of partition between us having abolished the Enmity not only by thy Death but in thy Life thine Exampl as wel as Precept engaging us to lay aside those distinctions wherby Schism and Faction curtail our Kindness and hinder our mutual Edification And tho unnecessary Conversation with leight or scandaIous persons is to be industriously avoided and very warily admitted yet when a just Occasion or accidental Providence brings a vicious person into my Company let me rather improv the Opportunity to reclaim an Offendor than be deterr'd from using my best endevor to save a Soul from death throu the Shame or Fear of being censured a Friend of Publicans and Sinners as thou my Lord and Master hast often been who like a merciful Physitian wouldst rather inspect our very Corruptions than neglect the Cure even of a lascivious Harlot such as this Samaritan seems to be for when thou didst bid her Go call thy husband and she replyed I hav no husband thou couldst tell her In that thou saidst truly for thou hast had five husbands and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband implying that in case he were husband to some other she lived in Adultery if not yet she lived in Fornication with one not espoused to her self §. 4. This particular Discovery of the privat Transactions of her own life made by one that was wholy a Stranger both to her Country and Person induced the Woman to confess unto him Sir I perceiv that thou art a Prophet and on that consideration she enters upon the Debate of a publick Controversy which had been so violently maintained between their two Nations that the Iews would hav no Dealings with the Samaritans supposing a person so extraordinarily qualified very fit to decide the matter in Dispute which she states thus Our 〈◊〉 worshipped in this Mountain and ye say that in Ierusalem is the place where men ought to worship I prais thy Holy Name O thou Reconciler of the World not only For asserting the Truth of the Jewish Church and the Error of the Samaritan in this thy positiv Reply Ye worship ye know not what we know what we worship for Salvation is of the Iews but likewise for opening a way unto their Reconciliation and removing the Occasion of the Difference by saying unto the Woman Believ me the hour cometh and now is when ye shal neither in this Mountain nor yet at Ierusalem worship the Father but the tru Worshippers shal worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth Lord since thou hast no longer confined thine Adorers to attend thy Service in one determinat place but dost will that men pray evry where lifting up holy hands I humbly beseech thee let this our Christian 〈◊〉 engage us to the more hearty and sincere Attendance as wel on thy publick Ordinances as our privat Offices of Religion remembring that God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in Spirit and in truth for the Father seéketh such to worship him §. 5. The Woman being hereby convinced of her Error the better to express her readiness to embrace the further Revelation of the Gospel saith unto him I know that Messias cometh which is called Christ when He is com he will tell us all things I celebrat thy Gracious Name O Iesus For saying unto her I that speak unto thee am He. With what plainness dost thou own the truth and power of that thine Office to this Alien nay Enemy to the Commonwealth of Israel which thou didst with so much care reserv from the Notice of thine own Peepl the Mystery which thou didst couch under obscure Parabls and 〈◊〉 Sayings in thy many publick Sermons to them thou hast clearly unvailed in one short and plain Expression to this Samaritan O the depth of the Riches both of the Wisdom and Knowledg of God! how unsearchabl are his Judgments and his Ways past finding out My Gracious God since thou hast thus reduced into Practice what thou hadst long before professed to thy Servant Moses I will have Mercy on whom I will hav Mercy I humbly beseech thee hav Compassion on my Soul and vouchsafe to make thy self effectually known unto me who am wors than a Samaritan by Nature a Sinner of the Gentils in Conversation §. 