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*
13-NIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
AT LOS ANGELES
THE
WHOLE WORKS
OF THE
RIGHT REV. JEREMY TAYLOR, D.D.
LORD BISHOP OF DOWN, CONNOR, AND DROMORE.
VOLUME XV.
CONTAIMXG
THE GOLDEN GROVE J THE PSALTER ; A COLLECTION OF OFFICES, OR
FORMS OF PRAYER; DEVOTIONS FOR VARIOUS OCCASIONS;
AND THE WORTHY COMMUNICANT.
YOL. XV.
THE
WHOLE WORKS
OF THE
RIGHT REV. JEREMY TAYLOR, D.D,
LORD BISHOP OF DOWN, CONNOR, AND DROMOKE :
WITH
A LIFE OF THE AUTHOR,
AND
A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF HIS WRITINGS,
BV THK
RIGHT REV. REGINALD HEBER, D.D.
LATE LORD BISHOP OF CALCUTTA.
V'
THIRD EDITION OF THE COLLECTED WORKS.
IN FIFTEEN VOLUMES.
VOL. XV.
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, ORME, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMANS ; J. RICHARD-
SON : HATCHARD AND SON; J., G., AND F. RIVINGTON ;- J. BOHN; HAMILTON,
ADAMS, AND CO. ; DUNCAN AND MALCOLM; SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, AND CO.;
E. HODGSON; B. FELLOWES ; H. BOHN; C. DOLMAN; H. BICKERS; J. H. PARKER,
OXFORD; J. AND J. J. DEIGHTON, CAMBRIDGE; G. AND J. ROBINSON, LIVER-
POOL; AND W. STRONG, BRISTOL.
M.DCCC.XXXIX.
LONDON.
PRINTtD BY MOVES AND BAKCLAY,
Castle Strict, Leicester Square.
BR75
n 3?
. J5
CONTENTS
OF
THE FIFTEENTH VOLUME.
THE GOLDEN GROVE;
PAGE
Or, a Manual of Daily Prayers and Litanies, fitted to the Days of the
Week : containing a short Summary of what is to be believed, prac-
tised, and desired 1
CREDENDA ; or, what is to be believed 11
AGENDA; or, Things to be done 32
POSTULANDA ; or, Things to be prayed for 50
Festival Hymns 76
THE PSALTER OF DAVID;
With Titles and Collects, according to the Matter of each Psalm :
whereunto are added, ' Devotions for the Help and Assistance of all
Christian People, in all Occasions and Necessities' 93
Devotions for several Occasions 197
A COLLECTION OF OFFICES,
Or Forms of Prayer in Cases Ordinary and Extraordinary ; taken out
of the Scriptures, and the Ancient Liturgies of several Churches,
especially the Greek 237
Morning Prayer, throughout the Year 243
Evening Prayer, throughout the Year '. 255
Additional to the foregoing Offices 265
Varieties to be added upon the Great Festivals of the Year 282
An Office or Order for the Administration of the Holy Sacrament of
the Lord's Supper, according to the way of the Apostolical Churches,
and the Doctrine of the Church of England . . 290
CONTENTS.
A Form of Administration of the Holy Sacrament of Baptism 306
The Devotions and proper Offices for Women 316
The Offices or Forms of Prayer and Devotion for the Miserable and
Afflicted 332
A Form of Devotion ; to be used and said in the Days of Sorrow and
Affliction of a Family, or of Private Persons 371
A Form of Prayer or Thanksgiving 378
THE WORTHY COMMUNICANT;
Or, a Discourse of the Nature, Effects, and Blessings, consequent
to the worthy Receiving of the Lord's Supper; and of all the Duties
required in order to a worthy Preparation : together with the Cases
of Conscience occurring in the Duty of him that ministers and of him
that communicates; as also Devotions fitted to every part of the
Ministration 391
The Introduction . 397
CHAPTER I.
OF THE NATURE, EXCELLENCES, USES, AND INTENTION OF THE
HOLT SACRAMENT OF THE LORD'S SUPPER.
SECTION I.
Of the several Apprehensions of Men concerning it 404
SECTION II.
What it is which we receive in the Holy Sacrament 409
SECTION III.
That in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper there are represented and
exhibited many great Blessings, upon the special Account of that
sacred Ministry, proved in general 421
SECTION IV.
The Blessings and Graces of the Holy Sacrament enumerated and proved
particularly 431
SECTION V.
Practical Conclusions from the preceding Discourses 445
SECTION VI.
Devotions preparatory to this Mystery 454
CONTENTS. V
CHAPTER II.
OF OUR GENERAL PREPARATION TO THE WORTHY RECEPTION OF THE
BLESSED SACRAMENT, AND THE PARTICIPATION OF THE MYSTERIES.
SECTION I. PAGE
Of Examination of ourselves in order to the Holy Communion 457
SECTION II.
Of the Examination of our Desires 462
SECTION III.
Of our Examination concerning remanent Affections to Sin 470
SECTION IV.
Of Examination of ourselves in the Matter of our Prayers, in order to
a holy Communion 480
SECTION V.
Of preparatory Examination of ourselves in some other Instances .... 486
SECTION VI.
Devotions to be used upon the Days of our Examination, relative to
that Duty 493
CHAPTER III.
OF FAITH, AS IT IS A NECESSARY DISPOSITION TO THE
BLESSED SACRAMENT.
SECTION I.
Of Catechumens, or unbaptized Persons * 499
SECTION II.
Of Communicating Infants 501
SECTION III.
Whether Innocents, Fools, and Madmen, may be admitted to the Holy
Communion , , 508
SECTION IV.
Of actual Faith, as it is a necessary Disposition to the Sacrament .... 510
CONTENTS.
SECTION V. PAGE
Of the proper and specific Work of Faith in the Reception of the Holy
Communion 520
SECTION VI.
Meditations and Devotions relative to this preparatory Grace ; to be
used in the Days of Preparation, or at any Time of Spiritual Com-
munion . 534
CHAPTER IV.
OF CHARITY, PREPARATORY TO THE BLESSED SACRAMENT.
SECTION I.
Operations of Charity, relative to the Holy Communion 537
SECTION II.
Of Doing Good to our Neighbours * 540
SECTION III.
Of Speaking Good of our Neighbours 543
SECTION IV.
Forgiveness of Injuries a necessary Part of Preparation to the Holy
Sacrament ^ 546
SECTION V.
Devotions relative to this Grace of Charity: to be used, by way of
Exercise and Preparation to the Divine Mysteries, in any Time or
Part of our Life; but especially before and at the Communion .... 579
CHAPTER V.
OF REPENTANCE, PREPARATORY TO THE BLESSED SACRAMENT.
SECTION I.
Remarks on the Necessity of Repentance in general 582
SECTION II.
The Necessity of Repentance in order to the Holy Sacrament 585
CONTENTS. Vll
SECTION III. PAGE
What Actions of Repentance are specially required in our Preparations
to the Holy Sacrament 589
SECTION IV.
How far we must have proceeded in our general Repentance, and
Emendation of our Lives, before we communicate 606
SECTION V.
What Significations of Repentance are to be accepted by the Church
in Admission of Penitents to the Communion 635
SECTION VI.
Whether may every Minister of the Church and Curate of Souls reject
impenitent Persons, or any Criminals, from the Holy Sacrament, until
themselves be satisfied of their Repentance and Amends 639
SECTION VII.
Penitential Soliloquies, Ejaculations, Exercises, and preparatory
Prayers, to be used in all the Days of Preparation to the Holy
Sacrament . 648
CHAPTER VI. '
OF OUR ACTUAL AND ORNAMENTAL PREPARATION TO THE
RECEPTION OF THE BLESSFD SACRAMENT.
SECTION [ .
An Inquiry whether we are habitually prepaied, is the pr oper Pre
paralion for the Holy Communion 652
SECTION II.
Rules for Examination of our Consciences against the Day of our
Communion 655
SECTION III.
Of an actual Supply to be made of such Actions and Degrees of Good
as are wanting against a Communion Day 659
SECTION IV.
Devotions to be used upon the Morning of the Communion 664
Vlll CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VII.
OF OUR COMPORTMENT IN AND AFTER RECEIVING THE
BLESSED SACRAMENT.
SECTION I. PAGE
Of the Circumstances and Manner of Reception of the Divine Mysteries 667
SECTION II.
Acts of Virtues and Graces relative to the Mystery, to be used before
or at the Celebration of the Divine Sacrament 677
SECTION III.
An Advice concerning him who only communicates spiritually 688
Prayer before Sermon 690
Prayer after Sermon 694
THE
GOLDEN GROVE;
OR,
A MANUAL
OF
DAILY PRAYERS AND LITANIES,
FITTED TO THE DAYS OF THE WEEK.
CONTAINING
A SHORT SUMMARY
OF
WHAT IS TO BE BELIEVED, PRACTISED, AND DESIRED.
VOL. XV.
TO THE
PIOUS AND DEVOUT READER.
IN this sad declension of religion, the seers who
are appointed to be the watchmen of the Church,
cannot but observe that the supplanters and under-
miners are gone out, and are digging down the
foundations ; and having destroyed all public forms
of ecclesiastical government, discountenanced an
excellent liturgy, taken off the hinges of unity, dis-
graced the articles of religion, polluted public as-
semblies, taken away all cognizance of schism, by
mingling all sects, and giving countenance to that
against which all power ought to stand upon their
guard : there is now nothing left, but that we take
care that men be Christians. For concerning the
ornament and advantages of religion, we cannot
make that provision we desire : " Incertis de salute,
de gloria minime certandum :" for since they who
have seen Jerusalem in prosperity, and have forgot-
ten the order of the morning and evening sacrifice,
and the beauty of the temple, will be tempted to
IV TO THE READER.
neglect so excellent a ministration, and their as-
sembling themselves together for peace and holy
offices, and be content with any thing that is
brought to them, though it be but the husks and
acorns of prodigals and swine, so they may enjoy
their lands and their money with it ; we must now
take care that the young men who were born in
the captivity, may be taught how to worship the
God of Israel after the manner of their fore-
fathers, till it shall please God that religion shall
return into the land, and dwell safely, and grow
prosperously.
But never did the excellence of episcopal
government appear so demonstratively and con-
spicuously as now.- Under their conduct and order
we had a church so united, so orderly, so governed ;
a religion so settled, articles so true, sufficient,
and confessed ; canons so prudent and so obeyed ;
devotions so regular and constant ; sacraments so
adorned and ministered ; churches so beauteous
and religious ; circumstances of religion so grave
and prudent, so useful and apt for edification, that
the enemies of our church, who serve the pope
in all things, and Jesus Christ in some, who dare
transgress an institution and ordinance of Christ,
but dare not break a canon of the pope, did despair
TO THE READER. V
of prevailing against us and truth, and knew no
hopes but by setting their faces against us to
destroy this government, and then they knew they
should triumph without any enemy : so Balaam,
the son of Bosor, was sent for, to curse the people
of the Lord, in hope that the son of Zippor might
prevail against them that had long prospered under
the conduct of Moses and Aaron.
But now, instead of this excellence of con-
dition and constitution of religion, the people are
fallen under the harrows and saws of impertinent
and ignorant preachers, who think all religion is
a sermon, and all sermons ought to be libels against
truth and old governors, and expound chapters
that the meaning may never be understood, and
pray that they may be thought able to talk, but
not to hold their peace ; casting not to obtain
any thing but wealth and victory, power and
plunder. And the people have reaped the fruits
apt to grow upon such crabstocks : they grow idle
and false, hypocrites and careless ; they deny them-
selves nothing that is pleasant; they despise reli-
gion, forget government; and some never think
of heaven ; and they that do, think to go thither in
such paths which all the ages of the Church did
give men warning of, lest they should that way
go to the devil.
VI TO THE READER.
But when men have tried all that they can,
it is to be supposed they will return to the ex-
cellence and advantages of the Christian religion,
as it is taught by the Church of England ; for by
destroying it, no end can be served but of sin
and folly, faction and death eternal. For besides
that no church that is enemy to this, does worship
God in that truth of propositions, in than unblam-
able and pious liturgy, and in preaching the
necessities of holy life, so much as the Church
of England does; besides this, I say, it cannot
be persecuted by any governor that understands
his own interest, unless he be first abused by false
preachers, and then prefer his secret opinion
before his public advantage. For no church in
the world is so great a friend to loyalty and obe-
dience, as she, and her sisters of the same per-
suasion. They that hate bishops, have destroyed
monarchy ; and they that would erect an eccle-
siastical monarchy, must consequently subject the
temporal to it. And both one and the other would
be supreme in consciences ; and they that govern
there, with an opinion that in all things they ought
to be attended to, will let their prince govern
others, so long as he will be ruled by them : and,
certainly, for a prince to persecute the Protestant
religion, is as if a physician should endeavour to
TO THE READER. Vll
destroy all medicaments, and fathers kill their sons,
and the master of ceremonies destroy all formali-
ties and courtships ; and as if the pope should root
out all the ecclesiastic state. Nothing so combines
with government, if it be of God's appointment, as the
religion of the Church of England ; because nothing
does more adhere to the word of God, and disregard
the crafty advantages of the world. If any man
shall not decline to try his title by the word of God,
it is certain there is not in the world a better guard
for it than the true Protestant religion, as it is taught
in our church. But let things be as it please God :
it is certain, that in that day when Truth gets her
victory, in that day we shall prevail against all God's
enemies and ours, not in the purchases and perqui-
sites of the world, but in the rewards and returns of
holiness and patience, and faith and charity ; for by
these we worship God, and against this interest we
cannot serve any thing else.
In the meantime we must, by all means, secure
the foundation, and take care that religion may be
conveyed, in all its material parts, the same as it was,
but by new and permitted instruments. For let us
secure that our young men be good Christians : it is
easy to make them good Protestants ; unless they be
abused with prejudice, and suck venom with their
Vlll TO THE READER.
milk, they cannot leave our communion, till they
have reason to reprove our doctrine.
There is, therefore, in the following pages, a
compendium of what we are to believe, what to do,
and what to desire ; it is indeed very little, but it is
enough to begin with, and will serve all persons so
long as they need milk, and not strong meat. And
he that hath given the following assistances to thee,
desires to be even a doorkeeper in God's house, and
to be a servant of the meanest of God's servants, and
thinks it a worthy employment to teach the most
ignorant, and make them to know Christ, though but
in the first rudiments of a holy institution. This only
he affirms, that there is more solid comfort and mate-
rial support to a Christian spirit in one article of
faith, in one period of the Lord's Prayer, in one holy
lesson, than in all the disputes of impertinent people,
who take more pains to prove there is a purgatory,
than to persuade men to avoid hell : and that a plain
catechism can more instruct a soul, than the whole
day's prate which some daily spit forth, to bid men
' get Christ, and persecute his servants.'
Christian religion is admirable for its wisdom, and
for its simplicity ; and he that presents the following
papers to thee, designs to teach thee as the Church
was taught in the early days of the apostles. To
TO THE READER. IX
believe the Christian faith, and to understand it ; to
represent plain rules of good life; to describe easy
forms of prayer ; to bring into your assemblies hymns
of glorification and thanksgiving, and psalms of prayer.
By these easy paths they lead Christ's little ones into
the fold of their great Bishop ; and if by this any
service be done to God, any ministry to the soul of a
child or an ignorant woman, it is hoped that God will
accept it: and it is reward enough, if by my ministry
God will bring it to pass that any soul shall be in-
structed, and brought into that state of good things,
that it shall rejoice for ever.
But do thou pray for him that desires this to
thee, and endeavours it.
CREDENDA;
ou,
WHAT IS TO BE BELIEVED.
'O ft.lv Sj i.oyas hfiiv ofteXoyti^ii; pit/tru, u; o'iyt, o^6us fi<xu,ibiup.ivoi, <r%l$ov tt.yu.Qai
ylyvovrai, Plato de Legibus.
Let this truth be confessed, and remain for ever, That they who are well
instructed, easily become good men.
A short Catechism for the Institution of Young Persons in
the Christian Religion.
QUESTION. In what does true religion consist ?
ANSWER. In the knowledge of the one, true God, and,
whom he hath sent, Jesus Christ ; and in the worshipping
and serving them. a
Quest. What dost thou believe concerning God ?
Ans. 1. That there is a God ; 2. That he is one ; 3. Eter-
nal ; 4. Almighty ; 5. That he hath made all the world ;
6. That he knows all things ; 7. That he is a Spirit, not of
any shape, or figure, or parts, or body ; 8. That he is present
in all places ; 9. That his seat is in heav.en, and he governs
all the world, so that nothing happens without his order and
leave; 10. That he is the fountain of justice ; 11. Of mercy;
12. Of bounty and goodness ; 13. That he is unalterably
happy, and infinitely perfect; 14. That no evil can come
near him ; 15. And he is the rewarder of them that diligently
seek him. b
1 John, xvii. 3. 1 John, ii. 23.
b Deut vi. 4. Exod. xx. 2, 3. Revel, i. 4. Psalm xc. 2. 1 Tim. i. 17.
12 CREDENDA.
Quest. What other mystery is revealed concerning
God?
Ans. That God being one in nature, is also three in
person ; expressed in Scripture by the names of " Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit." The first person is known to us
by the name of " The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."
The second person is called " The Son, and the Word of the
Father." The third is "The Spirit and Promise of the
Father." And these are three and one after a secret manner,
which we must believe, but cannot understand.
Quest. What is this God to us ?
Ans. He is our Creator and Father, and therefore he is
our Lord ; and we are his creatures, his sons, and his ser-
vants. d
Quest. Wherefore did God create and make us?
Ans. That we might do him honour and service, and
receive from him infinite felicities. 6
Quest. How did God make man ?
Ans. By the power of his Word, out of the slime of the
earth ; and he breathed into him the breath of life/
Quest. Was man good or bad, when God made him?
Ans. Man was made pure and innocent. 8
Quest. How, then, did man become sinful and miserable ?
Ans. By listening to the whispers of a tempting spirit,
and breaking an easy commandment, which God gave him
as the first trial of his obedience. 11
Quest. What evils and changes followed this sin ?
Ans. Adam, who was the first man, and the first sinner,
did, both for himself and his posterity, fall into the state of
death, of sickness, and misfortunes, and disorder both of
Gen. i. 1. Exod. xx. 11. Heb. iii. 4. Isa. xl. 12. Job, xlii. 2, 3. Psalm
cxxxix. 1, &c. Psalm cxlvii. 5. Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7. 1 Tim. vi. 15, 16.
John, iv. 24. 1 Kings, viii. 27. Psalm cxxxix. 8, 9. Acts, vii. 48, 49.
Psalm ii. 4 ; ciii. 19 ; cxv. 3. Isa. xli. 4 ; xliv. 6. Job, ix. 4, &c. Deut.
xxxii. 39. Gen. xviii. 25. Deut xxxii. 4. Psalm ciii. 8 ; xxv. 8 ; Ixxxvi. 5.
Psalm 1. 12. James, i. 17.
c Matt, xxviii. 19. John, xiv. 16, 26 ; xv. 26. 1 Cor. xii. 4-6. 2 Cor.
xiii. 14. 1 John, i. 1 ; v. 7, 5 ; iii. 23. Luke, xxiv. 49. Acts, i. 4 ; ii. 33.
d Coloss. i. 16. Acts, xvii. 24. 1 Cor. viii. 6 ; vi. 19. Gal. i. 4.
Phil. ii. 15. Dan. ii. 47. Zech. iv. 14 ; xiv. 9. Matt. xi. 25.
e Psalm cxlv. 10, 11. Acts, xiv. 15. ' Gen. ii. 7.
f Eccles. vii. 29. Ecclus. xv. 14. h Gen. iii. per tot.
CKEDENDA. 13
body and soul : we were thrown out of Paradise, and lost
our immortality. 1
Quest. Was man left in these evils without remedy?
Ans. No ; but God, pitying his creature, promised, that
of the seed of the woman he would raise up a Saviour and
Redeemer, who should restore us to God's favour, and to
the felicity which we lost. k
Quest. How did God perform the promise ?
Ans. By sending Jesus Christ to take upon him our
nature, to die for our sins, to become our Lord, and the
author of holiness, and life, and salvation to mankind. 1
Quest. Who is Jesus Christ ?
Ans. He is the Son of God, the second Person of the
Holy Trinity, equal with the Father, true God, without be-
ginning of life, or end of days.
Quest. How, then, could he be our Redeemer, and the
promised seed of the woman ?
Ans. The Son of God, in the fulness of time, by the
miracles of his mercy, took upon him human nature, and
united it after a wonderful manner to his godhead ; so that
he was both God and man. He was born of a virgin, who
conceived him not by any natural means, but by the power
of the Holy Ghost, and was called Jesus Christ ; and his
mother's name was Mary, of the seed of Abraham, of the
family of King David ; and all these things came to pass
when Augustus Caesar was lord of the Roman empire."
Quest. How did Jesus Christ work this promised re-
demption for us ?
Ans. By his holy and humble life, and his obedient dying
a painful death for us upon the cross.
Quest. What benefits do we receive by the life and death
of Jesus Christ?
*
9 i
' Rom. v. 12 ; iii. 23 ; vi. 20. Ephes. ii. 3.
k Gen. iii. 15. Gal. iv. 4. 1 Pet. i. 20. John, iii. 16. Heb. ii. 14,
15, &c.
1 John, viii. 25, 28. Heb. ii. 9, 16-18. Luke, i. 74, 75.
m Isa. ix. 6. 1 Tim. iii. 16. 1 John, v. 20. Isa. XXXY. 4, 5.
John, i. 2, 18 ; viii. 5, 8. Rer. i. 8. Heb. xiii. 8 ; i. 8. Phil. ii. 6. Rom.
ix. 5.
n Gal. iv. 4. Rom. i. 3. Acts, ii. 30, 32; iii. 22. Heb. i. 1 ; ii. 11.
Acts, xiii. 23. Deut. xviii. 15. Matt. i. 18. Matt. i. 21. Luke, ii. 4, 5, &c.
Heb. ii. 9, 10.
14 CREDENDA.
Ans. We are instructed by his doctrine, and encouraged
by his excellent example ; we are reconciled to God by his
death ; he hath given us an excellent law, and glorious pro-
mises ; and himself hath received power to make good all
those promises to his servants, and fearfully to destroy them
that will not have him to reign over them. p
Quest. What promises hath Jesus Christ made us in the
Gospel ?
Ans. He hath promised to give us all that we need in
this life ; that every thing shall work together for our good ;
that he will be with us in tribulation and persecution. He
hath promised his graces and his Holy Spirit to enable us to
do our duty ; and if we make use of these graces, he hath
promised to give us more : he hath promised to forgive us
our sins ; to hear our prayers ; to take the sting of death
from us ; to keep our souls in safe custody after death ; and
in his due time to raise our bodies from the grave, and to
join them to our souls, and to give us eternal life, and joys
that shall never cease. q
Quest. How is Jesus Christ able to do all this for us ?
Ans. When he had suffered death, and was buried three
days, God raised him up again, and gave him all power in
heaven and earth, made him Head of the Church, Lord of
men and angels, and the Judge of the quick and dead/
Quest. By what means doth Jesus Christ our Lord convey
all these blessings to us ?
Ans. Jesus Christ had three offices, and in all he was
Mediator between God and man ; he is our Prophet, our
Priest, and our King. 3
Quest. What was his office as he was a Prophet?
Ans. This office he finished on earth; beginning when
P Read the 3d, 4th, and 5th chapters to the Hebrews. Eph. ii. 13-15.
Luke, xix. 27 ; xxiv. 46, 47.
1 Matt. vi. 25, &c. Rom. viii.' 28. John, xiii. 33. Acts, xiv. 22.
2 Cor. i. 4. Matt. iv. 11, 12; xi. 20, 21. John, vi. 44, 45. 2 Pet. i. 3, 4.
Matt. xv. 59. Acts, ii.38; iii. 19. Luke, xviii. 7. Matt, vii.7. Coloss. ii. 13.
1 Cor. xv. 54, 55, 57. Rev. xiv. 13. 1 Cor. xv. 22 ; vi. 14. 2 Cor. iv. 14.
John, vi. 40.
r Matt, xxviii. 6, 18. Phil. ii. 9, &c. Heb. ii. 9 ; v. 9 ; i. 8. Tit. ii. 13, 14.
Epb. iii. 14, 15, 20. 1 Cor. xi. 3. Ephes. v. 23. Coloss. ii. 10. Acts, x. 42.
2 Tim. iv. \; viii. 17, 31. 1 Pet. iv. 5.
1 Tim. ii. 5. Heb. viii. 6 ; ix. 15 ; xii. 24.
CREDENDA. 15
he was thirty years old to preach the Gospel of the kingdom,
faith, and repentance. 1
Quest. When began his priestly office, and wherein does
it consist ?
Ans. It began at his death ; for he was himself the priest
and the sacrifice, offering himself upon the altar of the cross
for the sins of all the world."
Quest. Did his priestly office then cease ?
Ans. No; he is a priest for ever; that is, unto the end
of the world, and represents the same sacrifice to God in
heaven, interceding and praying continually for us, in the
virtue of that sacrifice, by which he obtains relief of all our
necessities."
Quest. What doth Christ in heaven pray for on our
behalf?
Ans. That our sins may be pardoned, our infirmities
pitied, our necessities relieved, our persons defended, our
temptations overcome, that we may be reconciled to God, and
be saved. y
Quest. How is Jesus Christ also our King ?
Ans. When he arose from his grave, and had for forty
days together conversed with his disciples, shewing himself
alive by many infallible tokens, he ascended into heaven,
and there sits at the right-hand of God ; all things being
made subject to him, angels, and men, and devils, heaven
and earth, the elements, and all the creatures ; and over all
he reigns, comforting and defending his elect, subduing the
power of the devil, taking out the sting of death, and making
all to serve the glory of God, and to turn to the good of his
elect. 2
Quest. How long must his kingdom last ?
Ans. Till Christ hath brought all his enemies under his
feet ; that is, till the day of judgment : in which day shall
be performed the greatest acts of his kingly power; for
then he shall quite conquer death, triumph over the devils,
1 John, i. 18. Luke, iii. 23. John, v. 43. Luke, xxir. 19. Acts,
iii. 23, &c.
u Heb. v. 5, 7, 8, &c. Heb. vii. per totum. * Heb. vii. 24, 25.
s Rom. viii. 33, 34. 1 John, ii. 1. Heb. iv. 14-16.
z Heb. i. 3, 8. Psalin ex. 1. 1 Thess. i. 10. Acts, i. 3. Luke, xxiv. 51 ;
i. 33. 1 Pet. iii. 23.
16 CREDENDA.
throw his enemies into hell-fire, and carry all his elect to
never-ceasing glories ; and then he shall deliver up the
kingdom to his Father, that God may be all in all."
Quest. How is Christ a Mediator in all these offices ?
Ans. A mediator signifies one that stands between God
and us. As Christ is a Prophet, so he taught us his Father's
will, and ties us to obedience : as he is a Priest, he is our
Redeemer, having paid a price for us, even his most precious
blood, and our Advocate pleading for us, and mediating our
pardon and salvation : as he is a King, so he is our Lord,
our Patron, and our Judge ; yet it is the kingdom of a
Mediator, that is, in order to the world to come, but then to
determine and end. And in all these, he hath made a
covenant between God and us of an everlasting interest. 6
Quest. What is the covenant which Jesus Christ, our
Mediator, hath made between God and us?
Ans. That God will write his laws in our hearts, and
will pardon us, and defend us, and raise us up again at the
last day, and give us an inheritance in his kingdom.
Quest. To what conditions hath he bound us on our part ?
Ans. Faith and repentance. d
Quest. When do we enter into this covenant ?
Ans. In our baptism, and at our ripe years, when we
understand the secrets of the kingdom of Christ, and under-
take willingly what in our names was undertaken for us in
our infancy. 6
Quest. What is the covenant of faith which we enter
into in baptism?
Ans. We promise to believe that Jesus Christ is the
Messias, or he that was to come into the world ; that he is
the anointed of the Lord, or the Lord's Christ ; that he is
the Son of God, and the son of the Virgin Mary ; that he is
God incarnate, or God manifested in the flesh ; that he is the
Mediator between God and man; that he died for us upon
the cross, and rose again the third day, and ascended into
heaven, and shall be there till the day of judgment ; that then
a Psalm ex. 1. 1 Cor. xv. 24, 25, 28. Matt. xxv. 34, 41.
b Gal. iii. 20. Heb. viii. 6 ; ix. 15 ; xii. 24. 1 Cor. xv. 24.
c Heb. viii. 6 ; x. ; xiii. ; x. 16 ; xii. 24. Jer. xxxi. 31.
d Mark, xvi. 16. Matt. iv. 17. Acts, ii. 38.
e Acts, ii. 38, 41 ; iii. 19.
CREDENDA. 17
he shall be our Judge ; in the meantime he is the King of
the world, and Head of the Church/
Quest. What is the covenant of repentance ?
Ans. We promise to leave all our sins, and, with a
hearty and sincere endeavour, to give up our will and affec-
tions to Christ, and do what he hath commanded, according
to our power and weakness* 5
Quest. How if we fail of this promise through infirmity,
and commit sins?
Ans. Still we are within the covenant of repentance,
that is, within the promise of pardon, and possibility of
returning from dead works, and mortifying our lusts ; and
though this be done after the manner of men, that is, in
weakness, and with some failings, yet our endeavour must
be hearty, and constant, and diligent, and our watchfulness
and prayers for pardon must be lasting and persevering. 11
Quest. What ministries hath Christ appointed to help
us in this duty ?
Ans. The ministry of the word and sacraments, which
he will accompany with his grace and his Spirit. 1
Quest. What is a sacrament ?
Ans. An outward ceremony ordained by Christ, to be a
sign and a means of conveying his grace unto us.
Quest. How many sacraments are ordained by Christ?
Ans. Two: baptism, and the supper of our Lord. k
Quest. What is baptism ?
Ans. An outward washing of the body in water, in the
name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost : in which we are
buried with Christ in his death, after a sacramental manner,
and are made partakers of Christ's death, and of his resur-
rection, teaching us that we should rise from the death of
sin to the life of righteousness. 1
t
' Matt. xvi. 16; i. 18. 1 Tim. iii. 16. Rom. xiv. 9. Acta, i. 9; iii. 21 ;
xvii. 31. Rer. i. 5 5 xvii. 14.
Luke, i. 75. Tit. ii. 11, 12. 1 Pet. ii. 1-3. <H Pet. i. 4, &c. Heb.
xii. 1, 2.
h 1 John; ii. 12 ; v, 16, 17. Gal. vi. 1 ; v. 24, 25.
1 Rom. x. 15. Eph. ii. 20; iv. 11, 12. 1 Cor. xii. 28. 2 Cor. v. 20.
Matt, xxviii. 20.
k Matt, xxviii. 19 ; xxvi. 26. 1 Cor. xi. 24.
1 Gal. iii. 27. 1 Cor. xii. 13. Rom. vi. 4. John, iii. 25. Tit. iii. 5.
Eph. v. 24. Col. ii. 12. Acts, ii. 38 ; xxii. 16. Heb. x. 22. 1 Pet. iii. 21.
VOL. XV. C
18 CREDENDA.
Quest. What is the sacrament of the Lord's supper ?
Ans. A ceremony of eating bread and drinking wine,
being blessed or consecrated by God's minister in public
assemblies, in remembrance of Christ's death and passion . m
Quest. What benefits are done unto us by this sacra-
ment?
Ans. Our souls are nourished by the body and blood of
Christ ; our bodies, are sealed to a blessed resurrection, and
to immortality ; our infirmities are strengthened, our graces
increased, our pardon made more certain ; and when we
present ourselves to God, having received Christ's body
within us, we are sure to be accepted, and all the good
prayers we make to God for ourselves and others are sure
to be heard."
Quest. Who are fit to receive this sacrament ?
Ans. None but baptized Christians, and such as repent of
their sins, and heartily purpose to lead a good life.
Quest. What other ministries hath Christ ordained in
his Church, to help us, and to bring so many great purposes
to pass.
Ans. Jesus Christ hath appointed ministers and am-
bassadors of his own to preach his word to us, to pray for
us, to exhort and to reprove, to comfort and instruct, to
restore and reconcile us, if we be overtaken in a fault ; to
visit the sick, to separate the vile from the precious, to
administer the sacraments, and to watch for the good of our
souls.?
Quest. What are we tied to perform towards them ?
Ans. To pay them honour and maintenance, to obey
them in all things according to the Gospel, and to order
ourselves so, that they may give account of our souls with
cheerfulness and joy. q
Quest. Which are the commandments and laws of Jesus
Christ?
Ans. They are many, but easy ; holy, but very pleasant
to all good minds, to such as desire to live well in this
world, and in the world to come : and they are set down in
m 1 Cor. xi. 23-25. Matt. xxvi. 26. Mark, xiv. 22. Luke, xxii. 19.
1 Cor. x. 16. Matt. xxvi. 28. 1 Cor. xi. 27-29.
P 1 Cor. v. 18. Acts, xx. 28. 1 Pet. v. 2. Gal. i. 6. James, v. 14.
1 Gal.ri. <i. 1 Tim. v. 17. Heb. xiii. 17.
CREDENDA. 19
the sermons of our blessed Lord, and of his apostles ; but
especially in the fifth, sixth, and seventh chapters of St.
Matthew/
AN EXPOSITION
THE APOSTLES' CREED.
/ believe in God.
I BELIEVE that there is 'a God who is one, true, supreme,
and alone, infinitely wise, just, good, free, eternal, immense,
and blessed, and in him alone we are to put our trust. a
The father Almighty.
I believe that he is, 1. The Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ; and, 2. Of all that believe in him, whom he hath
begotten by his word, and adopted to the inheritance of
sons : and because he is our Father, he will do us all that
good to which we are created and designed by grace ; and
because he is almighty, he is able to perform it all ; and,
therefore, we may safely believe in him, and rely upon him. b
Maker of heaven and earth.
He made the sun and the moon, the stars, and all the
regions of glory ; he made the air, the earth, and the water,
and all that live in them ; he made angels and men, and he
who made them, does, and he only can, preserve them in the
r Read also Rom. xii. Epb. v. and vi. 1 Thess. v.
Luke, vi. 35. Deut. x. 17 ; vi. 4. Mark, xii. 29, 32. 1 Cor. viii. 4.
John, xvii. 3. 1 Thess. i. 9. Psalm xc. 2 ; xciii. 2 ; Ixxvii. 13 ; xcv. 3 ; cxlvii.
5. Rom. xvi. 17. 1 Tim. i. 17. 2 Chron. xix. 7. Psalm cxix. 137. 1 Chron.
xvi. 34. Psalm xxxiv. 8 ; cxxxv. 6. Exod. xxxiii. 19. 1 Tim. i. 11.
b John, viii. 58. Rom. viii. 29, 32. 1 Cor. viii. 6; xv. 24. Matt. xxiv. 36.
Heb. ii. 11. 1 Pet. i. 23. Gal. iv. 4.
20 CREDENDA.
same being, and thrust them forward to a better ; he that
preserves them, does also govern them, and intends they
should minister to his glory; and therefore we are to do
worship and obedience to him in all that we can, and that he
hath commanded. 6
And in Jesus Christ.
I also believe in Jesus Christ, who is, and is called a
Saviour, and the Anointed of the Lord, promised to the
patriarchs, whom God anointed with the Holy Spirit, and
with power to become the great Prophet, and Declarer of
his Father's will to all the world, telling us how God will be
worshipped and served ; he is anointed to be the Mediator
of the new covenant, and our High-Priest, reconciling us to
his Father by the sacrifice of himself; and to be the great
King of all the world : and by this article we are Christians,
who serve and worship God the Father through Jesus
Christ. d
His only Son.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God, he alone, of him. alone;
for God, by his Holy Spirit, caused him to be born of a virgin :
by his power he raised him from the dead, and gave him a
new birth, or being in the body : he gave him all power and
all excellence ; and beyond all this, he is the express image
of his person, the brightness of his glory, equal to God,
beloved before the beginning of the world, of a nature
perfectly Divine ; very God by essence, and very man by
assumption ; as God, all one in nature with the Father; and
as man, one person in himself. 6
Our Lord.
Jesus Christ, God's only Son, is the heir of all things and
persons in his Father's house : all angels and men are his
servants, and all the creatures obey him ; we are to believe
c Isaiah, Ixv. 17 ; Ixvi. 12. Acts, iv. 24. Psalm xxxvi. 7, 8. Matt v. 26 ;
x. 29, 30. Rev. xiv. 7. Matt. iv. 10.
d Matt. i. 20. John, iii. 34. Acts, x. 28 ; iii. 22, 23. Heb. xii. 24 ; i. 8 ;
vi. 7, 21. Rev. i. 5. Acts, xi. 26 ; xxvi. 28. 1 Pet. iv. 16.
e Luke, i. 32. Rom. i. 3, 4. 1 John, v. 9, &c. ; iv. 15 ; v. 5. John, i. 11.
Col. i. 15, 17, 18. Heb. i. 3, 5. Phil. ii. 6. John, iii. 35 ; v. 19. Col. ii. 9, 10.
John, xvii. 24.
CREDENDA. 21
in him, and by faith in him only, and in his name, we shall
be saved. f
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost.
I believe that Jesus Christ was not begotten of a man,
nor born by natural means, but that a Divine power from
God, God's Holy Spirit, did overshadow the virgin-mother
of Christ, and made her, in a wonderful manner, to conceive
Jesus in her womb; and by this his admirable manner of
being conceived, he was the Son of God alone, and no man
was his father. 5
Born of the Virgin Mary.
Though God was his Father, and he begat him by the
power of the Holy Ghost, and caused him miraculously to
begin in the womb of his mother, yet from her he also
derived his human nature, and by his mother he was of the
family of King David, and called the Son of Man, his
mother being a holy person, not chosen to this great honour
for her wealth or beauty, but by the good will of God, and
because she was of a rare exemplar modesty and humility :
and she received the honour of being a mother to the Son of
God, and ever a virgin, and all generations shall call her
blessed.' 1
Suffered under Pontius Pilate.
After that Jesus passed through the state of infancy and
childhood, being subject to his parents, and working in an
humble trade to serve his own and his mother's needs, he
grew to the state of a man, he began to preach at the age of
thirty years, and having, for about three years and a half,
preached the Gospel, and taught us his Father's will, having
spoken the Gospel of his kingdom, and revealed to us the
secrets of eternal life, and resurrection of the dead, regene-
ration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, perfect remission of
sins, and eternal judgment : at last, that he might reconcile
the world to his Father, he became a sacrifice for all our
f Matt, xxviii. 18. Acts, ii. 36. Psalm ii. 6, 7, &c. 1 Cor. viii. 6. Heb.
i. 6, 14, 15. 1 Pet. i. 21.
s Luke, i. 35. Gal. iv. 4. Luke, i. 32.
11 Luke, i. 26, &c. Matt. i. 18. Luke, i. -15, 48. Mutt. i. '.'3.
22 CREDENDA.
sins, and suffered himself to be taken by the malicious Jews,
and put to a painful and shameful death ; they being envious
at him for the number of his disciples, and the reputation of
his person, the innocence of his life, the mightiness of his
miracles, and the power of his doctrine ; and this death he
suffered when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea.'
Was crucified.
Jesus Christ being taken by the rulers of the Jews, bound
and derided, buffeted and spit upon, accused weakly and
persecuted violently ; at last, wanting matter and pretences
to condemn him, they asked him of his person and office ;
and because he affirmed that great truth, which all the world
of good men longed for, that he was the Messias, and
designed to sit at the right-hand of the Majesty on high,
they resolved to call it blasphemy, and delivered him over to
Pilate, and, by importunity and threats, forced him against
his conscience to give him up to be scourged, and then to
be crucified. The soldiers, therefore, mocking him with a
robe and a reed, and pressing a crown of thorns upon his
head, led him to the place of his death ; compelling him to
bear his cross, to which they presently nailed him ; on which
for three hours he hanged in extreme torture, being a sad
spectacle of the most afflicted and the most innocent person
of the whole world. k
Dead.
When the holy Jesus was wearied with tortures, and he
knew all things were now fulfilled, and his Father's wrath
appeased towards mankind : his Father, pitying his innocent
Son groaning under such intolerable miseries, hastened his
death ; and Jesus, commending his Spirit into the hands of
his Father, cried with a loud voice, bowed his head, and
died ; and by his death sealed all the doctrines and revela-
tions which he first taught the world, and then confirmed by
his blood : he was consecrated our merciful High-Priest, and,
by a feeling of our miseries and temptations, became able to
help them that are tempted : and for these his sufferings, was
1 Luke, ii. 51, 52 ; iii. 23. John, iii. 4, &c. Acts, xiii. 39. Matt. xxr.
31, 32. Luke, xxii. 63. John, xviii. 4, 12, &c. Matt. xxvi.
k Matt, xxvii. Mark, xv. Luke, xxiii. John, xix.
CREDENDA. 23
exalted to the highest throne, and seat of the right-hand of
God ; and hath shewn, that to heaven there is no surer way
than suffering for his name ; and hath taught us willingly to
suffer for his sake what himself hath already suffered for
ours: he reconciled us to God by his death, led us to God,
drew us to himself, redeemed us from all iniquity, purchased
us for his Father, and for ever made us his servants and
redeemed ones, that we, being dead unto sin, might live unto
God : and this death being so highly beneficial to us, he
hath appointed means to apply to us, and to represent to
God for us in the holy sacrament of his last supper. And
upon all these considerations, that cross which was a smart
and shame to our Lord is honour to us, and as it turned to
his glory, so also to our spiritual advantages. 1
And buried.
That he might suffer every thing of human nature, he
was, by the care of his friends and disciples, by the leave of
Pilate, taken from the cross, and embalmed (as the manner
of the Jews was to bury), and wrapt in linen, and buried in a
new grave, hewn out of a rock ; and this was the last and
lowest step of his humiliation." 1
He descended into hell.
That is, he went down into the lower parts of the earth,
or (as himself called it) "into the heart of the earth;" by
which phrase the Scripture understands the state of separa-
tion, or of souls severed from their bodies : by this, his
descending to the land of darkness, where all things are
forgotten, he sanctified the state of death and separation,
that none of his servants might ever after fear the jaws of
death and hell ; whither he went, not to buffer torment (be-
cause he finished all that upon the cross), but to triumph
over the gates of hell, to verify his death, and the event of
his sufferings, and to break the iron bars of those lower
1 John, xix.; xviii. 37. Phil. ii. 8. Col. i. 20. Isaiah, Hi i. 10. Heb. vii.
25 ; is. 12 ; ii. 17, 18 ; iv. 5. Luke, xxiii. 46. John, x. 17, 18 ; xii. 32 ;
xi. 51. Eph. ii. 13, 11. Heb. ii. 10. Col. i. 21 , 22. Tit. ii. 14. John, vi. 51.
1 Pet. ii. 24 ; iv. 13. 2 Tim. ii. 11. Gal. vi. 14.
m Matt, xxvii. 57, &c.
24- CREDENDA.
prisons, that they may open and shut hereafter only at his
command. 11
The third day he rose again from the dead.
After our Lord Jesus had abode in the grave the remain-
ing part of the day of his passion, and all the next day, early
in the morning upon the third day, by the power of God, he
was raised from death and hell to light and life, never to
return to death any more, and is become the first-born from
the dead, the first-fruits of them that slept ; and although he
was put to death in the flesh, yet now being quickened in
the spirit, he lives for ever ; and as we all die in Adam, so
in Christ we shall all be made alive ; but every man in his
own order : Christ is the first ; and we, if we follow him in
the regeneration, shall also follow him in the resurrection.
He ascended into heaven.
When our dearest Lord was risen from the grave, he
conversed with his disciples for forty days together, often
shewing himself alive by infallible proofs, and once to five
hundred of his disciples at one appearing : having spoken to
them fully concerning the affairs of the kingdom, and the
promise of the Father; leaving them some few things in
charge for the present, he solemnly gave them his blessing,
and in the presence of his apostles was taken up into
heaven by a bright cloud and the ministry of angels, being
gone before us to prepare a place for us above all heavens, in
the presence of his Father, and at the foot of the throne of
God ; from which glorious presence we cannot be kept by
the change of death, and the powers of the grave, nor the
depth of hell, nor the height of heaven ; but Christ being
lifted up, shall draw all his servants unto him. p
Andsitteth on the right-hand of God the Father Almighty.
I believe that Jesus Christ sitteth in heaven above all
n Eph. iv. 9. Matt. xii. 40. Acts, ii. 27. Hos. xiii. 14. 1 Cor. xv. 54.
Rev. xx. 13, 14. Matt xvi. 18. Rev. i. 17, 18.
Mark, xvi. 1, Acts, x. 40. Rom. xiv. 9. Acts, v. 30, Inc. Col. i. 18.
Matt, xxviii. 1. 1 Pet. iii. 18; i.3. Eph. i. 17. 1 Cor. xv. 20, &c.
P Luke, xxiv. 45, 50. Matt. xxi. 17. John, xx. and xxi. Acts, i. 9. 1 Cor.
xv. 6, 45, 47. Heh. vi. 19, Rom. viii. 38, 39. 1 John, iii. 2.
CREDENDA. 25
principalities and powers, being exalted above every name
that is named in heaven and earth, that is, above every
creature above and below, all things being put under his
feet : he is always in the presence of his Father, interceding
for us, and governs all things in heaven and earth, that he may
defend his Church, and adorn her with his Spirit, and pro-
cure and effect hereternal salvation : there he sits and reigns
as King, and intercedes as our High-Priest ; he is a Minister
of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle which God
made and not man, the Author and Finisher of our faith, the
Captain of our confession, the great Apostle of our religion,
the great Bishop of our souls, the Head of the Church, and
the Lord of heaven and earth: and, therefore, to him we are
to pay Divine worship, service, and obedience, and we must
believe in him, and in God by him, and rely entirely on the
mercies of God through Jesus Christ. q
From thence he shall come.
In the clouds, shining, and adorned with the glory of his
Father, attended by millions of bright angels, with the voice
of an archangel, and a shout of all the heavenly army, the
trump of God ; and every eye shall see him ; and they that
pierced his hands and his feet shall behold his majesty, his
terror, and his glory : and all the families of the earth shall
tremble at his presence ; and the powers of heaven shall be
shaken, and the whole earth and sea shall be broken in pieces
and confusion : for then he shall come to put an end to this
world/ and
To judge the quick and dead.
" For the Father judgeth no man, but hath given all
judgment to the Son ;" and at this day of judgment, the Lord
Jesus shall sit in the air in a glorious throne ; and the angels
having gathered together God's elect from the four corners
of the world, and all the kindreds of the earth being brought
before the judgment-seat, the records of their conscience
shall be laid open ; that is, all that ever they thought, or
J Phil. ii. 8, 9, &c. Eph. i. 17, 22. Rom. viii. 34. Heb. vii. 27. 2 Pet.
i. 4. Heb. xii. 2. 1 Pet. i. 20, 21. Heb. i. 6.
r John, xiv. 3. Matt. xxiv. 30. 1 Thess. iv. 16. Rev. i. 7. Acts, i. 11.
y Tim. iv. 1.
26 CREDENDA.
spake, or did, shall be brought to their memory, to convince
the wicked of the justice of the Judge in passing the fearful
sentence upon them, and to glorify the mercies of God to-
wards his redeemed ones : and then the righteous Judge shall
condemn the wicked to the portion of devils for ever, to a
state of torments, the second, and eternal, and intolerable
death ; and the godly being placed on his right-hand, shall
hear the blessed sentence of absolution, and shall be led by
Christ to the participation of the glories of his Father's
kingdom for ever and ever. Amen. s
/ believe in the Holy Ghost [or] the Holy Spirit ;
Who is the third person of the holy, undivided, ever
blessed Trinity, which I worship, and adore, and admire,
but look upon with wonder, and am not in a capacity to
understand. I believe that the Holy Spirit, into whose name,
as of the Father and the Son, I was baptized, is the hea-
venly Author, the Captain, the Teacher, and the Witness of
all the truths of the Gospel : that as the Father sent the
Son, so the Son from heaven sent the Holy Spirit to lead
the Church into all truth ; to assist us in all temptations, and
to help us in the purchase of all virtue. This Holy Spirit
proceeds from the Father, and our Lord Jesus received him
from his Father, and sent him into the world, who, receiving
the things of Christ, and declaring the same excellent doc-
trines, speaks whatsoever he hath heard from him ; and in-
structed the apostles, and builds the Church, and produces
faith, and confirms our hope, and increases charity : and this
Holy Spirit our blessed Lord hath left with his Church for
ever, by which all the servants of God are enabled to do all
things necessary to salvation, which by the force of nature
they cannot do : and we speak by the Spirit, and work by
the Spirit, when by his assistances, any ways imparted to us,
we speak or do any thing of our duty. He it is who en-
lightens our understandings, sanctifies our will, orders and
commands our affections ; he comforts our sorrows, supports
our spirits in trouble, and enables us, by promises, and confi-
dences, and gifts, to suffer for the Lord Jesus and the Gospel :
and all these things God the Father does for us by his Son,
8 John, v. 22, 23. 1 Thess. ir. 16, 17. Matt. xxv. 32. Acts, x. 42.
Matt. xxv. 34, &c.
CREDENDA. 27
and the Son by the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit by all
means within and without, which are operative upon, and
proportionable to, the nature of reasonable creatures. This
is he who works miracles, gives the gifts of prophecy and of
interpretation ; that teaches us what and how to pray ; that
gives us zeal and holy desires ; who sanctifies children in
baptism, and confirms them with his grace in confirmation,
and reproves the \vorld, and consecrates bishops, and all the
ministers of the Gospel, and absolves the penitent, and blesses
the obedient, and comforts the sick, and excommunicates the
refractory, and makes intercession for the saints, that is, the
Church; and those whom he hath blessed, appointed, and
sanctified to these purposes, do all these ministries by his au-
thority, and his commandment, and his aids. This is he that
' testifies to our spirits that we are the sons of God,' and that
makes us to cry, ' Abba, Father ; ' that is, who inspires into
us such humble confidences of our being accepted in our
hearty and constant endeavours to please God, that we can
with cheerfulness and joy call God our Father, and expect
and hope for the portion of sons both here and hereafter;
and, in the certainty of this hope, to work out our salvation
with fear and reverence, with trembling and joy, with dis-
trust of ourselves, and mighty confidence in God. By this
holy and ever blessed Spirit, several persons in the Church,
and every man in his proportion, receives the gilts of wisdom,
and utterance, and knowledge, and interpretation, and pro-
phecy, and healing, and government, and discerning of
spirits, and faith, and tongues, and whatsoever can be ne-
cessary for the Church in several ages and periods, for her
beginning, for her continuance, for her in prosperity, and for
her in persecution. This is the great ' promise of the Father,'
and it is the ' gift of God,' which he will give to all them
that ask him, and who live piously and chastely, and are
persons fit to entertain so Divine a grace. This Holy Spirit
God gives to some more, to some less, according as they are
capable. They ' who obey his motions,' and love his pre-
sence, and improve his gifts, shall have him yet more abun-
dantly : but they that ' grieve ,the Holy Spirit,' shall lose
that which they have ; and they that ' extinguish him,' belong
not to Christ, but are in the state of reprobation ; and 'they
28 CREDENDA.
that blaspheme ' this Holy Spirit, and call him the spirit of
the devil, or the spirit of error, or folly, or do malicious de-
spites to him. that is, they who on purpose considering and
choosing, do him hurt by word or by deed (so far as lies in
them), shall for ever be separated from the presence of God
and of Christ, and shall never be forgiven in this world, nor
in the world to come. Lastly, this Holy Spirit seals us to
the day of redemption; that is, God gives us his Holy Spirit
as a testimony that he will raise us again at the last day,
and give us a portion in the glories of his kingdom, in the
inheritance of our Lord Jesus. 1
The holy Catholic Church.
I believe that there is and ought to be a visible company
of men professing the service and discipline, that is, the reli-
gion of the Gospel, who agree together in the belief of all
the truths of God revealed by Jesus Christ, and in confession
of the articles of this creed, and agree together in praying
and praising God through Jesus Christ ; to read and hear the
Scriptures read and expounded ; to provoke each other to
love and to good works ; to advance the honour of Christ,
and to propagate his faith and worship. I believe this to be
a holy church, spiritual, and not civil and secular, but sanc-
tified by their profession and the solemn rites of it, pro-
fessing holiness, and separating from the evil manners of
heathens and wicked persons, by their laws and institutions.
And this church is catholic, that is, it is not confined to the
nation of the Jews, as was the old religion ; but it is gathered
out of all nations, and is not of a differing faith in differing
places, but always did, doth, and ever shall profess the faith
which the apostles preached, and which is contained in this
creed ; which whosoever believes, is a catholic and a Christ-
ian, and he that believes not, is neither. This catholic
Church I believe, that is, I believe whatsoever all good
* Matt, xxviii. 19. Jobn, xv. 26 ; xvi. 13 ; vi. 45 ; vii. 16, 17 ; y. 37.
Acts, xv. 32; iii. 33 j ii. 4 ; xiii. 1-3 ; xx. 28. Luke, xii. 12. John, xvii/37 ;
xiv. 16 ; xvi. 13, 8. Watt. x. 10. Eph. i. 17 ; iii. 16. 1 Cor. ii. 10-12. Rom.
viii. 14-16 ; xiv. 17 ; xv. 13, 19. 1 Thess. i. 6. Luke, xxiv. 49 ; iv. 18. Acts,
ii. 33, 38. Eph. iv. 7, 30. 1 Cor. iii. 16. Eph. i. 13. Acts, vii. 51. Rom. i. 14.
1 TLess. v. 19. Mark, iii. 29. 2 Cor. i. 22 ; v. 15.
CREDENDA. 29
Christians in all ages and all places did confess to be the
catholic and apostolic faith."
The communion of saints.
That is, the communion of all Christians, because, by
reason of their holy faith, they are called saints in Scripture,
as being begotten by God into a lively faith, and cleansed
by believing; and by this faith, and -the profession of a holy
life in obedience to Jesus Christ, they are separated from
the world, called to the knowledge of the truth, justified
before God, and endued with the Holy Spirit of grace, fore-
known from the beginning of the world, and predestinated
by God to be made conformable to the image of his Son, here
in holiness of life, hereafter in a life of glory ; and they who
are saints in their belief and profession, must be so also in
their practice and conversation, that so they may make their
calling and election sure, lest they be saints only in name
and title, in their profession aud institution, and not in
manners and holiness of living, that is, lest they be so
before men, and not before God. I believe that all people
who desire the benefit of the Gospel, are bound to have a
fellowship and society with these saints, and communicate
with them in their holy things, in their faith, and in their
hope, and in their sacraments, and in their prayers, and in
their public assemblies, and in their government ; and must
do to them all the acts of charity and mutual help which
they can and are required to ; and without this communion
of saints, and a conjunction with them who believe in God
through Jesus Christ, there is no salvation to be expected :
which communion must be kept in inward things always,
and by all persons, and testified by outward acts always,
when it is possible, and may be done upon just and holy
conditions/
The forgiveness of sins.
I believe that all the sins I committed before I came to
u 1 Tim. iii. 15. Eph. iii. 21. Heb. ii. 12 ; x. 24. 1 Cor. xiv. 26, &c.
Matt, xviii. 17, 18. Acts, xii. 5. 1 Cor. xiv. 14. Gal. i. 8, 9. Col. ii. 8, 9.
Heb. xiii. 8, 9.
x Acts, xx vi. 10 ; ix. 13, 32, 41. 1 Cor. vi. 11 ; i. 2. Matt. xxii. 14.
1 Pet. i. 2, 14-16. 2 Pet. iii. 11. Matt, xviii. 17, 18. Heb. x. 25. 1 Cor. xi.
23, &c. Eph. iv. 13 ; v. 6, 7, 21 ; vi. 18. Phil. ii. 4 ; i. 27. Rom. xvi. 16, 17.
1 John, iii. 18. 1 Pet. i. 22.
.30 CREDENDA.
the knowledge of the truth, and all the Slips of human
infirmity, against which we heartily pray, and watch, and
labour, and all the evil habits, of which we repent so timely
and effectually, that we obtain their contrary graces, and
live in them, are fully remitted by the blood of Christ ;
which forgiveness we obtain by faith and repentance, and
therefore are not justified by the righteousness of works,
but by the righteousness of faith : and we are preserved in
the state of forgiveness or justification by the fruits of a lively
faith, and a timely active repentance/
The resurrection of the body.
I believe, that at the last day, all they whose sins are
forgiven, and who lived and died in the communion of
saints, and in whom the Holy Spirit did dwell, shall rise
from their graves, their dead bones shall live, and be clothed
with flesh and skin, and their bodies, together with their
souls, shall enter into the portion of a new life ; and that
this body shall no more see corruption, but shall rise to an
excellent condition ; it shall be spiritual, powerful, immortal,
and glorious, like unto his glorious body, who shall then be
our Judge, is now our Advocate, our Saviour, and our Lord. 2
And the life everlasting.
I believe that they who have their part in this resur-
rection, shall meet the Lord in the air; and when the
blessed sentence is pronounced upon them, they shall for
ever be with the Lord in joys unspeakable, and full of
glory ; God shall wipe all tears from their eyes ; there shall
be no fear or sorrow, no mourning or death, a friend shall
never go away from thence, and an enemy shall never
enter; there shall be fulness without want, light eternal,
brighter than the sun; day, and no night; joy, and no
weeping ; difierence in degree, and yet all full ; there is love
without dissimulation, excellence without envy, multitudes
without confusion, music without discord ; there the under-
y Rom. iii. 28. Acts, iL 38; xiii. 38. 1 John, ii. 1, 2, 12. Gal. vi. 1.
John, xx. 23. Mark, xvi. 16. 2 Pet. i. 5, &c. Eph. i. 13. 1 Pet. i. 15-18.
James, ii. 17, 20, &c. 1 John, iii. 21, &c. Heb. xii. 14-16.
1 1 Cor. xv. 29, &c. Matt. xxii. 31. Rom. viii. 11, 23. John, vi. 3?.
Phil. iii. 20. 2 Cor. v. 1.
CREDENDA. 31
standings are rich, and the will is satisfied, and the affec-
tions are all love, and all joy, and they shall reign with God
and Christ for ever and ever. a
Amen.
This is the catholic faith, which, except a man believe
faithfully, he cannot be saved.
" Regula quidem fidei, una omnino est, sola immobilis et
irreformabilis, credendi scil. in unicum Deum Oninipotentem,
&c. Hac lege fidei maneute, csetera jam disciplines et con-
versationis admittunt novitatem correctionis, operante scil. et
proficiente usque in finem gratia Dei : b
"The rule of faith is wholly one, unalterable, never to be
mended, never changed ; to wit, I believe in God, &c.
This law of faith remaining, in other things you may
increase and grow."
" Hsec est fides, quae paucis verbis tenenda in symbolo
novellis datur ; quse pauca verba fidelibus nota sunt : ut
credendo subjugentur Deo, subjugati recte vivant, recte
vivendo cor mundent, corde niundo quod credunt, intel-
ligant : c
" This is the faith which in few words is given to novices;
these few words are known to all the faithful ; that by believ-
ing they may be subject to God ; by this subjection they may
live well ; by living well they may purify their hearts ; and
with pure hearts they may relish and understand what they
do believe."
" Symbolum tessera est et signaculurn, quo inter fideles,
perfidosque secernitur : d
" This creed is the badge or cognizance by which the
faithful are discerned from unbelievers."
" Hujus catholici syrnboli brevis et perfecta confessio,
quse duodecim apostolorum totidem est signata sententiis,
tarn instructa est in munitione coelesti, ut'omnes hsereticorum
opiniones solo possint gladio detruncari : e
" This short and perfect confession of this catholic creed,
which was consigned by the sentences of twelve apostles, is
so perfect a celestial armour, that all the opinions of heretics
may by this alone, as with a sword, be cut in pieces."
a 1 Thess. iv. 17. Rev. xxi. 4 ; xxii. 5. Matt. xxtr. 34.
b Tertull. de velandis Virgin. S. Aug. de Fide et Symb.
d Max. Taurin. de Tradit. Symb. Leo M. ad Pulcheriam Aug.
AGENDA;
OR,
THINGS TO BE DONE.
Inscripta Christo pagina immortalis est ;
Nee obsolescit ullus in ccelis apex.
Prudent. vt rrtQamt. Hymn x.
The Diary; or, a Mule to spend each Day religiously .
SECTION I.
1 . SUPPOSE every day to be a day of business ; for your
whole life is a race and a battle, a merchandise and a jour-
ney. Every day propound to yourself a rosary or a chaplet
of good works, to present to God at night.
2. Rise as soon as your health and other occasions shall
permit; but it is good to be as regular as you can, and as
early. Remember, he that rises first to prayer, hath a more
early title to a blessing ; but he that changes night into day,
labour into idleness, watchfulness to sleep, changes his hopes
of blessing into a dream.
3. Never let any one think it an excuse to lie in bed, be-
cause he hath nothing to do when he is up ; for whoever hath
a soul, and hopes to save that soul, hath work enough to do
to " make his calling and election sure," to serve God, and to
pray, to read, and to meditate, to repent, and to amend, to
do good to others, and to keep evil from themselves. And
if thou hast little to do, thou oughtest to employ the more
time in laying up for a greater crown of glory.
4. At your opening your eyes, enter upon the day with
some act of piety.
AGENDA. 33
1. Of thanksgiving for the preservation of you the
night past.
2. Of the glorification of God for the works of
the creation, or any thing for the honour of God.
5. When you first go off from your hed, solemnly and
devoutly bow your head, and worship the Holy Trinity, the
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
6. When you are making ready, be as silent as you can,
and spend that time in holy thoughts ; there being no way
left to redeem that time from loss, but by meditation and
short mental prayers. If you choose to speak, speak some-
thing of God's praises, of his goodness, his mercies, or his
greatness : ever resolving, that the first-fruits of thy reason,
and of all thy faculties, shall be presented to God, to sanc-
tify the whole harvest of thy conversation.
7. Be not curious, nor careless in your habit, but always
keep these measures :
1 . Be not troublesome to thyself, or to others, by
unhandsomeness or uncleanness.
2. Let it be according to your state and quality.
3. Make religion to be the difference of your habit,
so as to be best attired upon holy or festival days.
8. In your dressing, let there be ejaculations fitted to the
several actions of dressing : as, at washing your hands and
face, pray God to cleanse your soul from sin ; in putting on
your clothes, pray him to clothe your soul with the righteous-
ness of your Saviour : and so in all the rest.
For religion must not only be the garment of your soul,
to invest it all over ; but it must be also as the fringes to
every of your actions, that something of religion appear in
every one of them, besides the innocence of all of them.
9. As soon as you are dressed with the first preparation
of your clothes, that you can decently do it, kneel and say
the Lord's Prayer ; then rise from your knees, and do what
is necessary for you in order to your further dressing, or
affairs of the house, which is speedily to be done ; and then
finish your dressing, according to the foregoing rules.
10. When you are dressed, retire yourself to your closet;
and go to your usual devotions, which it is good that, at the
first prayers, they were divided into seven actions of piety:
1. An act of adoration.
VOL. xv. D
34 AGENDA.
2. Of thanksgiving.
3. Of oblation.
4. Of confession.
5. Of petition.
6. Of intercession .
7. Of meditation, or serious, deliberate, useful read-
ing of the Holy Scriptures.
11. I advise that your reading should be governed by
these measures :*
1. Let it be not of the whole Bible in order, but
for your devotion use the New Testament, and such
portions of the Old as contain the precepts of holy life.
2. The historical and less useful part, let it be
read at such other times which you have of leisure
from your domestic employments.
3. Those portions of Scripture which you use in your
prayers, let them not be long. A chapter at once, no
more ; but then what time you can afford, spend it in
thinking and meditating upon the holy precepts which
you read.
4. Be sure to meditate so long, till you make
some act of piety upon the occasion of what you
meditate; either that you get some new arguments
against a sin, or some new encouragements to virtue ;
some spiritual strength and advantage, or else some
act of prayer to God, or glorification of him.
5. I advise that you would read your chapter in the
midst of your prayers in the morning, if they be divided
according to the number of the former actions ; because
little interruptions will be apt to make your prayers
less tedious, and yourself more attent upon them. But
if you find any other way more agreeing to your spirit
and disposition, use your liberty without scruple.
12. Before you go forth of your closet, after your prayers
are done, sit yourself down a little while, and consider what
you are to do that day, what matter of business is like to
employ you, or to tempt you ; and take particular resolution
against that, whether it be matter of wrangling, or anger, or
covetousness, or vain courtship, or feasting : and when you
enter upon it, remember upon what you resolved in your
a Out tffri <riva ffuQTiva.1 fan ffuii^
Sf . Chrysoit. Homil. iii. de Lazaro.
AGENDA. 35
closet. If you are likely to have nothing extraordinary that
day, a general recommendation of the affairs of that day to
God in your prayers, will be sufficient ; but if there be any
thing foreseen that is not usual, be sure to be armed for it,
by a hearty, though a short prayer, and an earnest, prudent re-
solution beforehand : and then watch when the thing conies.
13. Whosoever hath children or servants, let him or her
take care that all the children and servants of the family
say their prayers before they begin their work ; the Lord's
Prayer, and the ten commandments, with the short verse at
the end of every commandment, which the Church uses ; and
the creed is a very good office for them, if they be not fitted
for more regular offices. And to these also it were good
that some proper prayer were apportioned, and they taught
it. It were well if they would serve themselves of this form
set down at the end of this Diary.
14. Then go about the affairs of your house, and proper
employment, ever avoiding idleness, or too much earnestness
of affection upon the things of the world : do your business
prudently, temperately, diligently, humbly, charitably.
15. Let there be no idle person in or about your family,
or beggars, or unemployed servants, but find them all work
and meat ; call upon them carefully ; reprove them without
reproaches, or fierce railings. Be a master, or a mistress,
and a friend to them, and exact of them to be faithful and
diligent.
16. In your servants, suffer any offence against yourself,
rather than against God ; endure not that they should swear,
or lie, or steal, or be wanton, or curse each other, or be
railers, or slanderers, or tell-tales, and sowers of dissension
in the family, or amongst neighbours.
17. In all your intercourse with your .neighbours in the
day let your affairs be wholly matter of business or civility,
and always managed with justice and charity ; never let it
be matter of curiosity or inquiry into the actions of others ;
always without censuring or rash judgment, without back-
biting, slandering, or detraction : do it not yourself, neither
converse with them that do. He or she that loves tale-
bearers, shall never be beloved, or be innocent.
18. Before dinner and supper, as often as it is conve-
nient, or can be had, let the public prayers of the Church, or
some parts of them, be said publicly in the family, and let as
36 AGENDA.
many be present as you can. The same rule is also to be
observed for Sundays and holydays, for their going to
church. Let no servant be always detained, but relieved and
provided for by changes.
19. Let your meal be temperate and wholesome, accord-
ing to your quality, and the season begun and ended with
prayer ; and be sure that in the course of your meal, and
before you rise, you recollect yourself, and send your heart
up to God with some holy and short ejaculation, remem-
bering your duty, fearing to offend, or desiring and sighing
after the eternal supper of the Lamb.
20. After meal, use what innocent refreshment you please
to refresh your mind or body, with these measures.
1 . Let it not be too expensive of time.
2. Let it not hinder your devotion, nor your busi-
ness.
3. Let it be always without violence or passion.
4. Let it not then wholly take you up when you are
at it ; but let your heart retire with some holy thoughts,
and sober recollections, lest your mind be seized upon by
it, and your affections carried off from better things ;
secure your affections for God, and sober and severe
employment. Here you may be refreshed, but take heed
you neither dwell here, nor sin here. It is better never to
use recreation, than at any time to sin by it. But you
may use recreation, and avoid sin, and that is the best
temper ; but if you cannot do both, be more careful of
your soul than of your refreshment, and that is the
best security. But then in what you use to sin, carefully
avoid it, and change your refreshment for some other
instance, in which you can be more innocent.
2 1 . Entertain no long discourses with any, but, if you can,
bring in something to season it with religion : as God must
be in all your thoughts, so, if it be possible, let him be in all
your discourses, at least, let him be at one end of it ; and
when you cannot speak of him, be sure you forget not to
think of him.
22. Toward the declining of the day, be sure to retire to
your private devotions. Read, meditate, and pray ; in which
I propound to you this method :
On the Lord's day meditate on the glories of the
creation, the works of God, and all his benefits to
AGENDA. 37
mankind, and to you in particular. Then let your devo-
tion be humbly, upon your knees, to say over the 8th
and 19th Psalms, and sometimes the 104th, with proper
collects which you shall find or get : adding the form
of thanksgiving which is in the * Rule of Holy Living,'
page 293, in the manner as is there directed ; or some
other of your own choosing.
Meditate on Monday on 1. Death.
Tuesday 2. Judgment.
Wednesday 3. Heaven.
Thursday 4. Hell.
Saying your usual prayers, and adding some ejaculations
or short sayings of your own, according to the matter of
your devotion.
On Friday, recollect your sins that you have done
that week, and all your lifetime ; and let your devotion
be to recite, humbly and devoutly, some penitential lita-
nies, whereof you may serve yourself in the ' Rule of
Holy Living,' p. 284.
On Saturday, at the same time, meditate on the pas-
sion of our blessed Saviour and all the mysteries of our
redemption, which you may do and pray together, by
using the forms made to that purpose in the ' Rule of
Holy Living,' p. 298. In all your devotions begin and
end with the Lord's Prayer.
Upon these two days and Sunday, you may choose
some portions out of the ' Life of Christ,' to read and
help your meditation, proper to the mysteries you are
appointed to meditate, or any other devout books.
23. Read not much at a time ; but meditate as much as
your time, and capacity, and disposition, will give you leave :
ever remembering that little reading and much thinking,
little speaking and much hearing, frequent and short
prayers and great devotion, is the best way to be wise, to
be holy, to be devout.
24. Before you go to bed, bethink yourself of the day
past ; if nothing extraordinary hath happened, your con-
science is the sooner examined ; but if you have had any
difference or disagreeing with any one, or a great feast, or
great company, or a great joy, or a great sorrow, then recol-
lect yourself with the more diligence ; ask pardon for what
is amiss ; give God thanks for what was good : if you have
38 AGENDA.
omitted any duty, make amends next day ; and yet if nothing
be found that was amiss, he humbled still and thankful, and
pray God for pardon if any thing be amiss that yon know
not of. If all these things be in your offices, for your last
prayers, be sure to apply them according to what yon find in
yonr examination : but if they be not, supply them with short
ejaculations before yon begin your last prayers, or at the
end of them. Remember also, and be sure to take notice of,
all the mercies and deliverances of yourself and yonr rela-
tives that day.
25. As yon are going to bed, as often as yon can con-
veniently, or that yon are not hindered by company, meditate
on death, and the preparations to yonr grave. When yon lie
down, close your eyes with a short prayer, commit yourself
into the hands of your faithful Creator ; and when yon have
done, trust him with yourself, as yon must do when you are
dying.
26. If you awake in the night, fill up the intervals or
spaces of your not sleeping by holy thoughts and aspirations,
and remember the sins of your youth : and sometimes re-
member your dead, and that you shall die ; and pray to God
to send to you and all mankind a mercy in the day of
judgment.
27. Upon the holydays observe the same rules ; only let
the matter of your meditations be according to the mystery
of the day. As upon Christmas-day, meditate on the birth
of our blessed Saviour, and read that story and considera-
tions which are in the * Life of Christ :' and to your ordinary
devotions of every day, add the prayer which is fitted to the
mystery which you shall find in the ' life of Christ/ or in
the * Role of Holy Living.' Upon the day of the Annuncia-
tion, or our Lady-day, meditate on the incarnation of our
blessed Saviour ; and so, upon all the festivals of the year.
28. Set apart one day for fasting once a week, or once a
fortnight, or once a month at least, but let it be with these
cautions and measures :
1 . Do not choose a festival of the Church for your
fasting day.
2. Eat nothing till your afternoon devotions be done,
if the health of your body will permit it : if not, take
something, though it be the less.
3. When you eat your meal, let it be no more than
AGENDA. 39
ordinary, lest your fasting day end in an intemperate
evening.
4. Let the actions of all the day be proportionable
to it ; abstain from your usual recreations on that day,
and from greater mirth.
5. Be sure to design beforehand the purposes of your
fast, either for repentance, or for mortification, or for the
advantages of prayer ; and let your devotions be accord-
ingly. But be sure not to think fasting, or eating fish,
or eating nothing, of itself to be pleasing to God, but as
it serves to one of these purposes.
6. Let some part of that day extraordinary be set
apart for prayer, for the actions of repentance, for con-
fession of sins, and for begging of those graces for whose
sake you set apart that day.
7. Be sure that on that day you set apart some-
thing for the poor ; for fasting and alms are the wings
of prayer.
8. It is best to choose that day for your fast, which is
used generally by all Christians, as Friday and Saturday ;
but do not call it a fasting day, unless also it be a day of
extraordinary devotion and of alms.
29. From observation of all the days of your life, gather
out the four extraordinaries :
1. All the great and shameful sins you have com-
mitted.
2. All the excellent or greater acts of piety, which
by God's grace you have performed.
3. All the great blessings you have received.
4. All the dangers and great sicknesses you have
escaped. And upon all the days of your extraordinary
devotions, let them be brought forth, and produce their
acts of virtue :
1. Repentance and prayers for pardon.
2. Resolutions to proceed and increase in good
works.
3. Thanksgiving to God.
4. Fear and watchfulness, lest we fall into worse, as
a punishment for our sin.
30. Keep a little catalogue of these ; and at the foot of
them set down what promises and vows you have made, and
kept or broken, and do according as you are obliged.
40 AGENDA.
31. Receive the blessed sacrament as often as you can :
endeavour to have it once a month, besides the solemn and
great festivals of the year.
32. Confess your sins often, hear the word of God, make
religion the business of your life, your study, and chiefest
care ; and be sijre that in all things a spiritual guide take you
by the hand.
Thou shalt always rejoice in the evening, if thou doest
speud thy day virtuously.
VIA PACIS.
A SHORT METHOD OF PEACE AND HOLINESS,
WITH
A MANUAL OF DAILY PRAYERS FITTED TO THE
DAYS OF THE WEEK.
SUNDAY.
The First Decad.
1. IT is the highest wisdom, by despising the world, to
arrive at heaven : for they are blessed whose daily exercise
it is to converse with God by prayer and obedience, by love
and patience.
2. It is the extremest folly to labour for that which will
bring torment in the end, and no satisfaction in the little en-
joyment of it : to be unwearied in the pursuit of the world,
and to be soon tired in whatsoever we begin to do for Christ.
3. Watch over thyself, counsel thyself, reprove thyself,
censure thyself, and judge thyself impartially : whatever thou
dost to others, do not neglect thyself; for every man profits
so much as he does violence to himself.
4. They that follow their own sensuality stain their con-
sciences, and lose the grace of God : but he that endeavours
to please God, whatever he suffers, is beloved of God. For
it is not a question, Whether we shall or shall not suffer? but,
Whether we shall suffer for God or for the world ? whether
we shall take pains in religion or in sin, to get heaven or
to get riches ?
5. What availeth knowledge without the fear of God ? An
AGENDA. 41
humble ignorant man is better than a proud scholar, who
studies natural things, and knows not himself. The more
thou knowest, the more grievously thou shalt be judged :
many get no profit by their labour, because they contend for
knowledge, rather than for holy life ; and the time shall come,
when it shall more avail thee to have subdued one lust, than
to have known all mysteries.
6. No man truly knows himself, but he groweth daily
more contemptible in his own eyes ; desire, not to be known,
and to be little esteemed of by men.
7. If all be well within, nothing can hurt us from without :
for from inordinate love and vain fear, comes all unquietness
of spirit, and distraction of our senses.
8. He to whom all things are one, who draweth all things
to one, and seeth all things in one, may enjoy true peace and
rest of spirit.
9. It is not much business that distracts any man, but the
want of purity, constancy, and tendency towards God. Who
hinders thee more than the unmortified desires of thine own
heart ? As soon as ever a man desires any thing inordinately,
he is presently disquieted in himself. He that hath not
wholly subdued himself, is quickly tempted and overcome in
small and trifling things. The weak in spirit is he that is in
a manner subject to his appetite, and he quickly falls into
indignation, and contention, and envy.
10. He is truly great, that is great in charity, and little in
himself.
MONDAY.
The Second Decad.
1 1 . WE rather often believe and speak'evil of others, than
good. But they that are truly virtuous, do not easily credit
evil that is told them of their neighbours. For if others
may do amiss, then may these also speak amiss. Man is frail
and prone to evil, and, therefore, may soon fail in words.
12. Be not rash in thy proceedings, nor confident and
pertinacious in thy conceits. But consult with him that is
wise, and seek to be instructed by a better than thyself.
13. The more humble and resigned we are to God, the
42 AGENDA.
more prudent we are in our affairs to men, and peaceable in
ourselves.
14. The proud and the covetous can never rest.
'15. Be not ashamed to be, or to be esteemed, poor in this
world : for he that hears God teaching him, will find that it
is the best wisdom to withdraw all our affections from secular
honour, and troublesome riches, and to place them upon
eternal treasures ; and by patience, by humility, by suffering
scorn and contempt, and all the will of God, to get the true
riches.
16. Be not proud of well-doing ; for the judgment of
God is far differing from the judgment of men.
17. Lay not thine heart open to every one, but with the
wise and them that fear God. Converse not much with
young people and strangers. Flatter not the rich, neither
do thou willingly or lightly appear before great personages.
Never be partaker with the persecutors.
18. It is easier, and safer, and more pleasant to live in
obedience, than to be at our own disposing.
19. Always yield to others when there is cause ; for that
is no shame, but honour : but it is shame to stand stiff in a
foolish or weak argument or resolution.
20. The talk of worldly affairs hindereth much, although
recounted with a fair intention : we speak willingly, but
seldom return to silence.
TUESDAY.
The Third Decad.
21 . WATCH and pray, lest your time pass without profit
or fruit. But devout discourses do greatly further our
spiritual progress, if persons of one mind and spirit be
gathered together in God.
22. We should enjoy more peace, if we did not busy
ourselves with the words and deeds of other men, which
appertain not to our charge.
23. He that esteems his progress in religion to consist in
exterior observances, his devotion will quickly be at an end.
But to free ourselves of passions, is to lay the axe at the root
of the tree, and the true way of peace.
AGENDA. 43
24. It is good that we sometimes be contradicted and
ill thought of, and that we always bear it well, even when we
deserve to be well spoken of: perfect peace and security
cannot be had in this world.
25. All the saints have profited by tribulations ; and they
that could not bear temptations, became reprobates, and fell
from God.
26. Think not all is well within, when all is well without ;
or that thy being pleased is a sign that God is pleased : but
suspect every thing that is prosperous, unless it promotes
piety, and charity, and humility.
27. Do no evil, for no interest, and to please no man,
for no friendship, and for no fear.
28. God regards not how much we do, but from how
much it proceeds. He does much that loves much.
29. Patiently suffer that from others which thou canst
not mend in them, until God please to do it for thee ; and
remember that thou mend thyself, since thou art so willing
others should not offend in any thing.
30. Every man's virtue is best seen in adversity and
temptation.
WEDNESDAY.
The Fourth Decad.
31. BEGIN everyday to repent, not that thou shouldstat
all defer it, or stand at the door, but because all that is past
ought to seem little to thee ; because it is so in itself : begin
the next day with the same zeal, and the same fear, and the
same humility, as if thou hadst never begun before.
32. A little omission of any usual exercise of piety,
cannot happen to thee without some loss* and considerable
detriment, even though it be upon a considerable cause.
33. Be not slow in common and usual acts of piety and
devotion, and quick and prompt at singularities : but having
first done what thou art bound to, proceed to counsels and
perfections, and the extraordinaries of religion, as you see
cause.
34. He that desires much to hear news, is never void of
passions, and secular desires, and adherences to the world.
44 AGENDA.
35. Complain not too much of hinderances of devotion :
if thou let men alone, they will let you alone : and if you
desire not to converse with them, let them know it, and they
will not desire to converse with thee.
36. Draw not to thyself the affairs of others, neither
involve thyself in the suits and parties of great personages.
37. Know that if any trouble happen to thee, it is what
thou hast deserved, and therefore brought upon thyself.
But if any comfort come to thee, it is a gift of God, and
what thou didst not deserve. And, remember, that often-
times when thy body complains of trouble, it is not so much
the greatness of trouble, as littleness of thy spirit, that makes
thee to complain.
38. He that knows how to suffer any thing for God,
that desires heartily the will of God may be done in him,
that studies to please others rather than himself, to do the
will of his superior, not his own, that chooses the least
portion, and is not greedy for the biggest, that takes the
lowest place, and does not murmur secretly, he is in the
best condition and state of things.
39. Let no man despair of mercy or success, so long as
he hath life and health.
40. Every man must pass though fire and water before
he can come to refreshment.
THURSDAY.
The Fifth Decad.
41. SOON may a man lose that by negligence, which hath
by much labour, and a long time, and a mighty grace,
scarcely been obtained. And what shall become of us be-
fore night, who are weary so early in the morning ? Wo
be to that man who would be at rest, even when he hath
scarcely a footstep of holiness appearing in his conversation !
42. So think, and so do, as if thou wert to die to-day,
and at night to give an account of thy whole life.
43. Beg not a long life, but a good one: for length of
days oftentimes prolongs the evil, and augments the guilt.
It were well if that little time we live, we would live well.
44. Entertain the same opinions and thoughts of thy sin
AGENDA. 45
and of thy present state, as thou wilt in the days of sorrow.
Thou wilt then think thyself very miserable and very foolish
for neglecting one hour, and one day of thy salvation : think
so now, and thou wilt be more provident of thy time and of
thy talent. For there will a time come, when every careless
man shall desire the respite of one hour for prayer and
repentance, and I know not who will grant it. Happy is
he that so lives, that in the day of death he rejoices, and is
not amazed !
45. He that would die comfortably, may serve his ends
by first procuring to himself a contempt of the world, a
fervent desire of growing in grace, love of discipline, a
laborious repentance, a prompt obedience, self-denial, and
toleration of every cross accident for the love of Christ, and
a tender charity.
46. While thou art well, thou mayest do much good, if
thou wilt ; but when thou art sick, neither thou nor I can tell
what thou shalt be able to do. It is not very much, nor
very good : few men mend with sickness, as there are but
few who, by travel and a wandering life, become devout.
47. Be not troubled, nor faint in the labours of mortifica-
tion, and the austerities of repentance : for in hell one hour
is more intolerable than a hundred years in the house of
repentance: and try: for if thou canst not endure God
punishing thy follies gently, for a while, to amend thee, how
wilt thou endure his vengeance for ever to undo thee?
48. In thy prayers wait for God, and think not every
hearty prayer can procure every thing thou askest. These
things which the saints did not obtain without many prayers,
and much labour, and a shower of tears, and a long pro-
tracted watchfulness and industry, do thou expect also in its
own time, and by its usual measures. Do thou valiantly,
and hope confidently, and wait patiently, and thou shalt find
thou wilt not be deceived.
49. Be careful thou dost not speak a lie in thy prayers,
which, though riot observed, is frequently practised by care-
less persons, especially in the forms of confession, affirming
things which they have not thought, professing sorrow which
is not, making a vow they mean not.
50. If thou meanest to be devout, and to enlarge thy
religion, do it rather by increasing thy ordinary devotions,
46 AGENDA.
than thy extraordinary. For if they be not regular, but
come by chance, they will not last long. But if they be
added to your ordinary offices, or made to be daily, thy
spirit will, by use and custom, be made tender, and not
willing to go less.
FRIDAY.
The Sixth Decad.
51. HE is a truly charitable and good man, who, when he
receives injuries, grieves rather for the malice of him that
injures him, than for his own suffering ; who willingly prays
for him that wrongs him, and from his heart forgives all his
faults ; who stays not, but quickly asks pardon of others for
his errors or mistakes ; who sooner shews mercy than anger ;
who thinks better of others than himself ; who offers violence
to his appetite, and in all things endeavours to subdue the
flesh to the spirit. This is an excellent abbreviature .of the
whole duty of a Christian.
52. No man can have felicity in two states of things ; if
he takes it in God here, in him he shall have it hereafter ; for
God will last for ever. But if he takes felicity in things of
this world, where will his felicity be when this world is
done ? Either here alone, or hereafter, must be thy portion.
53. Avoid those things in thyself which in others do
most displease thee. And remember, that as thine eye
observes .others, so art thou observed by God, by angels, and
by men.
54. He that puts his confidence in God only, is neither
overjoyed in any great good thing of this life, nor sorrowful
for a little thing. Let God be thy love and thy fear, and he
also will be thy salvation and thy refuge.
55. Do not omit thy prayers for want of a good oratory
or place to pray in, nor thy duty for want of temporal en-
couragements. For he that does both upon God's account,
cares not how or what he suffers, so he suffer well, and be
the friend of Christ ; nor where nor when he prays, so he
may do it frequently, fervently, and acceptably.
56. Very often remember and meditate upon the wounds
and stripes, the shame and the pain, the death and the
AGENDA. 47
burial, of our Lord Jesus ; for nothing will more enable us to
bear our cross patiently, injuries charitably, the labour of
religion comfortably, and censuring words and detractions
with meekness and quietness.
57. Esteem not thyself to have profited in religion, unless
thou thinkest well of others and meanly of thyself: there-
fore, never accuse any but thyself; and he that diligently
watches himself, will be willing enough to be silent con-
cerning others.
58. It is no great matter to live lovingly with good-
natured, with humble, and meek persons : but he that can
do so with the froward, with the wilful and the ignorant,
with the peevish and perverse, he only hath true charity :
always remembering, that our true solid peace, the peace of
God, consists rather in complying with others, than in being
complied with, in suffering and forbearing, rather than in
contention and victory.
59. Simplicity in our intentions, and purity of affections,
are the two wings of a soul, investing it with the robes and
resemblances of a seraphim. Intend the honour of God
principally and sincerely, and mingle not thy affections with
any creature, but in just subordination to God, and to
religion ; and thou shalt have joy, if there be any such thing
in this world. For there is no joy but in God, and no sorrow
but in an evil conscience.
60. Take not much care what or who is for thee, or
against thee. The judgment of none is to be regarded, if
God's judgment be otherwise. Thou art neither better nor
worse in thyself, for any account that is made of thee by any
but by God alone : secure that to thee, and he will secure
all the rest.
SATURDAY.
The Seventh Decad.
61. BLESSED is he that understands what it is to love
Jesus, and contends earnestly to be like him. Nothing else
can satisfy or make us perfect. But be thou a bearer of his
cross, as well as a lover of his kingdom. Suffer tribulation
for him, or from him, with the same spirit thou receivest
48 AGENDA.
consolation : follow him as well for the bitter cup of his
passion, as for the loaves ; and remember, that if it be a hard
saying, " Take up my cross and follow me," it is a harder
saying, " Go, ye cursed, into everlasting fire."
62. No man can always have the same spiritual pleasure
in his prayers : for the greatest saints have sometimes
suffered the banishment of the heart; sometimes are fervent,
sometimes they feel a barrenness of devotion : for this spirit
comes and goes. Rest, therefore, only in God, and in doing
thy duty : and know, that if thou beest overjoyed to-day,
this hour will pass away, and temptation and sadness will
succeed .
63. In all afflictions, seek rather for patience than for
comfort. If thou preservest that, this will return. Any man
would serve God, if he felt pleasure in it always ; but the
virtuous does it, when his soul is full of heaviness, and
regards not himself, but God, and hates that consolation
that lessens his compunction ; but loves any thing, whereby
he is made more humble.
64. That which thou dost not understand when thou
readest, thou shalt understand in the day of thy visitation :
for there are many secrets of religion, which are not perceived
till they be felt, and are not felt but in the day of a great
calamity.
Go. He that prays despairs not. But sad is the condition
of him that cannot pray. Happy are they that can, and do,
and love to do it.
66. He that will be blessed in his prayers, must make his
prayers his rule. All our duty is there set down, because in
all our duty we beg the Divine assistance : and remember,
that you are bound to do all those duties, for the doing of
which you have prayed for the Divine assistance.
67. Be doing actions of religion as often as thou canst,
and thy worldly pleasures as seldom ; that if thou beest sur-
prised by sudden death, it may be odds but thou mayest be
taken at thy prayers.
68. Watch, and resist the devil in all his temptations
and snares : his chief designs are these ; to hinder thy desire
in good ; to put thee by from any spiritual employment,
from prayers especially, from the meditation of the passion,
from the remembrance of thy sins, from humble confession
AGENDA. 49
of them, from speedy repentance, from the custody of thy
senses and of thy heart, from firm purposes of growing in
grace, from reading good books, and frequent receiving the
holy sacrament. It is all one to him, if he deceives thee by
a lie or by truth ; whether he amaze or trouble thee, by love
of the present or fear of the future : watch him but in these
things, and there will be no part left unarmed, in which he
can wound thee.
69. Remember how the proud have fallen, and they who
have presumed upon their own strength have been dis-
graced ; and that the boldest and greatest talkers in the
days of peace, have been the most dejected and pusillanimous
in the day of temptation.
70. No man ought to think he hath found peace, when
nothing troubles him ; or that God loves him, because he
hath no enemy ; nor that all is well, because every thing is
according to his mind ; nor that he is a holy person, because
he prays with great sweetness and comfort; but he is at
peace who is reconciled to God ; and God loves him when
he hath overcome himself; and all is well when nothing
pleases him but God, being thankful in the midst of his
afflictions ; and he is holy, who, when he hath lost his com-
fort, loses nothing of his duty, but is still the same, when
God changes his face towards him.
VOL. xv.
POSTULANDA;
OR,
THINGS TO BE PRAYED FOR.
Jubet Deus ut petas, et si non petis displicet, et non negabit quod petis :
et tu non petes ? S, August.
A form of Prayer, by way of Paraphrase, expounding
the Lord's Prayer.
Our Father.
MERCIFUL and gracious ; thou gavest me being, raisedst me
from nothing to be an excellent creation, efforming me after
thy own image, tenderly feeding me, and conducting and
strengthening me all my days : thou art our Father by a
more excellent mercy, adopting us in a new birth, to become
partakers of the inheritance of Jesus ; thou hast given us the
portion and the food of sons ; O make us to do the duty of
sons, that we may never lose our title to so glorious an
inheritance.
Let this excellent name and title, by which thou hast
vouchsafed to relate to us, be our glory and our confidence,
our defence and guard, our ornament and strength, our
dignity, and the endearment of obedience, the principle of a
holy fear to thee, our Father, and of love to thee and to
our brethren, partakers of the same hope and dignity.
Unite every member of the Church to thee in holy bands ;
let there be no more names of division, nor titles and
ensigns of error and partiality ; let not us, who are brethren,
contend, but in giving honour to each other, and glory to
thee, contending earnestly for the faith, but not to the breach
of charity, nor the denying each other's hope : but grant that
we may all join in the promotion of the honour of thee our
POSTULANDA. 51
Father, in celebrating the name, and spreading the family,
and propagating the laws and institutions, the promises and
dignities, of our elder brother; that despising the transitory
entertainments of this world, we may labour for, and long
after, the inheritance to which thou hast given us title, by
adopting us into the dignity of sons. For ever let thy Spirit
witness to our spirit, that we are thy children, and enable us
to cry Abba, Father.
Which art in heaven.
Heaven is thy throne, the earth is thy footstool : from
thy throne thou beholdest all the dwellers upon earth, and
triest out the hearts of men, and nothing is hid from thy
sight. And as thy knowledge is infinite, so is thy power,
uncircumscribed as the utmost orb of heaven, and thou
sittest in thy own essential happiness and tranquillity, im-
movable and eternal. That is our country, and thither thy
servants are travelling ; there is our Father, and that is our
inheritance ; there our hearts are, for there our treasure is
laid up till the day of recompense.
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy name, O God, is glorious, and in thy name is our
hope and confidence : according to thy name, so is thy
praise unto the world's end. They that love thy name, shall
be joyful in thee ; for thy name which thou madest to be
proclaimed unto thy people, is, " The Lord, the Lord God,
merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in good-
ness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving
iniquity, and transgression, and sin ; and that will by no
means clear the guilty." In this glorious name we worship
thee, O Lord ; and all they that know thy name, will put
their trust in thee. The desire of our soul is to thy name,
and to the remembrance of thee. Thou art worthy, O Lord,
of honour, and praise, and glory, for ever and ever: we con-
fess thy glories, we rejoice in thy mercies ; we hope in thy
name, and thy saints like it well : for thy name is praised
unto the ends of the world ; it is believed by faith, relied
upon by a holy hope, and loved by a great charity : all thy
Church celebrates thee with praises, and offers to thy name
the sacrifice of prayer and thanksgiving.
52 POSTULANDA.
Thou, O God, didst frame our nature by thy own image,
and now thou hast imprinted thy name upon us; we are thy
servants, the relatives and domestics of thy family, and thou
hast honoured us with the gracious appellative of Christians.
O let us never dishonour so excellent a title, nor, by un-
worthy usages, profane thy holy name, but for ever glorify
it. Let our life be answerable to our dignity ; that our body
may be chaste, our thoughts clean, our words gracious, our
manners holy, and our life useful and innocent, that men,
seeing our good works, may glorify thee our Father which
art in heaven.
Thy kingdom come.
Thou reignest in heaven and earth : O do thou rule also
in our hearts ; advance the interest of religion ; let thy
Gospel be placed in all the regions of the earth ; and let all
nations come and worship thee, laying their proud wills at
thy feet, submitting their understandings to the obedience of
Jesus, conforming their affections to thy holy laws. Let thy
kingdom be set up gloriously over us ; and do thou reign in
our spirits, by thy Spirit of Grace ; subdue every lust and
inordinate appetite ; trample upon our pride, mortify all
rebellion within us, and let all thine and our enemies be
brought into captivity, that sin may never reign in our mor-
tal bodies ; but that Christ may reign in our understanding
by faith, in the will, by charity, in the passions, by morti-
fication, in all the members, by a right and chaste use of
them. And when thy kingdom that is within us hath
flourished, and is advanced to that height whither thou hast
designed it, grant thy kingdom of glory may speedily suc-
ceed ; and we thy servants be admitted to the peace and
purity, the holiness and glories, of that state where thou
reignest alone, and art all in all.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Thy will, O God, is the measure of holiness and peace ;
thy providence the great disposer of all things, tying all
events together, in order to thy glory and the good of thy
servants, by a wonderful mysterious chain of wisdom. Let
thy will also be the measure of our desires : for we know,
that whatsoever thou sayest is true, and whatsoever thou
POSTULANDA. 53
doest is good: grant we may submit our wills to thine, being
patient of evils which thou inflictest, lovers of the good which
thou commandest, haters of all evil which thou forbiddest,
pleased with all the accidents thou sendest ; that though our
nature is weaker than angels, yet our obedience may be as
humble, our conformity to thy will may rise up to the de-
grees of unity, and theirs cannot be more ; that as they in
heaven, so we in earth may obey thy will promptly, cheer-
fully, zealously, and with all our faculties; and grant, that
as they there, so all the world here may serve thee with peace
and concord, purity arid love unfeigned, with one heart and
one voice glorifying thee our heavenly Father.
Grant that we may quit all our own affections, and sus-
pect our reasonings, and go out of ourselves, and all our own
confidences; that thou being to us all things, disposing all
events, and guiding all our actions, and directing our inten-
tions, and overruling all things in us and about us, we may
be servants of the Divine will for ever.
Give us, this day, our daily bread.
Thou, O God, which takest care of our souls, do not
despise our bodies, which thou hast made and sanctified, and
designed to be glorious. But now we are exposed to hunger
and thirst, nakedness and weariness, want and inconveni-
ence, ' Give unto us neither poverty nor riches, but feed us
with food convenient for us,' and clothe us with fitting pro-
visions, according to that state and condition where thou hast
placed thy servants ; that we may not be tempted with want,
nor made contemptible by beggary, nor wanton or proud by
riches, nor in love with any thing in this world ; but that we
may use it as strangers and pilgrims, as the relief of our
needs, the support of our infirmities, and tire oil of our lamps,
feeding us till we are quite spent in thy service. Lord, take
from thy servants sad carefulness, and all distrust, and give
us only such a proportion of temporal things as may enable
us with comfort to do our duty.
Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass
against us.
O dear God, unless thou art pleased to pardon us, in vain
54) POSTULANDA.
is it that we should live here: and what good will our life do
us? O look upon us with much mercy, for we have sinned
grievously against thee. Pardon the adherent imperfections
of our life, the weaknesses of our duty, the carelessness of
our spirit, our affected ignorance, our indiligence, our rash-
ness and want of observation, our malice and presumptions.
Turn thine eyes from our impurities, and behold the bright-
ness and purest innocence of the holy Jesus ; and under his
cover we plead our cause, not that thou shouldest judge our
sins, but give us pardon, and blot out all our iniquities, that
we may never enter into the horrible regions where there
are torments without ceasing, a prison without ransom, re-
proaches without comfort, anguish without patience, dark-
ness without light, * a worm that never dies, and the fire that
never goeth out.'
But be pleased also to give us great charity, that we may
truly forgive all that trouble or injure us, that by that character
thou may discern us to be thy sons and servants, disciples
of the Holy Jesus, lest our * prayer be turned into sin,' and
thy grace be recalled, and thou enter into a final anger
against thy servants.
Lead us not into temptation.
Gracious Father, we are weak and ignorant, our affections
betray us, and make us willing to die, * our adversary the
devil goeth up and down, seeking whom he may devour ;' he
is busy and crafty, malicious and powerful, watchful and
envious; and we tempt ourselves, running out to mischief,
delighting in the approaches of sin, and love to have neces-
sities put upon us, that sin may be unavoidable. Pity us in
the midst of these disorders ; and give us spiritual strength,
holy resolutions, a watchful spirit, the whole armour of God,
and thy protection, the guard of angels, and the conduct of
thy Holy Spirit, to be our security in the day of danger.
Give us thy grace to fly from all occasions to sin, that we
may never tempt ourselves, nor delight to be tempted ; and
let thy blessed providence so order the accidents of our lives,
that we may not dwell near an enemy ; and when thou shalt
try us, and suffer us to enter into combat, let us always be
on thy side, and fight valiantly, resist the devil, and endure
POSTULANDA. 55
patiently, and persevere constantly unto the end, that thou
mayest crown thy own work in us.
But deliver us from evil.
From sin and shame, from the malice and fraud of the
devil, and from the falseness and greediness of men, from all
thy wrath, and from all our impurities, good Lord, deliver
thy servants.
Do not reserve any thing of thy wrath in store for us ;
but let our sins be pardoned so fully, that thou mayest not
punish our inventions. And yet, if thou wilt not be en-
treated, but that it be necessary that we suffer, thy will be
done ; smite us here with a father's rod, that thou mayest
spare us hereafter : let the sad accidents of our life be for
good to us, not for evil ; for our amendment, not to exas-
perate or weary us, not to harden or confound us : and what
evil soever it be that shall happen, let -us not sin against
thee. For ever deliver us from that evil, and for ever deliver
us from the power of the evil one, the great enemy of man-
kind, and never let our portion be in that region of darkness,
in that everlasting burning, which thou hast 'prepared for the
devil and his angels' for ever.
For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
So shall we thy servants advance the mightiness of thy
kingdom, the power of thy majesty, and the glory of thy
mercy, from generation to generation, for ever. Amen.
LITANIES
FOR ALL THINGS AND PERSONS.
O GOD the Father of mercies, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, have mercy upon thy servants, and hear the prayers
of us miserable sinners.
O blessed Jesus, the fountain of peace and pardon, our wis-
dom and our righteousness, our sanctification and redemption,
56 POSTULANDA.
have mercy upon thy servants, refuse not to hear the
prayers of us miserable, sorrowful, and returning sinners.
O holy and divinest Spirit of the Father, help our infir-
mities : for of ourselves we know not what to ask, nor how
to pray, but do thou assist and be present in the desires of
us miserable sinners.
I.
For Pardon of Sins.
Remember not, Lord, the follies of our childhood, nor
the lusts of our youth; the wildness of our head, nor the
wanderings of our heart; the infinite sins of our tongue, and
the inexcusable errors of the days of vanity.
Lord, have mercy upon us, poor miserable sinners.
Remember not, O Lord, the growing iniquities of our
elder age, the pride of our spirit, the abuse of our members,
the greediness of our appetite, the inconstancy of our pur-
poses, the peevishness and violence of all our passions
and affections.
Lord, have mercy, &c.
Remember not, O Lord, how we have been full of envy
and malice, anger and revenge, fierce and earnest in the
purchases and vanities of the world, and lazy and dull, slow
and soon weary in the things of God and of religion.
Lord, have mercy, &c.
Remember not, O Lord, our uncharitable behaviour to-
wards those with whom we have conversed, our jealousies
and suspicions, our evil surmisings and evil reportings, the
breach of our promises to men, and the breach of all our holy
vows made to thee our God.
Lord, have mercy, &c.
Remember not, O Lord, how often we have omitted the
several parts and actions of our duty ; for our sins of omis-
sion are infinite, and we have not sought after the righteous-
ness of God, but have rested in carelessness and forgetful-
ness, in a false peace and a silent conscience.
Lord, have mercy, &c.
O most gracious Lord, enter not into judgment with thy
servants, lest we be consumed in thy wrath and just dis-
pleasure : from which
Good Lord, deliver us, and preserve thy servants for ever.
POSTULANDA. 57
II.
For Deliverance from Evils.
From gross ignorance and stupid negligence, from a
wandering head and a trifling spirit, from the violence and
rule of passion, from a servile will and a commanding lust,
from all intemperance, inordination, and irregularity what-
soever :
Good Lord, deliver and preserve thy servants for ever.
From a covetous mind and greedy desires, from lustful
thoughts and a wanton eye, from rebellious members and
the pride and vanity of spirit ; from false opinions and igno-
rant confidences :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From improvidence and prodigality, from envy and the
spirit of slander, from idleness and sensuality, from presump-
tion and despair, from sinful actions and all vicious habits :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From fierceness of rage and hastiness of spirit, from
clamorous and reproachful language, from peevish anger and
inhuman malice, from the spirit of contention and hasty and
indiscreet zeal :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From a schismatical and heretical spirit, from tyranny
and tumults, from sedition and factions, from envying the
grace of God in our brother, from impenitence and hardness
of heart, from obstinacy and apostasy, from delighting in sin
and hating God and good men :
God Lord, deliver, &c.
From fornication and adultery, from unnatural desires
and unnatural hatreds, from gluttony and drunkenness, from
loving and believing lies, and taking pleasure in the remem-
brances of evil things, from delighting* in our neighbour's
misery and procuring it, from upbraiding others and hating
reproof of ourselves :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From impudence and shame, from contempt and scorn,
from oppression and cruelty, from a pitiless and unrelenting
spirit, from a churlish behaviour arid undecent usages of
ourselves or others :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
58 POSTULANDA.
From famine and pestilence, from noisome and infectious
diseases, from sharp and intolerable pains, from impatience
and tediousness of spirit, from a state of temptation and
hardened spirits :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From banishments and prison, from widowhood and want,
from violence of pains and passions, from tempests and earth-
quakes, from the rage of fire and water, from rebellion and
treason, from fretfulness and inordinate cares, from mur-
muring against God and disobedience to the Divine com-
mandment:
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From delaying our repentance, and persevering in sin,
from false principles and prejudices, from unthankfulness
and irreligion, from seducing others and being abused our-
selves, from the malice and craftiness of the devil and the
deceit and lyings of the world :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From wounds and murder, from precipices and falls, from
fracture of bones and dislocation of joints, from dismem-
bering our bodies and all infatuation of our souls, from folly
and madness, from uncertainty of mind and state, and from
a certainty of sinning :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From thunder and lightning, from phantasms, spectres,
and illusions of the night, from sudden and great changes,
from the snares of wealth, and the contempt of beggary and
extreme poverty, from being made an example and a warning
to others by suffering sad judgments ourselves :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From condemning others and justifying ourselves, from
mispending our time and abusing thy grace, from calling
good evil and evil good, from consenting to folly and tempt-
ing others :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From excess in speaking and peevish silence, from looser
laughing and immoderate weeping, from giving evil example
to others or following any ourselves, from giving or receiving
scandal, from the horrible sentence of endless death and
damnation :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
POSTULANDA. 59
->
From cursing and swearing, from uncharitable chiding,
and easiness to believe evil ; from the evil spirit that, walketh
at noon, and the arrow that flieth in darkness; from the
angel of wrath, and perishing in popular diseases :
Good Lord, deliver, Sec.
From the want of a spiritual guide, from a famine of the
word and sacraments, from hurtful persecution, and from
taking part with persecutors :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From drowning or being burnt alive, from sleepless nights
and contentious days, from a melancholy and a confused
spirit, from violent fears and the loss of reason, from a vicious
life and a sudden and unprovided death :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From relying upon vain fancies and false foundations,
from an evil and an amazed conscience, from sinning near
the end of our life, and from despairing in the day of our
death :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
From hyprocrisy and wilfulness, from self-love and vain
ambition, from curiosity and carelessness, from being tempted
in the days of our weakness, from the prevailing of the flesh
and grieving the Spirit, from all thy wrath and from all
our sins :
Good Lord, deliver, &c.
III.
For Gifts and Graces.
Hear our prayer, O Lord, and consider our desire ; hearken
unto us for thy truth and righteousness' sake : O hide not
thy face from us, neither cast away tny servants in dis-
pleasure.
Give unto us the spirit of prayer, frequent and fervent,
holy and persevering, an unreprovable faith, a just and an
humble hope, and a never-failing charity.
Hear our prayers, O Lord, and consider our desire.
Give unto us true humility, a meek and a quiet spirit, a
loving and a friendly, a holy and a useful conversation,
bearing the burdens of our neighbours, denying ourselves,
60 POSTULANDA.
and studying to benefit others, and to please thee in all
things.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give us a prudent and a sober, a just and a sincere, a
temperate and a religious spirit ; a great contempt of the
world, a love of holy things, and a longing after' heaven and
the instruments and paths that lead thither.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Grant us to be thankful to our benefactors, righteous in
performing promises, loving to our relatives, careful of our
charges, to be gentle and easy to be entreated, slow to anger,
and fully instructed and readily prepared for every good work.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give us a peaceable spirit and a peaceable life, free from,
debt and deadly sin ; grace to abstain from all appearances of
evil, and to do nothing but what is of good report; to confess
Christ and his holy religion, by a holy and obedient life, and
a mind ready to die for him when he shall call us and
assist us.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give to thy servants a watchful and an observing spirit,
diligent in doing our duty, inflexible to evil, obedient to thy
word, inquisitive after thy will, pure and holy thoughts,
strong and religious purposes, and thy grace to perform
faithfully what we have promised in the day of our duty, or
in the day of our calamity.
Hear our prayers, &c.
O teach us to despise all vanity, to fight the battles of the
Lord manfully against the flesh, the world, and the devil; to
spend our time religiously and usefully, to speak gracious
words, to walk always as in thy presence, to preserve our
souls and bodies in holiness, fit for the habitation of the
Holy Spirit of God.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give us a holy and a perfect repentance, a well-instructed
understanding, regular affections, a constant and a wise
heart, a good name, a fear of thy majesty, and a love of all
thy glories above all the things in the world for ever.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give us a healthful body and a clear understanding, the
love of our neighbours and the peace of the Church, the
POSTULANDA. 61
public use and comfort of thy holy world and sacraments, a
great love to all Christians, and obedience to our superiors,
ecclesiastical and civil, all the days of our life.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give us spiritual wisdom, that we may discern what is
pleasing to thee, and follow what belongs unto our peace ;
and let the knowledge and love of God and of Jesus Christ
our Lord be our guide and our portion all our days.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Give unto us holy dispositions and an active industry
in thy service, to redeem the time mispent in vanity ; for
thy pity sake take not vengeance of us for our sins, but
sanctify our souls and bodies in this life, and glorify them
hereafter.
