the sincerity and integrity thereof I. THESE good thoughts of Mine O! Most merciful God I know are late Purposes in one drawing towards the end of his Days And Purposes of one affrighted with the near approach of Death who whilst he was at ease and liberty was wont most wretchedly to slight thy Calls and to abuse thy Grace But O! Father accept me tho I return late into thy service and have tarryed till it is the last hour of the day Accept me tho it is the Rod that has given Repentance and Affliction that has made me Wise. Be graciously pleased O! Good Lord with any thing and at any time that shall bring me back to thy Self And despise not my Repentance altho it is the Repentance of a Malefactor in agonies more than thou didst despise that of the Penitent Theif upon the Cross. But make me find that true Repentance is wellcome to thee at all times and that in this world it is never too late to grow Wise nor will ever be in vain to return with our whole heart to thy Service thro Jesus Christ our Lord Amen II. And Oh! Merciful God by the Power of thy Grace make my Repentance True and my Return intire that it may be acceptable in thy sight thro' the Blood of my dearest Lord. What good Purposes I have begun through Fear of this World carry me on to perfect by the considerations of the next world Improve my Horror of Pain into an Hatred of Sin and my Sorrow for the Dangers which I have brought upon my Self into a Godly sense of the dishonor which I have done to thee Oh! Cut me not off from my Sins till thou hast cured me of them and finish'd the Work of Grace upon my poor Soul That I may have all my Punishment in this Life but Peace with thee and Rest after Death in the Joys of Paradice for my dear Saviours sake who died to save Sinners yea to save such capital offenders as I am and as suffer'd with him when he hung upon the Cross between two Theeves Amen Our Father c. PRAYERS FOR PRISONERS FOR CRIMES VI. For Respite and longer Time in this world and against the day of Tryal I. LOrd If it be thy good pleasure spare me a little longer and let me escape that untimely end which my Crimes have deserved I would fain live on some time to make proof of my good purposes and having abused so much time to contract evil Habits I should be most glad and thankful to have a little more to wear them off again Tho I have many worldly Reasons for this Respite yet O! Great and Righteous Judge I desire it not so much upon any other account as of Redeeming my former years of Vice and of growing more Perfect in thy service and of being better fitted than alas I am at present to appear before thy Judgment Seat Hear me O! Lord for thy mercys and thy Dear Son and my only Saviour Jesus Christs sake Amen II. Oh! Thou God of Patience and long-sufferance shew thy accustomed Forbearance unto thy wretched Servant Save me from that Pit of Destructions which I have Digged for my self and from the sentence of Death which I am horribly affraid to hear from the mouth of my earthly Judge But let this deliverance be brought about O! My God only by the wise Ordering of thy good Providence not by any Falshood of mine or other unlawful Arts. I fear Death O! Righteous God But that which makes me most affraid of it is because I have sinned And I Desire to fear sining more than dying O! Therefore gracious Father suffer me not to yeild to any new wickedness tho it be to save my Life Make me diligent in all innocent ways and means for my Preservation and direct me to the wisest But let me resort to none that is ill nor say or do any thing for my own Defence at my Tryal here which will rise up against me and be Matter of Accusation when I come to be tryed again at thy dreadful Bar. And the less care I may seem capable hereby to take of my self the more do thou care for me O! My God And when my Cause comes to be heard so order things by thy Mercy that there may not be a full evidence produced against me and that neither the Judge nor Jury may be disposed to stretch things to my Prejudice that so thy Servant may escape But if in thy Justice thou hast determined to cut me off untimely for this offence Thy Blessed and most Righteous Will be done But then gracious Lord perfect my Repentance before I go hence and for the voice and merits of thy dear Sons most precious Blood pardon my