You must meditate of the fourfold state of man man may be considered in a fourfold state 1. Either in the state of innocency as he was before the fall a spotless picture of God that is a rare meditation study the happiness of man before he fell when he was made after Gods own image 2. The state of man when fallen when corrupted study the cursed condition of man in his natural condition 3. The estate of man when restored by Christ when regenerated when renew'd when made a picture of God 4. The estate of man in Heaven 1. What thou wert in Adam 2. What thou art when fallen 3. What thou art in Christ. 4. What thou shalt be in Heaven You must meditate of your sins of your good duties of your evidences and of your comforts 1. You must meditate of your sins that is a large field to walk in you must meditate of the sins you have committed against God of your sins of omission of your sins of commission your sins against the Law your sins against the Gospel your Sermon-sins your Sacrament-sins your spiritual sins your fleshly sins You must meditate of sin to be humbled for it that is a rare meditation to fit you for the Sacrament And oh that we had hearts seriously to meditate of our sins 2. You must meditate of your good duties that is how many good duties we omit how many good duties we sinfully perform whether we perform duties so as to please God in the performance of them 3. You must meditate of your Evidences for Heaven whether they are right or no whether you have gotten Tribunal-proof assurance for Heaven whether thy Evidences for Heaven are death-enduring whether they will hold out at the day of Judgment 4. You must meditate of your comforts whether those comforts that you have be the consolations of the Spirit or the delusions of the Devil There are many men will tell you that they have comforts but their comforts are Diabolical delusions not Divine consolations You must meditate of the frailty of your body the immortality of your soul the dependance you have upon God and the advantage God hath you at 1. The frailty of your body the body of man is made of dust and will quickly crumble to dust it is an earthly Tabernacle that is easily dissolved What a rare thing will it be to take the Scripture and study all the comparisons to which the life of man is compared to set out the shortness of it it is compared to grass to hay to stubble to dry stubble to a dry leaf to a swift post to a vapour to a hands-breadth meditate of the frailty of thy vile body that will quickly go down to the house of rottenness 2. Meditate of the immortality of thy soul thy precious soul which is a picture of God made by God and made for God There is no man but hath a heavenly tapour within him which can never be blown out there is no man but he hath that within him that he cannot kill himself there is no man but he hath that within him that must live for ever as blessed as an Angel or as cursed as a Devil Meditate upon the dependance you have upon God Oh this will keep thee humble and make thee comply with Gods will thou dependest upon God for thy being thy well-being thy eternal being thou dependest upon God every minute thou livest by Gods upholding thee study the dependance thou hast upon God for thy soul thy body thy wise thy children thy all 4. Meditate of the advantage God hath thee at God hath all the world between his hands as the Prophet saith and he can easily crush us as we do a moth as we are creatures he can annihilate us if he please and as we are sinners he can throw us into hell if he please Study the relations in which God hath placed thee study thy calling thy company thy heart 1. Study thy relations in which God hath placed thee there is none of us all but we are under many relations art thou a Minister art thou a Magistrate art thou a Father art thou a Master study the duties of every relation study how to honour God in every relation study to keep a good conscience in every relation 2. Study thy calling how to honour God in thy calling how to keep a good conscience in thy calling how to keep thy self unspotted from the sins of thy calling for there is no calling but hath some sin or other attending it Oh meditate that thy Shop do not destroy thy soul meditate to keep a good conscience in thy Shop that thou dost not lose in thy own house what thou gainest in Gods house 3. Study thy company what company to keep that is a great matter for I know a man by his company more than any thing whatsoever I mean by the company he useth to keep Study to keep a good conscience in all company study to keep thy self from the sins of thy company 4. Study thy heart meditate often of thine own heart the deceitfulness of thy heart the heart is deceitful above all things it is the greatest cheater in the world and there are thousands whose hearts do cozen them into Hell thy heart will tell thee thou lovest God when thou dost not love him at all that thou art upright when thou art an hypocrite Study thy Thoughts thy Affections thy Words and thy Actions 1. Meditate of thy Thoughts the vanity of thy thoughts the vileness of thy thoughts the Hell shall I say that is in thy thoughts if all the thoughts that we think were written upon our foreheads how would we be ashamed that the world should see us Oh meditate of thy covetous thoughts of thy lustful thoughts thy vile and vain thoughts to be humbled for them 2. Meditate of thy Affections God doth especially look to our affections he hates any service that is not mixed with affection There are several Affections meditate of thy love whether thou lovest God or the world most Meditate where thy love is whether thou servest God out of love whether the world doth not lye nearer thy heart than Christ Meditate of thy desire whether thou hast larger desires after the creature than after God Meditate of thy joy whether thou dost not delight more in vanity than in Christ Jesus And meditate of thy sorrow whether thou dost not mourn more for outward losses than for thy sins Meditate of thy anger whether thy anger be rightly placed And meditate of thy trust and hopes whether thou dost trust in God at all times 3. You must meditate of your Words Oh what a world of sin is in our tongues and if we would meditate of the sins of our tongues Oh what a black catalogue would there be the tongue is a world of iniquity set on fire of hell saith the Apostle Iames. 4. Meditate of thy Actions whether thy actions be agreeable to the will of God or no
heaven His course was to consider all the Creatures that were under the Heaven I have seen saith he all the works that are done under the Sun and behold all is but vanity and vexation of spirit After he had meditated upon the world he goes over the riches and the pleasures of the world and when he had reckoned them all he concludes in Chap. 2. 11. Then I looked on all the works my hand had wrought and on the labour that I had laboured to do and behold all was vanity and vexation of spirit I gathered me silver and gold and the peculiar treasure of Kings and of the Provinces I got me men-singers and women-singers and the delights of the sons of men as musical instruments and that of all sorts so I was great and increased more than all before me in Ierusalem also my wisdom remained with me and whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them And when he had looked upon all these glorious Excellencies what was his Conclusion Behold saith he all was vanity and vexation of spirit and there was no profit under the Sun Did we meditate much on the vanity of the world we would not idolize it so much 7. Divine Meditation is a mighty help to beget in us the grace of thankefulness for the mercies and blessings we receive from God Certainly it is a great duty that lyes upon us to be thankful for Gods mercies now there is no way to stir you up to thankefulness so much as meditation upon the mercies of God for he that forgets the mercies of God cannot be thankful for them and therefore mark the course that David takes Psal. 8. 3. When I consider the heavens the work of thy fingers the Moon the Stars which thou hast ordained then he crys out What is man that thou art mindful of him or the son of man that thou visitest him for thou hast made him a little lower than the angels When he considered what God had done for man then he admires the love of God to man and breaks out into thankfulness Certainly a Christian forgetful of Gods mercies can never be thankful for them and the way to beget thankefulness is to meditate on what God hath done for us 8. Divine Meditation is a mighty help to beget in you a preferring of Gods house before your own house It is the great sin of this age wherein we live that every man studies to build his own house and no man cares for the house of the Lord We may truly say as Ieremiah saith This is Sion whom no man regards every man seeks his own interest and no man almost cares what becomes of Religion There is a strange kind of lukewarmness that is upon the spirits of all men in this age that so men may grow great themselves they care not what becomes of the House of God Now Divine Meditation would make you prefer the building of Gods House before the building of your own house And for this purpose let me beseech you to read Hag. 1. 4. Is it time for you Oh ye to dwell in your cieled houses and this house lye waste It was the sin of the people of Israel that they neglected the building of Gods House and every man strove to grow rich in his own particular Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts consider your ways here the Prophet calleth them to consideration ye have sown much but bring in little ye eat but you have not enough ye drink but ye are not filled with drink ye clothe you but there is none warm And he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes What was the matter because they did not build Gods House therefore God did not build their house v. 7. Thus saith the Lord of Hosts consider your ways ye looked for much but lo it came to little and when you brought it home I did blow upon it why saith the Lord of Hosts because of my house that is waste and ye run every man into his own house therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew and the earth is stayed from her fruit God will never settle England God will never settle your houses till you make conscience to build Gods House and till you have more zeal for the House of God than for your own houses though you may dream of peace and plenty yet certainly the Lord will never build your houses until you build Gods House And therefore he saith further Hag. 2. 17. I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands yet ye turned not to me saith the Lord. Consider now from this day and upward from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month even from the day that the foundation of the Lords Temple was laid consider it from this day will I bless you And certainly the world is much mistaken the way to build your own house is to join together to settle Religion God will never prosper you till Gods House be setled And did you meditate on these two Chapters the first and second Chapter of Haggai it would by Gods grace beget in you a mighty zeal toward the setling of the House of God and to prefer that before the setling of your own house 9. Divine Meditation will beget in us a keeping of all the commandments of God There is no Commandment of God but Divine Meditation when it is sanctified I do not say otherwise will work in us and inable us to keep Deut. 4. 39 40. Know therefore this day and consider it in thy heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath there is none else thou shalt keep therefore his statutes and his commandments And David saith Psal. 119. 55. I have remembred thy name Oh Lord in the night and have kept thy Law 2. Divine Meditation is not only a means to beget grace but it is a mighty help to preserve and increase grace As the wood preserves the fire as the oil preserves the flame as the water preserves the fish so doth meditation preserve your graces It preserves every grace and it increaseth every grace for Meditation is a Divine pair of bellows to blow up the sparks of grace when there is but a little fire meditation will kindle this fire more and increase it when you find your love of God grows cold meditate upon the love of God and this will kindle the love of God in your hearts and when you find the fear of God to diminish in you meditate upon the power of God that thy breath is in his hand that he hath thee in his hand this will increase the fear of God and so when the love of the world increaseth upon you meditate upon the vanity and nothingness of it and this will decrease the love of the world 3. Divine Meditation as it is a means to beget grace and to increase grace so it is
