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B05787
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The devout companion: containing prayers and meditations for every day in the week: and for several occasions, ordinary and extraordinary.
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E. S.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing S2450A; ESTC R213357
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46,424
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199
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THE Devout Companion Containing PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS FOR Every Day in the Week AND FOR Several Occasions Ordinary and Extraordinary Psal 55. 17. Evening and Morning and at Noon will I pray and cry aloud and he shall hear my Voice The Twelfth Edition LONDON 〈…〉 Henry Rhodes at the 〈…〉 he corner of Brile 〈…〉 1699. TO THE Truly Honoured The LADY J. C. MADAM AT Your Request these ensuing Prayers and Meditations were composed which I here present to Your view not that You want my weak Instructions for You are known to be so good a Proficient in God's School and have more of this Heavenly Language by Heart than I can instruct you by Precept The Meditations I have taken from the Psalms of that sweet singer of Israel the Royal Prophet and this Key opens not only the Kingdom of Grace but the Kingdom of Heaven too it being an exact Composure of all Christian Vertues No Worshipping can be more true or more spiritual than the Psalter said with a pure Mind and a hearty Devotion For David was God's Instrumeâ—t to the Church teaching and admonishing as our Duty is to each other in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual Songs making melody to the Lord. In your Voyage to the Almighty You might have I doubt not a better Card or Compass to sail by than this Form of Prayer which I prescribe yet I beseech You encourage others by Your pious Example to feed upon this Milk for Babes those which are weak by tasting of it your Self So recommending it to Your Pious Acceptation wishing You all Happiness that this Earthly Paradise can afford whist You remain upon Earth and at the last a Crown of Immorral Glory in the highest Heavens is the earnest desire of Madam Your humble and faithful Servant in Christ Jesus E. S. THE Devout Companion Containing MEDITATIONS AND PRAYERS For every Day in the Week c. A Preparatory Prayer against wandring Thoughts and vain Imaginations Thrice Holy Blessed and Glorious Trinity Three Persons and One God have mercy upon me a miserable Sinner O Almighty God the only Giver and Bestower of all good things and without whose special Favour and Grace no Man hath Power to perform any spiritual Duty as he ought to do O Lord I know not what to pray for as I ought O let thy Spirit help my Infirmities and enable me to offer up a spiritual Sacrifice acceptable to thee by Jesus Christ II. Make me to remember into whose Presence I am come and with whom I have to do even with a God of infinâ—te Majesty before whom the Cherubims veil their Faces as being astonished at the Presence of so great a God as thou art How dare I then a moâ—t vile and sinful Creature who am but Dust and Ashes presume to appear at this time before thee who have drunk Iniquity like Water breaking so often thy holy Laws and Commandments by committing those things thou forbiddest and leaving undone those good things thou commandest III. But I come unto thee O Lord in the name of thy dear Son Jesus Christ the Righteous who hath redeemed me with his most precious Blood O then look upon me in him and for the merits of his Sufferings pardon all my Sins and blot out my Offences Strike an awful reverence in my Soul that I may continually keep a watch over my Thoughts Words and Actions least my Presumption and want of due Reverence unto thy Deity should turn my Prayers into Sin IV. Give me a lively apprehension of all my wants and necessities and a right Understanding both of those Blessings which I have received from thee and of those great Mercies which thou hast promised to bestow on them that ask thee that so I may be endued with Expressions both for Prayer and Thankfulness and may become able by the assistance of thy Grace to pour out my Soul continually before thee Support me with Faith that I may come with a good assurance to thy Throne of Grace to offer up my earnest Supplications unto thee and let me not go away from thy presence without a Blessing V. Grant Lord that this holy Exercise of Prayer may prove a delight to me O make me constant and diligent in the use of it remembring the speedy access the Prayers of the Faithful have in thy Presence and what a great Privilege it is for poor Mortals to unfold their Wants and lay open their Desires and Griefs before thee VI. Ever O Lord let the end of my Prayers be to thy Glory always exercising a Conscience void of Offence by offering up my Thanksgivings for Mercies received as I shall be earnest in suing for those Gifts and Graces I stand in need of Grant this O heavenly Father for the sake of thy dear Son my only Saviour and Redeemer Amen Meditations for Sunday THis is the Day which the Lord hath made a Day of Rest to our Bodies and for the Benefit of our Souls O let us rejoice and be glad in it all the Days of our L 〈…〉 leaving off our worldly Thoughts and Employments and be â—eeking after our future Happiness II. Great iâ— the Lord and great is the Honour of this day above all others The Jews kept Holy the Seventh Day and we Christians the Sunday or Lord's Day They in their Sabbath were especially to remember the Creation of the World but we in ours the Resurrection of Christ who hath made a way for us into that better worâ—d which we expect hereafter III. This convinceth the Folly of the Jews who are so superstitious in observing the Ceremony of Rest as that they think they ought not to prepare any Food for their bodily sustenance on the Sabbath-Day neither do any work tho' it be for the Resection of Life it self But God in the Institution of the Sâ—bbath so rested whose Example we ought to imitate as that he ce 〈…〉 not in â—â—sting from doing good but in câ—â—sing to Create he continued to Preserve of which our Saviour saith My Father worketh hitherto and I work IV. This Day is set apart to be employed in the Worship and Service of God First more solemnly and publickly in the House of God from whence none ought to absent himself unless sickness or some extraordinary occasion prevent him Secondly at home privately praying with your Family or in your Closet exercising those other Duties of Reading and Meditation V. O Praise the Lord then O my Soul and enter into Contemplation with thy self upon all his Mercies Consider what a great Benefit it is to thee that there is such a set time weekly for thy spiritual Relief and Comfort cast off all worldly Business then and freely embrace this joyful Day of harvest whereby we may lay up in store for the whole Week nay even for our whole Lives VI. This day furnishes us with that Golden Rule by which we may square all our Actions and at last attain to the perfection of him whom the Royal Psalmist makes
