Then never think it strange to see us grieve When he is gone who should our heart relieve Nor strange to see him forc'd for to retire But rather wonder that he should appear And through the latters lend a friendly blink When he perceives the fainting heart to shrink And rather think it strange that so remisse We prove in searching what the quarrel is Of such desertions as the heart do vex And with dejection do the sp'rit perplex I do confesse believing were the best In quietnesse and confidence to rest But saving faith to holinesse adheres And guarded is with many filiall fears And out of love is ever sorely moved When evidences are of love removed Though you conversant are and so inured In heav'nly matters and so well secured Can stand before the gates of hell and make Your progresse yet the weak may stumbling take For in this case much grace we take to be Hopefull sincere in heart humilitie And studying to make out a true disjunction From every motion can obstruct that unction Whereby we be conjoyn'd in that communion With our dear Lover in a sp'rituall union So as by grace grafted in him we grow Up by that influence that from him doth flow Untill we be into his image formed And most devotly to his will conformed But you appear so prudent that therefore We leave to be consider'd lesse and more These our essayes at your command pursued To be by you corrected and renewed And as ye do think meet in time and place Compos'd and right applyed to the case Samuel Helena Sam. MOst precious people saved and secured By force of felt and fervent love allured Your conferences free I have been hearing And do approve and for your better clearing Do certify that your most Princely Love These actings in his children doth approve We who be named gracious be it known No grace but what is giv'n have of our own And by that grace immediatly maintained Converted call'd as you and so sustained The diff'rence only doth consist in this The King his pleasure good was us to blesse â—ince from the womb we came to humane sight To sanctify us by his heav'nly light And separate we be for this effect To do and suffer as he does direct â—ot specially his elect Flock to feed And them unto the living Fountain lead You have been over-hearing what was said â—n reference to this distressed Maid You have been carefull hereby to conceive The myst'ry of her case I do perceive You have been searching out for second causes Which cautioned would be with certain clauses â—ut you are sober and are satisfi'd â—om solide grounds of reason certifi'd And this is right for never one as yet Of soundest and profoundest searching wit In natures secrets by the Physicks poring Or winged with the Metaphysicks soaring Exactly could the causes and effects Matter and form with all their due respects Produc'd by natures infinite variety On severall objects marvelous rariety Conceiv'd by science or by all their Art Ever demonstrate to the thousand part Our princ'ples are with much experience fraught So by our practice we are daily taught And new essays are set on work again More light by new discoveries to attain Our King the God of Nature only knows The nature matter form effects and cause Of all things for by Him they are and shall Bring forth his glory and our gladnesse all This Microcosme Man a world contains Of various parts his Maker all maintains And this great world in all its sev'rall acts Subservient unto mans up-making makes Bodies celestiall in their sev'rall Spheres And all that to the Firmament adheres In all their various courses contribute To our continuance comfortable fruit What herb fruit flow'r beast fowl or fish there is But bend their best concurrence to our blesse The weak the strong the bitter sowre and sweet The hot the cold in their degrees compleat In all their concords and their sympathies Discords divisions and antipathies Find mater for their master Man to make Him see they do his service undertake And who can doubt but man immortal might Have stood if not deprived of that light Deservedly which in his soul did shine And did all knowledge necessar confine His present being to preserve if he Preserved had his prime integrity They stand in force but we now fallen blind Judicially death and destruction find Amidst the means of life but yet our King Doth us to light and life from darkness bring So as that now we may most clearly see That ev'ry case we come through doth agree With our condition present presuppose We should much weaknesse under wrath disclose And as amongst the sons of men we find That many are in many things inclin'd Alike none of all Adam's race have been That in all things to sympathize were seen For as we diff'rent in our faces be So in our gifts is great diversity But as all Simples from the earth that grow Or from th' elementary Ocean flow By skilfull composition refin'd Wonders do work when they are well combin'd Ev'n so with men in all their sev'rall motions Deeds dispositions and their various notions There doth result by heavens high decree To our great King a heav'nly harmonie Let it our study deep be to devise The Author of these wonders how to prize How we are wonderfully made to be From nothing and maintained wonderously How wonderfully have we wandred far How wonderfully we reclaimed are Wonder upon that glorious Majesty That shines on all his works so wondrously Wonder upon his condescentions sweet Whereby these wonders with our weaknesse meet Him him who perfect is and infinite Simple eternall essentially compleat Surpassing wonder sacredly adore And in adoring humbly wonder more Wonder upon his wisdomes deep contriving By death to bring thy death-bound lifes relivieng That his eternall Son thy flesh assum'd To ransom thee that unto death was doom'd That he eternally did so delight T' obscure his glory to procure thy light That by th' eternal Sp'rit he us inspires With grace divine faith and devote desires To know believe himself his truth and love And thereinto most loyally to move These be the contemplations best that can Beseem and do become the love-bred man These thoughts sublime can elevate alone The heart soul-savory fruit to feast upon To seal an union and communion sweet In all transcendent love divine compleat With him in heav'n who hath mans nature plac'd And by his spirit us on earth so grac'd Let us suppose that all the worlds of men Stood up on life that ever lived then That every man a different world were Of all things that hath been shall be or are And variously these all were animated With all indowments that have been created These all were also into one compacted And all were in one quintessence extracted Those spirits pure most peircing sure should prove And yet be dazled at this depth of love In darkest clouds this love finds out a
delihgts most eminently move His countenance the Suns bright rayes obscures His love the adamantine heart allures His wisdom all His works in order dresses His might maintains His right and pride suppresses And I am bound His bountie to believe Which changes not but shall my sp'rit relieve In His good time on whom I do rely And studie shall my self how to deny Sam. Now art thou happy and my heart is glad To see thy faithfull heart from fainting fred Hold fast and follow hard with firm desires Faith quenches not but kindles sacred fires Hele. It doth become me well to wait I see But Oh again that He would smile on me How shall I find Him out and where I pray Sam. Hold straight believe me thou art in the way Deck up thy self approach He sees thee come And with His comforts shall thee overcome The Royal King a Princely Garden plants With curious flowres and thither daily haunts Feeding among the Lillies smelling Roses Nuts Spices and perfums composing Poses A sweet Loves feast for thee He doth prepare Down in the fruitfull flow'ry valleys there And from the valley shall convey thee thence Where thy try'd faith in that long long'd for sence Is swallowed up there where the marriage loves Exceeding all conceiv'd desires thou proves There where He shall thy faith bred soul imbrace Within the consolations of His face Wherein the splendor of that brightnesse poring And in the glory of that glore adoring Renewed rayes immortall life restoring Admiring magnifying and sweetly soaring High up amongst these holy heavenly hosts Of glorious and glorified ghosts With golden harps about the throne who sing New songs of their redemption to their King Hele. O but these sweet expressions relish well My frozen heart begins to melt I feel These words unto my wearied soul I think Like precious oyl so savingly do sink Slides down like my Beloveds wine so sweetly Wakens from sleep my tongue to speak compleatly O that once for Himself He would me seal What can be nam'd that may with love prevail Insist therefore For I do gladly hear And till the tongue be loos'd shall lend the ear Sam. The weakest means have force enough to move Affections when they be surpriz'd with love He cals and sees thee come from mountains steep Which Leopards and cruel Lyons keep Leaning on thy Beloved who doth love His truth and strength at length to see thee prove Observe with me this brief gradation now And I shall cease a space and hearken you For help to our capacity compare The outward splendor of this fabrick where By nature from the caverns of the womb Out of which dungeon to the world thou came Again compare the difference aright Betwixt this Paradice and that dark night Of nature which the other so transcends As over bodies lively sp'rits ascends And there the diff'rence vast again conceive Betwixt the life of sense we shall receive And this of faith wherein we forward thrust Untill we be refined in the dust When interruptions all shall be removed And we inlarg'd to love as we be loved In knowing and injoying him who is The Author of our everlasting blesse In this gradation we may something see But under what it is infinitley SONG I. Light out of Darknesse Hel. INfinitely most certainly for feeble we Conceive aright cannot these mysteries The spot upon our blotted eyes rejecting These rayes which yet with splendor bright reflecting Upon the then capacitated sp'rits Which warming beams affections invites But so transcendent that our present case Such super-excellency cannot imbrace For dazled with these glistring gleams What we receive seems be but dreams When we let slip by our secure neglectings The grip of faith glaming at these reflectings Spare therefore to compare our deepest apprehensions Do but impair his praise whose love 's above dimensions He is more fragrant when he 's most remote Then nearest dearest loves whereon we doat Conjecture then when he appears so near That thou may'st touch and taste and smell and hear Tell if thou can this other man And so we shall recall our long debate And treat of love for all For mine he is and I am his And who could wish so high a blesse As to be treas'ring up a stock of praise While we are hurling through these whirling dayes Sam. Now my dear friends it seems to me ye shrink And I may well conjecture what ye think I shew'd you first that you should surely see Matters to make you much a musing be Eliza. This sudden change makes me indeed admire And yet the reason must of thee enquire And that she may be prayed to proceed That on her fulnesse we may further feed Song I. continued Hel. God in his Saints ador'd admir'd My soul exalts this day desir'd Of his free grace he hath appointed Among this fellowship anointed With ghostly graces for my grieves So as my life a new revives Surpriz'd with sense of love so far That flaming my affections are And for the time can do no more But th' Author of this love adore And gladly would be set to sing The praises of my Spouse and King And to record his noble acts Who passeth by my fond mistakes And smiles upon my face again That I may faithfull hence remain Now all you sweetest saints that uses To haunt these shads you sacred Muses And Graces that with me did groan In my distracted mourning moan Earth rivers all below above Come sympathize in songs of love Of love above all parallell so far As stars above the earthly glob that are You Groves and Downs where erst I deadly lay I 'le rise and dance about your doors this day Eliza. Oh now for stirring spirits that could move Amongst the flames of this heart-forcing love Amongst the wonders of this world most strange What can compare with this sweet sudden change This day of gladnesse let us now agree To solemnize this glorious victory I reverence do the Providence Divine Which in this meeting doth so clearly shine But for to sing or say confused here I cannot speak or do but still admire Sam. Come I will take thee by the hand we 'll go With her alongst these Downs and Groves also Where she hath wandred in her weighty dayes And cease their sorrow with a song of praise Then South begin and blow upon our Myrtle trees And North proceed to show thy strength to eternize This glory in each airt a crosse the continent The whole Creation may with our Love-songs consent Now rocks begin to roar for ye's the Treble take And trees attend your lowre for ye's the Tenor make My self the Base shall be Muses be ye the Meen So we shall seriously sing Solace we have seen SONG II. Life out of Death Sam. SAy on say on solaced sweetly surely we have been Jea Play on play on sense-moving mater surely we have seen Rocks We's roar and cry Trees Our strength we's try Our roots lay by With startling
