without A drop of Bloud Poly. Away we stay too long Lead us where you left the Prince Exeunt Omnes Enter Aratus Never did Justice shew her self so Eminent This was a Deed as if her own Hand Had wrought it Who can complain the want of Providence Or say the Guiltie and the Innocent make one Heap in Judgement when This is told A Tyrant in the Midd'st of All his Strengths guarded with Friends and Armes What ever Power or Policie could make him Safe with by a Single Hand strengthen'd with Justice was snatcht from the midd'st of all The Ligt'ning melts not the enclos'd Gold With half that wonder leaving that Containes it Nor doth the Plague in a Multitude of Men Make a Choice so Curious Enter to him Cleander and Clearchus Clean My Lord we may Sheath our Swords This Gallant Act of the Heroick and The brave Pallantus has not onely Remov'd a Tyrant but I may say Dissolv'd an Armie and Reduc'd a Kingdome The Pretor in the Cities Name offers Allegiance And divers Bodies both of Horse And Foot have left th' Enemies Camp and are Come over to us What can we attribute To this Noble Deed that in any measure May reach the Greatnesse of it We ought to Acknowledge it the Compendium of all Our Future Fortunes and what over High And Happy shall succeed to us to be The Consequents alone of this A Benesit Of that Universall Nature that like The Sunnes Influence our Enemies feel The Good of it as well as we Ara. Sir you weigh This Action as you ought And while you can look Thus Nobly on the Services are done you You 'l make this Isle a Land of Heroes The Princes Eyes breed Vertues when they shine Upon 'em and what ever has been found To be his Temper quickly growes to be The Genious of the People Clear What thinkes your Lordship If we drew out and fac'd the Body of The Enemy that yet holds together And with Fear or Forces sought to dissolve 'em Ara. My Lord what can we return you for this Gallant Forwardnesse But the Force that now Stands against us will not be worth your Highnesse Hazard nor yet paines to face ' eur A little Shame and Obligation to their Late Master Is all the Bond that holds 'em And a few Dayes if not Houres will scatter 'em without Our Swords But this Message from the City Will require your Majesties attendance To it Please you to hear what their Demands Are to you Exeunt Omnes Drums and other noyses of an Assault Pall Within Spare no Opposition Bréak the Gates add fire unto your Force Enter Rodia and another Lady frighted in Endora after them Rodia O Madam they break in upon us Eud. O my Father when thou art slain I cannot Fear what after does befall me The same That was their Crueltie to Thee will to Me be Pittie A noyse as if the doores were forc'd Pallantus and other Souldiers break in Pall Stand No man advance to touch a Life Or doe a further Violence My Rage Has blindly lead me on to Violate A place no lesse Sacred than the Temples And rudelie ere I lookt about hath thrust me On the Deitie So those that are led To see some Glorious Sight eager and longing Ask still as they passe which is the way and How near till they are engag'd within its Splendour which opening suddainly upon them Makes 'em retire as fast again with Reverence Eud. What stayes thee Monster And makes thee pant thus Ore the Prey Here I stand ready and doe Invite thy Furie Come and save my hand A labour if thou art Surfeited I 'le Whet thy Appetite Th' art a Murderer A Villain these Name thee not They are but Diseases of the State Thou the Death The Law Comprehends them within her Verge thy Giant Faults doe so much O're-top Her that Justice Cannot reach thee and if there were no Gods Thou then wert Innocent and would'st stand Safe Because thou art so Wicked Thou hast Kill'd Thy King O no thou had'st no share in him He was a King of Men thou a Beast the Foulest and the bloudiest that ever preyd On Innocence Pall My Revenge how false Thy Beautie was Eud. How Monstrous thou appear'st Thou represents unto me all Ill I ever heard of Pall And thou all that I ever heard of Good Eud. Thou mov'st like so many Living-Mischiefes had the Priests beheld thee They might have Divin'd all these Future Evills So exactlie in thy Form that what they told Would rather have seem'd a Story than A Prophesie and have sav'd us from thee Nature was never Guiltie of such a Work Some hellish-Hellish-Power hath given thee Birth and Spirit And sent thee on the Earth to destroy all That 's Fair and Holy Cap. Sir raise your Spirits Can you endure such words as these Souldiers on And make Her feel those Evils She hath utter'd Pall Hold hold Thou Worse than she hath Named darest thou Command or move to such a Sacriledge If thy Sinnes were told thee from