Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish ...
thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.
—Matt. 17.27.

The Testimony published at Rutherglen.

May 29. 1679.

AS the Lord hath been pleased to keep & preserve His Interest in this Land, by the Testimonies of some faithful witnesses from the beginning: So in our day, some have not been wanting, who through greatest hazards have added their Testimonies to these who have gone before them, by suffering death, banishment, torturings, forfaultries, Imprisonments, & what not, from a perfidious & cruel Adversarie to the Church & Kingdome of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Land.  Therefore, we owning the same Interest of Christ, according to the word of the Lord, & the National & solemne League & Covenant, Desire to add our Testimony to the Testimonies of the worthies that have gone before us (though we be unworthy, yet hoping as true members of the Church of Christ in Scotland) And that against all things done prejudicial to this Interest, from the beginning of the work of Reformation, Especially from the year 1648 to 1660. And more Particularly from the said year 1660. & downwards, against the Acts following: As, Against the Act of Supremacy; The Declaration, whereby our Covenants were condemned; The Act for eversion of the established Government of the Church, & for establishing of Abjured Prelacy; The Act Rescissory of all Acts of Parliaments & Assemblies, for establishing the Government of the Church according to the word; The Act of Glasgow, putting the same in execution, whereby at one time were violently cast out above three hundred Ministers, without any Legal Procedure; Likewise The Act for appointing an holy Anniversary day, to be kept every 29th of May, for giving thanks for the setting up an usurped power, destroying the Interest of Christ in the Land: whereby the Creature is set up to be worshipped in the room of our great Redeemer, And a power is assumed which is proper to the Lord only;  For the appointing of ordinances in his Church, as particularly the Government thereof & the keeping of holy days, belongeth to no Prince, Prelate, nor person on earth, but only to our Lord Redeemer.  And further, we give our Testimony against all sinful & unlawful Acts, emitted & executed, published & prosecuted by them, against our Covenanted Reformation.  And for Confirmation of this our Testimony, We do here this day, being the 29 of May 1679. publickly & most justly burn the foresaid Acts, at this Croſs of Rutherglen, being the Chief Burgh of the Nether ward of Clidſdale; As they perfidiously & blasphemously have burnt our holy Covenants, through several Cities of these Covenanted Kingdoms.  We hope none will take exceptions at our not subscribing this our Testimony, being so solemnly given: for we are ready to do it if necessarie, And to enlarge it with all our faithful suffering brethren in the Land.



[ This text is presented above as it was published in the original 1687 Informatory Vindication; which may be considered the most authentic available, being published by those who adhered to the declaration. Minor adjustments to the spelling of some words have been made. This and other Declarations were adhered to afterward by the United Societies, as they explain in their Informatory Vindication, "for the matter, substance, & scope of them, as accommodated to the times wherein they were exhibited, according as we explain them afterward, Head 2."—JTKer. ]