practise of this duty be not always like Martha troubled with this and that business but remember Maries choice who chose the better part in attending upon Christ's Ministry I would have all rich men every day think of that Text Luk. 12. 20. Thou fool this night shall thy soul be taken from thee and what then will become of all thy possessions I confess God doth not require this at the hand of the daily labourer or at the hands of servants that are not masters of their own time and those that are very poor and are not able to set time apart for Meditation But you may remember I gave you a distinction between Ejaculatory Meditation and solemn Meditation a poor man when he is at his work may have a short Ejaculatory Meditation though he hath not time for this set and solemn meditation when he is at his work he may meditate upon the Promises and of Heaven and of Hell and of Death and Iudgment and the vanity of the world I have heard of a godly man was wont to say I thank God I can be in heaven in the midst of the croud of Cheapside I can meditate on the Rest I shall have in the other world 3. The third Direction is this The Sabbath-day especially is a day wherein all sorts of people are to busie themselves in this excellent work of Divine Meditation this is a day wherein the labourer ceaseth from his work the Plowmans yoke is taken off and the labouring-man and the serving man have their rest therefore it concerns all of us to spend some time every Sabbath-day in Meditation to meditate of the work of Creation or Redemption for the Lords-day is so called because Christ rose on that day and Christ set apart that day in memory of his Resurrection in memory of his Redemption therefore this is thy work Oh Christian not only to come to the publick Ordinances not only to pray in thy family but to set some time apart for Divine Meditation and the Lord forgive us this sin that we have omitted this duty so long Oh that I could be Gods instrument that there might be a resurrection of it that you would make conscience of it every Sabbath-day as you make conscience of attending upon publick and private duties so you would put this as one of your Sabbath-day duties for it is the very Quintessence the life and soul of all duty the Sabbath-day is a type of the eternal Sabbath which we shall keep for ever in Heaven and shall not I think of my eternal Sabbath upon the Sabbath shall not I be much in Heaven when I am keeping a rest upon earth that represents my eternal rest in Heaven let us upon our day of rest meditate much upon our eternal rest Oh let us upon our Sabbath-day meditate upon the everlasting Sabbath which we shall keep with God Almighty the Father Son and Holy Ghost for ever in Heaven 4. And last Direction is this That Sacrament-days are especially to be meditating-days to be set apart for this great work of Divine Meditation it is the great end why Christ hath appointed the Sacrament to shew forth the Lords-death till he come and saith Christ Do this in remembrance of me There are two things make us worthy receivers of the Sacrament Preparation before we come and Meditation when we are come and though thy Preparation be never so serious yet if thou dost not act aright in thy Meditation as well as thou hast done in thy Preparation thou maist lose the benefit of the Sacrament Now if any should ask me What are those things you would have us to meditate of when we are come unto the Sacrament or when we are at the Sacrament There are twelve Meditations which ought to take up our Sacramental-time which I call twelve common-place-heads I do not say we can meditate upon all of them at one Sacrament but my design is to give you matter sufficient that you may sometimes meditate of one sometimes of another I will but name them 1. You must meditate of the great and wonderful love of God the Father in giving Christ not only to die for us upon the Cross but in giving him to be our food at the Sacrament there was nothing moved God to give Christ but pure love and great love For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son So how so infinitely so inexpressibly the love of God in bestowing Christ is so great that the Angels desire to look into it And you that are not affected with this love I fear you have little share in it That is enough to take up one Sacrament 2. You are to meditate at the Sacrament not only of the love of the Father in giving of his Son but of the love of Christ in giving himself Ephes. 5. 2. Who loved us and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour As God gave Christ so Christ gave himself as God gave himself as man the Godhead infused this will into the Manhood that Christ willingly laid down his life Ioh. 10. 17 18. Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life that I may take it up again no man taketh it from me but I lay it down of my self I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it up this commandment have I received of my Father Now the love of Christ in giving himself to be a curse for us is a love that passeth knowledg yet it is a love that we must study to know It is a riddle but such a riddle as the Apostle himself doth in so many express words declare unto us Ephes. 3. 19. That we may be able to comprehend with all Saints what is the breadth and length and depth and heigth and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledg Great is the love of Christ which passeth knowledg great is the love of Christ in dying for us and being made sin for us and being made a curse for us 3. We must meditate of the heinousness of sin when we were all fallen in Adam we were ingulphed into such a bottomless abyss of misery that none but the blood of a God could deliver us for there was an infinite breach by sin between God and us and this breach could never be made up but by the blood of God That is a rare meditation at the Sacrament to meditate of the heinousness of sin when you see the bread broken it was sin that caused Christs body to be broken and when you see the wine poured out it was sin caused Christs blood to be poured out it was sin that caused Christ to suffer so much 4. You must meditate of the excellency of this Sacramental feast for the Sacrament is a commemorative Sacrifice it is a commemoration of that blessed Sacrifice that was offered on the Cross for our sins and it is an obsignation
is so excellent Difficilia quae pulchra the more excellent any duty is the more difficult it is And another reason why it is so difficult is because it is so contrary to corrupt nature now the more contrary any duty is to corrupt nature the more excellent it is The difficulty of the duty should not so much discourage us as the excellency of the duty should quicken us Now that I may help you against the difficulty of this duty I shall lay down three sorts of rules 1. Rules for the right qualifying of the person that is to meditate 2. Rules for the right ordering the Subjects upon which he is to meditate 3. Rules for the right meditation upon these Subjects I. I shall lay down Rules and Directions for the right qualifying and ordering the person that is to practise this Divine duty of Meditation and for that purpose I shall give you in these Rules 1. Convince thy soul of the absolute necessity of Divine Meditation I have shewed it is a duty expresly commanded by God a duty required of all sorts of persons of Kings of Generals of Armies of young Gentlemen of Women of Ministers David Ioshua young Isaac in my Text practised this duty and many Women and many holy men Let me add that this very duty is the life and soul of all Christianity you are but carcasses of Christians if you be not acquainted with it it is as impossible to live without a soul as it is to be a good Christian without Divine Meditation As it is impossible for a man to be nourished by meat if he want digestion and concoction so it is impossible for a man to be nourished in grace if he neglect the duty of Divine Meditation for Divine Meditation is the spiritual concoction and digestion of all holy things and all holy duties As a man without concoction I mean without a faculty of digestion and concoction so is a Christian without the practise of Divine Meditation 2. Convince your souls and the Lord convince you of the great benefits and advantages that are obtained by a conscientious practise of Divine Meditation as I have shewed Divine Meditation is a mighty help to the begetting grace and increasing grace 1. It is a mighty help to the begetting repentance as David saith Psal. 119. 59. I considered my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies It was the consideration of the evil of his ways that made David turn his feet to Gods Testimonies And it is said of Peter Mark 14. 72. When he thought thereon he wept what made Peter repent the meditation of the unkindness of the sin he committed against Christ. And what made the Prodigal child come home to his father Luk. 15. 17. When he came to himself he considered and said how many hired servants of my fathers have bread enough and to spare and I perish with hunger It was consideration that made the Prodigal child come home to his father he considered how much bread there was in his fathers house and he ready to starve 2. Divine Meditation is a mighty help to the love of God for to an inconsiderate Christian God is as a picture with a curtain drawn over it but consideration takes away the curtain unveils God to a man and shews him all the beauty and excellency that is in God and it is like a fiery furnace to kindle a Divine fire of love in the soul of every Christian. 