Hell's everlasting flames avoided, and heaven's eternal felicities injoyed containing the penitent sinner's sad lamentation for the deplorableness of his impious life ... : also holy preparations to a worthy receiving of the Lord's Supper ... / by John Hayward, D.D.

Hell's everlasting flames avoided, and heaven's eternal felicities injoyed containing the penitent sinner's sad lamentation for the deplorableness of his impious life ... : also holy preparations to a worthy receiving of the Lord's Supper ... / by John Hayward, D.D.

Table of contents

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Title page

TO THE Christian READER.

THE PENITENT SINNER Bemoaning and Bewailing the DEPLORABLENESS OF HIS IMPIOUS LIFE. PART I.

A short View of the Horrors and Terrors the Damned in Hell.

The Penitent Sinner's Holy Resolutions to a thorough Reformation.

•ome Considerations of the Glory of the Saints in Heaven.

SOME HOLY PREPARATIONS To a Worthy Receiving of the BLESSED SACRAMENT OF THE LORD's SUPPER.

The Necessity of this Duty pressed from several Portions of Scripture.

How we ought to examine and resolve with our selves before we Communicate in this great Ordinance.

A Prayer to be used before the Receiving of the Blessed Sacrament.

At the time of Receiving, you may use these Ejaculations.

At the Receiving of the Bread, say,

After the Bread, say,

Before Receiving of the Cup, say,

Devout Prayers, Praises, and Thanksgivings upon several Occasions.

A Short Collection of some of the Holy Resolutions of Holy DAVID, concerning Prayer and Praises.

Some few of God's Promises to those that truly serve him, and call upon his Name.

A Morning Prayer for a Family.

An Evening Prayer for a Family.

A Prayer against the Temptations of the Worl• the Flesh and the Devil.

A Prayer for the Remission of Sins.

A Prayer before a Sermon.

A Prayer to be said after Sermon.

A Prayer against wicked Thoughts.

A Prayer in Prosperity.

A Prayer for one that is going to Sea.

A Prayer in distress of Weather at Sea, either by Storm or Tempest.

A Thanksgiving for a safe Return from Sea.

A Prayer for one that is going a long, Journey

A Prayer for a sick Person.

A Prayer for a young Virgin.

The Wife's Prayer for her Husband.

The Widow's Prayer.

A Prayer for a Woman with Child.

A Thanks giving for safe Deliverance from the Perils of Child-bearing.

A Prayer for all Christian Vertues, as Love, Faith, Hope and Charity,&c.

A Prayer for all Earthly Blessings.

Graces before and after Meat.

Grace before Meat.

Grace after Meat.

Grace before Meat.

Grace after Meat

Grace before Meat.

Grace after Meat.

Grace before Meat.

Grace after Meat.

HYMNS and Spiritual SONGS of Praise to Almighty GOD, for our happy Deliverance from Popery, and the horrid Cruelty and Barbarity of Blood-thirsty Men.

A HYMN.

A SONG of Praise.

SONG II.

A Song of Praise.

A Song of Praise.

A Prayer for King William.

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Licens'd and Enter'd according to Order.

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Ma [...]thew 25. ve. 3 [...] Come ve Blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom [...] prepared for you &c▪

[...]thew 25. ver. 41 Depart from me ye Curse [...] [...] Everlasting Fire prepared for the Dev [...]

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HELL's Everlasting Flames AVOIDED, AND Heaven's Eternal Felicities INJOYED.

The First Part.

Containing the Penitent Sinner's Sad Lamentation for the Deplorableness of his impious Life. With a short View of the Terrors of the Damned in Hell; and his Holy Resolutions to a thorough Reformation; with some Considerations upon the Glory of the Saints in Heaven.

Also holy Preparations to a Worthy Receiving of the Lord's Supper: With Devout Prayers, Praises, and Thanksgivings upon several Occasions; with Graces before and after Meat.

To all which are Added

Hymns, and Spiritual Songs of Praises to Almighty God for our happy Deliverance from Popery and the horrid Cruelty and Barbarity of Blood-thirsty Men: With an excellent Prayer for King William.

By that eminent Divine, Mr. John Hayward.

The Tenth Edition.

London, Printed for Robert Gifford, and are to be sold at his Shop in Old-Bedlam, without Bishopsgate. 1696. Price bound▪ 1s.

TO THE Christian READER.

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AS you tender the Everlasting Welfare of your Precious and Immortal Souls, cease from doing Evil, learn to do well; and with this humble Penitent, take a view and look back upon what you hav [...] been a doing ever since you came in to the World, to this day, and I doub [...] not but that you will find you hav [...] been too much like him, in doing th [...] which you ought not, and leavin [...] that undone which you ought to do Therefore let him be your Pattern and take up with him in his Resolutions, which is fully to leave h [...] [Page] old course of Life, and to follow on hard after the Lord; and to seek him while he may be found, and to call upon him while he is near; and to press forward towards the Mark of the high Calling of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, for which end this small Piece is Published.

And that you may reap this Benefit by it, of finding Acceptance with the Lord Jesus, and by his Merits be received into Glory, is, and shall be the Constant and Hearty Prayer of

Your Soul's Cordial Friend, JOHN HAYWARD.

THE PENITENT SINNER Bemoaning and Bewailing the DEPLORABLENESS OF HIS IMPIOUS LIFE.
PART I.

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Psal. xi. 6.

Upon the Wicked he shall rain Snares, Fir [...] and Brimstone, and a horrible Tempe [...] This shall be the Portion of their Cup.

O Christ the Son of the most H [...] God, the Saviour of most mi [...] rable Men! who for us Men, a [...] for our Salvation, left thy Glorious Ha [...] tation in the highest Heavens, whose B [...] fed Body was buffetted with Fists, to with Whips, stretched upon the Cropierced with Nails and Spears, and bath in the sweet Streams of thy own preci [...] Blood, for the Redemption of all [...] [Page] kind: O Father, O Restorer, O Preserver of Life! to thy Majesty, to thy Mercy my sinful Soul, full of fresh bleeding Wounds, full of old corrupted Sores, sick to the Death with the surfeit of Sin, would willingly present it self, and send a few faint Groans unto thy heavenly Ears.

But alas! the greatness of my Disease ha [...] almost taken away the sense thereof: and so horrible is my corruption, that I fear I shall offend thy pure Presence, and altogether turn thee from regarding me, thine Ear from attending me; and thy Compassion from relieving me; for I have a sharp Testimony within me, which accuseth, which condemneth; that altho' in words I have profess'd thy Service, yet my Actions have charged my Tongue with Untruth: For I have never subdued my own Will, and [...]elinquisht the Prey whereon it hath fed, which Conquest is a necessary part of Christian Duty, to obey the Pleasure. But I have remain'd Proud, Ambitious, Angry, Cruel, Rash, Vain-glorious, Envious, Covetous, Deceitful, Delicate, Sensual, Idle, Light; a great lover of my self, of my Flesh, of my Estimation, of all wordly both Advantages and De [...]ghts. I have added Folly unto Blindness, [Page] Malice to Ignorance, and Obstinacy to Offence: I have sinned with a high hand against thee, and more impudently should I have sinned, if, as I had ended with my Conscience, I had ended also with my Shame. In a word, all my Passions have been so lively and strong, that I cannot cast my trembling thoughts into any corner of thy Commandments, but my Conscience giveth me a sharp conviction, and crieth out guilty against me.

Adam did once taste of one forbidden Fruit, but I have often tasted of all; I have broken every Branch of the Tree of Good, which thou hast commanded, and of the Tree of Evil which thou hast forbidden: I have taken delight in all sorts of sins, not always for pleasure, but either in meer Licentiousness or depraved Custom▪ and many times not without great trouble and toil, even as the Prophet said, Jer. 9. 5. They have taken great pains to do evil.

Behold, O gracious Lord! the Guides which I have followed, the Friends which I have affected, the Counsellors which [...] have credited, and the Masters which I ha [...] obeyed; with these have I lovingly liv [...] with these have I loyally kept my Fai [...] even wi [...]h the Appetites of my filthy Fle [...] [Page] with the Transitory Treasures of this World, bathing my unhappy Soul in the soul and foolish Pleasures of this Life: These have been my Gods, these have been my Idols, but now they are my Accusers, now Witnesses against me, now my Judges, now my Tormentors.

I am far more wretched than I can possibly imagine; and altho' I think that I am at the very bottom of my Misery, yet do I find my self to sink daily more deep in the Mire. I am one of the most poor and wretched Creatures in the World, I am one that hath most abused thy benefits, and if thou hadst wrought so much both by secret Inspiration, and by outward means in them of Tyre and Sidon, even in other great Sinners, as thou hast wrought in me, they would have converted unto thee in Sackcloth and Ashes. I am unworthy of the service and use of any of thy Creatures; I am unworthy to lift up mine Eyes towards Heaven, and more unworthy to speak unto thee, but most of all to [...]eceive from thee those Comforts and Consolations wherewith thou usest to cherish thy Children.

O Sin, the very Bane and Death of my Soul, was it not enough for th [...]e to infect [Page] a heedless Creature with thy Poyson, bu [...] thou must make it so ugly and loathsom [...] that the Eye of Mercy should not endu [...] to behold? Was it not enough for thee [...] crush it in pieces with thy weight but tho [...] must also go to stop the Ear of Pity wit [...] Horror, and the Mouth of Praye [...] [...] Shame? Was it not enough for thee to draw me to destruction, but thou must all so take from me both the sense of my Grief, and the sight of my Danger? an [...] consequently the Cure of the one and the Care of the other?

I was wounded and I felt it not; I w [...] wounded unto death, and I perceived [...] not; I was bound, I was beaten, an [...] [...] garded it not; yea, my deadly [...] were a delightful tickling unto [...] I took pleasure in satisfying the [...] my Lusts, and like Solomon's Fool, I laug [...] ed when I was lashed; for I was not m [...] self when I was without thee, neither desiring nor discerning that which was good nor yet shunning, nor yet seeing tha [...] which was evil.

I became in the Passage of all my Act [...] ons, not only foolish, but altogether sensless; for thou are truth, and I was [...] out thee: and thou art Life▪ and I was [...] [Page] out thee; and as one that always continues in places of unsavoury smells, perceiveth no annoyance, or as a brutish and savage Life seems civil to him who hath continually been brought up in the same, because Custom changeth into Nature, and one Contrary is not known but by the other; even so I did not think my self in Misery, because I never knew what Felicity meant, and because I never knew either the Beauty or Stability of a vertuous Life: I did not think that vice had made me so unseemly, and so unsound; continual use confirmed Impudency, and took from me the Opinion of Sin.

True it is, that I found a few Sparks of thine Image within me, but they were few indeed, and of little force; which I did so continually quench or abuse, that thro' them I can expect no profit at all, but rather to be made inexcusable before thee.

Alas how am I deformed, how am I defiled! O Almighty God and Everlasting Father! My fainting Soul groaneth and gaspeth for thy Grace, but it is abashed at thy Glory; I would fain intreat thy Mercy to heal me, but I am loth to offend thy Majesty in beholding me: I am ashamed to lay open my Iniquities, and yet (woe is [Page] me) I cannot appear before thee withou [...] them. Ah these my sins! how do they distress, how do they distract me? they desire to be seen, but they are unwilling to be shewn, lest they should be detested they are not healed without Confession▪ and they are not heard without Confusi [...] ▪ If they be covered they cannot be cured and if they be opened they must needs be abhorr'd: In the mean time their sharpness pierceth, and their weight presset [...] me, they torment me with Grief, the astonish me with Fear, they confound m [...] with Shame.

What shall I say, or what shall I do Wretch that I am! whither did I bend my pace, and to what pass am I now come what have all my Pleasures been unto m [...] but as Fruit eaten before it be ripe, which will set the Teeth on edge, and posse [...] the Body with dangerous Diseases? What have I been in all my Travels in the Affairs of the World, but as a sick Man tumbling and tossing in his Bed, he expecting ease in his change, and contentment, ye [...] both of us deceived alike, because whithe [...] soever we turn our selves, the cause of ou [...] disquiets remaineth within us? O Christ I did not set thee before my Eyes, and [...] [Page] I dare not appear in thy sight: I rejoyced but not in thee; I am troubled, but thou art not with me. Alas, better it were to be nothing, than to be without thee, without whom all things are nothing; better it were to be dead than to be without thee, our Life.

Therefore, O my Soul! wicked, wretched Soul! shake off this death of Sin wherein thou wallowest, and wherein thou wanderest; raise up, rouse up thy self from this dangerous dulness, call to thy consideration, unhappy Creature, from whence thou runnest, where thou art, and whereto thou hastenest; the favour which thou forsakest, the horror wherein thou abidest, and the terror whereto thou rendest.

Thou wast once wash'd clean with the Heavenly Fountain of Baptism, with the pure Robe of Righteousness, endowed with the Joys of Heaven, and espoused to thy Saviour Christ; but now thou hast by impurity of Life soiled thy self with sin, defiled that glorious Garment, broken those sacred Bands, and made thy loving Spouse both thy great Enemy and severe Judge.

O Christ, how can I forget thy Goodness? and yet, how dare I remember thy Greatness? since I have denied thee with [Page] Peter, betrayed thee with Judas, and run from thee with the rest of thy Disciples, nay more, with the cursed and cruel Jew [...] I have mocked, blasphemed, buffered and scourg [...]d thee, spit upon thy glorious Fac [...] and torn open thy tender Wounds: Ther since I have committed their cruelty, what hope can I have to avoid their Curse that thy Blood be not upon me and my Posterity.

Alas, miserable Wretch! in what Pat [...] have I walked? In what Pollutions have wallowed? and in what perplexities an now plunged? wherein the consideration both of Good and Evil, tormenteth me a like: of Good, with grief of that which have lost: of Evil, partly with sense o [...] that which I sustain, and partly with fea [...] of that which I expect.

I have lost Glory, I feel Shame, I fea [...] Punishment; the loss is by me irreparable the shame inexcusable, the fear inconsolable: O miserable Estate! O uncomfortable Condition! not only to be depriv▪ of unspeakable Joys, but also to be aflicted with intolerable Pains.

O Sin! the defiler, the deformer, the destroyer of Souls! from how high a pitch [...] Happiness hast thou dejected me? [...] [Page] how deep a Gulf of Misery hast thou depressed me? with what a World of Woes hast thou inclos'd me? here Woe and there Woe, and a very Hell of Woes is heaped upon me. Justly, Lord, justly am I thus tormented; for I have been faint, yea, false in the charge thou hast committed unto me; I have thrown away my spiritual Weapons, I have forsaken the Field of Christian Combate, and not only cowardly yielded, but Traitor-like, I have turned to the Prince of Darkness, my greatest Enemy.

I have cast off my Saviour, and cast away my self; I have forsaken the Society of Saints, and joyned my self to a company of the Damned. O Hellish Companions! I have abandoned the Palaces of Heaven, and built me a Nest in the loathsome Den of Hell: I am altogether become an Abject from God, and a Subject to the Devil.

What hast thou done? O mad Man! O mischievous! O monstrous Man! what hast thou done? what a woeful exchange hast thou made? what a lamentable loss hast thou incurred? O perverse Will! O miracle of madness! How, O God, hath Corruption depraved me? How, O God, [...]hall Satisfaction restore me?

[Page] Cast thy self, forlorn Wretch, into the uncomfortable Dungeons of Sorrow, overwhelm thy self with Mountains of bitter Mourning; come Grief, come Horror, come Anguish, come Fear, heap your selves upon me, wrap me in, weigh me down; I have impudently contemned you, I have desperately provoked you, and now do miserably call for you.

