you may see The laws of God most holy and most high Whose Will 's the rule of all holiness Of love and mercy and of righteousness These pure commands light to the eyes impart They 'r right and good and do rejoice the heart Receive them in thy mind since they are light And since they 'r good make them thy hearts delight Great peace have they O Lord thy law that love Nothing to them a stumbling-block shall prove Would you read Proverbs much sence in few words The Scripture Proverbs plenteously affords In Scripture rare Epistles you will find Where to his Friends Christ writes his heart and mind And as their case requires so he in love Sometimes commends and sometimes doth reprove Would you read news here 's news both great and true Good tidings of great Joy and ever new That God was manifest in humane flesh Will be for ever wondrous news and fresh He is the same to day and yesterday And is the same for ever and for aye His love 's the same it never waxeth old His blood 's still fresh his vertue grows not cold He 's white and ruddy still his beauty rare Doth never fade no age can it impair His locks are black no grey hairs there are seen His Marriage bed continues ever green All earthly things do languish and decay The fashion of the world doth pass away These things are nothing else but shadows fleeing Which seem to be and have no solid being But Christ is truth and new creatures true Old things are past lo all things here are new These things fade not with time they grow not frail They are eternal and shall never fail New creatures wax not old they never die Newness of life lasts to eternity New are their hearts their spirits minds and sense Their acts are acts of new obedience Their way is new as light it shines alway Still more and more unto the perfect day These creatures new have a new secret name And a new City New Jerusalem A new Heav'n and new Earth which far excell This World for there all righteousness doth dwell New various fruits they gather from the tree Of Life and drink new wine perpetually Eternal draughts of Light Love and Joy While God himself they fully do enjoy Ah Fools who seek for needless Novelties To feed fantastick Curiosities Of precious time so prodigally lost Your brave new nothings will not quit the cost Search for the new things that are great and true And of this labour thou shalt never rue These news thy soul to wondering will raise And yield sweet matter of new Songs of praise Art thou dispos'd to sing apply thine ear In scripture thou a joyful sound shalt hear Of Psalms and Hymns and Songs Spiritual Which make a melody celestial No Poet now can such Composures write For the great Maker did these Songs indite They came from Heaven and by a heavenly strain They lift the soul from Earth to Heaven again There are high Songs made touching the great King Who hath pre-eminence in every thing There are most stately Songs of acts divine Sweet Songs of Love which better are than wine Here mournful Songs and Songs of joy and gladness And here are Songs compos'd of mirth and sadness The Psalm begins sometimes with sighs and tears And sad complaints of dangers and of fears But while the Psalmist sings the grief and fray Evanish and are sweetly sung away These fingers travel much aloft to raise Their hearts and tongues to highest Notes of praise They call for help invite the creatures all In Earth Seas Air the Hosts celestial But all the praise that creatures can afford Is far below the praise due to the Lord. This rent will never fully payed be Through all the Ages of Eternity But they who ever praise are ever blest In restless praise there is eternal rest Unto the word the Lord subjoined hath The Sacraments for to confirm our Faith That as we hear so we may clearly see Christ and his Grace presented to our eye In Baptism behold Christ doth apply His Blood and Spirit us to purifie To purge away our guilt and filthiness To give us holiness and righteousness Be pure and clean and of a holy frame Since thou wast washed in God's holy Name Unto the holy One the holy Three Thou offer'd wast should'st thou not holy be Think never shame holiness to avow Glory to stand to thy Baptismal Vow Abhor the filthy lusts of Swinish Hogs Disdain to cast what 's holy unto Dogs Watch fight against all worldly lusts and evils Resist unclean lying and murthering Devils Be strong in God and in his power of might The War is holy and the Cause is right Put on Gods armour stand stand do not flee Upon the Captain always fix thine eye He is the Captain of Salvation Cleave unto him and thou shalt surely win For he hath given to all thy Foes the foil Come after him and gather up the spoil He will thee feast in midst of all thy fight Cover thy Table in thine Enemies sight A Banquet in the fight expect thou may Since Christ Love's Banner doth o're thee display O! let it not be ever said of thee That from