before the Elders made his Confession as followeth UNto this day I do understand but little of the English Language the Word of God came not first unto my heart by the English Language I did not know what state I was in at my first birth and my sin by birth I knew not When I was young I knew not what I was as now I do know for now I know that I am a sinful man Since I prayed to God I know more of my self but afore I cared not for such things nor what they said If I heard any thing I took no heed to it if any asked me whether I knew God I did not regard it yea I hated the knowledg of God nor did I regard any word of God but other kinde of praying which we used I did love to pray to the Devil this I loved But afterward I began to think it may be they say true that speak of God it may be it is true that God is in heaven and should any teach me in my language I might know God but if I should pray it may be it is in vain to pray in my language could I speak English I might learn to pray And I see the English love us and therefore it is like that is true which they say of God and I desire to live for ever where they do When I first heard the Word it said God is good a little I believed it but I did more doubt Mr Iackson asked me if I did pray to God I asked him whether God understood our language if I prayed to him Hee said yea all things God doth know and all languages Then my heart said It may be I may attain to pray But my heart was hard and therefore I could not pray afterwards it may be I may Sometime I thought if we did not pray the English might kill us but if I prayed I thought I did not pray right When I saw and considered that all men in the world dyed I knew not how I might come to live for ever how my soul might live and therefore I desired I might pray to God aright because they that so pray are all one as if they dyed not but live for ever I wish't I could pray aright but could not tell how to do it I did in my heart love wandering about and our wilde courses alwaies and when I did pray it was but out-side praying for in my heart I understood not right praying to God I understood not how to pray and I regarded not my weariness of that which was good many things hindred my heart I was ashamed because my heart was full of evil Sometimes I thought of my sins but it was but a little and I was soon weary of any good I did not think God was not mercifull but I saw my heart was naught and very little did I know the evils of my heart No humility was in my heart and to this day my heart is evil and hard is my heart When you taught us the Word of God my heart did not believe but went contrary to the Word of God I saw my mourning for sin was not good I do confess my heart did not submit to God only I hoped I might might learn the Word of God which you taught us My heart did afore love praying to the Devil but I do not finde that I so love praying to God therefore I did pray Lord break my heart that I may pray to God aright My heart was weary of praying quickly and therefore my heart said Surely my heart is nought and I am like a dead man and therefore I prayed Lord help me now to pray aright to God Now I knew that God knoweth all the thoughts of my heart and my many sins and contrary doings and how little I know of God Surely I am a great sinner and this I do throughly know that great are my sins and that my heart is contrary to praying to God and my heart desired wilde courses and I see that my heart loveth not praying to God Yet now my heart began to desire to pray and to love those things which are according to right praying but I knew not what to do Then I asked what I should do then I heard this answer I should desire Christ to break my heart by his spirit none else in the world could do it no man could work faith in me but the Word which I heard doth it I could not my self repent of sin or be ashamed but this I know that the Word of God saith Those that believe in Christ shall not perish but have eternal life Then my heart said Oh Lord let it be so to me and let not my heart say contrary Again I heard If any be foolish let him ask wisedom of God who giveth freely Then my heart said I am foolish Oh Lord teach me Then I feared that my heart in vain seeketh and then I desired humility and that I might not pray in vain and that I might not pray only outwardly But my heart had contrary and misbelieving thoughts dayly and my heart did not dayly desire after God and but a little could I remember of God Sometime my heart desired not to be like to such as prayed aright unto God therefore I desired the Image of God upon me and that I might be like to them wch prayed to God aright alwaies I thought that what God said in his Word was right I heard this word The Foxes have holes and the Birds have nests but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head Then my heart said Truth Lord the riches of this world are of no value and therefore I desire not this worlds goods but only heavenly blessings and grace I desire the way to the Heavenly Kingdom And always my heart saith touching my poverty and misery I give myself and my soul to God and to Christ because that is right Again I learn in the Catechize Q. What hath Christ done for us A. He dyed for us hee was buried he rose again for us and by his resurrection hee raiseth our souls unto grace and also at the last day And my heart said Oh let it be so in me Again it is said What else hath Christ done for us A. He ascended to heaven to raise our hearts first to heaven and then to carry us to heaven also to be with him for ever My heart saith Oh God I am not able to save my self I cannot save my own soul this is only thy work Oh God and my heart believeth it and with God is mercy and goodness but in this world is nothing but weariness and I know my weakness therefore I am ashamed and Oh let God put grace into my heart and my heart saith Oh let me not say in vain that I believe Oh Lord help that I may truly believe not by my works but by thy Word Oh God Again it is said in Catechism Why is
