Because I would rather see the German method of agriculture introduced for the good of the orphanage and the congregation (the sooner the better), I am considering risking, in the name of the Lord and on credit of the heavenly Father (who can easily steer the heart of a benefactor in Europe to pay for it), the purchase of a pair of strong horses. Together indeed they would cost up to 24 £ sterling, but they would redound to a profit of many years’ duration in the congregation, by the blessing of God. The people in town and on the plantations would cultivate their plots with them, and on their account contribute something small to the upkeep of the horses, as they have done till now with the one commonly owned horse now left.

As long as we plant only the local crops² even at the orphanage and have to perform everything with the hoe, we will not become independent of benefactions from Europe, but will still have to support ourselves here and there with borrowing. But, if God blesses our plan for Kalcher in company with another honest man (for whom we are now seeking), to set about plowing and cultivating wheat, rye, barley, and oats (for which project some funds will be needed early on), we hope to manage more easily. Little will happen without manure, hence I think we must have some additional head of cattle. We would want to put an honest Salzburger and his wife on the orphanage plantation with them and to build for him, as householder, a house and stables to facilitate the matter for him as much as possible. Then he and Kalcher would jointly cultivate the orphanage’s land near town and by and by on the plantation. In this manner we can dispense with servants, who are not to be had anyhow; and, if we use day laborers, they can earn their daily wage sooner than with the local crop, and bring profit to the orphanage.

Almost everyone is convinced that our people here would have not only easy labor but several advantages if they concentrated on German agriculture and sericulture, and would therefore succeed sooner. Health would be more stable. For we can clearly see that when the people have to plant their corn, rice, and beans in the great heat and have to mow the grass, they get fever, diarrhea, etc., especially the ones from the 4th transport.³ On the other hand, the German crops are sown in fall and winter, and no further labor takes place with them until they are gathered in during the current month. For they let no grass come up, and therefore need not be weeded out. May our simple yet honest intention please God, and may He accompany it with His blessing at the orphanage and in the congregation!

Thursday, the 13th of May. This morning, when I was on my way from a sick married couple’s house to the orphanage, a man offered me two packets of letters and the report that Mr. Vigera was in Savannah and had received these letters from Colonel Stephens to me. Mr. Vigera himself had written a few lines to me of his sound and safe arrival, saying that he had brought along to our place from Frederica six barrels of flour and all kinds of trappings for horses for the seven rangers, or soldiers. He said our people were to fetch those things along with the large chest from Halle, which had arrived last Friday in Savannah from Charleston, with the large boat. Yesterday evening the two Kieffers went to Savannah. They will help with the boat which they borrowed from us to bring those things which will not fit into the large boat.

Last Friday, just as the large chest was brought to Savannah, we so profited, among other things, from the example of David (2 Samuel 19:39), who showed himself grateful in word and deed to the beneficent and righteous Barzillai, that we gratefully remembered, to the praise of God, the many good deeds shown us in our pilgrimage by our dear superiors and other worthy patrons in Europe. Since we cannot reimburse their unselfish love by kissing and blessing them, as did David, we will love them and pray with righteous hearts that they may be found among those on that day to whom the risen and transfigured Christ will say: “Come, ye blessed of my Father,” etc.

I cited as an example of our new benefactions General Oglethorpe’s order that I report to him the status of our congregation every month and that I shall be able to take advantage of his advice and assistance and that last Friday, while reckoning and paying for the labor at the mill, amidst extreme bodily fatigue, I received a letter from Mr. Whitefield reporting that he had collected 20 £ sterling for us, from which the orphanage should partake most but also the congregation, and especially that a few pounds should be allocated to a rice mill. He said he was hoping to collect more before his departure from England. And it could be none other than impressive to me that, as I was paying out the last money, I received a letter saying that God had once more brought together something for the mill. This state of affairs, in which I recognize divine wisdom and grace, caused me to be not at all offended upon seeing from the Weekly History, a sheet printed in London and enclosed with the Court Chaplain Ziegenhagen’s worthy letter, that the letter I sent to Mr. Whitefield on 6 April 1741, in which I reported to him on the church we have built and of the orphanage and the mill, is inserted word for word in this sheet. For it gives him and other benefactors not only news of how the monies we received were applied to the building of the church, but I also wish them in compensation every divine blessing from the abundance of Jesus Christ. I and my parishioners implore the Father of all mercy on bended knee in the new church to compensate such great benefactions in time and there in eternity, as both adults and children have already done.

Our faith was strengthened no little by the long awaited chest from Halle, for we have held to it till now so strongly by faith and prayer that we knew it would not go astray from us. Even yesterday, after my bloodletting, the specifications of the linen, medications, and books in the chest came into my hand and before the eyes of my dear colleague and myself. The appearance of this great blessing redounded to us to the praise of God. For the sake of distribution we also made a rough estimate, as if everything were already in our hands. This was somewhat amusing to us, but today it strengthened us in our faith.

Concerning myself and my own household’s circumstances, I cannot find a purpose in the wisdom, omnipotence, and kindness of God in His conduct, nor fathom the reason here; rather I only say, full of humble astonishment: “Thousand and thousand thanks be unto thee, Great King.” For, as indicated in my journal, I owe (from what oversight I cannot say) upwards of 20 £ sterl. to many different accounts. Now that I have paid such debts from my biannual salary, which I had received the 1st of this month and therefore had little left, I received in today’s pack of letters the following note from Prof. Francke: “Because in his will the late Mr. von Burgsdorff bequeathed 100 Reichsthaler to Boltzius or his heirs, the same belong rightfully to him, and he is requested to send a receipt to me for Mrs. von Burgsdorff.” Indeed, in the words of the song: O Gott du tiefe, etc., “The fame and glory of Thy name reaches such a distance that no one can imagine it. All worship you and must bow to you. And if anyone reports his need to thee in confidence, Thou wilt help him with thy glance. By the good counsel is the deed,” etc.

The worthy Court Chaplain Ziegenhagen’s most pleasing letter, which we also received in copy, brought my dear colleague and me much refreshment, for which may the Lord refresh him in turn. His arguments for our continuing our official duties serve us vigorously to confirm us in this calling to take charge of the physical as well as the spiritual affairs of the congregation, as again offered and accepted from General Oglethorpe.

Some weeks ago the N. woman opposed me in a matter and used spiteful words so that I wished a temporal authority here actually to punish such wickedness. But God took hold of her by the foot, in which she trod a deep puncture, so that she needs no further punishment before men, but rather, by means of this severe discipline, can come to reflection and penance if she does not willfully strive against it. God helps us thus on every side, if occasionally human counsel and aid may be lacking.

Friday, the 14th of May. General Oglethorpe, laboring practically day and night and in great fatigue, has to bear right much from the unbroken people, and hence he has need of our own and others’ intercession. He received Mr. Vigera and Pichler very kindly and attested to much joy and pleasure concerning our place. He is giving Pichler (appointed by him “tythingman” or non-commissioned officer over the six rangers) 20 sh. sterl. per month, and each of the six rangers 15 sh. He is also giving them horses, good flintlocks, saddles, trappings, powder, and lead, which things he brought along. The work they must do is meager, and it is a great benefaction not only for these men but also for the whole congregation, which may not be burdened with foreign soldiers. The description which Pichler gives of Frederica and its inhabitants agrees fully with what the young Zübli recounted from his own experience after his return. The wheat which stands in the fields there is so skimpy that if it did not grow better here no one would plant anything like it. From his story our people can palpably grasp what a great benefaction our solitude is, and how many advantages we enjoy.

Today in the edification hour on the plantations I shared some things from the letters we received (as will happen this evening in the prayer hour), so as to move the listeners both to gratitude for the many kindnesses of God which hold sway over us, and also intercession for our German fatherland and our benefactors in Europe. To this end especially I have drawn many passages from the beautiful letter from Prof. Francke. At the beginning of the hour I repeated in general a few points from the 19th chapter of 2 Samuel, which we had been examining, and I showed briefly what a benefaction it was that our dear Lord granted us therein so many edifying examples. I said He had a salutary purpose in the example of the late and living righteous ones, which, alas! a most meager number of men allow to reach them, and thus increase their measure of sin.

If the pious ones of olden times were a despicable little spark in the eyes of the world, as the late Luther testifies concerning the prophet Isaiah in his preface on this servant of the Lord, and as we see in David, Mephiboseth, Barzillai, even Christ and His apostles, then this is still so. Men of the world are so blind that they do not recognize at all the inner treasure of the faithful, but only their transgressions and errors, which indeed are their daily acts of penance. They perch like blue-flies upon their wounds and boils, and I told all this to our listeners in admonition. Our friends and dear patrons far away recognize that there are faithful among us, and hence they receive news of our congregation as gladly as from their own children in a foreign land, as the present letters attest. Hence it is a sign of a perverted mind whenever some amongst us know people no more pious than they themselves are, and almost dislike hearing of any difference.

Also, the recent introductory words of Sirach 21:18 show that there has been constantly a difference amongst the parishioners as wide as the heavens. We reminded them further that the old Barzillai had done well to act alone and together with eternity rather than go to Jerusalem. For his eyes could see anew what doubtless he knew from much experience, to wit, that with a large population there is much bustle and unrest. For what unrest and bickering arose over trifles from ambition and other worthless causes both here and by the Jordan between the tribe of Judah and the remaining Israelites.

I reminded them from the stories of the patriarchs that the nearer they came to the cities and society of uncouth men, the more unrest and harm they had. Though there may be all sorts of trials in our wilderness, it is nonetheless a sweet wilderness for the many sorts of spiritual and physical causes, a wilderness into which God beckons us and speaks with us lovingly. Pichler now regards our wilderness quite highly, after he has been some weeks at another place. I reminded everyone that our dear Lord effects many sorts of convictions in the hearts of our parishioners, as then amongst the Israelites after their rebellion, v. 9, so that they begin to see the misery of their sin and to long for grace in Christ. But with many it lasts no longer than with this ancient people, who were not only coarse and immodest towards their virtuous king, v. 41, but finally for the sake of an utterly worthless cause disapproved of him and followed after quite another, to wit, Seba, as earlier they had followed Absalom. For that reason they had not only great sorrow of heart but also tumbled headlong into the judgment of God.

Today Hosannah and tomorrow crucifige is always the modus procedendi with hypocrites.⁴ With that I warned our people conscientiously against further lack of faith towards the signs of grace of the Holy Spirit. At the end of the repetition I inquired whence came the cause for Joab’s and these Israelites’ having so little respect for David, and that they were impudent and spiteful. A main cause is doubtless his great kindness and gentleness. He was happy to forgive and forget, which is what all gentle parents, authorities, ministers, and superiors experience. And thus it happens even to our dear Lord. What is more abused than divine mercy and patience? But therefrom follow judgments all the more severe.

In this I directed them once more to Sirach 5:2. I told them in plain words how I had fared till now in this regard with self-willed parishioners who want always to be justified in their wickedness. Their consciences would have told many of them this. What happened to me personally I do not punish, and I gladly forgive and forget, above all whenever such people assert regret and sorrow. For, if they were to be punished for transgressions against me personally, others might take exception to it and look upon it as personal revenge. I feel sorry for such miserable people, who fall into the hands of the living God. He has grasped many a man for his disobedience and contradiction so that he feels it well, and it is good when the hand of God is felt, so that they may humble themselves beneath it. On this occasion I announced to the parishioners what a labor of love the worthy Court Chaplain Ziegenhagen had undertaken this time in the writing of a long letter in which he sought to move me and my dear colleague with very important reasons, all pertaining to the true benefit of our parishioners, to preserve along with our ministerial office the office of Justitiarius.⁵ To this end I have been resolved, in God’s name, as long as God grants me life and strength. Indeed, since the arrival of the fourth transport my strength has increased right markedly. God be praised!

Saturday, the 15th of May. Yesterday evening around eleven o’clock the locksmith /Ruprecht/ Schrempff called me to his young wife /Barbara/, who had already been struggling with death, and who was already dead before I came there. She had only complained for a few days, and the violence of the vomiting and asthmatic attacks had increased so rapidly that her end came sooner than she and others had guessed. My dear colleague was with her during the day but was able to talk and pray more with others than with her, because she understood little by then. Her name was Barbara Prück, and she came to us as a single, often sickly woman with the fourth transport.⁶ At her own request she served in my house until her marriage, which I would rather have hindered than encouraged. This quick death is making a great impression on the people of our place.

They shall be further impressed with the word of the Lord tomorrow. The fourth chapter of the prophet Amos, which I read today with my family, shows how God takes hold of men from time to time, and how thereby He seeks nothing but their true conversion, but nonetheless must lament that He can attain His gracious purposes neither through benefactions nor through judgments and chastisements. Mrs. N. was present with me at the death of the young woman, and took such an impression of it that she herself became ill and had me called to her this morning in haste. She shrieked and cried with the unrest of her heart and felt very severe strokes of conscience. She sighed and called constantly: “The troubles of my heart are enlarged,” and deported herself very fearfully. I urged on her the verse: “I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart and hast pleasure in uprightness”; and explained to her what honest penitence was according to scripture, that no intention may consist of sinning further in any way, and I showed that the Lord Jesus healed such broken hearts. She admitted a few of the things with which she had sinned, and prayed very earnestly.

Mr. Vigera arrived yesterday evening in our small boat during the prayer hour, and with us he praised the Lord for what He had done for his good and ours. He cannot mention General Oglethorpe without extolling his kindness greatly.

Sunday, the 16th of May. Our large boat arrived only at sunrise this morning with the large chest filled with books, medications, linens, and other things. Mr. /Thomas/ Jones also sent six small barrels of flour for our orphanage. He had bought the flour for a tolerable price in Frederica from the sloop taken from the French. When I come to him I will hear whether they are gifts or must be paid for. The chest was so large and heavy that it could not easily be off-loaded and brought up the bluff, hence I had it opened in the boat in the presence of the manager, Kalcher, and the blessings found in it brought up on people’s arms and in baskets. Several people were very busy at it. When everything was laid out in my chamber, we had to marvel at the great blessing which the Lord had brought together and had preserved on the long journey, and had to glorify Him for it. Not the least item was damaged; in addition none of the rain which had fallen yesterday on the river had been able to penetrate the well-protected chest.

Yesterday afternoon, quite suddenly, such a violent storm arose, the like of which none of us had ever experienced. It tore up many garden fences and took the roofs off a few huts and scattered the shingles a distance away, and thereupon occurred a downpour. The oarsmen did not dare to make land for fear that it would throw the crashing trees upon them and into the boat from the shore. They had rather to stop in the middle of the river, and the harsh weather was the reason they did not reach our Ebenezer but rather had to put into one of our plantations.

I refreshed them this morning in my house with wine and bread, and there God revived us with the sight of this great blessing. At this time we received for our library all the exegetical works of Dr. Lange on the Holy Writ of the Old and New Testaments,⁷ and besides them other important special writings for our office by the late Prof. Francke, the late Dr. Anton, and the late Pastor Freylinghausen,⁸ and also the sermons of Pastor Schubart on the gospels and the epistles.⁹ For the congregation we received Bibles, hymnbooks, Arndt’s book on True Christianity, catechisms, many small sermons, all sorts of seeds, also various things necessary for our school children. The linen comes to a great quantity and is in such a fine condition along with the books, thread, medicines, two dresses for our helpmeets, and other things, that everything might have been packed yesterday. Once more we say: “What our God hath created He will also keep, Hallelujah.”

After the morning sermon I announced this blessing which we had received to the parishioners, and indicated once more that the distribution of the linen for the first three transports was to be set up in the manner already reported, for which purpose they might be present in town at two o’clock tomorrow, if it please God. I told them that the beautiful books with which the fourth transport was to be provided would be more highly treasured in the eyes of the knowledgeable than a piece of linen. I said that if the Lord would see their honest feelings at these gifts, it would be an easy thing for Him in His time to cause the remaining things which did not come to them now to devolve upon them, according to His promise in Matthew 6:33. I reminded them of what had been quite impressive to me this time among other things, to wit, that the chest which we had received had been packed and sent off in Halle at the beginning of June of the previous year, at which time we had received a large chest of linen, books, and medicines from there. And therefore, I said, God had given us one thing with His right hand, and with the left (anthropopados,¹⁰ one might say) had prepared another unbeknownst to us for our joy, which indeed should effect gratitude and contentment.

Monday, the 17th of May. We used this afternoon to distribute the physical blessings bestowed by God. The people from the plantations were indeed quite punctual for it. In the morning the men and children were occupied with my admonition of yesterday to clear the streets and large open places near the city of bushes. This is a very necessary and useful thing because otherwise the snakes and other varmints will make nests and by and by, if the growth continues, every good appearance of the city would be lost. We felt with certainty today that the Lord was with us during the singing, praying, and the entire business of the distribution. We gathered at a given signal in the church and sang the hymn: Danckt dem Herrn ihr Gottes Knecht, etc.

Thereupon I confirmed to the parishioners, adults and children, that it was very pleasing to me to see them gathered here before the Lord and in His house. I said they might praise the Lord with us for His kindness still holding sway over us, and that amongst ourselves we might spend our short lifetimes in His service and honor, and especially that we might pray for our dear benefactors. For this we had, I said, high cause: for the current gifts and benefactions of many costly books, forty-seven rolls of linen, medicine, and other things had not only come to us at a time of trouble, by God’s fatherly direction, but also by His foresight had come safely over water and land to Ebenezer, when indeed we were hearing that, during this time of war, men, material, and whole ships were being lost. I said that we not only had not deserved this, but also that it was the free good gift of the heavenly Father, through which, however, He disclosed His loving heart lovingly to us and that, when He caused the physical gifts to befall us in so miraculous a way, He had much rather bestow upon us the perfect gifts which His dear Son really merited. I reminded them thereby of the verse: “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts,” etc.

I do not see it as mere chance that since Easter God has brought us joy through a collection by Mr. Whitefield and in other ways, but especially by means of the loving gifts received from Halle at this time, to wit, between Easter and Pentecost (a year ago our kind Lord did just the same); but also He wishes to coax us thereby, so that we shall call to Him for the best gift, the Holy Spirit, as the disciples did before Pentecost at the command of Christ. He will give it most gladly and we promised the parishioners, who are parched with thirst for this water of life, like Zion, an example of a simple, hopeful, and confident prayer according to the contents of the material we spoke of. This entire sermon was aimed to inspire the simple souls from the recognition of and pleasure in the gifts now being distributed to a good and sweet trust in the reconciled Father in Christ, who is rich in mercy towards all who call to Him. Finally we sang: Was unser Gott geschaffen hat das will er auch erhalten, etc.

After the conclusion of this verse we again went to my house, and in good order each of the 103 persons (men, women, and youths)¹¹ was given four yards of linen carefully measured (making 12 mathematical feet); and a few besides got knives, buckles, and boots. I had already made clear publicly to the children in church that I would keep my word and would have to lay aside the gifts for the disobedient ones until they improved, but the very small children, who had an advantage in the grace and love of Christ, were also to have an advantage in physical gifts.

After the distribution they all came into my chamber, where the women had their small children on their arms. I said aloud the little verse: “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings,” etc., showing them therefrom that the children, on account of their baptismal grace, had such a great treasure in their souls and hearts that it surpassed every worldly treasure and the splendor of every angel. I said that Jesus had repeated these words from the 8th Psalm when He was in the temple at Jerusalem and heard the children crying “Hosannah!” etc. And because it says here: “Thou hast perfected praise,” we may recognize therefrom that He works through His spirit and dwells in their hearts and uses even their frail mouths as instruments of His praise.

I told them that, since many of the larger children till now had been misusing their mouths and the nobler member, the tongue, for sinning and vanity and had likely committed a world of unrighteousness, they therefore could recognize from it what miserable hearts they had, from which everything evil was going through their mouths and other members. I could apply to the small children, embellished with the righteousness of Christ, what I had once read aloud to them: “You should,” said Christ to each, “be my dear little son or daughter, the others still belong to the world.” The latter part was very frightening and the former most comforting; and, I said, they could all come to it if only they would wish to renew their baptismal vows.

I repeated again that I wished to let the small children partake first of this gift—the small ones, whom Jesus had in His loving arms and for whose sake he He had also bestowed upon us this gift. On the other hand, I said I would hold back the part of those who had been mischievous and disobedient so far until they improved. Because some of them appeared pitiful, I did not wish to send them away completely empty-handed, but rather presented them with either a comb or a few buckles and knives. But before that I prayed with the large and small children, all standing, which prayer a little girl closed with the Our Father and another with the little rhyme: “My Father, prepare me for Thy service. May Thy will be done in me in time and eternity.” Still another added: “My Jesus, impress upon me Thy childlike nature, let me obey at once Thy first word.”¹²

Those who could not be brought in from the plantations shall receive theirs tomorrow, please God, admidst prayer and praise of God in the house where church is being held. The total number of children who each got a shirt and other things and who shall receive still more with successful improvement, is eighty-three. And thus concluded the entire business, to my edification and to the extensive inspiration of the parishioners. May God bless abundantly the worthy benefactors for these benefactions which have been meted out to us, the orphanage, and the entire congregation, and gladden them in return for the joy they caused us, in time, but especially in eternity, amen! Hallelujah!

