AN Address is now to be made unto an Handmaid of the LORD, who Expect [...] e're long the arrival of a Time, when her Loins will be filled with Pain, Pangs will take hold of her, the Pangs of a Woman, which travail­eth. 'Tis New, Sure, if ever, a Time, wherein it may be Expected, that she will hearken to the Counsils of God▪ This, if any, is the Time, wherein the Methods and Motions of Divine Grace, will find her; And if ever you will hear the Voice of God at all, To Day you will hear His Voice.

[Page]The Hazards and Hardships under­gone by the Travailing Daughters of Eve, make a Considerable Article of the Curse, which the Transgression where-into she was Deceived, has brought upon the mi­ [...]erable World. But our Great Redee­mer has procured this Grace from God, into the Daughters of Zion, that the Curse [...] turn'd into a Blessing. The Approach of their Travails, proves to them an Oc­casion and an Excitement for those Ex­ercises of Piety, that Secure to them, and prepare them for, Eternal Blessedness; and they may Say, Tis Good for me that I have been Afflicted. Unto this it is very such owing, that tho' thro' the Evident providence of God watching over Hu­mane Affairs, there is pretty near an equal Number of Males & Females born, at the Number of the Males who are apparently Pious, and partakers of a New [...]rth, is not so great as that of the Fe­males. Indeed, it will argue a wonder­ful Stupidity of Soul, and Obstinacy in [...]in, if the Dangers and Sorrows where­ [...] you are now obnoxious, do not [...]ake you Serious, and cause you Seri­ously [Page 3] to Consider on your Condition, and bring you to a Considerate, Sollici­tous, Effectual Preparation for Eternity: if you are not now ready to hear the Admonitions of God your Saviour. You are now Addressed, with some Advice from Heaven, in hopes, that This is the Time, for you to be more than eve [...] Made Wise unto Salvation.

And the first thing, to be propounded unto you, is; That you do not indulge an indecent Impatience or Discontent, at the State, which you find ordered for you. It will be a very blameable Inde­cency and Indiscretion in you, to be Dissatisfyed at your State of Pregnancy. Froward Pangs of Dissatisfaction, har­boured, and humoured, in you, because you See that in Sorrow you are to bring forth Children, may displease Heaven, and bring yet more Sorrow upon you. It will indeed look too Unnatural in you, to complain of a State, whereinto the Laws of Nature established by God, have brought you. The will of the Great God, has been declared in these Terms, 1 Tim. V. 14. I will that the Younger Wo­men, [Page] Marry, bear Children. When you find that a Conception has brought you [...]nto Child-bearing circumstances, Let your Submission to the Will of God there­in, be full of Satisfaction, and Resigna­tion. Let this Thought now carry you Cheerfully thro' all the Uneasiness, which is now become Unavoidable: Great GOD; I am thine; And I am willing to be, all that thou wilt have me to be! Indeed, it is to be esteemed a Mercy of God, that One principal End of Marriage, is thus [...]ar in an Honourable way of being answe­red with you. It was acknowledged as [...] Mercy, in the Old Time, by the Holy Wo­men, who trusted in God. They Look'd on themselves as Mercifully Visited of God, when they had conceived. It was en­tertained, as a Gracious Promise of God unto His People, That they should have an Offspring. It was esteemed, The taking away of a Reproach. Barrenness was Threa­tened, and Bewayled, as a Calamity: A Punishment for a Michol. The Saints made it a frequent Petition in their Prayers, That God would bestow Children upon them. I shall Speak but in a Lan­guage [Page 5] which your Sex of Old would have allow'd of, if I now tell you; That God has Look'd upon His Handmaid, and Re­membred her, and not forgotten her, but given her to Conceive. For I must go on to tell you, That upon your giving up your self unto the Lord, Your Children become the Children of God. They are my Children, Saith your God: It is a Child of God, that you have now within you: What a Consolation! 'Tis a Subject and a Ser­vant of a Glorious CHRIST, whose Bones are now growing in the Womb, of her that is with Child; It is, a Member of His Mystical Body, which is now Shaping in Secret, and Curiously to be wrought. An Ex­cellent Gentlewoman, who had a Strong presage, which prov'd a True One, of her Dying by her Travail, yet you read in her Legacy Written for her unborn Child, her Desire of God, that she might be a Mother to One of His Children. I add, You are to bring forth a Creature of Excellent Faculties; and One from whom the Lord will have glory for Eter­nal Ages. You don't know, what an Instrument of Good this Child may [Page] prove in the World. As mean a Mother as you, has brought forth an Hero. Nor do you know, what a Possession, what an Enjoyment, this Child may prove unto You particularly. Who can foresee, how far, This Same shall comfort you! This is the first Lessen of Piety, to be urged upon you: Whatever Sickness you now labour under, be not Sick of your present State. Rebuke, Repress, Restrain, all Disquiet of Mind; Why art thou cast down, O my Soul, and why art thou disquieted within me? Hope in God! It is all for the best. O Builder up of the Church of God in the World; Say, and Pray, O my God, Help me always to like the State, wherein thou performest the thing, that is appointed for me.

