in a particular manner we would Meditate upon the Nature and Properties which God hath wrought in Beasts we might thence not only take good Instructions for the better preservation and sustenance of our Bodies but Lessons also to frame and perfect our Manners As for Instance Meditate on the Camel which then stoopeth and kneeleth when he shall be charged and thence learn the lesson of Humility Meditate on the Cock which giveth out of his own Mouth Meat to his Hens and exposeth himself to any danger to keep them safe and thence learn the Lessons of Liberality and care over our Families Meditate on the Bee which gets Honey out of the Flowers without any damage or injury done to them and thence learn to Gain by the use of anothers Goods without his hurt or prejudice Meditate on the one eyed Fish called vid. Fran. de Animal Ura Noscopos whose Eye so stands that it always looketh upwards and thence learn to fix your hearts upon things which are above Or upon the Goat which continually climbs up to high and eminent places and thence learn the same Lesson more perfectly From Meditation on such and the like Works of God Good and Learned Persons have much improved themselves and others by way of Application of them for Orators have us'd them to perswade and others also who have written well and Elegantly and God and Holy Men frequently instruct us by the Manners and Conditions of Beasts and lead us thereby to perfection and uprightness of Life for they advise us to be Prudent as Serpents and Innocent as Doves and Meek and Gentle as the Lamb and Strong and Constant as the Lyon Now to many other Examples of this kind I shall leave you to your own thoughts Thus we see what a large Field of Meditation all Mankind hath from what they see God hath done in the World But we must not bound our Meditations On what Christians should meditate here but consider that we are Christians and thereupon proceed in this Duty with care and circumspection for because we are thus called it behoves us to fix our thoughts chiefly on God's gracious Work in sending his Son into the World to Redeem those who Believe in him from the Bondage of Sin Death and Misery That God so loved the World that he Io. 3 16. gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting Life is such a glad Tyding which should never slip out of our memories Certainly there is much Benefit got by reflecting upon such loving Works of God for as the Flint is broken upon the Cushion so our Hearts which are hard and stony by customary sinning will hereby through God's Grace be broken and made tender and plyable to the observance of God's Laws Meditate upon Divinity cloathed in Humanity upon Life suffering Death upon Glory induring Shame upon the Beloved cast out to Misery upon Heaven Descending into Hell and then be silent if you can and if it be possible forbear to cry out who can resist such Love What frozen Heart cannot be thaw'd with such heat Who would not Fear such a Lord And who would not be Obedient to such a Father These are the admirable effects which are wrought in us by the Meditation on such a wonderful Work of God and therefore to fix our thoughts frequently upon this Object is not only the special Duty but the excellent priviledge of us who are called Christians And here Meletus that he might not surfeit his Hearers patience and hereby put the Medicine he us'd for their diligence in the prescrib'd Office in need of a Medicine it self he adjourn'd them to another time to hear the Report he was to make upon the next Object of Meditation CHAP. III. Meletus's Second Discourse of Meditation IN the next Congress he proceeded to declare that the Duty of Meditation was to be exercis'd upon our selves That is said he we must Think upon our Condition what we are and what we are like to be Whether we are what we profess Christians in reality and whether we declare our selves to be so by departing from Iniquity Now if by Meditation we discover what we are we shall soon know what we shall be if we so continue for Misery and Happiness everlasting will be the consequent of our Wicked or Pious Conversation as we Live so shall we Die and as we Die so shall we be Rewarded we must either be Goats or Sheep receive our Blessing or our Curse either be thrown down into outer Darkness or else enter into our Masters Ioy. Now the first Meditation in reference to our selves should be to know what the Condition of our Heart is for that is the special Gift which God requests of us And Prov. 23. since we should not give him we know not what something at adventure and not what we may be assured he will kindly accept and carefully Preserve and plentifully Reward We must fix our thoughts so as to examine what our Hearts are in themselves and then we shall know what our selves are and what God expects from us Now as no Member of the Body performs any Action of Spiritual Life wherein a Pulse from the Heart doth not Beat. So it is