6. As soon as thou O Christ hadst given her this open Evidence and Acknowledgment of thine Office and Authority the Woman as having forgot her corporal Necessities and tasted the Grant of the Request she had made unto thee Sir giv me this Water that I thirst not neither com 〈◊〉 to draw left 〈◊〉 Water-pot and went her way into the City and 〈◊〉 to the Men that-lived in her Neighborhood Com and see a man which told me all things that ever I did Is not this the Christ I magnify thy Name For the communicativ Virtu of the Christian-Faith and the gradual Propagation of thy Gospel therby Many of the Samaritans of that City having believed on Thee for the Saying of the Woman which testified He told me all that ever I did Let those apparent Notices of thy Will O my God which hav enlightned mine Understanding and engaged mine Affections in the Profession of the tru Faith render me zealous and succesful in publishing those sacred Truths wherof I my self am convinced that I may becom an happy and industrious Instrument to promote thy Glory and the Good of others whether they be my Brethren and Neighbors in the flesh or not since throu him who came and preached peace to us which were afar off as wel as to them that were nigh we are no more Strangers and Foreiners but are made capabl of becoming fellow Citizens with the Saints and of the hous-hold of God by being built upon the foundation of the Apostls and Prophets Jesus Christ himself being the chief Corner-stone §. 7. In the mean while his Discipls who were newly returned with the Provisions which they went unto the City to buy and marvelled that He talked with the Woman prayed him saying Master eat But he said unto them I hav meat to eat that ye know not of I prais and magnify thy Name O Jesus Becaus wheras thy Discipls were apt to mistake thy words in a carnal sence as appears by their questioning one with another Hath any man brought him ought to eat thou hast fully explained the spiritual Meaning therof by this thy gracious Declaration My Meat is to do the Will of him that sent me and to finish his Work O hevenly Father create in me I beseech thee the same Mind which was in thy Son Christ Jesus that I also may prefer doing good in my Generation before my necessary Food and esteem the Performance of those things which are agreeabl to the Will of thy Holiness my chief Repast and Satisfaction such Acts of Obedience and Charity being capabl to 〈◊〉 my Soul unto Everlasting Life while the daily Bread which my Body stands in need of doth perish in
Presence O Blessed Jesu and for the powerful Influence of thy Spirit manifest therin even before thy Manifestation to the World Help me O Lord so to correspond with Thee in thy gracious Visitations as to discharge all the Offices of Lov Friendship and Christian Piety incumbent on me toward all Relations that I also may be a Joy unto thy Servants and they such unto Me as Thou art unto us all And let the voice of thy Salutation sounded in mine Ears by the Ministry of thy Word make me Blessed in believing that there shal be a Performanre of those things which were told us from the Lord as wel concerning the second Coming to judg the World as hath already been of thy first Coming to redeem it §. 8. O my dear Redeemer who in making choice of this Holy Virgin to be thy Happy Mother hast regarded the low Estate of thy 〈◊〉 preferring that before all the outward Pomp and Grandeur wherwith we are too fondly taken to giv us an instructiv Instance that Humility is the Fountain and Fore-runner of Honor for behold from thenceforth all Generations do call 〈◊〉 Blessed My Soul doth magnify the Lord For He that is Mighty hath don great things and Holy is his Name He hath shewed strength with his Arm when He put down the mighty from their Seats and exalted them of low degree to help his Servant Israel in remembrance of his Mercy Lord since the Poor and Lowly in heart are so acceptabl in thine Eys teach me to lov Retirement and delight in Devotion as this Elect Virgin did and make me truly content and happy in the lowest degree wherin thy Providence shal think fit to place me And since thou art graciously inclined to fill the hungry 〈◊〉 good things let her Faith in relying on God's ancient Promises of Mercy which he spake to our Fathers to Abraham and to his Seed for ever her Wisdom in treasuring up all thy Sacred tho Mysterious Verities her constant Obedience to thy revealed Will her exemplary Humility amidst all thy Graces conferr'd upon her and that Spirit of Prais and Thanksgiving wherwith she rejoiced in God her Savior added to her modest Chastity and holy Fear replenish and adorn my Soul and Life in all Estates and Conditions for thy Mercy is on them that fear Thee from Generation to Generation §. 9. O thou Day spring from on high who throu the tender Mercy of our God hast visited us to giv Light to them that 〈◊〉 in Darkness and in the Shadow of Death to guide our Feet in the way of Peace Blessed be the Lord God of Israel For he hath visited and redeemed his Peopl and hath raised up an horn of Salvation for us in the house of his Servant David Lord grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hands of our Enemies may serv Thee without fear in Holiness and Righteousness before Thee all the days of our Life till we acquire the saving 〈◊〉 of thy Salvation given unto thy Peopl by the Remission of their Sins §. 