But now, the Next thing to be pro­pounded, is; That you hasten into a State of Safety for Eternity: Yea, This is the very First Thing that you have to do, upon your being Sensible of a Conception. For ought you know, your Death has entred into you, and you may have con­ceived That which determines but about Nine Months more at the most, for you [Page 7] to Live in the World. Preparation for Death is that Most Reasonable and Most Seasonable thing to which you must now Apply your self. It will do you no Hurt. You will Dy not One Mi­nute the Sooner for it. And being Fit to Dy, you will be but the more Fit to Live.

Daughter of Sorrows; Will you give a Great and Just Attention? Set your Heart unto these things; They are not Vain Things; Your Everlasting Life is concer­ned in them.

You must in the first Place be very sensible, That Except you are Born again, it had been Good for you that you had never been born; Except you have Experience of a true Conversion to God, you unavoi­dably Perish. The Sorrows of Child-birth, will be to you, but the Beginning of Sor­rows, and of such as know no End. Think with your self, If the Pains of my Travail, which I hope, will be quickly over, were to last a thousand years, how wretched, Oh! how wretched were I! And yet, if my Peace be not made with the Holy God, I may fear to be more terribly dealt withal! Oh! Tis a [Page 8] fearful thing to fall into the Hands of the Living God! Some Women that have been in Horror of Conscience, have declared, that all the Anguish of bringing more than Seven Children into the World has been much more tolerable, than that hor­rible Anguish of their Mind. How Intole­rable then, Oh! how Insupportable, will be the Anguish, in the Conscience of a Sinner, banished from God, fearfully Scorched and Tortur'd with Impressions from the Wrath of God; and cast into a Place of Torments, into the Place of Dragons! Let the Thought of this, mightily Quick­en and Hasten your Flight from the Wrath to come. In this Flight you must first, Acknowledge; O Holy Lord, I am not Able to Turn unto thee. You must also Acknow­ledge; O Holy Lord, I am not Worthy, that thou shouldest help me to Turn. Without this Humiliation, you will never Turn. But then, go on with proper Acknow­ledgments of Sovereign Grace, to beg of the Gracious Lord; O Glorious One, Turn thou me, and I shall be turned. Proceed now, and Ponder, on your Sinful and Woful circumstances before the Lord; [Page 9] Ponder, and Confess; O Great God, I have Sinned, and Perverted that which is Right! I have Sinned, and I have done very foolishly! Examine your past Life; Reflect on all the Errors and Follies of your Life. Look back with Bitterness of Soul, upon every Sin, that you can charge your self with­al; Every Violation of the Ten Command­ments, on each of which you should make a Pause; Every Miscarriage, in every Condition, in every Relation, in every Em­ployment. Be as much afraid of Leaving any Sin unconfessed, as you would be of having the After-birth left in you, after your Travail. And because you have not Ob­served, and have not Remembred Thousands of your Sins, bewail this Inadvertency also, as not the least of your Sins. With Asto­nishment cry out, O Holy God, I am a most Polluted Creature! My Life has been a very course of Sin. Innumerable Evils compass me about; My Sins, my Sins are Numberless. My Heart fails me, when I think upon them! At the same time, Go up as far as the Origi­nal Sin, which is the Fountain of all your Sins. The Terrors of Child-bearing which are now upon you, do very properly lead [Page 10] you to bewail your Share in the Sin of your First Parents; and to bewail with Bitter Tears, that Corrupt Nature, which by a Derivation from your Next Parents you brought into the World with you. Think, Lord, I was conceived in Sin; I was born a Leper; and my poor Child will be so too! But herewithal, you must very deeply affect your self, with the horrid and heinous Evil, which there is in every Sin. Afflict yourself, with it; What have I done? O Great God, How wickedly have I Deny'd thee, and Defy'd thee, and Despised the Blood of my Saviour, and Hearkened unto Sa­tan before my Saviour, and chose Earth and Hell, before the Joyes of Heaven, as often as I have Sinned against thee! I have been a Fool that have made Light of Sin. This, This has been an heavy Aggravation of all my Sin. Go on then to an amazing View of the Deplorable State into which you are fal­len by your Sin. Think with Amaze­ment; ‘Wo is unto me, that I have Sin­ned! The Infinite God is angry with me; And who knows the Power of His Anger! The Devil demands me as his Captive; I am a Prey to the Terrible [Page 11] one. Sin Tyrannizes over me; I am held in chains of Darkness. If I dy, as I am, what will become of me! Who can dwell in those Everlasting Burn­ings, which will be the Doom of those who dy unpardoned! O Wretched one that I am; who shall deliver me!’ Being brought into the Contrition of this Distress; NOW, Behold the admirable SAVIOUR provided for you; The JE­SUS, who is God Manifest in Flesh, God and Man in One Person: The Saviour, who is Able to Save you unto the Uttermost; the Saviour who bids you Look unto Him and be Saved. Oh! Take the Encourage­ment of that Sweet Word, Joh. VI. 37. Him that comes unto me I will in no Wise cast out. Cry to Him, O my dear Saviour, Draw me to thee; Oh! make me thine, and Save me. Let no Apprehension of your own Vileness make you despair to find Accep­tance with Him; Nor let any Good in your selves Embolden your Hope & Plea, that you may be Accepted. Come un­der no Recommendation, but that of your own dreadful Necessity, and Confusion, and the Triumphs of Grace, which arise from [Page 12] the Salvation of such a Lothsome Sinner!