the Church the Spouse of Christ and of every chosen Child of God and Member of the Body mysticall after Regeneration Neverthelesse of all the tryals troubles and temptations they are to meet with in the strait way II. Secondly in particular there is represented the sad condition and sharp affliction of the Child of God under desertion made appear in a threefold consideration 1. First More felt then real Debated from Page 8. to 23. Where it is made evident that the Child of God after Regeneration may be wrapt under fearfull clouds of darknesse and discouragement and impossible to be comforted till there come a reviving from the inward Comforter And this is most properly Love sicknesse being for tryal and prevention Psa 42. Psa 30.7 8 9 10. 2. Secondly Real and felt And this is debated from Page 23. to 49. Wherein there is notice taken of the severall most prevailing tentations upon several ranks of persons viz. The Court-bred the School-bred the Countrie-bred and the Citty-bred the Civilian also and the most savage of conversation Neverthelesse the party deserted not able to discern the speciall cause of the affliction untill the means be sanctified by inward supply And this is for chastisement and correction tending to humiliation Psal 51. 1 Sam. 1.16 3. Thirdly More real then felt Debated from p. 49. to 76. Where it is made appear that the believer may be lying under much guilt unsensible unâ—ill a timous wakning come and when it is come under much perplexity untill a word of peace be pronounced And this is for tryall and wakening Isa 39.12 2 Sam. 24.10 11 12 13. III. Thridly After all this serious debate unto small purpose the smoaking flax being long smoothered and now breathed upon it kindleth swiftly and breaks out sweetly in an excessive flame of spirituall fervour And whereby then and not till then the party being prevailed with there appears a correspondent alteration of affections in the whole strain and uniforme expressions of the whole Society 1. First The perplexed person under absence is now upon renewed sense elevated unto a most sublime soul-ravishing rapture in a SONG p. 76. and the continuation thereof p. 77 78. 2. Secondly The Associates sympathising therewith in extasie SONG 2. p. 79. 3. Thirdly The continuation of the Sympathy in extasie SONG 3. pag. 80 81. 4. Fourthly The Soul-rapture upon renewed sense again renewed SONG 4. pag. 82 83. 5. Fifthly Solide grounds of spirituall security by way of Echo p. 84. 6. Sixthly A timous warning to guard against carnall security with comforts and incouragements unto chearfulnesse against trials and troubles till he end his journy p. 85. to 96. 7. Seventhly The grounds of Gospel-ordinances presented under the name of the Pallace-garden from p. 96. to 107. wherein there are nine severall MAZES making up the Garden viz. First A Border of Restriction p. 98. Secondly A Beam of Instruction 99. Thirdly Cordials for Incouragement 100. Fourthly Loves Mystery 101. Fifthly The Fountain unexhaustible 102. Sixthly Loves Labyrinth 103. Seventhly Loves Mirrour 104. Eighthly Loves Emblem 105. Ninthly Loves Union 106. 8. Eightly The Jewel of Jewels a Vade-mecum for heart impression and preservation p. 110. to 114. 9. Ninthly The Symphonicall desires and delights of the Redeemed in their retirements closing with that Song Rev. 15.3 4. p. 114. to 121. 10. Tenthly A harmonious Consort and a Song of praise p. 121. to 126. 11. Eleventhly Reviving Recollections and Solliloquies closing with the Song of all Saints Rev. 7.12 p. 127 to 1â—4 12. Twelfthly An Objection by the mere natural man answered and the party advised p. 134. to 142 In all which there is represented sure grounds of â—oud comfort under all the trials incident to the Child of Goâ— after regeneration from his birth in his life and death and after death his soul injoyments boâ—es rest and resurrection soul and bodies second conjunction small absolution and endlesse beatitude carrying also through the whole discourse from infallible truth the terrours of the Law against all that be under the Law all â—eâ—ding to 〈◊〉 serious study of keeping a Communion with God in the Spirit with a spiritual and chearfull conversation undeâ— all dispensations crosse or comfortable in that humblenesse and singlenesse of heart the fruits of saving faith which workes by love to the praise of the Author and our own peace And as to the additions of a preparatory Paradox explained in a comparison betwixt the first and second birth going before a subsequent survey of the first and second death resurrection and generall judgement they bâ— hereto annexed for making compleat the intended designe of delineating the pedigree of the new Creature from the right stock of his portraict from his true Parentâ— and Procreation his crosses conflicts comforts and confidences from the right Fountain in life and in death his restauration from death and darknesse unto immortall life and light of glory from the all-glorious and ever blessed Author of his being and this his most blessed well-being TO THE OBSERVANT READER UPON THE ENSUING POEM YOu who desire to know the plain tho strait Path-way to new Jerusalems high gate Whose pav'ment bright emboss'd with Gems be far More rich and fine then the most glistring Star In glore excells the boundlesse saphire bounds Of lights vast Curtain these pure Christall-â—ounds Whose azure Canopy and pleasant fields Great ground of soul-amazing wonder yeelds If any in designs so high aspires As to resolve through waters and through fires Of tort'ring trouble to climb the steep yee-rocks 'Twixt Heaven and earth in spight of Satan's strocks And will rest satisfi'd with nothing lesse Then Heav'n yea God Himself eternall blesse Resolving to endure all grief all pain All losse this great prize All in all to gain Lo here 's a Pilgrim who being guided by Truths sacred threed and Gods directing eye Is now come near his journies end not stayed By fained fraud or vain hopes not dismayed By force frowns hate or groundlesse fears expecting Gods call to enter Jordan and neglecting Fond vanities he 's looking from the top Of Pisgah by the eye of faith and hope Toward the Promis'd Land which to enjoy Through 's time he mainly did himself imploy But while God spares soul-wasting idlenesse He loaths and therefore on the Wildernesse Through which he 's come and all that did befall Him in his way there-through and in his call Thereto reflecting all he well observes And unto others carefully preserves Lo therefore here held forth thou 'lt clearly see Of Christian cases the diversity Sometimes rapt to the third heav'ns by loves wings They see their strange soul-ravishing sights and things Vnutterably glorious whence doth spring Amazing joy true peace which makes them sing Here neither reason faith nor hope but love And sense cause the soul-chariot-wheels to move Sometimes these soul-transporting objects be Vail'd whence flow darknesse great perplexity Afflicting trouble tort'ring grief of mind By which they are
he is under dreadfull confusiâ—ns and hesitations in hazard of miscarriage and â—ady to give over untill it please the Lord to reâ—eal Himself more clearly and thereby making â—o the work of faith with power brings out the â—risoner of hope unto the open air of the Goâ—el to lay hold upon the Prince of life and by â—eholding Him the Captain of our Salvation 〈◊〉 giving His Life to the death for penitent and â—elieving sinners hes destroyed death spoiled 〈◊〉 of the sting and the law of its strength quieâ—ng the conscience in satisfying justice and so â—eeing the fearfull soul from the rigorous exactiâ—s of a fierce and fiery law unto a further growth â—f grace and the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ But being by much weaknesse almost â—vercome in these wrestlings and like an unwise â—n having stayed long in the breaking forth of â—ildren by gracious assistance having gained â—me better ground of confidence I break out in â—is contest with my self Ho! hellish heath dost thou not tire to toile Thy self alongst this stinking Stigian Lake What canst thou like in this forsaken Soile Where all that drove of damned devils quake Ah dost thou look for Limbos Patrum here For Purgatory or poor Infants pain No the eternall wrath of God severe Doth ever burn none doth return again Ho! lo these swelling sulph'rous floods that roar Gaze no more on these griefly ghosts forlorn Wambling in wofull endlesse torments sore Blaspheming God that ever they were born Return withdraw now do ye danger dread Despair attends and can ye overturn Thou hadst dropt down if not upheld indeed Where all these ever-dying damned mourn He that upholds thee bids thee turn in haste To taste and feast upon this fervent Love Return my soul therefore unto thy rest Prepare thy heart His mercies force to prove How canst thou be so base as misbelieve Him who hes shed His blood to set thee free Wilt thou by incredulity deprive Thy self of peace so purchased for thee Thy guilty Conscience and the Law exact He silenc'd hes that ye can say no more And now thou may this day come see and take His truth His grace Himself thee to restore Is it not now so naturall to thee Him to believe since thou art born again As once it was His truth to vilifie When thou in nat'rall darknesse did remain Thy bands thy bondage all thy tort'ring terrors From infidelity unpurg'd do spring May not this ransom now remove thy errours When death and hell hereby hes lost the sting The Law like the Law-maker doth remain Righteous and holy sp'rituall and just So doth thy Conscience here bear witnesse plain Of what thou dost amisse for that it must But none of these can hinder thee to hold The grip that thou hast got of God by grace No they do let thee see that thou art sold By sin a slave to satan and do chase Thee now with speed timous supplie to take And wonder that thou art prevented so Before the Law thy conscience did awake For then remedilesse had been thy woe Thy reason cannot thy relief receive Thy guilt will ever keep thee under grief Then shalt thou so thine own poor soul deceive And it bereave of offered relief Arise therefore and mourn the more for sin That now thou seest it hes procur'd Gods ire Again to see slain Christ for thee begin Whose blood doth quench that fear'd infernall fire Doubtlesse I would be fred of this wanrest Wherein I wrestle as a wretch forlorn Under the weight of guilt and wrath supprest And with the torment of these terrours torn But now I see I must for life believe On Him who freely loves and freely gives Not that for my believing I may live That I may live He gives me to believe And firmly now to fix upon His Love His Mercy Truth and power infinite And by the motions of His Grace to move As He shall give assistance by His Sp'rit And yet as the naturall man before he comâ— to the years of discretion by education and experience is exposed unto many dangerous trialâ— and troubles wherein he is often in danger oâ— ruine being like an untamed Colt or a wildâ— Asse in the Wildernesse snuffing up the wind brutishly exposing himself unto the perill of perishing every day in his riot and insolency Right so the new Man albeit come out of the womb of Regeneration wrestled through the straits and travels of new Birth escaped the poweâ— of the Law bondage and darknesse where undeâ— he was kept and that for the time corruptioâ— hes been kept far under that it could not get up the head having tasted how good the Lord is and doth grow up by sucking in the sincere Milâ— of the Word Yet the old and bold Serpent that vigilant subtill and restlesse enemie of our Salvatioâ— sleepes not but lyes at all advantage by all means to make use of every time under all cases for undoing all that God hes done in us so far as lyes in his power Who seeing us so satisfied with what we have received lets us swell a little and then like an Angell of Light lifts us up and leads us ouâ— of the humble and holy way of self denyal and sincere dependence for daily and immediate support unto self-confidence and carnall contentment abusing the rich mercy and turning the free grace received unto wantonnesse so that before I was aware was left in the dark pestered with meny piercing temptations and much foiled under some fearfull devices Which perceivingâ— and after some serious pause turning to my strong hold and putting on the armour of proof entered the fight of faith under his Banner who overcame for me Confident that He would also overcome in me to the praise of the glory of His Grace I break out in this passion Thou damned Devil go to the hells and die That never dying death thy portion just Infernall Feind fall down and scoarchingly For ever Why It is thy doom thou must Down downly die and there thy power restrain The Lord reprove thy pride and malice vain This passion thou puts me to perforce â—ecause thou dost perplex and vex me still Who by thy wiles would me from God divorce â—nd dragg me after thy pernicious will In plots profound thy wits thou dost imploy By treacherous trains poor souls for to destroy Thou like a Syren canst thy song enchant Untill the carnall part thereto incline When in resemblance thou dost seem a Saint This cruell craft is found in thee and thine The world worldlings at thy wish thou hast And mine own flesh to keep me in unrest My facile mind thou also much dost mar With many foolish fantasies confuse And to my judgment erâ—ors also dare Present maintain with lies and bid me chuse The rules of reason and of carnall sense So to destroy my faith on this pretence Thou lets my sins forsaken me before And shews my sorrow is below my sin And that to
