it is strucken downeward the higher it rebounds upward so the lower thy prayers take their rising from thy heart the higher they ascend up into the eares of God Stoope therefore O my soule and bee sure to bee humble and so thou mayst be sure to command faile â—ot to be lowly and so thou shalt not faile to be exalted be content to be strucken the harder downeward and so thou shalt make the higher bound upward into Heaven But will not this be a dry diet to have onely bread and no drinke to it Did it not even choake the Bethulians and almost wither the Israelites in the Wildernesse Or why should we thinke to have drinke without asking more then bread Is it for that wee sinned first in eating and therefore are punished with begging for bread to eate Or is it that Christ keeps within his compasse and teacheth us to aske for bread from heaven who was himselfe the bread that came downe from heaven Or is it as Christ sayd of the poore that water we have alwaies with us but bread wee have not alwaies such indeed may bee the mazes of thoughts when they wander in darknesse but by the light of the first cause wee shall see the true cause that Christ who is himselfe verbum Abbreviatum makes this prayer for us in a kinde of Hierogliphicks where one character stands for many things and if Moses comprehended all Elementar matter as fire ayre water under the one word of earth why may not Christ comprehend all temporall things under the one word of bread and indeed in this sence oftentimes the Scriptures use it as when wee read in Ezekiel that one of the sinnes of Sodome was fulnesse of bread wee must not thinke that their excesse was onely in eating of dry bread but that they exceeded in the superfluity of all meates and drinkes adding thirst to drunkennesse and making themselves Artificiall stomackes with devises of gluttony But why then should hee use so many words even five whole petitions in expressing spirituall Graces Is â—t not that temporall things like foule cloathes or ragges may well enough bee wrapped up in one bundle together but spirituall graces as things more precious require more roome and being to make us without spot are themselves to bee made up without wrinkle Yet may it perhaps not bee without mistery also that Christ teacheth us here to aske onely for bread as he promiseth us in heaven to give us onely drinke to shew that this life and the next are both but one meale and that we cannot drinke with him in his Fathers Kingdome unlesse wee first eate him here the bread which came downe from heaven But doth not this petition seeme to be out of his right place and doth it not come in before his time seeing Forgivenesse of trespasses is a more excellent gift then giving of bread and in all reason that which is first in excellency should also be first in order Yet we shall finde reason for this ordering of these petitions and the lawes of true Heraldry no way transgressed For as Rachel sayd to Iacob Give me children or else I die so wee much more justly say to God Give us bread or else we die So that as Nature is before Grace and life before a happy life It must needs be reasonable that asking for bread which nature cals for to supply the defects of life should goe before Forgiving of trespasses which Grace cals for to supply the defects of a hapy life and as there is this reason in respect of our selves so their is a stronger reason in respect of God for nothing can more admirably set forth the admirable goodnesse of Gods Nature then the very scituation of these petitions For by this bounty is placed before his mercy and it comes to passe that the Sunne shines upon the good and the bad and the raine fals upon the just and unjust And even for us it is a most happy marshalling of the petitions for if God should never give us any thing but when he hath nothing to forgive us he should never give us seeing our life is a perpetuall encrease of our debts and while wee aske him to Forgive us even in that we commit somthing that needs forgivenes It is proper to this petition that it is not proper to any one sort of creatures but is common to all and therefore though it stand in a valley yet it hath the largest prospect And it may be called the petition of providence for where all the other are intentive to the care of another life this onely is appoynted to make provision for the present life Here now would bee competition for place betweene the two that follow but that Repentance is in wonderfull grace with God and hath the Angels also for speciall friends and therefore hath precedence For when we say Forgive us our trespases is it not plainely the prayer of penitent sinners who are alwaies confessing their sinnes and professing their amendment imploring Forgivenesse and deploring their owne weakenesse all which and onely which are the parts of this petition And therefore this petition if wee did well should not bee spoken with words but with sighes for what can come from a broken heart but sighes and untill the heart bee broken this petition will never bee truely sound And least our owne sighes should not bee sufficient the Spirit it selfe makes request for us