So, so it is just; afflict the Wicked, torment the Guilty, revenge the Injuries, revenge the Perjuries, which I have committed against God; give me a touch of the Tortures which I have deserved, give me a taste of the Banquet which I have prepared; Comfort, Peace, Security, Joy, keep away, I will I have none of you, except you bring a pardon with you: As to many that are sick all things seem bitter, so all your pleasures are distasteful unto me. I account you my deceitful and flattering Enemies; Disquiet shall be my Rest, Mourning my Mirth, sowre Sorrow my Comfort. Alas, how shall I present my self before the Majesty of the most righteous and upright Judge? how shall my fearful Face behold him? how terrible will he cast his Countenance upon me? his Eyes far brighter than the Sun, have narrowly observed all [Page] my Actions, he hath weigh'd my Words he hath examin'd my Thoughts, he hat [...] fealed up all my Sins, he hath hitherto been silent, hither patient, but alas, he wil [...] one day cry out, and call me to a reckon [...] ing for all.

O my heart! O poor heart! a heart fu [...] of miseries, never able to sustain these Fir [...] brands of Conscience: alas, Wretch that [...] am! comfortless and forsaken Wretch whither shall I go? to whom shall I see [...] for succour? who shall have pity and compassion upon me? If I behold the Heave [...] I am justly excluded, because I have gri [...] vously sinned against them; If I look upo [...] the Earth, it is weary of me, because I ha [...] been noisome unto it: on the one side I s [...] the Good I have declin'd, on the other si [...] the Evil which I have pursued; before [...] is Death ready to arrest me, behind me my wicked Life ready to accuse me; abo [...] me thy Justice ready to condemn me; b [...] neath me Hell fire ready to devour me. [...] am altogether unworthy that the Ea [...] should bear me, that the Light and A [...] should refresh we, that any Creature shou [...] serve me; my eyes are not worthy to lo [...] towards thee; yea, they are most wort [...] to be extinguished with Tears. If then I [...] [Page] ashamed to be seen, how shall I be assur' [...] to be received? I have no Heart to ask what hope can I have that I shall obtain?

Go to then, O sinful Soul! enter again into the Closet of thy Conscience, turn over the Books of thy Accompts, cast up thy Reckoning, set down thy Sum, see what thou hast done, and what thou hast deserved.

O Lord, I must confess I have been guilty of abusing many Creatures, in desi [...]ing, seeking, and embracing them above and before thee: I have been guilty of Blasphemy, guilty of Swearing, guilty of Lying, guilty of vain and foolish Talking, guilty of Covetousness, guilty of Cruelty, guilty of Pride, guilty of Ambition, guilty of Riot, guilty of Gluttony, guilty of Drunkenness, guilty of Lightness, guilty of Looseness, guilty of Lust, guilty of Envy, guilty of Hatred, guilty of Anger, guilty of Unquietness, guilty of Frowardness, guilty of Obstinacy, guilty of Rashness, guilty of Violence, guilty of Idleness, guilty of Sloth, guilty of Hypocrisie, guilty of Flattery, guilty of Curiosity, guilty of Detraction, guilty of Oppression, guilty of Slander, and to sum up all, guilty of breaking of all thy Commandments. The penalty is eternal Banishment from thy presence, and intolerable and endless Pains in Hell-fire.

[Page] Out upon me, Wretch! alas, what shall become of me? O my Lord! I know not what to do, I cannot tell what answer to make; and being now in Extremity both of danger and fear, my Cogitations trouble me, my Conscience tormenteth me, every Thought is a Thorn unto me, insomuch as that I may conclude of my self with that of Judas, It had been good for me that I had never been born. Nay, go on then a little further, look down into Hell before thou leap into it; observe there who expects thy coming, what shall be thy entertainment; look down into Hell, I say, over which thou now hangest by the slender twined thread of Life, which, if it should happen suddenly to break, thou art in danger therein to be devoured; if it doth no [...] break, yet the turning of the Heaven is instead of a Wheel, which continually windeth some part towards thee.

A short View of the Horrors and Terrors the Damned in Hell.

O Good God! what do I behold in th [...] Infernal Lake? nothing but Horro [...] Tumultuous and Eternal Horror, Fie [...] Chains, Flaming Whips, Scorching Darness, [Page] tormenting Devils, and burning Souls, howling, roaring and lamenting; Woe and alas, with a mad Rage blaspheming God, in despair for ever to be received into his Favour, and for despite, in being fetter'd by him in those Eternal Flames, with a desperate Impenitency, cursing all Creatures, and especially themselves, tearing in a manner their own Substance, and inviting the furious Fiends to torment them.

All the Pains of this Life are singular, vexing some one sense or member of the Body; or if many be affected at once, yet never all; but here every Pore and Part of the condemned Prisoner, as well inward as outward, hath both a full and fit charge of Punishment, without either intermission or change: for as he hath offended God with every part of his Soul, and part of his Body, so must every one of them receive his peculiar Punishment: the Memory is tormented with Pleasures that are past, the Apprehension with Pains that are present, the Understanding with Joys that are lost, and Miseries that are to come, the Will with a malicious and envious Disposition at the Glory of God and his Elect, and above all, the Conscience is griped with a bitter despite, and raging fruitless Repentance [Page] for every particular Offence the Sinner hath committed, which once seem'd [...]oft and sweet, but then, like Serpents, cru [...]lly and restlesly gnaw upon him; never [...]asing to rub into his remembrance how [...]ase were the Causes of his Calamity, what Warning was given, what Means was pre [...]ented for the avoiding of it, how effectu [...]lly he had been persuaded, how earnestly [...]ntreated to change his choice, and accept [...]he offer of eternal Happiness; how easily [...]e might, and many times how nearly he [...]ad apprehended the occasion, and yet [...]ow negligently, how foolishly, how mad [...] [...]he continued in his careless course.

Further, the Sight is affected with fear [...]ul Darkness and ugly Devils, the Hearing with terrible and hideous Cries, the Smell with poisonous Stink, the taste with bit [...]erness far exceeding Gall, the Feeling [...]ith intolerable Fire.

A Fire which as nothing does feed it, so [...]t consumeth nothing that it doth burn: a Fire which hath no Light to comfort, but Heat to torment; no Light but to shew [...]hem their own Miseries, and the Miseries [...]f those they did inordinately affect: A [...] whose force shall never be spent or [...]inguished, or yet abated, but so long as [Page] [...]d is God, so long it shall torment the [...]cked, and that with such vehement rage, at one drop of Water to be applied to [...] scorched Tongue, will be of greater [...]luation than a Thousand Worlds.

O unhappy Bodies! which are to be ba [...]ed in this burning Lake, speaking nothing [...]t Curses, seeing nothing but Miseries, [...]aring nothing but mourning and gnash [...] of Teeth: O silly Souls! which passed [...]ay the time of this Life either in Idleness in Evil; what an endless Chain of Calaty have your short Joys linked together? [...]ur seven years of plenty are past, no menti [...], no memory remaineth of them; your [...]ry is vanish'd, your felicity is swallow-up in the Sea of Sorrow, your Plea [...]es are turn'd into Serpents in your [...]es, into Bellows which blow up the [...]e to torment you.

And altho' this Fire be of one only sort, [...]t doth it not in one sort torment the [...]mned, but yieldeth to every Sinner a de [...]ee of Punishment answerable to the de [...]ee of his Transgression; even as when [...]ny stand under the scorching Sun, all are [...]t vexed with Heat alike, but as their Bo [...]es are differently disposed, so doth one [...]mplain above another, and therefore [Page] that which is a property of our material Fire, by reason of diversity of Bodies, is proper also to the Fire of Hell, by reason of diversity of Sins; for as the same material Fire burneth not Straw, Wood, and Iron a like, so the same Hell fire perplexeth different sinners, in a different sort; because not so much the Persons as the Sins of Men, are the proper subject of this burning, the eternal Fuel of these Flames.

But this Pain of Sense is far surmounted as Divines hold Opinion, by another Pain which they term the Pain of Loss; because that which the Damned do feel in Hell, i [...] nothing comparable to that which they forego, and that is to be deprived both o [...] the Society and Sight of God, wherein consisteth the Essential Glory of the Saints for the more good a thing is, the greater Pain and Grief doth it cause in being either not attained or lost. And therefore seeing that God is infinitely good, no [...] only comprehending but exceeding the perfection of all things, and therewith the last end of our desires, and the perfect Rest of a reasonable Soul, it followed that all the other Torments of Hell do no [...] so much afflict the Soul, as to be deprived for ever of him.

[Page] It cannot be expressed, it cannot be conceived, as how excellent and glorious is the [...]ight and enjoyment of God, so what Punishment it is to be deprived thereof! M [...] [...]y are so weak in judgment that they de [...]ire no more than to escape Hell, but there [...]s a far greater Torment than the Torment of Hell, it is a greater Torment to be shut [...]ut of Heaven, than to be perpetually imprisoned in Hell: Hell is intolerable, but [...]uch more intolerable than to be depriv'd [...]f the Glory of Heaven, than to be hated [...]f Christ, than to have him turn away his [...]oul-satisfying Countenance, than to shut is amiable Eyes, than to say unto us, D [...] [...]art from me, ye cursed, I know ye not. O [...]weet Jesus, suffer us not, I beseech thee, [...] taste of these Torments, suffer us not, se [...]ure Souls, lightly to esteem it, at least suf [...]er us not with a high pace to hasten unto [...]. So much as thy Glory and Beauty doth [...]ceed the Torments of Hell, so much is [...]e Torment greater to be deprived of the [...]e, than to be possessed with the other.

And besides these common Torments, [...]ery Offender shall have his particular [...]ains according to the difference of his [...]ns, either in quality or kind.

[Page] The Proud shall be abased, and beaten under foot, the Covetous shall be crushed with the weight of their want, the Gluttonous shall be devoured with ravenous hunger, the Drunkard shall be dried up with scorching thirst, the Lascivious and Unchaste shall be wrapt up in the Embrace of stinking, stinging▪ and scorching Flames they that regarded not the Poor crying t [...] them for a crumb of Bread, shall becom [...] there both endless and successless Begga [...] for a drop of Water; they that would no [...] in this Lifeonce think on these Pains, ther [...] by to bridle their Affections, shall there, b [...] reason of their extensive sense of them, b [...] able to think upon nothing else, and in li [...] manner the rest by weight and measure so that according to the Glory and Plesure they did enjoy, Misery and Torme [...] shall be proportioned to them, where [...] as well the Beauty and Order of God's [...] stice, as also both the manner of their E [...] cess, and the measure of it shall perfect [...] appear.

All this doth the Scripture in dive [...] places declare, in that it saith, In Hell Hunger and Thirst, wailing and gnashi [...] of Teeth, Two-edg'd Swords, Worn [...] Serpents, Scorpions, Hammers, Wor [...] [Page] wood, Water mingled with Gall, tempestuous Spirits, and Spirits created for Revenge: By all which Expressions, as well the greatness, as also the multitude and variety of Torments are signified, which the damned shall for ever endure.

Finally, then shall be poured upon the damned the full Flood of God's Wrath, which he hath gathered together upon all the Sins that have been committed since the beginning of the World, and all the Torments that possibly can be imagined, shall then be heaped upon their Heads: Nay, all the Torments which in this Life either have been invented, or can be imagined, do stand in no comparison, whether for sharpness, or continuance, with the Torments of that place, which altho' they shall be common to many, yet they shall be most heavy upon those that have had the best Means and Opportunities to avoid them.

And not only all these Pains, but any one of them shall be so grievous, and so intolerable, as that it is impossible for the Wit of Man either to express or imagine; for so much as the least Torment of Hell [...]hat can be conceived, is more than we can possibly conceive, and yet shall no Crea [...]ure be griev'd for them; and endure they [Page] must be without any hope, First, of Intermission: And Secondly, of Abatement, Thirdly, of Change, without which things not only painful and indifferent, but thing [...] pleasant (as appeareth by the Manna God sent down to the Children of Israel) become insupportable. Fourthly, of the poo [...] Comfort of Calamity, Pity; but on the contrary, the Devils shall upbraid them▪ the Damned curse them, and the Saint [...] deride them. Lastly, of End, for nothing is perfectly great which hath an [...] End.

If there might be any End of these Torments, altho' it should be after so many millions of Years as there are drops of Water in the Sea, as there are Motes of Du [...] upon the Earth, as there hath been Moments of time since time began, it woul [...] be some comfort to those that do endu [...] them; but Eternity is intolerable unt [...] them, infinite Eternity breaketh the [...] Hearts, Eternity is the very Hell of Hel [...] If all the Punishments in Hell were n [...] greater than the stinging of Ants, or [...] Fleas, Eternity▪ is enough to make them in tolerable; the present sense of Pain is no so grievous to the Damned, as it is grievo [...] to think that after many Millions of Ag [...] [Page] they shall be as far either from End or Ease, as they were at the first day of their beginning.

It is certain that a thousand Pleasures make no satisfaction for one exquisite torment, because the torment is without ease, and pleasures are not without Composition and Allay; and if they do not make satisfaction for one Torment, much less infinite; and if not for a small time, much less for Eternity; and if not for the Torment of one part, much less of the whole.

And as one that floateth half choaked and wearied in the Sea, ceaseth no [...] to wrestle with the Waves, to cast forth his Hands every way, altho' he graspeth nothing but thin and weak Water, which continually deceiveth his pains; so they that both swim and sink in this depth of Death, shall always strive and struggle therewith, altho' they neither find nor hope for any help. O deadly Life! O immortal Death! what shall I term thee? Life, wherefore then dost thou kill Death, and wherefore dost thou then endure? There is neither Life nor Death, but there is some good in it, for in Life there is some Ease, and in Death an End; but thou hast neither Ease nor End. What then shall I term thee? Even the bitterness [Page] of both: for of Death thou hast the Torment without any End, of Life thou hast the Continuance without any Ease. God hath taken away both from Life and Death all that which is Good; the rest he hath mixed together, and therewith tempered the Torments of Hell.

O unsavoury Composition of the Cup of God's wrath! a death always living, and an end ever in beginning; a Death which shall not devour, but tear, and eat, but not consume. And as this Death can never die, so shall it never be satisfied, or weary in gnawing upon every part of his most miserable Prey. O Intolerable Vengeance, and equal with Eternity! which no means can moderate, no patience can endure, no time can end; but so long as God shall live, so long shall the damned die; and when he shall cease to be happy, which can never be, then shall they cease to be miserable.

A Star, which is far greater than the Earth, appeareth to be a small Spot in comparison of the Heavens; much less shall the Age of Man seem, much less the Age and Continuance of the World, in regard of these eternal Pains. The least Moment of Time, if compared with Ten-Millions of Years, because both terms are definite, and [Page] the one a part of the other, beareth, alth [...] a very small, yet some Proportion; but this or any number of Years in respect to Eternity, is nothing less than just nothing. All things that are finite, I may be compared together; but between that which is finite, and that which is infinite, there is no comparison.

