the company of wickâ—ed Men and God taketh away merciful 〈◊〉 righteous men from the evil to come So 〈◊〉 dealt with Josiah I will gather thee to thâ— Fathers and thou shalt be put into thy grâ—â— in peace and thine eyes shall not see all the 〈◊〉 which I will bring upon this place And Goâ— hides them for a while in the grave untill 〈◊〉 indignation pass over So that as Paradise 〈◊〉 the Heaven of the soul's joy so the Graâ—â— may be term'd the Heaven of the bodies 〈◊〉 3. Whereas this wicked Body lives in a world of wickedness so that the poor Soul cannot look out at the Eye and not be infected nor hear by the Ear and not be distracted nor smell at the Nostrils and not be tainted nor taste with the Tongue and not be allured nor touch by the Hand and not be defiled and every sense upon every temptation is ready to betray the Soul by death the Soul shall be delivered from this Thraldom and this corruptible body shall put on incorruption and this mortal immortality 1 Cor. 15. 53. O blessed thrice blessed be that Death in the Lord which delivers us out of so evil a World and freeth us from such a body of bondage and corruption The third sort of Meditations are to consider what good Death will bring unto thee 1. DEATH bringeth the godly Man's Soul to enjoy an immediate Communion with the blessed Trinity in everlastâ—ng bliss and glory 2. It translates the Soul from the Miseâ—ies of this world the contagion of sin and â—â—ciety of Sinners to the City of the living â—ed the Celestial Jerusalem and the comâ—any of innumerable Angels and to the assemâ—ly and congregation of the first-born which 〈◊〉 written in Heaven and to God the Judge 〈◊〉 all and to the Souls of just Men made perâ—ect and to Jesus the Mediator of the new â—ovenant 3. Death putteth the Soul into the aactual and full possession of all the inheritance and happiness which Christ hath either promised unto thee in his Word or purchased for thee by his blood This is the good and happiness whereunto a blessed death will bring thee And what truly Religious Christian that is young would not wish himself old that his appointed time might the sooner approach to enter into this celestial Paradise where thou maist exchange thy Brass for Gold thy Vanity for Felicity thy Vileness for Honour thy Bondage for Freedom thy Lease for an Inheritance and thy mortal State for an immortal Life He that doth not daily desire this blessedness above all things of all others he is less worthy to enjoy it If Cato Vticensis and Cleombrotus two Heathen-men reading Plato's Book oâ— the Immortality of the Soul did voluntarily the one break his Neck the other run upon his Sword that they might thâ— sooner as they thought have enjoyed those joys what a shame is it for Christianâ— knowing those things in a more excellent measure and manner out of God's owâ— Book not to be willing to enter into these heavenly Joys especially when their Master calls for them thither If thereforâ— there be in thee any love of God or desirâ— of thine own happiness or salvation wheâ— the time of thy departing draweth nearâ— that time I say and manner of Death which God in his unchangeable Counsel hath appointed and determined beâ—fore thou wast born yield and surrender up willingly and chearfully thy Soul into the merciful hands of Jesus Christ thy Saviour And to this end when the time is come as the Angel in the â—ight of Manoah and his Wife ascended from the Altar up to heaven in the flame of the sacrifice so endeavour thou that thy spirit in the sight of thy friends may from the altar of a contrite heart ascend up to Heaven in the sweet perfume of this or the like spiritual Sacrifice of Prayer A Prayer for a sick Man when he is told that he is not a Man for this World but must prepare himself to go unto God O Heavenly Father who art the Lord God of the spirits of all flesh and hast made us these souls and hâ—st appointed us the time as to come into this World so having finished our course to go out of the same the number of my days which thou hast determined are now expired and I am come to the utmost bounds which thou hast appointed beyond which I cannot pass I know O Lord that if thou enterest into judgment no flesh can be justified in thy sight And I O Lord of all others should appear most impure and unjust for I have not fought that good â—ight for the defence of thy Faith and Religion with that zeal and constancy that I should but for fear of displeasing the World I have given way unto sins and errours and for desire to please my flesh I have broken all thy Commandments in thought word and deed so that my sins have taken such hold on me that I am not able to look up and they are more in number than the hairs on my head If thou wilt straitly mark mine iniquities O Lord where shall I stand if thou weighest me in the balance I shall be found too light For I am void of all righteousness that might merit thy mercy and loaden with all iniquities that most justly deserve thy heaviest wrath Buâ— O my Lord and my God for Jesus Christ thy Son's sake in whom only thou art well pleased with all penitent and believing sinners take pity and compassion upon me who am the chief of sinners Blot out all my sins out of thy remembrance and wash away all my transgressions out of thy sight with the precious blood of thy Son which I believe that he as an undefiled Lamb hath shed for the cleansing of my sins In this faith I lived in this faith I die believing that Jesus Christ died for my sins and rose again for my justification And seeing that he hath endured that Death and born the burthen of that Judgment which was due unto my sins O Father for his Death and Passion 's sake now that I am coming to appear before thy Judgment-seat acquit and deliver me from that fearful Judgment which my sins have justly deserved And perform unto me that gracious and comfortable Promise which thou hast made in thy Gospel That whosoever believeth in thee hath everlasting life and shall not come into Judgment but shall pass from death unto life Strengthen O Christ my Faith that I may put the whole confidence of my salvation in the merits of thy obedience and Blood Encrease O holy Spirit my patience lay no more upon me than I am able to bear and enable me to bear so much as shall stand with thy blessed will and pleasure O blessed Trinity in Unity my Creator Redeemer and Sanctifier vouchsafe that as my
to Consider with me how false how vain how vile are those things which still retain and chain thee in this wretched and cursed estate wherein thou livest and do hinder thee from the favour of God and the hope of eternal life and happiness Meditations on the hindrances which keep back a Sinner from the Practice of Piety THose hindrances are chiefly seven 1. An ignorant mistaking of the true meaning of certain places of the holy Scriptures and some other chief grounds of Christian Religion The Scriptures mistaken are these 1. Ezek. 33. 13 16. At what time soever a sinner repenteth him of his sin I will blot out all c. Hence the carnal Christian gathereth that he may repent when he will It is true whensoever a sinner doth repent God will forgive but the Text saith not that a sinner may repent whensoever he will but when God will give him Grace Many saith the Scripture when they would have repented were rejected and could not repent tho' they sought it carefully with tears What comfort yields this Text to thee who hast not repented nor knowest whether thou shalt have grace to repent hereafter 2. Matth. 11. 26. Come unto me all you that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest Hence the lewdest man collects that he may come unto Christ when he list But he must know that no man ever comes to Christ but he who as Peter saith Having known the way of righteousness hath escaped the pollutions of this world through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To come unto Christ is to repent and believe and this no man can do unless his heavenly Father draweth him by his grace 3. Rom 8. 1. There is no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus True but they are such who walk not after the flesh as thou dost but after the Spirit which thou didst never yet resolve to do 4. 1 Tim. 1. 15. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners c. True but such sinners who like St. Paul are converted from their wicked life not like thee who still continuest in thy lewdness For that Grace of God which bringeth salvation unto all men teacheth us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present world 5. Prov. 24. 16. A just man falleth seven times in a day and riseth c. In a day is not in the Text which means not falling into sin but falling into trouble which his malicious enemy plots against the just and from which God delivers him And though it meant falling in and rising out of sin what is this to thee whose falls all men may see every day but neither God nor Man can at any time see thy rising again by repentance 6. Isa. 64. 6. All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags Hence the Carnal Christian gathers that seeing the best works of the best Saints are no better then his are good enough and therefore he needs not much grieve that his devotions are so imperfect But Isaiah means not in this place the righteous Works of the Regenerate as fervent Prayers in the name of God charitable Alms from the bowels of mercy suffering in the Gospel's defence the spoil of Goods and spilling of Blood and such works which Saint Paul calls the fruits of the Spirit But the Prophet making an humble confession in the name of the Jewish Church when she had fallen from God to Idolatry acknowledgeth that whilst they were by their filthy sins separated from God as Lepers are by their infected sores and polluted cloaths from Men their chiefest Righteousness could not but be abominable in his sight And though our best works compared with Christ's righteousness are no better than unclean rags yet in God's acceptation for Christ's sake they are called white rayment yea pure sine linen and shining far unlike the Leopard's spots and filthy garments 7. James â— 2. In many things we sin all True but God's Children sin not in all things as thou dost without either bridling their lusts or mortifying their corruptions and though the relicks of sin remain in the dearest children of God that they had need daily to cry Our Father which art in heaven forgive us our trespasses yet in the New Testament none are properly called Sinners but the unregenerate but the Regenerate in respect of their Zealous endeavour to serve God in unfeigned holiness are every where called Saints Insomuch that St. John saith that whosoever is born of God sinneth not that is liveth not in wilful filthiness suffering sin to reign in him as thou dost Deceive not thy self with the name of a Christian whosoever liveth in any customary gross sin he liveth not in the state of grace Let therefore saith St. Paul every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity The regenerate sin but upon â—railty they repent and God doth pardon therefore they sin not to death The Reprobate sin maliciously sinfully and delight there in so that by their good will sin shall leave them before they leave it They will not repent and God will not pardon Therefore their sins are mortal saith St. John or rather immortal as saith St. Paul Rom. 2. 5. It is no excuse therefore to say we are all sinners True Christians thou seest are all Saints 8. Luke 23. 43. The Thief converted at the last gasp was received to Paradise what then If I may have but time to say when I am dying Lord have mercy upon me I shall likewise be saved But what if thou shalt not And yet many in that day shall say Lord Lord and the Lord will not know them The Thief was saved for he repented but his fellow had no grace to repent and was damned Beware therefore lest trusting to too late repentance at thy last end on Earth thou be not driven to repent too late without end in Hell 9. 1 John 1. 7. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin And 1 John 2. 1. If any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous c. Oh comfortable But hear what Sâ— John saith in the same place My little children these things write I unto you that ye sin not If therefore thou leavest thy sin these Comforts are thine else they belong not to thee 10. Rom. 5. 20. Where sin abounded grace did abound much more O sweet But hear what St. Paul addeth What shall we say then shall we continue in sin that grace may abound God forbid How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein Rom. 6. 1 2. This place teacheth us not to presume but that we should not despair None therefore of these Promises promiseth any grace to any but to the penitent heart The grounds of Religion mistaken are these 1. From the Doctrine of Justification
pretence of my Calling and Office robbed and purloined from my fellow Christians yea I have received and suffered Christ where I was trusted many a time in his poor members to stand hungry cold and naked at my Door and hungry cold and naked to go away succourless as he came and when the leanness of his checks pleaded pity the hardness of my heart would shew no compassion Where I should have made conscience to speak the truth in simplicity without any falsehood prudently imaging aright and charitably conâ—â—â—ing all things in the best part and should have defended the good name and credit of my Neighbour alas vile wretch that I am I have belyed and slandered my fellow-brother and as soon as I heard an ill report I made my tongue the Instrument of the Devil to blazon that abroad unto others before I knew the truth of it my self I was so far from speaking a good word in defence of his good name that it tickled my heart in secret to hear one that I envied to be taxed with such a blemish tho' I knew that otherwise the graces of God shined in him in abundant measure I made jests of officious and advantage of pernicious lies herein shewing my self a right Certain rather than an upright Christian And lastly O Lord where I should have rested fully contented with that portion which thy Majesty thought mâ—â—râ—st to bestow upon me in this Pilgrimage and rejoyced in anothers good as in mine own alas my life hath been nothing else but a greedy lusting after this Neighbours house and that Neighbours land yea secretly wishing such a man dead that I might have his living or office covâ—â—iâ—g rather those things which thou hast bestowed on another rather than being thankful for that which thou hast given unto my self Thus I O Lord who am a carnal sinner and sold under sin have transgressed all thy holy and spiritual Commandments from the first to the last from the greatest unto the least and hear I stand guilty before thy Judgment-seat of all the breaches of all thy laws and therefore liable to thy curse and to all the miseries that Justice can pour forth upon so cursed a creature And whether shall I go for deliverance from this misery Angels blush at my Rebellion and will not help me Men are guilty of the like transgression and cannot help themselves Shall I then despair with Cain or make away my self with Judas No Lord for that were but to end the