Sins I am more concerned for thy Favor than how to come off here I am content to suffer what thou pleasest in this world so thou wilt let me go off in thy Peace and admit me among the meanest of thy Servants in the world to come for our Lord Jesus-Christs sake Amen Our Father c. EJACULATIONS FOR THE PRISONER FOR CRIMES At his TRYAL LORD Hear the Cry of the Prisoners and Deliver thou those who are appointed unto death Amen Here the cry of my wants for Mercy not of my sins for Justice Amen Help me O! Lord for I have none but thee to look unto My defence lies not in my own Innocence but only in thy meer Mercy and tender Providence Amen EJACULATIONS After his TRYAL if Acquitted LORD thou redeemest me from the Grave and this Acquittal of me is as Life from the Dead Blessed yea for ever blessed be thy most endearing Mercy Amen Lord the Life which here thou hast given me I do most humbly and intirely give back and devote to thee Oh! Accept me and let me have nothing more to do with Sin and Vanity Amen Oh! Let me never forget this inestimable Mercy nor fail to make the best use of this remainder of Life which out of thine abundant Goodness thou hast now lent me Amen If Condemned LORD I meekly receive this Sentence as my just Punishment I have the due reward of my Deeds But as my Sin brings this untimely and shameful Death Oh! Let my true Repentance thro my dear Lord and Saviours Merits secure the forgiveness of my Sins and bring me to everlasting Life Amen PRAYERS FOR PRISONERS FOR CRIMES VII Prayers after Sentence of Condemnation or any time before Execution and at Execution only making the Changes as they are noted in the Margin O! Almighty and most righteous Judge to thee it belongeth to take vengeance and to me to suffer it I must clear thy justice and confess I have my deserts and have none but my Self to blame for this heavy Sentence But now O! Lord when the Sword of vengeance is unsheathed and is come to the stroke do thou stand by me and Comfort me Deal not with me as I have done with thee but tho I have
basely and wretchedly forsaken thee all my Life yet leave me not I humbly intreat thee in my last Hour When the justice of man lays my Blood upon my own Head let thy Mercy O! Blessed Jesu lay thy Blood upon it too to expiate the guilt of mine Let that purge me from all my sins that altho I Dye Stained therewith here I may appear without spot before the Tribunal of my Heavenly Father Amen II. Sweet Jesu Thou disdainedst not to Cast an eye upon the Penitent Thief on the Cross. Oh! Despise not me when I suffer in like case as he did and I hope truly repent me of my sins and fix all my Hopes in thee under my distress as he did in his Thou once hungest upon a Tree thy self for the sins of others Oh! By the Blood of thy Cross Save me who stand justly condemned to suffer the same for mine own sins Save me O! Lord a great wretched but a penitent contrite Sinner In thy merits Do I trust Into thy merciful Hands do I commend my Spirit I Believe that thou O! Lamb of God art the Saviour of sinners Oh! Save me who am Chief among Sinners and rescue my trembling and departing Soul from eternal Misery I Freely and from my Heart forgive all mine Enemies Oh! Do thou in the abundant Riches of thy Mercy forgive me Accept of such recompence as I am able to make to those who have sufferd by me and make up the wrongs which I have done to any and which now I am no longer able to repair Supply all that to them and their Families by thy mercy which they have lost by my wickedness that they may neither be tempted nor burden'd by the loss nor I tormented by the punishment accruing thereby Give me strength O! Almighty and most merciful Lord under my last Agonies Help me to bear all patiently and to resign my self holy to thy Mercy Let the example of my Fall be a warning to others that the prevention of their Crimes may make some reparation for the greivous Scandal which I have given by mine And tho I tast thy Justice in my ignominious Death yet O! Gracious Father let me find the sweetness of thy mercy after it for my dearest Lord and Saviour Jesus Christs sake Amen III. Lord save me for I flee unto thee for safety Save me or else I perish everlastingly Save me a wretched Sinner O! Jesu thou Saviour of Sinners I have been a lost Sinner but thou Camest to seek