<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2013-06-18</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Sarah Wingo</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Checklist: x *Add TEMPHEAD, change DATE, validate x*Review over all structure: FRONT,BODY, BACK, DIV or rarely GROUP x*Add DIV TYPEs, make sure that @types makes sense as a navigational aide, and work in the context of the whole text, validate x*Survey book for troublesome formats of all kinds, including lists, illustrations, tables, music, math, end-notes, quasi-tabular arrangments, and marginalia. x*Proof title page(s) x*Examine marginalia. Is it all best tagged as NOTE? x*Observe divtop and divbottom material marking beginnings and ends of divisions, check that they are correctly tagged as HEAD, HEADNOTE, CLOSER, OPENER, ARGUMENT, EPIGRAPH, SIGNED, DATELINE, BYLINE, etc. x*Check for GAPs - MISSING and BLANK, MUSIC, MATH, FOREIGN, SYMBOL, INTRUDER x*Check PB placement and completeness, ensure sequence of N="" x*Check ^, oe, italic I / J, _Initals, space between &amp;c., -- x*Check for illustrations and correct usage of FIGURE. Add FIGDESCs if necessary. x*Check q; startq endq Q x*If appropriate, check for yoghs. x*If appropriate, check for Latin problems, e.g. oe and ae digraphs x*If appropriate, check for abbreviation and brevigraph problems. x*If appropriate, check for units of measure, symbols (alchemical, astronomical, etc.) and the like. x*Correct illegibles from proofsheet x*Check illegible page, para, line, span, word, dollar signs x*Final validate Corrected [ ] illegible groups out of [ ]. Converted [ ] illegible groups to GAP DESC="illegible". DONE</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A85247">
<STC T="W">F830</STC>
<STC T="T">E1328_1</STC>
<STC T="T">E1529_1</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99867834</BIBNO>
<VID>170052</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>THE SINNER'S TEARS, IN MEDITATIONS AND PRAYERS.</P>
<P>By THO: FETTIPLACE, <HI>Dom: Pet: Cantab.</HI></P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Mat. 3.2.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Repent, for the Kingdome of Heaven is at hand.</P></Q>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for <HI>Humphrey Mo&s;eley,</HI> and are to be &s;old at his Shop at the <HI>Prince's Armes</HI> in St. <HI>Paul's</HI> Church-yard. 1653.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="frontispiece">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<P><FIGURE>
<HEAD>The SINNERS TEARS <HI>By</HI> T.F.</HEAD>
<P>Iu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="3 letters"></P>
<P>Suhitp t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">scr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">it</P>
<P> Paenitentia</P>
<P>16 LONDON 53</P>
<P><HI>Printed for Humphrey Narley. at the Princes Armes in S^t Pauls Churchyard</HI></P>
<FIGDESC>woodcut frontispiece</FIGDESC>
</FIGURE></P>
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="3" MS="y">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE <HI>RICHARD</HI> Lord <HI>Keble,</HI> one of the Lords Commi&s;&s;ioners of the Great Seal of <HI>England,</HI> and the much Honored <HI>Mary</HI> his truly Virtuous and Re|ligious Lady, Grace and Peace.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>My honored Lord,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P><HI>_I</HI> Know not where to find a fit|ter Patron for tears than your Lord&s;hip, the con&s;tant Series of who&s;e happie daies, hath been an exact pattern of true Piety, and but one intire Oblation of fincere Devotion: Greatne&s;s and goodne&s;s are the be&s;t &s;uppor|ters
<PB REF="4">of decaying Holine&s;s; by the one &s;he is defended from &s;uffering ill, by the other in|couraged in doing well. The&s;e high and happy Ornaments, together with my near|ne&s;s of blood unto your Honors neare&s;t rela|tion; and mine infant education in that gratious Family (to which (as to the happy in&s;truments) I thankfully a&s;cribe my fir&s;t ingraftings into Chri&s;t) are &s;trong per&s;wa&s;ions to invite me to pre&s;ume upon your Honors Patronage of this &s;mall tract, and humbly to pre&s;ent you with a ta&s;t of &s;uch whol&s;ome fruits, as (by divine in|crea&s;e) have had their growth from tho&s;e precedent blo&s;&s;oms. If ever kneeling were in &s;ea&s;on, now is the needfull time, when there is not onely wrath gone out from the Lord again&s;t us, but even the blood, Vialls of his fierce&s;t wrath are daily powred down upon us. I willingly confe&s;s my &s;elf to have been too deep a &s;harer in tho&s;e grievous &s;ins, which have inforced the&s;e heavy judge|ments; what I cannot recall, I de&s;ire hear|tily to bewail, and (as a true &s;igne of mine unfeigned &s;orrow) according to the mea|&s;ure of my weak abilities, have penn'd the&s;e following lines: accept of them I be&s;eech you, as humbly devoted to your honors &s;er|vice; and read them as the di&s;turbed noti|ons
<PB REF="4">of my di&s;tracted meditations. That ho|ly Providence which hath directed their ends, will (I tru&s;t) &s;upply their defects; even this the lea&s;t of graines (by that mer|cy) may become a fruitfull tree, and branch it &s;elf into matter of commemorati|on to the learned, of in&s;truction to the igno|rant, of help to the weak, of comfort to the willing, of joy to the good, of terror to the bad, of happine&s;s (I tru&s;t) to all that are di|rected to it, and e&s;pecially unto their &s;oules that &s;tand in greate&s;t need of comfort from it.</P>
<P>I &s;hall not pre&s;ume to inlarge my &s;elf with wa&s;t expre&s;&s;ions, becau&s;e I know your Lord&s;hips more weightie affairs will not admit of &s;uch fruitle&s;s indeavours; I &s;hall now onely crave your Honors leave, to end with <HI>Ori&s;ons;</HI> as you have been both holy in your lives, &s;o may you be happy in your deaths, ble&s;&s;ed in your memorialls; may tho&s;e hopefull pledges of your loves be faithfull earne&s;ts of your joyes, and future branches of the Churches Peace; may they all (by your examples) go on cheerfully, and joyfully, in tho&s;e pathes of Piety which lead to re&s;t and quietne&s;s, that their &s;eed|time being &s;orrow, their harve&s;t may be joy, that all tears may be wip'd from their
<PB REF="5">eyes, all &s;orrowes from their hearts; This is (my honored Lord) the mo&s;t affectionate de&s;ire, as a kin&s;man, the mo&s;t zealous as a Chri&s;tian, of</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>The mo&s;t humble of all your Honors Servants,</HI> Tho: Fettiplace.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>To the Chri&s;tian Reader <HI>All Chri&s;tian Con&s;olation.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_THe mi&s;eries of this di&s;tre&s;&s;ed age are &s;uch, and &s;o many, that I know well, a &s;ubject of joy would, in the worlds eye, appear more &s;ea&s;ona|ble, and be far more acceptable, after &s;uch a deluge of &s;orrow; but that heart which is as truly &s;en&s;ible of the weight of Sin, as of the burden of Mi&s;ery, will &s;urely find, that there is no true joy but in godly &s;orrow, that there is more complaceney of &s;oul in one repentant tear, than in an age of plea&s;ure: with grief of heart I confe&s;s, that much of my lit|tle time hath been vainly &s;pent, I now (therefore) willingly re&s;olve, to la|ment my lo&s;t houres, and &s;hall account it my chiefe&s;t happine&s;s on earth, to &s;pend my &s;hort remainer, to my be&s;t advantage; I be&s;eech thee therefore (for thine own &s;ake) to con&s;ider with mee,
<PB REF="6">that God hath-re&s;erved us unto the la&s;t, the wor&s;t, the very dreggs of time; that our tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions are innumerable, our calamities unmatchable, our griefs unutterable, that our dayes, our houres, our minutes, perhaps are few, and full of evill, that it were even now mo&s;t ju&s;t with God to bring them to an end; that Satans cunning is un&s;earcha|ble, his malice implacable, and (with|out divine a&s;&s;i&s;tance) unre&s;i&s;table; that there is no one minute of our whole lives, in which we are not expo&s;ed unto many great dangers, both of &s;ouls and bodies; and wee &s;hall then find, that it behoveth us to watch, and pray, that it mainly concerneth us to &s;tore our &s;elves with &s;uch fit remedies, as may either inable in the combat, or &s;up|port us in the foil.</P>
<P>Such humble Confe&s;&s;ions, and de|vout Prayers, as (by Gods mercy) I have found agreeable to mine own condition, I have here publi&s;hed for the good of thine; and &s;uch true com|fort as I have enjoyed in them, I hear|tily de&s;ire may be derived to thee from them: And my humble and mo&s;t ear|ne&s;t petition unto Almightie God is, that as wee have been deep &s;harers in
<PB REF="6">&s;inning and in &s;uffering, &s;o wee may al&s;o be devout &s;harers in &s;orrowing, that the Vialls of our teares, may paci&s;ie the Vialls of his wrath, that &s;o his fierce anger may be appea&s;ed, our crying &s;inns pardoned, our bad con&s;ciences quieted, our bleeding hearts comforted, our langui&s;hing de|&s;ires relieved, our &s;ad divi&s;ions en|ded, our di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Church re&s;tored, our dear Country pre&s;erved, and our &s;infull &s;ouls and bodies eternally &s;aved.</P>
<P>With this happy re&s;olution of timely contrition, I joyfully imbrace thee, and earne&s;tly intreat to be im|braced by thee, that by this ble&s;&s;ed U|nion of our &s;ouls upon Earth, wee may at la&s;t enjoy each other, in tho&s;e &s;weet imbraces of Eternity, which is the cordiall de&s;ire, and &s;hall be the daily and devout prayer of</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thy &s;ervant in all good affections and hearty well-wi&s;hes in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, <HI>Tho. Fettiplace.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="7">
<HEAD>The Sinners Complaint.</HEAD>
<LG>
<L><HI>AH Lord &s;o long! what &s;udden fears?</HI></L>
<L><HI>What cares and doubts, what &s;ighs and teares,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Since la&s;t thou did'&s;t afford thy loving look</HI></L>
<L><HI>Have me opre&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>And rob'd of re&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Becau&s;e thou Lord thy &s;ervant ha&s;t for&s;ook?</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>If not a look, yet hear me &s;peak,</HI></L>
<L><HI>And pittie me; O do not break</HI></L>
<L><HI>Thy brui&s;ed reed; why &s;hould'&s;t thou &s;trive with man,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Who&s;e dayes are done,</HI></L>
<L><HI>When but begun,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Sith thou great God ha&s;t mea&s;ur'd out his &s;pan?</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Amaze me not with fearfull things;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Give me thy grace, O give me wings</HI></L>
<L><HI>Of &s;wift de&s;ire, and holy zeal, to rai&s;e</HI></L>
<L><HI>My &s;oul to skies,</HI></L>
<L><HI>With powerfull cryes.;</HI></L>
<L><HI>That I may &s;weetly warble forth thy prai&s;e,</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Thou art my Centre, fix me there,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Or move me in thy ble&s;&s;ed Sphere;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Suffer me not (dear Lord) to moove from thee,</HI></L>
<L><HI>There is no re&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>But in thy Bre&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>And in thine ab&s;ence pre&s;ent mi&s;ery.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>O that I were at re&s;t with thee,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Or el&s;e that thou wert come to mee,</HI></L>
<PB REF="7">
<L><HI>Since in thine ab&s;ence I am &s;o di&s;tre&s;t;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Thy wrathfull frown,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Hath thrown me down,</HI></L>
<L><HI>And rais'd a &s;torm in my unquiet bre&s;t.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Come Lord, and clo&s;e the&s;e wretched eyes,</HI></L>
<L><HI>So blear'd with &s;ins and mi&s;eries;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Re&s;olve this erring heart to tamer du&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Which every day</HI></L>
<L><HI>Thus &s;leals away,</HI></L>
<L><HI>That it may ri&s;e more joyfull and more ju&s;t.</HI></L>
</LG>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="8">
<HEAD>THE SINNERS JOY.</HEAD>
<LG>
<L><HI>All my Soul! why &s;o di&s;mai'd?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Why &s;o &s;ad, &s;o &s;ore afraid?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Can&s;t thou think tho&s;e gratious eyes,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Drench'd in tears for thee,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Can di&s;dain &s;uch powerfull cryes,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Such humility?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Sinners &s;oules mu&s;t &s;orrow keep,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may mourn, when God can weep.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Soul, though thou ha&s;t done ami&s;s,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Yet rejoyce, for thou art his.</HI></L>
<L><HI>See, his &s;oul was &s;ad to death,</HI></L>
<L><HI>In his agony,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Sad to ca&s;e thy wofull breath,</HI></L>
<L><HI>In thy mi&s;ery.</HI></L>
<L><HI>Be not faithle&s;s, but beleeve,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may &s;igh, when God can grieve.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Do not grudge to lend a tear,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Can'&s;t thou doubt, or can'&s;t thou fear?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Can'&s;t thou &s;ee his bleeding heart</HI></L>
<L><HI>And not believe him?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Wounded &s;oul that bears a part,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Can never grieve him?</HI></L>
<L><HI>Timely tears are precious &s;eed,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may weep, when God can bleed.</HI></L>
</LG>
<PB REF="8">
<LG>
<L><HI>Be not &s;o ca&s;t down; Ala&s;s!</HI></L>
<L><HI>See his &s;oul for&s;aken was,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Frighted with his Fathers frown,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Left in paines of hell:</HI></L>
<L><HI>Ah why art thou &s;o ca&s;t down?</HI></L>
<L><HI>'Twas to make thee well;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Doubt not, but admire his co&s;t,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may &s;tray, when God was lo&s;t.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Soul, when thou art left alone,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Do not deem thy Saviour gone,</HI></L>
<L><HI>When thou can&s;t not &s;ee his face,</HI></L>
<L><HI>'Tis to let thee know</HI></L>
<L><HI>That tho&s;e &s;innes with-draw his grace,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Which brought him &s;o low.</HI></L>
<L><HI>See where he in grave doth lie,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may faint when God can die.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L><HI>Weep no more, but wipe thine eyes,</HI></L>
<L><HI>See, O &s;ee, thy Saviour ri&s;e,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Happie Soul, thy debts are paid,</HI></L>
<L><HI>He is a&s;cended;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Death is not, be not afraid,</HI></L>
<L><HI>All woes are ended;</HI></L>
<L><HI>Grieve no more, believe and live,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Man may take, when God can give.</HI></L>
</LG>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="9">
<HEAD>DEO SALVATORI.</HEAD>
<LG>
<L><HI>WIth &s;ighing Soul, and bended knee,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Thy Servant vowes him&s;elf to thee:</HI></L>
<L><HI>My God, accept a broken heart</HI></L>
<L><HI>Bleeding for Sin; O thou which art</HI></L>
<L><HI>The Soveraign balm, vouch&s;afe to bee</HI></L>
<L><HI>(My deare&s;t Lord) that Balm to mee.</HI></L>
<L><HI>Inlighten with thy &s;aving grace,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Tho&s;e eyes thou guide&s;t to this place,</HI></L>
<L><HI>And grant (dear God) tho&s;e fins of mine</HI></L>
<L><HI>May not ob&s;cure that Grace of thine.</HI></L>
</LG>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Amen.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB REF="9">
<HEAD>THE SINNER'S TEARS</HEAD>
<DIV2 TYPE="introduction">
<HEAD>The Entrance to the Work.</HEAD>
<P>_THere is no man but naturally de|&s;ireth Happine&s;s, even tho&s;e un|happy ones that lea&s;t endeavour for it, have oftentimes an ear|ne&s;t longing to it; there can be no true Happine&s;s without Peace, no true Peace without Holine&s;s, without offering violence to our corrupt affections, without ran|&s;aking our &s;oules and &s;earching out the very &s;ecrets of our Sinfull hearts: the wordling may be outwardly merry, but none but the &s;ons of &s;orrow can be inwardly contented; that outward Joy may delight for a &s;ea&s;on, but this inward Peace remaineth for ever.</P>
<P>Peace is the riche&s;t Jewell in a Chri&s;tians Cabinet, the choi&s;e&s;t Legacy that Chri&s;t be|queathed to his cho&s;en ones; in it there is a complication of all Ble&s;&s;ings, and without it an expectation of all Mi&s;eries; there is no attai|ning to it, but by the &s;earch of him who is the giver of it, there is no following this &s;earch, but by that path which leadeth to the ready way, and there is but one guide that can direct
<PB N="2" REF="10">us unto that path: Ble&s;&s;ed God, there is no way unto thee but by thee, thou art life, and thou art the way to that life, and thou art the guide to that way, thou Lord art all in all unto me, and therefore, &s;halt be now and ever prai&s;ed by me.</P>
<P>In all awfull reverence to thy &s;acred Ma|je&s;tie, in fear and trembling at the &s;ight of thy &s;evere Ju&s;tice to impenitent &s;inners, in &s;erious apprehen&s;ion of thy &s;weet mercy in forbearing me a mi&s;erable wretch, and with unfeigned for|row and humilitie of heart for grieving thy good Spirit, I here dedicate the &s;hort remainer of my &s;infull dayes to thy &s;ervice; In thy name, and in thy fear, I begin my di&s;cour&s;e, who art the God of peace, by who&s;e holy Spirit I am guided to this happy &s;earch: Lord, lead mee in it by the &s;ame Spirit, that I may become an in&s;trument of glory unto thee, of happine&s;s to thine, of re&s;t to mine own &s;oul.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. I. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of our &s;infull thoughts touching the Sacred Deitie, with holy cautions to order our Devoti|ons aright.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Lord,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>WHen I &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider what thou art (the lea&s;t glimps of who&s;e eternall glo|ry I can no way &s;ee but by conceiving what thou art not) when I look upon the va&s;t di&s;tance between thee the ble&s;&s;ed Creator, and mee thy &s;infull Creature, I cannot but wonder at thy great patience, at thy rich goodne&s;s, at thine endle&s;s mercy towards mee.</P>
<PB N="3" REF="10">
<P>My whole life from my nativitie hath been a continued cour&s;e of &s;infulne&s;s again&s;t thee, mine actions highly rebellious, my thoughts finfully wicked, even the very be&s;t of them a dark, confu&s;ed, indige&s;ted heap of mi&s;concei|vings of thy &s;acred Maje&s;tie.</P>
<P>Thou (Lord) art an E&s;&s;ence mo&s;t glorious, mo&s;t inconceivable, eternallie injoying Ble&s;|&s;edne&s;s in the fruition of thy &s;elf; thy Centre is every where, thy Circumference no where; thou admitte&s;t not of Augmentation, nor of Di|minution; no length of time is b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">yond thee, no depth of wi&s;dome beneath thee, no height of glory above thee, no bredth of mercy be&s;ide thee: Thou a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">o Lord a mo&s;t pure, &s;imple, and eternall beeing; Pure without matter, without form; Simple without mixture, without compo|&s;ition; Eternall, without beginning, without end: no Created being can expre&s;s thee, no imagi|nation conceive thee, no under&s;tanding utter thee: when I think of thee as thou art, the bright beames of thy glory amaze mee; when I con|ceive of thee what thou art not, the terrors of mine own heart affright mee; even but the Lea&s;t thought of this kind is impious, &s;eeing that hereby I do not onely rob thee of thy glo|ry, but even deprive thee of thy &s;elf: and yet Lord, as thy being is mo&s;t high, &s;o is the &s;earch thereof mo&s;t nece&s;&s;ary, becau&s;e from it (as from the ble&s;&s;ed fountain) I enjoy my pre&s;ent, I ex|&s;pect my future happine&s;s; and unto it with joy of heart, and earne&s;tne&s;s of &s;oul, I de&s;ire &s;hould run the current of my prai&s;es in this life, of my Allelujaes in that to come.</P>
<P>When I find (therefore) any Corporall parts appropriated to the Divine nature, I there &s;ee thee gratiou&s;ly de&s;cending to the weakne&s;s of
<PB N="4" REF="11">my frail and infirm nature, and ever ble&s;s thy holy name that vouch&s;afe&s;t to declare thy &s;elf, not as thou art, but as I am: Thine Eye (Lord) is thy Wi&s;dom, thy Right hand thy Power, thy &s;itting thine Immutability, thy Standing thy Fortitude, thine Anger thy Ju&s;tice in pu|ni&s;hing, thy Repentance thy Mercy in pardo|ning, thy Hatred of &s;in thy Holine&s;s, thy grieving thy Loving kindne&s;s, thy Patience and long &s;uffering thy Goodne&s;s; all are thy &s;elf.</P>
<P>Neither is it enough for me to con&s;ider the Divine nature in Unitie of E&s;&s;ence, unle&s;s I go yet further and find a Trinity of Per&s;ons; to be curious in this &s;earch is dangerous, to be care|le&s;s damnable; nothing may be here &s;afely &s;een, but what is gratiou&s;ly revealed: Lord no man can &s;ee thee as thou art in thy &s;elf, &s;uffer mee therefore to &s;ee thee as thou art unto us, that I may know thee, and love thee, and delight in thee, and be for ever known and loved of thee.</P>
<P>If there were not an eternity of being, then it may be truly &s;aid that not being was before being, and &s;o that being had its ri&s;e from-not being, by cau&s;ing it &s;elf to be when it was not; So &s;hould Privation which was eternally evill, produce that glorious being which is eternally good: Seeing this cannot be, it will hence follow, that being was from all eterni|ty, and that this being was eternally Good; for that which was good in the effect, mu&s;t needs be far more eminently good in the cau&s;e. That this eternall good being mu&s;t be al&s;o infinite, becau&s;e eternity it &s;elf is infinite; That this infinite eternall good being, mu&s;t be of infinite power, to continue infinitely; That this infinite power mu&s;t al&s;o bee of infinite under|&s;tanding, to &s;upport and pre&s;erve this eternall
<PB N="5" REF="11">infintie good beeing; and this infinite under|&s;tanding is God.</P>
<P>Where there is an infinite under&s;tanding, there mu&s;t al&s;o be an infinite object to be under&s;tood, els could it not be in&s;initely active, and &s;o &s;hould both eternity and infinitie &s;uffer diminution and become defective, which were for them both to be and not to be, which is impo&s;&s;ible; and &s;eeing there can be no object infinite out of God; therefore this eternall infinite and ever-ble&s;&s;ed object, mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity be God.</P>
<P>Where there is an infinite under&s;tanding, and an infinite object to be under&s;tood, there cannot choo&s;e but be an infinite and eternall love; for from this infinite Under&s;tanding of this infinitely amiable and for ever ble&s;&s;ed object, there mu&s;t needs proceed an infinite delight, whereby it in|finitely injoyeth its own excellency, and eternally reflecteth on the beauty of its own perfection; els this infinite eternall under&s;tanding &s;hould want power to enjoy this infinitely aimiable object, and &s;o &s;hould be neither good, infinite, nor eternall; and this infinite and eternall love is God.</P>
<P>Now becau&s;e this Under&s;tanding, Object, and Love are all infinite, and that what&s;oever is in|finite mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity be God; it will from thence truly and undoubtedly follow, that this under&s;tanding is God, this Object God, and this Love God. And becau&s;e it is as equally impo&s;|&s;ible that there can be any more than one infi|nite, therefore it will as a&s;&s;uredly follow that the&s;e three are one, three in Exi&s;tence, one in E&s;&s;ence, three in Order, one in Eternity; three per&s;ons, one eternall, infinite, glorious, incompre|hen&s;ible, wi&s;e God; to whom be glory for ever. Amen.</P>
<PB N="6" REF="12">
<P>This is that ble&s;&s;ed Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that ineffable, mo&s;t my&s;terious Trinity in Unity, eternally injoying ble&s;&s;edne&s;s in its own E&s;&s;ence; This is that ble&s;&s;ed inter-union of that ever ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, that mo&s;t un&s;peakable, im|mutable, incomprehen&s;ible fruition of eternall joy, at which the ble&s;&s;ed Angells &s;tand amazed, in which the ble&s;&s;ed Saints &s;hall &s;weetly re&s;t them&s;elves for ever.</P>
<P>All this, and infinitely more than this, thou art Lord in thy &s;elf, thy Wi&s;dom, Ju&s;tice, Mercy, Truth, Power, Holine&s;s, and what&s;oever other Attributes thou art pleas'd to take unto thy Di|vine E&s;&s;ence, are unto thee one, although unto us divers; and thou art therefore plea&s;ed diver&s;ly to manife&s;t thy &s;elf unto us, becau&s;e we cannot otherwi&s;e conceive thy being, than according to thine outward working; thy di&s;tinct operations are unto us the divers Indications of thine eter|nall, undivided, and for ever ble&s;&s;ed e&s;&s;ence.</P>
<P>And now Lord, who can &s;ee thee thus and live? I have hitherto &s;een nothing but de&s;tructi|on to my body, amazement to my &s;oul: In thine E&s;&s;ence there is light inacce&s;&s;ible, unto which no mortall eye can approach; in thine at|tributes terror unutterable, from which no mor|tall man can e&s;cape: Thy wi&s;dom trying my corrupt heart, and &s;coarching my &s;infull reines; Thy Ju&s;tice mo&s;t &s;evere, fearfull in the pronun|ciation, dreadfull in the execution; Thy truth admitteth of no alteration; no Judgement pro|nounced but preci&s;ely fullfilled; Heaven and Earth &s;hall pa&s;s away, but not one tittle of thy &s;acred word; Thy Holine&s;s is &s;uch, that even the ble&s;&s;ed Angells are impute in thy &s;ight; what then &s;hall become of me a mi&s;erable wretch, the thoughts of who&s;e heart are only evill, and that
<PB N="7" REF="12">continually? were it not for thy rich mercy, I were lo&s;t for ever; by this alone I am for ever reconcil<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">d unto thee, and &s;hall eternally be ble&s;&s;ed with thee.</P>
<P>I can here with joy un&s;peakable and glorious, behold thee my loving Father affectionately imbracing me in Chri&s;t from all eternity, by the &s;weet working of thy holy Spirit; this is that truly-ble&s;&s;ed vi&s;ion of the &s;acred and my&s;terious Trinity in this life of Grace, that will for ever make me truly happy in that of Glory. Lord, if I find thee not Three in One to my &s;oul's com|fort in this life, I &s;hall never be found of thee to be ble&s;&s;ed in thee in that to come.</P>
<P>Without thy Power it had not been decreed, without thy Wi&s;dom it had never been acted, without thy Love it had never been &s;ini&s;hed: Here in a &s;evere Judge I joyfully behold a mer|cifull Redeemer; In a glorious Divinity a true Humanity, united to the Deity, not mixed with it; Before I had three Per&s;ons in one E&s;&s;ence, here I have two Natures in one Per&s;on, God and Man, one Chri&s;t, in whom, and by whom, I have a joyfull intere&s;t and undoubted union in the Godhead. Here is the Father promi&s;ing, the Son performing, the Holy Spirit confirming. This is alone that ble&s;&s;ed &s;ight of God, that bringeth re&s;t and quietne&s;s to my weary &s;oul: To know him to be my God, to have &s;uffered for my &s;in, and ri&s;en again for my Ju&s;tification. To find him &s;upporting, &s;u&s;taining me in my in|firmaties, relieving my wants, cha&s;ti&s;ing my er|rors, revenging my wrongs, repairing my breaches, directing my wayes, protecting my per|&s;on; wounding, rending, breaking my obdu|rate heart; creating in me a clean heart, and renewing a right Spirit within me; be|moaning,
<PB N="8" REF="13">bewailing mine iniquities; inviting, nay compelling me to mercy and forgivene&s;s.</P>
<P>Seeing now, O my Soul, that Gods being in him&s;elf is incomprehen&s;ible; and his Love in Chri&s;t unutterable; with what Filial fear &s;hould&s;t thou think of him, with what awfulne&s;s name him, with what reverence and preparedne&s;s pray unto him, with what heat of affection love him, with what carefulne&s;s and con&s;cience fear to of|fend him, with what cheerfulne&s;s and holy dili|gence devote thy &s;ervice to him?</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>Seeing that I am utterly unable of my &s;elf to comprehend thee, O let me be graciou&s;ly compre|hended of thee, that corruption may be &s;wallowed up of immortality, and humane frailty of eternall glory.</HI></P>
<P><HI>As thou ha&s;t given me an under&s;tanding in part to know thee, &s;o give me al&s;o affections intirely to love thee, and fixed re&s;olutions to adhere unto thee; that as thou art truly and eternally one in thine E&s;&s;ence, and yet di&s;tinctly three in thy Per&s;ons; &s;o I may be truly and entirely one in my obedience, although di&s;tinctly three in my faculties; that all may be but one, and that a plea&s;ing &s;acrifice of prai&s;es unto thee, of profit unto others, of comfort to my &s;elf.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive my mi&s;conceivings of thy &s;acred E&s;|&s;ence, my ra&s;h approaches to thy heavenly pre&s;ence, my cold, carele&s;s, irreligious thoughts, di&s;tracted words, unde&s;ent actions. Lord, I am &s;ailing on the &s;tormy &s;ea of ignorance and mi&s;ery, O be thou my &s;ure Pilot to direct me, my &s;weet calm to re|fre&s;h me, my &s;afe harbour to receive me; for of thee, and through thee, and to thee, are all things, to thee be glory for ever. Amen.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="9" REF="13">
<HEAD>CHAP. 2. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of Gods Love, and mans Unthankfulne&s;s.</HI></HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">A Meditation &s;uited to the Morning.</HEAD>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I con&s;ider of the richne&s;s, of the largene&s;s, of the con&s;tancy of thy love to man, of mans vilene&s;s and untoward|ne&s;s unto thee his God, I &s;tand amazed at thy goodne&s;s, and mine own unthankfulne&s;s. How great, and invaluable a ble&s;&s;inge do I enjoy in being made partaker of the glorious light of this pre&s;ent day? how vile and unworthy am I that receive it? how great and glorious art thou that give&s;t it? Thou, O Lord, art light inacce&s;&s;ible, unto which no mortall eye can approach; before who&s;e glorious Maje&s;ty the ble&s;&s;ed Angels &s;tand amazed; and I am du&s;t and a&s;hes, yea wor&s;e, Lord, (for du&s;t was thy creation, and therefore in its entity was good) before I was du&s;t I was not at all: This not being, by thee became a being, this being beautifull, this beauty immortall; and without thee this happy being is again be|come far wor&s;e than not to be.</P>
<P>What can be more vain, more empty than no|thing? ah wo is me, I am now become far wor&s;e than nothing; thou mad&s;t me all goodne&s;s, and that goodne&s;s might have made me all ble&s;&s;ed|ne&s;s; but I have made my &s;elf all &s;in, and this &s;in hath made me all mi&s;ery; there was darkne&s;s in not being, but that darkne&s;s was incapable, there is greater darkne&s;s in being ill; for this darkne&s;s is mo&s;t capable of the privation of all light of comfort in this life, of the fruition of
<PB N="10" REF="14">the blackne&s;s of darkne&s;s in hell for ever.</P>
<P>This, Lord, was my condition in nature, and without thy gracious help mu&s;t have been &s;o for ever. Let me now &s;ee what my condition is by Grace, by which I enjoy not only the light of nature (without which my life would prove uncomfortable) but all&s;o a &s;weet and &s;afe a&s;&s;u|rance, that thou wilt by this happy light conduct me &s;afely to the ble&s;&s;ed light of Glory.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, I can now look no way but to happine&s;s, I now find a true &s;weetne&s;s and com|po&s;edne&s;s of &s;oul, a con&s;tant and courageous &s;etledne&s;s of heart, even in the very heighth of all the di&s;turbances of Nature, of all the inun|dations of Sin, of all the fluctuations of Sorrow, of all the Machinations of Satan: from the &s;weet fountain of thy mercy, ari&s;e tho&s;e pretious &s;treames of Con&s;olation, which aboundantly relieve mee in this barren wilderne&s;s.</P>
<P>I find indeed a law in my members, conti|nually rebelling again&s;t the law of my mind, but I find al&s;o thy grace to bee &s;ufficient for mee, by which I am victorious here, and &s;hallbe triumphant hereafter: Satan may &s;trive to win|now mee like wheat, but this &s;hall make mee the purer for thy Granary. I now find a totall and a ble&s;&s;ed change of the whole man; mine affections which formerly were captivated unto &s;in, in|tirely devoted to thy &s;ervice; my love with holy <HI>David</HI> wonderfull to thy law, my hatred per|fect again&s;t &s;in, my de&s;ire eager for thy pre|&s;ence, my fear a&s;toni&s;hing in thine ab&s;ence, my delight in thy promi&s;es ravi&s;hing, my joy in thy performances triumphing.</P>
<P>By the&s;e rich indowments of thine I am wrapt up above the reach of humane mi&s;ery; all vain and empty de&s;ires of the be&s;otting plea&s;ures of
<PB N="11" REF="14">this life appear truly as they are, but thornes and bryars, to di&s;turb the growth of my felici|ty; how &s;weet is their lo&s;s for thy gain? how ea&s;ily, how willingly, how joyfully, how thank|fully, are all the&s;e foggy mi&s;ts of ignorance and error happily di&s;per&s;t, by the bright rayes of my en&s;uing glory.</P>
<P>Be&s;ide the&s;e fawning enemies of Peace which flatter to unquietne&s;s, I am now able to in|counter with tho&s;e other which affright the &s;oul even in their fir&s;t appearance, and are able to deject the carnall man even to a&s;toni&s;hment, and utterly to expo&s;e him to the tyranny of &s;in, and torture of puni&s;hment: &s;uch Lord is the va&s;t difference between the ble&s;&s;ed ones of thy fold, and tho&s;e unhappy ones which &s;tray from thee into the &s;trange pa&s;tures of impiety.</P>
<P>No &s;orrow can &s;urprize mee but for &s;in, and even this too thou make&s;t to increa&s;e my joy: what affliction can be evil which is thy phy&s;ick who art the fountain of all good? if it be grie|vous in the ta&s;t, it is joyous in the effects; If I mark the happy clo&s;e, I mu&s;t with joy confe&s;s, that the&s;e bitter &s;torms wil end in ble&s;&s;ed calms, will bring to my remembrance tho&s;e grievous &s;inns that brought my Saviour to tho&s;e bitter groanes, will force mee from the &s;orrowes of this life, to my Cele&s;tiall harbour, will bring mee on my knees to &s;ee mine own vildne&s;s, will inrich mee with the graces of humilitie, and patience, and together with them the &s;weet injoyments of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit; and if &s;o, how can I complain of want, when in &s;tead of earth I enjoy heaven?</P>
<P>Lord, what can he fear that is a&s;&s;ured of thy favour? afflictions, tribulations, cro&s;&s;es, &s;inns, Sa|tan, Death, hell it &s;elf &s;hall work to mine ad|vantage: as my cro&s;s is more grievous, my crown
<PB N="12" REF="15">&s;hall be more glorious; where &s;in and Satan have been mo&s;t prevailing, there Grace and Goodne&s;s &s;hallbe more triumphing. How truly &s;weet Lord is the inviolable peace of thy &s;aints? who powerfully compelle&s;t even the very rage of earth and hell to work to their advantage. Lord &s;anctifie the trialls of this life unto my &s;infull &s;oul, that by my patient &s;ufferings with my Saviour here, I may have peace with him and by him hereafter.</P>
<P>I have hitherto looked on mine inward hap|pine&s;s; if I now ca&s;t mine eyes upon mine out|ward, I &s;hall there &s;ee that all the&s;e outward ble&s;&s;ings all&s;o are mo&s;t peculiarly belonging to the Saints; the wicked ones of the world are robbers, and &s;hall one day give an account of their theft; children, friends, &s;trangers, even our very enemies, are protected, pre&s;erved, inriched, ble&s;&s;ed for our &s;akes; &s;o was <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> and his bre|thren for <HI>Jacob, Zoar</HI> for <HI>Lot, Potipher</HI> for <HI>Jo&s;eph,</HI> the Centurion and &s;ouldiers for St <HI>Paul:</HI> And if thou (Lord) wilt look &s;o lovingly upon the children of this world for thine elect &s;ake, how gratiou&s;ly wilt thou one day look upon tho&s;e &s;onnes that &s;hall be made partakers of thine own inheritance?</P>
<P>Who would not now bee holy? &s;eeing that in this ble&s;&s;ed condition, there is not only &s;afety inviolable, but peace untterable, &s;afety in life, and &s;weetne&s;s in death.</P>
<P>And now Lord, when I enquire for what cau&s;e thou give&s;t me all this, I find nothing but thy meer love unto me; when I ask what thou re|quire&s;t for all this, I hear thee demand no thing but the return of love: what is more ea&s;y, what more &s;weet than love? and what object more aimable than that glorious being that is the
