without griefe nor yet griefe without ioy ☜ Of the right gouernement of our eyes Reasons mouing vs to mourning 1. If we mourn not for other mens sinnes they become ours 2. If we mourn many blessings follow it ☜ A three-fold comfort that sustained Dauid 1. A meditation of the righteousnesse of God 2. A meditation of the equity of Gods commands flowing from his righteous nature The Lawe of God represents to vs the image of God How horrible an euill sinne is ☞ If any man desire to know what will be his end let him inquire at Gods word The loue which godly men carry to the word cannot be satisfied in this lâ—…fe The nature of zeale Sundâ—…y sorts of zeale ☞ Rom. 10. 2. Ambrose The effects of holy zeale Rom. 12. Knowledge Zeale two wings of the soule How true zeale may be tried from false ☜ Who are enemies to godly men 3. A meditation of Gods constant and continual working according to his word As God hath a mouth to speake so a hand to doe as continuall experience hath proued ☞ Loue in God the fountaine of all his benefites Loue in man the fountaine of all his seruice ☞ Temporizers in Religion Carol. Sigon de rep 〈◊〉 lib. 1. c. 3 ☞ They are little esteemed of men who are great in the account of God Macar â—…om â—…â—… 1. Ioh. 3. Persons should â—…e regarded for heir faith Iam. 2. Obliuion of our duety is the first steppe to defection What a sure comfort we haue by the word of God The Crosse is necessary for a Pilgrime and why The kindly sonnes of God cannot want a Crosse. Carnal and spirituall ioy consist not together Delight in the word an argument of true Godline The fearefull recompence of them who loue not Gods word Vatab. Three things in this verse Praier is a seede which now wee should sowe plentifully that in haruest wee may reap the fruit thereof ☞ Feruency and zeale of heart required in praier Ambrose Psal. 119. Euery crying pearces not heauen The voice of the wicked in praier â—…uailes not Great things should be asked from the great God Praier a seruice due to God only He that seeks from God should also offer to him Continuance in praier recoÌ„mended vnto vs Ambrose in Psal. 119. ☜ How time posts away and we should striue with it ☞ How a man on earth may imitate the life of Angels Ambrose The first fruits of our hart and tongue euery morning shold be offered to God ☜ Gold professors reproued who spend all their time on the world If they cannot giue all at least they should giue the halfe of it vnto God Prayer mitigates trouble The common argument of al Gods children in Prayer Ambâ—…n Ps. 119 Is from his mercy not from their merit How Dauid desires God should deale with him in iudgement The godly are a mark of contradiction to Satan and al his instruments Comfort against the contempt of men No enemy so neere to hurt vs as God is neere to helpe vs. Comfortable examples therof Vpon what condition will the Lord be neere vnto vs. Amb. in Psalm 119. If we in our heart be also neere vnto him They that in affection goe farre from the Lord hurt themselues ☜ The word is a â—…affe to sutaine vs in trouble Man commands without reason he proâ—…es without performance 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 without effect not to the Lâ—… Experience of the truth of Gods word doth greatly comfort vs. The Word an Anchor of the soule The prouidence of God by stable order ruleth all things ☜ Eurip. Aug. in Matth. Ephes. 1. Dauids prayers proper to euery member of the Church How God is a spectator and partaker with vs in all our afflictions ☞ A good conscience makes a man familiar with God An appellation from men to God To be vsed of them who are wronged by men A warning to Iudges 2. Chron. 19. ☞ Wicked men are the authors of their owne wracke Amb. in Psalm 119. Basil. in Ps. 119. The word of God and his saluation are conioyned together Externall prosperity of wicked men not to be regarded Acts 26. The godly guilty of transgression but not of conteÌ„pt It is grace only by which one man differs froÌ„ another in godlinesse Godly men edifie their harts by euery thing they see in others In Gods mercy not in our merit stands our comfort Ambrose The mercies of God why they â—…re called great Esa. 40. Comfort against the greatnesse of our sinnes ☜ 1. Tim. 1. The mercies of God are called tender why Iam. 3. ☞ Life of grace should be cherished continually Constancy in Religion Trouble a tryall of true Religion Iob 1. Such as are not sincere worshippers will not continue ☞ Manifold were Dauids troubles There is one persecuter of the godly Satan but he hath many instruments Corrupt affections sore persecutors 1. Cor. 6. ☞ By visible enemies also he persecutes vs. ☜ The godly esteeme more of Gods glory then their owne liues A good thing that a man can desire God to look vpon him Ambrose Psal. 119. Vanity to hide our way from the Lord. Loue of Gods word in the godly is inuincible Not only Gods promises but his precepts also are loued of the godly Rom. 7. 8 Worldly things sought earnestly by worldlie men May make vs ashamed that cannot seek excellent things with an excellent affection Perswasion of the truth of Gods word brings out obedience Vatab. 2. Pet. 1. 