and save that which was lost And after all my woful and wretched course of Sins my own most deserved afflictions and thy most undeserved Grace I hope have brought me now at last to true Repentance and thou hast Order'd Repentance and remission of Sins to be Preach'd to all Sinners Oh! Save me a penitent Sinner and as thou didst with The Theif upon the Cross receive and comfort me in this may last Hour Amen Our Father c. EJACULATIONS For him at the time of Execution INTO thy Hands O! Lord I commend my Spirit Amen I return thee a Spirit alass loaded with Sins But wash'd I humbly hope with the tears and sorrows of true Repentance Lord graciously accept my Repentance and pardon my Sins for the Merits of that most Precious Blood which was shed to wash away the sins of all truly and penitent Sinners Amen PRAYERS FOR PRISONERS FOR CRIMES VIII A Thanksgiving for deliverance out of Prison whither they had been justly committed for capital Crimes I. O! Almighty Lord who art the blessed Author of all Life Happiness with a most thankful Heart I humbly adore and praise thy Mercy which hath now lent me my life anew and rescued me out of the jaws of Death My Sins had set a snare for my own Life and I had digged a pit for mine own Soul Yea my ungodly ways had most heinously injured thee at the same time they threaten'd to destroy my self And yet neither my own madness in seeking misery nor the resentment of the greivous wrongs thereby done to thee could put by thy Love O! Father of Mercies and God of all Comforts from shewing mercy unto me I called out to thee and was holpen I put my Trust in thee and was not confounded I sought thee earnestly and thou wast found of me The snare is broken and I am delivered The Pit is cover'd and to the glory of thy free Mercy and tendeâ— Care of me I have happily escaped For which all praise anâ— thanks be ever ascribed to theâ— thro Jesus Christ my Lord. Ameâ— II. And Lord keep the memory of this surpassing Mercy always fresh upon my Spirit and let me ever be praising thee for the same with joyful Lips Never suffer me to forget the vows which I made in my distress but let my whole life be one acceptable Sacrifice to thee my Redeemer and make all my actions to shew forth thy Praise When I was in Trouble O! Blessed Lord it was not so much out of the love of Life as out of the love of innocence that I desire to be Respited Oh! Grant me Grace now to employ my Life as I then designed to do and to make good now what I did then pretend Fix me unalterable in all the ways of Godliness which I have begun Preserve me from Repeating any of my former wickednesses especially this Great one which was so like to bring down vengeance on my Head for all the Rest. Tho I am cleared thereof before men yet I know O! Righteous Lord that I shall ever stand Guilty of it before thee unless I shew true amendment of the same and make Restitution for all the wrongs done to any thereby in the best sort I can Oh! Keep me ever ready to do that fully whatever it cost me and carefully to slip no opportunities of doing the same And make me so watchful to spend all the remainder of my Days in all holy and Thankful obedience that I may not only have the Purposes and Promises of Repentance which alas was a great part of what I had to shew before but the Proofs thereof to produce and to comfort my heart withal on any new Alarm And then O! Gracious God when thou shalt bring me to fear Death a second Time thy blessed will be done and by thy Grace I shall be able and in condition to bid it welcome thro the merits of my blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Amen III. Once more Blessed yea for ever Blessed be thy Great and Glorious Name O! Almighty Father for bringing me into this Distress as well as for bringing me out of it I reverence thy Justice for bringing it upon me But at the same time I most thankfully own thy Mercy which when all other ways sailed would order this to reduce me to thy Self and to make me break off my wicked Courses And ever deal with me O! blessed Lord and Saviour in