Hear our prayers, &c.
Our Father, &c.
IV.
TO BE ADDED TO THE FORMER LITANIES, ACCORDING AS
OUR DEVOTIONS AND TIME WILL SUFFER.
For all States of Men and Women} especially in the Christian
Church.
O BLESSED GOD, in mercy remember thine inheritance, and
forget not the congregation of the poor for ever ; pity poor
mankind, whose portion is misery and folly, shame and
death : but thou art our Redeemer, and the lifter up of our
head ; and under the shadow of thy wings shall be our help,
until this tyranny be overpast.
Have mercy upon us, O God, and hide not thyself from
our petition.
Preserve, O God, the catholic Church in holiness and
truth, in unity and peace, free from persecution, or glorious
under it, that she may for ever advance the honour of her
Lord Jesus, for ever represent his sacrifice, and glorify his
person, and advance his religion, and be accepted of thee in
her blessed Lord, that, being filled with his Spirit, she may
partake of his glory.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give the spirit of government and holiness to all Christian
kings, princes, and governors ; grant that their people may
62 POSTULANDA.
obey them, and they may obey thee, and live in honesty and
peace, justice and holy religion; being nursing fathers to
the Church, advocates for the oppressed, patrons for the
widows, and a sanctuary for the miserable and the father-
less, that they may reign with thee for ever in the kingdom
of the Lord Jesus.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give to thy servants the bishops, and all the clergy, the
spirit of holiness and courage, of patience and humility,
of prudence and diligence, to preach and declare thy will by
a holy life and wise discourses, that they may minister to
the good of souls, and find a glorious reward in the day of the
Lord Jesus.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give to our relatives [our wives and children, our friends
and benefactors, our charges, our family, &c.] pardon and
support, comfort in all their sorrows, strength in all their
temptations, the guard of angels to preserve them from evil,
and the conduct of thy Holy Spirit to lead them into all
good ; that they, doing their duty, may feel thy mercies here,
and partake of thy glories hereafter.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give to all Christian kingdoms and commonwealths
peace and plenty, health and holy religion ; to all families of
religion and nurseries of piety, zeal and holiness, prudence and
unity, peace and contentedness ; to all schools of learning,
quietness and industry, freedom from wars and violence,
factions and envy.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give to all married pairs faith and love, charitable and
wise compliances, sweetness of society and innocence of
conversation ; to all virgins and widows great love of
religion, a sober and a contented spirit, an unwearied attend-
ance to devotion and the offices of holiness ; protection to
the fatherless, comfort to the disconsolate, patience and
submission, health and spiritual advantages to the sick ;
that they may feel thy comforts for the days wherein they
have suffered adversity.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Be thou a star and a guide to them that travel by land or
sea, the confidence and comfort of them that are in storms
POSTULANDA. 63
and shipwrecks, the strength of them that toil in the mines
and row in the galleys, an instructor to the ignorant ; to them
that are condemned to die be thou a guide unto death ; give
cheerfulness to every sad heart, spiritual strength and pro-
portionable comfort to them that are afflicted by evil spirits ;
pity the lunatics ; give life and salvation to all to whom thou
hast given no understanding; accept the stupid and the
fools to mercy, give liberty to prisoners, redemption to cap-
tives, maintenance to the poor, patronage and defence to
the oppressed ; and put a period to the iniquity and to the
miseries of all mankind.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give unto our enemies grace and pardon, charity to us,
and love to thee ; take away all anger from them, and all
mistakes from us, all misinterpretations and jealousies; bring
all sinners to repentance and holiness, and to all thy saints
and servants give an increasing love and a persevering duty ;
bring all Turks, Jews, and infidels to the knowledge and
confession of the Lord Jesus, and a participation of all the
promises of the Gospel, all the benefits of his passion ; to all
heretics give humility and ingenuity, repentance of their
errors, and grace and power to make amends to the Church
and truth, and a public acknowledgment of a holy faith, to
the glory of the Lord Jesus.
Have mercy upon us, &c.
Give to all merchants faithfulness and truth ; to the
labouring husbandmen health and fair seasons of the year,
and reward his toil with the dew of heaven and the blessings
of the earth ; to all artizans give diligence in their callings,
and a blessing on their labours and on their families ; to old
men, piety and perfect repentance, a liberal heart and an
open hand, great religion and desires after heaven ; to
young men give sobriety and chastity, health and usefulness,
an early piety arid a persevering duty ; to all families, visited
with the rod of God, give consolation and a holy use of the
affliction, and a speedy deliverance; to us all, pardon, and
holiness, and life eternal, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of
God, and the communication of the Holy Spirit, be
with us all for ever. Amen.
POSTULANDA.
A short Prayer to be said every Morning.
O ALMIGHTY GOD, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
God of mercy and comfort, with reverence and fear, with
humble confidence and strong desires, I approach to the
throne of grace, begging of thee mercy and protection,
pardon and salvation. O my God, I am a sinner, but sor-
rowful and repenting : thou art justly offended at me, but
yet thou art my Lord and my Father, merciful and gracious.
Be pleased to blot all my sins out of thy remembrance, and heal
my soul, that I may never any more sin against thee. Lord,
open my eyes, that I may see my own infirmities, and watch
against them ; and my own follies, that I may amend them :
and be pleased to give me perfect understanding in the way
of godliness, that I may walk in it all the days of my pil-
grimage. Give me a spirit diligent in the works of my
calling, cheerful and zealous in religion, fervent and frequent
in my prayers, charitable and useful in my conversation ;
give me a healthful and a chaste body, a pure and a holy
soul, a sanctified and an humble spirit ; and let my body,
and soul, and spirit, be preserved unblamable to the coming
of the Lord Jesus. Amen.
II.
Blessed be thy name, O God, and blessed be thy mercies,
who hast preserved me this night from sin and sorrow, from
sad chances and a violent death, from the malice of the
devil and the evil effects of my own corrupted nature and
infirmity. The outgoings of the morning and evening shall
praise thee, and thy servants shall rejoice in giving thee
praise for the operation of thy hands. Let thy providence
and care watch over me this day, and all my whole life, that
I may never be against thee by idleness or folly, by evil
company or private sins, by word or deed, by thought or
desire ; and let the employment of my day leave no sorrow,
or the remembrance of an evil conscience at night; but let it
be holy and profitable, blessed and always innocent ; that
when the days of my short abode are done, and the shadow
is departed, I may die in thy fear and favour, and rest in a
holy hope, and at last return to the joys of a blessed resur-
POSTULANDA. 65
rection, through Jesus Christ; in whose name, and in whose
words, in behalf of myself, and all my friends, and all thy
servants, I humbly and heartily pray, Our Father, &c.
A Prayer for the Evening.
ETERNAL GOD, Almighty Father of men and angels, by
whose care and providence I am preserved and blessed, com-
forted and assisted, I humbly beg of thee to pardon the sins
and follies of this day, the weaknesses of my services, and
the strength of my passions, the rashness of my words, and
the vanity and evil of my actions. O just and dear God,
how long shall I confess my sins, and pray against them,
and yet fall under them ! O let it be so no more ; let me
never return to the follies of which I am ashamed, which
bring sorrow, and death, and thy displeasure, worse than
death. Give me a command over my evil inclinations, and
a perfect hatred of sin, and a love to thee above all the
desires of this world. Be pleased to bless and preserve me
this night from all sin, and all violence of chance, and the
malice of the spirits of darkness : watch over me in my
sleep ; and, whether I sleep or wake, let me be thy servant.
Be thou first and last in all my thoughts, and the guide and
continual assistance of all my actions. Preserve my body,
pardon the sin of my soul, and sanctify my spirit ; let me
always live holily, and justly, and soberly ; and, when I die,
receive my soul into thy hands, O holy and ever-blessed
Jesus; That I may lie in thy bosom, and long for thy
coming, and hear thy blessed sentence at doomsday, and
behold thy face, and live in thy kingdom, singing praises to
God for ever and ever. Amen.
Our Father, &c.
FOR SUNDAY.
A Prayer against Pride.
I.
O ETERNAL GOD, merciful, and glorious, thou art exalted
far above all heavens ; thy throne, O God, is glory, and thy
sceptre is righteousness, thy will is holiness, and thy wisdom
VOL. xv. p
66 POSTULANDA.
the great foundation of empire and government : I adore thy
majesty, and rejoice in thy mercy, and revere thy power, and
confess all glory, and dignity, and honour, to be thine alone,
and theirs to whom thou shalt impart any ray of thy majesty,
or reflection of thy honour : but as for me, I am a worm and
no man, vile dust and ashes, the son of corruption, and the
heir of rottenness, seized upon by folly, a lump of ignorance
and sin, and shame, and death. What art thou, O Lord ? the
great God of heaven and earth, the fountain of holiness, and
perfection infinite. But what am I ? so ignorant, that I
know not what ; so poor, that I have nothing of my own ; so
miserable, that I am the heir of sorrow and death ; and so
sinful, that I am encompassed with shame and grief.
II.
And yet, O my God, I am proud : proud of my shame,
glorying in my sin, boasting my infirmities ; for this is all
that I have of my own, save only that I have multiplied
my miseries by vile actions, every day dishonouring the work
of thy hands : my understanding is too confident, my affec-
tions rebellious, my will refractory and disobedient ; and yet
I know thou resistest the proud, and didst cast the morning
stars, the angels, from heaven into chains of darkness, when
they grew giddy and proud, walking upon the battlements of
heaven, beholding the glorious regions that were above them.
III.
Thou, O God, who givest grace to the humble, do some-
thing also for the proud man ; make me humble and obe-
dient. Take from me the spirit of pride and haughtiness, am-
bition and self-flattery, confidence and gaiety : teach me to
think well, and to expound all things fairly of my brother, to
love his worthiness, to delight in his praises, to excuse his
errors, to give thee thanks for his graces, to rejoice in all
the good that he receives, and ever to believe and speak
better things of him than of myself.
IV.
O teach me to love to be concealed, and little esteemed ;
let me be truly humbled, and heartily ashamed of my sin
and folly ; teach me to bear reproaches evenly, for I have
POSTULANDA. 67
deserved them ; to refuse all honours done unto me, because
I have not deserved them ; to return all to thee, for it is thine
alone ; to suffer reproof thankfully, to amend all my faults
speedily ; and do thou invest my soul with the humble robe
of my meek Master and Saviour Jesus ; and, when I have
humbly, patiently, charitably, and diligently served thee,
change this robe into the shining garment of immortality,
my confusion into glory, my folly to perfect knowledge, my
weaknesses and dishonours to the strength and beauties of
the sons of God.
V.
In the meantime use what means thou pleasest, to conform
me to the image of thy holy Son ; that I may be gentle to
others, and severe to myself: that I may sit down in the
lowest place ; striving to go before my brother in nothing,
but in doing him and thee honour ; staying for my glory, till
thou shalt please, in the day of recompenses, to reflect light
from thy face, and admit me to behold thy glories. Grant
this for Jesus Christ's sake, who humbled himself to the
death and shame of the cross, and is now exalted unto glory :
unto him, with thee, O Father, be glory and praise for ever
and ever. Amen.
FOR MONDAY.
A Prayer against Covetousness.
I.
O ALMIGHTY GOD, eternal treasure of all good things, thou
fillest all things with plenteousness ; ' thou clothest the lilies
of the field, and feedest the young ravens that call upon
thee :' thou art all-sufficient in thyself, #nd all-sufficient to
us ; let thy providence be my storehouse, thy dispensation of
temporal things the limit of my labour, my own necessity the
measure of my desire : but never let my desires of this world
be greedy, nor my labour immoderate, nor my care vexa-
tious and distracting, but prudent, moderate, holy, subordi-
nate to thy will, the measure thou hast appointed for me.
II.
Teach me, O God, to despise the world, to labour for the
68 POSTULANDA.
true riches, to ' seek the kingdom of heaven and its righ-
teousness,' to be content with what thou providest, to be in
this world like a stranger with affections set upon heaven,
labouring for, and longing after the possessions of thy king-
dom ; but never suffer my affections to dwell below, but
give me a heart compassionate to the poor, liberal to the
needy, open and free in all my communications, without base
ends, or greedy designs, or unworthy arts of gain ; but let
my strife be to gain thy favour, to obtain the blessedness of
doing good to others, and giving to them that want, and the
blessedness of receiving from thee pardon and support, grace
and holiness, perseverance and glory, through Jesus Christ
our Lord.
FOR TUESDAY.
A Prayer against Lust.
I.
O ETERNAL PURITY, thou art brighter than the sun, purer
than the angels, and the heavens are not clean in thy sight ;
with mercy behold thy servant, apt to be tempted with every
object, and to be overcome by every enemy. I cannot, O
God, stand in the day of battle and danger; unless thou
coverest me with thy shield, and hidest me under thy wings.
The fiery darts of the devil are ready to consume me, unless
the dew of thy grace for ever descend upon me. Thou didst
make me after thy image : be pleased to preserve me so,
pure and spotless, chaste and clean ; that my body may be a
holy temple, and my soul a sanctuary to entertain thy
divinest Spirit, the Spirit of love and holiness, the Prince of
purities.
II.
Reprove in me the spirit of fornication and uncleanness,
and fill my soul with holy fires, that no strange fire may
come into the temple of my body, where thou hast chosen
to dwell. O cast out all those unclean spirits, which have
unhallowed the place where thy holy feet have trod : pardon
all my hurtful thoughts, all my impurities ; that I, who am a
member of Christ, may not become the member of a harlot,
POSTULANDA. 69
nor the slave of the devil, nor a servant of lust and unworthy
desires : but do thou purify my love, and let me ' seek the
things that are above,' ' hating the garments spotted with the
flesh ;' never any more, ' grieving thy Holy Spirit' by filthy
inclinations, with impure and fantastic thoughts : but let
my thoughts be holy, my soul pure, my body chaste and
healthful, my spirit severe, devout, and religious, every day
more and more ; that, at the day of our appearing, I may be
presented to God washed and cleansed, pure and spotless, by
the blood of the holy Lamb, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
FOR WEDNESDAY.
A Prayer against Gluttony and Drunkenness.
I.
O ALMIGHTY FATHER of men and angels, who hast, of thy
great bounty, provided plentifully for all mankind to support
his state, to relieve his necessities, to refresh his sorrows, to
recreate his labour ; that he may praise thee, and rejoice in
thy mercies and bounty : be thou gracious unto thy servant
yet more, and suffer me not, by my folly, to change thy
bounty into sin, thy grace into wantonness. Give me the
spirit of temperance and sobriety, that I may use thy crea-
tures in the same measures, and to the same purposes which
thou hast designed, so as may best enable me to serve thee,
but 'not to make provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts
thereof:' let me not, as Esau, prefer meat before a blessing ;
but subdue my appetite, subjecting it to reason and the
grace of God, being content with what is moderate, and use-
ful, and easy to be obtained ; taking it in due time, receiving
it thankfully, making it to minister to my body, that my
body may be a good instrument of the soul, and the soul a
servant of thy Divine Majesty for ever and ever.
II.
Pardon, O God, in whatsoever I have offended thee by
meat, and drink, and pleasures ; and never let my body any
more be oppressed with loads of sloth and delicacies, or my
70 POSTULANDA.
soul drowned in seas of wine or strong drink ; but let my
appetites be changed into spiritual desires, that I may hunger
after the food of angels, and thirst for the wine of elect souls,
and account it ' meat, and drink, and pleasure to do thy will,'
O God. Lord let me eat and drink so, that my food may
not become a temptation, or a sin, or a disease ; but grant
that, with so much caution and prudence, I may watch over
my appetite ; that I may, in the strength of thy mercies and
refreshments, in the light of thy countenance, and in the
paths of thy commandments, walk before thee all the days
of my life, acceptable to thee in Jesus Christ, ever advancing
his honour, and being filled with his Spirit, that I may, at
last, partake of his glory ; through the same Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
FOR THURSDAY.
A Prayer against Envy.
I.
O MOST gracious Father, thou spring of an eternal charity,
who hast so loved mankind, that thou didst open thy bosom,
and send thy holy Son to convey thy mercies to us ; and
thou didst create angels and men, that thou mightest have
objects to whom thou mightest communicate thy goodness :
give me grace to follow so glorious a precedent, that I may
never envy the prosperity of any one, but rejoice to honour
him whom thou honourest, to love him whom thou lovest,
to commend the virtuous, to discern the precious from the
vile, giving honour to whom honour belongs, that I may go
to heaven in the noblest way, of rejoicing in the good of
others.
II.
O dear God, never suffer the devil to rub his vilest leprosy
of envy upon me ; never let me have the affections of the
desperate and damned ; let it not be ill with me, when it is
well with others, but let thy Holy Spirit so overrule me for
ever, that I may pity the afflicted and be compassionate, and
have a fellow-feeling of my brother's sorrows, and that I
may, as much as I can, promote his good, and give thee
POSTULANDA. 71
thanks for it, and rejoice with them that do rejoice ; never
censuring his actions cursedly, nor detracting from his praises
spitefully, nor upbraiding his infelicities maliciously, but
pleased in all things which thou doest or givest ; that I may
then triumph in spirit, when thy kingdom is advanced, when
thy Spirit rules, when thy Church is profited, when thy saints
rejoice, when the devil's interest is destroyed ; truly loving
thee, and truly loving my brother ; that we may all together
join in the holy communion of saints, both here and here-
after, in the measures of grace and glory ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
FOR FRIDAY.
A Prayer against Wrath and inordinate Anger.
I.
O ALMIGHTY JUDGE of men and angels, whose anger is
always the minister of justice, slow, but severe, not lightly
arising, but falling heavily when it comes : give to thy servant
a meek and a gentle spirit, that I also may be slow to anger,
and easy to mercy and forgiveness. Give me a wise and a
constant heart, that I may not be moved with every trifling
mistake, and inconsiderable accident, in the conversation
and intercourse of others ; never be moved to an intemperate
anger for any injury that is done or offered ; let my anger
ever be upon a just cause, measured with moderation and
reason, expressed with charity and prudence, lasting but till
it hath done some good, either upon myself or others.
. II.
Lord, let me be ever courteous, and easy to be entreated ;
never let me fall into a peevish or contentious spirit, but
follow peace with all men, offering forgiveness, inviting them
by courtesies, ready to confess my own errors, apt to make
amends, and desirous to be reconciled. Let no sickness, or
cross accident, no employment or weariness, make me angry
or ungentle, and discontent or unthankful, or uneasy to
them that minister to me ; but, in all things, make me like
unto the holy Jesus. Give me the spirit of a Christian,
72 POSTULANDA.
charitable, humble, merciful and meek, useful and liberal,
complying with every chance; angry at nothing but my
own sins, and grieving for the sins of others ; that while my
passion obeys my reason, and my reason is religious, and my
religion is pure and undefiled, managed with humility, and
adorned with charity, I may escape thy anger which I have
deserved, and may dwell in thy love, and be thy son and
servant for ever ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
FOR SATURDAY.
A Prayer against Weariness in Well-doing.
I.
O MY GOD, merciful and gracious, my soul groans under the
loads of its own infirmity ; when my spirit is willing my flesh
is weak ; my understanding foolish and imperfect, my will
peevish and listless, my affections wandering after strange
objects, my fancy wild and unfixed, all my senses minister to
folly and vanity ; and though they were all made for religion,
yet they least of all delight in that. O my God, pity me,
and hear me when I pray, and make that I may pray accept-
ably. Give me a love to religion, an unwearied spirit in the
things of God. Let me not relish or delight in the things of
the world, in sensual objects, and -transitory possessions ; but
make my eyes look up to thee, my soul be filled with thee,
my spirit ravished with thy love, my understanding employed
in the meditation of thy law, all my powers and faculties of
soul and body wholly serving thee, and delighting in such
holy ministries.
II.
O most gracious God, what greater favour is there than
that I may, and what easier employment can there be than
to pray thee to be admitted into thy presence, and to repre-
sent our needs, and that we have our needs supplied only
for asking and desiring passionately and humbly ? But we
rather quit our hopes of heaven, than buy it at the cheapest
rate of humble prayer. This, O God, is the greatest
infirmity and infelicity of man, and hath an intolerable
cause, and is an unsufferable evil.
POSTULANDA. 73
III.
O relieve my spirit with thy graciousness, take from me
all tediousness of spirit, and give me a laboriousness that
will not be tired, a hope that shall never fail, a desire of
holiness not to he satisfied till it possesses a charity that will
always increase ; that I, making religion the business of my
whole life, may turn all things into religion, doing all to thy
glory, and by the measures of thy word and of thy Spirit :
that when thou shalt call me from this deliciousness of
employment, and the holy ministries of grace, I may pass
into the employment of saints and angels, whose work it is
with eternal joy and thanksgiving to sing praises to the
mercies of the great Redeemer of men, and Saviour of men
and angels, Jesus Christ our Lord : to whom, with the Father
and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and worship, all service
and thanks, all glory and dominion, for ever and ever. Amen.
A Prayer to be said by a Maiden, before she enters into the
State of Marriage.
I.
O MOST glorious God, and my most indulgent Lord and
gracious Father, who dost bless us by thy bounty, pardon us
by thy mercy, support and guide us by thy grace, and govern
us sweetly by thy providence ; I give thee most humble and
hearty thanks, that thou hast hitherto preserved me in my
virgin state with innocence and chastity, in a good name, and
a modest report. It is thy goodness alone, and the blessed
emanation of thy Holy Spirit, by which I have been preserved ;
and to thee I return all praise and tfcfanks, and adore and
love thy goodness infinite.
II.
And now, O Lord, since by thy dispensation and over-
ruling providence I am to change my condition, and enter
into the holy state of marriage, which thou hast sanctified
by thy institution, and blessed by thy word and promises,
and raised up to an excellent mystery, that it might represent
74 POSTULANDA.
the union of Christ and his church : be pleased to go along
with thy servant in my entering into, and passing through,
this state, that it may not be a state of temptation or
sorrow, by occasion of my sins or infirmities, but of holiness
and comfort, as thou hast intended it to all that love and fear
thy holy name.
III.
Lord, bless and preserve that dear person, whom thou hast
chosen to be my husband; let his life be long and blessed,
comfortable and holy ; and let me also become a great bless-
ing and comfort unto him ; a sharer in all his joys, a refresh-
ment in all his sorrows, a meet helper for him in all accidents
and chances of the world. Make me amiable, for ever, in
his eyes, and very dear to him. Unite his heart to me in the
dearest union of love and holiness ; and mine to him in all
sweetness, and charity, and compliance. Keep from me all
morosity and ungentleness, all sullenness and harshness of
disposition, all pride and vanity, all discontentedness and
unreasonableness of passion and humour : and make me
humble and obedient, charitable and loving, patient and
contented, useful and observant ; that we may delight in
each other according to thy blessed word and ordinance,
and both of us may rejoice in thee, having our portion in the
love and service of God for ever and ever.
IV.
O blessed Father, never suffer any mistakes or discontent,
any distrustfulness or sorrow, any trifling arrests of fancy,
or unhandsome accident, to cause any unkindness between
us : but let us so dearly love, so affectionately observe, so
religiously attend to each other's good and content, that we
may always please thee, and by this learn and practise our
duty and greatest love to thee, and become mutual helps to
each other in the way of godliness ; that when we have
received the blessings of a married life, the comforts of
society, the endearments of a holy and great affection, and
the dowry of blessed children, we may for ever dwell together
in the embraces of thy love and glories, feasting in the
marriage-supper of the Lamb to eternal ages, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen. Amen.
POSTULANDA. 75
A Pray erf or a holy and happy Death.
O ETERNAL and holy Jesus, who by death hast overcome
death, and by thy passion hast taken out its sting, and made
it to become one of the gates of heaven, and an entrance to
felicity, have mercy upon me now, and at the hour of my
death. Let thy grace accompany me all the days of my life,
that I may, by a holy conversation and a habitual perform-
ance of my duty, wait for the coming of our Lord, and be
ready to enter with thee at whatsoever hour thou shalt come.
Lord, let not my death be in any sense unprovided, nor
untimely, nor hasty, but after the manner of men, having in
it nothing extraordinary, but an extraordinary piety, and the
manifestation of a great and miraculous mercy. Let my
senses and my understanding be preserved entire till the last
of my days ; and grant that I may die the death of the
righteous, free from debt and deadly sin, having first dis-
charged all my obligations of justice, leaving none miserable
and unprovided in my departure; but be thou the portion of
all my friends and relatives, and let thy blessing descend
upon their heads, and abide there, till they shall meet me in
the bosom of our Lord. Preserve me ever in the communion
and peace of the Church ; and bless my death-bed with the
opportunity of a holy and a spiritual guide, with the assist-
ance and guard of angels, with the reception of the holy
sacrament, with patience and dereliction of my own desires,
with a strong faith, and a firm and humbled hope, with just
measures of repentance, and great treasures of charity to
thee, my God, and to all the world ; that my soul, in the
arms of the holy Jesus, may be deposited with safety and
joy, there to expect the revelation of thy day, and then to
partake the glories of thy kingdom, O eternal and holy Jesus.
Amen.
FESTIVAL HYMNS.
I will sing with the Spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.
HYMNS
CELEBRATING THE MYSTERIES AND CHIEF FESTIVALS OF THE
YEAR, ACCORDING TO THE MANNER OF THE ANCIENT
CHURCH ; FITTED TO THE FANCY AND DEVOTION OF THE
YOUNGER AND PIOUS PERSONS : APT FOR MEMORY, AND
TO BE JOINED TO THEIR OTHER PRAYERS.
Hymns for Advent, or the Weeks immediately before the Birth
of our blessed Saviour.
I.
WHEN, Lord, O when, shall we
Our dear salvation see ?
Arise, arise ;
Our fainting eyes
Have long'd all night : and 'twas a long one too.
Man never yet could say
He saw more than one day,
One day of Eden's seven :
The guilty hours, there blasted with the breath
Of sin and death,
Have, ever since, worn a nocturnal hue.
But thou hast given us hopes, that we,
At length, another day shall see,
Wherein each vile neglected place,
Gilt with the aspect of thy face,
Shall be, like that, the porch and gate of heaven.
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 77
How long, dear God, how long !
See how the nations throng :
All human kind,
Knit and combined
Into one body, look for thee their head.
Pity our multitude ;
Lord, we are vile and rude,
Headless, and senseless, without thee,
Of all things but the want of thy blest face :
O haste apace,
And thy bright self to this our body wed :
That, through the influx of thy power,
Each part, that erst confusion wore,
May put on order, and appear
Spruce, as the childhood of the year,
When thou to it shall so united be. Amen.
The second Hymn for Advent ; or, Christ's coming to
Jerusalem in triumph.
LORD, come away ;
Why dost thou stay ?
Thy road is ready ; and thy paths, made straight,
With longing expectation wait
The consecration of thy beauteous feet
Ride on triumphantly : behold, we lay
Our lusts and proud wills in thy way.
Hosannah ! welcome to our hearts : Lord, here
Thou hast a temple, too, and full as dear
As that of Sion ; and as full of sin ;
Nothing but thieves and robbers dwell therein,
Enter, and chase them forth, and cfeanse the floor ;
Crucify them, that they may never more
Profane that holy place,
Where thou hast chose to set thy face.
And then if our stiff tongues shall be
Mute in the praises of thy deity,
The stones out of the temple-wall
Shall cry aloud and call
Hosannah! and thy glorious footsteps greet. Amen.
78 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
Hymns for Christmas Day.
I.
MYSTERIOUS truth ! that the self-same should be
A Lamb, a Shepherd, and a Lion too !
Yet such was he
Whom first the shepherds knew,
When they themselves became
Sheep to the Shepherd-Lamb.
Shepherd of men and angels, Lamb of God,
Lion of Judah, by these titles keep
The wolf from thy endangered sheep.
Bring all the world into thy fold ;
Let Jews and Gentiles hither come
In numbers great, that can't be told ;
And call thy lambs, that wander, home.
Glory be to God on high ;
All glories be to th' glorious Deity.
The second Hymn ; being a Dialogue between three Shepherds.
1. WHERE is this blessed Babe,
That hath made
All the world so full of joy
And expectation ?
That glorious boy 1 ,
That crowns each nation
With a triumphant wreath of blessedness ?
2. Where should he be but in the throng,
And among
His angel-ministers, that sing
And take wing
Just as may echo to his voice,
And rejoice,
When wing and tongue and all
May so procure their happiness.
3. But he hath other waiters now ;
A poor cow,
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 79
An ox, and inule, stand and behold,
And wonder,
That a stable should enfold
Him, that can thunder.
Chorus. O what a gracious God have we !
How good, how great ! ev'n as our misery.
The third Hymn: of Christ's Birth in an Inn.
THE blessed Virgin travail'd without pain,
And lodged in an inn ;
A glorious star the sign,
But of a greater guest than ever came that way ;
For there He lay,
That is the God of night and day,
And over all the pow'rs of Heaven doth reign.
It was the time of great Augustus' tax,
And then he comes,
That pays all sums,
Ev'n the whole price of lost humanity,
And sets us free
From the ungodly empery
Of sin, and Satan, and of death.
O make our hearts, blest God, thy lodging place ;
And in our breast
Be pleas'd to rest,
For thou lov'st temples better than an inn ;
And cause, that sin
May not profane the Deity within,
And sully o'er the ornaments of grace. Amen.
A Hymn upon St. Johns Day.
THIS day
We sing
The friend of our eternal King,
Who in his bosom lay,
And kept the keys
Of his profound and glorious mysteries ;
80 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
Which, to the world dispensed by his hand,
Made it stand
Fix'd in amazement to behold that light,
Which came
From the throne of the Lamb,
To invite
Our wretched eyes (which nothing else could see,
But fire and sword, hunger and misery)
To anticipate, by their ravish'd sight,
The beauty of celestial delight.
Mysterious God, regard me when I pray,
And, when this load of clay
Shall fall away,
O let thy gracious hand conduct me up,
Where on the Lamb's rich viands I may sup :
And, in this last supper, I
May, with thy friend, in thy sweet bosom lie,
For ever, in eternity. Hallelujah.
Upon the Day of the Holy Innocents.
MOURNFUL Judah shrieks and cries
At the obsequies
Of their babes, that cry
More that they lose their paps, than that they die.
He, that came with life to all,
Brings the babes a funeral,
To redeem from slaughter Him,
Who did redeem us all from sin.
They, like himself, went spotless hence,
A sacrifice to innocence ;
Which now does ride
Trampling upon Herod's pride ;
Passing, from their fontinels of clay,
To heaven a milky and a bloody way.
All their tears and groans are dead,
And they to rest and glory fled ;
Lord, who wert pleas'd so many babes should fall,
Whilst each sword hop'd that ev'ry of the all
Was the desired King : make us to be
In innocence like them, in glory, Thee. Amen.
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 81
Upon the Epiphany, and the three Wise Men of the East
coming to worship Jesus.
A COMET, dangling in the air,
Presag'd the ruin both of death and sin ;
And told the wise men of a king,
The King of glory, and the Sun
Of Righteousness, who then begun
To draw towards that blessed hemisphere.
They, from the furthest east, this new
And unknown light pursue,
Till they appear
In this blest infant king's propitious eye,
And pay their homage to his royalty.
Persia might then the rising sun adore ;
It was idolatry no more.
Great God, they gave to thee
Myrrh, frankincense, and gold ;
But, Lord, with what shall we
Present ourselves before thy majesty,
Whom thou redeem'dst when we were sold ?
We've nothing but ourselves, and scarce that neither,
Vile dirt and clay ;
Yet it is soft, and may
Impression take :
Accept it, Lord, and say, this thou hadst rather ;
Stamp it, and on this sordid metal make
Thy holy image, and it shall outshine
The beauty of the golden mine. Amen.
A MEDITATION OF THE FOUR LAST THINGS,
DEATH, JUDGMENT, HEAVEN", AND HELL;
FOR THE TIME OF LENT ESPECIALLY.
A Meditation of Death.
DEATH, the old serpent's son,
Thou hadst a sting once, like thy sire,
That carried hell, and ever-burning fire :
But those black days are done ;
VOL. xv. G
82 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
Thy foolish spite buried thy sting
In the profound and wide
Wound of our Saviour's side;
And now thou art become a tame and harmless thing,
A thing we dare not fear,
Since we hear,
That our triumphant God, to punish thee
For the affront thou didst him on the tree,
Hath snatch'd the keys of hell out of thy hand,
And made thee stand
A porter to the gate of life, thy mortal enemy.
O Thou, who art that gate, command that he
May, when we die,
And thither fly,
Let us into the courts of heaven through thee !
Hallelujah !
THE PRAYER.
My soul doth pant tow'rds thee,
My God, source of eternal life :
Flesh fights with me ;
O end the strife
And part us, that in peace I may
Unclay
My wearied spirit, and take
My flight to thy eternal spring ;
Where, for his sake
Who is my King,
I may wash all my tears away
That day.
Thou conqueror of death,
Glorious triumpher o'er the grave,
Whose holy breath
Was spent to save
Lost mankind ; make me to be styl'd
Thy Child ;
And take me, when I die,
And go unto my dust, my soul,
Above the sky
With saints enrol,
That in thy arms, for ever, I
May lie. Amen.
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 83
Of the Day of Judgment.
GREAT Judge of all, how we vile wretches quake !
Our guilty bones do ache ;
Our marrow freezes when we think
Of the consuming fire
Of thine ire,
And horrid phials, thou shalt make
The wicked drink ;
When thou the winepress of thy wrath shalt tread
With feet of lead.
Sinful rebellious clay ! what unknown place
Shall hide it from thy face !
When earth shall vanish from thy sight,
The heavens that never err'd,
But observ'd
Thy laws, shall from thy presence take their flight,
And kill'd with glory, their bright eyes stark dead
Start from their head :
Lord, how shall we,
Thy enemies, endure to see
So bright, so killing majesty ?
Mercy, dear Saviour: thy judgment-seat
We dare not, Lord, entreat ;
We are condemn'd already, there.
Mercy ! vouchsafe one look
On thy Book
Of Life ; Lord, we can read the saving Jesus here,
And in his name our own salvation see :
Lord, set us free ;
The book of sin
Is cross'd within ;
Our debts are paid by thee,
Mercy !
Of Heaven.
O BEAUTEOUS God, uncircumscribed treasure
Of an eternal pleasure,
Thy throne is seated far
Above the highest star.
84 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
Where thou prepar'st a glorious place
Within the brightness of thy face
For every spirit
To inherit,
That builds his hopes on thy merit,
And loves thee with a holy charity.
What ravish'd heart, seraphic tongue or eyes,
Clear as the morning's rise,
Can speak, or think, or see,
That bright eternity ?
Where the great King's transparent throne
Is of an entire jasper stone :
There the eye
O' th' chrysolite,
And a sky
Of diamonds, rubies, chrysoprase,
And, above all, thy holy face
Makes an eternal clarity.
When thou thy jewels up dost bind, that day
Remember us, we pray,
That where the beryl lies
And the crystal, 'bove the skies,
There thou may'st appoint us place
Within the brightness of thy face ;
And our soul
In the scroll
Of life and blissfulness enrol,
That we may praise thee to eternity.
Allelujah !
Of Hell
HORRID darkness, sad and sore ;
And an eternal night !
Groans and shrieks, and thousands more
In the want of glorious light !
Every corner hath a snake
In the accursed lake :
Seas of fire, beds of snow,
Are the best delights below ;
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 85
A viper from the fire
Is his hire,
That knows not moments from eternity.
Glorious God of day and night,
Spring of eternal light,
Allelujahs, hymns, and psalms,
And coronets of palms,
Fill thy temple evermore.
O mighty God,
Let not thy bruising rod
Crush our loins with an eternal pressure ;
O let thy mercy be the measure ;
For, if thou keepest wrath in store,
We all shall die ;
And none be left to glorify
Thy name, and tell
How thou hast sav'd our souls from hell.
Mercy !
On the Conversion of St. Paul.
FULL of wrath, his threatening breath
Belching naught but chains and death :
Saul was arrested in his way,
By a voice and a light,
That, if a thousand days
Should join in rays
To beautify one day,
It would not shew so glorious and so bright.
On his amazed eyes it night did fling,
That day might break within ;
And, by those beams* of faith,
Make him of a child of wrath
Become a vessel full of glory.
Lord, curb us in our dark and sinful way ;
We humbly pray ;
When we down horrid precipices run
With feet that thirst to be undone,
That this may be our story.
Allelujah !
86 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
On the Purification of the Blessed Virgin.
PURE and spotless was the maid,
That to the temple came ;
A pair of turtle-doves she paid,
Although she brought the Lamb.
Pure and spotless though she were,
Her body chaste, and her soul fair,
She to the temple went
To be purified
And tried
That she was spotless and obedient.
O make us follow so blest precedent,
And purify our souls, for we
Are clothed with sin and misery.
From our conception,
One imperfection
And a continued state of sin
Hath sullied all our faculties within.
We present our souls to thee
Full of need and misery :
And, for redemption, a Lamb
The purest, whitest, that e'er came
A sacrifice to thee,
Even Him that bled upon the tree.
On Good Friday.
THE Lamb is eaten, and is yet again
Preparing to be slain ;
The cup is full and mix'd,
And must be drunk :
Wormwood and gall
To this, are draughts to beguile care withal,
Yet the decree is fix'd.
Doubled knees, and groans, and cries,
Prayers, and sighs, and flowing eyes,
Could not entreat.
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 87
His sad soul sunk
Under the heavy pressure of our sin :
The pains of death and hell
About him dwell.
His Father's burning wrath did make
His very heart, like melting wax, to sweat
Rivers of blood,
Through the pure strainer of his skin :
His boiling body stood
Bubbling all o'er,
As if the wretched whole were but one door
To let in pain and grief,
And turn out all relief.
O Thou, who for our sake
Didst drink up
This bitter cup,
Remember us, we pray,
In thy day,
When down
The struggling throats of wicked men
The dregs of thy just fury shall be thrown.
Othen
Let thy unbounded mercy think
On us, for whom
Thou underwent'st this heavy doom,
And give us of the well of life to drink.
Amen.
On the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin.
A WINGED harbinger, from bright heav'n flown,
Bespeaks a lodging room
For the mighty King of love,
The spotless structure of a virgin womb,
O'ershadowed with the wings of the blest Dove ;
For he was travelling to earth,
But did desire to lay
By the way,
That he might shift his clothes, and be
A perfect man as well as we.
88 FESTIVAL HYMNS.
How good a God have we, who, for our sake,
To save us from the burning lake,
Did change the order of creation ;
At first he made
Man like himself in his own image ; now
In the more blessed reparation
The heavens bow :
Eternity took the measure of a span,
And said,
" Let us like ourselves make man,
And not from man the woman take,
But from the woman, man."
Allelujah ! We adore
His name, whose goodness hath no store.
Allelujah !
Easter Day.
WHAT glorious light !
How bright a sun, after so sad a night,
Does now begin to dawn ! Blessed were those eyes
That did behold
This sun, when he did first unfold
His glorious beams, and now begin to rise:
It was the holy tender sex,
That saw the first ray :
Saint Peter and the other had the reflex,
The second glimpse o' th' day.
Innocence had the first, and he
That fled, and then did penance, next did see
The glorious Sun of Righteousness,
In his new dress
Of triumph, immortality, and bliss.
O dearest God, preserve our souls
In holy innocence ;
Or, if we do amiss,
Make us to rise again to th' life of grace,
That we may live with thee, and see thy glorious face,
The crown of holy penitence.
Allelujah !
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 89
On the Day of Ascension.
HE is risen higher, not set :
Indeed a cloud
Did, with his leave, make bold to shroud
The Sun of Glory from Mount Olivet.
At Pentecost, he '11 shew himself again ;
\Vhen every ray shall be a tongue
To speak all comforts, and inspire
Our souls with their celestial fire ;
That we, the saints among,
May sing, and love, and reign.
Amen.
On the Feast of Pentecost, or Whitsunday.
TONGUES of fire from heaven descend
With a mighty rushing wind,
To blow it up and make
A living fire
Of heav'nly charity, and pure desire^
Where they their residence should take.
On the apostles' sacred heads they sit ;
Who now, like beacons, do proclaim and tell
Th' invasion of the host of hell ;
And give men warning to defend
Themselves from the enraged brunt of it.
Lord, let the flames of holy charity,
And all her gifts and graces, slide
Into our hearts, and there abide ;
That thus refined, we may soar above
With it unto the element of love,
Even unto thee, dear Spirit,
And there eternal peace and rest inherit.
Amen.
9O FESTIVAL HYMNS.
Penitential Hymns.
I.
LORD, I have sinned : and the black number swells
To such a dismal sum,
That, should my stony heart, and eyes,
And this whole sinful trunk, a flood become,
And run to tears, their drops could not suffice
To count my score,
Much less to pay :
But thou, my God, hast blood in store,
And art the Patron of the poor.
Yet since the balsam of thy blood,
Although it can, will do no good,
Unless the wounds be cleans'd with tears before ;
Thou in whose sweet but pensive face
Laughter could never steal a place,
Teach but my heart and eyes
To melt away,
And then one drop of balsam will suffice.
Amen.
II.
GREAT GOD, and just! how canst thou see,
Dear God, our misery,
And not, in mercy, set us free!
Poor miserable man ! how wert thou born
Weak as the dewy jewels of the morn,
Wrapt up in tender dust,
Guarded with sins and lust,
Who, like court- flatterers, wait
To serve themselves in thy unhappy fate.
Wealth is a snare ; and poverty brings in
Inlets for theft, paving the way for sin :
Each perfum'd vanity doth gently breathe
Sin in thy soul, and whispers it to death.
Our faults, like ulcerated sores, do go
O'er the sound flesh, and do corrupt that too.
FESTIVAL HYMNS. 91
Lord, we are sick, spotted with sin,
Thick as a crusty leper's skin ;
Like Naaman, bid us wash ; yet let it be
In streams of blood that flow from thee :
Then will we sing
Touch 'd by the heav'nly Dove's bright wing,
Hallelujahs, psalms, and praise.
To God, the Lord of night and days ;
Ever good, and ever just,
Ever high, who ever must
Thus be sung ; is still the same ;
Eternal praises crown his name !
Amen .
A Prayer for Charity.
FULL of mercy, full of love,
Look upon us from above ;
Thou, who taught'st the blind man's night
To entertain a double light,
Thine and the day's (and that thine too) ;
The lame away his crutches threw ;
The parched crust of leprosy
Return'd unto its infancy :
The dumb amazed was to hear
His own unchain'd tonsrue strike his ear :
O
Thy powerful mercy did even chase
The devil from his usurped place,
Where thou thyself shouldst dwell, not he.
O let thy love our pattern be ;
Let thy mercy teach one brother
To forgive and love another ;
That, copying thy mercy here,
Thy goodness may hereafter rear
Our souls unto thy glory, when
Our dust shall cease to be with men. Amen.
THE
PSALTER OF DAVID:
WITH
TITLES AND COLLECTS,
ACCORDING TO THE MATTER OF EACH PSALM :
WHEREUNTO ARE ADDED
DEVOTIONS
FOR THE
HELP AND ASSISTANCE OF ALL CHRISTIAN PEOPLE, IN
ALL OCCASIONS AND NECESSITIES.
THE PREFACE.
IT is natural for all men, when they are straitened
with fears or actual infelicities, to run for succour
to what their fancy, or the next opportunity, pre-
sents, as an instrument of their ease and remedy.
But that which distinguishes men in these cases, is
the choice of their sanctuary ; for to rely upon the
reeds of Egypt, or to snatch at the bulrushes of
Nilus, may weft become a drowning man, whose
reason is so wholly invaded and surprised by fear,
as to be useless to him in that confusion; but he
whose condition (although it be sad) is still under
the mastery of reason, and hath time to deliberate,
unless he places his hopes upon something that is
likely to cure his misery, or at least to ease it, by
making his affliction less, or his patience more, does
deserve that misery he groans under. Stripes and
remediless miseries are the lot of fools; but afflic-
tions, that happen to wise men or good men, repre-
sent indeed the sadnesses of mortality ; but they
become monuments and advantages of their piety
and wisdom.
In this most unnatural war, commenced against
the greatest solemnities of Christianity, and all that
is called God, I have been put to it to run some-
whither to sanctuary; but whither, was so great a
question, that had not Religion been my guide, I
XCV1 PREFACE.
had not known where to have found rest or safety :
when the king and the laws, who, by God and man
respectively, are appointed the protectors of inno-
cence and truth, had themselves the greatest need
of a protector. And when, in the beginning of
these troubles, I hastened to his Majesty, the case
of the king and his good subjects was something
like that of Isaac, ready to be sacrificed ; the wood
was prepared, the fire kindled, the knife was lift up,
and the hand was striking ; that, if we had not been
something like Abraham too, and " against hope
had believed in hope," we had been as much with-
out comfort, as we were, in outward appearance,
without remedy.
It was my custom long since to secure myself
against the violences of discontents abroad, as
Gerson did against temptations, "in angulis et
libellis, in my books and my retirements;" but
now I was deprived of both them, and driven to a
public view and participation of those dangers and
miseries, which threatened the kingdom, and dis-
turbed the evenness of my former life. I was
therefore constrained to amass together all those
arguments of hope and comfort, by which men in
the like condition were supported ; and amongst all
the great examples of trouble and confidence, I
reckoned king David one of the biggest, and of
greatest consideration. For, considering that he
was a king vexed with a civil war, his case had
so much of ours in it, that it was likely the devo-
tions he used, might fit our turn, and his comforts
sustain us.
PREFACE. XCV11
And indeed, when I came to look upon the
Psalter with a nearer observation, and an eye dili-
gent to espy my advantages and remedies there
deposited, I found very many prayers against the
enemies of the king and church, and the miseries of
war. I found so many admirable promises, so
rare variety of expressions of the mercies of God,
so many consolatory hymns, the commemoration
of so many deliverances from dangers, and deaths,
and enemies, so many miracles of mercy and sal-
vation, that I began to be so confident as to believe
there could come no affliction great enough to spend
so great a stock of comfort, as was laid up in the
treasure of the Psalter : the saying of St. Paul was
here verified, " If sin" and misery " did abound,
then did grace superabound :" and as we believe of
the passion of Christ, it was so great as to be able
to satisfy for a thousand worlds ; so it is of the com-
forts of David's Psalms, they are more than suffi-
cient to repair all the breaches of mankind. But
for the particular occasion of creating confidences in
us, that God will defend his church and his anointed,
and all that trust in him, against all their enemies
(which was our case, and contained in it all our
needs for the present), I found so abundant supply,
that of one hundred and fifty psalms, some whereof
are historical, many eucharistical, many prophetical,
and the rest prayers for several occasions ; thirty-
four of them are expressly made against God's and
our enemies, eleven expressly for the Church, four
for the king ; that is, a third part of the Psalms
relate particularly to the present occasion, beside
XCVI1I PREFACE.
many clauses of respersion in the other, which, if
collected in one, would, of themselves, be great
arguments of hope to prevail in so good a cause.
This, which experience taught me now, I was
promised before by a frequent testimony of the
doctors of the Church, who gave the Psalter such a
character, as is due to the best and most useful
book in the whole world : viz. the most profitable
of books, the treasury of holy instructions ; " con-
summationem totius paginae Theologicse, the per-
fection of the whole Scripture ;" so the ordinary
gloss calls it: "arma juvenum, parva Biblia, tribu-
latorum solatia, the young man's armoury, the
little Bible, the comfort of the distressed ;" so others :
to be said by all men, upon all occasions, is the
counsel of the most devout amongst them. But
concerning the Psalter there are good words enough,
and real observation of advantages in the several
prefaces before the commentaries upon the Psalms,
set forth by the fathers and writers of the first and
middle ages. I leave the particular enumeration of
them to the learned divines of our church, to whom
it is more proper : the sum of them is this, which
Tertullian alone hath expressed in his Apology
against the Gentiles, " Omnes bibliothecas et omnia
monumenta unius prophetae scrinium vincit, in quo
videtur thesaurus collocatus esse totius Judaici sacra-
menti, et inde etiam nostri ; This book alone of
the prophet David hath in it some excellences be-
yond all the monuments of learning in any library
whatsoever, and is the storehouse both of the Jewish
and Christian religion."
PREFACE. XC1X
But that which pleases me most is the fancy of
St. Hilary, expounding the Psalter to be meant ' the
key of David/ spoken of by St. John in his Revela-
tion: and properly enough: for if we consider, how
many mysteries of religion are opened to us in the
Psalter, how many things concerning Christ, what
clear vaticinations concerning his birth, his priest-
hood, his kingdom, his death, the very circumstances
of his passion, his resurrection, and all the degrees
of his exaltation, more clearly and explicitly re-
corded in the Psalter than in all the old prophets
besides, we may easily believe that Christ, with the
key of David in his hand, is nothing else but Christ
fully opened and manifested to us in the Psalms in
the whole mystery of our redemption. " Omnes pene
psalmi Christi personam sustinent," saith Tertullian ;
" Almost all the psalms represent the person of
Christ." Now this key of David opens not only
the kingdom of grace, by revelation of the mysteries
of our religion, but the kingdom of heaven too ; it
being such a collection of prayers, eucharist, acts of
hope, of love, of patience, and all other Christian
virtues, that as the everlasting kingdom is given to
the heir of the house of David, so the honour of
opening that kingdom is given to the first prince of
that family; the Psalms of his father David are one
of the best inlets into the kingdom of the Son.
Something to this purpose is that saying of one of
the old doctors, "Vox psalmodiae, si recto corde
dirigatur, in tantum omnipotent! Deo aditum ad
animum aperit, ut intentae animae vel prophetise
mysteria vel compunctionis spiritum infundat ;
C PREFACE.
The saying or singing of psalms opens a way so
wide for God to enter into the heart, that a devout
soul does usually, from such an employment, receive
the grace of compunction and contrition, or of un-
derstanding prophecies."
Upon such premises as these, or better, the
Church of God, in all ages, hath made David's
Psalter the greatest part of her public and private
devotions ; sometimes dividing the Psalter into
seven parts, that every week's devotion might spend
it all.
Sometimes decreeing that ' it should be said day
and night.' Otherwhile enjoining ' the recitation
of the whole Psalter before the celebration of the
blessed sacrament; and, after some time, it was
made 'the public office of the Church.'
It was the general use of Christendom to say the
Psalms ' antiphonatim, by way of verse and an-
swer,' saith Suidas; and so ancient, that the Reli-
gious of St. Mark in Alexandria used it, saith Philo
the Jew; and St. Ignatius, or else Flavianus, and
Diodorus, brought it first into the Church of Antioch.
And for the private devotions, that they chiefly
consisted of the Psalms, we have great probability
from the strict requiring it of the clergy, and parti-
cularly from them who came to be ordained, great
readiness of saying the Psalter by heart. It was
St. Jerome's counsel to Rusticus : and when St.
Gregory was to ordain the bishop of Ancona, his
inquiry concerning his canonical sufficiency was, if
he could say David's Psalms without book ; and for
a disability of doing it, John the priest was rejected
PREFACE. C{
from the bishoprick of Ravenna. But this, I conceive,
more relates to their private than to their public
devotions : for I cannot think but that, in respect of
the public liturgy, it was enough for bishops and
priests to read the psalm ; the requiring ability to
remember them was to engage them to a frequent
use of so admirable devotions in their private
offices.
But the Psalms were not only of use to the
Church, as they lay in their own position and form,
but the devout men of several ages drew them into
collects, antiphonaries, responsories, and all other
parts of their devotions. They made their prayers
out of the Psalms ; their confessions, their doxo-
logies, their ejaculations, for the most part, were
clauses or periods of the Psalter. St. Jerome made
a collection of choice versicles, and put them toge-
ther into their several classes, and that was much of
his devotion ; the collection is still extant under the
name of " St. Jerome's Psalter." St. Athanasius
made an index of the several occasions and matters
of prayer and eucharist, and fitted psalms to each
particular ; that was his devotion ; the psalms entire
as they lay, only he made titles of his own. I have
seen, of later time, a short hymn of some eight
verses, which are, indeed, choice sentences out of
several psalms, set together to make a compendium
of liturgy or breviary of our necessity and devotions,
collected by St. Bernardine : it is a very good copy
to be followed. But if we look into the old liturgies
of the Eastern and Western churches, and, where we
will almost, into the private devotions of the old
Cll PREFACE.
writers, we may say of them in the expression of
the prophet, " Hauriebant aquas e fontibus Salva-
toris, they drew their waters from the fountains
of our blessed Saviour," but through the limbecks of
David.
But the practice of this devotion I derived from
a higher precedent, even of Christ and his apostles :
for before the passion immediately "they sung a
psalm," saith the Scripture; "Hymno dicto," saith
the vulgar Latin, " having recited or said a psalm."
But, however, it was part of David's Psalter that
was sung ; it was the great Allelujah, as the Jews
called it, beginning at the 113th Psalm, to the
119th exclusively; part of that was sung. But this
devotion continued with our blessed Saviour as long
as breath was in him ; for when he was upon the
cross, he recited the 22d Psalm ' ad verbum,' saith
the tradition of the Church ; and that he began it,
saith the Scripture, "My God, my God, why hast
thou forsaken me?" The whole psalm is rather a
history than a prediction of the passion ; and what
Tertullian saith of the whole Psalter, is particularly
verified of this, " Filium ad Patrem, id est, Chris-
tum ad Deum, verba facientem reprsesentat ; It
represents the Son's address to his Father, that is,
Christ speaking to God." Against the example of
Christ, if we confront the practice of Antichrist,
nothing can be said greater in commendation of
this manner of devotion : for bishop Hippolytus, in
his oration of the end of the world, saith, that in
the days of Antichrist, "Psalmorum decantatio
cessabit, they shall then no more use the singing
PREFACE. CHI
or saying of psalms ;" which when I had observed,
without any further deliberation I fixed upon the
Psalter as the best weapon against him, whose
coming, we have great reason to believe, is not far
off, so great preparation is making for him.
From the example of Christ this grew to be a
practice apostolical, and their devotion came exactly
home to the likeness of the design 'of this very book ;
they turned the Psalms into prayers.
Thus it was said of Paul and Silas, Acts, xvi.
" They prayed a psalm ;" so it is in the Greek ;
and we have a copy left us of one of the prayers
or collects, which they made out of the bowels of
the second Psalm ; it is in the fourth chapter of
the Acts, beginning at the twenty-fourth verse, and
ends at the thirty-first. And now I have shewn
you the reasons of my choice, and the precedents
that I have followed. This last comes home to
every circumstance of my book. I only add this,
that since, according to the instruction of our blessed
Saviour, God is to be worshipped in spirit and in
truth ; no worshipping can be more true or more
spiritual than the Psalter, said with a pure mind
and a hearty devotion. For David was God's
instrument to the Church, " teaching and admonish-
ing us," as our duty is to each other, " in psalms,
and hymns, and spiritual songs ;" and the Spirit of
Truth was the grand Dictator of what David wrote ;
so that we may confidently use this devotion as the
Church of God ever did, making her addresses to
God most frequently by the Psalms : so Prudentius
reports the guise of Christendom.
CIV PREFACE.
Te mente pura simplici,
Te voce, te cantu pio,
Rogare curvato genu,
Flendo et cnnendo discimus.*
The prayers which I have collected out of the
Psalms are nothing else but the matter of the
Psalms put into another mood, and fitted to the
necessities of Christendom, and of ourselves in
particular, according to the first designation or
secondary intention of the blessed Spirit: for the
use of them could not expire in the person of
David, though first occasioned, many of them, by
his personal necessities : for " all Scripture was
written for our learning, upon whom the ends of
the world are come," saith the apostle : and Christ,
and his apostles, and the Church of all ages, *hath
taught us by his example and precepts, that the
purposes of the Holy Ghost were of great extent,
and the profits universal both for times and occa-
sions ; so also were the prayers which the Church
made out of the Psalms, and sung them in her
public offices. St. Austin found great advantages
by such devotions, as himself witnesses : " Cum
reminiscor lacrymas meas, quas fudi ad cantus
Ecclesiae, in primordiis recuperatae fidei meae,
magnam instituti hujus utilitatem agnosco ; When
I call to mind the many tears I shed, when I heard
the hymns and psalms of the Church, I cannot but
acknowledge the great benefit of this institution."
And yet besides the spiritual sense of an actual
devotion which is sooner had in this use of the Psalms
Hymn. 9. Cathem.
PREFACE. CV
than of other prayers, I have had a meditation that
this manner of devotion might be a good symbol
and instrument of communion between Christians
of a different persuasion ; for if we would com-
municate in the same private devotions, it were a
great degree of peace and charity. The Nicene
fathers, in their zeal against heresy, forbade their
people to be present at the prayers of heretics : and
they had great reason, so long as they derived their
heresy into their liturgy, into their very forms of
baptism. But I am much scandalized, when I see
a man refuse to communicate with me in my
prayers, even such as are in his own Breviary
or Manual. For, methinks, it is strange, that the
Lord's Prayer itself should be unhallowed in the
mouth of a protestant, and yet the whole office
from the mouth of one of their priests, though never
so wicked, though a necromancer, a secret Jew,
or any thing, so of their communion, shall lose no
tittle of its sanctity and value. So long as nothing
of controversy is brought into our prayers (and
certainly we may very well pray to God without
disputing), and devotion is not made a party ; he
that refuseth to join with me in what himself con-
fesses true and holy, upon pretence I am a heretic,
will certainly prove himself a' schismatic. For true
it is, a heretic is to be avoided, that is, in his
temptation and in his heresy, just as a notorious
fornicator and adulterer, a sentenced drunkard,
and no more ; the apostles' rule excommunicates
all alike, " with such men no not to eat :" and this
rule cannot, with so much ease and certainty, be
CV1 PREFACE.
put to practice in the case of heresy as in the case
of drunkenness ; because heresy is as much harder
to be judged, as the soul is more invisible than the
body ; especially if we make heresy to be an error,
not in the great articles of faith only, but to consist
in minutes also : as all they do who refuse to com-
municate with persons disagreeing even in the
smallest article.
But he that is ready to join with all the societies
of Christians in the world in those things which
are certainly true, just, and pious, gives great
probation that he hath at least ' animum catholi-
cum, no schismatical soul;' because he would
actually communicate with all Christendom, if
" bona fides in falso articulo," sincere persuasion
(be it true or false) did not disoblige him : since
he clearly distinguishes persons from things, and,
in all good things, communicates with persons bad
enough in others. This is the communion of charity;
and when the communion of belief is interrupted
by mispersuasion on one side, and too much con-
fidence and want of charity on the other, the erring
party hath human infirmity to excuse him ; but
the uncharitable, nothing at all. This, therefore,
is the best and surest way, because we are all apt
to be deceived, to be sincere in our disquisitions,
modest in our determinations, charitable in our
censures, and apt to communicate in things of
evident truth and confessed holiness. And such
is this devotion, the whole matter whereof is the
Psalms of David, and the prayers symbolical, and
alike in substance, and of the same expression
PREFACE. CV11
throughout, where it is not already by circum-
stances.
So that I thought I might not imprudently in-
tend this book as an instrument of public charity to
Christians of different confessions. For I see that
all sorts of people sing or say David's Psalms ; and,
by that use, if they understand the consequences of
their own religion, accept set forms of prayer for
their liturgy, and this form in special is one of their
own choices for devotion : so that if all Christians
that think David's Psalms lawful devotions, and
shall observe the collects from them to be just of
the same religion, would join in this or the like
form, I am something confident the product would
be charity, besides other spiritual advantages. For
my own particular, since all Christendom is so much
divided and subdivided into innumerable sects, I
knew not how to give a better evidence of my own
belief, and love of the communion of saints, and
detestation of schism, than by an act of religion,
whose consequence might be, if men please, the
advancement of a universal communion. For in
that which is most concerning, and is the best
preserver of charity, I mean practical devotion and
active piety, the differences of Christendom are not
so great and many, to make art eternal disunion and
fracture ; and if we instance in prayer, there is none
at all abroad (some indeed we have commenced at
home), but in the great divisions of Christendom
none at all, but concerning the object of our prayers
and adorations. For the Socinian shuts up the
Holy Ghost from his litanies, and places the Son of
CV111 PREFACE.
God in a lower form of address. But concerning
him, I must say as St. Paul said of the unbelievers,
" What have I to do with them that are without ?"
For this very thing, that they disbelieve the
article of the holy Trinity, they make themselves
uncapable of the communion of other Christian
people of the Nicene faith, and we cannot so much
as join with them in good prayers, because we are
not agreed concerning the persons to whom our
devotions must be addressed ; and Christendom
never did so lightly esteem the article of the holy
Trinity as not to glory in it, and confess it publicly,
and express it in all our offices. The Holy Ghost,
together with the Father and the Son, must be
worshipped and glorified.
But since all Christians of any public confessions
and government, that is, all particular and national
churches, agree in the matter of prayers and the
great object, God in the mystery of the Trinity, if
the Church of Rome would make her addresses to
God only, through Jesus Christ our Lord, and leave
the saints in the calendar, without drawing them
into her offices (which they might do without any
prejudice to the suits they ask, unless Christ's inter-
cession without their conjuncture were imperfect),
that we might all once pray together, we might
hope for the blessings of peace and charity to be
upon us all. I am sure they that have commenced
this war against the king and the Church, first fell
out with the liturgy, and refused to join with us in
our prayers : I have, therefore, a strong persuasion,
that if we were joined in our prayers, we should
PREFACE. C1X
quickly be united in affections : and to this purpose
I have some reason to believe this Psalter may do
good service.
For I have seen an essay of this design made by
that prudent and pious moderator of controversies,
George Cassander, who did much for the peace of
Christendom. When disagreeing interests and opi-
nions made the great schism in the Western churches,
he puts forth devotions, and with them collects to each
psalm. But I said it was a mere essay ; they are
short of what he could have done : but when I saw
his name at them, I guessed what every man else
would have guessed concerning him, it was a pursu-
ance of his great design for peace and charity.
I have seen three more : the first by an old Saxon
priest or bishop, in which there is nothing of offence,
nothing but pious and primitive for the matter ; but
the collects so short that the psalm did scarce pass
through the prayer ; so little of the relish is left that
the percolation is scarce discernible.
A second was printed at Lyons 1545, without
the author's name, with a complying design of
avoiding all offence, and a not engaging of God in
our scholastical wranglings, but quite contrary to
the Saxon : the prayers are so full of paraphrase,
that I resolved to go further,* and see if I could
speed better ; and at last met with a Psalter printed
lately at Antwerp by command, very fairly indeed,
with a title and a collect to every psalm, all free
from dispute, and partaking in the questions of
Christendom, not so much as a gust or relish of
his own party till the Psalter be done ; the prayers
CX PREFACE.
all good : and here I had fixed, but that I had found
them very often to be impertinent. But that which
I observed in all these is, that the design seems
alike, and they are a form of devotion made for no
private sect, but for the benefit of all Christian
people ; which the author of the Antwerp Psalter
declines in his additional devotions, where he brings
in litanies to saints as grossly as he had before
avoided it with discretion.
If any man's piety receives advantage by this
intendment, it is what I wish : but I desire that his
charity might increase too, and that he would say a
hearty prayer, when his devotion grows high and
pregnant, for me and my family; for I am more
desirous my posterity should be pious than honour-
able. I have no ends of my own to serve, but to
purchase an interest of prayers ; for I would fain
have these devotions go out into a blessing to all
them that shall use them, and yet return into my
own bosom too ; and if I may but receive the
blessings of the Psalter, " even the sure mercies
of David," it will be like the reward of five cities
for the improvement of a few talents ; I shall ven-
ture again in a greater negotiation, and traffic for
ten talents ; for there is no honour so great as to
serve God in a great capacity ; and, though I wait
not at the altar, yet I will pay there such oblations
of my time and industry, as I can redeem from the
services of his Majesty, and the impertinences of
my own life.
THE
PSALTER OF DAVID,
TITLES AND COLLECTS FITTED TO EACH PSALM, &c.
THE FIRST DAY OF THE MONTH.
Jtflornfag Draper.
PSALM I.*
A Prayer that we may continually meditate in God's Law y
and have no fellowship with wicked Persons in the Manner
of their living or dying.
O HOLY JESU, Fountain of all blessing, the Word of the
eternal Father, be pleased to sow the good seed of thy word
in our hearts, and water it with the dew of thy divinest
Spirit ; that while we exercise ourselves in it day and night,
we may be like a tree planted by the water-side, bringing
forth, in all times and seasons, the fruits of a holy conversa-
tion ; that we may never walk in the way of sinners, nor
have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness ; but
that when this life is ended, we may have our portion in the
congregation of the righteous, and may be able to stand
upright in judgment, through the supporting arm of thy
mercy, O blessed Saviour and Redeemer, Jesu. Amen.
* To avoid enlarging the volume unnecessarily, the words of the Psalms
have been omitted, as reference can easily be made to the Psalter.
112 THE FIRST DAY.
PSALM II.
A Prayer to promote Christ's Kingdom, and for Grace to
serve him with Fear and Reverence.
O blessed Jesu, into whose hands are committed all domi-
nion and power in the kingdoms and empires of the world,
out of whose mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it thou
mightest smite the nations, and rule them with a rod of iron ;
on whose vesture and on whose thigh a name is written,
King of kings, and Lord of lords ; we adore thee in thy
infinite excellence and most glorious exaltation, beseeching
thee to reveal thy name and the glory of thy kingdom to
the heathen which know thee not, and to the uttermost
parts of the earth, which are given thee for thy possession
and inheritance. And to us give thy grace to serve thee in
fear, and plant the reverence of thy law and of thy name in
our hearts ; lest thy wrath be kindled against us, and thou
break us in pieces like vessels of dishonour. Have mercy
on us, O King of kings, for we have put our trust in thee ;
thou art our Saviour and Redeemer, Jesu. Amen.
PSALM III.
A Prayer for Defence against all our Enemies, bodily and
ghostly.
O Lord, our Defender, have pity upon us : behold, the
armies of the flesh, the world and the devil, fight against our
souls, and multiply against us, every day, temptations and
disadvantages. We are not able of ourselves, as of our-
selves, to think a good thought, much less to put to flight
the armies of them that have set themselves against us round
about. But thou, O Lord, art our Defender; thou art our
worship, and the lifter-up of our heads. Up, Lord, and help
us : arm us with the shield of faith, and the sword of the
Spirit, and, in all times of temptation and battle, cover our
heads with the helmet of salvation : so shall we not be afraid
for ten thousands of our enemies : for salvation belongeth
unto thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE FIRST DAY. 113
PSALM IV.
A Prayer in which we exercise an Act of Hope in God, and
desire his Providence over us.
O God, who art the Author of all righteousness, from
whom all grace, and safety, and glory, does proceed, hear
the prayers of thy humble servants, whensoever we call upon
thee in our trouble ; for our trust is in thee alone ; and no
creature can shew us any good, unless it derives from thee.
Shew the light of thy countenance upon us, let thy provi-
dence guide all our actions and sufferings to thy glory and
our spiritual benefit, and consign us to the blessedness of
thy kingdom, by the testimony of thy Holy Spirit ; that we
may not place our joys and hopes upon the good things of
this life, which perish and cannot satisfy, but in the eternal
fountain of all true felicities ; that, thou being our treasure,
our hearts may be fixed upon thee by the bands of charity
and obedience ; that thou mayest make us to dwell in safety
here, and when our days are done, we may lay us down in
peace, and take our rest in thy arms, expecting the coming
of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM V.
A Prayer for a Blessing upon all pious People, and for
Protection against the Malice of wicked Men.
O most holy and blessed Lord God, who canst take no
pleasure in wickedness, neither can evil come nigh thy
dwelling; defend us and all thy Holy Church from the fraud
and malice of blood-thirsty and deceitful men, and from the
crafty insinuations of all them that work vanity: but let thy
blessings be upon the righteous, and "let thy favourable kind-
ness defend thy whole Church as with a shield; that all those
who put their trust in thy mercy, may be ever giving of
thanks, and may be joyful in thee. O lead us in thy righte-
ousness, that we become not a rejoicing to our enemies ; but
that we may worship thee in fear, and come into thy house
to make our prayers unto thee, and to give thee thanks for
the multitude of thy mercies, which thou hast given us in
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
VOL. xv. i
114 THE FIRST DAY.
lEbenmg Draper.
PSALM VI.
A Prayer of a Penitent Person for Remission of his Sins.
O MOST merciful God, whose property is always to have
mercy and to forgive, behold, with the eyes of thy pity and
compassion, the state of thy humble servants, made most
miserable by reason of our sins. Hear the voice of our
weeping, pity our groaning; strengthen us, for we are weak;
heal us, for our bones are vexed ; and deliver our souls from
death, that, being saved from the bottomless pit, we may
give thanks to thy holy name. O turn from the severity of
thy displeasure, and visit us with thy mercy and salvation.
For all our sins give us a great sorrow and contrition, and in
our sorrows let thy comforts sustain us; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM VII.
A Prayer for Defence of our Innocence against the unjust
Molestation of our Enemies.
O God, from whom cometh our help, thou art a righteous
Judge, and preservest all that are true of heart: deliver us
from our persecutors, who travail with mischief against us,
and have digged a pit for our destruction. O let their
wickedness and malicious devices against thy servants come
utterly to an end for evermore. Thou, O Lord, art strong,
and able to take vengeance, and yet, being provoked every
day, still art patient towards us, and compassionate. Deliver
us from their wrath, to whom we have done no injustice or
displeasure ; pardon our offences against thee, and protect
our innocence against them ; that we may praise thy name,
and give thanks unto thee for thy righteousness and salva-
tion, who art blessed for evermore. Amen.
PSALM VIII.
A Contemplation of the Divine Beauty and Excellence
manifested in his Creatures.
O Lord God, Father of men and angels, God of all the
creatures, who hast created all things in a wonderful order,
THE SECOND DAY. 115
and hast made them all conveyances of thy mercies to man-
kind ; give us great and dreadful apprehensions of thy glory
and immensity, thy majesty and mercy, that we may adore
thee as our Creator, love thee as our Redeemer, fear thee as
our God, obey thee as our Governor, and praise thee as the
Author and Fountain of all perfections, and all good which
thou hast communicated to thy creatures, that they may all,
in their proportions, do thee service, who hast to that end
made the world, and redeemed us by oar Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE SECOND DAY.
PSALM IX.
A Prayer of poor and oppressed People against their
Persecutors.
O LORD GOD, who art a defence for the oppressed, and a
refuge in due time of trouble, have mercy upon us thy ser-
vants, who are violently assaulted by enemies without, and
weaknesses and temptations within. Thou never failest
them that seek thee, but lovest to hear the poor make their
complaint unto thee in their trouble, and art known to exe-
cute judgment upon them that oppress them. Pity us, and
look upon the trouble we suffer of them that hate us; deliver
us from the strivings of our adversaries, lift us up from the
gates of death ; that being safe under thy mercies and pro-
tection, we may give thanks unto thee with our spirits and
voices, we may embrace thee with a lively faith, fear thee
with all our hearts, serve thee with all our powers and
faculties both of soul and body, all the days of our life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM X.
A Prayer to God in Times of Persecution and War against
the Church.
O Lord God, who behoklest all the actions of men, and
seest all the ungodliness of sinners,, aud the wrong the^ Ho
116 . THE SECOND DAY.
unto thy servants, we fly unto thee for succour and defence,
in this our needful time of trouble. Behold, O Lord, how
the enemies of thy Church have set their eyes against her,
and use all violences and arts, that thy poor servants may
fall under the hands of their captains. Thou seest their
malice, and their confidences : they fear thee not, neither
art thou, O God, in all their thoughts. But thou art our
King for ever and ever, and the helper of the friendless.
We commit ourselves wholly to thy mercy and providence :
take the matter into thine own hand. Let them perish out
of the land, that are exalted against thee, and against thy
Church : that we, being delivered from fear of our enemies,
may serve thee with constant and regular devotions all the
days of our life ; through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XL
An Address to God by way of Hope and Confidence in him,
and a Prayer against our secret Enemies.
O Lord, who art our hope and our refuge, and the ex-
ceeding great, reward of all that trust in thee, have mercy
upon us thy servants, who have no confidences, but upon thy
mercies and infinite loving-kindness. Defend us from all
secret plots and designs, intended against our peace and
securities by them that privily shoot at us, and would over-
throw the foundations of our repose and safety. And, that
we may be better entitled to thy protection and care over us,
make us to love righteousness, and to follow the things that
are just; that, by thy grace, we being defended from taking
delight in wickedness, may also be delivered from the por-
tion of the ungodly, which thou givest them to drink, upon
whom thou rainest snares, fire and brimstone, storm and
tempest. Deliver us, O Lord, from the eternal pressure of
thy wrath; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XII.
A Prayer for Defence against the Dangers of Evil Company.
O MOST blessed Jesu, who, in thy eternal providence, dost
suffer 'the tares and the wheat to grow together until the
THE SECOND DAY. 117
harvest, permitting heretics and vicious persons to commu-
nicate in the external society of thy people ; grant us thy
grace, that we may so believe, and heartily obey, all thy pure
words and dictates which thou hast taught us in thy holy
Gospel, that we may be kept unspotted of the world. And,
although the ungodly walk on every side, yet we may perse-
vere in the ways of righteousness, and increase the number
of the godly, that, at last, we may be admitted into the glo-
rious fellowship of saints and angels, who behold thy face,
and the glories of thy kingdom, where thou livest and
reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, eternal God,
world without end. Amen.
PSALM XIII.
A Prayer in Time of Temptation.
O God, the Giver of all grace, the Author of all ghostly
strength, look with compassion upon our infirmities, and
how unequally we are assaulted by many, by powerful, by
malicious adversaries. How long, O Lord, how long shall
we seek for rest, and find none ? O give us either peace or
victory ; and preserve us, that we sleep not in the death of
sin, lest our grand enemy the devil say ' he hath prevailed
against us.' Our trust is in thy mercy, and thy delight is in
it : strengthen us so with thy grace, that we may fight a
good fight, and conquer, and be crowned with a crown of
righteousness, which, we beg, we may receive from the hands,
and by the mercies, of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.
PSALM XIV.
A Prayer against Atheism and Irreligion.
O Eternal God, Creator of the 'world, Conserver of the
creatures, whose essence, and goodness, and perfections, are
infinite, and made so manifest in the creation, order, protec-
tion, and disposition of thy creatures, that, without the
greatest sin and folly in the world, we cannot but acknow-
ledge thee, and adore thee with the lowest adorations of
soul and body, and with the most profound humility : pre-
serve us, O Lord, in great religion, veneration and reverence
of thy Divine perfections. Keep us from all distrust of thy
118 THE THIRD DAY.
providence, all doublings of thy infiniteness, or of any other
article of our faith ; and grant that we, confessing thee
before all the world, may be acknowledged for thy children,
and rewarded among thy servants, not for our righteousness,
but through the merits and mercies of our dearest Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE THIRD DAY.
J&ornfag ^raget.
PSALM XV.
Which is a short Rule of a good Life, and a Desire of Innocence
and Sanctity.
O LORD, let thy mercy preserve us in holiness and inno-
cence; or, if through infirmity we fall, make us to rise again
by penitence : that we may lead an incorrupt life with humi-
lity, and truth, and justice, not slandering our neighbour,
not invading his right, not breaking our trust, not oppressing
the indigent and necessitous, but doing good to all, and
especially making much of them that fear the Lord; that
we may never fall from thy favour, but, at the end of our
weary pilgrimage, we may take our rest upon thy holy hill,
and dwell in thy tabernacle, where thou reignest with
infinite glory and felicities, God eternal, world without end.
Amen.
PSALM XVI.
A. Prayer for the Blessings of God's Providence and Preserva-
tion in this Life, and for Glory hereafter.
O God, who art the portion of our inheritance, our God
and our preserver, preserve and maintain all those good
things, which thou hast wrought in us and for us ; and that
we may never fall, give us thy grace, that we may set thee
always before us, rejoicing in thee, and delighting in the
saints that are upon the earth : that when our flesh shall see
corruption, our souls may not be left in hell, but may walk
THE THIRD DAY. 119
in the paths of life ; and in the day of the restitution of all
things, both bodies and souls may have a goodly heritage,
even the lot of thy right-hand, where there is pleasure for
evermore, and where we may see thy face and the glory of
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM XVII.
A Prayer for Protection against the Injuries of our Enemies,
bodily and ghostly.
O most merciful Jesu, thou that art the Saviour of them
that put their trust in thee, defend us and deliver us from the
hands of all our enemies ; and although they are a sword of
thine, and an instrument sent from thee to chastise us for
our sins, yet arise, O Lord, in mercy and strength ; disap-
point them and cast them down, lest they destroy our souls ;
that, when thou hast visited us with thy fatherly correction,
and tried us like as silver is tried, thou mayest find no
wickedness in us. Sanctify our hearts and lips, that we may
not think a thought displeasing unto thee, and that our mouth
may not offend. Keep us as the apple of an eye; hide us
under the shadow of thy wings of mercy and providence ;
keep us from the ways of the destroyer, and hold up our goings
in thy paths, that we may persevere in righteousness, and
our footsteps may not slip ; that, in the day of the resurrec-
tion of the just, we may behold thy presence, and receive
infinite satisfactions in the vision beatifical. Grant this, O
merciful Saviour and Redeemer Jesu. Amen.
Draper.
PSALM XVIII.
A Prayer for Strength and Victory in War, temporal or spi-
ritual, together with an Act of Hope and Confidence in God.
O GOD our Saviour, the rock upon whom all our hopes are
built, our strength and defence, our salvation and our refuge,
hear our voice out of thy holy temple; let our complaint
come before thee and enter even into thy ears. The sor-
rows of death compass us, and we are afraid, because of the
120 THE FOURTH DAY.
overflowings of ungodliness. Our enemies are strong, yea,
they are too mighty for us, and we have no hope to escape,
unless thou preventest them in the day of our trouble, and
deliverest us from the strivings of our enemies. But in thee,
O Lord, is our hope ; do thou teach our hands to fight, and
gird us with strength unto the battle. Make us to have an
eye unto all thy laws, that we may eschew our own wicked-
ness, and be uncorrupt before thee : then shalt thou give us
the defence of thy salvation, and we shall give thanks unto
thee, O Lord, and sing praises unto thy name, who art become
our strong helper, and the God of our salvation, which thou hast
given unto us in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE FOURTH DAY.
J&ornmg Draper.
PSALM XIX.
A Prayer for the Preservation from Sin, and for Love of
God's Law.
O MOST blessed Jesu, thou Sun of Righteousness, who earnest
forth from the bosom of thy eternal Father, as a bridegroom
out of his chamber ; be pleased to plant in our hearts the
fear of the Lord, and in our bodies the purity and cleanness
of chastity, and make them to abide there for ever. Lighten
our eyes with the light of thy Gospel, and the bright revela-
tion of thy whole will and pleasure ; that so being guided by
thy grace, we may be cleansed from all our secret sins, and
preserved from presumptuous and great offences : so shall
the thoughts and meditations of our heart, the words of our
mouth, and all our actions, be always acceptable in thy sight,
O Lord our Saviour, our strength and our Redeemer Jesus.
Amen.
PSALM XX.
A Prayer that God would hear our Petitions which we make
to Him in Times of Trouble.
O King of Heaven, who art the health and strength of our
right-hand, have mercy upon us, and hear us when we call
THE FOURTH DAY. 121
upon thee : let our prayers come into thy presence like a
burnt-offering of a sweet savour ; for in all our troubles we
disclaim all confidences in any of thy creatures, and remem-
ber thy name only, O Lord our God. Teach us what to ask,
and how to come into thy presence, that we may never beg of
thee any thing but what is agreeable to thy will, and may then
promote thy glory when thou suppliest our necessities ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XXI.
A Prayer for the King.
O eternal God, King of kings, and Lord of lords, have
mercy upon thy servant the king : as thou hast set a crown
of gold upon his head, and given him power and command
to rule thy people with justice and piety, so do thou hear the
request of his lips, grant him the desire of his heart, and pre-
vent both his desires and requests with the blessing of thy
goodness : give him great honour and reverence in the sight
of his people and of all the nations round about : let all his
enemies feel thine hand, and put them to flight that rise up
against him : that, when thou hast given him the blessings
of a long life and prosperous, and made him glad with the
joy of thy countenance, at last he may be crowned with
everlasting felicity, and reign with thee in thy eternal king-
dom ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Draper.
PSALM XXII.
A Meditation upon the Passion of our blessed Saviour.
O MERCIFUL Jesu, who for our sakes didst suffer thyself to
be betrayed, tormented, spit upon, crucified, and to die, that
thou mightest purchase for us redemption from the sting of
death, the miseries of hell, the malice and power of the devil ;
deliver our souls from the sword of thy vengeance ; cut us
not off by untimely death ; free our darling from the power
of the dog, our souls from being a prey unto the devil ; snatch
us out of the lion's mouth, who goeth up and down, seeking
whom he may devour. O Jesu, be a Jesus unto us, and let
122 THE FIFTH DAY.
those victories which thou hast obtained over Satan, and
hell, and the grave, bring us peace and righteousness, and a
crown of glory in the heavens, where thou livest and reign-
est in the great congregation of saints and angels, one God,
world without end. Amen.
PSALM XXIII.
A Prayer that God would guide, and feed, and support us, as
a Shepherd doth 7ds Flock.
O blessed Jesu, thou great Shepherd and Bishop of our
souls, let thy grace convert us, let thy mercies guide us in
the paths of righteousness ; feed us with thy word and sacra-
ments, refresh us with the comforts of thy Holy Spirit ; and
in the whole course of our life, which is nothing else but a
valley of miseries and a shadow of death, let thy rod correct
us, like a father, when we do amiss, and thy staff support us
in all our troubles and necessities. O let thy loving-kindness
and mercy follow us all our days, that after this life we may
dwell in thy house for ever, where thou hast prepared a table
and a full cup of blessing for thy people, and shalt anoint
their heads with the oil of an eternal gladness in the fruition
of thy glories, O blessed Saviour and Redeemer Jesu. Amen.
THE FIFTH DAY.
Jflornfng
PSALM XXIV.
A Meditation upon the Ascension of our blessed Saviour : and
a Prayer for Sanctity, that we may ascend where he is.
O BLESSED Jesu, King of glory, Lord of hosts, and King of
all the creatures, to whom the everlasting doors were opened,
that thou mightest enter into thy kingdom which thou didst
open to all believers, after thou hadst overcome the sharpness
of death ; give us clean hands and a pure heart : teach us to
follow thy innocence, to imitate thy sanctity, that we may
receive from thee our Lord the eternal rewards and blessings
of righteousness, and ascend thither, whither thou, O God of
THE FIFTH DAY. 123
our salvation, art gone before, who livest and reignest with
the Father and the Holy Ghost, eternal God, world without
end. Amen.
PSALM XXV.
A penitential Psalm, or a Prayer for Deliverance from Sin
and Punishment.
O gracious and righteous Lord God, who art the guide of
the meek, and teachest the humble and gentle in thy way,
forgive the sins and offences of our youth : and although by
them we have deserved thy wrath, and that we be put to con-
fusion, yet be pleased to think upon us for thy goodness, and
according to thy mercy ; that when thou hast forgiven us all
our sin, and taken away our adversity and all our misery,
thou mayest keep our souls in perfectness and righteous
dealing, that at last we may dwell at ease, free from trouble,
and safe from all our enemies, even when we shall inherit the
land of everlasting rest, where thou livest and reignest, eter-
nal God, world without end. Amen.
PSALM XXVI.
A Prayer of Preparation to the Holy Sacrament, and
to Death.
O Lord, our Judge, whose loving-kindness is great, and
always before our eyes, manifested in the abundant acts of
thy grace and providence, make us to love and frequent all
the actions, ministries, and conveyances of thy graces to us,
especially thy holy sacraments. O dear God, endue our
souls with faith, and charity, and^ holy penitence ; that our
hands and hearts, our souls and bodies, being washed in
innocence and penance, we may go to thy holy table, and
may, in the whole course of our life, walk righteously and in
obedience to thee ; that, in this world, hating the congrega-
tion of the wicked, and the fellowship of deceitful and vain
persons, at last our souls may not be shut up with sinners,
nor our lives with the blood-thirsty, but we may have our
portion in the eternal habitation of thy house, where thine
honour dwelleth and reigneth, world without end. Amen.
124 THE FIFTH DAY.
C&tonfng
PSALM XXVII.
A Prayer that, being freed from our Enemies, we may attend
the Services of Religion, and serve God in his holy Temple.
O LORD GOD, thou hast been our succour, our light and
salvation : leave us not, neither forsake us when we are
assaulted by enemies without and by temptations from within ;
but lead us in the right way, which thou hast appointed for
us to walk in : and when thou hast lifted up our heads above
our enemies round about us, grant that we may spend our
days in prayer, and giving praises to thee, and in all other
actions of holy religion, visiting thy temple with frequent
addresses of devotion, and contemplating and admiring the
fair beauty of the Lord ; and that, being secure in such em-
ployments, being hid in thy tabernacle, and taking sanctuary
within the secret place of thy dwelling, we may at last come
unto thy heavenly Jerusalem, where the gates of thy temple
are open day and night, there seeing the goodness of the
Lord in the land of the living, praising thee to all eternity ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XXVIII.
A Prayer for Deliverance from Death and Damnation.
O Lord, my strength and confidence, my shield and the
defence of all that hope in thee, hear the voice of our humble
petitions. We hold up our hands to thy mercy-seat, praying
thee for pity, and pardon of our sins : reward us not according
to our deeds, nor according to the wickedness of our inven-
tions ; for if thou shouldest deal with us according to the
operation of our hands, we should be like them that go down
into the pit, and our inheritance would be death and destruc-
tion. But our heart hath trusted in thee, and thou hast
helped us : continue thy loving-kindness to us, and pluck us
not away, neither destroy us with the ungodly and wicked
doers, but magnify thy mercies in the salvation of our souls;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE SIXTH DAY. 125
PSALM XXIX.
In which God is adored, and the Mightiness of his Power and
Voice is celebrated.
O most glorious God, who makest the thunder ; thy voice
is mighty in operation, and is a glorious voice: give us
grace that we may hear thy voice, and obey it with reverence
and humility. Thou that breakest the cedar-trees, let thy
word rend our hearts with sorrow and contrition for our sins,
that so we may feel the power and the mercy of thy voice,
and may ascribe unto thee worship and strength, worshipping
thee with a holy worship all the days of our life ; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE SIXTH DAY.
Jttornfng
PSALM XXX.
A Prayer for Deliverance from Sickness, and Death, and
Damnation.
O LORD our God, whose mercy is infinite, but thy wrath
endureth but the twinkling of an eye, and even, in this short
time of thy wrath, thou rememberest mercy; we cry unto
thee, and address ourselves unto thee right humbly : O turn
not thy face away from us ; keep our life from them that go
down into the pit, and preserve our souls from hell. And
although thou sometimes sendesf heaviness unto us and
trouble upon our loins, yet let it be but as for a night; let
thy mercy dawn upon us, and shine as in a glorious morning:
for thou art more pleased in demonstrations of thy mercy,
than in shewing thy displeasure. O Lord, heal us, and be
merciful unto us and save us ; turn our heaviness into joy,
and gird us with gladness ; so shall we give thanks unto thee
for ever ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
126 THE SIXTH DAY.
PSALM XXXI.
A Prayer for Protection against our Enemies and all Dangers
of Soul and Body, and specially at the Hour of Death.
O God, our rock and the house of our defence, let us be
glad and rejoice in thy mercies and salvation. Consider,
O Lord, our trouble ; and, in thy pity, know our souls to be
set round about with enemies and adversaries. Shut us not
up into the hands of our enemies, nor our lives within the
grave. Our time, O Lord, is in thy hand, to thee pertain the
issues of life and death : and though our strength hath failed
us because of our iniquity, and our bones are vexed by reason
of our sins, yet our hope is in thee, O Lord ; we have said,
Thou art our God. Deliver us from all our enemies, bodily
and ghostly: turn our sadness into joy and our mourning
into gladness, lest our bodies and souls be consumed for
very heaviness. Let us not be put to confusion nor to
silence in the grave, but let us see thy marvellous loving-
kindness, and partake of thy plentiful goodness which thou
hast laid up for them that fear thee, even before the sons of
men. O let us never be cast out of the sight of thine eyes,
but deal with us in mercy and loving-kindness. Into thy
hands we commend our spirits, resigning ourselves up to thy
providence and disposition, either to life or death, as thou in
thy infinite wisdom shalt find most proportionable to thy
glory and our eternal good, beseeching thee to be our guide
to death, and to lead us for thy name's sake to everlasting
life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XXXII.
A Confession of Sins and a Prayer for Pardon.
O LORD GOD, eternal Judge of men and angels, whose pro-
perty is always to have mercy and to forgive, have mercy
upon us, who confess our sins unto thee to be so great and
THE SIXTH DAY. 127
many, that, were not thy mercy infinite, we might despair of
having our unrighteousness forgiven or our sins covered.
O dear God, preserve us from the great plagues that remain
for the ungodly ; and let thy mercy embrace us on every
side. Impute not unto us the sins we have multiplied against
thee and against all the world ; for we have been like to a
horse and mule without understanding, brutish in our pas-
sions, sensual in our affections, of unbridled heats and dis-
temperatures. But thy mercy is as infinite as thyself. O let
not thy hand be heavy upon us, but forgive the wickedness
of our sin, and compass us about with songs of deliverance :
then shall we be glad and rejoice in thee, O Lord, who art
become our mighty Saviour and most merciful Redeemer
Jesu. Amen.
PSALM XXXIII.
A Prayer to God for the Graces of Fear, Hope, and Religion.
O Lord our God, who lovest righteousness and judgment,
who fillest the earth with thy goodness, and lookest down
from heaven upon the children of men : consider us, O Lord,
and let thy grace fashion our hearts, and produce in our souls
such forms and impresses as may bear thy image, and seem,
beauteous in thine eyes, that thou mayest be our God, and
choose us for thine inheritance. Let thy mercy feed us, thy
hands deliver us from death, and snatch us from the jaws of
hell : teach us to fear thee, to put our trust in thy mercy,
patiently to tarry for thee and the revelation of thy loving-
kindnesses, to hope in thy holy name, and to rejoice in thy
salvation, giving thee thanks and praise with a good courage,
with humble and religious affections, all the days of our life,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XXXIV.
A Prayer, that we, being disposed by Holy Living, may receive
and have a Sense and Taste of the Divine Goodness.
O most merciful and gracious Lord, whose eyes are over
the righteous, and thine ears are open unto their prayers,
give us, we beseech thee, a contrite heart and an humble
128 THE SEVENTH DAY.
spirit, a fear of thy name, a watchfulness over our tongue
that we epeak no guile, a care of our actions that we eschew
all evil, and a zeal of thy name that we may do good ; that
being thus prepared with holy dispositions, we may be de-
livered out of all our troubles by the hands of thy mercy,
we may be defended against our enemies by the custody of
angels, we may be provided for, so as to want no manner of
thing that is good, by the ministration of thy providence;
that so, in all the whole course of our life, we may feel the
goodness of the Lord, seeing and tasting the sweetnesses of
thy mercy, which may be to us an antepast of eternity, and
as an earnest of the Spirit to consign us to the fruition of the
glories of thy kingdom, who livest and reignest ever one God,
world without end. Amen.
THE SEVENTH DAY.
Jttorm'ng Draper.
PSALM XXXV.
A Prayer to be delivered from our Enemies.
O LORD our God, who art the shield of the oppressed, and
the buckler of all that trust in thee, deliver us from all the
assaults and intendments of our enemies against us, who
without cause make pits for our souls : let the angel of the
Lord scatter all their mischievous imaginations, lest they
triumph over us, and say, ' We have devoured them ;' strive
thou with them that strive with us, and fight against them
that fight against us. Preserve us in innocence, that we
neither sin against thee, nor do injustice to them : and
restore us to our peace : so shall we talk of thy righteousness
and thy praise all the day long, and give thee thanks in the
great congregation of saints, because thou hast pleasure in
the prosperity of thy servants, and hast redeemed them
from the hands of their enemies; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
THE SEVENTH DAY. 129
PSALM XXXVI.
A Prayer, desiring the Joys of Heaven, the Blessings
of Eternity.
O God, whose mercy reacheth unto the heavens, and thy
righteousness unto the clouds ; teach us to abhor every thing
that is evil, and to set ourselves in every good way ; that
thy fear being always before our eyes, and our trust being
under the shadow of thy wings, thou mayest continue forth
thy loving-kindness to us all the days of our life : that at
last we may be satisfied with the plenteousness of thy house,
and may drink down rivers of pleasures, deriving from thee
the eternal fountain and well of life, and, in the light of thy
countenance, may see everlasting light ; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
bening
PSALM XXXVII.
A Prayer that we may trust and delight in God, and that our
lot may be amongst the Godly, and not in the seeming
Prosperity of the Wicked.
O GOD ALMIGHTY, who never forsakest the godly, but pre-
servest them for ever, let thy law be in our hearts, fixed and
grounded, that we may keep innocence, and take heed to
the thing that is right : order our goings, and make thy way
acceptable to thyself; that we, delighting in thee alone,
committing our ways wholly to thy providence, and putting
our trust in thy mercies, we may not be confounded in the
perilous times; but may be refreshed in the multitude of
peace, having peace all our days, and peace at the last, in
the inheritance of saints, who have refused the gilded glories
of this world, which is the lot of the wicked and ungodly
people, and are satisfied with the expectation of true joys,
and the reward of innocence ; through the merits of Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
VOL. XY. K
130 THE EIGHTH DAY.
THE EIGHTH DAY.
Jfflorning ^rager.
PSALM XXXVIII.
A Prayer for Remission of Sins.
O LORD, who knowest all our desires, and from whom our
groaning is not hid, we confess before thee our many wicked-
nesses, and are truly sorry for our sins : our wickednesses
are gone over our head, and are a sore burden too heavy for
us to bear: our enemy the devil is malicious and mighty,
our weaknesses many, our temptations strong, our con-
sciences do busily accuse us. Where shall we appear in the
day of judgment.' How shall we stand upright in the eternal
scrutiny ? Our trust is in thy merits. O blessed Jesu, thou
art our judge and our advocate: thou shalt answer for us,
O Lord our God. Put us not to rebuke, O Lord, in thine
anger, for it is insupportable ; neither let thy whole dis-
pleasure arise, for that is vast and mountainous as our sins,
and will break us in pieces. O let not the arrows of thy
vengeance slick fast in us, for our sins are wounds enough,
and make us restless and miserable. Touch our sores gently,
and let not thy hands press us, unless to drive forth our
corruption : then shall we follow the thing that good is, and
rejoice greatly in thy mercies, O Lord God of our salvation,
who hast redeemed us, and saved us through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XXXIX.
A Meditation of the Shortness and Vanity of our Life, and a
Prayer preparatory to Death.
O eternal God, who art without beginning or end of days,
thou hast given us a short portion of time in the generations
of this world ; our condition is vain, unsatisfying, and full of
disquiet, and we have no hope but in thee, O Lord. O teach
us to number our days, to remember and to know our end,
that so we may never sin against thee; and grant that we
may live as always dying, being of mortified souls and bodies,
of bridled tongues and affections, and that, instead of heaping
THE EIGHTH DAY. 131
up riches, we may strive for a treasure of good works, laying
up in store against the time to come, that having recovered
our strength, lost by the commission of sins, when we go
hence and are no more seen, we may have a residence in
those mansions which are prepared for the saints, by our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM XL.
A Thanksgiving to God for his Deliverance, and a Prayer for
Redemption from Sins, and Defence against, our Enemies.
O Lord our God, whose works are wondrous, and thy
thoughts, which are to usward, full of mercy and admirable
in wisdom ; we adore and worship thy infinite perfections,
and thy providence in the disposing of all thy creatures, and
the effects of all causes, which, in an infinite variety, thou
orderest to thy glory and the good of all faithful people.
Thou hast dealt, with us in mercy ; and although our sins
are so multiplied that they are more in number than the
hairs of our head, yet thou hast not suffered us to fall into
the horrible pit of eternal misery and destruction, but hast
set our feet upon the rock Christ Jesus, and by his graces
and holy laws hast ordered our goings. Let it be thy plea-
sure still to deliver us, for we are not able of ourselves to
look up, and our enemies still seek after our souls to destroy
us. Make no long tarrying, O God ; shew thyself our helper
and redeemer; so shall we talk of thy truth and of thy salva-
tion in the assemblies of thy servants in this life, hoping that
we shall hereafter declare thy righteousness in the great con-
gregation of saints and angels, singing eternal praises to God
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
(JBbcning Draper.
PSALM XLI.
A Prayer for the Grace of Charity, for Pardon of Sins, and
for Deliverance from False Friends and Traitors.
O BLESSED JESU, Saviour of the world, be merciful unto us,
and heal our sins, for we have sinned against thee, and are
132 THE EIGHTH DAY.
no more worthy to be called thy children ; but yet make us
thy servants, and give us testimony that we are translated
from death to life, by charity and love to all our brethren.
O make our bowels yearn with pity and compassion over the
necessities of the poor and needy, and give us grace and
power to help them and relieve their miseries ; that we,
being merciful as our heavenly Father is, may receive such
blessings and assistances as thou hast provided for the
charitable ; deliverance from our open enemies, safety from
private treachery and conspiracies, comfort in our sicknesses,
health of body, and pardon of our sins, through thy mercies
and blessed charity, O most merciful Saviour and Redeemer
Jesu. Amen.
PSALM XLII.
A Prayer for Comfort in Spiritual .Desertion and Dryness of
Affection, and that we may long and sigh after God.
O eternal and living God, thou art the help of our coun-
tenance and our God, thou art the thing that we long for,
and our hearts are vexed within us and disquieted when we
feel not the comforts of thy Spirit, and those actual exulta-
tions and that spiritual gust which thou dost often give to
thy people as earnest of a glorious immortality. O Lord,
pity our infirmities, and give us earnest longings for the
fruition of thee our God, in the actions of holy religion.
Grant unto us vivacity of spirit, unweariedness in devotion,
delight and complacency in spiritual exercises ; that when
our souls are vexed with temptations and sadnesses, we may
remember thee concerning the land of promise, and be com-
forted and encouraged in our duties by the expectation of
those glories which thou hast laid up for them that love the
appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM XLIII.
A Prayer for Cheerfulness of Spirit in our Devotions.
O God, our defender and deliverer, thou art the God of
our strength, and our ghostly confidence : let the light of
thy countenance produce the beams of spiritual joy in our
souls, and let thy truth lead us in the way of thy salvation,
that when we go unto thy dwelling-places, where thou
THE NINTH DAY. 13(J
manifestest thy presence, we may approach unto thee with
joy and gladness, rejoicing in nothing more than in doing
thee service, and singing praises to thy name for the help of
thy countenance, which thou givest us in our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE NINTH DAY.
PSALM XLIV.
A Prayer in the Time of War.
O LORD GOD of hosts, who for our sins hast suffered the
sword to take vengeance upon us, and to plead thy cause
against us, O hide not thy face from us, and forget not our
misery and trouble. We are killed all day long, and are
accounted as sheep appointed to be slain ; we are covered
with the shadow of death; and they which hate us spoil our
goods. Deal with us in pity ; and as thou hast done to our
fathers of old time, when they called upon thee in their
trouble, so deal with us: thou overthrewest their enemies,
and didst tread them under that arose up against them.
Arise, and help us, and deliver us also for thy mercy's sake :
our own sword cannot help us, but let thy right-hand and
thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, work deliver-
ance and salvation for us. Go forth with our armies, O
thou God of hosts, do thou fight our battles, that we may
not turn our backs upon our enemies ; but crown us with
victory and peace, that we may make our boast of thee all
day long, and praise thy name for ever, who art holy, and
just, and merciful, the great God of battles and recompenses.
From thee let mercy now and eVer proceed, and to thy
name let honour be for ever ascribed of all the hosts of
heaven and earth, world without end. Amen.
PSALM XLV.
A Prayer for the Conversion of the Heathen, and Prosperity
of the Church.
O blessed Jesu, Prince of the catholic Church, thou art
fairer than the children of men, thy lips are full of grace,
134- THE NINTH DAY.
thine armies mighty, thy head is crowned with majesty, and
clothed with worship and renown : have mercy upon thy
holy Church ; bless her for ever with righteousness, and let
the oil of gladness refresh her amidst the multitude of her
sorrows and afflictions. And because she is the daughter of
a king, and thou takest pleasure in her beauty, let her not
always be clothed in mourning garments, but let her be
decked with exterior ornaments and secular advantages, such
as may truly promote the interests of holy religion. Let
kings and queens be nursing fathers and nursing mothers
unto her; and so let the sound of thy Gospel go into all the
earth, that her children may be princes in all lands, and
ministers of thy kingdom, advancing thy honour, and further-
ing the salvation of all men, for whom thou didst give thy
precious blood, that all people may worship thee, and give
thee thanks for ever; who, together with the Father and the
Holy Ghost, livest and reignest one God, world without
end. Ainen.
PSALM XLVI.
A Prayer for Protection, and for Confidence in God in Times
of public Distractions, and for the Peace of Christendom.
O most merciful Saviour Jesu, Prince of peace, at whose
birth all the kingdoms of the world were in peace and
tranquillity, be thou in the midst of us for our refuge and
present help in times of trouble and public calamities ; when
the kingdom is moved, and the hearts of men shake at the
tempests of the same. Dear God, unite all the parts of
Christendom with the union of faith and chanty, and the
fruits of them, a blessed and universal peace. Break the
bow of the mighty, knap the spear of the warrior in sunder,
and burn the chariots in the fire, that wars may cease in all
the world, and we all may feel the promised blessing of the
Gospel, that our swords may be converted into plough-
shares, and our spears into pruning-hooks : that thy name
and thy kingdom may be exalted among the heathen, and in
all the nations of the earth, who livest and reignest over
all, in the unity of the blessed Trinity, God eternal, world
without end. Amen.
THE NINTH DAY. 135
PSALM XLVII.
A Prayer fur the Exaltation of Christ's Kingdom, and that all
the Princes of the World may jointly adore Jesus reigning
in the Heavens.
O LORD GOD, King of heaven, who reignest a great king in
all the earth ; thou art high above all creatures, and art to be
feared in all the kingdoms of the earth: let the seed of thy
Gospel be disseminated in all the corners of the habitable
world : let thy grace break down all the strongholds of sin
and Satan, subduing all people under thee, and the nations
under thy feet ; that the princes of the nations that have
not known thy name may be joined to thy people, the people
of the God of Abraham, becoming one sheepfold under one
Shepherd, Jesus Christ, our blessed Lord, our Saviour and
Redeemer. Amen.
PSALM XLVIII.
A Prayer for the Prosperity of the Church.
O great God, who art highly to be praised, who hast
manifested thy power and thy mercy in the constitution,
propagation, and defence of thy holy Church, by the
miraculous assistances and effects of thy Holy Spirit, inso-
much that the kings of the earth marvelled to see such
things, and were astonied and suddenly cast down, ac-
knowledging the powers of thy kingdom, and submitting to
thy laws with faith and obedience :* be pleased, according to
thy gracious promise, to uphold the same for ever : let not
the gates of hell prevail against thy Church : be thou known
in her palaces as a sure refuge : make her the joy of the
whole earth, and let her be glad and rejoice because of thy
judgments; so shall we praise thee in the midst of thy
temple, waiting for thy loving-kindness, that according as
thy name is, so may thy praise be, infinite and eternal, world
without end. Amen.
136 THE TENTH DAY.
PSALM XLIX.
A Prayer that we may despise perishing Riches, and put our
Trust in God only.
O blessed Jesu, them only Redeemer of souls, who, by
thy death and passion, hast delivered us from the place of
hell, give us grace to put our whole trust in thee, and in the
riches of thy mercy and loving-kindness, always remembering
our end, the vanity and shortness of our lives, the certainty
of our departure. Teach us to despise the world and worldly
things ; and to lay our treasure up in heaven by charity and
actions of religion ; that while we live here, we may have
our conversation in heaven, by love, by hope, and by desires,
that when our beauty shall consume in the sepulchre out of
our earthly dwellings, we may be received into everlasting
habitations, always to enjoy thee, who livest and reignest
eternal God, world without end. Amen.
THE TENTH DAY.
Jftormng Draper.
PSALM L.
A Prayer that we may lead a holy Life, and find Mercy in
the Day of Judgment.
O MOST mighty God, who art more pleased with the sacrifice
of thanksgiving, and the oblation of our souls in the vows of
obedience and a holy life, than with the burnt-offerings and
sacrifices of bullocks and goats, let thy grace reform our lives
and manners : keep our mouth from slander and obloquy,
from guile and deceit : let us never consent to actions of
injustice or uncleanness, that we partake not with thieves or
with adulterers either in their sin or punishment ; that wheu
thou shalt appear in perfect beauty, with a consuming fire
before thee, and a tempest round about thee, with terrors
and glorious majesty, calling the heavens and the earth
together, that thou mayest judge all thy people, thou mayest
THE TENTH DAY. 137
gather us among thy saints, and give us the mercies and the
portion of thine inheritance, that so we may honour thee by
an eternal oblation of praise and thanksgiving in the heavens,
where thou, O God, declarest thy salvation to all thy elect
people ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LI.
A Prayer for the Pardon of Sins, and the Restitution of
God's Favour.
O most merciful God, whose goodness is great, and the
multitudes of thy mercies are innumerable, have mercy upon
us, for our sins are ever before us, presented by the continual
accusations of a troubled conscience. We have sinned
against thee, and done evil in thy sight: and yet because
thou art the God of mercy, and Fountain of eternal purity,
delighting in the conversion and salvation of a sinner, we
present unto thee the sacrifice of a troubled spirit, of broken
and contrite hearts ; beseeching thee to let the dew of thy
favour, and the fire of thy love, wash away our sins and
purify our souls. Make us clean hearts, O God, and pure
hands ; though our sins be as scarlet, yet make them like
wool ; though they be as purple, yet make them as white as
snow. Restore the voice of joy and gladness to us : let us
not be for ever separate from the sweet refreshings of thy
favour and presence ; but give us the comforts of thy help
again, and let thy free Spirit loose us from the bondage of
sin, and establish us in the freedom and liberty of the sons of
God : so shall we sing of thy righteousness, and our lips
shall give thee praise in the congregation of thy redeemed
ones, now, henceforth, and for ever. Amen.
PSALM LII.
A Prayer for Deliverance from Tyranny, Oppression,
and Slander.
Almighty God, whose goodness endureth daily, extend
this thy goodness towards us thy servants, and defend us
from the tyranny and malice of all our enemies, who boast
themselves in mischief: keep us from the obloquy of false
138 THE TENTH DAY.
tongues, and from the slander of lying persons, who talk of
lies more than righteousness ; that we, being nourished by
thy goodness, and watered with the dew of Divine blessings,
may flourish like a green olive in the house of God, bringing
forth the fruits of tender mercy, and abounding in peace, and
that we may, by the suffusion of anointing of the Holy
Ghost, be consigned to thy everlasting kingdom, there to
reign with thee, who reignest eternally, one God, world
without end. Amen.
