much pains do some Men take how many Difficulties do they Encounter with that they may leave a Rich and Pleasant Inheritance to their Children Tho' many times in the getting of it they do such unjust and wicked Actions as are never to be purg'd away but in the Eternal Flames of Hell And what do they keep to themselves as the reward of all their Labours Nothing but a Despicable Winding-Sheet and a Coffin made up of four Boards this is the Recompence of all their Toil But if something more be spent at thy Funeral it is commonly laid out more for the Fame and Credit of thy Kindred and the Surviving Heir than for thee so that a farthing should not sometimes be bestowed upon the dead Corps if they could but secure their own Honour The Prayer O Merciful Father give me such Courage and Resolution that I may not be affrighted at the ghastly appearance of Death nor faint when I think on my last dying Agonies and that my Body must rot in the Earth But having my mind fix'd on thee and on the Glories of the Eternal State I may put off all fear of Death and depart this Life with Joy and Readiness with a firm hope of a Glorious Resurrection and of enjoying that Bliss and Glory with which both Body and Soul shall be endued in the Celestial and Happy Life And because I came naked into this World let me willingly leave all Worldly things which may retard my flight to Heaven O Lord Jesu who for our sakes didst taste the bitterness of Death and in those Agonies of Mind didst sweat great drops of blood grant that by the Merits of thy Passion I may never feel the bitter pangs of Eternal Death CHAP. III. After Death there remains another Life and Death is the entrance either to Eternal Happiness or Misery ALthough the Body after Death corrupts and putrifies and returns to the Earth from whence it was taken yet for as much as the Soul is immortal and the Body shall arise at the last Day and be again united to the Soul and so the whole Man shall be translated into another State It is therefore requisite that a Christian should not confine his Meditations upon death only but should be very Solicitous that his Life may be happy in the other World Many Men indeed lead such Lives as if they did not believe there were a God nor any other life after this but when they come to dye they will be convinced of these truths by their own Consciences and by those notions which are implanted in the minds of all Men that good Deeds shall be Rewarded and Wickedness punished in the other World and though they should not believe this even when they are dying yet afterwards they will feel it to their unspeakable Sorrow However the immortality of the Soul has been believed by the whole Race of Mankind at all times and if we Consult either Sacred or Heathen Writers we shall find that another life after this hath been asserted by all not to heap up the many Testimonies of Holy Scriptures this one of our Saviour may suffice which Comprehends as it were the Sum of all the rest The Hour is coming Joh. 5.28 in the which all that are in the Graves shall hear the Voice of the Son of God v. 25. And shall come forth they that have done good unto the Resurrection of Life and they that have done Evil unto the Resurrection of Damnation And indeed if we consider the lives of those Persons which the Sacred Scriptures affirm to have liv'd devoutly from hence we may have an evident Testimony of a future Life for in all Ages how much Misery have they undergone who have endeavoured to lead Pious Lives and to be conformable to the Divine Will very Remarkable are the Calamities of the Holy Fathers under the Old Testament the Martyrdoms of Christs Apostles under the New and the Tribulations of others who have Worshipp'd God in Spirit and in Truth But if they had look'd no farther than this Life no doubt but they would have follow'd the common way of the World and have indulged themselves in Ease and Pleasures as their Lusts and Appetites bid them Which since they did not do it is a convincing Testimony that they sought a more happy and a better Life after the Miseries of this For as St. Paul says 1 Cor. 15.19 If in this Life only we have hope in Christ we are of all Men most miserable Now if we Consult the Heathens as often as we hear them commend Piety and Justice and other Virtues so often we are to think they declare Mans Immortality and a Future Life for to what purpose were it to follow Virtue and suffer Evil if there remain'd no hopes of another life This Doctrine the Wise Men in all Ages taught Zoroaster Hermes Trismagistus Orpheus Phocylides Theogenis Homer Hesiod Pindar Pythagoras Socrates Plato Aristotle Cicero Virgil Horace Ovid Seneca and all the Wise Famous Philosophers and from hence it was that all Nations had a Religion and certain Rites whereby they worshipp'd the Gods and believ'd a Hell and Elysian fields If we run over the whole World we shall find that the most Rude Barbarous and Savage People even those who scarcely seem to have any Humanity in them have all by a common consent embraced this Faith for this Notion was not bred in the Schools of Philosophers and so spread abroad in the World but it is implanted and engraven in the Breast of every Man Rom. 2.14.25 and if some Men have endeavoured to perswade themselves that things are otherwise yet could they never bring their minds firmly to believe so for a wicked Man as that Platonick said would not have his Soul to be Immortal for fear he should suffer the due Punishments of his Crimes but he prevents the Sentence of his Judge and condemns himself to be guilty of Death But there is no need of saying more on this Argument since amongst Christians t is certain and undoubted that after this life there remains another But forasmuch as the future State of Men after this life is not alike but some shall abound with all felicity whilst others shall suffer all kind of miseries hence we see that the success of a Man's happiness depends upon his death and that all our felicity or infelicity happens either from a good or a bad death and that on one moment depends an Eternity either of infinite blessedness or unspeakable misery for in what ever condition death finds and leaves any Man in the very same shall he appear at the last judgment Eccl. 11.3 if the tree fall toward the South or toward the North in the place where the tree falleth there it shall be And thus as every Man dies the same shall he be in the other life for as St. Paul says we must all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ 2 Cor. 5.10 that every
God to call him out of it Let not any then despise these counsels and directions as if they belonged only to sick and Dying Men but rather consider that if they daily exercise themselves in the use and practise of them whilst they are in their health and strength they will reap the greater benefit by them when they come to die and will depart this life with a comfortable assurance of God's favour but it is to be feared that they will find themselves very ill prepar'd for an happy departure hence at the time of their dissolution who when they were well us'd all their endeavours to put the thoughts of death out of their minds Be therefore intent and diligent in reading and meditating on Lectures of Mortality and learn to die whilst you live Put on the person of a dying man even now whilst the strength of your mind and body remains perfect and entire in you Do those things now which you would desire to do when you are a dying and then when ever the timâ— draws nigh that you must die indeed you will find all those holy preparations with which you so frequently exercised your self in your life time will be wonderfully helpful and subservient to you in that your last hour All the Divine Comforts and Consolations with which you entertain'd your self during the days of your Pilgrimage here will come afresh into your mind and you will have little more to do than to rejoyce in the reflexions on a well spent life and to commend your Soul into the Hands of God as into the Hands of a faithful Creatour and most Merciful Saviour And when ever any sickness seizeth on you remember that it doth not come by chance but by the hand of God and thank him for his Fatherly Correction towards you Commit your self to his Divine Providence and rely not too much on the Physitians help which we find king Asa reprov'd for in Holy Scripture Yet according to the advice of the Son of Sirach Honour the Physitian and make use of such means as God and Nature offer but let your greatest care be for the health of your Soul For since a dreadful Eternity succeeds the short moment of your life What madness would it be to employ all your Care and Diligence about this vain life which passeth away like a shaddow and to make no provision for your everlasting State in the other World till you are brought to the very confines of it But O Christian if you are wise be every day thinking that you must shortly put off this your Earthly Tabernacle even as the Lord hath shewn you And in any sickness that befalls you first reconcile your self to God and then you may be assured that either he will make the means you use conducive to the health of your Body or else will make your Disease and even Death it self healthful to your Soul A TABLE Of the Chapters in the ensuing Treatise comprizing the Sum of Christian Religion CHAP. I. IT is appointed for all Men once to die p. 1. Chap. II. And at death all things in the World are to be left behind p. 4. Chap. III. But after death there remains another life and death is the passage either to Eternal Happiness or Misery p. 10 Chap. IV. All Men after death must stand before the Judgment Seat of God p. 16. Chap. V. And some shall be Translated into Eternal life abounding with infinite Felicities p. 22. Chap. VI. Whilst others shall be cast headlong into the unspeakable Torments of Hell p. 27. Chap. VII And since they only are partakers of the Blessed life who die well it therefore concerns all Men to be careful how they live and to prepare themselves for a Blessed death as a thing very difficult Now this Preparation is either general and to be exercised every day or particular to be performed when death approaches p. 36. Chap. VIII Towards this general and daily Preparation it is requisite for a Man first to consider the certainty of death the shortness of life and uncertainty of the hour of death p. 38. Chap. IX Secondly Not to fear Death p. 52. Chap. X. Thirdly That he perform the Duty of a Christian p. 61. Chap. II. Now the Duty of a Christian consists chiefly in true Repentance And first in sorrow for sin p. 68. Chap. XII Secondly In an Humble Reliance on the Mercies of God and in Faith in Christ p. 73. Chap. XIII Thirdly In an Holy life p. 79. Chap. XIV And he lives well who loves God above all things p. 85. Chap. XV. And his Neighbour as himself p. 93. Chap. XVI And to this end he is to strive against all Capital and Enormeus sins which are contrary to the love of God and his Neighbour p. 97. Chap. XVII And that the Christian may the better persevere in the exercises of Virtue and Repentante it may be very useful for him to compose a Diary or a daily Form of Devotion p. 118 Chap. XVIII The particular preparation for death consists in two things one whereof concerns the sick Person and the other his Neighbour The first is that the dying Man make his peace with God and fortifie his mind against all those Temptations which usually insinuate themselves at this time The second is that he be in perfect Love and Charity with all Men and rightly dispose of all his Worldly concerns p. 140. IMPRIMATUR Feb. 15. 