shew Mercy That they may have patience with me till I can raise as much as I am able towards the discharge of their Debt and mercifully forgive the rest when I can raise no more Oh! That they may not be rigorous in exacting the Hundred Pence which I am not able to pay them because then thou declarest that thou likewise wilt exact the many thousand of Talents which they are as unable to pay thee And that thus by mutually shewing Mercy we may all be prepared to receive it at thy hands for thy dear Son our most blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ's sake Amen Our Father c. PRAYERS FOR PRISONERS FOR DEBT III. Prayers for an Heart to be Honest to his Creditors I. O! Almighty Lord who lovest Righteousness but hatest Iniquity let me not take up with a Prison as an Art of Defrauding nor chuse to rest thus uncomfortably confined in mine own Person to leave the guilt and curse of ill gotten Goods and of unpaid Debts to my Family Make me willing O! God to do justice to all who are any way concerned with me to the utmost of that worldly estate which I have to dispose of And ready to give every man what I owe him tho' I keep nothing to my self but am left thereby to live upon thy good Providence If want must be my share Oh! Let me want the Conveniences or even the necessaries of Life rather than the innocence thereof And grant good Lord that the place of my wanting may be here in this world where my wants will soon have an end not hereafter in the next world where they will know no end for Jesus Christ's sake Amen II. Enable me O! Blessed Lord if thou pleasest by thy good Providence and put me again into a Condition fully to discharge and clear my Accounts with all my Creditors Let none of them O! My God be losers in the end by me But bless me in my ways that I may have enough wherewithal to satisfy all their just Demands and give me an Heart to pay it out accordingly and that with thankfulness for their Forbearance and without unnecessary delays And dispose them to have patience with me till this can be done And suffer not me in the least to abuse that Patience but make me apply my self diligently to raise it for them as fast as I can and honestly to pay it to them as fast as I can raise it for them But if I am not able to pay them all that I owe them grant them the Heart to forgive me what I cannot pay And since what is thus given to me is given to the Poor look upon it O! Lord as lent to thee and be thou their pay-Master As they very charitably consider my Necessities do thou carefully prevent theirs And whatsoever they abate to me of my Scores do thou make up abundantly to them and theirs by thy good Providence And after they have forgiven me tho I am no longer answerable to them in Law yet make me ever sensible O! God that I still owe the same to them in Equity And give me always the heart to repay whatsoever they Acquit if ever thou shalt put me in a Capacity either by proper Payments or by grateful Offices so to do And by living always in this inward readiness and preparation of Mind to do them all exact justice tho' I can never fully clear my Debts yet by thy Grace I shall clear my Conscience and be fit not only for their Charity but also for thine eternal Mercy thro the merits and mediation of my blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Amen PRAYERS FOR PRISONERS FOR DEBT IV. A Thanksgiving for a Prisoner for Debt on his Release from Prison I. O! Father of Mercies and God of all Consolations the sighings of the Prisoners have come before thee and thou hast graciously heard my Prayer and set my feet at Liberty To thee O! Blessed Lord do I owe this comfortable Freedom which I have now obtained and to thy Boundless and undeserved Mercy will I ever thankfully ascribe it And Oh! That in all my Life and thro the whole course of my Conversation I may ever remember that I am thy Freeman O! That I may always adore and praise thy Goodness for my Deliverance and walk so humbly and thankfully and obediently towards thee as may shew that I am never unmindful that thou gracious God hast given me my Liberty and that I am ever to improve and spend it to thy Glory thro Jesus Christ my Lord Amen II. And Lord let me never lose those good Thoughts and Purposes nor forget those Vows which I made to thee when I was in Trouble Give me a mind suited in all things to my Circumstances and Grace to deny my self and to study to the utmost of my Ability to do justice to all my Creditors Never suffer me to forget their kindness in my Release nor to give them any just Cause