"Franke visited Ulm, Augsburg, Anspach, and Nüremberg, on his tour, and by this time, I suppose, has reached home. Various opinions are afloat as to the object of his journey. It may well have been for the sake of his health, but evidently he had an additional object. The dear man has a large heart; and this, I think, prompted him to leave Halle for a time, (especially as that place had no dearth of labourers,) that he might embrace a wider range of usefulness; though his humility would not allow him to declare this. He must have gained much valuable experience on his way; for wherever he came, all sorts of Christians, the tempted and tried, the serious and zealous, the great and little, the learned and the simple, opened their hearts to him, and were forward to communicate their thoughts to his sympathizing spirit. I should like to hear the report he will have to make to his colleagues and friends at his return.

"That his previous good opinion of our beloved country has been increased by his coming amongst us, is not unimportant, especially as he saw more than the outside of things. He had intercourse with many real members of the true church, who repaired to him from all parts, yes, even from remote villages and hamlets. The two pre-eminent endowments of this good man are, love of Scripture and love of prayer; endowments which he wishes to see every one of us likewise cultivate more and more into personal piety, and diligent promotion of one's neighbour's good. This expresses in brief the very tenor of his whole mind; and with such a mind, he is green and flourishing in old age."

Upon his death, which took place in 1727, Bengel wrote as follows:

"Franke's death has touched the hearts of many in Würtemberg. His life was a continual blessing. It was as if Luther's mighty spirit stirred within him; and a similar spirit has been stirred up in Germany by his instrumentality. May the goodness of Almighty God gather our souls with his among those of just men made perfect in Christ!—Who knows if there can now be brought together in all Christendom three such fellow-labourers as were Breithaupt, Anton, and Franke? Yet these were found in the single town of Halle. Providence had made the cross their medium of union; and the several institutions over which they presided in the same university, were the means of bringing them together for that remarkable usefulness which crowned their harmoniously concerted and diligent exertions. These three were like one family, excluded from all outward intrusion."

"I have not for some time met with any new publication which has pleased me so much as STEINHOFER'S 'Discourses on the Epistle to the Hebrews.' It is just such an exposition as was wanted. But why did he not put his name to it?"

"Count ZINZENDORF's Jeremiah I consider as one of his best works; I often think upon the proverb,

Οὐκ ἐν τῷ μεγαλῳ τὸ εὐ,

̓Αλλ ̓ ἐν τῷ ἐν τὸ μέγα κειται.

(Goodness does not consist in greatness, but greatness in goodness." ")

In 1725, the well known Frederic Rock, one of the leaders of the Inspirati (as they were called) came to Tübingen, and solemnly deposited a copy of his prophetic effusions in the collegiate church of that city. Ten years afterwards (12th Sept. 1735) he came to Bengel at Denkendorf, accompanied by his associates, Wickmark, Metz, and Karr. Just before they arrived, Bengel happened to have been reading Sleidan's "Account of the disturbances raised by Münster and his party at the time of the Reformation." Possibly this had contributed to put him on his guard; however, he was more reserved to them than they had expected; but they made themselves quite affable and agreeable, though in truth they were greatly disappointed in him. Rock, therefore, a few days after this interview, sent him an inspired effusion (dated Sept. 17,) upbraiding him with monstrous pride of heart, and menacing divine judgments upon him. He also distributed written copies of this extraordinary document in various parts of Würtemberg, taking care to send one to the Rev. Andrew Bardili, the pastor of Heiningen, who was one of Bengel's particular friends. Bengel expressed himself upon the subject as follows:-"It is true that in my conversation with Rock I kept myself pretty high, that is, I was becomingly reserved; for I was not at all disposed to coincide with him. He addressed me as a chief preceptor; an appellation which, for very good reasons, I was inclined rather not to hear than to censure. Whether my guardedness was among the incidents that moved him to draw up the 'judgment' he has since pronounced upon me, I know not; Rock perhaps himself does not know, and the Searcher of hearts alone can decide. On the 17th of September, (the date of the 'judgment,') I felt, to the best of my recollection, a tolerable serenity of spirit; and preached shortly afterwards from the text, 'Every one that exalteth himself shall be abased,' &c., without any self-accusation on the subject; indeed, I felt