in the See Mede on Prov. the 4. spiritual Man and the Actions of Grace that lives not which some Gracious v. 23. Motion from the Heart doth not quicken and therefore know by Tryal and Examination what that is Now according to Scripture Phrase the Heart of Man is of a large extent for 't is not only the principal inward part of all Life and the Fountain of Motion and Native Heat but it is the Principal and Original of all the faculties and of all the Because of this full description of the Heart the greek Inter preters give it many Names as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Animal and Vital Operations The seat of the Understanding Fancy Memory and Affections It is the spring from whence the Thoughts Discourses Imaginations Passions and Motions which are in Man flow and stream forth Besides it is the Treasury of Virtues and Sink of Vices and the place of all Habits So that the Heart signifies a sincere assent of Mind a serious purpose of Will a great force of Affections a large endeavour of Strength and Integrity and perfection of Mind Now when upon Meditation we thus know what our Hearts are and how they are differenc'd from double or rather half Hearts then we shall understand what that Duty and Obedience to God is which is hearty or perform'd with the whole Heart and which will be well pleasing to him for hence we learn that it must be true and sincere not feigned and hypocritical serious and solid and not in jest light and superficial diligent and efficacious not weak remiss and sloathful whole and full not concise lame and imperfect Now this knowledge is not only worth the obtaining but absolutely
necessary and therefore should engage us in the Meditation of it because it is the most proper means for that end And when we have fix'd our thoughts to this purpose then we should fix them upon the main thing requir'd in us as We are Christians And that is set down by our Lord and Master from whom we have our Names in the Phrase of being Born again and the necessity of it is added Io. 3. 3. to stir up our diligence in assuring our selves that we are in that Condition for except it be thus we shall not see ver 3. the Kingdom of God So that we must be New or Undone Creatures live in Grace or die in Sin And next to the Necessity if it we must Meditate upon the Excellency the superlative Excellency of that New State As that it makes us partakers of the Divine Nature that is Regenerate by the 2 Cor. 5. 17. Holy Ghost or indewed with new qualities of Righteousness and Holiness wherein we resemble God as Children do their Father bearing the Image of his Wisdom and Purity And also that hereby we become Kings and Priests unto God Kings because of the Victories which in that Condition we obtain against the Flesh the World and the Devil and Priests because then we offer up to God a pure Body and Holy Prayers and the Works of Piety and Mercy The next Object we should fix upon in reference to our selves is to know what we shall be or what kind of future Life we shall live And in order hereto it will highly concern us to Meditate on the four last things namely Death Iudgment Hell Heaven These last things well consider'd will make us always last and live in spight of Death it self Now as a previous motive to six our thoughts upon the first of these Objects DEATH Let us Note that the Regular Death performance hereof may cause our Sins to Dye before they be Old and thereby secure us from the full strength and force of them in our Hearts for 't is the Nature of Sin to be stronger and more fierce when Old than Young the wither'd and drooping Body proves a Medicine for Sin 's growth and flourishing for when the Fort or Outwork of the Soul is Dismantled by many Breaches made in it by Lust and Intemperance and from the frequent Detachments and fresh Supplies sent by Satan from those vicious Habits as from a well furnish'd Magazine which he hath laid up against it then Sin retires into the Castle of Mans Soul and there un tes his Forces and makes them stronger and what Ruines the out-Out-work that is the Body hath suffer'd doth but Alarm Satan's Industry to make the Castle the more Invincible for himself Now the frequent thoughts of Death may out-wit Satan and prevent this his Stratagem and this should stir us up to be exercis'd in that counterplot and employment and that this will herein prove successful we may be assur'd from hence namely that the Heavenly Arithmetick of Numbering our Days that we may apply our Hearts to Wisdom must be learned by Meditation Hereby we should often visit our Sepulchres and take a turn in our Tombs and Dress our selves up in our winding Sheets By this Art we may make Death our Natures grim Enemy our choice Friend and hereby learn an Acquaintance with it and procure its familiarity and even touch and stroke it and so abate much of its fierceness when of necessity and according to Heavens Statute Law it must and doth come