19 The iudgement by-gon should warne the wicked of iudgements to come Euery man feares when iudgement comes Onely godly men feare before it come Euery example of godlie men learnes vs some lesson How Dauid saith he was persecuted without cause He compares not himselfe with God but with men Princes suppose they were wicked yet should they be reuerenced ☜ Murther of Kings is from the spirit of Saâ—…au 1. Sam. 24 The feare of Gods wrath ouercomes the feare of man his displeasure Psal. â—… The awe-band of wicked men is without them The awe-band of godly men is within them ☜ Ambrose Psal. 119. With what affection Gods word should be receiued ☞ Why naturall men esteeme not of Gods word The godly find ioyfull tydings by the word and therfore esteeme of it But the wicked finde it a message of their damnation What maruaile then they like it not Euery thing contrary to Gods word is a falsehood and why Colâ—… hatred of euill shortly turnes into a liking of euill ☜ Bodily vncleannes vnseemely for Gods people Ambrose Much more spirituall vncleannes He that hateth sinne must loue Gods law Affections if they be strong cannot lurke but will breake forth in actioÌ„s Ambrose Such is our coldnesse that we scarse pray so frequently on the Sabboth as Dauid did euery day Yet on the sabboth the daily sacrifice should be doubled ☜ It is not for one but for all the godly what euer comfort is in Gods word Godly men many wayes described in holy Scripture and why ☞ Yet are they
message sake esteeme them alwayesarorthy to be welcomed And sith they pray vnto God for your L. be loth to refuse them in their reasonable requests to you remembring that reason which Ambrose vsed to Theodose the Emperour Si dignus non sum qui à te audiar nec etiam dignus qui pro te à deo exaudiar If I be not worthy that I should be heard of thee when I speake vnto thee farre lesse am I worthy that I should be heard of God when I speake to him for thee The third is that ye haue a continuall care of your selfe Nature can teach you to care for those things which are yours but it is grace must learne you to care for your selfe Satan is a restlesse tempter but yet so subtill that he can frame his temptations according to the ages and states of men he tempts not children as he doth young men neyther tempts hee young men as hee doth the aged neyther tempts he the aged as he doth any of the other two Hee tempts children with folly and playes with them as the Prouerb is at the belly blinde seeking no more of that age but that it be passed ouer with foolish and friuolous things Young men againe he tempts to wickednesse many wayes by the fury of their inordinate concupiscence these are called by the Apostle The noysome lusts of youth Aged men most commonly he tempts them with couetousnesse and excessiue cares of the vvorld Omnia in homine cùmsenescunt vitia sola iuuenescit auaritia When all other sinnes waxe olde and feeble in a man onely couetousnesse waxeth young and increaseth her strength And who can tell how miserable that man is vvho in his childehood liued like a foole in his youth vvaâ—… filthy in his olde age a vvorldling vnlesse God by grace bring him out of that fearfull bondage I speake not this as if I for baâ—… the vse of this vvorld or â—…id condemne all care thereof or those lawfull pleasures your L. takes in building planting or other such 〈◊〉 vertues wherein ye stand vnto all that are about you a patterne of policy but to warne you that ye walke cere â—…spectly vsing this world as if ye vsed it not What-euer your actions be about it set your affections vpon better things knowing as saith the Apostle that the shape and figure of this world goes away It is vvisedome to forsake this vvorld vvith our vvill before we be forced to forsake it against our vvill to leaue it euen when we do possesse it Abraham liued not so long as did many of his fathers yet when he died it is said of him that he died full of dayes because he desired no mo Sith ye know ye must remoue be prepared like Israel in Egypt with their loines girded and their staues in their handes ready to march forward from Egypt to Canaan Be content with the dayes ye haue gotten line so as not needing any moe but vse euery day as if it were your last day after which if God giue you another take it as a super-plus and be thankefull to him for it For all these causes which I haue premitted and that the seed of godlinesse which these many yeares I haue knowen in you breeding spirituall remorse with teares and godly holy desires may at length be cherished and brought forward both to the flourishing and further fructifying I hauâ—… here presented to your L. these Meditations which I ordinarily deliuered to my people in time of their euening Prayers and haue 〈◊〉 it A holy Alphabet or A. B. C. of godsinesse so plaine in it selfe that children may vnderstand it and yet 〈◊〉 plentifull in heauenly instruction that the mest 〈◊〉 godly and auncient may euery day learne something by it Accept it reade it practise it right Honourable steppe forward in the godd course which now ye haue happâ—…y begun and these good conclusions which I know ye haue 〈◊〉 with your selfe may 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…orth â—…to 〈◊〉 that so the world may see by the fruit that the tree growes euerth longer the better Such of your waies and workes as your L. â—…nowes haue 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 others 〈◊〉 now â—…o amend them that all reaâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 satisfaction and such as before mistiked you for your euill may now thanke God for your good and you by wel-doing bringing forth fruits worthy of amendment of life may make sure to your selfe your calling and election Which mercie the Lord more and more confirme towards you for Christâ—… sake Amen Your L. in Christ Iesus William Cowper B. of Galloway A HOLY ALPHAbet for Sions Scholars My helpe is in the Name of the Lord. THere is no way by which a man may learne but by the same God doth teach him by precepts he instructs by requests he exhorts by promises hee allures by threatnings he terrifies and â—…herfore hath he