Neither is it any piece of Injustice to inflict Eternal Punishment for sins that were done but for a time; because the just and severe Judge doth not weigh the Actions only, but the Hearts of Men: For, therefore do the wicked sin for a time, because they have but a time to live; but they are desirous to live for ever, because they are desirous to offend for ever; being more desirous to sin than to live, and not regarding life, but only to enjoy the Pleasures of sin; and therefore it is just that they shou'd never want punishment who ever had a will to offend, that they should never find an end of Revenge, who would never have made an end of sin. Again, as God is infinite both in Majesty and Mercy, it followeth that every Offence against that Majesty is also infinite, and therefore worthy infinitely to be punish'd. And surely if a Man that is sharply pinch'd with some [Page] one particular Pain, be it but the a king of one of his Teeth, doth think one Night exceeding long, tho' he lieth in a soft Bed, well applied and cared for; for if he tur'neth often, and telleth the hours, and thinketh every one long till it be Day; how tedious can we think Eternity will seem to those that shall be continually perplexed and torn with those Eternal torments? not only the Body, but primarily the Soul, in a dark Babylonian Furnace, foaming forth most horrible Heat: And if Forty Days Rain, driven with the Tempest of God's Wrath, was sufficient to destroy the whole World, what shall we conclude of the full Storm and Stream of his Rage, wherein the fiery Darts of his Fury shall never cease to beat upon his Enemies? O dreadful Fire! kindled by the breath of God's Eternal Wrath, more exceeding the fire of this World than can be imagined: O ugly Darkness! cursed by the Mouth of God: O Eternal Night both inward of the Soul, and outward of the Body, in regard whereof the palpable Darkness of Aegypt was scarce a Day which light Clouds over cast: O long and loathsome Night! wherein the Morning will never appear, wherein the hope of Light is no less desperate than the [Page] desire violent. Is this, O Lord, the wages of Sin? is this the punishment of wicked Doers? of whom I am one in so deep a degree, that it is no wonder if my Conscience tremble, and my Soul cleave with Sighs, and my Eyes drowned with Tears.

The Penitent Sinner's Holy Resolutions to a thorough Reformation.

IS it so? is my Case so deplorable and desperate? must my sinful Life end in the entring into those eternal Flames? must my Frolicks die into everlasting Burnings? must my jolly Hours be turn'd into bitter Weepings and Wailings? must my breaking of God's Holy Commandments cause me to be fetter'd in Chains, and that forever in utter Darkness, where there is nothing but hideous and fearful cryings and groanings? Is it so? Hath God told me, that cannot lye, and shall I not have the Faith to believe him? Yes, I will. If this be the Exit of a sinful Life, tell me no more of those Dalilah's, of those Pleasures I have formerly taken a delight in: There is no playing with Sin, I will get clear of it whatever it cost me; I will give ear to its [Page] bewitching Enchantments no more, I will not for a few merry hours hazard my eternal Safety: Heaven is not a thing to be lightly esteem'd, it is of more value than a thousand Worlds, and I believe it to be so▪ and why should I be so foolish and careless as not to take any care to fit my self for an Admittance into it? I know not how soon my Change may come; and if it should come and I not prepar'd, I am undone, and that for ever; therefore I will bid my old Friends farewel: farewel fine Clothes, and farewel all delicious Living farewel Carding and Dicing, Hunting and all manner of Revelling whatsoever that I have taken any delight in, for my Delight shall be for the future in fearing and serving of God, and in keeping of his Commandments, which was the chief End of my being made a rational Creature: therefore away with your En [...]icements, your Traps and Snares, whereby you would delude and deceive me, till you drag me into H [...]ll's Everlasting Flames; for I see what all Lewdness will come to, which is dreadful to me; therefore molest and trouble me not, I will run the pleasan [...] ways of God's holy Commandments, I wil [...] ascend God's holy Hill, I will make haste [Page] to Mount Sion, I will be kept in the Tents of Wickedness no longer (therefore lift up your Head, O ye Gates, and be ye lifted up ye Everlasting Doors; I will force my way thro', I will enter,) and all that ever Men or Devils can do unto me, shall not hinder: shall Tribulation, or Distress, or Persecution, or Famine, or Nakedness, Peril or Sword? these can but kill the Body, but I have an immortal Soul, that is of greater value, if I save that I save all: and shall I fear dangers in striving to be abundantly satisfy'd with the Fatness of God's House? I see a City which hath Foundations, whose Builder and Maker is God: I see a-far off a House made without Hands eternal in the Heavens: farewel deceitful Heart, I will give Ear to your false Suggestions no more, I have a more sure word of Prophecy, whereunto I resolve to take heed: how often hast thou taught me to hide my Sins, and call them by wrong Names, that I might excuse my self for departing from them? But dare I presume to think to deceive the all-wise God? No, God will not be blinded, he will not be mocked, he is not asleep like Baal, or gone a Hunting: No, Canst thou draw a Curtain before the Eyes of Infinite Wisdom? [Page] No, he sits and sees, and observes all the Actions of Men, therefore I am ashamed knowing what I have done. I have called my Pride, Decency; my Covetousness, Frugality; my Drunkenness, Good-Fellowship; my Lasciviousness, Impossibility of resisting the Dictates of Nature; my slandering others, but saying what I hear; And thus I have deceived my self, but I will for the future be deceived no more, but I will hearken unto what the Lord will say unto me, and not to my base and deceitful Heart's Lust: I have seen enough of Impiety, I will stay no longer in Sodom, these flowery Meadows, these pleasant Fields shall make me lie down no more: I see there's Death in the Pot, and the great Day of God's eternal Wrath is hastening; therefore I come, Lord, I will stand off no longer: I have staid in the service of Sin and of the Devil too long already, I will give ear to what thou shalt be pleased to say to me: I will turn my back no more upon thee, I will harden my heart no more. It is the voice of my beloved that knocks, I will arise and let him in: Awake up my Glory; Awake, I have slumbered too much: get up my drowsie Affections, the Lord is at hand. O my God! wilt thou [Page] spread forth thy blessed Arms, to embrace and receive such a wretched Creature as I am, filled with all manner of wickedness and Deceit; and having known the Judgment of God; that they who commit such things, are worthy of Death, have not only done the same, but have had pleasure in them that do them? is there Mercy in store for such a Rebel? then I heartily renounce the Devil and all his Works, therefore, arise, O Lord, and let thy Enemies be scatter'd, and appear for me with thy Almighty Power and out stretch'd Arm, and deliver me from this Slavery, this hard Bondage that I am under: Deliver me from these my Enemies that seek my utter Destruction.

Methinks I see them quaking and trembling before God's Tribunal, that thought it below them, while upon Earth, to make Religion their business: Methinks I see them, how they are ashamed of their Madness and Folly, and methinks I hear them ca [...]l and cry to the Rocks and Mountains to fall upon them, to hide them from the Face of him that sits upon the Throne. Direct me, O Lord, and teach me by thy holy Spirit; draw me and I will run after thee; teach me to sing the Song of Sion; [Page] guide me in the Path of Life; Leave not my Soul in Hell, pull it out. I have made a solemn choice of God for my Portion, le [...] me know how I must love him; I will obey your Counsel, I will act according to your Directions, be not afraid of me, I will not turn my back in the day of Battle, I have done with these fading, deceitful Pleasures, I find no Comfort, no enjoyment in them; they may please for a while but they cannot satisfie for ever: Nay, they are destructive both to Soul and Body: Solomon took a tryal of them all, and found them so, and so all Men are forc'd to confess at last, and too often when it is too late. I see most Men of another Mind when they come to die, to what they are in the time of their strength, and health, and Liberty. (But, O my Soul! come not then into their Secret, unto their Assembly, my Honour be thou not united) Take warning by these sad Examples. There are many Snares laid, I am beset with temptations, but I will hug those Monsters no more, but will resist and overcome them by thy Power. Come my Soul, ascend to higher Thoughts, Hopes and Labours, and away with thy soft Wishes and dull Endeavours are these fit for seeking Eternal Joys? doth [Page] a slow pace become a Man that is resolv'd for Eternity? The Voice of the Lord is powerful, the voice of the Lord is full of Majesty, the Voice of the Lord breaks the Cedars: and art thou the only Creature he cannot shake? it's done, I am sensible, and I am resolved: Resolution will go far, as I may see by these Examples: Resolution made David run thro' a Troop, and leap over a Wall, Psal. 18. 29. It was his Resolution made him say thus, Psal. 119. 46, 106. I have sworn and will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments: I will speak of thy Testimonies before Kings, and will not be ashamed, and I will delight my self in thy Commandments. My hands will I lift up unto thy Precepts, which I have loved: and I will meditate in thy Statutes. It was Resolution, made Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego go voluntarily into the Fire; It was Resolution made St. Paul ready not only to suffer, but to die at Jerusalem, for the Name of Jesus: Resolution made David's Worthies draw Water out of the Well of Bethlehem: Resolution made Ignatius despise Fire, Sword, and wild Beasts: Resolution made Empedocles give himself to the Flames, and Artalus to sit down as one unconcern'd in the fiery Chair his Enemies [Page] had prepared for him; and Resolution made Job bear his great Losses. Shall I be faint-hearted? shall I be a Coward? shall these and others resolve to part with anything, so much as their very Lives for their Saviour's Sake? Lord I am resolved with these Worthies to undergo any thing for the advancement of thy Honour and Glory; My heart is ready to obey all thy Commands; therefore, Lord, make me clean▪ help me to put a way the evil of my doing [...], and learn me to do well, that so I may si [...] no more against thee, or grieve thy Holy Spirit: I am convinced that thy service i [...] perfect freedom; he that enters upon it is under the Government of a good and a lawful Prince; he feels nothing that i [...] burthensome unto him; thou visitest him with Everlasting Loving kindness, an [...] thou givest thy Angels charge over him and thou wilt not suffer any harm to come unto him: thou a [...]t with him in his distress, and when he weeps, thou holdest a Bottle under to catch his Tears: thou bindest up his Wounds, and healest all his Sores; thou watchest over him, and thy Ears are open to his Prayers, and his Groans are not hi [...] from thee, his Peace is made with thee; so here, they that truly fear and serve thee▪ [Page] are free from all slavish fears, nothing but Love rules in their Hearts, which makes their Yoak easie, and their Burthen light, and the Narrow way full of delight and satisfaction; they have peace of Consc [...]ence, a peace which passeth all understanding, so that the Devil can make no War against them, to do them any harm; he may raise a Storm, and lay a Siege, but he cannot overthrow: for he that is for them, is stronger than he that is against them: he may set their House on fire, but he cannot consume them; and rain Brimstone upon them, but they have a Tower to flee to, a Place of Refuge and Defence; Who is a strong Tow [...]r in the day of distress, and the Righteous [...]lee unto it, and are safe. Ah Lord! these are great and glorious Priviledges, that [...]hy chosen ones are made Partakers of: O Lord, make me one of these, and [...]uide me by thy Counsel, until thou shalt [...]ing me unto Glory.

[...]ome Considerations of the Glory of the Saints in Heaven.

THis Felicity is represented to us by many Names, but most especially Two, taken from Two things in this [Page] World which we affect most, that is, Life and a Kingdom.

First, Life, Luke 10. 15. Master, who shall I do to inherit eternal Life? And,

Secondly, A Kingdom; Matt. 22. 3 [...] Mark. 12. 28. Luke 2. 32. Fear not, litt [...] Flock; for it is your Father's pleasure to gi [...] you a Kingdom.

The Nature of Life is so sweet to all Me [...] because naturally we desire to preserve o [...] Being even in this mortal Life; which [...] fast chained, not only to infinite change o [...] Calamities, but to many Dangers, and f [...] nally to Death it self; but that Life whic [...] is the blessed State of those who have a fu [...] fruition of God, is a true, lively, and perfect Life, a pure Life, a holy Life, a secur [...] Life, a Life free from Molestation, fr [...] from Change, a most happy Life, as we [...] for the Glory thereof as for the Eternity.

In this Glory there may be degrees, [...] there can [...]e no defect, altho' like S [...]a [...] one Saint shall differ from another, yet a [...] [...]hall shine, altho' like Vessels, one s [...]a [...] hold more than another, yet all shall [...] full: Neither shall this difference cause [...] ny to complain: First, Because in the [...] selves they shall find no want: And, [...] condly, Because the Glory of others sha [...] be as their own.

[Page] And yet this Glory could not make Life [...]appy, if it were not also perpetual: The [...]ore glorious it is to be enjoyed, the more [...]ievous it would be to determine; the [...]ery Thoughts of Ending wou'd much [...]bate the pleasures of Enjoying; but Eter [...]ity addeth so much to Contentment in [...]his Glorious Life, as it addeth to conti [...]uance; it maketh the Pleasures of this [...]ife even like it self, no less than infinite.

Likewise a Kingdom is of such Estima [...]on among Men, that for it they will ven [...]ure their Estates, their Lives, their Souls; [...]ay they will surmount all difficulties and [...]angers; they will make their way thro' [...]lood, through Wounds, through Death [...] self to attain it, altho' it be but a small Corner-Kingdom upon Earth, incident to [...]numerable Casualties and Care: But his Kingdom is a Heavenly Kingdom▪ [...] [...]ternal Kingdom, a most blessed Kingd [...] [...] Tim. 4. 18. 2 Pet. 1. 11. Luke [...] [...]at. 23. 34. a Heavenly Kingdom, [...] [...]ove the tempestuous Troubles of this [...] [...]riour World, an eternal Kingdom, sub [...]ct neither to declination nor change; a [...]lessed Kingdom, furnished with all Feli [...]ties, without any mixture of Misery or [...]rief; the Excellency whereof may be [Page] consider'd in two principal Points, Larg [...] ness and Magnificence, which may not b [...] obscurely conjectured.

For if it be true which all Authors a [...] firm, That many Stars do far exceed th [...] whole Body of the Earth in greatness seeing these Stars bear so small a Proportion in regard of that Heaven whereo [...] they are fixed, the Face whereof is ope [...] to our View: how little is the compass [...] all the Kingdoms upon the Earth, in co [...] parison to the Celestial Kingdom which [...] above the Starry Heaven, and in unknow [...] dimensions exceedeth that Sphear? Be astonish'd, O my Soul! and altogether wrap from thy bodily Senses, upon consideration both of the Greatness of this Kingdom, and the unspeakable Goodness [...] the King thereof; who hath said unto the [...]ncerning the same, as once he said unt [...] [...], of the Land of Canaan, Lift [...] [...] [...]yes now, and look from the Place wh [...] [...] art, for all the Land which thou seest [...] [...] [...]ve unto thee for ever, Gen. 13. 14, 15.

Proceed also to consider the Beauty an [...] Majesty of that Kingdom, even by th [...] Rule which the Apostle hath taught, Ro [...] 1. 20. In esteeming the invisible Works [...] God by those that are visible.