<PB N="13" REF="15">perfection of al love, &amp; that love the beauty of al perfection? Thou can&s;t not give Lord what thou ha&s;t not, the glory of thy creation is but a glimps of that grater glory of thine e&s;&s;ence; Lord who can deny thee Love? how &s;weet is this yoak, how light this burden! when I love thee I enjoy thee, and my &s;elf in thee, I po&s;&s;e&s;s thee, I re&s;t in thee for ever. O my God, all that thou give&s;t mee, all that thou require&s;t of mee, is to make mee happy, to thee be glory for ever. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>All this I joyfully confe&s;s thou ha&s;t done for mee, and yet the whole cour&s;e of my corrupt life hath been nothing elce but a continued Rebelli|on again&s;t thee: mine Eyes full of Adultery, my tongue of Corrupt communication, my hands of oppre&s;&s;ion, mine eares open to iniquity, my heart full of hypocricy, my feet Lame in thy paths, and &s;wift to walk in the wayes of &s;inners, my whole man nothing elce but the very body of death and de&s;truction.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have &s;inned again&s;t precepts, again&s;t promi|&s;es, again&s;t mercies, again&s;t judgments, again&s;t the checks of mine own con&s;cience, and the ble&s;&s;ed motions of thy holy Spirit; I have even tempted my temptations, by making daily and hourely provi&s;ions for &s;in; and have been &s;o farr from &s;or|rowing for all this, that I have re&s;olved to con|tinue yet &s;till. And yet &s;o great is thy compa&s;&s;ion towards mee, that &s;till thou &s;tore&s;t up new mercies for mee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I bewail my weakne&s;s, I lament my willfulne&s;s, I abhorr my filthine&s;s; I heartily de|&s;ire, and earne&s;tly endeavour to unrip my &s;oul, to ran&s;ack my heart, to unlock the very &s;ecrets of my thoughts, that I may have all my &s;ins con|tinually
<PB N="14" REF="16">before mee, even in their wor&s;t appearan|ces; and I may loath them and leave them, and obtain thy gratious pardon for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I confe&s;&s;e, Lord, that I am utterly unworthy to enjoy this ble&s;&s;ed light, which I have &s;o much abu&s;ed to thy great di&s;honour; much more the light of Grace, by which thou leade&s;t me to that of Glory; and that it were more ju&s;t with thee, for ever to deprive me of the&s;e happy lights, and to expo&s;e me to the terrours of eter|nall darkne&s;&s;e:</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I have finned, and cannot chu&s;e but &s;in; I am a great and grievous &s;inner, and yet I am thy child; have pity upon me, have pity upon me, for I am in mi&s;ery: into the bo&s;ome of thy tender love I thru&s;t my &s;infull &s;oul for &s;afety and protection.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O let not thy ju&s;tice triumph in my ruine, but thy mercy in my deliverance, &s;o &s;halt thou have the glory, and I the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of mine eternall happine&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Hear me, O Lord, and help me, for thy name &s;ake, for thy promi&s;e &s;ake, for thy Sons &s;ake.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="3" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 3. <HI>Vpon the con&s;ideration of Divine Provi|dence.</HI></HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">A Meditation for Noon.</HEAD>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P>WIthout thy holy providence no creature can &s;ub&s;i&s;t, by thine Allmighty power they were created out of nothing, and if thou &s;hould&s;t not &s;u&s;tain them, they
<PB N="15" REF="16">mu&s;t needs return to nothing: how wi&s;ely, how wonderfully doe&s;t thou guide and govern the&s;e inferiour creatures? All things are at once di&s;po&s;ed of by thee, and move &s;ucce&s;&s;ively to their appointed ends: but above all, how gra|tiou&s;ly ha&s;t thou provided for the good of man? what varieties of food, how &s;ecretly, how &s;weet|ly di&s;po&s;ed it to &s;u&s;tentation? No creature can be nouri&s;hing without thee, and with thee I enjoy not onely nutriment, but delectation: how &s;weet is this thy goodne&s;&s;e to my body? how much more &s;weet thy mercy to my &s;oul? and if thy temporall refre&s;hments are &s;o good, how ravi&s;hing is that cele&s;tiall food, with which thy Saints and Angels are delighted?</P>
<P>Lord, how unde&s;erving am I of the&s;e thy many favours? Thou give&s;t rain to the earth, and it becometh fruitfull; thou loade&s;t me daily with thy ble&s;&s;ings, and loe I am unthank<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="3 letters"> even tho&s;e creatures that are in&s;en&s;ible, are daily nouri&s;ht into augmentation, and man alone, whom thou ha&s;t made to live for ever, con|tents him&s;elf with daily diminution.</P>
<P>This wofully appears by my deadne&s;s and dul|ne&s;s in my Chri&s;tian calling, by my back wardne&s;s to Holy Duties, by my carele&s;ne&s;&s;e and coldne&s;&s;e in prayer, wearine&s;&s;e in reading, irkomene&s;&s;e in meditation, by my faint Hope, &s;ick Faith, luke-warm Love, frozen Charity, lame Pati|ence, langui&s;hing Zeal, and all tho&s;e other vi|&s;ible decayes of Goodne&s;s, which are none o|ther than the very &s;ymptomes of a dying &s;oul.</P>
<P>Ah now, Lord, how mi&s;erably deformed mu&s;t I needs appear in thy fight, that am thus ugly in mine own! Thou that had&s;t compa&s;&s;ion on me when I was in my blood, and then &s;aid&s;t un|to me, Live; that ha&s;t wa&s;hed me clean from
<PB N="16" REF="17">&s;in and pollution, and e&s;pou&s;ed me into thine own bolom, wilt thou all&s;o love me in death? Wilt thou court me in the grave? How ju&s;tly mighte&s;t thou for ever leave me to mine own ruin, that can &s;o ea&s;ily, &s;o willingly for&s;ake thee, for the plea&s;ures of &s;in; and yet how &s;weetly, how affectionately doe&s;t thou order all things for me? Even my very &s;ins invite me to a more happy, to a nearer Union with thee.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee therefore, O my God, the life of my life, the very being, and a&s;&s;ured comfort of my &s;infull &s;oul, and wretched body, do I addre&s;s my &s;elf for mercy and forgivene&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I confe&s;s my &s;elf unworthy of thy gracious providence in &s;u&s;taining this frail and infirm body, much more unworthy (O Lord) of thine un&s;peakable love, in reviving, relieving, imbra|cing my deformed &s;oul.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, who am I of whom thou art thus tenderly compa&s;&s;ionate? When I was in the womb I was defiled with &s;in, when I came out of it I was covered with &s;hame; the World bewitched me, the Fle&s;h be&s;otted me, the Devill beguiled me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, when no eye pittied me, then thou bad&s;t mercy on me; and now at la&s;t when I am run from thee, when I have adulterated my fir&s;t Love, when I am become poor and wretched, and mi&s;erable, and blind, and naked, thou freely forgive&s;t me, thou calle&s;t me thy fair one, and give&s;t me thy love.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O my God, I admire thy Goodne&s;s, I deplore and abhor mine own wretchedne&s;s; O let the &s;weetne&s;s of thy love in Chri&s;t, inflame the dying sparks of my benummed &s;oul to prai&s;e thee with|out cea&s;ing.</HI></P>
<PB N="17" REF="17">
<P><HI>Expatiatc my narrow thoughts, with day'y contemplation of my heavenly home, with joyfull expectation of the &s;weet fruition of Eternity; O give me &s;uch a ble&s;sed rapta&s;ie of &s;oul, that I may live above the reach of humane mi&s;ery, and reign with thee hereafter in immortall glory.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="4" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 4. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of the &s;infulne&s;s, &s;hortne&s;s, and uncertaintie of life.</HI></HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">A Meditation &s;uited to the Evening.</HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I call to mind how many daies have pa&s;t me without bending of a knee, how many nights I have gone prayerle&s;s to bed, I may well wonder that I am this hour a|live to &s;peak unto thee: I have been too un|mindfull of thy holy providence, and am there|fore utterly unworthy of thy mercifull protecti|on: Few, and full of evill have my dayes been in the hou&s;e of my pilgrimage, I know not how &s;oon I may goe hence, and yet I &s;till live as if I knew not why I came hither.</P>
<P>I am many wayes invited to my heavenly home; how &s;weetly doe&s;t thou wean from the mi&s;eries of life, by the ble&s;&s;edne&s;s of death! By this Evenings re&s;t of my body I am put in mind of that eternall re&s;t of my &s;oul: This dayes ending tells me that the end of all things is at hand, that the fa&s;hion of this world pa&s;s|eth, and that all things &s;hall become new: As
<PB N="18" REF="18">this hour is the Evening to this day, &s;o this day (for ought I know) may be the Evening to my whole life; I cannot challenge to my &s;elf one minute more; how vain am I to promi&s;e dayes and years? Lord, in the whole current of thy Sacred Story I find but onely one, that dur&s;t pre&s;ume upon &s;o large a reckoning, and him thou brande&s;t with the name of Fool: Let his folly (Lord) be my in&s;truction, &s;o &s;hall I ac|count each day my la&s;t, and neither care to live, nor fear to dye.</P>
<P>How many have been &s;nacht out of this life, how &s;uddenly, and to mans eye how fearfully? How un&s;peakable is thy mercy unto me to &s;pare me for repentonce? how often and how earne&s;t|ly ha&s;t thou invited me to mercy how coldly and how carele&s;ly have I refu&s;ed the&s;e thy gra|cious offers? &s;till I &s;in, and &s;till thou forgive&s;t, and (which is the height of my impiety) I therefore am more and more evill again&s;t thee, becau&s;e thou art more and more gracious unto me; and it were now mo&s;t ju&s;t with thee, even this very moment, to put a period to my &s;infull life.</P>
<P>Lord, Let this teach me to improve the &s;hort remnant of my dayes to thy &s;ervice, and that I may endeavour &s;o to doe, I will pre&s;cribe my &s;elf the&s;e following rules.</P>
<P>Each evening &s;hall take a &s;trict account of that dayes traffique for my &s;oul, and where I find my &s;elf a lo&s;er, I will labour for &s;upply. When I awake, my fir&s;t thoughts &s;hall begin with thee, from whom I have my fir&s;t being: Nothing will more truly repre&s;ent me to my &s;elf, than the fir&s;t view of mine affections; if my fir&s;t thoughts be &s;ea&s;oned with grace, my fol|lowing actions will &s;avour of goodne&s;s. My
<PB N="19" REF="18">care &s;hall be more to dre&s;s my &s;oul, than to trim my body; I will think no pains too great, no ornaments too rich to make her beautifull. One devout &s;igh from a contrite heart, is of more worth (in thy &s;ight) than an hours task of Lip-devotion. My affections are the &s;oul of my words, without which, I &s;peak onely, but pray not: when my prayers are cold, my hopes may well be comfortle&s;s. My &s;et hours for De|votion &s;hall be con&s;tant; no pretence of nature &s;hall debar me of this happine&s;s: The Lovers eyes are often glancing on the plea&s;ing object that delights him; if my affections be &s;incere, my looks will be amorous, I &s;hall often &s;teal a &s;weet Ejaculation to &s;atisfie the longing of my Love-&s;ick &s;oul. When I can thus bring the day to an end, my life will be comfortable, my death happy, and I may then &s;ay with holy <HI>David,</HI> that <HI>I will lay me down in peace, and take my re&s;t, for it is thou Lord onely that make&s;t me dwel in &s;afety.</HI></P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, in the morning of my Creation thou gave&s;t me unto my &s;elf, in the evening of my Redemption thou gave&s;t thy &s;elf unto me: My Creation was wonderfull, my Redemption a&s;toni&s;hing. As this dayes light is ob&s;cured for the re&s;t of my body, &s;o wert thou the blefied and eternall Light for the re&s;t of my &s;oul. Thou, O ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, art my light to direct me, my heat to comfort me, my &s;weet and &s;afe repo&s;e e|ternally to refre&s;h me.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Gracious God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>With humble and dejected heart I ask for|givene&s;s of the many failings of my &s;infud life pa&s;t, recall my &s;infull thoughts to my re|membrance: Lord, as the burthen of them is
<PB N="20" REF="19">intollerable, &s;o let my grief for them be unut|terable.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, open mine eyes that I may &s;ee the foulnes, and the filthine&s;s of &s;in, and apprebend the great|ne&s;s of thy wrath again&s;t it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive tho&s;e actuall &s;ins which this dayes light hath witne&s;&s;ed; Lord, give me a godly &s;or|row for them, a perfect batred again&s;t them, a fixed and a con&s;tant re&s;olution to for&s;ake them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, clean&s;e me from my &s;ecret and unknown &s;ins, and keep me, for thy mercy &s;ake, that da|ring and pre&s;umptuous &s;ins may never have domi|nion over me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Make me a carefull Steward of that pretious time which thou haft given me, withdraw my affections from the vain plea&s;ures of this &s;infull life, and grant that all the dayes of my appointed time I may wait readily and chearfully untill my change &s;hall come.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="5" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 5. <HI>Upon our approaching unto Gods Hou&s;e.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>THere is no mortall man worthy to &s;tand at thy door, much le&s;s to appear in thy pre|&s;ence; and yet how often have I pre&s;umed to approach unto thee without that prepared|ne&s;s of heart, without that dejection of &s;oul, without that true and holy reverence that be|cometh thy child.</P>
<P>I am now going out of <HI>Egypt</HI> into <HI>Canaan,</HI> out of Bondage into Freedom: The &s;infull troubles
<PB N="21" REF="19">of this life are my &s;ouls Taskma&s;ters, to load it with a burthen in&s;upportable, and this is that place of &s;acrifi&s;e, that Mount of God, to ea&s;e and &s;olace it.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider therefore, O my &s;oul, in what relati|on thou now &s;tande&s;t to thy God: If thou art a true I&s;raelite, thou wilt look back upon thy drudgery, and de&s;pi&s;e it, and offer up thy &s;elf a living &s;acrifice with cheerfulne&s;s, with thankful|ne&s;s of heart. If thou art Gods child, thou wilt love to be in Gods hou&s;e; Long for Gods pre|&s;ence, thir&s;t for his favour, delight in his Word, and rejoyce to be often at his Table: Thou wilt make it thy chie&s;e&s;t joy to be often in that place, from whence thou may&s;t expect thy chief|e&s;t good.</P>
<P>Lord (by thy grace a&s;&s;i&s;ting) I will now un|cloath my &s;elf of all earthly affections, I will call to mind unto who&s;e pre&s;ence I approach, and wherefore; that I am going from this Church Militant, to that Triumphant; that thou, Lord, art as truly pre&s;ent here in Grace, as there in Glory (unle&s;s therefore I am in love with mi&s;ery) I will leave behind me all earthly|mindedne&s;s, and carry with me a pure heart, and heavenly thoughts, a lowly mind, and re|verend ge&s;ture. Lord, if I go not cheerfully to thy Throne of Grace, I may well fear I &s;hall never go joyfully to that of Glory.</P>
<P>The lowe&s;t room in thy Hou&s;e &s;hall content me, Divine Wor&s;hip admitteth not of di&s;parity of per&s;ons; we are all &s;inners, and (as we are in nature) mo&s;t impure in thy &s;ight, the wor&s;t room in thy Hou&s;e is too good even for the be&s;t of us, yet decency of place may be taken with mode&s;ty, if not &s;ought with emulation.</P>
<P>During the time of this holy di&s;pen&s;ation, I
<PB N="22" REF="20">will call my thoughts unto a &s;trict attendance; and make it part of my precedent prayer, that I may. Satan is ever mo&s;t bu&s;ie, when our in|tentions are mo&s;t holy; which when he cannot divert, he labours to corrupt, and by this means when I de&s;ire to grow better, I become wor&s;e. How carefull ought I to be to avoyd his cunning, who can couzen me in my be&s;t actions?</P>
<P>My &s;oul &s;hall more delight it &s;elf with the matter, than my ears with the melody of thy &s;acred Notes: Church-mu&s;ick will be then tru|ly &s;weet unto me, when mine outward joy is &s;ub&s;ervient to mine inward.</P>
<P>Mans &s;infull weakne&s;s &s;hall not make me &s;light thy holy Ordinance: If my Pa&s;tor have failings, I will pity, and pray for him, but not de&s;pi&s;e him. If I look into mine own &s;oul, I &s;hall there find work enough to repair mine own ruins. This, Lord, &s;hall rather move me to extoll thy mercy, in upholding mine own &s;teps, to lament the &s;adne&s;s of my Brothers mi|&s;ery. Lord, let me never think my &s;elf better than another, becau&s;e I know not how &s;oon I may become wor&s;e.</P>
<P>I &s;hall willingly continue in that Fold where thou ha&s;t placed me, and hope to remain there with comfort, till thou &s;halt lead me out with &s;afety. While I am at thy feeding, I am happy; one of thy mor&s;els well dige&s;ted with humility and thankfulne&s;s, will yeeld me better nouri&s;h|ment than that other food of mine own finding. The very meane&s;t of thy Mini&s;ters may afford me Patience, and that heavenly Grace, with thy ble&s;&s;ing to boot, is a great advantage. If I receive thy Sacred Word with cheerfulne&s;s, with earne&s;tne&s;s of heart, my obedience &s;hall be accepted, my zeal rewarded.</P>
<PB N="23" REF="20">
<P>While I am within thy walls, I &s;hall account that ge&s;ture mo&s;t decent that is mo&s;t humble, and tho&s;e ceremonies mo&s;t nece&s;&s;ary that are mo&s;t &s;uitable to obedience; all matters of Do|ctrine (which are nece&s;&s;ary to &s;alvation) ought to be guided by thy &s;acred Word, which is the onely rule of faith; all matters of Di&s;cipline, (which are nece&s;&s;ary onely to obedience) are therefore left to thy Churches care: that as thou art one, &s;o thy Church may be one, in that ble&s;&s;ed union of love; which is the bond of peace.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>And now, O Lord, if thou &s;halt call me to a &s;trict account for all my mi&s;demeanours in thy &s;acred Wor&s;hip, with what confu&s;ion of face mu&s;t <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">needs appear before thee?</HI></P>
<P><HI>How many evill &s;ugge&s;tions, how many idle imaginations, how many &s;infull objects have I often entertained, to divert my thoughts from thy &s;ervice?</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have too often &s;inned in ab&s;enting thy Hou&s;e, but more often and more grievou&s;ly in frequenting it, by coming carele&s;ly and out of cu&s;tome, by un|be&s;eeming ge&s;tures, cold prayers, heartle&s;&s;e hear|ing, profane &s;coffing, curious cen&s;uring, and even in the be&s;t of my performances, by &s;erving thee my God by halves; all this I heartily be|wail, and earne&s;tly de&s;ire thy pardon and forgive|ne&s;&s;e for it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, let this daies re&s;t of my body, bring to my remembrance that eternall re&s;t of my &s;oul; let me not now think mine own thoughts, &s;peak mine own words, doe mine own actions, but come before thee with a &s;anctified and humble &s;oul, with a wounded and contrite &s;pirit.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Repell all evill &s;ugge&s;tions, remove all idle
<PB N="24" REF="21">imaginations, divert all &s;infull objects; enlighten mine under&s;tanding, rectify my will, &s;trengthen my memory, &s;ubdue mine affections, that I may rejoyce in thy love, delight in thy law, long for thy pre&s;ence, rely on thy promi&s;es, thir&s;t for thy grace, and be for ever ble&s;&s;ed in thy glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="6" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 6. <HI>Upon our returning from Gods Hou&s;e, and the neglect of private duties.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>HE that knoweth thee, will undoubtedly de|light to &s;erve thee; if I call thy Sabbath a delight, my thoughts in this day will be pure, my words gratious, mine actions holy: That &s;oul which cannot joyfully familiarize it &s;elf with thee in this life, may well be fearfull to be &s;een of thee in that to come.</P>
<P>When I &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider what a rich favour I enjoy, how great a di&s;tance I am at from thee my God, how &s;weet a mercy thou afforde&s;t me to &s;peak unto thee, I cannot but confe&s;&s;e mine own unworthine&s;&s;e, if I regard not what I hear, if I rejoyce not to recall thy ble&s;&s;ed words to my remembrance.</P>
<P>How dreadfull was that voyce that &s;pake in thunder! and how &s;evere the words that then were &s;poken! how ble&s;&s;ed is this &s;till mu&s;ick of the Go&s;pell! and how delightfull to my wound|ed &s;pirit! Lord, let this rai&s;e my &s;oul above the reach of earthly vanities, let this encourage me to heavenly chearfullne&s;&s;e in heavenly duties,
<PB N="25" REF="21">to be joyfull in reading, fervent in prayer, fre|quent in meditation, con&s;tant in all: That knowledg wil make wofully wi&s;e, which teacheth me to know, and not to do thy will: Meditation is the life of Hearing, Practice the life of Me|ditation, and a &s;incere heart the life of Pra|ctice.</P>
<P>When I look into my life pa&s;t, I find it to be all &s;in; when I con&s;ider of my life pre&s;ent, I cannot but confe&s;&s;e it to be all &s;hame; I am &s;till &s;o far from growing better, that I am become much wor&s;e; this is that ble&s;&s;ed day which con|cerneth my peace, if I embrace not this happy opportunity, I may ju&s;tly fear the&s;e gratious offers will be hid for ever from mine eyes: each word that I heard thy day is of weight; if I be|come not more holy by my heavenly improve|ments by it, I &s;hall certainly become &s;infull by my carele&s;&s;e neglecting of it. Thy work, O Lord, will have its end, and this end (either to my happine&s;&s;e or ruine) &s;hall a&s;&s;uredly pro|mote thy glory; there is no vacuity in nature, with thee, the God of nature, there can be none.</P>
<P>Think therefore, O my &s;oul, that this daies in&s;truction may be thy la&s;t (as thou hope&s;t) for heaven, let it not pa&s;&s;e thee without &s;ome pro|fit: Con&s;ider &s;eriou&s;ly how many millions of worlds one lo&s;t &s;oul would give to be re&s;tored to thy condition; that to morrow thou maye&s;t be as one of them, and then judge how great will be thy folly, how wofull thy mi&s;ery; if thou trifle&s;t with tho&s;e &s;acred coun&s;els which con|cern thy re&s;t.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou God of infinite compa&s;&s;ions, look not upon tho&s;e infinite failings of my &s;infull nature,
<PB N="26" REF="22">but behold me in the beauty and perfection of thy ble&s;&s;ed Son.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Teach me, O Lord, to &s;ee the rebellion of mine own wicked heart, by his perfect obedience, my &s;infulne&s;&s;e by his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, my mi&s;ery by his mercy.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive my many and &s;infull compliances of nature, which have made me a &s;tranger to thy graces, and mine own happine&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The great neglect of mine obedience unto thy commands, hath ju&s;tly called for the great and heavy load of mine afflictions; the carele&s;&s;e withdrawing of mine affections from thee my God, hath occa&s;ioned the &s;ad departings of thy holy Spirit from me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O that my lo&s;&s;e of tears might now prevail with thee, to repair the lo&s;&s;e of thy pre&s;ence in my &s;infull &s;oul: Lord let the greatne&s;&s;e of my folly in &s;inning, extoll the richne&s;&s;e of thy mercy in forgiving.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;tore me to the joy of thy &s;alvation, and &s;tabli&s;h me with thy free Spirit, &s;o &s;hall I have the comfort, and thou the prai&s;e of my de|liverance.</HI></P>
<P><HI>If thou, Lord, wilt give me under&s;tanding to delight in thy Law, I &s;hall all&s;o have a &s;weet a&s;&s;urance, that thou wilt delight in me to doe me good.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Accept of my de&s;ires, &s;trengthen my endea|vours, perfect my performances, pardon my weakne&s;&s;e, a&s;&s;i&s;t my willingne&s;&s;e, forgive my &s;in|fulne&s;&s;e, nouri&s;h the good motions of thy holy Spirit in me, and for thy mercies &s;ake remove all dangers and temptations from me; that when the &s;hort and wretched race of my imperfect holine&s;&s;e is ended here, I may &s;olemnize that eternall Sabbath with thy ble&s;&s;ed Saints and An|gels
<PB N="27" REF="22">in thy Kingdome, and re&s;t with thee in the perfection of true happine&s;&s;e for ever.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="7" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 7. <HI>Upon the want of due Preparation for re|ceiving of the ble&s;&s;ed Sacrament of the Lords Supper.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I look upon the ine&s;timable value of that gift which I am this day to re|ceive, when I con&s;ider of the Maje&s;tie of thee the Giver, of the mi&s;ery of me the Re|ceiver, of the va&s;t difference between corruption and eternity, of thy &s;trict commands for pre|paration to the Pa&s;&s;cover under thy Law, of thy ble&s;&s;ed precepts for due receiving of thy Sacra|ment under the Go&s;pell, of thine own example in wa&s;hing thy Di&s;ciples feet, and thereby &s;ym|bolizing the eternall wa&s;hing of their &s;ouls; of thy Saints practice in their &s;olemn prepara|tions unto holine&s;&s;e, by pulling off their &s;hoes when they approached thy pre&s;ence; of thy &s;e|vere judgements again&s;t <HI>&V;zza,</HI> for heedle&s;&s;e touching of thine Ark; again&s;t the <HI>Beth&s;hemites,</HI> for curiou&s;ne&s;&s;e in looking in; again&s;t tho&s;e ra&s;h <HI>Corinthians,</HI> whereof (for want of holy pre|paration) &s;ome were weak, &s;ome &s;ick, &s;ome fallen a&s;leep; and la&s;tly, of that dreadfull &s;entence again&s;t unworthy commers to thy Wedding Fea&s;t, pronounced by thine own mouth, I tremble at my bold approaches to thy ble&s;&s;ed Table, I wonder at thy goodne&s;&s;e that I am yet alive to &s;ay there is yet mercy with thee, that thou may&s;t be &s;cared.</P>
<PB N="28" REF="23">
<P>How many ble&s;&s;ed opportunities of coming to thy Table have I &s;infully neglected! How many abu&s;ed, by my &s;infull re&s;ort thither, by my wandring and idle thoughts there, by my wicked and profane actions after I returned thence!</P>
<P>Lord, wilt thou &s;till &s;uffer me to abu&s;e thy goodne&s;&s;e? How long Lord, how long &s;hall I wander in the&s;e wofull waies of wickedne&s;&s;e? I am weary of the &s;ins and mi&s;eries of this life, and willing to embrace this heavenly comfort for my &s;oul. I confe&s;&s;e my &s;elf a great and grievous &s;inner, and yet I know Lord, thou came&s;t not to call the righteous, but &s;inners to repentance: I am hungry, and poor, and blind, and naked, and mi&s;erable, de&s;titute of all hope, of all help, but from thee alone; Lord I am unworthy of thy crums, yet thou admitte&s;t me to thy Table; the &s;infulne&s;&s;e of my corrupt na|ture hath made a wofull &s;eparation between us, but the richne&s;&s;e of thy &s;ufferings hath for ever made a &s;weet conjunction of us; all my &s;ins are thine, all thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is mine, thou art now my well-beloved, and I am thy cho&s;en one, and in this ble&s;&s;ed Union is my &s;weet and &s;afe repo&s;e for ever.</P>
<P>Who can enough deplore that more than wofull &s;eparation? Who can enough admire this more than wonderfull conjunction? this more than happy reconciliation? Here is Ju&s;tice undeniable, Mercy incomprehen&s;ible, Wi&s;dome unutterable, Love unimitable.</P>
<P>O let my &s;oul now lo&s;e it &s;elf in the un|known paths of heavenly contemplation; let me this day apprehend thee (O my Saviour) fa&s;ting, praying, weeping, groaning, &s;weating, bleeding, fainting, dying, for my &s;ake, and
<PB N="29" REF="23">now pleading to my God for mercy for me: Let me now ta&s;t the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of that mercy by a lively faith, the fulne&s;&s;e of this &s;weetue&s;&s;e by a ble&s;&s;ed hope, the fruition of this fulne&s;&s;e by eternall love.</P>
<P>Lord how unworthy am I of the&s;e embraces, if I bewail not, if I abhor not, if I for&s;ake not all the wretched failings of my &s;infull life pa&s;t; if I rejoyce not with joy un&s;peakable, and glo|rious, to be admitted to &s;o great a mercy; if this inflame not mine affections with un&s;potted love to thee my God, with earne&s;t longings for thy pre&s;ence of Grace in this life, of Glory in that to come?</P>
<P>And now, Lord, &s;ince thou in thy rich love ha&s;t freely forgiven me my pounds, I will all&s;o mo&s;t willingly and heartily forgive my brother his pence; I will have nothing to doe with malice, that had &s;o much need of mercy: I will unfeignedly, and freely, and fully for|give all injuries on earth; I will love all tho&s;e that hate me, and pray for all tho&s;e that de|&s;pightfully u&s;e me; and all this for thy &s;ake who ha&s;t freely loved me, and layd down thy life for me, to whom be Glory for ever. <HI>A|men.</HI></P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>Look down in mercy and compa&s;&s;ion on me thy poor di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;uppliant, whom thou now vouch&s;afe&s;t to admit unto thy heavenly Banquet; Illuminate my blindne&s;s by the ble&s;&s;ed light of thy mo&s;t &s;acred Word, &s;atisfie my hunger with the &s;weet refre&s;hings of thy gracious pre&s;ence, in|rich my poverty, with the gifts and graces of thy holy Spirit; cover my nakedne&s;s with the pre|cious robes of thine own righteou&s;ne&s;s; &s;wallow
<PB N="30" REF="24">up the depth of my mi&s;ery by the height of thy mercy, that I may this day appear before thee with a &s;incere heart, and happy &s;oul.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, &s;trengthen and &s;upport my feeble faith, make me joyfully to tru&s;t in thee, con&s;tantly to re|ly upon thee, thankfully to &s;acrifi&s;e my &s;oul in prai&s;es to thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>&V;ouch&s;afe, dear Lord, that I may worthily approach thy ble&s;&s;ed Table, that I may this day be &s;o united to thee, that all my joy and com|fort may hereafter bee for ever with thee.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="8" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 8. <HI>Containing pious Ejaculations at the time of Receiving.</HI></HEAD>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P>Lord,</P>
<P><HI>THis art that ble&s;&s;ed Bread by which my &s;oul is nouri&s;ht to eternall life; thou art that fruitfull Vine from which doth flow tho&s;e gladding comforts to my fainting &s;pirit.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou wert broken for my &s;ins, thou wert brui&s;ed for my tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, and the cha&s;ti&s;e|ment of my peace was upon thee: Lord, by thy &s;tripes let my &s;infull &s;oul be healed.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou tooke&s;t into thy hand the cup of trem|bling, thou dranke&s;t out the very dregs thereof, and thy precious blood was poured out like water for my &s;ake.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Sweet Je&s;us &s;u&s;tain me by this Bread, refre&s;h me with this Wine, recover me with this Po|tion, clean&s;e me by this Effu&s;ion; that I may
<PB N="31" REF="24">this day receive joyfully, return thankfully, live righteou&s;ly, and dye happily.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="9" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 9. <HI>Containing a brief Meditation, and pious Thanksgiving after our Receiving.</HI></HEAD>
<P>I Am this day joyfully delivered from the bondage of Sin and Satan, and happily re|&s;tored unto the glorious liberty of the &s;ons of God; I have relli&s;hed the &s;weetne&s;s of his hea|venly promi&s;es, and received the &s;eal of his gra|cious performances; I now enjoy that ble&s;&s;ed Peace of God w^c^h pa&s;&s;eth all our under&s;tanding. My deliverance is wonderful, my freedom ab&s;o|lute, my peace unalterable, my joy unutterable: My con&s;cience is now quieted, my &s;pirit ravi&s;h|ed, mine enemies vanqui&s;hed, and my God wel|plea&s;ed.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee therefore, O thou ble&s;&s;ed Fountain of eternall &s;weetne&s;s, do I addre&s;s my joyfull &s;oul, to love and honour thee to my lives end. Lord Je&s;us accept of me, and &s;o powerfully and gra|ciou&s;ly a&s;&s;i&s;t me, that I may &s;avingly behold thee in thy ble&s;sed promi&s;es, that I may happily enjoy thee in thy holy Ordinances; that I may clearly &s;ee, and joyfully confe&s;s what great things thou ha&s;t done for my poor &s;oul; that I may be dayly ravi&s;hed with apprehen&s;ion of thine exceeding love, and hourly hu&s;ied with recounting thy end|le&s;s prai&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me to for&s;ake the &s;ins and mi&s;eries of this life; make me more watchful over my corrupt heart, more zealous of thy glory and thy chil|drens
<PB N="32" REF="25">good; that I may never willingly offend thee, but wholly &s;acrifi&s;e the &s;hort remainder of my dayes unto thee; that &s;o my heart and my fle&s;h may triumphantly rejoice in thee the living God.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Mortifie my corruptions, &s;upport my weakne&s;s, accept my willingne&s;s: Let this my humiliation before thee be a plea&s;ing &s;acrifice unto thee, for his alone &s;ake who&s;e precious life thy rich mer|cie hath &s;acrifi&s;ed to thy Ju&s;tice for me. Lord hear me, and have mercy on me for his alone &s;ake whom thou ha&s;t freely given unto me, that I may truly love thee, devoutly &s;erve thee, earne&s;tly im|brace thee, eternally enjoy thee.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="10" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 10. <HI>Upon a Journey undertaken, and the many dangers incident thereunto.</HI></HEAD>
<P>I Am now going from mine own home, and know not whether I &s;hall ever return; God I know hath &s;et a p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">riod to my dayes, beyond which I cannot pa&s;s, but when, or where, or how my life &s;hall end, I am uncertain. Many are the dangers that attend this &s;infull life, and many more my &s;ins that have de&s;erv'd them, I can neither number the one, nor fore&s;ee the o|ther; this is the wretched, and the &s;ad con|dition of my body, and (without unfeigned &s;or|row for my &s;ins) the much more wofull ca&s;e of my di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;oul.</P>
<P>Lord, there is nothing &s;o &s;weet as thy love, nothing &s;o &s;afe as thy protection, and yet I have carele&s;&s;y neglected the one, and thou may&s;t now ju&s;tly deny me the other; thou ha&s;t woed
<PB N="33" REF="25">me to mercy, and I have refu&s;ed to come; thou ha&s;t graciou&s;ly invited me by thy continuall pre&s;ervations, by thy fatherly &s;u&s;tentations, by thy gentle corrections, by thy faithfull promi|&s;es, and thy rich performances.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, how wonderfull are thy com|pa&s;&s;ions towards me, when I am unthankfull for thy many favours, when I am unmindfull of mine own mi&s;eries, even then thou graciou&s;ly provide&s;t for me, and yet for all this I have not hitherto re&s;olved &s;eriou&s;ly to come unto thee.</P>
<P>Such, and &s;o many are my &s;ins, &s;o great is my unthankfulne&s;s, that I now tremble to appear before thee; and yet &s;o tender is thy mercy to me, that thou again allure&s;t me to comfort and contentment. Lord, into the ble&s;&s;ed bo&s;om of thy love I ca&s;t my &s;elf for &s;afety and pro|tection; and in the mid&s;t of danger, even in death it &s;elf will joyfuliy rely upon thee.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>For thou, O Lord, art my &s;trong rock and for|tre&s;s, unto which I will alwaies re&s;ort: Lord keep me as the apple of thine eye, hide me under the &s;haddow of thy wings.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Strengthen my weak faith again&s;t the &s;trong a&s;&s;aults of Satan; &s;upport and comfort me in all the fears and terrors of mine own accu&s;ing con|&s;cience; protect and keep me in this pre&s;ent journey; let thy holy Angels be my ble&s;&s;ed Guar|dians, to protect me in life, to pre&s;erve me in death, to a&s;&s;i&s;t me after death.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O let me never grieve tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed Spirits (which though invi&s;ibly, yet mo&s;t a&s;&s;uredly are my attendants) Lord, as thou ha&s;t given them ready|ne&s;s and cheerfulne&s;s of mind to watch my pre&s;er|vation, and further my &s;alvation, &s;o give me
<PB N="34" REF="26">carefulne&s;s and con&s;tancy of &s;oul to joy them in my life and conver&s;ation.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And &s;eeing, Lord, I cannot know my hour of di&s;&s;olution, O teach me &s;o to number my days, that I may apply my heart unto heavenly wi&s;dom; that I may obtain a &s;weet a&s;&s;urance of thy love in Chri&s;t; unfeigned &s;orrow for my &s;ins, a &s;in|cere and con&s;tant heart to thy &s;ervice, and a cheer|full readine&s;s at thy call.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="11" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 11. <HI>Containing pious Meditations, and zea|lous Ejaculations after a Journey.</HI></HEAD>
<P>I Am now by Gods gracious providence retur|ned &s;afe unto mine earthly home, but am &s;till travelling to my heavenly: There is nothing in this life but labour and &s;orrow, nothing in that but re&s;t and happine&s;s, and yet I dote upon the one, and neglect the other. Lord, if my trea|&s;ure were with thee, my heart would be there all&s;o: When thou give&s;t me more knowledge of thee, I &s;hall have more de&s;ire to come unto thee; When my &s;ins have made me more &s;en|&s;ible of mine own mi&s;ery, thy Grace (I tru&s;t) will make me more capable of thy &s;weet mercy.</P>
<P>Lord, if this vain unquietne&s;s be &s;o refre&s;h|ing to my mortall body, how truly ble&s;&s;ed will thy heavenly re&s;t be to mine immortall &s;oul? When thou, Lord, wilt wipe away all tears from mine eyes, all akings from my heart; when there &s;hall be no more death, neither &s;or|row, nor crying, nor any more pain; when &s;oul and body &s;hall triumphantly and joyfully
<PB N="35" REF="26">repo&s;e them&s;elves in thee for ever: when they &s;hall drink freely of the rivers of thy plea|&s;ures, and be for ever &s;atisfied with the fatne&s;s of thy hou&s;e.</P>
<P>I confe&s;s my &s;elf unworthy to enjoy this out|ward re&s;t in this mine earthy home, much more unworthy to enjoy that inward re&s;t, that &s;weet a&s;&s;urance of a lively hope, to be partaker of e|ternall re&s;t. How wretched is my body without this outward quietne&s;s? How much more wre ched is my &s;oul without thee? Thou, O Lord, art my &s;hield to defend me, my &s;taff to uphold me, my food to &s;u&s;tain me, my wine to glad me, my beloved to embrace me, my plea|&s;ure to delight me, my joy to ravi&s;h me, my &s;weet and &s;ate repo&s;e for ever to refre&s;h me.</P>