miseries of this life and to begin the endless torments of hell I will rather appeal to thy Throne of Grace where mercy reigns to pardon abounding sins and out of the depth of my miseries I will cry with David for the depth of thy mercies Though thou shouldest kill me with afflictions yet will I like Job put my trust in thee Though thou shouldest drown me in the Sea of thy displeasure with Jonas yet will I catch such hold on thy Mercy that I will be taken up dead clasping her with both my hands And though thou shouldest cast me into the bowels of Hell as Jonas into the belly of the Whale yet from thence would I cry unto thee O God the Father of heaven O Jesus Christ the Redeemer of the World O Holy Ghost my Sanctifier three Persons and one eternal God have mercy upon me a miserable sinner And seeing the goodness of thine own Nature first moved thee to send thine only begotten Son to die for my sins that by his Death I might be reconciled to thy Majesty O reject not now my penitent Soul who being displeased with her self for sin desireth to return to serve and please thee in newness of life and reach from Heaven thy helping hand to save me thy poor servant who am like Peter ready to sink in the Sea of my sins and misery Wash away the multitude of my sins with the merits of that Blood which I believe that thou hast so abundantly shed for penitent sinners And now that I am to receive this day the blessed Sacrament of thy precious Body and Blood O Lord I beseech thee let thy holy Spirit by thy Sacrament seal unto my soul that by the merits of thy Death and Passion all my sins are so freely and fully remitted and forgiven that the curses and judgments which my sins have deserved may never have power either to confound me in this life or to condemn me in the world which is to come For my stedfast faith is that thou hast died for my sins and risen again for my justification This I believe O Lord help mine unbelief Work in me likewise I beseech thee an unfeigned repentance that I may hearâ—ily bewail my former sins and loath them and serve thee henceforth in newness of life and greater measure of holy devotion And let my soul never forget the infinite love of so sweet a Saviour that hath laid down his life to redeem so vile a sinner And grant Lord that having received these seals and pledges of my Communion with thee thou maiest henceforth so dwell by the Spirit in me and I so live by faith in thee that I may carefully walk all the days of my liâ—e in godliness and piety towards thee and in Christian love and charity towards all my Neighbours that living in thy fear I may die in thy favour and after death he made partaker of eternal life through Jesus Christ my Lord and only Saviour Amen 3. Of the means whereby thou maiest become a worthy Receiver THese means are duties of Two sorts the former respecting God the latter our Neighbour Those which respect God are Three First sound Knowledge Secondly true Faith Thirdly unfeigned Repentance That which respecteth our Neighbour is but one sincere Charity 1. of sound Knowledge requisite in a worthy Communicant Sound Knowledge is a sanctified understanding of the first Principles of Religion As first Of the Trinity of Persons in the unity of the God-head Secondly Of the creation of Man and his Fall Thirdly Of the curse and misery due to sin Fourthly Of the Natures and Offices of Christ and redemption by faith in his death especially of the doctrine of the Sacraments sealing the same unto us For as an house cannot be built unless the foundation he first laid so no more can Religion stand unless it be first grounded upon the certain knowledge of God's Word Secondly If we know not God's Will we can neither believe nor do the same For as worldly businesses cannot be done but by them who have skill therein so without knowledge must men be much more ignorant in divine and spiritual matters And yet in temporal things a Man may do much by the light of nature but in religious misteries the more we rely upon natural reason the further we are from comprehending spiritual Truth Which discovers the fearful estate of those who receive without knowledge and the more
tempt and move thee to relapse into thy former sins answer them as the Spouse doth in the Canticles I have put off my coat of my former corruption how shall I put it on I have washed my feet how shall I defile them again Lastly If ever thou hast found either joy or comfort in receiving the holy Sacrament let it appear by the eager desire of receiving it often again For the Body of Christ as it was anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows so doth it yield a sweeter savour than all the ointments of the world The fragrant smell whereof allureth all Souls who have once tasted the sweetness thereof ever after to desire oftner to taste thereof again Because of the savour of thy good Ointments therefore do the Virgins love thee O taste therefore often and see how good the Lord is saith David This is the Commandment of Christ himself Do this in remembrance of me and in doing this thou shalt shew thy self best mindful and thankful for his death For as oft as ye shall eat this bread and drink this cup ye shall shew the Lord's death until he came And let this be the chief end whereunto both thy receiving and living tendeth that thou maist be a holy Christian zelous of good works purged from sin to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world that thou mayst be acceptable to God profitable to thy brethren and comfortable unto thine own soul. Thus far of the manner of glorifying God in thy life Now followeth the Practice of Piety in glorifying God in the time of sickness and when thou art called to die in the Lord. AS soon as thou perceivest thy self to be visited with any sickness meditate with thy self 1. That misery cometh not forth of the dust neither doth affliction spring out of the earth Sickness comes not by hap or chance as the Philistines supposed that their Mice and Emrods came but from mans wickedness which as sparkles breaketh out Man suffereth saith Jeremy for his sins Fools saith David by reason of their transgressions and because of their iniquities are afflicted As therefore Solomon adviseth a man to carry himself towards an earthly Prince If the Spirit of him that ruleth rise up against thee leave not thy place for gentleness pacifieth great sins so counsel I thee to deal with the Prince of Princes If the spirit of him that ruleth heaven and earth rise up against thee let not thy heart despair for repentance pacifieth great sins And who soever returneth in his affliction to the Lord God of Israel and seeks him he will be found of him 2. Shut to thy Chamber door Examine thine own heart upon thy bed search and try thy ways Search as diligently for thy capital sin as Joshua did for Achan till thou findest it For albeit God when he beginneth to chasten his Children hath respect to all their sins yet when his anger is incensed he chiefly taketh occasion to chasten and enter with them into judgment for some one grievous sin wherein they have lived without Repentance 3. When thou hast thus considered all thy sins put thy self before the Judgment-Seat of God as a Felon or Murtherer standing at the Bar of an earthly Judge and with grief and sorrow of heart confess unto God all thy known sins especially thy Capital Offences wherewith God is chiefly displeased Lay them open with all the circumstances of the time place and manner how they were committed as may most serve to aggravate the hainousness of thy sins and to shew the contrition of thy heart for the same Lift up thine hand and acknowledge thy self before the righteous Judge of Heaven and Earth guilty of eternal death and damnation for those thy hainous sins and transgressions And having thus accused and judged thy self cast down thy self before the Fcotstool of his Throne of grace assuring thy self that whatsoever the Kings of Israel be yet the God of Israel is a merciful God And cry unto him from a penitent and faithful heart for mercy and forgiveness as eagerly and earnestly as ever thou knewest a malefactor being to receive his sentence crying unto the Judge for favour and pardon vowing amendment of life and by the assistance of his grace never to commit the like sin any more All which thou maist do in these or the like words A Prayer when one begins to be sick O Most righteous Judge yet in JESUS CHRIST my gracious Father I wretched sinner do here return unto thee though driven with pain and sickness like the prodigal Child with want and hunger I acknowledge that this sickness and paiâ— comes not by blind chance or fortune but by thy divine providence and special appointment It is the stroke of thy heavy hand which my sins have justly deserved and the things that I feared are now faln upon me Yet I do well perceive that in wrath thou remembrest mercy when I consider how many and how hainous are my sins and how few and easie are thy corrections Thou mightest have strucken me with some fearful and sudden death whereby I should not have had either time or space to have called upon thee for grace and mercy and so I should have perished in my sins and have been for ever condemned in hell But thou O Lord visitest me with such a fatherly chastisement as thou usest to visit thy dearest Children whom thou best lovest giving me by this sicknes both warning and time to repent and to sue unto thee for grace and pardon I take not therefore O Lord this thy visitation as any sign of thy wrath or hatred but as an assured pledge and token of thy favour and loving kindness whereby thou dost with thy temporal Judgments draw me to judge my self and to repent of my wicked life that I should not be condemned with the godless and unrepentant World For thy holy Word assures me that whom thou lovest thou thus chastenest and that thou scourgest every son that thou receivest That if I endure thy chastening thou offerest thy self unto me as unto a son and that all that continue in sin and yet escape without correction whereof all thy children are partakers are bastards and not sons and that thou chastenest me for my profit that I may be a partaker of thy holiness O Lord how full of goodness is thy Nature that hast dealt with me so graciously in the time of my health and prosperity and now being provoked by my sins and unthankfulness hast such fatherly and profitable ends in inflicting upon me this sickness and correction I confess Lord that thou dost justly afflict my Body with sickness for my Soul was sick before of a long prosperity and surfeited with ease peace plenty and fulness of bread And now O Lord I lament and mourn for my sins I acknowledge my wickedness and mine iniquities
grace and mercy Yea we read of many in the Gospel that by sicknesses and afflictions were driven to câ—me unto Christ who if they had had health and prosperity as others would have like others neglected or contemn'd their Saviour and never have sought unto him for his saving health and grace For as the Ark of Noah the higher it was tossed with the Flood the nearer it mounted towards Heaven so the sanctified Soul the more it is exercised with affliction the nearer it is lifted towards God O blessed is that Cross that draweth a sinner to come upon the knees of his heart unto Christ to confess his own misery and to implore his endless mercy Oh blessed ever blessed be that Christ that never refuseth the sinner that cometh unto him though weather-driven by affliction and misery 7. Affliction worketh in us pity and compassion towards our fellow brethren that be in distress and misery whereby we learn to have a fellow-feeling of their Calamities and to condole their estate as if we suffer'd with them And for this cause Christ himself would suffer and be tempted in all things like unto us sin only excepted that he might be a merciful High Priest touched with the feeling of our infirmities For none can so heartily bemoan the misery of another as he who first suffered himself the same affliction Hereupon a Sinner in misery may boldly say unto Christ Non ignare mali miseris succurito Christe Our frailty sith O Christ thou didst perceive Condole our state who still in frailty cleave 8. God useth our sicknesses and afflictions as means and examples both to manifest unto others the faith and vertues which he hath bestowed upon us as also to strengthen those who have not received so great a measure of Faith as we For there can be no greater encouragement to a weak Christian than behold a true Professor in the extreamest sickness of his Body supported with greater patience and consolation in his Soul And the comfortable and blessed departure of such a man will arm him against the fear of death and assure him that the hope of the godly is a far more precious thing than that flesh and blood can understand or mortal eyes behold in this vale of misery And were it not that we did see many of those whom we know to be the undoubted Children of God to have endured such afflictions and calamities before us the greatness of the miseries and crosses which oft-times we endure would make us doubt whether we be the Children of God or no. And to this purpose St. James saith God made Job and the Prophets an example of suffering adversity and of long patience 9. By afflictions God makes us conformable to the Image of Christ his Son who being the Captain of our Salvation was made perfect through sufferings And therefore he first bare the Cross in shame before he was crowned with glory and did first taste gall before he did eat the honey-comb and was first derided King of the Jews by the Soldiers in the High-Priests Hall before he was saluted King of Glory by the angels in his Father's Court. And the more lively our Heavenly Father shall perceive the Image of his natural Son to appear in us the better he will love us and when we have for a time born his likeness in his sufferings and fought and overcome we shall be crowned by Christ and with Christ sit on his Throne and of Christ receive the precious white Stone and morning Star that shall make us shine like Christ for ever in his Glory 10. Lastly That the godly may be humbled in respect of their own state and misery and God glorified by delivering them out of their Troubles and Afflictions when they call upon him for his help and succour For though there be no Man so pure but if the Lord will straitly mark Iniquities he shall find in him just cause to punish him for his sin yet the Lord in mercy doth not always in the affliction of his Children respect their sins but sometimes layeth afflictions and crosses upon them for his glories sake Thus our Saviour Christ told his Disciples That the man was not born blind for his own or his Parents sin but that the work of God should be shewed on him So he told them likewise that Lazarus's sickness was not unto the death but for the glory of God O the unspeakable goodness of God which turneth those afflictions which are the shame and punishment due to our sins to be the subject of his honour and glory These are the blessed and profitable ends wherefore God sendeth sickness and affliction upon his Children whereby it may plainly appear that afflictions are not signs either of God's hatred or of our reprobation but rather tokens and pledges of his fatherly love unto his Children whom he loveth and therefore chasteneth them in this life where upon repentance there remains hope of pardon rather than to refer the punishment to that life where there is no hope of pardon nor end of punishment For this cause the Christians in the Primitive Church were wont to give God great thanks for afflicting them in this life So the Apostles rejoyced that they were counted worthy to suffer for Christ's Name Acts 5. 41. And the Christian Hebrews suffered with joy the spoiling of their goods knowing that they had in Heaven a better and an enduring substance Heb. 10. 34. And in respect of those holy Ends the Apostle saith That though no affliction for the present seemeth joyous but grievous yet afterwards it bringeth the quiet fruit of righteousness to them who are thereby exercised Pray therefore heartily that as God hath sent unto thee this sickness so it would please him to come himself unto thee with thy sickness by teaching thee to make those sanctified uses of it for which he hath inflicted the same upon thee Meditations for one that is recovered from Sickness IF God hath of his mercy heard thy Prayers and restored thee to thy health again consider with thy self 1. That thou hast now received from God as it were another life Spend it therefore to the honour of God in newness of life Let thy sin die with thy sickness but live thou by grace to holiness 2. Be not the more secure that thou art restored to health neither insult in thy self that thou hast escaped Death but think rather that God seeing how unprepared thou wast hath of his mercy heard thy Prayer spared thee and given thee some little longer time of respite that thou maist both amend thy life and put thy self in a better readiness against the time that he shall call for thee without further delay out of this World For though thou hast escaped this it may be thou shalt not escape the next sickness 3. Consider how fearful a reckoning
