and intercession 6. Lead us not into Temptation but deliver c. O LORD we have no strength against those multitudes of temptations that dayly assault us only our eyes are upon thee O be thou pleased either to restrain them or assist us and in thy faithfulness suffer us not to be tempted above that we are able but in all our temptations make us a way to escape that we be not overcome by them but may when thou shalt call us to it resist even unto blood striving against sin that being faithful unto death thou mayest give us the crown of life For thine is the Kingdom the Power c. HEAR us graciously answer our petitions for thou art the great King over all the earth whose Power is infinite and art able to do for us above all that we can ask or think and to whom belongeth the Glory of all that good thou workest in us or for us Therefore blessing honour glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne to our God for ever and ever Amen Pious EJACULATIONS Taken out of the Book of PSALMS For PARDON of SIN HAVE mercy on me O God after thy great goodness according to the multitude of thy mercies do away mine offences Wash me throughly from my wickedness and cleanse me from my sin Turn thy face from my sins and put out all my misdeeds My misdeeds prevail against me O be thou merciful unto my sins Enter not into judgement with thy servant for in thy sight shall no man living be justified For thy names sake O Lord be merciful unto my sin for it is great Turn thee O Lord and deliver my soul O save me for thy mercies sake For GRACE TEACH me to do the thing that pleaseth thee for thou art my God Teach me thy way O Lord and I will walk in thy truth O knit my heart to thee that I may fear thy name Make me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit within me O let my heart be sound in thy statutes that I be not ashamed Incline my heart unto thy I estimonies and not to covetousness Turn away mine eyes lest they behold vanity and quicken thou me in thy way I am a stranger upon earth O hide not thy Commandments from me Lord teach me to number my days that I may apply my heart unto wisdom For the LIGHT of Gods COUNTENANCE LORD why abhorrest thou my soul and hidest thy face from me O hide not thou thy face from me nor cast thy servant away in displeasure Thy loving kindness is better then life it self Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon me Comfort the Soul of thy servant for unto thee O Lord do I lift up my soul. THANKSGIVING I WILL always give thanks unto the Lord his praise shall ever be in my mouth Thou art my God and I will thank thee thou art my God and I will praise thee I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live I will praise my God whilest I have my being Praised be God which hath not cast out my prayer nor turned his mercy from me Blessed be the Lord God even the God of Israel which only doth wondrous things And blessed be the Name of his Majesty for ever and all the earth shall be filled with his Majesty Amen Amen For DELIVERANCE from TROUBLE BE merciful unto me O Lord be merciful unto me for my Soul trusteth in thee and under the shadow of thy wings shall be my refuge until these calamities be over-past Deliver me O Lord from mine enemies for I flie unto thee to hide me O keep my Soul and deliver me let me not be confounded for I have put my trust in thee Mine eyes are ever looking unto the Lord for he shall pluck my feet out of the net Turn thee unto me and have mercy upon me for I am desolate and in misery The sorrorws of my heart are enlarged O bring thou me out of my troubles For the CHURCH O BE favourable and gracious unto Sion build thou the walls of Jerusalem O God wherefore art thou absent from us so long Why is thy wrath so hot against the sheep of thy pasture O think upon thy Congregation whom thou hast purchased and Redeemed of old Look upon the Tribe of thine Inheritance and Mount Sion where thou hast dwelt It is time for thee Lord. to lay to thy hand for they have destroyed thy Law Arise O God and maintain thine own cause Deliver Israel O God out of all his troubles Brief Heads of Self-Examination especially before the Sacrament Collected out of the fore-going Treatise concerning the breaches of our Duty To GOD. FAITH NOT BELIEVING there is a God Not believing his Word Not believing it practically so as to live according to our belief HOPE Despairing of Gods mercy so as to neglect duty Presuming groundlesly on it whilst we go on in wilful sin LOVE Not Loving God for his own excellencies Not loving him for his goodness to us Not labouring to please him Not desiring to draw neer to him in his Ordinances Not longing to enjoy him in Heaven FEAR Not Fearing God so as to keep from offending him Fearing man above him by committing sin to shun some outward suffering TRUST Not trusting on God in dangers and disiresses Using unlawful means to bring us out of them Not depending on God for supply of our wants Immoderate care for outward things Neglecting to labour and expecting God should support us in our idleness Not looking up to God for a blessing on our honest endeavours HUMILITY Not having a high esteem of God Not submitting obediently to act his will Not patiently suffering it but murmuring at his corrections Not amending by them Not being thankful to him Not acknowledging his wisdome in choosing for us but having eager and impatient desires of our owe. HONOUR Not Honouring God by a reverend usage of the things that relate to him Behaving our selves irreverently in his house Robbing God by taking things that are consecrated to him Profaning Holy times the Lords Day and the Feasts and Fasts of the Church Neglecting to read the Holy Scriptures not marking when we do read Being careless to get knowledge of our duty chusing rather to continue ignorant then put our selves to the pains or shame of learning Placing Religion in hearing of Sermons without practising them Breaking our Vow made at Baptisme By resorting to Witches and Conjurers i. e. to the Devil By loving the pomps and vanities of the world and followlowing its sinful customes By fulfilling the lusts of the flesh Profaning the Lords Supper By comming to it ignorantly without examination contrition and purposes of new life By behaving our selves irreverently at it without devotion and spiritual affection By neglecting to keep the promises made at it Profaning Gods Name by blasphemous thoughts or discourse Giving others occasion to blaspheme him by our vile wicked lives Taking unlawful OATHS Perjury Swearing in
hear me and grant I may now approach thee with such humility and contrition love devotion that thou mayest vouch safe to come unto me abide with me communicating to me thy self all the merits of thy Passion And then O Lord let no accusations of Satan or my own conscience amaze or distract me but having peace with thee let me also have peace in my self that this Wine may make glad this Bread of life may strengthen my heart enable me chearfully to run the way of thy Commandments Grant this merciful Saviour for thine own bowels compassions sake EJACULATIONS to be used at the LORDS TABLE LORD I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof I have sinned What shall I do unto thee O thou preserver of men Here recollect some of thy greatest sins If thou Lord shouldst be extream to mark what is done amiss O Lord who may abide it But with the Lord there is mercy and with him is plenteous Redemption Behold O Lord thy beloved Son in whom thou art well pleased Hearken to the cry of his blood which speaketh better things then that of Abel By his Agony and bloody Sweat by his Cross and Passion good Lord deliver me O Lamb of God which takest away the sins of the world grant me thy Peace O Lamb of God which takest away the sins of the world have mercy upon me Immediately before Receiving THOU hast said That he that eateth thy flesh and drinketh thy blood hath eternal life Behold the servant of the Lord be it unto me according to thy word At the Receiving of the Bread BY thy Crucified body deliver me from this body of death At the receiving of the Cup. O LET this blood of thine purge my conscience from dead works to serve the living God Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean O touch me and say I will be thou clean After Receiving WHAT shall I render unto the Lord for all the benefits he hath done unto me I will take the Cup of Salvation and call upon the name of the Lord. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and blessing Therefore blessing honour glory and power be to him that sitteth upon the Throne and to the Lamb for ever and ever Amen I have sworn and am stedfastly purposed to keep thy righteous judgements O hold thou up my goings in thy paths that my footsteps slip not A Thanksgiving after the Receiving of the Sacrament O Thou fountain of all goodness from whom every good and perfect gift cometh and to whom all honour and glory should be returned I desire with all the most fervent and inflamed affections of a grateful heart to bless and praise thee for those inestimable mercies thou hast vouchsafed me Lord what is man that thou shouldst so regard him as to send thy beloved Son to suffer such bitter things for him But Lord what am I the worst of men that I should have any part in this attonement who have so oft despised him and his sufferings O the height and depth of this mercy of thine that art pleased to admit me to the renewing of that Covenant with thee which I have so often and so perversly broken that I who am not worthy of that dayly bread which sustains the body should be made partaker of this bread of life which nourisheth the soul and that the God of all purity should vouchsafe to unite himself to so polluted a wretch O my God suffer me no more I bâ—seech thee to turn thy grace into wantonness to make thy mercy an occasion of security but let this unspeakable love of thine constrain me to obedience that since my blessed Lord hath died for me I may no longer live unto my self but to him O Lord I know there is no concord between Christ and Belial therefore since he hath now been pleased to enter my heart O let me never permit any lust to chace him thence but let him that hath so dearly bought me still keep possession of me and let nothing ever take me out of his hand To this end be thou graciously pleased to watch over me and defend me from all assaults of my spiritual enemies but especially deliver me from my self from the treachery of my own heart which is too willing to yield it self a prey And where thou seest I am either by nature or custome most weak there do thou I beseech thee magnifie thy power in my preservation Here mention thy most dangerous temptations And Lord let my Saviours sufferings for my sins and the Vows I have now made against them never depart from my minde but let the remembrance of the one enable me to perform the other that I may never make truce with those lusts which nailed his hands pierced his side and made his soul heavy to the death But that having now anew listed my self under his banner I may fight manfully and follow the Captain of my Salvation even through a sea of blood Lord lift up my hands that hang down and my feeble knees that I faint not in this warfare O be thou my strength who am not able of my self to struggle with the slightest temptations How often have I turned my back in the day of battel How many of these Sacramental vows have I violated And Lord I have still the same unconstant deceitful heart to betray me to the breach of this O thou who art Yea and Amen in whom there is no shadow of change communicate to me I beseech thee such a stability of minde that I may no more thus start aside like a broken bow but that having my heart whole with thee I may continue stedfast in thy Covenant that not one good purpose which thy Spirit hath raised in me this day may vanish as so many have formerly done but that they may bring forth fruit unto life eternal Grant this O merciful father through the merits and mediation of my Cruâ—ified Saviour A Prayer of Intercession to be used either before or after the receiving of the Sacrament O MOST gracious Lord who so tenderly lovedst mankind as to give thy dear Son out of thy Bosome to be a propitiation for the sins of the whole word grant that the effect of this Redemption may be as universal as the design of it that it may be to the salvation of all O let no person by impenitence and wilful sin forfeit his part in it but by the power of thy grace bring all even the most obstinate sinners to repentance Inlighten all that sit in darkness all Jews Turks Infidels and Hereticks take from them all blindness hardness of heart and contempt of thy Word and so fetch them home blessed Lord unto thy fold that they may be saved among the number of the true Israelites And for all those upon whom the Name of thy Son is called grant O Lord that their conversations may
