Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A63959
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The Dying speeches, letters and prayers &c. of those eminent Protestants who suffered in the west of England (and elsewhere) under the cruel sentence of the late Lord Chancellour, then Lord Chief Justice Jefferys : with an account of their undaunted courage at the barr, and afterwards : with the most remarkable circumstances that attended their execution : never before published.
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1689
(1689)
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Wing T3372A; Wing D2956_CANCELLED; ESTC R42261
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33,759
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40
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use No Duty so acceptable to God as Charity that 's it which our Saviour exalts so far that he saith Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom for I was an hungry and ye fed me naked and ye cloathed me sick and in prison and ye visited me I die and leave you but if you keep close to God and his ways he will never leave you nor forsake you The summe of the whole is Fear God and keep his Commandments Do that to all others that you would they should do to you is the golden Rule of the Gospel and will be a great Preservative to you from offending either God or Man. Eternity calls me away and I have neither Time nor Opportunity to add more Your Duties may be various in the World as Servants as Masters as Husbands as Wives as Parents There is no Condition of life but hath its Comforts and its Troubles the Lord fit you for whatsoever Condition he calls you to whether Honour or Dishonour Riches or Poverty But remember whatsoever it be it is God's Providence orders and governs the World. Dear James as thou art the eldest strive to be the best and a good Example to the rest a dutiful and a loving Son Whatever thou or the rest have lost by me God can make up even in this Life My dear Babes who have been all Pledges of my Love by the best and most affectionate Wife I do once more beg it of you as my last Request that you obey love and honour her who hath been the greatest worldly Blessing to your Father and will never think any thing too much to do for you My dear Children Farewell I must now take my leave both of you and all worldly Comforts I trust and hope I am going to the Eternal Inheritance where Sin and Sorrow cease and that I may meet you at the right hand of my blessed Saviour is the dying Prayer of Dear Children Your affectionate and loving Father Richard Nelthrope Newgate 29 Octob. 1685. Mr. Nelthrope's last Speech THE great and inexpressible trouble and distraction I have been under since I came into trouble especially since my close Confinement in Newgate hath so broken my Reason that for many weeks last past till the day my Sentence was passed I have not had any composure of mind and have been under the greatest trouble imaginable Since my dearest Wife hath had the favour granted her of coming to me I am at present under great composedness of mind through the infinite goodness of the Lord. As to what I stand Outlawed for and am now sentenced to Dye I can with comfort appeal to the great God before whose Tribunal I am to appear that what I did was in the simplicity of my heart without seeking any private advantage to my self but thinking it my Duty to hazard my Life for the preservation of the Protestant Religion and English Liberties which I thought invaded and both in great danger of being lost As to the design of Assassinating the late King or his present Majesty it always was a thing highly against my Judgment and which I always detested and I was never in the least concerned in it neither in Purse nor Person nor never knew of any Arms bought for that Intent nor did I believe there was any such design nor ever heard of any disappointment in such an Affair or Arms or Time or Place save what after the discovery of the General design Mr. West spoke of as to Arms bought by him And as to my self I was in the North when the late King was at New-market and the first news I had of the Fire was at Beverly in York-shire As to my coming over with the late Duke of Monmouth it was in prosecution of the same ends but the Lord in his holy and wise Providence hath been pleased to blast all our undertakings tho there seemed to be a very unanimous and zealous spirit in all those that came from beyond the Seas And as to the Duke of Monmouth's being declared King I was wholly passive in it I never having been present at any publick Debate of that affair and should never have advised it but complained of it to Coll. Holms and Captain Patchet I believe the Lord Gray and Mr. F the chief Promoters of it As to the Temptation of being an Evidence and bringing either into trouble or danger any the meanest Person of his Life upon the Account for which I suffer I always abhorred and detested the thoughts of it both when in and out of danger and advised some very strongly against it except when under my distractions in Prison that amongst other temptations did violently assault me but through the goodness of my dearest God and Father I was preserved from it and indeed was wholly incapable and could never receive the least shadow of comfort from it but thought Death more eligible and was some time afore out of my distracted and disquieted condition wholly free from it thô not without other Temptations far more Criminal in the sight of men I bless the Father of all mercies and God of all Consolations that I find a great Resignedness of my Will to his finding infinitely more comfort in Death than ever I could place in Life thô in a Condition that might seem honourable every hour seeing the Will of God in ordering this Affair more and more cleared up to me God hath given God hath taken blessed be his holy Name that hath enabled me to be willing to suffer rather than to put forth my hand to Iniquity or to say a Confederacy with those that do so I am heartily and sincerely troubled for what hath happened many mens Lives being lost and many poor distressed Families rained the Lord pardon what of sin he hath seen in it He in his wonderful Providence hath made me and others concerned Instruments not only for what is already fallen out but I believe for hastening some other great work he hath to do in these Kingdoms whereby he will try and purge his People and winnow the Chaff from the Wheat the Lord keep those that are his faithful unto the end I dye-in Charity with all the World and can readily and heartily forgive my greatest Enemies even those that have been Evidences against me and I most humbly beg the Pardon of all I have any wise in the least injured and in a special manner most humbly ask Pardon of the Lady Loyl's Family and Relations for that my being succoured there one night with Mr. Hicks brought that worthy Lady to suffer Death I was wholly a Stranger to her Ladyship and came with Mr. Hicks neither did she as I verily believe know who I was or my Name 'till I was taken And if any other have come to any loss or trouble I humbly beg their Pardon and were I in a Condition I would as far as I was able make them a requital As to my Faith I neither look nor hope for