followers strive to be rich and esteem'd Thy charitable labours were maliciously slander'd and shall not our faults have the patience to be reprov'd Thou disdain'dst not to be cal'd in scorn the Carpenters son and cannot our lownes bear a litle disparagement O how unlike are we to that blest Original * who descended from heav'n to become our pattern How do we go astray from that sacred path * which the holy JESUS trac'd with his own steps Pity O dear Redeemer the infirmitys of thy children and strengthen with thy grace our fainting harts Arm us O glorious Conqueror of sin and death against all the fears and terrors of this world Arm all our powers with those celestial vertues of Faith and Hope and invincible Love That we may still go on and resolutely meet * whatever stands in our way to heav'n Since we must suffer as Christians and deserve it as sinners * Lord let us bear it as becomes thy servants Glory be c. Antiph He humbled himself for us and became obedient to death even the death of the Cross Antiph Unworthy are we O Lord of the least of thy favours and ingrateful for all Psal LXIX MY God when I consider what thou hast suffer'd for us and what we have done against our â—â—elvs I am amaz'd at the wonders of thy goodnes and confounded at the vilenes of our misery Our sins were the cause of thy cruel death yet still we permit them to live in us We entertain the worst of thine enemys and treacherously lodg them in our own bosoms Prefering a petty interest before thy heav'n a transitory pleasure before eternal felicity Many we confess are the follys of our life and our consciences tremble at their own great guilt Many are the times thou hast graciously pardon'd us and still we relapse and abuse thy clemency The memory of our transgressions is bitter to us and the thought of our ingratitude extreamly afflicts us But is there O my JESU any stain so foul * which thy precious Blood cannot wash away Is there any heap of sins so vast * to exceed the number of infinite mercys O no Thou canst forgive more then we can offend but Thou wilt not forgive unless we fear to offend Unless we seek to Thee for peace and reconcilement and humble our selvs in thy holy presence Wherefore behold O Lord we fall down at thy crucified Feet and there ask pardon for our perverse affections Reverently we kiss thy pierced Hands and implore forgivenes of our wicked actions Humbly we salute thy bleeding Side and supplicate thy grace to purify our intentions All we can offer thy offended Majesty * to pacify the justice of thy wrath Is only an humble ey bath'd in tears and a penitent hart broken with contrition Only a firm Resolve to change our lives and even all this we must beg of Thee O Thou our gracious and indulgent Lord who freely pardon'st all that truly repent Who giv'st repentance to all that ask and invit'st all to ask by promising to give Make us look seriously into our own brests and hartily lament our many failings Make us search diligently for our bosom-sins and strive to cast them out with prayer and fasting Open thou O Lord our lips to accuse our crimes that we blush not to confess what we fear'd not to do Correct our past sins with the works of pennance that the stains they leave may be quite ta'ne away Preserve us herafter with thy powerful grace that no temptation surprize or overcome us Extend thy mercy O Lord over all our works since Thy self has declar'd 't is above all thine own Glory be c. Antiph Unworthy are we O Lord of the least of thy favors and ingrateful for all Our Father c. First Lesson ATtend to me O my People hear me O my Nation for a Law shall proceed from Me and my judgment shall rest to be a light of the world I gave my back to the scourgers and my cheeks to those who pluckt off the hair I turn'd not away my face from them that rebuk't me and spit upon me I have trodden the winepress alone and of the Gentiles there was not a man with me I lookt about and there was no helper I sought and there was none to aid All that saw the laught me to scorn they shot out their lips and shook their heads he hop't in the Lord let him deliver him because he delights in him let him save him I was as one that is deaf and heard not and as a dumb man that opens not his mouth They who sought evil against me spake vanitys and meditated deceits all the day long They open'd their mouths upon me as a lyon ravening and roaring many dogs incompast me the councel of the malignant besieg'd me They pierc'd my hands and my feet they numbre'd all my bones they divided my garments and for my vesture they cast lots They gave me gall to eat and in my thirst vineger to drink I am poured out as water and all my bones are disjoynted my hart is made like wax melting in the mid'st of my bowels my strength is dry'd up like a potsheard and my tongue cleav'd to my mouth Thou hast brought me down to the dust of death R. All this O Blessed JESU thou taught'st thy holy Prophets to prepare the world for thy coming all this and infinitely more Thou verify'dst in thine own Person with pains and sorrows and reproaches able to make even patience it self break forth into this sad complaint * O all you that pass by the way behold and see if there be grief like to my grief I was betray'd and bound and led away captive I was revil'd and buffeted and scornfully spit on I was stript and scourg'd and condemn'd to a cruel death I was crown'd with thorns and pierc't with nails and crucify'd among theeves * O all Second Lesson NOw therefore saith our Lord Turn to me with all your hart in fasting and weeping and mourning Rend your harts and not your garments and be converted to the Lord your God for he is benign and merciful patient and of much compassion and ready to pardon your offences who knows if he will return and forgive and leave behind him a blessing Seek our Lord while he may be found call on him while he is nigh Behold the hand of the Lord is not shortned that he cannot save nor his ear heavy that it cannot hear but your iniquities have divided between you and your God and your sins have hid his face from you that he will not hear Let the impious forsake his way and the wicked man his thoughts and return to our Lord and he will have mercy on him and to our God for he is bountiful in pardoning Wash you be clean take away the evil of your thoughts from mine eys cease to do perversly learn to do good seek judgment relieve the oppressed judg for the fatherless defend the widow Come
our own conditions but to manage wel what thou appointest Psal CXXIX WHy do we thus bemoan our selvs and rashly utter such repining words Seems it so hard a fate to tread the path * which all our Ancestors have gone before us Adam the first of men and Abraham the friend of God David the man after God's own hart and the blessed Mary Virgin-Mother of our Lord All these have paid their debt to nature and subscrib'd the law of universal mortality JESUS himself the Eternal Son of God expir'd on the Corss * and went to his glory through the gates of death And shal our fond self-love so blindly flatter us to wish an exception from this general Rule Shal we be murmuring stil our life is but a sapn and that expos'd to innumerable sorrows Does not the very shortnes abate it's miserys do not those many miserys commend its shortnes Should we not rather rejoyce at the sight of death that when e're it comes stil brings us advantage If in our age 't is a haven of repose and ought to be welcome after so long a voyage If in our youth it prevents a thousand calamitys a thousand dangers of ruining our souls If by an ordinary sicknes 't is the course of nature if by an outward violence 't is always the wil of heaven What need we fear how many deaths there are we are sure there can be but one for us Dying is an act to be done but once and once wel done we are happy for ever Lord we confes thy Decrees are just and our selvs the cause of all our miserys We sacrifice our youth to sport and folly and our manly years to lust and pride We spend our old age in craft and avarice and begin not to live til we are ready to dy Then we bewail the shortnes of our time when our selvs have prodigally thrown it all away We lead a loose and negligent life and then complain death takes us unawares Our days are perhaps too few to grow rich or satisfy the ambition of a haughty spirit But to be taught the love of God * and the meek and humble life of JESUS Requires not so much the number of years as the faithful endeavours of a pious mind Could we bestow on the improvement of our souls * the time we so vainly trifle away Our day would be short enough not to seem tedious and long enough to finish our appointed task And what O glotious Lord is our busines here * but to trim our lamps and wait thy coming But to sow the immortal seed of hope and expect herafter to reap the Increase No matter how late the fruit be gather'd if stil it go on in growing better No matter how soon it fal from the tree if not blown down before it be ripe O thou most just but secret Providence who govern'st all things by the counsel of thy Will Whose powerful hand can wound and heal lead down to the grave and bring back again Behold to Thee we bow our heads and freely submit our dearest concerns Strike as thou pleasest our helth our lives we cannot be safer then at thy dispose Only these few requests we humbly beg which O may thy clemency vouchsafe to hear Cut us not off in the midst of our folly nor suffer us to expire with our sins unpardon'd But make us Lord first ready for thy self then take us to thy self in thine own fit time Give them eternal rest O merciful Lord and may thy glorious light shine upon them for ever Glory be c. Antiph 'T is not for us O Lord to chuse our own conditions but to manage wel what thou appointest Antiph Only our earth shal return to earth but our better part shal live for ever Psal CXXX MY Soul all these complaints concern not thee whom thy bounteous God has made immortal Who when this house of clay shal fal into dust * and this narrow cage be broken down Shalt soar aloft on thine own free wings and spread thy boundles ey over all the world If thou hast happily train'd up thy self * to aim stil upwards at the highest heavens Swift as a flash of quickest lightning * shalt thou instantly