(Bbem'ng ^
PSALM LIII.
A Prayer for Redemption of the Church from the Persecution
of Atheists and Persons irreligious.
O LORD GOD, who dwellest in heaven, and lookest down
from thence upon the children of men, be pleased to give
salvation to thy people out of Sion, thy holy habitation, and
preserve thy Church from the malice of such persons as have
not called upon thee, but would eat up thy people as they
would eat bread : that we, being delivered from the captivity
of sins and miseries, may serve thee with freedom of spirit,
in joy and spiritual rejoicing, all the days of our life ; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LIV.
A Prayer for Deliverance from our Enemies.
O blessed Jesu, our God and our helper, whose name is
comfortable, the hope of all that are miserable, and the relief
of the oppressed, hearken unto our prayers, and, for thy
name's sake, save us from the tyranny of those that are
risen up against us, and seek after our souls. Give us thy
grace that we may set thee always before our eyes, to obey
thy laws, to follow thy example, to trust in thy protection,
to give praises unto thy holy name, who livest and reignest
with the Father and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without
end. Amen.
THE ELEVENTH DAY. 139
PSALM LV.
A Prayer for Deliverance from Treachery, and the
Conspiracies of our secret Enemies.
O eternal God, who hast promised to nourish and defend
all them that cast their burden upon thee, deliver the souls
of thy servants in peace from the battle that is against us.
Tearfulness and trembling are come upon us, and the fear of
death is fallen upon us ; for our enemies are maliciously set
against us, and minded to do us mischief; and we know not
whither to flee away and be at rest, for mischief and sorrow
are round about us. O rescue us from the public enmity of
our open adversaries, and from the secret conspiracies of all
our private enemies ; so shall we pray unto thee, and that
instantly, and praise thy name in the evening, in the morn-
ing, and in the noon-day, dedicating to thy honour and
worship the beginning, the growth, and the decrease of our
life, even all our days, because thou hast not suffered us to
fall for ever, but hast brought us from the pit of destruction ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE ELEVENTH DAY.
Jttomtng ^ragcr.
PSALM LVI.
A Prayer that we may trust in God, and have such Carefulness
over our Ways, that we give our Enemy no Advantage.
O LORD GOD, in whom we have trusted, have mercy upon
us who are daily troubled with sadnesses in the world,
temptations of the devil, weaknesses of the flesh, malicious
surmisings and mistakings of our enemies, and whatsoever
may make us miserable, and disturb our peace. Give us
great assistances of thy grace, that we may walk without
scandal, resist and overcome the devil, despise the things of
this world, and be strengthened in our spirits with ghostly
confidence ; that whensoever we call upon thee, we may
have thee on our side, and our enemies be put to flight; that
our souls being delivered from death, and our feet from
140 THE ELEVENTH DAY.
falling, we may at last be admitted into the light of the
living, there to walk eternally before thee our God, who
livest and reignest in the unity of the blessed Trinity, world
without end. Amen.
PSALM LVII.
A Prayer to be delivered from the Power of the Devil,
and Slander of Men, and that we may put our Con-
fidence in God.
O most high and mighty God, who hast set thyself above
the heavens, and thy glory above all the earth, do thou send
from heaven, and save us from the reproof of all our ghostly
enemies, who would eat us ; for our soul is among lions, and
the devil is busy seeking to devour us. O send out thy
mercy and truth, deliver us from the malicious slander of
men, and from the dreadful accusations of the devils at the
day of judgment, who are set on fire against us, and their
teeth are spears and arrows gnashing at us to tear us in
pieces. Let thy mercy sustain us, let thy righteousness be
interposed in answer for us, that as our enemies accuse us,
thy mercies may acquit us ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
PSALM LVIII.
A Prayer that God's People may be delivered from the Malice
of wicked Men.
O Almighty Lord, thou God that judgest the earth, who
preparest rewards for the righteous, and executest vengeance
against the ungodly, deliver all thy chosen people from
the peevishness of froward and ungodly men, whose hands
deal with wickedness, and they imagine mischief in their
hearts. And to thy servants give thy grace, that our rnirids
may be set upon righteousness ; that we may judge the thing
that is right, never refusing to hear thy voice, or stopping
our ears, like the deaf adder, against thy holy precepts ;
that we may have no iniquity in our mouths, nor unright-
eousness in our actions ; and at last we may have the reward
of the righteous, the inheritance of thy kingdom ; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE ELEVENTH DAY. 141
(Bbening
PSALM LIX.
A Prayer against Heretics, and all other Enemies of the
Church.
O LORD GOD of Israel, visit us with thy salvation, and
deliver us from the malice of wicked doers, and the violences
of blood-thirsty men. Let not them prosper, O Lord, in
their machinations, whose preaching is of cursing and lies,
and who offend of malicious wickedness; shew us thy good-
ness plenteously, that we may never forget thy mercies or thy
laws ; for thou art our defence and refuge, and our merciful
God ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LX.
A Prayer in Time of War or Temptation.
O Lord God, who for our sins hast shewed us heavy
things, and given us a drink of deadly wine, and yet hast
never failed them that fear thee, but hast given them a token
that they may triumph because of thy truth and mercy,
consigning them to redemption and deliverance by the testi-
mony and comforts of thy Holy Spirit : O be thou our help
in trouble, for all our hope is in thee, and we disclaim all
confidence in ourselves, or in the arm of flesh, praying thee
for aid ; that in thy strength we may tread down our enemies,
and give thee thanks, who art the fountain of strength, and
the disposer of victories; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
PSALM LXI.
A Prayer for the King, and for Comfort in Sadness.
O blessed Jesu, thou that art the rock higher than all
the world, upon whom thy Church is built, and all our hopes
rely, be merciful unto us, and give ear unto our prayers ;
be unto us a fountain of comfort whensoever our heart is in
heaviness, for under the covering of thy wings there is joy, and
health, and safety. Save all those that fear thy name, and
give thy blessing to thine heritage ; and that the blessings
of thy people may be lasting and perpetual, give unto thy
servant the king long life; let thy loving-kindness and faith-
fulness alway preserve him ; be a strong tower for him against
142 THE TWELFTH DAY.
all his enemies ; and at last bring him to an eternal kingdom,
where no enemies shall assault or disturb his peace ; that
he may dwell before thee for ever, and rejoice in the partici-
pation of the blessings of thy kingdom, who livest and
reignest ever one God, world without end. Amen.
THE TWELFTH DAY.
Jftornmg Draper.
PSALM LXII.
A Prayer that we may trust in God only, in all our Troubles.
O LORD GOD, of whom cometh our salvation, thou art our
defence and strength, our health and our glory ; give us thy
grace, that we may put our whole trust in thee alway, that
we may pour out our hearts before thee in all our troubles,
that we may wait still upon thee for the performance of our
expectation in all our longings and desires. Be thou our
defence ; uphold us, that we may not fall into those great
sins which lay waste our consciences, or into such mise-
ries as make us without hope or remedy, the miseries of
despair, obstinate malice, or the woes of a sad eternity.
Teach us to despise riches ; to disclaim all trust in the
creatures ; not to delight in lies or vanity ; not to multiply
wrongs and robbery ; that when thou shalt come with power
and great glory, to reward every man according to his work,
thou mayest be merciful unto us, pardoning our sins, and
accepting us to life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
PSALM LXIII.
A Prayer for the Deliverance from the Miseries of our Pil-
grimage; with Longing and Desires for God and the Joys
of Heaven.
O merciful and dear God, whose loving-kindness is
better than the life itself, defend us against the malice and
designs of all them that seek the hurt of our souls, and make
us to rejoice in thy help, and under the shadow of thy wings.
O let the day-spring of thy favour visit us from on high, that
we may seek thee with an early devotion, pursue after thee
with a constant and an active industry, and at last possess
THE TWELFTH DAY. 143
thee with the firm comprehensions of love and charity ; that
in this world, we, looking for thee in holiness of living,
longing and thirsting after thee with fervent desires, may for
ever hereafter behold thy power and glory, and our souls be
eternally satisfied, even as with marrow and fatness, when
our lips and hearts shall praise thee to all eternity. Grant
this for the love and honour of Jesus Christ, our only
Mediator and Redeemer. Amen.
PSALM LXIV.
A Prayer for Deliverance from the Slander and Mischiefs of
all wicked Persons.
O Lord God, thou that nearest the voice of our prayers,
and considerest the cries of them that fly unto thee for
succour, deliver us and all thy whole Church from the gather-
ing together of the froward, and from the insurrection of
wicked doers. Disappoint their snares, infatuate their
counsels, distract their consultations, and blast all their
designs ; let the swords and arrows of their tongues be shot
in vain, that they may never hit any of thy servants, nor
wound him that is perfect. Make them to fall, O God, in
their hopes, whereby they encourage themselves in mischief,
and fear not ; and do thou laugh them to scorn ; that we,
who have put our trust in thee, may rejoice in thee, and
confess that it is thy work to give salvation and deliverance
to thy people, whom thou lovest, in our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM LXV.
A Prayer for Spiritual Blessings, 'and for Fruitfulness of
the Earth.
O GOD, the hope of all the ends of the earth, and of them
that remain in the Broad sea, be thou merciful unto our
sins, and let not our misdeeds prevail against us, so as either
to make us habitually sinful, or endlessly miserable ; but
give us the blessings of thy chosen ; let us receive the influ-
ences of thy graces and benediction, by the participation
of thy word and sacraments in thy holy temple. And as
144 THE TWELFTH DAY.
thou embraces! us with thy right hand, shewing us wonderful
things in thy righteousness and salvation, so let thy left hand
be under our heads, and give us such a portion of temporal
blessings as shall be necessary for us. Make the earth plen-
teous, and bless the increase of it; crown the year with
goodness, and let the clouds drop fatness ; that the valleys
standing thick with corn, may laugh and sing thy praises;
and that we, being refreshed with the multitude of thy
blessings, may praise thee in Sion ; and, at last, be satisfied
with the pleasures of thy house in the celestial Jerusalem,
where thou livest and reignest, one God, world without end.
Amen.
PSALM LXVI.
A Prayer that God would support us in Times of Trouble,
and deliver us.
O Lord God, who art wonderful in thy works, and in thy
doings towards the children of men ; thou chastisest every
one whom thou receivest, proving us and trying us, like as
silver is tried : let thy merciful hands lead us through the
fire of afflictions, and the waters of temporal chastisements,
so as we may not be consumed with the flames of thy
wrath, nor the waters go over our souls ; but that we, being
sustained by the comforts of thy Spirit, and refreshed with
the dew of thy graces, may at last be brought out into a
wealthy place, even the place of eternal treasures. O give
us thy grace, that our hearts incline not to wickedness, and
that our feet slip not ; that so, we regarding thy laws, and
having respect to obey thy holy will and pleasure, thou
mayest hear our prayers, the greatness of thy power may cast
down all our enemies, that they may never be able to exalt
themselves ; that while thou boldest our souls in life, we may
never cease praising thee, who hast never turned thy mercy
from us ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXVII.
A Prayer that all Men may bless God, and God may bless
all Men.
O Lord our God, thou Governor of all nations, and the
righteous Judge of the whole earth, be merciful unto us, and
bless us. Thou makest the sun to shine upon all the corners
THE THIRTEENTH DAY. 145
of the habitable world, giving his light both to the good and
bad ; let the light of thy countenance diffuse itself to all
nations, and to all men : lighten all our darkness with the
beams of thy Divine favour ; teach thy ways unto all the
people of the earth, and give thy saving health to all nations ;
that while all join with one consent, to fear thee and to
give thee praises, thou rnayest govern us all in peace and
righteousness, and when thou shalt come to judge us, we
may receive thy everlasting mercies. Grant this for Jesus
Christ's sake, our only Mediator and Advocate. Amen.
THE THIRTEENTH DAY.
PSALM LXVIII.
A Prayer for Defence and Propagation of the Catholic
Church.
O LORD GOD, mighty and merciful, thou ridest upon the
heavens as it were upon a horse ; thou art the Father of the
fatherless, and defendest the cause of the widow ; have
mercy upon thy holy Church : and, since her Lord and
Spouse is gone up on high, even to his holy habitation, leave
us not comfortless, but send the Holy Ghost, in assistances
and gifts, to dwell amongst us ; that, by his aid, we may
escape death spiritual, and the bitterness of the temporal.
Send a gracious rain, even the dew of thy Divine favours,
upon thine inheritance, to refresh us in our weariness and
sadnesses. Make thy people innocent and chaste as the
dove; and, besides the beauty of internal sanctity, let thy
Church be covered with silver wings, and her feathers like
gold, decked and assisted with exterior advantages, as may
best promote thy honour, and the services of religion. Let
all the princes and lands of the earth stretch their hands out
unto thee, O God, and confess thy mightiness and thy
honour ; that thy Gospel going forth into all lands, peace,
and all thy blessings, may follow it, and thy praise be multi-
plied from generation to generation ; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
VOL. xv. L
14G THE THIRTEENTH DAY.
lEbtnmg $rager.
PSALM LXIX.
A Prayer in Time of Persecution for the Cause of Religion.
O BLESSED Jesn, whose loving-kindness is comfortable,
who, for our sakes, didst taste vinegar and gall, that thou
mightest redeem us from the bitterness of death and sin, and
establish to thyself a church in holy religion, and defend it
with thy favour and power ; have mercy upon thy servants,
who suffer from the hands of their enemies for the testimony
of a good conscience, and the doctrines of a catholic faith.
Let not them that trust in thee, O Lord God of hosts, be
ashamed ; but let them who, for thy sake, have suffered
reproof, be delivered from them that hate them, and from the
deep waters of persecutions and discomforts ; that we, and
all thy faithful people, being saved from our enemies, may
praise thee and thy faithfulness in this world, and may
finally inherit the land of promise, which thou hast made to
all that suffer persecution for a cause of righteousness, even
the possession of thine inheritance, thy kingdom in heaven,
where thou livest and reignest, ever one God, world
without end. Amen.
PSALM LXX.
A Prayer to (rod for Blessings upon faithful People, and
Deliverance from our Enemies.
O Lord God, our Helper and Redeemer, have mercy upon
us and all thy faithful people : make haste and help us, O
God, against all those that seek after our souls to do us
mischief: make us to delight in thee, to wait for thy salva-
tion, to trust in thy mercies, to rejoice in thy excellences
and perfection ; that our feet being directed by thy, guidance,
our weaknesses strengthened by thy power, our sins par-
doned by thy mercies, and our souls justified by thy free
grace, we may always give thee praise with the humble
addresses of devotion and thankfulness; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE FOURTEENTH DAY. 147
THE FOURTEENTH DAY.
Jttormng
PSALM LXXI.
A Prayer for the Continuance of God's Favour to us, even to
our old Age, and a longing for a happy Departure.
O LORD GOD, our house of defence and our castle, who,
by thy mercies and thy loving Spirit, has taught us and led
us in thy ways from our first years until now, thou hast
brought us to great honour, even the honour of being Christ-
ians, the honour of adoption to be thy children and heirs of
thy glorious promises, co-heirs with thy Son Jesus Christ,
and hast comforted us on every side with a continual stream
of thy mercies and refreshments : give us thy grace, that we
may love thee, and long for thee above all the things of this
world. And as thou hast holden us up, ever since we were
born, so let thy mercy go along with us all our days: cast
us not away in the time of age, and give us grace, that we
may never cast thee nor thy laws from us. Let not thy
grace, and the ghostly strength we derive from thee, forsake
us when our natural strength fails us ; but let our spirit grow
upon the disadvantages of the flesh, and begin to receive
the happiness of eternity by an absolute conquest over the
weakened and decaying body ; that after we have, by thy
aid, passed through the great troubles and adversities thou
shewest unto all thy children in this world, we may lie down
in righteousness and with thy favour; that when thou bringest
us out from the deep of the earth again, we may have a joyful
resurrection to the society of saints and angels, and the full
fruition of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM LXXII.
A Prayer for the Exaltation and Propagation of Christ's
Kingdom.
O blessed Jesu, who didst descend from heaven into the
womb of the blessed Virgin, like rain into a fleece of wool,
thou that punishest the wrong-doer, and defendest the
children of the poor, and them that have no helper, have
148 THE FOURTEENTH DAY.
mercy upon thy holy Church ; be pleased, by her ministry,
to extend thy blessings and thy dominion from the one sea
to the other, even unto the world's end, that all kings of the
earth may fall down before thee, and all nations may do thee
service. Make thy righteous people to flourish, and subdue
their enemies under them, delivering them from falsehood
and wrong, that they may be blessed with abundance of
peace, and be satisfied with thy righteousness and salvation
through thy mercies, O blessed Saviour and Redeemer Jesu.
Amen.
Draper.
PSALM LXXIII.
A Prayer that we may have our Portion in God, and not in
the good Things of the Men of this World.
O LORD GOD, who art loving unto all thy Church, even
unto all such as are of a clean heart, give us hearts humble
and merciful, that we may never be holden with pride, nor
overwhelmed with cruelty ; and sanctify our words and lips,
that we may never blaspheme thy holiness, nor our talking
be ever against thee or thy honour. O God most highest,
give unto us such religious and mortified affections, that we
may never thirst after the temporal advantages and prosper-
ities of the wicked : set not our feet in slippery places, lest
we be suddenly cast down, and have our portion in the lot
of the wicked, who perish and come to a fearful end : guide
us with thy counsel, that we holding us fast by thee, and
putting our trust in thee, O God, thou mayest be the strength
of our hearts, the hope of our souls, and the ground of all
the confidence and content in this life, and, after this life is
ended, thou mayest receive us with glory, and be our portion
for ever ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXIV.
A Prayer against all Sacrilegious Persons, and all the
Enemies of the Church.
O Lord God, blessed Jesu, who with thy precious blood
hast purchased to thyself and redeemed a church, that it
THE FIFTEENTH DAY. 149
should serve thee in holiness and righteousness, being de-
livered from fear of all their adversaries ; forget not the
congregation of thy poor people for ever ; maintain thine
own cause ; deliver thy turtle-dove from the multitude of
her enemies. Preserve with thy right-hand all the places
appointed for thy public service ; let a guard of flaming
cherubims (as at the gate of Paradise) stand sentinel, and
keep from the invasions of sacrilegious persons, and the
pollutions of all impure church -robbers, all thy dwelling-
places, that thou mayest for ever dwell among us, defending
the poor, bringing help to all thy people, and particular
blessings and assistances to the tribe of thine own inherit-
ance, which thou hast sanctified to thy worship and service ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE FIFTEENTH DAY.
Jfltormng Draper.
PSALM LXXV.
A Prayer against the Terrors of the Day of Judgment.
O LORD GOD, the Judge of all the world, from whom cometh
all promotion and all punishment, have mercy upon us now
at the hour of death, and in the day of judgment, when thou
shalt judge all the congregations of men and angels accord-
ing unto right. O give us grace to expect thy coming in
humility and charity, that we be not stiff-necked and exalted
in our own opinion and conceptions, but may submit to thy
yoke with meekness and obedience ; that when thou shalt
pour forth the cup of vengeance upon the ungodly, we may
not drink or taste of the dregs of it, but may sit down at
thy table in the supper of the Lamb, and be satisfied with the
blessings of eternity ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXVI.
A Prayer that we may fear God's Judgments, and be freed
from the Terrors of Men.
O Lord God, whose dwelling is in heaven, and thy name
is great in all the world, plant the dread and reverence of
thee and thy power in our hearts : let thy threatenings and
150 THE FIFTEENTH DAY.
thy judgments which are heard from heaven, and executed
upon disobedient and gainsaying people, make us to tremble
at the remembrance of our sins, and in the .consideration of
our weaknesses and demerits : and let thy mercies and the
remembrance of thy infinite loving-kindnesses make our
hearts still, full of evenness and tranquillity, that we may
not fear the fierceness of man, or the wrath of those whose
spirits thou canst refrain, lest we be disturbed in our duties
towards thee ; but let ns so fear thee, that we may never
offend against thee, but may pass from fear to love, from
apprehensions of thy wrath to the sense and comforts of thy
mercies, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXVII.
A Prayer that the Experience of God's Goodness may pro-
duce Hope in us, and remove from us all Fearfulness and
Doubting.
O God, who doest wonders, and hast declared thy power
amongst all people, let the observation of thy mercies and
loving-kindnesses make such deep impression in our hearts
and memories, that when we are in heaviness, we may re-
member the years of thy right-hand, and call to mind the
wonders of old time : that although thou sometimes with-
drawest the brightness of thy countenance from us, and
shuttest up thy loving-kindness ia a short displeasure, yet
the experience of thy old mercies, which never fail, may
sustain our infirmities, and the expectation of thy loving-
kindnesses may cure all our impatience, till, in thy due time,
the sense of thy favours may actually relieve all our dis-
tresses, and thy right hand lead us like sheep into the folds
of eternal rest and security ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
lEbenmej
PSALM LXXVIII.
A Commemoration of God's Bkssings to his Church of old, of
his Judgments upon Sinners, and his Mercies to the Penitent.
O LORD GOD of our fathers, God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, thou that leddest thy people through the wilderness
THE SIXTEENTH DAY. 151
with a light and with a cloud, and with thy bright angel ;
for their sakes turning rocks into a springing well, and
making the sea and the river become dry land, so making
demonstration of the greatness of thy mercy by the greatness
of thy miracles, and didst still go on to make all thy crea-
tures leave their natures to serve them, even then when they
tempted and provoked thee ten times in the desert : O be
pleased to do unto us as thou didst unto them ; lead us through
the desert of this world with the light of thy Holy Spirit ;
and from the rock, which for our sakes thou didst smite
with the heavy rod, the roek Christ Jesus, let water and
blood stream forth, to cleanse, and to refresh us. Give us
of the bread that came down from heaven, the flesh of thy
dear Son, to eat ; that we being purified by his blood, and
nourished by that celestial manna, our hearts may be set
aright, and our spirits may cleave stedfastly unto thee, O
God ; that we may remember thy works, and trust in thy
mercies, and may keep thy commandments. O never let the
fire of thy wrath be kindled towards us, nor thy heavy dis-
pleasure come up against us. Let us not consume our days
in folly and vanity, lest our years be spent in trouble ; but
when through infirmity we fall, let thy gentle correction call
us home, that we may turn us early, and seek after thee,
our God, who art our strength and our merciful Redeemer ;
that we may never feel the furiousness of thy eternal wrath,
nor have our portion amongst the evil angels, but may be
conducted by thy mercies and providence to the border of
thy sanctuary, and to the mountain where thou reignest over
all the creatures, one God, world without end. Amen.
THE SIXTEENTH DAY.
Jfflorning Draper.
PSALM LXXIX.
A Prayer that God would deliver his Church from the Cruelty
of all her Persecutors.
O LORD GOD of thine inheritance, who conveyest many
blessings to the children of men by the prayer and ministry
152 THE SIXTEENTH DAY.
of thy Church, let our prayers obtain of thee mercies and
deliverances for her. O Lord, thou hast planted thy Church
in the humility, and poverty, and death of thy Son ; thou hast
watered it with the blood of thy apostles and martyrs ; thou
hast made it flourish and spread forth its branches, by the
warmth, and heat, and graces of thy Holy Spirit, and hast,
according to thy promise, still preserved it in the midst of
all enmities and disadvantages. Thy laws and righteous
commandments have been a scorn and derision to Jews and
Gentiles : the flesh of thy servants hath been meat for the
beasts of the land : and still she wears the purple robe of
mockery, and the crown of thorns, which at first she took
from the head and side of her dearest Lord. At last, O Lord,
be gracious unto thine inheritance : help us, O God of our
salvation, for the glory of thy name : let not thine enemies
devour the Church, and lay waste her dwelling-places : be
merciful unto our sins : preserve all those that by malice of
their enemies are appointed to death, or prison, or any other
misery : let us still enjoy the freedom of thy Gospel, the food
of thy word, the sweet refreshings of thy sacraments, public
communion in thy Church, and all the benefits of the society
of saints ; and let not our sins cause thee to remove the
candlestick from us, but make thy people and the sheep of
thy pasture secure and glad in thy salvation, that we may
shew forth thy praise in this world and in the world to
come; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXX.
A Prayer for the Church,
O thou Shepherd of Israel, thou that sittest upon the
cherubims, stir up thy strength, and come and help thy
people, that prayeth unto thee for mercy and protection.
Thou hast made affliction the portion of thy children in this
life; thou feedest them with bread of tears, and givest them
plenteousness of tears to drink : yet be pleased to shew the
light of thy countenance upon us, to lighten our darknesses,
to relieve our miseries, to heal our sicknesses ; and let not
thy Church become a strife unto her neighbours, but reunite
her divisions, and make her not a prey to them that would
devour her, and then laugh her to scorn. O Lord, hedge
THE SIXTEENTH DAY. 153
her about with thy mercies, with the custody of angels, with
the patronage of kings and princes, with the hearts and
hands of nobles, and the defence of the whole secular arm ;
lest the wild beasts of the field pluck off her grapes, destroy
the vintage, and root up the vine itself : but let her so flourish
under the beams of thy favour and providence, that it may
take root, and spread, and fill all lands ; that the name of
the man of thy right-hand, the God and man Christ Jesus,
may be glorified, thy Church enlarged and defended, and we
blessed with thy health and salvation. Grant this, O Lord,
for Jesus Christ's sake, our only Saviour and Redeemer.
Amen.
PSALM LXXXI.
A Festival Song, and a Prayer for the Grace and Blessings
of Obedience to God's Laws.
O Lord God our strength, whose mercies are infinite,
whose majesty is glorious, whose goodness is amiable above
all the excellences in the world ; enlarge our hearts with joy
and rejoicings in thy glories, open our mouths wide, and fill
our lips with thy praises, that upon the solemn feast-days we
may commemorate thy excellences and mercies, and the
great mysteries of our redemption and religion, adoring thee
with thanks and joyfulness, who art mysterious in thy words,
and marvellous and merciful in all thy works. And that we
may, in the best manner, express our thankfulness to thee,
give us thy grace that we may hear thy voice, that we may
obey thee and walk in thy laws, that we follow not our own
imaginations, nor be given to our own hearts' lusts, but that
we resigning ourselves only to thy holy will and pleasure,
thou mayest hear our prayers whenever any storm of trouble
falls upon us, and turn thine hand against our adversaries ;
and that we, being delivered from, the burden of our sins,
may be fed with the choicest of thy viands, and with food
from the rock Christ Jesus, even his most precious body and
blood, nourishing us up to life eternal, through the same
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
154- THE SIXTEENTH DAY.
lEbenfng
PSALM LXXXII.
A Prayer for Princes and Judges of the World, that they
may do right Judgment.
O ALMIGHTY JUDGE of men and angels, thou God of gods,
and Prince of princes, let thy Spirit of anointing rest upon
the princes and rulers within the pale of the universal
Church; and let thy righteousness and judgments guide all
those that sit in the seat of the judges, that they may
minister justice and true judgment unto the people, de-
fending and promoting the interest of true religion, relieving
the oppressed, encouraging virtue, and dishonouring vicious
persons ; delivering the poor, and saving them from the hand
of the ungodly : that men may not walk on still in darkness,
but their evil deeds may be discovered and brought to light ;
that we may all live before thee in righteousness, expecting
the great day of righteous judgment, which we beg we may
all behold with confidence, receiving thy mercies, and be-
holding thy face in glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
PSALM LXXXIII.
A Prayer against the Enemies of the Church, particularly
sacrilegious Persons.
O Lord God, who wert known to thy people Israel by thy
name Jehovah, thou only art the Highest over all the earth ;
arise and defend thy people, and deliver thy secret ones
from the murmurings, counsels, and crafty imaginations of
thine enemies against them. Fix the foundations of thy
Church upon a rock, and preserve thine inheritance in peace
and safety. Infatuate the counsels, restrain the sacrilegious
appetites, of all such persons, who would rob all thy houses,
and take them to their own possession ; and make their faces
so ashamed and their hearts afraid, that they may return
from covetousness and impiety, and seek thy name, repenting
of all their sins, and living in justice and religion, that at
last they may come into an everlasting possession of thy
house and of thy temple, where thine honour dwelleth and
reigneth eternally, world without end. Amen.
THE SIXTEENTH DAY. 155
PSALM LXXXIV.
A Prayer of Desire and Longings after the Joys of
Heaven.
O Lord God of hosts, who dwellest in the heavens, seated
in essential and eternal felicities ; fill our hearts with desires
and longings to enter into those courts where thou sittest,
attended with the beauteous orders of angels, and millions
of beatified spirits : and that our desires may receive infinite
satisfactions, give us thy help, that we going through the
vale of misery, the pools may be filled with water, our hearts
and eyes may run over with tears of repentance, and over-
flow with sorrow and contrition for our sins ; that we living
a godly life, going from strength to strength, from virtue to
virtue, at last we may appear in Sion unto the God of gods,
beholding the face of thine Anointed, thy Christ and our
Jesus, and may dwell one day in thy courts, even all the
long day of eternity ; through the same Jesus Christ, our
Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXXV.
A Thanksgiving for God's free Mercy in the Pardon of our
Sins, and a Prayer for the Continuance and Increase of his
Mercies to us.
O most gracious God, who art reconciled unto us in our
Saviour Jesus, having for his sake forgiven the offences of
thy people, and covered all their sins with the robe of his
most immaculate sanctity and righteousness : let thy grace
convert and quicken us, that we may rejoice in thee and thy
salvation, in faith of thy promises, m the hope of actual com-
munication of thy mercies to us, and in love to thee for so
great blessings and redemption : and when thou hast spoken
peace unto our souls, and reconciled us to thyself in the
blood of thy Son, give us the grace of perseverance, that we
may never turn again to folly, but may follow mercy and
truth all our clays, and at last be satisfied with thy righteous-
ness and peace eternal ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
156 THE SEVENTEENTH DAY.
THE SEVENTEENTH DAY.
Jftoming Draper.
PSALM LXXXVI.
A Prayer for Sanctity and Preservation.
O LORD GOD, good and gracious, and of great mercy unto
all them that call upon thee, give ear unto our prayers, and
ponder the voice of our desires, whenever we call upon thee
in our trouble. Let the souls of thy servants be refreshed
with thy comforts, and defended from the congregations of
proud and naughty men. Turn thee unto us with mercy,
give thy strength unto us, teach us thy laws, make us to
walk in thy truth, give us the fear of thy name, and knit our
hearts unto thee with the indissoluble bands of charity and
obedience ; that our souls being saved from the nethermost
hell, we may worship thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name,
who art full of compassion and mercy, long-suffering, and
plenteous in goodness and truth, which thou hast manifested
to us in our deliverance and redemption ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM LXXXVII.
A Contemplation of the Excellences of Sion, or the celestial
Jerusalem.
O Lord God, who dwellest in Sion, and delightest to have
thy habitation in the hearts of men : thou hast built the
Church as a city upon a hill, and laid the foundation of it
upon the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ being the chief
corner-stone : make us to be a spiritual building fit for thy
habitation, and a residence for thy Holy Spirit, grounding us
in faith, building us up in hope, and perfecting us in charity;
that we, being joined in the communion of saints, in the union
of the holy catholic Church militant on earth, may all partake
of the blessings of thy Church triumphant in the city of thee
our God, in the celestial Jerusalem, where thou livest and
reignest ever one God, world without end. Amen.
THE SEVENTEENTH DAY. 157
PSALM LXXXVIII.
A Prayer in Time of Sickness and Danger of Death.
O Lord God of our salvation, who for our sakes wert
wounded, and didst die and lie in the grave, but yet alone of
all that ever died, wert free among the dead, and by thine own
power didst rise again with victory and triumph, have mercy
upon thy servant, for thine indignation lieth hard upon me,
and thou hast vexed me with all thy storms. My soul is full
of trouble by reason of my sins, and my life draweth nigh
unto the grave : restore me unto thy favour, and let me not
go down into the dark, nor my life into the place where all
things are forgotten ; but let me shew forth thy loving-kind-
ness amongst thy redeemed ones in the land of the living :
for the living, the living, he shall praise thee, and confess
the holiness and the mercies of thy holy name. O hide not
thou thy face from me, but give me health of body, and re-
store and preserve me in the life of righteousness ; and so
bless me with opportunities of doing thee service, that I may
redeem the time past, and by thy grace may grow rich in
good w*orks, always abounding in the work of the Lord ; that
when thou shalt demand my soul to be rendered up into thy
hands, my soul may not be abhorred of thee, nor suffer thy
terrors, but may feel an eternity of blessings in the resur-
rection of the just ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
35benmg Draper.
PSALM LXXXIX.
A Prayer for the King in Time of Wars or any public
Calamity.'
O LORD GOD of hosts, thou art greatly to be feared in the
council of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all the
world. Let thy strong hand and thy mighty arm bless and
preserve thine anointed the king : as thou hast exalted thy
chosen from among the people, so let the greatness of thy
blessings and assistances distinguish him from all the world :
make his throne as the days of heaven, smite down his
158 THE EIGHTEENTH DAY.
enemies before his face, let thy hand hold him fast, that the
enemy may not be able to do him violence, and let thine arm
strengthen him, that the sons of wickedness may not hurt
him. O do thou never put his glory out, nor cover him with
dishonour, but give him victory in battles, honour and re-
joicing in time of peace, confidence in thee, reverence
amongst his people, and continual defence in thy salvation ;
that when thou hast finished his days in peace and honour,
his seed may be established in his throne, and endure for
ever, like as the sun before thee. Grant this, O King of
kings, for his sake, to whom thou hast given all power and
dominion in heaven and earth, even our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE EIGHTEENTH DAY.
PSALM XC.
A Meditation of Death, and a Prayer preparatory to it.
O ETERNAL GOD, whose being was before the mountains
were brought forth, before the earth and the world were
made, even from everlasting, and world without end, have
mercy upon us weak and impotent people, the children of
men, who fade away suddenly like the grass : remove our
misdeeds from before thee, and our secret sins from the sight
of thy countenance : be not angry with us, neither consume
us in thy displeasure : teach us to number all the days of our
life, and to reckon on still till the day of death ; that when
our days are gone, and our years are brought to an end like
a tale that is told, thou mayest turn unto us at the last, and
be gracious unto us in the pardon of our sins, in restraining
the power and malice of all our ghostly enemies, in giving us
opportunity of all spiritual assistances and advantages ; that
our lamps being trimmed and burning bright with charity
and devotion, we may enter into the bridechamber, there for
ever to behold the glorious majesty of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE EIGHTEENTH DAY. 159
PSALM XCI.
A Prayer for Protection in all Dangers.
O Lord God, our hope and our stronghold, have mercy
upon us, and defend us under the shadow of thy wings, that
we, trusting under thy defence, may, by thy faithfulness and
truth, be covered as with a shield and buckler. Give thy
angels charge concerning us and our habitations, that we
may be preserved and kept in all our ways, that no evil
happen unto us, no plague come nigh our dwelling, no
terrors of the night, no arrows of thy vengeance by day, may
disturb our peace or safety. Let thy ministering spirits bear
us in their hands, and keep us from precipice, from fracture
of bones, from dislocations, noisome or sharp diseases, stu-
pidities and deformities, that we may tread under our feet all
the snares of the roaring lion and the great dragon the devil,
who seeks our bodily and ghostly hurt. Do thou set thy
love upon us, and deliver us from all our troubles ; and at
the end of our days shew us thy salvation, and satisfy us
with long life, even of a blessed eternity in thy kingdom ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XCII.
A Meditation of the great Works of God in the Destruction
of the Wicked, and the Preservation of the Godly.
O Lord God, thou art the Most Highest for evermore ; thy
works are glorious, and thy thoughts are very deep : make
our hearts and tongues loud instruments of thy praises, that
we may tell of thy mercy in the morning; of thy truth, in
the night ; and that we may rejoice in giving thee thanks
for the operations of thy hands all the days and nights of
our life. Let thy merciful kindness descend evermore upon
the righteous, that they may flourish like a palm-tree, being
continually watered with the dew of temporal and spiritual
blessings, and may bring forth fruits of a holy conversation.
And grant that we thy servants being planted in the house
of God, and firmly fixed in the blessed communion of saints,
may flourish in the courts of thy house, thy celestial temple,
to all eternity. O let not our portion be amongst the
160 THE EIGHTEENTH DAY.
ungodly and unrighteous : make us not to communicate in
their wickedness, so much as by consent or approbation, that
we may never perish and be destroyed in the furiousness of
thine anger, which thou treasurest up against the day of
vengeance and righteous judgment, even the day of the
appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
lEbmtng Draper.
PSALM XCIII.
A Prayer that God would preserve his Church against the
Storms and Floods of Persecution.
O LORD our King, who art girded with strength, and hast
prepared thy seat from everlasting, establish thy testimonies
in our hearts as a sure foundation of temporal and eternal
happiness. Preserve thy house, the holy catholic Church, in
peace and holiness, which is its defence and ornament : and
although the floods of persecution and secular disadvantages
have lift up their waves to overthrow it ; yet because it is
built upon a rock, the rock Christ Jesus, make it to stand
firm and sure against all the malice of hell and earth, and all
the powers of them both; for thou, O Lord, art mightier
than all the waves and storms of her enemies. To thee,
O Lord, who dwellest on high, and art mightier, be all
honour and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
PSALM XCIV.
A Prayer for Patience, Comfort, and Assistance to the Godly,
and that God would disappoint the Designs of the
Wicked.
O Lord God, Judge of the world, to whom vengeance
belongeth, and the execution of righteous judgments ; have
mercy upon us, chasten us with thy gentleness and fatherly
correction when we sin against thee, teach us thy law, be
our refuge and our confidence in our troubles, and give us
patience in times of adversity ; that, in the multitude of sor-
rows, thy comforts may refresh us, thy mercies may relieve
us, thy grace may pardon and confirm us, that our feet slip
not, and our souls be not put to silence. Have pity upon all
THE NINETEENTH DAY. 161
distressed and miserable people : do justice upon all that
murder the widow, that put the fatherless to death, that
grind the face of the poor. Fail not thy people, O Lord,
and forsake not thine inheritance ; but destroy the devices
of all them that imagine mischief as a law, and are confede-
rate against the righteous, to condemn the innocent, to dis-
countenance religion, to disadvantage thy worship and
service : that in the day of eternal vengeance, when thou
shalt reward the proud after their deserving, and the pit be
digged for the ungodly, we may have the lot of thine inhe-
ritance, and reign in the fellowship of saints, who give
honour and praise to thee, O Lord God Almighty, world
without end. Amen."
THE NINETEENTH DAY.
Jftlorm'ng Draper,
PSALM XCV.
A Hymn invitatory to the Worship of God, and a Prayer for
Obedience to his Will.
O GREAT GOD, the Lord our Maker, who art a King above
all gods, give us the graces of humility arid holy religion,
that we may worthily praise and worship thy glories and
perfections infinite. We are the people of thy pasture ; let
thy mercies lead us, and feed and refresh our souls with
the Divine nutriment of thy word and sacraments. We are
the sheep of thy hands : do thou guide us, that we may never
go astray : or if we do, bring us home into the sheepfold of our
great Shepherd, that we, hearing his voice, may not harden
our hearts, neither tempting thy mercies, nor provoking thy
wrath ; that our hearts being preserved from error, and our
ways from obliquity and crookedness, we may at last enter
into thy eternal rest, through the merits and guidance of our
great Shepherd Jesus Christ, our Mediator and Redeemer.
Amen.
PSALM XCVI.
A Hymn of Adoration, and Magnifying the Glories of God.
O Lord God, in whose sanctuary is power and honour,
VOL. xv. M
162 THE NINETEENTH DAY.
before whose presence is glory and worship, fill our lips and
souls with great devotion and reverence towards thee our
God ; make us to love thy goodness, to adore thy omnipo-
tence, to reverence thy justice, to fear thy majesty, to admire
and tremble at thy omniscience and omnipresence, and to
contemplate, with the greatest zeal and affections, all those
glories which thou cominunicatest to the sons of men, in the
revelations of thy Gospel, of thy creatures, and of thy mira-
cles ; that we may tell of thy greatness, and declare thy
salvation from day to day ; and when thou comest with
righteousness to judge the earth, and all people with thy
truth, we may rejoice in thee everlastingly, and sing an
eternal hallelujah to thee in thy sanctuary. Grant this for
Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only Saviour. Amen.
PSALM XCVII.
A Meditation upon the Day of Judgment, and a Prayer for
Mercy and Salvation.
O Lord our King, Lord of the whole earth, have mercy
upon us, and sanctify us with thy grace, that we may hate
every thing that is evil, that we may love thee, give thanks
unto thy name, and rejoice in remembrance of thy holiness ;
that in the day of judgment and great terrors, when thou
shalt sit in thy seat supported with righteousness and judg-
ment, and a fire shall go forth from thy presence, to burn up
thy enemies on every side, thou mayest preserve our souls in
safety from the hand of our enemies, and a light may spring
up unto us to preserve us from eternal darkness and the
want of the light of thy countenance, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
PSALM XCVIII.
A Thanksgiving for the Redemption of Mankind by
Jesus Christ.
O MOST glorious and powerful Jesu, who with thine own
right hand and with thy holy arm hast gotten to thyself, on
THE NINETEENTH DAY. 163
our behalf, the victory over sin, hell, and the grave ; remem-
ber this thy mercy and truth which thou hast promised to all
that believe on thee : give us pardon of our sins sealed unto
us by the testimony of the Holy Spirit and of a good con-
science : and grant that we by thy strength may fight against
our ghostly enemies, and by thy power may overcome them,
that we may rejoice in a holy peace, and sing and give thee
thanks for our victory and our crown. Extend this mercy,
and enlarge the effect of thy great victories to the heathen,
that all the ends of the world may sing a new song unto
thee, and see the salvation of God : that when thou comest
to judge the earth we may all find mercy, and be joyful to-
gether before thee in the festivity of a blessed eternity,
through thy mercies, O blessed Saviour and Redeemer Jesu.
Amen..
PSALM XCIX.
A Prayer for the Virtue of Religion and Devotion in holy
Places.
O great God, and King of heaven and earth, thou that
sittest between the cherubims, unmoved in the centre of
thine own felicity and essential tranquillity, undisturbed in
the great concussions and unquietness of the earth ; give
unto us thy servants venerable and dreadful apprehensions
of the sanctity and perfections of thy name and nature,
which is great, wonderful, and holy. Teach us in all ad-
dresses of our devotion, and in all places appointed for thy
service, by all reverence and holiness of soul and body to
express the greatness of thy power and our weakness, the
majesty of thy glory, and the unworthiness of our persons,
the distance of God and man, of finite and infinite, of Lord
and servant; that the awfulness of thy dread majesty may
check every unreverent gesture and thought in us, and teach
us to make approaches of humility and fear, that we, calling
upon thy name according to our duties, and by the fear of
thee being taught to keep thy testimonies and never to
forget the law thou givest us, may be delivered from thy
wrath and punishment, and at last praise thee upon thy holy
hill in thine everlasting habitation; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
164; THE NINETEENTH DAY.
PSALM C.
A Psalm of Praise to God for his Mercy and Truth.
O Lord our God, who hast created us out of nothing,
and hast redeemed us from misery and death when we were
thine enemies; shewing great expresses of thy loving-kind-
ness, when we were vessels of wrath and inheritors of perdi-
tion; revealing thy truth unto us in the sermons of the
Gospel ; teach us to walk as thou hast commanded us, to
believe as thou hast taught us, that we may inherit what
thou hast promised us : for thou art the way, the truth, and
the life. We are thy people, and the sheep of thy pasture;
thou art our guide and our defence : let thy grace teach us
to serve thee, and thy Holy Spirit assist and promote our
endeavours with the blessings of gladness and cheerfulness
of spirit, that we may love to speak good of thy name, and
at last may go into the courts of thy temple with praise and
a song in our mouths, to thy honour and eternal glory,
whose mercy and truth is everlasting, and revealed unto the
Church in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM CI.
A Prayer for a holy Life.
O Lord God of eternal purity, who art of pure eyes, and
canst behold no unrighteousness or impurity, enlighten our
understandings, that we may have knowledge in the way of
godliness ; make our paths straight and our hearts perfect ;
take from us the sins of unfaithfulness, correct and mortify
in us all froward and peevish dispositions ; let us love the
society of the saints, and hate the fellowship of the wicked,
that we may not be destroyed with the ungodly, nor be
rooted out from the city of the Lord, and banished from
the sweetness of thy presence ; for with thee is light, and
health, and salvation : to thy name be all honour, and glory,
and praise ascribed, world without end. Amen.
THE TWENTIETH DAY. 165
THE TWENTIETH DAY.
.Plorm'ng
PSALM CII.
A Prayer for Comfort in Sadness, Anxiety of Spirit, Sick-
ness, or any other Affliction.
O ETERNAL GOD, who endurest for ever, and thy remem-
brance throughout all generations, have pity upon us ac-
cording to the infinite treasures of thy loving-kindness ; hear
the voice of our groaning, for thy indignation and thy wrath
lieth hard upon us, and our sins have put an edge upon thy
sword, and a thorn into our wounded consciences. O build
up the ruins of our souls, repair the breaches of our comforts
and our hopes, and let thy glory now appear, for that shines
brightest in the beams of thy mercy, and when thou turnest
unto the prayer of poor wretched destitutes, it becomes an
eternal monument and a record of thy honour, and all gene-
rations which shall be born shall praise thee. Look down,
O Lord, from thy sanctuary ; hear the mournings of us and
of all distressed people ; send us health and life so long as it
may be a blessing ; and do not shorten our days in wrath :
but give us grace so to spend all our time in the works of
repentance and holiness, that when our years fail, and our
change is come, we may be translated to the new heavens,
which shall never perish nor wax old, there to continue and
stand fast in thy sight for ever ; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
PSALM GUI.
A Thanksgiving to God for all his'Benefits and Mercies.
O most merciful God, whose mercy is as high as the
heavens, as great and many as the moments of eternity ; thou
hast opened thy hand wide to fill us with blessings, and the
sweet effects of thy loving-kindness ; thou art pitiful as a
father, tender as a mother, careful as a guardian, and exceed-
ing merciful to all them that fear thee : we pray thee to fill
our souls with great apprehensions and impresses of thy
unspeakable mercies, that our thankfulness may be as great
166 THE TWENTIETH DAY.
as our needs of mercy are : and let thy merciful loving-kind-
ness endure for ever and ever upon us all. Keep no anger
in store for us, chide us not in thy displeasure, satisfy our
mouths with good things, remove all our sins from us as far
as the east is from the west, heal all our infirmities, and save
our lives from destruction ; for these are mercies thou
delightest in : and because we cannot praise thee according
to thy excellences, take our souls, in thy due time, into the
land of everlasting praises, that we may spend a whole
eternity in ascribing to thy name praise, and honour, and
dominion. Grant this for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord
and only Saviour. Amen.
PSALM CIV.
A Contemplation of the Wisdom and Goodness of God
manifested in his Creatures.
O LORD GOD, who art exceeding glorious, who art clothed
with majesty and honour, thou hast created all things with
admirable wisdom, established them with excellent order,
and hast provided for them with mercy and singular provi-
dence ; be pleased to give us grace that we may remember
thou hast created us all for thy glory, that thou hast planted
thine image on us, and hast crowned all our years with thy
mercies and loving-kindness ; let us never disobey thy will,
forget thy mercies, or deface thine image in us ; but when
all thy creatures praise thee in their manner, let not us, whom
thou hast made in dignity next to angels, disturb the blessed
order of creation by our sins and irregular disobedience.
Open thy hand, O Lord, and fill us with good things, both
spiritual and temporal ; that when thou takest away our
breath that we die, and turn again to our dust, thou mayest
not hide thy face away from us, but communicate to us the
light of thy countenance, and the glories of thy kingdom,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE TWENTY-FIRST DAY. 167
THE TWENTY-FIRST DAY.
Jfflorning Draper.
PSALM CV.
A Commemoration of God's Care of his Church, and
Blessings to his People.
O LORD GOD, who art alway mindful of thy covenant and
promise to a thousand generations, and didst deliver the
seed of Abraham, the children of Jacob thy chosen, from the
slavery of Egypt, from the waves of the sea, from the rage of
Pharaoh, from the thirst and famine of the wilderness, con-
tinue the like mercies to all Christian people ; deliver us
from the bondage of our sins, preserve us in the ark of the
Church, that we perish not in the waves of this troublesome
world : save us from the fury of all our temporal and ghostly
enemies, feed us from heaven, and give us a competence of
good things on earth, that we may keep thy statutes, and
observe thy laws, and at last receive the promises of a blessed
eternity, which, in the covenant of thy Gospel, thou hast
made unto all that believe in thee, and are obedient to thy
word. Grant this, O blessed Jesu, to whom, with the
Father and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and glory, world
without end. Amen.
PSALM CVI.
A Commemoration of God's frequent Pardons and Mercies
to the Penitent.
O LORD GOD, full of mercy and pity, who didst many times
deliver thy people from their adversity, when thou, for their
rebelling against thee with their inventions, hadst given them
into the hands of the heathen ; remember us, O Lord,
according to the favour thou bearest unto thy people, and
visit us with thy salvation ; and though we have done amiss,
and dealt wickedly against thee and against thy covenant,
yet be pleased to help us for thy name's sake, and make thy
186 THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY.
power to be known in the mighty deliverance and redemp-
tion of us from so great danger and misery. Give us grace
to believe thy words, to abide thy counsels, to walk in thy
laws, to relinquish our own sinful and vain desires, to obey
our governors, ecclesiastical and civil ; that we may not have
the lot of Dathan and Abiram, but at last may receive our
portion in the felicity of thy chosen, giving thee thanks with
thine inheritance, for that thou hast turned from us thy
wrathful indignation, pitying us and saving us according to
the multitude of thy mercies. Thy name be blessed, O Lord
God, everlastingly and world without end, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY.
PSALM CVII.
A Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Miseries and Danger.
O LORD GOD, gracious and good, whose mercy endureth for
ever, have mercy upon us when in our trouble we cry unto
thee ; for when our hearts are brought down through heavi-
ness, there is none to help us up, or to deliver us out of our
distress, but only thou, O Lord. We have sinned, we have
rebelled against thee, and lightly regarded thy counsels ; we
have walked and sat in darkness and in the shadows of death,
being fast bound in the captivity and misery of sin. O bring
us out of darkness, and break our bonds asunder ; guide us
through the desert of this world, in which grows nothing
but sadness and discontent ; still the tempests, and smooth
the floods of misery, which are ready to overwhelm us ; and
in thy due time bring us to eternal rest, and to the haven
where we would fain be ; that in the congregation of thy
holy people we may praise thee for thy goodness, and
declare the wonders thou hast done for us, in delivering us
from sin, and misery, and death, and bringing us to a city
to dwell in, where there is life, and light, and joy eternal,
in the beholding the face of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. Amen.
THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY. 169
lEbenmg
PSALM CVIII.
A Prayer for Victory against our Enemies.
O LORD GOD, whose mercy is greater than the heavens, and
thy glory is above all the earth, be thou exalted in thine own
strength, and magnify thy power and thy mercy, in defending
us, and all thy holy Church, against all our enemies, temporal
and spiritual. Forsake us not, O God our defence, for vain
is the help of man : do thou strengthen us, and go forth
with our hosts to battle ; that we, being defended and armed
by thee, may do acts great and good, fighting thy battles,
and putting our confidence in thy righteousness only, and
thy salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CIX.
A Prayer against God's Enemies, and especially Traitors,
prophetically intended against the Person of Judas.
O God of our praise, who wast contented that thy Son
Jesus Christ should be betrayed into the hands of sinners by
one of his own apostles, the traitor Judas, and in punishment
of so great impiety didst suffer Satan to stand at his right
hand, tempting him to despair, and to give sentence upon
himself to condemn himself, and to execute his own judg-
ment, and gavest his bishopric to another ; let thy righteous
judgments find out all those that are traitors to their prince,
enemies to the Church, apostates from religion, hypocrites
under specious pretences and beauteous titles ; that they
may be clothed with shame, and may cover themselves with
their own confusion, as with a cloak ; that, by thy punish-
ments in this life, they may be driven to a sharp and salutary
repentance, and may be saved in the life to come. Deal thou
with us, O Lord, according to thy mercy ; take away the
curse, and let not thy blessing be far from us ; let not our
wickedness, nor the wickedness of our fathers, be had in
remembrance in thy sight; let our minds be alway to do
good, and our hearts and lips be given unto prayer, and our
prayers so guided by thy assistances, that they be not turned
170 THE TWENTY-THIRD DAY.
into sin ; that when we go hence, like the shadow that de-
parteth, and are driven away like the grashopper, when the
days of our vanity and rejoicing are past, we may stand at
thy right hand, and our souls be saved from the lot and
portion of the unrighteous ; through the righteousness and
passion of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE TWENTY-THIRD DAY.
.Plornmcj Draper.
PSALM CX.
A Hymn in the Honour of Christ's Kingdom, and Priesthood,
and Exaltation.
O ETERNAL GOD, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
when thy Son had drunk of the brook in the way to the
grave, and to our redemption (beginning his passion by the
brook Cedron, and tasting the waters of bitterness till he had
drunk off the whole chalice of thy wrath upon the cross),
didst lift up his head, and set him at thy right hand, till thou
shalt make all his enemies his footstool ; fill pur hearts with
his love and praises, that we may pay him the offerings of
our souls and bodies in a holy worship, and joyful thanks-
giving for all the parts and mysteries of our redemption ; for
his birth in the womb of his holy mother, pure and virginal
like the morning dew ; for his death and passion ; and for his
continual mediation and intercession, by which he doth
officiate in his eternal priesthood, which is after the order of
Melchisedeck. Remember us, blessed Jesu, in the day of
thy power, when thou shalt come to judge the world, and
the places filled with dead bodies shall give up their dead ;
that we may sit at thy right hand to magnify and behold the
glories of thy kingdom for ever and ever. Amen.
PSALM CXI.
An Eucharistical Hymn for the Benefits of the Holy Gospel,
particularly of the Blessed Sacrament.
O blessed Jesu, whose righteousness endureth for ever,
thy work is worthy to be praised and had in honour, for that
THE TWENTY-THIRD DAY. 171
thou hast been merciful and gracious to us, and hast given
meat, even the food of the blessed sacrament, unto them that
fear thee, that by the participation of thy holy communion
we should have thee in remembrance, and ever be mindful
of thy covenant : plant thy fear in our hearts, give us wisdom
and good understanding, and make us to have pleasure in
thee, and all thy works ; that we, obeying the precepts of
thy holy Gospel, and performing the conditions of thy
covenant, which thou hast established for ever in truth and
equity, in verity and judgment, we may worthily praise and
adore thy reverend and holy name among the faithful in this
life, and in the congregation of saints in the life to come,
through thy mercies, O blessed Jesu, to whom, with the
Father and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and glory, now
and for ever. Amen.
PSALM CXII.
A Prayer for the Fear of the Lord, for Charity, and the
Blessings of the Righteous.
O Lord God, who art to be feared in the generations of
the world, teach us the fear of thy name, that we may fear
to offend thee, and that, delighting in thy commandments,
we may serve thee, without fear of our enemies, in holiness
and righteousness all our days. Let thy light arise upon
the darkness of our understandings ; let thy mercies and
gentleness cure all thoughts of unmercifulness in us; and
make us charitable, of tender bowels, yearning with pity over
the needs of the poor. Teach us to guide our words with
discretion, make us never to be moved from our purposes of
holy living, stablish our hearts in thy love, that in the day
of restitution of all things, thou mayest give us the portion of
the charitable, the rewards of thy right hand ; and when the
wicked shall gnash with their teeth, and consume away in a
sad eternity, we may be satisfied with the riches and plen-
teousness of thy house for ever ; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
172 THE TWENTY-THIRD DAY.
PSALM CXIII.
A Thanksgiving to God for his Acts of Providence, and
particular Care over the Poor and Humble.
O Lord God, whose dwelling is on high, and yet thou
humblest thyself to behold the things that are in heaven and
earth, have mercy upon us thy humble servants, and lift us
up from the gates of death ; take us out of the mire, that we
sink not into the bottomless pit of misery and infelicity :
and when for our sins thou humblest us as low as the dust,
let thy mercy exalt us, and restore us to the light of thy
countenance and the joy of thy salvation ; that when thou
shalt call all the world to judgment from the rising of the
sun to the going down thereof, we may be set with the
princes of thy people, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in
thine eternal kingdom, to sing praises to thy name from this
time forth for evermore. Amen.
IBbem'ng Draper.
PSALM CXIV.
A Thanksgiving to God for the Deliverance of his People
from Bondage and Misery.
O LORD GOD, at whose presence the earth trembles, who
workest salvation and deliverance for thy Church in all ages,
and didst deliver thy people from the bondage of Egypt with
a mighty hand and an arm stretched out in miraculous effects ;
deliver us from the bondage of sin, from the tyranny of the
devil, from the empire and dominion of the flesh : that our
bodies and souls being mortified, our flesh brought under
subjection of the Spirit, our appetites made subordinate to
reason, and our souls wholly comformable to thy will, our
hard stony hearts may be converted into hearts of flesh, and
into a springing well bringing forth the waters of repentance,
and fruits springing up to life eternal ; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY. 173
PSALM CXV.
A Prayer against Idolatry, and for Confidence in the
true God.
O Lord God Omnipotent, whose seat is in heaven, and
thou hast done whatsoever pleased thee in heaven and earth,
give us thy grace, that in all our troubles we may make thee
our succour and defence, and put our trust in thee only ;
that we, receiving thy mercies and the satisfaction of all
our hopes from thy plenteousness and loving-kindness, may
give praise unto thy name, never ascribing to ourselves any
honour, or the glory and thanks of any good action or pro-
sperous success, but to thee, who art the Author and Giver of
all good things. Preserve us from all dangers of idolatry,
from worshipping or loving any vain imaginations, and
making any thing to be our confidence besides thee, our
God ; that so thou mayest be mindful of us, and bless us in
all our ways, and when we die and go down into silence, we
may have our portion amongst the blessed of the Lord, in
the inheritance of thy kingdom, through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY.
Jfltornmg ^rajw.
PSALM CXVI.
An Act of Love and Thanksgiving to God for Deliverance
from Sin and Death.
O LORD GOD of eternal mercies,' gracious and righteous,
give unto us hearts filled with love and praise to thy holy
name ; for thou hearest our prayers, thou breakest asunder
the bonds of our sins, thou deliverest our souls from trouble
and heaviness, and snatchest us from the snares of death,
and savest us from the pains of hell. O merciful God, let
our souls rest in thee, and be satisfied in the pleasures of thy
mercy, that we may receive the cup of blessing and salvation,
174 THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY.
and celebrate the eucharist in honour of thy name, and in
remembrance of thy infinite benefits which thou hast done
unto us, and at last may pay our great Hallelujah to the Lord
in the courts of the Lord's house, in the midst of the celestial
Jerusalem, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXVII.
An Invitation to all People to praise God's Mercy and Truth.
O blessed Jesu, who art not only the glory of thy people
Israel, but the light of the Gentiles, let thy merciful kindness
be ever more and more towards the sons of men ; that the
nations which have not known thee, may hear thy truth, and
feel thy mercies, and call upon thy name, and thy grace may
be confirmed upon us, till we receive the fulness and perfec-
tion of thy graces, in the full fruition of the glories of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
PSALM CXVIII.
A Psalm of Thanksgiving for the Mercies and Salvation
which are given us in Jesus Christ.
O most gracious Lord, our strength and our song, thou
art become our salvation, and thy mercy endureth for ever :
be thou on our side, take part with them that help us, let the
voice of joy and health be in our dwellings, and when thou
chastenest and correctest us for our sins, give us not over
unto death, but fix our faith and hopes upon the head stone
in the corner, even our Lord Jesus Christ ; that in all the
assaults made against us by our ghostly enemies, the right
hand of the Lord may have the pre-eminence, and bring
mighty things to pass, even victory and deliverance unto thy
servants ; that we, putting no confidence in the best of men,
may trust in thee, O Lord, till at last, when thou openest
the everlasting gates of righteousness, we may enter in and
give thee thanks and praise ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY. 175
PSALM CXIX.
A Prayer for Religion, Zeal, Love of the Law of God,
and Meditation in it.
O BLESSED Lord God, whose words are light and life to the
obedient and believing soul, let thy grace so purify our hearts
and actions, that we may be undefiled in thy way, keeping
thy testimonies, and seeking thee with our whole heart ; that
our ways being made direct without wandering into by-paths,
we may go into our country, the land of eternal and glorious
promises ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
Grant, O Lord, that our affections and endeavours be not
divided between thee and the world, but that we may seek
thee with our whole heart, cleansing our ways from all im-
purity, giving to thy service our youth and more perfect age,
even all our days, and all our powers; taking more delight in
the way of thy testimonies than in all manner of riches and
fading pleasures ; that we, delighting in thee, and the ways
that lead to thee, may be beloved of thee with an eternal
love ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
III.
O Lord God, our Father and our Guardian, we are
strangers upon the earth, far removed from our country, and'
we are in darkness and walk in the shadow of death ; let not
this darkness seize upon our souls, hide not thy command-
ments from us, but open our eyes with the light of thy Holy
Spirit, that we may see the wondrous things of thy law, and
admire thy glories, and adore thy might, and obey all thy
righteous precepts : and although all our hearts be already
enkindled with the love of thy law, yet make our desires to
serve thee more fervent, that our lukewarmness may arise up
to the flames and ardours of a cherubim ; that while we are
busied in thy statutes, making them our delight and our
counsellors, shame and rebuke may always be turned from
us, and we ever rejoice with hope and confidence in thee ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 76 THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY.
IV.
We have chosen the way of thy truth, O Lord, and laid
thy judgments before us ; and yet, through our infirmities
and the disadvantages of the flesh, we are in heaviness, and
drive on slowly, like Pharaoh's chariots with the wheels off;
our souls and our desires cleave unto the dust and to things
below, and we are not active in thy services. O quicken us
according to thy word, refresh our weariness, comfort our
sadness, take from us the way of lying and vanity, set our
hearts at liberty from the bondage of sin, from the fetters of
temptation, from the encumbrances of the world ; and then
we shall run the way of thy commandments, never ceasing
to run till we arrive at the land of eternal rest and righteous-
ness, where thou livest and reignest world without end.
Amen.
THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY.
Jftoming $rager.
V.
O LORD GOD, who art of infinite sanctity, and hast given us
thy law/that we, walking in so Divine a rule, may imitate the
perfection of thy holiness ; make us to go all our days in the
paths of thy commandments : take from us all greedy and
inordinate appetite of the creature; let not our hearts be
inclined to covetousness, nor our eyes wander after vanity :
but grant that we, being established in thy law, and walking
in thy fear, may persevere in the ways of righteousness,
keeping the way of thy statutes even unto the end ; that the
rebuke which for our sins we may justly fear, may, by thy
mercies and pardon, be taken away from us, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
VI.
Let thy loving mercy come unto us, O Lord, and thy
salvation ; for thou always keepest promise, and never dis-
appointest the hopes of them that trust in thee. Give us
confidence and boldness in thee, that we may never fear or
THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY. 177
blush to confess thee before men, but may speak of thy
testimonies even before kings, and may never be ashamed of
thy word, which is the ground of our hope ; but that our
hands may be lift up to perform thy law, and our study,
our love, and our delight may be in it, even for ever and ever ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
VII.
Think upon us, O Lord, in all our desires, in all our fears,
in all our troubles ; let thy law give us comfort, redress, and
satisfaction : that in our trouble we may thence derive com-
fort, in our fears we may there fix our anchor of hope, and
from thence we may get defence against the derisions and
insolences of the proud. And grant that thy grace may
reward thy grace in us, and a further degree of sanctity may
crown the first beginnings : and when by thy assistances we
think upon thy name, and keep thy law, we beg this only,
that our reward may be still to keep thy commandments.
Grant this for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only Saviour.
Amen.
VIII.
O dear God, be thou our portion and the lot of our in-
heritance, and be merciful unto us whenever we make our
humble petition in thy presence, and above all the desires of
our souls let us receive satisfaction in this request : give us
repentance and thy Holy Spirit, that we, calling our own
ways to remembrance, may be truly sorrowful for our past
sins, and may make haste, prolonging not the time, but early
and instantly turn our feet unto thy testimonies ; that we,
being companions of all that fear thee, may be partakers of
all the blessings in the communion of saints, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
IX.
Thou, O Lord, art gracious even in the execution of thy
judgments and displeasure against sinners, and thou sendest
chastisement and correction to us when we go wrong, that
thou mayest chide us into obedience and the blessings of
eternity : let not idleness and sensuality make us remiss in
our duty, nor our own vanity and the sense of thy favour
VOL. xv. N
178 THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY.
make us proud, nor the want of holy discipline make us
impudent and refractory ; but let thy mercies and judgments
learn us thy statutes, and make them dearer to us than
thousands of gold and silver ; that while we make thy
statutes to be our treasure, our heart may be fixed on them
in a continual meditation ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
X.
U LORD our Maker, thy hands have made us and fashioned
us, let thy Holy Spirit regenerate us, and thy grace form us
anew : that the old man being destroyed, the new man may
be produced in righteousness and sanctity : that our hearts
may be sound in thy statutes without hypocrisy and inor-
dinate ends, full of candour and ingenuity ; that thy loving
mercies coming unto us in a full stream, we may live in them,
and be turned unto thee, never to be removed from thy law
and love. Grant this for the love of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
XL
O Lord our Helper, teach us to remember our end, to
consider our years that are past, that we, in consideration
how few the days of thy servants are which are yet to come,
may quicken our industry and affections to thy law ; that by
a double and more active endeavour in the ways of thy com-
mandments, we may redeem the time, and by thy mercy
being delivered from all them that trouble and persecute us,
we may be refreshed in thy eternal comforts, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
XII.
O Lord our Guide, thou hast laid the foundation of the
earth sure, and it abideth, but thy word endureth for ever in
heaven : and though heaven and earth shall pass away, yet
one tittle of thy word shall never pass in vain and unac-
complished : teach us to obey thee with a regular obedience,
THE TWENTY-SIXTH DAY. 179
that since all the creatures continue according to thine or-
dinance and serve thee, we only may not disobey thee, and
disturb the order of creation by a rebellion of creatures
against their Maker, lest thy wrath arise upon us, and we
perish in our trouble. Have mercy upon us, and deliver us
from thy wrath ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
XIII.
O Lord our Governor, who art the Fountain of all wisdom
and understanding, and hast commanded that all that lack
wisdom should ask it of thee, who givest liberally ; make us
wise and understanding in the observation of thy command-
ments, that we may refrain our feet from every evil way, and
never shrink from thy judgments, but may delight and study
in all the expresses of thy will, which thou hast revealed to
us by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE TWENTY-SIXTH DAY.
XIV.
O SUN of Righteousness, that earnest to bring light unto the
world by thy word, and example, and illumination of thy
Holy Spirit; let thy Spirit lead us, thy example guide us,
thy word teach us j that we may not love darkness more
than light, but may keep thy righteous judgments according
to our many purposes and our vow of baptism. Keep us
from the snare of the ungodly, and from our ownselves, the
dangers of our own concupiscence, and the miseries of our
infirmity : leave not our souls in our own hands, but keep
them under thy protection and government, lest we swerve
from thy commandments ; but that applying our hearts
always to fulfil thy statutes even unto the end, we may pos-
sess thy law as our portion and inheritance for ever. Grant
this, O blessed Jesu, for thy promise and for thy mercy's
sake, that we may glorify thee in the unity of the most mys-
terious Trinity, now and for evermore. Amen.
180 THE TWENTY-SIXTH DAY.
XV.
O God of our defence and shield, thou that treadest down
all them that depart from thy law, and puttest away the
ungodly of the earth like dross, let thy mercies hold us up,
that we may he safe from sin and death eternal : make us to
hate all evil things, all evil imaginations ; that we, being
established with a trust in thee, and building our expecta-
tions upon thy mercies and promises, may not be disap-
pointed of our hope, but may live with thee eternally; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
XVI.
O Lord God, thou seest with what miseries and dangers
we are encompassed, our ghostly enemies seek to do us
wrong, and to oppress our souls: give us not over unto
their malice, but arm us against their pride and insolence by
faith in thy word, by hope of thy mercies, and looking for
thy health, and by love unto thy commandments ; that so in
this world, and in the eternal retribution of the saints, thou
mayest deal with thy servants according to thy loving mercy.
Grant this for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only Saviour.
Amen.
XVII.
O just and dear God, shew the light of thy countenance
upon thy servants, and let this light give unto us under-
standing in thy law, that our steps being ordered in thy
word, thou mayest deliver us from the wrongful dealings of
men, and from the malicious enmities of our ghostly adver-
saries ; that by their temptations and our own weakness, we
may never be brought under the dominion of sin and wicked-
ness ; that when thy word goeth forth to call to judgment all
people, quick and dead, thou mayest be merciful unto us, and
save us, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name.
Grant this for the merits and mercies of our dearest Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
XVIII.
O righteous Lord God, whose judgments are true, and
thy testimonies exceeding righteous, enkindle our souls with
THE TWENTY-SIXTH DAY. 181
a zeal to thy laws and service, that the continual remem-
brance of thy commandments may so enable our souls, as to
give a greatness and reputation to us in thy estimation, even
the greatness of humility and obedience, which are more
honourable in thy eyes than all the pomps and vanities of
this world. Grant this for his sake, who, for our sakes,
humbled himself to the form of a servant, and became obe-
dient to the death of the cross, even Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be all honour
and glory now and for ever. Amen.
XIX.
O LORD GOD of eternal mercy and truth, give us hearts fixed
upon thy Divine beauties, and an actual intention in our
prayers, that we may call upon thee with our whole hearts ;
and do thou hear in heaven when we call upon thee : deliver
us from all them that of malice draw nigh to persecute
and afflict us ; be thou also nigh at hand, and nothing can
disturb our safety. Make us to see thee early in the morn-
ing ; let our eyes and our prayers prevent the night-watches,
that we may be safe in our conversation with thee, and our
daily approaches to thy mercy-seat, where thou sittest
attended with cherubims and seraphims, glorious in thyself,
incomprehensible in thy attributes, and infinitely rejoicing in
thy mercies, which thou shewest unto us in our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
XX.
O Lord, thy mercy is great, thy word is true from ever-
lasting, and in the truth of thy word, and in the mercies of
thy promises and loving-kindness, thou lovest to be known
to the sons of men. O give us thy health and salvation,
that our souls being delivered from the heavy pressure of
sin, and quickened in thy word, thou mayest avenge us of
all oar ghostly enemies, and deliver us in thy righteousness
in the day of thy eternal vengeance upon the ungodly,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
182 THE TWENTY- SEVENTH DAY.
XXI.
All our ways, O God, are before thee ; let all our ways
be directed by thee, and teach us to walk as in thy presence.
Make us to hate and abhor lies and vanity : and give us so
much love and so much zeal of thy name and honour, that
we may make it a business to give praises to thee with a
frequent and daily devotion ; that we, standing in awe of thy
word and holy laws, and doing after thy commandments,
our expectations may be satisfied with thy saving health, and
we may at last enjoy the peace which they have that love
thy law, even the peace of a good conscience here, and of a
blessed eternity hereafter, through Jesus Christ our Lord*
Amen.
XXII.
O Lord God, we have gone astray from thy command-
ments, and been like lost sheep ; thou art our Shepherd
and our merciful Guide : O seek thy servants, let thy hand
help us, let thy care and providence reduce us into the way
of thy statutes ; that we being delivered according to thy
own word from thy wrath, and from our corruptions and
irregularities, may at last be satisfied with thy saving health,
and our lips may speak of thy praise in the choir of saints
and angels, singing glorious anthems to all eternity to the
honour of thee, O Lord God eternal, who livest and reignest
world without end. Amen.
THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY.
Jftornfag Draper.
PSALM CXX.
A Prayer to be delivered from false Tongues and Cohabitation
with wicked Persons.
O LORD GOD, who nearest the prayers of them that call
upon thee in their calamities and distresses, have mercy
upon us thy servants, who live in the midst of a crooked and
THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY. 183
perverse generation, whereof we ourselves make too great a
part ; we beseech thee so to order the circumstances and
opportunities of our life, that we may live in the society of
holy people, whose example and conversation may be a
continual incentive to the ways of peace and righteousness ;
and deliver us from a necessity of conversing with turbulent
spirits, angry and unpeaceful dispositions, who, upon all
occasions, make 'themselves ready to battle. Sanctify our
hearts and lips with a burning coal from thy altar, that our
words may be holy and profitable ; and keep us from all
slander and scandal, and the rewards of both, the sharp
arrows of thy vengeance, the hot burning coals of thy
wrath. Grant this for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and
only Saviour. Amen.
PSALM CXXI.
A Prayer for God's Protection over us.
O Lord God, our Keeper, who dwellest upon the eternal
hills, from whence cometh all our help, .let thy mercies and
thy providence watch over us by day and night, that neither
the vanities of the one nor the terrors of the other may dis-
turb our peace or safety. Let not our feet be moved, but be
fixed upon the rock, Christ Jesus ; and so order our goings,
making us to walk in the way of thy commandments, that
thou mayestgo in and out before us, till at last we come into
thy presence to dwell with thee for evermore ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXIL
A Prayer for the Peace and Prosperity of the Church.
O blessed Jesu, who didst descend, according to thy
human nature, from the house of thy servant David, and
hast planted a church, and defended it with a mighty hand
and great assistances ; be pleased to preserve peace within
her walls, and send plenteousness within her palaces ; that
all that love her peace may prosper, and receive the blessings
which thou givest to thy faithful people in the communion of
saints. Take from her all schisms and divisions, that she
may be like a city that is at unity with itself, strong in
184 THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY.
faith, abounding in hope, and rich in the treasure of charity ;
that at last she may be removed to a fellowship of all those
joys and felicities which are laid up for the inhabitants of
the heavenly Jerusalem, which is from above, and is the
mother of us all. Grant this, O blessed Jesu, our only
Mediator and Redeemer. Amen.
PSALM CXXIII.
An Ejaculation, or a Lifting up our Souls to God for Help in
Trouble.
O Lord God, that dwellest in the heavens, have mercy
upon us in all our troubles, in contempt, in our poverty, and
whenever we are oppressed by any injurious practices of the
proud. Thou art our Lord and Master ; we are thy servants ;
our eyes wait upon thee, till thou have mercy upon us : let us
not be ashamed of our hope, nor unfaithful in our services,
nor distrustful of thy providence ; but make us diligent
labourers in our calling, good husbands of our talents, and
faithful in all thy house ; that we, first serving thee, may at
last sit down at meat with thee at thy table in thy kingdom ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXX1V.
A Thanksgiving for our Deliverance from the Power of all
our Enemies, and a confessing God to be the Author of it.
O Lord God, which hast made heaven and earth, in
whose name our help standeth, we praise and bless thy name,
that in our troubles and temptations thou hast stood on our
side, and pleaded for us against them that rose against us.
It was thy hand, O Lord, and the help of thy mercy, that
relieved us : the waters of affliction had drowned us, and the
stream had gone over our soul, if the Spirit of the Lord had
not moved upon the waters. Thou, O Lord, didst blast the
designs of our enemies with the breath of thy displeasure ;
and to thee, O Lord, we ascribe the praise and honour of our
redemption. Perpetuate thy mercies to us ; let us never be
given over as a prey to our ghostly enemies, but break their
snares, discover and weaken all their temptations by which
they would destroy our souls ; that we, being delivered from
THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY. 185
sin, may be preserved from thy wrath, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXV.
A Prayer for Confidence in God, and for Deliverance from
the Portion of the wicked.
O Lord God, our trust and confidence, in whom who-
soever trusteth shall never be removed, but standeth for
ever ; let thy mercies and the guard of holy angels stand
round about us, and about all thy holy people, like the hills,
for our defence and safety, that we may be inaccessible by
all the intendments of our enemies. O let us not put our
hands to wickedness, neither let our portion be in the lot of
the ungodly, whom thou leadest forth to destruction : but
let us receive the blessing which our Lord Jesus left unto his
Ckurch, even the peace of God the Father, of the Son, and of
the Holy Ghost ; to whom be all honour and glory ascribed
of men and angels, now and for ever. Amen.
PSALM CXXVI.
A Contemplation of the Joys and Blessings of them that
depart hence in the Lord.
O LORD GOD, who hast promised salvation to thy people,
and hast done great things for us already, deliver us from
the captivity and bondage of sin and misery. Fill our hearts
with holy sorrrow and compunction, whenever we trespass
against thee; and teach us so to deny ourselves, to mortify
our affections, to crucify our lusts and all the temptations of
the flesh, that we, going on our way mourning and weeping,
despising the pleasures of this life, may, when thy great
harvest shall come, and thy reapers, the angels, shall sepa-
rate the wheat from the tares, come before thee with joy, and
bring our sheaves with us to be laid up in thy granary, that
so we may escape the everlasting burning; through the
mercies of Jesus Christ. Amen.
186 THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY.
PSALM CXXVII.
A Prayer for God's Blessings to go along with the temporal
good Things he gives us.
O Lord our God, without whose blessing all our labours
are vain and unprofitable, and our possessions are but bitter
and unpleasant ; let thy blessing be upon our labours and
our substance, our children and our dwelling, that the good
things of this life may be a heritage and gift from the issues
of thy favour, and an earnest of a greater blessing : make
our souls diligent in thy service, not importunate and greedy
for the increase of riches : let our dwellings be safe and
peaceable, and our families increase in thy blessings ; that
we, feeling the comforts of thy favour here, may be stirred
up to great desires after the blessings of eternity ; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXVIII.
A Prayer for the fear of God, and the Blessings of the Godly.
O Lord God, who hast promised to multiply thy blessings
upon them that fear thee, teach us the fear of the Lord ; and
let thy Spirit so assist us, that we may walk in thy ways with
great observation of all our actions, and much diligence to
perform thy holy will ; that we may receive the blessings of
the righteous, blessings of the right hand and of the left
hand, and may rejoice in the blessing and peace of thy
Church, waiting for the consummation of all blessing and
peace in thy eternal kingdom ; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXIX.
A Prayer against the Enemies of the Church.
O most blessed Jesu, who for our sins didst suffer the
ploughers to plough upon thy back, and make long furrows,
suffering shame and whipping for our sakes, and all the con-
tradictions of sinners, and didst leave sorrows and afflictions
entailed upon thy Church, that by suffering with thee, she
might at last reign with thee in glory : deliver us and all thy
THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY. 187
holy Church from all that fight against us ; hew the snares
of the ungodly in pieces ; let the designs of them that have
evil will at thy Church, be like the grass growing upon the
house-tops, withered and blasted before it comes to maturity;
and make us to prosper under thy mercies, and in the good
wishes and devout prayers of holy people ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXX.
A Penitential Psalm, or a Prayer for Pardon and Redemption
from Sins.
O Lord God, blessed Jesu, with whom is mercy and
plenteous redemption, who didst redeem thy people from all
their sins, paying the ransom of thine own blood to purchase
us freedom and salvation ; let the height of thy mercy take
us up from the deep abyss of sin and misery. O be not
extreme to mark what we have done amiss, for it is im-
possible we should abide the extremity of thy severest judg-
ments. And as thy mercy pardons what is past, so let the
sweetness of it beget thy fear in our hearts, that we may not
dare to offend so gracious, so merciful a God ; but that,
trusting in thy word, and flying unto thee for succour, we
may wait for thee till our change cometh, looking for thee
in holiness and righteousness all our days: grant this for
thy mercies' and compassion sake, O blessed Jesu, our only
Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.
PSALM CXXXI.
A Prayer for the Graces of Humiliation and Mortification.
O Lord God, before whom the humble publican, who
durst not lift up his eyes to heaven, but, with confusion of
face, begged pardon, was justified and acquitted ; give
unto us, thy servants, humility of soul, and modesty in our
behaviour, that our looks be not proud, nor our thoughts
arrogant, nor our designs ambitious : but that our souls
being refrained from all vanity and pride, our affections
weaned from great opinions and love of ourselves, we may
trust in thee, follow the example of our blessed Master, and
receive thy promises, which thou hast made unto us in our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
188 THE TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY.
THE TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY.
PSALM CXXXII.
A Prayer for the Church, for the Promotion of Religion, for
the King, and for the Clergy.
O LORD GOD, who dwellest not in temples made with hands,
and yet hast been pleased to manifest thy presence by special
blessings and assistances in places set apart for thy worship,
be pleased to hear our prayers and accept our services when-
ever we make our addresses to thee in the house of prayer,
and fall down low on our knees before thy footstool : let thy
priests be clothed with righteousness, and let thy saints sing
with joyfulness, and let all those that make their approaches
unto thee, purify their hearts and hands, that they may offer
to thee a pure sacrifice, even the sacrifice of obedience and
holiness, and the expresses of true religion. Bless, O Lord,
thy servant the king, whom thou hast made the patron and
defender of the Church ; make his horn to flourish and be
exalted above all his enemies, and let thy word be as a lantern
for thine anointed, to shew him thy holy will and pleasure ;
that, he seeking thy honour and glory, thy Church may
flourish under the covert of his shield and patronage, her
victuals may be blessed with increase, her poor satisfied with
bread, her priests decked with health, her saints with joy,
and himself with honour, and great renown, and a flourishing
diadem, while his enemies sit clothed in shame and misery.
Grant this, O blessed God, for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord
and only Saviour. Amen.
PSALM CXXXIII.
A Prayer for Unity in the Churchy in a Kingdom, or Family.
O blessed Jesu, in whose garment was variety, but no
rent or seam, have mercy upon thy holy catholic Church and
all Christian kingdoms and families; and so unite all our
hearts and affections by the union of faith and charity, that
we be not torn into factions and schisms, but being anointed
THE TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY. 189
with the precious ointment, even the anointing of thy Spirit
from above, we may keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond
of peace : and grant that this holy ointment may so knit
together the guides of thy Church, the rulers of kingdoms,
the princes of the nations, that the blessings of it may
descend to the skirts of the people, and that thou mayest
bless us with thy graces here, and hereafter give us life for
evermore in the participation of thy glorious kingdom, where
thou livest and reignest, ever one God, world without end.
Amen.
PSALM CXXXIV.
An Invitation to the Clergy to be diligent in singing God's
Praises publicly.
O Lord, Creator and Governor of all the world, thou that
madest heaven and earth, that all should celebrate thy praise
and the glory of thy name ; give great religion and devout
affections to thy ministers, that, by frequent elevation of their
hands and hearts in thy sanctuary in behalf of themselves
and all the people, thy Honour may be exalted among all thy
servants, religion may be advanced, and the love of thy name
increased, and thy blessings may descend upon us in a plen-
tiful proportion, to supply all our necessities ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
%
PSALM CXXXV.
A Prayer that God would avenge his people of their Enemies,
and an Invitation of them to praise his Name.
O Lord God, in whose sight the death of all the saints is
precious, and to whom the souls of the martyrs from under
the altar call to avenge their blood, that is shed like water
upon the earth; be gracious unto* us thy servants ; avenge
all thy people of their enemies : that all that hate and per-
secute thy Church, being either brought to repentance or
confusion, thy name and thy memorial may be celebrated to
all generations, thy kingdom and thy coming may be has-
tened ; that the saints may receive the consummation of their
glories, by resurrection of their bodies, and receiving the
crown of righteousness which thou hast prepared for all that
put their trust in thee ; and that we all standing in the house
190 THE TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY.
of the Lord, even in the courts of the house of our God, for
ever, may praise thy name, which is gracious and lovely, even
for ever and ever. Amen.
mg Draper.
PSALM CXXXVI.
A Prayer of Thanksgiving to God for his eternal Mercies.
O GOD of heaven and Lord of lords, who by thy excellent
wisdom hast made the heavens, and only doest great wonders
in heaven and earth, making all thy creatures to be expresses
of thy power and of thy loving mercy ; let thy mighty hand
and stretched-out arm lead us through the midst of this
world and the throng of all our enemies, giving us food for the
sustenance of our bodies, the light of the Sun of Righteous-
ness to lead us in our goings, and great apprehensions of thy
mercy to excite in us devotion and^true religion; that we,
praising thy mercies, and being relieved and sustained by thy
loving-kindness, may at last come to the land of promise
which thou givest for a heritage to thy people, and may
receive the mercies of thy kingdom, which endure for ever;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXXXVII.
A Prayer for the Redemption of the Church from Captivity
and Persecution.
O Lord our God, thou hast placed us in this world like
pilgrims and strangers far from our country, far from rest ;
give us souls and desires so abstract, so religious and con-
templative, that all our hopes, our joys, and longings, may be
to enjoy thee and thy glories in the celestial Jerusalem : and
let thy comforts refresh us in this our captivity and exile, that
in our heaviness thou mayest be our joy, our songs and me-
lody may be the songs of Sion, the praises of thy name :
that when thou hast delivered us from the wrath and malice
of our enemies, and dashed all their wickedness (which they
have conceived, and would bring forth to our destruction)
THE TWENTY-NINTH DAY. 191
against the rock Christ Jesus, we may be blessed amongst
thy children, and be carried into our country, the land of
glorious promises, there to reign with thee, who livest and
governest all things, world without end. Amen.
PSALM CXXXVIII.
A Prayer and a Thanksgiving for Gods Mercies.
O Lord God, who hast magnified thy name and word
;ibove all things, make good thy loving-kindnesses towards
us, and endue our souls with much strength ; that thine hand
being stretched forth upon the furiousness of all our ghostly
enemies, and we being saved by thy right-hand, may praise
thee and all thy glories, serving thee here with a lowly mind
and a great industry : that at last we may worship thee in
thy holy temple, in the midst of all the myriads of angels,
where thy glory is great and far exalted above all gods.
Grant this for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only Sa-
viour. Amen.
THE TWENTY-NINTH DAY.
jJWormncj ^prager.
PSALM CXXXIX.
A Meditation of the Omnipresence of God, and a Prayer
that we may always walk as in his Sight.
O LORD our God, who art infinite in wisdom, and present in
all places, filling heaven, and earth, and hell, with the effects
of thy mighty power, and communications of thy glorious
essence ; let thy hand lead us, and thy right-hand hold us in
all our ways, always considering that thou art present, under-
standing our thoughts and words even long before they are,
and seeing our most secret ways as clearly as in the sight of
the sun : print thy fear mightily upon our souls, that we may
be as fearful of committing sins in secret, as in the eyes of
all the world : that we, hating all iniquity, and loving thy
counsels as our dearest treasures and guide, may, by the
paths of a holy life, be conducted into the way everlasting;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
192 THE TWENTY-NINTH DAY.
PSALM CXL.
A Prayer for Deliverance from the Mischief of all wicked
Persons.
O Lord God, thou strength of our health, thou that
avengest the poor, and maintainest the cause of the helpless,
deliver us, O Lord, and preserve us from the evil and wicked
man, that neither his example may corrupt us, nor his coun-
sels mislead us, nor his prosperity scandalize us, nor his strife
disquiet us, nor his mischief disturb our safety : but do thou
cover our heads in the day of battle and contestation against
all our bodily and ghostly enemies; that although they hunt
us to overthrow us, yet we may prosper upon earth under
thy favour and protection, and at last, being removed from
all fears, and sadness, and dangers, may continue in thy sight
amongst the congregation of the just for ever ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXLI.
A Prayer for the Virtue of Religion, for Holiness of Life,
and for Deliverance from the Snares of our Enemies.
O Lord, our trust and confidence, haste thee unto us, and
consider our voice, when we call upon thee in our trouble
and necessity ; let our prayers ascend up unto thee as in-
cense, and be as the savour of the evening and morning
sacrifice. We beg of thee nothing but grace and power to
fulfil thy will : let not our hearts be inclined to any evil. Set
a watch, O Lord, before our mouths, and keep the door of
our lips : let us not be busied in ungodly works, that we may
never offend in our thoughts, or words, or actions ; and when
we do amiss, do thou smite us friendly, and reprove us with
the checks of a tender conscience, that thy fatherly correc-
tion may, like precious balm, cure all the wounds made by
our own infirmities; that we, escaping all the snares of
wickedness, may for ever hear and obey thy sweet words, and
our souls may never be cast out of thy presence, but for ever
may rejoice in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE TWENTY-NINTH DAY. J 93
(Bbcnfng
PSALM CXLII.
A Prayer in all Sadness, and in the Hour of Death.
O LORD GOD, thou art our hope, and our portion in the land
of the living ; consider our complaint and misery : thou art
our place to flee unto, thou only art our sanctuary. O hide
us under the covert of thy wings, keep ns from all the
dangers which multiply upon us, when our spirits are in
heaviness, and our bodies pressed with infirmities : be thou
always at our right-hand, and assist us so with the strength
of thy grace, that our temptations and our enemies not being
above our strength derived from thee, our souls may with
confidence go out of prison, and give eternal thanks unto
thy name in the companies of the righteous ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXL1II.
A Prayer that God would pardon our Sins, and direct us in
the Way of Righteousness.
O Lord our Judge and our Redeemer, hearken unto us
for thy truth and righteousness' sake; deliver us from the
guilt of all our sins, and those great punishments which are
due to us for the same. Enter not into judgment with us,
for in thy sight no man can be justified by any worthiness of
his own. Endue our souls with the righteousness of a holy
faith, living and working by charity. Shew us the way that
we should walk in ; teach us to do whatsoever pleaseth thee ;
quicken our souls in the paths of life ; and so continue the
conduct of thy Spirit to us, that if may never leave us, till
we be brought forth of this world into the land of righteous-
ness, to dwell with thee eternally ; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
VOL. xv.
194 THE THIRTIETH DAY.
THE THIRTIETH DAY.
JiTornmg Draper.
PSALM CXLIV.
A Thanksgiving for Victory, and a Prayer for the Blessings
of Peace.
O LORD our strength, our hope and fortress, our castle and
deliverer, our defender in whom we trust ; bow the heavens,
O Lord, come down and save us, send down thy hand from
above, deliver us and take us from the great waters, from
those miseries and afflictions which come upon us by reason
of our sins, and from the condition of mortality, and from the
hand of strange children, whose right-hand is a right-hand of
wickedness. Give us, O Lord, victory and peace, and all
the blessings of thy peace, with which thou usest to adorn
and beautii'y the dwellings of the righteous, that we may be
happy in the continual descent of thy favours ; but above all,
our happiness may consist in being thy people, and thou
being our God, that we may be blessed for ever in so blessed
a relation ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXLV.
A Meditation of the Glory and Majesty of God, and the
Mightiness of his Kingdom.
O God our King, thou art marvellous, worthy to be
praised, and there is no end of thy greatness : give us en-
larged and sanctified hearts and lips, that we may sing of thy
righteousness, and magnify thy glory, thy worship, and won-
drous works. All thy works praise thee, O Lord, and thy
saints give thanks unto thee. Make us holy and righteous
in thy sight ; we are already the works of thine hands : and
then we have a double title to praise thee ; uphold us, O
Lord, that we fall not, and lift us up when we are down.
Give us meat in due season for our souls and for our bodies ;
that we, .being filled with the plenteousness of thy mercies
here, may have our best, and all our desires fulfilled and
satisfied hereafter amongst such as fear thee, and give thanks
unto thy holy name for ever. Grant this for Jesus Christ's
sake; to whom with thee, O Father, and the Holy Spirit, be
all honour and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
THE THIRTIETH DAY. 195
PSALM CXLVI.
A. Prayer that we may trust in God only, and not in an Arm
of Flesh.
O Lord God, who reignest a King for evermore, give us
grace that we may make thee our help, and fix our hopes in
thee, for thou only art able to give deliverance. Feed our
souls, O Lord, and satisfy us with thy salvation, when we
hunger and thirst after righteousness ; help us to right, when
we suffer wrong; heal our backslidings ; raise us when we
are fallen ; enlighten the eyes of our souls, that we walk not
in darkness and the shadow of death ; and do thou take care
for us in all our ways and in all our necessities ; that when
our breath goeth forth, and we turn again to our earth, we
may reign with thee in Sion, thy celestial habitation, for
evermore; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXLVII.
A Celebration of God's Wisdom and Providence in the Mi-
nistration of the 2' kings of this World, and of his Goodness
towards them that fear him.
O LORD GOD, whose power is great, and thy wisdom infinite,
give us broken and contrite hearts, meek spirits, a fear of
thy name, and a trust in thy mercy ; that thou mayest arise
upon us with healing in thy wings, giving us medicine to
heal all our ghostly sicknesses, and thy delight may be in us,
delighting to do us good, to feed us when we call upon thee,
to set us above our enemies, to give us knowledge of thy
laws, to build up Jerusalem, and to repair the breaches of thy
Church, that we may sing praises unto thee, O God, and be
thankful to all eternity ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CXLVIII.
An Invitation of all the Creatures in the World to praise God.
O Lord God, whose name only is excellent, and thy
praise above heaven and earth ; we adore and bless thy
mercy and thy power for creating us after thine own
image; thou spakest the word, and we were made; thou
commandest, and we were created. And as thou hast
196 THE THIRTIETH DAY.
established thy creation with a law for ever, that all should
minister to thy praises in their several proportions ; so give
us grace that the laws of sanctity, of faith and obedience,
which thou hast given to us, may never be broken ; that we,
serving thee not only in the order of thy creatures, but in the
capacity of thy children, may sing thy praises amongst the
angels and the numerous host of saints reigning in thy
kingdom for ever and ever. Amen.
PSALM CXLIX.
A Meditation on the Joys of Heaven -prepared for the Saints.
O Lord our King, in whose honour and salvation all thy
saints rejoice, give unto thy holy Gospel a free passage in all
the world, that kings and nobles may be bound with the
chains of obedience, discipline, and subordination to all thy
holy laws : and grant to us thy servants, that thy laws may
be so fixed in our hearts, and thy praises in our mouths, and
righteousness in all our actions, that we may be written
among the righteous, and have our portion with the saints,
who rejoice in their beds of eternal rest, and are joyful in the
glories of thy kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PSALM CL.
An Invitation to praise God with all our Faculties and Powers.
O eternal God, thy holiness, and power, and excellent
greatness are far above all the praises of man and angels,
and yet thou art pleased in the harmony and consent of a
thankful heart and a thanksgiving tongue ; touch our hearts
with admirable apprehensions of thy Divine perfections, that
our songs of thy honour may be devout and illuminate to
the height of ecstasies, and the devotions of a, seraphim ; for
nothing is proportionable to thy glories, but what is infinitely
beyond our infirmities. Make us to sing thee and thy name
while we have breath ; and when we are breathless, let our
hearts fill up the harmony, and think thy praises so cordially,
till our souls being separated from the harsh sound ofour bodily
organs, we may praise thee when we are all spirit in the state
of separation, and in the reunion when our bodies shall be
made spiritual, singing to thee exalted praises for ever and ever.
To thee, O blessed and glorious God, be praises, and honour,
and glory, ascribed now and to all eternity. Amen, Amen.
DEVOTIONS
THE HELP AND ASSISTANCE
CHRISTIAN PEOPLE
ALL OCCASIONS AND NECESSITIES.
A Prayer against' wandering Thoughts, to be said at the
beginning of our Devotions.
ALMIGHTY GOD, who hast commanded us to pray unto
thee without ceasing, and hast added many glorious promises
for our encouragement, let thy Holy Spirit teach me how to
pray : give me just apprehensions of my want, zeal of thy
glory, great resentment of thy mercies, love of all spiritual
employments that are pleasing unto thee; and do thou help
mine infirmities, that the devil may not abuse my fancy with
illusions, nor distract my mind with cares, nor alienate my
thoughts with impertinencies ; but give me a present mind,
great devotion, a heart fixed upon thy divine beauties, and
an actual intention and perseverance in my prayers, that I
may glorify thy name, do unto thee true and laudable ser-
vice, and obtain relief for all my necessities. Hear me, O
King of heaven, when I call upon thee ; for thou hast pro-
mised mercy to them, that pray in the name of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. Ameu.
J98 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
Penitential Prayers, and a Form of Confession of Sins to God,
to be said upon Days of public or private Humiliation.
O LORD GOD of mercy and pardon, give me a just remem-
brance and sad apprehensions of my sins ; teach me to bewail
them with as great indignation and bitterness, as I have
committed them with complacency and delight. Let my
prayers and my confession come into thy presence, and
obtain a mercy for me and a pardon. Let not thy justice
and severity so remember my sins, as to forget thine own
mercy : and though I have committed that for which I
deserve to be condemned, yet thou canst not lose that glo-
rious attribute, whence flows comfort to us and hopes of
being saved. Spare me, therefore, O merciful God ; for, to
give pardon to a sinner that confesseth his sins, and begs
remission, is not impossible to thy power, nor dispropor-
tionate to thy justice, nor unusual to thy mercy and sweetest
clemency. Blessed Jesu, acknowledge in me whatsoever is
thine ; and cleanse me from whatsoever is amiss. Have pity
on me now in the time of mercy, and condemn me not when
thou comest to judgment : for what profit is there in my
blood ? Thou delightest not in the death of a sinner, but in
his conversion there is joy in heaven ; and when thou hast
delivered me from my sins, and saved my soul, I shall praise
and magnify thy name to all eternity. Mercy, sweet Jesu,
mercy.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
I am not worthy, O Lord, to look up to heaven, which is
the throne of thy purity ; for my sins are more in number
than the hairs upon my head, and my heart hath failed me.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have not lived according to thy will, but in the vanity of
mine own thoughts, in idle, sinful, and impertinent language,
in foolish actions, in blindness of heart, in contempt of thy
holy word and commandments ; I have not loved thee, my
God, with all my heart, nor feared thee with all my soul, nor
served thee with all my might, according to thy holy precept,
nor loved my neighbour as myself.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 199
I have been unthankful to thy Divine Majesty, forgetting
that thou madest me and preservest me ; to thy Son my
blessed Saviour, forgetting the bitter pains he suffered for
me ; and to the Holy Ghost, forgetting how many gracious
influences I have received from him for my help, comfort,
and promotion in the ways of holy religion : but have re-
belled against thee my Maker, have sold myself to work
wickedness, from whence, by the passion of thy holy Son, I
was redeemed, and have resisted the Holy Ghost.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have offended thee, my God, in an inordinate estimation
of myself, in vain complacencies and desires to be esteemed
as much or more than others ; in not suffering with meek-
ness, indifference, and obedience, the humiliations sent to
me by thy Divine providence ; in haughty deportment to-
ward my superiors, equals, and inferiors; and in accepting
such honours as have been done to me, without returning
them to thee the fountain.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have offended thee, my God, in impatience, in anger,
intemperate in degree, inordinate in the object, growing
peevish and disquieted by trifling inadvertencies of others;
and slight accidents about me.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have offended thee, my God, by being envious at the
prosperous successes and advantages of my neighbours, and
have had resentments of joy at their displeasures and sadnesses.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have been negligent in performance of my charge, idle
in doing my duties, soft and effeminate in my life, indevout
in my prayers, slothful in the exercises of religion, weary of
their length, displeased at their return, without advertency
in the execution of them, and glad at an occasion of their
pretermission.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have been diligent and curious in pleasing my appetite
of meat and drink, and pleasures, losing my time, pampering
my flesh, quenching the Spirit, making matter both for sin and
sicknesses, and have not been sedulous in mortifying my body
for the subduing mine own intemperances and inordination.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have been an improvident steward of the good things
200 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
them hast given me ; I have loved them inordinately, sought
them greedily and unjustly, dispensed them idly, and parted
with them unwillingly : I have not been so charitable to the
poor, or so pitiful to the afflicted, or so compassionate to the
sick, or so apt to succour and give supply to the miseries of
my neighbours, as I ought, but have too much minded things
below ; not setting mine affections upon heaven and heavenly
things, but have been unlike, thee in all things : I have been
unmerciful and unjust.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
Mine eyes, O Lord, have wandered after vanity, behold-
ing and looking after things unseemly without displeasure,
despising my neighbours, prying into their faults ; but have
been blind, not seeing mine own sins and infinite irre-
gularities.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have not with care kept the door of my lips, nor bridled
my tongue, but have been excessive in talking, immoderate
in dissolute and wanton laughter, apt to lie, to deny truth, to
accuse others, to scoff at them, to aggravate their fnults, to
lessen their worth, to give rash judgment, to flatter for
advantage, to speak of thy name irreverently, and without
religious or grave occasions ; our discourses have been allayed
with slander and backbiting, not apt to edify, or minister
grace unto the hearers.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
Mine ears have been greedy after vanity, listening after
things unprofitable, or that might tend to the prejudice of
my neighbours, and have not, with holy appetite, listened
after thy holy words and conveyances of salvation.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
1 have offended thee by the entertainment of evil thoughts,
thoughts of uncleanness and impurity, and have not resisted
their first beginnings, but have given consent to them expli-
citly and implicitly, and have brought them up till they have
grown into idle words and actions.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have made myself guilty of the sins of others, by con-
sent, by approving, by not reproving, by co-operating, by
encouraging their ill actions, so making mine own heap
greater, by pulling their deformities upon mine own head.
Lord, be merciful to me u sinner.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 201
I have employed all my members and faculties both of
soul and body in the ways of unrighteousness ; [ have trans-
gressed my duty in all my relations, and in all my actions
and traverses of my whole life : even where I might have
had most confidence, I find nothing but weakness and
imperfections.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
I have broken my vows and purposes of obedience and
holy life ; I have been inconstant to all good, refractory to
counsels, disobedient to commands, stubborn against admo-
nition, churlish and ungentle in my behaviour, unmindful
and revengeful of injuries, forgetful of benefits, seeking my
own ends, deceiving my own soul.
Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.
My secret sins, O Lord, are innumerable : sins secret to
myself through inadvertency, forgetfulness, wilful ignorance,
or stupid negligence ; secret to the world, committed before
thee only, and under the witness of mine own conscience. I
am confounded with the multitude of them, and the horror
of their remembrance.
O Jesu God, be merciful unto me.
I.
SON of David, blessed Redeemer, Lamb of God, that takest
away the sins of the world, have mercy upon me ; O Jesu, be
a Jesus unto me : thou that sparedst thy servant Peter that
denied thee thrice; thou that didst cast seven devils out of
Mary Magdalene, and forgavest the woman taken in adul-
tery, and didst bear the convert thief from the cross to the
joys of paradise, have mercy upon me also: for although I
have amassed together more sins than all these in conjunc-
tion, yet not their sins, nor mine, nor the sins of all the
world, can equal thy glorious mercy, which is as infinite and
eternal as thyself. 1 acknowledge, O Lord, that I am vile,
but yet redeemed with thy precious blood ; I am blind, but
thou art the light of the world; 1 am weak, but thou art my
strong rock ; I have been dead in trespasses and sins, but
thou art my resurrection and my life. Thou, O Lord, lovest
to shew mercy; and the expressions of thy mercy, the nearer
they come to infinite, the more proportionable they are to
thy essence, and like thyself. Behold then, O Lord, a fit
202 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
object for thy pity : my sins are so great and many, that
to forgive me will be an act of glorious mercy ; and all the
praises which did accrue to thy name by the forgiveness of
David, and Manasses, and Saint Paul, and the adulteress,
and the thief, and the publican, will be multiplied to thy
honour in the forgiveness of me, so vile, so unworthy a
wretch, that I have nothing to say for myself, but that the
greatness of my misery is a fit object for thy miraculous and
infinite mercy. Despise me not, O Lord, for I am thy crea-
ture : despise me not, for thou didst die for me ; cast me not
away in thine anger, for thou earnest to seek me, and to save
me. Say unto my soul, ' I am thy salvation ;' let thy Holy
Spirit lead me from the errors of my ways, into the paths of
righteousness, to great degrees of repentance, and through
all the parts of a holy life, to a godly and a holy death.
Grant this, O blessed Jesu, for thy mercies' and for thy pity
sake. Amen.
II.
O Lord God, blessed Jesu, eternal Judge of quick and
dead, I tremble with horror at the apprehension, when I call
to mind with what terrors and majesty thou shalt appear in
judgment; a fire shall go out from thy presence, and a tern-
pest shall be stirred up round about thee, such a tempest as
shall rend the rocks, level the mountains, shake the earth,
disorder and dissolve the whole fabric of the heavens ; and
where then shall I, vile sinner, appear, when the heavens
are not pure in thy sight ? Lord, I tremble when I remember
that sad truth, * If the righteous scarcely be saved, where then
shall the wicked and the ungodly appear ?' I know, O Lord,
that all my secret impurities shall be laid open before all the
nations of the world, before all the orders and degrees of
angels, in the presence of innumerable millions of beatified
spirits. There shall I see many that have taught me inno-
cence and sanctity, many that have given me pious example,
many that have died for thee, and suffered tortures rather
than they would offend thee. O just and dear God, where
shall I appear? who shall plead for me, that am so laden
with impurities, with vanity, with ingratitude, with malice,
and the terrors of an affrighting conscience ? Lord, what
slmll I do, who am straitened by my own covetousness,
accused by my own pride, consumed with envy, set on fire
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 203
by lust, made dull with gluttony, and stupid by drunkenness,
supplanted by ambition, rent asunder with faction and dis-
cord, made dissolute with lightness and inconstancy, de-
ceived with hypocrisy, abused with flattery, fooled with
presumption, disturbed with anger, and disordered by a
whole body of sin and death? But thou shalt answer for
me, O Lord, my God ; thou art my Judge and my Advocate,
and thou art to pass sentence upon me for those sins for
which thou diedst. O reserve not my sins to be punished in
the life to come, for then I die eternally; but bring me in this
world to a holy, a sharp, and salutary repentance. Behold,
I am in thy hands ; grant I may so weep and be contrite for
my sins, that in the hour of my death I may find mercy, and
in the day of judgment I may be freed from all the terrors of
thy wrath, and the sentence of the wicked, and may behold
thy face with joy and security, being set at thy right-hand,
with all thy saints and angels, to sing an eternal hallelujah to
the honour of thy mercies. Amen, sweet Jesu. Amen.
III.
Most merciful and indulgent Jesus, hear the complaint
of a sad and miserable sinner ; for I have searched into the
secret recesses of my soul, and there I find nothing but
horror, and a barren wilderness, a neglected conscience
overgrown with sins and cares, and beset with fears and sore
amazements. I find that I have not observed due reverence
towards my superiors, nor modesty in my discourse, nor
discipline in my manners ; I have been obstinate in my vain
purposes, cozened in my own semblances of humility, perti-
nacious in hatred, bitter in my jesting, impatient of sub-
jection, ambitious of power, slow to good actions, apt to talk,
ready to supplant my neighbours, full of jealousies and sus-
picion, scornful and censorious, burdensome to my friends,
ungrateful to my benefactors, imperious to my inferiors,
boasting to have ?aid what I said not, to have seen what I
saw not, to have done what I did not, and have both said,
and seen, and done what I ought not, provoking thy Divine
Majesty with a continual course of sin and vanity. And
yet, O Lord, thou hast spared me all this while, and hast
not taken away my life in the midst of my sins ; which is a
mercy so admirable and of so vast a kindness, as no heart or
tongue can think or speak. If thou hadst dealt with me
20 i DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
according as I had deserved, and might justly have expected,
I had heen now, now at this instant, sealed up to an eternity
of torments, hopelessly miserable, fearing the revelation of
thy day with an unsnpportahle amazement : and now, under
the sweet influences of thy mercies, I am praying to thee,
confessing my sins, with shame indeed at my baseness and
ingratitude, but with a full hope and confidence in thy mercy.
