praier and whereas praier is ought to be a daily exercise of euery christian man woman euen as the Iewes had their daily morning and euening sacrifice which were not without praier and as it is saide of Daniell Dan. 6.10 that it was his custome to praie three times euerie day Yea earnest and feruent and continuall praiers in the daies of fasting they haue vsed a speciall and extraordinarie kinde of praier differing from all other that they haue vsed before both in zeale and strength of praier and also in continuance Therefore we in the daies of our fastings also should be more zealous feruent in praier and also longer and more continuall then at other times as then we haue alwaies some speciall cause to mooue vs vnto it and the outward abstinence also should further vs thereunto And this we read to haue beene the practise of the Niniuites in their publike fast which they kept that then according to that knowledge that they had they did all praie verie earnestly vnto God that he would spare them according to that that the king commanded saying Iona. 3.8 Let man and beast put on sackcloth and crie mightily vnto God that is praie earnestly vnto him for mercie as Dauid vseth the like phrase in the same sense Psal 130.1 Out of the deepe places haue I called or cried out vnto thee O Lord. And this feruencie of praier the prophet Esay Esay 58 4. required of the Iewes in their fastes when hee saith Behold yee fast to strife and debate and to smite with the fist of wickednesse yee shall not fast as yee doe to daie to make your voice to be heard aboue this latter part of the verse others doe read thus whose interpretation and iudgement heere I follow You doe not fast that you might lift vp your voice on high that is to God in feruent praier which is one speciall cause of fasting and therefore it is called a day of reconciliation Lâ—u 23.27 because that then the priest by earnest praier did seeke to reconcile the people vnto God But to returne to the prophet Esay he finding fault with them that they did not fast to a right end namely to humble themselues and conuicting them plainly of the want of humilitie and repentance because there was strife and debate and contention among them which ought not to haue beene neither could haue beene if in the sight of their sinnes they had beene rightly humbled to seeke vnto God for mercy saith farther that they did not fast as those times did require to lift vp their voices earnestlie to God in praier they did chide and were earnest and aloud one with another but they were not earnest and aloud in praier vnto God as they should haue beene therefore whereas it is translated Yee shall not fast as you do to daie to make your voice to be heard aboue referring this lifting vp of the voice vnto loud words in contention as for the most part men will then be heard others doe read it as wee haue heard you doe not or you will not fast that your voice might be heard aboue referring it to the lifting vp of the voice to God in praier and in more then ordinarie praier noted by the lifting vp of their voice as was said before that the Niniuites did not speake onely but crie out and that mightily or with all their strength vnto God Therefore in â—he daies of â—asting we â—ust inforce â—ur selues to â—eruent and 〈…〉 So that to fasting must bee ioined a most earnest kinde of praier as the time shall then require and as men must not praie coldly and from the teeth outward as we say at anie time so then especially they must not bee wearie but consider well what great necessitie there is of praier both in respect of their sinnes and of the punishment of them and so inforce themselues to an earnest kinde of long praier as if a man were fallen into a deepe pit or well he would crie out aloud and long with all his strength euen vntill he were hoarse or had lost his voice that so he might be heard and holpen and would not fauour himselfe in such a case Thus it appeareth that when Ezra and the rest that feared God with him fasted because of the transgression of them of the captiuitie that hee praied verie earnestly and long as wee may gather both from his behauiour and from the wordes that hee then vsed which were full of great affection Ezra 9.4 for it is written of him that he sate downe astonied vntill the euening sacrifice and after the euening sacrifice he arose vp from his heauinesse and when he had rent his clothes his garments he fell vpon his knees and spread out his handes vnto the Lord God and saide O my God I am confounded and ashamed to lift vp mine eies vnto thee my God for our iniquities are increased ouer our head and our trespasse is growen vp vnto the heauen and so foorth as it followeth in that praier of his full of all humilitie and zeale The like may be said of the prophet Daniel who in the end of the seauentie yeeres of their captiuitie vnderstanding by bookes as he saith of himselfe and namely by reading the Prophecie of Ieremie that the number of yeeres which the Lord would accomplish for the destruction of Ierusalem were now almost expired and turned his face vnto the Lord Dan. 9.3 by praier and supplications with fasting and sackcloth ashes and then how zealously