet consecrated to his office, expostulated with the +vicar-general of the diocese for allowing such heretical doctrines to +be promulgated without opposition, and that led to the calling of a +convention of the learned men of the abbey and the university, before +which Rough and Knox were summoned to make answer to nine articles, +involving heresies, which had been drawn from their sermons. But +nothing more serious resulted from that meeting than a debate between +Knox and a friar named Arbuckle, whose arguments Knox easily refuted, +and that too with a considerable mixture of the grim humour which ever +and anon laughs outright in the pages of his history. Clearly, +therefore, it would be a perilous thing for the Church to let such a +man do all the preaching to the people; and so orders were issued that +each of the learned men in the abbey and university should preach {19} +in his own turn on the Sundays in the parish church. This deprived +Knox of the opportunity of addressing the congregation on those days +when the greatest numbers were in attendance; but he continued his +ministry on the other days of the week, and that with such success that +although it lasted in all at this time not more than three months, many +of the inhabitants of the town renounced popery, and made confession of +the Protestant faith by partaking of the Lord's Supper in the reformed +manner, the first occasion on which the ordinance was publicly +administered in Scotland after that fashion. + +Thus the beginning of Knox's work marks a distinct stage in the history +of the Scottish Reformation. At first, and under what has been called +by Lorimer the Hamilton period, peculiar emphasis was laid upon the +truths which were revived in the teaching of Luther; under the Wishart +period the doctrine of the sacraments came into prominence, and then +first the influence of Switzerland began to be felt by Scotland; but +under Knox attention was directed especially to the nature and +constitution of the church, and the first sermon which he preached, and +of which we have given the barest outline, had already in it "the +promise and the potency" of the great work which he was yet to +accomplish for his native land. + + + +[1] "The Scottish Reformation." A Historical Sketch by Peter Lorimer, +D.D. London: R. Griffin & Co., 1860, p. 157. + +[2] "The Works of John Knox," collected and edited by Dr. David Laing, +vol. i. p. 185. Once for all let it be said that in making these +quotations the spelling is modernized, but otherwise no alteration is +made. + +[3] By Dr. David Laing: see "Knox's Works," vol. vi. pp. xxii. xxiii. + + + + +{20} + +CHAPTER II. + +IN THE FRENCH GALLEYS, 1547-1549. + +During the months which had elapsed since the time when the Castle of +St. Andrews had become a refuge for those who had so summarily and +unscrupulously murdered Beaton, changes had occurred both in England +and in France which deeply affected their interests. Henry VIII. died +on the 28th January, 1547, and for a short time during the minority of +Edward the reins of government had been virtually given into the hands +of the Duke of Somerset, under the name of Protector. This deprived +the besieged of their most powerful friend, for although after Henry's +decease the Privy Council fulfilled his directions and voted money to +Leslie and others as individuals, together with a certain sum for the +maintenance of a garrison in the castle, yet Somerset took little +further care of those who remained within its shelter, and left them +virtually to their own resources. The death of Francis I. of France, +which took place on the 31st of March in the same year, added to their +danger, for he was succeeded by Henry II., who as Dauphin had been the +leader of the party {21} most opposed to England, and who was therefore +by no means indisposed to do anything that would tend to widen the +breach between that country and his own. When therefore Somerset, +unwisely insisting on reviving the pretensions of feudal superiority +over Scotland which had been put forth by Edward I., permitted the +Borders to be wasted by fire and sword, and urged the French to abstain +from interference, he was met with the reply that their king "might not +suffer the old friends of France to be oppressed and alienated from +him." In France, therefore, the Regent Arran and the queen-mother +found a willing ally, and in the beginning of June Leo Strozzi, prior +of Capua, appeared with a fleet of French galleys in sight of the +Castle of St. Andrews, and demanded the surrender of its inmates. +According to agreement this was conditioned on the reception from Rome +of absolution for the murderers of Beaton. But although Strozzi +brought absolution with him, it was expressed in such an equivocal +form,--"Remittimus irremissibile," we pardon that which is +unpardonable,--that the persons interested refused to accept it, and +the siege was renewed. Arran, hearing of the arrival of his allies, +hastened from the west country to co-operate with them, and the result +was such as might have been expected. For this time the defenders had +to contend with skilled gunners, before whose batteries, as Knox had +forewarned them would be the case, "their walls were no better than +eggshells." From the steeple of St. Salvador's College and the towers +of the Abbey, as well as from the galleys in {22} the bay, the cannon +of their assailants poured shot in upon them, while within the walls +the plague broke out with virulence. So in the end of July Kirkcaldy +of Grange went forth with a flag of truce to make the best possible +terms with the victors. The conditions obtained were that the lives of +all within the castle, whether English or Scotch, should be spared; +that they should be safely transported to France; and that in case, +upon conditions that by the king of France should be offered unto them, +they could not be content to remain in service and freedom there, they +should, at the expense of the king of France, be safely conveyed to +what country they would require, other than Scotland. These promises, +however, were shamefully broken, for the vanquished were taken on board +the vessels which had been plentifully loaded with the spoils of the +castle, and carried to France, where they were held in bondage for many +months. One detachment of them was taken to Cherbourg, and another to +Mount St. Michael. Knox himself was reduced to the condition of a +galley-slave. + +We have no connected account of his experiences in this time of trial, +but here and there in his works he has dropped incidental hints which +give us glimpses of his sufferings, and of the manner in which they +were endured by him. In his history of the Reformation, in connection +with the account of an effort made by some of his friends to dissuade +him in the year 1559 from preaching in St. Andrews, we have a report of +the answer which he gave to them, and in that occurs the following +passage: {23} "In this town and church began God first to call me to +the dignity of a preacher, from, the which I was reft by the tyranny of +France by procurement of the bishops as ye all well enough know. How +long I continued prisoner, _what torment I sustained in the galleys, +and what were the sobs of my heart_, is now no time to consider." An +equally pathetic reference to his misery during this season of bondage, +and to his solace under it, is to be found in his treatise on the true +nature and object of prayer, in which after having referred to the +words, (Ps. vii. 16, 17) "His mischief shall return upon his own head, +and his violent dealings shall come down upon his own pate. I will +praise the Lord according to His righteousness, and will sing praise to +the name of the Lord most high," he goes on to say, "This is not +written for David only, but for all such as shall suffer tribulation to +the end of the world. For I, the writer hereof (let this be said to +the laud and praise of God alone), in _anguish of mind and vehement +tribulation and affliction_, called to the Lord, when not only the +ungodly, but even my faithful brethren, yea and mine own self, that is +all natural understanding in me, judged my cause to be irremediable; +and yet in my greatest calamity, and when my pains were most cruel, +would His eternal wisdom that I should write far contrary to the +judgment of carnal wisdom, which His mercy has proved true. Blessed be +His holy name! And therefore I dare be bold, in the verity of God's +word to promise that notwithstanding the vehemence of trouble, the long +continuance thereof, the {24} dispersion of all men, the fearfulness, +danger, dolor, and anguish of our hearts; yet if we call constantly to +God, that beyond expectation of all men, He shall deliver." There can +be little doubt, as Dr. Laing remarks in a foot-note to this passage, +that Knox here refers to his bodily and mental sufferings during his +confinement on board the French galley, and so we see that his faith +was not a mere sentimental thing, that, as he has himself elsewhere +expressed it, he was no mere "speculative theologue," but indeed a +steadfast believer, who had proved God's faithfulness to His promise +even in the sorest tribulation. + +Again in the epistle to the congregation of the Castle of St. Andrews +prefixed by him to the tract on Justification by Faith, which his +friend Henry Balnaves had written during his imprisonment at Rouen, we +find among other allusions to his support under his sufferings the +following words: "I exhort that ye read diligently this treatise, not +only with earnest prayer that ye may understand the same aright, but +also with humble and due thanksgiving unto our most merciful Father, +who of His infinite power hath so strengthened the hearts of His +prisoners, that in despite of Satan they desist not yet to work, but in +the most vehemency of tribulation seek the utility and salvation of +others." + +And in a letter written in December, 1559, he speaks of "all the +torments of the galleys" in such a way as to lead us to conclude that +he was subjected to the greatest hardships. Once more, and perhaps +most pathetically of {25} all, in that letter to the congregation of +Berwick which Dr. Lorimer first printed in his "John Knox and the +Church of England," and to which we shall have to make fuller reference +by-and-by, he thus writes: "This day I am more vile and of low +reputation in my own eyes than I was either that day that _my feet were +chained in the prison of dolor_ (the galleys I mean), or yet that day +that I was delivered by His only providence from the same." + +It is clear, therefore, that his sufferings were severe, and while he +endured them with a fortitude that was sustained by his faith in God, +he was careful also to maintain always a conscience void of offence. +He tells us that those who were in the galleys "were threatened with +torments if they would not give reverence to the mass, but they could +never make the poorest of that company to give reverence to that idol." +He adds the following narrative, and from the ironic humour that plays +about his style as he recites it, we cannot doubt that he was himself +the hero of the story. "Soon after the arrival at Nantes, their great +salve was sung, and a glorious (gaudy) painted board was brought in to +be kissed, and amongst others was presented to one of the Scotchmen +then chained. He gently said, 'Trouble me not; such an idol is +accursed, and therefore I will not touch it.' The patron and the +arguesyn (_i.e._ sergeant who commanded the forcats) with two officers, +having the chief charge of all such matters, said, 'Thou shalt handle +it,' and so they violently thrust it to his face, and put it betwixt +his hands, who seeing the extremity, taking the {26} idol, and +advisedly looking about, he cast it into the river, and said, 'Let our +lady now save herself; she is light enough; let her learn to swim.' +After that was no Scotchman urged with that idolatry." + +But sorely bestead as he was in his captivity, he would not sanction +any attempt to escape which should savour of violence. Though himself +innocent of all complicity in Beaton's murder, he had seen the cause +which he had at heart so greatly hindered by the consequences of that +evil deed, and he was withal so utterly opposed to everything which he +believed that God had forbidden, that he would be no party to doing +evil that good might come. Accordingly when Kirkcaldy and two other +friends who were confined with him at Mount St. Michael wrote to him to +inquire whether they might with safe conscience break their prison, he +replied, that if without the shedding of any blood they could set +themselves at liberty, they might do so without sin, but that he would +never consent to their slaying of others in order to obtain +deliverance. He added the expression of his own assurance that God +Himself would work out their enlargement in such a way that "the praise +thereof should redound to His glory alone." Nor was that with him a +mere temporary or intermittent sentiment. It was the settled +conviction of his soul; for from the very beginning of his captivity +when one of his fellow-prisoners would often ask him if he thought that +they should ever be delivered, his invariable answer was that "God +would deliver them from that bondage {27} to His glory, even in this +life." Nor did he falter, even when his own strength seemed ebbing +out, for when the galleys had returned to Scotland in the summer of +1548, and were lying between Dundee and St. Andrews, while he himself +was so reduced by illness that his life was despaired of, the same +companion bidding him look to the land, asked him if he knew it, +whereupon he made reply, "Yes, I know it well, for I see the steeple of +that place where God first opened my mouth 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 holy name in the same +place." He tells this almost as if he believed that the Spirit of +prophecy spoke through him at the moment; but it is not necessary for +us, while admitting the full truth of the narrative, to accept any such +explanation. If his anticipation had not been verified, his words +might have been entirely forgotten; and the probability is that his +conviction rested rather upon his general apprehension of the +principles of the Divine administration, than upon any supernatural +communication of a special sort. The Psalmist writes that "the secret +of the Lord is with them that fear Him;" and this gracious +illumination, which is the heritage of all in the proportion in which +they possess the character with which it is associated, is sufficient +to account for the correctness of his impression, without having +recourse to the theory of prophetic inspiration. That even Knox +himself would have thus regarded this matter, seems clear from a +passage in {28} his "Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which Dr. Lorimer thinks is of standard authority as +giving the principle of interpretation for all those places in which he +speaks in what may be called a prophetic tone and manner; and in which +it has sometimes been thought that he spoke not without some endowment +of supernatural insight and foreknowledge. We quote the following +sentences: "But ye would know the grounds of my certitude. God grant +that hearing them, ye may understand and steadfastly believe the same. +My assurances are not marvels of Merlin, nor yet the dark sentences of +profane prophecies; but (1) the plain truth of God's word, (2) the +invincible justice of the everlasting God, and (3) the ordinary course +of His punishments and plagues from the beginning, are my assurances +and grounds" (p. 85). + +But however we may account for the assurance which he felt, his +forecast of the future was certainly remarkably fulfilled; and there +are few contrasts in history more striking and suggestive than that +between the weak and apparently dying galley-slave looking longingly on +the shores of his native land; and the energetic Reformer of a later +date, of whom the English ambassador wrote to Cecil saying: "I assure +you the voice of one man is able in an hour to put more life in us than +six hundred trumpets continually blustering in our ears." + + + + +{29} + +CHAPTER III. + +MINISTRY IN BERWICK-ON-TWEED, 1549-1550. + +By what means Knox obtained his release from the galling servitude in +which he had been held by the French, we have not been able to +discover; but it is believed that he was indebted for it to the +intercession of England, and it is certain that in the early part of +the year 1549, he was employed by the Privy Council of that country as +one of the ministers whom its members commissioned to preach the +doctrines of the Reformation throughout the kingdom. The probability +is that he arrived in London about the month of February, and it is +conjectured that as Henry Balnaves was in that city as a commissioner +from the besieged in St. Andrews, at the time of the death of Henry +VIII., Knox, who had just then entered upon his ministry, may have been +beholden to his friend for bringing his name to the favourable notice +of the English Reformers. But however that may have been, we come upon +authentic and reliable information, when we find in the register of the +Privy Council, under date April 7th, 1549, an entry authorizing the +payment of five pounds "to {30} John Knox, preacher, by way of reward." +Besides this, his name occurs as the sixty-fourth in a list of eighty +who obtained licence to preach in England during the reign of Edward +the Sixth. He himself informs us in his History, that "he was first +appointed preacher to Berwick, then to Newcastle; last he was called to +London and to the southern parts of England, where he remained till the +death of Edward the Sixth." This is all that he has said directly in +that work concerning his residence in England; but so much new light +has been shed on this part of the Reformer's career by the painstaking +and elaborate monogram of Dr. Lorimer, that we are now able to follow +his steps with something like minuteness. + +He was settled first at the border town of Berwick-on-Tweed, which in +those days was "the focus of a long and bloody war between the two +kingdoms, which had begun with the tremendous slaughter of the Scots at +Pinkey in the autumn of 1547, and in which the Scots, having received +large assistance from France, were still able to maintain so vigorous a +defence that there was no near prospect of a return of peace."[1] Thus +it happened that its garrison was larger than ordinary, and everything +about the place was volcanic. Quarrels among the soldiers were common, +and the civilians themselves were not over peaceful, so that the +chronic state of the town was one of disorder. John Brende, "master of +the musters," reports to the Protector Somerset concerning {31} it: +"There is better order among the Tartars than in this town; the whole +picture of the place is one of social disorder and the worst +police."[2] Besides all this, the great majority of the people were as +yet probably papists, for the doctrines of the Reformation had made +little progress thus far in the northern counties, and matters +ecclesiastical were very unsettled. In March of that year the first +Prayer-Book of Edward VI. was sanctioned by Parliament and published +for the use of the Church. The new liturgy still retained much of the +leaven of sacerdotalism and sacramentarianism, but it was decidedly in +advance of anything which could have been issued in the days of Henry +VIII. It was thoroughly approved by but a portion of the bishops, and +there were several counties in the remoter parts of the kingdom where +it was never introduced at all. Tunstall, then Bishop of Durham, who +was no friend to the cause of reform, was in no haste to give effect to +the new legislation; and the council of the north, to which was +committed the care of public affairs in that then distant corner of the +realm, probably thought it advisable to refrain from enforcing it upon +the people, until they were prepared, by the instructions of some +eminent preacher, for receiving and obeying it. Thus we account for +the fact that, all the time he was in Berwick, Knox was left very much +to his own discretion as to the doctrines which he preached, and the +methods {32} which he adopted for the conduct of Divine service and the +administration of the sacraments. + +Already in his preface to Balnaves's treatise on Justification, the +first of his printed productions so far as can be traced, he had +written a summary of his belief on that great central doctrine; and in +his disputation with Arbuckle in St. Andrews, he had been truly charged +with holding the following opinions--viz. first, man may neither make +nor devise a religion that is acceptable to God, but is bound to +observe and keep the religion that from God is received without +chopping or changing thereof; second, the sacraments of the New +Testament ought to be ministered as they were instituted by Christ +Jesus and practised by the apostles, nothing ought to be added to them, +nothing ought to be diminished from them; third, the mass is abominable +idolatry, blasphemous to the death of Christ, and a profanation of the +Lord's Supper. When therefore he began his labours at Berwick he set +himself to the proclamation of the great truths which radiate from the +priesthood of Christ; and in his dispensation of the supper he followed +an order of his own, which was not improbably the same as he had +adopted in the Castle of St. Andrews. This is put beyond dispute by +his letter to the congregation of Berwick, written probably about the +close of 1552, and the fragment entitled "The Practice of the Lord's +Supper used in Berwick-upon-Tweed by John Knox, preacher to the +congregation of the Church there," both of which are to be found in +{33} Dr. Lorimer's Appendix. The matter is of more than mere +antiquarian interest, and we may therefore make one or two extracts +from the more important of these documents. + +In regard to his preaching he thus writes: "As for the variety and +diversity of opinions touching the doctrine and chief points of +religion which ye have received, God I take to witness, and the Lord +Jesus Christ, before whom at once shall all flesh appear, that I never +taught unto you, nor unto any others my auditory, that doctrine as +necessary to be believed which I did not find written in God's holy law +and testament. And, therefore, in that case with Paul I will say, 'If +an angel from heaven shall teach unto you another gospel than ye have +heard and externally received, let him be accursed.'" Then after +stating in a positive form what he understands by the gospel he adds: +"If in any of these chief and principal points any man vary from that +doctrine which ye have professed, let him be accursed:[3] (1) as if any +man teach any other cause moving God to elect and choose us than His +own infinite goodness and mere mercy; (2) any other name in heaven or +under the heaven wherein salvation stands, but only the name of Jesus; +(3) any other means whereby we are justified and absolved from wrath +and damnation that our sins deserve, than by faith only; (4) any other +cause or end of good works than that first we are made good trees, and +thereafter bring {34} forth fruits accordingly, to witness that we are +lively members of Christ's holy and most sanctified body, prepared +vessels to the honour and praise of our Father's glory; (5) if any +teach prayers to be made to other than God above; (6) if any Mediator +betwixt God and man, but only our Lord Jesus; (7) if more or other +sacraments be affirmed or required to be used than Christ Jesus left +ordinary in His Church, to wit, Baptism and the Lord's Table, or +mystical supper; (8) if any deny remission of sins, resurrection of the +flesh and life everlasting to appertain to us in Christ's blood, which, +sprinkled in our hearts by faith, doth purge us from all sin; so that +we need no more nor other sacrifices than that oblation once offered +for all, by the which God's elect be fully sanctified and made perfect; +if any I say, require any other sacrifice to be made for sins than +Christ's death, which once He suffered, or any other manner whereby +Christ's death may be applied to man, than by faith only, which also is +the gift of God, so that man hath no cause to glory in works; and yet, +if any deny good works to be profitable as not necessary to a true +Christian profession, let the affirmers, teachers, or maintainers of +such a doctrine be accursed of you, as they are of God unless they +repent." In these articles we are struck with the absence of all +reference to the Holy Spirit and regeneration; but we have many +allusions to these subjects elsewhere, some, indeed, in this very +document, and we may suppose that as it was specifically the +mediatorial work of Christ that was then in controversy, {35} he +designedly restricted himself to that. But from this summary, brief as +it is, we learn that even at this early date, long before he had +visited Geneva, or met Calvin, Knox had found his own way by the study +of the Scriptures to those views of gospel truth which are now +associated with the name of the great Frenchman; and that they formed +the chief themes of his public discourse at Berwick is evident from the +solemn words with which he has here introduced their enumeration. + +Nor was his proclamation of them there in vain; for in his vindication +of himself, at a later date before Queen Mary of Scotland, from the +charge of causing great sedition and slaughter in England, and securing +his ends by necromancy, he said among other things, "I shame not +further to affirm that God so blessed my weak labours, that in Berwick, +where commonly before there used to be slaughter by reason of quarrels +that used to arise among the soldiers, there was as great quietness all +the time that I remained there, as there is this day in Edinburgh."[4] +Besides this, there is in the letter from which we have quoted abundant +evidence that his biographer was not wrong when he affirmed that during +his two years in Berwick numbers were converted and a visible +reformation was produced upon the soldiers of the garrison who had been +notorious for turbulence and licentiousness. + +But his procedure in regard to the Lord's Supper was even more +remarkable for its independence, than {36} the tenour of his discourses +was for its adherence to the Pauline theology. In the Book of Common +Prayer issued by the joint authorization of Convocation and Parliament +in 1549, the rubric for the Lord's Supper provided that bread +"unleavened and round as it was afore" should be used. But in regard +to that Knox took the bold course of ignoring the authoritative +rubrics. He substituted common bread for the wafer, and he +administered the "elements" to the people while they sat, according to +the form still followed in the nonconforming churches of England, and +the Presbyterian churches in all parts of the world. It may seem to +some that this was a defiance of the law; and perhaps in strictest +construction so it was; but it is to be remembered that, as yet, the +law had not become operative in the district to which Berwick belonged, +and that therefore it was open meanwhile for Knox to take the course +which he believed to be best. Thus he writes:[5] "Kneeling at the +Lord's Supper I have proved by doctrine (teaching) to be no convenient +gesture for a table; (a gesture) which hath been given in that action +to such a presence of Christ, as no place of God's Scripture doth teach +unto us. And therefore, _kneeling in that action_, appearing to be +joined with certain dangers, no less in maintaining superstition than +in using Christ's holy institution with other gestures than either He +used or commanded to be used, _I thought good amongst you to avoid and +to {37} use sitting at the Lord's Table_; which ye did not refuse, but +with all reverence and thanksgiving to God for His truth knowing, as I +suppose, ye confirmed the doctrine with your gestures and confession." +The order which he observed[6] began with a sermon on the benefits +given us by God through Jesus Christ; this was followed by prayer, +after which was read the account of the institution of the ordinance +from 1 Corinthians xi. 20-30. Then a declaration of "what persons be +unworthy to be partakers" was made; after which "common prayer was +offered in the form of confession." At the conclusion of this prayer, +some notable passage in which God's mercy is most evidently declared +was read from the gospel, and thereafter the minister pronounced +absolution to such as unfeignedly repent and believe in Jesus Christ. +After this came prayer for the congregation and for the sovereign. + +At this point the fragment which we have been following breaks off, but +there is every reason to believe that the remainder of the service was +the same as that afterwards adopted in Scotland; and any one at all +conversant with the ecclesiastical ritual of the Presbyterian churches +in that country may see in the portion which we have given the origin +of the "action" sermon, the "fencing of the tables;" and the frequent +if not invariable use of the passage from first Corinthians as the +"warrant" for the observance of the Supper, {38} which characterize a +communion "occasion" in that country. But the singular thing about the +matter is that this Puritan and Presbyterian form of administering the +ordinance of the Lord's Supper was observed in England by John Knox +when he was labouring at Berwick as a recognised minister of the Church +of England, and acting under the authority, or perhaps, to put it more +correctly, with the permission, of the government. This was at a date +anterior by ten years to the time when it was introduced into Scotland +with the sanction of its Parliament. + +But it deserves notice that although Knox was thus conscientiously +opposed to kneeling at the Lord's Table, he was not so intolerant as to +declare that the taking of that posture at that table was necessarily +sinful. The reader of the letter addressed to the congregation at +Berwick cannot fail to be struck with the broad Pauline spirit +manifested by the Reformer in his treatment of this subject. He is +advising his friends as to what they should do if, now that he had +ceased to have the oversight of them, the practice of kneeling at the +communion table should be insisted upon; and he affirms that he neither +recants nor repents his former teaching, but still prefers sitting to +any other posture; yet he adds[7] "because I am but one having in my +contrair, magistrates, common order, and judgments of many learned, I +am not minded for maintenance of that one thing to gainstand the +magistrates in all and {39} other chief points of religion agreeing +with Christ, and His true doctrine, nor yet to break nor trouble common +Order, thought meet to be kept for unity and peace in the congregations +for a time. And least of all do I intend to condemn or lightly regard +the grave judgments of such men as unfeignedly I fear (reverence), love +and will obey, in all things judged expedient to promote God's glory, +_these subsequents granted to me_." Then follow three conditions which +may be summarized thus,--first, that the magistrates make known that +kneeling is not required for any superstitious reasons or for any +adoration of Christ's natural body believed to be there present, but +only for the sake of uniform Order and that for a time; second, that +kneeling is not imposed as a thing essential to the right observance of +the ordinance, or required by Christ, but enjoined only as a ceremony +thought seemly by men; and third, that the brethren shall have regard +to his conscience, and not bring any uncharitable accusation against +him, because he seeks to follow what Christ has commanded rather than +what men have required. With these concessions granted, he declares +that he would be satisfied; and that there may be no breach of charity, +he recommends his former flock, should these conditions be complied +with, to conform to the requirements of the Prayer-Book if those in +authority should insist on their so doing. We have been the more +particular in bringing out this fact at this particular time, because +of its bearing on his conduct in connection with the {40} issue of the +revised Prayer-Book in 1552, of which we shall have to speak more +particularly by-and-by. + +So much for the Reformer's public work in Berwick; but before we +accompany him to Newcastle, we must pause to mention that it was during +his residence at this time in the border town that he made the +acquaintance of and was engaged to the lady who afterwards became his +wife. Her name was Marjory Bowes, and she was the daughter of Richard +Bowes, youngest son of Sir Ralph Bowes, of Streatham. Her mother was +Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Robert Aske, of Aske. The father, probably +on account of Knox's religious opinions, was opposed to the marriage, +and so the union was deferred for some years. But the mother was +friendly to the Reformer, and with her he kept up a constant +correspondence in which many of the softer traits of his character come +beautifully out. Mrs. Bowes was subject to religious melancholy, and +the tender manner in which he often seeks in his letters to bind up her +bruised spirit shows that, when occasion needed, he could be a "son of +consolation" as well as a "son of thunder." Sometimes too, as when his +heart was stirred with solicitude for the spiritual interests of those +among whom he had laboured, or when he was required to confront the +possible issue of his uncompromising adherence to what he believed to +be right, he rises to a strain of heroism which reminds us of the +greatest of the apostles. One example of this occurs in his letter to +his Berwick friends, and we may fitly {41} close this chapter by +reproducing it here. "If any man be offended with me that I, willing +to avoid God's wrath and vengeance threatened against such as having no +necessity despise His ordinances, do purpose and intend to obey God, +embracing such as He has offered unto me (rather) than to please and +flatter man that unjustly held the same from me; if any, I say, for +this cause be offended and will seek my displeasure or trouble, let the +same understand, that as I have a body, which only they may hurt, and +not unless God so permit; so have they bodies and souls which both +shall God punish in fire inextinguishably with the devil and his +angels, unless suddenly they repent and cease to malign against God and +His holy ordinance. With life and death, dear brethren, I am at +point,--they before me in equal balances. Transitory life is not so +sweet to me that for defence thereof I will jeopard to lose the life +everlasting. Nor yet is corporeal death to me so fearful that albeit +most certainly I understood the same shortly to follow my godly +purpose, I would therefore depone myself to die in God's wrath and +anger for ever and ever, which no doubt I should do, if for man's +pleasure I refused God's perfect ordinance."[8] There is no mistaking +the ring of such words as these; and lie who wrote them takes his place +in the honourable company of the heroes of conscience to whom the world +no less than the Church has owed so much. + + + +[1] Lorimer, p. 17. + +[2] Lorimer, p. 18 + +[3] Lorimer, pp. 257-8. + +[4] Lorimer, p. 16. + +[5] Lorimer, p. 261. + +[6] Lorimer, p. 290. + +[7] Lorimer, pp. 261-2. + +[8] Lorimer, p. 260. + + + + +{42} + +CHAPTER IV. + +KNOX AND THE ENGLISH BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, 1551-1553. + +From Berwick Knox was removed, in the early summer of 1551, to +Newcastle-on-Tyne, where he laboured, with occasional absences, for +nearly two years. Already, in the spring of 1550, he had made a public +discourse of great importance there, and perhaps the impression +produced by his words then, may have led to his being ultimately +transferred thither. There is extant among his writings "A Vindication +of the Doctrine that the Sacrifice of the Mass is Idolatry," to which +this note is prefixed: "The fourth of April, in the year 1550, was +appointed to John Knox, preacher of the Holy Evangel of Jesus Christ, +to give his confession why he affirmed the mass idolatry; which day, in +presence of the Council, and congregation, amongst whom was also +present the Bishop of Durham, in this manner he beginneth." This has +been supposed by some to indicate that he was under accusation of +heresy, and had been called to Newcastle to make his defence. But +though it is not unlikely that his {43} doctrine had been objected to +by Tunstall, yet the Council of the North was not an ecclesiastical +tribunal, and there is nothing in the whole address to imply that the +speaker was upon his trial. The truth seems rather to have been that +the members of the Council invited him to declare and enforce his +opinions concerning the mass before an audience which filled the great +church of St. Nicholas. + +The argument of his discourse on this occasion was an amplification of +the following syllogism: "all worshipping, honouring, or service, +invented by the brain of man, in the religion of God, without His +express commandment is idolatry: the mass is invented by the brain of +man without any commandment of God; therefore, the mass is idolatry." +The ground here taken was identical with that which he had defended +against Arbuckle, and is distinctively different from the position +which, in the very same year, was taken by Cranmer in his "Defence of +the true Catholic Doctrine of the Sacrament." The Anglican primate +meant by idolatry the substitution of a false God for the true, as in +the adoration of the host, for the real body, blood, soul and divinity +of the Lord Jesus Christ. But by the same term, as his major premise +makes abundantly evident, Knox designated that which we should call now +constructive idolatry, namely, "the invention of strange worshippings +of God, introduced without any warrant from His word;" or what the +Westminster divines meant, when in their Shorter Catechism in answer to +the {44} question, "What is forbidden in the second commandment?" they +reply, "The worshipping of God by images, _or any other way not +appointed in His word_." With Cranmer the word meant the worshipping +as God of that which is no God; with Knox it denoted the worshipping of +God in a manner invented by men and unauthorized by God. Cranmer was +the father of the Anglican churchmen; Knox was the earliest, and by no +means the least noteworthy, of the Puritans, for the principle which he +advocated was one which he was as ready to apply to ceremonies in the +reformed churches as to the idolatries of the Romish worship. The +utterance of these sentiments by him at this time marks the beginning +of that movement which has continued even until now, and which in its +progress, among other less conspicuous results, called into existence +the various nonconforming churches of England; inspired the covenanters +of Scotland to begin and carry through their long and painful struggle +with the second Charles; widened the civil liberties of Great Britain; +and planted the seed from which the American Republic has grown into +stateliness and strength. + +Its more immediate personal effect, as we have conjectured, was the +transference of Knox from Berwick to Newcastle, where he continued to +administer word and sacraments in the same manner as he had been +accustomed to follow. On the banks of the Tyne he was as faithful and +fearless in his pulpit utterances, and as simple in his ritual +observances, as he had been on the {45} banks of the Tweed. "God is +witness," said he in a letter to his Newcastle friends, written by him +from the continent in 1558; "and I refuse not your own judgments, how +simply and uprightly I conversed and walked among you, that neither for +fear did I spare to speak the simple truth unto you; neither for hope +of worldly promotion, dignity, or honour, did I wittingly adulterate +any part of God's Scriptures, whether it were in exposition, in +preaching, contention, or writing; but that simply and plainly, as it +pleased the merciful goodness of my God to give unto me the utterance, +understanding, and spirit, I did distribute the bread of life, as of +Christ Jesus I had received it;"[1] and again, "How oft have ye +assisted to baptism? How oft have ye been partakers of the Lord's +Table prepared, and used, and ministered, in all simplicity, not as a +man had devised, neither as the king's proceedings did allow, but as +Christ Jesus did institute, and as it is evident that Saint Paul did +practise?"