10. Holy Jesu With what Wisdom didst thou delay thine Incarnation so long With what Mercy no longer Thou didst defer it so long that the Scriptures fore-going it might testify of Thee according to that saying In the Volume of the Book it is written of Me to the end all holy Souls in the sundry Ages and Nations of the World might be filled with Expectations Desires of Thy Coming in the Flesh and confirmed in their Faith by the Prophecies accordingly fulfilled Yet wouldst thou not delay it longer that the Over-flowings of thy Lov in the Fulness of Time might satisfy all holy Longings with the Accomplishment of thy wonderful Incarnation in order to our compleat Redemtion I prais and magnify thy Name For the exceeding Riches of thy Grace and Wisdom treasured up in this thy mysterious and sacred Dispensation Beseeching thee that as Thou art the 〈◊〉 of all Nations so to render thy self altogether lovly in mine eys O vouchsafe to com into my Soul in the fulness of thy Compassion for the Pardon of my Sins in the fulness of thy Grace to subdu my Lusts and in the fulness of thy Power to strengthen me in resisting Temtations as thou camest in the fulness of thy Lov to redeem me from their malevolent Influence §. 11. O Blessed Jesu who didst endure nine Months Confinement in thy Mother's Womb til the days were accomplished that she should be delivered that beginning at the Root of our Nature thou mightest throuly cleans its Original Corruption I magnify thy Sacred Name For thy patient Conformity to thine own Laws of Nature attending till her ordinary Time and Method should open the doors of the Matrix for thy Releas Lord moderat that Impatience wherwith we usualy crave any expected Good and that Eagerness of mind which precipitats us into irregular Courses to evade whatsoever we fancy uneasy or troublsom And when I am reduced to any great Strait enabl me with a contented Patience and humbl Resignation to wait on Thee my best Aid and Exemplar for Deliverance in thy good time §. 12. When as his Mother Mary being espoused to Joseph was found with Child before they came together and that just man not willing to make her a public Exampl was minded to put her away privily the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a Dream saying Joseph thou Son of David fear not to take Mary thy wife for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost and she shal bring forth a Son and thou shalt call his Name Jesus for he shal save his Peepl from their Sins I celebrat thy saving Name For fulfilling that which was spoken of the Lord by the Prophet saying Behold a Uirgin shal be with Child and shal bring forth a Son and they shal call his Name Emmanuel Evidence thy self O Jesus to be God with Us. in making us tender of our Neighbor's Reputation and instead of judging rashly according to appearance let us rather follow the Dictats of thy Grace if not from the immediat Direction of thy Holy Spirit yet according to the charitabl Prescriptions of thy Holy Word §. 13. Then Joseph being raised from Sleep did as the Angel of the Lord had bidden him laying aside all the unkind Determinations of his mistaken Jealousy I prais and magnify thy Name O God For that steddy Faith and perfect Resignation wherwith this thy Servant entertained the Intimation of thy Divine Will who was not disobedient to the hevenly Vision but readily submitted to the Authority of the Message without disputing the Truth or Possibility of the Mystery therin revealed Lord render me more inclinabl to employ my Talent in a hearty Obedience to thine express Commands than spend my Time in the fruitless Disquisition of those unaccountabl 〈◊〉 which thou hast been pleased to reveal from Heven And let his unparallel'd Abstinence who took unto him his Wife and yet
Inhabitants thereof may at length be induced to beat their Swords into Plow-shares and their Spears into Pruning-hooks And in order to the publick Peace put an end to mens privat Animosities and pacify the particular Commotions of their Minds Compose all our tumultuous Passions whensoever they arise regulat our disorder'd Appetits subdu our pervers Wills and reduce all our unbridled Affections and Faculties to so serene a Temper as is meet for the Reception and Obedience of that Great and Only Potentat whose Name is Wonderful Counsellor The mighty God The Ever lasting Father The Prince of Peace §. 