away without his errand If mercy he asked mercy he found were his sin never so great were his Disease never so grievous Nay he offered and gave his mercy to many that never asked it being moved only with the Bowels of his own compassion and the sight of their misery as to the woman of Samaria the widow of Naim and to the sick man that lay at the Pool of Bethesda who had been 38 years sick If he thus willingly gave his mercy to them that did not ask it and was found of them as the Prophet saith that sought him not will he deny mercy unto thee who dost so earnestly pray for it with Tears and dost like the poor Publican so heartily knock for it with penitent fists upon a bruised and broken heart Especially when thou prayest to thy Father in the name and mediation of Christ for whose sake he hath promised to grant whatsoever we shall ask of him as sure as God is true he will not Though Nineve's sins had provoked the Lord to send out his sentence against them yet upon their repentance he recalled it again and spared the City how much more if thou likewise repentest will he spare thee seeing his sentence is not yet gone forth against thee if he deferred the judgments all Ahab's days for the external shew only which he made of humiliation how much more will he clean turn away his vengeance if thou wilt unfeignedly repent of thy sin and return unto him for grace and mercy He offered his mercy unto Cain who murthered his innocent Brother If thou dost well shalt thou not be accepted As if he should have said if thou wilt leave thy envy and malice and offer unto me from a faithful and contrite heart both thou and thine Oblation also shall be acceptable unto me And to Judas that so treacherously betray'd him in calling him friend a sweet appellation of love and when Judas offered he willingly consented with that mouth wherein never was found guile to kiss those dissembling lips under which lurked the poyson of Asps. Had Judas apprehended this word friend out of the mouth of Christ as Benhadad did the word Brother from the mouth of Ahab doubtless Judas should have found the God of Israel more merciful than Benhadad found the King of Israel But God was more displeased with Cain for despairing of his mercy than for murthering his Brother and with Judas for hanging himself than for betraying his Master in that they would make the sins of mortal men greater than â—he Infinite mercy of the eternal God or as if they could be more sinful than God was merciful Whereas the least drop of Christ's Blood is of more merit to procure God's mercy for thy salvation than all the sins that thou hast committed can be of force to provoke his wrath to thy damnation If Satan shall suggest that all this is true of God's mercy but that it doth not belong unto thee because thy sins are greater than other mens as being sins of knowledge and of many years continuance and such as whereby others have been undone and all for the most part â—ommitted wilfully and presumptuously against God and thy Conscience And therefore though he will be merciful unto others yet he will not be merciful unto thee Meditate 1. That many who are now in Heaven most blessed and glorious Saints committed in the same kind when they lived on earth as great and greater sins then ever thou hast committed and continued before they repented in those sins as long as ever thou hast done As therefore all their sins and the continuance in them could not hinder God's mercy upon their repentance from forgiving their sins and receiving them into favour no more shall thy sins and continuance therein hinder him from being merciful unto thee if thou dost repent as they did yea upon thy Repentance every one of their examples is a pledge that he will do the same unto thee that he did unto them For as the least sin in God's Justice without repentance is damnable so the greatest sin upon repentance is in his mercy pardonable Thy greatest and inveteratest sins are but the sins of a man but the least of his Mercies is the mercy of God Because thou knowest thine own sins thou doubtest whether they shall be pardoned Mark how this doubtful case is resolved by Good himself Many in Isaiah's days thought as thou dost that they had continued so long in sin that it was too late for them now to seek to return unto God for Grace and Mercy But God answereth them Seek ye the Lord whilst he may be found call ye upon him whilst he is near As if he had said whilst life lasteth and my Word is preached I am near to be found of all that seek me and pray unto me The People reply But we O Lord are grievous sinners and therefore dare not presume to call upon thy Name or to come near thine Holiness To this the Lord answereth Let the wicked forsake his way and the man of iniquity his thoughts and let him return unto me and I will have mercy upon him and to his God and I will pardon him abundantly But we would think say the people that if our sins were but ordinary sins this promise of Mercy might belong unto us But because our sins are so great and of such long continuance therefore we fear lest when we appear before God he will reject us To this God answereth again My thoughts of mercy are not your thoughts neither are your ways of pardoning my ways for as the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts If therefore every sinner in the world were a world of such sinners as thou art do thou but yet what God bids thee repent and believe and the Blood of Jesus Christ being the Blood of God will cleanse both thee and them from all your sins 2. That as God did foresee all the sins which the world should commit and yet all those could not hinder him from loving the world so that he gave his only begotten Son to death to save as many of the world as would believe and repent much less shall thy sins being the sins of the least member of the world be able to hinder God from loving thy soul and forgiving thy sins if thou dost repent and believe 3. That if he loved thee so dearly when thou wast his Enemy that he payed for thee so dear a price as the spilling of his heart blood how can he now but be gracious unto thee when to save thee will cost him but the casting of a gracious look upon thee Look nor thou therefore to the greatness of thy sins but to the infiniteness of his mercy which is so surpassing great that if thou puttest all thine own grievous sins
now called to Repetitions in Christ's School to see how much Faith Patience and Godliness you have learned all this while and whether you can like Job receive at the hand of God some evil as well as you have hitherto received a great deal of good As therefore you have always prayed Thy will be done so be not now offended at this which is done by his holy will 7. That all things shall work together for the best to them that love God Insomuch that neither Death nor Life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers c. shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Jesus Christ our Lord. Assure your self that every pang is a prevention of the pains of hell every resâ—ite an earnest of Heavens rest and how many stripes do you esteem heaven worth As your life hath been a comfort to others so give your friends a Christian example to die and deceive the Devil as Job did It is but the â—â—oss of Christ sent before to crucifie the love of the World in thee that thou mâ—â—st go eternally to live with Christ who was crucified for thee As thou art therefore a true Christian take up like Simon of Cyrâ—nâ— with both thy arms his holy Cross carry it after him 〈◊〉 him thy pains will shortly pass thy joys shall never pass away Consolations against the fear of Death IF in the time of thy sickness thou findest thy self fearful to die meditate 1. That it argueth a dastardly mind to fear that which is nor For in the Church of Christ there is no death Isa. 25. 7 8. And whosoever liveth and believeth in Christ shall never die Job 11. 26. Let them fear death who live without Christ. Christians die not but when they please God they are like 〈◊〉 translated unto God Their pains are but Elijah's fiery chariot to carry them up to heaven or like Lazarâ—â—'s sores sending them to Abraham's Bosom In a word if thou be one of them that like Lazarus lovest Jesus thy sickness is not unto the death but for the glory of God who of his love changeth thy living death to an everlasting life And if mans heathen men as Socratâ—s Câ—â—tiuâ— Seneca c. died willingâ—â— when they might have lived in hâ—pe of the immortality of the soul wilt thou being traiâ—â—d so loâ—g in Châ—â—st's Schâ—ol and now câ—llâ—d to the Marriage Supper of the blessed Lâ—â—h Rev. 19 7. be one of those Guests thâ—â— refuse to go to that joyful banquet God forbid 2 Remember that thy abode here is but the second degree of thy life for after thou hadst first lived nine Months in thy Mothers Womb thou wast of necessity driven thence to live here in a second degree of life And when that number of months which God hath determined for this life are expired thou must likewise leave this and pass to a third degree in the other world which never ends Which to them that live and die in the Lord surpasseth as far this kind of life as this doth that which one lives in his Mothers Womb. To this last and excellentest degree of life through this door passed Christ himself and all his Saints that were before thee and so shall all the rest after them and thee Why shouldst thou fear that which is common to all God's Elect Why should that be uncouth to thee which was so welcom to all them Fear not death for as it is the Exodus of a bad so it is the Genesis of a better World the end of a temporal but the beginning of an eternal life 3. Consider that there are but three things that can make death so fearful unto thee 1. The loss thou hast thereby 2. The pain that is therein 3. The terrible effects which follow after All these are but false â—res and causeless fears For the first if thou leavest here uncertain goods which Thieves may rob thou shalt find in heaven a true Treasure that can never be taken away these were but lent thee as a Steward upon accounts those shall be given thee as thy reward for ever If thou leavesâ— a loâ—ing Wise thou shalt be married to Christ which is more lovely If thou leavest Children and Friends thou shalt there find all thy religious Ancestors and Children departed yea Christ and all his blessed Saints and Angels and as many of thy Children as be God's Children shall thither follow after thee Thou leavest an earthly pâ—ssession and a house of clay and thou shalt enjoy an heavenly inheritance and mansion of glory which is purchased prepared and reserved for thee What hast thou lost Nay is not death unto thee gain Go home go 〈◊〉 and we will follow after thee Secondly For the pain in death the fear of death more pains many than the very paâ—gs of death for many a Christian dies without any great pangs or pains â—itch the 〈◊〉 of thy Hope on the firm ground of the Woâ—d of God who hath promised in thy weakness to perfect his strength and not to suffer thee to be tempted above that thou art able to bear And Christ will shortly turn all thy temporal pains to his eternal joys Lastly As for the terrible effects which follow after death they belong not unto thee being a member of Christ for Christ by his death hath taken away the sting of death to the faithful so that now there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus And Christ hath protested that he that believeth in him hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but haâ—â— passed from death unto life Hereupon the holy Spirit from Heaven saith Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord and that from thenceforth they rest from their labours and their works do follow them In respect therefore of the faithful death is swallowed up in victory and his sting which is sin and the punishment thereof is taken away by Christ. Hence death is called in respect of our bodies a sleep and rest In respect of our Souls a going to our heavenly Father a departing in peace a removing from this body to go to the Lord a dissolving of soul and body to be with Christ. What shall I say Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints These pains are but thy throes and travail to bring forth eternal life And who would not pass through Hell to go to Paradise much more through death There is nothing after death that thou needest feaâ— not thy sinsâ— because Chrâ—st hath payed thy ransom not the Judge for hâ— is thy loving brother not the grave 〈◊〉 iâ— is the Lord's bed not he for thy Redeemâ—r keeps the keys not the Devil for God's holy Angels pitch their Tents about thee and will not leave thee till they bring thee to Heaven Thou wast never 〈◊〉 etâ—â—nal life glorifie therefore â—â—ist by a
