while after all the above-mentioned breaches made upon them, he still
continued to give them a nail in his holy place, and a wall in Judah and
Jerusalem, _Ezra_ ix, 8, 9, they therefore again laid their appointments
upon some others to prepare a draft of _An Act, Declaration, and
Testimony_, &c., and which, under the favor of Divine Providence, has at
length been finished and laid before the presbytery. We only need to
observe further with reference to this, that the long delay of what is
now agreed upon did not proceed from any design in the presbytery, of
depriving either the people of their particular inspection, or the
generation, of any benefit that might be obtained by a work of this
nature, but partly from the fewness of their number, and great extent of
their charge, and partly from the great distance of members' residence
from each other, whereby they can seldom have access to meet all
together, for expediting this or any other work of public concern they
have in hand.

It is, therefore, with an eye to the Wonderful Counselor (when Zion's
faithful counselors are so few) for light and direction in the
management of this great and important work, that the presbytery have
resolved upon the publication hereof at this time, for the reasons which
follow:

1. Because this duty of bearing witness for truth, and declaring against
all error, and defection from it, and transmitting the same uncorrupted
to posterity, is expressly enjoined on the church by the Spirit of God
in the Scriptures of truth. _Psal._ lxxviii, 5: "For he hath established
a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded
our fathers that they should make them known to their children."
_Isaiah_ xliii, 10: "Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord." _Matth._ x,
32: "Whosoever, therefore, shall confess me before men, him will I also