NOW Behold the Sacrifice of your Sa­viour, and Plead, ‘O Great God, let the Blood of thy Son, cleanse me from all my Sin. Be Reconciled unto me, be­cause my JESUS has been my Sacrifice!’ Behold the Righteousness of your Saviour, and Plead, ‘O Great God, Thy Son has answered thy Law, as a Surety for me. My Advocate Shews His Righteous­ness for me; therefore deliver me from going down to the Pit.’ That this your Precious Faith in the Sacrifice & Righteousness of your Saviour may be Justified with a Good Evidence to the Sincerity of it, Re­sign your self up to the Holy Spirit of your Saviour; Consent that the Spirit of Holiness take Possession of you. Yield the consent of a Conquered Soul; ‘O Spirit of the Holy One; I am willing, Oh! do thou make me willing, that thou come and Renew me in the Spi­rit of my Mind; make me a New Creature; Produce the Holy & Love­ly Image of God upon me. Embitter all my Sin to me; Enable me to bear every Cross thou appointest for me. [Page 13] Wean me from this World; Reign in my Heart; Oh! Dwell there, as in thy Temple. Guide me by thy Coun­sil; Bring me to thy Glory.’ So in the Promised Strength of Heaven, take up Resolutions of Universal and Perpetual Pi­ety. Come to that Piety; Psal. CXIX. 57. Thou art my Portion, O Lord; I have said, That I would keep thy Words. Thus the New birth is carried on! Thus you have gone through the Work, that will disarm Death of all its Terror; that may Enable you to Sing, O Death, where is thy sting! If you should now be Teeming with your Death, yet you may keep Re­joycing in the Hope of the Glory of God. When the Handmaid of the Lord, had the Proposals of Heaven made unto her, She complied; Luk. I. 38. Beheld, The Handmaid of the Lord; but it unto me accor­ding to thy Word; and she became in a Transcendent Sense owner of a CHRIST immediately. O Handmaid of the Lord, The Great Saviour, who condescended once to make a Virgin, The Tabernacle of God, proposes this to you; Shall I be thy Saviour; and Heal thee, and Lead thee, and [Page] [...]ule thee for ever more? Let your Answer [...]e, Behold, the Handmaid of the Lord; be it [...]nto me according to thy Word. In an A­greeable sense you became owner of a CHRIST immediately. Now, if you Dy, To Dy will be gain!

