i !! I! FROM THE LIBRARY OF REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D. BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO THE LIBRARY OF PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Paction JANUARY, 1855. N EW BOOKS IN THE COURSE OF PUBLICATION BY Messrs. RIVINGTON, WATERLOO PLACE, PALL MALL, LONDON. EVANGELICAL LIFE, as seen in the EXAMPLE of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. By JOHN JAMES, D.D., Canon of Peterborough, Author of a "Comment on the Collects," and other Works. In 12mo. 7s. 6d. (Now ready.) II. CHRISTIANITY and MODERN INFIDELITY: their relative INTELLECTUAL CLAIMS compared. By the Rev. R. W. MORGAN, Perpetual Curate of Tregynon, Montgomery- shire; Author of "Verities of the Christian Church," "Vindication of the Church of England," and other Works. In post 8vo. 8s. 6d. (Just published.) III. QUEBEC CHAPEL SERMONS, preached in the former Half of 1 854. By HENRY ALFORD, B.D., Minister of the Chapel ; Editor of a New Edition of the Greek Testament, with English Notes. In small 8vo. 7*. 6d. 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QUIET MOMENTS; a FOUR WEEKS' COURSE of MEDITATIONS before Evening Prayer; and for Noonday and Sunset. By the Same Authoress. Second Edition. In small 8vo. 3s. 6d. VIII. ENGLAND'S SACRED SYNODS; a CONSTITUTIONAL HISTORY of the CONVOCATIONS : showing the primitive Source and British Origin of these Assemhlies, and tracing their Records from the Earliest Times to the Date of the Establishment of the Book of Common Prayer. By JAMES WAYLAND JOYCE, M.A., late Student of Christ Church, Rector of Burford, Third Portion, and Proctor for the Clergy of the Diocese of Hereford. In One Volume. 8vo. {In the press.) IX. ENGLAND and ROME; a Discussion of the PRINCIPAL DOCTRINES and PASSAGES of HISTORY in common Debate between the Members of the two COMMUNIONS. By W. E. SCUDAMORE, M.A., Rector of Ditchingham, and late Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. In 8vo. 10*. 6d. {Now ready.') X. PAPERS and SERMONS on the WAR. In the course of publication, a Series of Religious Papers for the Seat of War and the Relations at Home; intended to meet the cases of the Wounded, the Dying, the Prisoner, the Relation at Home, the Recruit, and the Public. MANUAL of PRAYER for the WOUNDED. Qd. {Ready.) Jan. 1.— SERMON for the WOUNDED. „ 8.— To the DYING. „ 15.— To the MOTHER at HOME. „ 22.— To the RECRUIT. „ 31.— The DUTY of the BRITISH PUBLIC. XI. The SECOND GERMAN BOOK : a SYNTAX, and Etymo- logical Vocabulary, with copious Reading- Lessons and Exercises. By the late Rev. T. K. ARNOLD, M.A., Rector of Lyndon, and formerly Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge ; and J. W. FRADERSDORFF, Phil. Dr., of the Taylor-Institute, Oxford. In 12mo. 6s. 6d. {Now ready.) Also, by the same Authors, 1. The FIRST GERMAN BOOK. Third Edition. 5s. 6d. 2. READING COMPANION to the FIRST GERMAN BOOK. 4s. 3. HANDBOOK of GERMAN VOCABULARY. 4s. XII. 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A COURSE of SERMONS on the LORD'S PRAYER, with Illustrations from the Writings of the Fathers of the Church. By THOMAS HUGO, M.A., F.S.A., F.L.S., Senior Curate of St. Botolph, Bishopsgate. In 12mo. 6s. XXI. A MEMOIR of FELIX NEFF, Pastor of the High Alps ; and of his Labours among the French Protestants of Dauphine, a Rem- nant of the Primitive Christians of Gaul By WILLIAM STEPHEN GILLY, D.D., Canon of Durham, and Vicar of Norham. Sixth Edition. In small 8vo. 5s. 6d. {In the press.) BOOKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED xxn. MEDITATIONS and PRAYERS on the ORDINATION SERVICE for DEACONS. By the Rev. J. H. PINDER, M.A., Principal of Wells Theological College. In small 8vo. 3s. 6d. XXIII. NOTES at PARIS in 1853; particularly on the State and Prospects of RELIGION. In small 8vo. 4s. XXIV. THE SECOND HEBREW BOOK, containing the BOOK of GENESIS. With Syntax and Vocabulary. By the late Rev. T. K. ARNOLD, M.A., Rector of Lyndon, and formerly Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. In 12mo. 9s. Lately published, by the same Author, The FIRST HEBREW BOOK. l2mo. 7s. 6d. (A KEY to this V\ ork is now ready, price 3s. 6d.) XXV. AN INTRODUCTION to the DEVOTIONAL STUDY of the HOLY SCRIPTURES. By EDWARD MEYRICK GOULBURN, D.C.L., Head Master of Rugby School, and Chaplain to the Lord Bishop of Oxford. In small 8vo. 3s. 6d. XXVI. THE JOURNAL of CONVOCATION, No. II., being a New um;>n °f." SYNODALIA." Edited by the Rev. CHARLES \\ ARREX, of Over, St. Ives, Hunts. In Svo. 2s. (Now ready.) Lately published, No. I., containing the REPORTS of CONVOCATION for 1854. Is. XXVII. A PARAPHRASTIC TRANSLATION of the APOSTO- LICAL EPISTLES, with NOTES. By the late PHILIP NICHOLAS SHUTTLEW ORTH, D.D., Lord Bishop of Chichester. tifth Ldition. In Svo. 9s. X XVII I. MATERIALS for TRANSLATION into LATIN: selected and arranged by AUGUSTUS GROTEFEND. Translated from the German by the Rev. H. H. ARNOLD, B.A., and Edited (with Notes and Excursuses from Grotefend) by the late Rev. T. ARNOLD AI.A Rector of Lyndon, and formerly Fellow of Trinity College, lAmbndge. Third Edition. In 8vo. 7s. 6d. (Just published.) *.* A KEY to this Work may now be bad. In Svo. 4s. x XIX. THE HAPPINESS of the BLESSED Considered as to the I articulara <>( their State ; their Recognition of each other in that • »te ; and its Difference of Degrees. By RICHARD MANT, D.D., late Lord liishop of Down and Connor. Seventh Edition. In 12mo 4S. BY MESSRS. RIVINGTON. XXX. THE CHRISTIAN CHARACTER ; Six Sermons preached in LENT. By JOHN JACKSON, D.D., Lord Bishop of Lincoln. Fifth Edition. In small 8vo. 3s. Qd. (Just published.) XXXI. PRAYERS for the SICK and DYING. By the Author of "Sickness : its Trials and Blessings." In 12mo. Second Edition. 2s. 6d. XXXIT. SOME ACCOUNT of the COUNCIL of NIOEA, in con- nexion with the LIFE of ATHANASIUS. By JOHN KAYE, D.D., late Lord Bishop of Lincoln. In 8vo. Ss. XXXIII. HENRY'S ENGLISH GRAMMAR; a Manual for BEGIN- NERS. By the late Rev. 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(Just published.) XLIV. THINGS AFTER DEATH; containing Three Chapters on the INTERMEDIATE STATE, with Thoughts on Family Burying s, and 150 ORIGINAL EPITAPHS in Verse, for Country Churchyards. By the Rev. JOHN MILLER, M.A., of Worcester College, Oxford. Second Edition. In small bvo. 3s. 6d. XLV. XENOPHON'S ANABASIS. With ENGLISH NOTES, translated (with Additions) from the German of Dr. HERTLEIN, by the late Rev.T. K. ARNOLD, M.A.. Rector of Lyndon, and the Rev. II K.N K\ BR( )\VN E, M.A., Canon of Chichester. (Forming a New Volume of Arnold's School Classics.) In 12mo. 6s. 6d. Hooks IV. to VII. of this Kdition are contained in Mr. Arnold's Fourth (iriek Book. XLVI. SICKNESS : its TRIALS and BLESSINGS. Fourth Edition. In -mall 8vo. 5s. BY MESSRS. RIVINGTON. XLVII. HYMNS and POEMS for the SICK and SUFFERING. In connexion with the Service for the VISITATION of the SICK. Edited by the Rev. T. V. FOSBERY, M.A., Perpetual Curate of Sunningdale. Third Edition. In small 8vo. 6s. 6d. This Volume contains 233 separate pieces; of which about 90 are by writers who lived prior to the 18th Century: the rest are modern, and some of these original. Amongst the names of the writers (between 70 and 80 in number) occur those of Sir J. Beaumont— Sir T. Browne— F. Davison — Elizabeth of Bohemia— P. Fletcher — G. Herbert— Dean Hickes— Bp. Ken — Norris — Quarles — Sandys — Bp. J. Taylor — Henry Vaughan — and Sir H. Wotton. And of modern writers : — Miss E. B. Barrett — The Bishop of Oxford— S. T. Coleridge— Sir R. Grant— Miss E. Taylor— W. Words- worth— Rev. Messrs. Chandler — Keble — Lyte — Monsell — Moultrie — and Trench. XLVIII. SERMONS preached at Romsey. By the Hon. and Rev. GERARD J. NOEL, M.A., late Canon of Winchester, and Vicar of Romsey, Hants. With a Preface by SAMUEL WILBERFORCE, D.D., Lord Bishop of Oxford. In 12mo. 7s. 6d. XLIX. 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Eighth Edition. *»* This new Edition lias been reprinted from the Sixth in deference to opinions of authority as to the comparative usefulness of the Sixth and Seventh, and will remain in future the standard Edition. The objtct of this Work is to enable the Student, as soon as he can decline and conjugate with tolerable facility, to translate simple sentences after given examples, and with given words ; the principles trusted to being principally those of imitation and very frequent repetition. It is at once a Syntax, a Vocabulary, and an Exercise Book; and is used at all, or nearly all, the Public Schools. Also, by the same Author, A SECOND PART of the above Work (On the PARTICLES). In 8vo. 6s. 6d. LIV. THE DARK AGES ; a Series of Essays in illustration of the Religion and Literature of the Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, and Twelfth Centuries. By the Rev. S. R. MAITLAND, D.D., F.R.S., and F.S.A., some time Librarian to the late Archbishop of Canterbury, and Keeper of the MSS. at Lambeth. 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TO WHICH ARE ADDED, SOME OF HIS LETTERS, (NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED,) AND A SHORT ACCOUNT OF HIS LIFE WILLIAM HAWKINS, Esq. HIS EXECUTOR. THE WHOLE COLLECTED BY JAMES THOMAS ROUND, B.D. RECTOR OP ST. RUNWALD'S AND ST. NICHOLAS, COLCHESTER, AND LATE FELLOW OF BALLIOL COLLEGE, OXFORD. LONDON PRINTED FOR J. G. & F. RIVINGTON, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH YARD, AND WATERLOO PLACE, PALL MALL; AND SOLD BY J. H. PARKER, OXFORD; & T. ALBIN, COLCHESTER. 1838. LONDON : GILBERT & RIVINGTON, PRINTERS, ST. JOKS'S SQUARE. PREFACE. The greater part of the following collection was published in separate pieces by Bishop Ken in his lifetime. Two of the sermons were printed after his death by his great nephew and executor, Mr. Haw- kins. Some of the letters were printed for the first time by the Rev. W. L. Bowles, in his life of the Bishop, and they appear in the present volume by Mr. Bowles's kind permission ; the rest have never been published before : some of these were in the possession of the Rev. Dr. Williams, the late Head Master of Winchester College, and some were in the Bodleian Library. The Editor takes this oppor- tunity of returning his grateful thanks for the cour- tesy which has enabled him to make these additions to the present collection. The Articles of Visitation and Enquiry, &c. were found in the library at Long- leate, and, by the kindness of the late Marquis of Bath, a copy of them was taken for the Editor. He is afraid that some of the remains of Bishop Ken have escaped his enquiries. He has been informed, that there exists a letter of his purporting to be "A a 2 IV PREFACE. Letter addressed to the Parishioners of Woodhay during the time of the plague," but he has not suc- ceeded in finding it. It does not appear that the Sermon which the Bishop preached at Bath on Ascension-day, and which called forth some animad- versions in print, was ever itself published. Several works which have been printed from time to time with Bishop Ken's name, are not in- cluded in this collection. The following passage, from the Epistle Dedicatory, prefixed by Mr. Haw- kins to his edition of Ken's Poems, in four volumes, octavo, proves that such spurious works were to be found even during the lifetime of the Bishop. " His frequent joining of the syllable co to words, beside the great propriety thereby preserved, may be taken (though I dare not aver it to be so intended) for a designed characteristic of his genuine performances from such as are spurious, he having met with ill- treatment of that nature in his lifetime. And for the further prevention of which, (as far as in me lies,) I beg leave to assure your Lordship, that no- thing more of his performances are ever to be pub- lished." The four following have come under the notice of the Editor, and have been rejected by him as spurious. 1. A Letter to the Author of a Sermon, &c. 2. The Retired Christian. 3. The lloyal Sufferer : a manual of meditations and devotions ; written for the use of a royal though afflicted family, by T. K., D.D. 1699. Afterwards published under the title of — PREFACE. V " A Crown of Glory, the reward of the righteous ; being meditations upon the vicissitude of all sub- lunary enjoyments." 4. Expostulatoria ; or, the Complaints of the Church of England, &c. 1. In regard to the "Letter to the Author of a Sermon," the Editor is of opinion, that in the absence of all evidence in favour of its genuineness, the tone and temper shown through the whole of it are sufficient to prove that it was not written by Ken. 2. The extract from Hawkins's Epistle Dedicatory, relating to the spurious works, is cited in a note of the Biographia Britannica, under the article Ken, with the following remark in the margin by the Editor : " Among these was published under his name, The Retired Christian, the seventh edition of which came out in 1756, 12mo." The style and matter of this book are conclusive against its genuineness. 3. It cannot be denied that there are some traces of resemblance between the style of " The Royal Sufferer," and that of Bishop Ken, but they are points characteristic of the writers of those times, rather than peculiar to Ken himself. In the follow- ing particulars, there is a striking want of resem- blance. Ken's acknowledged prayers abound with thanksgiving, and with ascriptions of glory to God ; but in those of " The Royal Sufferer" there are com- paratively few of either, and these few have no traces of Ken's peculiar manner. A marked differ- VI PREFACE. ence is also to be observed in the terminations of the prayers. In those acknowledged to be Ken's, the following forms of expression are used, " for the merits of Jesus, thy beloved," — " through Jesus Christ, thy beloved," — " through Jesus, thy beloved," — " for thy infinite goodness' sake, and for the sake of Jesus, the Son of thy love." In " The Royal Sufferer" the prayers are usually terminated with the ordinary forms of expression, e. g. "through Jesus Christ our Lord and only Saviour," — " for Jesus Christ's sake, thy beloved Son, and my alone Saviour." Other minute traces of dissimilarity have influenced the Editor in decid- ing against the admission of " The Royal Sufferer" * into this collection. 4. Had it not been for the following very amusing extract from the manuscripts of Thomas Hearne in the Bodleian Library, vol. ii. page 169., the Editor would have had much greater difficulty in deciding upon the claims of the " Expostulatoria :" but after Hearne's statement of its disavowal by Ken's execu- tor, it is impossible, whatever its merits may be, to consider it a genuine production of the Bishop. " An infamous book is lately published called ' Expostulatoria,' under the name of Bishop Ken. It 1 This is not the only devotional book connected with the memory of James. The Editor has been favoured by Arch- deacon Todd with a si<^ht of a scarce little Tract, printed at Paris in the year 1G92 ; — the second part of which is entitled, "Royal Meditations, being the true portraiture of his Majesty in his soli- tudes and sufferings, written during his retirements in France." PREFACE. Vll is against the Clergy, and exposes them for non- residence, and I know not what. The Executor of the Bishop has published an advertisement or two, showing that it is none of his Lordship's, (as indeed nobody of understanding and honesty can think,) and another advertisement is published, showing that it is a fanatical book reprinted, that first came out in 1663 under the name of "Ichabod." It was reprinted in 1691. See Bodley's interleaved Line. C. ii. 22. — N. B. Since the writing what goes before, I have looked into this book, which is far better done than I thought when I wrote that passage. It appears to me to be too true a representation of the condition of our Church ; — and I am afraid there are too good grounds to charge the several incumbents with the crimes specified in it. It is writ in the style of Bishop Ken, but I much ques- tion whether it be really his. Yet it is very well done, and I see no hurt why it may not bear so great a name." The following advertisement from " The Post- Boy," May 29, 1711, would seem to be one of those alluded to by Hearne, — " Whereas there has been lately published a book called ' Expostulatoria, or the Complaints of the Church,' &c. under the name of Dr. Ken, late Bishop of Bath and Wells ; to do therefore justice to the memory of that pious prelate, and to undeceive them that have been imposed upon by it, this is to certify, that the same was first printed in the year 1663, and reprinted in 1691, for J. Harris at the Harrow in the Poultry, 10 VI 11 PREFACE. under the title of ' Ichabod, or, Five Groans of the Church, prudently foreseeing and passionately be- wailing her second fall, threatened by these five dangerous though undiscerned miscarriages, that caused her first, viz. — 1. Undue ordination. 2. Loose profaneness. 3. Unconscionable Simony. 4. En- croaching pluralities. 5. Careless non-residence, &c.' Which book is to be seen at Mr. Samuel Keble's, Bookseller, in Fleet-street." Archdeacon Todd has kindly informed the Editor, that the history of the " Expostulatoria" was as follows : — 1. It first appeared as "Ichabod," in 1663. 2. Then as " Lachrymae Ecclesiarum," in 1689. 3. Then as "Expostulatoria," in 1711. 4. Then as the "Church of England's Complaints," &c. in 1737. If proof was wanting of the great popularity of Ken as a writer in his own time, the existence of these spurious works would furnish it. Popularity, in the usual sense, can hardly be expected for this collection in the present day. But the Editor believes that it will have a favourable reception from all admirers of primitive piety and constancy ; and he doubts not that they will readily pardon him for concluding these few prefatory re- marks with the following address to the memory of Ken, taken from a pamphlet in the possession of Archdeacon Todd, entitled "An Address to the Archbishop of Canterbury, as Visitor of Colleges in tin- University of Oxford, and as Primate of .-ill PREFACE. IX England, &c. Quarto. London, 1791. By a Country Clergyman." " I wish not to see the episcopal dignity lowered in any respect : a venerable parent was never weary of reading Bishop Beveridge's works, and he inspired me with an early veneration for the name and office. But there is one of that venerable order, whose memory, above all others, I shall ever love and cherish to my latest breath. Hail, immortal Ken, guide of my youthful steps ! Thy bounty never ceased to feed the poor, nor thy tongue to instruct the ignorant. Thy presence, or thy spirit, continually pervaded all parts of thy extensive diocese. It illuminated her churches, and darted comfort through the cheerless gloom of her prisons. To the sanctity of thy character the profligate Charles submitted on his death-bed. To thy virtue the genius of England bowed in the Tower. To thy unbounded and per- suasive generosity and charity, the second successor in thy bishopric greatly owed his acceptance of it. Receive, said the good old man to his friend, Receive the see with as good a conscience as I have quitted it. Hail, gentle, blessed spirit ! For thy sake, may the mitre ever flourish !" Benedicat Deus. Colchester, Jan. 22, 1838. CONTENTS. PAGE A Short Account of the Life of Thomas Ken, sometime Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, by W. Hawkins, Esq 1 Letters from Bishop Ken, William Lloyd, the deprived Bishop of Norwich, and Dr. Thomas Smith 33 Three Sermons : — I. Preached at the Funeral of the Right Hon. The Lady Margaret Mainard, at Little Easton, in Essex, June 30, 1682.— On Prov. xi. 16 113 II. Preached in the King's Chapel, Whitehall, in the year 1685.— On Dan. x. 11 145 III. Preached upon Passion Sunday. — On Micah vii. 8, 9. 1 74 The Practice of Divine Love ; being an Exposition of the Church Catechism . 207 Directions for Prayer, for the Diocese of Bath and Wells. . . .336 A Manual of Prayers, for the Use of the Scholars of Winchester College, and all other Devout Christians 357 Three Hymns, for Morning, Evening, and Midnight ; by the Author of the Manual of Prayers 435 Prayers for the Use of all Persons, who come to the Baths for cure 443 A Pastoral Letter, from the Bishop of Bath and Wells, to his Clergy, concerning their behaviour during Lent 473 12 Xll CONTENTS. PAGE A Letter exhorting the Clergy of the Diocese of Bath and Wells, to Collect in hehalf of the French Protestants 4b 1 Articles of Visitation and Enquiry, concerning Matters Ecclesias- tical, exhibited to the Ministers, Churchwardens, and Sides- men of every Parish within the Diocese of Bath and Wells, in the Visitation of the Right Reverend Father in God, Thomas, (by Divine Providence,) Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells • 485 SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF THOMAS KEN, SOMETIME LORD BISHOP OF BATH AND WELLS. Thomas, youngest son of Thomas Ken of Furnival's- Inn, by Martha his wife, was born at Berkhamstead in Hertfordshire, in July 1637. His father's family was of great antiquity, and had possessed a \ery plentiful fortune for many generations, having been known by the name of the Kens, of Ken-place, an estate now in possession of the Right Honourable Earl Poulett, who descends from an heiress of the Kens \ When he was about the age of thirteen he was sent to school at Winchester College, where he con- tracted that friendship, so closely at length cemented, between himself and that afterward most truly pious prelate, Dr. Francis Turner, late Bishop of Ely ; and 1 John, Lord Paulett of Hinton St. George, married Christian, daughter and heir of Christopher Ken, of Ken, in Com. Som. Esq. ; Dugd. Bar. 2, A SHORT ACCOUNT where his parts, application, and behaviour, were so well employed and observed, that at the age of twenty ' he was elected to New College, Oxon ; where he took his Bachelor of Arts degree, May 3, 1661 ; and his degree of Master of Arts, Jan. 21, 1664; Bachelor of Divinity, 1678 ; and Doctor of Divinity, June 30, 1679. But by reason he outlived all, or most, of his contemj^oraries, and that therefore little account of his behaviour in that place can be had, I shall not render this whole account suspicious, by inserting surmise, where I intend to advance nothing but what may evidently be made appear. I shall only add this, that as soon as his circumstances would permit, he gave them upwards of one hundred pounds, as a small acknowledgment for his education, and towards the erecting of their new building. He was from hence, on Dec. 8., in the year 1666, chosen into the society of Winchester, where his most exemplary goodness and piety did eminently exert itself; for that college being chiefly designed by its founder for a retired and studious life, what could a great and generous spirit propose, but the good of souls, and the 2 glory of that God to whom he constantly ascribed it, even in his most familiar letters ? And for this purpose he kept a constant course of preaching at St. John's Church in the Soak, near Winton, (where there was no preaching minis- ter, and which he therefore called his cure,) and brought many anabaptists to the Church of England, 1 lie went to Hart Hall in Oxford, and was entered student there Anno 165G. The next year he was admitted Probationer Fellow of New College. — Lives of English Bishops. 3 Glory be to God, was his constant prescript to all his letters and papers. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 3 and baptized them himself. And that neither his study might be the aggressor on his hours of instruc- tion ; or what he judged his duty, prevent his im- provement; or both, his closet addresses to his God, he strictly accustomed himself to but one sleep, which often obliged him to rise at one or two of the clock in the morning, and sometimes sooner, and grew so habitual, that it continued with him almost till his last illness. And so lively and cheerful was his temper, that he would be very facetious and en- tertaining to his friends iri the evening, even when it was perceived that with difficulty he kept his eyes open ; and then seemed to go to rest with no other purpose than the refreshing and enabling him with more vigor and cheerfulness to sing his morning hymn, as he then used to do to his lute before he put on his clothes. Some time after he was fellow of Winchester College, Dr. George Morley, then Bishop of that diocese, made him his domestic chaplain, and pre- sented him to the parsonage of Woodhay, in Hamp- shire, vacant by the removal of his tutor, Dr. Shar- rock. And it was about this time he composed and published his " Manual of Prayers for the Use of the Winchester Scholars." That prelate soon after, without any application made in his behalf, preferred him to the dignity of a prebendary in the cathedral church of Winton ; and he was installed accordingly, April 12, 1669. In which post he was taken notice of by King Charles the Second. In the year 1675, the year of jubilee, he travelled through Italy, and to Rome ; and upon his return within that same year, he was often heard to say, that he had great reason to give God thanks for his travels ; since (if it were b2 4 A SHORT ACCOUNT possible,) ho returned rather more confirmed of the purity of the Protestant religion than he was before. And now that prince made choice of him to go with the Lord Dartmouth, to the demolishing of Tangier ; and at his return from thence, himself gave order he should be his chaplain '. He was some time after this made chaplain to the Princess of Orange, who was at that time residing in Holland ; in which post, his most prudent behaviour and strict piety, gained him entire credit, and high esteem with that Princess ; but a consequential act of his singular zeal for the honour of his country, in behalf of a young lady, so far exasperated the Prince, that he very warmly threatened to turn him from the service ; which the doctor resenting, and begging leave of the Princess, (whom to his death he distinguished by the title of his mistress,) warned himself from the service, and would not return to that court, till by the intreaty of the Prince himself, he was courted to his former post and respect ; con- senting to continue there for one year longer, (dur- ing which time he was taken at least into a show of great familiarity,) and when that year expired 1 This is incorrect, as Ken was already chaplain to the King when he preached the funeral sermon of Lady M. Maynard, June 30, 1082, and the expedition to Tangier did not take place till the month of October, 1083, and did not return till the fol- lowing year ; consequently the following extract in all probability contains a correct account of this part of Ken's life. " In 1079 he proceeded doctor of divinity, was made chaplain in ordinary to tbe King, and went into Holland chaplain to Mary, Princess of Orange. In 1684, he attended the Lord Dartmouth to Tan- gier, as his chaplain, who had a commission to demolish that im- portant fortress." — Extract from Life of Ken, from the lives of the English Bishops, London, 1733. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 5 he returned for England. This was not unknown to the King, nor did he show the least dislike to his behaviour ; for when the see of Bath and Wells became vacant by the removal of Dr. Peter Mews to Winton, the King himself stopped all attempts of Dr. Ken's friends (who would of their own incli- nations have applied in his behalf,) with this remark- able saying, That Dr. Ken should succeed, but that he designed it should be from his own peculiar ap- pointment. And accordingly the King himself gave order for a congedeslire to pass the seals for that purpose ; and he was consecrated Bishop of Bath and Wells on St. Paul's day, in the year 1684. And this even just after his opinion, — that a woman of ill repute ought not to be endured in the house of a clergyman, especially the King's chaplain, was publicly known. For at that time the King coming to Winton, and his harbinger having marked the Doctor's house, which he held in right of his prebend, for the use of Mrs. Gwin, he absolutely refused her admittance, and she was forced to seek other lodgings. And now at this juncture it was, when that King's period of life drew near, his distemper seizing his head, and our Bishop well knowing how much had been put off to that last point, and fearing the strength of his distemper would give him but little time, (as indeed it proved,) his duty urging him, he gave a close attendance by the royal bed without any intermission, at least for three whole days and nights ; watching at proper intervals to suggest pious and proper thoughts and ejaculations on so serious an occasion; in which time the Duchess of Ports- mouth coming into the room, the Bishop prevailed 6 A SHORT ACCOUNT with his Majesty to have her removed, and took that occasion of representing the injury and injus- tice done to his Queen so effectually, that his Majesty was induced to send for the Queen, and asking- pardon, had the satisfaction of her forgiveness before he died. The Bishop having homely urged the necessity of a full, and prevailed, as is hoped, for a sincere repentance, several times proposed the ad- ministration of the Holy Sacrament ; but although it was not absolutely rejected, it was yet delayed, from time to time, till (I know not by what autho- rity,) the Bishop, and all others present, were put out from the presence for about the space of half an hour, during which time it has been suggested, that father Huddleston was admitted to give extreme unction ; and the interval between this and death was so short, that nothing concerning the Bishop's behaviour happened worthy of notice in this account. This close attendance the Bishop thought so abso- lutely necessary, as thereupon to delay his admission to the temporalities of the see of Wells ; so that, when King James came to the crown, new instru- ments were passed for that purpose, and he was accordingly in full possession. At this time, it Mas frequently said by many of eminence, who knew him well, that they never knew any person so able and earnest to do good in such a station, as he was. He had a very happy way of mixing his spiritual with his corporal alms. When any poor person begged of him, he would examine whether he could say the Lord's Prayer, or the Creed ; and lie found so much deplorable ignorance among the grown poor people, that he feared little good was to be done upon them: but said he would try, whether OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 7 lie could not lay a foundation to make the next ge- neration better. And this put him upon setting up many schools in all the great towns of his diocese for poor children to be taught to read and say their catechism ; and about this time, and for this purpose it was, that he wrote, and published his exposition on the Church-catechism. And although it contained nothing, but what was strictly conformable to the doctrine of the Church of England, yet there being an expression in the first edition, which the papists at that time laid hold of, as if it favoured their doctrine of transubstantiation, he took particular care in the next edition !, even in that reign, by altering the ex- pression to ascertain the sense. By this method and management he engaged the ministers to be more careful in catechizing the children of their parishes; and they were by him furnished with a stock of necessary books for the use of children. And we may now judge, by the great and good success of the charity-schools, which are now so numerous, what great and good ends he at that time proposed. About this time also, he published his prayers for the use of the Bath. He went often in the summer time to some great parish, where he would preach twice2, confirm, and 1 Vide the Exposition. 2 Of his eloquence as a preacher we have many testimonies from Evelyn. The following is one: — "The Bishop of Bath and "Wells (Dr. Ken) preached at St. Martines to a crowd of people not to be expressed, nor the wonderful eloquence of this admirable preacher ; the text was, Matt. xxvi. 36 to verse 40, describing the bitterness of our blessed Saviour's agony, the ardour of his love, the infinite obligations we have to imitate his patience and resignation : the means by watching against temptations, and over ourselves, with fervent prayer to 8 A SHORT ACCOUNT catechize ; and when he was at home on Sundays, he would have twelve poor men or women to dine with him in his hall : always endeavouring, whilst he fed their bodies, to comfort their spirits by some cheerful discourse, generally mixt with some useful instruction. And when they had dined, the remain- der was divided among them to carry home to their families. By his instruction and example, he awed men into a sense of religion and duty. He often deplored the condition of the poor at Wells (who were very numerous) ; and as he was charitably disposed, so he was very earnest in contriving proper expedients of relief ; and thought no design could better answer all the ends of charity, than the setting up a work- house iu that place. But judging it not practicable without the advice, or at least the assistance of the gentlemen, he therefore often met and consulted attaine it, and the exceeding reward in the end. Upon all which he made most pathetical discourses. The communion followed, at which I was participant. I afterwards dined at Dr. Tenison's with the Bishop and that young, most learned, pious and excel- lent preacher, Mr. Wake." — Vol. i. page 638. *' 1st. April. — In the morning the first sermon was preached by Dr. Stillingfleet, Dean of St. Paul's ^at Whitehall) on Luke x. 41, 42. The holy communion followed, but was so interrupted by the rude breaking in of multitudes zealous to hear the second sermon, to be preached by the Bishop of Bath and Wells, that the latter part of that holy office could hardly be heard, or the sacred elements be distributed without great trouble. The Prin- cess being come, he preached on Mich. vii. 8, 9, 10, describing the calamity of the reformed church of Judah, under the Babylonian persecution, for her sins, and God's delivery of her on her re- pentance ; that as Judah emerged so should the new reformed Church, wherever insulted and persecuted. He preached with his accustomed action, zeal, and energy, so that people flocked from all quarters to hear him." Vol. i. p. (>I7. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 9 with them ; but not finding any suitable encourage- ment, he was forced to desist. In this he had a double view ; to rescue the idle from vicious practice and conversation ; and the industrious, from the op- pression of the tradesmen; who, to use his own expression, "did grind the face of the poor, growing rich by their labour, and making them a very scanty allowance for their work." His conduct at the time of the rebellion under the Duke of Monmouth, had sufficiently confirmed King James in opinion of his duty and allegiance ; insomuch, that although he daily relieved some hundred of the rebel prisoners then in Wells, daily praying with them in person, the King judging that it was only out of a principle of duty to distressed brethren, to save them from perishing both in body and soul, never so much as harboured any jealous thought of him : nay, so far did that King entertain hopes of his absolute obedience to his will and plea- sure, that although many of his sermons were framed against the Church of Rome, yet it was thought worth while to attempt to gain him over to the in- terest of that party at court ; but so ineffectually, that upon the preaching of one of the two sermons now published, and in the King's own chapel at Whitehall, (which seems wholly intended against both the Popish and fanatic factions, then united at court ;) and it being misrepresented to the King, (who had not been present at divine service) but sending for the Bishop, and closeting him on the occasion, received nothing in answer, but this fa- therly reprimand ; " That if his Majesty had not neglected his own duty of being present, his enemies 10 A SHORT ACCOUNT had missed this opportunity of accusing him :" — whereupon he was dismissed. But although that prince did not mistake his in- tegrity, yet certainly he was mistaken in him on a much more fatal occasion ; for now came the dispen- sing power in play, and his Majesty's declaration of indulgence, was strictly commanded to be read ; when this Bishop was one of the seven l, who openly 1 Evelyn gives the following clear account of the motives and grounds of their conduct. "May 18, 1688. — The King injoining the ministers to read his Declaration for giving liberty of conscience (as it was styled,) in all the churches of England, this evening six Bishops, Bath and Wells, Peterbo- rough, Ely, Chichester, St. Asaph, and Bristol, in the name of all the rest of the Bishops came to his Majesty to petition him, that he would not impose the reading of it to the several congre- gations within their dioceses ; not that they were averse to the publishing of it for want of due tenderness towards the dissenters, in relation to whom they should be willing to come to such a temper as should be thought fit, when that matter might be con- sidered and settled in Parliament and Convocation ; but that, the declaration being founded on such a dispensing power as might at pleasure set aside all laws ecclesiastical and civil, it appeared to them illegal, as it had done to the Parliament in 1661 and 1672, and that it was a point of such consequence, that they could not so far make themselves parties to it, as the reading of it in church in time of divine service amounted to. The Kino- o was so incensed at this address, that he with threatening expres- sions commanded them to obey him in reading it at their perils, and so dismissed them ; so I went to Whitehall Chapel, where after the morning lessons the Declaration was read by one of the choir who used to read the chapters. I hear it was read in the Abbey Church, Westminster, but almost universally forborne throughout London, the consequences of which a little time will show." — " May 25. All the discourse now was about the Bishops refusing to read the injunction for the abolition of the Test, &c. It seems the injunction came so crudely from the Secretary's office, OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 11 opposed the reading it, suppressed those which were sent to him to be read in his diocese, and petitioned the King not to pursue what was likely to prove so prejudicial both to church and state : which petition being called treasonable, was made the occasion of committing him to the Tower, in order to a trial : all which being already well known, I shall no longer dwell on so grating a subject 1. But though he dared to disobey his sovereign, in order to preserve the purity of his religion, and the care of his flock was always nearest his heart ; yet rather than violate his conscience by transferring his allegiance, he chose to leave both himself and them to the protection of the Almighty. So, when the Prince of Orange came over, and the revolution was grounded on the abdication of that it was neither sealed nor signed in form, nor had any lawyer been consulted, so as the Bishops, who took all imaginable advice, put the court to great difficulties how to proceed against them. Great were the consults, and a proclamation expected all this day, but nothing was done. The action of the Bishops was uni- versally applauded, and reconciled many adverse parties, Papists only excepted, who were now exceedingly perplexed, and violent courses were every moment expected. Report was that the Protestant lords and nobility would abet the clergy." — "June 8. This day the Archbishop of Canterbury, with the Bishops of Ely, Chichester, St. Asaph, Bristol, Peterborough, and Bath and Wells, were sent from the privy council prisoners to the Tower* for refusing to give bail for their appearance, on their not reading the Declaration for liberty of conscience ; they refused to give bail, as it would have prejudiced their peerage. The concern of the people for them was wonderful ; infinite crowds on their knees begging their blessing, and praying for them as they passed out of the barge along the Tower-wharf." — Vol. i. p. 648. See also Ev. vol. ii. p. 25. Ken beloved, &c. 1 See D'Oyly's Life of Archbishop Sancroft, vol. i. page 250. chapter vi. 12 A SHORT ACCOUNT King James, the Bishop retired ' ; and as soon as King William was seated on the throne, and the oaths of allegiance were to be taken to him, he, for his refusal being deprived by the state, did relinquish his revenue, (though not his care,) with as clear a conscience and as generous a mind, as that by which it was once bestowed on him. At the time of his being made Bishop, Mr. Francis Morley, nephew to the forementioned Bishop, knowing how little he had provided for such an 1 " Jan. 15. — I visited," says Evelyn, " the Archbishop of Canterbury, where I found the Bishops of St. Asaph, Ely, Bath and Wells, Peterborough and Chichester, the Earls of Ailesbury, and Clarendon, Sir George Mackenzie, Lord Advocate of Scot- land, and then came in a Scotch Archbishop, &c. After prayers and dinner, divers serious matters were discoursed, concerning the present state of the public, and sorry I was to find there was as yet no accord in the judgments of those of the Lords and Commons who were to convene : some would have the Princess made Queen without any more dispute, others were for a regency ; there was a tory party (as then so called) who were for inviting his Majesty again upon conditions ; and there were republi- carians who would make the Prince of Orange like a Statholder. The Romanists were busy among these several parties to bring them into confusion ; most for ambition or other interest, few for conscience and moderate resolutions. I found nothing of all this in this assembly of bishops, who were pleased to admit me into their discourses, they were all for a regency, thereby to salve their oaths, and so all public matters to procede in his Majesty's name, by that to facilitate the calling of a parliament, according to the laws in being. Such was the result of this meeting." — Vol. ii. page 1. " March 29. — The Archbishop of Canterbury and four other Bishops refusing to come to parliament, it was deliberated whether they should incur premunire ; but it was thought fit to let this fall, and be connived at, for fear of the people, to whom those prelates were very dear, for the opposition they had given to popery." — Vol. ii. page 9. