pusillanimity to be dejected to contemplate the examples of me and my Saints to commend thy selfe to the prayers and exhortations of good men to give way to my inward and divine inspirations to exercise prayer and holy reading never to admit of idlenesse to love silence and retirednesse These and such like doe change the naughtinesse of the mind and chase away the feare of death When thou shalt come in the end of every day say thus to thy selfe Now is my life become shorter by one day Earely when thou risest say thus to thy selfe O Gracious God now am I nearer to death by one Night An Exercise whereby earely or whensoever thou willest thou maist poure out thy heart unto God for a good death O Omnipotent eternall God my Creator and Lover I praise laud adore and blesse thee for that thou so mercifully and patiently hast suffered mee groveling in my sins and my unthankfulnes even unto this houre to which thou of thy goodnesse hast brought mee enriching me with thy benefits conferring this life with things necessary for this life upon me with an angelicall guardian protecting me and inlarging towards mee thy mercy who am injuriously â—nworthy and a spectacle of misery Ah gracious God who knoweth whether the terme of my life shall be proâ—ogued to the evening O what death shall I desire O â—ost mercifull Lord God and Father give unto mee contrition whereby with all mine heart I may bewaile my sins and my offending thee And doe not suffer my soule to goe forth from her bodie till she be reconciled to thee in mercy adopted to thee by grace adorned with thy merits and vertues inflamed with most perfect charitie and accepted according to thy all-good-will and pleasure O most gracious Lord Jesu Christ if this I desire of thee do please thee grant it unto me although I bee most unworthy to bee heard of thee grant unto me I beseech thee for thine infinite mercies and the merits of thy passion that I may bee purged in this life from all my sins that dying and through vehement and true contrition pricked and in most ardent charitie to thee united I may goe out unto thee my most sweet Redeemer being forthwith freed and secured from all damnation and future affliction Notwithstanding O most loving Jesu I doe offer and resigne my selfe unto thee whether it be to poverty penury or any other extremitie for thy glories sake according to thy good-will and pleasure beseeching thee only this that thou wouldst bee mindfull of my frailty vilenesse weaknesse and misery as also of thy goodnesse and charity that thou wouldest never forsake mee nor depart from mee but that thou wouldst alwayes wholly governe and possesse mee according to thy good pleasure Amen An oblation of Christ and his merits to his Father O Omnipotent most gracious Father I doe offer unto thee all those pains dolours reproches stripes and rebukes all adversities extremities and labours of thine onely begotten Jesu Christ the Lambe immaculate which hee suffered in his body for me likewise all his actions and every of his members afflicted for me his bloud shed for me and with prophane feet trampled also his most noble and devout Soule separated from his lovely Body for me his merits likewise and infinite vertues Likewise the powers or faculties of his Soule and body and all those vitall parts in him given up unto death for mee albeit inseparably united to his Divinity yea the whole Christ thy blessed Sonne God and man omnipotent and infirme despicable and glorious doing wonders and hanging upon the Crosse these I say doe I offer unto thy sacred Majesty to the expiation and satisfaction of all my sins and of all the world and to the mortification and extinction of all mine evill passions affections and vices to the supply of all my negligences and to thy praise and thanksgiving for all thy benefits O God be mercifull unto me a miserable sinner for his sake Have mercy on mee for the love of Jesu Christ thy beloved Son THE DYING mans Diary Or A Christians Memento mori Divided into a five dayes Exercise THere are who all the yeare long present the figure and feature of Death before them by some certaine Exercise and prepare themselves no otherwise for death than if they were even then to dye and that for the space of five dayes continually The first day they meditated of the griefes infirmities which goe before death and horrour of death unto all which they resigne themselves The next day they thinke of their â—ins confessing them with so great diligence and intention as if they were to dye presently after their confession Therefore they spend this day in sighs and teares The third day they come unto the blessed Eucharist with all the fervour they may receiving it as their Viaticum in their passage from this their exile The fourth day they make continuall supplications unto God for the unction of the Holy Spirit whereby they might be illuminated and the hardnesse of their hearts mollified And this they do as it were for extreme unction The fifth day they become most fervent Supplicants unto God for a spirituall death wherby they may perfectly dye to the world to themselves and live with God And to everie of these dayes may be applyed proper Psalmes and Prayers as also divine invocations giving of thanks for all benefits conferred by God upon them all their life long Profitable Counsell for one approaching neare the point of death O Daughter seeing thy selfe in this extremitie prepare thy soule for God so order and dispose here in thy life time of thy goods temporall that after thy death no difference nor debate may arise It is most profitable for thee to dispose of thy goods in thy life time and to redeeme thy sins whilest thou livest with works of mercie Whatsoever thou wouldest recommend to others to doe for thee labour to doe it of thy selfe For if after death thou go to eternall torment the