quench the wrath of God the more I must to mourn again for sin begin So friend-like teaching me how to remeed My own undoing by thy treacherous deed And wouldst have me believe that by repenting I must redeem my self or lost remain And so ensnare me by thy wise inventing And wast my substance in this subtile train For better wouldst thou never seek of me Then in these fetters perishing to see As if my Lord who hath me freely loved Did not revive me when my life were spent As if again this Love I had not proved Which mov'd my heart sincerely to repent So as alone He hath done all for me That by His death I may victorious be Hereby again thou dost advantage take Carelesse to make and carnally secure Both sluggishly and senslesly to slack In duties whereto Love doth me allure As if His Love were not of force to guide Me through the straits wherein I may be tri'd And when my Lord better to let me see My self whereof I daily stand in need The influence of his grace restrains from me Then butcher-like thou follows me with speed And dost surmise that I do beat the air And notions print to presse me to despair And when thou canst not by thy wit prevail Because I do by faith thy darts resist Then lion-like thou dost in arms assail And by thy wicked instruments insist To persecute in body state and name Thereby to bring me unto publike shame Thus didst thou first begin with lying lewd And therein counterfeited as thou can And then thy flatt'ry did convert to feud Burning in malice to betray the man The Syrene first and then the serpent grim Now from thy lurking hole the Lions limb But now thy fury to thy face shall turn And vex thee in quotidian extasie Of endlesse woe for evermore to burn In pain when I am from thy spight set free For all thy trains shal both increase thy charge And for triumphs victorious us enlarge For certainly what thou hast done or can Yet ever do in time to come I know Shall do but heap hape on the hopefull man And in the end turn to thy overthrow For as he is in battell try'd the more Into his rest shall he enjoy of glore And this I do not glosse upon in pride For weaknesse with the weakest I confesse And when my Lord doth leave me to be try'd Then dwining do I ly in deep distresse But then ev'n then whole hell cannot bereave Me of this faith I know whom I believe Thus Satan old thou seest not how I soar Above thy sight upon the Eagles wing EMANUELS might protects me evermore And in thy spight shall me to safety bring So go for lo I leave thee here to ly And with thy mates eternally to die And now again as the naturall man being brought to the light and through the trials and travels incident to him in his infancy and under age unto the years of discretion and experience is to be exercised in serious and important affairs concerning himself his Country and concernment and thereby is to give proof of his gifts and endowments grounded upon justice temperance prudence and fortitude with all other subordinate requisites and yet meeting with so many difficulties in the progresse of his best intended and most approvable actions is subject to much haulting and deviation in many things turning to his reproach The New Man in like manner being come through these and many such assaults and come up to some growth in light and experience is to be exercised as a Professor of Christianity and to exercise himself therein both in his generall and particular calling being strengthened by the gifts and grace received both to do and endure as it shall please the Giver to give the calling And for this end that he be indued with these requests 1. So much knowledge of himself as may produce sincere self-denial 2. So much of GOD as may make up a sole dependency upon a Providence 3. Faith whereby to sacrifice his Isaac his dearest darling to the service of God upon a known call 4. A fixed confidence that if he should slay thee thou wilt trust in him 5. Love above comparison so far as God is above the creature 6. Zeal like Phineas impartiall in the execution of justice in the Cause of God and our Country 7. Submission in what he takes as in what he gives 8. Patience in resting quiet and confident in all he doth 9. Humility tending to the increase of grace thankfulnesse under the crosse as under comfort 10. Chearfulnesse so shall the joy of the LORD be thy strength These be the approven grounds whereby to walk with approbation but how short every man comes in the practice it is too well seen whether from the world when it flattereth or frowns affecting or repining And in the unregenerate part what a filthy fume flows daily out of that stinking pudle where the dregs and spawn of all the devilry of hell is engrossed and but in part purged or rather born down and kept under from out-breaking in palpable enormities And yet the Devil knows well what coal to blow at and how to quicken more damnable and deadly Vipers to suck out our spirituall life unseen or adverted unto as spirituall pride carnall security under the exercise of our best actions taking growth with our gifts whereby Gods Spirit is grieved desertion procured crosses afflictions and corrections inflicted for humbling reclaiming keeping under and in order the light and facile heart which would miscarry unto ruine if not prevented But for this misery of self-deceiving deceit and desperate wickednesse of the heart the many inventions it finds out being prompted thereunto by the old Serpent to undo it self and how far the remnants of this corruption may prevail even in the Regenerate it is better seen then guarded against by too many as much fearfull and bitter experience can witnesse But thus it becometh every one that knows so much as that God knows the heart to make search till they attain to know the plague of their own heart that they may be confounded in themselves not lifting up their face for shame seing God is pacified towards them for all that they have done because of the stability of His Covenant Ezek. 16.62 63. But naturally every man being so conceited of himself scarce any man will believe that such things as both Scripture and experience make clear to be in the heart of man can be in his heart but will be ready to say Am I a dog that I should be tempted to do such things Till under the triall we become taught by wofull proof the folly of our faithlesnesse in our defections And having been much toyled in pruning and suppressing these sproutings and superfluities of naughtinesse that are alwayes taking life in the body of death So Hydra-like that as one head is stricken off another more monstrous and menstruous springs up to be conflicted with
compleat a man But thou art carnall that objects And doth discover thy defects A little ponder understand Shall that All-wise All-working hand All-just All-good All-holy King Misse in that most intended thing His Eyes were on when He gave being To all things subject unto seeing Did He this spacious Globe erect And by their sourse the seas collect Becircled by the firmament Illustrious and so excellent With plenteous store to entertain Poor wretched men that lost have been No from eternity He knew All what was past what should ensue And in a Second Adam sweet Made man again with God to meet Who for the Elect Surety stood And them restor'd by His own Blood Their flesh assumed for that end And doth His Sp'rit unto them send Which Holy Sp'rit their sp'rit inspires With sp'rit-renewing sacred fires Quickning purging and perfuming Grace increasing vice consuming Eyes and heart and minds inlarging With His Image supercharging Such searching souls as do imbrace The splendor of his pleasing face Rapt and made apt with open eyes To dyve in these excellencies And in that sourse of sweet delight To feast upon his beauty bright Whereby he doth our souls decore And to his Image us restore On whom by faith firm fixed solely The whole affections are made holy And humble by a self-reflect Upon thy self for self neglect So modesty shines in the face And gravity that Christian grace That generous Spirit that doth â—acer Her self to serve her Saving Maker That Sapience that far far sees To compose content from contraries That chastitie that can contain Affections all in order clean That love that vertue doth allure And all licentious lusts can cure That liberall mind that lively spreads And frugally preserves the seeds That charity that chearfully Knows when how where to give supply That temperance that can subdue Proud passions as they do renew That courtesie that neatly can Carry the master like a man That clemencie that can declare The colours clear of vertue fair That patience that prudence leads That peace which pious Spirits feeds That fortitude that fairly founded With resolutions firmly grounded On truth with strong stability Expressed with alacrity Courage and circumspection so That never storm can overthrow That single heart sincere and sweet Where comfort and delight do meet That sp'rit of contemplation piercing And heavens holy myst'ries searching Longing thronging thirsting till The fruit of faith the Soul full fill Then God beholding the effects That by his beams on Saincts reflects And looking on that beauty rare Accounts and cals them sweet and fair For grace in vertue so doth shine That vertue doth become divine This is the vertue I avouch'd The vertue that I would have touch'd The vertue true that clarifies And qualifies the qualities That doth illustrate and ingrain And turns in substance shadows vain That giveth smell and taste unto All that we think or speak or do This vertue well accomplish can And compleat the Christian man Gain this vertue and thou shall Inherit Heav'n and Earth and all More solide solace sweet possesse Then heart can think or pen express Limb out her lineaments conceive Such riches where thou can receive Try her parts taste every place Such sweet thou can no where embrace Drink her in with all desire Untill she set thy heart on fire Her beams they will thy breast inflame Her streams will qualifie the same Choise of choises chief content Of all beneath the firmament Search her for she waits to see Who for her love will fervent be And if thou joine thou shalt enjoy That bliss which nothing can annoy For then thou shalt into his Image grow From whom this vertue fair doth freely flow The Portraict and Character oâ— the Old Man Under the name of Vice described COme you who wonders curious are to see Or monsters such as most detested be And you who can indeed discern aright This Brat begot in hell by heav'nly light Vice here behold stript naked to the skin Look on her outside see her well within Her port and gesture here how vile behold Vain proud implacable presumptuous bold Disorderly by satans order placed As basely in the heart they be embraced Each ruling in his sphere rounding the brain And heart with humors perverse and profane Where generositie should bud and flourish Debate deceit there doth she neatly nourish There where the truth sincerely should be stated Faithlesse hypocrisie is firmly seated Malice envy and horrid hatred there Where love should move is in her breast made bare Under the shew of chastity most clean Closs impudent incontinencie is seen Ambition avarice wrath and cruelty Watch as they may most serviceable be Within a cloud of Christian clemency And humane gentlenesse dissimulately She sets her subtil snares for to entyse The weak for she in wickednesse is wise Her sottish slaves who serve her she doth lead Their souls on sensual lusts to live and feed Or otherwise to pry how to surprize Their nearest dearest friends that they may rise To treasure state or store honour or ease As they may their beloved Idol please And for those ends do study to devise By all the means that be below the skies Without controle directly to content That humor in its fixed element Objection Can all that you have heretofore asserted Be held for truth Is poor man so deserted And by that dev'lish villany possest Which here you have so peremptory prest Is man who is the creature rational Below the brute so fallen by his fall You see most men do something civile live Vice misregard and unto vertue cleave It seems that he doth some true light retain Suppose it suffered hath a fearfull stain And if it were as you affirm then he Not only should below the brutish be But might be ranked in degree with devils The Author of these specified evils What find we more in that apostate sp'rit Finall impenitency to compleat Then you of man each man forlorn hath said Is it not for His wrack that he was made Answer Our Glorious King Eternall only Wise Almighty Mover moved by advice Of uncreated wisdome that he can No lesse have done then well in making man Man was made holy righteous and good But he did stumble when he should have stood Before the tryals of the tempter slie And slew himself and all his progeny By misbelieving Him by whom he lived Is left to live to him whom he believed And being left of God he is possest Of all the devilry that is here exprest Man unregenerate is below most sure The vildest bruit on earth and most impure What Lyon Tygre or destroying Boaâ— So fervent fierce or cruell to devour What can with that vild murtherer compare Who for to feast his idol will not spare His nearest friends brothers or native seed And will imbrew his hands in parricide And in his own hot blood for to fulfill His humor give the fatall stroak and kill What Crocodil what scorching Scorpion
