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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	heart_n	spirit_n	word_n	8,255	5	4.2520	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43573	Closet-prayer a Christian duty, or, A treatise upon Mat. VI, VI. tending to prove that worship of God in secret is the indispensible duty of all Christians ... together with a severe rebuke of Christians for their neglect of, or negligence in, the duty of closet-prayer, and many directions for the managing thereof ... / by O. Heywood.	Heywood, Oliver, 1629-1702.	1671 (1671)	Wing H1762; ESTC R24371	90,506	148

positive Scripture-warrant to bind my conscience I dare not do otherwise I may say If I be deceived thou hast deceived me but I am sure plain Texts are no cheats I cannot otherwise understand such a Command and oh my God since thou hast thus ingaged me in thy work wilt thou suffer me to miscarry therein 4. He pleads a particular promise I will deal well with thee Surely a comprehensive word containing in it all that Jacob wanted Thus must a Christian search the Scriptures get hold of a promise spread it before the Lord whether for spiritual grace inward comfort or outward supply as thus Lord I find a promise in such a place to a person in my very case pat and pertinent to my very condition as if it had been calculated purposely for me in this juncture now Lord make it good to my Soul and Seed thou hast made it good to others in my state and why not to me Am not I an heir of promise And must not I have a share therein 5. Jacob lays himself under the sense of his own unworthiness I am not worthy saith he of the least of all thy mercies This is the property and excellency of a Saint to nullifie himself and Omnifie God as I may so say thus Abraham in his pleading calls himself dust and ashes and the Centurion judged himself not worthy that Christ should come under his roof Thus then abase thy self Lord I am not worthy to enjoy any common mercy not fit to lift up mine eyes to thee less than the least of thy mercies behold I am vile I am not only destitute of merits but full of demerits Hell is my desert I can challenge nothing as mine but sin and the fruits thereof Lord I condemn my self do not thou condemn me and cast me from thee 6. He is affected with Gods faithfulness in the performance of his promises acknowledging the truth of God shewed to his servant There is mercy in Gods making a promise to Abraham Mic. 7.20 truth in making it good to Jacob. Well then with Jacob thus plead Lord 't is true there was nothing of desert in me to engage thee either to make or keep thy gracious promise but sure the word is gone from thee yea and notwithstanding all my treachery and unfaithfulness thou hast kept it to this day Oh keep it still it depends wholly on thee let not my vanity alter the course of thy mercy but pardon and accept as thou hast done from my Aegypt until now 7. Jacob further recounts his former meanness his low condition With my staff I passed over this Jordan I came hither in a poor contemptible manner a sorry pilgrim thus do you plead Truth it is Lord thy grace is absolutely free there was neither wit nor wealth to move thee to do what thou hast done I can remember the time when I was as sorry and silly a creature as was in all the Countrey there was no capacity in me to do thee any remarkable service thou didst not set thy love upon me for any natural or moral accomplishments even so Father because it pleased thee and wilt thou now forsake me Thou mightest have done that at easier rates 8. Here 's Jacob's Stone of memorial for by-past and present mercies Now saith he I am become two bands i. e. two great companies of wives children servants flocks herds I may say These where had they been 'T is strange to see poor worm Jacob thus rich oh the bounty of God! So do thou say Lord take notice what thou hast done for me must all this be in vain Wilt thou throw away these good things Wilt thou not rather crown these gifts with continuance of thy kindness Wilt thou return to do me hurt after thou hast done me all this good Dost thou not remember my convictions consolations my fears tears doubtings refreshments Oh the passages of love betwixt thee and me Shall I be the grave of these mercies Lord forget me not 9. Here 's his sense of approaching danger Deliver me I pray thee from the hand of my Brother for I fear him c. A Brother offended is harder to be won than a strong City Jacob's danger was a spur to his Prayer A pursued Hart runs fast for shelter so do thou Soul when afraid flie to the Lord and say Oh my God I have deadly enemies within without my case is forlorn desperate I have none to run to but thy self Hast not thou said that in thee the fatherless find mercy Other refuge fails me no man cares for my soul Lord relieve deliver this sinful wretch else I go down into the pit 10. Once more doth Jacob plead the promise and inlarge the granted Charter Thou saidst I will surely do thee good and make thy seed as the sand of the Sea Thus do you still seek out suck sweetness from and put in suit the promises by earnest prayer In this manner Lord hast thou not promised an heart of flesh a broken heart Why then is my heart hardened from thy fear Dost thou not say thou wilt give thy holy Spirit to them that ask it This Lord I want to be a spirit of truth and