Provision of a Will a pompous Funerall Almes and Doales after death what will these availe thee when thou art damned Offer these Oblations to me now whilest thou art living that thou mayest not onely be delivered from thy sins but by increasing in my grace never fall into damnation but by my preventing grace preserving thee from sin persevere in good works even to the end When death draweth neare see that thou wholly free thy selfe then from all unnecessarie cares and imployments strive to meet me immaculately affectionately faithfully promising nor presuming nothing of thy works but through my assured mercie to obtaine Salvation And in this faith committing and commending thy selfe and all thou hast in this world to my providence and good pleasure receive the Sacraments humbly and devoutly Those peculiar priviledges and graces also which have power in them through my merits and are given by mee as a treasure unto the Church albeit many oft-times abuse them
neither remembers hee those prayers of ours which we so unseasonably presented but receiveth this one which we scarcely found yet found wee humbly offered For tell me Brethren what man is he with whom if his friend shall begin to talke and he will not answer him but observes him to decline from him and to direct his discourse unto another as if he were wholly aliened from him who I say could endure this Or suppose thou should'st intercede a Judge and addresse thy selfe to him in such a place as hee may heare thee and suddenly when thou should'st speake unto him thou leavest him or entertainest some trifling discourse with thy friend how could hee endure this Yet doth God suffer so many hearts of such as pray and thinke of many wandring thoughts while they pray I forbeare to speake of thoughts hurtfull I forbeare to speake of things depraved and offensive unto God for to thinke even of superfluous thoughts is an injury unto him with whom thou speakest Thy Prayer is a speech unto God When thou readest GOD speakes unto thee When thou praiest thou speakest with God But what Are wee to despaire of man-kind and now conclude that every man is damned when any wandring thought shall creepe in upon him and interrupt his prayer If wee should conclude thus Brethren I doe not see what hope might remaine in us But forasmuch as wee have hope in God for great is his mercy let us say unto him Rejoyce the soule of thy servant For unto thee O Lord doe I lift up my soule And how have I lifted it up As much as I could as much as thou gavest me strength as soone as I was able to lay hold on my fugitive soule So long as thou stoodst before me suppose him to speake in the person of God thou entertainedst such vaine superfluous thoughts as thou scarcely pouredst forth one fixt or stable prayer unto me What more canst thou answer unto this but that thou Lord art good and mercifull mercifull thou art in suffering me I fall away through sicknesse heale me and I shall stand strengthen me and I shall bee strong Meane time till thou doest this thou sufferest mee for thou Lord art gracious and very mercifull Not onely mercifull but very mercifull For our iniquity aboundeth and thy mercy aboundeth Yea full of mercy art thou to all such as call upon thee What is it then that the Scripture saith in so many places They shall call upon me but I will not answer Certainly he is mercifull to all such as call upon him unlesse it be for that some calling upon him doe not call upon him of whom it is said They have not called upon God They call but not upon God Thou callest for what thou lovest Thou callest for what thou wishest in thee thou callest for what thou would'st have come to thee Wherefore if for this end thou call upon God that money may come to thee that an inheritance may descend to thee that temporall dignity may befall thee thou callest upon him for those things which thou desirest that they may come unto thee But thou makest God here a furtherer of thy lusts not a favourer of thy desires Is God good if he give thee what thou would'st have What if thou would'st have what is ill were hee not more mercifull unto thee in not giving thee what thou would'st have Yet for all this if hee doe not give it thee God is as nothing unto thee For thou sayest How long have I sought how oft have I sought and yet am not heard But what hast thou sought Perchance the death of thy Enemy what if he also besought thine He who created thee he likewise created him Thou art a man hee likewise is a man But God is the Judge hee hearkneth both but hee heareth not both Thou art sad for that thou art not heard in thy prayer against him be glad that hee is not heard in his prayer against thee But thou wilt say I did not seeke this I sought not the death of mine enemy but I besought the life of my child What evill sought I in this Thou soughtst no evill as thou thinkest but tell mee what if hee were taken from thee lest Sin should change his understanding But thou wilt say hee was sinfull and therefore I desir'd that hee might live that hee might reforme his life Thou desiredst that he might live better but what if God saw that he by living longer would become worse How knowest thou then whether might more redound to his profit to dye or live Seeing then thou knowest not returne into thy heart leave this to the secret counsell of God But what shall I then doe wilt thou say How may I pray How maist thou pray As thy Lord hath taught thee as thine Heavenly Master hath taught thee Call upon God as God Love God as God Nothing is better than hee desire him covet him See how this princely Prophet calleth upon the Lord in another other Psalme One thing have I desired of the Lord that I will require And what is this hee desires Even that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the dayes of my life And to what end To behold the beauty of the