1693 4. Guil. Lancaster R P D Henrico Epis Lond à Sacris Domesticâ—s ERRATA PAg. 13 line 5. for Theogenis read Theognis p. 45. l. 2. f. neglact r. neglect p. 52. l. 15. f. the r. a. p. 53. l. 28. f. World r. World p. 69. l. 19. f. Mirrior r. Mirroir p. 81. l. 9. f. in r. and. p. 103. l. 23. f. this r. his p. 108. l. 28. f. Languish r. Anguish p. 127. l. 11. f. putrisying r. putrify p. 172. l. 10. f. desire r. deserve p. 173. l. 8. f. make r. maketh Daniel Sennertus HIS MEDITATIONS OF Living holily and dying happily CHAP. I. That all must die WE are taught both by Sacred and Heathen Writers that we must all die whilst they often inculcate that it is appointed unto men once to die Heb. 9.27 Wisd 7.6 1 Kings 2.2 that all-Men have one entrance into Life and the like going out that Death is the way of all the Earth Thus also Ovid speaks Tendimus huc omnes metam properamus ad unam Omnia-sub leges mors vocat atra suas We all pass swiftly on to the same state And all are subject to the Laws of Fate And Horace Lib. 2. Od. 18. Omnes manet una nox calcanda semel via lethi A long dark Night will all the World o're spread And all the rugged paths of Death must tread But much more plainly doth daily experience and the Funerals we continually see go by our doors admonish us of our mortality Sen. Ep. 100. Omnis dies omnis
hora c. Every day every hour shews us we are nothing and by some fresh Arguments puts us in mind of the frailty of our Natures which we too easily forget and forceth us to look on death whilst we are thinking of abiding here for ever There is no man can promise himself an immunity from death by any of those things which are wont to distinguish Men from the rest of Mankind Neither Age nor Sex no condition or state of life neither learning nor honours nor riches nor beauty nor pleasure can defend any one from death Young and Old Kings and Beggars the Wise and the Ignorant the Fair and the Deformed must all die Pallida mors aequo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas Hor lib. 1. Od 4. Regumque turres Neque ulla est aut magno aut parvo lethi fuga Pale Death goes into all a like Id. Sat. 6. lib. 2. Serm. as well Towers of Princes as the poorest Cell Nor is there any one can flie from Death Thus as there is no difference observable in the birth of men so neither is there in their death The Prayer LOrd let me know my end and the number of my dayes that I may be certified how long I have to live Behold thou hast made my dayes as it were a span long and my age is even as nothing in respect of Thee Verily every man living is altogether Vanity We come up as a flower and are cut down and never continue in one stay Lord so teach me to number my dayes that I may apply my heart unto wisdom Grant that I may not be one moment forgetful of my mortality and knowing that I must die let me never think of setting up my rest here CHAP. II. The Consideration of those things which happen at Death THe devout Christian ought not only to be perpetually mindful of his own mortality but also seriously to consider what Death is and what usually befalls men when they are dying and when they are dead Imagine therefore before your eyes a man now on the Confines of Death just ready to give up the Ghost fix this object in your mind and every day revolve it in your thoughts See how he lies dying almost without breath His Body loses all its beauty and comeliness and begins to smell of the Earth from whence it was taken and none of its members perform their functions And yet this is that Body which not long since was so sumptuously fed so delicately cloath'd and nurs'd up with so much care and cost Then a man begins to despise his Gold and Silver his Jewels and Apparel his Riotings and Pastimes when he finds no assistance from them either against his Sickness or his Death he sees all his worldly delights are vanished away and others ready to possess his Honours and Riches and an afflicting thought it is to him to consider that for the obtaining these very things he hath undergone so much toil and labour and hath committed so many sins And hence will arise many conflicts of mind many tormenting thoughts and unquiet hours Sometimes the acuteness of his Disease afflicts him sometimes his Conscience wounds him and Satan sets before his eyes the multitude of his Sins which now appear more vile and heinous than ever before he thought them to be Sometimes he is distracted when he remembers how much time he hath prodigally spent in vanity and folly and that now he must give a strict account of all his thoughts words and actions sometimes his Soul is grieved by the temptations of the Devil driving him to despair and shewing him the direful punishments of Hell-fire Thus also when a man begins to think he can live no longer he then considers he must leave his Wise and Children his Kinsfolks and Friends his Riches and Honours and every thing that was dear to him here and this leads him to consider further that in a short time his Soul must be separated from his Body and that he must pass into another state of Life Then if a man hath not duly prepared himself for Death nor reconciled himself to God with what anguish shall his Soul be tormented when he can expect no help from any of those things which he before so much accounted of To live longer is not permitted him and to die is intolerable Then he calls to mind his former sins which he hath committed and sees the time of his examination and of the divine vengeance is at hand If he looks back upon his past life all the dayes he has spent seems but a moment of time If he looks forward on that infinite space of Eternity which is to come he then grieves that he hath preferr'd such vain delights and of such short continuance before an eternal weight of Glory and Happiness And these things do so disquiet him that no room is left for any comfortable thoughts for Death now approaching he will scarcely have either time or strength to think on any thing for his good to what purpose is it to give wholesome advice to administer profitable Counsels to one whose Senses are impair'd by the violence of his Disease and whose mind and understanding are weakned and disturb'd by the Indisposition of his Body For whilst he is considering that he is not prepar'd for Death as he ought and distracts himself with the thoughts of his sad Condition his Eyes begin to grow dim and his Ears deaf his Tongue falters and his Memory and Reason fail him Do those things therefore now whilst thou art in Health and God alloweth thee Time and Strength which thou canst not but think Reasonable should be done at thy last Hour arm thy self betimes against all those Evils and Temptations which commonly befall Men at the time of Death and seeing that neither Riches nor Honours nor Pleasures nor Friends can prolong our Lives for one hour nor free us from those Cares and Anxieties which are wont to disturb Men when they are dying believe it it is desperate madness to undergo so much labour for the sake of them and contrariwise to neglect those things which would help us toward the attainment of Everlasting Happiness And now O Man think what will become of thee after death As soon as thou art dead every one even thy nearest and best Friends thy Wife and Children and Kinsfolk will fly from thy Corps and will not be able to endure the sight of thee before they were pleased with thy Embraces but now thy very presence is Ghastly and Terrible Here then is the bounds of Worldly Love and Friendship It is therefore very unreasonable to place our Confidence in these things but let us rather put our Trust in those which may be useful to us even after we are dead Think how horrid and noisom the stink of thy Carkass would be even to thy nearest Kindred and yet this is that Body for the indulging whereof thou hast so often offended thy God How
not condemned He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved Therefore being justified by Faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ The Prayer LOrd Jesu Christ guide me by thy Holy Spirit that I may walk in thy ways and always have in my mind this sum of the whole Duty of Man Eccl. 12.13 14. fear God and keep his Commandments For God shall bring every work into Judgement with every secret thing whether it be good or whether it be evil O let every moment that voice sound in mine ears arise ye dead and come to judgement And at the last let me hear thy gracious voice saying come thou blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for thee from the beginning of the World I acknowledge indeed and confess that by my sins I have deserved the pains of Hell but thou by thy Passion Death and Resurrection hast redeemed me from them and merited Heaven for me In thee therefore in thy merits and mercies I put my whole trust and confidence and joyfully expect thy glorious coming Amen Come Lord Jesus Amen Rev. XXII 20. CHAP. V. The Joys of the Life eternal ALthough it cannot be imagin'd much less express'd in words what difference there is between the joys of Heaven and the pains and miseries of the damned yet for as much as many live as if it matter'd little or nothing whether after death they were to be admitted into the blessed Life above or to be cast into the bottomless pit it therefore well becomes a Christian daily to consider how vastly the miseries of Hell differ from the glories of Heaven that so he may be convinced how necessary it is earnestly to endeavour to avoid the one and obtain the other For who is there so void of sence that for the hopes of gaining one Farthing would run the hazard of losing an hundred thousand Crowns and yet this they daily do who defile themselves with sin that they may follow after the riches pleasures and honours of this World for all these things and even the whole World could any man gain it to himself are more vile if they be compared to eternal lise which is utterly lost by sin than the smallest mite compar'd to the greatest sum imaginable Or who is there so desperately wicked that would dare to commit crimes worthy of death in the sight of a Gibbet a drawn Sword or a flaming fire and in the presence of a Judge who he knew would immediately condemn him to these torments and yet this they do who well knowing that the pains of Hell are so plainly set before their eyes in the Holy Scriptures do yet daily commit such sins as justly deserve those infernal plagues Now eternal Happiness consists in these two things In the absence of all evil things and in the enjoyment of every thing that is good Rev. 21.4 For God shall wipe