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 13 expense, as attends the entry and continuance in such a chair, most generously offered, and lent him a considerable sum to defray his expences, and fur- nish him with an equipage, as his station required : which he would often mention with a grateful ac- knowledgment, expressing a particular satisfaction, when he found himself in a condition to discharge the debt. And he was often by Dr. Thomas Chey- ney (one of his chaplains, to whom I am obliged for many of the particulars which frame this account) observed to complain, that for this very reason no great matter was to be expected from him; as thinking himself obliged to be just before he could be charitable. But here, if any should expect extravagance, in that having enjoyed such pre- ferments he was still poor, it must be observed, that, if there can be an extravagant in good works, he was such, in that most excellent gift of charity. His whole fortune lying in his preferments, those of his relations who were necessitous, (but whom he could never regard the less for their being so) were a continual drain upon his revenue : and he seemed to joy with those who lived in more plenty, not more for their own well-being, than that thereby he was at liberty to disperse the remainder of his income to necessitous strangers, which he always did with so open a bounty, that he became a com- mon father to all the sons and daughters of affliction. His charity was so extensive, that having once, while in the See of Bath and Wells, received a fine of four thousand pounds, great part of it was given to the French Protestants ' ; and so little regard had to future contingencies, that when he was deprived by the state, (which was not long after) all his effects after 1 See his Letter to the Clergy of his Diocese in their behalf. 14 A SHORT ACCOUNT the sale of all his goods, excepting his books (which he never sold), would amount to no more than seven hun- dred pounds. Which with the ever to be acknowledged generosity of his noble friend and eminent benefac- tor, procured him the enjoyment of a clear quarterly payment of twenty pounds, which that noble peer charged on part of his own estate ; and which among many other and greater favours, is thus thankfully acknowledged in the last will and testament of our grateful Bishop : viz. — " I leave and bequeath to the Right Hon. Thomas Lord Viscount Weymouth, in case he outlives me, all my books, of which his lordship has not the duplicates, as a memorial of my gratitude for his signal and continued favours." Besides which gift of books, he had in his life-time, both before and after deprivation, given several large catalogues to places that were populous, and had parochial libraries within his own diocese. He had an excellent genius for, and skill in musick ; and whenever he had convenient opportunities for it, he performed some of his devotional part of praise with his own compositions, which were grave and solemn. He had always a great relish for divine poesy ; and in his retirement under this noble lord's roof, he composed many excellent, useful, and pious pieces, which (together with one epic poem, which was written by him about the time of his voyage to Tangier, and seems to have had his last hand) may soon be ready for the press, if this specimen be well accepted \ But now his public affairs giving room, and his cholic pains rendering him uncapable of more serious study, he applied himself so happily to this favourite entertainment, as thereby in some measure to palliate the acuteness of his pain, and, 1 These were afterwards published in four volumes, 8vo. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 15 as is hoped and conceived, may give full satisfaction to his readers, by promoting their chief happiness, to the glory of God the giver. So close was his appli- cation to these studies, and so was his mind bent upon quietness, that during all the time of his re- tirement, and among all the attempts of, and clamours against those called Jacobites in the reign of King William, he was never once disturbed in that quiet enjoyment of himself, and it is presumed, never suspected of any ill design, since never publickly molested, or privately rebuked. It is true, he was once sent for by warrant, to appear before the privy council in the year 1696; but having the particular of that matter by me, left under his own hand \ I think it best to refer the reader to it, as subjoined to the latter end of this account. That his opinion was not agreeable with such of the nonjurors, who were for continuing a separation, by private conse- crations among themselves, may (should there be any good occasion) best be known by his answers to letters, written from men of learning, who conversed with him on that subject ; and which he left behind him : and from what I must affirm, that it was on his request the present Bishop of Bath and Wells accepted of that see. And because some have attempted to detract from this good man, as if tainted with errors of popery, and not so stedfast to the doctrine of the Church of England 2, and per- 1 See the account of his examination before the privy council, and the extract from the life of Kettlewell, explaining the trans- action here referred to. 3 The following extracts from Evelyn strongly confirm this statement of Ken's attachment to the Church of England : — " The Bishop of Bath and Wells preached on John vi. 17. a 12 16 A SHORT ACCOUNT haps for want of a steady conduct about the time of the revolution ; I think myself obliged, not only from most excellent and pathetic discourse ; after he had recom- mended the duty of fasting and other penitential duties, he exhorted to constancy in the Protestant religion, detestation of the unheard of cruelties of the French, and stirring up to a liberal contribution. This sermon was the more acceptable, as it was unexpected from a Bishop who had undergone the cen- sure of being inclined to Popery, the contrary whereof no man could show more. This indeed did all our Bishops, to the dis- abusing and reproach of all their dilators, for none were more zealous against Popery than they were." — Vol. i. p. 625. " Most of the great officers, both in the court and country, lords and others, were dismissed, as they would not promise his Majesty their consent to the repeal of the Test and penal statutes against Popish recusants. To this end most of the parliament men were spoken to in his Majesty's closet, and such as refused, if in any place or office of trust, civil or military, were put out of their employments. This was a time of great trial, but hardly one of them assented, which put the Popish interest much backward. The English clergy every where preached boldly against their superstition and errors, and were wonderfully followed by the people. Not one considerable proselyte was made in all this time. The party were considerably put to the worst by the preaching and writing of the Protestants in many excellent treatises, evincing the doctrine and discipline of the reformed religion, to the manifest disadvantage of their adversa- ries. To this did not a little contribute the sermon preached at Whitehall before the Princess of Denmark and a great crowd of people, and at least thirty of the greatest nobility, by Dr. Ken, Bishop of Bath and Wells, on John viii. 46, (the gospel of the day) describing through his whole discourse the blasphemies, perfidy, wresting of scripture, preference of tradition before it, spirit of persecution, superstition, legends, and fables of the Scribes and Pharisees, so that all the auditory understood his meaning of a parallel between them and the Romish priests, and their new Trent religion. He exhorted his audience to adhere to the written word, and to persevere in the faith taught in the Church of England, whose doctrine for Catholic and soundness he pre- OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 17 his will, made not long before his last sickness (and which being taken as a death-bed profession of faith, may gain the greater credit) to transcribe the words following : — " As for my religion, I die in the Holy Catholic and Apostolic faith, professed by the whole church before the disunion of East and West ; more particularly I die in the communion of the Church of England, as it stands distinguished from all papal and puritan innovations, and as it adheres to the doctrine of the cross :" but likewise to adjoin a letter from the present Bishop of Sarum, written to him just before his deprivation, which, together with our Bishop's answer, may not only show that Bishop's opinion of the honour he had been to, and the service he had done the Church, but likewise the caution our Bishop used towards others, in regard to their taking the oaths, and his good wishes for the prosperity of our Church. " My Lord, " This gentleman who is presented to a living in your lordship's diocese came to me to receive insti- tution but I have declined the doing of it, and so have sent him over to your lordship that you being satisfy'd with relation to him may order your chan- cellor to do it. I was willing to lay hold on this occa- sion to let your lordship know that I intend to make no other use of the commission that was sent me than to obey any orders that you may send me in ferred to all the communities and Churches of Christians in the world ; concluding with a kind of prophesy, that whatever it suffered, it should after a short trial emerge to the confusion of her adversaries, and the glory of God. — vol. i. page 637. C 18 A SHORT ACCOUNT such things as my hand and seal may be necessary. I am extremely concerned to see your lordship so unhappily possess'd with that which is likely to prove so fatal to the Church if we are deprived of one that has served in it with so much honour as you have done, especially at such a time when there are fair hopes of the reforming of several abuses. I am the more amazed to find your lordship so positive; because some have told myself that you had ad- vised them to take that which you refuse yourself, and others have told me that they read a pastoral letter which you had prepared for your diocese, and were resolved to print it when you went to London. Your lordship it seems changed your mind there, which gave great advantages to those who were so severe as to say that there was somewhat else than conscience at the bottom. I take the liberty to write this freely to your lordship, for I do not deny that I am in some pain till I know whether it is true or not. I pray God prevent a new breach in a church which has suffered so severely under the old one. " My lord, Your lordship's most faithful servant and brother, " Sarum, October 1. " Gi. SARUM." " all glory be to god. " My Lord, " I am obliged to your lordship, for the continued concern you express for me ; and for the kind freedom you are pleased to take with me ; and though I have already in public fully declared my mind to my OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 19 diocese concerning the oath, to prevent my being misunderstood ; yet since you seem to expect it of me, I will give such an account, which if it does not satisfy your Lordship will at least satisfy myself I dare assure you, I never advised any one to take the oath ; though some, who came to talk insidiously with me, may have raised such a report : so far have I been from it, that I never would administer it to any one person, whom I was to collate. And therefore, before the Act took place, I gave a par- ticular commission to my Chancellor, who himself did not scruple it ; so that he was authorized, not only to institute, but also to collate in my stead. If any came to discourse with me about taking the oath, I usually told them, I durst not take it my- self. I told them my reasons, if they urged me to it, and were of my own diocese : and then remitted them to their study and prayers, for farther direc- tions. It is true, having been scandalized at many persons of our own coat, who for several years to- gether preached up passive obedience to a much greater height than ever I did, it being a subject with which I very rarely meddled, and on a sudden, without the least acknowledgment of their past error, preached and acted the quite contrary ; I did prepare a pastoral letter, which, if I had seen reason to alter my judgment, I thought to have published ; at least that part of it, on which I laid the greatest stress, to justify my conduct to my flock : and before I went to London, I told some of my friends, that if ' that proved true, which was affirmed to us with 1 The Bishop was about this time confidently assured, that King James had by some special instrument made over the kingdom of Ireland to the French King. c2 20 A SHORT ACCOUNT all imaginable assurance (and which I think more proper for discourse than a Letter) it would be an inducement to me to comply. But when I came to town, I found it was false ; and without being in- fluenced by any one, or making any words of it, I burnt my paper, and adhered to my former opinion. Tf this is to be called change of mind, and a change so criminal, that people who are very discerning, and know my own heart better than myself, have pronounced sentence upon me that there is some- thing else than conscience at the bottom, I am much afraid, that some of these who censure me, may be chargeable with more notorious changes than that ; whether more conscientious or no, God only is the Judge. If your Lordship gives credit to the many misrepresentations which are made of me, and which, I being so used to can easily disregard, you may naturally enough be in pain for me : for to see one of your brethren throwing himself headlong into a wilful deprivation, not only of honour and of income, but of a good conscience also, are par- ticulars, out of which may be framed an idea very deplorable. But though I do daily in many things betray great infirmity, I thank God, I cannot accuse myself of any insincerity: so that deprivation will not reach my conscience, and I am in no pain at all for myself. I perceive, that after we have been sufliciently ridiculed, the last mortal stab designed to be given us, is, to expose us to the world for men of no conscience ; and if God is pleased to permit it, His most holy will be done; though what that particular passion of corrupt nature is, which lies at the bottom, and which we gratify, in losing- all we have, will be hard to determine. God grant OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 21 such reproaches as these may not revert on the authors. I heartily join with your Lordship in your desires for the peace of this Church ; and I shall conceive great hopes, that God will have compassion on her, if I see that she compassionates and supports her sister of Scotland. I beseech God to make you an instrument to promote that peace, and that charity, I myself can only contribute to, both by my prayers, and by my deprecations, against schism, and against sacrilege. "My lord, Your Lordship's very faithful servant and brother, " October 5. 1689. " THO. BATH & WELLS." And because I have lately seen some reflections in a pamphlet, lately crept into the world under the suspicious title of a Secret History ', wherein Dr. Ken is by name mentioned to teaze the Duke of Monmouth in vain on the scaffold, to profess the doctrine of passive obedience : I think it proper here in this place boldly to affirm, that our Bishop (for such he was at that time, and did attend on the scaffold) never acted or assisted there, but in the devotional part only. And this, though a Negative, may be proved to satisfaction. 2 And as to what is so confidently mentioned a little after, concerning the subscription of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, among many others, to the invitation of the Prince of Orange ; was there any such subscription any where to be produced, it must not have been denied ; but there are very 1 Vide Secret History of Europe, part ii. page 27. 2 Vide from page 46. to page 51. 22 A SHOUT ACCOUNT strong arguments to be urged, that he never had any the least hand in that matter. And now to close all, I shall set forth one in- stance of care, that himself might not offend. For whilst he stayed in town, and lodged with his old friend Dr. Hooper, now Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, who had daily and earnestly discoursed him on the subject of compliance with the Oath, he at last used these expressions to him : — " I question not, but that you, and several others, have taken the oaths with as good a conscience as myself shall refuse them, and sometimes you have almost per- suaded me to comply, by the arguments you have used ; but I beg you to urge them no farther ; for should I be persuaded to comply, and after see reason to repent, you would make me the most miserable man in the world." And lest any here- after looking into his Will, and observing the legacies therein bequeathed, should determine that either he who left such legacies could not be this described poor man, or this man of charity to have left more legacies than effects, I think myself obliged to reconcile these seeming contradictions, by a very easy explanation. For so little distrust had our present Princess, on the throne, of any ill actions of this just and religious bishop, so great an opinion of his honesty and quiet temper, that notwithstanding he could not be prevailed with to qualify himself for living under her protection, by the now necessary oaths, yet she was glad he would not refuse her yearly favour, which she was gra- ciously ] .leased to bestow on him to his death, and would often complain, it Mas too little for his thanks, which he dutifully sent her; which together with OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 23 a legacy given him a little before his death, by a very valuable friend of his, not only enabled him to do many acts of charity in his life time, (as what he chiefly proposed by accepting it) but his exe- cutor likewise, to discharge all such legacies as he thought fit to charge him with. I shall not be so bold as to sum up the character of such a man. I have neither leisure, nor opportunity, to search for particular facts ; a large account of his life requiring both a more able and polite genius and pen. My design being only to give some short account to introduce his writings into the world, I shall only add some few matters of fact of my own knowledge concerning his last sickness, and leave the reader to refresh himself with the following specimen. Making bloody water, which was thought to be occasioned by an ulcer in his kidneys, he went to Bristol in the beginning of the year 1710, for the benefit of the hot- well ; where he spent the summer, and till November following. At which time, he removed to Leweston near Sherborne in Dorset- shire, a seat belonging to the Honourable Mrs. Thynne, whose good works merited his respect and acknowledgment, as much as her generosity at- tempted the relief of his distemper. And being there seized with a dead palsy on one side of him, he was confined to his chamber, till about the middle of March ; when, being (as he thought) able to take such a journey, he resolved for the Bath, in hopes to find relief from those waters; nor could the persuasions of that good Lady or his physician divert his design, though lie laboured under another distemper, viz. the dropsy. So calling at Long- Leate on Saturday, in his way thither, he spent 24 A SHORT ACCOUNT that evening in adjusting some papers ; all the next day he confined himself to his chamber, and on Monday he was confined to his bed ; till on the Monday following, viz. March 19, 1710, his soul was set free. He was remarkably patient in his sickness ; and when upon his own inquiry of his physician, how many days he thought he might probably live, desiring him to speak plainly and freely, and telling him he had no reason to be afraid of dying ; and being by him answered, about two or three days, his only reply was (his usual expres- sion, and that without the least concern,) " God's will be done :" desiring that no applications might be made to cause him to linger in pain. It can be no wonder he should so little regard the terrors of death, who had for many years travelled with his shroud in his portmantua, as what, he often said, might be as soon wanted as any other of his habili- ments ; and which was by himself put on, as soon as he came to Long-Leate, giving notice of it the day before his death, by way of prevention, that his body might not be stripped. He dozed much the day or two before he died ; and what little he spake, was sometimes not coherent, which having been plied with opiates, seemed to be rather the effect of dream, than distemper. He was buried at Froome- Selwood, it being the nearest parish within his own diocese to the place where he died, as by his own request, in the church-yard, under the east window of the chance], just at sun-rising, without any manner of pomp or ceremony, besides that of the order for burial in the liturgy of the church of England, on the 21st day March, 1710. Anno Etat. 73. OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 25 He left behind him but few relations : Martha, the daughter of his brother Mr. John Ken by Rose his wife : which Martha married to the Honourable Christopher Frederick Kreienberg, resident of his Electoral Highness of Hanover in London. John Beacham, at this time fellow of Trinity College, and William Beacham sometime fellow of New College Oxon, and since deceased, who were the sons of his sister Martha by her husband Mr. James Beacham. Isaac Walton, residentiary of the cathedral church of Sarum, and Anne, son and daughter of his sister Anne by her husband Mr. Isaac Walton of London ; which Anne, having married to William Hawkins, D.D. sometime prebendary of the cathedral church of Winton, had issue by him William and Anne, both living. Which William, being by will, proved in the prerogative court of Canterbury, April 24, 1711. appointed executor, and having had opportunities of knowledge and enquiry of him, submits this impartial, and he hopes not unacceptable account to the public. AN ACCOUNT OF HIS EXAMINATION BEFORE THE PRIVY-COUNCIL ». "ALL GLORY BE TO GOD. " After the favourable hearing, which this day the lords of the most honourable Privy Council gave 1 The following extract from the life of Kettlewell, folio p. 163. gives an account of the circumstances which led to this exami- nation. " Notwithstanding the great care which Mr. Kettlewell took to behave himself so inoffensively, as not to give the government 26 A SHORT ACCOUNT me, Mr. Bridgman came out to me to tell me, that their lordships expected a copy of my answers ; any occasion to animadvert upon him in a public manner, there was one thing fell out in the latter end of his life, which might have brought him into considerable trouble, had he survived much longer. It was a model of a fund of charity, for the needy suffering Clergy, drawn up by him in the January before he died, and presented to the Bishops of his communion, whom he would have to be constituted the managers of the said fund, with such of their Clergy as they should appoint. For though there were not wanting for some of the first years many charitable bene- factors who took pity upon the sufferings of the deprived Clergy, yet there was hitherto no regular collection of their contributions, for want of a fund and of managers to see the same prudently and equally distributed. Whereby not a few were imposed upon in their charity, and several undeserving persons (who are always the most confident) by their going up and down did much prejudice the truly deserving, whose modesty would not suffer them to solicit for themselves. Yea, there were also some false pretenders, persons of bad characters, and such as were not deprived on account of the oaths, but for other reasons, and whose only merit consisted in being secret spies and infor- mers for the ministry, — one of whom I knew who had forged letters of orders to qualify himself; these by appearing more zealous than others, made it their business to insinuate them- selves, and to do all the mischief in their power to those whom they pretended to side writh. This Mr. Kettlewell had observed and complained of; but could think of no better remedy, than to bring the Clergy into a more near dependance upon their Bishops by this means ; by which the case, and character of every one might more narrowly be looked into. He was also very sensible, that some of his brethren spent too much of their time in places of concourse and news, by depending for their subsis- tence upon those they there got acquainted with : as also, that others who had very resolutely stood their ground in the beginning, afterward finding not only themselves but their families also at the point of starving, and having no prospect of any relief to them, chose to submit and qualify themselves ; having this excuse for it, that they were necessitated to surrender when they OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 27 which, as far as I can recollect, I here humbly offer to their lordships. had held out to the last extremity. Wherefore upon repeated complaints brought to them from all quarters of the kingdom, that many of the deprived Clergy, with their wives, children, and families, were reduced to extreme want and misery, being left without any means to support themselves, the Bishops under deprivation, thinking the proposal of Mr. Kettlewell very reasonable, as well as charitable, concluded the model which he had laid, now fit to be put in execution ; and accordingly, in July following, their charitable recommendation, for begging the alms of such tender hearted persons, as might have an inclina- tion to commiserate and relieve the afflicted servants of God, was by them sent forth. This paper, having been signed by all the then surviving Bishops, as by Lloyd of Norwich, Frampton of Gloucester, Turner of Ely, Ken of Bath and Wells, and White of Peterborough, deprived, presently made some stir, according to the different affections of the people to whom it was presented, it being addressed in general to all christian people : so that it was not long before the government took umbrage thereat, and found it necessary to put a stop to it. These deprived fathers had consulted the learned in the law thereupon, and this clause was inserted in their paper, " as far as in law we may :'' but nevertheless it was deemed by the ministry illegal as coming out with a pretence of authority, and in the nature of a brief; and that it was moreover an usurpation of Ecclesiastical jurisdic- tion. Wherefore warrants were issued out against the subscribers and dispersers of this paper that they might be prosecuted accord- ing to law for a misdemeanour. An occasion for which proceeding was given by a certain gentleman of universal good will and of an unblemished character, who, being acquainted with Mr. Thomas Firmin, a person at that time very famous for collecting and distributing the alms of well disposed people, for the relief of many thousands of the poor and afflicted, recommended to him the case of the poor deprived Clergy, and therewith gave him the said paper of the Bishops, that he might make by it the proper application on their behalf. The which he accepting, as not thinking there was any danger in it, began to act openly therein, as in a matter purely of charity, and the more so as 12 28 A SHORT ACCOUNT "The printed paper subscribed by the deprived Bishops, to beg the alms of charitable people, being shewed me, I was asked, appropriated to those who dissented from him both as to the church and state ; but he was presently told by some of his great friends, that the paper was a libel, that his acting in virtue thereof, was altogether illegal, and tending to sedition ; that it was raising money for the support of the enemies of the govern- ment ; and that he could be no friend to the same, nor discharge himself, but by acquainting a secretary of state with what he knew thereof, and delivering up the paper which he had for his commission. Mr. Firmin at this, not a little affrighted, and both willing to serve the government to his best, and unwilling to betray the gentleman who had intrusted him, communicated to him the bad success of the application made by him, and the consequences which were thence to be expected, from the handle which would thereby be infallibly taken, according to all that he had heard from a certain great person then near the helm of affairs : and to screen this gentleman, known to be Mr. Kettlewell's friend, from falling under the weight of the government, it was therefore contrived that a third person, and one who had nothing to lose should take this upon himself. So accordingly one of the deprived Clergy, a most peaceable man and in every thing of an irreproachable character, being also one of Mr. Kettlewell's friends and one of the managers in this very collection for his suffering brethren, was pitched upon by them ; who readily offered himself to stand as in the gap and to appear in a cause, for which he could not be without a most tender compassion as being his own : and this Clergyman being hence taken up by a secretary of state's warrant, upon the concerted information of Mr. Firmin, and owning the paper, and himself to be concerned in promoting the intent thereof, he was for some months detained in custody, and afterwards discharged. Thus the matter being now brought before the Privy-Council, the storm had like to have fallen heavy upon the heads, and the principal managers of the fund pro- posed ; but that by the discreet answers given to the lords of the council, it was thought proper at last Jo drop this affair as easily as could be, after having put a stop to the method which was taken. Particularly Uishop Ken, upon his examination OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 29 " Did you subscribe this paper? "A. My lords, I thank God I did, and it had a very happy effect; for the will of my blessed Re- deemer was fulfilled by it ; and what we were not able to do ourselves, was done by others ; the hungry were fed, and the naked were clothed ; and to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, and to visit those who are sick or in prison, is that plea which all your lordships as well as I, as far as you have had opportunities, must make for yourselves at the great day. And that which you must all plead at God's tribunal for your eternal absolution, shall not, I hope, be made my condemnation here. "It was then said to this purpose ; No one here condemns charity, but the way you have taken to procure it : your paper is illegal. "A. My lords, I can plead to the evangelical part : I am no lawyer, but shall want lawyers to plead that ; and I have been very well assured that it is legal. My lords, I will sincerely give your lordships an account of the part I had in it. The first person who proposed it to me was Mr. Kettlewell, that holy man who is now with God ; and after some time it was brought to this form, and I subscribed it, and then went into the country to my retirement made such an apology for the part he had in it, as was irresistible, his answers being those of a true Christian Bishop : the first person, he said, who proposed it to him was Mr. Kettlewell, that holy man, who is now with God. And there was such an harmony betwixt the spirit of one and the other of these two excellent persons, in relation to their pastoral and ministerial duties, as hardly there could be greater ; the good Bishop upon all proper occasions expressing the solid esteem which he had for Mr. Kettlewell and for his judicious and pious works." 30 A SHORT ACCOUNT in an obscure village, where I live above the sus- picion of giving any the least umbrage to the government. " My lords, I was not active in making collections in the country, where there are but few such objects of charity ; but good people of their own accords sent me towards fourscore pounds, of which about one half is still in my hands. " I beg your lordships to observe this clause in our paper, ' as far as in law we may :' and to receive such charity, is, I presume, " which in law I may ;" and to distribute it is a thing also, " which in law I may." " It was objected to this purpose : This money has been abused and given to very ill and immoral men ; and particularly to one who goes in a gown one day, and in a blue silk waistcoat another. "A. My lords, to give to an ill man may be a mistake, and no crime, unless what was given was given him to an ill purpose ; nay, to give to an ill man and knowingly is our duty, if that ill man wants necessaries of life ; for as long as God's pa- tience and forbearance indulges that ill man life to lead him to repentance, we ought to support that life God indulges him, hoping for the happy effect of it. " My lords, in King James's time there were about a thousand or more imprisoned in my diocese, who were engaged in the rebellion of the duke of Monmouth ; and many of them were such which I had reason to believe to be ill men, and void of all religion : and yet for all that, I thought it my duty to relieve them. It is well known to the diocese, that I visited them night and day, and I thank God I supplied them with necessaries myself, as far as I OF THE LIFE OF BISHOP KEN. 31 could, and encouraged others to do the same ; and yet King James never found the least fault with me. And if I am now charged with misapplying what was given, I beg of your lordships, that St. Paul's apostolical rule may be observed, ' against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses ;' for I am sure none can testify that against me. What I gave, I gave in the country ; and I gave to none but those who did both want and deserve it : the last that I gave was to two poor widows of deprived clergymen, one whereof was left with six, the other with seven small children. " It was said to this purpose : You are not charged yourself with giving to ill men, though it has been done by others: but the paper comes out with a pretence of authority, and it is illegal, and in the nature of a brief; and if such practices are permitted, private men may supersede all the briefs granted by the King. " A. My lords, I beg your pardon, if I cannot give a full answer to this ; I am no lawyer, and am not prepared to argue it in law. " It was farther objected to this purpose : By send- ing forth this paper, you have usurped ecclesiastical jurisdiction. " A . My lords, I never heard that begging was a part of ecclesiastical jurisdiction ; and in this paper we are only beggars, which privilege I hope may be allowed us. " I make no doubt, but your lordships may have had strange misinformations concerning this paper : but having sincerely told you what part I had in it, I humbly submit myself to your lordships' justice. "I presume your lordships will come to no im- 32 A SHOKT ACCOUNT, kc. mediate resolution concerning me ; and having1 voluntarily surrendered myself, and the warrant having never been served on me till I had twice attended here, this being the third time, and my health being infirm, I beg this favour of your lord- ships, that I may return to my sister's house, where I have hitherto lodged, which is a place the mes- senger knows well ; and that I may be no otherwise confined, till I have received your lordships' final resolution. "This favour your lordships were pleased very readily to grant me ; for which I return my humble acknowledgements, beseeching God to be gracious to your lordships. "April 28, 1696. THOMAS BATH & WELLS. Deprived." LETTERS FROM BISHOP KEN, WILLIAM LLOYD, THE DEPRIVED BISHOP OF NORWICH, AND DR, THOMAS SMITH. i) LETTER I. FOR THE REVEREND DR. JOHN NICHOLAS, VICE-CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD. My good Friend, It pleased God to take away Mr. Coles ' between 1 0 and 11 of ye o'clock yesterday night about ye very time we were commending him to God in the prayers, Cujus anima requiescat in pace. His sisters have lost an excellent brother, and ye society a very sincere and understanding man, but, to recompense his losse, as soon as ever he was dead ye warden was persuaded to go to an election of a successoure imme- diately ; and just as we went into the chappelle Mr. Harris appeared, and was chose2, nemine contra- 1 Gilbert Coles, admitted fellow of New College, after he had served two years of probation, 1637 ; took the degree of arts in 1648, or thereabouts ; became fellow of the New College near Winchester ; but soon after was elected fellow by the visitors appointed by Parliament. Afterwards he was elected fellow again by the society of New College, for the great respect they had for him, he being about that time rector of East-Meon, in Hampshire, and accounted by many a learned man. Afterwards he became rector of Easton, near Winchester, D.D. and rector of Ash, in Surrey. He wrote, " Theophilus and Orthodoxus ; or, several conferences between two friends, the one a true son of the Church of England, the other fallen off to the Church of Rome," Oxford, 1674. He died 1676, and was buried in the Church of Easton before mentioned. Over his grave his widow soon after erected a stone, with this inscription thereon ; Gilbert Coles, S. T. P. hujus ecclesise Rector, Coll. Winton. Socius, obiit 19 Junii, 1676, anno aetatis suae 59. Mcerens conjux posnit hoc." —Wood. 2 Bowles. D '2 36 LETTERS. dicente, before dinner. You may perhaps suspecte that we of this colledge might have a design against you, in taking your friends away, and leaving you all your honours ; but, to convince you of the contrary, I will endeavour to rid you of Bampton \ whom Dr. Clutterbuck2 is willing to recommend to his kinsman, upon some discourse I had with you, but I intend he shall receive the favour from you early, or not at all ; and I hope the new colledge are now resolved that no one who offers disrespect to you can be acceptable now. I thank you kindly for your favours to my little boy. It is fitt for me to appear at Oxford : I shall, God willing, be ready. In ye mean time, you would do me kindnesse to exchange offices with me, for I would willingly be Vice Chan- cellour a month, provided you would be Bursar ! In regard to the death of my colleague ye present account of the whole yeare lies on me. Read to B. what follows : Dr. Clutterbuck desires me to send to you for a scholar who is prudent and welle-behaved, to live with a Knight at Greenwich, of his owne 1 This James Bampton is doubtless the same mentioned by Wood in his Fasti Oxonienses. " This person took no higher degree than B. L. entered afterwards into holy orders, and published a sermon, but the title of it I do not know, only the text, which is, " suffer little children to come," &c. — St. Mark x. 4. He also provided another thing for the press, which I think is not yet published, nor ever will be. He died of a con- sumption 9th May, 168 3, aged 37, and was buried in the west cloister belonging to that college." — Wood. 2 Thomas Clutterbuck, D.D. rector and vicar of South Stone- ham, near Southampton, installed as an Archdeacon in the cathedral of Winchester in the place of Robert Sharroch, promoted to this preferment through his great patron Morley ; took his degree of M.A. of Magdalen College 1646 Wood. LETTERS. 37 name, and of kin to him. His employment will be only to read prayers, and to have a young gentle- man's company, who is about 17 yeares of age, but, having lived in Italy, scarcely knows the customes of England, and to reade some parts of learning which are most suitable to him. I doubt not but you are able to recommend several fitt for him, but if I might guide your choice I would wish you would propose it to Mr. Bampton. I know very welle that you have not any reason to be kind to him, but I am of opinion, as they soon go abroad for some time, you would soon learne to like him better at his returne than before ; besides, he told me the other day that he was desirous of a schoole, and soome friends did recommend him to Mr. Nowell for a chaplaine ; but I am afraide he will not suit him, and though his behaviour to you has made me much less concern'd for him than, I own to you, I should have bene, yett I like him so welle, that if he has a mind to this employement I desire you to recommend him, for without your recommendation I shall be able to doo him no good. Dr. Clutterbuck is now in London, lodging att Mr. Roger Newton's, in Little Brittaine. Send your resolution by ye nexte post to him, for he expects it. Excuse this very longe letter Deare Sir, Yours most affectionately, T. KEN. Oct. 2\th, 1677. 38 LETTERS. LETTER II. FOR HIS GRACE, THE ARCHBP. OF CANTERBURY. My very good Lord, I should not dare to make this invasion on your Grace, but that my duty enforces me and the ambi- tion I have to send newes, which I know will be extremely wellcome to your Grace, and the rather because it is of a convert to our Church, and of a convert, who is no lesse a persone then Collonell Fitz Patrick ; who upon a deliberate enquiry is so fully satisfy'd with our Church, that he comunicates with us next Lords day in the Princess's chapell. 'Tis not to be imagined how much both their Highnesses are pleased with the Colonel's happy resolution, and the Prince comanded me to give my Lord of London a particular account of it, which I have done. On Mooneday his Higlmesse goes for Germany; the pretence is hunting, but the chiefe thing which he proposes to himself, wee understand, is to discourse the Germane Princes about the present posture of Europe, and to take acurate measures to expose the comon enemy. I most earnestly begge your Graces benediction. My good Lord, your Graces Most obedient and most humble Servant, THO. KEN. Hague. Sept. With, 1G80. LETTERS. 39 LETTER III. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." Most Reverend Father and my very good Lord, I had made my acknowledgments sooner to your Grace, for the favour of your letter, but that I de- lay'd them on purpose, hoping to have sent them by another hand. In the affair I mentioned in my last, I acted according to the best of my judgment, and that I might give no occasion, to any more of those misrepresentations, under which I have so often, and so undeservedly lay'n. The copy which I have by me, I will take care to send by my secretary, who, God willing, is to be in Towne at the Terme. There are some particulars, especially those, which relate to Faculties, which by experience, I find not practicable, and many of the cures in my diocesse, are so very small, that I am very glad to gett a sober person to supply them, though he is not a graduate, but as for ordinations, your Grace may be assured that I endeavour all I can to lay hands suddenly on no man. I am very sensible of the charitable opinion you are pleased to have of me, and the favourable construction you make of my actions : God grant I may in some measure answer your Grace's just expectations. I beseech God of his infinite good- nesse, and in mercy to his poore Church, to give you a supereffluence of his H. Spirit, to assist and support you, and I humbly begge your benediction. My good Lord, Your Graces most obedient son and Servant, THO. BATH & WELLS. Oct. 1, 1687. 12 40 LETTERS. LETTER IV. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, The entire veneration I have ever had for your Grace, makes your displeasure the more afflicting, especially so great a displeasure against me, as your letter expresses, and that too for such a crime which I abhorre, no lesse than insincere dealing, and in the whole, I am so unhappy as to be supposed guilty by your Grace, and to be treated by you as if I were. But I hope your Grace will have that charity for me, as to believe me, when I with all humble submission acquaint you, that I never had the originall you men- tion. And if I had had it, I know not the least tempta- tion imaginable I could have had to have detained it. The onely copy I had, I have sent, and I thought it was the same you meant, having, as I understood your letter, lost the other ; and I sent it to the Bishop of Ely, because I was tender of giving you the trouble of a letter which might be spared, and I sent it with a particular circumstance of duty to your Grace, that my old friend must needs be very forgettfull, if he gave no better account who it was that brought, or how it came to his hands. I confesse I should have sent your paper sooner, and so I had done, had not the persons with whome my secretary was to transact businesse disappointed us, and this, if it be a fault, I presume is a veniall one. But how much soever assured T am of my owne innocence, rather LETTERS. 4 1 than tyre you with a tedious vindication of myselfe I choose to begge your pardon, as well as your bene- diction. My good Lord, Your Graces most obedient son and Servant, THO. BATH & WELLS. Dec. 5th, 1687. LETTER V. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." May it please your Grace, Before I could return any answer to the letter with which your Grace was pleased to favour me, I received intelligence that the Dutch were just coming to Wells, upon which I immediately lefft the town, and, in obedience to his Majesty's generall commands, took all my coach horses with me, and as many of my saddle horses as I well could, and took shelter in a private village in Wiltshire, intending, if his Ma: had come into my country, to have waited on him, and to have paid him my duty. But this morning wee are told his Ma: is gone back to London, so that I onely wait till the Dutch have passed my diocesse, and then resolve to returne thither againe, that being my proper station. I would not have lefft the diocesse in this juncture, but that the Dutch had seas'd houses within ten miles of Wells before I went, and your Grace knowes, that I, having been a servant to the Princess, and well acquainted with many of the Dutch, I could not have staid with- out giving some occasions of suspicion, which I 42 LETTERS. thought it most advisable to avoid ; resolving by God's grace to continue in a firm loyalty to the King, whome God direct and preserve in this time of danger ; and I beseech your Grace to lay my most humble duty at his Majesty's feet, and to acquaint him with the reason of my retiring, that I may not be misunderstood. The person your Grace mentions wrote to me to the same purpose, and I spake with the Archdeacon, who says he demands nothing but his due, so that the law must decide the controversy. God of his infinite mercy deliver us from the cala- mitys which now threaten us, and from the shines which have occasioned them. My very good Lord, Your Graces very affect: Servant and Br, THO. BATH & WELLS. Nov. 24, 1688. LETTER VI. FOR MRS. GREGGE. " All Glory be to God." Good Mrs. Gregge, If you hear any thing from my friends, direct your letter, not to me, but to Mr. Isaac Walton, rector of Polshot, to be left at the post-house, in Devizes ; for to his house I am now, God willing, going for some time ; partly for my health, partly to avoid that cloud under which I lye, (and chiefly from my brethren, God forgive them for it,) as having done all that is proper for me to doe to assert my character, the doing of which has created me many enemies, as 1 expected it would. LETTERS. 43 My brother of G is, I hear, out of harm's way, in Wales, at the present, but I have heard nothing from him. My best respects to my good mother and to dear Miss, who, I doubt not, behaves herself with all decency, and piety, and humility, as becomes not only the daughter of a bishop, but a bishop in afflic- tion. Dr. Kidder is now said to be my successor, or rather supplanter. He is a person of whom I have no knowledge. God of his infinite goodness mul- tiply his blessings on yourselfe, and on my good friends with you, and enable us to do and to suffer his most holy will. Your very affectionate Mend, THO. BATH & WELLS. LETTER VII. FOR MISTRESS LLOYD1 AT HODSDEN. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord, Your Lordship did much cheer me, when you told me that our affaires went on well. I was in great hopes of seeing you this morning, but you had other avocations : let me know when you can come, and I will be sure to attend you, or when I shall come to you. If any thing more occurs, an intimation is enough, and will not take up too much of your time. D. W. should, I think, be acquainted with our con- cernes, who is able to advise very well. My best 1 The Letters to the Bishop of Norwich are nearly all of them thus directed. 44 LETTERS. respects to your good lady. God of his infinite mercy fitt us for all the trialls He designes us to undergoe. Your most affect: friend and Br, Nov. 18th, 1091. T. B. &W. My Br has sent you a letter, which I keep til] we meet. LETTER VIII. FOR THE REV. MR. HARBIN. " All Glory be to God." Good Mr. Harbin, You tell me that Mr. Pitts censures the deprived Bishops for not asserting their rights in a public manner at their deprivation. If he puts me among the number, he does me wrong ; for I, at the time, in my Cathedral, which was the proper place, from my Pastoral Chair, publicly asserted my canonical right, professing that I esteemed myself the Canonical Bishop of the diocese, and that I Would BE READY, ON ALL OCCASIONS, TO PERFORME my pastoral duties. This I did when all Mere devoted to the Revolution, and waited for suggestions which they might inform of; particularly, it was then urged that I said I was the lawful pastour, insomuch that I was faine to appeal to some less byassed, whether my word was not ' canonical,* which 1 judged as most proper, and a word that the law was a stranger to. I professed, that not being able t<» make this declaration to the whole diocese, I made it virtually to all, by making it in the Market- square. LETTERS. 45 What others of my brethren did, I know not; but I acted as uniformly as I could. Pray let good Mr. Jenkins know this, and let Mr. Pitts know it, if you chance to meet him. Pro- bably I may have the copy of my declaration among my papers at Long-Leat. I pray to God to restore my good Lord. I shall be extremely glad to hear that he goes abroad. God keep us in his holy fear. Your affectionate friend and Brother, T. R. & W. LETTER IX. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." Good Doctor, This is onely to wish you a happy new year, hav- ing the opportunity of saluting you by Mr. Harbin, who was chaplaine here before to our deare friend, the Bishop of Ely, now with God, and is at present in the same station with my Lord Weymouth, who has a great esteeme of him, and that very deservedly; and I entreat you to shew him all the favour you can in his studys. I know my good Lord Weymouth will be very glad to see you, and you will be re- ceived by him with great respect, but I would have you dine with him on a day when he shall have least company to interrupt your conversation, and Mr. Harbin can best informe you of that. I beseech God of his infinite goodnesse to make us wise for eternity. Your most affect: friend and Br, Jan. 23. THO. RATH & WELLS. 4G LETTERS. No. 1. to the b. of b. and w. My Lord, Some while since I received the honour and favour of your Lordship's letter by Mr. H., whose studies as I have already since our first acquaintance, so I shall still contrive to assist by procuring him the use of the MSS. in the Cottonian Library. He seems to have a peculiar talent, genius, and inclination towards the illustrating the history and antiquity of our Church, and especially since K. Henry VIIIth5 first contest with Rome, which happily ended in the utter extinction and overthrow of the papal power here in England, and made way for the Reformation ; a more accurate, perfect, and impar- tial accompt of which, may, I hope, be expected from him and some others than hitherto has been done ; the horrible blunder and grosse mistake and perverse reflexions upon, and misrepresentations of the coun- sels and actions of those times, committed by the late historian, arising from the great haste he was in, and from the prodigious and scandalous negli- gence and carelessness of himself or his amanuenses, from the warmth and impetuosity of his temper, and, it may be, from a worse principle, being biassed by his Scotch Presbyterian education, make it neces- sary that such a work, in which the honour of our Church is concerned, should be done over again by 0110 or other who both understand and love the constitution better, and will examine more carefully LETTERS. 47 and judiciously those records and memorials which he has slubbered, and in many places misunderstood, and make use of great numbers of other valuable papers which he either had not the opportunity of seeing or at least carelessly overlookt. At the opening of the Convocation last weeke at St. Pauls, the Latine sermon being there preached by Dr. Haley, they chose unanimously Dr. Hooper for their Prolocutor, who is to be presented to the Upper House on Fry day, 21st instant. A little time will show whether a licence will be granted them to enter into any debate about affairs relating to the Church, which most already begin to doubt of. Several plausible resons and pretensions, besides the prerogative vested in the Crowne by the submission of the Clergy, passed into an Act 28 H. VIII. in all likelyhood will be alleged for their being dismist from their attendance, and for their being sent home as wise and prepared as they came to vindicate the doctrine and discipline of the Church against the attaques of its numerous adversaryes, not to mention other accidents tho so seemingly remote, to which all mankind, the higher as well as the lower, the oppressors as well as the oppressed, are continually subject in this vain and perishing world, which is now hastening on toward its utmost period. But, however, if these men should chance to sit, it is feared, that instead of uniting against the com- mon enemys of our religion, they wil quarrell among themselves of which the carryed on of late by two different partyes with such intemperate heat and downright railing one at another, seem to be a cleare proofe, at least a manifest presage. Instead of further reflexion, I wil only add what a friend 48 LETTERS. and servant of your Lordship wrote at yfc end of Dr. Wake's booke, page 255 : — Nee lex est justior ulla Quam sceleris socios in se convertere ferrum, Et sociis fidei violatae impingere crimen, Et sociis fidei violatae infligere pcenam. Let them upbraid, challenge in their invective writ- ings, and hate one another as their humour and pas- sion shall suggest, this is certaine, that whilst one party pretends with zeal and animosity to assert the authority of Christian princes, and the other with as great eagerness and fierceness and semblance of reli- gion and piety to defend the essential rights of the Church, they have both shamefully agreed to do so and so, and these latter especially, have been wholly silent, not to say consenting, when they saw several righteous Bishops and Priests deprived by a Lay power. But I forbeare, and lay a suddain restraint upon my passion, lest it swells and rises too high, and do with all meekness and calmness of mind and temper humbly desire your blessing and prayers. I am, my Lord, your Lds most faithful and humble Servant, T. S. London. Feb. 25, 170^. LETTER X. FOR THE DEAN OF WORCESTER. " All Glory be to God." My good Friend, I wrote to you not long ago, to recommend to your serious consideration, the schism which has so LETTERS. 49 long continued in our Church ; and which I have often lamented to my Brother of Ely, now with God, and concerning which, I have many years had ill abodings. I need not tell you what pernicious con- sequences it may produce, and I fear has produced already ; what advantage it yields to our enemies, what irreligion, the abandoning of the public assem- bly s may cause in some, and what vexation it creates to tender consciences in the country, where they live banished from the House of God. I know you con- curr with me in hearty desires in closing the rupture ; and methinks this is a happy juncture for it : the Lower House of Convocation do now worthily affect the rights of the Clergy, and I dare say will gladly embrace a reconciliation ; the question is, how it may be conscientiously effected ? for which purpose, I wish you would consult with my Brother of Nor- wich, Dr. Smith, Mr. Wagstafe, and other learned sufferers, who are within your reach. 1 name not my Brother of Gloucester, partly because of his remoteness, and partly because he never interrupted communion with the jurors, which has been the prac- tice also of our friends at Cambridge ; but I cannot forbear to name the excellent Mr. Dodwell, who is near you, and will be ready to contribute his advice to further so charitable a design. If you think fit to discourse this thing among yourselves, when it is done, I could wish, that by the intervention of some friend, a meeting might be contrived, with the worthy prolocutor ', and two or three of his brethren. In the mean time, give me leave to suggest my pre- sent thoughts, if it is not judged advisable for my 1 Hooper, afterwards Ken's successor at Bath and Wells. E 50 LETTERS. Brother of Norwich and myself, to resign up our canonical claims, which would be the shortest way, and which I am ready to do, for the repose of the flock, having long ago maintained it to justify our character ; if, I say, this is not thought advisable, then that a circular letter would be pened, and dis- persed, which should modestly and yet resolutely, assist the cause for which we suffer, and declare that our opinion is still the same, in regard to passive obedience, and specify the reasons which induce us to communicate in the publick offices, the chiefest of which is to restore the peace of the Church, which is of that importance, that it ought to supersede all ecclesiastical canons, they being only of human, and not divine authority. A letter to this purpose would make our presence at some of the prayers rightly understood to be no betraying of our cause ; would guard us against any advantage our adversarys may take from our Christian condescention ; would re- lieve fundamental charity, and give a general satis- faction to all well-minded persons. I offer this with submission, and out of a sincere zeal for the good of the Church, and I beseech the Divine goodness to guide both sides into the way of peace, that wo may with one mind, and one mouth, glorify God. Yr most affect, friend and brother, 7 March, 1700. T. B. & W. LETTER XI. " All Glory be to God." My good Friend, I am still of the opinion that Mr Cook's aim was extravagant, and was likely to give little assist- LETTERS. 5 1 mice to his parents and brothers, and I said enough to convince him of it, when I told him that after his son had served his time, he could be only a journey- man unless he took the oath, which was at present the case of one whom I knew, and that if he did take it, he could have no seat in the office unless he could advance about 500/. to purchase it. Your concern for the good lady is very kind and just, but if you visit her and at the same time show an aversion to her husband, it will, I fear, rather afflict than com- fort her. The complaisant expressions you censure I never used, and am confident the Coll : will not say 1 did, so that I look on the imputation as one of those causeless suspicions, under which some of my arbitrary friends are pleased to lay me. In the latter part of your letter you give your own character, on purpose, I perceive, that I should take the reverse of it to my self. And in some respects I am willing to do it, namely, in allowing all degrees of excusability to those who are of a different persuasion, and in the business of clandestine consecrations against which you know I always declared my judgment ; I foresaw it would perpetuate the schism which I daily deplore : and I thought it insidiously procured by Melford for that purpose, who could intend no good to our Church ; but I was forced at last to tollerate what I could not approve of. As to the main, I may pro- bably continue as firm as they who keep more bustle; though I told you long ago I could shew no zeal for it, and then gave you the reason which cooled me, and which I sent to our friends abroad. You have been more than once severe upon me. I leave you at your liberty to dissent from me, and if you will not indulge me the like liberty to dissent from you, I E 2 52 LETTERS. must take it, though without any breach of friendship on my part. God keep us in His most holy fear, Your most affectionate friend and Br, THO: B & W. Octr. I, 1701. No. 2. to the b. of bath and wells. My Lord, I write this to comply with the urgent request of the bearer, Mr. James Gray, a worthy clergyman of the Church of Scotland, now going to Bath, in attendance upon the Countess of Roxburgh, and purposing after some little to wait upon your Lord- ship; tho' I tell him that this recommendation seems altogether superfluous and unnecessary, he not being unknowne to you, and having such an authentic attestation under the hands and seals of the Archb. of St. Andrews and the Bishop of Edin- burgh. I know your Lordship's generous and truly Christian com passion and concern for that grievously afflicted and persecuted Church, and the distressed clergy thereof, and how ready and zealous you have been, upon all occasions suggested and offered, to pro- mote this great duty of our religion, and to recom- mend to the humanity, to the good nature, to the charity, to the bounty of devout persons of your acquaintance, especially of a distinguishing character and quality, whom God lias blest with plentifull for- tunes and estates, and who abound in the good things of this life, the sad and wofull condition of such as suffer for Conscience and righteousness sake. Which LETTERS. 53 consideration has prevayled upon me to write so freely to your Lordship, and at the same time en- courageth me to hope that you will be pleased to pardon the trouble hereby given, by My Lord, Your Lordship's most dutiful & obedient servant, 'J'. S. London, 27 July, 1701. LETTER XII. TO WORTHY MR. HARBIN1. Good Sir, I staid at Sarum longer than I intended, by which means I received your letter, which gave me much satisfaction for the present ; but since that I hear that the abjuration goes on, only they have changed voluntary into compulsory 2. I am troubled to see the nation likely to be involved in new universal oaths, but hope they will be imposed on none but those who were employed or promoted in church and state. I came to Winchester yesterday, where I stay one post more, and then goe either to Sr R. U. or L. Newton, where you shall hear from me. Little Matthew is very well, and the schoolmaster, at whose house I lodge, tells me he is very regular, and minds his book. My best respects where most due. I beseech God to multiply his blessings on yourselfe and on the family where you are. Your truly affectionate friend and brother, T. B. & W, Winton, Jan. 22. 1 Lord Weymouth's chaplain. 2 Sec Rapin, 1701, 54 LETTERS. LETTER XIII. FOR THE SAME. You will do me the kindnesse to set me at ease about it, and let we know whether it will be enforced. It is an oath I shall never take. I will rather leave the kingdom, as old and infirm as I am ; and if it is likely to drive me to that (illegible) I would gladly (illegible) to prepare for the storme, as possibly may be had. Pray write by Tuesday's post, and direct to William Jones, at Canon Walton's house, in the Close in Sarum. My humble service to my good Lord and Lady. God helpe us, &c. Yours, goode Sir, Very affectionately, T. B. & W. LETTER XIV. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD, AT MR. HARBIN'S, A GROCER, OVER AGAINST SOMERSET HOUSE. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, This is only to let you know that I go towards Polshot, God willing, to-morrow, and thither, if there isany occasion forit,yourLordshippe may direct to me. I have been more free from my distemper, I thank God, during my stay in this clear air than I have been for many years, and I would gladly seat myself in the down country, but that I must abide not where I would, but where I can ; a moist, thick & muddy air does by no means agree with me, though to such a one I am LETTERS. 55 now retiring. My best respects to Mrs. Lloyd, and to your family. God keep us in His holy fear. My good Lord, Your Lordship's very affect; fr(l: and B'. THO. B. & W. Apr. 26th. No. 3. to the lord bishop of bath and wells. My Lord, Though your Lordship hath withdrawn corre- spondence with me for some years passed, and also that brotherly affection, which you vouchsafed me heretofore, yet I cannot forbear giving you this inter- ruption in this nice conjunction of affairs, because your presence and counsel seem to be very necessary to us upon the fact of the late emergency, viz. the decease of K. W. Therefore I make bold to pray and intreat you to come up to our comfort and assistance as soon as conveniently you can. This, my Lord, is the earnest request of such of our brethren as I have seen and conferred withall, as well as of, My Lord, Your Lordship's affect: fr. and Br, Wm. N. March 16//*. LETTER XV. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. Your's of Mar: 16th, came not to my hands till ye 26th, after the post was gone, so that I was forced to deferre my answer, till this next post day. 56 LETTERS. I have discoursed with the person you mention, and he replied to this purpose. He said that he remem- bers not that he withdrew correspondence from you designedly, and that you as much withdrew your's from him; or rather it was dropp'd between you both, because there was nothing to maintaine it worth the postage. As for brotherly affection, he denys that it was ever withdrawn on his part. He ownes that he in some things always dissented from his friend, but without breach of friendship. He says he cannot imagine that his counsel and assist- ance can be worth a London journey, which is con- sistent neither with his purse, nor convenience, nor health, nor inclination. As to the present emer- gency, it may, he believes, give a fair occasion to many to alter their conduct — but it does not at all influence him. He has quite given over all thoughts of re-entering the world, and nothing shall tempt him to any oath, onely he heartily wishes that by those who know the towne, some expedient might be found out, to put a period to the schism which is so very vexatious to persons of tender consciences, who live scattered in the country. In any thing of that nature, he would gladly concur: he thinks it had been happy for the Church, had M'.Kcttlewell's state of the case been embraced. In the mean time, he never uses any characterisetick in the prayers, himself, nor is present where any is read, and he has endeavoured to act uniformely to the moderate sen- timents which he cannot exceed. He sends his hearty respects to yourself and family, and to all his, and your friends. Your very affect" friend & brother, Uanh 20. T. B. & W. LETTERS. 57 LETTER XVI. FOR THE SAME. I received your's my good friend, and am glad it gave you any satisfaction which I wrote to you. A friend of late has been much dissatisfied with me, because I will not give up myself to his keeping, which I have no reason to do, and he probably may raise jealousy of me. When I told you that a Lon- don journey was not agreeable to my purse, it was no pretence, but a real truth. I am not able to support the expense of it, which all that know my condition will easily believe. I thank God, I have enough to bring the yeare about while I remain in the country, and that is as much as I desire. I have been often offered money for myself, but always refused it, and never take any but for to distribute, and in the country I have nothing now for that good use put into my hands. As for the schism, I believe I can propose a way to end it, but it is not practicable till the convocation meets, and then if the face of affairs alter not, I make no question but Erastian- isme will be condemned, which by some of us has been proposed as a means of reunion. My re- spects to your fire-side. God keep us in His Holy feare. Your's very affectionately. Sarum, Ap; 7. To-morrow 1 return, God willing, to Hampshire, for a short time. 58 LETTERS. LETTER XVII. FOR THE BISHOP OF NORWICH '. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, Mr. Jones intending to wait on you, lest the correspondence should quite expire, I took this oppor- tunity of giving you a line or two. I find that I am misinterpreted by some of the brethren, and am charged with giving advices concerning communion, contrary to our mother, whereas the only advice I have given was to recommend the two last prayers of good Mr. Kettlewell's book to people's reading. I was always of his opinion, and wished that our brethren had not stated the question on higher terms, and I approved of the book in manuscript. I easily guess from whom the prejudices conceived against me rise, and I had rather be loaded with treble the number, than put myself under his dis- cipline. My best respects to your good wife and to your daughter. I shall spend this summer, God willing, most at Longleat, though I am now very uneasy there; not but that my Lord is extremely kind to me, but because I cannot go to prayers there, by reason of the late alterations, which is no small affliction to me. God keepe us in his holy fear, and make us wise for eternity. My good Lord, Your Lordship's most affect: friend and Br, THO. B. & W, Jim, 30. 1 Sent by a private hand. LETTERS. 59 LETTER XVIII. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. My good Lord and Br, I made no sooner a return to your last, because you gave me hopes of hearing from you again, and more at large. It is a great satisfaction to me, that without consulting one another, we were both of the same mind. I confess I never was for extremities, which I soon thought would prove of fatal conse- quences, but I find that others, who always were and still are for them, think but hardly of me, and pro- bably they may think as hardly of your Lordship. As for Mr. Jones, I think him an honest man, but since I conversed with him, and observed him, he is not one whom I would chuse for a governor to a young gentleman. My best respects to your lady, and to your daughter. God keep us in his holy feare. My good Lord, Your Lordship's most affec: friend & £r, THO. B. & W. Aus. 21. LETTER XIX. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, Your's came to my hands, and as to the copy of a letter which your friend received, I may well doubt of the truth of it, till I see it confirmed, for certainly had it been true, the powers above must have had some intimation of it, and as far as I can 60 LETTERS. learn they have received none. As for the other, I never argued the case with lay- people, but recom- mended to them the two last chapters of ]\Ir. Ket- tlewell's book, where it is truly and fully stated, to my apprehension, and I am extremely satisfied that your sentiments concur with mine. Our brother of Ely, now with God, had the like thoughts, and gave the like advice to a worthy person now near me in the country, who related it to me, and I always thought and said, that stricter measures would be of fatal consequence to our church, for which some of our brethren would never relish me. I am going to Polsheault tomorrow for a few days, and I have an invitation to give a visit to our good brother of Glocester, if the rheumatic and cholic pains which haunt me permit it. My best respects to your good Lady and daughter. God of his infinite goodness make us wise for eternity. My good Lord, Your Lordship's most affect: Br, THO. B. & W. Sep. 4th. LETTER XX. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, I made as I told you I intended a visit to our good Brother of Glocester, who was not a little joyed to see me. He is very cheerful, and being past eighty, does not only daily expect, but, like St. Paul, longs for his dissolution, fie has many infirmities of LETTERS. 6 1 old age, but his eyes are very good, and he uses no spectacles. With all the tenderness imaginable he remembers your Lordship. Dr. Bull being in my way I called upon him, which he took the more kindly, because he thought, we had as much aban- donned him, as he seems to have abandonned us, and the respect I paid him, I perceive surprised him, and the rather because he never has taken any notice of our deprived brethren : but he has reason to value his old friends, for his new have little regarded him. My best respects to your good lady. I beseech God to keep us in his holy fear, and to make us wise for eternity. Your Lordship's most affect: Brother, B. & W. Sep: 17. LETTER XXI. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, Your Lordship's of the 26th, found me at Long- leat on the 28th, which I left the next day, my Lord Weymouth removing to the Town, and am now at Polshealt. I am extremely glad that you and the Bishop elect of Sf. Asaph conversed together. He is one of the best understandings I ever knew, and if he will exert himself will do excellent service to this sinking Church. I should think it one of the best excursions I could make to give you both a visit, but besides my aversion to the Town, I am af- flicted with such pains, that I am by no means fit for travelling — they are rheumatic, and lie within my 62 LETTERS. joints, and never come to the extreme parts, and at this present, my left arm is in a great measure dis- abled. I have a great desire to spend Christmas, God willing, with the Kemeyses, but fear I shall not be in a condition to do it. I am much concerned, that the Friend is not yet consecrated, and cannot imagine the reason of the delay. What you write of the Scotch I easily believe, and had thought that their quarrel about Episcopacy had been over. Since that to my great surprise, passed the Confirmation of Presbytery. It will be a great satisfaction to me, to hear now and then from you, God keep us, in his holy feare. My good dear Lord, Your Lords'15 most affectionate Br, T. B. & W. Oct. 30th. I shall be glad to see the work you mention. LETTER XXII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My dear Brother, Though I received both your Lordship's, yet having wrote the same post your last came, I for- bore to give you a second trouble, having but little matter for a letter in this place where I am. You have a very true apprehension of your brother of Sf. Asaph. He is of an excellent temper as well as understanding, & a man of sincerity though he may be of a different judgment ; & I much desire that you may often meet, & consult how to moderate things, LETTERS. 63 as much as may be, salvd veritate, for I fear that many of our friends run too high, and that the Church of Rome will reap advantages of excesses in that kind. Your letters are a great consolation to me in this solitude, & therefore I intreat the con- tinuance of them. M1. Dodwell's book has been sent me, I presume, by himself. He seems to build high on feeble foundations. I presume he will not have many entire proselytes to all his hypothesies. My respects to the good company with you ; God keep us in his holy fear. My good Lord, your Lordshipp's most affect, friend & Brother, THO. B. & W. Nov. 13. LETTER XXIII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord and dear Brother, I return you my thanks for both yours. I have no news to return, but that last night there was here the most violent wind that ever I knew ; the house shaked all the night, we all rose and called the family to prayers, &, by the goodness of God, we were safe amidst the storm. It has done a great deal of hurt in the neighbourhood, & all about, which we cannot yet hear of; but I fear it has been very terrible at sea, and that we shall hear of many wrecks there. Blessed be God who preserved us. I hope that your Lordship & your family have suf- 12 64 LETTERS. fered no harm, & should be glad to hear you are well. I beseech God to keep us in His holy fear, Your Lordship's most. affect: friend and brother, Nov. 27. THO. B. & W. LETTER XXIV. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord & Brother, I think I told you in my last, that I intended, God willing, to spend the Christmas with the good virgins at Nash ; so that after Saturday next, your Lordship must direct nothing hither. The storm on Friday night, which was the most violent, I men- tioned in my last, but I then did not know what happened at Wells, which was much shattered, and that part of the palace where Bishop Kidder and his wife lay, was blown down in the night, and they were both killed and buried in the ruins, and dug out towards morning It happened on the very day of the Cloth fair, when all the country were spectators of the deplorable calamity, and soon spread the sad story. God of His infinite mercy deliver us from such dreadful surprises. I am assured that no one either in the palace, or in the whole town, beside them, had any hurt. God keep us in his holy fear, and our dwellings in safety, My good Lord, your Lordship's most affect: friend & Br, Nov. 29. THO. B. & W. LETTERS. 65 LETTER XXV. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord and Brother, Blessed be God who preserved us both in the late great storm; it is a deliverance not to be forgotten. I hear of several persons who solicit for my Diocese, and whom I know not, and I am informed that it is offered to my old friend, the Bishop of St. Asaph, and that it is declined by him. For my own part, if times should have changed, I never intended to return to my burden, but I much desire to see the flock in good hands, and I know none better to whom I may entrust it than his ; for which reason I write to him this post, to let him know my desire that he should succeed, with which I thought good to acquaint your Lordship. I leave this place, God willing, on Wednesday, hoping to reach Bath, which is but twelve miles, and to stay a night or two with Colonel Philips. My best respects to all the good family with you ; God keep us in his Holy feare. Your Lordship's most affect. B1, THO. B. & W. Dec. 6. LETTER XXVI. FOR THE RIGHT REV. FATHER IN GOD, GEORGE, LORD BISHOP OF ST. ASAPH. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, I am informed yl you have had an offer of Bath and Wells, and yl you refused it, wch I take very F 66 LETTERS. kindly, because I know you did it on my account ; but since I am well assured y1 ye diocese cannot be happy to y* degree in any other hands than in your owne, I desire you to accept of it, and I know yl you have a prevailing interest to procure it. My nephew and or little family, who present your Lord- shippe their humble respects, will be overjoyed at your neighbourhood. I told you long agoe at Bath how willing I was to surrender my cannonicall claime to a worthy person, but to none more willingly than to yourselfe. My distemper disables me from ye pastoral duty, and had I been restored, I declared allways yl I would shake off ye burthen, and retire. I am about to leave this place, but if need be, ye archdeacon can tell you how to direct to me. My best respects to your good family. God keepe us in his holy feare. My good Lord, Your Lordshippe's most affectionately, Dec. 6th. T. B. & W. LETTER XXVII. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. " All Glory be to God." My good Ld and Br, The same post wch brought me your Lord- shipp's, brought the news of ye occasionall bills ' being throwne out by ye lords. I think I omitted to tell you ye full of my deliverance in ye late storme for the house being searched yc day following, yc 1 The Bill against occasional conformity. LETTERS. 67 workmen found yl ye beame ufh supported ye roof over my head was shaken out to y% degree, yl it had but halfe an inch hold, so yl it was a wonder it could hold together ; for wch signall and particular pre- servation God's holy name be ever praised ! I am sure I ought alwayes thankfully to remember it. I, hearing y* ye Bp of St. Asaph was offered Bath and Wells, and yl on my account he refused it, wrott to him to accept of it. I did it in charity to ye dio- cese, y' they might not have a Latitudinarian Tradi- tour imposed on them, who would betray ye bap- tismall faith, but one who had ability and zeal to assert it ; and the imminent danger in which reli- gion now is, and which dayly increases, ought to supersede all ye antient canons. I am so disabled by rheumatick and colick pains, y* I cannot in con- science returne to a publick station, were I restored ; and I think none ought to censure me, if in such perillous times I desire a coadjutor, for wh I have good precedents, as well as reasons. It is not ye first time I dissented from some of my brethren; and never saw cause to repent of it. The ladys here send you their duty. God keep us in his holy feare. Your Lordshipp's most affece friend and B1', Nash. Dec. 18. T. B. & W. LETTER XXVIII. FOR THE RIGHT REV. FATHER IN GOD, GEORGE, LORD BISHOP OF ST. ASAPH. "All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, The last post brought me ye news wch I ear- nestly expected, and wch your lordshippe's letter f 2 68 LETTERS. gave me hope of, and I heartily congratulate ye diocese of Bath and Wells of your translation, for it was ye good of ye flock, and not my friendshippe for yourselfe, wch made me desire to see you in ye pastoral 1 chaire, where I know you will zealously " contend for ye faith once delivered to ye saints" wch in these latitudinaria.n times is in great danger to be lost. I could easily forsee yl by my concerne for you I should incurre ye displeasure of some of my brethren, but this is not ye first instance in wcb I have dissented from them, and never had cause to repent of it; and ye good of ye diocese supersedes all other considerations. I have another wish for ye good of ye diocese you are to leave, and it is, y1 Dr. Edwards might succeed you there, though he is a person whome I doe not know so much as by sight. My best respects to your good lady, whose paines I can ye more tenderly condole, from what I feele dayly myselfe. God keepe us in his holy feare. My good Lord, Your Lordshippe's most affectionately, T. K. Dec. 20th. LETTER XXIX. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord and dear Br, Your last came to me yesterday in the morning, blessed be God, who has given you safe, and sancti- fied your affliction to you. All here, send most kind remembrances to your lordshippe, and to their good friends with you, to which I add my owne. The LETTERS. 69 Jacobites at Bristoll, fomented by those at London, are thoroughly enraged against me for my cession to one, whom all mankind besides themselves, have a high esteem of, and one most able and willing to preserve the depositum, and under whose care I assure myself that the diocese will be secured from the latitudinarian contagion. Our Br of Gl: is doing the same thing, having surrendered his cure of souls at Standish, to his curate, who I presume is by this time possessed of it. But the same persons, who inveigh against me, take no notice of him. I am threatened with something to be printed against me : I believe they had better let me alone. If I should produce the frequent letters, a certaine person wrote to me, for near two yeares together, to importune me to consent to clandestine c. they would discover the temper of the man, and the zeal he shewed to make the schism incurable, which I was always for moderating, foreseeing how fatall it would prove. As long as I have your approbation, and the example of our other Br, I have little re- gard for the passion of others; I thank God that I have reposed the flock in safe hands, which is a great ease to me, and I have preserved them from a wolfe, that might have invaded them. All who condemn me, owne that death legitimates an intruder, and I know no reason, but that voluntary cession, and that for the apparent preservation of the whole flock, to one who will not intrude, may be as effec- tuall as death \ God keepe us in his holy feare. My good Lord, Your Lordshipp's most affect: friend and B', March 7th. T. B. & W. 1 The following letter shows that Ken had good reason to 70 LETTERS. No. 4. FOR BISHOP KEN. My good Lord and deare Brother, I have your dispatch of the 7th current now before me. I must own the obligations your Lordship complain of the treatment which he met with from the less amiable among the nonjurors : — Rev'. Sr. On this day seven night, I received yr kind letter, in which the melancholy account of Bpp. K. added to the affliction of the day. I had but too great reason to believe all you say of him, before yrs came to me, but I was willing (if the History were undoubtedly true,) to have it from so good and authentic an hand. When I saw him before Xmas, he gave me great occa- sion to suspect his declination, for that to my surprise, he told me, he could resign his Bprick to Dr H. for the preservation of the faith, now in danger. I told him practical doctrines were as much in danger as those of our necessary belief, and that however sound Dr. H. was in those, (which I thought was very questionable, in relation particularly at present to the ninth article of the creed ',) yet his Lordship could not say he was sound as to moral doctrines, and that his very acceptance of the diocess of S'. Asaph, on the terms of the present gov"' was an evident proof of it, and that he might as well have resigned before to Dr. K. We had a great deal of discourse, which with submission I thought incoherent, and his temper I found, as you well observe, impa- tient of contradiction ; however with that modesty and deference, which I then owed unto him and his character, I could not forbear replying. The last week I attended the good family, in which Bp. K. used to be when in these parts, and in which he was when I saw him last. I talked with those ladies some time about this unhappy business; upon reasoning with them, they could not but agree with me, that the Bp. was in the wrong ; but I find them 1 At least by his practice. LETTERS. 