[Page] If then God hath provided for these our base Bodies, and sinful Souls, such excellent, such abundant Pleasures from the Service of all Creatures in this World, [...]ow excellent, how innumerable are those Pleasures which are prepared for those glorified Bodies and Souls which shall behold him Face to Face? If the Delights [...]e so great and various which he imparteth to the Evil as well as the Good, to his Enemies as to his Friends, what hath he reserved for his good, best, and choicest Friends? If our Prison yield such fair contentments what will he do for us in his Royal Court? If we find such Comfort in this stormy time of Tears, what may we expect in the sweet Sun shine of Joy? If this corruptible World, which he set up for a small time, as a Cottage or Outhouse, be so gorgeous, so magnificent, that many desire no other Heaven, what Estimation shall we make of his princip [...]l and Princely Palace? His Eternal Habitation prepar'd before all Worlds, to set forth his Majesty and Glory, and for the uttermost declaration both of his Wisdom and Power? It is very like that the Palace of Babylon was exceeding fair, whereof Nebu [...]hadnezzar so much gloried; Is not this [Page] great Babel, which I have built for the Hou [...] of the Kingdom, for the Honour of my Maj [...] sty? But assuredly all this World of ou [...] which holdeth a middle state between He [...] ven and Hell, and in some sort participate [...] of both; surpasseth, and it surpasseth n [...] Hell so far in Beauty and Glory, as it surpassed by the Royal Court of Heave [...] which being framed fit for the Majesty, greeable to the Estate of Almighty God, no less gorgeous and great than his Wi [...] dom could contrive, and his Power p [...] form, and that is above all compass of co [...] parison, Infinite, Ps. 84. 11. O! how amial [...] are thy Dwellings, thou Lord of Hosts, [...] Soul longeth and panteth even to enter i [...] thy Courts, even thy great City, Holy a [...] Heavenly Jerusalem, Rev. 21. and 22. 1 [...] which shineth with thy Glory as clear [...] Chrystal; whose Buildings are of pu [...] Gold, like glittering Glass, whose Wa [...] and Foundations are of precious Stones whose Gates are so many entire Pearls whose Streets are pav'd with pure Gold glittering as Glass, where is no need [...] any Sun, because the Lamb is the Lam [...] that giveth it a large, a glorious Light from whose Seat streams a River of Wat [...] of Life, clear as Crystal, and upon th [...] [Page] Brooks is planted the Tree of Life, which continually yieldeth both Physick and Food; where is no Curse, no Night, no unclean thing, but the Throne of God and of the Lamb; and his Servants shall see his Face, and serve him, and Reign for evermore.

Matthew 8. 8. When thou wert upon the Earth, O my Saviour! in thy humbled State, the Centurion professed himself unworthy; and so he was, that thou shouldst come under his Roof, altho' in probability neither framed nor furnished in the meanest fashion: on the other side, how unworthy am I, base wretched Worm! to enter into this thy Heavenly Habitation, prepared [...]or thy glorious estate? Psal. 84. 1, 4. O! how amiable are thy dwellings, thou Lord of [...]osts? Blessed are they that (thou shalt make worthy to) dwell in thy House, they shall [...]lways be praising of thee.

But there is no place can afford true Fe [...]icity, if the Society be not suitable to the [...]ame A Country is much esteemed accor [...]ing to the Nature and Quality of the In [...]abitants: if they be many, if of Noble Nature, if of a generous Disposition, if [...]ll aiming at one common End, who then [...]re the Inhabitants of this Celestial City? [Page] here is the full assembly of Angels, o [...] whom in this World we have the service [...] but not in sight; in Number answerabl [...] to the large Capacity of that Place, mo [...] amiable, most admirable C [...]eatu [...]es i [...] Beauty, disposed in most excellent O [...]de [...] here are the ancient Wo [...]thies, or rathe [...] Wonders of this World, the Patriarch [...] the Prophets, the Apostles, the Evang [...] lists, the Marty [...]s, the Confessors, and g [...] nerally all the company of Saints, in su [...] multitude that they cannot be numbre [...] for Nobility all the Children of Go [...] holding such Order for their Places, a [...] Proportions for their Glory, as it please [...] the Divine Wisdom to dispose: And abo [...] all, here is the holy Humanity of our Sa [...] our Christ▪ seated in the height of Majes [...] at the right Hand of the Father, being t [...] Head of that blessed Body of Saints.

O sweet Society! what shall I say [...] thee; it seemeth a Presumption to desi [...] thee, and yet without desire of thee I ca [...] not live: Habakkuk 2. 4. For the righ [...] ous Man doth live by Faith; if then have the Faith to believe thee, I cann [...] but have a desire to enjoy thee, Heb. [...] ▪ 38. Gal. 3. 11.

[Page] Rom. 1. 17. 19. The true Life of a Christian is Faith: our Senses may be deceived, and thereby possess our Opinion with Er [...]or; I cannot have this Life of Christiani [...]y if my Faith is not more assured than [...]ny Sense.

Well, this is the Seat, this is the Soc [...]e [...]y which God out of his infinite Goodness and Mercy hath appointed for those [...]hat love him, and long for his appearing, [...]nd that make it their chiefest business in his World to serve him, and glorifie his Name; those full and transcendent Feli [...]ities they shall enjoy, endeavour not to [...]xpress, O my Soul, thou art nothing near [...]ble to understand them; thou art so far [...]om understand [...] them, as thou art [...]om enjoying, [...] more do under [...]and them, but [...] do enjoy them: [...]nly thou mayest a [...]ar off look towards [...]em, and (so clear as the Cloudiness of [...]lesh and Blood will permit) in distinct [...]arts take a view of them, as they are [...]iefly applicable either to the Body or the [...]ul: For this filthy Flesh, which is now [...] cumbersome and offensive to the Soul, [...]d subject to so many mutations, shall in [...]e general Resurrection be changed, and [...]ade most glorious; it shall cast off a [...]l [Page] Corruption, and therewith also all the Deformities and Calamities which proceeded from the same, Isa. 35. 6. There shall not be one feeble, The Lame shall leap as an Ha [...] and the Dumb shall sing; for if the Blind and Lame were not permitted to enter into David's House, much less shall any Deformity or Defect, either enter or approach unto the House of God; and as the So [...] by conforming it self to the Will of God so the Body by conforming it self contrary to the Nature thereof, to the Will o [...] the Soul, shall be made partaker of the Perfection and Glory of the Soul, and be seated in a most flourishing and never-fading State of high Perfections; it shall be adorned with most [...] Beauty, even the wise Man saith [...] [...]7. In the time [...] their visitation they shall shine.

Moses saw God but imperfectly, and while, and his Face did shine; how the [...] shall they shine, who shall perfectly see [...] Face for ever? Our Saviour did in so [...] measure describe this glorious Beaut [...] when he said, Mat. 13. The Just M [...]n s [...] shine as the Sun in the Kingdom of their F [...] ther: It shall be delivered from the lu [...] pish Heaviness wherewith it is clogged a [...] incumbred in this Life, and be in Agil [...] [Page] equal with Angels; for as they enjoy equal Glory, so shall there be no difference in their Gifts: The thought of Man is not more swift: when the Sun riseth in the East, the Beams thereof are not more speedily darted into the West, than that shall be both swift and sudden in performing motion, Isaiah 40. 31. They shall mount up with Wings as Eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Hereto shall be added a most large Liberty, no Limits to include, no stop to restrain it from passing freely whereit pleaseth; and also their strength shall be as the strength of Angels, nothing shall resist it, eve [...] thing shall give it way, it shall strive with no greater strain in effecting any thing, than we do in the motion of our Eyes.

Further, it shall be delivered from all Diseases and Pains of this Life, and shall [...]njoy a strong and perfect Constitution of Health: no Sickness shall seize upon it, no [...]nfirmity, no Debility, shall approach it, grow upon it, prevail against it, because as [...]he Psalmist saith, Psal. 37. 39. The Health [...] the Righteous is from the Lord.

Above all, it shall be wholly filled with [...]nspeakable Delight and Satisfaction; [...]hat, do I say, it shall be filled? it shall be [Page] inebriated, not having the sence of any other thing; what, do I say wholly? every part, every faculty, and every sense shall be satiated with delight in its own proper Object; not like the corruptible and sorrowful Pleasures of this Life, which are a [...] smoak in cold weather, whereof the Smoak is more noisom and offensive than the hea [...] is comfortable, but exceeding them as fa [...] in Excellency as they do in Cause and i [...] Continuance, and so far in Plenty as the [...] do in Place, Psal. 36. 8. It shall be satisfied with the abundance of God's House, an [...] he shall give you drink of his Pleasures as o [...] of a River.

Lastly, It shall be crown'd with Immo [...] tality, whereby it shall be assured never t [...] dissolve, never to decline, but to endure [...] long in the same perfect and blessed Esta [...] as the Almighty and Everlasting God sha [...] endure: for he that causeth the Heave [...] to continue without change, after so man thousand years since they were created, [...] by the same Almighty Power, and Ou [...] stretch'd Arm, shall also cause the glorifi [...] Bodies of the Saints always to flourish [...] ven as the Bay-Tree, or as the wise M [...] saith, The just shall live for ever, and t [...] shall be the accomplishment of all the re [Page] for if the Prophet David thought one Day in God's earthly House, better than a thousand in another Place, the highest thoughts and greatest Imaginations we can conceive is infinitely short of the Blessedness and Gloriousness of this Heavenly House, not made with Hands, the unspeakable delightful habitation of Almighty God.

O! be astonished, O my Soul, at the wonderful Loving-kindness of Almighty God: O thou lover of Man! O thou that lovest Man in sin! altho' thou lov'st not sin in Man; what hath our filthy flesh worthy of this Honour? it should according to its Deserts be tyed rather in a Stable with Beasts, for feeding, following, and satisfying of its most beastly Appetites, than sit in thy Sanctuary among thy Angels. Dust should by Nature remain with Dust, and not be advanc'd above the Heavens; but as thou didst honour Ishmael the Son of a Bond woman, because he belonged to Abraham, so thou art pleas'd likewise to afford such Favour to this base and wretched brood of Corruption, for the dependency thereof upon thy only Son; the Parts shall participate with the Head, and belike unto it: as he had communicated with that in Nature, so shall that communicate with him in Glory.

[Page] But how much the Soul is more noble than the Body, so much more capable it is of greater Felicities: it shall be filled with perfect Wisdom, and behold it Face to Face, 1 Cor. 13. 12. Now I see in part, saith the Apostle, but then shall I know even as I am known. Then shall it behold and know the invisible Nature of the Blessed Trinity▪ the Power of the Father▪ the Wisdom of the Son, the Goodness of the Holy Ghost, the bottomless Depths of God's Judgments, now unsearchable and past finding out, shall then be seen, even as the Prophet [...]id, Psal. 36. 9. In thy Light we shall see Light. And in beholding God, it shall behold the Causes, Natures, and Ends of all things which God hath made of Nature to be known, because they are more clear and conspicuous in God than in themselves. Then shall all Men be known of all, neither shall any, either Quality or Action, be secret to any; and this is the end of all ou [...] Endeavou [...]s, John 17. 3. This is Everlasting Life, saith our, Saviour, to know thee the true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.

Also it shall be ravished with perfect Love, both towards God, for the infinite Causes of Love, which in him shall appear, [Page] and towards the Saints, for that it shall perceive them to love, and to be belov'd of God: Both so much as it self, and for the same cause, it shall love God more than it self, because it shall be sensible that God loveth it more than it is able to love it self: the Saints it shall love equal with it self, as being Members of one Body, whereof Christ is Head: for if the Spirit of Man hath Power to cause so great Unity as we see between the Members of one Body, the Spirit of God, which is the Soul of that Body of Saints, shall cause so much more perfect Union, by how much it is a more noble and powerful Form, and giveth a more noble and durable Being. Hereupon it followeth, First, That it shall conceive so many particular Joys as it shall see causes of Love in God, which are infinite. Secondly, That it shall equally rejoice at the Felicity of every one, as at that which is proper to it self, whereby all the Saints shall partake of one another's Excellencies; for in this Union, Love shall be in its full Perfection, the Nature of which Vertue is to make all things common.

It shall also enjoy a most sweet Peace and Concord in it self; for the Body and Soul of every just Man which in this Life [Page] are always in Combat, by reason of the Contraries between them, the one being Spiritual, the other Carnal, shall then enjoy a compleat Peace by consent; there shall not be any Distraction or Strife any more, but they shall be carried one Way, and be guided by one Will, and that is the Will of God.

The Will of God shall be the Will of the Saints; as they shall give a full and free Consent to the Will of God, so shall God in all things consent unto their Will; for how can the Head disagree from the Members, how can one perfect Spirit be contrary to it sel [...]?

Herewith it shall be advanc'd to a most high and happy degree of Honour; for that which here was drown'd in the Putrefaction of the Flesh, constantly in Miseries, destitute both of Comfort and of Help, entangled with Infirmities, loaden with loathsome Sins; in a word, doing nothing but Sin, finding nothing but Miseries, which are the Reward of Sin. God only, and alone mov'd by his tender Mercy, will take it to himself, he will cleanse it, he will cure it, he will cloath it with perfect Righteousness, he will adopt it for one of his Sons, and make it a fellow heir of his most [Page] glorious Kingdom; he will incorporate it with his only Son, who is in all things equal with himself; In respect thereof, that of the Prophet David may be very fitly applied to those Saints, Psal. 82. 6. I have said that ye are Gods, and that ye are all the Children of the most High.

To these shall be added great Ability; for whatsoever they shall have a will to do, they shall have Power to perform; because he that is Omnipotent, shall in all things consent to the Will thereof. To these also Security shall be added; for as it shall enjoy all things it can desire, so shall it not fear to lose any thing it shall enjoy; because neither it shall be willing to lose them, or God deprive them of them against their Wills; neither can any Power take that away which God wills they shall retain.

Lastly, it shall be filled with perfect and unspeakable Pleasure and Joy, which no Understanding is able to apprehend; and this shall proceed from the clear Vision of Almighty God, in beholding of him Face to Face. 1 Cor. 13. in beholding of him as he is, wherein consisteth the Essential Glory of all the Saints, and which is also the last End and Centre of their desires. For the Soul of Man cannot find any peace or rest [Page] in any thing short of this blessed Vision, even as neither the hearing of God, nor conversing with him, could satisfie the Mind of Moses, but rather edg'd and sharpen'd his Desire to behold God's Face. The reason is, for that all the Pleasures and Contentments of this World, being Beams of that Sun, Sparkles of that Fire, are most purely and perfectly contain'd in God. The Perfection of all the Creation, and whatsoever deserveth Love or Admiration, are more full and compleat in God than in themselves: whence it follows, that whosoever enjoyeth the Presence of God, enjoyeth the Perfections of all Creatures, which are able abundantly to delight both Body and Soul.

And as the Sea receiveth all Streams, and yet hath proper Waters in far greater abundance, so in God there is a Confluence of all the Perfections of all Creatures, yet his own Perfection doth infinitely exceed them, with the Presence whereof all the Powers of the Mind shall be filled, all the Senses of the Body satiated; insomuch as they shall neither in desire seek, nor in hope aspire, nor in imagination create any greater Pleasure: For therefore hath God made Man, that Man should receive by him [Page] internal happiness of the Soul, by contemplation of his Divinity; and external of the Body, by view of his Humanity.

The understanding shall rest in that Light of Knowledge, the Will shall rest in Love of that Goodness, the Desire shall rest in the Fruition of that Delight; Every Power of the Soul shall be always hungry, and always satisfied; hungry without wanting, satisfied without loathing; the more it hath, the more it shall desire; the more it desires, the more it shall have; and the more it hath and desireth, the more it shall see to be desired and had. The three Disciples saw but a Glimpse of this Glory upon Mount Tabor, and were ravish'd with such contentment, that they cried out with one consent, it is good for us to be here. St. Paul being wrapt up in the third Heaven, 2 Cor. 12. 4. and Rom. 8. 18. faw that which was not possible to be spoken of, yet thus much he spake, I account that the Afflictions of this time, are not worthy of the Glory that shall be showed unto us. This also did that Kingly Prophet David say, Ps. 16. 11. In thy Presence is the fulness of Joy, and at thy right hand are Pleasures for evermore. This did our Saviour himself express in pronouncing Happiness to the pure in [Page] Heart, Matth. 5. 8. because they shall see God; and therefore he form'd this Request for those that his Father had given unto him. Joh. 17. 24. [...]ather, I will that they be with me even [...] I am, that they may behold my Glory which▪ thou hast given me: Assuredly, (1 Kings 10) if the Queen of Sheba esteemed them happy who stood in the presence of Sclomon, and heard his Wisdom (Behold) a greater than Solomon is here.

