THE Court Convert OR A Sincere Sorrow for SIN Faithfully TRAVERS'D Expressing the Dignity of a True Penitent Drawn in Little by ONE whose Manifold Misfortunes Abroad have render'd him Necessitated to seek for Shelter Here By Dedicating Himself and this small POEM By H. A. Gent. Printed for the Author TO THE HONOURED Ioseph Boyeck Esq r S r THE Author's Condition being at present on a Level and the Basis of his former Fortune Overthrown to get Clear of the Dilemma and prevent his future Interment in the Ruins Humbly takes leave to Dedicate this small Poem the Off-spring of a Penny-less Muse to Your kind Acceptance Having nothing in this Iron Age wherewith to support him but a Feeble Quill He knows it is not Practicable to Trade for Wealth in the Poets Territories he might as well depend on the Wheel of Fortune for a Benefit which only Turns to the advantage of her Favourites than Fish for Pearl in the Muses Helicon where are only Wrecks and no Riches he has only play'd a little about the Brink which if not we done is submitted to Correction But bâ—lieving the spirit of Goodness and true Humility resides in your Generous Breast as Rich Gemm in a Noble Cascate he is Encourag'd to Lay this the aforesaid Brat aâ— your Hospitable gate for they whose Estimate of Men and things Proceed not from a Blind and Popular Applause Lives uâ—most near the Example of our SAVIOUR who when on Earth Declin'd the Conversation of a Proud Tetrarch for that of a Poor Lazer and Valu'd more the Holy acts of an Humble Fisher then all the Great and Heroick Deeds of a Haughty Caesar I am Your Honours most Dutiful Servant Henry Anderson THE COURT CONVERT DEluding World which hath so long amus'd And with false Shapes my dreaming Soul abus'd â—yrannick Court where simple Mortals buy With Life and Fortune splendid Slavery â—ence-forth Adieu my goodly Stock of Years â—aid out for that I now lament with Tears Monarchs who with amazing Splendor glare â—nd Favorites who their Reflections are â—oth shine 't is true but 't is like Glass they do â—rittle as that and made of Ashes too The Hour is set wherein they must disown The Royal Pomp the Treasure and the Throne The dazling Lustre of Majestick State Shall be extinguish'd by the Hand of Fate Highness must stoop into the hollow Grave And keep sad Court in a cold dampish Cave Beauty and jovial Youth decays apace Age still and Sickness oft doth both deface The Favorite whom all adore and fear Whose Strength doth so unshakable appear It 's but a Tower built on flitting Sands No longer than the Tempest sleepeth stands Nor can the Calm of Fortune long insure Or Monarch's Favour crazy Man secure We moulder of our selves and soon or late We must resign beloved Life to Fate From stately Palaces we must remove The narrow Lodging of a Grave to prove Leave the fair Train and the light-guilded Room To lie alone benighted in the Tomb. GOD only is Immortal Man not so Life to be paid upon demand we owe. The rigid Laws of Fate with none dispense From the least Beggar to the greatest Prince The crooked Sythe that no Distinction knows Monarchs and Slaves indifferently mows One Day we 'd pity those we now admire When after all the Glory they acquire When after all the famous Conquests they have made Fierce Death their Lawrels in the Dust hath laid Those Heads and Hands which States and Princes steer Who Rule in Peace and Conquer in the War Shall by a sad and certain Change of State Be doom'd a Prize to Death and rigid Fate Then be no more their very Name will die To Fame unless preserv'd by History 'T is Heaven's Great KING alone whom Angels serve Who does our Hearts our Care our Love deserve To HIM all 's due there 's nought at our command But must be paid at his Divine Demand To HIM the Christian ought to make his Court His Love the only Matter of Import Not but that Honour must to Kings be paid Being by Heav'n Heav'n's Vicegerents made To such we dedicate our Hearts and Hands With due Submission to their just Commands And their unjust ones tho we cannot do We must the Mulct with Patience undergo T is Sacrilege in any Case to pry â—nto the God-like Power of Majesty And mere Typheon insolence to strive Law to a King with lawless Arms to give But all good Subjects should adore the Hand By which Kings and the Crowns they wear do stand And while the Earth's great Master we revere Pay Homage also to the Thunderer To GOD whom Kings obey whose Bounty gave Their