away all tears from the eyes of the blessed and there shall be no more death neither sorrow nor crying neither shall there be any more pain And as it is written 1 Cor. 2.9 eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither have entred into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him For what greater felicity can there be than to have no calamities to disturb us not to be terrified with the fear of death to behold the face of God to be amongst the Quires of Angels to serve our Creatour with the blessed Spirits and all the Saints and with perpetual Hyms and Praises to magnifie his glorious Name If you value and desire Health there shall be constant soundness and eternal Life If you are delighted with the friendship of good men there you shall have the familiar acquaintance of all the blessed inhabitants above who will all have one Heart and one Soul In short there will be nothing wanting that a man can wish for What saith St. Quid inquit Augustinus hac vita beatius ubi non est paupertatis metus non agritudinis imbectllitas nemo laeditur nemo irascitur nemo invidet cupiditas nulla exardescit nullum cibi desiderium nulla honoris aut potestatis pulsat ambitio nullus Diaboli metus insidia Daemonum nulla terror gehennae pracul mors neque corporis neque animae sed immortalitatis munere jucunda vita Nulla ibi discordia cuncta consona cuncta convenientia Sanctorum omnium una erit concordia Nox ibi nulla nullae tenebrae sed lux summa quoniam Dominus inluminabit civitatem Incerna ejus erit Agnus Sancti fulgebunt sicut stellae sicut splendor firmamenti Dabitur ibi consociare choris Angelorum intueri Patriarchas Prophetas videre Apostolos atque omnes Sanctos Gloriosa sunt hac sed multo glorisius erit D E V M intueri Manual cap. 17. Augustin can be more happy than this life where there is no fear of Poverty nor the weakness of Infirmities no body is hurt no body is angry none envies another no lust inflames them no longing after food no desire of honour and power disquiets them there is no dread of Satan no snares of the Devil no fear of Hell there is neither death of Body or Soul but by the means of immertality a most delightful life there will be no evil no discord but a perfect harmony because there will be a mutual agreement between all the Saints there will be no night nor darkness but the greatest light for the Glory of God will enlighten it Rev. 21.23 and the Lamb will be the light thereof Dan. 12.3 and the Saints shall shine as the Stars and as the brightness of the Firmament there we shall associate with the multitudes of Angels and Archangels and all the Heavenly Powers there we shall behold the Patriarchs and Prophets the Apostles and all the Saints these are glorious things but it will be yet much more glorious to behold GOD himself for the happiness and glory of eternal life doth chiefly consist in the vision and enjoyment of God who will then be all in all But how great this future felicity will be the mind of man is not capable to conceive however we may make some faint conjectures for seeing God is the Creatour and Preserver of all things it must needs be that all the things in the World which to us appear fair and beautiful are in him so much more eminently if therefore the prospect and contemplation of the Creatures be sweet and grateful the Creatour himself must needs be much more ravishing and delightful so that since we shall see God face to face all even the most beautiful things in this World will be surmounted by the transcendent beauty of God He shall be all in all the satisfaction of all desires and the perfect felicity of the Saints Psal 84.4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy House they will always be praising thee Psal 31.19 O
how great is thy Goodness which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee The Prayer ALmighty Lord God forasmuch as eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither hath it entred into the Heart of Man to conceive those good things which thou hast prepar'd for those that love thee I must needs confess that through the dullness of my Senses which cannot comprehend these things I have not so earnestly sought after eternal life as I ought to have done Vouchsafe therefore to illuminate my mind that I may in some measure understand the Excellency of Heaven that my Soul may long after its joys and being captivated therewith I may despise this World and value it as nothing in comparison of the Glories of that blessed and eternal Life so direct all my thoughts and actions that I may at length attain to that blessed and happy State where no misery nor sorrow dwells that I may see thee face to face with all thy Saints and enter into the full possession of those immense glories and felicitlites which are at thy right hand for evermore Amen CHAP. VI. The pains and miseries of Hell AND now should there be any one so detestably wicked as not to be allured by the happiness of eternal life yet surely the miseries of Hell would terrifie him Now Hell in holy Writ is call'd a furnace of fire Mat. 13.42 eternal fire and that cannot be quenched Mat. 25.46 an everlasting punishment Apoc. 9. destruction the bottomlejs pit outer darkness Mat. 8.12 where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth Mat. 25.41 everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels Rom. 2. tribulation and anguish Apoc. 21.8 a Lake that burns with fire and brimstone All which names of Hell admonish us that the pains of the damned shall be eternal most grievous infinite inexpressible and accompanied with the Society of Devils As to the eternity thereof which is the longest and also endureth the longest pious Antiquity hath illustrated it with such similitudes as these suppose there were a Mountain of Sand heap'd up to Heaven and that once in a thousand years a little Bird should take from thence one grain of sand there would be hopes that after many million of years and a long space of time that can scarcely be conceived the Mountain would at last be consumed but in eternity no such thing can be hop'd for Or suppose a scrol of Parchment so long as to encompass the whole Globe of the Earth nay even the highest Sphere of Heaven on which should be written nothing but closely joyned Figures of Nine throughout now tho' no Arithmetician can compute this number yet doth it not by far reach eternity and should you add a thousand more nay a thousand thousand of the like numbers yet could you by no means comprehend eternity since then eternity is so unmeasurably long certainly none but men that are desperate can be careless and negligent how they are to spend it or rather since it can never be spent not to consider whether they shall be happy or miserable in the other World What madness is it for trifles and things of no value to be cast headlong into Hell there to be punished with unspeakable torments for ever and ever Should any one bring you to a furious flaming fire and there ask you for what price or for what part of voluptuousness you would be willing to be tormented in it for a day or for but one hour would you not easily answer him that you would not buy such tortures for all the pleasures the Earth affords no nor for all the World how then is it that for some petty-gain some deceitful honour some flitting short-liv'd pleasure you choose to burn in the eternal flames of Hell you are afraid of the fire for an hour though you should gain the whole World and yet you cast your self into the eternal torments of Hell for things of no value De reparat laps Tell me saith St. Chrysostome how long a season of luxurr how much voluptuousness would you set against eternal torments an hundred years we will give to pleasures and an hundred more and if you please a thousand more alas what compensation is this for eternity is not all the time of our life which we spend in pleasure and luxury like the vain dream of one night if it be compar'd to eternity is there then any one who for a pleasing dream one night would choose to undergo eternal torments and be willing to receive these so he might but enjoy that Pleasures pass away like a shadow but the punishments remain without end and although the same space of time were allotted for the delights of this World and the pains of Hell yet is there any one so foolish and void of Sense that would choose to Juffer one days Infernal Plagues for one days Worldly Pleasure When as one hours pain any Torment of the Body is wont to make us forget all the time past of our Lives which we have spent in pleasures Nor are the pains of Hell only Eternal but also infinitely grievous and inexpressible For nothing so sad or terrible can be imagined but those Eternal Torments are still more grievous All the most dreadful inhumane and cruel things which the Barbarity of Tyrants have ever invented are not to be compared with these pains of Hell For not only the Body but the Soul also shall be afflicted The remembrance of past offences which have occasion'd so many Evils the continual sence of Racking Pains the Hatred and Detestation of God and all the Saints and principally the thoughts of being for ever rejected from the most blissful sight of God all these things do miserably torment the Sinner There will be heard the doleful Cries Sighs and Lamentations the Cursings and Execrations of Parents Children Brethren Sisters and Friends who by their Example or Negligence have thrown others into that place of Torments for they will be most furiously enraged against those whom above all others in this life they loved most dearly At the sight of them they shall be provoked and incensed as against their greatest enemies And now though these Torments are of themselves very sad and terrible yet are they still made more grievous by the perpetual Society of Devils and damned Spirits Any one that has seen a Man possessed with the Devil or if he hath not seen one yet hath read out of the Gospel or other Histories the deplorable condition of those men that are possess'd will easily believe what a most woful thing it is to be under the power of the Devil Who is there of so undaunted a Courage that is not afraid of Apparitions which are disguised Devils and does not tremble at the sight of them And yet the Devil in possess'd folks or when he terrifies Men by his Evil Spirits hath no more power over Men than God is pleas'd to grant him and hath not yet