7 1 and the good ladyes att Nash have layd upon me, for your good wishes to me and my family. I was so wedded to an opinion of his great piety and charity, that I fear it will be difficult to dissuade them from communicating with him whilst in the family, wherein he is expected again be- fore Lent. I told them, as soon as I should hear that he was at their house, I would wait on him, and tell him what the world positively affirms of him. If the Bp agree to it, I will modestly beg his reasons for acting thus, and if I can answer them, I will decline his communion, as now himself encouraging and commu- nicating in a schism. I am told that it is verily believed, that after all, he will not communicate with Bp H. which seems to me a greater inconsistency, for it is strange for a Bp to deliver up his flock to another, with whom he thinks it a sin to communicate himself. I am informed likewise, that the Bp of N. hath en- couraged, and congratulated Bp. K. on his cession to Bp H. and that by a letter sent lately to him. I am fully persuaded it is an arrant calumny, or a mistake. I told the person informing, that probably the Bp of N. might rejoice, that since a schismatick must be placed at Wells, a person otherwise so acceptable as Dr H. would be the man, but that the Bp. of N. shd any ways persuade the Bp of B. & W. to concur in the least in such an act himself, is past my belief. I thought fit to acquaint you with this story, that justice may be done to that good Bp, and so I submit it to what use you shall please to make of it, begging your direction in this, or any other affair of this nature. I have since a letter from Bp K. subscribed T. K. I have laboured for some months past to bring a young lady of quality off from the schismatical churches entirely. I have talked, and wrote to that purpose, but poor Bp K. hath undone more in one word, than I was likely to do in ten thousand, for he allowed that liberty, that strange occasional conformity, and so the Lady is confirmed in her amphibious devotion. God be merciful to this poor Church. The delusion, and infatuation spreads wider, and wider. This poor gentleman's lapse is occasion of great lamentation unto us, and laughter to our enemies. It confirms more the otherwise well inclined in their schism, hardening the obstinate schisma- tick, and I fear gives occasion to the profest enemies of God, to blaspheme more abundantly, and as for my own part, it is a 72 LETTERS. sensibly greived, (when I read your letter) for the noyse, and outcryes, made both at Bristoll, and here above upon the account of your cession. How a sudden passion may carry and transport some men at Bristoll I know not ; but I am sure I have not heard any of the brethren here, say anything disres- pectfull of your person, or your charecter, unlesse what amounts to no more than this, viz. that they seemed offended, because your conduct in and about the cession, was not managed communi consetisu. To obviate this objection, I took the fredom to write unto you, and to desire you, not to quit your charge, untill we might, (for our mutuall satis- faction) meet, and consult upon that weighty case, least we should doe anything that might hurt the church, or wound the minds of our brethren. To this, you were pleased to inform me, that your Lordship was fully satisfyed in the meritts of the person, that was to succeed you, and named the reverend Dr. Hooper. I was apprised of his piety, learning, and good temper, and if my approbation would have signified any thing I did then say, and doe now say the same, viz. in my poore opinion you could not have desired, or wished for a worthier or fitter person for your successor, and thereupon wished, that a double portion of his predecessors double affliction to think that I must be necessitated, to forsake his communion who received me by absolution to the peace and unity of the Church ; but I must doe it, if that father hath fallen himself into those errors, out of which (I dayly bless God) I am retrieved. I congratulate the recovery of yr Lady's health' and so does my spouse. I beg the prayers and continuance of yr friendship, and am, Revd Sir, Y1' most devoted. LETTERS. 73 spirit might rest on him. Thus my Lord, I have plainly laid before your Lordship, all the account I know of, relating to this matter, both to satisfy your Lordship of what I am apprised of, and to prevent (if possible) the groundlesse surmises of those, who are apt to take fire without due materialls. With all respects and service to your Lordship, and to the good ladyes att Nash, I remain your Lordship's Affectionate brother, and humble Servant, March 14, 170f . Wm. NOR: I have not any manner of news, save that the new King of Spain is arrived at Lisbone and mightily caressed by the King of Portugall. LETTER XXX. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord and dear Brother, Among other things which are vehemently laid to my charge, one is, that against your advice, and entreaties I would obstinately go my own way; against this I owne that you had wrote to me to deferre my session, but that the nature of the thing would not permit it, and if I had not given my consent that post, I might have had a hireling and not a shepherd, and I wrote to you to that purpose, and that after I had receded, your Lordship approved of what I had done, and that I had by me your letters, which congratulated my choice, to attest it, 74 LETTERS. and that in your last, you seem to lay to heart the danger in which the depositum is, as much as myself, and which was the sole motive which inclined me, and you expresse your sense of the hardnesse of the work to stem the strong current which runs against the Church, in which you have the concurrent tes- timonies of all sober men. Sure I am, if people will duly weigh all circumstances, no well-minded man can blame me. I am told from London, that 'tis urged that by my action, I condemn their conduct, but how I know not, if any of them had a cure of souls, and could transfer it, into like hands, as I have done, I should exhort them to recede, as well as myself, for the common good of the flock, without making a bargaine with the successor for a pension, as I fear some have done who blame me. The ladies here are, God be thanked, very well, and present their respects to yourself and family. God keep us in his holy feare and prepare us for a happy eternity. My dear Ld, Your Lordship's most affectionate Brother, T. B. & W. March 20th. LETTER XXXI. FOR THE SAME. " All Glorv be to God." My good Lord and Brother, I perceive by youre two last that your Lordshippe is very shy of owning your approbation of my action1, His resignation. LETTERS. 75 at which I justly wonder, in regard that your expres- sions signify it very clearly. I have done nothing but what may be justified by primitive precedents, and which is for the preservation of the depositum, which ought chiefly to exhaust a pastours zeal, espe- cially when he is in all respects disabled himselfe for pastoral care, and that the flock might have a shepherd, and not a hireling. As for the clause you mention, I could give some instances, from my own knowledge, but the persons are dead, and I will not name them. If I had been conversant in the towne, I might pos- sibly have heard of more. The truth is, that which provoked me to mention it, was one of our brethren in the country, who to a friend of mine very much blamed my cession. My friend who heard him, pre- sently reply'd to this purpose ; that he should rather reflect on himselfe, who had been making a bargain for an acquaintance of his who was deprived, which it seems my friend knew, and he was presently silenced, being told that no such thing was chargeable on me ; and this passage coming to my knowledge, occasioned that clause in my letter. I am not sur- prised at the censures bestowed on me; I foresaw them all ; and, to deal freely with your Lordshippe, you are not without your share. Tis not long ago that a very sober person expressed some dissatisfac- tion at your suffering your son to take all tests; I reply'd that I never heard you did so ; and that it might be a false report ; and so the discourse ended. For my own part, I never did any thing in my life more to my satisfaction than my receding. It has eased me of a great load which lay on me, has en- tirely loosened me from the world ; so that I have now 76 LETTERS. nothing to doe but to think of eternity, for which God of his infinite mercy prepare us. My good Lord, Your Lordps very affect: Friend and Brother, T. B. & W. April 1st. LETTER XXXII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord & dear Brother, Though I wrote to your Lordship last, yett I am in a manner bound to write again, to let you know that the ferment against me rises higher and higher, insomuch that when the neighbours at Bristol come hither, they manifestly insult me, and though you are pleased to tell me, that others kindled this fire and not yourself, I must take the freedom to tell you, that it is yourself have most contributed to it. For it is still vehemently urged against me, that I acted quite contrary to your earnest remonstrances, which you know to be false : If I did, I do not re- member that I ever put myself into your keeping, and was to do nothing but by your direction ; but you yourself can acquit me in that particular, by only relating matter of fact. But I find there is a flat contradiction between them and me ; I affirm you approved of my action, and you flatly deny it, and affirm the quite contrary, & that increases their zeal : now I calmly appeal to you to let me know the literal importance of this expression, for I will LETTERS. 77 only mention this : " I heartily congratulate your choice, and wish a double portion of your spirit may rest upon the head and heart of your successor, for I trust he will act valiantly and becoming his station." If this does not signify an approbation, and more than that, a congratulation, both of my action, and the person, to that height, I am much mistaken, since you would not have used this language if you had thought my successour as you style him, a schis- matical Bishop. No, good Brother, your native thoughts were the same with mine, but when you heard a cry against me, you flew to the distinction of Person and Cession, and 'tis from thence that the fury against me was raised, for doing an act, which according to the best of my judgment, appeared truly primitive and charitable, and I may add neces- sary too. This is not all ; the heat against me is furnished with fresh fuel from the town, and that by your communicating my letters, which I am charged with here. This is hard usage ; sure I am that I have never showed your letters to my angry neighbours, being unwilling to expose private correspondance, which when exposed is easily misrepresented, and exaggerated, and if I had done it I verily believe that the like heat would have been raised against yourself. Sure I am had you acted uniformly to the expressions you used to me, this storm had quite allayed, or at least very much moderated. Upon the whole matter, I who desire nothing more than in retreat quietly to serve God, to pray for my Bre- thren, which I daily do, and to mind only my latter end, seeing my letters do but make more trouble, desire to be excused from writing for the future, for I find it much easier for me silently to endure the 78 LETTERS. passion of others than to endeavour to mitigate it. I beseech God to make us wise for eternity. Your Lordship's very affect: Brother, April 5. T. B. & W. LETTER XXXIII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord and Brother, Your Lordship's was sent to me to Polshalt last night. I confess when I wrote my last I was heated, and provoked to a great degree, and if my provoca- tion transported me to any indecent expressions, I beg your pardon, which you will I hope the more readily grant, because you seem to have been in the like passion when you wrote, and because I intend to give you no further trouble. You must give me leave to be sensible when I am insulted, which I can very easily forgive. Every day increases the satisfaction I have in providing so well for my flock. God keep us in his holy fear, and make us wise for eternity. Your Lordship's very affectionate friend and Br, May 1. T. K. LETTER XXXIV. FOR THE RIGHT REV. FATHER IN GOD, GEORGE, LORD BISHOP OF ST. ASAPH. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord, Your Lordshippe gave me a wonderfull surprise when you informed me y* ye Queen had boon pleased 12 LETTERS. 79 to settle a very liberall pension on me. I beseech God to accumulate the blessings of both lives on her Majesty for her royall bounty to me, so perfectly free and unexpected ; and I beseech God abun- dantly to reward my Lord Treasurer \ who inclined her to be thus gratious to me, and to give him a plentifull measure of wisdome from above. My Lord, lett it not shock your native modesty, if I make this just acknowledgement, y1 though ye sense I have of her Majesty's favour in ye pension is deservedly great, yett her choosing you for my suc- cessor gave me muck more satisfaction ; as my con- cerne for ye eternal welfare of ye flock, exceeded all regard for my owne temporal! advantage, being as truely conscious of my own infirmitys, as I am assured of your excellent abilitys, of wch ye diocese, even at your first appearance, signally reaped ye fruits. God of his infinite goodnesse keep us in his reveren- tiall love, and make us wise for eternity. My Lord, Your Lordshipp's most affectionate Friend and Br, June 7th, 1704. THO. KEN, L. B. & W. LETTER XXXV. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord, I have sent my servant to begge of your Lord- shippe two or three bottles of canary for or sick 1 Godolphin. 80 LETTERS. friend, wrh ye Doctour comends to him. Your Lord- shippe gave ye whole family so seasonable and sen- sible a consolation, yl it revived ye whole family, and it gave me a very great satisfaction to see my friend doe an act of so great, so free, and so well-timed charity. Ye good man is full of resignation to ye divine will, and has an humble confidence of a blessed mortality. He has slepped this night as well as could be expected, and is asleepe now, and his pulse, wch for some days was unperceivable, is now become tolerable. He has strength to turne in his bed, as weak as he is, and to expectorate, and is sensibly mended ; and I hope God will restore him, w,h will be a blessing next to miraculous. He has his understanding perfectly. My best respects to your good lady, and to ye three young gentlewomen, and to Mr. Guilford. I beseech God to make us wise for eternity. My good Lord, Your Lordshipp's most affectionate Friend and Br, THO. KEN, L. B. & W. Oct. 6th. LETTER XXXVI. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord and Br, I am in debt to you for the last post. It is no small satisfaction to me, that you approve of my choice, in good earnest. I had such experience of one before, who, instead of keeping the flock within LETTERS. 8 1 the fold, encouraged them to stray — that I was afraid of a traditour, and in such a time as this, thought I could not do a greater kindness to the diocese, than in procuring it one of the most valuable men in the church, and one who was so very able to defend the depositum, which seemes to me to be in the utmost danger. The good ladys here present their best respects to your Lordship ; and begge your blessing. I beseech God to send you and yours a happy new year, and to keep us in his reverential love. Your Lordship's most affect: friend &c Br, T. K. Dec. 27. LETTER XXXVIT. FOR MRS. HANNAH LLOYD. " All Glory be to God." My very good Lord & Brother, 'Though I have nothing worthy of the postage, yet I thought myself obliged to give your Lordship an account of my motions : I am now at Sarum, where I have been detained by a lame horse, but hope to be gone, God willing, to-morrow, and to be at Nash on Saturday, or Monday, there to spend my Lent. You cannot imagine the universal satisfaction expressed for Dr. Hooper's coming to my See ; and I make no doubt but that he will rescue the diocese from the apostacy from " the faith once delivered to the saints," which at present threatens us, and from the spirit of latitudinarianism, which is a common sewer of all heresies imaginable, and I am not a little satisfied, that I have made the best provision for the G 82 LETTERS. flock, which was possible, in our present circum- stances. God keep us in His holy fear. Your Lordship's most affecte friend & Br, Feb: 21. T. K. LETTER XXXVIII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My good Lord and dear Brother, I came not to Nash till last night, being de- tained by the way by a lame horse, and there I met with your letter of Janry 25th, by which I perceive my letter to you, which gave you an account of my motions, miscarried. I read yours with very great commiseration of your condition very painful and afflicting, though thanks be to God, the paroxysm was over before you wrote, and I hope by this time you have recovered your spirits, the sovereign sup- port of which is a good conscience and resignation to the Divine will, of which I assure myself you have a plentiful experience ; my distemper, which is always most domineering at spring and fall, has threatened me with a further assault, but thanks be to God, it soon abated. I presume that my successor has so many avocations, that at present he cannot make so long an excursion as to visit your Lordship, but will do it when he is at liberty. God keep us in his Holy fear, and enable us to improve all the mementoes he is pleased to give us of eternity. My good Lord, Your Lordship's most affectionate friend & Brother, Nash, Feb. 27. K. The good Ladys are your servants. LETTERS. 83 No. 5. TO BP. KEN. My Lord, About ten or twelve days since I put into Mr. Bromes hands a booke lately printed in Holland, (tho' London is put in the title-page) wch he un- dertook to convey to your Lordship by the first con- venience, and wch I hope, before this letter arrives wil be safely delivered to you. I cannot forbeare acquainting your Lordship, that besides the scandalous and shameful errors of the presse, owing to the wretched carelessness of an ignorant corrector, they have mangled my copy, and have wholly omitted several passages, both in my pre- face, and in the body of the booke, upon pretense that they contained innuendoes and reflexions on P.O.C. the transactions of the late times ; as when I call Archbishop Sancroft invictum Ecclesice Anglicancs con- fessorem : and where I speake modestly of my being deprived of my preferment in nupera fatali ista rerum apud nos catastrophe : and the like, wch I forbeare to mention, wch would not passe muster among the Dutch Domines and Huguenots. I have upon all just occasions endeavoured in the lives of Archbishop Usher, and Bishop Cosin to do right to the memory of the blessed Saint and Martyr K. Charles I. and to the Church of England among forraigners — but I wil not go about to anticipate your Lordsps judgement herein ; for the life of John Dee, I hope, I have done some service to the religion of our blessed Lord and Master, who for this purpose was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the g2 84 LETTERS. devil: idolatry, oracles, magic, witchcraft, and the like. I submit the whole performance to your Lp* favourable opinion, and am with all dutifull respect, my Lord, Your Lps most humble and faithful Serv*, T. S. London, Dec. 19, 1706. LETTER XXXIX. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy good Friend, I should sooner have returned you my thanks for the excellent present you designed for me, and withall should have condoled with you for the inju- rious treatment, which your book has met with, but that it is not yet come to my hands. This night I expect it. or at the farthest to-morrow morning. I am of opinion that the Dominees are not to be blamed, they are too Calvinisticall to be in league with those who oppose you. There is a remarkable scripturient person, who keeps correspondence with your adversaries here, as appears by what is publish- ed, who to gratify his paymasters, might easily do you the unkindnesse, but this is onely my conjecture at a distance. I wish that you had sent your copy to Dr. Cockbourne ; T believe that he would have done you right, and he may yet print a sheet, to be bound up with the book which may supply what is LETTERS. 85 omitted, and might rectify the wilfull mistakes they have made who printed. Mr. Harbin corresponds with him. I most heartily wish you a new yeare, & beseech God to keep us in his reverential love. " Your truely affect: friend & Br, THO: B. & W. Dec. 30th. LETTER XL. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." " My worthy dear Friend, " I returne you many thanks for your last very valuable present. I remember that when I read the first edition of the lamentable persecution of the great good man to whom you have worthily done justice, it made me sad, and the second reading re- vived the same sad thoughts, but the afflicted Patri- arch is happy in this that God has moved you to embalme his memory. Living so long and so much in the country, I have no charitable contributions put into my hands, but of my owne I can spare you the contents of the following note, which, you would oblige me by accepting. I beseech God to keep us in his reverential love and mindfull of eternity. Your most affect, friend and Br, THO. B. & W. May 24th. 86 LETTERS No. 6. to the bp. of b. & wells. My Lord, I write this expressly to acknowledge the re- ceipt of your Ls kind letter and generous present, and to returne my humble and hearty thankes for both. I wish that I had had the courage ten or twelve years ago to have acquainted you with the course of my studyes at that time, in order to have received your assistance. Having then, and several yeares after the full and free use of the Cottonian Library, I de- signed to have written at large the history of the life and reigne of that unfortunate great lady, Mary Queen of Scotland, out of original letters and other authentic papers, containing all the secret consulta- tions and transactions of state relating to the king- dome and Church of Scotland at that time, of wch an imperfect account is given by Archbishop Spottes- wood, through his want of the knowledge of these memoires, and a very false, malicious, and scandalous one by those furious incendiaries, Buchanan and Knox ; and accordingly T began to lay in store of materials in order to the foundation and superstruc- ture of that worke, transcribing either myself as much and as far as my weake eyes would suffer, or employing an amanuensis to do this drudgery for me. But the growing charge and expense being above my narrow fortune and my modesty not per- mitting me to addresseto any rich lord or gentleman man, tho' of virtuous, honest, and loyal principles, as dreading a repulse, which would have been to me an LETTERS. 87 intolerable kind of mortification, I quitted that de- signe, tho' not without great regret, and betook my- self to other studyes, which were little or no way chargeable, and wdl lay within the reach and com- pass of my owne single and unassisted industry. But I have repented, and I do stil heartily repent, and am troubled for that culpable omission; my great age, having this weeke entred upon the seaventieth year of my life, my ill eyes, and the loss of those conveniencyes I enjoyed during the life-time of my excellent friend, Sir John Cotton, and my present perplexed circumstances putting me as it were out of a possibility, and rendering me altoge- ther uncapable of retrieving that lost game. Besides, I heare that the author of the memoires of the affaires of Scotland, &c, Mr. Crawford, who printed it here about a yeare since, and then flourished with the title of her Majesty's historiographer for the kingdome of Scotland, of wch he is since deprived, has set upon the same designe, and for that purpose has transcribed partly by himselfe and partly by a diligent assistant, two great folio volumes of papers relating to this argumt out of several Cottonian MSS. in order to compile his history. By his booke, which he sent me, and by that little conversation I had with him when he was here in London, I judge him to be a very ingenious man and of good principles, and a great enemy to the rebellious and fanatical and practices of the covenanting Lords Kirkmen of that age : but whether he has sufficient abilityes, I meane judgement, and skill to performe this worke so well as it ought to be done others after my decease wil judge. I am now endeavouring to set my house in order and am reviewing my own compositions such 88 LETTERS. as they are, and collections of different kinds, which either have been left by dying- friends, or which have luckily fallen into my hands, and especially letters of several great and learned men beyond sea, with whom I have kept a correspondence, and am digesting them, that I may do some service to learning, and to the righteous cause for which I have suffered, after I shall retire into my dormitory. My Lord, I hope you will readily forgive me, that I treat you with this over great familiarity, and trouble you with these minute particulars of my life and study, and that you will not impute it to me as a vanity or as a fault, both which I earnestly deprecate. I am with all dutiful respect, My Lord, Your Lordship's most obliged humble Servant, T. S. London, 7 June 1707. %*% I meddle not with newes — but the new appear- ances of things in Europe, and the sudden and unex- pected revolutions which have lately happened, I believe have forced our state Magi, to cry out, Digitus Dei est hie. I hope that Mr. Harbin will think of conveying to me the unpublished manuscript papers of Mr. Burkin, which my Lord Weymouth when he was lately in towne, was pleased to promise me the use of. LETTERS. 89 LETTER XLI. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, Your letter was sent beyond Bristol, where I had been, when I was come away, so that I had it not till some time after I returned to Longleat. I give you thanks for your kind acceptance of the little I could doe for you. If you want me at any time, I entreat you to let me know it. I discours'd with my Lord concerning you. He has a just value for you, and has sent you a token. If you will call on Mr. Brome the bookseller, he has ten pounds for you, for which by this good Lord's order, I sent him a note. As for your design in writing the life of the Q. of Sc. I am not sorry for your disappointment, for you would have been engaged to have made some severe reflections, though just, on Q. Eliz. which would have given offence, she being the darling of the people, and I had rather that the odium should fall on another than on yourself. Mr. Harbin has papers by him which will give great light into the history and a letter of Q. E. herself, to excite her keeper to assassinate her, of which he will give you an account if need be, and which ought to be pub- lished by the writer whome you mention, and who with your directions may be enabled to perfect his designe. I perceive that we are much of an age, for next month I shall be in my seventieth year. I 90 LETTERS. beseech God to keep us in his reverential love, and mindfull of eternity. " Your's very affectionately, THO. B. & W. June 28. No. 7. to the bp. of b. & w. My Lord, Upon reading your Lordship's letter of the 28th of June, I was extremely surprised with the contents of it. If in my last I took a liberty of acquainting- you with the course of my former studies, and with the difficulties I then laboured under, which interrupted their further progresse, and forced me to desist, I did it wholly in the way of excuse and apology to take off the censure of such as might upbraid me for not performing what I had so many years since upon mature deliberation undertaken, in the wording of which it may be, I was not so cautious as I ought to have been, which might give occasion to your Lord- ship to recommend me to the favour of Lord Wey- mouth, which was not in the least designed by me. And now my Lord having secured my modesty, it becomes me to acknowledge your kindness in it, and the good effect it has produced, I mean the noble present which his Lordship has been pleased to make me. I would send a letter full of humble thanks and gratulations, if I did not think that it would be more offensive than agreeable : and therefore, in- stead of that I beseech you to do it for me, and to assure my Lord that I am truly sensible of the obli- gation; and that I doubt not if it shall please God to 12 LETTERS. 9 1 spare my life, I shall have a just occasion of doing it myself more solemnly than in a bare verbal transient acknowledgment. In the history which formerly I designed to have written I believe that I should have done good service to the Church and to Religion in exposing the traitorous, the schismatical, the seditious and rebellious principles and practices of the Scotch Presbyterians ; but I should have had a tender re- gard to the fame and memory of Q. Elizabeth, whose glorious reign received great blemishes from her in- dulging her favourite courtiers in their sacrilegious invasions of the revenues of the Church, and from the death of this unfortunate Queene, her kinswoman. Ragion di Stato and the incessant, importunate, and united addresses of parliament and people, and opi- nions of Judges and lawyers will, I feare, be no good plea at the barre of God's tribunal ; but we may charitably hope that some graines of allowance may be put in the other scale to take off from the weight of her scarce justifiable severity. I am no stranger to the letter that she is said to have written (but how truly I know not) to Sir Amias Pawlet ; wch I confesse choques me more than all the imputa- tions cast upon her by the Papists. I have good and full assurance that she was heartily troubled and grieved, as wel as ashamed when the fatall blow was struck and past retrieving. However the great ministers by whose counsels she was influenced and governed thought fit to have registered the com- mission by which Q. Mary was tryed, and the whole processe of her tryall amongst the rolls of the Ex- chequer : of wch I shall give your Lordship a briefe account from a paper under the hand of Mr. Arthur Agard, one of the Deputy Remembrancers of the 92 LETTERS. Exchequer, wch I met with in the Cottonian Library, & signed by him in February 1603. The Commission with a written booke touching the execution of it was delivered into the receijrt office of the Exchequer, Westminster, by the L. Treasurer Burleigh in the year 1595, but was taken thence by the command of K. James, 20 June 1603, and delivered to the L. Treasurer Buckhurst, and ivas never restored though demanded. I conclude, I thinke, not unjustly from this last passage that it was utterly destroyed, K. James I. taking effectual care that this Record should never appeare in after-times to the infamy of the Queene his mother. Your Lp will forgive me for troubling you with this historical notice, wch I believe is scarce knowne to any person alive at this day, and wcb indeed I have kept secret from the time of my first discovery til now. I am with all dutiful respect and reverence, My Lord, Your Lordship's most faithfull & humble Serv*, THO. SMITH. London, 5 July, 1707. LETTER XLII. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, You need not write to this good Lord, lest your acknowledgments shock his modesty, as his present did yours, and I dare say that lie lias so great an LETTERS. 93 esteem of you, that he would on all occasions, gener- ously assist you. He tells me that he has papers which will justify all the severe reflections which can be made on Q. E. of which I presume that Mr. Har- bin has given you an account, or will do it whenever you shall desire it, though considering how much an impartial relation will disgust the prevailing many, I wish it rather published by another than by yourselfe, she is so much the Heroine of the Multitude. I doubt not but that she had many and great provocations, but the way she took to free herself will not appear excusable. I entreat you to let me know with the freedom of a friend, when you are in any streight, or want supplys, to carry on your labours of love for the publick. God keep us in his reverential love, and mindful of eternity. Your truely affect: friend & B', THO. B. & W. July 12. LETTER XLIII. FOR THE SAME. " All Glory be to God." My worthy good Friend, My poor sister Ken is now in great affliction for the losse of her onely son, who dyed at Cyprus, &; I entreat your charity, which I know is truly evange- licall, to visit her, & to apply such ghostly lenities to her sorrow, as may set her at ease, or at least very much moderate her passion. When my Lord comes to town you will be a welcome visitant to him, he hav- 94 LETTERS. ing a just value for you. God keep us in his Holy fear & wise for eternity. Your truely affect: friend & Br, THO. B. & W. Oct. 25. No. 8. to the b. of b. & wells. My Lord, Upon the receipt of your Lordship's letter wch gave me the first accompt of the death of your nephew at Cyprus, I went the next day to comfort the sorrowful 1 mother, very much dejected by the losse of her onely son, and I stil continue my visits at proper intervalls. But those impressions of griefe begin to weare off, and her religion and piety have taught her to submit with all Christian patience to these sad inflictions of Providence. Upon my Lord Ws: coming to towne, I intend according to your Lordship's advice, and the great obligation he has been pleased lately to lay upon me, above my hope and expectation (for I was not so vaine as to phansy any such thing) to wait upon him at a convenient time in order to make my acknowledgements, wch are so justly due. Things here appeare with a sickly and frightful 1 complexion : and whilst some grave and wise men take up with the common notions and maxims founded on a true politique experience Res nolunt male administrari ; as if all our misfortunes were owing to rash unsteady and ill-shapen councils, I looke higher .and see the hand of God lift up over the nation and punishing us for our horrible wicked- LETTERS. 95 nesses and defection ; and yet notwithstanding our present phantasyes and dreames of triumph the next campaigne we are plunging ourselves deeper in guilte, and seem to labour under a dismal judicial blindness and infatuation. But my melancholich re- flexions perchance carry me on too farre ; and therefore it becomes me to put a suddaine stop to this carriere, and hasten without any further cere- mony to beg your Lordship's blessing and prayers and the continuation of your friendship to My Lord, Your Lordship's obliged & humble Servant. November 1707. T. S. LETTER XLIV. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, I beseech God, to reward you for your charitable visitts to my sister, who I hope by this time, has overcome her passion. I deferred writing to you till the family removed, intending to send by good Mr. Jenkins, from whom you will receive five pounds, as a token of the real respect I have for you. I can, thanks be to God, very well spare it, and I entreat you to oblige me by accepting it. I intend, God willing, to spend the winter with two good virgins beyond Bristol, where there is a kind of nunnery, and with whome I usually abide in my Lord's absense. God keep us in his reverential love and make us wise for eternity. Your most affect: friend & Br, Nov. 24th. THO. B. & W. 96 LETTERS No. 9. to the bishop of bath & wells. My Lord, Hearing- from Mr. Jenkins that your Lordship's stay at Longleat would be very incertaine, I deferred writing out of feare, that a letter directed thither might have the misfortune to miscarry. But the Christmas festival now approaching I presume that you have made your retreat from the noise and hurry of a palace, open to all comers of fashion & quality, to the private seat of the good Ladyes wch has a better pretense to the title of a Religious House than those so called in Popish countryes, where supersti- tion, opinion of merit, and forced vowes take off very much from the pure spirit of devotion and render their restraint tedious and irkesome. But these good Ladyes are happy under your conduct, and are by an uninterrupted course of piety elevated above all the gaudy pompes and vanities of the world, and enjoy all the comforts and satisfactions and sere- nity of mind to be wished for, and attained on this side of heaven in their solitudes ; and I cannot but looke upon you as another St. Hierome conversing with the devout Ladies at Bethlehem, instructing and confirming their faith, and directing their consci- ences in the methods of true spiritual life, and onfla- ming their soules with seraphic notions of God, and of Christ, and of the other world, and especially by the most convincing evidence & demonstration of example. Now, my Lord, having made this just LETTERS. 97 excuse for my not writing sooner, I hasten to make my gratefull acknowledgmts for the contents of your last letter ; and next, to unburthen myselfe that I was extremely surprised not to say almost confounded stupito Sf stwdito as the Italian phrase is, with the excessive kindnes of your repeated present ; wch considering the narrownes of your owne circum- stances I made it a scruple at conscience whether I could fairly receive: tho' you were pleased in your letter to obviate that doubt by telling me that you can very well spare it. I would not willingly forfeit that good opinion, your Lordship may have of my humility & discreet behaviour by refusing your bene- ficence, as if I did not throughly enough consider the sacrednes & dignity of your order, and the meanness of my station in the Church : but it concernes me however to say that I blessed God that since the ini- quity of the times deprived me of my fellowship, and a little Prebend of 201. a yeare, I have been sup- ported by the kindness of a Brother with whom I have lived for almost nineteen yeares together, and besides this I humbly adore the Divine Providence that by the advantage of bookes, such as they are wch I have published and by the kind presents of friends I have been furnished, all other expenses fully adjusted, with a small overplus of mony to buy upon occasion bookes necessary in the way of my study and wch I can no more live without, then without my daily bread. My Lord I know you are too wise and too good to be offended with what I have now written, with an over great and it may be a faulty simplicity and frankenes : wch I hope also you wil not rigorously H 98 LETTERS. impute to me who am with all possible duty, respect .!v reverence, My Lord, Your Lords1'5 most obliged faithfull & humble Serv*, London, 20 Dec. 1707. T. S. My Lord I went some while since to make my just & gratefull acknowledgm*3 to my Lord W. but he soon stopt my mouth : wch readily convinced me that he governes himselfe by true principles of Christianity, and that he does keepe firme in his memory the words of the Lord Jesus in that divine aphorisme, preserved by St. Paul, that it is more blessed to give than to receive, than in this Lord's opinion to receive so much or rather so little, as thankes. LETTER XLV. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend. Till I was settled with the good virgins, of whom you have such respectful thoughts, and whose habi- tation I reach' d not till last night, I deterred to send you my acknowledgments for your obliging accep- tance of the little present which I sent you. I am very glad that you were with yr good lord ; he does really conduct his life by the divine maxims recorded by St. Paul, & he is truly rich in good works, & indeed so are his near relations ; munificence seems to be the family virtue, & traduced to their posterity. I knew that you are so fully employed & LETTERS. 