to us how wickedly soever we live The Apostle teaches us another use of them 2 Cor. 7. 1. Having therefore these promises let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God When we do thus we may justly apply the promises to our selves and with comfort expect our parts in them But till then though these promises be of certain truth yet we can reap no benefit from them because we are not the persons to whom they are made that is we perform not the condition required to give us right to them 23. This is the Faith or Belief required of us towards the things God hath revealed to us in the Scripture to wit Such as may answer the End for which they were so revealed that is the bringing us to good lives the bare believing the truth of them without this is no more then the Devils do as S. James tells us Chap. 2. 19. Only they are not so unreasonable as some of us are for they will tremble as knowing well this Faith will never do them any good But many of us go on confidently and doubt not the sufficiency of our Faith though we have not the least fruit of obedience to approve it by let such hear S. James's judgment in the point Ch. 2. 26. As the body without the spirit is dead so Faith if it have not works is dead also 24. A second Duty to God is HOPE that is a comfortable expectation of these good things he hath promised But this as I told you before of Faith must be such as agrees to the nature of the promises which being such as requires a condition on our part we can hope no further then we make that good or if we do we are so far from performing by it this duty of Hope that we commit the great sin of Presumption which is nothing else but hoping where God hath given us no ground to hope this every man doth that hopes for pardon of sins and eternal life without that repentance and obedience to which alone they are promised the true hope is that which purifies us S. John saith 1 Epist. 3. 5. Every man that hath this hope purifieth himself even as he is pure that is it makes him leave his sins and earnestly endeavour to be holy as Christ is and that which doth not so how confident soever it be may well be concluded to be but that hope of the Hypocrite which Job assures us shall perish 25. But there is another way of transgressing this Duty besides that of Presumption and that is by Desperation by which I mean not that which is ordinarily so called viz. the Despairing of mercy so long as we continue in our sins for that is but just for us to do But I mean such a desperation as makes us give over endeavour that is when a man that sees he is not at the present such a one as the promises belong to concludes he can never become such and therefore neglects all duty and goes on in his sins This is indeed the sinful desparation and that which if it be continued in must end in destruction 26. Now the work of hope is to prevent this by setting before us the generality of the promises that they belong to all that will but perform the condition And therefore though a man have not hitherto performed it and so hath yet no right to them yet hope will tell him that that right may yet be gained if he will now set heartily about it It is therefore strange folly for any man be he never so sinful to give up himself for lost when if he will but change his course he shall be as certain to partake of the promises of mercy as if he had never gone on in those former sins 27. This Christ shews us in the parable of the Prodigal Luke 15. where wee see that Son which had run away from his Father and had consumed the portion given him in riotous living was yet upon his return and repentance used with as much kindness by the Father as he that had never offended nay with higher and more passionate expressions of love The intent of which Parable was only to shew us how graciously our heavenly Father will receive us how great soever our former sins have bin if we shall return to him with true sorrow for what is past and sincere obedience for the time to come nay so acceptable a thing is it to God to have any sinner return from the error of his ways that there is a kinde of triumph in heaven for it there is joy in the presence of the Angels of God over one sinner that repenteth Luke 15. 10. And now who would not rather chuse by a timely repentance to bring joy to heaven to God and his holy Angels then by a sullen desperation to please Satan and his accursed spirits especially when by the former we shall gain endlesse happiness to our selves and by the latter as endless torments 28. A Third Duty to God is LOVE there are two common Motives of love among men the one the goodness and excellency of the person the other his particular kindness and love to us and both these are in the highest degree in God 29. First he is of infinite goodness and excellency in himself this you were before taught to believe of him and no man can doubt it that considers but this one thing that there is nothing good in the world but what hath received all its goodness from God His goodness is as the Sea or Ocean and the goodness of all creatures but as fome small streams flowing from the Sea now you would certainly think him a mad man that should say the Sea were not greater then some little brook and certainly it is no less folly to suppose that the goodness of God doth not as much nay infinitely more exceed that of all creatures Besides the goodness of the creature is imperfect and mixt with much evil but his is pure and entire without any such mixture He is perfectly Holy and cannot be rainted with the least impurity neither can he be the Author of any to us for though he be the cause of all the goodness in us he is the cause of none of our sins This S. James expresly tells us Chap. 1. 13. Let no man say when he is tempted He is tempted of God for God cannot be tempted with evil neither tempteth he any man 30. But secondly God is not only thus good in himself but he is also wonderful good that is kind and merciful to us we are made up of two parts a Soul and a Body and to each of these God hath exprest infinite mercy tenderness Do but consider what was before told you of the SECOND COVENANT the mercies therein offered even Christ himself all his benefits and also that he offers them so sincerely
and heartily that no man can miss of enjoying them but by his own default For he doth most really and affectionately desire we should embrace them and live as appears by that solemn Oath of his Eze. 33. 11. As I live saith the Lord I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked but that the wicked turn from his ways and live whereto he adds this passionate expression turn ye turn ye from your evil ways for why will ye die To the same purpose you may read Ezek. 18. Consider this I say and then surely you cannot but say He hath great kindness to our souls Nay let every man but remember with himself the many calls he hath had to repentance and amendment sometimes outward by the Word sometimes inward by the secret whispers of Gods Spirit in his heart which were only to woe and intreat him to avoid Eternal misery and to accept of Eternal happiness let him I say remember these together with those many other means God hath used towards him for the same end and he will have reason to confess Gods kindness not only to mens souls in general but to his own in particular 31. Neither hath he been wanting to our Bodies all the good things they enjoy as health strength food raiment and what ever else concernes them are meerly his gifts so that indeed it is impossible we should be ignorant of his mercies to them all those outward comforts and refreshments we daily enjoy being continual effects and witnesses of it and though some enjoy more of these then others yet there is no person but enjoyes so much in one kinde or other as abundantly shews Gods mercy and kindness to him in respect of his Body 32. And now surely you will think it but reasonable we should Love him who is in all respects thus Lovely Indeed this is a duty so generally acknowledged that if you should ask any man the question whether he loved God or no he would think you did him great wrong to doubt of it yet for all this it is too plain that there are vey few that do indeed love him and this will soon be proved to you by examining a little what are the common effects of love which we bear to men like our selves and then trying whether we can shew any such fruits of our love to God 33. Of that sort there are divers but for shortness I will name but two The first is a Desire of pleasing the second a Desire of enjoying These are constantly the Fruits of Love For the first 't is known by all that he that loves any person is very desirous to approve himself to him to do whatsoever he thinks will be pleasing to him and according to the degree of love so is this desire more or less where we love earnestly we are very earnest and careful to please Now if we have indeed that love to God we pretend to it will bring forth this fruit we shall be careful to please him in all things Therefore as you judge of the tree by its fruits so may you judg of your love of God by this fruit of it nay indeed this is the way of tryal which Christ himself hath given us Jo. 14. 15. If ye love me keep my commandements and S. John tell us 1 Ep. 5. 3. That this is the love of God that we walk after his commandements and where this one proof is wanting it will be impossible to testifie our loue to God 34. But it must yet be farther considered that this love of God must not be in a low or weak degree for besides that the Motives to it his excellency and his kindness are in the highest the same Commandment which bids us love God bids us love him with all our heart and with all our strength that is as much as is possible for us and above any thing else And therefore to the fulfilling of this Commandement it is necessary we love him in that degree and if we do so then certainly we shall have not onely some slight and faint endeavours of pleasing but such as are most diligent and earnest such as will put us upon the most painful and costly duties make us willing to forsake our own ease goods friends yea life it self when we cannot keep them without disobeying God 35. Now examine thy self by this hast thou this fruit of love to shew doest thou make it thy constant and greatest care to keep Gods Commandments to obey him in all things earnestly labouring to please him to the utmost of thy power even to the forsakeing of what is dearest to thee in this world if thou dost thou maist then truly say thou lovest God But on the contrary if thou wilfully continuest in the breach of many nay but of any one command of his never deceive thy self for the love of God abides not in thee This will be made plain to you if you consider what the Scripture saith of such as that they are enemies to God by their wicked works Col. 1. 21. That the carnal minde and such is every one that continues wilfully in sin is enmity with ' God Rom. 8. 7. That he that sins wilfuly tramples under foot the Son of God and doth despight unto the Spirit of Grace Heb. 10. 29. and many the like And therefore unless you can think enmity and trampling and despight to be fruits of love you must not believe you love God whilest you go on in any wilful disobedience to him 36. A Second fruit of Love I told you was desire of Enjoying This is constantly to be seen in our love to one another If you have a friend whom you intirely love you desire his conversation wish to be alwayes in his company and thus will it also be in our love to God if that be as great and hearty as this 37. There is a two fold Enjoying of God the one Imperfect in this life the other more Perfect and compleat in the life to come that in this life is that conversation as I may call it which we have with God in his Ordinances in Praying and Meditating in Hearing his Word in Receiving the Sacrament which are all intended for this purpose to bring us into an intimacy and familiarity with God by speaking to him and hearing him speak to us 38. Now if we do indeed love God we shall certainly hugely value and desire these wayes of conversing with him it being all that we can have in this life it will make us with David esteem one day in Gods Courts better then a thousand Psal. 84. 10. We shall be glad to have these opportunities of approaching to him as often as it is possible be careful to use them diligently to that end of uniting us still more to him yea we shall come to these Spiritual exercises with the same chearfulness we would go to our dearest friend And if indeed we do thus it is a good proof of