Tuesday, the 18th of May. In the morning I was occupied alone with the children on the plantations, those who had gathered at the place of the divine services with their parents, or mothers and fathers. I first prayed with and over them, and then I told them that I wished to bestow upon them something which God had placed into my hands. But first, I said, they were to grant me something in return: I required in fulfillment nothing else but that each child who could read should recite me a little verse for my edification and joy. Out of the hearts and mouths of the children came forth the following little verses, even from those who hardly knew how to talk. We and our children dedicate them to the worthy benefactors as a testimony of our feeble gratitude:

“. . . prayer also shall be made for him continually, and daily shall He be praised.” Psalms 72.

“For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.” Hebrews: 12.

“. . . Praise the Lord, O my soul. While I live I will praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God, etc.” Psalms 146.

“Remember that Jesus Christ . . . was raised from the dead. . . .” 2 Timothy 2.

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God. . . .” 1 Thessalonians: 5.

“Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask Him that thy ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper.”

“Thou art indeed the best gift which a man, etc.”

“Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works . . . and thy thoughts. . . .” Psalms 40.

“My children, when it goes well with you, see, and remain, etc.” Sirach 42.

“Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 1.

“Fear God, dear child, God knoweth and seeth all things.”

“My chaste Jesus, make clean my unclean heart, so that I may be a bride of the pure Lamb.”

“. . . . let not those that seek thee be confounded. . . .” Psalms 69.

Wednesday, the 19th of May. Old N., who was otherwise an honest Christian, has many good books, is well read in them, and has depended on his own righteousness, is now on his sickbed coming to a recognition of things. He is beginning, in his current condition, to doubt his imaginary state of grace. That pleased me, and I thank God for it and believe it will progress further with him. Towards evening I was called to the locksmith N. /Veit Lechner/. I found him in bed; and as soon as I came to him he commenced to howl and weep about his sins. I told him I was pleased that God was opening his eyes and that he had only to seek more and more to progress further, for his being brought low would be the way to his being raised up.

As I was speaking thus, his stepson N. /Schrempff/, whose wife /Barbara Brückl/ had died so suddenly the previous week, also came in, sat down next to the bed, began to weep as well and to say that he was the greatest sinner. The locksmith’s wife also stood by the bed and said it was indeed a special day which God had presented us with. Oh, what a grace it is indeed when God can disclose to the sinner his corruption. If a person sets about it in a faithful manner he will certainly come to the recognition of His great love and friendship. Oh, may the Lord indeed help these people to a further recognition of their so deep misery, as well as of His great grace! I told them they should reflect carefully on their previous life and that it would be good if Hell were right hot for them here in the time of grace and if they learned totally to despair of themselves but not of God’s grace.

Thursday, the 20th of May. This noon I spoke with an ill person of the 4th transport who was also lamenting her sins. She said they had caused her much trouble during the night, and that it appeared to her they were greater than could be forgiven her. I said that I was happy that it was coming to that point and that it customarily happened that, in penance, a person’s sins appeared as great mountains, but that this must only serve to make one despair totally in oneself and come only to Christ, who said: “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Another person who was listening to this said afterwards that the words of Jesus had brought great blessing for him in his dark circumstances, since he did not know how things would turn out with him. He said he had only been praying that God not let him fall from His grace; for the rest He could do with him as He liked: “He who appeareth to lose his soul will help it to life.”

This story gave me a proper explanation of these words: It is also found in the practice of Christianity that, just at the point when one believes things appear so miserable that one will indeed lose one’s soul, God is near to the soul with His aid and helps it to life. Thus can the Holy Spirit unlock His word best of all to simple people, while others, even scholars who do not allow themselves to be enlightened to Him, rack their heads over it, turn out this and that meaning from their own reason, but nonetheless do not catch the sense of the Holy Spirit.

Friday, the 21st of May. Yesterday evening a storm arose, and it rained right penetratingly. Nonetheless, various German people came to the prayer hour, in which we made known the purpose of the blessed time before Pentecost.¹³ To wit, we are making known now to ourselves in the regular Sunday Gospels many necessary and glorious things about the Holy Spirit and His person and ministry, whence they are to study such wholesome and treasured material and take it to heart in quietude and amidst heartfelt prayer. To further such study I offered them three points, with divine assistance: 1) who the Holy Spirit is according to His person and function; 2) how necessary He is to us; and 3) how we can partake of Him. I enjoy talking of divine truths like these, not only because they are most highly necessary for being saved, but also because I have found that many people indeed have been badly instructed about it and lack a literal recognition of it.

At the storehouse I received 2 £ 9 sh. 6 p. Sterling for fourteen pounds, fourteen ounces of silk, which has been made this year in our orphanage. In Savannah, the woman who was actually designated by the Lord Trustees for sericulture lost over half of the silkworms, and the same happened to a man in Abercorn who could make no more than two pounds. Some people ascribe it to a poisonous dew that fell onto the mulberry leaves. Others believe, however, that the too excessive heat at the beginning of spring made the worms sick and killed them.

With us in the orphanage they lay in the attic beneath the roof, and the heat and the moisture from the leaves and from the excrement of the worms was so great that we could not take it but for short periods. Hence it will be necessary for the silk business to have its own arrangements, which thereafter we may look upon almost as a capital from which yearly would be drawn certain interest for the benefit of the orphanage. Now would be a good time for making silk, for it has been quite cool for some time both day and night. We are having sufficient rain and right fruitful weather, so that we may hope for a good harvest. The wheat has been brought in, the rye, barley, and oats are still not completely ripe, but everything has thrived so well that one could not wish for anything better. Also the Indian corn is standing just as we wished in every field.

General Oglethorpe gave Pichler a written order by which the Rangers, or reconnaissance, are to be governed. I translated it into German for them today in Brandner’s house, and admonished them to good behavior. This order is very well composed, and at quite many points it redounds to Ebenezer’s benefit, so that we must thank the Lord as for a benefaction in this matter, too. Pichler is an officer and senior man of these six rangers, but in the judgment of General Oglethorpe he can continue to do his milling, because there is very little to do in that office, except if extraordinary steps would have to be taken to remove enemies such as Spaniards, Negroes, deserters, and other nefarious people who molest our place.

My errands on the plantations lasted until sundown, and when I hastened off, Mrs. N. had me called to come into her chamber. She and her husband are boarding with N. until they can move to their own land. While tending corn in the fields today, her soul was under great stress and she wished either her husband or N. to come to her and speak comfortingly to her. And God listened to her sighs, for a Salzburger brought salt in the boat for her husband and called her husband to fetch it, and she could lament her concerns to him. And since, contrary to her expectations, our dear Lord arranged for one of her ministers to come into her neighborhood and be in N.’s house, she recognized His faithful and paternal care and was very much strengthened, took comfort from God’s word with an eager heart, and prayed with me to the Lord. It was dark when this agreeable business was over, and I came home so late that we could not hold the evening prayer hour.

Saturday, the 22nd of May. Ms. N. attested to me tearfully that our dear, patient Lord had given her a tangible blow to her heart through the sudden and unfortunate death of Mrs. Schrempff, who was almost the same age as she. I see from this example (although I already know other examples) that unfounded certainty of salvation holds the wicked and hypocritical world in false security. On the contrary, in the case of such deaths we bring many people to reflection when we show our parishioners, within appropriate limits but without mincing words, that we feel the most heartfelt commiseration for such people who have died without penitence but that it does them no good after they have frittered away their time of grace.

This Ms. N. recognizes and regrets her former lack of faith and backsliding, and I reminded her of the verse which had awakened her not too long before: “Strive to enter in at the strait gate.” I also recommended to her that she practice constantly the “six syllables:” praying, guarding, struggling; none could be without the other, and because she had allowed them to be lacking, this was the cause of her falling back. But, I told her, if she would zealously practice these six syllables, as it were, each of the six weekdays, according to Christ’s command, then the calm Sabbath of the Lord would enter into her, and she into it, so that we could say: “I rest now, my salvation.” There one will get the power to continue praying, guarding, and struggling. I said that, if it was true (as I did not wish to doubt) that she had humbled herself because of her sins like the prodigal son, she would already be making a joy for all heaven by means of this work of God, which she allowed to take place in herself. What might then not turn out if she converted to the Lord? It just chanced that she found a certain small gift with me at the moment I presented to her the heartfelt love and care of God. I said she would really recognize and draw pleasure from it when she and her husband became serious.

Sunday, the 23rd of May. Christian Riedelsperger is still lying quite patiently upon his wearisome sickbed and is enjoying every possible support from the orphanage. He asked me not to become impatient with him, because he considered it a great benefaction that he was being taken care of in soul and body in the orphanage. I told him that I remembered quite well indeed his good service to the orphanage; since I was not in a position to reward him for it, our dear Lord was doing it for him on his sickbed. During the conversation we came to the 41st Psalm, which I read aloud to him, and which was very clear and impressive for us both, since it fitted him and the circumstances of his household and his Christianity so well. His faith and hope were so much strengthened that I could look upon the emotion of his heart in his tear-filled eyes and in his gestures. I also gave his mother-in-law and her daughter the 41st Psalm to re-read.

Monday, the 24th of May. Mrs. N. is a faithful hearer of God’s word, and with it she seeks to further her soul and her husband. She means well whenever she says something aloud to her husband from God’s word. But she does not always act wisely, for her husband has an uncontrollable temper. Whenever she wishes to direct him properly from God’s word and chastise him, she makes the bad worse and acts contrary to the command of the Lord: “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, lest they trample them under their feet and turn again and rend you,” etc. This last item she acknowledged as having experienced. I advised her, from Peter 3:1–4, how she had to behave towards her husband; and I said that, if she prayed earnestly for him in this, God would bless her words and actions in him. She could also say that, when his anger had passed, he was happy to have her talk with him and regretted his wrongful action.

N. and his wife are coming from the plantations to me to hear a word of admonition from me concerning the state of their marriage and their Christianity. They have moved in with N.N. with the idea that they would live more peacefully with one another, but because they took their old hearts along with them and kept them till now, words and works still smell and taste like water from the same old barrel. I was pleased that they did not justify themselves, but rather considered themselves unconverted, and attributed their disunity, frivolousness, and intemperance to that, and that they had resolved to turn about and become like children, otherwise they would come from the hell of an unhappy marriage into the other hell.

I gave them directions on how they should set about becoming righteously converted, to which end they also took along the beautiful little book Dogma of the Beginning of Christian Life.¹⁴ Until now they have gladdened the evil spirits by means of their disorderly way of life. On the other hand, they have distressed God, angels, and the pious people who have knowledge of them. In the beginning I was of a mind to keep their gift of linen with me until there was a consequential true improvement (as has happened also with a few other adults and children). Finally I gave it to them with confidence, and saw even today a good effect from it.

Our dear merciful Lord is everywhere in the congregation bringing the souls to a recognition and acknowledgement of their sinful misery, and my dear colleague told me some details of it. When that is done, the departure from Germany will be right dear to them, and when they come completely through and to the enjoyment of the fatherly favor and grace of God in Christ, this solitude will become right pleasant for them, and they will be very well content with all divine guidance and trials, which are aimed only at their true salvation. In similar circumstances I often ponder the words of the Lord: “What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter.”

Tuesday, the 25th of May. N.N. received me with tears of penance and joy when I visited him in his bodily weakness prior to the edification hour, and he unburdened his whole heart before the face of the Lord. God disclosed to him the hiding places of his heart so that he no longer viewed as insignificant what others viewed as insignificant, rather as great, and he found himself humbled most deeply by it. Amidst copious tears he acknowledged that he had not been loyal to his beneficent employer but rather, although he had performed his work with all his strength, he had nonetheless stained his conscience with unjustly obtained goods. This was now causing him a thousandfold disquiet, and hence, he said, he desired instruction.

Some masters had treated him very badly and he had wished them evil. It now pained him and caused him woe. He sees the restitution of the unjust goods not as penance itself, still less as a meritorious work for whose sake God would have to forgive him and be gracious to him. Rather, because God has effected a hatred in his heart for all sins, he wishes to suffer nothing thereof either within or outside of himself, and cannot come to rest in the blood and wounds of Christ until sin is gotten rid of. This matter will have to be transmitted in writing to the worthy Mr. N., as he himself movingly prayed. The latter knows his old master well and will, according to his wisdom, act as he should in the matter. His heart is overwhelmed with remorse and he has an inner desire for salvation through the blood of Christ, hence I could confidently give him absolution, whereupon with a strengthened heart he prayed the beginning of the 103rd Psalm: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, etc. . . . who forgiveth all thine iniquities.”

A second man of heartfelt piety from the 4th transport remained behind after the edification hour and disclosed to me a certain rather complicated matter of which, to be sure, he was already absolved in Germany by a treasured instrument of the Lord. But he still cannot properly attain repose, although I cannot comment on this matter in detail. He has an honest desire for others, who with him have a curse upon themselves along with a good appearance, to come to a recognition of sin and be saved from the danger of perdition.

Wednesday, the 26th of May. Young Mrs. Eischberger, who came to us with her husband from Bieberach, has been lying since Sunday in severe labor; and, because yesterday no one could give any further aid or advice, we fetched Mrs. Rheinländer. I, too, rode out yesterday around 4 o’clock to visit a few sick people, especially Glaner and his wife, and at the same time to be nearby to baptize the probably weak child. In the middle of the plantations a woman reported to me that a young daughter had been born and that mother and child had been in extreme mortal danger. We quickly prepared for the act of baptism, but it was delayed until evening because of the godparents. They wished to ask some married couple from the 4th transport; but, because I knew that they were ignorant and had not grasped properly the basic lessons of Christianity, I had to advise against this sponsorship, and they were satisfied with it.

Prior to the baptism I examined Mrs. Ott in her dwelling on her knowledge of catechism and said a few words for the edification of the Eigel children. They are very remote from the school being held in Steiner’s house, so that only the two biggest children have been able to go there. But, because going to school is also necessary for the three small children, I have talked with Mrs. Bischoff /Friederica Bishop/, who enjoyed a very good instruction in our school and also has a good talent, and have requested her to take these small children of her neighbors into her house, and instruct them in writing, and impart to them a few easy Biblical verses and something from the catechism. She wishes to consider it further with her husband.

Young Eischberger, whose little child we baptized yesterday, is a well-trained miller, to whom I committed the milling and the complete care of the mill in the name of the congregation, and he has taken on the job with joy. In Pichler’s absence he has done the milling and has rapidly made such good flour that he has won everyone’s confidence. God is working powerfully through His word in him, and if he remains faithful to God he will also be a faithful, conscientious miller who seeks the profit of the congregation. God will not forget to reward him for his faith and love, although the congregation is not in a position to fully support a miller.

Thursday, the 27th of May. Today was the celebration of the Ascension, on which our merciful God granted us much edification from the dear gospel of Christ. Because the Lord Jesus is so loving and offers His grace abundantly even to the faithless and unworthy people, I had the children come to my chamber after the afternoon divine services and gave them, with good admonitions and heartfelt wishes, those gifts which I had recently kept back and laid aside until their improvement. Some adults also received Bibles and hymnbooks and a few of their gifts which had been put aside with good reason, so that today was a day of true joy in body and spirit. They could recognize how desirous our exalted Savior must be to distribute the gifts we have received, since people have such a love for the members of our congregation that they would gladly donate all kinds of things to them according to their need, if only it were within their power. Yesterday evening, while we were contemplating the Bible story, the little verse from Proverbs 17:13 came up: “Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.” I also gave these words to the children today to take home and warned them against ingratitude and improper application of the gifts they had received.

Our dear Lord has now done well indeed with my own debts, which I had on account of the various bills and expenses, for with the present of 18 £ Sterl., which we received as a legacy from Mr. von Burgsdorff, I have been able to pay everything to the last farthing. It was to my benefit that my dear colleague remembered a certain item of a few pounds from the goods which had been bought for the congregation in Charleston, which was to be paid to me. A few days ago, I reviewed my bills again and found, to the restrengthening of my faith, that I could pay accurately everything to the various cash accounts, and my current semiannual salary of 25 £ Sterling was just left over, for which I rightly praise the Lord.

Friday, the 28th of May. N. and his wife have both become ill, and I would have liked to have visited him already at the beginning of the week. When I was with him today, he asserted that he had longed for me and regretted that he did not come diligently to me when he was well and (as he expressed it) recount the whole badly led course of his life. He said he had been too fond of the world and temporal things and had sinned greatly, especially at his work in Germany, by taking advantage of his neighbor. In his opinion he had done his work more faithfully and better than others, so he thought he could take something for himself over and above his wages, etc. I could already hear what he was aiming at, and that each and every unjustified farthing was now becoming a fire in his newly kindled conscience. Hence I told him how necessary bodily distress was for us, because by means of it God wished also to awaken the sleeping conscience and lance and press out the abcesses therein, as it were.

Sunday, the 30th of May. We dealt with today’s gospel Dominica Exaudi “On the Faithful as Temples of the Holy Spirit, 1) that they are such, 2) that, however, they are not recognized as such by the world.” In the exordium we showed, comparing the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 3:16–17, that even the most perverted, miserable people, who by nature are right loathsome and offensive and who, as corrupters of God’s Temple, deserve to be corrupted again, can only come to this degree of dignity if they let themselves be brought into the good, wise, and salutary order of God by means of the preaching of the law and gospels. Without this they will remain abominable and frightful creatures, in whom, as children of disbelief, the Prince of Darkness, along with other unclean spirits, has his works and dwelling. This meditation brought me to the serious example of the possessed boy of whom the late Dr. Kortholt wrote a special little treatise. From it, during the afternoon repetition hour, I read the first part aloud, with necessary reflections and applications. It certainly was very useful, for me and others, for the advancement of the Kingdom of Christ and the vexation of Satan.

JUNE

Tuesday, the 1st of June. After the edification hour we showed the people on the plantations that our dear Lord had gradually granted 147 £ Sterl. & 8 p. for the building and maintenance of the mill. It was also paid out gradually and the bill for it was closed. Two sh. and tuppence more was spent than taken in, but someone made a present of that, so that income and outgo could be balanced. The corn delivered up from every bushel for the maintenance of the mill is to be ground and sold for money in Savannah. If we use the great benefaction of the mill with faithful and grateful hearts, our Father in Heaven will easily enable us to pay off the 50 £ lent for the mill after the stipulated five years has passed and to continue the maintenance of the mill. We have also come to such an arrangement with the miller’s wages as to satisfy him and the congregation.

Wednesday, the 2nd of June. N.N. and his wife are very ignorant. I had the husband at my house this morning to examine his knowledge of the catechism, but it was in a terrible state. He cannot read properly, and she does not recognize a single letter, and they both dwell at the farthest end of the plantations, so that we cannot so easily go to their aid. I would wish that many a person had applied more diligence in Germany to reading and to the catechism. Now the people are involved in constant work and are just getting started getting their first living arrangements settled, but will get provisions for only one half a year. But God will show us how to help their ignorance and plant the true recognition of God and Christ in them. Many are also very lazy and slow in the matter.

Thursday, the 3rd of June. Granewetter is a very Christian and faithful laborer, who loves Kalcher and the orphanage. He is inclined, according to God’s will, to take over without pay the management of the plantation to be planned for the orphanage. But he is now ill, and has planted some corn on Steiner’s land, so that only towards fall will we be certain about the assumption of the above-mentioned labor for the benefit of the orphanage. We cannot get servants, and I hope in this manner to lighten Kalcher’s burden and have as much planted as might be necessary for the maintenance of the orphanage. But may the Lord do what pleases Him.

Friday, the 4th of June. Today we completed the story of the 20th chapter from 2 Samuel in the edification hour on the plantations and in the prayer hour at the city. Without doubt many join me in praising the Lord for the rich treasure of edification which He is graciously bestowing upon us from it; and every devout parishioner sees quite clearly that such Biblical stories are not dry history but rather are of great importance. God has disclosed to us many kinds of human corruption; and He has reminded us very impressively by means of appropriate examples and testimony from His word of our duties in all circumstances, also in view of the present valuable time before Pentecost. God strengthened me quite remarkably in the weakness I felt a few days ago in the edification hour during the act of baptism and in the conversation with some people who had some things to discuss with me on account of their plan to take Communion; and He caused me quite noticeably to feel His presence. Upon completion of this spiritual labor I was called on a rather remote path to Sanftleben’s old plantation, which he had sold to Matthäus Bacher of the 4th transport. This old and very ill Bacher yesterday enjoyed a good consolation from my dear colleague. But today he also was longing for me; and, in the hope of accomplishing a few useful things with him and his family, I let neither fatigue nor extreme midday heat keep me back from this visit. My hope was indeed blessed by our gracious Savior, who thirsts mightily for the salvation of the coarsest and most extreme sinner.