the Heavens Thou'dst blaspheme the Voice that spoke to thee Withdraw thy Rage is too Unhollow'd for This Place Provoke me not with another Offer I shall not swollow your Bitterness Though guilded in the Name of Friendship Exeunt Captain and Souldiers Eudo. What next intend'st thou What Master-piece Of wickedness wilt thou glory in alone Know thou canst not Force me here within thy Reach I am as safe as if an Army All resolute to death divided us She shewes a Dagger This Hand something weaker than a Womans Can resist all thy strength were it as great In Mischief as in Will Pall Though I seem all That you have Named and Fouler yet this is A sin I dare not do O think me not Worse than you have said already and then I may again wash off my Stains The Beasts Are Noble meek to Chastity and humbly Lick the feet of Majesty Judge me not By shew our Eyes deceive us and as oft Perswade us to the Wrong as do the Blind- Mans feet falsely do prompt us All that is VVhite is Innocent and all that 's Black is Sinful without exception Should those That look on you be led so by the sense They must kneel down before you and adore you As some Deity not being able To phansie so much God as they do see In you Such Formes their Powers have given you That you may become a Rival in their VVorships Eudo. VVhy talk'st thou thus Thy Tongue hath no more power Than hath thy Hands Pall Neither intend Violence VVould you could entertain of me one thought Of Goodness as hopeless as you think me I 'd undertake to make it good and Better't Daily Eud. Why delay'st thou VVhat would'st thou have Pall Forgiveness Love I dare not say Eudo. Love Thy Thoughts are more Mishapen than thy self In thy very Hopes thou art Cruel This Base Imagination hath wrong'd me more Than all thy Actions In those thou onely Sought'st the
the Power of Faith THough Men by Nature born to fear and to avoid what may seem hurtful yet that fear by Grace and Faith may be converted into divine Valour of the highest kind as is evident by the Three Children in the fiery Furnace and by Daniel in the Lion's Den which with other the like Examples should invite such Men as trust in God not to fear what he only can prevent if he thinks fit and though a fearful Man cannot remove a Mole-hill for want of Faith much less Mountains how little Faith then have we when the noise only of Ill News does affright our unsetled Souls with dismal apprehensions of what may never happen more than the ill event brings with it if it do unto such pious men as live prepar'd to bear afflictions for few moments here with faithful joyful Thoughts of their eternal Happiness in Heaven So that we see the Power of Faith will remove the greatest terrour and work Miracles when Men dare trust in God Lord give me grace to live as I do write And as thy holy Spirit shall indite To manifest thy mighty Mercy shown To such a Reprobate as must own Christ's Doctrine to suffer CHrist's Doctrine is with patience to inure Our selves to suffer what he did endure On Earth from that malicious cursed Crew Who scorn'd his Miracles and boldly slew Their bless'd Messiah who did then submit To die because his Father did think fit That we redeemed by his precious Blood Might trust in him who dy'd to do us good And now may sighing sing and weeping pray Our death may prove our highest Holy-day When we with Christ in Paradise appear And shine amongst those blessed Angels there On the Power of Love to God TO love and fear God is what every good Christian doth own and what most Men think they do but very few I fear do understand what it is to love and fear Him as we ought with all our Heart Soul and Mind above all other Objects whatever which is a Lesson of great use to bring Men to Heaven who know that we are dying every moment that we live and cannot wish more pleasure here than we shall find by serving God thus For those who can love him with all their Heart and Mind will worship and adore him with the same Zeal and will obey praise thank pray and trust in him with the like fervent affection in all their divine addresses with their utmost endeavours to be with him in Heaven which God never will reject nor can eternal Bliss be purchased at a lower rate of Love Thus God exposes Heaven to entice Good Men to purchase at the Market-price When Love with all its Perquisites comply To six a blessed Immortality On such exalted Souls as take delight To mediate on his beatick sight When their enlightned Faith does bring them there Enrich'd with love they 'll bid adieu to fear And leave no arguments to justifie Such timorous Men as dare not think to die Though their eternal joy will then be such That none will have too little