sent his seruants of sundry quaâ—…ities according to their seuerall gifts vnto vs â—…ome like Moses to teach vs some like Esay to â—…omfort vs some like Ieremie mourning to vs â—…om like Dauid singing to vs. If when they teach we learne not if when they mourne we lament not if when they pipe we dance not yea if the sweetest songs of the sweet Singer of Iâ—…rael Qut noster Orpheus est delight vs not to raâ—…e vp our affections to the Lord are we not inexcusable By the deceit of vaine pleasure Sathan steales the heart of man from God and the Lord most artificially by the sweetnesse of true pleasure alâ—…lures him home againe What could the Lord haue done any more vnto vs that he hath not done He propones most profitable things for vs in his word and to make them the more welcome he seasons them with pleasures Nam quod gratum est iucundius recipitur constantius retâ—…netur Vnto this vse serues the whole booke of the Psalmes which is Commune quoddam medicinae promptuarium but in speciall this Psalme which in the iudgement of Ambrose exceeds the rest as farre as the light of the Sunne excels the light of the Moone It was written by one of the Saints of God but in so maruellous a manner that the wordes therof convene and agree vnto all Quod huius operis proprium est So that it is Veluti penu doctrinae publicum vnicuique apta conuenientia distribuens and therefore should be in no lesse account with those who loue the spirituall lise then is the vse of the Sunne the ayre and the fire for the entertainment of this naturall life The Author of this Psalme was most properly called by Euthymius Primi regis cor lingua calamus for he receiued this testimony from the heauenly Oracle That hee was a man after Gods heart Now because no greater ioy can come to the children of God then to know that God esteemes of them as he esteemed of Dauid that they are also men after the heart of God let
most described by loue for two causes 1 Loue in vs â—…des vs to a 〈◊〉 knowâ—…dge of Gods â—…ue to vs. 1. Ioh. 4. ☜ A great comfort to know that God is well minded toward vs. 2. By loue in vs we know we are in the state of grace Two things to trie if we haue loue or not 1. He that loues God cannot but loue his law fith it is a pourtrait of his image 2. He that loues God cannot but loue his Saints Ioh. 13. 1. Ioh. 4. And now our affection toward himselfe â—…s to be declared in our affection to his Saints As Dauid intreated weake Mephiboseth for Ionathans sake So should we poore weake Christians for Christs sake ☞ The great recompence of godlinesse Our greatest comfort is proâ—…ised now but not exhibited now Amb. The priuiledge of godly men No trouble can hurt them To the wicked prosperity is pernitious Their peace ends in perturbation ☞ The miserable estate of wicked men when comforts externall faile theÌ„ Esa. 28. Example hereof in Nero. Without application we can reape no comfort of Gods promiâ—…es Yea most comfortable promises are most terrible to such as 〈◊〉 not apply them Faith carries vs out of our selues to leane on the Lord. Matth. 7. Bern. Loue proued by obedience and obedience tryed by loue We sinne against God because we loue him not as we should if we loue him not we are inexcusable ☜ Hypocrisie and dissimulation farre from men who are truely godly Ambrose They lay open their cogitations and affections to God The wicked cannot hide from God yet will â—… be laid to their charge ☞ Godly men interrupt their prayers against their will We should pray for our praiers Basil. Prayer reiected a sore plaguâ—… Ambrose Three sorts of complaint made by the godly 1. Against inuisible enemies 2. Against visible 3. Against themselues Rom. 7. No wisedome in man without the word Ierem. Gifts of nature grace wherein different Praier should be seasoned with faith Iames 1 Feruencie Iames 5 Humility Prayer makes man on earth a great Courtier with God in heauen To pray and not preuaile is Moabs curse Praiers should bee seconded with promises and promises with performances They who goe before the pâ—…oin honour should goe before them also in good example Both soule and body and all that we haue receiued from God should be returned to him ☞ Christians are Prophets and should edifie one another The word of God keeps religion and order among men No successe in temporall things without Gods helping hand In spirituall exercises much more labour is lost if the grace of God help not Ier. 8. 22 ☞ The beginning of saluation we haue now the perfection we looke for 1. Peter 1 We haue comfort by the beginnings but no contentmeÌ„t Worldlings cold professors reproued who long not for better then they haue Luke 6 The word to vs in our pilgrimage is like Manna to Israell in the wildernes They who dispise the word need not look for saluation If naturall life may be loued How much more should eternall life be loued But many liue by the one who are dead as concerning the other Fruit of all Gods benefits is profit to vs praise to himselfe Dauid persecuted with banishment It is common to all men to wander from God Basil in Psal. 119. Ambrose Psal. 119. ☜ Such as thinke themselues without sin are but blinde Esay 6 An answere to presumptuous Papists boasting of perfection Bern. ☞ Confession of sin profitable Amb. de pâ—…nit lib. 2. c. 6 Gregor moral 22 God the great shepheard of his people Ambros. His 〈◊〉 toward his wandring sheepe The praise of the beginning progresse and perfection of our saluation is dew to God onely The godly neuer so fall that they lose all grace Ambr. The manifolde vses of Gods word to the godly What comfort we should finde in it if our affection toward it were like Dauids August ☜