Conspirators which if this very Minute was not improv'd to this Advantage thy Lord was unavoidably taken to the Loss of his most precious Life by these most accursed Miscreants and Blood-Hounds of Hell This Judas had been Love indeed and could Men or Angels that had no foreknowledge of any design have judg'd it otherwise And greater Love than this could not possibly have been shewn thus privately and resolvedly to have ventur'd thy own Life for thy Master's Or Judas it 's a wonder that before thy foul and polluted Mouth came to his sacred Lips thou couldst not discern the Tears and Drops of Blood upon his Heavenly Face or when thou hadst once kiss'd him through suddain eagerness without discerning yet the moisture of an unusual Kiss should have made thee immediately have look'd upon his distorted Agonious Face and there presently have seen written in Characters of Blood Jesus oft' kissed his Disciples the intent of thy abominable approach and wicked design and that it was not unknown or unlook'd for and expected by thy Lord and Master who the very Evening before had said at the very time of eating the Passover together with his Disciples I shall be betray'd this nighâ— into the hands of the most wicked Jews and it shall be done too by the hands of one of my own Disciples and he that dippeth his hand with me in the Dish the same is he that shall betray me And hast thou quite forgot Judas thou answer'd and said Is it I Or hadst thou quite forgot thy Master had already told thee He knew the very thoughts of thy Heart and of the rest of thy Brethren and had pray'd for you that the very thoughts of your Hearts if possible might be forgiven you Thou Judas hadst oft seen many Miracles done by thy Master The Earth open'd and swallow'd them up and wast not thou afraid at this time he might have wrought one more upon thee as upon Corah Dathan and Abiram for offering strange Fire unto the Lord and thou at this time offering strange Friendship but will nothing of all this do nor work upon thee to deter thee from thy Impious Enterprize and to alter thy wicked Intention But art thou resolv'd to give this betraying Kiss and to go on with thy former Mercenary unparalell'd Resolutions and to stifle all Reflects Retorts or Reminiscenciated Acts of Conscience and to cry All Hail Master and give the Kiss And after this Kiss of thine Judas canst thou be looking upon and be abetting aiding and assisting these Vile Wretches Officers and Soldiers in all their rage and violency with their rude Hands thus to drag thy Saviour and pull him along and with their Swords and Staves in their Hands to force him and hale him on and with their Lanthorns and Torches the better to direct their blows upon thy Master I say Judas couldst thou see all this and still persist in unrelenting and obdurate Impiety and Impudence Saith our Dear Saviour Judas are you come out as against a Thief and a Robber with Swords and with Staves to take me I was daily with you in the Temple teaching and you took me not but the Scriptures must be fulfill'd they all forsook him and fled Mark 14.48 49 50. But thou Judas hear thou deef and look thou blind as Isaiah saith Will nothing of all this bring any thing to thy remembrance nor to behold any thing in my innocent Face Who is blind but my Servant or deaf as the Messenger I sent Who is blind as he that is perfect in all this wickedness and blind as the Lord's Servant Seeing many things but thou observest not Opening the Ear but thou hearest not The Lord is well pleas'd for his Righteousness sake It becometh thus to be done that all Scriptures might be fulfill'd And canst thou Judas be ignorant of them Or hast thou blinded thy Eyes thus And hardned thy Heart And wholly sold thy self to the Devil to work out and accomplish this wickedness and cruelty to thy Master with thy Kiss Whomsoever I shall kiss the same is he hold him fast Matth. 26.48 Now when Caiphas and his Crew had Examin'd Jesus and had all with one consent unanimously voted his Death yet it was beyond the Verge of their power to put into execution their determin'd Sentence but bound him and sent him away Malefactor-like to Pilate When morning was come all the Chief-Priests and Elders of the People take Counsel against Jesus to put him to death and when they had bound him they led him away to Pontius Pilate their Chief Governor Then Judas which had betray'd him when he saw how they had us'd him and that he that he had privately agreed with the betray him to had proceeded further in his Malice and Rage to his Master than was agreed upon at first and had