the Grave I praise thee O Lord from the very bottom of my heart for all thy love and boundless mercy and kindness for thy holy Incarnation Passion Resurrection and Ascention into Heaven and sitting at the right hand of God the Father where thou makest Intercession for me II. In thy merits I beseech thee to look upon me thou art that living Sacrifice that was offered up for me and in thy Name do I offer up unto thee this my morning Sacrifice evermore praising thee and magnifying thy holy Name Mortifie in me all fleshly Corruptions quicken me in the inner Man By the power of thy death let me die unto Sin and by the power of thy Resurrection let me rise to Righteousness and newness of Life Let the one as an antidote expel the poison of Ungodlyness and the other as a restorative excite me to Holiness III. Enlighten my Understanding that I may know thy Will reform my Life that I may do all things aright and to discern Good and Evil. Teach me to fear thy Name to neglect all things in regard of thee to be grieved at my own and others Sins but rejoyce exceedingly whensoever I can please thee Let me this Day labour that whatsoever I do may be pleasing in thy sight as I am thy Servant let me depend upon thee and as I am a Christian walk worthy of my Vocation and Calling IV. Be gracious and favourable unto the whole Church and bless every particular Member thereof be good to the light of our Eyes the breath of our Nostrils thy Solomon our gracious King bless thine own Tribe the Tribe of Levi the Nobility Gentry and Commonalty and let thy Peace rest upon those that pray for our Peace wheresoever dispersed over the Face of the whole Earth Lord keep me the remaining part of this Day in thy Truth and give me Peace and true Faith in thee now and for evermore Amen A Prayer for Thursday Noon For God's Blessing on our Endeavours O Eternal and most gracious God who though thou art ever infinite yet enlargest thy self by the number of our Prayers and takest our often Petitions to thee to be an addition to thy Glory so great is thy Humility toward poor Mortals I most humbly beseech thee O Lord that thine Eyes may continually attend upon me and thy Grace daily defend me from all danger succour cherish and comfort me in my Necessities and govern all my counsels Studies and Labours so that I may spend this Day according to thy blessed Will and the discharge of my own Conscience that warily avoiding all things that may displease thee and setting always before my Eyes thy Fear I may by the assistance of thy heavenly Grace and the guidance of thy holy Spirit work that which is acceptable and pleasing unto thee unto thy Praise and Glory for ever Amen A Prayer for Thursday Night For Deliverance from Sudden Death O Lord most holy the giver of all good things and the protector of all those that love thee I give thee most humble and hearty thanks nor only for thy preservation of me this day but all my life O Lord forgive me the Offences I have committed against thee this Day blot out all my sins with the blood of thy dear Son â—esus Christ and I beseech thee for his sake remember them no more II. Vouchsafe O Lord to extend thine accustomed goodness and protection over me this Night that I may peaceably and quietly take my rest which thou hast appointed for the refreshing of my wearied and weak body and I beseech thee to defend me that nothing hurt me keep me also good Lord from sudden and unprovided Death and preserve me by the guard of thy holy Angels that I may enjoy my rest this Night in thee until the Morning and then give my self to the fulfilling of my Duty the discharge of my Employment and the working of thy will unto my life's end III. In whose Name I referr my self wholly to the Almighty Protection even in the Name of thy blessed Son Jesus Christ the Righteous beseeching thee that when this Life shall have an end and my last sleep being come I may take my everlasting Rest with thee in thy heavenly Kingdom for the which Kingdom I do heartily beseech thee of thine inestimable goodness to fit and prepare me and all other thy Servants to the attainment of the same for the glory of thy holy Name and the everlasting comfort of our own Souls Amen Meditations for Friday THe Lord even the most mighty God hath spoken and called the world from the rising up of the Sun unto the going down thereof Out of Sâ—on hath God appeared in perfect beauty Our God shall comâ— and shall not keep silence there shâ—ll go before him a consuming firâ— and a mighty tempest shall be stirred up round about him He shall call the Heaven from above and the Earth that he mâ—y judge his People Gather my Saints together unto me those that have made a Covenant with me with Sacrifice And the Heavens shâ—ll declare his Righteousness for God is Judge himself Hear O my People and I will speak I my self will testifie against thee O Israel for I am God even thy God I will not reprove thee because of thy Sacrifices or for thy Burnt-offerings because they were not always before me I will take no Bullock out of thine house nor He-goats out of thy fold For all the Beasts of the Forest are mine and so are the Cattle upon a thousand hills I know all the Fowls upon the mountains and the wild Beasts of the field are in my sight If I be hungry I will not tell thee for the whole world is mine and all that is therein Thinkest thou that I will eat Bulls flesh and drink the blood of Goats Offer unto God thanksgiving and pay thy vows unto the most highest And call upon me in the time of trouble so will I hear thee and thou shalt praise me But unto the ungodly said God why dost thou preach my Laws and takest my Covenant in thy mouth Whereas thou hatest to be reformed and hast cast my Words behind thee When thou sawest a thief thou consentedst unto him and hâ—st been partaker with the Adulterers Thou hast let thy mouth speak wickedness and with thy tongue thou hast set forth deceit Thou satest and spakest against thy Brother yea and hast slandered thine own Mother's Son These things hast thou done and I held my tongue and thou thoughtest wickedly that I am even such a one as they self but I will reprove thee and set before thee the things that thou hast done O consider this ye that forgâ—t God lest I pluck you away and there be none to deliver you Whoso offereth me thanks and praise he honoureth me and to him that ordereth his conversatition aright will I shew the salvation of God Glory be to the Father c. As it was in the beginning c. A Prayer for