Hereupon it followeth; that all the Faculties of the Soul and Body shall always praise God without either intermission or End: The Saints shall never be weary of singing Praises to the most High God, and sing that Song which St. John, Rev. 14. 3. call'd a New Song; for that altho' it be one common Praise, answerable to one common Glory, which all the Society of Saints enjoy, yet with respect to that Delight and Joy of Heart which will arise from the Glory and Praise of it, it will be always fresh and new unto them; this Heavenly▪ Harmony shall never be old: as the Glory, so the Praise of the Saints shall never cease▪ but shall ever be new, and yet never alter or change. Psal, 81. 1, 4. O how amiable are thy Dwellings, thou Lord of Hosts; blessed are they that dwell in thy House, they shall always be praising of thee.

[Page] Psal. 87. 3. Very Glorious things are spoken of thee, O thou City of God. O Glorious City, when shall I enter into thee, when shall I possess and enjoy thee? to see my God, to converse with that blessed Society which dwelleth in thee, in perfect Peace and Felicity, passing all Understanding.

O Eternal Kingdom! O Eternal Light! O Eternal Life! not so much to be spoken as to be desired, and as by all Endeavours to be approach'd! O blessed State! not to be express'd even by those who only enjoy thee, O only Purchase, worthy of the precious Blood of Jesus Christ! how can I believe thee, and not admire thee? how can I hope for thee, and not extol thee? how can I think of thee, and not long for thee? O that this present state of Strife and Contention were at an end! O that the time of my Travel, or rather my Banishment from thy heavenly Kingdom were expir'd! who can be in love with this Life full of misery, that hath any hope, faith and confidence in thy Mercy? Tell me, O my Soul, what a happy hour will that be, when Death shall knock at thy Gates, and put thee in the way to life! Call thee from Prison to Liberty; from troublesome Travel to joyful [Page] Rest; from a living Death to an Immortal Life: When others shall fear, thou shalt look up, Luk. 21. 28. because thy Redemption draweth near. Then shall the glorious Company of Saints and Angels come to meet thee with Congratulations of unspeakable Joy for thy delivery out of the great Oppressions of Aegypt. Then shall the Spouse meet thee, and say, Cant. 2. 10. Arise my Love, my fair one, and come away, for behold the Winter is past, and the Shower is over, the Flowers have appeared in our Land, and the singing of Birds is come. Then shall the Angels-marvel, and say, (Cant. 8. 5.) Who is this coming out of the Wilderness, leaning upon her Well beloved? What Honour will it be unto thee, when they shall present thee before the Throne of the most Blessed and Glorious Trinity, with a joyful Memorial of the Good which thou hast done, and of the Evil which thou hast suffered for the Love of God; when thy blessed Saviour shall step forth unto thee and say, Well done good and faithful Servant, welcome into thy Master's Joy: What Joy and Satisfaction shall be ren [...]red unto thee for all the tryals and afflictions of this Life! Of what dignity, of what value shall Vertue then be adjudged.

[Page] How delightful will it be after safe Arrival, to lift up thy Eyes, and view the dangerous Voyage thou hast made; when thou shalt see the Tempest wherewith thou hast been tossed, the Streights which thou hast passed, the Dangers which thou hast avoided, how many Millions do daily perish, and with how few thou didst escape; then shalt thou sing with the princely Prophet, Psal. 94. 17. If the Lord had not helped, it had not failed but my Soul should have been put to silence.

What Joy is daily made when new Inhabitants do arrive to furnish the void places of this Celestial City! for assuredly, if there be much Joy in Heaven at the conversion of Sinners, much greater will the Joy be when they come to be glorified. O how sweet will then be the Fruit of Vertue, whose Root in this World is esteem'd so bitter! how pleasant will that Peace be after this troublesome Warfare; after great variety of Perils, that eternal Security; after this Weariness, that sweet Rest. The Children of Israel went up armed out of Egypt, Exod. 13. 13. but when they came into the Land of Promise, they laid down their Weapons; they forgot their Fears, 1. Kings 4. 25. Every Man sate securely under [Page] his own Vine, and under his own Fig-tree. Here we are set in the State of Strife, there our War shall be at an end; there shall they sit secure from so much as the Fear of the fiery Dart of the Enemy; There they shall not dread his Stratagems or his Strength; thither the Sighs do not pierce; there the hissing is not heard of the poysonous Basilisk, but the Glory of God doth enlighten that Region, and the soft and sweet Breath of the Holy Spirit doth refresh it.

O pleasant Peace! O sweet Security▪ what can be sufficiently said of thee? Job. 4. I acknowledge with the Woman of Samaria, not only that this Well is very deep, but that I want a Bucket to draw. Thou canst not be understood of those that enjoy thee not, thou canst not be prais'd enough of those that enjoy thee. O ye Sons of Adam, O blind and perverse Generation, miserable lost Sheep! if this be your Country, whether do you range? if this be your Pasture, whither do you stray? whither do you wander, if this be your home? What do you? Wherefore stand ye looking about? wherefore will ye lose these Joys, the least whereof are greater and more lasting than any this World can afford: Assuredly, if we should endure the Torments [Page] of Hell for a long season, to enjoy these Felicities but for a short time, our Pains wou'd be abundantly satisfied with this exceeding weight of Glory.

And if thou enquirest, O Man, what thou must do to attain to the enjoyment of these Everlasting Joys, give an attentive Ear to what thy blessed Saviour hath said, Matt. 11. 11. The Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. If thou canst violently break off with all thy beloved and darlings sins, thy Dalilahs, which would ruine thy immortal Soul; and if thou canst but do justly, love Mercy, and walk humbly with thy God, and thou canst set thy whole desires after this Kingdom, thou shalt certainly enjoy it, and that for evermore. O weak Man, wherefore art thou troubled? Christ hath taken all the pains, and he hath paid the Price, and a dear one too, no less than his own precious Blood: hear what he saith unto thee, Mat. 13. 41. The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a Treasure hid in a Field, which when a Man hath found, he goeth and sells all that he hath, and buyeth that Field. Lo here the Purchase [...]s laid before thee, it is worth all that thou [...]ast, it is valued to thee as thou valuest thy self, therefore make away all thy desires [Page] in things of this Life, and let all thy joy be fix'd upon that Kingdom, and tho [...] shalt have it: Christ hath given himself to purchase this Kingdom for thee, therefor [...] let not sin reign in thy Body, but give up thy self in Love to him, and he will giv [...] himself and his Father's Kingdom unto thee. But alas, O my Soul! where ar [...] thou? what dost thou? where is thy Joy [...] where is thy Love, wherewith thy though [...] shou'd be inflam'd? how art thou chain' [...] with the Inchantments on this ugly Earth [...] How art thou drown'd in drowsiness, O my Soul! that thou art so careless and senseles [...] of true Spiritual Pleasures, and so fon [...] upon the vanities and vexations of thi [...] Life! Tell me, dost thou believe there is [...] Kingdom of Heaven, wherein thou art inroll'd a Citizen, whereto thou art adopted an Heir; and hast thou not a longing Love to be possess'd of the same? Alas▪ how faint is thy Faith, how unbelieving [...] thy belief! Tell me, I pray thee, what Entertainment hath intangled thee into th [...] Love of this Life? What dost thou fin [...] therein but wanting and wishing; fro [...] whence ariseth two Tortures of the Mind Hope and Fear? how art thou busied there in, as the Spider that consumeth her ow [...] [Page] Bowels in weaving curious Nets only to catch Flies? O my Soul! it is not any true contentment or satisfaction that thou findest in any of the Pleasures of this Life, but [...]t is thy own Heaviness that holdeth thee down, it is thy own Dulness that doth undo thee.

There is no difference between doubting of this Happiness, and not desiring of it: If then thou hast any Sparkles of Faith, shake off this sleepy Sloath, away with this Unchearfulness, away with this dead Dulness, away with all the profane Earthly Pleasures, those Lime twigs of the Devil, which cleaving to the Feathers of thy Devotion, make thee unable to [...]ount upwards.

O my God! O that I could so free my Affection! O that I cou'd so heave up my heavy Heart unto thee! O that I were in desire as I am indeed, a Sojour [...]er, a Traveller, a Stranger upon Earth. O that I cou'd travail like a Woman in Childbirth, to be delivered of this lum [...]ish Load of Sensuality, and to solace my self only in Desire, Hope, and in Assu [...]ance of thee.

This do I desire, O Lord, or rather weakly wish for; I am so fetter'd with [Page] Flesh and Blood, that I am so far fro [...] performing it, that I cannot desire it i [...] such sort as I should. It is Nature tha [...] drowneth me in this dead Sea of Worldliness: I cannot endure to think upon much less desire a Dissolution. If th [...] Nature be not, O Lord, over-rul'd, and chain'd down by thy Grace, I shall b [...] neither able to do, nor desire; but like Lot, I shall be loath to depart out of Sodom; therefore, O Lord, let me grow i [...] thy Grace, and in the Knowledge of Jesus Christ my Lord; that I may live to thy Praise here, and be glorified with thee hereafter in those Glorious Mansions have had a short View of.

SOME HOLY PREPARATIONS To a Worthy Receiving of the BLESSED SACRAMENT OF THE LORD's SUPPER.

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The Necessity of this Duty pressed from several Portions of Scripture.

FIrst, by the Express Commands of our Blessed Lord and Saviour, who is the Chief, nay, the Sum and Substance of what this blessed Ordinance representeth unto us; as in Matt. 26. 26. 27. And as they were eating, Jesus took Bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave to the Disciples, saying, Take, eat, this is my Body.

And he took the Cup and gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, drinkye all of it: And for this good and beneficial Reason to all Mankind; as Ver. 28. This is my blood of [Page] the New Testament which was shed for man for the remission of their Sins. And St. Mar [...] 14. 22, 23. And as they did eat, Jesus too [...] Bread and blessed it, and brake it, and gave t [...] them, and said, Take eat; this is my Body. An [...] he took the Cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. Luk 22. 19, 20. And he took Bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my Body which is given for you▪ do this in remembrance of me. Likewise also the Cup after Supper, saying, this Cup is the New Testament of my Blood, which is she [...] for you. And by St. Paul we have a hint o [...] it, 1 Cor. 11. 23, 24, 25. For I have receiv' [...] of the Lord that which also I have delivere [...] unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night that he was betrayed, the same night took Bread. And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat, this is my Body which is broken for you: This do in remembrance of me. And the reason that is given is, For as often as ye eat of this Bread, and drink of this Cup, ye do shew forth the Lord's Death till he come.

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How we ought to examine and resolve with our selves before we Communicate in this great Ordinance.

WE are Exhorted to it by the Apostle St. Paul, 1 Cor. 11. 28. But let [...] Man examine himself, and so let him eat of that Bread, and drink of that Cup. The Apostle's reason is, Because he that eateth and drinketh Unworthily, eateth and drinketh Damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's Body.

O Dreadful! that any shou'd be so careless, so heedless and presumptuous, to go to this Table of the Lord, and not be fitted and prepared for it! when they that run may read the fatal Consequence of Unworthy Receiving.

Therefore that you may not come to this Ordinance, and go away in a far wo [...]se Condition than you came, fit and prepare your self for it; First, by examination, examine thy own Heart, which is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it? and try your own ways: see what you are doing, whether serving of God, or the Devil, or your self: And if you have been serving your self, or the Devil, do so no more, but turn [Page] from all your wicked ways with a full resolution and purpose of heart, and cea [...] from doing evil; learn to do well.

Examine and see what God hath sai [...] concerning those that break his Statute [...] that observe not his Commandments t [...] keep them; that are stubbo [...]n, careless, an [...] unconverted Sinners, that will not hav [...] God for their Portion, nor none of h [...] ways, but will walk after the imaginatio [...] of their own Hearts, striving, as it wer [...] with all their might, to make sure of Eternal Burnings, which will be the certai [...] Portion of all the Workers of Iniquity, a God himself hath declar'd, that canno [...] Lye.

Ask thy self the Question, whether tho [...] art one of those head strong Sinners or no [...] Why shouldst thou be afraid to ask thi [...] Question, when no less than eternal Joy [...] or eternal Woes depend upon it? I am not afraid to look over my Estate, to se [...] whether I am a rich Man or a poor; an [...] why shou'd I be afraid of seeing whethe [...] I am a wise Man or a Fool? a Friend [...] an Enemy to God, and whether the blesed Portion of the Righteous, or the cu [...] sed Portion of the Wicked will fall to m [...] Share.

[Page] What means my living in so many known Sins, and be contented to perform some formal Ceremonies in the Service of God, and now and then put up a dead, [...]ull, heartless Prayer, and put him off with [...]he world's leaving? O dreadful poor de [...]uded Soul that I am! to think that the All-wise God, maker of Heaven and Earth, and the Fountain of Waters, will be con [...]ented with these false hypocritcal, and indifferent Actions! No God is not such a [...]ne as my self, he is of purer eyes than to behold such Wickedness with any approbation.

Therefore take heed, O my Soul, and [...]heat not thy self any longer, but turn to [...]he Lord with singleness and uprightness of Heart, and serve him with a ready and [...] thankful Mind; and take as much, nay more pleasure in obeying his Commandments, in doing his Will, in observing his [...]tatutes and Judgments, as ever thou didst [...] thy most darling Sin, in deceitful Dali [...]h's, which will certainly bring thee to [...]verlasting Ruine and Destruction, if thou [...]ost not leave them and forsake them, and [...]eave to the Lord; and fear his dreadful [...]ame, and love him with all thy Heart, [...]d with all my Soul, and with all thy Mind, [...]d with all thy Strength, and thy Neighbours [Page] as thy self, and love mercy, and do justly, and walk humbly with thy God, and then thou wilt be fit and prepared for this Heavenly Banquet, whereby thy Soul will be infinitely refreshed, and the Souls of all those that are Receivers in the true Faith, Fear and Love.

A Prayer to be used before the Receiving of the Blessed Sacrament.

MOst Holy Lord God and Everlasting Father, who out of thy infinite loving kindness to Mankind, gavest thy only begotten Son to make satisfaction to thy Justice for the Sins of the whole World▪ O Lord, thy Mercy is very great toward [...] me and all Men, in that we have sinned, and thou hast appointed thy only Son to bear the Burthen of the Punishment fo [...] them; O Lord, do thou fit and prepar [...] me by thy Heavenly Grace, for this thy great Ordinance, and so grant me by thy Strength, as that I may perform my pa [...] of it with that holy Fear and Reveren [...] as I ought. And Lord, Grant I may r [...] ceive that benefit by it thou designest [...] in it, which is that Soul-satisfying Cordi [...] the fresh stream of thy Everlasting Lov [...] [Page] Lord, make me more and more sensible by it of thy great Loving-kindness towards me. O Lord, grant this, and abundantly more than I am able to ask or think, for thy dear Son's sake: to whom with thee, O Father, and the blessed Spirit, be all Honour, Praise and Glory, from this time, henceforth, and for ever.

At the time of Receiving, you may use these Ejaculations.

BLess the Lord, O my Soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy Name; for his wonderful Mercy and Loving-kindness to me is very great. Magnifie the Lord, O my Soul, and sing Praises to the most high God; for he hath visited and redeem [...]d his People with his most precious Blood.