terrible pains and cruel torments the Apostles and Martyrs have voluntarily suffered for the Defence of Christ's Faith when they might have lived by dissembling or denying him how much more wilâ—ing should'st thou be to depart in the â—aith of Christ having 〈◊〉 pains to torment thee and â—ere 〈◊〉 to comfort thee The spiritual sigh upon the seventh Thought O Lord my sins have deserved the pains of Hell and eternal death much more these fatherly corrections wherewith thou dost afflict me But O blessed Lamb of God which takest away the sins of the world have mercy upon me and wash away all my filthy sins with thy most precious blood and receive my soul into thy heavenly Kingdom for into thy hands O Father I commend my spirit and thou hast redeemed me O Lord thou God of truth The sick Person ought now to send for some godly and religious Pastor IN any wise remember if conveniently it may be to send for some godly and religious Pastor not only to pray for thee at thy death for God in such a caâ—e hath promised to hear the prayers of the righteous Prophets and Elders of the Church but also upon thy confession and unfeigned Repentance to absolve thee of thy sins For as Christ hath given him a calling to baptize thee unto repentance for the remission of thy sins so hath he likewise given him a calling and power and authority upon repentance to absolve thee from the sins I will give thee the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven and whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven And again Verily I say unto you whatsoever ye bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever ye lâ—ose on earth shall be loosed in heaven And again Receive ye the holy Ghost whose soevever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them and whose soever sins ye retain they are retained This Doctrine was as ancient in the Church of God as Job for Elihu tells him That when God strikes a man with malâ—dy on his bed so that his soul draweth near the grace and his life to the burieâ—â— if there be any messenger with him or an interpreter one of a thousand to declare unto man his righteousness then will â—e have mercy upon him c. and answerable hereunto saith St. James if the sick have committed sins upon his repentance and the Prayers of the Elders they shall be forgiven him These have power to shut Heaven and to deliver the scandalous impenitent sinner to Satan For the weapons of their warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to cast down c. and to have vengeance in readiness against all disobedience They have the key of loosing therefore the power of absolving The Bishops and Pastors of the Church do not forgive sin by any absolute power of their own for so only Christ theâ—r Master forgive 〈◊〉 but ministerially as the seâ—vants of Christ and Stâ—wards to whose fidelity their Lord and Master â—ath committed his Keys and that is when they do declare and pronounce either publickly or privately by the Word of God what bindeth what looseth and the meâ—cieâ—â— of God to penitent sinners or his Judgments to impenitent and obstinate persons and so do apply the general promises or threatnings to the penitent or impenitent For Christ from Heaven doth by them as by his Ministers on Earth declare whom he remitteth and bindeth and to whom he will open the gates of heaven and against whom he will shut them And therefore it is not said Whose sins ye signifie to be remitted but whose sins ye remit They then do remit sins because Christ by their Ministry remitteth sins as Christ by his Disciples loosed Lazarâ—s Joh. 11. 44. And as no water could wash away Naaman's Leprosie but the waters of Jordan tho' other Rivers were as clear because the promise was annexed unto the water of Jordan and not of other Rivers so tho' another Man may pronounce the same words yet have they not the like efficacy and power to work on the conscience as when they are pronounced from the Mouth of Christ's Ministers because the promise is annexed to the Word of God in their mouths for them hath he chosen separated and sâ—t apart for this work and to them he hath committed the ministry and word of reconciliation by their holy calling and ordination they have received the holy Ghost and the ministerial power of binding and loosing They are sent forth of the holy Ghost for this work whereunto he hath called them And Christ gives his Ministers power to forgive sins to the penitent in the same words that he teacheth us in the Lord's Prayer to desire God to forgive us our sins to assure all penitent sinners that God by his Minister's absolution doth fully through the merits of Christ's Blood forgive them all their sins So that what Christ decreeth in heaven in â—oro ju â—icii the same he declareth on earth by his reconciling Ministers in foro poenitentie so â—hat as God hath reconciled the world to himself by Jesus Christ so hath he saith the Apostle given unto us the ministry of this reconciliation He that sent them to baptize saying Go and teach all nations baptizing them c. sent them also to remit sins saying As my Father sent me so send I you whosesoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them c. As therefore none can baptize tho' he use the same water and words but only the lawful Minister which Christ hath called and authorized to this Divine and Ministerial Function so tho' others may comfort with good words yet none can absolve from sin but only those to whom Christ â—ath committed the holy Ministry and Word of reconciliation and of their absolution Christ speaketh He that heareth you heareth me In a doubtful Title thou wilt ask the Counsel of a skilful Lawyer In peril of sickness thou wilt know the Advice of the learned Physician and is there no danger in dread of damnation for a sinner to be his own Judge Judicious Calvin teacheth this point of Doctrine most plainly Etsi omnes mutuo â—â—s debeamus consolari c. Altho saith he â—e ought to comfort and confirm one another â—n the confidence of God's Mercy yet we see that the Ministers are appointed as witnesses and sureties to ascertain our Consciences of the â—emission of sins insomuch as they are said tyremit sins and to loose souls Let every faithful man therefore remember that it is his duty if inwardly he be vexed and afflicted with the sense of his sins not to neglect that remedy which is offered unto him by the Lord to wit that for the easing of his conscience he make private confession of
shall know them 2. Adam in his Innocency knew Eve to be Bone of his Bone and Flesh of his Flesh as soon as he awaked much more then shall we know our Kindred when we shall awake perfected and glorified in the Resurrection 3. The Apostles knew Christ after his Resurrection and the Saints which rose with him and appeared in the holy City 4. Peter James and John knew Moses and Elias in the transfiguration how much more shall we know one another when we shall be all glorified 5. Dives knew Lâ—zarus in Abraham's Bosom much more shall the Elect know one another in Heaven 6. Christ saith that the twelve Apostles shall sit upon twelve thrones to judge at that day the twelve Tribes therefore they shall be known and consequently the rest of the Saints 7. Saint Paul saith that at that day we shall know as we are known of God and Augustin out of this place comforteth a Widow assuring her that as in this life she saw her Husband with externaâ— eyes so in the life to come she should know his heart and what were all his thoughts and imaginations Then Husbands and Wives look to your actions and thoughts for all shall be made manifest one day See 1 Cor. 4. 5. 8. The faithful in the Old Testament are said to be gathered to their Fathers Therefore the knowledge of our Friends remains 9. Love never falleth away therefore knowledge the ground thereof remains in another life 10. Because the last day shall be a declaration of the just judgment of God when he shall reward every man according to his works and if every man's work be brought to light much more the worker And if wicked men shall account for every idle word much more shall the idle speakers themselves be known And if the Persons be not known in vain are the works made manifest Therefore saith the Apostle every man shall appear to account for the work that he hath done in his body c. See Wisdom ch 5. ver 1. Though the respect of diversities of degrees and callings in Magistracy Ministry and Oeconomy shall cease yea Christ shall then cease to rule as he is Mediator and rule all in all as he is God equal with the Father and the Holy Ghost The greatest knowledge that man can attain unto in this life comes as far short of the knowledge which we shall have in Heaven as the knowledge of a child that cannot yet speak plain comes of the knowledge of the greatest Philosopher in the World They who thirst after knowledge let them long to be Students of this Vâ—iversity For all the light by which we know any thing in this World is nothing but the very shadow of God but when we shall know God in Heaven we shall in him know the manner of the work of the Creation the mysteries of the work of our Redemption yea so much knowledge as a Creature can possibly conceive and comprehend of the Creator and his work But whilst we are in this life we may say with Job How little a portion hear we of him And assure our selves with Syracides that There are hid yet greater things than these be and that we have sâ—eâ— but a few of God's works 2. They shall love God with as perfect and absolute a love as possibly a creature can do The manner of loving God is to love him for himself the measure is to love him without measure For in this life knowing God but in part we love him but in part but when the Elect in Heaven shall fully know God then they will perfectly love God And for the infinite causes of love which they shall know to be in him they shall be infinitely ravished with the love of him 3. They shall be filled with all manner of divine pleasures At thy right hand saith David there are pleasures for evermore yea They shall drink saith he out of the river of pleasures For as soon as the Soul is admitted into the actual fruition of the beatifical Essence of God she hath all the goodness beauty glory and perfection of all Creatures in all the World united together and at once presented unto her in the sight of God If any be in love there they shall enjoy that which is more amiable If any delight in fairness the fairest beauty is but a dusty shadow to that he that delights in pleasures shall there find infinite varieties without either interruption of grief or distraction of pain he that loveth Honour shall there enjoy it without the disgrace of cankered envy he that loveth treasure shall there possess it and never be beguiled of it There they shall have knowledge void of all ignorance health that no sickness shall impair and life that no death can determine In a word look how far this wide world surpasseth for light pleasures and comforts the dark and narrow womb wherein thou wast conceived a child so much doth the World to come exceed in joys solace and consolation this present World How happy then shall we be when this life is changed and we translated thither 4. They shall be replenished with an unspeakable joy In thy presâ—nce saith David is the fulness of joy and this joy shall arise chiefly from the vision of God and partly from the sight of all the holy Angels and blessed Souls of just and perfect Men who are in bliss and glory with him But especially from the blissful sight of Jesus the Mediator of the New Testament our Emanuel God made Man His sight will be the chief cause of our bliss and joy If the Israelites in Jerusalem so shouted for joy that the earth rang again to see Solomon crowned how shall the Elect rejoyce in Heaven to see Christ the true Solomon adorned with glory If John Baptist at his presence did leap in his mothers womb for joy how shall we exult for joy when he will be not only with us but in us in heaven If the wise men rejoyced so greatly to find him a Babe lying in a manger how great shall the joy of the Elect be to see him sit as a King in his celestial Throne If Simeon was glad to see him an Infant in the Temple presented by the hands of the Priests how great shall our joy be to see him a King ruling all things at the right hand of his Father If Joseph and Mary were so joyful to find him in the midst of the Doctors in the Temple how glad shall our Souls be to see him sitting as Lord amongst Angels in Heaven This is that joy of our Master which as the Apostle saith the eye hath not seen the ear hath not heard nor the heart of man can conceive which because it cannot enter into us we shall enter into it 5. Lastly They shall enjoy this blissful and glorious
estate for evermore Therefore it is termed everlasting life and Christ saith that our joy no man shall take from us All other joys be they never so great have an end Ahasuerus's Feast lasted an hundred and eighty days but he and it and all his joys are gone For mortal man to be assumed to heavenly glory to be associated to Angels to be satiated with an delights and joys but for a time were much but to enjoy them for ever without intermission of end who can hear it and not admire it who can muse of it and not â—e amazed at it All the Saints of Christ as soon as they felt once but a true taste of these eternal joys counted all the riches and pleasures of this life to be but loss and dung in respect of that And therefore with uncessant prayers fastings alms-deeds tears faith and good life they laboured to ascertain themselves of this eternal life and for the love thereof they willingly either sold or parted with all their earthly goods and possessions Christ calleth all Christians Merchants Luke 19. and Eternal Life a precious Pearl which a wise Merchant will purchase tho' it cost him all that he hath Matth. 