O turn the eyes of thy Divine clemency with a gracious
aspect upon a wretched sinner, open the bowels of thy
mercy, and receive me into favour. O my dear God, let
thy grace speedily work that in me, for which thou so
long hast spared me, and to which thou didst design me in
thy holy purposes and mercies of eternity, even a true faith,
and a holy life conformable to thy will, and in order to
eternal blessedness. I remember, O Lord, the many fatherly
expressions and examples of thy mercies to repenting sin-
ners, thy delight in our conversion, thy unwillingness to
destroy us, thy earnest invitation of us to grace and life, thy
displeasure at our danger and miseries, the infinite variety of
means thou usest to bring us from the gates of death, and to
make us happy to eternity. These mercies, O Lord, are so
essential to thee, that thou canst not but be infinitely pleased
in demonstrations of them. Remember not, O Lord, how
we have despised thy mercies, slighted thy judgments, neg-
lected thy commandments ; but now, at length, establish in
us great contrition for our sins, lead us on to humble con-
fession and dereliction of them, and let thy grace make us
bring forth fruits meet for repentance, fruits of justice, of
hope, of charity, ofVeligion and devotion, that we maybe
what thou delightest in, holy, and just, and merciful, vessels
prepared for honour, temples of the Holy Ghost, and instru-
ments of thy praises to all eternity. O blessed Jesu, who
livest and reignest ever one God, world without end. Amen.
O Lord Jesu Christ, Son of the eternal God, interpose
thy holy death, thy cross, and passion, between thy judgment
and my soul, now and in the hour of my death ; granting
unto me grace and mercy, to all faithful people, pardon and
peace, to the Church, unity and amity, and to all sinners,
repentance and amendment, to us all, life and glory ever-
lasting, who livest and reignest ever one Cod, world without
end. Amen.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 205
A Form of Thanksgiving, with a particular Enumeration of
God's Blessings.
MOST glorious Lord God, infinite in mercy, full of com-
passion, long-suffering, and of great goodness ; I adore, and
praise, and glorify thy holy name, worshipping thee with
the lowliest devotions of my soul and body, and give thee
thanks for all the benefits thou hast done unto me ; for
whatsoever I arn, or have, or know, or desire as I ought, it
is all from thee ; thou art the Fountain of being and blessing,
of sanctity and pardon, of life and glory.
Praise the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me,
praise his holy name.
Thou, O God, of thine infinite goodness, hast created me
of nothing, and hast given me a degree of essence next to
angels, imprinting thine image on me, enduing me with rea-
sonable faculties of will and understanding to know and
choose good, and to refuse evil, and hast put me into a
capacity of a blessed immortality.
O praise the Lord with me, and let us magnify his
name together.
Thou, O God, of thy great mercy, hast given me a comely
body, a good understanding, straight limbs, a ready and
unloosed tongue; whereas, with justice, thou mightest have
made me crooked and deformed, sottish and slow of appre-
hension, imperfect and impedite in all my faculties.
O give thanks unto the God of heaven ; for his mercy
endureth for ever.
Thou, O God, of thy glorious mercies, hast caused me to
be born of Christian parents, and didst not suffer me to
be strangled in the womb, but gavest me opportunity of
holy baptism, and hast ever since blessed me with education
in Christian religion. .*
Thy way, O God, is holy : who is so great a God as
our God?
Thou, O God, out of thine abundant kindness, hast made
admirable variety of creatures to minister to my use, to serve
my necessity, to preserve and restore my health, to be an
ornament to my body, to be representations of thy power
and of thy mercy.
Unto thee, O God, will I pay my vows : unto thee will
I give thanks.
206 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
Thou, God, of thine admirable and glorious mercy,
hast made thine angels ministering spirits for my protection
and defence against all the hostilities of the devil ; thou hast
set a hedge about me, and such a guard as all the power of
hell and earth cannot overcome ; thou hast preserved me
by thy holy providence, and the ministry of angels, from
drowning, from burning, from precipice, from deformities,
from fracture of bones, and all the snares of evil, and the
great violations of health, which many of my betters suffer.
I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, with my whole
heart ; even before the gods will I sing praises unto
thee.
Thou, O most merciful God, hast fed me and clothed me,
hast raised me up friends and blessed them, hast preserved
me in dangers, hast rescued me from the fury of the sword,
from the rage of pestilence, from perishing in public dis-
temperatures and diseases epidemical, from terrors and
affrightments of the night, from illusions of the devil and sad
apparitions ; thou hast been my guide in my journeys, my
refreshment in sadnesses, my hope and my confidence in all
my griefs and desolations.
O give thanks unto the Lord of lords ; for his mercy
endureth for ever.
But above all mercies, it was not less than infinite,
whereby thou lovedst me and all mankind, when we were
lost and dead, and rebels against thy Divine Majesty ; thou
gavest thine own begotten Son to seek us when we went
astray, to restore us to life when we were dead in trespasses
and sins, and to reconcile us to thyself by the mercies and
the atonement of an everlasting covenant.
He is our God, even the God of whom conieth salva-
tion : God is the Lord by whom we escape death.
most blessed Jesu, I praise and adore thine infinite
mercies, humility, and condescension, that for rny sake thou
wouklst descend from the bosom of thy heavenly Father into
the pure womb of an humble maid, and take on thee my
nature, and be born, and cry, and suffer cold, and all the
incommodities which the meanness of a stable could minister
to the tenderness of thy infancy.
Lord, what is man that thou art mindful of him ; and
the son of man, that thou so regardest him?
1 adore thee, blessed Jesu, and praise thee for thine
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 207
immaculate sanctity, for all thy holy precepts and counsels,
for thy Divine example, for thy miracles and mysterious
revelations of thy Father's will, for the institution of the holy
sacraments, and all other blessings of thy prophetical office.
O praise the Lord, for the Lord is gracious : sing praises
unto his name, for it is lovely.
I adore and love thee, most blessed Jesu, for all the
parts of thy most bitter passion, for thy being betrayed and
accused, buffeted and spit upon, blindfolded and mocked,
crowned with thorns and scourged, for thine agony and
bloody sweat, for thy bearing the sad load of the cross and
sadder load of our sins, for thy crucifixion three long hours,
when the weight of thy body was supported with wounds
and nails, for thy death and burial, for thy continual inter-
cession and advocation with thy heavenly Father in behalf
of me and all thy holy Church, and all other acts of mediation
and redemption, the blessings of thy priestly office.
O praise the Lord for his goodness ; and declare the
wonders he hath done for the children of men.
I adore and magnify thy holy name, O most blessed Jesu,
for thy triumph over death, hell, sin, and the grave, for thy
opening thy kingdom of heaven to all believers, for thy
glorious resurrection and ascension, for thy government over
all the creatures, for the advancement of thy holy kingdom,
for thy continual resisting and defeating the intendments of
thy enemies against thy Church by the strength of thine arm,
by the mightiness of thy power, by the glories of thy
wisdom ; for those blessed promises thou hast made and
performest to thy Church of sending the Holy Ghost, of
giving her perpetuity of being, in defiance of all the gates
and powers of hell and darkness, and blessing her with
continual assistances, and all other glories of thy regal office
and power. .
O sing praises, sing praises unto our God ; O sing
praises, sing praises unto our King. For God is
the King of all the earth : sing ye praises with
understanding.
O most Holy Spirit, Love of the Father, Fountain of
grace, Spring of all spiritual blessings, I adore and praise
thy Divine excellences, which are essential to thy glorious
self in the unity of thy most mysterious Trinity, and which
208 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
thou coramunicatest to all faithful people, and to me thy
unworthy servant in the unity of the catholic Church.
magnify the Lord our God, and fall down before his
footstool ; for he is holy.
O blessed Spirit, I praise and magnify thy name for thy
miraculous descent upon the apostles in Pentecost in myste-
rious representments, for those great graces and assistances
coining upon their heads, and falling down upon us all in the
descent of all ages of the Church, for confirmation of our
faith, for propagation of the Gospel, for edification and
ornament of thy family.
Thou, O God, shalt endure for ever, and thy remem-
brance throughout all generations.
most glorious Spirit, I praise and magnify thy name
for the inspiration of the apostles and prophets, for thy pro-
vidence and mercy in causing Holy Scriptures to be written,
arid preserving them from the corruptions of heretics, from
the violences of pagans, and enemies of the cross of Christ.
1 will always give thanks unto the Lord : his praise
shall ever be in my mouth.
1 bless thy name for those holy promises and threaten-
ings, those judgments and mercies, those holy precepts and
admonitions, which thou hast registered in Scriptures, and
in the records and monuments of the Church ; for all those
graces, helps, and comforts, whereby thou prornotest me in
piety and in the ways of true religion ; for baptismal and
penitential grace ; for the opportunities and sweet refreshings
of the sacrament of the eucharist; for all the advantages thou
hast given me of good society, tutors, and governors ; for the
fears thou hast produced in me as diiatories and impediments
of sin, for all my hopes of pardon, and expectation of the
promises made by our Lord Jesus Christ to encourage me in
the paths of life and sanctity ; for all the holy sermons,
spiritual books, and lessons ; for all the good prayers and
meditations ; for those blessed waitings and knockings at
the door of my heart; patiently tarrying for and lovingly
i.iviting me to repentance without ceasing; admonishing and
reproving me with the checks of a tender conscience, with
exterior and interior motives ; and for whatsoever other
means or incentives of holiness thou hast assisted me withal.
I magnify, and praise, and adore thee and thy goodness.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 209
All nations, whom thou hast made and sanctified, shall
come and worship thee, O Lord, and shall glorify thy name ;
for thou art great and dost wondrous things ; thou art God
alone : and great is thy mercy towards me ; thou hast
delivered my soul from the nethermost hell ; therefore shall
every good man sing of thy praise without ceasing. O my
God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever with cherubims
and seraphims, and all the companies of the heavenly host,
saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth ; holy is our
God, holy is the Immortal, holy is the Almighty, the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, to whom be all honour, and
glory, and dominion, and power, ascribed of all spirits, and
all men, and all creatures, now and for evermore. Amen.
I.
Prayers preparatory to the receiving of the blessed Sacrament.
MOST immaculate and glorious Jesu, behold me, miserable
sinner, drawing near to thee with the approaches of humility
and earnest desire to be cleansed from my sins, to be united
to thee by the nearest and most mysterious union of charity
and sacramental participation of thy most holy body and
blood : I presume nothing of mine own worthiness, but I am
most confident of thy mercies and infinite loving-kindness.
1 know, O Lord, I am blind, and sick, and dead, and naked,
but therefore I come the rather: I am sick, and thou art my
physician, thou arisest with healing in thy wings, by thy
wounds I come to be cured, and to be healed by thy stripes:
I am unclean, but thou art the Fountain of purity : I am
blind, and thou art the great Eye of the world, the Sun of
Righteousness ; in thy light I shall see light : I am poor, and
thou art rich unto all, the Lord of all the creatures. I,
therefore, humbly beg of thy mercy that thou wouldst be
pleased to take from me all my sins, to cure my infirmities,
to cleanse my filthiness, to lighten my darkness, to clothe
my nakedness with the robe of thy righteousness, that I
may, with such reverence, and faith, and holy intention,
receive thy blessed body and blood in the mysterious sacra-
ment, that it may be unto me life, and pleasantness, and holy
VOL. xv. P
210 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
nourishment, and that I may be firmly and indissolubly
united to thy mystical body, and may at last see, clearly and
without a veil, thy face in glory everlasting, who livest and
reignest ever one God, world without end. Amen.
II.
I adore and bless thy glorious Majesty, O blessed Jesu,
for this great dignation and vouchsafing to me, that thou art
pleased, for all the infinite multiplication of my sins, and
innumerable violations of thy holy law, still to give thyself
unto me, to convey health, and grace, and life, and hopes
of glory, in the most blessed sacrament. I adore thee, O
most righteous Redeemer, that thou art pleased under the
visible signs of bread and wine, to convey unto our souls thy
holy body and blood, and all the benefits of thy bitter
passion. O my God, I am not worthy that thou shouldst come
under my roof, hut let thy Holy Spirit, with his purities, pre-
pare for thee a lodging in my soul. Thou hast knocked often,
O blessed Jesu, at the door of my heart, and would st will-
ingly have entered : behold, O Lord, my heart is ready to
receive thee : cast out of it all worldly desires, all lusts and
carnal appetites, and then enter in, and there love to inhabit,
that the devil may never return to a place that is so swept
and garnished, to fill me full of all iniquity. O thou lover of
souls, grant that this holy sacrament may be a light unto
mine eyes, a guide to my understanding, a joy to my soul;
that by its strength I may subdue and mortify the whole
body of sin in me, and that it may produce in me constancy
in faith, fulness of wisdom, perfection and accomplishment
of all thy righteous commandments, and such a blessed union
with thee, that I may never more live unto myself or to the
world, but to thee only ; and by the refreshments of a holy
hope I may be led through the paths of a good life and
persevering piety to the communion and possession of thy
kingdom, O blessed Jesu, who livest and reignest ever one
God, world without end. Amen.
III.
O Lord God, who hast made all things of naught, produc-
ing great degrees of essence out of nothing, make me a new
creature ; and of a sinful man, make me holy, and just, and
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 211
merciful ; that I may receive thy precious body devoutly,
reverently, with meekness, contrition, and great affection,
with spiritual comfort and gladness at thy mystical presence.
Feed my soul with bread from heaven, fill me with charity,
conform me to thy will in all things, save me from all dangers
bodily and ghostly : assist and guide me in all doubts and
fears, prepare and strengthen me against all surreptions and
sudden incursions of temptations, cleanse me from all stains
of sin, and suffer nothing to abide in me but thyself only,
who art the life of souls, the food of the elect, and the joy of
angels. Give me such a gust and a holy relish in this
Divine nutriment, that nothing may ever hereafter please me
but what savours of thee and thy miraculous sweetness.
Teach me to loathe all the pleasures and beauties of this life ;
and let my soul be so inebriated with the pleasures of thy
table, that I may be comprehended and swallowed up with
thy love and sweetness : let me think on nothing but thee,
covet nothing but thee, enjoy nothing but thee, nothing in
comparison with thee, and neither do nor profess any thing
but what leads to thee, and is in order to the performance of
thy will and the fruition of thy glories. Transfix my soul,
O blessed Jesu, with so great love of thee, so great devotion
in receiving the holy sacrament, that I may be transformed
to the fellowship of thy sufferings, and admitted to a partici-
pation of all the benefits of thy passion, and to a communion
of thy graces and thy glories. I desire to be with thee :
dissolve all the chains of my sin, and then come, Lord Jesus,
come quickly. Let my soul feed on thee greedily, for thou
art the Spring of light and life, the Fountain of wisdom and
health, a torrent of Divine pleasure and tranquillity, the
Author of peace and comfort. Enter into me, sweet Jesu,
take thou possession of my soul, an4 be thou Lord over me
and all my faculties, and preserve me with great mercy and
tenderness, that no doubting or infidelity, no impenitence or
remanent affection to a sin, no impurity or irreverence, may
make me unworthy and incapable of thy glorious approach.
Let not my sins crucify the Lord of life again ; let it not be
said concerning me, 'The hand of him that betrayeth me is
witli me on the table:' that this holy communion may not be
unto me an occasion of death, but a blessed peace-offering
for my sins, and a gate of life and glory. Grant this, O
212 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
blessed God, for bis sake, who is botb Sacrifice and Priest,
the Master of the feast and the Feast itself, even Jesus
Christ, to whom with thee, O Father, and thy Holy Spirit,
be all honour and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
A Prayer offer the receiving the consecrated Bread.
I GIVE thanks unto thee, almighty and eternal God, that
thou hast not rejected me from thy holy table, but hast
refreshed my soul with the salutary refection of the body of
thy Son Jesus Christ. Lord, if I had lived innocently, and
had kept all thy commandments, I could have had no pro-
portion of merit to so transcendent a mercy : but since I
have lived in all manner of sin, and multiplied provocations
against thy Divine Majesty, thy mercy is so glorious and
infinite, that I am amazed at the consideration of its im-
mensity. Go on, O my dear God, to finish so blessed a
redemption ; and now that thou hast begun to celebrate a
marriage and holy union between thyself and my soul, let me
never throw off the wedding garment, or stain it with
pollution of deadly sin, nor seek after other lovers ; but let
me for ever and ever be united unto thee, being transformed
into thy will in this life, and to the likeness of thy glories in
the life to come, who livest and reignest, ever one God,
world without end. Amen.
After receiving the Cup.
O just and dear God, who, out of the unmeasurable
abysses of wisdom and mercy, hast redeemed us, and offered
life, and grace, and salvation to us, by the real exhibition of
thy Son, Jesus Christ, in the sacrifice of his death upon the
altar of the cross, and by commemoration of his bitter
agonies in the holy sacrament ; grant that that great and
venerable sacrifice, which we now commemorate sacrament-
ally, may procure of thee for thy whole Church mercy and
great assistance in all trials, deliverance from all heresies,
schisms, sacrilege, and persecutions ; to all sick people
health and salvation, redemption for captives, competence
of living to the indigent arid necessitous, comfort to the
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 213
afflicted, relief to the oppressed, repentance to all sinners,
softness of spirit and a tender conscience to the obstinate,
conversion to the Jews, Turks, and remedy to all that are
in any trouble or adversity. And grant to us, O Lord, that
this blesssed sacrament and sacrifice of commemoration, in
virtue of that dreadful and proper sacrifice upon the cross,
may obtain for me, and for us all who have communicated
this day, pardon and peace ; and that we may derive from
thee, by this ministry, grace to expel all our sins, to mortify
all our lusts, to exterminate all concupiscence, to crucify
all inordinacy and irregularity, to produce in us humility,
and chastity, and obedience, and meekness of spirit, and
charity, and may become our defence and armour against
the violence and invasions of all our ghostly enemies and
temporal disadvantages: and give us this grace and favour,
that we may not die in the guilt and commission of a sin
without repentance, nor without receiving the blessed sacra-
ment; but that we may so live and die, that we may at last
rest in thy bosom, and be embraced with the comprehensions
of thy eternal charity, who livestand reignest, ever one God,
world without end. Amen.
All blessing, and praise, and honour, be unto thee, O
blessed Redeemer ; and to thee we, the banished and miser-
able sons of Adam, do call for mercy and defence, and to
thee we sigh and cry in this valley of tears. O dearest
Advocate, turn those thy merciful eyes towards us, and shew
us thy glorious face in thy kingdom, where no tears or sighing,
or fears or sadness, can approach. Amen. Sweetest Jesu,
Amen.
PRAYERS PREPARATORY TO DEATH.
I.
A Prayer for a blessed Ending, to be said in Time of Health
or Sickness.
O BLESSED JESU, Fountain of eternal 'mercy, the Life of the
soul, and glorious Conqueror over death and sin, I humbly
beseech thee to give me grace so to spend this transitory
214 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
life in virtuous and holy exercises, that when the day of my
death shall come, in the midst of all my pains I may feel the
sweet refreshings of thy Holy Spirit comforting my soul,
sustaining mine infirmities, and relieving all my spiritual
necessities : and grant that in the unity of the holy catholic
Church, and in the integrity of Christian faith, with con-
fidence and hope of thy mercy, in great love towards thee,
in peace with my neighbours, and in charity with all the
world, I may, through thy grace, depart hence out of this
vale of misery, and go unto that glorious country, where
thou hast purchased an inheritance for us with the price of
thy most precious blood, and reignest in it gloriously in the
unity of thy Father and ours, and thy Holy Spirit and our
ghostly Comforter, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
II.
A Prayer to be said at the Beginning of a Sickness.
O Lord my God, who chastisest every one whom thou
receivest, and, with thy fatherly correction, smitest all those
whom thou consignest to the inheritance of sons, write my
soul in the book of life, and number me amongst thy child-
ren-, whom thou hast smitten with the rod of sickness, and,
by thy chastisements, hast brought me into the lot of the
righteous. Thou, O blessed Jesu, art a helper in the need-
ful time of trouble; lay no more upon me than thou shalt
enable me to bear, and let thy gentle correction in this life
prevent the unsupportable stripes of thy vengeance in the life
to come. Smite me now, that thou mayest spare me to all
eternity : and yet, O blessed High-Priest, who art touched
with a sense of our infirmities, smite me friendly, and reprove
me with such a tenderness as thou bearest unto thy children,
to whom thou conveyest suppletory comforts, greater than
the pains of chastisement ; and in due time restore me to
health and to thy solemn assemblies again, and to the joy of
thy countenance. Give me patience and humility, and the
grace of repentance, and an absolute dereliction of myself,
and a resignation to thy pleasure and providence, with a
power to do thy will in all things, and then do what thou
pleasest to me ; only in health or sickness, in life or death,
let me feel thy comforts refreshing my soul, and let thy grace
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 215
pardon all my sins. Grant this, O blessed Jesu, for my trust
is in thee only: thou art my God, and my merciful Saviour
and Redeemer. Amen.
III.
A Prayer to be said in the Progress of a Sickness.
O Lord my God, blessed Jesu, who, by thy bitter death
and passion, hast sweetened the cup of death to us, taking
away its bitterness and sting, and making it an entrance to
life and glory ; have pity upon me thy servant, who have so
deep a share in sin that I cannot shake off the terrors of
death, but that my nature, with its hereditary corruption,
still would preserve itself in a disunion from the joys of
thy kingdom. Lord, I acknowledge my own infirmities,
and beg thy pity. It is better for me to be with thee : but
the remembrance of my sins doth so depress my growing
confidence, that I am in a great strait between my fears and
hopes, between the infirmities of my nature and the better
desires of conforming to thy holy will and pleasure. O my
dear Redeemer, wean my soul and all my desires from the
flatteries of this world : pardon all my sins, and consign
so great a favour by the comforts and attestation of thy
divinest Spirit, that, my fears being mastered, my sins
pardoned, my desires rectified, as the hart thirsts after the
springs of water, so my soul may long after thee, O God,
and to enter into thy courts. Heavenly Father, if it may be
for thy glory and my ghostly good, to have the days of my
pilgrimage prolonged, I beg of thee health and life ; but if
it be not pleasing to thee to have this cup pass from me,
thy will be done : my Saviour hath drunk off all the bitter-
ness. Behold, O Lord, I am in thy hands, do with me as
seemeth good in thine eyes. Though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou
art with me : thy rod and thy staff comfort me. I will lay
me down in peace, and take my rest ; for it is thou, Lord,
only who shalt make me to dwell in everlasting safety, and
to partake of the joys of thy kingdom who livest and reign-
est, eternal God, world without end. Amen.
216 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
IV.
A Prayer for a Sick Person in Danger of Death.
O Lord Jesus Christ, our health and life, our hope, and
our resurrection from the dead, I resign myself up to thy
holy will and pleasure, either to life, that I may live longer
to thy service and my amendment ; or to death, to the per-
petual enjoyment of thy presence, and of thy glories. Into
thy hands I commend my spirit; for I know, O Lord, that
nothing can perish which is committed to thy mercies. I
believe, O Lord, that I shall receive my body again at the
resurrection of the just. I relinquish all care of that, only
I beg of thee mercy for my soul ; strengthen it with thy
grace against all temptations, let thy loving-kindness defend
it, as with a shield, against all the violences and hostile
assaults of Satan ; let the same mercy be my guard and
defence which protected thy martyrs, crowning them with
victory in the midst of flames, horrid torments, and most
cruel deaths. There is no help in me, O Lord ; I cannot by
my own power give a minute's rest to my wearied body ; but
my trust is in thy sure mercies ; and I call to mind, to
my unspeakable comfort, that thou wert hungry, and thirsty,
and wearied, and whipt, and crowned with thorns, and
mocked, and crucified for me. O let that mercy which
made thee suffer so much, make thee do that for which thou
sufferedst so much, pardon me and save me. Let thy merits
answer for my impieties, let thy righteousness cover my sins,
thy blood wash away my stains, and thy comforts refresh my
soul. As my body grows weak, let thy grace be stronger ;
let not my faith doubt, nor my hope tremble, nor my charity
grow cold, nor my soul be affrighted with the terrors of
death ; but let the light of thy countenance enlighten mine
eyes, that I sleep not in death eternal ; and when my tongue
fails, let thy Spirit teach my heart to pray with strong cry-
ings, and groans that are unutterable. O let not the enemy
do me any violence, but let thy holy mercies and thy angels
repel and defeat his malice and fraud ; that my soul may, by
thy strength, triumph in the joys of eternity, in the fruition
of thee, my life, my joy, my hope, my exceeding great
reward, my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
. DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 217
V.
For a Dying Person, in or near the Agonies of Death.
Most merciful and blessed Saviour, have mercy upon
the soul of this thy servant ; remember not his ignorance,
nor the sins of his youth : but according to thy great mercies,
remember him in the mercies and glories of thy kingdom.
Thou, O Lord, hast opened the kingdom of heaven to all
believers; let the everlasting gates be opened, and receive
his soul; let the angels, who rejoice at the conversion of a
sinner, triumph and be exalted in his deliverance and salva-
tion. Make him partaker of the benefits of thy holy incar-
nation, life, and sanctity, passion and death, resurrection and
ascension, and of all the prayers of the Church, of the joy
of the elect, and all the fruits of the blessed communion of
saints ; and daily add to the number of thy beatified servants
such as shall be saved, that thy coming may be hastened,
and the expectation of the saints may be fulfilled, and the
glory of thee, our Lord Jesu, be advanced, all the \vhole
Church singing praises to the honour of thy name who livest
and reignest ever one God, world without end. Amen.
VI.
O most merciful Jesu, who didst die to redeem us from
death and damnation, have mercy upon this thy servant,
whom thy hand hath visited with sickness : of thy goodness
be pleased to forgive him all his sins, and seal his hopes of
glory with the refreshments of thy Holy Spirit. Lord, give
him strength and confidence in thee, assuage his pain, repel
the assaults of his ghostly enemies. by thy mercies, and a
guard of holy angels ; preserve him in the unity of the
Church, keep his senses entire, his understanding right, give
him great measure of contrition, true faith, a well-grounded
hope, and abundant chanty; give him a quiet and a joyful
departure, let thy ministering spirits convey his soul to the
mansions of peace and rest, there with certainty to expect a
joyful resurrection to the fulness of joy at thy right-hand,
where there is pleasure for evermore. Amen.
218 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
VII.
A Prayer for the Joys of Heaven.
O most glorious Jesu, who art the portion and exceeding
great reward of all faithful people, thou hast beautified
human nature with glorious immortality, and hast carried
the same above all heavens, above the seat of angels, beyond
the cherubims and seraphims, placing it on the right-hand
of thy heavenly Father; grant to us all the issues of thy
abundant charity, that we may live in thy fear, and die in thy
favour. Prepare our souls with heavenly virtue, for hea-
venly joys, making us righteous here, that we may be
beatified hereafter. Amen.
A MORNING PRAYER.
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, OF THE SON, AND OF THE
HOLY GHOST.
Our Father which art in Heaven, Sfc.
I.
O ETERNAL Sun of Righteousness, who earnest from the
bosom of thy Father, the Fountain of glorious light, to
enlighten the darknesses of the world, I praise thy name,
that thou hast preserved me from the dangers of this night,
and hast continued to me still the opportunities of serving
thee, and advancing my hopes of a blessed eternity. Let
thy mercies shine brightly upon me, and dissipate the clouds
and darknesses of my spirit and understanding, rectify my
affections, and purify my will, and all my actions ; that
whatsoever I shall do or suffer this day, or in my whole life,
my words and purposes, my thoughts and my intentions,
may be sanctified and be acceptable to thy Divine Majesty.
Amen.
II.
Grant that my understanding may know thee, my heart
may love thee, and all my faculties and powers may give
thee due obedience, and serve thee. Preserve me this day
from all sin and danger, from all violences and snares of mine
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 219
enemies, visible and invisible ; let thy holy fear be as a
bridle to my distemperatures, and thy love so enkindle and
actuate all my endeavours, that no pleasures or allurements
of the world may draw me from thy service, nor any diffi-
culty or temptation may be my hinderance. Let the pro-
found humility and innocence of my blessed Saviour keep
from me all pride and haughtiness of mind, all self-love and
vainglory, all obstinacy and disobedience, all fraudulency
and hurtful dissimulation ; and let the graces of the Holy
Ghost take so absolute possession and seizure of my soul,
and all its faculties, that I may tread down and cast out the
spirit of intemperance and uncleanness, of malice and envy,
idleness and disdain, that I may never despise any of thy
creatures but myself; that so being little in my own sight, I
may be great in thine. Amen.
III.
Clothe my soul with a wedding garment, the habits of
supernatural faith and charity, that I may believe all thy
holy promises and revelations without all wavering, and love
thee, my God, with so great devotions and affections, that
neither life nor death, prosperity nor adversity, temptations
within nor without, may ever disunite me from the love of
thee ; but that I may have the most intimate adhesion to
thy glories and perfections, of which my condition in this
world is capable. Make me to choose virtue with the same
freeness of election, entertain it with as little reluctance,
keep it with as much complacency, actuate it with as many
faculties, serve it with as much industry, as I have, in time
past, my vices and pleasures of the world : and grant that
all inordinate affection to the transitory things of this life
may daily decay in me, and that I may grow in spirit and
ghostly strength, till I come to a* perfect man in Christ
Jesus. Amen.
IV.
Give unto thy servant true humility, great contrition, a
tender conscience, and obedient heart, an understanding
always busied in honest and pious thoughts, a will tractable
and ever prone to do good, affections even and moderate, a
watchful custody over my senses, that by those windows sin
may never enter in, nor death by sin. Make me to watch
220 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
over my tongue, and keep the door of my lips, that no cor-
rupt or unseemly communication proceed out of my mouth ;
that I may never slander, calumniate, or detract from the
reputation of my neighbour ; that I be not busy in the faults
of others, but careful to correct mine own, being gentle and
merciful to others, and severe towards myself; that I may
speak much of thy praises, and what I can for the edification
of my brethren. Amen.
Give me understanding in thy law, that I may know thy
will ; and grace and strength faithfully to fulfil the same.
Give me a fear of thy name, and of thy threatenings, and a
love and hope of thy promise ; let me daily feel thy mercies,
and remove thy judgments far from me. Imprint in my
heart a filial reverence and awfulness towards thy Divine
Majesty, that I may study to please thee with diligence, to
worship thee with much devotion, to submit to the dispo-
sitions of thy providence with thankfulness ; and that in
conscience of my duty towards thee, I may honour the king,
obey magistrates under him, love the saints, and do all acts
of charity according to my opportunity and ability; directing
all my actions and intentions, not according to custom, or
in pursuance of mine own ends, and temporal advantages,
but in thy fear, and in holy religion, to the advancement of
thy honour and glory. Amen.
VI.
Give me a soul watchful in the services of religion, con-
stant in holy purposes, ingenuous and free from sordid ends
or servile flattery ; a modest gravity in my deportment ;
affability and fair courteous demeanour towards all men ;
austerity in condemning my own sins ; sweetness in fraternal
correction, and reprehending others; mature judgment; a
chaste body, and a clean soul ; patience in suffering ; delibe-
ration in my words and actions ; good counsels in all my
purposes: make me just in performing promises, and in all
my duties ; sedulous in my calling ; profitable to the com-
monwealth ; a true son of the Church ; and of a disposition
meek and charitable towards all men. Amen.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 221
VII.
Let this be my portion, arid the comfort of my pilgrimage,
so long as I am detained in the condition of mortality, and
exiled from my heavenly country; that, being free from all
fear of mine enemies, and from vexations, fears, and solici-
tudes of this life, I may be wholly devoted to thy service,
that I may attend thee only, and what tends to thee ; that I
may rejoice only in thee, and my soul may rest in thee ; that
without distractions I may entertain thy heavenly doctrine,
and the blessed motions of thy Holy Spirit, spending my
time in the duties of necessity, in the works of charity, and
the frequent office of religion, with diligence, and patience,
and perseverance, and hope, expecting the accomplishment
of my days in peace ; that when I go unto my dust, I may
be reckoned amongst those blessed souls whose work it is
to give thee praise, and honour, and glory, to all eternity.
Amen.
Blessed be the holy and undivided Trinity, now and
for evermore. Amen.
AN EVENING PRAYER.
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF
THE HOLY GHOST.
Our Father which art in Heaven, fyc.
I.
O LORD GOD, who art the light and splendour of souls, in
the brightness of thy countenance is eternal day that knows
no night; in thy arms, and in thy protection, is all quietness,
tranquillity, and everlasting repose ; while the darkness
covers the face of the earth, receive my body and soul into
thy custody ; let not the spirits of darkness come near my
dwelling, neither suffer my fancy to be abused with the
illusions of the night. Lord, I am thy servant, and the
sheep of thy pasture : let not the devil, who goeth up and
down seeking whom he may devour, abuse my body, or
make a prey of my soul ; but defend me from all those cala-
mities which I have deserved, and protect my soul, that it
222 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
consent not to any work of darkness, lest mine enemy say,
he hath prevailed over me, or do mischief to a soul redeemed
with thy most precious blood. Amen.
II.
Pardon and forgive me all the sins and offences of my
youth, the errors of mine understanding, the inordination of
mine affections, the irregularity of all mine actions, and par-
ticularly of whatsoever I have transgressed this day, in
thought, word, or deed, Lord, let not thy wrath arise ; for
although I have deserved the extremest pressure of thine
indignation, yet remember my infirmity, and how thou hast
sent thy Son to reveal thy infinite mercies to us, and convey
pardon and salvation to the penitent. I beseech thee also
to accept the heartiest devotion and humblest acknowledg-
ment of a thankful heart for thy blessing and preservation of
me this day ; for unless thy providence and grace had been
my defence and guide, I had committed more and more
grievous sins, and had been swallowed up by thy just wrath
and severest judgments. Mercy, sweet Jesu. Amen.
III.
Lord, let thy grace be so present with me, that though
my body sleep, yet my soul may for ever be watchful, that I
sleep not in sin, or pretermit any opportunity of doing thee
service : let the remembrances of thy goodness and glories
be first and last with me, and so unite my heart unto thee
with habitual charity, that all my actions and sufferings may
be directed to thy glory, and every motion and inclination,
either of soul or body, may, in some capacity or other, re-
ceive a blessing from thee, and do thee service ; that whether
I sleep or wake, travel or rest, eat or drink, live or die, I
may always feel the light of thy countenance shining so upon
me that my labours may be easy, my rest blessed, my food
sanctified, and my whole life spent with so much sanctity
and peace, that, escaping from the darknesses of this world,
I may at last come to the land of everlasting rest, in thy
light to behold light and glory, through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
Blessed be the holy and undivided Trinity, now and
for evermore.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 223
Another Prayer for Evening.
I.
VISIT, we beseech thee, O Lord, this habitation with thy
mercy, and us thy servants with salvation, and repel far from
us all the snares of the enemy. Let thy holy angels dwell
here to keep us in peace and safety, and thy blessing be upon
us for ever, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
O Lord Jesu Christ, the lively image of thy Father's
mercies and glories, the Saviour of all them that put their
trust in thee ; we offer and present to thee all our strengths,
and powers of our souls and bodies, and whatsoever we are
or have, to be preserved, governed, and possessed by thee.
Preserve us from all vicious, vain, and proud cogitations,
unchaste affections, and from all those things which thou
hatest. Grant us thy holy charity, that we love thee above
all the world, that we may, with sincerity of intention and
zealous affections, seek thee alone, and in thee only take our
rest, inseparably joining ourselves unto thee, who art worthy
to be beloved and adored of all thy creatures with lowest
prostrations and highest affection, now and for evermore.
Amen.
III.
O Father of mercies, and God of all comforts, let thy
blessing be upon us, and upon all the members of thy holy
Church; all health and safety both of body and soul, against
all our enemies, visible and invisible, now and for ever. Send
us a quiet night, and a holy death in the actual communion
of the catholic Church, and in thy charity, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
Our Father which art in Heaven, &c.
Now, and in all dangers and afflictions of soul and
body, in the hour of death, and in the day of judg-
ment, save us and deliver us, O sweet Saviour and
Redeemer Jesu.
224? DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
COLLECTS TO BE ADDED UPON VARIOUS OCCASIONS.
I.
For the Church.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hast revealed thy
glory to Jews and Gentiles in our Lord Jesus Christ, extend
thy hand of mercy over all the world, that thy Church may
spread like a flourishing vine, and enlarge her borders to the
uttermost parts of the earth; that all nations partaking of the
sweet refreshings of thy Gospel, thy name may be glorified,
the honour of our Lord Jesus advanced, his prophecies ful-
filled, and his coming hastened. Bless, O Lord, thy holy
Church with all blessings of comfort, assistance, and preserva-
tion; extirpate heresies, unite her divisions, give her patience
and perseverance in the faith, and confession of thy name in
despite of all enmities, temptations, and disadvantages ; de-
stroy all wicked counsels intended against her or any of her
children by the devil or any of his accursed instruments; let
the hands of thy grace and mercy lead her from this vale of
misery to the triumphant throne of her Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. Amen.
II.
For the King.
O Lord our heavenly Father, high and mighty, King of
kings, who in thy hands hast the hearts of kings, and canst
turn them as the rivers of water, send the light of thy coun-
tenance and abundance of blessings upon thy servant, our
sovereign lord, king Charles : make him as holy, valiant,
and prosperous as king David, wise and rich like Solomon,
zealous for the honour of thy law and temple as Josiah ; and
give him all sorts of great assistances to enable him to serve
thee, to glorify thy name, to protect thy Church, to promote
true religion, to overcome all his enemies, to make glad all
his liege people : that he serving thee with all diligence, and
the utmost of his possibility, his people may serve him with
honour and obedience, in thee and for thee, according to thy
blessed word and ordinance ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 225
III.
For the Queen.
O God of heaven, Father of mercies, have mercy upon
our most gracious queen, unite her unto thee with the hands
of faith and love, preserve her to her life's end in thy favour,
and make her an instrument of glory to thy name, of refresh-
ment to the Church, of joy to all faithful people of this king-
dom, and crown her with an eternal weight of glory, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
i
IV.
For the Bishops.
O thou great Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, most
glorious Jesu, bless all holy and religious prelates, especially
the bishops of our church. O God, let abundance of thy
grace and benediction descend upon their heads, that by a
holy life, by a true and catholic belief, by a confident con-
fession of thy name, and by a fatherly care, great sedulity
and watchfulness over their flock, they may glorify thee our
God, the great lover of souls, and set forward the salvation
of their people, and of others by their example; and at last,
after a plentiful conversion of souls, they may shine like the
stars in glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
V.
For our Parents.
O Almighty God and merciful Father, who from the
loins of our first parents, Adam and Eve, hast produced
mankind, and hast commanded us to honour our parents ;
in pursuance of thy holy commandment, and of our duty to
thee our God, and in thee to them, w*e do, with all humility,
beg a blessing of thee for our parents, who from thy mercy
and plenty have conveyed many to us : pardon and forgive
all their sins and infirmities, increase in them all goodness,
give them blessings of the right hand and blessings of the
left : bless them in their persons, in their posterity, in the
comforts of thy Holy Spirit, in a persevering goodness, and
at last in an eternal weight of glory, through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
VOL. XV. Q
226 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
VI.
For our Children.
O Father of heaven, God of all the creatures, by whose
providence mankind is increased, I bless thy name for be-
stowing on me that blessing of the righteous man, the bless-
ing of children. Lord, bless them with health, with life, with
good understanding, with fair opportunities and advantages
of education, society, tutors, and governors ; and, above all,
with the graces of thy Holy Spirit, that they may live and be
blessed under thy protection, grow in grace, and be in favour
with God and man, and at last may make up the number of
thine elect children, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
VII.
For our Patron, our Friends, and Benefactors.
O Almighty God, thou fountain of all good, of all excel-
lence both to men and angels, extend thine abundant favour
and loving-kindnesses to my patron, to all my friends and
benefactors : reward them, and make them plentiful com-
pensation for all the good which, from thy merciful provi-
dence, they have conveyed unto me. Let the light of thy
countenance shine upon them, and let them never come into
any desertion, affliction, or sadness, but such as may be an
instrument of thy glory and their eternal comfort, in our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
VIII.
A Prayer of a Wife for her Husband.
O my God, who hast graciously pleased to call me to the
holy state of matrimony, bless me in it with the grace of
chastity, with loyalty, obedience, and complacency to my
husband ; and bless him with long life, with a healthful
body, with an understanding soul, with abundance of thy
graces, which may make him to be and continue thy servant,
a true son of the Church, a supporter and a guide to me his
wife, a blessing and a comfort to his children, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 227
IX.
Of a Husband for his Wife.
O merciful God, who art a Father to us thy children, a
Spouse to thy holy Church, a Saviour and Redeemer to all
mankind, have mercy upon thy handmaid my wife; endue
her with all the ornaments of thy heavenly grace, make her
to be holy and devout as Esther, loving and amiable as
Rachel, fruitful as Leah, wise as Rebecca, faithful and obe-
dient as Sarah, that being filled with grace and benediction
here, she may be partaker of thy glory hereafter, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
X.
For a Curate to say in behalf of his Parish.
O blessed Jesu, thou that art an eternal Priest, a uni-
versal Bishop, and the fountain of all ghostly good, have
mercy upon this parish which thou hast concredited to my
charge. Lord, I am unfit for so great a burden, but by thy
aid and gracious acceptation I hope for mercy, pardon, and
assistance. O Lord, send thy Holy Spirit to dwell amongst
us : let here be peace and charity, and true catholic religion,
and holy discipline. Comfort the comfortless, heal the sick,
relieve the oppressed, instruct the ignorant, correct the re-
fractory, keep us all from all deadly sin : and make them
obedient to their superiors, friendly to one another, and ser-
vants of thy Divine Majesty ; that so from thy favour they
may obtain blessings in their bodies, in their souls, in their
estates, and a supply to all their necessities, till at last they
be freed from all dangers and necessities in the full fruition
of thy everlasting glories, O blessed Saviour and Redeemer
Jesu. Amen.
XI.
For a Parishioner to say in behalf of his Curate.
O God Almighty, who art pleased to send thy blessings
upon us by the ministration of the bishops and priests of thy
holy Church, have mercy upon thy servant to whom is com-
mitted the care of my soul, that he, by whose means thou
art graciously pleased to advance my spiritual good, may
by thy grace and favour be protected, by thy providence
228 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
assisted, by thy great mercies comforted and relieved in all
his necessities bodily arid ghostly, through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
XII.
For safe Childbirth.
O blessed Jesu, Son of the eternal God, who, according
to thy humility, wert born of a holy maid, who conceived
thee without sin, and brought thee forth without pain, have
mercy upon me thy humble servant, and as by thy blessing
I have conceived, so grant that by thy favourable assistance
I may be safely delivered : Lord, grant me patience, and
strength, and confidence in thee, and send thy holy angel to
be my guardian in the hour of my travail. O shut not up
my soul with sinners, nor my life with them that go down
into the pit. I humbly also beg mercy for my child ; grant
it may be born with its right shape, give it a comely body
and an understanding soul, life, and opportunity of baptism,
and thy grace from the cradle to the grave, that it may
increase the number of saints in that holy fellowship of
saints and angels, where thou livest and reignest, eternal
God, world without end. Amen.
XIII.
Before a Journey.
O God, who didst preserve thy servants Abraham and
Jacob, thy people Israel, thy servant Tobias, and the wise
men of the east in their several journeys, by thy providence,
by" a ministry of angels, by a pillar of fire, and by the
guidance of a star; vouchsafe to preserve us thy servants
in the way we are now to go. Be, O Lord, a guide unto us
in our preparation, a shadow in the day, and a covering by
night, a rest to our weariness, and a staff to our weakness, a
patron in adversity, a protection from danger; that by thy
assistance we may perform our journey safely to thy honour,
to our own comfort, and at last bring us to the everlasting
rest of our heavenly country, through him who is the way,
the truth, and the life, our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus,
Amen.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 229
XIV.
For afflicted Persons.
O Lord God, merciful and gracious, whose compassion
extends to all that are in misery and need, that takest delight
in the relieving the distresses of the afflicted, give refresh-
ment to all the comfortless, provide for the poor, give ease
to all them that are tormented with sharp pains, health to
the diseased, liberty and redemption to the captives, cheer-
fulness of spirit to all them that are in great desolations.
Lord, let thy Spirit confirm all them that are strong,
strengthen all that are weak, and speak peace to afflicted
consciences, that the light of thy countenance being restored
to them, they may rejoice in thy salvation, and sing praises
unto thy name, who hast delivered their souls from death,
their eyes from tears, and their feet from falling : grant this
for the honour of thy mercies, and the glory of thy name,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
XV.
For our Enemies.
O blessed Jesu, who wert of so infinite mercies, so trans-
cendent a charity, that thou didst descend from heaven to
the bowels of the earth, that thou mightest reconcile us who
were enemies to the mercies of thy heavenly Father; and,
in imitation of so glorious example, hast commanded us to
love them that hate us, and to pray for them that are our
enemies ; I beseech thee, of thine infinite goodness, that
thou wouldst be pleased to keep me with thy grace in so
much meekness, justice, and affable disposition, that I may,
so far as concerns me, live peaceably with all men, giving no
man occasion of offence : and to them who hate me without
a cause, I beseech thee give thy pardon, and fill them with
charity towards thee and all the world ; bless them with all
blessings in order to eternity, that when they are reconciled
to thee, we also may be united with the bands of faith, and
love, and a common hope ; and at last we may be removed
to the glories of thy kingdom, which is full of love and
eternal charity, and where thou livest and reignest, ever one
God, world without end. Amen.
230 DEVOTIONS FO*R SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
XVI.
A Prayer to be said upon Ember Days. 1
O merciful Jesu, who hast promised perpetuity to the
Church, and a permanence in defiance of all the powers of
darkness, and the gates of hell, and to this purpose hast
constituted several orders, leaving a power to his apostles,
and their successors the bishops, to beget fathers of our
souls, and to appoint priests and deacons for the edification
of the Church, the benefit of all Christian people, and the
advancement of thy service ; have mercy upon thy ministers
the bishops, give them for ever great measure of thy Holy
Spirit, and at this time particular assistances, and a power of
discerning and trying the spirits of them who come to be
ordained to the ministry of thy word and sacraments : that
they may lay hands suddenly on no man, but maturely,
prudently, and piously, they may appoint such to thy service
and the ministry of thy kingdom, who by learning, discre-
tion, and a holy life, are apt instruments for the conversion
of souls, to be examples to the people, guides of their
manners, comforters of their sorrows, to sustain their weak-
nesses, and able to promote all the interests of true religion.
Grant this, O great Shepherd and Bishop of our souls,
blessed Jesus, who livest and reignest in the kingdom of
thine eternal Father, one God, world without end. Amen.
Sanctus Deus.
Sanctus Fortis.
Sanctus Immortalis.
XVII.
A Prayer wherewith St. Austin began his Devotions ; ad-
miring the unspeakable Majesty and Attributes of God.
Conf. lib. i. c. 4.
What art thou, O my God? what art thou, I beseech
thee, but the Lord my God ? for who is God besides our
Lord, who is God besides our God ? O thou supreme, most
merciful, most just, most secret, most present, most beautiful,
most mighty, most incomprehensible, most constant, and
yet changing all things ; immutable, never new, and never
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 231
old, and yet renewing all things ; ever in action, and yet ever
quiet ; heaping up, yet needing nothing ; creating, uphold-
ing, filling, protecting, nourishing, and perfecting all things.
Thou lovest, and yet thou art not transported ; thou art
jealous, yet thou art void of fear ; thou dost repent, yet thou
art free from sorrow ; thou art angry, and yet art never
unquiet ; thou takest what thou findest, yet didst thou never
lose any thing ; thou art never poor, and yet thou art glad
of gain; never covetous, and yet thou exactest profit at our
hands. We bestow largely upon thee, that thou mayest
become our debtor ; yet who hath any thing but of thy gift ?
Thou payest debts, when thou owest nothing ; thou forgivest
debts, and yet thou losest nothing. And what shall I say ?
O my God, my life, my joy, my holy dear delight ! or what
can any man say when he speaketh of thee I And wo be
to them that speak not of thee, but are silent in thy praise ;
for even they who speak most of thee, may be accounted to
be but dumb. Have mercy upon me, O Lord, that I may
speak unto thee, and praise thy name. Amen.
XVIII.
A general Confession.
Almighty God, I, a miserable sinner, do humbly confess,
and am truly sorrowful for my many and great, my innume-
rable and intolerable crimes, of which my conscience does
accuse me by night and by day, and by which I have pro-
voked thy severest wrath and indignation against me. I
have broken all thy righteous laws and commandments by
word or deed, by vain thoughts or sinful desires. I have
sinned against thee in all my relations and capacities, in all
places and at all times ; I can neither reckon their number,
nor bear their burden, nor suffer thy anger, which I have
deserved. But thou, O Lord God, art merciful and gracious ;
have mercy upon me ; pardon me for all the evil I have
done ; judge me not for all the good I have omitted ; take
not thy favour from me, but delight thou to sanctify and
save me, and work in me to will and to do of thy good
pleasure all our duty, that being sanctified by thy Spirit,
and delivered from my sin, I may serve thee in a religious
and holy conversation, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
232 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
XIX.
A Prayer against Temptations.
O God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, thy name is
great, thy essence is infinite, thy goodness is eternal, and
thy power hath no limit ; thou art the God and Lord of all,
blessed for evermore : look down in mercy and compassion
from thy dwelling, hear my prayers and supplications, and ,
deliver me from all temptations of the world, the flesh, and
the devil. Take not thy grace from me, let me never want
thy help in my need, nor thy comfort in the day of my
danger or calamity. Never try me beyond my strength, nor
afflict me beyond my patience, nor smite me but with a
father's rod. I have no strength of my own, thou art my
confidence, my rock, and my strong salvation. Save me, O
God, from the miseries of this world, and never let me suffer
the calamities of the next. Rescue me from the evils I have
done, and preserve me from the evils I have deserved ; that,
living before thee with a clean heart, and undefiled body,
and a sanctified spirit, I may, at the day of judgment, be
presented pure and spotless by the blood of the Lamb, that
I may sing eternal hallelujahs in heavenly places to the
honour of God our Saviour, who hath redeemed our souls
from death, our eyes from tears, and our feet from falling.
Grant this in the richness of thy mercy, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
XX.
A Prayer of Thanksgiving for any great Deliverance.
O God, my God and Father, thou hast strangely pre-
served and rescued me from evil, and, for the glory of thy
own name, thou hast diverted the arrow that was directed
against me. What am I, O Lord, and what can I do, or
what have I done, that thou shouldest do this forme ? I am,
God, a miserable sinner, and I can do nothing without a
mighty grace ; and I have done nothing by myself but what
1 am ashamed of, and I have received great mercies, and
miracles of providence. I see, O God, I see that thy good-
ness is the cause and measure of all my hopes and all my
good : and upon the confidence and greatness of that good-
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 233
ness, I humbly beg of thy sacred majesty to keep and defend
me from all evil by thy wise providence ; to lead me into all
good by the conduct of thy Divine Spirit, and where I have
clone amiss give me pardon, and where I have been mistaken
give me pity, and where I have been injured give me thy
favour and a gracious exchange : that I may serve thee here
with diligence, and hereafter may rejoice with thee, and love
thee as I desire to love thee, and as thou deserves! to be
loved, even with all the powers and degrees of passion and
essence, to eternal ages, in the inheritance of Jesus, whom
I love, for whom I will not refuse to die, in whom I desire to
live and die : to whom with thee, O gracious Father, and the
Holy Spirit, be all glory and honour, love and obedience, for
ever and ever. Amen.
XXI.
A Prayer to be said by a Prisoner in behalf of himself .
O Almighty God, the merciful Father of all that put their
trust in thee, look down from the beauteous throne of thy
glory with much mercy and compassion upon thy servant,
who is a child of misery, full of sin and full of calamity ;
whose only hope is in the mercies and loving-kindness of the
Lord. O do thou pardon all my trespasses and debts, by
which I am in arrear to thee, put them upon the accounts of
the cross ; for our blessed and most gracious Lord hath paid
our price to redeem us from the eternal prisons : and be thou
pleased to enrich me with thy Holy Spirit, that I may be
strong in faith, abounding in hope, established in a holy
patience, and rich in charity ; expecting with meekness and
submission, when the times of refreshment shall come from
the presence of the Lord, our blessed Saviour and Redeemer
Jesus. Amen.
XXII.
A Prayer to be used by those that are at Sea.
O Almighty God and Father of heaven and earth, who
settest bounds to the sea, and restrainest the waves thereof
by a heap of sand, by mountains and rocks, by thy word and
by thy Spirit, saying, ' Hither shall thy proud waves pass, and
no further ;' look upon thy servant, whose life is in his hands,
and I dwell in the shadows of death night and day : I know,
234 DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
O Lord, and confess, the floods and waves of passion do
frequently overrun me ; and we are drowned in the storms
and overwhelmed with iniquity. The oaths, blasphemies,
impieties, irreligious actions, of which I stand guilty before
thee, are louder than the fiercest winds, and call aloud upon
thee for vengeance ; and many of us in our greatest danger
provoke thee with the greatest unreasonableness and violence
of impiety. But, O God, our God, be gracious unto thy
servant who accuseth himself, and confesseth his guilt, and
acknowledgeth thy justice, and begs thy goodness, and
prays to thee for safety and defence, for deliverance and for
pardon, for thy conduct and thy blessing. Keep us, O God,
from storms and quicksands, from pirates and rocks, from
errors and impieties, from all evil contingencies and all evil
actions ; let this voyage be safe to my person and goods, let
it be blessed by thy providence and thy Holy Spirit, that I
may return with comfort and with advantages of success,
and thy servant may glorify thee in the land of the living,
in the Church of the first-born, the congregation of thy
redeemed ones, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
XXIII.
In a Storm, or Danger of Pirates, or Shipwreck.
O eternal and most holy Saviour Jesus, who, in the days
of thy flesh and thy infirmity, didst command the winds and
rebuke the seas, and they obeyed thee : and thou art exalted
far above all principalities and powers, above all heavens
and all angels, and art the King of the world, and hast com-
manded us to come boldly to the throne of grace, with pro-
mise of help in time of need : look down upon thy servant,
who, in the abyss of the seas, and the more uncomfortable
abyss of our trouble, invocate the abyss of thy mercies. O
refuse not to hear the prayers, and to consider the cries, and
to behold and pity the need of me who call upon thee, who
put my trust in thee, who have laid up all my hopes in thee,
and thy infinite and eternal goodness. I have no strength
of my own, but thou art my confidence ; be thou also my
portion and guide, my defence and shield, a star in the night
and a covering by day.
DEVOTIONS FOR SEVERAL OCCASIONS. 235
XXIV.
Strengthen my faith, O God, and increase my hope, that,
in the greatest danger, I may against hope believe in hope,
and with faith and love expect the salvation of the Lord , and
may find thy goodness rescuing me from this present fear,
and defending me in all our difficulties, and sanctifying every
accident, and sweetening every event of providence, and
consigning me by these blessings to a final delivery from all
my sins, and from the evil which my sins deserve, to the
glory of God, to the salvation of my soul in thy day, in thy
glorious day, eternal and most holy Saviour and Re-
deemer Jesu. Amen.
XXV.
A Prayer wherewith to conclude all our Devotions.
Almighty God, who hast promised to hear the petitions
of them that ask in thy Son's name ; I beseech thee merci-
fully to incline thine ears unto me, who have now made my
prayers and supplications unto thee : and grant that those
things which I have faithfully asked according to thy will,
may be effectually obtained, to the relief of my necessity,
and to the setting forth of thy glory, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
The Blessing.
The peace of God, which passeth all understanding ; the
blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghost; the virtue of Christ's blessed cross and passion ;
be with me now, and at the hour of death. Amen.
COLLECTION OF OFFICES,
OR
FORMS OF PRAYER
IN
CASES ORDINARY AND EXTRAORDINARY;
TAKEN OUT OF THE SCRIPTURES, AND THE ANCIENT LITUR-
GIES OF SEVERAL CHURCHES, ESPECIALLY THE GREEK.
l-ri ro O.VTO i ry ir^fio^n Up* ffinif^tffi fti* linfif Ifra, its tavf.
St. Ignaliut.
AN
ADVERTISEMENT*
TO THEM THAT SHALL USE THESE PRAYERS.
BECAUSE no Prayers are the more pleasing to God
for being long, and they are oftentimes displeasing
even to good men if they be very long ; and yet, on
the other side, if the devotion be long it is the
better : and if that be lasting, it ought to be sup-
plied with materials, like gums to the altar of
incense, and fuel for the holy fires : he that collected
these devotions did design to serve the advantages
both of length and shortness, that the most devout
may be fitted, and the most secular and employed
may not be wearied.
1. Therefore, although every thing is set down
at length, that the trouble of references and turnings
back might be avoided, and, therefore, seem longer
than they are ; and the hymns are sometimes double,
that the variety might be more apt to please and to
* The reason for omitting the Preface to the " Collection of Offices," has been
stated at p. 312 of vol. vii.
240 AN ADVERTISEMENT, &C.
i
instruct, and the offices are made full, that upon the
more solemn days, when people come with a greater
and more active devotion and greater leisure, their
time and their piety might be employed ; yet, on
other days, there is but one lesson appointed, and
one hymn to follow it.
2. The prayers are divided into smaller portions,
that with ease any of them may be omitted by
persons whose occasions force them from their at-
tendance on longer offices; besides that there are
two Forms of Morning and Evening Prayer, the one
shorter, the other longer.
3. In the beginning of Morning and Evening
Prayer, some of the devotions which are set down,
are desired and intended to be used but seldom;
not only to avoid tediousness, but for other reasons
very obvious, that the minister's more solemn power
and office might not be less regarded, by being
daily (and consequently very often without just dis-
positions) offered : I mean it concerning the form of
Absolution. The Confession may be shortened as
there is cause, by making use only of some of the
sections, and leaving out the other.
4. If, upon communion-days, the Morning Prayer
and the Communion Office be not read at one time,
but the Morning Prayer be read at seven or eight
o'clock in the morning ; and the Communion Office
AN ADVERTISEMENT, &C. 241
at the time of celebration ; or if it be convenient that
they be both together, if then the sermon be in the
afternoon, the length will be very tolerable.
5. These Prayers being intended only as a cha-
ritable ministry to them who are not permitted to use
those which were appointed formerly, there is no
necessity upon any one, and he may use as much or
as little as he please ; and therefore no man will have
cause to complain of length or shortness.
VOL. XV.
For the Offices themselves, I pray God bless them to all
those ends whither they are designed, and to which in their
own nature they can minister. And as I humbly recommend
them to God's blessing, so I do submit them to the judgment
of my afflicted mother the Church of England, and particu-
larly to the censure of my spiritual superiors : and I desire
that these Prayers may no longer be used in any public
place, than my lords the bishops, upon prudent inquiries
and grave considerations, shall perceive them apt to minister
to God's glory, and useful to the present or future necessities
of the sons and daughters of the Church of England.
MORNING PRAYER,
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
Say one or more of these Sentences.
HE that covereth his sins, shall not prosper: but he that
confesseth and forsaketh them, shall have mercy. Prov.
xxviii. 13.
To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses,
though we have rebelled against him. Neither have we
obeyed the voice of the Lord our God to walk in his laws,
which he hath set before us by his servants the prophets.
Dan. ix. 10.
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and
the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness. 1 John, i. 8, 9.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit ; a broken and
a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Psalm li. 17.
Cast away from you all your transgressions whereby ye
have transgressed, and make you a new heart, and a new
spirit. For why will ye die ? I have no pleasure in the
death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God. Wherefore
turn yourselves, and live ye. Ezek. xviii. 31, 32.
After which say,
Draw nigh, therefore, unto God, and he will draw nigh
unto you. Cleanse your hands, and purify your hearts.
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and make a
confession of your sins unto him, with a hearty sorrow
and an humble hope, begging for pardon at the throne of
grace.
Let us pray.
The Confession.
I.
O ALMIGHTY GOD, great Lord of heaven and earth, we mi-
serable sinners, with fear and shame, cast ourselves down
244 MORNING PRAYER
before thee, humbly confessing our manifold sins and unsuf-
ferable wickednesses, by which we have deserved thy wrath,
and that we should be separated from the sweetest comforts
of thy presence for ever.
II.
We confess, O great God, we have sinned against thee
by knowledge and by ignorance, by folly and by surprise,
by word and deed, by anger and desires, by night and by
day, in private and in public, by the lusts of the flesh and
the vanity and pride of our spirits : our sins of omission are
infinite, and the sins of our tongue cannot be numbered. O
God, thy words and laws are holy, and thy judgments are
terrible ; but we have broken all thy righteous laws and
commandments, and we have great cause to be afraid of thy
severest judgments : and where shall we appear, when thou
art angry with us ?
III.
But thou shalt answer for us, O Lord our God : thou art
our Judge, but thou art our Redeemer ; we have sinned, but
thou, O blessed Jesus, art our Advocate. Have mercy
upon us ; have mercy upon us, most miserable sinners ; enter
not into judgment with us, lest we die : let not thine anger
arise, lest we be consumed ; but spare us, gracious Lord,
spare thy servants, whom thou hast redeemed with thy most
precious blood ; O reserve not evil in store for us against
the day of vengeance, but shew thy goodness in us, and let
thy mercies be magnified upon us : deliver us, O Lord, from
the power of sin ; and preserve us from the punishments of
it, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Deprecation to be used upon solemn Days, or at the Dis-
cretion of him that ministers.
I.
O LORD our God, whose power is infinite, whose glory is
supreme, whose mercy is without measure, whose goodness
is unspeakable, despise not thy returning servants, who
earnestly beg for pardon and to be reconciled to thee : sanc-
tify, O God, our bodies and souls, search out our spirits, and
cast out all iniquity from within us ; all weak principles and
false arguings, every impure lust and filthy desire, all pride
and envy, all hypocrisy and lying, all inordinate love of this
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 245
world, and base covetousness ; all hardness of heart and un-
relenting dispositions, all peevishness and hasty anger, all
mindfulness of injuries and revengefulness, all blasphemy
and irreligion ; and every motion of soul and body, which
can withdraw us from thee, and is against thy will and
commandment.
II.
Gracious Father, give us perfect pardon for what is past,
and a perfect repentance of all our evils, that, for the time to
come, we may, with pure spirits, with broken and contrite
hearts, with sanctified lips and holy desires, serve thee reli-
giously ; walk humbly with our God; converse justly and
charitably with men ; and possess our souls in patience and
holiness, and our bodies in sanctification and honour, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Prayer of A bsolution, to be said by the Minister alone,
according to his Piety and Discretion, when he sees cause,
not frequently.
OUR blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus, the great Shepherd
and Bishop of our souls, that Lamb of God who taketh
away the sins of the world, who promised paradise to the
repenting thief, and gave pardon to the woman taken in
adultery, pardon and forgive all your sins known and
unknown.
O blessed Jesus, in whatsoever thy servants as men
bearing flesh about them, and inhabiting this world, or de-
ceived by the devil, have sinned, whether in word or deed,
whether in thought or desire, whether by omission or com-
mission, let it be forgiven unto them by thy word and by
thy Spirit ; and for ever preserve thy servants from sinning
against thee, and from suffering thine eternal anger, for thy
promise sake, and for thy glorious name's sake, O blessed
Lord and Saviour Jesus. Amen.
Then devoutly and distinctly say the Lord's Prayer.
OUR Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil.
246 MORNING PRAYER
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
The Doxology.
GLORY be to the Father of mercies, the Father of men and
angels, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Glory be to the most holy and eternal Son of God, the
blessed Saviour and Redeemer of the world, the Advocate of
sinners, the Prince of Peace, the Head of the Church, and
the mighty Deliverer of all that call upon him.
Glory be to the holy and eternal Spirit of God, the Holy
Ghost the Comforter, the sanctifying and life-giving Spirit.
All glory and thanks, all honour and power, all love and
obedience, be to the blessed and undivided Trinity, one God
eternal.
The heavens declare thy glory, the earth confesses thy
providence, the sea manifests thy power ; and every spirit,
and every understanding creature, celebrates thy greatness,
for ever and ever. All glory and majesty, all praises and
dominion be unto thee, O God, Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost, for ever and ever. Amen.
Then arising from their knees, let the Psalter be read in order, as shall
be judged convenient : that is to say, the ordinary portions for every
day, Morning and Evening Prayer: and Psalms particularly chosen for
special Days of Festivity, or of Humiliation, respectively.
After the Psalms ending with " Glory be to the Father," &c., read a
chapter in the Old Testament. The chapter out of the Old Testament
is to be read on Sundays and Festivals ; and not omitted without great
occasion : but, on ordinary days, it may suffice, after the Psalms, imme-
diately to read the Lesson out of the New Testament.
A fter which, recite this Hymn to the honour of God; saying the verse*
interchangeably. *
REJOICE in the Lord, ye righteous : for praise is comely for
the upright.
The word of the Lord is true ; and all his works are
faithful.
He loveth righteousness and judgment : the earth is full
of the goodness of the Lord.
By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all
the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
He gathereth the waters of the sea together as a heap :
he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 247
Let all the earth fear the Lord : let all the inhabitants
of the world stand in awe of him.
Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him ;
upon them that hope in his mercy.
To deliver their souls from death ; and to keep them
alive in the time of famine.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous ; but the Lord
delivereth him out of all.
Evil shall slay the wicked : and they that hate the
righteous shall be desolate.
Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise
wicked works with men that work iniquity : and let me
not eat of their dainties.
Cause me to hear thy loving-kindness in the morning,
for in thee do I trust : cause me to know the way wherein I
should walk, for I lift up my soul unto thee.
Teach me to do thy will, for thou art my God ; thy
Spirit is good : lead me into the laud of uprightness.
Gather not my soul with sinners; nor my life with
bloody men.
The poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and
saved him out of all his troubles.
O taste and see that the Lord is good : blessed is the
man that trusteth in him.
O how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up
for them that fear thee ; which thou hast wrought for them
that trust in thee before the sons of men.
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence
from the pride of man : thou shalt keep them secretly in
a pavilion, from the strife of tongues.
O love the Lord, all ye his saints : for the Lord preserveth
the faithful, and plenteously rewardeth the proud doer.
Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart,
all ye that hope in the Lord.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Or this,
SING praises unto God, sing praises : sing praises unto
our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the
earth : sing ye praises with understanding.
God reigneth over the nations : God sitteth upon the
throne of his holiness.
248 MORNING PRAYER
He is our refuge and strength : a very present help in
trouble.
Many, O Lord our God, are thy wonderful works which
thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are towards us :
they cannot be reckoned in order.
For God is my King of old, working salvation in the
midst of the earth.
Thou didst cleave the fountain and the flood ; thou
driest up mighty rivers.
The day is thine, the night also is thine : thou hast
prepared the light and the sun.
Thou hast set all the borders of the earth, thou hast
made summer and winter.
Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name :
worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
The voice of the Lord is upon the waters : the God of
glory thundereth, the Lord is upon many waters.
The voice of the Lord is powerful : the voice of the
Lord is full of majesty.
The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve, and
discovereth the forests : and m his temple doth every
man speak of his glory.
Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous : and
shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
For this God is our God for ever and ever, he will be
our guide unto death.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Then read a Lesson out of one of the four Gospels, or the Acts of the
holy Apostles; in order, or bj choice, upon extraordinary occasions.
After which recite one of these following Psalms.
THE mighty God, even the Lord hath spoken, and called
the earth, from the rising of the sun unto the going down
thereof.
Out of Sion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.
Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence : a fire
shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous
round about him.
He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the
earth, that he may judge his people.
And the heavens shall declare his righteousness ; for God
is Judge himself.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 249
His name shall endure for ever : his name shall be con-
tinued as lono- as the sun : and men shall be blessed in him :
O
all nations shall call him blessed.
Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only
doth wondrous things.
And blessed be his glorious name for ever : and let the
whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, Amen.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Or this, to be said especially on Communion Days.
PSALM XXIII.
THE Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
He inaketh me to lie down in green pastures, he leadeth
me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul : he leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me ; thy rod and
thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine
enemies, thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth
over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days
of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Then say the Apostles' Creed, or the Nicene Creed, if it be a great
Festival of the Church.
I BELIEVE in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven
and earth :
And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord : Which was
conceived by the Holy Ghost : Born* of the Virgin Mary :
Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and
buried : He descended into hell : The third day he rose again
from the dead : He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the
right-hand of God the Father Almighty : From "thence he
shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost : The holy catholic Church :
the communion of saints : The forgiveness of sins : The
resurrection of the body : And the life everlasting. Amen.
250 MORNING PRAYER.
The Nicene Creed, to be said upon the great Solemnities
of the Year.
I BELIEVE in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of
God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of gods,
Light of light, very God of very God, begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father ; by whom all things
were made : who for us men and for our salvation came down
from heaven, and was incarnate, by the Holy Ghost, of the
Virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for
us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered, and was buried, and
the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and
ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right-hand of the
Father. And he shall come again with glory, to judge both
the quick and the dead : whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life,
who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, who with the
Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified,
who spake by the prophets. And I believe one catholic and
apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remis-
sion of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
After the Creed.
Minister. The Lord be with you.
People. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
OUR FATHER which art in heaven : Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come : Thy will be done in earth as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil :
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
I.
O GREAT King of heaven and earth, the Lord and Patron of
all ages, receive thy servants approaching to the throne of
grace in the name of Jesus Christ ; give unto every one of us
what is best for us, cast out all evil from within us, work in
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 251
us a fulness of holiness, of wisdom and spiritual understand-
ing, that we, increasing in the knowledge of God, may be
fruitful in every good work, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Collect for the Morning.
II.
O Almighty Father, great God of all the world, who
dwellest in the light to which no man can approach, in thy
presence there is no night, in the light of thy countenance
there is perpetual day : we thy servants, whom thou hast pre-
served this night, who bless and glorify thee this day, who
live by thy power, who desire to walk by thy laws, to be
blessed by thy providence, to be defended by thy almighty
hand, humbly pray unto thee, that this day and all the days
of our lives may be holy and peaceable ; send thy Holy Spirit,
the Spirit of peace, to be the guide of our way, the guard of
our souls and bodies. Grant that all the chances and acci-
dents of this day may be healthful to our bodies and profit-
able to our souls ; and that we may spend the remaining
portion of our life in blessing, and peace, and holiness. Make
thou the latter end of our days to be Christian, without
shame and without torment ; and when we shall appear be-
fore thy dreadful seat of judgment, grant that we may not be
confounded, but may stand upright in the congregation of
the saints, acquitted by the death of Christ, justified by his
resurrection, pardoned by his sentence, saved by his mercy,
that we may rejoice in his salvation, and sing thy praises for
ever and ever. Amen.
A Prayer against Temptations.
III.
O God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, thy name is
great, thy essence is infinite, thy g'oodness is eternal, and
thy power hath no limit ; thou art the God and Lord of all,
blessed for evermore. Look down in mercy and compassion
from thy dwelling, hear our prayers and supplications, and
deliver us from all temptations of the world, the flesh, and
the devil. Take not thy grace from us, let us never want
thy help in our needs, nor thy comfort in the day of our
danger and calamity. Never try us beyond our strengths,
nor afflict us beyond our patience, nor smite us but with a
252 MORNING PRAYER
father's rod. We have no strengths of our own, thou art
bur confidence, our rock, and our strong salvation. Save us,
O God, from the miseries of this world, and never let us
suffer the intolerable calamities of the next. Rescue us from
the evils we have done, and preserve us from the evils we
have deserved ; that we, living before thee with clean hearts,
and undefiled bodies, and sanctified spirits, may, at the day
of judgment, be presented pure and spotless by the blood of
the Lamb, that we may sing eternal hellelujahs in heavenly
places to the honour of God our Saviour, who hath redeemed
our souls from death, our eyes from tears, and our feet from
falling. Grant this in the richness of thy mercy, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Then shall be added, upon all Sundays and Festivals of the year, this
following Prayer : and upon other days, as opportunity is to be had, all
or some portions.
The Prayers for Kings, &c., and the state Ecclesiastical, are never to be
omitted : but on ordinary days it may suffice to recite them, omitting so
much of either as is included in the columns [*].
The Prayer of Intercession, for all States of Men and Women
in the Catholic Church.
I.
SAVE us, defend and keep us in thy fear and love, O thou
God of mercy and grace ; give unto us the light of thy
countenance, pardon of our sins, health of our body, sancti-
fication of our spirits, peace from heaven, and salvation of
our souls in the day of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
For the Catholic Church.
II.
Hear our prayers for thy holy Church catholic, which thou
hast redeemed with thy blood, sealed and sanctified with thy
Spirit : extirpate all heresies and false doctrines, unite all her
divisions, let her be prosperous under thy favour, and the
protection of kings and princes, and the whole secular arm :
that she may daily celebrate thy name, with strict obedience,
and pure spiritual sacrifices; that she may be accepted, and
prevail in her daily and nightly prayers, and that the gates
of hell may never prevail against her ; let her live in the
Spirit, and reign in thy glory ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 253
For the supreme Power.
III.
We pray unto thee, O great King of heaven and earth, for
all Christian kings, princes, governors, and states : crown
them with justice and peace, and with the love of God, and
the love of their people ; [*] let holiness be the ornament of
their heads ; invest them with the armour of righteousness,
and let the anointing from above make them sacred and
venerable, wise and holy, [*] that being servants of the King
of kings, friends of religion, ministers of justice, and patrons
of the poor, they may, at last, inherit a portion in the king-
dom of our Lord Jesus..
For the State Ecclesiastical.
IV.
Remember all them that do the Lord's work in the
ministry and conduct of souls. Give them great gifts and
great holiness, [*] that wisely and charitably, diligently and
zealously, prudently and acceptably, they may be guides to
the blind, comforters to the sad and weary, that they may
strengthen the weak and confirm the strong, separate the
vile from the precious, boldly rebuke sin, patiently suffer for
the truth, and be exemplary in their lives, [*] that in all their
actions and sermons, in their discipline and ministrations,
they may advance the good of souls, and the honour of our
Lord Jesus. Amen.
For all Orders and States of Men, &fc.
V.
O blessed God, who art rich in mercy and compassion,
take care of all states of men and women in the Christian
Church, the nobility and gentry, magistrates and judges,
advocates and physicians, merchants and artificers, husband-
men and tradesmen, the labourers and the hirelings : give
them grace in their several callings to glorify thee, and to
keep a good conscience both towards God and towards man,
that they may find eternal comfort in the glorious day of our
Lord Jesus.
For the Miserable and Afflicted.
VI.
In mercy remember the poor and needy, the widows and
254 MORNING PRAYER.
fatherless, the strangers and the friendless, the oppressed
and the grieved, the decrepit and sickly, the young men
and the tempted, the weak of heart and the weak in hody,
them that languish and them that are dying ; relieve their
necessities, comfort their sorrows, sanctify their calamities,
strengthen their weaknesses, and suffer not the devil to pre-
vail over them in the days of their sorrow and disadvantage :
and, in thy due time, deliver them from their sad bondage
into thy glorious liberty of the sons of God, through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
VII.
Be a guide to the travellers, a star and a port to mariners,
the comfort and strength of miners and galley-slaves. Pity,
good God, all gentlemen that are fallen into poverty and
sad misfortunes ; strengthen and deliver all women that are
in sharp and dangerous labour ; all them that roar and groan
with intolerable pains and noisome diseases : have mercy
and compassion upon all that are afflicted with illusion of
the night and frightful apparitions ; that are haunted or pos-
sessed with evil spirits, or troubled with despairing or amazed
consciences, with the stone and with the gout, with vio-
lent colics and grievous ulcers : give them pity and give
them patience, a speedy deliverance from their calamity, and
a sanctified use of the rod of God, through Jesus Christ our
Lord.
VIII.
We pray unto thee, O blessed Father, in behalf of all that
are in banishment and captivity, in fetters or hard services,
n want or extreme poverty, in great fear or in any great
passion. Keep them from sinning against thee, and from
being swallowed by too great a sorrow. Let the accidents
of their lives be under the command of reason, and of thy
Holy Spirit, and end in holiness and comfort, in peace and
joys eternal ; through the mercies of our God, in our Lord
and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
For Preservation from Danger and Evil.
IX.
Keep us, O God, from famine and pestilence, from earth-
quakes and inundations, from fire and sword, from invasion
by foreign enemies and from civil wars, from false religion
EVENING PRAYER, &C. 255
and from discountenancing the true : let every Christian soul
find pity at the throne of grace : let all our errors and igno-
rances find pardon by Christ, and remedy by the Holy Spirit
of Christ ; hear all our prayers, relieve all our necessities,
sanctify all the events of thy providence, and the changes of
our life, that we may for ever love and for ever fear thee, and
all things may work together for our good unto thy glory,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Blessing.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communication of the Holy Spirit of God, be with
us, and with all our relatives, and with all the servants of
God, this day, and for evermore. Amen.
EVENING PRAYER,
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
Say one or more of these sentences.
O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be
ashamed, because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain
of living waters.
O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, have
mercy upon us for thy name's sake ; for our backslidings
are many, we have sinned against thee.
Seek the Lord, while he may be found : call upon him,
when he is near.
There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity,
and passeth by the remnant of the transgression of his
heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he
delighteth in mercy.
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous
man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he
will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will
abundantly pardon.
256 EVENING PRAYER.
Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity,
whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with
him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive
the spirit of the humble, and to renew the hearts of them
that are contrite.
After which add this short Exhortation.
I beseech you that are present, to join with me in an
humble confession of sins to Almighty God, casting your-
selves down with all humility before the throne of grace.
The Confession.
I.
ALMIGHTY GOD, powerful and merciful, thou art a jealous
God against persevering sinners, but a gracious Father to
the penitent : let thy merciful ears be opened to the peti-
tions of thy servants, who, with sorrow and shame, confess
their sins unto thee.
II.
We have loved the world, not thee: we have obeyed the
desires of our own hearts, not thy holy laws and command-
ments : we have often left our duty undone, but cease not to
please our senses, and to feed greedily upon vanity : thou
hast commanded us to love our brethren, and, instead of
loving them, we have slandered and reproached, injured
and tempted them, envied their good, and rejoiced in their
calamity.
III.
O blessed God, we are ashamed when we remember our
own follies, our violent passions, our peevishness and pride,
our vain thoughts and unprofitable words, our uncharitable
and useless conversation : we spend our days in idleness
and folly, our nights in the images and causes of death ;
and though our sins are so many that we cannot number
them, yet we so little apprehend our own dangers that we
neither leave them utterly nor heartily deplore them.
IV.
But, O God, thou God of pity and compassion, have
mercy upon us : for thou art our Father, merciful and gra-
cious, and thou hast revealed to mankind an infinite mercy
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 257
in Jesus Christ. For his sake be pleased to give us repent-
ance and to give us pardon, and grant that our souls being
washed in the blood of the holy Lamb and the baptism of
repentance, we may live a gracious, a holy, and a blessed
life, in all godliness, and honesty, and sobriety, and may die
in the love of God, in the charity of our neighbours, in the
communion of the Church, and in a sure and certain hope of
life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Prayer of Absolution, to be said by the Minister alone,
according to his Piety and Discretion, when he sees cause.
Our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus, the great Shepherd
and Bishop of our souls, that Lamb of God that taketh away
the sins of the world, who promised Paradise to the repent-
ing thief, and gave pardon to the woman taken in adultery,
pardon and forgive all your sins known and unknown. O
blessed Jesus, in whatsoever thy servants, as men bearing-
flesh about them, and inhabiting this world, or deceived by
the devil, have sinned whether in word or deed, whether in
thought or desire, whether by omission or commission, let it
be forgiven unto them by thy word and by thy Spirit ; and
for ever preserve thy servants from sinning against thee, and
from suffering thine eternal anger, for thy promise sake, and
for thy glorious name's sake, O blessed Lord and Saviour
Jesus. Amen.
Then devoutly and distinctly say the Lord's Prayer.
Our Father which art in heaven : Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come : Thy will be done in earth as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil :
For thine is the kingdom, the power,, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
The Doxology.
Glory be to the Father of mercies, the Father of men and
angels, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Glory be to the most holy and eternal Son of God, the
blessed Saviour and Redeemer of the world, the Advocate of
sinners, the Prince of peace, the Head of the Church, aud the
mighty Deliverer of all them that call upon him.
VOL. xv. s
258 EVENING PRAYER
Glory be to the holy and eternal Spirit of God, the Holy
Ghost the Comforter, the sanctifying and life-giving Spirit.
All glory and thanks, all honour and power, all love
and obedience, be to the blessed and undivided Trinity, one
God eternal.
The heavens declare thy glory ; the earth confesses thy
providence ; the sea manifests thy power ; and every spirit,
and every understanding creature, celebrates thy greatness
for ever and ever. All glory and majesty, all praises and
dominion, be unto thee, O God, Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost, for ever and ever. Amen.
Then, arising from their knees, let the Psalms be said in order, unless
some extraordinary occasion do intervene : in which case let Psalms
be selected according to the occasion, or as is afterwards described ,
concluding with, Glory be to the Father, &c.
Then read, upon all Sundays and Festivals of the year, a Chapter in the
Old Testament, either in order or by choice.
After the Lesson recite this Hymn.
I will remember the works of the Lord ; surely I will
remember the wonders of old : I will meditate of all thy
works, and talk of thy doings.
Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary : who is so great a
God as our God ?
Thou art the God that doest wonders, thou hast declared
thy strength among the people.
Thou, even thou, art to be feared : and who may stand
in thy sight when thou art angry ?
For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine
is red ; it is full of mixture, and he poureth out of the same ;
but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall
wring them out and drink them.
But I will declare for ever : I will sing praises to the
God of Jacob.
For thou art my hope, O Lord God : thou art my trust
from my youth.
By thee have I been holden up from the womb : thou art
he that took me out of my mother's bowels, my praise shall
be continually of thee.
For the Lord is a sun and a shield : the Lord will give
grace and glory : and no good thing will he withhold from
them that live a godly life.
THROUGHOUT TIIK YKAR. 2. r if>
O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that puttcth his trust
in thce.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Or this.
God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
and to be had in reverence of all them that arc about him.
Thou rulest the raging of the sea ; when the waves
thereof arise, thou stillest them.
'Hi e heavens are thine, the earth also is thine : as for the
world arid the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne :
mercy and truth shall go before thy face.
For lo, thine enemies, O Lord, lo, thine enemies shall
perish : all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
The righteous shall flourish like a palm-tree : he shall
grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Those that be planted in the house of the Lord, shall
flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall still bring forth fruit in their old age : they
shall be fat and flourishing.
To shew that the Lord is upright : he is our rock, and
there is no unrighteousness in him.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Then read a Lesson out of the Epistles of St. Paul, or any of the Canon,
ical Epistles ; in order, or selected upon special occasions.
After the Lesson say this Psalm.
Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer, and attend to the
voice of my supplications.
Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger
towards us to cease.
For thou, Lord, art good, and* ready to forgive, and
plenteous in mercy to all them that call upon thee.
O remember not against us former iniquities : let thy
tender mercies speedily prevent us.
Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy
name : deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's
sake.
Teach us thy way, O God, and we will walk in thy
truth : unite our hearts to fear thy name.
260 EVENING PRAYER
O satisfy us early with thy mercy, that we may rejoice
and be glad all our days.
So we, thy people and sheep of thy pasture, will give
thee thanks for ever : we will shew forth thy praise from
generation to generation.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Or this.
In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust, let me never be
ashamed ; deliver me in thy righteousness.
Into thy hand I commend my spirit ; thou hast redeemed
me, O Lord God of truth.
Make thy face to shine upon thy servants : save us for
thy mercies' sake.
For great is thy goodness which thou hast laid up for
them that fear thee ; which thou hast wrought for them
that trust in thee before the sons of men.
The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that
fear him, and delivereth them.
Thou art my hiding-place ; thou shalt preserve me from
trouble ; thou shalt compass me about with songs of
deliverance.
Thou makest darkness, and it is night, wherein all the
beasts of the forest do creep forth.
Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast
thou made them all : the earth is full of thy riches.
The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever : the Lord
shall rejoice in his works.
He appointed the moon for certain seasons ; and the sun
knoweth his going down.
1 will sing unto the Lord as long as I live : I will sing
praise unto my God while I have my being : my meditation
of him shall be sweet, I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will both lay me down in peace and sleep ; for thou,
Lord, makest me dwell in safety.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
Or else say Psalm 103d, or the 91st, or the 121 ( .
Then shall follow the Apostles' Creed.
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven
and earth : And in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord ;
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 261
Which was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin
Mary : Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead,
and buried : He descended into hell : The third day he rose
again from the dead : He ascended into heaven, and sitteth
on the right-hand of God the Father Almighty : From
thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost : the holy catholic Church :
The communion of saints : The forgiveness of sins : The
resurrection of the body: And the life everlasting. Amen.
Minister. The Lord be with you.
People. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come : Thy will be done in earth as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for
ever and ever. Amen.
Then follows the first Collect, as at Morning Prayer.
I.
O great King of heaven and earth, the Lord and Patron
of all ages, receive thy servants approaching to the throne of
grace in the name of Jesus Christ. Give unto every one of
us what is best for us, cast out all evil from within us, work
in us a fulness of holiness, of wisdom and spiritual under-
standing, that we, increasing in the knowledge of God, may
be fruitful in every good work ; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
Or this.
Save us, defend and keep us in thy fear and love, O thou
God of mercy and grace. Give unto us the light of thy
countenance ; pardon of our sins, health of body, sanctifica-
tion of our spirits, peace from heaven, and salvation of our
souls in the day of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
I.
For Repentance and a Holy Life.
Almighty God, the fountain of holiness and felicity, who
262 EVENING PRAYER
by thy word and thy Spirit dost conduct all thy servants hi
the ways of peace and sanctity ; inviting them by promises,
and winning them by love ; endearing them by necessities,
and obliging them by the perpetual testimonies of thy loving-
kindness ; grant unto us so truly to repent us of our sins, so
carefully to reform our errors, so diligently to watch over all
our actions, so industriously to do all our duty, that we may
never transgress thy holy laws willingly ; but that it may be
the work of our lives to obey thee, the joy of our souls to
please thee, the satisfaction of all our hopes, and the perfec-
tion of our desires, to live with thee in the holiness of thy
kingdom of grace and glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
II.
For Peace.
O Almighty and most gracious Father, who art the
Fountain of peace, and the Father of unions, we pray unto
thee for peace, for love, and for thy salvation. Let a holy
peace for ever dwell in our consciences. Let peace and
holiness, and God's blessing, for ever adorn, support, and
enlarge this family : [or parish, or church, or commonwealth. ,]
Let there be peace and union of minds in all Christian
assemblies ; one heart and one voice, the same faith and an
eternal charity. Make wars to cease in all the world, that
the peace and the design of the Gospel may be advanced,
the laws of the holy Jesus may be obeyed, and his name be
magnified in all the world, for ever and ever. Amen.
III.
For all Christian Princes, and the Ecclesiastical State.
Almighty God, who rulest in the kingdoms of men, and
in all the events of the world, defend those with thy mercy
whom thou hast adorned with thy power ; lift up the horn,
advance the just interests of all Christian kings, princes, and
states, by the power of thy venerable and life-giving passion.
Give unto all them who serve thee in the ministries of
religion, wisdom and holiness, the blessings of peace, and
great abilities to minister prosperously to the good of souls,
by the power and aids of thy Holy Spirit of wisdom.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 263
IV.
Pardon all our sins ; take away our iniquities from us all,
and preserve us from all danger and trouble, from need and
persecution, from the temptations of the devil, from the
violence and fraud of all our enemies. Keep us, O God,
from sinning against thee, and from suffering thy wrath ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
V.
The Collect for the Evening.
O Almighty Father, who givest the sun for a light by
day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a
light by night, vouchsafe to receive us, this night and ever,
into thy favour and protection, defending us from all sad
casualties and evil accidents, ruling and governing us with
thy Holy Spirit, that all darkness and hurtful ignorance, all
infidelity and weakness of heart, all inordinate fear and
carnal affections, may be removed far from us ; that we,
being justified by the mercies of God in our Lord Jesus, may
be sanctified by thy Spirit, and glorified by thy infinite
mercies in the day of the glorious appearing of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
VI.
For a blessed Death.
O most gracious and most holy Redeemer, who, by dying
for us, becamest the Author of life unto us, and hast sub-
dued all the powers of hell and the grave, taking away the
sting of death, and breaking in pieces the powers of dark-
ness ; have mercy upon us now and at the hour of death :
let thy Holy Spirit govern all our words and actions, our
thoughts and designs, our civil iptercourse and the duties of
religion ; and grant to us so perfectly to obey his command-
ments, and attend his motions all the days of our life, that
we may, by holy habits and a constant performance of our
duty, wait for the coming of our Lord, and be ready to enter
with him at whatsoever hour he shall come.
VII.
O be merciful unto us in the day of our calamity, and
264 EVENING PRAYER
of thy visitation : strengthen our faith in the day of our
sicknesses and trial, when the cloud is thick and the storm is
great : that we may rely upon thy grace, invocate thy
mercies, hope in thy goodness, and receive the end of our
hopes, the salvation of our souls. O let us never descend
into the dwellings of the wicked, nor into the place of them
that know not God ; but be pleased here to guide us with
thy counsel, and after that receive us with thy glory, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Or this.
O eternal God, thou Fountain of life and pardon, there is
no number of thy days nor of thy mercies ; be merciful unto
us now and at the hour of our death ; let not thy servants
be arrested with sudden death, that we be neither unready in
our accounts, nor snatched hence with an imperfect duty,
nor surprised in an act of sin, nor called upon when our
lamps are untrimmed ; let it be neither violent nor untimely,
hasty nor unblessed, but after the ordinary visitation of men,
having in it an excellent patience and an exemplar piety,
and the greatest senses and demonstrations of thy eternal
mercies. Preserve, O God, our reason and religion, our
faith and our hope, our sense and our speech, perfect and
useful till the last of our days ; and grant that we may die
the death of the righteous, and let our last end be like to
his, free from debt and deadly sin, having first discharged
all our obligations of justice, and made competent provision
for our relatives, that none of ours be left miserable and
unprovided in our departure ; but grant that being blessed
by thy providence, and sanctified with thy Spirit, they may
for ever be servants of the Lord Jesus.
II.
Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts, shut not
up thy merciful eyes and ears unto our prayers ; but spare
us, O Lord most holy, O God most mighty, O holy and
merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us
not, at our last hour, for any pains of death, to fall from thee ;
but strengthen us with a mighty grace, and support us with
an infinite mercy, giving us perfect measures of repentance
and great treasures of charity ; that at the general resurrec-
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 265
tion in the last day, we may be found acceptable in thy
sight, and receive that blessing which thy well-beloved Son
shall then pronounce to all them that love and fear thee,
saying, ' Come, ye blessed children of my Father, receive
the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the
world.' This mercy, O most merciful Father, vouchsafe to
give unto us and all thy servants, through Jesus Christ, our
Mediator and Redeemer. Amen.
Here may be inserted any of the portions of the Prayer of Intercession,
which is at the end of Morning Prayer.
The Blessing.
The Lord bless you and keep you : the Lord make his
face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you. The
Lord lift up the light of his countenance upon you, and give
you peace.
The blessing of 'God Almighty, the Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, be amongst you , and abide with you, and be
your portion for ever and ever. Amen.
To be added to the foregoing Offices upon special Occasions, immediately
before the Blessing at Morning or Evening Prayer.
A Prayer before Sermon.
O LORD GOD, Fountain of life, Giver of all good things,
who givest to men the blessed hope of eternal life by our
Lord Jesus Christ, and hast promised thy Holy Spirit to
them that ask him ; be present with us in the dispensation
of thy holy word [and sacraments] ,* grant that we, being
preserved from all evil by thy power, and, among the diver-
sities of opinions and judgments in this world, from all errors
and false doctrines, and led into all truth by the conduct of
thy Holy Spirit, may for ever obey thy heavenly calling :
that we may not be only hearers of the word of life, but
doers also of good works, keeping faith and a good con-
science, living an unblamable life, usefully and charitably,
This clause is to be omitted, if there be no sacrament that day.
266 ADDITIONAL^ TO THE FOREGOING OFFICES.
religiously and prudently, in all godliness and honesty before
thee our] God, and before all the world ; that at the end of
our mortal life we may enter into the light and life of God,
to sing praises and eternal hymns to the glory of thy name,
in eternal ages, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
In whose name let us pray in the words which himself
commanded, saying,
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come : Thy will be done in earth as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
A Prayer of Thanksgiving after Sermon ; if it be convenient
by reason of the Time or other Circumstances.
I,
Almighty God, our glory and our hope, our Lord and
Master, the Father of mercy and the God of all comfort, we
humbly present to thee the sacrifice of a thankful spirit in a
joyful acknowledgment of those infinite favours by which
thou hast supported our state, enriched our spirits, com-
forted our sorrows, relieved our necessities, blessed and
defended our persons, instructed our ignorances, and pro-
moted our eternal interest. We praise thy name for that
portion of thy holy word, of which thou hast made us par-
takers this day. Grant that it may bring forth fruit unto
thee, and unto holiness in our whole life, to the glory of thy
holy name, the edification of our brethren, and the eternal
comfort of our souls in the day of our Lord Jesus.
II.
Have mercy upon all that desire, and upon all that need ,
our prayers. Ease the pains of the sick, support the spirit
of the disconsolate, hear the cries of orphans and widows in
their calamity, and restore all that are oppressed, to their
rights, and sanctify to them all their wrongs ; pity the folly,
and pity the calamities, of poor mankind ; in mercy remember
ADDITIONALS TO THE FOREGOING OFFICES. 267
those that are appointed to die, comfort and support their
spirits, perfect and accept their repentance, and receive the
souls returning unto thee, whom thou hast redeemed with
thy most precious blood.
III.
Lord, pity and pardon, direct and bless, sanctify and save,
us all. Give repentance to all that live in sin, and per-
severance to all thy sons and servants for His sake who is thy
beloved, and the foundation of all our hopes, our blessed Lord
and Saviour Jesus, to whom, with the Father and the Holy
Spirit, be all honour and glory, praise and adoration, love
and obedience, now and for evermore. Amen.
If this whole Office be said at Morning or Evening Prayer respectively,
the Collect before Sermon here put down, may be used instead of
the usual Prayer before Sermon, ending with the Lord's Prayer ;
and the Sermon to begin immediately before the Blessing.
The Sermon being ended, the Prayer of Thanksgiving may be said, and
the Congregation dismissed with the Blessing set down at the end
of Evening Prayer.
A Prayer when a sick Person desires to be publicly
prayed for.
I.
O Almighty and most gracious Father, who art the
Fountain of life, and health, and pardon, hear the prayers of
thy servants in behalf of our brother, the miserable for
the afflicted, of sinners for him whom thou hast smitten.
Lord, lay no more upon him than thou shall enable him to
bear, but give him patience ; and do thou thyself open a door
for his escape, even by a holy and a reformed life, and a
speedy recovery, or else by a blessed death, as thou, in thy
infinite loving-kindness, shalt choose for thy glory and his
eternal interest.
II.
Lord, give unto thy servant a perfect repentance and a
perfect pardon of all his sins. Remember not the errors of
his youth, the weaknesses of his spirit, the surprises of his
life, and the crimes of his choice: but join his present
sufferings to the passion, his prayers to the intercession, and
268 ADDITIONAL^ TO THE FOREGOING OFFICES.
Jiis repentance to the merits of our dearest Saviour Jesus ;
that he may be pardoned and pitied, comforted and sup-
ported, sanctified and saved, in the day of recompenses.
III.
Blessed Jesus, who hast overcome all the powers of sin,
hell, and the grave, take from thy servant all inordinate fear
of death, give him a perfect resignation of his will, and con-
formity to thine ; restrain the power of the enemy, that he
may not prevail against the soul which thou hast redeemed :
if it be thy will, give him a speedy restitution of his health,
and a holy use of the affliction ; or if thou hast otherwise
decreed, preserve him in thy fear and favour, and receive his
soul to mercy, to pardon, and eternal life, through thy
mercies and for thy compassion sake, O blessed Saviour and
Redeemer Jesus. Amen.
I.
For seasonable Weather in Time of Drought, immoderate Rain
or Scarcity, or Death of Cattle, tifc.
O Lord God, whose providence is universal, and suffereth
nothing to happen in vain, have mercy upon thy servants,
who have deserved thy wrath, and to suffer thy indignation
in every expression, by which thou art pleased to signify it.
Thou, O God, coverest the heaven with clouds, and preparest
rain for the earth ; thou makest the grass to grow upon the
mountains, and herb for the use of men : thou givest fodder
unto the cattle, and feedest the young ravens that call upon
thee : hear us, O God, who are thy servants, and the sheep
of thy pasture. We have indeed wandered and gone astray,
but do thou be merciful unto us, and bring us home to thee :
take away thine anger from us ; bless the labours of the
husbandman, and the fruits of the field ; refresh the weary
earth with seasonable showers [or, seasonable weather], a for
thou hast the key of rain, and the key of providence ; thou
didst bind up the heavens with ribs of iron, and thou didst
open again the sluices of water, at the prayer of thy servant
Elijah ; and thy hand is not shortened, and thy mercies have
no limit.
* According to the present need of rain or fair weather respectively.
ADDITIONALS TO THE FOREGOING OFFICES. 269
II.
Open thy hand, O God, and fill us with thy loving-
kindness, that the mower may fill his hand, and he that
bindeth up the sheaves, his bosom, that our garners maybe
full with all manner of store ; that our sheep may bring
forth thousands and ten thousands in our streets : that our
oxen may be strong to labour, that there be no breaking in
or going out, that our hearts may be replenished with food
and gladness, that there be no complaining in our streets.
Give us sufficient for this life; food and raiment, the light of
thy countenance, and contented spirits ; and thy grace to
seek the kingdom of heaven and the righteousness thereof
in the first place, and then we are sure all these things shall
be added unto us. Grant the desires and hear the prayer of
thy servants, for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only
Saviour. Amen.
Or this, upon the same Occasion, or in the Time of any other
Judgment.
Almighty Father, Lord of heaven and earth, we have
sinned, and thou hast smitten us ; and all our evils that we
suffer, are drawn upon our heads by our own impious hands ;
let thy threatenings and thy judgments, thy love and thy
fear, thy promises and thy precepts, work in thy servants
an excellent repentance, and our repentance obtain thy
favour, and thy favour remove the present evil [of drought,
of immoderate rain, of murrain, of plague, of war, of sick-
ness] a from us ; sanctify unto us thy rod, and support us
with thy staff, and restore us to those comforts which we
need, and which thou hast promised to give to them that
love and fear thee, that repent of their sins, and beg for
pardon through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
According to the present occasion.
270 MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
A SHORTER FORM OF MORNING PRAYER
FOR A FAMILY.
A more private Office for the Family, to be said betimes in the morning
on Sundays, or at any hour of the morning upon the other days of the
week.
IN THE NAME OF OUR BLESSED LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS,
OUR FATHER, ETC.
The Morning Hymn.
HEARKEN unto the voice of my cry, my King and my God,
for unto thee will I pray.
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning. O Lord, in
the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look
up.
Great is our Lord, and greatly to be praised : his eyes
are ever upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto
their cry.
Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens ; and thy faith-
fulness reacheth unto the clouds.
Thy righteousness is like the great mountains, thy judg-
ments are a great deep : O Lord, thou preservest both man
and beast.
How excellent is thy loving-kindness, O Lord ; therefore
the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy
wings.
For with thee is the fountain of life : in thy light we
shall see light.
According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise to the
ends of the earth : thy right-hand is full of righteousness.
The Lord, the Lord God is merciful and gracious, long-
suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping
mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, and transgression,
and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.
What is man that thou shouldst magnify him, and that
thou shouldst set thy heart upon him ?
And that thou shouldst visit him every morning, and try
him every moment !
If thou wouldst seek unto God betimes, and make thy
supplication to the Almighty ;
MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 271
If thou wert pure and upright, surely now he would
awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteous-
ness prosperous.
O Lord, be gracious unto us, we have waited for thee, be
thou our arm every morning ; our salvation also in the time
of trouble.
O send out thy light and thy truth ; let them lead me,-
let them bring me to thy holy hill, unto thy dwelling.
put your trust in the Lord, for with the Lord there is
mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption : he shall
redeem his people from their sins.
Then shall their light break forth as the morning, and
their health shall spring forth speedily ; for the glory of the
Lord shall be their rereward.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the
Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen.
If there be time and convenience, let a chapter be read out of the Sapi-
ential books in order, viz. the Proverbs of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, the
Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus.
Then shall follow the Creed, to be said by all together.
1 believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven
and earth ; And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord :
Which was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin
Mary : Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead,
and buried : He descended into hell : The third day he rose
again from the dead : He ascended into heaven, and sitteth
on the right-hand of God the Father Almighty : From thence
he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in
the Holy Ghost : The holy catholic Church : the communion
of saints : The forgiveness of sins : The resurrection of the
body : And the life everlasting. Amen.
Minister. The Lord be with you.
People. And with thy spirit.
I.
Let us pray.
O eternal and most blessed Saviour Jesus, thou art the
bright Morning-Star, and the Sun of Righteousness ; ,thou
272 MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
dost enlighten our eyes with thy beauties, and our hearts
with thy comfort and with the joys of God ; tho*u art the
Fountain of health and life, of peace and truth, of rest and
holiness ; thou givest to them that want, thou comfortest
them that suffer, thou forgivest them that repent, and hearest
the prayers of all them that call upon thee : we adore thee,
and praise thy glories, and rejoice in thy salvation, and give
thee thanks for thy blessing and defending us, this night,
from all the evil which we have deserved every day, and
from all the violences and snares by which the enemy of
mankind would have hurt us, or destroyed us, unless he had
been restrained by thy eternal goodness and thy almighty
power. Blessed be God.
II.
We acknowledge, O God and Father of our life, that we
are less than the least of all thy mercies, and our iniquity
is greater than we can bear: our thoughts are vain, our words
are foolish and useless, injurious and uncharitable, our ac-
tions criminal and hateful ; our devotion cold, our passions
violent and unreasonable ; our duties imperfect, our repent-
ance little, our holiness none at all. O God our Judge, we
confess before thee, that we neither know thee as we ought,
nor have taken care that we might ; we live in the world to
ourselves, but without just regards of thee and of religion ;
we daily receive thy blessings, and yet we provoke thee
every day ; we tremble not at thy judgments, though we
have deserved them, nor fear till the evil day comes upon
us : we are greedy of doing evil, but impatient of suffering
any in prosperity: we forget thy severity and justice : in
afflictions we are timorous and amazed, and dare not rely
upon thy goodness, nor with confidence and love expect the
effects of thy mercies and forgiveness. Every thing can
ternpt us to sin, and we fall infallibly ; but by all the arts
of thy Spirit, and the methods of thy mercy, we are not brought
to obey thee as we ought : our state is sad, our condition is
sinful, our hopes are broken, and we often forget ourselves,
and still neglect and despise our own danger.
III.
But, O God our Father, merciful and gracious, have
mercy upon us. Be pleased to admit thy servants to a full
MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 273
pardon of all our sins, let us not persevere in any one sin,
nor pass from one sin to another. Smite us not, O God, in
thine anger, and let not thy wrath descend upon our guilty
heads. Thy anger, O God, is insufferable, thy vengeance is
the portion of accursed souls, and thou hast prepared the
everlasting fire for the devil and his angels for ever. O Lord,
thou Father of our life and lover of souls, let us never have
our portion in the bottomless pit, in the lake that burneth
with fire and brimstone for ever : but let our portion be in
the actions of repentance, in the service of God, in the aids
and comforts of thy Spirit, in duty and holiness, in the light
of thy countenance, and in the likeness and in the inheritance
of our Lord Jesus, O God, let not thine arrows smite us,
nor thy judgments consume us ; keep us from all expressions
of thy wrath, and let us rejoice in thy mercies and loving-
kindnesses for ever and ever. Amen.
IV.
And that thy servants may reasonably and humbly hope
for thy final mercies and deliverance, be pleased to give us
all that we need in order to the performance of our duty, and
work all that in us by which we may please thee. Instruct
us in thy truth, and prepare the means of salvation for us,
providing for the necessities, and complying with the capa-
cities, of every one of us. Take from us all blindness of
heart and carelessness of spirit, all irreligion, and wilful
ignorance. Create in us a love of holy things, and open
our hearts, that we may perceive, and love, and retain the
things of God with diligence, and humility, and industry.
O God our Father, pity our weaknesses and temptations, our
avocations and unavoidable divertisements, the prejudices
and evil contingencies happening in the state of our lives :
enable us with sufficient and activa graces to do whatsoever
thou requirest of us severally. Require no more of any one
of us than thou hast or shalt give unto us, neither do thou
exact all that ; for we all confess our weaknesses and defects,
our strange imperfections and inexcusable wanderings and
omissions : but be pleased to cure all our vicious inclina-
tions ; and take care to remove from us all those temptations,
which without thy mighty grace are not to be avoided, and
if they come, are by our weaknesses not to be overcome.
VOL. xv. T
274 MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
Keep us, O God, from flattery and irreligion, from vicious
compliances and evil customs, and let not the reverence of
any man cause us to sin against thee ; keep us upright in our
religion and worshippings of thee, and let no change of the
world engage us in a state of life against our duty ; for Jesus
Christ's sake, our dearest Lord and Saviour.
V.
Keep us, O God, by thy Holy Spirit of grace, from all
the sins of idleness and intemperance, from injustice and
sensuality, from the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes,
from the pride of life and vanity of spirit, from being careless
of our duty or false in our trust, from breach of promise or
reproachful language, from slandering or traducing any man,
from false accusation and false witness, from faction and
envy. Grant us thy grace, that we may be diligent in our
business, just in our charges, provident of our time, watchful
in our duty, careful of every word we speak. O make us to
be pleased in the offices of religion, useful to those that
employ us, dutiful to our superiors, loving to each other, con-
scientious in private, humble in public, patient in adversity,
religious and thankful in prosperity.
VI.
O blessed God, take care of our souls, and of our bodies :
keep us from sharp and tedious sicknesses. Let us never fall
into want or be unprovided for in our age, and forsake us
not, O God, when we are gray-headed. Grant us great
measures of thy Spirit, that we may abstain from all appear-
ances of evil, and from all occasions of it, and that we may
take care to do whatsoever is honest and of good report;
that having laid up a treasure of good works against the day
of thy visitation, we may rejoice in the day of our death, and
find mercy at the day of judgment, through the goodness of
our God, and by the grace of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. Amen.
VII.
Bless and sanctify, defend and save, all Christian kings,
princes, governors, and states ; grant that all powers, civil
and ecclesiastical, may join together in the promoting the
honour of God and the kingdom of the Lord Jesus, and may
MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 275
find the blessings of God, and the rewards of the Lord Jesus,
in this world, and in the world to come. Give health and
comfort, peace and holiness, long life and increase of grace,
to the chiefest of this family [here name the relation'] : grant
that their portion may he in religion, and the love of God ;
keep them from all evil by the guard of angels, and lead
them into all good by the conduct of thy good Spirit.
VIII.