3. It is a mighty help to beget in us the fear of God Oh did you meditate much of the power of God and the goodness of God and the forgivenesses that are in God Oh you would fear God for his goodness and for his greatness the reason why we love God no more is because we think of God no more study God no more 4. It would be a mighty help to the love of Christ for Christ Jesus to an unmeditating Christian is like a book that is sealed like a treasure that is lockt up but Meditation opens this book unlocks this treasure and that man that solemnly meditates of the excellency and love of Christ cannot but love Christ. 5. It is a mighty help to the contempt of the world for the world is like gilded Copper there is a glittering excellency in it but meditation of the vanity of the world will wash off all the gilt the whorish paint the glittering excellency that is in the world a man that looks upon the world a far off sees nothing in it but excellency but when you come to meditate of the vanity of the world and all worldly things meditation will make you contemn the world and all worldly things 3. Consider the unconceivable and unexpressible mischiefs that come upon a Christian for want of Divine Meditation What is the reason why men go on in their sins without repentance it is for want of Meditation Ier. 8. 6. No man repenteth because no man saith what have I done What is the reason the Word of God takes no more impression upon your hearts and there is no more good done by Preaching it is because you do not meditate upon what you hear as a plaister that is put to a wound if it be pluckt off as soon as it is put on it will never do you good so if a Sermon be forgotten as soon as it is heard it will never profit you And what is the reason that the mercies of God do no more good that men are no more thankful for mercies and no more fruitful under mercies because they do not consider their mercies come from God Hos. 2. 8. She did not know that is she did not consider that I gave her corn and wine and oil and multiplied her silver and gold which they prepared for Baal They would not have prepared their silver and gold for Baal had they considered that God gave it but they would have served God with it that is the reason why you are so proud of your mercies and sin against God with your mercies because you do not meditate that the Lord hath given you all the mercies you have and what is the reason men get no more good by afflictions because they do not consider why God afflicts them what is the meaning of Gods rod and how they might get their afflictions sanctified the want of the practice of Divine Meditation is the cause of all punishment as well as of all sin Ier. 12. 11. All the whole land is made desolute because no man lays it to heart 4. If you would be rightly qualified for Divine Meditation labour to get a sufficient furniture of spiritual knowledg for the reason why this duty is so difficult and why men cannot continue long at it is for want of sufficient matter to meditate upon For as I shewed you Meditation is a dwelling a musing an abiding upon the things we know of God or Christ or the Promises it is an unlocking of the treasure of knowledg concerning
God and Christ and Heaven and he that hath not a good stock of knowledg of Christ or the Promises can never continue long to meditate upon Christ or the Promises if ever you would be a good Practitioner of this duty of Divine Meditation you must labour to be instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven as the Phrase is Mat. 13. 42. Every Scribe which is instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a man which is a housholder that brings out of his treasure things old and new You must be acquainted with things both new and old and instructed in the things of the Kingdom of God and you must be men in understanding 1 Cor. 14. 20. Brethren be not children in understanding howbeit in malice be ye children but in understanding be men A babe in understanding cannot be long in meditation but you must be babes in malice but in understanding men of ripe age You had need have a great deal of knowledg that would be Practitioners to purpose of this excellent duty of Divine Meditatiou you must grow in grace and in the knowledg of our Lord Iesus Christ. 5. If ever you would be a good Practitioner in the School of Divine Meditation you must labour to get a serious spirit for a slight-headed Christian can never be a good meditating Christian a slight-headed and a slight-hearted Christian that cannot dwell upon things but rove from one thing to another cannot be a good Christian pardon my words I speak them upon much deliberation for Religion is a serious matter it is a business of eternity and therefore it requires a serious Christian and if ever you would practise this duty that I am preaching of if ever you would go up to the mount of Meditation to converse with God there you must labour to be of a serious spirit as those were Luk. 1. 66. And all they that heard him laid it up in their hearts they did not slight what they heard but laid it up in their hearts Luk. 2. 19. But Mary kept all these sayings and pondered them in her heart Luk. 2. 51. But his mother kept all these sayings in her heart A good Christian is a pondering a serious Christian. There is a fourfold frame of spirit that cannot stand with true Christianity nor with the practice of this duty that I am preaching of and the Lord help you against them 1. A slight frame of spirit that man that thinks slightly of God will love him but slightly and serve him but slightly slight thoughts of God will make but slight impressions upon the heart and slight impressions upon the life Slight thoughts of God will have but slight affections to God for if my apprehensions be slight my affections and my actions will be slight for my affections and actions follow my apprehension Therefore a slight frame of spirit is a very sad frame of spirit 2. As there is a slight so there is a trifling frame of spirit when a man thinks of the things of Heaven as trifles when a man trifles way a Sacrament trifles away a Sermon trifles away a Prayer as thousands of you do Oh it is a sad thing for a man to be serious in trifles and to trifle in serious things I cannot tell which is the worst though I think rather the second is the worst That is a sad thing when a man looks upon Sabbaths and Sacraments and Ministers and Ministry and all the holy things of God as trifles such an one was Gallio when he saw it was a matter of Religion he cared for none of these things he looked upon them as trifles A trifling frame of spirit cannot consist with true Christianity 3. There is a watry frame of spirit there are some men tell them of their sins and they will yield to you and confess their sins and promise amendment and there are many while they are at a Sermon the Sermon takes impression upon them but they are of a watry spirit nothing will abide upon them As a man that flings a stone into the water it will make one circle and another circle and another circle a great many circles but there is no abiding of them they are quickly gone so there are some men their hearts will melt at a Sermon or a Sacrament but they are of a watry spirit nothing will abide upon them Take a stone and fling it at a feather-bed the stone will make a great dint in it but this dint will not abide though the feather-bed yield to the stone yet there is no remaining of the impression so many a man is of a yielding spirit that nothing will fix 4. A rash inconsiderate frame of spirit cannot stand with true Christianity when a man rusheth upon good duties and upon Offices Church-offices and State-offices without any deliberation Meditation or preparation when a man prays rashly comes to the Sacrament rashly headily hand over head as we say this man is a spiritual fool and all his holy duties are the sacrifices of fools Eccles. 5. 1. Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God and be more ready to hear than to give the sacrifices of fools for they consider not that they do evil Be not rash with thy mouth and let not thy heart be hasty to utter any thing before God A rash spirited man that prays headily and comes to holy duties headily and inconsiderately this man catcheth many a fall as a man that runs hastily will quickly stumble so a man that is spiritually rash will run into many spiritual evils As a man that is rash in his calling will quickly out-run himself so he that is rash in holy duties will quickly run into a thousand mischiefs as Peter was so rash when he said to Christ Though all men forsake thee yet will not I. He was over rash but it cost him dear So it was a rash act of David when he went to kill Nabal and if Abigail had not hindred him he had murdered him And when he gave the land to Mephibosheth's servant it was a rash act Consider I beseech you these four Particulars these frames of spirit will never make you good Christians never fit you for the practise of this rare duty of Divine Meditation but you must pray unto God that he would give you a solemn and serious spirit if ever you would be rightly qualified to go up to the mount of Divine Meditation The sixth Rule is this Labour for the love of Heaven and Heavenly things the reason why people find it so difficult to meditate upon Heavenly things is for want of love to them for if you did love Christ I need not perswade you to meditate of God I need not perswade a covetous man to meditate of his money a man that loves the world you need not perswade him to meditate of the world or a man that is voluptuous to meditate upon his pleasures his love to his pleasures will force him to think of them