13. Alexander hearing the report of the great riches of the Eastern Country divided forthwith among his Captains and Soldiers all his Kingdom of Macedonia He phaestion asking him what he meant in so doing Alexander answered That he preferr'd the riches of India whereof he hoped shortly to be master before all that his Father Philip had left him in Macedonia And should not Christians then preferr the eternal riches of Heaven so greatly renowned which they shall enjoy ere long before the corruptible trash of the Earth which lasts but for a season Abraham and Sarah left their own Country and Possessions to look for a City whose builder and maker is God and therefore bought no Land but only a place of Burial David preferred one day in this place before a thousand elsewhere yea to be a door-keeper in the house of God rather than to dwell in the richest Tabernacles of wickedness Elias earnestly besought the Lord to receive his Soul into his Kingdom and went willingly tho in a fiery Chariot thitherâ— St. Paul having once seen Heaven continually desired to be dissolved that he might be with Christ. St. Peter having espied but a glimpse of that eternal glory in the Mount wished â—hat he might dwell there all the days of his life saying Master it is good for us to be here How much better doth Peter now think it to be in Heaven it self Christ a little before his death prayeth his Father to receive him into that excellent Glory And the Apostle witnesseth that for the joy which was set before him he endured the Cross and despised the shame If a Man did but once see those joys if it were possible he would endure a hundred deaths to enjoy that happiness but one day Saint Augustine saith That he would be content to endure the torments of hell to gain this joy rather than to lose it Ignatius St. Paul's Scholar Being threatned as he was going to suffer with the cruelty of Torments answered with great courage of Faith Fire Gallows Beasts breaking of my bones quartering of my members crushing of my body all the torments of the devil together let them come upon me so I may enjoy my Lord Jesus and his Kingdom The same constancy shewed Polycarp who could not by any terrours of any kind of death be moved to deny Christ in the least measure With the like resolution answered Basil his persecutors when they would terrifie him with death I will never said he fear Death which can do no more than restore me to him that made me If Ruth left her own Country and followed Naâ—â—i her Mother-in-law to go and dwell with her in the land of Canaan which was by a type of Heaven only upon the fame which she heard of the God of Israel though she had no promise of any portion therein how shouldst thou follow thy holy Mother the Chruch to go unto Christ into the heavenly Canaan wherein God hath given thee an eternal inheritance assured by an holy Covenaâ—t made in the word of God signed with the Blood of his Son and sealed with his Spirit and Sacraments this shall be rhine eternal happiness in the Kingdom of Heaven where thy life shall be a communion with the blessed Trinity thy joy the presence of the Lamb thy exercise singing thy ditty hallelujah thy consorts Saints and Angels where youth flâ—urisheth that never waxeth old beauty lasteth that never fadeth love aboundeth that never cooleth health continueth that never slacketh and â—ife remaineth that never endeth Meditations directing a Christian how to apply to himself without delay the aforesaid knowledge of God and himself THou seest therefore O Man how wretched and cursed thy state is by corruption of â—â—ture without Christ insomuch that whereas the Scriptures do liken wicked men unto Lions Bears Bulls Horses Dogs and such like savage Creatures in their lives it is certain that the condition of an unregenerate man is in his Death more vile than a Dog or the filthiest Creature in the World For the Beast being made but for Man's use when he dieth endeth all his miseries with his death But Man endued with a reasonable and immortal soul made after God's image to serve God when he ends the miseries of this life must account for all his misdeeds and begin to endure these miseries that never shall know end No creature but man is liable to yield at his death an account for his life The brute creatures not having reason shall not be required to make any account for their deeds and good Angels tho' they have reason yet shall they yield no account because they have no sin And as for evil Angels they are without all hope already condemned so that they need not make any further accounts Man only in his death must be God's accountant for his life On the other side thou seest O Man how happy and blessed thy estate is being truly reconciled unto God in Christ in that through the restauration of God's Image and thy restitution into thy soveraignty over other creatures thou art in this life little inferiour to the Angels and shall be in the life to come equal to the Angels Yea in respect of thy Nature exalted by a personal Vnion to the Son of God and by him to the glory of the Trinity superior to the Angels a Fellow-Brother with Angels in spiritual Grace and everlasting Glory Thou hast seen how glorious and perfect God is and how that all thy chief bliss and happiness consisteth in having an eternal Communion with his Majesty Now therefore O impenitent sinner in the bowels of Christ Jesus I intreat thee nay I conjure thee as thou tenderest thy own salvation seriously
day 5. Praying for rest and protection that night 6. Remembering the state of the Church the King and the Royal Posterity our Ministers and Magistrates and all our Brethren visited or persecuted 7. Lastly commending thy self and all thine to his gracious custody All which thou maist do in these or the like words A Prayer for the Evening O Most gracious God and loving Father who art about my bed and knowest my down-lying and mine up-rising and art near unto all that call upon thee in truth and sincerity I wretched sinner do beseech thee to look upon me with the eyes of thy mercy and not to behold me as I am in my self For then thou shalt see but an unclean and defiled creature conceived in sin and living in iniquity so that I am ashamed to lift up mine eyes to heaven knowing how grievously I have sinned against heaven and before thee For O Lord I have transgressed all thy Commandments and righteous Laws not only through negligence and infirmity but oftentimes through willful presumption contrary to my knowledge yea contrary to the motions of thy Holy spirit reclaiming me from them so that I have wounded my conscience and grieved thy Holy Spirit by whom thou hast sealed me to the day of redemption Thou hast consecrated my soul and body to be the temples of the Holy Ghost I wretched sinner have defiled both with all manner of pollution and uncleanness My eyes in taking pleasure to behold vanity mine ears in hearing impure and unchaste speeches my tongue in leasing and evil speaking my hands are so full of impurity that I am ashamed to lift them up unto thee and my feet have carried me after mine own ways my understanding and reasoning which are so quick in all earthly matters are only blind and stupid when I come to meditate or discourse of spiritual and heavenly things my memory which should be the treasury of all goodness is not so apt to remember any thing as those things which are vile and vain Yea Lord by woful experience I find that naturally all the imaginations of the thoughts of mine heart are only evil continually And these my sins are more in number than the hairs upon mine head and they have grown over me like a loathsom leprosie that from the Crown of my head to the sole of my feet there remains no part which they have not infected They make me seem vile in mine own eyes how much more abominable must I then appear in thy sight And the custom of sinning hath almost taken away the conscience of sin and pulled upon me such dullness of sense and hardness of heart that thy judgments denounced against my sins by the faithful Preachers of thy Word do not terrifie me to return unto thee by unfeigned repentance for them And if thou Lord shouldest but deal with me according to thy justice and my desert I should utterly be confounded and condemned But seeing that of thine infinite mercy thou hast spared me so long and still waitest for my repentance I humbly beseech thee for the bitter death and bloody passion sake which Jesus Christ hath suffered for me that thou wouldest pardon and forgive unto me all my sins and offences and open unto me that ever streaming fountain of the blood of Christ which thou hast promised to open under the New Testament to the penitent of the house of David that all my sins and uncleanness may be so bathed in his blood buried in his death and hid in his wounds that they may never be more seen to shame me in this life or to condemn me before thy Judgment-seat in the World which is to come And for as much O Lord as thou know'st that it is not in man to turn his own heart unless thou dost first give him grace to convert and seeing that it is as easie with thee to make me righteous and holy as to bid me to be such O my God give me grace to do what thou commandest and then command what thou wilt and thou shalt find me willing to do thy blessed will And to this end give unto me thine Holy Spirit which thou hast promised to give to the world's end unto all thine Elect people And let the same thy holy Spirit purge my heart heal my corruption sanctifie my nature and consecrate my soul and body that they may become the temples of the Holy Ghost to serve thee in righteousness and holiness all the days of my life that when by the direction and assistance of thy holy Spirit I shall finish my course in this short and transitory life I may chearfully leave this world and resign my soul into thy Fatherly hands in the assured confidence of enjoying everlasting life with thee in thine heavenly Kingdom which thou hast prepared for thine elect Saints who love the Lord Jesus and expect his appearing In the mean while O Father I beseech thee let thy holy Spirit work in me such a serious repentance as that I may with tears lament my sins past with grief of heart be humble for my sins present and with all mine endeavour resist the like filthy sins in time to come And let the same thy holy Spirit likewise keep me in the Vnity of thy Church lead me in the truth of thy Word and preserve me that I never swerve from the same to Popery nor any other errour or false worship And let thy Spirit open mine eyes more and more to see the wondrous things of thy Law and open my lips that my mouth may daily defend thy truth and set forth thy praise Increase in me those good gifts which of thy mercy thou hast already bestowed upon me and give unto me a patient spirit a chast heart a contented mind pure affections wise behaviour and all other graces which thou feest to be necessary for me to govern my heart in thy fear and to guide all my life in thy favour that whether I live or die I may live and die unto thee who art my God and my Redeemer And here O Lord according as I am bound I render unto thee from the Altar of my humblest heart all possible thanks for all those blessings and benefits which so graciously and plentuously thou hast bestowed upon my soul and body for this life and for that which is to come namely for mine Election Creation Redemption Vocation Justification Sanctification and Preservation from my child-hood until this present day and hour and for the firm hope which thou hast given me of my Glorification Likewise for my health wealth food raiment and prosperity and more especially for that thou hast defended me this day now past from all perils and dangers both of body and soul furnishing me with all necessary good things that I stand in need of And as thou hast ordained the day for
the Creation the first day wherein it was finished was consecrated for a Sabbath so in the time of Redemption the first day wherein it was perfected must be dedicated to a holy rest but still a seventh day kept according to God's moral Commandment The Jews kept the last day of the week beginning their Sabbath with the night when God rested but Christians honour the Lord better on the first day of the week beginning the Sabbath with the day when the Lord arose They kept their Sabbath in remembrance of the World's Creation but Christians celebrate it in memorial of the World's Redemption yea the Lord's-day being the first of the Creation and Redemption puts us in mind both of the making of the old and redeeming of the new World As therefore under the old Testament God by the glory consisting of seven Lamps seven Branches c. put them in remembrance of the Creation Light and Sabbath's â—est So under the New Testament Christ the true light of the world appeareth in the midst of the 7 lampâ— and seven golden candle-sticks to put us in minâ— to honour our Redeemer in in the light of the Gospel of the Lord's seventh day of rest And seeing the Redemption both for might and mercy so fâ—r exceedeth the Câ—cation it stood with great reason thee the greater work should carry the honour of the day Neither doth he honourable title of the Lord's-day diminish the glory of the Sabbath but rather being added augments the dignity thereof as the name of Israel added unto Jacob made the Patriarch the more renowned The reason taken from the example of God's resting from the work of the Creation of the World continued in force till the Son of God ceased from the work of the Redemption of the World and then the former gave place to the latter 4. Because it was foretold in the Old Testament that the Sabbath should be kept under the New Testament on the first-day of the week For first in the 110 Psalm which is a Prophecy of Christ and his Kingdom it is plainly foretold that there should be a solemn day of assembling wherein all Christ's people should willingly come together in the beauty of holiness Insomuch that no rain of peace shall be upon those Families that in the feast will not go up to Jerusalem the Church to worship the King the Lord of hosts Now on what day this holy Feast and Assembly should be kept David sheweth plainly in Psal. 118 which was a prophecy of Christ as appears Mat. 21. 42 Acts 4. 11. Ephes. 2. 20. as also by the consent of all the Jews as Jerom witnesseth For shewing how Christ by his ignominious death should be as a stone rejected of the Builders or chief Rulers of Judea and yet by his glorious Resurrection should become the chief stâ—ne of the Corner he wisheth the whole Church to keep holy that day whereupon Christ should effect this wonderful work saying This is the day which the Lord hath made let us rejoyce and be glad in it And seeing that upon this day that which Peter saith of Christ appeareth to be true That God made him both Lord and Christ Acts 2. 36. therefore the whole Church under the New Testament must celebrate the day of Christ's Resurrection Rabby Bachay also saw by the fall of Adam on the sixth day that on the same day the Messias should finish the work of man's redemption And alluding to the speech of Boaz to Ruth sleep unto the Morning that Messias should rest in his grave all their Sabbath-day And he gathereth from that speech Gen. 1. on the first day Let their be light that the Messias should rise on the first day of the week from death to life and cause the spiritual light of the Gospel to enlighten the World that lay in the shadow of darkness and death The Hebrew Author of the Book called Sedar Olam Rabbi cap. 7. recordeth many memorable things which were done upon the first day of the week as so many Types that the chief worship of God should under the New Testament be celebrated upon this day As that on this day the cloud of God's Majesty first sate upon his people Aaron and his Children first executed their Priesthood God first solemnly blessed his people The Princes of his people first offered publickly unto God The first day wherein fire descended from heaven The first day of the World of the Year of the Month of the week c. All shadowing that it should be the first and chief holy-day of the New Testament St. Augustine proveth by divers places and reasons out of the holy Scripture that the Fathers and all the holy Prophets under the Old Testament did foresee and know that our Lord's-day was shadowed by their eighth day of Circumcision And that the Sabbath should be changed from the seventh day to the eighth or first day of the week And Junius out of Cyprian saith that Circumcision was commanded on the eighth day as a Sacrament of the eighth day when Christ should arise from the dead The Council Foro-Juliense affirms That Esay prophesied of the keeping of the Sabbath upon the first day of the week If this Mystery was so clearly seen by the Fathers under the shadows of the Old Testament sure the God of this World hath deeply blinded their minds who cannot see the Truth thereof under the shining light of the Gospel Therefore this change of the Sabbath-day under the New was nothing but a fulfilling of that which was prefigured and fore-prophesied under the Old Testament 5. According to their Lord's Mind and Commandment and the direction of the Holy Ghost which alway assisted them in their Ministerial Office the Apostles in all the Christian Churches which they planted ordained that the Christians should keep the holy Sabbath upon that seventh Day which is the first Day of the week Concerning the gathering for the Saints as I have ordained in the Churches of Galatia so do ye also Every first-day of the week c. When ye come together in the Church being the Lord's-day to eat the Lord's-Supper to remember and shew the Lord's death till he come c. In which words note 1. That the Apostle ordained this Day to be kept holy therefore a divine Institution 2. That the Day is named the first-day of the week therefore not the Jewish seventh or any other 3. Every first-day of the week which sheweth a perpetuity 4. That it was ordained in the Churches of Galatia as well as of Corinth and he settled one uniform order in all the Churches of the Saints therefore it was universal 5. That the exercises of this day were Collections for the poor which appears by Acts 2. 42. and Justin Martyr's testimony Apolog. 2. which were gathered in the holy Assembly after Prayer preaching of the Word and Administration of the Sacraments therefore it