Christ's Colours thou away did flee Christ and his fulness in the union-feast We may both hear and see smell touch and taste By these same ports were Satan Death and Sin Enter'd Christ Life and Righteousness come in Adam did hear take smell touch taste tâ—â— fruit And was transform'd to a vile mortal Brute He is the Living the Life-giving Bread Here is the meat indeed the drink indeed Under the shadow of this true Apple tree Sit down it 's Fruit to thy taste sweet shall be This tree of life this true and noble Vine Yields Grapes which bleed true life a life divine Christ would be broken that he might be bread And that the dead might live he would be dead He would bleed out his life that we might drink Life in his blood remember him and think Still of his Death and in his Temple still Think of his Love and of his latter Will. Thou who art willing Christ himself to take And all his fulness no more scruples make For as the bread thou eat'st and as the wine Thou drink'st belongs to thee so Christ is thine As food the empty body satiates And life and strength recruits and recreates So Christ to souls doth full contentment give He is their strength and life by which they live If he dwell in thee thou shalt filled be With all Gods fullness most abundantly And thou shalt live not thou but rather he Who is a quickning Spirit shall live in thee Faint not when to great works thou hast a call In Christ who strengthens thee thou maist do all Thou wilt him find life giving strenthening food The living Spring of all that 's truly good Prepare thy self for this great holy Feast The King himself observeth every guest He who
Shall torture thee to all eternity Now tell me Soul what thy Objections are Is it Christ's Yoke Rod Cross that doth thee scare His Yoke is easie and his Burthen light His Laws not grievous but the Soul's delight All his Commandments are holy just good And better far than thy appointed food They sweeter than the Honey-Comb shall prove For all his Laws are summed up in love The love of God who is the chiefest good And of our Neighbour our own flesh and blood To the in hatred is on Earth a Hell But it 's a Heaven on Earth in love to dwell Shouldst thou not love the Lord with all thy heart Who goodness is and doth good impart With all thy soul since he 's the God alone Which to the soul gives satisfaction With all the mind for he doth fill the mind And cannot be by finite thoughts confin'd With all thy strength Thy Powers are not able Him to desire as he is desirable Tho all thy soul to th' utmost thou extend It cannot boundless goodness comprehend Love sweetly joins the heart to God alone And other gods before him will have none It will have none on Earth or Heaven above But God for its desire delight and love The Spouse disdains this is love's holy pride By Christ's companions to turn aside To please the Lord love doth the soul dispose And with his will in every thing to close Love worship's God according to his mind And loves to be within his will confin'd Love fears his Jealousie and stands in awe To take ought from or add ought to his Law. It casts all worship forged by man's will And doth the sale of Idol-mongers spill Love God and then his glorious Name to thee As precious Ointment poured out will be Strongly yet sweetly Love will thee restrain From taking his most holy Name in vain Love God so Sabbath-days from morn till night Shall be by thee accounted a delight These Sabbaths of the Lord are holy blest Love's tristing times Feast-days and days of Rest Then the beloved blesseth Saints with grace And glory then they see his lovely face He entertaineth them in holy rest Days in his Courts of all days are the best From love to God neighbourly love doth flow From this sweet root this pleasant plant doth grow Since man was made in Gods similitude Since all men are of the same flesh and blood It 's for God's honour and our own behoof That we our Neighbour as our selves should love The light of Nature cries it's righteous To do as we would men to do to us If thou thy neighbour love thou wilt delight To keep him blameless and to do him right Love turns Superiors to Fathers kind And makes them of a condescending mind Love bounds their wrath moves to commiseration Love tempers rigour pleads for moderation When Justice matcht with Mercy sweetly reign Then all of Justice and of Mercy sing Blest is the land in which the law of love Doth rule in those below and those above Love maketh Equals deal with one another As every one were one another's brother Where Love prevaileth in inferiors It makes them kindly honour higher powers Love envies not superiors higher place But doth in God's Order still acquiesce Love maketh Subjects patient and mild Like to a kindly tender hearted child Who tho injur'd with grief and shamefac'dness Conceals his Father's faults and nakedness Love maketh man abhor man's blood