feruently he praied as it appeereth in the whole praier in which he often breaks out into many passionate exclamatioÌ„s so especially by the often doubling of the same petitions which was no vaine babling in him ful of words without any great matter but did arise of the abundance of his earnest desire and great feeling that he had of that which he praied for as when he saith Dan. 9.15 O our God heare the praier of thy seruant and his supplications and cause thy face to shine vpon thy Sanctuarie that lieth waste for the Lords sake O my God incline thine eare and heare open thine eies and behold our desolations and the citie whereupon thy name is called for we doe not present our supplications before thee for our owne righteousnesse but for thy tender mercies O Lorde heare O Lord forgiue O Lord consider and doe it deferre not for thine owne sake O my God for thy name is called vpon thy citie and vpon thy people Thus both of them praied verie feruently and with great zeale which argued that they had great hope of obtaining their suites otherwise they would soone giuen them ouer and not haue beene so importunate For it is most certaine that according to the hope that we haue of obtaining any thing at the handes of God or man so are our desires and requestes vnto them more earnest or more cold therfore when
most earnestly to seeke to God for his pardon and for the bestowing of all vpon vs againe and by howe much the more wee doe so and professe that in our selues by reason of our sinnes we are vnwoorthy of any thing in the world by so much the more let vs hope from the mercy and promises of God and seeke accordingly that in Christ Iesus Heb. 1.2 Rom. 8.1 whom hee hath made heire of all things we may be founde woorthie of all and fellow heires of them with him as the Apostle speaketh And euen as a man if he were condemned to death would sue earnestly for his pardon especially if hee were lead from the iudge to the place of execution and were also vpon the ladder and had the rope about his necke and the neerer he were to death and had the verie badges and tokens of it vpon him the more earnest suter wold he be for his pardon if hee coulde but conceaue that there were any hope of it So we the more that by this holie exercise of fasting we see and professe that we are woorthy of all Gods punishments and plagues yea of eternal death and condemnation it selfe by so much the more earnestlie wee must praie that God would forgiue vs our sinnes and spare vs. Therefore in the daies of fasting there must be a speciall kinde of striuing with God in praier and wee must as it were wrestle with him therein and neuer giue him ouer or suffer him to haue rest vntil he haue sent vs away with some blessing Euen as it is saide of the holy patriarke Iacob â—e must rastâ—e and riue w th â—nd in our â—aiers that in his returne homeward from Laban as he did praie vnto God most feruently so all night long he wrestled with an angell in the shape of a man that is â—en 32.26 with God himselfe so appearing vnto him and hee held out with him in wrestling euen vnto the morning and then he said vnto him let me goe for the morning appeareth vnto whom he answered I will not let thee goe except thou blesse me and so he held him fast stil then he bestowed vpon him this great blessing by changing his name from Iacob to Israel that because hee had power and had preuailed with God hee should preuaile with men much more So that vision of the angell wrestling with him and the change of his name tended both to one end namely to assure him that God had heard his praier which hee made before and would deliuer him out of the hand of Esau Gen. 32.11 whom he feared and therefore whereas hee was called at his birth Iaacob that is one that holdeth by the heele and so ready to ouerthrow him for thus was he borne holding his brother Esau by the heele Gen. 25.26 in token that in time hee should by the power of God preuaile against him and so also against all his enimies now he is called Israel that is Gen. 32.28 a prince of the strong God because as the interpretation is giuen in the text he had power with God and shoulde preuaile with men that is he had preuailed with God in his praier as was declared vnto him in the vision of wrestling and should preuaile against Esau and al other his enimies but how he did and should heereafter preuaile with God and obtaine all things of him the vision did shew namely that hee praied so feruently and so continually that he did not giue ouer vntil he had some assurance from the Lord by his holie spirit that he had heard him and would defend blesse him according vnto his own desire Gen. 32.9 the Lords promise Thus must wee also striue with the Lord in our praiers as the Apostle speaketh to the Romanes Rom. 15.30 and requireth of them that they would striue with him by praier to God for him and we must put all our strength to it as Iacob did when he wrestled with the angel And to see it againe more cleerly in the same comparison As a man that wrestleth for the best game will put all his might and skill to it and wil not giue ouer as long as he hath anie thing in himselfe that he might preuaile so must we in our praiers