<P>Let this teach me (Lord) to fix my thoughts on heaven and heavenly things; to u&s;e this world &s;oberly in thee and to thee; to view it (truly as it is) a barren wilderne&s;s, a tran&s;i|tory, vain, and empty thing; far incon&s;i&s;tent with my reall happine&s;s; to de&s;ire nothing, to enjoy nothing in the creature, but onely in, and unto thee the great Creator; &s;o &s;hall no vain plea&s;ure bewitch me, no unju&s;t profit beguil me; no &s;udden &s;orrow di&s;may me, no terrors of con&s;cience affright me.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee, O thou &s;overaign of my &s;oul, do I de|vote the remnant of my &s;infull dayes, to love thee, to prai&s;e thee, to honour thee, to re&s;t in thee for ever.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord wean me from the &s;ins and mi&s;eries of this life, and rai&s;e my thoughts to immortality: Let the &s;weetne&s;s of thy heavenly joyes relieve the har&s;hne&s;s of my worldly &s;orrows, that mi&s;ery may be &s;wallowed up of mercy and frailty of eternity.</HI></P>
<PB N="36" REF="27">
<P><HI>&V;nite me in a ble&s;sed union with thee, that I may con&s;tantly adhere unto thee, and be for ever graciou&s;ly accepted of thee: O give me a &s;weet complacency of &s;oul in thy &s;ervice, and a will|ing and a dutifull obedience unto thy com|mands.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord give me a thankful heart for all thy mercies to me, for thy continuall pre&s;ervation, for thy ble&s;&s;ed &s;upportation, for the injoyment of thy needfull comforts in this life, and for the glo|rious hopes of tho&s;e in that to come.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God, &s;o &s;ublimate my &s;infull &s;oul, that I may &s;ee the richne&s;s of thy love in Chri&s;t, that I may &s;oberly enjoy thy ble&s;&s;ings here, and faithfully ex&s;pect thy joyes hereafter.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, all that I have without thee is meer emptine&s;s, and nothing, meer vanity, and wor&s;e than nothing; my glory, &s;hame; mine honor, ig|nominy; my health, ruin; my riches, poverty; my gain, lo&s;s; my plea&s;ure, pain; my laughter, madne&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou, O Lord, art all in all unto me, O grant that nothing may withdraw my &s;ervice from thee; that no inticing plea&s;ure may allure me, that no di&s;tracting care, or &s;infull &s;orrow may di&s;turb me, but that my &s;oul may now and ever &s;afely and contentedly rely upon thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, thou &s;ee&s;t all my de&s;ires, and my conti|nuall groanings are not hid from thee: Thou a|lone knowe&s;t how weary I am of the &s;inful tra|vailes of this life, how earne&s;tly I long to be at re&s;t with thee; Lord pardon all my &s;ins, and put an end to all my mi&s;eries: Come Lord Je&s;us, come quickly, wipe away all tears from mine eyes, and bring me to that re&s;t of thine which ne|ver &s;hall have end.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="12" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="37" REF="27">
<HEAD>CHAP. 12. <HI>Upon the great danger of Security.</HI></HEAD>
<P>DEceive not thy &s;elf, O my Soul, it is not &s;o ea&s;y a matter to inherit Heaven, as thou imagine&s;t; there will be much fighting, &s;weating, bleeding, much compunction of &s;oul, &s;ubjection of body, hard pre&s;&s;ing towards the mark, for the price of the high calling in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us, before this happy conque&s;t can be gained.</P>
<P>Con&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">der therefore in what condition thou now &s;tande&s;t, what ground thou ha&s;t gained of thy corrupt nature, how much better thou art this day than the day pa&s;t, than the year pa&s;t, than thy whole life pa&s;t; nay rather how much wor&s;e, by adding &s;in unto &s;in, by drinking in iniquity like water, by trea&s;uring up wrath a|gain&s;t the day of wrath, and revelation of thy righteous judgement.</P>
<P>Philo&s;ophy will tell thee, that in all naturall motions, the nearer they are to ending, the more violent their motion is; Divinity will tell thee, that in old age thou wilt be fat, and well liking: what increa&s;e of love ha&s;t thou to Gods Law? what growth of hatred again&s;t &s;in? what bo&s;ome-&s;in ha&s;t thou parted with? what gratious improvement ha&s;t thou made in Know|ledge, Faith, Repentance, Love, and all tho&s;e other gifts and graces which concur to thy per|fection?</P>
<P>Holy Saint <HI>An&s;elm</HI> was often heard to &s;ay, <HI>If I could from hence behold the pains of hell, from thence the horrour of &s;in, I would rather embrace
<PB N="38" REF="28">tho&s;e pains, than this horrour:</HI> O what growth of grace was here! how far am I from this degree of holine&s;&s;e! how ea&s;ily per&s;waded to delude my &s;elf with &s;hews and &s;hadows of perfection. There is no attaining unto happine&s;&s;e without holy violence, without beating down my body, without cheri&s;hing my &s;oul; if I conquer not here, I cannot triumph hereafter.</P>
<P>Lord, when I look into the &s;trictne&s;&s;e of the lives of thy Saints, I much lament the folly of mine own; I &s;ee holy <HI>David</HI> in &s;ackcloth and a&s;hes, con&s;uming whole daies and nights in mourning for &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n, wa&s;hing his bed with his tears, afflicted in body, tormented in &s;oul, grieving, crying, roaring, for unquietne&s;&s;e of heart. Ble&s;&s;ed <HI>Paul</HI> &s;ubduing his body, by fa&s;t|ing, watching, praying, toyling in the Mini&s;try. and thou, my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, in continuall la|bour and &s;orrow for my &s;ake: how vain is my tru&s;t, how fal&s;e my hope, how great my errour, to believe I run, when I &s;tand &s;till? to expect a triumph without a victory, a victory without a combat. Lord, if many that &s;trive to enter in at the &s;trait gate, yet &s;hall not be able: what &s;hall become of me? who am &s;o far from coming to thee, that I every day am running from thee; who am not onely oppo&s;ite unto thee, but even enmity it &s;elf again&s;t thee.</P>
<P>Sometimes I feel the &s;tings and gripings of a wounded con&s;cience, I know my &s;elf to be a grievous &s;inner, but I quiet my di&s;turbances by thee my Saviour, I willingly accept of mercy from thee, but grudgingly repine at &s;ervice to thee; thou bidde&s;t me indeed to drink freely of the waters of life, but thou commande&s;t me all&s;o to make my calling and election &s;ure, to work out my &s;alvation with fear and trembling;
<PB N="39" REF="28">thou ordaine&s;t not the end without the means; if I rebelliou&s;ly neglect the one, thou may<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;t mo&s;t righteou&s;ly deny me the other: Lord, what can it profit me to enjoy the plea&s;ures of &s;in for a &s;ea&s;on, when I deprive my &s;oul of hap|pine&s;&s;e for ever?</P>
<P>O let this teach me to deplore my dangerous condition, to goe on chearfully in the waies of godline&s;&s;e, to think no co&s;t too much, no pains too great, no grief too good, to purcha&s;e Hea|ven; to con&s;ider &s;eriou&s;ly, that time once pa&s;t can never be recall'd, that this hour may be my la&s;t, and bring me to eternity of torments; where the &s;tream is &s;tille&s;t, there the chanell is deepe&s;t; where there is lea&s;t di&s;tru&s;t, there is u&s;ually mo&s;t danger: Satan therefore di&s;turbs me not, becau&s;e I &s;leep in death: But when thou, Lord, &s;halt open mine eyes to &s;ee the &s;ub|tilty of this Deceiver, I &s;hall then find, that <HI>the waters</HI> (of &s;in) <HI>are gone over my &s;oul,</HI> that I am wofully drowned in the great depth of &s;e|curity, and can expect nothing (without mer|cy) but Satans cruelty, and mine own endle&s;&s;e mi&s;ery.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To that &s;weet mercy therefore I appeal, with earne&s;tne&s;&s;e of &s;oul, and humblene&s;&s;e of heart, be|moaning my &s;innes, bewailing my tran&s;gre&s;&s;i|ons.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord my God, when I con&s;ider of thy gra|tious goodne&s;se, and mine own vilene&s;&s;e, I am utterly a&s;hamed to appear in thy pre&s;ence.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou ha&s;t often called me to repentance, but I have not hearkned unto thee; thou ha&s;t loving|ly invited me to mercy, but I have wilfully re|fu&s;ed; thou ha&s;t clothed me with thine own gar|ment, and I have &s;hamefully defiled it; thou
<PB N="40" REF="29">ha&s;t enriched me with thy grace, and I have rob|bed thee of thine honour: All this, and infinitely more than this, thou ha&s;t freely done for me, the wor&s;t of &s;inners, and yet for all this I have re|belliou&s;ly for&s;aken thee, and mo&s;t ungratiou&s;ly been mo&s;t unmindfull of thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And now, Lord, &s;eeing that I am dead and putrified in &s;ins, and rotten in corruptions, what el&s;e can I expect from thee, but to be buried out of thy &s;ight? and yet thou &s;till &s;aye&s;t unto me, live.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou ble&s;&s;ed Fountain of eternall good, con|vey tho&s;e happy &s;treams of comfort to my &s;infull &s;oul, that may revive me from the grave of mi|&s;ery: open mine eies, that I may &s;ee thee in thy long patience, in thy great goodne&s;&s;e, in thy rich mercies, in thy fatherly affections towards me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I am wofully &s;unk into the deep mire of &s;in, where no &s;tay is; Lord uphold me by thy grace, that I peri&s;h not eternally; O deliver me for thy mercy &s;ake, for I am helple&s;&s;e and poor, and my heart is wounded within me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let my &s;oul live, and it &s;hall prai&s;e thee, and thy judgements &s;hall help me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>As thou ha&s;t rai&s;ed me by thy power, &s;o rule me by thy providence, that thy grace may be far &s;weeter with my &s;ufferings, than my plea&s;ure with my &s;ins.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;train my loo&s;e de&s;ires, renew my good pur|po&s;es, a&s;&s;i&s;t my weak endeavours, correct mine errours, &s;u&s;tain my infirmities; give me a godly &s;orrow for my &s;ins, a thankfull heart for thy fa|vours, a filiall fear of thy judgements, a &s;incere love to thy laws, an holy con&s;tancy, and happy per&s;everance, to my lives end.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="13" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="41" REF="29">
<HEAD>CHAP. 13. <HI>Upon the great danger of Pre&s;umption.</HI></HEAD>
<P>ALa&s;s, my Soul, how vain art thou, how wretched, to pre&s;ume upon the mercy of thy God? how can&s;t thou be &s;o fooli&s;h to believe, that God will favour thee in that, which he &s;o &s;everely puni&s;hed in his own Son? thinke&s;t thou that pretious bloud was &s;pilt to cheri&s;h &s;in? Be not mi&s;taken, for as Chri&s;t Ie&s;us came into the world to &s;ave &s;inners, &s;o he came all&s;o to call &s;inners to repentance. Doe&s;t thou argue well to &s;ay, becau&s;e God is mercifull, long-&s;uffering, and of great goodne&s;&s;e, therefore I will abu&s;e his mercy in &s;inning, his patience by my long continuing in &s;in, his great good|ne&s;&s;e by my great unthankfulne&s;&s;e? is not this to mock his mercy, to bid defiance to his ju&s;tice, to arm him with fury, to invite him to revenge? A&s;&s;ure thy &s;elf, the longer he is in drawing his Bow, the more forcible will he &s;end his Arrow.</P>
<P>Deceive not thy &s;elf therefore, God will not be &s;o mercifull to thee, as to be unju&s;t to him|&s;elf; All the waies of God are Mercy and Truth; Mercy to &s;upport thy weakne&s;&s;e, Truth to correct thy wilfulne&s;&s;e: There is therefore Mercy with him, that he may be feared, not that he may be &s;lighted, not that he may be &s;hamefully di&s;honoured. How full of fal&s;hood is thy bold pre&s;umption? thou crie&s;t Peace, Peace, when &s;udden War is ready to de&s;troy thee; <HI>There is no peace to the wicked, &s;aith my God;</HI> Heaven and Earth are up in Arms again&s;t
<PB N="42" REF="30">thee, and there is none left, not &s;o much as thine own Con&s;cience to deliver thee.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t gratiou&s;ly received the knowledge of the truth, thou ha&s;t grievou&s;ly &s;inned again&s;t the light of that knowledge, thou ha&s;t wofully continu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">d in thy &s;ins, without remor&s;e of con|&s;cience, without de&s;ire of repentance, and there now remaineth no more &s;acrifice for &s;in, but a &s;earfull looking for of judgement, and violent fire, that &s;hall devour the Adver&s;aries.</P>
<P>O remember, that the Angels, for one &s;in, were thrown down from Heaven, and that <HI>Adam,</HI> for one &s;in, was ca&s;t out of Paradi&s;e: Thy &s;ins (O my Soul) are innumerable, thou ha&s;t had line upon line, and precept upon precept, and yet thou adde&s;t &s;in upon &s;in, and tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ion upon tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion: Thou ha&s;t &s;inned again&s;t many pretious promi&s;es, again&s;t many gratious performances, again&s;t many fearfull judgements; thou ha&s;t grieved that good Spi|rit, by which the Saints are &s;ealed up unto the day of redemption: All the&s;e are heavy aggra|vations upon thee, to fill up the mea&s;ure of thy &s;ins, and ha&s;ten the &s;wiftne&s;&s;e of thy puni&s;h|ments.</P>
<P>Ah how &s;ad is thy condition! thou ha&s;t not onely wearied out thy &s;elf in wickedne&s;&s;e, but thy God all&s;o: hear what he faith unto thee, how he complaineth of thee, by his holy Pro|phet, <HI>Behold, I am pre&s;&s;ed under you, as a cart is laden with &s;heaves, Amos</HI> 2.13. and yet thou &s;till adde&s;t more load: but as thou adde&s;t &s;in upon &s;in, &s;o thou calle&s;t for wrath upon wrath; as thou ha&s;t made a mock at &s;in, &s;o God will make a mock at mi&s;ery; as thou ha&s;t thy mea&s;ure in &s;inning, &s;o God will have his mea&s;ure in puni&s;h|ing: Con&s;ider what he &s;aith unto thee by his
<PB N="43" REF="30">Prophet, <HI>Judgement will I lay to the rule, and Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to the ballance, E&s;ay</HI> 28.17, 18. As he hath a bottle for thy tears, &s;o he hath a bag for thy tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, <HI>Job</HI> 14.17. their growth is recorded, their number accounted, their nature examined, all &s;ealed up again&s;t the great and fearfull day of the revelation of the righteous judgement.</P>
<P>O con&s;ider this thou that forgette&s;t God, le&s;t he tear thee in pieces, and there be none to deliver thee: Think how &s;uddenly thou may&s;t be &s;natcht away by tho&s;e infernall Fiends, to endle&s;&s;e torments, and then what tears will be enough to weep thine ob&s;equies, to quench tho&s;e everla&s;ting burnings? But then, ala&s;s, in&s;tead of tears of compa&s;&s;ion, thou &s;halt have mocks of deri&s;ion, the cur&s;ed Devils will laugh thee to &s;corn, the ble&s;&s;ed Saints and Angels will re|joyce at thy confu&s;ion, and God him&s;elf, who onely can relieve thee, will for ever hide his tender mercy from thee.</P>
<P>Awake therefore out of thy &s;leep of death, look well into thy lo&s;t e&s;tate, thou art now near unto making up the mea&s;ure of thy &s;ins, beyond which thou can&s;t not pa&s;&s;e: Thy God hath &s;aid to thee, as to the Sea, hitherto malt thou goe, and here &s;halt thou &s;tay thy proud waves: Think how &s;uddenly thou maye&s;t be called to thy la&s;t account, even this very hour, (for ought thou knowe&s;t) tho&s;e cur&s;ed Spirits may convey thee to thy fiery Pri&s;on: O think how powerfully the wrath of God will then &s;eize upon thee; how wofully thou wilt excrutiate thy &s;elf, with apprehen&s;ion of thy former folly; and la&s;t of all, how wretchedly thou art for|ever bani&s;ht from eternall joyes, to &s;uffer with the damned in eternall torments: L<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">t this
<PB N="44" REF="31">move thee to amend thy wicked wayes, to cry mightily to God for mercy, to judge thy &s;elf, to condemn thy &s;elf, that thou may&s;t not be judged of the Lord; to <HI>Ki&s;s the Son le&s;t he be an|gry, and &s;o thou peri&s;h from the right way: If his wrath be kindled, yea but a little, ble&s;&s;ed are all they that put their tru&s;t in him. Turn (therefore) unto the Lord thy God (O my &s;oul) for he is gracious, and merciful, &s;low to anger, and of great kindne&s;s, and repenteth him of the evil.</HI></P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>As an unfeigned &s;ign of my repentance, in angui&s;h of heart, and bitterne&s;s of &s;oul, I earne&s;t|ly de&s;ire to &s;earch into the &s;ecreets of my &s;infull thoughts, to unbo&s;om all my &s;ins, and lay them open to the view of all thy Saints, that thou may&s;t have the glory, they the good, and I the &s;hame of my confe&s;&s;ion; that &s;o this penitent &s;en&s;e of mine iniquities (which I thankfully acknow|ledge cometh alone from thee) may be an evi|dence unto me, that thou wilt al&s;o give me pardon for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I willingly confe&s;s my &s;elf to be a great and grievous &s;inner, mine original defiled, my birth polluted, mine infancy &s;tained, my youth in&s;nared, my manhood corrupted, mine age be|&s;otted.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Mine imaginations vain, my thoughts &s;infull, my words wicked, mine actions abhominable, my whole life a very &s;ink of &s;in and all unclean|ne&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>When thy hand hath been heavy upon me, I have then promi&s;ed thee amendment; when thy rode hath been taken off from me, I have again returned to mine evil cour&s;es; this plainly &s;hew|eth, that I have hitherto &s;ought but any &s;elf in
<PB N="45" REF="31">thee, and may therefore ju&s;tly fear to be for&s;aken of thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have been undutiful to thee my God, en|vious and uncharitable to my neighbour, hy|pocritical to the world, deceitful to mine own &s;oul.</HI></P>
<P><HI>My thoughts have been wanton, my de&s;ires la|&s;civious, my actions unclean.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have been blind to thy precepts, deaf to thy promi&s;es, dumb in thy prai&s;es, lame in thy &s;ervices, &s;ick at thine ordinances, dead to thy imbraces.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have broken all my promi&s;es, I have &s;light|ed all thy threatnings, I have abu&s;ed all thy mer|cies, I have rejected all thy favours, I have delayed my repentance, I have re&s;i&s;ted the checks of mine own con&s;cience, I have quenched the motions of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, and turned thy grace into wantonne&s;s; and yet as if all this had been too little to condemn me, I have mo&s;t daring|ly pre&s;umed on thy mercie, and mo&s;t ungracion&s;ly re&s;olved to go on in my impieties.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, thou ha&s;t peomi&s;ed to forgive tho&s;e that repent, to ea&s;e tho&s;e that are heavy laden, to rai&s;e up tho&s;e that are fallen, to &s;atisfie tho&s;e that are hungry, and to bind up tho&s;e that are broken-hearted.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord my God, I earne&s;tly de&s;ire to repent, I am laden with a burthen in&s;upportable, I am feeble and &s;ore &s;mitten with the terrors of thy Law, my fle&s;h trembleth, and my heart fainteth; I am fallen into the very mouth of hell, I am &s;orely wounded with the remor&s;e of mine own accu&s;ing con&s;cience, and hungry for the &s;weet refre&s;hings of thy &s;aving grace.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou, O Lord, ha&s;t made me &s;en&s;ible of this my great mi&s;ery, and thou alone can&s;t make me
<PB N="46" REF="32">capable of thy rich mercy; unto that mercie there|fore I appeal, with &s;ighs in my &s;oul, and &s;orrow in my heart.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou which art the ble&s;&s;ed fountain of all goodne&s;s, which de&s;ire&s;t not the death of a &s;inner, but rather that he &s;hould repent and live, have mercy upon me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou which art the Saviour of the world, which came&s;t to &s;eek, and to &s;ave tho&s;e which were lo&s;t, have mercy upon me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O holy, and for ever ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, thou which feede&s;t and refre&s;he&s;t the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;oules of thine Elect, have mercy on me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let thy power (O ble&s;&s;ed Father) &s;upport my weakne&s;s; thy wi&s;dom (O ble&s;&s;ed Son) &s;up|ply my folly; thy love (O ble&s;&s;ed Spirit) re|&s;train my wilfulne&s;s; that as thou art eternally one, &s;o I may for ever be at unity with thee, although mo&s;t wofully divided in my &s;elf.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, as thou ha&s;t given me a heart to pray unto thee, &s;o give me al&s;o a &s;oul to prai&s;e thee, and a &s;erius re&s;olution to perform tho&s;e promi&s;es I make unto thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord &s;weeten all my &s;orrows by thy ble&s;&s;ed &s;ufferings, inlarge my heart with thankfulne&s;s for thy many favours, &s;trengthen my weak faith, re&s;train my rebellious nature, increa&s;e daily in me the gifts and graces of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit; in|due me with a perfect hatred again&s;t all &s;in; and grant, dear God, that daring and pre&s;umptu|ous &s;innes may never have dominion over me.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="14" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="47" REF="32">
<HEAD>CHAP. 14. <HI>Upon Quenching the motions of Gods holy Spirit.</HI></HEAD>
<P>COn&s;ider, O my &s;oul, from whence the&s;e happy thoughts ari&s;e, and wherefore, if they were from nature, they mu&s;t needs &s;avour of corruption, but now they are from Grace, they &s;ummon thee to goodne&s;s, they beckon thee to immortality: Thy God now calleth thee to repentance; he offers thee his gracious pardon for thy &s;in; his love, his protection, his peace, his grace, his glory: He now woeth thee to fa|vour, and thou (a wofull wretch) convicted by thine own accu&s;ing con&s;cience, condemned by divine Ju&s;tice, rebelliou&s;ly rejecte&s;t all the&s;e gracious offers: Ah, what wofull folly is this! nay rather what wilfull madne&s;s! As there is a time of calling, &s;o there will be a time of re|jecting; the ble&s;&s;ed wind of Gods holy Spirit bloweth but where it li&s;teth; when it is once gone, thou knowe&s;t not whether it &s;hall ever return: <HI>God will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth,</HI> Rom. 9. Ah wo be unto that &s;oul who&s;e time of calling is once pa&s;t, a thou&s;and worlds cannot redeem its lo&s;s. If thou wilt not now embrace the&s;e com|fortable breathings of his tender love, thou &s;halt then endure the bitter &s;torms of his in|cen&s;ed wrath.</P>
<P>If thou wilt not embrace his Mercy, thou &s;halt exalt his Ju&s;tice: <HI>I called unto you</HI> (&s;aith God) <HI>and yee refu&s;ed to come, I held out my hand and ye would not look towards me; therefore will I for&s;ake you in your extremity, when your fear com|eth
<PB N="48" REF="33">as de&s;olation, and your de&s;truction as a whirlwind, when di&s;tre&s;s and angui&s;h cometh upon you; then &s;hall they call upon me, but I will not an&s;wer, they &s;hall &s;eek me early, but they &s;hall not find me.</HI> Prov. 1.24, 27, 28.</P>
<P>Gods clemency and patience in this life will a&s;&s;uredly exa&s;perate his fury, and revenge, in that to come; as his Mercy is unutterable, &s;o his Ju|&s;tice is intollerable, both are his divine being, and therefore both mu&s;t needs be infinite; both are to manife&s;t his glory, and therefore both mu&s;t be eternall.</P>
<P>From hence is that expre&s;&s;ion of Saint <HI>Vaul, It is a fearfull thing to fall into the hands of the living God.</HI> Heb. 10. From hence it is that wicked men are left unto their own &s;wing in this life, that they may be payd home with Gods wrath in that to come.</P>
<P>Let this teach thee, O my &s;oul, to welcome the&s;e endeared motions of the gladding Spirit, to thir&s;t for them, to rejoyce in them, to think no thought too dear to be di&s;loged for them.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, I hear thee calling thy holy A|po&s;tle Saint <HI>Peter,</HI> and I &s;ee him readily for|&s;aking all to follow thee; how often ha&s;t thou called me, a &s;infull wretch, by the &s;weet moti|ons of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit; and I have hitherto refu&s;ed to for&s;ake the very lea&s;t of all my &s;ins, for thy &s;ake, who willingly for&s;ooke&s;t all the plea&s;ures of this life for mine? Long ha&s;t thou waited my repentance, but I have yet hated to be reformed. Mercy hath been offered, and I have not e&s;teemed it, Judgement hath been threatned, and I have not regarded it; thou ha&s;t not onely whi&s;pered unto me by thy graci|ous vi&s;its of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, but thou ha&s;t e|ven
<PB N="49" REF="33">called me aloud, by thy divine hand of whol&s;om cha&s;ti&s;ement; By lo&s;s of friends, by lo&s;s of means, by lo&s;s of health, by lo&s;s of li|berty, and (without thy rich mercy) by the great danger of that greater lo&s;s of thy Go&s;pel, and thereby of thy gracious pre&s;ence in this life, and thine eternall joys in that to come. All this my &s;ins have ju&s;tly brought upon me, and yet for all this, my wretched heart de&s;ires to be a &s;tranger to thee.</P>
<P>Lord, who am I that thou &s;o graciou&s;ly invi|te&s;t unto mercy? Lord, what am I that now pre&s;ume to &s;peak unto thee? I am &s;o deformed, and contemptible, that mine own knowledge cometh far &s;hort of mine own mi&s;ery. O how ju&s;tly might&s;t thou for ever leave me to my &s;elf, to eat the fruit of mine own wayes, and to be filled with the fal&s;hood of mine own devices, to po&s;&s;e&s;s &s;orrow, and inherit &s;hame? But thou, O Lord, who art infinite in goodne&s;s, ha&s;t mani|fe&s;ted to my &s;infull &s;oul, that when I wretched|ly for&s;ake thee, thou readily for&s;ake&s;t all to fol|low me; when I run from thee, thou bewaile&s;t me; when mi&s;ery compels me to return, thou joyfully receive&s;t me, thou lovingly relieve&s;t me, thou then graciou&s;ly accepte&s;t of me; And now, O Lord, when I have even wearied out thy mercy and compa&s;&s;ion towards me, thou &s;till invite&s;t me to come unto thee.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee therefore, O thou ble&s;&s;ed Shepheard of my &s;oul, do I devote the&s;e penitent expre&s;&s;ions: O let tho&s;e tributary tears which are due to thy &s;uf|ferings, be now plentifully poured forth for mine own &s;ins. Lord pardon my contempt of grace, and graciou&s;ly enable me to entertain the&s;e happy vi|&s;its of thy holy Spirit, and patiently to bear the&s;e
<PB N="50" REF="34">&s;weet cha&s;ti&s;ements of thy heavenly hand, that I may have fellow&s;hip with Chri&s;t, and peace with God.</HI></P>
<P><HI>If thou Lord for the &s;ins of my pro&s;perity, &s;halt think it fit to bring upon me the mi&s;eries of adver&s;ity, for the great neglect of thy gracious vi|&s;its, to deny mee the &s;weet comforts of thy ble&s;&s;ed an&s;wers, yet give me patience, and &s;ure confidence to tru&s;t &s;til in thy mercie, that &s;o while I am mo&s;t ju&s;tly debarred of my longing de&s;ires, I may not be utterly deprived of thy loving favours.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord ca&s;t me not away from thy pre&s;ence, O leave me not unto my &s;elf, le&s;t I peri&s;h everla&s;t|ingly; make me to &s;ee the richne&s;s of thy love and favour towards me: Quicken the motions of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit in me, renew my good thoughts, and &s;ix them wholly upon heaven and heavenly things; Lord Je&s;us make me joyful in them, and for ever truly thankful for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Make me willing to enjoy thee, and ready to abandon all things for thee: Lord I now &s;eek thee but I cannot find thee, I call upon thee but thou an&s;were&s;t me not: O ki&s;s me with the ki&s;&s;es of thy mouth, for thy love is better than wine.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord let thy left hand &s;upport me, and thy right hand imbrace me, let me be outwardly, and in|wardly, &s;u&s;tained by thee; my weakn&s;s by thy power, my rebellion by thine obedience, my folly by thy wi&s;dom, my pollution by thy &s;anctification, my faith by thy fruition; that I may be grieved for thine ab&s;ence, delighted in thy pre&s;ence, inamored with thy beanty, inriched with thy bounty, infla|med with thy love, adorned with thy graces, com|forted with thy con&s;olation, incompa&s;t with thy glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="15" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="51" REF="34">
<HEAD>CHAP. 15. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of Gods peculiar Providence to his Children.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>NOthing can befall me in this life, without thy wife, and over-ruling providence; not &s;o much as one hair of me can fail without thy allowance; for even my very hairs are num|bred; as a Sparrow cannot fall to the ground, &s;o neither a hair from mine head without thy &s;acred leave: And if thy ble&s;&s;ed Providence protecteth the&s;e inferior creatures, if it extend it &s;elf even unto excrements, how much more &s;afely doe&s;t thou guard the bodies, how much more tenderly the &s;oules of thine Elect? Yet &s;uch is my &s;tupidity by nature, that I &s;eldom look beyond the &s;eond cau&s;es; I u&s;ually con|tent my &s;elf with ca&s;uals and contingencies, and often judge that meerly accidentall, which &s;weetly moves by thy commands, to thine ap|pointment and thy childrens good.</P>
<P>Thy Providence is eternall, thy provi&s;ion in time; thou, O Lord, art infinitely wi&s;e, and cau&s;t therefore provide infinitely well, the end thou ordaine&s;t to thy &s;elf, the means to thy creature; good and bad are under thy protecti|on; the good for them&s;elves, the bad for o|thers; both for thy glory; the one thou wille&s;t to be happy, the other thou permitte&s;t to be mi&s;erable; neither of them can avoyd their nece&s;&s;ity of fate, and yet thou neither incline&s;t the one, nor inforce&s;t the other, becau&s;e unto both in their originall thou gave&s;t perfect free|dome
<PB N="52" REF="35">of will, to chu&s;e the good, to leave the bad; to inherit life, or purcha&s;e death.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed God, we are all debtors in our fir&s;t Parents, thou may&s;t therefore mo&s;t ju&s;tly re|quire that of us, which was lent us in them: They were able to pay, but not willing; we, their wofull po&s;terity (as we are in nature) are neither able, nor willing; But by thy grace, Lord, we are onely willing, and not able; and thou ha&s;t therefore &s;ent thine onely Son, who was both freely willing, and fully able, to ap|pea&s;e thy Ju&s;tice, to reconcile thy Mercy, to comfort us here, to crown us hereafter.</P>
<P>And now, Lord, having given us thy Son, how &s;halt thou not, together with him all&s;o, give us all things? and yet I often &s;ee thee gi|ving of good things to the bad, and bad to the good: there is nothing more fiequent in this life than the afflictions of thy children, nothing more common than the pro&s;perity of the wicked, they receive their good things in this life, I &s;hall enjoy mine in that to come, when I &s;hall be comforted, and they tormented. Thou, O Lord, art righteous in all they waies, and holy in all thy works; thou loade&s;t them with thine outward ble&s;&s;ings, for their outward obedience; thou denie&s;t me the&s;e outward favours, for mine inward advantage; by the one they are left inexcu&s;able; by the other I am made more conformable; my patience exerci&s;ed, my faith tried, my love examined, my humility proved; all the&s;e are &s;peciall tokens of thy mercy to|wards me; for as grace increa&s;eth here, &s;o &s;hall glory hereafter.</P>
<P>Lord, what can he fear that is a&s;&s;ured of thy favour? that knoweth a&s;&s;uredly, that all the&s;e outward things &s;hall work together for the
<PB N="53" REF="35">be&s;t, to his advantage? If <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> be thrown into the Pit, it is to &s;end him into <HI>Egypt;</HI> if into Pri&s;on, to pre&s;er him to <HI>Pharoah,</HI> that &s;o Corn may be &s;ent into <HI>Canaan;</HI> if Satan be &s;ent to tempt <HI>Job</HI> with afflictions, it is becau&s;e <HI>Job</HI> &s;hall overcome Satan by patience; if holy <HI>David</HI> be|come a &s;ad &s;pectacle of humane frailty by &s;in|ning, it is to make him a pattern of true piety in repenting; if the bodies of the Saints be grievou&s;ly martyr'd in this life, it is to array them with glorious robes in that to come.</P>
<P>Lord, let this teach me joyfully to entertain the &s;adde&s;t of events, which either thy wi&s;dome, mans unrighteou&s;ne&s;s, or Satans cruelty, can bring upon me; to be patient under them, and thankfull for them; to ran&s;ake my &s;oul, and &s;earch diligently there, for what &s;in thou &s;end|e&s;t this &s;orrow, to bewail it, abhor it, for&s;ake it, and earne&s;tly implore thy pardon for it: When I am thus happily re&s;olved, I &s;hall then have that undaunted boldne&s;&s;e, to &s;ay with holy <HI>Job, Allthough thou kille&s;t me, yet will I tru&s;t in thee;</HI> with holy <HI>David, Though I walk through the valley of the &s;hadow of death, yet will I fear none evill, for thou Lord art with me;</HI> and with thy ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle, that <HI>I know a&s;&s;uredly, that the &s;ufferings of this life &s;hall work for me a far greater and more exceeding weight of glory,</HI> in that to come.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee therefore, O thou ble&s;&s;ed Guardian of my &s;infull &s;oul, and wretched body, doe I addre&s;&s;e my &s;elf for &s;afety and protection.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I confe&s;&s;e, O Lord, there is no one minute of my whole life can be &s;afe without thy gratious providence, and yet &s;o wretched have I been, that few or none of them have been devoted to thy &s;ervice.</HI></P>
<PB N="54" REF="36">
<P><HI>Lord, I am not worthy of the lea&s;t of all thy mercies, and of all thy truth thou ha&s;t afforded me; even the very be&s;t of all my actions hath ju&s;tly merited the very wor&s;t of all thy puni&s;h|ments, and yet thou daily loade&s;t me with thy ble&s;&s;ings, allthough I hourly &s;in again&s;t thee, by my great tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive me my unmindfulne&s;&s;e of the&s;e thy mercies, my great unthankfulne&s;&s;e for all thy fa|vours, and fix my &s;infull &s;oul more willingly, more joyfully, more fervently, more con&s;tantly, on thy &s;ervice.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Teach me to keep a catalogue of thy mercies, to let none pa&s;&s;e without a thankfull and devout acknowledgement; to &s;et &s;ome daies apart from the year, &s;ome hours from each day, to prai&s;e thee for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive the pride of my pro&s;perity, my care|le&s;ne&s;&s;e of thee, my coldne&s;&s;e unto thine, my cro&s;&s;e|ne&s;&s;e unto others, my cruelty to my &s;elf.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord pardon my repinings in adver&s;ity, my di&s;ta&s;t of thy power, my di&s;tru&s;t of thy providence, my deniall of thy wi&s;dome, my refu&s;all of thy love, my contempt of thy favour, my neglect of thy grace, my de&s;pair of thy goodne&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O give me &s;uch a ble&s;&s;ed frame of heart, that I may chearfully and joyfully content my &s;elf, to walk in what&s;oever paths thy ble&s;&s;ed providence &s;hall lead me to: O hold thou up my goings in tho&s;e paths, that my feet &s;lip not; teach me to make a gratious and a &s;weet improvement of the&s;e outward cro&s;&s;es, a ble&s;&s;ed and a wi&s;e advan|tage of thine inward graces: Lord lead me by thy coun&s;ell here, and afterwards receive me to thy glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="16" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="55" REF="36">
<HEAD>CHAP. 16. <HI>Upon &s;infull Anger, and the great di&s;|turbance thereof.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I con&s;ider of thy patience, and long-&s;uffering towards me, a mi&s;erable &s;inner, of the lowline&s;&s;e of thy Saints, and of the great humility and meekne&s;&s;e of my Saviour in his &s;ufferings, I much deplore the wofull weakne&s;&s;e of mine own infirmities, and more admire the richne&s;&s;e of thy goodne&s;&s;e, in admitting me to &s;peak unto thee.</P>
<P>What plea&s;ure, Lord, can&s;t thou take in that &s;ervice which is all &s;in? how can&s;t thou delight in that which thou abhorre&s;t? thou art a God of pure eyes, and can&s;t not behold iniquity; if all my righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e be in thy &s;ight as filthy rags, and men&s;tiuous clothes, how full of ug|line&s;&s;e and deformity will my &s;ins then appear before thee?</P>
<P>Ah Lord, thou ha&s;t often &s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n how ea&s;ily, how &s;uddenly, how wretchedly, I have been &s;wallowed up of &s;infull pa&s;&s;ion; how I have violated that invaluable peace which thou ha&s;t given me, by revengefull thoughts, by de&s;pight|full words, by di&s;turbing actions: I know no|thing in my corrupt nature, but to know my &s;elf mi&s;erable; I &s;ee nothing in this mi&s;ery, but terrour and confu&s;ion, affliction to my body, de&s;truction to my &s;oul; all occurrences of this life &s;hould have rather added to my growth of grace, than di&s;turbance of nature: I have hi|therto been gro&s;&s;ely mi&s;taken, in calling that a
<PB N="56" REF="37">defect of my body, which is in truth an er|ror in my &s;oul: Nature was at fir&s;t created pure, no di&s;obedience was then in the pa&s;&s;i|ons, Man hath marred it by his Fall: all the Streams that are now troubled flow from this Fountain; this barren excu&s;e therefore is &s;o far from le&s;&s;ening &s;in, that it makes it bigger. I am now &s;o much the more &s;tained by committing actuall &s;in, as I &s;hould have been more holy, and am not, &s;ince original.</P>
