wherewth helhound he Continually poor wretch tormenteth me And bind him lord I thee most humbly pray That he doe never more lead me away As he hath done but that I sinfull may From this fowl Legion totally fall away But 't is not in me nor my power O Lord Except thou pleas vouchsafe to me the word Then please sweet Jesus I thee humbly pray That blessed word of comfort to me say That thou in me and I likewise in thee Shall rest and so for evermore shall be Freed from tentation of that wicked fiend The mortall enemy of all humane kinde Which hurrieth this my weak fleshly mind More wavering much then is th'instable wind Which wandreth like the sun from east to west And when 't comes there then there it doth not rest But roving runs up to the Starry Skies And by and by unto the Deep it dives And mounts again up to the highest ayre But yet can finde no firm fast footing there For though it be even now at hand hereby T is gone again in th'twinkling of an eye For t is so swift as there is nothing can Force it to stay so long as man is man Not much unlike unto that Noah's Dove Which found no footing but in th' Ark above It flies aloft and hovers in the ayre To find that rest which cannot be found there Except thou please vouchsafe to take it Lord As thou hast promised by thy sacred word For to safe keep all whom soever shall Upon the name of our Lord Jesus call Then bend you knees of my most wicked heart Which guideth all this the inferiour part And humbly pray and pray and pray again And in that posture do thou still remain Untill our Saviour please thy suit to hear And to thy prayers vouchsafe to turn his ear And do not thou if so at this repine That he hears not these sinful prayers of thine For many causes doubtlesse there may be That he as yet doth turn his ear from thee And all of them of thee thy self arise Who is at best but onely worldly wise And savours not the things that are above Which do proceed from that good God of love But diving down-wards seldom or ne're heeds That althings good frō heav'n alone proceeds And yet wilt thou unto the earth encline Distasting things are spiritual and divine And when thou seest it's onely reall cause It may be then th'wilt stop and take a pause And pray again yet still thou sinful art Extreamly troubled with a double heart Which boat-man like doth seem to make a shew Of looking upward yet doth downward draw With all its force unto this massie earth Where it at first receiv'd its vital breath And doth so clog the inward spiritual part As it doth yeeld unto the wicked heart And so they both are downward led away From thee their Saviour and their onely stay And runs so fast down Sions steepy hill As that to Babel needs these wretches will Except thou please sweet Jesus lend thy hand And force them both to stop and make a stand And climbe with speed up Sions hill again Which cannot be without excessive pain Unto the heart whose loins are stife and weak And painful climbings forceth them to break Unlesse sweet Jesu thou wilt please to be Their Comforter in this extremity And grant them strength that they may re-obtain The top of blessed Sions hill again Then come sweet Jesu I the humbly pray Come quickly Lord and do thou make no stay For the glasse is now at point to be out-run Then come Lord Jesu come Lord Jesu come And send my soul some speedy present aid Or else deer God it meerly is betrayed By a fawning friend who seems to make a shew That he to it ent'rest love doth owe. And yet indeed its deadliest enemy Who kils it self to make my soul to die O help sweet Jesu help I humbly pray My silly mind from thee thus drawn away By this foul flesh that 's foul in every part Because it s govern'd by a fleshly heart That domineers within my hollow breast And will not let my silly minde take rest For all my members they do so combine As that from heaven to earth they do encline Yea even the head wherein is onely placed The senses all which neither live to taste Nor hear nor see nor scent nor yet to feel Ought what is good but all whatsoever is ill And th' apprehension it doth still project Nothing that 's good but all things good neglect And memory it ever more forgets These blessings great and bounteous benefits Which thou hast pleased in mercy heap on me The very picture of base misery Who cannot think so much as one good thought But it is mixed with something which is nought Nor yet to presse into the Lords presence To pray for ought without some great offence For then and there I often plainly finde My minde is hurried as if with the winde O're all the earth well it know's not where Nor matter 's much so as it be not there Where it should be but alwayes runs astray Like to the blinde man that hath lost his way And is