Shortly after, the curate with a party of soldiers arrived, and, leaving the privates outside, entered the manse with the officers. Rudely accosting Mr Guthrie, he told him that the bishop and committee, after much lenity shown to him for a long time, were constrained to pass the sentence of suspension against him for not keeping presbyteries and synods with his brethren, and for his unpeaceableness in the church, of which sentence he was appointed to make public intimation unto him, and for which he had a commission under the Archbishop of Glasgow’s hand. Mr Guthrie answered—“I judge it not convenient to say much in answer to what you have spoken; only whereas you allege there hath been much lenity shown toward me—be it known unto you, that I take the Lord for a party in that, and thank him for it; yea, I look upon it as a door which God opened to me for preaching this gospel, which neither you nor any man else was able to shut, till it was given you of God. And as to that sentence passed against me, I declare before these gentlemen—the officers of the party—that I lay no weight upon it, as it comes from you or those who sent you: though I do respect the civil authority who, by their law, laid the ground for this sentence; and were it not for the reverence I owe to the civil magistrate, I would not surcease my preaching for all that sentence. And as to the crimes I am charged with, I did keep presbyteries and synods with my brethren; but I do not judge those who now sit in these to be my brethren, but men who have made defection from the truth and cause of God: nor do I judge those to be free or lawful courts of Christ that are now sitting. “And as to my unpeaceableness, I know I am bidden follow peace with all men, but I know also I am bidden follow it with holiness; and since I could not obtain peace without prejudice to holiness, I thought myself obliged to let it go. And as for your commission, to intimate this sentence, Sir, I here declare I think myself called by the Lord to the work of the ministry, and did forsake my nearest relations in the world, and give up myself to the service of the gospel in this place, having received an unanimous call from the parish, and been tried and ordained by the presbytery; and I bless the Lord he hath given me some success, and a seal of my ministry upon the souls and consciences of not a few that are gone to heaven, and of some that are yet on their way to it. And now, Sir, if you will take it upon you to interrupt my work among this people, as I shall wish the Lord may forgive you the guilt of it, so I cannot but leave all the bad consequences that follow upon it, betwixt God and your own conscience. And here I do further declare before these gentlemen, that I am suspended from my ministry for adhering to the covenant and work of God, from which you and others have apostatized.”