unbounded Orb of love Wonders are by Believers brought about That cruell tyrants cannot cancell out And by Believers to be enjoyed are Joyes wonderfull above conceiving far But we shall spare for more exactly those Matters we must debate before we close Now to the purpose and the Person precious Whom I have seen and still esteemed gracious Notable in the Assemblies of the Saints And solemn Meetings where Believers hauntâ— I know the case and truly see it clear Fraught with the fruits of faith of love and fear But she is not in that condition now So to confesse far lesse this to avow But in this sentence most succinct I 'le shew The matter and the meaning shall pursue And this it is Heavens child of hope doth faint for want of sight Resolv'd to grope through darkest deeps for light And this assertion sure for to explain Take notice now and answer you again You see Celestiall from terrestriall things Exhaling vapours that much darkness brings Eclipses do our naturall Sun surprise Which yet we see most royally arise The worlds first birth from Gods most pure intention Eternall purpose and divine invention Was made to be by no materials Existent pre-existent Seminals In darknesse swadled up untill the bright Creating word in time commanded light And when this light aright composed stood Night to preceed day-light God saith is good Jea This dispensation sad you take I see To flow from causes one or more of three The first from provocation I conceive The second what for triall we receive The third to Soveraignity ascends The Cause supreme where causes all depends You know suppose that naturall things be used And to illustrate sp'rituall matters chused Spirituall things are not demonstrate clearly By naturall that worke by nature merely The one by the prefixed Rule doth run The other Arbitrary how and when And yet suppose these generals should contain Much to this purpose when by searching seen Yet ye must nearer come her case to clear From such effects as may be seen appear For if she be bemisted left alone In this confus'd condition she is gone Sam. Will ye not condescend that all things be Good in their time appointed certainly And that our only wise and holy King Profoundly hath contrived every thing Spirituall naturall morall arbitrary Contingent voluntar and necessary And ordered so this contrary to that Man may with dread and reverence stand thereat Jea We trust your charity hes so conceived That Scripture-truths are all by us believed Albeit that under trials severall may By strong assaults much weaknesse oft bewray We know He 's the supream and only good And all things to his glory do conclude And that suppose rejected we should be It were our place his grace to magnifie His wisdom justice truth and holinesse We question not but our untowardnesse In not adverting to his counsels grave Which only could and should from swerving save And yet our tender Lover hath appointed And with spirituall unction hath anointed With coming some and cordialls stor'd that be Soveraign for Soul-diseases seasonablie â—Mongst whom ye be of speciall esteem In binding up the wounds that desperat seem I pray you speak in proper speeches plain As this perplexed party best may gain And lead us in these mysteries divine Untill the Sun begin again to shine Sam. I know it worthy of our pains shall prove To dyve in this deep mystery of love Therefore I shall not spare to condescend Some of our precious time herein to spend This mourning Bride sure has propined been With precious sweet sp'rit-consolations clean Whereby the King of Kings doth recreate Replenish purifie and elevate The soul that to espouse he is whereby She in his absence sick of love doth ly Jea Be pleas'd more specially us to acquaint With these so precious presents and how sent And how received that so effectuall prove As to procure such firm and fervent love Sam. He cleared hes her blear'd and blinded eyes Inflam'd her heart so as she feels and sees Her Comforter convey himself with kissings And breath into her soul supernall blessings The beauty of whose visage her invites To trace him out when he doth make retreats For in her heart so hes he shed that seed Which her affections after him doth lead And at a word created now anew She bids the whole Creation adiew And in this Sphere of Love celestial soare Not stooping to terrestriall triffles more Untill her Lover come and do relieve Her weighted sp'rit and heart contrite revive Jea Why doth she not in patience possesse Her soul and so attend his timousnesse Sam. Basenesse of mind such patience she esteems Which would suspend her of these warming beams By influence whereof she alone doth live And therefore closely unto him doth cleave Jea But is her project lawfull let me know Sam. True love was never limited by law Jea But earthly minds in mounting high do burn Sam. The Spirit by habit heavenly doth turn Jea Doth she the body then the more disdain Sam. No but doth tune it to a spâ—rituall strain For it 's the organ ordained for to sing The praises of her Lovely Prince and King Jea How doth she then so sadly ly and still Sam. She doth attend his presence and his will Preparing straight his praises to expresse But till his coming lurks in heavinesse Jea But where is then the hold of Faith and Hope Fast held but pressing nearer hard to grope Desiring still the Marriage-day to see When in His Robes she may arrayed be And joyning then his sweet soul-feeding face Her firm affections fervent may imbrace Hele. Poor Pilgrim I in dole and deep unrest For want of Faith with hellish fears supprest Here wandring as a woefull wretch alone So void of sense can do no more but moan Unworthy of respect regard or view Much lesse your face my spirits to renew It is my wonder that your worth should stay So to respect this crocked clog of clay So hardned that affections cannot melt To mold a new by any motions felt Yet happy you you Blessings do procure Who would conduct and doth instruct the poor But from the wayes of wisdome I have gone So far astray that I may mourn alone And groan for grief now when I cannot mend But all my dayes in dole and dolor spend And for to understand your friendly speech Or meaning thereof hardly can I reach But true it is sometimes I have exprest Some secrets that should not have been confess Of feelings sweet above expression far Which for the time but seeming shadows are For now deserted like a desart owle I hopelesse ly and can but hopelesse howle Bewailing oft that ever I was born For all is gone and I am left forlorn Sam. Dear friends conveened here for this intent With misteries of Love to be acquaint Let us unweary willingly attend For all her griefs shall sure in gladnesse end Jea Our true desire and most delight shall be We
may more clear this Divine science see And with the whole affections of our heart To learn the Heavenly Methods of this Art I know the heart contrite and broken spâ—rit Is for our King a Receptacle meet I know with timous comforts he doth turn Unto the pure in sp'rit who for him mourn I know the thirsting soul and hungry heart In His sweet face have fulness for their part I know that pleasures in eternitie Attend their souls that fleshly follies flee I know the penny-earn'st of Peace and Bless Received by the meek and lowly is And wisely witnessed here may we see The might of truth and height of mercy free The strength of Faith shining through filial fear The wing of Love weak ones to hide and bear Hele. I wonder much that you so wise and grave Such groundlesse expectations can conceive For shew'd you are so far of this my case That I presumed should have made you cease But presuppone that these your strange conceits Were true of me which unto me relates But nothing unto me I think belong Yet were it fearfully free Love to wrong And should bewray ingratitude so far As justly might me from his grace debar For sure I am I had not been cashiered If to offend my King my heart had feared But gading I so far astray have stept And in confusions such my self have wrapt That now mine eyes are dimm'd my tongue bedumb'd Mine ears are deafned and my heart benumb'd That what I hear I do not apprehend But sure I see my well you do intend Jea Yet with permission and submission now My friend let me obtain this sute of you This is a day of grace and it may prove If you improve it well a time of love Unto this timous counsell grave advert Gainstand these griefs that do disturb thy heart Think on what light life liberty and peace Thou lately tasted hes by special grace The earnest of these Treasures rich procured For thee and by the Lover sweet secured But under cloud eclipsed thou must be By proof to find thine own infirmitie In Patience Faith Dependency Submission Importunately presse thou hes commission Then look and long and to this promise cleave And when thou art rebuked yet believe He. Madam your counsell gracious grave and good Does all desir'd felicities include But I have forfault all these offers fair And of these Blessings now am stripped bare And when I hear of former happinesse Grief horrour and despair the more increase Once was I light and now in darknesse ly Once was I life now in deaths jawes I dye Once had I freedome now in bondage bound Once had I peace now in vexation stound You speak of pleasures in a word anew But dolefully may I bid them adiew For I an earn'st of wrath endure I think Might all the sinfull sons of Adam sink The evil spirit when he does depart Returning enters in the empty heart And every devil of whatsoever deceit May in this soul receive a several seat And I will tell you more Jea No more Refrain There is too much of this untimely strain O fearfull but it be for to let slip Of Sacred Truths by Faith the saving grip And O! how bitter are the agonies Of absence in soul-searching secrecies O horrour terrour dread what dreadfull height Is absence totall in eternal night When timely tastes do so the godly tare Where shall the godlesse go beneath despair But I forbear Sir speak to her so plain That she may be brought to her self again Sam. This darknesse does th'approach of day presage And us the more unto the means ingage Thou harden dost thy self in thy mistakes And of our tendernesse advantage makes Thou dost expose thy self a present prey Syrene deceits of Sathan to obey Misled with carnal wit by quaint convoyance So subtilly to worke thy souls annoyance Wilt thou prescribe his coming or confine His counsels to these finit thoughts of thine Dare thou his faithfulnesse draw in debate Because he doth not on thy humours wait Doth he his influence dispense for hyre Dar'st thou a reason of his rules require But these demands in time and place recall Examine and answers receive we shall And now in patience yet we shall persist And with convincing arguments insist Think on when we from darknesse unto light Translated were and did receive our right Unto His Royal Court and House of Wine Where loves bright banner over thee did shine Then didst thou see in darknesse thou hadst been Clos'd Embrion-like into the womb unseen Untill thy Lover Mover in this place The fruits of His free love made thee imbrace Then didst thou clearly see that gracious He Indur'd to be obscur'd for gracelesse thee And that He might thy glorious dayes begin Assum'd thy flesh and suffered for thy sin Purg'd and perfumed thee His Bride to be And did present himself Bridegroom to thee Thy King thy Captain and thy Husband now And to engadge thee more him to avow His Princely Robes thou saw him lay aside Enter the lists and in his armour bide Till all thy foes he had defyed in fight And from their malice fred thee by his might And led thee here among these sweet contents Where only children of the King frequents But that thou may'st convinced be the more I shall this Countrie set thy face before For as it seems thou dost so sullen ly Thou art surprysed with a lethargie Or for a proof art left a little space To try what love thy Lover can displace Thou knowst the Citty of our Royall King Where He to breed and woo his Bride doth bring What glorie and excellencie alone Believers shining see about the Throne Thou seest Him righteous Judgements dayly read Give doome unto thy foes thy causes plead When from His Ivorie pallaces he comes Thee to imbrace the smell of His perfumes Affect the Virgin-bowels for to move Frames and inflames the quickned heart to love For certainly unto Beleevers true That be renew'd all things becometh new And in this World of wicked workers we A World enjoy of sweet felicitie Consisting in a Righteousnesse procured For us with sp'ritual joy and peace secured And this new heav'n and earth and citty fair Whether the Elect chosen called are Above comparison you know excells The rarest fairest richest parallels The River that out-through the Citty slides For every severall Cittizen divides Unto refreshment and the fruitfull tree That renders various fruits abundantly For every season unto all affections And soveraign physick health for all complexions Our everlasting light without declining Advancing gloriously and brightly shining Curse from the Crosse force from affliction shed The sting from death from fear and bondage fred Where we may dayly sing among the branches And swime among the streams our thirst that quenches And bath us in that River sweetly flowing And feed upon the Spices neatly growing About the banks of these delicious fields That hony milk and wine so pleasant yeeldâ—
