When thou shouldest speak with a Divine Tongue and with an Heavenly Wisdom thou mayest have good cause to cry out Who hath believed our report and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed Isai 5. John 12. In short as the Rivers of fresh Water that run continually into the Sea derive not from thence their natural bitterness thus thy good and Holy Life thy Learned and excellent Sermons will not be able to remove the corruptions of this present evil Age nor stop the Torrent and hinder the overflowings of Vice for thy labor and industry if compared with the corruption of the World are as unconsiderable as a few drops of water in comparison of the Ocean This cursed Earth may be watered with thy Sweat and Tears it will nevertheless bring forth nothing but Bryars and Thistles the Weeds which thou thinkest to pluck up will tear thy Skin and draw bloud out of thy Hands In short he that plants is nothing nor he that watereth but it is God who giveth the increase 1 Cor. 3. It is justly to be feared that in staying any longer time in this corrupt and unwholsome Air thou mayest receive some evil impressions from the general contagion It is to be feared that thou mayest sully thy pure Hands by handling so many Wounds and Sores and that the Thorns of this cursed Earth may pluck off the Wooll of thine harmless and innocent life But when thou shouldest have a thousand times more Gifts and Graces and that thy labors should bring far greater advantages and profit to Christ's Church it belongs not to thee to give Laws unto thy God but to follow the motion of his Will Leave to him the chief care of his own Houshold and rest upon his Eternal Providence He hath more right in the Church than thou canst pretend to for he hath created it by his Power and redeem'd it by his precious Bloud He that cares not for his own especially for those of his Family hath denied the Faith and is worse than an Infidel and can God who is Faithfulness it self and the very Being of Truth God who cannot deny himself and whose Gifts and Calling are without Repentance Rom. 12. Can such a God cast off all care of his Church of that Church which he embraceth with an Eternal Love and cherisheth as the apple of his Eye Jer. 31. This Father of Mercies who hath not spared his own Son but hath delivered him to dye for his Church how should not he with him freely give her all things Rom. 8. He understands better than thou and all the men of the World what is proper and advantageous for this Holy Congregation and for every member that composes it He knows how to provide for all its wants for his Wisdom is infinite and his Providence is most wonderful When this great God hath a designe to plague his Enemies and to declare his justice he hath always fit Agents ready and his Quiver full of Arrows As soon as he commands the Holy Angels that wait before him to cast their Sicles into the Earth and to reap or pour down the Viols of his wrath these Holy Spirits fly with an unspeakable swiftness to perform his Sacred Pleasure Revel 14 16. Likewise when he intends to do good to his Chosen he finds in every place the Heralds of his Mercy and his Divine hand is always full of Blessings As the Main Ocean of his wonderful Riches can never become dry Likewise the Channels by which he conveys them to us shall never fail The cause of thy complaints should serve to appease thy Grief nourish thy Faith and increase thy Hopes for if thou art graced with extraordinary Gifts this proceeds neither from thy Nature nor thine Industry but God's Favour and Bounty Now thou mayest be assured that his hand is not shortened his great Power is not lessened the Well-spring of all his Blessings and Wonders is not stopt nor dryed up Is 49. He that sends a desired whiteness the prognostick of an approaching harvest to the spacious Fields John 4. He sends also into his Spiritual Harvest Laborers when he sees it convenient In this latter Age and in this decay of the World as well as in the first appearance of his Church Luk 10. he finds Men to work in his Vineyard or rather he forms and fashions them with the hand of his Grace and enables them by his Holy Spirit for he gives the Mouth and the Tongue he makes deaf dumb blind and restores the eye-sight he calls things that are not as if they were Matth. 20. Exod. 4. Rom. 4. When he designes for himself a Tabernacle he calls by name a Bezaleel and fills him with his Spirit of Wisdom of Understanding and knowledge in all manner of Workmanship Exod. 31. When he resolves to deliver the Children of Israel from their Babylonish Captivity and to build the Temple of Jerusalem he hath at his Command Cyrus Darius and Artaxerxes Acts 14. He stirs up Zerobabels Esdras and Nehemiahs Likewise when he intends to repair the breaches of his House and to increase the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour he makes Servants and fit Agents and bestows upon them sufficient Graces for such a noble Work Psal 8. Mat. 21. As he hath never left himself without witness in doing good thus he hath never been without witnesses to declare his Sacred Truth Luk 19. By the mouth of Babes he perfects his praise and as our Saviour told the Jews If these held their peace the stones would cry out Luk 19. God will rather pluck the Pillars of the Idols Temples to prop up his Church rather than to suffer it to fall down he will change the Wolves into Lambs and the Lambs into Shepheards rather than that his Sheep should want their necessary Pasture He chooseth the feeble things of this World to confound the strong the despicable and such as are not to destroy such as are 1 Cor. 9. Thus God never leaves his Church without some testimony of his favour some powerful instrument of his Grace but many times it happens that when he removes one good thing from us he bestows upon us something more rare and excellent This consideration glads the Heart of Joseph upon his Death-bed as appears by what he said to his Brethren I am going to dye but God will not fail to visit you and cause you to go up from hence into the Land that he swore unto Abraham Isaac and Jacob Gen. 50. For instead of a Joseph who had occasioned their Bondage God raised up a Moses who deliver'd them with a mighty hand and a stretched-out Arm 2 Kings 2. Thus God took up Elijah with a Chariot of Fire but he gave unto Elisha a double portion of his Masters Spirit and caused his Glorious Miracles to appear with greater admiration Likewise our Lord and Saviour when he had finished the great work of our Redemption he ascended up into Heaven A Cloud conveying him
in the 31 Psalm I trusted in thee O Lord I said Thou art my God my times are in thy hand He is of the same judgement in the 39 Psalm Behold thou hast assured me my days as an band breadth and in the 68 Psalm Vnto God the Lord belong the issues of Death Moses teacheth us the same Lesson in his Divine Hymn Psal 90. for when he hath represented how that it is God who reduceth Man to Ashes and maketh him return to his first substance he tels us speaking unto God Thou turnest man to destruction and sayst return ye Children of Men. King Hezekiah's comparison is very notable he compares the Life of Man to a Thread that God hath twisted and that he cuts off at his pleasure Isai 38. Mine Age is departed and removed from me as a Shepherds Tent I have cut off like a Weaver my life he will cut me off with pining Sickness from day even to night wilt thou make an end of me Hannah Samuels Mother removes all difficulty and confirms this Truth sufficiently 2 Sam. 2. It is God saith she who killeth and maketh alive he bringeth down to the Grave and bringeth up There is nothing more significant to the same purpose than our Lord and Saviours words I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive for evermore Amen and have the Keys of Hell and of Death Apoc. This great God and Saviour closeth the Gates of the Grave when he pleaseth and 't is not possible to open them against his will In short Whether we live we live to the Lord whether we die we die to the Lord whether therefore we live or die we are the Lords Rom. 14. And our Reason being enlightned with a Divine Revelation teacheth us this good and profitable Lesson for if God hath a hand in our Conception and Birth and if he appoints the time of our entrance into the world wherefore should not he also have an hand in our Death mark out the time of our last departure David speaks thus to God in the 139 Psalm My substance was not bid from thee when I was made in secret and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the Earth Thine eyes did see my substance yet being imperfect and in thy Book all my Members were written which in continuance were fashioned when as yet there is none of them we may therefore for the same reason say to God My substance will not be hid from thee when this miserable Body shall fall to pieces as rotten Wood and as a Moth-eaten Garment thine Eyes shall see me when Death shall cut off the Thred of my Life and separate what thou hast joyned together so wonderfully thy Power and Wisdom shall have an hand in my last hours and nothing shall happen to me but that which thou hast afore ordained in thine unsearchable Decrees If God appoints the time of our Resurrection and if it be certain that without his express Commission the Holy Spirit will not breathe upon our dead bones to cause them to revive is it probable that the breath should depart out of our Nostrils and our Bodies should fall into the Bed of corruption without the Orders of this great and living God Ezek. 37. He hath appointed to the Sun its course and to the Stars that shine in the Heavens their several motions and stations Isai 40 and should not he also appoint to his Children their motions seeing that they are to shine for ever in the Heaven of Heavens where justice dwels as so many immortal Stars He hath measured the Waters in his hand he hath compassed the Heavens with his Span he hath weighed the Mountains in Scales and the Hills with a Ballance he hath fashioned the Earth with a Hive and given bounds to the roaring Sea and is it possible that he hath not not measured the time of our Life and that he hath marked out with his finger the last moment He who hath numbred the Kingdoms of Heathen Princes hath he not also numbred the days in the which he intends to reign in our hearts by his Holy Spirit hath he not appointed the time for us to ascend up into the highest Heavens where we are to reign with him in the Kingdom of his Glory If it be certain that God hath unmbred the Hairs of our Head Matth. 10. it is not to be doubted but that he hath also numbred the days of our Life And if a Sparrow doth not fall to the ground without his order how can it be that a Soul should take its flight up to Heaven without his express Commission He bottles up our Tears he keeps a Record of all our afflictions and takes an account of our Sorrows Psal 50. and can we imagine that he doth not keep an account of the life and death of Men and that he minds not the time that we are to spend in this vally of Tears He takes notice of our uprising and of our down-sitting he compasseth thee round about whither thou dost stop or go Psal 59. and can it be conceiv'd but that he observes thy rising at thy birth the several passages of thy Life and thy going down at thy Death In short if God hath appointed in his eternal Council the continuance of the great World he hath also without doubt limited the Life of Man the little World and the Image and Compendium of the Great As our Lord and Saviour teacheth us Man is not able by his solicitous care to add one Cubit to his stature and our experience sufficiently demonstrates that we cannot add a year a day nor a moment by all our labor and industry to the continuance of our Life If Life and Death were not in Gods hand there would be nothing setled nor constant neither in the Kingdoms of the World nor in the Church of Christ The Prophets would be often found in grievous errors and the eternal Election would be totally abolish'd for the most weighty affairs of a Commonwealth depend upon the Life of Princes The death of one Man is able to turn an Empire upside down and to change the state of a Kingdom If Alexander the Great had been stifled in his Cradle what would become of the Prophesie of Paniâ— who declares the glorious victories that this Prince should obtain against King Darius the Persian Monarch under the Embleme of an Hâ—-Goat that should run at a Ram with all his might that should break his two horns and trample him under his feet And if King Cyrus had died before the obtaining of the Kingdom of 〈◊〉 how should Isaiah's Prophesie be accomplish'd for he paints out this young Conqueror in his most lively Colours and calls him by his name in this expression I have said of Cyrus He is my Shâ—pheard and shall perform all my pleasure even saying to Jerusalem Thou shalt be built and to the Temple Thy Temple shall be laid Isai 44. If the Devil could have taken away St. Pauls Life
an affliction I am unworthy of all thy favors seeing thou dost take from me such a precious jewel which was shewn to me as a Lightning I am afraid to have been wanting in my Duty and that this death that kills me is the effect of my stupidity and blindess Methinks I could have hinder'd this doleful accident for if I had behav'd my self otherwise than I have done my Life and Soul should not be now in its Grave O God of all comfort pardon my excessive grief pacify my sighs stop the currant of my Tears remove all these vain displeasures that consume me deliver my Soul from this unmerciful grief and torment that it suffers and from these troubles that are more than humane Instead of looking to these inferior Causes and to the circumstances of the death of this person that I did love as mine own Soul give me grace to remember that the least things as well as the greatest are govern'd and rul'd by thy wise Providence and that the good and the evil proceed from thy Divine appointment Give me Grace to consider that thou dost hold in thine Almighty hand the Keys of Life and Death and that thou alone dost cast us into the Grave and lift us up from thence again Thou O Soveraign Monarch of the Vniversal World who dost not only let death loose but dost also appoint all the means to talke us out of the World make me truly submissive unto thy Sacred Pleasure and to put the Finger upon my Lips because it is thy doing If I open them let it be to adore thy Justice and sing forth thy Praises the person for whom I lament so much was nearly related to me like another my self but it was also thy Creature thy Child and a Member of our Saviours mystical Body We for our parts believe to have the right of disposing of our Workmanship and of that which we have bought with our Money and hast not thou O God the liberty to dispose of that which thou hast created after thy likeness bought not with corruptible things as with Gold and Silver but by the precious Blood of the Lamb without spot or blemish Thou hadst a Son who is the brightness of thy Glory and the express image of thy person whom thou hast not spared for me and shall I Lord refuse thee my Heart and my Bowels Thy only begotten Son came down upon Earth to suffer the most cruel and ignominious Death of the Cross but thou hast taken up into Heaven the person whom my soul did love to crown it with a glorious and ever happy Immortality Shall his or her Felicity be the cause of my Misery and that his or her Rest occasion my displeasure It is the property of true love to prefer the happiness of the beloved Persons to our own satisfactions Therefore our Saviour told his Apostles If you did love me you would rejoyce because I go to my Father for my Father is greater than I. Between thee O great and living God and us miserable Worms of the Earth there is a vast difference as there is between the innocent and harmless delights of this world and the unspeakale pleasures of thy presence for these are but as drops of Water that are dried up with the least wind whereas the satisfactions of Heaven are like a bottomless Sea of Delights in which we shall swim for ever Do I therefore weep for him or for her whose tears thou hast wip'd away Do I wear a mourning Apparel and a black Scarf for him who is now cover'd with a Glorious Attire of Joy and Gladness and who is adorned with an Habit as white as Snow Do I delight my self in darkness and doth he solace himself at the Fountain of Light and Glory Do I seek a solitary and melancholly Retreat and doth he rejoyce amongst the thousands of Angels and the Glorious company of the immortal Spirits I sigh and groan and he sings a new song the Song of the Blessed which is always in his mouth All my complaints and groanings cannot bring him back upon Earth but when that were possible it is not just to attempt it my kindness would be cruel and my love most inhumane How could I resolve to make him leave the Haven of Eternal Felicity to expose him again to the furious Waves and storms of this troublesom Sea of the World How can I have the heart to pull him down from his Triumphing Chariot and from the magnificent Throne unto which thou hast raised him to engage him in new and fresh encounters and to bind him again with a chain of misery how could I pluck off from him the Habits of Light and Glory to cloath him with darkness and cover him with our infirmities Is it possible that I should be so inhumane to draw him out of Rivers of pleasures to cast him again into a Sea of Gaul and Bitterness to take from him the Bread of thine Heavenly Kingdom and the Fruits of the Tree of Life to give him the Bread of affliction and the Apples of Sorrow and grief Can I be so cruel to pluck him from thy bosom from the Breasts of thy most tender favours and from that fulness of Joy which he hath in the sight of thy Countenance to make him languish in our embraces swallow the poison of this miserable Life and groan under the burden of our mortal afflictions In short can I be so senseless as to remove him out of that Eternal Life to cause him to become again the sport of Death He is pass'd from Death to Life is it my desire that he should return back from Life into the merciless hands of Death we shall go to him but he cannot come to us seeing that this life is so short that it is spent and gone as a thought we shall see one another shortly in the light of the Living O Lord how wonderful art thou in thy Works how Magnificent in the means that thou employest and how various is thy Wisdom in all things I see that what thou hast done is not only for thy Glory and for the advantage of this happy Creature a that thou hast received into thy Rest but it is also for my happiness and the instruction of my neighbors for in taking from me my most dearly Beloved my Joy my Pleasure and my Hopes thou hast put my Obedience and faith to a Tryal As thou didst heretofore try the Father of the faithful in requiring from him his only Son Isaac in whom thou hadst promised to bless all the Nations of the World I confess good Lord to the praise of thy Grace and Goodness that my tryal is loss than his for thou didst command Abraham to sacrifice his Son with his own hands to spill his Blood in thy presence and to reduce his Body into Ashes but thou requirest of me no other Sacrifice but that of my Obedience and of my Submission to thy Holy Will Thou wilt have me say with
painful Fetters Rejoyce O my Soul look up to that Rest that God prepares for thee above The blessed time is come that I shall no longer endure the heat of the day and the watchings of the Night but I shall rest eternally under the shadowes of the Tree of Life and there satisfy my self with its delicious Fruits I shall no longer withstand the contradiction of Sinners nor hear the mocks of the sensual and factious minds I shall no longer encounter with the enemies of thy Sacred Truth nor endure the stings of my Lusts but I shall live for ever in the blessed company of the Holy Angels and rejoyce with the Glorified Saints I shall preach no more against the obstinacy of Men. nor weep for the sins that disgrace thy Church and Profession nor complain of the injustice and affronts done to my Person nor grieve for my own imperfections but I shall sing for ever thy Divine Praises with the Seraphins and the Congregation of the first-born whose Names are recorded in Heaven O Lord who hast an infinite Power in thy Hands and bottomless Treasuries of Mercy be pleased to drive away from thy Flock all ravenous Wolves and mercenary Souls and raise up to this thy Church ☞ a Faithful Sober Wise and a Learned Clergy bring in our dissenting Brethren reconcile the differences that are amongst us and give to us all a friendly compliance that we may no longer be a hissing and a by-word to our Enemies Thou art able yet to clap an effeciual Plaister to our bleeding wound and to cure the distempered minds Be pleased therefore O great Physitian of both Soul and Body mercifully to look down from Heaven upon these Nations Check that bold spirit of division that causeth so much disorder amongst us and make us all sensible of our chief interests which consists in a Blessed Vnion Pour upon our Clergy abundance of thy Grace and give an happy success to their painful Ministry but now I am going to serve thee above in Heaven in a more glorious and excellent Ministry where I shall meet with no trouble nor resistance no weariness grief pain sorrow nor displeasure I shall enter into the joy of my Lord and receive from his merciful Hand the uncorruptible Crown of Immortality and Glory I shall follow the Lamb whithersoever he goes and he shall be my Shepherd for ever he will lead me to the Fountains of living water and wipe away all Tears from mine Eyes Amen A Prayer and Meditation for a Father of a Family FAther of Eternity I yield unto thee my unfeigned thanks because thou hast made me an happy instrument to put into the World Children out of whose mouths thou mayest accomplish thine own praise and who may serve thee here below and worship thee for ever in Heaven amongst the thousands of Angels Whilst I have been in the World I have brought them up in thy Love and Fear I have caused them to suck from the Breast the Milk of Piety and when they were come to an age of understanding I have taught them to walk in thine holy Fear and obey thy Commandements I have laboured to shew them a good example and to guide them in thy Truth And now that I am ready to return unto thee who art the Author of my life and being the only source of my Happiness I leave them in thy merciful hands beseeching thee to look down upon them with the eyes of thy compassion they are thine Lord acknowledge thine own Image and Handywork Thy Finger hath fashioned these Bodies where so many wonders are to be seen And these souls that animate and move them are the breath and beams of thy Divinity Thou hast engaged to be our God and the God of our Posterity after us Thy great and precious promises have been made to us and to our Children O Heavenly Father I desire not that thou shouldest take them out of the World but that thou shouldest keep them from evil Cover them under the shadow of thy wings and preserve them from those Miseries and Calamities which thou hast threatened to send upon the Inbabitants of the Earth for their sins If thou dost chastise them let it be with the Rod of Men and with the scourges of the Sons of Men but withdraw not from them thy Grace and thy fatherly compassions Let the flames of affliction render their Faith more Pure their Lives more Holy and their Zeal more Sincere and Earnest and let it prepare them for thee and thine Eternal Bliss O Holy Father thou seest that the age in which we live is wonderfully corrupt that the Earth is inclined to Vice and that Sin raigns every where Thou knowest also how weak the Nature of Children is and how inclinable to evil therefore strengthen them I beseech thee with such Antidotes as may preserve them from the infection of the times Suffer not the wickedness of the World to win upon their affections nor Satan to prevail upon them by his suggestions nor evil company to spoil their pious Education Give them an understanding to know thee an Heart to love thee and Affections to embrace thee and thy Glory Let thy Holy Angels guard them by night and by day Let thy Providence defend them thy Word instruct them thy Promises comfort them and thy Holy Spirit Regenerate them and imprint in their Souls thy blessed Image Give them neither Poverty nor Riches but nourish them with Food convenient but especially give them that Bread which is come down from Heaven which hath brought Life into the World make them to raste of the Heavenly Gift and of the Powers of the World to come inflame them with thy Love and Charity and adorn them with all Christian Vertues but chiefly Sanctify them with thy Holy Spirit and make them to become new Creatures seeing that without Sanctification none shall see thy Face in Glory Confirm them for ever in thy Holy Covenant and give them grace to transmit it to their posterity after them as a blessed Inheritance that thou mayest be Glorified by them from Generation to Generation to all Eternity Suffer not the World nor Hell to pluck them out of thine Hand that nothing may separate them from the love which thou hast shewed to them in Jesus Christ thine only Son Let not Death terrify them but let it rather rejoyce and comfort them because that it is the entrance that leads to the Glorious Dwelling of their Heavenly Father and to the Celestial Paradise whatsoever change or alteration shall happen here below let them always lift up their Eyes to thee who art the same yesterday and to day and shalt be the same for ever Let them never forget their Duty to thee from whom they have received their Being and Life that they may prefer the Glory of thy Great Name the Purity of thy Worship and the hopes of thy Heavenly Kingdom to all worldly Glory Magnificence Riches advantages and Pleasures of the Flesh
out the Heavens and Commanded the succession of the Seasons and who is the Author and Lord of thy Life We need not tempt God as the Philistins did of old and require from him a miracle to know if it be his hand for God assures us that he himself inflicts the Wound and binds it up that his hand strikes and heals again 1 Sam. 5. Affliction cometh not forth of the Dust neither doth trouble spring out of the ground Job 5. Who is able to say that these things are come to pass and the Lord hath not commanded them doth not evil and good proceed from the appointment of the most High There is no evil in the City but God hath done it that is to say that there is no distemper nor affliction but he over-rules and governs it by his wonderful Providence This perswasion will stop our murmuring in the midst of our greatest troubles and violent paines it will cause us to say with David I have held my peace Lord and have not open'd my Lips because it was thy doing Or if we offer to speak it shall be in the language of a blessed Servant of God Lord thou troublest me but it is sufficient for me to know that it is thy hand Job 2. As if he should have said this Physick is very bitter O great Physitian of my Soul and Body but I will freely drink it up because thou hast prescribed it It is not just to receive good at the hand of God and refuse evil to complain of a disease that he hath sent us for a few days instead of blessing him for the health which he hath continued unto us many years In short when our Souls should be troubled with the anguish of death when drops of bloud should come out of our veins we must in such a case lift up our Eyes to Heaven and say with our Lord and Saviour Father if it please thee that this Cup should not pass away from me except I drink it Nevertheless O Father not my Will but thy Will be done Luk 21. This same consideration will keep us from falling into despair and from fancying that the evils will swallow us up For seeing God sends both evil and good and that he is faithful and just that he is true and merciful he will not suffer us to be tempted that is that we should be afflicted above that we are able but with the temptation he will make away to escape that we may be able to bear it 1 Cor. 10. He kindles not all his wrath at once and employs not all his fury he discovers not all the strength of his Arm Psal 78. but when his anger is hottest he remembers to have pity and compassion on the afflicted for he knows of what we are made that we are but Dust and Ashes Hab. 3. He remembers that we are but Flesh that is to say weakness it self a wind that passeth away and returneth not again Psal 103. He regulates his chastisements not according to the horridness of our sins but according to our great weaknesses Gen. 18. Psal 78. Therefore when God speaks of David's Son the true and lively Image of the Holy Seed with which he hath concluded an Eternal Covenant he speaks in this manner If he commits sin I will chastise him with the Rod of Men and with the stripes of the Children of men but my mercy shall not depart away from him 2 Sam. 7. And St. Paul speaking in general of the afflictions with which God visits his Children 1 Cor. 10. he stiles them Humane temptations to assure us that they shall never exceed the strength and power of our weak Nature The wise and experienced Physitian appoints neither Physick nor Bleeding to the Patient until he hath well examined his Pulse and understood thereby the disposition of his Body and shall not God's Eternal Wisdom that never acts without good reason and that perfectly knows the Pulse and Temper of our Souls that searcheth our Reins and that sees our very Heart proportion his Physick and Remedies to our weaknesses for his design is to heal and not to destroy us He once inflicted punishments upon Babylon by measure and numbred the Viols of his Wrath which he poured upon the seat of the Beast and shall not this good God measure the Rods and weigh the Afflictions with which he reproves his Children shall not he number their Sighs and Tears This consideration comforts King David Thou saith he O God tellest my wandrings put thou my tears into thy bottle are they not in thy Book Ps 56. Although Flesh and Bloud may think otherwise I am perswaded that Diseases may be looked upon as the sweetest and most favourable afflictions It was David's perswasion for when he was to chuse one of these three Plagues either War Famine or Plague which is the most grievous most hated and dreadful of all distempers he chose the Plague We should never forget the reason of his choise Let us fall now said he to the Prophet Gad into the hands of the Lord for his Mercies are great and let me not fall into the hand of Man The evils which God sends to us are expressions of his Love and of his Fatherly Care of us for God begins his Judgements that is his Chastisements at his own House and shews most severity to the Servants whom he loves best 1 Pet. 4. Therefore he tells the Angel of the Church of Laodicea As many as I love I rebuke and chasten Revel 3. The greatest affliction that can happen to us in the World is never to be afflicted and the most grievous temptation is never to be tempted St Paul to the Hebrews speaks most excellently upon this subject Forget not saith he the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto Children my Son despise not thou the chastening of the Lord nor faint when thou art rebuked of him for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and scourgeth every Son whom he receiveth If ye endure chastening God dealeth with you as with Sons for what Son is he whom the Father chasteneth not but if ye be without chastisement whereof all are partakers then are ye Bastards and not Sons Heb. 12. All things work together for good to them that love God Rom. 8. The Diseases of the Body are the Physick of the Soul The Aches which thou seelest in thy Body are Instructions of thy Mind God intends to make thee sigh for thy sins water thy Couch with thy Tears and abhor the remembrance of thy former miscarriages Psal 6. The causes of thy present pain and grief He intends to make thee partaker of his Holiness Heb. 12. If it please God to sanctify his afflictions to thee thou wilt be able to say with David It was good for me that I was afflicted that I might learn thy Commandments Before that I was afflicted I went astray but now I keep thy Word Psal 119. Although our Lord and Saviour was the only Son and
Spring of Comfort that can never be stopt nor dried up Let the Storms and Flouds beat against thee Let the defluxions endeavour to check thee Is 58. thou mayest say with King David I have set the Lord always before me because he is at my right hand I shall not be moved Psal 16. When I should walk in the valley of the shadow of Death when I should have no other help nor assistance in the World when there should be no more strength remain in my Body I would not fear for O God thy staff and thy Rod will comfort me Is 26. God will not only draw near to thy bed of Sickness but he will embrace and receive thee into his protection he will kiss thee with the kisses of his mouth and make thee taste of the sweetness of his Divine Comforts Cant. 1. He will cherish thee as a Mother doth her Child to pacify it and make thee so sensible of his Love that thou mayest say with the Spouse his left hand is under my head and his right doth embrace me With his Gracious Hand he will wipe off thy cold sweat and into his bosom he will receive thy sighs thy groans and thy tears he will gather up into his most precious bottles And as it happened when our Lord and Saviour was in his Agony when drops of Bloud fell from him the Holy Angels appeared to comfort him Luk 22. Likewise in our greatest and most difficult encounters when thou shalt be at handy-blows with death it self his faithful Ministers hâ—s Messengers the Angels of his right hand shall visit thee to supply thee with spiritual Comforts 2 Cor. 5. Revel 5. And when these earthly Comforters shall fail he will send to thee some of those powerful Spirits that wait before his Glorious Throne Dan. 7. O good God if we could but perceive the things that are of themselves invisible and if thou didst but give us eyes like unto those of the Holy Prophet we should behold Legions of immortal Spirits flying about in the houses of Sorrow with an intent to comfort the Christian Souls Is 6. 2 King 6. Finally as the Sun with its Light and the strength of its Beams drives away the thickest Clouds and comforts with its delightful countenance the face of the whole Earth Thus Jesus Christ the Sun of Righteousness that carries healing under his wings banisheth all sadness with the light of his Divine Graces Mal. 3. and with the presence of his Holy Spirit he drives away the most sensible griefs and fills us with unspeakable joy and with the Peace of God which passeth all understanding A Prayer and Meditation for a sick Person who desires to prepare for Death O Almighty and Gracious God! who hast created both light and darkness and who dost by the wisdom of thy Providence bestow good and evil things upon us I acknowledge that thine Hand hath cast me upon this bed of sickness and that this disease proceeds not so much from the disorder of my Body 〈◊〉 from the corruption and extravagancy of my Soul far be it from me to complain of thy justice I adore thy Goodness and Wisdom O Lord how favourable are thy punishments if compared with my deservings I have miserably abused thy former Mercies mispent that time of health that I received from thee in whom we live move and have our Being I confess that I have loved the vanities of the World and the satisfaction of this wretched Flesh more than the Glory of thy great Name 〈◊〉 the Salvation of my Soul therefore I could willingly water this Couch with my Tears O God who understandest all things thou knowest that my weeping proceeds not from any fretful humour but out of a sincere displeasure of having offended so good a Father and merciful Lord In thâ—â— thy chastisement I feel the workings of thy tender compassion and I perceive thy most wonderful Love I see thâ— thou dost not rebuke me in thy wrath nor dost not correâ— me in thy fury Thou dost not punish me as a Judge bâ— dost chastise me as a Father so that this disease is a tesâ—â—mony of thy Love and of thy Fatherly care of me 〈◊〉 thou dost correct all them whom thou lovest and causest tâ—â—â—â— to feel the smart of thy Rod whom thou ownest for 〈◊〉 Children therefore if we were without reproof wh◠〈◊〉 all are partakers we should be no longer Children but bastards If this chastisement is at present grievous and painful one day it will produce the Peaceable Fruits of Righteousness and as at the end of Jonathan 's Rod he tasted Honey that comforted him and opened his Eyes Likewise when I shall have felt the Rods of thy displeasure I shall taste the sweet comforts and unspeakable joys of thine Holy Spirit and my understanding shall be more enlightened O Almighty and ever wise God who drawest Light out of Darkness and causest that all things work together for good to them â—hat love thee it matters not how thou orderest this disease so that it may advance thy Glory and further my Salvation Thou beholdest mine affliction and poverty and thou knowest better than I can what is good and expedient for me O great God I know that thou canst do all things and that thou givest the wound and bindest it up thou strikest and thy hands must heal thou castest into the Grave and bringest up again The most desperate and irrecoverable diseases thou canst cure the dead thou canst bring to life again and call the things that are not as if they were O Almighty Physitian thou canst not only vouchsafe thy Blessing to these Remedies prescribed and administred to me but if thou speakest the word I shall be perfectly whole and well again But if thou judgest expedient to continue this disease upon me continue O merciful Lord unto me and increase thy Fatherly assistances and the comforts of thine Holy Spirit Strengthen me with a Christian patience and with a resolution worthy of my hâ—nourable Profession seeing that thou art the Soveraign Physitian both of Soul and Body I beseech thee my God if thou dost not remove the distemper of my Body at least pluck out of my Heart and mind all the grief and displeasure that torments me Fill my Soul with thy Peace Joy Love and Heavenly Comforts while my Body languisheth upon this Earth and while I am kept from my former societies of Men. Let my mind be lifted up to Heaven Let my Soul delight it self in a familiarity with thee I have lost too much time already about the affairs of the World that is nothing but vanity and vexation of Spirit Give me Grace to employ now these few moments of leasure which thou dost grant to me to think seriously upon my sins to beg thy pardon with an earnest Repentance Give me Grace to meditate upon thine unspeakable and eternal Mercy to embrace it with a true and lively Faith upon thy Glory and the Happiness of thy Kingdom
O Heavenly Father not my Will but thy Will be done Pluck this Thorn out of my Flesh or vouchsafe unto me sufficient strength to endure its deadly wounds with patience O good God thou knowest that my Spirit is willing but my Flesh is weak and that my misery is heavier than the Sand of the Sea-shore but thou that quickenest the dead wilt accomplish thy Vertue in mine Infirmities Therefore instead of speaking in Cain's Language My punishment is greater than I can bear I will say with St. Paul I can do all things in Christ that strengthens me O Lord punish me not in thy wrath nor correct me in thy heavy displeasure but chastise me in reason that I may not be reduced to nothing When thou didst wrestle with Jacob thou tookest upon thee an Humane Body and didst strengthen thy Servant by the vertue of thy Divine Spirit O Merciful and Graciouus God let thy punishments be proportionable to my great weaknesses suffer not any temptation to seize upon me but only Humane and give me with the temptation an happy issue that I may support it that neither Death nor Life nor Pain nor Torment may ever separate me from thy Love or pluck me out of thine Hand Good Lord forsake me not that I may never forsake thee but enable me with Strength Patience and Constancy to bear my burden and make me more than Conqueror by Jesus Christ our Lord. Merciful God pity thy servant or rather thine adopted Child Awaken thy jealousie and let thy Bowels that are hardened against me move thee to compassion Strengthen me in this encounter with the assistance of the good Angels that comforted thine only Son in the night of his most bitter affliction cause this black night of my Sorrows to pass speedily away or rather in the midst of these dark shadows cause me to see the ravishing beams of thy Mercy Heal my grievous wounds or else pour into them the refreshing Balm of thy most tender and Divine Consolations my Heart and my Flesh fail and faint away but look upon me with a Gracious Eye and receive me into the embraces of thine Eternal Mercy Declare I beseech thee how sensible thou art of my affliction by a present relief receive my Sweat and Tears and put them into thy Bottles O good God thou seest that I am fainting and that my Soul is weary within me comfort me therefore with thy Cordials and with thy most Divine refreshments Give me to drink of the Wine of thy most effectual Consolations that may restore unto me my spirits apply the right hand of thy Mercy that it may strengthen my Soul and drive from thence all poison and infection Let thine Holy Spirit the Spiritual Dove light upon me to bring joy unto me O living God thou seest that I dye but give me some of that living Water whereof if a man drink he shall live Eternally my Friends are grieved with me and weep for my bitter affliction but can give me no assistance but thine only look would be able to deliver me O my God either pull me out of this Sea of Trouble into which thou hast cast me or cause me to pass through these waves to the Inheritance prepared for me from the foundation of the World Quench these violent Flames that burn and consume me or let them serve as fiery Chariots to carry me in triumph to Heaven O how mad and senseless should I be if I did fear Death seeing that it will put an end to my torments it will break in pieces my grievous Chains it will wipe away all Tears from mine Eyes and banish all grief from my Heart O my God when shall all my Cries my Sighs and Groans be changed into Songs of Praise and Thanksgiving when shall I see my self in the Glorious company of the Blessed who are come out of the great tribulation and who have wash'd and cleansed their Garments in the Bloud of the Lamb. Draw me and I shall run after thee and Glorify thee for ever in thine Heavenly Temple Amen CHAP. 14. The second Consolation against the fears of Death is to look upon God as a merciful Father and to trust upon his infinite Goodness THere is no Child well descended but desires earnestly to see his Fathers Face and especially the Face of a Good and Gracious Father A great Princes Son who hath been brought up in a Forreign Countrey rejoyceth at his own Happiness when his Father sends for him to make him partaker of the Glory and Dignity of his Empire he is not then grieved nor troubled he seeks not to delay his going but rather he embraceth with transports of joy the Messenger of such good news he thinks of nothing but of hasting his departure if he could borrow wings he would fly with an unspeakable swiftness to his Fathers Palace Now we are the Children of the Great God whose Throne is Heaven and whose Footstool is the Earth for our Faith that looks upon Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Redeemer considers God as our God and Father for to them who have received this only Son of the Father hath been granted the priviledge of being the Sons of God to them who believe in his name 1 Job 1. So that we have just cause to be transported in an Holy Excess of Joy with the Apostle St. John Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the Sons of God 1 Joh. 3. We were by nature Children of Wrath as others but God who is rich in Mercy hath predestinated us unto the adoption of Children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his Will Eph. 2. He gives us the Gracious assurances of this free adoption in this life for as we are Children he hath sent the Spirit of his Son in our Hearts to cry Abba Father Eph. 1. This Holy Spirit bears witness with our Spirits that we are the Children of God If we be Children then Heirs of God and Co-heirs with Christ Gal. 4. Yea if we suffer with him that we may be also Glorified with him Rom. 8. That we might be the Children of God he hath not only adopted us by Jesus Christ but also regenerated us by uncorruptible Seed We are not born of Flesh and of Bloud but we are born of God His infinite Goodness perswaded him first to grant us a Being and his incomprehensible love hath moved him to reform our Beings and reprint his Divine Image in our Hearts John 1. 1 Pet. 1. He hath begotten us by his pure Grace by the word of his Truth that we might be the First Fruits of his Creatures Jam. 1. 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 uncorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in Heaven for us 1 Pet. 1.