Scepters Crowns and all the Goods they have To GOD whose Sun-beams guilded Royal State And Glory gives to each great Monarch's Fate With whose unknown but to HIM easy Skill Manages Powers and Princes as HE will Now for to get in favour with this Prince There needs no more but simple Innocence No Honour at his Court is bought with Gold But for cheap Love are all Preferments sold And in proportion to the Love you bring You shall have Power from the KING of Kings With a good Stock of Love there one may climb To a great Fortune in a little time Nor is it hard me-thinks to love a GOD Who is himself so Loving and so Good In other Courts a Man doth lose himself Oft for a little and long drudg'd for Pelf In Business bearing an uncertain State Made void sometimes by Envy or by Hate Rendring Possession of too short a Date For as a Dropsie makes the Body grow At the same time that it brings Nature low O're-whelm'd with Water choak'd with Wind So Wealth at once swells up and starves the Mind â—t GOD the Soul's Capacity doth fill â—is Bounty over-flows Man's boundless Will â—nd since the Earth cannot our Nature bless â—nd the great World 's too little for the less â—is boundless Self he gives us is so good As Romans hold the Sacramental Food â—o regale us with 's Body and His Blood With Heavenly Manna Angels tasteful Meat The same he gave His loving Twelve to Eat â—imself the Treater and Himself the Treat Come all that Hunger to the Royal Feast Come ev'ry one and wear the Nuptial Vest â—et the King's Splendor dash or dazle none Or being Mean discourage any one â—our Host is known to be as Meek as Great And will alike the King and Beggar treat Spare not his Board you cannot make him poor The more he gives the greater is his Store His Bounty like his Treasure 's unconfin'd By giving still to Give the more inclin'd Come then and crowd into his Royal Court And to the Source of Goodness all resort Love H I M whose Goodness Words cannot express And whose Ail-flowing Bounty is not less Lift up your Reason then and have a care No foolish worldly Baubles enter there With such Precaution you 'll acquire his Grace And purchase in his glorious Court
a Place Where you will bless the Day you first awoke The happy Time in which your Slumber broke Crowds of all Blessings will your Hearts invade And your fresh blooming Joys will never fade No more the Storms of Princes you will fear That cause so many Wrecks and Wretches here Where in a Moment all the Cargo's lost Which your whole Stock of anxious Care has cost One Day with GOD affords you more Content Than twenty Lives in Courts of Princes spent An angry Word a Slight a gloomy Frown Will be enough to cast a Courtier down â—f he would beg a Favour of his King Let his Request be ne'er so mean a thing A hundred Journeys he must undertake His Suit to this and that great Courtier make Thousands of Legs and Cringes it will cost â—nd after all perhaps his Labour 's lost â—ut with GOD's Votaries it is not so We cannot ask so fast as He 'll bestow His EAR is still to hear our Suits inclin'd And to each Suitor daily proveth kind HE often hears before we are aware And our least Wants by HIM consider'd are The smallest Hair falls not beside HIS Care On HIM we cannot our good Thoughts displace Unless we madly throw away HIS Grace Only to Him our Hearts should yield the Sway And not by false Obedience Heaven betray For first GOD doth what he would have us do Love with a Love beyond Example true His Charming Law is LOVE His Yoke is sweet Both for the King and poorest Beggar meet Easy and Light alike to Great and Small And the same Hire proposed to them all Of Monarchs he to Him is Great alone Who to himself becomes a Little One. The only Greatness which poor Man can have â—s to be here his Great Redeemer's Slave That King that doth not Heav'n's just King obey A Traitor is himself to Majesty The simple Shepherd who with chast Desire The cheerful Innocence to Heav'n aspires The honest painful Labourer who sweats â—rom Morn to Night to get the Bread he eats â—f he serves Heaven is indeed more Great Than Kings with all their Pride and Purple State Thrice brave those Monarchs who had dar'd to fly â—rom all th' alluring Charms of Majesty Lay down the Sword their conqu'ring Troops forsake Unarm'd alone the Heaven of Heavens t'attack A Holy War with Hosts of Pleasures wage â—nd tho the Flesh did for the Foe ingage Triumph'd o'er Foreign and Domestick