99 so rich in good works of another nature, which yet are a charity to the publick, yf I make a scruple of giving you any long diversion from your studys. I beseech God to send you a happy new year, & to prosper your labours of love, in which I know you spend your time. Good sr, Your most affect: friend & Br. THO. B. & W. Dec. 28th. No. 10. to the bishop of b. & w. My Lord, I have forborne writing of late to your Lordship, chiefly out of a principle of reverence and respect, that I might not trouble you unnecessarily with frequent letters, during your retirement into the desert, out of the noise and hurry of the world, where you have, in the religious society of the good ladyes, as much as we can pretend to in this life, been ex- ercising all the holy charitable offices, belonging to and flowing from the article of the 'Ayiwv Koivwvm, and especially in your fervent intercession with God, in behalfe of the poore, harrassed, and afflicted Clergy & others, who by the powerfull influence of divine grace have hitherto kept themselves free and untainted from the pollution of false and wicked oaths, and other gnostic practices, and now wholly for their principles, (for they can lay nothing else to their charge) are under a severe prosecution. But how- ever, I tell my suffering brethren, that this is little H 2 100 LETTERS. in comparison, with what our predecessors were forced to undergo, from the Rebells & Schismatics, from the yeare 1641 to 1660. But I forbeareto run out into any further, either satyre or complaint, and write this with all freedome, having the advantage of so good and safe a conveyance, by Mr. Jenkins, wch if I did not readily lay hold upon, and make use of, to send your lordship my just and gratefull ac- knowledgments of the obligations wch you have laid upon me, by your generous kindnesses and other good effects of friendship, I should justly condemne myselfe. In the midst of the infirmityes of my age, and of the troubles, in wch I have been involved, & espe- cially of the great dampe of spirits, & melancholy for the wretched and wofull condition of my country, wch is plunged more and more, in greater degrees of guilt wch cryes to heaven for vengeance, without speedy repentance and reformation, I thank God I do find some quiet houres to lay out upon my studyes, in order to do some little service to learn- ing and the concernes of our common Christianity, the pursuit of wch I hope cannot justly render me obnoxious to the indignation of the government, and throw me into prison, and what those studyes are at present, the worthy Bearer, for whose learning, judgment, and excellent temper of mind I have a great value, may if he pleases acquaint your Lord- ship with. If your Lordship should chance either by busines, or by any invitations to make a nearer approach to London, I would quickly hasten downe to enjoy the happiness and blessing of your conver- sation ; but that not being well to be hoped for, I will endeavour to supply that misfortune and defect, LETTERS. 101 by seasonable and proper addresses upon all just occasions as it will ever become, My Lord, Your Lordships most obliged faithfull, & humble Servant, THO. SMITH. April 1708. London, Dearie Street, Soho. LETTER XLVI. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, I should be ashamed to lett your letter lye so long without thankful acknowledgment, but that I re- ceived it not till Friday evening ye 14th, from good Mr. Jenkins, I not coming to Longleate till then, by reason of the illness of my horses. I could not, without great fraternall sympathy, hear of your late troubles, but I make no doubt, but that they were sent you from the benigne direction of providence, to quicken those graces, which otherwise might have layn dormant, and I am confident that you have experimented, y* it was good for you to have been in trouble, and I hope that our brethren will copy the example you have given them. I have no inclina- tion to the Towne ; it neither agrees with my healthe nor temper, but if any thing should draw me up, my good friend shall be sure to be one of the first, to whom I would pay my respects. I thank God, that I am unmolested in the country, h I hope I shall continue so, and one woidd think that our yeares & 102 LETTERS. our profession, and course of life, would give no occasion for the least suspition. I beseech God to prosper your labours of love for the publick, and to keep us both mindfull of eternity. Good Dr. Your most affectionate friend & B', May 16*/*. THO. 13. & W. No. 11. to the bp. of b. & wells. My Lord, On Thursday last 3d instant, I delivered to Mr. Brome a copy of my edition of the epistles of St. Ignatius, with other pieces of apostolical antiquity; in the publishing of wrh I had pious & honest views in my mind, such as the ser- vice of our common Christianity, the defense of the sacred order of Bishops and the advantage of Ecclesiastical History & learning: but how far I have attained to any of these great & good ends, I must leave to your Lp, & others versed in these studies to judge. But however, notwithstanding the opposition h traverses, I met with in the beginning of this worke, I comfort myself with the innocency of my intentions, and with the favourable opinion of some learned men, wdl I ought not to disesteem or reject, how meansoever the performance may appear to be; but as it is, I humbly offer it to your Lps acceptance, as a sincere tho' poor ac- kiiowledgm* of the obligations you have been pleased to lay upon me, in a long course of yeares. But, my Lord, you will forgive me, if 1 say I received the favour & honour <>f your last present LETTERS. 103 with great reluctance, both with regard to your Lordshp narrow circumstances, and to my case also, who, I thank God, am not straitned, but if ever that sad time should come, by any unforeseen or unpre- ventable accident, I will at such a pinch lay my modesty aside, & have recourse to your Lp and acquaint you with lny particular case. I know your Lordships great concerne & zeale, for all the practical dutyes of religion, especially such as relate to the relief of worthy persons tumbled down from a high & plentiful fortune, by the vicis- situde of human affairs, almost to a starving condition, wch consideration emboldens me to recommend to your I/, persons of great piety, virtue, and honour, the Lady D. and her two daughters, left very desti- tute by that loyal gentleman Sir R. D. who I thinke was well knowne to you : and the true reason of my mentioning them is this: — Hearing lately from a person of quality, of the prodigious bounty of my Lord and Lady Weymouth annually bestowed on persons who stand in need of such supports, & not doubting but that this good Lord & Lady would contribute largely to the relief of their necessity, my designe in mentioning them is only to give you an occasion of representing their case to that Lord & Lady, when they come into the country, and of their having a share in their truly Christian commu- nications. I had not the boldnes to addresse my Lord upon this argument, & have not had hitherto the happiness of seeing my Lord : tho' I have been not wanting in my attempts, & I know that your Lordships recommendation wil be a thousand times more effectual than my personal addresse or letter, 104 LETTERS. tho' never so carefully couched on their behalfe ; and therefore, begging your pardon for putting you to this labour, I humbly leave it with your Lp to act according to your accustomed measure of wisdome & piety. I had almost forgot to mention, that the distressed familye receives now & then some sprinkling of the L's charity, but what is not equal to a mainte- nance, and being at present unsettled & uncertain, there can be no dependance upon it. Forgive this crude letter, to be sent presently to Mr. Brome for conveyance. I write with great uneasiness & disorder both of mind & body. If I were a true Stoick, I should forbeare mentioning at this time that a goutish humour is fallen into my knee & leg, after I have lived past the age of a man, without knowing before what this terrible & troublesome paine is. I humbly beg your Lps blessing & prayers, & am with all dutifull respect. My most reverend Lord, your Lp$ most obliged, faithful & obedient Servant, T. S. London, Feb. \10%. LETTER XLVII. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, I return you many thanks for the most valuable present you sent me, and I entreat you to per- mitt me to scud you now and then, some testimony LETTERS. 105 of my esteem, which I can well spare, and indeed considering your labours of love & learning, all your friends can give to you is given to the publick. I cannot tell whether I should condole or congratu- late your goutish distemper for some are of opinion that it prolongs life, & for that reason wish for it, & your friends will be glad for any thing which will prolong a life so very useful. I am sorry for good Lady Dutton & her daughters : I beseech God to support them. If when you go into the city, you call on Brome the bookseller, he will pay you fifty shillings which I design for them, though I desire you to make no mention from whom it came. I intend to mention you to my Lord when I have a fair opportunity. God keep us in his reverential love, resigned to his will, and mindful of eternity. Dear Sr, Your very affectionate Friend & Br, THO. B. & W. Feb. 2\th. Post-mark. AVarminster. — Seal : — anchor and crucifix united. No. 12. TO THE Bp OF B. & W. My Lord, I should scarce forgive myselfe, if upon my Lord W.'s leaving the towne, I did not lay hold on the opportunity of paying my humble respects so justly due to your Lp, in this short & hasty addresse. Yesterday I waited upon my Lord (wch was the only time I saw him, my other frequent attempts being unhappily disappointed) to wish him & his Lady a 1 06 LETTERS. good journey into the country, & all the benedictions of heaven upon him & his family ; but I had not the courage to recommend the distressed condition of the good Lady Dutton, & her two daughters, to his liberality and bounty, wch is so large & diffusive, and wch is even in ye sight of God of great price & esteeme ; but make it my humble request to your Lordship a second time, whenever you find a proper & seasonable occasion, of discoursing about that particular branch of practical Christianity, to repre- sent their case to him, as I stated it in my last letter : for whom indeed I am an hundred times more con- cerned than for myself, who expect nothing, as having as good Bp. Fell once told me, (tho' he went upon a wrong notion, as if I had been discontented for not being more taken notice of & neglected,) as much as the apostles, food & rayment & clothes & the other necessary supports of life, & had as he added, as many books Sf as much mony as he had. To the former, I readily assented & was very wel satisfied with my meane, & indifferent circum- stances, & was at perfect ease in my mind ; but to the latter I said nothing and left him to answer himselfe. And since this wicked revolution, I blesse God what by His merciful providence toward me, and what by my studious way of living, & what by the kind- ness of my Brother, with whom I have been twenty years, I live happily & wel, rejoicing and triumphing in my sufferings for righteousness & conscience sake, without the least fret or anxiety of mind, & am as happy as I can or ought to desire to be, while I con- tinue in this world. Your Lp will forgive this escape w,h perchance prudence should have hindered me Iron) being guilty of: but I do it the rather to divert 12 LETTERS. 107 you from any consideration of me, & that you may use your interest with that noble Lord & Lady on behalfe of these virtuous & good gentlewomen, whom I have assisted out of my little pittance, as much as I am able, & would do much more, if it lay in my power, for I thinke no family wants it more, or deserves it better. It is a great satisfaction to me, that your Lordship has been pleased so favourably to approve of my new edition of St. Ignatius & the other monumts of true genuine, & apostolical antiquity ; & your acceptance toge- ther with that of other learned men, as well foreigners as those of our own country, has sufficiently counter- balanced the great trouble & charge I have been at, in the publication of them, without the least advantage from any one, no not from the university, from wch I might reasonably, & without the guilt of presumption have expected a gratification. They have only thought fit to present me with forty copyes of my own booke, in quires with wch I ought to be contented, and am very glad, that it will turne to a good account, they having sold about one hundred copies in Oxon, and about five months since the re- mainder of the impression to a bookseller. But why do I trouble your Lp with these little trivial & silly accounts of things relating to myself? You have I am sure goodness & charity & kindness enough for me not to impute this lavish freedome to me as a fault. In my next, I may possibly entertain your Lp with better thoughts, and with a more agreeable argument, being at present straitned for want of time, designing to go immediately to my Lord's house, to put this letter into the hands either of Mr. Jenkins or Mr. 108 LETTERS. Harbin. I heartily beg your Lordship's blessing and prayers, and am, with all humility & deference, My Lord, Your Lordship's most faithful & obedient Servant, T. S. London. May, 1709. I delivered upon the receipt of it your Lps kind present to my Lady D, wch she received with all due acknowledgm*5 of the favour. LETTER XLVIII. FOR DR. SMITH. " All Glory be to God." My worthy dear Friend, I have already putt his Lordshippe in mind of your distressed Lady, & her two daughters ; but in regard the Legacy will not be suddenly raised, I could not further presse their relief at present. I am sorry that the university made you not a more respectfull return '. I heartily congratulate you in the happi- nesse you enjoy in a good conscience, which is an anticipation of heaven, & am scrupulous of taking up too much of your time, which you so beneficially employ for the public, & for the future generation, to whom you will make your memory pretious. God keep us in his reverential love, resigned to his will and mindfull of eternity. Good Dr Smith, Yours very affectionately, May 23. T1IO. B. & W. 1 He means for Ignatius. The Dr. had only fourty copies for his pains. — Hearne. THREE SERMONS. i. PREACHED AT THE FUNERAL OF THE RIGHT HON. THE LADY MARGARET MAINARD, AT LITTLE EASTON, IN ESSEX, JUNE 30, 1682. ON PROV. XI. 16. II. PREACHED IN THE KING'S CHAPEL, WHITEHALL, IN THE YEAR 1685. ON DAN. X. 1 1 . III. PREACHED UPON PASSION SUNDAY. ON MICAH VII. 8, 9. DEDICATION. To the Right Honourable William Lord Mainard, Baron of Eastains, and Comptroller of His Majesty's Household. My Lord, Though I am unwilling to decline any service which your Lordship expects from me, yet when you en- joined me, the printing of this sermon, I could not obey your command without disputing it. For I considered, that in such an age as this, where an exemplary holiness is very rare, I shall be thought guilty of most gross flattery, in the character I have given of your incomparable lady now in heaven. But knowing I have so many unexceptionable witnesses to attest every line I have said, especially yourself, who best understood her value, and are most sensible of her loss ; and being conscious to myself that I have spoken no other throughout than the words of truth, I soon broke through all the dis- couragements I had, either from the just censures the world would fix on the meanness of the dis- course, or from the unjust ones it might pass on my insincerity ; and resolved to do all that little honour 112 DEDICATION. I could to her memory, and to give God the glory of her example; and I humbly beseech the Divine goodness, that what I now offer to the public, may not be wholly unprofitable to those who read it ; however, I am sure, it will not be unacceptable to your Lordship, or to those who were so happy to know her, which will be satisfaction enough to My good Lord, your Lordship's most humble and faithful servant, THO. KEN. SERMON PREACHED AT THE FUNERAL OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LADY MARGARET MAINARD. " A gracious woman retaineth honour." — Puov. xi. 16. The world was never yet so bad, but the good man, though his life was a continued satire to the age he lived in, did always either find or extort a venera- tion from it. So true is it of both sexes, which Solomon here affirms of woman only, that gracious persons, they who are in the grace and favour of God, and are strengthened by his gracious assistances, they who by the covenant of grace are enrolled in his service, and in whose hearts there is a conspira- tion of all the graces of his holy Spirit ; all which particulars are included in the word grace, and do all concur to make up a gracious soul ; such persons, I say, as these, shall from the generality of men gain an inward esteem and a great opinion, and for the most part, an outward and a suitable respect, or as the wise man words it, shall retain honour. I 114 A FUNERAL SERMON ON I must confess that there are many instances, even in our own perverse generation, wherein virtue has rather been contemned and ridiculed than honoured, but I will mention no other than the most signal of all, God incarnate, whose example, though it was as perfect and unblameable as the fulness of the God- head could render it ; yet his most divine Person was so far from being honoured by many of the Jews, that He lay under the utmost imputations of slander and blasphemy which words could express ; and as glorious as all his miracles were, they were ascribed to no other than Beelzebub, the prince of the very devils \ But though it be true that our blessed Lord, in regard to his state of humiliation, seemed to have no form, no comeliness in Him 2 ; yet all his conversa- tion had so many irradiations of divinity in it, which did abundantly evince his heavenly extraction ; and it is no wonder He should suffer such contradictions of sinners, it being usual for an heroic virtue, which is singly to encounter whole legions, to contend with inveterate errors or reigning vices, to reprove and reform the world, as our Saviour was, to be loaded with most diabolical reproaches. But goodness has an inseparable splendour which can never suffer a total eclipse, and when it is most reviled and per- secuted, it then shines brightest out of cloud. So that all who are not wilfully blind, who will but make use of their eyes to see, must acknowledge the force of its rays. This did the very Jews themselves, as many as had any relics of common ingenuity left; the mill- 1 Matt. xii. 2 1. a Isa. liii. 2, 3. THE LADY MAINARD. 115 titude owned our Saviour for a great Prophet, won- dered at his gracious words \ confessed He had done all things well 2, insomuch, that they would have exalted Him to the throne, and have made Him their King ; Pilate could find no fault in Him at all 3 ; and the centurion, a heathen, even when he saw Him hanging on the cross, as a malefactor, cried out, " Certainly this was a righteous man V So that a gracious person, under the most extreme degree of infamy and slander, shall yet retain honour, shall from all that are in their right minds, have at least an inward veneration. If this be verified of a public virtue, there can be less doubt of it in a private one, which not being on such a stage as may provoke and affront the angry world, by openly contradicting, or upbraiding, or chas- tising it, passes along with a less assaulted and less envied reputation, and more undisturbedly retains honour than the former. There is, I know, an honour which is due to all men, as they are God's workmanship 5, and have some lines of his image in them, but especially to kings and to magistrates, whom it is our duty to honour, whether they be gracious persons or no ; this we are to render to the froward and pagan, as well as to " gentle and believing masters 6 ;" to princes that are " infidels and persecutors," as well as to " Christian and nursing fathers 7." But then this honour is not paid them out of respect to any real goodness in them, but only to their authority, as 1 Luke vii. 16. iv. 22. 2 Mark vii. 37. 3 John vi. 15. xviii. 38. 4 Luke xxiii. 47. 5 1 Pet. ii. 17, 18. 6 1 Tim. vi. 2. 7 Rom. xiii. 1, i 2 I 1 0' A FUNERAL SERMON ON they are God's ordinance, as we depend on their pro- tection, and as onr obedience is enforced by law and penalties ; but the honour we give to a gracious person, is purely in reference to his moral excellencies which are legible in the whole conduct of his life. The former is merely civil, the latter, may in some sort, be styled religious ; empire is honoured as it resembles God's power, abstracted from his holiness, and therefore it is compatible with an ungracious person, it is confined only to this world and reaches no farther ; but graciousness is honoured as a partici- pation of the divine nature, appropriated to no other than saints, and which has its prospect only on heaven ': the former is like thunder and lightning, and works on our fear ; the latter is like the appearance of a good angel, arrayed in beams, awful, but kind, which do not afflict but cheer the sight, and raise in us a mixed passion of love and veneration together ; and in this sense it is, that the gracious person, for the venerable goodness that is visible in him, shall retain honour. To attempt any laborious proof of so clear a truth as this, were needless ; do but consult the universal practice of mankind, and road it there. What rules do the philosophers prescribe to render our lives most satisfactory to ourselves, and most commend- able to others ? with what colours do the orators paint those persons they intend to celebrate ? what images do the poets form when they design an hero, are they any other than the rules, and colours, and images of moral goodness ? do not hypocrites, to court the esteem of the vulgar, personate the saint, 1 2 Pet. i. 4. THE LADY MAINARD. 1 1 7 and politicians, to make the people honour them, pre- tend to religion ? and why do they both put on this disguise, but because they know that wickedness barefaced is in the eyes of all men most detestable, and that the names of saint and of religion, are cre- ditable in the world ? Show me that profligate wretch, who in his cool thoughts, or on his death- bed, does not decline all his loose companions, and seeks out for men truly good and conscientious, to whom he may intrust his estate, his children, and all that is dearest to him, even his own soul too, for which he then begs their ghostly counsel ? What man is there so wicked, who on his death-bed does not wish that he may " die the death of the right- eous," and that " his latter end may be like his ?" Look into the histories and customs of ages past, see how greedily coveted, how dearly purchased, and how highly valued, the statues, and all the little re- mains of good men have been. The heathens, to express their great esteem of goodness, built temples to virtue and honour, and joined these temples toge- ther, and made the former the only passage into the latter ; they thought praise to good men as just a tri- bute as sacrifice to their gods ; and one of the wisest of them wonderfully pleased himself in fancying how lovely and venerable, how divine and transporting an idea he should see, could he but look into the breast of a good man. We have then the practice and the judgment of the whole world to confirm this truth, that virtue has always had a great and a gene- ral esteem, that the gracious person retains honour. On the contrary, is there not a natural shame, a sense of turpitude, or a confusion of face in vicious and unclean actions? why else are men afraid to 118 A FUNERAL SERMON ON commit them before the most inconsiderable spec- tator, and choose darkness for a thick mantle to cover them \ why else do they blush to own them, wish a thousand times they had never been done, and reflect on them with dissatisfaction and horror? why else do their own consciences lash and upbraid them? whereas, if we will but take the pains to make up an induction of all Christian graces, we shall easily see, that there is none whose friendship is more ambitiously sought, none with whom men would sooner change persons, none who are accounted of more substantial worth, or more generally revered, or more influential to the good of mankind, or sooner wanted in the world, or who make a nobler figure in story, than the devout, the humble, the just, the meek, the temperate, the charitable ; or to express all in one word, the gracious person, who therefore shall always retain honour. I need not reckon up the numerous places of Holy Scripture where goodness and honour are linked together ; how " the wise are said to inherit glory1 ;" "the humble and meek to be exalted2;" how we are commanded " to keep our vessels in sanctifi- cation and honour 3," and how God has promised to " honour those who honour him 4 :" I need not men- tion the primitive Dyptics, or how the Church Ca- tholic has celebrated the festivals, and honoured the memories of the saints and of the martyrs ; I need not suggest that obvious conclusion, that if gracious persons can draw even wicked men to a reverential love of their virtue, much more will they engage the 1 Prov. iii. 35. 2 Luke i. .r)2. I Thess. iv. I. 1 1 Sam. ii. SO TPIE LADY MAINARD. 1 19 friendship of all that are holy, and not only of holy men but of holy angels too, who being all ministering spirits deputed by God to attend them \ the more heavenly they see any committed to their charge does grow, the more respectful attendance in all pro- bability they give him. And there is the highest reason in the world why there should be so honourable a loveliness in a gra- cious person, if we consider the likeness he bears to that great God whom we adore. For as there are on all men innate impressions of God's existence, so there are also of his Attributes, and none ever yet in earnest believed there was a God, but he also believed that God was a Being, infinite in all per- fections, in wisdom and power, justice and mercy, purity and holiness, veracity and beneficence, and as these excite our love, and our adoration to God, so wherever we see any, though but imperfect resem- blances of his inimitable perfections, in the saints here on earth, wherever we see men in any measure holy and pure, just and merciful, faithful and beneficent, we there see the image of God Himself, and cannot but pay them a suitable honour : thus as goodness and adorableness are co-eternal in God, so are sanc- tity and venerableness coeval, in gracious persons. Nor are we only by grace made like to God, but He is also pleased actually to dwell in us, and to consecrate our souls to be his temples ; and as God commanded the Jews to reverence his sanctuary 2, the place of his residence among them 3, where He sat between the cherubims, and a glorious light that shined on the propitiatory was the symbol of his pre- 1 Heb. i. M. 2 1 Cor. iii 16". 3 Lev. xix. 30. 120 A FUNERAL SERMON ON sence : so, when in gracious souls, we discover all the fruits of the Spirit \ a kind of glory brightening their conversation, and a sacred amiableness breathed on them from heaven, we are sure that God inhabits there, and cannot but reverence his temples. Such honour have all God's saints from even wicked men, from all holy persons, and from the good angels, and infinitely above all these, from God Himself, who honours them with his image, after which they are renewed, and with his presence, of which they are possessed ; such honour, I say, have all his saints even in this life, which if we did but seriously contemplate, would stir us up to a gene- rous emulation, would encourage us to implore the divine grace, that we may bewail all our past sins, cleanse ourselves from all filthiness, both of flesh and of spirit, which produce nothing in the end but shame and horror, and daily grow more conformable to his likeness, which is the only way to assert the dignity of our nature, and to retain honour. But when once our souls shall be divorced from our bodies, when the name of the wicked shall rot and stink sooner than his carcase, leaving no memo- rials behind, unless it be of his sin, his infamy, his madness, or his folly2 ; precious then in the sight of the Lord shall be the death of his saints 3, blessed shall be their memories, they shall be had in ever- lasting remembrance4, and their good names, being registered in the book of life, shall flourish to immor- tality. All this while T have not done justice to my sub- 1 Gal. v. 22. 2 Pro v. x. 7. Psalm cxvi. 15. 4 Psalm cxii. <">. THE LADY MAINARD. 121 ject, by affirming only in general, that goodness is honourable, I must therefore be more particular, and inquire, why Solomon does here instance in the woman rather than in the man, A gracious woman retains honour. And the reason seems to me to be either this, that as vice is more odious and more detested, so on the other hand, virtue is more attractive, and looks more lovely in women than -it usually does in men, inso- much that the gracious woman shall be sure to pur- chase and to retain honour. Or it is, because men have more advantages of aspiring to honour in all public stations of the Church, the court, the camp, the bar, and the city, than women have, and the only way for a woman to gain honour, is an exemplary holiness ; this makes " her children rise up and call her blessed, her hus- band and her own works, to praise her in the gate V' the sole glory then of that sex is to be good, for 'tis a gracious woman only who retains honour. Or it is, because women are made of a temper more soft and frail, are more endangered by snares and temptations, less able to control their passions, and more inclinable to extremes of good or bad than men, and generally speaking, goodness is a tenderer thing, more hazardous and brittle in the former than in the latter, and consequently a firm and steady virtue is more to be valued in the weaker sex than in the stronger ; so that a gracious woman is most worthy to receive and to retain honour. Or it is, because women in all ages, have given many heroic examples of sanctity ; besides those re- 1 Prov. xxxi. 28. 31. 122 A FUNERAL SERMON ON corded in the Old Testament, many of them are named, with great honour in the New, for their assiduity and zeal, in following- our Saviour, and their charity, in ministering to him of their substance ' ; they accompanied Him to Mount Calvary, lamented his sufferings, waited on the cross, attended the sepulchre 2, prepared spices and ointments 3 ; and re- gardless, either of the insolence of the rude soldiers, or of the malice of the Jews, with a love that cast out all fear, they came on the first day of the week, before the morning light, to embalm Him ; and God was pleased to honour these holy women accordingly, for they first saw the angel, who told them the joyful news that he was risen 4 ; and as if an angel had not been a messenger honourable enough, Jesus Himself first appeared to the women, the women first saw, and adored him ; and it was these very gracious women, whom our Lord sent to his disciples, that women might be first publishers of his resurrection, as angels had been of his nativity. Our Saviour himself, has erected an everlasting monument in the gospel, for the penitent woman that anointed him 5 ; and God incarnate honoured the sex to the highest de- gree imaginable, in being born of a woman, in becom- ing the son of a virgin mother, whom all generations shall call blessed ; and I know not how to call it, but there is a meltingness of disposition, and affectionato- ness of devotion, an easy sensibility, an industrious alacrity, a languishing ardour, in piety, peculiar to the sex, which naturally renders them, subjects more pliable, to the divine grace, than men commonly are ; 1 Luke viii. 3. - Matt, xxvii. 55. Luke xxiii. 27. 55,56. 1 Matt, xxviii. 5. ' Matt. xxvi. 13. 12 THE LADY MAINARD. 1*23 so that Solomon, had reason to bestow the epithet gracious, particularly on them, and to say, that a gracious woman retaineth honour. I am well aware, that if we consult the sensual, and debauched rank of men, it is not the gracious, or the chaste woman they esteem, but only the fair, or the lascivious; esteem, did I say! men may court an idle, or a wanton beauty, for their lust, but they can only esteem a gracious and a chaste one, and when all is done, she only deserves the name of beautiful ; as for the lascivious, and the prostitute, against whom Solomon so often, and so pathetically warns the young man, she is so utterly impure, that I will not so much as name her, in the same discourse with a gracious woman ; I will then, make the com- parison between mere outward beauty only, and grace, and you will soon perceive the difference. For beauty, if it be natural, is from a woman's birth, it is her chance, and not her merit ; if it be artificial, it makes her no other than a painted sepul- chre, gaudy without, and that has nothing but rotten- ness, and stench within ; but grace is the free gift of God, and our own free choice, in a happy conjunc- tion, it is no other than a God-like loveliness, imprest on our spirit. Beauty is often incident to stark fools, and to the profane, and irreligious. But grace is peculiar to holy persons, who like the king's daughter, are all glorious within !. Beauty is prone to admire itself, and to swell with pride; grace instils a just sense of our own vileness, and teaches humility ; that is apt to invite 1 Psalm xlv. 13. 124 A FUNERAL SERMON ON temptation ; this is a preservative against it. The former spends her morning hours, at her glass ; the latter at her prayers ; that most delights herself, in new fashions, and fine clothes, in platting the hair, and wearing of gold ' ; this puts on the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God, of great price. Beauty has been often, to the best, and wisest of men, witness Solomon himself, destructive and fatal, for which reason holy Job made a covenant with his eyes 2 ; and our Saviour commands us, not to look on a woman to lust after her 3, and the fairer she is the greater is the danger ; but grace, secures our innocence, awes men into sobriety, looks them into chastity, and the more intense it grows, its in- fluence is the more sovereign and efficacious. Beauty, gratifies only our outward sense, it is a mixture of colour, and figure, and feature, and parts, all in due proportion and symmetry ; or indeed it is a well shaped frame of dust and ashes, beloved by fond men only, who, like the most stupid of idolaters, worship the bare statue, without regard to the deity there enshrined : but grace is a confluence of all attractives, which approves itself to our own most deliberate judgments, and is beloved by God. Do but imagine you were in the spouse's garden, where, when the south wind blows4, the several spieos and gums, the spikenard and the cinnamon, the frankin- cense and the myrrh, send forth their various smells, which meeting together, and mixing in the air, make a compounded odour, such a composition, of all ' 1 Pet. iii. 3. - Job xxxi. 1. a Matt. v. 28. ' Cant. iv. 16. THE LADY MAINARD. 125 virtues ; such an universal and uniform agreoableness, is there in a gracious soul, which in a manner, whether we will or no, engages our affections. Beauty is vain, and favour is deceitful \ says the wise man, it soon evaporates, and cheats our expec- tation, in a little time it decays, by cares, or child- bearing, or sickness or a thousand other accidents ; men no sooner begin to crop the flower, but it fades, and sinks, and dies, or it is often soured with such inward dispositions which render it afflicting, and insupportable; but grace creates to our minds an entire satisfaction, has a goodness intrinsic and eternal, grows more amiable, the more it is enjoyed, so that the woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised, she shall for ever retain honour. As a jewel of gold in a swine's snout 2, which is hung there on purpose to be defiled, to be rolled in filth and mire, and is one of the most notorious and ugly incon- gruities in the world ; such a kind of absurdity, if you will believe Solomon, is a fair woman without discretion ; her beauty, it is true, is a jewel, but a jewel extremely ill placed, and serves for no other purpose, but to make her folly more conspicuous, to expose her the more to impurity, and to a swinish sensuality, but grace makes a woman a crown to her husband 3, the glory of the man, and advances her price above rubies ; so that a gracious woman is a jewel of a value inestimable, she has worth and orna- ment, and lustre, and beauty, and honour, all combined together. Most deservedly then, did wise Solomon give the preference to grace, and did assure us, that ' Prov. xxxi. 30. - Prov. xi. 22. 3 Prov. xii. 4. ; 1 Cor. xi. 7. ; Prov. xxxi. 10. 126 A FUNERAL SERMON ON a strong man is not more powerful to get, and when gotten " to retain his riches," than a gracious woman to acquire honour and to retain it when acquired. It is now time to do all the right I am able to the noble lady deceased, who was a woman so re- markably gracious, and retained an honour so entire and unblemished, that all the measures I have hitherto laid down, either of grace or of honour, are but a faint copy, drawn after her; she was all the while before my thoughts, her holy example is the original, and though I will not say, that among the many daughters who have done virtuously \ she absolutely excels them all, yet I am sure, she deserves to be esteemed one of the highest order. But, alas ! we have nothing now left, except this poor relique of clay, which in a few minutes must be restored to its native earth, and for ever hid from our eyes ; the gracious soul that informed it, is flowed back again to God, from whom it first streamed, and his most blessed will be done, who is compassionate and adorable in all his chastisements ; yet as we are flesh and blood, we cannot but feel the stroke which even his Fatherly hand has given us. It is the curse of the wicked, to die unlamented, unless it be, that they are sometimes carried to the grave 2, with the mer- cenary tears, of those who make mourning a trade; but the death of the righteous being a loss irrecover- able, and a real calamity, to us who survive, must needs fill us with sad resentments, when we consider of how great a blessing we are deprived. Our Saviour himself, has countenanced a moderate grief for our friends in weeping over his own dead 1 Prov. xxxi. 29. - Jer. xvi. 1. THE LADY MAINARD. 127 friend Lazarus ' ; so that if we shed our tears over the grave of this gracious and honourable lady, it is but to be just to her ashes, to ease our own sorrow- ful spirits, and to testify to the world how dear a sense we have of her worth. For had she had nothing but her quality to have recommended her, we might have performed her funeral ceremonies with a bare out- ward solemnity, but without any more concern, than a common object of mortality gives us ; but she was a woman so truly gracious, that we could not but most affectionately honour her, and cannot but have a grief, that bears some proportion to our loss. For it is our loss only we can bewail ; we grieve for ourselves, not for her, she has a joyful deliverance from temptation and infirmity, from sin and misery, and from all the evil to come ; she is now past all the storms and dangers of this troubled life, and is safely arrived at her everlasting haven ; she is now fully possessed of all that she desired, which was to be dis- solved and to be with Christ, and we cannot lament her being happy. When we weep for common christians, we are not to be sorry, as men without hope 2, but when we have so many, so uninterrupted and so undeniable demonstrations, of the sanctity of a person as we have of this gracious woman, we have no reason at all to grieve on her account, since we have not only a bare hope, but an assurance rather, that she is now in glory. But why did I call her death a loss? it is rather our gain ; we were all travelling the same way, as pilgrims towards our heavenly country, she has only got the start of us, and is gone before, and is happy 1 John xi. 35. 2 1 Thess. iv. 1.3. 128 A FUNERAL SERMON ON first, and I am persuaded that we still enjoy her prayers for us above, however I am sure that we enjoy her good works here below, which now appear more il- lustrious, and without that vail her modesty and her humility cast over them ; we still enjoy her example, which being now set in its true light, and at its proper distance, and delivered from that cloud of flesh, which did obscure and lessen it, looks the more gracious and the more honourable ; and if we follow the track she trod, we shall ere long enjoy her society in heaven. Let us then alter our note, and rather honour than bewail her : she was a gracious woman, and honour is her due ; her good name, like a precious ointment poured forth, has perfumed the whole sphere in which she moved. To paint her fully to the life, I dare not undertake, she had a graciousness in all her conversation, that cannot be expressed, and should I endeavour to do it, I must run over all the whole catalogue of evangelical graces, which do all concen- tre in her character ; I must tell you, how inflamed she was with heavenly love, how well guided a zeal she had for God's glory, how particular a reverence she paid to all things and to all persons that were dedicated to his service, how God was always in her thoughts, how great a tenderness she had to offend her heavenly Father, how great a delight to please him. But you must be content with some rude strokes only, for such particulars would be endless ; all my fear is, that I shall speak too little, but I am sure I can hardly speak too much. Say, all you who have been eye-witnesses of her life, did you from her very cradle ever know her any other than a, gracious woman :' As to myself, I have had the honour to know her near twenty years ; and THE LADY MAINARD. 