or too much And those who truly love will surely find Their happiness by God is predesign'd Who sees the heart and thoughts of every Man That loves and serves him to the best they can On Faith WHen Faith grows strong our Fancies will soar high To search the secrets of Eternity Which to our Souls are of so near concern That no man can a greater Lesson Learn Nor have a more serene celestial Bliss Than he 'll enjoy by practising of this Great step which by degrees will lead him on To the sacred Seat of his Adoption Where Faith 'bove all the Gifts of Grace will shine With Love in Bliss and Glory most divine On God's Mercy OUr God from us his Glory keeps conceal'd Because it would destroy us if reveal'd His Essence we can never understand 'T is well if we obey his just Command For God to mortal Man will never teach Such great Secrets because what we can reach By Nature cloys as soon as had or known He therefore lets us live by Faith alone Still subject to so many hopes and fears That our prime Joys are damp'd by frequent tears Which daily do our sorrows multiply Until death comes to tell us we must die The only remedy ordain'd to cure All sorts of evils that we here endure Yet God in mercy makes amends at last To free us from all miseries are past By raising them to bliss who do their best To gain a share in his eternal rest Which belt in God's esteem is to do all Was done by bless'd St. Stephen and St. Paul On true Valour HAppy are they who in these latter days Are fill'd with love with gratitude and praise To God whose joyful Souls do ever fly With highest thoughts of their Eternity And by the actions of their lives declare That Faith in Christ has conquer'd their despair For all past Crimes and now with Death has made Strict Friendship never more to be afraid Of his most sick alarms in disguise Nor of his quickest Summons by surprize And thus the greatest Cowards in the Land For Valour may in competition stand With any Hero's of the former age Or those who now in a just cause engage When Courage is a Vertue to be brave And sets a Crown on such a Soldier's grave On Relapsed Man in Paradise WHen Youth with strength wealth and beauty flourish Some short joys our wanton hearts may nourish But when old age is much decrepid grown We ought with sighs and tears great Sorrows own For idle hours that we have vainly spent Without the sense of shame or punishment And if we die in that unhappy state All hopes of mercy then will come too late So that if age revive and propagate Past sins till they do greater Crimes create 'T will turn old Age's Blessings into hate Then let no mortal man presume to think He cannot see when he is pleas'd to wink For no Man yet was ever such a Sot That Age his former Crimes had so forgot That on his Crutches thinks 't is boldly brave Loaden with Crimes to creep into the Grave Much worse than Youth when cross'd in his desire In a mad fit dares leap into the fire Which shows that all our Ages here ne'er can Retrieve the Curses of relapsed Man Till faith in Christ create a brighter flame Impow'ring men to have a surer claim To Heaven at our blessed Saviour's cost Than that which Adam's disobedience lost By which we the intrinsick Treasure find Of future joys in a Seraphick mind On the Power of Faith IF all Men did our Christian Graces understand That like good Heraulds we might rank them according to their antiquity and merit Faith may claim the highest dignity and place as of just right to be the most fixed foundation on the blessed Rock of our Salvation which will unmov'd withstand the greatest Storms when lofty Structures built on Sand are with Wind
Perfumes laid there on purpose the which wraps the Pile in smoak and smells ore all the Roome At the End of the Song the Curtain falls and shuts both the Scene and Actors from the Beholders Sight FINIS Mid-night and Daily THOUGHTS To a careless Sinner THou dost not sure believe that thou shalt die Or never think'st upon it seriously Because thou liv'st as if thou didst disdain After this life ever to rise again Else thou wouldst set a higher price upon The Glories of thy Resurrection For 't is not possible a Man of sense Can always hold so ill intelligence With Heaven as not to wish or not to fear He never may or never would come there Some Caveats WHen petty Pleasures are procur'd with Gold When youth is gone and we decrpeid old There 's no more Gusto than a Tale twice told The greatest Monarchs while they flourished Were honour'd and ador'd but being dead Were soon forgot and only pitied So that whatever Marble Tombs pretend All their gay glories never can defend Their pamper'd bodies from the Beggar 's end Caesar and