[2] How it came that he was permitted to administer the +sacrament in that manner does not appear; but the fact that he did so +is incontrovertible, and that he did not stand quite alone in taking +such a course is evident from these words in Becon's "Displaying of the +Mass," written in the reign of Queen Mary: "How oft have I seen here, +in England, people sitting at the Lord's Table!" It is well known also +that the opinions of Hooper, on this subject, were in full accord with +those of Knox; and though we have not been able {46} to find any +distinct statement that he had actually reduced them to practice, yet +it is all but certain that he did so. + +But in any case his nonconformity in the matter of kneeling did not +keep Knox from attaining a prominent place among the leaders of his +time, for in December, 1551, six months after he had been stationed at +Newcastle, he was appointed one of King Edward the Sixth's chaplains, +who were six in number, and all of whom were selected because they were +"accounted the most zealous and ready preachers of that time." This +preferment was a recognition of the ability which Knox had shown. It +added much to his consideration and weight in the social scale, while +it gave him an opportunity of making his influence felt in +ecclesiastical affairs in a manner which has left its mark on the +English Prayer-Book even until the present day. To understand how this +came about, it is needful to bear in mind that the Second or Revised +Book of Common Prayer was completed at the press in August, 1552, and +had been appointed by the Parliament of that year to come into use in +the churches on the first day of November. Into that book had been +reintroduced from the "order of communion," published in 1548,[3] {47} +the injunction that the people should receive the bread and wine +"kneeling." That had, indeed, been the accustomed posture before, but +no instruction for its observance had been contained in the First +Prayer-Book published in 1549. There the directions are thus given: +"Then shall the priest first receive the communion in both kinds +himself, and next deliver it to other ministers, if any be there +present (that they may be ready to help the chief minister), and after +to the people." But in the two years immediately following the +publication of that First Prayer-Book, discussion on the posture at the +Lord's Table had been brought up, and as Cranmer, Ridley, and the most +of the other Reforming Bishops were opposed to the views and practices +of Knox, Hooper, and others, they deemed it advisable to foreclose +debate and put an end to diversity of order by an authoritative +injunction. For this purpose, in the Prayer-Book in 1552 the rubric +was made to read thus: "Then shall the minister first receive the +communion in both kinds himself, and next deliver it to the other {48} +ministers, if any be there present (that they may help the chief +minister), and after to the people, in their hands, kneeling." Thus it +came about that what had been left undefined in the former book was +expressly limited in the new one; and, therefore, though in other +respects the latter was much more in harmony with the sentiments of +Knox, it was in this less tolerant than the former. When, therefore, +Knox was appointed to preach before the king in the autumn of that +year, having probably seen one of the first-issued copies of the book, +he took occasion to enter fully into the discussion of the mode of +administering the communion, and his discourse was not without +immediate effect, for in a letter of John Utenhovius to Henry +Bullinger, dated October 12, 1552, the writer says:[4] "Some disputes +have arisen among the bishops, within these few days, in consequence of +a sermon by a pious preacher, chaplain to the Duke of Northumberland, +preached by him, before the king and Council, in which he inveighed +with great freedom against kneeling at the Lord's Supper, which is +still retained here in England. This good man, however, a Scotsman by +nation, has so wrought upon the minds of many that we may hope some +good to the church will at length arise from it, which I earnestly +implore the Lord to grant." Now there can be no doubt that the +preacher here referred to was Knox, who as having been in contact with +Northumberland as Warden-General of the border counties, might easily +be {49} mistaken by a foreigner for the chaplain of that nobleman. +Other facts to be taken in connection with the information furnished by +Utenhovius are the following:[5] In the Record of the Privy Council, +under date 26th September, 1552, there is an order to Grafton, the +printer, forbidding him to issue any copies of the new Prayer-Book; and +commanding that if any had been already distributed to his +fellow-publishers they should "not be put abroad until certain faults +therein had been corrected." Clearly therefore, as copies of the book +had been sold, it was possible for Knox to have obtained one, and as +Lorimer says, "none would be more eager purchasers than those ministers +of the Church who were most zealous for reform." Meetings of the +Council were held on October 4th and 6th, at one or other of which +objections to the rubric seem to have been made, probably as the result +of Knox's sermon, and to have been referred to Cranmer for his review. +On October 7th, Cranmer wrote to the Council in vindication of the +rubric on kneeling, a letter which purports to be a reply to certain +objections against it which had been forwarded to him by its members. +On the _agenda_ paper of the business to be transacted at the meeting +of the Council on the 20th of October, and which still exists in the +handwriting of Cecil, there is a line to this effect: "Mr. Knocks--b of +Cat|rb|--ye book in ye B of Durh|m|," and at that very meeting, as we +learn from the Record, "a letter was directed to Messrs. Harley, Bill, +Horn, {50} Grindal, Pern, and Knox, to consider certain articles +exhibited to the King's Majesty, to be subscribed by all such as shall +be admitted to be preachers or ministers in any part of the realm, and +to make report of their opinions touching the same." These articles, +therefore, must have come at this time into Knox's hands, and, though +many of them must have received his cordial endorsement, there was one +of them which he could not have approved; that, namely, which contained +this clause: "and as to the character of the ceremonies, they are +repugnant in nothing to the wholesome liberty of the gospel, if they +are judged from their own nature, but very well agree with it, and in +very many respects further the same in a high degree." How could Knox, +after his recent sermon on kneeling in the Lord's Supper, give his +sanction to that article? Manifestly he would feel that he must +protest against such an assertion as it contained; and then, as Lorimer +says, "the thought would seem to have flashed upon him that he had now +another and quite an unexpected opportunity of making a fresh appeal to +the king and Council on that very question of the rubric on kneeling, +which was still apparently in dependence. There was still time to make +one more attempt. In addition to his judgment upon the articles at +large, which need not go to the Council so quickly, what if he should +single out this 38th Article and make it the subject of a separate +representation, and distinguishing between the ceremony of kneeling and +all the rest; what if he should confine the bulk {51} of his +representations to this single point, which was now the only one in +which it was feasible to look for any immediate alteration?" That at +least was done by the memorial, which by its authors is called their +confession in regard to the 38th Article, and which Lorimer has printed +for the first time in his appendix. No names are subscribed to the +document, but the first portion of it bears strong internal evidence of +having been the production of Knox; and though in other parts there are +traces, as the painstaking editor thinks, of the hands of Thomas Becon +and Roger Hutchinson, we agree with him in believing that every one who +examines the whole statement with care will conclude "that whatever +Englishman may have joined him in the memorial, and whatever they may +have contributed to its substance of thought, it was Knox himself who +held the pen." This memorial could have been of no use after the final +action of the Council on the matter of "kneeling;" and it was evidently +called forth by the reference of the articles to the royal chaplains, +therefore it must have been prepared between the 20th and 27th October, +and must have been presented to the meeting of the Council on the +latter of these two dates, on which also, and we may conclude as the +result of the arguments contained in the memorial, the "Declaration on +Kneeling," which has all the marks of the style of Cranmer, and which +therefore had probably been sent by him to the Council as a suggested +compromise, was adopted, and ordered to be {52} inserted in the +forthcoming book. This accounts for the circumstance mentioned by the +editor of "The Two Liturgies" in a note, that the paragraph in question +"is printed on a separate leaf in some copies, and as is evident from +the signatures, was added afterwards." In one copy, "the leaf is +pasted in after the copy was bound, and several copies are without it." +Now putting all these things together, the conclusion is not only +legitimate but inevitable, that the insertion of the declaration on +kneeling in the Prayer-Book was due to the agency of Knox, more +probably than to that of any other man. As Lorimer writes (p. 121), +"The compromise prevailed, but apparently there would not have been so +much as a compromise obtained if the 'confession' had not been thrown +into the scale at the very last moment.... His last blow had the +effect of overcoming the resistance to all further change which a +majority of the Council had hitherto maintained." Hence, though we may +not approve of the spirit in which Weston uttered the words, or accept +either his description of Knox or his designation of the doctrine on +which he insisted, yet he was correct as to the matter of fact when he +said, "a renegade Scot did take away the adoration and worshipping of +Christ in the sacrament, by whose procurement that heresy was put into +the last communion book; so much prevailed that one man's authority at +that time." + +The Declaration itself was in the following words:--"Although no order +can be so perfectly devised, but it {53} may be of some, either for +their ignorance and infirmity, or else of malice and obstinacy, +misconstrued, depraved, and interpreted in a wrong part: And yet, +because brotherly charity willeth, that so much as conveniently may be, +offences should be taken away; therefore we willing to do the same: +Whereas it is ordained in the Book of Common Prayer, in the +administration of the Lord's Supper, that the communicants kneeling +should receive the Holy Communion: which thing being well meant, for a +signification of the humble and grateful acknowledging of the benefits +of Christ, given unto the worthy receiver, and to avoid the profanation +and disorder, which about the Holy Communion might else ensue: lest yet +the same kneeling might be thought or taken otherwise, we do declare +that it is not meant thereby, that any adoration is done, or ought to +be done, either unto the sacramental bread and wine there bodily +received, or to any real and essential presence there being of Christ's +natural flesh and blood. For as concerning the sacramental bread and +wine, they remain still in their very natural substances, and therefore +may not be adored, for that were Idolatry to be abhorred of all +faithful Christians. And as concerning the natural body and blood of +our Saviour Christ they are in heaven and not here. For it is against +the truth of Christ's true natural body, to be in more places than in +one at one time." Opinions will of course differ as to whether in this +matter the influence of Knox was beneficial or the reverse. We are +writing biography, not a treatise on {54} theology, and what we have +been seeking to show is the share that Knox had in the English +Reformation. Sacramentarians generally will agree in styling the +Declaration which we have quoted "the black rubric," but for ourselves +we have no hesitation in avowing our agreement with Lorimer that "there +is nothing in the whole English Liturgy which is, to say the least, +more Protestant;" and it may be well, to give completeness to our +reference to the subject, that we should add that author's very +condensed summary of the subsequent history of this famous rubric. "At +the accession of Elizabeth it was dropped out of the Prayer-Book, along +with that portion of the 35th Article upon which it rested; and it +remained outside the Liturgy for a hundred years. And why? Simply +because its omission was judged as important by the Church's leaders +then as its insertion had been at first. Elizabeth's church policy was +a comprehensive policy, and neither James I. nor Charles I. had any +wish to depart from it. She wished, and so did her council and first +Parliament, to make it as easy as possible for the "Roman party to +continue in the National Church, but she and they knew that such a +comprehension was impossible as long as the "Declaration on Kneeling" +remained in the Prayer-Book. Its insertion had taken place in order to +"comprehend" the Puritan party, to the exclusion of the Romanists; and +now its omission took place in order to comprehend the Romanists, at +the risk of driving out the Puritans. But why do we now {55} find the +"Declaration" restored to its old place? What was the motive of so +remarkable a rehabilitation in 1662? It is easy to discern it. The +circle of church evolution and change had then returned into itself. +In 1662 the old policy of conciliating and comprehending the Puritans +instead of the Catholics was again in season--was again the key of the +situation. To this policy the "Declaration on Kneeling" was again +indispensable, and again, therefore, this most remarkable rubric was +restored, in substantially the same form, to its vacant place. Nor has +its history yet exhausted itself. It has retained its recovered place +through all the changes of the last two centuries only to come forward +into new significance and importance in our own day. The last chapter +of its history was written only the other day in the long discussion +and the fateful decision of the Bennett case. Its simple but trenchant +language was often quoted in the pleadings, and passed into the body of +the judgment itself: "As concerning the natural body and blood of our +Saviour Christ they are in heaven, not here: for it is against the +truth of Christ's true natural body to be in more places than in one at +one time." + +But the memorial to the Privy Council, which we have traced to Knox, +prevailed also so far as to secure a modification of the article on +ceremonies, which, originally numbered as the 38th, came out owing to +some minor condensations as the 35th, and took this ultimate shape--(we +give Lorimer's translation from {56} the Latin)--"The book which of +very late time was given to the Church of England by the king's +authority and the Parliament, containing the manner and form of praying +and ministering the sacraments in the Church of England, likewise also +the book of ordering ministers of the Church set forth by the foresaid +authority, are godly, and in no point repugnant to the wholesome +doctrine of the gospel, but agreeable thereunto, furthering and +beautifying the same not a little; and therefore of all faithful +members of the Church of England, and chiefly of the ministers of the +Lord, they ought to be received and allowed with all readiness of mind +and thanksgiving, and to be commended to the people of God."[6] When +this is compared with the clause formerly given it will be seen that +what before was said of the "ceremonies" is here restricted to the +"doctrine," and that everything to which the memorial had taken +exception is omitted. + +But though the insertion of the Declaration on Kneeling into the +Prayer-Book satisfied one of the conditions which, in his letter to his +Berwick friends, Knox had laid down as essential to his conforming to +"common Order": it did not meet the others, and so he steadily refused +to accept a formal charge in the Church of England. At the very time +when the Council was {57} engaged in the discussions which we have just +mentioned, the Duke of Northumberland wrote from Chelsea, under date +October 27th, 1552, to Secretary Cecil, in these words:[7] "I would to +God it might please the King's majesty to appoint Mr. Knox to the +office of Rochester bishopric, which for three reasons would be very +well. First: he would not only be a whetstone to quicken and sharp the +Bishop of Canterbury, whereof he hath need, but also would be a great +confounder of the Anabaptists lately sprung up in Kent. Secondly, he +should not continue the ministration in the north, contrary to this set +forth here" (meaning to the usual form prescribed at this time). +"Thirdly, the family of the Scots now inhabiting in Newcastle, chiefly +for his fellowship, would not continue there, wherein many resort to +them out of Scotland, which is not requisite." These are certainly +rather strange reasons why Knox should be promoted to a bishopric, but +they prove not only that he had acted an independent part in Newcastle, +but also that his fame had gone so widely over Scotland that multitudes +of his fellow-countrymen were attracted to that place for the sake of +enjoying his ministrations. But he would not be made a bishop, and he +must have expressed his refusal with all his wonted plainness of +speech, for a few weeks later, on the 7th December, Northumberland +writes to the same correspondent: "Master Knox's being here to speak +with me, saying he was so willed by you; I do return him again, {58} +because I love not to have to do with men which be neither grateful nor +pleasable."[8] So his grace is minded to put the case; but with his +former letter in our hands we can see that gratitude in his vocabulary +meant falling in with his individual plans, and "pleasableness" was +with him a synonym for "squeezeableness." + +In the following February (1553) Knox was offered the Vicarage of All +Hallows in Bread Street (London); but that also he declined, and we +have from the pen of Calderwood an account of what occurred in +connection with that.[9] "In a letter, dated the 14th of April, 1553, +and written with his own hand, I find," says that author, "that he was +called before the Council of England for kneeling, who demanded of him +three questions. First, why he refused the benefice provided for him? +secondly, whether he thought that no Christian might serve in the +ecclesiastical ministration according to the rites and laws of the +realm of England? thirdly, if kneeling at the Lord's Table was not +indifferent? To the first he answered, that his conscience did witness +that he might profit more in some other place than in London; and +therefore had no pleasure to accept any office in the same. Howbeit, +he might have answered otherwise, that he refused that parsonage +because of my Lord of Northumberland's command. To the second, that +many things were worthy of reformation in the ministry of England, +without the reformation whereof no minister {59} did discharge, or +could discharge, his conscience before God; for no minister in England +had authority to divide and separate the lepers from the whole, which +was a chief point of his office; yet did he not refuse such office as +might appear to promote God's glory in utterance of Christ's gospel in +a mean degree, where more he might edify by preaching of the true word +than hinder by sufferance of manifest iniquity, seeing that reformation +of manners did not appertain to all ministers. To the third he +answered, that Christ's action in itself was most perfect, and Christ's +action was done without kneeling; that kneeling was man's addition or +imagination; that it was most sure to follow the example of Christ, +whose action was done sitting and not kneeling. In this last question +there was great contention betwixt the whole table of the lords and +him. There were present there the Bishops of Canterbury and Ely, my +Lord Treasurer, the Marquis of Northampton, the Earl of Bedford, the +Earl of Shrewsbury, Master Comptroller, my Lord Chamberlain, both the +Secretaries, and other inferior lords. After long reasoning, it was +said unto him that he was not called of any evil mind; that they were +sorry to know him of a contrary mind to the common Order. He answered +that he was more sorry that a common Order should be contrary to +Christ's institution. With some gentle speeches he was dismissed, and +willed to advise with himself if he would communicate after that +Order." But, unlike Hooper, who, after a long controversy about +vestments and a brief {60} imprisonment for his refusal to wear them, +accepted the bishopric of Gloucester, vestments and all, only however +to suffer martyrdom at last under Queen Mary, Knox remained steadfast +to the position which he had taken up; and, refusing a permanent +charge, which would have required him to give his assent and consent to +the Articles, and to conform to the common Order, he was sent in June, +1553, as one of the itinerary preachers into Buckinghamshire, where he +laboured with great zeal and assiduity for some weeks. + +In the interval between October, 1552, and March, 1553, we find that +Knox had been back at Newcastle, where he was bitterly opposed by Sir +Robert Brandling, the Mayor, whose zeal was checked, however, by the +agency of Lord Wharton, then Lord Warden of the North, at the +suggestion of Northumberland; and there are some interesting letters +belonging to this portion of his life which give us delightful glimpses +into his heart and habits. In one we see him "sitting at his book," +and contemplating Matthew's Gospel by the help of "some most godly +expositions, and among the rest Chrysostom." In another he writes, +"This day ye know to be the day of my study and prayer to God." And in +a third, written to Mrs. Bowes from London, whither he had been +summoned in haste before the Privy Council, we have this record: "The +very instant hour that your letters were presented unto me was I +talking of you, by reason that three honest poor women were come to me, +and were complaining their great infirmity, and were {61} showing unto +me the great assaults of the enemy, and I was opening the causes and +commodities thereof, whereby all our eyes wept at once; and I was +praying unto God that you and some others had been there with me for +the space of two hours, and even at that instant came your letters to +my hands, whereof the part I read unto them; and one of them said, 'Oh +would to God I might speak with that person, for I perceive there be +more tempted than I.'" Thus amid the multiplicity and weight of his +public labours he did not neglect either the study or the closet; and +the weeping Knox, seeking to comfort those that were cast down, is a +picture that must seem strange to many who know little more about him +than that his fortitude made Mary Stuart shed tears of wounded pride +and disappointed ambition. + +In April he preached in the Chapel Royal before the young king, and +inveighed in the strongest terms against Northumberland and Paulet, +finishing one of his scathing passages in this way: "Was David and +Hezekiah, princes of great and godly gifts and experience, abused by +crafty counsellors and dissembling hypocrites? What wonder is it, +then, that a young and innocent king be deceived by crafty, covetous, +wicked, and ungodly counsellors? I am greatly afraid that Ahithophel +be councillor, that Judas bear the purse, and that Shebna be scribe, +comptroller and treasurer." The pulpit in those days had to discharge +the duties of public criticism on politics and morals, which are now +much more appropriately performed by the press; and so, as Froude {62} +remarks, "since discipline could not be restored, Knox, and those who +felt with him the enormities of the times, established, by their own +authority, this second form of excommunication." It was then perhaps a +necessity, but it is always, more or less, a dangerous thing for a +minister to do; and it must be admitted that Knox was not always just +in such philippics. But he was always conscientious, and he was always +brave; and he well knew at the moment the risk which he was running. +In the present case, if little good came out of it to the country, no +harm resulted from it to himself; for, as we have seen, he was shortly +afterwards engaged to preach in Buckinghamshire. And there he laboured +on, like another Jeremiah, forecasting evils which none of his hearers +would believe could happen, until at the death of Edward the Sixth, on +the 6th of July, 1553, they were rudely awakened from their sleep of +security. + +Such was Knox's share in the working out of the English Reformation; +and we have dwelt thus long upon it because the facts which we have +stated have only recently been brought to light; and because we wished +to set forth with as much clearness as condensation would allow the +opinions which were held, and the mode of worship which was observed, +by him, even at this early stage in his history. If Knox did something +for England, England did much also for him. If he was instrumental in +keeping the Church of that country from greater affinity with Romanism +than it might otherwise have shown, there can be no doubt that the evil +effects {63} of compromise as witnessed by him there helped to make him +more thorough in his later work in Scotland; while it is also most true +that during his residence there his contact with the Christian people +whom he met did something to soften and sweeten his piety, and to make +it more inward and sympathising. Most of all, God was preparing him by +it for the great work which he was afterwards to perform in his native +land; and his years of service in England were blessed in securing for +him the friendship and confidence of her ablest statesmen, without +whose assistance, humanly speaking, Scotland might have been lost to +Protestantism in the very crisis of her history. + + + +[1] Lorimer, p. 73. + +[2] Ibid., p. 74. + +[3] Dr. Lorimer has said (p. 31) that "in both the formularies recently +set forth," the Order of Communion in 1548 and the "Book of Common +Prayer" in 1549, the practice of kneeling in the Lord's Supper had been +retained; and on a subsequent page (112) that "in the Second +Prayer-Book of King Edward VI. a rubric had _for the first time_ been +inserted appointing the Lord's Supper to be administered to the +communicants in a kneeling posture." But these statements are not made +with that author's usual accuracy. For the "Order of Communion" reads +thus: "Then shall the priest rise, the people still reverently +kneeling, and the priest shall deliver the communion, first to the +ministers, if any be there present, that they may help the chief +minister, and after to the others." But in the "Book" of 1549, the +rubric is as we give it in the text. What the motive was for the +omission of kneeling in the Book of 1549 it is not easy to say, but the +fact of its omission is undoubted. (See "The Two Liturgies," by Rev. +Joseph Kelley, p. 92.) + +[4] Lorimer, p. 98. + +[5] Lorimer, p. 109. + +[6] For the full discussion of this subject we refer to Dr. Lorimer's +monograph, "John Knox and the Church of England," a most valuable and +original contribution to English Ecclesiastical history, though the +absence of an index makes it less serviceable to the student than such +a work should be. + +[7] Lorimer, pp. 149-150. + +[8] Lorimer, p. 151. + +[9] See Laing: "Knox's Works," vol. iii. pp. 86-7. + + + + +{64} + +CHAPTER V. + +LAST DAYS IN ENGLAND, 1553. + +During the last illness of the young King Edward, Knox, as we have +seen, received a commission to go upon a preaching tour in the county +of Buckingham, where, like an old Hebrew prophet, he warned his hearers +of the coming crisis. He was back in London, however, as we learn from +the date of the first of his published letters, on the 23rd of June +(1553); but before the death of his majesty, which happened on the 6th +of July, he had returned to Buckinghamshire, and there, at Amersham, on +the 16th of that month, he preached a sermon suited to the times in the +very thick of the turmoil caused by the dispute as to the succession to +the crown. The Duke of Northumberland had presumed to set the Lady +Jane Dudley on the throne, but Mary Tudor's adherents could not brook +such disloyalty to their mistress, and had already entered on that +struggle which ended in the collapse of the reign of "the twelfth-day +Queen." The county of Bucks, as Froude tells us, "both Catholic and +Protestant," was "arming to the teeth." Sir Edward Hastings had called +{65} out its musters, in Mary's name, and had been joined by Peckham, +the cofferer of the royal household, who had gone off with the treasure +under his charge, so that the Reformer was speaking "at the peril of +his life among the troopers of Hastings." Nevertheless, nothing +daunted, he thus apostrophised the land:[1] "O England! now is God's +wrath kindled against thee. Now hath He begun to punish as He hath +threatened a long while by His true prophets and messengers. He hath +taken from thee the crown of thy glory, and hath left thee without +honour as a body without a head. And this appeareth to be only the +beginning of sorrows, which appeareth to increase. For I perceive that +the heart, the tongue, and the hand of one Englishman is bent against +another, and division to be in the whole realm, which is an assured +sign of desolation to come. O England! England! dost thou not +consider that thy commonwealth is like a ship sailing on the sea; if +thy mariners and governors shall one consume another, shalt thou not +suffer shipwreck in short process of time? O England! England! alas +these plagues are poured upon thee, for that thou wouldest not know the +most happy time of thy gentle visitation. But wilt thou yet obey the +voice of thy God and submit thyself to His holy words? Truly if thou +wilt, thou shalt find mercy in His sight, and the estate of thy +commonwealth shall be preserved. But if thou obstinately wilt return +into Egypt, that is, if thou contract marriage, confederacy, and league +with such {66} princes as do maintain and advance idolatry (such as the +Emperor, which is no less enemy unto Christ than ever was Nero); if for +the pleasure and friendship (I say) of such princes them return to +thine old abominations, before used under the papistry, then assuredly, +O England, thou shall be plagued and brought to desolation by the means +of those whose favour thou seekest, and by whom thou art procured to +fall from Christ and to serve Antichrist." These were bold words. +Some of them, indeed, might be called rash, and, as we shall see, +furnished a weapon for his adversaries at a future day; but there was +no quailing in the heart of him who uttered them, and the sting of them +after all was in their truth. + +From Amersham he went up to London, where on the 19th of July he was a +witness of the great outburst of popular enthusiasm with which Mary was +welcomed to the throne; but he could not share in the wild delight of +the multitude, for as he tells us himself, "in London, in more places +than one, when fires of joy and riotous banqueting were at the +proclamation of Mary," his tongue was vehement in declaring his +forebodings of the storm which was so soon to break. On the 26th of +July he wrote to Mrs. Bowes from Carlisle, and again on the 25th of +September we find him writing to her on his return to London from Kent, +where he seems to have been labouring for some weeks. The dates +indicate that he was both "in labours abundant" and "in journeyings +often," and show that he had little reason to {67} upbraid himself, as +in one of his writings referring to this time he does, for "allowing +the love of friends and carnal affection for some men more than others +to allure him to make more residence in one place than another, thus +having more respect to the pleasure of a few than to the necessity of +many, and not sufficiently considering how many hungry souls were in +other places to whom none took pains to break and distribute the bread +of life." But he was ere long to be "in peril" as well as labour. +From the first he had augured nothing but evil from the accession of +Mary, and it is to his honour that with such misgivings in his heart, +he was at this very time in the habit of using in the pulpit a prayer +of singular beauty and comprehensiveness, in which we find this +petition: "Illuminate the heart of our Sovereign Lady Queen Mary with +pregnant gifts of the Holy Ghost, and influence the hearts of her +council with Thy true fear and love." As the months rolled round, +however, it became only too apparent that England would no longer be a +safe place for him. The door of opportunity which Edward had opened +was speedily closed by Mary. In August, indeed, she issued a +proclamation giving toleration to all meanwhile, forbidding her +Protestant and Catholic subjects to interrupt each other's services, +yet prohibiting all preaching on either side without licence from +herself. But in November, under the influence of the violent reaction +which had set in, and in obedience to the opinion of the people, +three-fourths of whom were still attached to the old religion, the {68} +Commons, by a vote of 350 to 80, enacted that from the 20th December +following there should be no other form of service in the churches but +what had been used in the last year of Henry the Eighth, and leaving it +free to all up till that date to use either of the books appointed by +Edward or the old one at their pleasure. Up till the day thus +specified, therefore, Knox was comparatively safe, and during that time +he was probably in London a guest in the families of the Lockes and the +Hickmans, with whose members he afterwards corresponded. It was in +this interval also, as seems most probable, that he began to prepare +his exposition of the sixth Psalm, and his "godly letter to the +faithful in London, Newcastle, Berwick, and all others within the realm +of England that love the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," both of +which were afterwards finished in France. + +From London he went to Newcastle, whence on the 22nd of December he +wrote to Mrs. Bowes a letter which contains a postscript to this +effect: "I may not answer the places of Scripture, nor yet write the +exposition of the sixth Psalm, for every day of this week must I +preach, if this wicked carcase will permit." But dangers began to +thicken around him; for in the end of December or beginning of January, +his servant was seized as he carried letters from him to Mrs. Bowes and +her daughter, in the expectation of finding something in them that +might furnish matter of accusation against him. They contained nothing +but religious advices and such things as he was prepared to avow before +any {69} tribunal in the country, but fearing that the report of the +matter might cause uneasiness to his friends at Berwick, he set out to +visit them in person. On the way, however, he was met by some of the +relatives of his betrothed, who prevailed on him to relinquish his +intention, and to retire to a place of safety on the coast, from which, +if necessary, he might escape out of the country by sea. From this +retreat he wrote to his friends, saying that "his brethren had, partly +by tears and partly by admonition, 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," yet promising if Providence prepared the way to +do as his counsellors advised, and "give place to the fury and rage of +Satan for a time." So when he became satisfied that the apprehensions +of his friends were, well founded, he procured a vessel which landed +him safely at Dieppe on the 20th of January, 1554. What his pecuniary +circumstances at this time were may be inferred from these words in a +letter to his future mother-in-law: "I will not make you privy how rich +I am, but off (_i.e._ from) London I departed with less money than ten +groats; but God has since provided, and will provide I doubt not +hereafter abundantly for this life. Either the Queen's Majesty or some +treasurer will be forty pounds richer by me, for so much lack I of duty +of my patents (that is, salary as Royal Chaplain), but that little +troubles me." And more interesting even than that glimpse {70} into +his poverty is the recital of his feelings toward England in a letter +to the same correspondent written just before his embarkation: "My +daily prayer is for the sore afflicted in those quarters. Some time I +have thought that it had been impossible so to have removed my +affection from Scotland that any realm or nation could have been +equally dear unto me; but I take God to record in my conscience that +the troubles present and appearing to be in the realm of England are +doubly more dolorous unto my heart than ever were the troubles of +Scotland." + +Thus Knox parted from the realm of England. Had he remained much +longer in it, he would most probably have shared the fate of Cranmer, +Ridley, Latimer, and the "noble army," whom Mary's intolerance "chased +up to heaven." But God had other work for him to do, and it was well +for Scotland that he listened to the entreaty of those who counselled +him when he was "persecuted in one country" to "flee to another"; so it +came about that for a brief season he found refuge in that land wherein +only a few years before he had been a galley-slave. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 308-9. + + + + +{71} + +CHAPTER VI. + +FIRST DAYS OF EXILE, 1554. + +From England Knox went to Dieppe, where he sojourned at this time for a +month, and finished his exposition of the sixth Psalm, the first +instalment of which he had sent to Mrs. Bowes just before leaving the +shores of Britain. This production was primarily designed for the +consolation and encouragement of that lady, who, as we have already +hinted, seems to have been afflicted with religious melancholy. +Apparently she was one of those, of whom every pastor has had some +experience, who believe that God has cast them off, and who while +"fearing the Lord," yet "walk in darkness and have no light." Her life +was one constant wrestle with spiritual depression, by which her +intimate friends were afflicted almost as much as she was herself. +Knox dealt with her most tenderly, and under the influence of his wise +words she regained her comfort for a time, but after a little she was +in the depths again, and the whole process had to be gone over with her +anew. Had she lived in modern days, a prudent friend would have +counselled her to consult a skilful physician, {72} and would have +sought to combine medical treatment with religious advice. We cannot +wonder, however, that we have nothing in this tractate bearing on that +aspect of the matter. The writer deals throughout with the malady as +spiritual, but he treats it most wisely, and the great well of +tenderness in his heart reveals itself to the reader in such a passage +as the following:[1] "These things put I you in mind of, beloved +mother, that albeit your pains sometimes be so horrible that no release +nor comfort ye find neither in spirit nor yet in body, yet if the heart +can only _sob unto_ God, despair not, you shall obtain your heart's +desire, and destitute you are not of faith. For at such time as the +flesh, natural reason, the law of God, the present torment, and the +devil at once do cry God is angry, and therefore is there neither help +nor remedy to be hoped for at His hands; at such time, I say, to sob +unto God is the demonstration of the secret seed of God which is hid in +God's elect children, and that only sob is unto God a more acceptable +sacrifice than, without this cross, to give our bodies to be burned +even for the truth's sake." Very comprehensive also is this expansion +of the second petition of the Lord's Prayer in the same treatise.[2] +"We are commanded daily to pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' which petition +asketh that sin may cease, that death may be devoured, that transitory +troubles may have an end, that Satan may be trodden under our feet, +that the whole {73} body of Christ may be restored to life, liberty, +and joy, that the powers and kingdoms of this earth may be dissolved +and destroyed, and that God the Father may be all in all things, after +that His Son Christ Jesus, the Saviour, hath rendered up the kingdom +for ever." And in these days when so much is written, both wise and +otherwise, on the subject of eschatology, some interest may be felt in +the following "bit" of exposition. "'For there is no remembrance of +Thee in death; who laudeth Thee in the pit?' As (if) David would say, +'O Lord, how shall I pray and declare Thy goodness when I am dead, and +gone into the grave? It is not the ordinary course to have Thy +miracles and wondrous works preached unto men by those that are buried +and gone down into the pit. Those that are dead make no mention of +Thee in the earth, and therefore, O Lord, spare Thy servant, that yet +for a time I may show and witness Thy wondrous works unto mankind.' +These most godly affections in David did engender in him a vehement +horror and fear of death, besides that which is natural and common to +all men, because he perfectly understood that by death he shall be +lettit (hindered) any further to advance the glory of God. Of the same +he complaineth most vehemently in the 88th Psalm, where apparently he +taketh from them that are dead, sense, remembrance, feeling, and +understanding, alleging that God worketh no miracles by the dead, that +the goodness of God cannot be preached in the grave, nor His faith in +perdition, and that His marvellous works {74} are not known in +darkness. By which speeches we may not understand that David taketh +all sense and feeling from the dead, neither yet that they who are dead +in Christ are in such estate that by God they have not consolation and +life. No; Christ Himself doth witness the contrary. But David so +vehemently depresses their estate and condition, because that after +death they are deprived from (of) all ordinary ministration in the Kirk +of God. None of those that are departed are appointed to be preachers +of God's glory unto mankind. But after death they cease any more to +advance God's holy name here among the living on earth, and so shall +even they in that behalf be unprofitable to the congregation as +touching anything that they can do, either in body or soul after death. +And therefore most earnestly desired David to live in Israel for the +further manifestation of God's glory."[3] + +Appended to this tract there is the date "upon the very point of my +journey, the last of February, 1553(4), so that Knox left Dieppe about +the beginning of March, but before his departure he finished and +transmitted the first of that series of admonitions and consolatory +epistles which during his exile on the continent he addressed to his +friends in England, and from which we have already quoted so many +passages throwing light upon his labours among them. This earliest of +the series is entitled "A Godly Letter of Warning or Admonition to the +Faithful in London, Newcastle, and Berwick," {75} and is written in a +strain of burning and impassioned expostulation. It is mainly founded +on the sermon preached by Jeremiah to the princes and all the people of +Judah in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, as recorded in the +26th chapter of his prophecies. Knox runs a skilful parallel between +the circumstances of the Jews before the destruction of their capital +by Nebuchadnezzar, and those of the people of England under Mary, and +with the presage of coming judgment darkening his spirit, he exhorts +the "remnant" to fidelity and earnestness. One extract will give the +reader some slight idea of its style and purport. [4]"Hitherto have I +recited the estate of Judah before the destruction of Jerusalem and +subversion of that commonwealth. Now I appeal to the conscience of any +indifferent (_i.e._ impartial) man in what one point differ the +manners, estate and regiment (_i.e._ government) of England this day +from the abuse and estate rehearsed of Judah in these days, except that +they had a king, a man of his own nature (as appeared), more facile +than cruel, who sometimes was entreated in the prophet's favour, and +also in some cases heard his counsel; and ye have a queen, a woman of a +stout stomach (_i.e._ of a haughty spirit), more stiff in opinion than +flexible to the truth, who no wise may abide the presence of God's +prophets. In this one thing you disagree; in all other things as like +as one bean or nut is like to another, (1) Their king was led by +pestilent priests; who guides your queen, it is not {76} unknown. (2) +Under Zedekiah and his council the idolatry which by Josiah was +suppressed, came to light again; but more abominable idolatry was never +in the earth than is that which of late is now set up again by your +pestilent papists among you. (3) In Jerusalem was Jeremiah persecuted +and cast into prison for speaking the truth and rebuking their +idolatry; what prison in London tormenteth not some true prophet of God +for the same causes? And O thou dungeon of darkness, where that +abominable idol of late days was first erected (thou Tower of London, I +mean), in thee are tormented more Jeremiahs than one, whom God shall +comfort according to His promise, and shall reward their persecutors +even as they have deserved; in which day also shalt thou tremble for +fear, and such as pretend to defend thee shall perish with thee, +because thou wast first defiled with that abominable idol." + +The letter concludes with the following touching sentences:--"The peace +of God rest with you all. From one sore troubled heart upon my +departure from Dieppe--1553(4)--whither God knoweth. In God is my +trust, through Jesus Christ His Son; and therefore I fear not the +tyranny of man, neither yet what the devil can invent against me. +Rejoice, ye faithful, for in joy shall we meet where death may not +dissever us." + +At the time when he wrote these words he seems to have had no definite +purpose as to his immediate destination, but we have now no difficulty +in tracing his movements, for in a letter addressed to his afflicted +{77} brethren in England, and dated Dieppe, 10th May, 1554, we find the +following words:--"My own estate is this: since the 28th of January I +have travelled through all the congregations of Helvetia (Switzerland), +and have reasoned with all the pastors and many other excellent learned +men upon such matters as now I cannot commit to writing; gladly I would +by tongue or by pen utter the same to God's glory." What these things +were may perhaps be inferred from the words of Bullinger to Calvin in a +letter dated 26th March, 1554, to this effect: "I have enclosed in this +letter the answer I made to the Scotsman whom you commended to me; you +will return it to me when you have opportunity."[5] Now as Knox +visited Geneva in that month of March, and obtained from Calvin a +letter of introduction to Bullinger, there can be no doubt, as Dr. +Laing has shown, that the reference is to him. The questions which he +submitted to Bullinger were the following, and we give them entire, +with a brief summary of the answer to each, that we may make plain the +gravity and importance of the matters which were at this time +engrossing his attention:--(1) "Whether the son of a king, upon his +father's death, though unable by reason of his tender age to conduct +the government of the kingdom, is nevertheless by right of inheritance +to be regarded as a lawful magistrate, and as such to be obeyed as of +Divine right?" This, illustrating his statement by a reference to King +Edward the Sixth of England, Bullinger answers in the {78} affirmative. +(2) "Whether a female can preside over and rule a kingdom by Divine +right, and so transfer the right of sovereignty to her husband?" To +this Bullinger replies, that, though the law of God ordains the woman +to be in subjection, yet as it is a hazardous thing for godly persons +to set themselves up in opposition to political regulations, and in the +gospel does not seem to unsettle hereditary rights, the people of God +may rejoice in a female sovereign if she be like Deborah; and if she be +of a different character, they may have an example and consolation in +the case of Athaliah; but with respect to the right of transferring the +government to her husband, only those persons who are acquainted with +the laws and customs of the realm can give a proper answer. (3) +"Whether obedience is to be rendered to a magistrate who enforces +idolatry and condemns true religion; and whether those authorities who +are still in military occupations of towns and fortresses are permitted +to repel this ungodly violence from themselves and their friends?" No +definite or categorical answer is given to this inquiry, on the ground +that it is difficult to pronounce on every particular case; but while +there is need of wisdom, lest by rashness and corruption much mischief +may be occasioned to many worthy persons, it is unequivocally asserted +that death itself is far preferable to the admission of idolatry. (4) +"To which party must godly persons attach themselves in the case of a +religious nobility resisting an idolatrous sovereign?" This is left by +the Swiss Reformer to the judgment of the individual {79} conscience. +Between the lines of these questions we can easily read that Knox was +pondering questions which lie near the foundation of civil and +religious liberty; and that, foreseeing the occasion which he might +soon have for dealing practically with them, he availed himself of the +opportunity furnished by his exile for consulting the most eminent +Swiss Protestant divines regarding them. + +He returned to Dieppe in May, 1554, and remained there until the end of +July in order that he might gain accurate information concerning his +brethren in England, and might learn whether he could do anything in +their behalf. To these weeks must be assigned the preparation and +transmission of his "Faithful Admonition unto the Professors of God's +Truth in England," which caused him so much trouble in the Frankfort +episode of his history. For that reason, therefore, it may be well to +give a brief account of this trenchant production. It is evidently the +expansion of a discourse formerly preached by him on the experience of +the disciples in the storm, when they "toiled in rowing" because "the +wind was contrary unto them," with a pungent and sometimes not very +prudent, application of its lessons to the circumstances which then +existed in England. It was his habit to preach his sermons before he +wrote them, and indeed, so far as appears, he did not often write them +out, even after they had been delivered, but usually contented himself +with speaking from a few notes, which were made in the margin of his +Bible, and which remained the sole {80} memoranda of the discourse. In +the present case the note was to the effect "_Videat Anglia_"--"Let +England beware!" and the matter written in his book in Latin was this: +"Seldom it is that God worketh any notable work to the comfort of His +Church but that trouble, fear, and labour cometh upon such as God hath +used for His servants and His workmen; and also tribulation most +commonly followeth that Church where Christ Jesus is most truly +preached." In his exposition he goes on to explain why, after the +miracle of the feeding of the multitude, Christ sent both the people at +large and His disciples away; and dwells on the danger to which the +apostles were exposed, the manner of their deliverance through the +coming and the word of Christ, the zeal of Peter in seeking to meet the +Lord on the waves, and his fear in sinking in the waters, and the mercy +of the Master in permitting neither Peter nor the rest of the disciples +to perish, but gloriously delivering them all. Into his treatment of +these several things he introduces plentiful allusions to the state of +affairs in England, and the object which he has before him as a whole +is two-fold--first, to encourage those who had made a profession of the +Reformed Faith to maintain the beginning of their confidence steadfast +unto the end; and second, to give warning of the dangers which were to +be apprehended if the kingdom should come under the dominion of +strangers, as it would infallibly do when Mary became the wife of +Philip of Spain. The admonition bears the imprint "20th day of July, +1554." Now the marriage {81} of Mary to Philip was celebrated on the +25th day of that same month, and it was provided by the treaty for that +alliance, and confirmed by Act of Parliament, that Philip, as the +husband of Mary, "should have and enjoy, jointly with the Queen his +wife, the style, honour, and kingly name of the realm and dominions +unto the said Queen appertaining, and shall aid her Highness, being his +wife, in the happy administration of her realm and dominions." This +helps us to understand one of the questions which Knox had proposed to +Bullinger, and explains at least, if it cannot justify, the vehemence +of his feelings and the violence of his words in the "admonition." He +speaks of "Stephen Gardiner and his black brood;" calls the wafer of +the host "the round clipped God;" declares that "the devil rageth in +his obedient servants, wily Winchester, dreaming Durham, and bloody +Bonner, with the rest of their bloody, butcherly brood;" avers that +Jezebel "never erected half so many gallows in all Israel as +mischievous Mary hath done within London alone;" denounces Mary as a +"breaker of promises;" calls her that most unhappy and wicked woman;" +and foretells evil for England if she--_i.e._ England--contract +marriage, confederacy, or league with such princes as do maintain and +advance idolatry (such as the Emperor, which is no less an enemy here +to Christ than ever was Nero)." All this is dreadful enough. But let +us bear in mind that Mary, on her accession, had publicly declared that +she "meant graciously not to compel or strain other men's consciences +otherwise than God should, as she trusted, {82} put in their hearts a +persuasion of the truth, through the opening of His word unto them," +and that, by her subsequent conduct she had utterly falsified that +word; let it be remembered that at the very time of Knox's writing, +Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer had been prisoners for seven or eight +months in the Tower, first under the charge of treason, and latterly +under that of heresy; let it be considered that reports were +continually coming to Knox's ears of the daily increasing sufferings of +the Protestants in England, and then some allowance will be made for +the outburst of his indignation in these passionate utterances. Still, +when we have made all such allowance, we must admit that a more +cautious man would have foreseen that a probable effect of such a +bitter onslaught would be the increase of the persecutor's fury, and +would not have gone out of his way to irritate the German Emperor by +comparing him with Nero. But caution never was one of Knox's +distinctive excellences. If it had, he would not have become a +Reformer, for your merely cautious men are of very little service +either to their generation or to the world. Boldness is necessary for +progress, and where the boldness is, we must reconcile ourselves as +best we may to its attendant shadow. In the present instance Knox paid +dearly enough for his imprudence, as we shall shortly see, and we may +therefore content ourselves with this simple reference to it. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. iii. p. 137. + +[2] Ibid., p. 128. + +[3] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 151-2. + +[4] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 187-8. + +[5] "Works," vol. iii. pp. 219, 226. + + + + +{83} + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE TROUBLES AT FRANKFORT, 1554-1555. + +From Dieppe, after having launched across the channel the thunderbolt +of the "Faithful Admonition," Knox retired to Geneva, where he enjoyed +the friendship of John Calvin and other Swiss divines, and where, +though he was now bordering on fifty years of age, he applied himself +to the study of Hebrew with all the ardour of youth. But such a man +could not long be permitted to enjoy learned leisure. Accordingly we +find that in the end of September, 1554, he was called to be one of the +pastors of a congregation of English exiles who had found an asylum in +Frankfort-on-the-Maine, a city whose inhabitants had early embraced the +principles of the Reformation, and befriended refugees from all +countries so far as that could be done by them without coming to an +open breach with the Emperor. Already a church of French Protestants +was in existence there, and on application to the authorities the +English exiles obtained the joint use of the place of worship allotted +to that congregation, on condition that they should in their {84} +service conform as nearly as possible to the forms observed by the +French. This was thankfully accepted by the English, who agreed among +themselves, be it observed before Knox appeared among them, to give up +the audible responses, the Litany, the surplice, and other things which +"in these reformed churches would seem more than strange." It is added +in the "Brief Discourse of the Troubles begun at Frankfort" which lies +before us as we write, that "as touching the ministration of the +sacraments, sundry things were also by common consent omitted as +superstitious and superfluous;" and that "after that the congregation +had thus concluded and agreed, and had chosen their minister and +deacons to serve for a time, they entered their church on the 29th of +July." + +Having thus secured for themselves religious privileges, the Frankfort +exiles by a circular letter invited their brethren in other continental +cities to come and share the blessing with them. To this the English +residents at Strasburg replied recommending certain persons as well +qualified to fill the offices of superintendent or bishop, and pastors, +but before receiving that communication the brethren at Frankfort had +already chosen three persons, one of whom was Knox, to be their +pastors, and to be invested with co-ordinate authority. The invitation +was not specially attractive to Knox, both because he was loth to +sacrifice the advantages for study which he was enjoying at Geneva, and +because he feared the outbreak of such a {85} controversy as ultimately +arose. But moved by what McCrie has styled "the powerful intercession +of Calvin," he accepted the call and went to Frankfort about the end of +October or the beginning of November. Before his arrival there, +however, the harmony of the congregation had been disturbed by the +reception of a letter from the English residents at Zurich, who +declined to come to Frankfort unless they obtained security that the +Church would use the Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., on the ground that +the rejection or alteration of that form of service would give occasion +for the charge against them of fickleness in their religion, and would +be a virtual condemnation of those who at that very time were suffering +persecution on its account. To this the members of the church at +Frankfort replied that they had obtained permission to use their place +of worship on the condition of their conforming as closely as possible +to the French ritual; that there were some things in the English book +which would give offence to the Protestants of the place whose +hospitality they were enjoying; that certain ceremonies in that book +had been occasion of scruple to conscientious persons at home; that +they were very far indeed from pronouncing condemnation of those who +had drawn up that book, since they themselves had altered many things; +and that the sufferers in England were testifying for more important +matters than rites of mere human appointment. This answer, while it +somewhat abated the confidence of the friends at Zurich, did not {86} +drive them from their purpose, for they instigated their brethren at +Strasburg to make the same request both by letter and by deputation, +and thus widened the area of the controversy. + +This was the state of things when Knox appeared upon the scene, and +although his convictions were strongly on the side of those who opposed +the adoption of the Book of Common Prayer, he strove to act the part of +a peacemaker, as far as he consistently could. For when the +congregation agreed to adopt the order of worship followed in Calvin's +Church at Geneva, he declined to carry out that determination until +their learned brethren in other places should be consulted. He +confessed that he could not conscientiously administer the sacraments +according to the English book, but he offered to restrict himself +solely to the preaching of the word, and let some one else administer +the sacraments; and if that freedom could not be granted to him, he +desired that he might be altogether released from the pastorate to +which he had been chosen. But the congregation would not consent to +give him up, and in the hope of preventing future controversy, Knox, +who was joined by Whittingham, afterwards Dean of Durham, and others, +drew up a fair summary and description of the English Prayer-Book, +which they sent to Calvin for his inspection and advice. In his reply +the Genevese Reformer bewailed the existence of unseemly contentions +among them; claimed that he had always counselled moderation respecting +external {87} ceremonies, yet condemned the obstinacy of those who +would consent to no change of old customs; declared that in the English +liturgy he had found many "_tolerabiles ineptias_,"--tolerable +fooleries,--which might be borne with in the beginning of the +Reformation, but ought to be removed as soon as possible; gave it as +his opinion that the circumstances of the exiles in Frankfort warranted +them to attempt the removal of such blemishes; and rather caustically +remarked that "he could not tell what they meant who so greatly +delighted in the leavings of popish dregs." + +This letter produced considerable effect, and a committee, of which +Knox was one, was appointed to draw up a form which might harmonize all +parties. When this committee met, Knox acknowledging that there was no +hope of peace unless "one party something relented," indicated how far +he was willing to go in the direction of compromise; and the result was +the drawing up of a form of which "some part was taken from the English +Prayer-Book, and other things put to, as the state of the Church +required." By the consent of the congregation this order was to +continue until the month of April; and if any contention should +meanwhile arise, the matter was to be referred for decision to these +five learned men, namely, Calvin, Musculus, Martyr, Bullinger, and +Vyret. This agreement was put in writing, and subscribed by the +members of the congregation amid the joy of all. "Thanks were given to +God, brotherly reconciliation followed, great familiarity (was) used, +and the former {88} grudges forgotten; yea, the Holy Communion was upon +this happy agreement also ministered." + +But this peace was not of long continuance, for on the 13th of March +Dr. Richard Cox, who had been the preceptor of Edward VI., and who was +afterwards a bishop under Queen Elizabeth, arrived in Frankfort with a +company like-minded with himself; and on the very first day on which +they attended public worship, they broke the _concordat_ by indulging +in audible responses. When they were expostulated with by some of the +seniors, or elders, of the congregation for their disorderly conduct, +they replied that "they would do as they had done in England, and that +they would have the face of an English Church;" and on the following +Sunday one of their number, without the knowledge or consent of the +congregation, entered the pulpit and read the Litany, while the rest +answered aloud. This was a still more flagrant breach of the +agreement, for Knox and his friends specially objected to the Litany; +and therefore on the afternoon, it being his turn to preach, Knox made +a public protest against such procedure. He showed how after long +trouble and contention among them, a godly agreement had been made, and +how it had been ungodly broken, "which thing it became not the proudest +of them all to have attempted." He further alleged that as we must +seek our warrant for the establishing of religion from the word of God, +and without that nothing should be thrust into any Christian +congregation; and as in the English Prayer Book there {89} were, as he +was prepared to prove, things both superstitious, impure, and +imperfect, he would not consent that it should be received in that +Church; and he declared that if the attempt should be made, he would +not fail to speak against it from that place, as his text might furnish +occasion. He also affirmed that, among other things which provoked +God's anger against England, slackness to reform religion when time and +opportunity were granted was one; and as an instance of that slackness +he specified, to the sore wounding of some then present, the allowing +of one man to have three, four, or five benefices, to the slander of +the gospel, and the defrauding of the people. + +This remonstrance brought things to a crisis, and on the following +Tuesday the congregation met to take the whole matter into +consideration. Cox and his company claimed the right of sitting and +voting with the rest, but it was contended that they should not be +admitted until they had subscribed the discipline of the Church. This +objection would have prevailed, but on the intercession of Knox they +were received, and they rewarded his magnanimity by outvoting him, and, +at the instigation of Cox, discharging him from preaching and from all +interference in the affairs of the congregation. This, however, only +made matters worse; and to prevent a disgraceful tumult, the whole case +was referred to the senate of the city, from whom they had obtained +permission to use the place of worship in which they assembled. That +body, after in vain recommending a {90} private accommodation, issued +an order requiring the congregation to conform exactly to the French +ritual, and threatening if that were disobeyed to shut up the church. +With this injunction Cox and his party outwardly complied for the time; +but seeing the influence which Knox possessed, and having no hope of +carrying their point so long as he should remain among them, they took +means of the basest sort to get him out of the way. For two of them +went privately to the magistrates of the city and accused Knox of high +treason against the emperor, and against Mary, Queen of England, +putting forth as the ground of their charge those passages from the +Faithful Admonition which we have already quoted. On receipt of this +charge the magistrates sent for Whittingham, and asked him concerning +the character of Knox, whom he described in his reply as "a learned, +grave, and godly man." They then informed him of the charge which had +been preferred against him, and requested that he would furnish them +with an exact Latin translation of the sentences of his tract, nine in +number, which had been brought to their particular attention. They +gave orders also that meanwhile Knox should desist from preaching until +their pleasure should be known. With this command Knox loyally +complied; but when he appeared next day in the church as an ordinary +hearer, not thinking that any would be offended at his presence, "some +departed from the sermon, protesting with great vehemence that they +would not tarry where he was." + +{91} + +The action of the informers was most embarrassing to the magistrates, +who abhorred the malice by which they were evidently actuated, but at +the same time feared that the matter might come to the ears of the +emperor's council then sitting at Augsburg, and that they might be +compelled to give Knox up to them or to the Queen of England; and as +the best means of extricating themselves from the difficulty, they +suggested that he should privately withdraw from the city. Accordingly +on the evening of the 25th of March, 1555, he delivered a most +consolatory address to about fifty of the members of the Church in his +own lodgings; and "the next day," to borrow the words of the author of +the Brief Discourse, "he was brought three or four miles on his way by +some of these unto whom the night before he had made that exhortation, +who, with great heaviness of heart and plenty of tears, committed him +to the Lord." + +The sequel is soon told. Cox, by falsely representing that the +congregation was now unanimous, obtained an order from the senate for +the unrestricted use of the English Prayer-Book, and then procured in +the Church the abrogation of the code of discipline, and the +appointment of a superintendent or bishop over the other pastors. The +result was that a considerable number of the members left the city, and +the remainder continued a prey to strife, which Cox and his friends did +not stay to compose, for they also soon took their departure to other +places. The Church was thus virtually broken {92} up; and it is not +without significance that, in seeking afterwards to be excused from +performing service before a crucifix in the chapel of Queen Elizabeth, +Cox employed the very argument which Knox had urged without effect upon +himself, for he said, "I ought to do nothing touching religion which +may appear doubtful, whether it pleaseth God or not; for our religion +ought to be certain, and grounded upon God's word and will." + +We have gone thus fully into the "Frankfort troubles," not so much +because, as McCrie says, they present in miniature a striking picture +of that contentious scene which was afterwards exhibited on a larger +scale in England, or because it would not be difficult to find similar +divisions on precisely similar points in the days in which we live, but +because of the insight which the history gives us into the character of +Knox himself. The controversy was keen and bitter; but throughout it +all our Reformer shows to great advantage,--evincing what Carlyle has +called "a great and unexpected patience," by which we suppose he means +a patience which those who know nothing more about him than the usual +caricature of his character, which too many have accepted, would hardly +have expected. But the readers of his letter to his Berwick friends, +on which we have already commented, could have looked for nothing else +at his hands; and we commend the study of this episode in his history +to all those who have been accustomed to regard him as a dogmatic, +domineering, impracticable {93} man, who was determined always to have +his way in the scorn of every consequence. The offer to restrict +himself solely to preaching, or, if that should not be granted, to go +quietly away, stands out to his lasting honour, and shows how eager he +was to prevent all strife; while the simple mention by the chronicler +of the "plenty of tears" shed by those who accompanied him out of the +city, witnesses to the tenderness of his friendship; and by both alike +we are reminded of the great apostle whose words were so constantly +upon his lips. In reviewing the whole case, he cannot help recalling +that his opponents had brought against him the old cry, "He is not +Caesar's friend;" but he prays for them thus, "O Lord God, open their +hearts that they may see their wickedness, and forgive them for Thy +manifold mercies; and I forgive them, O Lord, from the bottom of my +heart. But that Thy message sent by my mouth should not be slandered, +I am compelled to declare the cause of my departing, and so to utter +their folly, to their amendment I trust, and the example of others who, +in the same banishment, can have so cruel hearts to persecute their +brethren." His opponents tried to excuse themselves, and in a letter +to Calvin put the best possible construction on their case; but nothing +said by them altered the opinion of the great Reformer, in which we are +persuaded all fair-minded men, whatever may be their ecclesiastical +opinions will agree, to this effect:--"But certainly this one thing I +cannot keep secret, that Mr. Knox was, in my judgment, neither godly +nor {94} brotherly dealt withal." It was a hard and bitter experience, +and no doubt it had its influence in determining him, when he came to +deal with the Reformation of Scotland, to make more thorough work of it +than they had done in England. + + + + +{95} + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE MINISTRY AT GENEVA, 1555-1559. + +On his departure from Frankfort Knox made his way to Geneva, whither he +was followed by a considerable number of those who had adhered to him +in the former city. There it seems evident that he was invited by +them, and probably also by others who had joined them, to resume his +pastoral labours; for at the solicitation of Calvin, the Lesser Council +of Geneva granted for the joint use of the English and Italian +congregations the church called the Temple de Nostre Dame la Nove; and +it is recorded that on the first of November, 1555, when the English +Church was formed, Christopher Goodman and Arthur Gilby were "appointed +to preach the word, _in the absence of John Knox_." This indicates +that Knox was already recognised as one of the permanent pastors of the +Church, and that just at that time he was for some reason or other, +away for a long season from the scene of his labours. + +Where he was and what he was doing we have ample means of tracing, for +in the September of that {96} year we find him back again in Scotland, +for the first time since he had been taken prisoner by the French. But +much as he cared for the spiritual interests of his native land, it is +probable that his return to Great Britain at this time was more +immediately prompted by feelings of a personal nature. We have already +referred to his attachment to Marjory Bowes, daughter of Richard Bowes, +and of Elizabeth Aske, of Aske, near Berwick, and Dr. Laing has given +strong reasons for believing that he came now for the purpose of making +her his wife. The precise date of his marriage, indeed, is uncertain. +Dr. McCrie has put it in 1553, before he left England on the ground +that after that date Knox invariably addressed Mrs. Bowes as his +"mother" and spoke of Marjory as his "wife." The truth, however, seems +to have been that owing to the strong opposition of her father and +other relatives to the alliance, and also, perhaps, to the very +uncertain position of the Reformer himself, in these times of +unsettlement and peril, they contented themselves in 1553 with formally +pledging themselves to each other "before witnesses." But now, +immediately on his landing, at a point on the east shore not far from +the boundary between England and Scotland, he repaired to Berwick, +where he found Marjory and her mother enjoying the happiness of +religious society. After this, he visited Scotland, where he laboured +for some months, and the marriage may not have taken place until the +time when, preparatory to their setting out for Geneva, Mrs. Bowes {97} +resolved to leave all her relatives and cast in her lot with her +son-in-law. + +The visit of Knox to Scotland, at this juncture, was of immense service +to the cause of the Reformation. The clergy, unable or unwilling to +discern the signs of the times, had sunk into supineness, under the +belief that what they called heresy had been well-nigh banished from +the land. Arran, now Duke of Chatellerault, had given