with sighes that cannot be expressed which though it bee true of all the other petitions yet most properly of this For if sorrow griefe feare shame all of them great and all of them together deserve sighing they are all here met or are all heere to meete in this Petition There is a word which though it be no part of the petition yet because it brings the petition in it is not it selfe to be left out namely the conjunction And which in all the former petitions was never used because indeed there was no use of it For they went all singly by themselves as chiefly referred to the honour of God who is Actus simplicissimus and chiefely fitted for the mouthes of Angels who are substantiae simplices but now that we are come to the Petitions for the onely use of men now there is use of this conjunction for all blessings in this world are tied as it were by linkes together are not good but in conjunction therefore this conjunction And is now here used that as the first use of it that ever was was to joyne the bodies themselves of heaven earth together so the use of it here is to joyne the blessings of heaven earth together for as an earth without a heaven would have made but a miserable world so these earthly blessings without the heavenly will make but a miserable man And therefore wee have no sooner sayd Give us this day our daily bread but it presently followes And forgive us our
for the inchoation of the Kingdome of Grace but these are pâ—operly they that pray for the consummation of the Kingdom of glory when all things shal be made subject to the Father and God shall be all in all And it remaines onely for these to pray for this Kingdome seeing they are already lifted up above all other kingdomes having the kingdomes of the world in contempt the kingdome of satan in subiection and as for the Kingdome of Grace they have it already in perfection Though we have stiled this petition the prayer of the Saints departed as being the most eminent persons that can say it yet we doe not thereby exclude our selves but we enter common with them or rather we pray for a Kingâ—ome more then they doe They onely for the Kingdome of glory we for the Kingdome both of grace and glory yet may we justly call it theirs seeing they began it to us and continue it with us and enforce it for us But doe not the words of this petition crosse one another and is there not an opposition betweene them For Kingdome is a word of Majesty and comming is a word of inferiority at most of equality and so we seeme to pray to Gods disparagement we make a superiour inferiour at most but equall But is it not that we mean not here a descent but an extent of the Kingdome and a comming not of duty but of grace and so neither the Kingdome disdaineth the comming nor the comming disparageth the Kingdome but Kingdome and comming are magnified both in their uniting This petition at first sight seemes to flatter flesh and blood asking as they themselves would wish but Christ hath taken them downe from any such hope professing plainely that his Kingdome is not of this world And though it may be thought amâ—ition to aske so great a matter as a Kingdome yet it is in truth humility for untill we attaine to this Kingdome we cannot be wholly Gods true servants and it is reason the suite should be the greater because we are likely to tarry longest for it But is it not strange to see us come as we doe here In forma pauperis to aske a Kingdome yet so we must doe and so hath Christ proclaimed it Blessed are the poore in spirit for theirs is the kingdome of Heaven And yet if we marke it well as poore as we seeme to come we shall finde that Salomon in all his royalty was not cloathed as we are by this petition for by it we are cloathed here with sanctification that we may be cloathed hereafter with immortality Some seditious heads may here take occasion to thinke that to pray for this Kingdome is to pray against all earthly kingdomes and to disthrone Gods Lieutenants of their authority But know O world that this Kingdome though it take away our subjection to the world yet it taketh not away our subjection in the world though we be not of the world which St. Iames taxed for Enmity with God yet we are of the world which Augustus taxed for tribute to Caesar and this tribute must be paide as well from our hearts as from our purses for out of the duty we owe him that hath placed us in his service we learne to be contented to serve every one in his place When we say this petition we meane not that Gods Kingdome should so come to be here as that it should be no where else for this were but to remove it whilst we seeke to enlarge it and to make that finite which is infinite but we pray onely for the beames of the Sunne of righteousnesse not for the Sunne it selfe for the power and priviledges of the Kingdome not for the body that as Christ saith No man can come unto me except the Father draw him So we most properly understand the Kingdome to come to us when the Father drawes us and makes us come unto it and so in effect our petition is this that God by his Spirit would so rule over us that our spirits may wholly be ruled by him and