particular comfort and encouragement in meditating upon the words of the Psalmist, 'Lord! my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty.' As far as I know any thing of my own state, I should have expected reproach for almost any thing rather than haughtiness of demeanour, or high thoughts of myself. But even were it an admonition of the Lord's sending, I cannot exculpate those by whom it is sent, from having gone beyond their commission, as they were not satisfied with conveying it to me only, but have thought it necessary to circulate written copies of it elsewhere; and this supererogation of zeal may prevent not a few from benefiting by my humble efforts; for many, who disagree with Rock in every thing else, appear ready enough to hear any thing he may have to say against me. As to whether they are acting with God's approval, the day will declare it.— My belief is, that God will yet raise up other and better witnesses than such as these. The longer I live, the more strictly do I adhere to and depend on his (written) word, which is tried unto the uttermost;' neither shall I have to repent of so doing at the last moment of my life, though it should come to-day."

In 1745, a person of the name of Streib, of M., imagined himself to be one of the "two witnesses" in the Apocalypse. He even came to Bengel, who, after kindly and patiently hearing all he had to say, frankly told him what part of his views he considered untenable, and endeavoured to show him how easily corrupt notions of every sort may intermix with what in the main is excellent and scriptural. All Bengel's remarks being accompanied with much love and mildness, were kindly received; but Streib, persisting in his own notions, Bengel wrote of him as follows:-" Even what flows from the truth itself, may become strangely mingled with fallen nature's impurities; this too may happen to sincere and honest persons, and the mixture be so inconceivably subtile, that whoever is not aware of the variety of its strange results, can have but little suspicion of such a thing. In conversing with Streib, I was quite prepared to regard him as a pious person of some spiritual experience. But as to his prophetic qualifications, I was not able in so short a time to give him sufficient attention; and chronology is not the only disputed point upon which I advised him to be prudent for his own sake, and moderate in what he uttered upon such subjects to others. I observed to him how particularly desirable it was that he should refrain from declaring himself one of the 'two witnesses;' that he should not thus speak of himself, even in the most private

manner; no, nor allow his heart to suggest such a thought. The human heart, unless restrained and regulated by the word of God, proves deceitful above all things;' and though it may be drawn off from worldly cares and lusts, still it will seek its own, even in spiritual things themselves, (so as to become wonderfully inflated with spiritual pride.) He ought, therefore, to take seasonable warning, lest his own heart should easily become so inflated, as to be very injurious to his welfare, both temporally and spiritually. I am perfectly willing that this warning, and the remarks which have occasioned it, should be communicated to him; indeed, I request that it may be done, with my kind regards. I am still in the same mind as when I conversed with him, both with respect to every kind feeling towards him, and not less with respect to that careful discrimination which is so indispensable upon all subjects of this nature."

CHAPTER IV.

HIS LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH.

BENGEL inherited a weakly constitution, and was always of delicate health. But, by the divine blessing, upon careful attention to it, he reached the age of sixty-five. He sometimes had dangerous illnesses, and felt more and more the frailty of his earthly tabernacle, especially in his later years. To a feeling

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of this sort we may ascribe a remark he made long before his last illness, that "the life of man is a constant tendency to death," (perpetua tendentia ad mortem;) but he gave full scope to his religious convictions, not wishing to hide from himself the thought of dying, but endeavouring to become familiar with it. And as he did not consider theology to be a mere knowledge of the art of dying, so he held it to be the Christian's most important business to emerge from a state of sin to a confirmed state of grace; and herein to wait, not for death, but for the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he regarded death as only a thing by the way, and not properly a part of God's arrangement for man, because not originally such." Accordingly his whole spiritual life was so occupied with the consideration of our mortality, that it would be giving a very imperfect account of him not to notice how he endeavoured for years together to become familiar with the business of departure. Here then we may properly insert some extracts from his correspondence, in which may be discerned all along, from an early period of his life, the same feelings which he expressed at his last illness and death.

Writing to Marthius, as far back as in the year 1725, he says, “What if I should go before you, my dear friend, into the eternal world! When I was travelling last summer on a very windy day, upon a visit to my friend Weissensee, I experienced such a weakness in the head and stomach, as to have been in great danger of apoplexy. Having reached Boll, I was confined to bed, without any human adviser or any medical person near me that I could put confidence in; so that you