Now although we be the Children of God and the supposed Heirs of his Crown our Glory and Dignity is not to be discerned during the years of our Earthly Pilgrimage Our Heavenly Father suffers us here in an Estate contemptible in the eye of the World that we might learn Humility and desire more earnestly his celestial Inheritance As it happens in a dark and obscure midnight Men tread under feet the Pearls the Diamonds the Scepters and the Crowns Thus it is now that a gross ignorance hath overspread and covers the face of the World the Children of God who are the most precious Jewels of his Crown are esteem'd no better than the scum or the filth of thē Earth This consideration causeth St. John to tell us Beloved we are now Children of God it doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is 1 Joh. 3. As David sent for Absalom out of the Philistins Countrey and gave him leave to dwell in the City of Jerusalem but for the space of two years he would not suffer him to enter his Royal Palace or see his Face Likewise God hath freed us from the Devils Tyranny and Hells Power he hath admitted us into his Holy Church which is as his Jerusalem where he gives a fore-tast of our Heavenly Peace and Reconciliation but he delays for a time our reception into the magnificent Palace of his Glory and to the enjoyment of his Divine Presence the highest satisfaction and the greatest happiness While we remain in the Body we are estranged from God so that we are saved but by Hope 2 Cor. 5. But when we shall depart out of this Body we shall be with the Lord and shall enter into a real fruition of his Celestial Inheritance Rom. 8. Finally while we dwell here below we may see the Image of our Heavenly Father and behold his Face as in a Glass but when he shall have caused us to draw near his Throne we shall see him face to face we shall be transformed into his likeness and be fully satisfied with his resemblance Rom. 1. 1 Cor. 3. 1 Cor. 13. Psal 17. Let Death be never so hideous and ugly it is the Messenger of our Heavenly Father and if we can have but the confidence to open its iron hands and look into them we shall find Gracious Letters full of Love by which this Father of Mercy calls us to the full enjoyment of our Eternal Happiness Death doth not only invite us to go to God but it serves as a Vessel to convey us through this tempestuous Sea of the World to go to our good God who expects our coming at the Haven of everlasting Rest it is like to Eliah's Chariot of Fire that carried him up to Heaven 2 King 2. If Death covers our eyes with one hand and deprives us of the Light of the Sun with the other it rents in pieces that Vail which hinders us from the sight of the varieties of God's immortal Sanctuary and discovers to us the Glorious Face of the Father of Lights with the one it digs for our Bodies a Grave to cast them in but with the other hand it flings open for our Souls the Gates of the Heavenly Jerusalem to usher them into the Banqueting-Hall Therefore Death should be so far from frighting us that its arrival should rather comfort us and cause us to resolve to follow it with an Holy chearfulness for we should not only be willing to go to God with transports of joy when he is pleased to call us to himself to behold his Face and to eat of the Bread of Eternal life in his Heavenly Kingdom but of our own accord we should be impatient to enjoy his Glorious Presence and in a continual longing to see that happy day that shall bring us into him and satisfy us with his unspeakable Delights A true Christian should be moved in this occasion with David's Spirit As the Hart panteth after the Water-Brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God My Soul thirsteth for God for the living God when shall I come and appear before God I confess that this Great God before whom we are to appear is cloathed with Glory and Majesty and dwels in the Light which no man can approach unto 1 Tim. 6. I know that he sits upon a dreadful Throne of Fire whereof the Wheels are like a burning Flame Dan. 7. that a thousand thousand wait upon him and ten thousand Millions stand before him Isai 6. I am not ignorant that at his Presence the Earth is moved the Sea and the Rivers dry up the Mountains tremble and the little Hills shake the Rocks decay the Pillars of Heaven fail and the Seraphims cover themselves with their wings Revel 4. But let not this dreadful Majesty and Heavenly Pomp terrify thee O believing Soul for this Great God is full of a Fatherly affection for thee Round about this Throne of God there is a beautiful Rainbow of a Green colour like unto an Emerald to signify unto us that God is reconciled and that the Covenant of our Peace is to continue for ever As out of this magnificent Throne proceed the Thunders and Thunderbolts that fright the Worldlings and cast the proud Souls down to the ground so from thence proceed also Lightnings and such refreshing Flames as are able to comfort the Believer and to guide him to his Celestial Inheritance We are related to God more than the Angels and Seraphims for we are not only his Creatures and Servants but also his Children and the Members of his Son nay we are but one with him Joh. 17. Let us therefore return our hearty thanks to our Heavenly Father which hath made us mete to be partakers of the Inheritance of the Saints in Light Colos 1. Let us go up with confidence to Mount Sion for there are no signes of God's wrath to be seen nor of his just vengeance we shall find no bounds to separate us from God's Gracious Presence but we shall find Cords of Love to draw us and unite us unto him we shall see no fire to devour and scare us but we shall perceive the comfortable Flames which burn without consuming and which bring Comfort rather than Fear we shall not meet there a terrible Law-giver to derive us from him to scare us with his Thunderbolts but we shall meet a loving Father to embrace us and open to us the bosom of his tender compassions In short we shall not hear there the terrible sound of the Trumpet that causeth the Rocks to split asunder that casts to the ground the proud Cedars and that makes the Deer cast their young but we shall hear the sweet and melodious voice that will settle our trembling Souls refresh our languishing Hopes and fill us with Peace and Eternal Comfort Heb. 12. I acknowledge that God is just but he is also merciful and his
for them now if there be any reason to render unto every one that which hath been dearly bought and purchased with a great price and seeing that it would be a great sin to refuse unto any man that which he hath paid for with the Bloud of his only and beloved Son how can we refuse our Souls unto God seeing that they belong to him because he hath not only created them and stamped in them his Image but he hath also purchased them with the Bloud of his only Son in whom from all Eternity he is well pleased We must not therefore imitate the example of naughty paymasters or unjust possessors of other Men's Goods we must not expect until our Souls be plucked from us by violence but rather like the good and righteous Debtors we must return them willingly and yield them up into his hands who hath paid for them an infinite and an unvaluable Ransome David was of this mind when he said Into thine hand I commit my spirit thou hast redeemed me O Lord God of Truth Psal 31. 11. In this Death and Passion of our Glorious Redeemer we learn not only our Duty but also sufficient grounds of comfort and hope and if I may so say it is in the Bowels of this dead Lion that we find the sweetest and most ravishing Consolations this Chief Priest that bears us upon his Breast in his Heavenly Sanctuary or rather upon his Heart will not forsake us in the day of our distress and will not give us over to the fears and pangs of death for seeing that he hath encountred with this cruel Death seeing that it hath felt its sting its shiverings and pains and that he hath bin tempted as we have bin in all things except in sin he is merciful and faithful to have compassion of our infirmities he is no less able to assist us in our temptations and to make us in all things more than Conquerors 12. Believing Souls consider with me the noble expressions of St. Paul Blessed be God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of Mercies and the God of all comfort who comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we our selves are comforted of God 2 Cor. 1. These excellent Truths may be very well applied to our Lord Jesus Christ whom the Holy Ghost names The Apostle and High Priest of our Profession Heb. 3. For the comfortable assistances which he hath received from God in the time of his greatest anguish are precious tokens and infallibie assurances of God's future help in our need for as when he was in his bitter Agony when his Soul was cast down with deadly sorrow an Angel from Heaven comes to comfort him Likewise when we shall be engaged in an encounter with death when it shall endeavour to fill our Souls with sadness and apprehensions he will doubtless send unto us some of his good Angels that be at his right hand I mean the faithful Teachers of his Holy Word or else he will send from Heaven some of his blessed Spirits that stand about his Throne and that are commonly employed in the preservation of the Godly The Holy Ghost himself the Comforter of afflicted Souls and the true Oil of Gladness will then drive from our hearts all grief and refresh us with his Heavenly Comforts He will not forsake us until he hath brought us to the Head Spring of Eternal Joy and Comfort 13. Our Lord and Saviours deliverance from death is an Image and an assurance of our future deliverance which we are to expect from God's Mercy and Almighty Power for as when St. Paul saith that this High Priest in the days of his Flesh offered up Prayers and Supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from Death And was heard in that he feard We are not to understand that he was freed altogether from death but rather that he had the favour granted to him of swallowing Death up into Victory and of triumphing over the Powers of Hell and that through the shame and bitterness of death he is gone into his Glory and into the Joys of his Heavenly Paradise Likewise when we pray unto God in our greatest distresses and deepest sorrows when we pour into his bosom the Tears of a sincere Repentance he hears us from his Sanctuary and delivers us from Death not by hindring us from dying but by raising our Souls to pass through Death into an immortal Life from this valley of Tears into Happiness and endless Bliss 14. If we will be sully perswaded that God will not with-hold from us the Joys and Comforts of his Holy Spirit and that he will make us more than Conquerors of death by admitting us into an Eternal Felicity we need but cast our eyes upon our Lord Jesus Christ for as he who bestows much will not refuse a little so God who hath not spared his only Son but hath delivered him for us all to an ignominious and cruel Death how shall not he with him freely give us all things St. Paul hath taught to argue in this manner and to gather this consequence necessary from God's proceedings Rom. 8. 15. When Christ our Lord gave up the Ghost upon the Cross the vail of the Temple was rent from the top to the bottom Heaven was opened and a repenting Thief was admitted All this happened to teach us that we may enter into the Holy of Holies by the Bloud of Jesus by the new and living way which he hath consecrated by the Vail which is by his Flesh and that this merciful Lord hath always his Arms wide open to receive us and that he will never refuse the Glory of Heaven and the delights of his Paradise to the greatest sinners that repent and that seek to his Eternal Mercy by his infinite Merits 16. The Death of this great God and Saviour is the payment of all our debts and the expiation of all our crimes it is the healing of all our diseases the freedom from all our miseries for it hath overcome Satan and the powers of Hell It is the death of an Eternal Death it is this meritorious death that hath purchased for us Heaven and all its Excellencies and procured to us a Right to God's Paradise and to its Delights and Pleasures In short it is this Death that conveys Pardise into our Souls before we enter into Paradise and fills our minds with an Heavenly and Divine Peace and an unspeakable and glorious Joy 17. This Cross of our Saviour may be compared to the Wood which Moses cast into the Waters of Marah for it takes away from the natural Death of God's Children whatsoever is incommodious and bitter and causeth us to relish Sweetness and Comforts that cannot be express'd It is like the Salt which the Prophet Elisha cast into the Waters of Jerico to make them wholsom and fruitful for
it causeth that death it self proves our Salvation and brings unto us unspeakable comforts I may also liken it to the Meal which the same Prophet cast into the Pot of which the Sons of the Prophets had made this complaint O thou man of God there is death in the pot It is the death of Death because it removes from it all deadly poison and causeth us to relish Angelical satisfactions I may therefore justly say of this Glorious Cross that it is The Tree of Knowledge of good and evil Because it makes known and understood the dreadful evils from which we are delivered and the infinite advantages which are procured to us 〈◊〉 Christ's death I may call it also the Tree of Life for every one that takes of the Fruit of this Tree with the hand of Faith and he that eats of it shall live for â—ver John 6. Believing Souls it is that Mystical Ladder which Jacob saw in a vision for it unites Heaven and Earth sinful Man with his God Gen. 28. It pleased the Father to make peace by the Bloud of the Cross of his Son and to reconcile all things unto himself whether they be things in Earth or things in Heaven Coloss 1. It is by the means of this Blessed Cross that the good Angels are sent to our assistance and that all the Graces and Blessings of God are procured unto us by this Cross we shall ascend up to God and to his Eternal Happiness under the shadow of this Divine Cross our Souls do rest and enjoy the Peace of God which passeth all Understanding It is like the Golden Scepter which King Ahasuerus stretched out unto Esther for if we touch this precious Cross with the hand of Faith if we embrace it with a contrite Soul we shall obtain from the King of Kings not only the half part but all his Kingdom with all its Delights Honours and Advantages 18. Moses's Rod was chang'd into a Serpent as well as the Rods of Pharaoh's Magicians but this Serpent devoured all the rest Thus the death of our Lord and Saviour is accompanied with Sorrow Fear and Anguish but these fears swallow up all other fears and cause us to draw near with confidence to the Throne of Grace his Sorrows drive away all our Griefs and fill us with Joy and Eternal Comfort his Anguish gives ease and satisfaction to our Souls his troubled Mind is the cause of the settlement of our Consciences his drops of Bloud do wash down our Tears his Groans hinder us from Sighing and his grievous cryings do cause us to sing with Joy The Fetters of this Glorious Redeemer have purchased our Freedom and his Condemnation our Absolution he hath been content to drink Vinegar mingled with Gall and to swallow the very dregs of the Cup of God's Wrath and Justice that he might cause us to drink of the Rivers of his Divine Pleasures He cried out in the violence of his Grief My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Matth 27. That God might never forsake us and that in our greatest troubles we might have always his fatherly assistance ready at hand he hath stooped his Head to raise our hopes In short he is dead that he might deliver them who through fear of death were all their life time subject to a cruel and unsufferable Bondage Heb. 2. So that all such as tremble and are afraid at the approaches of Death have not yet felt the power and efficacy of the Cross of our Lord Jesus They trample under feet the Bloud of the Son of God and as much as in them lies they render the fruits and efficacy of this blessed death of no effect 19. Consider well Christian Souls and imprint into your minds this Lesson Remember that death is never to be feared but when it proceeds from God's wrath and the curse of his Law and when our sins and offences have supplied it with offensive weapons when the Devil who seeks to devour us as a roaring Lion follows death at the heels and when at the same time Hell opens its infernal jaws to swallow us up But those who have placed their Faith and Hope in the Death and Passion of the Saviour of the World and who embrace his Cross are exempted from all its fears and out of the reach of all its poisonous Darts 20. My beloved Souls be not therefore frighted to see the face of the great Judge of the World 1 Tim. 2. Seeing that there is such an excellent Mediator between God and Man namely the Man Christ Jesus who hath given himself a Ransom for all Rom. 3. He hath disarmed God's Eternal Justice and stopt the proceedings of his Vengeance for God hath appointed him for all Eternity to be a Propitiation by Faith in his Bloud John 5. The Father judges no man but hath given all Judgement to the Son as he is the Son of Man There is now no condemnation to them that are in Jesus Christ whosoever believes in him shall never come into condemnation but is passed from Death to Life Rom. 8. John 5. 21. Fear no more the Thunderbolts and the flashes of Fire of Mount Sinai neither do you tremble when you hear its horrible Thunder Cursed is every one who continues not in all things written in the Book of the Law to do them Deut. 28. For although Christs Hands be nailed and fastened to the Wood they pluck nevertheless out of the Hands of God's Justice his terrible Thunderbolts and the Sword of his Vengeance The precious Bloud that runs down from the wounds of this Divine Redeemer do quench the scorching heat of his Eternal burning As at the morning of our Saviours Passion he had a care of his Disciples and therefore he desired those that came to take him If you seek me let these goe John 18. Likewise he hath now a care of all such as believe in his name to secure them under the shadow of his Cross He takes their place and for them he stands before God's justice saying Seeing that you have taken me to be their pledge and that you have pursued me without Mercy seeing that I have sufficiently satisfied for all their crimes and have tasted for them the most bitter and cruel death suffer them to enjoy the freedom that hath been purchased at such a dear rate Suffer them to pass through death into the enjoyment of a blessed Life which is the price of my Bloud and the fruit of my Victories This merciful Redeemer hath put himself of his own accord in our stead and hath endured in his own Person all the pains which were due to our sins he hath been struck with Moses's Rod and pierced through with the Darts of the Law he hath been made a Curse for us for it is written Cursed is every one that hangeth upon a Tree Gal. 5. But we are not only by his means redeemed from the Curse of the Law but we are also blessed in him with all manner of
and ready with its jaws open to devour me But Lord I come to cast my self before thy Blessed Cross I take hold of the Horns of this Altar I dip my self in thy Bloud I put on the Robes of thy Righteousness and wrap my self up in thy Death O Holy Redeemer I know that thou hast been distressed and grievously perplexed at the approaches of Death and that thine Agony hath been so bitter that thou hast sweated drops of Bloud and the Holy Angels have come down to comfort thee whereas thy Servants the Martyrs have gone to death and their sufferings with expressions of Joy as to a most splendid Banquet or to a Triumph Thou hast prayed with strong Crying and Tears to be delivered from death and that this Cup might pass away so that thou mightest never tast of its bitterness But Lord thy death was not as mine and as that of thy blessed Martyrs Thy death was an atonement for the sins of the whole World whereas our death is not intended as a satisfaction to God's justice but rather to render us capable of receiving the blessed Fruits of his Eternal Compassions Thou didst bear the strokes of God's Justice and endure the fierceness of his wrath enflamed against the sins which thou hast loaded on thy self But we instead of this consuming Fire which thou hast quenched with thy precious Bloud we perceive the flames of Love instead of the Hand of thy justice we see thy Arms wide open to receive us into Eternal Happiness Death good Lord was armed with our sins and iniquities and with all that is dreadful in Hell but I see that all the Armor of Death are hung upon thy Cross they are the Trophies and everlasting marks of thy Glorious Victory Thou hast felt not only the most sensible Darts of Death but also the most terrible Thunderbolts and fearful Curses of the Law Thou hast secured us from all that violence thou hast redeemed us from the dreadful Curses When thou wast made a Curse for us thou hadst not only to encounter with death but also to destroy him who had the Empire of Death and to break in pieces the Gates of Hell Thou didst spoil Principalities and Powers shewing them openly and triumphing of them in thy Cross O wonderful Saviour How marvellous are thy Works and worthy of the continual admiration of Men and Angels Thou hast drunk up the very dregs of the Cup of God's fury that we might never taste of it and thou hast taken upon thee all the punishment that our sins and offences had deserved that we might never feel them Thy grievous pangs alleviate my torments thy bruises and wounds are my health and cure thy fears do comfort and settle my mind and thy distressed Soul doth fill mine full of joy and comfort thy crying doth appease the troubles of my Conscience and thy drops of Bloud do wash down my Tears thine affliction comforts me thy sorrow is my joy and thy bitterness is my sweetness thy death is my victory and thy Cross is my Triumph I shall no longer apprehend to dye seeing thou didst procure unto me Life and Immortality O Glorious and Merciful Lord the Kingdom of Heaven belongs unto thee by a twofold Right it belongs to thee because thou art the only Son of God and the Heir of all things it belongs to thee also because thou hast purchased it with the infinite Merits of thy Sufferings the first is sufficient for thee the second thou hast resigned unto me that I might one day enjoy this Heavenly Kingdom as the fruits of thy Death and the price of thy Bloud I have hoped in thee Lord I shall never be confounded I know that nothing impure or defiled shall enter into thine Holy Jerusalem but thy Bloud shall wash me from all my sins and make me as white as Snow O Glorious Lord O thou that art wonderful how precious is thy death unto me It is the payment of all my debts the atonement of all my crimes and the ransom of the whole World It is our peace with God our re-union with Heaven and our reconciliation with the Blessed Angels of Light It is the death of Death it self and the ruine of Hell In short it hath not only drawn me out of an Abysse of Misery freed me from Eternal Damnation and the infinite torments of the bottomless Pit but it hath purchased for me Heaven with all its Glory and Paradise with its unspeakable Delights David was much admired for making use of Goliah 's Sword to cut off his Head but who will admire and wonder at thee O victorious Son of David seeing thou hast swallowed up Death into Victory by thine own death Sampson was wondered at because he killed a few Enemies by his death but who will not wonder at thee O Son of Righteousness who by thy death hast destroyed all the enemies of our Salvation and given to death itself its death's wound Jacob slept peaceably at the bottom of the mysterious Ladder which reacht from the Earth up to Heaven But O my Lord God I shall lay my self down and find more peace and quiet at the bottom of thy blessed Cross seeing that by its means I have access to the Father unto whom thou hast reconciled me seeing that I may with boldness go to the Throne of Grace to obtain Mercy and Help in time of need Lord Jesus I discover in thy Cross not only the source of my sweetest Comforts of my greatest Joys and of my noblest expectations but I learn also there how to dye well and I perceive all the Vertues in their greatest perfection that should accompany my Soul at its Egress out of this Body O Lord Who art Perfection it self and who hast left me such a notable Example that I might imitate it give me Grace to express to all my Relations that cordial and holy affection and that tenderness which I see in thee give me Grace to forgive with all mine Heart mine Enemies that I may pray God for them who have persecuted me with fury Give me Grace in my greatest pains to follow the example of thy sweet Nature of thy Goodness of thy Patience and noble Resolution Inflame my Soul with an earnest Zeal for thy Glory and with such a love as caused thee to offer thy self up in Sacrifice to God Here I am O God ready to perform thy Will my Soul is none of mine but thine who art its faithful Creator and its merciful Saviour Seeing that thou hast paid its Ransom that thou hast washed and cleansed it in thy Blood cloathed it with thy Righteousness and put it in a capacity of entring into thine Heavenly Sanctuary and of appearing before the Father of Lights do with it as it shall seem good unto thee O sweet Jesus who hast been pleased to Dye and be Crucified for me wretched Sinner give me that Grace that I may for ever live and raign with thee and that I may at every
pleasures for evermore Christian if thou hadst but as much Faith and assurance as there is Glory and happiness in Heaven with what excess of Joy shalt thou leave the World and all its vanities to ascend up to that magnificent Palace purchased for thee with the precious Blood of thy Redeemer Jonathans eyes were once enlightned when he tasted some Hony with the end of his Rod which he had found in a Rock And thou believer if thou hast by Faith tasted the Divine sweetness that proceeds from Christ the Rock of Eternity thine understanding will be all enlightned Thou shalt need no other Consolation against Death for Death it self shall fill thee full of Consolation and real Joy So that thou shalt have cause to speak not onely as Jacob O God I expect thy Salvation Gen. 49. but as King David I was glad when they said unto me let us go into the House of the Lord our feet shall stand within thy Gates O Jerusalem Psal 122. By this means thou shalt not onely expect with patience and embrace with Joy the blessed news of this Glorious Salvation but thou shalt endeavor to hasten its coming by thy continual and repeated Sighs O my God When wilt thou stretch out unto me from above thy Gracious Armes When shall I go into thy Celestial Sanctuary When shall I see plainly thy Divine and Glorious Face When wilt thou cause me to drink out of the Rivers of thy Pleasures How blessed is the man whom thou hast chosen and taken to thy self to dwell for ever in thy Holy Courts such shall be satisfied with the good things of thy House and of thy Glorious Palace Joseph mâ—rched out of his Prison in haste to go to the Palace of the Kings of Egypt and haste not thou as much reason to make as much hast out of the Prison of this wretched Body O believing Soul that thou mayest go up to the Palace of the King of Kings who intenâ—s to install thee into such a Glorious estate in comparison of which all the pomp of Pharaoh and of all the Kings and Princes of the Earth is nothing but as the hore-frost of the night Bartimeus forsakes willingly his Mantle to creep to the Lord Iesus when he called him and thou Christian Soul wilt not thou leave this body which is as a troublesome garment to thee to ascend up to this Divine Saviour who intends to cure thee of all thy distempers and Diseases and who purposes to load thee with his blessings and unspeakâ—ble favors He will not onely bring thee to behold the refreshing light of Heaven but he will also cause thee to shine as the Sun for ever and ever Religious Soul cast off this spotted garment of the flesh and so much the more chearfully because God holds out in his Hand a Garment of Light and Glory which he will bestow upon thee for it shall happen to thee as to the Prophet Elias who having let fall his Mantle he found himself all encompassed about with Flames of fire and an extraordinary light for assoon as thou shalt put off this miserable body thou shalt be surrounded with Celestial flames in which thou shalt mount up to Heaven into the dwelling of immortality where thou shalt be like God who cloaths himself with light as with a Garment To this purpose the words of the Prophet Zachariah concerning the High-Priest Iehoschuah are very proper he was arayed with filthy Garments but an Angel from Heaven calls to them that waited before him Take away the filthy Garments from him and cloath him with change of raiment let them set a fair Mitre upon his head This O Christian Soul is the true Image of thy condition at thy departure and the lively portraiture of thy future happiness At present thou art cloathed with a body undermined by sickness and labor thou bearest about thee the relicks of the old man but behold God calls to thee from his Holy Sanctuary Take away from him this old garment pluck off all remains of this old cloathing bespotted with sin where the Devils Image is yet to be seen and give him the Sacred ornaments of a Royal Priesthood cloath this Soul with a long garment whitned in the Blood of the Lamb gird it about with the Ephod of righteousness put upon its head an uncorruptible Crown and in its hand a Golden Viol that it may for ever offer up the Heavenly perfumes in the company of all the glorified Saints If after all this O Christian thou doubtest of the felicity and glory of such as die in the Lord Iesus hear what an Apostle saith who was himself ravished up into the third Heaven where he beheld in this Glorious Palace unspeakable things We know that if our earthly house of this Tabernacle were dissolved we have a building of God a house not made with hands eternal in the Heavens for in this we groan earnestly desiring to be cloathed upon with our house which is from Heaven If so be that being cloathed we shall not â—e found naked for we that are in this Tabernacle do 〈…〉 burdned not for that we would be uncloathed but cloathed upon that mortality might be swallowed up of Life And listen to what the Holy-Ghost saith Blessed are the Dead that die in the Lord for so saith the Spirit for they rest from their labors and their works do follow them Would to God that we had some other Word besides that of Death to express the wonderful and happy change that we make when we go out of this miserable World for to speak properly we cannot be said to die when we leave a place full of misery to enter into another blessed with an endless felicity when we exchange a laborious estate for a peaceable and an happy rest when we come off from a cruel War to enjoy the pleasures of everlasting Joy when we pass through Death to an endless life and forsake a Tomb to mount up on a Throne Christian Soul remember thy beginning and thine end consider what thou art from whence thou proceedest and whither thou goest Thou art a living Image of thy Creator and a beam of glory thou art of a celestial and immortal nature God hath washed and cleansed thee in the Blood of his Lamb without spot and blemish and sanctified thee by his holy Spirit he hath brought thee to an estate convenient to enter into his holy City and he is ready to admit thee to take the fruition of his glory Thou hast fought the good fight finished thy course and kept the faith it is therefore high time that thou shouldest receive the Crown of life Thou hast this precious Crown already in thine hands Thou art at the Gates of Heaven and at the entrance of Paradise Go therefore O believing Soul go with Joy and gladness to this great God that calls thee to this mercifull Saviour that stretcheth forth his hands unto thee and opens his bosome to receive thee go into the
like to vanity his days are as a shadow that passeth away Psal 144. and say as David I am gone as the shadow when it declineth Psal 109. If thou hearest the roaring of the Winds that God taketh out of his Storehouses Lift up thy Soul unto God thy Creator and say with Job Job 7. Remember that my life is but a wind mine eye shall no more see good Job 30. that is the imaginary Good of this miserable World And elsewhere Thou liftest me up to the wind thou causest me to ride upon it and dissolvest my substance If thou takest any delight in the sight of Birds that fly in the Air Let this excellent thought enter into thy mind My days are passed away as the Eagle that hasteth to the prey Job 9. If thou lookest up to the Glory and Beauty of the Heavens and seest the ravishing light of the Stars consider that thy God who hath form'd thee after his Image is so good and noble that he will not suffer thee to dwell for ever or perish amongst this slimy and miserable Earth but to dwell with him for ever in the Heavens and that at the end of thy Race he will raise and carry thee into the Palace of his Glory where thou shalt shine as the Sun in its greatest splendor If thou dost meditate upon the changeableness of the seasons remember that the spring of thy infancy the hot Summer of thy Youth the Autumn of thy Maturity and the sad countenanc'd Winter of thy cold and decrepid age shall succeed one another in the same order Let him who travels by Land think upon Job's complaint My days have been swifter than a Post they flee away they see no good Job 9. Let him call to mind the Apostles excellent saying This one thing I do forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before I press forwards towards the mark for the prize of the high Calling of God in Christ Jesus Phil. Let him who sails upon the Sea fancy the whole World as a great Sea tost up and down with several furious Waves our Life as a dangerous Voyage and our Days as Ships that pass away in a moment and let him consider that the last breath of Death will drive us into the Haven of Eternal Felicity to the enjoyment of immortal Glory Job 9. Doth God bless us with Children let us understand that we are minded by them of our Mortality for they come to take our room and to succeed to our Estate Doth God take them away to his Rest and those of whom we are most fond Let this advertise us That God intends thereby to cut off all the lower Roots that tye us to this Earth to unloose our hearts and affections that we may offer them up to him alone Instead of spending our selves in Tears and indulging our foolish humour in needless displeasures Let us comfort our selves with this consideration That by this means a part of our selves is enter'd into Heaven and that tother part will follow apace Let us say with David We shall go to them but they shall not return to us 2 Sam. 11. Let the Rich Man when he reckons his Money remember that God hath reckon'd and appointed his days and let this Order sound continually in his Ear Give an account of thy Stewardship Luke 16. Let the Magistrate when ever he delivers his Vote or pronouce a Sentence be arm'd with this consideration That he who sits in the Judgement Seat here below shall stand at the Bar and be judged himself above That one day he shall appear as a poor prisoner at the Tribunal of his great God That the Books will be open'd and that the universal Judge of the World will peruse every particular of his accusation That he must tender an account not only of his words and actions but also of his most secret thoughts and that without any examination at the Rack God will discover the very bottom of his heart Let the Gentleman whenever he receives his Rents and his Revenues call to mind the Tribute that he must needs pay to death Let the Prince and the Lord when he handles his Royal Parents and his antient Charters or when he examines the Homage and Duties to be paid to his House and Family take notice that he must go in person to Heaven Gates and pay his Homage to the Divinity Let the King who sits in his Seat of Justice or Chair of State think upon the Throne of the King of Kings before which he must appear as well as the most wretched Caitiff and the meanest of his subjects and that he must give account before a just God who is no respecter of Persons Let the Minister be never employed about the Duties of his Function but let him Long and wish for that happy day in the which the Lamb shall instruct and feed him in person and lead him to the Fountains of living water Let the Christian Soldier engrave upon his Sword this Sentence of Job Is there not as it were a warfare appointed to all Mortals on Earth Job 7. And instead of thirsting after humane blood let him prepare to encounter with Deathit self Let the Husbandman when ever he sows his Seed or when he reaps the Corn of his Fields be mindful of the season that comes on apace in which his Body must â—ot in the Earth that it might grow up to Eternity Let him think upon what St. Paul saith O fool that which thou sowest is not quickened except it dye 1 Cor. 15. and let him meditate upon Davids comfortable perswasions They who sow in Tears shall reap with Songs of Triumph Psal 126. Let an Handy craftsman that works in his shop imprint in his mind this excellent Sentence Our days are like the days of an hireling and when he hath ended his Task and that he is departing to his Rest let him comfort himself with this assurance That assoon as he shall have ended that work that God hath given him to do he shall rest from all his labors Job 7. When ever the Physitian visits his Patient or when the Chyrurgeon tends upon his wounded Bodies let them consider that they have no Secret nor Art able to protect them from Death or to cure the wounds that it strikes in our corruptible Nature Let the most cunning Lawyers the most advised Counsellors and the most eloquent Orators remember that all their Rhetorick and subtilty will never obtain for them their Suit against Death nor procure a moment of respite and delays And let the most Learned Philosophers learn That the soundest Philosophy is the meditation of Death In short What ever be our Imployment Condition or Age let us lift up our minds and hands unto God to speak to him in the Language of the Prophet David Lord let me know my end and the number of my days that I may know how long I am to live Or of Moses So teach