8. O thou Eternal Son who art the Wisdom of the Father and hast endued thy Church with such a Degree of Prudence and Gratitude as to institute and observ an Annual Feast for a constant Memorial of thy Nativity to confirm our Faith re-inforce our Duty redoubl our Praises and repeat our Thanks so that being filled with thy Graces by a du participation of thy H. Sacraments in a grateful Commemoration of the Word made Flesh we may all conspire to celebrat thy salutiferous Birth with Eucharistical Joy I magnify thy Name For the great and diffusiv Efficacy of thy outwardly mean and 〈◊〉 Nativity the Fame wherof hath so marvelously prevailed over all the Earth that the Gentils are com to thy Light and Kings to the brightness of thy Rising Strengthen and direct thy Church the Pillar and Ground of the Truth to maintain the Beauty of Order and the Virtu of H. Disciplin together with the Form of sound Words in her Doctrin throu-out all Ages that all her Members may with one Mind and one Mouth glorify God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ by celebrating all such Festivals with holy Joy in Unity of Spirit and the Bond of Peace as are instituted for the Honor of thy Mercy the Glory of thy Wisdom and the setting forth of thy Goodness Power in this great and inscrutabl Mystery of Godliness God manifest in the Flesh. Ever-blessed God who evry year refreshest us with a re newed Birth of devout Affections by the Welcom Memorial of our Savior's Nativity Grant that we may entertain this humbl Rising of the Sun of Righteousness with such ardent Devotions as may better dispose and engage us to follow Him who enlighten'd the World with his Truth and enflamed it with his Lov til we acquire as great Abilities as we hav Obligations to join with the Celestial Choir in Singing the Angels Carol Glory to God in the Highest on Earth Peace Good Will towards Men. Cap. III. Of His Circumcision §. 1. When eight days were accomplished for the Circumcising of the Child tho the Power and Innocence of my Gracious Redeemer might well hav exemted Him from that rigorous Ceremony yet did the Holy Jesus freely submit therunto at once to obey the divine Law acquit Us from that bloody Rite and giv us many useful Instructions I prais and magnify thy Name O Christ for substituting a more easy Sacrament instead of that sharp Ceremony wherunto Thou thy self hast submitted and teaching me by this thy voluntary Condescension to yield ready Obedience to all the Ordinances of God how severe and grievous soever they seem to Flesh and Blood Let the Endearment of thy tender Lov in undergoing those hard and painful Rules from which thou hast thought fit to releas thy Church engage evry Member therof to wave all Pleas of Dispensation or Priviledg which may seem to countenance any Remisness in the discharge of our Religious Duties And when the Iniquity or Violence of unreasonabl Men who frequently impose greater Burdens than themselves are willing to bear shal make it necessary for me either to observ any unwarrantabl Injunctions or undergo any severe Penalties rather than transgress thine express Will inspirit me with Grace and Corage patiently to submit therunto but withal render me cheerfuly conformabl to all those wel advised Constitutions wherby our lawful Superiors either in Church or State hav thought fit to regulat our Deportment in things indifferent §. 2. O thou tru Messiah whose Name was called JESUS being so named of the Angel before thou wast conceived in the Womb I giv thee all possibl Thanks and Prais For making good the gracious Purport of this thy Name in saving thy peepl from their Sins O Blessed Jesus since by the Imposition of this adorabl Name the Holy Ghost hath made a publick Declaration that Thou art com into the World to save Sinners save me I beseech thee who am the chief of Sinners let me tast and see how gracious the Lord is in the Healing Influence of this Name A Name that doth charm the dullest Ears and revive the drooping Hearts of miserabl Sinners infinitly beyond the sweetest Accents of Musick and therefore is exalted abov evry Name even by God himself which hath made it highly reasonabl whatever any cavelling Hypocrits either by their irreligious Doctrin or Deportment argu to the contrary that at the Name of Jesus evry knee should bow in 〈◊〉 in Earth and under the Earth and that evry Tong should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father In Obedience to which Divine Decree I prostrat my Self before Thee O Lord I worship Thee O Christ and humbly beg Thee on my Knees to be my Jesus my Savior §. 3. O Holy Jesus who in this first tho small Effusion of thy Blood didst pay the Earnest of that Debt which thou hadst undertaken to satisfy as our Surety I bless thy saving Name For thus obliging thy Self to fulfil the whol Law and expiat its Violation on our 〈◊〉 How early began my 〈◊〉 to suffer He shed his Blood almost as soon as he drew his Breath O my Soul defer not to execute His Will who seem'd impatient to procure thy Welfare at the price of his Blood and instead of abusing his exact Obedience for a Cloak of Libertinism let the Exampl of his Perfection engage thee to follow his Steps in all holy Conversation And do thou O Jesu at once supply and satisfy for all the Defects of my frail Obedience §. 