place as Regent +to Mary, the mother of Mary Queen of Scots, whose policy it was just +then to temporize with the Protestant nobles, and to disguise for a +season her deep-rooted and undying hatred of their cause. In the good +providence of God, also, a number of the leading adherents of the new +faith, like Erskine of Dun, Maitland of Lethington, and others, had +come to Edinburgh to confer with and enjoy the ministrations of John +Willock, who had been sent over by the Duchess of East Friesland, +ostensibly on a commercial mission to the Scottish court, but really to +see "what good work God would do by him to his native land;" and the +private meetings which he held with the Protestants in Edinburgh for +prayer and the exposition of the word, may have suggested to Knox that +he should follow a similar plan. That at least was the course which he +determined to pursue. He was received into the houses of certain +burgesses whose names he has enshrined in his history, and though the +number of meetings and the necessity of holding them in secret kept him +busy night and day, he was greatly {98} encouraged by the results. +Writing to Mrs. Bowes, he says that "the fervent thirst of his +brethren, night and day, sobbing and groaning for the bread of life, +was such, that if he had not seen it with his own eyes he could not +have believed it;" and again that "the fervency here did far exceed all +others that he had seen;" and "did so ravish him, that he could not but +accuse and condemn his slothful coldness." + +The news of his arrival spread among the Reformers in all parts of the +country, and his presence was so eagerly desired everywhere that he was +obliged to postpone his return to Berwick, and enter upon a series of +evangelistic journeys through different districts of the land. But we +will allow him to describe his work at this time himself. Thus he +writes in his "History": "John Knox, at the request of the Laird of +Dun, followed him to his place of Dun, where he remained a month, daily +exercised in doctrine, whereunto resorted the principal men of that +country. After his returning, his residence was most in Calder, where +repaired unto him the Lord Erskine, the Lord Lorn, and Lord James +Stuart, Prior of St. Andrews (half-brother to Mary Stuart), where they +heard and so approved his doctrine, that they wished it to have been +public. That same winter he taught commonly in Edinburgh; and after +the Yule (Christmas) by the conduct of the Laird of Barr, and Robert +Campbell of Kinzeancleugh, he came to Kyle, and taught in the Barr, in +the house of the Carnell, in the Kinzeancleugh, in the town of Ayr, +{99} and in the houses of Ochiltree and Gadgirth, and in some of them +ministered the Lord's Table. Before the Pasch (Easter) the Earl of +Glencairn sent for him to his place of Finlaston, where, after +doctrine, he likewise ministered the Lord's Table; whereof, besides +himself, were partakers his lady, two of his sons, and certain of his +friends. And so returned he to Calder, where divers from Edinburgh, +and from the country about, convened as well for the doctrine as for +the right use of the Lord's Table, which before they had never +practised. From thence he departed the second time to the Laird of +Dun, and teaching them in greater liberty, the gentlemen required that +he should minister likewise unto them the Table of the Lord Jesus; +whereof were partakers the most part of the gentlemen of the Mearns, +who professed that they refused all society with idolatry and bound +themselves to the uttermost of their power to maintain the true +preaching of the Evangel of Jesus Christ, as God should offer to them +preachers and opportunity." Well done, ye men of the Mearns, and ye +worthy descendants of the Lollards of Kyle! Often in the history of +Scotland have the dwellers in these parts stood up manfully for the +truth, but never was a nobler thing done in either locality, than when +ye thus received and welcomed the apostle of your country's Reformation! + +Such labours were sure sooner or later to attract the attention of the +bishops; and accordingly while he was in the Mearns he was summoned to +appear {100} before them at Edinburgh, in the Church of the +Blackfriars, on the 15th May, 1556. They probably imagined that this +mere "show of force" on their part would suffice to frighten him into +silence. If they did, they reckoned without their host; for encouraged +by his friends he came to Edinburgh to meet and face his accusers. But +when it came to the pinch, they shrank from the encounter; and so it +was that on the very day on which he had been summoned to stand before +them, he preached, of all places, in the very lodging of the Bishop of +Dunkeld, to a greater audience than he had hitherto addressed in +Edinburgh. For ten days he continued morning and afternoon at this +work, and so thoroughly was his heart refreshed by it that he writes of +it thus to Mrs. Bowes: "O sweet were the death that should follow such +forty days in Edinburgh as here I have had three." + +But the boldest, if we should not call it the most audacious thing, +which he did in this visit, was to address a letter to the Queen +Regent, wherein he vindicated himself from the charges made by his +enemies against him, and exhorted her to hear the word of God, and +regulate her government by its principles. The suggestion to send such +an epistle came from the Earl Mareschal and Henry Drummond, who had +been brought to hear him by Lord Glencairn, and who declared, on what +they said they knew of the queen's mind, that she was in a mood to be +propitious. But though the letter is correctly described by Lorimer as +one "which for its {101} courtesy of phrase, and faithfulness of +counsel, was equally suitable to her dignity as a queen, and to his +character as a minister of God," it met with only a mocking reception. +"Please you, my lord, to read a pasquil," said Mary of Guise, after it +had been put into her hands, and while she was giving it to the +Archbishop of Glasgow, and that was all the notice of it which she +condescended to take. This treatment of his expostulation being +reported to Knox, revealed to him how little he had to expect from Mary +of Guise; and as just at this time letters arrived from Geneva +"commanding him, in God's name, as he that was their chosen pastor, to +repair unto them for their comfort," he made immediate preparations for +his departure thither. He took leave of the several congregations to +whom he had preached, and sent on his wife and his mother-in-law to +Dieppe before him, there to await his arrival. He reached them in the +month of July, and shortly after went with them to Geneva; for in the +"Livre des Anglois" there is an entry to the effect that on the 13th of +September, 1556, John Knox; Marjory, his wife; Elizabeth, her mother; +James ----, his servant; and Patrick, his pupil, were received and +admitted members of the English Church and congregation there. + +The reception of Mrs. Bowes into his household, especially with his +knowledge of her deep-seated melancholia, says much for the kindliness +of Knox's heart; and contrasts strongly with the spirit manifested on a +similar matter by that other Scotsman whose {102} correspondence has so +recently been given to the world. We know not if the cheap sneer +indulged in by so many at the expense of the mother-in-law were as +common in his days as it is in ours, but, in any case, Knox in all this +was thoughtfully tender, and though he admits that the desponding habit +of Mrs. Bowes was often a great trial to him, yet he never withdrew his +regard from her. The following sentences of Dr. Laing express all that +needs to be said more on this subject: "Her husband, I presume, was a +bigoted adherent of the Roman Catholic faith, and this may serve as the +key both to his opposition to Knox's marriage with his daughter, and to +the mother's attachment to her son-in-law. It cannot at least be said +that Knox was actuated by the expectation of wealth. In his last will +and testament he states that all the money he received from the +mother's succession for the benefit of his two sons was one hundred +marks sterling, which he, 'out of his poverty,' had increased to five +hundred pounds Scots, and had paid through Mr. Randolph to their uncle, +Mr. Robert Bowes, for their use. The comparative value of money at +this time was very variable; but we may reckon (that) the hundred +marks, or L66 13s. 4d., were increased by Knox to L100 sterling."[1] + +After Knox left Scotland the courage of the bishops revived, for they +actually summoned him again, and on his failure to put in an appearance +they were bold enough to burn him in effigy at the Cross of Edinburgh! +{103} But this _brutum fulmen_ of theirs could not undo the work which +he had wrought. For by his labours at this time, especially in +exposing the evil of the Protestants' any longer countenancing, papal +worship, he detached from the Romish communion the nucleus round which +the Church of Scotland, in a reformed state, was ultimately to form +itself. Hitherto there had been no separate organization of the +adherents to the Protestant faith; and no formal observance by them of +the ordinance of the Supper. But now they had, to some extent at +least, committed themselves to ultimate separation from the Church of +Rome. As Lorimer says, "They were now a "Congregation" or community of +Evangelical Christians, as much bound to one another as they were +dissevered from the Church of the popes." And Knox's leaving of them +in that condition was as much for their good as his arrival among them +some months before had been. Had he remained longer in Scotland at +this time, his presence would have undoubtedly provoked an outburst of +persecuting fury on the part of the bishops and their friends; while as +it was, the seed which he sowed had opportunity to root itself in the +hearts of those who had received it at his hands; and this it would +assuredly do if they followed the directions which he had left behind +him. For before his departure he drew up a letter of wholesome counsel +addressed to his brethren in Scotland, in which he exhorts them to give +themselves to the daily study of the Bible and worship of God in their +homes, and gives them {104} directions as to the holding and conducting +of assemblies for public worship and mutual conference and prayer, +recommending them to observe a regular course in their reading, and +cautioning those who should speak, to do so with modesty, avoiding +"multiplication of words, perplexed interpretation, and wilfulness in +reasoning." If anything occurred in the text which they could not +resolve for themselves, he advised them to apply for assistance to the +more learned, and offered if they should refer it to him, to give them +such help as he could render, saying, "I will more gladly spend fifteen +hours in communicating my judgment with you, in explaining as God +pleases to open to me any place of Scripture, than half an hour in any +matter beside." + +To the same period belong his "Answers to some Questions concerning +Baptism," etc., which had been proposed to him by some inquirers, and +which are of a sort that have often troubled young converts in similar +cases. They are, whether baptism administered by the popish priests +was valid and did not require repetition? Whether the decree of the +apostles and elders at Jerusalem be still in all its points binding on +believers? Whether the prohibition in 2 John 10 extended to the common +salutation of those who taught erroneous doctrine? How the directions +respecting dress in 1 Peter iii. 3 are to be obeyed? and the like. And +with them all he deals in a spirit of wisdom for which multitudes +unacquainted with his works would hardly give him credit. We need not +enter into details regarding them; {105} but as the first mentioned of +the above subjects was debated a few years ago in the Assembly of the +Presbyterian Church (North) of the United States, it may not be +uninteresting to state that, while Knox declares unequivocally that it +would be wrong for Protestant believers to seek baptism for their +children from popish priests, he yet as plainly affirms that a man who +had been baptized in infancy in papistry ought not to be rebaptized +when he cometh to knowledge, because Christ's institution could not be +utterly abolished by the malice of Satan or by the abuse of man. + +From September, 1556, to September, 1557, Knox laboured in Geneva, +delighting in his work and rejoicing in the fellowship of congenial +friends. Indeed, these halcyon months seem to have been the most +peaceful of his chequered life, and we do not wonder that he wrote +regarding Geneva: "I neither fear nor shame to say, it is the most +perfect school of Christ that ever was in the earth since the days of +the apostles." In the public services of the Church he used the form +of prayer which had been drawn up by himself and others for the English +congregation, and which was the groundwork of the "Book of Common +Order" that was received by the Church of Scotland in 1565. But as +that will come up for description in its proper place, we need not +dwell upon it here. The harmony of the Geneva Church was sweet after +the controversies of Frankfort, and the intercourse of the brethren +from England, who were then engaged in the preparation of that version +of the {106} Scriptures which continued to be for nearly a hundred +years the favourite Bible of the Puritans, must have been a constant +joy. + +But this happiness did not last long; for in the month of May (1557) +James Syme and James Barron, two burgesses of Edinburgh, and his own +very devoted friends, arrived with a letter from Glencairn, Lorn, +Erskine, and Lord James Stuart, beseeching "in the name of the Lord," +that he would return to his native land; and affirming that he would +find all the faithful whom he had left behind him, not only glad to +hear his doctrine, but also ready to jeopardise their lives and goods +for the setting forward of the glory of God. The opinion of Calvin and +other friends to whom he submitted this request, was that he could not +refuse such a call "without declaring himself rebellious unto God and +unmerciful to his country"; and no doubt his own heart had already +given a similar response. Accordingly, after making all due +arrangements for the leaving of his charge, and for the care of his +family in his absence, he set out from Geneva in the end of September, +and arrived at Dieppe on the 24th October. He was met there, however, +with letters which gave him the impression that those who had invited +him to return to Scotland had repented of their action in that regard; +and that many of the professed adherents of the truth had drawn back +and became faint-hearted in the cause. This brought him to a stand, +and he determined to go no farther until his way should be more clear. +He {107} immediately wrote to his correspondents, explaining how he +came to be at Dieppe, upbraiding them for their fear and fickleness; +admonishing them of the great importance of the enterprise to which +they had committed themselves; and alleging that they ought to hazard +their lives and fortunes to deliver themselves and their brethren from +spiritual bondage. This letter is dated October 27th, 1557, and was +followed by another of a more general tenour to his brethren in +Scotland, which appears to have been written in the same place on the +1st of December. + +In the expectation of receiving some definite information from +Scotland, Knox lingered in Dieppe for some considerable time, and +officiated as temporary preacher to a Protestant Church which had +recently been formed there. But when no answer came to his appeal to +his countrymen, he set his face again toward Geneva, to which, after +visiting Lyons, Rochelle, and other towns, he returned in the spring of +1558. + +But though he had heard nothing from Scotland, matters there had been +making steady progress. There may have been just enough of wavering on +the part of some to give occasion for the desponding letters which had +arrested him at Dieppe, yet there had been no great reaction. For on +the 3rd December, perhaps after the receipt of Knox's letter of the +preceding October, there had been a conference of the leading +Protestants as to what was best to be done, and as the result a Common +Bond or Band--the earliest of those {108} covenants which have had so +conspicuous a place in the church history of Scotland--was drawn up and +subscribed by Argyle, Glencairn, Morton, Lorn, Erskine of Dun, and many +others. By this "engagement" they pledged themselves in the most +solemn manner "to strive in their Master's cause even unto death;" "to +maintain, set forward, and establish the most blessed word of God, and +His congregation;" with their "whole power, substance, and their very +lives; and to labour to the utmost of their possibility, to have +faithful ministers purely and truly to preach Christ's gospel, and +minister His sacraments to His people." + +This was brave and hopeful in the highest degree. But Knox knew +nothing of it meanwhile, and in his despondency composed and issued +that tract which must be pronounced the greatest mistake of his life. +We refer, of course, to "The First Blast of the Trumpet against the +monstrous Regiment (_i.e._ government) of Women," which is an elaborate +argument designed to establish the proposition that "to promote a woman +to bear rule, superiority, dominion, or empire, above any realm, +nation, or city, is repugnant to nature, contumely to God, a thing most +contrarious to His revealed will and approved ordinance; and finally it +is the subversion of good order, of all equality and justice." We have +already seen from the questions which he put to Bullinger, that he had +been pondering this subject for some time; and there is evidence in the +tract itself, that he had diligently consulted what we should now {109} +call "the literature of the subject," for he refers to Aristotle's +politics; to the Books of the Digests; to such Fathers of the Church as +Tertullian, Augustine, Ambrose, Chrysostom, etc. But it was clearly +prompted by the fact that Mary Tudor was on the throne of England; and +there is throughout a strong undercurrent of application to her +character and cruelties. Whatever opinion may be taken on the main +question, however,--and the very existence of the Salic law in some +states still proves that there _are_ two sides to it, there can be no +doubt that Knox's treatment of it at all, not to speak of the sort of +treatment which he gave it, was at this time impolitic and imprudent. +In his preface he intimates that he is prepared to be condemned by +multitudes, and even for being accused by some of high treason; and +doubtless, he thought that he had counted the cost before he built his +tower. But the publication brought such a storm about his head, that +though he had purposed to follow his first blast with a second and a +third, the two latter were never blown. His friend and colleague, +Christopher Goodman, put himself by his side in a work entitled "How +Superior Powers ought to be Obeyed of their Subjects;" and at a later +day John Milton, in quoting from Goodman, and referring to him and +others, in his "Tenure of Kings and Magistrates" says, "These were the +pastors of those saints and confessors, who, flying from the bloody +persecution of Queen Mary, gathered up at length their scattered +members into {110} many congregations ... _These were the true +Protestant divines of England_, our fathers in the faith we hold."[2] +But such laudations were exceptional. Foxe, the martyrologist, wrote a +long and friendly letter to Knox, in which he expostulated with him on +the impropriety of its publication; and even his friend John Calvin, in +a letter to Cecil, felt compelled to deny all complicity with its +production. Mary Tudor did not live long to resent it; but her sister +Elizabeth never either forgot or forgave it; and it prejudiced the mind +of Mary Stuart against him long before she looked upon his face. Not +many months after its publication he was constrained to say "My first +Blast hath blown from me all my friends in England," and could he have +foreseen what the alliance of Elizabeth was ultimately to do for +Scotland in the very climax of her Reformation agony, we may safely say +that the work would neither have been written nor published. + +But his excuse (_valeat quantum_) is not far to seek, and we cannot do +better than give it in the words of Carlyle.[3] "It is written with +very great vehemency; the excuse for which, so far as it may really +need excuse, is to be found in the fact that it was written while the +fires of Smithfield were still blazing, on best of bloody Mary, and not +long after Mary of Guise had been raised to the Regency of +Scotland--maleficent crowned women these two--covering poor England and +poor Scotland {111} with mere ruin and horror, in Knox's judgment, and +may we not still say to a considerable extent, in that of all candid +persons? The book is by no means without merit; has in it various +little traits unconsciously autobiographic, and others which are +illuminative and interesting. One ought to add withal, that Knox was +no despiser of women, far the reverse in fact; his behaviour to good +and pious women is full of respect; and his tenderness, his filial +helpfulness in their suffering and infirmities (see the letters to his +mother-in-law and others) are beautifully conspicuous. For the rest +his poor book testifies to many high intellectual qualities in Knox, +and especially to far more of learning than has ever been ascribed to +him, or is anywhere traceable in his other writings." + +To this time also belongs his treatise on Predestination, in answer to +an anonymous writer who called his work "The Careless of Necessity." +It is the most elaborate of all the Reformer's productions, and goes +into the Augustinian controversy, on the side of the great +ecclesiastical father, with much vigour of logic, great clearness of +language, and apt and extended references to Scripture. Nowhere else, +as it seems to us, does Knox indulge in such closely compacted +argument, or write in such a nervous style. He is very careful to keep +himself from misrepresentation, and all he states may be accepted as +true; but there is another side to the shield to which he rarely +refers, and which must be admitted as implicitly as that to which he +has restricted {112} his attention. It is not, of course, equal to the +great work of Mozley on the same subject; but they who would master the +literature of the controversy cannot afford to overlook this valuable +contribution to its documents. + +Knox continued at Geneva until the month of January, 1559, when, in +response to a request sent to him by those who had signed the "Godly +Band," which was backed by letters of a more recent date, informing him +of the state of things in Scotland, he left his wife and family behind +him and set out for his native land. Mary, the English queen, had now +gone to her account, and her sister Elizabeth had succeeded to the +throne, so that the Protestant refugees on the continent could safely +return to their own country, and it was, therefore, no longer necessary +for him to retain his position as pastor. Before the breaking up of +the congregation, however, its members met to give thanks to God, and +agreed to send one of their number with letters to their brethren in +Frankfort and other places, congratulating them on the happy change +which had come about at home, and requesting them to forget all past +unpleasantness, while they co-operated as brethren to procure such a +settlement of religion in England as would be well-pleasing to all the +friends of the Reformation. Having received favourable replies to +these letters, they went in a body to the council of the city, and +William Whittingham, in their name, expressed to the seigneurie the +gratitude which they felt for the good reception given to them during +{113} their exile, presenting them at the same time as a lasting +memorial of their names the "Livre des Anglois," which is still +preserved among the archives of Geneva, and from which we have quoted +an interesting entry. They then left the city in which they had found +so safe an asylum, and Knox sent letters with them to some of his +former acquaintances in England, desiring that they would obtain +permission for him to travel through England on his way to Scotland. +Naturally enough he wished to see some of those among whom he had +formerly laboured; but there is reason to believe that his principal +motive in asking this favour, at this time, was that he might disclose +to Cecil the existence of a plan which had been formed by the Princes +of Lorraine, with which somehow he had become acquainted, and which had +for its objects the setting up of the claim of Mary Stuart to the +throne of England, the dethronement of Elizabeth under pretence that +she was a bastard and a heretic, the union of England and Scotland +under one crown, and the suppression of the Reformation in both by +bringing the whole island under the virtual control of France. But the +indignation of Elizabeth at his "First Blast" was such that his request +was indignantly refused, and it was with difficulty that those who +presented his letters escaped imprisonment. He did not learn this +result of his application until his arrival in Dieppe; and even then, +impressed with the importance of the information which he had to +communicate, he himself wrote to Cecil, seeking to remove all +difficulties, and desiring a personal {114} interview. But this +overture met with no better success; and so, determined to wait no +longer for that which seemed to be hopeless, he sailed from Dieppe on +the 22nd of April, and arrived at Leith on the 2nd of May, 1559. From +this time up till his decease, with the exception of a brief visit +which he made to England, Scotland was the sole scene of his labours; +and during these thirteen years the incidents of his public life became +part and parcel of the history of his country. + + + +[1] "Works," vol. vi. p. lxvi. + +[2] "Knox's Works," by Laing, vol. iv. p. 359. + +[3] Carlyle's Works, vol. xii. p. 137. + + + + +{115} + +CHAPTER IX. + +RETURN TO SCOTLAND, 1559. + +The landing of Knox in Scotland was almost dramatic in its timeliness; +and though we cannot here undertake to rewrite the annals of the +period, we must as briefly as possible outline the situation. The +Queen Regent, who had so far succeeded in her temporizing policy as +even at one time to have secured the commendation of Knox, had now +openly declared herself as the enemy of the Reformation; and, at that +very moment, four of its preachers were under summons, at her instance, +to stand trial before the justiciary court at Stirling on the 10th of +May, for "administering without the consent of the ordinaries the +sacrament of the altar in a manner different from that of the Catholic +Church, during three several days of the late feast of Easter, in the +burghs and boundaries of Dundee, Montrose, and various other places in +the sheriffdoms of Forfar and Kincardine, and for convening the +subjects in these places, preaching to them, seducing them to their +erroneous doctrines, and exciting seditions and tumults." How things +had come to this crisis it is not hard to tell. {116} At the +consultation at which the "Godly Band" was adopted, the Reformers +agreed besides on these two things, viz. first, that prayers and the +lessons of the Old and New Testaments should be read in English, +according to the Book of Common Prayer, in every parish on Sundays and +festival days by the curates, or, if they refused, by such persons +within the bounds as were best qualified; and second, that the Reformed +preachers should teach in private houses only, until the government +should allow them to do so in public. In accordance with the latter of +these resolutions, the Protestant noblemen took preachers as private +chaplains into their homes, kept them under their protection, and +encouraged them in informal and domestic meetings to expound the word +of God. This soon came to the knowledge of the bishops, and the +primate, presuming on his influence with some of Argyle's friends, +wrote to that earl, expostulating with him for having John Douglas +under his care. Such interference provoked a very smart and stinging +retort; and the archbishop, falling back on the old tactics of +persecution, thought he would strike terror into the hearts of the +Protestants by another execution. He found a victim in Walter Mill, a +venerable old man, who, though condemned years before as a heretic by +Cardinal Beaton, had escaped the stake at that time, but was now +discovered and consigned to the flames, in the midst of which he +expired, with these pathetic and prophetic words upon his lips, "As for +me, I am four-score and two years old, and cannot live long by the +{117} course of nature, but a hundred better shall arise out of the +ashes of my bones. I trust in God I shall be the last to suffer death +in Scotland in this cause." This horrible deed--done on the 28th +August, 1558--thrilled the people into earnestness in a moment, and +determined them to make open profession of their adherence to the +Reformed worship, so that their ministers were emboldened to preach and +administer the sacraments in public, even without the permission of the +government, for which until then they had waited. + +Meanwhile, in the month of July, a formal petition had been presented +to the Regent by the Protestant barons, requesting her to restrain the +violence of the clergy, and asking liberty of worship according to a +restricted plan, to which they were willing to conform until their +grievances should be examined and redressed. To this she replied after +her usual plausible fashion, in such a way as to make them believe that +she was friendly to their proposals. But the hollowness of her words +is apparent from the fact that in the very same month she was in +consultation with the archbishop of St. Andrews, as to the course which +should be adopted for checking the Reformation; yet, as she needed the +help of the Protestants at the meeting of the Parliament in November +for the carrying of certain measures on which her heart was set, +nothing was done openly by her against them until after that date. In +December, however, she gave the primate such assurances of her support, +that he summoned the Reformed preachers to {118} appear before him at +St. Andrews on the and of February following, to answer the charges of +usurping the sacred office and of disseminating heresy. This +proceeding on his part stirred up the Protestant nobles, so that they +informed the Regent that if the trial went on they would be present to +see justice done, and she, fearing the consequences, prevailed upon the +archbishop to prorogue the trial. At the same time she summoned a +convention of the nobility to meet at Edinburgh on the 7th of March, +and induced the archbishop to call a provincial council of the clergy +to meet in the city on the first of the same month. + +When the clergy met, two representations were laid before them, one +from the Protestants, asking what they felt to be needed, and another +from persons still attached to the Roman Catholic faith, praying for +the redress of certain grievances in ecclesiastical administration; but +both were treated with indifference. A secret treaty had been entered +into by them with the Queen Regent, wherein they had promised to raise +a large sum of money to enable her to put down all heresy, and so in +the most uncompromising confidence they confirmed all the doctrines and +practices of the Church, and declared that both the preachers who +administered the sacraments after the Reformed manner, and those who +received them at their hands should be excommunicated. + +This action of theirs convinced the Reformers that nothing was to be +hoped for from the clergy, and the {119} treaty to which we have +referred having somehow come to their knowledge revealed to them that +they had just as little to hope for from the court; so they broke off +all further negotiations and left the city. But they had scarcely gone +when a proclamation was made at the Market Cross, by order of the +Regent, prohibiting any person from preaching or administering the +sacraments without authority from the bishops; and it was because they +had disregarded that injunction that Paul Methven, John Christison, +William Harlow, and John Willock were now summoned to appear at +Stirling on the 10th of May, before the Court of Justiciary. When, +therefore, Knox arrived at Leith on the 2nd of that month, he could +truly say that he had come "even in the brunt of the battle." Nor was +he dismayed thereat. Rather like the war-horse of the sacred poet, he +said among the trumpets Aha! and went forth rejoicing in his strength +to mingle in the fray. + +The next morning the announcement of his arrival to the provincial +council of the clergy which was still in session in Edinburgh broke up +that assembly in haste, but not before its members had despatched a +messenger with the news to the Queen Regent who was then at Glasgow, +and who a few days later proclaimed Knox as a rebel and an outlaw in +virtue of the sentence formerly pronounced against him in his absence +by the bishops. But all this counted for little with him, for after +waiting only a few hours at Edinburgh, he had already gone to Dundee, +where he found the Protestants of Angus and {120} neighbourhood +gathered in great numbers and determined to attend their ministers to +Stirling. Lest, however, they should do harm, when they only intended +to do good, they determined to halt at Perth, from which place they +sent forward Erskine of Dun to inform the Regent at Stirling of the +peaceable object of their approach. As usual, when she heard what he +had to say, she sought to gain time by temporizing. She authorized him +to promise in her name that the trial should not go on, and prevailed +on him to persuade them to give up their purpose. Accordingly the +larger number of them returned to their homes. But when the day +appointed for the trial came, the summons was called by the Regent's +orders, the ministers were outlawed for non-appearance, and all persons +were prohibited, under pain of being treated as rebels, from harbouring +or assisting them. Erskine, finding that he had been grievously +befooled, escaped from Stirling and carried the news to Perth, where on +the day of his arrival Knox preached a sermon in which he denounced the +idolatry of the mass, and on which consequences followed which he did +not at the moment anticipate. For after his discourse had been +concluded a priest "in contempt" uncovered a rich altar-piece and +prepared to celebrate mass, whereupon a youth uttered an exclamation of +indignation. This provoked the priest to strike him "a great blow," +and he retaliated "in anger" by throwing a stone at the priest, which +hit the altar and broke one of the images. This was the spark to which +the people were {121} as tow, and in the course of a few minutes +everything in the church that savoured of idolatry--altar, images, +ornaments and the like--was thrown down and demolished. The report of +this outbreak soon gathered a mob described by Knox as "not of the +gentlemen, neither of them that were earnest professors, but of the +rascal multitude," who finding nothing more to be done in the church +rushed to the monasteries of the Black and Grey Friars and to the +Charterhouse and laid them all in ruins. + +This was the beginning of that demolition of Roman Catholic edifices +for which Knox has been so grievously assailed. But, without entering +minutely into the merits of the question, and cheerfully admitting +that--owing to human imperfection--a work like that in which our +Reformer was engaged could not be carried through without the doing of +some things of which men in less troublous times must disapprove, we +must be permitted to advance the following considerations. First, the +outbreak at Perth was in a manner accidental, and was not either +premeditated or instigated by Knox. Second, when the work of purifying +the churches was systematically entered upon, special instructions were +given to those entrusted with it to guard against any injury to the +fabrics themselves; for in a document enjoining the purgation of the +Cathedral of Dunkeld and subscribed by Argyle and Ruthven on the 12th +August, 1560, the parties commissioned are thus addressed: "Fail not +ye, but that ye take good heed that neither the desks, {122} windows, +nor doors be anywise burnt or broken, either glass-work or iron-work." +Third, the work of absolute destruction was reserved for the +monasteries. Now we can clearly see the reason for such a distinction. +The churches were the property of the people, and after being cleansed +were preserved for the people's use; but the monasteries, as Burton +candidly admits, were in a manner "fortresses of the enemy," and as +such were demolished. Yet even for the destruction of them Knox and +his brethren are not solely to be blamed; for as the historian just +named has said[1]: "In the history of the invasions directed by King +Henry and Somerset we have seen enough to account for large items in +the ruin that overcame ecclesiastical buildings in Scotland. For +Melrose, Kelso, Jedburgh, and the many other buildings torn down in +these inroads, the Scots Reformers have no censure beyond that of +neutrality or passiveness. The ruined edifices were not restored as +they naturally would have been had the old Church remained +predominant." When all these things are taken into account, it will be +seen that there is very little foundation for the common outcry against +Knox in this matter. + +In the present instance the demolition of the monasteries by the mob in +Perth seriously complicated the situation, and gave the Regent an +advantage which she was not slow to improve. For in an address to the +nobility in Stirling, she so employed it as to succeed in getting their +assistance in advancing against Perth", _with {123} an army_, for the +purpose of putting down what she chose to call a dangerous rebellion. +The Reformers wrote to her disclaiming all such intention; but finding +her inflexible, they prepared to defend themselves, and were assisted +by the opportune arrival of Glencairn from Ayrshire, with 2,500 +volunteers. When therefore she reached Perth she discovered that her +force was greatly outnumbered by theirs, and she was obliged to accept +an "appointment," by which she engaged to leave the citizens unmolested +in the exercise of their religion, and they pledged themselves to +return to their homes. This agreement she violated in many ways, and +so finally lost the confidence and support of Argyle and Lord James +Stuart, both of whom had been thus far politically on her side, but now +cast in their lot whole-heartedly with the congregation. After this +experience the leaders determined to take a step in advance and set up +Protestant worship in those places where their own personal influence +or the adherence of the people promised success, and it was resolved to +begin at St. Andrews. They therefore set a day for Knox to meet them +in that city, where he arrived on the 9th of July. When the archbishop +learned that he intended to preach in the cathedral he sent a message +to his friends to the effect that, "In case John Knox presented himself +at the preaching-place in his town and principal church, he should make +him be saluted with a dozen of culverings, whereof the most part would +light upon his nose." This threat somewhat daunted those by whom he +was {124} accompanied, and they endeavoured to dissuade him from +preaching; but the reply of the Reformer takes its place beside +Luther's words on the way to Worms, for he said, "As for the fear of +danger that may come to me let no man be solicitous, for my life is in +the custody of Him whose glory I seek, and therefore I cannot so fear +their boast or tyranny that I will cease from doing my duty, when of +His mercy He offereth me the occasion. I desire the hand or weapon of +no man to defend me. I only crave audience, which if it be denied me +here I must seek further where I may have it." There was no resisting +such a determination, and the result justified his courage, for +remembering doubtless his own words years before, while a slave in the +French galley, he preached on the Sunday, nor on that day alone, but +also on the four next following, without seeing anything either of the +archbishop or his culverings; and such was the effect of his discourses +that the provost, magistrates, and inhabitants agreed to set up the +Reformed worship forthwith, and proceeded at once to strip the church +of its images and to pull down the monasteries. + +The report of all this taken to the Queen Regent in the palace of +Falkland by the archbishop, led to the affair of Cupar Muir, which +Carlyle has thus described after his own manner: "Not itself a fight, +but the prologue or foreshadow of all the fighting that followed. The +Queen Regent and her Frenchmen had marched in triumphant humour out of +Falkland, with their artillery ahead, soon after midnight, trusting to +find at St. Andrews {125} the two chief lords of the congregation, the +Earl of Argyle and Lord James Stuart (afterwards Regent Murray), with +scarcely a hundred men about them,--found suddenly that the hundred +men, by good industry over-night, had risen to an army; and that the +congregation itself, under these two lords, was here, as if by _tryst_, +at mid-distance, skilfully posted, and ready for battle either in the +way of cannon or of spear. Sudden halt of the triumphant Falklanders +in consequence; and after that a multifarious manoeuvring, circling, +and wheeling, now in clear light, now hidden in clouds of mist; Scots +standing steadfast on their ground, and answering message-trumpets in +an inflexible manner, till, after many hours, the thing had to end in +an 'appointment,' truce, or offer of peace, and a retreat to Falkland +of the Queen Regent and her Frenchmen, as from an enterprise +unexpectedly impossible."