In mercy and great compassion remember all them that
are miserable and afflicted, persecuted or poor; that have
lost their estates or lost their liberty, their health or their
peace, their innocence or their hopes ; restore them, O Lord,
to all good, and to all useful comforts ; and let not the enemy
of mankind invade thy portion, or destroy any soul for whom
thou hast paid the price of thy most precious blood. Hear
us, O God, in mercy, and bless all our relations, and prosper
all our labours, and sanctify all our intentions, and forgive
us all our sins, and relieve all our necessities, and defend us
from all dangers, and especially from our ownselves, from
our evil habits and foolish customs, from our weak principles
and sad infirmities, from our evil concupiscence and vicious
inclinations, from the power of the devil and from thy wrath ;
and bring us in mercy and truth, in holiness and comfort, in
labour and certainty, to a fruition of the glories of God, in
the inheritance of our blessed Saviour. Grant this, O God
our Father, for the merits and by the redemption and inter-
cession of our blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communication of the Holy Spirit of God, be with
us, defend and guide, sanctify and save us, and all our rela-
tives, and all the servants of God, this day and for evermore.
Amen.
276 EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
A SHORT FORM OF EVENING PRAYER
FOR A FAMILY.
IN THE NAME OF OUR BLESSED LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS.
OUR FATHER, &c.
The Hymn.
O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the
earth, thou hast set thy glory above the heavens !
When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers,
the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained :
What is man, that thou art mindful of him, and the son
of man, that thou visitest him?
For thou hast made him little lower than the angels, and
hast crowned him with glory and honour.
Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of
thy hands : and hast put all things under his feet ;
All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field, the
fowl of the air, and the fishes of the sea.
O Lord, our Governor, how excellent is thy name in all
the world !
The heavens declare the glory of God ; and the firmament
sheweth his handy work.
Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night
sheweth knowledge.
Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their
words to the end of the world.
To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and
not be silent : O Lord, my God, I will give thanks unto thee
for ever.
Shew me thy ways, O Lord, teach me thy paths, lead me
in thy truth, and teach me ; for thou art the God of my sal-
vation : on thee do I wait all the day.
Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy loving-
kindnesses ; for they have been ever of old.
Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgres-
sion : according to thy mercy remember me, for thy goodness'
sake, O Lord.
For thy name's sake, O Lord, pardon mine iniquity, for
EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 277
it is very great : O keep my soul and deliver me, let me not
be ashamed, for I put my trust in thee.
That which I see not, teach thou me : I have done iniquity,
but I will do no more : for there is no darkness, nor shadow
of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.
For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all
his goings : but none saith, Where is God my Maker, who
giveth songs in the night ?
But I put my trust in thee, O Lord ; I have said, Thou
art my God.
Into thy hand I commend my spirit ; thou hast redeemed
me, O Lord God of truth.
I will lay me down in peace: for thou, Lord, only makest
me dwell in safety.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Or this.
Preserve me, O God, for in thee do I put my trtist : O
my soul, thou hast said unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord :
my goodness extendeth not to thee ;
But to the saints which are in the earth, and to the
excellent, in whom is all my delight.
The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my
cup : thou maintainest my lot.
I will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel : my
reins also instruct me in the night-seasons.
I have set the Lord always before me : because he is at
my right-hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is
glad, and my glory rejoiceth : my flesh also shall rest in
hope.
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell : neither wilt
thou suffer thy Holy One to see corruption.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life ; in thy presence is
the fulness of joy : at thy right-hand there are pleasures for
evermore .
As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my
soul after thee, O God.
My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God : when
shall I come and appear in the presence of God ?
The Lord will command his loving-kindness in the day-
278 EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
time, and in the night his song shall be with me ; I will
make my prayer unto the God of my life.
For thou art the God that doest wonders ; thy way, O
God, is in the sanctuary : who is so great a God as our God ?
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
and from the noisome pestilence.
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night : nor for
the arrow that flieth by day.
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep
thee in all thy ways ; they shall bear thee in their hands,
lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
I will remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee
in the night-watch ; for thou hast been my health, therefore
in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits,
even the God of our salvation.
He that is our God, is the God of salvation : and unto
God the Lord belong the issues of death.
Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy : for thou
renderest to every man according to his work.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
The Lesson.
1 Thess. v. 2. -
Yourselves know perfectly, that the day of the Lord so
cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say,
Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon
them, as travail upon a woman with child : and they shall
not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that
day should overtake you as a thief. Ye all are children of
the light and children of the day : we are not of the night or
of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep as do others ; but
let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep, sleep in the
night ; and they that be drunken, are drunken in the night.
But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the
breast-plate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of
salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath ; but to
obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ : who died for us, that
whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
Or read a chapter in the Sapiential books in order.
EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 279
After the Lesson recite the Creed.
I believe in God the Father Almighty, &c.
The Lord be with you.
Answer. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
I.
The Confession of Sins, taken out of the Prayer of
St. Ephraim, the Syrian.
O Almighty God, who dwellest in the inaccessible light,
before whom the greatest mountains are like the dust of the
balance, and in whose sight the heavens are not pure, and
the angels tremble, and the saints are charged with folly,
and all the world shall fear in thy glorious presence ; we
confess to thee, O Lord, Father of heaven and earth, all
those sins which we have wrought in private and in public ;
for thou knowest all things, and nothing is hid from thy
righteous eyes. Thou art the God of mercy and pity, and
thou wouldst have all, even strangers, to be saved ; we fly
therefore unto thee, who art the Lover and Saviour of all
the souls of the faithful. Have pity upon us, who have many
times embittered and grieved thy most holy Spirit, to the
joy of our enemies, and the sad ruin of our pitiable and
wounded souls. Behold, O God, we have been dead in sins
and trespasses, and servants to thy enemy. There is no
kind of sins but we have committed, or would have com-
mitted ; if it were pleasant, we cared not for the foulness,
but if we were tempted we did fall ; and where we did fall,
there we did love to lie; we have sinned worse than the
adulteress or the thief, more than the publican or the pro-
digal, oftener than David or Manasses : we have sinned
against greater mercies, a more determined conscience, a
better law, a clearer revelation, more terrible threatenings,
and better, much better promises.
II.
We know, O God, and tremble at the sad remem-
brance, that all our sins shall be placed before our faces at
the day of thy dreadful appearance ; O look upon us with a
mighty pity, let not the angel of wrath snatch our precious
280 EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.
souls from thy beatific presence ; take not the sweet refresh-
ments of thy Spirit from us one hour. O dearest Lord, thou
Lover of souls, take not our lives from us, while our souls are
unprepared and unready, unexcused and unpardoned ; for
thou knowest the abyss of our sins, and thou knowest what
is that abyss of flames and anger, which is prepared for
foolish and unwary souls.
III.
Most blessed Saviour Jesus, thou gavest thy life to
redeem us from death ; and thou art the Judge of those
actions for which thou wert a sacrifice ; and to give sentence
upon those men for whom thou art an advocate, and makest
perpetual intercession: O suffer us not to fall under thine
eternal anger ; destroy the whole body of sin in us ; bring
our understandings into the obedience of God, our affections
under the dominion of reason, our reason into a perfect
subordination to thy Holy Spirit; that we may love thee
and fear thee, and, by repentance and charity, may enter into
thy favour, and dwell there by a holy perseverance all our
days ; through Jesus Christ our Lord,
IV.
The Prayers.
Do thou open our eyes, that we may see our own vile-
nesses, and forsake them ; and our foolish errors, that we may
amend them ; and all our infirmities, that we may watch
against them ; and all our duty, that we may pursue it
earnestly and passionately, prudently and entirely, presently
and for ever. Cause us to return to our duty with greater
fervour and devotion than ever we have sinned against thee
with pleasure and delight ; and as we have dishonoured thee
by our unworthiness, so grant that we may glorify thee ten
times more, weeping bitterly for our sins, watching against
them strictly, hating them infinitely, and forsaking them
utterly. O grant that we may every day renew our repent-
ances and vows of a better life, and make us to do every day
what we promise, and what is our duty ; so imprinting a holy
religion and a severe repentance in our spirits, that we may
confess our sins with a real and humble sorrow, and beg for
pardon, because we desire it, and ask for thy help because
we will make use of it, and number our sins because we will
EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY. 281
leave them ; not resting in forms of godliness, but living in
the power of it, in love and duty, in holiness and godly
choice ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
V.
Most gracious God and Father, imprint in our hearts
great apprehensions of thy power and thy glories, of thy
judgment and thy mercies, of our sins and of our change
approaching, of our fugitive life and the day of our death, of
"our duty and our danger, and the inexpressible terrors of the
day of judgment; and, in proportion to such apprehensions,
teach us, O God, to walk in this world with fear and caution,
with hope and purity, with diligence and devotion, religiously
and usefully, humbly and charitably, with love and obedience
to thee, with love and justice to our neighbours, with sober
spirits and chaste bodies, with temperance and peace, with
faith and patience, with health and holiness, in the favour of
God and the friendliness of our neighbours, in the com-
munion of the Church, and in obedience to all good laws ;
that we, being blessed by thy providence, defended by thy
ministering angels, conducted by thy good Spirit, instructed
by thy word, nourished by the body of Christ, cleansed by
his blood, and clothed with his righteousness, may grow
from grace to grace in the increase of God to the fulness of
Christ, being subjects of thy kingdom of grace in this world,
and heirs of the kingdom of glory in the world to come ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
VI.
Give us pardon, O thou God of mercy and peace, for all
the errors and follies, the ignorances and omissions, the rash
words and imprudent actions, of which any of us hath been
guilty this day, or at any time before. We confess our sins
every day, and yet every day sin against thee ; and we pray
unto thee for all the blessings that we need, and thou givest
us all that we pray for, and much more ; but yet we regard
thee not, but every day we have new matter of shame and
sorrow.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
282 ADDITIONALS UPON
For if thou, Lord, wilt be extreme to mark what is done
amiss, we shall not be able to abide or stand upright in judg-
ment : thy mercy is great, and thou hast blessed us this
day, and kept us from the evils of our inclination, and the
evils of temptation : and though in the things wherein our
consciences do not accuse us, we are not justified, but by thy
mercies and loving-kindness in Christ Jesus, yet we rejoice
in thy goodness to us, and praise thy bounties and thy love,
and hope in thy mercies, and beg of thee that thou wilt
pardon us, and keep us this night and ever; sanctify and
save us, bless us at home and abroad, in the works of our
calling and the duties of religion, in our persons and rela-
tions ; make us to do what pleaseth thee, and to be what
thou hast designed us to be, and to receive what thou hast
promised, and to keep us from all the evil we have deserved,
for Jesus Christ's sake, our dearest Lord and Saviour. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communication of the Holy Spirit of God, be with
us, and with all our relatives, and with all the servants of
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
VARIETIES
TO BE ADDED
UPON THE GREAT FESTIVALS OF THE YEAR.
UPON CHRISTMAS-DAY.
The Psalms appointed at Morning Prayer, Psalms ii. xlv. ex.
Evening Prayer, Psalms Ixxxvii. Ixxxix.
The Hymn for Christmas- Day, to be said after the Second
Lesson at Morning and Evening Prayer.
PRAISE waiteth fqr thee, O God, in Sion : and unto thee
shall the vow be performed.
O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh
come.
THE GREAT FESTIVALS. 283
Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to
approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts : he
shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy
holy temple.
By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us,
O God of our salvation, who art the confidence of all the
ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea.
Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare
what he hath done for my soul.
The people that walked in darkness, hath seen a great
light ; and they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death,
upon them hath the light shined.
O that men would therefore praise the Lord for his good-
ness, and declare the wonders that he hath done for the
children of men.
He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry
ground into water-springs.
He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a
joyful mother of children.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and
the government shall be upon his shoulders.
His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the
mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall
be no end.
He shall sit upon the throne of David to order his king-
dom, and to establish it with judgment and justice for ever
and ever.
O that men would therefore praise the Lord for his good-
ness, and declare the wonders that he hath done for the
children of men.
Minister. Glory be to God on high,
Answer. And on earth peace, good-will towards men.
Minister. Amen.
Answer. Amen.
Then proceed to the Nicene Creed.
The Collect, to be inserted after the first Collect of the Morning
and Evening Prayer ; and may be said during the twelve
Days.
Almighty God, who hast so loved the world, that for our
284- ADDITIONALS UPON
redemption from sin and misery thou gavest thy Son, that
he, taking upon him our nature, and being born of a virgin,
might perform to thee the obedience which mankind owed,
and pay the price in which we were indebted, and teach us
what thou wouldst have us to do, and convey to us all the
good which thou didst design for us ; overshadow us with
thy Holy Spirit of grace, that we may conceive Christ in our
hearts by faith, rely upon him in a holy hope, and express
him in an excellent charity ; that as he was pleased to take
upon him our nature, so we may be born again, and be
partakers of the Divine nature, that conforming to his image,
following his example, and being filled with his Spirit, we
may grow in the knowledge and love of God, and live in
righteousness; that, being thy sons by a holy adoption, we
may partake of the inheritance of thy well-beloved Son, the
first-born of all the creatures, our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. Amen.
UPON GOOD-FRIDAY.
Instead of tin- Psalms of the day, read at Morning Prayer, Psalms zzii. xxv. li.
Evening Prayer, Psalms Ixxxi. Ixxxv. Ixzzvi. Izxxriii.
Or any three of them.
The Collect.
O MOST blessed, most gracious Saviour Jesus, who, by thy
obedience unto death, even the death of the cross, didst
become, the sacrifice of the world, the great example of
patience, the Lord of life, the good Shepherd, laying down
thy life for thy sheep, and the Mediator between God and
man ; let thy wounds heal, thy blood cleanse, thy death
make us to live, and thy Spirit make us to work righteous-
ness all our days ; that we may, by thy aid, and by thy
example, obey our heavenly Father with all our powers and
all our faculties, with our reason and our affections, with
our souls and with our bodies, with our time and with our
estate, in prosperity and adversity ; that we may bear our
cross patiently, and do thy work cheerfully, and be ready to
benefit mankind with great charity and great industry ; that,
being followers of thy life and partakers of thy death, we
THE GREAT FESTIVALS. 285
may receive a part in the resurrection of the just to the joys
of God in thy inheritance, O most blessed, most gracious
Saviour Jesus. Amen.
FOR EASTER-DAY.
The Psalms appointed for Morning Prayer, Psalms xxx. xlv.
Evening Prayer, Psalms Ivii. btvi. Ixxii.
The Hymn to be said after the Second Lesson at Morning and
Evening Prayer.
IN thee, O Lord, I have put my trust ; let me never be put
to confusion, but rid me and deliver me in thy righteousness ;
incline thine ear unto me, and save me.
Be thou my stronghold, whereunto I may always resort :
thou hast promised to help me ; for thou art my house of
defence and my castle.
For thou, O Lord God, art the thing that I long for :
thou art my hope even from my youth.
Through thee have I been holden up ever since I was
.born : thou art he that took me out of my mother's womb ;
my praises shall be always of thee.
O let my mouth be filled with thy praise, that I may
sing of thy glory and honour all the day long.
Thy righteousness, O God, is very high : and great
things are they, which thoujiast done ; O God, who is like
unto thee !
O what great troubles and adversities hast thou shewed
me ! and yet didst thou turn and refresh me : yea, and
broughtest me from the deep of the earth again.
Thou hast brought to me great honour, and comforted
me on every side.
Therefore will I praise thee and thy faithfulness, O God,
playing upon an instrument of music : unto thee will I sing
upon the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel.
My lips will be fain when I sing unto thee ; and so will
my soul, whom thou hast delivered.
Blessed be the Lord God, even the God of Israel, which
only doeth wondrous things.
286 ADDITIONALS UPON
And blessed be the name of his majesty for ever ; and all
the earth shall be filled with his majesty. Amen, Amen.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
The Collect.
O most holy, most glorious Saviour and Redeemer Jesu,
who for our sakes didst descend from the glories of God to
the pains and labours of the earth, and didst pass from a
painful life to an ignominious death, from the bitterness of
death to the darkness of the grave, and by thy Divine power
didst raise thyself from death to life again ; we give thee
thanks for thy infinite love to us and all mankind ; we ac-
knowledge thee to be our Lord, and confess thee to be our
God ; we adore thy majesty, and rejoice in thy mercies ; we
humbly pray thee to enable us, with thy Spirit, to believe all
thy doctrines, and to obey all thy commandments, that after
a holy and religious life, spent in doing honour to thy holy
name, we may be partakers of thy holy resurrection, passing
from death to life, from the darknesses of the grave to the
light of heaven, from an imperfect duty to the perfection of
holiness in the fruition of the joys of God in thy eternal
kingdom, O most holy, most glorious Saviour and Redeemer
Jesu. Amen.
UPON ASCENSION-DAY.
Instead of the Psalms of the day, read at Morning Prajer, Psalms xv. xxi. xxir.
Evening Prayer, Psalms xcii. xcvi. xcvii.
The Collect.
O BLESSED High-Priest, holy Jesus, King of the world and
Head of the Church, who, when thou hadst taken upon thee
our nature and our sin, and appeased thy Father's wrath, and
performed all his will, and overcome death, and rescued all
obedient souls from the hand of the enemy, didst ascend to
thy eternal Father, and open the kingdom of heaven to all
believers ; thou hast espoused thy Church unto thyself with
the eternal circles of thy providence, with thy love and with
thy care, with thy word and with thy Spirit, thy promises
THE GREAT FESTIVALS. 287
and thy holy intercession; thou hadst a feeling of our in-
firmities, and art our merciful High-Priest, makingintercession
for us for ever ; O, be pleased to represent and supply all our
wants ; excuse all our infirmities ; pity all our calamities,
pardon our sins, and send down thy Holy Spirit of grace
into our hearts, that though we walk upon the earth, yet our
conversation may be in heaven, and there also may be our
portion and inheritance for ever, through thy mercies, O most
gracious Saviour and Redeemer Jesus. Amen.
FOR WHITSUNDAY.
Psalms for Morning Prayer, Psalms Ixxxvii. Ixxxix.
Evening Prayer, Psalms ii. xlv. ex.
The Hymn to be said after the Second Lesson at Morning and
Evening Prayer.
SING aloud unto God our strength : make a joyful noise
unto the God of Jacob.
I will remember the works of the Lord : surely I will
remember thy wonders of old : I will meditate of all thy
works, and talk of thy doings.
Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary : who is so great a
God as our God ? Thou art the God that doest wonders ;
thou hast declared thy strength among the people.
Vow and pray unto the Lord your God : let all that be
round about him, bring presents unto him that_ought to be
feared.
He shall cut off the spirit of princes : he is terrible to the
kings of the earth.
Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works!
through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies
submit themselves unto thee.
Sion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Judah
rejoiced, because of thy judgments, O Lord.
For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth : thou art
exalted far above all gods.
Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the
upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous ; and give thanks at
the remembrance of his holiness.
288 ADDITIONALS UPON
The Lord hath made known his salvation : his right-
eousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
He hath remembered his mercy and truth toward the
house of Israel : all the ends of the earth have seen the
salvation of our God.
Give unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give
unto the Lord glory and strength.
For he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth : he
shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people
with his truth.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
The Collect.
O eternal God, the great Father of spirits, the great
Lover of souls, who didst send thy Holy Spirit upon thy
Church in the day of Pentecost, and hast promised that he
shall abide with the Church for ever, let thy Holy Spirit lead
us into all truth, defend us from all sin, enrich us with his
gifts, refresh us with his comforts, rule in our hearts for
ever, conduct us with his truth, and lead us in the way ever-
lasting; that we, living by thy Spirit, and walking in him,
may by him be sealed up to the day of our redemption. O
let thy Spirit witness to our spirits, that we are the children
of God, and make us to be so for ever, through Jesus Christ
our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of
the same Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
UPON TRINITY SUNDAY.
O BLESSED, ineffable, and most mysterious Trinity, how
admirable are thy beauties, how incomparable are thy per-
fections, how incomprehensible are those relations of the
three most blessed Persons, which we believe, and admire,
and adore, but understand not ! The angels are amazed in
the unimaginable beauties of that glorious presence, and are
swallowed up with the ocean of thy infinity. How then can
we, who are in the lowest order of understanding creatures,
and have removed ourselves further from thee, and the par-
ticipation of thy excellences, by a sinful life, praise thee
THE GREAT FESTIVALS. 289
either according to our duty or thy glories ! yet be pleased
to accept the humblest adorations, and with a favourable
and a gracious eye behold the lowest worshippings and
duty of thy servants. We confess and glory in thy om-
nipotence, thy immensity, thy goodness, thy uncircum-
scribed nature, thy truth, thy mercy, thy omniscience. O
let us also receive thy blessings and gracious influences, that
we may adore thee with all our powers and possibilities for
ever, love thee with all our affections for ever, serve with our
best and earliest, and all our industry : that, being here
wholly inebriated with love, and busied in thy service and
the duties of a holy obedience, we may, to all eternity,
rejoice in the beholding of those glories which are above all
capacities, above all heavens, above all angels, even those
glories which stream forth from the throne of the eternal
God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, to whom be
glory and dominion, honour and adoration, eternally con-
fessed due, and humbly paid by all men and all angels, world
without end. Amen.
A Collect to be used upon any of the Festivals or
Commemoration of the Apostles.
Almighty God, who hast built thy holy Church upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief corner-stone, we bless and magnify thy
name, thy holy and ever glorious name, for thy graces
which thou gavest to thy apostles, and prophets, and martyrs,
in the days of their flesh ; and this day we have thy servant
[here name the apostle, &c.] in remembrance : praising thee
for the benefits which the Church hath received by his
ministry and example ; we pray unto thee to give us thy
grace, that we, obeying thy doctrine which he taught and
published, and following his example as he followed Christ,
we also may, with safety and holiness, pass through this
valley of tears ; that, serving thee in our generation, advanc-
ing thy honour, and obeying thy laws, we may, in the society
and communion of saints and angels, sing eternal hallelujahs
to the honour of thy mercy and of thy majesty, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
VOL. xv. u
AN
OFFICE OR ORDER
FOR THE
ADMINISTRATION OF THE HOLY SACRAMENT
OF THE
LORD'S SUPPER,
ACCORDING TO THE WAY OF THE APOSTOLICAL CHURCHES,
AND THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND.
THE ANTE-COMMUNION.
OUR Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come: Thy will be done in earth as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil :
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
The Collect.
O King of glory, Lord and Maker of the world, thou art
a God knowing all things and all thoughts even long before
they are ; be thou present with us in this religious solemnity
calling upon thee. Deliver us from the shame of our sins,
from the corruption and evil inclinations that attend them,
and from all the evils that may justly follow them. Cleanse
our wills and our understandings from all evil lusts and con-
cupiscence, from the deceits of the world, from the violence
and snares of the devil, from all guile and hypocrisy, from
every evil word and work, that we may serve thee faithfully,
worship thee religiously, and pray unto thee acceptably ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 291
Then shall the Minister humbly say this Prayer of Preparation, first in behalf
of himself, then of the Congregation.
O Lord God, who, in mercy and great compassion, dost
consider thy people, and hast given unto us, thy unworthy
servants, miserable sinners, confidence and commandment
to present ourselves before thee at thy holy table to repre-
sent a holy, venerable, and unbloody sacrifice for our sins,
and for the errors and ignorances of all thy people, look
upon me, the meanest and most polluted of all them that
approach to thy sacred presence. Pity me, O God, and wash
away all my sins. Cleanse my heart and my hands, my head
and my lips, from all impurities of the flesh and spirit ; and
remove far from me all irreverence and undecency, all foolish
imaginations and vain reasonings; and, by the power of the
Holy Ghost, make me worthy for this ministry, accepting this
service for his sake, whose sacrifice I represent, and by whose
commandment I minister, even our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. Amen.
Have mercy upon this thy people, who, with hungry and
thirsty souls, come to be refreshed and comforted by the
Divine nutriment of thy holy body and blood. Pity our in-
firmities, despise not our unworthiness, curse not our follies,
and take not from thy servants thy grace and the light of
thy Divine countenance, but, according to the multitude of
thy great mercies, do away all our offences, that, without
self-condemnation, we may appear before thy glory, covered
with the veil of Jesus, adorned with the robe of his righteous-
ness, and illustrated with the brightness of thy Divine Spirit ;
that we may live by thy grace, and feel thy mercy and pardon
in this world and in the world to come ; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
Then shall the Minister, rising up, rehearse, with a loud voice, the Eight
Beatitudes : the People still kneeling.
Minister. Our Lord Jesus, seeing the multitudes, went
up into a mountain ; and he opened his mouth, and taught
them, saying,
1 . Blessed are the poor in spirit : for theirs is the kingdom
of heaven.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
292 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
Minister. 2. Blessed are they that mourn : for they
shall be comforted.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 3. Blessed are the meek : for they shall in-
herit the earth.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 4. Blessed are they which hunger and thirst
after righteousness : for they shall be filled.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 5. Blessed are the merciful : for they shall
obtain mercy.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 6. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they
shall see God.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 7. Blessed are the peace-makers : for they
shall be called the children of God.
People. Lord, pardon our faults, and incline our hearts
to obey thee, that we may inherit this blessing.
Minister. 8. Blessed are they which are persecuted for
righteousness' sake : for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
People. Lord, make us ready in heart and body to obey
thee in every thing, that we may inherit all these blessings in
the kingdom of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
Let us pray.
O Lord God, our Creator, who hast given us life and
being, and hast shewn unto us the way of salvation, vouch-
safing to us the revelation of heavenly mysteries, and hast
commanded to us this service in the power of the Holy
Ghost, and obedience of the Lord Jesus ; be thou well
pleased, O Lord, with this our service and duty, and grant
that with a holy fear, and a pure conscience, we may finish
this service, presenting a holy sacrifice holily unto thee, that
thou mayest receive it in heaven, and smell a sweet odour in
the union of the eternal sacrifice, which our blessed Lord
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 293
perpetually offers ; and accept us graciously as thou didst
entertain the gifts of Abel, the sacrifice of Noah, the services
of Moses and Aaron, the peace-offering of Samuel, the repent-
ance of David, and the incense of Zacharias : and as from
the hands of thy holy apostles thou didst accept this ministry,
so vouchsafe, by the hands of us miserable sinners, to finish
and perfect this oblation, that it may be sanctified by the
Holy Ghost, and be accepted in the Lord Jesus ; that we,
being adopted into the society and participation of his holiness
and sufferings, admitted to his service, incorporated to his
body, united to his purity, made partakers of his intercession,
pardoned by his mercy, sanctified by his grace, confirmed by
his strength, professing his religion, believing in his word,
hoping in his promises, and keeping all his commandments,
may receive the reward of faithful and wise stewards in the
day of thy righteous judgment.
Grant this, O God, for his sake who is the food of our
souls, and the joy of our hearts, the object of our faith and
hope, and the great example of charity and all excellences,
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Then, all arising from their knees, shall be read some portions of Scrip-
ture, relating to the present Mystery, viz.
1st Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, chap.xi. from verse
23 to the end.
The Gospel according to St. Mark, xiv. 2, unto verse 26.
Or,
1st Epistle of St. Paul written to the Corinthians, chap x. from
verse 1 to verse 18.
Gospel according to St. Matthew, chap. xxvi. from verse 17
to verse 30.
Sometimes one of these may suffice ; but never above two are to be used at
once, one out of the Epistles, one out of the Gospels.
Then shall follow this Eucharistical Hymn, all standing up, reciting the verses
interchangeably.
One thing have I desired of the Lord, that I will seek
after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days
of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to visit his
temple.
For, in the time of trouble, he shall hide me in his pavilion ;
in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me, and set me
upon a rock.
294 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
Therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I will sing and speak praises unto the Lord.
The Lord is my light and my salvation ; whom shall I
fear? the Lord is the strength of my life ; of whom shall I be
afraid ?
Examine, O Lord, and prove me : try my reins and my
heart.
For thy loving-kindness is before my eyes : and I will
walk in thy truth.
I have not sat with vain persons ; neither will I go in
with dissemblers.
I will wash my hands in innocence : and so will I com-
pass thine altar, O Lord,
That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and
tell of all thy wondrous works.
taste and see that the Lord is good : blessed is the man
that trusteth in him.
Look at the generations of old, and see did ever any trust
in the Lord and was confounded ? or did any abide in his
fear, and was forsaken ? or whom did he ever despise that
called upon him ?
For the Lord is full of compassion and mercy, long-suf-
fering and very pitiful, and forgiveth sins, and saveth in time
of affliction.
Ye, therefore, that fear the Lord, believe him : and your
reward shall not fail.
They that fear the Lord will seek that which is well-
pleasing unto him ; and they that love him shall be filled
with the law.
They that fear the Lord will prepare their hearts and
humble their souls in his sight.
For as his majesty is, even so is his mercy.
What shall I render unto the Lord for all the benefits
which he hath done unto me ?
1 will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name
of the Lord.
Return unto thy rest, O my soul ; for the Lord hath dealt
bountifully with thee.
I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and call
upon the name of the Lord.
The Lord hath been mindful of us, and he will bless
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 295
us ; lie will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and
great.
Blessed be the name of our God, from this time forth for
evermore. Praise the Lord.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Then shall the Minister, with a loud voice, pronounce this Commina-
tion.
" Thus saith the Lord Jesus, I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are
they that do his commandment, that they may have right to
the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the
city. For without are dogs and sorcerers, whoremongers
and murderers. The idolaters and the filthy, the fearful and
the unbelieving, the hypocrite and the liars, the drunkards
and the envious, the hinderers of God's word, and the slan-
derers of their neighbours, the swearers and the covetous,
the impenitent and the uncharitable, shall have their part in
the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone. And be-
hold I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give
every man according as his work shall be.
" I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these
things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of
David, and the bright and morning-star : and the Spirit and
the Bride say, ' Come,' and let him that heareth, come : and
let him that is athirst, come ; and whosoever will, let him take
the water of life freely." a
But first cleanse your hands and purify your hearts,
repent you truly of all your sins past, retain no affection to
any thing that displeases God : resolve against all sin, strive
against all, pray against all, watch against all, and so shall
ye be meet partakers of this holy table : but if any of you
here present live in any known sin, of which ye have not
truly repented, and which ye do not mean presently and
utterly to forsake ; in the name of Jesus Christ, I pronounce
every such person to be unworthy of these holy mysteries,
and that he cannot receive them but to his condemnation.
a Apocal. xxii.
296 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLT COMMUNION.
Judge, therefore, yourselves, brethren, that ye be not
judged of the Lord : for it is a fearful thing to fall into the
hands of the living God ; and who is able to dwell with the
everlasting burning?
But if any of you, after this severe admonition, shall pre-
sume to approach these sacred mysteries with an impure and
disobedient heart, let him know that he pollutes the blood
of the everlasting covenant, he eats and drinks damnation to
himself, not discerning the Lord's body. I have given you
warning ; I have discharged my duty.
All ye who truly repent you of your sins, and are in love
and charity with your neighbours, and intend to lead a holy
life in all godliness, and sobriety, and honesty, draw near
and take these holy mysteries to your comfort ; first make
your humble confession of sins to God, and meekly beg his
pardon for what is past, and his grace for the time to come.
The Confession, to be said by all kneeling.
Almighty God, we miserable sinners do humbly confess,
and are truly sorrowful for our many and great, our innume-
rable and intolerable crimes, of which our consciences do
accuse us by night and by day, and by which we have pro-
voked thy severest wrath and indignation against us. We
have broken all thy righteous laws and commandments, by
word or by deed, by vain thoughts or sinful desires ; we have
sinned against thee in all our relations, in all places and at
all times : we can neither reckon their number, nor bear their
burden, nor suffer thine anger which we have deserved. But
thou, O Lord God, art merciful and gracious : have mercy
upon us : pardon us for all the evils we have done : judge us
not for all the good we have omitted : take not thy favour
from us, but delight thou to sanctify us and save us, and
work in us to will and to do of thy good pleasure all our
duty; that being sanctified by thy Spirit, and delivered from
our sins, we may serve thee in a religious and a holy con-
versation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Then the Minister, rising up, shall pronounce" Absolution in the form pro-
scrihed at Morning Prayer.
Our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus, the great Shepherd
and Bishop of our souls, that Lamb of God who taketh away
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 297
the sins of the world, who promised paradise to the repenting
thief, and gave pardon to the woman taken in adultery, he
pardon and forgive all your sins known and unknown.
O blessed Jesus, in whatsoever thy servants, as men bear-
ing flesh about them, and inhabiting this world, or deceived by
the devil, have sinned, whether in word or deed, whether in
thought or desire, whether by omission or commission, let it
be forgiven unto them by thy word and by thy Spirit ; and
for ever preserve thy servants from sinning against thee, and
from suffering thine eternal anger, for thy promise sake, and
for thy glorious name's sake, O blessed Lord and Saviour
Jesus. Amen.
Then, all rising up, there shall be made a Collection for the Poor, by the
Deacon or Clerk, while the Minister reads some of these Sentences, or
makes an exhortation to Chanty and Alms.
To do good and to distribute, forget not ; for with such
sacrifices God is well pleased. Heb. xiii. 16.
Blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy: the
Lord shall deliver him in the time of trouble : the Lord will
preserve him and keep him alive, and he shall be blessed
upon the earth, and thou wilt not deliver him into the will
of his enemies. The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed
of languishing : thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness.
Psalm xli. 1-3.
He which soweth sparingly, shall reap sparingly ; and he
which soweth bountifully, shall reap bountifully. Every man
according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give, not
grudgingly or of necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver.
2 Cor. ix. 6, 7.
Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighte-
ousness, that when ye fail, they may receive you into ever-
lasting habitations. Luke, xvi. 9.
Give alms of such things as ye have ; and, behold, all
things are clean unto you. Luke, xi. 41.
Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand,
* Come, ye blessed children of my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was
a hungered, and ye gave me meat ; I was thirsty, and ye
gave me drink ; I was a stranger, and ye took me in ; naked,
and ye clothed me ; I was sick, and ye visited me ; I was in
prison, and ye came unto me.' Matt. xxv. 34, 35.
298 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
Let him that is taught in the word, communicate unto
him that teacheth, in all good things. Be not deceived, God
is not mocked : for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he
also reap. Gal. vi. 6, 7.
If there be none fit to gather, the Minister himself shall gather it: and when
he hath done or received it from the hand of him that gathered it, let him
in an humble manner present it to God, laying it on the Communion-
Table , secretly and devoutly saying,
Lord, accept the oblation and alms of thy people: and
remember thy servants for this thing, at the day of judgment.
Then shall follow the Address to the Holy Mysteries ; the people shall come
up to the Holy Table where it is the custom, or near it, where it is most fit
to communicate : and then the Minister shall say,
Let us pray.
O God, who, by thy unspeakable mercy, hast sent thy
only begotten Son into the world, that he might bring the
wandering sheep into his fold, turn not away from us miser-
able sinners, who worship and invocate thee in these holy
mysteries. For we do not approach to thee in our own
righteousness, but in the hope and confidence of that glorious
mercy, by which thou hast sent thy holy Son to redeem
miserable and lost mankind. We humbly beseech thee to
grant, that these mysteries, which thou hast ordained to be
ministries of salvation to us, may not become an occasion
of our condemnation, but of pardon of our sins, of the reno-
vation of our souls, of the sanctification and preservation of
our bodies, that we may become well-pleasing to thee our
God, in the obedience of our Lord Jesus, with whom, and
with thy Holy Spirit, thou reignest over all, one God, blessed
for evermore. Amen.
Minister. Lift up your hearts.
People. We lift them up unto the Lord.
Minister. Let us give thanks unto our Lord God.
People. It is just and right so to do.
Minister.
It is, indeed, truly just, righteous, and fitting, to praise
and to glorify, to worship and adore, to give thanks and to
magnify thee, the great Maker of all creatures, visible and
invisible, the treasure of all good, temporal and eternal : the
fountain of all life, mortal and immortal : the Lord and God
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 299
of all things in heaven and earth, the great Father of his
servants, the great Master of his children.
The heavens and the heaven of heavens, and every power
therein; the sun and the moon, and all the stars of the sky;
the sea and the earth, the heights above and the depths
below; Jerusalem that is from above, the congregation celes-
tial, the Church of the first-born written in the heavens, the
spirits of the prophets and of just men made perfect, the
souls of the apostles and all holy martyrs, angels and arch-
angels, thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, the
spirits of understanding and the spirits of love, with never-
ceasing hymns and perpetual anthems cry out, night and day,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts! heaven and earth
are full of thy glory. Hosanna ! Blessed is he that cometh
in the name of the Lord !
Hosanna in the highest !
HERE BEGINNETH THE COMMUNION.
After a decent pause for short Meditation, the Minister shall, with a loud
voice, say,
Our Father, &c.
And then this, 'ExQavvtris, or Denunciation.
LET all corruptible flesh be silent, and stand with fear
and trembling, and think within itself nothing that is earthly,
nothing that is unholy. The King of kings, the Lord of
lords, Christ our God, comes down from heaven unto us, and
gives himself to be meat for the souls of all faithful people.
All the glorious companies of angels behold this and wonder,
and love and worship Jesus. Every throne and dominion,
the cherubims with many eyes and the seraphims with many
wings, cover their faces before the majesty of his glory, and
sing a perpetual song for ever: Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
Glory be to God on high ; and in earth, peace ; good- will
towards men. Hallelujah.
Then shall follow this Prayer of Consecration, to be said by the Minister
standing.
I.
Have mercy upon us, O heavenly Father, according to thy
glorious mercies and promises, send thy Holy Ghost upon
300 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
our hearts, and let him also descend upon these gifts, that
by his good, his holy, his glorious presence, he may sanctify
and enlighten our hearts, and he may bless and sanctify
these gifts ;
That this bread may become the holy body of Christ.
Amen.
And this chalice may become the life-giving blood of Christ.
Amen.
That it may become unto us all, that partake of it this
day, a blessed instrument of union with Christ, of pardon
and peace, of health and blessing, of holiness and life eternal,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
Holy and blessed art thou, O King of eternal ages, foun-
tain and giver of all righteousness.
Holy art thou, the eternal and only-begotten Son of God,
our Lord Jesus Christ, Redeemer of the world.
Holy art thou, O blessed Spirit, that searchest all things,
even the depths and hidden things of God.
Thou, O God, art almighty : thou art good and gracious,
dreadful and venerable, holy and merciful to the work of
thine own hands.
Thou didst make man according to thine image; thou
gavest him the riches and the rest of paradise : when he fell
and broke thy easy commandment, thou didst not despise his
folly, nor leave him" in his sin ; but didst chastise him with
thy rod, and restrain him by thy law, and instruct him by
thy prophets ; and, at last, didst send thy holy Son into the
world, that he might renew and repair thy broken image.
The People shall auswer,
Blessed be God.
He, coming from heaven, and taking our flesh, by the
power of the Holy Ghost, of the Virgin Mary, conversed with
men, and taught us the way of God, and the dispensation of
eternal life.
People. Holy Jesus ! Blessed be God.
But when for the redemption of us sinners he would
suffer death upon the cross without sin, for us who were
nothing but sin and misery, in the night in which he was
betrayed, he took bread, he looked up to heaven, he gave
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 301
thanks, he sanctified it, he brake it, and gave it to his apo-
stles, saying, 'Take, eat, This 3 is my body which is broken
for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' Likewise after
supper he took the cup ; and when he had given thanks and
blessed it, he gave it to them, saying, ' Drink ye all of this,
for this b is my blood of the new testament, which is shed
for you and for many, for the remission of sins. Do this in
remembrance of me. For as often as ye shall eat this bread,
and drink this cup, ye shall shew forth the Lord's death till
he come.'
The People shall answer,
Amen.
Minister. We believe, and we confess.
People. We declare thy death, and confess thy resur-
rection.
Then the Minister kneeling, shall say this Prayer of Oblation.
I.
We sinners, thy unworthy servants, in remembrance of
thy life-giving passion, thy cross and thy pains, thy death
and thy burial, thy resurrection from the dead, and thy
ascension into heaven, thy sitting at the right hand of God,
making intercession for us, and expecting, with fear and
trembling, thy formidable and glorious return to judge the
quick and dead, when thou shalt render to every man accord-
ing to his works ; do humbly present to thee, O Lord, this
present sacrifice of remembrance and thanksgiving, humbly
and passionately praying thee not to deal with us according
to our sins, nor recompense us after our transgressions ; but
according to thy abundant mercy, and infinite goodness, to
blot out and take away the handwriting that is against us in
the book of remembrances which thou hast written: and that
thou wilt give unto us spiritual, celestial, and eternal gifts,
which neither eye hath seen, nor ear hath heard, neither hath
it entered into the heart of man to understand, which God
hath prepared for them that love him ; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
Then shall follow the reception and distribution of the Holy Sacrament, the
Minister first receiving, and privately saying this short Prayer.
O blessed Jesus, my Lord and my God, thou art the
a The Minister at those words shall touch the bread.
b Here he must touch or handle the chalice.
302 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
celestial food and the life of every man that cometh unto
thee. I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and am
not worthy to partake of these holy mysteries ; but thou art
my merciful Saviour. Grant that I may, religiously, thank-
fully, and without reproof, partake of thy blessed body and
blood for the remission of my sins, and unto life eternal.
Amen.
Then reverently taking in his hand the consecrated Bread, that he means
to eat, let him say,
The body of our Lord Jesus, which was broken for me,
preserve my body and soul into everlasting life. Amen.
Then praying awhile privately, let him receive the Chalice, saying,
The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was shed for
the remission of my sins, cleanse my soul, and preserve it
into everlasting life. Amen.
Then let him pray awhile privately, and recommend to God his own
personal necessities, spiritual and temporal, and the needs of all his
relatives, &c.
After that, let him distribute it first to the Clergy that help to officiate, and
after that, to the whole Congregation that offer themselves, saying the
same words, changing the person.
While the Minister of the Mysteries is praying privately, the People may
secretly pray thus, or to this purpose ;
I believe, O God, and confess that thou art Christ, the
Son of the living God, who came into the world to save
sinners, whereof I ain chief. Lord, make me this day par-
taker of thy heavenly table; for thou dost not give thy secrets
to thy enemies, but to the sons of thine own house. Let me
never give thee a Judas' kiss; I confess thee and thy glories,
I invocate thee and thy mercies : I trust upon thee and thy
goodness like the thief upon the cross ; Lord, remember me
in thy kingdom, with the remembrances of an everlasting
love.
Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under
my roof; but as thou didst vouchsafe to lie in a manger
with beasts, and to enter into the house of Simon the leper,
nor didst despise the repenting harlot when she kissed thy
feet ; so vouchsafe to lodge in my soul, though it be a place
of beastly affections and unreasonable passions ; throw them
out and dwell there for ever; purify my soul, accept the
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 303
sinner, cleanse the leper, so shall I be worthy to partake of
this Divine banquet. Amen.
'When evervof the Communicants hath received in hoth kinds, let the Paten
and Chalice, if any of the consecrated Elements remain, be decently
covered, and then shall follow these Prayers.
THE POST-COMMUNION.
The Minister and People devoutly kneeling, shall say the Lord's Prayer,
the People repeating every Petition after the Minister.
OUR Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name :
Thy kingdom come : Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven : Give us this day our daily bread : And forgive us
our trespasses, as we*forgive them that trespass against us :
And lead us not into temptation : But deliver us from evil :
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever
and ever. Amen.
Then the Minister shall pray this Prayer for the catholic Church.
I.
Receive, O eternal God, this sacrifice for and in behalf
of all Christian people, whom thou hast redeemed with the
blood of thy Son, and purchased as thine own inheritance.
From the fountains of mercy, the springs of our blessed
Saviour, let all thy people, upon whom the name of Jesus is
called, receive confirmation and increase of grace, fruitful-
ness in good works, and perfect understanding in the way of
godliness. Defend, O God, thy Church, and preserve her
from all heresy and scandal, from sacrilege and simony, from
covetousness and pride, from factions and schism, from
atheism and irreligion, from all that persecute the truth, and
from all that work wickedness, and let not the gates of hell
prevail against her, nor any evil come near to hurt her.
II.
Give thy blessing, God, to this nation ; remember us
for good, and not for evil ; be reconciled unto us in the Son
of thy -love, and let not thine anger be any longer upon us,
nor thy jealousy burn like fire. Send us health and peace,
justice and truth, good laws and good government; an
304 AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION.
excellent religion, undivided, undisturbed; temperate air,
seasonable showers, wholesome dews, fruitful seasons : crown
the year with goodness, and let the clouds drop fatness, that
we may glorify thy name, and confess thy goodness, while
thou bearest witness to us from heaven, filling our hearts
with food and gladness.
III.
With a propitious eye, and a great pity, behold the
miseries of mankind ; put a speedy period to all our sins
and to all our calamities : hear the sighings of the distressed,
the groans of the sick, the prayers of the oppressed, the
desires of the poor and needy ; support the weakness of them
that languish and faint ; ease the pains of them that are in
affliction, and call to thee for help. Take from the miserable
all tediousness of spirit and despair : pardon all the peni-
tents, reform the vicious, confirm the holy, and let them be
holy still; pity the folly of young men, their little reason
and great passion ; succour the infirmities and temptations
of the aged, preserving them that they may not sin towards
the end of their lives ; for Jesus Christ's sake.
IV.
Admit, O blessed God, into the society of our prayers,
and the benefits of this eucharist, our fathers and brethren,
our wives and children, our friends and benefactors, our
charges and relatives, all that have desired our prayers and
all that need them, all that we have, and all that we have
not, remembered ; thou knowest all their necessities and all
their dwellings, their joys and their sorrows, their hopes and
their fears, the number of their sins and the measures of their
repentances; O dear God, sanctify them and us; let our por-
tion be in the good things of God, in religion and purity, in
the peace of conscience, and the joys of the Holy Ghost, in
the love of God and of our neighbours. O gather us to the
feet of thy elect when thou wilt, and in what manner thou
art pleased : only let us appear before thee without shame
and without sins, through the merits of Jesus Christ, ou
most merciful Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.
Then shall follow the Eucharistical Prayers.
I.
GLORY be to thee, O God our Father, who hast vouchsafed
AN OFFICE FOR THE HOLY COMMUNION. 305
to make us at this time partakers of the body and blood of
thy holy Son : we offer unto thee, O God, ourselves, our
souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy, and living sacrifice
unto thee : keep us under the shadow of thy wings, and de-
fend us from all evil, and conduct us by thy Holy Spirit of
grace into all good ; for thou who hast given thy holy Son
unto us, how shalt not thou with him give us all things else ?
Blessed be the name of our God for ever and ever. Amen.
II.
Glory be to thee, O Christ, our King, the only begotten
Son of God, who wert pleased to become a sacrifice for our
sins, a redemption from calamity, the physician and the
physic, the life and the health, the meat and the drink of
our souls ; thou, by thy unspeakable mercy, didst descend to
the weakness of sinful flesh, remaining still in the perfect
purity of spirit, and hast made us partakers of thy holy body
and blood : O condemn us not when thou comest to judg-
ment, but keep us ever in thy truth, in thy fear, and in thy
favour, that we may have our portion in thine inheritance,
where holiness and purity, where joy and everlasting praises,
do dwell for ever and ever. Amen.
III.
Proceeding from glory to glory, we still glorify thee, O
Father of spirits, and pray thee for ever to continue thy
goodness towards us. Direct our way arijjht, establish us
in holy purposes, keep us unspotted in thy faith, let the
enemy have no part in us, but conform us for ever to the
likeness of thy holy Son ; lead us on to the perfect adoption
of our souls, and to the redemption of our bodies from cor-
ruption, and fill our hearts and tongues with everlasting
praises of thy name ; through Jesug Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Blessing.
The peace of God which passeth all understanding, keep
your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God,
and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord : And the blessing of
God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be upon you,
and abide with you, and be your portion for ever and ever.
Amen.
VOL. xv. x
A
FORM
or
ADMINISTRATION OF THE HOLY SACRAMENT
OF
BAPTISM.
Pure Water being provided, and put into the Fount, or into a Lavatory
of Silver, or some other clean vessel, fit and decent for this sacred
action, the Minister, being vested in an ecclesiastical habit, shall begin
with this Exhortation.
DEARLY BELOVED BRETHREN,
FORASMUCH as from our first parents we derive nothing
but flesh and corruption, and that 'flesh and blood cannot
inherit the kingdom of heaven ;' it is necessary that every
man who is reckoned in Adarn, should be also reckoned in
Christ; that every one who is born of the flesh, be also born
again, and born of the Spirit ; that every son of man by nature
may become the son of God by adoption, be incorporated
into Christ, entitled to the promises, and become heir of
heaven by grace and faith in Jesus Christ ; and that this
cannot be done but by being admitted to the covenant of
grace in baptism ; our blessed Saviour saying, that ' except
a man be born again of water and of the Spirit, he cannot
enter into the kingdom of God ;' let us humbly and devoutly
pray unto God, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he
will be pleased to send down his Holy Spirit upon these
waters of baptism ; that they may become to this infant
[all that shall be washed in them 3 ] a laver of regeneration,
a If the place be populous, and baptisms frequent, and this water be kept
(as is usual in most churches both of East and West), then that clause within the
crotchets may be used, else not.
AN OFFICE FOR THE ADMINISTRATION, &C. 307
and a well of water springing up to life eternal : and that this
infant maybe admitted to the covenant of grace and pardon,
of mercy and holiness, receiving from grace what by nature
he cannot have, that being baptized in water to the remission
of sins, he may all his life walk in this covenant of grace and
holiness, as a lively member of the holy Church, which is the
mystical body of Christ our head.
Let us pray.
I.
O Almighty and Eternal God, Father of men and angels,
Lord of heaven and earth, whose Spirit, moving upon the
waters at the beginning of the world, produced every living
and every moving creature ; thou by the flood of waters
didst wash away the iniquity of the old world, and by pre-
serving to thyself a generation of holy persons, whom thou
didst bring up from those waters, didst consign to us a type
of regeneration : look, O Lord, graciously upon the face of
thy Church, and multiply in her thy regenerations, and the
new births of thy Spirit. With the abundance of thy grace
make thy holy city to rejoice, and still open this holy fountain
of baptism, for the reformation and sanctification of all the
nations of the world ; that thy blessed Spirit sanctifying
these waters, a new and heavenly offspring may hence arise,
full of health and light ; that human nature, which was
made after thy own image, being reformed and restored tq
the honour of its first beginning, may be cleansed from all
the impure adherences of sin, preserved from the dominion
of it, and rescued from all its sad effects, that what shall be
so born in the womb of the Church, may dwell in the house
of God, and reign with thee for ever in the inheritance of our
blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus. 'Amen.
II.
Our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus, who was baptized
of John in Jordan, who walked upon the waters, who con-
verted water into wine, who out of his precious side shed
forth blood and water, the two sacraments of life, unto his
holy Church, and commanded his disciples to ' teach all
nations, baptizing them with water in the name of the Father,
308 AN OFFICE FOR THE
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost : ' he bless and sanctify by
his Holy Spirit this water, that it may be instrumental and
effective of grace, of pardon and sanctification : hear us, O
most gracious God, that whosoever shall be baptized in this
water, may be renewed by thy grace, justified by thy mercy,
sanctified by thy Spirit, preserved by thy providence, and
guided by thy word ; that in this water, springing from the
paradise of God, the soul [or souls] presented unto thee may
be cleansed and purified, and that there may be added to thy
Church daily, such as shall be saved in the day of thy
glorious appearing, O blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus.
Amen.
Then, the Minister and People arising from their knees, the following
Gospel shall be read.
Hear the words of the holy Gospel written by St.
Matthew, in the third chapter, &c.
Verses 13 to 17, inclusively.
" Then cometli Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John,
to be baptized of him. But John forbade him, saying, I
have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me ?
And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now ;
for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he
O
suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up
straightway out of the water, and, lo, the heavens were opened
unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a
dove, and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven
saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
Hear likewise what St. Mark writeth in his tenth chapter.
Verses 13 to 16, inclusively.
The Jews " brought children" to Christ, *' that he should
touch them, and his disciples rebuked those that brought
them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and
said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me,
and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of God.
Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the king-
dom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.
And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them,
and blessed them."
ADMINISTRATION OF BAPTISM. 309
FRIENDS,
"In these Gospels you see the actions and hear the
words of our blessed Saviour : how he commanded little
children to be brought unto him, how he rebuked those that
would Ijave kept them away, how readily he blessed them,
how kindly he embraced them, how he pronounced them
capable of, and entitled to, the kingdom of God : how he
commanded us to receive the kingdom as infants received it,
and affirmed that we can no way receive it but by being like
them : you know, also, that although Christ commanded
them to be brought unto him, there is no ordinary and
appointed way for infants to come to Christ, and no way
possible for them to be brought to Christ, but by this new
birth and regeneration in the laver of baptism : you see also
by the example and words of our blessed Lord himself, that
even the most innocent persons ought to be baptized ; for he
himself, who knew no sin, was yet baptized in the baptism
of repentance, and so to do was the fulfilling of righteous-
ness; we may therefore easily perceive that the innocence of
infants, and their freedom from actual sin, cannot excuse
them from baptism. And if we remember, that although our
blessed Saviour required faith of them who came to be
healed of their diseases, yet by the faith of others/ who
came in behalf of such as could not be brought, or could not
come, the sick person was healed ; we are sufficiently in-
structed, that although infants have no more actual faith
than they have actual sin, yet the faith of others can be, and
is, by the usual and revealed method of the Divine mercy, as
well imputed to them, to the purposes of grace and life,
as the sin of Adam can be imputed to the purposes of death ;
that * as in Adam all die, so in Christ all should be made
alive :' we may therefore, from these certain evidences, con-
clude, that God alloweth in you this obedience and charity,
in bringing this child to Christ, to receive all blessings of
which he is capable, and a title to the promises and adoption
to be the child of God, a sanctification by the Spirit, a
designation to the service of Christ, and putting him into
the order of eternal life. Therefore b [as circumcision was
* Matt. viii. 13 ; tx.28. John, IT. 50. Mark, ix. 23.
b All tbis between the crotchets may be omitted, according to the discretion of
him that ministers.
310 AN OFFICE FOR THE
the seal of the righteousness of faith, and yet ministered to
infants eight days old, and commanded so severely, that God
said, The uncircumcised child, whose flesh is not circumcised,
that soul shall be cut off from his people : so baptism, which
is now the seal of the same faith and the same righteous-
ness, and a figure like unto the former, is to be administered
to infants, although they have no more actual faith than the
children of the Israelites had ; our blessed Saviour having
made baptism as necessary in the New Testament, as cir-
cumcision in the Old. For because little children can
receive the kingdom of ,God, and in infants there is no
incapacity of receiving the mercies of God, the adoption to
be children of God, a title to the promises, the covenant of
repentance, and a right to pardon ; whosoever shall deny to
baptize infants when he is justly required, is sacrilegious and
uncharitable. Since, therefore, the Church of God hath so
great, so clear, so indubitable a warrant to baptize infants,
and, therefore, did always practise it] let us humbly and
charitably give thanks to God for his great mercies unto us
all, and, with meekness and love, recommend this child to
the grace of God."
Let us pray.
I.
O Almighty and Eternal God, who hast redeemed us from
sin and shame, from the gates of hell and the sting of death,
and from ignorance and darkness, by thy holy Son, who is
that light which lighteneth every man that cometh into the
world : we praise and glorify thy name, that thou hast called
us to the knowledge of thy will, and the love of thy name,
and the service of thy majesty, which is perfect freedom, the
freedom of the sons of God.
IT.
As thou hast dealt graciously with us, so deal with this
infant, whom we humbly bring and offer to our blessed
Saviour Jesus, that he should receive him, and bless him with
the blessings of an everlasting love. Receive him, O most
gracious Lord, who is thy child by creation, make him thine
c Rom. iv. 11-13, 17. Gal. iii. 14, 29.
ADMINISTRATION OF BAPTISM. 311
also by adoption into thy covenant of grace and favour ; let
him be consigned with thy sacrament, be admitted into
Christ's kingdom, enter into his warfare, believe his doctrine,
labour and hope for his promises, that this child, witnessing
here a good confession, may have his understanding for ever
brought unto the obedience, his affections to the love, and all
his faculties to the service, of Christ ; and after he hath
served thee in his generation, he may receive his part and
portion in thy glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Then arising from their knees, the Minister shall say uiito the God-
fathers and Godmothers, as followeth :
" Well-beloved friends, you have brought this child to be
presented unto Christ as a servant of his laws, and a disciple
of his doctrine; ye have prayed that God would receive him,
and give him a portion in the Gospel and kingdom of his
Son ; ye have heard what promises God hath made on his part,
and ye believe and know all ' his words are yea and amen,'
and not one tittle of them shall pass unaccomplished ; now,
therefore, because it is a covenant of grace and favour on
God's part, and of faith and obedience on ours, though God
prevents us with his grace, and begins to do for us before we
can do any thing for him, yet you, under whose power this
child is, and by whose faith and charity this child comes to
Christ in holy baptism, must also, on his behalf, promise that
he will forsake the devil and all his wicked works, that he
will faithfully believe Christ's holy Gospel, and dutifully
keep all Christ's commandments."
Minister. Dost thou abjure, and renounce, and promise
to forsake, the devil and all his wicked works, not to listen
to his temptations, not to be led by the flesh, by the vain
powers of the world, by carnal or covetous desires, but thou
wilt be the servant of the Lord Jesus ?
Answer. I forsake them all', and will be a servant of
Jesus.
Minister. Dost thou believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth ? And in Jesus Christ, his only
begotten Son, our Lord ? And that he was conceived by
the Holy Ghost ; born of the Virgin Mary ; that he suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried ; that
he went down into hell, and also did rise again the third
day ; that he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right-
312 AN OFFICE FOR THE
hand of God the Father Almighty ; and from thence he shall
come again, at the end of the world, to judge the quick and
the dead? And dost thou believe in the Holy Ghost; the
holy catholic Church ; the communion of saints ; the remis-
sion of sins ; the resurrection of the flesh ; and everlasting
life after death ?
Answer. All this I will profess and steadfastly believe.
Minister. Wilt thou be baptized into this faith ?
Answer. That is my desire.
Let us pray.
O Almighty God, who hast given the promise of thy
Spirit to us and to our children, even to as many as the Lord
our God shall call ; give thy Holy Spirit to this infant, that
the evil spirits of darkness may not take thy portion from
thee, nor hurt the body, nor deceive the understanding, nor
corrupt the will, nor tempt the affections of this infant : but
that thy Spirit, who bloweth where it listeth, and no man
knows whence he cometh nor whither he goeth, may be in
this child as the seed of God springing up to life eternal ;
that the kingdom of God which is within, and cometh not
with observation, may early rule and conduct this infant,
prevent the folly of his childhood from growing up to sins in
Ms youth, and may work strongly in him when his weakness,
his ignorances, and temptations, are most powerful to prevail
upon him ; that from his cradle to his grave he may be guided
by the Spirit of God in the paths of the Divine command-
ments. Admit him, O God, into the bosom of the Church,
into the arms of thy mercy, into a right of the promises, into
the service of Christ, into the communion of saints ; and
give him power to become the son of God, that being buried
with Christ in baptism, he may also rise with him through
the faith of the operation of God, through the same our
blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Then the Minister of the Sacrament shall take the Child in his arms, and
ask the name.
Then naming the Child aloud, he shall dip the head, or face, or body of
the Child in the water, saying,
N. Tbaptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Dipping the head, at the naming of the holy Trinity.
ADMINISTRATION OF BAPTISM. 313
If the Child be weak, or any other great cause intervene, it may
suffice, instead of dipping, to sprinkle water on the face, using
the same form of words.
Then shall the Priest make the sign of the Cross upon the Child's
forehead, saying,
" We sign this child with the sign of the cross, and enrol
him a soldier under the banner of Christ, to signify, and, as
a ceremony, to represent, that the duty of this and all bap-
tized persons is manfully to fight under the banner of Christ
against the flesh, the world, and the devil, all the days of
their life ; and by the power which Christ our blessed Lord,
who hath the key of David, hath given unto me, I admit
this child into the communion of saints, into the bosom of
the visible Church, the kingdom of grace, and the title to the
promises evangelical, and the hopes of glory."
Our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus, who, when he had
overcome the sharpness of death, did open the kingdom of
heaven to all believers, and gave unto his Church the keys of
the kingdom, that his ministers might let into it all that
come to him ; he, of his infinite goodness and truth, make
good his gracious promises upon this infant, that what we do
on earth according to his will, he may confirm in heaven by
his Spirit and by his word, to the glory of the blessed and
undivided Trinity, God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Amen.
Then shall the Minister add this Invitation.
Seeing now, dearly beloved, that this infant hath received
holy baptism, and is washed in the laver of regeneration,
admitted into the bosom of the Church, into the covenant of
faith and repentance, pardon and holiness ; let us give
thanks to God for these graces, and pray that this child may
lead his life according to the present undertaking.
I.
We give thee thanks and praise, O heavenly and most
gracious Father, that it hath pleased thee to call this child
to thy holy baptism, to renew him with thy Holy Spirit, to
admit him into the Church, to adopt him for thy child, and to
receive him unto the profession of thy faith: and we humbly
314 AN OFFICE FOR THE
beseech thee to grant unto him thy grace, to accompany him
all the days of his life, that he may hold fast the profession
of his faith, making his calling and election sure; that his
body being washed in pure water, and he tasting of the
heavenly gift, being made partaker of the Holy Ghost, and
sprinkled in his heart from an evil conscience, he may follow
thee in the regeneration, and, after the end of this life, he may
for ever be with them who have washed their robes and
made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Grant this,
O God our Father, through Jesus Christ our blessed Saviour
and Redeemer.
II.
O most holy, most gracious Saviour Jesus, who lovest
thy Church, and hast given thyself for it, that thou mayest
sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water in the
word ; do thou with thy Holy Spirit enlighten, and with
thy word instruct, the understanding of this child, that he
may live by faith, and may receive the secrets of thy king-
dom, and know thy will, and obey thy laws, and promote
thy glory.
III.
>
O God, be thou his Father for ever, Christ his elder
brother and his Lord ; the Church his mother ; let the body
of Christ be his food, the blood of Christ his drink, and the
Spirit the earnest of his inheritance. Let faith be his learn-
ing, religion his employment, his whole life be spiritual,
heaven the object of his hopes, and the end of his labours ;
let him be thy servant in the kingdom of grace, and thy son
in the kingdom of glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Then shall the Priest add this Blessing.
Our blessed Lord God, the Father of men and angels,
who hath sent forth his angels ministers, appointing them to
minister to the good of them who shall be heirs of salvation,
he of his mercy and goodness send his holy angel to be
the guardian of this child, and keep him from the danger
and violence of fire and water, of falls and sad accidents,
from evil tongues and evil eyes, from witchcraft and all
ADMINISTRATION OF BAPTISM. 315
impressions of the spirits of darkness, from convulsions and
rickets, from madness and stupidity, from folly and evil
principles, from bad examples and from evil teachers, from
crookedness and deformity, from the mutilation of a member
or the loss of sense, from being useless and unprofitable,
from being impious, harsh-natured, and unreasonable ; and
make him a wise, useful, and a holy person, beloved of men,
and beloved of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen,
Amen.
You the godfathers and godmothers of the child, as you
have done this charity to the infant to bring him to holy
baptism, so you must be sure to continue your care over him
till he be instructed in his duty, taught what vow he hath
made by you, and how he shall perform it. To this purpose
you shall take care that he may learn the Lord's Prayer, the
Apostles' Creed, and the Commandments of our Lord, that
he may know how to pray, what to believe, and what to
practise ; and when he is in all these things competently in-
structed, neglect not any opportunity of bringing him to the
bishop, that he, by imposition of hands and invocation of
the Holy Spirit of God, may procure blessing and spiritual
strength to this child. Which duty when you have done,
you are discharged of this trust ; and, from the mercies of
God, may humbly hope for the reward of your charity.
THE
DEVOTIONS AND PROPER OFFICES
WOMEN.
An Office for safe Childbirth.
I.
O ALMIGHTY FATHER of men and angels, in whose hands
are the keys of life and death, of the womb and of the grave,
look down at this time in great mercy and gentlest com-
passion upon thy servant. Thou hast, O God, upon the
weakest of mankind fixed the sharpest degree of painful
childbirth ; but so thou lovest to magnify thy mercies and
thy power, that thy strength may be seen in our weakness ;
so let it be, O God, unto thy handmaid ; let thy loving-
kindness be her confidence and her rest, her hope and her
security, now and in the hour of her travail.
II.
Lord, let thy holy angels be present with thy servant, in
their holy and charitable ministries about her person ; it is
a great thing that we require ; but we beg it of the great
King of heaven and earth, the Lord of angels, who hath
promised that his angels shall stand in circuit round about
them that fear the Lord : look, O Lord, upon her fear ; it is
humble, but it is trembling: look upon her love, and make it
what it is not yet : do thou sanctify her fear of thee, and
change it into obedience, and carefulness of duty ; increase
her love of thee, and make it to be pure and perfect, operative
and busy, zealous and obedient ; make it to grow up to
the perfections of a Christian, and pass unto the beauties of
AN OFFICE FOR SAFE CHILDBIRTH. 317
holiness : so shall thy servant feel thy daily mercies, and no
evil shall come near to hurt her.
III.
Gracious Father, give thy servant leave to rely upon thy
glorious promises. Thou hast commanded us to call upon
thee in our trouble, and hast promised to deliver us : O look
upon thy handmaid, leave her not, nor forsake her, for
trouble is hard at hand, and there is none that can help or
deliver but only thou, O God. In thee, O Lord, do we trust,
let thy servants never be confounded. Be pleased, O Lord,
to give thy servant patience and dereliction of her own
desires, perfect resignation of her own will and a conformity
to thine ; that she may with joy receive the blessing which
thou wilt choose for her, and which we humbly beg of thee,
even that she may have a holy, a healthful, a joyful, and a
safe deliverance of her burden. Lord, keep her from all sad
accidents and evil contingencies, from violent pains and
passions, from all indecency of comportment and unqnietness
of spirit, from impatience and despair, from doing any thing
that is criminal, or feeling any thing that is intolerable.
IV.
O Lord our God, give thy servants leave to pray unto
thee in behalf of this thy handmaid, that thou wilt not cut
her off in the midst of her days, nor forsake her when her
strength faileth : but spare her, O God, not for any purposes
of vanity, or the satisfaction of any impotent or secular
desires, but that she may live to serve thee, to redeem her
time mispent in folly, to get victory over temptations, and
perfect dominion over her passions, to grow great in religion,
and of an excellent charity and devotion. O spare her
a little, that she may recover her strength before she goes
hence and be no more seen ; so shall thy servant rejoice in
thy mercies, and speak of thy loving-kindness in the Church
of thy redeemed ones, and will spend her days in holiness
and zealous pursuances of religion. Remove her sins far
from her, as the east is from the west ; for thou didst send
thy most holy Son to die for us, and redeem us from all the
powers of sin and hell : thou knowest whereof we were
made, and rememberest that we are but dust : O do not visit
318 A THANKSGIVING FOR WOMEN
her sins upon her by a hasty death, but manifest thy mercies
and thy pardon, by giving her a mighty grace, that she may
live a holy life : and be pleased to grant this also, that those
impresses of pious resolutions, and religious purposes of fear
and love, of hope and desire, which thy grace in the circum-
stances of her present condition makes upon her, may abide
in her soul for ever; and, in the days of ease and safety, may
be as operative and productive of holiness, as now they are
of a hearty prayer, and passionate desires for thy mercies
upon her, in a safe and blessed childbirth.
V.
Lord, bless her child ; grant that it may be born with
a right shape and a perfect body, with a comely countenance
and straight limbs, with entire senses and expedite faculties,
with an excellent power of understanding and sweet dis-
positions; and let thy Holy Spirit of grace conduct it to the
sacrament of baptism, and in safety and holiness from the
cradle to the grave. Grant this, O eternal God, for his sake,
who was born of a holy maid, and suffered the infirmities of
nature, and died for our sins, and rose again for our justifica-
tion, even our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
An Office of public Thanksgiving for Women after their
Delivery from Childbirth, or any great Sickness, or
Calamity, or Fear.
At tbe end of Morning Prayer, immediately before the Blessing, the
woman presenting herself before God on her knees, in some
convenient place near to him that ministers, begin with this
Exhortation.
" FORASMUCH as it hath pleased Almighty God, who hath
commanded us when we are aiflicted to pray, and hath
promised to be with us in trouble, to make good his truth
and mercy unto you, in standing at your right-hand in the
day of your sorrow and danger, giving you safe deliverance
[and a living and hopeful child a ], you shall therefore return
to him the sacrifice of a thankful and joyful heart, in an
* This may be inserted or omitted, according to the present circumstances.
AFTER CHILDBIRTH. 319
humble acknowledgment of the Divine mercies and goodness
unto you, in this great blessing and deliverance from the
pain and peril of childbirth." [Or else name any other
instance in which the minister is required to give thanks.]
The Psalm or Hymn of Thanksgiving:
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want : he maketh
me lie down in green pastures, he leadeth me beside the
still waters.
He restoreth my soul : he leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil : for thou art with me ; thy rod and
thy staff they comfort me.
I will declare thy name unto my brethren : in the midst
of the congregation will I praise thee.
Ye that fear the Lord, praise him ; for he hath not despised
nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted : neither hath he
hid his face from him, but when he cried unto him, he heard.
O . Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast
healed me.
Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave :
thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his : and give thanks
at the remembrance of his holiness.
For his anger endureth but for a moment ; in his favour
is life : weeping may endure for a night, but joy conieth in
the morning.
1 cried unto thee, O Lord : unto the Lord I made my
supplication.
What profit is there in my blood, when I go down into
the pit ? shall the dust praise thee ? shall it declare thy truth ?
Hear, O Lord, and have mercyupon me: Lord, be thou
my helper.
Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing:
thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with glad-
ness.
To the end that my glory may sing praise unto thee, and
not be silent : O Lord my God, I will give thanks to thee
for ever.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
320 A THANKSGIVING FOR WOMEN
Or else say the Te Deum.
We praise thee, O God : we acknowledge thee to be the
Lord.
All the earth doth worship thee, the Father everlasting.
To thee all angels cry aloud : the heavens and all the
powers therein.
To thee cherubim and seraphim continually do cry,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth,
Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of thy glory.
The glorious company of the apostles praise thee.
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise thee.
The noble army of martyrs praise thee.
The holy Church throughout all the world, doth ac-
knowledge thee :
The Father : of an infinite Majesty.
Thy honourable, true, and only Son.
Also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.
Thou art the King of glory, O Christ.
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.
When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man, thou didst
not abhor the virgin's womb.
When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death, thou
didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right-hand of God, in the glory of the
Father.
We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge.
We therefore pray thee, help thy servants, whom thou
hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with thy saints in glory
everlasting.
O Lord, save thy people : and bless thine heritage.
Govern them : and lift them up for ever.
Day by day, we magnify thee,
And we worship thy name, ever, world without end.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.
O Lord, have rnercy upon us : have mercy upon us.
O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us : as our trust is
in thee.
O Lord, in thee have I trusted: let me never be confounded.
Minister. The Lord be with you.
Answer. And with thy spirit.
AFTER CHILDBIRTH. 321
Let us pray.
O most merciful Saviour and Redeemer Jesus, who wert
born of a pure and a holy maid ; who hast felt the calamities
of mankind, and knowest how to pity our infirmities, and
rejoicest in doing and shewing mercy to all that need, and
to all that call to thee for succour ; we give thee thanks and
praise, that thou hast heard the prayers, and considered the
cries and relieved the necessities, of this thy servant, and
kept her life from the grave, still continuing to her a portion
in the land of the living, and opportunities of serving thee.
O be pleased to continue and increase, and to sanctify thy
mercies to thy servant : pardon all her sins, pity her infirmi-
ties, enable her duty, keep her from all evil by thy blessed
providence, let her portion be in the things of God and of
religion, in the light of thy countenance, and the service of
thy majesty ; that she, walking humbly and devoutly before
thee, piously and dutifully to her relatives, doing justice,
and giving good example to those with whom she shall con-
verse, may find the rewards of holiness, and the eternal
mercies of God, in the day of thy glorious appearing, O
blessed Saviour and Redeemer Jesus. Amen.
Then shall be added this form of Blessing.
The Lord bless you, and keep you. The Lord make his
face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you. The Lord
lift up the light of his countenance upon you, and give
you peace.
The blessing of God Almighty, the Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, be amongst you, and abide with you, and be
your portion for ever and ever. Amen.
A Prayer to be said immediately after the Woman's Delivery,
either by the Priest, or anytother in Attendance.
O ALMIGHTY LORD and Father, who healest every sick-
ness and every disease, and art ever gracious, and always
present to the prayers of them who, in the day of trouble,
call upon thy holy name ; thou hast given delivery to this thy
servant [and made her the mother of a living child], still be
pleased to continue and renew thy loving-kindness unto
her ; keep her from all violent accidents and intolerable
pains, from colds and fevers ; defend her by the custody of
VOL. xv. Y
32*2 A NEW-MARRIED WIFE'S PRAYER.
thy holy angels of light, from all impresses of the powers of
darkness : give h*r rest and sleep, a quiet spirit, and an easy
tody ; confidence in thee, and a daily sense of thy mercies ;
a speedy restitution of health and strength, and a thankful
heart to praise thee in the congregation of saints, and to
serve thee with an increasing and a persevering duty all the
days of her life ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Then, if there be time and fitted circumstances, add this Prayer for the
Child.
O eternal God, who hast promised to be a Father to a
thousand generations of them that love and fear thee ; be
pleased to bless this child, who is newly come into a sad and
most sinful world. O God, preserve his life, and give him
the grace and sacrament of baptismal regeneration : do thou
receive him and enable him to receive thee, that he may have
power to become the child of God ; keep him from the spirits
that walk at noon, and from the evil spirits of the night, from
all charms and enchantments, from sudden death and violent
accidents : give unto him a gracious heart and an excellent
understanding, a ready and unloosed tongue, a healthful and
a useful body and a wise soul, that he may serve thee aud
advance thy glory in this world, and may increase the number
of thy saints and servants in the kingdom of our Lord Jesus.
Amen.
To God the Father of our Lord Jesus : to the eternal Son
of God, the Son of man : to the Spirit of the Father and the
Son : be all honour and glory, praise and thanksgiving, love
and obedience, now and for evermore. Amen.
A Prayer to be said by a new-married Wife entering into
a Family.
I.
O ETERNAL GOD, the Father of wisdom and mercy, thou
hast been my guide and my defence all iny days ; thou didst
take me from my mother's womb, and didst conduct me
through the varieties of my life with much mercy, and the
issues of a loving and wise providence ; I bless thy name, O
Lord, for all thy dispensations ; thou hast done all things
with infinite goodness and infinite wisdom : thou hast kept
me from the effects of thy wrath, and the evils of my own
A NEW-MARRIED WIFE'S PRAYER. 323
infirmities ; thou didst defend me from evils by the guard of
angels, and didst lead me into good by the conduct of thy
Holy Spirit: thou hast always heard my prayer, ever being
more ready to bless me than I to ask it : thou hast said unto
me, ' I will never leave thee nor forsake thee ;' be therefore
graciously pleased to hear the prayer of thine handmaid, that
I may have the aids of an excellent providence and a mighty
grace to do my duty in all my relations, in all varieties and
changes of the world, until my great change shall come.
II.
Give thy blessing to thy servant, my dear husband; give
him a long life and a confirmed health ; encircle him with
blessings, adorn him with thy grace, nourish him with content,
refresh him with a perpetual succession of comforts, let the
light of thy countenance be upon him in all his actions and
the accidents of his life, and grant that he may still more
and more increase in the love and fear of thy holy name;
that, despising the things of this world, he may hunger and
thirst after the things of God and of religion, and may have
his portion in the gathering together of the saints in the
kingdom of grace and glory.
III.
Bless me, even me, O my Father ; and grant that I may,
in all things, do my duty to thee, my God : give me a perfect
command over all my passions and affections, that they being
subject to my will, and my will guided by reason, and my
reason by religion, I may never suffer any undecency or
violent transport, but may pass through all the accidents of
my life with meekness and a sober spirit, with patience and
charity, with prudence and holiness. O be pleased to give
thy servant a right judgment in all things, that I may not be
amazed at trifles, nor discomposed by every contrariety of
accidents, nor passionate for the things of the world, nor
discontent if thou shouldst smite me : but that I may, with
an even arid a quiet spirit, do my duty, and comply with
every variety of thy providence, and obey my husband, and
be amiable in his eyes, and useful and careful for his children :
ever desiring to approve myself to thee in a holy and hearty
obedience, in piety and devotion, in patience and humility,
324) A NEW-MARRIED WIFE'S PRAYER.
in chastity and purity, in all holiness of conversation : and do
thou give thy holy and blessed Spirit to guide and teach me
all my days, that I may overcome all my infirmities, and
comply with and bear the infirmities of others, and charitably
pardon their errors, and fairly expound their actions, and
wisely perceive their intentions, and with a Christian in-
genuity deport myself in all things, giving offence to none,
but doing good to all I can ; that I may receive pardon from
thee for all my sins, and pity for all my infirmities, and thy
blessing upon all my actions, and a sanctification of all my
intentions ; and when my life is done, I may have the peace
of God, and the testimony of a holy conscience, to accom-
pany me to my grave, and to consign me to a holy and a
blessed resurrection, to partake of the inheritance which
thou hast provided for thy saints and servants. Grant this
for Jesus Christ's sake, our dearest Lord and Saviour.
Amen.
For a Fruitful Womb.
I.
O MOST gracious and eternal God, Father and Lord of all
the creatures, thou didst sanctify marriage in the state of in-
nocence, in the dwellings of paradise, and didst design it for
the production of mankind, and didst give it as one of the
first blessings of mankind. O be pleased to look upon thy
handmaid who waits for thy mercy, and humbly begs of thy
infinite goodness to make me partaker of that blessing which
thou didst design to all the sons and daughters of Adam :
thou, O God, hast the keys of heaven and hell, of rain and
providence, of the womb and the grave : O let not thy
servant feel the curse of dry breasts and a barren womb ; but
make me a joyful mother of children, that thy handmaid may
serve thee in increasing the number of thy redeemed ones,
and may minister blessings to this family into which thou
hast adopted me, and may bring comfort to my dear husband,
whom do thou bless, and love, and sanctify for ever.
II.
O God, I confess I am unworthy of this or any other
favour ; I am less than the least of thy mercies, yet our
weakness and unworthiness cannot be the measures of thy
THE AFFLICTED WIFE'S PRAYER. 325
mercy : thou art good and gracious, infinitely gracious,
essentially good, and delightest in shewing mercy to them,
that call upon thee, and put their trust in thee : O dear God,
I remember that thou didst relieve the sorrows of thy servant
Hannah, and gavest her the blessing of children ; thou didst
bless the womb of Elizabeth, who was barren ; thou spakest
the word, and the rocks did rend, and they sent forth a plea-
sant stream : thy hand is not shortened, and thy mercies are
not less than ever, no less than infinite, and why should not
thy servant hope that thou wilt hear my prayer, and grant
the desire of my soul ? Even so, O gracious Father, let it be
as thou pleasest : thy wisdom is infinite, and thy counsels
are secret, and the ways and lines of thy providence are like
the path of a bird in the air, and are not to be discovered by
our weak sight.
III.
I know, O God, that thou lovest to hear our prayers, and
thou delightest in the humble, passionate, and resigned
desires of thy servants. Although, O God, I desire this
blessing with an earnestness as great as any temporal favour,
yet I numbly submit my desires, my interests, my content,
and all that I am or have, to thy holy will and pleasure,
humbly begging of thee that I may cheerfully suffer, and
obediently do thy will, and choose what thou choosest, and
observe the ways of thy providence, and revere thy judgment,
and wait for thy mercy, and delight in thy dispensation, and
expect that all things shall work together for good to them
that fear thee. O let thy Holy Spirit for ever be present
with me, and make me to fear thee and to love thee above
all the things in the world for ever, and then no ill can come
unto thy servant : for whosoever loves thee cannot perish.
Hear the prayer of thy servant, a^id relieve my sorrow, and
sanctify my desires, and accept me in the Son of thy love and
of thy desires, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
A Prayer to be used by an afflicted Wife in behalf of a
vicious Husband.
I.
O ETERNAL FATHER, thou Preserver of men, thou great Lover
of souls, who didst send thy holy Son to die, that mankind
might be redeemed, and sin might be destroyed : thou
326 A PRAYER OF AN AFFLICTED WIFE.
knowest how intolerable a thing it is that a soul should, to
eternal ages, be encircled with thy wrath and the indignation
of a mighty and an angry God ; and, therefore, dost love to
do miracles of mercy, because thou lovest not that a sinner
should perish : be pleased to give thy handmaid leave to pre-
sent her humble desires in behalf of a sinner, one sinner for
another; the miserable for him that is ready to perish.
Lord, look down in mercy upon my husband ; snatch him
from the jaws of hell, suffer him not to perish in his sin ; but
open his eyes with the light of thy word and of thy Spirit,
that he may espy his danger, that he may behold the
deformity of his sins [the injuriousness of his actions, the
folly of his pleasures], the iniquity of his vows.
II.
Cleanse his hands and heart from all unrighteousness
[from blood-guiltiness, from rapine, from violence, from
cruelty], O Lord, and purify his soul and body from all
impurity [from all intemperance, from the violence and fury
of passion], giving him a perfect repentance, and a perfect
pardon : and if it be thy will, let me also, some way or other,
co-operate towards the recovery of his precious soul ; and be
pleased to remember the sufferings of thy handmaid, not that
he may receive evil, but that I may find good from thy
gracious hands, in the day of recompense ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
If she have escaped anj Violence intended against her, bj his Malice
or Passion, then add this Prayer of Thanksgiving.
O God, my God and Father, thou hast strangely pre-
served and rescued me from evil, thou hast made decrees in
heaven for my safety and preservation ; and for the glory
of thy own name, thou hast diverted the arrow that was
directed against me. What am I, O Lord, and what can I do,
or what have I done, that thou shouldst do this for me ? I '
am, O God, a miserable sinner, and I can do nothing without
a mighty grace ; and I .have done nothing by myself, but
what I am ashamed of, and yet I have received great mercies,
and miracles of providence. I see, O God, I see that thy
goodness is the cause and the measure of all my hopes, and
all my good : and upon the confidence and greatness of that
THE PRAYER OF A MOTHER. 327
goodness, I humbly beg of thy sacred Majesty to keep and
defend me from all evil by thy wise providence; to lead me
into all good by the conduct of thy Divine Spirit ; and where
I have done amiss, give me pardon ; and where I have been
mistaken, give me pity ; and where I have been injured, give
me thy favour, and a gracious exchange ; that I may serve
thee here with diligence and love, and hereafter may rejoice
with thee, and love thee as I desire to love thee, and as thou
deservest to be loved, even with all the powers and degrees
of passion and essence, to eternal ages, in the inheritance of
Jesus, whom I love, for whom I will not refuse to die, in
whom I desire to live and die, to whom with thee, O gra-
cious Father, and the Holy Spirit, be all honour and glory,
love and obedience, for ever and ever. Amen.
A Mother's Prayer for her Children.
I.
MOST gracious and eternal God, Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, Father of men and angels, Father of mercies, and
God of all comforts ; thou hast promised to be a Father to
a thousand generations of them that love and fear thee ; be
thou a God and a Father to me, and the children which thou
hast given me. Enable me, O Lord, to bring them up in the
nurture and admonition of the Lord, and in the fear of God,
to the praise of thy holy name. O give me thy grace and
favour, that I may instruct them with diligence and meek-
ness, govern them with prudence arid holiness, provide for
them useful employments, and competent provisions of life
and comfort, leading them in the paths of religion and jus-
tice, by example and precepts of holiness ; never provoking
them to wrath, never indulging them in their follies, never
conniving at an unworthy action ; and that all my children
may be thine, O preserve them in thy favour, or take them
away from hence while they are. If thou pleasest, let them
live to a full age, but secure to them a full measure of piety
and holiness ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
To this end give them grace to obey their parents, that
doing the duty, they may receive the promise : preserve them
from sin and shame, from youthful follies, and youthful
328 THE WIDOW'S PRAYER.
crimes. Sanctify them throughout in their bodies, and souls,
and spirits ; that their thoughts may be pure and holy, not
displeasing or misbecoming the eye of him who is the
Searcher of hearts ; let their words be true, prudent, and
ingenious, seasoned with grace, and apt to minister grace
unto the hearers : let all their actions, in their whole life,
be such as become the servants of Jesus, holy and useful,
that they may not be burdens to the public or to their
family ; but pleasing thee, and doing good to others, they
may increase in the love of God, and in favour with men,
and may have the portion of the meek and humble in this
world, and of the pure and merciful in the world to come ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Widow's Prayer.
I.
O ETERNAL GOD, most gracious Lord, and my most merciful
Father, thou art my refuge and my hope, my sanctuary and
my rock, my guardian and protector, all my days. I have
offended thee, and thou hast smitten me ; I have deserved
very much evil, and thou hast corrected me with the gentle
visitation of a father's rod : and though thy hand is heavy,
and thy rod presseth me sore, by reason of my own weakness
and infirmities, yet when I consider how little I suffer in
respect of what I have deserved, I cannot but adore thy
goodness, and delight in thy mercies, and run for help and
comfort, support and conduct, to that hand which smites
me. O my God, give me patience under thy afflicting hand :
for my impatience, I fear, hath provoked thee to anger, and
hath doubled my own calamity ; and since my duty is my
proper cure, and will make thy hand easy, and thy anger
little ; give thy servant a quiet and a resigned, an humble
and a meek spirit, that I may not become my own tormentor,
and my sin may not be my own punishment.
II.
O my gracious Lord, do to me what seemeth good in thy
own eyes ; I am like clay in the hands of the potter ; and
what am I, that I should repine against the acts of thy provi-
dence and dispensation ? Behold, O God, thy handmaid is
but a worm before thee ; shall dust and ashes repine against
THE WIDOW'S PRAYER. 329
God? Thou art just and righteous in all thy ways, and
though thou hast afflicted me sore, yet, blessed be thy holy
name, I have not lost my hope, and I can yet pray, and I
will trust in thee though I die ; only be thou pleased to let
this thy. heavy hand efform in me the effects of grace, and
conform me to the likeness of the holy Jesus, my dearest
Saviour ; that I may so bear the cross that I may never dis-
please him, nor dishonour the excellent name of a Christian
by which I am called.
III.
I am, O my God, by the means of thy heavy hand, not
only under the discipline of a child, but have also obtained a
new title to thy especial providence and protection ; for thou
art the patron of the poor, the helper of the friendless, the
father of the fatherless, and the defender of the widows : and
if these be the effects of thy anger, and that when thou
smitest us, thy very strokes are healing, and thy displeasure
is medicinal, what shall thy servant expect will be the effect
of thy pardon and loving-kindness? But yet, O my Lord,
help me in my duty, and though I have failed in all my rela-
tions hitherto, by my impatience and murmur, by my careless
comportment and undutiful behaviour towards thee ; yet now
let my sad state of widowhood be a state of holiness and
repentance, of devotion and a severe religion. Let me recol-
lect my years in bitterness, and my soul in sorrow for my
sins : let me have no affections for the things of this world ;
but let my hope and all my joy, my desires and my conversa-
tion, be in heaven, and all my employment and care be how
I may enjoy thee in holy and spiritual unions and adherences.
IV.
O Lord, I know that the way^of man is not in himself: it
is not in man that walketh, to direct his steps : I have often
resolved to live innocently, and I have often broken all my
holy purposes ; and I cannot of myself think one good
thought as of myself, but my sufficiency is of thee ; thou art
my strength : O preserve thy servant in my single state of
widowhood, that I may never have any thought of change,
till the day of my great change shall come : be thou, O God,
a covering of the eyes unto thy handmaid ; let me have no
loves but thine, no affections but for thy service ; and since
330 THE WIDOW'S PRAYER.
thou hast broken in pieces the holy band of conjugal society
which thy holy ordinance did tie between my dear lord and
husband and thy handmaid, give me thy grace dearly to pre-
serve his memory, to retain the impresses and remembrances
of that affection, and to entertain no new ones ; but wholly
employ my time, my estate, and all my powers [in a bringing
up my children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,
in making fair and fitting provisions for them, in giving them
good example], in bearing the burden of the Lord sweetly,
in prayers and fastings, in alms and piety, in reading and
meditating, in spiritual and sacramental communions ; that
when the work of my life is done, I may find pardon and
favour, and acceptance at the hands of my Lord, and a por-
tion among thy saints and servants.
V.
If there be Children of both Sexes, let the following portion be added.
O my God, now thy servant hath taken upon me to speak
to my Lord, let not my Lord be angry, nor reject the prayer
of his servant, interceding and praying for my children, the
pledges of my dear lord and husband : preserve them, O
God, in the strictest duty and services to thyself: O be thou
their God and Father, let thy providence be their portion,
thy service their employment, thy angels their guards ; keep
them so by thy preventing and thy restraining grace, that
they may not, by their own sins, provoke thee to anger and
jealousy ; and let not the sins of their forefathers be visited
upon them in thy anger and displeasure : thou lovest to shew
mercy, and thou delightest in the affections of thy loving-
kindness, and thou art displeased when our vilenesses con-
strain thee to pour down thy judgments on us. O be pleased
to grant, that they living in holy obedience to thee, may feel
a perpetual stream of mercy, refreshing and supporting them ;
and let them not bear another's burden, for thou art just and
merciful, righteous and true, and hast sentenced every one to
bear their own iniquity.
VI.
Great God of mercy, heal all the breaches of this family,
* If she have children, insert this within the crotchets.
THE WIDOW'S PRAYER. 331
preserve and increase the remaining comforts and advantages
of it, support the estate, renew thy favour to it, and perpetu-
ally pour down thy blessings upon it : for the light of thy
countenance and thy gracious influence does preserve and
bless, support and nourish, honour and advance, persons,
families, and kingdoms. Bless my eldest son ; give him an
obedient and a loving spirit, a provident and a wise heart, a
worthy and a pious comportment, a blessed and an honour-
able posterity : to my younger sons give health and holi-
ness, wisdom, and fair fortunes, the love of God and good
men : to my daughters give thy perpetual grace and favour,
that they may live in honour and a severe chastity, free from
sin and shame, from temptation and a snare, and let their
portion be in the blessing, in the love and service of God.
Let them live in the favour of God and man, useful to others,
an honour to their family, a comfort to all their relatives and
friends, and servants to thy Divine Majesty.
VII.
Preserve me thy servant from all evil, lead me into all
good ; change my sorrows into comforts, my infirmity into
spiritual strength ; take all iniquity from me, and let thy
servant never depart from thee. I am thine, O save me ; I
am thine, sanctify me and preserve me for ever ; that neither
life nor death, health nor sickness, prosperity nor adversity,
weakness within nor cross accidents without, may ever sepa-
rate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Amen, blessed Jesus, Amen.
THE
OFFICES OR FORMS
OF
PRAYER AND DEVOTION
FOR THE
MISERABLE AND AFFLICTED.
An Office to be said in the Days of Persecution of a Church,
by sacrilegious or violent Persons.
Our Father which art in heaven, Sec.
Minister. O God, make speed to save us.
Answer. O Lord, make haste to help us.
Minister. Glory be to the Father, &c.
Answer. As it was in the beginning, &c.
I.
A Hymn petitory and complaining.
O GOD, the heathen are come into thine inheritance : thy
holy temple have they denied, and made Jerusalem a heap
of stones.
The adversaries roar in the midst of the congregations :
and set up their banners for tokens.
They have set fire upon thy holy places : and have defiled
the dwelling-places of thy name, even unto the ground.
They have destroyed all the carved work thereof ; with
axes and hammers.
Yea, they said in their hearts, Let us make havoc of them
altogether: thus have they spoiled the houses of God in
the land.
AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION. 333
God, how long shall the adversary do this dishonour ?
how long shall the enemy blaspheme thy name ; for ever?
Why withdrawest thou thy hand, even thy right hand ?
pluck it out of thy bosom : for they have devoured Jacob,
and laid waste his dwelling-place.
They have said, Come, and let us root them out, that they
be no more a people ; and that the name of Israel may be no
more in remembrance.
Hold not thy tongue, O God ; keep not still silence :
refrain not thyself, O God, for they have cast their heads
together with one consent, and are confederate against thee.
They have taken crafty counsel against thy people : and
consulted against thy hidden ones.
O Lord God of hosts, how long wilt thou be angry with
thy people that prayeth ?
Thou feedest them with the bread of tears : and givest
them plenteousness of tears to drink.
Wilt thou be displeased at us for ever ? and wilt thou
stretch out thy wrath from one generation to another ?
Wilt thou not turn again and quicken us, that thy people
may rejoice in tbee ?
Will the Lord absent himself for ever ? and will he be no
more entreated ? Is his mercy clean gone for ever ? and is his
promise come utterly to an end for evermore ?
Hath God forgotten to be gracious 1 and will he shut up
his loving-kindness in displeasure ?
O do thou bring the wickedness of the ungodly to an
end : but guide thou the just.
Bring down the ungodly and malicious : take away his
iniquity, and thou shalt find none.
Shew thy marvellous loving-kindness : thou that art the
Saviour of them that put their trust in thee, from such as
resist thy right hand.
So will not we go back from thee : quicken us, and we
will call upon thy name.
Turn us again : O Lord of hosts.
Cause thy face to shine : and we shall be saved.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
334 AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION.
II.
A Hymn consolatory, in Time of Persecution.
The Lord is in his holy temple ; the Lord's seat is in
heaven : his eyes consider the poor : and his eyelids try the
children of men.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord : and the
people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.
For thou shalt keep thy people that are in adversity : and
shall bring down the high looks of the proud.
For thou shalt save them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve
them from this generation for ever : for the righteous Lord
loveth righteousness : his countenance will behold the thing
that is just.
For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the
needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord : I will set him in
safety from him that swelleth against him.
For the Lord will not fail his people, neither will he for-
sake his inheritance : until righteousness turn again unto
judgment, and all such as be true in heart shall follow it.
O how plentiful is thy goodness which thou hast laid up
for them that fear thee : and that thou hast prepared for them
that put their trust in thee, even before the sons of men !
Thou shalt hide them privily, by thine own presence, from
the provoking of all men : thou shalt keep them secretly in
thy tabernacle from the strife of tongues.
Great plagues remain for the ungodly ; but whoso putteth
his trust in the Lord, mercy embraceth him on every side.
He calleth upon the Lord, and the Lord heareth him: yea,
and Saveth him out of all his troubles.
He delivers their souls from death, and feedeth them in
the days of .famine : they shall not be confounded in the
perilous time, and in the days of dearth they shall have
enough.
The Lord ordereth a good man's going : and maketh his
way acceptable to himself.
Though he fall, he shall not be cast away : for the Lord
upholdeth him with his hand.
Thou, Lord, shalt save both man and beast : how excellent
is thy mercy, O God ! and the children of men shall put their
trust under the shadow of thy wings.
AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION. 335
O taste and see how gracious the Lord is : blessed is the
man that trusteth in him.
The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous : and his ears
are open unto their prayers.
The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth them : and de-
livereth them out of all their troubles.
O love the Lord, all ye his saints : for the Lord pre-
serveth them that are faithful, and plenteously rewardeth the
proud doer.
The salvation of the righteous cometh of the Lord : which
is also their strength in the time of trouble.
And the Lord shall stand by them, and save them : he
shall deliver them from the ungodly, and shall save them,
because they put their trust in him.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, Sec.
The following Hymns may be said in the public or private
Calamities of a Church, of a Family, of a single Person,
under Persecution or Oppression, false Imprisonment,
unjust and vexatious lawsuits, <Sfc.
III.
My soul waiteth still upon God : for of him corneth my
salvation : he verily is my strength and my salvation, so that
I shall not greatly fall.
Thou also shalt light my candle : the Lord my God shall
make my darkness to be light.
Thou hast given a token for such as fear thee : that they
may triumph because of the truth.
Therefore were thy beloved delivered : help me with thy
right hand, and hear me.
O praise the Lord which "dwelleth in Sion : shew the
people of his doings.
For when he maketh inquisition for blood : he remem-
bereth, and forgetteth not the complaint of the poor.
For the poor shall not always be forgotten : the patient
abiding of the meek shall not perish for ever.
He hath not despised nor abhorred the low estate of the
poor : he hath not hid his face from him, but when he called
unto him, he heard him.
336 AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION.
Wherefore should the wicked blaspheme God : while he
doth say in his heart, Tush, thou, God, carest not for it?
Surely thou hast seen it ; for thou beholdest ungodliness
and wrong, that thou mayest take the matter into thine
hand : the poor committeth himself unto thee ; for thou art
the helper of the friendless.
Lord, thou hast heard the desire of the poor: thou pre-
parest their heart, and thine ear hearkeneth thereto ;
To help the fatherless and poor to their right ; that the
man of the earth be no more exalted against them.
O cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall nourish
thee : and shall not suffer the righteous to fall for ever.
Hold thee still in the Lord, and abide patiently upon
him : but grieve not thyself at him whose way doth prosper,
against the man that doth after evil counsels,
For wicked doers shall be rooted out : but they that wait
upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
Yet a little while and the wicked shall not be : yea, thou
shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
But the meek shall inherit the earth : and shall delight
themselves in the abundance of peace.
So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the
righteous : doubtless there is a God that judgeth the earth.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
IV.
Hymn consolatory and petitory for the Church and Clergy,
in Times of Persecution.
Blessed are they that dwell in thy house : they will be
always praising thee.
Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee : in whose
heart are thy ways.
Blessed is the people, O Lord, that can rejoice in thee :
they shall walk in the light of thy countenance.
For the Lord is a sun and shield : the Lord will give grace
and glory, and no good thing will he withhold from them that
walk uprightly.
Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which
thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are towards us : they
AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION. 337
cannot be reckoned up in order to thee : if I would declare
and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.
Many shall see it and fear : and put their trust in the
Lord.
The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh occasion
to slay him : but the Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor
condemn him when he is judged.
The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord, and put his trust
in him : and all they that are true of heart shall be glad.
Keep innocence, and take heed unto the thing that is
right : for that shall bring a man peace at the last.
They that sow in tears, shall reap in joy.
He that now goeth on his way weeping, and beareth forth
good seed, shall doubtless come again with joy, and bring
his sheaves with him.
The Lord from out of Sion shall so bless thee, that thou
shalt see Jerusalem in prosperity all thy life long, and peace
upon Israel.
For God will save Sion, and build the cities of Judah :
that men may dwell there, and have it in possession.
The posterity also of his servants shall inherit it : and
they that love his name, shall dwell therein.
Arise, O Lord, into thy resting-place : thou and the ark
of thy strength .
Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt : thou hast cast
out the heathen, and planted it.
Thou madest room for it: and when it had taken root, it
filled the land.
The hills were covered with the shadow of it : and the
boughs thereof were like the goodly cedar-trees.
Why hast thou then broken down her hedge : that all
that go by, pluck off her grapes?
The wild boar out of the wood doth root it up : and the
wild beasts of the field devour it.
Turn thee again, thou God of hosts : behold and visit this
vine, and the place of thy vineyard, that thy right-hand hath
planted ; and the branch that thou madest so strong for thyself.
Turn us again, O God : shew the light of thy countenance,
and we shall be whole.
Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness.
Let thy saints sing with joyfulness.
VOL. xv. z
338 AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION.
So we thy people, and sheep of thy pasture, will give
thee thanks for ever.
We will shew forth thy praise, from generation to
generation.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
If there be occasion, add Psalms Ixxxix. xxi. and Ixi.
Then for the Lesson read Judges, ii. or iii. 1 Sam/ xxxi. Ezra, ix.,
Nehemiab, ix., or Daniel, ix. Matthew, xix. verse 16, to the end of
Matthew xx. Matthew, xxi.
If there be Famine, or Dearth, or Drought, read Jeremiah, xiv.
If two Lessons be read at one Meeting, then let one of the former
Hymns be read between the two Lessons, and omitted before.
If but one Lesson be read, or after the Second Lesson [if there be two]
say this Psalm.
Plead thou my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with
me : for they have laid their net to destroy me without a
cause ; yea, even without a cause have they made a pit for
my soul.
Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice
over me : neither let them wink with the eye, that hate me
without a cause.
For they speak not peace, but they devise deceitful matters
against them that are quiet in the land.
They rewarded me evil for good : to the great discomfort
of my soul.
Stir up thyself, and awake to my judgment : even unto
my cause, my God and my Lord.
Judge me, O Lord my God, according to my righteous-
ness : and let them not rejoice over me.
And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord : it shall rejoice
in his salvation.
All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee,
which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him :
yea, the poor and needy from him that spoileth him ?
Let them shout for joy and be glad that favour my right-
eous cause : yea, let them say continually, Let the Lord be
magnified which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his
servants.
Trust in the Lord, and do good : so shalt thou dwell in
the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION. 339
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him : fret not
thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, hecause of
the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
For the Lord shall laugh at him : for he seeth that his
day is coming.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Minister. The Lord be with you.
Answer. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
The Collect.
Almighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that
thou hast made, and lovest not that a sinner should die ; be-
fore thee and before thy angels there is joy in heaven at the
conversion of a sinner ; thou hast promised pardon to the
penitent, and salvation to them that persevere : O grant that
we may never presume on thy mercy, or despise the riches of
thy goodness ; but that thy forbearance and long-suffering
may lead us to repentance : create and make in us new and
contrite hearts, that we truly mourning for our sins and
forsaking them, condemning ourselves and justifying thee,
crucifying the old man and becoming new creatures, may
obtain of thee mercy and remission ; that though we are now
worthily punished for our sins, by the comfort of thy grace
we may be mercifully relieved, through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
The Prayer for the Church.
I.
O eternal God, thou preserver of men, and the great
lover of souls, have pity and compassion upon thine afflicted
handmaid, the Church of England. Thou hast humbled
us for our pride, and chastised us for our want of discipline.
O forgive us all our sins, by which thou hast been provoked
to anger and to jealousy, to despise our sorrows, and to arm
thyself against us.
II.
Blessed God, smite us not with a final and exterminating
340 AN OFFICE IN TIME OF PERSECUTION.
judgment, call not the watchmen off from their guards, nor
the angels from their charges ; let us not die by a famine of
thy word and sacraments : if thou smitest us with the rod of
a man, thou canst sanctify every stroke unto us, and canst
bring good out of evil, and delightest to do so : but
nothing can bring us recompense if thou hatest us, and
sufferest the souls of thy people to perish.
III.
Unite our hearts and tongues, take away the spirit of
error and division from amongst us, and so order all the
accidents of thy providence, that religion may increase, and
our devotion may be great and popular, and truth may be
encouraged and promoted, and thy name glorified, and thy
servants comforted and instructed, that thy Holy Spirit may
rule, and all interests may stoop and obey, publish and
advance the honour of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
For the superior Clergy.
O most blessed Saviour Jesus, King of heaven and earth,
the Head and Prince of the catholic Church, who hast ap-
pointed thy servants ministers and stewards in the house of
thy Father, to give bread to the hungry, and drink to them
that thirst after the water of life flowing from the fountains
of our Saviour : continue and bless, sanctify and adorn with
thy gifts and graces, all the spiritual guides and governors
which thou hast appointed over us : that they may continue
in thy service to comfort the afflicted, to instruct the igno-
rant, to confirm the strong, to defend and promote thy truth,
to intercede for thy servants, to open the kingdom of heaven
to all believers, and to shut up the disobedient and rebellious
in everlasting prisons, by the keys of the kingdom, by thy
word and sacraments, by thy power and by thy Spirit ;
remove not the candlestick from us, neither do thou quench
the light of Israel ; but let thy servants, our bishops and
priests, be like burning and shining lights in the temple of
God, by a continual, never failing, never broken succession,
offering up the daily sacrifice, rejoicing in the plenty of
peace, and the employments of thy house ; in holy offices,
and a daily ministration ; that thou being for ever pleased,
and for ever glorified, we may be thy peculiar people, a
AN OFFICE IN TIME OF WAR. 341
chosen generation, a royal priesthood, clothed with right-
eousness, and singing with joyfulness eternal hallelujahs to
the honour of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Priests and the inferior Clergy.
Most blessed and eternal Jesu, who art a priest for ever
after the order of Melchisedec, and hast separated thy ser-
vants to minister to thee in holy offices, and to convey holy
things unto the people; give unto all thy servants, the
ministers of thy word and sacraments, the spirit of prudence
and knowledge, of faith and charity, of watchfulness and holy
zeal; that they, as good helps in government, may declare
thy will faithfully to their congregations, and administer
the sacraments purely and devoutly, and by their holy life
become an example to thy little flock, that so they, with
cheerfulness and joy, may render an account of their charge,
and may by thy mercy obtain the blessing of thy priesthood,
and the glories of thy kingdom, O most blessed and eternal
Saviour, who livest and reignest with the Father and the
Holy Spirit, eternal God, world without end. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, &c.
To this Office may be added the Confession of Sins, taken out of
St. Epbraim the Syrian, in ' the Evening Prayer for a Family,' and said
immediately before the Collect; or else immediately before the
Blessing (as opportunity shall require or permit) may be said the
Litany described at the end of these Devotions.
Any of these Prayers or Psalms may, upon any occasion, ordinary or
extraordinary, be used in any of the other Offices.
In time of War, to the foregoing Offices may be added these following
Prayers, taken out of a special Office published by the authority of
Queen Elizabeth, 1597.
A Prayer for an Army or Navy, in Time of War.
I.
O Almighty Lord God of hosts, the Prince of Peace, and
the everlasting Counsellor, we humbly beseech thee so to
conduct, encourage, and defend our armies and fleets with
thy mighty arm, and thy wise providence, that what they
shall attempt or take in hand for defence of this church and
state, may be prosperous and blessed. Direct and lead
them- all in safety, strengthen their, governors and leaders
342 AN OFFICE IN TIME OF WAR.
with sound counsel and wise conduct, the officers and soldiers
with ready obedience and valiant resolution : bless their
conflicts with signal victories ; give them blessed opportu-
nities of effecting the purposes of peace and justice with the
least bloodshed. Preserve them from contagious diseases,
from the violence of sword and sickness, from evil accidents
or crafty designs, from treachery or surprise, from careless-
ness of their duty and from all irreligion, from eonfusion or
fear, from mutiny and disorder. Give them a happy and
an honourable return, that we being defended from our ene-
mies, thy servant our sovereign [or supreme] may rejoice in
thy mercies, and thy Church may give thee thanks in the
days of peace, and all thy people may worship thee in a holy
religion, giving thee praise, and honour, and glory for ever,
in eternal ages, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Or this.
I.
O most mighty Lord God, who reignest over all the
kingdoms of men, thou hast power in thy hand to cast down
and to raise up, to save thy servants and to rebuke their
enemies, and in all ages hast given victory to thy people,
effecting by small numbers what man cannot do by the mul-
titude of a host : let thy ears be now open unto our prayers,
and thy merciful eyes upon our trouble and our danger. O
Lord, do thou judge our cause in righteousness and mercy,
prosper our arms, and defend our armies. Establish us in
the rights thou hast given us, in our lands and in our goods,
in our government and in our laws, in our religion and in all
the holy orders which thou hast appointed to minister to all
who shall be heirs of salvation.
II.
Never let ambition or cruelty, thirst of empire or thirst
of blood, the greediness of spoil or the pleasures of victory,
make us either to love war or to neglect all the just ways of
peace : and grant unto the army such piety and prudence,
such happy circumstances and blessed events, that none of
them may do any act misbecoming Christians, disciples, and
servants of the Prince of Peace. Do thou, O God, bless
them in all their just actions and necessary defences, that they
AN OFFICE FOR PRISONERS. 313
may neither do wrong, nor suffer any. Let not our enemies
have their unjust desires, nor their mischievous imaginations
prosper, lest we become a scorn and derision to our oppres-
sors. The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the
strong, and a horse is counted but a vain thing to save a
man ; but our trust is in the name of the Lord our God, he
is our strength and our defence : for it is thou, O Lord, who
canst indifferently save with many or with few.