Lord. If then thou desirest to be the Lover of God with thy sincâ—rest affections and chastest sighes love him like him long for him languish for him than whom thou canst find nothing more joyfull nothing more gracefull nothing more cheerefull nothing more diuturnall For what more diuturnall than what is sempiternall Doe not feare that hee at any time will fall from thee who hath made thee that thou shouldst not fall from him If then thou callest upon God as God be secure thou art heard thy portion hath relation to that verse He is very mercifull to all such as call upon him Doe not then say He hath not given me this Returne unto thy heart and discharge thy conscience examine it doe not spare it If thou hast at any time called upon God for temporall benefits assure thy selfe that therefore hee did not give them thee because they would not profit thee In this Brethren let your hearts be edified your Christian hearts your faithfull hearts lest yee fall into murmuring against God by being discontented when frustrated of your desires and in vaine it is to kick against the prick Make recourse to the Scriptures The Devill is heard and the Apostle is not heard How seemes this unto you How are the Devils heard They besought him that they might goe into the heard of Swine and it was granted them How is the Devill heard He besought him that he might tempt Iob and it was suffered him How is the Apostle not heard Lest I should be exalted out of measure through the abundance of revelations there was given unto me a pricke in the flesh the Messenger of Satan to buffet me For this thing I besought the Lord thrice
a soft bed a pleasant chamber and delight of the flesh Bee ashamed therefore O my soule when thou beholdest thy Lord hanging upon the Crosse Where imagine him to bee preaching unto thee and rebuking thee after this manner I tooke for thee O man a Crowne of Thornes Thou in contempt of mee wearest a garland made of Flowers I for thee stretched out my hands upon the Crosse wilt thou reach thine forth to pleasures and dalliance I dying could not quench my thirst so much as with water wilt thou seeke after precious Wines and Viands I both on the Crosse as likewise all my life long was full of reproaches and sorrowes wilt thou bestow thy time upon honours and pleasures I suffered my side to bee opened that I might make thee even partaker of my heart wilt thou have thine exposed and opened to vaine and perillous loves A Short and fruitfull Confession of a Sinner unto God for obtaining Contrition O God of inestimable and eternall mercy God of unmeasurable piety God the Creator and Redeemer of mankind who purifiest the hearts of such as confesse their sinnes unto thee who releasest all such from the bond of iniquity as accuse themselves before the sight of thy divine majesty I beseech the power and depth of thy goodnesse with inward groanes that according to the multitude of thy mercies thou wouldst grant mee to make a pure and sincere confession before thee of all my sinnes whereof my guilty conscience doth accuse mee And that thou wouldst give mee true repentance for all such things as I have committed in naughty thoughts depraved cogitations wicked consent unjust counsell in concupiscence and uncleane delights in evill and hatefull words in malicious works in my seeing hearing tasting smelling and touching I truly even in all my members doe conceive my selfe guilty above measure because as the starres of heaven and sands of the Sea so doe I know my sinnes to bee innumerable But to thee Lord who knowest all secrets and who hast said Thou desirest the repentance of a Sinner doe I reveale all the secrets of my heart accusing my naughtinesse and my many and very great sinnes which I have committed before the eyes of thy fearefull Majesty all my wretched life long especially these here for the better increase of thy devotion and spirituall compunction maist thou particularize some of thy grievouser Sinnes with all those my evils which are open and manifest O God of mercy in thy sight And now O most gracious LORD looke upon mee and have mercy on mee and give unto mee a fountaine of teares and remission of all my sinnes through thy free mercie and that with inward confession of heart and affection of desiring remission seconded with so sincere a Confession Rectifie and reforme in mee O most loving Father whatsoever is depraved in mee either in word deed thought through my owne impietie or the Devils subtiltie and by joyning mee a member to the unity of the Church make mee partaker of thy Redemption and admit mee to the Sacrament of blessed reconciliation as one who hath no confidence but in thy mercy and compassion A Confession of Sinnes by Blessed Augustine O Mercifull pitifull great and terrible God I confesse unto thee my sins to thee to thee doe I discover my wounds for thine ineffable goodnesse bestow a Salve on mee Thou O most mild Lord vouchsafedst to say I desire not the death of a sinner but rather that hee may turne from his wickednesse and live I confesse that my life is in thy sight wicked and crooked that my life is falling into the lake of misery and my Soule perishing in my iniquities Lust sinfull delight naughty works wrath pridâ— impatience malice envy gluttony ebriety theft rapine lying perjury scurrility foolish speaking murmuring detraction ignorance infidelity distruct negligence of Gods Commandements as contagious glagues have slaine my Soule Mine heart and lips are polluted My seeing hearing tasting smelling and touching have enfeebled my Soule with sinnes and I am wholly lost as well in my cogitation as action I beseech thee O my Lord God whose mercy hath no end draw mee unto thee as thou drewest that sinfull woman As thou gavest grace unto her not to cease from kissing thy feet washing them with her teares and wiping them with her