we know not at what time nor in what place Death intends to come upon us let us expect it at every moment and in every place Seeing that we lodge in this Earthly Tabernacle without any loss or assurance of Time let us be ready to depart at the first warning for it will be far better for us to goe out willingly than to be drag'd out against our wills it is not convenient that Death should carry us away in the same manner as the Sea bears and tosseth a dead Corps upon its wayes But we must in this occasion imitate the discreet Pilate or Mariner that trims his Sails and helps by his Art the Winds and the Tide to drive him to his desired Haven We should not follow Death as the Malefactor follows the Executioner that leads him to suffer but as the Child follows his Father that conducts him to a Feast we should not engage him in a combat with Death by constraint as the antient Slaves did with the wild Beasts in the Roman Amphitheaters but we should imitate David's generosity who of his own accord march'd out of the Camp of Israel to fight with Goliah It is better for us to attack and seize upon Death than to be surprized and devoured by it unawares Come when thou wilt O Death thou shalt never surprize me for I wait for thee at every moment with my weapons ready in my hand Thou shalt never drag me forcibâ—y for I will follow thee willingly and joyfully Although thou art mine Enemy yet will I speak to thee in the Language of the Spouse in the Canticles to her beloved Draw me and I will run after thee Nay I will meet thee in the way and receive thee with hearty embraces for instead of dreading thy coming I desire it passionately and hope for it for at thy first arrival assoon as I shall have seen thee I shall have overcome thee O blessed and happy day that assures me of such a glorious Victory and of such an Eternal Triumph A Prayer and Meditation upon the continual expectation of Death O Gracious God in whose power alone and at whose pleasure are the Times and the Seasons I know that it is appointed to all men once to dye and that the Grave is the dwelling which thou hast prepared to receive all Mankind we understand sufficiently by the experience of former Ages that none is able to say I shall live and shall not see Death Thou O Almighty God our Supreme Judge hast pronounced our irrevocable Sentence in the Earthly Paradise that we must dye so that I should be guilty of the greatest folly and madness if I did not firmly believe that I must dye as others and follow at my turn in the way of all flesh But Lord thou hast been pleased to hide from our knowledge the wonderful proceedings of thy providence and dost not suffer us to see the Hand that marks out the last hours of our Life We can perceive no shadow to discover to us with certainty when shall be the going down of our Sun we know not at what hour of the day or of the night thou wilt call us away to appear before thy great Tribunal Give us therefore Grace O merciful God to be alway ready to answer to thy Call and to obey thy Holy Commands that I may be as a Ship at Anchor that stays only for a Wind to set her Sails forward or as a Soldier who waits only for the Signal to march to the Encounter Give me Grace O good Lord that I may be like the good and faithful Servant who expects his Masters coming and hears his voice assoon as he calls Or like the wise Virgins who were ready to meet the Bridegroom and to follow him into the Marriage Chamber seeing that I can never know neither the time nor the place when Death will come to me O that I might expect and wait for it at every moment and at every place O that I might live in such a manner as if I were always ready to dye That my Soul were always upon my Lips prepared to fly away That I were continually in readiness to commit it into thy hands O my God my Faithful and Merciful Creator By this means I shall receive Death with Joy when it comes as thy Servant and Messenger and I shall follow it willingly being certainly perswaded that it will lead me into Eternal Life and introduce me into thy Glorious and Immortal Palace Amen A Prayer and Meditation for Youth O Almighty God and Vniversal Light that enlightenest every Man coming into the World the only Author of my Being by whose Gracious allowance I breath Thou O Lord hast formed and fashioned my Body with thy Divine hand and hast put into it an immortal Soul created after thy likeness Thou hast not only bestowed upon me a Life but hast by thy continual care preserved my Soul and kept my Body from all the dangers unto which this weak and frail Nature is always subject Although I feel my self lusty and strong if thou withdrawest away from me thy Spirit and that Divine Vertue that sustains me I shall instantly fall away and return again into nothing from whence thine Almighty Hand hath taken me O merciful Lord seeing that I live by thee alone make me to live only to thee and for thee that all my actions may tend to thy Glory and Praise thee That I may consecrate to thee with all my heart the First-Fruits of my Life and the Flower of my Age that I may remember my Creator in the days of my Youth and that I may abstain from Vice before the Time come in which I shall say That I have no pleasure therein O Father of Mercies pardon and forgive all the Sins and Infirmities of this foolish and unconsiderate Youth Give a stop to all the unruly motions and repress the violent attempts of this boiling Age tame this miserable Flesh that is not obedient to the will of its God That if the dread of thy Holy and great Name and the respect that I owe to thy Sacred Eyes that behold me are not sufficient to recall me from the Commission of sin and to oblige me to obedience Give me Grace to look continually upon Death that appears round about me and it may be in my very bosom Give me Grace to listen daily to the Heavenly voice that calls me to come forth before the Tribunal of the Great Judge of the World who spies my most secret actions who reads the most inward thoughts of my mind and examines all the passages of this most wretched life O that this flourishing Age and this perfect Health that I enjoy might never flatter me with the conceit of being free from and out of the reach of Deaths merciless Darts But let me remember that there are more Flowers and Blossoms that fall to the ground than Men gather of Fruits and that more tender and young Plants are taken up
before his journy to Damascus where he was strangly converted by a Miracle how could Gods immutable decree be accomplish'd for he had designed him from his Mothers Womb to be a Noble Vessel of his Grace and Mercy and a faithful Ambassador of his Son Gal. 1. If the good Thief had died before he had seen the Light or if he had been kill'd in one of his Robberies how could he have been converted upon the Cross where he Repented of his Crimes Or how could he have heard from our Saviour these blessed and comfortable words Verily I say unto thee Thou shalt be with me this day in Paradise Luke 31. The Heathens have perceiv'd and understood this Truth but they have darkened and defaced it by their impertinent and ridiculous Fictions for their Poets tell us that there are three Parcae or infernal Goddesses the one holds the Distaff and Spins the other winds up the Thred the third cuts it and puts a period thereby to the Life of Man By this Fable they intend to teach us that God lengthens or shortens at his pleasure Mans Life As it is therefore certain that God hath numbred our days he hath also appointed in his infinite Wisdom the means to convey us out of the world If one dieth in Peace another is kill'd in War If one departs in his Bed another hangs upon a Gibbet If one perisheth by Famine and another is stifled with the Plague If one is struck with the Thunder and the other is torn in pieces by wild Beasts If one is choak'd in the Waters and the other perisheth in the Flames In short if the separation of the Soul from the Body happens in a different manner it is not without the express Leave and Orders of our Heavenly Father Therefore when we see the strangest accidents come to pass and the most unexpected and tragick Deaths before our Eyes We must remember the saying of the Prophet Jeremy when he saw the burning and plunder of Jerusalem Who is he that saith and it cometh to pass when the Lord commandeth it not out of the mouth of the most high proceedeth not evil and good Sam. 3. We must then consider with the Prophet Isaiah That it is God that creates the Light and the Darkness and that sends Prosperity and Adversity Isai 15.45 Or with Amos who enquires whither there be any evil in the City and the Lord hath not done it Amos 3. That is to say that there is no Affliction nor Death that happens but God hath appointed it and fore-ordain'd it by his wise providence If the Devil cannot destroy Job's Flocks of Sheep nor hurry headlong into the Sea the Herds of Swine without his leave who holds him fast in Chains Matt. 8. Let us perswade our selves that all the powers of Hell and the World cannot cause us to dye by a violent Death if God hath not ordain'd it before in the resolutions of his infinite Wisdom so that if at any time a Prince or a Magistrate speaks to us in Pilats language to our Saviour Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee and power to save thee John 19. being strengthened with an Holy Confidence Let us answer him as our Saviour Thou shouldest not have that power over me were it not given to thee from above Without the leave and pleasure of my God thou canst not take from me an Hair of my Head We read in the Book of Judges that when Abimelech assaulted the Tower of Thebez with a resolution to win it upon a suddain a Woman cast from the top a piece of a Milstone that fell upon his Head and broke his Scull Judg. 9. If we look only upon the second Causes this accident may appear to be strange and unexpected but we must lift up our Eyes to the Almighty hand of an al-seeing Power and Wisdom far more dextrous than that of this poor Woman for the same Relation declares That God by this means brought to pass Jotham's Prophecy and rendred the wickedness of Abimelech which he did unto his Father in slaying the seventy Brethren with his merciless hand upon his own guilty head Ahab King of Israel was disguised with a designe to fight with the Syrians 1 Kings 22. An unknown Soldier le ts fly by chance an Arrow out of his Bow which struck him in the weakest part of his Armor wounded him to death and the Dogs lickt the Blood that gushed out of his Wounds At this sight a carnal and an earthly Mind will say That this was but a mischance of War an unfortunate accident But the Spirit of God informs us better that this happen'd to fulfil the Prophecy of Elias and the dreadful threatnings which he had pronounced against this wicked Prince who labor'd by Tyrannical and devilish attempts to invade other mens Possessions Thus saith the Lord in the place where Dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall Dogs lick thy blood even thine 1 Kings 21. When we cast our eyes upon the Tragical death of Josias King of Juda at the first sight it appears but the effect of the boiling fury of Youth which carried him against all reason obstinately to fight with Pharaoh Neco King of Egypt or of the strength and swiftness of his Enemies according to the complaint of Jeremiah the Prophet Our persecutors are swifter than the Eagles of the Heaven they pursued us upon the Mountains they laid wait for us in the Wilderness The breath of our Nostrils the anointed of the Lord was taken in their pits of whom we said under his shadow we will live among the Hâ—â—then Lam. 4. But to understand the Truth we must enter farther into the Sanctuary and adore the wisdom of Gods Decree that had resolved to take away this good and religious Prince into his Eternal Rest and bestow upon him a more noble and a richer Crown before he took in hand the sword of his vengeance to punish the people of Israel for the many Idolatries and horrid Crimes of which they had been guilty By this means God fulfilled the Prophecy of Husda Behold I will gather thee unto thy Fathers and thou shalt be gathered into thy Grave in peace and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place 2 Kings 22. When we look upon the Death and Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ we may imagine at the first view that only the Pharisees envy Judas's Treason the mutiny of the rude Rabble Pilates Injustice Herods Jests and the cruelty of the Roman Soldiery were the causes of his Tragedy but the Holy Apostles Peter and John unto whom our Saviour had discover'd the rarest secrets of his Wisdom consider these outward Agents but as the Instruments to bring Gods great designe Mans redemption to pass Therefore they speak of it in this manner in the fourth of the Acts Against thine Holy Child Jesus whom thou hast anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people
Saints and of thy blessed and Glorious Angels Amen A Prayer and Meditation upon the manner of our Death O God the Creator of all flesh and Father of the immortal Spirits I know that all manner of Deaths of thy Children are precious in thy sight and that howsoever they shall happen thou wilt take care of my Soul when I consider all things I sind that it matters not whether my Soul gets out by my Lips or by a wound so that it enters into thy Glory to enjoy thine Eternal Happiness What difference is there if my Lamp goes out of its own accord or if it be blown out by some envious blast so that it be lighted again by the immortal beams of the Son of Righteousness and continuâ— for ever Glorious in the highest Heavens I shall be sufficiently happy if I dye in the Lord and enter into mine Eternal Rest from all my Labors in what manner soever Death assaults me from all Eternity O Lord thou knowest all thy works and with a glance of thine Eye thou discoverest the depths and seest the bottom of Eternity As thou hast marked out and appointed the moment of my death thou hast also ordained the manner of it I must O Almighty God repose my self upon this wonderful and wise Providence and be contented with thy uncontroulable Decrees but O my God and Heavenly Father if thou wilt give me the liberty who am but Dust and Ashes to speak unto thee and to send up the thoughts of my Heart I beseech thee to be so Gracious as to let me know my end that I may not be surprised on a sudden by an unexpected death as Job's Children and so merciful as to give me timely notice of my departure as thou didst to thy servant Hezekiah I desire not the notice of many years but of a few days or at least of a few hours immediately before that my Soul may not be disturb'd with evil thoughts nor frighted with false conceits and malicious suggestions of the Devil but that I may end my days with all tranquility and satisfaction of mind that I may always have a perfect use of my sences of my reason and understanding and a certain perswasion of thy Grace and Favor that I may glorify thy name and edify my acquaintances until the last moment of my departure Suffer not therefore my Soul to be snatch'd away by force on a suddain but that I may have time to commit it into thy merciful hands Amen A Prayer and Meditation for one that dies in a strange Countrey in the midst of Infidels O My God and Heavenly Father how painful and grievous is this trial who can express the troubles of my mind at the moment of my most urgent necessity and of all the troubles of my mind at the time of my Agony I see my self destitute of all humane assistance Here I am at a distance not only from my natural soil and fare from the pleasant company of my friends and deprived of all spiritual Comfort of which I have at present greatest need in my extremity but also to my unspeakable grief here I am in a barbarous Countrey in the hands of my most inhumane and unreconcileable Enemies I have no body to comfort and rejoyce me nor to strengthen me in the faith of my Saviour Christ all things that appear before me do increase and add to my trouble I am here among the Enemies of the Truth who labour to destroy my interest in Christ and to cause me to perish now that I am entering into the Haven of Eternity I must encounter with Death with Hell it self and with the subtle insinuations of the infernal Spirits O Almighty and merciful Lord suffer me not to lose courage and to yield to the present temptations By thy wonderful Providence and out of the Treasuries of thy Mercy supply all my wants and infirmities and grant that I may with the Shield of faith quench all the siery Dorts of the Devil I am beset with many visible and invisible Enemies but they that are for me are more in number then they that are against me It is true I am far from my Native Countrey but I am not one jott farther from Heaven whereof the Earth is the Center I am at a distance from all my Earthly friends but nothing can put me at a distance from thee O good God who lovest me with an unchangeable affection I am in the imbraces of mine Heavenly Father and of my God I have not the comfort of a Minister to assist and help me in my grief and pain but I know that thou wilt send to me thine Holy Angels as once to thy beloved Son in his bitter Agony These Angels shall protect me against all the power of the Prince of darkness Thou wilt administer unto me thy self the sweet comforts of thy Salvation thy Rod and thy Staff will assist me in this Valley and Shadow of Death O Lord thou dost things that are not to be searched out and so many wonders thot it is not possible to number them Thy Grace is sufficient for me and thy power is made manifest in mine infirmities thine Holy Spirit who is the true comforter and the great Power of the Almighty shall refresh me in these my afflictions and in all things shall made me more than Conqueror Thou art stronger than all other beings so that I am perswaded nothing can ravish me out of thine hands I am certain that neither Death nor Life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers nor things present nor things to come nor heighth nor depth nor any other creature can separate me from the love that thou hast declared to me in Jesus Christ my Lord This precious faith with which thou hast enabled my Soul shall vanquish the World triumph over Hell and destroy Death in its own Empire Amen A Prayer and Meditation upon the death of a beloved Person O My God I acknowledge that there is nothing certain nor unchangeable on Earth but thy precious and Holy Promises therefore it becomes us to enjoy the things of the World as not enjoying them Thou hast snatch'd out of my embraces and pull'd from my bosom my greatest Darling and most intimate friend by this means thou hast open'd my Heart and torn my Bowels thou hast separated me from my self so that my life is but a burden and a pain to me I did often look upon this pleasant object of my love as a gift from above and a mark of thy favour and liberality It was my greatest joy and my seetest comfort The day that it took away loaded me with sorrows and overwhelmed me in a Sea of grief That which doth most disturb me is That I am afraid that this is a streak and an effect of thine anger and justice Lord my God I must needs acknowledge that I have grievously offended thee seeing thou dost thus chastise me with so much severity and makest me to feel so sharp
to grant us the blessed disposition of St. Paul that we may be able to speak as he did I have learn'd to be content in whatsoever estate I am I know both how to be abased and I know how to abound every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry both to abound and to suffer need I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me Phil. 4. Remember Christian Souls to settle your Treasure in Heaven where neither the Moth nor Rust can corrupt and where Thieves cannot break through and steal Labor to be rich in Faith and in good Works that you may inherit the Kingdom that God hath promised to them that love him 7. But if it hath pleased God to bless thy labors and if his powerful and liberal hand hath raised thee up to great Honor so that thou enjoyest Riches in abundance thou must remember to possess them in such a manner that they may not enslave thee and according to St. Paul's advice thou must remember to enjoy them as if thou enjoyest them not and that the fashion of this World passeth away we must not trust upon them nor pride in them we ought to glory in something else as God himself exhorts us Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom nor the strong of his strength Let not the rich man glory in his Riches but he that glories let him glory in that he hath understanding and knows me Jer. 9. 8. We must not only take off our hearts and affections from the world and its vanities trample upon them and esteem them like Dung in comparison of the unspeakable Treasures of Heaven but we must also be ready to leave them at every moment as so many trifles vain and perishable things as we are to possess them without displeasure and fear so we must part with them without grief and murmuring When we should loose in a day all that God hath bestowed upon us in the world it becomes us to strengthen our selves with an Holy confidence and resolution saying with Job The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord Job 1. 9. If we happen to part with our Goods Honors and Dignities in the service of God and for the profession of Christs Gospel in such a case we ought to endure the loss with a Christian patience and an excessive joy because that such a loss for a just cause will prove at last to our advantage and glory This was the practice of the faithful Hebrews of whom St. Paul renders this testimony You have received with joy the spoiling of your Goods knowing that you have in Heaven a better and a more lasting inheritance Heb. 10. Christian Souls represent unto your selves the example of the Prophet Moses who esteem'd the reproach of Christ greater riches than the Treasures of Egypt for he had a respect unto the recompense of the reward Heb. 11. 10. Whilst we enjoy our Goods we must take care of the poor and be bountiful in Alms and to speak in St. Paul's language Whilst we have any time let us do good especially to the houshold of faith Gal. 6. Whoever hath compassion of the poor makes God his debter he will assuredly return him his good Deed Prov. 19. Our Saviour promiseth to recompense a Cup of cold water that shall be given to the meanest of such as believe in his name Matt. 10. Alms is a Seed that is cast upon Earth but its Flowers and most excellent Fruits are to be gather'd in Heaven He that sows liberally shall reap liberally It is not therefore as that other Seed mentioned Psal 126. That they that sow in Tears shall reap with Songs of Triumph 2 Cor. 9. For whosoever bestows his Alms sparingly and unwillingly he shall be Treated in the same manner as him that refuseth to part with it therefore St. Paul declares When I should give all my Goods to nourish the poor if I have no Charity I am nothing 2 Cor. 13. God loves a chearful Giver and delights in such Sacrifices 2 Cor. 9. Remember therefore Christians that God shall judge you at the last day not by your Learning Knowledge Riches or Dignities and Honors of this life but by your Alms Deeds and acts of Charity and Hospitality and by the distributing of your Goods to the necessities of the Saints Make to your selves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousness that when you fail they may receive you into the everlasting Habitations Matt. 25. Rom. 12. Luke 16. That upon your Tomb one may justly engrave He hath scattered he hath given to the poor his Righteousness that is his Charity and Alms-deeds remain for ever Psal 112. 11. Finally we must not only take off our Heart and Affections from the Riches Honors and Vanities of this World but we must also deny our selves tame and overcome our passions and crucify our Flesh with its Lusts Therefore our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ calls upon us from Heaven He that will follow me let him deny himself take up his Cross daily and come after me Matt. 10. That we may be able to imprint this good Lesson in our minds we should seriously consider in the first place that we are but strangers and pilgrims in this world and that we have no lasting City Heb. 13. The Houses that God grants to us are no perpetual Dwellings but only Inns for our present accommodation This was the frequent consideration of the great Patriarchs Abraham Isaack and Jacob who saw the promises afar off believed and embraced them for St. Paul informs us that they did ingeniously profess that they were no better than strangers and pilgrims upon earth and that their intention was to march forwards to their Celestial Countrey This was Jacobs language when he appeared before Pharaoh The days of my pilgrimage have been short and evil they have not attain'd to the years of the life of my Fathers and of the time of their pilgrimage Heb. 12. Gen. 47. And not only the antient Patriarchs who never had any other possessions in the world than a Tomb or some small piece of ground have acknowledg'd themselves to be strangers and pilgrims but Princes and Kings also whom God hath sanctified by his Holy Spirit have freely confess'd the same for David declares not in the time of his banishment nor of his flight nor in his calamities and misery but in his most flourishing Estate and in the midst of his Triumphs Glory Plenty and Prosperity he declares unto God I am a stranger and a forreigner with thee as all my Fathers were Psal 39. 119. And when he speaks not only of himself but also of the rest of God's Children that are upon Earth he makes no difficulty to confess We are strangers and forreigners with thee as all our Fathers were and our days are as a shadow upon Earth that have no stop 1 Chron. 29. Rich and Poor Masters and
midst of them St. Thomas who was not with the Apostles when Christ first appeared amongst them lost the comfort then of seeing him risen from the dead And if this merciful Redeemer had not had compassion of him he had perish'd in his unbelief for ever If upon the day of Penticost any of the faithful had been found absent from the Holy company of the Faithful in Jerusalem they had not seen the Glorious appearance of the Holy Ghost who knows but in a Sermon that we have neglected we have lost some pious advice some seasonable exhortation by which God might have brought our hearts to repentance Who knows but instead of that Fire that devours us we might have felt the Holy Flames kindled in us like unto those Flames of the burning Bush that would burn in us and not consume us Who knows but at the breaking up of the Assembly we might have said as the two Disciples of Christ going to Emaus Did not our heart burn within us when he spoke to us and opened the Scriptures 68. We must be fervent zealous and persevering in Prayers and other Holy Duties and embrace our Lord and Saviour with the Arms of Faith and Repentance and say unto him as Jacob I shall not leave thee until thou hast blessed me especially we ought to apply our selves to these blessed exercises when we feel the inward and troblesome struglings of the Flesh against the Spirit we must imitate that Holy and vertuous Woman who feeling two Children stirring in her Womb fell to her Prayers and unburdened her sorrows in the bosome of our Heavenly Father And as St. Peter when he began to sink lifted up his Hands in Prayer saying Lord save me Matth. 14. Likewise we who walk upon this dangerous Sea of the World assoon as we feel our selves sinking into the Delights of the World or assoon as the Waves of vicious examples and dangerous customs do hurry us away Let us cry out from the bottom of our Hearts O merciful God stretch out thine hand from above and deliver me from these Waters of Hell that carry me away accomplish thy vertue in mine infirmities and give me Grace in resisting against sin to resist unto Blood Psal 69. Heb. 50. 2 Cor. 22. Let thine Holy Spirit overcome mine let Heaven command the Earth and let Paradise lead Hell in Triumph If we make this Petition with all our Hearts God will grant it from his Holy Sanctuary He will extinguish the Fire that burns us He will shut the Lions mouth that intends to devour us He will appease the Winds and the Storms that the Devils have raised in us and at his first entrance into our Ship tost up and down with fears and apprehensions he will bring Peace and a blessed tranquility and will lead us to the safe Haven of Eternal Happiness as the Prophet Moses when he had been familiar with God came down from the Mountain with a shining countenance and as our Saviour when he was in Prayer upon Mount Tabor was transfigured his Garments were white as the Light and his Face appeared as glorious as the Sun Likewise if we lift up our selves above all these earthly and corruptible things and pray unto God with an Holy Earnestness and Zeal we shall see that our Souls shall be thereby cloathed with Holiness and full of Glory and Light they will be transformed into the blessed Image of the great God whom we adore for as soon as we behold him we become enlightened 69. To the end that we may tame this Body and reduce it to obedience and to overcome all our wicked and dangerous Lusts Psal 69 34. It is necessary that we should joyn Fasting to our Prayers we must not always expect a time appointed by the Rulers of our Church upon solemn accasions but we must order unto our selves a Fast according as we shall see it expedient and useful for if this Flesh is unruly it is rebellious against God and his Holy Commandements if because it is fed in Ease and Plenty it is Lustful Impure and Insolent Let us cut off from it all its dainties and labor to mortify it by Fastings and Abstinence and remember what our Saviour Christ saith in the Gospel That there are some evil spirits that are not to be driven out but by Fasting and Prayer Matth. 27. 70. If God gives us the Grace to overcome Sin and weaken our Lusts by fervent and earnest Prayers and by austere Fasting and hot tears of Repentance and by the assistance of his Divine Spirit that will pour his Blessings upon our Devotions take heed that we become not careless and negligent in good Works deceive not your selves Religious Souls and be not surprized for many times the old Man looks as if he were dead that we might not offer to strike him again to the Heart and give him the last blow that he may recover more strength there is always in the Ashes something of that infernal Fire that is able to do much mischief Lust is not rooted out so perfectly but that there remains some strings in our Hearts that may grow again This source of Iniquity is not so dry but that it may run afresh As it is during the time of Peace Men exercise themselves in feats of Arms and prepare new Armor for the War Likewise during the calm and rest of our Souls we must prepare some Armor for our Spiritual Warfare And as it is not sufficient to win a place by Assault and to have driven out the Enemies Forces but we must also watch day and night and keep a constant and a strong Guard that we may not be surprized and driven out again Thus when we have forced out the Devil and banish'd him out of our Hearts we must be always upon our Guard and stop all the Avenues for fear that this evil Spirit should come upon us accompanied with seven worse Spirits and that our last condition should be worse than the first 71. To these Works of Piety and Devotion in which we cannot be always employed we must remember to add a lawful Calling for Idleness is the Mother of all Vices when we are doing nothing the Devil prompts us to evil this happened to David a man after God's own heart for when he gave himself over contrary to his former practice to an unworthy idleness whilst he was looking into his neighbors House the Devil entred into his Heart and by the assistance of a lustful Object inflamed his Soul with an unlawful desire as the Iron that is not us'd becomes Rusty as the standing Water putrifies and as the Earth that is not manur'd begets insects and venemous Serpentss Likewise a Soul that is not employed is soon cover'd over with the rust of Vice It is easily drag'd along into the corruption of the age and apt to beget and bring forth Monsters therefore the Prophet Ezekiel examines the very beginning and first spring of Solomon's Sin saying That it was
the plenty of Bread Ease and Idleness Ezek. 16. Christians if you desire to keep your Souls pure and undefiled that the Holy Spirit may Reign in them give no entertainment to the Devil let him find you always well employed and let him never see you at leasure to assault you with his hellish temptations Eph. 4. 72. After all we must seriously think upon death and represent it always before our Eyes for as a Pilate that will govern and steer the course of this life as we ought we must consider our latter end live always as if we were ready to dye and to breath forth the last gasp therefore this Sentence is worthy to be Engraven upon Cedar in Golden Characters What ever thou sayest or what ever thou doest remember thy latter end and thou shalt never sin Eccl. 7. Wonder not Christian Souls if in this Treatise where I am to furnish you with Remedies against the fears of Death I would have death it self to be a Remedy against Sin for these things are united and linked together or rather they hold one another by the hand for as a good and Holy Life is a safe preparation to an happy Death Likewise Death is a strong motive to oblige us to live well for there is none unless it be a brutish and a furious Varlot but at the hour of Death laments at the consideration of his former wicked Life and grieves that he hath not applyed himself to the fear of God and to the practice of Christian Vertues If a Malefactor after that he is condemn'd to dye and hath heard the Sentence of his doom did mind nothing but drinking and playing and neglect Prayer and Repentance by which such an one is to dispose himself to go to God every one would wonder at him as at a Monster and a Madman likewise if we consider as we ought that Death is certain and unavoidable and that God hath pronounced the Sentence in his anger and that not one shall be excepted this will be able to withdraw us from Vice and to perswade us to Holiness without which none shall see God Heb. 12. Therefore at every moment when Satan the World our own Flesh shall solicite us to any evil action let us think within our selves would I have death find and seize upon me in this employment Am I in a good disposition to go thus unto my God and to appear before his Tribunal Jesus the Son of Syrac had well consider'd this when he pronounc'd this excellent Sentence which I could wish were engraven in the Soul of every Christian Remember thy latter end and thou shalt not sin We must therefore live in the World without being guilty of its corruptions and abominations As the Fish preserves its sweetness in the midst of the Salt Waves of the Sea and as the Sheep never learn to bark nor to bite although they be always with Dogs Likewise although our conversation be in the World amongst the prophane and vicious Men of this Age we must not imitate their filthy Words their Oaths their Blasphemies and less Reason have we to follow their wicked and abominable Deeds we must live among them as Lot lived in the City of Sodom as Joseph in Aegypt as Daniel in Babylon Blessed and Holy is he who hath part in the first Resurrection the second Death shall have no power upon him When Jacob by God's Command went to Bethel he Commanded his Wives his Children and all that were with him Put away the strange Gods that are among you and be clean and change your Garments and let us arise and go up to Bethel Gen. 33. And I will make there an Altar unto God who answered me in the day of my distress and was with me in the way which I went Then they delivered into Jacob's hands all the strange Gods that were in their possession and he hid them under an Oak in Sechem Thus before we go to the true Bethel to the dwelling where we shall eat our fill of the Bread of the Kingdom of Heaven Before you offer unto God the Sacrifice of your Souls you must if you be true Christians renounce Sin and all wicked Lusts which have been formerly your Idols I shall desire of you willingly that you would bury them deep in this base Earth but you had better do as God Commands you from Heaven Trample under foot all these abominable Vices and all these worldly Lusts that are to you as so many false Gods that you worship Ezek. Put away from before me these Idols of jealousie that provoke me to jealousie and sanctify this Temple of my Holiness Cleanse your hands ye Sinners and fanctify your selves ye double-minded put off the Old man with all his Deeds and put on the New man created according to the Image of God Righteousness and true Holiness and then you shall be admitted to the Holy Temple of my Glory to offer unto me in the innumerable Companies of Saints the acceptable perfume of Praises and Thansgivings Jam. 4. Eph. 4. This is a Duty so just and necessary that natural reason it self enlightned by Grace acknowledges it to be so nay the most wretched Varlets are constrain'd to give Glory to God and to condemn themselves they confess that they are indebted to the Divine Majesty but the payment of this debt they put off from day to day and when ever you come to them they are ready to demand a delay they acknowledge their faults the hainousness of their Crimes and the necessity of Repentance but they are always putting off Repentance and Reformation of life As when a sluggard is newly awak'd out of his sleep he desires yet a little sleep a little slumber a little folding of the hands to sleep Prov. 24. Thus when ever Death appears the Voluptuous are yet requesting to enjoy their carnal Delights when the Lords Messengers are calling upon us to repair the breaches that the Devil hath made in our Souls we could willingly answer as the Jews did to the Prophet That the time is not come that the Lord's house should be built Hag. 1. The young man in his Youth and Strength is apt to say that it is not yet time to busy himself about Wisdom and Reformation and that when he comes to be old he will then repent of the sins of his Youth and the old man he endeavours to put his Repentance until the hour of his departure He expects to make then a general confession of all his crimes to satisfy all his neighbors and to restore what he possesseth so unjustly In short all Men in general do flatter themselves in their evil courses and most are so extravagant as to be perswaded that when they have lived in sin and iniquity all their life mispent God's Blessings abused his Mercies a Tear or a Sigh at the time of our Death will make a sufficient amends for all and that he will be fully satisfied if we say then as the