III.
Wherefore, from thy holy sanctuary, open thine eyes and
behold ; stretch forth thy hand and help ; defend and save
our armies and navies, O thou God of power, from all evil of
man, and all evil of chance. Cover their heads in the day of
battle and danger ; send thy fear before thy servants, that
our enemies may flee before them : let thy faith make them
valiant in fight, and put to flight the armies of aliens, rebels,
&c. ; and by this shall thy servants know thou favourest us,
in that our enemy doth not triumph over us, and shall always
confess, to the praise of thy name, that it was thou, Lord,
the shield of our hope, and the sword of our glory, who hast
done great things for us ; and evermore say, ' Praised be the
Lord, that hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servants.'
Hear us, O Lord, for the glory of thy name, for thy loving
mercy, and for thy truth's sake; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
AN OFFICE FOR PRISONERS.
The foregoing ordinary Offices are fitted for all mankind in general,
and so may be also used by these in their prisons : to which they may
add what is fit for them in the following Devotions : and upon solemn
occasion, or upon special necessity or devotion, they may entirely
and distinctly use the following Prayers and Psalms, &c.
IN the name of our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
Versicle. O God, make speed to save us.
Answer. O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father, &e.
As it was in the beginning, <^c.
344 A FORM OF PRAYER FOR PRISONERS.
The Psalm.
I will cry unto God with my voice : even unto God will I
cry with my voice, and he shall hearken unto me.
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord : in the night
my sore ceased not ; my soul refused to be comforted.
When I am in heaviness, I will think upon God : when
my heart is vexed, I will complain.
remember how short my time is : wherefore hast thou
made all men for naught ?
1 go hence like the shadow that departeth, and am driven
away as the grashopper : but the Lord shall endure for ever,
lie hath also prepared his seat for judgment.
For he shall judge the world in righteousness : and
minister true judgment unto his people.
The Lord also will be a defence for the oppressed : even
a refuge in due time of trouble.
And they that know thy name, will put their trust in thee :
for thou, Lord, hast never failed them that seek thee.
Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man : preserve me
from the violent man.
I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the
afflicted, and the right of the poor.
Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name :
the upright shall dwell in thy presence.
O let the sorrowful sighing of the prisoners come before
thee : according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou
those that are appointed to die.
The humble shall consider this and be glad : seek ye
after God, and your soul shall live.
For the Lord heareth the poor : and despiseth not his
prisoners.
Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth
on high,
Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in
heaven and earth ?
He raiseth up the poor out of the dust : and lifteth the
needy out of the dunghill.
Blessed be the name of the Lord, from this time forth
for evermore.
For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry
soul with goodness.
A FORM OF PRAYER FOR PRISONERS. 345
Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being
bound in affliction and iron :
He bringeth them out of darkness and the shadow of
death : and breaketh their bands in sunder.
O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness: and
declare the wonders that he doth for the children of men!
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Or this.
In thee, O Lord, have I put my trust, let me never be put
to confusion : but rid me and deliver me in thy righteous-
ness ; incline thine ear unto me and save me.
Be thou my stronghold, whereunto I may always resort:
thou hast promised to help me, for thou art my house of de-
fence and my castle.
As for the children of men, they are but vanity ; the child-
ren of men are deceitful upon the weights: they are altoge-
ther lighter than vanity itself.
O trust not in wrong and robbery, give not yourselves
unto vanity; if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.
Up, Lord, why sleepest thou? awake, and be not absent
from us for ever.
Wherefore hidest thou thy face : and forgettest our misery
and trouble?
For our soul is brought low even unto the dust: our belly
cleaveth unto the ground.
O cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall nourish
thee : and shall not suffer the righteous to fall for ever :
For this God is our God for ever : he shall be our guide
unto death.
There the wicked cease from troubling : and there the
weary be at rest.
There the prisoners rest together : they hear not the voice
of the oppressor.
The small and great are there : and the servant is free
from his master.
Blessed is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help :
and whose hope is in the Lord his God.
Which helpeth them to right that suffer wrong : which
feedeth the hungry.
346 A FORM OF PRAYER FOR PRISONERS.
The Lord looseth men out of prison, the Lord giveth sight
to the blind, he helpeth them that fall : the Lord careth for
the righteous.
Praise the Lord, O my soul : while I live, will I praise the
Lord : yea, as long as I have any being, I will sing praises
unto my God.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
The Lesson.
Read Gen. xxxix. and xl. Isaiah, xlii. and li. Jerem. xxxii. or
xxxvii. and lii. Matt. xxv. Acts, v. and xvi.
Let these be read at several times ; and if the Office be said in private,
let him that reads and is interested, meditate awhile. After which,
let him humbly kneel down and pray.
I.
The Prayer for all Prisoners.
O Almighty God, the merciful Father of all that put their
trust in thee, look down from the beauteous throne of thy
glory, with much mercy and compassion upon us thy servants,
who are children of misery, full of sin and full of calamity,
whose only hope is in the mercies and loving-kindness of the
Lord. O do thou pardon all our trespasses and debts, by
which we are in arrears to thee ; put them upon the accounts
of the cross ; for our blessed and most gracious Lord hath
paid our price to redeem us from the eternal prisons : and be
thou pleased to enrich us with thy Holy Spirit ; that we may
be strong in faith, abounding in hope, established in a holy
patience, and rich in charity ; expecting with meekness and
submission, when the times of refreshment shall come from
the presence of the Lord, our blessed Saviour and Redeemer
Jesus. Amen.
II.
For Prisoners of Debt.
Enable us, O God, thou Treasure of all goodness, and all
plenty, and all justice, to do our duty to those to whom we
are obliged ; let not their kindness to us be injurious to them,
nor our poverty become their calamity ; but do thou enable
us, by the miracles of thy mercy, to do what we are bound
A FORM OF PRAYER FOR PRISONERS. 347
to do ; or incline our creditors to accept what we can, and
make us willing to do according to the utmost of our power;
and do thou make it up in the blessings of plenty and
mercy, what is diminished to them by our poverty and in-
felicity. Restore us, O God, to the light of thy countenance,
to the sense of thy mercies and refreshments ; sanctify our
present condition ; make us humble and obedient, quiet and
peaceable, temperate and patient : let not our calamities ex-
asperate our spirit ; nor the present affliction make us to
seek for comfort in the creature, much less in vice and stu-
pors of drunkenness, in profane noises and evil company. O
let our hopes be in thee, and our joy in thee only, and in thy
service; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
III.
For Prisoners of Crime.
O eternal and most holy Saviour Jesus, who wert brighter
than an angel, purer than the morning-star, and yet wert
pleased for our redemption to take upon thee our guilt, that
suffering our punishment thou mightest rescue us from an
intolerable state of evil : thou didst for our sakes suffer thy-
self to be imprisoned in the house of the High-Priest, and
have thy holy hands bound with cords, that thou mightest
procure to us the liberty of the sons of God ; O look upon us
with a gracious eye. Thou didst suffer, and yet wert inno-
cent ; we suffer less than we have deserved, and hope in thy
goodness that we never shall suffer so much. O hear our
cries from the bottom of our prisons, from the depths of our
sorrows ; let this affliction be thy discipline to work contri-
tion and repentance in our hearts. Thou art just, O God, in
all that we suffer, and thou art to be glorified ; and shame
and confusion of face belongs unto us, as it is this day : but
never let us suffer the confusion of a sad eternity : accept our
sorrow and repentance, our suffering and our shame ; that
our sins beinr washed in the blood of the Lamb and the tears
O
of repentance, our souls may be presented pure and spotless
before the throne of grace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
IV.
If the Prisoners be condemned to Death, then add this Prayer.
O most merciful Saviour, who didst glorify thy mercy by
348 A FORM OF PRAYER FOR PRISONERS.
giving pardon and promising paradise to the repenting thief,
thy mercies have no limit, and thy loving-kindness cannot
be measured ; O hear the cries and deepest groanings of
miserable perishing sinners, who cannot look up with any
hope, but only because thy glorious mercy is greater than
can be understood, and by thine own measures thou doest
good to the miserable and calamitous. Thou didst add
fifteen years to the days of Hezekiah upon his prayer ; but
he was righteous. Thou didst lift up the head of Manasses
from the dungeon, and gavest pardon to him when he cried
mightily ; but he was a timely penitent. O give mercy to
thine enemies, that fain would be reconciled to thee ; to the
impenitent, that fain would be admitted to repentance ; to
miserable and undone persons, who desire that the infinite-
ness of thy mercy should be glorified upon those whom
nothing can relieve but what is infinite as thyself. O give
pardon to thy servants, give patience, a conformity to thy
will, and a dereliction of their own ; let thy blessed angels
stand in circuit round about and rescue this miserable com-
pany [man, woman, &c.] from all the violence and fraud of
the spirits of darkness, from the weakness of human nature,
from the curse and power of evil habits, and from eternal
damnation ; through the mercies of God and the grace of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
I.
For Prisoners under Oppression, by false Accusation, by unjust
War, for a good Conscience, or unreasonable Dealings of Men
by vexatious lawsuits, and violent, injurious Bargains.
O Almighty God, most merciful, most gracious Father,
who hast glorified thine eternal Son, and exalted him to be a
Covenant for the people, a Light of the Gentiles, to open the
blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and
them that sit in darkness, out of the prison-house : thou
standest at the right-hand of the poor, to save his soul from
unrighteous judges: thou art a defence for the oppressed,
and a refuge in due time, in the time of trouble : O look
upon thy servants, who suffer wrong from the violent and
unjust usages of our oppressors: if it be thy will, speedily
rescue us from our calamity. We submit to thy will and
A FORM OF PRAYER FOR MARINERS. 349
pleasure, and adore thy providence and thy wisdom in every
dispensation ; but we beg of thee, together with the suffer-
ing, give us patience and a way for us to escape ; and sanc-
tify both thy justice in our suffering, and thy mercy in our
delivery. Do thou judge our cause, O Lord, defend our
persons, give good unto our persecutors, and not evil ; give
them a love of justice, and repentance, pardon, and holiness ;
send peace, O Lord, in all our days and in all our dwellings ;
let there be no leading into captivity, no complaining in the
houses of bondage ; and let not our portion be with per-
secutors, but with the poor and the persecuted, with the
harmless and the innocent, with them that do good, and suffer
evil for Jesus Christ's sake, our Lord and only Saviour.
Amen .
II.
O God of mercy, extend thy loving-kindness to all thy
servants, who are under the same or any other great affliction:
deliver them, O God, from all evil, from their own weakness
and their enemies' power ; bless them with thy providence,
sanctify them by thy grace, pardon them by thy mercy,
defend them with thy power, conduct them by thy Spirit, en-
rich them with thy wisdom, and bring them to all holy and
useful comforts in this world, and to never-ceasing glories in
the world to come; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communication of the Holy Spirit of God, be with
us and with all our relatives, and with all the servants of
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
AN OFFICE, OR FORM OF PRAYER, FOR SAILORS
OR MARINERS.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
Versicle. O God, make speed to save us.
Answer. O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
350 A FORM OF PRAYER FOR MARINERS.
The Psalm.
BLESSED is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help ; and
whose hope is in the Lord his God.
Which made heaven and earth, the sea and all that
therein is : which feedeth the hungry.
The Lord is great, and cannot worthily be praised : he is
more to be feared than all gods.
His dominion is from one sea to the other, and from the
flood unto the world's end.
Whither then shall I go from thy Spirit ? or whither
shall I go from thy presence?
If I climb up into heaven, thou art there : if I go down
to hell, thou art there also.
If I take the wings of the morning, and remain in the
uttermost parts of the sea ;
Even there also shall thy hand lead me, and thy right-
hand shall hold me.
They that go down to the sea in ships, and do business
in great waters ;
These men see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in
the deep.
For he commandeth and raiseth the stormy wind, which
lifteth up the waves thereof.
They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the
depths : their soul is melted because of trouble.
They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man :
and are at their wit's end.
Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble : and he
bringeth them out of their distresses.
He maketh the storm a calm : so that the waves thereof
are still.
Then are they glad, because they be at quiet : so he
bringeth them unto the desired haven.
O that men would therefore praise the Lord for his good-
ness, and for his wonderful works to the sons of men !
O Lord God of hosts, who is like unto thee? thy truth,
most mighty Lord, is on every side.
Thou rulest the raging of the sea : thou stillest the waves
thereof, when they arise.
Thou shalt shew us wonderful things in thy righteousness,
A FORM OF PRAYER FOR MARINERS. 351
O God of our salvation : thou that art the hope of all the
ends of the earth, and of them in the broad sea.
They also that dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth,
shall be afraid at thy tokens : thou that makest the out-
goings of the morning and evening to praise thee.
The Lord hath said, I will bring my people again, as I did
from Basan: mine own will I bring again, as I did some time
from the deep of the sea.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Or this; to be said especially in a Storm or Danger of
Shipwreck.
The Lord is King; ever since the world began, hath thy
seat been prepared : thou art from everlasting.
The floods are risen, O Lord, the floods have lift up their
voice : the floods lift up their waves.
The waves of the sea are mighty, and rage horribly : but
the Lord that dwelleth on high, is mightier.
Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord :
awake as in the ancient days, in the generations of old.
Art not thou he, which hath dried the sea, the waters of
the great deep : that hath made the depths of the sea a way
for the ransomed to pass over ?
Thou art the God that doeth wonders : and hast declared
thy power among the people.
Thou hast mightily delivered thy people, even the sons of
Jacob and Joseph.
The waters saw thee, O God ; the waters saw thee, and
were afraid : the depths also were troubled.
The clouds poured out waters : the air thundered, and
thine arrows went abroad.
The voice of thy thunder was heard round about ; the
lightnings shone upon the ground : the earth was moved,
and shook withal.
Thy way is in the sea, and thy paths in the great waters :
and thy footsteps are not known.
Therefore I will cry unto God with my voice, even unto
God will I cry with rny voice : and he shall hearken unto me.
Hear me, O God, in the multitude of thy mercy : even in
the truth of thy salvation.
352 A FORM OF TRAYF.R FOR MARINERS.
Take me out of the mire, that I sink not: O let me be do-
livered from them that hate me, and out of the deep water*.
Let not the water-flood drown me, neither let the deep
swallow me up: and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.
Hear me, O Lord, for thy loving-kindness is comfortable :
turn thee unto me, according to the multitude of thy mercies.
Who is like unto thee, O Lord, amongst the gods? who is
like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing
wonders ?
O hide not thy face from thy servants : for we are in
trouble : O haste and hear us.
Our souls are full of trouble ; and our life draweth nigh
unto the grave.
O thou that nearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come :
O let our prayer enter into thy presence, incline thine ear
unto our calling.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
If there be time and opportunity to read any portions of Scripture
suitable to the necessity, then read, if they be pursued by Pirates,
Exod. xiv. from verse 21 to verse 20 of chapter xv. If they be
in danger of Shipwreck, read Jonah i. or ii. or Acts, xxvii.
At other times, read Matt. viii. or ziv. or Mark, iv. or
Luke, viii.
The Prayer.
I.
O Almighty God, and Father of heaven and earth, who
seltest a bound to the sea, and restrainest his waves by a
heap of sand, by mountains and by rocks, by thy Word and
by thy Spirit, saying, * Hither shall thy proud waves pass and
no further ; ' look upon us, thy servants, whose lives are in
our hands, and we dwell in the shadows of death night and
day ; we know, O Lord, and confess the floods and waves of
passion do frequently overrun us, and we are drowned in the
storms, and overwhelmed with iniquity. Our [oaths, blas-
phemies, impieties] irreligious actions are louder than the
fiercest winds, and call aloud upon thee for vengeance ; and
many of us, in our greatest danger, provoke thee with the
greatest unreasonableness and violence of impiety. But
O God, our God, be gracious unto thy people, who accuse
A FORM OF PRAYER FOR MARINERS. 353
ourselves, and confess our guilt, and acknowledge thy justice,
and beg thy goodness, and pray to thee for safety and
defence, for deliverance and for pardon, for thy conduct and
thy blessing. Keep us, O God, from storms and quicksands,
from pirates and rocks, from error and impieties, from all
evil contingencies and all evil actions ; let our voyage be
safe to our persons and to our goods ; let it be blessed by
thy providence and thy Holy Spirit, that we may return with
comfort and with advantages of trade (or success}, and thy
servants may glorify thee in the land of the living, in the
Church of the first-born, the congregation of thy redeemed
ones; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
In a Storm, or Danger of Pirates and Shipwreck.
O eternal and most holy Saviour Jesus, who, in the days
of thy flesh and thy infirmity, didst command the winds and
rebuke the seas, and they obeyed thee ; and thou art now
exalted far above all principalities and powers, above all
heavens and all angels, and art the King of the world, and
the great Prince of the whole creation ; and thou hast com-
manded us to come boldly to the throne of grace, and hast
promised we should find help in time of need ; look down
upon thy servants, who, in the abyss of the seas, and the
abyss of our trouble, invocate the abyss of thy mercies ;
speak peace unto our consciences, and command our enemies
to be in peace with us, or to have no power against us;
rebuke the winds ; restrain the violent and injurious : thou
art our refuge ; be thou therefore our defence and our
security, and rescue us from the present danger ; we know,
O God, that the devil is a great prince, and rules in the air,
and in the hearts of the children of disobedience ; but thou
art the King and Lord over him and all princes of the world;
thou art the Prince of spirits, and restrainest the spirits of
princes ; let not the enemy of mankind execute his cruel
envy against us, nor any of the elements, or any of his
instruments, be able to do us any violence.
III.
O refuse not to hear the prayers, and to consider the
VOL. xv. A A
354 A FORM OF PRAYER FOR TRAVELLERS.
cries, and to behold and pity the need of them that call upon
thee, that put their trust in thee, that have laid up all their
hopes in thee, and thine infinite and eternal goodness : we
have no strengths of our own, but thou art our confidence ;
be thou also our portion and our guide, our defence and our
shield, a star in the night and a covering by day: strengthen
our faith, O God, and increase our hope ; that in the greatest
danger we may, against hope, believe in hope, and with faith
and love expect the salvation of the Lord, and may find thy
goodness rescuing us from this present fear, and defending
us in all our difficulties, and sanctifying every accident, and
sweetening every event of providence, and consigning us, by
these blessings, to a final delivery from all our sins, and from
the evils which our sins deserve ; to the glory of God, to the
salvation of our souls in thy day, in thy glorious day, O
eternal and most holy Saviour and Redeemer Jesus. Amen.
A Form of Prayer and Blessing to be used over him, that, in
the beginning of a Journey, by Land or Sea, begs the
Prayers of the Minister of the Church.
The Prayer.
O ALMIGHTY GOD, most gracious and most merciful, who
art a God afar off as well as nigh at hand, and hast sent thy
ministering angels to minister good to them that shall be
heirs of salvation ; be thou pleased to send thy holy angel
before this thy servant N., to defend him from the heat of
the day, and the cold of the night ; from the arrow that flies
at noon, and the evil spirits that walk in darkness; from errors
and falls, from precipices and fracture of bones, from pirates
and robbers, from evil intentions and evil accidents, from
violent weather and violent fears, from all impressions of
evil men and evil spirits ; let his journey be safe and useful
to thy servant, comfortable to his relatives, holiness to the
Lord, and glory to thy name; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Blessing.
The Lord bless thee and keep thee ; the Lord make his
face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee : he
keep thee from all evil by the custody of angels, and lead
A PRAYER IN BEHALF OF FOOLS. 355
thee into all good by the conduct of his good Spirit.
Amen.
Let the providence and love of God be thy defence and
thy security; his grace be thy portion, his service thy em-
ployment : he go in and out before thee, and keep thee in all
thy ways, and lead thee in all his.
He bring thee back again in peace and safety, and prosper
all thy innocent and holy purposes ; and when the few and
evil days of thy pilgrimage are ended, he of his infinite
mercy bring thee to the regions of holiness and eternal
peace ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
I.
A Prayer to be used in behalf of Fook or Changelings.
O ETERNAL and most "blessed Saviour Jesus, who art the
Wisdom of the Father, and art made unjo us Wisdom,
Righteousness, Sanctification, and Redemption, have pity
upon the miserable people to whom thou hast given life and
no understanding. Thou didst create us of nothing, and
gavest us being when we were not, and createdest in us
capacity of blessings when we had none, and gavest us many
when we did not understand them ; thou bringest infants
from the womb, and from the state of nature to the state of
grace, and from their mothers' breasts thou dost often convey
them to the bosom of Jesus, and yet they do nothing, but
thou art glorified in thy free gift. O be gracious to all
natural fools and innocents, for thou hatest nothing which
thou hast made, and lovest every soul which thou hast
redeemed; we, that have -reason, can deserve heaven no
more than these can ; but these do not deserve hell so much
as we have done. Impute not to them their follies that are
unavoidable, nor the sins which they discern not, nor the
evils which they cannot understand ; keep them from all
evil and sad mischances, and make supply of their want of
the defences of reason by the special guard of angels ; and
let thy obedience and thy sufferings be accepted, and thy
intercession prevail for them ; that since they cannot glorify
thee by a free obedience, thou mayest be glorified by thy
free mercies to them ; and for their destitution of good in
this world, let them receive eternal blessings in the world to
come, through thy mercies, O eternal and most blessed
Saviour Jesus. Amen.
356 A PRAYER IN BEHALF OF HERETICS.
II.
A Prayer for Madmen.
Almighty God, whose wisdom is infinite, whose mercy is
eternal, whose tranquillity is essential, and whose goodness
hath no shore ; in judgment remember mercy, and do thou
delight to magnify thy mercy upon them who need it, but
cannot ask it; who are in misery, but feel it not; who do
actions without choice, or choose without discretion and
sober understanding. Pity the evil they suffer, and pardon
the evils that they have done, and impute not unto them the
evils which they rather bear than act; and let not their entry
into this calamity be an exclusion from their future pardon ;
but let this sad calamity and judgment which they bear, be
united to the sufferings of our Lord, and be sanctified by his
intercession, a*nd become an instrument of their peace.
Lord, restore them to their health and understanding ; take
from them all violent passions, and remove all evil objects
far from their eyes and ears : create a clean heart, and renew
a right spirit in them : give them sober thoughts and meek
spirits, contempt of the world, and love of holy things ;
suffer them not to do violence to any man, and let no man
do violence to them : let them be safe under the conduct of
thy providence and the public laws, and be innocent under
the conduct of thy Holy Spirit; that when thou shalt return
and speak peace to thy people, they may rejoice in thy
mercies and salvation. Thou didst, O God, shew mercy to
Nebuchadnezzar, and gavest to him the heart of a man, after
he had sinned, and fallen into the lot of beasts and wildness;
and thy hand is not shortened that thou canst not help ; but
let thy mercies and loving-kindness return upon thy servants
as at first, that thou mayest rejoice in thy mercies and
salvation, because thou hast pleasure in the prosperity of thy
servants. Grant this, Almighty God and Father, for Jesus
Christ's sake, our Lord and dearest Saviour. Amen.
III.
A Prayer in Behalf of Heretics and seduced Persons.
O MOST blessed, most gracious Saviour Jesus, who art the
Way, and the Truth, and the Life ; thou that art a Light to
them that sit in darkness, the Light that lighteneth every
A PRAYER IN BEHALF OF HERETICS. 357
man tliat cometh into the world; preserve thy Church in peace
and truth, in love and holiness, to thy second coming : reduce
every misbeliever to the fold of thy Church ; instruct every
ignorant person in the ways of godly wisdom ; subdue the
pride of man, and bring every understanding to the obedience
of thy sacred law. Let no man's vanity or ignorance divide
the Church, let not any holy truth be sullied with the mixture
of impure and heretical doctrines, nor evil principles dis-
order the beauties of religion and godly living, nor any
doctrines of men be taught as the commandment of God ;
but grant that the truth of God may be publicly maintained,
constantly taught, humbly believed, zealously practised by
all men in their several stations ; that in the Church of God
there be no contention but in giving honour to each other,
and glory to God in all the ways of faith and charity ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
IV.
Bless the ministry of thy holy word in its ordinary dis-
pensation ; grant it may prevail mightily for the convincing
of them that have no faith, for the reproving of the errors of
them whose faith is not pure ; for the confirming them who
are weak in faith ; for the perfecting them who are novices
in faith; open the hearts of all gainsayers, take from them
all their prejudices and all their passions, their secular
interest and confident opinions, that they may humbly and
meekly attend to the voice of God in the mouths of thy
servants, in the pages of Scripture, in the doctrines of the
Spirit ; that they may do nothing against the truth, but for
the truth ; that they may not quench the Spirit, nor despise
prophesying, nor shut their eyes against the light, and their
hearts against the love of God : but grant that in all things
being obedient to the heavenly calling, they may receive the
blessings of truth and peace in this world and in the world
to come, exalting the kingdom, and partaking the glories of
our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
These three last Prayers are to be used upon any of the great
Festivals of the Year; especially Easter-day, Ascension-day, Whit-
sunday, and upon eight days after these Festivals ; or upon Good'
Friday.
358 A FORM OF PRAYER AT THE
Prayers and Psalms to be used by the Minister and Curate
of Souls at the Visitation of the Sick.
In the name of our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
Minister. O God, make speed to save us.
Answer. O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Then recite this Psalm,
REBUKE me not, O Lord, in thine anger : neither correct
me in thy heavy displeasure.
Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am weak: O Lord,
heal me, for my bones are vexed.
My soul is also sore troubled : but, Lord, how long wilt
thou punish me ?
Turn thee, O Lord, and deliver my soul : O save me for
thy mercy's sake.
For in death no man remembereth thee : and who will
give thee thanks in the pit ?
Shall the dust give thanks unto thee ? or shall men
declare thy truth in the grave, in the land where all things
are forgotten ?
My time is in thy hand, O let me not be confounded :
shew thy servant the light of thy countenance, and save me
for thy mercy's sake.
My life is waxen weak with sorrow, and my years are
consumed in mourning.
Mine eye is consumed with very heaviness : and my
strength faileth me because of mine iniquity.
For thine arrows stick fast in me : and thy hand presseth
me sore.
There is no health in my flesh, because of thy displeasure ;
neither is there any rest in my bones, by reason of my
sins.
For my wickednesses are gone over mine head : and are
like a sore burden too heavy for me to bear.
But I will confess my wickedness, and be sorry for my
sin.
VISITATION OF THE SICK. 359
Against thee have I sinned, and done evil in thy sight :
that thoumightest be justified in thy saying, and clear when
thou art judged.
O give me the comfort of thy help again : cast me not
away from thy presence ; and take not thy Holy Spirit from
me.
Be thou my strong rock and a house of defence, that
thou mayest save me : be thou also my guide, and lead me
for thy name's sake.
Into thy hand I commend my spirit: for thou hast
redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of truth.
In God is my health and my glory : he is the rock of my
might ; in God is my trust.
Blessed is the man whom thou choosest and receivest
unto thee : he shall dwell in thy court, and shall be satisfied
with the pleasures of thy house, even of thy holy temple.
O praise our God, ye people, and make the voice of his
praise to be heard : which holdeth our soul in life, and suffer-
eth not our feet to slip.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Or this.
In thee, O Lord, have I put my trust: let me never be
put to confusion : deliver me in thy righteousness.
Lord, let me know mine end, and the number of my
days : that I may be certified how long I have to live.
Behold, thou hast made my days as it were a span long,
and mine age is even as nothing in respect of thee : and
verily, every man living is altogether vanity.
And now, Lord, what is my hope ? truly my hope is even
in thee.
Deliver me from all mine offences : take thy plague away
from me ; I am even consumed by the means of thy heavy
hand.
When thou with rebukes dost chasten man for sin, thou
ruakest his beauty to consume away like as it were a moth
fretting a garment : every man therefore is but vanity.
Hear my prayer, O Lord, and with thine ears consider
my calling : hold not thy peace at my tears.
360 A FORM OF PRAYER AT THE
For I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner : as my
fathers were.
O spare me a little, that I may recover my strength,
before I go hence and be no more seen.
O Lord, let it be thy pleasure to deliver me : make haste,
O Lord, to help me.
O send out thy light and thy truth, that they may lead
me, and bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy dwelling.
Up, Lord, why sleepest thou ? awake, and be not absent
from us for ever: hide not thy face from us, and forget not
our misery and trouble.
For our soul is brought low, even unto the dust : our belly
cleaveth unto the ground.
Arise and help us : and deliver us for thy mercy's sake.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Then may the Minister read John, xi. from the first verse to the forty,
seventh ; or else this short Lesson, Matt. xxv. from verse 1 to the
fourteenth.
Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened unto ten
virgins, which took their lamps, and went to meet the bride-
groom.
And five of them were wise, and five foolish.
The foolish took their lamps, but took no oil with them.
But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
Now while the bridegroom tarried long, all slumbered
and slept.
And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the
bridegroom cometh : go out to meet him.
Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
And the foolish said to the wise, Give us of your oil, for
our lamps are out.
But the wise answered, saying, We fear lest there will
not be enough for us and you : but go ye rather to them that
sell, and buy for yourselves.
And when they went to buy, the bridegroom came : and
they that were ready went in with him to the wedding, and
the gate was shut.
Afterwards came also the other virgins, saying, Lord,
Lord, open to us.
VISITATION OF THE SICK. 361
But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know
you not.
Watch, therefore : for ye know neither the day nor the
hour when the Son of man will come.
After the Lesson, as he sees occasion, let him add some Discourse of bis
own, short and pertinent to the necessities of the Sick Person, ever
being careful that he do him all his assistaaces, and call upon him to
perfect that which can never be perfected but in this world, t. e. his
Repentance.
Immediately after this Exhortation, or if it was done before, or is
better reserved to another time, then immediately after the Lesson
or the Psalm, according to the discretion of him that ministers, and
according to the Circumstances of the Sick Man, let him add these
Prayers.
Let us pray.
I.
A Prayer for Repentance.
O Almighty God and most merciful Father, who delight-
est not in the death of a sinner, but that he be converted
from his sin, and thou be turned from thine anger ; give unto
thy servant a deep contrition for his sins, a perfect hatred of
them, a timely and an entire dereliction of them; grace to
fear thee, and grace to love thee ; powers to serve thee, and
time and grace to finish all the work of God which thy
servant ought to do; that the soul of thy servant, being
washed white in the blood of Jesus, may be justified by thy
mercy, sanctified by thy Spirit, blessed by thy providence,
saved by thine infinite and eternal goodness ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
II.
For Patience and Ease.
O Almighty and most gracious Saviour, who didst suffer
with meekness and patience those severe stripes of thy
Father's wrath which we did deserve, but thou didst feel,
and hast established with mankind a covenant of faith and
patience, a law of sufferings, making the way of the cross to
be the way of heaven : give to thy servant thy grace, that
according to thine excellent example and holy commandment,
he may bear the burden of the Lord with an even and a
362
willing, an obedient and a loving spirit. O let him never
charge thee foolishly, nor murmur secretly, nor make too
much haste ; but, with faith and hope, submit his body and
soul to thy merciful and just dispensation ; that he may not
discompose the duties of his repentance by a new sin, nor
provoke thee to anger by his impatience, nor offend them
who charitably minister to him, nor neglect the doing of any
thing that can be in his power or in his duty to his body or
his soul. O God, be merciful unto thy servant, and press not
him with an unequal load ; but remember that we are but
flesh and vanity, that we are crushed before the moth, and
die in thy displeasure : give him ease and rest, a quiet mind
and a peaceful conscience : make thou all his bed in his
sickness; and deliver him not into the will of his spiritual
enemies : but glorify thy mercies, and make thy goodness
illustrious upon thy servant ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
III.
Against Death and the Fear of it.
O eternal God, who, for the sin of man, didst send death
into the world, and by the resurrection of thy holy Son didst
bring life to all believers ; have mercy upon this thy servant,
whom thou hast smitten with thy rod, and brought into the
valley of tears, and the shadow of death ; O let not thy fierce
anger go beyond a fatherly correction : let this rod be dis-
cipline, not vengeance ; let it kill his sin, but not the man :
but in judgment remember mercy ; take from thy servant all
inordinate fear ; give him a present mind, a hopeful spirit, a
faithful heart, a perfectly repenting conscience, a charitable
and a devout soul. Take from him the fear, and take from
him the sentence of death; preserve his life, and restore his
health, if that be best for him ; for to thy power we submit,
on thy goodness we do depend, by thy wisdom we desire to
be governed, and that thy love should choose for thy servant.
But if thou hast otherwise decreed, O grant to thy servant the
comforts of a holy hope, and the strengths of an unconquer-
able faith ; the constancy of an unmoved patience, and the
meekness of a perfect resignation ; that to him to live may
be Christ, and to die may be gain ; that whether he lives or
,fo may be thine ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
VISITATION OF THE SICK. 363
IV.
For Pardon.
O most gracious and eternal Son of God, who only hast
power to forgive sins, and to rescue erring souls from the
power of sin, and from the wrath of God ; be gracious to thy
servant, who confesses thy justice in his suffering, and begs
to feel thy mercy in his pardon, and thy pity in his ease and
restitution. Contend no longer with the miserable, who
confesses himself guilty : reject him not that begs for remis-
sion of his sins and remission of thine anger ; remember not
the follies of his childhood, nor the vanities of his youth, the
sins of his tongue, nor the sins of his anger ; the sins of
desire, nor the innumerable breaches of charity ; his infinite
omissions of duty, and the inexcusable actions of his choice.
Thou hast glorified thyself in all generations of the world by
giving pardon to the penitent, and ease to the afflicted, com-
fort to the comfortless, and refreshment to the weary ;
behold, O God, the sorrows of thy servant, and remember
his sins no more : behold the passion and the pains which
our blessed Lord suffered for our sins ; and let not the sins
of thy servants cause thee to take another forfeiture, and
produce another and an eternal anger : but spare thy servant
in thine anger ; and remember him in thy mercy, and pity him
in thine infinite compassion, and relieve him with mighty
grace, and deliver him from his sins, and bring him to thy
glory ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
V.
If he be in, or near, the Agonies of Death.
O blessed God, thou Lover of souls and the Saviour of
thy servants, who gavest thy Son to die for us, that we
might live in him ; look with mercy and great compassion
upon the soul of thy servant, for whom the Lord Jesus gave
his precious blood. Now, O God, is that sad period in
which he is to be consigned over to his final sentence; now
is the day of his great expense ; his needs of mercy are great
as his sins, and great as his dangers, and great as all his
enemies ; let him receive the fruit of all his labours, a blessed
return of all his prayers, the grace of thy promises, and the
364 A FORM OF PRAYER AT THE
effect of all the sufferings of the holy Jesus : now, O God,
let him find the end of his hopes, and a just peace in his
conscience, a spiritual communion with Christ, and the
benefit of all his passion, pardon of his sins, and the sweetest
visitations of thy Holy Spirit the Comforter. Now let him
feel the effect of thy mighty power and of thy glorious
victory over sin and all the powers of darkness : let them
have no portion in him; and let thine anger end in comfort
and pardon, in the visitation of angels, and the glorious
appearing of thy Holy Spirit. Now let him feel the truth of
religion, and the substance of the things he hath hoped for ;
the verification of thy promises, and the goodness of God ;
let all the sermons of the Gospel pass into real exhibition of
thy loving-kindness : and let thy servant rejoice in the
portions of the blessed, in the redemption of his soul, in the
communion of saints, in the society of the spirits of just men
made perfect ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Then shall the Minister recommend the soul of the dying man, if it be
departing the body.
I.
O most blessed and most gracious Saviour Jesus, into
thy holy hands we commend the soul of this our brother,
praying thee to defend it from all evil, from the wrath of
God which he hath deserved, from the evil spirits of dark-
ness which are ready to devour her, from the flames of hell
from whence nothing can rescue her but the mercies of God
in our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
II.
Let thy holy angel receive this soul from her prison and
ruinous house of clay, and carry her to the region of loving
and obedient souls in the bosom of Jesus, there with joy and
longing, with the assurance of hope and a peaceful charity,
to expect the resurrection of the just, and the day of thy
righteous judgment. Amen.
III.
O let not the devils accuse this soul before thee, or if
they do, let them not prevail; but interpose thy death
and passion, thy mediation and intercession, between thy
VISITATION OF THE SICK. 365
judgment and this soul, now at her departure and at the day
of judgment ; that, in the terrors of that day, this soul may
stand upright, supported by the arms of thy eternal mercy.
Amen.
IV.
Let not this soul carry along with her the infirmities of
her present state, but be immured with a guard of loving
and blessed spirits to defend her against all the hostilities
and incursions of evil angels. Now she shall see what she
never saw, and hear what she never heard, and know what
was never revealed below ; O grant that she may have aids
that here she never did need, even mighty assistances in
proportion to her new and stranger state, that whatsoever is
in the darkness or in the fire, in the secret regions of wrath,
and the horrible places of torment and fearful expectations,
may not afflict or affright the lamb of thy flock, the price of
thy blood, the child of thy kingdom, and the portion of
thine own inheritance. Amen.
V.
O sweetest Jesu, say unto this soul, 'This day shalt
thou be with me in Paradise ;' say unto this soul, ' Fear
not, for it is my Father's pleasure to give thee a kingdom ;'
let this soul dwell in safe and pleasant regions ; and be
supported with the hope of God, comforted with a holy
conscience, rejoice in a confirmed pardon, be recreated with
the visitation of angels, and walk in white whithersoever the
Lamb shall go. Amen.
VI.
Give unto this decaying, dying body, a blessed and a
glorious resurrection ; to this weary and afflicted, this peni-
tent and redeemed soul, a portion in the blessed sentence of
thy right hand amongst the blessed children of thy Father,
who shall receive the kingdom prepared for them from the
beginning of the world. Amen.
VII.
Remember, O God, the good things which, by thy grace,
and by the aids of thy Holy Spirit, thy servant hath done in
366 VISITATION OF THE SICK.
all his life ; and remember not his evil deeds which, by the
weakness of the flesh, and the temptations of the devil,
and the evil contingencies of this world, have afflicted and
humbled the soul of thy servant : remember thy holy Son
did die for these ; and thy Holy Spirit was the cause of
those; and for whom thou hast given thy Son, and to whom
thou hast given thy Spirit, give thine eternal pardon and thine
eternal glories ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
After the Soul is departed, the Minister may say this Prayer in behalf
of the living Friends and Relatives of the dead.
Almighty God, who governest all things in heaven and
earth with infinite wisdom and infinite mercy, and bringest
good out of evil, comfort out of sorrow, and after a gentle
visitation dost refresh thy children with the light of thy
countenance, with the blessings of thy providence, with the
returns of thy grace, and the comforts of thy Holy Spirit;
have mercy upon this family, and return to them all with thy
loving-kindness, exchanging their present sorrow into the
advantages of holiness and blessing. Be thou now and ever
what thou gloriest in, a Father of the fatherless, a Husband
to the widow, a God of comfort to them that mourn in secret.
Grant that thy servants may not weep as men without hope,
nor murmur at thy dispensation, nor complain of any thing
but themselves, nor desire any thing but that thy will be
done, nor do any thing but what is agreeable to thy holy
word and commandment. And grant that when thou smitest
any of us, it may increase thy fear in us, and when thou doest
good to any of us, in smiting or forbearing, in chastising or
comforting, it may increase thy love in us: and let thy Holy
Spirit so prevail over all our wills and understandings, our
affections and the outward man, our interests and our hopes,
that we may live in this world pleasing to thee, and may go
out of this world with the peace of a holy conscience, and
may have a joyful resurrection in the last day, to a participa-
tion of the glories of God ; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Blessing.
The Lord bless you, and keep you. The Lord make his
face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you. The
PRAYERS AT THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD. 367
Lord lift up the light of his countenance upon you, and give
you peace.
The blessing of God Almighty, the Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, be amongst you, and abide with you, and be
your portion for ever and ever. Amen.
Prayers and Devotions to be used at the Burial of the Dead.
The Minister, before the Corpse entering at the Church-door, may begin
with one or more of these Sentences.
A GOOD name is better than precious ointment : and the day
of death, than the day of one's birth.
It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to
the house of feasting : for that is the end of all men, and the
living will lay it to his heart.
I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord : he that
believeth in me, yea, though he were dead, yet shall he live.
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall not die for
ever.
It is appointed to all men once to die, and after death
comes judgment.
I would not have you to be ignorant concerning them
which are asleep, that we sorrow not even as others without
hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even
so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
After the Corpse is set down in the body of the Church, let Morning orEven-
ing Prayer be read according to the time of the day, with this difference
only : instead of the usual Psalms, read Psalms xxxis. xlix. xc. For
the first Lesson read Job, xiv. or xix. After the first Lesson, read
Psalm Ixxxviii. For the second Lesson read 1 Cor. xv. from verse 12 to
the end. After the second Lesson read Nunc Dimittis.
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace,
according to thy word :
For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people ;
To be a light to lighten the Gentiles, and to be the glory
of thy people Israel.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
368 A FORM OF PRAYER AT THE
After the usual Prayers are done, then the Corpse being carried to the
Grave, the Minister sball read this Lesson.
ECCLESIASTES XU.
Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while
the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou
shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.
While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be
not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain :
In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble,
and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders
cease because they are few, and those that look out of the
windows be darkened ;
And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the
sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the
voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be
brought low ;
Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and
fears shall be in the way, and the almond-tree shall flourish,
and the grashopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail ;
because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go
about the streets :
Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be
broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel
broken at the cistern.
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was ; and the
spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
People. Blessed be God.
The Minister, while they are preparing to inter the Corpse, shall say this
Psalm.
The wicked is driven away in his wickedness : but the
righteous hath hope in his death.
I said in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates
of the grave : I am deprived of the residue of my years.
I said, I shall not see the Lord, even the Lord in the land
of the living : I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants
of the world.
I have set the Lord always before me : because he is at
my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth : my
flesh also shall rest in hope.
BURIAL OF THE DEAD. 369
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell : neither wilt thou
suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness : when
I awake with thy likeness I shall be satisfied.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life : in thy presence is
the fulness of joy, and at thy right hand there is pleasure for
evermore.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, Sac.
When the Corpse is in the Grave the Minister shall say,
Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God to take to
himself the soul of our dear brother here departed; we lay his
body in the ground ; for out of it was it taken ; dust it is,
and unto dust it does return ; but we lay it down in a sure
and certain hope of the resurrection from the grave. For the
Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God : and
the dead in Christ shall rise first; then those, which are alive
and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the
clouds, to meet the Lord in the air : and so shall we be ever
with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these
words.
Let us pray.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father which art in heaven, &c.
I.
O Almighty God, with whom do live the spirits of the
just men made perfect, we give thee humble thanks that thou
hast delivered the soul of thy servant [ a N. N.] from the cala-
mities of this life, putting a period to his sin and to his pains;
O be pleased shortly to fill up the numbers of thine elect,
and hasten thy kingdom ; and to us thy servants grant that
we may die to sin and live to righteousness, living a holy and
a gracious life, peaceable and blessed ; that when we have
Bishop Taylor seems to be of opinion, that to name the deceased adds
solemnity to the service.
VOL. XV. B B
370 A FORM OF PRAYER, &C.
served thee in our generations, we may die the death of the
righteous, leaving a good name and a fair example behind,
and our good works may follow us ; that heing holy in our
lives, we may be blessed in our death, and with this thy servant,
and all other departed in thy love and fear, may lie in the
bosom of our Lord, till, by the trump of God, we shall be
awakened in the resurrection of the just, to reign with thee
in thy kingdom ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
II.
O most blessed Saviour Jesus, who art the resurrection
and the life, and in whose sight the death of thy saints is
precious, look upon us thy servants whose life is vanity, and
our days pass away like a tale that is told, and as the remem-
brance of a passenger that stayeth but a night ; the days
of our pilgimage are few and evil, and we disquiet ourselves
in vain : O look upon us with a gracious eye ; give us thy
Holy Spirit of wisdom and peace to guide us in the ways of
God, that our affections and our conversation being in heaven,
and being weaned from this world, we may die daily, and
every day be doing good ; that laying up a treasure of good
works, we may rejoice in the day of our death, and may be
freed from the terrors of the day of judgment, and the gates
of hell may not prevail against us. O preserve us from that
eternal wrath which shall destroy all thine enemies; and let
our portion be with the charitable and the merciful, on the
right hand of the Father, where thou sittest and reignest
in the glory of God, to eternal ages, world without end.
Amen.
If it be opportune, then here may he added one of the ' Prayers for a
blessed Death,' at the end of Evening Prayer throughout the year ;
ending with the usual Benediction :
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, &c.
A
FORM OF DEVOTION;
TO BE USED AUD SAID IS
THE DAYS OF SORROW AND AFFLICTION
OF
A FAMILY, OR OF PRIVATE PERSONS.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
Our Father, which art in heaven, &c.
Versicle. O God, make speed to save us.
Answer. O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
The Psalm.
HIDE not thy face far from me, O Lord, put not thy servant
away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither
forsake me, O God of my salvation.
my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou nearest not :
and in the night season I am not silent.
But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of
Israel.
Our fathers trusted in thee : they trusted in thee, and thou
didst deliver them.
But I am a worm, and no man : smitten of thee, Lord,
afflicted, tormented, forsaken.
Thou hast filled me with bitterness, and hast made me
drunk with wormwood : thou hast removed my soul far off
from peace, and I have forgotten prosperity.
But, O God, thou art my God, early will I seek thee : be
not thou far from me ; O Lord, O my strength, haste thee
to help me.
1 acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have
372 A FORM OF PRAYER IN THE
I not hid : I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord ;
O do thou forgive the iniquity of my sin.
Thou art my hiding-place, thou shalt preserve me from
trouble : thou shalt compass me about with songs of
deliverance.
Lord, make me to know my end, and the measure of my
days, what it is : that I may know how frail I am.
Behold, thou hast made my days as a handbreadth, and
mine age is nothing before thee: verily every man at his best
state is altogether vanity.
And now, O Lord, what wait I for? Surely my hope is
in thee.
Deliver me from all my transgressions, remove thy stroke
away from me : I am even consumed by the blow of thy
hand.
When thou with rebukes dost chasten man for iniquity,
thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth : surely
every man is vanity.
Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear unto my cry, hold
not thy peace at my tears : for I am a stranger with thee, and
a sojourner, as all my fathers were.
O spare me a little, that I may recover my strength :
before I go hence, and be no more seen.
Let all those that seek thee, rejoice and be glad in thee :
let such as love thy salvation, say continually, The Lord be
magnified.
But I am poor and needy, yet the Lord careth for me :
thou art my help and my deliverer ; make no tarrying, O
my God.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
Then read the second chapter of Ecclesiasticus ; or the sixth chapter of
St. Matthew's Gospel ; or the twelfth chapter to the Romans ; or the fifth
chapter of the second Epistle to the Thessalonians; or the first of Timothy,
the sixth chapter; or Hebrews, the twelfth; or James, the fifth. These
at several times.
After the chapter is read, sit still awhile, and consider of such comforts or
instructions as are in the chapter fitted to your needs.
If this Office be said by a Minister in the company of the afflicted Person,
then he may add such useful and comfortable Discourses as are occasioned
by the chapter, and then say the following Collects.
After meditation or discourse, humbly kneel down and pray.
TIME OF AFFLICTION. 373
I.
An Act of Repentance.
O my God and Father, in vain do we beg to have thy
heavy hand taken from us, so long as the cause remains :
our sins, O God, our sins are so great, so numerous, so into-
lerable, that we must needs with shame hide our face, and
confess we have deserved all the evil that we suffer, and all
that which thou hast threatened. We have, O God, more to
give thee thanks for, than we have to deplore. It is thy in-
finite mercy, that we are yet kept from feeling thy severest
judgments. It is thy mercy that we have our senses and our
understandings, that we have the use of thy word and sacra-
ments, that we have not intolerable pains of body, and un-
sufferable troubles in our mind : it is thy blessing that we
have bread, that we have any friends, that we have the
prayers of thy faithful servants ; that we have faith in thee,
and that we have hope. It is thy infinite mercy, that we are
yet kept from the unsufferable pains of hell, and are per-
mitted to pray to thee, to rely upon thy mercies, to work out
our salvation, and to expect thy loving-kindness in the land
of the living.
II.
All the evils that we suffer, we have deserved, but nothing
of the good have we deserved ; we are less than the least of
all thy mercies, and our sins are greater than the greatest of
all our sufferings. And now, O God, thou who hast so
mercifully dealt with thy servants in taking a less fine of us
than in justice thou mightest have exacted, be pleased also
to proceed in the methods of thy mercy ; and make our pre-
sent sufferings be instrumental of thy glory, of the pardon of
our sins, of the sanctifications of our spirits, of the humilia-
tion of our souls, that, like silver tried in the fire, we may
come forth more pure vessels of honour, pleasing and accept-
able to thee in Jesus Christ.
HI.
An Act of Patience and Resignation.
We know, O God, that thou art infinitely wise and
infinitely gcoi and thou dispasest all the events of thy
374 A FORM OF PRAYER IN THE
creatures to excellent purposes, and delightest to bring good
out of evil. Behold, O God, we are thy servants and thy crea-
tures, do to us as seemeth good in thine eyes ; only give us
patience and a long-suffering spirit, that we may not murmur
secretly, when we complain openly ; that we may not make
haste in the day of our calamity, but with a quiet spirit
expect and wait for the time of our redemption. But make
no long tarrying, O Lord; make haste to help us, O God of
our salvation ; and be pleased to give us a light from heaven,
that, with the eye of faith, we may see beyond the cloud, and
look for those comforts which thou didst prepare for thy ser-
vants that love thee and put their trust in thee, and have laid
up all their hopes in the bosom of God.
IV.
An Act of Hope.
O God, our God, thou hast said unto us, ' I will never
leave you, nor forsake you ;' thou hast often eased our cala-
mities, and taken off thy severe hand, thou hast promised to
be with us in time of need, thou delightest to deliver them
whose confidence is in thy goodness. Thou hast supported
our spirits in the day of our sorrow, and hast given us many
intervals and spaces of refreshment, and renewest thy loving-
kindness day by day: O let us never have our portion
amongst the hopeless and desperate. Let us always pray to
thee, and hope in thee, and in every period of our affliction
let us do some actions of virtue, by which we may please
thee, and be accepted so long as we can pray. Thou hast
commanded us to hope ; and we do hope, that these comforts
shall refresh our souls, that thy mercies will support us under
our afflictions, that thy Spirit shall comfort us in it, and thy
grace and thy glorious providence shall speedily deliver us
from it. Amen, blessed Jesus, Amen.
V.
TJie Petition.
And now, O most merciful Father, give thy servants
admittance to present our complaint before the throne of
grace, and let our petition enter into thy presence : thy arrows
stick fast in us, and thy hand presseth us sore : open thy heart,
TIME OF AFFLICTION. 375
the treasure and spring of mercy, and thence let comforts
and refreshments descend upon thy servants. Put a blessed
period to our sorrows, but first put a stop to our sins ; let
us not sin against thee, when for sin thou art smiting us ;
let us never charge thee foolishly, nor behave ourselves
peevishly towards others, but use all the means we can to
ease their sorrows, to lighten their burdens, to sweeten their
lives, that so we may expect from thy goodness a more plen-
tiful and abundant measure of loving-kindness.
VI.
O Lord, put a bar and stop unto our passions ; make them
to be humble ministers of religion and prudent government,
but never let us suffer any violent transportations in our-
selves, never be provoked to any bitterness, never to be harsh
or cruel towards any, never to speak any thing peevishly and
nndecently, never to put too much upon any temporal
interest; in all things let us behold thy providence, and
reverence thy justice, and adore thy majesty, and feel thy
mercy, and obey thy Spirit; arid if thou shalt still persevere
to smite us, and to try thy servants, let not thy punishing us
ever cause us to sin against thee. Let not our own follies be
our scourges, lest we sin against thee, and lose thy blessing
for ever.
VII.
Be pleased, O God, to add this favour unto thy ser-
vants, that our trouble may not be doubled or increased by
our own infirmities : take from us all troublesome fancies
and too quick apprehensions of our sorrows ; blessed be thy
name, they are finite, and they are temporal sorrows, they
are less than our sins, and they are less than thy mercies.
Give us grace to despise the world and all ite interests and
possessions, that while we set not our affections upon them,
we may not be too much afflicted when we are crossed in
them ; but let our great care be to please thee, our greatest
fears lest we should sin against thee. Let our duty be our
employment, thy providence our portion, thy Spirit our guide,
thy law our rule : that when this cloud is passed over, we
may see the brightness of thy face, and perpetual showers of
grace and mercy, refreshing our sad and weary spirits : so
shall thy servants sing praises to the honour of thy name,
376 A FORM OF PRAYER AGAINST
when thou shalt have saved our souls from death, our eyes
from tears, and our feet from falling: grant these mercies,
O blessed God and Father, for Jesus Christ's sake, our dear-
est Lord and Saviour. Amen.
A private Prayer to be said by or for a Person (mutatis
mutandis) apt to be afflicted with fear of Death or God's
Anger, and the uncertain State of his or her SouL
O eternal God, most gracious Father, in much mercy and
compassion behold me thy servant laden with my sins, encom-
passed with infirmity, assaulted by enemies without, and apt
to be betrayed by my own weaknesses within. If lam cheer-
ful, I am apt to be careless of my duty; if lam sad, I am
timorous and unsafe, too ready to distrust thee, and to sink
under the burden of those calamities which by my sins /
have deserved. O God, I confess, with sorrow and shame,
that I resolve often to give myself entirely to thy service, but
/ am so perpetually beaten with the violent tempests and
storms of passion, that all my hopes and all my fears grow
unactive and useless, and are overcome by them, and sink
under my own evil customs and infirmities, lust, pride, ambi-
tion, anger ; and under this state of infelicity / groan and
labour, and to thee / humbly make my complaint ; for thou
art my hope and my strength, my rock and my might, my
Saviour and defender, my support and my deliverer. O hear
the saddest cries of thy humble and afflicted servant, and give
me ease from my greatest sorrows ; give me a cheerful heart,
and a severe spirit ; a love of thy mercies, and a trembling at
thy judgments ; an infinite desire to please thee, and a great
fear to offend thee ; and though / humbly desire of thy glo-
rious goodness, to secure and promote my eternal interest by
what instruments thou pleasest, yet because thou art my
Father and my merciful God, / beg of thy infinite goodness
to take care of my infirmities, and to pity my weaknesses ;
and make my religion to be to me the pleasantest thing in
the world ; that nothing may tempt me from thee, and prevail
in the days of my weaknesses and disadvantage.
II.
O blessed God, be pleased to give me a perfect repent-
ance for all my sins, and admit me to a full pardon ; and not
SPIRITUAL AFFLICTION. 377
only so, but, if it be thy gracious will, consign this my
pardon by some testimony from heaven, by a holy and an
humble hope, by a strong faith and a cheerful spirit, by joy
in God, and a command over my passions, by meekness and
charity, by forgiving every one that troubles me, and every
one that offends me. O God, my God, give to thy servant
an excellent religion and a devout spirit, and grant that /
may take great pleasure in the service of God, in obedience
to my spiritual superiors, in doing the works of that duty to
which thou hast called me in my present state of life ; and
never suffer me to fall into a despairing or an amazed con-
science, into the evils of a tedious or impatient, a wounded or
an afflicted spirit: but grant that, rejoicing in thee evermore
and delighting in doing my duty, in mortifying my passions,
in loving and serving my dearest relations, / may be pre-
served in thy fear and thy favour, and nothing may be able
to separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus.
Amen.
III.
O my dearest Saviour, take from thy servant all inordinate
fear of death, and give me a great desire after heaven and
heavenly things : and when thou shalt call me from this
world, conduct me by the graces and comforts of thy Holy
Spirit evenly and holily, certainly and cheerfully, to the
regions of hope and joy, that in thy arms / may expect
and long for the day of recompenses and of thy glorious
appearing. O God, hear the prayer and most passionate
desires of thy servant ; and since thou hast commanded us in
the time of need to come with boldness to the throne of
grace, grant that / may be accepted by thy mercies and
loving-kindness, through the merits and intercession of my
Lord, in whom / desire to live, and for whom / will not
refuse to die, our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus; to whom
with thee, O blessed Father and most Holy Spirit, /humbly
give all honour, and thanks, and glory, and love, and ser-
vice ; and desire to do so for ever. Amen.
378 FORM OF THANKSGIVING AFTER HARVEST.
A FORM OF PRAYER OR THANKSGIVING.
The Preface to the following Office.
SINCE it hath pleased God to hear our prayers, and to give
us the blessing we now feel and rejoice in, the blessing of
peace, health, plenty, victory, &c., let us faithfully and de-
voutly give thanks unto God for his great benefit and grace ;
and say,
Psalms Eucharistical, or of Thanksgiving, upon Special Times
of Festivity, to be added to any of the foregoing Offices;
or to be said distinctively.
I.
After a plentiful Harvest.
Our Father, which art in heaven, &c.
O be joyful in God, all ye lands : sing praises unto the
honour of his name, make his praise to be glorious.
O come hither and behold the works of God : how won-
derful he is in his doing towards the children of men.
Thou visitest the earth, and blessest it : thou makest it
very plenteous.
Thou waterest her furrows, thou sendest rain into the
little valleys thereof: thou makest it soft with the drops of
rain, and blessest the increase of it.
Thou crownest the year with thy goodness, and thy
clouds drop fatness.
They shall drop upon the dwellings of the wilderness,
and the little hills shall rejoice on every side.
The folds shall be full of sheep : the valleys also shall
stand so thick with corn that they shall laugh and sing.
Praised be God, which hath not cast out our prayer, nor
turned his mercy from us.
Let us now fear the Lord our God, that giveth rain, both
the former and the latter rain in his season.
He reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
Lord, what is man, that thou hast respect unto him ! or
the son of man, that thou so regardest him !
The eyes of all wait upon thee, O Lord : and thou givest
them their meat in due season.
Thou openest thy hand : and fillest all things living with
plenteousness.
AFTER RECOVERY FROM SICKNESS. 379
The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his
works.
The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, yea,
all such as call upon him faithfully.
He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him : he also
will hear their cry, and will help them.
That our sons may grow up as the young plants : and
that our daughters may be as the polished corners of the
temple.
That our garners may be full and plenteous with all
manner of store : that our sheep may bring forth thousands
and ten thousands in our streets.
That our oxen may be strong to labour : that there be no
decay ; no leading into captivity, and no complaining in our
streets.
Happy are the people that be in such a case: yea, blessed
be the people which hath the Lord for their God.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, Sec.
II.
After Recovery of a City, Family, or single Person, from the
Plague, or any great Sickness.
come hither and hearken, all ye that fear God : and I
will tell you what he hath done for my soul.
1 called unto him with my mouth, and gave him praises
with my tongue : O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and
thou hast healed me.
Thou, Lord, hast brought my soul out of hell : thou hast
kept my life from them that go down to the pit.
O what great troubles and adversities hast thou shewed
me, and yet didst thou turn and refresh me ! yea, and
broughtest me from the deep of the earth again !
Sing praises unto the Lord, O ye saints of his : and give
thanks unto him for the remembrance of his holiness.
For his wrath endureth but the twinkling of an eye, and
in his pleasure is life : heaviness may endure for a night, but
joy cometh in the morning.
Praised be the Lord, daily : even the God which helpeth
us and poureth his benefits upon us.
380 FORM OF THANKSGIVING
He is our God, even the God of whom cometh salvation :
God is the Lord, by whom we escape death.
I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy : for thou hast
considered my trouble, and hast known my soul in adversity.
Thou hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy
but hast set my feet in a large room.
Thou hast turned my heaviness into joy: thou hast put
off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness.
Therefore shall every good man sing of thy praises with-
out ceasing : O my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
III.
After a Victory ', or the prosperous Ending of a War.
Blessed be the Lord my strength: which teacheth my
hands to war, and my fingers to fight.
My hope and my fortress, my castle and deliverer : my
defender in whom I trust, which subdueth my people which
is under me.
When my spirit was in heaviness, thou knewest my path :
in the way wherein I walked, they privily laid a snare forme.
I cried unto the Lord, and said: Thou art my hope and
my portion in the land of the living.
Thou didst send down thine hand from above : thou didst
deliver me and take me out of the great waters, from the
hand of strange children.
Thou hast given victory unto kings : and hast delivered
David thy servant from the peril of the sword.
For I know that the Lord is great : and that our Lord is
above all gods.
Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did he in heaven and
in earth : in the sea, and in all deep places.
The Lord is on my side : I will not fear what man doth
unto me.
The Lord taketh my part with them that help me : there-
fore shall I see my desire upon mine enemies.
It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put any confidence
in man.
It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put any confidence
in princes.
AFTER VICTORY OR WAR. 381
The Lord is my strength and my song : and is become my
salvation.
The voice of joy and health is in the dwellings of the
righteous : the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things
to pass.
The right hand of the Lord hath the pre-eminence: the
right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass.
He maketh wars to cease in all the world : he breaketh
the bow, and snappeth the spear in sunder; and burneth the
chariots in the fire.
Behold how good and joyful a thing it is, for brethren to
dwell together in unity.
It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran
down unto the beard, even unto Aaron's beard, and went
down to the skirts of his clothing.
For there the Lord promised his blessing, and life for
evermore.
The Lord liveth : and blessed be my strong helper, and
praised be the God of my salvation.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
If there be any other occasion, instead of these use Te Deum laudamus, &c.
After each of these Eucharistical Psalms, shall be added as followeth.
Minister. Lift up your hearts.
Answer. We lift them up unto the Lord.
Minister. Let us give thanks unto the Lord our God.
Answer. It is meet and right so to do.
Minister.
It is very meet, right, and our bounden duty, that we
should, at all times, and in all places, give thanks and praise,
honour and adoration, love and duty, to thee, O Lord God,
the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort ; who hast
known our soul in adversity, and delivered us from the evil
we have deserved, and hast given us good things we deserved
not. We confess, O God, that we are less than the least of
all thy mercies ; but thy immense, thy unlimited goodness
and loving-kindness, rejoices in doing us good, in preserving
us from evil, in heaping thy benefits upon us, in giving to us
witness from heaven, in feeding our hearts with food and
382 A PENITENTIAL LITANY.
gladness: in delivering us from our enemies; in snatching
us from the power of the grave : in commanding thy destroy-
ing angel to hurt us not. Holy Jesus, blessed be God.
II.
We are thy servants and thy children ; we are all thine ;
and have no interest but thy service; thou art our God, and
all our hopes are laid up in thee. Thou art gracious when
thou smitest us ; but we cannot express thy infinite sweetness
when thou relievest our necessity, when thou sustainest our
sorrows, when thou dost deliver us from thy wrath, when
thou hearest our prayers, when thou pourest thy benefits
upon us. Ogive unto thy servants thankful hearts, obedient
and loving spirits, carefulness of duty, charity and humility,
zeal for thy glory, submission to thy Divine will and pleasure;
that servingjthee with all our powers, loving thee with all our
faculties, obeying thee in all instances, delighting in thee in
all dispensations, we may be conducted through all varieties
of providence, and defended in all temptations of our enemies,
and relieved in all the necessities of our life, and assisted in
all particulars of duty ; that so we may pass through this
valley of tears in peace and meekness, in faith and charity,
with the confidence of a holy hope, and in the strength of
thy righteous promises, to the fruition of those mercies
which are the portion of willing and obedient souls; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE GREAT PENITENTIAL LITANIES ;
To be said according to the discretion of him that ministers ; especially in
the time of Lent, and upon solemn Fasting-days.
O BLESSED GOD, Father of mercies, who hast sent thy Son
to redeem us from sin and wrath, have mercy upon us, rebel-
lious and perishing children, lost and miserable sinners.
O blessed Saviour Jesus, who wert the price of lost man-
kind, and gavest thyself a sacrifice for our sins, have mercy
upon us, miserable and lost, but sorrowful and returning
sinners.
O blessed Spirit of the Father, who didst come into the
world, to sanctify and to teach, to illuminate and to guide it,
A PENITENTIAL LITANY. 383
have mercy upon us, foolish and ignorant, lost and miserable
sinners.
O most blessed and mysterious Trinity, God the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us, perishing and
miserable sinners.
1. Pardon, O God, the vanities of our childhood, and the
sins of our youth, our backward and dull ignorance, our for-
ward and active malice, our early sins and slow repentances,
our hastiness to all evil, and our unwillingness to all good
things whatsoever.
If thou, Lord, wilt be extreme to mark what is done
amiss, O Lord, who may abide it?
2. O God of mercy, pardon our want of discipline, our
averseness to learn good things, our desires of evil, the first
insinuations of sin, or niorOse delectation in vain thoughts, our
pleasure in evil remembrances, our entertaining little images
of sin, our love of the temptation, our fondness after trifles,
our want of love and want of understanding of the things
of God.
Cast us not away from thy presence, and take not thy
Holy Spirit from us.
3. O God of mercy, pardon the infinite number of our
foolish thoughts and voluptuous desires, our proud imagina-
tions and fantastic pleasures, our secret deliciousness in
what thou hast forbidden, our desires to die, our contempt
and neglect of life, our foolish contrivances and trifling pur-
poses, our ridiculous designs and unreasonable intentions.
Turn thy face from our sins, O Lord, and put out all
our misdeeds.
4. O God of mercy, pardon the infinite omissions of our
duty, our seldom prayers, and frequent wandering of our
head and heart ; our foolish arts to cozen ourselves, and to
cheat our souls of duty and reward; our wicked rejoicings
when we were forced to omit our devotions, and our listless
manner of attending to them ; our dulness in hearing, our
deadness in observing, our excuses and pretences, our weari-
ness of body and tediousness of spirit, our dulness and
sleepiness, our seldom reading and more seldom meditating,
our loss of many opportunities of receiving the holy commu-
nion, our making use of all opportunities of pleasure and
vanity.
384 A PENITENTIAL LITANY.
But there is mercy with thee ; therefore shalt them be
feared.
5. O God of mercy, pardon all the sins of our proud and
prejudicate understandings, our wilful ignorance and volun-
tary neglect of the instruments of salvation; the weakness
and imperfection of our faith, and our trifling notices of
things; our distrust of thee and our confidence in the crea-
tures, our superstitious fancies and foolish opinions, our weak
conjectures and easiness to believe, our suspicions and jealou-
sies of thee, and our wicked sentences and evil reportings
concerning thy actions and thy attributes; our relying upon
dreams, and our not relying upon thy word; our love of
being abused in our persuasions, and our believing doctrines
for interest and passion, and weak inquiries and confident
opinions, our doubtings and trepidations in the day of tempt-
ations, and our unreasonable confidences, boastings, and
presumptions, when we are prosperous, easy, and untempted.
Lord, be merciful to our sins, for they are very many.
6. O God of mercy, pardon the sins of our will ; our vio-
lent prosecutions of pleasure, and our hatings of religion; our
unwillingness to please thee, and our fierceness of desire to
please ourselves ; our unwillingness to submit to thy laws
and to the events of thy providence, our disobedience to re-
velations, to the advices of the wise and the discourses of the
learned, to the voice of God and the lessons of the Spirit,
our unreasonable choice and malicious determinations, our
yieldings to the whispers of the flesh, and our obstinacy
against the motions of illuminated reason.
O give us the comfort of thy help again, and establish
us with thy free Spirit.
7. O God of mercy, pardon the inordination and irregu-
larity of our affections; our anger is hasty and quick, unrea-
sonable and immoderate, a perpetual storm and a perpetual
folly ; our desires are passionate and great, sensual and in-
temperate; we fear the fears of men, and our hopes are of
things that profit not ; we love that which destroys us, and
do not love that by which we can be made alive ; we rejoice
in the ways of death, and our sorrow is not unto amendment
of life ; every sad accident of the world does amaze us, but
we are not afflicted when we lose thy favour, when we do
foolish things, and enter into portions of thy displeasure.
A PENITENTIAL LITANY. 385
Lord, be merciful unto us, for our sins are very great.
8. O God of mercy, pardon the hypocrisy of our lives,
our desires to seem holy, our neglect of being so, our being
satisfied with shadows and outsides, with an unactive faith,
with the faith of devils and the hope of hypocrites, with the
comforts of the presumptuous and the confidence of the
proud : we have rested in outward works, and have not se-
cured the truth of the Spirit ; we confess our sins, and still
commit them ; we pray against them, and yet we love them ;
we call thee Father, and obey thee not ; we say thou art our
Lord, and yet we do not fear thee ; we approach thee with
our lips, and our hearts are far from thee ; we bow our heads
and lift up our hearts and hands against thee : we humble
ourselves in flattery, and mortify our affections with deceit ;
we pretend religion to serve our own worldly ends ; resting
in forms of godliness, but denying the power of it.
O God, be merciful unto us, for our state is very
miserable.
9. O God of mercy, pardon our impatience and immorti-
fication,our secret murmurs and open rebellions; ourtempt-
ings of God, our provocations of thee to anger, our entering
into needless dangers?, the deferring of our repentance, and
the hardening of our faces against thy judgments ; our con-
tempt of thy mercies, and turning thy grace into wanton-
ness, despising thy long-suffering and thy goodness, and
trusting boldly where thou hast given us no ground of hope
or comfort.
O blessed Jesu, that takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us.
10. O God of mercy, pardon the innumerable sins of our
tongue, our vain and common swearings, our bold affirmatives
of what we know to be false or know not to be true, our
crafty and ensnaring talk, our*ecret and injurious whispers,
our backbiting and detraction, our undervaluing our brother
and easily reporting evil, our bragging and vainglorious
words, our laying snares for praise, our flattering some and
reproaching others, our clamorous revilings and uncharitable
chidings, and in whatsoever we have spoken against thee or
against our brother.
O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us.
VOL. xv. c c
386 A PENITENTIAL LITANY.
11. O God of mercy, pardon our abuses of thy sacred
and venerable name, our unworthy usages of ourselves upon
whom thy name is called, our profanation of thy word, our
irreverent using the sacraments, our dishonouring thy houses
of prayer, our curious inquiries into the secrets of God and
the secrets of men, our wilful angering and provoking our
neighbours to cursing, and swearing, and all intemperate
wrath, our unnecessary troubling them and betraying them
to folly and indignation.
O remember not our old sins, but have mercy upon us,
and that speedily.
12. O God of mercy, pardon our abuse of holy times and
holy offices, our neglect of assembling ourselves together,
our vain recreations and foolish employments, the prodigality
of our precious time in idle gaming and useless business, our
being idle servants or cruel masters, false in our trust or
unreasonable in our commands, our peevish neglect of the
customs of the Church, and our schismatical behaviour in the
congregations of the Lord.
Help us, O God of our salvation, and for the glory of
thy name, save thy sinful servants.
13. O God of mercy, pardon all our rebellions against
thee and against thy representatives our lawful superiors ;
our irreverence and disobedience, our murmurs and repinings
against them, our rude words and perverse disputings, our
neglect of their persons and desires, our publication of their
faults and rejoicing in their infirmities, our being ashamed
of their poverty and condition, our boasting of our kindred
and extraction, our secret cursings or open reviling the
ministers of justice, our mocking and scorning old and
aged persons, and whatsoever is irreverent, froward, dis-
obedient, unjust, or uncharitable towards our betters.
O deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's
sake.
14. O God of mercy, pardon all our cruel thoughts, and
provoking words, and injurious actions; cleanse our hands
from violence, and our hearts from blood-guiltiness ; O God,
forgive us our uncharitable treating of ourselves or others,
our unjust wranglings and peevish quarrels, our taking things
and words in an evil sense and to purposes of discord and
dissension, our threatening and keeping men in fears, our
A PENITENTIAL LITANY. 387
not rescuing or not preserving those whom we could and
ought to have preserved, our embittering the spirit of our
neighbour, our unpeaceable dispositions, our tempting and
betraying, our wounding and killing our own souls and the
souls of our brethren, whom we ought to have snatched from
the fire, and, according to our powers, withheld from the
everlasting burning.
O take away our iniquities from us, and remember our
sins no more.
15. O God of mercy, pardon our gluttony and drunken-
ness, the disorders of our diet and the disorders of our pas-
sion, our wanton thoughts and wandering eyes, our impure
desires, and all our actions of uncleanness, our lascivious
dressings and idle consumptions of our time, our making
provisions for the flesh to fulfil the lusts of it, the dishonour-
ings of our body, and the pollutions of our spirit, our making
the members of Christ be the members of a harlot, and de-
filing the temples of the Holy Ghost by unnatural actions
and desires, not to be named, and much less to be enter-
tained, our softness and effeminacy, our sensualities and
studies of the flesh, and all the excesses and irregularities
within that state which thou hast blessed and sanctified :
but we are unclean, we are unclean.
O cleanse our souls from sin ; take away our iniquities,
and thou shalt find none.
15. O God of mercy, pardon our injustices and rapines,
our open invasion and secret underminings of the rights
of others, our greedy desires and fierce pursuances of money,
our love of wealth and our hastiness to be rich, our arts of
unequal bargaining and deceitful words, our unjust lawsuits
and the vexatious prosecutions of just or unjust, our detain-
ing the wages of the hireling and our defalking of his dues ;
our pressing upon the necessities of the poor, and raising
prices for their need ; our hard and oppressive contracts, our
rigours of justice and varieties of injustice, our want of charity
and tenacious retaining our money, our reception or reten-
tion of unjust purchases; our sacrilege and simony, our en-
tering into the fields of the fatherless, wronging the helpless
widow, who is thy care ; our forwardness to run into debt,
and our carelessness to come out of it : our improvident
conduct of our estates and our foolish misperidings, our
388 A PENITENTIAL LITANY.
causing diminution to the goods of others, and the avaricious
increasing of our own.
Wash us thoroughly from our iniquity, and cleanse us
from our sin.
17. O God of mercy, forgive us our breach of promise to
men, and of our holy vows made to thee our God : our wilful
or careless lying, our false accusation or false witnessing, our
perverting righteous judgment by bribery or false informa-
tion, and causing the innocent to suffer ; our leading the
blind out of his way ; our accusing others, and justifying
ourselves, our false excuses and feigned pretences, our cause-
less affirmings and denyings, our jealousies and suspicions,
and all the iniquity of our hearts and tongues.
Hide thy face from our sins, and blot out all our
transgressions.
18. O God of mercy, pardon our envy and our discon-
tented hearts, our ambitions and curiosities, our rejoicings
in the evil of our neighbours, and our repining and displea-
sure at his advancement, our violent and distracting careful-
ness for the things of this world, our affrightinents in every
sad accident, and all our covetous thoughts and degenerous
and unworthy practices.
Lord Jesu, be merciful to us miserable, but penitent
and returning sinners.
O that our head were waters, and our eyes a fountain of
tears, that we might weep day and night, till thou wert recon-
ciled to thy people ! Thy congregation is an assembly of
adulterous and treacherous men.
We have bent our tongues like a bow for lies, but we are
not valiant for the truth upon earth ; we have proceeded
from evil to evil, and we have not known thee.
Every one deceives his neighbour, and weary themselves
to commit iniquity: for these things thou hast visited us in
anger, thou hast fed us with wormwood, and given us water
of gall to drink. Thou hast sent the sword upon us to con-
sume us, and the spirit of division to scatter us abroad.
But in thee, O Lord, is our confidence and our glory ; for
thou dost exercise loving-kindness, judgment, and righteous-
ness in the earth ; for in these things thou dost delight.
O Lord, therefore correct us, but with judgment, not in
thine anger, lest thou bring us to nothing : we pray not
A PENITENTIAL LITANY. 389
against sorrow ; but pray thee to multiply our penitential
sorrows upon us ; that we may truly mourn for our offences
against thee, and may, with great caution, take care we may
no more offend thee, and redeem the time which we have
spent in vanity ; and employ the remaining portion of our
days in the ways of peace and righteousness, of wisdom and
the fear of God ; that when thou shalt send thy angels to
gather the wheat into thy granary, we may be bound up in
the bundle of life, and dwell in the house of God for ever,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ka/ <foi rqv do^av
Tw
TJ T/,
Nuc xa/ asi xai 115 TOII$ aiuvai
ruv
THE
WORTHY COMMUNICANT;
OR,
A DISCOURSE
OF THE
NATURE, EFFECTS, AND BLESSINGS,
CONSEQUENT TO
THE WORTHY RECEIVING OF THE
LORD'S SUPPER,
AND OF ALL THE DUTIES REQUIRED IN ORDER TO
A WORTHY PREPARATION:
TOGETHER WITH
THE CASES OF CONSCIENCE OCCURRING IN THE DUTY OF HIM THAT
MINISTERS, AND OF HIM THAT COMMUNICATES;
AS ALSO
DEVOTIONS FITTED TO EVERY PART OF THE MINISTRATION.
TO THE
MOST ILLUSTRIOUS PRINCESS,
HER ROYAL HIGHNESS
MARY,
PRINCESS OF GREAT BRITAIN, DOWAGER OF ORANGE, &c.
MADAM,
ALTHOUGH none of the subjects of these nations
can, in propriety of speaking, be a stranger to the
royal family, from whom every single person receives
the daily emanations of many blessings ; yet
besides this, there is much in your Royal Highness,
by which your princely person is related to all
amongst us, that are or would be excellent. For
where virtue is in her exaltation, to that excellent
person, all that are or would be thought virtuous,
do address themselves either to be directed or
encouraged, for example 'or for patronage, for the
similitude of affection or likeness of design ; and,
therefore, Madam, although it is too great a con-
fidence in me, something a stranger, to make this
address to so high-born and great a princess ; yet
when I consider that you are the sister of my king,
CCCXC1V EPISTLE DEDICATORY.
and the servant of my God, 1 know there was
nothing to be expected but serenity and sweetness,
gentleness and goodness, royal favours and princely
graces; and, therefore, in such fruitful showers, I
have no cause to fear, that my fleece shall be dry,
when all that is round about it, shall be made irri-
guous with your princely influence. I shall, there-
fore, humbly hope, that your Royal Highness will
first give me pardon, and then accept this humble
oblation from him who is equally your servant, for
your great relations, and for your great excellences :
for I remember with what pleasure I have heard it
told, that your Royal Highness's Court hath been,
in all these late days of sorrow, a sanctuary to the
afflicted, a chapel for the religious, a refectory to
them that were in need, and the great defensative
of all men, and all things, that are excellent ; and
therefore, it is but duty, that, by all the acknow-
ledgments of religion, that honour should be paid
to your Royal Highness, which so eminent virtues
perpetually have deserved. But because you have
long dwelt in the more secret recesses of religion,
and that, for a long time, your devotion hath been
eminent, your obedience to the strictest rules of
religion hath been humble and diligent, even up to
a great example, and that the service of God hath
been your great care and greatest employment ;
EPISTLE DEDICATORY. CCCXCV
your name hath been dear and highly honourable
amongst the sons and daughters of the Church of
England ; and we no more envy to Hungary the
great name of St. Elizabeth, to Scotland the glorious
memory of St. Margaret, to France the triumph of
the piety of St. Genevieve, nor St. Katharine to
Italy, since in your royal person we have so great
an example of our own, one of the family of saints,
a daughter to such a glorious saint and martyr, a
sister to such a king, in the arms of whose justice
and wisdom we lie down in safety, having now
nothing to employ us, but in holiness and comfort
to serve God, and, in peace and mutual charity, to
enjoy the blessings of the government under so
great, so good a king.
But, Royal Madam, I have yet some more per-
sonal ground for the confidence of this address : and
because I have received the great honour of your
reading and using divers of my books, I was readily
invited to hope, that your Royal Highness would
not reject it, if one of them desired, upon a special
title, to kiss your princely hand, and to pay thanks
for the gracious reception of others of the same cog-
nation. The style of it is fit for closets, plain and
useful ; the matter is of the greatest concernment, a
rule for the usage of the greatest solemnity of
religion : for as the eucharist is, by the venerable
CCCXCV1 EPISTLE DEDICATORY.
fathers of the Church, called ' the queen of myste-
ries;' so the worthy communicating in this, is the
most princely conjugation of graces in the whole
rosary of Christian religion ; and, therefore, the
more proportioned and fitted for the handling of so
princely a person, whom the beauty of the body,
and the greatness of birth and excellence of religion,
do equally contend to represent excellent and illus-
trious in the eyes of all the world.
Madam, it is necessary that you be all that, to
which these excellent graces and dispositions do
design you: and to this glorious end, this manual
may, if you please, add some moments ; the effecting
of which is all my design, except only that it is
intended, and I humbly pray that it may be looked
upon, as a testimony of that greatest honour, which
is paid you by the hearts and voices of all the reli-
gious of this Church ; and particularly of,
MADAM,
Your Highness's
Most humble and most devoted Servant,
JEREMY DUNENSIS.
THE
INTRODUCTION.
WHEN St. Joseph and the blessed Virgin-Mother had, for
a time, lost their most holy Son, they sought him in the
villages and the highways, in the retinues of their kindred
and the caravans of the Galilean pilgrims; but there they
found him not. At last, almost despairing, faint and sick
with travel and fear, with desires and tedious expectations,
they came into the temple to pray to God for conduct and
success ; knowing and believing assuredly, that if they could
find God, they should not long miss to find the holy Jesus;
and their faith deceived them not : for they sought God ;
and found him that was God and man, in the midst and
circle of the doctors. But being surprised with trouble and
wonder, they began a little to expostulate w'ith the Divine
child, why he would be absent so long, and leave them (as
it must needs be when he is absent from us), in sorrow
and uncertain thoughts? This question brought forth an
answer, which will be for ever useful to all, that shall inquire
after this holy child : for as they complained of his absence,
so he reproved their ignorance : "How is it that ye have
so fondly looked for me, as if I were used to wander in
unknown paths without skill, and without a guide ? why did
ye inquire after me in highways and village-fields ? Ye
never knew me wander, or lose my way, or abide but where
I ought; why, therefore, did ye not come hither to look for
me 1 Did ye not know that I ought to be in my Father's
house ?" a that is, there where God is worshipped, where he
* So the Syriac interpreter renders the Greek lv <ra7; TOV Harris fiov, 'in the
places of my Father ;' ' In iis quas Patris mei sunt,' so the Arabic version.
'In negotiis Patris me, in my Father's business,' so Castalio, Piscator,
and our English Bibles. But the second reddition is more agreeable with
398 THE INTRODUCTION.
loves to dwell, where he communicates his blessing and
holy influences : there, and there only, we are sure to meet
our dearest Lord.
For thrs reason, the place of our address to God and
holy conversation with him, he is pleased to call * his house,'
that with confidence we may expect to meet him there,
when we go to worship ; and when the solemnities of
religion were confined to the tabernacle, he therefore made
it to be like a house of use and dwelling, that in that figure
he might tell us where his delight and his abode would
be ; and, therefore, God furnished the tabernacle with the
utensils of a prophet's room at least, a table and a candle-
stick; and the table must have dishes and spoons, bowls
and covers, belonging to it : the candlesticks must have
lamps, and the lamps must be continually burning. And
besides this, the house of God must have in it a continual
fire, the fire must not go out by night nor day ; and to this
the prophet alludes : " God hath his fire in Sion, and his
hearth, or furnace, in Jerusalem :" and after all, there must
be meat in his house too. And as this was done by the
sacrifices of old, so by the Lord's supper, in the New Testa-
ment. So that now it is easy to understand the place and
the reason of Christ's abode ; even in his Father's house,
there where his Father dwells; and loves to meet his
servants ; there we are sure to find the Lord. For as God
descended and came into the tabernacle invested with a
cloud, so Christ comes to meet us, clothed with a mystery :
he hath a house below as well as above ; b here is his dwell-
ing, and here are his provisions ; here is his fire, and here
his meat ; hither God sends his Son, and here his Son
manifests himself; the Church and the holy table of the
Lord, the assemblies of saints, and the devotions of his
people ; the word and the sacrament, the oblation of bread
the words of the Greek, and the first is more consonant to the use of that phrase
in the New Testament. So John, xix. 27. St. John received the mother of our
Lord, ii; TO. TSia,, 'recepit earn in domum suam ;' so Bezaand our English translation:
' he took her to bis own house.' And thus St. Chrysostom uses the same phrase,
Serm. 52. in Genes. Tlov uToXxvnis rav S/ea/av j aux I-9-a Sri o<xav ay alrat ETjX^siV
<rufi@it!vy, v riii vou ^if-roTov rou Ixvrev aurat a,ttiyxn \ ' Whither do you drive the
just man 1 Do you not k now, that wherever he sets his foot, he is within his
Father's house or territory V
b O Tarpeie Pater, qui templa secundam Incolis a coelo sedem.
THE INTRODUCTION. 399
and wine, and the offering of ourselves, the consecration and
the communion, are the things of God, and of Jesus Christ ;
and he that is employed in these, is there where God loves
to be, and where Christ is to be found ; in the employments
in which God delights, in the ministries of his own choice,
in the work of the Gospel, and the methods of grace, in
the economy of heaven, and the dispensations of eternal
happiness.
And now, that we may know where to find him, we must
be sure to look after him ; he hath told us where he would
be, behind what pillar, and under what cloud, and covered
with what veil, and conveyed by what ministry, and present
in what sacrament ; and we must not look for him in the
highways of ambition and pride, of wealth and sensual
pleasures ; these things are not found in the house of his
Father, neither may they come near his dwelling. But if we
seek for Christ, we shall find him in the methods of virtue,
and the paths of God's commandments; in the houses of
prayer, and the offices of religion ; in the persons of the
poor, and the retirements of an afflicted soul : we shall find
him in holy reading and pious meditation ; in our penitential
sorrows, and in the time of trouble ; in pulpits, and upon
altars ; in the word, and in the sacraments : if we come
hither as we ought, we are sure to find our Beloved, him
whom our soul longeth after.
Sure enough Christ is here ; but he is not here in every
manner, and, therefore, is not to be found by every inquirer,
nor touched by every hand, nor received by all coiners, nor
entertained by every guest. He that means to take the air,
must not use his fingers, but his mouth ; and he that receives
Christ, must have a proper, that is, a spiritual instrument, a
purified heart, consecrated lips, and a hallowed mouth, a
tongue that speaks no evil, and a hand that ministers to no
injustice, and to no uncleanness : for a disproportionate
instrument is an indecency, and makes the effect impossible
both in nature and morality. Can a man bind a thought
with chains, or carry imaginations in the palm of his hand ?
Can the beauty of the peacock's train, or the ostrich-plume,
be delicious to the palate and the throat? Does the hand
intermeddle with the joys of the heart? Or darkness that
hides the naked, make him warm ? Does the body live as
400 THE INTRODUCTION.
does the spirit ? Or can the body of Christ be like to com-
mon food ? Indeed the sun shines upon the good and bad ;
and the vines give wine to the drunkard as well as to the
sober man : pirates have fair winds and a calm sea, at the
same time when the just and peaceful merchantman hath
them. But although the things of this world are common
to good and bad, yet sacraments and spiritual joys, the food
of the soul, and the blessing of Christ, are the peculiar right
of saints ; and the rites of our religion are to be handled by
the measures of religion, and the things of God by the rules
of the Spirit : and the sacraments are mysteries, and to be
handled by mystic persons, and to be received by saints ;
and, therefore, whoever will partake of God's secrets, must
first look into his own ; he must pare off whatsoever is amiss,
and not without holiness approach to the holiest of all holies,
nor eat of this sacrifice with a defiled head, nor come to this
feast without a nuptial garment, nor take this remedy without
a just preparative. For though, in the first motions of our
spiritual life, Christ comes alone and offers his grace, and
enlivens us by his Spirit, and makes us begin to live, because
he is good, not because we are, yet this great mysterious
feast, and magazine of grace and glorious mercies, is for
those only that are worthy ; for such only, who, by their
co-operation with the grace of God, are fellow- workers with
God in the laboratories of salvation. The wrestler that
Clemens of Alexandria tells us of, addressing himself to his
contention, and espying the statue of Jupiter Pisaeus, prayed
aloud : " If all things, O Jupiter, are rightly prepared on my
part, if I have done all that I could do, then do me justice,
and give me the victory." And this is a breviate of our
case : " He that runneth in races," saith the apostle, " he
that contends for mastery, is temperate in all things ;" and
this at least must he be that comes to find Christ in these
mysteries ; he must be prepared by the rules and method of
the sanctuary : there is very much to be done on his part ;
there is a heap of duties, there is a state of excellence,
there are preparations solemn and less solemn, ordinary and
extraordinary, which must be premised before we can receive
c Ei waura (trrtu) a Ziu, SiavTwf ftei vgos rot iyutx jra.e-trx.'ua.efi.a.t,
THE 4NTRODITTION. 401
the mysterious blessings, which are here not only consigned,
but collated and promoted, confirmed and perfected.
The holy communion, or supper of the Lord, is the most
sacred, mysterious, and useful conjugation of secret and
holy things and duties in the religion. It is not easy to be
understood ; it is not lightly to be received : it is not much
opened in the writings of the New Testament, but still left
in its mysterious nature : it is too much untwisted and nicely
handled by the writings of the doctors, and by them made
more mysterious : and like a doctrine of philosophy, made
intricate by explications, and difficult by the aperture and
dissolution of distinctions. So we sometimes espy a bright
cloud formed into an irregular figure ; when it is observed
by unskilful and fantastic travellers, it looks like a centaur to
some, and as a castle to others : some tell that they saw an
army with banners, and it signifies war ; but another, wiser
than this fellow, says, it looks for all the world like a flock
of sheep, and foretells plenty ; and all the while it is nothing
but a shining cloud, by its own mobility, and the activity of
a wind cast into a contingent and inartificial shape. So it is
in this great mystery of our religion, in which some espy
strange things which God intended not, and others see not
what God hath plainly told : some call that part of it a
mystery which is none : and others think all of it nothing
but a mere ceremony and a sign : some say it signifies, and
some say it effects : some say it is a sacrifice, and others call
it a sacrament : some schools of learning make it the instru-
ment of grace in the hand of God : others say that it is God
himself in that instrument of grace : some call it venerable,
and others say, as the vain men in the prophet, that " the
table of the Lord is contemptible :" some come to it with
their sins on their head, and Bothers with their sins in their
mouth: some come to be cured, some to be quickened:
some to be nourished, and others to be made alive : some,
out of fear and reverence, take it but seldom ; others, out of
devotion, take it frequently : some receive it as a means to
procure great graces and blessings, others as an eucharist,
and an office of thanksgiving for what they have received :
some call it an act of obedience merely, others account it an
excellent devotion, and the exercising of the virtue of
religion : some take it to strengthen their faith, others to
VOL. xv. D D
402 THE INTRODUCTION.
beget it, and yet many affirm that it does neither, but sup-
poses faith before hand as a disposition ; faith in all its
degrees, according to the degree of grace whither the com-
municant is arrived : some affirm the elements are to be
blessed by prayers of the bishop or other minister ; others
say, it is only by the mystical words, the words of insti-
tution : and when it is blessed, some believe it to be the
natural body of Christ : others to be nothing of that, but
the blessings of Christ, his word and his Spirit, his passion
in representment, and his grace in real exhibition : and all
these men have something of reason for what they pretend ;
and yet the words of Scripture from whence they pretend,
are not so many as are the several pretensions.
My purpose is not to dispute, but to persuade; not to
confute any one, but to instruct those that need, not to
make a noise, but to excite devotion ; not to enter into
curious, but material inquiries, and to gather together into
a union all those several portions of truth, and differing
apprehensions of mysteriousness and various methods and
rules of preparation, and seemingly opposed doctrines, by
which even good men stand at distance, and are afraid of
each other. For since all societies of Christians pretend to
the greatest esteem of this, above all the rites or external
parts and ministries of religion, it cannot be otherwise but
that they will all speak honourable things of it , and suppose
holy things to be in it, and great blessings, one way or
other, to come by it; and it is contemptible only among
the profane and the atheistical. All the innumerable dif-
ferences which are in the discourses and consequent prac-
tices relating to it, proceed from some common truths, and
universal notions, and mysterious or inexplicable words,
and tend all to reverential thoughts, and pious treatment
of these rites and holy offices ; and, therefore, it will not be
impossible to find honey or wholesome dews upon all this
variety of plants; and the differing opinions, and several
understandings of this mystery, which (it maybe) no human
understanding can comprehend, will serve to excellent
purposes of the Spirit ; if, like men of differing interest,
they can be reconciled in one communion, at least the ends
and designs of them all can be conjoined in the design and
ligatures of the same reverence, and piety, and devotion.
THE INTRODUCTION. 403
My purpose, therefore, is to discourse of the nature,
excellences, uses, anil intention of the holy sacrament of the
Lord's supper, the blessings and fruits of the sacrament,
all the advantages of a worthy communion, the public and
the private, the personal and the ecclesiastical, that we
may understand what it is that we go about, and how it is
to be treated. I shall account also concerning all the duties
of preparation, ordinary and extraordinary, riiore and less
solemn ; of the rules and manners of deportment in the
receiving; the gesture and the offering, the measures and
instances of our duty, our comport and conversation in and
after it ; together with the cases of conscience that shall
occur under these titles respectively, relating to the particular
matters.
It matters not where we begin ; for if I describe the
excellences of this sacrament, I find it engages us upon
matters of duty, and inquiries practical : if I describe our
duty, it plainly signifies the greatness and excellence of tho
mystery : the very notion is practical, and the practice is
information ; we cannot discourse of the secret, but by de-
scribing our duty ; and we cannot draw all the lines of cfuty,
but so much duty must needs open a cabinet of mysteries.
If we understand what we are about, we cannot choose
but be invested with fear and reverence : and if we look in
with fear and reverence, it cannot be but we shall under-
stand many secrets. But because the natural order of
theology is by faith to build up good life, by a rectified un-
derstanding to regulate the will and the affections, I shall
use no other method, but first discourse of the excellent
mystery, and then of the duty of the communicant, direct and
collateral.
THE
WORTHY COMMUNICANT,
$c. Sjc.
CHAPTER I.
OF THE NATURE, EXCELLENCES, USES, AND INTENTION, OF
THE HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE LORD'S SUPPER.
SECTION I.
Of the several Apprehensions of Men concerning it.
WHEN our blessed Lord was to nail the hand-writing of
ordinances to his cross, he was pleased to retain two cere-
monies, baptism and the holy supper ; that Christians may
first wash, and then eat ; first be made clean, and then eat
of the supper of the Lamb : and it cannot be imagined but
that this so signal and peculiar retention of two ceremonies
is of great purpose and remarkable virtues. The matter
is evident in the instance of baptism : and as the mystery is
of the foundation of religion, so the virtue of it is inserted
into our creed, and we all " believe one baptism for the re-
mission of our sins ;" and yet the action is external, the very
mystery is by a ceremony, the allusion is bodily, the element
is water, the minister a sinful man, and the effect is produced
out of the sacrament in many persons, and in many instances,
as well as in it : and yet that it is effected also by it and with
it, in the conjunction with due dispositions of him that is to
be baptized, we are plainly taught by Christ's apostles, a and
the symbols of the Church.
But concerning the other sacrament, there are more
divisions and thoughts of heart. For it is never expressly
Acts, ii. 38.
THE NATURE AND EXCELLENCES, &C. 405
joined with a word of promise ; and where mention is made
of it in the Gospels, it is named only as a duty and a com-
mandment, and not as a grace or treasure of holy blessings ;
we are bidden to do it, but promised nothing for a reward ; it
is commanded to us, but we are not invited to obedience by
consideration of any consequent blessing ; and when we do
it, so many holy things are required of us, which as they are
fit to be done, even when we do not receive the blessed
sacrament, so they effect salvation to us by virtue of their 1
proper and proportioned promises in the virtue of Christ's
death, however apprehended and understood.
Upon this account, some say that we receive nothing in
the blessed eucharist, but we commemorate many blessed
things which we have received ; that it is affirmed in no
Scripture, that in this mystery we are to call to mind the
death of Christ ; but because we have it already in our mind,
we must also have it in our hearts, and publish it in our con-
fessions and sacramental representment, and therefore it is
not the memory, but the commemoration of Christ's death ;
that as the anniversary sacrifices in the law were " a com-
memoration of sins every year," 6 not a calling them to mind,
but a confession of their guilt, and of our deserved punish-
ment ; so this sacrament is a representation of Christ's death
by such symbolical actions as himself graciously hath ap-
pointed : but then, excepting that to do too is an act of
obedience, it exercises no other virtue, it is an act of no other
grace, it is the instrument of no other good ; it is neither
virtue nor gain, grace nor profit. And whereas it is said to
confirm our faith, this also is said to be unreasonable ; for
this being our own work, cannot be the means of a Divine
grace ; not naturally, because it is not of the same kind, and
faith is no more the natural effect of this obedience, than
chastity can be the product of Christian fortitude ; not by
Divine appointment, because we find no such order, no
promise, no intimation of any such event ; and although the
thing itself, indeed, shall have what reward God please
to apportion to it as it is obedience, yet of itself it hath no
other worthiness ; it is not so much as an argument of per-
suasion; for the pouring forth of wine can no more prove
b Heb. x. 3. ' Aycifivtiffti a,//ut^nuv uttr luixurif.
406 THE NATURE AND EXCELLENCES
or make faith that Christ's blood was poured forth for us,
than the drinking the wine can effect this persuasion in us,
that we naturally, though under a veil, drink the natural
blood of Christ ; which the angels gathered as it run into
golden phials, and Christ multiplied to a miracle, like the
loaves and fishes in the Gospel. But because nothing that
naturally remains the same in all things as it was before ; can
do any thing that it could not do before ; the bread and
wine, which have no natural change, can effect none : and
therefore we are not to look for an egg where there is
nothing but order ; and a blessing where is nothing but an
action ; and a real effect where there is nothing but an
analogy, a sacrament, a mystical representment, and some-
thing fit to signify, and many things past, but nothing that
is to come. This is the sense and discourse of some persons
that call for an express word, or a manifest reason, to the
contrary, or else resolve that their belief shall be as unactive
as the Scriptures are silent in the effects of this mystery.
Only these men will allow the sacraments to be " marks of
Christianity ; symbols of mutual charity ; testimonies of a
thankful mind to God ; allegorical admonitions of Christian
mortification, and spiritual alimony ; symbols of grace con-
ferred before the sacrament, and rites instituted to stir up
faith byway of object and representation ;" that is, occasion-
ally and morally, but neither by any divine or physical, by
natural or supernatural power, by the work done, or by the
Divine institution. This, indeed, is something, but very
much too little.
But others go as far on the other hand, and affirm that,
in the blessed sacrament, we receive the body and blood
of Christ ; we chew his flesh, we drink his blood : " For his
flesh is meat indeed, his blood is drink indeed :" and this is
the manna which came down from heaven ; our bodies are
nourished, our souls united to Christ : and the sacrament is
the infallible instrument of pardon to all persons that do not
maliciously hinder it : and it produces all its effects by virtue
of the sacrament itself so appointed, and that the dispositions
of the communicants are only for removing obstacles and
impediments,- but effect nothing; the sumption of the
mysteries does all in a capable subject, as in infants who do
nothing, in penitents who take away what can hinder : for it
OF THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 407
is nothing but Christ himself; the body that died upon the
cross, is broken in the hand of him that ministers, and by the
teeth of him that communicates: and when God gives us his
Son in this divine and glorious manner, with heaps of
miracles to verify heaps of blessings, how shall not he with
him gi\5$ us all things else ? They who teach this doctrine,
call the holy sacrament " the host ; the unbloody sacrifice ;
the flesh of God ; the body of Christ ; God himself; the
mass ; the sacrament of the altar." I cannot say that this is
too much, but that these things are not true; and although
all that is here said, that is of any material benefit and real
blessing, is true, yet the blessing is not so conferred, it is not
so produced.
A third sort of Christians speak indefinitely and glori-
ously of this Divine mystery ; they speak enough, but they
cannot tell what ; they publish great and glorious effects, but
such which they gather by similitude and analogy, such
which they desire, but cannot prove ; which indeed they
feel, but know not whence they do derive them : they are
blessings which come in company of the sacraments, but are
not always to be imputed to them ; they confound spiritual
senses with mystical expressions, and expound mysteries to
natural significations ; that is, they mean well, but do not
always understand that part of Christian philosophy which
explicates the secret nature of this Divine sacrament. - And
the effect of it is this, that they sometimes put too great con-
fidence in the mystery ; and look for impresses which they
find not ; and are sometimes troubled that their experience
does not answer to their sermons, and meet with scruples
instead of comforts, and doubts instead of rest, and anxiety
of mind in the place of a serene and peaceful conscience.
But these men, both in their right and in their wrong, enu-
merate many glories of the holy sacrament, which they
usually signify in these excellent appellatives, calling it, c
" The supper of the Lord ; the bread of elect souls, and the
wine of angels ; the Lord's body ; the new testament, and
the chalice of benediction; spiritual food ; the great supper;
c \ti<rovyia,, autaQis, fivirrfifiiov S-i7av, h^ov^y'ici, desiderata, St~ XKI 9-uovoiof
#J'f, Swgay t^ir^iov, "Sagon Uj/TJiXav, 'upt^mv, pvniirii, $o%ri, Xargs/'a, fiXay/a, ii/%agiffr!x,
T&XETX TsXenav, hostiu hostiarum, mvsterium mysteriorum, ftvffrayu'yia ,
Dominicum.
408 THE NATURE AND EXCELLENCES, &C.
the divinest and archisyrnbolical feast ; the banquet of the
Church ; the celestial dinner ; the spiritual, the sacred, the
mystical, the formidable, the rational table ; the supersub-
stantial bread ; the bread of God ; the bread of life ; the
Lord's mystery ; the great mystery of salvation ; the Lord's
sacrament ; the sacrament of piety ; the sign of unity ; the
contesseration of the Christian communion ; the Divine grace ;
the Divine making grace ; the holy thing ; the desirable ; the
communication of good ; the perfection and consummation
of a Christian ; the holy particles ; the gracious symbols ;
the holy gifts ; the sacrifice of commemoration ; the intel-
lectual and mystical good ; the hereditary donative of the
New Testament; the sacrament of the Lord's body; the
sacrament of the chalice ; the paschal oblation ; the Christian
passport ; the mystery of perfection ; the great oblation ;
the worship of God ; the life of souls ; the sacrament of our
price and our redemption:" and some few others, much to
the same purposes : all which are of great and useful signifi-
cation ; and if the explications and consequent propositions
were as justifiable, as the titles themselves are sober and
useful, they would be apt only for edification, and to minister
to the spirit of devotion. That, therefore, is to be the design
of the present meditations, to represent the true, and proper,
and mysterious nature of this Divine nutriment of our souls ;
to account what are the blessings of God reacheth forth to us
in the mysteries, and what returns of duty he expects from
all to whom he gives his most holy Son.
I shall only here add the names and appellatives which
the Scripture gives to these mysteries, and place it as a part
of the foundation of the following doctrines : it is, by the
Spirit of God, called, d '-' The bread that is broken ; the cup
of blessing ; the breaking of "bread ; the body and blood
of the Lord ; the communication of his body ; and the com-
munication of his blood ; the feast of charity or love ; the
Lord's table, and the supper of the Lord." Whatsoever is
consequent to these titles we can safely own, and our faith
may dwell securely ; and our devotion, like a pure flame,
with these may feed, as with the spices and gums upon the
altar of incense.
d A.ydxn, t Pet. ii. 13. 1 Cor. xi. 20, 29 ; x. 16. Jude, 12. Acts, vi. 2.
WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE, &C. 409
SECTION II.
What it is, which we receive in the Holy Sacrament.
IT is strange, that Christians should pertinaciously insist
upon carnal significations and natural effects in sacraments
and mysteries, when our blessed Lord hath given us a suf-
ficient light to conduct and secure us from such misap-
prehensions. "The flesh profiteth nothing: the words
which I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life ;"
that is, the flesh is corruption, and its senses are ministers
of death : and this one word alone was perpetually sufficient
for Christ's disciples. For when, upon occasion of the
gross understanding of their Master's words by the men of
Capernaum, they had been once clearly taught that the
meaning of all these words are wholly spiritual ; they rested
there, and inquired no further : insomuch that when Christ,
at the institution of the supper, affirmed of the bread and
wine, ' That they were his body and his blood,' they were
not at all offended, as being sufficiently before instructed in
the nature of that mystery. And besides this, they saw
enough to tell them what they ate was not the natural body
of their Lord : this was the body which himself did or might
eat with his body : one body did eat, and the other was
eaten ; both of them were his body, but after a diverse
manner. For the case is briefly this :
We have two lives, a a natural and a spiritual ; and both
must have bread for their support and maintenance, in pro-
portion to their needs and to their capacities : and as it
would be an intolerable charity to give nothing but spiritual
nutriment to a hungry body, and pour diagrams and wise
propositions into an empty, stomach ; so it would be as
useless and impertinent to feed the soul with wheat or flesh,
unless that were the conveyance of a spiritual delicacy.
a Duplex vita, duplicem poscit panem. S. Aug. Oportuit autem, non
solum primitias nostrse naturae in participadonem venire melioris, sed omnes
quotquot velint homines et secunda nativitate nasci, et nutriri cibo novo, et
Luic nativitati accommodate, atque ita praevenire mensuram perfectionis.
Damasc. de Fide. Orthod. 1. c. iv. 14.
Et quoniam spirituals est Adam, oportuit nativiUituiu sjurituoleiii e>e,
similiter et cibum. Id. ibid.
410 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
In the holy sacrament of the eucharist, the body of Christ,
according to the proper signification of a human body is
not at all, but in a sense differing from the proper and
natural body : that is, in a sense more agreeing to sacra-
ments; so St. Jerome expressly, 5 " Of the sacrifice which is
wonderfully done in the commemoration of Christ, we may
eat ; but of that sacrifice which Christ offered on the altar,
the cross, by itself, or in its own nature, no man may eat."
" For it is his flesh, which is under the form of bread,
and his blood, which is in the form and taste of wine : for
the flesh is the sacrament of flesh, and blood is the sacra-
ment of blood : for by flesh and blood that is invisible,
spiritual, intelligible, the visible and tangible body of our
Lord Jesus Christ is consigned, full of the grace of all
virtues, and of Divine majesty;" so St. Austin. "For,
therefore, ye are not to eat that body which you see, nor to
drink that blood which my crucifiers shall pour out : it is the
same, and not the same ; the same invisibly, but not the
same visibly. For until the world be finished, the Lord is
above, but the truth of the Lord is with us. The body in
which he rose again must be in one place, but the truth of it
is every where diffused." For there is one truth of the body
in the mystery, and another truth simply and without mystery.
It is truly Christ's body, both in the sacrament and out of it ;
but in the sacrament it is not the natural truth, but the
spiritual and the mystical. d
" And therefore it was that our blessed Saviour, to them
who apprehended him, to promise his natural body and blood
for our meat and drink, spake of his ascension into heaven,
that we might learn to look from heaven to receive the food
of our souls, heavenly and spiritual nourishment ; " said St.
Athanasius. e " For this is the letter which, in the New
Testament, kills him who understands not spiritually what is
spoken to him; under the signification of meat and flesh, and
blood and drink;" so Origen. f "For this bread does not
go into the body, (for to how many might his body suffice
b In Levit et Habetur de Consecrat. dist. ii. secundum se.
c Habet. de Consecrat. dist. ii. Epist. ad Iren.
d Vide eund. in Joban. tract. 1.
c In Tract, verb. Quicunque dixerit verbum in Filiuni hominis.