Condemn'd him to Death and was now carrying him from one Court and Council to another and at this present time was going with him to Pilate and saw now it would be made a publick Business of which he had a promise it should be only private and that he must inevitably be known to be the Man and Vengeance then would not suffer him to live nor yet should he know where to hide his Head when it was once come to be known amongst all the rest of the Disciples therefore he began to repent him as he thought in time and resolv'd upon this course to carry the Money back again to the High-Priests and let them know he had alledg'd false things against his Master which were in no manner true and therefore had brought them their Money again in full tale and in the very same Bag and threw it down upon the Treasury-Table in the Temple where before he had receiv'd it and told them plainly he repented and had sinn'd in betraying Innocent Blood concluding in himself this was the only Politick way left to save himself and bring his Master off again that he had so falsly betray'd But they took no notice of any thing that he said to them they had already made use of him as a Property to betray Jesus of Nazareth to them that they had of along time-past endeavour'd to apprehend and as for Judas in what he had done whether well or ill to himself what car'd they he had done well for them let him go and be hang'd if he will what do we care say they we will proceed with our sport And when he saw that all that was said and done would prevail nothing upon the Jews he goes out and lays violent hands upon himself Then Judas which had betray'd him when he saw that they had condemn'd him repented himself and brought again the thirty pieces of Silver to the High-Priests and Elders saying I have sinned in that I have betray'd the Innocent Blood and they said What is that to us see thou to that and he cast down the pieces of Silver in the Temple and went out and
God Let them in scorn and derision be Crucifying my Saviour between two Malefactors as the chiefest of them I in the greatest bitterness of my Soul will be pouring out the most ardent of my Prayers with Sighs Groans and Tears that are unutterable to remember me both now whilst thou art on the Cross and as soon as thou art exalted in thy Kingdom of Glory O God! the Son Redeemer of the World have mercy upon me miserable Sinner By the mystery of thy Holy Incarnation By thy Nativity and Circumcision By thy Fasting Baptism and Temptation Good Lord deliver me By thy Agony and Bloody Sweat By the Cross and Passion By thy precious Death and Burial By thy Glorions Resurrection and Ascension And by the coming of the Holy Ghost Good Lord deliver me O Son of God! I beseech thee to hear me O Lamb of God! that takest away the Sins of the World Grant me thy Peace O Christ hear me O Lord hear me O Lamb of God that takest away the Sins of the World have Mercy upon me Lord have mercy upon me Christ have mercy upon me O Lord hear me and remember me now now thou art giving up thy most precious Life and pouring out thy innocent harmless and compassionate Soul Remember me when thou com'st into thy Kingdom What can a poor Soul beg more and desire more of its Redeemer at the point of Death Or what can be given or done more by an ever-blessed Saviour and Holy Jesu to save us from the Jaws of Death Power of Hell and Eternal Torments Than to be pouring out his own Soul by Prayers and Tears to his Heavenly Father at the very last minute of his precious Life for us But stay O blessed Jesu What is it I perceive and see still in this black and dismal hour O Lord Is it thee still in thy Agony and bloody Sweat It is so dark I can but just perceive thee Is it not finisht yet What say'st thou Lord now to my poor fainting dying Soul Speak Lord one word of comfort to me notwithstanding all thy Adversaries and implacable Enemies about thee Speak Lord and thy Servant heareth Speak Lord and my Soul shall live If thou art so faint thou can'st not speak in this grievous Conflict let thy good Prophet speak for thee Wherefore when I came was there no man to help When I call'd was there none to answer Do you think I am past Saving of you or Delivering of you in this time of my Dereliction Tho you all forsake me in this hour of my Crucifixion I do not forsake you my Children my Flock and my poor Lambs my Redeemed and the purchas'd of my Soul Is my Hand shortned at all though nail'd to the Cross that I cannot Save or that I cannot Redeem Or have I no power to deliver Behold at my Rebuke I dry up the Sea I make the Rivers a