bee so earnest importunate with the Lord that we rise not vp from praier or depart away from him vntill hee haue blessed vs and the harder that we find it to obtaine anie thing because of our sinnes the more earnestly must wee striue in praier for it Therefore now in thee daies of fasting let vs stirre vp our selues vnto praier and striue against all vnfitnesse that might hinder vs and as for other things so that this great mortalitie might haue an end without which feruencie of praier all our fasting is nothing woorth Seeing then that feruencie and continuance in praier is so proper vnto the time of fasting as we haue heard and it is specially vndertaken to that end The papists had no speciall praier vpon their fasting daies we may see by this also how farre the church of Rome al Papists are from the true fast prescribed in Gods word practised of this seruants thogh they would be thought to be the onely men in the world that fast and pray For vpon the Fridaies and other fasting daies there was no speciall time appointed as also not in Lent appointed for praier neither did manie of them that professed fasting come to the Church at all to that end and if some of them did praie vpon their Saints eeuen at night yet many did not which were bound to the fast and they that did all the rest of the daie were without praier and vpon those daies they went about their businesse as at all other times especially vnto noone or vnto eeuen-song as they called it Whereas the whole day of fast is altogither of the nature of the Sabbath both for resting from worke also for sanctifying of the time and therefore vpon those daies they had holy conuocations and assemblies for the worde and praier as in the booke of Leuiticus â—eu 1.6 31. â—eu 23.27 the yeerely day of fast for the Iewes is called a Sabbath of rest and besides it is further added therein you shall haue an holie conuocation and yee shall doe no worke Therefore when these Catholikes falsely so called did rest in the bare ceremonie of fasting and did not giue themselues that daie to praier more then at other times for the most part they neglected that that was principall in it and whereunto it should be referred And so we see what the Lord requireth of vs al at this present and to what end we abstaine euen that we hauing nothing to hinder vs inwardly nor outwardly in our bodies to presse vs downe to the earth our mindes might be lifted vp in all feruencie of praier vnto our heauenly father in the mediation of our Lord and Sauiour so
the glorie of God and loue to the saluation of our brethren that wee should wee might see that besides this grieuous plague that is and hath beene not onely vpon our enimies if wee haue anie but vpon our neighbours friends which requireth publike fasting wee had many causes to haue done it priuately often long before this in respect of the horrible abominations and sinnes committed against God and against men euery where And that we might be mooued vnto it indeed we may further consider that we haue not onely the example of men but of godly women in this kind who haue giuen themselues much vnto priuate fasting For we read in the Gospell of Anna the daughter of Phanuel who was a Prophetesse Luk 2.37 and a widow of a great age who went not out of the temple but serued God with fasting and praier night and day Anna the â—rophetesse â—sed much priuate fasting This holie woman liuing in those corrupt times a little before the comming of our Sauiour Christ when all things in the Church were out of order did often humble her selfe before God in fasting and praier and sought earnestly vnto God tor a redresse of them she did not hecrein loose her labour but had the fruite of them for it came to passe that though she were a widdow and about foure-score and foure yeres yet she liued to see Christ come in the flesh to her vnspeakeable comfort and confessed him likewise and spake of him to all that looked for redemption in Ierusalem to the comfort of many Thus we see how we ought to haue fasted priuately oftentimes before so might we happely haue escaped at the least some great things that haue befallen vs and obtained manie great blessings which now wee haue wanted and also we see what we must doe heereafter if wee will looke to escape many euils and enioy manie blessings with the children of God and that at this present we had neede to doe as wee doe euen to continue these publike fasts that so wee might make a supply of that which we should often priuately haue done before Thus also in the daies of Queene Hester the fast that was kept by all the Iewes in Sushan A priuate fast held in manie seuerall families at once for the turning awaie of that great mischiefe that was intended against them by proud Haman though it was coÌ„mon in respect of the whole Church of God in that citie that kept it yet it was priuate in respect of the seuerall places where it was kept namely not in any coÌ„mon place of assemblie but in their seuerall houses dispersed heere and there so that Hester Hest 4.16 and her maides kept it by themselues as she promised for herselfe and for them euen as the rest of the Iewes were willed to doe it â—he duties of 〈◊〉 