A Form of Prayer in Scripture-Phrase.
O GOD! the God of the Spirits of all Flesh; who hath Created the Heavens, and stretched them out; and the Earth, with the Fruits thereof, and Breath and Spirit to them that walk herein; who art clothed with Honour and Majesty; who coverest thy self with Light, as with a Garment; Look down from Heaven, [...]hy holy Habitation, and have respect unto the Prayers of thy Servants, and let our Prayers [...]ome before thee as Incense, and the lifting up of our hands as the Morning Sacrifice: We [...]onfess, O Lord, thou didst Create our first Parents in thy own Image, and beathedst into [...]hem the Breath of Life, but they have eaten of the forbidden Fruit; all mankind from their Loyns have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God: And yet; O Lord, to fill up the Measure of our Condemnation, we have [...]dded actual Sins; for who can say, he hath made his Heart clean? We have sinned in thought; opur Souls, which should have been seasoned with the sweet Meditations of thy Goodness, Mercy and Grace, have been prostrated, and assailed with black and hollish thoughts of Atheism, and Dispair, Blasphemy and all manner of Soul-vexing fears. O! [Page 2] what a world of Ignorance, Vanity of M [...] and disesteem of thy mercy, and unb [...] have seated themselves in our Hearts: confess, O Lord, we have sinned in our wo [...] o [...]r Tongues, that should have been as Tr [...] pets to sound thy praise, have been de [...] guilty of Blasphemy, Swearing, Lying, S [...] dering, Reviling, Rayling, Brawling, Scos [...] Boasting, Sowing Seeds of Discord amo [...] our Neighbours: The Tongue is a Fir [...] World of Iniquity, and hath defiled whole Bodies, and is set on Fire of Hell: confess, Lord, we have sinned indeed, wit [...] our worldliness, covetousness, pride, lust, [...] lice, lukewarmness, impatiency, vain glory self love. O the wrongs we have done, the Goods we have ill-gotten, and the time have mispent, and O the Sabbath we have p [...] phaned: Oh! the pollutions, the distemp [...] and estrangedness from God in our Sou [...] Oh, the Villanies and the Vanities of [...] whole Life: O Lord, we may as well num [...] the Stars, as our sins: But, dear Father, thou pleased to translate us from darkness light, and from the Power of Satan, into [...] Kingdom of thy dear Son: Let us no lon [...] abuse the good gifts of our God, and turn Grace into wantonntss: And let us not gri [...] the Holy Spirit of God, whereby we are sea [...] unto the day of Redemption. O help a keep us, that we do not wrong the bles [...] Name of God, his Word, Religiopn and P [...] fession of Godliness. We confess, Lord, [Page] have sinned against thy Law, and have [...] all thy Commandments: O Lord! we confess we have sinned against the Gospel, we are ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, tho it be the power of God unto Salvation to every one that believeth. We have not thirsted after Christ, our Souls have not panted after him, as the Hart panteth after the water-brooks; We have not loved the Lord Jesus in Sincerity, nor considered him as the Life of our Souls: We have not counted all things loss and dung, for the knowledg of Christ Jesus our Lord: we take no pains to know him, and the power of his Resurrection, and the Fellowship of his Sufferings: we hide, as it were, our Faces from him, and will not have him to Reign over us: we have not relied upon Christ for Justification, Sanctification and Salvation: O Christ, there is not one of us that stireth up himself to take hold on thee; And yet Lord, thou hast given us space to repent of all our Abominations which we have committed; yet we have not repented; but have made our faces harder than a Rock, and have refused to return: But above all, Oh the insolencies and accesses and tyrannies of our bosom sins, our darling delights which we cannot part withal And for all these sins, thou, O God, hast Punished us less than our Iniquities have deserved: It is of the Lord's Mercy, we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not: If thou shouldst lay Judgment to the line, and righteousness to the plume [...], thou mightest [Page] make thy Jealousy to smoke against us, and the Curses that are written in thy book, th [...] mightest lay upon us, and blot out our Nam [...] from under Heaven: Thou mightest ma [...] thine Arrows Drunk with Blood, and t [...] Sword devour Flesh from the beginning of r [...] venges; and give us our Portion with t [...] wicked that are turned into Hell, and all t [...] Nations that forget God: But thou, O Lor [...] hast said, If we confess our Sins, thou art fait [...] ful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse u [...] from all our unrighteousness. Thou hast pro [...] mised, That he that covereth his sins, shall no [...] prosper; but he that confesseth his sins, an [...] forsaketh them shall have Mercy: Thou ha [...] proclaimed, Return thou back-sliding Israel saith the Lord, and I will not cause mine an [...] ger to fall upon thee, for I am Merciful, saith the Lord; only acknowledg thy Iniquity that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God: Thou hast threatened, I will return to [...] my place till they acknowledg their Offences in their Afflictions, they will seek me early: Thou hast sweetly encouraged us, if any man say, I have sinned, and p [...]rverted that which was right, and it profitted me not, thou wilt deliver his Soul from the Pit, and his Life shall see the Light: And, O Lord, in reference to these thy sayings, promises and