Wilderness The Fish stinketh and dieth for Thirst because there is no Water I cloath the Heavens with blackness and I make Sack loth their covering I make the Earth to quake and tremble and it would tumble down to the Eternal Abiss but that I bear up the Pillars of it at this very moment that I am bleeding and dying upon the Cross Let the Jews have as vile and mean thoughts of me as they please and cast all their scorn and malice mixt with their cruel rage and poison at me It 's I that make the Rocks to rent the Sun to gather paleness and the Moon to be turn'd into Blood Notwithstanding that all the Scriptures might be fulfill'd and my Redeem'd Ones the Purchas'd of my Soul set at liberty I give my Back to the smiters and my Cheeks to them that pluck't off my Hair I hid not my face from shame and spitting for the Lord Gâ—d doth and will help my Soul and sustain it Whatever my Body doth or shall cry out and say therefore I shall not be confounded therefore I have set my Face like a Flint and know that I shall not be asham'd He is near that justifieth me Who will contend with me Let us stand together Who is my Adversary Let him come near Behold the Lord will help me Who is he that will condemn me Lo they shall all wax old as a Garment and the Moth shall eat them up Who is it amongst you that feareth the Lord Who obeyeth the Voice of hit Servant that walketh in darkness and hath no light Let him trust in the Name of the Lord and stay himself upod his God Behold all ye that kindle a Five that compass your selves about with sparks walk in the light of your Fire and in the sparks that ye have kindled this shall ye have of my hand ye shall lie down in sorrow Isa 50. But my Soul draw near or else thou wilt lose the sight of thy Saviour Darkness hastens on a-pace O Holy Jesu is it not thee Let me wipe and drain my dim and almost spent and blind Eyes and look again Lord it is thee I still perceive thy Tears distilling down thy sacred Face Thy Temples boiling out of Spirituous Blood Thy Sacred Hands and Feet blubbering up and venting out from behind the Nails great Bladders of Blood and Froth from the expulsive force of thy most exquisite Torments O Lord even now my Soul fainteth and dieth within me My Spirits fail me My poor Mortal Eyes and tender fainting Heart is not able to behold thee longer Nor yet while my Life and Strength remains can I forbear when an interval of Tears will permit my sight looking after thee still and pouring forth my fervent and frequent requests to thee and falling into these most strict Examinations within my self What! From the Sixth till almost the Ninth Hour is my dear Saviour in the height of this vehement Agony and not over yet But still labouring and groaning under the burthen of my Sins What great and heinous Sin of mine is it that I am guilty of that is not aton'd yet That God is so extremely incens'd at and that he will not yet pardon That my poor Saviour is yet struggling for till the last drop of his most Precious Blood is exhausted Let me look immediately into my Soul into every corner and crany of it all must out and be discover'd of what nature or quality soever it be whether Lying Cursing Swearing and Forswearing Theft Murther Fornication Adultery Incest Pollution with the Dead or Copulation with Beasts Blasphemy Spite and Contempt against thy Holy Word and Sacraments O quickly quickly quickly help me O my God to find it out and to bring all to remembrance that thou mayest no longer be extorted and convuls'd in these grievous Torments Look upon me dear Saviour and cast quickly thy dying Eye towards me Christ cast his dying Eyes to a Supplicant Sinner as thou didst upon Peter in the High-Priest's Hall denying thee that I may immediately remember it seeing thy Righteous Father is so exact
thy Sacred Temples mix'd together with the filthy Excrements of the most nasty and polluted Wretches Spittle How O Lord are thy Tender and Holy Back and Sides buffetted and bleeding with their Jewish Stripes and thy Cheeks smitten with their filthy and brawny Hands Who Lord is able to behold all this and their Hearts not bleed and even faint away to see how he is thus brought out by Filate's Command before all the Jews who lead him up and down by the Hair of his Head Speaking of its Excellency and Beauty in the Canticles where all his Graces are set forih And his Hair as black and as bushy as a Raven now serves only as an Halter to lead him and drag him along Then saith Pilate Tho' I bring him forth to you thus mangled and torn yet it is only to please and appease you but I find no fault