a man that is ambitious you need not perswade him to think of honour and preferment but the love that he hath to preferment will force him to think of it So did you love God Christ Heavenly things you would be much in the meditation of them And the reason why you meditate no more of them is because you love them no more Psal. 119. 97. Oh how do I love thy law what then it is my meditation all the day What made David meditate all the day upon the Law of God because he loved it Psal. 1. 7. But his delight is in the Law of the Lord and in his Law doth he meditate day and night A man that is deep in love with a woman you need not bid him think of that woman Where the love is there the soul is Oh did you delight in the things of Heaven I need not lay down rules to perswade you to the practise of it the very love would be a loadstone love is a loadstone of Meditation and he that loves good things will think of them Cogitatione crebra cogitatione longa cogitatione profunda that is very often very long and very deep a man that is deep in love is deep in meditation of the party he loves The seventh Rule Labour to get an interest in Heavenly things labour by Scripture-evidences to make out thy interest in Heavenly things what comfort can that man have of meditating of Heaven that doth not know he hath a right to Heaven what comfort can that man have of meditating of Christ that doth not know that Christ is his what comfort can that man have in meditation of God that looks upon God as his enemy It is interest that will facilitate Divine Meditation a man that hath an interest in an inheritance will often think of it if he hath a thousand pound a year that is his own he is often thinking how to improve it and enjoy it but if he hath no title or right to it alas he will not think of it what doth he care for it It is your interest in the things of Heaven that will raise your meditation of them and as long as you have no assurance of a title to Heaven you will never heartily meditate of it you may know it by rote and by form but you will never heartily meditate of it till you know it to be your inheritance and you will never heartily meditate of the Promises till you know you have a title to them that they are Promises made to you The eighth Rule is this Labour to get a heart disengaged and disintangled from the world a man that is dead and buried in the world it is in vain to perswade him to go up the mount of Meditation a bird that is in a Lime-twig it is in vain to bid that bird fly alas poor bird she is intangled in the Lime-twig a man that is intangled in the lime-twigs of the world it is in vain to bid this man mount up in Meditation The love of the world is like the plague of flies that Pharoah had in Egypt he could not eat a bit of meat but the flies got into his meat and got into his drink so a man that is up to the ears in the world cannot pray cannot hear a Sermon and cannot receive the Sacrament but this plague of flies comes there the thoughts of the world is at the Sacrament with him in Prayer with him on the Sabbath-day with him The love of the world pray pardon me in this expression is just like a familiar spirit for indeed I cannot speak too much against it a Witch that hath a familiar spirit it will go along with her wheresoever she goes when she hath once entertained it she can never be rid of it but the Devil will haunt her so the love of the world is an invisible Devil and will haunt you wheresoever you go if you go to the Sacrament there the Devil will haunt you if you go to the mount of Meditation the Devil and the world will be there if you go to pray there the Devil will be And you that are in these lime-twigs it is in vain to preach to you the Doctrine of Divine Meditation and therefore let me speak to you as God did to Moses Put the shooes off thy feet for the place whereon thou stands is holy ground So do I say if ever you would be qualified for this duty of Divine Meditation put the shooes off your feet You must labour to be mortified to the world and worldly things you must labour to get a Heavenly frame of spirit it is in vain to perswade a worldly man to meditate of Heavenly things I do but beat the air for such as the heart is such will the man be if the heart be lustful the man will meditate of lustful things and act lustful things if the heart be worldly the man will be worldly such as thy heart is such is thy thoughts such are thy affections such are thy actions and till thy heart be Heavenly thou canst never be a fit practitioner of this duty and therefore labour for a Heavenly heart The ninth Rule is this Be not discouraged though you find a difficulty in the beginning of practising this duty but accustom thy self to it Custom will make perfectness usus promptus facit Custom will make it an easie thing as an Apprentice that is newly bound to his Master finds his Trade very hard at first but afterwards by custom when he hath been a year or two at it then it is very easie so at the first you will find it very hard to meditate of Christ to abide and dwell long at it but let me assure you accustom your selves to it and you will find it very easie through Gods mercy Have you not known many a man and woman that hath been by the Physician prescribed to walk up a hill every day at the first he finds it very hard he is not able to do it but within a month or two it begins to be easie and they that before could not go up the hill without resting almost twenty times now they can go up without resting at all Oh the hill of Meditation is hard for us to climb that are so full of the world so full of vanity and folly but if you did accustom your selves to climb up this hill by often doing of it you would find it very easie The tenth and last Rule is this Do all these things by power derived from Iesus Christ I do not think that it is in your power to do these things but I know there is power in Christ and Christ will give you power as the Apostle saith Phil. 4. 13. I am able to do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Go to Christ for a Heavenly heart for a serious spirit to kindle in thee a love to Heavenly things to shew thee thy interest in Heavenly things for if thou didst
Souldiers Generals and Captains 5 4. Learned Men. Ib. 5. Women Ib. There be two sorts of Meditation of heavenly things 1. Sudden short occasional 6 2. Solemn set deliberate Ibid. 1. Of Occasional Meditation three Things viz. the Excellency Examples and Practise Ibid. 1. The Excellency of occasional extemporary sudden and ejaculatory Meditation from Scripture and humane Testimony 7 8 2. The Examples from Scripture and humane Testimony 9 3. Motives to perswade to the Practise of it viz. 13 1. It may be performed at all times Ibid. 2. Practic'd in all places and companies 14 3 It is easie to spiritualized ones Ibid. 4. 'T is the excellency of a Christian to spiritualize natural things herein exceeding a Bruit 15 All wicked men Ibid. 5. 'T is the greatest affront we can give to God not to make a spiritual use of his creatures 17 6. 'T is a Soul-destroying sin not to observe the Works of God and make a good use of them 18 II. Of Solemn Meditation the Nature and Necessity 22 1. The Nature of solemn Meditation in two particulars 23 1. 'T is a dwelling and abiding upon things that are Holy being typified two ways By the Beast That did chew the cud 24 That had eyes within and without 25 2. 'T is an act of the heart as well as the head Ib. It must enter into the door of the understanding heart and conversation 28 2. The Necessity of it evinc'd from the Mischiefs of neglecting this Duty 29 Advantage of practising this Duty 29 1. The mischiefs and inconveniencies of neglecting this duty It is the cause of sin and punishment 30 1. The want of practising this Duty causeth sin As particularly Ibid. 1. 'T is the reason of hard-heartedness Ibid. 2. Unprofitableness of hearing Sermons 31 3. Not relishing of sweetest promises 33 4. No impression from threatnings 34 5. No bettering by mercies Ibid. 6. No amending by afflictions 36 7. No heart softning by Providences Ib. 8. Reason of distrustfulness of Gods Providence 37 9. Censoriousness of others not of our selves Ibid. 10. Offering the sacrifices of fools in worship 38 2. The want of practising this duty causeth punishment 40 2. The advantages and benefits by a conscientious practise of this duty in begetting and increasing of grace and arming against temptations 42 1. 'T is a mighty help to the begetting and working of grace in 9 particulars Ibid. 1. To work repentance and reformation of life 43. to 55. 2. A love to God 43. to 55. 3. A fear of God 43. to 55. 4. A love to Jesus Christ. 43. to 55. 5. Faith and trust in God 43. to 55. 1. In his Providence in all outward streights 2. Promises in all spiritual troubles 6. A contempt of the world and worldly things 43. to 55. 7. Thankfulness for mercies and blessings 43. to 55. 8. A Preference of Gods house to our own 43. to 55. 9. A Keeping of all Gods Commandments 43. to 55. 2. 'T is helpful to preserve and increase grace 55 3. 'T is helpful to arm and defend against all the temptations of the Devil 56 The Application of this Doctrine concerning this necessary duty of Meditation may be for 1. The Reproof of those Christians that are utterly unaccustomed to and unacquainted with this duty and these are of four sorts viz. 1. The ignorant Christian that knows not how to set about the work 58. 2. Forgetful Christian that remembers not God 61 3. Rash-headed Christian that acts without consideration where are four evils viz. 63 1. Such is a spiritual fool in offering sacrifices to God 64 2 Often speaks that he 'l wish he had not 65 3. Quickly runs into error and by-paths 66 4 Will never persevere and hold out to the end 67 4. A slight-headed Christian that cannot dwell long upon any thing which argues a slight Christian. 68 Q. Are then all who have slight heads Hypocrites Ibid. A. There is a double slightness of head viz. 69 1. That which is a natural disease when a child of God of a weak head cannot think long of any thing at all Ibid. 2. That which is sinful when a man can be serious and dwell long upon the things of the world not on the things of heaven this is reprov'd Ibid. 2. The Reproof of those who meditate upon things that are evil and wicked 70 1. Such as design and do evil 2. Such as delight in the evil they have done 71 3. An Exhortation to all to accustom themselves to the duty of meditation viz. To 1. Ministers 2. Nobles 3. Souldiers 4. Young Gentlemen 5. Merchants 6. Women In speaking to this Exhortation six particulars proposed viz. 1. Place 2. Time 3. Properties 4. Companions 5. Materials 6. Helps 72 73 74 1. Concerning the Place to chuse one convenient which is freest from distractions 76 2. Time which proves seasonable in due circumstances Here four Rules are suggested 81 1. It behoves all not hindred to endeavour the setting apart of some time every day morning afternoon or night 82 2. To set a sufficient proportion of time a-part every day 84 3. The Sabbath-day especially all should busie themselves in this duty 86 4. A Sacrament-day more especially 87 Here 12 Things suggested as instances of Sacramental Meditation viz. 88 1. The great and wonderful love of God the Father in the giving of Christ. Ibid. 2. Love of Christ in giving himself 89 3. Hainousness of sin 90 4. Excellency of the Sacramental feast Ibid. 5. Our own unworthiness 91 6. Our spiritual wants and necessities Ibid. 7. The cursed condition of an unworthy receiver Ib. 8. The happy condition of those that come worthily 92 9. The Sacramental Elements of Bread and Wine Ib. 10. The Sacramental Actions 93 11. Sacramental Promises Ib. 12. What retribution to make to Christ. 94 3. Properties ingredients and qualities of Meditation viz. 1. Divine Meditation must be often Because 96 1. We shall know more of the best things 97 2. Have more near and intimate acquaintance with them 99 3. Heavenly Duties will become more easie to us 2. It must be solemn and serious not only formal 101 102 3. Not only notional and speculative but practical and reflective It must be in the understanding heart and affections yea and the conversation 105 4. It must be particular and applicative 108 5. It must be calm and quiet 110 6. It must be persevering 112 There be four Arguments to persevere Viz. From the 1. Necessity 2. Excellency of it 113 3. Mischiefs by not practising of it Ibid. 4. Easiness attainable by persevering in it 116 4. Companions of Meditation which are two 117 1. Praying must be joined with Meditation ibid. 2. Reading will do well to accompany in weak Christians with two Cautions viz. 118 1. Not to read much lest it hinder 120 2. Not to read at the Sacrament ibid. 5. Materials of Meditation 121 The four last things Death Iudgment Heaven Hell 1. Death 1. The certainty 2.
