notes of some sermons that Mr. Guthrie had preached from
the 55th chapter of the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah, with relation to
personal covenanting; and, without the least intimation of the design
made to him, printed them in a little pamphlet of 61 pages _12mo_, under
this title, A clear, attractive, warming beam of light, from Christ, the
Sun of light, leading unto himself, &c.----printed at Aberdeen,
1657.----

This book was indeed anonymous; but Mr. Guthrie was reputed the author
by the whole country, and was therefore obliged to take notice of it. He
was equally displeased at the vanity of the title, and the defect of the
work itself, which consisted of some broken notes of his sermons,
confusedly huddled together, by an injudicious hand.----He saw that the
only method to remedy this, was to review his own sermons; from which he
soon composed that admirable treatise, The Christian's great interest;
the only genuine work of Mr. Guthrie, which hath been blessed by God
with wonderful success, in our own country; being published very
seasonably a little before the introduction of prelacy in Scotland at
the restoration.

The author of his memoirs saith, "He had a story from a reverend
minister of the church, who had the sentiments of Dr. Owen from his own
mouth, who said,----You have truly men of great spirits in Scotland;
there is, for a gentleman, Mr. Bailey of Jerviswood, a person of the
greatest abilities I almost ever met with; and, for a divine, (said he,
taking out of his pocket a little gilt copy of Mr. Guthrie's treatise)
that author I take to have been one of the greatest divines that ever
wrote. It is my _vade mecum_, and I carry it and the Sedan new testament
still about with me. I have wrote several folios, but there is more
divinity in it than in them all.----It was translated into low dutch by
the reverend and pious Mr. Kealman, and was highly esteemed in Holland,
so that Mrs. Guthrie and one of her daughters met with uncommon civility
and kindness, when their relation to its author was known. It was also
translated into french, and high dutch; and we are informed, that it was
also translated into one of the eastern languages, at the charge of that
noble pattern of religion, learning and charity, the honourable Robert
Boyle."

At the synod of Glasgow held April 1661, after long reasoning about
proper measures for the security of religion, the matter was referred to
a committee; Mr. Guthrie prescrib