certainly there was in this our old Doctor such warmth of affections as is seldom seen in so antient a man and yet was it mannaged with such Christian Prudence that he exercised it not about light and trivial matters but about the greater and more substantial points of Religion and that through the whole course of his Life Whether he Preached Prayed or discoursed about Divine things all was performed with much zeal and heat of affections He was fervent in spirit serving the Lord Rom. 12.11 How glad was he of an opportunity of Preaching and if his liberty could have been purchased with money what would he not have given for it He was very affectionate in Prayer His Prudence and yet were his affections so tempered with Prudence and Judgement that though upon extraordinary occasions he would dâ—â—â—large himself therein yet in his Family Prayers he was usually short that so he might not make Religious duties a burthen to those that joyned with him And as his Prayers were fervent so he had this honour from God that he had many signal returns and answers to his Prayers as we shall hear afterwards and as can be attested by many who received benefit by them both for Soul and Bodily distempers and affections He was conscienciously strict in the observation of the Lords Daies The Sabbath Sanctified not permitting any discourses in his presence but such as were suitable to the Day and to the Duties thereof Rebuking and reproving such as would take liberty to discourse about their worldly businesses upon Gods Day Fourthly His liberality and bounty were as eminent His bounty and charity and exemplary as any of his other Graces God gave him a good Estate so a large heart which was a double mercy He was rich in good works ready to distribute willing to communicate Laying up in store for himself a good Foundation against the time to come 1 Tim. 6.18 19. He hath been often heard to say That he could fare hardly and go meanly that he might be the better enabled thereby to be charitable unto others that were in want And it is believed that few of his estate and rank exceeded him herein Seldom did any necessitous Persons come to him seldom did he hear of the necessitiâ—s of others though at a distance from him but they tasted of his Bounty He gave large summs of money every year for divers years together to pious and charitable uses as his Wife can testifie who kept an account in writing of the several summs so disbursed by him Towards the relief of the poor persecuted Protestants in Piâ—mont he gave thirty pounds and as much the same year to another charitable use He gave also several considerable summs yearly for the support and encouragement of some poor Schollars in the University of Dublin besides a large summ of money disbursed out of his own purse towards furnishing the Library there with Books And as he had thus sundry waies exercised his Bounty whilst he lived so at his Death he gave large Legacies to pious and charitable uses and God made good that Promise to him Isa 58.10 If thou draw out thy Soul to the hungry and satisfie the afflicted Soul Then shall thy Light rise in obscurity and thy darkness be as the Noon-day 5. To this Grace of Charity may be added his Candour His Candour and courteous deportment which gave a lustre to his Bounty according to that of the Poet Dat benè dat multum Qui dat cum munere vultum He was not apt to be offended with others much less apt to offend others His Meekness He alwaies interpreted to the best sense that which might seemingly have ministred occasion of offence by which excellent temper he drew love and respect to himself wheresoever he came and with whomsoever he conversed whether in private Families or in his more publick imployments Sixthly In the last place his Faith His Faith and Patience and Patience calls for our consideration of which as he had given good proof in the whole course of his Life so they eminently shon forth when he came to die In the time of his sickness he shewed an holy humble and chearful resignation of himself to the wife and merciful disposal of God his Heavenly Father Not one repining word was heard to proceed out of his mouth He was dumb and opened not his mouth because it was the Lord that did it Psalm 39.9 There was not any impatient or uncomly motion seen in him but being full of Faith of Christian Patience and courage he feared not Death but was well prepared and resolved against that stroke of it And would often say O how happy a thing is it by Death to be about a possibility of Sinning The Heathen Philosophers called Death The most terrible of all terribles and the Sacred Scripture calls it The King of terrours It is Storied that one hearing a person highly commended for his excellent Virtues said Let us stay till his Death and then we shall be the better able to judge of all these things which make such a glittering shew in him for the present And certainly to be able to look the King of Terrouâ—s in the Face without consternation and to meet the last enemy Death with Joy and consolation His Perseverance is no small evidence of a true and strong Faith and this was evidently seen and discerned in this worthy Doctor at the time of his Death He often declared in his health that in his younger daies he had been sorely vexed and pestered with Satans Temptations but at last meeting with a plain honest Christian such an other probably as the Shepherd was with whom Junius met to whom complaining of his fears he first rebuked him and then instructed him Good Counsel saying You look at the reward without minding and intending the Work in that you desire and expect Assurance before you have well resolved upon doing your Duty My advice therefore is to mind what God requires of you in your present station and be serious and diligent therein and the other will come in Gods due time This advice he professed was of great use to him all his Life after so that after that time he was not troubled with such perplexing thoughts as formerly he had been but lived and dyed in Peace both with God and man in the great Climacterical year of his Age October 22. 1666. Examples of his power and prevalency in Prayer The wise Solomon tells us Prov. 12.2 That a good man obtaineth favour of the Lord That is He hath what he will of God Id quod vult à Domino impetrat quia eius voluntas est ipsissima Dei voluntas nec aliud vult As Mercer hath it out of Rabâ—i Levi. It is written of Luther â—â—e vir potuit à Deo quicquid voluit That by his Prayers he could prevail with God at his pleasure Melancthon and Myconius being sick of desperate