129 to be admitted to her most intimate thoughts, and I cannot but think, upon the utmost of my observation, that she always preserved her baptismal innocence, that she never committed any one mortal sin, which put her out of the state of grace ; insomuch, that after all the frequent and severe examinations, she made of her own conscience, her confessions were made up of no other than sins of infirmity, and yet even for them, she had as deep an humiliation, and as penitential a sorrow, as high a sense of the divine forgiveness, and loved as much, as if she had had much to be forgiven : so that after a life of above forty years, nine of which were spent in the court, bating her involuntary failings, which are unavoid- able, and for which allowances are made, in the covenant of grace, she " kept herself unspotted from the world \" and if it may be affirmed of any, I dare venture to affirm it of this gracious woman, that by the peculiar favour of heaven, she past from the font unsullied to her grave. Her understanding was admirable, and she daily improved it, by reading, in which she employed most of her time, and the books she chose were only serious or devout, and her memory was faithful to retain what she read : she took not up her religion on an implicit faith, or from education only, but from a well studied choice, directed by God's holy Spirit, whose guidance she daily invoked, and when once she had made that choice, she was immoveable as a rock, and so well satisfied in the Catholic faith, pro- fest in the Church of England, that I make no doubt, but that she always liv'd, not only with the strictness 1 James i. 27. K 130 A FUNERAL SERMON ON of a primitive saint, but with the resolution also of a martyr : it was strange to hear how strongly she would argue, how clearly she understood the force of a consequence, and how ready at all times she was " to give a reason of the hope that was in her, with meekness and fear ' ;" her letters which were found in her cabinet, not to be delivered till after her death, and very many others in the hands of her relations, sufficiently show how good and how great she was. In them this humble saint, before she was aware, has herself made an exact impression of her own graciousness ; they are penned in so proper and unaf- fected a style, and animated throughout with so divine a spirit, with such ardours of devotion, and charity, as might have become a Proba, a Monica, or the most eminent of her sex, insomuch, that her very absence was the more supportable to her friends, in regard she compensated the want of her presence by writing, and sent them a blessing by every return. I cannot tell, what one help she neglected to secure her perseverance, and to heighten her graces, "that she might shine more and more, to a perfect day 2 ;"' her oratory was the place, where she principally re- sided, and where she was most at home, and her chief employment, was prayer, and praise. Out of several authors, she for her own use transcribed many excellent forms, the very choice of which does argue a most experienced piety, she had devotions suited to all the primitive hours of prayer, which she used, as far as her bodily infirmities, and necessary avocations would permit, and with " David, praised God seven times a day," or supplied the want of those solemn 1 1 Pet. iii. 15. s Prov. iv. 18. THE LADY MAINARD. 131 hours, by a kind of perpetuity of ejaculations, which she had ready to answer all occasions, and to fill up all vacant intervals, and if she happened to wake in the night, of proper prayers even for midnight, she was never unprovided. Thus did this gracious soul, having been enkindled by fire from heaven, in her baptism, lived a continual sacrifice, and kept the fire always burning, always in ascension, always aspiring towards heaven from whence it fell. Besides her own private prayers, she morning and evening offered up to God the public offices, and when she was not able to go to the house of prayer, she had it read to her in her chamber. To prayers she added fasting till her weakness had made it impossible to her constitution, and yet even then, on days of abstinence, she made amends for the omission, by other supplemental mortifications. Her devotions she enlarged on the fasts and festivals of the Church, but especially on the Lord's days, dividing the hours between the Church and her closet. She never failed, on all opportunities to approach the holy altar, came with a spiritual hunger and thirst to that heavenly feast, and communicated with a lively, with a crucifying, but yet endearing remem- brance, of her crucified Saviour. The sermons she heard, when she came home she recollected, and wrote down out of her memory abstracts of them all, which are in a great number among her papers, that she might be, " not only a hearer of the word, but a doer also." The holy scriptures she attentively read, and on what she read, she did devoutly meditate, and did by meditation appropriate to herself; it was her soul's k2 13*2 A FUNERAL SERMON ON daily bread, it was " her delight and her counsellor," and, like the most blessed Virgin Mother, " she kept all things she read, and pondered them in her heart." Who is there can say they ever saw her idle ? No, she had always affairs to transact with heaven, she was all her life long " numbering her days, and apply- ing her heart to wisdom," or, to describe her with her own pen, she was " making it her business, to fit herself for her change, knowing the moment of it to be uncertain, and having no assurance that her warn- ing would be great." Oh happy soul, that was thus wise, in a timely consideration of that, which of all things in the world is of greatest importance to us, to be considered, namely our latter end ! You may easily conclude that a saint, who was always thus conversant with her grave, and had heaven always in her view, must have little or no value for things below, as indeed she had not, she did not only conquer the world, but she triumphed over it, had a noble contempt of secular greatness, lived several years in the very court, with the abstraction of a recluse, and was so far from being " solicitous for riches, for herself, or her children,"' that to use her own words, she looked on them, " as dangerous things, which did only clog and press down our souls to this earth, and judged a competency to be cer- tainly the best." All the temporal blessings, the divine goodness was pleased to vouchsafe her, she received with an overflowing thankfulness, yet her affections Mere so disengaged, her temperance, and moderation so habi- tual, that she did rather use than enjoy them, and was always ready to restore them, to the same gracious hand that gave them, but no one can ex- THE LADY MAINARD. 133 press her thoughts, so pathetically as her own self; Oh, says that blessed saint, " since God gives us all, let us not be sorrowful though we are to part with all, the kingdom of heaven, is a prize, that is worth striving for, though it costs us dear : alas ! what is there in this world, that links our heart so close to it !" and elsewhere she affirms, that " all blessings are given on this condition, that either they must be taken from us, or we from them, if then, we lose any thing, which we esteem a blessing, we are to give God the glory, and to resign it freely." She was a perfect despiser, of all those vanities, and divertisements, which most of her sex, do usually admire ; her chief, and in a manner, sole recreation was to do good, and to oblige, and if we will be advised, by one so wise to salvation, " we are to seek for comfort, and joy from God's ordinances, and the converse of pious christians, and not to take the usual course of the world, to drive away melan- choly, by exposing ourselves to temptations ;" and this was really her practice, insomuch that next to the service of the temple, which she daily frequented, there was no entertainment in the whole world so pleasing to her, as the discourse of heavenly things, and those she spake of with such a spiritual relish, that at first hearing, you might perceive she was in earnest, that she really " tasted the Lord was good," and felt all she spake. Amidst all her pains and her sicknesses, which were sharpe, and many, who ever saw her shew any one symptome of impatience ? So far was she from it, that she laments, when she reflects, " how apt we are to abuse prosperity," demands, " where our con- formity is to the great Captain of our salvation, if we J 34 A FUNERAL SERMON ON have no sufferings ;" professes, "that God by suffering our conditions to be uneasy, by that gentle way, in- vites us to higher satisfactions, than are to be met with here," and with a prostrate spirit, "acknowledges that God was most righteous in all that had befallen her, and that there had been so much mercy mixt with his chastising, that she had been but too happy." Thus humble, thus content, thus thankful, was this gracious woman, amidst her very afflictions. Her soul always rested on God's paternal mercy, and and on all his exceeding great and precious promises, as on a sure and stedfast anchor, which she knew would secure her, in the most tempestuous calamities; to his blessed will, she hourly offered up her own, and knew it was as much her duty, to suffer his fatherly inflictions, as to obey his commands. Her charity made her sympathize with all in misery, and besides her private alms, wherein her left hand was not con- scious to her right, she was a common patroness to the poor and needy, and a common physician to her sick neighbours, and would often, with her own hands dress their most loathsome sores, and sometimes keep them in her family, and would give them both diet and lodging till they were cured, and then clothe them and send them home, to give God thanks for their recovery, and if they died, her charity accom- panied them sometimes to the very grave, and she took care even of their burial. She would by no means endure, "that by the care of plentifully pro- vidinsr for her children, the wants, and necessities of any poor Christian should be overlooked, and desired it might be remembered that, alms and the poors prayers will bring a greater blessing to them, than thousands a year." Look abroad new in the world. THE LADY MA1NARD. 135 and see, how rarely you shall meet, with a charity like that of this gracious woman, who next to her own flesh and blood, was tender of the poor, and thought an alms as much due to them as portions to her children. To corporal alms, as often as she saw occasion, she joined spiritual, and she had a singular talent in dispensing that alms to souls ; she had a masculine reason to persuade, a steady wisdom to advise, a perspicuity both of thought and language to instruct, a mildness that endeared a reproof, and could com- fort the afflicted from her own manifold experience of the divine goodness, and with so condoling a ten- derness that she seemed to translate their ano-uish on herself. And happy was it for others, that her charity was so comprehensive, for she often met with objects so deplorable that were to be relieved in all these capacities, so that she was fain to become their benefactress, their physician, and their divine alto- gether, or if need were, she bid them shew themselves to the priest or else took care to send the priest to them ; thus was it visibly her constant endeavour to be in all respects merciful, as her Father in heaven is merciful. She could bear long, and most easily forgive, and no one ever injured her but she would heap coals of fire on his head, to melt him into a charitable tem- per, and would often repay the injury with a kindness so surprising, that if the injurious person were not wholly obdurate and brutish must needs affect him. But if any one did her the least good office, none could be more grateful ; she would if possible, return it a hundred-fold, if she could not in kind, she would 136 A FUNERAL SERMON ON at least do it in her prayers to God, that out of his inexhaustible goodness he would reward him. Her soul seemed to possess a continued serenity, at peace with herself, at peace with God, and at peace with all the world ; her study was to give all their due, and she was exactly sincere and faithful to all her obligations, she kept her heart always with all diligence, was watchful against all temptations and naturally considerate in all her actions ; her dis- position was peaceful, and inoffensive; she looked always pleased rather than cheerful, her converse was even and serious but yet easy and affable ; her interpretations of what others did or said were always candid and charitable, you should never see her indecently angry or out of humour, never hear her give an ill character, or pass a hard censure, or speak an idle word, but " she opened her mouth in wisdom, and in her tongue was the law of kindness V If you look on her, in her several relations, in her childhood, her father the Right Honorable the Earl of Dyzart, being banished for his loyalty, she was under the breeding of the excellent lady her mother, to whom she was in all respects so dutiful a child that she protested her daughter had never in any one instance offended her; by that time the young lady was about eleven or twelve years old, God was pleased to take her good mother to Himself, and from that time to her marriage, this gracious woman lived with a discretion so much above her years, with so conspi- cuous a virtue and so constant a wariness, that she always retained honour, such an honour, as never had the least mote in it. And to her honour be it spoken, 1 Prov. xxxi. 26. THE LADY MAINARD. 137 that in an age when the generality of the nation were like children tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine, she still continued stedfast in the commu- nion of the church of England, and when the priests and service of God were driven into corners, she daily resorted, though with great difficulty, to the public prayers, and was remarkably charitable to all the suffering royalists, whom she visited and relieved and fed and clothed and condoled, with a zeal like that which the ancient christians shewed to the primitive martyrs. The silenced, and plundered, and persecuted Clergy, she thought worthy of double honour; did vow a certain sum yearly, out of her income, which she laid aside only to succour them. The congregations, where she then usually communicated, were those of the reverend and pious Dr. Thruscross, and Dr. Mossom, both now in heaven, and that of the then Mr. Gunning, the now most worthy Bishop of Ely, for whom she ever after had a peculiar veneration. But I must by no means pass by the Right Reve- rend Father in God, Bishop Duppa, then of Salisbury, afterwards of Winchester, but now with God, who was then put out of all, and an exemplary confessour, for the King, and the Church ; this holy man, when she resided in the country, lived in the neighbour- hood, and she often visited him, and he seemed to be designed on purpose by God's most gracious direc- tion to be her spiritual guide, to confirm her in all her holy resolutions, to satisfy all those scruples, to becalm all those fears and regulate all those fervours which are incident to an early, and tender piety ; and God's goodness rendered him so successful, that 138 A FUNERAL SERMON ON she retained the happy influence of his ghostly advice to her dying day. Before the age of twenty she was married to the Right Honourable William Lord Mainard, to whom in her letters she often gives the most affec- tionate thanks imaginable, for his invaluable and unparalleled kindness towards her, as she herself terms it, and most fervently prays that the Lord Jesus Christ would be his exceeding great reward and his portion for ever; but I forbear to offer violence to the modesty of the survivor, and will content myself to say only in general, that when she was a wife, she still retained her accustomed devo- tion which she practised when a virgin, and her greatest concern was "for the things of the Lord, how she might please the Lord, how in a marriage honourable, and a bed undefiled, she might be holy both in body and in spirit, and attend upon the Lord, without distraction1." And since, as Solomon affirms, "a prudent wife is from the Lord2," she was certainly the immediate gift of God, and sent by propitious heaven, for a good angel, as well as for a wife. As a mother she was unspeakably tender, and careful, of the two children with which God had blest her; but her zeal for their eternal welfare was predominant, and she made it her dying request that in their education, their piety should be princi- pally regarded, or to speak her own words, " that the chief care should be, to make them pious Christ- ians, which would be the best provision that could be made for them." 1 1 Cor. vii. 32. 2 Prov. xix. II. 12 THE LADY MAINARD. 139 In reference to her son, it was her express desire, that he should be good, rather than either rich, or great, " that he should be bred in the strictest princi- ples of sobriety, piety, and charity, of temperance and innocency of life, that could be ; that he should never be indulged in the least sin, that he should never be that, which these corrupt days call a wit, or a fine gentleman, but an honest and sincere Christian, she desired he might be." She profest, " there was nothing hard to be parted with, but her lord, and her dear children," but though her passion for them was as intense, as can well be imagined, yet for the sake of her God, whom she loved infinitely better, she was willing to part with them also, had long foreseen the parting and pre- pared for it, and " humbly begged of her heavenly Father, to take them into his protection ;" she took care of their souls, even after her death, in the letters she left behind her, and comforted herself ', with an entire acquiescence in the good pleasure of her beloved, with hopes that she should still pray for them in heaven, and that she should, ere long, meet them there ; and this consideration of meeting above, put her into a transport which makes her, in one of her letters, cry out, " O how joyful shall we be, to meet at Christ's right hand, if we may be admitted into that elect number !" In her family, she always united Martha and Mary J together, took a due care of all her domestic affairs, and managed them with a wise frugality, with a constant deference to God's merciful providence, and without either covetous fears or restless anxiety ; 1 Luke x. 4 1 , 42. 140 A FUNERAL SERMON ON but withal, " she sat at the feet of Jesus, and heard his word, and of the two was still most intent on the better part." She studiously endeavoured by private and parti- cular and warm applications to make all that at- tended her, more God's servants than her own, and treated them with a meekness, and indulgence, and condescension like one who was always mindful " that she herself also had a Master in heaven 1." Her near relations, and all that were blest with her friendship, had a daily share in her intercessions, all their concerns, all their afflictions were really her own ; her chief kindness was for their souls, and she loved them with a charity, like that which the blessed shew to one another in heaven, in their reciprocal complaisance at each other's happiness, and mutual incitements to devotion. In respect of the public, which she often laid sadly to heart, her eyes ran down in secret, for all our national provocations, and she had a particular office on fasting days for that purpose ; which shews how importunate she was, at the throne of grace, to avert God's judgments and to implore his blessing on the land. And now, after all these great truths, which I have* said of this excellent lady, one grace I must add, greater than all I have hitherto mentioned, and it is her humility ; she was so little given to talk, and had that art to conceal her goodness, that it did not appear at first sight, but after some time, her virtue would break out, whether she would or no ; she seemed to be wholly ignorant of her own graces, and 1 Eph. vi. 9. THE LADY MAINARD. 141 had as mean an opinion of herself, as if she had had no excellence at all, like Moses, her " face shined, and she did not know it 1 ;" others she esteemed so much better, had that abasing sense of her own infirmities, and that profound awe of the divine Majesty, that though she was great in God's eyes, she was always little in her own. After the Whitsun-week was over, she removed from Whitehall, to Easton-lodge in Essex, not out of any hopes of recovery, but only that she might have some little present relief from the air, or that she might die in a place which she loved, in which God had made her an instrument of so great good to the country, and which was near her grave ; and you may easily imagine, that after a life so holy, the death of this gracious woman must needs be signally happy ; and so it was, not but that during her pains, she had often doubts, and fears that afflicted her, with which in her health she was unmolested, and which did manifestly arise from her distemper, and did cease as that intermitted ; but the day before she died, God was pleased to vouchsafe her some clearer manifestations of his mercy, which in the tenderness of his compassion, he sent her, as preparatives of her last conflict, and as earnests of heaven, whither he intended the day following to translate her. How she behaved herself in her sickness, I cannot better express than by saying, that she prayed con- tinually ; and when the prayers of the Church were read by her, or when the hour of her own private prayer came, though she was not able to stand or to 1 Exod. xxxiv. 29. 142 A FUNERAL SERMON ON help herself, she would yet be placed on her knees ; and when her knees were no longer able to support her, she would be put into the humblest posture she could possibly endure, not being satisfied unless she gave God his entire oblation, and " glorified him in her body, as well as in her spirit, which were both God's own !" by purchase here, and were both to be united in bliss hereafter. On Whitsunday she received her viaticum, the most holy body and blood of her Saviour, and had received it again, had not her death surprised us, yet in the strength of that immortal food she was enabled to go out her journey, and seemed to have had a new transfusion of grace from it, insomuch, that though her limbs were all convulsed, her pains great, and without intermission, her strength quite exhausted, and her head disturbed with a perpetual drowsiness, yet above, and beyond all seeming possi- bility, she would use force to herself, to keep herself waking, to offer to God her customary sacrifice to the full, to recollect her thoughts, and to lodge them in heaven, "where her heart and her treasure was, as if she had already taken possession of her mansion there, or as if she was teaching her soul to act ii i de- pendency from the body, and practising before- hand the state of separation, into which, having re- ceived absolution, she in a short time,happily launched ; for all the bands of union being untied, her soul was set at liberty, and on the wings of angels, took a di- rect and vigorous flight, to its native country, heaven, from whence it first flew down 2. 1 1 Cor. vi. 20. 2 Luke xvi. 22. THE LADY MAINARD. 143 There then we must leave her, in the bosom of her heavenly bridegroom, where, how radiant her crown is, how ecstatic her joy, how high exalted she is in degrees of glory is impossible to be described, for " neither eye hath seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man to be conceived, the good things which God hath prepared for those that love him1," of all which she is now partaker. We have nothing then to do but to congratulate this gracious woman, her eternal and unchangeable honour, and as she always and in all things, gave God the glory here, so that his praise was continually in her mouth, for all the multitude of his mercies, and of his loving kindness towards her, and is now prais- ing him in heaven ; let us also offer up a sacrifice of praise, for her great example; her light has long sinned before us, and we have seen her good works. Let us therefore glorify the Father of lights, at whose beams her soul was first lighted. Blessed then for ever, be the infinite goodness of God, who was so liberal of his graces to this humble saint, who made her so lively a picture, of his own perfections, so gracious, and so honourable : blessed be his mercy, for indulging her to us so long, for taking her in his good time to himself, and for that happiness she has now in heaven. To God be the glory of all that honour, her graciousness did here acquire, for to Him only it is due ; let therefore his most holy name have all the praise. To our thanksgiving let us add our prayers also, that God would vouchsafe us all his holy Spirit, so to 1 1 Cor. ii. 9. 144 A FUNERAL SERMON, &C. assist, and sanctify, and guide us, that every one of our souls may be gracious like hers, that our life may be like hers, our latter end like hers, and our portion in heaven like hers, which God of his infinite mercy grant, for the sake of his most beloved Son, to whom with the Father, and the blessed Spirit, be all honour and glory, adoration, and obedience, now and for ever. Amen. SERMON PREACHED IN THE KING'S CHAPEL AT WHITEHALL, 1685. Dan. x. 11. " O Daniel, a man greatly beloved." I am not surprised, if at the first hearing- you censure the choice of my text, as having no regard to those two important circumstances, time and place: not to time, because the story of Daniel seems foreign to the fast of Lent ; not to place, because Daniel seems an example unfit for the court, being* a prophet, one whose religion looks as much like his calling as his virtue ; one who had supernatural gifts, and imme- diate inspirations, which make up an original too singular and extraordinary for any but prophets to copy out. But if it shall appear that Daniel was not of the sacerdotal but regal line : if it shall appear, that he was a courtier, and not only a courtier but a favorite ; and not only a courtier and a favourite, but a minister too ; such a courtier, and favourite, and minister, as L 146 A SERMON PREACHED no age can parallel : if to the courtier, the favourite, and the minister, be added the ascetic and the saint : if in all these respects, he was, as the margin literally renders it, a man of desires, or, according to the Hebrew idiom, a man greatly beloved both by God and men : if from these materials I form such an idea, which shall be proportioned to your imitation, and shew you Daniel's secret, that every one of you may skill the art to become greatly beloved, like him ; I hope you will be reconciled to the subject I have chosen, as not being unsuitable to this peni- tential season, as not being improper for this august assembly, whose edification is both my duty and design. If then you will be pleased to take a view of the several excellences of this great man, so greatly beloved, and so greatly worthy of your observation ; the first that occurs, is his noble extraction. He and his three kinsmen, Hananiah, Mishael, and Aza- riah l, as to their tribe were of the children of Judah ; and not only of the royal tribe in general, but in particular of the royal family, as all agree : and though Josephus will have them of the kindred of king Zedekiah, yet they seem to speak more pro- bably, who affirm them to be sons of king Hezekiah, or rather descended from him. This being most con- sonant to the prophecy of Isaiah, who foretells con- cerning Hezekiah, "that his sons which should issue from him, should be taken away, and should be in the palace of the king of Babylon:" and this was punctually fulfilled, when Nebuchadnezzar com- manded Ashpenaz to bring " certain of the children 1 Chap. i. 6. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 147 of Israel, and of the king's seed, and of the princes, that they might stand in the king's palace, and before the king1," that they might live constantly in the court : and the persons who were thus brought were Daniel, and his three companions, who were therefore all four princes by royal descent, and courtiers by royal designation. But that I may more particularly pursue the cha- racter of Daniel, leaving his other three fellow courtiers, I am next to add, that Daniel was not only a courtier like them, but also a favourite. The name courtier belongs to all who have the honour to attend their prince ; but the title favourite implies a peculiar grace, which is indulged but to a few, whom their sovereign is pleased to treat more like friends than servants, more like familiars than subjects : and yet a minister sounds something greater than a favourite : one is created in a moment, the other is framed by degrees out of great abilities and a long experience : one is often the choice of an unaccount- able affection ; the other, of a deliberate judgment : one studies how to please his prince, the other how to greaten and to secure him. And Daniel, the man greatly beloved, was favourite and minister to at least five great emperors of the world : I say at least five ; because, if it were proper to entertain this au- ditory with the perplexities in this pa*rt of chronology, from the different enumerations which are given of the Babylonian kings, I might reckon more than five : but in regard the sacred history mentions no more, I shall confine myself to that number. Of these five, three were kings of Babylon ; which are all intimated by the Prophet Jeremy ; where, 1 Chap. i. 3. 5. i/2 148 A SERMON PREACHED speaking- of Nebuchadnezzar, he predicts, that " all nations should serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the time of his land come ] :" where three only are mentioned ; the first of whom is Nebuchad- nezzar, who had a particular favour for Daniel above his three fellow captives, and therefore gave him the most honourable name, " Belteshazzar 2 :" a name which seems appropriate to the royal family, and is either the same or very little different from " Bel- shazzar 3," the name of his grandchild, who afterwards succeeded in the empire ; and that which rendered the favour much greater was, that he called him " Belteshazzar4" from the name of his god, of his great god Bel : nay, so fixed was the kindness the king bare him, that when his three friends were thrown into the fiery furnace, for not " falling down and worshipping the golden image5", Daniel, who without all doubt abhorred that idolatry as well as they, was yet too dear to the king to run the same fate ; and he stood exempt from that fiery trial, from that inhuman condemnation. Nor was he only " Nebuchadnezzar's favourite, but his minister too ;" for he made him " a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the \\ ise men of Babylon 6." More than this, at Daniel's request, to whom it seems he could deny nothing, he set his three dear asso- ciates, " Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon T." 1 Jcr. xxvii. 7. ' Dan. i. 7. :1 Chap. v. 12. ' Chap. iv. 8. Chap. iii. 20. " Chap. ii. IS. 7 Chap. ii. 40. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 149 But we cannot take the true height of that favour and of that trust which Daniel had, unless we esti- mate it from the greatness and dominion of the king he served : " greatness which reached unto heaven, and dominion which spread to the end of the earth V Insomuch that God is said " to give him a kingdom and majesty, and glory, and honour; and for the majesty God gave him all people, and nations and languages trembled and feared before him ; whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive ; whom he would he set up, and whom he would he put down 2." Now to be entire favourite and chief minister to so universal a monarch as this is certainly to be one of the greatest subjects that ever was ; and to this sublimity of honour was Daniel exalted. King Nebuchadnezzar enjoyed the monarchy of the world about forty-three years ; and then left it to his son, Evil-Merodach, not mentioned by Daniel, possibly, because the prophet had no remarkable visions during his reign, as he had during the reigns of the other emperors. But whatever the reason be of Daniel's silence in this particular, he is mentioned in other places of Holy Writ ; and we may reasonably presume, that the son could not easily forget how mightily Daniel had merited of his father, and how useful and necessary he was to the affairs of the empire. And if the story of Bel and the Dragon, which our Church reads for example of life, and in- struction of manners ; if that story happened under this emperor's reign, as some good chronologers attempt to prove, then Daniel still kept the same pitch of greatness under the son, as he did under the 1 Chap. iv. 22. 2 Chap. v. 18, 19. 150 A SERMON PKEACHED father ; for it is there expressly said, that " he con- versed with the king, and was honoured above all his friends 1." And we may probably enough impute that great liberty, and that royal treatment, which the captive king of Judah, Jehoiachin, then found from Evil-Merodach, to the power and intercession of Daniel, his beloved minister 2. Evil-Merodach having worn the imperial crown about twenty-two years, Belshazzar succeeds next ; and Daniel was still the same great man under the son, as he had been under the father and the grand- father. For it was Belshazzar who commanded, that " Daniel should be clothed with scarlet, and a chain of gold should be put about his neck, and proclama- tion made, he should be the third ruler in his king- dom 3," next to himself, and, as it is most likely, to his own son. And he was as much his minister as his favourite ; and is therefore said to " rise up, and to do the king's business 4." Belshazzar within about four years disappeared, and Darius seized the kingdom ; and translated the empire from the Babylonians to the Medes. And Daniel still shone with the same lustre as before ; and was by " Darius set over all the Median princes 3," and designed to be set over the whole realm. And how greatly beloved he was by his new master you may easily guess, by that great sorrow, and concern, and zeal for his deliverance the king showed, by his refusing all instruments of music, and his being able to take no rest, whilst his beloved Daniel, by an unjust extorted sentence, was surrendered to the 1 History of Bell and the Dragon, v. 2. 3 2 Kings xxv. 27. ; Jer. Hi. 31. 3 Chap. v. 29. 1 Chap. viii. 27. ' Chap. vi. 3. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 151 lions ; by that exceeding joy he betrayed for his safety ; and by the exemplary vengeance he retaliated on his accusers, making their very wives and children share in their destruction1. Darius having wielded the imperial sceptre eigh- teen years, or thereabouts, Cyrus invaded his throne, and began a new monarchy of the Persians : and Daniel is said to prosper under the reign of Cyrus, as well as of Darius2. And in the third year of this emperor's reign, we are sure that Daniel was alive 3, though how long after we cannot tell ; but undoubt- edly whilst he lived he had as great influence on Cyrus, as he had on the former emperors ; and his dexterous application, together with his informing him of those prophecies of Isaiah, where the great God of Israel had honoured him with the glorious appellations of his shepherd and of his anointed 4, might, in all probability, be one great incentive which God used, to stir up the spirit of that infidel monarch to make that auspicious proclamation for the return of the captivity, and for the rebuilding of both the city and the temple 5. One thing more is very re- markable, that though Daniel was exceeded by none in the zealous love he bore to his own native country, and was by no means fond of his sovereign greatness ; yet we do not read, he ever returned with his coun- trymen, but denied himself that consolation for his dear Israel's sake ; that, being his nation's resident in the Persian court, he might keep his interest alive, 1 Chap. vi. 1, 2, 3, 14, 18, 23, 24. 1 Chap. vi. 28. 3 Chap. x. 1. 4 Isa. xliv. 28 ; xlv. 1. 5 2 Chron. xxxvi. 22.; Ezra i. 1, &c. 152 A SERMON PREACHED and be ready on all occasions to negotiate and further their affairs. It is now time to reflect, how rare and difficult it is for a person of conspicuous eminence to get a sure looting in the very land of his own nativity, where places and customs and laws are all familiar and natural to him; and where he has so many friends and relations to assist and support him. But when we contemplate Daniel's greatness, and how impreg- nable it was, it seems to be prodigious, especially considering the many disadvantages under which he lay. He was a captive, and his very captivity ren- dered him vile and contemptible ; he was a stranger, and 'yet engrossed the highest honours in a foreign country, by which he became obnoxious to a national envy ; he was a Jew, one who had an utter antipathy to the Pagan idolatry, and Avas the infidels' common enemy. Now to see a captive, a stranger, a Jew, both courtier and favourite, and minister to five suc- ceeding monarchs of the Gentiles, in no less than three universal monarchies ; to see a Jewish slave dive into the counsels, and please the humours of so many imperious masters ; to shift empires so often, and to accommodate himself so properly, first, to the Babylonian, then to the Median, then to the Persian rites, and maxims, and interests, and dependences; in such amazing revolutions, to be fixed in an orb above all clouds, and storms, and mutations, in the region below ; when fate fell three several times in labour of new empires; to feel none of those pangs and convulsions under which all the world besides did groan; to stand unshaken, when the public suf- fered so many universal earthquakes; for a Hebrew slave to be so greatly beloved and honoured by so AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 153 many heathen emperors, for about ninety years together, and in that time to see the ruin and the resurrection of his own native country ; more than this, to be ordained by propitious heaven on purpose, by his interest in those emperors, to be his country's patron in misery, its advocate under oppression, its deliverer out of captivity, and its restorer to its pris- tine glory; is certainly to be such a courtier, and favourite, and minister, as no period of time could ever shew such another; and Daniel was all this, who, like an intelligence, was ever moving his sphere, and ever immoveable himself. Thus Avas Daniel a man greatly beloved by kings; and so he was by the people too : the history of Susanna expressly says, " that from that day forth, Daniel was had in great reputation in the sight of the people1." From that day forth, which is as much as to say, that he was in universal esteem all the time he lived. For at that time, when he gave judgment on the two elders, he was but a young youth2, about twelve years old, if some of the ancients may be believed ; and the Jewish historian affirms, that Daniel had that great happiness all his life long- to be honoured, not only by kings, but by the people too ; nay, so constant and notorious a favourite he was, both to the prince, and to the whole empire, that as Nebuchadnezzar changed his name from Daniel to Belteshazzar ; so the angel Gabriel seems to change his name once more, from Belteshazzar to the man greatly beloved, for so he is there called, " O man, greatly beloved 3." But that which crowns all is this, that when he 1 Susannah, ver. G4. - Ibid. 45. 3 Daniel ix. 23; x. 19. 154 A SERMON PREACHED had served three might)7 monarchies, with five the greatest monarchs in the world, for so many years together, his death, after a very busy life, was most pacific and honourable ; and after his death, his memory was precious and eternal : he died as great as he lived ; for either he was buried in a most mag- nificent tower of his own building at Ecbatan in Media, where the Median, and Persian, and Par- thian kings were ever after ambitious to be interred ; or, as others affirm, he was buried at Babylon in the very imperial sepulchre ; the greatest monarchs es- teeming his neighbourhood in the very grave the highest of all honours, hoping that his sacred ashes might hallow theirs. And yet for Daniel to be the darling of so many mighty kingdoms, was infinitely short of that incom- parable felicity he had, to be the peculiar favourite of heaven ; in which respect he was most eminently the man greatly beloved. For if to receive the greatest favours from God, that mortal man is capable of receiving, be an argument of God's love, then was Daniel beloved, greatly beloved by God. It was this love of God, which made his greatly beloved Daniel prosperous in adversity, that gave him freedom in captivity, friendship among enemies, safety among infidels, victory over his conquerors, and all the privileges of a native in strange countries: it was this love of God, that gave his greatly beloved, "knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom, and understanding in all visions and dreams \" It was this love of God, that delivered him in dangers; from the conspiracy and malice of the Median 1 Daniel i. 17. 12 AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 155 princes, and from the fury of the lions : that sent one angel into the den to stop their mouths ; and another angel at another time, to bring a prophet on purpose to feed him : that signally revenged him of his enemies, and did by a miracle vindicate his inte- grity1. It was the love of God, that sent the angel Gabriel to visit him, to be his interpreter, to strengthen, and comfort, and encourage him ; to re- veal secrets to him, and to assure him, that his prayers were heard 2. It was the love of God, which gave him the spirit of prophecy, that excellent spirit, that spirit of the holy gods, as the Babylonians styled it, by which he foretold the rise and period of the four monarchies, the return of the captivity, and wrote long beforehand the affairs of future ages 3. But be- yond all this, it was the love of God that presented him with a clearer landscape of the gospel than any other prophet ever had : he was the beloved prophet under the old dispensation, as John was the beloved disciple under the new; and both being animated with the same divine love, there was a wonderful harmony between them : both of them had miracu- lous preservations, one from the lions, the other from the boiling cauldron ; both engaged young in the service of God, and consecrated their lives by an early piety, and both lived to a great and equal age, to about an hundred years ; both had the like intimacy with God, the like admittance into the most adorable mysteries, and the like abundance of heavenly vi- sions ; both had the like lofty flights, and ecstatic 1 Daniel vi. 4, 5. 22. 24. Hist, of Bel, 36. 42. 2 Daniel ii. 19. ; viii. 10. ; ix. 22. ; x. 11, 12. 19. 3 Daniel iv. 9. 18.; v. 11. 12. 14.; x. 14. ; ix. 25. 156 A SERMON PREACHED revelations. Read what Daniel saw, of the " ancient of days, and of his throne, and of the angels his at- tendants V' and you must needs say, that his visions in this life were next to beatific. His prophecies of the Messias 2, of the precise time of his coming, and of his cutting off; of the destruction of Jeru- salem, and of Antichrist ; of the Son of man 3, and of the universality and perpetuity of his kingdom, the Church Catholic ; of the day of judgment, of the resurrection, of heaven, and of hell ; were so literally fulfilled in the gospel, and so legible there, and all his predictions so express, and full, and particular, that for this very reason, his writings were questioned by both the Gentiles and the Jews, because they looked more like the history of things past, than a prophecy of things to come. But the Jews' own historian esteemed Daniel one of the greatest pro- phets, for the same reason for which others unjustly reproach him. The mouth of truth, our blessed Saviour, has declared Daniel a prophet 4 ; and the greater clearness his prophecies have, the more likely they are to be wrote by Daniel ; who the more greatly he was beloved, the greater were the commu- nications of divine love to him, and the greater by consequence were his illuminations. All these wonderful vouchsafements from above to Daniel, though they were most illustrious demon- strations that he was greatly beloved, yet they were indulged him for the sake of others, as well as for his own : there is therefore one more illustrious 1 Daniel vii. 9, 10. 