' In Levit. c. x. bom. 7.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 411
for meat?) but the bread of eternal life supports the sub-
stance of our spirit; and, therefore, it is not touched by the
body nor seen with the eyes, but by faith it is seen and
touched;" so St. Ambrose. g "And all this whole mystery
hath in it neither carnal sense nor carnal consequence ; " saith
St. Chrysostom.' 1 " But to believe in Christ is to eat the
bread ; and, therefore, why do you prepare your teeth and
stomach ? Believe him, and you have eaten him : " they are
the words of St. Austin. For faith is that ' intellectual
mouth,' as St. Basil 1 calls it, which is within the man, by
which he takes in nourishment.
But what need we to draw this water from the lesser
cisterns ? We see this truth reflected from the spring itself,
the fountains of our blessed Saviour: "I am the bread of
life ; he that cometh unto me shall not hunger, and he that
believeth on me shall not thirst:" and again, " He that eats
my flesh, hath life abiding in him, and I will raise him up at
the last day." 1 The plain consequent of which words is
this, That, therefore, this eating and drinking of Christ's
flesh and blood, can only be done by the ministries of life and
of the Spirit, which is opposed to nature, and flesh, and
death. And when we consider, that he who is not a spiritual
and a holy person does not feed upon Christ, who brings
life eternal to them that feed on him, it is apparent that
our manducation must be spiritual, and, therefore, so must
the food ; and, consequently, it cannot be natural flesh,
however altered in circumstances and visibilities, and impos-
sible or incredible changes. For it is not in this spiritual
food, as it was in manna, of which our fathers did eat, and
died; but whosoever eats this Divine nutriment, shall never
die." 1 The sacraments, indeed, and symbols, the exterior
part and ministries, may be t taken unto condemnation, but
the food itself never. For an unworthy person cannot feed
on this food, because here to eat Christ's flesh is to do our
8 De Sacram. lib. v. c. 4. et in Luc. lib. v. c. 8.
h In Johan. vi. horn 47, tract. 26, in Joban.
' 'Srofta vanrov j'vBav rou unS^aTou.
1 John, vi. ;5.~>, .')i-o(j.
111 Res ipsa, cujus siicramentum est, omni homini ad vitam, nulli ad exitium,
quicunque ejus partieeps fuerit. S. Aug. tract, xvi. in Jolu de Resur. Car,
c. 37.
412 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
duty, and to be established in our title to the possession of
the eternal promises. For so " Christ disposed the way of
salvation, not by flesh, but by the Spirit," saith Tertullian ;
that is, according to his own exposition, Christ is to be
desired for life, and to be devoured by hearing, to be chewed
by the understanding, and to be digested by faith ; and all
this is the method and economy of heaven, which whosoever
uses and abides in it, hath life abiding in him. He that in
this world does any other way look for Christ, shall never
find him ; and, therefore, " if men say, Lo, here is Christ, or
lo, there he is in the desert, or he is sv raptiois, in the cupboards
[or pantries, where bread or fish is laid], believe it not:"
Christ's body is in heaven, and it is not upon earth : "The
heavens must contain him till the time of restitution of all
things ; " and " so long as we are present in the body, we are
absent from the Lord.""
In the meantime, we can taste and see that the Lord is
gracious, that he is sweet : but Christ is so to be tasted as he
is to be seen, and no otherwise ; but here we walk by faith,
and not by sight ; and here ako we live by faith, and not by
mere or only bread, but from that word which proceedeth out
from God ; that as meat is to the body, so is Christ to the
soul, the food of the soul, by which the souls of the just do
live. He is the bread which came down from heaven ; the
bread which was born at Bethlehem ; the house of bread was
given to us, to be the food of our souls for ever.
The meaning of which mysterious and sacramental ex-
pressions, when they are reduced to easy and intelligible
significations, is plainly this : By Christ we live and move
and have our spiritual being in the life of grace, and in the
hopes of glory. He took our life, that we might partake of
his ; he gave his life for us, that he might give life to us : he
is the author and finisher of our faith, the beginning arid
perfection of our spiritual life. Every good thought we
think, we have it from him ; every good word we speak, we
speak it by his Spirit ; "for no man can say that ' Jesus is
n Annon av^^u-rotfityia,^. Hoc mysterium pronunciat [Nestorius] et irreli-
giose fidelium mentes in sensus adulterines detrudit, ac humanis cogitationibus
aggreditur, qus sola pura et in exquisita fide accipiuntur. S. Cyril, lib. ad
Euopbium Anathem. xi.
Quod esca est carni,Iioc animae fides. S. Cypr. id. de Ccena Dom.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 4J3
the Lord,' but by the Holy Ghost:" and all our prayers are
by the aids and communications of the Spirit of Christ, ' who
helpeth our infirmities,' and ' by unutterable groans,' and in-
expressible representment of most passionate desires, ' maketh
intercession for us.' In fine, all the principles and parts, all
the actions and progressions of our spiritual life, are deriva-
tions from the Son of God, by whom we are born and
nourished up to life eternal.
2. Christ being the food of our souls, he is pleased to
signify this food to us by such symbols and similitudes as
his present state could furnish us \vithal. p He had nothing
about him but flesh and blood, which are like to meat and
drink ; and, therefore, what he calls himself, saying, " I am
the bread of life," he afterwards calls "his flesh and his
blood," saying, " My flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is
drink indeed ;" that is, that you may perceive me to be indeed
the food of your souls, see, here is meat and drink for you,
my flesh and my blood ; so to represent himself in a way
that was nearest to our capacity, and in a more intelligible
manner, not further from a mystery, but nearer to our manner
of understanding ; and yet so involved in figure, q that it is
never to be drawn nearer than a mystery, till it comes to
experience, and spiritual relish and perception. But because
we are not in darkness, but within the fringes and circles of
a bright cloud, let us search as far into it as we are guided
by the light of God, and where we are forbidden by the
thicker part of the cloud, step back and worship.
3. For we have yet one further degree of charity and
manifestation of this mystery. The flesh of Christ is his
word ; the blood of Christ is his Spirit ; and by believing in
his word, and being assisted and conducted by his Spirit, we
are nourished up to life ; and so Christ is our food, so he
becomes life unto our souls.
Thus St. Clemens of Alexandria and Tertullian affirm the
Church, in their days, r to have understood this mystery,
P "A-vavra. T^ITKI TOI; avroTs i% fa.^.s'rtt. Arist. DH 1 ? apud Arabes et
Hebraeos significat panem et corpus.
1 Ka^KTig 01 liuy^a.^oi \i aurea irtvocxi TJJV trxiav yt>ti(Qi>ufiv xxi Ton a,\^6tta,i Tut
Xg&iftdriuv. 5. Chrysost.
r Pedag. i. lib. de Resur. Car. O.VTX tivcti TO, pv/*a.r<z xctl ri>u; Aoyav? nurtu xeu
TW ffd^ita,, KO.} rauJfAaEuseb. lib. iii. Eccles. Theol. M. S. Pro. 9. 5.
414 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
saying, " The word of God is called flesh and blood :" for so
the Eternal Wisdom of the Father calls " to every simple soul
that wanteth understanding, Come, eat of the bread, and
drink of the wine which I have mingled :" and that we may
know what is this bread and wine, he adds, " forsake the
foolish and live, and go in the way of understanding." Our
life is wisdom ; our food is understanding. The rabbins 8
have an observation, that whenever mention is made in the
Book of the Proverbs of eating and drinking, there is meant
nothing but wisdom and the law ; and when the doctors,
using the words of Scripture, say, " Come and eat flesh, in
which there is much fatness," they would be understood to
say, " Come and hear wisdom, and learn the fear of God,
in which there is great nourishment and advantage to our
souls." Thus ' wisdom' is called ' water,' and * understand-
ing;' 'bread,' by the son of Sirach ;* "With the bread
of understanding shall she feed him, and give him the water
of wisdom to drink." It is by the prophet Isaiah" called
" water and wine ;" arid the desires of righteousness are
called "hunger and thirst" by our blessed Saviour, in his
sermon on the niount. x And in pursuance of this mysteri-
ous truth we find that God, y in his anger, threatens a
" famine of hearing the words of the Lord :" when we want
God's word, we die with hunger, we want that bread on
which our souls do feed. It was an excellent commentary
which the Jewish doctors make upon those words of the
prophet, 55 " With joy shall ye draw waters from the wells of
salvation ;" that is, "from the choicest or wisest of the just
men," saith Rabbi Jonathan ; R from the chief ministers of
religion, the heads of the people, and the rulers of the
congregation ; because they preach the word of God ; they
open the wells of salvation, from the fountains of our
Saviour, giving drink and refreshment to all the people.
Thus the prophet Jeremiah b expresses his spiritual joy, and
the sense of this mystery : " Thy words were found and I
did eat them, and thy word was unto me the joy and
* Moreh Nevoch. lib. i. c. 30. * Ecclus. xv. 3.
" Isaiah, Iv. 1, 2. * Matt. v. 6.
y Amos, viii. 11. z Isaiah, xii, 3.
* A selectis justorum, a capitibus et primariis ccetus.
b Cap. xv. 16.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 415
rejoicing of my heart ; for I am called by tliy name, O Lord
God of hosts :" the same with that of our blessed Saviour,
" My words are spirit, and they are life," they give life and
comfort, they relish our souls, and feed them up to immor-
tality.
As the body or flesh of Christ is his word, so the blood
of Christ is his Spirit in real effect and signification. For
as the body without blood is a dead and lifeless trunk, so is
the word of God without the Spirit, a dead and ineffective
letter : and this mystery we are taught in that incomparable
epistle to the Hebrews : c for ' by the blood of Christ' we are
sanctified ; and yet that which sanctifies us is the Spirit of
grace, and both these are one : for so saith the apostle ;
" the blood of Christ was offered up for us, for the purifi-
cation of our consciences from dead works ;" but this offer-
ing was made ' through the eternal Spirit ;' and, therefore, he
is equally guilty, and does the same impiety, he who does
" despite to the Spirit of grace, and he who accounts the
blood of the covenant an unholy thing ;" d for by this Spirit
and by this blood we are sanctified ; by ' this Spirit,' and by
the ' blood of the everlasting covenant,' e Jesus Christ does
perfect him in every good work, so that these are the same
ministry of salvation, and but one and the same economy of
God. Thus St. Peter affirms, that by the ' precious blood
of Christ/ we are redeemed from our vain conversation, and
it is every where affirmed, that we are ' purified and cleansed
by the blood of Christ,' and yet these are the express effects
of his Spirit : for ' by the Spirit we mortify the deeds of the
body,' and we ' are justified and sanctified in the name of
our Lord Jesus by the Spirit of our God.' By which ex-
pressions we are taught to distinguish the natural blood of
Christ from the spiritual.; the blood that he gave for us,
from the blood which he gives to us: that was indeed by
the Spirit ; but was not the same thing, but this is the Spirit
of grace, and the Spirit of wisdom. And, therefore, 'as our
fathers were made to drink in one spirit, when they drank of
the water of the rock,' so we also partake of the Spirit when
we drink of Christ's blood, which came from the spiritual
rock when it was smitten : for thus according to the doctrine
c Heb. ix. 14. d x. 29. e xiii. 20.
416 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
of St. John, ' the water, and the blood, and the Spirit, aro
one' and the same glorious purposes.
As it was with our fathers in the beginning, so it is now
with us, and so it ever shall be, world without end : for they
fed upon Christ, that is, they believed in Christ, they ex-
pected his day, they lived upon his promises, they lived by
faith in him : and the same meat and drink is set upon our
tables : and more than all this, as Christ is the Lamb slain
from the beginning of the world, so he shall be the food of
our souls in heaven, where they " who are accounted worthy
shall sit down and be feasted in the eternal supper of the
Lamb;" concerning which blessedness, our blessed Saviour
saith/ " Blessed is he that eateth bread in the kingdom of
God :" for he hath appointed to his chosen ones, ' to eat
and drink at his table in his kingdom :' plainly teaching us,
that by eating and drinking Christ, is meant in this world to
live the life of the Spirit, and in the other world it is to live
the life of glory : here we feed upon duty, and there we feed
upon reward : our wine is here mingled with water and with
myrrh, there it is mere and unmixed : but still it is called
meat and drink, and still is meant grace and glory, the fruits
of the Spirit and the joy of the Spirit ; that is, by Christ
we here live a spiritual life, and hereafter shall live a life
eternal. 8
Thus are sensible things the sacrament and representa-
tion of the spiritual and eternal, 11 and spiritual things are the
fulfillings of the sensible.' But the consequent of these
things is this : that since Christ always was, is, and shall be,
the food of the faithful, and is that bread which came down
f Luke, xiv. 15.
( Oi SE 6tov TifMavrif aX9-;vov divxevrl,
Zurit x^ti^ayofinfovir aluvo; ^poini, tturai
OixavTi; jra.^a^iumi, opa; \<>&r<Xia, xtjvrev,
Aaivvftivai yi-uxv* agret d-r ovytiov dfrt^otvro;.
Sibyl. Erythr. Orac. Luke, xxii. 30.
b Ea forma qua semper carnalia in figuram spiritualium antecedunt. Tertul.
de Baplis.
1 T T xt.m^u/Aa.'ra, TUV airSuruv' <ra ya/> <p,<yi7v -ty*/Ja>.v IfTi rgiQqs $t>%txii;.
rgiQirai yag ^A;>i avaXji^s/ <rui xa*.uv xa.} tr^ei^ii <rtai xareftapei-rvv. Phil. Al.
In ratione sacrorum, par est animae et corporis causa, nam plerumque, quae
non possunt circa animam fieri, fiunt circa corpus. Servius in illud Virgilii
' vittasque resolvit,' etlib. iv. 512. ' In sacris quae exbiberi nonpoterunt, simu-
labantur et erant pro veris.'
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 417
from heaven : since we eat him here and shall eat him there,
our eating both here and there is spiritual: only the word of
teaching shall be changed into the word of glorification, and
our faith into charity, and, all the way, our souls live a new
life by Christ, of which eating and drinking is the symbol
and the sacrament. And this is not done to make this
mystery obscure, but intelligible and easy. For so the pains
of hell are expressed by fire, which to our flesh is most
painful, and the joys of God, by that which brings us greatest
pleasure, by meat and drink, and the growth in grace, by
the natural instruments of nutrition, and the work of the
soul, by the ministries of the body, and the graces of God,
by the blessings of nature: for these we know, and we know
nothing else ; and but by phantasms and ideas of what we see
and feel, we understand nothing at all.
Now this is so far from being a diminution of the
glorious mystery of our communion, that the changing all
into spirituality is the greatest increase of blessing in the
world : and when he gives us his body and his blood, he does
not fill our stomachs with good things : for of whatsoever
goes in thither, it is affirmed by the apostle, that " God will
destroy both it and them ;" but our hearts are to be re-
plenished, and by receiving his Spirit we receive the best
thing that God gives : not his lifeless body, but his flesh
with life in it ; that is, his doctrine and his Spirit to imprint
it, so to beget a living faith, and a lively hope, that we may
live, and live for ever.
4. St. John, k having thus explicated this mystery in
general, of our eating the flesh and drinking the blood of
Christ, added nothing in particular concerning any sacra-
ments, these being but particular instances of the general
mystery and communion with Christ. But what is the
advantage we receive by the sacraments, besides that which
we get by the other and distinct ministries of faith, I thus
account in general.
The word and the Spirit are the flesh and the blood of
Christ, that is the ground of all. Now, because there are
two great sermons of the Gospel, which are the sum total
and abbreviature of the whole word of God, the great
k John, vi.
VOL. XV. E K
418 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
messages of the Word incarnate, Christ was pleased to invest
these two words with two sacraments, and assist those two
sacraments, as he did the whole word of God, with the
presence of his Spirit, that in them we might do more sig-
nally and solemnly what was in the ordinary ministrations
done plainly and without extraordinary regards.
" Believe and repent," is the word in baptism, and there
solemnly consigned : and here it is that by faith we feed on
Christ : for faith as it is opposed to works, that is, the new
covenant of faith as it is opposed to the old covenant of
works, is the covenant of repentance: repentance is expressly
included in the new covenant, but was not in the old : but
by faith in Christ we are admitted to the pardon of our sins,
if we repent and forsake them utterly. Now this is the
word of faith ; and this is that which is called the flesh or
body of Christ, for this is that which the soul feeds on, this
is that by which the just do live : and when, by the opera-
tion of the Holy Spirit, the waters are reformed to a Divine
nature or efficacy, the baptized are made clean, they are
sanctified and presented pure and spotless unto God. This
mystery 1 St. Austin rightly understood when he affirmed,
that " we are made partakers of the body and blood of Christ,
when we are in baptism incorporated into his body ;" " we
are baptized in the passion of our Lord ;" so Tertullian,
to the same sense with that of St. Paul, '* we are buried
with him by baptism into his death :" that is, by baptism
are conveyed to us all the effects of Christ's death : the flesh
and blood of Christ crucified are, in baptism, reached to us
by the hand of God, by his Holy Spirit, and received by the
hand of man, the ministry of a holy faith. So that it can,
without difficulty, be understood that as in receiving the
word, and the Spirit illuminating us in our first conversion,
we do truly feed on the flesh and drink the blood of Christ,
who is the bread that came down from heaven ; so we do it
also, and do it much more in baptism, because in this, be-
sides all that was before, there was superadded a rite of
God's appointment. The difference is only this, that out of
1 Ad infantes apud Bed am.
m Tingimur in passione Domini Tertul. lib. de Bapt.
v, S. Cyril, vocat baptismum, Catech. xi.
IN THR HOLY SACRAMENT. 419
the sacrament, the Spirit operates with the word in the
ministry of man ; in baptism, the Spirit operates with the
word in the ministry of God. For here God is the preacher,
the sacrament is God's sign, and by it he ministers life to us
by the flesh and blood of his Son, that is, by the death of
Christ into which we are baptized.
And in the same Divine method the word and the Spirit
are ministered to us in the sacrament of the Lord's supper.
For as in baptism, so here also there is a word proper to the
ministry. " So often as ye eat this bread, and drink this
cup, ye declare the Lord's death till he come." This, indeed,
is a word of comfort. ' Christ died for our sins;' that is, our
repentance which was consigned in baptism, shall be to pur-
pose ; we shall be washed white and clean in the blood of
the sacrificed Lamb." This is ' verbum visibile ;' the same
word read to the eye and to the ear. Here the word of God
is made our food, in a manner so near to our understanding,
that our tongues and palates feel the metaphor and the
sacramental signification : here faith is in triumph and
exaltation : but as in all the other ministries evangelical,
we eat Christ by faith, here we have faith also by eating
Christ : thus eating and drinking is faith, it is faith in mys-
tery, and faith in ceremony : it is faith in act, and faith in
habit : it is exercised, and it is advanced : and, therefore, it
is certain that here we eat the flesh and drink the blood of
Christ, with much eminence and advantage.
The sum is this. Christ's body, his flesh and his blood,
are, therefore, called our meat and our drink, because by his
incarnation and manifestation in the flesh he became life
unto us : so that it is mysterious, indeed, in the expression,
but very proper and intelligible in the event, to say that we
eat his flesh and drink his blood, since by these it is that we
have and preserve life. -But because what Christ began in
his incarnation, he finished in his body on the cross, and all
the whole progression of mysteries in his body was still an
operatory of life and spiritual being to us, the sacrament of
the Lord's supper being a commemoration and exhibition of
this death, which was the consummation of our redemption
n St. Aug. torn. vi. cont Faustum, lib. xix. c. 19; et torn. ix. in Erang.
Joban. tract. 80.
420 WHAT IT IS WE RECEIVE
by his body and blood, does contain in it a visible word, the
word in symbol and visibility, and special manifestation.
Consonant to which doctrine, the fathers, by an elegant ex-
pression, called the blessed sacrament, ' the extension of the
incarnation.*
So that here are two things highly to be remarked:
1 . That by whatsoever way Christ is taken out of the
sacrament, by the same he is taken in the sacrament : and by
some ways here more than there.
2. That the eating and drinking the consecrated symbols
is but the body and lesser part of the sacrament : the life and
the spirit is believing greatly, and doing all the actions of
that believing, direct and consequent. So that there are in
this, two manducations, the sacramental and the spiritual:
that does but declare and exercise this ; and of the sacra-
mental manducation, as it is alone, as it is a ceremony, as it
does only consign or express the internal, it is true to affirm
that it is only an act of obedience : but all the blessings and
conjugations of joy, which come to a worthy communicant,
proceed from that spiritual eating of Christ, which, as it is
done out of the sacrament very well, so in it and with it
much better. For here being, as in baptism, a double signi-
ficatory of the Spirit, a word and a sign of his own appoint-
ment, it is certain he will join in this ministration. Here we
have bread and driuk, flesh and blood, the word and the
Spirit, Christ in all his effects and most gracious com-
munications.
This is the general account of the nature and purpose of
this great mystery. Christians are spiritual men, faith is
their mouth, and wisdom is their food, and believing is man-
ducation, and Christ is their life, and truth is the air they
breathe, and their bread is the word of God, and God's Spirit
is their drink, and righteousness is their robe, and God's laws
are their light, and the apostles are their salt, and Christ is
to them all in all, for we must put on Christ, and we must
eat Christ, and we must drink Christ : we must have him
within us, and we must be in him : he is our vine, and we are
his branches : he is a door, and by him we must enter : he is
our shepherd, and we his sheep : ' Deus meus et omnia, he
is our God, and he is all things to us :' that is, plainly, he is
our Redeemer, and he is our Lord : he is our Saviour and our
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 421
teacher: by his word and by his Spirit he brings us to God,
and to felicities eternal, and that is the sum of all. For
greater things than these we can neither receive nor expect:
but these things are not consequent to the reception of the
natural body of Christ, which is now in heaven; but of his
word and of his Spirit, which are, therefore, indeed his body
and his blood, because by these we feed on him to life
eternal. Now these are, indeed, conveyed to us by the
several ministries of the Gospel, but especially in the sacra-
ments, where the word is preached and consigned, and the
Spirit is the teacher, and the feeder, and makes the table
full, and the cup to overflow with blessing.
SECTION III.
That in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper there are repre-
sented and exhibited many great Blessings, vpon the special
account of that sacred Ministry, proved in general.
IN explicating the nature of this Divine mystery in general,
as I have manifested the nature, and operations, and the whole
ministry to be spiritual, and that not the natural body and
blood of Christ is received by the mouth, but the word and
the Spirit of Christ, by faith and a spiritual hand, and, upon
this account, have discovered their mistake, who think the
secret lies in the outside, and suppose we tear the natural
flesh of Christ with our mouths : so I have, by consequent,
explicated the secret which others, indefinitely and by con-
jecture and zeal, do spea.k of, and know not what to say, but
resolve to speak things great enough. It remains now that I
consider for the satisfaction of those that speak things too
contemptible of these holy mysteries ; who say, ' it is nothing
but a commemoration of Christ's death, an act of obedience,
a ceremony of memorial, but of no spiritual effect, and of
no proper advantage to the soul of the receiver.' Against
this, besides the preceding discourse convincing their fancy
of weakness and derogation, the consideration of the proper
excellences of this mystery, in its own separate nature, will
422 MANY GREAT BLESSINGS
be very useful. For now we are to consider how his natural
body enters into this economy and dispensation.
For the understanding of which we are to consider, that
Christ, besides his spiritual body and blood, did also give us
his natural, and we receive that by the means of this. For
this he gave us but once, then when upon the cross he was
broken for our sins ; this body could die but once, and it
could be but at one place at once, and heaven was the place
appointed for it, and at once all was sufficiently effected
by it, which was designed in the counsel of God. For by
the virtue of that death, Christ is become the author of life
unto us and of salvation ; he is our Lord and our lawgiver ;
by it he received all power in heaven and in earth, and by it
he reconciled his Father to the world, and in virtue of that
he intercedes for us in heaven, and sends his Spirit upon
earth, and feeds our souls by his word ; he instructs us to
wisdom, and admits us to repentance, and gives us pardon,
and, by means of his own appointment, nourishes us up by
holiness to life eternal.
This body being carried from us into heaven, cannot be
touched or tasted by us on earth ; but yet Christ left to us
symbols and sacraments of this natural body ; not to be, or
to convey that natural body to us, but to do more and better
for us; to convey all the blessings and graces procured for
us by the breaking of that body, and the effusion of that
blood : which blessings, being spiritual, are therefore called
his body spiritually, because procured by that body which
died for us; and are therefore called our food, because by
them we live a new life is the Spirit, and Christ is our bread
and our life, a because by him, after this manner, we are
nourished up to life eternal. That is, plainly thus : Therefore
we eat Christ's spiritual body, because he hath given us his
natural body to be broken, and his natural blood to be shed,
for the remission of our sins, and for the obtaining the grace
and acceptability of repentance. For by this gift and by
this death he hath obtained this favour from God, that by
faith in him and repentance from dead works, by repentance
towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, we may be
saved.
To this sense of the mystery are those excellent words of
John, vi. 51.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 423
the apostle : b "He bare our sins upon his own body on the
tree, that he might deliver us from the present evil world,
and sanctify and purge us from all pollution of flesh and
spirit; that he might destroy the works of the devil ; that he
might redeem us from all iniquity ; that he might purchase to
himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works ; and that
we, being dead unto sin, might live unto righteousness."
"Totum Christian! nominis et pondus et fructus mors
Christi; c All that we are, or do, or have, is produced
and effected by the death of Christ."
Now, because our life depends upon this death, the mi-
nistry of this life must relate to the ministry of this death,
and we have nothing to glory in but in the cross of Christ :
the word preached is nothing but Jesus Christ crucified :
and the sacraments are the most eminent way of declaring
this word: for ' by baptism we are buried into his death,'
and by the Lord's supper we are partakers of his death : we
communicate with the Lord Jesus as he is crucified ; d but
now since all belong to this, that word and that mystery that
is highest and nearest in this relation, is the principal and
chief of all the rest; and that the sacrament of the Lord's
supper is so, is evident beyond all necessity of inquiry, it
being instituted in the vespers of the passion, it being the
sacrament of the passion, a sensible representation of the
breaking Christ's body, of the effusion of Christ's blood;
it being by Christ himself entitled the passion, and the
symbols invested with the names of his broken body, and
his blood poured forth, and the whole ministry being a great
declaration of this death of Christ, and commanded to be
continued until his second coming. Certainly by all these
it appears, that this sacrament is the great ministry of life
and salvation : here is the publication of the great word of
salvation, here is set .forth most illustriously the body and
blood of Christ, the food of our souls ; much more clearly
than in baptism, much more effectually than in simple enun-
b Rom. v. 10. Col. i. 21, 22. Tit. ii. 12. Heb. ii. 14. Heb. ix. 1 Pet.
i. 18 ; ii. 24.
c Tertul. lib. iii. c. 8, cont. Marcion.
d Figura est ergo praecipiens, passione Domini esse communicandum, et
suaviter atque utiliter recondendum in memoria, quod pro uobis c.iro ejus cruci-
fixa et vulnerata sit S. Aug. de Doctr. Christ, lib. iii.
424 MANY GREAT BLESSINGS
ciation, or preaching and declaration by words : for this
preaching is?, in infants and strangers to Christ, to produce
faith; but this sacramental enunciation is the declaration
and confession of it by men in Christ; a glorying in it, giving
praise for it, a declaring it to be done, and owned, and ac-
cepted, and prevailing.
The consequent of these things is this, that if any mys-
tery, rite, or sacrament, be effective of any spiritual blessings,
then this is much more, 6 as having the prerogative and illus-
trious principality above every thing else in its own kind, or
of any other kind in exterior or interior religion. I name
them both, because as in baptism the water alone does one
thing, but the inward co-operation with the outward oblation
does save us, yet to baptism the Scriptures attribute the
effect, so it is in the sacred solemnity : the external act is,
indeed, nothing but obedience, and of itself only declares
Christ's death in rite and ceremony; yet the worthy commu-
nicating of it does, indeed, make us feed upon Christ, and
unites him to the soul, and makes us to become one spirit, ac-
cording to the words of St. Ambrose ; f "Ideo in similitudinem
qnidein accipis sacramentum, sed verae naturae gratiam virtu-
temque consequeris; Thou receivest the sacrament as the
similitude of Christ's body, but thou shalt receive the grace
and .the virtue of the true nature."
1 shall not enter into so useless a discourse, as to inquire
whether the sacraments confer grace by their own excellence
and power, with which they are endued from above, because
they who affirm they do, require so much duty on our parts,
as they also do who attribute the effect to our moral disposi-
tion : but neither one nor the other say true : for neither the
external act, nor the internal grace and morality, does effect
our pardon and salvation; but the Spirit of God, who blesses
the symbols, and assists the duty, makes them holy, and this
* Et tu qui accipis panem Divinae ejus substantial, in illo participas ali-
munto. S. Ambros. lib. Ixvi. de Sacr. Hie umbra, Lie imago, illic veritas: umbra
in lege, imago in evangelic, veritas in coelestibus Idem de Offic. lib. iv. c. 48.
Si quis vero transire potuerit ab hac umbra, venial ad imaginem rerum, et videat
adventum Christi in carne factutn, videat eum pontificem, offerentem quidem et
nunc patri hostias, et postmudum oblaturum, etintelligat haec omnia imagines esse
spiritualium rerum, et corporalibus officiis ccelestia designari. Orig. in 1'sal.
x.\.\ viii. Vide eund. horn. vii. in Levit. et Epiphanium in Ancborata.
1 De Sacrain. lib. vi.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 425
acceptable: only they that attribute the efficacy to the mi-
nistration of the sacrament, choose to magnify the immediate
work of man, rather than the immediate work of God, and
prefer the external, at least in glorious appellations, before
the internal ; and they that deny efficacy to the external
work, and wholly attribute the blessing and grace to the
moral co-operation, make too open a way for despisers to
neglect the Divine institution, and to lay aside or lightly
esteem the sacraments of the Church. It is in the sacraments
as it is in the word preached, in which not the sound, or the
letters, or syllables, that is, not the material part, but the
formal, the sense and signification, prepare the mind of the
hearer to receive the impresses of the Holy Spirit of God,
without which all preaching and all sacraments are inef-
fectual : so does the internal and formal part, the significa-
tion and sense of the sacrament, dispose the spirit of the
receiver the rather to admit and entertain the grace of the
Spirit of God there consigned, and there exhibited, and there
collated. But neither the outward nor the inward part does
effect it, neither the sacrament nor the moral disposition;
only the Spirit operates by the sacrament, and the commu-
nicant receives it by his moral dispositions, by the hand of
faith. And what have we to do to inquire into the philo-
sophy of sacraments? these things do not work by the
methods of nature: but here the effect is imputed to this
cause, and yet can be produced without this cause, because
this cause is but a sign in the hand of God, by which he tells
the soul when he is willing to work.
Thus baptism was the instrument and sign in the hands of
God to confer the Holy Spirit upon believers, but the Holy
Ghost sometimes comes like lightning, and will not stay the
period of usual expectation. For when Cornelius had heard
St. Peter preach, he re'ceived the Holy Ghost ; and as some-
times the Holy Ghost was given because they had been bap-
tized, now he and his company were to be baptized because
they had received the Holy Ghost. And it is no good argu-
ment to say, the graces of God are given to believers out of
the sacrament, ergo, not by or in the sacrament; but rather
thus, if God's grace overflows sometimes, and goes without
his own instruments, much more shall he give it in the use
426 MAN* GREAT BLESSINGS
of them: if God gives pardon without the sacrament, then
rather also with the sacrament. For supposing the sacraments,
in their design and institution, to be nothing hut signs and
ceremonies, yet they cannot hinder the work of God: and,
therefore, holiness in the reception of them will do more
than holiness alone : for God does nothing in vain ; the sa-
craments do something in the hand of God, at least, they are
God's proper and accustomed time of grace ; they are his
seasons, and our opportunity ; when the angel stirs the pool,
when the Spirit moves upon the waters, then there is a minis-
try healing.
For consider we the nature of a sacrament in general,
and then pass on to a particular enumeration of the most
excellent blessings of this. When God appointed the bow g
in the clouds to be a sacrament, and the memorial of a pro-
mise, he made it our comfort, but his own sign : " I will
remember my covenant between me and the earth, and the
waters shall be no more a flood to destroy all flesh." This
is but a token of the covenant ; and yet, at the appearing of
it, God had thoughts of truth and mercy to mankind ; " The
bow shall be in the cloud, and I will look upon it, that I may
remember the everlasting covenant between me and every
creature." 11 Thus when Elisha 1 threw the wood into the
waters of Jordan, * sacramentum ligni, the sacrament of
the wood,' Tertullian k calls it, that chip made the iron swim,
not by any natural or infused power, but that was the sacra-
ment or sign, at which the Divine power then passed on to
effect an emanation. When Elisha talked with the king of
Israel about the war with Syria, he commanded him to smite
upon the ground, and he smote thrice, and stayed. This
was ' sacramentum victoria, the sacrament of his future
victory:' for the man of God was wroth with him, and said, 1
"Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then thou
hadst smitten Syria, until thou hadst consumed it ; whereas
now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice." In which it is
remarkable, that though it was not that smiting that bent
the Syrians, but the ground ; yet God would effect the
beating of the Syrians by the proportion of that sacramental
smiting. The sacraments are God's signs, the opportunities
8 Gen. ix. 15. h Verse 16. ' 2 Kings, vi. 6. k Advers. Judaeos.
1 2 Kings, xiii. 18, 19.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 427
of grace and action. " Be baptized, and wash away thy
sins," said Ananias'" to Saul: and, therefore, it is called " the
laver of regeneration, and of the renewing of the Holy Ghost;""
that is, in that sacrament, and at that corporal ablution, the
work of the Spirit is done. For although it is not that
washing of itself, yet God does so do it at that ablution,
which is but the similitude of Christ's death, that is, the
sacrament and symbolical representation of it, that to that
very similitude a very glorious effect is imputed; " for if we
have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we
shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection." For the
mystery is this; by immersion in baptism, and emersion, we
are configured to Christ's burial, and to his resurrection:
that is the outward part; to which if we add the inward,
which is there intended, and is expressed by the apostle p in
the following words : " knowing that our old man is crucified
with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that
henceforth we should not serve sin :" that is our spiritual
death, which answers to our configuration with the death of
Christ in baptism : " that like as Christ was raised up from
the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should
walk in newness of life:" q there is the correspondent of our
configuration to the resurrection of Christ : that is, if we do
that duty of baptism, we shall receive that grace: God offers
us the mercy at that time, when we promise the duty, and do
our present portion. This St. Peter r calls ' the stipulation
of a good conscience,' the postulate and bargain which man
then makes with God, who promises us pardon and immor-
tality, resurrection from the dead, and life eternal, if we
repent toward God, and have faith in the Lord Jesus, and if
we promise we have, and will so abide.
The same 3 is the case in the other most glorious sacra-
ment: it is the same "thing in nearer representation : only
what is begun in baptism, proceeds on to perfection in the
holy communion. Baptism is the antitype of the passion
of Christ; and the Lord's supper ff^avnxbs ruv ffotiwaruv, that
also ' represents Christ's passion.' Baptism is the union of
"Acts, ix. 17. Tit. iii. 5. Rom. vi. 5.
P Verse 6. q Verse 4. ' 1 Pet. iii. 16.
8 Et institutio paria, et significatio similia, et finis facit aequalia_S. Aug.
apud Bedam in 1 Cor. x. So Cyril. Hieron. Catecli. ii.
428 MANY GREAT BLESSINGS
the members of Christ, and the admission of them under one
head into one body, as the apostle' affirms, " we are all bap-
tized into one body ; " and so it is the communion, " the
bread which we break; it is the communion of the body of
Christ, for we, being many, are one body and one bread;""
in baptism we partake of the death of Christ, and in the
Lord's supper we do the same, in that, as babes ; in this,
as men in Christ ; so that what effects are affirmed of one, the
same are, in greater measure, true of the other; they are but
several rounds of Jacob's ladder reaching up to heaven, upon
which the angels ascend and descend, and the Lord sits upon
the top.
' And because the sacraments evangelical be of the like
kind of mystery with the sacraments of old, from them we
can understand, that even signs of secret graces do exhibit as
well as signify. For beside's that there is a natural analogy
between the ablution of the body and the purification of the
soul, between eating the-holy bread and drinking the sacred
chalice, and a participation of the body and blood of Christ ;
it is also in the method of the Divine economy to dispense
the grace which himself signifies, in a ceremony of his own
institution. Thus at the unction of kings, priests, and of pro-
phets, the sacred power was bestowed ; and " as a canon is
invested in his dignity by the tradition of a book, and an
abbot by his staff, a bishop by a ring (they are the words of
St. Bernard"), so are divisions of graces imparted to the
diverse sacraments." And therefore, although it ought not
to be denied that when, in Scripture and the writings of the
holy doctors of the Church, the collation of grace is attributed
to the sign, it is by a metonymy, and a sacramental manner
of speaking, yet it is also a synecdoche of the part for the
whole; because both the sacrament and the grace are joined
in the lawful and holy use of them, by sacramental union, or
rather by a confederation of the parts of the holy covenant.
" Our hearts are purified by faith, " y and so our consciences 2
are also made clean in the cistern of water. " By faith we
are saved;" 3 and yet " he hath saved us by the laver b of rege-
neration ;" and they are both joined together by St. Paul, c
1 Cor. xii. 13. u 1 Cor. x. 16, 17. * Serm. de Coena Domini.
y Acts, xv. 9. * Ephes. v. 26. Rom. iii. 28. Luke, vii. 50.
b Tit. iii. 5. c Epbes. v. 26.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 429
" Christ gave himself for his Church that he might sanctify
and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word ;" that
is, plainly, by the sacrament ; according to the famous com-
mentary of St. Austin, " accedat verbum ad elementum et
turn fit sacramentum, when the word and the element
are joined, then it is a perfect sacrament," and then it does
effect all its purposes and intentions. Thus we find that the
grace of God is given by the imposition* 1 of hands : and yet
as St. Austin e rightly affirms, "God alone can give his Holy
Spirit, and the apostles f did not give the Holy Ghost to them
upon whom they laid their hands, but prayed that God would
give it, and he did so at the imposition of their hands."
Thus God sanctified Aaron ; and yet he said to Moses,
* Thou shalt sanctify Aaron ;' that is, not that Moses did it
instead of God, but Moses did it by his ministry, and by visible
sacraments and rites of God's appointment. And though we
"are born of an immortal seed, by the word of the living
God," 8 yet St. Paul said to the Corinthians, " I have begotten,
you through the Gospel." And thus it is in the greatest
as well as in the least ; he that drinks Christ's blood, and
eats his body, ' hath life abiding in him :' it is true of the
sacrament, and true of the spiritual manducation, and may
be indifferently affirmed of either, when the other is not
excluded ; for as the sacrament operates only by virtue of
the Spirit of God, so the Spirit ordinarily works by the instru-
mentality of the sacraments. And we may as well say that
faith is not by hearing, as that grace is not by the sacra-
ments : for as, without the Spirit, the word is but a dead
letter; so with the Spirit, the sacrament is the means of life
and grace: and the meditation of St. Chrysostom h is very
pious and reasonable: " If we were wholly incorporeal, God
would have given us graces unclothed with signs and sacra-
ments; but because our spirits are in earthen vessels, God
conveys his graces to us by sensible ministrations." The
word of God operates as secretly as the sacraments, and the
sacraments as powerfully as the word ; nay, the word is
always joined in the worthy administration of the sacrament,
which, therefore, operates both as word and sign by the
d 2 Tim. i. 6. e Lib. xv. de Trinit. c.26. ' Acts, yiii. 18.
s St. Aug. lib. iii. in Levit. q. 81. h Homil. in Mat.
430 MANY GREAT BLESSINGS
ear, and by the eyes, and by both in the hand of God, and is
the conduct of the Spirit, all the effect that God intends,
and that a faithful receiver can require and pray for.
For justification and sanctification are continued acts :
they are like the issues of a fountain into its receptacles ;
God is always giving, and we are always receiving, and the
signal effects of God's Holy Spirit sometimes give great
indications, but most commonly come without observation ;
and, therefore, in these things we must not discourse as in
the conduct of other causes and operations natural : for
although, in natural effects, we can argue from the cause to
the event, yet, in spiritual things, we are to reckon only
from the sign to the event. And the signs of grace we are
to place instead of natural causes, because a sacrament in
the hand of God is a proclamation of his graces ; he then
gives us notice that the springs of heaven are opened ; and
then is the time to draw living waters from the fountains of
salvation. When Jonathan shot his arrows beyond the boy,
he then, by a sacrament, sent salvation unto David ; he bade
him be gone and fly from his father's wrath ; and although
Jonathan did do his business for him by a continual care and
observation, yet that symbol brought it unto David ; for
so we are conducted to the joys of God, by the methods and
possibilities of men.
In conclusion, the sum is this : The sacraments and
symbols, if they be considered in their own nature, are just
such as they seem, water, and bread, and wine ; they retain
the names proper to their own natures : but because they
are made to be signs of a secret mystery, and water is the
symbol of purification of the soul from sin, and bread and
wine, of Christ's body and blood ; therefore the symbols and
sacraments receive the names of what themselves do sign :
they' are the body and they are the blood of Christ : they
are metonymically such. But because yet further they are
instruments of grace in the hand of God, and by these his
Holy Spirit changes our hearts, and translates us into a
Divine nature; therefore the whole work is attributed to
them by a synecdoche : that is, they do in their manner
1 St. Austin in Levit. q. 57. Solet autem res qiue significat, ejus rei nomine,
quam significat, nuncupari. Theodoret, Dial. i. c. 8. Tu p,l> ffuftan re rtv fu/t-
CaJut; ri9-i;*iv tvtfta.' rta" Ji <rvfj.(iKu, re rau ra/Mtrff.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMRNT. 431
the work for which God ordained them, and they are placed
there for our sakes, and speak God's language in our accent,
and they appear in the outside : we receive the benefit of
their ministry, and God receives the glory.
SECTION IV.
The Blessings and Graces of the Holy Sacrament enumerated
and proved particularly.
IN the reception of the blessed sacrament, there are many
blessings which proceed from our own actions, the conjuga-
tions of moral duties, the offices of preparation and reception,
the reverence and the devotion ; of which I shall give an
account in the following chapters : here I am to enumerate
those graces which are intended to descend upon us from the
Spirit of God in the use of the sacrament itself precisely.
But, first , I consider, that it must be infinitely certain,
that great spiritual blessings are consequent to the worthy
receiving of this Divine sacrament; because it is not at all
received but by a spiritual hand ; for it is either to be under-
stood in a carnal sense that Christ's body is there eaten, or
in a spiritual sense : if in a carnal, it profits nothing ; if in a
spiritual he be eaten, let the meaning of that be considered,
and it will convince us that innumerable blessings are in the
very reception and communion. Now what the meaning of
this spiritual eating is, I have already declared in this chap-
ter, and shall yet more fully explicate in the sequel/ 1 In the
sacrament we do not receive Christ carnally, but we receive
him spiritually ; and that of itself is a conjugation of bless-
ings and spiritual graces. The very understanding what we
do, tells us also whaf we receive. But I descend to par-
ticulars.
1. And, first ; I reckon that the sacrament is intended to
increase our faith : for although it is with us in the holy
sacrament, as it was with Abraham in the sacrament of
circumcision : he had the grace of faith before he was cir-
cumcised, and received the sacrament after he had the
Chap. iii. sect. 5.
432 MANY GREAT BLESSINGS
purpose and the grace ; and we are to believe before we
receive these symbols of Christ's death ; yet as by loving
we love more, and by the acts of patience we increase in the
spirit of mortification, so by believing we believe more;
and by publication 6 of our confession we are made confident,
and by seeing the signs of what we believe, our very senses
are incorporated into the article: 'and he that hath, shall
have more.' And when we concorporate the sign with the
signification, we conjoin the word and the spirit; and faith
passes on from believing to an imaginary seeing, and from
thence to a greater earnestness of believing, and we shall
believe more abundantly : this increase of faith not being
only a natural and proper production of the exercise of its
own acts, but a blessing and an effect of the grace of God
in that sacrament : it being certain that the sacrament,
being of Divine institution, could not be to no purpose
[for " in spiritualibus sacramentis ubi praecepit virtus, servit
eflfectus :" c " where the commandment comes from him that
hath all power, the action cannot be destitute of an excellent
event"]: and, therefore, that the representing of the death of
Christ, being an act of faith, and commanded by God, must
needs, in the hands of God, be more effectual than it is in its
own nature; that faith shall then increase, not only by the
way of nature, but by God blessing his own instruments,
can never be denied but by them that neither have faith nor
experience. For this is the proper sense and the very exalt-
ation of faith: the Latin Church, for a long time, into the
very words of consecration of the chalice, hath put words
relating to this purpose: " For this is the cup of my blood of the
new and eternal testament, the mystery of faith, which for
you, and for many, shall be shed for the remission of sins."
And if by faith we eat the flesh of Christ, as it is confessed
by all the schools of Christians, then it is certain, that
when so manifestly and solemnly, according to the Divine
appointment, we publish this great confession of the death
b Ante communicationem corporis Christ! et sanguinis, juxta orientalium
parti urn morem, unanimiter clara voce sacratissimum fidei recenseant symbol urn,
ut primum populi quam credulitatem teneant, fateantur. Condi. Tulet. it. c. ?.
Et St. Anibros. Quibus (symbolis; vescentes, confessionem fidei susc adilebaut:
respondebant Amen. Idem etiam sancitum in Concil. Agath.
-' Euseb. Kinis. kabetur de coosecrat. dist. 2.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 433
of Christ, we do, in all senses of spiritual blessing, eat the
flesh and drink the blood of Christ. And let that be
expounded how we list, we are not in this world capable of,
and we do not need, a greater blessing ; and God may say in
the words of Isaac to his son Esau, " With corn and wine
have I sustained thee ; and what is there left, that I can do
unto thee, my son ?" To eat the flesh and to drink the
blood of Christ sacramentally, is an act of faith ; and every
act of faith, joined with the sacrament, does grow by the
nature of grace, and the measures of a blessing ; and, there-
fore, is eating of Christ spiritually ; and this reflection of
acts, like circles of a glorious and eternal fire, passes on in
the uni vocal production of its own parts, till it pass from
grace to glory.
2. Of the same consideration it is, that all the graces,
which we do exercise by the nature of the sacrament re-
quiring them, or by the necessity of the commandment of
preparation, do here receive increase upon the account of
the same reason ; but I instance only in that of charity, of
which this is, signally and by an especial remark, the sacra-
ment ; and, therefore, these holy conventions are called by
St. Jude, d " feasts of charity," which were Christian festi-
vals, in which also they had the sacrament adjoined. But
whether that doth effect this persuasion or no, yet the thing
itself is dogmatically affirmed in St. Paul's explication of
that mystery, 6 " We are one body, because we partake of
one bread ;" that is, plainly, Christ is our head, and we the
members of his body, and are united in this mystical union
by the holy sacrament ; not only because it symbolically
does teach our duty, and promotes the grace of charity by a
real signature, and a sensible sermon ; nor yet only because
it calls upon Christians by the public sermons of the Gospel,
and the duties of preparation, and the usual expectations of
conscience and religion ; but even by the blessing of God,
and the operation of the Holy Spirit in the sacrament, which
d Jude 12.
' 'Ex Si ftiais f%r,s agrov K'OQO; (trfftrai avbouv.
Corpus sumus de conscientia religionis, et discipline imitate, et spei fcedere.
Coimus ad Deuin, et quasi manu facta, precationibus ambimus. Haec vis Deo
grata est Teitul. Apol. c. 39. Idem (Advers. Ha>ret., c. 20) ait sacrameutum
esse contesserationem inutuse dilectionis in membris ecclesis inter se.
VOL. XV. p F
434 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES
(as appears plainly by the words of the apostle) is designed
to this very end, to be a reconciler and an atonement in the
hand of God ; a band of charity, and the instrument of
Christian communion ; that we may be one body, because
we partake of one bread ; that is, we may be mystically
united by the sacramental participation ; and, therefore, it
was not without mystery, that the congregation of all Christ's
servants, his Church, and this sacramental bread, are both in
Scripture called by the same name. This bread is the body
of Christ, and the Church is Christ's body too ; for, by the
communion of this bread, all faithful people are confederated
into one body, the body of our Lord. Now it is to be
observed, that, although the expression is tropical f and
figurative, that * we are made one body,' because it is meant
in a spiritual sense, yet that spiritual sense means the most
real event in the world : we are really joined to one common
Divine principle, Jesus Christ our Lord ; and from him we
do communicate in all the blessings of his grace, and the
fruits of his passion ; and we shall, if we abide in this union,
be all one body of a spiritual church in heaven, there to
reign with Christ for ever. Now, unless we think nothing
good but what goes in at our eyes or mouth ; if we think
there is any thing good beyond what our senses perceive, we
must conceive this to be a real and eminent benefit ; and yet
whatever it be, it is therefore effected upon us by this sacra-
ment, ' because we eat of one bread.' The very repeating
the words of St. Paul is a satisfaction in this inquiry ; they
are plain and easy; and whatever interpretation can be put
upon them, it can only vary the manner of effecting the
blessing, and the way of the sacramental efficacy; but it
cannot evacuate the blessing, or confute the thing. Only it
is to be observed in this, as in all other instances of the like
nature, that the grace of God in the sacrament usually is a
blessing upon our endeavours ; for spiritual graces, and the
blessings of sanctification, do not grow like grass, but like
corn ; not whether we do any husbandry or no, but if we
cultivate the ground, then, by God's blessing, the fruits will
spring and make the farmer rich ; if we be disposed to
receive the sacrament worthily, we shall receive this fruit
' A/a rr, fvyxu,<rn KKI onxfroi^tiuffn^hid. Pelusiot.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 435
also. Which fruit is thus expressed, saying, " This sacra-
ment is therefore given unto us, that the body of the Church
of Christ in the earth may be joined or united with our head
which is in the heavens. " g
3. The blessed sacrament is of great efficacy for the
remission of sins ; not that it hath any formal efficacy, or
any inherent virtue to procure pardon, but that it is the
ministry of the death of Christ, and the application of his
blood, which blood was shed for the remission of sins, and is
the great means of impetration, and, as the schools use to
speak, is the meritorious cause of it. For there are but two
ways of applying the death of Christ, an internal grace and
an external ministry. Faith is the inward applicatory ; and
if there be any outward at all, it must be the sacraments ;
and both of them are of remarkable virtue in this particular ;
for by baptism we are baptized into the death of Christ, and
the Lord's supper is an appointed enunciation and declara-
tion of Christ's death, and it is a sacramental participation
of it. Now to partake of it sacramentally, is by a sacrament
to receive it ; that is, so to apply it to us, as that can be
applied ; it brings it to our spirit ; it propounds it to our
faith ; it represents it as the matter of eucharist ; it gives it
as meat and drink to our souls ; and rejoices in it, in that
very formality in which it does receive it, viz. as broken for,
as shed for, the remission of our sins. Now, then, what can
any man suppose a sacrament to be, and what can be meant
by sacramental participation ? for unless the sacraments do
communicate what they relate to, they are no communion or
communication at all. For it is true, that our mouth eats
the material signs ; but, at the same time, faith eats too,
and therefore must eat ; that is, must partake of the thing
signified ; faith is not maintained by ceremonies : the body
receives the body of the mystery ; we eat and drink the
symbols with our mouths, but faith is not corporeal, but
feeds upon the mystery itself; it entertains the grace, and
8 Serm. viii. ad fratres in erem. Hoc sacramentum ideo nobis datum est, ut
corpus Ecclesise Christ! in terris cum capite, quod est in ccelis, coadunetur.
Itaque, petendo pauem nostrum quotidianum, perpetuitatem postulamus in Christo,
et individuitatem a corpore ejus. Tertul. de Orat. Et ideo panem nostrum, i. e.
Christum, dari nobis quotidie petimus ; et, qui in Christo manemus, a sanctifica-
tione ejus et corpore non recedamus. St. Cyprian, de Orat. Domin.
436 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES
enters into that secret, which the Spirit of God conveys under
that signature. Now, since the mystery is perfectly and
openly expressed to be the remission of sins, jf the soul does
the work of the soul, as the body the work of the body, the
soul receives remission of sins, as the body does the symbols
of it and the sacrament.
3. (2.) But we must be infinitely careful to remember, that
even the death of Christ brings no pardon to the impenitent
persevering sinner, but to him that repents truly : and so does
the sacrament 11 of Christ's death ; this can do no more than
that : and, therefore, let no man come with his guilt about
him, and in the heat and in the affections of his sin, and
hope to find his pardon by this ministry. He that thinks so,
will but deceive, will but ruin himself. They are excellent,
but very severe, words which God spake to the Jews, and
which are a prophetical reproof of all unworthy communi-
cants in these Divine mysteries : " What hath my beloved
to do in my house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with
many ? The holy flesh hath passed from thee, when thou
dost evil ;" that is, ' this holy sacrifice, the flesh and blood of
thy Lord, shall slip from thee without doing thee any good,
if thou hast not ceased from doing evil.' But the vulgar
Latin read these words much more emphatically to our
purpose : " Shall the holy flesh take from thee thy wicked-
ness, in which thou rejoicest?" Deceive not thyself, thou
hast no part nor portion in this matter. For the holy sacra-
ment operates indeed, and consigns our pardon, but not
alone ; but in conjunction with all that Christ requires as
conditions of pardon. But when the conditions are present,
the sacrament ministers pardon, as pardon is ministered in
this world, that is, by parts, and in order to several purposes,
and with power of revocation, by suspending the Divine
wrath, by procuring more graces, by obtaining time of
repentance, and powers and possibilities of working out
our salvation, and by setting forward the method and eco-
nomy of our salvation. For, in the usual methods of God,
h Qui scelerate viyunt in Ecclesia, et communicate non desinunt, putantes se
tali communione mundari, discant nihil ad emundationem proficere, dicente pro-
ji he ta, ' Quid est, quod dilectus meus facit in domo mea scelera mult a? nunquid
carnes sanctae auferent a te malitias tuas ?' Jer. xi. 15. hidor. Hispal. de
Summo Bono, lib. i. c. 24.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 437
pardon of sins is proportionable to our repentance ; which
because it is all that state of piety we have in this whole life
after our first sin, pardon of sins is all that effect of grace
which is consequent to that repentance ; and the worthy
receiving of the holy communion is but one conjugation of
holy actions and parts of repentance, but indeed it is the
best and the noblest, and such in which man does but best
co-operate towards pardon, and the grace of God does the
most illustriously consign it. But of these particulars I
shall give full account when I shall discourse of the
preparations of repentance.
4. It is the greatest solemnity of prayer, the most
powerful liturgy and means of impetration, in this world.
For when Christ' was consecrated on the cross, and became
our High-Priest, having reconciled us to God by the death
of the cross, he became infinitely gracious in the eyes of
God, and was admitted to the celestial and eternal priesthood
in heaven ; where, in the virtue of the cross, he intercedes
for us, and represents an eternal sacrifice in the heavens on
our behalf. That he is a priest in heaven, appears in the
large discourses and direct affirmatives of St. Paul. k That
there is no other sacrifice to be offered, but that on the cross,
it is evident, because " he hath but once appeared in the end
of the world to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself;"
and, therefore, since it is necessary that he hath something
to offer so long as he is a priest, and there is no other sacrifice
but that of himself offered upon the cross, 1 it follows, that
Christ, in heaven, perpetually offers and represents that
sacrifice to his heavenly Father, and, in virtue of that, obtains
all good things for his Church.
4. (2.) Now what Christ does in heaven, he hath com-
manded us to do on earth ; that is, to represent his death, to
commemorate this sacrifice," 1 by humble prayer and thankful
Onus a Kvgiif a 6f ri/^uv e #geff$i%iift,iiiof avroy it; <ro a.yiov, xa} <ro vvrigiugtiviav,
tetfov, xeci x-vtuftanxe* aurcv Svfiaffrri^ttv tl; IffuJnv tvca^itts fvivpanxiis, &C.
k Heb. vii. 24. i Heb. viii. 3.
Nonne semel immolatus est Cbristus in seipso 1 et tamen in sacramento,
non solum per omnes paschsc solennitates, sed omni die, populis immolatur.
Nee utique mentitur qui interrogatus, eum respondent ' immolari :' si enim
Bacramenta quandam similitudinem earnm rerum, quarum sacramenta sunt,
non habeant, omnino Bacramenta non essent. St. Aug. Epist. ad Bonifac. 23.
Quia corpus assumptum ablaturus erat ab oculis, et illaturus sideribus,
necessarium erat, ut, die coena?, sacramentum nobis corporis et sanguinis
438 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES
record ; and, by faithful manifestation and joyful eucharist, to
lay it before the eyes of our heavenly Father, so ministering
in his priesthood, and doing according to his commandment
and his example ; the Church being the image of heaven ;
the priest, the minister of Christ ; the holy table being a
copy of the celestial altar ; and the eternal sacrifice of the
Lamb slain from the beginning of the world, being always
the same ; it bleeds no more after the finishing of it on the
cross; but it is wonderfully represented in heaven, and
graciously represented here; by Christ's action there, by his
commandment here. And the event of it is plainly this ;
that as Christ, in virtue of his sacrifice on the cross, inter-
cedes for us with his Father, so does the minister of Christ's
priesthood here ; that the virtue of the eternal sacrifice may
be salutary and effectual to all the needs of the Church, both
for things temporal and eternal. And, therefore, it was not
without great mystery and clear signification, that our blessed
Lord was pleased to command the representation of his death
and sacrifice on the cross should be made by breaking bread,
and effusion of wine ; to signify to us the nature and sacred-
ness of the liturgy we are about, and that we minister in the
priesthood of Christ, who is a priest for ever after the order
of Melchisedec ; that is, we are ministers in that unchange-
able priesthood, imitating, in the external ministry, the pro-
totype Melchisedec : of whom it was said, " He brought
forth bread and wine, and was the priest of the most high
God ;" n and, in the internal, imitating the antitype, or the
consecraretur, ut coleretur jugiter per mysterium, quod semel offerebatur in pre-
tium; ut, quia quotidiana et indefessa currebat pro omnium salute redemptio, per-
petua esset redemptionis oblatio, et perennis victima ilia viveret in memoria, et
semper praesens esset in gratia, vera.unica, etperfecta hostia,fide sestimanda, non
specie, iieque exteriori censenda visu, sed interiori affectu. Unde coelestis
confirmat autoritas, quia ' caro mea vere est cibus,' et ' sanguis meus vere est
potus.' Recedat ergo omne infidelitatis ambiguum; quoniam, qui autor est
muneris, idem testis est veritatis. Euseb. Emiss.
n Non sine mysterio, sine re, vel panis ad aram
Vel vinum fertur, cui superaddis aquam.
Utraque sub typico ritu, formaque futuri,
Melchisedec Domino sacrificasse ferunt Hildebert. Cenoman.
Melchisedec Domino panem vinumque litavit ;
Christus idem faciens, pactum vetus evacuavit. Hugo Card.
Rex ille Salem, qui,munere tali,
Mystica praeorisit summi libamina Christi.
Claud. Marian. Victor, lib. iii. in Genes.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 439
substance, Christ himself; who offered up his body and
blood for atonement for us ; and, by the sacraments of
bread and wine, and the prayers of oblation and intercession,
commands us to officiate in his priesthood, in the external
ministering like Melchisedec, in the internal after the
manner of Christ himself.
4. (3.) This is a great and a mysterious truth, which as it
is plainly manifested in the Epistle to the Hebrews, so it is
understood by the ancient and holy doctors of the Church.
So St. Ambrose : " Now Christ is offered, but he is offered
as a man, as if he received his passion, but he offers himself
as a priest, that he may pardon our sins ; here, in image or
representation, there, in truth, as an advocate interceding
with his Father for us." So St. Chrysostom : " In Christ
once the sacrifice was offered, which is powerful to our
eternal salvation ; but what then do we ? do not we offer
every day ? what we daily offer is at the memorial of his
death ; and the sacrifice is one, not many ; because Christ
was once offered, but this sacrifice is the example or repre-
sentation of that." And another : " Christ is not impiously
slain by us, but piously sacrificed ; and by this means we
1 declare the Lord's death till he come :' for here through him
we humbly do in earth, which he, as a Son, who is heard
according to his reverence, does powerfully for us in heaven :
where, as an advocate, he intercedes with his Father, whose
office or work it is ; for us to exhibit and interpose his flesh
which he took of us, and for us, and, as it were, to press it
upon his Father." To the same sense is the meditation of
St. Austin :P " By this he is the priest and the oblation, the
sacrament of which he would have the daily sacrifice of the
Church to be : which because it is the body of that head, she
learns from him to offer herself to God by him, who offered
himself to God for he*r." And, therefore, this whole office is
called by St. Basil, sv^ xgoexopidris, 'the prayer of oblation,'
the great Christian sacrifice and oblation in which we
present our prayers and the needs of ourselves and of our
brethren unto God, in virtue of the great sacrifice, Christ
upon the cross, whose memorial we then celebrate in a
Divine manner, by Divine appointment.
In x. ad Heb. habetur de consecr. dist. ii.
P De Civit. Dei, lib. x. c. 20.
440 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES
4. (4.) The effect of this I represent in the words of Lyra :^
" That which does purge and cleanse our sins, must be
celestial and spiritual ; and that which is such, hath a per-
petual efficacy, and needs not to be done again : but that
which is daily offered in the Church, is a daily commemora-
tion of that one sacrifice which was offered on the cross,
according to the command of Christ, * Do this in comme-
moration of me.'"
4. (5.) Now this holy ministry and sacrament of this death,
being according to Christ's commandment, and, in our
manner, a representation of that eternal sacrifice, an imita-
tion of Christ's intercession in heaven in virtue of that
sacrifice, must be after the pattern in the Mount ; it must be
as that is, ' pura prece,' as Tertullian's phrase is, * by pure
prayer;' it is an intercession for the whole Church, present
and absent, in the virtue of that sacrifice. I need add no
more, but leave it to the meditation, to the joy and admira-
tion of all Christian people, to think and to enumerate the
blessings of this sacrament, which is so excellent a repre-
sentation of Christ's death, by Christ's commandment ; and
so glorious an imitation of that intercession which Christ
makes in heaven for us all ; it is all but the representation of
his death, in the way of prayer and interpellation ; Christ as
head, and we as members ; he as High-Priest, and we as
servants, his ministers. And, therefore, I shall stop here,
and leave the rest for wonder and eucharist : we may pray
here with all the solemnity and advantages imaginable ; we
may, with hope and comfort, use the words of David/ " I
will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the
Lord." We are here very likely to prevail for all blessings/
for this is by way of eminence, glory, arid singularity, ' calix
benedictionis, the cup of blessing,' which we bless, and by
which God will bless us ; and for which he is to be blessed
for evermore.
5. By the means of this sacrament our bodies are made
capable of the resurrection to life and eternal glory. For
* In Epist. x. ad Hebr. r Psalm cxvi.
Ilinc ergo pensemus quale sit boo sacramentum, quod pro absolutione
nostril passionem unigeniti filii imitetur. Quis enim fidelium liabere dubium
posset, in ipsa immolationis bora ad sacerdotis vocem coelos aperiri, in illo Jesu
CLristi mysterio aogelorum chores adesse. S. Gregor. in bomil. Pascbali.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 441
when we are externally and symbolically in the sacrament,
and by faith and the Spirit of God internally united to Christ,
and made partakers of his body and blood, we are joined
and made one with him, who did rise again ; and when the
head is risen, the members shall not see corruption for ever,
but rise again after the pattern of our Lord. If, by the
sacrament, we are really united and made one with Christ,
then it shall be to us in our proportion, as it was to him : we
shall rise again, and we shall enter into glory. But it is
certain we are united to Christ by it ; we eat his body and
drink his blood sacramentally by our mouths, and, therefore,
really and spiritually by our spirits and by spiritual actions
co-operating. For what good will it do us to partake of his
body, if we do not also partake of his spirit 1 but certain it
is, if we do one, we do both; 4 "cum naturalis per sacra-
mentum proprietas perfectae sacramentum sit unitatis," as
St. Hilary's expression is ; " the natural propriety," viz. the
outward elements, " by the sacrament," that is, by the institu-
tion and blessing of God, " becomes the sacrament of a perfect
unity :" which, beside all the premises, is distinctly affirmed
in the words of the apostle ; " we which are sanctified, and
he which sanctifies, are all of one ;" and again, " the bread
which we break, is it not the communication of the body of
Christ? and the cup which we drink, is it not the communi-
cation of the blood of Christ ?" plainly saying, that, by this
holy ministry, we are joined and partake of Christ's body
and blood, and then we become spiritually one body, and,
therefore, shall receive in our bodies all the effects of that
spiritual union ; the chief of which, in relation to our bodies,
is resurrection from the grave. And this is expressly taught
by the ancient Church. So St. Irenaeus" teaches us: "As
1 Humana enim caro, quae erat peccato mortua, carni mundae unita, incorpo-
rata, unum cum ilia affecta, vivit de spiritu ejus, sicut unum corpus de suo
spiritu. St. Aug. Epist. ad Iren.
Condescendens Deus nostris fragilitatibus influit, oblntis vim vitae convertens
ea in veritatem proprise carnis, ut corpus vitae quasi quoddam semen vivificativum
inveniatur in nobis St. Cyril, ad Ccelosyrium.
Christus suo corpora per communionem mysticam benedicens credentibus et
secum et inter nos unum corpus efficit. St. Cyril, in Joban. lib. xi. c. 26. De
Trinit. lib. viii.
* Lib. iv. c. 34. S. Clem. Alex. lib. ii. Paedag. c. 2. Bibere Jesu sanguiiiem
est participem esse incorruptionis Domini. Lib. v.
442 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES
the bread which grows from the earth, receiving the calling
of God, that is, blessed by prayer and the word of God, is
not now common bread, but the eucharist, consisting of two
things, an earthly and a heavenly ; so also our bodies re-
ceiving the eucharist, are not now corruptible, but have the
hope of resurrection." And again : " When the mingled
chalice and the made bread receives the word of God, viz. is
consecrated and blessed, it is made the eucharist of the
body and blood of Christ out of those things by which our
body is nourished, and our substance does consist : and how
shall any one deny that the flesh is capable of the gift of
God, which is eternal life, which is nourished by the body
and blood of Christ?" And St. Ignatius* calls the blessed
eucharist, dSavafftas <pdgfj,axov, ' the medicine of immortality :'
for the drink is his blood, who is dydvii dpSagrog xai a'twaog wfl,
" incorruptible love and eternal life ;" evftfioXa, rfc Jipir'zgas
dvaardffsug, so the fathers of the Nicene Council, " the sym-
bols of our resurrection;" " the meat nourishing to immor-
tality and eternal life," so St. Cyril of Alexandria ; " for
this is to drink the blood of Jesus, to be partakers of the
Lord's incorruptibility," said St. Clement. y " For bread is
food, and blood is life, but we drink the blood of Christ,
himself commanding us, that, together with him, we may, by
him, be partakers of eternal life;" so St. Cyprian. 2
6. Because this is a ministry of grace by bodily ceremo-
nies, and conveys spiritual blessings by temporal ministra-
tions, there is something also of temporal regard directly
provided for our bodies by the holy sacrament. It some-
times is a means in the hand of God for the restoring and
preserving respectively of our bodily health and secular
advantages. I will not insist upon that of St. Gorgonia,
who, being oppressed with a violent headach, threw herself
down before the holy table, where the sacrament was placed,
and prayed with passion and pertinacy, till she obtained
relief and ease in that very place : nor that of St. Ambrose,*
who, having trod upon a gentleman's foot afflicted with the
* 'Aifiiavei TOV f&ri a-raS-avtJV.
y Tay-r* JW/ VIM TO aifta, rou 'lufov, rijf xu^iaxtji p.iret*.aSi7v if$*ffimt. Epist.
ad Ephes.
Aut quicunque sit auctor Sermon, de Coena Domini.
* Vide St. Ambros. in Orat. Funebri Satyri fratris, et St. Aug. lib. xxii. de
Civitat Dei, c. 8.
IN THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 443
gout, in the time of ministration, gave him the holy symhols,
and told him it was good for his sickness also, and that he
presently found his cure. I myself knew a person of great
sanctity, who was afflicted to death's door with a vomiting,
and preparing herself to death by her ' viaticum,' the holy
sacrament, to which she always bore a great reverence ; she
was infinitely desirous, and yet equally fearful, to receive it,
lest by her infirmity she should reject that which, in her
spirit, she passionately longed for : but her desire was the
greater passion, and prevailed ; she received it, and swal-
lowed it ; and, after great and earnest reluctancy, being
forced to cast it up, in zeal , and with a new passion, took it
in again, and then retained it, and from that instant speedily
recovered, against the hope of her physician, and the ex-
pectation of all her friends. God does miracles every day ;
and he who, with spittle and clay, cured the blind man's
eyes, may well be supposed to glorify himself by the extra-
ordinary contingencies and sacramental contacts of his own
body. But that which is most famous and remarked, is,
that the Austrian family do attribute the rise of their house
to the present grandeur, to William, earl of Hapsburgh, and
do acknowledge it to be a reward of his piety in the venerable
treatment and usage of these Divines mysteries. It were easier
to heap together many rare contingencies, and miraculous
effects of the holy sacrament, than to find faith to believe
them nowadays; and, therefore, for this whole affair I rely
upon the words of St. Paul, 6 affirming that ' God sent sick-
nesses, and sundry kinds of death, to punish the Corinthian
irreverent treatment of the blessed sacrament ;' and, therefore,
it is not to be deemed, but that life and health will be the
consequent of our holy usages of it : for if by our fault it is
a savour of death, it is certain, by the blessing and intention
of God, a savour of life. But of these things in particular
we have no promise ; and, therefore, such events as these
cannot, upon this account of faith and certain expectations,
be designed by us in our communions. If God please to
send any of them, as sometimes he hath done, it is to pro-
mote his own glory, and our value of the blessed sacrament,
the great ministry of salvation.
b 1 Cor. xi. 26.
444 THE BLESSINGS AND GRACES, &C.
7. The sum of all I represent in these few words of St.
Hilary. 6 ** These holy mysteries, being taken, cause that
Christ shall be in us, and we in Christ." And if this be
more than words, we need no further inquiry into the par-
ticulars of blessing consequent to a worthy communion ; for
"if God hath given his Son unto us, how shall not he, with
him, give us all things else?" "Nay, all things that we
need, are effected by this," said St. Clement of Alexandria,
one t>f the most ancient fathers of the Church of Christ :
" Eucharistiae qui per fidem sunt participes, sanctificantur et
corpore et anima ; d They, who by faith are partakers of
the eucharist, are sanctified both in body and in soul."
Fonte renascentes, membris et sanguine Christi
Vescimur, atque ideo templum Deitatis habemur.SeduL
" How great, therefore, and how illustrious benefits"
(it is the meditation of St. Eusebius Emissenus) " does the
power of the Divine blessing produce ! you ought not to
esteem it strange and impossible ; for how earthly and mortal
things are converted into the substance of Christ, ask thy-
self, who art regenerated in Christ. Not long since, thou
wast a stranger from life, a pilgrim and a wanderer from
mercy, and, being inwardly dead, thou wert banished from
the way of life. On a sudden, being initiated into the laws
of Christ, and renewed by the ministries of salvation, thou
didst pass suddenly into the body of the Church, not by
seeing, but by believing ; and, from a son of perdition, thou
hast obtained to be adopted a son of God, by a secret
purity ; remaining in a visible measure, thou art invisibly
made greater than thyself, without any increase of quantity ;
thou art the same thou wert, and yet very much another
person in the progression of faith ; to the outward nothing
is added, but the inward is wholly changed ; and so a man
is made the son of Christ, and Christ is formed in the mind
of a man. As therefore suddenly, without any bodily per-
ception, the former vileness being laid down, on the sudden
thou hast put on a new dignity, and this that God hath done,
that he hath cured thy wounds, washed off thy stains, wiped
c Ha;c, sumpta et hausta, faciunt ut nos in Christo et Christus in nobis sit.
Lib. viii. de Trinit. babetur de consecrat dist.
d Lib. ii. peed. c. 2.
PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS, &C. 445
away thy spots, is trusted to thy discerning, not thy eyes ;
so when thou ascendest the reverend altar to be satisfied
with spiritual food, by faith regard, honour, admire the
holy body of God ; touch it with thy mind ; take it with the
hand of thy heart, even with the draught of the whole inward
man."
SECTION V.
Practical Conclusions from the preceding Discourses.
THE first I represent in the words of St. Austin,* who
reduces this whole doctrine to practice in these excellent
words : " Let this whole affair thus far prevail with us, that
we may eat the flesh and drink the blood of Christ, not only
in the sacrament, which many evil persons do, but let us
eat and drink unto the participation of the Spirit ; that, as
members, we may abide in the Lord's body ; that we may
be quickened by his Spirit; and let us not be scandalized,
because many do temporally eat and drink with us, who yet,
in the end, shall find eternal torments:" that is, let us
remember, that the exterior ministry is the least part of it :
and externally and alone it hath in it nothing excellent, as
being destitute of the sanctity that God requires, and the
grace that he does promise, and it is common to wicked men
and good. But when the signs and the thing signified,
when the prayers of the Church and the Spirit of God, the
word and the meaning, the sacrament and the grace, do
concur ; then it is sroXAjjj y'sftov Swdpeus, " it is a venerable
cup, b and full of power," and more honourable than all our
possessions ; " it is a holy thing," saith Origen, c " and ap-
pointed for our sanctification." For Christ in the sacra-
ment is Christ under'a veil : as without the hand of faith we
cannot take Christ, so we must be sure to look here with an
eye of faith ; and whatsoever glorious thing is said of the holy
sacrament, it must be understood of the whole sacrament,
body and spirit, that is, the sacramental and the spiritual
communion.
* Tract, xvii. in Johan. Content! sint ad venerationem figuris defendentibus
a vilitate secretum. Macrob. in Somn. Scip. lib. i. c. 2.
ro <pgixrot,Chrysostom. e "Aytai n KOU ayiafrt rout % ftieus.
446 PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS FROM
2. Let no man be less confident in his holy faith and
persuasion concerning the great blessings and glorious effects,
which God designs to every faithful and obedient soul in the
communication of these Divine mysteries, by reason of any
difference of judgment, which is in the several schools of
Christians concerning the effects and consequent blessings of
this sacrament. For all men speak honourable things of it,
except wicked persons and the scorners of religion : and
though of several persons, like the beholders of a dove
walking in the sun, as they stand in several aspects and
distances, some see red, and others purple, and yet some
perceive nothing but green, but all allow and love the
beauties ; so do the several forms of Christians, according as
they are instructed by their first teachers, or their own ex-
perience, conducted by their fancy and proper principles,
look upon these glorious mysteries, some as virtually con-
taining the reward of obedience, some as solemnities of
thanksgiving and records of blessings, some as the objective
increases of faith, others as the sacramental participations of
Christ, others as the acts and instruments of natural union ;
yet all affirm some great things or other of it, and, by their
differences, confess the immensity and the glory. For thus
manna represented to every man the taste that himself did
like ; but it had in its own potentiality all those tastes and
dispositions eminently ; and altogether, those feasters could
speak of great and many excellences, and all confessed it to
be enough, and to be the food of angels : so it is here, it is
that to every man's faith, which his faith wisely apprehends ;
and though there are some .who are of little faith, and such
receive but a less proportion of nourishment, yet by the very
use of this sacrament, the appetite will increase, and the
apprehensions grow greater, and the faith will be more con-
fident and instructed ; and then we shall see more, and feel
more. For this holy nutriment is not only food, but physic
too ; and although to him who believes great things of his
physician and of his medicine, it is apt to do the more
advantage ; yet it will do its main work even when we
understand it not, and nothing can hinder it but direct
infidelity, or some of its foul and deformed ministers.
3. They who receive the blessed sacrament, must not
suppose that the blessings of it are effected as health is by
THE PRECEDING DISCOURSES. 447
physic, or warmth by the contact and neighbourhood of fire ;
but as music one way affects the soul, and witty discourses
another, and joyful tidings a way differing from both the
former, so the operations of the sacrament are produced by
an energy of a nature entirely differing from all things else.
But however it is done, the thing that is done, is this ; no
grace is there improved, but what we bring along with us ;
no increases but what we exercise. We must bring faith
along with us, and God will increase our faith : we must
come with charity, and we shall go away with more ; we
must come with truly penitential hearts ; and to him that
hath, shall be given, and he shall have more abundantly:
he shall be a better penitent, when he hath eaten the sacri-
fice that was slain for our sins, and died in the body, that
we might live in the spirit, and die no more. For he is the
bread from heaven ; he is " the grain of wheat, which falling
into the earth, unless it dies it remains alone ; but if it dies,
it brings forth fruit, and brings it forth abundantly."
4. Although the words, the names, and sayings con-
cerning the blessed sacrament, are mysterious and inexpli-
cable, yet they do, nay, therefore we are sure, they signify
some great things ; they are in the very expression beyond
our understandings, and, therefore, much more are the
things themselves too high for us : but, therefore, we are
taught three things. 1. To walk humbly with our God;
that is, in all intercourses with him to acknowledge the
infinite distance between his immensity and our nothing, his
wisdom and our ignorance, his secrets and our apprehen-
sions : he does more for us than we can understand. It
was an excellent saying of Aristotle, which Seneca d reports
of him, " Nunquam nos verecundiores esse debere, quam
quum de Diis agitur ; we ought never to be more bashful
and recollect, than when we are to speak any thing of God."
"Timide de potestate deorum, et pauca dicenda sunt," said
Cicero ; e " We must speak of his power and glory timorously
and sparingly," 'with joyfulness and singleness,' or simplicity
' of heart : ' so the first Christians ate their bread, their eucha-
rist ; so we understand the words of St. Luke. 2. To walk
* Nat. Q. lib. rii. c. 30. Ruhkopf. vol. v. p. 414.
De Nat, Deor.
448 PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS FROM
charitably with our disagreeing brother, that this may be
indeed a sacrament of charity, and not to wonder if he be
mistaken in his discourses of that which neither he nor you
can understand. 3. Though it be hard to be understood,
yet we must be careful, that with simplicity we admire the
secret, and accept the mystery ; but at no hand, by pride
or ignorance, by interest or vanity, to wrest this mystery to
ignoble senses, or to evil events, or to dangerous propo-
sitions, or to our own damnation.
5. Whatever propositions any man shall entertain in his
manner of discoursing of these mysteries, let him be sure to
take into his notice and memory those great appellatives
with which the purest ages of the Church, the most ancient
liturgies, and the most eminent saints of God, use to adorn
and invest this great mysteriousness. In the Greek liturgy
attributed to St. James, the sacramental symbols are called
" sanctified, honourable, precious, celestial, unspeakable, in-
corruptible, glorious, fearful, formidable, Divine. " f In the
use of which epithets, as we have the warranty and consent of
all the Greek churches, since they ever had a liturgy, so we
are taught only to have reverend usages and religious ap-
prehensions of the Divine mysteries ; but if, by any appel-
lative, we can leafn a duty, it is one of the best ways of
entering into the secret. To which purpose the ages primi-
tive and apostolical did use the word * eucharist ; ' the name
and the use we learn from Origen ; g " the bread, which is
called the eucharist, is the symbol of our thanksgiving
towards God." But it is the great and most usual appel-
lative for the holy Supper ; 6 ugros svxagidrtag, and aerov U%a-
gusrrft'zvra, we find in Ignatius,* 1 St. Clemens, Justin Martyr,
the Syrian paraphrast, Origen, and ever after amongst the
Greeks, and afterwards amongst the Latins. By him we
understand that then we receive great blessings, since the
very mystery itself obliges us to great thankfulness. I have
instanced in this, as an example to the use of the other
1 'T<rt TUI a.yia.tr\v<rui. rifi'iui, 'aesvoatiut, afpxrtiv, i^jTai
(poiKTa*, Stiur, Saigiay.
S'Ern 5; xet,} ffv[if>o\oi iifui frit a*; rat Bin tu%<toiff-Tia;' agrtf,
ptims. Lib. viii. cont. Celsum.
b Epist ad Smjrn. Sect. i. of this chap.
THE PRECEDING DISCOURSES. 449
epithets and appellatives, which from antiquity I have
enumerated.
6. He that desires to enter furthest into the secrets of
this mystery, and to understand more than others, can hetter
learn by love than by inquiry. 1 " He that keepeth the law
of the Lord, getteth the understanding thereof," saith the
wise Bensirach; k if he will prepare himself diligently, and
carefully observe the dispensations of the Spirit, and receive
it humbly, and treat it with great reverence, and dwell in the
communion of saints, and pass through the mystery with
great devotion and purest simplicity, and converse with the
purities of the sacrament frequently, and with holy intention,
this man shall understand more by his experience, than
the greatest clerks can by all their subtilties, the comment-
aries of the doctors, and the glosses of inquisitive men :
" Obey and ye shall understand," said the prophet : and our
blessed Saviour assured us, 1 " that if we continue in his
word, then we shall know the truth ; and if any man will do
his will, he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God
or no." " For we have not turned from our iniquities that
we might understand the truth," said Daniel. "For the
love of the Lord," saith the wise man, " passeth all things
for illumination."
7. Let no man advance the preaching of the word of
God to the disparagement, or to occasion the neglect, of the
sacraments. For, though it be true that * faith comes by
hearing,' yet it is not intended that, by hearing alone, faith is
engendered ; for the faith of the apostles came by seeing; 11
and St. Paul's faith did not come by hearing, but by intuition
and revelation; and 'hearing,' in those words of St. Paul,
does not signify the manner of ministration, but the whole
economy of the word of God, the whole office of preaching ;
which is done most usually to babes and strangers by sermon
or homily, but more gloriously and illustriously to men by
' Nam animalis homo, hoc est, qui sequitur cogitationes humanas et
animates sive naturales, non est capax eorum, qu<e sunt supra naturam et
spiritualium, atqua ita et spiritualem esum carnis Dominica? non intelligit;
cujus qui non sunt participes, non eiunt participes aeterna? vita3. Theophylact.
in c. vi. Job.
k Ecclus. xxi. 11. ' i John, viii. 31, 32.
m Ecclus. xxv. 11. i John, i. 1.
VOL. XV. G G
450 PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS FROM
sacraments. But however, be it so or otherwise, yet one
ordinance ought not to exclude the other, much less to dis-
parage the other, and least of all to undervalue that which is
the most eminent : but rather let every Christian man and
woman think, that if the word ministered by the Spirit is so
mighty, it must be more when the word and the Spirit join
with the sacrament, which is their proper significatory. He
that is zealous for the word of God, does well ; but let him
remember, that the word of God is a goodly ring, and leads
us into the circles of a blessed eternity ; but because the
sacrament is not without the word, they are a jewel enchased
in gold when they are together. The ministries of the Gospel
are all of a piece ; they, though in several manners, work
the same salvation by the conduct of the same Spirit.
8. Let no man, in the reception of the sacrament, and in
his expectation of blessings and events from it, limit his
hopes and belief to any one particular ; for that will occasion
a littleness of faith, and may make it curious, scrupulous,
and fantastical : rather let us adore the secret of God, and
with simple expectations receive it ; disposing ourselves to
all the effects that may come, rather with fear and indefinite
apprehensions, than with dogmatical and confident limit-
ations ; for this may beget scruples and diminution of value ;
but that hinders nothing, but advances the reverential treat-
ments and opinion.
9. He that guesses at the excellence and power of the
sacrament by the events that himself feels, must be sure to
look for no other than what are eminently or virtually con-
tained in it ; that is, he must not expect that the sacrament
will make him rich, or discover to him stolen goods, or cure
the toothach, or countercharm witches, or appease a tempest,
if it be thrown into the sea. These are such events that God
hath not made the effects of religion, but are the hopes and
expectations of vain and superstitious people. And I
remember that Pope Alexander III., in the Council of
Lateran, wrote to the bishop of St. Agatha for advice how
to treat a woman who took the holy sacrament into her
mouth, and ran with it to kiss her husband, hoping by that
means to procure her husband's more intense affection.
Concil. Lat. part. 1. c. 30.
THE PRECEDING DISCOURSES. 451
But the story tells, that she was chastised by a miracle,
and was not cured but by a long and severe repentance.
10. He that watches for the effects and blessings of the
sacrament, must look for them in no other manner than what
is agreeable to the usual dispensation. We must not look for
them by measures of nature, and usual expectation : not that
as soon as we have received the symbols, we shall have our
doubts answered ; or be comforted in our spirit as soon as
we have given thanks for the holy blood ; or be satisfied in
the inquiries of faith, as soon as the prayers of consecration
and the whole ministry is ended ; or prevail in our most
passionate desires, as soon as we rise from our knees ; for we
enter into the blessings of the sacrament by prayer, and the
exercise of proper graces ; both which, being spiritual instru-
ments of virtues, work after the manner of spiritual things ;
that is, not by any measure we have, but as God pleases ;
only that in the last event of things, and when they are
necessary, we shall find them there : God's time is best, but
we must not judge his manner by our measures, nor measure
eternity by time, or the issues of the Spirit by a measuring
line. The effects of the sacrament are to be expected as the
effect of prayers : not one prayer, or one solemn meeting,
but persevering and passionate, fervent and lasting prayers ;
and continual desire, and a daily address, is the way of pre-
vailing. " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening
withhold not thy hand, for thou knowest not whether shall
prosper, either this or that, or whether they shall be both
alike good." p
11. He that looks for the effects and blessings told of to
be appendant to the sacrament, must expect them upon no.
other terms but such as are the conditions of a worthy com-
munion. If thou dost find thy faith as dead after the recep-
tion as it was before, it may be, it is because thy faith was
not only little, but reprovable ; or thou didst not pray
vehemently, or thou art indisposed by some secret disad-
vantage, or thou hast not done thy duty ; and he shall
imprudently accuse that physic for useless and unfit that is
not suffered to work by the incapacity, the ill diet, the weak
stomach, or some evil accident of the patient.
? Eccles. xi.
452 PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS FROM
12. Let no man judge of himself, or of the blessings and
efficacy of the sacrament itself, or of the prosperity and
acceptation of his service in this ministry, by any sensible
relish, by the gust and deliciousness, which he sometimes
perceives, and other times does not perceive. For these are
fine accidents, and given to some persons often, to others,
very seldom, to all, irregularly, as God pleases; and
sometimes are the effects of natural and accidental dis-
positions, and sometimes are illusions. But that no man
may fall into inconvenience for want of them, we are to con-
sider that the want of them proceeds from divers causes.
1. It may be the palate of the soul is indisposed by listless-
ness or sorrow, anxiety or weariness. 2. It may be we are
too much immerged in secular affairs and earthly affections.
3. Or we have been unthankful to God when we have
received some of these spiritual pleasures, and he, therefore,
withdraws those pleasant entertainments. 4. Or, it may be,
we are therefore without relish and gust, because the sacra-
ment is too great for our weakness, like the bright sun to a
mortal eye, the object is too big for our perceptions and our
little faculties. 5. Sometimes God takes them away, lest we
be lifted up and made vain. 6. Sometimes for the confirm-
ation and exercise of our faith, that we may live by faith and
not by sense. 7. Or, it maybe, that by this dryness of spirit
God intends to make us the more fervent and resigned in
our direct and solemn devotions, by the perceiving of our
wants and weakness, and in the infinite inability and insuf-
ficiency of ourselves. 8. Or else it happens to us irremedi-
ably and inevitably, that we may perceive these accidents
are not the fruits of our labour, but gifts of God, dis-
pensed wholly by the measures of his own choice. 9. The
want of just and severe dispositions to the holy sacrament
may, possibly, occasion this uncomfortableness. 10. Or we do
not relish the Divine nutriment now, so as at other times, for
want of spiritual mastication ; that is, because we have not
considered deeply, and meditated wisely and holily. 11. Or
there is in us too much self-love, and delight in, and ad-
herence to, the comforts we find in other objects. 12. Or we
are careless of little sins, and give too much way to the
daily incursions of the smaller irregularities of our lives. If,
upon the occasion of the want of these sensible comforts and
THE PRECEDING DISCOURSES. 453
delightful relishes, we examine the causes of the want, and
suspect ourselves in these things, where our own faults may
be the causes, and there make amends, or if we submit our-
selves in those particulars where the causes may relate to
God, we shall do well, and receive profit. But unless our
own sin be the cause of it, we are not to make any evil
judgment of ourselves by reason of any such defect; much
less diminish our great value of the blessings consequent to
a worthy communion.
13. But because the pardon of sins is intended to be the
great effect of a worthy communion, and of this men are
more solicitous, and for this they pray passionately, and
labour earnestly, and almost all their lives, and, it may be,
in the day of their death have uncertain souls : and, there-
fore, of this, men are most desirous to be satisfied if they
apprehend themselves in danger ; that is, if they be con-
vinced of their sin, and be truly penitent, although this
effect seems to be least discernible, and to be a secret
reserved for the publication and trumpet of the archangel at
the day of doom ; yet in this we can best be satisfied. For
because when our sins are unpardoned, we are under the
wrath of God, to be expressed as he pleases, and in the
method of eternal death ; now if God intends not to pardon
us, he will not bless the means of pardon ; if we shall not
return to his final pardon, if we shall not pass through the
intermedial, if he will never give us glory, he will never give
us the increase of grace. If, therefore, we repent of our
sins, and pray for pardon, if we confess them and forsake
them, if we fear God and love him, if we find that our
desires to please him do increase, that we are more watchful
against sin and hate it more, that we are thirsty after
righteousness, if wje find that we increase in duty; then
we may look upon the tradition of the holy sacramental
symbols as a direct consignation of pardon. Not that it
is then completed, for it is a work of time ; it is as long in
doing as repentance is in perfecting ; it is the effect of that,
depending on its cause in a perpetual operation, but it is
then working ; and if we go on in duty, God will proceed to
finish methods of his grace, and snatch us from eternal death,
which we have deserved, and bring us unto glory. And
454 EJACULATIONS.
this he is pleased by the sacrament all the way to consign :
God speaks not more articulately in any voice from heaven,
than in such real indications of his love and favour.
14. Lastly : Since the sacrament is the great solemnity
of prayer, and imitation of Christ's intercession in heaven,
let us here be both charitable and religious in our prayers,
interceding for all states of men and women in the
Christian Church, and representing to God all the needs of
ourselves and of our relatives. For then we pray with all the
advantages of the Spirit when we pray in the faith of Christ
crucified, hi the love of God and of our neighbour, in the
advantages of solemn piety, in the communion of saints,
in the imitation of Christ's intercession, and in the union
with Christ himself, spiritual and sacramental ; and to such
prayers as these nothing can be added but that which will
certainly come, that is, a blessed hearing and a gracious
answer.
SECTION VI.
DEVOTIONS PREPARATORY TO THIS MYSTERY.
Ejaculations.
I.
1 . I WILL praise thee with my whole heart ; before the
angels will I sing praise unto thee.
2. I will worship towards thy holy temple, and praise thy
name for thy loving-kindness, and for thy truth ; for thou
hast magnified, above all thy name, the word of thy praise.
3. In the day when I call upon thee, thou shalt answer,
and shalt multiply strength in my soul.
4. How precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God ! how
great is the sum of them ! The Lord will perfect that which
concerneth me : thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever.
5. I wait for the Lord : my soul doth wait, and in his
word do I hope.
6. My soul doth wait for the Lord more than they that
keep the morning watches, that they may observe the time
of offering the morning sacrifices.
EJACULATIONS. 455
7. O let my soul hope in the Lord, for with the Lord
there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption : he
shall redeem his people from all iniquity.
II.
1. Our Lord is gentle and just : our God is merciful.
2. The Lord keepeth the simple : I was humbled, but
the Lord looked after my redemption.
3. O my soul, return thou unto thy rest ; because the
Lord hath restored his good things unto thee.
4. He hath snatched my soul from death, mine eyes from
tears, and my feet from falling : I will therefore walk
before the Lord in the land of the living.
5. I have believed ; therefore will I speak : in the as-
semblies of just men, I will greatly praise the Lord.
6. What shall I return unto the Lord ? all his retributions
are repaid upon me.
7. I will bear the chalice of redemption in the kingdom
of God : and in the name of the Lord I will call upon my
God.
III.
1. I will pay my vows unto the Lord : I will then shew
forth his sacraments unto all the people.
2. Honourable before the Lord is the death of his holy
one : and thereby thou hast broken all my chains.
3. I have sworn, and I will perform it ; that I will keep
thy righteous judgments.
4. I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth ; yea, I
will praise him among the multitude.
5. For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor : to
save him from them that condemn his soul.
6. His work is honourable and glorious, and his righteous-
ness remaineth for ever : he hath made his wonderful works
to be remembered.
7. The Lord is gracious and full of compassion : he hath
given meat unto them that fear him : he will be ever mindful
of his covenant : he hath shewed his people the power of his
works : blessed be God.
456 PRAYERS TO BE USED IN
Prayers to be used in any Day or Time of Preparation to the
Holy Sacrament.
I.
THOU Shepherd of Israel, thou that feedest us like sheep ;
thou makest us to lie down in pleasant pastures, and leadest
us by the still waters running from the clefts of the rock,
from the wounds of our Lord, from the fountains of salvation ;
thou preparest a table for us, and anointest our heads with
the unction from above, and our cup runneth over : let the
blood of thy wounds, and the water of thy side, wash me
clean, that I may, with a pure clean soul, come to eat of the
purest sacrifice, the Lamb slain from the beginning of the
world .
II.
Thou givest thyself to be the food of our souls in the
wonders of the sacrament, in the faith of thy word, in the
blessings and graces of thy Spirit. Perform that in thy ser-
vant, which thou hast prepared and effected in thy Son ;
strengthen my infirmities; heal my sicknesses; give me
strength to subdue my passions, to mortify my inordinations,
to kill all my sins : increase thy graces in my soul ; enkindle
a bright devotion ; extinguish all the fires of hell, my lust
and my pride, my envy and all my spiritual wickednesses ;
pardon all my sins ; and fill me with thy Spirit, that by thy
Spirit thou mayest dwell in me, and, by obedience and love,
1 may dwell in thee, and live in the life of grace, till it pass
on to glory and immensity, by the power and the blessings,
by the passion and intercession of the Word incarnate ; whom
I adore, and whom I love, and whom I will serve for ever
and ever.
III.
O mysterious God, ineffable and glorious Majesty ; what
is this thou hast done to the sons of men ? thou hast from
thy bosom sent thy Son to take upon him our nature ; in him
thou hast opened the fountains of thy mercy, and hast invited
all penitent sinners to come to be pardoned, all the oppressed
to be eased, all the sorrowful to be comforted, all the sick to
be cured, all the hungry to be filled ; and the thirsty to be
refreshed with the waters of life, and sustained with the wine
of select souls. Admit me, O God, to this great effusion of
PREPARATION FOR THE HOLY SACRAMENT. 457
loving-kindness, that I may partake of the Lord Jesus, that
by him I may be comforted in all my griefs, satisfied in all
my doubts; healed of all the wounds of my soul, and the
bruises of my spirit ; and being filled with the bread of
heaven, and armed with the strength of the Spirit, I may
begin, continue, and finish, my journey through this valley
of tears, unto my portion of thy heavenly kingdom, whither
our Lord is gone before to prepare a place for every lovino-
and obedient soul. Grant this, O eternal God, for his sake,
who died for us, and intercedes for us, and gives himself
daily to us, our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus. Amen.
CHAPTER II.
OF OUR GENERAL PREPARATION TO THE WORTHY RECEP-
TION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT, AND THE PARTICIPA-
TION OF THE MYSTERIES.
IN all the Scriptures of the New Testament, there are no
words of particular duty relating to the blessed sacrament,
and expressing the manner of our address to the mysteries,
but those few words of St. Paul, 3 " Let a man examine him-
self; and so let him eat." The apostle expresses one duty,
and intimates another. The duty of preparation is expressed ;
but because this is a relative duty, and is not for itself, but
for something beyond, he implies the other to be the great
duty, to which this preparation does but minister. 1. A man
must examine himself. 2. And a man must eat. A man
must not eat of these mysteries, till he be examined ; for that
were dangerous, and may prove fatal : but when a man is
examined, he must eat ; for else that examination were to no
purpose.
SECTION I.
Of Examination of ourselves in order to the Holy Communion.
THERE is no duty in Christianity, that is partly solemn
and partly moral, that hath in it more solemnity and
1 Cor. xi. 28.
458 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
more morality than this one duty ; and, in the greatest de-
clension of religion, still men have fear, when they come to
receive this holy sacrament. They that have no religion
will fear when they come to die ; and they who have but a
little will fear when they come to communicate. But al-
though men who believe this to be the greatest secret and
sacredness of our religion, do more in their addresses to this
than to any thing else, yet many of them that do come
consider that they are only commanded to examine them-
selves ; and that, according to the ordinary methods, is
easily done. It is nothing but asking ourselves a few ques-
tions : ' Do I believe? Do I repent? And am I in charity?'
To these the answers are ready enough ; * I do believe that
Christ gave his body and blood for me, as for all mankind ;
and that Christ is mystically present in the sacrament ; I
have been taught so all my life, and I have no reason to
doubt it. 2. I do also repent according to the measures I
am taught : I am sorry I have sinned, I wish I had not done
it ; and I promise to do so no more ; and this I do constantly
before every communion, and before the next comes 1 have
reason enough to renew my vows ; I was never so good as
my word yet, but now I will. 3. I am also in charity with all
the world ; and against this good time, I pray to God to
forgive them ; for I do.' This is the usual examination of
consciences ; to which we add a fasting day ; and on that
we say more prayers than usual, and read some good dis-
courses of the sacrament ; and then we are dressed like the
friends of the bridegroom, and with confidence come to the
marriage-supper of the Lamb. But this examination hath,
itself, need to be examined. Noah laboured a hundred
years together, in making the ark, that he and a few more
might be saved ; and can we think, in an hour, to prepare
our souls for the entertainment of him that made all the
world ? This will very hardly be done : for although our
duty of preparation is contained in this one word of ' Try,' or
* Examine,' it being, after the manner of mysteries, mysteri-
ously and secretly described, yet there is great reason to
believe, that there is in it very much duty; and, therefore,
we search into the secret of the word, and to what purposes
it is used in the New Testament.
1 . It signifies to try and search, to enter into the depths
BEFORE THE COMMUNION. 459
and secrets, the varieties, and separations, and divisibilities
of things. The word is taken from the triers of gold, 8 which
is tried by the touchstone, and, in great cases, is tried by the
fire. And, in this sense, St. Paul might relate to the present
condition of the Christians, who were often under a fiery
trial. b For the holy communion, being used by the primitive
Christians according to its intention, was, indeed, a great
consolation to the martyrs and confessors, as appears often
in St. Cyprian . c And this blessing and design was mystically
represented to the Church in the circumstance of the institu-
tion, it being done immediately before the passion: they
who were to pass through this fiery trial, ought to examine
themselves against this solemnity, in order to that last trial,
and see whether or no they were vessels of sanctification and
honour ; for none else were fit to communicate, but they also
that were fit to die ; Christ would give himself to none but
to them who are ready to give themselves for him : according
to that saying of Christ, " If any man hear my voice and
open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and
he with me. To him that overcometh, will I grant to sit
with me," d &c. That is, " those who are tried by the expe-
riments of great love, and a great patience, that out of love
are willing to suffer, and with patience do suffer unto the
end ; these are the guests at my heavenly table : " for labour
and affrightment put a price 6 upon the martyr's crown, while
his virtue grows in danger, and like the water-plants ever
grow higher than the floods. Now the use that we can make
a AoxiftK^ir&i' xtti rov -ggvffov fatagnvfe.lv xai ^ajtif^ti^ofisy, Irt^a iragaSs/Jsvyavrsy.
b Non Israel edit sine amaris caulibus agnum ;
Tolle tuarn, Christ! qui cupis esse, crucem ;
Quos amat, aerumnis etenim Deus angit ; at illia
Laetior exhausto palma labore venit.
c Nunc non infirmis, eed fortibus, pax necessaria est; nee morientibus, sed
virentibus, communicatio a nobis danda est ; ut quos excitamus et hortamur
ad prtelium, non inermes et nudos relinquamus, sed protectione sanguinis et
corporis Christi muniamus ; et cum ad hoc fiat eucharistia, ut possit accipientibus
esse tutela, quos tutos esse contra adversarium volumus, munimento Dominicae
saturitatis armemus. Lib. de Lapsis, et Epist. 54.
d Rev. iii. 20, 21.
e Sit laurea justis
Ex pretio quod terror agit ; mansuraque virtus
Crescit in adversis, quse, testibus usa periclis,
Ad meritum discrimen habet
Arat. Diacon. lib. ii. in acta.
460 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
of this sense of the word, is, that we also are to examine
what we are likely to be, or what we have been, in the day of
persecution ; how we have passed through the fire. Did we
contract the smell of fire, or the pollution of smoke? Or are
we improved by the purification of the discerning flames?
Did we do our duties then, and then learn to do them better?
Or did we then, only, like glass, bend in all the flexures and
mobilities of the flame, and then mingle with the ashes,
incorporating with the interests and foulest pollutions of the
world ? Or were we like gold, patient of the hammer, and
approved by the stone of trial ? Like gold in the fire, did
we untwist ourselves from all complications and mixtures
with impurer dross? Certain it is, that by persecution and by
money/ men are, in all capacities and relations, best exa-
mined how they are in their religion and their justice.
Sometimes God tries his friends as we try one another,
by the infelicities of our lives ; g when we are unhappy in our
affliction, if we be not unhappy in our friend too, he is a right
good one ; and God will esteem of us so, if we can say with
David, " Though thou hast smitten us into the place of
dragons, yet have we not forgotten thee ; " and " my soul is
alway in my hand," that is, I am always in danger and
trouble, and I bear death about me, " yet do I not forsake
thy commandments." This, indeed, is God's way of exami-
nation of us ; but that is all one ; for we must examine
ourselves here in order to our duty and state of being, as God
will examine us hereafter, in order to what we have been
and done. And there is no greater testimony of our being
fit to receive Christ, than when we are ready to die for him.
But this is a final trial ; we must have some steps of pro-
gression, before we come thus far.
2. There is a way something less than this. Lycurgus
instituted among the Spartans, that the princes, the magis-
trates, the soldiers, and every citizen that was capable of
dignity, should be tried ; h they examined their lives whether
they had lived according to 'the rate of their employment or
pretension: and those who were so examined, were called
doxi{j,afft)si/rig, ' tried and examined men ; ' and if they were
f Ecclus. xxxi. 9. 8 ^.ox.'ifia.'^i revs <f!^evs tx, <rns *tt rev fiiev a,Tv%ia.s.
'EvioTi St avrur xcu iZfroH^iro o fiias' }oxtfta<rirts , atri rau its afyas
Qsfitvti. Suidas. 'EirJ ruv x^u.'^iui rut %g nffifiui rovf tv ifgoinvreti $<ixiftciii
BEFORE THE COMMUNION. 461
persons quitting themselves like men, they were ascribed in
the number of the good citizens. That is our way to try
whether we be instructed and rightly prepared to this good
work, and that is, to be examined by a course and order of
good works; that was the old and true way of examining.
For examination is but a relative duty, and nothing of
itself; for no man is the better for being examined, if, being
examined, there follows notbing after it. He that is exa-
mined, either must be approved ; or else, in St. Paul's phrase,
he is ad6xi/j,og, ' a reprobate.' And to what purpose is it, that
every man should examine himself, but, in case that he find
himself unfit, to abstain and forbear to come ? For if he
comes unworthy, he dies for it ; and, therefore, to ' examine'
must signify, ' let every man examine himself, so that he be
approved :' and so the word is used by St. Paul, 1 happy is
he that doth not condemn himself " in that which he ap-
proveth." The word signifies both to examine and to prove ;
that is indeed to examine as Avise men should ; do/.i^dca: dvr/'
ro\J -/.>r,a:, saith Suidas ; it is all one as to judge righteous
judgment after due examination ; and that is expressly added
by the apostle, in the same chapter, after the precept of exa-
mination, " Judge yourselves, that ye be not judged of the
Lord ;" that is, ' your examination of yourselves will prevent
the horrors of the eternal scrutiny ; your condemnation of
your sins will prevent God's condemnation of you for them ;
and then, when you examine so as to judge, and so condemn
your sins that you approve yourselves to God and your own
consciences, then you have examined rightly.'
The sense then is this : let a man examine and prove
himself, whether he be fit to come to the holy communion,
and so let him eat ; not so, if, upon examination, he be found
unfit : but because \t is intended he should come, and yet
must not come without due and just preparations, let him
who conies to the holy communion, be sure that he worthily
prepare himself.
These then are the great inquiries : 1. How a man shall
so examine himself, as to kno\v whether he be fit or no?
2. What are those necessary dispositions, without which a
man cannot be worthily prepared ? The first will represent
'Rom. riv. 22. U Z t,x,{t*r<,. Phil. i. 4. 10. Gal. vi. 4. Ephes. v. 10.
462 OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES.
the general rules of preparation. The second inquiry will
consider the more particular.
SECTION II.
Of the Examination of our Desires.
EVERY one that comes to the holy sacrament, must have
earnest affections and desires towards God and religion, and
particularly towards these Divine mysteries ; and, therefore,
he must examine accordingly, whether or no he be willing
and passionately desirous to do all his duty. His saying
that he is so, I do not suppose to be a sufficient satisfaction
to a serious inquiry, unless he really feels himself to be so.
For we find that all men pretend that they have earnest
desires to be saved ; and very many, espying the beauties of
wisdom, the brightness of chastity, the health of temperance,
the peace of meek persons, and the reputation and joy of
the charitable, wish that they were such excellent persons.
But they consider not, that it is the splendour, not the
virtue; the reputation, not the usefulness; the reward, and
not the duty, that they are in love withal. Our desires of
holiness are too often like our desires of being cut of the
stone, or suffering caustics or cupping-classes, an unwilling
willingness, a hard and a fatal necessity, and, therefore,
something of a consequent choice ; since it can be no better,
it must be no worse. But this can never make our duty
pleasant ; we can never be heartily reconciled for the things
of God as long as we feel smart and pain in the ministries of
religion: we suffer religion, and endure the laws of God; but
we love them not. He that comes to God, whether he will
or no, confesses the greatness of God and the demonstrations
of religion, but sees no amability and comeliness in it ; and
shall find as little of the reward.
It is true that force and fear may bring us in to God ;
and *' the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom ;" and
Christ said, " Compel them to enter;" and our natural needs,
or our superinduced calamities, may force us to run to God,
and affright us into religion as into a sanctuary. But then
if we enter at this door, we must examine whether we be
OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES. 463
taken with the beauties of the interior house : does fear
make us look, and does looking make us like ? If holy
desires and love be not in the beginning or the progression,
we shall do the work of grace pitifully, and our preparations
coldly, and our attentions distractedly, and receive the sacra-
ments without effect.
Now concerning our desires, we shall best judge of them
by the proper effects and significations of desire.
Signs and Indications of the Sincerity and Heartiness of
our Desires.
Are his affections warm and earnest, inquisitive and
longing, interested and concerned in the things of God ? I
do not say it is necessary that he find those passions and
degrees of fierceness, which passionate persons find in sensual
objects : but yet it is very fit that we inquire concerning
those degrees and excesses of desire. Not that he is unfit
who finds them not ; but that they who have them, can also
receive comfort in their inquiry, and become examples to
others, and invite them forwards by the argument of amabi-
lity which they feel.