carrying of the Cross but then only can we be said to take it up when having a means of escaping it by a sin we rather chuse to endure the Cross then commit the Sin for then it is not laid on us by any unavoidable necessity but we willingly chuse it and this is highly acceptable with God yea withal so strictly required by him that if we fail of performing it when we are put to the tryal we are not to be accounted followers of Christ for so himself hath expresly told us Mat. 16. 24. If any man come after me let him deny himself and take up his Cross and follow me and so again Mark 8. 34. It were therefore a good point of Spiritual Wisdom for us sometimes by some lower degrees of self-denyal to fit our selves for this greater when we shall be called to it we know he that expects to run a Race will before-hand be often breathing himself that he may not be foil'd when he comes to run for the prize in like manner 't wil be fit for us sometimes to abridge our selves somewhat of our lawful pleasure or ease or profit so that we may get such a mastery over our selves as to be able to renounce all when our obedience to God requires it 53. And as we are thus to Trust on God for deliverance from danger so are we likewise for supply of our wants and those again are either Spiritual or Temporal our Spiritual want is that of his Grace to inable us to serve him without which we can do nothing and for this we are to depend on him provided we neglect not the means which are Prayer and a Careful using of what he hath already bestowed on us For then we have his promise for it he will give the holy Spirit to them that ask it Luke 11. 15. And unto him that hath shall bee given Mat. 25. 29. that is To him that hath made a good use of that grace he hath already God will give more We are not therefore to affright our selves with the difficulty of those things God requires of us but remember he commands nothing which he will not enable us to perform if we be not wanting to our selves And therefore let us sincerely do our parts and confidently assure our selves God will not fail of his 54. But we have likewise Temporal and Bodily wants and for the supply of them we are likewise to rely on him And for this also we want no Promises supposing us to be of the number of them to whom they are made that is Gods faithful Servants They that fear the Lord lack nothing Psal. 34. 9. v. 10. They that seek the Lord shall want no manner of thing that is good Again Psal. 33. 18 19. Behold the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him upon them that hope in his mercy to deliver their souls from death and to feed them in time of famine Examples also we have of this as we may see in the case of Eliah and the poor Widow 1 Kings 17. And many others 55. We are therefore to look up to him for the provision of all things necessary for us according to that of the Psalmist The eyes of all wait upon thee O Lord and thou givest them meat in due season And our Saviour hath taught us to pray for our daily bread thereby teaching us that we are to live in continual dependance upon God for it Yet I mean not by this that we should so expect it from God as to give up our selves to idleness and expect to be fed by Miracles No our honest industry and labour is the meanes by which God ordinarily gives us the necessaries of this life and therefore we must by no means neglect that He that will not labour let him not eat sayes the Apostle 2 Thess. 3. 10. And we may believe God will pronounce the same sentence and suffer the slothful person to want even necessary food But when we have faithfully used our own endeavour then we must also look up to God for his blessing on it without which it can never prosper to us And having done thus we may comfortably rest our selves on his Providence for such a measure of these outward things as he fees fittest for us 56. But if our condition be such that we are not able to labour and have no other means of bringing in the necessaries of life to our selves yet even then we are chearfully to rest upon God believing that he who feeds the Ravens will by some means or other though we know not what provide for us so long as he pleases we shall continue in this world and never in any case torment our selves with carking and distrustful thoughts but as the Apostle 1 Pet. 5. 7. Cast all our care on him who careth for us 57. This is earnestly prest by our Saviour Matth. 6. where he abundantly shewes the folly of this sin of distrust The place is a most excellent one and therefore I shall set it down at large Verse 25. Therefore I say unto you take no thought for your life what you shall eat or what you shall drink neither for your body what you shall put on is not the life more then meat and the body then raiment Behold the fowls of the air for they sow not neither do they reap nor gather into barns yet your heavenly Father feedeth them Are ye not much better then they Which of you by taking thought can adde one cubit to his stature And why take ye thought for raiment consider the Lilies 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 arayed like one of these Wherefore if God so clothe the grass of the field which to day is and to morrow is cast into the Oven shall he not much more clothe you O ye of little faith Therefore take no thought saying What shall we eat or what shall we drink or wherewithal shall we be clothed for after all these things do the Gentiles seek for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and then all these things shall be added unto you Take therefore no thought for to morrow for the morrow shall take thought for the things of it self sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof I might adde many other texts to this purpose but this is so full and convincing that I suppose it needless 58. All therefore that I shall say more concerning this duty is to put you in minde of the great benefits of it as first that by his trusting upon God you engage and binde him to provide for you Men you know think themselves highly concern'd not to fail those that depend and trust upon them and certainly God doth so much more But then secondly there is a
the Apostle saith Rom. 1. 31. We do not only do the things but take pleasure in them that do them and therefore intice and draw as many as we can into the same sins with us Then it is risen to the highest step of wickedness and is to be look't on as the utmost degree both of sin and danger Thus you see how you are to examine your selves concerning your sins in each of which you are to consider how many of these heightning circumstances there have been that so you may aright measure the hainousness of them 7. Now the end of this Examination is to bring you to such a sight of your sins as may truly humble you make you sensible of your own danger that have provoked so great a Majesty who is able so sadly to revenge himself upon you And that will surely even to the most carnal heart appear a reasonable ground of sorrow But that is not all it must likewise bring you to a sense and abhorrence of your basenesse and ingratitude that have thus offended so good and graecious a God that have made such unworthy and unkind returnes to those tender and rich mercies of his And this consideration especially must melt your hearts into a deep sorrow and contrition the degree whereof must be in some measure answerable to the degree of your sinnes And the greater it is provided it be not such as shuts up the hope of Gods Mercy the more acceptable it is to God who hath promised not to despise a broken and contriâ—e heart Psalm 51. 17. And the more likely it will be also to bring us to amendment For if we have once felt what the smart of a wounded Spirit is wee shall have the lesse minde to venture upon sin again 8. For when wee are tempted with any of the short pleasures of sinne wee may then out of our owne experience set against them the sharp pains and terrors of an accusing conscience which will to any that hath felt them be able infinitely to outweigh them Endeavour therefore to bring your souls to this melting temper to this deep unfeigned sorrow and that not only for the danger you have brought upon your self for though that be a consideration which may ought to work sadnesse in us yet where that alone is the motive of our sorrow it is not that sorrow which will avail us for pardon and the reason of it is clear for that sorrow proceeds only from the love of our selves we are sorry because we are like to smart But the sorrow of a true penitent must be joyned also with the love of God and that will make us grieve for having offended him though there were no punishment to fall upon our selves The way then to stir up this sorrow in us is first to stir up our love of God by repeating to our selves the many gracious acts of his mercy towards us particularly that of his sparing us and not cutting us off in our sins Consider with thy self how many and how great provocations thou hast offered him perhaps in a continued course of many years wilful disobedience for which thou mightest with perfect justice have been ere this sent quick into hell Nay possibly thou hast before thee many examples of less sinners then thou art who have been suddenly snatcht away in the midst of their sins And what cause canst thou give why thou hast thus long escaped but only because his eye hath spared thee And what cause of that sparing but his tender compassions towards thee his unwillingness that thou should'st perish This consideration if it be prest home upon thy soul cannot chuse if thy heart be not as hard as the nether Milstone but awake somewhat of love in thee towards this gracious this long suffering God and that love will certainly make it appear to thee that it is an evil thing and bitter that thou hast forsaken the Lord Jer. 2. 19. That thou hast made such wretched requitals of so great mercy it will make thee both ashamed and angry at thy self that thou hast been such an unthankful creature But if the consideration of this one sort of mercy Gods forbearance onely be such an engagement and help to this godly sorrow what will then be the multitude of those other mercies which every man is able to reckon up to himself and therefore let every man be as particular in it as he can call to minde as many of them as he is able that so he may attain to the greater degree of true contrition 9. And to all these endeavours must be added earnest prayers to God that he by his holy Spirit would shew you your sins and soften your hearts that you may throughly bewail and lament them 10. To this must be joyned an humble consession of sins to God and that not only in general but also in particular as far as your memory of them will reach and that with all those heightning circumstances of them which you have by the forementioned examination discovered Yea even secret and forgotten sins must in general be acknowledged for it is certain there are multitudes of such so that it is necessary for every one of us to say with David Psal. 19. 