cleft To send a death-bound soul a quickning lift And when our Sun seems be eclipsed far Faith playes her course by the least twinkling star The Wran may flighter on this oceans brim The Dolphine dyve the Elephant may swim For loves sweet sympathies consist in looks Blinks smiles and smells whereby the Lover hooks The loved and the loved thence again From passion strong cannot it self refrain Let this suffice and ere we do remove We 'll consolate this Lady sick of love Her Lover shall ere it be long be sure Shine on her soul and so her peace procure For she in child-birth of fair grace doth ly Let us some cordials for her pangs apply And now speak damesell and let us hear What fruit from our endeavours doth appear Hele. Now am I so o'recome constrain'd to note Your travels for my well have been devote For ev'ry parcell of your free confessions Renews the sense to me of like transgressions But now in speciall you have specified Some errors that I would were rectified And all that ye have said I must confesse For every word my grief may well increase When I look up what my most Princely Love Before he brought me here made me to prove And likewise also since he brought me here What kingly bounty daily doth appear Freely bestow'd upon a fondling poor Whose worth could never thing but wrath procure And now I am convinc'd for I have prov'd That with such fervent love he hath me lov'd That for my frailties and infirmnesse great His grace and mercy he would not retreat Or that his bowels which for me were moved By this my stumbling should have been removed But this rich bounty and this love divine I lost and am deserv'dly left to dwine And pine away in sp'rituall poverty For pride of sp'rit unseen takes root in me Which now I find the cause of all my anguish Wherein I do consume away and languish Nor should I yet have seen this vain conceit But by the fruit of that vile root of late For I did suffer my fond heart to think That I was setled so I could not sink And that by grace receiv'd I could sustain Till from this tent translated I had been I doated on his gifts did not adore Himself of whom I did enjoy that store The idol of the heart was set in place Above the Author of my grace and peace And now therefore of force confesse I must His judgements are both righteous and just For grace abus'd thus gracelesse here to ly In place of peace in deep perplexity Sam. And art thou past recov'ry can'st thou say Is there no ground of hope whereon to stay Or art thou so vain-gloriously affected Ev'n when that seed of Satan is dissected Hele. No but I am therewith infected sore That seperate I cannot any more Therefrom then from my self for it 's become Deaf to rebuke and to defence but dumb Sam. Dost thou not know for this is still confesâ— Remnants in us remain undispossest Of much perversity which all our life To purge will keep us in continuall strife Hele. And I immunity do not indeed From provocation or correction plead But this a sprig so privily doth sprout And with the root and fruit of grace break out So sp'ritually and so commixt convoy'd Untill it get the life of grace destroy'd Ev'n as these sp'rits whereby we be enliv'd By veins and arteries the blood deriv'd Out from the heart the body to maintain Unknown contains therewith the bodies bain For what I do or what I do endure Progresse in grace to make or growth procure In mortifying self self to reform This venom unawars doth all deform I cannot speak a word by rule of reason Nor think nor act religiously in season But this vile poyson of spirituall pride Doth sliely in the heart deceitfull slide This is the thing our King could not endure In Angels for by pride they fell impure What may I then base wretch impure expect Who on some drams of grace receiv'd reflect I am as if of grace a treasure sure In store I could at my command procure Whereas my conscience shewes that I am stain'd With all that justly may make me disdain'd And that which might this mighty monster check His subtilty perverse detect and break But with this tincture now I am so tainted And throughly as I were therein indented Which when I see and am ashamed sore Haughty hereof I do become the more Sam. And what but grace in this most fearfull sight Could thee sustain against the Serpents slight Whereby thou formerly hes still prevailed ' Gainst all the policie he hes assailed Hele. The flesh and sp'rit defil'd with thoughts impure Which carnall hearts do unto lusts allure I see and do gainstand by grace but this Bred up with grace grace to displace it is And cannot pitch but on the print of grace Sincerity of grace for to deface Sam. How then is this thou can so moved be Since grace thou does confesse remains in thee Whereon this witch doth fix and keep thee waking And cast thee over in this fever quaking Consider when a King provok'd hes been By his own Son by many pranks obscene Should give commands in bands to make him ly In prison dark to humble him thereby And yet indulgently again relent To try if he his folly would repent Give orders for his further liberty Out of the prison dark to set him free And yet this ranting child should still remain So sensless as to think he could retain This life of freedom and abused light By his own industry or naturall right Were it not then convenient for to cast Him in the darkest pit in fetters fast Till he by pain and pinching hunger there Were taught of vain conceits for to despair Doth this comparison thy pallat please Can'st thou apply it to thy own disease And if thou can then shall it truely prove The strong effects of a Parentall love Hele. Nothing in nature can decipher more The case and cause of my distractions sore But naturall causes have a naturall cure Yet who a wounded spirit can endure How far the heavens above the earth doth bend Spirituall things our naturall thoughts transcend My Princely Parent penetrats the sp'rit And loves the single humble heart contrite He He alone with searching piercing eyes This privy pride and arrogancie sees And cannot passe't for it doth derogate Most from His dispensations intimate Hereby in bondage I indure these stounds These hellish torments and these deadly wounds Of conscience wherein I to death am bleeding Forc't by the folly of this fancie feeding Sam. I would have thought thou shouldst preferred far Thy Lovers wisdom and affections were All similies before could be devis'd By any finite creature or advis'd Thou by his secret censures sees he sees The deepest of these damned subtilties And throws thee under bondage till thou be Taught how to guard against this devilry Now then consider him who sees
The Heav'nly Manna and thereon have feasted And at the fountain have refreshed been Therein revived and returned clean And that when slumbring I began to swell I have been left in darknesse for to dwell Untill it pleas'd my King who knows my pain For my relief me to revive again I likewise do confesse what ye have said In ref'rence unto provocations made Which have recited been by severall here And pertinently made for to appear From sound experience much diversity And nearest numberlesse variety That with the like I have been led astray And drawn upon my self a cloudy day The crosse did with corruption so increase I forc'd have been my folly to confesse For I might read in every severall rod Real offences against a righteous God Who yet from wretched me did not remove His tender mercy faithfulnesse and love For in his coming I might daily see His goings were for wak'nings unto me Again I shall not take unto denyals But that I have acquainted been with tryals From all the Fiends and their infernall states Where I have often felt and dealt debates His brood within his instruments without Inviron and invest me round about And yet from all their cruelty and spight Have been preserv'd from that malicious might And where they had permission to perplex Turn'd to my good and them the more may vex And as this is by you my friends affirmed Is likewise now by me again confirmed But not the lesse â—lace that I can say I have no benefite thereby this day You have been arguing long and I replying Contending much and many things denying Wherein convinc'd that ye the right maintain Yet know ye not what sorrows I sustain For I had never darknesse known aright If once I had not seen the shining light Nor what it were to be beslav'd with devils If of their seed I had not seen the evils Nor what deliv'rance or defence could mean If fearfull danger were not something seen But while so many eminent I see For light and life inlargement liberty Forsaken and before the tryall fail How can I then presume for to prevail Who now so long so fearfully do ly Without relief or hope of remedy If ye my dolours knew ye would deplore That wofull anguish and vexation sore That I am wrangled with and wrapped in When terrours of the second death begin Of outward suffering I make no acount Although they do ye know too much amount A raging devil in the wicked reeling Venting their venom with villanous reviling Professed friends do privily supplant The most engaged in their ranting taunt And being held in fetters raging roar Because they cannot reach for to devour My person means profession and my name To burie in the dust of death they dream But when the prince of darknesse doth begin This dark and dozned heart again within To raise his works and to enlive his brood What can I men lesse then lost wretch conclude And more this tyrant hath attain'd the leading Of my affections ev'n while I am pleading Against his faunings and his flatt'ring baits Whereby I dragged am in dang'rous straits And cannot stint because I have no strength Nor hope to be relieved at the length For this I sigh for this I weep and mourn For this my bowels in my belly turn For this I seperate my self alone For this my blood and moisture both are gone Because the Comforter that can relieve My heart no answer for my grief doth give But in this desp'rate case at distance keep While all these serpents do about me sweep With open jaws sharp claws and cruell sting Trusting to sink and swallow quick they sing Sam. Well I perceive you have at length been plain Yet all doth turn unto one thing again Except some aggravation of the space The measure and ingredients in the case This closse eclipse with storms of flying fire Darknesse and thundring bolts of dreadfull ire From devils and from every instrument They could devise to work they detriment And then least for thy self to stand and fight So far above thy cunning and thy might Partly because that thou hes known them fall Compar'd with thee a shrub were cedars tall But yet look over thine accounts and cast Thou may come to a reckoning right at last These persons eminent at first did yeeld They never try'd the fight upon thee field And look again aright and thou shalt see Such as thy self triumph in victory Who in the fight by slight have oft been foil'd And yet by strength renew'd the spoiler spoild Consider also if thou couldst have stood Before old Belial and his brutish brood If they were not by chains of strength restrain'd And thou to use thy armes aright were train'd The measure and the space which most