Alexander both became The highest splendor of a glorious Name And yet in some things both deserved blame So that when Men have all the World subdu'd They may themselves and all their Fame delude Unless they do in Piety conclude Those mighty Hero's car'd not to be good But brave because they never understood The sacred Sanction of our Saviour's Blood But those who saw the Miracles he did And heard how boldly he their Crimes forbid Are justly scourg'd instead of being chid What 's our due then who do believe yet run The course which that accursed Crew begun To slight God and re-crucifie his Son Which shews Men want some Caveats to restrain The idle Fancies of a busie Brain That frequent losses bring instead of gain These serious Thoughts are Caveats to despise Such Crimes as from our idle hours may rise And captivate our Senses in disguise Till by a power divine we can obtain Such bright serener joys as will sustain Our Souls and to eternity remain For we are born to learn and to express By daily actions what we do profess To purchase everlasting happiness On Poverty PUre honest Poverty in former times Was no disgrace but now our latter Crimes Have introduc'd new kinds of punishments To expiate our sins for old Contempts In luxury and such profuse expence That we are now chastiz'd for that offence With Penury to make us own our shame And free all present accidents from blame Which from God's mercy now to us is sent To make our most obdurate hearts repent And yet there may such poverty proceed From wicked Men whose malice have decreed Our ruine to get wealth for their support In spight of right or their damnation for 't And such absurd base scandals do invent That no man's innocence can e'er prevent From such Devils good Lord deliver me As hate all those who truly worship thee And with profound repentance do submit To all the judgments that our God thinks fit And make the poverty I now endure For all excesses past a perfect cure On Pride OF all the Vanities I know 't is Pride Which all the World most justly may deride That like an Ass with golden Trappings dress'd Thinks himself 'bove all other Beasts the best And when he brays does all that hear him fright Mistaking their amazement for delight Like gilded Fools that only learn of late To strut and make loud noise when they do prate For Pride did ne'er the greatest man adorn Nor free him from God's hate and wise Men's scorn Satan for Pride and for Ambition fell With his accursed Crew from Heav'n to Hell On Pride's Kindred PRide 's next of kin are such as do despise Their Neighbours for the Motes in their dark Eyes Who first their own Beams should remove then learn That Rule by which they may such Motes discern And by this caution constantly prevent Such rash Censures that do raise discontent Between good Friends who seldom will endure A blind Man's Precepts till himself he cure Septemb. 3. 1693. On this Day's Sacrament received LORD I Did believe but not such joy conceive As since I did thy Sacrament receive To ratifie thy mercy and my zeal By adding of thy Holy Spirit's Seal Upon my heart to manifest thy love And all my doubts and fears by faith remove Which made me shrink from death but now my voice Shall Hallelujah's sing and Soul rejoice To celebrate this Victory obtain'd O'er all my sins by thy bless'd Conduct gain'd How great then is my Obligation grown If thou wilt this day my Election own By adding joys on joys and grace on grace Till I in glory come to see thy face And now adore and worship thy great Name With warm addresses from this sacred flame On Adoption I Have read that he who lives in a constant uniform Obedience to the Gospel and performs the Conditions required in it departs sincerely from iniquity and shuts up the ways that lead him into temptation may give himself as strong and comfortable an assurance that he is an adopted Child of God as if a voice from the Clouds should tell him so and is a good argument for frequent Meditations How to know when our Sins are forgiven IT has been asked How a Soul may know when her Sins are forgiven and answered thus When she finds the same affection to God with his that said I hate iniquity and all false ways I utterly abhorr Yet David who said so did die and so must we Tho' our Souls may by the same grace become of the same temper with his and our sins be forgiven too yet we may consider how few Men do slip out of this World into eternity with a joyful hearty delight to be with God through divine Love which is the highest perfection of an holy life and is our greatest assurance to manifest our sins forgiven when our Souls are by faith so fixed on God as to know no joy so great as such