[2] + +From this place Knox accompanied the forces of the congregation to +Perth, and thence to Edinburgh, where on the 7th of July the +Protestants of the city chose him to be their minister, and then for +the first time his voice sounded through the cathedral of St. Giles in +ringing notes of trumpet power. But soon after the lords of the +congregation, having been compelled to conclude a treaty with the +Regent, by the terms of which they agreed to quit Edinburgh and deliver +it up to her, judged it unsafe that he, being so obnoxious to her, +{126} should remain there without their protection, and so, putting the +less objectionable John Willock for the time into his place, they set +him free for a preaching excursion through different parts of the +kingdom. + +How he wrought on that occasion, and where, he has himself described in +one of his letters thus: "I have been in continual travel since the day +of appointment (_i.e._ the treaty with the Regent), and notwithstanding +the fevers have vexed me the space of a month, yet have I travelled +through the most part of this realm, where all praise be to his blessed +Majesty, men of all sorts and conditions embrace the truth. Enemies we +have many, by reason of the Frenchmen who are lately arrived, of whom +all parties hope golden hills and such support as we are not able to +resist. We do nothing but go about Jericho, blowing with trumpets as +God giveth strength, hoping victory by His laws alone. Christ Jesus is +preached even in Edinburgh, and His blessed sacraments rightly +ministered in all congregations where the ministry is established; and +they be these, Edinburgh, St. Andrews, Dundee, Perth, Brechin, +Montrose, Stirling, and Ayr. And now Christ Jesus is begun to be +preached upon the south borders in Jedburgh and Kelso, so that the +trumpet soundeth over all, blessed be our God." + +This was written on the 2nd September, 1559, and on the 20th, his wife, +having obtained through the influence of Throckmorton, the English +ambassador at Paris, that permission to pass through England which had +been denied to her husband, reached Scotland in safety. Her {127} +mother came with her as far as Northumberland, and after remaining a +short time with her friends there, took up her abode in Knox's +household, and continued a member of his family, at least till the +death of her daughter, though some believe that even after that she +remained with him, with but a brief interval, till her own decease. +Mrs. Knox was accompanied by Christopher Goodman, who had been the +colleague of her husband in Geneva, and who continued to labour in +Scotland, first at Ayr and afterwards at St. Andrews, until his return +to England in 1565. + +But the work in Scotland was too great to be successfully carried out +by its own people, even if they had been united among themselves, +which, unhappily, they were not. The Reformers there had to contend +not only with the adherents of the papacy in their own land, but also +with the power and diplomacy of France, and therefore it was of the +utmost consequence that assistance from England should be secured. It +was, fortunately, also quite important for England that France should +be prevented from securing a permanent hold on Scotland; but it was +some time before the English queen could be induced to commit herself +in any way to the cause of the Scottish congregation; and many +negotiations were required before that result was obtained. Neither +into the details of these, nor into the particulars of the civil war, +which lasted at this time in Scotland for about a year, can we enter +here. They will be found at length in the pages of the historians; and +it may suffice in this {128} place to say that at last, as the fruit of +the mission of the younger Maitland to the English Court, Elizabeth +consented to send a fleet into the Firth of Forth, and an array across +the border; and that the ultimate issue was a treaty entered upon +during the siege of Leith, on the 7th July, 1560, which secured that +the French troops should be immediately removed from Scotland; that an +amnesty should be granted to all who had been engaged in the late +resistance to the Queen Regent; that the principal grievances in the +civil administration should be redressed; and that a Free Parliament +should be held to settle the affairs of the kingdom. + +Before this turn was given to matters, and at midnight between the 10th +and 11th of June, the Queen Regent, Mary of Lorraine, the mother of the +Queen of Scots, had passed away from the earth, and thus the stage was +as it were cleared for the important things which were so soon to be +achieved. The one Mary had gone to her account; the other had not yet +come from France to take personal possession of the throne of her +native land, and in the interval many things otherwise--humanly +speaking at least--unattainable were obtained. "The stars in their +courses" were fighting for the Reformation; the providence of God was +on its side, and blind indeed must the historian be who sees no +indication of that fact. But because we fully recognise His hand, it +is the more important that we distinctly note also the obliquities +which characterized the conduct of many of the human actors in these +transactions; and it is with a {129} sense of something like +mortification that we confess that even Knox did not stand the ordeal +without deterioration. He was, as Laing remarks, "a chief instigator +and agent" in the negotiations with England; and, for the most part, he +manifested the strictest integrity. But there is one letter extant +which prevents us from being able to say that he never lent his +countenance to deceit. He is writing to Sir James Croft requesting +that men should be sent by him to the help of the Reformers; and in +answer to the objection that the league between England and France made +it impossible to do that without offending France, he says,[3] "If ye +list to craft with them, the sending of a thousand men to us can break +no league nor point of peace contracted between you and France; for it +is free for your subjects to serve in war any prince or nation for +their wages; and if you fear that such excuses shall not prevail, you +may declare them rebels to your realm, when ye shall be assured that +they are in our company." We mention it that we may not be accused of +concealing any portion of the truth concerning him. We do not +extenuate it; we cannot vindicate it. We say only that it is, so far +as we know, the solitary instance of the kind in the extensive +correspondence of our Reformer; that it is a clear exception to the +general outspoken, and in some cases even indiscreet, frankness by +which he was characterized; and that, perhaps, he caught the infection +from those with whom he was treating, for Froude says of Elizabeth at +{130} this time, "It is certain only that on the one hand she was +distinctly doing, what as distinctly she said she was not doing; and on +the other, that she was holding out hopes which, if she could help it, +she never meant to fulfil;"[4] and even Cecil, as the same author +proves, was a master in the same kind of craft, so that his indignant +reference to Knox's proposal reads to us now like an illustration of +"Satan reproving sin." It was in truth, as Laing has said, "an age of +dissimulation;" but Knox knew better; he was before his age in other +things, and should have been above it in this. + +But enough, we gladly turn from censure to praise, and wish to direct +attention at this point to Knox's views concerning civil government. +There was an assembly of nobles, barons, and representatives of burghs +held at Edinburgh on the 21st of October, 1559, at which the propriety +or lawfulness of depriving the Queen Regent of her authority (which was +afterwards resolved upon) was debated; and before which John Willock +and Knox were asked to give their opinion on the question. Willock +alleged that the power of rulers is limited, that they might be +deprived of it on valid grounds; and that the fortification of Leith, +and the introduction of foreign troops into the kingdom, was a good +reason why the Regent should be divested of her authority. Knox, while +agreeing with what he had said, added that the assembly might safely +proceed on these principles, provided only that they did not suffer the +misconduct of {131} the Regent to alienate them from their allegiance +to their own proper sovereigns, Francis and Mary; that they were not +actuated by any private hatred of the Regent herself; and that any +sentence which they should now pronounce should not preclude her +re-admission to office if she afterwards acknowledged her error, and +agreed to submit to the estates of the realm. These sentiments, +considering the circumstances in which the Reformers were then placed, +were moderate and wise. They show how very far from revolutionary Knox +and his associates were; and it is no small praise to him to say that +in a struggle which strained everything to the utmost, he sought to +maintain law while striving after liberty, and was careful to +discriminate between condemnation of the manner in which an office was +filled, and repudiation of the office itself. The relation of the +Reformation from popery to civil liberty is a theme which might furnish +materials for a goodly volume, and space will not allow us to enlarge +upon it here; but it might be well in these days if more attention were +directed to the opinions of the Reformers regarding political +government, and the share which these have had in laying the foundation +of freedom, as it is now enjoyed in Great Britain and the United +States. So far as Knox is concerned, we could have no better summary +of his views on the subject than that which is given by his great +biographer, from which we quote the following sentence,[5] each clause +of which is amply confirmed by {132} McCrie in the learned and +elaborate note which he has appended to his statement:--"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 anything +contrary to the Divine law, natural or revealed; that in every free and +well-constituted government, the law of the land was superior to the +will of the prince; 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; that every +nation is entitled to provide and require that they shall be ruled by +laws which are agreeable to the Divine law, and calculated 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 violate this, employ that power for the +destruction of the commonwealth which was committed to them for its +preservation and benefit, or, in one word, if they shall become +habitual tyrants and notorious oppressors, that the people are absolved +from allegiance, and have a right to resist them, formally to depose +them from their place, and to elect others in their room." It may +surprise some of our readers to discover how fully Knox in these +particulars was abreast of many of the views of the most enlightened +Liberals of our generation; but even Major, the principal of the {133} +Glasgow University when Knox became a student, had struck out in the +same direction, and in one of his works[6] has declared that "a free +people first gives strength to a king, whose power depends on the whole +people;" and that "a people can discard or depose a king and his +children for misconduct just as it appointed him at first;" and similar +sentiments might be cited from the pages of Buchanan. Major taught +them in the class, and Buchanan wrote them in his works; but Knox gave +them utterance, and that too with such force, that they were widely +diffused among the people, so that in due season the divine-right +nonsense of the Stuarts was exploded, and the beginning of a new order +of things introduced. + +But even in this matter, advanced as he was, Knox was not entirely +above the narrowness of his age. In common with all the Reformers, and +the most of the Puritans, he held that the theocracy of the Jews was +the ideal state, and as a consequence, that it was the duty of the +civil government to punish idolatry with death, to set up and maintain +the true religion by all the means at its disposal, and to put down +heresy as rebellion. {134} Neither the statesmen nor the divines of +that age seem to have perceived that the true analogue to the Jewish +theocracy is the spiritual Church of Christ, and so we account for the +fact that they continually referred to the Old Testament as their +warrant for seeking to advance what they believed to be the truth, and +to put down what they considered to be error by force. They did not +remember that in the Jewish state God was in no mere figurative sense, +but really and absolutely the King, so that in it to fear God and to +honour the king was virtually the same thing, and sin in every form was +also _ipso facto_ crime, was indeed treason, as committed against the +head of the government, and so was punishable by civil pains and +penalties. Forgetting or not perceiving _that_, the Reformers took the +Jewish for the model constitution. In all the states which they sought +to remodel, they lost sight of the distinction between a theocracy and +an ordinary government, and confounded crime with sin, and sin with +crime. More especially they made the crime of crimes to be, the +resisting or not conforming to what they themselves believed to be the +true religion as revealed by God, and as such they punished that with +all severity. There is no instance indeed on record of Knox himself +being in any way mixed up with persecution, understanding by that word +merely the putting of one to death for religious practices or opinions. +No such controversy can be raised over him as that which has been held +regarding Calvin and the prosecution of Servetus. But they all alike +held {135} that it was the duty of the government to establish and +maintain, as a government, and that means by enactments enforced by +penalties, the true religion; and from that persecution follows; rather +let us say, in that persecution is involved. To this error, which, +however, was the common opinion of their times, may be traced most of +the difficulties in which they were involved in the prosecution of +their work. The world has been slow to come to it, but no perfect +liberty either in Church or in state is possible save through the +separation of the one from the other, and the restriction of each to +its own proper domain. When this shall be attained in Scotland and +England, then shall be the beginning of another era, as strongly marked +as that which began in the overthrow of the Papal Church three hundred +years ago. The course of our narrative takes us now into parliamentary +debates, and royal closets, fully as often as into assemblies of the +Church, and therefore before we enter upon this section of the history, +we deem it right to indicate once for all the views which we ourselves +hold upon the subject. It is the province of the biographer to +narrate, and he must not be held as endorsing everything which he +records. + + + +[1] "History of Scotland," vol. iii. p. 354. + +[2] "An Essay on the Portraits of John Knox," pp. 139-140. "Works," +vol. xii. + +[3] "Works," vol. vi. p. 90. + +[4] Froude's "History of England," vol. vi. p. 273. + +[5] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. p. 149. + +[6] "De Historia Gentis Scotorum," book iv. chap. 22. I am indebted +for these citations to my late friend, Dr. J. M. Ross, whose researches +into the literature of Scotland have been recently published, and whose +early death is mourned by all who knew his worth. His work on the +Pre-reformation Literature of Scotland is a perfect thesaurus of +precious things, and has attracted the widest attention. + + + + +{136} + +CHAPTER X. + +THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH, 1560. + +The meeting of Parliament, provided for in the Treaty of Leith, was +opened with great ceremony on the 1st of August, 1560, and was attended +by an unusually large number of members. Knox "improved" the occasion +by preaching from the cathedral pulpit a series of expository sermons +on the prophecies of Haggai, with special application to the +circumstances of the country at the time. On his own showing he was +"vehement," and as he inveighed strongly against those who had been +enriched with the revenues of the Church, his words gave great offence +to many. Maitland sneeringly said, "What! we must now forget ourselves +and bear the barrow to build the house of God,"--words which already +showed that spirit of insincerity which afterwards took him into the +opposite camp. The great matter before this Parliament, after it had +approved the articles of the treaty, was the settlement of religion, +and as a preliminary to that the ministers were requested to draw up a +summary statement of "that doctrine which they would maintain as +wholesome and true, and only {137} necessary to be believed." This +work was done by them in four days, at the end of which they produced +the Confession which Knox has given at full length in his history. It +is all but certain that he had a considerable hand in its preparation, +and it has been described by the younger McCrie as "remarkably free +from metaphysical distinctions and minutiae," and as "running in an +easy style, and in fact reading like a good sermon in old Scotch." It +is, of course, Calvinistic, but in the article on election, there is +nothing of either reprobation or preterition. In that on the Lord's +Supper it repudiates alike the doctrine of transubstantiation, and that +of those who believe it to be "nothing else but a naked and bare sign," +insisting on some mystical influence as connected with it, but yet +confessing that such influence is given "neither at that only time, nor +yet by the proper power of the sacraments only," so that it is +exceedingly difficult to get from it a definite statement of what +precisely the "grace" in the sacrament is; but that difficulty is felt, +in our judgment, as seriously by those who desire to reduce to plain +language the words of the Westminster standards on the same subject. +In the section which treats of the authority of Scripture, there is no +attempt to formulate any theory of inspiration, but simply a +declaration that "in those books which of the ancients have been +reputed canonical, all things necessary to be believed for the +salvation of mankind are sufficiently expressed," and an affirmation +that "such as allege the Scriptures to have no other authority, but +that which is received from {138} the Kirk (Church) are blasphemous +against God, and injurious to the true Kirk, which always heareth and +obeyeth the voice of her own spouse and pastor, and taketh not on her +to be mistress of the same." On the subject of the civil magistrate +its words run thus: "That to kings, princes, rulers, and magistrates, +we affirm that chiefly and most principally the reformation and +purgation of the religion appertains; so that not only they are +appointed for civil policy, but also for maintenance of the true +religion, and for suppressing of idolatry and superstition, as in +David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah, and others highly commended for +their zeal, in that case may be espied," a statement which amply +confirms what we have just said regarding the position taken by the +Reformers on this matter. We ought to add, however, that according to +Randolph, the representative of the English Court, who was present on +the occasion of the ratification of the Confession, the section on the +civil magistrate had been expunged by Maitland, to whose revision, as +well as that of the Lord James Stuart, it had been submitted, and by +whom certain strong phrases in other parts of the document had been +softened. In Knox's history we have no word of anything like that, but +simply the Confession as it was actually ratified, and in that a +paragraph on the civil magistrate stands with the rest. But as there +is in that paragraph a good deal about the prerogatives of rulers, and +the duty of obedience to them, while there is no word of the limits of +allegiance to them, and the right of {139} resisting them when they +violate either the laws of the realm or the dictates of conscience, on +both of which points we know that Knox and his brethren held strong +convictions, it is probable that at first the article contained some +things on these aspects of the question, which were afterwards stricken +out, by the two men whom we have named, as being likely if retained to +imperil the acceptance of the document as a whole. This is only a +conjecture of our own, but it is not inherently improbable, and it +serves to harmonize the statement of Randolph with the appearance in +Knox's history of a chapter on the civil magistrate in the Confession +as adopted. + +This summary of doctrine was laid before Parliament, and carefully read +over article by article. Then, that no one should have a pretext for +complaining of undue haste, its further consideration was adjourned to +another day, the 17th of August, on which it was almost unanimously +accepted, and "ratified by the three estates of the realm." This was +followed on the 24th of the same month by the passing of Acts +abolishing the jurisdiction of the Pope in Scotland, repealing all +former statutes passed in favour of the Roman Catholic Church, and +ordaining that all who said mass, or heard mass, should for the first +offence be punished with confiscation of goods, for the second with +banishment, and for the third with death. Thus on the very threshold +of their undertaking they manifested the same intolerance from which +they had themselves suffered so much. + +{140} + +With a view to the proper organization of the Protestant Church, the +Lords of the Privy Council appointed Knox, along with five other +ministers, to draw up a plan of reconstruction which in their judgment +should be both agreeable to Scripture and practicable in the +circumstances of the country at the time. The outcome of their labours +was that scheme of Church government and order, which is known in +Scottish ecclesiastical history as "The First Book of Discipline." It +specifies the officers of the Church, permanent and temporary, +describes the manner of their election and appointment, particularizes +their duties, and gives principles for guidance as to general +discipline, while it also furnishes directions as to the celebration of +marriages and the conducting of funerals. At the same time it outlines +with great fulness a magnificent system of national education, such as +Scotland is only now beginning to realize, though for centuries it has +enjoyed something of an approximation to it. + +This "Book" is one of extreme interest, and is worthy of far more +attention from the mass of the people in these days than it has +received, or perhaps is likely to receive; but to whet the appetites of +our readers for the enjoyment of the work itself, we shall give some +general notion of its contents. The permanent officers in the Church +were ministers, elders, and deacons. The ministers were to be elected +by the people, but in case they neglected to do that duty within forty +days the Church of the superintendent with his council was to {141} +"present" to them a man whom they judged apt to feed the flock, yet it +was always to be avoided "that any man be violently intruded or thrust +in upon any congregation." Thus Knox and his brethren were +"non-intrusionists;" yet we doubt if in the famous controversy which +ended in 1843, they would have come up to the party standard, for the +"Book" says: "But violent intrusion we call not, when the council of +the Kirk, in the fear of God, and for the salvation of the people, +offereth unto them a sufficient man to instruct them, whom they shall +not be forced to admit before examination." Then elsewhere it is said, +"If his doctrine is wholesome and able to instruct the simple, and if +the Kirk can justly reprehend nothing in his life, doctrine, or +utterance, then we judge the Kirk which before was destitute +unreasonable if they refuse him whom the Kirk did offer, and _they +should be compelled by the censure of the council and Kirk_, to receive +the person appointed and approved by the judgment of the godly and +learned." Where was "the veto without reasons" then? And on whose +side was the First Book of Discipline? or was it on both sides? The +minister so chosen or appointed was to give proof of his gifts by +interpreting before the men of soundest judgment in the neighbourhood, +some place of Scripture selected by his brethren in office. He was +also to be examined openly "before all that list to hear," by the +ministers and elders of the Kirk, "in all the chief points that now lie +in controversy betwixt us and the Papists, {142} Anabaptists, Arians, +or other such enemies of the Christian religion." Next he was to +preach to the congregation calling him, that in open audience of his +flock he might give confession of his faith in full. Then public +"edict" was to be proclaimed, not only in the church where he was to +serve, but also in other places, especially in those in which he had +formerly lived, that if there was known any reason why he should not be +appointed to the ministry it should be shown. If everything were +satisfactory, the manner of his installation to office was to consist +in the consent of the people to whom he was appointed and the +approbation of the learned ministers by whom he was examined. The +admission was to be "in open audience." After a sermon by some +"especial minister" on the duty and office of ministers, exhortations +were to be given to minister and people, and this paragraph follows: +"Other ceremony than the public approbation of the people and +declaration of the chief minister, that the person there presented is +appointed to serve that Kirk, we cannot approve; for albeit the +apostles used the imposition of hands, yet seeing the miracle is +ceased, the using of the ceremony we judge is not necessary." Most +evidently John Knox believed in "_order_," but just as evidently he did +not believe in "_orders_," and there is no place here for the doctrine +of "succession." + +The elders and deacons were to be chosen by the people _annually_, from +among a list given by the minister, and if Churches be of smaller +number than that such {143} office-bearers can be chosen from among +them, they may be joined to the next adjacent Church. We have here +therefore the "rotatory" eldership, as it has been called by some in +America, recognised in principle, and the reason given for it is "lest +that by long continuance of such officials men presume upon the liberty +of the Church." Those holding the office were eligible for +re-election, but they must be appointed yearly "by common and free +election." In another place he says: "This order has been ever +observed since that time in the Kirk of Edinburgh, that is that the old +session before their departure nominate twenty-four in election for +elders, of whom twelve are to be chosen, and thirty-two for deacons, of +whom sixteen are to be elected, which persons are publicly proclaimed +in the audience of the whole Kirk, upon a Sunday before noon, after +sermon, with admonition to the Kirk, that if any man know any notorious +crime or cause that might unfit any of these persons to enter in such +vocation they should notify the same unto the session the next +Thursday; or if any know any persons more able for that charge, they +should notify the same unto the session, to the end that no man, either +present or absent, being one of the Kirk, should complain that he was +spoiled of his liberty in election." The duty of the elders was to +assist the minister in the oversight and discipline of the flock; and +that of the deacons was to superintend the revenues of the Church and +to take care of the poor. + +Besides these permanent offices, two others were {144} recommended for +the meeting of present emergencies. There were first a class of men +called Readers, whose duty it was to read the Common Prayers and the +Scriptures, in places still destitute of properly qualified ministers, +and which otherwise would have had no service of any sort for public +worship or instruction. They were restricted to the function of +reading, and hence their name; but they were encouraged to prosecute +their studies, and if they advanced satisfactorily they were permitted, +after examination, to append some exhortations to their readings, and +then they were called Exhorters. In addition to these, and at the +other end of the scale, the Book recommended the appointment of ten +Superintendents, each of whom was to have the supervision of a district +over which he was required regularly to travel for the purpose of +preaching, planting Churches, and inspecting the conduct of ministers, +exhorters, and readers. Some have maintained that in this there was a +recognition of Episcopacy, but as Dr. Laing has shown, the office was +merely temporary, and the number never exceeded the five who were first +appointed. Like other ministers the superintendent was subject to the +Assembly, and might be censured, superseded, or deprived of his office +by its decision. These office-bearers were to be appointed in the +first instance by the Privy Council, or by a commission appointed by +that body for the purpose; but, afterwards, by the whole ministers of +the district to be superintended, from a list of names already +proclaimed by the ministers, elders, {145} and deacons with the +magistrates and council of the chief town in the province; and for his +installation a form is given, with a list of the questions to be +proposed to him, and the answers to be given by him. It is added that +"the superintendent being elected and appointed to his charge, must be +subjected to the censure and correction of the ministers and elders, +not only of his chief town, but also of the whole province over the +which he is appointed overseer." + +It may be added here, that "The Book of Common Order" makes mention of +still another class of office-bearers, called Teachers or Doctors, who +were to be men of learning for the exposition of God's word, and whose +nearest modern equivalent seems to us to be the professors in +theological seminaries, but it is said "for lack of opportunity we +cannot well have the use thereof." + +In regard to the sacraments the "Book of Discipline" lays down that the +Lord's Supper should be observed after the manner already described by +us when we were treating of Knox's ministry in Berwick. In great towns +it was recommended that it should be observed four times in the year, +and in order to keep off Easter, the first Sundays in March, June, +September, and December are suggested, because "we study to suppress +superstition." It was also specified that in large towns there should +be daily sermon, or else common prayer, with some exercise of reading +the Scriptures; and in smaller places there should be at least one day +besides the {146} Sunday appointed for sermon and prayer. Baptism +might be administered wherever the word was preached, but it is alleged +to be more expedient that it be on the Sunday, and never in private +unless accompanied by the preaching of the word; for as the Book of +Common Order says, "The sacraments are not ordained of God to be used +in private corners as charms or sorceries, but left to the congregation +and necessarily annexed to God's word as seals of the same." We admit +the clause about "charms," but with the household baptisms of the +Scriptures before us, and the other baptisms, which were +administered--as it were "extempore"--by the apostles in the house of +the jailer and the house of Cornelius, we are not quite so sure about +the rest of "the rubric." Marriages were not to be entered into +secretly, but in open face and audience of the church; the place for +their celebration, therefore, was the church, and the time recommended +was Sunday before sermon. It was suggested that there should be no +service of any sort at funerals; but it is added, "Yet we are not so +precise but that we are content that particular kirks use services in +that behalf, with the consent of the ministry of the same, as they +shall answer to God, and to the assembly of the Church gathered within +the realm." + +But the most interesting portion of the Book of Discipline, perhaps, to +us in these days, is that which refers to education, contemplating as +it did the erection of a school in every parish for the instruction of +the {147} young in the grammar of their own language, in the Latin +tongue, and in the principles of religion; the setting up in every +notable town of a "college" for the teaching of "the arts, at least, +logic and rhetoric, and the tongues;" and finally the establishment in +the "towns accustomed,"--that is Aberdeen, St. Andrews, and +Glasgow,--of Universities with full appointments which are minutely +described. These were to be supported, stipends were to be furnished +for the superintendents, ministers, and readers, and suitable provision +made for ministers' widows, and orphan children, out of the confiscated +revenues of the Church, the bishops, and the cathedral establishments, +together with the rents arising from the endowments of monasteries and +other religious foundations. + +The "Common Prayer" so frequently referred to was no doubt "the order +of Geneva which is now used in some of our kirks," as the words within +inverted commas quoted from the Book of Discipline make clear. That +book had been prepared for the English congregation of Geneva during +Knox's pastorate there; and with such changes as the difference of +circumstances made necessary, it came to be adopted by the Scottish +General Assembly in 1564. Our reference to it here, therefore, is a +little premature, as we are now writing of events that occurred in +1560; but it may be convenient, as we are treating of the organization +of the Scottish Church, to dispose of the matter, once for all, in this +place. As we have already incidentally {148} recorded, it was agreed +by those who entered into the "Godly Band," that "common prayers" be +read in the parish churches on Sundays by the curates if they +consented, or if they refused, by such persons within the bounds as +were best qualified to do so. This probably was meant to specify the +second Prayer-Book of King Edward VI., yet as Dr. Laing remarks, and +the reasoning of Dr. McCrie on the subject tends to confirm his +statement, "the adoption of that book could only have been to a partial +extent, and of no long continuance." He proceeds thus: "But this, +after all, is a question of very little importance, although it has +been keenly disputed, for it is well to remember that at this period +there were no settled parish churches, and as there were no special +congregations either in Edinburgh or in any of the principal towns +throughout the country, no ministers had been appointed. The lords of +the congregation and their adherents were much too seriously concerned +in defending themselves from the Queen Regent and her French +auxiliaries, and more intent for that purpose on obtaining the +necessary aid from England, than to be at all concerned about points of +ritual importance. In the following year, when the French troops were +expelled from Scotland, and the Protestant cause was ultimately +triumphant, we may conjecture that, in some measure swayed by the +avowed dislike of Knox to the English service book, the preference was +given to the forms of Geneva. We hear at least no more word of the +English Prayer-Book, and {149} in the "Book of Discipline," prepared