At the Receiving of the Bread, say,

THis is that Bread, which came down from Heaven, That whosoever eateth [...]hereof, shall never hunger. Thou hast dealt [...]y Bread to the Hungry, O feed me with [...]is Bread of Life: O strengthen my Faith, [...]nd open my Mouth with fervent desires, [...]at I may eat, not to satisfie my Bodily [...]unger, but Spiritual, and to the refresh [...]ent of my Immortal Soul. O let my [Page] Soul feel the Efficacy of thy Grace, that may not eat unworthily. O Lord, I beseech thee to direct me by thy holy Spiri [...] to receive it worthily, to my everlasting Comfort. Amen.

After the Bread, say,

Oever blessed Jesus, Son of the mo [...] high God, sanctifie this Bread to th [...] Soul, that it may enable me to overcom [...] all Assaults of the World, the Flesh, an [...] the Devil; and that I may continue th [...] faithful Servant to my Live's end. Amen.

Before Receiving of the Cup, say,

THe Lord himself is the portion of [...] Inheritance, and my Cup; thou sh [...] maintain my Lot, my L [...]t is fallen to [...] in a fair Ground; yea, I have a good Heritage, I have set God always bef [...] me: he is on my right-hand, therefo [...] shall not fall: Gracious is the Lord, a [...] Righteous, yea our God is merciful. W [...] reward shall I give unto the Lord, for the benefits he hath done for me? I [...] receive the Cup of Salvation, and call [...] on the Name of the Lord.

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Devout Prayers, Praises, and Thanksgivings upon several Occasions.

A Short Collection of some of the Holy Resolutions of Holy DAVID, concerning Prayer and Praises.

PSALM ix. Verse 1, 2.

I Will praise thee O Lord with my whole heart: I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.

I will be glad and rejoice in thee, I will sing praises to thy Name, O thou most High.

Verse 11. Sing praises to the Lord that dwelleth in Zion: declare among the People his doings.

Psal. xviii. 3. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from my Enemies.

Psalm. xix. 12, 13. Who can understand his Errors? Cleanse thou me from secret Faults.

Keep back thy Servant also from presumptuous sins, let them not have dominion over me.

[Page] Psal. xxviii. 1, 2. Unto thee, O Lord, will I cry; my Rock be not silent to me.

Hear the Voice of my Supplications, when I cry unto thee.

Psalm xxxiii. 1, 2, 3. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye Righteous, for Praise is comely for the Upright.

Praise the Lord with Harp, sing unto him with the Psaltery, and an Instrument of ten Strings.

Sing unto him a new Song, play skilfully with a loud Noise.

Psalm li. 1, 2. Have Merey upon me, O God, according to thy loving kindness: According to the multitude of thy tender Mercies, blot out my transgressions.

Wash me throughly from my Iniquity, and cleanse me from Sin.

Psalm lxvii. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. God be merciful unto us, and bless us: and cause thy Face to shine upon us.

That thy way may be known upon the Earth, and thy saving health among all Nations

Let the People praise thee, O God, let all the People praise thee.

O let the Nations be glad, and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the People righteously, and govern the Nations upon the Earth.

Let the People praise thee, O God, let all the People praise thee.

[Page] Then shall the Earth yield her Increase, and God, even our God shall bless us.

God shall bless us, and all the ends of the Earth shall fear him.

Psalm c. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord all ye Lands.

Serve the Lord with gladness, come before his presence with singing.

Know ye that the Lord he is God, it is he that hath made us, and not we our selves; we are his People, and the Sheep of his Pasture.

Enter into his Gates with thanksgiving, and into his Courts with Praise: Be thankful unto him and bless his Name:

For the Lord is good, his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endureth to all Generations.

Some few of God's Promises to those that truly serve him, and call upon his Name.

Psalm cxii. Verse 1, 2, 3.

BLessed is the Man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his Commandments.

His seed shall be mighly upon the Earth: the Generation of the Upright shall be blessed.

[Page] Wealth and Riches shall be in his House: [...]nd his Righteousnes shall endure for ever.

Job li. 7. Thou shalt make thy prayer unto [...]im, and he shall hear thee: and if thou seek [...]im, he will be found.

Isa. lxv. 24. Before they call I will answer: and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

John xv. 7. Ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

John xvi. 24. Ask and ye shall receive, that your joy may be-full.

John xiv. 13, 14. Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name I will do it.

Matthew xxi. 22. And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Matthew vi. 6. Pray to thy Father which seeth in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Matt. vii. 7. Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

A Morning Prayer for a Family.

MOst glorious and ever blessed Lord God, whose goodness and mercy is extended to the very ends of the Earth, who dost from thy Throne behold all the actions of the Sons and Daughters of Men, [Page] whether they be good or evil, that thou mayest reward them according to their doings. O Lord, we poor sinful Dust and Ashes, are this Morning come before thee to beg Grace of thee, hoping in thy Mercy, which is over all thy Works: Keep us, we humbly pray thee, this Day, as thou hast kept us the Night that is past and gone, keep us in thy Faith, Fear, and Love, and forgive us all our Transgressions, by the Merits of thy dear Son. Teach us to bewail them as we ought, and separate them from us that would separate us from thee our God. O Lord, take away from our Minds, all Ignorance and Blindness, and all hardness of heart, and make thy Word more precious to us than the Gold of Ophir, and guide us by thy holy Spirit here, out of all that is evil, into all that is good; that when our great change comes, we may receive that Crown of Glory that is laid up for all those that run and are not weary; that walk and are not faint; but that travel in thy strength, and by thy gracious assistance, till they arrive to their Journeys end; which is to rest in thy Bosom. O Lord do thou strengthen our Weakness, enlighten our Understandings more and more, that in [Page] the greatest Temptation, we may have knowledge of thee, and of thy ways that we may never be overtaken; but that for the future we may press forward towards the mark of the high Calling in Christ Jesus our Lord. Lord, do thou prosper all our Undertakings, and bless our Goings out and Comings in, and give us Hearts to learn something of every thing, and make a spiritual Use of our Actions and Occasions, till we come to lodge with thee in thy Kingdom. Let our Affections grow one towards another unfeignedly, and that we may love our Enemies, and bless them that curse us; but especially the houshold of Faith, and that we may always pray for them, and they for us, and both of us be heard of thee for our selves, and one for another, and thy Son for us all. Bless, Lord, the Catholick Church with Truth, Peace, soundness of Doctrine, and holy Discipline. Continue thy Favours upon this Land of our Nativity, and with the choicest of thy blessings, bless the King upon the Throne, and all the Royal Family; sanctifie the Lives and the Studies o [...] thy Servants that labour in thy Word o [...] Doctrine. Bless his Majesty's most Honourable Privy Council, and all others i [...] [Page] Authority with necessary Favours. Bless the Nurseries of good Learning, all Grammarschools, the famous Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and the Inns of Court. Bless this City and Place wherein we live. Remove the Punishments due for the Sins thereof, and give them Grace to repent in time, lest they be destroyed, Bless all our Friends, Relations, and others, for whom thou hast appointed us to make Prayers and Supplications. Bless this Family with Grace and Peace, that they all may know their several Duties towards thee, and one towards an [...]ther. And all we beg for Jesus Christ his sake; To whom with thee, O Father, and the Blessed Spirit, be all Praise, Honour and Glory, ascribed by us here, and all thine elsewhere, both now and for evermore.

An Evening Prayer for a Family.

O Lord God, Father of all Mercies, and God of all Consolations; we [...] come this Evening by thy great Mercy, [...] to the Throne of Grace, to beg Grace o [...] thee to help us in the time of Need, an [...] also to return thee hearty thanks for [...] multitude of thy great Mercies; but [...] [Page] especially for thy merciful preservatin o [...] us this Day, and all the Times and Days of our Lives, that thou hast by thy mighty Power and streched out Arm, brought us out of innumerable Perils and Dangers▪ and hast attended us both by Night and by Day, and poured upon us contrary to our deserts, so many Excellent Blessings and Benefits, both Spiritual and Temporal; Good Lord, we beseech thee keep us, as thou hast done hitherto, from Day to Day, and make us steadfast in the profession of thy Holy Name, and keeping of thy Commandments, that neither the Wrath of Man, nor the Malice of the Devel may turn us away from thee. Lord, turn thy back upon our Iniquities, blot ou [...] our Transgressions, and remember our Sins nō more, in which we have so much delighted; change our corrupt and polluted-Hearts, and wash and cleanse us in the Blood of our dear Redeemer. Forgive us all that is past, and grant us the assurance of that Forgiveness seal'd up i [...] [...]ur Consciences by thy Holy Spirit. Forgive us our intolerable Barenness in good Works, our base Unthankfulness and the Abuse of thy Grace, and strike our stony [...]earts with the Rod of thy Fear, that w [...] [Page] may attain unto a due Thankfulneness for [...] thy Favours, and a most unfeign'd and [...]rnest Repentance of our Sins. O Lord, [...]ess us all this Night, and after our Bo [...]ies have been refreshed, do thou bring us [...] the light of another day; wherein we [...]ay praise thy great Name in the Land [...]f the Living. Sanctifie us by thy Word [...]roughout Soul, Body, and Spirit, for thy [...]ord is Truth. Bless▪ this Nation, pre [...]erve the King, and all that are in Au [...]hority, and all thy Children: Raise up [...]e Heavy-hearted that mourn in Zion; Give them Beauty for Ashes, the Oil of [...]oy for Mourning, and the Garments of [...]raise for the Spirit of Heaviness, Lord, [...]e merciful unto them whom thou hast [...]ade any way helpful unto us: Bless every one of us in our proper station, that we [...]ay serve thee with all our Hearts, fear [...]hy Majesty, and love thy Precepts. These [...]hings, O Lord, and what ever thou know [...]st is needful for us, we humbly crave of [...]hee in the Name and Merits of Jesus Christ, our blessed Redeemer; saying as [...]e hath taught us, Our Father which art in Heaven, &c.

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A Prayer against the Temptations of the Worl [...] the Flesh and the Devil.

O Most merciful Father, and migh [...] God of Jacob, a strong Tower [...] the Faithful, a Rock of Defence an Refuge for all the Distressed; thou kno [...] est I am set in the midst of many Da [...] gers, my Weakness is very great, ins [...] much as that without thy help I cannot [...] void being ruined, and that for ever: beseech thee preserve my Body and So [...] from all Temptations, and Snares of th [...] Devil, and suffer not my Senses to ta [...] that Pleasure and Delight in the things [...] this World as I used to do; but Lord, l [...] me use them as if I used them not, an [...] take my Affections more and more off them, and settle them upon their rig [...] Objects, those things that are above Lord, do thou take from me all that [...] Deformed and of a corrupt Nature, an [...] work and establish that which thy Gra [...] hath wrought in me, that having on th [...] Armour, I may be able to stand against a [...] the Besetments of the Enemy. Let m [...] not be drawn away into any Sensuality [...] any desire of the Flesh, but give me power to overcome it, that I may live soberly [Page] righteously, and godly in this present evil World, and serve thee better, and live [...]ore in the Spirit. Lord, preserve me [...]rom the darkness, filthiness, and deceit [...]ulness of this World, that I may not fa [...]hion my self like unto it, to follow a Mul [...]itude; but being changed by the renew [...]ng of the Mind, I may walk up [...]ghtly [...]efore thee all the days of my appointed [...]ime till my change comes. O Lord, do [...]hou be a present help unto me in the time [...]f Trouble, for in thee I do and will [...]ut my trust and confidence; therefore [...]ead me no further into Temptations than [...]hou art pleased to give me strength to o [...]ercome them. O Lord, that I may with [...]rong Faith resist Satan, and help me to [...]ull down his Kingdom more and more, [...] Watching, Fasting and Praying, mor [...]fying the Deeds of the Flesh; and let thy [...]ighteous Law be my meditation Day [...]nd Night, and not the foolish Vanity and [...]nful Pleasures of this World. Let not [...]rosperity make me forget thee, nor Ad [...]ersity cast me into Despair, but let me [...]ake all thy dealing with me, whether on [...]he one hand, or on the other, in love from [...]ee, which is that wherein thy Dispensa [...]ons are towards me. Lord, arm me with [Page] thy Spirit, encourage me with thy Pr [...] sence, and let me always feel the effectu [...] working of thy Power, which is ever mad [...] perfect thro' Weakness; even for Chri [...] Jesus his sake.

A Prayer for the Remission of Sins.

O Glorious Lord God and everlastin [...] Father, I a wretched and an u [...] done Sinner without thy Mercy, a [...] come before thee to beg favour of thee fo [...] all my Offences; begging, praying, de [...] ring, and beseeching thy heavenly Majest [...] that thou would'st in Mercy look dow [...] upon me; I cannot but confess, were not for the hope I have of thy Mercy a [...] the hold of thy Comfort, and the rene [...] ing Graces I sometimes receive from th [...] and that sweet rellish I have of thy goo [...] Gifts, and thy Heavenly Word, I sink in [...] Despair, for my sins are continually b [...] fore me; if I go, they follow me; if run, they fly after; if I look back, the sta [...]e upon me; if I go forward, they me me; if I turn to the right-hand, they terifie me; if to the left-hand, they torme [...] me: If I look down into the Earth, H [...] is ready to devour me: Now I have [...] [Page] way but to look up to thee; help me, good God, save me dear Father; succour me [...]weet Redeemer; assist me, merciful Crea [...]or, that my Prayers may be so servent, so [...]ealous, so affectionate towards thee, that [...]hey may draw down thy Mercies upon me: Power down thy Blessings, showre [...]own thy Graces, open thy hand of Mer [...]y, and restore joy and consolation to my [...]eavy-laden Soul; wash away my Sins; [...]ipe away my Iniquities, heal my Infir [...]ities; purge my wicked Mind of all ill [...]houghts; pardon all my Damnable Deeds [...]nd detestable Dealings; take all hardness [...] heart from me, and according to thy [...]ood promise, renew a right Spirit within [...]e; send the Joys of thy holy Comforts [...]on me: O Lord let me have some taste [...]d some sense of thy most glorious and [...]ost comfortable Presence; let me be re [...]ewed by thy Grace, and established in [...]y Service, that I may never back-slide [...]om thee: But grant, O most merciful [...]ther, that my whole dependance may be [...]on thee, so that in all my Thoughts, [...]ords and Actions, I may rejoyce in ser [...]g, fearing and obeying of thee, that I [...]y spend the residue of my Days in thy [...]vice, seeking thy Honour and Glory. [Page] And, most merciful Father; favourably govern, help, instruct, guide, and teach me by thy Wisdom to magnifie thy Name, and preserve me in all my Ways and Work [...] and all about me. Remember thy po [...] Flock; build up thy Church in the mo [...] holy Faith; Comfort Sion; govern an [...] assist all painful Pastors and Teachers▪ teach them and us rightly to know thee▪ and truly to follow thee in all the Paths o [...] Righteousness and true Holiness. O Lord [...] Rouse my sleepy Soul, and defend it fro [...] evil Imaginations; keep me always in th [...] good frame of Spirit, which will caus [...] me to meditate upon thy Law Day an [...] Night. Grant that I may not do an [...] thing that is contrary to thy Command [...] but that I may walk in Piety and in Peace Give me a true and hearty Repentan [...] for Sin, that I never may repent of, that [...] may be truly sorrowful for spending of m [...] time so much in the Devils Service. [...] powerful preserver of Men, remember m [...] and restore me to Joy and Comfort, an [...] hasten in time thy Salvation unto m [...] Draw my lingring Soul with the Co [...] of thy Love, and it shall run after the Good Lord, declare thy Mercy unto m [...] that I may make known thy hand- [...]o [...] [Page] Establish me in thy Grace; excite me to Goodness; give me Grace, that I may grow stronger and stronger to walk before thee, and weaker and weaker to sin against thee, and faithful and stedfast in thy Service to my Life's End. Grant this, dear God, for thy Son' sake, my blessed Redeemer. Amen.

