Scriptures we explored. But no society of this kind was more useful
and pleasant to us than one which, from its object, received the name
of _Exegetical_. It met during the session of the Theological classes
every Saturday morning at half-past six. The study of Biblical
criticism, and whatever might cast light on the word of God, was our
aim; and these meetings were kept up regularly during four sessions.
Mr. M'Cheyne spoke of himself as indebted to this society for much of
that discipline of mind on Jewish literature and Scripture geography
which was found to be so useful in the Mission of Inquiry to the Jews
in after days.[4]

[4] The members of this Society were--Rev. _William Laughton_,
now Minister of St Thomas's, Greenock, in connection with the
Free Church; _Thomas Brown,_ Free Church, Kinneff; _William
Wilson_, Free Church, Carmyllie; _Horatius Bonar_, Free Church,
Kelso; _Andrew A. Bonar_, Free Church, Collace; _Robert M.
M'Cheyne; Alexander Somerville_, Free Church, Anderston, Glasgow;
_John Thomson_, Mariners' Free Church, Leith; _Robert K.
Hamilton_, Madras; _John Burne_, for some time at Madeira;
_Patrick Borrowman_, Free Church, Glencairn; _Walter Wood_, Free
Church, Westruther; _Henry Moncrieff_, Free Church, Kilbride;
_James Cochrane_, Established Church, Cupar; _John Miller_,
Secretary to Free Church Special Commission; _G. Smeaton_, Free
Church, Auchterarder; _Robert Kinnear_, Free Church, Moffat; and
_W.B. Clarke_, Free Church, Half-Morton. Every meeting was opened
and closed with prayer. Minutes of the discussions were kept; and
the essays read were preserved in volumes. A very characteristic
essay of Mr. M'Cheyne's is "Lebanon and its Scenery" (inserted in
the _Remains_), wherein he adduces the evidence of travellers for
facts and customs which he himself was afterwards to see. Often,