When I came to the house, the mother and children were singing the beautiful hymn: Wenn meine Sünde mich kränken, etc. The sick old husband told me he was very anxious on account of his sins. He complained vehemently about his earthly heart and wished with all his heart to come to rest in Christ. His eyes brimmed with tears of melancholy over his sins against God, and the whole character of his words and gestures showed true remorse at his sins and his parched thirsting for absolution through the blood of Jesus. He had discussed it with his family, deciding that after his death something of his wherewithal should go to our orphanage. But I told him that I did not wish to hear more about it because my time was short; rather, I wished that God might not begrudge him his time of grace for complete preparation for blessed eternity. I left him with the hymn: Weltlich Ehr und zeitlich Gut Wollust, etc., which his stepson, Theobald Kieffer, is to read aloud to him.

Sunday and Monday, the 6th and 7th of June. The holy celebration of Pentecost. Forty-nine persons were at Holy Communion on the holy day of celebration. More people reported for it, but they themselves held back partly for sound reasons and partly because we had to advise them that they needed better preparation for this holy feast.

The young locksmith Schrempff received a salutary stroke on his conscience by the sudden death of his wife, so that he not only is more withdrawn and quiet, but also diligently bends his knee in prayer before God. His parents, with whom he is now staying, attest that of him. Good intentions and the diligent practice of the means of salvation are in themselves still no sign of true conversion and change of attitude, and therefore one does not have to hasten to Holy Communion if one does not wish to cause harm and hinder the work of God in the soul towards a rebirth. For that reason I have previously spoken about Schrempff and his intentions with his parents and later with him and given him reasons why it is better for him to hold back this time. This postponement does not make him unworthy, rather he has received instruction concerning what we, in God’s stead, are seeking through this deferral.

Many have already made a good beginning with Christianity; but, because they have hastened rapidly to Communion, wishing to strengthen their faith here before it has been in fact properly kindled, they have received more harm than profit from such haste. N. had to acknowledge, when asked, that he knew nothing of true conversion to God; and he could easily comprehend that in this state the holy repast was not for him, as for one spiritually dead. Although he has been amongst us now for some time, he has not yet grasped the letter of the little catechism of our church. He excuses this with his inability and gross stupidity, but I do not accept such excuses. In other things he is active and capable enough.

He should first learn the catechism without interpretation, then I will assign him new reading. He has the Unselt girl, his wife’s sister,¹ at his house, and he should encourage her every morning and night, even indeed at midday, to repeat clearly a main section, when he should then listen and re-read it with his wife. The catechism is the little Bible and in it is instruction for true faith and pious living and for coming to the enjoyment of the treasure of true Christianity. For common, simple people the catechism is written separately, although even learned persons, if they have the proper childlike spirit of the New Testament, find their splendid reading there. We carefully remind the people that learning the catechism by heart is not enough, rather it also has to come to the practice of the truths learned there.

Tuesday, the 8th of June. Our dear Lord has caused various people, indeed the greatest part, of the 4th transport to become violently ill with fever. But we notice quite clearly that the illness is not mortal but rather to the honor of God, so that the Son of God may be honored.² I have spoken with various such patients today in town and on the plantations and have had much pleasure, edification, and hope from the openhearted recognition of the state of their souls; surely God will attain His goal in them. He rakes up old sins; and, although they confessed them in the confessional years ago and received external absolution, this and many other things do not satisfy their conscience because, in all external things, good in themselves, they had false, unrepentant hearts that loved the world and sin. Their frivolous behavior directly after they had gone to confession and communion made that clear enough. But now through the grace of God it will come to this: “From the world to Christ, and then the matter is done.”

Because it is necessary for such souls to experience a veram contritionem cordis (true contrition of the heart) and thus become a proper place of work for the Holy Spirit to produce a true, beatific faith, I have faithfully warned them against too rapid comfort; for many have hardly tasted the bitterness of sin and of the anger they have merited from it when they immediately wish to be comforted, absolved of sin, and provided with Holy Communion. The wound must first be squeezed out and the wild, putrid flesh be cauterized at the same time before one can lay a poultice of salvation on it, if it is not to become a cura palliativa³ which turns out badly. In the meantime we do not leave them without comfort, rather we demonstrate to them from the gospel how willing the Lord Jesus is to accept sinners and what treasures of grace He has won and prepared for them, if only they come to Him weary and burdened and do not simply take His blood and merit as a most precious ransom in faith, but rather also submit themselves to His tender yoke and rule with upright hearts—for we are instructed in the gospel to believe not in half-Christ but rather in the entire Savior, as High Priest, Prophet, and King.

Wednesday, the 9th of June. I visited the shoemaker Kohleisen’s wife. She was in her sickbed, and my consolation was so dear to her that she let me recognize her pleasure with words and gestures. She is like parched earth, as it were, visibly drinking up the downpour. She longs very much for a blessed death and therefore wishes to use no more medicine, since those already used have had no effect. She had the little verse “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be ye of good cheer,” etc. recited to her until she had grasped it in her mind and at the same time in her heart. She prayed along very fervently and held herself unworthy of all spiritual and physical benefactions. And she even insisted upon paying for a certain gift meant for her refreshment, because she holds herself in her poverty to be well enough provided with temporal goods. She says she has more than she needs in this life.

Thursday, the 10th of June. Yesterday afternoon a herd of 200 head of cattle came to our place for sale. Amongst them are some that are tamer than can be gotten in Carolina. Around about Purysburg and Savannah it is a dangerous time to buy cattle on account of the fiercely raging epidemic. Hence I did not wish to involve myself with the man in a trade for anything other than a cheap price, because he would risk less with a cheap sale than we would with a cheap purchase. But because many people of the 4th and remaining transports would like to have cows on account of their milk and dung in order to be able to apply themselves all the better to growing German crops, they nonetheless bought cows and calves for 2 £ 5 sh. sterl. But Mr. Vigera waited till today and profited by waiting: he received ten fat oxen to be slaughtered for the orphanage and the congregation at a fair price and was able to select them from among the herd. Should our dear Lord, as we hope in His kindness, hold His hand over us, so that our cattle are protected from the epidemic, then our people have not bought too dearly. For cattle will gradually become very rare and expensive.

We are now beginning to examine the remarkable story from 2 Samuel 21 at the prayer meeting, wherein we hear that God afflicted His people for the sake of old sins which had not been disposed of by means of true penitence, with physical judgments. Thereby we shall receive many necessary reminders, as happened just yesterday evening.

Friday, the 11th of June. Today I read, to the strengthening of my faith, Nahum 1:7: “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in Him.”

Saturday, the 12th of June. Till now I have had only a very few children in the preparation for Holy Communion. They come to me four times a week between 11 and 12 o’clock. We have been able to choose no other hour because that is the time the children can best be away from their work and it is also the most convenient for me. There are very few schoolchildren in town because most of the people live on the plantations, and hence we are determined that the schoolmaster Ortmann give the reading and writing lesson to the few older children who must still go to school. Thus my dear colleague keeps only the catechisation, and as a consequence he gets enough time to take on the labor with the Praeparendis ad S. Synaxin.⁴ This is useful to me in that I can visit the people on the plantations much better and more easily, and my vigor may not weaken too much all at once. For, whenever I traveled out early in the morning and had to be back home already at 11 o’clock, I had to hasten and would overheat myself; and after being overheated I would have to apply what little powers I had left to the spiritual labor in the preparation lesson. But this way I can often remain outside until afternoon, when it is cooler, and accomplish all the more with children and adults. Most of the people have been very happy with our visits and consolations, and (praise God!) they have proven profitable to many.

Sunday, the 13th of June. The locksmith Lechner and his wife both have the fever. She is lying in bed, but things have improved with him. Our dear Lord is doing great things in the souls of these people. They have come to the contrite recognition of their sin and have borne a great deal in their conscience. But after their hearts were properly humbled by the law and it appeared to them that there would be no grace for them and that they would perish in their misery, God caused them to cast a glance into the gospel and comforted them very much; and He brought the woman effectively to the assurance of His forgiveness of sins and His fatherly love.

Tuesday, the 15th of June. The righteous Israelite Glaner is for the most part recovered from his perilous illness, but his wife is lying in bed in a very weak condition, and as she did for him previously, so now he can be on hand to come to her aid. Her brother Lemmenhoffer, with whom she and her husband are dwelling, told me yesterday that she had had hard struggles on account of her youthful sins, but through the grace of Jesus Christ she conquered and obtained assurance of the gracious forgiveness of all her sins. For this reason she was reposing there quite peacefully. I too found her thus when I visited today and sought further to strengthen her, by means of the gospels, in the grace she had received. I reminded her at the same time to prepare herself for new struggles, but also to creep with all her misery to the faithful Savior and into His wounds. As it is said of Him: “He can save all which come unto Him,” likewise, “His hand hath no end of helping, however great be the harm.”

Wednesday, the 16th of June. Mrs. Kohleis received Holy Communion this morning on her sickbed, as was her heartfelt desire. She told me that two years ago in Memmingen the Lord had opened her eyes and had brought her to a deep recognition of and bitter feeling of her sins, by reason of which she had come to great unrest, sadness, and many tears. She had revealed her concern and trouble to an honest man, Mr. N.S., and has had much comfort from his consolation and instruction. She extols her Savior above everything and considers herself to be a sinner worthy of death, and not worth any gift. I somewhat clarified for her the great love of the Lord Jesus for sinners and the great treasure of Holy Communion. At that she became greatly amazed and joyful and began profusely to glorify God. We prayed fervently before and after Holy Communion, and I can hope that the Lord has given her much blessing from the enjoyment of His love and His blood in the holy sacrament. Some time ago she wished to present me and my dear colleague with 7 sh. 6 p.; and, because we did not wish to accept it, it had to go to the orphanage. Now that she is ill and has need of some refreshment, while her husband is somewhat sparing in his expenditures, I am giving her the money back gradually so that her husband may procure some care and refreshment for her. To that end I gave him 2 sh. 6 p. today.

Thursday, the 17th of June. Some men from the congregation were busy in my vineyard today sticking in 7-foot stakes for the grapevines and tying them up. In the winter we planted 184 vines for the first time, and 145 have come up. Since March—less than four months—a few have grown over seven feet, and they have become so thick that those who dealt in viticulture in Germany had to marvel and to assume, not without reason, that next year, with God’s blessing, there will be grapes on some of the stems. Now that the vines are properly bound up, the vineyard has a very pleasing appearance, and Christian hearts are fairly moved to praise the Lord for the kindness He has shown here. This, along with the encouragement for the congregation to a similar viticulture, is the chief objective of planting this vineyard next to my house.

General Oglethorpe has even advised me to choose the method which they have in the Madeira Islands and lead the grape vines up high above the ground, somewhat as in Germany on the house walls, or as people are accustomed to making arbors and grape houses. But I wished to try it with the German method because the man whom we are using for it understands the German method but not the Madeira method of planting; time will show which the best method is. The above-named gentleman, who has inspected everything in Madeira, is of the opinion that the heat reflecting back off the ground would spoil the grapes if they were not hanging quite high. Also the grapes there are watered by means of certain water ducts, as for instance in Egypt; where there is little rain, the fields have to be treated as in Deuteronomy 11:12 ff. The above-mentioned German assures me that on the Rhine, where he has produced wine, it is as hot as here in this country, yet the grapes have taken no harm. I had also had some grafted or branched onto wild varieties, but we only got a single one. Perhaps the wild vinestocks, which I first caused to be set up in the winter and soon thereafter grafted, had not taken proper root, or perhaps the great downpour which immediately followed it caused harm. Some also were not properly watched, and we will try again in the future, since now the wild vinestocks have taken root well, and have put out many shoots. May God also cause His honor and the best for the congregation to be furthered thereby.

Sunday, the 20th of June. Yesterday towards evening two Englishmen arrived here, and because the one, a physician, had lodged in my house last year, along with Col. Stephens and Mr. Jones, they also requested lodging with me this time and wished also to have horses to ride this morning to Old Ebenezer. If they had not asked on Sunday we would have done what we could, but we did not wish in the least to participate in their desecration of the Sabbath, which they did not like at all. Such people speak out quickly about the urgency for whose sake their journey will brook no delay. In like manner they claim that they can pray and serve God on the journey. They made an agreement with an English servant who was waiting for his master. They traveled with him to Old Ebenezer and from there wished to go on to Savannah-Town.⁵ Some Reformed people from Purysburg brought these Englishmen here in a boat, and this morning they went home again. Although they had the opportunity to celebrate Sunday with us here and to learn something from God’s word for the salvation of their souls, they did not avail themselves of it. This downright despicable scorn of God’s law and word cannot possibly drag on into the future without retribution.

Monday, the 21st of June. Old N. from the 4th transport is still very weak and seems to have a hectic fever. He has already been inconvenienced in Germany by something hectic, and the remedies used did not take. His sickbed will, I hope, redound to his spiritual recovery. For on account of his sins he is bent very low, is getting away from his own piety (long possessed but self-made), and wishes only to become blessed as a weak sinner by means of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. We can see clearly that God has gradually disclosed to him the idolatry he was practicing with the opere operato⁶ and the habit of worshipping in public, so that now he holds them, to be sure, good and necessary, but regrets that so many such as he seek their salvation and blessedness without true conversion and change of heart. In previous times he and his family had heard that godless people were glorified from the pulpit as blessed after their death; and he had, as it were, blessed himself in his heart and thought that, if N. has become blessed although he led a godless life, you and your family cannot be damned, for you take displeasure in such ways, Isaiah 3:12.

Old Mrs. N. seems to recognize more clearly what a horrible abomination sin is. I showed everyone in the house once again how necessary but also how blessed the true conversion to God is. I said they had to be careful not to consider this important work of God to be of their own power, and that when things had progressed far they must not simply stand by Moses, i.e., by the recognition and feeling of sin and the external improvement of their lives, but rather as persons hungry for grace must believe totally and utterly in the name of the only begotten Son of God, and therefore come to assurance of their salvation.

Wednesday, the 23rd of June. Yesterday in the evening prayer hour we heard from the especially remarkable story of 2 Samuel 21 that David offered everything which the Gibeonites would require and, to be sure, for the purpose that they bless the inheritance of the Lord through their prayer, whereby we compared Job 29:131, “The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me: and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.” With that we reminded our parishioners of their duty, in view of all our worthy benefactors in Europe. Every blessing is the heart and hand of God, and that means whoever knocks, with a believing prayer, for him will it be opened. God happily opens His merciful hand and casts down abundant blessings. We repeated this very point today with the orphan children and we mutually implored the Lord for His blessing for us, for our orphanage, and for all our known and unknown benefactors, in the name of Jesus Christ; and we certainly hope for His sake that our prayers are favorably answered.

Saturday, the 26th of June. This afternoon I found a little time to visit Lechner and his family. The husband recounted to me how severe the weather had been yesterday evening, saying that from yesterday’s heavy thunder his window was so shaken that three panes popped out and were thrown to the floor. I showed them how they should let this serve to make them properly humble. Yes, said the wife, we ask our dear Lord properly to humble us, for otherwise we cannot do it.

Till now we have been considering a remarkable story from 2 Samuel 21 from which we can recognize by the example of the Gibeonites how it is that God cannot suffer His people to be oppressed, although they are poor and of minor consequence in the world. It is this one story that I believe is so especially appropriate to today’s Christianity. For which sins are indeed more common than these: that people cannot suffer the poor, especially when they are faithful? Who indeed takes heed of the pious? They are a despised people, hence it is also no wonder that judgments follow. But who believes that it comes thence? Nonetheless, all men might consider that the faithful are so dear to God their Father that He cannot suffer the apple of His eye to be touched, thereby arousing them to struggle thence, also to become people such as that. Oh, what a benefaction it is that our dear Lord grants us the opportunity also to look at the stories from the Old Testament!

Sunday, the 27th of June. Today God as love was made known from the Gospel on the second Sunday after Trinity, and thereby demonstrated to my soul, as I believe, to others, much compassion. May He be praised for it, and grant proper faithfulness.

Tuesday, the 29th of June. On Friday towards evening I traveled to the orphanage in Savannah to receive gratefully the gift of 20 £ Sterl. which Mr. Whitefield collected in Scotland for our orphanage and congregation. At first I was of a mind to travel there on foot; but, because night was falling and bad weather was coming up, I would not have arrived there safely, especially because I did not know the road properly. The road is long, in some places covered with water, and in the vicinity of the orphanage the air is so full of flies that one’s eyes, nose, and mouth are full of them.⁷ As a consequence, the wisdom of God ordained that, since I was worrying about a horse and had no hope of getting one for money, a horse came into the courtyard where I was lodging. I spoke a few good words to the man to whom it belonged [he was not at our place], and he turned it over to me. In the meantime another was found upon which our housefather Kalcher was supposed to accompany me. But he was feeling a few hints of fever (motus febriles), hence he had to remain behind. Thereupon a pious youngster, considered dear and worthy in the orphanage, was dispatched to me to show the way.

We arrived shortly before evening at the orphanage, without being inconvenienced by the weather in the least. There to my great joy I met Mr. /Thomas/ Jones, who was awaiting a boat returning from Charleston on which he was going to Frederica. I was received warmly by him and those in charge at the orphanage; and I spent that evening and the following morning amidst blessings. After I had settled the accounts and other things, I traveled with my faithful companion on Saturday morning at nine o’clock back to Savannah. The orphanage has been built to the point where most of the rooms can be occupied, but it will still require much money before the construction is finished. The interior and exterior have the appearance of a princely castle, and the residents in it enjoy much comfort. The word and prayer of God are also diligently practiced here, but I did not find out by which blessing it is accompanied. They themselves regret that it is set up in a very inconvenient place, where there is practically no good land for crops and raising cattle, and also no good water. Five hundred acres of land are fenced in, and because they let cows and horses go free upon the pasture, many are adversely affected; for the pine forests are so miserable that almost no grass grows there. One cannot find such miserable land far and wide elsewhere.

Wednesday, the 30th of June. We indicated yesterday on the plantations in the edification hour, and today in the town during the prayer hour, that we intend to celebrate a day of prayer and penance next Friday, for which we are now preparing right properly. May the Lord grant the grace to all members of the congregation to draw near to Him, through heartfelt penitence and faith: thus He will certainly draw near to us, and by means of His presence of grace be a fiery wall around us, which no enemy by whatever name can breach. Today God granted me much strengthening of my heart during meditation, with the penitential text Jeremiah 6:8: “Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited.” His fatherly heart is now still turned towards us, and He certainly will cause us to celebrate this day of penance for that reason, so that by means of penance and faith we may partake of all the blessings raised up for us in it, indeed, so that we may creep into it as an unconquerable citadel. The words which are preached to us in this verse are quite right: “And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?” My introductory words are to my own, and hopefully to others’, strengthening of faith: “I can take comfort in Him when the need is greatest. He has more than a fatherly love for me, His child.” That is indubitably true.

Barthel Rieser’s youngest son /Johann Georg/, a lad of 15 years, has been dealt with very severely by a large dog. Along with other frivolous lads, he beat the dog several times without cause when they were guarding the beans. Hence, the dog avenged himself in this way when he met him alone. The hand of God is quite clearly to be recognized in this unfortunate occurrence, which even the parents and others who know everything about the story indeed see. A few weeks ago in the repetition hour I communicated to the adults and children something from the noteworthy report by the late Dr. Kortholt about a lad who was possessed. It was very impressive to me and others. I saw this lad, however, as heedless and ill-behaved, for which I had to speak with him and remind him before the entire congregation that already in Germany with the departure of the first transport he had broken his leg, and lastly, that he had been sitting on a horse, disobeying his mother, and had been thrown to the ground twice, injuring his shoulder badly. I added that, since he had not accommodated himself to repentance through such chastisement from God, but rather persisted in his despicable behavior, something was coming which was not good for him, and I warned him movingly to improve himself. But this did not result; rather, he progressed further in his depreciation of God’s word and in other ways, to the annoyance of other people and the saddening of his mother, and therefore this judgment had come upon him.

In Savannah on the first Sunday after Trinity a man of about twenty years, whom the new magistrate had shortly before brought here from England, drowned; and they found his body after a few days, grievously dealt with by the fishes and the crocodiles. He too would not listen to warnings, but rather against the will of his cousin, the above-mentioned magistrate, went swimming secretly. “Who knoweth the power of thine anger? Even according to thy fear, so as thy wrath.”

JULY

Friday, the 2nd of July. Today, to the great edification of our souls, we celebrated a solemn day of penance and prayer. We took the penitential texts from Jeremiah 6:8 and Hoseah 14:2–5, wherein was clearly presented to us not only the proper kind but also the great profit of true penance and improvement. In the afternoon we had a drenching rain, which I turned to the strengthening of our faith according to the instruction in 21:10, 14, showing it to be a sign of grace that God was once more reconciled to the land. In the evening prayer hour we sought the face of the Lord further, praised Him for His patience and forebearing and so many other spiritual benefactions, and we prayed to Him according to our sins and those of the country according to the example of the prophet Daniel, Chap. 9:4, etc., in the Name of Jesus Christ.