2 Daniel ix. 2.3, &c. 1 Daniel vii. 9. 13, 14. 18. 27. ; xii. 1, 2, 3. Matth. xxiv. 15. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 157 than all these, and that is a favour which God be- stows on but very few, and on none but great saints, who are greatly beloved ; and not usually on them till near their death, and is the very top blessing of which man is capable in this life, the highest bliss on this side heaven ; and that is, an absolute assurance of a glorious immortality ; and such an assurance as this had the beloved Daniel ; for the angel having discoursed to him of the resurrection of those that " sleep in the dust, and of their awaking to everlast- ing life ' ;" adds, " Go thy way till the end be ; for thou shalt rest, and stand in the lot at the end of the days." O the unutterable felicity of this man, thus greatly beloved by God ! whilst the generality of saints sigh under their flesh and blood, which clogs, and loads and depresses them ; whilst the pe- nitent are still begging their pardon, and the humble full of fears and misgivings, by reason of their nume- rous failings ; whilst the best of them all see heaven only through a glass darkly, and at a distance, and can reach no higher in this world, than hope, and desire, and reliance on God's promise, and patient expectation ; Daniel, the man greatly beloved, has an angel sent on purpose by God, to assure him of his lot in a glorious eternity, and that his mansion there was prepared and brightened to receive him : and yet this is not all ; Daniel was not only assured of future glory, but of a greater degree of glory than others had ; for having made it his great business here below to love God himself, and greatly to love Him, and to excite others to love God as greatly as he loved Him, he was to have a more sublime exal- 1 Daniel xii. 2, 13. 158 A SERMON PREACHED tation in bliss than ordinary ; the greater his love was, the nearer was he to be seated to the throne of God his beloved; and having "turned many to righteousness, he was to shine as the stars for ever and ever V If ever then there was a happy man on earth, Daniel was the man; who lived beloved, greatly beloved by five mighty monarchs ; greatly beloved by his own people ; greatly beloved by three foreign nations ; and greatly beloved by God : and after a long, a happy, an honourable life, died a peaceable and lamented death, with full assurance of God's favour, was buried in the royal sepulchre, and left an immortal blessed memory behind him in the world, and ascended to glory, to a superlative degree of Qflorv in the kingdom of heaven. Who is there that does not above all things desire to live and die like this man, greatly beloved ? Who is there that is not impatient to know the peculiar maxims by which Daniel conducted his life, and by which he became so universally, so greatly beloved by God and man ? If then you would learn Daniel's secret, that powerful inflammative and preservative of love, which Daniel had, and which made him, according to the text, understood in a passive sense, a man greatly beloved. Take the very same expression in an net ive sense, and then you have it; he did greatly love, and therefore he was greatly beloved : that was all the court-cunning, all the philtre that Daniel had. It is love that most naturally attracts love; and from this love lie is called, "a man of desires ;" 1 Daniel xii. 3. AT WHITEHALL, 1685- 159 of desires for the glory of God, and for the welfare of king and people ; still I am short : he was a man full of desires ; so full, that he was made up of desires, he was all desires ; for so the original em- phatically styles him, " thou art desires 1." But to descend to particulars ; it is very observ- able, that the preparation he had for a court life was affliction : he had from his childhood a great share in the calamity of his country ; and in the first year of Nebuchadnezzar 2, and the third of Je- hoiakim, about eighteen years before the destruction of the city and temple under Zedekias, and the total captivity of Judah began, he was carried captive into Babylon, as another Joseph sent afore by God to be the father of his country ; and captivity was the more insupportable to him, being a prince of a great spirit, and born to command ; and to see himself a slave to an insulting infidel, must needs be one of the most outrageous afflictions that could possibly befal him. But it is an usual method with God to lay the foundation of a great sanctity in affliction ; affliction, which made lasting impressions of his de- pendance on God, and kindled a fervent devotion, which melted him into a compassionate charity, and sank him into a profound humility ; affliction, which taught him betimes resignation to the divine will, the vanity of the world, and the uncertainty of great- ness ; that happily prevented the assaults of youth- ful lust, and by the experience he felt of gracious supports, and endearing consolations, charmed him to make God his first and only love. Thus prepared by God's paternal care 3, accustomed 1 Daniel ix. 23. 2 Ibid. i. 1. 3 Lam. iii. 27. 160 A SERMON PREACHED to the yoke from his youth, and armed against all the ghostly dangers he was to encounter, he comes in a very tender age, as all generally affirm, to the Babylonian court; and being entirely pre- possessed with the love of God, never any young noble person entered a court with a nobler reso- lution than did young Daniel, and that was, to live in the King's palace an ascetic and a saint, as well as a courtier, and never wilfully to offend God, his greatly beloved. This made him " purpose in his heart, that he would not defile himself with the portion of the King's meat, nor with the wine that he drank ' ;" lest he should either eat meats for- bidden by the law, or consecrated to the idol Bel, or be tempted to excess. And it is incredible to think, how such an abstinence as this (which the church now recommends to our practice) did naturally fit him for his secular employment : since our common observation teaches us, that nothing more clouds our understandings, and indisposes us for business ; nothing does more debase a great man, or makes a wise man look more like a fool, or more exposes them to the mockery and contempt of the meanest of their servants, or supplies more fuel to brutish and wandering sensuality, or more certainly dilapi- dates their estates, or is more destructive to their health, than the surfeits of intemperance ; which abstinence does either prevent, or correct. Abstinence, the best defensitive a Christian can have: abstinence, that preserved young Daniel safe, amidst allurements more formidable than the raven- ing lions in their den, and though he was very young 1 Daniel i. 8. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 161 and very beautiful withal \ fit to be both tempter and temptation, though this young beautiful prince lived in the greatest favour and honour, affluence and authority, in three the most luxurious courts in the whole world : yet he lived untainted, he lived always in the fiery furnace, and not so much as the smell of fire passed on him 2, but he still kept his virgin love for God, his greatly beloved. So certain it is, that nothing more conduces to the health and vivacity, and purity, both of mind and body, than to feed now and then (especially at such a solemn time as this) on pulse, like Daniel ; to become (for a few weeks) ascetics, like him. Make but the trial, and you will wonder to find, how much an abstinence like this, preserves the whole man entire for God, and disposed for all the offices of divine love. Next to Daniel's temperance as an ascetic, con- sider his devotion as a saint, devotion which was the oil that kept the lamp burning and secured all his other graces. Besides the continual ejaculations which divine love was always inspiring, and he al- ways breathing ; amidst all the multiplicity of state- affairs, he never made business a dispensation from God's service, he retired into his chamber three times a day for solemn prayer 3 : love made him zealous to converse with his beloved, and love made God greatly communicative to his friend : when he was in any great perplexity, prayer was his refuge, and God his counsellor; he instantly withdrew into his oratory, to desire mercies of the God of heaven, concernino- the secret ' ; and when his prayers were heard, he took 1 Daniel i. 4. 2 Ibid. iii. 27. 3 Ibid. vi. 10. 13. ' Ibid. ii. 18, 19, 29. M 162 A SERMON PREACHED as much care to give God thanks, as he had done to pray, he ascribed all to God, and nothing to him- self, and blessed the God of heaven. Nor were his prayers confined to his own person, but he interceded with God for his own people also : he bewailed their miseries, and their sins which occasioned them ; implored their pardon and deliver- ance ; and he prayed for them with great intense- ness, and affectionate fervency ; he set his face to seek God for them by prayer and supplication \ and with the same concern with which he prayed for himself. More than this, his charity extended to the Baby- lonians too, to enemies and unbelievers; and he prays, that their wise men, who were devoted to destruction, might not perish 2. And that you may be convinced how pertinent the example of Daniel the ascetic, is, to teach us to spend this holy season devoutly, to enforce all his prayers and supplications, he added fasting, and sack- cloth, and ashes ; and that fasting was accompanied with alms too, consonant to his own exhortation to Nebuchadnezzar, to break off his sins by righteous- ness, and his iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor 3 ; nay, we have him continuing his fast and mourning three whole weeks together ; during which time, " he ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh or wine into his mouth ; neither did he anoint himself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled V Nothing is more plain than this, that Daniel did not think the bare abstaining from flesh to be fasting, when in the mean time we indulge ourselves in ' Dan. ix. 3, 4, &c. 2 Ibid. ii. 18. 3 Ibid. iv. 27. * Ibid. x. 2. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 163 all the most palatable wines, all the delicacies of fish, and all the luxury of banquets. This is a licentious notion, which rose by the decay of christian piety. When he fasted, his diet was afflicting, and such as became a mourner ; not to humour, but to chastise nature ; not to pamper his appetite, but merely to appease it. The ancient christians knew no such distinction between fish and flesh ; their lenten-fare was bread and water and salt ; and their first meal on fasting days, was not till the evening. I mention this example, to show you what the ancients thought fasting, and how they kept Lent ; I do not exhort you to follow them any further, than either our climate, and our constitutions will bear; but we may easily follow Daniel, in abstaining from wine, and from the more pleasurable meats, and such an abstinence as this, with such a mourning for our own sins, and the sins of others, is the proper exer- cise of a primitive spirit, during all the weeks of Lent. For what is Lent, in its original institution, but a spiritual conflict, to subdue the flesh to the spirit, to beat down our bodies, and to bring them into sub- jection? What is it, but a penitential martyrdom for so many weeks together, which we suffer for our own and other sins? A devout soul, that is able duly to observe it, fastens himself to the cross on Ash Wednesday, and hangs crucified by contrition all the Lent long; that having felt in his closet, the burthen and the anguish, the nails and the thorns, and tasted the gall of his own sins, he may by his own cru- cifixion be better disposed to be crucified with Christ on Good Friday, and most tenderly sympathize with all M 2 164 A SERMON PREACHED the dolours, and pressures, and anguish, and torments, and desertion, infinite, unknown, and unspeakable, which God incarnate endured, when he bled upon the cross for the sins of the world ; that being puri- fied by repentance, and made conformable to Christ crucified ', he may offer up a pure oblation at Easter, and feel the power and the joys, and the triumph of his Saviour's resurrection. And to encourage you to such a devotion, thus enforced with fasting, and mourning, and alms, as was this of Daniel, reflect on the wonderful success he found ; for when he began his supplications, the angel Gabriel was sent to him by God, and arrived before he had ended them ; and by that heavenly messenger, God then honoured him with that glorious prophecy of the seventy weeks 2. And the prophet Ezekiel joins Daniel with Noah and Job3, as the three greatest instances of prevalence with God that ever prayed. You have seen how Daniel served his God ; and you are next to see how he served his prince, I may add, the people too ; for the prince and the people have but one common interest, which is the public prosperity; and none can serve the prince well, but he dot's serve the people too : and Daniel served his prince and not himself; the love of God had given him an utter contempt of the world. And this made him despise Belshazzar's presents, " Thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another4 ;"' to shew, that it was a cordial zeal for the king, and not self-interest, that inclined him to his service. This 1 Phil. iii. 10. Dan. ix. 21, 22. 3 Ezek. xiv. 1 l. ' Dan. v. 17. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 165 was evident in all his ministry ; insomuch, that when the Median presidents and princes combined in his destruction, he had so industriously done the king's business l, was so remarkably righteous a person 2, so faithful in the discharge of his duty, both to king and people, so beneficial to all, and offensive to none, so remote from all flattery, so courageous on just and fit occasions, in warning his great masters of their dangers 3, and minding them of their duty 4 ; he had so universal a benignity to all, so sincerely sought the good of Babylon 5, was so forward to rescue an injured innocence, as he did Susanna ; so tender of men's lives, that he was never at rest till he saved all the wise men of Babylon6, when the decree was gone out for their massacre ; so careful of their peace and prosperity that he sat in the gate of the king to hear every man's cause, and with great patience and assiduity to do justice to all : he had behaved him- self so irreproachably, that they could find " no occasion nor fault in him concerning the kingdom ; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him 7. For this reason, when no accusation, no slander could stick on him from the law of the land, the conspirators resolve to take advantage against him from the law of his God; and put Darius upon making that impious decree, " That whoever should ask any petition of God or man for thirty days to- gether, save of the king, should be cast into the den of 1 Dan. viii. 27. 2 Ezek. xiv. 14. 3 Dan. iv. 25. 27. 4 Dan. v. 23. 25. 5 Jer. xxix. 7- 6 Dan. ii. 13, 24, 49. 7 Dan. vi. 4. 166 A SERMON PREACHED lions V It was a decree which was one of the greatest pieces of flattery imaginable : nothing could better please a proud infidel king, than to be deified. It was the most opportune device in the world, to try whether the Babylonians would pay an entire obedience to their new Median emperor : it was a kind of idolatry, the most plausible that could be invented. To worship an idol, such as Bel, or such as Nebuchadnezzar's golden image was, that had been a test too gross ; and a man may much more ration- ally worship himself than a creature of his own making. To worship an animal that had motion and strength, such as the dragon, was better than to worship a lifeless trunk ; yet this had been to sink the worshipper infinitely below the beast he wor- shipped : but to worship a king, that is much more defensible ; the very statues of kings have been venerated, even by Christians, and met with solemn processions and placed in their very temples ; inso- much, that from the honour there paid to the images of emperors, an analogical inference was afterwards made, for the introducing of the images of saints and martyrs into churches. But to worship the king himself, seems much more allowable, especially such a king, the greatest monarch on earth, who has power of life and death, who in dominion, in rewards and punishments, was the liveliest image of God in the world ; who was able to hear and grant the petitions there offered him : if any idolatry can be excusable or venial, it is certainly this. And nothing could ever be thought on, so ensnaring to Daniel, as ' Dan. vi. 7. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 167 this project of the Median princes. Not to worship the king, had been to shew him a personal dishonour ; and it was grievous for Daniel personally to affront Darius, who had been so gracious, and indulgent a master to him- Not to pray to God for thirty days together, and yet pray to the king in his stead, had been all the while to renounce God, and to exalt a creature into his throne. On the one hand, the den and the lions threaten him ; on the other, the bottomless pit, and the damned spirits. In this strait in which Daniel was, could no ex- pedient be found? What if he had worshipped the king, that worship might be interpreted allegiance, rather than idolatry ; or it was only worshipping God in the king that represented him ; or he might for thirty days together petition the king to repeal his ungodly decree, and to worship the true God ; and all the time, secretly, and in a corner, or mentally, he might have worshipped God ; any one of these expedients had reconciled all, had gratified the king, secured Daniel, and defeated all his enemies. But Daniel knew none of these salvos, none of these reserves and evasions ; he durst not deny God, and scandalize all good people, by giving that divine worship to the king, which was due only to God. Religion was his tenderest care, and he had hitherto kept it inviolable ; and would never communicate with either the Babylonian or the Median, or the Persian idolatries. A great love made him greatly zealous for God his beloved ; and the more publicly God was dishonoured, the more pub- licly Daniel resolved to own him; and "prayed three times a-day in his chamber, on his knees1," 1 Dan. vi. 10, 168 A SERMON PREACHED more conspicuously than ever, with his windows open towards Jerusalem ; not for ostentation, but example. When his duty to God, and obedience to his king- stood in competition, though it was an inexpressible grief to the good man, that ever there should be such a competition, he obeyed God, and patiently suffered the king's displeasure, in being cast into the lions' den, from whence God did miraculously deliver him ; and even the king himself, by congratulating his deliverance, and destroying his enemies, shewed afterwards that he loved Daniel the better, for loving his God better than his king ; for sagacious princes best measure the fidelity of their subjects, from their sincerity to God. I am well aware, that after all this, some will say that Daniel had a supernatural gift of prophecy, and of interpreting dreams, which rendered him greatly beloved, and made him a pattern too high for the imitation of ordinary persons. Tis true, Daniel was a prophet, and inspired, and peculiarly honoured on that account ; nay more, adored too, and that by proud Nebuchadnezzar himself ' : though his being a saint was more forcible to make him greatly be- loved, than being a prophet. But the several kings that made him their minister, considered him more as a statesman than a prophet. His inspirations were occasional, now and then ; his political abilities, constant and habitual : and it was from the expe- rience of those abilities that he was intrusted with the public affairs. Nor is it necessary or usual, that prophets should be politicians ; they commonly are fitter for a cell, than a court; for contemplation, rather than an active life. 1 Daniel ii. 1G. AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 169 Besides, there are two sorts of divination, one sacred and inspired, the other natural and political ; the former might now and then, while he was useful, make him a favourite ; the latter made him always a minister : and in this latter, Daniel excelled, as much as in the former, insomuch, that his wisdom became proverbial, "Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel1.'' It is this kind of divination, which is common to all wise men ; and was probably the genius which accom- panied Socrates. It was by this kind of divination, that Daniel gave safe counsels, foresaw consequences, and to the utmost of his reach, left, nothing to chance. It was such divination, such sagacity as this, which interpreted to him all the dreams of human life, the vanities of the proudest wight, the follies of the shrewdest contrivances, and the uncer- tainties of all worldly success ; and therefore taught him, greatly to adore that allwise Almighty Provi- dence, which holds the helm of the world ; to im- plore the protection of him, " who rules in the king- dom of men, and gives it to whomsoever he will 2 ;" and greatly to love his most gracious conduct in all his disposals, which when all is done, is our only true wisdom. You have seen Daniel, one royally descended, an instance of the greatest, both courtier and favourite, and minister that ever was ; who was all three, to no less than five monarchs, and in three several monar- chies of the world ; one that kept his station in the greatest revolutions that ever were, under all the disadvantages imaginable, of captive, and stranger, 1 Ezek. xxviii. 3. 2 Daniel iv. 25. 170 A SERMON PREACHED and Jew, for about ninety years together ; one who to all his other characters, added that of the ascetic and the saint : all which made him greatly beloved, greatly beloved by God, at whose glory he ever aimed ; greatly beloved by all those kings, whom he faithfully served ; greatly beloved by the people, whose good he studied. You have seen, how love was reciprocal, how Daniel greatly loved the king and the people: and this was the secret he had, which naturally attracted so universal a love. A secret that is neither too mysterious for your com- prehension, nor too heroic for your imitation : a secret of a certain and approved virtue. For good- ness is awful and amiable to all mankind, and has charms that are irresistible. There is a powerful sweetness, a propitious obligingness, such effusions and irradiations of divinity in it, which commands our affections, and are able to overcome all our aver- sions ; and I am confident, that there is no one here, but if he would make the experiment, would find a proportionable success. Let me then exhort, let me beseech you, to con- sider all the attractives of the divine love, till God's sovereign love inflame you, and you habitually breathe his praises. Learn like Daniel, humility by affliction, purity by temperance ; to keep your graces alive by prayer, and frequenting your oratory; to subdue rebellious nature, by fasting and mortifica- tions. Learn from Daniel, a universal obligingness and benignity, an awful love to your prince, a con- stant fidelity, an undaunted courage, an unwearied zeal in serving him. Learn from Daniel, an equal mixture of the wisdom of the serpent, and of the AT WHITEHALL, 1685. 171 innocence of the dove, an inoffensive conversation, a clean integrity, and an impartial justice to all within your sphere. Learn from the man greatly beloved, to reconcile policy and religion, business and devotion, abstinence and abundance, greatness and goodness, magnanimity and humility, power and subjection, authority and affability, conversation and retirement, interest and integrity, heaven and the court, the favour of God, and the favour of the king, and you are masters of Daniel's secret ; you will secure yourselves an uni- versal and lasting interest; you will like him, be greatly beloved, both by God and man. For when we have in vain tried all other methods, there is nothing stable but virtue ; nothing that can keep us steady in all revolutions, but the love of God ; and when the worldly wise men, and the mighty, fall by their own weakness, or moulder by the decays of time, or wear out of fashion, or are over- whelmed by a deluge of envy, or are blown away by the breath of God's displeasure, or when the world, of its own accord, frowns and forsakes them, and their name and memory perish ; the man that loves God is still the same, God whom he loves is still the same, with him is no variableness, nor shadow of turning; his incentives are still the same, infinite philanthropy, loving-kindness and amiableness ; his end is still the same, the glory of his beloved ; his duty is still the same, and has a goodness essential and unchangeable ; his retreat to a peaceful conscience is still the same ; his assistances have still the same sweet force ; his ambition, the same heavenly prospect ; his designs, and affections, and resolutions, have still the same centre ; his will is in the disposal of the same 172 A SERMON PREACHED gracious providence ; his very afflictions meet in the same point with his prosperity, and both work together for his good. Search now, and see, if over the whole universe you can find a place of rest, a steady happiness in any thing, but in the love of God, and you will return with Solomon's account, " All here below is vanity and vexation of spirit." For this world is founded upon the seas and esta- blished on the floods ', the very foundation of it is laid in mutability. But he that loves God, and trusts in his beloved, is like mount Sion that cannot be re- moved, but stands fast for ever2 ; he is built on the rock of ages, he stands firm on a height, that has no precipice, and is above all assaults, and is in eternal security. For what, or who, shall separate a resolute lover from the love of Christ ; shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, &c. But alas, when we frail creatures have done all we can, it is impossible for us to love God so as he is worthy to be beloved, so as to satisfy ourselves we love him enough. No holy person can love God to that degree, but he passionately desires to love him much more ; and through the unavoidable weakness of lapsed nature, the best of men do often fail in their duty, and are reduced to bare desires only. Love no sooner begins to offer up a sacrifice to our beloved, but the fire is apt to go out ; and nothing many times, but the dying embers of languid desires remain on the altar. And this is suitable to the name the angel gives to Daniel, when he styles him a man of desires : it is the proper description of a good man here on earth, that he is a man of desires. For 1 Psai xxiv. 2. - Isa. xxvi. 1. 1*2 AT WHITEHALL, 1G85. 173 this world is the region of want, and consequently of desires : and happy is the man, who being first greatly beloved by God, to his power, loves God again ; and out of that motive of divine love, earnestly desires, like Daniel, to oblige, and help, and relieve, and serve, and pray for all mankind, as bearing the image of his beloved ; but above all, to have a reverential and zealous love for his prince, who more immedi- ately represents, and resembles, God his beloved. O may every soul here present, live and die this happy lover, thus greatly beloved by men, if it be the divine will ; but above all, thus greatly beloved by God ; " to whom with the Son, and Holy Spirit, be Glory," &c. A SERMON PREACHED UPON PASSION SUNDAY. Micah vii. 8, 9. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy; when I fall, I shall rise ; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall he a light unto me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me : He will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness. Every 1 one that hears this passage of scripture, will soon perceive what the prophet intends, namely, a 1 Evelyn gives the following account of the delivery of this sermon, vol. i. page 647. " 1st. April in the morning, the first sermon was preached by Dr. Stillingfleet, Dean of St. Paul's, (at Whitehall) on Luke x. 41, 42. The holy communion followed, but was so interrupted by the rude breaking in of multitudes, zealous to hear the second sermon, to be preached by the Bishop of Bath and Wells, that the latter part of that holy office could hardly be heard, or the sacred elements, be distributed without great trouble. "The Princess being come, he preached on Micah vii. 8, 9, 10. describing the calamity of the reformed Church of Judah, under the Babylonian persecution, for her sins, and God's delivery of her, on her repentance ; that as Judah emerged, so should the new reformed Church, wherever insulted and persecuted. He preached with his accustomed action, zeal,' and energy, so that people flocked from all quarters to hear him." A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL. 175 representation of the church of Judah under the Babylonish captivity. I say of Judah ; for though the prophet prophesied of Samaria as well as of Jerusalem \ yet from the 9th verse of the 3d chap- ter, to the end of the prophecy, he undoubtedly speaks of the latter, as appears from the series of the prophecy itself, which we have no reason to disjoint, and from the several predictions here scattered of deliverance and restoration, which were never literally fulfilled in the ten tribes, who were never restored, but only in Judah, to whom God had promised a restoration. It was then the church of Judah, of whom, and to whom, the prophet spake ; and more than that, it was to the reformed church of Judah. For though Micah prophesied in the days of Jotham and Ahaz, as well as of Hezekiah, yet this latter part of the prophecy was uttered in the days of king Hezekiah, as we learn from the prophet Jeremy, who makes mention of the 12th verse of the 3d chapter, as spoken in that king's time ; and in all probability, so was all that follows, and spoken after the captivity of the ten tribes, which fell out in the sixth year of his reign: and it is evident to all, who read the sacred story, that the king Hezekiah was a most illustrious reformer of God's church, as was Jotham before, and Josias after him. As the prophet directed his discourse to the church, to the reformed church in general, so he applied him- self to all degrees of men in particular. He preached not only to the people and to the priests, but to the court ; " to the heads of the house of Jacob, and to the princes of the house of Israel 2," nay, to king 1 Micah i. 1. :' Micah iii. 9. 176 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, Hezekiah himself ; in whoso presence, as the pro- phet Jeremy informs us \ he delivered that direful pro- phecy, "therefore shall Zion for your sake be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house, as the high places of the forest2," warning the king and the court, of the danger of national sins ; of the national judgments they would certainly bring down, unless prevented by a national repentance. It was a bold undertaking, to denounce God's judgments to the king, and to the court ; and to tell them, that the king's palace and that the whole city of Jerusalem should be ploughed, should be utterly destroyed : such mortifying subjects as these, courts, above all others, are not willing to hear of. But true prophets, in the delivery of their messages, fear none but God, and dare say any thing that God commands them. And there are times when pro- phets cannot, must not, keep silence ; when the watchmen ought to blow the trumpet, to give the warning of repentance to the whole land, or if the land will not take the warning, to free their own souls. Amos, who was originally " neither prophet, nor prophet's son, but a poor herdsman of Tckoa ;" yet when God sent him he had courage from above, to prophesy against Israel, against king Jeroboam, and against the worship of the calves, "that the high places of Isaac should be desolate, and the sanctu- aries of Israel laid waste, and that God would rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword." And to prophesy these terrible things, even at Bethel, which was the king's chapel, and the king's court : 1 Jcr. xxvi. 18. 3 Micah iii. 12. UPON PASSION SUNDAY. ]77 and to prophesy in spite of Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, who falsely accused Amos to Jeroboam, for conspiring against him ; adding " that the land was not able to bear all his words :" as if a true zeal for God, had been rebellion against the king. The prophet Jeremy once thought to leave off prophesying, when he saw the word of the Lord made a reproach, and a derision daily ; but he was not able to continue silent, as he himself confesses. " I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name : but his word was in my heart, as a burning fire shut up in my bones : I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay. The prophet Micah was very powerfully moved, and assisted, and cries out, " truly I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin ! ;" and that assistance of God's spirit made him wonderfully successful ; insomuch that king Hezekiah was so wrought on by Micah's words, " that he feared the Lord, and besought the Lord, and the Lord repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them." Happy was it for the king, that he so devoutly attended to the prophet ; happy was it for the pro- phet, that he had the opportunity of preaching to the king himself. Had he preached these severe, though necessary truths, in another congregation, where a sort of men, such as the Psalmist complains of, came " on purpose to wrest his words, and with thoughts against him for evil," what tragical rela- tions had been made of his sermon ? But the pro- phet was safe under the king's gracious protection, 1 Micah iii. 8. N 178 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, and in having the king himself for his auditor ; " who being like an angel of God," liked the preacher the better, for the conscientious discharge of his prophetic duty. But though the prophet preached to the church, to the reformed church of Judah, and to all degrees of men in it ; to the people, to the priests, to the court, and to the king himself ; yet the words I have chosen to discourse on, are to be appropriated to the penitent part only of this reformed church ; because that reliance on God's mercy, and that sense of their own guilt which is here expressed, is applicable only to them; and to them only, the character here given can fully agree. You all know, that the whole church of Judah was by Hezekiah reformed from idolatry, and had the true worship of God restored, and all sorts of people seemed with great readiness to contribute to that reformation ; not only the priests, but the peo- ple, and the princes, all shewed a vigorous zeal in all the cities of Judah, breaking down the images, and cutting down the groves, and throwing down the high places and altars, and offering very liberally to the service of the temple. But even in this good king's davs, though they were reformed in their faith, and in the public worship, the generality of them were still unreformed in their lives. And yet as wicked as they were, they thought themselves very secure from God's anger. A strange stupidity had possessed them to that degree, that " they leaned upon the Lord and said, is not the Lord among us ? no evil can come upon us." Of all this the prophet frequently in this prophecy, and in this very chapter, sadly complains, lamenting the universal UPON PASSION SUNDAY. [79 corruption of manners, which he saw in the people, in the princes, in the priests, in all orders of men, and threatening very sore judgments to their impenitence. Yet still, by the great goodness of God, there was in this, and in the following reigns, which Mere all wicked and irreligious, except that of Josias, among a great number of apostates to idolatry, a remnant left. There were some gleanings of good men, who took warning from the prophet, and from the cap- tivity of the ten tribes, who wisely learned repen- tance from the woful experience of their captive neighbours, and kept alive that reformation, which had been so happily begun. The prophet saw, that on such as these his sermons had their desired effect ; and professes, that " his words did good to him that walked uprightly ' ;" and it is of such as these, it is of this penitent remnant of the reformed church of Judah, the prophet here speaks, " rejoice not against me," &c. It is easy to observe, that the prophet in these words, draws three several pictures of reformed Jndah : and he draws her in three distinct postures, like a captive, like a penitent, and like a conqueror. He draws her calamity, in the first ; her behaviour under it, in the second ; and her deliverance from it, in the third. 1 . He draws her first like a captive, like a captive woman sitting in the dust, in a disconsolate, forlorn condition bewailing her captivity. And the parti- culars out of which this mournful idea is composed is couched in these expressions, " her enemy, her enemy rejoicing, her fall, her sitting in darkness, and the indignation of the Lord." If you please then to listen to the lamentations of ' Micah ii. 7. N 2 180 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, captive Judah, you will hear her begin them with " O mine enemy :" and great reason she had so to do. For her enemy, or rather enemies, the singular being here put for the plural, were very numerous, and in all respects very formidable ; more nations than one were immediately combined in her ruin, and parti- cularly the Babylonians, and the Edomites, who are chiefly remarked in holy scripture. The Babylonians were a mighty nation, whose quiver was as an open sepulchre ; and they were all mighty men, who would eat up all the harvest, the flocks and the herds, the vines and the fig-trees, and impoverish all the fenced cities wherein Judah trusted, with the sword. They were cruel, and would show no mercy ; a bitter and hasty nation, terrible and dreadful, and very heavily laid their yoke on God's people. I need say no more of them than this, that St. John when he was to draw a prophetic descrip- tion of the great Antichrist under the Gospel, was directed by the Spirit of God, to make Babylon the type, and to paint spiritual Babylon in the colours of the temporal ; as if no nation under heaven were infamous and wicked enough, to furnish him with idolatry, and pride, and uncleanness, and eovetous- ness, and cruelty, and impiety, in full perfection, fit to resemble the man of sin, but only the Babylonian. The Edomites were the children of Esau, and originally of the same blood, and of the same reli- gion with Judah, though they revolted from the church of God. And these seemed to have derived from Esau their father, his perverseness, which he remarkably shewed to his aged mother : insomuch that Josophus gives them this character, " that tiny wore ;i turbulent and unruly nation, always prone to UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 181 commotions, and rejoicing in changes '." But their animosity against Judah seemed to be hereditary ; the loss of the birth-right, and of the blessing in their father, entailed revenge on all his posterity. And they were all along the natural enemies of the children of Jacob. And when they saw Judah assaulted by the Babylonians, they sided with Judah's enemies, and thirsted to have a share in the destruc- tion of God's church. " They had a perpetual hatred, and shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword, in the time of their calamity. Edom pursued his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever." The prophet Obadiah spends his whole prophecy on " Edom, for his violence to his brother, for standing in the cross-way to cut off those that did escape, and for delivering those that did remain in the day of distress." So that the Edomite was an enemy as merciless, and as im- placable, as the very Babylonian. Such were the enemies of afflicted Judah ; and God in his just indignation against Judah's sins, gave both these enemies their desired success ; success that was able to satiate the most impetuous and revengeful cruelty. For they did not only make a complete conquest over Judah ; but when she was conquered, and prostrate at their feet, and past all possibility of the least resistance, they insolently insulted over the conquered ; they rejoiced against her. This cut captive Judah to the heart, and gored her soul with a multitude of new sorrows. It was a grievous calamity to be conquered; but all her miseries 1 De Bell. Jud. 1. 4. c. 0. 