12. Who can understand his errors cleanse thou me from my secret faulâ—s When you have thus confest your sins with this hearty sorrow and sincere hatred of them you may then and not before be concluded to feel so much of your disease that it will be seasonable to apply the remedy 11. In the next place therefore you are to look on him whom God hath set forth to be the propitiation of our sins Rom. 3. 25. Even Jesus Christ that Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world John 1. 29. And earnestly beg of God that by his most precious blood your sins may be washed away and that God would for his sake be reconciled to you And this you are to believe will surely be done if you do for the rest of your time forsake your sins and give your selves up sincerely to obey God in all his commands But without that it is vain to hope any benefit from Christ or his sufferings And therefore the next part of your preparation must be the setting those resolutions of obedience which I told you was the third thing you were to examine your selves of before your approach to the holy Sacrament 12. Concerning the particulars of this resolution I need say no more but that it must answer every part and branch of our duty that is we must not only in general resolve that wee will observe Gods Commandments but we must resolve it for every Commandment by itself and especially where we have found our selves most to have failed heretofore there especially to renew our resolutions And herein it neerly concerns us to look that these resolutions be sincere and unfeigned and not only such slight ones as people use
to rejoyce in thine own portion Fourthly Consider how far thou art from deserving any good thing from God and then thou canst not but with Jacob Gen 32. 10. confess that thou art not worthy of the least of those mercies thou enjoyest and in stead of murmuring that they are no more wilt see reason to admire and praise the bounty of God that they are so many Fifthly be often thinking of the joyes laid up for thee in Heaven look upon that as thy home on this world only as an Inne where thou art fain to take up in thy passage and then as a Traveller expects not the same conveniences at an Inne that he hath at home so thou hast reason to be content with what ever entertainment thou findst here knowing thou art upon thy journey to a place of infinite happiness which will make an abundant amends for all the uneasiness and hardship thou canst suffer in the way Lastly Pray to God from whom all good things do come that he will to all his other blessings adde this of a contented minde without which thou canst have no taste or relish of any other 10. A fifth Duty is DILIGENCE This is made up of two parts watchfulness and industry and both these we owe to our Souls 11. First Watchfulness in observing all the dangers that threaten them Now since nothing can endanger our Souls but sin this watchfulness is principally to be imployed against that And as in a besieged City where there is any weak part there it is necessary to keep the strongest guard so it is here whereever thou findest thy inclinations such as are most likely to betray thee to sin there it concernes thee to be especially watchful Observe therefore carefully to what sins either thy natural temper thy company or thy course of life do particularly incline thee and watch thy self very narrowly in those Yet do not so lay out all thy care on those as to leave thy self open to any other for that may give Satan as much advantage on the other side but let thy watch be general against all sin though in a special manner against those which are like oftenest to assault thee 12. The second part of diligence is industry or labour and this also we owe to our Souls for without it they will as little prosper as that vineyard of the sluggard which Solomon describes Prov. 24. 30. For there is a husbandry of the Soul as well as of the estate and the end of the one as of the other is the increasing and improving of its riches Now the riches of the Soul are either Natural or Divine By the natural I mean its faculties of reason wit memory and the like by the Divine I mean the graces of God which are not the Souls natural portion but are given immediately by God and both these we are to take care to improve they being both talents intrusted to us for that purpose 13. The way of improving the natural is by imploying them so as may bring in most honour to God we must not let them lye idle by us through sloth neither must we overwhelm them with intemperance and bruitish pleasures which is the case of too many but we must employ them and set them on work But then we must be sure it be not in the Devils service like many who set their wit only to the profaning of God or cheating their neighbours and stuff their memories with such filthiness as should never once enter their thoughts our use of them must be such as may bring in most glory to God most benefit to our neighbours and may best fit us to make our accounts when God shall come to reckon with us for them 14. But the other part of the Soules riches is yet more precious that is grace and of this we must be especially careful to husband and improve it This is a duty expresly commanded us by the Apostle 2 Pet. 3. 18. Grow in grace And again in the first Chapter of that Epistle verse 5. Give all diligence to adde to your faith vertue and to vertue knowledge c. Now the especial means of improving grace is by imploying it that is by doing those things for the enabling of us whereunto it was given us This is a sure means not only in respect of that easiness which a custome of any thing brings in the doing of it but principally as it hath the promise of God who hath promised Matth. 25. 29. That to him that hath that is hath made use of what he hath shall be given and he shall have abundance He that diligently and faithfully employs the first beginnings of grace shall yet have more and he that in like manner husbands that more shall yet have a greater degree so that what Solomon saith of temporal riches is also true of spiritual The hand of the diligent maketh rich 15. Therefore whenever thou findest any good motion in thy heart remember that is a season for this spiritual husbandry If thou have but a check of conscience against any sin thou livest in drive that on till it come to a hatred and then that hatred till it come to resolution then from that resolution proceed to some endeavours against it Do this faithfully and sincerely and thou shalt certainly finde the grace of God assisting thee not only in every of these steps but also enabling thee to advance still higher till thou come to some victory over it Yet to this industry thou must not fail to adde thy prayers also there being a promise that God will give the holy Spirit to them that ask it Matth. 7. 11. And therefore they that ask it not have no reason to expect it But it must be asked with such an earnestness as is some way answerable to the value of the thing which being infinitely more precious then all the world both in respect of his own worth and its usefulness to us we must beg it with much more zeal and earnestness then all temporal blessings or else we shew our selves despisers of it 16. Having directed you to the means of improving grace I shall to quicken you to it mention the great danger of the contrary And that is not as in other things the losing only those further degrees which our industry might have helped us to but it is the losing even of what we already have For from him that hath not that is again hath not made use of what he hath shall be taken away even that which he hath Matth. 25. 29. God will withdraw the grace which he sees so neglected as we see in that Parable the Talent was taken from him that had onely hid it in a Napkin and had brought in no gaine to his Lord. And this is a most sad punishment the greatest that can befal any man before he comes to Hell indeed it is some kind of foretaste of it it is the delivering
Peter tells us that if any suffer as a Christian he is to glorifie God for it 1 Pet. 4. 16. There is such a force and vertue in the testimony of a good Conscience as is able to change the greatest suffering into the greatest triumph and that testimony we can never have more clear and lively then when we suffer for righteousnes sake so that you see Christianity is very amiable even in its saddest dress the inward comforts of it do far surpass all the outward tribulations that attend it and that even in the instant while we are in the state of warfare upon earth But then if we look forward to the crown of our victories those eternal rewards in heaven we can never think those tasks sad though we had nothing at present to sweeten them that have such recompences await them at the end were our labours never so heavy we could have no cause to faint under them Let us therefore when ever we meet with any discouragements in our course fix our eye on this rich prize and then run with patience the race which is set before us Heb. 12. 2. Follow the Captain of our salvation through the greatest sufferings yea even through the same red sea of blood which he hath waded whenever our obedience to him shall require it for though our fidelity to him should bring us to death it self we are sure to be no losers by it for to such he hath promised a Crown of life the very expectation whereof is able to keep a Christian more cheerful in his fetters and dungeon then a worldling can be in the midst of his greatest prosperities 22. All that remains for me farther to add is earnestly to entreat and beseech the Reader that without delay he puts himself into this so pleasant and gainful a course by setting sincerely to the practise of all those things which either by this Book or by any other means he discerns to be his duty and the further he hath formerly gone out of his way the more haste it concerns him to make to get into it and to use the more diligence in walking in it He that hath a long journey to go and finds he hath lost a great part of his day in a wrong way will not need much intreaty either to turn into the right or to quicken his pace in it And this is the case of all those that have lived in any course of sin they are in a wrong road which will never bring them to the place they aim at Nay which will certainly bring them to the place they most fear and abhor much of their day is spent how much will be left to finish their journey in none knowes perhaps the next hour the next minute the night of death may overtake them what a madness is it then for them to defer one moment to turn out of that path which leads to certain destruction and to put themselves in that which will bring them to bliss and glory Yet so are men bewitched and enchanted with the deceitfulness of sin that no entreaty no perswasion can prevail with them to make this so reasonable so necessary a change not but that they acknowledge it needful to be done but they are unwilling to do it yet they would enjoy all the pleasures of sin as long as they live then they hope at their death or some little time before it to do all the business of their Souls But alass Heaven is too high to be thus jumpt into the way to it is a long and leasurely ascent which requires time to walk The hazards of such deferring are more largely spoken of in the Discourse of Repentance I shall not here repeat them but desire the Reader seriously to lay them to heart and then surely he will think it seasonable counsel that is given by the wise man Eccles. 5. 