saith The Tree that brings not forth good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire My heart said sure so is my heart and I have deserved to be cast into the fire I have brought forth such fruits as may justly cut me down Again I heard the word of Christ He that heareth the Word and doeth it shall be blessed Then my heart said I have deserved not to be pardoned but I beg for mercy Again the word saith This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased My heart said sure God is merciful to send his own Son and Christ is merciful that he came and died for us Again I heard that the Tempter came to Christ and said If thou be the Son of God make these stones bread But Christ said man liveth not by bread only but by every word which cometh out of the mouth of God Then I believed that Christ was the Son of God and that my Soul liveth not by bread but by the Word of God Again Mat. 8. the Leper came to Christ and said Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me whole and Iesus touched him and he was healed Then my heart said surely Christ is the Son of God and he only can heal my sins Again I heard in Mat. 6. If ye forgive one another God forgiveth you Then my heart said I desire to do this else God will be angry with me Again I heard Mat. 9. all diseased came to Christ the blind halt c and he healed them therefore I believed that he was the Son of God and I begged of Christ to pardon my sins and save me because sure he is Christ the Son of God Again the word saies Not every one that saith Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdome but he that doth the will of my Father Then my heart said I do fear because I do very weakly obey the Word of God and therefore Christ saith Depart ye workers of iniquity My heart said such an one am I but now I cry to and trust to Christ to pardon all my sins Again I heard Mat. 11. that Christ said Capernaum was lifted up to heaven by the Gospel but should be cast down to hell for refusing it I thought I did now pray iâ— I now fall off I shall perish And again Christ saith It shall be easier for Tyre and Sidon in that day Then my heart said I have deserved the worst of Gods wrath for I believed not the great works of God and therefore I desire pardon of all my sins and to forsake all my sins and to pray to Christ as long as I live Again I heard Mat. 5. That Heaven and Earth shall pass away but not one jot or tittle of the Word of God but all shall be fulfilled Therefore my heart did desire that I may both hear and do the Word of God which will never perish Again I heard Mat. 16 Christ saith Who say ye that I am Peter said Thou art Christ the Son of the living God Christ said Blessed art thou Peter flesh and blood hath not revealed this to thee but my Father and on this Rock I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it Therefore my heart believed that God helped me to receive Christ and I desire to take that promise to Peter and my heart joyed more and more in Christ and in the Word of God Again I heard Mat. 26. Iesus took bread and blessed it and brake it and gave it and said Take eat this is my body which is broken for you and likewise the Cup c. saying This is my blood in the New Testament which was shed for remission of sins c. My heart said sure Christ is full of love and hath given us great mercy and I desire to partake of it Again the wicked did kill Christ but he rose again and ascended to heaven then my heart believed Christ Again I heard Iohn 14. No man cometh to the Father but by me My heart said so be it Lord I desire to come to God by Christ and I said Why did the wicked kill Christ My heart said I believe that Christ died for my sin and therefore I desire to believe in Christ Then my heart did joy in Christ and to heartle Word of God but yet to this day I have doubts in my heart my heart is weak to this day And now I know that in six daies God made the world and before that God I desire to confess my sins and forsake them and no more to do them Sometimes my heart is in an ill frame and loveth sin and my heart hateth good therefore I desire the free Mercy of Christ to hold and keep my Soul When he had finished and I had read before the assembly this confession of his we called upon the witnesses to co-attest Who did in the same order as before express themseves to the like purpose Only when we called for Tho Stanton his sonnes they were not present nor did they any more appeare in the Congregation to attest the Indians confessions all the day Ponampiam He was next called forth and thus spake I Confess my sinnes before the Lord and his people this day While my Father lived and I was young I was at play and my Father rebuked me and said we shall all die shortly In private we asked him what ground or reason moved his Father so to speak he answered it was when the English were new come over and he thinketh that his Father had heard that Mr Wilson had spoken of the flood of Noah how God drowned all the world for the sinnes of the people Then I was troubled and thought sure what God saith shall be and not what man saith but I quickly forgot this and thought not of any good That same Winter the pox came all my kindred died only my Mother and I lived we came to Cohannit by Dorchester where I lived till I was a man and married All those daies I sinned and prayed to all gods and did as others did there I lived till the Minister came to teach us When I heard that they prayed my heart desired it not Sometime I prayed among them and sometime I neglected it I feared to pray because of the Sachems therefore I put it off for the fear of man Afterward I considered in my heart to pray to God not because I loved the word but for other reasons I heard that Word Mal. 1. From the rising of the Sun to the going down thereof my name shall be great among the Gentiles and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name and a pure offering for my name shall be great among the heathen saith the Lord of hosts Then I was troubled in my thoughts about running away yet then I thought if I should go to another place they must pray also and therefore I cannot flie from praying to God therefore I tarried and when others prayed I prayed