Saturday, the 3rd of July. This morning our dear Lord caused me by means of an example to learn that yesterday’s day of penance and the preaching of the Word was abundantly blessed by Him. N.N. had fever but came to the church door to listen to the sermon and visited the prayer hour, at which time our dear Lord walked so near to his heart that he spent the entire night in prayer and came to an inner feeling of the deep corruption of his heart by being enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Especially the verse from Matthew 15:19–20 penetrated deeply into his mind and, upon recognizing his sins and the grace of God ruling over him, he wept profusely. He requested instruction and aid from me in prayer, and I faithfully admonished him for his external and internal calm, to pray diligently while working, to study the divine word reverently, and to guard and struggle against everything which seeks to draw him away from his good intentions. I gave him something for repeated reading, from which will ensue much for the furtherance of good for him.

Old Bacher from the 4th transport is becoming weaker and weaker and seems to be drawing nearer and nearer to his end. Today he received Holy Communion as a sinner truly repentant and hungry for grace. I had not the least cause to doubt that he was a worthy communicant at the table of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the gracious doctrine of the gospels demands. In his own eyes he was a worthless worm who deserved eternal damnation many times over, but one for whom it had always been a matter of inner regret that he had spent his lifetime not in the service of God but in the service of the world and sin and had offended the eternal love and his all-highest Benefactor. But he crept, like the most miserable beggar and publican, to the feet of Jesus, and cried out only for grace, for the sake of the treasured sacrifice merited for sinners; and he stands earnestly ready to surrender his heart honestly to our dear Lord.

Bacher also stands ready, if God should allow him to rise once more, to spend the rest of his life, by means of the certitude of the Holy Spirit, in honoring Him. He let us recognize his sadness over his sins and his longing for Christ and for aid by word and gesture so beautifully that for a long time I have not had such confessors and communicants. He no longer regrets that he let himself be led by God into this wilderness, because God thereby sought his conversion and salvation. He indicated to me that he had bequeathed 50 gulden for the orphanage and a like sum for the construction of the church, and for that I wished for God’s blessing to come upon him. His son-in-law, Theobald Kieffer, tells me these days that his mother-in-law has also become ill and is now beginning to recognize the peril of her sins and soul. Thus I found her today also. Her earthly sense, in which she has been involved till now, she regards as her most common sin, and so it is; but she recognizes at the same time that, even if she has done nothing more, for the sake of that she would already be fit for damnation. I hope God will also bring her to true penance, as He has done with her husband and daughter.

Sunday, the 4th of July. Very early this morning I received the news that last night old Matthäus Bacher passed away quite peacefully into his Savior, into whom by faith he had crept like a poor worm, and had therefore exchanged toilsome time for blessed eternity. Yesterday he attested that, after he had taken Holy Communion, things were quite well with him. The last Biblical verses which I called out to him and laid upon his heart, after we had partaken of Holy Communion, were: “Thou hast made me to serve with thy sins,” etc., “I have blotted out thy transgressions,” etc., item 1) “Lord, now thou lettest thy servant go in peace.” etc. He seized them with an eager heart and rejoiced over the great love of the Lord Jesus Christ for us poor and lost sinners, with his heart, his words, and his gestures. He had a good recognition, had read many good books (as he had brought along hither a fine supply of them), and knew many Biblical verses by heart.

Satan would gladly have made use of Bacher’s wide knowledge and plain righteousness as a cord to drag to perdition; but divine mercy grew so great over him that he well recognized that at the hour of death nothing will support us but Christ and His merits within which the penitent sinner may hide and conceal himself against every claim of the law, every charge against his conscience and well-deserved wrath, as in a sanctuary. God’s wisdom arranged things so that he got Theobald Kieffer as a son-in-law, from whom he received much physical charity and spiritual opportunity to concern himself about the truth in Christ. This young man has a fine gift for being edifying in speech and behavior to his neighbor.

My dear colleague held divine services on the plantations today and returned home quite late indeed because he had been requested to aid in burying the righteous Israelite Andreas Pilz, who died this morning even before my colleague arrived. As others had, this dear man had had tertiary fever, but did not spare himself with it, nor properly wait out the perspiration, because he was much too industrious in carrying out his profession and caring for the corn he had planted. Hence he got great swelling in his feet, great pains in the old injury to one of his feet, and other unfavorable occurrences. He was a very honest man, regarded by all as dear and worthy. We can testify about him as did the worthy Senior, that he was his worthy and dear penitent and had never grieved him, i.e., Mr. Urlsperger and his one-time father confessor in Lindau, Senior Riesch. In all circumstances he deported himself as a child and quiet lamb, and even in his final sufferings never caused us to feel the least impatience. When he was asked just this morning by his pious neighbor how his heart stood with the Lord Jesus, he replied that his case had never been better than now and that he rested fully in God’s paternal will. Mr. Vigera gave him testimony regarding his behavior on the voyage over here that could not have been better; since he had become particularly fond of this man because of his honest heart, he as well as we are truly grieving this man’s premature departure. But since the Lord Himself is doing this, we accept that His will is supreme, and what He does is well done.

Monday, July 5. For some time now, we have had heavy rains almost every day. Thus, the summer’s heat has been quite bearable. So far, this type of weather has not damaged the crops, but all is in the will of the Lord. He has given and He may take away and spoil the crops as quickly as the peaches have rotted on many of the trees before they were half ripe. In our gardens, many of the trees are so damaged by the worms which dig into and around the roots that the leaves have started turning yellow; this is a clear sign that they will soon rot away. Here in this country, the peach trees do not grow old, and here too, quod cito fit, cito perit.¹ For the trees mature quickly here, and bear fruit in their third year.

Klocker, his wife and their children have suffered much from the fever, but now they are doing somewhat better. Both honest people praise the Lord, that He has chastised them lightly for their own best. They are both honest people, gladly accept edification through the Lord’s word and like our praying with them, and they also seek to serve their neighbor without considering their own benefit.

Tuesday, July 6. N.N. attested that his wife was now on the narrow way to the Lord; he added that he had never had such good hopes of her conversion as now. He has worked with her without tiring through the word of the Lord, prayer and good example, and has also shown great patience, knowing full well that God had shown and is still showing great patience with him as well. He also recognizes that a true conversion is the work of the Lord Himself which will come about in its own time, without our legalistic endeavor and self-conceit. Nonetheless, we must also make our own efforts for ourselves and our neighbors, and not push everything into our dear Lord and His ministers.

Wednesday, the 7th of July. N. is lying on his bed at the plantation quite ill. Yesterday he had someone ask me to come to him, but I could not, lacking both time and strength. This morning I found him in a severe fever, and his wife was assisting him to the best of her ability amidst her own bodily weakness. I was just beginning to speak when tears flowed copiously from him and he at once poured out his many sins committed in Germany, using his mouth to empty his conscience, and charged himself as the most arrant sinner. She also concluded with confession, and both tearfully thanked God for saving them from darkness, from glib put-on Christianity, and from so many horrors of the world; and also for bringing them to the opportunity properly to know themselves and Christ. She was raised a Papist and turned first to the Lutheran doctrine under our guidance, which grace she extols very highly. What others are accustomed to regard as minor are now for them damnable sins, and they fully intend to offer the remainder of their lives to God. A great gift should for a long time not have been so dear to me as this penitent recognition, and I told them that with their penance they caused joy not only for me, poor man, but also for all of heaven.

I said I could assure them from God’s word that the Lord would carry out this now-commenced good work splendidly if they remained faithful and would use the means properly. As long as we have known them they have led an honorable, orderly life, but they sought no comfort in it, as they knew that in Christ Jesus nothing counted but a new creature. I gave them the 32d, 38th, and 51st Psalms for reverent reading and study, wherein they would find that there was only one way to blessedness for both mighty and lowly, to wit, a penitence, and faith. I also visited Michael Rieser and also found signs in him and his wife that God was doing something in their souls through His word and was freeing them more and more from their prejudice which they had against the truth. Similar good things were edifying to me when I heard them concerning Simon Rieser and his wife, who both were ill with fever.

Thursday, the 8th of July. Colonel Stephens recounted to me recently that one of his friends had been in Edisto in Carolina on Sunday and saw that all the men came to divine services in the church with daggers, rifles, and pistols, which they had to do from fear that their black slaves might revolt during the divine services. If the Lord Trustees should give in to the desire of the inhabitants of this country for Negroes, we will hardly be certain of our field and garden crops, let alone our lives.

Ruprecht Schrempff was with me and was thanking God for letting him recognize the danger to his soul when he was amongst the journeymen. He was given to drunkenness and other disorderly behavior according to the custom amongst the traveling artisans and journeymen. He recognizes now through God’s grace that this is the broad path which leads to hell. He has been a very useful person to us with his handiwork, and will be even more profitable to us if he righteously offers his heart to the Lord Jesus. Indeed, he wishes that he had learned no trade, since thereby he became involved in so much sin; but I informed him that the trade was not really to blame for it and was not sinful of itself, rather he could with it serve both God and his neighbor. He is a locksmith but he can do almost every task that is asked of him.

Saturday, the 10th of July. At my request the men from the plantations gathered in town this morning. I announced to them there the circumstances in which our colony, according to God’s destiny, found itself on account of the war. We see things not simply according to reason without the Word, but according to the Holy Writ, and we endeavor amidst prayer and petition to have the purpose of our merciful heavenly Father redound to us. I gave them the prophet Jeremiah for diligent reading. Therein is presented quite clearly the causes for the judgment of God upon His people and is shown the path to avoid it. Because so many people from Savannah and other places are fleeing to us, our people are reminded of the many good things that so many thousands rendered them in Germany when they were fleeing Salzburg and Austria.²

Now in almost the same circumstances they should unselfishly let others enjoy those same good things. And since dwellings are lacking to take these guests, I suggested quickly building a large hut, for which Mr. Vigera wished to turn over the shingles he had intended for finishing his own dwelling, but the congregation found it better to repair the old vacant huts and stables, which they did straightaway unitis viribus,³ and now so many huts are ready that a great many can be taken in. Also, the people on the plantations and in town are taking in as many as there is room to spare. In the meantime Mr. Vigera’s house is being finished, in which we may (as happens in our houses and in the orphanage) put up honoratiores (distinguished folk). We are not lacking, praise God! in foodstuffs, and we are prepared to supply them with meat and bread for some time; for drinking, safe water will suffice.

In the following matters a miraculous kindness of God holds sway over us: 1) that none of our inhabitants is being required to serve as a soldier for field duty, as must be done in Carolina, where there are no regular troops; 2) that now that flight is upon the land our wives and children are not having to be sent away to another place and therefore be separated from their families for a long time, as happens in Savannah and other places; 3) that our little Ebenezer, wherein nonetheless the great Jehovah is with His Word and Sacrament, is becoming a refuge for the inhabitants of this country, in which we are quite assured of God’s protection from hostile Indians and Negroes, as natural⁴ people recognize; 4) that we are provided with sufficient provisions and foodstuffs, although the import from other places may be cut off; 5) that we have boats and horses to transport our weak and sick, if God’s providence shows us the way to turn elsewhere.

Our people are willing and happy to furnish another contingent of emigrants if the Father wishes it. They formerly emigrated from their fatherland and, like Abraham, did not know whither they were going, but they emigrated into His outspread loving arms, and found everywhere a table spread before them from His loving kindness, although their enemies and closest relatives had previously prophesied quite fearsome things for them. If He wished to build for us a third Ebenezer, why should we not be satisfied with His guidance? What we leave here are purely gifts from God, for of ourselves we have not one spoon, still less anything greater. How should we not trust Him abundantly to give us once more everything which we turn our backs upon, according to His loving advice and command? For what appears impossible to us is for Him the least of His works. God has strengthened us mightily in our faith and we certainly believe that He will cause us to come into distress for its sake so that we may see His glory as we have already had many proofs thereof (may He be praised for it).

The current story of the last wars of David against the Philistines from 2 Samuel 21 gives us much insight in our present circumstances, and with it instruction and comfort, and I still hope more and more that we may be able to observe the following twenty-second chapter with application to ourselves, where it says in the superscription (as below): “And David spoke unto the Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of his enemies and out of the hand of Saul,” etc.

Sunday, the 11th of July. God imposes other chastisements on the inhabitants of the country, and all sorts of intermittent fevers and deaths upon us. May the Lord nonetheless attain His salutary purpose with everyone, and cause none to be discovered amongst them of whom He has to complain: “Thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.”

Monday, the 12th of July. This morning two boats full of women and children arrived from Savannah and were lodged in a large chamber in my house and a neighboring building already prepared. Last night they stayed on the plantations with Theobald Kieffer. They put up with much on their way on account of the summer heat and especially on account of the extraordinarily violent rain which we had day before yesterday and yesterday for an hour. They were happy to find an opportunity here to dry all their clothes in the sun. The preacher from Savannah /Orton/ was also amongst them and was making every effort for their provisioning. In Abercorn, likewise, many women and children and a few men have arrived; and on Saturday I sent them a man on horseback to show them the way by land to the plantations, where the people accommodated them according to their ability. But because they have received good news from Savannah they only wish to camp in Abercorn until they have confirmation of it.

The young locksmith Schrempff asked for me; I found him lying sick in bed. He recounted to me that he had sinned mightily against me and my dear colleague and that it was causing him much distress day and night, because we had not blessed his wife (who had passed away), with whom he had lived in discord. He asked for forgiveness for the hate and bad feeling he had conceived against me and requested that I do it in his name with my dear colleague also. He finds the solitary life and lack of intercourse with other people very salutary for his Christianity. He thanked me also very courteously for withholding Holy Communion from him, now seeing the necessity and profit of it.

Tuesday, the 13th of July. When I came to the mill from visiting the sick I found Mr. /Thomas/Jones here. He had come to Abercorn yesterday evening and had sent our herdsman from the orphanage cowpen to me this morning to ask for a horse. I sent him one directly, and Pichler traveled along with it to show him the way here. More and more people are still coming to Abercorn, because on account of the high waters the petiaguas⁵ cannot go further. Mr. Jones, according to his ability, wishes to care for them as much as for the people at our place. This morning I read a letter which one of those in authority, to wit Mr. Parker, had written to his wife, who was in my house. In it he reported that General Oglethorpe and his soldiers had such good hopes of driving off the Spaniards that not one of the women and children from Frederica wished to flee to another place. Hence I am astounded that people are still moving away from Savannah in greater and greater numbers, giving them much anguish. From the story in 2 Samuel 21:15–22 we have learned that it was a kind of Philistine and heathenly gross behavior to rely on men and flesh, even if it were that of giants, to hold before our arm as a shield, which according to Jeremiah 17:5 brings only a curse. We rely, however, on David and Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 20, 1-30) upon the Lord Sabaoth, who can create help when it is most needed and none knows whence it shall come forth.

Wednesday, the 14th of July. This morning was quite blessed in my soul, notwithstanding the manifold disquiet because of so many people in my house.

Schrempff sent his stepfather /Veit Lechner/ quite early to me, and asked to talk to me. When I came to him he said that the righteous Austrian /Johann/ Schmidt had already been with him and had brought him much profit by means of his encouragement. He said he had been unable to sleep the entire night since he had prayed to God in Christ’s name the entire time and thereby had spent the whole sleepless night in a blessed state. He would rather, he said, if it pleased God, not sleep at all, because otherwise he had many fantasies and could not contemplate God as diligently through word and prayer. He believed he was assured that God, since his day of penitence, had begun to convert his heart and bring it to a new birth, and he wishes to remember this same day all his life.

Schrempff uses words in such a way and deports himself in such a manner that I believe the Lord has made him into another person. He loathes sin immensely. He recognizes his former best friends to have ruined the time he had on earth, and he sees quite well that their respectability and self-righteousness will not suffice before God’s judgment. He has a heartfelt love for the faithful in the congregation, whom he formerly considered hypocrites, and he can well distinguish light and darkness and appearance and truth. He has a great love for the church, for the orphanage, for my dear colleague and me, and wished to present the two of us with four £ Sterling. I did not wish to accept it, however, since I knew his needy circumstances; hence I had to promise to accept it after his death. He fears neither the Spaniards nor death itself. He wishes for General Oglethorpe the same faith that he feels in his soul. With that faith, he believes, which “breaks through steel and stone and encompasses omnipotence,” Oglethorpe could “chase them back alone.”

Schrempff asks God only that He strengthen him with enough that he might go to Holy Communion with the congregation this coming Sunday, and then he says he would gladly be sick again and even die. I recognized the same grace in the late Bacher’s house. The daughter, Kieffer’s wife, had become quite weak and had me fetched to her to receive comfort from the Gospels and finally to receive Holy Communion. Since the death of her father the young woman has quite faithfully had in mind the passage, “Thou hast made me to serve with thy sins,” etc. Jesus has given her the grace to perceive Him as her “Blood-bridegroom” covered with blood and wounds upon the cross and to learn from Him that her sins have made Him into such a picture of misery but that, as she draws near to Him as a penitent sinner, everything shall be eternally forgiven and forgotten. She testifies of her great worthlessness and unworthiness but also of the great love of Christ for her, and of herself for Him, with such powerful and heartbreaking words and gestures that my heart was especially awakened and stimulated to praise God for the experience of such great grace.

The old mother also has every sign of the penitent sinner who wishes with all her misery⁶ to repose in the blood and wounds of Christ and hear nothing of the world or anything else except Him. Along with Theobald Kieffer they made confession very heartily and fervently and took Holy Communion to their great blessing. With this the story of the publican Zacchaeus became as alive for me as if it had just happened today in this house.

Thursday, the 15th of July. Today, when I visited two patients who were very calm and comforted in the Lord, He greatly blessed the Word of our Savior in my heart: “Fear not, thou dear land, but be cheerfully comforted, for the Lord can do great things.”⁷

We conferred on the plantations, agreeing that the cattle belonging to the congregation, which for some years had been in the forest in unfamiliar areas, would be sought and driven nearer here, so that in case of need the congregation would have them close by. Also a few men were sent on horseback and on foot to catch a black who had been encountered in the woods with a weapon.

Friday, the 16th of July. This morning our dear Mr. Jones traveled with me to the plantations where a boat was already prepared to take him down the mill-river to Abercorn and further to Savannah. He has been quite content staying with us, and he rejoiced over the spiritual and physical blessings with which our dear Lord has crowned our Ebenezer. He has had two oxen brought to Abercorn and one hither from Old Ebenezer. They will be slaughtered and distributed amongst the people, in which our sick will also participate. At the beginning a calf and soon thereafter a fat ox were slaughtered at the orphanage for these strangers, so that till now they have not lacked either meat or bread or roof and shelter for dwelling. They are hoping very soon to get good news, whereupon they intend to return to Savannah. At this time there are no more women and children in Savannah: some are in Abercorn and some are here. Also many people from Frederica are amongst them.⁸

I am surprised that the people are nonetheless still hesitating, even though they are hearing good tidings from Frederica. It is comforting to us that all righteous people of the congregation, even the sick, are of good cheer and trust the almighty heavenly Father not to allow the Spaniards power over us to trouble our little band and scatter them hither and yon. Last Sunday during the repetition hour we compared profitably the text at Jeremiah 4:1 with that at Timothy 3:1–5. The Lord discloses many things to us which the world does not consider sinful and horrible; but, because He declares them so in His Word, we are more and more offended by them and cause ourselves to be helped by Christianity.

God’s wisdom arranged for us last week to observe the last part from 2 Samuel 21 about the last wars of David and, by collating his psalms, to learn that he let such unrest in this miserable life serve to 1) cause him better to recognize and hate sin as the cause of all evil, 2) thereby drive him all the more zealously into prayer, 3) better to recognize his and our suffering Savior and to learn to have recourse to His merits, 4) cause the world to become bitter as gall to him, and Heaven and redemption from all .evil to become as sweet as sugar. The great peril into which David fell and from which the Lord rescued him by means of the otherwise evil Abisai reminded us not only of the manifold times we had been rescued and inspired to praise God, but also we learned to believe that even evil and unconverted people will have to help according to the will of the heavenly Father to save this country and the inhabitants thereof from the jaws of our enemies.

From the 22nd chapter now being observed we learned (and to be sure, from the superscription) that our dear David arranged things thus, as was already made known previously from the time of the New Testament (Psalms 72:15) and is prescribed for us as a rule of life, James 5, 13: “Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry (even if only confidently hoping for help from the Lord)? Let him sing psalms.” In this superscription it is attested that David the Lord’s servant 1) had many enemies. For, although he was a man according to God’s heart, he nonetheless was not a man according to the hearts of men. He did not please them, and they were secretly and openly rebellious towards him. The world loves its own and hates whatever has the disposition of God and Christ. But what miserable people are the enemies of the faithful!

2) That he had God for a friend, God who caused him, his servant, to fall into many trials but did not cause him to fail therein, rather He saved him. N.B.: from the hands of all his enemies—and at this we discussed the stories from 1 Samuel 18:11; 19:10–12; 21:10 ff.; 23:26–28, 29, 30; 2 Samuel 21:16. We were able to take a clear example therefrom that David was as it were caught in the hands and claws of his enemies but also richly experienced in the miraculous help of his God, whom he could not glorify enough in this song of praise. This great and wise God lives still and still performs great things amongst His people. His grace takes many forms. In the 34th Psalm, v. 20, it says to our great comfort: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.” What a benefaction it is then to have for friends the triune God and the entire struggling and triumphant church!