in him John 19.4 Then came Jesus forth wearing the Crown of Thorns and the Purple Robe and Pilate saith unto them Behold the Man ver 5. And this could not be acted without a Prophecy to the Jews Your Hands are defiled with Blood and your Fingers with Iniquity-Your Lips have spoken Lyes and your Tongues have uttered perverse Things None calleth for Justice nor any pleadeth for Truth Their Feet run to Evil and they make hast to shed innocent Blood Their Thoughts are Thoughts of Iniquity Wasting and Destruction are in their Paths Judgment is far from them neither to do Justice doth it overtake them Again Judgment is turned away backward and Justice standeth afar off for Truth is fallen in the Street and Equity cannot enter Isa 59. And again Isaiah saith more to the same purpose Yea Truth faileth and he that departeth from Evil alluding to our Saviour maketh himself a Prey And the Lord saw it and it displease him that there was no Judgement And be saw there was no Man and wonder'd that there was no Intercessor therefore his Arm brought Salvation unto him and his Righteousness sustained him for he put on Righteousness as a Breast-plate and as an Helmet of Salvation upon his Head and be put on Garments of Vengeance for Cloathing and was clad with Zeal as a Cloak According to their Deeds accordingly be will repay Fury to his Adversaries and Recompence to his Enemies Thus we may see how the Spirit of God leads out the good Prophet and not only him but all the Patriarchs and Prophets they are all full and abound with the Predictions and Prefigurations of Holy Jesu of the Messias but more especially this Prophet Isaiah Herod before and the High-Priests and Soldiers now at this very time cannot open their Mouths and make Sport with our dear and ever-blessed Saviour but it shall be foretold Against whom do you sport your selves Against whom do you make a wide Mouth and draw out the Tongue Are you not Children of Transgression and a Seed of Falshood Yea for Judas betraying him For the Iniquity of his Covetousness was I wrath and smote him I hid me and was wrath and he went on frowardly in his Heart Isa 57.4 17. Now notwithstanding all this that Pilate had permitted them to do to innocent Jesus thinking that this Indignity and Suffering of our Saviour might have been full satisfaction to them all When Pilate said unto them Behold the Man in his Kingly Robes thus affronted and abused in all this Contempt Scorn and Sufferings Yet was there inverate malice and envy against innocent and harmless Jesus such that all this Blood had not yet satisfied their Blood-thirstiness But when the Chief Priests and Officers saw him they cry'd out all This will not do we must have him Crucify'd nothing less than that will satisfie us Pilate saith unto them If nothing else will satisfie you nor appease this Tumult and Uproar Take ye him and Crucifie him your selves for I find no fault at all in him This would not yet appease them for we have a Law and according to our Law we can put no Man to Death Moreover we have a strict Law against Blasphemy not boring through the Tongue but Death and by our Law be ought to dye because be hath made himself the Son of God When Pilate heard that Saying he was the more afraid and went into their Judgment-Hall a Third time Jesus carried before Pilate a Third time Luke 23.22 John 19.9 and said unto Jesus Whence art thou But Jesus gave him him no Answer Then Pilate said unto him Speakest thou not unto me Knowest thou not that I have power to Crucifie thee and have power to Release thee How Pilate is thy Power so great And wilt thou not do it Out of thy own Mouth shalt thou be condemn'd John 19 10. Jesus answer'd and said unto him Eusebius speaking of Christ's Divinity gloses upon it Christ's Divinity here stoopt not to Pilate's Humanity Thou couldest have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above From thenceforth Pilate sought to Release him but the Jews cry'd out saying If thou let this Mango thou art not Caesar 's Friend Whosoever maketh himself a King speaketh against Caefar When Pilate therefore heard that Saying he brought Jesus forth and sate down in the Judgment Seat in a place that is called the Pavement but in the Hebrew Gabatha And it was the preparation for the Passover and about the sixth hour and he saith unto them Behold your King But they cry out Away with him Crucifie him Pilate saith Shall I Crucifie your King The Chief Priests answered We have no King but Caesar John 19.5 Now Pilate when he saw that after all ways and means and courses that he had taken with Jesus to