in danger ever for to fall Into a Ditch where he doth lye and crall And cry for help but if there be none by The blind man's likely in the Ditch to ly Then help sweet Jesus help I humbly pray That this my wicked wandring mind may stay And fix on thee and on thy grievous pain To bring it back to that right way again And being there I humbly pray the Lord Vouchsafe to bind it w th strong Sampson's cord When his hair was cut that it may always stay And never more so gad and run astray But ever keep within those blessed bounds To think on thee and on thy grievous wounds How thou endurd'st those bitter pains for me Of all man-kinde a wretch most unworthy Except thou please vouchsafe give me a call As thou did'st Peter or that blessed Saul Who persecuted thee and them were thine Yet at thy call did never once repine But presently he at that call became A painfull Preacher of thy sacred Name Now call sweet Jesu call I humbly pray That I from thee in sin no longer stay But come and wash thy blessed feet with tears Who hath freed me from all those horrid fears Were justly due unto my stony heart If it had had its onely due desert And then I hope my wearied soul shall rest In thee alone by whom 't is onely blest And wait on thee at this thy loving call Before that glorious heavenly Tribunal Where Angels sing 'fore thee continually The praises due to th' sacred Trinity There thou my minde do now set up thy rest For therein shalt thou certainly be blest And in that place be sure to spend thy life And do not prove like Lot his foolish wife But still aspire to mount aloft my soule That thou may'st be one in that
whatsoe're he doth thee Unto the Lord who made the heav'n earth And all therein even with his only breath O stay my soul and there do thou admire The wond'rous greatness of that flaming fire Appear'd to Moses in the pillary cloud Which did his chosen children Israel shrewd Untill their sins stir'd up his heavy wrath And then he did as now of late he hath Done to this I le wherein we wretched live To whom his goodnesse did such blessings give As never land on earth had more then we And yet of peace we wretched cannot ' gree So that the son 's against the father's set And father he against the son doth fret And brother ' gainst his brother often wars And so will not let fall these wofull jars Till God shall please that his most heavy hand For to withdraw from o're this sinfull land And give us grace we may in hart repent And yeeld him thanks for his great blessings sent Which we unthankfull did as yet forget And for that cause each brother's blood is set Against it self like as did wicked Cain When as his brother Abell he had slain Sweet Jesus please to stay this thy sharp sword And stead thereof to send thy blessed word That thou thereby mayst beat down growing sin The want whereof hath doubtles only bin The real cause of this our mortall fewd which doubtless doth from our hard hearts proceed Sweet Jesus please to mollifie them so Like Peter's when he solely wept for woe Or like Manasses when he came be bound By Ashurs host who fell upon the ground And gained pardon for his grievous sin Whereby with speed he was restor'd again To Juda's crown and it so long enjoy'd Untill by death he was from thence destroy'd Sweet Jesus grant that we have many such And then without doubt it will help us much To further peace for which we daily pray That thou wilt please in thy great mercy stay This sword of thine and sheath it up again That we in peace may here hence now remain And live like loving brothers in this land VVhich thou hast kept with thine own pow'rfull hand From foreign fos tho now there be none such As we our selves domestick ones by much Sweet Jesus help good Lord we daily pray This bloody war of ours with speed to stay And put us once in happy peace again That we in peace may here hence now remain And praise thy name and that incessantly For giving us this bounteous great mercy And this must thou and onely thou alone Or else Lord Jesus other there is none Can yeeld us help in this our greatest need For now is nothing can stand us in steed But onely thou then come Lord Jesu come Or else deer God we are utterly all undone For them elected to the publique good With purging ill have bred in some ill blood And th' weaker sex it is become so strong T is doubtfull Lord the other sex to wrong So as between two are esteemed extream Most suffer much tho they retain the mean For now ther 's no part of this wretched I le Tho it enjoyed a blessed peace ere while But t is grown now unto a bloody war For many a one thinks their honest neighbor far More quiet then he and so with grief repines At 's neighbours good and then his malice finds Some hole or other in his neighbours