<P>Lord, let this teach me to deal truly with my &s;oul, to uncloath my &s;elf of all &s;infull excu&s;es, that &s;o &s;in may appear truly what it is, and may become out of mea&s;ure &s;infull; that mine Anger may be holy, my application of it happy, that nothing may di&s;turb me but &s;in; that I may be a Lyon in thy cau&s;e, a Lamb in mine own; that when I hate the &s;in, I may love the per&s;on; when I rebuke the offence, I may pray heartily for the offender; &s;o &s;hall I zea|lou&s;ly enjoy thee my God, religiou&s;ly em|brace my neighhour, patiently po&s;&s;e&s;s mine own &s;oul.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>And now, Lord, as thou ha&s;t given me an heart to confe&s;s my &s;ins of impatience before thee, &s;o give me a &s;weet a&s;&s;urance in my Savi|our, that by him I have a&s;&s;ured pardon for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>If thou Lord for my &s;infull Anger &s;halt inflict upon me thy &s;evere wrath; and for my long con|tinuing in my &s;ins, the long duration of thy pu|ni&s;hments; yet let not thy &s;everitie exceed the mea&s;ure of my Chri&s;tian charity; though thou continue&s;t my mi&s;eries, yet withdraw not thy mercies. O make me more and more humble unto thee my God, and more and more meek among&s;t
<PB N="57" REF="37">thy children; conform me to that ble&s;&s;ed pattern of true piety and patience; that as a &s;heep in thy hands (my ble&s;&s;ed Shearer) &s;o I may be dumb, and not open my mouth again&s;t thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord bani&s;h from me all de&s;ires of revenge; let Patience have its perfect work, to quiet me here, and crown me hereafter,</HI></P>
<P><HI>I confe&s;s my &s;elf to be a great and grievous &s;in|ner, and yet I am thy creature; my body is thine, and my &s;oul is thine, both were joyned in thy creation, and both are joyned in my devotion; both have &s;inned again&s;t thee, O let them both be humbled before thee, not to &s;atisfie thy Ju&s;tice, but to implore thy Mercy; not to merit thy Grace, but to magnifie thy Goodne&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me truly &s;en&s;ible of the greatne&s;s of thy mi&s;ery, that I may the more devoutly, the more &s;incerely, &s;ue to thee for mercy: Forgive the many violent erupcions of my &s;infull pa&s;&s;ions, give me a meek and humble &s;pirit, that I may happily enjoy thy pre&s;ence, and mine own con|tent. Lord grant that I may patiently and joy|fully imbrace the wrongs and injuries of this life, for thy &s;ake, who ha&s;t been patient even to death for mine.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let that be made ea&s;ie unto me by thy grace; which by nature is impo&s;&s;ible, that nothing may delight me but thy love, nothing grieve me but thy di&s;plea&s;ure, nothing offend me but thy di&s;honour.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="17" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="58" REF="38">
<HEAD>CHAP. 17. <HI>Upon mans inordinate love to the Creature.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WO is me that I am con&s;trained to live in <HI>Me&s;hech,</HI> and to dwell in the tents of <HI>Ce|dar;</HI> wo is me that I was conceived in &s;in, that I was born in &s;in, and that I have &s;o long been captive to the power of &s;in: How vain am I, how wretched, to beguil my &s;elf of re&s;t and quietne&s;s? O how unworthy to defile my Mariage vows, to pro&s;titute my love to the&s;e unclean, and fal&s;e embraces of a &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">nfull world, to dig unto my &s;elf the&s;e broken Ci&s;terns of im|pure and empty joys, and to for&s;ake tho&s;e living waters of eternall life: O wofull cateif, if I well con&s;ider what I am; but &s;ar more wo|full, if I &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider what I &s;hould be.</P>
<P>Lord, when I was in my blood, thou &s;aid&s;t unto me, Live; when I was ca&s;t out, and none eye pittied me, then thou had&s;t mercy on me; when I was naked thou clothed&s;t me, when I was wounded thou healed&s;t me; nay more, Lord, thou did&s;t uncloath thy &s;elf for me, and by thy wounds I am healed; when I was loath|&s;om in mine own eyes, I was beautifull in thine; and when all this is not yet enough to manife&s;t thy wonderfull compa&s;&s;ions towards me, thou feede&s;t me at thine own Table, thou lodge&s;t me in thine own bo&s;om, thou make&s;t me partaker of thine own inheritance.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed God, what coulde&s;t thou have done more for me that thou ha&s;t not done? And yet for all this I for&s;ake thee, I neglect thee, I
<PB N="59" REF="38">abu&s;e thee, I adulterate tho&s;e many vows and promi&s;es I made unto thee: And now, Lord, when I am even a&s;hamed to pre&s;ent my &s;elf be|fore thee, when my fal&s;e heart hath been &s;o great a &s;tranger to thy ble&s;&s;ed bo&s;om, that I am even afraid to kneel to thee for mercy; thou graci|ou&s;ly forgive&s;t me, thou bemoane&s;t my &s;in, thou hide&s;t my &s;haure, thou make&s;t love unto me, and (to the wonder of my &s;oul) delighte&s;t &s;till to &s;et thy love upon me.</P>
<P>Thou, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, ha&s;t told me, that if I were of this World, it would love me, but now I am not of this World, that the World hateth me: Lord, what madne&s;s is this in me to love mine utter enemy? to de|light in her bo&s;om, which hunteth for my precious life? to forlake thee, the plea&s;ant Lil|ly of the Vallies, the &s;weet Refre&s;hments of E|ternity, to weary out, and wound my &s;oul a|mong&s;t the Bryars of this barren Wilderne&s;s? Thou Lord, ha&s;t &s;ayd unto me, Ari&s;e my Love, my Fair one, and come away; thou invite&s;t me from the &s;howers and tempe&s;ts of a &s;tormy Win|ter, from the cares and troubles of a di&s;conten|ted life, to the &s;weet dews of thy graces, the gentle breathings of thy Spirit, the tender buds of thy love, the lovely blo&s;&s;ems of thy good|ne&s;s, the plea&s;ant fruit of thy promi&s;es, the joyfull crop of thy performances: And notwith|&s;tanding all this I &s;till cry, yet a little more &s;leep, yet a little more number, yet a little more folding of the hands together; yet a little more &s;in, yet a little more &s;hame, yet a little more &s;orrow.</P>
<P>Ah, Lord, what is there in the creature, that thus &s;trangely bewitcheth me? or rather, what is there not in it, that is not every minute
<PB N="60" REF="39">ready to betray me, and di&s;poyl me of tho&s;e pre|cious ornaments of &s;oul which thou ha&s;t given me; the cares and cro&s;&s;es of this life a&s;flict me, the plea&s;ures be&s;ot me, the profits di&s;turb me, pride puffeth me up, and even mine own heart deceiveth me; by calling good evill, and evill good; by making that &s;weet in the expectati|on, which is bitter in the fruition: Lord, while I have &s;ought the creature, I have lo&s;t my &s;elf, my body in di&s;tempers, my &s;oul in di&s;tracti|ons.</P>
<P>That precious Faith which is the ground of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not &s;een, who&s;e end is the &s;alvation of my &s;oul, which is thy gift who art the God of truth, is now drowned in a &s;ea of error, and ju&s;tly gi|ven up to believe dreams and delu&s;ions, and doctrines of Devils; to tru&s;t wholly in vanity, and to follow after lying.</P>
<P>That &s;aving knowledge, by which I was for|merly enlightned in thy &s;acred Truths, is now blinded with the &s;oggy mi&s;ts of &s;in and igno|rance: This, Lord, is my great aggravation, and ju&s;t condemnation, that light is come into the world, and I have loved darkne&s;s better than light.</P>
<P>That glorious hope which maketh not a&s;ha|med, but ex&s;pecteth an inheritance eternall in the heavens, which fadeth not away, is now become a vain and empty hope, delighted with &s;in, rewarded with &s;hame.</P>
<P>Tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed affections by which my happy &s;oul was wont to walk in thy wayes, and to delight it &s;elf in thy commands, are now wea|ried out in wayes of wickedne&s;s; and that heart which hath &s;o often promi&s;ed obedience unto thee any thy Laws, hath now for&s;aken
<PB N="61" REF="39">thee the living God, and made a covenant with death and hell.</P>
<P>Thus am I robbed and &s;poyled of all, and am become poor, and wretched, and blind, and naked, and mi&s;erable; my whole head is &s;ick, and my whole heart is faint; I have &s;own in iniquity, and mu&s;t reap in a&s;fliction; I am in|toxicated with the wine of Errour, that &s;tings me like a Scrpent, and bites me like a Cocka|trice, and yet when I awake (&s;uch is the &s;ad|ne&s;&s;e of my pre&s;ent condition) I &s;ay, I will &s;eek it yet &s;till.</P>
<P>Lord, he that is once out of thy path, know|eth not the length of his journey, and may well fear to lo&s;e him&s;elf for ever.</P>
<P>And now, Lord, what is my hope? truly my hope is even in thee; thou &s;ee&s;t my weakne&s;&s;e, and accepte&s;t my willingne&s;&s;e: thou that know|e&s;t it impo&s;&s;ible that the world &s;hould be o|vercome by me, bidde&s;t me be of good comfort, becau&s;e thou (Lord) ha&s;t overcome the world for me; if I fight not again&s;t thee, though I am often foyled, yet I am more than conquerour in thee.</P>
<P>O let this teach me joyfully to rely upon thee, to make thee the height of my joy, the end of my de&s;ires, the onely happy and eternall object of my &s;infull &s;oul: Lord, I heartily de|fire thee, I thankfully embrace thee, and doe for ever vow my &s;oul and body to thee.</P>
<P>Suffer me not to wander from thy ble&s;&s;ed pre|&s;ence, let me not longer dally nor di&s;&s;emble with my &s;oul; O let me not think that I then love thee, when I love but my &s;elf in thee; make me now at la&s;t to know tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed things that belong to my peace, le&s;t they be for ever hid from mine eyes.</P>
<PB N="62" REF="40">
<P>Lord, by thy rich mercy I can now plainly &s;ee the vanity and emptine&s;&s;e of all the&s;e earthly objects, the folly and mi&s;ery of tho&s;e that re&s;t in them, the re&s;t and quietne&s;&s;e of tho&s;e that lea&s;t rely upon them; in this tranfitory beauty of the Creature, I can now behold the ravi&s;hing perfections of the great Creato<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">r.</P>
<P>Lord, I now exceedingly de&s;ire to know thee, that I may for ever love thee, that I may be &s;ick of love till I enjoy thee, that I may joyfully re&s;t in thee, and be eternally united to thee.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>For thou, Lord, art infinitely &s;weeter than the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of thy Creatwes; they are all but emptine&s;&s;e and vanity, but in thy pre&s;ence is the fulne&s;&s;e of joy, and at thy right hand there are plea&s;ures for evermore.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou ble&s;sed Fountain of eternall goodne&s;se, forgive me mine offences, cover my &s;ins, and fix my &s;oul upon the &s;weetne&s;se of thy heavenly joyes; give me con&s;tancy and &s;teadine&s;&s;e of heart, to cleave unto thee, and for thy mercy &s;ake re|move all vain de&s;ires that may betray me from thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou ble&s;&s;ed Saviour of my &s;infull &s;oul, by who&s;e per&s;ect obedience all my di&s;obedience is forgiven me; who ha&s;t given thy &s;elf for me, and to me; give me all&s;o unfeigned repentance, that I may heartily bewail the &s;infulne&s;se of my life pa&s;t, that I may make a gratious improvement of my life pre&s;ent, and faithfully perform the vows and promi&s;es which I make unto thee, for the &s;hort remainder of my life to come.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O ble&s;&s;ed and eternall Comforter of all tho&s;e &s;infull &s;ouls that put their tru&s;t in thee, give me a &s;weet and full a&s;&s;urance of thy love in Chri&s;t; withdraw my wretched heart from vanity, in|flame
<PB N="63" REF="40">it with an earne&s;t and affectionate de&s;ire to thee; open mine eyes, that I may &s;ee &s;ome glimps of thy cele&s;tiall joyes prepared for me; make me often to think of them, earne&s;tly to long for them, and readily and chearfully to part with all the&s;e earthly plea&s;ures to enjoy them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me able to encounter and with&s;tand the &s;trong a&s;&s;aults of Satan, and this evill world; give me thy &s;aving grace, and take from me what thou wilt; without thy ble&s;&s;ed pre&s;ence, all the&s;e outward joyes are wearine&s;&s;e, and emptine&s;&s;e; without thee, even life it &s;elf is bitterne&s;&s;e unto me; without thy love I ask it not of thee, yea I rather beg thee (Lord) to take it from me, that &s;o I may be joyfully relea&s;ed from the bondage of a &s;infull body, that I may love thee with a pure and &s;potle&s;&s;e &s;oul, that all mine imperfections may be done away, that &s;o I may &s;ecurely dwell with thee, in perfect holine&s;se, and endle&s;&s;e happine&s;se.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="18" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 18. <HI>Upon the &s;in of Uncleanne&s;&s;e, with en|couragements to avoid it.</HI></HEAD>
<P>COn&s;ider, O my Soul, in what a ble&s;&s;ed re|lation thou now &s;tande&s;t to thy God; thou ha&s;t lately grieved for thy &s;ins, and God hath all&s;o gratiou&s;ly accepted of thy &s;orrow, and thou art now at peace and union with him; his holy Spirit is thy Comforter, his holy Pro|vidence thy Guide, his holy Angels thy Guar|dians, his holy Saints thine A&s;&s;i&s;tants; the Creatures without thee are at league and union
<PB N="64" REF="41">with thee, and thy Con&s;cience within thee is a continuall fea&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> unto thee: while thus thou continue&s;t thy &s;afety is inviolable, thy joy un|utterable, thy peace unalterable.</P>
<P>Who can expre&s;&s;e the ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e of this con|dition? how ravi&s;hing is this reviving pre&s;ence of the gladding Spirit, by which thou art &s;u&s;|tained &s;weetly here, by which thou &s;halt be joy|fully refre&s;ht hereafter!</P>
<P>Wilt thou now lo&s;e all this (O my Soul) for this fal&s;e, this foul, this momentany plea&s;ure? wilt thou lodge this bea&s;tly &s;in, where thou now lodge&s;t thy Redeemer? Con&s;ider how vain it is, how bitter it will be; think how many &s;ad thoughts, how many aking hearts, how many wounding &s;ighs, this fall of thine will co&s;t thee; what di&s;tempers of body, what di&s;turbance of &s;oul, what unquietne&s;&s;e of &s;leep, what checks of con&s;cience, what inward &s;adne&s;&s;e in thy greate&s;t merriment, and (which is wor&s;t of all) what a fearfull apprehen&s;ion of Gods wrath in this life, and wofull expectation of judgement, and &s;uffering of extremity of pains in Hell for ever.</P>
<P>Let not the vain hope of Gods mercy flatter thee; for while he is mercifull, he will be ju&s;t, yea his mercy &s;hall provoke his ju&s;tice; if his patience and long-&s;uffering doe not lead thee into timely repentance, his wrath and fury &s;hall &s;urely lead thee out to greater condemna|tion.</P>
<P>If cu&s;tome per&s;wade thee, let cu&s;tome all&s;o reclame thee; if thy fle&s;h murmur, thy &s;pirit will rejoyce: O how happy wilt thou find this oppo&s;ition! how glorious this victory! even but one ble&s;&s;ed thought of amendment, is of more value than an age of &s;in.</P>
<PB N="65" REF="41">
<P>Holy Saint <HI>Augu&s;tine,</HI> who was wont to nou|ri&s;h his la&s;civious fle&s;h, and thought it then im|po&s;&s;ible to live without the lu&s;tfull ki&s;&s;es of his <HI>Roman Dames,</HI> when once he had but reli&s;hed the ravi&s;hing embraces of eternity, brake forth into this &s;weet and mo&s;t divine expre&s;&s;ion, <HI>How truly &s;weet is the lo&s;&s;e of this earthly &s;weetne&s;&s;e! tho&s;e tran&s;itory joyes which I was formerly afraid to lo&s;e, I now rejoyce to bani&s;h; it was thou, O Lord, who did&s;t thru&s;t them out; it is thou, O Lord, who art entred in, who art &s;weeter than all &s;weetne&s;&s;e, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Lord let this example move me to a ble&s;&s;ed imitation of this ble&s;&s;ed Saint, to take heed of holding conference with Satan, to labour to repell the very fir&s;t motions to &s;in; if I delight in his di&s;cour&s;e, I &s;hall &s;oon con&s;ent to his coun&s;ell; if he feel me re&s;i&s;t, I &s;hall find him give ground. Lord let me remember what I fight for, and follow my advantage with courage and &s;ucce&s;&s;e, that when my daies of warfare &s;hall determine, I may &s;ay with joy and comfort, with thy ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle, <HI>I have fought a good fight, I have kept the faith, I have fini&s;hed my cour&s;e, from henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, which the Lord the righ|teous Judge &s;hall give me at that day, and not unto me onely, but unto all tho&s;e that love and expect the day of his appearing,</HI> 2 Tim. 4.7, 8.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou ha&s;t often &s;een the weakne&s;se of thy &s;in|full &s;ervant, how willingly, how wretchedly I have been yeelding to the fal&s;e allurements of my &s;infull fle&s;h; how ba&s;ely I have given ground, even upon the very fir&s;t a&s;&s;ault, without de&s;ire of re&s;i&s;tance, without care of repentance.</HI></P>
<PB N="66" REF="42">
<P><HI>I have hitherto been &s;o far from &s;orrowing for this &s;in, that I have much delighted in it, and often grieved thee, my God, in framing of ex|cu&s;es for it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God, how rich is that peace which I enjoy by thee, how glorious that hope which I po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e in thee, how wonderfull that mercy I ob|tain from thee? and yet how carele&s;ly, how coldly, have I parted from thee? Lord forgive what is pa&s;t, re&s;train what is pre&s;ent, prevent what is to come: O let me enjoy no &s;weetne&s;&s;e but in thee, who art nearer to me than I can be to my &s;elf, who art &s;weeter to me than the &s;weetne&s;se of the&s;e earthly plea&s;ures.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O give me &s;uch a ble&s;&s;ed frame of heart, &s;uch Angel-like integrity of &s;oul, that my thoughts may be cha&s;t, my de&s;ires holy, my words gratious, my actions good.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me a double portion of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, that I may double my obedience to thy &s;weet com|mands, that I may ta&s;t the comforts of thy hea|venly joyes, and utterly abhor the fal&s;e allure|ments of this &s;infull world.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let the &s;weet &s;howers of thy di&s;tilling graces allay the&s;e motions of concupi&s;cence, extingui&s;h the&s;e devouring flames of lu&s;t, that I may con|&s;tantly and happily oppo&s;e this darling &s;in to my la&s;t hour, and joyfully triumph with thee for ever.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="67" REF="42">
<HEAD>CHAP. I. <HI>Upon immoderate Mirth, and the &s;infull inconveniencies thereof.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>IF I were this day to dye; If thou &s;houlde&s;t now &s;ay unto me, Give an account of thy Steward&s;hip, for thou &s;halt be no longer St w|ard; if mine Audit were at this in&s;tant to be given up, and all mine actions this pre&s;ent hour to be account<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">d for, how &s;adly &s;hould I look upon that lo&s;t time which hath been &s;pent in &s;in? how many vain <HI>Items</HI> mu&s;t needs appear to my de&s;erved &s;hame, and ondle&s;s for|row? So many minutes wa&s;ted in unclean and wanton cogitations; &s;o many dayes and nights in frivolous and idle di&s;cour&s;e; &s;o many weeks, and moneths, and yeares, in vain and finfull actions: How full of horror and confu&s;ion would this Account appear, even to mine own eies With what face &s;hould I dare pre&s;ent itunto thine? What would I not now give to purcha&s;e but &s;ome &s;mall re&s;pite to redeem this wofull wa&s;te, this vain expence of time? What &s;eri|ous vows, and faithfull promi&s;es &s;hould I now make of amendment? What con&s;tant houres would be now dedicated to thy &s;ervice? my whole life would now &s;eem too little to bewail my &s;olly, to redeem my lo&s;s.</P>
<P>O what madne&s;s is it then, while I have dayes of mercy, to de&s;pi&s;e them, to abu&s;e them, to be utterly neglective of them? What is it, Lord, that I &s;o eagerly per&s;ue? Even the very heighth of all mine outward happine&s;s, is but a &s;hort crackling of thorns, a &s;udden blaze,
<PB N="68" REF="43">which may &s;eem to warm me, but can never throughly heat me; Wo be to that &s;oul for e|ver, that can find no refre&s;hment but in this momentany fire; If thy Grace, Lord, can|not warm me, thy Glory will not comfort me.</P>
<P>There can be no true joy but in godly &s;or|row; <HI>The heart of the wi&s;e is in the hou&s;e of mourn|ing, the heart of fools in the hou&s;e of mirth,</HI> Eccl. 7.6. The luxurious Wanton may be carnally joyfull, but the penitent Chri&s;tian is cordially merry.</P>
<P>There is no better tryal of this truth (Lord) than from thine own mouth, who wert a man of &s;orrows; thou, O Lord, ha&s;t told me, That I &s;hall weep, but the world &s;hall rejoyce; that I &s;hall &s;orrow, but my &s;orrow &s;hall be turned into joy, and my joy &s;hall no man take from me, <HI>John</HI> 16.20.</P>
<P>Deceive not thy &s;elf therefore (O my &s;oul) for if thou walke&s;t too far in this enticing path, thou art out of thy way to Heaven; and thou may&s;t go &s;o far in it as to lo&s;e thy &s;elf, and by a cu&s;tomary freedom of thy Chri&s;tian liberty, &s;oon find &s;o great an indi&s;po&s;ition unto God, and goodne&s;s, that unle&s;s the ble&s;&s;ed Shepheard of thy &s;oul vouch&s;afe to find thee, by his &s;a|ving grace, it is improbable, nay it is impo&s;&s;i|ble that thou &s;hould&s;t ever return.</P>
<P>Can&s;t thou be &s;o &s;en&s;le&s;s to believe that thou art Chri&s;ts Di&s;ciple, when thou wilt not bear his Cro&s;s? Did ever any of his followers enjoy heaven without violence? without beating down their bodies? without cheri&s;hing their &s;oules? without much weeping, fa&s;ting, praying, &s;igh|ing, groaning for their &s;ins? without being crucified unto the world, and the world unto
<PB N="69" REF="43">them? without checking, and controlling their unruly lu&s;ts? without utterly for&s;aking all this earthly tra&s;h? and joyfully accounting it as lo&s;s and dung to po&s;&s;e&s;s Chri&s;t?</P>
<P>Look upon the Prophets, Apo&s;tles, Martyrs, Virgins, Fathers of the Church, and all the ble&s;&s;ed company of Saints, in all times, places, Ages of the world, and thou &s;halt find them all to u&s;e this world as if they u&s;ed it not; quietly, &s;paringly, &s;oberly; <HI>I&s;aac</HI> at his evening devotion in the &s;olitary fields, <HI>Eliah</HI> at his pri|vate <HI>Carmel,</HI> the <HI>Bapti&s;t</HI> in the de&s;art, St. <HI>Paul</HI> in his de&s;ires out of the body, and with Chri&s;t, holy <HI>Simeon</HI> in his Pillar, Saint <HI>Jerome</HI> in his Cave, all of them and innumerable more of Gods Saints, were true <HI>Benonies,</HI> &s;onnes of &s;orrow and affliction.</P>
<P>Lord, with how much fervour, and alacrity of &s;oul, did the&s;e thy ble&s;&s;ed ones pur&s;ue thy heavenly joyes? what &s;harp combats had they to overcome them&s;elves? And if &s;uch cho&s;en and &s;elect ve&s;&s;els as the&s;e, have had &s;uch great &s;trivings, &s;uch powerfull conflicts with their finfull bodies? what will become of me? th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">t have obeyed &s;in in the lu&s;ts thereof, that can find no plea&s;ure but in folly, no laughter but in madne&s;s.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider therefore, O my &s;oul, whil&s;t thou ha&s;t yet time, that there is no truer character of a graeele&s;s heart, than prophane mirth; thou art too ready to believe, that God is mercifull, that all thy &s;ins may be forgiven thee in a mo|ment; that the good Thief was &s;aved at the la&s;t hour, and that therefore thou may&s;t &s;till go on in wickedne&s;s. God indeed is allwayes ready to &s;hew mercy, but it is onely unto tho&s;e that are ready to repent: And how knowed thou
<PB N="70" REF="44">whether God will accept thee in that hour? Whether he may not, whether he will not, then withdraw his &s;aving grace from that &s;infull &s;oul, which hath &s;o long withdrawn it &s;elf from his &s;ervice: This is that which thy ble&s;&s;ed Sa|viour telleth thee, <HI>Not every one which crieth Lord, Lord, &s;hall enter into the Kingdom of heaven, but he that doth the will of my Father which is in hea|ven,</HI> Matth. 7 21.</P>
<P>And le&s;t perpaps that one example of the dy|ing Penitent may flatter thee, con&s;id<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">r of the time, the place, the manner of his &s;trange con|ver&s;ion: <HI>This was a&s;&s;uredly</HI> (&s;aith St <HI>Augu&s;tine) to manife&s;t the power and Godhead of a dying Saci|our, and that upon the rare con&s;e&s;&s;ion of an Infidell, and that at &s;uch a time when all the world for&s;ook him, and even his own Di&s;ciples either doubted, or denied his Godhead.</HI></P>
<P>Ala&s;s, how little comfort can&s;t thou now reap from this example: how &s;hould it rather affright thee, to &s;ee bu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> one &s;oul among&s;t &s;o many milli|ons to obtain mercy at the la&s;t hour, &amp; that upon &s;uch weighty circum&s;tances? on what a weak foundation doe&s;t thou build thy hopes of hap|pine&s;s? how ea&s;ily will that devouring &s;torm of thine accu&s;ing con&s;cience ruin it? and then how great the fall will be, the fearfull horror of thy lo&s;t e&s;tate will wofully expre&s;s.</P>
<P>Lord, let this teach me to redeem tho&s;e pre|cious hours which I have lo&s;t: O let each wan|ton thought, each idle word; be monitors to tell me how my Audit &s;tands with heaven. I can &s;peak nothing, I can doe nothing, which I can recall; each circum&s;tance of &s;in is charged in mine account, and mu&s;t be reckoned for: how careful &s;hould this make me of the-expen&s;e of that time that is recorded for eternity? Thou,
<PB N="71" REF="44">O Lord, art holyne&s;s it &s;elf, thy Saints and An|gels are holy, and thy children mu&s;t be holy; nothing but holine&s;s can inherit heaven, no un|clean plea&s;ure, no impure joy &s;hall enter there: How can I ever hope to be an inhabitant of that holy City, who&s;e heavenly language I can|not &s;peak?</P>
<P>And now, Lord, &s;eeing the&s;e things are thus, by thine a&s;&s;i&s;ting grace, I &s;eriou&s;ly re&s;olve to allow my &s;elf no plea&s;ure in this life, but what is &s;anctified with moderation; becau&s;e I clearly &s;ee, the&s;e outward plea&s;ures to be one|ly &s;o far u&s;efull unto me, as by them I am made more &s;erviceable unto thee: Moderate and hone&s;t repa&s;t, &s;ets an edge upon my &s;oul, and makes it more earne&s;t, more-active in devotion; when I take up plea&s;ure as a trade, I become a Traytor to my body, a Tyrant to my &s;oul.</P>
<P>Lord, I am now heartily in love with heaven, and grudge at that hours liberty in outward merriment, that maketh not the next more eager of mine inward comfort; There is no &s;weetne&s;s but in goodne&s;s, and there is no goodne&s;s in that mirth which is not &s;ubordi|nate to this &s;weetne&s;s: Chri&s;tian liberty may be ea&s;ily mi&s;taken, and become licentious wickedne&s;s; there is often-times mo&s;t danger in tho&s;e things which &s;eem mo&s;t nece&s;&s;ary, if not u&s;ed with moderation.</P>
<P>And now Lord, having &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;idered what time is, and wherefore, I admire the fol|ly, and lament the mi&s;ery of all tho&s;e who&s;e onely aim is to mi&s;-&s;pend it: My dayes are few, and full of evil, O let my greate&s;t care be to husband my time well; I have much bu&s;i|ne&s;s, and great, to di&s;patch, and I know not whether this dayes l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ght may be my la&s;t; Mine
<PB N="72" REF="45">eternity of joy or &s;orrow, hath its dependance on this &s;hort moment: If I think upon it &s;eri|ou&s;ly, I &s;hall grudge to &s;pend one minute vain|ly: Lord, there is no di&s;tinction of time with thee, one day with thee is as a thou&s;and years, and a thou&s;and years as one day; O let me &s;e|riou&s;ly con&s;ider, that with me there is, that I mu&s;t work while it is called to day, that mine houres are &s;wift and &s;hort, that the night of death cometh when I cannot work; that the end of all things cometh, when time &s;hall be no more: By thy grace therefore I will piou&s;ly devote the remnant of my life to holy duties, &s;o &s;hall mine age of &s;in be nothing in thy &s;ight; and one day well &s;pent (in thy remembrance) as a thou&s;and years.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>Wilt thou accept of &s;uch a &s;infull creature as I am to appear before thee, to approach unto thee, to &s;ue to thee for mercy? How bold am I to look up unto thee with the&s;e adulterous eyes, that have &s;o long been gazing on the&s;e earthly joyes? how much pre&s;uming on thy mercy, to im|plore thee with that tongue, that hath &s;o much provoked thy di&s;plea&s;ure? how impudent to offer that di&s;loyall heart unto thee, that hath &s;o fa&s;t been wedded to this &s;infull world?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, when mine own wretchedne&s;s had brought thy gracious vi&s;itation on me, when thy hand pre&s;sed me &s;ore, when thine arrows &s;tuck fa&s;t in me, and the venome of them drank up my &s;pirits; when my heart was in hcavine&s;s, and my &s;oul in bitterne&s;s, when my life was drawing near unto the grave, when mine own con&s;cience pleaded powerfully a|gain&s;t me, and the terrors of a &s;econd death
<PB N="73" REF="45">were ready to devour me; I then earne&s;tly im|plored thee for mercy, and thou freely forgave&s;t me; I then begged my life of thee, that I might thankfully devote the remnant of my life unto thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ah Lord, how wretchedly hath mine own heart deceived me? what &s;erious vows, and faithfull promi&s;es did I then make unto thee? and yet how carele&s;ly, how fooli&s;hly am I depart|ed from thee? how vainly have I trifled out that precious time which thou ha&s;t given me? how ju&s;tly may&s;t thou now deprive me of this wretched life, by which I have &s;o much di&s;ho|nored thee?</HI></P>
<P><HI>And now, Lord, when I have even wearied out my &s;elf in wickedne&s;s, when my &s;oul is over|charged with &s;in, and my heart with &s;orrow; when the vanity of this life is ready to for&s;ake me, and there is nothing left but mi&s;ery and &s;hame to &s;eize upon me; I have not yet re&s;olved &s;eriou&s;ly to come unto thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, leave me not unto the weakne&s;&s;e of mine own infirmities, expo&s;e mee not unto the raging hillowes of the&s;e &s;trong temptations, &s;uffer me not to &s;ink into this depth of &s;in, to be de&s;troyed by this dreadful &s;torm of Satan, and mine own accu&s;ing con&s;cience; rebuke the&s;e windes and waves, and cau&s;e a ble&s;&s;ed calm within me; reach out thy hand of mercy, and &s;upport me; &s;trengthen my drooping &s;oul, that I may joyfully, and faithfully lay hold upon thee: give me a fixed heart, that I may &s;eriou&s;ly return unto thee, and may this hour be graciou&s;ly accepted of thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord wean me from the fal&s;e imbraces of this evill world, turn all the&s;e &s;infull joyes to bitterne&s;s unto mee, make me to &s;ee their
<PB N="74" REF="46">foulne&s;&s;e and deformity, their emptine&s;&s;e and vanity, their &s;hortne&s;s and uncertainty, their fal&s;hood and flattery, their wearine&s;&s;e and mi|&s;ery.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O let my heart be filled, let my &s;oul be ravi&s;hed with tho&s;e tran&s;cendent joyes of thine which are for ever; give me a joyfull &s;oul to re&s;t &s;ecurely in them, a ready heart devoutly thankfull for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord moderate my de&s;ires to outward in|joyments; let me relli&s;h no &s;weetne&s;&s;e but in thy love, no goodne&s;&s;e but in thy grace, no comfort but in the full a&s;&s;urance of thy glory.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive tho&s;e wretched houres which have been &s;toln from thy &s;ervice: O Lord, my God, I heartily bewail them, and willingly re&s;olve to &s;pend my days in &s;orrow for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Make me more watchfull over my corrupt heart, more carefull of my precious time, more &s;erious in the weighty work of my &s;alvation; more &s;orrowfull for &s;in, more mindfull of the hour of death and day of judge|judgement: That &s;o I may affect the plea|&s;ures of this life &s;oberly, enjoy them &s;paring|ly, and leave them cheerfully.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="20" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="75" REF="46">
<HEAD>CHAP. 20. <HI>Upon the great danger of deferring the hour of repentance.</HI></HEAD>
<P>COn&s;ider, O my Soul, of the great danger of delaying thy repentance; of judging that &s;o ea&s;y, which will prove &s;o difficult; of thinking that allmo&s;t fini&s;ht, which is &s;carce yet begun: Believe&s;t thou it will &s;uffice thee to have &s;ome tran&s;itory thoughts of thine a|mendment, to have perhaps &s;ome pinching &s;ighs, &s;ome &s;tings of con&s;cience, &s;ome &s;hews of &s;or|row for thy &s;ins; to hang down thy head like a bulru&s;h for a day, and yet afterwards to return with the dog to thy filthy vomit, and with the &s;ow to the wallowing in the na&s;ty mire of &s;in: While thou continue&s;t in this cour&s;e, thy hopes of amendment are extreme doubtfull, of reconciliation dangerous, of repentance de&s;pe|rate.</P>
<P>If ever thou hope&s;t to inherit heaven, let not Satan thus delude thee; look well into thine evill and corrupt heart, and thou &s;halt there find, that this is not the cure, but the di&s;|ca&s;e of &s;in; that thou grieve&s;t not for thine of|fence, but for thy puni&s;hment; that thou may&s;t yet go much farther in this &s;uppo&s;ed path of thy repentance, and &s;till be far &s;hort of that &s;ince|rity of heart which God requireth of thee, and yet have no part nor fellow&s;hip in Chri&s;t: Thou may&s;t with <HI>Saul</HI> expre&s;s thy &s;orrow with thy tears; with tho&s;e Beleevers in the Go&s;pel, re|ceive the word with joy; with <HI>Demas,</HI> &s;hew thine inward grace by thine outward obedi|ence; and in &s;ome &s;ort be made partaker of the
<PB N="76" REF="47">Holy Gho&s;t, and have a ta&s;t of the good things of the world to come; and yet for all this, come far &s;hort of this unfeigned work of true repen|tance. Ala&s;s, what can it profit thee to bewail that &s;in which thou wilt not forgo? what reward can&s;t thou expect for that obedience which &s;o &s;oon fainteth? what comfort in that joy which is but temporary?</P>
<P>Remember how great a work thou ha&s;t in hand, how many millions of lo&s;t &s;ouls complain eternally in hell of this neglect; O look into the foulne&s;s of thy &s;in, and then into the true|ne&s;s of thy &s;orrow: If thou art Gods child, thou wilt be grieved for offending of &s;o good a Father; thou wilt abhor that &s;in that hath &s;o much provoked his di&s;plea&s;ure, thou wilt mo&s;t &s;olemnly prote&s;t again&s;t it, and &s;eriou&s;ly re|&s;olve for ever to avoyd it; thy &s;in will be ever before thee, to humble thee here, to exalt thee hereafter.</P>
<P>Thy degrees of &s;in will have thy degrees of &s;orrow; thy mea&s;ure of pollution will require thy mea&s;ure of &s;anctification: As thou ha&s;t gi|ven up thy members to be &s;ervants of &s;in, &s;o thou mu&s;t now yeeld them up to be weapons of righteou&s;ne&s;s; as thou ha&s;t been drowned in plea&s;ure, &s;o thou mu&s;t be drencht in tears; yea tho&s;e tears will be thy dayly food, to nouri&s;h thee in grace, to enrich thee in glory.</P>
<P>O how truly-ble&s;&s;ed is that &s;oul, which hath unfeignedly re&s;olved on this good, this great, this nece&s;&s;ary work? that can cheerfully and joyfully expre&s;s it &s;elf with holy <HI>David,</HI> and &s;ay, <HI>Lord I am bowed down greatly, I goe mourning all the day long, I have roared out for very angui&s;h and unquietne&s;s of heart.</HI> If thou ha&s;t <HI>Davids</HI> &s;orrow (O my &s;oul) thou &s;halt a&s;&s;uredly have
<PB N="77" REF="47"><HI>Davids</HI> joy, thou &s;halt &s;ay with him all&s;o, <HI>Lord I am thy child, and the &s;on of thine handmaid, thou ha&s;t broken my bonds in &s;under,</HI> P&s;al. 116.16. Satan may now tempt thee, and through thy frailty and infirmity prevail again&s;t thee; but to become a cu&s;tomer to evill, the powers of hell cannot entice thee; a thou&s;and worlds are not now of that value with thee, as the joyfull remembrance of thy pa&s;&s;ed dangers, thy pre&s;ent comfort, thy future &s;afety.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t now &s;een (O my &s;oul) how ab&s;o|lutely nece&s;&s;ary this great work is; think now how happy will be the performance, how full of danger the delay: the longer thou continu|e&s;t in &s;in, the more remote thou art from grace; What extreme folly is this in thee, to deprive thy &s;elf of that friend, of whom thou ha&s;t mo&s;t need? If thou finde&s;t thy &s;elf &s;o back|ward to this holy duty now, how aver&s;e wilt thou be hereafter, when &s;in is more deeply rooted in thee, the devill in more firm po&s;&s;e&s;&s;i|on of thee, and God him&s;elf removed further off from thee?</P>
<P>From whence now are the&s;e fal&s;e hopes, the&s;e vain promi&s;es of future happine&s;s? how dare&s;t thou refu&s;e the&s;e gracious offers of eternity? how full of doubtfulne&s;s and extreme hazard is this fal&s;e a&s;&s;urance of that holy Spirit, which thou ha&s;t &s;o often grieved? Be not deceived, God is not mocked, look what a man &s;oweth, even that &s;hall he reap; he that &s;oweth in the fle&s;h, &s;hall reap corruption; he that &s;oweth in the Spirit, life everla&s;ting: If thou wilt not hear Gods call in this life, he will not hear thine in that to come; if thou wilt not mourn for thy &s;ins here, thou &s;halt howl for them for ever. <HI>And who &s;hall then have pitty upon thee? or who
<PB N="78" REF="48">&s;hall be &s;orry for thee? or who &s;hall pray for thy peace? thou ha&s;t abandoned me (&s;aith God) thou ha&s;t gone from me, and now will I &s;tretch out my hand again&s;t thee to de&s;troy thee.</HI> Jerem. 15.5, 6</P>