in +December, 1560, the only form mentioned is "Our Book of Common Order," +and "The Book of our Common Order, called the Order of Geneva." There +is also in existence a copy of an edition of that book printed in +Edinburgh in 1562, which shows its actual use at that time. Afterwards +it was found needful to have it enlarged, and the metrical version of +the Psalms, taken in large proportion from Sternhold and Hopkins, and +accompanied with appropriate tunes, was appended to it. We cannot go +into all the details of each part of the service here, but will content +ourselves with giving the order which it follows. It begins with a +confession of faith of considerable extent, but following the lines of +the Apostles' Creed of which it is an expansion; then come sections in +the order in which we name them, and respectively entitled--Of the +Ministers and their Election, Of the Elders and as Touching their +Office and Election; Of the Weekly Assembly of the Ministers, Elders +and Deacons; Of the Interpretation of the Scriptures. After these +comes the sanctuary service proper, consisting first of a prayer of +confession, of which a choice of one or other of three forms is given, +or perhaps it may have been intended that all three should be used, for +the book is not so explicit here as elsewhere; second, a psalm to a +plain tune sung by the people; third, a prayer by the minister for the +assistance of God's Holy Spirit, for which no form is given, and the +minister is to offer it as the Holy Spirit shall move his heart; +fourth, the {150} sermon; fifth, a prayer for the whole state of +Christ's Church, and for the Queen and her council, and the whole body +of the commonwealth; sixth, the Apostles' Creed; seventh, a psalm sung +by the people; eighth, the Benediction, after one or other of two +forms, to wit, that of Aaron and his sons, or that of the apostle at +the end of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, but in both instances +"us" is substituted for "you;" and so the congregation departeth. To +this are appended the Genevan form of prayer after sermon; and another +form to be used after sermon, on the week-day appointed for common +prayer; prayers used in the churches of Scotland during the time of +their persecution by the French; the thanksgiving after their +departure; and a prayer for the general assemblies of the Church. It +will be observed that nothing is here said of the reading of the +Scriptures, but this was not because that was under-valued, but because +the reader, who was in many cases the minister's assistant, had +already, before the commencement of the service proper, attended to +that duty in the hearing of the people. So far were Knox and his +friends from slurring over that exercise, that in the Book of +Discipline this characteristic passage occurs: "Further, we think it a +thing most expedient and necessary that every church have a Bible in +English, and that the people be commanded to convene to hear the plain +reading or interpretation of the Scriptures as the Church shall +appoint, that by frequent reading this gross ignorance, which in the +{151} accursed papistry hath overflown all, may partly be removed. We +think it most expedient that the Scriptures be read in order, that is, +that some one book of the Old and the New Testament be begun and +orderly read to the end. And the same we judge of preaching, where the +minister for the most part remaineth in one place; for this skipping +and divagation from place to place, be it in reading, be it in +preaching, we judge not so profitable to edify the Church, as the +continual following of one text." + +The order for baptism follows: the father, or in his absence the +godfather, is to rehearse the articles of his faith (this mention of +the godfather is interesting, and some may be surprised to learn, that +at the baptisms in Geneva of Knox's two sons, who were born there, +Whittingham was godfather to the one and Miles Coverdale to the other); +the minister follows with an exposition of the Creed; after that comes +a prayer; then the minister taketh water in his hand, layeth it on the +child's forehead, repeating the words of the formula of baptism, and +closes with an offering of thanks. The Book of Discipline had already +disallowed the sign of the cross, all anointings, and the like. This +is followed by "the manner of the Lord's Supper," into which we need +not go, as that has been already described. Then there is a single +sentence on burial, discouraging services at the grave; but after +burial "the minister, if he be present and required, goeth to the +church if it be not far off, and maketh some comfortable exhortation to +the {152} people touching death and resurrection." The book concludes +with "The Order of Ecclesiastical Discipline," pointing out the three +causes of discipline--the two kinds of discipline private and public, +and the like. There is in it no form for marriage; but that could be +supplied from the "Order of Geneva," which in this respect follows the +lines of other ecclesiastical books. + +This "Book of Common Order" has often been called "John Knox's +Liturgy," and within due limitations it is not inaccurately so +denominated; but the term is apt to be misleading, and it needs to be +added that the forms contained in it are not prescribed for constant +and exclusive use, but are given more in the way of a directory to +ministers as to the conduct of the service. The "Readers" of course +were restricted to them; but ministers were left free to use them or +not at their discretion. Thus we find in what we may call the +"rubrics" such expressions as these: "When the congregation is +assembled at the hour appointed, the minister useth one of these two +confessions, _or like in effect_;" "the minister after the sermon useth +this prayer following, or _such like_." Similar liberty is given as to +the prayers in the forms for baptism and the Lord's Supper; and at the +end of the form for the service on the Sunday we have this general +statement: "It shall not be necessary for the minister daily to repeat +all these things before mentioned; but beginning with some manner of +confession, to proceed to the sermon, which ended, he useth either the +prayer for all estates before mentioned, or else {153} prayeth as the +Spirit of God shall move his heart, framing the same according to the +time and manner which he hath entreated of." Thus the position of the +book, as concerns the debate between liturgy proper and free prayer, is +one of liberty, furnishing forms to those who wished to use them, and +leaving those who did not to pray as the Spirit moved them; but showing +to both alike what order was to be observed in the service as a whole, +what subjects were to be introduced into the prayers, and in what order +and connection they were to be brought into them. It ought to be noted +also that this book gave a great impulse to congregational singing of +psalms, which was adopted instead of that of choral anthems; and the +fashion now so universal, of printing the tunes in connection with the +Psalms, was followed, if not indeed introduced, so far as Scotland is +concerned by it. But though Knox had undoubtedly a hand in the +preparation and sanction of this so-called Liturgy, Dr. Laing has +unqualifiedly affirmed "that in no instance do we find himself using +set forms of prayer." The importance of the subject in itself, and the +general interest now felt in it by most of the Presbyterian and +Congregational Churches alike in Great Britain and America, must be our +apology for going so fully into this interesting history, and for +setting, as far as we may, the exact truth about it before the reader. + +But we must now resume the thread of our narrative. The Book of +Discipline never was so ratified as to become the law of the land. Its +general outlines, {154} indeed, were followed in the organization of +the Church; but though it received the signatures of many members of +the Privy Council, it was bitterly opposed by others--by some because +they were unwilling to disgorge the share of the Church's patrimony of +which they had taken possession, and by others because of their +aversion to the strict moral _surveillance_ to which it would have +subjected them. Knox puts the matter in a nutshell when he says: +"Everything that impugned to their corrupt affections was called in +their mockage a 'devout imagination.' The cause we have already +declared: some were licentious; some had greedily gripped to the +possessions of the Kirk; and others thought that they would not lack +their part of Christ's coat, and that before ever He was hanged, as by +the preachers they were oft rebuked." The final arrangement of the +temporalities was made later, when the ecclesiastical revenues were +divided into three parts, two of which were given to the ejected popish +clergy for their lives; and the other was divided between the court and +the Protestant ministers. + +As to the conduct of public worship the General Assembly of the Church +passed an Act in December, 1562, which enacted that "one uniform order +shall be taken in the administration of the sacraments, solemnization +of marriages, and burial of the dead, according to the Book of Geneva"; +and in December, 1564, it was ordained by the same body "that minister, +exhorter, and reader shall have one of the psalm books lately printed +in Edinburgh and use the order contained {155} therein, in prayers, +marriage, and ministration of the sacraments." + +In the latter part of 1560 Knox entered upon his ministry in Edinburgh, +with the Cathedral of St. Giles as his parish church, and John Cairns +as his assistant or reader. The city council provided for his lodging +a house at the Netherbow Port, which had been that of the Abbot of +Dunfermline, and which is now the property of the Free Church of +Scotland, by whom it is preserved as a memorial of the Reformer. The +council assigned him at first a stipend of L200, besides discharging +his house rent. After the settlement by the Privy Council above +alluded to, he received at least a part of his stipend from the common +fund of the ministers--for there was an "equal dividend" of the portion +given to the Protestant clergy--and the city council added to that what +was necessary to bring it up to the sum originally given. An +interesting illustration of their care for his comfort is furnished in +the Act of council of date 30th October, 1561, which runs thus: "The +same day the provost, bailies, and council ordains the Dean of Guild +with all diligence to make a warm study of deals to the minister John +Knox, within his house above the hall of the same, with light and +windows thereunto, and all other necessaries." But before that time a +dark shadow had fallen upon his dwelling, for toward the end of +December, 1560, his wife died, leaving him with his two boys to mourn +her loss. + +Public affairs just then also had a threatening aspect. {156} Mary and +her husband, the King of France, persistently refused either to ratify +the Treaty of Leith, or to confirm the settlement of the Reformed +Church, and were preparing a French army for the invasion of Scotland; +while agents of the Roman Catholic Church were sent over to rally the +adherents of the old faith. But "man proposes and God disposes," for +before the projected invasion could be carried out Francis II. died (on +December 5th, 1560), and Lord James Stuart was sent by a convention of +the nobility to France, not, as some have alleged, to invite Mary to +Scotland, but as Lord James himself wrote to Cecil, "for declaration of +our duty and devotion to her highness." Before his departure he +was--we quote from Knox's "History"'--"plainly premonished that if ever +he condescended that she should have mass publicly or privately said +within the realm of Scotland, that then betrayed he the cause of God, +and exposed the religion even to the uttermost danger that he could do. +That she should have mass publicly, he affirmed that he never should +consent, but to have it secretly in her chamber, who could stop her? +The danger was shown, and so he departed." He left Edinburgh on the +18th of March, and on the 19th of August, 1561, Mary arrived in +Scotland, where she was received with every demonstration of +enthusiastic welcome. + + + + +{157} + +CHAPTER XI. + +KNOX AND QUEEN MARY STUART, 1561-1563. + +Beautiful in person, attractive in manner, able, acute, brilliant even, +in intellect, Mary Stuart had many qualities which might have been +turned to good account for the welfare of her country. But, brought up +in a French court, her moral code was neither of the highest nor the +purest; educated under the supervision of her uncles of Lorraine, she +was taught to believe that the one great object of her life was to +advance the interests of the Roman Catholic Church; and sister-in-law +to him whose name is for ever blackened by the massacre of St. +Bartholomew, she was not likely to be over scrupulous as to the means +which she would employ to gain her end. So far as she had shaped a +policy to herself, when she came to Scotland, it would seem to have +been to temporize with the Protestants, until she had time either to +fascinate them by the spell of her personal magnetism or to crush them +by her power; then to make the throne of Scotland a stepping-stone to +that of England, to which she claimed to be the lawful heir, and so to +bring that realm also back {158} to its allegiance to the Pope. This +made her and Elizabeth implacable enemies. They were neighbours; they +were cousins; they were queens, these two, and the struggle between +them was to the death. One or other must go down. Each played a deep +and deceitful game, but Elizabeth was moved by ambition for herself, +while Mary was devoted to a cause, and so it is that as she lays her +head upon the block at Fotheringay it is encircled with the halo of a +kind of martyrdom, and the eye of the sternest judge is for the moment +blinded to the guilt of her life by the tear of pity which dims it as +he looks upon the manner of its close. + +Knox and she from the very first seem to have singled each other out +for a conflict hand to hand. He saw that everything which he counted +dear depended on the manner in which she was dealt with; and she +perceived that he was the moving spirit in that religious revolt which +it was her mission to put down. He feared the effect of her +blandishments upon others, and she recognised the magnitude of his +influence upon the people. He saw that if she could be baffled in her +efforts to re-establish popery in the land, the victory would be +finally won; and she felt that so long as he had the opportunity of +swaying the multitude by the fervour of his eloquence, there was no +hope of gaining the end on which her heart was fixed. He was afraid of +the effect of what his friend Campbell of Kingzeancleugh called "the +sprinkling of the holy water of the court" upon the less reliable of +his adherents; and she feared the fervour of {159} his prayers to God, +and the power of his appeals to his fellow-men. So there came to be +for some time a kind of duel between them, and the issue was at last a +victory for Knox. We need not approve unqualifiedly of everything +which he did or said in the course of the struggle, yet we must rejoice +in the result, for Knox "builded better than he knew," and secured, not +immediately but ultimately, the triumph of a larger liberty than that +which he at the time believed in; while she was the representative of +absolute power, and of a feudalism which looked upon the common people +as existing for her convenience and aggrandisement rather than upon +herself as the servant of the state. "What are you in this +commonwealth?" was her haughty question to him on one occasion. "A +subject born within the same," was his ever-memorable answer, and the +outcome of it has been that now in the land he loved the sovereign is +for the subjects, and not the subjects for the sovereign; it is a +little difference verbally, but in reality the gulf between the two is +that which divides freedom from slavery. + +The first collision between them occurred a few days after her landing. +Naturally enough, as some may think, she gave orders for the +celebration of a solemn mass in the chapel of Holyrood on the first +Sabbath after her arrival. She knew of the law passed by the +Parliament in 1560; she had probably heard from Lord James Stuart the +warning which had been given to him when he went to France, and +therefore this act on her {160} part was a virtual throwing down of the +gauge of battle at the feet of the Protestants. And thus they +themselves interpreted it. Some may imagine that they attached undue +importance to it; yet as Protestantism is still insisted on as a _sine +qua non_ to succession to the British throne, those who approve the +continuance of the Revolution settlement cannot consistently condemn +them. Moreover, it is not to be forgotten that to the Reformers the +mass was more than even an idolatrous service. It was a sign of many +other things: thumbscrews, racks, galley chains, gibbets and the like, +which were inseparably connected with papal supremacy, and in truth, as +one has said, "A man sent to row in French galleys and such like for +teaching the truth in his own land, cannot always be in the mildest +humour." When therefore her purpose became known, great excitement was +created among the Protestants, and some spoke of preventing her by +force from carrying it out; but Knox used his influence in private, +against such a proposal. On the following Sunday, however, from his +pulpit he showed his sense of the gravity of the crisis, when, after +exposing the idolatry that was in the mass, he alleged that "one mass +was more fearful unto him than if ten thousand armed enemies were +landed in any part of our realm of purpose to suppress the whole +religion." Hearing of this outburst Mary sent for him to the palace, +whether of her own motive or at the suggestion of others is not known, +and he had then, in the presence of Lord James Stuart, the first of +{161} those interviews which have been so harped upon by his +vituperators. We must refer our readers for the details to Knox's own +account in his "History," which has been little more than simply +modernised by McCrie, and must content ourselves with a mere summary of +what occurred. She began by attacking him for the writing of the +"First Blast," and after he had vindicated himself as best he could for +that, she charged him with having taught the people to receive a +religion different from that which was allowed by their princes. This +brought out his views as to the limits of obedience to civil rulers, +and on her interpreting his words to mean that her subjects should obey +him and not her, he vehemently repudiated that misapprehension, and +alleged that both rulers and subjects should obey God, and that kings +should be foster-fathers, and queens nursing-mothers to His Church. +That elicited the question from her which is the Church of God? and for +answer thereto he referred her to the Scriptures. This in its turn +raised the inquiry whose interpretation of Scripture was to be +accepted? which he answered by laying down the duty of private judgment +and of the comparing of one part of Scripture with another. At length +she very humbly remarked that she was not able to contend with him, but +that if she had those present with her whom she had heard they could +answer him, and he expressed his readiness to meet before her in +argument "the learnedest papist in Europe." To this she somewhat +tartly retorted, "You may perchance get that sooner {162} than you +believe," and he replied a little sarcastically to the effect that if +he ever got it, then indeed it would be sooner than he believed. He +took his leave in this courtly yet scriptural fashion, "Madame, I pray +God that you may be as blessed within the commonwealth of Scotland as +ever Deborah was in the commonwealth of Israel." + +Thus for the first time they measured their strength, and the result +was, in common speech, a draw. Mary found that Knox was made of more +unyielding stuff than those whom heretofore she had been in the habit +of meeting; and John formed an estimate of Mary's ability which his +subsequent experience only served to confirm. It was to be no child's +play between them. He could not afford to give so subtle and ready an +adversary the least advantage. Writing to Cecil after this interview +he says, "The Queen neither is, neither shall be of our opinion, and in +very deed her whole proceedings do declare that the cardinal's lessons +are so deeply printed in her heart that the substance and the quality +are like to perish together. I would be glad to be deceived, but I +fear I shall not. In communication with her I espied such craft as I +have not found in such age." + +Matters went on after this with tolerable quietness for months, and +Knox kept up his stated labours as the minister of Edinburgh. What +these were seem now to be surprising. He preached twice every Sunday, +and thrice besides during the week on other days. He met regularly +once a week with his elders for the oversight of {163} the flock; and +attended weekly the assembly of the ministers, for what was called "the +exercise on the Scriptures." These stated and constant labours, with +the addition of frequent journeyings by appointment of the General +Assembly to perform in distant parts of the country very much the duty +of a superintendent for the time, were exceedingly exhausting; and the +city council, wishing to relieve him of some of his duties, came (in +April, 1562) to a resolution to call the minister of the Canongate to +undertake the half of his charge; but their object was not accomplished +till June of the following year, when John Craig became his colleague. + +Meanwhile the Reformer came again into collision with the court. In +the beginning of March, 1562, the Duke of Guise and the Cardinal +Lorraine made that assault on a peaceable and defenceless congregation +of Huguenots, which is known in French history as the Massacre of +Vassy; and when the report of that was received by Mary, she was so +delighted that she gave in honour of the occasion a splendid ball in +the palace to her foreign servants, by whom dancing was kept up to a +very late hour. This act of hers was exceedingly painful to Knox, for +he had many warm friends among the Protestants of France, and his heart +was saddened by the tidings of the treatment to which they had been +subjected. Accordingly he gave vent to his feelings in his pulpit on +the following Sunday, when he preached from the text, "Be wise now, ye +kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth." After discoursing on +the dignity {164} of magistrates and the obedience which was due to +them, he lamented and condemned the vices to which they were too +commonly addicted, and made some severe strictures on their conduct, +affirming, among other things, "that they were more exercised in +fiddling and flinging, than in reading or hearing God's word," and that +"fiddlers and flatterers" (John was evidently fond of alliteration) +"were more precious in their eyes than men of wisdom and gravity." The +report of his discourse was carried by some one to Mary; and though he +had made no direct assault upon her, he was summoned on the next day to +the palace. Introduced to a chamber in which she sat, surrounded by +her maids of honour and principal courtiers, he was treated to a long +"harangue," as he calls it (but it was no doubt a proper scolding), on +the enormity of his conduct. Very wisely he heard that out without +interruption; then, when his "innings" came, he complained that he had +evidently been misreported to her, and craved leave to repeat to her +precisely what he had said, thus adroitly contriving that for that time +at least she should listen to a sermon. Beginning with the text, he +went over the main points of his discourse, which, among other things, +had in it this piece of sound sense: "And of dancing, madame, I said +that albeit in Scripture I find no praise of it, and in profane writers +that it is termed the gesture rather of those that are mad and in +frenzy than of sober men; yet do I not utterly condemn it, providing +that two vices be avoided: the former, that the principal {165} +vocation of those that use that exercise be not neglected for the +pleasure of dancing; and the second, that they dance not as the +Philistines their fathers, for the pleasure they take in the +displeasure of God's people." The accuracy of his rehearsal of his +sermon having been confirmed by those who had heard it when it was +originally given, the Queen said it was bad enough, but admitted that +it had not been so reported to her; and then very naively asked, that +if he heard anything of her that "misliked" him, he would come to +herself and speak of it to her privately. But Knox believed that +publicity was one great means of securing the vigilance, and through +that the safety, of the people, and therefore he declined to accede to +her request, on the ostensible ground that with the multiplicity of his +labours he had not the time for running about the court and his +congregation individually to deal with them for what he saw amiss. On +this occasion Knox was the champion of "free speech," and "scored" a +victory, so that he departed "with a reasonable merry countenance;" and +when some of the bystanders said, "He is not afraid," he made reply, +"Why should the pleasing face of a gentle woman affray me? I have +looked on the faces of many angry men, and yet have not been afraid +above measure," and so he left the Queen and the court for that time. + +The Romanists, encouraged by the hope of success, began now to put +forth strenuous exertions, both military and controversial, to recover +their lost ground; but the {166} rising of the Earl of Huntly in the +north was put down by the vigour of Lord James Stuart, who was now +known as the Earl of Murray; and the success of the abbot of +Crossraguel, in debate with Knox, was not such as to encourage others +to follow in his footsteps. That dignitary, in his chapel in +Kirkoswald, had, on August 30th, 1562, read a series of articles on the +mass and kindred subjects, which he offered to defend against all +comers; and on the following Sunday Knox, who happened to be in the +neighbourhood and heard of the challenge, came to the church to meet +him. But though he had courteously intimated to the abbot that he +would be present, that dignitary did not put in an appearance, and Knox +himself preached in the chapel. At the close of the service a letter +from the abbot was put into his hand; and, after negotiations, they met +on the 28th of September in the house of the provost of Maybole, where +forty persons on each side were admitted as witnesses. The debate +lasted for three days, and strangely enough was made by the abbot to +turn mainly on the significance of the act of Melchizedek in bringing +forth bread and wine when he went out to meet Abraham returning from +his victories over the five kings, which Knox averred "appertained +nothing to the purpose." At the end of the third day Knox, on the +ground of the scanty accommodation at Maybole, proposed that they +should adjourn to Ayr to finish the discussion; but this was declined +by the abbot, who promised to come to Edinburgh and resume it there if +the Queen would permit. {167} But he never came to the metropolis, +though Knox alleges that he himself had applied to the Privy Council +for the necessary permission. As usual in such cases, the victory was +claimed for each by his own partisans; but to counteract the false +reports that were circulated, Knox prepared and published the curious +tract, purporting to be an accurate account of the debate, which Dr. +Laing has reprinted in the sixth volume of the Reformer's works; and +though the discussion itself was on an entirely irrelevant issue, Knox +dealt with the very heart of the question in the prologue of his +pamphlet, which is written in his most vigorous and trenchant style. +One extract will show how sarcastic he could sometimes be, and with +what grim humour he could occasionally treat even the most sacred +subjects. He has been comparing the making of the "wafer-god" to that +of the idols so witheringly described by Isaiah in the 40th and 41st +chapters of his prophecies, and then proceeds as follows: "These are +the artificers and workmen that travail in making of this god, I think +as many in number as the prophet reciteth to have travailed in making +of the idols; and if the power of both shall be compared, I think they +shall be found in all things equal, except that the god of bread is +subject unto more dangers than were the idols of the Gentiles. Men +made them: men make it. They were deaf and dumb: it cannot speak, +hear, or see. Briefly, in infirmity they wholly agree, except that (as +I have said) the poor god of bread is most miserable of all other +idols; for according to their {168} matter whereof they are made, they +will remain without corruption for many years; but within one year that +god will putrefy, and then he must be burned. They can abide the +vehemency of the wind, frost, rain, or snow; but the wind will blow +that god to sea, the rain or the snow will make it dough again; yea, +which is most of all to be feared, that god is a prey (if he be not +well kept) to rats and mice; for they will desire no better dinner than +white round gods enow. But, oh then, what becometh of Christ's natural +body? By miracle it flies to heaven again, if the papists teach truly; +for how soon soever the mouse takes hold, so soon flieth Christ away, +and letteth her gnaw the bread. A bold and puissant mouse! but a +feeble and miserable god! Yet would I ask a question: 'Whether hath +the priest or the mouse greater power?' By his words it is made a god; +by her teeth it ceaseth to be a god: let them advise and answer." +Truly there is a ring of honest old Hugh Latimer in all this; and if +there were many such passages in Knox's sermons, it is not difficult to +explain how it was that "the common people heard him gladly." + +In the May of the following year (1563), Knox was sent for by Mary to +Loch Leven, where she was at the time residing, and treated to another +"interview," in which she endeavoured to induce him to use his +influence to put a stop to the prosecution of certain parties for their +celebration or countenancing of the mass. But nothing of importance +resulted, though from his own showing it is apparent that on this +occasion he was very {169} nearly thrown off his guard by the skill of +her acting and the "glamour" of her presence. + +In this same month Parliament met for the first time since Mary's +arrival in Scotland, and Knox confidently expected that the Treaty of +Leith would be ratified, and the establishment of religion by the +Parliament of 1560 would be put beyond all question by its action. But +he was doomed to disappointment. The "holy water of the court" had not +been without effect; the Protestant leaders had slackened in their +enthusiasm, and what he regarded as a great opportunity was lost. He +expostulated with many of the principal men of the party on the +subject, but his efforts were in vain; and the "contention" between him +and Murray over it was "so sharp" that there was a breach of friendship +between them which lasted for more than a year. The effect of all this +upon him was exceeding depressing; and on a Sunday before the +dissolution of Parliament he took occasion to unburden his soul to his +congregation. He expressed his sadness at the thought that those who +had in their hands the opportunity to establish God's cause had +actually betrayed it; he affirmed that the Parliament by which the +Protestant Confession was adopted and the Church reformed was as free +and lawful as any ever held in Scotland; and as reports of the Queen's +marriage were now in circulation, he warned them of the consequences +that would ensue if she should marry a papist. His words gave great +offence to many Protestants as well as Romanists; and when the Queen +heard of them {170} he was again summoned into her presence. This was +the occasion on which the much talked of "tears" were so plentifully +shed, and therefore we may reproduce the account of it given by McCrie, +which is itself only a condensation into the language of to-day of the +narrative given by Knox in his History. + +"Her Majesty received him in a very different manner from what she had +done at Loch Leven. Never had prince been handled (she passionately +exclaimed) as she was: she had borne with him in all his rigorous +speeches against herself and her uncles; she had offered unto him +audience whenever 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 +pronouncing these words with great violence she burst into a flood of +tears which interrupted her speech. When the Queen had composed +herself, he proceeded calmly to make his defence. Her grace and he had +(he said) at different times been engaged in controversy, and he never +before perceived her offended with him. When it should please God to +deliver her from the bondage of error in which she had been trained, +through want of instruction in the truth, he trusted that her Majesty +would not find the liberty of his tongue offensive. Out of the pulpit, +he thought, few had occasion to be offended with him; but there he was +not master of himself, but bound to obey Him who commanded him to speak +plainly, and to flatter no flesh on the face of the earth. + +"'But what have you do with my marriage?' said the {171} Queen. He was +proceeding to state the extent of his commission as a preacher, and the +reasons which led him to touch on that delicate subject; but she +interrupted him by repeating her question: 'What have ye to do with my +marriage? Or what are you in this commonwealth?' 'A subject born +within the same, madame,' replied the Reformer, piqued by the last +question, and the contemptuous tone in which it was proposed. 'And +albeit I be neither earl, lord, nor baron in it, yet has God made me +(how abject that ever I be in your eyes) a profitable member within the +same. Yea, madame, to me it appertains no less to forewarn of such +things as may hurt it, if I foresee them, than it doth to any of the +nobility; for both my vocation and conscience requires plainness of me. +And therefore, madame, to yourself I say that which I spake in 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 lieth to +renounce Christ, to banish His truth from them, to betray the freedom +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 (Erskine of Dun, who was +present), who was a man of mild and gentle spirit, tried to mitigate +her grief and resentment: he praised her beauty and her +accomplishments, and told her that there was not a prince in Europe who +would not reckon himself happy in gaining her hand. During this scene, +the severe and inflexible mind of the Reformer displayed {172} itself. +He continued silent, and with unaltered countenance, 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 +that he could see his own boys weep when he corrected them for their +faults, far less could he rejoice in her Majesty's tears; but seeing he +had given her no just reason of offence, and had only discharged his +duty, he was constrained, though unwillingly, to sustain her tears, +rather than hurt his conscience and betray the commonwealth through his +silence. + +"This apology inflamed the Queen still more: she ordered him +immediately to leave her presence, and wait the signification of her +pleasure in the adjoining 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 sat in their richest dress in the +chamber. 'O fair ladies, how pleasing were this life of yours, if it +should ever abide, and then, in the end, that we might pass to heaven +with all this gay gear! But fie upon that knave Death, that will come +whether we will or not!' Having engaged them in a conversation, he +passed the time till Erskine came and informed him that he was allowed +to go home until her Majesty had taken further advice. The Queen +insisted to have the judgment of the Lords of Articles, whether the +words he had used in the pulpit were not actionable; but she was +persuaded to desist from a {173} prosecution. 'And so that storm +quieted in appearance, but never in the heart.'"