to so improper so unfit a time it is rightly said that late repentance seldom happens to be true and serious and God by a just judgment oftentimes disregards those when they are dying who thought it grievous to remember God when they were well in health Of these the Divine Wisdom thus speaks Prov. 1.24 c. Because I have called and ye refused I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded but ye have set at nought all my counsel and would none of my reproof I also will laugh at your calamity I will mock when your fear cometh when your fear cometh as desolation when distress and anguish comeâ—h upon you Then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me For that they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord they would none of my counsel they despised all my reproof The Prayer O Most infinite Wisdom thy thoughts are not like our thoughts since then it did not please thee to reveal unto us the hour of our death grant that I may be always prepared for an happy departure hence that at thy coming I may be found watching and ready let not the hour of death surprize me in my sins and let me never spend one day without true repentance Inliven my Soul to be perpetually aspiring after thee and loving thee that so all things that happen to me may work together for good and nothing may be able to separate me from the love of Christ Jesus thy Son our Lord Amen CHAP. IX That Death is not to be fear'd SInce then it is certain that all must die that life is short and the hour of death is uncertain and that therefore it becomes us to be every moment prepared for an happy departure hence unless we will run the hazard of losing our Souls for ever the devout Christian therefore may prepare himself to die well if in the second place he learns not to fear death This then is the second head of those general and daily preparations for a blessed death that we bear the thoughts of death with a couragious mind and that we never be captivated with the false pleasures of life and the fond desire after earthly things for the pleasures of life and the blandishments of this World are chiefly to be reckon'd amongst those things which make death most bitter and formidable to us We know no union more close than that of Soul and Body so that nothing can appear more terrible than death which separates Soul and Body those two intimate companions moreover in this life there are many things we much value and which engage our affections to them such as are magnificent Buildings sumptuous Apparel Vessels of Gold and Silver Riches fruitful Fields delightful Gardens pleasant Vineyards Parents Children Wife and Friends of all which since death bereaves us 't is no wonder if we account it bitter Hence 't is said in Ecclesiasticus Cap. 41.1 O death how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions unto the man that hath nothing to vex him and that hath prosperity in all things But now a diligent consideration of the miseries and troubles of this life of which we shall speak by and by and of the joys of eternal life of which we have before treated will soon root out of our hearts all fondness and complacency for earthly things for these pleasures are false and counterfeit and under the sweet lies gall and bitterness This made Solomon the wisest of Kings who wanted nothing this Wotld could afford to make his life happy upon his own experience say that all things under the Sun are vain and empty Vanity of Vanities Eccl. 1.2 all is Vanity In this World we live like Strangers and Pilgrims why then do we not desire to return into our own Countrey what ever we leave behind us here shall there be recompenced with far more Excellent and Transcendent Rewards Thus our Saviour adviseth us Mat. 6.19 Lay not up for your selves treasures upon Earth where moth and rust doth corrupt and where thieves break through and steal But lay up for your selves treasures in Heaven where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through nor steal Altho' many things here are pleasant and grateful to us yet compar'd to Eternal Life they are nothing to be accounted off when we die we do not lose all those faithful Servants of Christ which were here so dear to us they will follow a little after When we die we are gather'd to our people and go unto our Fathers and we shall there have the acquaintance of more and far better Friends Angels and Archangels without number Dan. 7.10 for thousand thousands minister unto God and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before him what an unspeakable joy will it be to have a familiar conversation with the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs and all the faithful Servants of Christ And as the pleasures of this life are as nothing if they be weighed in an even ballance with the glories of immortality to which we pass by the gate of death so also death it self is not to be feared by us for though it is called the most terrible of all evils because it separates those two intimate Friends Soul and Body and delivers up the Body which was here so tenderly beloved and provided for to be eaten up by Worms though death consider'd in it self be the punishment of sin and befalls us by the Divine Malediction and though death be to be dreaded by one who is involved in a multiplicity of worldly business and is not provided for his departure out of this life and so is very doubtful of his future state yet forasmuch as by the death of Christ it is made the way and passage to eternal life to a good man who is prepared for an happy death it is not at all to be fear'd that the day of death is better than the day of ones birth Eccl. 7. â— For when we are born we enter into this World which is a scene full of miseries and calamities but when we die we leave them all and are translated into that other blessed life which is replenish'd with all kinds of felicities We are first of all in this World subjected to the slavery of our corruptions and original Sin whilst afterwards the seeds of many lusts spring up in us infidelity ambition covetousness hatred envy uncleanness and such like thus St. Paul complains that he was sold under sin Rom. 7.14 This is the height of misery and to a man enflamed with a desire after an holy life and in whose breast one spark of piety remains nothing can happen more grievous than the corruptions of the flesh of this the Apostle farther complains Ibid. v. 18. I know that in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no
nor any other worldly thing can any longer please or entice them And as nothing is more profitable for us than the daily meditation of death so on the contrary nothing is more hurtful than our forgetfulness of it and yet this is very common with the rich Men and great Ones of this World who as if they were to live the age of Methusalah lay up Provisions for many years continuance here and in the mean time think little or nothing of the life to come and so when they fancy they have attained to the top of their desires on a sudden with the rich Man in the Gospel they are forced to depart out of this life and too often descend into eternal destruction and forasmuch as the Devil well knows that nothing more powerfully excites men to holiness or better secures their souls from his snares than the meditation of death he therefore employs his greatest care and diligence to put these thoughts out of mens minds which if he can but obtain he easily gets every thing else he has a mind to and takes men captive at his will It is a sign of a mind altogether deprav'd and out of order which doth not care to hear Discourses and Conferences of Death which is sad and uneasie at the thoughts of it and therefore strives to divert it self with witty sayings and merriment with full bowls and all kinds of delight and pastime But on the contrary he who is in favour with God whose Soul is not plunged in sensual pleasures it is his delight to think often and to discourse of death for he knows 't is the only necessary way to everlasting bliss Secondly Towards our preparation for death we are to consider the shortness of our lives for how little time doth God allow us to live here many Infants expire at their very entrance in to life some die in their Childhood others in their Youth fewer arrive to their middle age but very few attain to old age from hence it is that in Holy Scripture our life is compar'd to those things that are most frail and momentary as the trace of a cloud a mist a spark Wisd 2. Job 14.2 Psal 90. Job 5.6.9 a shadow a flower a weavers shuttle a post a swift ship and an eagle that hasteth to his prey This also the Heathen declar'd and therefore Pindar call'd man the dream of a shadow Aeschylus the shadow of smoke M. Varro a bubble and with good reason are these names attributed to man for we die daily and some part of our lives are every day taken from us our whole state is nothing else but a journey a race to death And then Thirdly Consider that in this short life the time of death is uncertain for tho' it is appointed for all to die yet the hour of death is unknown some die in their Infancy some in their Youth and some in their old Age whilst others are overtaken by an unexpected death so that no one can assure himself of to morrow neither is the place or manner of our death known to us which is daily confirm'd to us by the dead Corpses we see carried by For all that die do not keep their Beds afflicted by a long continued sickness for some are taken away suddenly or in a moment lose their Senses by Appoplexies others are choak'd by violent Catarrhs some are kill'd by falls some by the ruins of Houses whilst others are trod under feet by Horses some are drowned in the Water and others are struck with Lightning whilst others unexpectedly fall into the hands of Thieves and Enemies and come to an untimely end which they never were afraid of Now what happens to one may happen to all and what may happen to all every one ought to expect may happen to them For man also knoweth not his time Eccles 9.12 as the fishes that are taken in an evil net and as the birds that are caught in the snare so are the sons of men snared in an evil time when it falleth suddenly upon them being then men we ought to think that whatever is common to man and does sometimes happen to others may also befal us Now hereby we are admonish'd to be every minute ready and prepar'd for death For God was pleased to let us be ignorant of the time of our death that the uncertainty thereof might be a means of exciting in us a constant practice of vertue and avoiding of sin and a perpetual care and endeavour to secure our eternal wellfare for how dangerous is it to live in such a condition that if a sudden death should surprize us unawares our salvation is utterly to be despair'd of and who can ascertain us that at the end of our lives when death comes on us like an armed man we shall be in so good a disposition as to be able to bewail our sins and implore the grace and mercy of God Indeed were we permitted to die often and return again to life their rashness and security were excusable who so seldom think of death but since 't is appointed unto all men but once to die and that there is no leading of our lives over again 't is manifest what great danger they run whom death overtakes before they are provided for it since it for ever takes away from them all hopes of salvation Let us then be always prepared for death let us fly from sin and not defer our repentance let us not cherish anger and revenge evil affections and a fond desire of living long in this World but let us account every day to be our last and when we go to sleep let us so demean our selves as if we were never to arise again from our beds and when we arise in the morning let us so spend every hour of the day as if we were never to lie down in our beds again let us so use the good things of this World as if we were to leave them every moment let us not vainly promise our selves along continuance here with that rich man in the Gospel who said unto his Soul Luk. 12.19 Soul thou hast much goods laid up for many years take thine ease eat drink and be merry whereas that very night his Soul was required of him but let us daily pray with holy David Ps 39.5 Lord let me know my end and the number of my days that I may be certified how long I have to live and let us not neglact that wholsom Admonition of our Saviour who saith Mat. 24.46 Vsque ad fin Blessed is that Servant whom his Lord when he cometh shall find watching Verily I say unto you that he shall make him Ruler over all his Goods But and if that Evil Servant shall say in his Heart My Lord delayeth his coming and shall begin to smite his fellow Servants and to eat and drink with the Drunken The Lord of that Servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for