satisfie the Jews nothing would do less than to Crucifie him He was now ready to pass Sentence and had enter'd the Judgment-Hall and sate down in the Judgment-Seat in order to it his Wife sends a Letter to him with words to this effect saying I beseech you Husband if you have any Love for me and any Bowels of Pity and compassion for this poor innocent Man Proâ—ula his Wife whom the Greek Church Honour as a Convert of our Lord's sends a Letter to him to this effect Jesus that now is arraign'd and stands before you just ready to be Condemn'd and Sentence to be pass'd upon him on purpose to gratifie the inordinate impetuous desires of a rash Multitude and blood-thirsty Jews forbear I say I humbly beg of you and do not Condemn him and have nothing to do with this just Man for I have suffer'd many things for him this day in a Dream which I shall communicate to you as soon as I see you When Pilate saw this and that he could prevail nothing but rather that a Tumult was made He called for Water and wash'd his Hands before the Multitude saying I am innocent of the Blood of this just Person see you to it Matth. 27.19 24. Then answered all the People and said Let his
Wrinkle or any such thing And this I beg with all Humility and Devotion that I am able to do upon the Account and for the Sake of my ever Blessed Redeemer and Advocate concluding in that Heavenly Prayer He Himself hath taught me saying Our Father c. A Prayer for the Author or Reader O Lord assist me so with Thy Blessed Spirit that all that I have now Written or Read in this foregoing Work may always be fresh upon my Heart and Soul and grant me O God that at this time I may pour out my Soul unto Thee upon my bended Knees in such like Prayers and Supplications that may be prevalent with Thee my Heavenly Father to guard and defend me this Day from all manner of Sins and power of Temptations whatsoever More especially against all those Sins that do so easie beset me and meet me at every turn those Sins thou knowest O Heavenly Father are my familiar and prevailing Sins that now by the special Concurrence of thy Blessed Spirit I may be able to strike at the very root of them all and like David kill the Goliah Give me O Lord a true rectify'd Spirit Sanctify'd throughout to overcome all Infirmities and Corruptions of Human Nature And that I may betake my self sincerely to the great Business of the Salvation of my Soul And that with the Blessed Apostle I may run the Race that is set before me looking unto Christ Jesus the Author and Finisher of my Faith who for the Joy that was set before him endur'd the Cross despis'd the shame and now is set at the Right Hand of God daily to make Intercession for me For him O Heavenly Father hast thou highly exalted and given him a Name above all other Names that at the Name of Jesus every Knee should how both of things in Heaven and of things on Earth O sweet Jesu O blessed Jesu who can but bow to Thee and supplicate to Thee and pour out their Prayers and Tears to Thee that left the bosom of Thy Father and all the Adorations and Chorus's of Saints and Angels and came down from Heaven to suffer the cursed and ignominious Death of the Cross for my Sins to have thy tender Hands that were always doing of Good and healing Diseases and thy blessed Feet that always kept the steady Paths of Eternal Life now to be turn'd twisted extended distorted disjointed and Nail'd to the Cross to drink the Vinegar and Gaul of Thy Father's high Displeasure for my great and grievous Sins to have Thy most sacred Sides pierc'd and to gush out with Water and Blood To see Thee all over sweating and pouring down Streams of Blood from the Crown of Thy Head to the Foot of the Cross and to suffer all this for my great grievous hainous Sins and abominable Iniquities Nay further O Dear Jesu to see Thee endure and to lie under Thy Father's Wrath and the pressure of all these Agonies and Torments which made Thee bitterly to cry out My God my God Why hast thou forsaken â—e O Lord What shall I do Who is able to behold Thee longer Who can but love Thee and in loving Thee adore Thee with infinite unbounded and unmeasurable Love and desire earnestly to be Dissolved and to be with Thee But if it is Thy good Pleasure to spare me longer let the true Love and perfect sense of all this Love and Suffering of Thine my Dear Lord and Saviour help me to live up to that exact Pattern thou hast left me here of Meekness Lowliness Humility Charity Forgiveness Bowels of Pity and Compassion and that a perfect sense of Thy Crucifixion may always be fresh in my Heart and Soul that