A Prayer before a Sermon.

MOst gracious Father, give us Hearts to hear thy Word with that due Reverence and Attention as we ought, knowing that it is the Word of God, and not of Man; therefore we ought to hear what by thy Servant thou art pleased to command us, that we may do it with all our Hearts, and with all our Souls. Lord, do thou keep our Thoughts upon what we hear, and let them not be carried away with any vain Illusions, and wicked Imaginations. Grant that we be not overcome with Sleep and Drowsiness, but quicken, O Lord, we beseech thee, our Senses: open our Ears to hear, and make us to understand how to observe thy heavenly Word; for thy only Son's sake, our Saviour. Amen.

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A Prayer to be said after Sermon.

O Lord God, we beseech thee to le [...] that Word which we have heard th [...] Day with our Ears, to be set home to o [...] Hearts, that we may not be only Heare [...] of thy Word, but Doers: that we may so learn to live to please thee, and make i [...] our Business to keep thy Commandments and spend the rest of our Lives, in th [...] Service, to the Honour and Glory of thy Great Name, and the Salvation of o [...] Immortal Souls, through Jesus Christ o [...] Lord. Amen.

A Prayer against wicked Thoughts.

MOst Glorious and Eternal God, I, one of the unworthiest of thy Creatures, am come on my bended Knees, to implore the gracious Assistance of thy Holy Spirit, against the Evil Thoughts that do arise in me, to the great Dishonour of thy Holy Name, and the great Trouble of my own Conscience: When I have Thought [...] to be fervent with thee in Prayer, either the Devil, the World, or the Flesh, do disappoint me, and I cannot do as I would for those things that I do, I would no [...] [Page] do, and those that I would, I do not: [...]n follows me, Shame is ready to over [...]ke me: Confusion is like to lay hold on [...]e; Destruction attends me, and Horrors [...]d Fear affright me: I have none to [...]ake my Supplications to, but to thee, my [...]viour, my Rock and Salvation. Help, [...] God; save me, merciful Father; de [...]nd me dear Creator, a Poor worthless [...]orm as I am; draw me from my Sins; [...]e, succour, pardon, and forgive me; [...]ash me, and I shall be clean; help me to [...]t away the Evil of my Doings, and [...]arn me, O God, to do well. Give me [...]iritual Thoughts to renew all good pur [...]oses within me; help me to put away [...]r from me all vain and lustful Thoughts [...]f the Flesh, and all malicious reproach [...]l and froward Thoughts, that proceed [...]om the Devil, or any worldly Occasions; [...]o that I may live purely, and have no Thoughts but what are innocent and [...]haste, always fearing to displease so gra [...]ous a God, and loving a Father as thou [...]t; and walking circumspectly before [...]hee, that I may be a good Example to [...] my Neighbours round about me, that [...]ey may see my good Works, and glorifie [...]ee, the only and alone Author of them.

[Page] To whom I give Praise, Honour and Gl [...] ry, at this time, henceforth and for evermore.

A Prayer in Prosperity.

MOst bountiful Father, as thou ha [...] been pleased to bless me with a large Portion of this World's Wealth give me an humble, thankful and charitable Heart, that I may be a good Steward [...] that thou hast been pleased to entrust m [...] with, in bestowing of it upon those Objects of Pity and Compassion that are i [...] great Straits and Necessity for it, and n [...] upon base and sordid Lusts, of which should certainly have cause to repent o [...] and that for ever. O Lord, grant that th [...] more earthly Blessings that thou give me, I may the more seek thy Heaven [...] Graces, that I may be the more humble [...] in the due consideration of my great u [...] thankfulness and ungratefulness of Spi [...] that I may live more piously and religiou [...] ly; and that when I depart this sinful L [...] I may be mindful to leave some good a [...] godly Examples of Charity to those th [...] follow. Grant that this my Wealth ma [...] be no hindrance to my Salvation, but rather a furtherance to me in all Pious, God [...]y [Page] and Charitable Action. Grant this, O Lord, and whatever more thou seest I stand in need of, for thy dear Son's sake; To whom with thee, O Father, and the Holy Ghost, be all Praise, Honour and Glory both now and for evermore.

A Prayer for one that is going to Sea.

O Lord God Eternal, who made the Seas, and the Fountains of Waters, at whose Commands the Winds are; I beg of thee to go along with me, and preserve me by thy Power and Outstreched Arm, from the Perils of the [...]reat Deep, and carry me safe to my desired Haven; and Lord, forgive me all [...]y Sins, heal all my Back-slidings, and [...]e me freely; grant me thy Grace, [...]hat I may live in thy Fear, and walk [...]rightly before thee with singleness of [...]eart, that so I may live to the Praise [...]d Glory of thy Great Name, and the [...]verlasting Salvation of my precious and [...]mortal Soul. And, Lord, as I have [...]gged of thee to carry me safe to my [...]sired Haven, so bring me home again, [...]at so I may have an occasion and op [...]ortunity with my Friends and Relati [...]ns, to sing Praises to thy great and glorious [Page] Name for all thy Mercies; but more especially that thou hast kept me from the merciless Waters and the Raging of the great Deep. So begging thy Protection for my Preservation, I resign up my self to thee, who art the God of all Power and Glory, both now and for evermore.

A Prayer in distress of Weather at Sea, either by Storm or Tempest.

O Lord God Eternal, maker of Heaven and Earth, the Sea, and all that therein is; We miserable Offenders, who have justly pull'd down thy Vengeance upon our Heads by the greatness of our Sins; we have provoked thy Wrath, we have deserved to be swallowed up quick by these raging Waves; O Lord, the Floods come over us, and even enter into our very Souls; O Lord, the Sea rages and rises up against us; Here we see thy woundrous Judgments in the grea [...] Deep, which unless thou preserve us, wil [...] swallow us up in a Moment. Lord, w [...] cannot but confess we have sinned again [...] thee with a high hand, and therefore justl [...] is thyfierce Anger kindled upon us, a [...] thy intolerable Judgments come up again [Page] us, there is none to help us: Therefore O Lord, for thy tender Mercy sake appear for us, and save us: Cease these Storms, and Tempest; Cease, we beseech thee these swelling, raging Billows: Command these blustering Winds, and they shall obey thee; for we are at the pit of Destruction, just ready to be swallowed up: Save us, Master, or we perish. Lord, increase out faith. Merciful Father, we beseech thee to take us into thy Protection; and if thou hast appointed Death for us, O Lord, be thou present, we beseech thee, to receive our Souls into thy Bosom, till the general Resurrection of our Bodies, and then receive our Souls and Bodies into thy Kingdom. If thou dost design us for Life, grant that these Afflictions may be so sanctified unto us, as to cause us for the future to live a Godly, Righteous, and Sober Life, all our Days. Grant this, O God, for thy dear Son's sake. Amen.

A Thanksgiving for a safe Return from Sea.

FAther of all Mercies, and God of all Consolations, I cannot but must confess, that I am obliged to return thee [Page] hearty thanks for all thy Mercies: But more especially at this time I am, and do return thee my humble and hearty Thanks for thy great Mercy, in bringing me safe over the great Waters t [...] rough [...] many Perils and Dangers, to my own Habitation, and to the Enjoyment of all my Friends and Relations; for which singular Mercy, O Lord, do thou give me a Heart to live answerable to it, that thou may est have the Praise, and I reap the Everlasting Comfort of it, and I will sing Praises to thy Great Name, for thou art my Salvation, my Rock, and strong Tower of Defence, and Praises wait for thee, O God, in Sion; for thou art worthy to be praised, both now, henceforth and for evermore.

A Prayer for one that is going a long, Journey

O Lord God, lead me in the Paths o [...] Righte [...]sness, and direct my Goings in th [...] [...]ay of Truth: We are bo [...] to Travel, and many have no certai [...] place of abode; our Days are like a Spa [...] and our Laves pass away swifter than Post. O what is Man that thou art [...] ful of him, or the Son of Man that t [...] hast any regard for him? We are like to [Page] Bubble, a Blast, we go hence, and are seen no more. Teach me, Lord, to number my days, that I may apply my heart unto Wisdom: Direct my [...]steps in the way of truth, and guide and govern me in my Travel, that I may go on with Comfort in this my: Journey. Be thou my God, my Help and Guide, to direct me in my way and Business. Keep me from all danger of Thieves, or other Mischief and Trouble, that I may have no disturbances in my Journey, no lets or hindrances, nor sorrow, nor heaviness, b [...] for my Sins. O Lord, keep and bless all my Friends and Relations, at home and abroad, in Health and Peace. O Lord, let me have the comfortable enjoyment of thy holy Spirit upon the way, that so it may assist me, that I may think, discourse, and act nothing but what is well pleasing to thee. And all this I b [...]g for Jesus Christ his sake. Amen.

A Prayer for a sick Person.

O God of all Comforts, who art a present help in time of Trouble, to them that faithfully rely upon thee for thy help and assistance in their Troubles: Lord, [...] hast laid me upon a Bed of. Languishing and upon a rowling pillow, [Page] where I cannot find relief, or ease, or comfort for my Body; Lord, do thou sanctifie this sore affliction unto me; I cannot but confess I have sinned and done wickedly, and grieved thy holy Spirit from time to time; yet merciful Saviour▪ return unto me that I may have a feeling of thy good Spirit. Let not the sins of my Youth, nor the iniquity of that time be upon me: But, Lord, as thou hast laid thy afflicting Hand upon me, arm me with [...]atience that I may endure this Visitation patiently. If thou art pleased to dispose of me for another life, then make me fit for thy Kingdom. Arm me and strengthen me to bear the But then without mourning against thee, but make me to undergo this Affliction willingly, and to fight it out manfully. What am I [...] a poor worthles [...] Worm [...] I have no [...] Comfort but from thee. Restore me [...] Health and amendment of Life, or else take me into thy Kingdom of Glory. Lord, cease my Pain, ease my Grief Lord, I intreat thee to grant, that neither the Devil nor the World may ever have power over me any more to make me disobey thee. Send thy good Angels both to keep me in Sickness and in Health, and [Page] grant that I may be always fitted and prepared for death, that I may not be afraid of it, if it be thy Will. Let me recover a little strength. Spare me a little before I go hence and be no more. O grant that I may find thy Grace work in me for my good, that if it be thy Will to take me hence, receive me to thy self. Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. So I commit and commend my self to thee in that Prayer thou hast taught me, saying, Our Father which art, &c. Lord strengthen my Faith to the end. I believe in God, &c.

A Prayer for a young Virgin.

MOst Glorious and Everlasting Father, look in Mercy, Pity and Compassion upon thy poor Hand-Maiden, and grant me the for giveness of my Sins, and grant that all thy Graces may flourish, in me, that I may be in favour both with God and Man. Crown my Virginity with pious and chaste Thoughts, that I may be as watchful to wait for thy coming, as the Wise Virgins, that I may enter with thee and them into thy Blessed Kingdom, before the Door be shut. Give me such good and heavenly Thoughts that a good Name is better than any [Page] thing that I can enjoy; and let me not part with my Reputation for the greatest Offers this World can afford, but help me to live a sober, meek, and chaste Life, by the gracious assistance of thy most holy Spirit. O defend me frome base and slandrous Tongues, and all wicked Temptations. O Lord, make me faithful and honest in all my actions in this Life, that whatsoever Charge is committed to my Care, I may be so careful of it, that nothing may be wanting when I come to resign it up. Marry me, O Lord, to thy self in Mercy and Righteousness, and if thou shalt be pleased to call me to the honourable Estate of Matrimony, let me take Rachel, Rebecca and Sarah for my Examples, in Love, Wisdom, Faithfulness and Obedience to my Wife, and towards all Persons with whom I have to do. Let me behave my self in all things so as becometh one that is wholly devoted to thy Service. Grant these things, O Lord, and whatever else thou knowest I stand in need of for Jesus Christ his sake; To whom with thee O, Father, and the Holy Spirit, be all Praise, Honour and Glory, both now, henceforth and for evermore.

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The Wife's Prayer for her Husband.

O Lord God, as thou hast joyned me in thy Fear and Name, in thy great Mercy to a loving and kind Husband, grant that I may be so loving, kind, and obedient to him, as may conduce to thy Glory, and both our Comforts; so endue me with a meek and quiet Spirit, and defend me and him from the power of all Temptation that may attend us, that so thy Strength may be made perfect in our Weakness. Grant us both the assistance of thy holy Spirit, that so it may teach us to love and cherish each other; and give us the Gifts of Chastity and Sobriety, that bothin body and mind we may live a pure Life, binging up our Children and Servants in thy Fear and Dread. O Lord, forgive us all our Sins, and grant us both Grace to love, fear, and serve thee our appointed time till our Change come, that so [...] this Life we may reap the Comfort of [...] enjoy, and receive the Fruit of [...] that is laid up in thy mercies. [...] all I beg upon the account of thy [...]ear Son: To whom, with thee and the [...]oly Spirit be all Praise, Honour and Glory [...]oth now, henceforth and for Evermore.

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The Widow's Prayer.

EVerlasting Lord God, a poor distress'd and afflicted Servant of thine is come before thee to beg the forgiveness of all her Sins, and to be a comfortable Husband to me in this my desolate and forlorn condition. And, Lord, as thou hast been pleased to lay so great an Affliction upon me, as to take so loving and kind a Husband from me, give me out of thy tender and everlasting Mercies, some other blessings to ease the Sorrows of my poor afflicted Soul. Lord, do thou give me Beauty for Ashes, the Oil of Joy for Mourning, and the Garment of Praise for the Spirit of Heaviness; that so after this Night of Afflictions, I may have some refreshing Comforts and Encouragements to sing Praise to thy great and glorious Name in the land of the living; and tell my Friends, Neighbours and Kinsfolk, how good thou the Lord hast been to me, and what great things thou hast dwe [...] for me, whereof I shall be glad. And, O sake [...], bless▪ me in all honest Endeavours, supply all my Wants, whether Spiritual or Temporal; and let me have the comfortable Fellowship of thy most holy Spirit t [...] [Page] direct me in all my ways, that I may do nothing that tends to the dishonour of thy great Name, or the disconsolation of my precious and immortal Soul. I pray thee order my Children and Servants Hearts and Minds, as that they may love and fear thee as they ought. Lord, do these things for me, and more abundantly than I am able to ask or think, for Jesus Christ his sake? To whom with thee, O Father, and the Blessed Spirit, be all Praise, Honour, and Glory, both now and for evermore.

A Prayer for a Woman with Child.

HEavenly Father, and God of all Power and Glory, who createdst the Heavens, and the Foundations of the Earth, and all that in them is, who createdst Man in thine own Image, but he hath found out many Inventions. Lord, I am come to supplicate thy Majesty, and to implore thy infinite Goodness to bless me in this Condition I am now in of Child-bearing, and grant that the Fruit of my Womb may have all the Parts and Members that it ought to have, and in their right places and stations; and whatever Weakness it may bring upon my Body, do thou grant me patience to bear it with all [Page] the submission imaginable to thy Will, and grant that all thou dost for me, and to me, may be sanctified, that so I may make a right use and improvement of it, to the Praise of thy glorious Name, and to the everlasting Comfort of my immortal Soul. Lord, preserve me from untimely Birth; grant through Faith, Prayer and Patience, I may escape all sudden Fears. Lord, do thou stand by me when I draw near to my hard labour, and let thy everlasting Arms be under me to bear me up under those intolerable Pangs which attend that dreadful Hour; and grant that the fruit of my Womb, as it grows up in bodily Strength, so let it grow also in spiritual Strength in thy Faith, Fear and Love. And grant me, O Lord, a patient and quiet Spirit at that Hour, and safe Deliverance in due Time, and make me a joyful Mother. Forgive and forget all my past Offences, and bless my poor Infant, and take it into thy Covenant, and give me Wisdom and Strength to bring it up in thy Fear, and to thy great Glory, and my further Joy, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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A Thanks giving for safe Deliverance from the Perils of Child-bearing.