word Mat. 12. The unclean spirit being cast out of a man he walketh about seeking rest and findeth none then hee returneth and bringeth 7 other spirits with him worse then himself and the end of that man is worse then his beginning When I heard this my heart feared I thought now I repent of my many sins for verily I am a great sinner I have offended I am 7 times worse then before I prayed then I repented Again I heard that Word He that penitently believeth shall be saved and then my heart did desire to repent and believe then I thought that men will not forgive me and therefore it is not good to abide in this place but I remembred that I had learned to read the Word and if I should forsake my friends I should lose the Word of God Then I heard that Word Repent for the Kingdome of Heaven is at hand my heart said ô let it be so and then my heart rested but yet quickly it was unquiet again Then I did strongly desire to repent of my sinnes I heard that Word that God Sowed good seed but evill seed was sowen by the Enemy and such were in my heart and as in my field there were many roots and weeds which spoyled the corne and I plucked them up and cast them out my heart said verily just so is my heart the Word is but a little in my heart and there be many ill roots in me and therefore God may justly cast me out from among his people because of my many sinnes Then my heart said I desire to pray to God as long as I live and now I forsake my sins who have been a great sinner Now I beg of Christ O give me thy spirit that I may confess my sins before God and not only before men again I remember that I cannot pardon or help my self but only Christ must help me Again I heard that Word All manner of sin shall be forgiven to a man but the sin against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven in this world nor in the world to come Then my heart feared because many and great were my sins since I prayed to God and I cried to God for mercy and pardon and then I thought I will pray to God as long as I live But verily I am a sinner for I am guilty not only of Adams sin but of my own sins also and they are many I remember that in Catechisme I learn that God made a Covenant of works with Adam Do the Commands and thou shalt live and thy seed also but if thou sin thou shalt die and thy seed also therefore by that I know I am a sinner and have deserved to die Then I crie to God O God have mercy upon me and pardon me Again I heard of the mercy of God but I am forgetfull and cannot remember Gods mercies to me God made a Covenant with Abraham and said I will be thy God and the God of thy seed after thee then my heart said O let it be so to me O Lord And now Abraham is in heaven who believed and kept Gods Covenant So I if I believe and keep Gods Covenant God will have mercy on me I remembred the Covenant of Circumcision to him and all his family and such a Covenant I desire for me and mine Again I heard Mat. 3. In those daies Iohn baptized in Iordan saying Repent for the Kingdome of God is at hand When I heard this my heart said the same is now with us not Abrahams signe but baptisme and therefore I desire to repent and Confess before God and before the Church and I desire not only to confess but to have repentance and faith that I may have grace mercy and pardon and such repentance as workes obedience Again the same Word saith vers. 6. They were baptized confessing their sins So I desire to do I do confess before God and desire to cast off and forsake my sins and to go to Christ The promise of pardon is to them that penitently believe and rest on Christ In the same Baptism of Iohn he said I baptize you with water but he that cometh after me is mightier then I he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire Now this Baptism I desire and not to receive the signe in vain I desire to purge out evill thoughts and therefore I confess these sins before God that they may be purged and I desire the spirit of God may dwell in me for ever to turn me to Christ I cannot of my self do any of these things but only Christ Jesus can by his spirit in me Again I heard another word As the Eagles are about a carkass so believers come to Christ then my heart said So be it Oh Lord when I receive the Covenant of God I am like the Eagles when I come to Christ I desire not to come in vain but if I feed not I shall die my soul will die Then I greatly begged that I might feed my soul on Christ and Oh Christ send thy spirit into my heart that I may not only know but do the Word of God Again Christ near his death took bread and blest it and broke it and gave it to his disciples and said Take yee eat yee this is my Body which was broken for you And so also he did the Cup and said Drink yee of it this is the Cup of my blood in the New Testament which is shed for the remission of sins Now this believers in Christ must do not only to eat Bread and to take the Sign but soul food therefore Christ sending his spirit and helping me I desire to receive the Sign not in vain but to help my faith When I had read this Confession in the Assembly we called upon the witnesses as before wee did whose answer was to the like purpose as before Wutasakompauin He was next called forth who thus spake HElp me Oh Jesus Christ to confess before the Lord Oh I am full of sin because Adams sin made mine and so was a sinner in my mothers womb When I was a youth I found many sins and after I was grown up I did the same alwaies all the daies of my life I lived in sin After the English came I went to their houses they would teach me about God but I hated it and went out I did not love such teaching Afterward the Minister taught and at first Waban perswaded me to pray and taught us I did not at first like it yet afterward I did Four years the Minister came to Noonantam I came but I only came I lost all he taught After I considered one word the Minister said That God sent him to teach us then I thought surely there is a God therefore I must believe and pray a little I believed but when I heard I did only outwardly hear After my wife and children died and then I almost cast off praying I had another wife and she died also