answered Who knoweth that and who can witness that He said The Minister is sent of God and sheweth us Gods Word and hee by that teacheth us Then I promised Waban that when hee came again I would pray to God Then Toteswamp came and exhorted me to pray to God and told me of Christ and pardon of sin and then almost my heart prayed to God Then I said English men understand not me and does God understand me They said God made all◠and understands all then I said I will pray to God Then I heard first that God made heaven and earth and all things and in six dayes finished them and also made man in his own Image wise and holy like God Then I heard that Satan came and tempted Eve and cozened her and she tempted the man And God had said Eat not of the tree in the midst of the Garden if yee eat thereof yee shall dye yet she did eat and gave unto man and he did eat and thereby he sinned and all his posterity became sinful and deserved damnation Then my heart said What shall I do and I prayed for my children for now I hear of eternal damnation and sure I am a great sinner Again I heard the Minister preach That Christ was born like a man and was both God and man and dyed for us and sheweth us the way of eternal life Then I cryed Oh Lord give me Christ because Christ hath dyed for us and hath made his righteousness ours and our sins are Christs as Adam made his sin ours Now my heart was broken and I saw that I was a great sinner When I heard of the great works of Christ I said Oh what shall I do that I may get Christ I said in my heart Oh let the holy Spirit help me for I am ashamed of my sins melted is my heart and I desire pardon of all my sins now I desire to forsake all my sins and now I desire dayly to quench lusts and wash off filth and cast out all my sins by the blood of Jesus Christ and this I do by believing in Jesus Christ Gen. 6. there was only one Noah righteous and God saved him then my heart said Oh mercifull God who savest them that trust in thee save mee Again God made his Covenant with Abraham and with all the seed of Abraham now I desire to have this Covenant and to receive this Commandement of Christ Abraham was strong in faith and followed Christ and my heart doth desire to follow Christ because he hath dyed for us Wutásakómpauin OH Christ help mee I confess my sins before God and before men We are all born in sin because Adam sinned and made his sin ours Our Parents knew not God nor the way of life we Indians are all sinners and did all sins afore we heard of God we did pray to every thing that is in the world and knew not the way of life When English men came first we did pray to the Devil and many were our sins and God doth know all our sins all which we have committed before the English came After the English came I went to Sudbury to Mr Browns house and he said to me Pray to God but I did not like it nor to hear of praying to God but afterwards I heard Waban prayed to God and I was not glad of it yet after Waban prayed he told us of it and that the Minister came to Noonantam I heard him and he taught that the souls of good men die and go to heaven the souls of the wicked when they die they go to hell but I only heard it Then we resolved we would pray to God and carry our children to Roxbury that they might learn to pray but we feared that we should not learn to pray After the Minister taught that word that every man himself must pray and believe to be saved and though your sons be at Roxbury and learn to pray yet if you pray not you must be damned Again I heard many words of God this was one Therefore watch for ye know not the day or hour when the Lord will come When I heard that I knew not what to do nor do I know when is the day of death But I am full of sin and when I die Christ will not receive me because I am so full of sin After that my wise dyed and then weak was my heart almost I left praying to God but yet I did not so But after I heard that word of God Who ever heareth the word and doeth it is like a wise builder who built on a rock and when the storms and floods came and beat upon the house it stood because it was built upon a rock But hee that heareth the word and doth it not is like a foolish builder who built upon the sand and the storms and floods came and beat upon that house and it fell because it was built on the sand By this I saw that I was a foolish builder because the death of my wife did almost make me leave praying to God After I had another wife and shee dyed also Then I heard that word That it is Gods love by afflictions to call us to repentance and therefore my heart said Oh Lord I will pray Oh Lord help me Again I heard another word that at the end of the world all must appear before the Iudgment Seat of Christ and therefore now confess all your sins and repent because Christ hath writ down all your actions both good and bad and all shall be opened and therefore repent of your sins that they may be pardoned Then I said I am a great sinner and ever I commit sin I confesse I have deserved hell and I cannot deliver my self but I beg of God Oh Lord give me Christ and I give my soul to Christ that all my sins may be pardond and I now confess my sins before man but at the end of the world I must be judged by Jesus Christ Now I desire the spirit of God would help me to confess all my sins to God that they may be pardoned in Jesus Christ THese Confessions I wrote in English from their mouthes with the best of my endeavours both for diligence and also faithfulness and so soon as they had done I read them unto the Elders and Brethren and Sisters there present and that the substance hereof was delivered by them and faithfully translated and delivered by me to the lest of my understanding I do here before the Lord testifie JOHN ELIOT I Did understand most things that some of those Indians spake and though others spake not so well to my understanding yet many things I understood of what they all spake and thus much I may testifie that according to what I understood the substance of their Confessions is here truly set down JOHN ELIOT jun. Waban being sick when the rest made their Confession after the Lord had restored him came to Roxbury and