the Sermon Bell. Nor was he thus desirous to Preach but as desirous that the word Preached might not slip out of the hearts or memories of such of the hearers as he conversed with turning all discourses to what was lately Preached saying that as the Bell when it was done ringing leaves a humming behind it so should Sermons after they are Preached He was a man mighty in Prayer he would often say a man of much Prayer was a man of much grace and a man of little Prayer was a a man of little grace As he was of a melted spirit in Prayer so he was another Jacob a great wrestler with God His Prayers were not only affectionate but very argumentative He had a very great excellency in pleading with God from Scripture Topicks which he would wonderfully improve And as his communion with God was great so the Lord did to admiration let out himself 〈◊〉 him not only eminently answering his prayers but revealing many secrets to him in and after prayer some of which for the encouragement and comfort of the Godly Reader I shall here take the liberty to relate In his younger years he had a Law-Sute with one about a Living he was possessed of of good value at last he was about to resign it as being unable to withstand so potent an adversary The people hearing of his resolution came to him and besought him that he would not but consider their precious Souls His tenderness was such that he held on the Sute to the expending of a very great summ of money and in the end was overcome His then Wife was much cast down for that so great a part of their estate was spent in that Sute whereupon being abroad one day hâ— besought the Lord exceeding earnestly to quiet his and her spirit with hiâ— providence whereupon he said hâ— saw the Skie open and heard a voicâ— which said to him that seeing hâ— was willing to spend his estate for his Glory neither he nor his should ever want which when he came home he told his Wife with great Joy saying he would not for 〈◊〉 he was worth want that comfortable answer to his prayers At an other time being without his knowledge noâ— minâ—ted in Parliament to go with their Commissioners for Ireland his wife was unwilling he having a precious people and great living where he was Some also of his Wives nearest Relations coming upon that occasion to visit them disswaded him from going himself also was fearful of the Sea in this Streight as his usual manner was he retired to his Closet where having spread the matter before the Lord and with much earnestness begging Counsel of God the Lord so satisfied him that he told his Wife he must go for he was assured he should be carried thither in safety and should be an Instrument to convert many Souls there In both the Lord was pleased to fulfill his word after a wonderful manner as there are other Instances at hand were it needful to multiply as that of his perswasion of the recovery of Mr. J. Mrs. M. and Mr. J. W. Even when sick in an other Land and his perswasion of Gods great care over these Nations for the sake of the many thousands of the Righteous in them Touching which in the close of a day of prayer he said he had an assurance by an audible voice and a glorious brightness that shined before him It is not unknown to some how great an encourager he was of godliness in all especially in such as under his Government in the Colledge were designed for the Ministry whom he would prefer in fellowships or other places before others And the like tenderness he showed his Brethren in the Ministry when under any discouragement because of their own weakness biding them to look up and telling them that the way to have legs was to use legs He was very communicative for he loved to be asked questions especially touching the sense of difficult Scriptures to which even upon the Sudden he would answer admirably His great humility he showed in his delightful Converse with the meanest Saints What he was in other Relations needs not my recital As he was a loving Father so a Husband of many which leaves the deeper impression upon the heart of his Relict Surely he was a true friend an useful Neighbour But that I may draw to a Conclusion having already exceeded the bounds of an Epistle what I have here spoken I desire may provoke imitation and that Ministers may thereby be excited to do all the good they can in their day seeing the Prophets do not live for ever that their words may live when they are dead that having so served Gods providence in their generation they may enjoy that Crown of which he is in full possession and I desire all may seriously consider why the Lord continues to remove our Lots and to pluck up our stakes and to fear lest it may be in Judgement to us of these sinful times as it is in mercy doubtless to them And I do heartily wish that these loud Voices of Gods providence might put us upon our Watch that keeping Faith and a good Conscience we may be in a readiness to enter into the Joy of our Lord when we shall be Called off the Stage of this miserable world Which the great God graciously vouchsafe in and through our Lord Jesus Christ Amen The Life and Death of the Reverend Learned and holy Doctor Samuel Winter sometime Provest of Trinity Colledge by Dublin DOctor Samuel Winter was born in the year of our Lord 1603. at Balsal His Birth and education in the wood-land part of Warwickshire about seven miles from the City of Coventry of Religious Parents About the twelfth year of his age it pleased God by the Ministry of one Mr. Slader then Preacher at the Chappel of Knowl near unto Balsal The Doctors Father having a great hand in bringing him thither to awaken his conscience and to make him serious about the things that concerned his everlasting Salvation His Conversion as also to stir up in him earnest desires of doing good to the souls of others for which end one day as he came from School about a mile from his Fathers house he retired himself under an hedge to pray and among other Petitions he begged of God that he would quallify him for the work of the Ministry and make his labour effectual and successful therein At which time he thought that he heard a voice saying God hath heard thy Prayer Prayer Answered and hath designed thee for that Work and thou shalt be an Instrument of Converting many Souls to God This exceedingly cheared up his heart insomuch as coming home he applyed himself to his Father requesting of him that he might be trained up for the work of the Ministry His Father asked him the reason of his desires He told him what Prayer he had made and what return he had from God to it