<P>Lord, let this teach me to deal truly with my &s;elf, to &s;earch narrowly for &s;in, timely for &s;or|row, and &s;peedily for pardon. <HI>Seek the Lord, O my &s;oul, while he may be found, for in the great wa|ter-floods</HI> (of his eternall wrath) <HI>thou &s;halt not come nigh him.</HI></P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have &s;inned, and I de&s;ire to repent; I have layen long fe&s;tering in the grave of &s;in, and cannot be now rai&s;ed without a miracle.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have &s;inned in delight, in con&s;ent, in action, in cu&s;tom, in long continuance of cu&s;tom; with|out remor&s;e of con&s;cience, without thought of repentance: I am grown old and impudent in &s;in, and am no more worthy to be called thy child.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I am become loath&s;om to my &s;elf, how much more odious unto thee, who art a God of pure eyes, and can&s;t behold none ini|quitie.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I have &s;inned again&s;t thee, I cannot repent but by thee; my tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion is active, my obedience pa&s;&s;ive, I can no more ari&s;e from &s;in than death, even this de&s;ire of &s;orrow is from thee; the repair of my corruption is the work of thy creation; when thou ha&s;t rai&s;ed me by thy grace, thou &s;upporte&s;t me by thy goodne&s;se, thou leade&s;t me by thy providence, thou drawe&s;t me by thy patience, thou compelle&s;t mee by thy power.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Such is my weakne&s;s, &s;uch is my feeblene&s;s by
<PB N="79" REF="48">nature, that I cannot ri&s;e without thee, that I cannot &s;tand without thee when I am rai&s;ed by thee; &s;uch is my &s;trength, &s;uch is my ability by grace, that I am able to go with thee, that I am joyfull to run after thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord quicken and revive me from the death of &s;in, and grave of mi&s;ery; &s;u&s;tain my wounded con&s;cience with the &s;weetne&s;s of thy &s;aving pro|mi&s;es; let thy patience and long-&s;uffering lead me in to repentance, thy holy Spirit unto perfect holine&s;s, and endle&s;s happine&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord Je&s;us draw me, and I &s;hall joyfully run after thee; my body in obedience to my &s;oul, my &s;oul and body in obedience to thy ble&s;&s;ed will, more zealou&s;ly, more willingly, more con&s;tantly to my lives end.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="21" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 21. <HI>Upon Servile fear, and the danger thereof.</HI></HEAD>
<P>NO child can fear his father as lie ought, that is not jealous of his fathers honour, that is not feelingly affected with his inju|ries, and zealou&s;ly devoted to perpetuate his prai&s;e; and it is as equally impo&s;&s;ible that this father can affect that &s;on, who&s;e obedience is rather enforced by power, than invited by af|fection.</P>
<P>If this be &s;o in Nature, it is much more &s;o in Grace; for thou, O Lord, art now a double father to me, thou art my father by creation, and my father by redemption: Lord, as thou ha&s;t doubled thy goodne&s;s towards me, I
<PB N="80" REF="49">&s;hould have doubled my return of thankfulne&s;s towards thee: Thy love to me is ab&s;olute, no breach can di&s;&s;olve it, no time determine it; thy love to me was from the beginning, and whom thou love&s;t thou love&s;t to the end: My love to thee is fickle, fal&s;e, and full of imperfections; and if my filiall fear, even in my re&s;t performances, be full of &s;pots and blemi&s;hes in thy &s;ight, how mo&s;t deformed &s;hall I appear, when I &s;erve thee with an irreligious, and ungodly fear? when I doe thy will repiningly, and coldly, not for love of thy mercy, but for fear of thy ju&s;tice? when I am knowingly and willingly con&s;enting to thy great di&s;honour; when I am &s;o zealous in the worlds cau&s;e, yea, too too often, in the devils cau&s;e, and &s;o benummed in thine; when &s;orrows di&s;may me, and &s;ins delight me.</P>
<P>Ah Lord! how far am I from what I ought to be? If I go on in this path, I peri&s;h everla&s;ting|ly; while I continue in this cour&s;e of di&s;obedi|ence, I hang over hell fire by the &s;lender twig of an uncertain life, and if that once break, my lo&s;s is irrecoverable: Thou Lord ha&s;t &s;ayd it (and thy word is truth) <HI>He which denieth me be|fore men, him will I deny before my Father which is in heaven:</HI> Lord let this teach me to delight in thy &s;ervice, to be jealous of thine honor, to thir&s;t for thy favour, to tremble at thy frown, to &s;ubmit to thy rod, to think nothing too dear to part withall, to purcha&s;e thy grace, to pro|mote thy glory. Thou, O Lord, love&s;t not a cowardly Chri&s;tian; if I prefer any thing to thy love, I am mo&s;t unworthy of it; that friend&s;hip is too dearly bought, which cannot be enjoyed without the lo&s;s of thy favour.</P>
<P>If my brother offend me, I will labour to re&s;tore him with the &s;pirit of meekne&s;s, le&s;t
<PB N="81" REF="49">whil&s;t I &s;tudy to rebuke another, I become guilty my &s;elf: No &s;in &s;hal pa&s;s me without &s;ome &s;hew of di&s;ta&s;t, without &s;ome feeling of my Makers injury, and my brothers mi&s;ery; If I be not moved with compa&s;&s;ion for anothers &s;in, I &s;hall never be moved with contrition for mine own; &s;uch comfort as I can willingly af|ford another, I may well hope &s;hall be graci|ou&s;ly conferred on my &s;elf.</P>
<P>In my reproof of &s;in I will ob&s;erve the&s;e holy cautions, le&s;t while I endeavour to become &s;er|viceable unto thee, I prove injurious to my neighbour: Private &s;ins &s;hall not have publique reprehen&s;ions; neither &s;hall publique &s;ins be undecently reproved by me a private per&s;on; Piety mu&s;t not confound Charity, nor Religion Policy. Lord, I may ea&s;ily tran&s;gre&s;s, even in my be&s;t intentions; how grievou&s;ly have I then failed in my rebellious actions? when I have not feared thee with that &s;incerity of heart which becometh thy child; when I have not loved thee for that beauty, for that richne&s;s, for that goodne&s;s which thou art, but for tho&s;e out|ward ble&s;&s;ings which I enjoy from thee; when I &s;erve thee for ba&s;e and by re&s;pects, &s;uch, and &s;o unbe&s;eeming my profe&s;&s;ion, &s;o far below that &s;oul which thou ha&s;t given me, that thou may&s;t ju&s;tly now withhold thy ble&s;&s;ings from me; when I have hitherto &s;ought but my &s;elf in thee, when my thoughts have been carnall, my words hypocriticall, my &s;ervice deceitfull.</P>
<P>To thy glory (Lord) and mine own de&s;erved &s;hame, I willingly confe&s;s, that I have not only &s;inned through the frailty of my nature, but I have &s;inned all&s;o with an high hand; &s;in hath not onely &s;urpri&s;ed me at unawares, but I have obeyed it in the lu&s;ts thereof, with willingne&s;s,
<PB N="82" REF="50">with greedine&s;s, with joyfulne&s;s; I have not onely corrupted mine own wayes before thee, by mine own &s;ins, but I have all&s;o fooli&s;hly con|tracted others faults, by hearing and &s;eeing thee my God di&s;honored in vain and &s;infull di&s;cour&s;e, in more vain and &s;infull exce&s;s, with|out &s;hew of di&s;like, without thought of reproof; yea, Lord, I have added unto others &s;ins by mine example, while I have feared to reprove that which I have known to be di&s;ta&s;tfull unto thee, while I have &s;eemed to love that which hath been hatefull to mine own &s;oul: With tho&s;e time-plea&s;ing Rulers in the Go&s;pel, I have believed in thee, but becau&s;e of the Pha|ri&s;ees (becau&s;e of outward re&s;pects) I have feared to confe&s;s thee; and have loved the prai&s;e of men more than the prai&s;e of God.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>But thou, Lord (who art infinitely good, and ever ready to forgive, who&s;e wi&s;e and over ru|ling Providence is only able to produce the great|e&s;t good out of the greate&s;t evill) Pardon and pa&s;s by my many and my weak compliances of &s;infu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">l nature; &s;upply my defects, accept my de&s;ires, incourage my endeavours: Let thy power be magnified in my weakne&s;s, thy love in my will|fulne&s;s, thy grace in my &s;infulne&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Suffer me not (O Lord) to run from thee, by a ba&s;e and &s;ervile fear of thy Ju&s;tice, O let me rather run into the bo&s;om of thy love by a filiall fear, in &s;weet and &s;afe a&s;&s;urance of thy mercy.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me to &s;ee the fearfulne&s;s and ugline&s;s of &s;in, by the bright rayes of thy ce|le&s;tiall beauty: O let me patiently, and joyfully, and thankfully, endure thy &s;weet cha&s;ti&s;ements
<PB N="83" REF="50">for it, and &s;peedily, and con&s;tantly withdraw my longings from it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me an yearning and relenting &s;oul for grieving thy good Spirit; give me (O Lord) that cha&s;t and ble&s;&s;ed fear belonging onely to thy children, that I may not fear thee to tremble at thee, but to love thee, to honor thee, to delight in thee, to enjoy thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, make me jealous of every deed, of e|very word, of every thought that may di&s;plea&s;e thee, and truly penitent for all tho&s;e &s;ins by which I have &s;o much di&s;honoured thee: Indue me with a loyall heart to love thee truly as I ought; &s;trengthen this love with holy confidence, and happy per&s;everance, that may for ever ha|ni&s;h this unholy fear; that &s;o my joyfull &s;oul may live above the reach of humane mi&s;ery; that I may be capable of no fear but of offend|ing thee; and that I may not onely fear thee my &s;elf, but be jealous all&s;o of thy fear in others.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, let nothing in this life withdraw me from a zealous and a con&s;tant love to thy &s;ervice, from a faithfull and devout indeavour to promote thy glory; that &s;o I may be ever found truly obedient unto thee, my God, religiou&s;ly acquainted with the affairs of this life, piou&s;ly affected to the good of mine own &s;oul.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="84" REF="51">
<HEAD>CHAP. 22. <HI>Upon the great neglect of reckoning daily with our con&s;ciences, and the benefits lo&s;t thereby.</HI></HEAD>
<P>COn&s;ider, O my &s;oul, how venomous the nature of &s;in is; if thou can&s;t afford to &s;leep in &s;mall &s;ins, thou wilt not &s;tick to welcom greater. Sin is of an incroaching na|ture; if thou &s;uffer it to &s;leep in thy bo&s;om, it will expect to dwell there: Little &s;ins are har|bingers to bigger ones; if thou lodge&s;t the&s;e, tho&s;e will challenge entertainment: Let each evening therefore take a &s;trict accompt of that daies action, and where thou finde&s;t thy &s;elf fail|ing, pray heartily for pardon.</P>
<P>In thine entrance upon this holy cour&s;e, thou wilt &s;urely find three potent oppo&s;itions: Sa|tan will tell thee, that God requireth no &s;uch &s;trictne&s;s at thy hands; the World will tell thee, thou ha&s;t this, or that employment to con&s;ider of; thine own Corruption will per&s;wade thee, that nature will abhor this di&s;contented cour&s;e, that thy &s;pirits will be too much dulled, and thy life will prove uncomfortable.</P>
<P>Ala&s;s my &s;oul, the&s;e are delu&s;ions to betray thee to a greater mi&s;chief. As there are degrees of Sanctification, &s;o there are of Pollution; no man becometh evill in an in&s;tant: from hence it is, that &s;ometimes the &s;oul can &s;tart even at the very thought of that &s;in, which by degrees it can dige&s;t without di&s;turbance. If holy <HI>David</HI> had accounted with his con&s;cience, after his lu&s;tfull looks on <HI>Bath&s;heba,</HI> doubtle&s;s tho&s;e fear|full
<PB N="85" REF="51">&s;ins of his had never been committed. O let not any vain pretences deter thee from this task, but the ble&s;&s;ed benefits allure thee; if the entrance be har&s;h, the progre&s;s will be &s;afe, the continuance &s;weet, the end happy.</P>
<P>By this enquiry thou &s;halt &s;ee thy &s;ins (tho&s;e great di&s;turbers of thy p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ace) arraigned, con|victed, condemned, and by the mercy of thy Sa|viour dayly dying in thee; Satan repul&s;ed, the gifts and graces of Gods holy Spirit &s;trengthen|ed, thy mournings comforted, thine infirmities &s;u&s;teined, thy con&s;cience quitted, thy rejoy|cings exalted, the holy Angels delighted, and thy heavenly Father well plea&s;ed. O how truly ble&s;&s;ed are the&s;e enjoyments! what &s;oul can be now &s;ad in this enquiry?</P>
<P>Lord, I now &s;olemnly re&s;olve upon this &s;afe, this &s;weet, this ble&s;&s;ed task; I willingly aban|don all excu&s;es that may hinder me, and joy|fully embrace tho&s;e happy duties which invite me nearer to thy heavenly pre&s;ence; thy yoak is ea&s;ie, and thy burthen light; when thy grace hath redeemed me from the bondage of &s;in, and re&s;tored me into the glorious liberty of thy chil|d en, I &s;hall then find (to my &s;ouls comfort) that thy &s;ervice is perfect fre<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">dom<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">, from &s;in, from &s;hame, from death, from hell; from all mi&s;eries here, from all torments here|after.</P>
<P>Be warie therefore, O my &s;oul, and carefull to remove all lets that may di&s;able thee, but tho&s;e e&s;pecially that turn me from a Chri&s;tian to a bea&s;t. Satan hath many wayes to couzen me; when he cannot beguile my judg<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ment, he will betray mine affections, and lead me by a &s;eeming good, in friendly &s;ociety, to a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> call evill in exce&s;s, and &s;o when he cannot corrupt
<PB N="86" REF="52">my intentions, he will undoubtedly divert mine actions, as well knowing it is impo&s;&s;ible for him to be devout, who is not temperate.</P>
<P>Lord, by how much Satan is more powerfull and malicious, by &s;o much make me more wi&s;e and circum&s;pect, that my intentions may be good, my words gracious, my actions vertuous, my life holy, my death happy.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>How large a portion of my little time have I be&s;towed on &s;in? how eager have I been of it? how negligent in asking pardon for it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord pardon my unmindfulne&s;s of holy duties, make me more watchfull for the time to come, that I may con&s;tantly re&s;olve upon amendment of my evill wayes, and willingly endure thy fatherly afflictions for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive tho&s;e &s;infull houres that have unfit|ted me for thy &s;ervice; &s;uffer me not, O Lord, to wander in the waies of wickedne&s;s, and when at any time the frailty of my wretched fle&s;h &s;hall tempt me to exceed tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed bounds which thou ha&s;t &s;et me, O let thy &s;aving grace re&s;train me; let not this &s;infull freedom captivate my precious &s;oul, to thy di&s;honour, and mine own de&s;erved &s;hame; but let thy gladding Spirit be my joyfull comfort, to refre&s;h me in life, and protect me in death.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Make me more zealous, more intent upon the wayes of godline&s;s; Lord &s;uffer not my pious re&s;olutions to abate with any outward ob&s;tacles; let me not lean upon the&s;e broken reeds, but re&s;t on thee the rock of my defence and &s;afety.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Make me content to leave the&s;e earthly vani|ties for thy &s;ake, who wert willing to forgoe Thy heavenly Throne for mine; though the frailty
<PB N="87" REF="52">of my nature hath too often led me into the bon|dage of &s;in, yet let the freedome of thy grace now guide me into the foot&s;teps of &s;orrow, that this ble&s;&s;ed &s;orrow may be turned into joy, and that this joy the world may not take from me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord open mine eyes, that I may &s;ee the ble&s;|&s;edne&s;&s;e of goodne&s;&s;e, the perfect freedome of thy &s;ervice, the glorious liberty of thy children; &s;o &s;hall I willingly &s;ubmit to thy commands, and joyfully partake of thy rewards.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God, with humblene&s;&s;e of &s;oul I offer up my &s;elf unto thee; Lord Je&s;us accept of me, and &s;o a&s;&s;i&s;t me with thy grace, that I may wholly dedicate my &s;elf to thy glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 23. <HI>Upon Unchri&s;tianlike dulne&s;&s;e in afflicti|on.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>I cannot live without cro&s;&s;es, unle&s;&s;e I can live without &s;in; when they come therefore, I will bid them welcome for thy &s;ake, from whom they are &s;ent; not one of them can af|flict me without thy leave, who ha&s;t directed their cour&s;e, limited their power; let me not repine at that which I have ju&s;tly d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;erved; let me rather rejoyce, that thou vouch&s;afe&s;t me this favour; if I were not thy child, I &s;hould not be under thy rod; if thou Lord did&s;t not love me, thou would&s;t not &s;courge me; no out|ward thing can &s;o well a&s;&s;ure me of thy favour, as the fellow&s;hip of thy &s;ufferings; for if I &s;uffer
<PB N="88" REF="53">with thee, I &s;hall a&s;&s;uredly be glorified together with thee.</P>
<P>Holy <HI>David</HI> was in trouble, and it was good for him: O let not that which was good for him, be evill for me. Lord, if thy phy&s;ick be bitter, yet it is whol&s;ome; if it make me heart|&s;ick now, it will make me healthfull hereafter; if I di&s;turb it not by mine impatience, it will work in me the quiet and the happy fruits of true repentance, and amendment of mine evill waies; it will remember me that I am a Stran|ger, and a Pilgrim here, that there is nothing in this life but wearine e and &s;orrow; it will drive me from the penury of &s;in, and tyranny of Satan, to the riches of grace, and liberty of goodne&s;&s;e; it will encourage me to walk wor|thy of the richne&s;&s;e of my calling in Chri&s;t Je|&s;us; it will make me willing to goe home to thee my heavenly Father, where I &s;hall feel no more pain, find no more &s;orrow, &s;uffer no more affliction, where thou Lord wilt wipe away all tears from mine eyes, all grief from my heart.</P>
<P>Thou (O Lord) alone knowe&s;t my di&s;ea&s;e, and can&s;t be&s;t temper my potion; each degree mu&s;t be an&s;wered, &s;o much &s;infull plea&s;ure as I enjoy, &s;o much &s;orrow mu&s;t I drink (and woe be unto me for ever if I drink it not) if I ta&s;t not of this cup here, I &s;hall drink of the very dregs in hell: Thou, O Lord, who ha&s;t freely forgiven me my &s;ins, ha&s;t not fully remitted my puni&s;hments; thou who did&s;t undergoe the mi&s;ery of life, and the bitterne&s;&s;e of death for me, ha&s;t neither bought off the one, nor taken off the other, from me; by thy &s;ufferings I am fully and for ever freed from the guilt and tor|ments of &s;in; by mine own corruptions I am
<PB N="89" REF="53">liable unto the act of &s;in, and &s;o even unto death all&s;o, as a temporall puni&s;hment for &s;in: Thou came&s;t not, O Lord, wholly to aboli&s;h &s;in in me, but to become righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and &s;anctifi|cation, and redemption unto me; not to abate my &s;orrows, but to uphold my &s;ufferings; that I being thereby made conformable unto thee in grace, may hereafter be partaker with thee of thy heavenly glory.</P>
<P>How fearfull ought this to make me to com|mit &s;in? how carefull to avoid occa&s;ions of allurements to it? how thankfull, how joy|full, to receive Gods Fatherly cha&s;ti&s;ements for it? I may here &s;ee, and joyfully admire, the wi&s;edome, ju&s;tice; goodne&s;&s;e, mercy, of my heavenly Father; his ju&s;tice, in puni&s;hing &s;in; his wi&s;edome, in the proportion and end of this puni&s;hment; his goodne&s;&s;e, by &s;u&s;teining me under it, by redeeming me from it; his mercy, by making it to work for me a far more exceed|ing, and eternall weight of glory.</P>
<P>Lord he that can droop under thy Cro&s;&s;e, &s;hall never follow thee to thy Crown; when I once find the lightne&s;&s;e of this load, by the &s;trength of thy &s;upporting grace, I &s;hall then feel, to my &s;ouls exceeding comfort, that one &s;in is of more weight than an age of &s;orrow.</P>
<P>And now Lord, I am joyfully prepared for the wor&s;t of afflictions, which either &s;in or Satan, life or death, can bring upon me; &s;courge me, launce me, brui&s;e me, break me, doe what thou wilt with me here, &s;o thou &s;pare me for ever; Lord, allthough thou kille&s;t me, yet will I tru&s;t in thee, for I know a&s;&s;uredly, that all the&s;e outward things &s;hall work together for the be&s;t for me; and that my pre&s;ent &s;ufferings thou ha&s;t &s;ent in mercy to me, to humble me for &s;in,
<PB N="90" REF="54">to pre&s;erve me from &s;hame; I ki&s;&s;e them, I em|brace them, and am &s;incerely thankfull for them. Lord let me clearly &s;ee for what &s;in thou ha&s;t inflicted this puni&s;hment, that I may bewail it, abhor it, for&s;ake it, implore thy par|don for it; when I am thus armed, I &s;hall be able to encounter thy fierce&s;t affliction; if I am found naked, the weake&s;t will foyl me.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>To thee, O Lord, who&s;e wi&s;e and over-ruling hand di&s;po&s;eth all occurrences of life, and &s;weetly guides them to the good of thy children, doe I addre&s;&s;e my &s;infull &s;oul, for mercy and protecti|on.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord open mine eyes, that I may &s;ee and be|lieve the con&s;tancy of thy love, in the mutability. of mine outward condition.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me a patient and a willing heart to wel|come all the changes of this pre&s;ent life, to be humble under them, to rejoyce in them, and be thankfull for them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive the pride of heart, and prodigality of hand, attending on my pro&s;perous e&s;tate; my great repinings, and ungodly pa&s;&s;ions, incident to my declining happine&s;&s;e, and increa&s;ing mi&s;ery.</HI></P>
<P><HI>As thou ha&s;t weaned me from the plea&s;ures of this life, by the rod of thine afflictions, &s;o wean me all&s;o from the &s;ins of this life, by the &s;taff of thy con&s;olations, that &s;o my heart may be wholly taken off from all earthly enjoyments; that I may become even as a weaned child, to forgoe willing|ly what thou denie&s;t me, to receive quietly what thou provide&s;t for me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>What I want of the&s;e outward ble&s;&s;ings, &s;upply <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">nto me by thine inward comforts, which are in|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">finitely better for me, and &s;hall be therefore <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ver dearer to me. Lord furni&s;h me with
<PB N="91" REF="54">graces &s;uitable to all events, and able to encourage me in all afflictions.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord &s;anctifie this pre&s;ent &s;orrow to my &s;infull &s;oul; &s;o &s;weeten it by thy grace, that it may bring forth in me the quiet, and the happy fruits of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e: Make it a &s;ure pledge of thy fatherly affections towards me; let it daily and hourely draw me nearer to thy pre&s;ence; let it wean me from the mi&s;eries of &s;in, and at la&s;t bring me to the &s;weet fruition of eternitie.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 24. <HI>Upon Unchearfulne&s;s in Chri&s;tianity, with incouragements to avoyd it.</HI></HEAD>
<P>AH Lord, from whence is my uncheerful|ne&s;s, my dulne&s;s in my Chri&s;tian calling? how much below that glorious hope which thou ha&s;t given me? When I con&s;ider of the richne&s;s of thy love in Chri&s;t, I find thee to be all in all unto me, and may well wonder at mine own unthankfulne&s;s, and ignorance, that is &s;tll doting on this worlds nothing and uncertainty. Thou (O Lord) art truly and eter|nally good, and therefore able to derive eter|nity of happine&s;s. Before I was created I was thine, and when I was not mine own thou be|came&s;t mine; thou (O my Saviour) who ha&s;t given me thy &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">lf, can&s;t deny me nothing: What is too good, too great, too glorious for that &s;o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> which thou ha&s;t redeemed at &s;o dear a rate, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">s the price of thine own blood, and e&s;pou&s;ed to thine own bo&s;om? Thy creatures are at peace
<PB N="92" REF="55">with me, thy holy Angels attend me, guard me, fight for me, rejoyce at my conver&s;ion; thy Saints triumphant pray for me, the Devils fly from me, and thou, O Lord, by thine all-mighty power, and gracious providence, art ever with me; thou care&s;t for me from the cradle to the tomb; <HI>Thou art about my bed, and about my paths, and &s;pye&s;t out all my waies;</HI> Yea, <HI>Thy mercy embraceth me on every &s;ide;</HI> when I &s;leep I am &s;afe, when I awake joyfull; in pro&s;perity I have thy rod to afflict me, in adver&s;ity thy &s;taffe to comfort me: Lord while I am in thy favour, I can look no way but to happine&s;s; if I walk not an&s;werable to it, I may well fear to be de|prived of it.</P>
<P>And doubtle&s;s (O my &s;oul) tho&s;e eyes which look &s;o graciou&s;ly upon thee in this life, will behold thee with a more earne&s;t, with a more endeared love in that to come, the&s;e tran&s;itory glances are but the faithfull pledges of tho&s;e future embraces. Tho&s;e arms of mercy which now &s;upport thee in thine often failings, &s;hall then encompa&s;s thee with glory; tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed hands which now cha&s;ti&s;e thee for thy rebellions, will then wipe away all tears from thine eyes; and that relenting heart, which &s;ometimes is mo&s;t unwillingly withdrawn from thee for thy Apo&s;ta&s;ie, will then unite it &s;elf to thine for ever.</P>
<P>Lord, who can be a Chri&s;tian and be &s;ad? who can believe all this, and not triumph in joyfull exaltation? and not in&s;ult over the &s;or|rows of this life? and not contemn the joyes of this bewitching world? and not re&s;i&s;t the&s;e cloudy, di&s;contented thoughts, the&s;e clo&s;e a&s;|&s;aults of Satans never-re&s;ting malice? Millions of Worlds, Miriads of Angels, cannot re&s;tore
<PB N="93" REF="55">that cur&s;ed &s;pirit to this happine&s;s which thou now enjoye&s;t, and yet &s;o &s;lightly regarde&s;t.</P>
<P>O let this teach thee to abhor his foul tem|ptations, to con&s;ider of thy worth in Chri&s;t, and to rai&s;e thy &s;elf above the reach of earthly mi&s;ery; to love thy God faithfully, to &s;erve him cheerfully, to per&s;evere joyfully; to be pa|tient in tribulation, to rejoyce in hope, to pray continually; to thir&s;t after the &s;weetne&s;s of his grace, and earne&s;tly to long for the con&s;umma|tion of his glory.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>How unworthy am I to be called thy &s;ervant, who have &s;o long been &s;ubject to the worlds com|mands? how unde&s;erving of the glorious liberty of thy Sons, who have &s;o willingly been fetter'd by mine own corruptions? how uncapable of thy heavenly comforts, that can rejoyce in nothing but the&s;e earthly vanities.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord open mine eyes, that I may &s;ee the rich|ne&s;s of the price of my high calling in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, and endeavour to walk worthy of it; that I may earne&s;tly de&s;ire thee, joyfully embrace thee, and con&s;tantly and cheerfully devote my &s;ervice to thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Forgive my drow&s;ine&s;s, my dulne&s;s, my back|wardne&s;s to holy duties; awake my &s;infull &s;oul from &s;en&s;uallity, and rai&s;e it to the ble&s;&s;ed thoughts of &s;weet eternity.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Compa&s;&s;ionate my weakne&s;s, accept my willing|ne&s;s, forgive my &s;infulne&s;s, quicken my dulne&s;s, correct my untowardne&s;s: Lord bring me to &s;uch a ble&s;&s;ed frame of heart, that I may willingly forgo the &s;ins and mi&s;eries of this life, and fre|quently delight my &s;elf with contemplation of thy joyes in that to c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">me.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="25" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="94" REF="56">
<HEAD>CHAP. 25. <HI>Upon Mans &s;infull frailtie in the hour of Temptation, with motives to make re&s;i&s;tance.</HI></HEAD>
<P>I Am now in the li&s;ts with Satan, and this hour to fight the Lords battail: God &s;eeth me, and his holy Angels &s;ee me, I have long profe&s;&s;ed my &s;elf to be Chri&s;ts &s;ouldier, and he hath now brought me to the field to prove me, now is the triall of my courage, of my Chri&s;tia|nity; if I overcome, I &s;hall rejoyce on earth, triumph in heaven.</P>
<P>If that evill one were as powerfull as mali|cious, I had ju&s;t cau&s;e to fear him; but now my comfort and a&s;&s;urance is, that he cannot hurt me, but by me: He now &s;trongly labours to en|cline my will (and wo were me if he might com|pell it) his &s;ubtile &s;ugge&s;tions, his unclean &s;olicitations, his fulminated motions, may be the father begetting, but mine own corrupt heart is the mother conceiving; there can be no danger from abroad, if there be no trea&s;on at home.</P>
<P>Look well into thy &s;elf therefore O my &s;oul, a&s;cend the Watch tower of thine under&s;tand|ing, and &s;ee that there lurk therein no &s;eeming &s;hews, no &s;pecious pretences, no gro&s;s lies, no fal&s;e propo&s;als to betray thee; if thy head be &s;urpri&s;ed, thy heart cannot long hold out.</P>
<P>Examine thine affections, try them by the ble&s;&s;ed rule of divine precepts, if they be not &s;harply corrected, they will &s;oon be corrupted; endeavour to re&s;i&s;t the very fir&s;t motions to &s;in;
<PB N="95" REF="56">for if Satan can beguile thine affections, he will undoubtedly command thine actions.</P>
<P>Quicken thy memory by the momentany plea|&s;ure of &s;in, by the heavy judgements threatned again&s;t it, by the &s;ad con&s;equences of it, by the eternity of torments after it: Think how often thou ha&s;t been allready foyled; how many &s;eri|ous vows and faithfull promi&s;es thou ha&s;t all|ready made to God of thine amendment; how carele&s;ly thou ha&s;t di&s;pen&s;ed with them all, and how pre&s;umptuou&s;ly per&s;i&s;ted in thy follies: O think how gracious thy God hath been unto thee in forbearing, how wonderfull his mercy is in pardoning, how ju&s;tly he might now de&s;troy thee, even in the very act of &s;inning.</P>
<P>Lord, if none of all this will yet &s;care me from &s;inning again&s;t thee, nor allure me to repent|ing, that I may draw nearer home unto thee: O let me yet confider who it is that leadeth me to fight, and wherefore I have engaged. Thou, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, art my Captain, and Heaven is my Country; Shall I now lo&s;e tho&s;e rivers of eternall plea&s;ures, for this &s;hort, this fal&s;e, this momentany joy? &s;hall I run from thee who art the Prince of Peace, and who ha&s;t &s;pilt thy pretious blood for me, unto that cruel enemy of Mankind, who hath drawn &s;o much blood from me? Shall I for&s;ake thee who ha&s;t layd down thy life for me, and in&s;lave my &s;elf to him who every minute &s;eeketh to devour me? Shall I di&s;honor thee my God, grieve thine holy Angels, &s;hame my profe&s;&s;ion, wound mine own con&s;cience, terrifie mine own &s;oul, &s;eek mine own ruin? If I con&s;ent to this tempta|tion, that God whom I di&s;honour will abhor me, tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed Angels whom I grieve will for&s;ake me, tho&s;e cur&s;ed &s;pirits whom I obey
<PB N="96" REF="57">will deride me, that con&s;cience which I now wound will accu&s;e me, that glorious Go&s;pel which I &s;hame will condemn me, and that ruin which I now &s;eek will for ever &s;eize upon me.</P>
<P>Let this move thee (O my &s;oul) as thou ex|&s;pecte&s;t happine&s;s, to take up a ble&s;&s;ed re&s;olution of re&s;i&s;tance: If the a&s;&s;ault di&s;may thee, let the conque&s;t encourage thee; if the beginning be &s;harp, the clo&s;e will be &s;weet; if nature be dejected, grace will be &s;trengthened; and as grace increa&s;eth here, &s;o &s;hall glory here|after.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider la&s;t of all what Saint <HI>James</HI> &s;aith, and fix it in thy thoughts as chief of all, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man that endureth temptation, for when he is tryed he &s;hall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promi&s;ed to them that love him,</HI> Jam. 1.12. Thrice happy is that &s;oul which is faithfull in Gods &s;ervice, although it may often faint, it &s;hall never fail; it may &s;ometimes be foyled, but &s;hall never be overcome; it &s;hall never fall totally, it can never fall finally; for thou, Lord, upholde&s;t it, and in thy love it is &s;ure of &s;afety here, of triumph here|after.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>With grief of heart I willingly confe&s;s, that I have &s;hamefully di&s;honored thy great and glori|ous name, by mine often failings, by my many faintings, and more wretched yeeldings; to the &s;hame of my profe&s;&s;ion, the grief of thy good Spirit, and the terror of my frail con|dition.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord how wretched is my &s;oul without thee and yet how ea&s;ily, how willingly am I enticed from
<PB N="97" REF="57">thee even at this in&s;tant I am ready to for|&s;ake thee, and may mo&s;t ju&s;tly fear to be for&s;aken of thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The world allureth me, the fle&s;h be&s;otteth me, the devill beguileth me, and mine own fal&s;e heart deceiveth me, and is now ready to rebell again&s;t me: O wretched man that I am, who &s;hall de|liver me? Lord Je&s;us a&s;&s;i&s;t me, and let thy &s;a|ving grace be now and evermore &s;ufficient for me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord rebuke the&s;e evill thoughts, relieve my mi&s;erie, &s;upport my weakne&s;s, &s;trengthen my willingne&s;s, give me an undaunted courage in thy &s;ervice, an unfeigned &s;orrow for my former failings, and con&s;tancy of heart again&s;t pre&s;ent &s;ugge&s;tions, and future temptations, that I may find no &s;weetne&s;s but in thy love, no plea&s;ure but in thy &s;ervice, no profit but in thy rewards.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 26. <HI>Upon the Infirmities of the Saints.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WIth grief of heart I confe&s;s, that I find a Law in my members, rebelling a|gain&s;t the Law of my mind, and leading me captive to the Law of fin, &s;o that tho&s;e things which I would do I cannot, and I dayly and hourly do tho&s;e things which I would not; yet my comfort is, that I make not provi&s;ion for the fle&s;h to fulfill the lu&s;ts thereof: By the weakne&s;s of mine own corruptions, I often fall into &s;in, but by the ble&s;&s;ed a&s;&s;i&s;tance of thy grace I abhor to lie there; &s;in oftentimes &s;ur|pri&s;eth
<PB N="98" REF="58">me, but by thy rich mercy hath never yet reigned over me; It hath often deceived me, but I tru&s;t &s;hall never de&s;troy me. It hath plea&s;ed thee, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, to con|clude all things under &s;in, that thy grace may abound; while I &s;trive again&s;t it, and am af|flicted for it, my &s;infull de&s;ires will (I tru&s;t) be graciou&s;ly accepted, and (in thy perfect obedi|ence) gloriou&s;ly rewarded.</P>
<P>Be not di&s;mayed therefore, O my &s;oul, that thou &s;ometimes art ravi&s;hed with apprehen&s;ion of thy heavenly joyes, and &s;uddenly relap&s;ed to the follies of a wretched heart; the one thou happily enjoye&s;t, by the &s;weet a&s;&s;i&s;tance of the heavenly Spirit; the other thou violently &s;uffer|e&s;t, by the &s;trong torrent of my &s;infull nature. Lord, &s;uch is thy great wi&s;dom, and inconcei|vable goodne&s;s towards me, that oftentimes thou leave&s;t me unto my &s;elf, and therefore &s;uffere&s;t me to fall (and that mo&s;t grievou&s;ly &s;ometimes) that I may &s;ee mine own infirmities, and be truly humbled for them; that I may impute nothing to mine own merits, but give all the glory to thy &s;ufferings; that I may goe out of my &s;elf, and mine own mi&s;ery, into the &s;weet enjoyment of thy rich, and endle&s;&s;e mercy.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider therefore, O my &s;oul, that &s;o long as thou continue&s;t in this valley of tears, thou can&s;t not live without this burthen of &s;in; &s;o long as thou carrie&s;t this frail body about thee, continuing weakne&s;&s;es will be attending on thee. O let this teach thee to bewail the mi&s;ery of this frail life, which is onely prone to evill, and that continually; let it humble thee for thy many failings, and invite thee to a more hearty and &s;incere affection to thy Saviour, by
<PB N="99" REF="58">who&s;e ab&s;olute and perfect obedience, all thine imperfections &s;hall be done away; and la&s;tly, to a more earne&s;t longing for thy bodies di&s;|&s;olution.</P>
<P>Comfort thy &s;elf in this, that all the mi&s;eries of this life &s;hall work together for the be&s;t to thine advantage, nothing can befall thee with|out his holy providence that &s;o dearly loveth thee, even thy very &s;ins &s;hall further thee to Heaven; if thou ha&s;t now fallen, through the infirmity of thy corrupt nature, God will rai&s;e thee, by this fall of thine, to more perfection in goodne&s;&s;e, to more vigilance, to more holine&s;&s;e, to more courage, to more con&s;tancy, in thy Chri&s;tian calling: for, <HI>The Lord ordereth a good mans goings, and maketh his way acceptable unto him, though he fall he &s;hall not be ca&s;t away, for the Lord upholdeth him,</HI> P&s;al. 37.23, 24. and if that evill one be powerfully malicious, the greater &s;hall thy joy and triumph be, when thou art happily victorious.</P>
<P>Lord, how truly ble&s;&s;ed is the condition of thy Saints? who compelle&s;t even the rage of earth and hell to work for their advantage: <HI>Why art thou then &s;o &s;ad, O my Soul, and why art thou &s;o di&s;quieted within me? &s;till tru&s;t in God, for he is the help of thy countenance, and thy God,</HI> P&s;al. 42.15.</P>
<P>Lord, how &s;ad is my condition without thee? thou (who alone knowe&s;t the &s;ecrets of all hearts) knowe&s;t that I love thee, that I long for thee, that I de&s;ire nothing in compare of thee my God, and yet thou finde&s;t nothing but pol|lution in me: &s;ometimes I beg to be at union with thee, and &s;ometimes live as if I cared not for mercy from thee; &s;till I &s;in, and &s;till thou forgive&s;t: yea I am therefore the more ready
<PB N="100" REF="59">to rebell again&s;t thee, becau&s;e thou Lord art mo&s;t ready to be mercifull unto me; and yet for all this (&s;uch are thy bowels of compa&s;&s;ion towards me) thou bemoane&s;t mine iniquity, thou invite&s;t, thou compelle&s;t me to mercy.</P>