4. This bloody Character of Circumcision left the Impression of God's Seal upon Believing Sinners that they bearing in their Bodies the Marks of the Most Holy might be put in mind whose Servants they are and what Duty they ow. I humbly adore Thee O Jesus for submitting to the Imputation of Sin and the Penalties consequential therunto tho thou knewest no Sin Lord Let this Prospect of thine Exinanition in taking upon Thee the form of a Servant yea a Sinner who art God blessed and holy for ever not only banish all those irregular Desires of Esteem which lurk in my bosom but also render me industrious to be truly Holy not to be thought 〈◊〉 And may this beginning of Sorrows in Thy 〈◊〉 abate all the Vanity and Niceness of Mine §. 5. O my immaculat Lord Thou hadst no Lusts to 〈◊〉 no
the Preaching and Baptism of S. John §. 1. O My Gracious Redeemer thou didst send thy Servant John who grew and waxed strong in Spirit being in the Wilderness til the day of his Shewing unto Israel as a Messenger before thy face to prepare thy way before Thee by 〈◊〉 the Baptism of 〈◊〉 for the Remission of Sins wherin he exprest The Uoice of one crying in the Wilderness Prepare ye the way of the Lord make his Paths strait as it is written in the Prophets I prais and magnify thy Name For this suitabl Beginning of the Gospel of 〈◊〉 Christ the Son of God Let me learn I beseech thee from the Austerity of thy Fore-runner both in Apparel and Diet for the same John had his Raiment of Camel's hair and a leathern Girdl at 〈◊〉 his Loins and his Meat was Locusts and wild Dony so to comply with the Doctrin of Mortification and Repentance which he preached and practised that I may 〈◊〉 the Salvation of God And as the Peepl who went out to him from Jerusalem and Judea and all the Region round about were baptized of him in Jordan confessing their Sins so do thou baptize me with the H. Ghost and with Fire to the forsaking of mine that being effectualy warned to flee from the Wrath to com I may bring forth fruits meet for Repentance rather glorying to hav Abraham my Father in Faith than after the Flesh since God is abl of the very Stones to rais up Children unto him And now that the Axis laid 〈◊〉 the Root of the 〈◊〉 be graciously pleased to direct the hand that guides it to cut off the dead or luxuriant Branches of Sin and Folly that evry 〈◊〉 may bring forth good Fruit in stead of hewing down the whol Body to be cast into the fire §. 2. When the Peepl the Publicans and the Soldiers which came forth to be baptized of John asked him What shal we do Instead of requiring them to forsake their several Callings as unlawful or irreligious He recommends Charity upright Dealing and honest Contentment to their Practice in the du Use of them I giv thee Thanks and Prais O Jesus For making the Duties of Religion consistent with those of our Worldly Vocations Lord bless my conscionabl Industry in that lawful Emploiment wherunto thy Providence hath called me that by my honest Diligence therin I may do Thee Service in my Generation and working with my hands the thing which is Good may hav and hav the Heart to giv to him that needeth And yet let not my earnest Concernment for the things of this Life be pleaded in Excuse for my Neglect of a better but among all my most justifiabl Cares allow som Time and Thought so to attend on the Ministry of thy Word and the Administration of thy Sacraments as may best make a practical Expression of and giv a proper Answer to this Inquiry on the behalf of my Soul What must I do to be saved §. 3. As the Peepl were in 〈◊〉 and all men mused 〈◊〉 their hearts of John 〈◊〉 he were the Christ or not so that the Jews sent Priests and Levits who were of the 〈◊〉 from Jerusalem to Bethabara beyond Jordan 〈◊〉 he was baptizing to ask him Who art thou He denied not but confessed I am not the CHRIST nor Elias neither that Propher I indeed baptize you with Water but there standeth one among you whom ye know not He cometh after me and is preferred before me for He was before me tho born after me the latchet of whose shoos I am not worthy to unloos whose Fan is in his hand and he wil 〈◊〉 purge his 〈◊〉 and wil gather the Wheat into his Garner but the Chaff he wil burn with fire unquenchabl I prais and magnify thy Name O Christ For this Record of John who 〈◊〉 witness of Thee without seeking the Enhancement of his own Reputation by the envious Concealment of thy Person or Office Lord purge the floor of my Heart from all that Chaff of Vanity and Pride