t worthy to be numbered among the living, or to appear among
the rest of his creatures; that to have seen one of my own species would
have seemed to me a raising me from death to life, and the greatest
blessing that Heaven itself, next to the supreme blessing of salvation,
could bestow; I say, that I should now tremble at the very apprehensions
of seeing a man, and was ready to sink into the ground at but the shadow
or silent appearance of a man's having set his foot in the island.

Such is the uneven state of human life; and it afforded me a great many
curious speculations afterwards, when I had a little recovered my first
surprise. I considered that this was the station of life the infinitely
wise and good providence of God had determined for me; that as I could
not foresee what the ends of divine wisdom might be in all this, so I
was not to dispute his sovereignty, who, as I was his creature, had an
undoubted right, by creation, to govern and dispose of me absolutely as
he thought fit; and who, as I was a creature that had offended him, had
likewise a judicial right to condemn me to what punishment he thought
fit; and that it was my part to submit to bear his indignation, because
I had sinned against him. I then reflected, that as God, who was not
only righteous, but omnipotent, had thought fit thus to punish and
afflict me, so he was able to deliver me; that if he did not think fit
to do so, it was my unquestioned duty to resign myself absolutely and
entirely to his will; and, on the other hand, it was my duty also to
hope in him, pray to him, and quietly to attend the dictates and
directions of his daily providence.

These thoughts took me up many hours, days, nay, I may say, weeks and
months; and one particular effect of my cogitations on this occasion I
cannot omit: One morning early, lying in my bed, and filled with
thoughts about my danger from the appearances of savages, I found it
discomposed me very much; upon which these words of the Scripture came
into my thoughts, "Call upon me in the day of trouble, and I will
deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me." Upon this, rising cheerfully
out of my bed, my heart was not only comforted, but I was guided and
encouraged to pray earnestly to God for deliverance: when I had done
praying, I took up my Bible, and opening it to read, the first words
that presented to me were, "Wait on the Lord, and be of good cheer, and
he shall strengthen thy heart; wait, I say, on the