good thing for to will is present with me but how to perform that which is good I find not For the good that I would I do not but the evil which I would not v. 24. that I do c. O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death None can be wholly freed from this corruption of the flesh in this life but after death we shall be altogether deliver'd from it and they who shall be thought worthy to enter into the blessed life above shall sin no more And farther a great trouble and misery it is to pious Men that they are forc'd to live and sojourn amongst so many wicked Persons Psal 120.5 like Sheep amongst Wolves this made David cry out Wo is me that I am constrained to dwell with Mesech and to have my Habitation among the Tents of Kedar Besides our Salvation is exposed to the greatest dangers the Devil as a Roaring Lyon 1 Pet. 5.8 walketh about seeking whom he may devour The World is daily exciting us to Sin by evil Examples and fair Promises the Snares wherewith Satan and the World endeavours to intrap us are every where laid for us in Riches in Meat and Drink in our Eyes and in our Ears in our Words and in our Actions now Death wholly frees us from the Temptations of the World the Flesh and the Devil And not only from these but also from all the Calamities and Misfortues which so usually happen to Mankind in this Mortal Life That this Life is full of troubles there needs not many words to prove since both Sacred and Prophane Authors complain of the Miseries of Humane Life Job 14.1 whilst they teach that Man that is born of a Woman is of few days and full of Trouble And that the very name of Man imports all miseries This truth we all daily experience For how lamentable is our Nativity To how many evils is our Infancy exposed Our youth to how many injuries and dangers is it obnoxious With how many cares is our Manhood distracted And how is our old Age Surrounded with Calamities What reason then we have to fear death which at once frees us from all these miseries which is the only safe Haven to us who sail on this Stormy and Tempestuous Sea Nor doth death only deliver us from Sin and all the Troubles of this World but is also the gate through which we are to pass into Eternal Life wherein the just shall enjoy the most delightful Society of God the Father of Christ our Saviour of the Holy Ghost the Comforter and of all the Angels and Blessed Spirits How great this future Happiness and Beatitude is the mind of Man cannot conceive nor words express And although our Bodies shall rot in the grave or be other ways dissolved yet is there no danger that we shall be separated from Christ to whom we are joyned by the Bond of the Spirit but the dead shall remain united to Christ both in their Bodies and in their Souls and in the last Judgment their Souls and Bodies being made one shall arise together to Eternal Glory Hence in Holy Writ Death is called a Sleep and the Grave a Bed or Dormitory For all these reasons the True Christian is so provided that not only death but sudden death also doth not affright him men indeed do usually not without cause dread sudden death but if we duly consider it a wicked life spent without Repentance is much more to be fear'd than a sudden death nor is a sudden death bad because it is sudden but because for the most part it overtakes Men unprepar'd and impenitent and so casts them headlong into Destruction whereas if it finds us ready a sudden death is not evil but rather a more speedy passage from this to an Happy and Eternal Life The Prayer MOst Merciful Father open and enlighten the Eyes of my Mind to see and rightly consider the Misery and Vanity of this present life that I may not set my affections on the World nor the things in it but may with my whole Heart long after the Joys of Heaven O Lord excite in me an ardent Desire after the Celestial Life and vouchsafe me some fore taste of it by the sweetness whereof the bitterness of death may be so allay'd that I may be daily ready to leave this World and desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ our Lord Amen CHAP. X. The Duty of a Christian THE third Head of the Preparation for a Blessed Death Non potest malè mori qui bene vixerit de discipline christiana cap. 12. was to live holily and to enter into such a course of life as becomes a Christian for as St. Augustin says No Body can die ill that hath liv'd well Now he lives well that performs the Duties of a Christian He therefore who is mindful of his Eternal Salvation must diligently consider what the Duty of a Christian is or what way of living may best conduce towards the attaintment of everlasting life after this For he who would die like a Christian must live as a Christian But he who lives wickedly shall die wickedly and shall arise and be condemned with the Wicked Now although there be many Duties which belong to Christians in common with other Men yet are they not peculiar to a Christian but are ordained for the preservation of Humane Society and honest Behaviour in the World One kind of Duty there is which properly belongs to a Christian which only is needful and which whoever performs it will be well with him hereafter for evermore And what that duty is the very name of a Christian doth sufficiently intimate For whereas the Sects of all Philosophers and Religions have received their Names from their Author and Master whose Precepts Ordinances and Institutions they follow in like manner Christians are so called because they only imitate Christ and as much as in them lies tread in his steps and obey his command and moreover what cannot be said of any other Religion a Christian is one who doth not live himself but Christ liveth in him by Faith Gal. 2.20 so that Christ is the life of Christians who thenceforth manifests himself in all their actions It is then chiefly requisite a Christian should know who Christ is whose Name he bears and to whom he gave up himself in the Sacrament of Baptism what he hath done for our Salvation and what he requires of us to do To this end first we are to remember that Man was Created by God after his own Image Gen. 1. that is as the Apostle explains it Gal. 4.24 in true Holiness and Righteousness so that his understanding was comformable to God and gave to him alone all Honour and Glory Him alone he lov'd reverenced and worshipped and with Him hereafter he should have enjoy'd an immortal eternal and most blessed life Secondly 'T is to be remark'd
shall be Forgiven The Apostle St. Paul reckons these amongst the works of the Flesh Gal. 5.20 21. Hatred Variance Emulations Wrath Strife Seditions Envyings and such like and pronounceth that they which do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God And St. John saith 1 Joh. 3.14 15. He that loveth not his Brother abideth in Death Whosoever hateth his Brother is a Murderer We have good reason to bear with the infirmities of others because there are many things which others must bear with in us For no one is perfect You see plainly that you are not able to bring your self to live according to those Rules which you could wish and why then should you be angry with others if they do not live just as you would have them Mat. 7.5 first cast out the Beam out of thine own Eye and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the Mote out of thy Brothers Eye let us therefore bear one anothers Burthens Gal. 6.2 for there is no body without fault And then farther let us endeavour to keep our selves from Slandering and Calumniating of others by not being too curious in enquiring into the Words and Actions and Lives of our Neighbours for what O Man is it to thee what another says or does Rom. 14.4 Who art thou that judgest another Mans Servant To his own Master he standeth or falleth Do thy best to give a good account of thine own Words and Actions to God and he also is obliged to render an account of his to the same God to whom all things are naked and open he sees all things under the Sun and knows what every one thinks and desires and to what end they direct their Actions therefore commit all to him rest contented and do not disquiet thy self with others cares The Prayer O Lord our most Merciful Father who in thy Son Jesus Christ hath called me to Eternal Life and forgiven me all my sins let thy Holy Spirit also direct and rule my heart that I may daily persevere in a true Repentance continually strive against my sins and increase more and more in all vertuous and godly living And for as much as my own strength is not sufficient to contend against so many Enemies and to bring my good purposes to effect do thou O Lord stretch forth thy Right Hand to assist me least I saint in the Warfare and Satan get the Dominion over me Thou O Lord resistest the Proud but givest grace to the Humble The proud in heart is an Abomination to thee vouchsafe me therefore O Lord an humble Spirit devoid of all High-mindedness according to the example of our Blessed Lord who being in the form of God humbled himself even to the Death of the Cross that he might exalt us unto everlasting life Make me to consider that I am but Dust and Ashes and have no reason to lift up my self let me not be proud of those gifts which thou hast bestowed on me and scornfully despise others but confess that what ever good is in me I have received it all from thee O Lord naked came I out of my Mothers Womb but thou hast bountifully given me Meat and Drink Cloathing and Habitation and all things necessary for the preservation of my life Make me to be contented with my Daily Bread that my mind may never be possess'd with Covetousness But may remember that I must go out of this World naked as I came and therefore may lay up my Treasure in Heaven which I may enjoy to all Eternity And because I know that in me dwelleth no good thing and the Flesh always Lusteth against the Spirit and is daily enticing me to the pleasures of this World grant O Lord that by the assistance of thy Holy Spirit I may crucifie and mortifie the Flesh with its affections and Lusts and may live soberly righteonsly and