<P>Lord, wilt thou &s;till &s;uffer me to abu&s;e thy goodne&s;&s;e? I have oft<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n run from thee, by re|lap&s;ing into grievous &s;ins, and thou, O Lord, as often ha&s;t received me to favour, and afforded me the &s;weet refre&s;hings of thy holy Spirit; I confe&s;&s;e my &s;elf unworthy to enjoy that ble&s;&s;ed Spirit which I have &s;o often grieved: O let this teach me to be truly and &s;incerely thankfull unto thee, to love thee more heartily, prai&s;e thee more joyfully, &s;erve thee more faithfully, to my lives end.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>For thou, O ble&s;&s;ed Lord, art all in all unto me, thou art &s;trength in my weakne&s;se, love in my wilfulne&s;s, life in my &s;infulne&s;&s;e; thou alone knowe&s;t under what great evils of &s;in, under what &s;ad pre&s;&s;ures of &s;orrow I daily groan, and thou ha&s;t promi&s;ed to ea&s;e tho&s;e weary &s;ouls, that cry to thee for &s;uccour and relief.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord &s;ave me, or I peri&s;h; Lord ea&s;e me of this heavy burden, that I &s;ink not to eternall mi|&s;ery; give me thy &s;aving grace, to guide me from the&s;e wofull waies of wickedne&s;&s;e; O let this hour put an end to this &s;in: Lord lead me unto thy paths, and uphold me there, that my feet &s;lip not; &s;uffer me not to feed upon the&s;e empty husks; O &s;atisfie me with thy mercy, and that &s;oon, be|fore I goe hence, and be no more &s;een.</HI></P>
<P><HI>My &s;pirit is willing (O Lord) but my fle&s;h is weak, have pity upon me, have pity upon me, for I am in mi&s;ery.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord cover my &s;ins, Lord pardon mine in|firmities,
<PB N="101" REF="59">Lord Je&s;us accept of me, and interpo&s;e thy ble&s;&s;ed merits for me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord rai&s;e me from this wretched fall; &s;up|port my weakne&s;&s;e, renew my repentance, increa&s;e my faith, quicken my zeal, that &s;o by thy gracious a&s;&s;i&s;tance, I may be rai&s;ed to more purity, to more perfection, in my Chri&s;tian calling; that where &s;in hath abounded, there grace may abound much more, to thy great glory, and mine own endle&s;&s;e comfort.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord hear, O Lord forgive, O Lord con&s;ider and doe it, defer not for thine own &s;ake, O my God.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="27" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 27. <HI>Upon De&s;ertion.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WHile I am in this pilgrimage of &s;in, I cannot be without this portion of &s;orrow, why complain I of that which I have &s;o ju&s;tly de&s;erved? how often hath my God af|forded me the gracious vi&s;its of his ble&s;&s;ed Spi|rit? and yet how ea&s;ily have I regarded them? Lord, I am not worthy of the lea&s;t of all thy mercies, much le&s;&s;e of this invaluable favour, to enjoy the ki&s;&s;es of thy &s;acred mouth; as I am now grieved for the lo&s;&s;e of thy pre&s;ence, &s;o I have too often grieved thee by mine own re|bellious ab&s;ence; this is the &s;ad condition even of the be&s;t of thy Saints in this life; as they have had their aberrations from grace, &s;o they have had their fluctuations in woe; the&s;e &s;ad departings of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit have ever been the ju&s;t memorials of their pre&s;ent griefs, and former mi&s;eries.</P>
<PB N="102" REF="60">
<P>I &s;ee thy holy &s;ervant <HI>David,</HI> &s;adly bemoan|ing this great lo&s;&s;e, and allmo&s;t de&s;pairing of the enjoyment of thy gratious pre&s;ence, I hear him crying out in bitterne&s;&s;e of &s;oul, <HI>Will the Lord ab&s;ent him&s;elf for ever, and will he &s;hew no more favour? Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promi&s;e fail for evermore? Hath God for|gotten to be gratious? hath he &s;hut up his tender mercy in di&s;plea&s;ure?</HI> P&s;al. 77.7, 8, 9.</P>
<P>How grievous was this complaint? how gra|tious thine an&s;wer? even in the very minute of di&s;tre&s;&s;e, even by the very lips of the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed; for it follows in a breath, <HI>And I &s;aid, this is my death, but I will remember the years of the right hand of the mo&s;t High.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Jonah</HI>'s extremity was thy ble&s;&s;ed oppor|tunity; even when <HI>Jonah</HI> thought him&s;elf in mo&s;t danger of peri&s;hing, he then found thy mercy mo&s;t ready in relieving; when he thought him&s;elf ca&s;t out of thy &s;ight, even then he found him&s;elf looking to thy pre&s;ence, and ready to be received into thy favour, <HI>Jonah</HI> 2.4.</P>
<P>Lord, if thou give&s;t me but the lea&s;t mea&s;ure of true faith, I &s;hall be able to remove the greate&s;t mountains of &s;in, and know a&s;&s;uredly, to my &s;ouls exceeding comfort, that thou hide&s;t thy face from me but for a moment in this life, that thou may&s;t gather me to everla&s;ting kind|ne&s;&s;e in that to come.</P>
<P>Comfort thy &s;elf in this therefore (O my Soul) that God will never leave thee, that he will never for&s;ake thee, that he will never leave thee totally, nor for&s;ake thee finally; that he hath not now withdrawn his gratious pre&s;ence from thee, but the pre&s;ent comfort of his grace from working in thee: as there are &s;ad de&s;er|tions, &s;o there will undoubtedly be gratious
<PB N="103" REF="60">vi&s;its; thou may&s;t be for&s;aken in &s;in, in the &s;uffer|ing of puni&s;hment for &s;in, in the &s;everity of that puni&s;hment, in the fearfull apprehen&s;ion of Gods wrath in this &s;everity; but a&s;&s;ure thy &s;elf (O my &s;oul) thou &s;halt never be for&s;aken in the finall execution of this wrath, in the eternall duration of this final execution.</P>
<P>Lord, if my hopes of heaven were grounded on the weak foundation of mine own abilityes, If mine Election were but temporary, I might ju&s;tly fear this de&s;ertion would prove eternall; but now my comfort is, that Chri&s;t is my &s;trong rock, on whom I am &s;afely built; that nothing can &s;eparate me from his love; that his Decree of mine Election is particular, &s;weet, &s;ure, and eternal; that the happy means appointed to this ble&s;&s;ed end, is faith, holine&s;s, righteou&s;ne&s;s, and &s;anctification; holine&s;s to obey thy precepts, &s;aith to embrace thy promi|&s;es, righteou&s;ne&s;s to enjoy thy Saints, and &s;anctification to po&s;&s;e&s;s my &s;elf: Thy ble&s;&s;ed Decree (O Lord) is &s;o far from giving me li|berty to commit &s;in, that it mo&s;t undoubtedly re&s;trains me from it; If I cannot make my calling and election &s;ure, by thy decreed means of &s;anctification, I &s;hall never make my comfort &s;ure by my vain hopes of glori|fication.</P>
<P>If I look upon <HI>Noah, Lot, David, Jonah, Chri&s;t</HI> him&s;elf, I &s;hall there &s;ee the &s;everal and the &s;orrowfull degrees of this De&s;ertion: <HI>Noah</HI> and <HI>Lot</HI> fearfully &s;inning, <HI>David</HI> a long time re&s;ting in &s;in, and wofully deprived of Gods gracious pre&s;ence for &s;in; <HI>Jonah,</HI> even doubting of Gods favour, in the &s;uddenne&s;s, and the &s;harpne&s;s of his puni&s;hment; and thou, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, affrighted with the
<PB N="104" REF="61">fiercene&s;s of thy Fathers wrath for &s;in, and for a time (as thou wert man) de&s;pairing of his gracious prefence.</P>
<P>Be not afraid therefore, O my &s;oul; for as thou art deferted for thy &s;ins &s;ake, &s;o thou art beloved for thy Saviours &s;ake; though he <HI>hide him&s;elf behind the wall</HI> (of thy corruption) yet he will graciou&s;ly <HI>look through the lattice</HI> (of thine humiliation) <HI>Cant.</HI> 2.9: Even this thy pre&s;ent &s;adne&s;s will afford thee &s;ome refre&s;h|ings, &s;ome gracious glimp&s;es of his holy Spi|rit; and though thy heart be now di&s;quieted within thee, thou &s;halt again a&s;&s;uredly receive the voice of joy and gladne&s;s. Lord let this teach me to abhor tho&s;e &s;ins that have deprived me of thy pre&s;ence; to &s;eek earne&s;tly to enjoy thee; to ri&s;e early to find thee whom my &s;oul loveth; to &s;ettle mine affections upon thy beauty, mine actions upon thy &s;ervice; that I may be guided by thy grace in this life, and encompa&s;t with thy glory in that to come.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>For thou, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, art infi|nitely dearer to me than the choice&s;t of the&s;e earthly vanities; their love is fal&s;e and uncer|tain, but thine true and eternall; abundantly &s;ufficient to rejoice me here, to enrich me here|after.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord my God, my &s;oul longeth for thee, I am weary of the &s;ins and mi&s;eries of this life, and nothing can relieve me but thy ble&s;&s;ed pre&s;ence: O make thy face to &s;hine upon me, and &s;ave me for thy mercy &s;ake.</HI></P>
<P><HI>My God, my God, look upon me, why ha&s;t thou for&s;aken me, and art &s;o far from the words of my complaint? O &s;atisfie my longings, for thou
<PB N="105" REF="61">knowe&s;t Lord that I love thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Hear my prayer, O Lord, and hide not thy face from my &s;upplications, O hide not thy &s;elf from me, nor ca&s;t thy &s;ervant away in displea|&s;ure.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thou ha&s;t been my &s;uccour, therefore leave me not, nor for&s;ake me, O God of my &s;alvation: Make thy face to &s;hine upon thy &s;ervant, and &s;ave me for thy mercy &s;ake.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O lead me from the bondage of &s;in, into the ble&s;&s;ed liberty of thy children, that I may be comforted in the &s;weetne&s;s of thy promi&s;es, and thou may&s;t be delighted in the zeal of my perfor|mances.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me the comfort of thy help again, and &s;tabli&s;h me with thy free Spirit; O hide not thy face from thy &s;ervant, for I am in trouble, make ha&s;t and hear me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I am defiled with &s;in, and di&s;quieted with &s;orrow; I am daily vexed with temptations, and hourly overcome with vanity; I am wretched|ly infolded in the mi&s;eries of mine own corrup|tions, and wofully beguiled by the devils &s;ubtil|ties; O wretched man that I am who &s;hall de|liver me?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord I bewail my mi&s;ery, and implore thy mercy; O that I were this hour at union with thee, that I might hereafter joyfully adhere unto thee, be graciou&s;ly accepted of thee, and for ever gloriou&s;ly exalted by thee.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="28" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="106" REF="62">
<HEAD>CHAP. 28. <HI>Upon the apprehen&s;ion of &s;udden danger.</HI></HEAD>
<P>BLe&s;&s;ed God, I know that nothing can befall me without thy holy providence, even this pre&s;ent danger is by thine appointment, and what thou ha&s;t de&s;igned it unto I know not, I enquire not; Lord give me a &s;weet and &s;afe a&s;|&s;urance that I am thine, and then doe with me what thou wilt: O let me live, and I &s;hall prai&s;e thee, and thy judgements &s;hall help me; but if thou haft appointed me this hour to dye, O let me then goe home unto thee, and be united in a &s;afer, in a &s;weeter union with thee. Lord hear me, and have mercy on me, for my dear Saviours &s;ake, who hath given his precious life a ran&s;om for me.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Pre&s;erve me, O God for in thee have I put my tru&s;t; for&s;ake me not, O Lord my God, be not thou far from me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord &s;trengthen and &s;upport my wavering faith, forgive me all my &s;ins, and &s;uffer not my &s;oul to be &s;urpri&s;ed in my la&s;t extremity.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ha&s;t thee to help me, O Lord God of my &s;alva|tion, for thy names &s;ake, for thy promi&s;e &s;ake, for thy precious blood &s;ake.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Into thy hands I commend my &s;pirit, for thou ha&s;t redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of truth.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="29" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="107" REF="62">
<HEAD>CHAP. 29. <HI>Upon the weakne&s;&s;e of Faith, and &s;in|fulne&s;s of Thoughts tending to De|&s;pair.</HI></HEAD>
<P>HOW much art thou mi&s;taken (O my Soul) to think thy &s;elf then farthe&s;t off from God, when thou art neare&s;t unto him; to &s;uppo&s;e thy &s;elf then mo&s;t wretched, when thou art neare&s;t to the paths of happine&s;s? He that never doubted, never truly believed; and he that hath lea&s;t a&s;&s;urance in him&s;elf, will have mo&s;t certainty in Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t &s;inned, and thou art &s;orrowfull; thou ha&s;t committed great and grievous &s;ins, and thou abhorre&s;t them, thou for&s;ake&s;t them, thou heartily de&s;ire&s;t pardon for them; if thou had&s;t not a godly &s;orrow, thou could&s;t not have this godly de&s;ire; if thy &s;orrow were for puni&s;hment, it would cau&s;e thy death, but now it is for &s;in, it will lead thee to repentance; if thou grieve&s;t not &s;o much for the &s;evere &s;entence of an in|cen&s;ed Judge, as for the di&s;plea&s;ure of a good and gratious Father, as thou &s;owe&s;t in tears, thou &s;halt reap in joy, nay thou &s;halt have great joy even in the&s;e tears, thou &s;halt have much &s;weetne&s;s even in this &s;orrow; and if thy &s;eed|time be &s;weet, how ble&s;&s;ed will thy harve&s;t be? hear what thy Saviour &s;aith, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they that mourn, for they &s;hall be comforted;</HI> in &s;orrows here, in eternity of joyes hereafter: who can cur&s;e, where God hath ble&s;&s;ed? what Devill can deject, where God will exalt?</P>
<P>Thou art grieved for offending thy gratious
<PB N="108" REF="63">God, and thou implore&s;t him for mercy; com|fort thy &s;elf in this, that <HI>God is near unto all tho&s;e which call upon him, yea that call upon him faith|fully,</HI> P&s;al. 105.18. Be not afraid therefore; for if thy faith be weak, yet it is living; if it be langui&s;hing, it will a&s;&s;uredly recover more &s;trength; if there be blo&s;&s;omes now, there will be fruit hereafter; the&s;e happy beginnings will have gratious proceedings, ble&s;&s;ed c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">d|ings.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider what thy God hath promi&s;ed by his holy Prophet, <HI>I will not break the brui&s;ed reed, nor quench the &s;moking flax,</HI> I&s;ay 42.3. Let not the &s;marting (therefore) of thy con&s;cience trouble thee, remember who it is that &s;earcheth it, <HI>I have wounded thee</HI> (&s;aith God) <HI>and I will heal thee, I have broken thee, and I will bind thee up.</HI> Thou art therefore wounded, that thou may&s;t be healed; thou art therefore broken, that thou may&s;t be bound up: That &s;ore which is in&s;en&s;ible, is ever mo&s;t dangerous; and that wound which &s;marteth mo&s;t, is mo&s;t capable of remedy.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, I now feel, to mine un&s;peakable comfort, that thou ha&s;t wounded me with the terrours of thy Law, that thou may&s;t heal me with the comforts of thy Go&s;pell; that I am therefore brui&s;ed with the burden of my &s;ins, that I may be ever ea&s;ed by the merits of my Saviours &s;ufferings; all my imperfections are his, all his righteou&s;ne&s;s is mine, I may boldly chalenge it, thou wilt not deny it, I may &s;afely plead it, thou can&s;t not refu&s;e it.</P>
<P>Con&s;ider yet further, O my Soul, what thy ble&s;&s;ed Saviour &s;aith unto thee, <HI>I am the re|&s;urrection and the life, he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet &s;hall be live; and who|&s;ever
<PB N="109" REF="63">liveth and believeth in me, &s;hall never dye,</HI> Ioh. 11.25, 26.</P>
<P>How can&s;t thou doubt now (O my Soul) when thy Saviour biddeth thee believe, and live? what can&s;t thou fear, when thou ha&s;t his promi&s;e for thy &s;afety? Heaven and Earth &s;hall pa&s;s away, but not one tittle of his Word &s;hall fail.</P>
<P>Let not the number of thy &s;ins affright thee, for it is <HI>his bloud which clen&s;eth us from all iniquity,</HI> 1 Ioh. 1.7, 9.</P>
<P>Let not the nature of thy &s;ins amaze thee, for <HI>though they were red as &s;carlet, yet he will make them white as &s;now.</HI></P>
<P>Let not the long continuance of them &s;tagger thee, for <HI>At what time &s;oever a &s;inner doth repent him of his &s;ins, from the bottome of his heart, I will blot them out of my remembrance, &s;aith the Lord,</HI> Ezech. 18.</P>
<P>Thy Co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">cience &s;hall not trouble thee, for <HI>Being ju&s;tified by faith, we have peace with God,</HI> Rom. 5.1.</P>
<P>The Devill cannot hurt thee, for <HI>Who &s;hall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect? it is God that ju&s;tifieth, who is he that condemneth? it is Chri&s;t that died, yea rather that is ri&s;en again, who is even at the right hand of God, who all&s;o ma|keth interce&s;&s;ion for us,</HI> Rom. 8.32, 33.</P>
<P>Nay (which is the &s;um of all) God him&s;elf in Iu&s;tice cannot condemn thee, for <HI>There is no condemnation to them which are in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, who walk not after the fle&s;h, but after the &s;pirit,</HI> Rom. 8.1. his lu&s;tice is &s;atisfied, his Mercy magnified, his Name be for ever glorified.</P>
<P>Lord let this teach me to rely with comfort on thy ble&s;&s;ed promi&s;es, and to walk worchy of them, in my religious performances; to mani|fe&s;t
<PB N="110" REF="64">my increa&s;e of grace, by my increa&s;e of goodne&s;s; to fix my heart wholly upon thee, to love thee, to fear thee, to honour thee, and a&s;&s;uredly to re&s;t in thee; when thy grace &s;hall enable me to delight in thy fear, my &s;ins can never per&s;wade me to de&s;pair of thy favour: my peace will be then inviolable, my joy unutter|able, my happine&s;s unalterable.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>When I con&s;ider of the wretchedne&s;s of mine own corruptions in nature, I am even ready to de&s;pair of thy love; But when I look upon the ble&s;&s;edne&s;s of my condition in Chri&s;t, I am then encouraged to &s;ue to thee for mercy and forgive|ne&s;s: Allthough thy ju&s;tice be &s;evere again&s;t ane, as I am a grievous &s;inner, yet thy mercy is mo&s;t &s;weet unto me in my Saviour.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I now tremble at thy judgements, yet I rejoyce in thy promi&s;es; allthough thy Law &s;peak never &s;o terribly, thy cur&s;es be never &s;o many, thy plagues be never &s;o grievous, thy wrath never &s;o tempe&s;tuous, yet in the &s;weet mercy of my Sa|viour I am able to abide them all.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord my God, I abhor my &s;elf, I accu&s;e my &s;elf, I condemn my &s;elf, I am now ready with thy wrath to &s;eize upon my &s;infull &s;oul, and ca&s;t it down to everla&s;ting mi&s;ery.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, unto thee onely I appeal for mercy and forgivene&s;s: &s;weet Je&s;us accept of me, and inter|po&s;e thy ble&s;&s;ed merits for me; inrich my &s;oul with thy &s;ufferings, be ever pre&s;ent with me, and eternall comfort to me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O holy and for ever ble&s;&s;&s;ed Spirit, thou that &s;anclifie&s;t the &s;ouls of thine Elect, a&s;&s;i&s;t and &s;trengthen me; quicken and revive my drooping &s;aith, increa&s;e my hope, cheri&s;h my love, foment
<PB N="111" REF="64">tho&s;e dying &s;parks, by the &s;weet breathings of thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, that they may zealou&s;ly break forth into a pure and fervent flame of holy affections, to thy great glory, and mine own eternall happi|ne&s;s.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="30" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 30. <HI>Upon the great Neglect of the duty of Prayer.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I &s;erion&s;ly con&s;ider how manifold and great my failings are, when I think of the &s;hortne&s;s and uncertainty of life, of the &s;olemnity of death, of the eternity of happine&s;s or mi&s;ery after death, and by all the&s;e of the nece&s;&s;ity, u&s;efulne&s;s, and excellency of Prayer, I may well wonder that I am ever from my knees.</P>
<P>My life is all &s;in, and had therefore need to be all &s;orrow; the greatne&s;s and continuance of my &s;ins have added to the greatne&s;s and continuance of my mi&s;ery, and there is none but thou (O Lord) that can relieve me; there is no coming to thee but by Prayer, and no Prayer powerfull with thee, but that which is fer|vent.</P>
<P>This is <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">hat eye of my affection that wound|eth the heart of thy compa&s;&s;ion; this is that holy violence that taketh Heaven by force, that &s;urpri&s;eth thy Mercy, that manicles thy Ju&s;tice, that wre&s;tles with thy Love, and will not let thee goe without a ble&s;&s;ing: This is my &s;trong armour to defend me, my daily
<PB N="112" REF="65">food to &s;u&s;tein me, my &s;afe repo&s;e to refre&s;h me, my &s;weet content for ever to delight me.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, how wonderfull is thy de&s;ire to man? how graciou&s;ly doe&s;t thou provide for him? how daily art thou mindfull of him? Thy words in&s;truct me, thy promi&s;es allure me, thy graces &s;u&s;tein me, thy &s;acraments &s;trengthen me, thy vi&s;its comfort me, thy embraces ravi&s;h me; And, as if all this were not yet enough to manife&s;t thy favour towards me, &s;o un&s;peakable is thy love, &s;o earne&s;t thy de&s;ires unto me, that thou ha&s;t even given me thy &s;elf, to be over|come by me. Lord, thou art all love, when I &s;trive with thee for mercy, I overcome thee by thy &s;elf; how great is thy goodne&s;s? how ten|der are thy mercies unto man, for who&s;e &s;ake thou contende&s;t even with thine own E&s;&s;ence? Thou ha&s;t given thy Son to die for me, and in him thy &s;elf to be overcome by me.</P>
<P>Lord, let this teach me to renew my acquain|tance often with thee, to labour to be power|full in my prayers; to &s;tudy to be humble, zea|lous, earne&s;t, even importunate in my devoti|ons; to let no &s;infull thought pa&s;s me without a &s;igh, no &s;infull action without holy contri|tion, no divine favours, without devout and thankfull acknowledgement: That &s;oul which is truly &s;en&s;ible of the burden of &s;in, will ha&s;ten unto that heavenly help that can give it ea&s;e, and that heart which is once truly inflamed with thy love, will readily in&s;truct <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">he tongue to be zealous in thy prai&s;e. Lord let me fir&s;t &s;eek mine own heart, before I pre&s;ume to come before thy Mercy &s;eat, le&s;t if I recall it not from the vanities of this life, my very prayers become &s;in, and &s;o while I expect a ble&s;&s;ing, I de&s;erve a cur&s;e.</P>
<PB N="113" REF="65">
<P>Let no vain excu&s;e, no barren pretence of this life, per&s;wade me to intermit this holy duty, le&s;t carele&s;ne&s;s, and coldne&s;s in devotion, beget in me a loathing of that cour&s;e, which by con&s;tant practice will become my con&s;tant comfort: I ord make me to con&s;ider of the &s;weetne&s;s, of the excellency of this gift, that I may dayly labour to improve it to my &s;oules eternall happine&s;s, That when I often fall (as I needs mu&s;t through the weakne&s;s of the fle&s;h) thou, O Lord, in mercy may&s;t re&s;tore me through my ble&s;&s;ed importunity of &s;pirit.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>With grief of heart (Lord) I confe&s;s, that my great neglect of this holy duty, hath mo&s;t ju&s;tly occa&s;ioned the great abatement of thy holy Spirit in me, and long withholdings of thine outward ble&s;&s;ings from me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord give me yet an heart to &s;erve thee, and then take from me what thou wilt: I de&s;ire nothing with out thee; for I know a&s;&s;uredily, that with thee I cannot but enjoy all things need|full for me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O make me to bewail mine own unworthine&s;s, my drown&s;ine&s;s, my dulne&s;s, my carele&s;ne&s;s, my much untowardne&s;s in thy &s;ervice: Create in me a clean heart (O Lord) and renew a right &s;pirit within me, that I may prai&s;e thee with alacrity, and fervency of &s;oul; that I may be daily ravi&s;h|ed with contemplation of eternity, and hourly &s;a|tisfie my thoughts with apprehen&s;ion of the &s;weetne&s;s of my pre&s;ent &s;afety, of my future glory.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me every day more earne&s;t in this holy duty; O give me &s;uch affectionate de&s;ires, &s;uch holy longings, &s;uch in&s;atiate appetites, &s;uch earne&s;t importunities of heart for heavenly
<PB N="114" REF="66">graces, that I may not onely beg of thee, but even wre&s;tle with thee for this ble&s;&s;ing, although the &s;infull de&s;ires of my corrupt fle&s;h go halting to the grave.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Be mercifull unto me (O Lord) for my &s;oul tru&s;teth in thee, and in the &s;hadow of thy wings will I make my refuge untill the&s;e calamities (of &s;ins and mi&s;eries) be overpa&s;t.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord hear the voice of my humble petitions when I cry unto thee, when I hold up my hands towards thy Mercy &s;eat, &s;hew thy &s;ervant the light of thy countenance, and &s;ave me for thy mercy &s;ake.</HI> P&s;. 28.2. P&s; 31.18.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="31" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 31. <HI>Upon the great neglect of Reading the &s;acred Scriptures.</HI></HEAD>
<P>ALa&s;s my &s;oul, how unbe&s;eeming thy pro|fe&s;&s;ion is this thy backwardne&s;s to holy du|ties? how long wilt thou grovell on this element of earth? how long be cheated with the&s;e counterfeit commodities, the&s;e childi&s;h toys of outward enjoyments? what &s;weetne&s;s can&s;t thou find in tho&s;e things which favour of corruption? what comfort in tho&s;e joyes which are but vain, vexatious, toyl&s;om, tran&s;i|tory? who&s;e &s;eeming beauties are &s;uddenly pa&s;&s;ing, never returning: O let this move thee to delight in that which cannot pa&s;s, to re|member whence thou art, and whether thou art going, that thou may&s;t thereby rai&s;e thy thoughts to immortality.</P>
<P>Look upon the beauty of tho&s;e &s;acred leaves,
<PB N="115" REF="66">and thou wilt loath the fal&s;hood of this worlds embraces: Thou may&s;t there find the &s;um of all that was, or is, or is to come, conducing to thy reall happine&s;s; There is nature unbowell|ed, hell opened, and heaven unveiled; Thou may&s;t there &s;ee the creature to be vanity, thy &s;elf mi&s;ery, thy Saviour felicity; Thou ha&s;t there his coun&s;ell to guide thee, his wi&s;dom to in&s;truct thee, his power to &s;u&s;tein thee, his gifts to encourage thee, his threatnings to ad|moni&s;h thee, his mercies to allure thee, his judgements to deter thee, his holy Spirit to comfort thee: There is antiquitie, &s;trangene&s;s, truth, in hi&s;tory; wonder in miracles, amaze|ment in prophecie, foundne&s;s in precepts, &s;weet|ne&s;s in promi&s;es; each &s;illable contained in this Book is matter of eternall moment. Take heed therefore, that thou pa&s;&s;e&s;t by no portion of th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">s &s;acred volume lightly, nor prye&s;t into any pre|&s;umptuou&s;ly; holy diligence is often ble&s;t with heavenly knowledge, and humble ignorance, with heavenly grace.</P>
<P>Lord, &s;eeing that thy word is in it &s;elf &s;o ex|cellently rich, and in its u&s;e &s;o ab&s;olutely good, with what earne&s;tn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;s of &s;oul ought I to embrace it? with what holy diligence peru&s;e it? with what devout cheerfulne&s;s, and con&s;tancy of heart, apply my &s;elf unto it? The&s;e high perfecti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">s &s;hall religiou&s;ly oblige me to repair my former neglects, by my pre&s;ent promi&s;es of my future performances.</P>
<P>No day &s;hall henceforth pa&s;s me, without &s;ome time alotted for this holy exerci&s;e, cu&s;to<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> will make it ea&s;ie, profit &s;weet; if the trouble|&s;om affairs of this li&s;e do &s;ometimes (to my &s;oul grief) di&s;tu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">b me in it (by thy grace a&s;&s;i&s;ting) they &s;hall never divert me from it; what is bor|rowed
<PB N="116" REF="67">from this ble&s;&s;ed task, by inforced ne|ce&s;&s;ity, &s;hall be repayed with advantage by the next happy opportunity. Lord, all is but vani|ty and meer nothing, in compare of thee, and thy &s;ervice: If I cannot be willingly holy, I &s;hall never be joyfully happy.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>So &s;anctifie my &s;infull &s;oul, that I may joyfully perform tho&s;e promi&s;es I make unto thee; that I may daily dedicate &s;ome part and portion of my &s;infull houres, to read &s;ome portion of thy &s;acred Scriptures: O let them ever be the joy of my joy, the life of my life, the light of mine eyes, and comfort of my heart.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord turn away mine eyes (from the&s;e out|ward enjoyments) le&s;t they behold vanity, and quicken me in thy way.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me an humble &s;oul, that I may read thy ble&s;&s;ed lines with holy fear and awfull reverence; that I may be piou&s;ly delighted with them, and happily in&s;tructed by them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me a di&s;cerning &s;oul, that I may &s;ee the wonderfull things of thy law, that I may truly love it, and delight in it, that my heart may be inflamed by it, and my tongue be ever talking of it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O let thy Statutes be my &s;ong in the hou&s;e of my pilgrimage, that I may walk in thy wayes with con&s;tancy, that I may run in thy race with fervency.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="32" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="117" REF="67">
<HEAD>CHAP. 32. <HI>Upon the neglect of Divine Medi|tation.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WHat doe&s;t thou here on earth, O my &s;oul? why art thou &s;o perplexed with the cares and &s;orrows of this &s;infull life? &s;o carele&s;s of the joyes in that to come? Who can judge him likely to inherit Heaven, that loves not to think of it? Thou may&s;t mea|&s;ure thy degrees of Grace, by thy de&s;ires of Glory: If thy thoughts be not often, and ear|ne&s;tly taken up with this &s;ubject, thou ha&s;t ju&s;t cau&s;e to &s;u&s;pect thy loving, to fear thy enjoy|ing it; for, <HI>Where thy trea&s;ure is, there will thy heart be al&s;o.</HI></P>
<P>If thou live&s;t the life of Plea&s;ure, thou art &s;o much wor&s;e than a bea&s;t, by how much thou oughte&s;t by rea&s;on to be better; if of Action, thou art &s;o much nearer to happine&s;s, as rea&s;on is beyond &s;en&s;e, and yet &s;o much farther off, as Grace is beyond Nature; if the happy life of heavenly Meditation, thou art &s;o far above vanity, as heaven is above earth, as immo|tality above nature, as glory above corrup|tion.</P>
<P>O how &s;weet are tho&s;e thoughts which lead me to Eternity, which rai&s;e my &s;oul above the reach of humane mi&s;ery, that can &s;up|port me under all the heavy pre&s;&s;ures of &s;in, under all the grievous burdens of &s;orrow, un|der all the &s;harp a&s;&s;aults of Satan; that <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 word"> make me merry in life, and triumphant in death.</P>
<PB N="118" REF="68">
<P>Nothing can more truly repre&s;ent me to my &s;elf, and inform me that I am all earthly, than the dullne&s;s and backwardne&s;s of my thoughts to be heavenly: Who can ever hope to be an inhabitant of that City, who&s;e lan|guage hee cannot &s;peak? Lord, when my thoughts are more zealou&s;ly affected with thy heavenly joys, I &s;hall then hope to be more frequently acquainted with thy heavenly vi&s;its; by my carele&s;s neglect of the one, I am now ju&s;tly deprived of the &s;weet enjoyments of the other; while I am wedded to this wretched world, my thoughts mu&s;t needs favour of cor|ruption: But if thou, Lord, wilt once open mine eyes to &s;ee the glorious beauty of my heavenly home, I &s;hall then know, and joy|fully confe&s;&s;e, that one hour thus &s;pent, will adde more comfort to my fool, more true con|tent to my de&s;ires, than all the&s;e outward ble&s;&s;ings, and I &s;hall then account, and joy|fully confe&s;s with thy Apo&s;tle, that all things are but lo&s;s, and dung, in compare of the rich|ne&s;s of thy love in Chri&s;t Je&s;us.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>For thou, O ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, art the ble&s;&s;ed Fountain of eternall happine&s;s; the joy of my heart, the triumph of my joy, the comfort of my life, the &s;afety of my body, the re&s;t of my &s;oul; without thee I am far wor&s;e than nothing, and with thee I enjoy all things; for thou art in the Father, and I in thee, and thou in me; and in this happy union is contained that fruition, is enjoyed that for ever-ble&s;&s;ed vi&s;ion, in which the &s;ouls and bodies of thy Saints eternally delight them&s;elves.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O thou &s;overaign of my &s;oules eternall comfort, how unworthy am I to enjoy thee, that have been
<PB N="119" REF="68">hitherto &s;o much un<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">indfull of thee? how un|de&s;erving to behold thee in thy glory, that am &s;o daily guilty of thy great di&s;honour?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord rai&s;e my thoughts to immortality, and fix my &s;oul upon the love of &s;weet eternity; let my chiefe&s;t joy be, ever to contemplate thee, who art my chiefe&s;t good.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Pardon tho&s;e wretched hours that have been lo&s;t in &s;earch of outward happine&s;s; O make me to redeem them, by abandoning the creature, and placing mine affections wholly on the beauty of the great Creatour; expatiate my &s;infull &s;oul with daily meditations of my future joyes, that I may love thee more fervently, fear thee more dutifully, de&s;ire thee more earne&s;tly, long for thee more heartily, embrace thee more faithfully, and think of thee more joyfully, to my lives end.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="33" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 33. <HI>Upon unchri&s;tianlike Dejectedne&s;s in Poverty.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WHY doe I excruciate my &s;oul with ap|prehen&s;ion of a &s;eeming evill? how un|worthy am I of this life, which I hold from that God, whom I dare not tru&s;t? will God feed me with the delicates of heaven, and not give me bread? will he give me full draughts of the rivers of his eternall plea&s;ures, and not afford me temporall refre&s;hments? &s;hall my death be precious in his eyes, and my life un|comfortable in mine own? can there be any
<PB N="120" REF="69">evill, and the Lord hath not done it? &s;hall he doe it, and &s;hall I complain? if poverty be evill in it &s;elf, yet it is good for me; the evill of &s;in hath drawn upon me this evill of puni&s;h|ment; &s;o this evill is from nature, and the good from grace: By this affliction I am wean|ed from the world, and made de&s;irous of my heavenly home; I am now put in mind, that my trea&s;ure being there, my heart &s;hould be there all&s;o; I am now fully a&s;&s;ured (by my patience and humility under this affliction, and by the quiet fruits of righteou&s;ne&s;s it daily bringeth forth in me) that I am Gods child; that as I am now made partaker of my Saviours &s;ufferings, &s;o I &s;hall be hereafter of his glory; that I part with earthly contentments, to enjoy heavenly comforts. Lord, when thou lende&s;t me thy &s;taff of con&s;olation, I &s;hall be well able to endure thy rod of affliction; all though my body be wor&s;e, I &s;hall then find my &s;oul to be much better, my pre&s;ent condition happy, my future ble&s;&s;ed.</P>
<P>In what e&s;tate &s;oever I am, I will think that be&s;t, becau&s;e thou (Lord) ha&s;t put me there: if my calling be low, my account will be the le&s;s; if I di&s;charge this faithfully, I &s;hall not lo&s;e my reward. Thou, O Lord, looke&s;t not upon my greatne&s;s, but my goodne&s;s, my faith|fulne&s;s in thy &s;ervice: A pin in thy materiall Temple was as u&s;efull as a &s;tone; if I be any thing in thy &s;pirituall, it is enough; yet let me not content my &s;elf with ea&s;ine&s;s and indifferen|cy in heavenly ble&s;&s;ings, but labour to &s;upply mine outward wants by inward graces; &s;o &s;hall this earthly bitterne&s;s be turned into &s;pirituall &s;weetne&s;s, and eternall ble&s;&s;edne&s;s.</P>
<P>Thou (O Lord) ha&s;t alotted me my portion
<PB N="121" REF="69">in this life, mo&s;t agreeable to thy Divine Wi&s;|dome, mo&s;t &s;uitable to my frail condition; and why take I then thought for to morrow? &s;uf|ficient unto the day is the evill thereof: Thou allowe&s;t me lawfull means for increa&s;ing of it, thou forbidde&s;t me repining thoughts to di&s;tru&s;t thee in it; Lord let me fir&s;t &s;eek thy Kingdome, and the righteou&s;ne&s;s thereof, and then I know a&s;&s;uredly, that all things needfull for me &s;hall be added to me.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou ble&s;&s;ed Saviour of the world, who for my &s;ake wert willing to endure the &s;cornfull po|verty of this life, to purcha&s;e my redemption, teach me by thine example, and for thy &s;ake, to undervalue all the glorious pomps of the&s;e en|ticing vanities, that though my body be de&s;pi&s;ed by the world, my &s;infull &s;oul may be accepted with thee, and both &s;oul and body may eternally be happy where thou art.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, by how much (by thy great &s;ufferings) thou wert made the vilder for me, by &s;o much (by thy rich mercy) let thy love be ever dearer to me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O give me graces &s;uitable to all events; let not pro&s;perity puff me up, nor adver&s;ity too much deject me; but for thy mercy &s;ake, let happine&s;s in Chri&s;t be all in all unto me; make me humble in the one, patient in the other, thankfull in either, bappy in both.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Grant (Lord) that no ungodly care, or &s;infull &s;orrow, may di&s;turb me, but that I may with wil|lingne&s;s, and thankfulne&s;s, and joyfulne&s;s of heart, contentedly rely upon thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Enrich my heart with heavenly thoughts, give me that better part which cannot be taken from me; Lord, what thou denie&s;t me of the&s;e