illumination a spirit of prayer and supplication a spirit of grace and sanctification and of satisfaction Oh bestow this mercy upon me Dost thou not promise to take away my inqiuities by pardoning Grace for thine own Name sake And to subdue my corruption and increase grace and bring me to glory Lord remember thy word unto thy servant in which thou hast caused me to trust Thus much for helps in pleading with God and for that use of Instruction CHAP. VIII An Vse of Exhortation urged SECT I. THe last Use is for Exhortation to put us on to the performance of this sweet duty of Closet-Prayer My beloved friends I beseech you suffer the word of Exhortation you see the work before you you see a plain Scripture-warrant for it you have heard many Instances of Scripture-patterns you see the manner of the performance let none now plead ignorance or look upon it as needless or make excuses or evasions Is it not equal and reasonable Is it not worth the while to converse with your God in a Corner Look over the reasons of the Doctrine and see if there be not some weight in them But besides those I shall propound to you these expostulatory Motives 1. Would you not be such as make conscience of every commanded duty You are no real Saints unless you have respect to all Gods Commandments Psal 119.6 If you pick and chuse in your obedience you are hollow-hearted hypocrites And can you deny this to be a duty And will you stand dodging with God Must he raze this Sentence out of the Bible to humour your conceits and sloth Is not Closet-Prayer a Christian duty Dare you argue against it Out of what Topicks will you fetch your Arguments And do you acknowledge it to be a duty and

86 Sect. 2. 4 Duties consequent to it 87 1 Observe Gods appearance ibid. 2. Walk suitably 88 Sect. 3. 3 Wait for Returns 90 4 Communicate Experiments 91 CHAP. VII Sect. 1. Concerning matter or words of prayer 94 1 Lords-Prayer is paraphrased 95 Sect. 2. 2 Wherein an example propounded from Jacob Exod. 32.10 in ten particulars 98 CHAP. VIII Sect. 1. 4 Vse of Exhortation to Closet-prayer pressed by ten Expostulatory Arguments 103 Sect. 2. Objections answered as 1 I perform Family-duty Answ 110 2. I am a poor Labouring man Ans ibid. 3. I am a Servant and cannot Ans 111 4 I want a convenient place Ans 112 5 I know some Christians against it Ans 113 Sect. 3. 6 I find not my heart prepared Ans 114 7 I meet with temptations Ans 115 8 I get no good by it Ans 116 9 I want gifts for it Ans 117 10 'T is too much ado labour Ans 118 Sect. 4. Cases of conscience answered 1 What difference betwixt Saint and hypocrite 120 2 Whether may a man ingage by vow 121 3 How may we know communion with God 122 4 What must I do if I find no good ibid. The Whole concluded with Exhortation 124 MATTH 6.6 But thou when thou prayest enter into thy Closet and when thou hast shut thy door pray to thy Father which is in secret and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly CHAP. I. SECT I. The Context cleared IN this excellent Sermon of our precious Saviour in the Mount we have both the Gospel clearly Propounded and the Law solidly expounded The corrupt and carnal Pharisees had degraded God's holy Law from its spiritual extent and regiment by their low and literal glosses but our Saviour restores it to its dignity and authority over hearts and consciences In this Chapter the best Preacher that ever opened his mouth doth admirably explain the Adjuncts Offices and Exercises of true Piety which are principally three Alms Prayer and Fasting to ver 19. Particularly concerning the Duty of Prayer there were two material destructive Faults which the Scribes and Pharisees were guilty of in that sweet and solemn Ordinance Those were 1. Hypocrisie 2. Battologie or vain-babling Jesus Christ rebukes and rectifies both 1. They were wont to perform their private devotions in publick places meerly for vain-glory to be seen of men as in the Synagogues or in the Streets ver 5. Now for the Disciples practice in this case he commands them to withdraw themselves out of the view of men into some solitary place and there perform that Duty where they are least exposed to the danger of ostentation ver 6. 2. Another fault that our Redeemer rebukes in the Duty of Prayer is vain Repetitions And though he only mention it here as the Heathens fault ver 7. yet certainly the Scribes and Pharisees might also be guilty of it for they are censured for their long Prayers Mat. 23.14 Yet upon different accounts Here the Heathens use vain repetitions that they may move God There the Scribes and Pharisees make long Prayers that they may deceive men and devour Widows houses This Text saith They think they shall be heard for their much speaking just as Baal's Priests 1 King 18.26 They called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon saying O Baal hear us they leapt upon the Altar and cryed aloud and cut themselves with knives and lancers till the blood gushed out upon them No doubt this was done to move their cruel god or rather stupid block to some pity and compassion Just as the frantick Papists do at this day in their self-tormenting penances But our God who is the searcher of hearts delights more in ardent affections than in either extension of the voice or multiplication of words or excruciating afflictions of the outward man Therefore our Saviour tells us that when we pray we come not to inform God of any thing he is ignorant of ver 8. Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him But we pray that our own hearts may be affected and that we may have the condition of acceptance And for the rectifying of this abuse of vain babling in Prayer Christ propounds and presents to us an exact draught and compendious platform of Prayer in that which is commonly called The Lords Prayer not as though men should say only those words and no more for then the Apostles had failed in praying in other terms but that this might be a directory for Prayer So that every thing we ask Ut aliter orare quam docuit non Ignorantia sola est sed Culpa Cyp. serm ad orat Domin pag. 408. should be reducible to some of those heads mentioned in this perfect platform So that as Cyprian saith To pray otherwayes than he hath taught either as to the manner or substance of the matter 't is not only ignorance but an offence and indeed we cannot expect to be heard except we ask as well according to Christs mind as in his name But this is not the subject I have chosen to insist upon That which falls under our present cognizance from this Text is The modification of Prayer with respect to the circumstance of privacy solitariness or retirement The Text holds forth the warrant for and manner of carrying on the great work of Closet-Prayer a copious Subject a precious Duty In which are 1 The Place for it a Closet 2 The clossness of the place Door-shut 3 The object of the worship Thy Father 4 The Arguments to inforce thy Duty 1 Gods omniscience he sees 2 His munificence will reward SECT II. The words opened FOr a more distinct opening of the words according to the parts before-mentioned consider 1. What is meant by a Closet here Some understand and interpret it not literally but mystically making an Allegory of it as though it did import interiorem cordis recessum the inner recesses or motions of the heart but though that be a truth and duty That we must pray in the closet of the heart yet I humbly conceive that is not the proper meaning of this place for we need not interpret this plain word in such a borrowed sense since multitudes of Scriptures are so express for worshipping God with the heart Besides that is not suitable to the scope of the place which opposeth self-retirement to the Pharisaical modes of devotion Leigh in Crit. Sac. in verb. The word then is to be literally taken and in general imports any secret place where a thing is laid up Mat. 24.26 Luk. 12.3 particularly it signifies a Safe or Cupboard to lay victuals in or a locked Chest wherein a treasure is usually reserved or it s taken as indeed here and oft elsewhere for a closs or secret chamber a withdrawing-room Quemvis locum occultum notat Par. retiring-place where a person is not seen or heard nor yet is disturbed in his devotions by any noise or

to make the right use of solitariness by having recourse to God No man cares for being alone but the serious person and no man cares for going to God when alone but the sincere Christian Man is a sociable creature and naturally we have no mind to entertain our selves by our selves A carnal heart hates a domestical audit men that have shrewish wives love not to be at home and persons that have guilty consciences cannot endure to hold discourse with them left they be tormented before the time Oh but a Christian that is upright and down-right would know all that concerns his own heart the best and worst therefore he communes with his own heart Psal 77.6 as David did and left he miss or mistake in his search he turns him to the heart-searching God by Prayer and cryes out to him to search his heart and discover him to himself The life of Religion consists in a souls communion with God in secret a man hath so much Religion as he hath betwixt God and his own Soul and no more A true Saint dares approve his heart to God in a Corner He is there exercising himself like a Souldier by himself handling his Pike and keeping his postures that he may be better fitted for a more solemn onset Yea a Christian doth purposely withdraw himself from company that he may converse with God Papists are true Christians Apes hence comes the solitary life of Monks pretending to imitate Eliah and Elisha John Baptist and the Apostles but 't is acknowledged by Hierom and great sticklers for a monastick life that this practice begun not till about the year 260 or 300. Some say Hilarion others Paulus Thebaeus others Antonius begun this manner of conversation But certainly there is a vast difference betwixt those ancient Christians solitary life and the Papists way of Monastick living 1. Those first Christians lived solitary of necessity that they might lye hid more safely in a time of persecution 2. They were not compelled to give all to the poor 3. They were not bound to a certain Rule nor did they ingage themselves by a perpetual Vow to that place and state Vid. Perk. Demonstr problem Monach. p. 227 228. but might change their manner of life if they saw good they were not bound as to meats marriage fasting 4. These ancient Monks were of the Laity not of the Clergy nay not so much as Deacons or Presbyters 5. They had no conceit of merit in a Monastick life till these latter ages I may add 6. Clarks Eccles Hist fol. 13. Those ancient Monks had a particular Calling and did work as the