7. Make no tarrying to turn to the Lord and put not off from day to day FINIS PRIVATE DEVOTIONS For several OCCASIONS ORDINARY and EXTRAORDINARY LONDON Printed for T. Garthwait at the little North Door of S. Pauls Church 1660. CHRISTIAN READER I Have for the help of thy Devotions set down some FORMS of PRIVATE PRAYER upon several occasions If it be thought an omâ—ssion that there are none for Families I must answer for my self that it was not from any opinion that God is not as well to be worship'd in the Family as the Closet but because the Providence of God and the Church hath already furnish'd thee for that purpose infinitely beyond what my utmost care could do I mean the PUBLICK LITURGY or COMMON PRAYER which for all publick addresses to God and such are Family prayers are so excellent useful that we may say of it as David did of Goliah's sword 1 Sam. 21. 9. There is none like it DIRECTIONS for the MORNING As soon as ever thou awakest in the morning lift up thy heart to God in this or the like short Prayer LORD As thou hast awaked my Body from sleep so by thy grace awaken my Soul from sin and make me so to walk before thee this day and all the rest of my life that when the last trumpet shall awake me out of my grave I may rise to the life immortal through Jesus Christ. WHen thou hast thus begun suffer not without some urgent necessity any worldly thoughts to fill thy mind till thou hast also paid thy more solemn Devotions to Almighty God and therefore during the time thou art dressing thy self which should be no longer then common decency requires exercise thy mind in some spiritual thoughts as for example consider to what Temptations thy business or company that day are most like to lay thee open and arm thy self with Resolutions against them or again consider what Occasions of doing service to God or good to thy neighbour are that day most likely to present themselves and resolve to embrace them and also contrive how thou mayest improve them to the uttermost But especially it will be sit for thee to Examine whether there have any sin escaped thee since thy last nights examination If after these considerations any further leisure remain thou mayest profitably imploy it in meditating on the general Resurrection whereof our rising from our beds is a Representation and of that dreadful Judgement which shall follow it and then think with thy self in what preparation thou art for it and resolve to husband caâ—â—fully every minute of thy time towards the fitting thâ—e for that great account As soon as thou art ready retire to some private place and there offer up to God thy Morning Sacrifice of Praise and Prayer PRAYERS for the MORNING At thy first kneeling down say O Holy Blessed and Glorious Trinity three Persons and one God have mercy upon me a miserable sinner LORD I know not what to pray for as I ought O let thy Spirit help my infirmities and enable me to offer up a spiritual
Sacrifice acceptable to thee by Jesus Christ. A THANKSGIVING O Gracious Lord whose mercies endure for e-ever I thy unworthy servant who have so deeply tasted of them desire to render thee the tribute of my humblest praises for them In thee O Lord I live and move and have my being thou first madest me to be and then that I might not be miserable but happy thou sendest thy Son out of thy bosâ—me to redeem me from the power of my sins by his Grace and from the punishment of them by his Blood and by both to bring me to his glory Thou hast by thy mercy caused me to be born within thy peculiar fold the Christian Church where I was early consecrated to thee in Baptism and have been partaker of all those spiritual helps which might aid me to perform that Vow I there made to thee and when by my own wilfulness or negligence I have failed to do it yet thou in thy manifold mercies hast not forsaken me but hast graciously invited me to repentance afforded me all means both outward and inward for it and with much patience hast attended and not cut me off in the acts of those many damning sins I have committed as I have most justly deserved It is O Lord thy restraining grace alone by which I have been kept back from any the greatest sins and it is thy inciting and assisting grace alone by which I have been enabled to do any the least good therefore not unto me not unto me but unto thy name be the praises For these and all other thy spiritual blessings my soul doth magnifie the Lord and all that is within me praise his holy Name I likewise praise thee for those many outward blessings I enjoy as health friends food and raiment the comforts as well as the necessaries of this life for those continual protections of thy hand by which I and mine are kept from dangers and those gracious deliverances thou hast often afforded out of such as have befallen me and for that mercy of thine whereby thou hast sweetned and allâ—yed those troubles thou hast not seen sit wholly to remove for thy particular preservation of me this night and all other thy goodness towards me Lord grant that I may render thee not only the fruit of my lips but the obedience of my life that so these blessings here may be an earnest of those richer blessings thou hast prepared for those that love thee and that for his sake whom thou hast made the Author of Eternal Salvation to all that obey him even Jesus Christ. A CONFESSION O Righteous Lord who hatest iniquity I thy sinful creature cast my self at thy feet acknowledging that I most justly deserve to be utterly abhorred and forsaken by thee for I have drunk iniquity like water gone on in a continued course of sin and rebellion against thee dayly committing those things thou forbiddest and leaving undone those things thou commandest mine heart which should be an habitation for thy spirit is become a cage of unclean birds of foul and disordered affections and out of this abundance of the heart my mouth speaketh my hands act so that in thought word and deed I continually transgress against thee Here mention the greatest of thy sins Nay O Lord I have despised that goodness of thine which should lead me to Repentance hardning my heart against all those means thou hast used for my amendment And now Lord what can I expect from thee but judgment and fiery indignation that is indeed the due reward of my sins But O Lord there is mercy with thee that thou may est be feared O fit me for that mercy by giving me a deep and hearty Repentance and then according to thy goodness let thy anger and thy wrath be turned away from me look upon me in thy Son my blessed Saviour and for the merit of his sufferings pardon all my sins And Lord I beseech thee by the power of thy grace so to renew and purifie my heart that I may become a new creature utterly forsaking every evil way and living in constant sincere universal obedience to thee all the rest of my days that behaving my self as a good and faithful servant I may by thy mercy at the last be received into the joy of my Lord Grant this for Jesus Christ his sake A PRAYER for GRACE O Most gracious God from whom every good and perfect gift cometh I wretched creature that am not able of my self so much as to think a good thought beseech thee to work in me both to will and do according to thy good pleasure inlighten â—◠〈◊〉 that I may know thee and let me not be barren or unfruitful in that knowledg Lord work in my heart a true faith a purifying hope and an unfeigned love towards thee give me a full trust on thee zeal for thee reverence of all things that relate to thee make me fearful to offend thee thankful for thy mercies humble under thy corrections devout in thy service sorrowful for my sins and grant that in all things I may behave my self so as befits a creature to his Creator a servant to his Lord enable me likewise to perform that duty I owe to my self give me that meekness humility and contentedness whereby I may always possess my soul in patience and thankfulness make me diligent in all my duties watchful against all temptations perfectly pure and temperate and so moderate in my most lawful injoyments that they never become a snare to me make me also O Lord to be so affected towards my neighbour that I never transgress that royal Law of thine of loving him as my self grant me exactly to perform all parts of justice yielding to all whatsoever by any kinde of right becomes their due and give me such bowels of mercy and compassion that I may never fail to do all acts of charity to all men whether friends or enemies according to thy command and example Finally I beseech thee O Lord to sanctifie me throughout that my whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory for ever Amen INTERCESSION OBlessed Lord whose mercy is over all thy works I beseech thee to have mercy upon all men and grant that the precious ransome which was paid by thy Son for all may be effectuall to the saving of all Give thy inlightning grace to those that are in darkness and thy converting grace to those that are in sin look with thy tenderest compassions upon the Universal Church O be favourable and gracious unto Sion build thou the walls of Jerusalem unite all those that profess thy Name to thee by Purity and Holiness and to each other by Brotherly love Have mercy on this desolate Church and sinful Nation thou hast moved the Land and divided it heal the sores thereof for it shaketh make us so truly to repent
of those sins which have provoked thy Judgements that thou also mayest turn and repent and leave a blessing behinde thee Bless those whom thou hast appointed our Governours whether in Church or State so rule their hearts and strengthen their hands that they may neither want will nor power to punish wickedness and vice and to maintain Gods true Religion and Vertue Have pity O Lord on all that are in affliction be a Father to the fatherless and plead the cause of the widow comfort the feeble minded support the weak heal the sick relieve the needy defend the oppressed and administer to every one according to their several necessities let thy blessings rest upon all that are near and dear to me and grant them whatsoever thou seest necessary either to their bodies or their Souls Here name thy neerest Relations Reward all those that have done me good and pardon all those that have done or wisht me evil and work in them and me all that good which may make us acceptable in thy sight through Jesus Christ. For PRESERVATION OMerciful God by whose bounty alone it is that I have this day added to my life I beseech thee so to guide me in it by thy grace that I may do nothing which may dishonour thee or wound my own soul but that I may deligently apply my self to do all such good works as thou hast prepared for me to walk in and Lord I beseech thee give thy Angels charge over me to keep me in all my wayes that no evil happen unto me nor any plague come nigh my dwelling but that I and mine may be safe under thy gracious protection through Jesus Christ. O Lord pardon the wandrings and coldness of these petitions and dâ—al with me not according either to my prayers or deserts but according to my needs and thine own rich mercies in Jesus Christ in whose blessed Name and Words I conclude these my imperfect Prayers saying Our Father c. DIRECTIONS for NIGHT. AT NIGHT when it draws towards the time of rest bethink thy self how thou hast passed the day examine thine own heart what sin either of Thought Word or Deed thou hast committed what opportunity of doing good thou hast omitted and what soever thou sindest to accuse thy self of confess humbly and penitently to God renew thy purposes and resolutions of amendment and beg his pardon in Christ and this not slightly and only as of course but with all devout earnestness and heartiness as thou wouldest do if thou were sure thy death were as near approaching as thy sleep which for ought thou knowest may be so indeed and therefore thou shouldest no more venture to sleep unreconciled to God then thou wouldest dare to die so In the next place consider what special and extraordinary mercies thou hast that day received as if thou hast had any great deliverance either in thy inward man from some dangerous