haires so graciously vouchsafe to grant unto mee that according to the greatnesse of mine iniquities thy great love may bee in mee that for thine unmeasurable piety thou maist forgive mee all my sinnes Bestow on mee pardon for evils past continence for evils present and cautelous prudence for evils to come Grant mee I beseech thee before I dye most fully to obtaine thy mercy and suffer not my dayes to bee ended till my sinnes bee pardoned but as thou willest and knowest have mercy on mee Amen A PRAIER before the holy Communion HAile O most holy flesh and bloud of Christ wherereof I am made partaker in these visible Elements Haile O thou highest sweetnesse who knowest no losing takest away all loathing destroyest death restorest life Haile thou blessed food which leadest thine Elect from the exile of this World to their Country Haile thou happy Sacrifice which art offered upon the Altar of the Crosse to God â—he Father for the whole burden of our sinnes Haile thou Manna more white than snow more sweet than honey more precious than all gold Take from mee I beseech thee O good Shepheard mine iniquities that with a purified heart and spirit I may deserve to taste these Holy of holiest Let this venerable Sacrament bee an impregnable Safeguard to mee against the deceits of the enemy that fed with this wholesome Viand I may passe the slippery wayes of this life in a blamelesse conversation and come unto thee the Bread of life and the true Lord of Angels without any hinderance of the Devils subtilty or malice O Lord heare mee bee pacified with mee attend mee and tarry not from mee O my God for thy goodnesse sake For none can bee worthy of so great a mystery unlesse thou ô Omnipotent God make him worthy Amen A PRAIER OF Th. Aquinas to be said after celebration of the holy Communion I Give thankes to thee O holy Lord OmnipoteÌ„t Father Eternall God who hast vouchsafed to refresh me thy grievous sinner and unworthy servant for no deserts of mine but for thy sole mercy sake with the precious Body and Bloud of thy Sonne our Lord JESUS CHRIST And I beseech thee that this holy Communion may not bee of guilt to mee unto condemnation but a soule-saving intercession of remission and consolation Let it bee unto mee the armour of faith and the shield of good-will Let it bee unto mee a removing of my vices a rooting out of lust and licentiousnesse an increasing of Charity and Patience Humility and Obedience and of all Vertues Let it bee a strong defence against all mine Enemies as well visible as invisible a perfect quieting and composing of my
to surprize us As a Plate or Lamell of gold set unto our eyes doth no lesse hinder our sight than a plate of iron so it behoveth us to renounce and remove from our minds all instable mortall creatures be they never so noble if wee will enjoy that most excellent Good which is God In true deniall the whole Summe of Perfection consisteth without which none shall profit what way soever hee turne him Almightie God grant us grace that with incessant endevour wee may perpetually strive to deny mortifie relinquish resigne goe forth of our selves and dis-esteeme our selves Amen TO HIS MOST Deare and affectionate Sisters their faithfull Brother dedicates THIS Passionate Pilgrim AS A living Memoriall of his unfained love never dying MY teares my joyes my widdow-weed my Bride My prize heav'ns praise my love Christ crucifide THE PASSIONATE PILGRIM Breathing A Contemplative Mans Exercise Offering A Penitent Soules Sacrifice THE Contemplative Mans Exercise Or Penitent Soules Sacrifice The wise mans heart is ever fixt on God And with a filiall kisse receives his rod. GOe to now miserable man flye a little thine occupations retire thy selfe for a space from thy tumultuous cogitations Lay aside now thine onerous cares and set apart thy laborious distentions Reserve thy selfe a while for God and rest thy selfe a little in him Enter into the chamber of thy mind shut out all things besides God and those things which helpe thee to seeke him and having shut thy gate seeke him Say now O my heart say now O my Lord I seeke thy countenance thy countenance O Lord doe I seeke Goe to therefore now my Lord God teach mine heart where and how it may seeke thee where and how it may find thee O Lord if thou beest not here where may I seeke thee being absent But being everie where why doe I not see thee present But surely thou inhabitest a light inaccessible But where is that light inaccessible Or how shall I come to that light inaccessible Or who will guide mee and bring mee to it that I may see thee in it Then with what signes with what face shall I seeke thee I have not seene thee O Lord my God I have not knowne thy face What shall hee doe O most high Lord what shall this thy forraine banisht one doe What shall thy servant doe doubtfull of thy love and far casten off from thy face Hee longeth to see thee and thy face is far from him Hee desireth to come unto thee and thine habitation is inaccessible Hee desireth to find thee and knoweth not thy place Hee affecteth to seeke thee and knoweth not thy countenance O Lord thou art my God and thou art my Lord and I never saw thee Thou hast made mee and re-made mee and all those good things which I have hast thou bestowed on mee and I have not yet knowne thee Finally to see thee was I made yet have not I done that for which I was made O miserable condition of man to lose that for which hee was made O hard and harsh chance is this Out alas what ha's hee lost and what ha's hee found What is gone and what abideth Hee hath lost happinesse for which hee was made and hee hath found unhappinesse for which hee was not made That is gone without which nothing is happie and that abideth which of it selfe is nothing but unhappie Man did eat the bread of Angels which now hee tastes not now hee eats the bread of sorrowes