to shed â—ince God hath man in his own Image made To sinful Anger Hatred Envy Spite Malice Revenge Love is most opposite Pure love destroys vile filthy lusts and flies From Fornications and Adulteries â—t purifies the heart and guards the eye And will not wrong a Neighbour's chastity He who is loving seeks his Neighbour's wealth And wrongeth none by Rapine or by stealth Love is most tender of a Neighbour's Name It thinks no evil and will not defame It loveth truth and doth abhor all lies False-witnessing reproaches calumnies Love is contented well with its own lot And what belongs to others covets not It 's opposite to the first inclinations Which tend to ill to sinful delectations Since Love's the end and sum of all the Law It 's pleasant in Love's easie yoak to draw The Law of Love is holy good and just But Oh! the lawless Law of sin and lust Like to a stinking humour spoils the taste Of Lust-sick men that the sweet food distaste To man's stiff Neck which galling lust doth spoil The Yoak seems hard which softer is than Oil. Yea no meer man is able since the Fall To keep these perfect Laws but breaks them all And every sin deserves God's curse and wrath Both in this present life and after death Yet O poor sinner turn not desperate Since with the Father there 's an Advocate Even Jesus Christ the Righteouss who hath Fulfill'd the Law appeas'd revenging wrath He hath the Law establisht answered All that it did demand or threatned Justice hath found a Ransom in the Son Full satisfaction for transgression He under lay the curse that he might free All from the curse who unto him do flee Come unto him who is the Lord's salvation And thou shalt not come into condemnation For all sins of omission and commission Thou shalt receive a full and free remission He will take off thy rags of filthiness And cloath thee with white robes of righteousness Was ever Traitor so perverfly mad To slight a pardon when it might be had To seek for cautioneis poor debters run Wilt thou an able off'red Surety shun Art thou with sins too heavy burden prest Come weary soul and Christ shall give thee rest Art thou for foughten and quite out of breath With the old man that man of sin and death Groan unto him that he may pity thee Say I 'm opprest Lord undertake for me He who cri'd out O wretched man am I Within a little sung of Victory Cry Help Lord sins prevail against me do Purge me subdue them and them quite undo Since without him thou canst do nothing right Be strong in him in the power of his might When thou com'st up out of the wilderness Lean upon him lean on him all thy stress Would thou have peace and comfort come to Jesus He is the peace and he alone can ease us By Faith receive him to dwell in thy heart He will thy conscience purge and ease its smart Take him as off'red in the Gospel-Call With this great gift the Father giveth all Stay wholly on him rest on him alone For to accomplish thy salvation To save thee from all sin and misery And with all goodness thee to satisfie Is not this work of Faith the hearts delight Is not this labour ease this burden light A hungry thirsty man will never think That it 's a grievous work to eat and drink It 's easing to a man with loads opprest To be disburden'd and to find a rest The wind tost traveller is glad to
makes changes strange of things It life from death sweet from bitter brings Peace out of trouble out of darkness light Out of the Eater meet from grief delight What of it self did to destruction tend Grace makes it in salvation to end As for Christ's Cross be not at it offended For it can never be enough commended O! it 's a holy pleasant stately thing To be conform'd to him in suffering Remember oft his oft repeated word The Servant is not greater than his Lord It is enough and very fair that he Who 's a Disciple as his Master be Is thy condition mean canst thou not find Accommodation unto thy mind Hast thou no harboury no house nor hold To shelter thee from storms look and behold The First-begotten to the world brought in In an Out-house and not into the Inn. He unto whom the Angels worship paid Is in a Manger not a Cradle laid Foxes have holes and each fowl hath its nest Christ had not whereupon his head to rest Want'st thou wherewith to buy thy daily bread Some of their substance to him ministred Or art thou from thy Native Soil exil'd Christ driven was to Egypt when a child Art thou reproached Vile iniquities Were cast on him calumnies and lies Vile drunkenness sensual gluttony Collusion with Devils blasphemy Madness deceit and friendliness to vice And all that crafty malice could devise Was charg'd on him whom they proclaim'd abroad An Enemy to Coesar and to God. Do Friends turn Foes or do they faint and flee From thee in straits to Jesus turn thine eye His own Disciples did leave him alone They to their own were scattered and gone He was by Judas traiterously