He heard with such attention and affection, that he seemed even to eat the words of the preacher. He earnestly longed for the pardon of his sins: but for the first three weeks he had not the least glimpse of comfort. Shortly after, as he was in prayer, crying earnestly for mercy, under great horror of soul, God broke in upon him in a wonderful manner, which he thus expressed to the person that preached. *“I believe now my peace is made with God through Jesus Christ. I experience a great change in my soul, for while I was at prayer, last night, in great terror, apprehensive that I was going immediately body and soul to hell: I cry’d out so loud that my fellow-prisoners in the next ward heard me, and called to know what was the matter: I told them that I was going to hell, and begged their prayers for me: but while I was in the midst of this horror and despair, I suddenly experienced a blessed and comfortable change: my mind was immediately calmed: I believed my sins were forgiven: the fear of hell was taken away: and I was so far from fearing death, that I was now more desirous to die, than to live.” He earnestly desired prayer to God in his behalf, and wept bitterly that ever he should sin against him. It was very observable from this time, that the greater sense he experienced of the mercy of God to him, the greater abhorrence he had of sin, and of himself for committing it. He was now more serious in hearing the word than ever; and was frequently singing of psalms and hymns. He could not bear to hear any of his fellow-prisoners profane the name of God, but would reprove them and exhort them with a serious concern to reflect on the consequences of such a behaviour. “Oh! (said he) did you but feel the terrors I lately did for my sins, you would dread the thoughts of ever sinning again.” “I have (says he, to a friend) deserved eternal death; but blessed be God who hath taken away the sting of death, and the guilt of sin; and now I can walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and not be afraid: now I can lay down and rise up, can live and die in peace.” Being removed from _Bridewell_ to _Newgate_, to be tried at the _Old Bailey_, the day before he was brought to the bar, he said, “Shortly I shall appear before the bar of man, and receive a sentence of death on this body; but this is my comfort, before man condemns me, God, the eternal God, has pardoned me: I shall stand guilty before man, but guiltless before God.” Being asked, “How he, who acknowledged himself a sinner could stand guiltless before God.” He replied, “Because Jesus Christ hath washed away my sins in his own blood; and I am justified by his grace: my sins are blotted out of the book of his remembrance.” It was asked again, “How he knew that Christ had taken away his sins, and that he was washed in his blood.”