Vncertainty 3. The fitness for it 4. How to be above the hurt of it 5. To live in expectation of it 6. To be free from the fear of it 122 2. Judgment 1. The terribleness of it 2. Solemnity of the great Assizes 3. Account to be given to God 4. Separation at that day 5. Happiness of the Godly 6. Miserableness of the wicked 123 3. Heaven 1. The joys of it 2. Beatifical Vision 3. Perfection 4. Perpetuity 5. Fitness for 6. What to do to get to Heaven 125 4. Hell where of the punishment of 1. Loss 2. Sense 126 2. God Christ the Holy Ghost and thy self 127 1. Of God where of his 1. Attributes 2. Works 3. What Relation towards him 128 2. Christ where of his 1. Divine 2. Humane nature 3. Offices and then of his 1. Life 2. Death where 1. what he suffered 2. for whom 3. who he was 4. what love he suffered with 5. what interest you have in it 6. his Resurrection 7. Ascension 8. Intercession at Gods right hand ibid. 3. Holy Ghost 1. nature 2. office 3. motion 4. graces 131 4. Our selves in the state of 1. Innocency 2. Apostacy 3. Regeneration 4. Glory 132 Further of our 1. Sins 2. Duties 3. Evidences 4. Comforts 5. frailty of body 6. immortality ibid. 3. Dependance upon God 4. Advantages God hath us at he may throw into Hell at pleasure therefore we should study and think on 1. our Relations 2. Calling 3. Company 4. our hearts Hereof 1. Thoughts 2. Affections 3. Words 4. Actions ibid. 5. Sinfulness of sin 137 6. Vanity of the Creature 138 7. Excellency of the Gospel 8. Commandments Threatnings Promises Ordinances of the Gospel as 1. Prayers 2. reading the Word 3. hearing the Word 4. the Sacrament 139 9. Errors of the times Iudgments of God great changes of the Nation several passages of Providence the mercies of God 140 6 Rules and Directions and those of three sorts respecting person subject manner 1. For the right qualifying of the person that is to meditate viz. 143 1. Convince thy soul of the necessity of it 144 2. Of the benefits and advantages of it as 145 1. The begetting Repentance 2. The Love of God 3. Fear of God 4. Love of Christ. 3. The mischiefs of not-meditating 4. Get a sufficient furniture of saving knowledg 148 5. Labour to get a serious spirit 149 to which purpose a fourfold frame of spirit is to be avoided as namely 150 1. A slight frame of spirit 2. A trifling frame of spirit 3. A watry frame of spirit 4. An inconsiderate frame of spirit 6. Labour for the love of heaven and heavenly things 153 7. Labour to get an interest in Heaven and heavenly things 154 8. An heart disengaged from the world 155 9. Be not discouraged though you have difficulty in the beginning 157 10. Do all these things by power deriv'd from Iesus Christ 158 2. Rules for the right ordering the subjects or materials ibid. 1. At the beginning pick out easie subjects as of Heaven 1. the happiness of it in general 2. in particular 161 2. Vse variety as heads of several materials were suggested 162 3. Pick out such subjects more especially as dispose to godly sorrow and holiness 163 4. Such as are most seasonable to thy condition and suitable to thy relation As suppose thou art 164 1. Troubled in mind and exceedingly dejected think of the willingness of Christ to receive poor ones 165 2. Troubled in conscience think of the promises not only to grace but of grace to give grace 167 3. In outward want consider the wonderful providences of God ibid. 4. Sick like to thy own life or some dear Relative think on a seasonable subject as Death c. 168 5. To receive the Sacrament consider the nature thy need of it c. 169 3. Rules for the manner of ordering Meditations on the foremention'd or like subjects viz. 170 1. To begin and enter upon the practise of Meditation and here be six Directions ibid. 1. Be sure to pick a fit place to meditate in ibid. 2. A fit and seasonable time according to our circumstances ibid. 3. Be sure to have a fit subject prepar'd not to seek at the time 171 4. Then set your self as in Gods presence under his eye ibid. 5. Begin with some short ejaculatory not long prayer 172 6. Keep your hearts with all keeping 173 2. To proceed better in this work here we must know there be two faculties of the soul the understanding and will or heart and affections 175 1. Rules to help the understanding more logically and plainly 176 1. Logically as Topicks or Common-place-heads ibid. viz. 1. Description 2. Distribution 3. Causes 4. Effects 5. Properties 6. Opposites 7. Comparisons 8. Titles 9. Testimonies ibid. An instance in considering sin as the subject ibid. 1. Consider description as a transgression of Gods Law 178 2. Distribution as sin by imputation propagation and action ibid. 3. Cause of sin God not the cause but Satan and self 179 4. Effects and cursed fruits temporal carnal and eternal 5. Properties and Adjuncts in general and particular 181 6. Opposites grace and holiness 182 7. Comparisons as bruises leprosie c. ibid. 8. Titles given to sin in Scripture as robbing God c. 183 9. Testimonies in Scripture against sin wrath of God c. ibid. 2. Plainly where particularly consider 184 1. What the Scripture saith of the subject you would meditate upon ibid. 2. What Sermons you have heard upon that subject 185 3. Take a Book that treats on the subject you would metate upon 186 4. Be sure to join Application with your Contemplation 187 5. Consider the means how to obtain what you meditate upon 188 2. Rules to help the will heart and affections and to raise them 189 1 Labour to get a relish and savour of the things you meditate on to have the heart affected 2. Complain before God for the want of this relish 3. Wish you had a supply of the tast you want 190 4. Confess your inability as of your self to do this 5. Petition to God for help 6. Confidently believe God will help you 3. Rules to conclude all after entrance and progress 197 1. Lift up your heart to God with thankfulness and bless his Name ibid. 2. Resolve to live as one who hath been thinking on the things of God 199 3. Recommend your self body soul relatives c. to God 200 A Perswasion to the practise of these things concluding in four particulars 201 1. Mourn before God that you have liv'd so long in the School of Christ and have not practised this duty of solemn Meditation 202 2. That you have misplac'd your Meditation ibid. 3. Study the necessity excellency usefulness and profitableness of Meditation as the marrow of all other duties 205 4. Defer not to practise according to the directions given in expectation of Gods blessing ibid. GEN. XXIV 63. And Isaac went out to meditate in the
case is thy soul now that is on the Sea of this world and then to go to the Ensuring-office you know you have your Ensuring-offices wherein you ensure your Ships at Sea to get your souls ensured by reconciliation with God and by true faith manifested by holiness and righteousness to get your souls assured that they may come safe to the haven of Happiness In a clear bright frosty Winter-night when thou goest out and beholdest the bespangled heaven multitude of bright Stars what a rare thing were it to meditate This glorious bespangled Firmament is but the stable as it were but the out-houses of that Heaven where I am to go it is but the outward Court but the Wash-house as I may say and if the Stable and Out-houses be so glorious Oh what is the inward palace above the spangled Heavens is my Fathers house where I hope to live for ever with God and there my Christ is now interceding for me and by the power of his Spirit shall I be brought one day to that house Oh when will that time come when will my soul mount thorough these Heavens into the heaven of Heavens Now is not this comely for a Christian will not this heavenlize you and spiritualize you And then when you go to bed at night to remember I have one day more to answer for to remember there will a last night come after which there will be no day but the Resurrection of all Remember thy last night thy concluding night the end of thy life But I have been over-long in this a great deal more than I thought but I do it because here I shall put an end to this discourse of occasional meditation There is a second sort of Meditation and that is that that I call set solemn and deliberate when a man sets apart an hour a day it may be sets a part some time and goes into a private Closet or a private Walk and there doth solemnly and deliberately meditate of the things of Heaven Now concerning this meditation I shall handle by Gods assistance these two Particulars 1. I will shew you the nature of it 2. I will shew you the necessity of it 1. The nature of this duty what this meditation is that I would press you to I will describe it in two Particulars 1. This holy meditation is a dwelling and abiding upon things that are holy it is not only a knowing of God and a knowing of Christ but it is a dwelling upon the things we know as the Bee that dwells and abides upon the flower to suck out all the sweetness that is in the flower so to meditate upon God and Christ and the Sacrament it is to dwell upon God and the Sacrament to suck out all the sweetness we can in the things we meditate upon As we read of Anna Luk. 2. 37. She continued in the Temple praying and fasting day and night To meditate is to continue and fix our selves and our hearts upon the things we know this meditation in Scripture is called a holy musing Psal. 39. 3. My heart was hot within me while I was musing to meditate is to muse or else it is to commune with our own hearts Psal. 4. Stand in awe and sin not commune with your own heart upon your bed and be still It is a communing a consulting with our own hearts or if you will it is a bethinking our selves so it is expressed 1 King 8. 47. If they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captive and repent The Hebrew word is if they shall bring back to their hearts if they shall reflect upon themselves for meditation is a reflecting act of the soul whereby the soul is carried back to it self and considers all the things that it knows Meditation is an inward act of the soul a spiritual act whereby the soul doth recoil upon it self and looks back upon it self and considers all the things that concern its everlasting happiness and if I be not mistaken it is rarely typified under the Law two manner of ways 1. By those beasts that did chew the cud you shall read Lev. 11. of the clean beasts and the unclean beasts now the clean beasts were such as did chew the cud of those they were to eat now the unclean beasts were those that did not chew the cud a meditating Christian is one that chews the cud that chews on the Truths of Jesus Christ that doth not only hear good things but when he hath heard them chews them over ruminates upon them that so they may be fitter for digestion and concoction and spiritual improvement an unclean Christian is one that doth not chew the cud that doth not ruminate and ponder and bethink himself of the things of Heaven 2. Another type of this rare grace of Meditation is that of the Beasts Ezek. 1. that Ezekiel saw that had eyes within and without Vers. 18. their wings were full of eyes round about them And so likewise the Beasts Rev 4. 6. Round about the Throne were four beasts full of eyes before and behind A notable and a rare type of Meditation for meditation is nothing else but a looking thoroughly into the things of God a looking before and behind as I may so speak a meditating Christian is a man full of eyes that doth not only know God but sees much of God There is another metaphor to express it Psal. 119 59. I thought on my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies The word in the Hebrew is taken from Chapmen that when they buy a commodity they turn it over and over and over again they look all about it into every part of it Meditation is a thorow contemplation and a thorow consideration of the things of God a meditating Christian is full of eyes full of heavenly understanding 2. It is an act of the heart as well as of the head it is not only a speculative knowledg of things Divine but a practical knowledg it is not only an act of the intellect and understanding but of the will and affections it is an affective grace as well as an intellective grace and therefore it is said of the Blessed Virgin Mary She pondered all these sayings in her heart she did not only think of them with her head but she pondered on them with her heart and you shall read Deut. 4. 39. Know therefore this day and consider it in thy heart A true meditation is when a man doth so meditate of Christ as to get his heart inflamed with the love of Christ so meditate of the Truths of God as to be transformed into them and so meditate of sin as to get his heart to hate sin when it is such a musing of God as kindles a fire in the whole soul as David doth express it Psal. 39. 3. While I was musing the fire burnt When a man doth so contemplate on God that his heart is all on fire with the love of God