godly in this present World and serve thee in pureness of Spirit all the days of my life Grant also that according to thy command and example we may love one another Root out of our Hearts all bitterness and malice that the Sun may never go down upon our Wrath but that we may do good to those that hate us and forgive all that have offended us Lord I beseech thee take from me Pride and give me the Spirit of Humility Extinguish in me the desires of the Flesh and inflame my Heart with the love of thee Cast out of my mind the fury of anger and implant therein the gift of Patience Remove from me the love of Vain-glory the bitterness of Envy and bestow on me the sweetness of Charity and Humility the gift of a meek and quiet Spirit which is in thy sight of great price CHAP. XVII A Diary of the practice of Piety BUT for as much as the Exercises of Piety ought to be every day performed because no body can be certain which shall be that last day when he shall depart out of this life and every day for ought we know may be our last It will therefore be very useful to have both in our view and memory the course of one day regularly dispos'd according to the pattern whereof we may lead our lives that so every day we may be prepared for an happy Death First then O Man when you awake out of sleep in the Morning let your earliest Meditations be on God nor ever let any thing but the thoughts of God first enter into your mind For serious Contemplations of God being once admitted into our minds will keep out all evil Devices think then first that God will easily hereafter raise you from the dead as now you are awaken'd from your sleep Afterwards when with open'd eyes you behold the light of the Sun think with your self how great the Glory and Majesty of the last day will be when so many hundred thousand glorious Bodies shining like the Sun and Stars shall go with Christ their Judge like so many Suns into eternal life and therefore use all diligence that you may appear one of that blessed number Afterwards revolve in your mind that the Devil like a Roaring Lion 1 Pet. 5.8 walketh about seeking whom he may devour That he was not far from you the night past and had a desire to hurt you and could have done it unless God had defended you by the Ministry of his Holy Angels And withal think that the Holy Angels were encamped all night round about you that now you are rising from your Bed they stand by you and therefore take care to behave your self Circumspectly as being placed in the presence of God and the blessed Angels When you put on your Cloaths think that they are the Tokens of guilt with which we cover our shame and nakedness and therefore you have no cause to be proud of them and whilst you cover your Body let not your Soul be naked but put on the wedding Garment even the Righteousness of Christ and think
how unsuitable it would be to have a mind filthy and stained with sin under a fair and clean garment Never undertake any business unless you have first humbly compos'd your mind and body to Prayer Thank God from your very heart that he hath been pleased to preserve you the last night and even all your life from the Snares and Violence of Satan and to keep you and yours from all outward perils and dangers and pray unto him that he would mercifully forgive you all your sins for the Merits of Christ that he would preserve you and yours all the faithful and the universal Church from the power and subtilty of the Devil that he would please to defend you from all dangers of Body and Soul and so guide you by his Holy Spirit that you may not offend him this day by any sin but that all your Thoughts Words and Actions may be directed to the glory of God and the good of Mankind that he will please not to take you out of the World unprepared by a sudden death and that if he should think it fitting to take away your life this very day he would be merciful unto you and receive you to himself Every Morning renew your resolutions of serving God and as if this were the first day of your returning to God and that hitherto you had done no kind of good firmly purpose in your mind to love the Lord your God and serve him only And humbly pray unto God that he would please to keep and assist you in these your good Resolutions of serving him In the Morning advise with your self what you are to do that day in the Evening take an account of what you have done And that you may have comfort at night stedfastly determine to spend the day well Having offer'd up your prayers to God read a Chapter or two in the Holy Scriptures and attentively consider what there is contained in it for your Consolation or Instruction or Admonition From the Sacred History you may observe how great Gods anger is against sins and with what terrible plagues he hath punish'd sinners and on the contrary with what signal Rewards he hath recompenced Holiness and how wonderfully he hath conducted his own People In short so read the Scriptures as thereby to confirm your Faith and excite in you the practice of Piety Do the same also at night when you are going to Bed and thus in no long space of time you will have read over the whole Bible and so will be provided with a sure guide in the paths of Virtue all the days of your life As Holy David saith Thy Word is a Lamp unto my Feet Ps 119.105 and a Light unto my Path. The Law of the Lord is perfect Ps 19.8 c. converting the Soul The Testimony of the Lord is sure making Wise the simple The Statutes of the Lord are right rejoycing the Heart the Commandment of the Lord is pure enlightning the Eyes The fear of the Lord is clean enduring for ever The Judgments of the Lord are true and righteous all together More to be desired are they than Gold yea than much fine Gold Sweeter also than Hony and the Hony Comb. Moreover by them is thy Servant warned and in keeping of them there is great reward Be careful therefore not to read the Holy Scriptures out of Custom only and as it were by the by but stay a while in the Meditation of what you have read for there is no Chapter but will yield very profitable matter for Holy Contemplations to wit on the Wisdom of God his Omnipotency Infinity Goodness Mercy and Justice On the Corruption of Humane Nature our own sins the Snares and Temptations of the Devil the punishments of the Wicked and the Rewards of the Righteous on the frailty shortness and mortality of Humane Nature On Repentance Faith the exercise of Holiness On our Blessed Saviours Incarnation Nativity Miracles Passion Death Resurrection Ascention Intercession and his Redemption of Mankind On the last Judgment the Happy State of the Blessed in the life to come and the misery of the Damned in Hell These and the like as they offer themselves are to be heedfully attended to and some time Meditated upon until some sorrow of Mind some ardor of Devotion some act of Faith some Divine flame of love springs up in your Soul Having thus performed your Devotions from which never suffer your self to be withdrawn by any thing whatever since there is nothing so serious and weighty as to be preferr'd before God you may then apply your self to the Duties of your Calling with a full intention to discharge them faithfully for the due performance whereof you are not only diligently to beware of offending God either in Thought Word or Deed and of injuring your Neighbour but you ought also to direct all your Actions to Gods glory and the good of others First as to what concerns your thoughts although the godly by reason of the Corruption of Humane Nature cannot avoid all evil thoughts yet be careful least you too much indulge them but suppress them betimes and be sure never to bring them forth to act nor suffer your self to be seduced in your Affections to any thing contrary to Honesty and Piety and which may in the least alienate your mind from the happiness of the life Eternal Never seek after popular Fame Be not Ambitious after Honours Riches or any Worldly thing but more especially do not prefer them before God be humble and contented with a competency and a good Conscience he is very happy and hath every thing who hath God for his Friend He is most miserable and hath nothing who hath God for his Enemy When ever any sinful affections begin by little and little to steal into your mind as Avarice Voluptuousness Envy Anger Enmity and Hatred and such like as we have before mentioned in the precedeing Chapter be diligent to stifle them in their first motions As to what concerns your words and discourse so govern your self as always remembring that severe expression of our Lords Mat. 12.36 That every idle word that Men shall speak they shall give an account thereof in the day of Judgment And therefore in your jesting observe never to cast a blot upon Religion or Scandalize any one or offend against the Rules of Honesty and Modesty So order all your Speech that you never Scandalize your Neighbour but endeavour to build him up in the most Holy Faith to this end pray with David Set a Watch O Lord Ps 141.3 and keep the Door of my Lips There is no true joy but what is joyned with the love of God and a good Conscience We often laugh when if the great danger we are in were rightly consider'd there is more need we should weep let your words and your Heart go together and let both always agree with truth avoid lying and desraud none with deceitful words when ever you
speak of God or Holy things do it reverently and discreetly and take not the name of God in vain speak ill of no body neither maliciously slander any person whatever And then as to your Life and Conversation commit your ways unto God and whatever you take in hand begin it in his Name and do all to the glory of God What ever you are about to do think first whether you would approve of it if another did it For why should you do your self what you would not like in another What ever you hear and see another speak or do that is good and praise-worthy do you endeavour to imitate it But if you observe any one to do things for which he deserves to be blam'd beware least you do the like Moreover consider whether you can give a good account of what you are going to do before the great Judge at the last Day Your own Conscience will be a better Judge of your Actions than all the World and although Men are ignorant of what you do yet remember that God sees you and that you can do nothing so privately but your own Conscience will be a Witness and a Judge of it In the duties of your calling trust in God nor ever attempt to discharge them by unlawful means which God hath forbidden Never think any thing gainful or expedient which may in the least hinder the Salvation of your Soul Do what is right and just and never prefer the praise of Men before the favour of God if God be gracious to you be not concern'd though the World hate you In short let this be your constant rule to direct all your actions to the glory of God and to the good and profit of your Neighbour so that whatever offends against this forbear it however goodly and specious it may appear In all your Conversation behave your self as becomes a faithful