You would have the Great Saviour hear your Calls unto Him for His Help, when in your Travail you have Sorrow, be­cause your Hour is come. You will then, with Agony Cry out, Oh! my God, Help me! And will be in a Sad case, if He turn a Deaf Ear upon your cry. There is all possible Reason, that you should Now hear His Calls to you; and by Obedience to His Gospel, prevent the Execution of that Threatning; As He cryed, and they would not Hear, so they cried, and I would not Hear, saith the Lord of Hasts. He calls, Abhor thy Sins; Let your Answer be, Lord, I Abhor them! He calls, Renounce all Trust in thy own Worth or Strength; Let your Answer be, Lord, I Renounce it! He calls, Embrace thy offered Redeemer in all His Offi­ces! Let your Answer be, Lord, I Embrace Him. O Effectually called One, say now, Mic. VII. 7. I will wait for the God of my Salvation; my God will hear me!

[Page 15]Were the Event of your Travail, much less uncertain than it is, yet the main Provision which you have to make against your Lying in, should be, That in the Day of Judgment your Account may be made with Joy, and not with Grief. In order to this, you must then be capable of saying, ‘O my Glorious Judge, The Sacrifice and the Righteousness which is my Plea for Everlasting Life, is in the Judg­ment-Seat. Lord Thou art it. My Judge is my Advocate. Lord, I did, by a Faith of thy Direction, Engage thee to be So.’ That this Faith may not then be Rejected as a Counterfeit, you must then be capable of Saying: ‘Lord, Thou hast infused a principle into my Soul, which tells me, That all Sin must be Repented of. I could not come to my Redeemer, without such a Princi­ple. But I have heartily, and Earnest-Repented of all my Sins; yea, as far as I could find them out, I have parti­cularly done so.’ And now, in order to that, it were desireable for you, to take a Catalogue of things Forbidden and Re­quired in the Ten Commandments of the Two [Page 16] Tables; and pass a Judgment on your selves according to the Discoveries which that Glass will give you of your self. That word is of a Vast Importance; 1 Cor. XI. 31. If we would Judge our selves, we should not be Judged. But it must then be found that this your Faith was not only Sorry for your Evil Works, but also, which will necessarily follow, Zealous of Good Works. O Anticipate the awful Trans­action. Place your selves now as before the Judgment-Seat of God. Think, When He Visits, what shall I answer Him!

Thus you have managed your Grand Concern. What is to be next Propounded unto you, is, in the Words of the Apostle; [...] Tim. II. 15. She shall be Saved in Child-bearing, if they continue, in Faith, and Charity, and Holiness, with Sobriety.

You see Holiness is a point of Great Consequence for the Child-bearing Wo­man. And what is Holiness, but a Dedica­tion unto God? May God assist you now to Dedicate your self unto Him. Study, and contrive, How to be the Lords; In what methods you may Employ all your Powers to Glorify the Lord. Come into the Cove­nant [Page 17] of God; and Kneeling before the Lord, thus Declare unto Him; ‘O Great God, Thou shalt be my God, and Portion. Heavenly Father, make me One of thy Children. O Son of God, Thou shalt be my Shepherd; O Spirit of God, Thou shalt be my Quick­ner. Lord, I Resolve to be thy Ser­vant. I will Enquire after my Duty, and persist in thy Service all my Days.’ If the Breach of the Old Covenant be that which has brought the Difficult [...] [...] your Travail, with all other misch [...] [...] upon you, what can you do better, [...] get as far as you can under the Wings of the New Covenant? But then when you bring your selves under this Consecration unto the Lord, you must bring your Chil­dren into it with you.

Tis particularly to be done, even for the Unborn Child. When 'tis become Sen­sible to you, that you have conceived▪ you will do well, without any Delay, to carry even this Embryo unto the Lord, and in some such manner as this Devote it un­to Him. ‘O God of the Spirits of all Flesh; I bring to thee, even my Hoped [Page 18] Offspring. Oh! Let thy Holy Spirit now take an Early Possession of it. Oh, Form it, and Fill it, and make it an Everlasting Instrument of thy Praises in the World.’

But you must Remember, that a De­testation of all Sin, is a thing wherein your Holiness is to shine, with a very convictive Splendor. Holiness is that which cannot Look upon Iniquity. The Griefs which you are now Suffering in your Body, are the Fruit [...] Sin. Let your Griefs for all your Sin [...] [...]cited and Sharpened by them. I [...] is One of your frequent Indis­po [...] [...]: May you become disposed thereby to a greater Loathing of Sin, than you have yet had raised in you. This is, to be Chastened, and made Partaker of Ho­liness. Think on that Word; Jam. I. 15. When Lust hath conceived, it brings forth Sin, and Sin when it is finished, brings forth Death. And say, O my Soul, Do not that abominable thing, which the Soul of God abominates: Let me chuse rather to Dy, than to Sin against the Holy One!