that his Kingdome of grace may so come unto us that we may come at last to his Kingdome of Glory But what need we to pray for the comming of this Kingdome for seeing it is infinite it must needs be every where and being every where it must needs be here already But is it not that there is a difference between the being of this Kingdome and the comming It is indeed every where but it comes not every where It is in the wicked upon earth and it is in the damned in hell but it comes onely to the faithfull on earth or to the Saints in heaven for wher it onely is it is in power or justice but where it comes it is in love and bounty where it onely is it leaves us at sea and suffers us to suffer shipwracke but where it comes it brings us into the Haven and sets us safe on shoare This Petition hath but three words and each word may have its emphasis each emphasis its meditation For if we place the emphasis upon the last word the meditation may be this that the ambition is not in asking a Kingdome but that we must have it come to us as though we thought our selves too good to goe to it but alas poore lame soules wee cannot goe to it though we would never so fayne for the truth is we are in bondage to another Prince that unlesse this Kingdome come and free us our Fetters will not suffer us to stir a foote But is not this directly contrary to that which Christ saith Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the kingdome prepared for you for here we pray that the Kingdome may come to us and there we are invited to come to it Here we are the marke and the Kingdome is the commer there the Kingdome is the marke and we the commers This indeed may well seeme wonderfull in our eyes seeing nothing is more wonderfull in nature then the nature of this Kingdome is It comes to us as our Ransome We come to it as to our Triumph It comes to us as it came and sat upon the Apostles in fiery tongues we come to it as Elias went up in a fiery charriot It comes to us as the Kingdome of Grace we come to it as to the Kingdome of glory And if wee place the Emphasis upon the second word It may be seconded with this Meditation It is true we are in this world as in a warre and have many enemies to assault us but will no lesse ayde then a Kingdome serve us Have we not Forces of our owne which we may muster up and make resistance This indeed was Pelagius his dreame but all men that are awake finde it otherwise For seeing those Forces did not serve our first Parents who were strong and at liberty what hope is there for us who are weake and in bondage But might it not serve to require
the helpe of Abraham For Abraham was Gods Friend and men will doe much for their friends how much more will God This also hath been and is still the ignorant fancy of some men therefore ignorant because Abraham is ignorant of us and knowes us not and seeing while hee lived hee came short by Tenne in helping the Sodomites whom hee knew he is like to come much shorter now in helping of uswhom hee doth not know But would it not be sufficient to pray for the ayde of Angells as God promised Moses that his Angell should goe with him and wee may be sure that God knew well what Assistance would serve Of this Errour it seâ—ms by Saint Paul some Colossians were in danger but wee see Moses would not trust to that helpe neither but flatly refused it It seemes he took Gods offer but as a try all and unlesse God would goe himselfe hee thought it no boore for him to stirre And indeed who can thinke it reasonable for Sonnes to rely upon their Fathers Servants For wee fight not with flesh and blood but with principalities and Powers and seeing we have a Kingdome to assault us wee must likewise have a Kingdome to assist us Neither our owne Forces Nor Succour of Saints Nor ayde of Angells will stand us in stead God himselfe must goe forth with our Armies or wee shall never be able to overcome And if we place the emphasis upon the first word It may then raise our minds to this meditation There are many competitors for this Kingdome to rule over us but above all though the basest of all the bramble satan catcheth hold of us to get it God is the trne Olive tree but he cannot take it upon him unlesse he should leave his fatnesse Hee is the true Figge-tree but he cannot be King over us unlesse he should leave his sweetnesse and that fatnesse and that sweetnesse he left the Father when he gave his Sonne the Sonne when he gave his life and now let all the Trees of the wood rejoyce for Thou O Lord art wâ—rthy to receive all glory and honour and power and the Lord shall raigne for ever And what then shall we render for this inestimable favour in taking us to be his subjects O let us offer him not onely the tenths of our labours but the first fruits of our affections let us open not onely the doores of our lips but the gates of our hearts that this King of glory may come in And when thou vouchsafest O my Lord to come with thy high Majesty under my low roofe and to worke a miracle by having that greatnesse which the world containeth not contained in the little corner of my breast Vouchsafe also to send thy Grace for the Harbinger of thy