to Repent of it Nor do thou ever forget it O! Merciful God but remember it always for their good Keep me thankfully Sensible of all the kindness of my Friends and Neighbours of all who did me any good Offices who shew'd me Countenance or supplyed my Necessity in the days of my Adversity Oh! Do thou make each of them that Requital which I ought to do and keep me always willing and ready to requite them after the best manner I can and when I am able to do no more to pray earnestly to thee that thou wouldest make up for me whatever returns of kindness I fall short in Remember also I humbly intreat thee O! Most merciful Father all those poor Prisoners who are still under their uncomfortable Restraints and in thy good Time do the same for them which in thy Mercy thou hast now done for me Oh! That having felt the same in my self I may ever have a most compassionate Sence and tender Feeling of their Afflictions and may joyfully embrace all opportunities of recommending them to the pity of others especially of those Persons from whose Charity they are to hope for their Release but above all O! Blessed God of Recommending them to thine everlasting Mercy which Grant that both they and I and all thy faithful People may ever earnestly Seek and succesfully Find for the sake of our only Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ AMEN FINIS THE CONTENTS OF THE Office for Prisoners for Crimes I. Directions for Prisoners for CRIMES Chap. I. HOW to Behave and Employ themselves after Commitment and before the Tryal page 1 Chap. II. How to Behave and Employ themselves in order to and at their Tryal p. 12 Chap. III. How to Behave and Employ themselves after Sentence of Gondemnation and at the Time of Execution p. 20 II. Special Directions for Prisoners for Debt p. 27 III. General Directions for Both. p. 33 Scriptures for Prisoners for Crimes p. 44 I. A general Prayer for all Prisoners taken out of the Companion for the Persecuted Particular Prayers for Prisoners for CRIMES I. For deliverance from their Sins and Sorrows p. 55 II. The Prisoners Confession of God's Justice in his sad Circumstances p. 57 III. His Profession of Repentance under the same p. 62 IV. Prayers for Learning Righteousness and Improvement of remaining Moments of Life p. 66 V. Prayers for Acceptance of Repentance tho late and for the sincerity and integrity thereof p. 70 VI. For Respite and longer Time in this world and against the day of Tryal p. 74 EJACULATIONS Ejaculations at his TRYAL p. 78 Ejaculations after his Tryal if Acquitted p. 79 If CONDEMNED p. 80 VII Prayers after Sentence of Condemnation or any time before Execution and at Execution only making the Changes as they are noted in the Margin p. 81 Ejaculations for him at the time of Execution p. 86 VIII A Thanksgiving for deliverance out of Prison whither they had been justly committed for capital Crimes p. 87 Scriptures for Prisoners for Debt p. 93 Particular Prayers for Prisoners for DEBT I. The indebted Prisoners Prayers for clearing the Score of his Sins p. 98 II. A Prayer for Mercy from his Creditors p. 101 III. Prayers for an Heart to be Honest to his Creditors p. 103 IV. A Thanksgiving for a Prisoner for Debt on his Release from Prison p. 107 The End †Isa. 33. 14. 1 Tim. 5. 4 8. Mat. 6. 26. †To indemnify and content my Crediter when foâ— Debt * Or Crimes Psal. 55. 5. Psal. 38. 8. 10. Psal. uâ— 1. †Prov. 11. 6. †Job 4. 8. †Job 15. 16. * Here you may name the sin †Mat. 20. 9. Luk. 23 42 43. †At Execution instead of Sentence say and shameful Death †add this at execution ‡ now for when at execution †Luk. 23. 43. †who am now to for when I at execution †at execution say aâ—â— now †Luk 23. 46 †1. Tim. 1. 15. †Add these at execut †Luke 19. 10. * Luk. 24. 47. †Luk. 23. 43. * Ps. 130. 3. †This when the Debts are Contracted by our own Faults in Luxury or Mispence But if thro innocent Misfortune and mere Hand of Providence instead of brought not only c. say Deserved not only to be made a Prisoner for the same in this uncomfortable Place but to be committed among the lost Angels to Chains of everlasting Darkness till the Terrible Judgment of the great Day * In Case of 〈◊〉 contracted by meer Hand of Providence omit this within the Hooks †Mat. 18. 28 c. †Ps. 45. 7. Ps. 11. 7. †Prov. 19. 17. †Psal. 79. 11. †Heb. 4. 15.