proclamations, threats and encouragments, we do embolden our selves to come before thee, to acknowledg our Wickedness and our iniquities: O Lord, we lie down in our shame, and [Page] [...]ur confusion covereth us: We cannot but say, we have sinned against the Lord our God, we [...]nd our Fathers from our youth have not o [...]eyed the voice of the Lord our God: And [...]oh that we could seek the Lord as the Children of Israel and Judah together, going and weep [...]ng, asking the way to Zion, with our Faces thither-ward. This is a time of Mourning, our sins have given us an occasion of sorrow; Oh, that we were on the Mountains, like the Doves of the Vallies, every one of us mourning for our Iniquities: Why, Lord, it is thy own promise, A new Heart will I give you, and a new Spirit will I put within you, and I will take away thy stony Heart out of your Flesh, and I will give you an Heart of Flesh. Oh, let us take to us words, and say to the Lord, take away all iniquity from us, and receive us graciously. O Lord, we have Idolized the Creature, and abused the Creator: we have many a time crucified Christ, and trod underfoot the Blood of the Lamb: O, that Christ would look on us, as he did on Peter, then should we look on Christ, whom we have so often Pierced, and mourn for him, as one that mourneth for his only son, and be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first Born: And good Lord, help us to mourn for our sins, cast us down, and humble us to purpose and then be pleased to lift us up again; surely thou art nigh to them that are of a contrite heart, and who tremble at thy word, and wilt save the humble person; and [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] to this purpose thou hast promised, that th [...] that sow in Tears, shall reap in Joy: He t [...] goeth forth, and weeneth, bearing preci [...] seed, shall doubtless come again rejoyci [...] bringing his sheaves with him; And is it [...] thy own saying, I dwell in the high and h [...] place with him also that is of a contrite a [...] humble Spirit, to revive the Heart of the co [...] trite ones, and to revive the Spirit of t [...] humble: O! for one Dram of this revivi [...] for our poor drooping Souls.
O! that we might have our requests, a [...] that God would grant us the thing that w [...] long for, even that it would please him [...] cover our Iniquities, and cause our sins to b [...] blotted out from before him: Dear Farthe [...] we are sure nothing can hinder Mercy from [...] but our sins: O! pardon our sins for thy nam [...] sake, O! pardon our Iniquity, for it [...] great.
And to this end, Oh! look on Christ th [...] Lamb, that takes away the sins of the Worl [...] It is he that bears our Iniquities; it is he tha [...] by himself purged our sins; it is he bears ou [...] sins on the Tree in his own body; 'tis he tha [...] loved us, and washed us from our sins in hi [...] own Blood; 'tis he that is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world; it was he that was wounded for our Transgressions, that was bruised for our Iniquities, the chastisement of our Peace was upon him, and with his stripes are we healed: Oh! then for his sake, and in [Page 7] his Blood, wash us throughly from our iniquities, and cleanse us from our sins: And to this end, dear Father, remember thy promises, wherein thou hast said, I will cleanse you from all your iniquities whereby you have sinned against me, and whereby ye have Transgressed against me: Thou hast said, I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy Transgressions, for my own names sake, and will not remember thy sins: Thou hast said, I have blotted out as a thick Cloud, thy Transgressions, and as a Cloud thy sins: Thou hast said, I will forgive their Iniquity, and will remember their sins no more: Thou hast said, Come now and let us reason together, tho your sins be as Scarlet, they shall be as white as Snow, tho they be red as Crimson, they shall be as Wooll. And thy Prophets have said, who is a God like unto thee? That pardonest Iniquity, and passeth by the transgressions of thy Heritage, and retaineth not thy Anger for ever, because thou delightest in mercy: We press thee, O Lord, with thy own precious Promises; we have nothing of our own to bring thee but sin: But dear Father, thou hast a Son that thou lookest upon, whom thou hast set forth for our propitiation; would we have a pledg of thy undeserved favour? Why thou hast given thy only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not Perish, but have everlasting Life: Dear Father, thou hast made large Promises, and entered into Covenant with us, that shall never fail on thy part: Dear [Page] [...] [Page 7] [...] [Page 8] Father, thou hast waited long for our retu [...] when we went astray, and wilt thou n [...] much more have mercy upon us now we pr [...] unto thee: When we excused our disobedien [...] and charged our faults on thee, yet then tho [...] settest thy Love upon us, but how much mo [...] now, Oh Lord, when we accuse our selv [...] and Pray for thy Mercy: Good Lord, Mise [...] is the object of Mercy, the greater our distre [...] is, the more glorious will be the Grace of Go [...] in our Deliverance. If thou wilt be mercifu [...] to our sins, then shall thy Glory appear, an [...] our Hearts shall be e [...]amed with thy love then shall we walk in thy fear, and ou [...] Tongues shall sing of thy goodness: Yea, ou [...] Tongues shall sing aloud of thy Righteou [...] ness; and for a [...]rance hereof to our poo [...] Souls, Oh! shew, us the Salvation of Go [...] seal up the assurance of Pardon in our Heart and Consciences, by the gracious Testimony o [...] thy Holy Spirit: Oh! let thy Spirit testify i [...] to us, and perswade us hereof, and confirm i [...] unto us by his Seal, and earnest; it is thy Spirit bears witness with our Spirits, that we ar [...] the Children of God: O! give us the Testimony of a renewed Conscience enlightened b [...] thy Spirit, and directed by thy word, whereb [...] we may come to know what God hat [...] wrought in us: O! give us the Spirit of A [...] doption, whereby we may with confidence an [...] comfort, cry, Abba Father: O! give us Jo [...] in the Holy Ghost, and the Answer of a goo [...] Conscience towards God: O! give us tha [...] [Page 9] [...]ift of God, a soul-saving and justifying [...]aith: O! that we could [...]oul our selves up [...]n the Lord Jesus, and stick fast unto his [...]ercy: We have found a rich treasure of pro [...]ises in thy word, for the pardon of our sins, [...]nly create in us that hand of Faith, that we [...]ay effectually receive what in mercy thou [...]eachest forth unto us: Oh! we are of little [...]aith, encrease it Lord, tho it be as a grain of [...]ustard-seed: Work in us not a dead Faith, [...]ut that which may be rich in good works, [...]ollowing after peace with all men and holy [...]ess, without which none shall see God: Oh! [...]leanse us from our impure Righteousness and [...]nenstruous Rags, and Cloath us with the [...]obes of Christ's Righteousness, that we may [...]e found in him, not having our own Righte [...]usness, which is of the Law, but that which [...] through the Faith of Christ, the Righteous [...]ess which is of God by Faith: Oh! give us true [...]epentance; 'tis thy own word, that unto us [...]ath God raised up his Son Jesus, and sent him [...]o bless us, in turning away every one of us [...]rom our Iniquities: O! that we could draw [...]ertue from Christ: O! that our heads were waters and our Eyes Fountains of Tears, that we might weep day and night for our sins: Oh! that all the night we could make our Beds to swim, that we could water our Couch [...]es with our Tears: Oh! that there were such Hearts in us, that we might Repent and Re [...]over our selves out of the s [...]are of the Devil: Oh! that we could lay our sins to our Hearts, [Page 10] that we could Repent us of all our wicke [...] ness, saying, What have we done? O! that [...] could bemoan our selves, as Ephraim, thou h [...] chastised us, and we were chastised, turn th [...] us, and we shall be turned, thou art the Lo [...] our God: O! that remembring our ways, ar [...] all our doings wherein we have been defile [...] we could loath our selves in our own sigh [...] for our iniquities and for our abominations.
O! give us saving knowledg, give us t [...] spirit of Truth, who will guide us into [...] truth; incline our Ears to wisdom, and o [...] Hearts to understanding, that we may cry a [...] ter knowledg, and lift up our Voice for u [...] derstanding, that we may understand the fe [...] of the Lord, and find the knowledg of o [...] God, that we may be able to cry unto thee, [...] our God we know thee, hast thou not prom [...] ed, saying, I will put my law into their Hear [...] and write it in their inward parts, and I w [...] be their God, and they shall be my Peop [...] O! that thou would'st give us this Knowled [...] that thou would'st fill our Hearts with t [...] knowledg, as the Waters cover the Sea: [...] give us the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelati [...] in the Knowledg of Christ, that the Eyes [...] our Understandings being inlightned, we m [...] know what is the hope of his Calling, a [...] what is the riches of the Glory of his Inher [...] tance in the Saints. Dear FAther, is not th [...] secret with the Righteous? is not the secret the Lord Revealed to them that fear him? [...] give us a love of God, and of Christ, and [Page 11] all things that belong to him: Thou hast said, I will Circumcise their Hearts, and the Hearts of our seed to love the Lord our God with all our Hearts and with all our Souls, that we may live and not die: Oh, set us on fire, burn us, make us new, and Transform us, that nothing besides thee may live in us: O! wound very deeply our Hearts with the Dart of thy Love, and that because of our sins, which are many, are forgiven us, we may love thee not a little, but much: Oh! that we were sick of Love, that our understandings, will and affections were all overcome and amazed, and that our faintings were enflamed towards thee, and even [...]melted into thee: O, sweet Jesu, touch our Souls with thy Spirit, that Vertue may come out of thee, into us, draw us unto thy self; Oh, let the savors of thy Oyntments, whose very Breath is love, be ever in our Nostrils: O give us the Flagons of the New Wine of thy Kingdom, which may lift up our Souls above our selves in our Loves, that we may forget the low and base Loves of this World, and by an Heavenly access may be Transported into an Heavenly Love, and Embrace Jesus Christ, who is the Lord from Heaven, with a love like himself: Oh! let us desire Union with thee, and help us to bring forth fruit unto thee: O, give us the fruit of the Spirit, that may resemble thee, and be pledges to us of thy Union with us: O burn and consume whatsoever would grow one with our Souls besides thee: O, let the fire of thy Spirit so turn our Souls into a Spiritual Fire, that the dross of the Flesh and the World [Page 12] being wholly consumed, we may be Spiritua [...] and so bring forth Fruits only to