Monks of Bangor that lived by the sweat of their brows and 7. They were not tyed up from conversing abroad as there was occasion and occasions there are manifold 'T is not fit persons should be always coopt up in a Corner but that they be of use to others in their places and capacities We were not born for our selves nor must we live only within our selves which would contradict the Law of Love and Charity Vita solitaria communi inferior est quia importunis cogitationibus plena quae tanquam muscae minutissimae de timo surgentes volunt in oculos co●dis interrumpunt Sabbathum mentis Ivo Carnatensis Epist 258. Videsis plura in Perk Ubi supra demonstrat Monasteria veterum ut plurimum faisse scholas publicas i. e. communitates docentium discentium A constant solitariness exposeth persons to a world of temptations it is not good to be alone saith Solomon An ancient could speak it from his own experience that a solitary life is inferiour to a common conversing because 't is full of importunate cogitations which like little flyes arising from dung fly in the eyes of the heart and interrupt the Sabbath of the mind Thus he But I need not trouble you with the mention of Popish Fopperies A right-bred Christian that hath learned the truth as it is in Jesus being thrust into a Corner knows how to improve solitariness for soul-advantage and voluntarily doth withdraw himself into a Corner that he may set himself to the work of God in good earnest Hence saith the Apostle concerning Husband and Wife 1 Cor. 7.5 Defraud ye not one the other except it be with consent for a time that you may give your selves to fasting and prayer Thence note that it 's convenient sometimes for Christians to sequester themselves from nearest Relations Vide Pareum in loc that they may have freer communion with God in holy Duties Only let these four cautions and limitations of the Text be observed 1. That it be with mutual consent 2. But for a Season 3. The end an advantage for Fasting and Prayer 4. That they come together again This respects not every days ordinary performances but some solemn undertakings of stated and extraordinary Fasts in a day of danger or calamity at which time the Bridegroom is to go forth of his Chamber and the Bride out of her Closet Joel 2.16 i. e. to sequester themselves from conjugal delights to afflict their souls by Fasting and Prayer But in these cases a sound Christian's due discretion regulated by the general rules laid down in Scripture will help in such performances that he may not dash on either rock of Superstition or Negligence but maintain a closs and constant communion with God both in the duties of his general and particular calling in publick Ordinances and in private and secret duties Thus much for the first Use CHAP. IV. The Second Vse viz. of Reprehension SECT I. Wicked men reproved 1. HEre is just ground of sharp rebuke to all graceless prayerless persons who understand nothing of this duty they know not what it is to tug and struggle with the Lord in Closet-Prayer David saith The wicked through the pride of his countenance will not seek after God God is not in all his thoughts Psal 10.4 He cannot pray aright any where much less in secret the same Psalm tells us what he doth in secret ver 8 9 10. In the secret places doth he murder the innocent his eyes are privily set against the poor The Apostle saith It is a shame even to speak of those things that are done of them in secret Eph. 5.12 Oh the abominable practices of prophane spirits in a corner Their consciences can tell them sad stories of secret sins which none but the God of Heaven and themselves know of yea because they see not God they think God sees not them like the silly bird because she thrusts her head into a bush thinks she is hid from the Fowler though her body be exposed to open view carnal mens Maxim is like that Monkish one Caute si non Caste Carry it warily if not chastly if they can hide their sin from men they take no notice whether God see them or no and from wishing that he did not see begin to suspect whether he do see or no and

tears and groanings in secret Oh sirs if others sins draw you not to secret Prayer let your own which may afford matter of abundant grief in your Closets and retirement 8. Would you not prevent and circumvent wicked mens secret plots Be sure then you undermine them by secret Prayer The Devil and the Pope have many closs and conclave consultations to undermine the Protestant Religion and to root out the name of Israel from under Heaven they are working under ground to do us mischief we have seen by the light of London's flames their hellish devices in their dark vaults Wicked men lye in wait secretly as a Lion in his den to catch the poor and murder the innocent Psal 10. Psal 64.1 2 4 5. 