But our passions and desires are so to be inquired of,
that we find no rest in our souls concerning this question,
unless we do, indeed, set a high value upon these mysteries ;
and love to partake of them," and desire them reasonably,
and, without very great cause, not to omit the opportunities
which the Church gives and requires us to use, and to exceed
the lowest measure of the law ; for he that only communicates
when he is commanded, communicates in obedience, but
not in love. For though obedience to God is love, yet our
obedience to man is most commonly fear ; at least we cannot
so well be sure that we are passionate enough, and have love
enough to these mysteries, when the law of men, that is,
when something ' without,' is our measure. For ecclesias-
tical laws have necessity most commonly for their limit ; and
* Ut perdunt propriam mortalia corpora vitam,
Si nequeunt escas sumere corporeas ;
Sic animae nisi deliciis rationis alantur,
Dum verbi seterni pane carent, pereunt.
Nam quid erit, quod dira procul fastidia pellat,
Cum se ipso refugit mens saturare Deo ? Prosper. Epigr.
464 OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES.
that is the least of all holy measures, less than their deter-
mination we cannot go and be innocent. But if we will
make judgment concerning our love and our desires, we
must frequent these holy mysteries by the measures and
suggestions of something that is within : if it be love, it will
have no measures but itself; and nothing can give it limits
but the circumstances of things themselves and the possibi-
lities of our persons and affairs.
2. Besides this coming upon necessity, our desires are
very much to be suspected, if compliance and custom or
reputation be the ingredients, and prevail above any better
motive that can be observed. As force makes hypocrites,
so favour and secular advantages make flatterers in religion ;
and when a prince or ruler, a master of a family, or any one
that hath power to oblige, is heartily religious, religion will
quickly be in fashion. Those persons which come upon
such inducements, are, by our blessed Saviour, signified by
the parable of the corn that fell by the highway ; they
presently receive it with joy ; and it springs quickly if the
sun shines : but when persecution comes, they hang the
head, and slack their pace, and appear seldom, and shew that
they had no depth of root. These men serve God when
religion is rich and prosperous ; they come to Christ for the
loaves, but care but little for the mystery. As long as the
religion stays at this port, it is good for nothing ; and the
very entry itself is suspicious. Fear is better than this ; but
if it pass on to create an effective and material love, it will be
well at last.
3. They that are easily diverted from communicating, and
apt to be excused from the solemnity, these men have just
cause to suspect their desires to be too cold to kindle the
fires upon this altar, and to consume this sacrifice ; they
have not love, and come against their will. Some men are
hindered by every thing; if a stranger come to the house,
if they be indisposed with a little headach, if they have
an affair of the world, if a neighbour be angry with them,
if a merry meeting be appointed the day before ; this is a
suspicious indifference and lukewarmness. They that are
not desirous to use all opportunities and to take all advan-
tages, and long for all the benefits, want very much of that
* hunger and thirst after the righteousness' of God, which is
OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES. 465
fulfilled in those mysteries, and to which Christ hath pro-
mised such ample satisfaction. I do not say, that every man
is hound to communicate every time that he can have it, and
that it is lukewarmness not to desire it so often as it is in our
power; but he that refuses it, when it is in his opportunity,
when his circumstances are fitted, when, by the measures of
piety and religion, it is decent and useful to him to do it (of
which I shall afterwards give an account), that man is
guilty of a criminal indifference; and when he does come, may
fear that he hath not spiritual hunger enough for so Divine
a banquet.
4. They that, in their preparation, take the least measures
that are practised or allowed, and rest there and increase
not, have neither value for the sacrament, nor desires of
the blessing, nor expectations of any fruit ; and, therefore,
cannot have this holy appetite in due proportion, because
they see no sufficient moving cause, and they look for little,
and find less, and, therefore, can never be true desirers.
For he that thinks there is no great matter in it, will have no
great stomach for it ; and he that will do no great matter for
it, certainly expects no great excellence in it; and such are
all they that take the least measures of preparation; who,
therefore, shall find the least measures of blessing, and, in
spiritual things, that which is called positively the least, is
just none at all; he that 'shall be called least in the king-
dom,' shall be quite shut out. This is an indifference, both
in the cause and in the effect : they feel no great blessings
consequent to their reception; and, therefore, their affections
are cold : and because they are so, they shall for ever be
without the blessing:.
O
5. They only can be confident that their desires are right,
who feel sharpnesses and zeal in their acts of love. For, in
spiritual things, eveVy abatement is by the mixture of the
contrary ; and therefore, when things are indifferent, we
cannot tell which shall be accepted or accounted of. And
when there is as much evil as good, the evil is only abated,
but the good destroyed, and is not accepted; and therefore,
till the victory be clear and evident, we cannot have much
comfort; but the strong desire is only certain and comfort-
able to the spirit. Great desires are a great pain: and the
spouse, in the Canticles, complains that she is ' sick of love,'
VOL. xv. H H
466 OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES.
and then calls upon Christ to ' comfort her with flagons' of
wine. Less desires than the greatest, if they be real and
effective of the work, are fit for such persons as are not the
greatest in religion. But in all spiritual progressions we are
sure that our desires shall never cease growing till they be
full of God, and are swelled up to immensity; and till they
come to some greatness, that they are like hunger and thirst,
or like the breasts of a fruitful nurse, full and in pain till they
be eased, we cannot be so confident that things are well with
us in this particular. Are we in trouble till we converse with
our Lord in all the ways of spiritual intercourse? Do we
rejoice when a communion-day comes? And is our joy
fixed upon consideration of that holy necessity of doing good
works at that time especially, and receiving the aids of grace,
and the helps of the sacrament liberally ? When it is thus, it
is well ; that we can be sure of: all measures of desire which
are so little, thatwe can compare them to no natural similitude
of earnestness and appetite, we can only say that they are
yet very uncomfortable ; and if we come often and pray that
we may have lively relish and appetite to the mysteries,
it may be well in time ; but as yet we cannot be sure that it
is so.
There is only in this case one help to our examination
and our confidence: he that comes because God commands
him, in a direct and certain obedience to the words of Christ,
or in a deep sorrow for his sins, coming either in hopes of
remedy, or in a great apprehension of his infirmity, address-
ing himself either for support and strength ; this man, although
he feels no sensual punctures and natural sharpnesses of
desire, yet he comes well, and upon a right principle. For
St. Austin, reckoning what predisposition is necessary by
way of preparation to the holy sacrament, reckons " hunger
and the sense of our sins and our infirmities;" but if he wants
the pleasure of these passionate indications, he must be
careful that he be sure in the intellectual and religious
choice ; for that is the thing which is intended to be signified
by all the exterior passions. But when he hath no sign, he
must be the more careful he have the thing signified, and
then all is right again.
But happy is that soul which comes to these springs of
salvation as * the hart to the water-brooks,' panting and
OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES. 467
thirsty, longing and passionate, weary of sin, and hating
vanity, and reaching out the heart and hands to Christ. And
this we are taught by the same mystery represented under
other sacraments; the waters of the spiritual rock of which
our fathers drank in the wilderness; the rock was Christ,
and those waters were his blood in the sacrament ; and with
the same appetite they drank those sacramental waters withal,
we are to receive these Divine mysteries evangelical.
Now let us, by the aids of memory and fancy, consider
the children of Israel in the wilderness, in a barren and dry
land where no water was, marching in dust and fire, not wet
with the dew of heaven, wholly without moisture, save only
what dropped from their own brows : the air was fire, and
the vermin was fire : the flying serpents were of the same
cognation with the firmament, their sting was a flame,
their venom was a fever, and the fever a calenture : and their
whole state of abode and travel was a little image of the day
of judgment, when the elements shall melt with fervent heat.
These men, like salamanders walking in fire, dry with heat,
and scorched with thirst, and made yet more thirsty by call-
ing upon God for water; suppose, I say, these thirsty souls
hearing Moses to promise that he will smite the rock, and
that a river should break forth from thence, observe how
presently they ran to the foot of the springing stone,
thrusting forth their heads and tongues to meet the water,
impatient of delay, crying out that ' the water did not move
like light, all at once:' and then suppose the pleasure of
their drink, the unsatiableness of their desire, the immensity
of their appetite ; they took in as much as they could, and
they desired much more. This was their sacrament of the
same mystery, and this was their manner of receiving it; and
this teaches us to cpme to the same Christ with the same
desires. For if that water was a type of our sacrament, or a
sacrament of the same secret blessing, then that thirst is a
signification of our duty, that we come to receive Christ in
all the ways of reception with longing appetites, preferring
him before all the interests of the world ; as birds do corn
above jewels, or hungry men, meat before long orations.
For it is worth observing, that, there being in the Old
Testament thirteen types and umbrages of this holy sacra-
ment, eleven of them are of meat and drink: such are, 1. The
468 OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES.
tree of life in the midst of Paradise ; 2. The bread and wine
of Melchisedec ; 3. The fine meal that Sarah kneaded for
the angels' entertainment; 4. The manna; 5. The roasted
paschal lamb; b 6. The springing rock; 7. The bread of
proposition to be eaten by the priests ; 8. The barley-cake in
the host of Midian: 9. Samson's father's oblation upon the
rock; 10. The honey-comb that opened the eyes of Jonathan ;
11. And the bread which the angel brought to Elijah, in the
strength of which he was to live forty days. All this is to
shew, that the sacrament is the life of the spiritual man, and
the food of his soul, the light of his eyes, and the strength of
his heart; and not only all this, and very much more of this
nature, but to represent our duty also, and the great prin-
ciple of preparation : meat is the object, and hunger is the
address. The wine is the wine of angels; but if you desire
it not, what should you do with it? for the wine that is not
to satisfy your need, can do nothing but first minister to
vanity, and then to vice; first to wantonness, and then to
drunkenness.
St. Austin, expressing the affections of his mother Mo-
nicha to the blessed sacrament, says, " That her soul was, by
the ligatures of faith, united so firmly to the sacrifice, which
is dispensed in the Lord's supper, that a lion or a dragon
could not drag her away from thence;" and it was said of
St. Catharine, " That she went to the sacraments as a suck-
ing infant to his mother's breasts;" and this similitude St.
Chrysostom c expresses elegantly; "See you not with what
pretty earnestness and alacrity infants snatch their nurse's
breast? how they thrust their lips into the flesh, like the
sting of a bee ? Let us approach to this table with no less
desire, and, with no less, suck the nipple of the holy chalice;
yet with greater desire let us suck the grace of the Holy
Spirit." And it is reported that our blessed Lord taught
St. Mechtildis, "When you are to receive the holy com-
munion, desire and wish to the praise of my name to have
all desire and all love, that ever was kindled in any heart
b Sint desiderii post escas pocula magni ;
Fraesertim, quia carnes assas sumpsimus agni.
Assa caro nobis facit ora magis sitibunda
Quam tenerae carnes, quas mollis decoquit unda. Petrus Blesens.
Homil. Ixxxiii. in 26. Matt.
OF EXAMINATION OF OUR DESIRES. 469
towards me, and so come to me; for so will I inflame,
and so will I accept thy love, not as it is, but as thou
desirest it should be in thee." d
" Come unto me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden,"
saith Christ; that is, they that groan under the burden of
their sins, and feel the load of their infirmities, and desire
pardon and remedy ; they that love the instruments of graces
as they are channels of salvation ; they that come to the
sacrament out of earnest desires to receive the blessings of
O
Christ's death, and of his intercession; these are the welcome
guests ; for so saith God, " Open thy mouth wide, and I will
fill it:" for "he hath filled the hungry with good things,"
said the holy virgin mother ; for Christ is food and refresh-
ment to none else : for ' the full he hath sent empty away.'
If, therefore, you understand your danger, and deeply
resent the evil of your infirmities and sinful state ; if you
confess yourselves miserable, and have all corresponding
apprehensions ; if you long for remedy, and would have it
upon any terms ; if you be hungry at your very heart, and
would fain have food and physic, health and spiritual ad-
vantages; if you understand what you need, and desire what
you understand; if these desires be as great as they are
reasonable, and as lasting as they are great; if they be as
inquisitive as they are lasting, and as operative as they are
inquisitive; that is, if they be just and reasonable pursuances
of the means of grace ; if they carry you by fresh and active
appetites to the communion, and, that this may be to pur-
pose, if they fix you upon such methods as will make the
communion effect that which God designed, and which we
need, then we shall perceive the blessings and fruits of
our holy desires: according to those words of David (as
it is rendered in the vulgar Latin), "The Lord hath heard
the desire of the poor: and his ear hath hearkened to the
preparation of their heart." An earnest desire is a good
preparation, and God will attend unto it. Concerning this,
therefore, we are first to examine ourselves. Upon the
d In actis Lovaniensibus dicitur de B. Ida, ex ore et naribus fluere sanguinem
solere, qui non sistebatur, donee ad sacram mensam se sisteret ad sedandum vehe.
mens ejus communicandi cum eo, quern ardenter amaverat, desiderium. c. 9.
ngtxriup.lv roivvv ftiru ^t^oTttrof aur/y xai Vifu^oif/.i^rn ayatmf, ftii vToftttvupiti
rifita^ixv. S. Chrys, horn. xxiv. in 1 ad Corinth.
170 OF EXAMINATION TOUCHING
account of our earnest desires, it is seasonable to inquire
whether to communicate frequently, be an instance of that
holy desire which we ought to have to these sacred mys-
teries ? and whether all men be bound to communicate fre-
quently, and what measure is the safest and best in this
inquiry? But because the answer to this depends upon
some other propositions of differing matter, I reserve it to
its proper place, 6 where it will be a consequent of those
propositions.
SECTION III.
Of our Examination concerning Remanent Affections to Sin.
HE that desires to communicate worthily, must examine
himself, whether there be not in him any affection to sin
remaining. This examination is not any part of repentance,
but a trial of it ; for of preparatory repentance, I shall give
larger accounts in its own place; but now we are to try
whether that duty be done, that, if it be, we may come ; if
not, we may be remanded, and go away till we have per-
formed it ; for he that comes, must have repented first : but
now he is to be examined whether he have or no done that
work so materially, that it is also prosperously; that is,
whether he have done it, not only solemnly and ritually, but
effectively ; whether he have so washed, that he is indeed
clean from any foul and polluting principle.
When the heathens offered a sacrifice to their false gods,
they would make a severe search to see if there were any
crookedness or spot, any uncleanness or deformity, in their
sacrifice. The priest was wont to handle the liver, and
search the throbbing* heart; he inquires if the blood springs
right, and if the lungs be sound; he thrusts his hand into the
region of the lower belly, and looks if there be an ulcer, or
a scirrhus, a stone, or a bed of gravel. Now the observation
which Tertullian b makes upon these sacrificial rites, is
* Chap. v. sect. 4.
a Et fibras pecudum et spirantia consulit exta. Virg.
b Miror, cum hostize probantur penes vos a vitiosissimis sacerdotibus, cur
praecordia potius victimarum, quam ipsorum sacrificaiitium, examinantur? .
Apolog. c. xxx.
REMANENT AFFECTIONS TO SIN. 171
pertinent to this rule: " When your impure priests look after
a pure sacrifice, why do they not rather inquire into their
own heart, than into the lamb's appurtenance? Why do
they not ask after the lust of the sacrificers, more than the
little spot upon the bull's liver?" The rites of sacrifices
were but the monitions of duty; and the priest's inquiry
into the purity of the beast was but a precept represented in
ceremony and hieroglyphic, commanding- us to take care that
the man be not less pure and perfect than the beast. For if
an unclean man brings a clean sacrifice, the sacrifice shall
not cleanse the man, but the man will pollute the sacrifice;
let them bring to God a soul pure d and spotless, lest God
espying a soul humbly lying before the altar, and finding it
to be polluted with a remaining filthiness, or the reproaches
of a sin, he turns away his head and hates the sacrifice.
And God, who taught the sons of Israel in figures and
shadows, and required of the Levitical priests to come to
God clean and whole, straight and with perfect bodies,
meant to tell us, that this bodily precept, in a carnal law,
does, in a spiritual religion, signify a spiritual purity. For
God is never called the lover of bodies, but the great lover
of souls; and he that comes to redeem our souls from sin
and death, from shame and reproach, would have our souls
brought to him as he loves them : an unclean soul is a defor-
mity in the eyes of God ; it is indeed spiritually discerned,
but God hath no other eyes but what are spirits and flames
of fire.
Here, therefore, it concerns us to examine ourselves
strictly and severely, always remembering, that to examine
ourselves (as is here intended) is not a duty completed by
examining; for this carries us on to the sacrament, or re-
turns us to the mortifications of repentance. 6
c Submonentur in his symbolis, ut, quoties accedunt ad altaria, vel nun-
cupaturi vota vel reddituri, nullum vitium, nullumque morbum afferent in
aniiua Philo.
d Conentur omnino nitidam et immaculatam animam in conspectum Dei
producere, rie visam aversetur Phih. Si inortale corpus, multo magis iinraor-
talem anitnam Idem.
* Salvatorem nostrum, fratres charissimi, suscepturi, totis viribus debomus
nos cum ipsius adjutorio pneparare, et oiniies latebras anim;c nostrai diligenter
aspicere, ne forte sit in nobis aliquod peccatum absconditum, quod et con.scit'ii-
tia;n nostram confimdat et mordeat, ut oculos Uivin;e niiiju^tutis oflbiulai
S. /liiibms. de Sacrum.
472 OF EXAMINATION TOUCHING
But sometimes our sins are so notorious, that they go
before unto judgment and condemnation, and they need no
examining; and whatsoever is not done against our wills,
cannot be besides our knowledge, and so cannot need exami-
nation, but remembering only. And, therefore, I do not call
upon the drunkard to examine himself concerning temper-
ance, or the wanton concerning his uncleanness, or the
oppressor concerning his cruel covetousness, or the custom-
ary swearer concerning his profaneness. No man needs
much inquiry to know whether a man be alive or dead, when
he hath lost a vital part.
But this caution is given to the returning sinner, to the
repenting man, to him that weeps for his sins, and leaves
what was the shame of his face, and the reproach of his
heart. For we are quickly apt to think we are washed
enough : and having remembered our shameful falls, we
groan in method, and weep at certain times ; we bid our-
selves be sorrowful, and tune our heart-strings to the accent
and key of the present solemnity ; and as sorrow enters in a
dress and imagery when we bid her, so she goes away when
the scene is done. Here, here it is that we are to examine
whether shows do make a real change; whether shadows
can be substances, and whether to begin a good work splen-
didly can effect all the purposes of its designation. Have
you wept for your sin, so that you were indeed sorrowful
and afflicted in your spirit? Are you so sorrowful, that you
hate it ? Do you so hate it, that you have left it ? And have
you so left it, that you have left it all, and will you do so for
ever? These are particulars worth the inquiring after.
How then shall we know ?
Signs by which we may examine and tell t whether our
Affections to Sin remain.
1. Because, in examining ourselves concerning this, we
can never be sure but by the event of things ; and the heart
being ' deceitful above all things,' we secretly love what we
profess to hate, we deny our lovers, and desire they should
still press us ; we command away the sin from our presence,
for which we die if it stays away. Therefore, while we
are in this preparatory duty of examination, the best sign
whereby we can reasonably suppose all affection to sin be
REMANENT AFFECTIONS TO SIN. 473
gone away, is, if we really believe that we shall never any
more commit that sin to which we are most tempted, and
most inclined, and by which we most frequently fall. Here
is a copious matter for examination.
2. When thou dost examine thyself, thou canst not but
remember how often thou hast sinned by wantonness, per-
haps, or by intemperance ; but now thou sayest thou wilt do
so no more. If thou hadst never said so, and failed, it might
have been likely enough ; but the sun does not rise and set
so often, as thou hast sinned and broken all thy holy vows ;
and thy resolution to put away thy sin is but like Amnon
thrusting out his sister, after he had enjoyed her and was
weary : sin looks ugly, after it hath been handled ; and
having lost thy innocence and thy peace for nothing but the
exchange of shame and indignation, thou art vexed, peevish,
and unsatisfied, and then thou resolvest thou wilt sin no
more. But thou wilt find this to be no great matter, but a
great deception; for thou only desirest it not, because for the
present the appetite is gone ; thou hast no fondness for it,
because the pleasure is gone ; and like him who having
scratched the skin till the blood comes, to satisfy a disease of
pleasure and uncleanness, feeling the smart, thou resolvest
to scratch no more.
3. But consider, I pray, and examine better; is the disease
cured, because the skin is broken ? will the appetite return
no more? and canst not thou again be tempted? is it not
likely that the sin will look prettily, and talk flattering
words, and entice thee with softnesses and easy fallacies?
and wilt not thou then lay thy foolish head upon the lap of
the Philistine damsel, and sleep till thy locks be cut, and all
thy strength is gone? wilt not thou forget thy shame and
thy repentance, thy sick stomach and thy aching head, thy
troubled conscience and thy holy vows, when thy friend
calls thee to go and sin with him, to walk aside with him in
the regions of foolish mirth, and an unperceived death?
Place thyself, by consideration and imaginative represent-
inent, in the circumstances of thy former temptation ; and
consider when thou canst be made to desire, and are invited
to desire, and naturally dost desire, can thy resolution hold
out against such a battery?
4. In order to this, examine whether there be in thee any
474 OF EXAMINATION TOUCHING
good principle stronger than all the arguments and flatteries
of thy sin : but above all things, examine whether there be
not in thee this principle, that if thou dost sin again in great
temptation, thou wilt and mayest repent again : take heed
of that, for it is certain, no man lives in the regions of
temptation, to whom sin can seem pleasant, but he will fall
when the temptation comes strongly, if he have this principle
within him, that though he do commit that sin, he may and
will repent. For then sin hath got a paranymph and a soli-
citor, a warrant and an advocate : if you think that you can
so order it, that you shall be as sure of heaven, though you
do this sin, as though you doit not, you can have no security:
your resolutions are but glass ; they may look like diamonds
to an undiscerning eye ; but they will last no longer than till
the next rude temptation falls upon them.
5. Examine yet further : is your case so, that you have
no reserves of cases in which your sin shall prevail? you
resolve to leave the partner of your follies, and you go from
her lest you be tempted : it is well, it is very well : but is
not your heart false as water? and, if you should see her
again, do not you perceive, that your resolution hath brought
you to a little shame, because it will upbraid thy falsehood
and inconstancy? You resolve against all intemperate anger,
and you deny the importunity of many trifling occurrences :
but consider, if you be provoked, and if you be despised, can
your flesh and blood endure it then ? It may be, Calphurnius
and Tucca shall not persuade thee to go to the baths of
Lucrinus ; but if Mecaenas calls thee, or the consul desires
thy company, thou canst resist no longer. Thou didst play
the fool with poor Calenia, and thou art troubled at thy folly,
and art ashamed when thou dost remember how often thou
wentest into the Summcenium, and peeped into the titles of
those unhappy women, whose bodies were the price of a
Roman penny; but art thou so severe and chaste, that
thou wilt die rather than serve the imperious lust of Julia ?
or wilt thou never be scorched with the flames of Corinna's
beauty? It is nothing to despise a cheap sin and a common
temptation; but art thou strong enough to overcome the
strongest argument that thy sin hath ? Examine thyself here
wisely and severely. It is not thy part, saying, * I will sin
no more.' He that hath new dined, can easily resolve to fast
REMANENT AFFECTIONS TO SIN. 475
at night; but when thou art hungry and invited, and there
is rare meat on the table, and thy company stays for thee,
and importunes thee, canst thou then go on with thy fasting-
day? if thou canst, it is as it should be; but let not thy
resolution be judged by short sayings, but first by great
considerations, and then by proportionable events. If nei-
ther the biggest temptation, nor thy trifling hopes, nor thy
foolish principles, nor weak propositions, can betray thee,
then thou mayest with reason say, that you have no affection
so strong as the love of God, no passion so great as thy
repentance, no pleasure equal to that of a holy conscience ;
and then thou mayest reasonably believe that there is in thee
no affection to sin remaining. But something more is to be
added.
6. In the examination of this particular, take no account
of yourself by the present circumstances, and by your
thoughts and resolutions in the days of religion and solem-
nity ; but examine how it is with you in the days of ordi-
nary conversation, and in the circumstances of secular em-
ployments. For it is with us in our preparations to the
holy communion, as it is with women that sit to have their
pictures drawn, they make themselves brave and adorned,
and put on circumstances of beauty to represent themselves
to their friends and to their posterity with all the advantages
of art and dressing. But he that loves his friend's picture
because it is like her, and desires to see in image what
he had in daily conversation, would willingly see her in
picture as he sees her every day; and that is most like
her, not which resembles her in extraordinary, and by the
sophistry of dressing, but as she looked when she went about
in the government of her family ; so must we look upon our-
selves in the dresses- of every day in the week, and not take
accounts of ourselves as we trick up our souls against a
communion-day. For he that puts on fine clothes for one
day or two, must not suppose himself to be that prince
which he only personates. We dress ourselves upon a day
of religion, and then we cannot endure to think on sin; and if
we do, we sigh; and when we sigh, we pray, and suppose
that if we might die upon that day, it would be a good day's
work, for we could not die in a better time. But let us not
deceive ourselves. That is our picture that is like us every
476 OF EXAMINATION TOUCHING
day in the week; and if you are as just in your buying and
selling as you are when you are saying your prayers; if you
are as chaste in your conversation as you are in your reli-
gious retirement ; if your temperance be the same every day
as it is in your thoughts upon a fasting-day ; if you wear the
same habits of virtue every day in the week as you put on
upon a communion-day, you have more reason to think your-
selves prepared, than by all the extempore piety and solemn
religion that rises at the sound of a bell, and keeps her time
by the calendar of the Church more than by the laws of
God.
This is not so to be understood as if it were not fit that
against a solemn time, and against a communion-day, our
souls should be more adorned, and our lamps better dressed,
and our lights snuffed, and our religion more active, and the
habits of grace should exercise more acts; but this is meant
only, that though the acts of virtue are not so frequent on
ordinary days, yet there must be no act of vice upon them
at all, and the habits of grace must be the same, and the
inclinations regular, and the disposition ready, and the
desires pressed; and you shall better know the estate of your
soul, by examining how you converse with your merchant,
than by considering how cautiously you converse with your
priest. He that talks to a prince will talk as wisely as he
can ; but if you will know what the man is, inquire after him
in his house, and how he is with all his relations. For no
man stands upon his guard always as he does sometimes.
If, therefore, upon examining, you would understand what
you are, examine yourself, not by your clothes, but by your
body ; not by the extraordinaries of a solemn religion, but by
the ordinaries of a daily conversation.
These are the best Signs I can tell of; but they are to be made
use of with the following Cautions.
1 . Although, in trying whether your resolutions are
likely to hold and your affections to sin are gone, you
must not rely upon words, but place yourself in the scene
and circumstances of your temptation, and try whether you
be likely to hold out when sin comes with all the offers of
advantage ; yet be careful that this examination of your own
REMANENT AFFECTIONS TO SIN. 477
strength against temptation become not a temptation to you ;
and this is especially to be attended to in the matter of lust
and fear.
For the very imaginations of a lustful object are of them-
selves a direct temptation ; and he that dresses his fancy with
remembrances of this vanity, opens a door to let the sin in.
Murenia's little boy, being afraid of the wolf at the door,
opened the door to see if he were gone, and let the beast in ;
and since the fancy is the proper scene of lust, he that brings
the temptation there, brings it where it can best prevail.
Therefore, in our examination concerning this evil, and
whether we be likely to stand in this war, we are to examine
ourselves only, w r hether we are perfectly resolved to fly and
not to fight : that is, whether we will secure ourselves by the
proper arts of the spirit of prudence ; for if any thing can
make us come near this devil, we are lost without remedy.
The temptations in the matter of fear are something like
it ; if you will examine whether you love God so well that
you would die for him, inquire as well and wisely as you
can, but be not too particular. Satisfy yourself with a general
answer, and rest in this, if you find that the apprehension of
death is not so great as the apprehension of sin ; if you pray
against fear, and heap up arguments to confirm your courage
and your hope ; if you find that you despise those instances
of persecution that you meet with ; for the rest, believe in
God, who, it may be, will not give strengths before you need
them: and, therefore, be satisfied with thus much, that your
present strength is sufficient for any present trial ; and when
a greater comes, God hath promised to give you more
strength, when you shall have need of more. But examine
yourself by what is likely to fall upon you actually. It may
be, you have cause to fear that you shall be made poor for a
good conscience, or imprisoned for your duty, or banished for
religion ; consider if you love God so well that you are likely
to suffer that which is likely to happen to you, but do not
dress your examination with rare contingencies, and unlikely
accidents, and impossible cases. Do not ask yourself whether
you would endure the rack for God, or the application of
burning basins to the eyes, or the torment of a slow fire, or
whether you had rather go to hell than commit a sin ; this is
too fantastic a trial ; and when God, it may be, knowing
478 OF EXAMINATION TOUCHING
your weakness, will never put you to it really, do you not
tempt yourself by fancy, and an afflictive representment.
Domitian was a cruel man, false and bloody; and to be
near him was a perpetual danger, enough to try the con-
stancy of the bravest Roman. But once, that he might be
wanton in his cruelty, he invited the chiefest of the Patricii
to supper, who, coming in obedience and fear enough,
entered into a court all hanged with blacks, and from thence
were conducted into dining-rooms by the pollinctores, who
used to dress the bodies unto funerals : the lights of heaven
(we may suppose) were quite shut out by the approaching
night and arts of obscurity : when they were in those charnel-
houses (for so they seemed), every one was placed in order,
a black pillar or coffin set by him, and in it a dim taper
besmeared with brimstone, that it might burn faint, and blue,
and solemn : where when they had stood awhile, like designed
sacrifices, or as if the prince were sending them on solemn
embassy to his brother, the prince of darkness ; on a sudden
entered so many naked blackamoors, or children besmeared
with the horrid juice of the sepia, who, having danced a
little in fantastic and devils' postures, retired awhile, and
then returned serving up a banquet as at solemn funerals,
and wine brought to them in urns instead of goblets, with
deepest silence, now and then interrupted with fearful groans
and shriekings. Here the senators, who possibly could have
struggled with the abstracted thoughts of death, seeing it
dressed in all the fearful imagery and ceremonies of the
grave, had no powers of philosophy or Roman courage ; but
falling into a lipothymy, or deep swooning, made up this
pageantry of death with a representing of it unto the life.
This scene of sorrows was overacted ; and it was a witty
cruelty to kill a wise man by making him too imaginative
and fantastical. It is not good to break a staff by too much
trying the strength of it, or to undo a man's soul by a useless
and so fantastic a temptation. For he that tries himself
further than he hath need of is like Palaemon's shepherd,
who, fearing the foot-bridge was not strong enough, to try it,
loaded it so long, till, by his unequal trial, he broke that
which would have borne a bigger burden than he had to carry
over it. Some things will better suffer a long usage than an
unequal trial.
REMANENT AFFECTIONS TO SIN. 479
2. When any man hath, by the former measures, exa-
mined himself, how his affections do stand to sin and folly,
by whatsoever signs he is usually made confident, let him
be sure to make abatements of his confidence, if he have
found that he hath failed already in despite of all his arts,
and all his purposes. If we have often fallen back from our
resolutions, there is then no sign left for us but the thing
signified ; nothing can tell us how our affections are but by
observing what they do. For he that hath broken his word
with me when it was in his power to keep it, hath destroyed
my confidence in him ; but if he hath deceived me twice or
thrice in the same thing, for shame and prudence sake I
will venture no more, if I can be disobliged. If we there-
fore have failed of our promises to God for many times, that
we can speak nothing reasonably of our proceedings, nor
imagine what thoughts God hath concerning us, but the
hardest and the worst ; though we have great reason to
rejoice in God's long-suffering and infinite patience, yet, by
any signs which can be given, we have no reason to trust
ourselves.
For if we shall now examine, we can tell no more than
we could do before; we were always deceived in our con-
jectures and pretences ; and it is more likely now, because
sin hath so long prevailed ; and, by our frequent relapses, we
must at least learn this truth, that our hearts are false, and
our promises are not to be trusted. In this case, no testi-
mony is credible but an eye-witness. Therefore let us leave
all artificial examinations, and betake ourselves to the solid
and material practices of a religious life. We must do some-
thing really, before we can, by inquiring, tell how it is with
us. When we have resolved, and in some measure per-
formed our resolution. ; when we have stood the shock of a
temptation, and found our heart firm as in a day of religion ;
when we perceive sin to be weaker, and the kingdom of
grace to grow in power ; when we feel that all our holy vows
are more than words, and that we are not the same easy
fools, always giving God good words, but never performing
them ; but that now we have set foot upon the enemy, and
are not infallibly carried away when our temptation comes ;
then we may inquire further, and look after the former signs
and indications of spiritual life, and the just measures of
480 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
preparation. Till then let us not trouble ourselves with the
particulars of spiritual arts, and the artificial methods of
religion ; for things are not so well with us as we suppose.
SECTION IV.
Of Examination of ourselves in the Matter of our Prayers, in
order to a holy Communion.
THE holy sacrament is, in its nature and design, a solemn
prayer, and the imitation of the intercession which our glorious
High-Priest continually makes for us in heaven ; and as it is
our ministry, and contains our duty, it is nothing else but the
solemnity and great economy of prayer, for the whole, and
for every member, and for all and every particular necessity
of the Church ; and all the whole conjugation of offices, and
union of hearts, and conjunction of ministers, is nothing but
the advantages, and solemnity, and sanctification of prayer;
and, therefore, in order to do this work in solemnity as we
ought, it were very fit that we examine ourselves, how we do
it in ordinary and daily offices.
For since there are so many excellent promises made to
prayer, and that nothing more disposes us to receive the
grace of the sacraments, and the blessings of communion,
than holy prayer ; since prayer can obtain every thing, it
can open the windows of heaven, and shut the gates of hell ;
it can put a holy constraint upon God, and detain an
angel till he leave a blessing ; it can open the treasures of
rain, and soften the iron ribs of rocks, till they melt into tears
and a flowing river: prayer can unclasp the girdles of the
north, saying to a mountain of ice, ' Be thou removed hence,
and cast into the bottom of the sea ;' it can arrest the sun in
the midst of his course, and send the swift-winged winds
upon our errand ; and all those strange things, and secret
decrees, and unrevealed transactions, which are above the
clouds, and far beyond the regions of the stars, shall com-
bine in ministry and advantages for the praying man : it
cannot be but we should feel less evil and much more good
than we do, if our prayers were right. But the state of
IN MATTER OF OUR PRAYERS. 481
things is thus : it is an easy duty, and there are many
promises, and we do it often, and yet we prevail but little.
Is it not a strange thing that our friends die round about us,
and, in every family, some great evil often happens, and a
church shall suffer persecution for many years together
\vithout remedy, and a poor man groans under his oppressor,
who is still prosperous, and we cannot rescue the life of a
servant from his fatal grave ; and still we pray, and do not
change the course of providence in a single instance many
times, whether the instance be of little or great concern-
ment : What is the matter? we patiently suffer our prayers
to be rejected, and comfort ourselves by saying, that, ' it
may be, the thing is not fit for us, it is against the decree of
God, or against our good, or to be denied is better; and
there is a secret order of things and events, to which a denial
does better minister than a concession.' This is very true,
but not always when we are denied ; for it is not always in
mercy, but in anger very often, we are denied, because our
duty is ill performed. For if our prayers were right, the pro-
vidence of God would often find out ways to reconcile his
great ends with our great desires : and we might be saved
hereafter, and yet delivered here besides ; and sometimes we
should have heaven and prosperity too, and the cross should
be sweetened, and the days of affliction should, for our sakes,
be shortened, and death would not come so hastily : and yet
we should be preserved innocent in the midst of an evil
generation, though it waited for the periods and usual deter-
minations of nature : let us rectify our prayers, and try what
the event will be ; it is worth so much at least ; but however,
as to the present case, if we perform this duty pitifully and
culpably, it is not to be expected we should communicate
holily. The gradation and correspondences of this holy
ministry will demonstrate this truth.
For what Christ did once upon the cross in real sacri-
fice, that he always does in heaven, by perpetual represent-
rnent and intercession ; what Christ does by his supreme
priesthood, that the Church doth by her ministerial ; what he
does in heaven, we do upon earth ; what is performed at the
right-hand of God, is also represented, and, in one manner,
exhibited upon the holy table of the Lord : and what is done
VOL. XV. I I
482 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
on altars upon solemn days, is done in our closets in our
daily offices; that is, God is invocated, and God is appeased,
and God is reconciled, and God gives us blessings and the
fruits of Christ's passion in the virtue of the sacrificed Lamb ;
that is, we, believing and praying, are blessed, and sanctified,
and saved through Jesus Christ. So that as we pray, so we
communicate ; if we pray well, we may communicate well,
else at no hand. Now in this, besides that we are to take
account of our prayers by all those measures of the Spirit
which we have learned in the Holy Scriptures, there are two
great lines of duty by which we can well examine ourselves
in this particular.
1 . That our prayers must be the work of our hearts, not
of our lips ; that is, that we heartily desire what we so care-
fully pray for : and God knows this is not very ordinary.
For besides that we are not in love with the things of God,
and have no worthy value for religion, there are many things
in our prayer which we ask for, and do not know what to do
with, if we had them ; and we do not feel any want of them,
and we care not whether we have them or no. We ask for
the Spirit of God, for wisdom, and for a right judgment in
all things; and yet there are not many in our Christian
assemblies who use to trouble themselves at all with judging
concerning the mysteries of godliness. Men pray for, humi-
lity, and yet at the same time think that all that which is
indeed humility is a pitiful poorness of spirit, pusillanimity,
and want of good breeding. We pray for a contrition and a
broken heart ; and yet, if we chance to be melancholy, we
long to be comforted, and think that the lectures of the
cross bring death, and therefore are not the way of eternal
life. We pray sometimes that God may be first and last in
all our thoughts; and yet we conceive it no great matter
whether he be or no ; but we are sure that he is not, but the
things of the world do take up the place of God, and yet we
hope to be saved for all that, and, consequently, are very
indifferent concerning the return of that prayer. We fre-
quently call upon God for his grace, that we may never fall
into sin ; now, in this, besides that we have no hopes to be
heard, and think it impossible to arrive to a state of life in
which we shall not commit sins, yet if we do sin we know
IN MATTER OF OUR PRAYERS. 183
there is a remedy so ready, that we believe we are not much
the worse if we do. Here are prayers enough : but where are
the desires all this while ? We pray against covetousness,
and pride, and gluttony; but nothing that we do but is
either covetousness or pride ; so that our prayers are termi-
nated upon a word, not upon a thing. We do covetous
actions, and speak proud words, and have high thoughts,
and do not passionately desire to have affections contrary
to them, but onlv to such notions of the sin as we have
entertained, which are such as will do no real prejudice or
mortification to the sin : and whatever our prayers are, yet
it is certain our desires are so little, and so content witli any
thing of this nature, that, for very many spiritual petitions,
we are indifferent whether they be granted or not.
But if we are poor or persecuted, if we be in fear or
danger, if we be heart-sick or atilicted witli an uncertain
soul, then we are true desirers of relief and mercy ; we long
for health, and desire earnestly to be safe; our hearts are
pinched with the desire, and the sharpness of the appetite is
a pain ; then we pray, and mind what we do. He that is in
fear of death, does not, when he prays for life, think upon
his money and his sheep ; the entering of a fair woman into
the room does not bend his neck, and make him look off
from the prince's face, of whom he sues for pardon. And if
we had desires as strong as our needs, and apprehensions
answerable to our duty, it were not possible that a man
should say his prayers and never think of what he speaks :
but as our attention is, so is our desire, trifling and imperti-
nent ; it is frighted away like a bird, which fears as much
when you come to give it meat, as if you came with a design
of death.
When, therefore,, you are to give sentence concerning
your prayers, your prayer-book is the least thing that is to
be examined, your desires are the principal, for they are
fountains both of action and passion. Desire what you pray
for, for certain it is, you will pray passionately if you desire
fervently. Prayers are but the body of the bird ; desires
are its angel's wings.
*2. If you will know how it is with you in the matter of
your prayers, examine whether or no the form of your prayer
bp the rule of your life. Every petition to God is a precept
484 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
to man ; and when in your litanies you pray to be delivered
from malice and hypocrisy, from pride and envy, from forni-
cation and every deadly sin ; all that is but a line of duty,
and tells us that we must never consent to an act of pride
or a thought of envy, to a temptation of uncleanness, or the
besmearings and evil paintings of hypocrisy. But we, when
we pray against a sin, think we have done enough, and if
we ask for a grace, suppose there is no more required. Now
prayer is an instrument of help, a procuring auxiliaries of
God, that we may do our duty ; and why should we ask for
help, if we be not ourselves bound to do the thing? Look
not, therefore, upon your prayers as a short method of ease
and salvation, but as a perpetual monition of duty ; and by
what we require of God, we see what he requires of us; and
if you want a system or collective body of holy precepts,
you need no more but your prayer-book ; and if you look
upon them first as duties, then as prayers, that is, things fit
to be desired, and fit to be laboured for, your prayers will be
much more useful; not so often vain, not so subject to
illusion, not so destitute of effect, or so failing of the pro-
mises. The prayers of a Christian must be like the devotions
of the husbandman, ' God speed the plough ; ' that is,
labour and prayer together; a prayer to bless our labour.
Thus, then, we must examine :
Is desire the measure of our prayer? and is labour the
fruit of our desire ? if so, then what we ask we shall receive
as the gift of God, and the reward of our labour ; but unless
this be the state of our prayer, we shall find that the
receiving of the sacrament will be as ineffective, because it
will be as imperfect, as our prayer. For prayer and com-
munion differ but as creat and little in the same kind of
o
duty. Communion is but a great, public, and solemn address
and prayer to God through Jesus Christ : and if we be not
faithful in a little, we shall not be intrusted in a greater ; he
that does not pray holily and prosperously, can never com-
municate acceptably. This, therefore, must be severely and
prudently examined.
But let us remember this, that there is nothing fit to be
presented to God but what is great and excellent ; for
nothing comes from him but what is great and best, and
nothing should be returned to him that is little and con-
IN MATTER OF OUR PRAYERS. 485
temptible in its kind. It is a mysterious elegance tliat is in
the Hebrew of the Old Testament, 3 when the Spirit of God
would call any thing very great or very excellent, he calls it
" of the Lord : " so ' the affrightment of the Lord ; ' that is,
a great affrightment fell upon them. And the fearful fire
that fell upon the shepherds and sheep of Job, b is called the
"fire of God;" and when David took the spear and water-
pot from the head of Saul while he and his guards were
sleeping, it is said that "the sleep of the Lord," that is, a
very great sleep, was fallen upon them. Thus we read of the
"flames of God," and "a land of darkness of God, " d that
is, vehement flames, and a land of exceeding darkness ;
and the reason is, because when God strikes, he strikes
vehemently; so that ' it is a fearful thing to fall into the
hands of the living God.' And on the other side, when he
blesses, he blesses excellently ; and, therefore, when Naomi
blessed Boaz, she said, "Let him be blessed of the Lord,"
that is, according to the Hebrew manner of speaking, " Let
him be exceedingly blessed." In proportion to all this,
whatsoever is offered, to God should be of the best; it
should be a devout prayer, a fervent, humble, passionate
supplication. He that prays otherwise, must expect the
curses and contempt of lukewannness, and will be infinitely
unworthy to come to the holy communion, whither they that
come intend to present their prayers to God in the union of
Christ's intercession, which is then solemnly imitated and
represented. An indevout prayer can never be joined with
Christ's prayers. Fire will easily combine with fire, and
flame marries flame ; but a cold devotion and the fire of this
altar can never be friendly and unite in one pyramid, to
ascend together to the regions of God and the element of
love. If it be a prayer of God, that is, fit to be entitled, fit
to be presented unto him, it must be most vehement and
holy. "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man"
only can be confident to prevail ; nothing else can ever be
sanctified by a conjunction with this sacrifice of prayer,
which must be consumed by a heavenly fire. There is not,
indeed, any greater indication of our worthiness or un worthi-
ness to receive the holy communion, than to examine and
understand the state of our daily prayer.
a Gen. xxxv. 15. b Job, i. 16. c Cant. viii. 6. A Jerem.
486 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
SECTION V.
Of preparatory Examination of ourselves in some other
Instances.
HE that comes to the holy communion, must examine him-
self concerning his passions ; whether that which usually
transports him to indecency and shame, to sin and folly, be
brought under the dominion of grace, under the command of
reason, under the empire of the Spirit. For the passions of
the soul are the violences and storms of reason ; neither
reason nor grace can be heard to speak when they are loud ;
and in vain it is that you tell a passionate person of the
interests of wisdom and religion. We see it in fools, who
O '
have no allay of reason ; their anger is rage, their jealousy is
madness, their desires are ravenous, their loves are trouble-
some and unseasonable, their hopes are groundless, but ever
confident ; their fears are by chance, but always without
measure : and a fool, when his belly is full, may as soon be
persuaded into temperate discourses, as he that is passionate*
to be obedient to God and to the rules of his own felicity.
A great fear and a constant virtue are seldom found in
one man ; and a coward is virtuous by chance, and so long
as he is let alone ; but unless the fear of God be greater than
the fear of man, it is in the power of his enemy whether that
man shall be happy or wise. And so it is in a great or easy
anger; every man and every thing can put a peevish person
out of his religion. It cannot in these and all the like cases
be well, unless by examining we find that our spirit is more
meek, our passion easier overcome, and the paroxysms or
fits return less frequently, and the symptoms be less ma-
lignant. In this instance we must be quick and severe ; and
begin betimes to take a course with these vermin and vipers
of the soul. Suetonius 8 tells, that when the witty flatterers
of Csesar had observed that no frogs did breed in his grand-
father's villa, which was in the suburbs of Rome, they set
themselves to invent a reason which should flatter the prince,
and boldly told abroad, that when young Octavius was a
a Quum primum fari coepisset, in avito suburbano obstrepentes forte
ranas silere jussit : atque ex eo negantur ibi ranae coaxal e. Octav. 94.
B. Crus. vol. i. p. 360. (J. R. P.)
IN SOME OTHER INSTANCES. 487
child, he once, in sport, forbade them to make a noise, and
for ever after they were silent and left their pools ; ever
since Octavius began to speak, they left off to make their
noises and their dwellings there. If we suppress our passions
that make inarticulate noises in the soul, if betimes and in
their infancy we make them silent, we shall find peace in all
our days. But an old passion, an inveterate peevishness, an
habitual impotency of lust and vile desires, are like an old
lion ; he will by no means be made tame, and taught to eat
the meat of peace and gentleness.
If thy passion be lasting and violent, thou art in a state
of evil : if it be sudden and frequent, transient and volatile,
thou wilt often fall into sin ; and though every passion be
not a sin, yet every excess of passion is a diminution of
reason and religion ; and when the acts are so frequent that
none can number them, what effects they leave behind, and
how much they disorder the state of grace, none can tell.
Either, therefore, suffer no passion to transport and govern
you, or no examination can signify any thing. For no man
can say, that a very passionate man is a very good man ; or
how much he is beloved of God, who plays the fool so
frequently ; nor how long God will love him, who is at the
mercy of his imperious passion, which gives him laws, and
can every day change his state from good to bad. It was
well said of one, ' If you give the reins to grief, every thing
that crosses thee can produce the biggest grief ;' b and the
causes of passions are as they are made within. He that
checks at every word, and is jealous of every look, and
disturbed at every accident, and takes all things by the
wrong .handle, and reflects upon all disturbances, switches
and spurs his passion, and strives to overtake sin, and to be
tied unto infelicity ; .but nothing can secure our religion, but
binding our passions in chains, and doubling our guards
upon them, lest, like mad folks, they break their locks and
bolts, arid do all the mischief of which they can have in-
struments and opportunity.
Concerning some sort of passionate persons, it may be truly said that
they are very unfit to communicate ; but that they are fit, it can be
confidently said of none.
b Dolori si fncna remiseris, nulla materia non est maxima.
488 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
Here, therefore, let us thus examine ourselves.
Are your desires unreasonable, passionate, impotent, and
transporting ? If God refuses to give you what you desire,
can you lay your head softly down upon the lap of provi-
dence,- and rest content without it? Do you thankfully
receive what he gives, and, when he gives you not what
you covet, can you still confess his goodness, and glorify his
will and wisdom, without any amazement, dissatisfaction, or
secret murmurs? Gan you be at peace within, when your
purposes are defeated ; and at peace abroad with him that
stands in the way between you and your desires ? And how
is it with you in your anger ? Does it last so long, or return
so frequently, as before ? Have you the same malice, or have
you the same peevishness? For one long anger, and twenty
short ones, have no very great difference, save only, that in
short and sudden angers we are surprised, and not so in the
other: but it is an intolerable thing always to be surprised,
and a thousand times to say, ' I was not aware,' or ' I was
mistaken.' But let us without excuses examine ourselves in
this matter, for this is the great magazine of virtue or vice;
here dwells obedience or licentiousness, a close knot or an
open liberty, little pleasures and great disturbances, loss of
time and breach of vows.* 1 But if, that we may come to
Christ, we have stopped so many avenues of sin, and
fountains of temptation, it may be very well ; but, without
it, it can never.
2. He that comes to the holy communion, must examine
himself whether his lusts be mortified, or whether they be
only changed. For, many times, we have seeming peace,
when our open enemies are changed into false friends: and
we think ourselves holy persons, because we are quit of
carnal crimes, and yet, in exchange for them, we are dying
with spiritual. It is an easy thing to reprove a murderer,
and to chicle a foolish drunkard, to make a liar blush, and a
c Haec brevis est, ilia perennis, aqua.
d Hie habitat nullo constricta Licentia nodo,
Et flecti faciles Irae, vinoque madentes
Excubia?
Jucundique Metus, et non secura Voluptas,
Et lasciva volant levibus Perjuria pennis.
Claud, de Nupliis Honorii. 78. Gesner. vol. i. p. 138.
IN SOME OTHER INSTANCES. 489
thief to run away. But you may be secretly proud, when
no man shall dare tell you so ; and have a secret envy,
and yet keep company with the best and most religious
persons. A little examination will serve your turn to know
whether you have committed adultery, or be a swearer ; but
to know whether your intentions be holy, whether you love
the praise of men more than the praise of God, whether
religious or secular interest be the dearer, whether there be
any hypocrisy or secret malice in your heart, hath some-
thing of more secret consideration. Do not you sometimes
secretly rejoice in the diminution or disparagement of your
brother ? Do not you tell his sad and shameful story with
some pleasure? Are you not quick in telling it, and willing
enough it should be believed? Would you not fain have
him less than yourself; not so eminent, not so well esteemed ;
and, therefore, do not you love to tell a true story of him,
that is not so very much for his commendation ?
These things must be examined, not that it can be
thought that a man must be without fault when he comes,
but that he must cherish none, he must leave none unex-
amined, he must discover as much as he can, and crucify
all that he can discover. He that hath mortified his carnal
appetite, and is proud of his conquest ; or prays often, and
reproaches him that does not; and gives alms, and secretly
undervalues him that cannot ; or is of a right opinion, but
curses him that is of the wrong; or leaves his ambitious
pursuits and vainglorious purposes, but sits at home and is
idle ; is like a man who stands by a fire in a wide and a
cold room ; he scorches on one side, and freezes on the
other; whereas the habits of virtue are like a great mantle,
and the man is warm and well all over. But it is an ill cure
for the ague to fall into a fever, or to be eased of sore eyes
by a diversion of the rheum upon the lungs. And that soul
that turns her back upon one sin, and her face to another, is,
it may be, weary of the instance, but not of the iniquity ;
and, rolling upon an uneasy bed of thorns, chooses only to
be tormented in another part : but finding the same sense
there, because the part is informed by the same spirit, and
no difference between the thorn in the side and the thorn in
the hand, perceives herself miserable and encircled with
calamity. But when from carnal crimes, which bring shame,
4-90 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES
a man falls into spiritual crimes, which most men let alone ;
from those sins which every thing can reprove, to a secret
venom and an undiscerned ulcer ; a man may come to the
communion, and the holy man that ministers cannot reject
him ; but he causes no joy before the angels ; and because
he does not examine wisely and judge severely, he is dis-
cerned by God, and shall be judged, when to be 'judged'
means all one with * being condemned.'
3. When we examine ourselves in order to receiving of
the blessed sacrament, we must be careful that we do not
limit our examination, and confine it to the time since our
last receiving. For some persons who think themselves
spiritual, usually examine how they have comported them-
selves since the last communion only, and accordingly make
judgment upon themselves. And these men possibly may
do well enough, if they be of the number of them of whom
our blessed Saviour affirms, that ' they need no repentance,'
that is, no change of life, no inquiry but into the measures
of progression : but there are but few who live at that rate ;
and they that do, it may be, have not that confidence. But
to them, and all men else, it were safe advice, that the
inquiry how they have lived since the last communion,
should be but one part of their examination.
1 . Because they who so limit their inquiries, must needs
suppose that till then all was well, and that then they com-
municated worthily ; and consequently, that all the whole
work and economy of salvation was then performed ; every
one of which supposals hath an uncertain truth, but a very
certain danger.
2. They who so limit their examination, suppose that
at every communion they begin the world anew ; whereas
our future life is to be a progression upon the old stock, and
judgment is to be made of this that comes after by that
which went before ; and, therefore, these limited examina-
tions must needs be of less use and purpose. True it is,
that at every communion we are to begin a new life; and
so we ought every day ; that is, we ought to be as zealous
and as penitent, as resolute and affectionate, as if we never
had begun before : we ought so to suspect the imperfection
of what is past, that we are to look upon ourselves but as
new beginners ; that, by apprehending the same necessity,
IN SOME OTHER INSTANCES. 491
we may have the same passion, the same fervour and holy
fires. But in this matter of examining we must consider
how much hath been pardoned, that we may examine how-
thankful we have been, and what returns we have made : we
must observe all our usual failings, that we may now set our
guards accordingly : we must remember in what weak part
we are smitten, that we may still pray against it ; and we
must renew our sad remembrances, that we may continue
our sad repentances ; and we must look upon our whole life,
that we may be truly humbled. He that only examines how
it is with him since the last communion, will think too well
of himself if he spies his bills of accusation to be small ; but
every man will find cause enough to hide his face in the
dust, and to come with fear and trembling, when he views
the sum total of his life, which certainly will appear to be
full of shame and of dishonour.
3. We are not to limit our examination to the interval
since the last communion, because much of our present duty
is relative to the first parts of our life. For all the former
vows of obedience, though we have broken them a thousand
times, yet have still an obliging power ; and there are many
contingencies of our life which require peculiar usages and
treatments of ourselves, and there are many follies which we
leave by degrees, and many obligations which are of con-
tinual duty. And it may be that our passion did once carry
us to so extreme, so intolerable a violence, perhaps twenty
years ago, that we are still to keep our fears and tremblings
about us, lest the same principle produce the same evil event.
When Horatius Cocles e had won that glorious victory over
the three Sabine brothers, and, entering gloriously into Rome,
he espied his sister wetting his laurel with her unseasonable
tears for the death of.one of them whom she loved with the
honour of a wife and the passion of a lover ; and being mad
with rage and pride because her sorrow allayed his joys and
glory, he killed her with that sword by which her servant
died. Sometimes passion makes a prodigious excursion, and
passes on to the greatest violence and the most prodigious
follies : and though it be usually so restrained by reason and
religion, that such transvolutions are not frequent, yet one
c Liv. lib. i. c. 26.
492 OF EXAMINATION OF OURSELVES, &C.
such act is an eternal testimony how weak we are, and how
mischievous a passion can be. It is a miracle of Providence
that, in the midst of all the rudenesses and accidents of the
world, a man preserves his eyes, which every thing can ex-
tinguish and put out : and it is no less a miracle of grace
that, in the midst of so many dishonourable loves, there are
no more horrid tragedies; and so many brutish angers do
not produce more cruel sudden murders ; and that so much
envy does not oftener break out into open hostilities. It is
indeed a mighty grace that pares the nails of these wild
beasts, and makes them more innocent in their effects than
they are in their nature : but still the principle remains ; there
is in us the same evil nature, and the same unruly passion :
and, therefore, as there ought to be continual guards upon
them, so there must be continual inquiries made concerning
them; and every thing is to be examined, lest all be lost
upon a sudden.
4. We must not limit our examination to the interval to
the last communion, because our first repentances must still
proceed, and must never be at an end. For no man was so
pardoned at the last communion, but that he is still obliged
to beg pardon for those sins he then repented of. He must
always repent, and always pray, and never be at peace with
the first sins of his youth ; and the sorrows of the first day
must be the duty of every day : and that examination must
come into this account ; and when we inquire after our own
state, we must not view the little finger, but the whole man.
For, in all the forest, the ape is the handsomest beast, so
long as he shews nothing but his hand ; but when the in-
quiring and envious beasts looked round about them, they
quickly espied a foul deformity.
There are in the state of man's soul some good propor-
tions, and some well days, and some fortunate periods ; but
he that is contented with beholding them alone, cares more
O *
to please himself than to please God, and thinks him to be
happy whom man, not whom God, approves. By this way
twenty deceptions and impostures may abuse a man. See
therefore what you are from head to foot, from the begin-
ning to the end, from the first entry to your last progression :
and although it be not necessary that we always actually
consider all, yet it will be necessary that we always truly
DEVOTIONS TO BE USED, &C. 493
know it all, that our relative duties, and our imperfect
actions, and our collateral obligations, and the direct mea-
sures of the increase of grace, may be justly discerned and
understood.
4. He that examines himself and would make right judg-
ment of his state and of his duty, must not do it by single
actions, but by states of life and habits of religion. If we
can say truly that neither prosperity nor adversity, neither
cross nor crown, employment nor retirement, public offices nor
household cares, do disorder us in our duty to God and our
relations, that is, if we safely and wisely passed through, or
converse in, any one of these states of life, it is very likely
that things are well with us. But the consideration of single
actions will do but little. Some acts of charity and many
prayers, and the doing one noble action, or being once or
twice very bountiful, or the struggling with one danger, and
the speaking for God in one contestation ; these are excellent
things, and good significations of life, but not always of
health and strength not of a state of grace. Now because,
in the holy communion, we are growing up to the measures
of the fulness of Christ, we can no otherwise be fitted to it,
but by the progressions and increase of a man, that is, by
habits of grace, and states and permanencies of religion ; and
therefore our examinations must be accordingly.
SECTION VI.
Devotions to be used upon the Days of our Examination,
relative to that Duty.
The Hymn.
THE Lord is in his holy temple ; the Lord's throne is in
heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of
men.
The Lord trieth the righteous : but the wicked, and him
that loveth violence, his soul hateth.
For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness ; his coun-
tenance doth behold the upright.
The words of the Lord are pure words : as silver tried in
a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
494 DEVOTIONS TO BE USED
Thou hast proved mine heart ; thou hast visited me in the
night ; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing ; I am pur-
posed, that my mouth shall not transgress.
Hold up my goings in thy paths : that my footsteps slide
not.
As for God, his way is perfect : the word of the Lord is
tried ; he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.
For who is God save the Lord ? and who is a rock save
our God ?
Judge me, O Lord ; for I have walked in mine integrity :
but I trust in the Lord ; therefore I shall not slide.
Examine me, O Lord, and prove me ; try my reins and
my heart : for thy loving-kindness is before mine eyes, and
I will walk in thy truth.
I will not sit with vain persons : neither will I go in with
dissemblers.
I hate the congregation of evil-doers : and I will not sit
with the wicked.
I will wash my hands in innocence : so will I compass
thine altar, O Lord,
That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and
tell of all thy wondrous works.
But, as for me, I will walk in my integrity : redeem me
and be merciful to me.
So shall my foot stand in an even place : and in the
congregation will I bless the Lord.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
THE PRAYERS.
O ETERNAL and most glorious God, who sittest in heaven,
ruling over all things from the beginning ; thou dwellest on
high, and yet humblest thyself to behold the things that
are in heaven and earth. Thou hast searched me, O Lord,
and known me ; thou understandest my thoughts afar off, and
art acquainted with all my ways ; for there is not a word in
my tongue, but thou, O Lord, knowest it altogether. Be
pleased to impart unto thy servant a ray of thy heavenly
light, a beam of the Sun of Righteousness ; open mine eyes
that I may see the wondrous things of thy law, that I may
walk in them all my days. Set all my sins before my face,
RELATIVE TO OUR DUTY. 495
that I may speedily, and earnestly, and perfectly repent and
forsake them all. Give me a sight of my infirmities, that I
may watch against them ; discover to me all my evil and
weak principles, that I may reform them. And whatsoever
is wanting in me towards the understanding of any thing,
whereby I may please thee and perfect my duty, I beg of
thee to reveal that also unto me ; that my duty may not be
undiscerned, and my faith may not be reproved, and my
affections may not be perverse, and hardened in their foolish
pursuance, and a secret sin may not lie undiscovered and
corrupting my soul.
II.
Give me an ingenious and a severe spirit, that whatever
judgment of charity I make concerning others, I may give a
right judgment concerning my own state and actions, con-
demning the criminal, censuring the suspicious, suspecting
what seems allowable, and watchful even over the best ; that
I may, in the spirit of repentance and mortification, correct
all my irregularities, and reform my errors, and improve the
good things which thou hast given me ; that endeavouring
to approve my actions to my conscience, and my conscience
to thy law, I may not be a reprobate, but approved by thee
in the great day of examination of all the world, and be
reckoned amongst thy elect, the secret ones ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
A short form of Humiliation, after our Examination.
I.
Thy judgments, O Lord God, are declared in thunder,
and with fear and with dread ; thou shakest all my bones,
and my soul trembles when I consider that great day, in
which thou shalt judge all the world; and that infinite jus-
tice, which will not spare the mighty for his greatness, nor
the poor for his poverty ; and thy unlimited power, which
can mightily destroy all them that will not have thee to
reign over them.
II.
O most dreadful Judge, I stand in amazement when I
consider that the heavens are not pure in thine eyes ; and if
thou foundest perverseness in thy angels, and didst not spare
496 DEVOTIONS TO BE USED
them, what shall become of me ? The stars fell from heaven ;
and what can I presume, who am but dust and ashes ? They
whose life hath seemed holy, are fallen into an evil portion ;
and after they have eaten the bread of angels, they have
been delighted with carob-nuts, with husks and draff of
swine.
III.
There is no holiness, O God, if thou withdrawest thy
hand ; no wisdom profits if thy government does cease. No
courage can abide, no chastity can remain pure, no watch-
fulness keep us safe, unless thou dost continue to strengthen
us, to purify us, to make us stand. When thou leavest us,
we drown and perish ; when thy grace and mercy visits us,
we are lifted up and stand upright. We are unstable and
unsecure, unless we be confirmed by thee : but we seek to
thee for thy help, and yet depart from the ways of thy
commandments.
IV.
how meanly and contemptibly do I deserve to be
thought of! how little and inconsiderable is the good which
I do! and how vast, how innumerable, how intolerable are
the evils which I have done! I submit, O God, I submit to
the abysses of thy righteous and unsearchable judgment ; for
I have been searching for a little, some little good in me ;
but I find nothing. Much indeed of good I have received ;
but I have abused it : thou hast given me thy grace ; but I
have turned it into wantonness : thou hast enabled me to
serve thee ; but I have served myself; but never but when
I was thy enemy : so that * in me/ that is, in my flesh,
' dwelleth no good thing.'
V.
1 am a deep abyss, O God, of folly and calamity ; I have
been searching my heart, and can find no good thing ; I have
been searching, and I cannot find out all the evil. Thou
didst create in me a hope of glory, but I have lost my con-
fidence : and men have sometimes spoken good things of me,
but I know not where they are : and who shall raise me up,
when I fall down before thy face in thy eternal judgment ?
VI.
I will no more desire, I will no more suffer, I will no more
RELATIVE TO THAT DUTY. 497
seek, I will no more be moved by, the praises of men; for
behold, they speak, but they know nothing : thou art silent,
but thou knowest all things, and I increase the number of
my sins. What shall I do, O thou preserver of men ! I will
lay my face in the dust, and confess myself to be nothing.
VII.
Pity my shame, O God ; bind up my wounds ; lift me up
from the dust ; raise me up from this nothing, and make me
something ; what thou wilt, what thou wilt delight in. Take
away the partition wall, the hinderarice, the sin that so easily
besets me ; and bring me unto Jesus, to my sweetest Saviour
Jesus; unite me unto him ; and then, although in myself I
am nothing, yet in him I shall be what I ought to be, and
what thou canst not choose but love. Amen, Amen.
A Prayer for holy and fervent Desires of Religion, and
particularly of the blessed Sacrament.
O MOST blessed, most glorious Lord and Saviour Jesus ;
thou that waterest the furrows of the earth, and refreshest
her weariness, and makest it very plenteous ; behold, O God,
my desert and unfruitful soul ; I have already a parched
ground, give me a land of rivers of waters; my soul is dry,
but not thirsty ; it hath no water, nor it desires none ; I have
been like a dead man to all the desires of heaven. I am
earnest and concerned in the things of the world; but very
indifferent, or rather not well enduring the severities and
excellences of religion. I have not been greedy of thy
word, nor longed for thy sacraments. The worst of thy fol-
lowers came running after thee for loaves, though they
cared not for the miracle ; but thou offerest me loaves and
miracles together, and I have cared for neither. Thou
offerest me thyself, and all thy infinite sweetnesses ; I have
needed even the compulsion of laws to drive me to thee ;
and then indeed I lost the sweetness of thy presence, and
reaped no fruit. These things, O God, are not well; they
are infinitely amiss. But thou that providest meat, thou
also givest appetite ; for the desire and the meat, the neces-
sity and the relief, are all from thee.
VOL. xv. K K
498 DEVOTIONS TO BE USED.
II.
Be pleased, therefore, O my dearest Lord, to create in
thy servant a great hunger and thirst after the things of thy
kingdom and the righteousness of it, all thy holy graces,
and all the holy ministries of grace ; that I may long for the
bread of heaven, thirst after the fountain of salvation, and,
as the hart panteth after the brooks of water, so my soul
may desire thee, O Lord. O kindle such a holy flame in my
soul, that it may consume all that is before me ; that it may
be meat and drink to me to do thy will .
III.
Grant, O blessed Jesus, that I may omit no opportunity
of serving thee, of conversing with thee, of receiving thee ;
let me not rest in the least and lowest measures of necessity,
but pass on to the excellences of love, and the transporta-
tions of an excellent religion, that there may remain in me
no appetite for any thing but what thou lovest ; that I may
have no satisfaction but in a holy conscience, no pleasure
but in religion, no joy but in God ; and, with sincerity and
zeal, heartiness and ingenuity, I may follow after righteous-
ness, and the things that belong unto my peace, until I shall
arrive in the land of eternal peace and praises, where thou
livest and reijmest for ever, world without end. Amen.
O '
CHAPTER III.
OF FAITH, AS IT IS A NECESSARY DISPOSITION TO THE
BLESSED SACRAMENT.
EXAMINATION of ourselves is an inquiry, Whether we have
those dispositions which are necessary to a worthy commu-
nion ? Our next inquiry is after the dispositions themselves,
What they ought to be, and what they ought to effect ? that
we may really be that which we desire to be found when we
are examined. I have yet only described the ways of exa-
mining; now I am to set down those things whereby we
can be approved, and without which we can never approach
to these Divine mysteries with worthiness, or depart with joy.
These are three : 1. Faith ; 2. Charity ; 3. Repentance.
OF CATECHUMENS. % 499
SECTION I.
Of Catechumens ) or unbaptized persons.
THE blessed sacrament, before bim that hath no faith, is like
messes of meat set upon the graves of the dead ; a they smell
not that nidour which quickens the hungry belly ; they feel
not the warmth, and taste not the juice ; for these are pro-
vided for them that are alive, and the dead have no portion
in them. This is the first great line of introduction, and ne-
cessary to be examined : we have the rule from the apostle ; b
" Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith ; prove your
ownselves. Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus
Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates ?" As if he had
said, * Ye are reprobates ; and Jesus Christ shall never dwell
in you, except by faith ; without this, you can never receive
him ; and, therefore, examine strictly yourselves concerning
your faith.'
But the necessity of this preparation by faith hath a
double sense, and a proportionable necessity. 1. It means,
that no unbaptized person can come to the holy communion.
2. It means that those that are baptized have an actual and
an operative faith, properly relative to these Divine mysteries,
and really effective of all the works of faith. Of this we
have the most ancient and indubitable records of the Primi-
tive Church : for in the apology, which Justin Martyr made
for the Christians, he gives this account of the manner of
dispensing the holy eucharist: " It is lawful for none to par-
ticipate of this eucharistical bread and wine, but to him who
believes those things to be true which are taught by us, and
to him that is washed in the laver of regeneration, which is
to the remission of sins, and who lives as Christ hath com-
a Te sine dulce nihil, Domine,
Nee juvat ore quid appetere,
Pocula ni prius atque cibos,
Christe, tuus favor imbuerit,
Omnes sanctificante fide.
Prudeniius, hymno 3. ante cibum.
b 2 Cor. xiii. 5.
c OuSivt ^ovXta fitrair^Tv i'i-av Irri /i TM yfur-Ttuavri aX^>5 wa,i TK $t$i$aypivit vif '
j-eav, X.K} Z.ovirccfiiiiu v-ria atfiffiuf a,jAtx,<riuv xa,} w; dvKyivv^tf'.ui Xavrgay, KOU iHras
tuvTi ut o Xgirros va^fSaxir.
500 CATECHUMEN'S NOT ADMITTED
inanded." " Shut the profane and the unhallowed people
out of doors," so Orpheus d sang. None comes to this holy
feast but they whose sins are cleansed in baptism, who are
sanctified in those holy waters of regeneration, who have
obedient souls, ears attentive to the sermons of the Gospel,
and hearts open to the words of Christ. These are they
who see by a brighter light, and walk in the warmth of a
more refreshing sun ; they live in a better air, and are irra-
diated with a purer beam, the glories of the Sun of Right-
eousness ; and they only are to eat the precious food of the
sacrificed Lamb : for, by baptism, we are admitted to the
spiritual life ; and, by the holy communion, we nourish and
preserve it.
But although baptism be always necessary, yet alone it
is not a sufficient qualification to the holy communion, but
there must be an actual faith also in every communicant. Nei-
ther faith alone, nor baptism alone, can suffice ; but it must
be the actual faith of baptized persons, which disposes us to
this sacred feast ; for the Church gives the communion neither
to catechumens, nor to infants, nor to madmen, nor to natural
fools.
Catechumens not admitted to the Holy Communion.
Of this, besides the testimony of Justin Martyr, St. Cyril
of Alexandria gives this full account : " We refuse to give
the sacraments to catechumens, although they already know
the truth, and, with a loud voice, confess the faith of Christ ;
because they are not yet enriched with the Holy Ghost, who
dwells in them, who are consummated and perfected by bap-
tism. But when they have been baptized, because it is
believed that the Holy Ghost does dwell within them, they
are not prohibited from the contact and communion of the
body of Christ. And, therefore, to them who come to the
mystical benediction, the ministers of the mystery cry with
a loud voice, ' Sancta sanctis, Let holy things be given to
sanctified persons,' signifying, that the contact and sanctifi-
cation of Christ's body does agree with them only who, in
- Purior ilium
Solis Terror alit, ventosaque pabula libat.
Idyl. i. Claud. Gesner, vol. ii. p. 635.
TO THE HOLY COMMUNION. 501
their spirits, are sanctified by the Holy Ghost." And this
was the certain and perpetual doctrine and custom of the
Church ; insomuch, that in the primitive churches, they
would not suffer unbaptized persons so much as to see the
consecration of the holy mysteries, as is to be seen in many
ecclesiastical records/ The reason of this is nothing but
the nature and analogy of the thing itself. For we first
come to Christ by faith, and we first come to Christ by bap-
tism ; they are the two doors of the tabernacle, which our
Lord hath pitched, and not man. By faith we desire to go
in ; and by baptism we are admitted. Faith knocks at the
door ; and baptism sets it open : but until we are in the house,
we cannot be entertained at the master's table : they that are
in the highways and hedges, must be called in, and come in
at the doors, and they shall be feasted. The one is the moral
entrance, and the other is the ritual. Faith is the door of
the soul, and baptism is the door of the man. Faith is the
spiritual address to God, and baptism is the sacramental.
Baptism is like the pool of Siloam, appointed for healing:
it is salutary and medicinal : but the Spirit of God is that
great angel that descends thither, and makes them virtual ;
and faith is the hand that puts us in. So that faith alone
does not do it; and, therefore, as the unbaptized must not
communicate, so neither will baptism alone admit us; and
therefore, infants and innocents are yet uncapable. But
that is the next inquiry.
SECTION II.
Of communicating Infants.
Question. Whether infants are to be admitted to the
* holy communion?
WHETHER the holy communion may be given to infants,
hath been a great question in the Church of God ; which, in
1 Dion vs. Eccles. Hierarch. Microlog. observ. Eccles. c. 51. in Bibliotli.
Pair. Cabas. Exposit. Liturg. c. 15, 16. Germanus Patr. Const, in Rerum
Eccles. Theoria. Duraudus ration. Divin. offic. 1. ir. et vi. Albertus Magnus de
officio Missx, tract, iii. c. 23. Alcuinus de Divin. Offic. Aquinas Suuim. iii.
q. 80, art. 4.
502 OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS.
this instance, hath not been, as in others, divided by parties
and single persons, but by whole ages ; for from some of the
earliest ages of the Church down to the time of Charles the
Great, that is, for above six hundred years, the Church of
God did give the holy communion to newly baptized infants.
St. Cyprian a recounts a miracle of an infant, into whose
mouth, when the parents had ignorantly and carelessly left
the babe, the Gentile priests had forced some of their idol
sacrifice : but when the minister of the Church came to pour
into the mouth the chalice of our Lord, it resisted, and, being
overpowered, grew sick, and fell into convulsions. By which
narrative the practice of the Church of that age is sufficiently
declared. Of the matter of fact there is no question : but
they went further.
The Primitive Church did believe it necessary to the sal-
vation of infants. St. Austin believed that this doctrine and
practice descended from the apostles ; that without both the
sacraments no person could come to life, or partake of the
kingdom of heaven : which when he had endeavoured to
prove largely, he infers this conclusion : " It is in vain to
promise salvation and life eternal to little children, unless
they be baptized, and receive the body and blood of Christ ;
since the necessity of them both is attested by so many, so
great, and so Divine testimonies. " b And that this practice
continued to the time of Charlemagne, appears by a consti-
tution in his Capitular, saying, " That the priest should always
have the eucharist ready : that, when any one is sick, or when
a child is weak, he may presently give him the communion,
lest he die without it." And Alcuinus recites a canon, ex-
pressly charging, that " as soon as ever the infants are bap-
tized, they should receive the holy communion before they
a Lib. de Lapsis.
b Si ergo, ut tot et tanta Divina testimonia concimint, nee salus nee vita
aeterna baptismo et corpore et sanguine Domini cuiquam expectanda sunt, frustra
sine bis promittitur parvulis. Lib. i. de Peccat. Merit, et Remis. c. 20. et 24.
Vide eundem de verbis Apostoli, ad Bonif. Epist.23. ad Vitalem, Epist. 106. cont.
duas epistol. Pelagian, lib. i. c. 22 ; et lib. iv. c. 4. lib. cont. Julian, c. 2 ; et S.
Cyprian, lib. iii. ; Test ad Quirin. c. 25. Autor Hypognost. in operibusS. August.
Idem ait expresse S. Pauliuus Epist. Nolanus Epist 12. ad Severum. S. Cyril.
Hieros. Catecb. iii. c. 1. Idem dixit P. Innocentius. Capit. Caroli Mag. lib. i.
c. 161. Alcuin. lib. de Divinis Offic. Idem videre est in Ordine Romano, quern
edidit Michael Hittorpius.
OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS. 503
suck, or receive any other nourishment." The same also is
used by the Greeks, by the Ethiopians, by the Bohemians
and Moravians : and it is confessed by Maldonate, c that the
opinion of St. Austin and Innocentius, that the eucharist is
necessary even to infants, prevailed in the Church for six
hundred years together.
But since the time of Charles the Great, that is, for above
eight hundred years, this practice hath been omitted d in the
Western churches generally ; and in the Council of Trent it
was condemned as unfit, and all men commanded to believe,
that though the ancient churches did do it upon some pro-
bable reasons, yet they did not believe it necessary. Con-
cerning which, I shall not interrupt the usefulness which I
intend in this discourse, by confuting the canon ; though it
be intolerable to command men to believe in a matter of fact
contrary to their evidence, 6 and to say that the fathers did
not believe it to be necessary, when they say it is, and used
it accordingly : yet because it relates to the use of this Divine
sacrament, I shall give this short account of it.
The Church of Rome, and some few others, are the only
refusers and condeuaners of this ancient and catholic practice;
but, upon their grounds, they cannot reasonably deny it.
1. Because infants are, by them, affirmed to be capable of
the grace and benefits of the eucharist ; for to them who
put no bar (as infants put none), the sacraments, by their
inherent virtue, confer grace : and, therefore, particularly, it
is affirmed/ that if infants did now receive the eucharist,
they should also receive grace with it: and, therefore, it is
not unreasonable to give it to them, who, therefore, are
capable of it, because it will do them benefit ; and it is,
consequently, upon these grounds, uncharitable to deny
it : for,
2. They allow the ground, upon the supposition of which
the fathers did most reasonably proceed ; and they only deny
c Maklonatus in Johan. vi. Num. 116.
d Vide Hierem. Petr. C. P. doctor, exhor. ad Gennanos. Alvarez in Itin.
jEthiop. Joachimum Vadianum in notat. lib. i. fol. 14. de Sacram. Eucharistiae.
Concil. Trid. sess. 21. can. 4.
e Motou ya. tturov xoci Qtof ffrngiffxtrai'
A.yivnra. tfoitTv *f r i JUfpa.yfj.tva,
Agatho, cpud Ari$tot. ethic, vi. c. 3. Wilkinson, p. 23-1.
1 Franc, a Victor, de Euchar. n. 75.
504 OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS.
the conclusion. For, by the words of Christ^ it is absolutely
necessary " to eat his flesh and drink his blood :" and if
those words be understood of sacramental manducation (in
which interpretation both the ancients and the Church of
Rome do consent), then it is absolutely necessary to commu-
nicate. For although there are other ways of ' eating his
flesh, and drinking of his blood,' besides the sacramental
manducation, yet Christ, in this place, meant no other ; and
if of this he spake when he said, ' Without doing this, we
have no life in us,' then it will not be sufficient to baptize
them, though, in baptism, they should receive the same grace,
as in the eucharist : because, abstracting from the benefit and
grace of it, it is made necessary by the commandment ; and,
by the will of God, it is become a means indispensably
necessary to salvation. It is necessary by a necessity of the
means, and a necessity of precept. True it is, that, in each
of the sacraments, there is a proportion of the same effect, as
I have already discoursed ; h yet this cannot lessen the neces-
sity that is upon them both ; for so Pharaoh's dream was
doubled, not to signify divers events, but a double certainty.
And, therefore, although children, even in baptism, are par-
takers of the death of Christ, and are incorporated into, and
made partakers of, his body, yet because Christ hath made
one as necessary as the other, and both for several propor-
tions of the same reason, the Church of Rome must either
quit the principle, or retain the consequent ; for they have
digged a ditch on both sides, and on either hand they are
fallen into inconvenience. But it will be more material to
consider the question as it is in itself, and without relation
to any schools of learning. Therefore,
3. It is certain that in Scripture there is nothing which
directly forbids the giving the holy communion to infants.
For though we are commanded to examine, and so to eat,
yet this precept is not of itself necessary, but by reason of an
introduced cause ; just as they are commanded to believe
and repent, who are to be baptized ; that is, persons that need
it, and that can do it, they must : and infants, without exa-
mination, can as well receive the effect of the eucharist, as,
without repentance, they can have the effect of baptism.
t John, vi. 53 ; iii. 5. h Chap. i. gect. 5.
OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS. 505
For if they be communicated, they and the whole assembly
do declare the Lord's death ;' for that is done by virtue of the
whole solemnity, and it is done by the conjunct devotion of
the whole community : it is done by the prayers and offices
of the priest, and it is done by the action of every one that
communicates : it is done in baptism, and yet they are bap-
tized who cannot, with their voices, publish the confession.
Infants, indeed, cannot * discern' the Lord's body ; so neither
can they discern truth from falsehood ; an article of faith from
a heretical doctrine : and yet to discern the one is as much
required as to discern the other ; but in both the case is
equal ; for they must discern when they can confound or
dishonour ; but till they can do evil, they cannot be tied to
do good. And it were hard to suppose the whole Church of
God, in her best and earliest times, to have continued, for
above six hundred years, in a practical error ; it will not well
become our modesty to judge them without further inquiry
and greater evidence.
4. But as there is no prohibition of it, so no command for
it. For as for the words of our blessed Lord recited by
St. John, 1 upon which the holy fathers did principally rely;
they were spoken before the institution of both the sacra-
ments, and indifferently relate to either ; that is, indeed, to
them both, as they are the ministries of faith ; but to neither
in themselves directly, or in any other proportion, or for any
other cause. For faith is the principal that is there intended ;
for the whole analogy of the discourse, drawn forth of its
clouds and allegory, infers only the necessity of being Christ's
disciples, of living the life of grace, of feeding in our
hearts on Christ, of living in him, and by him, and for
him, and to him ; which is the work of faith, and believing in
Christ, as faith signifies the being of Christ's disciple. k
5. The thing itself, then, being left in the midst, and
undetermined, it is in the power of the Church to give it or
to deny it. For, in all things where Christ hath made no law,
the Church hath liberty to do that which is most for the
glory of God, and the edification of all Christian people.
And, therefore, although the Primitive Church did confirm
newly baptized persons, and communicate them, yet as with
' John, vi. J3. k See chap. i. sect. 2 and 3.
506 OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS.
great reason she did change the time of confirmation
from their first baptism, till they could give an account of
their faith, so with equal authority, when she hath an equal
reason, she may change and limit the time ofministering the
communion. The Church is tied to nothing but to the laws
of the sacrament, and the laws of reason, and the laws of
charity : but that either of them is reasonable enough, may
appear in the following considerations.
For the Primitive Church had all this to justify their
practice : that the sacraments of the Gospel are the great
channels of the grace of God : that this grace always descends
upon them that do not hinder it, and, therefore, certainly to
infants ; and some do expressly affirm it, and none can with
certainty deny, but that infants, if they did receive the com-
munion, should also, in so doing, receive the fruits of it : that
to baptism there are many acts of predisposition required, as
well as to the communion ; and yet the Church, who very
well understands the obligation of these precepts, supposes
no children to be obliged to those predispositions to either
sacrament, but fits every commandment to a capable subject :
that there is something done on God's part, and something
on ours; that what belongs to us, obliges us then when we
can hear and understand, but not before ; but that what is
on God's part, is always ready to them that can receive it :
that infants, although they cannot alone come to Christ, yet
the Church, their mother, can bring them in her arms :
that they who are capable of the grace of the sacrament,
may also receive the sign ; and, therefore, the same grace,
being conveyed to them in one sacrament, may also be im-
parted to them in the other : that as they can be born
again without their own consent, so they can be fed by the
hands of others ; and what begins without their own actual
choice, may be renewed without their own actual desire ;
and that, therefore, it might be feared, lest, if upon the
pretence of figurative speeches, allegories, and allusions, and
the injunction of certain dispositions, the holy communion be
denied them, a gap be opened upon equal pretences to deny
them baptism : that since the Jewish infants being circum-
cised is used as an argument that they might be baptized,
their eating of the paschal lamb may also be a competent
warrant to eat of that sacrament, in which also, as in the
OF COMMUNICATING INFANTS. 507
other, the sacrificed Lamb is represented as offered and slain
for them. Now the Church having such fair probabilities
and prudential motives, and no prohibition, if she shall use
her power to the purposes of kindnesses and charity, she is
not easily to be reproved, lest without necessity we condemn
all the Primitive Catholic Church , and all the modern churches
of the east and south to this day : especially since without
all dispositions infants are baptized, there is less reason why
they may not be communicated, having already received
some real dispositions towards this, even all the grace of the
sacrament of baptism, which is certainly something towards
the other. And after all, the refusing to communicate infants
entered into the Church upon an unwarrantable ground.
For though it was confessed that the communion would do
them benefit, yet it was denied to them then when the
doctrine of transubstantiation entered, 1 upon pretence lest
by puking up the holy symbols the sacrament should be
dishonoured ; which indeed, though that doctrine were true,
were infinitely unreasonable ; as supposing that Christ, who
suffered his body to be broken upon the cross that he might
convey grace to them and us, would refuse to expose the
symbols to the accidents of a child's stomach, and rather
deny them that grace, than endure that sight, who yet does
daily suffer mice and mouldiness to do worse unto it.
But on the other side, they that, without interest and
partiality, deny to communicate infants, can consider that
infants, being in baptism admitted to the promises of the
Gospel, and their portion in the kingdom of Christ, can
have upon them no necessity to be communicated. For by
their first sacrament they are drawn from their mere natural
state, and lifted up to the adoption of sons ; and by the
second sacrament alone they can go no further : that
although the first grace which is given in baptism, be given
them as their first being, yet the second graces are given to
us upon other accounts, even for well using the first free
grace : that in baptism there were promises made, which
are to be personally accepted and verified, before any new
grace can be sacramentally imparted : that it was necessity
which gave them baptism before their reason, and that
1 Victoria. Relict, de Eucharist, ubi supra.
508 WHETHER FOOLS, &C. MAY BE
necessity being served, there can be no profit in proceeding
upon the same method without the same reason : that
baptism is the sacrament of the new-born, the beginning, the
gate of the Church, the entry of the kingdom, the birth of a
Christian ; but the holy eucharist is the sacrament of them
that grow in grace, of them that are perfect in Christ Jesus :
and, lastly, to him that lists to be contentious, we are to
say, as St. Paul did, " We have no such custom, nor the
churches of God."
Now these probabilities on both sides may both of them
be heard, and both of them prevail in the sense of the former
determination : for, by the first, it may appear, that to com-
municate infants is lawful ; but the second proves that it is
not necessary ; for having in baptism received sufficient title
to the kingdom of heaven, they, who before the use of reason
cannot sin, and cannot fall from the grace they have received,
cannot be obliged to the use of that sacrament which is for
their reparation and security ; and therefore, in this case, the
present practice of the Church is to be our rule and measure
of peace and determination of the article.
SECTION III.
Whether Innocents, Fools, and Madmen, may be admitted to
the Holy Communion ?
To this I answer, that if fools can desire it, and can be kept
innocent, the Church did never deny it to them ; but unless
they be capable of love and obedience in some degree, they
must in no case be admitted. A vicious fool is intolerable ;
and he that knows nothing of it, nor can be taught any
thing, must be permitted to the mercies of God and the
prayers of the Church ; but he that is not capable of laws,
can be no part of a society, and, therefore, hath nothing to
do with communion. If he can but learn so much that it is
good for his soul ; if he can desire to go to God, and if he
can in any degree believe in Christ, he will be judged ac-
cording to what he hath, and not according to what he hath
not: but if he cannot discern between good and 'evil, but
indifferently likes and does one and the other, though mercy
ADMITTED TO THE HOLY COMMUNION. 509
is to be hoped for him in the last account, yet because he
does that which is materially evil, and cannot discern what
is spiritually good, he must not be admitted so much as to
the symbols of the Divine mysteries.
But concerning madmen, the case is otherwise ; and,
therefore, I am to answer with a distinction. If, from a state
of sin and debauchery, they entered into their madness, their
case is sad, and infinitely to be deplored ; but their debt-
books are sealed up ; they are like dead men ; until they
be restored to reason they cannot be restored to grace, and
therefore not admitted to the sacrament. But if they were
men of a good life, they may, in their intervals, that is, when
they can desire it, and when they will not use the sacrament
irreverently, be communicated. For the seed of God abides
within them, and no accident of nature can destroy the
work of God and the impresses of the Spirit ; nothing but
their own wills can do that.
For, in these cases, it is a good rule, and of great use in
the practice of the sacrament : ' Whoever can communicate
spiritually, may be admitted to communicate sacramentally ;'
that is, they who are in a state of grace, and can desire it,
must not be rejected : and, therefore, good men falling into
this calamity, when they have any ease from their sadness,
and that they can return to words of order, and composed
thoughts, though but for awhile, though but in order to that
ministry, are not to be rejected.
But, on the other side, whoever can hinder the effect of
the sacrament, they are not to be admitted to it, unless they
do not only not hinder it, but actually dispose themselves to
it. For if they can do evil, they can and ought to do good ;
and, therefore, vicious madmen having been, and still
remaining, in a state of evil, cannot be admitted till they do
good ; and therefore never while their madness remains.
The godly man that is so afflicted may, but yet not till the
fire that was hidden makes some actual and bright emis-
sions.
But, then, lastly : For others who are of'a probable life,
concerning whom no man can tell whether they be in the
state of grace or no, because no man can tell whether he
that comes with that sadness be capable or no, no man can
tell whether he does well or ill : and, therefore, he must
510 OF ACTUAL FAITH, AS IT IS
determine himself by accidents, and circumstances, and pru-
dential considerations, having one eye upon the designs and
compliances of charity, and the other upon the reverence of
the sacrament. And the case is in all things alike with
dying persons, past the use of speech and reason.
SECTION IV.
Of actual Faith, as it is a necessary Disposition to the
Sacrament.
BESIDES the faith that is previous to baptism, or is wrapped
up in the offices of that sacrament, the Church of God
admitted only such persons to the sacrament, whom she
called * fideles/ or ' faithful,' by a propriety or singularity
and eminence of appellation. They accounted it not enough
barely to believe, or to be professors ; for the penitents, and
the lapsed, and the catechumens, were so : but they meant
such persons whose faith was operative, and alive, and justi-
fying ; such men whose faith had overcome the world, and
overcome their lusts, and conquered their spiritual enemy ;
such who by faith were real servants of Christ, disciples of
his doctrine, subjects of his kingdom, and obedient to his
institutions. Such a faith as this, is, indeed, necessary to
every worthy communicant ; because, without such a faith,
a Christian is no more but a name ; but the man is dead ;
and dead men eat not. Of this, therefore, we are to take
strict and severe accounts ; which we shall best do by the
following measures.
1. Every true Christian believer must consent to the
articles of his belief by an assent firmer than can be naturally
produced from the ordinary arguments of his persuasion.
Men believe the resurrection; but it is because they are
taught it in their childhood, and they inquire fio further in
their age : their parents and their priests, the laws of the
Church and the religion of the country, make up the demon-
stration ; but because their faith is no stronger than to be
the daughter of such arguments, we find they commonly live
at such a rate, as if they did neither believe, nor care
whether it were so or no. The confidence of the article
makes them not to leave off violently to pursue the interests
NECESSARY TO THE SACRAMENT. 511
of this world, and to love and labour for the other. Before
this faith can enable them to resist a temptation, they must
derive their assent from principles of another nature; and,
therefore, because few men can dispute it with arguments
invincible and demonstrative, and such as are naturally apt
to produce the more perfect assent, it is necessary that these
men, of all other, should believe, because it is said to coine
from God, and rely upon it, because it brings to God,
trust it, because it is good, acknowledge it certain, because
it is excellent ; that there may be an act of the will in it, as
well as of the understanding, and as much love in it as
discourse.
For he that only consents to an article because it is
evident, is, indeed, convinced, but hath no excellence in
his faith, but what is natural, nothing that is gracious and
moral : true Christian faith must have in it something of
obscurity, something that must be made up by duty and by
obedience ; but it is nothing but this, we must trust the
evidence of God in the obscurity of the thing. God's testi-
mony must be clear to him, and the thing, in all other senses,
not clear ; and then to trust the article, because God hath
said it, it must have in it an excellence which God loves,
and that he will reward. In order to this, it is highly con-
siderable, that the greatest argument to prove our religion is
the goodness and the holiness of it ; it is that which makes
peace and friendships, content and comfort ; which unites all
relations, and endears the relatives ; it relieves the needy,
and defends the widow ; it ends strife, and makes love end-
less. All other arguments can be opposed and tempted by
wit and malice ; but against the goodness of the religion no
man can speak : by which it appears, that the greatest argu-
ment is that which moves love, intending, by love, to convince
the understanding.
But then for others who can inquire better : their
inquiries also must be modest and humble, according to the
nature of the things, and to the designs of God. They must
not disbelieve an article in Christianity, which is not proved
like a conclusion in geometry ; they must not be witty to
object, and curious to inquire beyond their limit. For some
are so ingeniously miserable, that they will never believe a
proposition in divinity, if any thing can be said against it :
512 OF ACTUAL FAITH, AS IT IS
they will be credulous enough in all the affairs of their life,
but impenetrable by a sermon of the Gospel : they will
believe the word of a man, and the promise of their neigh-
bour ; but a promise of Scripture signifies nothing, unless
it can be proved like a proposition in the metaphysics. If
Sempronius tells them a story, it is sufficient if he be a just
man, and the narrative be probable : but though religion be
taught by many excellent men, who gave their lives for a
testimony, this shall not pass for truth, till there is no
objection left to stand against it. The reason of these things
is plain : they do not love the thing ; their interest is against
it : they have no joy in religion : they are not willing and
desirous that the things shall appear true. When love is
the principle, the thing is easy to the understanding ; the
objections are nothing, the arguments are good, and the
preachers are in the right. Faith assents to the revelations
of the Gospel, not only because they are well proved, but
because they are excellent things ; not only because my
reason is convinced, but my reason yields upon the fairer
terms, because my affections are gained. For if faith were
an assent to an article but just so far as it is demonstrated,
then faith were no virtue, and infidelity were no sin : because
in this there is no choice, and no refusal. But where that
which is probable is also naturally indemonstrable, and yet
the conclusion is that in which we must rejoice, and that for
which we must earnestly contend, and that in the belief of
which we serve God, and that for which we must be ready
to die : it is certain, that the understanding observing the
credibility, and the will being pleased with the excellence,
they produce a zeal of belief, because they together make up
the demonstration. For a reason can be opposed by a reason,
and an argument by an argument : but if I love my religion,
nothing can take me from it, unless it can pretend to be
more useful and more amiable, more perfective and more
excellent, than heaven and immortality, and a kingdom and
a crown of peace, and all the things and all the glories of
the eternal God.
2. That faith which disposes to the holy communion,
must have in it a fulness of confidence and relying upon
God, a trusting in, and a real expectation of, the event of all
the promises of the Gospel. God hath promised sufficient
NECESSARY TO THE SACRAMENT. 513
for the things of this life to them that serve him. They
who have great revenues and full bags, can easily trust this
promise : but if thou hast neither money nor friends, if the
labour of thy hands and the success of thy labour fails thee,
how is it then ? Can you then rely upon the promise ?
What means your melancholy and your fear, your frequent
sighs, and your calling yourself miserable and undone? Can
God only help with means ? or cannot he also make the
means, or help without them ? or see them when you see
them not? or is it that you fear whether he will or no ? He
that hath promised, if he be just, is always willing, whether
he be able or no; and, therefore, if you do not doubt of his
power, why should you at all doubt of his willingness ? For,
if he were not able, he were not almighty: if he were not
willing to perform his promise, then he were not just; and
he that suspects that, hath neither faith nor love for God : of
all things in the world, faith never distrusts the good-will of
God, in which he most glories to communicate himself to
mankind. If yet your fear objects and says, that ' all is well
on God's part; but you have provoked him by your sins, and
have lost all title to the promise :' I can say nothing against
that, but that you must speedily repent and amend your
fault ; and then all will be quickly well on your part also ;
and your faith will have no objection, and your fears will
have no excuse. When the glutton Apicius had spent a vast
revenue in his prodigious feastings, he killed himself for fear
of starving : but if Ceesar had promised to give him all Sicily,
or the revenues of Egypt, the beast would have lived and
eaten. But the promises of God give to many of us no
security, not so much as the promise of our rich friend, who
yet may be disabled, or may break his word or die. But let
us try again.
God hath promised that " all things should work toge-
ther for good to them that fear him." Do we believe that
our present affliction will do so? Will the loss of our goods,
the diminution of our revenue, the amission of our honour,
the death of our eldest son, the unkindness of a husband,
the frown of our prince, the defeating of our secular hopes,
the unprosperous event of our employment? Do we find
that our faith is right enough really to be satisfied in these
things so much as to be pleased with God's order and method
VOL. xv. L L
514 OF ACTUAL FAITH, AS IT IS
of doing good to us by these unpleasant instruments ? Can
we rejoice under the mercy by joys of believing at the same
time, when we groan under the affliction by the passion of
sense? Do we observe the design of cure, when we feel the
pain and the smart ? Are we patient under the evil, being
supported by expectation of the good which is promised
to follow ? a This is the proper work of faith, and its best
indication.
Plutarch tells, that when the cowards of Lacedemon b de-
picted upon their shields the most terrible beasts they could
imagine, their design was to affright their enemies that they
might not come to a close fight ; they would fain have made
their enemies afraid, because themselves were so: which
when Lacon espied, he painted upon a great shield, nothing
but a little fly for his device : and to them who said he did it
that he might not be noted in the battle, he answered, * Yea,
but I mean to come so near the enemy, that he shall see the
little fly.' This is our case : our afflictions seem to us like
gorgons' heads, lions and tigers, things terrible in picture,
but intolerable in their fury : but if we come near and con-
sider them in all the circumstances, they are nothing but a
fly upon a shield, they cannot hurt us; and they ought not
to affright us, if we remember that they are conducted by
God, that they are the effect of his care, and the impress of
his love, that they are the method and order of a blessing,
that they are sanctified and eased by a promise ; and that a
present ease, it may be, would prove a future infelicity. If
our faith did rely upon the promise, all this were nothing ;
but our want of faith does cause all the excess of trouble.
For the question is not whether or no we be afflicted, whe-
ther we be sick, or crossed in our designs, or deprived of our
children, this we feel and mourn for; but the question
is whether all this may not, or be not intended to, bring good
to us ? Not whether God smiles or no, but to what purpose
* Si qua latent, meliora puta. Ov. M. i. 502.
b The cowards of Lacedemon.] Plutarch does not mention these cowards:
he merely states, that a Lacedemonian (Lacon) painted a fly upon his shield.
Aaxwv i<ri rns cur<ri$o; fivTav t%uv r/<r/ttov, xtti raurtiv al ftiit>> Ttis aXS/v>js, us
xa<raiyt)Mirif rni; sXtyev vtrsg <rov Xasv3-auv ravfa fi<fmnxii,"\ta. fn.lv our (iHn) Qscttga;
$*,. LUCOB. Apoph. Xyland. torn. ii. p. 234. D. (J. R. P.)
c Putnam, Phaeton, pro munere poscis.
NECESSARY TO THE SACRAMENT. 515
he smiles? not whether this be not evil, but whether this evil
will not bring good to us ? If we do believe, why are we
without comfort and without patience? If we do not believe
it, where is our faith ?
And why do any of us come to the holy communion, if
we do not believe it will be for our good ? but if we do think
it will, why do we not think so of our cross? for the promise
is that every thing shall. Cannot the rod of God do good as
well as the bread of God ? and is not he as good in his dis-
cipline as in his provision ? is not he the same in his school
as at his table ? is not his physic as wholesome as his food ?
It is not reason, but plainly our want of faith, that makes us
think otherwise. Faith is the great magazine of all the
graces and all the comforts of a Christian : and, therefore,
the devil endeavours to corrupt the truth of it, by inter-
mingling errors, the sincerity of it by hypocrisy, the in-
genuity of it by interest, the comforts of it by doubting, the
confidence of it by objections, and secular experiences, and
present considerations; by adherence to human confidences,
and little sanctuaries, and the pleasures of the world, and
the fallibilities of men. When Xerxes had a great army to
conduct, and great successes to desire, and various contin-
gencies to expect, he left off to sacrifice to his country
gods, forsook Jupiter and the sun: and, in Lydia, espying a
goodly platan-tree, tall, and straight, and spread, he encamped
all his army in the fields about it, hung up bracelets and
coronets upon the branches, and, with costly offerings, made
his petitions d to the beauteous tree : and when he marched
away, he left a guard upon his god, lest any thing should do
injury to the plant, of which he begged to be defended from
all injury. By such follies as these does the devil endeavour
to deflower our holy, faith and confidences in God ; we trust
in man, who cannot trust himself; we rely upon riches, that
rely upon nothing ; for they have no stabiliment, and they
have no foundation, but are like atoms in the air; the things
themselves can bear no weight, and the foundation cannot
bear them. In our afflictions, we look for comfort from wine
d Herodotus does not say, that Xerxes made any petitions to the plane-tree
EUJE (o E{j|f) a'Xara'wa'Tay, TJJV, xa,\\ias iiv'xa, S/ugvtruftivof xofff&u ^vffita, KOJ [ti\i-
3avM uvSouvu a3-aTw av5^ Imrai^a;, &c. Po/i/m. C. 31. Schweigh. vol. iii.
p. 191. (J. R. P.)
516 OF ACTUAL FAITH, AS IT IS
or company, from a friend that talks well, or from any thing
that brings us present ease, but, in the meantime, we look
not into the promises of God, which are the storehouses of
comfort : and, like the dogs at Hippocrene, we lick the water-
drops that fall upon the ground, and take no notice of the
fountain and the full vessels. These things are so necessary
to be considered, in order to our preparation to the commu-
nion, as they are necessary to be reduced to practice, in order
to a Christian conversation. For the holy communion is the
summary and compendium of the religion and duty of a
whole life ; and as faith cannot be holy, material, and ac-
ceptable, without it contain in it a real trust in the promises
of God, so neither can it be a sufficient disposition to the
receiving the Divine mysteries, unless upon this ground it be
holy, acceptable, and material.
3. That faith which is a worthy preparatory to the hoi}'
communion, must be the actual principle and effective of a
good life; a faith in the threatenings and in the command-
ments of God. Who can pretend to be a Christian, and yet
not believe those words of St. Paul?" " Follow after peace,
with all men, and holiness ; without which, no man shall see
God." And yet if we do believe it, what do we think will
become of us, who neither ' follow peace nor holiness,' but
follow our anger, and pursue our lust ? If we do believe
this, we had need look about us, and live at another rate
than men commonly do. But we still remain peevish and
angry, malicious and implacable, apt to quarrel and hard to
be reconciled, lovers of money and lovers of pleasures, but
careless of holiness and religion ; as if they were things fit
only to be talked on, and to be the subject of theological
discourses, but not the rule of our lives, and the matter of
our care. It is expressly said by St. Pauljf "He that
eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damna-
tion to himself." Now if we observe what crowds of people,
in great cities, come to the holy communion, good and bad,
penitent and impenitent, the covetous and the proud, the
crafty merchant from yesterday's fraud, and the wanton fool
from his last night's lust, we may easily perceive, that not
many men believe these words. He that says to me, ' Drink
Heb. jcii. 14. f 1 Cor. xi. 29.
NECESSARY TO THE SACRAMENT. 517
not this, for it is poison,' hath given me a law and an affright-
ment, and I dare not disobey him, if I believe him ; and if
we did believe St. Paul, I suppose we should as little dare to
be damned, as to be poisoned. Our blessed Saviour g told
us, that " with what measures we mete to others, it shall be
measured to us again;" but who almost believes this, and
considers what it means? Will you be content, that God
should despise you as you despise your brother? that he
should be as soon angry with you, as you are with him ? that
he should strike you as hastily, and as seldom pardon you,
and never bear with your infirmities, and as seldom interpret
fairly what you say or do, and be revenged as frequently as
you would be? And what think we of these sayings, h " Into
the heavenly Jerusalem there shall, in no wise, enter any
thing that defileth, or profaneth ; neither whatsoever worketh
abomination, or maketh a lie?" Do men believe God, and
yet, doing these things, hope to be saved for all these terrible
sayings ? ' ' Now the works of the flesh are manifest ; adultery,
fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, &c., of which I tell
you before, that they which do such things, shall not inherit
the kingdom of God."' Certainly if we did believe that
these things are spoken in earnest, we should not account
fornication such a decent crime, so fashionable and harmless ;
or make such a may-game of the fearful lectures of damna-
tion. For, if these words be true, will men leave their sins,
or are they resolved to suffer damnation, as being less trou-
blesome than to quit their vain mistresses ? surely that is not
it ; but they have some little subterfuges and illusions to
trust to. They say, ' they will rely upon God's mercy.'
Well they may ; if, " in well-doing, they commit their souls
to him as to a faithful Creator :" but will they make God
their enemy, and than trust in him, while he remains so?
That will prove an intolerable experiment ; for so said God,
when he caused his name to be proclaimed to the host of
Israel ; " The Lord God, merciful and gracious :" he caused to
be added, " and that will by no means quit the guilty." By
no means? No, by no means ; let us believe that as well as
the other. For the passion of our Redeemer, the intercession
of our High-Priest, the sacraments of the Church, the body
K Matt. vii. 2. h Rev. xxi. 27. ' Gal. v. 21.
518 OF ACTUAL FAITH, AS IT IS
and blood of Christ, the mercies of God, the saying, ' Lord,
Lord,' the privileges of Christians, and the absolution of the
priest, none of all this, and all this together, shall do him no
good that remains guilty ; that is, who is impenitent, and
does not forsake his sin. If we had faith, we should believe
this, and should not dare to come to the holy communion
with an actual guiltiness of many crimes, and in confidence
of pardon, against all the truth of Divine revelations, and
therefore without faith.
But then here we may consider, that no man, in this case,
can hope to be excused from the necessities of a holy life
upon pretence of being saved by his faith. For if the case
be thus, these men have it not. For he that believes in God,
believes his words, and they are very terrible to all evil per-
sons ; for " in Christ Jesus nothing can avail but a new
creature, nothing but keeping the commandments of God,
nothing but faith working by charity;" they are the words of
God. Wicked men, therefore, can never hope to be saved
by their faith, or by their faith to be worthy communicants,
for they have it not. Who then can ?
He only, by his faith, is worthily disposed to the com-
munion, and by his faith can be saved, who, by his faith,
lives a life of grace, whose faith is to him a magazine of holy
principles, whose faith endears obedience, and is the nurse
of a holy hope, and the mother of a never-failing charity.
He shall be saved by his faith, who by his faith is more than
conqueror, who resists the devil, and makes him fly, and
gives laws to his passions, and makes them obedient : who,
by his faith, overcomes the world, and removes mountains,
the mountains of pride and vanity, ambition, and secular
designs, and whose faith casteth out devils, the devil of lust,
and the devil of intemperance, the spirit that appears like a
goat, and the spirit that comes in the shape of a swine : he
whose faith opens the blind man's eyes, and makes him to
see the things of God, and cures the lame hypocrite, and
makes him to walk uprightly. " For these signs shall fol-
low them that believe," said our blessed Saviour ; k and by
these, as by the wedding garment, we are fitted to this hea-
venly supper of the king. In short, for whatever end faith is
k Mark, xvi. 17, 18.
NECESSARY TO THE SACRAMENT. 519
designed, whatever propositions it tends to persuade, to what
duties soever it does engage, to what state of things soever
it ought to efform us, and whithersoever the nature and
intention of the grace does drive us, thither we must go,
that we must do, all those things we must believe, and to
that end we must direct all our actions and designs. For the
nature of faith discovers itself in the affairs of our religion as
in all things : if we believe any thing to be good, we shall
labour for it ; if we think so, we shall do so. And if we run
after the vanities of the world, and neglect our interest of
heaven, there is no other account to be given of it, but be-
cause we do not believe the threatenings and the laws of God;
or 