so with much earnestness of spirit looking up towards Heaven he begged of God that the words of a dying man might make a deep impression upon the hearts of his Hearers And that as God had made him an Instrument of converting many Souls unto him in his Life so he would bless what he had now spoken that some one Soul might be brought to Jesus Christ by this his last Sermon Then he proceeded to further Heavenly discourses and Instructions quoting sundry Texts of Scripture for the proof of what he spake naming the Chapters Verses and words of the Texts which he opened and explained out of the Originals with that acuteness and strength of words with that zeal and fervency of spirit as was admirable so that he drew tears from the eyes of all that were present whether young or old And left any there present should think that his understanding and memory were grown weak oâ— that he was overcome through the abundance of Revelation which he had the night before to let them know that he had spoken to them the words of truth and soberness and that with a perfect understanding of what he spake he made this Narrative following He told them the manner of his education in Religion from his childhood and of the vanity which did attend his youthful daies and where and how God did appear to him for his Conversion at twelve years of his age and of the assurance which God had given him as is before related that he should be an Instrument of converting many Souls to God As also of his proficiency in learning from that very time He farther declared with tears trickling down his cheeks that he had many and many a time A faithfull Pastor in private before he went to Preach put God in mind of that Promise so made unto him and earnestly besought him to make good that Promise by giving a blessing to that Word of his which he was then going to deliver that some Glory might redound to his holy Name thereby To which his Prayers God had often been pleased to give a gracious Answer and to let him know it by the Conversion of some by those Sermons One of his Relations then present fearing that his Spirits would be weakened and spent by that his continued discourse desired him to repose himself for a while To whom he replyed with much earnestness and strength of voice No His Zeal were I sure that this should be my last night as indeed it proved and the last Sermon that I should Preach I would continue it two hours longer Adding that he was not afraid of Death And turning his Head backward he said Death is a Coward he comes behind me His Triumph He dares not look me in the Face And farther he said The Devil hath oft assaulted me in my Life time But God stoâ—d by me and give me strength to resist him so that he could never hurt me All that day following he lay in Heavenly Contemplation and Raptares His Raptures often breaking forth in Praises unto God for Jesus Christ And would sometimes desire his Wife and other Friends to tell him whether he were in the Body or out of the Body for he could not tell And a Minister being the in the House he desired that he might be called in and when he was come he propounded the same Question unto him who answered That he was in Life and among his Friends on Earth and therefore in the Body To this he replyed It is true and therewith rested satisfred and desired the Minister to pray with him which he did accordingly His Wife told him that some Friends present hoped that he might yet live To which he answered Can a Dead man live Will God work Miracles Shortly after he said God is doing great things in the world and he much bewailed the sad condition of the Church of Christ c. In the afternoon The power of Death finding Death to approach he often cryed out O the power of Death Not that he feared it for it shrunk from him but he found such a Power in Death as none could know but those that were under it He wished that his Sons had been present that they might see what the Power of Death was and what it was to die He desired also that some Neighbours of the Town might be called in that he might Preach his last Sermon to them And indeed to this very time his spirits speech and memory continued very active and strong About four a clock in the afternoon his Wife and his Wives Brother and Sister standing by his bedside asked him how he did He answered Very Weak Adding That he was going to Jesus Christ Death not to be feared Bid them not be afraid of Death with which words he put forth his hand and said Brother Sister Take Death by the Hand Be not afraid Death is a coward He flies from 〈◊〉 They found that his Hands were cold and Clammy whereby they perceived that he grew near to his end And himself not long after feeling that the dissolution of this earthly Tabernacle was now approaching lifting up his eyes towards Heaven he cryed out Câ—me Lâ—rd Jesus His blessed Death And presently with a smiling countenance he added Art thou Câ—me And so he breathed out his laâ—â— Thus Reader 〈…〉 through the more considerable passages of this blessed mans Life and Death Pause here a while and take a view 〈◊〉 all again and then surely thou canst nâ—â— but wish though it is desired for thee that it may be from a better Principle than was in Balaam Let me die the Death of this blessed man and let my last end be like his But in vain shak thou wish for this if the pattern of his Holy and Exemplary Life be neglected by thee It is Storied that a person of a loose Life that hearing what a comfortable end St. Bernard made said to his companions I would willingly die like St. Bernard but I would live like you It s too certain that many are of the same mind but as it is impossible but that an holy Life should have a blessed and happy Death Mark the perfect man and behold the Vpright For the end of that man is Peace Psalm 37.37 So it is as impossible in an ordinary way that a loose and wicked Life should have any other than a miserable and uncomfortable Death though some delusive fadeing flashes of seeming comfort they may sometimes have yet are but as a blaze of Thorns that is suddenly extinct For God himself hath said it There is no Peace to the wicked Isa 48.22 And again The wicked are driven away in their wickedness But the Righteous hath Hope in his Death Impius dum spirat sperat Sed Justus cum exspirat sperat The wicked Hope while they live with a vain ungrounded Hope But the Righteous hope when they die with a lively and well-grounded Hope that never