spiritual Comforts do raise when we desire to be in Heaven which taught David to hate iniquity and to abhorr all false ways and so reduced him from all his sins to become a man after God's own Heart On Reconciliation before we die IF we fully consider our manifold sins and the horrid Punishment due unto us for them if not forgiven before we die 't will make us tremble at the approach of Death But if we do believe in Christ's plenteous Redemption with GOD's immense Mercy to deliver us from Hell's eternal Torments and exalt us unto Heaven's eternal Joy and Glory it may be justly said Happy is that Man who can obtain such a Reconciliation with GOD before he die as daily to delight in the Meditation of a sudden Death with inward assurance of his eternal Bliss the moment he expires which is the highest Exaltation of Joy on Earth and will be the greatest Comfort at the
hour of Death and ought to be the chief Business of all Men to live and die so who do march every moment from our Cradles dying towards our Graves On Heavenly Joy WHate'er we do on Earth we all pretend Heaven is our Home Heaven is our Journey's end That 's true Seraphick Joy when we do find Such elevated Bliss as fills the Mind With high transports of God's celestial Throne And all our meaner Objects we disown Yet sometimes spoil our bless'd angelick rest To rowl on Roses when on Thorns is best Vainly thinking some diviner Grace May smooth afflictions with a smiling face When sighs and tears if they come not too late More surely can our heavenly Joys create When God observes our Zeal to do our best To please we shall assuredly be bless'd And may expect to find more Penitents Encircling of God's Throne than Innocents Which shews sincere Repentance surely can With a fix'd Faith restore relapsed Man Thus may our high-rais'd warm addresses prove Bright Ecstasies of the divinest Love Then will our Souls from dross be clean refin'd And by our sacred Chymist be calcin'd Fit for a Choir of Angels to attend Such Saints and sing them to their Journey's end On taking heed of all our Ways WHen God reduces Sinners to take heed Of all their ways in thought in word and deed Repentance then will be of little use When all our actions will need no excuse We shall the World subdue and stoutly stand In full obedience unto God's Command And then will Death in glorious Robes descend To guide not fright us at our Journey's end So that if we take heed in all our ways We shall the Devil defeat and wear the Bays To a Friend My dear Friend I Have read in a divine Author That if God be with us he will make us see that he is with us and will not depart from our sight until he has brought us never to depart out of his Which is a Lesson of high concern to Men in this World for Thus to enjoy God here is to be in Heaven before we die When our Souls are thus transported with a continual divine Conversation with Almighty God we may taste and relish his celestial Joys to some degree so as to envite us to value his spiritual Comforts above all carnal Fruitions So that our great Business is to improve this Blessing to the highest reach of humane Fancy by a daily practice of holy Meditations to contemplate and observe how God doth infuse this joyful enjoying of Him into our Souls by the secret working of the Holy Ghost when we set our selves with zealous integrity to find him there to converse with us on this great lesson of his immense Mercy with our humble prayers to be enlightned from above to participate of such angelical Delights as far as our frail Nature will admit of which by frequent use will bring us to such an habit of holy living that God will manifest his presence ever with us by an inward Felicity of divine Comforts to such an assurance of our Election unto eternal Bliss as is ineffable to be described So that when we raise our Thoughts with a divine Desire to know as much of God as we can know and of his being with us he will add of his Grace to enlarge our Capacities to such heavenly Trances in Devotion that we shall be with him and he with us as we do wish with such a joy as will dread all diverting Occasions that shall obstruct those Emanations of his holy Spirit working in us And thus if we do entertain our selves by such frequent addresses to find God he will daily meet and ever dwell with us if we unfelgnedly desire to dwell with him and will give us such a glimpse of his eternal Bliss as may fix our hearts on Heaven and make us live every moment in a joyful Expectation of Death's quickest Summons thither and by this frequent entertainment of thy Soul with God Thou my Friend wilt find such a communication with God on Earth to be the highest