doth move thee Is the appointment of thy Prince to prove thee That thou may taste His power in preserving Under thy want and weaknesse of deserving Do no more plague thy self with this debate Against this blessed and believing state A fixed faith all slavish fear removes And in its orbe unto the Author moves For measure time and means simplie surrender Thy self to Him He is wise kind and tender Whereof much rich experience thou abuses And for tranquillity this torment chuses Wherein be sure thou shalt be tortured till Thou do submit sincerly to His will Hele. Now do I well perceive by your discourse I have not soundly looked to the sourse Of dispensations as I might have seen A secret providence did me sustain Ev'n in these darkest dayes and dangers dread Which all my torture and my torment breed For if I had then had I never thought These fiery-brands that my vexation wrought Had loosed been but were in fetters ty'd And suff'red but to bark till I were try'd I likewise see as you have said that such Who in a flourish hes professed much The field did never by confession face But turn'd in searching tryals with disgrace And for the measure and the space I know It 's good for me so to be keped low I suffered was many essayes to take Which weigh'd aright might many humble make And upon me there lyes unto believing More real bands then upon any living And now that I should limit him doth wound Me most to whom I am so deeply bound And that I have so wilfully resisted The sp'rit whereby you have with me insisted For I have doing been what in me lay My soul unto the murderer to betray But now my Saviour worthily shall have His will for He I see will me but save And here I do acknowledge my mistakes And that my diffidence the dottage makes Bemisted in the mud so have I been And so gainsaid what I have felt and seen The truth of all that ye have now exprest Is clear to me and so by me confest For He my Lover is not only wise And strong and fair and lovely in mine eyes But He is wisdom beauty might and love Where all
generations hath revived and brought forth from the Womb of Regeneration a fair Family of Believers and by the Gospel-ordinances gathered them into his Garden of grace by the New and Living Way where the Fountain and Well of Life is opened free for all that will come to smell the Flowers and feast upon the Fruits of eternall and unchangeable Bounty infinitely preferable to all their losses where he conversing with them prepares them for the Pallace-Royall the Place of his Habitation where Mansions are appointed for them that they may be where He is that they may see His Glory and reâ—oice in Him for evermore And that as they have born the image of the earthly so we may â—ear the Image of the Heavenly And here is the prime and most precious Subâ—ect of Christian Contemplation where the Believer may expatiate and ingratiate himself in the â—weetest Recreations and Consolations by attaining unto and entertaining of an unseparable communion with God in Christ by the Holy Ghost â—nseparably One and only adorable MAZE 1. for restriction Job 37.33 34 HEnce carnall minds that apprehend Erroniously The Incomprehensible to comprehend most impiously Lights glorious Center inaccessible who can behold Lifes-life eternall unexpressible who can unfold How then shall men come to conceive Of this rare Blesse some do receive By Gods preordinate appointing who be renew'd And by the Holy Ghosts anointing who be indowed Brightly to see that Majesty Of God-Man that great Mystery Of love unto the Elect-seed Whence admiration doth proceed May come and see and so confesse Professe His Name and praise expresse And you who humbled in the sense of wants And search to know the priviledge of Saints May come in faith with reverence and fear See that without this frame you do forbear MAZE 2. for instruction 1 John 3.2 IN all these Mazes where we move The ground we walk upon is love And where we make approachings near Let 's come in reverence and fear Before His glorious Name who is A Beam supream of boundlesse blesse But so resplendent and transcendent To make appear convincing clear Behold this naturall Sun whose gleams doth apprehend us And whose illuminating beams doth comprehend us And thence infer how far The supream Author of this all excels this Star In this all comprehensive name I AM so condescending Eternall simple still the same all comprehending And in Emanuell sweetly seen In this fair Garden ever green Where daily with celestial showrs Be nourished His rarest flowrs Untill He glorifie His grace In such as here do Him imbrace MAZE 3. For incouragement Isa 55 John 1.27 HEre Soveraignity doth shine In condescensions so divine That ye whose lights are now anointed And for these glorious sights appointed On whom the Holy Ghost alone Hes left impressions upon Look in loves Christ-all mirrour clear Where loves sweet mystery does appear Firmly fixed till acquainted Thou be by faith therein indented This is the Mountain of our rest This sweetest Fountain only best Come drink salvation at this cup And on these consolations sup Where pleasures joy and peace abounds And glory to His Grace redounds Who Wonderfull will not conceal His Excellence but does reveal Himself so clear that we may read Him in His Name and on Him feed This Food who tasts shall thirst no more For fading gain or earthly glore But longing still to be translated Where they may be for ever stated MAZE 4. Loves mysterie 1 Tim. 3 1â— YE all who find your selves secure By lively saving faith and sure Who hes smell'd and who hes tasted Who hes felt and who hes feasted On these Love-dazling Mysteries divine Which on our cleared eyes do shine Of Man in God and God in Man Who sp'ritually destinctly scan Humanity still unconfounded With Deity and conjunctly bounded And do before The Unity in Trinity adore Advance that most admired Grace And feed upon that fairest Face For there alone and no where else That Love is found of love that smels That can be feasted on and felt The heart of Adamant can melt It 's life alone to be resolv'd In this this love to be disolv'd Tract it still and be allur'd So shall ye surely be secur'd O for these breathings of this Love That would the whole affections move MAZE 5. The fountain inexhaustible I AM THAT I AM GOD All Glorious I am that pure immense Ens entium Ens. Am I not wisdome infinite and love That omnipotent omnipresent whence I in my justice and my mercy move Am I not that sublime profound Abysse God Trinity in Unity compleat All truth all light all life eternall blesse Glorious holy Father Son Sp'rit GOD Holy Ghost eternall and infinite All Light all Life all Vertue pure compleat Irradiant being by whom all beings be Most blessfull breathings of the Vnity Sublime all-piercing and all-searching Spirit God Holy Ghost Eternall and Infinite E Expressed Splendor of the Deity M Might Majesty admir'd in Man Divine M Mercy rejoyc'd with Justice to agree A And Justice seen with joy in Mercy shine N Nerve of substantial Truth Illustrious fair V Wisdome and Well of Life where beauty springs E Eternall God of God God to declare L Lights Center where all Saints enlightned sings MAZE 6. Loves Labyrinth Eph. 5.23 THe race of man sprung from th'apostate reins deplorable And bitter root that all the branches stains restorable The mystery of man's defecting ponder The mind of God in mans perfecting wonder Perfected man degenerate by defection Defected man regenerate to perfection Adam by nature damn'd when he defected Damn'd Adam now refram'd by grace perfected O happy they may now we say Are such as sees with sp'ritual eyes aright these mysteries And do with reverence adore This Glorious Majesty before Fixed by faith till they prevail By pregnant prying through the vail The root of man elected leads this round And with the fruit of this great mist'ry's crown'd Come then and see the King as ye would live And by believing herein deeply dyve His power and his promise both believe So shalt thou see delight and love and live And with Heav'ns Quiristers adore and sing High Hallelujahs to this Glorious King MAZE 7. Loves mirrour Isa 45.22 LOve-dazled eyes look up and see Where purest spirits prying be And with seraphick love inflam'd You shall by fixing prove refram'd Gods only Son Gods rebell-wrath indure O love alluring Gods Sonship to Gods rebels to procure O large procuring We lay in darknesse till His glory shin'd And now He hes our souls in His combin'd Ingrav'd upon His Heart and Hands we be Ingrafted in His God-Man-Flesh be we Members more made Mates for Marriage loves To Him for whom the whole Creation moves In heaven and earth and hel whose scepter sweyes And dazles humane eyes with divine Rayes This Love all limits far exceeds Of length and depth and heighth and breadth Past comprehension by perusing A tractat for eternall musing Oh that our whole
how far above All finite apprehensions And unconceiv'd dimensions is His unchanged love Essentiall Simplicity Only sublime Infinity Supream transcendent Blesse Eternities unreachable Perfections unsearchable are absolutely His. This is our King He doth us claim And takes EMMANUEL for His Name us for his Spouse redeem'd Who unto sin and satan slav'd He sanctified hes and sav'd adopted Sons esteem'd Who is it then condemne that can The faithfull fruitfull Christian to Him that doth advert Where is that tribulation Affliction or tentation that can procure thy smart In this life Christian canst thou crave Better then did thy King receive since He so well allows Full freedom from these felt annoys And feelings of eternall joyes for all that Him avows Should we not chearfully with fear His dying in our bodie bear with Him who are to live Whose life shall be made manifest In such as purely have profest His Truth and thereto cleave Take courage then let come what can Christ and his crosse O Christian doth now the Crown preceed Delight to see the old man slain The New man form'd in thee again now by the divine seed Reviving Recollections and Soliloquies closing with the song of all Saints Rev. 7.12 SONG IV. O What sore troubles we endure By listning to the lyars lure What rescues rare do we injoy From dangers that should us annoy Bemisted under shadows here See not the perils that appear Till after trials we do track Them to the spring by looking back Darts of destruction daily flees From devils swift like swarms of bees The noysome Pestilence by night Maliciously pursues with might On Scorpions and on Serpents dread And on the Cockatrice we tread But sheltered be and and well preserv'd When they upon their spleen are starv'd And when we any pain abide Is it not when we step aside That on this stage we may fulfill Our task by time the truth untill And we by these characters spell The power that hes no parallel And by observance due do see That He hes an all-searching eye His retributive justice here And mercy precious doth appear Here doth the Well of Wisdome spring Knowledge and truth whereof we sing For in all generations Regions respective Nations In all imaginable places And in all conceived cases To all all times and every one All things are done by Him alone And done so well and wondrously That all men may admiring be And as they do admire adore His Royall Attributes before Whereby in time we timely taste And after time shall ever feast Upon that fulnesse when we shall Himself enjoy in and for all But Oh! How is 't that we can move In this infinity of love In this sublime simplicity Perfections and purity Immutable and all things moving Eternall Omnipotent proving O! What infirmity it is To slumber under so high blesse But Oh! How is 't we are not dying Th' excellencies that passes seeing Hearing knowledge or conceiving Till they come out above our craving When the Members all shall meet Incorp'rate in the Head compleat And as they have preserved been Unsearchably as they are seen Till one by one they be prepar'd And in appointed time declar'd All members moved by the mind Of him to whom they are inclin'd As by the weak resemblance here Of flesh and spirit may appear A fabrick wonderfully fram'd And strangly from the fountain stream'd Compos'd commixt conjoin'd divisive Wov'n var'ously visive invisive Hundreds above in numerous places Which from their office never ceases So naturally by nature led And by the vitall spirits fed Which by the soul her influence pure Unseen is set in order sure And seated in the brain doth move Each member for the mans behove And every instant at her will All powers do their part fulfill And she is every where perfecting Preparing dressing and directing As may make for the common right Wherein she daily doth delight How much more may we then believe Above what here we can conceive Of Him our Head who hes received More spirit then can be conceived And measures out abundantly To every member mightily All sp'ritual graces and anoints us As in His wisdome He appoints us Into our stations as seems meet To Him in whom we are compleat Anone alone that glorious day His