coat Tho the quarrel be but for one single groat To make complaint to them that are of power To plunder him by strong hand in an houre For some old wrong as then but newly done Perchance betwixt the Father and the Son O blessed Lord that this the German plunder Which whilom was in peaceful England wonder Should now so well with us be understood As any other usuall English word Whereby revenge in England's grown so rife It tends to take away non-nocents life For Satan o're this Isle bears such a sway As by his wiles he draweth many away From thee that is their only God and King Who are rather bound thy worthy praises sing For all thy goodnes to this wofull land Tho now it feel thy dreadfull heavy hand Sweet Jesus send some blessed Angel down To quell this hellish Satans furious frown And force him Lord as thou was pleased then When he made suit he might go into th' swine Who huried him headlong into the sea Lord drown him there that he n're more have powr To come within this spacious Ile more But we instead of blood may ly and groan In brinish tears and therein make our moan To God on high he will vouchsafe to please This cruell war of ours with peace to cease And then that we who are true English all May all one way on the name of Jesus call Vouchsafe good God that we may so accord In holy service of that heav'nly Lord As tho we differ some of us in part Yet we may all as one agree in heart And let our hearts good Lord in prai'r remain Lest in our sins we wretched may be slain When worthies dare to stand look on death Tho with that look they lose their deerest breath Brave Britains keep your ' forwon antient fame Least antient terrour turn to novell shame And since your valour cannot well be known Untill by you some valourous act be done Then look your swords be sharpe for foreign foe Whose joy 's encreased by our cause of wo's Lest we bewaile this great efflux of blood When t is too late to do us any good And worthies all in time for death prepare Since all in th' end shall fall unto death's share But look you still prefer an honourable death Before a shamefull beastly cowardly life Seeing God alone the day of death doth know But when or where no earthly man can show O then le ts pray and that incessantly To him that lives and shall eternally Come let us sing and all due praises give To him that died that we by him might live And alwayes yeeld praise to his holy name Who was is now and ay shall be the same O let us all with heart due praises sing To this our God and glorious heav'nly king Whose dwelling is above the heavens most high Whereto the best of sinners come not nigh Whose heavy judgement is for to descend Since none come there but they who do ascend Then strive my soul and do thou aye aspire To keep thy self out of that irksome fire Which burns and yet there is no light appears But pain and grief and dreadfull horrid fears Sweet Jesus please to keep my soul from hence And draw it up to th'high'st heavens that thence I may have help for without help from thee There is no comfort in extremitie Then teach me Lord with heart mouth to pray That I in thee may ever live and stay And never more so wander up and down From place to place as I poor wretch have don Sweet Jesus please
do seem to serve their God in show Their works set forth that God they do not know So now full time to turn our joyful singing Into a tune of sorrow sadly weeping O weep O weep let all this Isle now weep VVhen few or none are set the Lord to seek Though a world of people daily do encrease Yet Gods true service daily doth decrease VVhen many sins are smooth'd with seeming show Of godly actions all the world doth know For now dissembling most of men do use Whereby Gods honour they do much abuse So many think that they are free from sin When God doth know they are filthy foul within And such do show Christ came not them to call Seeing he was sent solely for sinners all O blessed Lord I do confess my sin Ope thou the gate that I may enter in For through thee onely and through thee alone I must have entrance or I must have none Now help Lord help good Lord help me with speed VVithout thy help sweet Saviour I am dead For with the world good God I am gone astray From thee my help my comfort and my stay Since conscience saith that heaven hath justly left me Also it may that hell hath justly gain'd me And so conclude there 's no injustice done Though God refuse accept me for his son How do I use to make a formal lye Not thinking how did Ananias dye And yet 't is held to be a slight offence Although for such Sapphira carried hence But now we are come to such a woful time As lying's thought of some to be no crime Because t is guilded with another name And yet in substance 't is