Perfection of Piety and a felicity much more delightful than all other Diversions which can never reach such Seraphick Joys as I wish to thee my Friend On the Fear of Death IF we fully consider our manifold Sins and the horrid Judgment due unto us for them it may well be said Happy is that Man who can obtain such a Reconciliation with God before he die as daily to delight in the meditation of a sudden death with inward assurance of his eternal Bliss the moment that he expires Because all our Ideas of the divine Felicities above do seldom invite Men to welcome Death with cheerful Hearts Our fears are so much stronger than our Faith that too many Men do rather think than find they do believe that Christ's plenteous Redemption will cancel all their Crimes and bring them into Heaven and therefore dare not really rejoyce to look on death but start back from such angelick Happiness as he brings good Men to participate of in God's eternal Glory which natural infirmity of doubting can only by an illustrious Faith be removed and that Faith by frequent Prayers be obtained Then thus to live and so to die will make us live and die in great tranquility though not to reach St. Stephen's Faith who saw Heaven open to him yet to so great a degree of divine Raptures in Devotion as to be filled with elevations of an inward assurance of our Election which must come from God when the Soul is in such a blessed Trance of celestial Delight that is ineffable to be described How near such joy is to the joy we read of in Paradise when fervent Zeal is by a lively Faith so raised and sixed in God by frequent Meditations it is a wonder that such Men can fear to die or doubt togo to God with cheerful Hearts when thus invited and thus led by his holy Spirit with such bright illuminations of surprizing joys while those divine Flames last as cannot be related When Men's hearts are warmed with such Seraphick high Transports of Love and Mercy from Almighty God to give true Penitents some taste of their eternal Glory that being thus enlightned they may not fear to die but rather welcome death who comes to carry them to Heaven which is the highest Exaltation of the Soul's joy so to delight in God that the expectation of Heaven may be more pleasant than all the momentary Fruitions of this World are compared unto a blessed incomprehensible Eternity Which neither Wit nor Fancy can express When multiplying numbers make it less When neither first nor last can e'er be known Points so far distant yet so join'd in one That the eternal Circle shews us none But is a secret known to God alone 'T is such a sacred Riddle soâ— profound That humane Wisdom never can expound But leaves us still to wonder and adore What will be after and what was before On
can we justifie this Creed if in our actions we daily do transgress what we so daily do profess as if our present moments did afford us more concern to pamper fading Flesh for being Worms meat in the Grave above the nourishing of our Souls with heavenly Manna to endure unto eternity If this be Gospel-Truth as I think it is I cannot chuse but wish and pray that my Retirement may produce the like Effects in others by reading what I write to obtain the high Felicity I privately enjoy transcending all the glistring Vanities that I have seen and too largely sharedin but now know no Felicity in this World to be compar'd unto the Joy of living ever ready to go out of it which is not so easily done as said though we endeavour all we can Now Reader I have nothing else to say But wish thee Grace to meditate and pray Which will high joys create and teach thee why True Piety will never fear to dye When arm'd with such Divine Philosophy FINIS ADDENDA On our cold desire to go to Heaven WE seem to prize the other World 'bove this But fear to go to that undoubted Bliss We find few Men who would with Enoch fly From hence to Heaven that dare soar so high Or with Elijah would take like delight To mount his Fiery Chariot in his flight Our Faith for such Celestial Joy comes short Of our Fruitions here where our Support Is what we see and what we understand Which we preferr before God's best command Tho' Reason and Religion both agree To bring us to a Bless'd Eternity In the same moment we are rais'd from hence Through Faith by God's Divinest Influence Which only can Immortal Life Create By Death destroying this our Mortal Fate So that till we with God's Decree comply We do not truly Live until we Dye To a Friend in a fit of the Gout WElcome thy pain my Friend this Gout is sent In Mercy to fore-warn and to prevent Thy Gluttonies and Epicurean Crimes Which were unpractis'd in our Fathers times This is the effect of