3) He begins to sing to the glory of this faithfully experienced God and benefactor a song of praise and inspires others to do the same, to which end he ordered it sung publicly ex instinctu Spiritus Sancti.⁹ See Psalms 18. Because this song is found twice word for word in the Holy Writ, it must have very great significance for the Holy Spirit. May He teach us with it to conduct ourselves properly. He has indeed displayed many proofs of His help and saving grace in this war with the Spaniards, and who knows what good reports we will hear while we are observing this long chapter and psalm, reports which likewise will inspire us to the praise of the ever faithful God? When we observe Isaiah 26 with the beginning of the 22nd chapter from 2 Samuel and our current circumstances we have, especially at this time, to rejoice with trembling. By and by the Lord will clarify everything for us so that we will recognize His wisdom, kindness, omnipotence, and justice. Hallelujah, Amen!

Saturday, the 17th of July. My dear colleague held confession on the plantations before noon this morning and brought back the news that Mrs. Klocker had died this morning. He was able to be sure to talk somewhat with her, but not much. Nonetheless she understood his call from the Word of the Lord and his prayers with her fairly well. She was an honest woman who could tell of difficult temptations, and her tale thereof was of such a nature that one who had experienced anything similar could well recognize that she had truly escaped Satan when she converted and hence had aroused his rage against her all the more. On her sickbed she was very patient and well content with divine dispensation. Prior to her illness she worked very hard in the fields, and indeed had her suckling little child with her in its cradle.

Sunday, the 18th of July. Since with God’s assistance at our place we hold so diligently to the Third Commandment, our dear Father in Heaven causes things to be so good for us that even in this time of war we can come together undisturbed openly for divine services on Sunday and workdays, when others in this country and vicinity have great distress of body and mind all day. May He be humbly praised for this undeserved benefaction!

A German who fled here from Frederica with his wife and children came to me and requested permission to settle amongst us. He has planted seven acres of land with corn, beans, potatoes, and pumpkins. All of it is said to be standing very nicely and is almost ripe. Now he has had to turn his back on everything and abandon everything that was his, and already it will have gone completely to waste. This man and his child had a great misfortune on the journey from Frederica, for a German boy who was with him in a boat mistakenly shot the child twice through the foot. As soon as I heard that, it occurred to me what Pichler had recounted to me after his journey from Frederica, to wit, that this man had sworn horribly at the general out of resentment and had execrated Frederica.

Monday, the 19th of July. Yesterday during the morning divine services Mr. Terry,¹⁰ the municipal scribe or recorder at Frederica, arrived here. He had to put up with a great deal on his journey via Fort Argyle, on account of the high water. This gentleman did many good things at sea for the Salzburgers of the 4th transport, hence they consider him their benefactor and father, and I am quite happy to show him some good will in my house, although there are also many other people and children along with the English preacher. He has applied already around 100 £ Sterling to the construction of a home and the establishment of a plantation and would not have fled had not the highest necessity required it. He described the attack of the Spaniards after they had taken Fort Simons so fearsomely that there was no hope for anyone to defend Frederica more than a few hours. Hence we have cause all the more to be astounded at the kindness of God which has helped so much and has presented the general many advantages over the Spaniards, and to glorify His holy and magnificent name.

Yesterday evening the honest wife /Maria/ of the cobbler Kohleisen died and was buried before noon today. I visited Simon Rieser and his wife who lay next to one another in bed, both ill with fever. I sought to aid them with bodily and spiritual remedies, may the Lord bless my doing so!

Wednesday, the 21st of July. Since the Spaniards cannot accomplish anything on land against Frederica but rather have lost a good deal of men, they have attempted to do their utmost on the water with their galleys, but they were received so warmly by Mr. Oglethorpe that they retired head over heels back to the sea. The prisoners are declaring that the Spanish soldiers are very agitated and disheartened, and it is said that quite secret counsel is being taken amongst the officers, one of whom is said to be the Governor of Havana. Until now no warships have come to help from Charleston. If they should arrive in time, the Spaniards’ retreat could very easily be cut off. It seems as if God Himself is not allowing a great physical mighty force of Englishmen to appear at Frederica, rather arranging that our dear General Oglethorpe should engage in combat alone with the enemy, so that everyone who observes it in the proper light might say that God had done it and should note that it is His work. For it is indeed amongst other points something remarkable that, although Mr. Oglethorpe is everywhere at the point, he has nonetheless received not the slightest wound, and also none of his people have been killed, but only two men wounded, one in the arm and one in the foot. He had a prominent Spanish officer in Frederica for a long time as a prisoner and treated him very amicably and magnanimously; but he (the Spanish officer) was contemplating setting fire to the storehouse in which all the powder lay, but God discovered that in time.

Thursday, the 22nd of July. Yesterday evening at the prayer hour and today on the plantations we announced that at the request of the authorities and according to our circumstances we are considering once more (please God) to celebrate publicly a day of penance and prayer. My dear colleague intends to hold divine services on the plantations and I to do so here.

I traveled to Abercorn this morning with the English preacher /Orton/. On our way a good friend from Savannah met us and brought us the joyful news that the Spaniards with all their ships, last seen to be around forty altogether, raised the siege with great loss and humiliation to themselves and retreated to St. Augustine. Doubtless they were apprehensive that the English warships were drawing near to offer them a naval encounter, for which, likely after the wise, clever, and bold defense of General Oglethorpe, they display no desire and by which they might also have lost their St. Augustine. The captive Spaniards even alleged that there were only six or eight hundred regular troops in the Spanish ships, but we now know better: besides the sailors there were at least four thousand of them.¹¹

As a special proof of God’s care it was adduced that the evil intentions of the Spanish senior officer whom Mr. Oglethorpe had as a prisoner for a long time in Frederica came to light at the right time. At the siege of St. Augustine, in the Spaniards’ opinion, he surrendered a certain fort too quickly to General Oglethorpe and disclosed many things, so that he was viewed by his countrymen more as a turncoat and traitor than as a prisoner. At the time of the current assault he bade Mr. Oglethorpe for leave to retire to the northern colonies because, he asserted, the Spaniards would deal with him cruelly if they were to catch him. Because, from long acquaintance with this officer, Mr. Oglethorpe put no mistrust in his honesty, he gave him a small skiff to take himself to an area from which he might be able to go further. But he used it to go to the Spanish fleet and proposed that the Spaniards should draw nearer Frederica with their galleys and bombard the city, while he in the meantime would set a fire in the storehouse and blow up everything in it by means of the powder stored there. He then returned once more to Frederica, asserting that he could not get through because of the great fleet and its close watch. Before he was able to carry out his evil plan God arranged to have two English prisoners escape from the Spanish fleet to General Oglethorpe and disclose to him that this officer had been there at such and such a time and had made arrangements for the perilous business with the Spaniards. At the appointed hour the galleys drew up and fired heavily upon Frederica; but the officer was soon caught and bound fast, and at that point the Spaniards with their entire fleet withdrew to St. Augustine.

Friday, the 23rd of July. Yesterday evening a quartermaster arrived here from General Oglethorpe with a few newly enlisted volunteers. Their billeting and provisioning again caused some problems, which came inconveniently for me on account of my preparing for today’s penitence, prayer, and thanksgiving. Today, too, because of them and others we could not remain undisturbed. Nevertheless our dear Lord succored me especially, and also my dear colleague felt His presence notably at the divine services on the plantations. We both had as our text the remarkable story of the gracious, miraculous rescue of the pious King Jehoshaphat and his subjects from the hands of their mighty enemies, from 2 Chronicles 20:1–30. It turned out here as it says in Psalms 50:15: “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

God caused us, too, to come into a “day of trouble” with the surprise attack of the Spaniards, but only for our benefit. Since the last day of penitence and prayer we have been driven privately and publicly to prayer, and thereupon the Lord has delivered us and placed new matter for His praise and glorification into our hearts and mouths. So that our dear parishioners might better see the parallelisinum temporis¹² and wonder at the great works of God even in our day, in humility and praise, I have made known to them in detail the peril in which the General, his soldiers, and the entire country stood, as well as the particularia¹³ of the miraculous rescue. Because in the above mentioned story of King Jehoshaphat there is clear reference in the song of praise to Psalms 106 and 136, both were read loudly and clearly by the big children between songs, before and after noon.

At the beginning of the morning divine services and at the end of the afternoon catechization chapters 14 and 17 of 1 Samuel followed in order to be read aloud. They also were very appropriate to our circumstances. In the evening prayer hour we sang Nun dancket all und bringet Ehr, etc. May He allow our holy practice to please Him, for the sake of Christ, and may He make our Ebenezer His vale of praise.

Saturday, the 24th of July. If wishing would help, I would like to give up my house to someone who could be authority and housefather for Ebenezer, and I would be happy to dwell in a house just as confined as it could be made. For I recognize it better now than previously: the bigger the house, the greater the unrest. For everyone who comes to Ebenezer asks where my house is and requests an amicable reception and ius hospitalitatis.¹⁴ It is customary here in this country for traveling people to receive everywhere free the night’s lodging and food and drink, because no proper inns have been established in the country, and if they do not find the same thing at our place, too, they will pass very unkind judgments.

I wrote a letter to General Oglethorpe this morning in which, amongst several other things, I reported that I was much impressed that he had used at the beginning and at the end of his letter just the words from the story in 2 Samuel 22 which we had considered the previous week, which had strengthened our faith and hope so much. I said that the Lord had delivered him from the hands of our enemies and that I had wished to decree a day of fast and prayer so that the Lord might wish to deliver this province from the hands of our enemies. We see now, I said, from his letter and from other reports, that it has happened, which should fairly inspire us to the praise of our so good and gracious Lord, as we are also inspired by the example and words of David in the 22nd chapter of 2 Samuel, with which we are now occupied.

I added finally that I believed that our dear Lord had something great in mind with and by means of this colony because He so clearly was protecting it from its enemies internally and externally. I said that I deemed myself and my parishioners fortunate to live in such a country in America to which the Lord our God turns His attention and upon which His eyes always look, from the beginning of the year till the end. It only depended on us, as the word of the Lord has it in Psalms 81: 14-17. For a last word I expressed the wish that the almighty and merciful God might strengthen him further and guide him with His eyes so that he would be the blessed one of the Lord in all his pathways.

To the worthy Mr. /Thomas/ Jones, who traveled to Frederica at the beginning of this week, I wrote as follows: “I learn that you have traveled to Frederica, and therefore you will see with your own eyes the great works of God which He has accomplished for our safety through His treasured instrument, General Oglethorpe. I cannot express with words what joy and gratitude were, and still are, in our hearts and mouths for our God our merciful deliverer during yesterday’s day of penance, prayer, and thanksgiving. We cherish such a high regard for the General that we would like to appear pleasing to him in everything that comes to his attention, so far as we are able. Publicly and privately we have besought God for him, and we do it still; and, since various members of the congregation have been anointed with the spirit of grace and prayer, I do not doubt that God has glanced favorably upon our poor prayer for the sake of Christ and will continue to do so and keep the General for many more years in health and prosperity for the benefit of this and other colonies, etc., etc.”

Monday, the 26th of July. I had a small job done by a man in the vineyard I had set up. On three of the vines some young grapes showed up unexpectedly. On one vine they were blooming, on the second they had faded, and on the third they were still very tender and will soon come to blossom. A few weeks ago by oversight a small grape was broken off. Now I can understand that it was true what a man from General Oglethorpe’s barony at Palachacolas told me, to wit, that vines here can bear grapes twice a year, for the young grape vines planted in the spring push out the little grapes late, and get ripe late. Now I have no doubt that if otherwise no harm comes to it, already in the second year there will be many grapes to harvest in my little vineyard. This also strengthens me in the hope that our dear Lord has kept aside for our people (whenever they first strive for the kingdom of God) many a beautiful material blessing which they will enjoy for pressing need and refreshment in the sweat of their brow. Every beginning is difficult, throughout the entire world.

The little son of my dear colleague, Israel Christian, a year and three quarters old, died last night and was buried with blessings this afternoon. He was sickly from his birth to the last moment of his life, and especially in the last part of the time he had to suffer a great deal on account of a stinging rash and other incidents. He has escaped all of that now, and has become a true Israel and prince of God. Although my spirit has been rather depressed on account of one thing and another, at the viewing and burial of this dear body God strengthened me and uplifted me mightily.

Tuesday, the 27th of July. The alderman from Savannah, Mr. Watson, accompanied me to our plantations and inspected everything, especially the mill. He showed an especial pleasure in it, as an important and very profitable work. He wished such closely proximate plantations were in the region around Savannah. He said he would happily take a walk through them almost every day for a good and thorough exercise. He recounted to me that the Scots in Darien had planted much corn and other crops this year, but because the men were with Mr. Oglethorpe in the war and the women had fled to Ogeechee or Fort Argyle, the fields had been plundered of all that kind of thing by the Indians and other people, so that there was no hope of a harvest.

Thursday, the 29th of July. The German people of Savannah let me know that they would like one of us to come to them, and that they too wish to celebrate a day of penance, prayer, and thanksgiving amongst themselves, as I admonished them to do in Abercorn. My dear colleague today took the journey on himself for this purpose. To be sure they cannot all come together before Sunday, nonetheless we hold an edification hour every evening with them, after the work we do with the city people. In the edification hour we will take as a basic text the important story in 2 Chronicles 1 ff., which we are examining here. May God help in making much good result from it.

A pious English widow has been lodging at the house of my dear colleague till now. She has been perilously ill, but now that she is a little stronger she traveled along in our small boat to Savannah, with her serving girl and baggage. Mr. /Thomas/ Jones lodges in her house and whenever we are in Savannah we enjoy many good things from her and him. Hence it was a joy for us to serve her on her pilgrimage, according to our ability. The big boat took down the alderman Mr. Watson, the preacher Mr. Orton, the English lady with her children, and large boxes. Since General Oglethorpe’s soldiers, for whom we furnished horses, rode off this afternoon in like manner, I have finally gotten rid of the disquiet from my house. Some large boxes are still standing here and will immediately be sent down when the big boat returns. Praise God for allowing us once more to come to quiet and solitude. He will also be able in His time to restore to us victuals, wine, etc. that have been consumed beyond the ordinary, and what was partly spoiled and partly lost, if we should need it.

I had a pleasant little hour with the sick N. Not only was her heart somewhat turned from N.N. for a long time because of mistrust, but also she faulted our manner with her children, and through careless talk caused harm to come to them. Here too we must say, however: “God will not abandon the soul, he loves it far too much.”¹⁵ So that He might convince her of her weakness, mistrust, and hasty judgments and bring her heart anew into His heart and her into the faithful and orderly union with other faithful persons, He laid her out on a harsh sickbed. From that He produced such a recognition and acknowledgement as bore witness to new grace. Indeed, the Lord has once more forgiven her everything and has made her desire the pleasure of His meal of love. She is considering partaking of it immediately. Since N. was not there, I prayed in the company of the N. and N. women and praised the Lord for all His spiritual and physical benefactions which He has shown to us and the patients.

Saturday, the 31st of July. I wish that the Lord Trustees, or the General in their name, might present a horse to the physician and the surgeon, so that they could visit the sick more often. Our one commonly owned horse has been lame for some time, and my horse, which my dear colleague shares, is used almost daily by us for visiting the people on the plantations. Therefore we can only lend it to the physician now and then, but not constantly.

AUGUST

Sunday, the 1st of August. We learned today from the proper gospel as well as from the example of two deeply pious Austrian emigrants that there are to be sure crosses but also blessings in the imitation of the Lord Jesus. Because the people in the Gospel of Mark 8:1 ff. abandoned their villages, cities, and friendships and followed after Christ into the wilderness, and also remained with Him for the sake of spiritual nourishment, they and their families were in need of food. But, when they just held out, the omniscient, merciful, and omnipotent Jesus showed Himself to be the right and most beneficial helper in need for them. The emigrants, who emigrated for the sake of the gospel, have to be tested by means of the cross, so that God’s word may be legitimated then even against our enemies, and so that everyone might recognize that in truth it was not their bellies that were in question but their consciences and souls. God causes the Salzburgers, Austrians, and Bohemians¹ in other places, and our own people in our place, to undergo fire and trial in various ways, but always we say, however, as in Psalms 31:8: “I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities.”

As with all machines, so goes it with our mill. Often there are things to repair or to add on. Since the last repair soon after the arrival of the 4th transport it has been working constantly day and night and has served the congregation and other people in Savannah and Purysburg splendidly. Now that the water in the creek is visibly falling and diminishing and is moving in a stronger current, it is washing out a few small holes in the dam. In addition, the millrace through which the water is led has become damaged, and necessity requires the men to make a new repair. The work which they completed lately with fascines is so durable that we could not wish for better. On the other hand, that which was built the first time without fascines still needs patching. Because I now have very little money in the mill coffer, the people are doing the current labor gratis. Till now it has not been necessary to set up the other course for which we already have the millstones; in addition we do not have the money for it. We guard against unwarranted additions and new debts according to our ability, but we also believe that, if necessity requires making new debts, it would be an easy thing for our dear Lord to pay everything. We have indeed many beautiful experiences of that.

My dear colleague returned home well this morning, via Abercorn, after he had preached the counsel of God concerning their salvation, not only twice on Sunday but also on Friday and the previous Sunday at noontime. Because the English preacher was indisposed, the English held no divine service on Sunday, so my colleague was able to serve the German people in the church alone without hindrance. And in any case, the public divine services of the English only begin after 10 and 3 o’clock, but we start around 8 and 1 o’clock and finish regularly before the beginning of their services, and so we do not hinder them, nor they us. God strengthened my dear colleague mightily in his spiritual labor, and we expect that he will cause a harvest to arise and remain in the hearts of the parishioners.

Tuesday, the 3rd of August. The late Maria Mauer, née. Wemmer, who was born in the Jurisdiction of St. Johannis, had often wanted to tell Hans Schmid how she wished her temporal legacy disposed of after her death. But, because Schmid did not guess that her end was so near, rather assumed that there was good hope for her recovery, he always steered the discussion from the earthly to something better. A few hours before the end she informed Held, her neighbor, how and in what manner they should distribute everything she would have to leave in the world.

Because everything came down to the testimony of Held alone, who also was to participate in the legacy, I took the matter up today in the open congregation after the edification hour. Held had to promise before God and the Christian gathering that he now intended to tell nothing but the pure unadulterated truth and devise neither for himself nor for anyone else’s joy or grief a single condition, otherwise the threat of God found in Psalm 5 would be fulfilled in him: “Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful men.” Herewith he recounted loudly and clearly what Mrs. Mauer’s last will and decree were concerning her plantation, cattle, and things, to wit, that Gabriel Mauer, Hans Schmid, Held, and the orphanage were to receive specific pieces; but the entire household effects and the small amount of money Schmid, Held, and the orphanage were to divide amongst themselves in three equal parts after her few debts had been paid. What others had borrowed from her or her husband was to be given to them as a gift. In addition, from the entire amount something was to be given to Dresler, who, along with his wife, had done her favors.

Maria Mauer had expressly bequeathed to the orphanage her newly laid out plantation with the crop on it, likewise her cow and calf; and from the household effects it also got one third part. The orphanage is marking out the plantation with the new hut to the inhabitants of the lower plantations by the mill, and they in turn wish to present it to Michael Schneider, till now the herdsman for the orphanage if he is willing to guard the cows for them for about three quarters of a year. We do not need him so urgently at the orphanage now, and we shall be glad to know that the people who have no herdsman have been helped thereby. He would be quite imprudent if he did not wish to accept this offer. This late Mauer woman is supposed to have an old mother in Memmingen. We hope the worthy Senior Urlsperger and other friends of Ebenezer will make it up to her that her daughter quite unexpectedly caused a fine part of her earthly property to flow to our orphanage.

Wednesday, the 4th of August. This morning I was occupied with the manager Kalcher, Schmid, Held, and Gabriel Mauer in distributing the bequest of the late Mrs. Mauer. She had expressly designated them as heirs in her will and had in general determined the distribution herself. The orphanage received in money 2 £ 11 sh. 7 p. Sterling, and the beds, clothing, cooking utensils, and hand tools from the household effects, and other things pertaining to the household, were such a rich blessing that we fairly glorify the Lord for them. Also, there is a passable field planted with corn, beans, and rice, which was left to the orphanage exclusively and which will indeed prove useful to it.

The sick Simon Riser, who is well known to the worthy Senior Riesch in Landau, asked for me urgently already on Monday, in his bodily weakness, so that he might declare to me his last will and testament regarding the money he lent the orphanage, his household effects, and plantation. On Monday I was prevented from coming to him, and yesterday on account of his high fever he was not in a position fully to disclose to me his will in the presence of his sick wife. Quite early this morning he was having convulsions also, but when I came to him at noontime he gave me his thoughts concerning his temporal goods. His money consists entirely of 40 £ 10 sh. Sterling, which has been used by the orphanage with his full knowledge and consent. Besides that he has a sum of his own which he does not wish mentioned in the will. In addition Schweiger owes him one pound, which he has forgiven him as a neighbor.