speak it I confesse that in my mothers belly I was defiled in sin my father and mother prayed to many gods and I heard them when they did so and I did so too because my parents did so and in my childhood afore I could act sin I did delight in it as dancing and Pawwaug and when they did so they prayed to many gods as Beasts Birds Earth Sea Trees c. After I was born I did all such things I loved lust when I was a youth though I did act these lusts but a little But when I had a little begun my heart did very much desire more to do such sins I saw the English keep Sabbath I cared not but played and catch't birds or any thing yet when I saw Englishmen I ran away on the Sabbath day because they should not see mee As yet I knew not of great sins as Murder Adultery then some Indians said we must pray to God When I was in English houses I saw them pray and I thought it a vain work They said there was but one God I thought nay there be many Gods When Indians said Wee will pray my heart said No I will not so long as I live Yet I heard more and more of praying to God and that my brothers prayed to God but my heart said Praying to God is vain After I heard Waban did pray and my brothers Wompoâ—as and Toteswoâ—mp yet my heart said No I am well enough I have not so sinned as other men I am no Murderer Adulterer c. Then I ran away yet I was not much troubled because my brothers prayed A little after I came and my brother said to mee I pray you pray to God I answered him not but my heart said No yet I was troubled because I heard my brothers I thought if any should kill my brothers I would kill him if any Warrs were I would go with my brothers only I thought of my love to my brothers and then that if my brother make Warr I would go with him to kill men Now he prayes shall not I go with my brothâ—â—â—◠〈◊〉 my brothers love me and they both pray to God 〈◊〉 should not I They prayed morning and 〈…〉 they eat and on Sabbath dayes then I thought I would do so but it was not for love of God or fear of God but because I loved my brothers Again when I came to Noonantam I heard the Minister preach and I desired to hear what he 〈…〉 taught but I understood not 〈…〉 because I understood stood 〈…〉 to hear I heard some youths 〈…〉 Roxbury My brother said to me Go you because you may learn Smithery For that reason I did go but desired not to learn to pray all these things were vain When we came to Roxbury I said I desired to learn Smithery But my Master said I may not teach him my Trade lest Indians learn to make Locks and Guns Then I would not dwell with him and thought to cast off praying and thought I would forsake my brothers My brother perswaded mee to dwell one year there but I would not yet at last I did dwell there one year and went to meeting but in vain for I understood not one word After that year I returned to Noonantam and then I heard that God made all the world but yet I did not pray to God one jot but still sinned and especially the sin of Lust I made light of any sin I heard and understood the Commands of God Thou shalt not murder commit adultery steal bear false witness covet and that made me afraid to commit sin afore man lest I should be punished or put to death but I feared not God After I heard the Minister ask Who made you A. God and Who redeemed you A. Christ and Who must sanctifie you The holy Ghost and that God made Heaven Earth Sea c. then I a little considered of God who made all this world and then I was afraid I saw that no man could make these things and that therefore we must pray to God Then my heart said Assuredly it is so God made all things and made mee and I must pray to him After this my brothers were sick and I prayed God Oh that they may live and then I heard that now God tryeth mee whether I will pray or no I confesse I have done many sins especially lust though I had not been a Murderer or the like But then my brothers and kindred dyed then my heart said Sure it 's a vain thing to pray to God for I prayed yet my friends dyeâ— therefore I will run wilde and did cast off praying I did not pray morning and night and at meat only on the Sabbath day I came to meeting but I cared not for hearing nor did I believe any thing I heard but I still lived in sin and my heart said I will run away for here we are hindred from sin in other places I may freely sin Then my brothers which lived were troubled for mee Then I said I will abide with my brothers because I love them but not because I would pray Then that Winter God broke my head I knew but little I was almost dead Then my heart said Now I know God is angry with mee for my sins and hath therefore smote mee then I prayed hard when I was almost dead I remembred my sins much and considered them much I remembred that God made all the world and therefore assuredly there is a God I heard that God made Adam and made him in his own image Gen. 1. and assuredly none but God could make all the world heaven earth sea c. then I did believe that God did make the world Again I confesse I saw that I had offended against God and sinn'd against him and that I had the root of sin in me and that I had deserved all miseries and death and hell I heard that God made a Covenant with Adam and forbad him to eat of the Tree in the midst of the Garden and yet he did eat and therefore God was angry with man and I was born in sin and therefore God was angry with me and because I have sometime forsaken God and run wilde therefore I now know my sin and my offence against God I desire no more to cast off God and prayer for now I know my sins and that I have deserved misery therefore now I desired to pray to God as long as I live I desired pardon of my sins and I thought it may be God will pardon mee and my heart prayed to God Oh God if thou give mee life again I will assuredly believe and obey and now I know my sins by the sin of Adam but when I had thus done quickly my heart would be vain again After my wound when I came to my self and awaked I saw my sin and promised God to pray unto him when I saw the mercy of God was so great unto mee I heard that word