Tis to be further Noted, That Medi­tations, assiduous and affectuous Medita­tions, [Page 19] on a Glorious CHRIST, are both Instances and Incentives of True Holiness It is the most astonishing thing that ever was in the World; Gal. IV. 4. God sent forth His Son, made of a Woman. Oh, Me­ditate much on it, and with much Asto­nishment. ‘O Great Saviour, O Bright Emmanuel; How gloriously didst those Humble thy self! Was there a Sinless Man conceived in a Virgin! Did the Son of God vouchsafe to Assume and Unite this Man, into His own [...] [...]ond Person! Is there now lying [...] [...]o­som of the Eternal Son of God, [...], who was once an Infant in the Womb of a Virgin! A Man born of a Woman, who is more than a Man! God manifest in Flesh. A Man bred, and born, and nursed by a Woman; but this Man-Child caught up unto God, and His Throne; and become the Lord of Angels, and of Worlds, and the Judge to whom all must give an Account. We are Sav'd thro' that Illustrious Child-bearing! O the Dignity put upon our poor Sex, in the Birth of such a Redee­mer! O the Assurance which the [Page 20] Distressed Handmaids of the Lord have to find Help with such a Redeemer in their Time of Need!’ Yea, you may improve this Consolation, in your Sup­plication for a Safe Deliverance, in the Hour that is coming upon you. Plead, ‘O Good God, The Humiliation of my Saviour in the circumstances o [...] His Nativity, has purchased this for me that I should be Saved in Child-bearing; Oh, Save me graciously! O my Saviour, [...] thou wast born of a Woman, cer­ta [...] [...] Child bearing Women, may cry [...] for thy Protection, thy Assistence. I hope in thee for it; such Salvation belongs unto thee, O Lord!’

You shall note this One thing more. Tis a Description of Holiness; Gal. IV. 19. Little Children, Of whom I travail in birth again, until Christ be formed in you. You have a Child formed in you. But, Oh! That you might have a CHRIST formed in you! Now, if you take up Right Thoughts of a Glorious CHRIST; if you have such a Mind as in a Christ you may see a Pattern of; if your Walk be such as a Christ has left you a Pattern of: [Page 21] Or, if you Love what a CHRIST Loves, and Hate what a CHRIST hates, and bear Afflictions and Abasements, with a CHRIST-like Patience, and are Crucifi­ed unto the World, in which a CHRIST was Crucified; Then you have a CHRIST formed in you. A CHRIST will be glo­riously concerned for the welfare of such Holy Women.

But Sobriety must accompany this your Holiness. Indeed, the Unborn Infant will be Naturally and Powerfully and Pro­fitably affected, by the Sobriety of an Holy Mother. The Passions, or the Surfeits of the Mother, make a strange Impression on the Infant; yea, on the Soul of it. Be Temperate in all Things. Keep your Mind in all the undisturbed Serenity that is possible. In your Meats, Drinks, Rest, use enough; but, Nothing too much. This Temperance, will dispose you to Wait upon God, in a due Frame for His Favours, and your Offspring will Enjoy the good Effects of it. Let the Conscience of the Sixth Commandment, make you Tender of your Health. If such Counsil had not been of some Consequence for the Infant also, the [Page 22] Angel would not have Counselled the Wife of Manoah, as you remember he did. If also the Intemperate Longings of Wo­men, are (as the Learned say) some un­happy Signatures of the Womans First Sin, [...]eft upon their Sex, this ought to render you as cautious as may be, of admitting them.