vain that they did beat at the gate with a Lord Lord open unto us Matt. 25. The door could not be open'd to them but it was answered from within Verily I say unto you I know you not I know that the chief and principal purpose of this and other Parables is to teach us how we should be prepar'd to expect the Glorious coming of our Lord Jesus Christ but they may very well be applied unto Death for it hath pleased God to keep secret and hidden the day in the which he will call us to himself and that of our Saviours coming to judgment that we may be equally prepar'd and dispos'd for the one as well as for the other As we shall be found at the time of our death so shall we be judged at the great day when Christ shall come down from Heaven with the Angels of his Power and from that judgement there shall be no Appeal Let us therefore put off the Sin that doth so easily beset us and break all the Chains of our filthy Lusts Let us disarm death and take from it its venemous Darts and its piercing stings Let us pluck off the Claws and the Teeth of this furious Beast and extinguish all its fires and it shall never be able to terrify us Let us live the life of Saints and God will give us grace to dye the death of the Righteous and to end like unto them Let us live as we would that we had lived at that instant when Death is upon our Lips Let us live as if at every moment we were to dy and at every hour God did call unto us from his Heaven Come and appear to Judgement And when Satan the World and our own Flesh solicite and draw us to evil let us say within our selves Is it thus that thou wilt reward the Lord thy God and acknowledge all the Blessings and Favors that thou hast received from his bountiful hand O Fool dost thou conceive that thou canst go to Heaven by marching in the Read to Hell If thou dost wilfully cast thy self away into the depths of sin what assurâ—nâ—â—â—ast thou of rising again by Repentance If 〈◊〉 â—orsakest God art not thou afraid God will forsake thee Is it thus that thou preparest thy self to dye Are these Lusts the Arms with which thou must encounter Death Art thou ready to draw near to the Sacred Majesty of thy God and to appear before his great Tribunal The night is far spent the day is at hand Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the Armor of Light Rom. 16. Let us live as Children of God and Heirs of his Kingdom Phil. 3. Let us be blameless and shine as Lights in the World Let our conversation be as Citizens of Heaven from whence we expect the Lord Jesus Eph. 2. Let us go to the Holy and Heavenly Jerusalem by the way of good Works which God hath prepared that we might walk in them Zach. 13. In all our Actions Words and Thoughts let there be engraven Holiness to the Lord. Let us declare by our Deeds that we really believe without doubting whatsoever the Holy Scripture declares of the Eternal pains of Hell and of the unspeakable joys of Heaven Gal. 6. Whilst we have time let us do good to all but chiefly to the Houshold of Faith Eph. 5. Let us redeem the time for the days are evil Doe not as Adam did who to eat of the forbidden Fruit so pleasing to his taste lost the Paradise which God had given him Let us not loose the Eternal Delights that God hath prepared for us from the beginning of the World for a moment of carnal pleasure Let us imitate the Holy and Wise Virgins put Oil in our Lamps betimes let us fill up our Hearts with Faith Hope and Charity and put on the Robes of Righteousness and Holiness As God's faithful Servants Let us labor to accomplish our Taske Let us be stedfast unmoveable always abounding in the work of the Lord that when Death shall appear or rather when the Prince of Life shall call us to himself we may be ready to give him an exact account of our Talents with which he hath intrusted us and that we may say unto him in sincerity and truth I have done the work that thou hast given me I have fought the good fight I have finished my course I have kept the faith O most excellent Lord I have nothing else to do but to receive from thy hand the Crown of Righteousness which thou hast promised to all that love thine appearance I have nothing else to do but to enter into thy Glorious Rest where thou dost embrace in thine infinite Mercies all such as have overcome Sin and Death and kept thy Works unto the end A Prayer and Meditation for him that prepares for Death by Repentance and an Holy Life O God the Holy of Holies who art Holiness it self Sin hath introduc'd Death into the World and rendred this our Enemy so terrible Strengthen me with thy Divine Vertue that I may be able to take from it betimes its mortal Weapons and its fiery Darts and that strength and poison which is so natural to it Seeing that since the Creation of the World thou hast prepared thine Heavenly Kingdom for me give me Grace to employ the remainder of my life to purge my Conscience from dead Works and to sanctify my Body and Soul that I may be in an Estate convenient for such an Holy Abode into which no impure nor defiled thing shall enter that I may be in a disposition fit to behold thy Glorious Face that cannot be seen without Holiness O Heavenly Father enlighten mine understanding with the light of thine Holy Spirit that proceeds from thee that I may discover the ugliness of sin and its dangerous consequences that I may abhor and abominate it with all mine heart that I may look upon it as an infernal Monster and as Satans Image as a grievous filth which hath disfigured the Master-piece of thine hands and blotted out of our Souls the chief features of thy Divine Image Give me grace to esteem it as that cursed Fire that hath kindled thy wrath set the whole world in a flame as that unfufferable burden under which Nature it self sighs and groans and under which Heaven it self complains as the murderer of our first Parents and of all Mankind in general as the Executioner that crucified the Lord of Glory and spilt his precious Bloud In short give me grace to treat it as our most unreconcileable enemy that provoketh thy vengeance and that labors to cast us headlong into the Abysse of Eternal Torments O Father of Mercies give me grace to perceive all the Beauties of Holiness and the Glory that shall reward it that I may be enflamed with its love and embrace it with all the affections of my Soul that I may look upon it as the the off-spring of Heaven as an image of
Death an affliction Must I abandon my dear Children whom I love as my Soul without guide and in danger of loosing the small temporal means that I have provided for them in danger also of being overcome by the vicious customs of the age and inticed to Idolatry and Superstition That we may be able to govern this violent passion that prevails so much upon our minds we must labor betimes to bring our selves to this That we may rest upon the good Providence of our Heavenly Father Christian Souls meditate upon this excellent saying in the 37 Psalm Leave thy ways to the Lord and trust in him and he will direct thee And in the 59 Psal Cast thy burden upon the Lord and he will sustain thee Forget not also that blessed exhortation of St. Peter Cast all your cares upon God for he careth for you Imprint also in your minds St. Paul's assertion All things work together for good to them that love God Remember the noble resolution of this great Apostle According to my earnest expectation and my hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed but that with all boldness as always so now also Christ shall be magnified in my Body whether it be by life or by death Thou desirest to be instrumental in the service of God and of the Publick it is an excellent desire indeed and praise worthy but it belongs to God to appoint the service that he intends to receive from thee it belongs to him to prescribe unto thee thy task and to order thy bounds he knows when he is to release thee from thy labor and how long thou must fight Is thine eye evil because thy God is so good and gracious as to shorten thy work and troubles All such as follow chearfully the Banners of the God of Hosts and never retreat without the Command of the great General of Heaven and Earth shall enjoy a blessed victory and obtain the honor of the Triumph as well the Novice and the fresh Soldier as the old and long experienced All such as labor faithfully in the Lord's Vineyard shall receive from him an eternal Reward as well he that continues but an hour as the other that bear the heat and burden of the day When thou shouldest have gone but a few steps in the paths of Righteousness thy God is so noble and liberal that he will bestow upon thee an uncorruptible Crown of Glory as well as if thou hadst continued there many years Great Princes that yield unto the King of Kings a Religious Respect and that seek your greatest Glory in the Cross of Christ submit your selves altogether to the pleasure of your universal Monarch for seeing the Lives of all Men are governed by his wise Providence he hath a particular regard and an high esteem of the Lives of Kings and Princes the Sons of his right hand Therefore whilst it is expedient for his Glory and their Salvation that they should live upon Earth he placeth round about their Sacred Persons his Holy Angels and encompasseth them with a wall of Fire Remember that as soon as the King of Israel was seated upon the Throne God commanded him to take in hand the Book of his Law and to read in it all the days of his life Ask from him that Wisdom and Prudence that is requisite to govern such multitudes of People and beseech him to grant unto you the strength and virtue that is necessary to bear so great a burden Let the Sword that he hath intrusted in your hands be to do justice upon Offenders and to protect the Guiltless As you are living Images of God's Soveraign Authority over his Creatures Remember that you should also represent his Goodness and Mercy follow the example of him who resists the Proud but gives grace to the Humble Live in such a manner that your Subjects may cherish and honor you as their common Father may obey and serve you as their Lord and may respect and fear you as their King Suffer not your Heart to be puft up with pride when you behold the large Dominions that God hath put under your Command and the People that own you for their Soveraign But lift up your eyes to the spacious Heavens take a view of their vast Extent and see how the whole Earth is inconsiderable in comparison of them and think upon God before whom all Nations are but as the smallest dust of a Ballance and as a few drops of Water Consider well that your Subjects are Creatures that God hath made after his own likeness and redeemed by the death of his Son and that they are to Reign with you for ever in Heaven Remember that the more God hath committed to your Trust the greater must be your reckoning and that you must one day appear in person before his dreadful Throne without Scepter or Crown as so many wretched Sinners to implore his Mercy Search into your selves and examine what you are your Bodies are subject to wounds infirmities and diseases as that of the meanest of your servants Your Souls also are moved with the same Passions and Lusts as theirs In short you are entered into the World in the same manner as the most miserable Slave and you shall go out of it again as he doth so that if a crowd of flatterers sooth you up as they did Herod A voice of God and not of Man Acts 12. Mind well what God speaks to you from Heaven I have said that ye are Gods and the Children of the most high nevertheless you shall dye as Men and you that are the chiefest shall fall as the rest Psal 72. During the time of your abode in the World employ your Blood Sweat and all the Strength and Power that God hath put into your hands for the good and advantage of your States and for the defence and preservation of the people that shelter themselves under your wings And if in the midst of your greatest and most flourishing Prosperities Death comes to give you a summons to depart let fall the Scepter willingly to joyn your hands together and to fall down and adore the King of the whole Earth Grieve not for the loss of worldly Glory that passeth away as a Lightning or as a shadow for God promiseth another that shall be more lasting than the light of the Sun If you can but overcome Death and your selves God will cause you to sit down upon another Throne and will bestow upon you a Kingdom that shall never be moved Revel 3. Heb. 12. Wise and Religious Princes be not solicitous for the things that shall happen after your decease He by whom Kings Reign and Princes do Justice is able enough to enrich your Successor with the Graces and Qualities that become a powerful Prince It may be that he will bestow upon him more Glory and Happiness than upon you When King David had ended his mortal Race God took him into his Rest it seems at first that the loss of so
Armies I speak not unto you prophane Atheists that laugh at the most Holy things and that are of opinion that all fear of God must be banished out of your Troops and Companies and that the most wretched Varlets are the best Soldiers but I speak to you Christian and Religious Commanders who forget not by your promotion amongst Men that you are nevertheless the Soldiers of Jesus Christ and although you wear at your side a material Sword forget not to employ also the sword of the Spirit the word of God that dwels in your hearts Neither do I intend to speak to you who manage War with an intent only to satisfy your Revenge your Ambition or your Covetousness but I speak to you brave and worthy Captains who have purified your weapons in an Heavenly Fire who undertake War only to procure a more lasting Peace to the publick and who fight only to serve your Prince and Countrey you that are the great bulwarks of States and Empires by whose labors and watchings Men sleep in security Let the whole World see by experience in your persons that there is nothing that agrees better with true generosity than Piety and the fear of God behave your selves always as in the sight of your Maker who is at your Elbows and accompanies you in all your actions Remember that he commanded to remove all filth from the Camp of Israel because of his Holy and Divine Presence If you will obtain his Blessing upon your persons and designes cast out of your Armies the filth of Vice and Punish without Mercy the Rapes Burnings all Impiety and Blasphemies make your Soldiers put in practice St. John the Baptist's most excellent advice to the Soldiers of his time who enquired what they were to do to be be saved Do violence said he to no man neither accuse any falsly and be content with your wages Live as Lambs and fight as Lions Spare as much as you can the bloud of your Soldiers and shed not that of your Enemies but against your Wills because they are God's Creatures and Men that bear his Image Never trust to your own valor and experience but remember that it is God who gives Courage and strengthens the hands in the day of Battel who causeth Fear and Terror to fly whither he listeth Look always upon David's example There was never a Captain more couragious nor more willing to venture his life and yet there was never a person more zealous in Prayer to God nor more submissive to his Will nor more careful to return unto him the praise of all his advantages and if Death comes to put a stop to your victories or to call you away in a trice in which your Prudence and Courage is requisite wonder not at it consider that God offers you by this means an occasion of a more Glorious Victory and of a more Magnificent Triumph for the victory over thousands of Mortal Men and of the whole World is nothing in comparison of a victory over Death and Hell Inquire not who shall succeed you in the Conduct of your Army out of a distrust of God's good providence for he who is able to raise up Children unto Abraham out of Stones can raise up also from thence Captains and Soldiers when he pleaseth to give a check to the Enemies pride and to deliver his People from their hands he can make Gideons Jephtha's Sampsons and such like extraordinary Commanders Who knows but that he will cause a General to succeed you that shall have more Courage and Generosity and that shall be blessed with a greater Happiness and more Glorious Successes When Moses departed to his Rest Joshua Commanded in his stead and for that purpose God enabled him with a noble Spirit of Wisdom and Courage for one Enemy that Moses overcame Joshua destroyed thousands whereas Moses did but coast along the Land of Canaan and turn up and down in the Wilderness Joshua brought the People of Israel into that pleasant Countrey and into a peaceable possession of it Seeing therefore that it is God's pleasure leave to others the care of worldly Wars and ye go to gather the pleasant and delicious Fruits of an Eternal Peace which hath been purchased unto you by the Bloud of Christ Likewise ye faithful Ministers of Jesus Christ remember to shew the example of a resignation to God's good pleasure according to your Doctrine Let not Death cause you to draw back thou hast my Brother a Will to Glorify God on Earth well but thou shalt Glorify him better in Heaven with more zeal and less hindrance whilst thou art surrounded and fetter'd with these Fetters of Mortality thy Ministry must needs be accompanied with many imperfections Thou imaginest that if it pleased God to prolong thy days thou mayest be instrumental in the reformation of the World but thou art mistaken My Brother for this World is accustom'd to Evil and this Age is hardened in Iniquity Preach as much as thou wilt to the Inhabitants of this inferior World it shall be as in the times of Noah the Herald of Righteousness when the patience of God waited for the conversion of Sinners for the whole Earth hath corrupted its ways so that all the thoughts and imaginations of the Heart of Man are evil continually from his Cradle they are corrupt and filthy And if God doth not interpose his Almighty Hand and declare in us the Virtue of his Holy Spirit our thoughts will grow worse and worse until we tumble into our Graves If thou afflict never so much thy just and innocent Soul and spend thy self in exhorting the greatest Sinners to fly from the wrath to come and the judgements of God that hang over their guilty Heads it may be thou shalt be mocked by thy nearest Relations as Lot was by his Sons-in-law When thou wouldest thunder out the threatenings of God's Law against the abominations of Israel as the Prophet Isaiah did once thou shouldest be forced at last to confess I have labour'd in vain I have employed my strength for nought Isai 49. Jer. 6. When thine Eyes should be converted into a fresh Spring of Tears and when thou shouldest spend the days and the nights in calling upon the Superstitious the Schismaticks and Idolaters to forsake their false worship and their unchristian proceedings thou shalt not be able to soften the hardness of their Hearts nor overcome their obstinacy but they will be ready to speak to thee in the Jews language to Jeremiah As for the word that thou hast spoken to us in the name of the Lord we will not hearken unto thee but we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouths to burn incense unto the Queen of Heaven and to pour out Drink-offerings unto her as we have done we and our Fathers our Kings and our Princes in the Cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem for then had we plenty of Victuals and were well and saw no evil Jer. 44.
him from their Mothers womb Our Lord Jesus Christ when he was on Earth took up in his Arms the little Children that were brought unto him laid his hands upon them and recommended them to God his Father and now that he is in Glory his Love and tender compassion for them is no less Therefore if we offer him our Children with all our hearts he will take them into his protection he will stretch over them the Arms of his Mercy and will never take them away again In short seeing that he promiseth to them the Kingdom of Heaven and his Eternal Felicities he will never with-hold from them things needful for this present life We can do nothing without God but God can do all things without us A great many Children become debauch'd and are spoil'd in their Parents over-fond tuition wherecas many that are out of their sight and that live when they are departed shew good examples of Piety and Godliness for example in Isaack's House in the presence of this Holy Man there was a prophane Esau a Glutton whereas Jacob that lived at a distance from his Parents when he fled for fear of his Brother had always before his eyes the fear of Isaack his Father Gen. 27. Gen. 31. that is to say the God whom his Father worshipped In Jacob's House Ruben defiled his Father's Bed in an incestuous manner whereas Jâ—seph in Potiphera's House chose rather an apparent death and present sufferings than to touch his Masters Wise Gen. 39. David had the unhappiness to see some of his Children guilty of Incest and Murder whereas Joas and Josias two Orphan-Princes in their tenderest infancy became Vertuous and Religious Kings zealous for the service of God How many Children are there who notwithstanding all the care and labor of their Fathers fall into extremity of misery How many are taken from their Parents embraces and dragg'd from thence to the Gallows whereas there are others that without Father or Parents assistance don't only escape grievous dangers but rise to Honors and Dignities as Joseph in Aegypt Daniel in Babylon and Esther that was Fatherless and a poor Captive became a Queen and moreover God made use of her and of her credit to deliver his People from Haman's conspiracy We see every day that God blesseth in an extraordinary manner many Orphans Cast your Eyes upon the Children of the blessed Martyrs and thou shalt perceive many that God hath made notable instances of his especial favors and of the Mercy that he promiseth to shew unto thousand Generations of them that serve him and obey his Holy Commands Thou shalt find some that have much more happiness in this life than the posterity of the Persecutors Thou shalt see them with astonishment bestow their Alms upon the Children of such as have plundered their Houses and spoiled their Goods Whilst you are yet in being exhort your Children to fear God to serve and to addict themselves with all their Heart to the study of Piety that hath the promises of this life and of the life to come Teach them first to seek the Kingdom of God and its Righteousness and all these things shall be added to them over and above Finally when your life should be much more useful to your Children than it is remember what our Lord and Saviour saith He that loves Son or Daughter more than him is not worthy of him Heaven is far more excellent than the Earth The Salvation and the Happiness of our Souls is to be preferr'd to all the considerations of Flesh and Bloud It is not just that such as have given us or to whom we have given the enjoyment of a temporal life should hinder us from the fruition of a Spiritual and Eternal Life Besides when we recommend them to God we put them into the protection of a true and of a wise Friend who is acquainted with their necessities who is so Good to procure them that which shall be needful for them and Almighty to accomplish all things which may be for their advantage Let us therefore conclude that it is the duty of a good Father that fears God not to resist death not to fly from it when the Lord calls but according to the good example of the antient Patriarchs he ought to end his days willingly with the praises of God in his mouth and with exhortation to his Children to love him fear him and serve him with all their heart to continue in his Holy Covenant and to prefer him to all the Riches and Honors of this miserable Earth And as when our Saviour had bestowed his Blessings upon his Disciples a Cloud carried him out of their sight into Heaven Likewise when a good Christian shall have thus given his Blessings to his Children he will shut his eyes to all inferior things and think upon nothing but upon the Eternal Bliss of the Heavenly Paradise If God calls us to himself in a miserable and wretched time when our beloved Infants are weeping about our Bed ready to say to us as Isaack unto Abraham My Father here is Wood a Fire and a Knife but where is the Beast for a Burnt-offering Gen. 22. God causeth the visible signes of his heavy displeasure to appear every where In every corner we see nothing but Fire and Sword Death's frightful Image and the fearful appearance of Masacres do scare and terrify us Destruction is come into the Holy places the Fire hath reacht as far as God's own Sanctuary and no body is able to deliver us The deluge of God's wrath hath overspread our Land in such a manner that as Noah's Dove we cannot find where to pitch our feet All our expectation is that God would also reach down his hand unto us from above to receive us into that Ark which is above the Heavens and unto which your Soul is now departing Gen. 8. If our dear Children speak unto us in this Language Let us with the courage assurance and faith of the Father of the Faithful return unto them this answer My Children the Lord will provide Gen. 12. Rom. 4. It is he that acts beyond appearance and against all hope who causeth the dead to live and calls things that are not as if they were he will send to you his good Angels to help you in all your necessities when you shall be reduc'd to the uttermost misery ready to receive the last stroke of death God's hands will stop the sword of his justice he will change your crying and fears into joy and Eternal gladness There will be some Holy and devout Soul that loves the publick peace and tranquility that will bring to you the Olive-branch of Peace God can appease the Tempest with his breath at his Command the winds will be still and the roaring Waves that are ready to devour you will return to their former tranquility Otherwise he will preserve you miraculously alive in the midst of the greatest troubles and most fearful confusion And as
Strength and Vertue of thy Holy Spirit that I may resist all my spiritual Enemies and obtain a Glorious Victory Give me Grace to overcome Sin the World and my Self all my Passions and wicked Lusts that I may see Hell confounded and Satan crush'd under my feet Lastly Give me strength to fight with courage against Death and to overcome it O great and living God! it is not necessary that any should remember me that I am Mortal because Death is to be seen every day before me I walk continually upon its Footsteps if it gives me an assault in the midst of my Prosperities and in the first increase of my Glory I shall then go to obtain a more happy and magnificent Victory than these earthly ones for it is far more Honourable to conquer Death and triumph over Hell than to be a Conqueror of thousands of Mortal Men. And if this cruel death carries me away in a time that my Life and Services are so useful to my Prince and Countrey Let me learn to rest upon thy wonderful Providence that cannot want Captains and Soldiers Thou wilt raise up after me more happy and victorious Commanders but I shall enter into thy Heavenly Rest and Peace that reigns in thy Kingdom Lord Jesus I shall gather the fruits of a blessed immortality which have been purchased by thy wonderful Victories and by thy glorious sufferings and I shall share in the joy of thine Eternal Triumphs Let this death therefore come when it pleaseth I shall be ready to say to it as St. Paul I have fought the good fight I have finished my course I have kept the faith henceforth there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness which the Lord the Righteous Judge shall give me at that day Amen A Prayer and Meditation for a Judge or Magistrate O Glorious Judge of Mankind who first honoured me with this noble employment and put into my hands the sword of Justice Let me always remember that I am not called to this noble Office by Man alone but by thee who lifts up and pulâ—s down who raiseth the poor out of the Dust to make him sit with the Mighty Enlighten my understanding with thy Divine Knowledge and strengthen me with that Spirit which thou gavest to Moses and to his Judges in Israel Give me grace to do the duties of my Office faithfully and to be an uncorruptible Judge Let my Ears be always open to hear the cries of the afflicted but shut to all unjust suggestions so that the wind of unlawful favor may never be admitted Let me without any respect of persons render unto every one what is his right and that nothing may hinder me from condemning the guilty and justifying the innocent Let it never happen to me to follow my passions or the Lust of others but let me be a faithful interpreter of thy Holy Laws and Commands At every time that I sit to judge thy people let me remember that thou art amongst the Judges and seest their most secret thoughts Let me always consider that when I have done judging others I shall be judged my self and nothing shall be able to oppose the Decrees of thine infinite wisdom If at any time the considerations of Flesh and Bloud tempt me to evil let me recal to mind my approaching Death that I may be bridled with an Holy Dread let me consider that it warns me already to appear in person before thy Tribunal where I must give up an account not only of my Words and of my Actions but of my most secret Thoughts and of the most plausible Acts of Judicature O Lord thou hast Eyes to see into the very depths an Ear to listen to the whisperings of the Heart and a powerful Hand to find out the Guilty When I think upon that Glorious Throne upon which whole Legions of Executioners of thy Justice do continually attend I should tremble for fear were it not that the Judge is my Advocate and Redeemer and that he is ascended up into Heaven there to intercede and prepare for me a place O let me therefore willingly quit these vain Honors of the World that pass away on a suddain Seeing that thou preparest for me above a Dignity far more Excellent Eternal and Vnchangeable Let me cast off without murmuring this Robe where Worms do breed and so many cares that consume my Heart Let my Soul put on with transports of joy the Heavenly Garments of Light and Glory that will render it Eternally happy Let me go down from this Seat of Judicature without grief seeing that the Lord Jesus promiseth to every one that overcometh that he will make them to sit with him upon his Throne When I am gone from hence thou wilt raise up wise and uncorruptible Judges that shall judge thy People according to Justice and Equity In the mean while I shall enjoy the sweet and comfortable effects of thine Eternal Mercy which thou hast discover'd in thine only Son who hath been made unto us Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption Amen A Prayer and Meditation for a Minister of the Gospel who beholds Death with Joy and Comfort OVniversal Shepheard and Bishop of our Souls I cannot sufficiently acknowledge and admire the Graces and Mercies which thou hast bestowed upon me thou hast called me to an Office in which the Angels of Heaven esteem it an Honor for themselves to be employed and in which thou thy self hast been diligent during the days of thy Flesh Thou hast been pleased to make me one of the Ministers of thy People and to commit to my trust that which thou dost cherish as the dearest and most precious thing of the World namely thy Church for which thou hast expressed so much love as to give thy self for it and to redeem it with thy precious Bloud But alas my Lord and my God who is sufficient for these things The employment is heavy and painful and I am weak and feeble The World hates and persecutes us most vehemently and the Devil like a roaring Lion walks continually about us to seek to devour the Shepheard with his Flock In thine own Inheritance I am forced to swallow many bitter Fruits and drink Waters of affliction I find more Briers and Thorns than Flowers and Roses They that should encourage me in the midst of so many Labors do often weaken my Hands and afflict my Heart that which should cause my great'st joy and fill my Soul with the sweetest Comforts is the occasion of my deepest sorrows and of my most violent grief Merciful Lord whilst thou art pleased to leave me in this mortal Life and in my Ministry accomplish thy Vertue in my weakness and do thou the work which thou hast enjoyn'd to me thy poor Servant Open the door wide to the Gospel of thy Grace that all people of the Earth may learn to serve and worship thee in Spirit and in Truth Defeat all the Counsels and all the strength that riseth up against
thee and bring all thoughts to thine obedience Let the World be confounded in all its purposes and let it never have the power to scare me by its threatenings or to corrupt me by its fair promises Let Satan once more fall from Heaven as a Lightning and let him be for ever shut up in the bottomless pit Shut up the mouths of all false Prophets and let thy Truth be victorious over Error that we may see the Congregations of thy true Catholick Church increase in number of persons that may worship thee with more Affection and Zeal or rather increase in them thy Grace and Heavenly Blessings O let me always consider that the Sheep that I am to feed belong not to me nor to any mortal Man but to thee Lord Jesus who hast created them by thine infinite power and redeemed them by thy wonderful Goodness Thou hast willingly offered thy self to the sufferings of a painful death that thou mightest deliver them from the Wolfs Paw and Claws of the infernal Lion Let me remember that I am shortly to appear before thy Glorious presence and to give thee an account of my Stewardship O Lord who knowest all things unto whom nothing is hid thou seest the very bottom of my Heart and spiest my most secret thoughts Thou knowest how faithfully and affectionately I have been employed in thy service I have led thy Sheep to the wholsome feeding of thy Heavenly Pastures I have led them to the Waters that burst forth unto Eternal Life my Conscience bears me witness before thee and thy Holy Angels that I have declared nothing neither by Word nor Writing but that which I firmly believe to be agreeable to the Oracles of the Prophets Apostles and Evangelists I have drawn out of the Sacred Treasuries of thy word things new and old for the beautifying of thy House and for the instruction of such as dwell there I have labour'd day and night in the hings that thou hast put into my heart for thy Glory for the advance of thy Kingdom and the comfort of thy Children In the important passages of my life I have not taken counsel from Flesh and Bloud but I have preferred the Honour of thy great Name and the Glory of thy Divine Truth to all Earthly advantages and to my particular interest I have despised all the Riches of this World and the Honors of the Age for the sake of the spiritual Treasuries and of that Heavenly Light which thou hast put into me as into an Earthly Vessel that all Glory may be ascribed to thee who art the Author of all good and of all perfect Gifts My most delicious Meat and my most pleasant Drink was to do thy Holy Will and to perfect thy Work I have taken a singular delight in declaring the wonderful Councils of thy Wisdom and discovering the Mysteries of thy Kingdom I have shared in the evils and sufferings of thy Members I have not been sparing of the comforts which thou hast furnished me in all my afflictions and temptations Thy Holy Law is in my Heart and thy Gospel is there engraven with the finger of thy Blessed Spirit Thou hast kindled in me an earnest desire of saving Souls and bringing them to Righteousness O Lord who searchest into the bottom of the most secret Hearts Thou knowest that I may say with the Holy Prophet The zeal of thine House hath caten me up Or with the Apostle The care of thy Church cometh upon me daily But for all this I pretend not to be justified in thy presence I am so far from resting upon mine own Righteousness and of being puft up with the opinion of my deservings that I confess my self a poor and a miserable sinner therefore with my whole Heart I desire the forgiveness of my great imperfections and miscarriages which I have been guilty of in thy service I have not been enflam'd with a Charity pure enough nor with a disinteressed Zeal I have been sometimes too indulgent and sometimes too severe in the reprehension of Vice and I have not been as I ought the Director of my Floâ—k in all manner of good Works the love of my self hath crept in with that affection that I owe to thee alone and I have have not served thee only for thy sake and for thy Divine perfections but also for the expectation of the Rewards which thou hast promised to thy faithful Servants when thou shalt render unto every one according to his Works I have been too sensible of the wrongs done to mine own Person and especially when I have seen my best deeds misinterpreted and my most charitable cares requited with ingratitude I have not always possâ—ssed my Soul with patience and I have not had that Meekness Love and Humility which thou Divine Jesus hast recommended to me by thine example on Earth O Lord if thou should est treat me according to the exacâ—ness of thy justice and require at my hands the Souls that are perished by my negligence or evil example I should be cover'd with shame and confusion and I should soon be cast with the unprofitable Servant into the Eternal Torments of Hell where are weeping and gnashing of Teeth But O Merciful Lord thou art goodness it self Love and the very being of Charity Thou acceptest the Will for the Deed and the Vndertaking for the Performance and thou hast thy Arms always wide open to receive thy poor Servants that weep for their mistakes and that humbly prostrate themselves before thee to implore thy Mercy and Forgiveness O Divine Saviour Thou art rich in Goodness and ready to cause thy Glorious Countenance to shine upon such as call upon thee to their unspeakable joy and comfort and upon such as draw near to thee by a true and serious Repentance Therefore I pour forth my Soul before thee and acknowledge that thou hast heard me and accepted the contrition of my heart and heard the voice of my Tears Thou strengthenest my Faith raisest my Hopes and fillest my Soul with refreshing and excellent considerations of thy Love Thou causest me to tast the Salvation which thou often preachest to others I feel thy Gracious Hand drawing me to thyself I see that thou openest to me the Gate of Paradise unto which I have had so many good and Holy Souls that rest now in the enjoyment of thy Glory Thou causest me to have the confidence of saying with the Holy Apostle I know that God will show Mercy unto me and receive me into his Heavenly Kingdom O Good and Merciful Lord I feel my Body consuming away and my strength decaying but thou art the Rock of my Heart and my portion for ever I see death coming apace to me but instead of afflicting and frighting me it comforts and rejoyceth my Heart for it comes to put an end to this miserable life that is no better than a languishing kind of death it comes to take me from my continued labors and loose me from my greivous and