the Spirit: O sweet Saviour, look upon us in mercy; or [...] look of thine will awaken our loves, and mak [...] us to weep bitterly, that we loved thee so little whom to love sufficiently our best and might [...] est Loves are most insufficient: Prevent ou [...] seeking with thy seeking, be thou present wit [...] us in thy Providence and Power, when tho [...] seemest to be far off us in the tast of thy sweetness and fruition of thy Loves; and then whe [...] we have regained thy Love we will hold mor [...] hardly, and keep more Fastly, and love thee mor [...] vehemently, and provide a Stock of Loves in th [...] Summer against the Winter, if it return any more O help us to love one another as Christ hath loved us, and make Our Love to abound more & more towards all men, especially to them that ar [...] of the houshold of Faith: And good Lord, cause us to love our Enemies, to bless them that curse us, and to pray for them that despightfully use us, and persecute us. O give us a zeal after God and his Truth, good Causes and good men. O let us not rest concented with a lukewarm Profession, being neither cold nor hot, but make Our Souls to break for the Longings they have for thy Judgments at all times. O that we were Fervent in the Spirit, zealous always in every good thing. O that the zeal of thy house might even eat us up; And that Our zeal might provoke Others unto thee. O that thy Word were in Our Hearts like a burning fire; that we were weary with forbearing, and that we could not stay. O give us the Grace of Patience. Thou hast told us, in the world we shall have Tribulation; [Page 13] and thro' much tribulation we must enter into the Kingdom of God. O make us to run with patience the Race that is ses before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our Faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the Cross, despised the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the Throne of God. O help us to consider him that endured such contradictions of sinners against himself, lest we be wearied and Faint in Our Minds. Let us not think it strange concerning the fiery Trial, but rather rejoi [...]e, in as much as we are made par [...]akers of Christs Sufferings, that when his glory shall be revealed, we may be glad also with exceeding joy. O teach us to reckon with our selves, that the sufferings of this present life are not worthy to be compared to that glory which shall be revealed in us. Hast thou not said, that if we be reproached for the Name of Christ, happy are we. O therefore that it may be given to us in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake. O help us to deny our selves, and to take up our Cross daily, and follow our Saviour. Give us perseverance, and to this end make us to build on thy promises. Thou hast said, that the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord; tho he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholdeth him with his right hand. Thou hast said to your Old Age, I am he, and even to hoary hairs, will I carry you, and I will deliver you; for this God is our God for ever, and he will be our Guide even unto death. O give us One Way, and One Heart, that we may Fear thee for ever; And make thou an evetlasting covenant with us, That th [...]n wilt not turn away from us to do us good. O put thy Fear into [Page 14] our hearts, that we may not depart from thee. And dear Lord help us to hold fast the profession of our Faith without wavering; confirm us unto the end, that we may be blameless unto the coming, and day of our Lord Jesus Christ. And dear Father, give us all other Graces, a lively hope that may save us; yea, in those times let us with Abraham, against hope, believe in hope, and give us joy in the Holy Ghost. Thou hast said, Joy is sown for the Righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. O give us a filial Fear, because thou takest pleasure in those that fear thee: For in that day that thou makest up [...]y Jewels, they shall be thine, and thou wilt spare them as a man spareth his own Son that serveth him. O give tis humility, and lowliness of Spirit, casting down imaginations, and every thing, that exalteth it self against the Knowledg of God. O give us meekness of mind, that the Wolf may dwell with the Lamb, and the Leopard may lie down with the Kid, the Calf and young Lion, and the Fatling together, whilst a little Child may lead them. O give us peace of conscience, and the peaco of God, that may guide, guard and garison our whole souls. And for our further assurance, o give an increase and growth to all these Graces, and do thou guide us continually, and satisfie our souls in drought. O make Fat Our Bones, that we may be like a watered Garden, and like a Spring of water, whose waters fail not. O let the Sun of Righteousness arise, with healing under his wings, that we may go forth, and grow up as the Calves of the Stall. O that thopu would'st be pleased to make our path as the path of the just, even as the shining light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. O that thou wouldest [Page 15] be unto us as dew unto Israel, that we might grow as the Lilly, and cast forth our Root as Lebanon, that our branches might spread, and our beauty be as the Olive-tree, and our smell as Lebanon. O Lord, hast not thou said, I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; and I will pour my Spirit upon thy Seed, and my blessing upon thy Off-spring? O put into our hearts their ways who go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appearing before God.