I said but now, To Wait upon God. And this you are to do, by pouring out your incessant Prayers unto Him. It is to be hoped, that you have been used unto Prayers all your Dayes. But certainly your Pregnant Time, should be above all a Praying Time. If you have never yet Prayed Earnestly, 'tis now a Time to do so; NOW a Time to have it said, Behold she Prayes!— and to Lament it Penitently before the Lord, that you have been so hardly brought unto it. You will now Retire to Daily and Frequent and Fer­vent Prayers, for all the Blessings of Good­ness Your Prayers, must be Cries; For thy Names sake, O Lord, Pardon my Iniquity, for it is great! And, O Lord, order my Steps in thy Word, and let not any Iniquity have Dominion over me. And, O Shew me [Page 23] thy Marvellous Kindness in thy Strong City▪ and the Goodness thou hast laid up for them that Fear thee! With the Pangs and Throwes of a Distressed Soul, in your Prayers, you will Cry for such things▪ and Lift up your Voice for such things. But then you will more particularly Employ your Prayers, for an Happy and an Ea [...] Delivery, in your Approaching Trav [...] In your Prayers for this Mercy, [a Mercy, which is Big with a Thousand Mercies!] you will Plead the Power of God Think on the Word Spoken to the Hand maid of the Lord; Luk. I. 37. With God nothing shall be unpossible. Plead the Mercy of God. Think on the word wherewith she of Old comforted her Soul; Lam. II. 25. The Lord is Good unto them that was for Him, to the Soul that Seeks Him. Remember, that the Name of God is, [...] Thou that hearest Prayer. You know how to turn these things into Prayer; how to make them the Plea's of your Praye [...] But, Oh! Don't Forget now to Plead the Mediation of the Saviour, who was pleased to be, and Sometimes to call Him self, The Son of the Hand-maid of the Lord [Page 24] Let such as these be your Groans before the Lord. ‘O most Powerful God, I know, Thou canst do every thing. There is nothing that can stand before the Power of thy Almighty Arm. Lord, If thou wilt, thou canst, give me a Good Time, in the Time of Trouble, that is before me. According to the Great­ness of thy Power, preserve One, that is appointed to dy, if thou doest not powerfully Step in to uphold and Stengthen her. O Father of Mercies, Deal Mercifully with thy Distressed Hand-maid; Look Mercifully, and with Pitty, on the Miseries, which the Sin of the World has entailed upon me. God be Merciful to me a Sinner. Oh! Behold thy Beloved JESUS, who was made a Curse, that so we might either not feel the Curse, or else get Good out of the Curse. For the Sake of thy JESUS, the Son of Man, who is the Son of God, and whom thou Lovest above all the Works of thy Hands, and for the Sake of whom thou Lovest all that sly unto Him; Oh! be Favourable to me!’

[Page 25]Let your Prayers be those, Psal. XXXVIII. 21, 22. Forsake me not, O Lord; O my God, be not far from me. Make Haste to help me, O Lord my Salvation. Or those; Psal. XXII. 11. Be not far from me for Trouble is near; and there is none to Help.

In these your Prayers, it would be of admirable Advantage, for you, to Search and find out the Precious Promises of God that may most of all Suit your Condition Present those Promises before the Lord as containing and engaging of Blessings which the Blood of the Lamb of God ha [...] bought for you. And Say, ‘Therefore has thy Hand-maid found in her Heart to Pray this Prayer unto thee: O Lord God, Thou art that God, and these b [...] thy Words, and thy Words be true, and thou hast Promised this Goodness unto thy Hand-maid; Therefore now [...] it please thee to Bless the House of th [...] Hand-maid; For thou, O Lord God hast Spoken it.’

Behold, Some of the Promises and Cordials, that you have to Live upon.

And now, Having these Promises, go Plead them with God; and let your Ex­perience, be that which is related con­cerning an Hand-maid of the Lord, Pray­ing for a Child; I Sam. I. 19, 15, 18. [...]he said, I am a Woman of a Sorrowful Spirit, [Page 27] but have poured out my Soul before the Lord.— So the Woman went her way, and her Unea­siness continued no longer.