the very same VVe call 't dissembling when we lying use And yet dissembling doth the truth abuse So th' nature is not altered with the name For this and that are both the very same And now 't is grown to such a common sin As if for lying death had never been Seeing he that knows not how a lye to give He knows not how in this vile world to live So as it seemes who wants the art of lying He wants the art in this vile world of living But though this art may help a livelihood here Assure thy self it will not help thee there Where nought but truth can come to ' th' Saviours ear 'Fore whom no shadows substance will appear He seeth the secrets of each hollow heart And will not swerye from truth in any part Then love this truth and loath this art of lying Least thou repent it when thou art a dying For then thou 'lt see no difference will appear When either of these come to thy Saviours ear Presume not then 't is lawful to dissemble Lest flesh blood too late will shake tremble For though thy Saviour prove to thee so kinde As let thee live to see if thou wilt minde To amend the fault so long by thee been used Though conscience tell thee God's therein abused Conceive thy heart is hardned in its sin And will not hear thy conscience speak within Who tells thee plainly that thou hast offended And oftentimes for it been reprehended Yet thou dost still run on in thy old course And in thy sin grow each day worse and worse But lay to heart how Ananias dyed And how thy self ere long must come be tryed Before a Judge admits of no dissembling But best of men will fall with fear and trembling Retain this fear and from it ne'er depart For this in time may mollifie thy heart Or if it do not think then 't is hardned so As 't may expect this fatall word of Go VVithout so much as any warning given But for thy sin thou art depriv'd of heaven For be assur'd when Ananias dyed He had no time to think he might be tryed But struck to death before he answer made For this just Judge will not be disobayed And though his mercy greatly doth abound Yet Ananias he was struck to ground When he had parted with a fair estate Intending it to help the poor mans fate So as it seems to th' poor his charity 's such In our esteem as might have helpt him much Yet here observe that man can do no good How great soere though 't be his livlihood Which may withstand the justice of this God If he resolve to beat us with his rod For when thou hast done all the good thou can Thou maist conclude thy self a sinful man Then help Lord help good Lord help me with speed Without thy help sweet Saviour I am dead For nought in me but hearty penitence Can gaine me pardon for my great offence Sweet Jesus teach my heart to fear and tremble And ne'er forget Sapphira did dissemble And for that sin did suffer suddaine death Let me retaine this thought whiles I have breath And teach me Lord for all my sins to weep And from tentation good Lord do me keep For my weak minde forgetful is of good But what is ill of me is ne'er withstood For it O Lord I freely do embrace So as I see in me 't is want of grace Supply this want in me good Lord I pray That in thy service I may every stay But sin is so ingrafted in my heart As it is loth from least of sin depart But rather smooth it with some seeming shew Although 't be sin apparently we know So as it seemes we are apt to foster ill But what is good nor with good heart nor will Sweet Jesus help this frailty is in me And heal me Lord of this infirmitie For my weak flesh to ill saith seldome No Sweet Jesus free me from this word of Go And grant me strength for to restraine my will That henceforth I be ne'er o'recome with ill But aye be lifting up my heart to thee And to thy name sing praise continually And with my tears wash off the guilt of sin Which my hard heart hath hereto lived in And henceforth weep in heart without dissembling To work salvation with my fear and trembling And teach my eys good God that they may weep And my weak flesh from sin it self to keep O weep O weep let all this Isle now weep If it expect from God's just judgement keep Let Britain weep whose brackish sea doth round it Lest God in justice in that sea do drown it Take notice now of his most heavy hand In justice stretched o're this woful land O weep O weep begin to weep in time Lest seas of tears will not wash off thy crime O weep O weep that all the world may see How God in mercy hath deliver'd thee O weep O weep to wash away thy guilt Hangs o're this Isle for blood is therein spilt VVhich like to rivers on the land do run Lord stay it now for Jesus sake thy Son That we may all with joyful noise accord To sing the praises of the heavenly Lord For that his mercy great on us now shown When our desert is to the