Nor pray we only for Remission, but for cleansing; not only for Pardon, but for purifying and power against sin, and deliverance from sin. Holy God, thou hast promised, That he that is left in Zion, and he that is left in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the Daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof, by the Spirit of Judgment, and by the Spirit of burning. Holy God, thou hast said, thou wilt put thy law in our hearts, and write it in our inward parts. Holy God, it is thy promise, the first promise, and the Foundation of all other promises, that the Seed of the woman should bruise the Serpents head; that Christ should break the Power and Dominion of Satan O that having those Promises, we could live by Faith; that we could rest upon God, and believe that God of his Free Grace in Christ will purge us from the filthy Remainders of sin, and renew us more and more after his Own Image in Righteousness and true holiness. Surely, Lord, tho [...] hast said it, and therefore no Presumption, bu [...] true Obedience, to assure our selves of whatsoever [Page 16] thou hast promised, and entred into bond and covenant Freely to give us: He that believeth on thee, as the Scripture saith, Out of his belly shall flow Rivers of living waters. Christ is a Fountain of Grace, ever flowing and ever Full, and of his fulness we all receive grace for grace. There is no grace but from Christ, nor no communion with Christ but by Faith, O therefore that we could embtace him by Faith for our sanctification, that so we might be filled with the gifts of his grace in our measure. 'Tis Christ that is our Wisdom and Sanctification as well as Righteousness and Redemption. O that our Jesus would justifie our Persons and sanctifie our Natures, and enable us to those duties of holiness that he requires; and that he would make us unto himself a Kingdom of Priests, an holy Nation. O Lord, we have many potent Enemies that daily war against us, the World, the Flesh and the Devil; and Our strength is too weak to vanquish the Allurements of this World, and to repress the Lusts of our rebellious hearts, or to defeat the Polices of Satan, much more to cleanse our own hearts. But, O Lord, thou hast promised, O help us to believe that God, who is rich in mercy, will aid and assist, and bless our Endeavours, yea and do the whole work for us and in us, according to his good pleasure. O grant we may not love the world, nor the things of the world, that our hearts be not over-charged with surfeiting and drunkenness, and the cares of this life, to neglect [...]u [...] immortal souls. O do thou be pleased to rouze us and lift us up from the death of sin unto a life of righteousness. And, good Lord, grant that we may not suffer sin to reign in our [Page 17] mortal bodies, that we should obey it in the lust [...]hereof; Neither suffer us to yeild our Members as [...]nstruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, that being made free from sin, and become the Servants of God, we may have our fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. And, dear Father, grant that we may be sober and vigilant, because our Advetsary the Devil, as a roaring Lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. O make us strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might, that we may be able to stand against all the wilds of Satan. Why, Lord, we wrestle not against flesh and blood only, but against principalities and powers, against thr Rulers of the darkness of this world, and against spiritual wickedness in high places. O therefore strengthen us, that we may stand, having the girdle of truth about our Loins, the Breastplate of Righteousness, and the shield of Faith, wherewith we may be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. We confess and acknowledg, O Lord, to thy glory, that all our strength is in thee, and in the power of thy might. And dear Father, we humbly beg, that thou wilt be pleased to stand and stay by us, by thy blessed Spirit of Grace, the remaining part of our days, that we may live righteously and godly in this present world; so that we may be able to stand when the secrets of all hearts shall be laid open; and may hear that joyful call thy blessed Son shall then pronounce, Come ye blessed, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you. That then we may enter into those Joys that the Living God hath provided for such, as Fear and Love, and delight in him; and for ever enjoy [Page 18] that glory our blessed Saviour speaketh of, that he had with thee before the Foundation of the world. O help us to draw near unto thee in full assurance of Faith, having our consciences sprinkled with clean water, and our souls purged and rinsed in the blood of the Lamb, that we may be as Vessels fitted for the Masters use. O that we could but seriously think of that abundant Love wherewith the Lord Jesus loved us, in that he took upon himself our Nature, and to leave the bosom of his Father for the redeeming of our lost souls; and yet we cannot leave our bosom sins, our darling delights, which have put him to those grievous Pains and Sufferings. O when shall it Once be, that the Love of Christ might constrain us, and bring us into an holy Admiration of liking, and loving, and delighting in him. O that we had but hearts to remember those Passion-crys our dear Saviour uttered on the Cross, saying, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? that so we might forsake our daily sins that made him thus cry out. And dear Father, do thou enable us to clear up our Evidences for another world; for this is transitory and passing away. O let us think often of that great Account we must One Day make before the Just Judg of all the Eaoth. O let it make us weep when our Hourglass is standing by us, to see how [...]ast one sand followeth each other. And who knoweth whether this day may not be the Sun-set of our Lives: But O and alas! who would defer to be upon his [...], that knows not how soon he may be called [...]o judgment? Why should we be such enemies to our own souls, as not to be prepared to welcome Death? The best Counsel, [Page 19] and the surest and safest care we can take, is to be still