MEMOIRS OF BENJAMIN KEACH. THESE Sufferings in the cause of truth and righteousness did not intimidate Mr. Keach. Two years afterwards, 1666, he published a small Poem, entitled, Zion in dis tress; or the groans of the true Protestant Church. He says in the preface, "that he perceived Popery was ready to bud, and would, if God prevented not, spring up afresh in the land." Being greatly harassed by his persecutors, and no prospect of enjoying any thing like a quiet settlement in the work of the ministry, he resolved, as he had not accepted the pastoral office in any church, to remove to London, where he thought he should have greater opportunities to be useful. Accordingly he turned his effects into money, and with his wife and children left Buckinghamshire in 1668; but in his way thither the coach was beset with highwaymen, who compelled all the passengers to alight and robbed them of every thing of value. This afflictive circumstance must have been very trying to him and Mrs. K. as they were now with three children in a strange place without money, and almost without any acquaintance in London. He however found friends who relieved his necessities, and also enabled him with the other passengers to bring an action against the county for the recovery of their loss: in which they were successful. He had not been long in London before he was invited to settle with a congregation in the Borough, and in a few months after he undertook the pastoral office among them, and was solemnly ordained by imposi tion of hands in 1668, being then 28 years of age. During four years after the settlement of Mr. Keach, they were obliged to meet from house to house, and though very careful to prevent being discovered, they were twice disturbed, and some of them indicted to appear at the Quarter Sessions. In 1672, when the declaration of indulgence was published, they built a meeting-house at the corner of Stoney Lane, Horsly Down. It pleased God to give such success to the ministry of Mr. Keach, that they soon increased so considerably that the place was frequently enlarged, till it became sufficiently capacious to contain nearly a thousand people. From this period to the Revolution in 1688, Mr Keach took a lively interest in every thing which related to the Protestant interest, and embraced every opportunity to expose the iniquitous scenes that were transacted for the introduc tion of Popery. Mr. Keach was a very zealous baptist, and appears to have taken an active part in the general assemblies held in London in 1689, &c. He was requested by the Association to visit the baptized churches, in several parts of the kingdom, and to preach the gospel to them. In this journey he was accompa nied by Mr. Benjamin Dennis, and it was attended with great success. His zeal for the baptist denomination appeared by writing in defence of it; by encouraging ministers who came to him from all parts of the kingdom; and by getting several meeting-houses erected for the worship of God. In 1692, Mr. Keach was engaged in a controversy on the subject of baptism with the Rev. Mr. Burkit, rector of Milden in Suffolk, and the well-known author of the exposition of the New Testament. The circumstances which led to this were as follows. Mr. John Tredwell, a baptist minister of Mr. Keach's acquaintance, was invited to take the care of a small congregation at Lavingham. This person was of unblemished life and conversation, and a very solid, useful preacher. Several persons being converted by his ministry and joining his church, Mr. Burkit, whose parish adjoined, was greatly offended, and warned his people against the dangerous principles and practices of this sect, and cast many unjust and uncharitable reflections both upon his neighbours and their opinions. Mr. Tredwell, who esteemed the character of Mr. Burkit, wrote him a friendly letter, persuading him to desist from suck methods, so derogating from the character and reputation he bore in the world; telling him that they had sufficient ground from scripture for their practice, and that scolding was not a likely way to promote truth. Mr. Tredwell hoped to bring him to friendly measures, but in this he was disappointed, as Mr. Burkit soon after came into the meeting-house when they were assembled for public worship, accompanied with several of his parishioners, and demanded of him to hear the doctrines he had reflected upon and called antiscriptural. Mr. Tredwell surprised at such a riotous and tumultuous challenge, however agreed, that he should have liberty to assert and vindicate his opinions, provided he might afterwards have liberty to make a reply. Upon this Mr. Burkit began with a short prayer, and then for two hours discoursed upon infant baptism, and when he had done departed with his company without giving Mr. Tredwell time to answer. Soon after Mr. Burkit published the substance of this harangue, and entitled it, An argumentative and practical discourse of infant baptism. This was intermixed with false stories of the Baptists and unchristian reflections cast upon them. Mr. Tredwell on this applied to Mr. Keach, and requested him to undertake to answer it: which he soon after did, and entitled it, The Rector rectified and corrected. To this work Mr. Tredwell prefixed an Epistle addressed to Mr. Burkit, dated Preston Place, April 30, 1692, in which he mentions the above circumstances, and also quotes a charge which Mr. Burkit had brought against him and the Baptists in