when a man doth so think on the Sacrament that his heart is all on a fire with a holy thirsting after the Sacrament When the heart is affected with the meditation of the head and therefore David saith Psal. 104. 34. My meditation of him shall be sweet this is the true meditation when we do so meditate of God as to taste a sweetness in God when meditation doth not rest in the intellectual part but flows into the will and affection that the heart is all inflamed with the things we meditate on There are many great Scholars that meditate much of God and Christ and Heaven and yet they are never the holier for their meditation and the reason is because they meditate on these things meerly to find out curious notions of God and Christ and Heaven but they do not meditate on these things to get their hearts affected to get Heavenly and Divine hearts and therefore you shall see many Scholars as undevout and as unholy as other people though they know more and meditate more And I have found it by experience that there are many poor lay-people that get more good by meditation than great Scholars for the great Scholar his meditation many times vanisheth into empty speculations and into notions and opinions but the honest godly man his meditation is all for practice he meditates of sin to hate it of the Sacrament to hunger after it of God to love him of Christ to be inflamed with a desire after him And therefore he gets the more good many times by meditation The Butterflie will dwell upon the flower as well as the Bee but the Butterflie only sucks the flower that she may paint her wings with it she is not useful to make honey she doth not suck honey from the flower so there are many Scholars many men that meditate much of the things of God to paint their wings that is to get more knowledg of God and Heaven and more curious expressions of Heaven but it is the honest Christian the plain-hearted Christian that meditates of God like the Bee to suck out the sweetness of God that meditates on Christ so as to get his heart burning in love to Christ this is the rare grace of meditation Meditation must enter into three doors or else it will never do you any good 1. It must get into the door of the understanding and there it is seated there is the proper place of meditation but if it rest there thou art never the better for it 2. It must get into the door of thy heart and of thy affections and thou must never leave meditating till it get into that door likewise 3. The door of thy conversation for thy meditation must not rest in the affections but it must likewise have influence into thy conversation to make thy conversation more holy thou must so meditate of God as to walk as God walks and so to meditate of Christ as to prize him and live in obedience to him A nurse that hath a nurse-child will cut the meat and will many times chew the meat for the child but she will not eat the meat but give it to the child for if she should chew the meat and eat it up her self the child might starve for all her chewing of it and preparing of it so it is with the grace of meditation Meditation while it is in the understanding chews upon the things of God and of Christ and of Heaven but when the understanding hath chewed these things it must not devour all these things it self but it must convey the meat it hath chewed as the meat is conveyed from the stomack into the liver and then into the heart and then into all the other parts of the body into the heart and into the will and into the affections and into the conversation This is the first the admirable nature of this grace 2. I come to shew you the necessity of it and I do this the rather that I might provoke you all to the practice of it for I am very confident there are few people that do practise this duty of meditation there are few that know how to practise it but there are very few that make conscience to practise it even you that make conscience to praying twice a day in your family seldom make conscience once a day of meditation nay once a week And therefore that I might awaken my self and you give me leave to shew you the great necessity of practising the duty of meditation and I will shew it two manner of ways 1. By considering the mischief that flows from the want of practising this duty 2. By shewing you the advantage and spiritual benefit that you will gain by practising this duty 1. I shall shew you the woful inconveniences and the intolerable mischiefs that come from the want of practising this duty of meditation I will bring them to two heads 1. I will shew you that the want of practising this duty is the cause of all sin 2. It is the cause of all punishment 1. I will shew you that the want of practising this duty is the cause of all sin and I will instance in particulars 1. The reason why people harden their hearts in sin and do not repent of their sins but go on obstinately is for want of meditation Ier. 8. 6. I hearkened and heard but they spake not aright no man repented him of his wickedness saying what have I done They did not repent because they did not reflect upon what they did they did not bethink themselves so the phrase is If any man bethink himself and repent 1 King 8. 47. they did not say I am undone by what I have done I have lost God and Heaven by what I have done and if I do not repent I am an undone creature for ever No man repented of his wickedness because no man considered what he had done for did you consider the evil that is in sin did you dwell and abide upon it did you commune with your own hearts and seriously consider what an evil and bitter thing it is to sin against God you durst not willingly sin against God but the reason why men go on rashly heedlesly obstinately in sin is for want of the meditation of the evil of sin 2. The reason why all the Sermons we hear do us no more good is for want of Divine meditation for it is with Sermons as it is with meat it is not the having of meat upon your table will feed you but you must eat it and not only eat it but concoct it and digest it or else your meat will do you no good So it is with Sermons it is not the hearing Sermons will do you good but it is the concocting them digesting them by meditation the pondering in your hearts what you hear must do you good And one Sermon well digested well meditated upon is better than twenty Sermons without meditation As for example a
not so much to have the wrath of God upon us as not to lay it to heart it is a sign of the greatest fury of God for a man to be given over to slightness of spirit when he is under the judgments of God not to regard and lay them to heart And thus I have been somewhat long in setting out unto you the mischiefs that flow from the want of the practise of the grace of Meditation and I do this to provoke you all to be humbled before God for the not practising this duty for I am confident your consciences will tell you that you do not practise it and to convince you of the necessity of the practising of this duty which is quite dead and buried in the world That I may be Gods instrument to stir you up to a conscientious practise of this duty of Heavenly meditation 2. I shall shew you the necessity of it from the benefits and advantages that will come unto Christians by the conscientious practise of this duty and this I will shew in three Particulars 1. It is a mighty help to the working and procuring of all grace 2. It is a mighty help to preserve and increase grace 3. It is a mighty help to arm us against the Devil and all his temptations 1. Meditation when it is sanctified is a mighty help to the begetting of all grace this I will shew in divers Particulars 1. It is a mighty help to work in us repentance and reformation of life and therefore David saith Psal. 119. 59. I thought on my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies I thought on my ways that is I considered the evil of my ways and what a bitter thing it is to sin against God what a dishonour I have brought upon God by my evil ways and what a scandal I have brought upon Religion Ezek. 36. 31. Then shall you remember your own evil ways and your doings that were not good and shall loath your selves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations A conscientious meditation of the evil of sin is a Divine hammer to break your hearts for sin and from sin for did you consider the Majesty of God that is offended by the least sin did you consider the infinite wrath of God against sin did you consider the affronts that are offered to God by sin that every sin is a dethroning of God a robbing of God a striking through the name of God did you consider the pollution that is in sin that sin makes you like the Devil did you further consider the mischief that sin brings upon us sin deprives you of the Beatifical vision sin shuts you out of heaven sin binds you over to everlasting burnings Again did you consider the patience of God and the goodness of God towards you yet notwithstanding all your sins and what an unkind thing it is to sin against so good a God and did you further consider what Christ hath done to purchase pardon for your sins and how Christ hath shed his blood for such wicked wretches as you are did you sanctifiedly meditate upon these things it would mightily provoke you to repent of your sins and to turn unto God And therefore you shall read concerning Peter after he had denied Christ Mark 14. 72. The cock crew and Peter called to mind the word Iesus said unto him Before the cock crow twice thou shalt deny me thrice and when he thought thereon he wept The meaning of the Greek word is When he weighed the speech of Christ when he thought what an unkind thing it was to deny his dear Lord and Master this made him weep if he had not meditated of the evil that he had committed he had never wept And what made the Prodigal child return home to his father you shall see the reason Luk. 15. 17. And when he came to himself he said How many hired servants of my father have bread enough and to spare and I perish with hunger When he came to consider with himself the misery that he had brought upon himself and that there were many servants in his fathers house that had bread enough I will arise saith he and go to my father and I will say Father I have sinned against heaven all this was but his meditation he did but thus think in his heart to do this and he arose and came to his Father 2. Divine meditation is a mighty help to beget in us a love to God for as it is with a picture that hath a curtain drawn over it though the picture be never so beautiful you cannot see the beauty of it till the curtain be drawn aside to an unconsiderating an unmeditating Christian God is as a picture with a curtain drawn over it he cannot see the beauty of God but meditation draws the curtain and lets us in to behold all the beauty that is in God and he that beholds the beauty of God cannot but love God As it is said of Socrates he was so good a man that all that knew him loved him and if any man did not love him it was because they did not know him much more may I say of God All that meditate in and study God cannot but love him And the reason why you do not love him is because you do not study and meditate on God as it is said 1 Ioh. 4. 8. He that loveth not knoweth not God for God is love he that knoweth God loveth God What is the reason the Saints in heaven love God so perfectly because they always behold his face they see him they think on him And did you meditate upon the excellency of God that God is altogether lovely that all Excellencies are after an infinite manner concentered in God that there is nothing lovely in the Creature but it is to be found infinitely in the Creator Did you further consider all the good things that God hath done for you all the blessings and mercies that you have received from God did you not only think but did you dwell upon these thoughts did you sit at this fire it would kindle a mighty flame of Divine love in your souls therefore David saith Psal. 39. 3. My heart was hot within me while I was musing the fire burned Psal. 104. 34. My meditation of him shall be sweet Did you meditate much of God you would taste a sweetness in God that would be as a Loadstone to draw your hearts to the love of God 3. Divine meditation is a mighty help to work in us a fear of God the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom now did you study the Majesty of God that God hath all men all the Devils in a chain and that God only can do us hurt and that no man can do us hurt but God must give him leave Did you study the Omnipotency of God you would fear God and fear him only as it is Isa. 51. 12 13. I even I am he that