in a readiness, with our Lamps trim'd, that we may be Furnished with those Graces, and fitted and prepared to enter into those Joys with the Bridegroom at his coming; and seriously to think with our selves, that every day we rise to be the day of our death, and every night we go to our beds, that we are laid down in our Graves. Who can Forget his Grave, that lays himself down in his Bed? And who would not so provide for himself as every night to think he went to his Grave. Our days are but Few; and the night will come e're long that we must die indeed, howsoever we peice and patch up this poor Cottage of the flesh, it will at the last fall into the Lords hand; and as time leaves us, so will Judgment and Eternity certainly find us. It was Davids saying, and oh that it might be our practice every night to wash our Beds, and to water our Couches with our Tears. O let us not slip over one night without repentance, nor go to our beds but beat upon our breasts, and say with the Publican, from our very hearts, Lord, be merciful unto me a sinner. How sweet a rest will that night bring forth whose sleep is prevented with the consideration of sin! O therefore do thou help us, and teach and instruct us to order our Conversation aright, that so we may see the salvation of our God. O do thou keep up in our memories a serious remembrance of those storms that have already gone over our heads, as Wars, Sores, Sicknesses, Plagues and Burnings, as we have seen with our Eyes, and many seasons unseasonable, because we could find no season to repent, and [Page 20] weep, and mourn for our sins, and for that precious time we have so often mispent. Our Springs have rather been our Graves than our Cradles; our Summers have not shoot up but withered our Grass, our Autumns have took away our flocks of sheep, and for our late Harvests, the Heavens themselves have not ceased weeping for us that could never yet find time to weep for our selves. O the miserable miseries that have fallen upon us! were not our houses infected, and our City depopulated, and many Graves made a bed whe [...]ein to lodge a whole Family, O, and alas! what a hideous noise was heard about us! In every Church Bells tolling, in every Ward some dying, in every street men watching, in every place, even every where, wringing of hands, wailing and weeping, groaning and dying: These are the evils that have been; and how should we forget them that have seen them with our eyes? And what better Rule have we to square our Lives by than the remembrance of those evils our Lives have suffered. Let us look back with good Old Jacoh, and see the great reason we have to redeem the time past, and that to come, because our days are evil. It is meer presumption to boast of the time to come: Can any man say he will live till to morrow: Look back, you that trust in the staff of Egypt; there is no man can assure you of one day; as near as 'tis to night some of us may be dead before the evening, and stiff with cold, more fit to lodg in our graves under Earth than in our beds above it. Nay let us assure our selves our Life is of no long continuance. What speak we of to morrow, or this day, when we are not [Page 21] sure of the least part of times division, a very hour; nay less. Watch therefore, saith our Saviour, for ye neither know the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come. What is our Life but a Few hours! and in one of them death must on necessity come; For 'tis appointed for all men once to die, and after that the Judgment. O let us watch then, for the hour is at hand, and we do not know how soon it will seize upon us; this very hour the breath we draw may be our infection, this very hour the bread we eat may be our poyson, this very hour the cup we drink of may be that bitter cup that may never pass from us; this very night may our souls be required of us. But thou, O Lord, give us a gracious visitation, that we may highly prize this moment of time with most serious watchfulness. O let those Considerations of Death and Judgment work effectually on our Hearts and Consciences, that they might make our very hearts to bleed within us, nay to break and fall asunder in our breasts, like drops of water. O with what enflamed attention should we hear and pray! with what insatiable graspings should we lay hold on the Lord Jesus Christ. O that streams of tears might run down our cheeks for this precious time we have lost; a day will come, we know not how soon, that we shall be past it, and cannot recover it, no not so much as one hour, if we could give a thousand, nay ten thousand worlds for it. But O the Losses of Losses! the Loss of our immortal souls, the Spouse of our well-beloved Christ: How many tears did he shed to save it! what groans, crys, prayers and his dearest Hearts Blood did he pour out before God to redeem our [Page 22] [...] [Page 23] [...] [Page 22] poor souls from the Jaws of Satan! O sweet Jesu [...] what a Loss is this! call to mind this, O my soul, and tremble; sleep not in sin, lest the sleep of death surprize thee; the hour is certain in nothing but uncertainties; For sure thou must die, yet thou knowest not on what day, nor in what place, nor how thou shalt be disposed when death must be entertained. O Lord, how many thousand Bills of Mortality have passed over our heads, and we little or nothing regard them; who knows but some of us may fill up the next weeks account, and be forc'd to render up our accounts before the Just Judg of all the Earth, of all our deeds done in the flesh, whether they be good or evil. He that once thought to begin to take his ease, was fain that very night, whether he would or no, to make his end: would you have thought this? He but now flourished like a green bay tree, his thoughts full of mirth, his soul of ease; but I passed by, and lo he was goue. Gone! whither? his body to the grave, his soul to hell; whose turn may be next, God only knows, who knoweth all. But whosoever we be that go on in a course of sin, in the name of God let us seriously bethink our selves of Mortality; how many have we heard of that went well to bed over night, for ought any man could tell, and yet have been found dead the next mo [...]ning. O help