which renders me at any time inclinabl to deck my self with the spoils of that Honor which is only du to Thee that being littl in mine own Eys I may cheerfuly magnify Him who is mightier than I of whose fulness we hav all received even Grace for Grace which alone can fit us to be laid up in store for the Master's Use in his Hous not made with hands eternal in the Hevens for the Law was given by Moses but Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ who being the only Begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father hath declared that God whom no man hath seen at any time And since the same John being a man sent from God came for a Witness to bear witness of the Light that all men throu him might believ let this his publick Testimony hav its designed Effect upon 〈◊〉 man that cometh into 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not only confirming the tru Faith where it hath been already planted but creating it also where 't is yet wanting with so great a Power and Demonstration of the Spirit that altho the World which was made by him without whom was not any thing made knew him not while He was in the World yet it may never more be said He came unto his own and his own received him not but being now no longer born of Blood or of the Wil of Man but of God All Flesh may see thy Salvation and behold the Glory of the Word made Flesh as that of the only begotten of the Father who as verily was in the beginning and was with God and was God as he dwelt among Us ful of Grace and Truth And the good God of the Spirits of all Flesh grant that the Son of thy Lov in whom was that Life which was the Light of Men may shine in the Darkness that hath benighted the Children of this World til the Power or rather Priviledg to becom the Sons of God which He gave to them that believ on his Name 〈◊〉 graciously imparted to all the Families of the Earth by embracing the true Faith which hath saved as many as received him §. 4. Then cometh Iesus from Galilee to Iordan unto Iohn to be baptized of him having quitted his dear Relations and privat Occupation the more freely to begin and attend his Father's business I celebrat thy Name O my Dear Redeemer For leaving the Sweetness of a peaceabl Retirement to enter upon a State not only encumber'd with Sweat and Travel but also 〈◊〉 to Censure and Persecution for thy Church's sake I humbly beseech Thee let no Self-ends or more pleasurabl Enjoyments detain any one from undertaking such publick Duties as he is lawfuly called unto but when a more open Exposure may any way conduce to the general Good and Benefit of thy Peepl be a safe Retirement never so desirabl encorage us all to abandon our
Copartnership with the Holy Trinity wherunto the inordinat Devotion of some Superstitious Christians hath erroneously exalted and inshrined thy Virgin-Mother in these later and more corrupt Ages of thy Church Lord I beseech thee inlighten my Soul with such a discreet and tru Distinction between the Honor or Respect I may justly bear to thy Earthly Mother or any other of thy Saints enrolled in Heven among the Spirits of Just Men made perfect and that Homage and Adoration which I am bound to pay unto Thy Self in the Unity of thy Hevenly Father and the Eternal Spirit that while I commemorat the Grace Thou hast conferred on Her whom thy H. Angel hath authorized us to call Blessed among Women I presume not to rob God of his peculiar Honor who declares expresly I wil not giv my Glory unto another And herein I shal best comply with that Advice which She her Self gave to the Servants that attended on this Nuptial Solemnity Whatsoever he saith unto you do it for thence we may rationaly infer That our resolved and activ Obedience to Thy Divine Commands is much more likely to gratify her holy Soul in Heven than any irregular Expression of Religious Worship unwarrantably tender'd to her Self on Earth Cap. IV. Of His Acts at the first Passover §. 1. AFter this he went down to Capernaum with his Mother his Brethren and Discipls but they continued there not many days for the Jews Passover was at hand and therefore Jesus went up to Jerusalem where finding those that sold Oxen and 〈◊〉 and Dovs and the Changers of mony sitting in the Templ he made a Scourge of small Cords and drove them all out thence 〈◊〉 out the Changers Mony and overthrew their 〈◊〉 saying unto them Take these things hence I prais and magnify thy Name O Lord of Hosts thou Mighty God of Sabaoth who for the more publick and notabl Declaration of thy Power didst signalize the very Commencement of thy Ministerial Function by purging thy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an 〈◊〉 Authority from 〈◊〉 gross Prophanation of those 〈◊〉 made it an Hous of 