fly to those blessed Objects But if thy thoughts have flag'd below and delighted to hover too near this earth If above all things thou hast lov'd thy God but not lov'd all things in order to thy God Or if thy tears have been too few to wash away thorowly the remaining stains Unworthy as yet of that blysful light * whose beams endure not the least impurity Thou must sit down in the shades of sorrow and dwel in the vale of tears and darknes There thou must sigh and mourn and wait til the days of thy purifying be fully finisht O the dear price those prisoners pay * for neglecting here to perfect their accounts How are their souls enflam'd with anguish and continually tortur'd with unspeakable pains How do they sadly lament their careles libertys and the litle passions they too much obey'd But alas their repentance comes now too late * to meet with that mercy they so long abus'd Now they must ly in this tedious dungeon til their patience have satisfyd the utmost farthing Only this hope sustains their hart and sweetens a litle their bitter cup That the redeeming Day is stil drawing on and wil infallibly at last appear O may that happy Day make hast to come and chear their darknes with its radient beams O may that Sun of Justice speedily arise and disperse the mist that intercepts their sight Come Lord come quickly dearest JESU and rescue with thy power thine own Inheritance Thou who cam'st humbly once to redeem us sinners come gloriously now to deliver thy Servants Deliver them O Lord from the snare of the enemy and their captive souls out of the hand of the Wicked That they may pass from death to life and dwel with Thee in thy blessed peace Give them eternal rest O merciful Lord and may thy glorious light shine upon them for ever Antiph Only our earth shal return to earth but our better part shal live for ever Our Father c. First Lesson MAn that is born of a woman lives a short time and is fill'd with many miserys He comes forth as a flower and is bruised into dust he flyes away as a shadow and never continues in the same state and thinkest thou fit to open thine eys upon such a one and bring him before thee into Judgment Who can make clean him that is conceiv'd of unclean seed is it not Thou who only art The days of man are short and the number of his months are with thee thou hast appointed his limits which cannot be passed depart a litle from him that he may rest till as a hireling his wisht-for day shal come Who wil grant me this that in Hell thou wouldst protect me and hide me til thy fury pass away and appoint me a
their birth and the unfortunate companions that inveagled them to sin They shall curse this vain deceitful world and cry out with a desperate enraged fury Are these the effects of those found desires whose enjoyment we made our chief felicity Alas what avail us now our wanton liberties aud the fugitive pleasures we so eagerly persu'd What comfort receive we from those empty honours * and faithles riches we so highly esteem'd They all are vanisht away like a shadow and as a cloud of smoke that 's scater'd with the wind But the remorse and punishment endure for ever and torture our spirits with perpetual anguish Thus shal they cry and none regard to hear them thus shal they mourn and none be found to pity them O sad expectance of a dissolute life O dreadful consequence of an impenitent death Eternally to long for what they never can enjoy eternally to suffer what they never can avoid Blessed be thy gracious Providence O God that with such tender care forewarns us of our dangers O save us too dear Lord from all those dangers save us for thy mercys sake Save us and make us fearful to do * what when we have done will make us miserable to suffer Quicken our apprehensions of the ruinous effects of Sin and with thy terrible threatnings check our unbridled passions That if thy glorious promises move not our harts the fear at least of hell may fright us into heav'n Glory be c. Antiph The day will come it will infallibly come when God will destroy all that work iniquity Antiph The day will come it will infallibly come when God will Crown all that love his glory Psal XLII VVHy do you mourn you children of the light to whom belong the promises of Blyss Who feed on the pleasant fruits of piety and the continual feast of a good conscience Who tast already the sweetnes of hope and herafter shal be satisfied with the fulnes of fruition What can molest your happy state whom the God of Glory has chosen for himself Whom he has adopted into his own Family and design'd for heirs of the Kingdom of heaven That Blessed Kingdom where all delights abound and sorrow and tears are banisht away Where none are sick or grow old or dy but flourish in health and youth and immortal life Where none are perplext with cares or fears but dwel secure and free for ever Where we no more shal be subject to chance no more expos'd to the danger of tentation Where we no more shal be crost by others no more disquieted by our own passions But a serene tranquillity perpetually within us and innumerable joys all round about us Joy in the excellencys of our glorifyd bodys joy