Believe it Meditation of it before is the best Receit to heal the anguish and sharpness of Death when it doth come and after our Thoughts have taken some Turns in the Charnel House let them come forth and by Meditation mount up to the place of Iudgment And there fix we our Minds upon the Righteous Iudge and the Glorious Tribunal and the Various Qualities and Postures of the Prisoners some smiling with their Pardons in their Hands and called by their Loving Master and Saviour from the Bar and plac'd at his Right Hand Others pale and ghastly and trembling under the terrours of a guilty Conscience and Seated on the Left Hand to be thrown down into a Prison of Eternal Darkness Meditate on the never Dying Worm that is bred in that Prison and there will fix his Venemous Teeth and Torment the Conscience for ever How to go through Hell to Heaven is a Road well known to those who have examined all the Passages which lead thither and are resolved upon that Iourney mauger all the dangers and frightful Objects and cruel usage which lye in the way to hinder them supposing it much better hereby to be scared to Happiness then to slide down delightfully to Misery we all know that the most dreadful State of those which are in Hell is express'd by Fire because it is the most terrible Element and the Meditation hereof may cause us through God's Grace to use all the proper means whereby we may escape it and that it may not be the Portion of our Cup. Now after such black and frightful thoughts which are as the Rod rather to keep us in awe and order than to assright and hurt us Let us Meditate on Heaven and this Heaven Object when duely entered upon will be so delightsome and delicious to our Souls that with the Spouse in the Canticles 2. Cap 5. they will crave whole Flaggons of it and drink so deep till they be inebriated with its sweetness For there all the precious and gracious Promises in God's Holy Word shall be fully accomplish'd and perform'd to them and what Draught can be more sweet and comfortable So that 't is our Recreation and Pleasure as well as our Obligation and Duty to Meditate on Heaven And that we may not be discourag'd from fixing our thoughts upon this Object because of the vast extent of it or surfeit them with the variety of those Delicacies which it affords For Eye hath not seen nor Ear heard nor can Man's Heart conceive what they are Let us set this Breviate or Epitomy of it before us and Meditate thereon Namely on the Incomparable and Incomprehensible Excellency of the Place of the unexpressible Ioys laid up in that place of the Fatness of that House of the innumerable Rivers of pleasure which glide along those Banks of the Transcendent Glory that fills every part of the Noble and Seraphical Quiristers which there attend of the Ravishing Anthems which are there heard and of the Vision of God himself which is Eternal Happiness And here Meletus looking about him and perceiving by the chearful aspects and diligent attention of his Hearers that their Ears were not yet satiated with his Lecture he went on to shew them some unquestionable Reasons why they should perform this Pious Office of Meditation and to what end and for what profit they should be so employ'd And the first Reason was because there is nothing more truly
and Persons wedded to their Senses and corpulent in Vice do not apprehend it and think there 's no such Matter because they cannot see it 't is too too thin to catch hold of their Senses and they too too thick for Incorporeal and Soul Notions It will be necessary to acquaint them with another Death which is after these we have mentioned and that is Eternal Now such Persons as we have mention'd may escape the first violent Death being not capitally punished in this Life but they shall not escape this last Death if they cheat the Gibbet and seare their Consciences yet they shall meet an Eternal Death with Satan their Lord and Master Were it possible for a Man to be always stabbing and slaying his Soul with Wantonness Pride Covetousness and other Vices and yet not smart as would his Body if consum'd with Ulcers and Dropsies yet the dart of Eternal Death is too too sharp not to be felt and this will plainly appear if we consider what eternal Death is And it is the state of the Demned It is a cursed departing from Christ into Everlasting Fire It is Blackness of Darkness for ever the Worm which never dies Eternal Damnation and Everlasting Punishment And were it possible for me to tell you all the pains of loss and sense wrapt up in this shroud of Death what it is to be punish'd with everlasting Destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his power what it is to dwell and to dwell for ever in a Lake of Fire fed with Brimstone what it is to have a Worm and that Worm as long as Eternity to be knawing and grinding our Souls Could I read and explain all the Deeds and Conveyances of Hell to shew you the Lease the for ever Lease that