"I am better acquainted with Jesus Christ than I am with any man in the world," said Robert Murray McCheyne. Andrew Bonar, his biographer and bosom friend, informs us that "during the last years of his short life, [he] walked calmly in almost unbroken fellow-ship with the Father and the Son." This no doubt explains why the spiritual impact of his life was so great, both during his short life on earth (he died in his twenty-ninth year), and in the years that followed his death--even up to the present time.

The pastoral letters contained in this short volume were written by McCheyne during a forced absence from his congregation. They reveal a true pastor's heart, full of tender compassion and concern for his flock. They abound with exhortations to Christlikeness of spirit and holiness of life, but also reverberate with warnings to the unconverted to flee to the Redeemer before it is too late.

The letters printed here are transcribed from the originals which are held at the Free Church of Scotland College, Edinburgh.