in the perfections of our enlarged souls Joy in the sweet society of Saints joy in the glorious company of Angels Joy in the ravishing sight of our beloved JESUS joy in the blisful union with the adored Deity All shal be joy and love and peace and all endure for eternal ages Let then the impenitent sinner be frighted with fear and the obdurate hart break asunder with grief But for the hopeful Innocent let them always be glad and the servants of JESUS rejoyce and sing Sweet is the yoke of thy love O Lord and light the burthen of thy commands But O how far more rich are thy faithful promises how infinitely greater thy glorious rewards When every vertue shal wear its proper crown and shine with a Diadem fit for its own head The humble there shal be highly exalted and the poor in spirit prefer'd to be Kings The meek shal posses that holy land and the mourners be comforted with eternal refreshments The clean of hart shal see the God of purity and the lovers of peace have the priviledg of his Children They who hunger and thirst after heav'n shal be fill'd and the merciful entertain'd with the embraces of mercy They who suffer persecution shal abundantly be rewarded and the enlightners of others shine bright as the stars They who relinquish any thing for God shal receive a hundred fold and all the Just be in glory for ever Then shal they bless the true friend that reprov'd them and the charitable hand that assisted to their happines They shal bless the provident mercys of their God and sing aloud the victorys of his grace Is this the effect of those litle pains we took are these the repairs for those petty losses we suffer'd Happy we who deny'd our selvs toys and now are advanc't to these high felicities Millions of years shal pass away and our glory shal seem but then to begin Millions of Millions shal pass away and our glory shal be no nearer its end Thus shal they all rejoyce and none disturb them thus shal they sing and all the heav'ns joyn with them O sweet expectance of a pious life O happy consequence of a holy death Eternally to be free from whatever can afflict eternally to enjoy whatever can â—â—elight Blest be thy gracious Providence O God that with so large a bounty woos us to our happines Woos us in a way we are so apt to be taken the love of our selvs and our own great interest As thou hast prepar'd such felicitys for us O may thy grace prepare us for them O may this best of works take up all our time at least take up the best of our time At least every morning let us renew our hope and close the evening with the same sweet thoughts Let us not faint and we surely shall see a prosperous issue out of all our sorrows Still let us labour still let us suffer our troubles are short and our joys eternal Glory be c. Antiph The day will come it will infallibly come when God will crown all that love his glory Antiph What will it profit us to gain the whole world and lose our own Souls or what shal we give in exchange for our souls Psal XLIII COme now my soul and chuse for life and death are set before thee Chuse while thy gracious Lord allows thee day lest the night of darknes overtake thy neglect Chuse but remember thy eternity is concern'd and examine well ere thou mak'st thy resolve Call all the pleasures of the world before thee and ask if any of them be worth such pains Ask if to satisfy some irregular passion * can recompence the forfeiture of such felicitys Ask if the vain forbidden things thou lov'st * deserve thy affection better than thy Maker Are they more worthy in themselvs or beneficial to Thee that thou canst prefer them before thy Redeemer Dost thou expect to be quiet by enjoying them or everlastingly happy by their procurement Will they protect thee at the hour of thy death or plead thy caus at the day of Judgment O 〈◊〉 they but deceive me with a smiling look which I too often have prov'd by dear experience 'T is heav'n alone that yeilds a true content 't is heav'n alone
Servants prophecy of Thee thus did their children sing thy praises Blessed be the Lord our God who alone does wonderful things and blessed be the Name of his Majesty for ever His dominion shall reach from sea to sea and from the river to the end of the world They who dwell in the wildernes shall kneel before him and his enemys shall lick the dust The Kings of Tharsis and the Isles shall offer him presents the Kings of Arabia and Saba shal bring him gifts All the Kings of the earth shal adore him and all Nations do him service For he shall rescue the weak from the hand of the mighty the weak who had none to help him He shall be favourable to the simple and the needy and preserve the souls of the poor He shall deliver them from usury and oppression and their name shall be honourable in his sight He shal live and to him shal be given of the gold of Arabia they shal adore him perpetually and bless him all day long O thou eternal King of heav'n and earth make good to thy servants these happy predictions So rule us here that we obey thy grace so favour us herafter that we injoy thy glory Glory be c. Antiph Lord thou not only offer'st us salvation but lay'st in