The Life of God in the Soul of Man: or, the Nature and Excellency of the Christian Religion. With Nine other Discourses on Important Subjects. To which is added, a Sermon preached at his Funeral by G. G. [ie. George Gairden (or Garden)] [Preface by Patrick Cockburn]

"HANDSOME EDITION" of RELIGIOUS CLASSIC WITH MUCH ADDITIONAL MATERIAL HERE FIRST PRINTED
first edition thus 8vo. [8],490,[6]pp. on 'fine' or thick paper, attractive head- and tail-pieces, contemporary red morocco, sides decorated with nesting panels formed by double and single gilt fillets and gilt rolls, gilt tooled ornaments at the corners and along the sides of one panel, spine with raised bands and richly tooled in gilt in panels, dark morocco title label gilt, board edges and fold-ins gilt rolled, edges gilt, marbled endpapers, small piece (c.1 cm) chipped from head of spine, joints strong but with some cracking, 2 corners little chaffed, but generally a nice copy in an attractive contemporary binding.
Contemporary name 'H. Needham' on a preliminary blank. From the Earls of Kilmorey library at Mourne Park, Co. Down.

Notably uncommon. ESTC t85046 locates copies in 10 U.K (including 4 in Oxford) and 6 U.S libraries only.
The Life of God in the Soul of Man was first published in 1677. The nine discourses or sermons by Scougal, p.115-394, are here first published from manuscript versions, edited by Patrick Cockburn. The funeral sermon by Gairden or Garden, p.395-490, also here first printed, includes an account of Scougal's life.Scougal (1650-1678), Scottish divine and the son of a Bishop of Aberdeen, was appointed Professor of Divinity at King's College Aberdeen in 1673. He sought to "impress his students with a sense of the holiness of the function to which they were destined, as well as to instruct them in theology" [D.N.B.]. He died aged only 28 and The Life of God is the only one of his books published in his lifetime. "Scougal is reckoned one of the saints of the Scottish church, and his Life of God in the Soul of Man is one of the few productions of its clergy to have attained the rank of a religious classic. ... In 1726 a handsome edition, discarding Burnet's tract and preface [added to earlier editions], was issued by Patrick Cockburn, son of the author's cousin" [D.N.B.].