so it may beget in me a compleat hatred and dread of all Sins that in the whole Course of my remaining Life I may be preserved and defended from the like Sins that I run not the danger of Eternal Damnation And that the inexhaustible Bowels of Thy Mercy may take pity of me so that I Crucifie Thee not again but being delivered from all Iniquities by thy most mighty Power may with finishing my Course here be receiv'd into the open Arms of Thy Eternal Salvation And this I most heartily beg upon the bended Knees of my Soul for Thy sake only and upon the alone account of Thee my Dear Lord and Saviour and ever-blessed Redeemer and Advocate Amen and Amen A Death Bed Meditation I Owe to God a Death as his Son did for me Ever since I have been born I have been sailing to this Haven and gathering Patience to comfort me in this Hour therefore should I be one of those Guests that would not come to the Banquet when they were invited What hurt is there is going to Sleep In going to Paradise I shall lose nothing but the Sense of Evils and anon I shall have greater Joys than I feel Pains for my Head is in Heaven already to assure me my Soul and Body shall follow after O Death Where is thy Sting Why should I fear that which I would not escape because my chief Happiness is gone before and I cannot have it unless I go to it I would even go through Hell it self for Heaven and therefore if I march but through Death I suffer less than I would for God My Pains do not dismay me because I Travel to bring forth Eternal Life My Sins do not fright me because I have Christ my Redeemer there The Judge doth not astonish me because I have the Judges Son my Advocate The Devil amazes me not because the Angels pitch their Tents about me The Grave grieves me not because I know it was my Lord's Bed O that God's Mercy to me might move others to love him For the less I can express of it the more it is The Prophets and the Apostles are my Fore-runners every Man will go before or follow after If it please God to receive me into Heaven before them that serv'd him better what Thankfulness do I owe him and because I have deferr'd my Repentance till this Hour whereby my Salvation had been cut off had I dy'd suddenly How doth my God in his Infinite Mercy to prevent my Destruction call me by this lingring Sickness and prepares me for my End and makes me by wholsome Pains weary of this beloved World lest I should depart unwillingly like to those whose Death is their Damnation Thus he loves me while he beats me and his Stripes are Plaisters to cure my Sores therefore who shall love him if I displease him This is my whole Business now to strengthen my Body with my Heart and to be contented as God hath appointed until I can Glorify him or He me If I live I live to Sacrifice If I dye I dye to my Saviour for Christ my Saviour is Sacrificed for me and therefore should I fear Death I have not that Faith and Hope I have profess'd but I doubted of God's Truth in his Promises Whether or no he will forgive Penitent Sinners which I sear not Come Lord Jesus for now thy Servant cometh into thy Everlasting Arms of Mercy I commit my Soul into thy Hands O Heavenly Father Come Lord Jesus come quickly A Letter written to his Friend in his Sickness Beloved I Marvelled not that you have Pain for you are Sick but I marvel that you cover it not for Offences because the Wisdom of Man is to bite in his Gpief and always to shew more Comfort in God than Pain in Suffering Now God calleth to Repetitious to see whether you have learn'd more Patience and Constancy than others If Sickness be sharp make it not more sharp by frowardness But know this is a great Favour to us when we dye by Sickness that makes us ready for God when he calls us Now you have nothing to think upon but God and you cannot think upon him without Joy Your Grief passes away but your Joy will never Tell me Friend or Patient How many Stripes is Heaven worth Is my Friend only Sick in the World or his Faith weaker than others You have always Pray'd Thy Will be done and are you now offended that God's Will is done How hath the Faithful Man forgot that all things even Death if self turn to the best to them that love God Teach the Happy O Lord to see his Happiness through Troubles Every Pain is the prevention of the Pain of Hell Every Ease in Pain is a fore-tast of the Ease and Peace and Joys in Heaven Remember therefore your own Comforts to others before and be not impatient when there is most need of Patience but as you have ever Taught us to Live so now give us an Example to Dye and deceive Satan as Job did FINIS