comforteth you who art thou that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die and the son of man that shall be made as grass and forgettest the Lord thy maker that hath stretched forth the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth As if he should say If thou didst remember and think on the Lord thy God who made the Heavens and the Earth and hath all things in his hand Thou wouldest not fear a man that shall die c. Jer. 10. 6 7. first the Prophet breaks out into an admiration of God Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee O Lord thou art great and thy name is great in might who would not fear thee O King of Nations for to thee doth it appertain forasmuch as among all the wise men of the Nations and in all their Kingdoms there is none like unto thee The meditation of God stirs up the Prophet to fear God Ier. 5. 22. Fear ye not me saith the Lord will you not tremble at my presence which hath placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree that it cannot pass though the waves thereof toss themselves yet can they not prevail though they roar yet cannot they pass over it Did we meditate much upon the power of God we would fear him and stand in awe of him 4. This Divine meditation is a mighty help to beget in us a love to Iesus Christ for Jesus Christ is a fountain sealed a spring shut up a garden inclosed Now you know no man is the better for a book sealed up or a treasure lockt up to a careless Christian Christ is a fountain sealed a treasure lockt up but meditation is the key that unlocks the treasury of all the Excellencies of Christ and opens the book to let us read all the Excellencies that are in Christ. Meditation doth as it were open the fountain and did we study what Christ is that he is the choicest of ten thousand altogether excellent the brightness of his Fathers glory and the express image of his Person and did we study the love of Christ to poor sinners the height the depth the length the breadth of the love of God toward us did we study how Christ became poor to make us rich how he became a curse to free us from the curse how he was made sin that we might be made the righteousness of God thorough him did we bury our selves in this meditation did you take half an hour in a day to meditate on the Excellency of Christ did you when you walk in the fields meditate on the love of Christ I am confident it would beget in you a love to Christ. 5. Divine meditation is a mighty help to inable us to believe and trust in God To trust 1. In his Providence in all outward streights 2. In his Promises in all spiritual troubles 1. It will help you to trust in his Providence when you are in any streights when all creature-helps fail and you are ready to sink then meditation will raise your faith and help you to trust in Gods Providence for outward provision Mat. 6. 25 c. I say unto you saith Christ take no thought for your life what you shall eat or what ye shall drink nor yet for your body what you shall put on be not solicitous for your outward provision But how doth Christ argue what way should we take that we may not distrust God saith he Meditate upon the fowls of the air behold the fowls of the air for they sow not v. 28. Why take you thought for raiment consider the lillies of the field how they grow they toil not neither do they spin and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these The meditation of the lillies and the fowls of the air is a means to help us to trust in the Lord in the day of our streights 2. It will enable you to relye upon the promises for the good of your souls Did you when you read the promises of the Bible chew them how sweet would they be the reason why the Promises are not sweet to you is because you read them but you do not chew them by meditating upon them if you did meditate upon them they would be sweeter than the honey and the honey-comb especially if you did join application with meditation Abraham was the Father of the Faithful and he was strong in faith and what made him strong in faith because he considered not his own body now dead neither the deadness of Sarah's womb but he considered the promise of God Rom. 4. 19. And the reason why the Saints of God are so void of comfort and hang down their heads and walk so disconsolately is because they consider the deadness of their own souls they consider their imperfections but they do not meditate upon the promises the freeness and the riches of them Mat. 16. 8. Which when Iesus perceived he said to them Oh ye of little faith why reason ye among your selves because you have brought no bread Here Christ reproves them for want of faith but how came they to want faith Do you not understand neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets ye took up and do ye not remember the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many baskets you took up As if Christ should have said If you had meditated on my former miracles you would never have doubted this miracle but because you do not remember what I have formerly done therefore it is that you are so full of unbelief Now the way to fill your souls with comfort is to meditate upon the Promises of God 6. Divine meditation is a mighty help to beget in us a contempt of the world and all worldly things for the world is like unto gilded copper it is an easie matter for a man to mistake gilded copper for true gold unless he considers what he takes for if a man take gold without consideration he may quickly be cozened there is a glittering excellency in the world the wealth and riches of it are glorious things to a carnal eye but meditation of the world will wash away all the paint that is upon the world the studying the vanity of the world the nothingness of all earthly things the unsatisfiableness of them and the perishing nature of them this will take away the glittering excellency that seems to be in the world and certainly you would never be so covetous and so worldly and dote so much upon the world did you meditate upon the vanity of it as you should do this is the course Solomon takes the book of Eccles is called The Book of the Preacher and the subject of it is to wean us from the love of the world But what course doth Solomon take Eccles. 1. 3. I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things done under
for his sinful plottings and sinful contrivances though they never come to light Isa. 29. 5. Wo unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord and their works are in the dark and they say who seeth us and who knoweth us The Lord will send us to hell for all our sinful contrivances and vain projects though they prove abortive 2. There are some that meditate upon the evil they have done as an old Adulterer will with delight tell stories of his youthful wantonness and an old wicked man will delight to tell tales of the sins that he hath formerly committed this is to act over your sins again in Gods account this is to lick up the old vomit this is to sin anew I would to God you would consider of it a man may go to hell for contemplative wickedness for spiritual wickedness for heart-adultery and heart-murder as well as for actual wickedness a man may go to hell for thinking evil as well as for speaking evil and doing evil for God is a Spirit and he looks into the frame of your spirits and he will send you to hell for the inward lust of sin as well as for the act of sin and that man that repeats over the sins of his youth with delight this man acts them over again in Gods account But I will not spend more time in the use of reprehension But I come to that which I especially aim at an Vse of Exhortation to beseech you all that you would subscribe to the obedience of this Text that you would conform your selves to this Text that you would accustom your selves to his most necessary and excellent and long neglected duty of Divine meditation Let me with all earnestness commend unto you the consciencious practise of this duty of Divine Meditation because it is an universal remedy against all sin it is a help to all goodness it is a preservative of all godliness it is armour of proof against all the Devils temptations and the want of it is the cause of all iniquity as you have heard Let me commend this to all sorts of Christians If it be necessary for you to reform your lives it is necessary for you to meditate for what saith David I considered my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies What made Peter when he had denied Christ repent and weep bitterly for what he had done the Text saith when he meditated upon what he had done he went out and wept bitterly it was the meditation of his sin made him do so What is the reason that men repent no more of their sins because they do not meditate of the bitterness of them Ier. 8. 6. No man repenteth because no man saith what have I done If it be necessary for you to love God to trust in God to contemn the world it is necessary for you to practise this duty of meditation what is the reason all the Sermons you hear do you no more good it is for want of meditation we do not meditate upon what we hear Let me commend this duty of meditation 1. Unto all Ministers There are four things saith Luther make a Minister reading praying temptation and meditation It is not reading makes a Scholar without prayer nor reading and prayer without temptation how can he comfort others that was never tempted himself and then meditation and therefore Paul perswadeth Timothy to be much in meditation 1 Tim. 4. 15. 2. Let me commend this to great persons to Lords and Earls and Kings David professeth of himself Psal. 119. 148. Mine eyes prevent the night-watchings that I might meditate on thy word v. 15. I will meditate on thy precepts v. 23. Princes also did sit and speak against me but thy servant did meditate in thy statutes 3. Let me commend this to you that are Captains and Soldiers and men that belong unto the C Ioshua the great Captain-General of the people of Israel is commanded by God to meditate in the Law of God day and night Iosh. 1. 8. 4. Let me commend this to young Gentlemen from the example of Isaac in the Text that went out as his custom was to meditate of God and the things of God Isaac was heir to Abraham who was a very rich man he was very rich in cattel and very rich in silver and gold and Isaac was the heir of all he had and at even-tide he went out and walked in the fields and meditated upon the things of God meditated upon the works of God the things of Heaven 5. Let me commend this to you that are Merchants to you that are Tradesmen that you would spare some time for meditation 6. Let me commend this to all Women according to the example of Hanna and the Virgin Mary she kept all these things and pondered them in her heart Luk. 2. 19 51. But his mother kept all these sayings in her heart Oh let me commend this to young maids when they are at their work that they would have some heavenly ejaculations and meditation of the works of God I remember I have read of Solon who was a great Law-giver saith he There are many good Laws made but there wants one Law to teach people how to practise all the other Laws such a Law were worth making So give me leave to tell you there are many excellent Sermons preached in this Nation in this City never better preaching I dare say in London but there is one Sermon yet to preach and that is to teach you to practise all the other Sermons Now if I be not mistaken this Sermon will help you to practise all the Sermons you ever heard for meditation is nothing else but a concocting of the mercies of God a digesting of the Promises and the Sermons we hear it is a Sermon to teach you to digest all the Sermons that ever you have heard Some men have a great appetite but have no digestion I do not complain of you that are greedy to hear Sermons but let me tell you if you have not a good digestion your Sermons will do no good that which a man is eating half an hour requires six or seven hours to digest I have heard of many men that eat too much but I never heard of any that digested too much you that eat much and do not digest it that which you eat will turn to bad nourishment therefore let me commend this duty to you as one of the choicest duties of a Christian. Now because of the excellency of this Subject I shall desire to speak to six Particulars about this Doctrine of Meditation 1. The place where we are to meditate 2. The time when we are to meditate 3. The ingredients and properties of Divine Meditation 4. The companions of it 5. The materials of it 6. Some helps to help us to the better practise of this duty 1. Concerning the place where we are to exercise this duty of Divine Meditation it is said of Isaac in