<PB N="122" REF="70">outward comforts, make good unto me by thine inward mercies, that all the&s;e earthly things may work together to the be&s;t to mine advantage, &s;o &s;hall my pre&s;ent poverty be an undoubted earne&s;t of my future glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="34" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 34. <HI>Upon Sickne&s;s, and ungodly repining thereat.</HI></HEAD>
<P>AS every good and perfect gift is from above, &s;o is all&s;o every puni&s;hment for &s;in, by every proportion of &s;orrow; <HI>For mi&s;ery cometh not out of the du&s;t, neither doth affliction &s;pring out of the earth,</HI> Iob 1.5, 6. That Divine Goodne&s;s, which wi&s;ely and affectionately di&s;|po&s;eth all things to the good of his cho&s;en, by his holy providence hath &s;uited their degrees, limited their powers, and appointed their ends; every pain in &s;ickne&s;&s;e, every pang in death, have their ju&s;t number, weight, and mea|&s;ure.</P>
<P>I't is the Lord, let him doe what he will; no|thing can befall me, but by his Divine allow|ance; nothing &s;hall di&s;may me, that my God inflicteth on me: if my vi&s;itation be grievous, I am &s;ure it is &s;afe, For <HI>He cha&s;ti&s;eth me for my profit, that I may be partaker of his holine&s;s.</HI></P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed be that &s;orrow which allureth me from &s;in, ble&s;&s;ed be that mi&s;ery that inviteth me to mercy, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 word"> ki&s;s it, I embrace it, and with humble|ne&s;s of heart I joyfully and patiently &s;ubmit unto it: <HI>The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh,
<PB N="123" REF="70">ble&s;&s;ed be the name of the Lord,</HI> Iob 1.21.</P>
<P>I humbly confe&s;s (Lord) that my great and grievous &s;ins have mo&s;t ju&s;tly de&s;erved this great and grievous affliction, that thou mighte&s;t long &s;ince have deprived me of my life, for de|priving thee of thine honour; that I am mo&s;t unworthy of this thy gentle vi&s;itation, for I am full of rottenne&s;s and corruption, and therefore can expect no other, but to be fill'd with &s;orrow and affliction; thou ha&s;t given me a body for thy &s;ervice, but I have defiled it with &s;in and wickedne&s;s; thou gave&s;t me a &s;oul enriched with thy heavenly graces, but I have defaced it with unthankfulne&s;s and di&s;obedience; no fa|culty of my &s;oul, no member of my body, but are mo&s;t impure, and &s;infull in thy &s;ight. Thou (O Lord) knowe&s;t all my fooli&s;hne&s;s, and my faults are not hid from thee; thou &s;ee&s;t how vainly I have mi&s;-&s;pent my pretious time, how carele&s;ly abu&s;ed that continued health which thou ha&s;t given me; how &s;eriou&s;ly been bu&s;ied on the Creature, how wretchedly neglected thee the great Creatour.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t often weaned me from &s;in, by thy ble&s;&s;ed motions, by thy gratious admonitions, by thy gentle vi&s;itations, by a wa&s;ted body, and a wounded &s;oul; and yet I &s;till &s;in, without cea&s;ing, without &s;orrowing, without repenting; &s;uch are my faults, &s;o grievovs mine offences, that I now blu&s;h to name tho&s;e &s;ins before thee, by which I have &s;o often and &s;o fooli&s;hly re|bell'd again&s;t thee: and now after all this, all|though thou ha&s;t with la&s;ting patience waited my return, and art inforced to withdraw thy pre&s;ent mercy, yet thou art moved to behold my pre&s;ent mi&s;ery, ev<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n in thy very wrath thou ha&s;t compa&s;&s;ion on me, <HI>Habac.</HI> 3.2. while thou
<PB N="124" REF="71">&s;eeme&s;t (by this pre&s;ent &s;ickne&s;s) to withhold thy favour from me, thou gratiou&s;ly intende&s;t, by this ble&s;&s;ed means, to &s;hew thy &s;elf more lovingly unto me; for, <HI>I know Lord, that thy judgements are ju&s;t, and that thou of very faith|fulne&s;sha&s;t cau&s;ed me to be troubled,</HI> P&s;al. 119.75. There&s;ore, <HI>Though thou kille&s;t me, yet will I tru&s;t in thee,</HI> Iob 13.15. <HI>Though I walk through the valley of the &s;hadow of death, yet will I fear no evill,</HI> P&s;al. 23.4. Behold Lord, I am willingly, and joyfully, and thankfully in thy hands, doe with me what thou wilt; if I live, I &s;hall prai&s;e thee; if I dye (I tru&s;t) I &s;hall goe home unto thee, and be for ever ble&s;&s;ed with thee.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou Father of mercies, and God of all con|&s;olations, behold me thy &s;ick &s;ervant, with thine eye of pity and compa&s;&s;ion; O remember not my former &s;ins, but have mercy upon me (O Lord) and that &s;oon, for I am come unto great extre|mity.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord my God, I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly, I goe mourning all the day long; thou write&s;t bitter things again&s;t me, and make&s;t me po&s;&s;e&s;s the iniquities of my youth; O let the &s;weetne&s;s of thy mercy qualifie the &s;harpne&s;s of thy Fatherly correction; con&s;ider me, O Lord, that I am but du&s;t, full of frailties and infirmi|ties, forgive me for thy mercy &s;ake.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Remember not the &s;infull failings of my youth, but according to the richne&s;s of thy goodne&s;s, be thou mindfull of me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O righteous Father, look not on the multitude and hainou&s;ne&s;s of mine offences, but look upon the bitter pa&s;&s;ion of thy ble&s;&s;ed Son, he was wounded for my tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, he was broken for mine iniquities, O by his (ble&s;&s;ed) &s;tripes let my &s;infull &s;oul be healed.</HI></P>
<PB N="125" REF="71">
<P><HI>Enable me to &s;uffer this thy gentle vi&s;itation, with that meekne&s;s, and contentedne&s;s of &s;oul, that becometh thy child; and &s;o ble&s;s it unto me, that it may bring forth in me the quiet and the happy fruits of righteou&s;ne&s;s, that it may drive my thoughts to immortality, and fix my &s;oul upon eternity.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, my hope is in thee, my &s;oul tru&s;t|eth in thee, and under the &s;hadow of thy wings &s;hall be my refuge, untill this mi&s;ery be overpa&s;t. O Lord con&s;ider my complaint, for I am brought very low.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let my pre&s;ent angui&s;h more prevail with thee, to move thee to compa&s;&s;ion, than my former fooli&s;hne&s;s, to &s;tir thy wrath and indignation: O enter not into judgement with thy &s;ervant, for no fle&s;h is righteous in thy &s;ight.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I confe&s;s my wickedne&s;s, and am &s;orry for my &s;in; for thy Names &s;ake, O Lord, be mercifull unto my &s;in, for it is great; my con|fu&s;ion is daily before me, and the &s;hame of my face hath covered me, my heart is di&s;quieted within me, and the fear of death is fallen upon me: Lord, I am thine, O &s;ave me for thy mercy &s;ake; into thy hands I commend my &s;elf, for thou ha&s;t redeemed me, O Lord thou God of Truth.</HI></P>
<P><HI>For&s;ake me not, O Lord my God, be not thou far from me, ha&s;t thee to help me, O Lord God of my &s;alvation. O &s;pare me, for thy mercy &s;ake, that I may recover my &s;trength, before I goe hence, and be no more &s;een.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="35" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="126" REF="72">
<HEAD>CHAP. 35. <HI>Upon the mi&s;ery of Life, and ble&s;&s;edne&s;s of Death.</HI></HEAD>
<P>I am a Pilgrim, and a Stranger here, as all my Fathers were, I am wearied out with tra|vell, and long to be at re&s;t; I am lodged here, but with great co&s;t, and greater danger; this &s;eeming &s;weetne&s;&s;e hath co&s;t me much true &s;or|row, many bitter &s;ighs, and aking hearts, di&s;|turbance of body, di&s;traction of &s;oul; I have &s;ought for help here below, but can find none, no creature on earth to relieve me, none to &s;upport me; I have &s;een plea&s;ure to be folly, and laughter madne&s;s, men of low degree to be va|nity, of high degree a lye, their under&s;tanding vain, their labours vain, their help much more vain; for who can ran&s;ome the &s;oul of his bro|ther? &s;urely man mu&s;t let that alone for ever. My &s;ub&s;tance is a meer &s;hadow, and my re&s;t unquietne&s;s; I labour for holine&s;s, but I can|not attain it; I &s;earch for happine&s;s, but I can|not find it; the Devill beguiles me of it, the World allures me from it; yea (&s;o &s;ad is my con|dition) that mine own &s;oul is again&s;t mine own contentment: Mine under&s;tanding co&s;ens me, mine affections betray me, my memory for&s;akes me; tho&s;e things which I would doe, I cannot, and I daily doe tho&s;e things which I would not; all that I am, all that I can be in this life, is nothing el&s;e but extreme vanity.</P>
<P>What &s;hall I think of all this? and where|with &s;hall I comfort me? by thy mercy, Lord, I have found out one that can relieve me;
<PB N="127" REF="72">Thou (O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour) art unto me life, and by thee death is unto me advantage; while my body &s;leeps it &s;hall re&s;t, and that re&s;t &s;hall be truly ble&s;&s;ed; I &s;hall re&s;t from labour, from &s;orrow, from &s;in; my &s;leep &s;hall be &s;afe, my vi&s;ion happy; while my body &s;leepeth my &s;oul &s;hall awake; when my &s;oul is uncloathed of fle&s;h, and my fle&s;h of beauty, my &s;pirit &s;hall be made ready with the robes of glory; while my du&s;t is in&s;en&s;ible, my &s;pirit is intelligible; mine eyes &s;hall be then opened, and I &s;hall &s;ee even as I am &s;een, with purity, and perfection of &s;oul; no veil of nature &s;hall ob&s;cure me, no defect of organes hinder me, no clouds of &s;in mole&s;t me; mine under&s;tanding &s;hall be clear, mine affections pure, my memory perfect; I &s;hall there be &s;atisfied in beholding, ravi&s;hed in in|joying, ble&s;&s;ed in reteining: nothing can be there wanting where I enjoy all that was, that is, that is to come; where the happy humanity is eternally united to the ble&s;&s;ed deity, where I am Chri&s;ts, and Chri&s;t is Gods. O happy con|dition of my &s;infull body, O ble&s;&s;ed change of my immortall &s;oul, the one is &s;owen in corrup|tion that it may ri&s;e to immortality; the other layeth down corruption, to inher it glory; though I now leave it, I &s;till long to enjoy it, and joy exceedingly in longing for it, be|cau&s;e I know I &s;hall for ever be united to it.</P>
<P>But wo is me, even in this happine&s;s I am &s;till mi&s;erable, I have found out my quiet, but I care not to enjoy it; death offers me a crown, and I refu&s;e to accept it; am I &s;o &s;en&s;le&s;s to affect mine own unhappine&s;s? to rejoyce in la|bour, and complain of re&s;t? what doe I here any longer? the world loves me not, nor I it;
<PB N="128" REF="73">why do I thus dote upon mine enemy? when it frowns it afflicts me, when it &s;miles it betrayes me; there is nothing in it but wearine&s;s and mi&s;ery.</P>
<P>Go out therefore, O my &s;oul, go out cheer|fully, from thy pri&s;on to thy palace, God is thy father, and heaven thy country; thou art here di&s;tre&s;&s;edly poor, and wretchedly naked, bereaved of graces, di&s;poyled of goodne&s;s, thou ha&s;t there much trea&s;ure, and of great price, a fair man&s;ion, and a goodly heritage; Chri&s;t hath purcha&s;ed it, and is gone before to pre|pare it: Thou longe&s;t much in this life to be|hold that which thou never &s;awe&s;t; here are great and glorious things prepared for thee, &s;uch as eye hath not &s;een, ear hath not heard, neither have entred into the heart of man to conceive; how earne&s;tly &s;hould&s;t thou long to &s;ee them? how much more earne&s;tly to enjoy them? how willingly &s;hould this make thee to expre&s;s thy &s;elf with holy <HI>David,</HI> and &s;ay, <HI>My &s;oul is athir&s;t for God, yea even for the living God, when &s;hall I come and appear before the pre&s;ence of my God?</HI></P>
<P>Ala&s;s my &s;oul, thou art here but groping in the dark, daily erring and mi&s;taking, hourly &s;tumbling and &s;alling into &s;in, into &s;hame, in|to &s;orrow; in great danger of the mi&s;eries of life, in greater of the torments of eternall death.</P>
<P>All that thou knowe&s;t here is to know thy &s;elf ignorant: Thou onely knowe&s;t things here by their events, thou &s;halt there know them in their fir&s;t cau&s;es; thou art here wearied out in gaining this imperfect, lame, and empty know|ledge, thou &s;halt there delight thy &s;elf in know|ing all that is de&s;irable, by knowing him in
<PB N="129" REF="73">whom are all the trea&s;ures of wi&s;dom and knowledge; the&s;e drops of tran&s;itory joyes are full of bitterne&s;s, tho&s;e rivers of eternall plea|&s;ures, are derived from the fountain of eternall &s;weetne&s;s; thou ha&s;t here vain pomp to delight thee, thou ha&s;t there a far greater and more ex|ceeding weight of glory to encompa&s;s thee; thou art here enthralled by the mi&s;ery of life, thou art there inlarged by the ble&s;edne&s;s of death.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, all this by grace I know, and &s;aithfully believe; and yet by nature I am &s;till blind, and ignorant, unable to di&s;cern, un|willing to de&s;ire tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed things which are belonging to mine everla&s;ting peace; but when thou (in thy rich mercy) &s;halt once open mine eyes, to &s;ee the beauty of my heavenly home, I &s;hall then entirely love it, and unfeignedly long for it; I &s;hall then mo&s;t willingly for&s;ake the&s;e tottering walls of my frail fle&s;h, to dwel with thee in p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">rfect holine&s;s and endle&s;s hap|pine&s;s, that frailty may be &s;wallowed up of immortality, and immortality may be imbraced by eternity.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou which wert; and art to come, who ha&s;t &s;weetned death by thy perfect obedience, and perfumed the grave by thy ble&s;&s;ed &s;ufferings, &s;uffer me not in my la&s;t hour, for any pains of death, or terrors of hell, to fall from the fa&s;t hold of a true and lively faith in thy promi&s;es, to lo&s;e the precious hopes of immortality, and &s;weet enjoy|ments of eternity.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord let me then &s;ay with thy ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle, That I know whom I have tru&s;ted, that he will keep what I have delivered to him, and re&s;tore it &s;afely unto me at that day.</HI></P>
<PB N="130" REF="74">
<P><HI>Let me &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider of the mi&s;ery of life, and ble&s;&s;edne&s;s of death; acquaint, me every day with the remembrance of it, and ble&s;s me every hour with a de&s;ire unto it; that I may willingly uncloath my &s;elf of &s;in and mi&s;ery, and joyfully be cloathed upon with immor|talitie.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O Lord prepare me for that ble&s;&s;ed hour, and in my greate&s;t weakne&s;s and extremity, even then when all the comforts of this wretched life &s;hall fail me, Lord Je&s;us for&s;ake me not, be not thou far from me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O give me then that inward joy, that ble&s;&s;ed comfort of thy holy Spirit, that may &s;upport and comfort me in all the terrors and amazements of this dark and unknown pa&s;&s;age, in all the dreadfull accu&s;ations of the devill, and mine own accu&s;ing con&s;cience.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord let thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit then witne&s;s to my &s;oul, that I am thy child, that thou wilt purge away all my dro&s;s, and take away all my &s;ins; that I am powerfully protected by thy grace, and &s;hall a&s;&s;uredly be made partaker of thy glory.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="36" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="131" REF="74">
<HEAD>CHAP. 36. <HI>Upon the great Neglect of Opportu|nities in doing good unto the Saints.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>WHen I call to mind the richne&s;s, and the largene&s;s of thy bounty towards me, I am much grieved at the coldne&s;s, and the carele&s;ne&s;s of my affections towards thine; each object of charity is an opportunity of mercy; If I neglect it, I am unkind to thee my Saviour, cruel to my neigbour, injurious to mine own &s;oul.</P>
<P>I am not, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ord, but Steward of thine out|ward ble&s;&s;ings, and it were now ju&s;t with thee, to call me to a &s;trict account: If any of thy Saints &s;uffer, which thou &s;ende&s;t unto me for relief, their &s;ufferings thou wilt &s;urely require at my hands: as each cup of cold water which I have given in thy name, &s;hall not lo&s;e its reward, &s;o each farthing which I ow unto thee in thy members, will a&s;&s;uredly require its ever|la&s;ting puni&s;hment.</P>
<P>I have been too carefully &s;olicitous for the things of this life, too care&s;ly negligent of the trea&s;ures in that to come: I have had many wayes to deprive my &s;elf of my pre&s;ent comfort, of my future happine&s;s; when my talent hath been large, I have had no lei&s;ure, when little, no ability to works of mercy. The pre&s;ent ne|ce&s;&s;ities of thy Saints have been daily negle&s;t|ed,
<PB N="132" REF="75">upon the fal&s;e pretence of future oppor|tunities; and tho&s;e future opportunities again put off by the dilatory plea of mine own pre|&s;ent nece&s;&s;ities: Thus have I long kept my &s;elf in a circulation of &s;elf-couzenage, and have &s;o lived here as if I were never to go hence, and were utterly ignorant for what cau&s;e I came hither.</P>
<P>From whence is this my great neglect of cha|rity towards my brethren, but from my greater want of love to thee my God, and from whence my di&s;obedience to thy precepts, but from mine unbelief of thy promi&s;es? Thou bidde&s;t me Give, and ha&s;t promi&s;ed it &s;hall be given unto me, good mea&s;ure, &s;haken toge|ther, pre&s;&s;ed down, and running over, <HI>Luke</HI> 6.38. Thou commande&s;t me not to be weary in well doing, and ha&s;t promi&s;ed, that in due time I &s;hall reap, if I faint no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 6.9. If I did beleeve the one, I &s;hould gladly per|form the other; and who&s;e word &s;hall I take (Lord) if I dare to que&s;tion thine? All thy ble&s;&s;ed promi&s;es are Yea and Amen, the begin|ing &s;weet, the end certain; as thou ha&s;t a bottle for my tears, and a bag for my tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, &s;o thou ha&s;t all&s;o a book for mine Alm&s;-deeds, <HI>Acts,</HI> 10.4. Not one of them &s;hall be forgot|ten, but even the very lea&s;t of them &s;hall be <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">raciou&s;ly accepted, gloriou&s;ly rewarded; not for my work &s;ake, but for thy promi&s;e &s;ake, no: for mine own &s;ake, but for my Saviours &s;ake: Lord I can merit nothing at thy hands but by thine own mercy.</P>
<P>And now Lord, let me examine, What I have gained, by my want of charity. I have ex|changed Heaven to enjoy earth, I have parted
<PB N="133" REF="75">with thee my Saviour, in whom are all the trea&s;ures that are true and crernall, for the very ba&s;e&s;t part of earth, which is vain and un|certain; I have lo&s;t tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed opportunities of doing good which can never be recalled, and together with them, tho&s;e rewards of thine, which &s;hall never be enjoyed. I have offended thee my God, grieved thy Saints, burdened mine own con&s;cience, and been an utter enemy to mine own &s;alvation.</P>
<P>As my affections have been frozen towards o|thers, &s;o have I ju&s;tly found the gifts and graces of thy holy Spirit, decaying daily in mine own &s;oul; my love cold to thy law, mine ears deaf to thy precepts, my mouth dumb to thy prai&s;es; my faith dead to thy promi&s;es, my hope fainting, my zeal langui&s;hing, my joy peri&s;h|ing. The&s;e are the &s;ad and &s;ure effects of want of charity, the beginning &s;infull, the progre&s;s dangerous, the end de&s;perate.</P>
<P>Lord, if tho&s;e heavenly &s;pirits, who&s;e very names import their ardency of love to thy glo|ry, are yet found cold enough in thy &s;ight, with what horror and confu&s;ion of face, will tho&s;e wretched &s;ouls appear before thee, who have not been &s;o much as lukewarm in thy &s;ervice?</P>
<P>By thy grace (Lord) I will therefore hence|forth make a godly improvement of all future opportunities of doing good; whar&s;oever thine allowance is unto me, of the&s;e outward ble&s;|&s;ings, I will dedicate &s;ome due proportion of it unto works of mercy; and cheerfully, and thankfully, tru&s;t thee my God with the &s;u&s;tenta|tion of my body, upon who&s;e ble&s;&s;ed protection, I &s;afely relie for the eternall pre&s;ervation of my &s;oul.</P>
<PB N="134" REF="76">
<P>my heart, my hand, my tongue, mine actions, &s;hall be allwaies ready to relieve the nece&s;&s;i|ties, to promote the good of thy children; and as this happy re&s;olution hath had its beginning from thy grace, &s;o &s;hall its aim be wholly at thy glory.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Lord,</HI></P>
<P><HI>Such is thy gratious goodne&s;&s;e unto thine, that thou even prevente&s;t them with thy ble&s;&s;ings; while they call upon thee thou art ready to an&s;wer, and before they speak unto thee thou art willing to hear.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I am thy child, and am therefore bold to crave a ble&s;&s;ing of thee, and what is now more &s;uitable to my nece&s;&s;ities, than the &s;weet infu&s;ion of thy holy Spirit? for I now find (to my grief of heart) that the forein heat of the plea|&s;ures and profits of this life, have extracted from me the inward heat of my de&s;ires and long|ings for thy ble&s;&s;ed pre&s;ence; the adventitious heat of the love of this world, hath quite con|&s;umed in me the naturall heat of my zeal to thy kingdom.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, kindle in me tho&s;e decaying sparks of thy grace, that they may now grow up into a bright flame of fervent affections to thy glory, and thy childrens good.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Teach me to know that godline&s;se is great gain, and that the true&s;t trea&s;ures are tho&s;e which are layd up with thee in thy King|dom.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, pardon my neglects of holy duties; for|give my deadne&s;&s;e, and my dulne&s;&s;e unto works of mercy; repair my &s;infull breaches by thy pre&s;ent graces: O let the fervour of my future
<PB N="135" REF="76">charity become a plea&s;ing &s;acrifi&s;e to expiate my former mi&s;ery; to reconcile my &s;oul (in Chri&s;t) to endle&s;s mercy.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="37" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 37. <HI>Upon the deceitfulne&s;s of the heart in the performance of holy duties.</HI></HEAD>
<P>NOthing is more common among&s;t Chri&s;ti|ans than to be deluded by the &s;hew of holy actions; the heart of man is deceitfull above all things, who can know it? holy perfor|mances are u&s;ually accompanied with helli&s;h temptations; when the Ship of our &s;oules is under &s;ail, and hath the fre&s;he&s;t way for hea|ven, we have then mo&s;t need to look to our &s;teerage, to have an eye to the compa&s;s and land-marks.</P>
<P>Which of our holy duties (which are the &s;hips we &s;ayl in to the port of happine&s;s) have not their rocks to &s;plit upon, or Remoraes to hinder them, or cro&s;s winds to divert them, or leaks to &s;ink them, or &s;eas to overwhelm them? when we arrive at any &s;mall mea&s;ure of good|ne&s;s, we many times re&s;t in it, and grow &s;e|cure upon it: if grace carry us on farther, we are too apt to beleeve that we are far better than our neighbours, that we are highly in Gods favour, and cannot but de&s;erve his fatherly protection, his liberall remuneration; and &s;o by this &s;ecret in&s;inuation of pride in our hearts, wee have folly in our hands,
<PB N="136" REF="77">&s;inne in our mindes, and &s;hame in our acti|ons.</P>
<P>That prayer is very rare, that is not fick of &s;ome di&s;temper; that charity very pure, that can admit of no mi&s;takes, and that performance very perfect, that is not &s;oyled with &s;ome filth of wickedne&s;s: How willing are our thoughts to wander in our prayers? how cold and carele&s;s are we in them? and how remils in the perfor|mance of them? where is that con&s;tancy, that fervency, that holy importunity of &s;pirit that is required of us in this holy exerci&s;e? which of us can truly &s;ay, that (throughout the whole cour&s;e of his whole life hitherto) he ever put up one prayer unto Almighty God, that was not cumbred with di&s;tracted thoughts, that needed not a pre&s;ent pardon? I tremble at mine own, and grieve at others failings (O let my &s;evere&s;t cen&s;ures of my brothers &s;ins, be a&s;&s;ured &s;igns of my be&s;t love) How far are we (even the very be&s;t of us) from that purity, and perfection of &s;oul which becometh this holy duty? and yet how ready are we, even the very wor&s;t of us, to be|leeve our &s;elves &s;ufficiently holy, a&s;&s;uredly happy?</P>
<P>We content our &s;elves u&s;ually with the very &s;hels, and husks, and out&s;ides of Religion; with &s;hews and &s;hadows of devotion; with cu|&s;tomary, cold prayers; intermitted, undige&s;ted readings; carele&s;s, incon&s;iderate meditations; hypocritall, phari&s;aical fa&s;tings; popular Alm&s;|deeds, having onely the &s;hew of godline&s;s, but denying the power thereof: All the&s;e, and what|&s;oever el&s;e are like to the&s;e, are odious to God, abhominable to good men, and mo&s;t de&s;tructive to their &s;ouls that are deluded by them.</P>
<PB N="137" REF="77">
<P>When, by the &s;weet a&s;&s;i&s;tance of the heaven|ly goodne&s;s, and gentle breathings of his ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, we are drawing nearer to our haven; when the agui&s;h di&s;tempers of the &s;oul are abated, and her native and radicall heat is grown &s;trong and vigorous; when the ferven|cie of our zeal is a rich evidence of the live|line&s;s of our faith, of the certainty of our hope, of the perfection of our charity; when our affections are inflamed with Gods love, and our actions aim onely at his glory; when we are grown up to that happy &s;tate of grace, that our con&s;ciences are pure, our re&s;olutions godly, our conver&s;ations unblamable; all|though wee dare not then propo&s;e the&s;e ba&s;e and by re&s;pects, the&s;e outward aims, unto out &s;elves, yet how cunningly and clo&s;ely will corruptions Real in upon us, even in the&s;e very ble&s;&s;ed acts of grace? This is too truly proved, too &s;adly experienced, even by the very be&s;t of Chri&s;tians: Lord (in thy rich mer|cie) give us eyes to di&s;cern it, hearts to a|voyd it.</P>
<P>How often may we find pride in our humi|lity, lu&s;t in our de&s;ires of cha&s;tity, our own private ends in our propo&s;als of Gods pub|lique intere&s;t? when we bear a part among&s;t the mourners of <HI>Syon,</HI> when we are ca&s;t down for &s;ome humane frailty, wee pre&s;ently conceive highly of our own holine&s;s, and very meanly of others in their relations unto happine&s;s; while we have &s;ought to become better, by the propo&s;all of &s;ome &s;trict rules, to pre&s;erve cha|&s;tity, have we not many times become wor&s;e, by poy&s;oning tho&s;e very defires by unclean thoughts, and uncleaner actions? How many
<PB N="138" REF="78">while they have &s;incerely aimed at Gods glory, by the holy propo&s;all, and happy performance of &s;ome reall good, for the benefit of his children, have been &s;ecretly &s;urpri&s;ed with the by-end of their own de&s;erved prai&s;e? Lord, how readily have I now met with mine own &s;ins, to thy great glory, and mine own de&s;erved &s;lame? I willingly confe&s;s, that I am guilty of all this, and in|finitely more than this; even the&s;e very lines are witne&s;&s;es again&s;t me, of my &s;ecret corrupti|ons; O let this my &s;orrowfull confe&s;&s;ion pur|cha&s;e for me thy free and full remi&s;&s;ion, that thou may&s;t have the glory, I the comfort, of the&s;e weak endeavours.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>And now Lord, &s;eeing I am thus impure, and &s;infull in mine own eyes, even in the very be&s;t of my performances, how loath&s;ome mu&s;t I needs ap|pear in thy &s;ight, who art Purity it &s;elf, and can&s;t not behold iniquity! Ble&s;&s;ed Lord, as thou ha&s;t given me the light of thy Word to di&s;cover me unto my &s;elf, &s;o give me all&s;o the &s;word of thy Spirit, to deliver me from my &s;elf.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Deliver me, O Lord, from the evill man, from mine own&s;ecret corruptions, and unknown abomi|nations.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Allthough I am unto mine own &s;oul both ruine and de&s;truction yet let my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour be unto me &s;afety and &s;alvation.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Search my heart (O Lord) and try my reins; O let no ba&s;e and by-re&s;pects inhabit there, to rob thee of thine honour; no fal&s;e and vain re&s;pects, to cheat me of my pre&s;ent holine&s;s, and future bap|pine&s;s.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Pardon and pa&s;s by the &s;ecret and unknown errours of my &s;infull life, &s;uppre&s;s the great di&s;|turbances
<PB N="139" REF="78">turbances of my corrupt affections, allthough they many times prevail again&s;t me, yet let thy &s;aving grace (Lord) be &s;ufficient for me.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord make me purely and entirely holy; let me love holine&s;s, neither for fear of thy puni&s;hments, nor for hope of thy rewards, but for thy &s;ake onely (O my God) who art holine&s;s it &s;elf. Let me never think my &s;elf holy enough, but forget all tho&s;e holy actions which are pa&s;t, and pre&s;s hard forward towards the mark, for the rich price of the high calling in Chri&s;t Je&s;us.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord crown my holy de&s;ires with happy per|formances, and ble&s;&s;ed per&s;everance, that at the end of my race I may receive the end of my hopes, the &s;alvation of my pretious &s;oul, and that for his &s;ake, and perfect holine&s;s, by whom I tru&s;t the&s;e weak and &s;infull endeavours of mine, &s;hall be gratiou&s;ly accepted, and faithfully rewarded.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="38" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="140" REF="79">
<HEAD>CHAP. 38. <HI>Upon the unruline&s;s of the Tongue, with nece&s;&s;ary cautions to re&s;train it.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>THY &s;ervant <HI>David</HI> is &s;aid to be a man after thine own heart, and yet I find him &s;etting a watch before his lips, that he might not offend with his congue: if &s;uch a cho&s;en ve&s;&s;el as he had &s;o much need of circum&s;pection, what holy cautions had I need to u&s;e, what &s;trict rules to ob&s;erve, who am &s;o far from <HI>David</HI>'s purity, that I am nothing el&s;e but wilfull impiety? I am &s;o far (Lord) from being at union with thee, that I am even enmity it &s;elf again&s;t thee.</P>
<P>In vain had holy <HI>David</HI> &s;et a watch before his lips, unle&s;s he had fir&s;t &s;et a guard upon his heart; where the fountain is impure, the &s;treams can never be whol&s;ome; if the heart be full of &s;infull corruption, the tongue will &s;oon overflow with corrupt and &s;infull communication.</P>
<P>Lord, I need none other proof of this point, than mine own &s;infull failings; how often have I provoked thee to anger, and di&s;plea&s;ure again&s;t me, by that u&s;uall, but mo&s;t fearfull &s;in of &s;wearing? of which, with &s;hame and &s;orrow I confe&s;s, my younger years were &s;adly guilty; &s;ince when, time and experience having added more light to my mind, but thou (O Lord) e|&s;pecially more grace to my heart, when I would have left it, to my great grief I could not; and had not that thy &s;aving and preventing grace re|&s;trained
<PB N="141" REF="79">my depraved nature, this &s;in had doubt|le&s;s been a &s;ad memoriall to my grave: &s;uch is the power of &s;in once grown habituall. O let my &s;orrowfull confe&s;&s;ion be the readers u&s;efull in&s;truction, that thou may&s;t have the glory, I the &s;hame of my mi&s;-doing.</P>
<P>Lord, I have often &s;inned again&s;t thee, by my wretched violation of the truth, in envious de|tractions from the good of my neighbour, vain|glorious aggravations of mine own abilities, cen|&s;orious taxations of my brethrens infirmities, indulgent diminutions of mine own iniqui|ties.</P>
<P>I have often grieved thy good Spirit, by which thou ha&s;t &s;ealed me up unto the day of redem|ption, by my vain and idle communications, by my ra&s;h and &s;infull exprobations, by my weak and froward objurgations, to the great di&s;|honour of thee my God, to the cominuall grief of thy Saints, to the &s;ad di&s;turbance of my &s;elf.</P>
<P>All this (to my hearts grief) have I often done, and by all this I may now plainly &s;ee, how much I have hitherto been the &s;ervant of &s;in, and Satan, how great an enemy to thy glory, and to the good of mine own &s;oul: But now, Lord, by thine a&s;&s;i&s;tance, my &s;peciall care &s;hall henceforth be, to allow my &s;elf no liberty of &s;peech, but what is aiming at Eternity; if my heart be heavenly, my words will be gra|tious, my actions holy, mine end happy; and that all this may be &s;o indeed (by thy grace Lord) I will ob&s;erve with carefulne&s;s, and con|&s;tancy, the&s;e following cautions.</P>
<P N="1">1. Before I &s;peak, I will con&s;ider, that I am in thy ble&s;&s;ed pre&s;ence, that what is once <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">k<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n
<PB N="142" REF="80">can never be recalled, but is recorded for eter|ternity.</P>
<P N="2">2. That each idle word mu&s;t be accounted for, and that my whole life hitherto hath been little el&s;e but vain and empty di&s;cour&s;e, tend|ing much to thy di&s;honor, the hurt of my neigh|bour, and (without mercy in Chri&s;t) the de|&s;truction of my own &s;oul.</P>
<P N="3">3. That there is no truer te&s;timony of a gracele&s;s heart, than a licentious tongue; that if I be not holy in my di&s;cour&s;e, I can never be happy in mine actions.</P>
<P N="4">4. That it is impo&s;&s;ible for tho&s;e prayers to be plea&s;ing to God, which are offered up with that &s;infull member, that is &s;o &s;hamefully de|filed with evill and corrupt communications a|mong&s;t men.</P>
<P N="5">5. That if I make a mock at Chri&s;tianity, by having onely a form of godline&s;s in mine outward actions, but denying the power there|of in my u&s;uall conver&s;ation, God will one day pay me home, by &s;hewing me the rich|ne&s;s of his &s;ufferings, but denying me the bene|fits thereof, and the &s;weet enjoyments there|by.</P>
<P N="6">6. That without heline&s;&s;e no man &s;hall &s;ee the Lord; and that &s;uch as is my common, and mo&s;t accu&s;tomed di&s;cour&s;e in my life, I may well fear will be my la&s;t, and mo&s;t un|comfortable expre&s;&s;ions at my death.</P>
<P N="7">7. Unto all this I will adde the &s;hortne&s;&s;e, mi&s;ery, and uncertainty of a &s;infull life; the horrour and amazement of a wretched death; the extremity and eternity of torments after death. Lord, when my heart is thus guard|ed by thy grace, my lips I tru&s;t will be ever open to thy prai&s;e.</P>
<PB N="143" REF="80">
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>Ble&s;&s;ed God,</HI></P>
<P><HI>If thy holy Angell dur&s;t not give railing ac|cu&s;ations again&s;t the devill; if thy Sainss in patience po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e their own &s;oules, and their &s;peeches he &s;ea&s;oned with &s;alt, admini&s;tring grace to the hearts of the hearers; if thou the ble&s;sed Saviour of the world, when thou wert reviled, reviled&s;t not again, but as a lamb before the &s;hearers &s;o opened&s;t thou not thy mouth, with what comfort can I now appear before thee, with what confidence expect a ble&s;&s;ing from thee?</HI></P>
<P><HI>With grief and &s;orrow I confe&s;&s;e, that my heart hath ever been full of corruption, and naughtine&s;se, my mouth full of cur&s;ing and bitterne&s;&s;e, my daily di&s;cour&s;e full of folly and uncleanne&s;&s;e, the whole cour&s;e of my life full of mi&s;ery and wickedne&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O that my head were water, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night (that I might mourn continually) for mine own and others &s;ins.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord purifie my heart, and rectifie my tongue, that both may be accepted of thee, and now and ever graciou&s;ly directed by thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, I acknowledge my faults, and my &s;in is ever before me; O let the &s;orrowfull remem|brance of my &s;ins invite thee to a &s;weet remem|brance of thy mercies, that thou maye&s;t have the prai&s;e, and I the comfort of thy gracious pardon.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord let my heart be inflamed with thy love, and my mouth filled with thy prai&s;e, that I may &s;acrifile my oul unto thee, that I may &s;anctifie my &s;oul before thee, by devout thoughts, by
<PB N="144" REF="81">gracious words, and godly actions, that &s;o I may with joyfulne&s;se and thankfulne&s;&s;e appear in thy fight, not onely all the day long, but even all my life long, that thou (my God) may&s;t be glorified, thy Saints delighted, and my &s;infnll foul eternally comforted.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="39" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 39. <HI>Upon holy revenge for &s;in, with motives and encouragements thereunto.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>I Have ever been too apt to revenge the &s;mall|e&s;t injuries offered unto me by others, in relation to mine outward condition, and too remi&s;s in that holy revenge of tho&s;e great and in&s;ufferable wrongs, which I daily and hourly obtrude upon mine own &s;oul; this plainly &s;heweth me to have been too much &s;avouring of fle&s;h and blood, too little mindfull of thy kingdom, and the righteou&s;ne&s;s thereof: That &s;oul which is truly &s;en&s;ible of its own injury, will (by thy grace) be dayly minding of its own redre&s;le; and that &s;inner which is unca|pable of &s;light offences, will in time become in|&s;en&s;ible of greater.</P>