Servant that you may one day hear that joyful voice of God Mat. 25.21 Well done thou good and faithful Servant thou hast been faithful over a few things I will make thee Ruler over many things enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. When you are about to eat or drink pray for Gods Blessing on it that it may succeed to the health of your Body and take so much as may suffice for the satisfying of your hunger and thirst after you have done render thanks unto God for all his gifts and graces bestowed on you and desire his blessing may go along with them And when your Body is full take care that your Soul be not empty but beg that it may be replenish'd with the Grace of God All the day long whatever your Employment be lift up your Heart unto God in frequent and short Ejaculations rendring him thanks for all his benefits and commending you and yours to his Protection and Governance On Holy-Days or any others appointed by the Church for Prayers or hearing Gods Word let no business ever detain you from joyning your Prayers with those of the Congregation for the obtaining publick and private Blessings from God since our Saviour hath promised his gracious presence where two or three are gathered together in his Name It is also requisite towards our dying Happily that we frequently receive the Holy Supper of our Lord that amongst other Fruits of this Divine Banquet we may be Admonished of our Union with Christ and so be fortified against the fears of Death for altho' our Bodies putrifying in the Grave or be any other ways dissolv'd yet is there no danger of our being separated from Christ with whom we are made one by the Bond of the Holy Spirit but when we are dead we still remain united to him both in Body and Soul and in the last day when our Bodies shall be again joyned unto our Souls they will arise unto Eternal Glory for it is not possible that our Bodies should remain in their Graves when they are united to the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ Moreover for as much as none can be certain of the hour of their Death nor promise themselves to morrow and that on our last hour depends our Eternal State and that after Death we shall be translated either to the joys of Heaven or to the everlasting Torments of Hell it is therefore our great concern to be always thinking of that hour on which depends our Eternal Happiness or Misery He is a prudent Man who thinks that every hour may be the last hour of his life Such a one will not easily fall into notorious sins but will use the things of this life thriftily and look upon them as vain and transitory But this cannot be done without Gods assistance so that it will be very fitting as you regard your Eternal Salvation to pour out your Prayers unto God with Ardent affections for his direction and assistance in such a form as is at the end of this Chapter or any other that suits your Devotion When the day is finished before you go to sleep be sure you never omit to examine your own Conscience which judging of the Conscience being a thing so very useful was even by the Heathen much approv'd of so that it will be a shame for Christians to come behind them in the study of Vertue and will hereafter be very dangerous Pythagoras hath described this Examination of the Conscience in very elegant Verses the sense whereof is that at night before we compose our selves to rest we ought to call to mind the Actions of the day past and chiefly to enquire into three things what we have done what we have lest undone and wherein we have transgressed our Duty and as we find our actions to have been accordingly we are to behave our selves to be griev'd and displeas'd with our selves for what we have done amiss and to take delight in what we have done well This Examination of the Conscience Seneca did not omit even amongst the Noise and Distractions os the Court I use saith he this Authority Vâ—or hae pâ—testate quotidie apud â—e causam dico 〈◊〉 sublatum Conspeâ—â—e lumen est conticuâ—t uâ—â—◠〈…〉 conseta â—â—â—ium 〈…〉 sirutor facâ—â—◠〈…〉 remetiâ—r 〈…〉 semdo 〈…〉 enim 〈…〉 mels 〈…〉 cere vide ne 〈…〉 saclas nunc 〈…〉 Lib. 3. de 〈…〉 and daily plead my cause with my self when the light is withdrawn from my sight and my Wife is silent being now inured to this custom I examine with my self the whole day past and review all that I have said or done I hide nothing from my own Serutiny I pass by nothing for why should I fear any thing by reason of my Errors When as I can say see that thon doâ—t it no more and for this time I will pardon thee Much more necessary then will it be for thee O Chrisâ—â—an to recal to your mind every day what things you have done and compare them with what you did the day before when Evening comes to summon
Holy Name The good of my Neighbour and the Eternal Welfare of my own Soul O let me not dare to sin against thee for the sake of any thing in the World but grant that with a constant resolution of serving and pleasing thee and by a lively Faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ I may be always provided for an happy departure out of this life Ah! Merciful Lord let not a sudden death overtake me unawares but â—nable me to War a good Warfare to keep Faith and a good Conscience that so wheresoever or whensoever it shall please thee to call for me out of this World I may follow thee chearfully and without delay and joyfully stand before the Tribunal of my Redeemer Jesus Christ and receive that Crown of Righteousness which is laid up for all those that love his appearing O Father of mercies and God of all Consolation let thy Holy Spirit never depart from me especially when I am yielding up the Ghost but vouchsafe me his Divine help and Assistance to vanquish all the difficulties of this World and all the Temptations of the Flesh and the Devil Grant me grace to fix my mind on nothing but thee thy goodness and mercy and to put my Trust and Confidence in the alone Merits of thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ to the last breath of my life and then O Lord receive my Soul Into thy hands I commend my Spirit O Father Son and Holy Ghost O Blessed Trinity O Eternal Unity save and defend me in this life and at the hour of Death O do not leave me nor forsake me CHAP. XVIII Of the more special and particular preparation for Death HAving now treated of the general preparation for Death which is to be performed the whole course of our life even whilst we are young and in our greatest health and vigour We now come to that more special and particular preparation which is necessary to be done when we are worn out with old Age or taken with any sudden and dangerous Disease so that we think the time of our departure is at hand For Death when we look on it at a distance only doth not much affect us but when we find it making its approaches near us we are then very pensive and disturb'd with the thoughts of it When ever therefore O Man any Disease seizeth on you think that sickness is the Harbinger of Death and that you are now admonished from Heaven as Hezechiah once was by the Prophet to set thine House in order Isa 38.2 for thou shalt die And rather look for Death than life For the event of sickness is very uncertain though at first it may seem but a light indisposition and it often happens that the Disease gaining more and more strength doth unexpectedly deprive a Man of the use of his Reason and of all serious Thoughts So that as soon as ever you find your self ill prepare your self for Death for if you should soon be well again yet your Care and Labour would not be in vain but if Death should come upon you before you are provided for it you run the hazard of losing your Soul for ever Heb. 9.27 For it is appointed unto Men once to die but after this the Judgment It is a most false and foolish opinion which hath obtained amongst some that the sick person will most certainly die if he makes his Will and receives the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ This hath no doubt been suggested by the Devil and spread abroad by ill Men that by this means they might frighten Men from fitting themselves for an happy Death Now this pre-paration consists in two parts the first thereof respects the dying Man and the other his Neighbour As to the first the dying Man is to take great care to reconcile himself to God whom he hath offended and to arm himself against all those Temptations which usually happen at that time To this end it will be necessary for him to search into his own Heart and examine over his whole life from the beginning to confess and bewail all his sins to God to pour out most Ardent Prayers and Sighs by the Assistance of the Holy Spirit for the obtaining pardon of his sins and Reconciliation with God in Christ our Saviour Examples of such Prayers may be found in the Penitential Psalms the prayer of Manasses and the like And although the sick Man ought chiefly to conless his sins to God against whom they were committed yet it is fit by the advice of the Apostle St. James James 5.16 that he should confess his faults to his Brethren to the Ministers of the Church and word of God to whom Christ hath committed the keys of binding and absolving Of remitting and retaining sins And chiefly let him confess those Crimes which most trouble his mind and with which Satan most disquiets him such let him repose in their Bosoms who are ready to assist him and to Administer suitable Consolations for sick Mens minds are many times not sedate enough for Divine Thoughts and Meditations and the Devil is very ready to divert those that offer themselves 'T is therefore the part of the Minister of Gods Word and his Friends to pray for the sick person that he may obtain pardon of his sins and not be overcome by the Temptations of the Devil It often happens that when Satan cannot drive Men to despair he then puts on another disguise and puffs them up with an opinion of their Merits This Temptation is diligently to be withstood For Satan exalteth those whom before he could not sink down that so he may cast them headlong with a more grievous fall Therefore O Man if ever such thoughts as these flatter thee consider that it is owing to Gods grace and not to your self if you are innocent from such and such offences and remember how many other ways you have offended him Or if you have been diligent in the performance of many good deeds and these come into your mind say with the Apostle 1 Cor. 15.10 By the grace of God I am what I am it was not I but the grace of God which was with me Ps 115.1 And not unto us O Lord not unto us but unto thy Name give glory Remember that Admonition of our Saviour Luk. 17.10 When ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you say we are unprofitable Servants we we have done that which was our duty to do 1 Eph. 1.8 And that of St. John if we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us As also that of St. Vae omni laudabili vitae hominum si remota misericordiâ eam discutias Domine Cons lib. 9. Cap. 13. Augustin Wo to the most perfect life of Man if thou Lord shouldest lay aside thy mercy and examine it If we read the Histories of dying Men or the