us to repent of all our sins by crying, and sighing, and sorrowing for sin; It may be this night, and that is not long to come, but we may sleep our last in this world. O keep us that we go not to bed with a conscience laden with sin. O how should we take any rest or sleep with the brother of death, when we lie down in [Page 23] danger of eternal death. O there is no more but a breath, one breath and no more; no more but a step, one step and no more. Oh were not this lamentable, that some One of us, who are standing or sitting here, should this night sleep his last, and to morrow have his body carried to his Grave; yea, and before to morrow morning, which the good Lord in mercy forbid, have his soul cast from a bed of Feathers into a bed of Fire. And yet alas! alas? if any of us should die this night in our sins, or in an unregenerated state, thus will it be with whomsoever we be. To morrow may our bodies be cold under earth, and our souls frying in the flames of hell. 'Tis good for us all to expect death every day; and by this means death foreseen cannot possibly be sudden; No, 'tis he dies suddenly that dies unpreparedly: Watch therefore, saith our Saviour; be ever in a readiness, and as we tender the everlasting wellfare of our poor souls, let us learn that Lesson of our blessed Saviour, not to lay up for our selves treasures on earth, where Moth and Rust doth corrupt, and where Thieves break through and steal; but lay up for our selves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where Thieves do not break thro' and steal; it is those treasures, those stocks of grace that will last us for ever, which is a circumspect walking, that Fervency of spirit, that Zeal of good works, that purity of conscience St. John speaketh of, which is the property of every true hearted profe [...]sor; It is the work, the life, the power of that prayer, that the rest of our life hereafter may be pure and holy. O that we could lay up such heavenly provision against the day of caamity; [Page 24] if while it is called to day we could make our peace with our peace with our heavenly Father, by an humble exercise of repentance. If in this time of grace we could purchase Gods Favour, and those rarest Jewels of Faith and a good conscience; if now before we come to appear at that dreadful Tribunal, that we could be so happy as to make God and Christ our Friends in the Court of Heaven, O how wellcom and how blessed then would our death be unto us, come it never so suddenly, still should death find us ready, and if ready, no matter how suddenly, yea tho it were this night. Oh help us seriously to consider what Jesus Christ did and suffered for us and for our sins: O how was he sorrowful even unto death, with exceeding sorrow, which made him pray, that the cup might pass from him; yet with submission to his Fathers will; and all to save our poor lost and undone souls: O the riches and love, and the free grace of Jesus Christ to us: Oh the earnestness of his prayers, and the agony he was in; not drops of water only, but his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. O how was he buffeted, spit on, reviled, mocked and scourged sor our sins: Oh how was the chastisement of our sins laid upon him, and by his stripes are we healed. And dear Father, do thou be graciously pleased to keep up in us an humble remembrance of this abundant love wherewith the Lord Jesus Christ hath bound us: he was crowned with Thorns for our sins, that we through his merits might be crown'd with glory in the Kingdom of Heaven. O unspeakable love! how were his tender hands and feet nailed to the Cross! his [Page 25] holy unspotted breast peirced with a spear, and his dearest hearts blood let forth, and all to save our poor souls from the pit of eternal destruction. O let us consider the great necessity we are in, in not looking unto this Jesus: we have need of Christ; we have need that he pray in us, and need that he pray for us unto our heavenly Father: we have need that he work in us, and need that he work for us of his plessed will and pleasure. We have need that he present us and ours blameless before his Fathers presence in life and death, and at the Judgment day. O Lord, there is not a moment in our lives wherein we stand not in continual need of Jesus Christ. O then let our necessities drive us to Christ, and mind us of Christ. And as it hath been our great misery in departing from God, dear Father, we beseech thee to cause us now to lay out all our strength by the blessed assistance of thy holy spirit of grace to the uttermost of our power, to gain a reconciliation with God, & to close with him on his own terms propounded to us in the Gospel. And dear Father, be pleased to raise up in us a love and a delight in the keeping holy thy Sabbaths here on earth, that so we may be fitted and prepared to keep an ever lasting Sabbath with thee in Heaven. Dear Lord, pardon, cleanse, purge, O purifie and make new our inward man by thine Almighty power; subdue our corruptions and renew our Natures, and bring us near unto thy self by the gracious workings of thy blessed spirit. O forget not thy loving kindnesses of old, but reach, O reach our souls by the blessed spirit of thy grace; O let us feel the power of thy spiritual and Gospel meltings upon our [Page 24] [...] [Page 25] [...] [Page 26] souls; O cause us to feel the warming and the reviving blood of the everlasting covenant working effectually upon our poor dead hearts and consciences. And dear Father, do thou be pleased to rescue us from our selves; deliver us, we humbly pray th [...], from a vain trisling spirit in the things of Eternity. O make us captives of thy love, and then shall we follow hard and close after thee, the Captain of our salvation. The Lord in much mercy waits on us continually to be gracious unto us; and shall not we wait on him to be made glorious for ever. Dear Father, we humbly pray thee to be pleased to soften our rebellious hard hearts by the gracious meltings of thy holy spirit, that so we may be fitted to receive thy truths, and bring forth the fruits of them in a most holy and a most heavenly conversation. O for Christ Jesus sake, make bare thy own arm, and deliver our