Rage Thrice blest are those who fled from being Great From Courts to safer Cottages retreat Heaven kindly doth their humble Thoughts defeat For Greatness while they strive to shun they meet They are made Great and so more glorious Kings By being just than by all earthly Things Ah! how we win in losing for our GOD While Heav'n is gain'd for a poor sorry Clod Of Earth When for a short Grief here endur'd We are of Everlasting Joys assur'd Since for one Pleasure we refuse our Sense We shall have Millions for our Recompence Poor abus'd Men unlucky Flock they stray Without the Shepherd void of the right Way Unthinking Souls that perish with Delight Which all the Threats of Heav'n cannot affright Fâ—r sure those Pains which do on Sin attend â—ins which begin but never must have end â—â—e immaterial Fire that burneth still â—â—t to their great Misfortune cannot kill â—he Devil's Dungeon and all sorts of Pain â—hich Human Fortitude cannot sustain â—ight one wou'd think Mens brutish Courage shake â—nd in our Souls a noble Fear awake â—â—t if the Racks of Hell can't Sin subdue â—ffer the Lord of Hosts to conquer you â—â—pose Him not unwisely but imbrace â—â—e favourable Offers of his Grace â—â—store Him to the Kingdom of your Hearts â—â—st without Mercy by the Devil's Arts â—he old Vsurper's lawless Power disown â—epose the hellish Tyrant from the Throne â—â—d let King JESUS reign in it alone His Law is much more easy to observe Than those o' th' World which yet we gladly serve It neither hurts the Body nor the Mind But is indeed to one and t'other kind A Check sometimes it may afford to Sense But is at length it s own Benevolence O Divine Law O easy Law of Love Let ME observe thee and thy Wages prove But then i' th' World a hundred Laws there be Void of all Sense but full of Tyranny Where foppish Form our Liberty restrains And cripples us with false fantastick Chains You must pretend to Love whom you Detest Fawn on the Great One when by him opprest With sneering Praise guild o'er his blackest Crimes And all those Humours which debauch the Times â—sk your Displeasure with a smiling Face â—â—d swear you 're highly pleas'd with your Disgrace â—â—iumph in shew when you are overthrown â—â—d all your Discontents and Griefs disown â—â—tting off quite with base uneasy Art â—â—e honest Commerce of the Mouth and Heart â—â—hameful Slavery of poor Mankind â—â—worthy of a Man or Christian Mind â—â—â—tead of CHRIST whom always we shou'd own â—â—â—se Tyranny and Passion we enthrone â—â—â—nging to those that from all Vertue run â—â— serve a thousand Masters in their turn â—â—e crouded Way of Vice cou'd never show 〈◊〉 Pleasure which true Vertue doth bestow â—â—â—m Innocence a native Joy accrues 〈◊〉 wracking Sorrow always Guilt pursues The Ill Man 's never Quiet nor Content The Good is full of Chear â—ho Penitent His inward Calm upon his Brow appears And Halcyon like no blustring Storm he fears Him all the Turns of Fate 's prepar'd to find Meets Frowns and Favours with an equal Mind If Sickness warns him of approaching Death Or Fortune robs him of his worldly Wealth It cannot his unshaken Courage move Who above Earth hath plac'd in Heav'n his Love His Health his Riches and his sole Delight Is here to serve his GOD with all his Might And that great Master faithfully to trace Whose Death was Triumph Pleasure a Disgrace He lov'd the Cross O Cross O happy Wood That once was manur'd with our Saviour's Blood And moisten'd with his Tears with Tears of Grief Whilst He that shed them dy'd for our Relief Whose all-revenging Death by th' Cross did quell Th' usurped Force of Sin and Power of Hell The Stygian Monster 's Power and so set free â—enowned Heroes from Captivity T was by this Cross that he to Heav'n did climb â—nd order'd all Mankind to follow HIM â— Cross O CHRIST O Wounds O Streams of Blood â— KING to your ungrateful Slaves too Good â—y Heart's Delight my lingring Soul's Desire â—y Love that burns me with a Jambent Fire â—y JESUS Blessed Body and his Blood â—rought down from Heav'n above to be Man's Food â—our LOVE I find does to such height amount â—y Gratitude is lost in the Account When Punishment was to my Actions due Amazing Favours my Misdeeds ensue Instead of being by your Justice thrust With sudden Thunder into native Dust While with my Works I earn'd the Fire of Hell And Satan triumph'd o'er my wretched Will When I provok'd your