state of the New Testament Neither can I here pass over without Admiration how the Sacrament of Circumcision continued in the Church 39 Jubilees from Abraham to whom it was first given unto the Baptism of Christ in Jordan which was just so many Jubilees after Bucholcer's account as the world had continued before from Adam to the birth of Abraham Moses began his Ministry in the 80 year of his age Christ enters upon his Office in the 80 Jubilee of the World's Age Joseph was thirty years old when he began to rule over Egypt Gen. 41. 46. and the Levites began to serve in the Tabernacle at thirty Years old so Christ likewise to answer these figures began his ministry in the Thirtieth Jubilee of Moses and when he began to be thirty years of age Luke 3. 23. in the midst of Daniel's last week and so continuing his ministry on Earth Three years and a half finished our Redemption and Daniel's Period by his innocent death upon the Cross. The most of all the great alterations and strange accidents which fell out in the Church came to pass either in a Sabbatical year or in a year of Jubilee For example The seventy weeks of Daniel beginning the first year of Cyrus and the 3439. year of the world contain so many years as the world did weeks of years unto that time and so many weeks of years as the world had lasted Jubilees Daniel's seventy weeks of years contain four hundred and ninety single years the world before that time 490 weeks or sabbaths of years Daniel's Period 70 weeks the world's 70 Jubilees so that to comfort the Church for their 70 years captivity which they had now according to Jeremy's prophecy endured in Babylon Gabriel tells Daniel That at the end of 70 weeks or Sabbaths of years that is 70 times seven years or 490 years their eternal Redemption from Hell should be effected by the death of Christ as sure as they were now redeemed from the captivity of Babylon This period of Daniel containing 70 Sabbaths or 10 Jubilees of years began at the first liberty granted the Jews by Cyrus in the first year of his Reign over the Babylonians mentioned Ezra 1. 1. and ends justly at the time that Christ died upon the Cross. From the death of Christ or the last end of Daniel's weeks to the seventy and one year of Christ the world is measured by seven Seals or seven Sabbaths of years making one compleat Jubilee From the end of those seven Seals the World is measured to her end by seven Trumpets each containing 245 years as some conjecture about 440 years hence the truth will appear Enoch the seventh from Alam having lived so many years as there are days in the year 365 was translated of God in a Sabbatical year Moses the seventh from Abraham as another Enoch is buried of God but born in a Sabbatical year of the World 2373 and in the 777 year since the Flood after Broughton's Computation is saved as a new Noah in a reed Ark and lived a builder of the Church so long as Noah was building the Ark â—â—0 years The promise was made to Abraham in a Sabbatical year being the 2223 year of the World The sixth year of Joshua being 2500 years from the Creation of the World wherein the land was possessed and divided among the children of Israel was a Sabbatical year and the 50 Jubilee from the Creation of the World At this year Moses begins his Jubilee by which as with a chain of thirty links he tieth the pâ—rting of Canaan's possession to the Israelites by Joshua to the opening of the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers by Jesus And so carrieth the Church of the Jews by a joyful stream of Jubilees from the Type to the substance from Canaan to Heaven from Jeshua to Jesus for Christ at the end of Mâ—ses's thirty Jubilees and the beginning of the thirtieth year of his age at his Baptism openeth Heaven and gives the clearest Vision of the blessed Trinity that was seen since the world began And by the silver Trumpet of his Gospel proclaims according to the Prophecy of Esay eternal redâ—mption to all that repent and believe in him And the year of our Saviour Christ's birth being the 3948 of the World was at the end of a Sabbatical year and the 564 Septenary of the World Moses maketh the common age of all men to be ten times seven Psal. 90. and every seventh year commonly produceth some notable change or accident in Man's life And no wonder for as Hippocrates affirmeth a Child in his Mother's womb on the seventh day of his conception hath all his members finished and from that day groweth to the perfection of birth which is always either the ninth or seventh month At seven years old the Child casts his teeth and receives new And every seventh year after there is some alteration or change in man's life especially at nine times seven the Clymacterick year which by experience is found to have been fatal to many of those learned men who have been the chiefest Lights of the World And if they escaped that year yet most of them have departed this Life in a septenary year Lamech died in the year of his life 777. Methusalem the longest liver of the Sons of Men died when he began to enter his 900 and 70 year Abraham died when he had lived 25 times seven years Jacob when he had lived 21 times seven years David after he had lived ten times seven years So did Galen so did Petrarch who as Bodin noteth died on the same day of the year that he was born so did the Maiden Queen ELIZABETH of blessed and never-dying Memory who came into this world on the Eve of the Nativity of the blessed Virgin Mary and went out of this world on the Eve of the Annunciation of the blessed Virgin Mary Hippocrates died in the 15th septenary Hierom and Isocrates in their 13. Pliny Bartolus and Casar in their 8 septenary And Johannes de temporibus who lived 361 years died in the 53d septenary of his life The like might be observed of innumerable others And indeed the whole life of a man is measured by the Sabbath for how many years soever man liveth here yet his life is but a life of seven days multiplied so that in the number of 7 there is a mystical perfection which our understanding cannot attain unto All which Divine Disposition of admirable things so oft by sevens calls upon us to a continual Meditation of the blessed seventh-day Sabbath in knowing and worshipping God in this life that so from Sabbath to Sabbath we may be translated to the eternal glorious Sabbath of rest and bliss in the life to come By the consideration whereof any man that looketh into the holy History may easily perceive that the whole course of the World is drawn and guided
Ghost thou maist become one with Christ and Christ with thee and so maist feel thy Communion with Christ confirmed and increased daily more and more That as it is impossible to separate the Bread and Wine digested into the blood and substance of thy body so it may be more impossible to part Christ from thy Soul or thy Soul from Christ. Lastly As the Bread of the Sacrament though confected of many Grains yet makes but one Bread so must thou remember that though all the faithful are many yet are they all but one mystical Body whereof Christ is Head And therefore thou must love every Christian as thy self and a member of thy body Thus far of the duties to be done at the receiving of the holy Sacrament called Meditation 3. Of the duties which we are to perform after receiving of the holy Communion called Action or Practice THE duty which we are to perform after the receiving of the Lord's Supper is called Action or Practice without which all the rest will minister unto us no comfort The Action consists of Two sorts of duties First such as we are to perform in the Church or else after that we are gone home Those that we are to perform in the Church are either several from our own souls or else joyntly with the Congregation The several duties which thou must perform from thine own Soul are Three First Thou must be careful that forasmuch as Christ now dwelleth in thee therefore to entertain him in a clean heart and with pure affections for the most holy will be holy with the holy for if Joseph of Arimathea when he had begged of Pilate his dead body to bury it wrapped it in sweet odours and fine Linen and laid it in a new Tomb how much more shouldest thou lodge Christ in a new heart and perfume his Rooms with the odoriferous incense of Prayers and all pure affections If God required Moses to provide a Pot of pure gold to keep the Manna that fell in the Wilderness what a pure heart shouldst thou provide to receive this divine Manna that is come down from Heaven And as thou camest sorrowing like Joseph and Mary to seek Christ in the Temple so now having there found him in the midst of his Word and Sacraments be careful with joy to carry him home with thee as they did And if the man that found but his lost sheep rejoyced so much how canst thou having found the Saviour of the World but rejoyce much more Secondly Thou must offer the Sacrifice of a private thanksgiving unto God for this inestimable grace and mercy for as this action is common unto the whole Church so is it applied particularly to every one of the faithful in the Church and for this particular mercy every soul must joyfully offer up a particular Sacrifice of Thanksgiving For if the Wise Men rejoyced so much when they saw the Star which conducted them unto Christ and worshipped him so devoutly when he lay a Babe in the Manger and offered unto him their Gold Myrrhe and Frankincense how much more shouldest thou rejoyce now that thou hast both seen and received this Sacrament which guideth thy soul unto him where he sitteth at the right hand of his Father in glory And thither lifting up thy heart adore him and offer up unto him the gold of a pure Faith the Myrrhe of a mortified heart and this or the like sweet incense of Prayer and Thanksgiving A Prayer to be said after the receiving of the Communion WHAT shall I render unto thee O blessed Saviour for all these blessings which thou hast so graciously bestowed upon my Soul How can I sufficiently thank thee when I can scarce express them Where thou mightest have made me a Beast thou madest me a Man after thine own Image When by sin I had lost both thine Image and my self thou didst renew in me thine Image by thy Spirit and didst redeem my Soul by thy Blood again and now thou hast given unto me thy Seal and Pledge of my Redemtion nay thou hast given thy self unto me O blessed Redeemer Oh what an inestimable treasure of riches and overflowing Fountain of grace hath he got who hath gained thee No man ever touched thee by Faith but thou didst heal him by Grace for thou art the Author of Salvation the remedy of all evils the medicine of the sick the life of the quick and the resurrection of the dead Seemed it a small matter unto thee to appoint thy holy Angels to attend upon so vile a Creature as I am but that thou would'st enter thy self into my Soul there to preserve nourish and cherish me unto life everlasting If the carcase of the dead Prophet could revive a dead man that touched it how much more shall the living body of the Lord of all Prophets quicken the faithful in whose heart he dwelleth And if thou wilt raise my body at the last day out of the dust how much more wilt thou now revive my Soul which thou hast sanctified with thy Spirit and purified with thy blood O Lord what could I more desire or what couldest thou more bestow upon me than to give me thy body for meat thy blood for drink and to lay down thy Soul for the price of my Redemption Thou Lord enduredst the pain and I do reap the profit I received pardon and thou didst bear the punishment Thy tears were my bath thy wounds my weal and the injustice done to thee satisfied for the Judgment which was due to me Thus by thy birth thou art become my Brother by thy death my ransom by thy mercy my reward and by thy Sacrament my nourishment O divine â—ood by which the sons of men are transformed into the sons of God so that man's nature dieth and God's nature liveth and ruleth in us Indeed all Creatures wondred that the Creator would be inclosed nine Months in the Virgins Womb though her Womb being replenished with the Holy Ghost was more splendid than the Starry Firmament but that thou should'st thus humble thy self to dwell for ever in my heart which thou foundest more unclean than a Dunghill it is able to make all the Creatures in Heaven and Earth to stand amazed But seeing it is thy free Grace and meer pleasure thus to enter and to dwell in my heart I would to God that I had so pure a heart as my heart could wish to entertain thee And who is fit to entertain Christ or who though invited would not chuse with Mary rather to kneel at thy feet than presume to sit with thee at thy Table Though I want a pure heart for thee to dwell in yet weeping eyes shall never be wanting to wash thy blessed feet and to lament my filthy sins And albeit I cannot weep so many tears as may suffice to wash thy holy feet yet Lord it is sufficient that thou hast shed Blood enough to cleanse my sinful Soâ—l And