did to his servants Gen. 22. 5. He said unto the young men abide you here with the asse and I and the lad will go yonder and worship Tarry you here below while I go up to the Mount of God Now I know this is a hard matter I am not ignorant of it to drive away this plague of flies that pester our best duties and therefore we must do as the Priest did to King Vzziah he would needs offer Incense and the Priest hindred him and the Lord plagued Vzziah and the leprosie appeared in his forehead and the Priest came and thrust him out of the Temple So I would have you do when you go to your Closets to meditate your vain thoughts will croud into the Temple of your hearts I would have you do as these Priest did thrust out these vain thoughts out of the temple of your hearts or rather pray unto God to do it for alas it is above our power to get free from distracting thoughts in this duty pray unto the Lord who is the heart-maker that he would be the heart-preparer for when you go to meditate God looks especially at your hearts and if your hearts be full fraught with lustful vain worldly carnal covetous thoughts he scorns all your service Now do not mistake me I mean if you willingly yield to this if you strive against it God will accept of it let it be thy work that is my rule to keep thy heart with all keeping when thou beginnest this work And labour to get thy heart disengaged and disintangled from worldly things So much for the beginning and of the six Rules to direct you in the entrance upon this work 2. I will lay down Rules for the better proceeding in this work for this you must know there are two faculties of the soul that must always be set on work in the practice of Divine Meditation the one is the Understanding the other is the heart and affections for Divine Meditation is not only an act of the head but of the heart and true Meditation must not only be intellectual and notional but practical and affectionative The work of the Understanding is to blow up and increase to kindle and inflame the love of God and Christ in the heart the Understanding to the heart and affections must be as the nurse to the child as the nurse cuts the meat and many times chews it and prepares it for the child to eat so doth the Understanding by Divine Truths it prepares them for the affections and the heart to close with them to eat them and digest them and to turn them into a holy conversation These are the two faculties we must set on work and you never meditate aright unless the affection be raised as well as the understanding and therefore both heart and head are the parts that must be exercised in the practice of the duty of Divine Meditation Now the work of the head or understanding is serious consideration of the Truths we come to meditate upon the work of the heart is increase of devotion and holiness by these Meditations Now I will speak to both I will give you Rules to help the intellectual part your contemplation of Divine things and Rules to help the affectionative part 1. I will give you Rules for the helping the understanding to chew and prepare the things you meditate upon for the heart and affections Now here I must tell you I shall be somewhat difficult and hard to be understood this is the knottiest and difficultest part of Meditation and therefore learned men that write of this subject that labour to teach the art of Divine Meditation do give in nine common-place-heads as so many several ways of the enlarging the understanding in the consideration of the Truths that they meditate upon 1. They would have you describe the thing you meditate upon 2. They would have you divide and distribute the thing you meditate upon 3. They would have you consider the causes of the thing you meditate upon 4. The fruits and effects 5. The adjuncts qualities and properties 6. The opposites and the contraries to it 7. The comparisons to which it is compared 8. The titles that are given to the thing of which you meditate 9. All the Scripture-testimonies that may be brought concerning the thing you are to meditate upon Now there are nine common-place-heads and these I fear are very difficult but that I might help you a little I will give you an example I will go over these Logical heads only I will preface thus much That it is not the intent of these learned men that we should be over-curious in prosecuting all these Logical heads for the end of Meditation is not to practise Logick but to kindle devotion and there are many subjects that will not admit of all these nine When I meditate of God I cannot shew any cause of God and I cannot make any comparison to compare God to but the meaning of those learned men is this that we should not rack and torture our understandings to pursue all these heads of reasons but we should pick out so many of them as are most suitable to the subjects we are meditating upon As for example Suppose I would go into my Closet and meditate of the sinfulness of sin then I would go over all these nine heads and by going over them you will understand the use of them I would meditate of the sinfulness of sin that so I might get my heart to hate it more that so I might study to be more mortified to it to mourn for it Now for this purpose that I might enlarge my intellectual part of consideration 1. I will begin with the description of sin and I will say thus to my soul when I am alone Oh my soul why shouldest not thou hate and abhor sin is not sin the breach of the holy law of God and doth it not therefore deserve eternal damnation is not sin a walking contrary unto God and certainly that man that walks contrary to God walks contrary to Heaven and contrary to his own happiness Is not sin most opposite to the greatest good and therefore must needs be the greatest evil and why then should not sin have the greatest sorrow why should not I hate sin above all things if it be the greatest evil 2. I would proceed to the distribution of sin and thus I would say to my soul Oh my soul how art thou be-leper'd with sin how art thou all over bespread with iniquity thou art guilty of the first sin that ever was committed in the world of Adam's eating the forbidden fruit that sin was jusdy thine by imputation For in him saith the Apostle we all sinned Rom. 5. 12. And thou wilt never be free from the guilt of the imputation of Adam's sin till thou be by faith made partaker of the imputation of Christs righteousness Thou art guilty Oh my soul not only of Adam's sin by
pleased to put these things in practice will find his heart will never want matter to meditate upon So much for the Intellectual part of Meditation which is the knotty and difficult part 2. Now I come to that which is the easiest part of Meditation I mean easie to understand but not easie to practice I come to that which is the best part of Meditation the very life and soul of Meditation and that is to help you to get your affections warmed and heated by the things you meditate upon for the work of the understanding is nothing else but to be as a Divine pair of bellows to kindle and inflame the heart and affections the work of the understanding is to chew and prepare matter to help the affections Now then I am to give you some directions and helps for the affectionative part to get your affections warmed and heated so as to stir up piety and devotion in your souls Now for the working upon your affections learned men that write upon this subject propound six common-place-heads as so many ways to raise the affections and to get them so excited as to increase grace and holiness in the soul. 1. You must labour to get a relish and a savour of the things you meditate upon 2. You must complain before God for the want of that relish 3. You must wish you had a supply of what you want of this relish and taste of the things you meditate on 4. You must confess your inability as of your selves to do this 5. You must petition to God for help 6. You must confidently believe God will help you Here are six helps for the affectionative part of Meditation now that you may know the use of these helps I shall crave leave to go over them all by way of instance I have given you an instance concerning the sinfulness of sin I went over nine common-place heads and shewed you how you should enlarge in every particular about the sinfulness of sin now I will proceed further in this instance and shew you how you should make use of these Particulars to get your affections raised and warmed and stirred up to more holiness After that I have traversed all the heads of reason and have considered the description the distribution cause and effects of sin now I come to the work of the affections And here 1. I will labour to get my heart affected with the bitterness of sin I will labour to taste the bitterness of it and to get my heart in a mourning frame and I will thus say to my self Oh my soul is sin so odious to God that no sacrifice but the sacrifice of the blood of God can appease Gods wrath and shall it not be odious to me was sin so displeasing unto God and so defiling to the soul that no bath but a bath of Christs blood can wash away the stain of it and shall I make a mock of that sin that cost the blood of Christ was sin a burden to Christ and shall it not be a burden to me Thus I would reason with my self Did sin make Christ shed drops of blood and shall it not make me shed a few tears Did Christ cry out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me for our sins I mean for our sins he took upon him and shall I make a sport of sin shall I make a mock of sin Doth David complain That his sins was a burden too heavy for him to bear And doth Paul cry out Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of sin And shall not sin be bitter to me shall not I mourn that I have sinned against so gracious a God so merciful a Redeemer so holy a Sanctifier 2. I would proceed to the second and begin to complain of the hardness of my heart and of my unaffectedness with the sins I am guilty of and I would thus say to my soul Oh my soul how is it that thou canst mourn for any outward loss if thou losest but a child though it may be thou hast half a score if thou losest but one of them thou canst mourn immoderately if thou losest thy wife thy husband any part of thy estate thou canst mourn too much but thou hast not one tear for thy sins how is it Oh my soul that thou shouldest be thus hard-hearted and unaffected with thy sins Is not sin Deicidium is not sin a murdering of God in as much as in us lies is not sin animaecidium that which slays the soul is not sin a dethroning of God a robbing of God an injuring of God how is it then that I am no more affected with my sin how is it that after so many Sermons so many Sacraments so many years being in the School of Christ after so many mercies received from God so many afflictions the Lord hath inflicted upon me yet my heart should be so hard and so flinty and so stony I can easily hate my enemy too too soon which I should not do but Sin that is my greatest enemy I cannot hate that which I should hate most of all I must love my outward enemy but God bids me hate my Sin God doth not bid me love the Devil or the works of the Devil I can hate that which I should love but I cannot hate that which I should hate I cannot hate my Sin 3. I would proceed to stir up my affections to a passionate wish and I would say to my soul thus Oh that my heart were more soft Oh that I could mourn with a godly mourning not with a legal mourning but with a mourning that is out of love to God Oh that I could mourn with repentance unto life with a Gospel-sorrow for all my sins of omission commission my Sacrament-sins my family-sins my Closet-sins the sins of my youth the sins of my riper age for all my unkindness against my God Oh that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears that I could mourn day and night for my sins and the sins of the times and the sins of the place wherein I live Oh that rivers of tears would run down my eyes because I have sinned against my God! Thus would I wish and passionately express my self that so I might get my heart raised up Oh that the Lord would pour down the spirit of mourning upon me 4. I would make an humble confession of my own inability to mourn and I would say thus O Lord thou knowest it is not in man to direct his own ways it is not in man to guide his own steps I know Oh Lord that I am not able of my self to think a good thought it is easier for me to cleave a rock in pieces than to cleave my rocky heart by my own strength there must be an Almighty power to get my heart to be soft for my heart Oh Lord is harder than the nether milstone and I cannot soften it I would mourn that