His two cows and their calves, his plantation with everything planted on it, in like manner all his household effects shall be given over to the honest and obliging Burgsteiner, who with his wife did Riser and his wife many favors on sick days and sound ones. Of the above money, after his death the orphanage shall have 15 £, Klocker 12 £, the church 4 £, Hans Flerl 1 £, Carl Flerl 1 £, Burgsteiner 6 £, and the poor 1 £ 10 sh. Although the will has been made and Riser and his wife surmise that they are near their departure, nonetheless I have good hope of their recovery if only they will follow somewhat the good advice we are always giving them about keeping a good diet. May our dear Lord recompense them also on their sickbeds for the love which they have shown in their testament to the orphanage and the church as well as to other needy persons in the congregation, and fulfill in them in grace what is said in Psalms 41.

Thursday, the 5th of August. Yesterday afternoon I received the sad news that Paul Müller’s wife /Anna Maria Krämer/ brought a premature child into the world the day before yesterday and that she herself had died yesterday in very great pain. For two weeks she had been in very dire circumstances during which the midwife Rheinländer also used every possible remedy, but it did not take effect as we had wished. Who would have thought that these two young women, Müller and recently Ott,² both brought here from Savannah and married at almost the same time, would die soon after one another, and to be sure in premature birth? At the funeral in town, this little verse was very profitable to me and the mourners: “And account that the long suffering of our Lord is salvation.”

Although N. is not a Salzburg emigrant, prior to and during his illness he has had many good motives and intentions, and has also begun to pray. Nonetheless he is still letting his old, evil disposition come through by way of coarse anger, bitterness, and curses if even some small thing gets in his way. His wife, still lying hard abed with fever, has to put up with much from him, and bear the brunt of his rage when she certainly does not deserve it by way of her conduct towards him; and therefore she senses the bitter harvest of her marriage begun in a perverted ³ manner. When I visited him today I earnestly from God’s word placed his malice before his own eyes, and showed him what sort of a person he was and how perilous his circumstances were. He does not lack for excuses, but thereby he betrays all the more his vexatious disposition, and shows that he is still far distant from penitence.

Friday, the 6th of August. Things have not improved to date with Schrempff, the young locksmith. Dr. Carl, in his Poor Man’s Apothecary, advises that whenever one is in such a mania as this Schrempff finds himself now—it stems from overheated blood—one should have one’s blood let often and mix saltpeter or spirits of vitriol in one’s drinking water.⁴ At first we tapped a vein in his head and, because the blood would not run, after that a vein in his arm, which last, fortunately, proved very successful. We had several men at hand who were holding him. May God grant His blessing thereto, for which before the bloodletting we also called out to Him beneath the open sky in the name of Christ. The tailor Christ was also there and had the courage to hold Schrempff’s hands so that he could not thrash around and hinder the bloodletting; but thereby or in some other way he must have become very fevered, because directly thereupon he had a severe hemorrhage which lasted from six to eleven o’clock.⁵ I as well as my dear colleague were called to him in the night—when we indeed administered two powders to him; but, because they showed no sign of calming his blood, we undertook a sympathetic cure for him, by which his blood was also calmed. He lay as if dead on the bare ground, and things would not have turned out well for him if we had not had some men bring him to a warm bed.

Saturday, the 7th of August. I was downright gladdened when my dear colleague recounted to me this noontime that the righteous Klocker is quite comforted in his family burden and his lingering fever and does not allow himself to regret leaving Germany and removing to this solitude. I find just the same honest attitude in Lechner and his wife who are both quite ill indeed but, with God’s guidance, very well satisfied. Among other things I said that amongst the fruit of the spirit in Galatians 5, patience was also recounted, which one cannot practice, or show that it is imbued in one’s heart by the Holy Spirit, unless the Lord God lay cross and affliction on it. The greater the affliction, and with it patience and resignation to divine will, the more grace; and it is a sure sign that such bearers of the cross have gone over from their natural state, by rebirth, into the realm of grace. Of them we say: “If He has resolved it, then I shall accept my fate undaunted,” etc. “Let it go as it goes, my Father on high hath help and counsel for everything.”

The mill has been repaired by some men under the guidance of the carpenter Kogler, so that already since Wednesday it has again been in full operation. The laborers seemed to prefer waiting, at my proposal of nine days ago, until the water in the river fell, to setting themselves now to repairing. Nonetheless, when, on the one hand, the uncertainty of the hoped-for water’s dropping (from our experience till now) and, on the other hand, the danger to the mill was made clear to them, they decided eight days ago to have some fascines constructed, and Monday they radically improved the dam and canal with them. At one point, when the work was still not completed, I received the news that the water was again beginning to rise strongly, and therefore praise be to God for causing things to come far enough that we can serve the congregation and strangers day and night with the mill. White flour is excessively expensive, and the mill is indeed really proving useful to us with our wheat planted here. The Indian corn is becoming ripe now, so that we are already gathering a few ears and preparing meal, which is very sweet and tasty.

Sunday, the 8th of August. As is usual in town, today we should also have held public divine services on the plantations, as has been done every two weeks for some time. But we have noticed in this hot summertime that quite many people are hindered in their prayers in Steiner’s cramped house, and hence some have preferred coming to town for public divine services. Hence, we are resolved to hold the divine services jointly here in town where we have a comfortable although not fully constructed church, until the carpenters and their assistants get the time and the strength to set up the church out there. This should have taken place in the spring, but there were other labors on the plantations, at the mill, and in the town, a good part of which would not bear postponing; and therefore we had to wait. Our dear Lord, who does everything beautifully in His own time, and whom we must follow rather than precede, will have His important reasons for it. Perhaps He wishes gradually to drop just enough money into our hands so that we can carry out this construction debt-free. For our dear faithful laborers, who must do many things gratis and without pay, as has been the case at the mill, badly need every single penny for their own and their families’ frequent bodily weaknesses and for clothing in these expensive times.

Monday, the 9th of August. At the end of last week, N. and his wife moved to N.’s plantation to get better care for his and her illness. Mrs. N. was at my place and requested that I come to N. as soon as possible, saying she was very weak and desired to speak with me. I found her on her sickbed; and, because the fever had passed, her strength had rallied somewhat. She applied it as best she could to prayer and the disclosure of her desire and thereupon became quite calm once more. She rendered such a beautiful, spontaneous, and joyful confession of her experience of penitence and righteousness and the same of her heartfelt intention to serve the Lord from now on with body and soul, and for His sake more and more intimately to cling to the Lord Jesus and believe in Him, that it gladdened me in my heart. She certainly knows that the Lord has listened to her many, many times; and she relies on Him in Christ to grant her wish with respect to her husband, who still causes her much suffering in her heart because of his coarse ways and sins, so that when she recovers once more she might be able to conduct a Christian state of matrimony.

Tuesday, the 10th of August. Yesterday afternoon Simon Riser’s wife died, and she was buried this morning on the plantations prior to the edification hour. From Germany and on the journey here she brought along not only a good testimony of a calm, Christian demeanor, but we in our place can also say everything good about her. Especially in her rather protracted illness she learned better to realize her sinful misery and what she deserved from God for it, and to humble herself before God in Christ and retire into His wounds as into the proper sanctuaries of the poor sinner. I heard no complaint from her and also perceived no cares for earthly things in her. In the last three days she had many pains and on that account sighed and wished that the Lord Jesus might come and resolve them, which was attributed by some to impatience. But the feeling of pain which often forces words of complaint from the sufferer, is for the faithful person as little a sin as it would be for Christ, who also felt bitterly the pains of soul and body and lamented them.

Wednesday, the 11th of August. I hope that, by and by, our inhabitants will apply themselves to making manure, since then the now scorned pine barrens would make right good and comfortable plantations. If only the orphanage or we two had one or two faithful servants and a small reserve of money we would make a try at starting a vineyard or other garden in the pine barrens or evergreen woods. Hopefully the eyes of others would open up so that they too would desire such land, which requires for clearing and fencing almost only half the labor. I showed Held, as one who understands wine making, my vineyard, and it caused in him a new and right immense desire to devote himself principally to planting vines near town, since he sees the advantage there so clearly. One cluster, which bloomed a short time ago, already has berries like mid-sized cherries, and hopefully it will become completely ripe in a month’s time. I now count on all the wine stocks 32 young clusters, and there would be more of them if I had not broken them off diligently, to save the young wood. This man assures me that in Germany it hardly comes as far in three years with the vine stocks as it has come here in the first year.

Thursday, the 12th of August. Ms. N. took Holy Communion this morning and showed herself thereby to be a penitent sinner hungering for grace. Since her husband went away on business, she disclosed to me her final wishes concerning her small amount of money and many clothes and household effects. Her husband came to her almost peniless, and from the beginning behaved in a very unChristian manner, for which she wishes from her heart to forgive him. Because the two of them have no children, he is to receive one third of her entire bequest, but her sister and the poor in the congregation each are to receive a share after her departure from the world. She especially wishes to know that something has been bestowed upon her current benefactress.

Friday, the 13th of August. N.N. was very much involved in a conflict with N., and for that reason was at my house. He did not justify himself, rather he recognized his misdeed tearfully and regretfully, and I hope he will now grasp that his Christianity till now has consisted more of words than of substance. We are greatly annoyed when we work on the people from one time to the next and still accomplish little. I was hastily called to a sick woman on the plantations, and her bodily circumstances were put to me so anxiously that I let everything drop and hurried to her. Her son-in-law met me in front of the house and told me that his mother-in-law was feeling a certain coarse sin very painfully in her conscience and would not be able to feel content until she had confessed it and gotten it off her heart. He said she would have acknowledged it from the time that God had begun to bring her to penance, if she had not been afraid. And therefore he was making her request known to me. When I came to her I found in her all the signs of a truthful sinner, hungry for grace, to whom, as if to a parched soul, the comfort of the gospels clung. The experience of some blessing in my office raises my downcast and troubled spirit once more.

Saturday, the 14th of August. This morning /Anna Maria/ Schwarzwälder in Old Ebenezer, and this afternoon her four-year-old only son, were buried in the cemetery on the plantations. Before the interment there was a sudden violent downpour, during which I read some things from the New Testament and hymnbook, and prayed in Leimberger’s dwelling with the mourners. N. was downcast because some people put the blame for the untimley death of the child on him. He recently acknowledged, to be sure, that he had once been too harsh with the child but since then had withheld all harshness and had done everything possible for the child to promote his good health. He said his wife and Mrs. N. as well as his conscience could give the best testimony in this matter. I told him that he could easily justify himself before men, but that he had an omniscient judge over him before whom he would indeed have to examine himself and humble himself; for the sake of His merit He would forgive him if he had done something bad to the child or had neglected to show him a kindness.

Meanwhile it would be an injustice for the people to do too much to him through unfounded judgments, and he had to believe that he had deserved this and sundry things for what he habitually did to the child and other matters. In private I told him that in his short marriage already many sorrowful things had come to pass; hence I worried that he had not begun his marriage in prayer and in the fear of God, for which reason I intended to admonish him to do true penance, failing which there would be even more misfortune. On the other hand, piety profited all things. He requested me to visit him often and to give him and his wife needed reading material. This will come about better in the future because he has resolved either to move to the town or to N.’s plantation.

We had such success with the matter of N. and the reconciliation of everyone on the plantations, in like manner with N. and N., that I was very much cheered about it. Also towards N. and the old N. he had once more a conciliatory and enlightened feeling. I am now setting about to fulfill my suggestions to him, which he approved, so that he might come into good physical order in his dwelling, his husbandry, and perhaps even in his marriage. May God intend for us to feel His blessing in this matter, too. We can ask for everything from Him in the name of Jesus Christ.

Monday, the 15th of August. This morning my dear colleague, Mr. Boltzius, traveled to Savannah in Jesus’ name and took along God’s Kingdom of Kindness, Patience, and Forebearance,⁶ which he had explained yesterday, as his introduction to the morning sermon. When one considers that God Himself directed this journey, it strengthens one in faith and trust in Him. My dear colleague was already inclined last week to travel to Savannah today, because he was always hoping to meet with letters from Europe and to arrange other matters. He did not, however, wish to force himself to do it, rather he caused it to depend on the providence of God. He inquired with our listeners whether there were not some intending to travel, and would they let him know; but nobody was about to go. But since God Himself had decided upon this voyage, He gave him a good cause by the arrival of the letters. Thus God knows how to overcome all obstacles so that His projects may continue. And whatever we may encounter, we may rest assured of His help.

Tuesday, the 17th of August. Today I held the edification hour on the plantations and used as a text the New Testament in order. It was John 8:31–36. Lastly, I showed our listeners the wide difference between having a son and a servant in one’s house. Similarly, even as concerned the realm of all nature, God had in it two types of people: Some used their material gifts as servants, but others rejoiced in them as His free sons and daughters.

The afternoon I used to visit some of the sick in the town, in which effort the dear Lord considered me worthy of His help; I therefore have hope that all that was said and prayed shall not be in vain. One of the ill remembered how Senior Urlsperger, whom he had often had occasion to see, had admonished him to be won over, to relinquish himself entirely into the Lord, and to withdraw from other bad fellows, but that he had never really followed this advice. True, the Holy Spirit had worked on him seriously quite often, so that he had indeed started to follow Him, but this state had never lasted for long and had soon vanished. The dear Mrs. von N. as well had told him that she would rather see him faithfully give in to the Lord Jesus than have him bring her a bag of a thousand ducats. I then admonished him to start following now, for he still did not know how he stood with his Maker; thus, he would now be able to please his dear friends, and even more so the dear Lord Jesus, Who had shed His last drop of blood for him. His old Adam might be as strong as he wished, the Son of God is even mightier to set him free of all his sins. 1 John 8, 36.

Wednesday, the 18th of August. This morning, the locksmith Lechner brought the news that the Lord Jesus called his wife to account from this world last night. I was with her just yesterday. I prayed with her; she wanted to repeat my words but it became too painful for her. In the evening she had begun again loudly to cry out, again and again: My Jesus, My Jesus, come, etc., as she had done the previous night, and that had lasted a long time into the night, until at last she became calm and departed toward morning. At the interment I pronounced the words of the Apostle Paul, 2 Timothy 4:17, “And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto His heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” I took this opportunity to cite what she had recounted to me in her days of health, to wit, that she had heartily implored our dear Lord that He might forgive even her sins and assure her of His grace. I said that God had heard and granted this simple prayer and had granted the request for which she had prayed. When our dear Lord thereafter laid her on her sickbed, we perceived no impatience in her, nor did we notice that she was sorry to have come to Ebenezer. She wished for nothing other than to be soon with her Lord Jesus, so as to be refreshed from the fountain of the living water. I said that this had happened the previous night, when the words of the Apostle Paul had come to fulfillment in her.

Thursday, the 19th of August. Towards evening, praise God! I reached Ebenezer once more; and I have to glorify the presence of God highly on this rather arduous journey. The heat is extraordinarily great day and night, so that even the oarsmen on the journey there became ill on the way. As soon as we arrived in Savannah, I made arrangements for their care and refreshment; and, after they had rested, our dear Lord gradually restored their strength once more. As much as time and strength allowed I went through the very gladdening letters from Europe on Monday evening. Captain Thomson had delivered them to our dear Mr. /Thomas/ Jones, and I read them further on the return journey.

I have to acknowledge, praise God, that some of them quite shamed and humbled me, and some of them inspired me to new zeal and earnestness in my Christianity and my office. I do not doubt that the Lord, who knew so miraculously how to preserve these letters in Captain Thomson’s quite damaged ship, will richly bless them amongst all in the congregation. May His glorious and holy name be praised for proclaiming quite noteworthy proofs of His especial paternal solicitude for our congregation, orphanage, church, school, and for our own homes. For we not only perceive it in general from the letters, but in parts from the excerpt from the foreword to the 8th Continuation: quite many worthy benefactors in Europe have designated their generous gifts to the valued Senior Urlsperger for Ebenezer, and we have been given the freedom at the same time to accept these gifts of love, which we very desperately need in these impoverished times, by means of a draft or sola-bill.

God has also inclined the hearts of the Lord Trustees to send orders to Colonel Stephens that I shall be paid 40 £ Sterling towards the construction expenses of my house, in the event that I be willing that after my death it be turned over not to my family but to my successor as a parish house. I have never had any other thought. Also the Lord Trustees have presented the skilled and industrious carpenter Kogler with a gift of 5 £ Sterling which he currently needs and which will greatly encourage him. I inquired of Colonel Stephens whether the Lord Trustees had considered anything about the bounty for our inhabitants from the year 1739,⁷ so that it would be paid once to them as to others in the country, as was also the desire of General Oglethorpe. He requested of me that I tell our people that this bounty or praemium for their hard work should still not be lost, but that they might have patience until the coming spring. For, he said, this time the enemies of this colony in Parliament had brought things so far that the Lord Trustees had received no money, but that they had good hope of receiving double the amount in the next session. Then they would be in a position to pay them the so-called bounty not only for the crop harvested in 1739 but also for this current year. And therefore it is an especial kindness of God that the Lord Trustees in these circumstances have appropriated the above-mentioned sum for my house and for Kogler. May He cause me and all of us herewith seriously to consider our last introductory verse: “Despaireth thou the riches of His goodness and forebearance and long suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth to repentance?”

In the first prayer hour in Savannah I told the Germans gathered there of their duty from the little verse: “Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most high.” They were carefully reminded thereby of the gracious rescue from the hand of the enemy, and what other kind things were bound up with it, and to recognize the fairness of God’s demand in the verse cited: “Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me, and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will show the salvation of God.” I would like to have added the little verse which follows (“Call upon me in the day of trouble,” etc.), in the following prayer hour but was prevented partly by business and partly by lack of strength. The practice of this gracious command of God should teach them the present distress in Savannah, for most of the people there are very ill and several have died, amongst whom is the English preacher, Mr. Orton. There are also now no victuals to be had, for which the poor must suffer greatly. Mr. Jones sent a large boat to Charleston to fetch food for the poor and the sick. From that one sees that God can forcefully afflict a country whose inhabitants are disobedient not only with war but in many other ways. Oh, that we might fall to our knees before Him in the name of Christ, and through true penance turn away still greater judgments!

Tuesday morning I was fetched to the orphanage in Savannah to marry a Christian captain there with a maiden brought up in the orphanage, for which reason I traveled once more to Savannah that afternoon. But on the way, because the path was long and the heat intense, I became quite tired out, so that I could not hold the admonition and prayer hour for the Germans who had gathered in the evening. For my refreshment, our generous Mr. Jones offered me everything within his capabilities. He himself had a perilously ill woman in his house. He showed me a letter in which the Lord Trustees, in very affectionate terms, write that he is to leave his duties as magistrate. He is also considering going to London between now and spring and returning here again after describing for them the status of this colony and his suggestions for its improvement. It is his intention to procure himself a sloop and to bring inexpensive goods into this country from Pennsylvania.

The principals of the orphanage and their children and family members have returned from Carolina once more, but they have to make do rather carefully with what they eat and drink, because their assistance from Europe may be lacking. For a long time we have received no letters from Mr. Whitefield, and from that they surmise that they are either lost or captured. In this matter we have the providence of God over us to glorify in that, as far as we know till now, no letters or other things directed to us have gone astray. Also, our children and people in the orphanage enjoy such advantages that they and we have great cause to thank our kind Lord for it and heartily to pray for our esteemed benefactors, who have caused a considerable amount to flow to the advancement of our little establishment for widows and orphans. We are planning to awaken ourselves publicly to a show of thanks.

Friday, the 20th of August. All the letters which we have received, although they are few, contain much material for our edification and for the praise of God, and I am right gladdened to make known and profitable the joyful and edifying contents of them to our parishioners in town and on the plantations. Our dear Lord has accompanied it always with noticeable blessings. This week I must first go through the last words of David from 2 Samuel 23 in the prayer and edification hours. We began to examine them before my journey. These words, according to the basic text, quite clearly deal with Christ, of whom all prophets, and therefore also David, have testified.⁸ Those words present Him to us in the most loving manner as the rock of Israel, the sovereign amongst men, the just one, the sovereign in the fear of God, as the ascension from on high, and the gentle rain to the spiritual fruitfulness of the New Testament.

It occurs to me that, if one wishes to know that the unfaithful are not blessed, and on the other hand the faithful are blessed, one need only examine in solitude their names which are attributed to them in fact and with much justification in the Scriptures. Thus, if we wish to know how much good we find in Christ, we should consider in our minds these and other glorious names so often attributed to Him in the Old and New Testament. Everything for the poor, penitent sinner; and therefore it is, as the esteemed Mr. N. writes in his very inspiring letter, “senseless and horrible to oneself, when one by means of deception of a few sins, beloved in one’s heart, causes oneself to be held back from this great blessedness in Christ.” Our recently sent diary and the special, clear marks sketched therein of God’s care which is holding sway over us in this perilous time of war show that our dear Lord has abundantly fulfilled in us the wish of the worthy Senior Urlsperger, which he placed over his very pleasing letter with the words of the 20th Psalm, v. 12: “The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion.”