you may then conclude that such an one is strengthened by God's Divine Spirit who upholds him and accomplisheth his Heavenly Vertue in his Servants infirmity This is the most wonderful and excellent of all Deliverances I confess some approve this discourse very well and admit these Consolations in their ordinary diseases but assoon as any extraordinary and violent griefs seize upon them they are apt to murmure against God and to complain that their punishment is too grievous Some proceed further to curse as Job the day of their birth and being hurried into despair are ready to cry out with Cain My punishment is greater than I am able to bear Unhappy Man Wilt thou imitate the barbarous Heathens who curse the Sun when it burns them and let fly their Arrows against Heaven when it Thunders wretched Man What will it avail thee to affront thy Creator what advantage wilt thou reap from the Blasphemies which thou dost belch forth against the Son of Righteousness miserable Worm of the Earth less than Dust and nothing wilt thou undertake to contend against God to pluck him from his Throne and to break the invincible Arm of his strength Dost thou imagine to stop the hand of his Vengeance by offending and sinning against him Wilt thou quench the fury of his wrath by spitting in his Face Believest thou that he will stretch forth his hand to deliver thee and to increase thy Blessings whilst thy mouth is open to blaspheme him who is thy Soveraign Lord. Listen well I beseech thee friend to my advice and I will draw thee out of the Abysse where thou art unhappily fallen and with God's help I will cause thee to understand that thou complainest wrongfully against him who doth all things advisedly and with Justice and Reason First run over the whole course of thy life and consider how many wicked deeds thou hast committed some by indiscretion others wilfully how many words have gone out of thy mouth how many thoughts have been entertained in thy mind against the Commands of Almighty God Consider seriously the number and grievousness of thy sins and miscarriages and thou shalt find that God's punishments are far less than thy deservings and that for one sensible word and bitter pain that thou feelest thou hast deserved many thousands so that thou shalt have cause to confess with the Prophet Daniel O Lord Righteousness belongeth unto thee but unto us confusion of Faces Dan. 9. And thou wilt say with David Innumerable evils have compassed me about mine iniquities have taken hold upon me so that I am not able to look up they are more than the hairs of my Head therefore my heart faileth me there is no whole part in my Flesh because of thine indignation nor rest in my bones because of my sin Ps 40. 2. Consider how many there are in the world more righteous than thou who suffer more grievous and longer evils than thou hast hitherto endured and yet have not had so much comfort and assistance If thou comparest thy condition with theirs thou shalt find that God spares and favors thee very much 3. Cast thine Eyes upon the death and passion of our Lord and Saviour who being righteous and innocent hath suffered for us wicked and abominable sinners Thine affliction is painful I confess but that which this merciful Redeemer hath suffered for thee was far more unsufferable Let his Exclamations his Tears and drops of Bloud which came out of his veins be witnesses and that earnest Prayer which he repeated three times upon his bended knees Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me that I may not drink it Let that doleful voice upon the Cross be also witness My God my God why hast thou sorsaken me 4. Weigh in just and equal Scales of the Sanctuary all the sufferings of this life with the torments of Hell which thou hast justly deserved and compare them together thou wilt quickly conclude that all thy pains are nothing if compared with the grievous tortures of that lake of Fire and Brimstone where there are weeping and gnashing of Teeth If thou art so sensible of these vanishing pains consider well how much thou art obliged to the goodness of God who hath freely pardoned all thine offences and redeemed thee from that eternal and unspeakable Misery of the t'other life 5. Thou must imitate those men who having their Sight dimmed with the extraordinary splendor of bright Colours or of a Body of Light turn off their Eies to look upon less offensive objects instead of handling always thy Wounds and Sores instead of thinking of the afflictions that lye heavy upon thee meditate upon the goodness and favors of God vouchsafed to thee since thy Conception until now I give thee leave to put in one side of the Scales all thy crosses losses diseases pains and grief upon condition that in the t'other Balance thou wilt put all the Mercies Favors Blessings and Deliverances which thou hast received from God's liberal Hand It is true thou groanest under thy Misery and complainest of thy condition thou verily believest that there is none so miserable as thou art so that willingly thou wouldest say with the Prophet Jeremiah Doth not this move ye O ye that pass by behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow which is done unto me wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger But when there should be nothing else but this alone that God hath called thee to the knowledge of his Holy Will enriched thee with the Graces of his Divine Spirit and sown in thy Heart the seeds of Eternal Life and the blessed hopes of seeing his Face in Glory thou oughtest to look upon thy self as one of the happiest Creatures under Heaven 6. Finally thou must meditate with a Religious attention upon the joys of Heaven and the Eternal Blessedness of Paradise for I reckon with the Apostle that the sufferings of this present life art not worthy to be eompared with the Glory which shall be revealed in us Lam. 1. When we cast our Eyes upon the Earth alone we judge it to be very spacious and large our sight is lost in the contemplation of so many Provinces Cities and Kingdoms but when we compare it with Heaven we find it to be but a point Likewise when we look upon and reckon up the hours days weeks months and years of our sufferings the time appears very tedious and long but when we compare all these parcels of time with Eternity they seem to us but a moment when we should have been overwhelmed with evils and miseries from the first instant of our entrance into the World until the last of our going out Yet we have reason enough to say with St. Paul Our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory while we look not at the things which are seen but at the things
that I may labor to attain unto it with transports of joy so that I may say with the Prophet David My Soul shall be satisfied as with Marrow and Fatness and my Mouth shall praise thee with joyful Lips when I remember thee upon my Bed and meditate on thee in the night Watches My Sickness seems very tedious but alas Lord my Sins have continued longer and all this pain that afflicts me and forceth from me so many sighs is nothing in comparison of the advantages and happiness that waits for me in Heaven When the whole course of my life should be a continual languishing it is but a moment in respect of Eternity And this moment of affliction produceth in us a weight of Eternal Glory that excels all things else O Lord Let the distempers and pains of my Body turn to the health of my Soul and a powerful obligation to the Practice of Piety and of all Christian Vertues Let me learn thereby to renounce the World and deny my self and to cast my self wholly into thy Divine Hands and submit my self to thy Holy Will As Jesus Christ is gain to me whether I live or whether I dye give me Grace to be ready to praise and glorify thy Mercy both in Life or Death If it be thy pleasure to spare me my life O that I may live more circumspectly than ever I have done in the fear and obedience of thy Sacred Commandements and as St. Peter's Wives Mother rose up from her Bed of Sickness to serve our Lord Jesus if thou freest me from my plague let me rise out of thy Couch to glorify and serve thee until the last moment of my life But if thou art pleased to call me out of the world here I am O God ready to do thy Will and obey thee without the least resistance for my Soul is already separated from this languishing Carkass and resolved to follow thee It is not grieved to see this wretched Body weakened and crazy as an Habit worn out because thou hast prepared for it a Garment of immortal Colours It is not vexed because this earthly Tabernacle decays for it hath a more lasting Dwelling in Heaven whereof thou hast been the Builder I have long looked upon this Couch as a representation of my Grave where I shall shortly lye down to take my last repose I have long expected Death that will break in pieces the last link of this chain of Misery to put a period to all my pains and grievance to take me out of this woful and rotten Lodge that falls to pieces to introduce me into a Glorious Palace of immortality where thy Divine Majesty dwels and where I shall for ever Glorify thee with the thousands of Angels and with all the sanctified Souls Amen A Prayer and Meditation for a sick Person tormented with grievous pains O Father of Mercies and God of all Comfort have pity upon me thou knowest that I am vexed with fearful pains that disturb my Mind and torment my Body thine Arrows run through me on every side and my Soul hath its fill of bitterness Thy wrath hath torn me to pieces and thou seemest to have set thy self against me One depth calls for another At thy Command the Waves and Flouds have passed over my head Thou hast given me many days of affliction and nights of torment I am like a person breaking upon a wheel or burning in hot flames I feel a fire that consumes me as a Worm that gnaws and darts that pierce through my Heart Sure my sins must be abominable and grievous seeing thou infflictest this great punishment upon me for thou art Mercy it self and it is not willingly that thou afflictest the Sons of Men. O good God consider what thou art and what I am wilt thou stretch forth thine invincible Arm against the Leaf that the wind tosseth up and down wilt thou declare the fierceness of thine Eternal displeasure against Chaff and Stubble wilt thou let fly all thine Arrows against a wretched Worm of the Earth and wilt thou cast out all thy Thunderbolts against a little Dust O Great God I am not a worthy Object of thy wrath against which thou shouldest kindle all thy displeasure Remember that I am but flesh a Wind that passeth away and returneth not again but rather remember Lord that I am thy Child and that thou hast redeemed me with the Bloud of thine only Son O my God it is not possible for me to withold my complaints suppress my groans and to dry up this torrent of Tears my Soul is wearied out with this languishing life or rather with this unmerciful Death for is there any sorrow like unto my sorrow Is there any torture or pain like unto my torment When the Prophet Jonas saw a little Goard withered that afforded him before a favourable shelter and shadow from the Sun-beams when he felt them beating hot upon his Head he cried out Death is better to me than life How much more cause have I to speak in this manner I of whom the strengh is withered as the parched Ground in the midst of Summer I who feel a Fire in my Bones and an Heat in my Bowels that burns and consumes me by day and by night Shall not thine Almighty and Merciful Hand that hath freed me from Hell take me out also of this deep Abysse of Misery Thou who deliverest thy Children from the burning Furnace wilt thou not quench the fury of this Flame that devours me O Lord shut up my Lips and let there come out nothing repugnant to that respect that I owe to thy Divine Majesty To thee Great God belongs Justice but to me shame and confusion of face when thou shouldest cause me to endure a thousand Plagues and Torments more if this poor Body were able to suffer them and when thou shouldest cast me irrecoverably into the Lake that burns with Fire and Brimstone I should have no cause to complain of thy severity It is true my pains are great but they are nothing in comparison of my sins and offences my torments are violent but they are not to be compared with my Saviours bitter sufferings with that cold sweat and those drops of Bloud that fell from his precious Body My affliction is unmerciful but it is not to be compared with the Glory that shall be revealed in them that worship thee and persevere to the end in an obedience to thy Holy Will When thou shouldest kill me Lord yet would I hope in thee for thou afflictest me that I might not perish for ever with the rest of the World Thou causest my Body to be destroyed that my Soul might be saved Bruise me Lord and crush me to pieces so that I may become some of thy precious Wheat Cut and burn me in this momentary Life so that thou wilt be favourable to me in the life to come Cause this bitter cup to pass from me that I may not drink up all its dregs Nevertheless
complain but shall be transported with joy and adore that infinite Goodness which thou hast declared to us poor and miserable sinners who out of thine incomprehensible Love hast made us thy Children and Heirs of thy Kingdom O Goodness worthy of the admiration of Heaven and Earth we were all lost but we shall be all found in God we were dead but by death we shall return to life we were over-whelmed in a grievous misery but by this means we shall attain to the greatest happiness O my God I recommend unto thee my Soul as to a faithful Creator Heavenly Father my Spirit I leave in thy Hands Amen CHAP. 15. The third Consolation against the fears of Death is to represent continually unto our selves the Death and Sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ and to trust upon the merits of his Cross IF we will dye with a peacable and quiet mind we must always represent to our selves the death and sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ and rely upon the merits of his Cross for the death of this Prince of Life should be the Model of ours and the bottomless Fountain of Comforts to a believing Soul 1. By looking upon this perfect example the wonder of Men and Angels we learn to endure with an Holy resolution and patience all the evils and pangs that accompany Death Luk 22. For although our Saviours Torments were most bitter so that his Soul was sorrowful unto death although there issued out of his innocent Body a bloudy Sweat for the violence of his pain nevertheless none ever heard the least murmuring or expression of impatience Isai 53. He was led to the slaughter as a Lamb and as a Sheep before the Shearer is dumb 2 From hence we learn that the last hours of our life must be employed in fervent and continual Prayers unto God seeing that this Beloved of the Father offers unto him at such a time his Prayers and Supplications with great Cries and a floud of Tears as to him who was able to deliver him from Death Heb. 5. In the bosoms of this Heavenly Father he poureth out all his Griefs and three times he presents this request Father if it be possible that this cup should pass away from me except I drink it Matth. 26. 3. We learn to present our selves before God's Divine Majesty with Humility and to resigne our selves wholly to his wonderful Providence seeing that he who thought it no robbery to be equal with God he whom the millions of Angels and Seraphims worship continually thought it no disgrace to himself to fall upon his knees three times to the ground and submit his Will to that of his Heavenly Father for after that he had said Father if it be possible let this cup pass away from me except I drink it He adds these words Nevertheless O Father not as I will but as thou wilt Matth. 26. 4. If at the time of our death an excessive sorrow or a malignant humour seize upon our minds so that in that disposition we are not able to see the Heavens open nor God who stretcheth out his Arm to receive us into his Rest Let us remember that this merciful Lord speaks to us as he did to his three Apostles who fell asleep when he was in his Agony Cannot you watch one hour with me Mat. 29. My dear Children it is no time to fall asleep with the foolish and inconsiderate Virgins trim your Lamps put on the Garments of Light to meet your Celestial Bridegroom and to enter with him into the Marriage Chamber Matth. 25. 5. God requires that we should do as much good at all times to our friends as we are able and to express the sincerity of our affections to those with whom Nature and our Duty have caused us to be related but especially at the hour of death we are more bound to this Religious Duty therefore Jesus Christ hath shewn us an excellent example for when he was nailed to the Cross and ready to breathe forth his Soul into the hands of his Heavenly Father he had an especial care of his Holy and Blessed Mother saying to his beloved Disciple My Son behold thy Mother and to her Woman behold thy Son 6. We must not only do good and shew kindness to our friends but we must forgive our greatest enemies such also as employ their greatest fury against us for by this means we shall follow the Blessed footsteps of our Gracious Saviour for he had compassion upon them that crucified him and mocked him Father said he forgive them for they know not what they do 7. By the Cross of Jesus Christ we learn to put our trust in the goodness of God in our greatest pangs and to embrace him as our most loving Father and Redeemer when he seems to discover to us a severe countenance full of wrath and displeasure for this Eternal Son of God in his most violent tortures when his Heavenly Father did suspend his aid and assistance and withheld the effects of his Grace the expressions of his Love and the comforts of his Divine Spirit nevertheless he looks upon him as his God and reposes himself upon him he prays unto him with an Holy assurance and repeats these passionate words My God my God! 8. If we will dye willingly and leave these crazy Bodies with a joyful mind when the time is come that we must go to the Father of Spirits we must remember with what resolution our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ prepar'd himself for death and how willingly he commended his innocent Soul into the hands of God his Father when he required it No man taketh my life away from me but I lay it down of my self I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again this Commandement have I received of my Father John 10. Heb. 10. This caused him to speak in this manner Here am I O God to do thy will Luk 23. Therefore when he gave up the Ghost he cried with a loud voice to shew that his precious Soul was not taken from him by violence but that he did willingly offer it up as a Sacrifice to God 9. In this rich description of Christ crucified we may further learn what should be our last words and last thoughts for if God vouchsafes to us the use of our Tongues until the last gasp we cannot end our life more comfortably than by such expressions as our Saviour made use of upon the Cross Father into thy hands I commend my Spirit But if we cannot move our Lips and that we cannot pronounce these words we must inwardly meditate upon them in our minds and express them with motions of the Heart 10. When we look more narrowly into the death and passion of our Lord Jesus Christ we may easily find how much we are bound to give up our souls unto God when he is pleased to call for them for this Blessed death is the price and ransom that he hath paid
instant be ready to say with all my heart I commend into thine hands my Spirit for thou hast redeemed it thou who art the strong and faithful God Amen CHAP. 16. The Fourth Consolation against the Fears of Death is to Meditate often upon our Lord Jesus Christ as he did lie in his Tomb. MAn doth naturally abhor and hate the sight of Graves some there are that cannot pass by a Church yard without expressing a distaste and secret displeasure not only such as make their abode in glorious Palaces and stately Dwellings but also such as reside in poor Huts or in pitiful Cabins such as are shut up in black Dungeons or exposed to the injury of the weather who have no other covering then the Sky can ever think upon Death without fear when they are to think that this Body must go into the Bowels of the Earth and lie down in a stinking and noisome Grave If ye will banish from your Minds this dangerous apprehension and these needless fears we must consider seriously with a religious application of our minds That we must never abhor the Earth because our Bodies have been made of Earth it hath been as it were the Mother that brings us forth We must also consider that it is the order of nature that all composed Bodies should return at their dissolution every part to its first principle therefore as the Soul mounts up to its first source and returns to God that gave it likewise it is no wonder if the Body returns to Dust because it proceeds from Dust and God hath pronounced a just Sentence in the earthly Paradise which shall never be revoked dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return Gen. 3. Nicodemus inquired of our Lord Jesus Christ How can a Man be born when he is old can he enter the second time into his Mothers Womb and be born John 3. This ridiculous and unprobable conceit is proved in a manner to be true in this occasion for we must enter again into the Womb of the Earth our common Mother that we might be Born again and pass into another Life It is not amiss to consider often the notable instances and excellent representations of our Death which St. Paul mentions in the 15 Chap. of the first Epistle to the Corinth for our Bodies are as the Seed which is cast into the Earth that it might bring forth O fool that which thou sowest is not quickned except it dye It cannot flourish untill it rots The Students of Nature inform us that the generation of one thing is the corruption of another In this occasion we may say that the corruption and dissolution of this wretched Body is the means and way that leads to a more glorious Generation You that weep for the decease of your Friends and Kindred when you see them laid in their Graves remember what David saith They that sow in tears shall reap with songs of Joy Psalm 126. Consider that Death is the way of all flesh and the Grave is the last retreat which God hath appointed for all living so that if we be loath to enter into the Tomb we must desire Almighty God to grant us a Lodging by our selves to change the common course of nature or to create for us another World Now the Grave is not only the general Rendezvous of all Mankind but it is a Couch where they rest after this laborious and painful race therefore when the Prophet Isaiah speaks of the Death of good Men he saith They enter into peace they rest in their Beds Is 57. For when he looks to the blessed estate of their Souls he tells us that they are entred into that great and eternal Peace that raigns in Heaven but when he casts an eye upon their Bodies he saith that they rest in their Beds For this cause the places appointed to bury the Dead are named sleeping places by the Greeks to teach us that there they are fallen asleep in expectation of the great Morne when God shall send to awaken them with the sound of the Archangels Trumpet Therefore when Jacob was ready to give up the Ghost he commanded his Son Joseph not to bury him in Egypt that he might sleep with his Fathers Gen. 47. Likewise Job speaks in the same manner I shall sleep in the Dust of the Earth Job 7. And God held this Language unto Moses Thou art going to sleep with thy Fathers Deut. 31. and to David when thy days be fulfilled thou shalt sleep with thy Fathers 2 Sam. 7. And when the Prophet Daniel speaks of such as were deceased since the Creation of the World he saith They sleep in the dust of the Earth Dan. 12. Especially take notice Christian Souls that when God spoke to Moset from the midst of the burning bush he told him I am the God of Abraham the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob Exod. 4. they had been dead many Ages before nevertheless God names himself their God Now God is not the God of the Dead but of the Living Mat. 22. Those holy Men were not Dead in regard of their Souls because they were Immortal and God had admitted them into Eternal Bliss Their Bodies also to speak properly were not Dead but slept in their Graves as our Sâ—viour said of Jairus's Daughter The Damsel is not Dead but Sleepeth Mat. 9. and of Lazarus Lazarus our friend Sleepeth John 11. Moreover we may justly â—â—y that the Estate of our Bodies in the Grave is better and more pleasant then our daily sleep for when we rest in our Beds we be often disturbed in our fancy we labour and sweat and the richest and most magnificent Couches are not free from this evil whereas in our Graves our Bodies are at rest and secure from all sense of pain so that they enjoy a perfect Sleep and a rest without disturbance The greatest Princes and the proudest Monarchs are constrained to take up their Lodging one after another here in this House which God hath prepared for all living and to repose themselves in that Couch which is to receive all the Sons of Adam When the Sacred History gives an Account of the Kings of Judea and of Israel it adds at the end of their Life He slept with his Fathers Let us be never so wretched poor and miserable we shall all be entertained in this dwelling of Kings and lay our selves down upon their Beds therefore when Job through the grieveousness of his pain complained because he had not Dyed immediately after his Birth he saith for now should I have lain still and been quiet I should have slept then had I been at rest with Kings and Councellors of the Earth which built desolate places for themselves or with Princes that had Gold who filled their Houses with Silver It is in this House and upon this Couch that the Patriarcks Prophets Apostles Evangelists Martyrs and generally all the Faithful do rest who have lived in all the Ages of the World
as it is Recorded of St. Stephen that when he had commended his Soul into the hands of the Lord Jesus that he fell asleep Acts 7. Therefore when St. Paul reproves the Coriâ—thians and acquaints them that God had punished them with divers Diseases and Death because they had profaned the Lords Supper he tells them For this cause many are feeble and sick amongst you and many sleep And when he speaks of all those that were dead in the profession of Christs Religion he saith they sleep in Jesus and he names them they that sleep Now we are not better and nobler then the Saints of Paradise to expect that our Bodies should receive a better and more favourable entertainment then they In short there is nothing more able to remove from our fancy that horror of our Graves then the consideration of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who is entred into the Earth as well as other Men and hath laid himself down there He hath Sanctified and perfumed that place with his Divine Presence he hath made it the object of our desires and the cause of our glory for there is no Subject but judgeth it an honour to lodge in his Princes Chamber and to lay down and sleep upon the Bed where he hath taken his rest although he hath remained there but a moment or an hour O glorious Tomb where Death and Life Disgrace and Glory are lodged together and where the Prince of Life the Author of all Honor and Happiness did rest himself Christians who desire to banish from your Souls all fears of Death and apprehensions of your Graves look upon your Sepulchres in the same manner as if you should see there Jesus Christ the King of Glory the Prince of your Salvation yet remaining asleep When old Jacob heard the mistaken news of the Death of his Son Joseph he was overcome with a violent grief so that he cryed out I shall go down with Sorrow to my Son into the Grave But the certain news of the Death and Burial of our true Joseph will fill us full of unspeakable comforts and will cause us to speak in another manner I shall go down to my Father into the Sepulcher with Joy The Prophet Elias raised to Life a Child which laid in his Chamber upon his Bed when he stretched himself upon it the Soul that was departed came again And Elisha raised another in the same manner by applying his Mouth to the Childs his Hands and Eyes to the little Infants But believing Soul God works for thee in this occasion a far more wonderful Miracle for our Resurrection and Life proceed from the Death and Burial of our great Prophet If we go into this holy Tomb if we lay our selves down upon this precious Body if we embrace it with a true and living Faith and a serious Repentance he will quicken us again and cause us to become Immortal for he hath been pleased to enter into the estate of the dead with an intent to procure unto us a blessed and a glorious Immortality A Prayer and Meditation for a Christian who strengthens himself against the horrible aspect of the Grave by looking upon our Lord Jesus Christ stretched out in his Tomb. O Wonderful Mediator between God and Man Thou art God Immortal and yet hast vouchsafed to take upon thee our Mortal Nature and to Dye for me miserable Sinner and to remain for a time in the estate of the Dead that thou mightest procure unto me a blessed Immortality Give me Grace to Meditate as I ought upon thy Sacred Body wrapped up in a winding sheet and laid in the Earth for by this means O sweet Jesus I shall be brought not to abhor the Grave I shall look with a stedfast and setled countenance on the Grave digging into which I must enter when thou shalt appoint it for the Servant is not greater then his Master It belongs not to the Creature to lift it self up above the Creator seeing that I expect to share in thy Glory and Exaltation it is but just and reasonable that I take some part in thy Disgraces and Abasement My reason assisted by thine holy Spirit teacheth me that I must be content to be wrapped up in thy Darkness and remain with thee in the valey of the Shadow of Death seeing that I hope to be cloathed one day with Light and Crowned with an eternal Life I must not only look upon the Grave without Fear but I shall consider it with Joy seeing that thou hast honoured it with thine holy presence and perfumed it with thy Divine and celestial perfumes I shall behold it in the same manner as if thou didst yet lye down in it as if I were to keep thee company there my Lord and my God A dead returned to Life again when he did but touch the Bones of thy Prophet but I do not only touch the Prince of Prophets but embrase thee with Faith as thou art dead for my Sins and as resting in thy Grave for my Salvation Thou shalt therefore make me sensible of thy Divine Vertue put in me the Seeds of Immortality and raise my hopes up to Heaven Already my Soul hath a share in the first Resurrection and one day this crazy Body shall return to newness of life If my Resurrection be not so quick and speedy as that of the Dead raised to Life by the Prophet It shall be far more glorious and lasting that I may bless thee with all thy Saints and praise thee for ever with thine Inheritance in Heaven Amen CHAP. 17. The Fifth Consolation against the Fears of Death is to Meditate upon the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ AS there is nothing more grieveous and unsufferable than to behold a proud and insulting Enemy who is alwayes victorious and whom none can overcome in his insolent and braving humor likewise there is nothing more pleasant and comfortable then to see such a pride cast down and to overcome such an Enemy Therefore the Children of Israel who had long groaned under the cruel tyranny of Pharaoh sung with Joy a Song of Triumph and Thanksgiving when God destroyed that wretched Tyrant and Buried him and his Army in the waves of the Red Sea For this cause when the Red Dragon the ancient Serpent called the Devil and Satan Exod. 15. who seduceth whole Nations was overcome and cast down from Heaven to the Earth There were Songs of Joy and Gladness heard in Heaven Revel 12. Now is come Salvation and Strength and the Kingdom of our God and the Power of his Christ for the Accuser of our Brethren is cast down which accused them before our God day and night therefore rejoyce ye Heavens and ye that dwell in them From hence let us conclude Christian Souls as it was a grievous Affliction and a sensible Grief to behold Death tyrannising over all the World and shutting up in its Dungeons Kings and Monarchs Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs and generally all the
Children of Adam of what condition or degree soever likewise it is a great comfort and unspeakable joy to us to behold this cruel and proud Enemy brought down overcome and disarmed to see our Lord Jesus Christ marching out of Deaths fortifications loaden with its Spoiles rejoyce therefore ye Heavens and ye that dwell in them for the Murderer of our Brethren is swallowed up into Victory We who are the Members of this great Conqueror have a share in his Honour and Glory in his Person we are Conquerors of Death so that we may say with the Apostle That God hath quickened us together and raised us up with him This Prince of Life hath not only loosened all the bands of Death and broken to pieces all its chains but he hath led away Death in Triumph and made it subject to his Celestial Empire He hath an absolute power over Death as he himself declares in these words I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive for evermore Amen and have the Keys of Hell and of Death For it stands with reason that if this invincible Lord when he was in the Prison of Death commanded over Death itself if he broke in pieces its Iron bars and its Brasen gates if he caused the Dead to go out and led them into the Holy City now that he is out of the Grave a victorious Conqueror he must needs command with an uncontrolable power this dreadful Enemy which he hath already overcome and brought under by his Almighty Hand O Death fret and fume out thy rage and fury I see that thou art tied as a Prisoner to the Triumphing Charriot of Jesus Christ my Saviour and I am certain that thou canst do nothing without leave and that thou canst not go a step unless he lengthens thy Chain As Joshua when he had overcome the Kings of Canaan called for his Captains and spoke to them in this manner Come near and put your feet upon the necks of these Kings fear not nor be dismayed be strong and of good courage Likewise we may imagine believing Souls that our Divine Joshua now that he hath conquered Death calls to us from Heaven tread upon this wretched Death with boldness fear not nor be dismayed The Children of Israel that trembled at the threatnings of Goliah were freed from all apprehensions when they saw him fall with a Stone from Davids sling so that the most timerous could have freely put their feet upon his Neck And shall not you Christians banish from your Hearts all fears and dread of Death now that you see that it is cast down at the feet of our true David the great Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls for although it opens its Jaws and that it fomes out flames of Fire it hath nevertheless received the Stroke of Death and is ready to give up the last gaspe And as the servant of Jonathan the Son of Saul dispatched and killed those whom his Master had cast down Thus we need but pursue the glorious Victories of the Son of the King of Kings or rather we need but gather up the pleasant Fruits of his Conquests for this Prince of Life that hath overcome Death for us offers to overcome it also in us with the Weapons with which he arms us In short to speak properly there can be no Death for such as are Incorporated in Jesus Christ by a true and lively Faith for he that lives and believeth in him shall never Dye and he that believeth in him though he were dead yet shall he live Joh. 11. A Prayer and Meditation for the believing Soul that strengthens it self against the Fears of Death by a Meditation upon the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ LOrd Jesus who hast been fully declared to be the Son of God with power by thy Resurrection from the Dead and who livest for ever and ever strengthen me in my weakness comfort me in my Sorrows and drive from my Soul all Fears and apprehensions of Death O wonderful Saviour I need no longer fear this cruel and proud enemy for thou hast broken all its fetters and chains and hast overcome Death and the Grave O glorious and triumphing Monarch what cause have I to dread a discomfited and disarmed Enemy whom I see lying under thy feet and chained to thy Triumphing Charriot I need but follow the sacred Footsteps of thy Victories and gather its excellent Fruits If thou hast been able to deal with Death when thou wast shut up in a Dungeon if thou didst then bring down its pride and carry away its prisoners what may not I expect from thy Victorious and Almighty Arm now that thou hast in hand the Keys of Hell and of Death O most mighty and merciful Lord Thou hast not only overcome Death for me but thou wilt also overcome it by me who am thy Child and the Sheep of thy pasture whereof thou hast paid the Ransome Thou art not only raised from the Dead but thou art also the Resurrection and the Life Thou the Prince of Life and the Lord of Glory and Immortality so that he that lives and believeth in thee shall never Dye and whosoever believeth in thee though he were Dead yet shall he live Sampson was worthily admired when he slept until midnight rose up and carried away the Gates of Gaza upon his Shoulders up to an high Mountain but who would not admire thee O invincible Nazarite who having slept until the third day in the bowels of the Earth didst rise again by thy Divine Vertue carry away the Gates of Hell and made them to become the Gates of Heaven and the entrance into thy celestial Paradice Let me Dye seeing that my Redeemer liveth and seeing that he intends to introduce me into an happy Life purchased for me with his most precious Blood and secured unto me by his glorious resurrection Amen CHAP. 18. The Sixth Consolation against the Fears of Death is the Ascention of Jesus Christ into Heaven and his sitting at the Right Hand of God IT is a great joy and comfort indeed to behold a cruel and a proud Enemy overcome and disarmed and our selves freed by that means from the heavy yoke of his unsufferable Tyranny but our joy would be turned into grief and our comfort into sadness if we did but perceive at the same time the Author of our Freedome choked with his own Blood and breathing out the last gasp at the moment of his Victory that our Sanctification might be entire and our joy perfect such a Friend to our welfare should continue afterwards alive and receive the Honors and Rewards due to him for such an expression of his Valor and Kindness to us There is no Enemy more cruel and more terrible then Death we have beheld it disarmed upon the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ and perfectly vanquished and subdued by his glorious Resurrection But if with the eye of our Faith we look a little higher to behold the glorious
any time we begin to sink and that our Soul is frighted this almighty Lord who hath not only delivered himself but is the Saviour and Deliverer of his Church will speak unto us as to his Apostle O Man of little Faith why didst thou doubt knowest thou not that I command the Winds that I can still the Waves and drive from thee the Tempest knowst thou not that I have in my hands the Keys of Hell and of Death When a person is to go to a place of rest and happiness and that he cannot pass to it but through a painful and thorny passage he marcheth with resolution and courage when a friend of his is gone before and stretcheth out unto him his hand to help him Now it is not possible to attain to the glories of Heaven and the joys of Paradise but through the passage of Death a passage very uneasie and grievous to our present seeming But Jesus Christ who loves us with an eternal Love hath gone through this passage before us he is past from this World to the Father he is gone to his God and to our God And that we might go to him he hath sent the Light of his holy Word to direct us John 2. he vouchsafes unto us his Staff and his Rod to comfort us Ps 23. and stretcheth out the right hand of his Almighty power to cause us to pass from Death to Life where I am saith he there shall also my Servant be Joh. 12. When the Apostles went up to Jerusalem and Jesus went before them Mark 9. they were terrified and frighted but we that go up to the Heavenly Jerusalem and tred upon the footsteps of this mighty Saviour ought to be full of boldness and Christian confidence This great God and Saviour Reigns in Heaven he Commands in the Earth the Sea and the Deep therefore we may Dye without Fear and with an holy Joy For who would not rejoyce to enter into the Glorious Palace of Immortality where we should see not only the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs the holy and blessed Virgin with all the Saints of Paradice but we shall see face to face our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ whom so many Kings and Prophets have desired to see and hear While we remain in these Bodies we are absent from the Lord therefore we rather desire to be absent from the Body and to be with Christ this Consideration causeth the holy Apostle to confess That his desire was to depart and to be with Christ which was far better for him Phil. 11. The Queen of Sheba left her Kingdom and came from a corner of the Earth to see King Solomon who was but a Type of Christ and who had but a little of his wisdom and glory and is there any Treasure on Earth any Honour in this Age or pleasure in this Life that might hinder us from going to see our Saviour Jesus Christ When he was in his Infancy the Shepherds left their Flocks and made hast towards Bethlehem to look upon him the wise Men came from the East to adore him and if he were yet on Earth we should undertake a tedious Pilgrimage to the ends of the World and part with our dearest enjoyments to see him But the little Village of Bethlehem is nothing in comparison of the celestial Jerusalem and what is the sight of the Lord Jesus in swadling Cloathes lying in a Manger and in the Arms of his Blessed Mother in comparison of the sight of a Christ cloathed with Light Crowned with Glory and sitting at the right hand of God the Father upon a Magnificent Throne Worshiped by all the Angels and the glorified Spirits The Father of the Faithful was transported with Joy when he saw in Spirit the day of the Lord and the Spouse in the Canticles was exceeding glad when she heard him knocking at her door and old Simon was ravished above measure when he held Christ in his Arms how much more shall we be transported and ravished into admiration and Joy when we shall look upon him as he is now in the highest Glory and raised to the most magificent Estate when we shall enjoy him never to leave him again When St. Stephen beheld the Heavens open and Jesus Christ sitting at the right hand of God the Father his face became radiant as that of an Angel Therefore how luminous and shining shall our Countenances be when we shall be entered into these places of Light and when we shall behold with open face this â—iessed Redeemer for ever When old Jacob heard that Joseph was alive and Reigning 〈◊〉 Egypt whom he had so tenderly loved and for whom he had shed so many tears he was most passionately â—esirous to see again this dear Son and to behold his glorâ— It is enough saith he Joseph is yet alive I will go and see him before I dye Gen. 45. And what think you believing Souls when you understand that your true Josâ—ph whom you heartily love Lives and Raigns above in â—â—eâ—ven and that he is there Worshipped by all the glorified Spirits do not you earnestly desire to see his Face and â—o behold his Divin Glory and Happiness This old Father was weak and feeble through Age and oppressed with Grief but his Spirit did revive when he saw the Wagons that Joseph hâ—d sent to fetch him and you my Christian Brethren when old Age and Sickness have weakened your bodies and grief and displeasure have undermined your Hearts do not you feel your selves revive when Death draws near and you perceive with the eye of Faith the Horses and Charriots which Christ hath sent ot carry you away to the Paradice of his Glory Seeing that Joseph received his Father and Brethren with Tears of Joy and all the House of Pharoah rung with outward expressions of gladness with what Joy with what kindness and love will Christ embrace us and what Joy will there be in Heaven at our arrival it is not to be expressed but with the Tongues of Angels Joseph fed his Father and his Brethren but he never yielded up unto them any part of his Glory Whereas our Lord Jesus Christ who excells Joseph as much in Power and Glory as in Love and Mercy shall not only feed us with the Bread of his Kingdome and give us to Drink of the Rivers of his Pleasures but he will also impart unto us some of his Glory and Magnificence as he promised to his Apostles I appoint unto you a Kingdom as my Father hath appointed unto me Luke 22. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my Throne even as I also overcame and am set down with my Father in his Throne be thou faithfull untill Death and I will give thee a Crown of Life Rev. 3. Josephs Brethren notwithstanding his Glory and Power became afterward Slaves but Jesus Christ will place upon our Head a Crown of pure Gold Joseph could never defend his Brethren from Death they all Died