Glory seeing there can no roome be dressed up against thy comming but onely by thy comming and no place can be reckoned fit for thee untill it be made fit by thee Possesse me wholly O my soveraigne raigne in my body by obedience to thy Lawes and in my soule by confidence in thy promises Frame my tongue to praise thee my knees to reverence thee my strength to serve thee my desires to cover thee and my heart to embrace thee that as thou hast formed me to thine Image so thou mayst frame mee to thy will and as thou hast made mee a vessell by the stamp of thy Creation to serve thee on earth so thou may est make me a vessell of honour by the priviledge of thy grace to serve thee in thy Kingdome In some the world Governes and he who is Prince of this world the divell and this government is a very â—yranny the people here are not Subjects but slaves they have fetters on all their faculties and if they â—oe not feele them it is because they are past feeling The avre of this place is onely Fogges and Mists which both blind their eyes and infect their spirits and makes it their Paradise to be wallowing in puddle He is no true Pâ—nce but an usurper and therfore rules all by force and falsehood He takes upon him to be their Pilot launcheth them out into the maine and then leaves them to stormes and temâ—ests and their Haven is to split against the Rockes So here is no being for thee O my soule thou hadst need to make haste hence and to seeke thee out some better harbour In some the flesh governes and they which be Ladies of the flesh Pride and Lust and this government is a very Anarchy Every base fancy hath an even sway with noble reason Wisdome here is not justified of her children they may speake the language of Canaan but they are all natives of Sodome their eyes are seeled up yet their flight is onely downe hill for they are travelling to the bottomles Pit So this O my soule is no place for thee neyther No resting for thee here seeing here is no rest but all in motion and all motion here is commotion In some the spirit governes and he who is the Father of spirits God himselfe and this government is a perfect Kingdome He hath Majesty for his Crowne Mercy for his seate and Iustice for his Scepter He hath wisedome for his Counsailour Almightinesse for his guard and Eternity for his date He hath heaven for his Pallace the earth for his Footstoole and hell for his prison He hath lawes to which nature assents and reason subscribes that doe not fetter us but free us for by them nature gets the wings of grace and transcends the earth Reason gets the eyes of fayth and ascends up to heaven He hath a yoke indeed but it is easie a burthen but it is light his reward is with him and his worke before him He is established in this soveraignty not by his subjects election of him but by his election of his subjects not as rayfing himselfe to a higher title but as humbling himselfe to a lower calling and as not receiving it from a Predecessor who is before all so never leaving it to a successour who is after all This is the place where my soule shall dwell here will I pitch my Tabernacle Onely O Lord let me be taken into the number of thy subiects and endue mee with the priviledges of thy Kingdome and I will freely and faithfully serve thee for ever Other Lords besides thee have heretofore ruled us but now we will remember thee onely and onely thy Name When we make this petition to God that his Kingdome may come we should doe well to remember a petition which God makes to us My sonne give me thy hâ—art For unlesse we give God our hearts whither can wee thinke this Kingdome should come For if it come to the eares as oftentimes it makes offer at the hearing of Gods Word it findes that onely a Thorough-fare which lies open on every side and no fit place to make a residence in and
Pharaoh that pursues to destroy us but thou art the Lord of Hosts that gettest thee honour upon Pharaohs Host and thine is the glory And for this deliverance from Pharaoh and his Host though but a type of ours Moses long since sung a song so loud that it hath ecchoed from him to David and from David to Esay and from Esay is come to us Thou O Lord art our strength and our song for thou hast beene our deliverance But is deliverance from evill the highest blessing we can reach to by our prayers what becomes then of the resurrection of our bodies and the life everlasting things so much talked off and so highly magnified Are they onely idle names and are there no such things indeed Or are they so little worth the praying for in all this absolute prayer we bestow not so much as a word upon them Or shall we thinke the prayer unperfect seeing the greatest things are left unprayed for and not once named or implyed O my soule take heede let not the weake fancies of thy owne spirit or the strong suggestions of a worse Spirit move such unhallowed doubts within thee For our deliverance from evill shall plainely appeare to bee the highest blessing wee can directly attaine to by our prayers and yet our confidence for the resurrection of our bodies and for the life everlasting shall have foundation enough to stand most firme