Journey towards God 2. If thou hast Children give to every one of them a Portion according to thy ability in thy life-time that thy life may seem an ease and not a yoak unto them yet so give as that thy Children may still be beholden unto thee and noâ— thou unto them But if thou keep all iâ— thy hands whilst thou livest they may thank Death and not thee for the portion that thou leavest them If thou hast nâ— Children and the Lord hath blest theâ— with a great portion of the goods of thiâ— World and if thou meanest to bestow them upon any charitable or pious uses put not over that good work to the trusâ— of others seeing thou seest how most oâ— other mens Executors prove almost Exeâ—cutioners And if Friends be so unfaithfuâ—â— in a man's life how much greater causâ— hast thou to distrust their fidelity afteâ— thy death Lamentable experience sheweth how many dead men's Wills have of laâ— either been quite concealed utterly overthrown or by cavils and quirks of Law frustrated or altered whereas by the Law of God the will of the dead should not be violated but all his godly intentions conscionably performed and fulfilled as in the sight of God who in the Day of the Resurrection will be just Judge both of the quick and dead And if any thing should hap in his Will to be ambiguous or doubtful it should be construed as it might come nearest to the Honour of God and the honest Intention of the Testator But let the vengeance due to such unchristian Deeds light on the Actors that do them not on the Kingdom wherein they are suffered to be done And let other rich Men be warned by such wretched examples not so to marry their Minds to their Money as that they will do no good with their Goods till Death divorceth them Considering therefore the shortness of thine own life and the uncertainty of others just dealing after thy death in these unjust days let me advise thee whom God hath blessed with ability and an intent to do good to become in thy life time thine own Administrator make thine own Hands thine Executors and thine own Eyes thy Over-seers cause thy Lanthorn to give her light before thee and not behind thee give God the Glory and thou shalt receive of him in due time the reward which of his grace and mercy he hath promised to thy good works 4. Having thus set thy House and Soul in order if the determined number of thy days be not expired God will either have mercy upon thee and say Spare him O killing Malady that he go not down into the pit for I have received a reconciliation Or else his Fatherly providence will direct thee to such a Physician and to such means as that by his blessing upon their endeavours thou shalt recover and be restored to thy former Health again But in any wise take heed that thou nor none for thee send unto Sorcerers Wizards Charmers or Inchanters for help for this were to leave the God of Israel and to go to Baal-zebub the God of Ekron for help as did wicked Ahaziah and to break thy Vow which thou hast made with the blessed Trinity in thy Baptism and be sure that God will never give a Blessing by those means which he hath accursed but if he permit Satan to cure thy Body fear lest it tend to the damnation of thy Soul Thou art tried beware 5. When thou hast sent for the Physician take heed that thou put not thy trust rather in the Physician than in the Lord as Asa did of whom it is said that he sought not to the Lord in his Disease but to the Physician which is a kind of Idolatry that will increase the Lord's anger and make the Physick received uneffectual Use therefore the Physician as God's Instrument and Physick as God's Means And seeing it is not lawful without Prayer to use ordinary food 1 Tim. 4. 4. much less extraordinary Physick whose good effect depends upon the blessing of God before thou takest thy Physick pray therefore heartily unto God to bless it unto thy use in these or the like words A Prayer before taking of Physick O Merciful Father who art the Lord of health and of sickness of life and of death who killest and makest alive who bringest down to the grave and raisest up again I come unto thee as to the only Physician who canst cure my Soul from sin and my Body from sickness I desire neither life nor death but refer my self to thy most holy Will For tho' we must needs die and being dead our lives are as water spilt on the ground which cannot be gather'd up again yet hath thy gracious Providence whilst liâ—â— remaineth appointed means which thou wilt have thy Children to use and by the lawful use thereof to expect thy blessing upon thine own means to the curing of their sickness and restitution of their health Aâ—d now O Lord in this my necessity I have according to thine Ordinance seâ—t for thy Servant the Physician who hath prepared for me this Physick which I receive as means sent from thy fatherly hand I beseech thee therefore that as by thy blessing on a lâ—â—p of dry Figs thou didst heal Hezekiah's sore that he recovered and by seven times washing in the river of Jordan didst cleanse Naaman the Syrian of his Leprosie and didst restore the Man that was blind from his birth by anointing his Eyes with Clay and Spittle and sending him to wash in the Pool of Siloam and by touching the hand of Peter's Wife's Mother didst cure her of her Fever and didst restore the Woman that touched the hem of thy Garment from her bloody Issue So it would please thee of thine infinite goodness and mercy to sanctifie this Physick to my use and to give such a blessing unto it that it may if it be thy Will and Pleasure remove this my sickness and â—ain and restore me to health and strength again But if the number of those days which thou hast appointed for me to live in this Vale of misery be at an end and that thou hast sent this sickness as thy Messenger to call me out of this mortal life then Lord let thy blessed will be done for I submit my will to thy most holy Pleasure Only I beseech thee increase my faith and patience and let thy grace and mercy be never wanting unto me but in the midst of all extremities assist me with thy Holy Spirit that I may willingly and chearfully resign up my Soul the price of thine own Blood into thy most gracious hands and custody Grant this O Father for Jesus Christ his sake to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory both now and evermore Amen Meditations for the sick WHilst thy sickness remaineth use often for thy comfort these
cleansâ—th him from all his sins and either asswage his pain or else increase his patience to endure thy blessed will and pleasure And good Lord lay no more upon him than thou shalt enable him to bear Heave him up unto thy self with those sighs aâ—d groans which cannot be expressed Make him now to feel what is the hope of his Calling and what is the exceeding greatness of thy Mercy and Power towards them that believe in thee And in his weakness O Lord shew thou thy strength Defend him against the suggestions and temptations of Satan who as he hath all his life time will now in his weakness especially seek to assail him and to devour him O save his Soul and reprove Satan and command thy holy Angels to be about him to aid him and to chase away all evil and malignant Spirits far from him Make him more and more to loath this world and to desire to be loosed and to be with Christ. And when that good hour and time shall come wherein thou hast determined to call for him out of this present life give him grace peacefully and joyfully to yield up his soul into thy merciful hands and do thou receive her into thy mercy and let thy blessed Angels carry her into thy kingdom Make his last hour his best hour his last words his best words and his last thoughts his best thoughts And when the sight of his eyes is gone and his tongue shall fail to do its office grant O Lord that his Soul may with Stephen behold Jesus Christ in Heaven ready to receive him and that thy Spirit within him may make request for him with sighs which cannot be expressed Teach us in him to read and see our own end and mortality and therefore to be careful to prepare our selves for our last ends and put our selves in a readiness against the time that thou shalt call for us in the like manner Thus Lord we recommend this our dear Brother or Sister thy sick servant unto thy eternal Grace and Mercy in that Prayer which Christ our Saviour hath taught us saying Our Father which art in heaven c. Thy grace O Lord Jesus Christ thy love O heavenly Father thy comfort and consolation O holy Spirit be with us all and especially with this thy sick servant to the end and in the end Amen Let them read often unto the sick some special Chapters of the holy Scripture as The three first Chapters of the Book of Job The 14. and 19. Chapters of Job The 34. Chapter of Deuteronomy The two last Chapters of Joshua The 17. Chapter of the first of Kings The 2 4 and 12. Chapters of the Second of Kings The 38 40 and 65. Chapters of Isaiah The History of the Passion of Christ. The 8. Chapter of the Romans The 15. Chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians The fourth of the first Epistle to the Thessalonians The fifth Chapter of the second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians The first and last Chapters of St. James The 11 and 12 to the Hebrews The first Epistle of Peter The three first and the three last Chapters of the Revelations or some of these And so exhorting the sick party to wait upon God by faith and patience till he send for him and praying the Lord to send them a joyful meeting in the Kingdom of Heaven and a blessed Resurrection at the last day they may depart at their pleasure in the Peace of God Consolations against impatience in sickness IF in thy sickness by extremity of pain thou be driven to impatience meditate 1. That thy sins have deserved the pains of hell therefore thou maist with greater patience endure these fatherly Corrections 2. That these are the scourges of thy heavenly Father and the rod is in his hand If thou didst suffer with reverence being a child the correction of thy earthly Parents how much rather should'st thou now subject thy self being the Child of God to â—he chastisâ—ment of thy heavenly Father seeing it is for thine eternal good 3. That Christ suffered in his soul and body far grievo ser pains for thee therefore thou must more willingly suffer his blessed pleasure for thine own good Therefore saith Peter Christ suffered for you leaving you an example that ye should follow hiâ— steps And Let us saith S. Pauâ— run with joy the race that is set before us looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the Cross c. 4. That these afflictions which now you suffer are none other but such as are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world as witnesseth Peter Yea Job's afflictions were far more grievous There is not one of the Saints which now are at rest in heavenly joys but endured as much as you do before they went thither yea â—â—ny of them willingly suffered all the torments that Tyrants could inflict upon them that they might come to those heavenly 〈◊〉 whereunto you are now called And you have a promise that the God of aâ—l grace after that you have suffered a while will make you perfect stablish strengthen and settle you And that God of his fidelity will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that ye may be able to bear it 5. That God hath determined the time when thy affliction shall end as well as the time when it began 38 years were appointed the sick man at Beâ—hesda's Pool Twelve Years to the Woman with the bloody Issueâ— Three months to Moses Ten days tribulation to the Angel of the Church of Smyrna Three days plague to David Yea the number of the godly man's tears are registred in God's book and the quantity kept in his bottle The time of our trouble saith Christ is but a Modicum God's Anger lasts but a moment saith David A little season saith the Lord and therefore calls all the time of our pain but the hour of sorrow Daâ—id for the swiftness thereof compares our present trouble to a Book and Aâ—â—anasius to a Shower Compare the longest misery that Man endures in this 〈◊〉 to the eternity of heavenly joys and they will appear to be nothing And as the sight of a Son safe born makes the Mâ—ther forget all her former deadly pain so the sight of Christ in Heaven who was born for thee will make all these pangs of death to be quite forgotten as if they had never been like Stephen who as soon as he saw Christ forgat his own wounds with the horror of the grave and terror of the stones and sweetly yielded his soul into the hands of his Saviour Forget thine own pain think of Christ's wounds Be faithful unto the death and he will give thee the Crown of eternal life 6. That you are
blessed â—eath Say cheerfully Come Lord Jesus 〈◊〉 thy Servant cometh unto thee I am willing Lord help my weakness Seven sanctified Thoughts and mournful Sighs of a sick Man ready to die NOW forasmuch as God of his infinite mercy doth so temper ouâ— pain and sickness that we are not always oppressed with extremity but gives us in the midst of our extremities some â—espite to ease and refresh our selves thou mâ—st have an espâ—cial caâ—e considâ—ring how short a 〈◊〉 thou hast either for ever to lose or to obtain Heaven to make use of every breathing time which God doth afford thâ— and during that 〈…〉 time of ease 〈…〉 roweth with all his force to arrive at the wished Port and that the Traveller never resteth till he come to his Journeys end we fear to descry our Port and therefore would put back our Bark to be longer tossed in this continual tempest We weep to see our jorneys end and therefore desire our journey to be lengthened that we might be more tired with a foul and cumbersome way The Spiritual Sigh thereupon O Lord this life is but a troublesome pilgrimage few in days but full in evils and I am weary of it by reason of my sins Let me therefore O Lord intreat thy Majesty in this my bed of sickness as Elias did under the Juniper tree in his affliction It is now enough O Lord that I have lived so long in this vale of misery take my soul into thy merciful hands for I am no better than my Fathers The Second Thought THink with what a body of sin thou art loaden what great civil wars are contained in a little world the flesh fighting against the Spirit Passion against Reason Earth against Heaven and the World within thee bending it self for the World without thee and that but 〈◊〉 only means remains to end this conflictâ— death which in God's appointed time will separate thy spirit from thy flesh the pure and regenerate part of thy Soul from that part which is impure and unregenerated The spiritual Sigh upon the second Thought OWretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death O my sweet Saviour Jesus Christ thou hast redeemed me with thy precious blood And be cause thou hast delivered my soul from sin minâ— eyes from tears and my feet from falling I do here from the very bottom of my heart ascribe the whole praise and glory of my salvation to thy only grace and mercy saying with the holy Apostle Thanks be unto God which hath given me the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. The Third Thought THink how it behoves thee to be assured that thy soul is Christ's for death hath taken sufficient gages to assure himself of thy bodâ— in that all thy senses be all ready to die save only the sense of pain but sith the beginning of thy being began with pâ—in marvel the less it thy end conclude with dolours But if these temporal dolours which only afflict the body be so painful O Lord who can endure the devouring fire who can abide the everlasting burning The spiritual Sigh upon the third Thought O Lord Jesus Christ the Son of the living God who art the only Physician that caâ—st ease my body from pain and restore my soul to life eternal put thy 〈◊〉 Cross and Death betwixt my 〈◊〉 and thy Judgments and let the merits of thy obedience stand betwixt thy Father's justice and my disobedience