houshoulâ—ers herein So ought euerie godly houshoulder at the foresight of anie iudgement of God like to come vpon the Church where they liue in which if anie such thing should come they must thinke that they are like to haue their part as Mordecay saide â—est 4 13. to Hester Thinke not with thy selfe that thou shalt escape in the kings house more then all the Iewes to seeke humblie vnto the Lorde themselues and theirs so many as are capable of it by fasting and praier priuately for the turning of it away when there is no publike order taken for it or likelihood that there shall be And this is that which the Apostle hath respect vnto when he thus writeth to the Corinthians â— Cor. 7.5 Defraud not one another except it bee with consent for a time that you may giue yourselues to fasting and praier and again come together that Satan tempt you not for your incontinencie Where hee speaketh to the maried parties the houseband and the wife and sheweth what duties they owe one to another 1. Cor. 7.3 as Let the husband giue vnto the wife due beneuolence and likewise also the wife vnto the husband yet for fasting and praier they may and ought for that time with both their consents separate themselues So that there may be occasions in all times for which the husband and the wife themselues alone or with the rest of their familie or with some other of their godly neighbors and friends may and ought to giue themselues priuately to fasting and praier and then the apostle sheweth how the maried coople should for a time in one dutie of theirs behaue themselues one toward an other And truely if wee had rightly considered of all things that haue fallen out in our time and well weighed them Priuate fasting ought to be intertained into mens houses and laide them to hart we might easely haue seene long agoe that God had giuen vs iust occasion to haue intertained this speciall part of his worship into our houses as well as anie other though hitherto it had little or no intertainment at all with the most nay they haue not once so much as saluted it a farre off And as by the grace of God wee haue in many houses where the Gouernours are anie thing religious priuate praier morning and euening and at other times priuate reading of the Scriptures priuate singing of Psalmes so ought we also somtimes to haue priuate fasting For wheÌ„ the Lorde hath laide some grieuous sickenesse euen vnto death vpon anie of our children sonnes or daughters as he did vpon Dauids then shoulde we haue with fasting praier sought vnto the Lord for them 1. Sam. 12.15 as hee did much more then when others haue beene in that case For what causes and what good might come thereby who haue beene neerer vnto vs as the husband or the wife who lie in the bosome one of another and are but one euen in the neerest bond as one flesh But especially when God hath taken any of them away and so hath come neerer vnto vs with his correction then had we much more cause thus in fasting to cast downe our selues at his feet in the humble confession of our sinnes which were the cause of it 2. Sam. 3.35 as Dauid did when Abner was slaine if he did so for one that was so farre off from him and had sometime also beene his enemie then we much more for those that haue beene neere vnto vs and alwayes our friends as of our familie and of our flesh And besides when God hath laid any speciall affliction vpoÌ„ our seruants Psal 35.12 69.9 for if Dauid did it for his enemies then wee much more for those whose seruice is not hurtfull but profitable vnto vs yea when any great sinnes haue broken out in any of our houshold which haue threatned some grieuous iudgement of God to enter in vpon vs for it or when wee haue seene sinne openly abound in others And if all men had thus done it might not onely haue kept this great plague out of many houses
but many other great punishments wherewith for want of it they haue beene iustly afflicted Yea we ought thus to haue done when wee haue wanted some great blessing of God or sought for some speciall thing at the hand of the Lord for our soules or bodies for our selues or for our children as in the matter of mariage or some other weighty thing that we haue had in hand which hath greatly concerned vs or them that we might be directed and blessed in the same as the children of the captiuitie did when they returned home towards Ierusalem Ezr. 8.21 for they proclaimed a fast and humbled themselues before God sught of him a right way for themselues and for their children and for all their substance and the Lord was intreated of them for he gaue theÌ„ good successe in their iourney and deliuered them from their enimies So we might doe it priuately that the Lord might blesse vs in the waightie affaires of ours keepe vs from all dangers that might otherwise befall vs. For though we obtaine many things daily at the mercifull hands of our heauenly father by our ordinarie prayers publike and priuate yet he hath made the largest promises of blessing vnto fasting and prayer and greatest things haue been obtained that way of all the seruaunts of God Math. 17.14 For as Christ sayd vnto his Disciples to whom a certaine man brought his sonne possessed with a