That you may be the better furnished and quickened for your Prayers, you will do well to Read the Scriptures: Tis your Duty, to Search the Scriptures. In the Scriptures, you may especially Single out the Book of Psalms, for your Companion and Counsellour & Comforter. Luther Religious Wife, Said, That she had new known the meaning of many Passages [...] the Psalms, if Afflictions had not Expounded them unto her. Your Afflictive a [...] Anxious condition, will make many passages in the Psalms, exceeding Relisha [...] and Agreeable. The Pious Author [...] the Book Entituled, A Present for Them Women, propounds to you, That you should Sing the Psalms considerately al [...] by your self; because you will find, [...] Voice quicken your Heart-affecting Meditation on the Matter; and he adds, [...] sides, it is most unquestionably Pleasant [...] those Good Angels, who are Ministring [...] rit [...] to attend you for Good. According then, for the Songs, by which you [...] [Page 28] Harmonize with Heaven, and call in the Help thereof I commend unto you, Mul­titudes of Passages, which ly Scattered all over the Psalter; especially in the III Psalm; the IV the XVIII. the XXIII. the XXV; the XXVII; the XXXI; the XXXIX; the XLIII; the LI; the LXXI; the LXXXVI; the XCI; the CXVI; the CXVIII; the CXIX; the the CXXVII; the CXXX; the CXXXVIII; the CXLII. To which you may add, the Prayer of Jonah the [...]ong of Hannah; and the Song of Mary. Nor are Psalms only, but Alms also, to ac­company your Prayers. The XLI Psalm, [...]ill tell you, what you are to think of them. Our Saviour, how frequently, [...]ow earnestly does He insist upon them! [...]y, Thy Merits, O my Saviour; are my only [...]; I shall never imagine my Alms to have [...]y; But thy Commands, O my Saviour, [...]ve directed them; therefore by my Alms I will prepare for thy Mercies. This is Pure [...]igion. The Prayers have a distinguishing [...]cacy, when it may be said, Thy Prayers [...] thy Alms are come up as a Memorial be­ [...] God. You are taught, That the Merci­ful [Page 29] shall obtain Mercy. It is a Sweet Word; Psal. XVIII. 25. With the Merciful, thou wilt shew thy self Merciful. Especially, when you Set apart your Whole Dayes for Prayer (which you will some-times do, as you shall be able to bear it,) you will on these Days dispense your Alms, with a particular Liberality. Is not this the Fast that I have chosen, Saith the Lord? And what if in the Dispensation of your Alms, you should have a Special Eye, to Poor Child-bearing Women, if you can hear of any Such, in Wants, and Straits, and grievous Necessities? You will have yet a more Special Eye, to such Poor as can Pray for you; and you will engage them to do it, with a Daily Remembrance of you.

What remains, is, for you to Enquire, Whether you have Omitted no Duty, the Omission whereof may be uneasy to you in a Dying Hour. Such a Duty often, is that of Joining to a Particular Church, an [...] So, coming to the Table of the Lord, and there Laying Hold on His Covenant. I [...] you have hitherto Delay'd this Duty, 'tis n [...]w High Time to do it. Wherefore No [...] first Secretly and Sincerely come into th [...] [Page 30] Covenant of Life, by an Hearty Consent unto every Article of it. And then pro­ceed Openly to Seal your Act and Deed in this way of God. Be Heartily Willing to be Delivered from all the Maladies and Miseries of your Soul; which is the first Mark of the Regenerate State: and then, Look on the House of the Lord, as an Hospi­tal for a Sin Sick Soul; Give not way to Discouragements, by the Sight of what is Amiss, but not Allow'd, in your Heart and Life; but approach the Table of the Lord, with a Soul Hungring and Thirsting after the Righteousness that will be the Cure of it. Make sure of this Qualification, That you have given up your self to the Lord, as well as you can; and that you Desire to be His and glorify Him; and that you Resolve alwayes to Pursue this Blessedness. Then come; Come, out of Obedience to the Lord, who sayes, Do This; Come, and be not Afraid. Be able to Say, Ah, Lord, I would come to thy Table with all the Grace, that may assure me of thy Love; I desire to Fear thy Name. But, if I can't come With it, I will come For it; Oh! Take Pitty on me!

[Page 31]If any thing else be necessary to Settle the Good State, either of your Soul, or of your House, Do with your might what your Hand finds to do.

And now, Your FAITH! You Read, Heb. XI. 11. Thro' Faith, Sarah was delive­red of a Child. In the Renewed, and often Repeted Exercise, of a Lively Faith, keep Looking for the Mercy of our Lord JESUS CHRIST, unto Life, both Temporal and Eternal. By Faith, keep continually com­mitting your self, into His Glorious Hands; who said unto a Godly Woman when her Faith began to fail her; Joh. XI. 40. Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the Glory of God? Were your Husband able to give you an Happy Travail, how willing would he be to do it! Yea, (were there any Goodness in him!) tho' it were to be by bearing your Trouble for you, as a rare Sympathy has caused Some to do! But by Faith you make Sure of your Saviour to be your Husband. The Voice of your Faith is, O my Saviour, I am thine; Do thou Possess me; And by thee let me bring forth Fruit unto God! And now, by Faith de­pend [Page 32] on your most Mighty, and most Gracious Husband. Say to Him, Cry to Him; O my Saviour, How canst thou cast me off! Hope in Him, to see the Fulfilment of a Word that once dropp'd from Him; Joh. XVI. 21. A Woman when she is in Tra­vail, hath Sorrow, because her Hour is come; but as soon as she is Delivered of the Child, she remembers no more Anguish; for Joy that a Man is born into the World.