general. "Since the late general liberty (says Mr. B.) the Anabaptists thinking themselves thereby let loose upon us, have disperst themselves into several counties, endeavouring to draw away our people from us, by persuading them to renounce their first dedication to God in baptism, and to enter their communion after the way of dipping. One of their teaching disciciples (meaning myself, says Mr. T.) having set up in our neighbourhood for making proselytes, by re-baptizing them in a nasty horse-pond, into which the filth of the adjacent stable occasionally flows, and out of which his deluded converts come forth with so much filthiness upon them, that they rather resembled creatures arising out of the bottomless pit, than candidates for holy baptism: and all this before a promiscuous multitude before the light of the sun." It is really awful to reflect on this desperate wickedness from such a man as Mr. Burkit, in publishing such an untruth to the world. "It seems to me (says Mr. T.) that you neither regard your own reputation, nor keeping a good conscience before God: you ought to repent of this your great rashness in asserting such abominable falsehoods." To counteract the influence of this vile slander, the following declaration was published. A Certificate under the hands of several sober and impartial persons. "Whereas Mr. Burkit, of Milden, in the county of Suffolk, hath (in his late book called, An argumentative and practical discourse of infant baptism,) very unjustly reproached the people called Anabaptists, and in particular Mr. John Tredwell (preacher of God's word) declaring that the said John Tredwell hath lately at Kittle-Baston, in the said county of Suffolk, baptized several persons in a nasty horse-pond, into which the filth of the adjacent stable occasionally flows, and that the people baptized in the said pond, came forth with much mud and filthiness upon them, &c. We whose names are hereunto subscribed, do sol emnly certify and declare to the whole world, that those reports and assertions of the said Mr. Burkit are utterly and notoriously false; for we taking a strict view of the said pond and stable, find the dung or filth of the said stable runs the quite contrary way from the pond into the road. "Moreover we solemnly certify and declare, that the persons baptized in the said pond, came forth without the least speck or spot of dirt upon their clothes, the water being clean. In witness whereof, we have set our hands this 3d day of May, 1692. Baptists. JOHN TYRIL, Sen. Gént. THOMAS CABLE. Not Baptists. WILLIAM BROWN. DAVID SARE, Jun. THOMAS GAME. WILLIAM BORAM. THOMAS BOSS. JOHN NOBLE. Notwithstanding the various labours in which Mr. Keach engaged, he was of a very weak constitution and often afflicted. He was at one time so ill, in 1689, as to be given over by the physicians, and several of the ministers and his relations had taken leave of him, as a dying man past all hopes of recovery. "But (says Crosby) the Rev. Mr. Hansard Knollys seeing his dying friend and brother in the gospel near to all appearance expiring; betook himself to prayer, and in an earnest and very extraordinary manner, begged that God would spare him and add unto his days the time he granted to his servant Hezekiah. As soon as he had ended his prayer, he said, "Brother Keach, I shall be in heaven before you," and quickly after left him. So remarkable was the answer of God to this good man's prayer, that I cannot omit it, though it may be discredited by some, there are yet living incontestable eviden ces of the fact. For Mr. Keach recovered of that illness and lived just fifteen years afterwards: and then it pleased God to visit him with that short sickness which put an end to his life." During this illness he had many friends with him, but the violence of his distemper soon deprived them of the expectation of his life. When he was very near his end, Mr. Jo seph Stennett was sent for; but when he came Mr. Keach was not able to say much to him, excepting desiring him to preach his funeral sermon from 1 Tim. i. 12. I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him against that day. During his illness he manifested extraordinary patience and resignation to the divine will, and with much composure told his wife that he had recommended her to a better husband, the Lord Jesus Christ; and exhorted his children to live in love, peace, and unity, and in a steadfast adherence to Christ and his ways. A little before his death, his eldest daughter, who was one of the people called Quakers, came to see him, with whom he endeavoured to converse, and manifested a great eagerness and desire to speak with her, but his speech failing prevented him. He died July 18, 1704, about 11 o'clock in the morning, and in the 64th year of his age. On the following Friday his remains were taken from his meeting house at the corner of Stoney-lane, to the Baptist burying ground in the Park Southwark. A very large auditory was collected to hear his funeral sermon, but the illness of Mr. Stennett prevented him from preach ing it, till some time afterwards. The sermon was not printed,though he was strongly solicited to do it. Mr. Keach had been twice married. His first wife was a Miss Jane Grove, of Winslow, in Buckinghamshire, "a woman of great piety and prudence," to which. might have been added, great affection and fortitude, which she manifested when her husband was set in the pillory, by standing by him and defending the