Saints He shall so sweetly swey When we in regions ordered are Shining above the brightest Star Or as in constellations standing Minding only His commanding Who only minds the glorious blesse Of God who Universall is O happy day of all delights Wherewith compar'd are nought but nights The best of by-past dayes alone Compact and quintessenc'd in one One glimpse of which desired day Shall all afflictions past defray All anguish and perplexities Digested in festivities Of sp'rituall joyes for ever springing In His face to give us singing Renewing every minut store To raise our notes for evermore When all the mysteries manifold In Heavenly Pallaces inrold To admiration be revealed And nothing can be known concealed Which wondring still then shall we move Wrapt and rapt up in very love When many mighty men shall mourn And unto dens of darknesse turn Who desp'ratly did grace despise And mercy offered could not prise God to offend would not refrain And wisdomes warning did disdain Are now forsaken and in anguish Left eternally to languish And before felt-wrath shall flee Like lightnings sclenting through the skie Under the doom of torments chief Dying ever never relief Where Saints the righteous judgment reads That from their righteous Judge proceeds And all about the Throne the more Him in his mercy shall adore Then judgment just and mercy free The Dâ—apason sweet shall be Of all that Harmony compleat From members seeming infinite Ordered through these vast dimensions Extending over apprehensions And comprehended only be By the infinite Deity About the Throne of Glory then These millions of Elect men Through all that blessed boundlesse bounds With various and with vocall sounds With Angels pure pure Seraphims Exalt their King with holy Hymns For as the soul is full refin'd When glory thereupon hath shin'd So shall the body be made meet For to possesse the Holy Sp'rit By whom these curious Organs may Well managed His praise display In soul and body both to bring All Glory to our Glorious King SONG V. Of all Saints Rev. 7.12 Amen Blessing And Glory And Wisdome And Thanks-giving And Honour And Power And Might Be Vnto Our God For Ever And Ever Amen  AMEN AMEN for evermore Blessing to God whom we adore And to His Name which Glorious is Glory ascend in Glorious blesse And to the adored Deity Wisdome in all excellency And unto Him free Grace doth give Thanks-giving be by all that live And to His all-honoured Name Honour duely do proclaime And to Him who us preserves Power ascribe who power deserves And to the King Almighty high Might and eternall Majesty Be by all the Elect moving Unto God in Jesus loving Our God alone One Holy Sp'rit God
the naturall man by natures light Convinced be but never see aright Till by the Holy Ghost he be renewed And in the heart by speciall grace indued And led unto the new and living way Where closing with his Saviour he may Discern from whence these waters spring that flow And make the barren fruitfull ground to grow Come then incline divine assistance can From nature thee renew a spâ—ritual man Aright to see His condescensions Applying by firm apprehensions Him shining clear in His Anointed Who is for thy approach appointed For He unmov'd all motions moves Which minutly His praises proves Extracting from most clear distractions A cluster sweet of solide actions For all that is was or shall be Is His eternall wise decree Whose high designs ador'd as His duration Admits no parallel or alteration Whom we in Christ our Saviour sweet must see Imbrace enjoy or die eternally But come and do not in your dreg remain Take up the Book and read and read again A serious Survey of this journey take This Child of Grace through all his tryals tract Here shalt thou see an unseen strength sustain The weakest that hath at the battel been And wisdome shining in the most unwise Might make affections in a rapt to rise Which in the Babe new born again doth grow Whereby he doth in Songs of Praises flow A Garden here with arbors for reposing A Jewel clear the ground of all rejoycing A Fountain whence waters of life do spring A Mountain thence thou may'st with safety sing A Spirit here perceive our sp'rits inspires With sighs and groans and answers such desires Come then in faith and as thou seeks receive Light life relief from darknesse grief and grave In brief behold these whole assertions here By proof from truth believed made appear And He above believing shall convoy Thee with Himself Himself for to enjoy Himself who is thy Potent Prince Victorious Light Life Delight and Lover only Glorious Come then attend His call and humbly say Come Lord thy servant hears and shall obey A SURVEY Of the FIRST and SECOND DEATH Closing with a SEPARATION-KISSE Betwixt two intimate FRIENDS The SOVL and BODY By way of DIALOGUE betwixt NATURE and GRACE Under the Names of FLESH and SPIRIT Heb. 9.27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die but after this the judgement Ephes 2.1 And you hath he quickned who were dead in sins and trespasses 1. THE body of man is of the earth naturall earthy 2. The soul of man is of a spirituall nature spirituall 3. The two joyned together in the time of life make up a person 4. The separation of the soul from the body is the naturall death of the person 5. The separation of Gods favourable Presence by His Spirit from the soul is the spirituall death of the person 6. All the Off-spring of the first man by his apostasie and disobedience are deservedly deprived of Gods favourable Presence by his spirit so come to the world dead in sins and trespasses 7. All these the naturall Off-spring of the first man that be left in this forlorn condition living and dying in this darknesse and ignorance of God and do never attain unto the first resurrection do ly under the first and be lyable unto the second death at the last day 8. The Elect and Chosen of God be by His free grace in a time of love called and by the effectuall working of His Spirit moved to believe His word and to joine with Jesus Christ for Salvation By whom neverthelesse that they be spiritually dead in sins and trespasses they are by His Spirit quickned to see and serve the living God dying unto sin and living unto righteousness and thereby made partakers of the first resurrection Against whom the second death at the generall resurrection shall have no place 9. To be spiritually-dead the mere naturall man knows not nor by reason of his atheism can know till the second death sieze upon him first at the seperation of the soul and body and secondly again at the resurrection and judgment 10. The Believer knows by woefull proof what it is to be spiritually dead by the dead works wherein they have walked before they knew themselves under darknesse 11. The Believer knows likewise what the second death means by being sometimes from provocation and sometimes from tryall deserted and often kept at distance and of such continuance as hath been both a hell of torments and hes bred fearfull anxiety and knows also and believes the Scripture-descriptions of the eternall torments never dying death and dolour that the wicked atheist must endure and perish under everlastingly As also by being condemned in themselves and saved by the Lord they know what it is to be absolved from that dreadfull condemnation 12. As to the dissolution of the body albeit it be a beginning of the second death to the wicked as it is a preparation to the second resurrection of the Godly whose souls are then feasting upon their Saviour His Face in Paradice It may be more properly named a Sleep as it is often in Scripture especially seeing the soul hes had her night of partiall separation in the body suppose but short in comparison of time yet under many sufferings whereas the bodies night in its element is free of trouble and for the length of time it is to rest there under darknesse It is not considerable in respect of the splendor of that day of eternal glory which is at the out-breaking And seeing it is with this temporall death of the bodie that the Believer hes only adoe let us look a little more particularly upon it and specially as it concerns the Believer It is appointed for all men to die naturall death being the separation of the soul from the body is rightly named unto mere naturall man the King of terrours A metaphor from a King or Tyrant who is unresistable for power unsatiable and unexorable for cruelty undefatigable for persistence furnisht with all manner of forces for execution in all places at all times through all the Continent where any of the sons of men takes life attending them constantly till every one of them fall under the fatall and finall stroak And there is nothing created in this Universe whether from within us or from without us from the furthest remote of the Stars to the least pile of grasse or pickle of dust which were all created for our good but hath been or may be the occasion of this dissolution As also by what means amongst so many and at what time so uncertain unto any that it is a wonder that the rationall creatures who knows themselves subject to it can think of it without terrour and most terrible that the most of men are over-turned before they think seriously of it But here appears the greatest wonder that ever any of the blind-born deservedly forsaken and self-lost generation of apostate man should come to know any more hereof then
strange combustion does it make As if in shivers it should shake And when that revolution's spent The second to essay is bent But when the time prefixt is run Must be renew'd before begun Right so our hourly changes are Which seem to us irregular They be by divine art compos'd And wisely done as well propos'd So that this last of time shall crown All that is past with high renown Believe believe this shalt thou see With these thine eyes most certainly Were there not thousands in thy case When I was sent thee to imbrace Into the womb and can God misse Now in accomplishing thy blesse Me to direct again aright To fetch thee up unto his sight And I so long who was conversant With thee and with thy case acquaint Shall I not know thee love thee move thee And thou delighted be to prove me So now confirmed in the faith to meet This be a kisse of separation sweet FLESH Dear soul I dow not let thee go Nor dare I sweet soul say thee no Shall I refuse thee thee my life Shall I consent O fearfull strife I must agree my life to give Or grieve him dying by whom I live I am convinc'd I ought to yield Creation only wields the shield But death by sin doth beat it down Now new Creation is my crown It moves me likewise dearest Lover Who art alone my nearest Mover To see thee thus so long detain'd With me where we be daily stain'd The Galley-slave in fetters ty'd With sad affliction daily try'd Can have no more desire to be Deliver'd hence then thou of me And reason more for he 's but fred Of grief but thou with glorie clad I from this life have thee deferr'd Too long now let me be interr'd Suppose with losse of life I be Divorc'd from thy society So as thou may more blesse enjoy Then can compare with my annoy Sprent out spring up at thy desirings Possesse the prise of thy aspyrings For here I do consent and say Angels conduct thee in the way And I am moved to believe That thou wilt come me to relieve In that day of refreshing clear Which we confide shall soon appear Spirit Enough enough it 's all I crave Sincere submission to have For that I entered this debate Lest out account should come too late Now shall I further let thee see Thou shalt me fail or I fail thee And would thou have me with thee hence When thou denuded art of sense Thee to enjoy was my delight Albeit it was my drowsie night As thou a time must be absented Yet are we so by faith indented And sure ingrafted in our Head Living we be when seeming dead Let us while we do live believe And so we shall by dying live Hence carnall thoughts hence natures night Welcome now sweet celestiall light Light light light light light light so bright What we have seen sets out of sight And makes us to conceive of seeing Above the bounds of this our being Hence incredulity vile ghuest That faithlesse fears does still suggest O happy choise by closely cleaving Unto our Life by firm believing Thy glory by degrees begun Now fred of suff'ring and of sin And I shall still attending be Again to be possest of thee The fathers of the former ages The greatest and the gravest sages The clearest Saints that e're were seen Our meeting there shall not preveen Where We our Husband Head and King Enjoying shall his praises sing In glory unconceivable where we Shall God for evermore adoring be The FIRST and SECOND RESURRECTION AND THE GENERAL JUDGMENT Closing with a SONG of DEGREES Ascending from what we were to what we are and from thence to what we shall be after time AS AN INTRODUCTION TO That New SONG of endless PRAISE ot be taught in and entered unto when there shall be no more time Matth. 