and like unto them that the Children of Israel did eat in the Promised Land In like manner the Fruits that we relish in the Wilderness of this World are Fruits of the Tree of Life with which we shall be fully satisfied in Heaven for the Grace that God bestows upon us here below by his Divine Spirit is the beginning of the Glory with which he shall Crown us above The same Light that shines upon our Souls on Earth shall shine much more for ever in Heaven But whereas we look upon it at present as it were through a black mist with much imperfection then we shall see it clearly without Vail or Darkness The same Holiness that adorns at present our Souls shall be their Ornament and Glory then it shall appear without spot or blemish That same peace of Conscience that preserves our Hearts and Sences shall Crown us above it shall be without the least disturbance In short the same Jesus that is conceived in our Hearts and that is formed and grows in us by degrees shall then appear in a perfect Stature that shall want no more increase As it is with the Sea it enters into the Rivers before the Rivers can run to the Sea in like manner God comes to us before we go to him and Heaven enters into our Souls before we can enter into Heaven Aged Simâ—on waited patiently for Death but assoon as he had seen the Saviour of the World and embraced him he ran to meet Death he thought upon nothing but his latter end therefore he prayed most earnestly to receive him into his Glorious Rest O Christian Soul how shouldest thou dispose and prepare thy self to dy seeing thou beholdest with the Eyes of Faith this Blessed Redeemer not wrapped up in Swathling Cloaths but Crowned with an infinite Glory and Light He is not in thine Arms but he lodges in thine Heart thou hast not received him to return or part with him again but to be united unto him for ever and to be incorporated into his mystical Body Seeing therefore that Death brings thee nearer to thy Redeemer perfects this Blessed Union and casts thee into the very Fountain of Life instead of being frighted at her and grieved when it comes to thee thou shouldest then rejoyce and be transported above measure with gladness we should meet this Death with a cheerful countenance I mean that we should meet the Lord Jesus this merciful Prince of Life who having vouchsafed unto thee the sight of his Salvation intends to receive thee into his Rest and Eternal and Glorious Peace that Reigns above in Heaven A Prayer and Meditation of a Christian Soul that strengthens it self against the fears of Death by considering our strict and unseparable Union with Jesus Christ by his Holy Spirit and the First-Fruits in us of our Blessed Immortality O Mighty and Merciful Lord who art the Son of Righteousness and the Fountain of Living Water drive away from me the dark shadows of death and quench all the Fires that it kindles in my Soul thou art not only dead for me but thou art pleased to live in me that I might one day live for ever with thee Thou hast of thy pure Mercy chosen me for thy Child and hast made me a Member of thy Mystical Body Flesh of thy Flesh Bone of thy Bone and caused me to be partaker of thine Holy Spirit God hath not given thee the Spirit by measure that out of thy fulness we might receive Grace for Grace By the means of this Blessed and Infinite Spirit that rests in my Soul I am united unto thee in a more perfect manner than the Tree is to the root that bears it or the Child to its Mother that nourisheth it in her Womb or the Members of the Humane Body to the Head that gives them Life The Ties that unite me unto thee O Glorious Saviour are more unchangeable than the Heavens and the Earth As nothing can pluck me out of thine Hands there is nothing can separate me from thine Heart Whether I live or dye I am thine my Lord and my God and nothing can alter thine affection for me Death can take me out of the World and carry me out of the embraces of my dearest friends but it can never separate me from thine Holy Spirit the Soul of my Soul and the Light of my Life which cannot be put out by all the envious Blasts and Storms of the Prince of Darkness this Holy Spirit will bring me to behold thy Face to rest in thy bosom and unite me unto thee for ever To whom Lord shall I go thou hast the words of Eternal life and thou art the inexhausible Fountain Thou art my Hope and my Treasure my Glory and mine only Happiness O faithful and unquestionable Witness I should be worse than an Infidel if I did call in question my future Salvation and Glory seeing the Father hath not spared thee for me although thou art his only and beloved Son the brightness of his Glory and the express Image of his Person Seeing that thou O merciful Lord hast willingly suffered the most shameful death of the Cross and spilt thy precious Bloud to wash away all my sins and satisfy for my crimes and seeing that thine Holy Spirit is come into my Heart to make me a partaker of that precious Bloud and Seal me for the day of Redemption O Glorious Spirit of my Saviour that rests upon me when I should be able to speak the Language of Angels I could not sufficiently express the wonderful operations that thou dost produce in my Soul thou kindlest in me such Heavenly Flames as never go out but are always alive as the fire of thine Altar Thou formest in me a white Stone where a new Name is written which no man knows but he that receives it Thou givest me to eat of that hidden Manna of that food of Angels that the World knoweth not Thou witnessest with my Spirit that I am a Child of God an Heir of God and a Joynt Heir with Jesus Christ the King of Kings Thou dost not only Seal unto me the pardon of all my Sins but thou dost also purify my Conscience from all dead Works to serve the living God Thou causest me to cry out Abba Father and imprintest in my Heart the Glorious Image of my Heavenly Father Thou art the Seal of my Adoption the earnest of mine uncorruptible Inheritance prepared for me in Heaven Thou hast given me the infallible assurances of a Glorious and Eternal Life and begun it already in my Soul granting to me its First-Fruits Thou causest me to behold the Sun-shine of thy Grace and makest it to give Light in mine Vnderstanding Thou dost not only vouchsafe unto me the favour of beholding from this Valley of Tears thine Heavenly Canaan but thou causest me to tast of its Fruits I am not yet come to the Fountain of Waters that spring forth to Eternal Life but I feel the Streams and the
Rivers that run in my Soul I am not yet come to thine Holy Paradise but thou hast caused Paradise to be in me Thou hast given unto me an unspeakable and glorious Joy and hast bestowed upon me that Peace of God that passeth all understanding O living and quickening Spirit unknown to the World thou strengthenest me in such a manner that death will never be able to fright me Thou hast united me to thy self by an unseparable Vnion O Prince of Life and hast put in me a Seed of Immortality an infallible Principle of Glory and a source of unspeakable Happiness Thou art in me to dwell with me for ever therefore thou shalt fill up the measure of thy most signal Favors My Faith by thy Divine assistance hath spied out the Kingdom prepared for us from the beginning of the World and shortly I shall see with mine Eies the unexpressable Beauties of that Celestial Countrey that flows with the Milk of the purest and sincerest Joys and with the Honey of the sweetest and most ravishing Comforts Thou hast sent a fore-taste of the Fruits of the Tree of Life but I shall come into thine Heavenly Paradise I shall ever have my fill of these delicious Fruits Now thou hast caused some drops of the dew of Heaven to fall upon mine Heart but then thou wilt make me drink of the Rivers of thy Divine Pleasures At present in my painful passage through this Valley of Tears in the midst of my Groans and Tears I may gather some Herbs but when I shall come to my Heavenly Countrey I shall reap my Hands full with Songs of Joy Here upon Earth I see God as in a Glass obscurely but in Heaven I shall behold him face to face and I shall be satisfied with his likeness My Lord and my God who by the infinite Merits of thy sufferings hast purchased for us this Spirit of Life and who hast given to my Soul such an Authentick Seal of my Salvation and such a precious earnest of thine Eternal Bliss I feel in me the motions and endeavours of of this New Man that Essays to leave this Body of Darkness and Death to enter into the Light of the Living Lord Jesus seeing thou hast made me partaker of the Spirit of thy Grace enlightned my Soul with thy Divine Knowledge and caused me to know the way of Life Seeing that thou hast given me to taste of the Heavenly Gift of the Powers of the life to come Seeing that thou hast vouchsafed to me the First-Fruits of thy Glory and that I already feel Heaven in my Soul Seeing that I behold thee with the Eyes of my Faith that I embrace thee with all my affections and that thou dwellest in my Heart perfect in me the work of thy Grace and bring me at last to thine Eternal Glory Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace for mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Amen CHAP. 20. The eighth Consolation is to consider that Death frees and delivers us from all the Evils that are in the World and that we daily suffer THere are certain Pictures with two Faces the one represents most ugly Features and the other beautiful and pleasant things This is the true Emblem of Death for it may be painted with a fearful Face a lean Body and iron Hands that ravish from us our Goods and our Honors and that divide our Persons dragging our bodies into a loathsome Sepulchre If we look upon Death in this manner we can do nothing less but tremble and fear We may also look upon it as a powerful Deliverer that unlooseth all our Fetters breaks our Chains to pieces lifts up our Souls to the highest Glory and Happiness If we consider thus there is nothing more lovely than death and nothing more to be desired I have hitherto endeavoured to shew how a Believer shall strengthen and comfort himself against the fears of Death but now I shall say something more with Heavens assistance I shall labor to prove not only that Death is to be expected without apprehension but to be received with an Holy Joy That it is not at all dreadful but rather it is to be earnestly desired I shall no longer give to speak right any Consolations against the fears of Death for I hope to make it plain that Death it self is to be looked upon as the greatest Consolation and Comforter That I may attain unto mine end I shall shew as in a Picture a short view of all the dreadful miseries of which Death delivers us and then I shall endeavour to paint out in the brightest Colours or rather I shall chaulk out unto you the Blessedness and Glories into which it ushers us Man's Life and Misery are Twin-Sisters that are born at the same time and owned Adam for their First Father they dye together at the same instant in true Believers We all know that Man begins his Life weeping and crying and ends it with sighs and Groans We come into the World all covered with Bloud and we go out wet all over with a cold Sweat If the Child cries not assoon as it is born we judge that it is dead and when the sick Body ceaseth to groan and sigh we say that he is past hopes so that as our crying is a token of Life likewise is and the end of thy sighs an infallible signe of thy Death Wretched Man how miserable is thy condition thy best friends rejoyce at thy crying and they weep and lament when thou ceasest to sigh and groan All the rest of thy time between thy Cradle and thy Grave is no happier it is but a continued Chain of Misery a mixture of pains a succession of evils and a Sea of bitterness As one Wave falls upon the back of another one evil is no sooner gone but another meets and threatens us one depth calleth another and all manner of Flouds and Storms pass over our Heads Job 5. As the Sparks rife out of the Fire to fly up and down Man is born for Misery and Pain and as the wisest of Kings speaks His days are nothing but pain and his employment but trouble in the night his Heart resteth not Eccles 3 There are scarce any dwellings but Messengers of ill news do sometimes come to them as they did to that of Job Job 1. By God's unchangeable order and appointment the days succeed the nights and divide the year into two equal parts for if the nights are longer in one season so much the shorter are they in another but the nights of our afflictions are so long that they seem to last several Ages whereas the days of our prosperity are so short that they are gone in a moment so that we may justly say with the Prophet Moses The best of our days are but labour and sorrow so soon doth our life pass away and we are gone Psal 90. It is as easy a taske to number the Stars of the Firmament and to reckon up the grains of
end is destruction whose God is their belly and whose glory is in their shame who mind earthly things Phil. 3. If we should seek in these days for the Christian Vertues where shall we find Faith Hope and Charity where shall we meet with Righteousness Fidelity Holiness Innocence Goodness Meekness Humility Patience Piety and Devotion You Daughters of Heaven what is become of you we cannot see any more your Angelical countenance we are so far from beholding the delightful Beams of your Divine Presence that we cannot spy out any of your Footsteps upon Earth You may therefore understand Christians thereby that the Son of God is at hand for iniquity abounds Charity grows cold and there is no more faith upon Earth In the midst of such a woful Corruption who of us doth afflict his Soul as Righteous Lot who weeps day and night as David a Man after God's own Heart where can we spy out the Fountains of Tears of the Prophet Jeremiah Or the confusion of Face of Daniel Or the Zeal of Moses of Phineas and of St. Paul If the Angel of God that went through the midst of Jerusalem did review in our days the Inhabitants of this Land I am afraid that he would not find many marked with the Letter Thau not many weeping and sighing for the abominations that are amongst us for evil and wickedness are become familiar to us by the means of our too usual inspection our continual conversation with the vicious accustomes us to the grievousness of their crimes and to the impiety of their discourses as we are accustomed by degrees to breathe in an unwholsom Air without aversion and to hear the fearful downfall of the Cartaracts of the River Nilus without repugnancy But we are so far from grieving at the universal inundation of Vice in the World that we our selves are carried away with the impetuous torrent of corruption Sin gets upon us insensibly and overcomes us so that the World is not unlike to the House mentioned by God himself in the 14 of Leviticus for it is not only infected with an incommodious Leprosy but it infects all such as dwell therein The Men of the World have an easier taske to teach us their Vices than we have to teach and perswade them to Vertue As a pestiferous Body may spread the infection and give it to a thousand such as are whole whereas a thousand in perfect health cannot heal one infected with the Plague So that what happened under the Ceremonial Law happens now unto us the clean Vessel did not sanctify the defiled but the defiled did corrupt by its approaches such as were clean Evil companies corrupt good manners and the flames of the most burning Zeal are extinguish'd by the coldness of the Age. As Lambs cannot feed amongst Bryars and Thorns without leaving behind them some of their Wooll Likewise the harmless and meek Souls cannot live amongst so much cousenage and malice without loosing something of their Innocency and Christian Simplicity Who is it amongst us that can say with a safe Conscience that the World is crucrified to him and that he is crucified to the World Gal. 6. Or who is it that lives in the World without being guilty of its sins as the Fish drinks of the Sea water and receives nothing of its bitterness Psal 26. Who can converse in the Courts of Princes as Joseph in Aegypt as Daniel in Babylon or as Queen Esther in the Court of Ahasuerus Is there any that can justly say that he hath washed his Hands in Innocency and purified his Conscience from all dead Works to serve the living God Heb. 9. Who can speak in this manner I have purified my Heart I am clean from my sin Prov. 20. In truth if we say that we have no sin we deceive our selves and the Truth is not in us 1 Joh. 1. We have good reason to break out into the Prophet Isaiah's exclamation when he saw God sitting upon his Throne Wo is me for I am undone because I am a man of unclean Lips and I dwell in the midst of a People of unclean Lips Isai 6. Or we may say with the same Prophet From the sole of the foot unto the crown of the head there is no whole part Not only the Souls that are fixed to the Earth but also such as mount up to Heaven by fervent Prayers and devout Meditations have good cause to acknowledge their imperfections and to ask forgiveness If any fancies himself to be perfectly whole and free from all infection let him enter into his Soul and seriously examine his own Conscience and the same thing will happen to him as to Moses when he put his hand into his bosom he drawed it out again as white as Snow all covered with Leprosie Exod. 4. Where is there a Christian that feels no Law commanding in his Members and strugling against the Law of his Understanding Who is it that finds not by experience the truth of St. Paul's saying The flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary the one to the other so that ye cannot do the things that ye would Rom. 7. Gal. 5. Without doubt such as know not nor never have felt the bitter and vehement struglings of their carnal Lusts that War against the Soul 2 Pet. 1. cannot conceive what it is to deny themselves to put off the old man with his Deeds to crucify the Flesh with its Affections and filthy Lusts Eph. 4. such know not what it is to mortify our Members to cut off our right Feet and right Hands and to pluck out our right Eyes Matth. 10. that is to say to destroy and by an Holy violence to give a deadly wound to all our brutish Passions and vicious Affections when they should seem to us as dear and useful as our Hands Feet and as tender as our right Eyes Coloss 3. Matth. 5. If these cursed affections could but declare their names they would say as the evil Spirits of the Gospel Our name is Legion for we are many As that Devil that possessed the Lunatick mentioned by St. Mathew he cast him sometimes into the Fire at other times into the Water Likewise these carnal Lusts labour to cast us sometimes into the Flames of Ambition or into the burning heat of Covetousness or to hurry us headlong into the gulf of unlawful Delights or into the mud of filthy and carnal Pleasures Furthermore they break the Chains and Ties with which we imagine to stop their fury they war and fight against us by day and by night and at every moment they return to charge us home and renew the combate Every where they assault us and have no more regard for Temples and Houses of Prayer than for common and publick places As Satan had once the boldness to encounter with Jehosoua the High-Priest before the Angel of God Likewise these cursed Lusts are so impudent to tempt us in the most Religious
burning is quite cold or lukewarm I have not a sufficient trust upon thy promises and upon thy fatherly care my Hope is not setled It doth not sill my Soul with Heavenly Joys and Comforts Thine eyes O Lord that sees all the secret Clossets of the Heart and that pierce into the depths are too Holy and Pure to pass over the sight of evil and to approve of the ill-favour'd Features of Satan yet imprinted in my Soul they don't only discover my sins and iniquities and all my evil Deeds but they also behold all the spots and imperfections of my best performances and of my most Glorious Acts. My Lord and my God I am not only grieved to see so much sin in the World in the Church and in my Self but I am also grieved and vexed that I have not grief enough That my Soul is not sufficiently vexed as that of Righteous Lot That the Zeal of thine House doth not eat me up as it did the Man after thine own Heart That mine Eyes are not become a Well-Spring of Tears as those of the Prophet That the cares of the Churches do not besiege me as they did thine Holy Apostle And that I do not sigh and cry as the servants whom thou didst mark with the Letter Thau O wonderful Lord Seeing that thou dost give me leave wherefore is it that I do not embrace thee with a lively Faith and a serious Repentance VVherefore do not I wrestle with thee by Prayers and Supplications and Tears and that I continue not in these Devotions until I have obtained thy most precious Blessings until thou hast changed my Being and my Life until thou hast renewed my Spirit and my Heart to love thee fear thee and worship thee answerable to thine infinite Merits and Glory O Lord I perceive thou hast not altogether forsaken me I perceive the day of my deliverance breaking in upon me I see Death coming to carry me out of this painful Dwelling out of this life of bitterness and sorrow I have this comfort that it shall put to death my most cruel and unreconcileable Enemies and introduce me into the freedom of thy Children It will cut off all the remains of that corruption in which I was first conceived and usher me into that Eternal Light that shines for ever in Heaven Therefore instead of frighting me the sight of Death rejoyceth and comforts my Heart for this cause I shall not fly from it and turn my back but I shall go and meet it I will endeavour to hasten its coming by my Prayers and continual VVishes I will embrace it when thou shall be pleased to send it O Almighty God of an infinite Goodness when wilt thou reach unto me thy Hand from Heaven to draw me out of this Egypt that I may no longer see the cruelties and abominations committed in it VVhen wilt thou deliver me out of this Babylon where Vice and Vertue are intermixed and where the Creature receives the Honor only due to the Creator VVhen wilt thou have Compassion of my poor Soul that drags yet some of its Chains And when shall I hear that sweet and comforting voice Loose him and let him go to his God who calls him and to his Saviour who holds out unto him his Arms wide open VVhen wilt thou send unto me thy good Angels to lead me up to thine Holy Mountain to thine Heavenly Jerusalem where no impure thing shall ever enter or that committeth Abomination or a Lye VVhen shall I see my self in that blessed Paradise where there shall be no Serpent to seduce us nor Lusts to war against us nor evil company to corrupt and spoil us VVhen shall I behold the new Heavens and the new Earth where Justice Righteousness and true Holiness are sitting upon the Throne How long Lord shall I hear thine Holy Name blasphemed and the Bloud of thy Covenant trampled under foot How long yet shall I listen to the impieties and abuses of the Children of this age VVhen wilt thou lift me up to the Dwelling of thy Glory where I shall be no longer assaulted with temptations from the VVorld with enticements from the Flesh and with the fiery Darts of the Devil where I shall be no more vexed with evil desires false Fears and vain hopes where I shall never offend my God nor grieve his Holy Spirit that hath sealed me to the day of my Redemption O Holy of Holies when shall thy Church be so sanctified and cleansed that no spot or wrinkle nor any such thing shall appear in it When shall I see it decked with fine Linnen cloathed with the Sun and crowned with the Stars When shall my Heart be as a golden Viol from whence sweet Perfumes may ascend VVhen shall I behold thy Face continually VVhen shall I love thee without interruption and serve thee without any Lett or Hinderance VVhen wilt thou put into my Hands a Celestial Harp and into my Mouth the Songs of the Blessed and when shall I worship thee in the company of all the Holy Spirits without intermission and for ever VVhen shall I sing forth thy Praises in Heaven O Lord when shall I appear with the Holiness of thy Saints in the white Robes of thy Martyrs and be as fiery as the Seraphims that fly about thy Glorious Throne O my God! Let this Holy Zeal which thou hast kindled in my Soul be like a Fiery Chariot and an Holy Flame to carry me up to the Heaven of thy Glory where I am to shine in thy presence for ever Amen CHAP. 22. The Tenth Consolation is the Glory and Happiness of our Souls at their Egress out of the Body IF there were neither Punishment nor Torment after this life to be feared the Wicked and Unbelievers that prosper in the World might justly esteem themselves the happiest of all men And if there were neither Glory nor Rewards to be expected after death the Righteous and the Faithful who drink here below Cups full of bitterness and sorrow would be the most miserable of all Creatures The condition of the Beasts would appear more happy than theirs for they enjoy in quiet and peace all the pleasures that the animal Nature is able to relish They are not tormented by so many diseases that vex our Bodies neither do they know the cares and displeasures that consume and fret our minds They grieve not for the time past nor trouble themselves with any apprehensions of the time to come They never feel the grievous disputes of Lusts They know not most of those Passions that torment and domineer over our Souls All their pains and sufferings end with their breath so that when they are dead they endure nothing If we make our Eyes the Judges of these things we may say The accident that happens to Men and Beasts is the same accident as is the death of the one so is the death of the other But if we search and examine further we shall find more difference than
of that uncorruptible Inheritance which God keeps for thee in Heaven and hath prepared since the Creation of the World Hast thou a pleasant Garden or a rich Field But what are all the Gardens of the World in respect of the Heavenly Paradise where the Tree of Life grows that brings forth its Fruits every moneth of the year and where the River of living Water as transparent as Chrystal runs continually What reason hast thou Christian Soul to grieve when thou forsakest the pleasures of the World that thou enjoyest with the Children of the Earth or the Delights of the Body which are common to thee with the bruit Beasts Seeing that God will satisfy thee with his most precious Delights for in the blessed Vision of his Face thou shalt meet with fulness of joy Hast thou any friends on Earth Let it not trouble thee to leave them for instead of one friend here below whom thou fanciest to be real and sincere thou hast thousands in Heaven who will receive thee into the Eternal Mansions and embrace thee as their companion and the partaker of the same Glory and Happiness Hast thou any Parents or Relations I suppose that they are not burdensome to thee and that thou receivest much more Pleasure and Assistance from them than Grief and Ingratitude yet thou hast a spiritual Parentage in Heaven and Eternal Relations Thou hast in the Mansion-House of thy Heavenly Father a great number of Brothers and Sisters with whom thou shalt live in a blessed Unity as Members of one Body governed by the same Spirit and enflamed with the same Zeal Thou Husband whom Death snatcheth away from thy beloved Wife seriously consider that God will unite thee to himself by an unscparable Union and that he purposeth to take up to him some part of thy self that thy expectations thy hopes and affections might be now in Heaven And thou also O Woman whom Death plucks out of the embraces of thy dear and loving Husband remember that thou hast a Husband also in Heaven who hath espoused thee to himself for ever in Righteousness in Mercy and Compassion a Husband always Living and Glorious a Husband who loves thee with an Eternal Love that is stronger than Death whose affections are enflamed for thee in such a manner that the Water of all the Seas and Rivers are not able to extinguish a Husband who bears with all thine infirmities and hath redeemed thee from all thy sins a Husband who hath not spared for thee his precious Bloud that he might procure for thee the Glory and Happiness of his Kingdom who invites thee to his Heavenly Nuptials having prepared and appointed for thee a Room in the Banqueting-Chamber where thousands of glorified Saints shall sit and where the meledious Tunes of Angels shall be heard a Husband who calls to thee reacheth out unto thee his Hand and opens his Bosom to receive thee If thou hast found any satisfaction and pleasure in the company of that Person whom God had given thee for an Assistant and Mate judge from thence what Angelical Delights thou shalt meet with in the ravishing embraces of thy Heavenly Spouse The most pleasant Marriage days are gone as a shadow but the day which shall bring thee to thy Celestial Bridegroom shall never depart nor darken so that the Heavenly Contentments shall abide and continue with thee for ever without the least distaste You beloved and loving Children who are yet in the bosom of a good Father or of a tender-hearted Mother suffer Death patiently to remove you far from them and depart with joy to that good God that will receive you as his Children satisfy your Souls with the Milk of his most Blessed Consolations and will make you his Heirs and Co-Heirs with his Son Jesus Christ Say to him as the Holy Prophet When my Father and my Mother should forsake me yet the Lord will receive me Isai 66. Rom. 8. Psal 27. And you Fathers and Mothers that have a tender affection for your Children if Death takes them out of your sight and deprives you of the comfort of their company grieve not as those who have no hope for when they should be never so accomplish'd when they should have never given you but pleasure and divertisement What are all these pitiful Delights that pass away in a moment and that change oft-times into bitterness and sorrow if compared with the Eternal Pleasures which we shall enjoy in the contemplation of God's Glorious Face and in a familiar acquaintance with his Divine Wisdom You shall not return to them but they shall in their time go to you so that you shall shortly see one another in the Dwelling of the Father of Spirits Matth. 27. Death separates you for a while but the Author of your Life will bring you together for ever Finally of what age and condition soever you be if you perceive the breath of your Life to stop never grieve nor murmure at it for if Death separates you from your Selves it brings you nearer to God your chief Good and instead of a wretched and perishing life it will promote you to the fruition of an Eternal and ever happy one If we had lived in the days when our Saviour was on Earth there is none of us but would have looked upon it as a singular Happiness and Honor to have been admitted with Peter James and John when they went up to Mount Tabor to be Eye-witnesses of our Saviour's transfiguration A far greater Honor and Happiness Death is endeavouring to procure you it will usher you up to Mount Sion it will transport you above all the Heavens where you shall behold more excellent wonders than ever the Apostles beheld upon Mount Tabor for you shall not only see this Glorious Saviour whiter than the Snow and brighter than the Sun but you your selves shall be transfigured with him and cloathed with an exceeding great Glory The Holy Apostles saw but two Prophets but you shall see all the Prophets all the Patriarchs Apostles Confessors Martyrs the Holy and Blessed Virgin and generally all the Saints that Reign and Triumph in Heaven The Apostles had a sight of this Glory of our Saviour as of a flash of Lightning it continued with them but for a moment for soon after they came down from the Holy Mountain and were again in danger of the same temptations as before and besieged by the same Calamities It will be otherwise with thee O Christian Soul thou art flying up to Heaven from whence thou shalt never descend till the great day of the Glorious Resurrection of our Bodies Thou shalt not be assaulted any more by any temptationâ— thou shalt have no more Enemies to overcome nor Bitterness to digest Thou art going to reap and enjoy the Blessed Fruits of thy Saviours Victories and to be Eternally satisfied with the Celestial Pleasures that are at the right hand of the God of Mercies We esteem St. John highly priviledged because the Lord gave him
42. As the hart panteth after the water-brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God my Soul thirsteth for God for the living God when shall I come and appear before God Psal 63. And elsewhere O God thou art my God early will I seek thee my Soul thirsteth for thee my Flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty Land where no water is to see thy Power and Glory so as I have seen thee in the Sanctuary It is not possible to taste of the heavenly Joyes but we are constrained to cry out as the man after Gods own heart How amiable are thy Tabernacles O Lord of Hosts My Soul longeth yea even fainteth for the Courts of the Lord my Heart and my Flesh crieth out for the living God Psal 84. Consider well believing Soul what vast difference there was between the earthly Jerusalem for which David was so passionate and the heavenly Jerusalem where God intends to receive thee What great disproportion was there between the little stream of Shilo and the large River of Paradise between the material Tabernacle the mercy Seat covered over with fine Gold upon which the Cherubims did stretch out their Wings and the immaterial Sanctuary of Heaven Jesus Christ the true Ark of the Covenant in whom are hid the richest Treasure of Wisdome and Knowledge in whom the fulness of the God-head dwells bodily and in whose glorious presence the Seraphims cover their Faces with their Wings Coloss 2. How contemptible were the Sacrifices Oblations and Burnt-offerings of the Children of Israel in comparison of the Spiritual Sacrifices that are presented unto God in Heaven in comparison of the Offerings burning there entire in the Flames of an Holy Zeal and of a perfect Charity And what was all the Frankinsence of Arabia and the sweet smells of the Holy-Land which were burnt in God's presence if compared with the sacred persumes that mount up out of the Golden Vials that are in the hands of all the members of the Glorified Church Seeing David esteems a Door-keeper of the House of the Lord an happy man on Earth How great shall thy Glory be and extraordinary thy happiness O believing Christian for thou art going to be advanced to the most Honorable Room of that Celestial Dwelling which God hath built with his own Hands To this purpose our Lord Jesus hath made to thee this gratious promise Him that overcometh will I make a Pillar in the Temple of my God and he shall go no more out and I will write upon him the name of my God and the name of the City of my God which is new Jerusalem which cometh down out of Heaven from my God and I will write upon him my new name Revel 3. If this great King was so desirous to hear the Levites singing the praises of God with their Tongues and Instruments of Musick How much more passionate should we be to hear the Harmonies of Heaven and the Celestial Hymns of the Holy Angels Archangels Cherubims Seraphims and of all the Glorified Saints who have in their mouths every one a new Song the Song of Moses and of the Lamb When the Shepherds heard some few expressions of the Angels Songs who praised God at the Nativity of the Son of God they began to rejoyce with an exceeding great joy they left their Flocks and ran in haste to look upon the Child Jesus in the Manger of Bethlem and thou devout Soul thou hearest already the sweet Anthems of Paradise and the ravishing consorts of thousands of Angels thou knowest that thy Saviour sits there upon a Throne cloathed with Glory and Divine Majesty and wilt thou not forsake all the base Employments of this sensual and animal life to go and see this wonderful Saviour who expects thee and intends that thou shalt sit also with him upon his Throne Zacheus climed upon a Sicamore-tree with an unspeakable swiftness and an earnest desire to behold the Lord Jesus as he passed by when he was in the estate of his humâ—liation and abasement Shouldest not thou be as earnest O Christian Soul to fly up above the Heavens to see this merciful Saviour in the estate of his Glory and elevation and to have him alwayes in thine eye for ever and ever When our Lord was come into the house of this poor Publican he told him That Salvation was that day come to his house And shalt not thou O blessed Soul have more reason to say when thou shalt enter into the Palace of this glorified Redeemer I am this day going into my Salvation and my Glory We highly esteem Iacobs happiness when he was in Bethel because God appeared unto him in that surprising Vision mentioned in the 28 of Genesis But if thou art an Israelite without fraud I esteem thee to be in a more happy and a more blessed estate thou hast a greater cause to break out into Iacobs Language This is Gods house and the Gate of Heaven Jacob it is true saw the Heavens open but he was not admitted into them at that time but now God opens these Heavens to receive and lodge thee for ever The holy Angels of God went up and down the Ladder that reached up from the Earth to Heaven but they left Jacob at the bottom of this Ladder whereas the Angels that are about thee are come down to cause thee to ascend up with them or rather to carry thee up in their hands and bring thee to Christ typified by this mysterious Ladder Jacob saw God at the top of this Ladder but he was to go afterwards to padan Aram he was to travel up and down to suffer many inconveniences the heat of the day the frost of the night the displeasure of his Father-in-Law and his Treachery he was forced to fly from the cruelty of his Brother Esau nay more then that he was forced to struggle and wrestle with God himself Whereas here is now the end of thy Pilgrimage of all thy troubles and encounters Thou shalt never feel the burning and scorching heat of thy Afflictions Thou shalt be no more tortured with the fears and Apprehensions that now congele thy Blood Thou shalt no more stand upon thy guard for fear of the deceits and violent dealings of Men Thou shalt wrestle no more with God by Prayers and Supplications and tears for they shall be no more in use God shall load thee with his most extraordinary blessings and bestow himself upon thee The Prophet Moses wished very passionately to see but for a moment God's Face whereof he had beheld so many glorious expressions and shouldest not thou desire as passionately to see that beautiful and ever shining countenance in its Glory and Splendor O Religious Soul thou art enflamed with this Divine affection God will shortly fulfil all thy mind so that thou mayst say to him as one of the Prophets Thou shalt cause me to know the way of Life Thy face is the fulness of Joy and at thy right hand are