Also from His Zion in dear Germany, where we have so many intercessors, much aid and strength has redounded to us. I have often remembered, in the distress of the times, the intercession of the faithful who carry our Ebenezer in their hearts; and I have strengthened myself from it in the old times of need. Hence I am impressed anew by what I have read in the extract of the foreword to the 8th Continuation, where an unknown 70-year old and very dear well-wisher writes with the gift which he sent in: “I think about you (the shepherds and sheep in Ebenezer) daily in my poor prayer before God, as many hundreds are doing, so that God may forever and ever multiply the good. May God Himself add His gracious amen to this. Hallelujah.” Another worthy friend caused these words to flow in: “The dear Salzburger shepherds and their flock in Ebenezer are always on my mind, after the depressing news. . . . Hopefully God will not have given them as prey to the grim lions, in which case they would be looked upon as martyrs. Oh, may the Lord protect and shelter them if indeed they still are making their pilgrimage in the wilderness.” “The onetime benefactor Mr. N. sends the enclosed for Ebenezer amidst heartfelt sighs for their preservation and victory over spiritual and material enemies.”

If these and other well-wishers of our little band would experience how clearly and gloriously our dear Lord has heard their wishes, sighs and supplications, it would strengthen them also in their faith and encourage them also in their own need and peril to ask and look for everything from the Lord. On account of the 4th transport, our dear Senior expresses the desire of his heart thus: “Oh, how anxious we were for the joyous report: The 4th transport and all goods have reached Ebenezer safely.” Another sincerely minded unknown benefactor writes on 5th December (new style): “May the supreme Commander over the sea now bring the 4th transport uninjured upon the waves of that sea to its resting place.” Which, praise God! as the submitted reports will have shown, took place eight days thereafter, to wit, in the new style, on the 13th of December.

Our dear Senior writes briefly as follows of our flour mill: “You were severely tested in the building of the mill. The Lord in the meantime will have healed the hurt.” This benefaction also took place for us not long after the arrival of the 4th transport, and it is now in such a condition that, as the worthy Mr. N. judged, we have to regard it fairly as an earthly treasure for our congregation. Although the water in the river has fallen noticeably, the milling goes on vigorously day and night, and the people can now already enjoy their new corn sweetly in the kindness of God, whereas formerly hardly half of it was profitable to them without the mill. It is said indeed with justice: “The works of the Lord are great, sought out of them that have pleasure therein” (if they take them properly in spiritual symmetry). Oh, may the Lord cause all sincere generous wishes dedicated to Ebenezer and its unworthy shepherds and flock in letters and in contribution of loving gifts to become such a loving seed that they might have from it a blessed harvest of joy once more in their sickbeds and at the ascension of the just! For the good works of the faithful, to which their intercessions and consilia also belong, will follow them as indubitable attestata of their unalloyed faith.⁹

May our gracious Lord, however, grant to us the wisdom to apply all the loving gifts which were sent over this time for the orphanage, for the building of the church, into the poor box, for my house, and for the refreshment of the two of us, according to the loving intentions of our esteemed benefactors. We now have for the ill and the healthy various objecta misericordiae,¹⁰ for which a few contributions from the poor box are necessary. The people from the 4th transport have lain ill for a long time and have had their corn smothered by grass or be eaten by vermin, especially since they have not been able to keep watch at night, and the healthy have had enough to do with caring for the sick and with watching over their own crops in the field. Kranwetter wept today over the fact that the bears tore up his fine corn, amounting to about 60 bushels, before it was properly ripe. The few people on Ebenezer Creek have not had time to make a fence around their fields, hence the sows and other cattle cause them much harm. Mr. Meyer is still ill and can serve the patients little. He has his own medications but none which were sent as a gift to the community; thus, it is only fair that he should be paid for them together with his labor. Still he himself charges little, and his love for the people effects love in return.

Saturday, the 21st of August. On her death bed, the late Mrs. Lechner stipulated that after her death, her little girl Elizabetha should inherit the largest bed and all her clothing and linen. Her husband, on the other hand, who lived with her in a Christian and peaceable manner, was to have the small bed and a few specified pieces of clothing besides his own. Since he came to her quite poor, he is also very much satisfied with it. This morning, in the presence of myself and Kalcher, the things were separated from one another, and one-half the money which was present was given to the little girl. She is being taken into the orphanage, and there we will see that her fever, which appears to be hectic, will be cured. In this manner the stepfather Lechner’s burden will be greatly lightened, since he has fever himself every day. From her mother the little girl has miscellaneous woolen clothes which shall be sold for her benefit before the moths gobble them up.

For many weeks on her sickbed the deceased woman became like a martyr, and having already surrendered her heart to the Lord Jesus in healthy days, she was satisfied with all of His ways and departed in peace. She recounted to me once that she had held her own blessed ascension in her spirit at our Feast of the Ascension, and that at it her mood became as joyful as never before in her life. She showed me the little place where she had knelt down and acknowledged all her sinful misery to the Lord Jesus. Words and tears flowed from her quite easily, and she said she had experienced then a beautiful assurance of gracious forgiveness of her sins. As often as we came to her we were right welcome to her with the gospel, and she showed herself always desirous of the rational, pure milk, just like a newborn little child. In this instance the words of the late Pastor Breithaupt impress me anew, as found in the autobiography of the late and valued Pastor Freylinghausen, to wit: He had heard the blessed deceased saying voce quasi tonitruante¹¹ about Ephenians 4: “. . . no one could ascend with Christ who had not traveled, as it were, in the deepest places of the earth through a feeling of spiritual misery and of the Reatus¹² dependent thereon.” Both she and her husband took displeasure in the ways and behavior of Mrs. N., with whom she became acquainted in N. and who had quite shallow teachings regarding penitence and faith. She thanked God for having saved her.

Sunday, the 22nd of August. N., who has been looked after in the orphanage in his illness till now, was not happy with the food and service and wished therefore to move with his small son to the plantations with the cobbler Ade. I granted his wish, but he soon reconsidered and remained in the orphanage, and now he is asking my pardon for being so hasty. For he now sees well that he would have settled into much unrest and inconvenience if he had moved out there. We have here not an inn but rather an orphanage, and therefore the people have to make do with whatever God grants. For the patients something special is cooked which they can tolerate; if they have the appetite they can receive their portion from the ordinary well-prepared fare. At the beginning of the afternoon divine services a great cloudburst opened up, and the wind accompanying the rain was extraordinarily strong. But God caused everything to pass away without harm, and we recognized the great majesty and power of God, who, if He wished, could throw everything together into one mass.

Monday, the 23rd of August. My dear colleague traveled away this afternoon to speak to the ill N. from God’s word, so that she may prepare herself for blessed eternity by means of penitence and faith. On account of travel to the plantations, our duties are becoming greater and more time consuming. Our horse, which we use for our visits, is becoming old and stiff since we use it so often (as do the medicus and others). Therefore we see it as a divine dispensation that amongst the current gifts we have received, through the Christian decree of some worthy benefactors, a little money for our own use, with which we can procure a good, strong horse. A friendly and unknown patron presented a Max d’Or for the building of a hut on our plantation.¹³ We are now considering also applying it to a much needed riding horse, which costs probably 10 to 11 £ Sterling, now that our faithful neighbor and manager, Peter Gruber, has just died blessedly upon completing the construction. Doubtless it will all be the same to the benefactor as long as his gift is profitable to us in one way or another. May the Lord recompense everyone abundantly for everything! We would gladly go to the plantations in pursuit of our official duties on foot like the Apostles if we could remain there for a long time like them. However, because we have sedem negotiorum,¹⁴ the school and prayer hours in the town, we can remain away hardly longer than a half day from home each time.

During his wearisome fever, Cranwetter got a very bad leg which has now burst open. He was brought in with some difficulty from the plantations this morning on a horse, so that he can be bandaged daily by Mr. Meyer, who himself is still very weak. He has every possible care in the orphanage, and Kalcher, along with his wife, is being right useful to him in spiritual and physical circumstances. The daughter of the late Mrs. Lechner was also accepted amongst the orphan children. She especially needs care and looking after in her current physical weakness. May our dear Lord recompense all benefactors of the orphanage for what they have presented in money this time also for support and progress through the hands of His treasured instruments. They have now put us in a position to pay every debt of the orphanage to the last penny, and there is still a good part left over for future housekeeping. And thus the Lord Jesus also works amongst us, so that it is said: “. . . they were filled; and took up of the broken meat that was left . . .” for future need, Matthew 15:37.

The space of the orphanage is becoming rather cramped because it is used for many purposes according to our present circumstances. If our dear Lord wishes to have it enlarged, He will easily show us the means and the ways. Moreover, we cannot consider it now, since we lack carpenters. For, when they are finished with Mr. Vigera’s house, with divine support they will finish off the church in town, complete the bridge, and also try to set up the church on the plantations, for which the lumber is already lying on the building site. This time, too, God has also cast a fine, loving blessing into the poorbox. At this time of current need in the congregation it will serve us very well indeed. Praise God for His superabundant grace!

Tuesday, the 24th of August. Till now Leitner has had the plantation on which our blessed mill stands; but, since we need the land near the mill greatly on account of the timber, the miller, and other things, he is ceding it and his huts completely to the mill, and he will be paid 7 £ 10 sh. Sterling for the work he did there. He himself, however, is moving to his wife’s still uncultivated plantation on the Savannah River, where he will find doubtless much new work, but also much advantage. The miller Eischberger is now getting what he wished, to wit, cleared, very good, and already fenced land; and for the sake of this advantage he will serve the congregation very inexpensively. He had set up a plantation far from the mill, but because he had to be absent from his wife and children day and night on account of the milling, it caused inconvenience on all sides. Hopefully he will be passing his own plantation on to someone. God has already granted something for payment of Leitner’s plantation, so that we have not needed to incur any debts. Thus He continues gradatim¹⁵ to help us. We glorify Thee, that Thou hast helped us, and in the name of our God we raise up banners.

Wednesday, the 25th of August. I paid Steiner 4 £ Sterling for holding school on the plantations, since it will soon be a year since he began the school. To be sure he has few children, but with them he shows great diligence and faithfulness, and he is worth the meager stipend and more. He was very satisfied with it, and received the money with heartfelt gratitude.

Thursday, the 26th of August. Yesterday evening an officer, Mr. Watkins, was expressly sent by General Oglethorpe to our plantations by water, and this morning Pichler brought him on horseback to me. He had with him a letter from Mr. /Thomas/ Jones to me. In it we were asked to have this gentleman brought on horseback in all haste to Old Ebenezer, from thence he was supposed to go with the greatest celerity to Charleston and further to Boston. He had very secret documents from General Oglethorpe to all the governors, to which he was supposed to bring back the answers himself in a period of 100 days or 14 weeks. He must never travel by water, rather by land at all times, because such secret correspondence now is much too uncertain on the sea. This officer wished neither to eat nor drink at my house; rather he hastened to Old Ebenezer, whither Pichler accompanied him. The above-mentioned officer related that the Spanish soldiers had letters of remission of their sins for seven years from the Pope if only they would conquer, kill, and burn out the heretics. They had a great mass of hand, leg, and neck irons with them in which to place their prisoners, for their victory was, in their opinion, certain already; and they wished to capture the inhabitants of this colony alive. Here too it was said: “Take counsel together, and it shall come to naught; speak the word, and it shall not stand, for God is with us.”

We have already celebrated our feast of thanksgiving for this notable rescue publicly at our place on the 23rd of July. It was, however, very heartening indeed to me that in General Oglethorpe’s Christian orders such beautiful specialia came to my attention on account of that; for, if our dear Lord strengthens my body, I wish to use them profitably once more properly with the congregation and it shall resound amongst us for joy: “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord He is God: it is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations.” Psalms 100, also Psalms 124.

Mr. /Thomas/ Jones recounted recently how the people and soldiers in Frederica, on the Sunday when the Thanksgiving Feast was held, observed calm and good order such as he had never before seen in Frederica. There was read aloud also a very edifying prayer of thanksgiving, which Mr. Jones, a very knowledgeable person regarding edifying things, judged to be quite fine. He considered it to have been composed and finished off by General Oglethorpe himself, he said, for at the time there was neither preacher nor schoolmaster in Frederica.

Friday, the 27th of August. Because my indisposition has increased today rather than diminished, my dear colleague has had to hold the prayer hours for me in town, today as well as yesterday, and also the edification hours on the plantations. I do not notice any fever, and my spirits seem rather good enough; but in my abdomen I feel much constant pain, which stems from the large obstruction and flatulence, which we have not been able to remove thoroughly either by means of an enema nor other medications. I must place myself in the will of God, for He holds His horas & moras.¹⁶ I learn that the edifying news from N., which the worthy Mr. N. has once more passed on to us, has been blessed in many people. Such noteworthy examples of a fundamentally evangelical conversion serve us very well indeed in our official duties in order to convince our parishioners of the necessity, possibility, and sweetness of a true conversion, and that this important work of God can be effected even in the dullest and most ignorant people if only they do not wantonly strive against peace.

Saturday, the 28th of August. Last night Mrs. Scheffler, née Kräher, who had served Mr. von Zoller in Memmingen, died on Kornberger’s plantation. Our dear Lord prepared her on her sickbed, as in His great mercy He had begun to do when she was healthy, for a blessed end and a consecrated journey home. As did other people in the congregation, she had had no illness other than a chronic quotidien fever, which finally wore her out. However, because Mr. N. recommends in his current letter a fundamental fever cure of a countess who is pious and experienced in arte medica (and also a great benefactress of Ebenezer),¹⁷ my dear colleague has taken it upon himself to manufacture this fever potion, and Mrs. Lackner is now using it to good effect. The Wurttemberg fever powder has been blessed in various people with quartan fever; but for some time there have been no more doses of it on hand. May God look upon our need in grace and bring about improvement in the time and in the manner when and how it is pleasing to Him. NB: Amongst us in the vernacular this powder is called “the Wurttemberg powder” because it was brought from there, but in fact on its box it read “the Berlin fever powder.” The manufacturer of it is Dr. Glockengiesser.

Sunday, the 29th of August. On this day forty persons from the congregation ate and drank of the body and blood of Christ in Holy Communion. Yesterday my dear colleague had double confessions on the plantations and here in the city, as also today he had all the errands of our office in the church alone, because my weakness is still persisting. In this he felt the presence of God abundantly. Because I was still hopeful yesterday evening that I would be able to read aloud my meditation on the beautiful gospel on the 12th Sunday after Trinity “on the God-Pleasing Figure of a Penitent and Forgiven Sinner,” he was not able to prepare himself for this gospel, rather in the morning he held his reading on the regular epistle 1 Corinthians 15:1, etc., and repeated the same in the afternoon.

I almost wish we always had one only one sermon and two repetition hours because the profit from them is very great, as experience shows, although those who are sated in spirit might have no real taste for it, in the manner of a few of the Ephesians, Acts 17:21. Nonetheless there is enough repetition amongst ourselves in the school and in the church, and we lack neither knowledge nor recognition. Besides the content of this gospel, my edification brought me the valuable verse: “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God,” etc. Whoever confidently recognizes Christ in His amplissimo merito,¹⁸ has indeed in reality everything which is said in the beautiful hymn read aloud by my dear colleague: Was hat getan der heilige Christ, etc.

Tuesday, the 31st of August. Mr. Vigera is having the builders working vigorously at his house, but he is very ill with fever and some time ago he left my house and took up lodging in the orphanage, where he believes he will enjoy fresher air and may have more care. I told him today that these days my most pressing care was to bring my affairs concerning God and Christ completely into order; and, I said, since quite a good deal of unfaithfulness and impurity had fallen into my conscience, I had not heen able to relax through the improvement I had hoped was coming, rather I had done as the Prodigal Son and the poor publican in the recent gospel did; and now I knew from the gospel that everything had been laid aside and made good for the sake of the complete payment of and propitiation of Christ. In this manner being ill and dying turns to good. The other thing, I said, to which I had next directed my concern was my frail body; also I owed it, an instrument of the soul, love and care. For the purpose I had used the means ordained by God for my good health; and, even today, I said, I clearly perceived the good effect of it.

SEPTEMBER

Wednesday, the 1st of September. As recently mentioned, on her sick bed Mrs. Scheffler made a will so that her husband, her own sister, and the poor would share in her clothing and legacy. Today the will was executed in my presence, and we allowed Scheffler to enjoy first choice in everything and such advantages as would make him satisfied. From the part which fell to the poor, the payment for the physician and the washing was made, which came to 18 sh. Sterl.

If I can find a modicum of time I am considering translating into German the beautiful ordinance of General Oglethorpe concerning the holding of a feast of thanksgiving in Frederica, in order to be able to read it aloud to our parishioners. The story from 2 Samuel 23 today of the heroes of David also inspired me to do it. God considered these heroes, their names and deeds, worthy of being placed in the Bible so that the name of the Lord, who gave such great salvation through them (as it says several times there), might be praised by the people living then and by future generations. Why should we too not do likewise in our day, since our dear Lord has given us heroes in the Lord Trustees, the General, and others, through whom such good befalls the country? One does not commit idolatry at all thereby, since on the contrary the lack of gratitude and thanklessness towards God and His instruments is quite great in this country and in the immediate neighborhood.

The meaning of this story of heroes certainly goes further and into the New Testament, of which we will also remind people of the most important things. If it redounded to the honor of King David to have such heroes around him, heroes who through his prayer, piety, and brave example increased so, so too it doubtless redounds to the honor of our Immanuel and to the spreading of His realm, if ministers and parishioners do not remain weak under His authority, rather they become strong in the Lord and in the power of His strength. The heroes were called that because they gathered to him at the time of the persecutions by Saul, as people in need and guilt and of saddened heart, and in this sadness they were tested. How many a poor publican, in need and guilt, has become a hero in the realm of Christ, who has accomplished so much to destroy the realm of darkness. Even if they were not equally gifted, nonetheless each one contributed what he had to the honor of Christ and the furtherance of His realm.

It is said here, too, heroically: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, etc.” “I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, etc.,” Romans 8, likewise:

Whoever has Christ as a Governor and Breaker will break up and say with Plerophoria, “I hang and remain hanging to Christ as a member. Wherever my head passes through, He will take me along, too. He draws us through death, through the world, through sin and hardship; He draws us through hell, and I am ever His companion. He pushes to the hall of glory, I follow always after Him and cannot turn aside for any discomfort. No matter how much they rage, my Head will receive me, my Savior is my shield that calms all raging.”¹

Oh how Blessed he, who clings securely to this priceless sovereign through faith and learns from mortal heroes to keep his courage up when there are difficulties or indeed when one stumbles or even falls on the scene of battle and action. One should pull oneself together and not delay too long with lamenting and worrying, otherwise one will remain behind, and the King and his realm will be harmed by it. Falling and stumbling must serve us to practice all the more what we are enjoined to do in Jeremiah 9, 23, 24.

Thursday, the 2nd of September. In today’s edification and prayer hour I was so gladdened and edified by the German translation of General Oglethorpe’s decree that there be a thanksgiving feast in Frederica that I became right strong in body and spirit while reading it aloud and elucidating it. When they read the specialia of our miraculous deliverance from the hands of our enemies, all of our friends in Europe will have to acknowledge, along with us, that the Lord has demonstrated to us in this country such miracles of His might, wisdom, and kindness as once occurred amongst the children of Israel in the wilderness and in Canaan. I only worry that, just as there were then great numbers of people who were blind to the miracles of God or who did not correctly profit from them or who soon forgot them, there are in this country no few of such a wicked kind, and we shall warn our people faithfully of such examples of lack of faith. Psalms 106:3, 4, 7; 8:11–17, etc.

What miracles God has demonstrated in the matter of the Salzburg emigration! But they have been almost forgotten by the Salzburgers themselves, and for some they have become almost a matter of amusement. Oh, what a decline! While preaching it I remembered what one of the magistrates who fled to us from Frederica, Mr. Terry, recounted, to wit, that the Spanish ships lay at anchor in the vicinity of Frederica for some days in the finest order, and formed a half-circle. Everything appeared as if the two present governors of Havana and St. Augustine had concurred and agreed on everything for the best and most orderly, as if they had overwhelmed Fort St. George, Frederica, and everything else with no difficulty and intended to gobble up everything like a breakfast. Also at spring tide and high water in the full moon they went in the best order under sail and did not turn away from the cannon fire from our side, and put their people ashore. But here too we have this word: “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.” They wanted to lay the chains and bonds they had with them upon us, and God put a ring in their noses, Isaiah 27, 29, and drove them back full of shame and ignominy.

Today and yesterday in the prayer hour we sang with great pleasure the incomparably beautiful hymn: Wo Gott der Herr nicht bey uns wär, wenn unsre Feinde toben, etc. In the second verse it says: “What human strength and wit undertake should rightly cause no fear. He sitteth on the highest peak and will reveal their plans. Though they attack most cleverly, our Lord will take another route, the outcome is in His hand.” They raged greatly and came here (with their thirty-six ships) as if they wished to devour us all, their desire was to wreak havoc, God was forgotten with them. “As the waves of the sea break on the shore, they stalk after our bodies and souls. May God have mercy on us!” V. 4, “They pursue us like heretics and thirst for our blood.” V. 5, “Praise and thanks be ever to God, they shall not succeed.” Hallelujah, praise God from eternity to eternity. Amen!