temptations or in thy outward from any great and apparent danger and offer to God thy hearty and devout praise for the same or if nothing extraordinary have so happened and thou hast been kept even from the approach of danger thou hast not the less but the greater cause to magnifie God who hath by his protection so guarded thee that not so much as the fear of evil hath assaulted thee And therefore omit not to pay him the tribute of humble thankfulness as well for his usual and dayly preservations as his more extraordinary deliverances And above all endeavour still by the considerations of his mercies to have thy heart the more closely knit to him remembring that every favour received from him is a new engagement upon thee to love and obey him PRAYERS for NIGHT. O Holy blessed and glorious Trinity three persons and one God have mercy upon me a miserable sinner Lord I know not what to pray for as I ought O let thy Spirit help my infirmities and enable me to offer up a spiritual Sacrifice acceptable unto thee by Jesus Christ. A CONFESSION O MOST Holy Lord God who art of purer eyes then to behold iniquity how shall I abominable wretch dare to appear before thee who am nothing but pollution I am defiled in my very nature having a backwardness to all good and a readiness to all evil but I have defiled my self yet much worse by my own actual sins and wicked customes I have transgrest my duty to thee my neighbour and my self and that both in thought in word in deed by doing those things which thou hast expresly forbidden and by neglecting to do those things thou hast commanded me And this not only through ignorance and frailty but knowingly and wilfully against the motions of thy Spirit and the checks of my own conscience to the contrary And to make all these out of measure sinful I have gone on in a dayly course of repeating these provocations against thee notwithstanding all thy calls to and my own purposes and vows of amendment yea this very day I have not ceased to adde new sins to all my former guilts Here name the Particulars And now O Lord what shall I say or how shall I open my mouth seeing I have done these things I know that the wages of these sins is death but O thou who willest not the death of a sinner have mercy upon me work in me I beseech thee a sincere contrition and a perfect hatred of my sins and let me not dayly confess and yet as dayly renew them but grant O Lord that from this instant I may give a bill of Divorce to all my most beloved lusts and then be thou pleased to marry me to thy self in truth in righteousness and holiness And for all my past sins O Lord receive a reconciliation accept of that ransome thy blessed Son hath paid for me and for his sake whom thou hast set forth as a propitiation pardon all my offences and receive me to thy favour And when thou hast thus spoken peace to my soul Lord keep me that I turn not any more to folly but so establish me with thy grace that no temptation of the world the Divel or my own flesh may ever draw me to offend thee that being made free from sin and becoming a servant unto God I may have my fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life through Jesus Christ our Lord. A THANKSGIVING O Thou Father of Mercies who art kind even to the unthankful I acknowledge my self to have abundantly experimented that gracious propertie of thine for notwithstanding my dayly provocations against thee thou still heapest mercy and loving kindness upon me All my contempts and despisings of thy spiritual favours have not yet made thee withdraw them but in the riches of thy goodness and long suffering thou still continuest to me the offers of grace and life in thy Son And all my abuses of thy temporal blessings thou hast not punished with an utter deprivation of them but art still pleased to afford me
cares of this life taking thought what I shall eat or drink or wherewithal I shall be clothed but grant that having by honest labour and industry done my part I may cheerfully commit my self to thy providence casting all my care upon thee and being careful for nothing but to be of the number of those whom thou ownest and carest for even such as keep thy Testimonies and think upon thy Commandments to do them That seeking first thy Kingdom and the righteousness thereof all these outward things may be added unto me in such a measure as thy wisdom knowes best for me grant this O Lord for Jesus Christ his sake For THANKFULNES O Most Gracious and Bountiful Lord who fillest all things living with good and expectest no other return but praise and thanksgiving let me O Lord never defraud thee of that so easie tribute but let my heart be ever filled with the sense and my mouth with the acknowledgement of thy mercies It is a joyful and a pleasant thing to be thankful O suffer me not I beseech thee to loose my part in that Divine pleasure but grant that as I dayly receive blessings from thee so I may dayly from an affectionate and devout heart offer up thanks to thee and grant that not only my lips but my life may shew forth thy praise by consecrating my self to thy service and walking in Holiness and Righteousness before thee all the days of my life through Jesus Christ my Lord and blessed Saviour For CONTRITION O Holy Lord who art a merciful embracer of true penitents but yet a consuming fire towards obstinate sinners how shall I approach thee who have so many provoking sins to inflame thy wrath and so little sincere repentance to incline thy mercy O be thou pleased to soften and melt this hard obdurate heart of mine that I may heartily bewail the iniquities of my life strike this rock O Lord that the waters may flow out even floods of tears to wash my polluted conscience my drowzy Soul hath too long slept securely in sin Lord awake it though it be with thunder and let me rather â—â—â—â— thy terrors then not feel my sin Thou sentest thy blessed Son to heal the broken hearted but Lord what will that avail me if my heart be whole O break it that it may be capable of his healing virtue and grant I beseech thee that having once tasted the bitterness of sin I may flie from it as from the face of a Serpent and bring forth fruits of repentance in amendment of life to the praise and glory of thy grace in Jesus Christ our blessed Redeemer For MEEKNES O Blessed Jesu who wast led as a sheep to the slaughter let I beseech thee that admirable example of Meekness quench in me all sparks of anger and revenge and work in me such a gentleness and calmness of Spirit as no provocations may ever be able to disturb Lord grant I may be so far from offering the least injury that I may never return the greatest any otherwise then with prayers and kindness that I who have so many talents to be forgiven by thee may never exact pence of my brethren but that putting on bowels of mercy meekness long-suffering thy peace may rule in my heart and make it an acceptable habitation to thee who art the Prince of peace to whom with the Father and holy Spirit be all honour and glory for ever For CHASTITY O Holy and Immaculate Jesus whose first descent was into the Virgins womb and who dost still love to inhabit only in pure and virgin hearts I beseech thee send thy Spirit of purity to cleanse me from all filthiness both of flesh and spirit my body O Lord is the Temple of the Holy Ghost O let me never pollute that Temple with any uncleanness And because out of the heart proceed the things that defile the man Lord grant me to keep my heart with all diligence that no impure or foul thoughts be harboured there but enable me I beseech thee to keep both body and soul pure and undefiled that so I may glorifie thee here both in my body and spirit and be glorified in both with thee hereafter For TEMPERANCE O Gracious Lord who hast in thy bounty to mankind afforded us the use of thy good creatures for our corporal refreshment grant that I may always use this liberty with thankfulness and moderation O let me never be so enslaved to that brutish pleasure of taste that my Table become a snare to me but give me I beseech thee a perfect abhorrence of all degrees of excess and let me eat and drink only for those ends and according to those measures which thou hast assigned me for health and not for luxury And Lord grant that my pursuits may be not after the meat that perisheth but after that which endureth to everlasting life that hungring and thirsting after righteousness I may be filled with thy grace here and thy glory hereafter through Jesus Christ. For CONTENTEDNES O Merciful God thy wisdom is infinite to choose thy love forward to dispence good things to us O let me always fully and intirely resign my self to thy disposals have no desires of mine own but a perfect satisfaction in thy choices for me that so in whatsoever estate I am I may be therein content Lord grant I may never look with murmuring on my own condition nor with envy on other mens And to that end I beseech thee purge my heart of all covetous affections O let me never yield up any corner of my Soul to Mammon but give me such a contempt of these fading riches that whether they increase or decrease I may never set my heart upon them but that all my care may be to be rich towards God to lay up my treasure in heaven that I may so set my affections on things above that when Christ who is my life shall appear I may also appear with him in glory Grant this O Lord for the merits of the same Jesus Christ. For DILIGENCE O Lord who hast in thy wisdom ordained that man should be born to labour suffer me not to resist that design of thine by giving my self up to sloth and idleness but grant I may so imploy my time and all other talents thou hast intrusted me with that I may not fall under the sentence of the slothful and wicked servant Lord if it be thy will make me some way useful to others that I may not live an unprofitable part of mankind but however O Lord let me not be useless to my self but grant I may give all diligence to make my calling and election sure My soul is beset with many and vigilant adversaries O let me not fold my hands to sleep in the midst of so great dangers but watch and pray that I enter not into temptation enduring hardness as a good souldier of Jesus Christ till at the last from this state of warfare thou translate me to the