which then hee knew not O the publique lamentation of men the universall mourning of the children of Adam Hee flowed in all plenteous manner wee sigh for hunger Hee abounded wee fast Hee happily possest and miserably lost wee unhappily need and miserably beg and alas wee remaine emptie Why did hee not keepe for us when he easily might what we so grievously want Why h'as hee thuâ— shut the light from us and brought darknesse upon us Wretched men whence are wee expulsed and whereto are we forced Yea whither are wee headlong throwne where overwhelmed From our Countrey to exile from the sight of God to our blindnesse From the joy of immortalitie into the bitternesse and horrour of death Miserable exchange from how great good to how great evill Great losse great griefe nothing but griefes But out alas for me unhappy wretch one amongst the rest of the miserable children of Eve divided from God what have I done what have I begun Whither did I goe whereto am I come to what did I aspire in what doe I now sigh I sought for good and behold trouble I went towards God and behold I became an offender against my selfe I sought for rest in my secret paths and I found tribulation and sorrow in my inward parts I would have laughed through the joy of my minde and I was enforced to rore through the griefe of mine heart Joy was expected and behold how sighes were increased How long Lord wilt thou forget us How long wilt thou turn thy face from us When wilt thou look upon us and heare us When wilt thou enlighten our eyes and shew thy face to us When wilt â—hou restore thy selfe to us O Lord look upon us heare us enlighten us Shew thy selfe to us that it may be wel with us without whom it is so ill with us Have mercie on our labours and endevors directed to thee who are able to doe nothing without thee Enlighten us helpe us I beseech thee O Lord let mee not despaire through fainting but respire by hoping I beseech thee O Lord mine heart is made bitter with her desolation Sweeten it with thy consolation I beseech thee O Lord I hungry have begun to seeke thee let me not depart fasting from thee I hunger-starv'd have come unto thee let me not depart unfed from thee I poore come to thee rich I miserable to thee mercifull let me not depart empty and contemned and if before I eat I sigh grant that after my sighs I may eat O Lord I am become crooked and cannot but looke downward raise mee that I may looke upward mine iniquities are gone over mine head they overwhelme me and as an heavie burden presse me Free and disburden mee lest the ditch stop her mouth upon me Let me look upon thy light though a farre off though from the deepe Teach mee to seeke thee and shew thee to mee seeking thee because neither can I seeke thee unlesse thou teach mee nor finde thee unlesse thou show thee Let mee seeke thee by desiring desire thee by seeking finde thee by loving love thee by finding I confesse O Lord and I give thankes because thou hast created in mee this thine Image that being mindfull of thee I might think of thee and love thee But so abolished is this image with the blemishes of vice and so darkned with the smoake of sinne as it cannot doe that for which it was made unlesse thou renue and reforme it I presume not O Lord to pierce thine height for
A SPIRITVAL SPICERIE Containing Sundrie sweet Tractates of Devotion and Piety By RI. BRATHWAIT Esq. Cant. c. 1. 12. c. 5. 13. My Welbeloved is as a bundle of Myrrhe unto mee he shall lye betweene my brests His cheekes are as a bed of Spices LONDON Printed by I. H. for George Hutton at his shop within Turning stile in Holborne 1638. TO THE TRVLY ENNOBLED THOMAS LORD FAUCONBERGE Baron of YAROM Together With his pious Progeny those succeeding Branches of a prospering Family R. B. Zealously Dedicates this Spirituall Spicerie Vpon the translation of his Divine Dialogue TO you my Lord who knowes th' Originall This may seeme fruitlesse yet these sacred flowres Like a Bride-posie at a Nuptiall May tender choice content to some of yours Which blest effect would crowne this Worke of ours That we should be so happy as to give Where we do love RULES how to dye and live Which for his Sake we aske that is our Saviour That we may live in 's feare dye in his favour A TITLE-TABLE Or Short Summarie of all such Tractates Meditations Prayers Contemplations and Motives to Piety as are comprised within this SPIRITUALL SPICERIE A Divine Dialogue or a comfortable Conference betwixt our Saviour and a Sinner with the Life of GRâ—YTRODIUS the Author Professant of a strict disciplinary Order Page 1. A familiar Expostulation of the Flesh to GOD the Father touching Câ—RIST pag. 53. An Answer of the Father to the Flesh. p. 61. A pithy Meditation upon this Expostulation and Answer to inflame the Soule with a devout fervour p. 65. Generall Rules of living well p. 69. The Sorrowfull Soules Solace p. 82. A Meditation referring to the former Ejaculation p. 93. Mans-Mutability p. 95. Minds-Traâ—quillity pag. 103. A Meâ—itation containing the praise of Peace and her Beautie p. 109. Christian Philosophy p. 113 The Soules Jubilee p. 121. The Christian Store-house p. 144. Man his owne Foe p. 153. Two devout Prayers or Meditations of F. Lewis of Granado p. 164. 