cause for which he suffered. This good woman died October 1670, in the 31st year of her age. This was a very great affliction to him, as she was a very tender and loving wife, and had been his companion in sufferings ten years. The extraordinary affection which he bare to her memory was manifested by his writ ing a poem on the occasion of her death, which he entitled, A Pillar set up, assigning as his reason the example of Jacob, And Rachel died and was buried, and Jacob set up a pillar on her grave, that is the pillar of Rachel's grave unto this day. In this he gave her a very high character, commending her zeal for the truth, sincerity in religion, uncommon love to the saints, and her great contentment in whatsoever condition of life God was pleased to place her. He particularly mentions how great an help and comfort she was to him in his suffering for the cause of Christ, visiting him while in prison, and taking all possible care of him, and encouraging him to go on, counting it an honour done them both, in that they were called to suffer for the sake of Christ. She was of an heavenly conversation, ber discourse savoury, and for the most part about spiritual things, seeking the good of those she talked with; and in this she was so successful, that many have acknowledged that they were indebted to her conversation for their conversion to God. As Mr. Keach published this account of her that her example might be imitated by others, for the same reason we have thought it worth transcribing. After being a widower about two years, he married again. This union was much to his comfort, as they lived together in great affection 32 years. "To collect every particular transaction (says Crosby) of this worthy minister's life, cannot be expected at such a distance of time; nay, even to collect all that was excellent and imitable in him is too great a task to be now undertaken. I shall only observe that he was a person of great integrity of soul; a Nathaniel indeed; his conversation not frothy and vain, but serious without being morose or sullen. He began to be religious early, and continued faithful to the last. He was not shocked by the fury of his persecutors, though he suffered so much from them for the cause of Christ. Preaching the gospel was the pleasure of his soul, and his heart was so engaged in the work of the ministry, that from the time of his first appearing in public, to the end of his days, his life was one continued scene of labour and toil. His great study and constant preaching exhausted his animal spirits, and enfeebled his strength, yet to the last he discovered a becoming zeal against the errors of the day; his soul was too great to recede from any truth that he owned, either from the frowns or flatteries of the most eminent. He discharged the duties of his pastoral office with unwearied diligence,by preaching in season and out of season, visiting those under his charge, encouraging the serious, defending the great truths of the gospel, and setting them in the clearest light. How low would he stoop for the sake of peace! and how would be bear the infirmities of his weak brethren! that such as would not be wrought upon by the strength of reason, might be melted by his condescension and good nature. He was prudent as well as peaceable; would forgive and forget injuries,, being charitable as well as courteoos. He was not addicted to utter hard censures of such as differed from him in less matters, but had a love for all saints, and constantly exercised himself in this, to keep a conscience void of offence towards God and towards man. He shewed an unwearied endeavour to re cover the decayed power of religion, for he lived what he preached, and it pleased God so to succeed his endeavours, that I doubt not but some yet living may call him their father, whom he bath begotten through the gospel. He affected no unusual tones, nor inde. cent gestures in his preaching, his style was strong and masculine. He generally used notes, especially in the latter part of his life; and if his sermons had not the embellishments of language, which some boast of, they had this peculiar advantage to be full of solid divinity; which is a much better character for pulpit discourses, than to say they are full of pompous eloquence and flights of wit. It was none of the least of his excellent qualifications for the ministerial work, that he knew how to behave himself in the house of God in regard of the exercise of that discipline which is so necessary to a christian society. With patience and meekness, with gravity and prudence, with impartiality and faithfulness, did he demean himself in his congregation; and with great prudence did he manage all their affairs upon all occasions. He was a very In his family he was very exemplary, encouraging the first appearances of piety, and constantly instructing them in the things of God, and putting them in mind of the concerns of their souls, praying with and for them. affectionate husband, a tender father, a prudent master, and a constant and grateful friend. He was naturally of a good disposition, and generally pleasant and cheerful in conversation. The vivacity of his temper sometimes exposed him to sharp and sudden fits of anger, which occasioned no small uneasiness to himself, as well as those who had given him any provocation; but those fits were but for a short continuance, and so the trouble occasioned by them was soon over and the goodness and tender |