O Lord God Eternal, accept of this Sacrifice of Thanks giving for thy great Mercy in appearing so wonderfully for me, to my great Ease and Comfort in that dreadful and painful Hour of Child-bearing, that thou hast been pleased safely to deliver me from the Perils of it, and to lengthen out my Days in the Land of the Living, and to see the Fruit, of my hard Labour and Travail. Lord, grant that it may prosper and grow up in thy Fear, to thy Glory, and both our Comforts. And grant, Lord, that I may live worthy of this Mercy, and make thee some grateful Returns for all thy Mercies. Pardon and forgive me all my Sins, and preserve me from sining against thee any more. And all I beg upon the account of thy dear Son. To whom with the, O Father, and with the blessed Spirit, be all Honour, Praise and Glory, both now and for evermore.

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A Prayer for all Christian Vertues, as Love, Faith, Hope and Charity,&c.

O Lord, Father of all Mercies, and God of all Consolations; bless me with all thy Spiritual Blessings, and Heavenly Graces, make me rich in Love, strong in Faith, full in Assurance of Hope, and abound in all Charitable Actions, according to that Sufficiency thou hast been ple [...]sed to bless and entrust me with, that I may have nothing to answer for at that great and terrible Day, wherein the Secrets of all Hearts shall be opened, and every one rewarded according to their Doings. Lord, grant that thy Graces may all flourish in me as the Bay-Tree, that so by my good Example, others may return to thee their Lord and Saviour, and so have cause to sing Praises to thy Great Name, for all thy Wondrous Works. Lord, keep me from Insolence and Pride, and grant me true Humility and Zealousness of Mind, and give me a true Consideration of my own Vileness, that so I may tremble and stand in Awe before thee, as a sinful Man, having always a better esteem of others than my self. Gracious Lord, when the Devil shall accuse, my own Conscience bear Witness against me, and the whole World forsake me for my Sins, do thou be my Strength, my Salvation, my Rock and strong Tower of Defence against these potent Enemies of my Soul Enflame my Dead Heart with the Heavenly Affection of an unseign'd Love, that I may love and adore thee above all; and my Neighbour as my self▪ Grant me a good Mind to help and succour all to my Ability; to forbear and forgive all that ever any did against me; Let not the least Spark of [Page] Envy or Wrath lodge within my Breast, nor never let the Sun go down upon my Anger, but let me be satisfied, that Vengeance is thine; and that thou art so just, that thou wilt send it upon the Heads of those that fear thee not, and call not upon thee, but that live in Envy and Malice, and Implacableness of Spirit against thy Children. Give me Grace, O Lord, to follow the Example of all good Men; and keep me from that hateful Sin of Sloath and I [...]leness, which is the High-way to Want and Beggary. Grant me a contented mind, and moderate my Des [...]res towards the Things of this World; and, Lord, be with me at the Hour of Death; and when I go hence and be no more seen, I may be admitted into thy Kingdom of Glory; that I may eternally sing Hallelujah's to thy great Name. Grant this, O God, and whatever else I stand in need of, for Jesus Christ his sake: To whom with thee and the Holy Ghost, be all Honour, Praise and Glory, both now and for evermore.

A Prayer for all Earthly Blessings.

O Lord God Eternal, which causeth the Sun to shine upon the Just and the Unjust, satisfie the Desires of thy Servants with thy bountiful Goodness; we cannot but must humbly acknowledge, that we are not worthy of the least of thy Favours, but that it is of thy Eternal Goodness we are living Monuments of thy mercy all this Day; Lord, do thou supply our daily Necessities, and give us this Day, and every Day, our daily Bread. Bless the manuring of our Ground, prosper [...] Corn, and bless the Seedtime with the Former and Latter Rain in their due [Page] Seasons. Keep our Fruits while they be upon the Earth, from Ha [...]l and Thunder, from excessive Droughts, over much Ra [...]o and Mildews, and send us a joyful Harvest▪ O Lord, bless and increase our Cattle, and keep them from those Casualties they are obnoxious to; amd bless our [...]ske [...] and our Store, and keep our Granaries, Barns and Store Houses from Fire and boisterous Winds, Thieves a [...]d sudden Inundations. Prosper all our Undertaki [...]gs whether by Sea or Land▪ Be thou a present H [...]lp in time of Trouble, and turn our Dear [...]s into Cheapness, and Scarcity into Ple [...]ty. And, Lord, open the Hearts of those to whom thou hast dealt liberally, that as thou hast been to them, they may be to their poor Fellow-Creatures that are in Want. Help us, O Lord, in all our Straits, and oppress us▪ not with too much Poverty; neither let us be puffed up in the Day of Prosperity, but keep us in Evenness of Temper in either extreme, that we may live in thy Fear and die in thy Favour. And all this we beg upon the Account of thy dear Son and our blessed Redeemer: to whom with thee, O Father, and the blessed Spirit, be all Praise, Honour, and Glory, both now and for evermore.

Graces before and after Meat.

Grace before Meat.

O Lord God, Maker of Heaven and Earth, who hast created [...]ll things for the use and service of Men: Bless these thy Creatures which [Page] thou hast provided for us, and set before us at this time, that they may strengthen our Bodies, so that thereby we may be the better able to live to thy Praise, Honour and Glory, both now and for evermore.

Grace after Meat.

ALmighty God, and Everlasting Father, who out of thy infinite Goodness hast most plentifully fed us, for which and all other Mercies, we return thee hearty Thanks; begging of thee so to direct and guide us, as that we may in some measure live answerable to thy Goodness to us. All which we beg for Jesus Christ his sake. To whom with thee, O Father, and the holy Spirit, be Praise, Honour and Glory, henceforth, and for evermore.

Grace before Meat.

MOst Gracious Father, we crave thy Blessing upon these good Creatures, that thou by thy good hand of Providence hast bestowed upon us; grant that they may give Nourishment to these our mortal Bodies, and sanctifie them so unto us, as that we may live to thy Praise, to thy Honour, and to thy Glory, both now, henceforth and for evermore.

Grace after Meat

MOst Bountiful and Gracious Lord God, whose Goodness is extended to the uttermost Parts of the Earth; what cause have we to praise and magnifie thy holy Name for this great and singular mercy of daily taking care for us, and plentifully feeding of us with the best and choicest of thy Creatures. As thou hast filled [Page] our Bodies with them, so fill our Souls with the Graces of thy holy Spirit. And all we beg upon the Account of thy dear Son: To whom with thee, O Father and the blessed Spirit, be all Praise, Honour and Glory for ever and ever.

Grace before Meat.

O Lord, it is by thy Goodness and Mercy, that we are here before thee this Day to partake of thy great Mercy, in providing such a plentiful Table for us. Grant, Lord, that what we eat at this time, may so refresh and strengthen us, as thereby we may not only be able, but obliged by thy great Goodness towards us, to serve thee with all our might, with all our strength, and with all our Soul, unto our Live's End.

Grace after Meat.

GOD of all Blessings and Gonsolations, we return thee our humble and hearty Thanks for thy satisfying our Bodies at this time, when Thousands of our Fellow-Creatures are in great want. Lord, grant that we may live up to this and all other Mercies, for Jesus Christ his sake, our Lord.

Grace before Meat.

THou King of Kings, and Lord of Lords; Bless these thy Creatures that thou hast filled our Table with at this time. Bless the King upon th [...] Throne, and all the Royal Family, with the choice of thy Blessings. Bless the Christian Churches i [...] this Land of our Nativi [...]y. And all we beg for Jesus Christ his sake: To whom with thee, O Fathe [...] and the blessed Spirit, be all Praise, Honour an [...] Glory, both now and for evermore.

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Grace after Meat.

THou Prince of Peace, and everlasting Father, who hast filled our Bodies in a most plentiful manner at this time, so fill the Souls of the [...]ing, and all the Royal Family, and ours, with the [...]est of thy Servants every where, with the Graces of thy most holy Spirit, whereby we may be con [...]ucted to thy Everlasting Kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

HYMNS and Spiritual SONGS of Praise to Almighty GOD, for our happy Deliverance from Popery, and the horrid Cruelty and Barbarity of Blood-thirsty Men.

A HYMN.

O Lord, thou hast been merciful

To thy beloved Land;

[...]or England thou hast saved

By thy Almighty Hand,

From the Barbarous Cruelty

Of all those that have sought

With all their Power to destroy;

Their Plots are come to nought.

The Cruelty they did design,

O Lord, was very great;

Thy People all for to destroy,

This Land to ruinate.

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But these our Enemies, O Lord,

Thou hast caused to fall;

And from that Ruine they design'd,

O Lord, thou hast sav'd us all.

A SONG of Praise.

THerefore thy praises, Lord, we'll sing,

To the Honour of thy Name;

For this Salvation thou hast wrought,

We'll magnifie the same;

When thou appeard'st our Foes they fell,

And perish'd at thy Sight;

For thou didst maintain our Cause,

And do the Thing that's right.

Our Enemies thou hast cast down,

Their Counsels overthrown;

Thou hast put out their Names that they

May never more be known.

O Lord, thou wast our Refuge then,

When we were sore opprest;

A Refuge will he be in time

Of Trouble and Distress.

SONG II.

LEt's praise the Lord with all our Hearts;

Let's praise God while we live:

While we have Beings, to our God

Let's Songs of praises give.

Trust not in great Men, not at all,

In whom there is no stay;

Their Breath departs, to Earth they turn

That Day their Thoughts decay.

O! happy are all those and blest,

Whom Israel's God doth aid;

Whose hopes upon the Lord do rest,

And on that God are staid.

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Who made the Earth and Heavens high,

Who made the Swellings deep,

And all that is within the same,

Who Truth doth ever▪ keep.

Who righteous Judgment executes

For those oppress'd that be;

Who to the Hungry giveth Food,

And sets the Captive free.

Who giveth to the Blind their Sight,

The bowed down doth raise;

The Lord doth dearly love all those

That walk in upright ways.

A Song of Praise.

TO render Thanks unto the Lord,

It is a comely thing;

And to thy Name, O thou most High,

Due Praise aloud to sing.

Thy Mercies great for to shew forth,

When shines the Morning-Light;

And to declare thy Faithfulness

With Pleasure every Night.

How great, Lord, are thy Works! each Thought

Of thine, O deep it is:

A wicked Man he knoweth not,

Fools understand not this.

When those that lewd and brutish are,

Spring quickly up like Grass:

And Workers of Iniquity

Do flourish all apace.

It is that they for ever may

Destroyed be and slain:

But thou, O Lord, art the most high,

For ever to remain.

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For all thine Enemies, O Lord,

Thine Enemies perish shall;

The workers of Iniquity,

Shall be dispersed all.

A Song of Praise.

O England, all with joyful Sounds

Up high your Voices raise;

Sing to the Honour of God's Name,

And Glorious make his Praise.

Say unto God how terrible

In all thy Works art thou?

Thro' thy great Power, thy Foes to thee

Shall all be forc'd to bow.

All on the Earth shall worship thee,

They shall thy praise proclaim,

Songs they shall sing most cheerfully

To thy most glorious Name.

For this great mercy thou hast wrought

By thy Almighty power;

Poor England to redeem and save

From those that would devour.

Just at the Pit of Destruction,

O Lord, we all did stand;

And nothing could us save from it,

But thy Almighty Hand,

O blessed be thy Glorious Name

To all Eternity;

The whole Earth let thy Glory fill;

Amen, so let it be.

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O Come let us sing to the Lord,

Come let us every one

[...] joyful noise make to the Rock

Of our Salvation.

Let us before his gresence come,

With praise and thankful Voice;

Let us sing psalms to him with Grace,

and make a cheerful noise.

For God, a great God, and great King

Above all Gods he is;

[...]epths of the Earth are in his Hands

The strength of Hills are his.

To him the raging Sea belongs,

For he the same did make:

The dry Land also from his Hands

Its Form at first did take.

O come let's worship him therefore,

Let us bow down withal;

And on our Knees before the Lord

Our Maker let us fall.

For he's our God, the People we

Of his own pasture are;

And of his Hand the Sheep to day,

If ye his Voice will hear.

A Prayer for King William.

MOst Glorious and ever-blessed Lord God, Maker of Heaven and Earth; who dost from thy Throne behold all the Inhabitants of this lower World; we humbly pray and beseech thee; for [...]esus Christ thy dear Son's sake, to bless with the [...]hoicest of thy Blessings, our Gracious Sovereign [...]ing William, who by thy great and wonderful Pro [...] [Page] under thee, and thy Christ, is come [...] supream Head and Governour of [...]is Land and [...] tion wherein we live: Lord, do thou endow hi [...] with all thy heavenly Graces, and bless all his U [...] dertakings against his and our implacable Enemie [...] whether by Sea or Land: Lord, let his and our Enemies fall before him; and carry him through this great Work thou hast brought him hither to manage; that he may settle this Nation in Peace, that every one of [...] may live and enjoy in Tr [...]nquility of mind all tho [...]e Earthly blessings thou hast our of thine Infinite Goodness and Mercy bestowed upon us: Lord, let thy Gospel flourish once more in thi [...] Nation; that thy Name may be glorified to [...] Ends of the Earth. O Lord, be our King's Defender and Keeper in all His Battles; And, Lord, do thou fight them for him, and then he will be crown'd with Success; and let him see the End of all his Enemies; and finally, after this Life, he may inheri [...] those Eternal Joys thou hast in store for those tha [...] love thee, and long for thy appearance: All this we beg for Jesus Christ his sake; to whom with thee, O Father, and the holy Spirit, be all Praise, Honour, and Glory, both now, henceforth, and for evermore.

FINIS.

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Information about this book

Title statement

Hell's everlasting flames avoided, and heaven's eternal felicities injoyed containing the penitent sinner's sad lamentation for the deplorableness of his impious life ... : also holy preparations to a worthy receiving of the Lord's Supper ... / by John Hayward, D.D.

Hayward, John, D.D.

Edition statement

1696

Publication

Publisher

Text Creation Partnership,

Place of publication

Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) :

Date

2008-09 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1).

ID [DLPS]

A86127

ID [STC]

Wing H1231A

ID [STC]

ESTC R42331

ID [EEBO-CITATION]

36273008

ID [OCLC]

ocm 36273008

ID [VID]

150083

Availability

This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal. The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.

Series

Early English books online.

Notes

(EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A86127)

Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 150083)

Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 2229:5)

Source

— Hell's everlasting flames avoided, and heaven's eternal felicities injoyed containing the penitent sinner's sad lamentation for the deplorableness of his impious life ... : also holy preparations to a worthy receiving of the Lord's Supper ... / by John Hayward, D.D., Hayward, John, D.D.. The tenth edition..

Extent

[6], 114 p.

Printed for Robert Gifford, and are to be sold at his shop in Old Bedlam, without Bishopsgate,. London :: 1696.. (Includes frontispiece depicting heaven and hell.) ("Price bound 1 s.") ("The First Part.") (Error in paging: p. 72-73 lacking in number only.) (Imperfect: worn, stained, and tightly bound, with loss of text.) (Reproduction of original in the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, University of California, Los Angeles.)

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