the Damned have got for their Souls and Bodies in the bottomless Pit Could I but describe to you the nature of Eternal Death you must conclude that 't is too too keen not to be perceiv'd and too certain and evident not to be avoided and they who get this Prize for their running and these Wages for their labour must needs be in a very sad and doleful condition their end is such an Eternal Death Phanias having thus confirm'd the two Propositions which his promised Method obliged him to he proceeded to give his Hearers some proper Directions whereby they might digest the full Feast of Knowledge which he had caressed them with and so they might be strong and well skill'd in opposing that politick Enemy Mistaken Wisdom which as he declar'd wars against Man's Soul And his first Direction herein was First Di 〈◊〉 that all Men would ponder and consider before they act For whilst they walk in this World they are in the company of Deceivers and they had need have their Eyes in their Heads and their Hands upon their Purses that is use all care that they be not deluded and in this Employment they should spend their time They should daily send out some Spies to give them true Intelligence and they should be as careful to get as good Law and Counsel to save their Souls as they are to secure their Bodies and Estates from the crasty Cheats and Delusions of others Believe it They should travel their Pilgrimage beset about with Guides and Opticks and all sorts of clear Glasses tied at their Girdles with Targets to defend their Heads and Eyes and with Weapons to force them away who would break and pull them from them This is their main business and this business they do or should know and own to be truly necessary and yet this is their usual Folly and Madness that they too too much neglect it They commonly pin their Welfare upon the Sleeves of Education and Custom doing as others do and have done before them and little very little regard why or wherefore they act thus or otherwise And whilst this is their course of life their Spiritual Enemies the Devil and their Lusts vanquish them for they lay Nets and Traps in their Walks and they never searching but running strait on are at length catcht and destroyed in them Now to overcome this danger this 〈◊〉 deadly danger they should fix their Thoughts upon what they do and examine what is their Rule and whither they tend They should consider whether their Enterprizes have God's Word for their Rule or only their own Wills and Desires which are naturally vain and vile They should turn their Actions this side and that and note which way their Bias leads them whether to Shame and Death or to Life and Glory whether to eternal Misery or Happiness They should pass no day without some Heavenly Soliloquy or holy dialogue with their Souls asking them what grounds they have to lay the 〈◊〉 of their Salvation on God's Mercy and their 〈◊〉 Merits How they can make it appear that they are Christ's Subjects and he their King What measure of Faith they have by which they expect the hope of Righteousness What Observance and Obedience to God by which they may be mark'd out and noted for his Friends as faithful Abraham was Such such Employs and Meditations are suitable for Christians high-born and precious Souls and when they are conversant in them they will be able to act according to the Prescriptions of true Wisdom and Knowledge Moreover since all of us are so much abus'd by our Natural Selves and our affected Folly and Knowledge wheedle us into the dark Chambers of Death let us resolve to cashiere these Enemies for ever never were such Stratagems and Delusions made use of as they exercise daily towards us They continually sport themselves with the Gulls and Cheats which they put upon us for they promise us Gardens and give us Dunghils Streams of Milk and Honey and give us an 〈◊〉 of Pitch and Brimstone Musical 〈◊〉 and delicious Banquets and only serve up to us wax'd Sweet meats and painted Venison and the Croakings of an affrighted Conscience Moreover they give us the World and at the same time snatch away our Souls and bargain to sell us some hours of Delight for an age of of Repentance and an Eternity of Woe Ask a poor Wretch who hath sadly experienc'd their Cheats what he can say in this case and he can tell you that they only shew'd him Pleasures which did bloodily scratch and bite him pleasant Groves tenanted with Tygers spacious Walks ending in bottomless Gulphs loaded Dishes and Golden Cups Canopied over with Swords and Halberds and underneath the Table lay in one place the Man made with Bones and his Dart in his Hand and hard by a ghastly Ghost with this Label from him Dying but never dead But if this Relation gain no Credit then if we dare be so bold call we up the Ghosts of Doeg Haman and Iudas and ask them how it now fares with them for their Treachery Pride and Cruelty Go go incredulous Fools and raise up Corah Dathan and Abiram