8 9. And now what course is to be taken for preventing these horrid designs Alas we have no other remedy but the ancient Christians weapons Prayers and Tears these may break their nets and blunt their weapons good Jeremiah knew not that they had devised devices against him but he reveals his cause to God in prayer and then God shews him their doings and prevents their attempts Jer. 11.18 19 20. Saints Closet-prayers may break wicked mens Closet-plots Fall closs then to this great duty 9. Would you not be condemned by the Heathens Chamber-Idolatry Oh then do you perform Chamber and Closet-Duties They had their Divos penetrales or Penates their Houshold-gods and Closet-images they had their opertanea and tenebrosa sacra their covered vailed and mysterious exercises in secret places And the Jews borrowed several mystical rites of the Heathens hence we read in Ezek. 8.12 of Chambers of imagery as the Papists at this day have their Crucifixes their petty-Chamber Closet deities where they drop their Beads and do homage to their Idols and shall these in their blind superstition condemn our irreligion Shall it be said of a devout Philosopher that in so many years he spoke more with the gods than with men And shall it be said of any of us that God even the true God is not in all our thoughts or so little in our lips at least in secret solemn addresses to him Let not poor ignorant Papists out-strip us in devotion Since there is such vast difference 10. Would you not be suitable to Gods dispensations When the Lord our God puts us to silence and into solitary places he expects that we should visit him there Cant. 2.14 Oh my Dove that art in the clefts of the rock in the secret place of the stairs i. e. in an afflicted persecuted and desolate condition Let me see thy countenance let me hear thy voice i. e. in the duties of Prayer praise and Gospel-Ordinances For then was her voice sweet and countenance comely when they are cast out then doth God expect and entertain them And this advantage have Gods children had by privacy into which they were cast as we heard before of Jeremiah Chap. 15.15 So the afflicted Church Lam. 3.28 29. When she sitteth alone in solitariness then she putteth her mouth in the dust in fasting and prayer and so a particular person as there Now a man is at leisure for it While persons have their full imployment or enjoyments they are too busie but when persons are taken off other wayes 't is time to retire themselves and retreat to God The less comfort persons find in publick Ordinances the more serious must they be in Closet-performances that the loss may be supplied some way SECT II. Several Objections Answered T Is strange if our carnal hearts and cavilling spirits have not something to say against this difficult duty I shall therefore mention what Objections I can foresee may be made and briefly answer them 1. Obj. We pray in our families and is not that enough What needs all this ado Answ 1. This Objection cannot be made by all some have no Families to pray with but if thou dost pray in thy family 't is well there 's many graceless heads and prayerless houses Of which it may be said The fear of God is not in this place Oh the wrath that shall be poured out on such Families But suppose thou dost Family-prayer is one thing and Closet-prayer is another and let me tell thee God never made one duty to supersede another you must not justle out one work because you are bound to perform another Every thing is beautiful in its place and season Gods Commandments are exceeding broad and take in a great compass of duties You must worship God in your Houses that exempts you not from worshipping God in your Closets no more than in the publick Assemblies There 's equal commands for all necessity of all neglect any at your peril Besides I told you a Child of God hath a secret errand to his Father that it is not fit his family should know of and upon this account God hath appointed Closet-Prayer as tendering the credit of his people that they might not discover their spiritual nakedness to any but to that God who knows their secrets and will keep their counsel And I must tell thee Soul thou art very little sensible of thy spiritual state or wants if thou have nothing to say to God that thou wouldst not have others to hear 2. Obj. But I am a poor man and busie in my calling and cannot take so much time in Closet-Prayer I have other occasions Answ Friend hast thou any greater business than the affairs of thy soul let thy calling stand still rather than thy soul should be damned Cursed be those occasions that eat out Religion But consider you may follow both Callings if you be observant our general and particular callings must not interfere Clean creatures divided the hoof considerate Christians are such as rightly proportion works to their particular seasons A chief part of David's Arithmetick of numbring daies was in that which we call Division to cast the account of this our short life so as to divide the little total sum thereof into the several portions of time due for performing every duty in The hand-maid may not thrust out the Mistress nor the Shop have all and Chamber none of our time You are flat Atheists if you think Praying will hinder your work No no Nobis pietate pecul●a C●escunt Mant. it blesseth and expediteth temporal affairs We use to say Meat and Mattins hinder no work Canst thou not get time for eating sleeping Yea dost thou not spend as much time in idleness and vain discourse as would be required every day for this duty If thou hadst an honest heart thou wouldst redeem time from thy meat or sleep or recreations for Prayer rather than neglect a duty or damn thy soul The truth is we complain we want time but we waste time There 's not the poorest Labourer but he mis-spends more time than Prayer-time comes to And why should any water be left off when there 's little enough in the channel to turn the Mill for or towards our