and from these bodily pains receive my Soul iâ—to thine everlasting peace for I cry unto thee with Stephen Lord Jesus receive my Spirit The Fourth Thought THink that the worst that Death can do is but to send thy Soul sooner than thy flesh would be willing to Christ and his heavenly Joys remember that that Christ is thy best hope â—he worst therefore of death is rather a help than a harm The spiritual Sigh upon the Fourth Thought O Lord Jesus Christ the Saviour of all them that put their trust in thee fâ—rsake â—or him that in misery flâ—â—â—h unto thy graceâ— fâ—â— succour and mercy Oh sound that sweet Voice in the ears of my Soul which thou spakest unto the penitent thief on the cross This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise For I O Lord do with the Apostle from my Soul speak unto thee I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ. The Fifth Thought THiâ—k if thou fearest to die That in Mount Sâ—on there is no Death for â—e that believeth in Christ shall never die And if thou desirest to live without 〈◊〉 the life eternal whereunto this 〈…〉 their miseries live with Christ in joys and thither shall all the godly which survive be gathered out of their troubles to enjoy with him eternal rest The Spiritual Sigh on the Fifth Thought O Lord thou seest the malice of Satan who not contenting himself like a roaring Lion all the days and nights of our life to seek our destruction shews himself busiest when thy Children are weakest and nearest to their end O Lord reprove him and preserve my Soul He seeks to terrifie me with death which my sins have deserved but let thy Holy Spirit comâ—ort my Soul with the assurance of eternal life which thy Blood hath purchased Asswage my pain increase my patience and if it be thy blessed will end my troubles for my Soul beseecheth thee with old blessed Simeon Lord now let me thy servant depart in peace according to thy word The Sixth Thought THink with thy self what a blessing God hath bestowed upon thee above many millions in the world that whereas they are either Pagans who worship not the true God or Idolaters who worship the true God falsly thou hast lived in a true Christian Church and hast grace to die in the true Christian Faith and to be buried in the Sepulchre of God's Servants who all wait for the hope of Israel and raising of their Bodies in the resurrection of the Just. The spiritual Sigh upon the sixth Thought O Lord Jesus Christ who art the Resurrection and the life in whom whosoever believeth shall live tho' he were dead I believe that whosover liveth and believeth in thee shall never die I know that I shall rise again in the Resurrection of the last day for I am sure that thou my Redeemer livest And tho' that after my death worms destroy this body yet I shall see thee my Lord and my God in this flesh Grant therefore O Christ for thy bitter death and passions sake that at that day I may be one of them to whom thou wilt pronounce that joyful sentence Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you before the foundation of the world The Seventh Thought THink with thy self how Christ endured for thee a cursed death and the wrath of God which was due unto thy sins and what
Israelites to convey them to Canaan's possession so death to the wicked is a sink to hell and condemnation but to the godly the gate to everlasting life and salvation And one day of a blessed death will make amends for all the sorrows of a bitter life When therefore thou perceivest thy soul departing from thy body pray with thy Tongue if thou canst else pray in thy heart and mind these words fixing the eyes of thy soul upon Jesus Christ thy Saviour A Prayer at the yielding up of the Ghost O Lamb of God which by thy blood hast taken away the sins of the world have mercy upon me a sinner Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen When the sick party is departing let the faithful that are present kneel down and commend his soul to God in these or the like words O Gracious God and merciful Father who art our refuge and strength and a very present help in trouble lift up the light of thy favourable countenance at this Instant upon thy servant that now cometh to appear in thy presence wash away good Lord all his sins by the merits of Christ Jesus's blood that they may never be laid to his charge Increase his faith preserve and keep safe his soul from the danger of the Devil and his Wicked Angels Comfort him with thy Holy Spirit cause him now to feel that thou art his loving Father and that he is thy child by Adoption and Grace Save O Christ the price of thine own blood and suffer him not to be lost whom thou hast bought so dearly Receive his soul as thou didst the penitent thief into thy heavenly Paradise Let thy blessed Angels conduct him thither as they carried the soul of Laâ—arus and grant unto him a joyful resurrection at the last day O Father hear us for him and hear thine own Son our only Mediator that sits at thy right hand for him and us all even for the merits of that bitter death and passion which he hath suffered for us In confidence whereof we now recommend his soul into thy fatherly hands in that blessed Prayer which our Saviour hath taught us in all times of our troubles to say unto thee Our Father c. Thus far of the Practice of Piety in dying in the Lord. Now followeth the Practice of Piety in dying for the Lord. THE Practice of Piety in dying for the Lord is termed Martyrdom Martyrdom is the testimony which a Christian beareth to the Doctrine of the Gospel by enduring any kind of death to invite many and to confirm all to embrace the truth thereof To this kind of death Christ hath promised a Crown Be thou faithful unto the death and I will give thee the Crown of life Which promise the Church so firmly believed that they termed martyrdom it self a Crown And God to animate Christians to this excellent prize would by a prediction that Stephen the first Christian Martyr should have his name of a Crown Of Martyrdom there are Three kinds 1. Solâ voluntate in will only as John the Evangelist who being boiled in a Cauldron of Oil came out rather annointed than sod and died of old age at Ephesus 2. Solo opere in deed only as the Innocents of Bethlehem 3. Voluntate opere both in will and deed as in the Primitive Church Stephen Polycarpus Ignatius Laurentius Romanus Antiochianus and thousands And in our days Cranmer Latimer Hooper Ridley Farrar Bradford Philpot Sanders Glover Taylor and others innumerable whose fiery zeal to God's Truth brought them to the flames of Martyrdom to seal Christ's Faith It is not the cruelty of the death but the innocency and holiness of the cause that maketh a Martyr Neither is an erroneous Conscience a sufficient warrant to suffer Martyrdom because Science in God's Word must direct Conscience in man's heart For they who killed the Apostles in their erroneous Consciences thought they did God good service and Paul of zeal breathed out slaughters against the Lord's Saints Now whether the cause of our Seminary Priests and Jesuits be so holy true and innocent as that it may warrant their Conscience to suffer death and to hazard their eternal salvation thereon let Paul's Epistle written to the ancient Christian Romans but against our new Antichristian Romans be judge And it will plainly appear that the Doctrine which St. Paul taught to the ancient Church of Rome is ex diametro opposite in 26 fundamental points of true Religion to that which the new Church of Rome teacheth and maintaineth For St. Paul taught the Primitive Church of Rome 1. That our Election is of God's free Grace and not ex operibus praevisis Rom. 9. 11. Rom. 11. 5 6. 2. That we are justified before God by faith only without good works Rom. 3. 20 28. Rom. 4. 2 c. Rom. 1. 17. 3. That the good works of the regenerate are not of their own condignity meritorious nor such as can deserve Heaven Rom. 8. 18. Rom. 11. 6. Rom. 6. 23. 4. That these Books only are God's Oracles and Canonical Scripture which were committed to the custody and credit of the Jews Rom. 3. 2. Rom. 1. 2. Rom. 16. 26. such were never the Apocrypha 5. That the Holy Scriptures have God's authority Rom. 9. 17. Rom. 3. 4. Rom. 11. 32. conferred with Gal. 3. 22. Therefore above the authority of the Church 6. That all as well Laity as Clergy that will be saved must familiarly read or know the Holy Scripture Rom. 15. 4. Rom. 10. 1 2 8. Rom. 16. 26. 7. That all Images made of the true God are very Idols R. 1. 23. R. 2. 22. conferr'd 8. That to bow the knee religiously to an Image or to worship any Creature is meer Idolatry R. 11. 4. and a lying service R. 1. 25. 9. That we must not pray unto any but to God only in whom we believe Rom. 10. 13 14. Rom. 8. 15 27. therefore not to Saints and Angels 10. That Christ is our only intercessor in Heaven Rom. 8. 34 Rom. 5. 2 Rom. 16. 27. 11. That the only Sacrifice of Christians is nothing but the spiritual Sacrificing of their souls and bodies to serve God in holiness and righteousness R. 12. 1 R. 15. 16. therefore no real sacrificing of Christ in the Mass. 12. That the religious worship called dulia as well as latria belongeth to God alone Rom. 1. 9. Rom. 12. 11. R. 16. 18. conferr'd 13. That all Christians are to pray unto God in their own native language R. 14. 11. 14. That we have not of our selves in the state of corruption free will unto good Rom. 7. 18 c. Rom. 9. 16. 15. That Concupiscence in the regenerate is sin Rom. 7. 7 8 10. 16. That the Sacraments do not confer grace ex opere operato but sign and seal that â—t is conferred already unto us Rom. 4. 11 12. Rom. 2. 28 29. 17. That every
Amos 5. 8. e To distinguish 'twixt Spring and Harvest Summer Winter and to foreshew Judgments to come f Moadim fig. Sacred times appointed for God's holy worship having special significations promises g One of the seven days of the week from the other h Solar Sabbatarian and Jubilee Exod. 23. 11 12. * Index Chr. apud An. Mundi 1968. After Mr. Rob. Pont. his computation Treatise of the last decaying age of the World publish'd An. Dom. 1600. R. Pont. treat of the last age p. 17. Jer 25. 11 12. Rev. 5. 1. a Rev. 8. 2. and 9. 7. Napier on the Apoc. Proposition 6 8 9. and his Resolution b Pont. of the last age of the World p. 12. Buchol 2. Index Chr. c Broughton's consent A. M. 1430. Deu. 31. Pont ibid. Sâ—aliger Buchol †Pont. p. 21. Buch. Chro. apad A. M. 2500. b Jubilee some derive â—f trumpeâ—s â—r Raâ—is 〈◊〉 wherewith the Jubilee was foundâ—d others from Juâ—â—l a â—â—ream because they carry us to thâ— death of Christ the â—uthâ—r of our eternal rest and joy c Isa. 61. 1. Luk. 4. 18. * Pont. of the last decaying age of the World p. 12. 13. 21. †Expertum â—st in plerisque omnibus 63. annum cum periculo clâ—le aliqua venire aut corporis morbique gravioris aut vitae interitûs aut animi aegritudinis Aul. Gell. lib. 1. 15. c. 7. August in Ep. ad Caium Nepotem exultat se Climactera communem saniorum omnium 63. evasisse Bodin de Repub. l. 4. c. 2. * Aristotle Cicero Bernard Bocace Erasmus Luther Melancthon Sturmius †She was she is what can there more be said In Earth the First in Heaven the second Maid Bodin Bucholc Climax vitae virorum ferè septenariis aut novenariis faeminarum verò senariis definitur Bodin de Rep. lib. 4. c. 2. a Wis. 1 1. 17. Wolph Prooem Chron. b Rev. 10. 6. c Tempus est rerum mundanarum duratio extrinsecus observata †H. Wolph Chron. c. 1. Tempus cum mundo coepit una desisturum est ibid. d Gen. 2. 3. e Rev. 1. 10. * Si quid hâ—rum tâ—to die per othem frequentat Ecclesia Nam hoc quin ita faciendum sit disp â—tare insol◠〈◊〉 infaniâ—â— est Aug. Epist. 1 8. ad Jau †Synod Col part 9. c. â— * Ignat. ad Magnes Apol. 2. Origen homilia 7. super Exod. 1. Epist. ad Januar 〈◊〉 c. 13. ad Casal Epist. â—6 August de temp ser. 251. a Psal. 87. 3. b Aug. de temp ser. 152. 154. Conc. Const. Can. 8. Wolphios Chr lib. 1. c. 10. Must. â—ipont post Dom. Pasc. c Mat. 27. 52. Cedoman Annal. An. Mund. 2515. d Rev. 10. 7. e Joâ—h 6. 13. * Aug. ad Casâ— am â—p 86 ad Jaâ—â—ar 119. c. 19. †Aug Ser. de temp 151. 15â— Conc. â— Constant. can 8. * Non dubitamas quin vâ—riè apud Christiâ—nos â—â—â—bathum 〈…〉 do 〈…〉 aliis diebus 〈…〉 〈◊〉 †〈◊〉 Prae 〈◊〉 in Gen. 2. 3. * Exod. 31. 13 14 c. Ezek. 2â— 12 20. †Ezek 46. 1. 2 3 c. * Exod 35. 2. Armin. disp Theolog. in praecept 4. Thes. 14. †Act. 10. 15. Isa. 58. 13. * Read H. Wolphius Chron. de Temp. l. 2. cap. 4. p. 118. c 7. p. 140 c. Num. 15. 32. 2 Mac. 8. 28. Cent. Mag. de l. 12. c. 6. Disp. de Tempore Ser. 117. Tho. Cantiprat lib. 2. de apid Timpii admiran vindict div Theat hist. Johan Finc lib. 3. de miraculis Stow's Abridgment An. 1582. Discite jam moniti Dominum non temnere Christum †Whilst the Preachers â—ied in the Church prophaneness prophaneness Gain would not suffer them â—hear â—herefore when they â—ried Fire fire in the street God would not suffer any â—o help * Num. 15. 38. †Num. 28. 9 10. b Exod. 35. 2 3. c Exod. 16. 23. d Deut. 5. 16. e It was the Sabbath day on which Moses and the Children of Israel sang to God when Pharaoh and his host were drowned in the Sea Ex. 15. See Trem. Jun. notes on Deut. 5. 15. and on Exod. 12. 15. Object 1. Gal. 4. 10. 1 Cor. 16. 1. 14. 37. Act. 20. 7. Col. 2. 17. Lev. 23. 37 38. Object 2. Col. 2. 16. Object 3. Rom. 14. 5. Rom. 15. 1. * Exod. 31. 12 13. Exod. 31. 15 c. Exod. 34. 21. Neh. 13. 15. Jer. 17. 21 22 27. Deut. 5. 14. Rom. 8. 22. Deut. 25. 4. 1 Cor. 9. 9. Neh. 13. 15 16 19. Rev. 1. 10. Isa. 58. 13 14. Psal. 37. 4. Eph. 5. 18 19. Rom. 12. 11. Deut. 28. 47. 1 Cor. 10. 7. Exod. 32. 6 18 19. Melius enim â—rare quà m salâ—are in sabbato Aug. in â—it Psal. 91 Act. 17. 31. Rom. 2. 12 c. 2 Thes. 2. 8 c. Lactan lib. 7. cap. 1. Rev. 22. 11. This was the last and heaviest curse that St. John wished spiritual Babylon Rev. 2 3. Isa. 56. 2. c. and 58. 13 c. Exod 16. 33 c. 1 Cor. 7. 5. Gen 35. 2. 1 Thess. 4. 4. 1 Sam. 21. 5. Exod. 19. 15. Col. 4. 3. Psal 92. 1 2 5. 1 Cor. 29. 11 c. * Here thou maist confess whatsoever sin of the last week clogs thy conscience †Joh. 1. 29. Matth. 13. 4 c. Luk. 8. 5 c Col. 4. 3. Acts 26. 18. a 1 Thess. 5. 13. b Heb. 13. 17. c 1 Cor. 11. 10. Eph. 3. 10. 1 Pet. 1. 12. Isai. 58. 13. Psal. 100. 4. Psal. 42. 1 2. Psal. 84. 10. Psal. 5. 7. Gen. 28. 16 17. 1 Cor. 14. 25. Psal. 26. 8. Psal. 27. 4. Verse 6. Psal. 23. 6. Eccl. 5. 1. 1 Cor. 12. 12. a Act. 2. 1 46. b Chap. 4. 32. Eccles. 5. 1. Ezek. 46. 10 Psal. 110. 3. †Cùm Romam venio jejuno Sabbato cùm hic sum non jejuno Sic 〈◊〉 ad quam fortè Ecclesiam veneris ejus morem serva si cuiquam non vis esse scandalo nec quenquam tibi Amb. consi August Epist. ad Januar a Luk. 4. 20. b Luk. 19. 48. * Isa. 2. 3. Act. 10. 33. Gal. 4. 14. 1 Thes. 2. 13 †Rev. 2. 7. Luke 24. 32 a Luk. 11. 28. b Rom. 15. 16 c Deut. 33. 3 d Joh. 10. 4. e Joh. 8. 47. and 18. â—7 f Luke 1 21. Mark 3. 35. Ezek. 46. 10. Luke 10. 16. Numb 6. 23 27. 1 Cor. 16. 1. 2 Cor. 9. 5 6 7 c. Lev. 11. 3. Psal. 119. 11. Mat. 13. 19. Job 31. 17 18. Hest. 9. 22. Deut. 15. 10 c. Matth. 25. 35 c. †If thou be a private man â—ither perfâ—rm these holy dâ—ties by thy self or joyn with some godly Family in the performance of them a Act. 17. 11. â—eb 5. 14. a Deut. 6. 7. b Mat. 26. 30. Jam. 5. 13. c Heb. 6. 1. Heb. 5. 14. Psal 〈…〉 19 1 c.