<P>My greate&s;t enemies are tho&s;e of mine own hou&s;hold: The world may allure me, the de|vill per&s;wade me, but it is mine own fal&s;e heart alone that betrayes me, and mine own corrupt nature that en&s;laves me: my greate&s;t
<PB N="145" REF="81">care &s;hall therefore be, to bend my &s;tronge&s;t force again&s;t mine own corruptions; to labour much to &s;ubdue mine affections, and to take an holy revenge upon my &s;infull actions; not to &s;atisfie thy ju&s;tice, but to implore thy mer|cie, that I may thereby truly manife&s;t my perfect hatred again&s;t &s;in, and the &s;incerity of my &s;oul to thy &s;ervice.</P>
<P>There need none other motives to invite me to this holy duty, than the wofull breaches &s;in hath daily made in my &s;oul, &s;uch as (with|out mercy) will never be repaired; this is too &s;adly proved by the &s;en&s;ible decay of goodne&s;&s;e, and the too powerfull growth of ungodline&s;&s;e in my corrupt heart; as it is ea&s;ie for that Ca&s;tle to &s;tand a clo&s;e &s;iege, that is well fortified, man'd and victualled, &s;o is it impo&s;sible for that Fort to hold out long which maketh no re&s;i&s;tance.</P>
<P>Lord, as mine own &s;pirituall ruins have hi|therto been cau&s;ed by mine own neglects, &s;o (by thy gratious a&s;si&s;tance) mine own repairs &s;hall be begun and fini&s;hed, by my pre&s;ent de&s;ires, and future endeavours. That time which I have lo&s;t by former carele&s;ne&s;&s;e, and cold|ne&s;&s;e in Religion, I will endeavour to re|deem by holy vigilance, and Chri&s;tian forti|tude; and that I may &s;incerely be what I in|tend, with willingne&s;s of heart, I offer up this &s;olemn Vow unto thee: Lord, as this holy motion came from thy heavenly Spirit, &s;o enable me to the performance of it, by thy grace, to thy glory, and my &s;oules eternall comfort.</P>
<P>I vow my &s;elf a &s;erious and profe&s;&s;ed enemy to all ungodline&s;&s;e; no &s;infull thought &s;hall
<PB N="146" REF="82">&s;urpri&s;e me without a &s;orrowfull &s;igh; no un|gracious word pa&s;s me without a &s;udden re|tractation, and devout confe&s;sion; no wicked action defile me without a &s;incere and godly humiliation; unto each mea&s;ure of &s;in I will allow a due mea&s;ure of &s;orrow; tho&s;e &s;ins that have been reigning over me, &s;hall at &s;et houres be con&s;tantly revenged by me; and as my body hath been a deep &s;harer in my &s;innes, &s;o it &s;hall all&s;o be a dayly &s;harer in my &s;ufferings: I will at &s;et &s;ea&s;ons deny my &s;elf &s;omewhat of the&s;e outward enjoyments (which thou Lord in mercy ha&s;t allowed me) as a true &s;ign of my true &s;orrow for that &s;infull exce&s;s which I have too often taken without thine allowance. Tho&s;e &s;infull houres which have been vainly lo&s;t in idlene&s;&s;e and emptine&s;&s;e, &s;hall be willing|ly redeemed in a con&s;tant ob&s;ervation of re|ligious duties; no day &s;hall pa&s;&s;e me without a &s;olemn and devout task of devotion, no hour without &s;ome &s;weet ejaculation: And when at any time the troubles and di&s;turbances of this frail life &s;hall deny me happy opportunities for the&s;e heavenly performances, what is wanting in act &s;hall be made up in de&s;ire; which thou, Lord, I tru&s;t wilt graciou&s;ly accept, and look upon as done, becau&s;e faithfully inten|ded.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou infinitely wi&s;e, and for ever ble&s;&s;ed being, that art truly and eternally happy, without the &s;infull &s;ervice of thy creature; and yet commande&s;t us to &s;erve thee for our own &s;akes, that we all&s;o may be happy in thee; thou that love&s;t not a fal&s;e and fickle heart, nor de|lighte&s;t in the &s;acrifi&s;e of fooles, give me
<PB N="147" REF="82">a wi&s;e and under&s;tanding heart, that I may &s;e|riou&s;ly con&s;ider of this &s;acred Vow; give me a con&s;tant and religious heart, that I may chear|fully perform what I have faithfully promi&s;ed; give me a broken and a contrite heart, that I may bitterly bewail what I have fooli&s;hly neg|lected; that thy great name may be glorified, my &s;infull life amended, my con&s;cience quieted, my spirit comforted, thy Saints delighted, thine Angels rejoyced, and my &s;oul and body eter|nally &s;aved in the great and dreadfull day of the Lord Je&s;us, to whom with thee, O ble&s;&s;ed Father, and thine holy Spirit, be all po&s;&s;ible prai&s;e, and honour, and glory, now and for ever.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="40" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. 40. <HI>Upon the ble&s;&s;ed condition of Gods Saints, with motives and encourage|ments unto Godline&s;s.</HI></HEAD>
<P><HI>Lord,</HI></P>
<P>(To clo&s;e up the&s;e imperfect lines) as I be|gan with that beauty of holine&s;&s;e, which thou thy &s;elf art, and is e&s;&s;entially contained in thee, &s;o my &s;oules de&s;ire is to end with that ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e, which we thy Saints enjoy, even in this vale of mi&s;ery, and is eternally de|rived from thee; that &s;o I may begin, and end with thee, who art the beginning and end of
<PB N="148" REF="83">thy creature, that I may lead thy &s;ervants from the pure fountain of true holine&s;&s;e, to the &s;weet &s;treames of inward happine&s;&s;e, wherein we may &s;ecurely bath our weary &s;oules in re&s;t and quietne&s;&s;e, untill thy gracious good|ne&s;&s;e &s;hall conduct us home, unto the full fru|ition of tho&s;e joyfull rivers, of thine endle&s;le plea&s;ure.</P>
<P>I am no &s;ooner entred upon this ble&s;&s;ed &s;earch, but I find my &s;oul ravi&s;hed with admi|ration at the greatne&s;&s;e, with apprehen&s;ion of the goodne&s;&s;e, with contemplation of the freene&s;&s;e of thy love and favour towards me. I &s;ee thee the great and glorious God of heaven and earth, from all eternity, out of thine own gracious goodne&s;&s;e, without all po&s;sibility in me (when I was not) either of de&s;iring, or de&s;erving this ine&s;timable love of thine, electing me in Chri&s;t (of whom thou had&s;t no need, from whom thou could&s;t receive no benefit) unto holy|ne&s;&s;e and happine&s;&s;e in this life, and unto blef|&s;edne&s;&s;e in that to come; and as I find this love of thine to be purely, &s;imply, admirably and e|ternally great, &s;o is it al&s;o truly, nece&s;sarily, &s;uffi|ciently and permanently good.</P>
<P>If it were not truly good, it could never make me truly happy; if not nece&s;&s;arily good, I might then enjoy happine&s;&s;e without it; if not &s;ufficiently good, my happine&s;&s;e enjoyed by it could not afford me &s;atisfaction in it; if not permanently good, what I enjoy in &s;atis|faction, I may want in perfection, by being &s;ud|dainly removed from it. But thou, O Lord, ha&s;t graciou&s;ly afforded me all the&s;e degrees of happine&s;&s;e, that I might be truly and eternally happy, that I might be happy in thee, becau&s;e
<PB N="149" REF="83">there is no attainining happine&s;&s;e but by thee, that I may be happy in &s;oul, and happy in body, happy in life, and happy in death, happy here, and happy hereafter.</P>
<P>Thou, O my ble&s;&s;ed Saviour, art &s;weeter unto me than all &s;weetne&s;&s;e; thou art that ble&s;&s;ed All-&s;ufficiency, by which I am both fully, and for ever &s;atisfied? thou art my &s;afe re|po&s;e, my inviolable peace, my rich re&s;t, my &s;afety in life, my comfort in death, my glory after death. By thy patient &s;ufferings, I am more than conqueror of &s;in, of &s;orrow, of death, of hell; by thy glorious re&s;urrection I have a&s;&s;u|red hope of immortality; by thy ble&s;&s;ed a&s;cen|tion, of eternall glory; by the one thou ha&s;t powerfully defended me again&s;t the rage and malice of devils, by the other thou ha&s;t graci|ou&s;ly exalted me in thy ble&s;&s;ed union with me above the nature of Angels; thy peace thou ha&s;t left with me, thy peace thou ha&s;t given unto me, even that ble&s;&s;ed peace of con|&s;cience which the world cannot take from me, and that eternity of peace with thee in thy Kingdom, which thou Lord in thy rich mercy ha&s;t prepared for me. O that I might now lo&s;e my &s;elf with contemplation of thine endle&s;&s;e love, that I might be ravi&s;hed into exta&s;ie, with apprehen&s;ion of my pre&s;ent &s;afety, of my future glory; that all my faculties of &s;oul might be but one entire and plea&s;ing &s;acrifi&s;e of thankfulne&s;&s;e unto thee; that as thou (O my Saviour) and the Father are one, &s;o I may be one with thee, to magnifie thy gracious pre&s;ence here, and to be for ever where thou art here|after, to &s;ee thy great glory, and enjoy mine own end le&s;&s;e felicity.</P>
<PB N="150" REF="84">
<P>From this for ever ble&s;&s;ed fountain of eternall happine&s;s doe plentifully flow tho&s;e plea&s;ant &s;treams of comfort, to the &s;ouls and bodies of the Saints, even in this life, by which they are &s;e|curely quieted, and joyfully contented, even in the very wor&s;t of times, which either mans malice, or the Devils cruelty, can &s;tudy to in|flict upon them; if they receive injuries, they return prayers, they entertain them with a <HI>Fa|ther forgive them, for they know not what they doe,</HI> Luk. 23.34. and <HI>Lord lay not this &s;in to their charge,</HI> Act. 7.60. And &s;o while they lo&s;e out|wardly, they gain inwardly (&amp; godline&s;s is great gain) for by patience they po&s;&s;e&s;s their own &s;ouls.</P>
<P>Their courage is undaunted, for <HI>The righteous is hold as a Lion,</HI> able to encounter the fierce&s;t affliction, ready to with&s;tand the &s;tronge&s;t tem|ptation; if the World frown upon them, they can chearfully &s;ay, and faithfully believe, that <HI>A &s;mall thing which the righteous hath, is better than great riches of the ungodly,</HI> P&s;al. 37.16. if it &s;mile, that <HI>They then account all things but lo&s;s and dung in compare of Chri&s;t Je&s;us;</HI> if outward ble&s;|&s;ings be pre&s;ent, they are humble under them, and thankfull for them; if ab&s;ent, <HI>They can pa|tiently tarry for the Lord, for they know he is their help,</HI> P&s;al. 33.14. and that <HI>No good thing will he withhold from them that love him,</HI> P&s;al. 34.10. if &s;ickne&s;s &s;eize upon them, <HI>The Lord is about their bed, and about their path, and &s;pieth out all their waies</HI> (their waies of &s;in, and their waies of &s;or|row) yea, <HI>He maketh their beds in their &s;ickne&s;s,</HI> (by ea&s;e to their bodies, comfort to their &s;ouls;) if famine threaten them, they have God's pro|mi&s;e to maintain them, <HI>For the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, and upon all tho&s;e that put
<PB N="151" REF="84">their tru&s;t in his mercy, To deliver their &s;ouls from dearth, and to feed them in the time of &s;ecurity,</HI> P&s;al. 33.17, 18. if &s;udden danger approach them, they have heavenly &s;uccour to defend them, for <HI>The Angell of the Lord tarrieth about all them that fear him, to deliver them;</HI> yea even Death it &s;elf is an advantage to them, and therefore no waies able to affright them, for <HI>Pretious in the &s;ight of the Lord is the death of his Saints;</HI> and therefore, <HI>Though the Lord kill them, yet will they tru&s;t in him,</HI> Iob 13.15. Lord, if thy mercy be thus great unto me, while I am yet in my &s;infull fle&s;h, how un&s;peakable &s;hall I find thy love, when my body is become &s;pirituall, my joy e|ternall?</P>
<P>From the&s;e outward enjoyments may well be derived their inward contentments, but by their inward refre&s;hments is enjoyed that incompara|ble, inconceivable, unutterable &s;weetne&s;s, that ble&s;&s;ed peace of God, and joy in the holy Gho&s;t, which pa&s;&s;eth all our under&s;tanding, God's holy Spirit witne&s;&s;ing with their &s;pirits, that they are his children, and mo&s;t pretious in his &s;ight, and they are now fully per&s;waded, with his ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle, that <HI>Neither Death, nor Life, nor Angels, nor Principalities, nor Powers, nor things pre&s;ent, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other Creature, &s;hall be ever able to &s;eparate them from the love of God which is in Chri&s;t Je&s;us our Lord,</HI> Rom. 8. 37, 38.</P>
<P>How full of &s;olid comfort is this ble&s;&s;ed a&s;|&s;urance? how are our &s;ouls ravi&s;hed with ap|prehen&s;ion of the &s;weetne&s;s of our pre&s;ent com|forts, of the fulne&s;s of our future joyes? the&s;e ble&s;&s;ed earne&s;ts of that ever ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, are the faithfull pledges of his future embraces, far
<PB N="152" REF="85">above the reach of Malice to di&s;turb, or De|vill to de&s;troy: Hence it is that our faith is pre|tious, our hope lively, our joy glorious, our lives &s;afe, our deaths ble&s;&s;ed, and from hence ari&s;e tho&s;e many and tho&s;e rich endowments of the Saints, their zeal burning, their love wonder|full, their de&s;ires earne&s;t, their longings in|&s;atiate, their petitions for enjoyings importunate: Lord, what can I de&s;ire more of thee, than what I enjoy from thee? I have thy mercy without me, and thy mercy within me, thy mercy in life, and thy mercy in death, thy mercy from the beginning, thy mercy to the end, and thy mercy without end, I am even crowned and encom|pa&s;&s;ed with mercy; O let me now &s;ay with holy <HI>David, I will allwaies give thanks unto the Lord, and his prai&s;e &s;hall be ever in my mouth,</HI> P&s;al. 34.1. Let me not onely prai&s;e thee my &s;elf, but (with him all&s;o) invite others to prai&s;e thee, <HI>O prai&s;e the Lord with me</HI> (all ye his Saints) <HI>and let us magnifie his name together,</HI> P&s;al. 34.3. <HI>O ta&s;t and &s;ee how gratious the Lord is, ble&s;&s;ed is that man which putteth his tru&s;t in him. Be glad, O yee righ|teous, and rejoyce in the Lord, and be joyfull all yee that are true of heart,</HI> P&s;al. 32.12.</P>
<P>And now, Lord, having had a ta&s;t of the &s;weetne&s;s of thy Saints happine&s;s on earth, I willingly for&s;ake all to follow them; I have too long been &s;traying in the &s;trange pa&s;tures of im|piety, and am now joyfully de&s;irous to be led home to thy fold, that I may feed in the green and fre&s;h pa&s;tures of thy &s;acred precepts, and drink freely of tho&s;e waters of comfort in thy ble&s;&s;ed promi&s;es, that I may &s;o drinle that I may never thir&s;t, but be fully &s;atisfied with thy grace in this life, with thy glory in that to come; O
<PB N="153" REF="85">let this evill world neither allure me to its va|nities, nor betray me from thy mercies, but as thou ha&s;t overcome the world for me, &s;o (by thy grace a&s;&s;i&s;ting) it may be all&s;o overcome by me: Thou ha&s;t indeed told me, that I &s;hall mourn in it, but my mourning &s;hall be turned into joy, and that my joy &s;hall no man take from me; Lord I believe, help my unbeliefe; I embrace thy cro&s;s, I de&s;pi&s;e the &s;hame, for that glory which is &s;et before me, of which I have a &s;afe a&s;|&s;urance by the ble&s;&s;ed earne&s;t of thy holy Spirit in me: <HI>To thee O Father, Son, and holy Spirit, one eternall, infinite, incomprehen&s;ible, and ever ble&s;&s;ed Goodne&s;s, be all po&s;&s;ible prai&s;e, honour and glory, now and for ever.</HI> Amen.</P>
<DIV3 TYPE="prayer">
<P><HI>O thou great God, who ha&s;t tender bowels of compa&s;&s;ions, and multitudes of mercies for us mi|&s;erable &s;inners, who art not ea&s;y to be provoked, but ever ready to forgive, who &s;uffere&s;t not thy whole di&s;plea&s;ure to ari&s;e again&s;t us, but even in thy very judgements remembre&s;t mercy, and art then moved with the &s;ight of our mi&s;ery, have mercy upon me a great and grievous finner.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord I have &s;inned, I have tran&s;gre&s;&s;ed, I have done fooli&s;hly, in departing from thy judgements: But righteou&s;ne&s;s belongeth unto thee (O Lord) and unto me &s;hame and confu&s;ion of face; O let thy bowels of compa&s;&s;ions remove out thy &s;ight my multitudes of tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, that I may now ap|pear before thee with a joyfull heart, and happy &s;oul.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Let thy words be &s;weeter to me than the hony and the hony comb (than the vain plea&s;ures, and fal&s;e profits of this life) O let my chiefe&s;t joy be in thy &s;ervice, my greate&s;t delight to walk in thy waies,
<PB N="154" REF="86">and all fal&s;e waies (of pollution and unclean|ne&s;s) let me utterly abhorr.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Give me that inward peace, that quietne&s;s of con&s;cience, which the world cannot take from me, that when I am afflicted by it, I may not be con|demned with it.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord let me faithfully believe, and gratiou&s;ly improve the con&s;tancy of thy love, in the worlds great uncon&s;tancy, the richne&s;s of thy mercy in this wretched ages mi&s;ery.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O that my eye might drop without cea&s;ing, that my heart might break forth into complaints, and my &s;oul be melted into &s;orrows, for mine own and others &s;ins, that have occa&s;ioned the&s;e heavy judgements, the&s;e &s;ad complainings of thy peo|ple.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord, as I have been a great and grievous &s;in|ner amongst them, &s;o let me be a con&s;tant and a true mourner for them; as thou ha&s;t beheld us &s;inning, &s;o now all&s;o behold us &s;orrowing, that as our &s;ins have provoked thee to anger, &s;o our tears may move thee to compa&s;&s;ion, that thy mercy may be magnified, our mi&s;eries relieved, our &s;orrows comforted.</HI></P>
<P><HI>O let not the&s;e bitter aggravations of thy judge|ments extort from us the lea&s;t mea&s;ure of im|patience, nor beget in us the lea&s;t degree of di&s;|tru&s;t; let us neither complain of thy ju&s;tice, nor de&s;pair of thy mercy, but quietly and thankfully rely upon thee, and in thy ble&s;&s;ed hour enjoy a &s;weet inlargement by thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lord pity the forlorn condition of thy &s;ons and daughters in affliction, repair their outward lo&s;&s;es by thine inward graces, that what is wanting to them of the&s;e earthly comforts, may be abun|dantly &s;upplied in thy heavenly joyes.</HI></P>
<PB N="155" REF="86">
<P><HI>Forgive the great di&s;turbers of the peace of this thy Sion, Lord open their eyes, that they may &s;ee how much they have erred from thy waies; Lord &s;anctifie their hearts, that they may &s;peedily re|turn unto thee, and be for ever gratiou&s;ly accepted of thee; O that thou wouldst give us one heart, and one voyce, that we might &s;erve thee without cea&s;ing, that we may be all truly humbled before thee, and truly joyfull in thee.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;tore me (for thy rich mercy &s;ake) unto that ble&s;&s;ed union of Love, which is the bond of Peace; that as thou our God art one, &s;o thy di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Church may be one, thy divided people one, their wi&s;hes and de&s;ires, their prayers and tears, their actions and endeavours one, for thy glory, the Churches &s;afety, and the Nations happine&s;s, That we may have peace with thee our God, peace with our enemies, peace with our own &s;ouls, and ever|la&s;ting peace with thee in thy Kingdome.</HI> Amen.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="prayer">
<PB REF="87">
<PB N="157" REF="87">
<HEAD>A comfortable PRAYER to bee u&s;ed at the point of death by the Vi&s;itors of the Sick.</HEAD>
<P>_O Eternall, Almighty, mo&s;t mercifull, and for ever ble&s;&s;ed Lord God of Hea|ven and Earth, wee thy poor, and mo&s;t unworthy creatures, mi&s;erable and di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;in|ners, in all humility of heart, and de|jectedne&s;s of &s;pirit, are here pro&s;trate before thee: Lord, we confe&s;&s;e that we are utterly unworthy to approach thy glorious pre&s;ence; Ble&s;&s;ed God, we are confounded and a&s;hamed to lift up our &s;infull eyes unto thee, who&s;e gracious goodne&s;&s;e we have &s;o much neglected, who&s;e patience and long-&s;uffering &s;o
<PB REF="88">long abu&s;ed, who&s;e anger and indig|nation &s;o ju&s;tly provoked, who&s;e wrath and fury &s;o wretchedly de|&s;erved.</P>
<P>Lord, we are heavy laden with the burden of our &s;innes, and thou alone art able to relieve us, to thee therefore we addre&s;&s;e our &s;infull &s;ouls for mercy and forgivene&s;&s;e: O thou that art the ble&s;&s;ed Shepheard of our erring &s;oules, that came&s;t into the World to &s;eek, and to &s;ave tho&s;e that are lo&s;t, have mercy upon us: O thou that ha&s;t e&s;pou&s;ed us unto thy &s;elf, and ha&s;t given us thy love, have mercy upon us; O thou that calle&s;t us to come unto thee, and embrace&s;t us when we are come, receive our prayers. Lord give us pre|pared hearts to meet thee in this holy duty; Quicken our benummed &s;oules with holy fervencie, that our devotions may a&s;cend unto thy gra|cious pre&s;ence: Lord thou ha&s;t pro|mi&s;ed to be near unto all tho&s;e which call upon thee, with &s;incerity, and faithfulne&s;&s;e of heart; for thy ble&s;&s;ed promi&s;e &s;ake, we mo&s;t humbly be&s;eech thee, let our humiliations be comfort|able, our prayers acceptable.</P>
<PB REF="88">
<P>In full a&s;&s;urance of the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of thy mercy towards us, wee are now bold to become Petitioners unto thee for this thy &s;ick &s;ervant, who&s;e life is drawing near unto the grave: Ble&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">d Lord God, it is thou that kille&s;t, and make&s;t alive, that bringe&s;t down to hell, and rai&s;e&s;t up again, we mo&s;t meekly be&s;eech thee therefore, for thy rich and tender love &s;ake to thine E|lect, to mitigate that bitter cur&s;e which thou ha&s;t layd upon us all in <HI>Adam:</HI> Lord look upon his affliction and his travail, and forgive him all his &s;innes; give him &s;ure patience to endure with meekne&s;s what&s;oever thou art plea&s;ed to inflict upon him; Lord lay no more upon his feeble body, than thou &s;halt make him, able for to bear; impo&s;e no more upon his wounded &s;pirit, than thou in mercy &s;halt &s;upport him under: For&s;ake him not, O Lord our God, be not thou far from him; let him remember that this cha&s;ti&s;ement of thine, is common to thy deare&s;t chil|dren; that thou hide&s;t thy face from him but for a &s;mall moment, but with ever|la&s;ting kindne&s;&s;e thou wilt have mercy on him.</P>
<PB REF="89">
<P>Lord, &s;ettle and compo&s;e his thoughts for thy Kingdom; let no di&s;turbance of this life di&s;tract tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed medi|tations, which invite the weary &s;oul to re&s;t and quietne&s;&s;e; let him now &s;ee, and joyfully beleeve, that thou wilt or|der all the&s;e outward things to thine own glory, and the good of tho&s;e that have relation to him; let him freely forgive all injuries on earth, and heartily de&s;ire to meet his greate&s;t ene|mies in heaven: O let his &s;oul be now tran&s;ported with the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of thy love, and favour towards him. Lord qualifie this bitter potion, which thy holy providence hath alotted to him; let him now remember, that the &s;uf|ferings of this pre&s;ent life, are not wor|thy of that glory which &s;hall be (&s;ud|dainly) revealed in him; and when the outward man is drawing neare&s;t to its di&s;&s;olution, Lord Je&s;us &s;trengthen, and rejoyce the inward man, with comfort and a&s;&s;ured confidence of thy &s;alvation.</P>
<P>To this end (O Lord) we mo&s;t hum|bly be&s;eech thee, to illuminate his un|der&s;tanding, that he may &s;ee the &s;ad|ne&s;&s;e of his own condition in him&s;elf,
<PB REF="89">that <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">he may deny and utterly abhor him&s;elf, that he may di&s;clame all &s;in|full confidence in his own actions, and endeavours, and wholly ca&s;t him&s;elf upon the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of him, in whom alone thy wrath is fully &s;atis|fied. Lord give him a &s;erious and a true remor&s;e of con&s;cience for his many, and his great offences; Lord Je&s;us grant that they may not now appear unto the terror and amazement of his &s;infull &s;oul: O let him now remember that it is thy precious blood which purgeth him from all iniquitie, that thou (O ble&s;&s;ed Saviour) art become unto him righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and holine&s;&s;e, and &s;anctification, and redemption. Lord comfort and a&s;&s;i&s;t him in this la&s;t, and greate&s;t tryall of his faith: And becau&s;e the &s;en&s;ible decay of his infirm body, and the violent di&s;turbance of his &s;ickne&s;&s;e, will not &s;uffer him to call upon thee with dige&s;tedne&s;&s;e of mind, and quietne&s;&s;e of &s;pirit, we therefore humbly pray thee, to &s;u&s;tein and com|fort him, even in his greate&s;t weakne&s;&s;e and extremity. Ble&s;&s;ed God, let the &s;or|rowfull &s;ighing of thy &s;ick pri&s;oner now come before thee: O let thy ble&s;&s;ed Spi|rit,
<PB REF="90">which is in him, put up humble &s;upplications to the Father for him; O &s;atisfie him with thy mercy, and that &s;oon: Let tho&s;e happy &s;ighs and groans, which cannot be expre&s;&s;ed, be|come a plea&s;ing &s;acrifi&s;e of thankful|ne&s;&s;e to thee, and a &s;weet &s;avour of eter|nall re&s;t to his departing &s;oul.</P>
<P>O thou that art the God of power, protect him from the fury of that roar|ing Lion, who is now &s;eeking to devour him: O thou that art the ble&s;&s;ed Saviour of the &s;infull world, compa&s;&s;ionate his frailties, commi&s;erate his infirmi|ties, forgive his iniquities: Lord purge him by thy pretious blood, cloath him with thine own righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, inrich him with thy ble&s;&s;ed merits, and plead them to thy Father for him. O thou holy and for ever ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, who art the pure fountain of eternall love, be pre|&s;ent with him, relieve, and comfort him in all the&s;e bitter pangs of his la&s;t hour, indue him with a willingne&s;&s;e and cheerfulne&s;&s;e to leave this tran&s;i|tory life, and crown him with eternity of joyes in that to come.</P>
<P>And now, O Lord, we come unto thee for our &s;elves, who are here at this time
<PB REF="90">upon our &s;infull knees before thee, Lord open our eyes, that we may &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider of that la&s;t, and &s;olemn hour of our departure: Lord &s;anctifie our hearts, that while we are encompa&s;&s;ed with &s;infull fle&s;h, we may lament our often failings, and infirmities, and every day be more and more de&s;irous to goe home to thee, who art the God of &s;pi|rits. Lord give us grace, that we may walk &s;oberly, and righteou&s;ly, and holi|ly, as becometh thy children; that at the re&s;urrection of the ju&s;t, our &s;oules and bodies may enjoy the ble&s;&s;ed con|&s;ummation of their endle&s;&s;e happine&s;&s;e. Lord hear our prayers, and let our cries come unto thee, for thy name &s;ake, for thy promi&s;e &s;ake, for thy ble&s;&s;ed Sons &s;ake. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="conclusion">
<PB REF="91">
<HEAD>The Conclu&s;ion.</HEAD>
<P><HI>BLe&s;&s;ed Lord God, by who&s;e onely mercy I have fini&s;hed this imperfect Work, as I began it by thy goodne&s;&s;e, &s;o I de&s;ire to end it with thy prai&s;e; Lord accept of it, and graciou&s;ly afford thy ble&s;&s;ing to it: Let not the weakne&s;&s;e and the &s;infulne&s;&s;e of me the In&s;trument, be the Readers di&s;cou|ragement, but give glory and honour to thee the Agent; for of thee, and through thee, and to thee are all things, to thee be prai&s;e for ever.</HI> Amen.</P>
<CLOSER>SOLI DEO GLORIA.</CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="part">
<PB REF="91">
<HEAD>For the comfort and a&s;|&s;i&s;tance of tho&s;e that are ready to depart this life, I have hereunto added the dying Confe&s;&s;ion of Mr. <HI>Anth<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ny Sadler,</HI> Mini&s;ter of Gods Word, at <HI>We&s;t-Thorock</HI> in <HI>E&s;&s;ex,</HI> of which I was an Ear|witne&s;s.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub"><HI>Obiit vice&s;imo die Maii, Anno</HI> 1643.</HEAD>
<P><HI>_THE Lord hath laid a gratious, and a gentle vi&s;itation on me; I doe acknowledge (with a thank|full heart) that this weakne&s;s: of body, this langui&s;hing of nature, the&s;e painfull daies and nights, are from him:</HI> For mi&s;ery cometh not out of the du&s;t, neither doth affliction &s;pring out of the earth, <HI>Job</HI> 5.6. <HI>Ah (my friends) little doe men think how much the great di&s;turbances of &s;ickne&s;s, how much he
<PB REF="92">pains and infirm ties of a dec ying body, di&s;tract tho&s;e ble&s;&s;ed thoughts, tho&s;e &s;weet and happy meditations, which the troubled &s;oul de&s;ires; The &s;pirit is wil|ling, but the fle&s;h is weak; Lord Je&s;us &s;trengthen the inward man, and lay no more upon this &s;infull b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">dy, than thou (in mercy) &s;halt enable it to bear.</HI></P>
<P><HI>I am now verily per&s;waded, that God hath purpo&s;ed to determine my daies, his ble&s;&s;ed will be done, even &s;o Lord Je&s;us come quickly.</HI></P>
<P><HI>He that looketh into his life pa&s;t, that ran&s;aketh his &s;oul, and calleth to minde the &s;infull failings of his youth, will finde it very hard, and difficult, to make his calling and election &s;ure: I have ear|ne&s;tly de&s;ired to leave no corner of my &s;oul un&s;earcht, and I finde my &s;elf to be a very great and wretched &s;inner; I have committed grievous &s;innes, very grievous &s;innes, &s;uch &s;innes as are not fit to be named before God's Saints; I have ex|amined my &s;oul by each particular Com|mandment, and I finde my &s;elf guilty of the breach of all, and that in an high manner, e&s;pecially con&s;idering that weigh|ty Function God's providence hath called me unto: I have not onely &s;inned again&s;t
<PB REF="92">mine own &s;oul, but again&s;t the &s;oules of others too, whom I have corrupted by my ill example, and that very often. And now, when I look upon the gla&s;&s;e of the Law, and there &s;ee mine owne vildne&s;&s;e, I finde Gods ju&s;tice, and mine own de|&s;erts, even ready to &s;urpri&s;e, and ca&s;t me down into the nethermo&s;t hell, and that mo&s;t righteou&s;ly.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But O &s;ee the goodne&s;&s;e of a gratious God! I now come to lay hold upon the promi&s;es, but how? not without repent|ance, not pre&s;umingly; I apply them not in a generall, but particular way; I doe not onely believe that Chri&s;t Je&s;us came i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> to the World to &s;ave &s;inners, but I be|lieve all&s;o that he died for my &s;innes, and ro&s;e again for my ju&s;tification: &mdash; God hath promi&s;ed (and all his promi&s;es are Yea and Amen) that he will not for|&s;ake tho&s;e which tru&s;t in him, nay he hath bound him&s;elf unto it by an oath, by two immutable things which cannot fail, his Truth, and his Holine&s;&s;e,</HI> Heb. 6.18. <HI>and God hath &s;aid, That he which confe&s;&s;eth and for&s;aketh his &s;innes, &s;hall finde mercy,</HI> 1 Joh. 1.9. <HI>I ac|knowledge them &mdash; I confe&s;&s;e them &mdash; I am grieved for them &mdash; I for&s;ake
<PB REF="93">them &mdash; I abhorre them|what &s;hould I doe more&mdash; God requireth not more of me,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">The&s;e pau&s;es were &s;upplied with tears.</NOTE> and yet for all this I cannot find my &s;elf a&s;&s;ured of his favour; me|thinkes this &s;orrow is not &s;o hearty as it ought to be, and yet I know, and &s;ted|fa&s;tly believe, that if God did not work with me, this &s;orrow could not be, and where he worketh, there can be nothing wanting; I know that the mo&s;t righ|teous man alive cannot perform this work &s;o perfectly as he ought, and therefore I believe, that he which is a&s;cended up on high, hath done it for me in that full and ample manner, which is able to ap|pea&s;e his Father's wrath; and I now tru&s;t, that by his perfect obedience this imperfect worke of mine &s;hall find a gra|tious acceptation. This is my hope, and this my beliefe.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Nay I can goe yet a little further, to &s;trengthen my a&s;&s;urance, that my peace is made with God; I every day, and every houre, doe pray unto my Saviour to inter|cede his Father for me; and if I implore him, he will intercede his Father; and if he intercede his Father, he cannot be denied.</HI></P>
<PB REF="93">
<P><HI>O my God, impute my &s;innes to him, transferre his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to me, and then I know I &s;hall appear a glorious &s;oul before thee.</HI> Amen.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="table of contents">
<PB REF="94">
<PB REF="94">
<HEAD>THE CONTENTS.</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM>CHAP. 1. <HI>UPon the &s;infulne&s;&s;e of our thoughts touching the &s;acred Deity, with holy cautions to order our devotions aright.</HI> pag. 2.</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 2. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of God's love, and man's unthankfulne&s;&s;e; A Medita|tion &s;uited to the morning.</HI> pag. 9</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 3. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of Divine Pro|vidence; A Meditation for noon.</HI> pag. 14</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 4. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of the &s;inful|ne&s;&s;e, &s;hortne&s;&s;e, and uncertain<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">y of life;
<PB REF="95">A Meditation &s;uited to the evening.</HI> pag. 17</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 5. <HI>Upon our approaching unto God's Hou&s;e, with nece&s;&s;ary cautions for our behaviour there.</HI> pag. 20</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 6. <HI>Upon our returning from God's Hou&s;e, and the neglect of private duties.</HI> pag. 24</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 7. <HI>Upon the want of due preparation for Re|ceiving of the Lord's Supper.</HI> pag. 27</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 8. <HI>Containing pious Ejaculations at the time of Receiving.</HI> pag. 30</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 9. <HI>Containing a brief Meditation, and pious Thank&s;giving after our Receiving.</HI> pag. 31</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 10. <HI>Upon a Journey undertaken, and the many dangers incident thereunto.</HI> pag. 32</ITEM>
<PB REF="95">
<ITEM>CHAP. 11. <HI>Containing pious Meditations, and zealous Ejaculations after a Journey.</HI> pag. 34</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 12. <HI>Upon the great danger of Security.</HI> pag. 37</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 13. <HI>Upon the great danger of Pro&s;umption.</HI> pag. 41</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 14. <HI>Upon quenching of the motions of God's holy Spirit.</HI> pag. 47</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 15. <HI>Upon the con&s;ideration of God's peculiar Providence to his Children.</HI> pag. 51</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 16. <HI>Upon &s;infull Anger, and the great di&s;|turbance thereof.</HI> pag. 55</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 17. <HI>Upon Man's inordinate love to the Crea|ture.</HI> pag. 58</ITEM>
<PB REF="96">
<ITEM>CHAP. 18. <HI>Upon the &s;in of Uncleane&s;s, with In|couragements to avoid it.</HI> pag. 63</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 19. <HI>Upon immoderate Mirth, and the great Inconveniencies thereof.</HI> pag. 67</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 20. <HI>Upon the great danger of deferring the hour of Repentance.</HI> pag. 75</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 21. <HI>Upon Servile Fear, and the danger thereof.</HI> pag. 79</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 22. <HI>Upon the great neglect of reckoning dai|ly with our Thoughts, and the benefits lo&s;t thereby.</HI> pag. 84</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 23. <HI>Upon Unchri&s;tian-like Dulne&s;&s;e in Affli|ction</HI> pag. 87</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 24. <HI>Upon uncheerfulne&s;&s;e in Chri&s;tianitie,
<PB REF="96">with Incouragements to avoyd it.</HI> pag. 91</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 25. <HI>Upon mans &s;infull frailty in the hour of Temptation, with Motives to make re|&s;i&s;tance.</HI> pag. 94</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 26. <HI>Upon the Infirmitie of the Saints.</HI> pag. 97</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 27. <HI>Upon De&s;ertion.</HI> pag. 101</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 28. <HI>Upon &s;udden danger.</HI> pag. 106</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 29. <HI>Upon the weakne&s;&s;e of Faith, and &s;in|fulne&s;&s;e of Thoughts tending to De|spair.</HI> pag. 107</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 30. <HI>Upon the great Neglect of the duty of Prayer.</HI> pag. 111</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 31. <HI>Upon the great neglect of Reading the &s;acred Scriptures.</HI> pag. 114</ITEM>
<PB REF="97">
<ITEM>CHAP. 32. <HI>Upon the neglect of Divine Meditation.</HI> pag. 117</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 33. <HI>Upon Unchri&s;tian-like Dejectedne&s;s in Poverty.</HI> pag. 119</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 34. <HI>Upon Sickne&s;s, and ungodly repining thereat.</HI> pag. 122</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 35. <HI>Upon the mi&s;ery of Life, and ble&s;&s;ed|ne&s;&s;e of Death.</HI> pag. 126</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 36. <HI>Upon the great neglect of opportunities in doing good to the Saints.</HI> pag. 131</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 37. <HI>Upon the deceitfulne&s;&s;e of the heart in the performance of holy duties.</HI> pag. 135</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 38. <HI>Upon the unruline&s;&s;e of the Tongue, with nece&s;&s;ary cautions to re&s;train it.</HI> pag. 140</ITEM>
<PB REF="97">
<ITEM>CHAP. 39. <HI>Upon holy revenge for &s;in, with motives and incouragements thereunto.</HI> pag. 144</ITEM>
<ITEM>CHAP. 40. <HI>Upon the ble&s;&s;ed condition of the Saints, with motives and encouragements unto Godline&s;&s;e.</HI> pag. 147</ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>A comfortable Prayer to be u&s;ed at the point of Death by the Vi&s;itors of the Sick.</HI> pag. 157</ITEM>
</LIST>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