Soul O save me for thy mercies sake O go not from me for trouble is hard at hand and there is none to help I stretch forth my hands unto thee my Soul gaspeth unto thee as a thirsty land Draw nigh unto my soul and save it O deliver me because of my enemies For my Soul is full of trouble and my life draweth nigh unto hell Save me from the Lions mouth hear me from among the horns of the Unicorns O set me up upon the rock that is higher then I for thou art my hope and a strong Tower for me against the enemy Why art thou so heavy O my Soul and why art thou so disquieted within me Put thy trust in God for I will yet give him thanks for the help of his countenance The Lord shall make good his loving kindness towards me yea thy mercy O Lord endureth for ever despise not then the work of thine own hands O GOD thou art my God early will I seek thee My Soul thirsteth for thee my flesh also longeth after thee in a barren and drie land where no water is Like as the hart desireth the water brooks so longeth my Soul after thee O God My Soul is a thirst for God even for the living God when shall I come to appear before the presence of God How amiable are thy dwellings O Lord of Hosts My Soul hath a desire and longing to enter into the Courts of the Lord my flesh and my heart rejoyce in the living God O that I had wings like a Dove for then would I flye away and be at rest O send out thy light and thy truth that they may lead me and bring me unto thy Holy Hill and to thy dwelling For one day in thy Courts is better then a thousand I had rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God then to dwell in the tents of wickedness I should utterly have fainted but that I believed verily to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living Thou art my helper and my redeemer O Lord make no long tarrying EJACULATIONS O LORD of whom may I seek for succour but of thee who for my sins art justly displeased Yet O Lord God most Holy O Lord most Mighty O Holy and most Merciful Saviour deliver me not into the bitter pains of eternal death Thou knowest Lord the secrets of my heart shut not up thy merciful eyes to my prayer but hear me O Lord Most Holy O God most Mighty O Holy and Merciful Saviour thou most worthy Judge eternal suffer me not at my last hour for any pains of death to fall from thee Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee and am not worthy to be called thy child yet O Lord do not thou cast off the bowels and compassions of a Father but even as a father pittieth his own children so be thou merciful unto me Lord the prince of this world cometh O let him have nothing in me but as he accuseth do thou absolve he lays many and grievous things to my charge which he can too well prove I have nothing to say for my self do thou answer for me O Lord my God O Lord I am cloathed with filthy garments and Satan stands at my right hand to resist me O be thou pleased to rebuke him and pluck me as a brand out of the fire cause mine iniquities to pass from me and cloth me with the righteousness of thy Son Behold O God the Divel is coming towards me having great wrath because he knoweth that he hath but a short time O save and deliver me lest he devour my soul like a Lion and tear it in pieces while there is none to help O My God I know that no unclean thing can enter into thy Kingdom and I am nothing but pollution my very righteousnesses are as filthy rags O wash me and make me white in the blood of the Lamb that so I may be fit to stand before thy Throne Lord the snares of death compass me round about O let not the pains of hell also take hold upon me but though I find trouble and heaviness yet O Lord I beseech thee deliver my soul. O dear Jesus who hast bought me with the precious price of thine own blood challenge now thy purchase and let not all the malice of Hell pluck me out of thy hand O blessed high Priest who art able to save them to the utmost who come unto God by thee save me I beseech thee who have no hope but on thy merits and intercession O God I confess I have defaced that Image of thine thou didst imprint upon my Soul yet O thou faithful Creator have pity on thy creature O Jesu I have by my many and grievous sins crucified thee afresh yet thou who prayedst for thy persecutors intercede for me also and suffer not O my Redeemer my soul the price of thy blood to perish O Spirit of grace I have by my horrid impieties done despight to thee yet O Blessed Comforter though I have often grieved thee be thou pleased to succour and relieve me and say unto my soul I am thy salvation Mine eyes look unto thee O Lord in thee is my trust O cast not out my soul. O Lord in thee have I trusted let me never be confounded O Blessed Lord who scourgest every Son whom thou receivest let me not be weary of thy correction but give me such a perfect subjection to thee the Father of Spirits that this chastisement may be for my profit that I may thereby be partaker of thy holiness O thou Captain of my Salvation who wert made perfect by sufferings sanctifie to me all the pains of body all the terrors of minde which thou shalt permit to fall upon me Lord my sins have deserved eternal torments make me chearfully and thankfully to bear my present pains chasten me as thou pleasest here that I may not be condemned with the world Lord the waters are come in even unto my soul O let thy Spirit move upon these waters and make them like the pool of Bethesda that they may cure whatsoever spiritual disease thou discernest in me O Christ who first sufferedst many and grievous things and then enteredst into thy glory make me so to suffer with thee that I may also be glorified with thee O dear Jesus who humblest thy self to the death of the Cross for me let that death of thine sweeten the bitterness of mine When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death thou didst open the Kingdome of heaven to all believers I believe that thou shalt come to be my Judge I pray thee therefore help thy servant whom thou hast redeemed with thy most precious blood Make me to be numbred with thy Saints in glory everlasting Thou art the resurrection and the life he that believeth in thee though he were dead yet shall he live Lord I believe help thou my unbelief My flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength
of my heart and my portion for ever I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ which is far better Lord I gâ—oan earnestly desiring to be cloathed upon with that house from heaven I desire to put off this my tabernacle O be pleased to receive me into everlasting habitations Bring my soul out of prison that I may give thanks unto thy name Lord I am here to wrestle not only with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers spiritual wickedness O take me from these tents of Kedar into the heavenly Jerusalem where Satan shall be utterly trodden under my feet I cannot here attend one minute to thy service without distraction O take me up â—o stand before thy Throne where I shall serve thee day and night I am here in heaviness through many tribulations O receive me into that place of rest where all tears shall be wiped from my eyes where there shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying nor pain I am here in a state of banishment and absence from the Lord O take me where I shall for ever behold thy face and follow the Lamb whither soever he goeth I have fought a good fight I have finished my course I have kept the faith henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness OBlessed Jesu who hast loved me and washed me from my sins in thine own blood receive my soul. Into thy hands I commend my Spirit for thou hast redeemed me O Lord thou God of truth Come Lord Jesu come quickly PRAYERS for their use who Mourn in secret for the PUBLICK CALAMITIES c. Psalm 74. O God wherefore art thou absent from us so long why is thy wrath so hot against the sheep of thy pasture c. Psal. 79. O God the Heathen are come into thine inheritance thy holy temple have they defiled and made Jerusalem an heap of stones c. Psal. 80. Hear O thou shepherd of Israel thou that leadest Joseph like a sheep shew thy self also thou that sittest upon the Cherubims c. A Prayer to be used in these times of Calamity O Lord God to whom vengeance belongeth I desire humbly to confess before thee both on my own behalf and that of this Nation that these many years of calamity we have groaned under are but the just yea mild returns of those many more years of our provocations against thee and that thy present which is but the due punishment of thy abused mercy O Lord thou hast formerly abounded to us in blessings above all people of the earth Thy candle shined upon our heads and we delighted our selves in thy great goodness peace was within our walls and plenteousness within our palaces there was no decay no leading into captivity and no complaining in our streets but we turned this grace into wantonness we abused our peace to security our plenty to riot and Luxury and made those good things which should have endeared our hearts to thee the occasions of estranging them from thee Nay O Lord thou gavest us yet more precious mercies thou wert pleased thy self to pitch thy Tabernacle with us to establish a pure and glorious Church among us and give us thy word to be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our paths but O Lord we have made no other use of that light then to conduct us to the chambers of death we have dealt proudly and not hearkened to thy comandments and by rebelling against the light have purchased to our selves so much the heavier portion in the outer darkness And now O Lord had the overflowings of thy vengeance been answerable to that of our sin we had long since been swept away with a swift destruction and there had been none of us alive at this day to implore thy mercy But thou art a gracious God slow to anger and hast proceeded with us with much patience and long-suffering thou hast sent thy judgements to awake us to repentance and hast also allowed us space for it But alas we have perverted this mercy of thine beyond all the former we return not to him that smiteth us neither do we seek the Lord we are slidden back by a perpetual backfliding no man repenteth him of his wickedness or â—aith what have I done 'T is true indeed we fear the rod we dread every suffering so that we are ready to buy it off with the foulest sin but we fear not him that hath appointed it but by a wretched obstinacy harden our necks against thee and refuse to return And now O God what balm is there in Gilead that can cure us who when thou wouldest heal us will not be healed we know thou hast pronounced that there is no peace to the wicked and how shall we then pray for peace that still retain our wickedness This this O Lord is our sorest disease O Give us Medicines to heal this sickness heal our souls and then we know thou canst soon heal our land Lord thou hast long spoken by thy word to our ears by thy judgments even to all our senses but unless thou speak by thy Spirit to our hearts all other calls will still be uneffectual O send out this voice and that a mighty voice such as may awake us out of this Lethargy thou that didst call Lazarus out of the grave O be pleased to call us who are dead yea putrified in trespasses and sins and make us to awake to righteousness And though O Lord our frequent resistances even of those inward calls have justly provoked thee to give us up to the lusts of our own heart yet O thou boundless ocean of mercy who art good not only beyond what we can deserve but what we can wish do not withdraw the influence of thy grace and take not thy holy spirit from us Thou wert found of those that sought thee not O let that act of mercy be repeated to us who are so desperately yet so insensibly sick that we cannot so much as look after the Physitian and by how much our case is the more dangerous so much the more sovereign remedies do thou apply Lord help us and consider not so much our unworthiness of thy aid as our irremediable ruine if we want it save Lord or we perish eternally To this end dispense to us in our temporal interest what thou seest may best secure our spiritual if a greater degree of outward misery will tend to the curing our inward Lord spare not thy rod but strike yet more sharply cast out this devil though with never so much foaming tearing But if thou seest that some return of mercy may be most likely to melt us O be pleased so far to condescend to our wretchedness as to afford us that and whether by thy sharper or thy gentler methods bring us home to thy self And then O Lord we know thy hand is not shortned that it cannot save when thou hast delivered us from our sins thou canst and wilt deliver