and if it be needful make his Will which ought to be plain and intelligible comformable to the Law of Nature to the Word of God and to the Laws of the Country wherein he lives that so there may be no occasion given to his Heirs and Executors to have any Litigious Disputes and Law-Suits after his Death and this he ought to do whilst his Mind and Tongue and Hand can perform their Functions and not to defer it till he is not able to make his mind known clearly and distinctly either by word or writing And indeed they do most conveniently and to the purpose who make their Wills whilst they are in perfect health on the contrary they very ill consult their own Affairs who put off the making of their Wills till some dangerous sickness assaults them and then perhaps they are suddenly taken out of the World or the Disease causes a Frenzie and so their minds become utterly indispos'd for the settling of their Worldly concerns If the sick Person remembers that he hath taken any thing away from any Man wrongfully let him restore it again to the right owner or if he be Dead and that cannot well be done let him appoint it to be given to pious uses to the poor of the Church or State For as St. Augustin saith Si res aliena propter quam peccatum est cum reddi possit non redditur non agitur poenitâ—ntia sed fingitur Epist 54. ad Maâ—don A Man is an Hypocrite and not a true Penitent if he doth not restore goods wrongfully taken when it is in his power to do it And let those also who abound in Riches honestly gotten take care that some portion of them be given to good and pious uses and that amongst the rest of their Legacies something be left and assigned to Christ Moreover the sick Person ought to look after such things as concern the Souls of those under his care and to commend unto all his Family that Religion which is contained in the Word of God and diligently to exhort them to a Holy life to the love and service of God Although as it hath been said such things were better to be ordered and provided for when we are well and in good Health because Death takes away many on a sudden and some Diseases are of such a Nature that they presently deprive a Man of the power of thinking on and ordering such things so that it will be most safe and prudent for the sick Person to put off all thoughts of Earthly things and not to distract himself with any cares but to fix his mind wholly upon God and on his happy passage out of this life And now when the sick Man finds his end approaching that the time of his departure is at hand and that he is now to struggle with the pangs of Death laying aside all Worldly cares let him intirely submit himself to Gods Will and in no wise withstand it and say Father thy Will be done whether it be by Life or by Death And then let him endeavour that he may die in the Faith of Christ and rest in the Lord that is let him give himself up wholly to the grace and mercy of God in the Merits of Christ and to the Consolations of the Holy Spirit For since in that last hour this World and all things in it Friends and Relations Riches and Pleasures and whatever else is taking and delightful must be quite abandon'd it is very fitting that his mind should bid farewel to all things here below and by Faith lift up it self to God alone And the Man being thus plac'd as it were out of himself he ought with the most earnest Affections and with the most Ardent Prayers and Fervent Sighs to fly unto the Mercy and Goodness of God and say with David Ps 73.26 My Flesh and my Heart faileth but God is the strength of my Heart and my Portion for ever In thee O Lord do I put my trust Ps 31.1 let me never be put to Confusion deliver me in thy Righteousness And then at last when he is just going out of the World let him commend his Soul unto God as unto a faithful Creatour and most Merciful Saviour and say with Christ Father Luk. 23.46 into thy Hands I commend my Spirit And with St. Act. 7.59 Stephen Lord Jesus receive my Spirit If any of the foregoing Temptations should be suggested by Satan to the sick Person when he lies under the agonies of Death let him not trouble himself to give an answer but commit himself wholly to Christ and depend only upon him and presevere to the last in pious Prayers and Ejaculations As also those that are present with him ought to do especially when they find his senses begin to fail him For the Prayers of the Righteous avail much and our Lord hath promised that where two or three are gathered together in his Name there will he be in the midst of them and that whatsoever we ask of the Father in his Name he will give it us Now where-ever Christs gracious presence is the Devil of necessity must flee before him Neither can the Devil tempt any Man beyond what God permits him And therefore every one ought not to be admitted to the sick Person when he is at the point of Death but only such who are Religious who by Devout Prayers can commend the departing Soul to God but such are not to be suffered to come to him who may in the least excite in him an hatred against any Man or a love towards any Worldly thing Or if they are permitted to come to him care must be taken that they behave themselves so as not to raise in his mind any evil affection which he had before laid aside and forsaken For a Soul that would depart happily out of this life ought to be inflam'd with the love of God alone and not to be mov'd either by the love or hatred of any Creature whatever And more especially let care be taken that the Dying Man may be visited and assisted by some Minister of Gods Word of good Learning and Judgment that he may know how to speak a word in season to the wearied Soul that he may so govern and temper his Discourse as neither to deceive the departing Soul by too much condescention and flattery nor to drive him to despair by an unseasonable sharpness and severity but may be able to instruct and fortifie him against all the Temptations of Satan with Divine Counsels and Consolations The Prayer O Lord God and my most merciful Father who hast now sent unto me the messenger of death and hast chastised me with sickness I confess my self to be a grievous sinner and that I have oftentimes offended thee even from my very infancy and therefore I acknowledge that this punishment is justly inflicted on me and that I desire death it self but I beseech thee of thine infinite mercies blot
out all my transgressions O Lord rebuke me not in thine anger neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure If I consider what I have done what I suffer is not so much what I have committed is grievous what I suffer is but light righteous art thou O Lord and upright are thy judgments O Lord deal not with me after my sins neither reward me after mine iniquities but according to the multitude of thy mercies think thou vpon me O Lord for thy goodness Thou God art my strength and the horn of my Salvation thou makest sore and bindest up thou woundest and thy hand make whole thou killest and makest alive thou bringest down to the Grave and bringest up if therefore thou pleasest to permit my Soul to remain any longer in this Earthly Tabernacle for thy Glory and Service O Lord help thy afflicted Servant and give me patience But if thou seest it fit to take away my Life thy Will be done and let thy Servant depart in peace Protect me against all the temptations and assaults of Satan with the Shield of thy mercy Grant that my faith may not fail me nor my hope be shaken nor the weakness of my Nature be cast down by the terrours of Death but after my Eyes are dim my Tongue faulters and my senses have lost their power and faculties grant that my Mind and Soul may be continually fix'd on thee and by the Assistance of thy Holy Spirit may be firmly united to thee and with my last breath I may commend my Soul into thy hands O Lord who livest and reignest for ever and ever Amen II. Blessed Lord forasmuch as I must bid farewel to this World I commend unto Thee all mine Thou who relievest the Fatherless and the Widow be their Father and Protector It is not for me to intermeddle with what is thy prerogative but give me Grace to use all Diligence to make my own calling and election sure before I go hence and be no more seen All my other care I cast upon Thee Be thou pleas'd to provide for all mine Bless them O Lord and replenish their hearts with a godly fear and love of thy holy Name Give them health of body soundness of mind and all good things which thou seest fit for them Keep from them all such things as may alienate their minds from Thee or any ways hinder them from the profession of a true faith or the practice of a Holy Life III. O Eternal Lord I now see all things in the World leave me but do not thou forsake me O my God In thee is my trust leave not my Soul destitute I flee unto thee for succour Make hast to help me O Lord my Salvation O my God be not far from me in this my last hour I confess indeed I am not worthy to be called thy Son or even the meanest of thy Servants but I cast my self at thy feet and fall down before thy Throne of Grace O deal with me according the multitude of thy mercies and enter not into judgment with thy Servant I do not hide my transgressions from thee but humbly confess them before thy Divine Majesty but according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness sake O Lord look upon my affliction and pain and forgive all my sins for the merits and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ Cast me not away from thy thy presence since thou hast redeemed me with the blood of thy Son O keep my Soul and deliver me let me not be ashamed for I put my trust in thee O dear Jesu thou art my Redeemer and my Saviour thou hast overcome the World Sin and Hell it self that they can do me no harm Lord I come unto thee do not reject me O do not leave me in this my hour of Death Into thy hands I commend my Spirit Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen Amen O Man remember Death and Eternity and whilst you live here consider where after Death you are to live for ever and ever FINIS Books Printed for and are to be Sold by Sam. Keble at the Great Turks-head in Fleet street MONASTICON ANGLICANUM Or the History of the Ancient Abbies and other Monasteries Hospitals Cathedral and Collegiate Churches in England and Wales with divers French Irish and Scotch Monasteries formerly relating to England Collected and Published in Latin by Sir William Dugdale Knt. late Gartor King of Arms in Three Volums and now epitomiz'd in English Page by Page price 10 s. The Historical Parts of the Old and New Testament in Verse with One Hundred and Twenty Cuts being the best use of Poetry and Sculpture 12o. price 2 s. EPICTETI Enchiridion Or the most Excellent Morals of Epictetus Made English in a Poetical Paraphrase By Ellis Walker M. A. A Collection of Private Forms of Prayers for Morning Noon and Night and other special Occasions by the Author of the Weeks Preparation to the Sacrament Degrees of Marriage that which is ordered to be had in all Churches