betrayed By Peter thrice most shamefully denied Art thou a Prisoner and hardly used Pursu'd to death and scornfully abused Christ as a Thief was apprehended bound As a mock-King in purple cloath'd and crown'd With pricking Thorns a Reed put in his hand As a mock-Scepter then they do command That he hood-wink't should tell who did him smite To shew at him as Prophet their despite They spit on him and scourge him cruelly And lead him out upon a Cross to die A lingring shameful painful cursed death On which he bore our sins and divine wrath These were the weights that did his soul distress His sweat was blood when bruised in this press The Cross as Christ hath left it we may say Is light Christ took its greatest weight away He wrath the bitterness of death drunk up And left no vengeance in his peoples cup For wrath and death he love and life puts in Which Marab's waters make more sweet than wine Take up his burden it is light and meet And drink his cup it healthful is and sweet To bear about the dying of sweet-Jesus Will not us kill but quicken strengthen ease us They 're highly honoured who suffer shame For Jesus sake and for his glorious Name Reproach for Christ is Riches much more great Than Egypt's Pleasures Treasures Honours State Shame for him honour is and loss is gain In death for him is life and ease in pain When all day long they 're killed for his sake Like sheep for slaughter burned at a stake They Conquerors and more than Conquerors prove Through him who them eternally doth love Turn thine eyes from the dark side of the Cross On which appears dishonour pain and loss And turn upon the lightsome side thine eye Where pleasure gain and glory thou maist see Christ's own Example will us best direct How of the Cross to take a right prospect The Son of man is glorified he said And God in him is also glorified If God in him thus glorified be God shall in him himself straight glorifie He Glory saw in being crucified He saw God by his suffering glorified He saw the heavenly glory to ensue Keep still this Triple Glory in thy view Sigh not then at the Cross as sad and sorry But shout in triumph Glory glory glory Live to God's Glory for his Glory die It is thy Glory God to glorifie If by thy death God glorified be Thou shalt in Glory live eternally They who with Christ do suffer with him reign And bearing palms eternal triumph sing If for the Name of Christ reproach'd thou be The Spirit of God and Glory rests on thee These momentary crosses which are light Work endless Glory of exceeding weight Yet go not from thy way to seek a cross Follow thy calling to God's way keep close That Cross which thy wise Lord for thee thinks meet Is in thy way in the great King 's High-street That thou must take it up or else go wrong Medling in what doth not to thee belong If in thy sufferings thou wouldst have delight See that thy call be clear the cause be right Take up thy Cross in Christ's Name and his strength That of thy race thou maist run all the length Pray to be strengthen'd by his glorious might To suffer with all patience and delight Tho thou wert burned yet if thou hast not Love burning will not profit thee a Jot Unto thy hungry Enemy give food Love those who hate thee vanquish ill with good And pray that those who do impoverish thee With the true riches may enriched be That they who cause thee wander far abroad May from their wand'ring be reclaim'd to God. Those who from Earth pursue thee till thou die Endeavour to draw them to Heaven with thee Our blessed Lord when hanging on the tree Prayed for those who did him crucifie He to his Father for their pardon pray'd And did say for them all that could be said How far was Stephen from leaving of his death On those who ston'd him witness his last breath He kneel'd and cri'd this sin Lord do not lay To their charge Thus in love he slept away O lovely blessed sleep O sure 't will be A heavenly thing in love to live and die Love is the way to Heaven love is the flame In which the soul surmounts the starry frame This is the work and life of Saints above To love and loved be for God is love He 's light and love he freely doth impart Light to the mind and goodness to the heart With his resplendent Glory fill thine eye And in his goodness place thou all thy Joy. Come see and taste Come come and taste and see With goodness fill thy heart with light thine eye The Father Son and Spirit Persons three Who are in Essence one do call on thee To come from dolesome darkness unto light From ill to good from sorrow to delight From death to life from guilt to righteousness From the vile filth of sin to holiness From want to fullness from weights which thee load To rest and ease from Satan unto God From Hell to Heaven from lusts base drudgery To that high service God to glorifie Not that we can unto his Glory add For it is boundless He hath ever had And hath and shall have to