you shall have pardon and be saved and therefore sometime I believe and sometimes I doubt again Afterward I had temptation to drinking and to vain courses nigh half a year yet when Sabbath came my heart would turn to God when the Soldiers came upon us on the Sabbath while wee were at meeting and made us bring our guns hither then my heart said Sure God hath not said Keep the Sabbath day holy and then my heart cast off God yet it was only in my heart When wee came to the Magistrates and Cutshamoquin asked Why they came on the Sabbath day my heart was troubled and I did believe when wee went from the Magistrates I was thirsty and I drank a great deal and I was drunk and was carried before the Magistrates and then I was ashamed Then I came to the Ministers house and I was greatly ashamed and my heart said Sure I have now cast off praying to God but I repented and cryed to God Oh God pardon all my sins and this my sin for my sins are great I had other temptations to drinking and I found my heart weak and doubting but my heart was troubled and I was ready to stumble like a little weak childe After this I heard that word of God Mat. 12. Do yee not remember what David did on the Sabbath day and was blamelesse Then I thought the Souldiers did not sin but then I saw that I was a great sinner and that I had broken the Sabbath Again I heard that word Mat. 3. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewen down and cast into the fire and this troubled mee because I had evil fruits Again Mat. 6. Christ saith Be ye not like hypocrites which seem to pray before men I thought this was my case I did only pray before men but I doubted of Christ and his Grace Again Mat. 5. Who ever breaks the least of Gods Commandements and teach men so to do shall be least in the Kingdom of heaven Then I was troubled because I had been an active sinner in lust and other sins and I was worse then a beast in my sins Then I cryed to God Oh Christ pardon all my great sins Oh Christ have mercy on mee Oh God remember mee to pardon all my sins Thus I cryed and desired pardon but I was weak in believing But then about two years after I was greatly troubled about my weakness I desired to do well but I was weak Then I cryed to God Oh God help mee by thy spirit in mee and send thy spirit into my heart Sometimes I read and taught on the Sabbath day but weakly Then I heard Mat. 23. Christ bid the people do what the Scribes and Pharisees said but not do as they do I said Lord that is my case I teach better then I do and therefore I desired repentance for my sin and to forsake my sin Then Mat. 7. Christ saith Thou hypocrite first cast the beam out of thy own eye and then thou mayst see clearly to cast the mote out of thy brothers eye My heart said Truly it is so I teach others but I do not well my self I reprove sin and yet I do it Then was my heart weary and I desired again to do well and amend but I found my self very weak Sometime my heart hated praying to God and meeting on the Sabbath dayes and therefore I see I deserve hell torments and then I cryed Oh Christ pardon all these my sins Then afterward my heart desired strongly to pray unto God but I saw I deserved misery and punishment and I was weak Then I desired my heart might be made strong by Church-covenant Baptism and the Lords Supper which might be as a Fort to keep me from enemies as a Fort keepeth us from our outward enemies Yet my heart was sometime backward and said No matter do it not but still do what thy heart would have thee And I saw Satan did thus follow mee with these temptations to misbelief and doubting But now I see Satan tempteth mee because hee desireth I should be ever tormented with him Then I learned that in Iohn 6. I am the true bread and hee that eateth mee shall live for ever and hee that drinketh my blood shall have life but hee that doth not eat my flesh and drink my blood shall not have life Then my heart saith Truth Lord that is my case Again I learnt Iohn 3. Hee that believeth shall not perish but have eternal life And my heart said Yea Lord let it be so Again Mat. 16. Christ saith Thou art Peter a Rock and on this Rock I will build my Church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it Therefore my heart said I desire this because Christ dwells in the Church and is in the midst of them where two or three are met together in my name Oh! I do therefore desire Church Ordinances that I might be with Christ and that I might have the Seals Mat. 3. Christ sayes Let it be for it is necessary that I should fulfill all righteousness My heart said Oh that I might also so do O Lord now my heart desireth and thirsteth Oh God have mercy on mee and pity my weakness that I may have pardon in Christ and strength from Christ in all his Ordinances and that I might leave all my sins and Oh God pardon all my sins for thy mercies sake I know not what to do I am so weak Oh God help and have mercy on mee And the same I desire of you before whom I am in this house help mee for Mat. 16. whom yee binde on earth are bound in heaven and whom yee loose on earth are loosed in heaven and my desire is that Christ would pardon all my sins and that I may be helped Elder Heath propounded this Question which hee answered in broken English Question Whether doth Satan still tempt you with former lusts and temptations and what do you when you are tempted Answer to the first part Yes alwaies to this day To the second part When Devil comes I sometime too much believe him but sometime I remember to do Gods Word because Gods Word is all one a sword and breaks the Devils temptations Deacon Park propounded this Question What is it in sin why hee hateth it now more then before Answ. his answer in broken English I did love sin but now not all one so because I hear Gods Word and that shewes mee that which I loved is evil and will bring mee to hell therefore I love it not now Deacon Park urged Doth hee hate sin because it is against God Answ. That chiefly Anthony FIrst I make confession in the presence of God and of all these Elders and this I confesse that I am not able to speak before the Lord yet I do it according as God requireth I should Assuredly I am a sinner but now I hope Christ hath taught mee his Word Oh let him my Lord help mee to