[1] + +At this time, when many of his friends were cold toward him, an effort +was made by some of his enemies to blacken his moral character by +accusing him of a vile offence, but the lie had nothing in it to make +it formidable. It was "a lie that was all a lie," and so it could be +"met and fought with outright." The vindication was so complete that +now very few remember that the allegation was ever made, and we refer +to it here only to show that he too was made an illustration of the +poet's words: "Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt +not escape calumny." + +Much more serious was the attempt made about this same time to convict +him of high treason. During the absence of Mary in Stirling, and on +the day of the observance of the communion in the Protestant churches, +her servants at Holyrood had taken measures for having the mass +celebrated with more than usual publicity and splendour. The result +was a scene of confusion and "brawling," almost indeed of riot, which +was caused by the interference of some Protestants who were present. +Two of these were afterwards indicted for their offence, which was +called in the technical language of the country and the time, +"forethought felony, hame-sucken, and invasion of the palace." Knox +had been empowered by a general commission from the Church to ask the +presence of the Protestant leaders in Edinburgh for {174} consultation +and assistance in any emergency which in his judgment might require the +same; and believing that the prosecution of these men might issue in +very serious consequences, he drew up under the advice of the friends +with whom he usually acted a circular letter, which he sent to the +principal gentlemen of the "congregation," stating the circumstances, +and asking them without fail to come to Edinburgh for the trial. A +copy of this letter found its way into the hands of Mary, who laid it +before the Privy Council, by whom it was pronounced to be treasonable. +The Queen was exultant. Now was her opportunity, and she resolved to +turn it to the best advantage. An extraordinary meeting of the +councillors and other noblemen was convened to be held at Edinburgh +about the middle of December, 1563, to try the cause. Some urged Knox +to acknowledge that he had done wrong, and cast himself on the Queen's +mercy, but that he absolutely refused to do, because he did not believe +that he had committed an offence; and when Secretary Maitland and +Murray called upon him, and somewhat ungenerously sought to get out of +him the nature of the defence which he meant to set up, he very wisely +put an end to the conversation with them, and resolved to keep his own +counsel until he was actually called to vindicate his conduct. + +When the day came, he stood forth as the champion of the liberty of +assembly, as before he had appeared in vindication of free speech; and +so admirably did he plead his cause that he was acquitted, if not +unanimously {175} at least _nem. con._, of the charge which had been +brought against him. + +Much has been said of the bearing of Knox towards Queen Mary, and said, +as we believe, most unjustly, for though he felt himself constrained to +oppose her course, and would not yield to her wishes, yet he was never +rude, or irreverent, or ungentlemanly. As Carlyle says, "he was never +in the least ill-tempered with her Majesty;" and most of those who +accuse him in this matter, we shrewdly suspect, have never read the +accounts of his interviews with her, but have simply accepted the +common babblement which has been so long current regarding them. No +candid student of the rehearsal of these interviews in Knox's History, +we are sure, could refuse to endorse the accuracy of Carlyle's +statement of the case when he says "Mary often enough bursts into +tears, oftener than once into passionate long continued fits of +weeping, Knox standing with mild and pitying visage, but without the +least hair's-breadth of recanting or recoiling, waiting till the fit +pass, and then with all softness but with all inexorability taking up +his theme again." + +But while Knox's manner toward her Majesty has been most +microscopically examined, very little attention has been given to +Mary's manner toward Knox; and on this particular occasion, in the +presence of the council and the nobles, sitting too as a kind of court +before which he was on trial for high treason, it was flippant and +unmannerly in the extreme, and was besides entirely {176} incompatible +with the presence in her of a judicial spirit. When she entered the +chamber and took her seat, she first smiled, and then burst into a loud +guffaw, saying, "This is a good beginning, but wot you whereat I laugh? +That man made me weep, and shed never a tear himself. I will see now +if I can make him weep." Then after his letter had been read, and he +was defending himself, she cried, "What is this? Methinks you trifle +with him. Who gave him authority to make convocation of my lieges? Is +not that treason?" There spake the despot, for beneath the velvet of +her glove there was always a hand of iron; but she touched a chord that +vibrated to a note which she had not thought to sound when she used +these words, for Ruthven said boldly and categorically, "No, madame!" +The gruff nobleman was immediately commanded by her Majesty to "hold +his peace," and Knox went on with his defence in such a way that he +successfully vindicated his right to call and hold a meeting of his +friends for any lawful purpose when and where he chose. He was next +questioned about the statement in his letter to the effect that he +feared the prosecution of these men would open a door for the +infliction of cruelty upon a greater number; and as he was proceeding +to enlarge upon the deeds of the papists in France, and denouncing +those who had done them, he was interrupted by the ejaculation of one +of the nobles, "You forget yourself; you are not in the pulpit." This +called forth the often quoted words, "I am in the place where I am +demanded of my {177} conscience to speak the truth; and, therefore, the +truth I speak; impugn it who so list." The Queen now felt that a +defeat was imminent, and as a last resort, she tried to work on the +sympathy of her lords by referring once more, but this time in another +fashion, to the fact that Knox had made her weep. That, however, only +gave him an opportunity of rehearsing all that had occurred on the +occasion to which she had referred, and thereby made his victory the +more sure. But what is to be said of her conduct throughout on this +trial? "Heard you ever, my lords, a more despiteful and treasonable +letter?" "You shall not escape so." "Is it not treason to accuse a +prince of cruelty?" "Lo! what say you to all that?" These are a few +of her expressions when she was sitting as a judge, and with these, and +others already quoted, before us, is it not idle to speak of justice, +far less of mannerliness or gentlewomanliness in the case? +Ungentlemanliness is bad enough,--though even of that we maintain that +there was nothing in Knox's treatment of his queen,--but to seek to +overbear a court as Mary did at this time, by the manifestation of her +eagerness to have the accused condemned, either by fair means or foul, +is infinitely worse. The spirit of Mary here was that of Jeffreys long +after. It was indeed far from being so coarsely and brutally +expressed, but it is worthy of all reprobation, and in view of the +facts which we have here presented, it is little wonder that Hume, in +writing to the historian Robertson, should have said, "I am afraid that +you, as well as myself, have drawn Mary's character {178} with too +great softenings. She was undoubtedly _a violent woman at all times_." +But he never altered his representation in his work, and to him, +perhaps, more than to all others, the prevalent misconception of our +Reformer's character, manner, and motives is to be traced. + +The result of this trial was announced by Secretary Maitland, when he +said to Knox that he was at liberty to return home for that night. But +though his voice was smooth, his soul was full of wrath, and Mary's +mortification vented itself in taunting the very man who had given her +the letter, for voting for the acquittal of him who wrote it. Thus +again the Reformer triumphed, and it is with a glow of satisfaction +akin to that with which Nehemiah recounts his escape from Sanballat, +that he finishes the record thus: "That night was neither dancing nor +fiddling in the court, for madame was disappointed of her purpose, +which was to have had John Knox in her will, by vote of her nobility." + + + +[1] McCrie's "Works," vol. i. pp. 206-8. + + + + +{179} + +CHAPTER XII. + +MINISTRY AT EDINBURGH, 1564-1570. + +In the month of March, 1564, Knox, who had been a widower for now +rather more than three years, was united in marriage to Margaret +Stewart, daughter of Lord Ochiltree, and the room in the old baronial +residence where the ceremony was performed is still pointed out to +visitors. Despite their dissimilarity in age, the union seems to have +been a very happy one, and such as brightened the last days of the +Reformer's home life. This year passed with little to make it +memorable save a long discussion between Knox and Secretary Maitland, +which originated in an attempt to restrain the freedom of the +Reformer's utterances on public questions in the pulpit, and wandered +over a great variety of topics, touching, among others, the duties of +magistrates and their subjects, but led to no immediate practical +result. The calm, however, was not of long continuance, for we come +now to those troublous times and dark doings which have made the reign +of Mary Queen of Scots the great debating ground of modern history. +She determined to marry Lord {180} Henry Darnley, the son of the Earl +of Lennox, a Catholic and an empty-headed fool. The knowledge of her +purpose provoked the project of an insurrection among some of her +nobles, who were headed by the Earl of Murray; but though they had the +promise of assistance from Elizabeth, she failed them when it came to +the point, and the result was that all who had been concerned in it +were proclaimed as outlaws and banished from the kingdom. In this +affair Knox took no part whatever, though Lord Ochiltree, his +father-in-law, was implicated in it, and was one of the exiles. But +though he did not compromise himself by proposing to join in the +meditated appeal to arms, he was as strongly opposed to Mary's marriage +as any of them, and as was his wont he liberated his conscience in the +pulpit, but it was not until after the nuptials had been consummated +that his words were especially regarded. The marriage was celebrated +on the 29th of July, 1565, and on the 19th of August, Darnley, for some +reason, chose to attend the public services in St. Giles' Cathedral, +where a great throne had been prepared for his reception. Whether Knox +had received any intimation of his intention to be present we are +unable to say, but in his sermon there were two things which gave great +offence to this prominent hearer. The first was his quotation of the +passage, "I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall +rule over them; children are their oppressors, and women rule over +them"; and the second, his declaration that "God had punished Ahab +because {181} he did not correct his idolatrous wife Jezebel." Darnley +believed that these words were meant for him, and went home in the +sulks, making his likeness to Ahab only the more striking by refusing +to eat his dinner. The preacher was immediately summoned before the +Privy Council, by whom he was told that he must desist from preaching +as long as their majesties were in the city. For his own exoneration +Knox printed the sermon for the preaching of which he was thus +condemned, and it remains the only specimen of his pulpit work proper +which has come down to us. It is founded on Isaiah xxvi. 13-21, and is +of the nature of an expository discourse, bringing out the primary +signification and reference of the words, and making application of the +principles evolved by that process to the characters and circumstances +of his hearers. It gives evidence of considerable scholarship, of +immense familiarity with Scripture, of good acquaintance with ancient +history, and of great fervour of spirit. It is neither a hasty nor ill +digested production, and it impresses us a good deal more by its +solidity than by its invective. Indeed, there are in it no passages +that one could put into comparison for that with others which have been +already mentioned by us; and it is a little difficult for the modern +reader to wed in his imagination a style so calm and weighty as that +which he finds here, with a manner so vehement as the Reformer's is +usually described to have been. But no printer can reproduce the man, +or the surroundings; here are the wood and the lamb indeed; but in +these {182} others were the fire--from heaven too in a sense--which +flamed forth with its energizing and consuming power, and made his +discourse a thing of might. Such difference as there is between a +bugle, and a bugle blown by a living martial musician, there is between +a printed sermon and the same discourse preached by its author with the +glow of spiritual enthusiasm in his heart and on his face. The one is +a thing of curious study to the professional man, the other is a +trumpet call which puts heart and heroism into hundreds in a moment. + +Knox showed his law-abiding spirit by obeying the injunction of the +authorities. His biographer, indeed, says that "it does not appear +that he continued any time suspended from preaching," but Dr. Laing +believes that he did not resume his usual ministrations at Edinburgh, +unless at occasional intervals, until after Queen Mary had been +deprived of her authority. He was not idle, however, in those months, +for he was employed not only in the preparation of his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," but also in the visitation of churches in the +south of Scotland, and in a journey into England, specially undertaken +to look after his two boys whom he had sent thither for education. + +In this interval occurred the murder of David Rizzio, on the 9th March, +1566, in the palace of Holyrood. That wretched man was an Italian +adventurer, whose knowledge of foreign languages made him useful to +Mary in her correspondence with the other members of the +Anti-Protestant League to which she belonged. {183} His acquaintance +with her political designs thence derived opened the way for his +becoming one of the most confidential of her advisers. That roused +against him the enmity of the Scottish nobles, and Darnley became +jealous of his intimacy with the Queen; so with his assistance and +approval David was foully slain almost before the eyes of his mistress. +Attempts have been made to implicate Knox with this affair, but though +he does not conceal his satisfaction at David's "removal," he was in no +wise accessory to his death. The very next day after this tragedy the +exiled lords returned to Edinburgh, and then followed thick and fast +upon each other events of great and lasting importance to the land. +These were the birth of James VI. on the 19th of June, 1566; the murder +of Darnley, on the night between the 9th and 10th of February, 1567, a +deed which was planned and carried out by Bothwell and his agents, not +without dark grounds for the suspicion, to say the very least, that he +and they were acting with the knowledge and consent of Mary herself; +the marriage on the 15th May, 1567, of Mary to Bothwell, that +black-hearted villain who was the evil genius of her life; the +surrender of Mary to the opposing Lords at Carberry Hill on the 15th of +June; the imprisonment of Mary in Loch Leven Castle, where, on the 24th +of July, she signed a deed abdicating the crown in favour of her infant +son, and appointing Murray regent during his minority; the escape of +Mary from her place of confinement on the 2nd of May, 1568; and the +defeat on May 13th of her {184} forces at Langside, whence she fled to +seek from Elizabeth refuge in England, with the Fotheringay block as +the ultimate result. For full details regarding all of these we must +refer our readers to the Scottish histories, and we content ourselves +with mentioning them thus in a group in order that we may carry in our +hands the clue for the intelligent following out of our Reformer's +career. + +When the infant James was crowned in the parish church of Stirling, on +the 29th of July, 1567, the sermon on the occasion was preached by +Knox, though he objected to perform the ceremony of anointing, which +accordingly was done by another. In the month of December following he +preached at the opening of Parliament, and had the satisfaction of +seeing an Act passed which ratified all that had been done in the way +of Reformation by the Parliament of 1560; while an additional statute +was now made providing that no prince should afterwards be admitted to +exercise authority in the kingdom without taking an oath to maintain +the Protestant religion. + +During the regency of Murray everything went well, but his +assassination (what terrible times these were!) at Linlithgow, by +Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh, on the 23rd of January, 1569, was a terrible +blow to Knox. Indeed, it may be said that he was never quite the same +man afterwards. Knox and Murray loved and trusted each other +thoroughly--perhaps all the more from the additional insight into each +other's hearts {185} which their temporary estrangement gave them, and +when the Regent was stricken down the Reformer felt as if his chief +human helper had been taken from him. Murray was a genuine patriot, +and in the main a sincere and noble man. He had his faults, and on +exceptional occasions like that described by Froude,[1] when he was +made the tool of Elizabeth, he was constrained to be, at least by his +silence, a party to deceit which in his heart he abhorred; but that +historian has not hesitated to call him "a noble gentleman of stainless +honour,"[2] and to affirm that "his noble nature had no taint of self +in it";[3] and though Robertson has done his best to belittle him, the +verdict of history we think will settle in the acceptance of +Spottiswood's eulogy: "a man truly good, and worthy to be ranked among +the best governors that this kingdom hath enjoyed, and therefore to +this day honoured with the title of 'the good Regent.'" On the Sunday +after this irreparable loss, Knox poured out his heart to God before +the congregation in a prayer which showed how deeply the bereavement +had depressed his spirit, and on the day of the funeral he preached a +sermon from the text, "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord," in +which he sketched the character and career of his friend with such +effect that three thousand persons were moved to tears by his words. +The blow fell sorely on the country; and it nearly crushed the {186} +Reformer. The loss preyed upon his spirit and enfeebled his strength, +so that in the month of October following he was stricken with +paralysis or apoplexy, which laid him aside altogether for a season +from his work, and gave warning of the approaching end. His enemies +exulted over his illness, and could not refrain from congratulating +themselves on the prospect that he would never preach again; but after +some weeks he so far regained his vigour as to resume, in part at +least, those labours in which he had found so much of his joy. +Throughout the winter and the spring he continued to bear testimony +from his pulpit to the principles which he had so long proclaimed, and +to expose and rebuke the evil-doers who were once more at work in the +land. For though the murder of Murray brought no permanent advantage +to the party of reaction, it brought back again, for a while at least, +the chaos and contentions out of which he had begun to bring order and +peace. Lennox, as the grandfather of the infant king, was put into the +place of Murray, but within a comparatively brief period he was +mortally wounded in an assault made upon the adherents of the king at +Stirling, by a force led by Huntly in the interests of Mary, and +Erskine of Mar was chosen as his successor. This was in September, +1571. Meanwhile Kirkaldy, of Grange, who had been appointed governor +of the Castle of Edinburgh by Murray, had turned his back upon the +professions and promise of his life, by avowing himself a partisan of +the Queen. He held that fortress for her {187} behoof, and gave its +protection to Secretary Maitland, who was working earnestly in her +cause. By Maitland's influence Kirkaldy was encouraged in a course +which was exceedingly painful to Knox. The Laird of Grange and he had +been fellow-sufferers in the French galleys, and to the last the heart +of the Reformer yearned after him. Yet he could not permit his conduct +as governor of the Castle to go unreproved. On two occasions, in +particular, he was constrained to take public notice of his doings. +The first was briefly this. There had been a scuffle in Dunfermline +between a cousin of Kirkaldy and his relatives, and some of the Duries, +a family with whom the Kirkaldys had a feud; and one of the latter +having been seen shortly afterwards in the streets of Edinburgh, was by +Kirkaldy's orders followed to Leith by some of his tools, that they +might chastise him with a cudgel. But they took the sword instead and +left him dead. In the attempt to escape, one of the assailants was +arrested and committed to the Tolbooth, but Grange and his men attacked +the building, violently forced it open, and marched off with their +liberated comrade to the Castle, the guns of which they fired, either +in token of triumph or for the purpose of striking terror into the +citizens. In his sermon on the following Sunday Knox protested against +this interference with the course of justice, using language which +seems to us both temperate and kindly: "Had it been done," he said, "by +the authority of a bloodthirsty man, or one who had no fear of God, he +would not have been so much {188} moved; but he was affected to think +that one, of whom all good men had formed so great expectations, should +have fallen so low as to act such a part, one too who, when formerly in +prison, had refused to purchase his own liberty by the shedding of +blood." An utter misrepresentation of this statement was carried to +Kirkaldy, who complained to John Craig, the Reformer's colleague, by +whom he was referred to the elders of the Church of which Kirkaldy +still professed to be a member. Knox himself, as soon as he had the +matter brought before him, denied that he had used the words imputed to +him, and took the first opportunity of correcting the false report, by +repeating and vindicating what he had really said. + +The other occasion was that of the appearance shortly after, in the +church, of Kirkaldy, accompanied by a strong armed escort, composed of +those who had been most conspicuous in the recent outrages. He had not +attended the public services for nearly a year, and Knox looked upon +his presence so surrounded as an attempt to overawe him. But he was +not the man to be thus intimidated, and so, as his good servant +Ballantyne tells us, he took occasion then and there to inveigh +"against all such as forget God's benefits received, and in treating of +God's great mercies bestowed upon penitents, according to his common +manner, he forewarned proud contemners that God's mercy appertained not +to such as with knowledge proudly transgressed, and after, more proudly +maintained the same." Kirkaldy was greatly {189} enraged at these +words, and even in the church he gave vent to his anger so loudly as to +be heard by a great part of the congregation. The report went out in +consequence that he meant to kill the preacher; but Knox held on his +way, dealing defiantly with the anonymous libels that were sent him, +and publicly declaring in words that have become proverbial, that "from +Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other inspired writers, he had learned to call a +fig a fig, and a spade a spade." + +But when, in 1571, Kirkaldy received the Hamiltons and their forces +into the Castle, the friends of Knox became seriously alarmed for his +safety. They proposed to form a guard who should constantly accompany +him for his protection; but he would not accept the offer, and even if +he had accepted it Kirkaldy would not have permitted it to be carried +out. It was according to military etiquette that he should suppress or +prevent all such outrages, and he expressed his willingness to provide +a guard for Knox from the soldiers of his garrison. He even tried to +get the Hamiltons to guarantee the safety of the Reformer, but they +declared that they could not enter into any such engagement, "because +there were many rascals and others among them who loved him not, who +might do him harm without their knowledge." One evening a musket was +fired into his window, and had he not been sitting in a place different +from that which he usually occupied, the ball must have struck him, and +would in all probability have mortally wounded him. After that he +{190} was importuned by his friends to seek a place of safety +elsewhere, but he refused to leave his post until they told him that +they had made up their minds to defend him, if need be, with their +lives, and that if blood was shed they would leave it on his head. +This argument prevailed, and he consented to remove to St. Andrews, +whither he went by easy stages, and where he arrived in the month of +May, 1571. In his absence his pulpit in St. Giles was filled for a +while by Alexander Gordon, Bishop of Galloway, who pleased the Queen's +party but displeased the vast majority of the Protestants, so that the +Church of Edinburgh was for a time dissolved, while disorder reigned in +the city, and what was virtually a civil war was raging in the country. + + + +[1] "History," vol. vii. pp. 345-7. + +[2] Vol. vii. p. 340. + +[3] Vol. iii. p. 355. + + + + +{191} + +CHAPTER XIII. + +LAST DAYS, 1570-1572. + +At St. Andrews Knox was free from personal danger, and resumed the work +of preaching. In the pulpit of the parish church he discoursed almost +regularly, with a vigour which triumphed for the time over his physical +weakness. We have a most graphic portrait of him at this time from the +pen of James Melville who was then a student at the University, and who +writes thus in his diary: (We are constrained to modernize the words +that they may be generally understood by English and American readers, +but we know how much they must lose thereby in expressiveness, to those +who understand the vernacular) "Of all the benefits that I had that +year (1571), was the coming of that most notable prophet and apostle of +our nation, Mr. John Knox, to St. Andrews, who by the faction of the +Queen occupying the castle and town of Edinburgh, was compelled to +remove therefrom, with a number of the best, and chose to come to St. +Andrews. I heard him teach there the prophecies of Daniel that summer +and the winter following. I had my pen and my little {192} book, and +took away such things as I could comprehend. In the opening up of his +text he was moderate for the space of half an hour; but when he entered +on application, he made me so to shudder (_scottice_, 'grue') and +tremble, that I could not hold my pen to write. He was very weak. I +saw him every day of his teaching, go slowly and warily, with a fur of +martens about his neck, a staff in the one hand, and good, godly +Richard Ballantyne, his servant, holding up the other armpit +(_scottice_, 'oxter'), from the abbey to the parish kirk, and by the +said Robert and another servant lifted up to the pulpit, where he +behoved to lean at his first entrance; but before he had done with his +sermon, he was so active and vigorous, that it seemed as if he would +beat the pulpit in pieces (_scottice_, 'ding the pulpit in blads') and +fly out of it." Nor must we omit this other trait, evincing as it does +the interest taken by the aged warrior in the young soldiers who were +then just girding on their armour. "He would sometimes come in and +rest in our college yard, and call us scholars unto him, and bless us, +and exhort us to know God, and His work in our country, and stand by +the good cause, to use our time well, and learn the good instructions +and follow the good example of our masters." + +In St. Andrews too, at this time, he published his "Answer to the +Letter of a Jesuit named Tyrie," which was the last work that he gave +to the world. It had been composed years before, in the haste which +was incident to his numerous occupations, but it was now {193} revised +and enlarged, and gives expression in a vigorous manner to his maturest +views on faith, religion, and the Catholic, or true and Universal +Church. Here is a nugget from it, not without its pertinence to some +popular notions current in the days in which we live. "We find that +Christ sends not His afflicted Church to seek a lineal succession of +any persons, before He will receive them; but He with all gentleness +calleth His sheep unto Himself, saying, 'Come unto Me all ye that +labour and are laden, and I will ease you.'" Truly a golden sentence, +touching the very quick of all Church controversies, and emphasizing +the principle never to be forgotten, that we must find our way to the +Church through Christ, and not to Christ through the Church. + +In public questions he did not cease to take an interest, although the +state of his health unfitted him for active leadership. Still, that he +was no unconcerned spectator of what was going forward is apparent from +the following statement, which, because of its faithfulness and +fairness, we take from the article by Dr. Mitchell on "The Last Days of +John Knox."[1] "In March, 1572, the General Assembly was held in St. +Andrews, in the schools of St. Leonard's College. This place was no +doubt chosen, in part at least, for the convenience of the aged +Reformer, whose counsel in that time of trouble was specially needed. +It was the last Assembly at which he was able to be present, and +probably the first witnessed by Davidson and Melville. 'There,' the +{194} latter narrates, 'was motioned the making of bishops, to the +which Mr. Knox opposed himself directly and zealously.' ... Some months +before this a convention at Leith had given its sanction to a sort of +mongrel episcopacy, nominally to secure the tithes more completely to +the Church, but really to secure the bulk of them by a more regular +title to certain covetous noblemen, who sought in this way to reimburse +themselves for their services in the cause." (The noblemen presented +to the bishoprics men who had first covenanted to give by far the +larger portion of the revenues to the patrons, and with a truly +Scottish humour, the people called these dignitaries "tulchan bishops," +a "tulchan" being the name which was given to a calf's skin stuffed +with straw, which was set up to make the cow give her milk more +willingly.) "First among these noblemen was the Earl of Morton, then +one of the chief supporters of the young prince, and soon after Regent +of the kingdom. Having secured a presentation to the Archbishopric of +St. Andrews, for Mr. John Douglas, he came over to the city, had him +elected in terms of the convention, and on the 10th of February +inaugurated into his office. This was performed by Winram, +superintendent of Fife, according to the order followed in the +admission of superintendents, save that the Bishops of Caithness, the +Superintendent of Lothian, and Mr. David Lindsay, who sat beside +Douglas, laid their hands on his head. Knox had preached that day as +usual, but, as Ballantyne is careful to tell us, "had {195} refused to +inaugurate the said bishop"; and, as others add, had denounced +"anathema to the giver, and anathema to the receiver," who, as rector +and principal, "had already far more to do than such an aged man could +hope to overtake." In the face of such a fact, it is idle for +historians to insinuate, as Burton does, that Knox gave in his closing +days even a _quasi_ sanction to episcopacy. + +In the month of July, 1572, a cessation of hostilities for a time was +agreed upon between the Regent's party and that of the Queen, so that +the city of Edinburgh was again delivered from annoyance, either at the +hands of the garrison or of "the lewd fellows of the baser sort" who +made its streets unsafe. As Melville says, "the good and honest men +thereof returned to their homes, and earnestly implored their pastor, +if he could without injury of his health, to do the same; and so Mr. +Knox and his family passed home to Edinburgh," where he arrived on the +23rd of August. On the following Sunday he preached in his old pulpit; +but as in his weakness he could not make himself heard in the large +cathedral, the western part of the nave, known as the Tolbooth Church, +was fitted up for his use; and that was the scene of his latest +ministrations. He preached as often as he was able, delivering a +course of sermons on the Redeemer's Passion, which he had always wished +to be the theme of his last discourses. But in his debilitated +condition, his ancient power had well-nigh departed. Only once during +this period of decadence {196} did the "wonted fires" flame forth out +of "their ashes." When he heard of the massacre of St. Bartholomew he +had himself assisted into the pulpit, and there, moved at once by the +tender recollections of the many friends of his own who had been among +the victims, and by his life-long antagonism to the system which was +identified with that horrible cruelty, he thundered forth the vengeance +of Heaven against "that cruel murderer the king of France;" and turning +to Le Croc, the French ambassador, he said, like another Elijah: "Go +tell your master that sentence is pronounced against him; that the +Divine vengeance shall never depart from him or from his house, except +they repent; but his name shall remain an execration to posterity, and +none proceeding from his loins shall enjoy his kingdom in peace." + +His closing work was the installation of his own successor. During his +absence from Edinburgh, Mr. John Craig, his colleague, had gone to +another sphere of labour, and his flock had now no other shepherd than +himself. He was, therefore, very naturally anxious to see some true +and earnest man set over them in the Lord, and accordingly obtained +permission from the General Assembly to induct any minister who might +be chosen by himself, the Superintendent of Lothian, and the Church of +Edinburgh, to take his place. They agreed to nominate James Lawson, of +Aberdeen, who, being urged by Knox to repair immediately to Edinburgh, +in a touching letter, with a still more touching postscript,--"Haste, +lest ye come too late!"--came to {197} the metropolis, gave such +evidence of his gifts as satisfied all parties concerned, and was +installed on the 9th of November. Knox preached the sermon on the +occasion in the Tolbooth Church, and after that removed with the +congregation to the larger area of the cathedral, where he went through +the form of admission by proposing the usual questions, and giving +exhortation first to the pastor and then to the people. He concluded +with prayer and the benediction; "then leaning upon his staff and the +arm of an attendant, he crept down the street, which was lined with the +audience, who, as if anxious to take the last sight of their beloved +pastor, followed him until he entered his house, from which he never +again came out alive." + +The next day he was seized with a violent cough, and he gradually +declined until the 24th of November, when, at the age of sixty-seven, +he breathed his last. His faithful servant, Richard Ballantyne, has +left a minute description of his death-bed experiences and sayings, +which Dr. McCrie has reproduced the main features of in his biography. +We select those which seem to us to give most insight into the +character of the man. Visited, a few days after his last sickness +began, by two of his personal friends, he "for their cause came to the +table," for it was the hour of dinner, and caused an hogshead of wine +in the cellar to be pierced for their entertainment, at the same time +playfully desiring one of them to send for some of it as long as it +lasted, for he would not tarry until it was all drunk." To the elders +of his Church who {198} came in a body to his room at his request, he +said, "I profess before God and His holy angels that I never made +merchandise of the sacred word of God; never studied to please men; +never indulged my own private passions or those of others, but +faithfully distributed the talents entrusted to me for the edification +of the Church over which I watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may +cast upon me respecting this point, I rejoice in the testimony of a +good conscience." As they were leaving, he detained his colleague and +the minister of Leith to give them a message to Kirkaldy of Grange, +adding to it these words: "That man's soul is dear to me, and I would +not have it perish, if I could save it." When they returned and told +him that they had met with a rude reception, he was much grieved, and +said, "that he had been earnest in prayer for that man, and still +trusted that his soul would be saved, although his body should come to +a miserable end." Such petitions as these dropped from his lips at +intervals, "Come, Lord Jesus. Be merciful to Thy Church which Thou +hast redeemed. Give peace to this afflicted commonwealth. Raise up +faithful pastors who will take the charge of Thy Church. Grant us, +Lord, the perfect hatred of sin, both by the evidences of Thy wrath and +mercy." To his friend Fairley, of Braid, he said: "Every one bids me +good-night, but when will you do it? I have been greatly indebted to +you, for which I shall never be able to recompense you, but I commit +you to one who can, to the eternal God." To Campbell of Kingzeancleugh +{199} he said, "I must leave the care of my wife and children to you, +to whom you must be a husband in my room." A few hours before his +death he said to his wife, "Go read where I first cast my anchor," and +she understanding his reference, read to him the 17th chapter of John's +Gospel, and afterwards a part of Calvin's "Sermons on the Ephesians." +Shortly after, seeing that death was fast approaching, and when he was +unable to speak, his servant said to him, "Now, sir, the time that you +have long called to God for, the end of your battle, is come; and +seeing all natural power now fails you, remember the comfortable +promises of our Saviour Jesus Christ, which ofttimes you have shown us. +And that we may understand and know that you hear us, give us some +sign." And "so he lifted up one of his hands, and incontinent +thereafter rendered up his spirit, apparently without pain or movement, +so that he seemed rather to fall asleep than to die." + +He was buried on the 26th of November, his body being accompanied to +the grave by a large concourse of people, among whom were the Earl of +Morton, newly-appointed Regent, and other noblemen. According to the +rubric of his own Book of Common Order, there was no religious service +at the funeral, but when the body was lowered to its place Calderwood +tells us that the Regent Morton uttered these words: "HERE LIETH A MAN +WHO IN HIS LIFE NEVER FEARED THE FACE OF MAN; WHO HATH BEEN OFTEN +THREATENED WITH DAGGE AND DAGGER, BUT YET HATH ENDED HIS DAYS IN PEACE +{200} AND HONOUR." The precise site of his grave cannot now be +identified. It was in the churchyard of St. Giles, which extended from +the church down the slope of the hill till it reached the Colgate, and +was wholly obliterated in 1633 when the Parliament House and other +buildings were erected. If any stone ever marked the spot, it was +probably then removed or destroyed. Tradition points out as the place +that which is now marked with the letters "I.K., 1572," a few feet to +the west of the statue of Charles II. in the Parliament Square. What +Charles ever did for Scotland to deserve any such memorial, it would +puzzle the wisest man to say, unless perhaps on the principle that it +was his intolerance which most of all provoked the Revolution; but many +will agree with Dr. Laing in thinking, that "a more appropriate +monument for such a locality would be a statue of the great Reformer." + +Knox, we are told, was of small stature, and his constitution never +recovered from the effects of the exposure to which he was subjected in +the French galleys, so that his frame was not well fitted for hardship +and fatigue. He too had his "thorn in the flesh," and that he did so +much in spite of that is a proof of the dominating power of his +spiritual earnestness over his physical weakness. Of the five +portraits reproduced and criticised so characteristically by Carlyle in +his "Brochure" on the subject, we give our verdict in favour of that +which he calls the Somerville portrait, and of which he says that it is +"the only probable likeness anywhere known to {201} exist." It is that +of a true Scottish face--sharp, wedge-like in its contour, surmounted +by a bald dome-like head fringed with scanty hair, the beard short and +not very profuse, the lips firmly set, with the slightest curl of scorn +in their