strong Falernian Wine And pride to wash thy Feet in Muscadine By eating Mushrooms stew'd with Ambergreece And the fat Livers of the Jews fed Geese With Peacocks Eggs in gravy to support Thy Luxuries and now thou 'rt punish'd for 't On the Fear of Death 'T IS strange that all Mankind should be afraid To Die nor any arguments perswade Wise Men from the terror of a Name Death is God's Messenger and we to blame To antedate his Arrant with such fear As doubts to go with Him we know not where Tho' Death's power only can our Souls convey To Heaven if we God's Holy Laws Obey But we still struggle with undaunted strife To keep our dying Bodies from true Life For want of Faith lest Death should by mistake Lead our sad Souls to the Infernal Lake When such gross misdoubting Grace only can Force Death to fright a misbelieving Man Which shews the Glory of our future State Is left to our own Option not to Fate On true Devotion WHen true Devotion is our chief delight We may presume 't is pleasing in God's sight And to our Souls will sacred Bliss reveal To fix and to eternalize our Zeal And while we live our blessed thoughts direct To the Seraphick Joys of God's Elect. And will by our Adoption when we dye Declare the glory of that dignity On God's wondrous Works WHen we consider God's Word and Deed And see the products of the smallest Seed It doth our wonder greatly antedate With joy and in our hearts fixt Faith create It doth all doubtful thoughts with truth confute When fancy guides our Fingers on the Lute But yet these petty arguments of sence Must all submit to God's Omnipotence In wonders of a higher nature shown Which all the Christian World admires and own But know not how the boystrous Sea or Land Do steady stand by God's Supreme Command Who has the Sun and Moon so firmly set With Stars in their fixt Spheres that no Man yet Can by his Industry or Art declare How high or what circumference they are And yet the Seat of God's Celestial Bliss Is still to be admir'd above all this Where God himself Inthron'd is pleas'd to dwell Which must in Glory all the rest excell Tho' these be wonders of a large extent There be some of much more wonderment That God should all Offences here forgive And grant us daily comforts while we live By our Souls washing in the Crimson Flood Of our Bless'd Saviours Sacramental Blood By which he does our Claim to Heaven advance When we approach in a Seraphick Trance And own his Mercies with intire delight To glory in his bright Beatick sight The more we think the more we wonder and The less of Miracles we understand Why the same Earth should ev'ry year produce Such various Fruits and Herbs for humane use If Faith and Gratitude did not combine To think such Meditations are Divine When God with secret Bliss such joys imparts As does create true Zeal in pious hearts And doth their Souls with flaming Love invite To Paradise ineffable to write Unless his Holy Spirit should indite To my Old Sick Friend MY good Old Friend why so sad does thy Age decline so fast that the Idea of thy Grave frights thee with fear to die Are we not all dying and none knows who shall go next nor how soon be gone if this occasion thy dismay I will teach thee an Antidote that will dispell the Poyson of that Serpent's bite and turn that universal curse of Death into a State of Bliss if thou can'st raise thy dejected Spirit to a quick sense of snaring the Eternal Joys of Heaven with those departed Saints who by Faith Prayer and Penitence are now exalted thither Let thy melancholy Meditations and Preparations for the Grave be changed from a Gaol delivery into a constant chearful zealous Conversation in thy Divine Retirements with God the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost by a total Resignation of thy Soul and all thy concerns unto them and think with pleasure how near thou art arrived to thy Journeys end to be with them in Paradise Then such Celestial Thoughts will be thy most pleasant entertainment and surely meet with surprising joy from Faith in Christ's plenteous Redemption which will beget a hearty speedy welcome unto Death's arrival who comes to conduct thee to Eternal Bliss and thou wilt also find that every devout step towards this felicity of thy approaching Salvation will make thy heart dance with a Saint-like delight to baffle the terrors of the Grave with a serene prospect of thy Eternal Happiness at hand and so make thy last hours full of Angelical transporting joy to be with God the moment thy Soul expires fix thy heart thus and all sad Thoughts will vanish when a sincere Faith becomes predominant Thy Heart by practice will delight in this Divine Elixir of Eternal Bliss On