deuill but they could not cast him out and they demanded of their Master why they could not doe it Many thing are not obtained without those prayers whereunto fasting is adioyned This kinde is not cast out but by prayer and fasting that is a most feruent kinde of prayer whereunto fasting is to be adioyned to quicken vs vp thereunto that it might be as it were a whetstone to sharpen our dull spirits and to set an edge upon our blunt hearts So that wee may easily perceiue that some things yea many things that we stand in need of are not obtained or euils remooued without this kinde of prayer whereunto fasting is adioyned For as some things are not to be had without a great price nor many sutes obtained of great men without long and earnest supplication so some things are not to bee receiued from God without those feruent prayers and supplications which can not be without fasting nor without that huÌ„ble prostrating of our selues which is wrought in vs by that meanes And thus we are taught that wee ought to haue vsed priuatelie this part of Gods seruice a great deale more than wee haue done whereby we might haue brought into our houses more blessings and have kept out more afflictions than now wee haue But indeed the ignorance of the most part is so lamentable By reason of their great ignorance many are vnfit for priuate fasts that if they shuld not onely haue thus done before but should now vpon the hearing of this doctrine heerafter determine for some good cause best knowen unto themselues to take this exercise vpon them they know not how to behaue themselues in it or to performe it in anie measure so as it might be acceptable vnto God and comfortable to themselues So that it would fall out with them as with those of whom our Sauiour Christ speaketh in the Gospell Luk. 5.36 that they should not only not be bettered thereby but made worse euen as if a piece of a new garment were put into an olde vesture then the new renteth it and the piece taken out of the new agreeth not with the olde or as if new wine were put into olde vessels the new wine would breake the vessels and it would run out and the vessels would perish By which parables he teacheth vs that fasting unfitly vsed of them that are not meet for it nor onely maketh them worse but vtterlie destroyeth them Therefore better were it for such not to vse it at all than by abusing it for want of skill further to prouoke Gods wrath against themselues in which respect hee excuseth his Disciples for not vsing this priuate fasting as yet â—ut in this â—ng and â—leere light â—f the Gâ—spel â—gnorance â—xcuseth â—one though the Disciples of Iohn Baptist did But surely for vs this long time and plentifull preaching of the Gospel so many yeres might haue made all of vs fit enough for this holie excrcise so many as are of yeres of discretion and so this grosse ignorance and thereby wonderful vnfitnesse that is in men doth not excuse them as it did the Disciples who were but Nouices in his schoole for hee had beene then but a little with them Therefore wee see what God requireth of vs priuately as any occasion shall fall out namely that wee should serue him not onely in other holy dueties but in fasting and prayer and therfore that we ought all of vs so to profit by the publike ministerie of the Word while it is among vs that we may be fit for it when the Lord by his word or by his worke shall call vs vnto it But to draw towards an end it is further to bee obserued concerning these priuate fasts that we now intreat of that all sorts of men and women haue not power to appoint vnto themselues what time they wil for this purpose no though they euidently see that they haue iust cause to vse it For besides that the man and woman are so neerely vnited by the bond of mariage as by the couenant of God Prou. 2.17 Math. 19.5 1. Cor. 7.5 whereby it commeth to passe that they are no more two but one flesh as Christ sayth in the Gospell so that they can not separate themselues one from another no not for a time and to this end without continuall consent as wee haue seene a little before all they that are vnder the priuate gouernment of others None vnder gouernment can make choise of daies for priuate fasts without consent of their gouernors are at the disposition of their gouernours by the law and commaundement of God as sonnes and daughters men seruants and maid seruants scholars all labourers and hired men for the time and such like so that none of these can without the knowledge and free consent of those vnder whom they are make choise of what day in the weeke they wil to obserue their priuate fasts in For seeing the day of fast is to be kept holie and being of the nature of the Sabbath as hath beene prooued before in it they must wholly rest from all the works of their ordinarie calling from euening to euening and must spend that time in the worship of God they can not at their owne will and pleasure giue ouer these workes and so consequently not appoint vnto themselues a day of resting but must be contented heerein to be ordered by the discretion of those to whom they haue either by the bond of nature or by some couenant wholly addicted themselues and all their