expression, and the eyes small, clear, penetrating, and quick; +altogether "a physiognomy worth looking at," and far more in keeping +with the character and history of the Reformer, than the long-bearded +timber-looking figure-head, surmounted by a Genevan cap, which has been +made so long to represent him to posterity, and which Carlyle has shown +to have no claim to authenticity. + +His children were five in number. His two sons by his first wife +became students in St. John's College, Cambridge, where Nathanael, the +elder, died in 1580. Eleazar, the younger, after finishing his +studies, became Vicar of Clacton Magna, and died in 1591. He too was +buried at Cambridge; and, by the death of both, the family of the +Reformer in the male line became extinct. His three daughters by his +second wife were Martha, Margaret, and Elizabeth. Martha became the +wife of Alexander Fairley, eldest son of Robert Fairley, of Braid, whom +we have just seen at the Reformer's death-bed. Margaret married +Zachary Pont, one of the Lords of Session, and latterly minister of St. +Cuthbert's, Edinburgh. Elizabeth wedded John Welsh, best known as +Minister of Ayr, who was banished for the part which he took in the +holding of the General Assembly at Aberdeen in July, 1605, and spent +many years as pastor of a {202} Protestant Church in France. It is of +this daughter that the well-known story is told to the effect that when +her husband's health failed she came over to London, and, having +through the influence of friends obtained audience of King James I., +requested the royal permission for his return to his native land. +After some coarse pleasantry, which need not here be repeated, the king +told her that if she would persuade her husband to submit to the +bishops he would allow him to go back to Scotland, whereupon, lifting +her apron and holding it out toward the king, she answered, like a true +daughter of her father, "Please your Majesty, I'd rather kep his head +(_i.e._ receive it from the block) there!" + + +Of the writings of Knox we have spoken incidentally in the course of +our narrative, and need not therefore enter now into any minute +criticism of their character and merits. They were struck out of him +almost extemporaneously by emergencies that arose, and, like all +similar productions, they were mainly ephemeral in their nature, so +that they are studied now, for the most part, only by those who wish to +gain some insight into the man, his times, and his work. He was not +what might properly be called literary. He would not have described +himself as another of his countrymen did, as "a writer of books." On +the contrary, in the preface to the only sermon which he published, he +affirmed that "he considered himself rather called of {203} God to +instruct the ignorant, comfort the sorrowful, confirm the weak, and +rebuke the proud by tongue and living voice in these most corrupt +times, than to compose books for the age to come; seeing that so much +is written (and that by men of most singular condition) and yet so +little well observed, he decreed to contain himself within the bounds +of that vocation whereunto he felt himself specially called." An +exception to this may perhaps be found in his "History of the +Reformation in Scotland," to which throughout we have been so much +indebted, and which is one of the raciest, clearest, and most +trustworthy records of the heroic struggle in which he was virtually +the leader of the victorious side. It has been stigmatized by Burton +as egotistical; but Carlyle more justly notices how on one occasion, +when his personal merit far excelled all possible description, "he +hardly names himself at all"; and where he could not be truthful +without speaking of himself, he invariably does so in the third person, +and without any attempt to glorify the work of which he might have +said, "_cujus pars magna fui_." For the rest, as Carlyle says, "His +account of every event he was present in is that of a well-discerning +eye-witness. Things he did not himself see, but had reasonable cause +and abundant means to inquire into--battles even, and sieges--are +described with something of a Homeric vigour and simplicity." It is +unfortunate for modern readers that it is written in the old Scottish +dialect; but if some competent scholar would only honestly modernize +and faithfully edit it, a {204} great boon would be conferred upon the +present generation, for it has in it many elements of popular interest. + +His special vocation was that of the preacher rather than of the +author. The pulpit was the throne of his peculiar and pre-eminent +power. Other men might equal or surpass him elsewhere, but _there_ he +was supreme. Different excellences might come out in himself on +different occasions; but in the pulpit all his abilities were +conspicuous, and there they were always at their best. It was the +glass which focussed all his powers into a point, and quickened their +exercise into a burning intensity which kindled everything it touched. +It brightened his intellect, enlivened his imagination, clarified his +judgment, inflamed his courage, and gave fiery energy to his utterance. +He was never elsewhere so great in any one of these particulars, as he +was, when in the pulpit, in them all; for there, over and above the +"_praefervidum ingenium_" which he had in common with so many of his +countrymen, and the glow of animation which fills the soul of the +orator when he looks upon an audience, he had the feeling that he was +called of God to be faithful, and that made him almost like another +Paul. Behind him was the cross of his Lord; before him was the throne +at which he was to be accountable, and between these two he stood +"watching for souls as one that must give account." He began his +discourse most commonly with Biblical exposition, and spent a little +time in calmly, clearly, and fully explaining the meaning of the +passage on which he was engaged. In this {205} portion of his sermon, +if we may judge from the published tracts which were apparently founded +on pulpit utterances, he was clear, simple, convincing; not making a +parade of learning, yet bringing out withal the true significance of +the sacred text. Then having cleared away all doubt from that, he made +it the foundation of a battery, whereon he erected a swivel gun, and +with that he swept the whole horizon, firing at every evil which came +within his view. Nor were the shots mere random things. They were +deliberately aimed, and they commonly did most effective work. No +matter who might be the evil-doer, the exposure was sure to be made, +and the expostulation, usually ending in denunciation, unless the +sinner should repent, was sure to follow. Whatever he might do +elsewhere, he could neither shut his eyes nor keep back his utterance +when he was, as he called it, "in public place." He was "set as a +watchman" to the people of Scotland, and he would watch with wakeful +vigilance, and give honest warning of everything which he saw wrong; +for the wrong with him was always fraught with danger, and the +wrongness was enough to evoke his protest. He used no soft words. He +was no maker of polite phrases. He spoke in order to be understood, +and therefore he "called a fig a fig, and a spade a spade." He went +into the pulpit not because he had to say something, but because there +was something in him which was compelling itself to be said. He spoke +because he "could not but" speak. That irrepressibility gave {206} +volcanic energy to his manner and fiery force to his words, so that the +effects produced by his sermons were not merely superficial. Like +those modern missiles which burst in the wounds which they have made, +his words exploded within the hearts of those who had received them, +and set them on fire with convictions that flamed forth in their +conduct. It was apparently impossible for any one to listen to him +without being deeply moved, either to antagonism, or to enthusiastic +agreement, or--for he could be tender also--to tears. + +It may be said indeed that he allowed himself too great liberty in +commenting on public men and national affairs; and we may readily admit +that in ordinary times, and especially in our altered circumstances, it +would be unwise in most preachers to use the pulpit precisely as he +did. But we have to bear in mind that the crisis through which his +country was passing at the time, was as much religious as political, +and that the pulpit was the only organ at his command. To his credit +be it recorded, that he was, if not the first, at least one of the very +first to perceive the importance of making and guiding public opinion +aright. He saw that the people were to be the virtual rulers in the +coming time; nay, he recognised in them the ultimate arbiters for the +decision of the great matters which were then in debate, and therefore +he would not take time to go to royal closets or noblemen's studies, +but made his appeal to the people as a body, and the pulpit was the +only place in which he could do that. The daily press was not then +born; the {207} public meeting had not yet come into vogue; but what is +now done by our editors in their columns, and by our statesmen in +Midlothian campaigns, and such like, he did by his five weekly sermons +in Edinburgh, and by his various preaching journeys in the south and +west and north divisions of the kingdom. He informed and aroused +public opinion. He appealed to the people, speaking to them as one +under oath to the King of kings the while; and when we put the matter +in that light, we have at once the defence of his procedure and the +explanation of his success. + +He was not always wise; neither was he always discriminating in his +utterances. Who is? who especially when surrounded by the difficulties +with which he had to contend? and we may well forgive him his +occasional indiscretions, when we think of the work which, in spite of +these, he was honoured to accomplish. By that work he has earned the +gratitude of posterity, and deserved a place among the men who are most +worthy to be remembered in these times. By that work the entire face +and future of Scotland were changed. She has made great progress in +many directions since his day, and outgrown many of the limitations +within which he would have restricted her; but the success of his work +made it possible for her to become what she is to-day. The liberty, +the literature, the philosophy, as well as the religion of Scotland, +could not have developed into what they became without the Reformation; +and without Knox, humanly speaking, the Reformation would not {208} +have been at all, or at least would not have been what it actually +became. He had not the lyric thrill of genius that vibrates in the +songs of Robert Burns; but in his own way and to his own tune he sang, +"A man's a man for a' that," two hundred years before the Ayrshire bard +was born. He laid the foundation of that national popular education +which has made Scotland at home so intelligent, and carried Scotsmen +with honour abroad into all the countries under heaven; and though he +would have protested very vehemently against the scepticism of Hume and +others, yet the men who have made the Scottish school of philosophy +illustrious, received, consciously or unconsciously, much of their +impulse from his work. Add to this, that wherever Presbyterianism has +found a foothold, its votaries name Knox side by side with Calvin, as +one of its foremost leaders and organizers. But when we consider the +shortness of the time within which Knox did his work for Scotland, the +greatness of the man becomes still more conspicuous. He was forty-two +years of age when he was called to preach in the Castle of St. Andrews, +and he died at sixty-seven. Within these twenty-five years therefore +his reformation work was done; and yet of these nearly two were spent +as a galley-slave in French captivity, five were passed in England, +three on the continent, and for the last year and a half of his life he +was disabled by paralysis, so that his active labours in his native +land were virtually condensed within little more than fourteen years. +During these, also, he had to contend, save in the brief season {209} +of Murray's regency, with the greatest difficulties, but through them +all he held on, and over them all he secured an ultimate triumph. His +energy was consuming, his zeal untiring, and his vigilance +unslumbering. With the eye of a statesman he looked into the future, +while at the same time he keenly scrutinized the movements of the +present. He had the near sight which sees what is closest to it with +admirable distinctness, and the far sight which descries with equal +accuracy what is distant, and with these he combined the philosophic +spirit which marked very correctly the connection between the two. He +was a true patriot, and ever willing to sacrifice himself in the +welfare of his country. And all these qualities in him were raised to +the white heat of enthusiasm, and fused into the unity of holiness by +his devotion to the God and Father of his Saviour the Lord Jesus +Christ. He spoke, and wrote, and acted as ever in His sight. This was +the secret of his courage, the root of his inflexibility, and the +source of his power. As a Reformer he had in him the boldness of +Luther, combined with some of the qualities of Calvin, and though as a +whole he was inferior to both, yet more than either he reminds us of a +Hebrew prophet. When we see him before Queen Mary, we think at once of +Elijah before Ahab, and more appropriately perhaps than any other man +in modern history he might have taken for the motto of his life the +oft-repeated asseveration of the Tishbite, "As the Lord God of Israel +liveth, _before whom I stand_." + +{210} + +And yet, though sternly uttering in the highest places what he believed +to be the word of God, there were not wanting in his character other +traits of gentleness and geniality. As Carlyle has truly said, "Tumult +was not his element, it was the tragic feature of his life that he was +forced to dwell in that." He too, like the granite mountains of his +native land, had in him fountains of tenderness, and valleys laughing +with cheerfulness. He was not the heartless Stoic that many have +ignorantly painted him, for have we not seen him weeping with those who +were "sobbing unto God"? And though it may seem strange to those who +have not made themselves acquainted with his history, there was in him +a vein of humour, yea even, as Carlyle says, of "drollery," that makes +him excellent company. This humour of his, as the writer just named +has admirably diagnosed it, was "not mockery, scorn, bitterness, alone, +though there is enough of that too, but a true, loving, illuminating +laugh mounts up over the earnest visage; not a loud laugh; you would +say a laugh in the _eyes_ most of all." + +But now our task is done. We have tried to show honestly the man as he +was, and to describe dispassionately the work which he did. He is, if +not pre-eminently the Scotchman of history,--though we think a good +claim might be established for him as such,--yet certainly one of "the +three mightiest," or of "the first three" of his nation; and like the +vine whose branches spread over the wall, his influence has gone in +blessing to other lands, for in his work we have the root of the +English {211} Revolution, and some of the seeds that were carried +westward in the _Mayflower_, and sown in New England fields, had fallen +from his hands. It is not inappropriate therefore that one whose +labours in the ministry of the gospel have closely connected him alike +with Scotland, England, and America, should pay this willing tribute to +his name and work. + + + +[1] "Catholic Presbyterian," vol. vi. p. 265. + + + + +{212} + +INDEX. + +NDX +Annand, Dean, Controversy of Knox with, 17. + +Answers to some questions concerning Baptism, etc., by Knox, 17. + +Arbuckle, Friar, Controversy of, with Knox, concerning the Mass, 18, 32. + +Arran, Earl of, appointed Regent of Scotland, 4; character of, 5. + +Argyle, Earl of, 108, 116, 125. + + +Balfour of Mount Quarry, 8. + +Balnaves, Henry, 6, 15, 24, 29. + +Band, or Bond, Godly, 107, 112, 116. + +Beaton, Cardinal, executes George Wishart, 2; character of, 4; produces +a forged will in order to obtain the Regency of Scotland, 4; murder of, +8; condemnation of Walter Mill by, 116. + +Becon's Displaying of the Mass, 45. + +Berwick on Tweed, Knox appointed to, 30; condition of, at that time, +31; practice of Knox at, in the matter of the Lord's Supper, 32, 36; +preaching of Knox at, 33. + +Blast, First, of the Trumpet against the monstrous Regiment of Women, +by Knox, 108. + +Book of Common Prayer (English), 31, 36, 46, 47. + +Book of Common Order (Scottish), 105, 147. + +Book of Discipline, First, 140-147, 153; not ratified, 154. + +Bothwell, Earl of, apprehends George Wishart, 2; connection of, with +the family of Knox, 10; part of, in Darnley's murder, 183; marriage of, +to Queen Mary, 183. + +Bowes, Marjory, betrothed to Knox, 40; marriage of, to Knox, 96; joins +her husband in Scotland, 126; death of, 155; sons of, 151, 201. + +Bowes, Elizabeth, mother-in-law of Knox, 40, 60, 66; character of, 71, +98, 100, 101; kindness of Knox to, 102. + +Brandling, Sir Robert, 60, 68. + +Bullinger, Henry, 48, 77; questions of Knox to, 77, 81, 108. + +Burton's History of Scotland quoted from or referred to, 4, 122, 195, +203. + + +Cairns, John, appointed reader to Knox in Edinburgh, 155. + +Calvin, John, 77, 82; opinion of, on English Prayer Book, 86; criticism +of Knox's treatment at Frankfort by, 93, 106, 110. + +Campbell, Robert, of Kingzeaucleuch, 98, 158, 198. + +Carlyle, Thomas, Opinions of, on Knox's conduct at Frankfort, 92; on +the First Blast, 110; on Knox's treatment of Queen Mary, 175; on the +portraits of Knox, 200; on Knox's History of the Reformation, 203; on +Knox's tenderness and humor, 210; description of the affair at Cupar +Muir by, 124. + +Cecil, Secretary, 49, 113, 130, 162. + +Clergy of Scotland, General character of, before the Reformation, 6. + +Confession of Faith, Scottish, 137; ratified by Parliament, 139. + +Conversion of Knox to Protestantism, 13. + +Coverdale, Miles, godfather to one of Knox's sons, 151. + +Cox, Dr. Richard, Relation of, to the troubles at Frankfort, 88, 91. + +Craig, John, colleague of Knox, 163, 188, 196. + +Cranmer, Archbishop, on the Mass, 43; letter of, to English Council, +49; probable author of Declaration on Kneeling, 51; sufferings of, 82. + +Crossraguel, Abbot of, Controversy with Knox, 166-168. + +Cupar Muir, Affair of, 124. + + +Darnley, Lord Henry, Marriage of, to Queen Mary Stuart, 180; offended +at sermon by Knox, 180; part of, in murder of Rizzio, 183; murder of, +183. + +Deacons, Office of, in First Book of Discipline, 143. + +Declaration of Prayer Book on Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, History +of, 48-55. + +Demolition of Roman Catholic edifices, Relation of Knox to, 121. + +Dieppe, Knox in, 71-76, 79, 113. + +Doctors, Office of, in Scottish Church, 145. + +Douglas, John, Chaplain to Earl of Argyle, 116. + + +Edinburgh, Knox chosen minister of, 125; Knox's house in, 155; labors +of Knox in, 163. + +Education, Book of Discipline on, 146. + +Edward VI., First Prayer Book of, 31, 36, 46, 47; Second Prayer Book +of, 46, 47; order of Communion under, 46; death of, 62. + +Elders, Office of, under First Book of Discipline, 142. + +Elizabeth, Queen of England, accession to the throne, 112; refuses +Knox's request for permission to travel through England, 113; relation +of, to Mary Stuart, 158; deceitfulness of, 130. + +England, Feelings of Knox in regard to, 70; influence of, on Knox, 62. + +Erskine, Lord, 98, 106. + +Erskine of Dun, 97, 98, 108, 120, 171. + +Exposition of the Sixth Psalm by Knox, 71-74. + + +Faithful Admonition, by Knox, 79-82. + +Fairley, Robert, of Braid, 198. + +Francis I., of France, Death of, 20. + +Francis II., Death of, 156. + +Frankfort on the Maine, History of Knox's troubles at, 83-94; departure +of Knox from, 91. + +First Blast of the Trumpet against the Monstrous Regiment of Women, by +Knox, 108, 113, 161; Carlyle on, 110. + +Froude, J. A., History of England, 64, 127, 139, 185. + + +Galleys, French, Knox's experiences in, 23-25. + +Geneva, Knox at, 83; pastor of English congregation in, 95; arrival of +Knox and family at, 101; labors of Knox at, 105, 107; thanks of English +refugees to the council of, 112. + +Gilby, Arthur, colleague of Knox at Geneva, 95. + +Glasgow University, Knox a student at, 11. + +Glencairn, Earl of, 106, 108. + +Godly Band or Bond, 107, 112, 116. + +Godly Letter of Warning, by Knox, 74-76. + +Guillaume, Thomas, Connection of Knox with, 13. + + +Haddington, George Wishart preaching at, 1; birthplace of Knox, 10. + +Hamilton, Patrick, 5. + +Henry VIII., Dispute of, with James V., 4; connection of, with +conspirators against Beaton, 7; Death of, 20. + +Hooper, Bishop, 45, 59. + +Hume, David, Letter of, to Dr. Robertson, on character of Mary Stuart, +177. + + +James V., Death of, 3; dispute with Henry VIII., 3. + +James VI., Birth of, 183; coronation of, 184. + + +Kirkaldy of Grange, 9; makes terms for surrender of the castle of St. +Andrews, 22; dissuaded by Knox from the shedding of blood to escape +from prison, 26; controversy of with Knox, 187; message of Knox to, 198. + +Kneeling in the Lord's Supper, Knox's opinions and practice in regard +10, 35, 37, 39; declaration of English Prayer Book on, 62. + +Knox, John, First appearance of, as body-guard of Wishart, 2; enters +the castle of St. Andrews, 9, 14; early history of, 10; conversion of, +to Protestantism, 13; within the castle of St. Andrews, 14; called to +the ministry, 15; controversy with Dean Annand, 17; sermon at St. +Andrews, 17; controversy with Friar Arbuckle, 18, 32; made a galley +slave, 22; feelings of, on sight of St. Andrews from the galley, 27; +released from the galleys, 30; preaching of, at Berwick, 33; +administration of Lord's Supper at Berwick, 36; opinions of, on Lord's +Supper, 39; heroism of, 40; removal to Newcastle, 42; discourse on the +Mass, 43; preaching of, at Newcastle, 45; practice in regard to the +Lord's Supper at Newcastle, 45; appointed a Royal Chaplain, 46; +preaches before Edward VI., 48, 61; influence of, on English Book of +Common Prayer, 48-52; relation of, to Duke of Northumberland, 48, 56; +offered a bishopric, 57; offered the vicarage of All Hallows, London, +58; before the English council, 58; in the county of Bucks, 65; sermon +at Amersham, 65; Exposition of Sixth Psalm, 68, 72; leaves England for +France, 69; love of, for England, 70; writes Godly Letter of Warning, +74; first visit of, to Switzerland, 77; returns to Dieppe, 79; writes +"Faithful Admonition", 79; goes to Frankfort on the Maine, 83; history +of troubles there, 84; leaves Frankfort, 91; pastor of English Church +at Geneva, 95; brief visit of, to Scotland, 95; marriage of to Marjory +Bowes, 96; work in Scotland at this time, 97-99; summoned to appear +before the bishops, 100; writes to the Queen Regent, 100; returns to +Geneva 102, labors at, 105; called to return to Scotland, 106; at +Dieppe, 106; returns to Geneva, 107; leaves Geneva for Scotland, 112; +arrives in Scotland, 114; preaches at Perth, 120; and at St. Andrews, +124; chosen minister of St. Giles, Edinburgh, 125; travels through +Scotland, 126; negotiations with Sir James Croft, 129; views of, on +civil government, 130; imperfect understanding of the relation of +Church and State, 133; residence of, in Edinburgh, 155; first interview +with Queen Mary Stuart, 159; second interview, 163; debate of, with +Abbot of Crossraguel, 166; breach between, and Earl of Murray, 169; +third interview with Queen Mary, 168; fourth interview with Mary, 170; +accused falsely of immorality, 175; before the Scottish council, 175; +marriage of, to Margaret Stewart, 179; preaches at coronation of James +VI., 185; mourns over the death of Murray, 185; stricken with +paralysis, 186; controversy with Kirkaldy of Grange, 187; danger of, in +Edinburgh, 189; goes to St. Andrews, 190; Melville's description of, at +this time, 191; publishes "Answer to the Letter of a Jesuit", 192; +returns to Edinburgh, 195; last sermon of, 197; last illness of, 197; +death of, 199; personal appearance of, 200; children of, 201; portraits +of, 200; writings of, 202; preaching of, 204; effect of work on +Scotland, 207; tenderness and humor of, 210. + +Knox's History of the Reformation, 9, 22, 25, 27, 35, 98, 121, 124, +138, 156, 161, 170; described by Carlyle, 203. + + +Laing, David, LL.D., Edition of Knox's Works quoted from or referred +to, 11, 12, 58, 65, 72, 74, 75, 77, 102, 110, 129, 130, 144, 148, 153, +182, 201. + +Lawson, John, Induction of, as Knox's successor, 197. + +Leslie, Norman, 8, 20. + +Lindsay, Sir David, 6, 15. + +Liturgy of Knox, 152. + +Lollards of Kyle, 99. + +Lorimer, Rev. Peter, D.D., Works on Knox quoted from or referred to, 8, +25, 28, 30, 31, 33, 36, 37, 41, 45, 46, 48, 49, 51, 52, 54, 55, 103. + +Lorn, Lord, 58, 106. + +Lorraine, Princes of, 113. + +Lord's Supper, first administered after reformed fashion, 19; practice +followed by Knox regarding at Berwick, 32-34, 36; kneeling in, opposed +by Knox, 38; influence of Knox on English Prayer Book regarding, 46-52; +declaration of Prayer Book on kneeling in, 52. + +Lyons, Knox visits, 107. + + +Major, John, Principal of Glasgow University, 11; opinions of, 11, 133; +present at Knox's sermon at St. Andrews, 18. + +McCrie's "Life of Knox" quoted from or referred to, 17, 85, 92, 96, +132, 161, 170, 193, 197. + +Maitland of Lethington, 97; the younger, 128, 136, 174, 178, 179. + +Marriage, Solemnization of, according to Book of Discipline, 146. + +Mary of Guise, character of, 3; Queen Regent of Scotland, 97; policy +of, 97; letter of Knox to, 100; declared enemy of Reformation, 114; +petition of Protestant barons to, 117; prohibits preaching or +administration of the sacrament without authority of bishops, 119; +proclaims Knox a rebel, 119; death of, 128. + +Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, 3; betrothed to the Dauphin of France, +5; reply of Knox to, on the charge of necromancy, 35; death of first +husband of, 156; character of, 157; arrival of, in Scotland, 156; +interviews with Knox, 159, 163, 168, 170, 173, 175; marries Lord Henry +Darnley, 180; marriage of, to Bothwell, 183; abdicates in favor of her +son, 183; defeat of, at Langside, 183; imprisonment of, by Elizabeth, +184. + +Mary Tudor, Accession of, to English throne, 66; prayer of Knox for, +67; first proclamation of, 67; marriage of, to Philip of Spain, 81; +attacked by Knox in First Blast, 109. + +Mass, Opinions of Knox on the, 32, 43, 107; Becon's Displaying of the, +45. + +Melville of Raith, 9. + +Melville, James, Description of Knox at St. Andrews by, 191. + +Mill, Walter, Martyrdom of, 116. + +Milton, John, quoted from, 109. + +Ministers, Office of, in Book of Discipline, 141. + +Mitchell, Dr., A. F., quoted from, 193. + +Morton, Earl of, 108; burial eulogy of, on Knox, 199. + +Murray, Earl of (See Lord James Stuart). + + +Newcastle on Tyne, Removal of Knox to, 42; preaching of Knox at, 45; +practice of Knox at, in regard to the Lord's Supper, 45. + +Northumberland, Duke of, 48, 57, 60, 61, 64. + + +Ochiltree, Lord, 172; father-in-law of Knox, 179, 180. + +Ormiston, Laird of, 10. + + +Prayer Books of Edward VI., First, 31, 36, 46; Second, 46, 47, 49, 52, +56, 85; opinion of Calvin on, 86. + +Perth, John Knox at, 121. + +Preaching, Knox's habit of preparation for, 79; effect of Knox's, at +Perth, 120; in Edinburgh, 136; before Darnley, 181; Knox's +characterized, 204. + +Predestination, Knox's Dissertation on, 111. + +Privy Council of England, name of Knox in register of, 29; memorial of +Knox to, on Lord's Supper, 49; appearance of Knox before, 58. + +Portraits of Knox, 200. + + +Randolph, English Ambassador at Edinburgh, 28, 138. + +Readers, Office of, in Scottish Church, 140. + +Reformation, Beginning of, in Scotland, 5; Hamilton period of, 19; +Wishart period of, 19; Knox period of, 19. + +Rizzio, David, character of, 182; murder of, 183. + +Robertson, William, D.D., character of Murray in History of Scotland, +185. + +Rochelle, Knox visits, 107. + +Ross, Dr. John M., quoted from, 133. + + +Sacraments, Scottish Confession of Faith on, 137; administration of +the, according to Book of Discipline, 145; according to the Book of +Common Order, 151. + +Scotland, Condition of, before Reformation, 7; visit of Knox to, in +1555, 97; arrival of Knox at, in 1559, 114; condition of, at that time, +115; labors of Knox in, 126; negotiations of, with England, 127. + +St. Andrews, Castle of, an asylum for Protestants, 8; siege of, by +Arran, 9; arrival of Knox in, 9; work of Knox in, 14; Knox called to +the ministry in, 15; Knox preaches in, 17; attacked by Leo Strozzi, 21; +visited by Knox, 123; the scene of Knox's all but latest labors, 191. + +Scottish Confession of Faith, 137. + +Scottish Parliament, Meeting of, in 1560, 136; in 1563, 169. + +Solway Moss, Battle of, 3, 4. + +Somerset, Duke of, Protector of England, 20. + +Stewart, Margaret, married to Knox, 179. + +Stuart, Lord James, Earl of Murray, 98, 106, 125, 138, 156, 166, 169, +174, 180, 184, 185. + +Strozzi, Leo, attacks the castle of St. Andrews, 21. + +Superintendents, Office of, in Scottish Church, 149. + +Switzerland, First visit of Knox to, 77. + + +Throckmorton, English Ambassador at Paris, 126. + +Tulchan Bishops, 194. + +Tunstall, Bishop of Durham, 31. + +Tyninghame Charter Room, Instrument in, signed by Knox, 12. + + +Utenhovius, Letter of, to Bullinger, 48. + + +Whittingham, Dean, with Knox at Frankfort, 86; gives thanks to council +at Geneva for hospitality to English refugees, 112; godfather to one of +Knox's sons, 151. + +Willock, John, 97, 126, 130. + +Wishart, George, at Haddington, 1; apprehension of, 2; attended by +Knox, 2; executed at St. Andrews, 3; influence of, on Knox, 13. + +Writings of Knox, 202. +ENDX + + + * * * * * + + + +REV. DR. WM. M. TAYLOR'S WORKS. + + +Contrary Winds and Other Sermons. + +Crown 8vo Volume, Cloth. $1.75. 3d Edition. + +"This work touches on numerous phases of life and thought and +experience, showing that the author has lived through a vast deal and +has been made the richer and stronger by it. It leaves the impression +of wisdom that comes from actual experience, dealing with life rather +than speculations, and so comes home to the heart and conscience. IT +SHOWS A WIDE RANGE OF READING AND CLOSE GRAPPLE WITH THE DIFFICULT +PROBLEMS OF OUR TIME. Such preaching is tonic and invigorating. It +strengthens the heart and fortifies the will to overcome trials and +conquer temptations and achieve victory."--_N. Y. 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Evangelist," says of Stanley's +"Sinai and Palestine"_: "We had occasion for its constant use in +crossing the desert, and in journeying through the Holy Land, and can +bear witness at once to its accuracy and to the charm of its +descriptions. _Of all the helps we had it was by far the most +captivating_." + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. + + + * * * * * + + +STANDARD RELIGIOUS BOOKS. + + +The Clerical Library. + +THIS SERIES of volumes is specially intended for the CLERGY, STUDENTS +AND SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS OF ALL DENOMINATIONS, and is meant to +furnish them with stimulus and suggestion in the various departments of +their work. Amongst the pulpit thinkers from whom these sermon +outlines have been drawn are leading men of almost every denomination +in Great Britain and America, the subjects treated of being of course +practical rather than controversial. The best thoughts of the best +religious writers of the day are here furnished in a condensed form and +at a moderate price. + +Five volumes in crown 8vo are now ready (_each volume complete in +itself_). Price, $1.50. + + +NOW READY--FOURTH EDITION. + +300 OUTLINES OF SERMONS ON THE NEW TESTAMENT. + +By 72 ENGLISH and AMERICAN CLERGYMEN, including + + Archbishop TAIT. + Bishop ALEXANDER. + Bishop BROWNE. + Bishop LIGHTFOOT. + Bishop MAGEE. + Bishop RYLE. + Dean CHURCH. + Dean VAUGHAN. + Canon FARRAR. + Canon KNOX-LITTLE. + + Canon LIDDON. + Canon WESTCOTT. + Rev. Prin. CAIRNS. + Rev. Dr. M. PUNSHON. + Rev. Dr. W. M. TAYLOR. + Rev. PHILLIPS BROOKS. + Rev. Dr. R. S. STORRS. + Rev. Dr. W. G. T. SHEDD. + Rev. Dr. T. L. CUYLER. + Rev. Dr. J. T. DURYEA. + + Rev. Dr. H. CROSBY. + Rev. Dr. Pres. McCOSH. + Rev. Dr. M. R. VINCENT. + Rev. Dr. JNO. PEDDIE. + Rev. Dr. C. T. DEEMS. + Rev. C. H. SPURGEON. + Rev. DEAN STANLEY. + Rev. Dr. A. RALEIGH. + +_And many others_. + + + +OUTLINES OF SERMONS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT. + +_AUTHORS OF SERMONS._ + + G. S. BARRETT, B.A. + Dean E. BICKERSTETH. + Bishop E. H. BROWNE. + J. BALD. BROWN, B.A. + T. P. BOULTBEE, LL.D. + J. P. CHOWN. + Dean R. W. CHURCH. + E. R. COUDER, D.D. + T. L. CUYLER, D.D. + A. B. DAVIDSON, D.D. + ROBERT RAINY, D.D. + ALEX'R RALEIGH, D.D. + C. P. REICHEL, D.D. + CHAS. STANFORD, D.D. + Dean A. P. STANLEY. + W. M. STRATHAM, B.A. + + J. OSWALD DYKES, D.D. + E. HERBER EVANS. + Canon F. W. FARRAR. + DONALD FRASER, D.D. + J. G. GREENHOUGH, B.A. + W. F. HOOK, D.D. + Bishop W. BASIL JONES. + JOHN KERR, D.D. + Canon EDWARD KING. + Bp. J. B. LIGHTFOOT. + WM. M. TAYLOR, D.D. + S. A. TIPPLE, B.A. + H. J. VANDYKE, D.D. + Dean C. J. VAUGHAN. + JAMES VAUGHAN, B.A. + + Canon LIDDON. + J. A. MACFAYDEN, D.D. + ALEX. MACLAREN, D.D. + Bishop W. C. MAGEE. + THEODORE MONOD. + ARTHUR MURSELL. + JOSEPH PARKER, D.D. + Dean E. H. PLUMPTRE. + JOHN PULSFORD. + W. MORLEY PUNSHON, D.D. + M. R. VINCENT, D.D. + W. J. WOODS, B.A. + C. WADSWORTH, D.D. + G. H. WILKINSON. + Bp. C. WORDSWORTH. + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. + + + * * * * * + + +THE CLERICAL LIBRARY--(Continued). + + +OUTLINES OF SERMONS TO CHILDREN + +With numerous Anecdotes. Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 3d vol. +of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +"_These sermons are by men of acknowledged eminence in possessing the +happy faculty of preaching interestingly to the young. As an evidence +of this, as well as of the character of the teaching, it is only +necessary to mention such names as those of WILLIAM ARNOT, THE BONARS, +PRINCIPAL CAIRNS, JOHN EDMOND, D.D., Drs. OSWALD DYKES and MARSHALL +LANG, besides many others."--Canada Presbyterian_. + +"This book contains a very high grade of thinking, with enough +illustrations and anecdotes to stock the average preacher for many +years of children's sermons."--_Episcopal Register_. + +"They are full of suggestions which will be found exceedingly helpful; +the habit of using apt and simple illustrations, and of repeating good +anecdotes, begets a faculty and power which are of value. This volume +is a treasure which a hundred pastors will find exceedingly convenient +to draw upon."--_N. Y. Evangelist_. + + + +PULPIT PRAYERS BY EMINENT PREACHERS. + +Crown 8vo. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the 4th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +_The British Quarterly_ says: "_These prayers are fresh and strong; the +ordinary ruts of conventional forms are left and the fresh thoughts of +living hearts are uttered. The excitement of emotional thought and +sympathy must be great in the offering of such prayers, especially +when, as here, spiritual intensity and devoutness are as marked as +freshness and strength. Such prayers have their characteristic +advantages._" + +_London Literary World_: "Used aright, this volume is likely to be of +great service to ministers. It will show them how to put variety, +freshness and literary beauty, as well as spirituality of tone, into +their extemporaneous prayers." + + + +Anecdotes Illustrative of New Testament Texts. + +With 600 Anecdotes. Crown 8vo, 400 pages. Cloth, $1.50. (Being the +5th vol. of the CLERICAL LIBRARY.) + +_London Christian Leader_ says: "_This is one of the most valuable +looks of anecdote that we have ever seen. There is hardly one anecdote +that is not of first-rate quality. They have been selected by one who +has breadth and vigor of mind as well as keen spiritual insight, and +some of the most effective illustrations of Scripture texts have a rich +vein of humor of exquisite quality_." + +_The London Church Bells_: "The anecdotes are given in the order of the +texts which they illustrate. There is an ample index. The book is one +which those who have to prepare sermons and addresses will do well to +have at their elbow." + +_N. Y. Christian at Work_: "AS AN APT ILLUSTRATION OFTEN PROVES THE +NAIL WHICH FASTENS THE TRUTH IN THE MIND, THIS VOLUME WILL PROVE AN +ADMIRABLE AND VALUABLE AID, NOT ONLY TO CLERGYMEN, BUT TO SUNDAY-SCHOOL +TEACHERS AND CHRISTIAN WORKERS GENERALLY." + +_N. Y. Observer_: "A book replete with incident and suggestion +applicable to every occasion." + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. + + + * * * * * + + +CHOICE POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES. + + +HEROES OF CHRISTIAN HISTORY. + +A SERIES OF POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES + +BY + +Eminent English and American Authors. + +12mo Vols., bound in cloth. Price, 75c. each. + +A series of biographies of men eminent in religious history, by writers +of recognized ability. Popular in style, trustworthy, and +comprehensive, and dealing with the most interesting characters and +events in the story of the Christian Church. The series condenses, in +entertaining form, the essential facts of the great body of religious +literature, and will have special value for the large class anxious for +information touching these great men, but unable, by reason of limited +leisure or means, to read more elaborate works. + + + +_NOW READY._ + + WILLIAM WILBERFORCE. By REV. JNO. STOUGHTON, D.D. + HENRY MARTYN. By REV. CHAS. D. BELL, D.D. + PHILLIP DODDRIDGE. By REV. CHAS. STANFORD, D.D. + WILLIAM CAREY. By REV. JAS. CULROSS, D.D. + THOMAS CHALMERS. By REV. DONALD FRASER, D.D. + ROBERT HALL. By REV. E. PAXTON HOOD. + RICHARD BAXTER. By REV. G. D. BOYLE. + +"This series of books will be widely popular. It consists of compact, +popular biographies of men eminent in religious history, prepared by +English and American authors of repute. They are similar in size to +the _English Men of Letters Series_, trustworthy and sufficiently +comprehensive, while yet brief enough to satisfy the demand of a large +number of readers who earnestly desire to become acquainted with the +lives and work of eminent Christian heroes."--_N. Y. Evening Post_. + + +_Sent on receipt of price, charges prepaid._ + +A. C. ARMSTRONG & SON, 714 Broadway, New York. + + + * * * * * + + + +[Transcriber's note: the "|" character is used to denote superscripted +characters, e.g. "Durh|m|". + + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Knox, by Wm. M. 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