Tuesday, the 7th of September. A man from the plantations had some things to do at my place, and, when he had accomplished them, he recounted to me in the praise of God how the Lord had especially refreshed him on the 13th Sunday after Trinity. It happened not only while taking Holy Communion, which he enjoyed with others during the day, but particularly in the afternoon at the repetition of the morning sermon. At that time He caused him especially to taste His grace, so that he was in especially good spirits because of it. If a verse was quoted or a point otherwise made, this was particularly impressive to him; but, if something new came up, it was even more impressive to him, and so forth. His heart was so uplifted by it that he went home joyfully. From this example we see that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and in eternity.” For, as he saw himself as the penitent publican, whose example we observed on just that Sunday, so it was with this man. Praise the Lord, who even now shows that He has the desire to dwell also in Ebenezer. Such a soul as that is indeed worth more than the whole world. There are still rams amongst us too, many of whom (but not all) can be made into His little sheep. I showed this man how he should faithfully proceed with the grace he had received, and not cast away his courage whenever he felt the still remaining coarseness in his heart. All this should serve to humble him, and he should seek only to be discovered in Jesus. At last I prayed with him, and he took his leave joyfully.

Wednesday, the 8th of September. In the prayer hours I (Boltzius) read aloud to great numbers of Germans in Savannah those points concerning holding of a feast of thanksgiving, from the translated decrees of General Oglethorpe, and have recounted various things along with them, as I have done here in Ebenezer, to the great edification of the parishioners. I also read aloud to them the beautiful hymn: Wo Gott der Herr nicht bey uns hält, etc., and recommended that they read diligently the 78th Psalm, with the request that they not fall into the same example of lack of faith as the ancient Israelites.

In Jeremiah 34 we read that the Jews at the time of their distress appeared to be quite pious, and did what pleased the Lord, as it says in v. 15; but, as soon as the fancy took them, and the Chaldeans, their enemies, had lifted the siege, they forgot God’s kindness and wended their old ways, indeed to their own ruin, as was prophesied to them in this chapter. Thus it went also with Jerusalem and the Jewish country after the ascension of Christ. The first time the Romans had to lift the siege and retire, and thereby the Jews only became more defiant, and laid all the more wood to their wrathful fire. But the faithful Christians meanwhile retired according to the word of Christ, Matthew 24:18 etc., to Pella, a Zoar beyond the Jordan, and they were protected. These two prayer hours were very impressive to the Germans, and we will see whether they will be grateful to our dear Lord for His saving, protecting, and beneficent kindness, with their mouths, their hearts and their demeanor. I am hopeful for a few. The Swiss Altheer, whom people here simply call the German butcher, is a great lover of the divine word.² He not only visits our prayer hours and sermons diligently, but also holds the divine services with the Germans on the Sundays when we sing, pray and read aloud partly from the late Dr. Müller’s and Lütkemann’s Postille and partly from Mr. Ulrich’s book of sermons.³ This will generate good profit from time to time.

Thursday, the 9th of September. Our heavenly Father has awakened the hearts of some dear benefactors in Germany who have sent some gifts of money here for the need and refreshment of myself and my dear colleague as the foreword to the 8th Continuation certifies. The most necessary thing which we could procure this time with them for the advancement of our office was a young, strong horse for visiting our parishioners on the plantations on the mill stream and on the Ebenezer Creek, likewise on our return journeys from Savannah to gain precious time taking a shorter land route from Abercorn to Ebenezer. The manager /Habersham/ of the orphanage /Bethesda/ near Savannah offered me a young, easygoing horse, which I also bought for 8 £ sterling since it was most highly recommended by all my good friends.

On the newly printed map of Georgia,⁴ just now sent to us, it appears as if the way from Savannah to Fort Argyle, Old Ebenezer, Fort Prince George or Palachacolas were paved, but for all that it is very badly arranged. No mention is made of our New Ebenezer; and Old Ebenezer, which is called simply Ebenezer, is not even placed in the proper spot on the map. Had God caused the danger from the Spaniards to gain ground so that people had had to flee (as everyone in the country had prepared to do), it would have been a miserable flight on account of the miserable paths and would have borne no comparison to the flight in Germany. No one would have been able to take along any goods, the sick would have to remain lying in bed and languishing without assistance and care, and many weak mothers and children would have forfeited their health and lives. Oh, what a benefaction the Lord rendered us by delivering us from the hand of our enemy! We are still singing and talking of this benefaction in our congregation, here in the prayer hours and out yonder in the edification hours.

I reminded the people today that, had God caused the eyes of the people in Frederica and other places to open, they would have seen, as did the boy Elisha, fiery steeds and chariots all around us, or, like the emigrant Jacob, at the approach of his hostile and grim brother Esau, they would have seen as at Mahanaim (Genesis 32:2), whole hosts of the invisible spirits which God sent to aid us; for “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.” It is God’s most blessed purpose that by means of this great deliverance every living inhabitant of this country should inherit salvation, or as it says in v. 7 of Psalms 78, which was read aloud today, “That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.”

From the reports which have now come to hand from Maryland and Pennsylvania via Charleston the inhabitants of this and the neighboring colony see how little safety would be found in other places and that they simply would have gone from the frying pan into the fire. For they are writing with certainty from there that four warlike nations⁵ which had always been sworn enemies of the French and friends of the English, had been drawn by machinations of the French to their side, and had begun to take action against the local English colonies in concert with them. May God make us and all wise indeed, in order properly to be concerned with the true fortress which is Christ and His invincible name.

Saturday, the 11th of September. This morning four men were busy bringing corn in from the young locksmith Schrempff’s field (he is still in a constant delerium) before the vermin or the weather spoil it for him. They will receive compensation for this labor of love in some way. It will still take two men to gather everything in for his harvest. This poor person has for some time been in a well-kept chamber in the orphanage and has also had victuals and nursing from Kalcher, who has had much unclean work thereby, for which may God recompense him. We could get no other man for this purpose, because each one had to take care of his crops and the current harvest. The harmful wild animals still always necessitate a guard at night.

Some men have worked this week on the church in the city in order to complete it fully, to wit, to lay the second floor and to finish the doors and windows and whatever else is necessary. Old N.⁶ from Purysburg came to us this evening by boat to attend today’s prayer hour and tomorrow’s divine services. He had once again another unexpected affliction at his house, for his wife, when she was pulling out young turnips in the field, was bitten on the finger by a small snake. The injured part was quickly incised, covered with salt, and bound tight, but because the finger became numb from it, the bandage was loosened, but with that she became deeply anxious and had severe pains in the finger and other parts of her body. After they had administered theriac to her and placed a certain kind of plaster upon it, the pains subsided, and she is now supposed to be out of danger.

Sunday, the 12th of September. On this 13th Sunday after Trinity we demonstrated from the Gospel the proof of faith through love. The words from Galatians 5:6, which we examined in the introduction, gave us the opportunity: “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love,” etc. In the application we showed that no person is excepted, and therefore no one of our parishioners is excepted from the righteous practice of love towards God and hence towards his neighbor. For God Himself says to each one of them: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” But no one loves himself in thoughts, intentions, and words, rather he seeks by deed to promote the benefit of his soul and body to the utmost of his capability; and therefore each one has to be well-disposed towards his neighbor.

I explained that God had presented the 4th transport to our old inhabitants and parishioners as an object of love and mercy in action, for till now that same transport has been very ill and has had either no harvest at all or a very poor one, only a half-year allowance which has long since run out, or provision of money, no cattle like the others. And, since, because of a lack of a grant in aid from Parliament, the Lord Trustees were not in a position at the time to do anything further for the 4th transport, our own people, to whom our dear Lord has once again given a good harvest, should show by deed that a true faith, valid before God and spontaneous through love, is being established in their hearts and souls by means of the prevailing sermon on the Gospel.

Before I went to bed last night, and after I had read over my planned meditation, a letter from the worthy Senior Urlsperger came to my attention. It had been sent to the 4th transport in London, but really directed to us, hence it was brought along. In it the worthy Senior shares, certainly at divine command and wise direction, the main contents of his sermon of last year on this gospel (Luke 10:23 etc.) to the edification of ourselves and our parishioners. Because it was so splendidly pertinent to my above purpose, I once again read aloud to the congregation in conclusion these points concerning the contents of the sermon he gave at that time. I explained to them first that I had thought at first reading that the sermon suited the well-to-do dear Augsburgers very well but that our own people might well not derive very much from it because they are still objecta misericordiœ⁷ while they are establishing themselves and because they need and are getting some assistance in good measure from the benefactions from Europe.

Now however I perceive, to my great pleasure, why the wisdom of God qrdained not only that this sermon be preached in Augsburg, but also that it come into our hands by means of the 4th transport. Namely, it is for the purpose of calling our inhabitants to show the suffering 4th transport in the most loving manner a merciful neighbor-love by means of our poor service, here just as it is shown so far away by the actions of the dear father of the Salzburgers, the worthy Senior; and I also see that the sick and needy people of the 4th transport (of whom various ones were present at the sermon) would be strengthened in faith and trust in His assistance by this particular example of God’s paternal care.

God, who had already cared for them for a year in advance (according to the content of the above-mentioned letter) and, by means of His paternal and wise decree, had loving thoughts for them, will indeed not abandon or neglect them in the present and future trials, if only this can bring about, by means of the sadness imposed, His salutary purpose (as we see now from the story of David’s heroes who had also been in need and guilt and heavy of heart). For, it is said, His manner was always first to humble and then afterwards to raise up. Because our dear Lord especially blessed the points read aloud in myself, my dear colleague, and others. I consider it worthwhile to enter them here as a reminder to our posterity who mayhap will inherit the Ebenezer daily register.⁸ This will also not be contrary to the wishes of the worthy Senior when he sees that the Lord has thus ordained it; for one should glorify God’s work magnificently.

The fourth thing (as written in the letter of 28 August 1741) is that I should send to them, or rather to their congregation for the purposes of edification as a greeting, the salient points of the compassionate love of one’s neighbor, as I preached to them yesterday on the 13th Sunday after Trinity from the regular Gospel (Luke 10). I clarified each and every characteristic with the behavior of the Samaritan towards the injured person and applied each and every characteristic directly to my congregation with the constant and lasting cry: “Go, and do thou likewise.” I. Compassionate love of one’s neighbor does not pass by the misery of that neighbor if divine providence places that same neighbor either near to one’s physical eyes or at a distance from the eyes of one’s spirit. II. It does not close its eyes to the trouble and misery of the neighbor but looks at it precisely. III. It does not look at the misery of the neighbor with indifferent but rather compassionate eye and heart. IV. It does not come to a stop at a distance and does not shrink from the misery of the neighbor but rather goes directly to it. V. It renders aid effectively to the neighbor to pull him out of his misery or soothe him in the midst of it. VI. It proceeds with its effective assistance fundamentally and prudently. VII. It denies its own righteousness. IX. It is untiring. Untiring in will, word, and works so that one good will follows from another, one good word from another, and one good work from another. It not only begins something but continues and completes it. X. It acts according to its ability and according to external and internal powers; it does what it does freely, willingly, and joyfully, or else it would not have the true nature of love. XI. This love also does not forget its enemies in their misery, rather it acts in this matter without regard to the person, nonetheless in such a way that it first turns its eyes to the misery of its companions in faith, especially those who not only profess their faith but who in truth have become faithful. XII. It does these things and continues to do them if no one mentions its name, even when people ascribe what it does to others or if others who have not done these things take credit themselves for them, if people slander them for their beneficence and seek to make it into sheer misdeeds. XIII. Compassionate love of one’s neighbor is not governed by others who are considered either prominent and great, or intelligent and educated, or even pious; rather it is governed in accordance with God’s Word, by means of which it is governed purely through faith and through the spirit of faith, according to the need which is there, according to the miserable neighbor before it, according to the ordinary or sometimes extraordinary impetus of a properly limited, humble, unsullied heart, and according to the above circumstances in which one finds oneself at one or another time in view of one’s profession, according to the freedom in which one stands, the place where and the people amongst whom one lives, the general world and particular ways which manifest themselves here and there, and the power of mind, of body and of other faculties which one has received from God. The basis upon which I built everything was the well-known little verse: “Faith with God doeth well. Love will help thy neighbor if you are born of God.”⁹

Monday, the 13th of September. A few years ago a rich widow in Purysburg County had her two children with us in the school, and they had their dwelling and care in the orphanage,¹⁰ for which she was to pay just a tolerable sum, to wit, for each boy 5 sh. sterling. After a few months she took them back, but fell behind in her payment. Now, however, since her second husband, a Frenchman, has died, she is writing to me and is offering to pay off her debt as soon as possible. Some few people from Purysburg have had their children here and had them boarded in the orphanage, but soon the small boarding fee would become too high for them, hence they took them home, and would rather let them go astray and grow up wild than apply a few monies to them. The great bulk of people care only for their own and their children’s bellies; little or nothing is applied to church, school, and proper raising. Even if there are some who are poor who otherwise might have been able to send their children to school, they prefer to use them for herding cattle, in tilling the soil, at fishing, hunting, or supervising blacks. It seems probable that most of them will gradually start leading a wild and dissolute Indian kind of life; may the Lord take pity on such a miserable thing. How lamentable things appear indeed amongst the German youth in Savannah! To be sure the children are kept at work, but not in school; their masters do not allow them this freedom. From their parents (for the most part unfaithful servants) they see nothing but disloyal services, practices, and old, sinful habits brought with them from Germany.

Wednesday, the 15th of September. Some people are now using the means which Counselor Walbaum transmitted to us a year ago and reiterated in his last letter, as a certain and fundamental cure for fever. Mr. Thilo himself has been gradually convinced that the fever is not only suppressed by it but cured, hence he has prescribed it also in the case of my spouse, who has had to drag herself around with fever for some years. We are also seeing the good effect in everyone who follows the prescribed routine, which consists of no great but rather quite easy and minor things. It requires the following: A few quarts of good wines, China de China, juniper berries and Virginia or local snake-root. For the regurgitation, however, which must come before one drinks the fever potion, Ipecacouna and cardobenedicti cooked in water to drink. This makes the cure somewhat costly and dear, to be sure, but everything for it is bought from the poor-box, so that it costs the poor nothing.

We would be happy to apply everything to this cure if only the tedious quotidian, tertian, and quartan fever could be remedied, with divine blessing. In this we have many traces of divine providence which has led us into this path of helping the people with their fever; this comforts us and causes us to hope for a good effect. Not only are the people soon losing the long-entrenched fever but also, when they use the cure, their strength increases noticeably. My dear colleague prepares everything himself according to the prescription which was sent over and is also present when the vomiting powder is taken along with those things pertinent to it, so that everything is arranged precisely according to the prescription. Thus the Lord cares for us in every particular, although sometimes we must wait a long time.

When I asked the sick cowherd N. whether he had accepted the word of penance which I had preached to him last Tuesday, he recited the first verses from the hymn: Ach Gott und Herr, wie gross und schwer, sind meine, etc. I told him that in my blindness I and many thousands had also sung that song and nonetheless had had no penitent recognition of sins. Hence, I said, it was necessary for him to put the Ten Commandments before him and, according to the instruction of each of them and as from a mirror, to recognize item by item the sins he had committed against God, to which end I myself gave him instruction. I am myself aware that he is a right coarse sinner; and, as long as he does not wish to recognize it, I cannot believe that truth is in him. For, although we do not prescribe a Popish aural confession and show the people from God’s word that a recognition of each and every sin is neither possible nor absolutely necessary, nonetheless it is a property of the great or so-called “publican penance” that, when their conscience is awakened, they feel the rough lumps in their conscience painfully, shake them out, discover their wounds and seek good counsel. What the late Luther said in the catechism comes about unconstrained: We should acknowledge in the presence of the one hearing confession the sins which we know and feel in our hearts, of which he specified some sins as examples.

Thursday, the 16th of September. This afternoon I visited three families on the plantations, among others Hans Flörl, whose wife, because her time of delivery has drawn near, can no longer go out or come to church. I was greatly pleased everywhere, especially at Flörl’s, in conversation from God’s word and prayer, and I dare hope that the Lord will have laid a lasting blessing on everyone. The people are busy with the harvest, but they are happy to lay everything down and be seated, or take such a position as if they wished to say, as Cornelius did, “. . . Now therefore we are all here” (with children at hand or in their arms) “present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.” (Acts 10:33). I presented Mrs. Flörl with the late Dr. Spener’s Pure Milk of the Gospel,¹¹ since she will daily read a treasure of grace and salvation and, as she certainly will do, will seek and find her nourishment in it. She is one hungry and thirsty for righteousness, as were Hanna and others who wait for deliverance in the manner of the New Testament. It is good to preach to such souls, for they themselves give one the material into one’s heart and mouth.

Friday, the 17th of September. As I was about to ride to the edification hour on the plantations today I might have had a great misfortune with our new horse if our good pious Lord had not turned it away in grace. It has been used a few times in the cattle roundup at the orphanage /Bethesda/ near Savannah, where man and horse are not spared, but rather everything has to go as if on a European fox hunt, wherein many a rider tumbles from his horse and breaks neck and leg. Because I wished to be out there quickly and to arrange something before the edification hour, this horse was supposed to take me a measured gallop, but it took to making such violent leaps as I had never seen in all my days, still less experienced. Because I was now worried that it would run at such an excessive speed across our still unfinished bridge (the rails for both sides are still lacking) and that I could not be able to stop it with the poor bridlebit, I had to decide to jump down. In doing so, however, I crashed into a standing tree unexpectedly and struck my right side and shoulder so that for a little while I could not catch my breath.

Nonetheless, I felt no harm to my head from the tremendous concussion and I still had my mental faculties. I had to let the horse run; but I went back to take an antispasmodic powder (pulvis antispasmodicus) and, according to my intention, to request another horse, because I had to hold the edification hour, if the people were not to have gathered from their plantations for it in vain. (My dear colleague had business elsewhere.) I took the orphan boy along and, when I came to the area where the bridge was, the horse was standing quite properly with saddle and bridle and let itself be caught twice more by me, when through my own fault it got out of my hands the first time. The boy brought it back home.

In God’s name I rode to the gathering and the edification hour, although the journey out had been especially bitter and the journey in very bitter too. I continued to take antispasmodic powder and had the injured, swollen shoulder, which was suffused with blood, smeared with Schauer Balm.¹² First I sang with my audience: Lobe den Herrn, den mächtigen König der Ehren, etc., and then I preached to them from the story of David’s heroes from the first part of my meditation which we had before us; and God allowed me to conclude everything well, so that the sermon was easier than the last two times. What consoled me greatly in this unfortunate occurrence was the fact that our dear God had granted me strength and joy to hold this edification hour, to which I had already looked forward in advance as to a harvest sermon. For the material appearing in the story suited our present circumstances splendidly.

Among other things we learned that the Philistines intended to destroy the harvest of the children of Israel and that according to 2 Samuel 23:11 and 1 Chronicles 12:13, they had already come so near to their lentil and barley fields that the Israelites fled and let everything drop; but the Lord delivered a great rescue by means of Shammah, who slew the Philistines and saved the field. If our dear Lord had not, through General Oglethorpe, delivered such a great rescue and driven out the Spaniards, our own and other peoples’ harvest in the country would certainly have been destroyed. For we know that they also had this as a goal, from their practices of several years. They have always attempted something in this colony when the crops have ripened. We were inspired to praise His name for this salvation from God which we experienced, we were strengthened also in trust in divine kindness.

As God granted David’s heroes such strength and bravery to master physical enemies and strike them to the ground, how should He not be willing to grant to all true Christians as spiritual warriors of Jesus Christ as many powers as they need to conquer their spiritual enemies?¹³ For Christ gained just that for us. That day¹⁴ will make it clear that many a true Christian defeated not only eight hundred spiritual enemies, as did Jas-hobeam as many physical ones, but rather many thousands, indeed the whole of Hell, by means of the right spiritual weapons, which are prayers and tears, and also drove back the physical judgments and physical enemies, as did the Legio fulminatrix of the first Christians.¹⁵ Such spiritual heroes, who are so profitable to the country and are such great benefactors to the world, are only too little regarded, like David and his people, and indeed are even sent away to the country. “They are unbearable for the ungodly to look upon.” Wisdom 11:11.

It is very edifying that David and his heroes, because of the malice and ingratitude of Saul and others, were not kept from doing good for the country and its inhabitants; and thus indicates a fine Christian disposition. The other thing which impressed me very much on my journey home was not only Steiner’s conversation, in which he attested to the blessing of this edification hour, but also the edifying attitude of two pious women under a tree whom I was able to see from my horse; I could also understand a few sounds of their prayer and conversation with God. Without doubt they thanked God for the benefaction which He manifested so obviously to us in the protection of our harvest and in preventing our flight from our enemies, about which we had suffered much anxiety. Things would have gone quite miserably had we done it.