means before hand to make us accept it Antiph All 's one to Thee O mighty Love whether joy or sorrow so mankind be sav'd Psal XCV 'T Was not thy joys alone O dearest Lord that thou inspir'dst into thy holy Prophets But thou reveal'dst to them thy sorrows too and commandedst them to publish them with a tender care That they not only should speak thy words but the more to affect us put on thy person O let our eys run down with water and our harts faint away with grief While we remember the suff'rings of our Lord and hear his sad complaints I gave my body to those that beat it and my cheeks to those that buffeted them I turn'd not away from them that reproach't me nor from them that spit on my face My enemys whisper together and spitefully maligne me when wil he dy and his name perish My familiar friend who ate of my bread * has lifted up his heel against me But thou upheldst me O Lord in my integrity and fet'st me before thy face for ever They Compast me about with words of malice and fought against me without a cause They rewarded me evil for good and hatred for my love I am poured forth like water I am taken away as a shadow when it declines My hart within me is as melted wax and all my bones are out of joynt My strength is dry'd up like a potsheard and my tongue cleaves to the roof of my mouth I'expected some to pity me and there was none I look't for Comforters but I found not one O my god my God how far hast thou forsaken me thou hast brought me into the dust of death Our father 's called to Thee and were deliver'd they trusted in Thee and were not abondoned But I am a worm and no man the reproach of men and the despis'd of the people All that see me laugh me to scorn they shoot out the lip and shake their head saying He trusted in God that he would save him let him deliver him if he delight in him Be not far from me O Lord my strength for trouble is nigh and none to help me The Assembly of the wicked have inclosed me about they pierce my hands and my feet I 〈◊〉 tell all my bones they gaze and stare upon me They part my garments among them and on my vesture they cast lots They gave me gall to eat and in my thirst vinegar to drink All these sad things O Lord thy Prophets foretold * to prepare our faith for such exorbitant truths All these indeed they expresly foretold but could there be found such wretches as would act them Yes O my God thine own selected nation conspir'd against Thee and with innumerable affronts most barbarously murther'd Thee This too even this thy cruel death thou plainly foreshewd'st The Inhabitants of Jerusalem shall look on me whom they crucify'd But O you holy Prophets what was the dismal cause * that shed the blood of this spotles Lamb He had they quickly answer done no iniquity nor could any fraud be found in his mouth But he was smiten for the sins of the people and taken away from the land of the living He deliver'd up himself to death and was numbred with the wicked he bore the sins of many and pray'd for his transgressors All we like sheep have gone astray and God laid on Him the iniquity of us all He was wounded for our offences and bruised for our transgressions The chastisements of our peace was upon him and by his stripes we were healed O blessed JESU who took'st upon thee our infirmitys to bestow on us thy own perfections Heal us thou great Physician of our souls and let us sin no more lest a worse thing befal us Heal us by the Mystery of thy holy Incarnation and the meeknes of thy humble Birth Heal us by the precious blood of thy Circumcision and the sweet and ever blessed name of JESUS Heal us by thy gracious manifestation to the Gentiles and the powerful influence of all thy Miracles Heal us by the exemplary obedience of thy Presentation and the Soveraign balsom of thy passion Heal us by the joys of thy victorious Resurrection and the triumph of thy glorious Ascension Heal us by the memory of all thy Blessings heal us by the memory of this days Mercy Heal us thou great Physician of our souls and let us sin no more lest a worse thing befal us Glory be c. Antiph All 's one to Thee O mighty Love whither joy or sorrow so mankind be sav'd Our Father c. First Lesson Isa 11. A Branch shal come forth from the root of Jesse and a flower rise up out of his root and the spirit of our Lord shal rest upon Him the spirit of wisdom and understanding the spirit of Counsel and strength the spirit of knowledg and piety and the spirit of the fear of our Lord shal replenish him He shal not judg according to the sight of the eys nor rebuke according to the hearing of the ears but he shal judg the poor in justice and rebuke for the mild of the earth in equity he shal strike the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips kil the impious Justice shal be the Girdle of his loyns and Faith the binder of his reins The Wolf shal dwel with the Lamb and the Leopard ly down with the Kid the Calf and the Lyon and the Sheep shal abide together and a little child lead them they shal not hurt and they shal not kil in all my holy mountain because the earth is filled with the knowledg of our Lord as the waters cover the Sea In