Justice with the height Of base Ingratitude and Earth's Delight You did ev'n then O depth of Goodness deign My Heart of all innated Vice to drain Which first in being Yours was truly blest Till I vile Wretch my MASTER dispossest YOV were its Lord its Monarch and what more Vouchsaf'd t' espouse a thing so mean and poor To the expence of Your dear Blood and Breath Your purple Sweat and Tortures worse than Death So dear it cost YOV yet I bore away Tho you have once more made the Wretch your Prey Dear Lord I wander'd in the Paths of Vice And grop'd on blindfold to the Precipice â—nstead of loving YOV the only Good 〈◊〉 made each empty Vanity my God But O Excess of Mercy YOV repay With Grace and Gifts Your Slave 's black Treachery Whom the false World and falser Court deceiv'd Whom Sin and Satan wretchedly enslav'd What dismal Blindness did possess my Mind â—or silly short-liv'd Toys to have resign'd A blest Eternity and you dear Lord Who can a real heavenly Good afford Eyes on my Cheeks let trickling Tears run down Your guilty selves in your own Waters drown False Guides that led me to the Hunter's Snare When by my self left wholly to your Care Ah poor ambitious fond deluded Sight Thus on the sorry Creature to delight Your Fellow-Slave a Bit of Earth a Dream E'en a poor wretched Nothing to esteem For what avails a Mitre or a Crown Or all that here a Man can call his own Those whom our fawning Flatterers call Great Whom baser Mankind prostrate at their Feet In the Divine Eternal Glass appear As little as the meanest Mortal here When th' Eye in Darkness sets and Life's warm Fire With th' Ice of Death in Sorrow doth expire What matters Gold by some Men so ador'd What Pleasure will a starry Crown afford This Garb ill fits a pale and lifeless Head And that bright Metal shines not to the Dead Corruption then will not forbear its Prey For fear of dead and helpless Majesty Nor will that Lustre which amaz'd poor Man Dazle the Legions of bold Vermin then Alas There 's no Distinction in the Grave Between the greatest King and meanest Slave All Flesh is there unto one Change design'd And leaves all worldly Goods and Fame behind But different Fates the righteous Souls attend From theirs that here do make a wicked End Those of the Good to Heaven's Great King repair The unknown Pleasures of his Court to share â—n Peace and glorious Triumph to enjoy The Fruit of their laborious Victory But those who lodg'd in Bodies did defy With unrepented Crimes the Deity Condemn'd to Chains and hopeless of Relief Die to all Bliss but ever live to Grief It is a doleful Scene to see base Man Provoke his patient MAKER all he can Shun Happiness so easy to be won And take a world of Pains to be undone Even employ his whole Life-long to buy A wretched Right to endless Misery Thus he who studies to indulge his Earth And quite neglects the Meaning of his Birth Into the gaping Jaws of Satan runs And the inviting Arms of JESUS shuns Those Arms that stand still open to receive All weary Prodigals that Sin do leave Arms full of Love and Pity which display Even to Foes and Traitors Sanctuary â—or those he left his Father's bright Abode Made Son of Man to make Man Son of GOD. To cure their Wounds He Life's Elixir bled And dy'd a Death to raise them from the Dead Dear JESUS who with such a charming Art â—ath soften'd and reduc'd Man's sinful Heart Did likewise on the Day the Church renews The Annual Obsequies of her dead Spouse â—rom worldly Vice her Votary set free â—nd from the Court anâ— World deliver'd me â—o from my self thus freed didst after deign â—o bind me with your Love 's enlarging Chain â—or such your Favours shew me but the way â—ood Lord my due Acknowledgment must pay â—OU had the Goodness for my sake to dye Which I for YOU will do most willingly And since my Life cannot suffice to pay For the least Breath of that You gave away I wish the Lives of all the World were mine That all for Your dear sake I might resign But a rent Heart since You will not despise And a bruis'd Reed to You in Sacrifice My Prayers I humbly offer and adore The GOD that doth accept a Gift so poor I love You Lord as bed-rid Men love Health Close Prisoners Freedom or starv'd Beggars Wealth My Soul thirsts after Thee pure Spring of Good As the chac'd Deer after a cooling Flood Nor do I love You for your HEAVEN no For Your blest sake all Comfort I 'll forego The sharpest Pain from thence will easy be And nought but HELL can be a Grief to me FINIS