poor distressed souls from that bottomless pit of eternal destruction. O strengthen our Memories, increase our faith, kindle our zeal, renew our Natures, and make us such as thou wouldst have us to be, best at heart, and best at last for Christ's sake. O rectifie our wills, enlighten our understandings, and subdue every lust within us, and cause us to run the ways of thy commandments. Dear Father, we beseech thee, we humbly beseech thee to make us more serious, and more sincere [...]n the things of Eternity, that we may not trifle [...]n those things of so high a nature, wherein our [...]oor immortal souls are so nearly concerned. Good Lord, in much mercy be graciously pleased [...]o carry on thy own work in us and for us, to he honour and glory of thy name, and for the [Page 27] eternal welfare of our poor distressed souls. O for Christ Jesus sake, open blind eyes, soften our hard hearts, unstop our deaf ears, subdue our rebellious wills, and renew our corrupt natures, and bring us into a conformity, and an humble subjection unto thy blessed self. O when shall it once be, that we may with our blessed Lord and Saviour count it our Meat and our Drink to do thy will, O God. O for Christs sake cast an eye of pity and compassion upon ns; shew us the favour of thy chosen, make us glad with thy inheritance and visit us with thy salvation. Good Lord, we beseech thee to enable us to lay fast and sure hold on him on whom thou hast been graciously pleased to lay help. And dear Father we humbly pray thee to be pleased to raise us up from the death of sin to a life of righteousness. And we humbly beseech thee to let us feel the power of Christ's Death killing sin in our mortal bodies, that we may no longer obey it in the lust thereof. Dear Father we beseech thee to be graciously pleased in mercy to blot out all our sins by the precious blood of thy dearly beloved Son, that so our names may not be blotted out of the book of life, and we for ever thrust out from thy presence, & out of the holy City of our God. And for Christ Jesus sake make us faithful to the death, and then give unto us a Crown of Life. And dear Father, do thou be pleased to rouze up our drowsie, dull consciences, and help us, we beseech thee, seriously to look into our inward man, knowing that it is high time to awake out of sleep: the time is far spent, the day is at hand, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour [Page 28] of light; le [...] us walk honestly as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fullfil the lust thereof. O Lord our God, thou hast promised to keep him in perfect peace. whose mind is staid on thee. O help us, we beseech thee, help us to trust in thee, and sincerely to wait on thee, that so we may be brought into the possession of this peace that lasts for ever. O help us seriously to look up unto thee, for thou art the Lord our God, and there is none else, so shall we be saved with an everlasting salvat [...] on. And dear Father, we humbly intreat thee to make us to be zealously affected for the honour of thy great name: and then seal unto us thy everlasting covenant of life and peace. Then shall we greatly rejoice in the Lord, and our souls shall be joyful in our God; for he will cloath us with the garments of salvation, and will cover us with his robes of righteousness; then shall we be drawn with his loving kindness and mercy, and loved by our dear Lord with an everlasting love. And we humbly intreat thee to prepare us for that great day of our Lord Jesus Christ, when he shall come to shake terribly the Earth. O blessed and happy a [...]e they who put their whole ttust and confidence in him; and sincerely hope in his mercy. O Lord, we are upon the very brink of an endless eternity, and it will not be long e're we shall be in another world, as certainly as we are now in this. O help us now, help us, dear Lord, that whatsoever our hands find to do, to do it with all our might; for there is no wisdom, nor knowledge, nor work [Page 29] nor device in the grave, whither we are all a going. Dear Lord, we humbly beg thy pardon; we have none to fly unto but unto thee; thou hast the words of Eternal Life: O! for Christ Jesus sake forgive all our Transgressions, and in Mercy heal all our Back-slidings; and dear Father, as ever thou intendest mercy unto our poor souls, work a thorough change upon our hearts & consciences, and save us by believing. O for ever blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a lively hope, by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved in Heaven for us, who are kept by the power of God thro' faith unto salvation. O make us more heavenly and more holy, that we may be blessed in the first resurrection, that the second death may have no power over us, that we may live and reign with our God, and our dear Redeemer for ever and ever, Amen.
Psalm 4
Psalm 18.
Psal. 23.
Psalm 27.
first part.
The second part.
Psalm 42.
Psal. 56.
Psalm 59.
Psalm 63.
Psalm 70.
Psalm 71.
The Second Part.
Psalm 86.
First Part.
The second part.
Psalm 95.
Psalm 100.
Psalm 116.
Psalm 119. v. 105.
Psalm 147.
Isaiah 35. 10.
Hymn 1.
Hymn 2.
Hymn 3.
Hymn 10.
On Isaiah 12.
Hymn 11.
Hymn 12.
Hymn 13.
Hymn 14.
Grace before Meat.
GRacious Lord God, Thou art the Fountain of Grace and Goodness, that's ever flowing, and ever full; thou providest for us in this Life, and for a better: Thou hast spread our Table before us at this Time: We humbly Pray thee let it not become a Snare unto us, but let us eat and drink as in thy Presence, and let those Mercies we are now about to receive from thee, engage our Hearts to love thee more, and serve thee better: And this we beg for Christ Jesus Sake. Amen.
After Meat.
GRacious Lord God, it is of thy great Mercy we are not consumed, because thy Compassions fail not: Thou hast fed our Bodies with thy Good Creatures at this time; we humbly pray Thee do thou take Care for the feeding of our poor [Page 78] Souls, and let us take heed now we have Eaten, and are full, lest we forget thee our God; continue thy Favours to us, make us glad with thy Inheritance, and visit us with thy Salvation, and all for the Sake of dear our Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.