167. A short and fruitfull Confession of a Sinner unto God for obtaining Contrition p. 179. A Confession of Sinnes p. 183. A Prayer before the holy Communion p. 187. A Prayer after celebration of the holy Communion p. 190. An other Prayer p. 193. A Prayer for all Judges and Justiciaries p. 196. A Prayer for peace or tranquillity of minde p. 201. Of the presence of the Conscience in every place p. 206. A Pithy Consideration inforcing in us to the former Subject a more serious Meditation p. 209. A Closing Sonnet upon these Miscellane Meditations p. 223. A Reply to a rigid Precisian rendring him in a sententions Sapphicke of the Poet all satisfaction p. 226. A Christian Diall which may serve well to shadow out our houres number our dayes direct our wayes contract our yeares and regulate our desires p. 228. The Life of Ioannes Lanspergius a Carthusian Author of that Christian Diall p. 230. A briefe institution with an Exerâ—ise for an happie deaâ—h expressed in a familiar Conference betwixt God and the Soule Wholesome Admonitions teaching a Christian how to dye well p. 252. An Exercise whereby â—arely or whensoever thou willest thou maist poure out thy heart unto God for a good death p. 257. An Oblation of Christ and his meriâ—s to his Father p. 261. The Dying mans Diary or a Christians Memento mori divided into a five dayes Exercise p. 264. Profitable Counsell for one approaching neare the point of death p. 265. An Exercise wherein the sicke person with sighes and groanes may resigne himselfe unto God and â—ervently desire that he may deserve to be joyned unto him p. 270. A Christians Last-will or Testament containing a Protestation or Testament not unprofitable to be repeated or meditated of every Christian at the point of death p. 281. An Elegie of Saint Dionysius of the judgement of death p. 288. An Epistle of Ludovious Blosius written to an especiall friend upon the perfecting and publishing of his Worke entituled The Parlour of the Soule p. 290. Certaine choice or Select Sayings of D. Henricus Suso of the love of the World and of the love of God p. 304. Of the Passion of our Lord. p. 309. Of the holy Eucharist p. 313. Of resigning denying and mortifying ones selfe p. 316. The Passionateâ— Pilgrim Breathing a Contemplative Mans Exercise offâ—ring a Pâ—nitent Soules Sacrifice p. 325. Deaths Memoriall p. 336. Deaths distinction p. 343. Holy Memorialls or Heavenly Memento's p. 345. Of his Conception Memoriall I. ibid. Of his Birth Memoriall II. p. 352. Of his Childhood Memoriall III. p. 360. Of his Youth Memoriall IV. p. 367. Of his Manhood Memoriall V. p. 375. Of his Age. Memoriall VI. p. 383. His Pleasures Memoriall VII p. 395. His Labours Memoriall VIII p. 406. His Life Memoriall IX p. 417. His Death Memoriall X. p. 443. THE LIFE Of JACOBUS GRUYTRODIUS Author of this Divine Dialogue Or Christian Manuall faithfully rendred according to the Originall IACOBUS GRUYTRODIUS a German a man singularly versed divine and humane Learning And opposite in constancy of opinion and consonancie of doctrine to those surreptitious Errours of the Time who as hee had commendably passed his youth in the Liberall Sciences so hee consecrated and happily bestowed the residue of his time to the honour of God in a devout privacie having his pen ever vers'd in Works of devotion and piety never in arguments of division or controversy He lived in the yeare M. CCCC.LXXII A Divine Dialogue Or A Comfortable Conference betwixt our SAVIOUR and a SINNER Sinner PArdon mee I beseech thee my most gracious Lord Jesu CHRIST thy most unworthy and unhappy Servant desirous to talke a while with thee and of thee Christ. Why Who art thou Sinner A sinfull man who unhappily and rashly have fallen into the misery and filthinesse of sundry sinnes and much more unhappily am ready to fall into eternall misery and calamity after the end of this life Christ. Thou needest not feare this fearfull fall if thou wilt but doe so much as truly repent thee of thy sinnes committed and henceforth abstaine from those sinnes whereof thou hast repented For I most tender in my compassion towards thee out of meere love descended from the royall Throne of mine high glory to unmeasurable dolour and anxiety all which I willingly suffered in my flesh in my mind in my members and senses to the end that I might deliver thee from the eternall torments of hell and bestow on thee the joy of Heaven Doubt nothing therefore touching thine offences I will forget them all so thou forget thine evill affection and depraved custome I will forget I say and blot out thine iniquity and as farre distant as the East is from the West so farre will I divide thee from thy sinne I will cleanse thee Neither will I cease till I
motions as well carnall as spirituall a constant cleaving in thee the one and true God and a happy consummation of mine end And I beseech thee that thou wouldst vouchsafe to bring mee thy most unworthy â—inner to thatineffable Banquet where thou with thy Sonne and holy Spirit art true light full satiety sempiternall joy consummate gladnesse and perfect felicity to thy Saints Through the same Christ our Lord Amen Another Praier of S. Bonaventure O Most sweet Lord JESU transpierce the marrow and bowels of my soule with the most sweet and wholesome wound of thy love with cleare sincere and most holy Apostolicall Charity that my soule may languish and melt alwayes with the onely love and desire of thee Let her long and faint afâ—er thy Courts Let her desire to be dissolved and to be with thee Grant that my soule may hunger after thee the bread of Angels the repast of holy soules our dayly bread super-substantiall having all pleasantnesse of taste and all delight of sweetnesse May mine heart alwayes hunger and feed on thee on whom the Angels desire to looke and with the sweetnesse of thy taste let the bowels of my soule be filled May shee alwayes thirst after thee the fountaine of life the fountaine of Wisdome and Knowledge the fountaine of eternall Light the streame of pleasure the fulnesse of the house of God May shee alwayes looke about for thee seeke thee finde thee draw towards thee come to thee meditate of thee converse with thee doe all things to the praise and glory of thy name with humility and discretion with love and delectation with facility and affection with perseverance to my dissolution And bee thou alwayes my onely hope my whole trust my riches my delight my joy my gladnesse my quiet and tranquillity