glorious company of Angels and blessed Spirits take upon thee these beautiful Robes of light with which thine Heavenly Father will cloath thy nakedness and accept this immortal Crown that he offers to thee go and satisfie thy self with the Bread of the Kingdome of Heaven and remove thy thirst with the Christial Waters of that River of pleasure which proceeds from the Throne of God and of the Lamb Go and behold the face of the Father of lights go and be happy with his Divine resemblance and be transformed into his glorious Image O blessed Soul Seest thou not already the Heavens open and Iesus Christ at the right hand of God the Father holding out his hand unto thee offering to receive thee into his glorious rest Seest thou not the Angels of Heaven cloathed in white raiment coming to transport thee out of this miserable estate Seest thou not how thou art already encompassed about with light and Celestial Flames Dost thou not relish the sweetness of Paradise Is not there a Heaven already in thine heart Dost thou not hear the Hymns of the glorified Spirits Hath not the Lord caused thee to hear that sweet and comfortable voice sound in thine ear Verily I say unto thee thou shall be this day with me in Paradise Come good and faithfull Servant enter into the Ioy of thy Lord seeiest thou not thy self lifted up above all earthly and perishing things Dost thou not fly upon the wings of faith and repentance to the Throne of Gods glory Dost thou not cast thy self into Paradise into the Arms of Almighty God into the bosome of the Lord Iesus to rest there for ever and to be Satisfied with the good things which eye hath not seen ear hath not heard and which are not entered into the heart of Man but which God hath prepared for them that love him A Prayer and Meditation of a Christian Soul that prepares to go out of its Body and comforts its self in the Contemplation of the glory and happiness of Paradice O God! the Author of my being and the Soveraign Lord of my life thou seest all the motions and dispositions of my Soul thou knowest that I have wholly resigned my self into thy hands and desire nothing else but to depend upon thy good pleasure speak Lord for thy Servant heareth here I am to do thy Will O God Thy People Israel removed their Camp at thy Command in the same manner I am ready to remove out of this Earthly Tabernacle at the first motion of thy Will The Golden Cherubims were alwayes upon their feet with their wings stretched out and their faces towards the Mercy Seat O that I likewise might look up to him who hath purchased for me the eternal Mercies of God him who is the Propitiation for my Sins that I may be always ready to fly up to him Lord Jesus seeing thou callest me to thy self stretch out thy hand unto me from above and draw me out of this tempestuous Sea When a poor blind man understood that thou calledst him to restore his sight he left his Garment for haste and ran to thee with joy and shall not I quit this wretched body to go to thee my Lord and my God seeing thou callest me out of the mid-night of this World to thy marvelous and glorious light seeing that thou hast a design not onely to discover to me this surprising and refreshing light that shines in Heaven but thou wilt cause me to shine in thy Kingdom as the Stars and as the Sun When the Prophet Elias let fall his Mantle he was immediately received into a Chariot of Fire and carried up into Heaven also I hope in thy tender love and favor that as soon as my Soul shall forsake this wretched Body it shall be likewise received into a Celestial Charriot of Fire that will carry it up to Heaven thou wilt deal as gratiously with my Soul as with thine High-Priest Joshua thou wilt take away its Garments shattered and broken by sickness and distempers bespotted and bedaubed with sin to adorn it with Robes of fine and bright linnen and Crown it with glory Therefore I am so far from being afflicted to see the earthly house of this Tabernacle demolished that I rejoyce in a certain assurance that I shall be admitted to my eternal Tabernacle of Heaven O good God! thou seest upon me a contemptible body of dust that desires nothing more then to return to dust again but this Heavenly and immortal Soul of mine that is come from above that is thy breath and a beam of thy glory this Soul I say will return up to its source and origin It sighs for thee O God! and desires nothing but eternal happiness Is it possible that I can be happy too soon and too speedily admitted to the Contemplation of thy glorious face Lord I should be worse then an Infidel if I did doubt of my Salvation if I were not assured to partake of thy glory for thou hast promised to save all such as persevere to the end and to give the Crown of life to all those that are faithfull unto Death Seeing therefore that by the assistance of thine holy Spirit thou hast enabled me to continue in thine holy and Divine Covenant to fight the good fight to finish my course and to keep the faith thou wilt not refuse me this great Salvation this precious Crown O merciful and bountiful Lord thou hast promised all such as overcome to cause them to sit upon thy Throne now by thy special grace and wonderfull power that appears and is fulfilled in mine infirmities I have overcome the World sin the Devil and Hell at present I beseech thee give me a new supply of strength to overcome Death also that I may have no more Enemies to counter with but that I may mount upon the magnificent Throne designed for me let this Death be a passage that may bring me to life immortality eternal glory and to the happiness of thy Kingdom Thou art my God and Father that lovest me with an unchangeable affection reach thy hand to me thy childe for I long for thee and open for me the bowels of thy most wonderfull mercies O good Lord receive me into thy bosome and satisfie me with the most effectual Consolations of thy goodness thou art my Spiritual Bridegroom draw me and I shall run or rather I shall fly after thee to magnify thy tender compassions and to be filled with thine heavenly delights Thou art the chief Shepheard of my Soul help me therefore in this vale of the shadow of Death let thy Staff and thy Rod assist and comfort me send me thy light and thy truth that they may lead and conduct me up to thy holy Mountain and to thine eternal dwelling Send thy good Angels that they may carry me up upon their Wings I expect O Lord thy Salvation I do not onely expect and hope for it but I desire and wish for it with all mine heart
my Soul is athirst for God my flesh and mine heart leap for joy for the strong and living God O Lord when shall I go up to the Heavenly Jerusalem when shalt thou open for me the Gutes of righteousness When shall I go into the holy Sanctuary When shall I be in the blessed company of the glorified Saints who have Palmes in their hands Crowns upon their heads and Praises in their mouths When shall I be with the thousands of Angels that are cloathed with light and glory and with burning Seraphims that surround thy Heavenly Throne O my God and Father When wilt thou remove and take away this covering from mine eyes that I may behold thy beautiful and glorious Face When shall I see my self transformed into thy Divine Image and sanctified with thy likeness O Lord thy grace hath brought me to a most happy estate Who could express the joy and satisfaction of my heart with the eyes of faith I see the Angels descending from Heaven to encompass me about I see them ready to take me into their armes and to transport me into thy glorious Rest O my God! I have nothing to stop me in this World I shut mine eyes to all things under the Sun all my thoughts are employed about the glory of Heaven and the pleasures of Paradice Merciful Father glorify thy Child that thy Child may glorify thee let me enter into the magnificent Palace of immortality let me see my God face to face let me embrace my Saviour and onely Redeemer let me receive from his hand the incorruptible Crown let me drink out of the Rivers of of his pleasures and let me swim in the Sea of his Heavenly delights O God whose goodness is unspeakable speak to me in a Language suitable to those heavenly desires which thou hast kindled in my Soul O that I may soon hear these sweet expressions Verily I say unto thee this day thou shalt be with me in Paradise come believing Soul enter into the Joy of thy Lord And before that I shall go into thy Heavenly joy cause this joy to come into my Soul before thou receivest me into Paradise cause a Paradise to be in me O my God I feel an unspeakable and surprising gladness in me I enjoy a peace which passeth all understanding I see my self already surrounded with light and Glory If therefore my expectation be so happy and pleasant what shall be the fruition If the first-fruits are so ravishing what shall we say of the harvest I see the Heavens open and Jesus Christ stretching out his armes unto me and opening his bosome to receive me my Lord and my God my Saviour and my All I commend my Spirit into thy hands for thou hast Redeemed it thou who art the Almighty and true God Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen CHAP. 23. The eleventh Consolation The glorious Resurrection of our bodies WHen God Created Angels he gave them a Spiritual nature that had little or no relation with the Elements I confess that some of these Heavenly Spirits have often appeared in humane bodies to the ancient Patriarchs but those bodies were extraordinary and subitaneous formed by Almighty Gods Power for such occasions besides those holy Spirits were not in those bodies as the Soul is in ours quickning and animating them in the same manner but onely as the Pilot is in the Ship that he governs therefore as soon as they had fulfilled the work about which they were employed by God they left those bodies without prejudice to their beings as the Pilot leaves and goes out of the Ship when he hath brought it to the desired Haven All the happiness of these glorified Spirits consists in this that God hath confirmed them in his grace and love and admitted them for ever to a continual contemplation of his glorious face It is not so with our Souls for although they be also spiritual and of an Heavenly substance God hath not created them to be alone and to subsist at a distance from all matter but to live in the pleasant company of those Elementâ—l bocies which he hath fashioned in a most Artifiâ—ial manner When he creates an humane Soul and pours it into an organized body it is not that it should be there as water in a Vessel or as a King in his Palace it lives not thereas an assisting form or as an outward cause of the Bodies operations but it is united to it by a very strict union and serves as an essential form It is the Principle of our life the internal cause of motion of Sense and of understanding So that if we will speak properly Man cannot be said to be altogether of a Spiritual nature as the holy Angels nor a single body as the Sun and the Stars but he is made up of both Therefore if our Souls wish to depart out of this Earthly Tabernacle it is not out of any displeasure against it as it is in it self for none did ever hate his own body every one seeks to nourish and cherish it But by accident because of the vanity and corruption unto which sin hath enthralled it we desire earnestly to depart out of it to a place where righteousness and true holiness raign that we might be with the Lord Jesus to behold him nearer It is therefore an undoubted truth That unless the body partakes of the same happiness and glory of the Soul Man cannot be said to be perfectly and entirely happy I confess it is no light occasion of joy to us to know that when our Soul casts off this earthly body it enters into the eternal Dwellings of Heaven whether it goes to behold the face of the Father of lights But this holy Joy is disturbed with sad reflections and this Heavenly sweetness is strangely altered with the bitter considerations of this poor body cast into the earth and left to the mercy of the crawling Worms for it is a most hatefull thing to behold our body rotting and turning to ashes that body that was our pavillion our Palace nay more then so that was a half part of our selves Therefore if we will render our Joy accomplished and apply an effectual comfort to our Souls we must nourish and entertain this pleasant assurance That the ruine of our bodies which causeth us to lament so much shall not be eternal but as our bodies fall down by Death they shall rise again one day at the general Resurrection This is one of the noblest and most excellent Mysteries of our Christian Religion and one of its most glorious advantages The Wisdom of the World with all its reasonings and the heathenish Philosophy with its rarest subtleties could never attain to this wholesome and comfortable Doctrine Therefore when St. Paul Preached to the Council of Athens he was heard with admiration until he had spoken to them of the Resurrection as soon as he began to mention that they laughed at him Therefore while Humane Reason remains in its darkness and
voice the praises of Almighty God in the glorious company of the Church triumphant with these unsteddy hands that can scarce hold any thing thou shalt one day receive Immortal Palmes and Golden Viols which thou shalt never quit with these feet that are dying and that can scarce hold thee up thou shalt follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth and thou shalt walk about the Streets of the heavenly Jerusalem and this same body that is going to rot and to be turned to dust shall one day shine as the Firmament and as the Sun in its greatest splendor What desirest thou more Christian Soul for thy comfort what addition can there be made to thine happiness for thou art going to the fruition of eternal Joyes and of endless pleasures in Heaven In the mean while thy Body shall endure no pain nor grief and God will shortly raise it up again from this deep sleep that begins to dull thy senses and close thine eye lids Shortly God will publish the year of the great Jubile all the Prisons of Death shall be then opened and the Prisoners shall be set at liberty Thou shalt shortly hear the found of the last Trump that shall rouse thee out of the dust and cause thee to appear in the presence of thy great Redeemer Thou leavest a wretched Body full of darkness and corruption assaulted by Death on all sides but it shall shortly be made uncorruptible immortal and adorned with Light and Glory Let therefore thy Heart rejoyce thy Tongue be glad and thy flesh rest in hope for the Lord will not leave thee always in the Grave he will not suffer thee to continue for ever in dust and corruption he will not only discover to thee the ways of life but he will shortly come down himself from Heaven for to lead thee thither When Death should be already upon thy lips when she should be ready to lay thee in thy Grave let not this disturb the quiet of thy Soul nor the peace of thy Conscience let it not shake thy precious Faith that keeps thee up nor drive thee from the Author of thy Blessed hope fixed in Heaven where Jesus Christ is entered as thy forerunner in short when thy Body should be all covered with sores and boiles as that of Job Job 19 when it should all fall to pieces before thine eyes let nothing hinder thee from crying out with this patient Man I know that my redeemer liveth and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the Earth and though after my skin worms destroy this Body yet in my flesh shall I see God whom I shall see for my se f and mine Eyes shall behold and not another And with St. Paul Phil. 3. We look from Heaven for the Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious Body according to the mighty working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself A Prayer and Meditation of a Christian who being ready to depart out of the World comforts himself with an assurance and expectation of the glorious Resurrection of his Body from the Dust O Eternal and Divine Word by whom all things were Created and without whom was not any thing made that was made Thou hast not only created our Souls and fashioned our Bodies with thy skilful hands but when they were miserably lost and corrupted with Sin thou hast been pleased to redeem both our Souls and Bodies with thy most precious Blood and to restore thy glorious Image in us This wretched Body is but an Earthen Vessel yet thou hast inclosed in it the richest Treasuries of Life and Light Thou hast appointed it to be the Temple of the Holy Ghost and a noble Pavillion of the Godhead to participate with the Soul in the eternal happiness of thy Kingdom I feel my strength failing me and this Earthly Tabernacle decaying every day and every hour so that I am certain that it shall shortly fall to dust But Lord I am sufficiently comforted with the knowledge that if the outward Man decays the inward is renewed day by day If this wretched Body falls down by Death thou shalt raise it up again at the general Resurrection My Lord and my God thou art sufficiently able for all power is given to thee in Heaven and in Earth and in the depths of the Sea As the Father raiseth and quickneth the Dead thou dost also quicken them whom thou hast chosen Thou hast fashioned my Body of Dust and created this Dust of nothing and shalt not thou be able of the same dust into which this my Body shall be turned by Death to make and fashion it again Thou hast by thine Almighty power created my Soul and infused it into this Body and canst thou not return it again when it shall please thee to live for ever in a more blessed society than ever it hath been before O Prince of Life Death hath sufficiently felt thy great and overflowing power It intended to swallow thee up but thou hast swallowed it up in a glorious manner into Victory Thou hast been dead but thou art returned to life and thou livest for ever and ever And now thou holdest in thy hands the Keys of Death Thou openest and shutest up thy black Dungeon at thy pleasure Thou killest and makest alive thou castest into the Grave and fetchest up again Lord Jesus who art the Resurrection and the Life as thou hast an ability to cause my Body to come out of the Dust thou art willing and resolved to take it out again for thou hast promised to awake with the sound of the Archangels Trump and to lead away with thee all them that sleep in thee and repose themselves upon thee when thou shalt come from Heaven with thy powerful Angels at the great day of thy Triumph and at the Crowning of thy Spouse all the Prisons of Death shall be opened and the prisoners set at liberty It shall not be long O Lord before thou wilt cause the last Trumpet to sound to publish and proclaime the great Day of Rest and Joy Thou shalt then put us in possession of all the advantages which we have lost Thou shalt command the Sea the Earth and the Grave to restore all the Bodies which they have swallowed up and they shall readily obey thee Thy mighty word that Created the World and sustains it shall be heard in our very Graves and at that instant we shall go out to appear before thy dreadful Tribunal We shall not go out in the same manner as Lazarus with our winding sheets about us we shall leave in the Grave all tokens of our former infirmities Thou shalt not only draw our Bodies out of their Tombs but thou shalt make them more beautiful more perfect and glorious than ever they were before so that we are able to say for a truth I hat the glory of this second House shall be greater than the glory
extinguishing the remains of their natural light and in smothering the good and rational dictates of their Consciences They shall be condemned because they have abused Heavens favors and filled themselves with Gods good Creatures without returning to him due thanks and because they have not meditated as they ought upon so many stately and noble works of nature nor learned by that means to know God who hath left in these works so many impresses of his eternal Power and Godhead and because that knowing God they have not glorified him as God this St. Paul teacheth in these words As many as have sinned without Law shall also perish without Law and as many as have sinned in the Law shall be judged by the Law for when the Gentiles which have not the Law do by nature the things contained in the Law these having not the Law are a Law unto themselves which shew the work of the Law written in their Hearts their Conscience also bearing Witness and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another in the day when God shall judge the secrets of Men by Jesus Christ according to the Gospel Rom. 2. They that profess to know the Law shall be judged by the Law such as have already heard the Thunders of Mount Sinai they shall one day feel the Thunderbolts They shall understand by experience what it is to rebel against God and to draw upon themselves and their guilty heads the dreadful curses of Gods Law Deut. 17. Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the Book of the Law to do them Gal. 3. There is no doubt but that the Jews upon whom Moses and the Prophets have spent so many fruitless exhortations to live well shall be punished with more grievous Torments than the poor Savages unto whom God never sent any Messuage who never had any acquaintance with the Commonwealth of Israel being strangers from the Covenant having no hope and being without God in the World Eph. 2. For that servant who knoweth his Masters will and doth it not shall be beaten with more stripes then him who knoweth it not Luke 12. But no people upon Earth have cause to expect and dread a more severe Sentence then the wicked Christians that make profession of knowing God and believing in Jesus Christ who nevertheless deny him by their Works and trample under feet the riches of his Grace how can it otherwise be for such as have heard the Gospel Preached who have seen Jesus Christ as it were Crucified before their eyes and yet have made no advantage of all this they ought to be punished in another manner than the bare Auditors of Moses that never saw the Messias but afar off and in the shadows of the Ceremonial Law Take notice of these Divine ex pressions of St. Paul to the Hebrews He that despised Moses Law died without Mercy under two or three witnesses of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the Blood of the Covenant wherewith he was Sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite unto the Spirit of Grace For we know him that hath said Vengeance belongeth unto me I will recompence saith the Lord and again the Lord shall judge his people It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God Therefore when St. Paul speaks of such as obey not the Gospel he saith That they shall be punished with eternal Punishments from the presence of God and from the glory of his power And our Saviour teacheth us that such as reject so great Salvation shall be punished more grievously than the most abominable Sinners unto whom it was never declared Therefore when he sends forth his Apostles to Preach he tells them whosoever shall not receive you and hear your words when ye depart out of that House or City shake off the dust of your feet verily I say unto you it shall be more tollerable for the Land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of Judgement than for that City Likewise when he upbraids the Cities which had not believed in him for their unbelief and impenitency because they were not converted at the Preaching of his Gospel and at the sight of his glorious Miracles Math. 11. he tells them Wo unto thee Chorazin wo unto thee Bethsaida for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes But I say unto you it shall be more tollerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of Judgement then for you And thou Capernaum which art exalted unto Heaven shalt be brought down to Hell for if the mighty works which have been done in thee had been done in Sodom it would have remained unto this day but I say unto you that it shall be more tollerable for the Land of Sodom in the day of Judgement then for thee The great Judge of the World shall place at his left hand all wicked Souls which have lived without any fear of God and without expressing Charity to the Members of his Mystical Body and shall pronounce to them this dreadful Sentence Depart from me ye Cursed to Eternal Fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels for I was an hungrey and ye gave me no Meat I was thirsty and ye gave me no Drink I was a stranger and ye took me not in Naked and ye cloathed me not sick and in Prison and ye visited me not verily I say unto you in as much as ye did it not to one of the least of these ye did it not to me But the faithful who have declared their Faith by a good and holy Life and by works of Charity and Mercy he will place at his right hand and in the Presence of God and all his holy Angels he shall say unto them Come ye Blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the World for I was an hungrey and ye gave me Meat I was thirsty and ye gave me Drink I was a Stranger and ye took me in Naked and ye cloathed me I was sick and ye visited me I was in Prison and ye came unto me verily I say unto you in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my Brethren ye have done it unto me There be some that make this question what sign shall precede immediately before or accompany the coming of Christ in the World Our Saviour hath given occasion to this demand for when he speaks of the things that are to happen about the time of his glorious Coming he saith That the Sun shall be darkened that the Moon shall not give light that the Stars shall fall from Heaven and that the powers of the Heavens shall be shaken and that then shall appear in Heaven the Sign of the Son of Man Some
God or Set forth the praises of God There is no ingenuous Soul but loves Peace and Rest for this cause the Glory and Happiness of Paradise is represented under this lovely and pleasant Notion as in the 4 Chapter of the Hebrews For we which believed do enter into rest as he said as I have sworn in my wrath if they shall enter into my rest for if Jesus had given them rest then would he not afterward have spoken of another day there remaineth therefore a Rest to the People of God for he that is entred into his Rest he also hath ceased from his own Works as God did from his Let us labour therefore to enter into that Rest This causeth old Simeon to cry out Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace Finally the Holy City is called Jerusalem which signifies a Vision of Peace And God himself makes this promise Behold I will extend Peace to her like a River Is 66. Phil. 4. Wherefore if the Peace which God grants to believing Souls in this life surpasseth all understanding what may we judge shall be the full enjoyment of an Eternal Peace in the Kingdom of Heaven the tongues of Men and Angels is not able to express its Dignity and Excellency Lastly because Men are lovers of Pleasures Delights and Pomp and that the most part seek for nothing but how to drive away their sorrows and to recreate themselves with pastimes Therefore the felicities of Paradise are represented by Rejoycings Pleasures and Eternal Solemnities as in the 36 Psalm Thou shalt cause them to drink of the River of thy pleasureâ— And in the 126 Psalm They that sow in Tears shall reap in Joy And God himself speaking of that most blessed time saith Behold I create new Heavens and a new Earth and the former shall not be remembred nor come into mind but be you glad and rejoyce for ever in that which I create for behold I create Jerusalem a rejoycing and her People a joy Therefore when the Holy Ghost represents the condition of the Glorified Saints he doth only say that God will wipe away all Tears from their Eyes and that there shall be no more sorrow nor crying nor labor nor pain nor grief but he adds over and above that in their mouths there shall be Songs of Praise and upon their Heads an Eternal joy and gladness like to a precious Crown which shall never be taken from them for this cause they call so earnestly upon one another Let us be glad and rejoyce and give glory to the Lord our God Revel 19. All our senses shall partake in these Heavenly and Everlasting Pleasures our Eyes shall behold with transports of joy the sacred countenance of our Redeemer the Riches and wonderful Beauty of his Palace the Glory and Magnificence of his Empire our Ears shall be delighted with the Musick of the blessed Saints and with the Tunes of the Angels and of the Church Triumphant our smelling shall receive the sweet perfumes of our Bridegroom whose Garments are of Myrrh and whose Vine always blossoming gives a good smell our Palat shall taste the Bread of Angels the hidden Manna the Fruits of the Tree of Life the Waters issuing forth to everlasting Life and the new Wine of the Kingdom of Heaven Our Hands shall embrace the Saviour of the World and with our Feet we shall walk about the streets of that golden City the Heavenly Jerusalem and we shall follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth Revel 14. Although I speak to you in this manner I am perswaded Christian Souls that you understand very well that these expressions and such like are not to be understood in a litteral Sence and that they are but dark Shadows and imperfect Images of the advantages of the life to come You have not forgot what St. Paul saith That they are things which Eye hath not seen Ear hath not heard and which never entred into the heart of Man which God hath prepared for them that love him 1 Cor. 2. And that this great God whose Riches are inexhaustible doth in us abundantly above what we are able to ask or think Eph. 3. so that when you see before you all the most Beautiful Amiable Glorious and excellent things of the World you may say in your selves without doubt the Glory and Happiness of Heaven is something more than all this for it is elevated so much above all Earthly enjoyments and surpasseth so much all the thoughts and conceits of Man that it is not possible to describe it in its own Colours nor to fancy it really as it is Think not therefore Christian Souls to meet in Heaven with a Paradise something like to your Gardens nor with Flowers like to such as adorn your pleasant Walks and Fields nor Fruits like to such as hang upon your Trees you may be assured that God will discover things infinitely more pleasant and delightful and more lasting Fancy not such a City built up as ours is where Gold Silver Pealrs and precious Stones are to be seen you may expect something more Noble and Magnificent than all the richest and most stately Cities of the World God will cause you to see not only the beauty of Silver the purity of Gold the whiteness of Pearls and the brightness of precious Stones but you shall discover something more beautiful purer whiter brighter and something more surprizing than any Earthly thing Think not to receive any material Crown or to ascend up upon Thrones like to those of Kings and Princes You may justly fancy something more Glorious and more lasting I am also perswaded Christians that you expect not in Heaven to find Tables covered as those of the rich Worldlings nor to glutt your selves with a Feast like that of the Nuptials of Earthly Princes without doubt your Faith hath an eye to something more Heavenly and Glorious Your Soul hungers for more exquisite Dainties and is athirst for more delicious and sweeter Drinks You are too well instructed to think to live in Heaven an animal and a sensual Life Such a gross conceit becomes only the Impostor Mahomet and his fond Paradise In this life that we lead upon Earth there are two things which chiefly discover our natural Infirmity The first is our eating and drinking absolutely necessary to make up the breaches that labor and the natural heat do make which spend and feed upon the radical Humour which serves to our life as Oil to a Lamp The other is Marriage appointed by God for the continuance and propagation of the humane Race But in Heaven our life shall be altogether Angelical Spiritual and Supernatural our Bodies shall be no more subject to corruption nor to any alteration they shall want no more food than the Stars do at present and the rest of the Celestial Bodies Therefore the Holy Ghost speaks expresly That we shall neither hunger nor thirst that the Sun shall not burn nor any other heat trouble us That is to
end Therefore the World shall for ever and ever bear the signs of it The Ornaments which it shall receive in this joyful day shall never be taken away and the Celestial fires of gladness shall never go out Although it is my opinion that the World shall never be totally Destroyed but that it shall become more beautiful and glorious than before I shall not undertake to give you a description of its several parts nor to tell you how it shall be employed for example I shall not determine whether we are to understand our Saviours words in the Gospel literally That the Sun shall become Dark that the Moon shall not give its Light and that the Stars shall fall from Heaven or whether these Heavenly Bodies shall still continue whether they shall be decked with a new Light and Glory and to what purpose they shall serve for then we shall be enlightned with a greater Light then that of all the Heavenly Bodies I shall only propose two Things First That as in the humane Body there are some Members which at present are useful but then they shall only be for Ornament and Beauty Likewise in the great World there are many needful things which shall then be of no use nevertheless they shall be preserved for the Beauty and Perfection of the World Secondly That as Man the little World shall then be more Beautiful and Perfect then when God first Created him likewise this great World shall receive more Beauty more Ornaments and Perfection then when God drew it out of its first Chaos As much difference as there is between the second Adam and the first between the Heavenly Paradice and the Earthly so much there shall be between the first and second World So that we shall have good cause to say of this great Palace which is to be destroyed and reared up again by the Almighty hand of God as the Holy Prophets said of Solomons Temple which we have already applied to our glorified Bodies The glory of this second House shall be greater than the glory of the first Some inquire whether we shall know one another in this State of Eternal Glory and happiness I mean whether the Subject shall know his Prince and King whether the Sheep shall know their Shepheard and the Shepheard his Sheep whether the Father shall know his Son the Son the Father the Husband his Wife and the Wife her Husband and so forth Although this question is of the number of such as are more curious then needful to be known nevertheless a reply seems to bring with it some kind of comfort and satisfaction I should judge that this Treatise should not be perfect if I did not say something to this matter but what I shall say shall be with the same moderation and reservedness as I have expressed in answering to the former questions for although what I shall speak seems to me very plain and without any difficulty others may have different thoughts without any prejudice to their Salvation However I may establish for an infallible Truth That the Glory of Heaven as well as Grace shall bring Nature to perfection but shall not destroy it it shall add to it other excellencies but shall not take away those that it hath already It shall not abolish any of the Faculties but it shall beautifie and enrich them with new Ornaments Therefore by consequence it shall not take away our Memory which is one of the rarest gifts and abilities of the reasonable Soul I confess that it is said That the former things shall be remembred no more and that they shall come no more into our mind But this is to be understood of the evils and calamities of this present life And we are not to understand the words so that to speak plainly we shall totally forget all the former evils and miseries and that we shall not remember to have undergone them St. John saith the contrary when he represents the Angel opening the fifth Seal that he saw under the Golden Altar which was before the Throne of God the Souls of them who had been Martyred for the Word of God and for the Testimony of the Truth crying out with a loud voice How long O Lord Holy and True dost thou not judge and revenge our Blood upon the Inhabitants of the Earth It is true these words may be understood in a figurative sense as when God said unto Cain The voice of thy Brothers Bloodcries from the Earth unto me and as St. Paul saith That the Blood of Jesus Christ speaks better things than the Blood of Abel However from hence we may conclude that the remembrance of all the Miseries and Evils which we have endured in this Life is not repugnant to our future estate of glory This remembrance is so far from prejudicing our felicity that on the contrary it shall increase and inlarge it so that it shall cause it to appear sweeter and more pleasant When the Prophet saith That the former things shall be remembered no more that they shall never come to mind he understands that the former evils shall never be felt and that we shall be for ever sheltered from all Misery and Misfortunes I cannot express this by a nobler and more proper example then that of Joseph when he went out of Prison to take into his hands the Government of Egypt and that he had strengthened himself by a rich Alliance in Marriage he named his eldest Son Manasseth which signifies forgetfulness or forgetful for he said God hath made me forget all my labor and my Fathers House Although this holy Manhd not forgotten altogether all those things for he knew afterwards his Brethren and told them of the mischief which they had intended against him and which God had turned to good But he spoke in this manner because God had changed his Misery and imprisonment into glory and honour In this sense we are to understand these words The former things shall be remembred no more because instead of the Evils and Miseries which we endure here below we shall enter into an Eternal Glory and Happiness The Prophet expounds himself sufficiently in the next words for when he had said The former things shall not be remembred nor come into mind he adds immediately after be you glad and rejoyce in that which I Create The Holy Ghost confirms us in this interpretation in another place by these words All Tears shall be wiped off from our eyes there shall be no more sorrow nor crying nor pain but eternal Joy and Gladness shall be upon our heads Seeing God intends not to destroy those gifts and abilities which he hath bestowed upon us in this Life much less shall he abolish our knowledge which is one of the brightest Beams of his Glory This knowledge shall be so far from diminishing or decaying that it shall then increase more and more until it comes to the highest perfection and glory As the Air looseth nothing of its twilight