〈◊〉 which was an Act so extraordinary as gave thy 〈◊〉 occasion to 〈◊〉 that it was written The zeal of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hous hath eaten me up May all Places religiously set apart for thy Worship be ever 〈◊〉 in a venerabl manner I beseech thee and in thy Sanctuary let evry man speak of his Honor that dwels there that when we 〈◊〉 upon Thee O God in the midst of thy Templ our Hearts being 〈◊〉 from all Sacrilegious Thoughts of Secular Negotiations which like a Cage of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are apt as wel to 〈◊〉 as keep a place in thy holy Habitation the Templ of thy more especial Presence may be as it ought a Hous of Prayer not a Den of Thievs §. 2. Most H. Jesus When the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thou 〈◊〉 these things questioned 〈◊〉 Authority saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thou unto us Thou 〈◊〉 briefly make Answer unto them 〈◊〉 this Templ and in three days 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 rais it up I celebrat thy Sacred Name For the hidden Mystery and yet most undoubted Truth couched in this thy prudent Reply which became easily intelligibl when thou wast risen from the Dead after that both Jew and Gentil had employ'd their utmost Power and Malice to destroy thee for then thy Discipls not only remembred that Thou hadst said this unto them but they 〈◊〉 understood that to be spoken of the Templ of thy Body which the 〈◊〉 misapplied to their material Templ in the building wherof forty and six years were elapsed I humbly beseech thee O Lord That the actual Accomplishment of all thy mysterious yet most infallibl Predictions may so enlighten the Understanding of thy Discipls in this later Age of thy Church as to engage Our Faith with no less efficacy than it did that of thy primitiv Followers who hereupon believed the Scripture and the Word which Jesus had said §. 3. O B. Jesus tho many 〈◊〉 in thy Name when they saw the Miracls which thou didst in Jerusalem at the 〈◊〉 in the Feast-day yet didst not thou commit thy Self unto them becaus thou knewest all Men I glorify thy great Name For this eminent Expression of the Divinity of the Son of Man who was so far abov the necessity of depending or relying on the faithless or feebl Generation of Adam that He 〈◊〉 not that any should testify of them for He knew what was in Man even while he vouchsafed to be conversant with them upon Earth in the likeness of Men. I humbly beseech Thee O Christ let the same Spirit which rested upon Thee be my Comfort and Support that from 〈◊〉 I lean not on any Child of Man for there is no Hope no Help in them but fully settl my whol Trust in God and commit the Keeping of my Soul to Him in Wel-doing as unto a faithful Creator And further teach me by this thine instructiv Exampl so much discreet Caution both in my Dealings with Men as may prevent the betraying of my Self to their deceitful Practices and in my Deportment towards God as may ever express me duly sensibl of 〈◊〉 Omniscience Cap. V. Of His Conference with Nicodemus §. I. WHen a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus came to Thee O Jesus by night with a privat Acknowledgment of thy Sacred Mission and unparallel'd Miracls which he wanted the Corage to avow in publick Thou wast gracioufly pleased without upbraiding either his Infirmity or Ignorance to discours the Mysteries of Regeneration to him in such a new and unheard-of manner as far exceeded the Knowledg of any Master of Israel I prais thy H. Name For all the profound and singular Excellencies of thy hevenly Doctrin wherby we know Thou art a Teacher com from God and for that convincing Method Thou hast made Use of to confirm it which was of force enough to make a Ruler of the Jews confess No man can do these Miracls that thou dost except God be with him Tho the Laws of Nature do not allow a Man to be born when he is old or enter the second time into his Mother's Womb yet by the Power of thy Grace let me I beseech thee 〈◊〉 born agen not of Water only but of the Spirit too that as I am naturally Flesh born of the Flesh so I may becom really Spirit born of the Spirit and be therby qualified both to 〈◊〉 and to enter into the Kingdom of God §. 2. O most holy and hevenly Doctor who didst represent to Nicodemus the unaccountabl yet apparent Motions of the H. Ghost in the mysterious Regeneration of evry one that is born of the Spirit by this apt Similitude The wind 〈◊〉 where it listeth and thou hearest the Sound therof canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth which drew him that was learned in the Matters of the Law to own his Ignorance in the Method of the Gospel by putting this Question 〈◊〉 can these things