25.31 to the end When the Son of Man shall come in His glory c. 1 Cor. 15.12 to the end Now if Christ be preached c. THe Resurrection of the body and the Generall Judgement is universally acknowledged where Christianity is known except amongst the brutishly ignorant or the profest Atheist But if it were so known and believed as it is condescended unto it would put Believers to a more serious study to try their condition then they be at as yet for who could indure to know believingly that living and dying in their naturall estate without the interposition of a Mediator and Saviour for their restauration they being raised up to join with their soul again should then be cast down in utter darknesse finally and rejected of God totally deprived of all further expectation of grace the gnawing worm of conscience wakened the wrath of a sin-revenging God upon the guilty person where in these everlasting burnings amongst innumerable legions of devils and numberless multitudes of condemned men they be to indure eternal torment Can it be imagined say I that any person so believing and that there were a possibility of recovery could be in rest untill they had unto their utmost endeavour used all imaginable means not thinking any pains too great if it were in compassing the Continent and the coasts of the sea for timous relief If we seeing one of our neighbours in the extremity of a Gout a Gravel-stone or Gangren And that we were certainly perswaded that within such a short space we should be in the very like condition unlesse we did apply our selves to such a Person who could assuredly prevent this so fearfull terrible and horrible torment would there be any delay made or difficulty impede us in our journey for finding out the Physitian Much more if he were at hand making offer of our relief and the removall of all our fears could we make the refusall Again Is it not evident that the most part of men do intangle themselves in most dangerous travels and troubles for gaining of a little uncertain treasure pleasure or preferment whereunto few attain And where attained is past before it be well possest Is it possible then that if the Resurrection of the body and the General Judgment were believed and the blessed condition of those that have accepted of the offer of grace in time and the utter ruine and eternall perdition of all such as have contemned this Great-salvation to sieze upon them in that day when they shall call to the mountains to fall upon them and cover them from that fierce wrath which undoubtedly they must underly for evermore No certainly it is neither probable nor possible but if these Truths were believed there would be little rest amongst the Believers untill they attained to that assurance of relief that might give them solide rest And yet every man is so convinced that none that is worthy to have the name of a man dar be so shamlesse as to deny such unquestionable truths seeing that thereby they should be found to deny the Scriptures of God dyted by His own
He hes trod the wine-presse of Gods wrath alone and none with Him He hes bruised the head of the old serpent that was lifted up against us He hes given the deadly stroak to all our enemies led them captive and cast them under chaines of darknesse unto the condemnation of the great day and were there ever man or Angel could have imagined of such things to have been done for them And is it possible for us out of the deepest of our conceivings to think seriously of these wonders that the Lord hes eternally designed for us and in time done for us and not be ravished with the admiration of them and over-joyed in belief of them And yet what lesse could He have done for us seeing it was His holy and eternall determination to espouse us to Himself and for that end to sprinkle us with His bloud that we may be imbraced and put beauty upon us that we may be loved by Him who is all love and admitted to His Bed-Chamber and Breasts of consolation where feasting upon that all-fulnesse and unconceivable sweetnesse that is in Him we may say and sing As we have heard so have we seen In the City of our God and of our King A SONG OF DEGREES Ascending from what we were in Nature to what we are in Grace and thence to what we shall be by believing NOw Saviour dear my soul receive Flesh blood and bones slides to the grave Grace hath procur'd by argument Of Nature now a full consent That the body shall remain Asleep till I return again And that I shall approach and prove Sweet Saviour now thy saving Love Amongst these mansions shining bright Where souls are feasting on thy sight And at what instant thou dost call The body then assume I shall That thence restor'd for evermore We in thy face may God adore That seeing there as we are seen Where never cloud doth interveen Nor subtile serpent shall appear With syren songs to tempt the ear Nor interrupt our Songs of love So set our present thoughts above As is the Heaven of heavens so far From thoughts infirm that finite are But yet because the Glory there Transcends believing let us spare And set our Songs in order right According to our present Light Of faith which fraught with wonders clear By pond'ring makes grac'd-men admire His Love and beauty still increasing While we His praises be expressing Let us make His Glorious Name Our deepest thoughts our chiefest theam So as we may with singing move In joyfull Songs of Praise and Love His Name His Name most highest high Essentiall God in Majesty Who with the Father and the Sp'rit As Counseller did take delight In this most Glorious Universe And here with men for to converse By wisdome viewing all the wonders That now appear surpassing numbers In these magnificent degrees And statutes of eternities All things by Omnipotency From nothing op'ning instantly Omniscience all things observing His providence all things preserving In all their comings goings courses Places cases and recourses According to their inclination Set by supream preordination Of that eternall counsell standing And unsearchably commanding Seen and unseen varieties Diversities rarieties From that Infinity proceeding Transcending this dimm twi-light reading Even in these clear excellencies That obvious be unto our eyes Far lesse find out Him infinite In His perfections full compleat Incomprehensible and pure Uncheangable that does indure But let our faithfull thoughts be fixt Upon that new creation next Wherein we deeply be concern'd To dive and be divinely learn'd Not by the line of humane learning But by the spirit of discerning To know how that most fatall fall The race of Adam damned all Deserv'dly left and so forlorn In bands of death and darknesse born Till in that Counsell now admired That wisdom wonderfull umpired Mercy and justice entering band In upright righteousnesse to stand To ransome from that rotten stock And so redeem a saved flock By sep'rating a second Root That should produce a precious fruit And by a sappie substance firme Regenerat renew confirme Whereby the power of His Sp'rit The marvell of all marvels meet When Members mysticall implanted Be in the divine nature fainted As being in the Head divine Where God doth in His fulnesse shine For by this mysterie adored Christ mystical's from death restored Here Soveraignity does shine And Love anterior to time Unto the Elect does appear Illustrious and shining clear Omniscience observing all And every one about this ball In every one and all their cases That by His pleasure He imbraces Omnipotency such preserving As be convinc'd of no deserving His providences likewise prove The firmnesse of His faithfull Love The travell of His Soul reviving In that all-wonderfull contriving And fully satisfi'd therein Because the fruit should purge our sin Whereby we ly in bands of wrath Untill we do apply His death Opening our eyes to see with grief Our selves and Him a sure relief Firmly fixing in our thought The wondrous wayes whereby he brought From nothing us to nature then From reasonlesse to rationall men From reason render'd reasonlesse Not standing in our steadfastnesse But prostitute to sinfull lust Were under death and darknesse thrust Again this true eternall Love Mov'd by His Sp'rit again to move Upon that then confused masse More marr'd then the first Chaos was When this good Sp'rit to order wrought That glorious work from nothing brought Whereby we may our weaknesse see The more observant hence to be Impressions pressing on the heart From which he never will depart Untill His Image be repair'd And we for glorie be prepar'd But guides us all the way we go And when we wander warns us so That through a world we are led Of snares that be before us spred Where swarms of devils are devising Daily our darkned souls surprizing And what a fray of lusts unclean Are from the spawn of satan seen Kindled and cannot quenched be Untill corruption crushed be O wonder now and wondering sing The praises of this wondrous King God His own Son Gods sole delight The life of man the worlds light Man to redeem mans nature taking That he might die for mans up-making Obscur'd be put to grief and brusing And all with chiefest pleasure chusing In time prefixt His Seed to see EMANUEL marvelous will be And now as then divinely seeing Imbraces in this glorious being Every minut under time Souls redeem'd from every clime Where this glorious Gospel's sounding Alairts and parts this globe surrounding Swarming up in severall Legions Received in celestiall regions And ordered in prepared places According to their gifted graces This is our glorious King of Hosts Sing to His praise you blessed ghosts For at His feet youâ— foes do fall While He conveens combines you all Because your high and glorious Head His fulnesse you and Members made His pains your gains His glory now Made Him delight to be with you Angels in these wonders using Minds apted rapted be in musing And ministring their service still Adoring do His glorious will And Souls redeem'd their songs begin This glory as they enter in And we in contemplation now Delight to sympathize with you In your triumphant state adoring Your King and in His glory soaring Swiming in Oceans of delights And visions of transcendent sights These glorious objects of your seeing The subject of your singing being When His comfortable reflectings Shines upon your crosse neglectings And your putting Him to grief Meets with this Royal Grace-relief Seeing now as you are seen And knowing that you might have been Amongst the damn'd by your deserving Under utter darknesse starving Where millions every minut rumble And in endlesse torments tumble While you upon His face do feed And the righteous reasons read Of all His judgements just and high That holy and unchanged be When all the Generations Of men since the creations And Angels come both good and bad To hear their sentence sweet and sad When at the twinkling of an eye The wicked shall rejected be And will endure eternall pain Rather then see that face again In righteous judgement justly burning For their grievous guilty spurning When the Faithfull father'd aright Remain rejoicing in His sight Who be of His rich grace the seed And now incorporate in the head Wherein of God all fulnesse growes And on the Members overflowes Here men and Angels clearly see The Counsells of eternity Wherein the Son of God rejoyced Eternally to see proposed This state of Sonship to the Saints With whom espoused now He haunts In heavens of blesse so far above As is the heavens we see to move This earth above and passe accounts As infinite finite surmounts From ev'ry severall soul whose cases Differs further then their faces But when in these infinities We enter and eternities And in the pleasures thereof placed And glory there by grace imbraced According to the great design Of God our Lord doth then resign Power Kingdome and authority To God alone who sets him free Of all his foes who be brought down When he receives the Royall Câ—own Of triumph now Christ mysticall Fully compleat who filleth all Now in Hiâ— Bride redeem'd rejoycing And she with joy on Him reposing In these vast dimensions bright Where He alone is all her light Life diet and delight alone The subjects of their Songs each one Nor could created-heavens contain These glorious Songs there heard and seen Sounding out from every airt And every soul a severall part And in such order sweet compos'd As all the heavens shall be rejoyc'd In the uncessant consolation Of this redeemed corporation When the King of Kings the Head A King hes every Member made And Priest to offer praises due And constantly their Songs renew But as we said so let us cease Towards these mysteries to prease Eye hes not seen ear cannot hear Nor heart conceive till we appear What for the Chosen was prepar'd And then it duely be declar'd Only by believing this Shall be above believing blesse And blessednesse which might allay All our wrestlings in the way And under hope the soul sustain Untill we may the fruit obtain When we shall joine and be victorious In that triumphant state so glorious And springing through the Skies shall sing All joyfull praises to our King FINIS