thy Name which sigh for the beauty of thy house and wilt thou not at these mens prayers let go thine anger and remember thine accustomed and old mercies Shalt thou not with thy heavenly policy turn our folly into thy glory Shalt thou not turn the wicked mens evils into thy Churches good For thy mercy is wont then most of all to succour when the thing is with us past remedy and neither the might nor wisdome of men can help it Thou alone bringest things that be never so out of order into order again which art the only Author and maintainer of peace Thou framedst that old confusion wherein without order without fashion confusedly lay the discordant seeds of things and with a wonderful order the things that of nature fought together thou didst ally and knit in a perpetual band But how much greater confusion is this where is no charity no fidelity no bonds of love no reverence neither of Laws nor yet of Rulers no agreement of opinions but as it were in a misordered quire every man singeth a contrary note Among the heavenly Planets is no dissention the Elements keep their place every one do the office whereunto they be appointed And wilt thou suffer thy Spouse for whose sake all things were made thus by continual discords to perish Shalt thou suffer the wicked Spirits which be authors and workers of discord to bear such a swing in thy Kingedome unchecked Shalt thou suffer the strong Captain of mischief whom thou once overthrewest again to inuade thy tents and to spoil thy Souldiers When thou wert here a man conversant among men at thy voice fled the Divels Send forth we beseech thee O Lord thy Spirit which may drive away out of the brests of all them that profess thy Name the wicked Spirits masters of riot of covetousness of vain-glory of carnal lust of mischief and discord Create in us O our God and King a clean heart and renew thy holy Spirit in our brests pluck not from us thy holy Ghost Render unto us the joy of thy saving health and with thy principal Spirit strengthen thy Spouse and the Heardmen thereof By this Spirit thou reconciledst the earthly to the heavenly by this thou didst frame and reduce so many tongues so many nations so many sundry sorts of men into one body of a Church which body by the same Spirit is knit to thee their Head This Spirit if thou wilt vouchsafe to renew in all mens hearts then shall all these forreign miseries cease or if they cease not they shall turn to the profit and avail of them which love thee Stay this confusion set in order this horrible Chaos O Lord Jesus let thy Spirit stretch out it self upon these waters of evil wavering opinions And because thy Spirit which according to thy Prophets saying containeth all things hath also the science of speaking make that like as unto all them which be of thy house is one Light one Baptisme one God one Hope one Spirit so they may also have one voice one note one song professing one Catholick truth When thou didst mount up to heaven triumphantly thou threwest out from above thy precious things thou gavest gifts amongst men thou dealtest sundry rewards of thy Spirit Renew again from above thy old bountifulness give that thing to thy Church now fainting and growing downward that thou gavest unto her shooting up at her first beginning Give unto Princes and Rulers the grace so to stand in awe of thee that they so may guide the Common-weal as they should shortly render accompt unto thee that art the King of Kings Give wisdom to be always assistant unto them that whatsoever is best to be done they may espy it in their minds and pursue the same in their doings Give to the Bishops the gift of prophecy that they may declare and interpret holy Scripture not of their own brain but of thine inspiring Give them the threefold charity which thou once demandest of Peter what time thou didst betake unto him the charge of thy sheep Give to the Priests the love of soberness and of chastity Give to thy people a good will to follow thy Commandments and a readiness to obey such persons as thou hast appointed over them So shall it come to pass if through thy gift thy Princes shall command that thou requirest if thy Pastors and Herdmen shall teach the same and thy people obey them both that the old dignity and tranquility of the Church shall return again with a goodly order unto the glory of thy Name Thou sparedst the Ninivites appointed to be destroyed as soon as they converted to repentance and wilt thou despise thy house falling down at thy feet which in stead of sackcloth hath sighs and in stead of ashes tears Thou promisedst forgiveness to such as turn unto thee but this self thing is thy gift a man to turn with his whole heart unto thee to the inâ—ent all our goodness should redound unto thy glory Thou art the maker repair the work that thou hast fashioned Thou art the Redeemer save that thou hast bought Thou art the Saviour suffer not them to perish which do hang on thee Thou art the Lord and owner challenge thy possession Thou art the Head help thy members Thou art the King give us a reverence of thy Laws Thou art the Prince of peace breath upon us brotherly love Thou art the God have pity on thy humble beseechers be thou according to Pauls saying all things in all men to the intent the whole Quire of thy Church with agreeing minds and consonant voices for mercy obtained at thy hands may give thanks to the Father â—on and Holy Ghost which after the most perfect example of concord be distinguished in property of Persons and one in nature to whom be praise and glory Eternally Amen FINIS A TABLE of the CONTENTS of the several CHAPTERS or PARTITIONS in this Book Which according to this Division by Reading one of these Chapters every Lords Day the whole may be Read over Thrice in the year PARTITION 1. OF the Duty of Man by the light of Nature by the light of Scripture Of Faith the Promises of Hope of Love Fear Trusting in God page 1. PARTITION 2. Of Humility of Submission to Gods Will in respect of Obedience of Patience in all sorts of Sufferings and of Honour due to God in several wayes in his House Possessions his Day Word Sacraments c. page 34. PARTITION 3. Of the Lords Supper of Preparation before Receiving of Duties to be done at the Receiving and afterwards c. page 67. PARTITION 4. Honour due to Gods Name of sinning against it Blasphemy Swearing Assertory Oaths Promissory Oaths Unlawful Oaths of Perjury of Vain Oaths and the Sin of them c. page 98. PARTITION 5. Of Worship due to Gods Name Of Prayer and its several parts Of Publick Prayers in the Church in the Family of Private Prayer of Repentance
us from our troubles O shew us thy mercy and grant us thy salvation that being redeemed both in our bodies and spirits we may glorifie thee in both in a chearful obedience and praise the Name of our God that hath dealt wonderfully with us through Jesus Christ our Lord. A Prayer for This Church O Thou great God of recompences who turnest a fruitful land into barrenness for the wickedness of them that dwell therein thou hast most justly executed that fatal sentence on this Church which having once been the perfection of beauty the joy of the whole earth is now become a scorn and derision to all that are round about her O Lord what could have been done to thy vineyard that thou hast not done in it and since it hath brought forth nothing but wilde grapes it is perfectly just with thee to take away the hedge thereof and let it be eaten up But O Lord though our iniquities testifie against us yet do thou it for thy Names sake for our backslidings are many we have sinned against thee O the hope of Israel the Saviour thereof in time of trouble why shouldst thou be as a stranger in the land as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night Why shouldst thou be as a man astonied as a mighty man that cannot save Yet thou O Lord art in the midst of us and we are called by thy Name leave us not deprive us of what outward enjoyment thou pleasest take from us the opportunities of our luxury and it may be a mercy but O take not from us the means of our reformation for that is the most direful expression of thy wrath And though we have hated the light because our deeds were evil yet O Lord do not by withdrawing it condemn us to walk on still in darkness but let it continue to shine till it have guided our feet into the way of peace O Lord arise stir up thy strength come help us and deliver not the soul of thy Turtle Dove this disconsolate Church unto the multitude of the enemy but help her O God and that right early But if O Lord our rebellions have so provoked thee that the Ark must wander in the wilderness till all this murmuring generation be consumed yet let not that perish with us but bring it at last into a Canaan and let our more innocent posterity see that which in thy just judgement thou denrest to us In the mean time let us not cease to bewail that desolation our sins have wrought to think upon the stones of Ston and pity to see her in the dust nor ever be ashamed or afraid to own her in her lowest and most persecuted condition but esteem the reproach of Christ greater riches then the treasures of AEgypt and so approve our constancy to this our afflicted Mother that her blessed Lord and Head may own us with mercy when he shall come in the glory of thee his father with the holy Angels Grant this merciful Lord for the same Jesus Christ his sake A Prayer for the Peace of the Church LORD Jesus Christ which of thine Almightiness madest all creatures both visible and invisible which of thy godly wisdome governest and settest all things in most goodly order which of thine unspeakable goodness keepest defendest and furtherest all thing which of thy deep mercy restorest the decayed renewest the fallen raisest the dead vouchsafe we pray thee at last to cast down thy countenance upon thy well beloved Spouse the Church but let it be that amiable and merciful countenance wherewith thou pacifiest all things in heaven in earth and whatsoever is above heaven and under the earth vouchsafe to cast upon us those tender and pitiful eyes with which thou didst once behold Peter that great Shepherd of thy Church and forthwith he remembred himself and repented with which eyes thou once didst view the scattered multitude and wert moved with compassion that for lack of a good Shepherd they wandered as sheep dispersed and strayed a sunder Thou seest O good Shepherd what sundry sorts of Wolves have broken into thy sheep cotes so that if it were possible the very perfect persons should be brought into error thou seest with what winds with what waves with what storms thy silly ship is tosl d thy ship wherein thy little flock is in peril to be drowned And what is now left but that it utterly sink and we all perish Of this tempest and storm we may thank our own wickedness and sinful living we discern it well and confess it we discern thy righteousness and we bewail our unrighteousness but we appeal to thy Mercy which surmounteth all thy works we have now suffered much punishment being scourged with so many wars consumed with such losses of goods shaken with so many floods and yet appears there no where any Haven or Port unto us being thus tired and forlorn among so strange evils but still every day more grievous punishments and more seem to hang over our heads We complain not of thy sharpness most tender Saviour but we discern here also thy mercy forasmuch as much grievouser plagues we have deserved But O most merciful Jesus we beseech thee that thou wilt not consider nor weigh what is due for our deservings but rather what becometh thy mercy without which neither the Angels in heaven can stand sure before thee much less we silly vessels of clay Have mercy on us O Redeemer which art easie to be intreated not that we be worthy of thy mercy but give thou this glory unto thine own Name Suffer not those which either have not known thee or do envy thy glory continually to triumph over us and say Where is their God where is their Redeemer where is their Saviour where is their Bridegroom that they thus boast on These opprobrious words redound unto thee O Lord while by our evils men weigh and esteem thy goodness they think we be forsaken whom they see not amended Once when thou sleptst in the ship and a tempest suddenly arising threatned death to all in the Ship thou awokest at the outcry of a few Disciples and straightway at thine Almighty word the waters couched the winds fell the storm was suddenly turned into a great calm the dumb waters knew their makers voice Now in this far greater tempest wherein not a few mens bodies be in danger but innumerable souls we beseech thee at the cry of thy holy Church which is in danger of drowning that thou wilt awake So many thousands of men do cry Lord save us we perish the tempest is past mans power it is thy word that must do the deed Lord Jesu Only say thou with a word of thy mouth Cease O tempest and forthwith shall the desired calm appear Thou wouldst have spared so many thousands of most wicked men if in the City of Sodom had been found but ten good men Now here be so â—any thousands of men which love the glory of