Yet by Faith Submit unto His Holy Will. We read of Rachel; Gen. XXXV. 16, 18. She Travailed, and she had hard La­bour; Her Soul departed, and she died. We read of another; I. Sam IV. 19, 20. She was with Child, near to cry out; She travailed, her Pains came upon her; it was the Time of her Death. Suppose this may, by the So­vereign Lord of Life, be the Portion ap­pointed for you: yet by Faith triumph over the Fear of Death; By Faith Resign your self into the Hands of the Glorious Lord; Lord Jesus, Receive my Spirit! And so, Rejoyce in the Hope of the Glory of God. When your Time arrives, meet it with an honourable Courage; bear it with an honourable Patience. But in the Minutes [Page 33] of your Anguish, Let your Cry be of that importance; Psal. XXVI. 11. Oh! Redeem me, and be Merciful unto me. Or, Psal. XXX. 10. Hear me, O Lord; Have Mercy upon me; Lord, Be thou my Helper. Your Omnipotent Redeemer, is One who Commands Deliverances, for them who Weep and Make Supplication; That is, He Commands His Good Angels, to bring and work Deliverances; Deliverances come as the Effects of His Commands unto His Ministers. No Mid-wives can do, what the Angels can!

While you are in a Doubtful Expecta­tion of your Travail, you will do well to avoid all Rash Vowes; which usually prove the Snares of Souls: But yet Entertain some Holy Resolutions, of a more Exact, a more Watchful, a more Fruitful Walk with God, when He shall have Delivered you. And being Delivered, your Next Work will be, to consider, What you shall render to the Lord. Oh! Think, as in Ezr. 9.13, 14. Seeing thou, O my God, hast given me such a Deliverance as this▪ Should▪ again break thy Commandments, wouldest thou not be Angry with me, till thou hast consume [...] [Page 34] me? But then, Go on to think, What you will do, that you may maintain more Communion with God, in the Re­ligion of the Closet: Think, What you will do, that you may be a greater Blessing in your Family, and to your several Re­latives: Think, What you will do in A­bating of your Superfluities, that you may Employ the more upon Pious Uses; Perhaps, to Clothe poor Widows, like another Darcas. Beg the Help of the Divine Grace, that you may Do such Things; and Glorify your Saviour, with a Reasonable Service.

One of the First Things to be done, is to Give up your New-born Child unto the Lord, in His Holy Baptism. Thus rescue the Child, from the Great Red Dra­gon, who is watching to Devour it. Let the Child be either Male or Female, this is a matter to be left entirely unto the Wisdom of the Glorious GOD. Either of them, if it be a Perfect Child, brings ten Thousand Mercies with it. And, if it may be a Child of God the Father, a Sub­ject of God the Son, a Temple of God the Spirit, think, This is enough; Lord, I have [Page 35] brought One of thy Children into the World.

As a Declaration of this Intention in you, Send the Child abroad, unto the Congregation of the Faithful, where it shall be Washed, and Blessed in the Name of the Glorious One, and laid under E­verlasting Bonds to be the Lords. But at the same time, Look on your self as laid under Bonds, to bring up the Child for Him; and in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord.

You will Suckle your Infant your Self if you can; Be not such an Ostrich as to Decline it, meerly because you would be One of the Careless Women, Living at Ease. Of such we read, They are Dead while they Live. But if you have the Calamity of Dry Breasts; or your Health will not permit you to Give Suck; Entertain it with Submission to the will of God; but as a Calamity.

Finally; Being well Recovered, you will Rejoyce in your Fresh Opportunities to Repair unto the Worship of God in His Congregations. Thither you will now Repair with such Dispositions as those; [Page 36] [Psal. CXVI. 16, 17, 18.] O Lord, Truly I am thy Handmaid, I am thy Handmaid; Thou hast Loosed my Bonds. I will offer to thee, the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving, and I will call upon the Name of the Lord. I will pay my Vows unto the Lord, now in the Presence of all His People.