For the three first petitions seeme chiefly referred to the honour of God in whom all his attributes are equall and therefore in them we goe as I may say upon even gronnd we can finde neither rising nor falling in them we seeme to see nothing that carries any higher than the earth or that tarries any longer then this life and therefore that clause In Earth as it is in Heaven though it be expressed onely in the third petition yet it is by many understood also in the other two but in the three latter which are referred to our owne benefit wee seeme to bee climbing up Iacobs ladder for at every petition we take a steppe higher In the first we begin very low and aske as Iacob did but onely meat and rayment In the second we take a steppe higher and aske a pardon of our faults In the third we goe yet higher and aske an absolute protection from all dangers and deliverance from all evill wherein we may be sayd to have wrestled with the Angell and obtained a blessing for this is the highest steppe we can possibly attaine to in this mortall life But how doth this step reach so high as Iacobs ladder which reacheth up to heaven Marke therefore O my soule for having begun in humility It seemes as if Christ here should say unto us Friend sit up higher for this step of our deliverance from evill seemes to deliver us to Heaven seeing it is contiguous and joynes immediately to the first steppe we shall take in Heaven when all teares shall be wiped from our eyes and they be made cleere to behold the blessed vision of God which is the highest steppe of all and in which consists the summe and summum of our eternall happinesse But why in all this prayer should we have for these things no petition Is it that wee shall have them rather by the participation of Christ then by the intercession rather as sonnes by inheritance then by suit as servants and is as much beyond our prayers as above our capacities Or is it that our deliverance from evill which is the highest steppe we are capable of in this world implies an Adhering to the Deliverer himselfe in the world where we shall be capable Or may we not say that the petition Thy Kingdome come though it goe from us with an onely reference to the honour of God yet it is returned from God to us with this Interence Honorantes me Honorabo and though it reach not so farre as the suite of the mother of Zebedeus sonnes to have one sit at his right hand the other at his left yet hee reacheth as farre as the suite of the thiefe upon the Crosse Lord remember me when thou commest into thy Kingdome But least it should be sayd that we goe about to take the Kingdome of Heaven by violence may wee not make the matter playner by saying that we therefore pray not for the resurrection of the body and for the life everlasting because they are not so properly the objects of fayth which have most to doe in our prayers as they are the objects of hope which is a transcendent to our prayers Fayth indeed prepares us for hope and the things we here pray for for the things we here after hope for but as it is not the fashion of a sonne to pray his father to make him his heire but hee carryeth himselfe dutifully and performeth his obedience and then he doubts not but he shall be heire so it is not our fashion with God to pray for our inheritance which is life everlasting and the Kingdome of Heaven but we pray that as sonnes wee may doe our duties and obey his Will and then we have an assured hope we shall enjoy them Although therefore by Name and in expresse termes we pray here but for the things onely which may bee had here yet by consequent and as in their causes wee pray also for the things which shall be had hereafter For the Graces which are the causes preceding now the blessings which are the effects will necessarily follow that is remission of sinnes and obedience to his Will and an uniting to Christ by the comming of his Kingdome being here obtayned the resurrection of our bodies and the life everlasting and the blessed vision of God will undoubtedly succeed Wee therefore pray onely that all impediments of our owne defects may bee removed and that all graces necessary may be supplyed and for the rest we rest our selves upon God and Fayth seemes here to put us over to hope for we have no more petitions to make but the next thing that followes is that of the Martyr Stephen concerning our eternall life In manus tuas Domine Commendo spiritum meum concerning the resurrection of our bodies that of the Prophet David My stesh shall rest in hope For having the promise of his word and the truth of his promise and the infallibility of his truth for our security though we have not done with Fayth yet wee have now more to doe with hope and thorough fayth are made confident to say in hope I know that my Redeemer liveth and though wormes destroy this body yet I shall see God in my â—esh For we thorough the spirit wayte for the hope of righteousnesse thorough fayth and that being justified by his grace wee shall bee made heires according to our hope of everlasting life But yet at last if it be exacted of this prayer that it must of necessity include also the blessings of