my peace my sweetnesse my perfume my solace my meat my repast my refuge my succour my wisdom my portion my possession my treasure wherin my mind and mine heart may be alwayes fixed grounded and unmoveably rooted Amen A PRAYER for all Judges and Justiciaries O Almighty God who judgest iniquity in equity and doest inscrutable things Thou who weighest the mountaines in a balance and wilt bring the Iudges of the Earth to judgement Direct their understandings to discerne what is right give them courage and resolution to doe what is right Give them wisdome in their waies faithfulnesse in their works uprightnesse in their walkes Remove from them covetousnesse and let it bee their ambition to advance thy glory Let neither rewards bee in their hands nor revenge in their hearts Take from them all drousinesse and dulnesse all security and remisnesse Imprint in their hearts a feare of thy name a reverence to thy throne and in all their judgements a sweet attemprature of meâ—cy and judgement Make them tremble when they call to mind whom they personate and imitate thee in being compassionate Let not the Orphans prayers nor the Widowes teares be unremembred seeing these are bottled up by thee let them not bee despised by them that represent thee O let righteousnesse drop upon the Earth that as dew falleth upon the grasse so every flowry border of this thine inclosed garden may bee watred by the dew of thy grace Suffer not this Iland to mourne nor her People to grone because of injustice oppression and wrong Put an hooke in the nostrils of all such imperious Iudges who take thy Law into their mouth and hate to be reformed As for those who turne Iudgement to wormewood and leave of righteousnes in the Earth These who buy the poore for silver and the needy for shoes These that put farre away the evill day and approch to the seâ—te of iniquity The Lord will be avenged of them Hee will mite the great house with breaches and the little house with clefts But remove these judgements from thine Israel O God May no corruption raigne in her Palaces nor iniquity in her pathes May a Zeale of thine house a feare of thy name a love of piety an hate to partiality seize upon the hearts of all Iudges and Iusticiaries in this Kingdome that they may execute their places without respect of persons and afterwards raigne with those three individuate Persons GOD the Father GOD the Sonne and GOD the holy Ghost Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity to whom bee all Glorie Amen A Prayer for Peace or tranquillity of Mind GRacious God who art a God of peace and hast pronounced a blessing upon those who make peace give mee that which thou blessest that I may enjoy what thou lovest embrace that which thou approvest affect that which thou commendest possesse that wherin thou delightest Thou knowest that debates variance and contention doe distract our devotion distemper the affection disquiet every good motion disturbe every pious intention Grant therfore I beseech thee that these differences to which I am ingaged or may hereafter bee intangled or inthralled be to the glory of thy great name the preservation of mine honest repute and fame and quiet of my affaires peaceably composed Cut out of mee towards my family all severity towards my familiars all disloyalty towards my Neighbours all extremity Grant mee peace of mind in my living peace of conscience at my dying and after death that peace which passeth all understanding Cause all tumults of the flesh to cease in mee all immoderate affections to decrease in mee all inordinate motions to dye in mee Sanctifie my heart purifie my mind direct my spirit erect my faith correct my life Remove from mee all occasions of difference that I may find quietnesse of conscience Grant that I may sow the seed of righteousnesse walke in the wayes of holynesse make profession of my faith with all singlenesse that I may come to the possession of happinesse Let mee seeks peace and ensue it Love thy Law and pursue it reforme thine Image and renue it Suffer not the tempests of this world to dismay mee the errors of this life to perplex mee or the terrors of death to appall mee I know O Lord affliction to bee bitter to him that suffers it impatiently but sweet to him that suffers it constantly Thou provest those thou lovest and afflictest those thou affectest Affliction then cannot be bitter when it maketh us better What though disgrace obscure mee wrongs inure mee reproach impeach mee injuries presse thicke upon mee I am made strong through him to beare them who bore the Crosse for me suffered all dishonour for mee shed his bloud for mee lost himselfe to finde mee became sold to redeeme mee racked upon the Crosse to reach mee a Crowne climing Mount Calvarie to mount mee to glory O make mee then ready in my suffering to imitate thee my Saviour Though warre assaile mee without give mee peace within Humble my Spirit that I may bee of that temper as I may still reflect upon the Image of my Saviour that living in his feare I may dye in his favour