the glorious liberty of the Children of God And in the 3. Chap. to the Colos he saith you are Dead and your Life is hid with Christ in God when Christ who is your Life shall appear you shall appear also with him in Glory Therefore this glorious appearing is stiled a blessed Hope that is to say the fulfilling and accomplishment of all that we expect or hope for as in the 2 Chap. to Titus St. Paul saith We expect the Blessed Hope the appearing of the Glory of our great God who is the Saviour Jesus Christ Then shall be the consummation of the Glory and of the head and of the Members for then the Son of God shall cause the Damned to feel that Power which he possesseth in Heaven and in Earth and in the Depths he shall discover himself to the faithful in his greatest Glory and most Divine Splendor Therefore this glorious Day of his descent from Heaven with the Angels of his power is mentioned as the first day of his manifestation of his appearing and of his Kingdom for this cause when the Holy Ghost speaks of this day it stiles it The day of the Lord Jesus Christ or the day of the Lord Jesus as also the Day of the Lord and the day of God As it shall be the Day of the Lord Jesus it shall also be our Day therefore St. Paul calls it The day of our Redemption because that in this day our Lord shall redeem our Bodies out of their Graves and shall bestow upon both our Souls and Bodies Eph. 4. all the Fruits of that Redemption which he hath purchased for us with his Blood Rom. 8. and shall raise us up to the highest Glory and most perfect happiness Heb. 9 It is the happy Day of the Consummation of our Marriage with this Divine Lamb. It is the day of our Joy and Triumph with the glorified Men and Angels It is the day of our Coronation and of our entrance into our Kingdom when the King of Kings the Lord of Lords shall Crown us with his own hand and put us in possession of an Empire prepared for us from the beginning of the World In a word it is the day when we shall come to the Lord Jesus and be with him as he is with the Father that we may be all in one Because of the glorious and wonderful things which shall come to pass on this day it is named The great Day St. Jude calls it thus when he speaks of the Revolted Angels he saith That God hath reserved them in everlasting Chains under darkness unto the Judgment of the Great Day In this manner many understand the words of St. John when he describes the Foul Spirits and likens them to Frogs which he saw coming out of the Dragons Mouth and of the Beast and out of the Mouth of the False Prophet and saith They are the Spirits of Devils working Miracles which God sent forth unto the Kings of the Earth and of the whole World to gather them to the Battle of that great Day of God Almighty Revel 16. Lastly this glorious Day is not only called The day of Judgement the Day of the Lord the Day of our Redemption and the Great day but oftimes without any addition it is stiled the Day and that Day as in the 10. Chap. to the Hebrews Let us consider one another to provoke unto Love and good Works not forsaking the assembling our selves together as the manner of some is but exhorting one another and so much the more as ye see the day approaching In the first Epist to the Thessal You are not in Darkness that that Day should surprise you Thus in 2 Epist to Timothy and first Chap. St. Paul saith I know whom I have believed and I am perswaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that Day And when he remembers the good and charitable Deeds of Mesiphorus he prays for him in this manner The Lord grant unto him that he may find Mercy of the Lord in that day And in the 4 Chap. speaking of himself he saith I have fought the good fight I have finished my course I have kept the Faith henceforth there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness which the Lord the righteous Judge shall give at that Day It is so stiled because of its excellency it is the Day of Dayes the end of all the Seasons the Consummation of all Ages and Times after this there shall be no more alteration of Days Months and Years Therefore an Angel is represented in the Revel lifting up his hand to Heaven swearing by the living God who hath Created Heaven and all things therein the Earth and all things in it and the Sea and the things that are there That there shall be no more Time for instead of this unconstant time which flies away without leaving any sign of its being an everlasting Eternity shall succeed an Eternity always the same always Blessed with Happiness alwayes glorious and joyful This Divine and Magnificent Day shall begin at the end of all other Days but shall never draw to an end Therefore St. Peter in these words calls it an Eternal day or Eternity 2 Pet. 3. Glory be to the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ both now and for ever Amen And in expectation of this Day of Days all Creatures are groaning and travailling in pain until now but especially Believers who have the First Fruits of the Spirit groan in themselves desiring with an earnest and holy desire to see the breaking of this great and glorious Day It is the end of all the Prophecies and the accomplishment of all Gods gracious promises to his People in all the Ages of the World It is the end and price of our Spiritual Calling the fulfilling of all our desires and expectations the Crowning of all our Labors and the highest step of that glory and happiness unto which we pretend You Devout Souls that delight in the contemplation of Celestial things I pray consider with me the accomplishment and the perfection of three kinds of works which have been succeeded by their several Rests The first was that of the Creation of the World for in six days God Created the Heaven and the Earth and all things in them and when he had finished his Works and found that they were good and perfect he rested the seventh day Gen. 1. 2. Therefore he Blessed and Sanctified it The second great work was that of Redemption for when our Saviour had fulfilled all the Prophesies which meâ—tioned him when he had caused the meaning of all the ancient Types and Figures to appear in his person and in his sufferings when he had fully satisfied the justice of God and purchased for us with his Blood an Eternal Redemption he cried out all is finished John 19. and he bowed his Head and gave up the Ghost After this Christ had nothing more to do nor to suffer but he
good Heli It is the Lord let him do what seemeth him good or with thy Servant Job The Lord gave the Lord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord. Thou hast pluckt out that strong root that did tye me to this Earth and hast out the pleasant string that did bind me so fast to the world that thou mightest transplant my heart in Heaven and lift up my affections to the things above A part of my self which I lookt upon as my Treasure is already with thee and the wings of Divine Love that enflames me caries me thither also at every moment Instead of continuing in my Sighs Groans and Tears for him or for her that I loved with all the affection and tenderness that I am capable of Give me Grace to employ my self in preparing to depart out of this earthly Tabernacle Enable me to imitate the Piety Zeal Faith and Constancy and all the other Noble Vertues of those whom thou hast received into thine Eternal Rest and crowned with Glory Let me dye the death of the Righteous and let my last End be like his Amen CHAP. 10. The fourth Remedy against the fears of Death to separate our Hearts from the World THe Children of Israel did leave the Wilderness with a ready mind and went joyfully over the River of Jordan when God Commanded them so to do The cause of this their readiness was an earnest longing for the Land of Canaan and their unsetled condition in the Wilderness having nothing but Tents to live in Death is to us the same in regard of our Heavenly Paradise as the River of Jordan was to the Children of Israel in respect of the promised Land Therefore from hence it appears that the best means of obliging our selves to a resolution of entring into this passage willingly is to free our selves from all those things which might incumber as stop or tye us to the World and to keep our selves always in a readiness to depart For that purpose it is not necessary that we should go out of the World but that the World should be banished and driven out of us and that we should renounce all the vanities and unruly affections so that we may be able to speak with the Apostle The world is crucified to me and I am crucified to the world for there be many who depart out of the World but leave there their Hearts and most tender Affections as Lot's Wife that went out of Sodom but left therewith her Treasures and Delights her most earnest desires as the Israelites who when they went out of Egppt left behind them their cursed affections with their pots of Flesh and Onions The same thing happens to many who separate themselves without any necessity from the acquaintance of Mankind and who affect a strange and austere kind of life They leave the society of wise and vertuous persons and the lawful use of the Blessings which Heaven hath vouchsafed to them and they deprive themselves of all that deserves our esteem and the means of glorifying God and edifying our neighbors but many times they carry with them their Corruptions their Vices and a legion of wicked Thoughts and carnal Desires By this means they give place to the Devil and expose themselves to all his temptations for that wicked Serpent delights himself rather in the Dens of Wild Beasts and in the Caves of the Earth than in the Palaces and Dwellings of Princes and Kings The most horrid and abominable Vices creep and breed rather in the Desarts and places of Retreat than in Publick and in the great Cities that are full of Inhabitants Lot remain'd chast in the most execrable City that was in the World but when he went aside to the foot of a Mountain and into a Cave to dwell he defiled himself with a monstruous Incest When Satan intended to tempt our Saviour Christ he carried him into a Desart and to the top of a Mountain From hence we may gather that this subtil Enemy of Mankind hath learnt by his long experience that the places of Retreat and the most solitary are the fittest for to lay his snares If our Saviour who was wholly innocent and free from Sin hath been able to overcome all manner of Temptations we are not of the same temper we are not furnished with such Armor as he was of Proof against all the enflamed Darts of the Devil for our miserable Flesh delights in its own destruction it opens the Ears and the Heart wide to the deceitful promises of Satan and suffers it self to be cheated by his damnable Enchantments It flatters us and causeth us to be â—ull'd aslcep in its bosom then like a treacherous Dalilah it betrays us into the unmerciful hands of our great Enemy Some cloath themselves with Hair and wear at their Girdle a knotted Cord whom the Devil drags to Hell with the invisible Chains of Lust Others climb up to the top of frozen Mountains and yet their Hearts do burn with impure Flames Some fret themselves in a mournful solitariness whose desires and longings are for the world and its vanities Others have their hands lifted up to Heaven whose mind is enslaved to the Earth and rooted in the rotten and filthy pleasures of the Times Some have a Lamp burning before them whose understanding is wrapt in gross darkness more palpable than that of Egypt Others have an empty Stomach whose Soul is full of abominable Passions In short Some live in appearance like Angels and yet they are possessed by legions of infernal Spirits Other seem to have no concernment in the World and yet lodge the whole World in their Hearts Under a course Habit there dwells oftimes more Envy more Vanity and Ambition than under the glorious attire of Silk and Gold Through a torn cloathing some Souls may be perceived swell'd with Pride and Arrogancy and in the company of Beggars are to be found many times the Designes of Kings and the lofty thoughts of the greatest Monarchs To speak plainly the good things and advantages of this life don't stop and wed us of themselves to this World but rather that Love and Affection which we bear to them for without doubt there be many that are more earnest and affectionate for the things that they want than others that enjoy them Some poor people have a far greater longing for Riches than ever Solomon had in the midst of all his great Treasures Some silly Women that are covered with old Rags and some contemptible Joanes have more Vanity and Pride in their Brains than ever had Queen Esther in her Richest and most Glorious Attire The Prophet Daniel was rais'd to an high and eminent Honour for he was the Governor of the third part of the Monarchy of the Persians and of the Medes nevertheless he was no more concerned in Babylon than if he had had there but a Sepulcre and worn the Chains of a Slave he sends forth as many Sighs and pours as many Tears
forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared Psal 130. He that hides his transgressions shall not prosper but he that confesseth and forsaketh them shall obtain Mercy Prov. 1.8 It is certain that there is no sinner never so guilty that shall seek unto God's Mercy by a true Repentance but shall obtain his Request Psal 113. David had defiled himself with an horrible Adultery and imbrued his Hands in the Bloud of one of his most faithful Servants but assoon as he made his Suit unto God with a broken Heart and a contrite Spirit this good and merciful Creator cleansed this foul Sinner from all his guilt at the fountain of his infinite Mercy he made him whiter than Snow and comforted his bruised Bones This consideration caused him to cry out I said I will confess unto God my transgressions and thou O God hast taken away the punishment of my sin Ps 52 King Manasseh had been addicted to devilish Arts and to the most abominablee and grievous Idolatries 2 Chron. 33. Nevertheless as soon as he sighs in his Chains his Prayers and his Groans found a Gracious reception at the Throne of Grace The poor Publican in the Gospel being ashamed to lift up his Eyes to Heaven struck upon his Breast with this expression of his penitent Soul O God be merciful to me a sinner Luk 18. And God look'd upon him with an Eye of Mercy and stretched out unto him his Gracious Hand so that hâ— departed to his home justified The penitent Magdalen was inwardly grieved at her former filthy and debauched behaviour so that she came and cast her self at our Saviours Feet watering them with her Tears and wiping them with the Hair of her Head Luk 9. but Christ soon lifted her up with these comfortable words Thy sins are pardoned thy faith hath saved thee go in peace St. Peter by an unconstancy that should cause the best Christians to tremble for fear of falling into the same Apostacy denied his Lord and Master three times with cursing and swearing Matth. 26. but this merciful God looked upon him with an eye of compassion and gave him grace to repent most bitterly of such a foul crime I doubt not but at the same time that this wretched sinner poured forth his Tears in God's presence doubtless he poured into his Heart the Oyl of Joy and Gladness and comforted him most effectually by his Divine Spirit Likewise although your sins be grievous and abominable if your Souls be struck with grief and displeasure if your Hearts be truly penitent so that you shed sincere Tears of Repentance and in case you are heartily sorry for the want of a sufficient displeasure for your sins in case you prostrate your self before your Heavenly Father he will raise you up again by his infinite Goodness he will cast all your sins and transgressions behind him he will cry unto you in your Hearts by the voice of his Holy Spirit My Son or My Daughter thy sins are forgiven thee John 5. He will fill your Souls with an unspeakable Joy Luk 9. and will cause you to sing with the Psalmist Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity and in whose spirit there is no guile Psal 32. Finally think not that it is ever too late to repent and that when Death is upon your Lips it is no time to seek to the Mercy of God As the business of Repentance cannot be too soon because we know not when God will call us to himself It is most certain that it can never be too late for at what time or season soever the poor sinner melts into Tears of Repentance in case his Repentance be real and his Tears proceed from a penitent heart God will always have the Arms of his Mercy wide open to receive him The Thief crucified at our Saviours side was at the last gasp when he was converted and when he uttered this excellent expression Remember me Lord when thou comest into thy Kingdom Luk 23. Our good and merciful Saviour granted his Request and encouraged him with the most excellent and comfortable promise that we can imagine Verily I say unto thee To day shalt thou be with me in Paradise In like manner when thou art at the point of death if God speaks unto thee and awakens thy Conscience it is an infallible signe that he hath compassion upon thee and that he will not destroy thee It is a signe that he opens for thee his Heaven full of Light and Glory and offers unto thee his Paradice with all its Divine Excellencies Doubt not penitent sinner that this is the acceptable day the day of Salvation and the time of Gods good pleasure seeing that this good God draws so near thee thou mayest with freedom draw near him And seeing that he beats and knocks at the door of thine Heart it is an infallible token that thou mayest also beat at the door of his Eternal Mercies and that he intends to open to satisfy thee In short at what hour soever we go unto God and appear before his Throne he stretcheth out unto us the Golden Scepter of his Goodness that we should obtain Mercy and find Grace to be helped in time of need It is not needful that we should prepare long and elaborated Speeches or Prayers to perswade God to vouchsafe his Grace and needful help in such an urgent necessity It is not necessary that we should compose them with the Art and Industry of humane Wisdom We need but pray unto God as unto our Father and weep in his bosom we need but open unto him our Hearts and call our selves his Children that alone is sufficient to move him to compassion and to stir up his Fatherly affections to appease his anger and to draw upon us his most excellent Blessings The Prophet Isaiah the most Eloquent of the Men of his time seeks no other argument to perswade God to have Mercy and compassion but this Look down from Heaven and behold from the Habitation of thy Holiness and of thy Glory where is thy Zeal and thy Strength the sounding of thy Bowels and of thy Mercies towards me are they restrained doubtless thou art our Father though Abraham be ignorant of us and Israel acknowledgeth us not Thou O Lord art our Father our Redeemer thy Name is from everlasting Isai 63. Likewise after that he had made this confession We are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy Rags and we all doe fade as a leaf and our iniquities like the wind have taken us away and there is none that calleth upon thy name that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee for thou hast hid thy face from us and hast consumed us because of our iniquities Chap. 64. He adds But now O Lord thou art our Father we are thy Clay and thou art our Potter and we all are the work of thine Hand Be
not wrath very sore O Lord neither remember iniquity for ever behold see we beseech thee we are all thy People By this gracious and loving Title of Father the prodigal Son is perswaded to be able to oblige his Father to have compassion of him I will rise and go to my Father and will say unto him Father I have sinned against Heaven and against thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Son make me as one of thy hired Servants Thus although we have forsaken our Heavenly Father mispent the Riches of his Grace and lived a filthy and a prophane Life Nevertheless if we can be but moved with a serious and a true repentance and say to him from our hearts Father I have sinned against Heaven and against thee I am no more worthy to be called thy Son He will forget all the miscarriages of our youth and will pass by all the offences that we have committed out of ignorance or mistake nay he will blot out all our wilful and deliberate sins he will not only embrace us when we shall cast our selves at his feet and in the arms of his Mercy but he will meet and receive us as his dearest Children he will kiss us with the blessed kisses of his Fatherly love he will give unto us his Holy Spirit that shall seal us for the day of Redemption and shall assure us that we are admitted to the liberty and all the priviledges of his Children he will shooe our Feet with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace and will give us all the assurances of our entire and perfect reconciliation He will cloath us here upon Earth with the Robes of Righteousness and Holiness and in Heaven he will bestow upon us uncorruptible Robes of immortality and Glory In this life he will give us the foretasts of Eternal Happiness and in the life to come he will lead us by the hand into the Banqueting Chamber and will cause us to sit there at Table with Abraham Isaack and Jacob and with all the First-born whose names are written in Heaven Out of this celestial abode all murmurings and complaints shall be banished but here shall be rejoycing and gladness for the conversion of poor sinners and for their admittance into the Kingdom of Heaven God himself shall invite the Holy Angels and blessed Spirits to share in these publick rejoycings saying to them We must rejoyce for these my Children were dead but now they are alive they were lost but now they are found again Let the miserable slaves of the Devil and of their filthy Lusts tremble at the approaches of death and let them look upon God as a dreadful Judge Rom. 2. For our parts we have not the spirit of Bondage to be again in fear but we have the spirit of Adoption whereby we may cry Abba Father Let the Sons and Daughters of Adam who have no other Being nor Life but that which they have received with their corrupted Nature fly from God's Presence for our parts we that are Regenerated by the Spirit of the second Adam we will draw near to him with boldness We will not say as that wretched Soul disturbed and frighted at the consideration of its crimes I heard thy voice I was afraid and hid myself Gen. 3. But rather having been brought up in the Schools of the Prophets and Apostles and having learn'd that we must prefer our Obedience to God's Will to all other things whatsoever we shall say unto him with Samuel Speak Lord for thy servant heareth 1 Sam. 8. Or rather we will speak unto him in plainer terms O my God and Heavenly Father speak when thou wilt for thy servant is ready and resolved to obey thy Commands we will stay till God shall call the fourth time as that Holy Man Numb 31. Who because of his tender and unexperienced years could not distinguish between God's voice and that of a Man but we will have our Ears always open to his Divine Orders and at the first motion and summons of his Will we shall be ready to follow him as the Children of Israel were in the Wilderness when they raised their Camp and marched according to God's directions Numb 3. And as when the Levites stopt and put down the Ark in its own place 2 Chron. 3. Moses did commonly pray O Lord give rest to the thousands of Israel Likewise you believing Souls whom God hath chosen for his Ark and Temple assoon as you shall perceive that this wise Governor of Mankind intends to put a period to your painful Journey and laborious Race that is to say assoon as you shall perceive the least signe of death speak with an Holy confidence and joy Rejoyce O my Soul the time of thy freedom and of thine Eternal Rest approacheth Here is the Messenger of good news here is Death that will usher me in to the Glorious Palace of my Heavenly Father Father the hour is come Glorify thy Son that thy Son may Glorify thee John 17. When the hour was come that our Lord Jesus Christ was to go out of this World to the Father he said unto his Disciples who were grieved for his going from them If ye loved me ye would rejoyce because I said I go unto the Father for my Father is greater than I John 13. John 14. Christian Souls speak in this manner at the hour of your departing If such as are about you happen to weep and lament if they endeavour to move and stop you by the considerations of Flesh and Bloud tell them why are you grieved at my deliverance and at the end of my misery why would you hinder and retard my Glory and Happiness O how cruel is your Love how blind and unconsiderate is your Affection Certainly if ye did love me as ye ought ye would prefer my satisfaction and the accomplishment of my happiness to the small advantages that ye might gather from my abode with you ye should consider that the least part of the joy that I shall feel in my Heavenly Fathers House is a thousand times more worth than all the Pleasures of the Earth than the Honors of the Age and the Pomp and Glory of the World My friends or rather my enemies let me go for I go to my Father I go to behold his Face which is the most Divine satisfaction I go to take possession of that Inheritance prepared for me from the foundations of the World John 20. Matth. 21. A Prayer and Meditation for a believing Soul that strengthens it self against the fears of Death by an Assurance and Trust upon God's Fatherly Goodness and Infinite Mercy MY God and Creator I perceive that the time of my departure draweth near and that Death presseth sore upon me It summons me to appear before thy dreadful Tribual it frights me when it brings to my remembrance all my former sins and represents unto me the hainousness of my crimes O Great God when I seriously think upon what I am
one after another and he also in his time yielded up the Ghost But Jesus Christ who is Risen from the Dead Dyeth no more Death hath no more Dominion over him so that he lives for ever and ever and will cause us all to become Immortal Therefore instead of desiring as Jacob to Live to go down into Egypt to see his Son Joseph we should earnestly desire to Dye that we might ascend up into Heaven there to behold our Lord Jesus Christ our Father and Redeemer When Jacob embraced again his wonderful and beloved Child in the exceeding transport of his Joy and Love he burst forth into this kind of Language Let me now Dye now that I have seen again thy Face and that thou art alive On the contrary when we shall embrace Christ in his Glory when we should behold his Divine Countenance we shall speak in another manner my Lord and my God seeing that I now look upon thee alive and Raigning in Heaven I shall live also and Raign with thee for ever and ever Amen A Prayer and Meditation for a believing Soul who strengthens it self against the Fears of Death by considering the glorious Ascention of Jesus Christ into Heaven and his sitting at the right hand of God O Holy and Divine Saviour I have often looked upon thy generous Behaviour and glorious Victories to strengthen my self against all apprehensions of Death but if thou wilt render my joy most perfect and accomplished give me Grace to Meditate upon thy Divine Triumph As thou hast engaged in many Encounters for my sake and hast vouchsafed unto me a share in thy Victory grant me also a share in thy glorious Ascention and Triumph As thou hast suffered for my Sins and art risen again for my Justification thou art also ascended up into Heaven to prepare a place for me thou art willing that I should be admitted into thy Noble and Divine Palace that I should be where thou art that I may behold thy Glory which thou hast enjoyed with God the Father before the Creation of the World O sweet and Merciful Lord what cause have I to fear to go to Heaven seeing that thou art there seated in the highest Glory and Felicity and that thou stretchest out thy merciful hand to receive and admit me Have not I good reason to expect to be glorified in thy Kingdom seeing that thou thy self dost bestow upon those that serve thee the Immortal Crowns and Scepters O great God and Saviour thy Throne is surrounded with Glory and Splendor nevertheless I will draw near unto it with boldness for it is a Throne of Love and a Throne of Mercy unto which every penitent Sinner may come Round about this glorious Throne I see a Rainbow of an Emerald colour that certifies me that thy Covenant is everlasting When thy Glory and Majesty did increase thy Love for me did not lessen and thy compassion and goodness were always the same Thou art the same yesterday and to day and thou shalt always be the same for ever Thou hast been pleased for my Salvation to lye in a Manger and to be nailed to a Cross Thou hast given thy Soul for my Ransome and hast spilt thy precious Blood to wash and cleanse me from my Sins and to make me a way that I might enter into thine holy Sanctuary In the midst of all that Glory and Light with which thou art now cloathed thou hast not thought it a scorn to acknowledge me for thy Brether and for a Member of thy Mystical Body It is for my sake that thou appearest before thine Heavenly Father it is for me that thou offerest up unto him Prayers and Supplications O wonderful Lord it is in thy power to give unto me the things which thou hast merited by thy Sufferings and which thou desirest for me by thy Prayers and Intercession for all power is given unto thee in Heaven and in Earth O Soveraign Monarch of the whole World hast not thou given unto us this great and gracious promise When I shall be lifted up from the Earth I shall draw all Men after me And is it not for us that thou hast prayed in this excellent manner Father I will that they also whom thou hâ—st given me be with me where I am that they may behold my glory which thou hast given me Seeing therefore that thou hast left this wretched Earth to go and Raign above in Heaven take unto thee my Soul O wonderful Redeemer and deliver it from this valley of Tears and Misery cause it to understand at the time of its departure those words of joy and eternal comfort Verily I say unto thee this day thou shalt be with me in Paradice Lord Jesus draw me with the cords of thy Mercy and Grace and I shad run after thee And seeing that I must of necessity pass through Death to come to thee the Prince of Life and Immortality give me Grace to consider it in the same manner as the Prophet Elias did the Fiery Charriots that carried him up to Heaven or as Jacob did the Waggon that carried him into Egypt to his Son that did Raign there this holy Father in a transport of joy cried out let me see my Son Joseph again and then let me Dye But when I shall be ravished with an unspeakable and glorious joy I shall speak in another manner Let me Dye that I may behold my true Joseph the Soul of my Soul the light of Life the Author of my Glory and Happiness O sweet Jesus I shall freely and willingly leave this wretched and crasie dwelling to enter into thy heavenly Palace to behold thy Glory and Magnificence O King of Kings and Lord of Lords when shall I hear that Divine Wisdom that drops from thy Lips and when shall I see thee sitting upon the Throne of thy Glorious Majesty where a thousand thousands wait upon thee and ten millions Worship thee When shall I enter into the Glorious Company of the Saints and Blessed Spirits that Sing forth thy Praises and cast at thy feet their most precious Crowns O glorious Monarch that art now in thy Kingdome enjoying a perfect happiness forget not thy poor Servant be not unmindful of thy Sâ—n or Daughter who am now overwhelmed with the sorrows of this miserable life and the anguish of Death Let not the Songs of the holy Angels and applauses of all the glorified Spirits hinder thee from listning to my Sighs and Groans O Almighty and merciful Lord look upon me with the eyes of thy Love and reach unto me thine helping hand Send unto me thine Angels of Light to receive my Soul and prâ—tect me from the Angels of Darkness that endeavâ—r to destroy me and to drag me headlong into Hell Let Some of thâ—se glorious Spirits that wait for thine orders and fly at thy command deliver me from Death and carry me upon their wings into thy Bosome I see the Heavens open and Jesus Christ sitting at the right hand
of God the Father Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen CHAP. 19. The Seventh Consolation against the Fears of Death is our strict and unseparable union with Jesus Christ by the means of his holy Spirit and the first Fruits of our Blessed Immortality OUr Lord Jesus Christ doth not onely live and triumph in Heaven but it is from thence our life our glory and our blessed Immortality proceed For as the Father hath life in himself he hath also given to the Son to have Life in himself and as the Father raiseth and quickneth the Dead likewise the Son quickneth whomsoever he will So that we may not only say to him as St. Peter Thou hast the words of eternal life John 6. but we may justly speak to him in Davids Language with thee is the fountain of Life in thy light shall we see light Ps 36. Therefore all those that are united and incorporated into Jesus Christ do participate of the fulness of his holy Spirit and by that means they became Immortal Now by the vertue of Christs Death and Pastion we are not only made partakers of the Fruits of his Sufferings but we are united to and Incorporated in him so that by that means we have obtained not only the grâ—â—t and precious promises of Glory and Immortality which he hath purchased for us by the infinite merits of his Sufferings but we receive the First-Fruits and foretasts of our future blessedness He that is lifted up and dwells on high quickens the Spirits of the humble Is 57. he dwells in our hearts by Faith Eph. 31. he pours into our Souls his holy and quickning Spirit for because we are the Children of God he hath sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts to cry Abba Father Gal. 4. Whosoever hath not this Spirit of the Lord Jesus he is none of his By the means of this Spirit he dwells in us and we in him we become the Members of his Body and we may boast that we are his Flesh and his Bones All things that are most strictly united by Nature or Art are employed to represent this admirable union John 6. which we enjoy with Jesus Christ by the means of his Spirit that quickens us Rom. 13. From hence are derived these expressions of the holy Apostles We have put on the Lord Jesus Christ Gal. 3. And that when we draw near to him who is the living stone rejected of Men but lifted up and of great price with God 1 Pet. 2. we like so many living stones are built up together to make a Spiritual House For the same reason our Saviour informes us John 15. That he is the true Vine and that we are the branches And St. Paul assures us that if we are become one Plant with him by the conformity of his Death we shall also be one by the resemblance of his Resurrection Rom. 6. To shew unto us that this Sacred Union contains many ties of Love our Lord Jesus Christ is represented as our Brother our Father and our Bridegroom therefore the Apostle tells us that he thinks it no Disgrace to own us for his Brethren in saying Heb. 1. I will declare thy name unto my Brethren and also where he informes us Rom. 8. that God had predestinated us to be conformed to the Image of his Son that he might be the first born among many Brethren And after his Resurrection he speaks in this manner to Mary Magdalen John 20. Touch me not for I am not yet ascended to my Father but go to my Brethren and say unto them I ascend unto my Father and your Father and to my God and your God Heb. 2. Therefore this glorious Redeemer shewing himself unto God with all the Elect saith Here I am and the Children which thou hast given me Hosea 2 And by the Mouth of Hosea he speaks to his Church and makes this promise unto her I will betroth thee unto me for ever yea I will betroth thee unto me in Righteousness and in Judgment and in loving kindness and in Mercies From hence it is that this Church is called The Spouse of the Lamb in the Revelations and in the Canticâ—es the Spiritual Union betwixt Christ and his Church is expressed by a continual Allusion to a Marriage between Man and Woman And because our Meat and Drink are turned into our Body and Substance Jesus Christ assures us That his Flesh is truly Meat and his Blood is truly Drink That he is the true Bread come down from Heaven that gives Life to the World and that whosoever shall eat him shall live for ever But amongst all the Similitudes borrowed to represent our Union with Jesus Christ by his holy Spirit there is none employed more frequently in holy Scripture than that of the Humane Body for there is not any more proper for us all the Spirits that give life and motion proceed from the Head and assoon as the Members are separated from it they Dye In the like manner the Spirit that quickens us and makes us become new Creatures proceeds from Jesus Christ so that whosoever is separated from this Head he falls into Death and Eternal Destruction And as there are many Members nevertheless they make up but one Body because they are all animated with the same Spirit and they are kept alive by the same Head l kewise there be many Members belonging to Christs Mystical Body some engaged yet upon Earth and others glorified in Heaven nevertheless they make up but one only Mystical and Spiritual Body for they are all quickned by the same Spirit and receive all the celestial influences from the same Head St. Paul teacheth us this Doctrin in expresse terms 1 Cor 12. For as the Body is one and hath many Members and all the Members of that one Body being many are one Body so also is Christ for by one Spirit are we all Baptised into one Body whether we be Jews or Gentiles whether we be bond or free and have been all made to drink into one Spirit Finally because the same spirit that is in our Lord as in the Head and Fountain and in the Church in general as in the Body which is quickned and moved is also in every particular Member The holy Apostle is not satisfied to call this Spiritual Body of Christ and his Church Christ but he tells us moreover that whosoever is united unto him is made but one Spirit with him These and such like Representations let them be never so lively and noble are but dark shadowes and unperfect Images of our Union with Jesus Christ by his holy Spirit for the richest and most Magnificent Garment can never keep off from the Body Diseases nor hinder the approaches of corruption that creeps upon it There is no foundation never so firm and well setled that can free the house built upon it from the ruines and breach s of time and the weather Although the Sap mounts up from the root of the vine and runs