that it might depart from me And he said unto me my grace is sufficient for thee for my power is made perfect through weaknesse He heard him whom he had disposed to damnation and heard not him whom hee prepared to salvation The sick patient asketh many things of his Physician yet the Physician gives them not hee heares him not after his will but for his health Make God then thy Physician aske of him health and hee will bee thy health not only as outward health but as he himself is all health Love not then any health beside him but as thou hast it in the Psalme Say unto my Soule I am thy Salvation What is it unto thee what hee give thee so he give himselfe unto to thee Now wouldst thou that hee give himselfe unto thee What if that thou wouldst have hee will not give thee that hee may give himselfe unto thee Hee removes impediments from thee that hee may enter in unto thee Brethren observe and consider what God gives here unto Sinners and hence gather what hee keepes in store for his Servants To Sinners that blaspheme him hee gives daily the benefits of Heaven and Earth hee gives fountains fruits health children wealth abundance All these goods things none giveth but God Hee that gives such things to the sinfull what thinkst thou stores hee up for his faithfull Doest thou thinke this of him that hee who gives such things to the evill reserves nothing in store for the good yes truly hee reserves not onely earth but heaven Nay perchance I speake of something too low when I speake of heaven hee reserves himselfe who made Heaven Beautifull is heaven but more beautifull is the Maker of Heaven But saist thou I see Heaven but I see not him Thou hast eyes to see Heaven But thou hast not as yet an heart to see the Maker of Heaven To that end came hee from Heaven to Earth that hee might cleanse thine heart whereby he might bee seene who made Heaven and Earth But freely with patience expect salvation Hee knowes best with what medicines to cure thee Hee knowes best how to cut thee how to seere thee Thou art become sick through sinne hee comes not onely to cheere but to cut and seere Doest thou not see what paine men suffer under the hands of their Physicians who promise unto them an uncertaine hope of life Thou shalt bee cured saies the Physician thou shalt bee cured if I cut thee And this is but the promise of man and promised to man Neither is hee certaine who speakes it nor hee who heares it because hee speakes it unto man who made not man nor perfectly knoweth what may become of man yet gives man credit to these words of man who knowes not what becomes of man hee submits his members unto him hee suffers himselfe to bee bound or sometimes unbound he is cut and seer'd and perchance hee recovers health for a few dayes yet after this short recovery of health hee knows not when hee must dye and perchance hee dyes while he is in cure or perhaps hee cannot bee cured But to whom hath God at any time promised and deceived Iâ—ius Horreo Suâ—â—ma affluentia Cujus cordiâ— Scrinio Sana Conscientia THE Christian Storehouse Rendred from Saint Augustine in his Tract upon the 64. Psalme upon these words Wee shall bee satisfied with the pleasures of thine House even of thine holy Temple WHat are those good things of the house of God Brethren let us suppose to our selves some rich House imagining it to bee stored with all good things how plenteous it may be what store of vessels of gold and silver there may bee how numerous a family what abundance of stock and store in a word how the House it selfe may delight us with pictures and structures of marble arched Roofes curious Columns specious Spaces sumptuous Rooms behold such things are desired but as yet out of the confusion of Babylon Prune all these desires O Citizen of Hierusalem prune all these if thou wilt returne to thine heavenly City let not captivity delight thee But if thou hast already begun to goe out of Babylon doe not looke behind thee doe not loyter in the way There want not yet Enemies to perswade thee to stay still in thy captivity and exile Let not then the speeches of the wicked prevaile with thee Desire the House of God and desire the good things of that house but not such as thou usest to desire either in thine owne House or in thy Neighbours or Patrons House There is goodnesse of another nature in this House What need wee to declare what those good things be of that House Let him expâ—esse them who singeth in his going out of Babylon We shall bee satisfied with the pleasures of thine House What are those pleasures Sometimes perchance wee erected our hearts to gold to silver and other pretious things doe not seeke such these oppresse they doe not refresh Let us here then meditate of those pleasures of Hierusalem those pleasures of the House of the Lord those pleasures of the Temple of the Lord because those pleasures which are of the House of the Lord those are pleasures of the Temple of the Lord. Wee shall bee satisfied with the pleasures of thine House Holy is thy Temple wonderfull in righteousnesse These are the pleasures of that House Hee sayes not thy holy Temple wonderfull in Pillars wonderful in Pictures wonderful in Marbles wonderfull in gilded buildings but wonderfull in righteousnesse Thou hast outward eyes wherewith thou maist see marble structures golden statues but within is the eye wherewith thou maist view the beauty of Righteousnesse within I say is the eye wherewith thou maist view the beauty of Righteousnesse If there bee no beauty in Righteousnesse whence is it that the Righteous old man is loved What may his body present to delight the sight Hee presents crooked lims a rugged forehead an head whitened with hoary haires weaknesse in all parts full of aches and complaints But perchance though this decrepit old man delight not thine eyes hee may delight thine eares With what voyce with what song For though perchance while hee was young hee sung well all those ayres are decayed with age For can the sound of his words possibly delight thine eares seeing he can scarcely pronounce his words through the dropping decay of his teeth Yet if hee bee just if he covet not that which is anothers if hee out of his owne distribute to the necessity of others if he admonish discreetly and understand rightly if hee beleeve sincerely if hee bee ready for the profession of truth to bestow even his decayed lims for many have beene Martyrs when they were old wee are moved to love him But whence is it that wee love him What good thing doe wee see in him with these eyes of our flesh Nothing There is then a certaine beauty of righteousnesse which wee see with the eyes of our heart and which wee