182 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, were acted over again, and again, and again, when they insulted, when the " enemy rejoiced against her." The Babylonians, they rejoiced against captive Judah ; and as they pass by, " they clap their hands, they hiss, and wag the head at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, Is this the city that men call the perfection of beauty, the joy of the whole earth ?" But that which cut deepest was their blasphemous taunt, ver. 10. " Where is the Lord thy God ? the gods of Hamath, and Arphad, and the gods of Sep- harvaim," were not able to deliver Samaria out of the hand of the king of Assyria ; and your great Jehovah, we now find, is as feeble as any of them, and as unable to resist the great king of Babylon ; or the God of Israel has abandoned his own hated Israel ; or he is fled to Babylon, as a tributary god, to do homage to the imperial deity of our great god Bel- You yourselves daily profane the name of your own God ; you yourselves renounce him, and fly to our gods for refuge ; your own God being no longer able to protect you ; your own God, who is as much king Nebuchadnezzar's captive, as you are his vain adorers: tell us, miserable wretches, tell us now, which is the Almighty, Jehovah or Bel? The Edomites they also "rejoiced against captive Judah," and impiously reproached her; " Where is the Lord thy God?" Your Jehovah is become a fugi- tive; lie wanders about the world without temple, or house to dwell in. How is your prophecy now fulfilled, "That the elder should serve the younger?" Say, which now inherits the blessing; Esau the conqueror, or Judah the captive? Thus did Judah's enemies insultingly open their mouths against her: "Thev hissed and gnashed the teeth, and said, we UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 183 have swallowed her up : certainly this is the day we look for ; we have found, we have seen it." Go on, victorious Babylonians ; root out the memory of Judah from the earth : Judah, forsaken by their God, and detestable to the whole world. " Thus did the children of Edom, in the day of Jerusalem, cry, down with it, down with it, even to the ground." Thus, with the joy of all their heart, and with de- spiteful minds, did Idumea rejoice at the inheritance of the house of Israel, because she was made de- solate. Such insults as these from the Babylonians and the Edomites, were the very gall of bitterness to captive Judah ; and so much the more afflicting, because her fall, her destruction, was so dreadful and consummate. The whole country, the land flowing with milk and honey, was laid waste : the city, all the palaces, the king's house, and the temple, were burnt to ashes. All her people, her nobles, and her priests, were either starved by famine, or struck dead by raging pestilence, or barbarously put to the sword, or, which is less eligible to generous minds, enslaved. Her king Zedekiah saw his sons, the young princes, the hope of the kingdom, murdered before his eyes ; the last sight they were for ever to see : for his weeping- eyes, as they dropped tears for his murdered children, were by the Babylonians put out ; and the captive, childless, blind, mournful king, was bound in fetters, and carried to Babylon. And yet this calamity, as great, as general as it was, did in this receive a very doleful aggravation, that it was not only great but lasting. Judah did not only fall, was not only in darkness, which in holy scripture signifies a very heavy affliction ; but she was to sit, to continue in darkness : for sitting 184 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, implies continuance. Her captivity, reckoning it from the reign of Jehoiakim, was to endure seventy years together ; so that very few, or none, who saw the beginning of their misery, could cherish any hope of living to see the end of it : the captivity itself being commensurate to the age of man, which is threescore years and ten; an age to which very few attain. And it was a killing consideration, to lie buried in such a sorrow, from whence there was no hope of a resurrection. But Judah's enemy, her enemy rejoicing, her fall, her sitting in darkness, though they were very bitter and deadly ingredients of her calamity, yet that which made her in all respects completely miserable, was, the indignation of the Lord. All the rest are easy to be endured, when God is on our side ; but the sins of Judah had most justly provoked God's anger and made him their enemy. And the anger, much more the indignation of God, has such a con- fluence of terrors in it, of terrors in body and in soul, of terrors particular and national, of terrors temporal and eternal, that had Judah never had enemy, had Judah never fallen, had Judah never sat in darkness, yet the indignation of the Lord was sufficient of itself to have soured all her prosperity, and would have rendered her condition infinitely more deplo- rable than the Babylonians and the Edomites, and all the damned spirits they invoked, could possibly have done. Great reason then had captive Judah to have an indelible impression of her miseries, and most sadly to bewail her calamity ; which being uni- versal to the whole land, we may easily imagine the sorrow to have been universal also. The obstinate as well as the penitent had a sense of their bondage : fehey all felt the punishment; but the penitent only UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 185 felt the sin. The penitent only had the skill to turn their very misery into a blessing, by their religious demeanour under it. Which is the next thing to be considered ; the behaviour of the reformed Judah under her calamity : and this is the Second posture in which she is drawn by the pro- phet ; like a captive before, but now like a penitent. And her behaviour is considerable in respect of her enemy ; in respect of God ; and, in respect of herself, In respect of her enemy, her behaviour is expressed in these words ; " Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy." Judah gives her enemies no ill language : she knew it was her burthen to bear reproach, as well as captivity. The hardest word she here uses towards either the Babylonian, or the Edomite, is enemy. And such they professedly were, and she sighed under the violence of that enmity, with which they both had overwhelmed her : and all the humble captive has to say to her enemy, is either a modest rebuke, or a fearless request, or a charitable item, not to grow too insolent by success ; " rejoice not against me, O mine enemy." "Rejoice not against me," O ye Babylonians; remember " that the Most High ruleth in the king- dom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will." He only is the God of battle, the sole arbiter of peace and war, and can in one minute turn the whole torrent of calamity on you : and so he cer- tainly will ; for the prophets that foretold my capti- vity, have also promised and foretold my deliverance: and the very same prophets have threatened miseries much more dreadful to befal you ; miseries to which no relief is promised, to which nothing is foretold. 18() A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, but outrageous despair. " The burthen which God will lay on Babylon, shall sink her" much lower than captive Judah is now ; " when the measure of her covetousness is full, her end will then come." And it is filling apace, if not brim-full already. Judah's calamity has a determinate period ; it shall last but seventy years at the longest ; but Babylon's shall be eternal : therefore " rejoice not against me, O ye Ba- bylonians." Rejoice not, O ye Edomites ; for in insulting over me, ye insult over your own miseries as well as mine. Our God has commanded the Jew not to abhor an Edomite ; " for he is his brother." Why should not this command be mutually observed on both sides? Why should the Edomite abhor his brother Jew ? If both sides had been to blame, why should not their common danger have reconciled them? Ah, had Judah and Edom revived that brotherly affection, which, before the loss of the birth-right, harboured in the breasts of their fathers, Jacob and Esau ; had they both joined for the common safety against the Babylonian, the common enemy humanly speaking; both might have preserved their liberty : but Edom will be an easy prey to the Babylonian, now her neighbour Judah is led captive. Rejoice not then against captive Judah ; since every wound yon give Judah, makes Edom bleed. Rejoice not ; for there can be no greater sign of judicial infatuation, "that God has destroyed the wise men out of Edom," than Edorn's rejoicing at Judah's captivity, which must needs precipitate her own. And to assure Edom that her burthen shall be much heavier than that of Judah, the prophets have foretold more terrible judgments t«» befal Edom, than Judah ever endured. UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 187 " The sword shall come upon Edom, the people of God's curse ; the calamity of Esau shall be brought upon him. Ye shall be desolate ; your pride shall be brought down : ye shall be as stubble. God will speak against all Idumea, in the fire of his jealousy : he will cut off man and beast ; your kings, and your princes; and ye shall drink the cup of God's fury; and therefore, rejoice not against me, O ye Edomites." No reason then, you see, had either the Babylo- nian or the Edomite, to rejoice over penitent, re- formed Judah, when in the lowest ebb of her misery : but great reason had Judah, amidst all her sorrows, to rejoice herself. And that from her behaviour. In respect of God : in whom she here expresses a very firm confidence, of deliverance and of support. Of deliverance ; " When I fall, I shall rise." Of Support ; " When I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me." Of deliverance : " When I fall, I shall rise." When I fall : when Jerusalem is laid waste, and the temple turned to ashes, and the whole nation carried captive into a strange land. From such an utter desolation as this, for Judah to date, or to infer her restoration, " When I fall, I shall rise ;" seems to be a confidence very preposterous. And yet it is further observable, that penitent Judah does not only conclude her own rise from her fall ; but concludes the same of all the nation in general, though she Avell knew, that it was a remnant only that repented. And as preposterous as such conclusions seem, they were most rational ones for penitent Judah to make, and very strongly built, not only on God's promise of restoring her after seventy years, but on the usual known methods of Divine Providence. ] 88 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, For God is wont to introduce his most eminent mercies, by some sharp previous affliction, that his people may be the better prepared to bear prosperity, which is too apt to alienate our affections from God, and to fix them on the world ; unless calamity does first mortify and humble them, and make us more solicitous to perform the duty, than to enjoy the blessing. I need go no further for an instance, than the first lesson read this day, Exod. iii. 9, 10, where we are taught, " That when the children of Israel's cry was come up to God," and their oppression was grown insupportable, then God sent Moses miracu- lously to deliver them. So that whensoever the ser- vants of God see their miseries seemingly past all remedv, then is God's season for their rescue. The more to magnify his power, and to endear his paternal care ; to make the blessing the more valuable ; to manifest that it is his own work, and that all the glory of it is due only to himself: to enkindle the greater love; to excite the more exalted praise; and so to dispose the receiver, that he may not abuse God's favour when it comes, and turn the blessing into a curse. Well then might Judah prognosticate her exaltation from lier humiliation, and say, "When I fall, I shall rise." Sometimes God works deliverances for his people, not because they are universally humbled and re- claimed, but purely for his own name's sake. This God himself declares again and again: "I had pity for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen. I do not this for your sakes, 0 house of Israel ; but for my holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen," &c. Well then might penitent Judah, from that UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 189 essential zeal God has to assert his own sovereign glory, infer the deliverance of the people called by his name ; though but a remnant only did repent. " When I fall, I shall rise." Again. It is customary with God, to spare a multitude, for the sake of a few : as he would have done Sodom, at Abraham's prayers, had there been ten righteous persons in it. And the like we read of Jerusalem ; where, if before the captivity, there " had been any that had executed judgment, and had sought the truth, God would have pardoned it." Besides, God is powerfully prevailed on by the prayers of those few righteous persons, that cry unto him for the rest : and Judah knew, that under the captivity there was a remnant of such righteous persons, of souls truly humbled, crying day and night to God, bewailing the sins of Sion, and praying for the peace of Jerusalem. These holy persons con- tinually " stood in the gap before God, that he should not utterly destroy the nation." These were God's remembrancers, who kept not silence, and would give him no rest, till he established, till he made Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Judah well knew the mighty force that such " effectual fervent prayers" had on the tender mercy of God ; and that made her confident for herself, and for the whole captivity, and put her into a transport of devout admiration : "who is a God like unto thee ; that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage ? He retaineth not his anger for ever ; He will turn again ; He will have compassion on us," &c. ver. 18, 19, 20. Thus, from the repentance, and devout supplications of the remnant only of God's heritage, Judah firmly concludes the delive- 190 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, ranee of the whole heritage ; "when I fall, T shall rise." Nor was Judah only confident of deliverance, but of support also in the mean time: "when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light unto me." And this confidence was grounded on the usual conduct of propitious Providence, as well as the other. For in Micah, and the rest of the prophets, when God denounces judgments against his people, his threats are intermingled with promises of blessings, either temporal or evangelical. Well then might penitent Judah say, " when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light unto me." When I am deprived of all the comforts of life, abandoned by all worldly succours ; when God himself seems to desert me, and suffers me to lie 70 years together in a vexatious captivity : when God seems to cover himself with a cloud, that my prayer shall not pass through ; then will the Lord be a light unto me ; at midnight I shall see a clear sunshine. "In the multitude of the sorrows I shall then have in my heart, God's comforts shall refresh my soul.'' My insulting enemies hinder my other friends, but cannot hinder God, who is my best friend, from visiting me. When poor, captive, exile, penitent Jndah, lies chained in a Babylonish dungeon, dark as hell ; yet the rays of the divine benignity can pierce through the thickest darkness, to enlighten and revive me. My chains will be then more eligible than liberty ; Babvlon will make me forget Sion. My very dungeon will be heaven upon earth, when I enjoy God there. No sad thought shall arise, but I can take sanctuary in one of his gracious promises, which shall instantly dispel it. Tf this be captivity by becoming a Babylonish slave. 12 UPON PASSION SUNDAY. 191 to become the Lord's freeman, O may my captivity last not seventy, but seventy times seven years. No time, O Lord, is long; eternity itself is not tedious, that is spent in thy fruition. O Almighty Goodness, thou only canst make captivity desirable ; welcome then darkness, there will I sit, desiring to see no light, but what comes from thy countenance : for thou art light, and liberty, and joy, and all in all to those, who for thy sake are content for a while to sit in darkness. • Such was the behaviour, such was the glorious confidence of the penitent reformed church of Jndah, under the Babylonish yoke, which she had always in her God ; a confidence which was a much greater blessing to her, than her safety, her freedom, her prosperity could have been. Will you next see her behaviour In respect of herself? which is penitential, and was the true solid ground of all her confidence in God : and it includes three particulars. Her submission, in regard to the greatness of her affliction ; " I will bear the indignation of the Lord." Her patience, in regard to its continuance ; " I will bear the indignation of the Lord, until he plead my cause," &c. Her confession, in regard to her sins ; which drew down that great and continued affliction on her ; " because I have sinned against Him." Her submission, in regard to the greatness of her affliction, is placed first ; " I Mill bear the indigna- tion of the Lord." The indignation of the Lord is a frightful expression, and in holy scripture does not only signify God's anger, but the fierceness of that 192 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, anger. And when God is once provoked to that degree, that " he takes to himself the weapons of his indignation, when he marches through the land in indignation, and threshes the people in his anger ; when the mountains quake, and the hills melt, and the earth trembles ; who can stand before his indig- nation ; and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger ?" Who, of all the sons of Adam, can stand in God's sight when he is angry, much less when he is moved to "indignation, to fiery indignation, which devours his adversaries ;" David was so terrified at the thoughts of it, that " he ate ashes like bread, and mingled his drink with weeping, because of God's indignation." How then could Judah resolve to bear that, which is impossible to be borne ; and to cry out, " I will bear the indignation of the Lord ?" True it is, the indignation of the Lord, is a weight too heavy for any to sustain but the Son of God, who had the iniquities of the Avhole world laid on his shoulders ; too heavy for a sinner to bear, but not for a penitent, such as Judah was, who could therefore bear, it, " because the Lamb of God, who was fore-ordained before the beginning of the world," had rendered it supportable. "The wicked drink the wine of God's wrath," poured out without mixture, without any mixture of mercy, into " the cup of his indignation ;" and they perish by the draught ; but the penitent, when they drink " the wine of God's wrath," they always drink it with a mixture of mercy ; and that which is deadly poison to the one, is a restorative to the other. Tt was mingled for Judah with mercy. God did not, on the humble captive. Suffer liis whole displeasure to arise ; but corrected her in measure, laid <>n her no more than he sup- UN PASSION SUNDAY. 193 ported her to bear, and by degrees made the hearts of the very Babylonians to relent towards her ; so that "in the peace of the land, Jndah also enjoyed peace." All the time the impenitent felt the terrors of the Lord, God called the mourners into his pecu- liar care, into a refuge from the storm ; " Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers and shut thy door about thee, and hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast." The indignation lasted but for a moment, but for a little moment ; and God was so infinitely tender of his church, that he gave warning of the indignation before it came, and warning of the critical, danger- ous little moment, when it was to come ; and would not, for that one little moment, leave it exposed ; but hid it in safe shelter, that the indignation could not reach it. Since then the paternal indulgence of God levelled his judgments of Judah's strength, and sustained her all the while with cordial consolations ; well might she resolve, as bitter as the cup was, to drink it off, as great as the calamity seemed, to endure it : "I will bear the indignation of the Lord ;" let him lay more on me, so that as he increases my load, he increases my supports ; I will bear as much load as he is pleased to lay on me ; "I will bear the indignation of the Lord." Thus did penitent reformed Judah exercise an humble submission to the greatness of her affliction. And so she did an unwearied patience to its conti- nuance also : " I will bear the indignation of the Lord, until He plead my cause." Until intimates her affliction to be lasting, as well as great ; and so it was. For the prophet Jeremy had told Judah o 194 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, that her captivity was to last seventy years. It seemed a long time to live in exile and slavery, and to suffer the affronts and indignities of insulting enemies. But God, to chastise his own people, to cure them of idolatry, to scatter some beams of saving knowledge, some notices of the true God among the Gentiles, and some preparatory intima- tions of the future Messias ; for these, and the like most holy, wise, and gracious purposes, had so decreed it. And there was nothing left for Judah, but an entire acquiescence in, and resignation to the divine will ; and patiently, without murmuring, to wait on God, and to attend his time, which is always best for us, always better than to choose for ourselves. And this was her daily practice, as she professes \ " I will look unto the Lord : I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me." And while she was thus waiting on God, for a return of her prayers, all holypersonswho died in captivity, died with the satisfaction of Moses; they had a joyful prospect of the promised land, though they did not live to enter it ; but instead of the earthly Jerusalem, they both saw, and entered the heavenly. And this con- sideration was enough to make them esteem their captivity short, when it procured their eternal free- dom. Well then might penitent Judah be content with her fetters ; and say, " I will bear the indigna- tion of the Lord ; I will bear it, until he plead my cause." But that which created this confidence in God, which made Judah so submissive to the greatness, and so patient under the continuance of her affliction. ' Micah vii. 7. ON PASSION SUNDAY. 195 was the deep sense of her guilt, which occasioned her penitential confession ; because I have sinned against him. For to a penitent, who has once felt the evil of sin ; to a penitent, who bemoans in the bitterness of his soul, who detests with the utmost abhorrence, the great and the continued outrages he has offered to infinite goodness ; no temporal punishment can appear too great, or too lasting. He is content to be miserable here, so he may be eternally happy* hereafter ; and thinks it most just he should bear the indignation of the Lord, because he has sinned against him. It is long ere God, who is slow to anger, is pro- voked ; longer, ere that anger rises to indignation. And nothing can provoke the God of mercy to his strange work, to anger, but sin : nothing can kindle his indignation, but obstinate sin ; when we " do evil with both hands, earnestly V And when his anger is provoked, and his indignation is kindled, and he begins to punish ; the original design of punishment, in the most merciful God, who delights not in the death of a sinner, is to awaken him to repentance. When his judgments are in the land, his intent is, that the " inhabitants should learn righteousness." When he is about to strike with his rod, Micah tells us, that " the Lord's voice cries, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name. Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it." And if there be any men of wisdom in the city, men that are wise to salvation, and will hear the rod, when God calls them to hear it ; and will rend their hearts, and turn unto the Lord with fasting, and weeping, and mourning, for their own. 1 Micah vii. 3. o 2 19() A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, and for the nation's sins; God is gracious and merci- ful, slow to anger, and of great kindness ; he re- penteth him of the evil ; he returns, and repents, and leaves a blessing behind him. It is then God melts into tenderest compassion ; how shall I give thee up, O Ephraim ! how shall I deliver thee, Israel ! my heart is turned within me; my repentings are kindled together. Judah had no sooner submitted to God, and confessed the justness of her punish- ment, from the greatness and continuance of her sins, but God himself condescends to the penitent ; his anger is in a moment becalmed, his indignation cooled, and all that follows is the happy consequence of Judah's repentance, and patient submission : which is The third thing considerable ; and the last posture in which the prophet draws the church of Judah. For having drawn her as a captive, and as a penitent, he now draws her as a conqueror. In the two former, he painted her calamity, and her behaviour under it ; and now he paints her deliverance from it ; and that in no less than four very signal mercies which God vouchsafed her. For He pleads her cause ; He executes judgment for her ; He brings her forth to the light ; and she beholds his righte- ousness. The first mercy God shows to reformed Judah, when by her repentance his indignation was appeased, is, to plead her cause. To plead for the widow, who groans under the oppressor; the widow who is poor and helpless, and unable to speak for herself, or to hire any one to plead for her, is a great act of charity among men, and recommended as such in Holy Scrip- ture. And from hence we may make some estimate. ON PASSION SUNDAY. 197 how great a mercy it is in God, " to plead for his people." Judah had been long loaded with the re- proaches and oppressions of the Babylonians and the Edomites ; who, measuring the goodness of their cause from their present temporal success, (as the most flagitious are wont to do) boasted of the favours their gods had bestowed on them, and of their own virtue. " They sacrificed to their net, and burnt in- cense to their drag ; because by them their portion was fat, and their meat plenteous." And in the mean time, they reviled the poor captive Jews, for the most wicked wretches in the world, because they were the most calamitous. Judah was forced to hear all their insolent calumnies, and did not dare to make a reply. But God, who is wont to " plead for his people" when they are most destitute, and their condition is most desperate, appears himself as Judah's advocate, and " pleads her cause ; pleads it from heaven," in turning all his providential chastisements to her good ; in making it appear, that the God of Israel had not abandoned his own Israel ; that he was still the Lord their God ; that their enemies' success was not from their virtue, but from his wise disposal ; that Judah's sins only made Babylon and Edom vic- torious : " that he ordained the Chaldeans for judg- ment, and established them for correction ; and suf- fered for a while the wicked to devour the man that was more righteous than himself;" and then poured a multiplication of woes on the devourer. That correction was only intended for Judah; but utter destruction for Babylon and Edom. For God is not only Judah's advocate, to plead her cause ; but in the Second place, her avenger; "He executes judg- 198 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, ment for her." For as our Lord puts the question, and answers it himself; " Shall not God avenge his own elect, and cry day and night to him, though he bear long with them ? I tell you, that he will avenge them speedily." And God did avenge his people here, as he had promised to do : " I will execute vengeance in anger, and fury on the Heathen, such as they have not heard." This was a tremendous threat ; and it was made good, both on the Baby- lonian, and on the Edomite. The Babylonian assaulted Judah for his glory ; out of his ambition of that universal monarchy which Providence, to make him a scourge to the world, de- signed him : and therefore God commanded Judah to serve the king of Babylon ; and assured them, that if they served him, they should live. And they were to " pray for the peace of that city ; that in the peace thereof, they might have peace." So that all Judah was enjoined by God, patient submission to that king. They were to subject their persons to the Babylonish government, but not to prostitute their consciences to the Babylonish idolatry, whensoever the commands of God, and of the king of Babylon, stood in competition. To have then obeyed the king, had not been allegiance, but apostasy. In such cases, the true Israelites would always be martyrs, but never rebels : they resolutely chose to obey God, and patiently to suffer the lion's den, the fiery furnace, and the extremity of the king's displeasure. How difficult soever this command of patient sub- notion at first seemed, their security manifestly lay in its punctual observation. For by their patient submission, they renounced all carnal expedients; they renounced the arm of flesh, and put themselves ON PASSION SUNDAY. 199 wholly under God's immediate protection : and the closer they sheltered themselves under the Almighty's wings, the safer still they were. Having put off their armour, and thrown away their swords, in entire obedience to God, the Lord of Hosts was their guard and their champion. Their own human counsels and attempts might have proved as unsuc- cessful, as they were unlawful; and might have doubled their miseries : but' in God's hands they were safe; putting their full trust in him, they were "sure never to be confounded." God readily espoused their cause; and within about fifty years after the burning of Jerusalem, retaliated upon Babylon all the evils she had brought on his people, and that in a much more plentiful measure, than ever he suffered her to mete to Judah. The judgment God executed for his people, was in all circumstances most remarkable. For vengeance surprised Babylon, when the great Belsljazzar, and his court and his concubines, were gorging themselves at a luxurious, idolatrous feast ; " drinking them- selves drunk in the vessels of the temple," and wal- lowing in their own loathsome vomits. It was then the king saw the fatal hand- writing on the wall ; k' At which his countenance fell, and his thoughts troubled him, and the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another." Then it was, in the depth of their security, in the dead of the night, that Belshazzar was slain, the city was taken, and Darius seized the kingdom. The Baby- lonians were destroyed in the midst of a debauch ; in the height of their impiety they all went drunk to hell, and their souls and bodies perished both together. 200 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, Thus terrible was God's vengeance on the Baby- lonians. We must next see, how he executed judg- ment for his people on the Edomites. The Edomites, whose chief motive in vexing Judah was pure re- venge : God himself expressly tells us so. " Thus saith the Lord, because that Edom hath dealt against the house of Judah, by taking vengeance, and hath greatly offended, and revenged himself upon them ; therefore I will make him desolate." There was nothing in the world, which did more greatly offend God, and which was more likely to make Edom un- prosperous, and obnoxious to the fury of God's anger, than their revenge. For " vengeance is mine ; I will repay, saith the Lord." And when once au- dacious sinners endeavour to wrest the sword out of God's hand, it is then time " for the God of ven- geance to shew himself :" and so he did. For within about five years after the destruction of Jerusalem, " God laid his vengeance on Edom ; He executed judgment on Edom for Judah," by the hands of the very Babylonians, whom they had a little before assisted to destroy her. And the judgment God executed on revengeful Edom was so very dreadful and lasting, that they are emphatically called the people, "against whom the Lord has indignation for ever." So little reason had Edom to rejoice at the Babylonian conquest ; and so fatally did Edom's re- venge against Judah prove, as much her punishment as her sin. When God, in respect of Judah's enemies, had, as her advocate, pleaded her cause, and, as her avenger, executed judgment, and fought for her, Judah had nothing to do, but to reap the fruits of that victory God himself had gained in her behalf. She now re- ON PASSION SUNDAY. 201 covers her entire freedom ; and "God brings her forth to the light." Hitherto she endured a long night of affliction, with some lightsome gleams only to refresh her : now God takes her up out of the dungeon, and brings her to open day : and he brings her out, with- out any of her own contrivance, or endeavour; with- out any thing on her part, but repentance and patient submission ; and on a sudden to convince all the world it was his own work, it was the Lord, it was only the Lord, who at the expiration of seventy years, stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, to make that transporting, that surprising decree, for building the temple, and for the restoration of captive Judah. Then was she brought forth to the light, in full splendor; the dawnings of which, all along, were to the faithful Israelites, the solace of their captivity, and in all their cheerful intervals, the subject of their songs ; when they took down their harps from the willows, and by the waters of Babylon, strove, with the descriptions of future Sion, to forget the past. But such was the goodness of God, and the care he had for his people, that they should love as well as fear him, that he made Judah see not only the justice, but the benignity of all his proceedings. " He made her behold his righteousness ;" which in Holy Scripture signifies benignity, or mercifulness, as well as justice. And this is the happy effect of affliction in all devout people. At first God seems to act severely towards them ; but the cloud by little and little vanishes, and the light breaks in upon us ; and upon our own experience we cannot choose but say, "I know, Lord, that thy judgments are right ; and that thou of very faithfulness hast caused me to be troubled." Nor have we reason only to 202 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, justify God, but to love him also, for his medicinal and fatherly chastisements ; and to say, " It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn thy statutes." This was Judah's condition : she saw herself happy, and her God most just, benign and merciful ; and her happiness being founded on afflic- tion, she relished it the better ; she did the better taste and see that the Lord was gracious ; she expe- rimentally felt, and confessed, and loved, and adored the righteousness of God. The righteousness of God, which made penitent, patient Judah, not only victorious but triumphant. She rode in triumph over the once insulting Ba- bylon, in triumph, the most illustrious that ever was ; in triumph, such as the good angels kept above, at the defeat of Lucifer, and his apostate spirits, when they saw the accursed rebels falling headlong from heaven, down to the place of endless torments, and heard them shrieking and howling all the way they fell ; and the loyal host in the mean time full of the mighty joys of victory, exulted in the just dam- nation of the rebellious legions, and sang triumphant hymns to the Lord of Hosts, by whose arm they had been conquerors. For thus the faithful triumphed over Babylon : " How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning?" So certain was the victory, so glorious was the triumph, with which penitent, patient Judah was honoured by God, who washer most tender advocate, to plead her cause; her most just avenger, to execute judgment lor her; her most mighty deliverer, to bring her forth to the lighl ; and her most indulgent patron, "to make her behold his righteousness." [t was not a greater consolation t<> penitent, patient 12 OX PASSION SUNDAY. 203 Judah,so clearly to "behold the righteousness of God," than it was a confusion to her enemies to see her restoration,- and God's thunderbolts falling- thick on their own heads, which the prophet has described in the following verse : " Then she that is mine enemy shall see it ; and shame shall cover her which said unto me, where is the Lord thy God ? Mine eyes shall behold her ; now shall she be trodden down, as the mire in the street." Hitherto I have only insisted on the case of Judah, and in making the application (since we have not that happiness which Micah had, to have the king him- self for our auditor, in whose royal candour a faith- ful preacher might be secure), to prevent all mis- representations, by which the most innocent discourse, and the very Scripture itself may, by insidious men, be perverted, and charged with odious insinuations ; I beseech you to observe, that as to Babylon, it lies in St. John's visions under so many detestable cha- racters ; the prophecies concerning it are so obscure, and the interpretations of them are so various, some of them so uncertain, some of them so forced, that I confess they are abstrusenesses which I do not suffi- ciently understand, and therefore forbear particularly to apply. As to Edom, their father Esau is made, in the New Testament, the idea of a profane person, of an apostate, of one hated by God, and of a reprobate : and God forbid I should bestow such names as these on any one communion of Christians whatsoever. But if we meet with any such in the world, who professing Christianity in words, do so far deny it in their works, as to reach those characters which the Scripture gives of Babylon and of Edom; we are to 204 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, deplore them, and pray to God to turn their hearts, and to warn all people " to come out from them, that they be not partakers of their sins, and that they re- ceive not of their plagues." And whensoever such enemies as these attempt the ruin of God's Church, our Saviour has taught his followers to encounter them. " Love your enemies ; bless them that curse you ; do good to them that hate you ; and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." St. John has taught all Christians how to overcome them ; " by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and by not loving their lives unto death." Judah has taught all the faithful, how to weather out a captivity under them ; by repentance and patient submission. And my design in this dis- course, is, from penitent, patient, reformed Judah, to draw an example for the reformed church of England as far as their conditions may any way agree, to imitate. From the example then before you of penitent Judah, I earnestly exhort you to a serious and un- delayed repentance, which is the duty proper to this penitential season. I exhort you to repent of your great, and numerous, and continued provocations; lest they bring down on the land that indignation of the Lord, under which Judah, because she had sinned, actually groaned; and which England, because she has sinned, may justly expect. I earnestly exhort you, from the example of patient Judah, to patient submission; the duty proper for tliis wry day, which is Passion Sunday. I exhort you to patient submission, to whatever chastisement or curse God is pleased to send you. T exhort yon to those fervent prayers and tears, and to that firm ON PASSION SUNDAY. 205 confidence, of either deliverance or support, with which the patient submission of penitent Judah, and of the primitive saints, was always accompanied. I exhort you to patient submission to God's indigna- tion, though it be great, though it be lasting ; since on this account, it is the more justly proportioned to the greatness, and perpetuity of our sins. I exhort you " to bear the indignation of the Lord ; to bear it, until he pleads your cause ; to bear it, because you have sinned against him." But to learn patient sub- mission perfectly, I exhort you above all to the patience of Jesus ; who " when he was reviled, re- viled not again ; when he suffered, he threatened not ; but committed himself to Him that judgeth righteously." In a word, I earnestly exhort you to a uniform zeal for the reformation ; that as, blessed be God, you are happily reformed in your faith, and in your worship, you would become wholly reformed in your lives. From such a reformation as this, we may con- fidently hope for a blessing : and whatsoever enemies our Church may at any time have, should they be as insulting as the Babylonian, or as revengeful as the Edomite ; nay, should they for awhile be never so successful, yet penitent, patient, reformed Eng- land, may then say with penitent, patient, reformed Judah, " Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy : when I fall, I shall rise, when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. I will bear the indig- nation of the Lord, because I have sinned against him ; until he plead my cause, and execute judg- ment for me. He will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness." 206 A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHALL, &C. Now to God, who pleads the cause of his Church, and executes judgment for her ; who brings her forth to the light, and makes her behold his righteousness: to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, be blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, for ever and ever. Amen. THE PRACTICE OF DIVINE LOVE BEING AN EXPOSITION OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. EXTRACT FROM GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE, FOR MARCH 1814. " Elmsthorpe, near Hinckley, March 8. "As your intelligent Magazine teems with a copious stream of interesting and amusing subjects, &c. herewith I send you a copy of a letter, now in my possession, written by Queen Anne when she was Princess of Denmark, in the reign of King James II., sent to Dr. Francis Turner, then bishop of Ely, to keep her a place in Ely Chapel, for hearing the catechism there expounded by Dr. Thomas Ken, Bishop of Bath and Wells. Your's, &c. " Richard Fowke." " ' I hear the Bishop of Bath and Wells expounds this afternoon at your chapel, and I have a great mind to hear him ; therefore, I desire you would do me the favour, to lett some place be kept for me where I may hear well and be the least taken notice of: for I will bring but one body with me, and desire I may not be known. I should not haven given you the trouble, but that I was afraid if I had sent any body, they might have made some mis- take. Pray lett me know what time it begins.' " DEDICATION. To the Inhabitants within the Diocese of Bath and Wells, Thomas, their unworthy Bishop, wisheth the knowledge and the Love of God. DEARLY BELOVED IN OUR LORD, The Church has provided this short Catechism, or Instruction, to be learned of every person, before he be brought to be confirmed by the bishop, wherein she teaches all things that a Christian ought to know and believe for his soul's health ; and she has injoined all fathers and mothers, masters and dames, to cause their children and servants, and apprentices, to come to the Church at the time appointed, and obediently to hear, and be ordered by the curate, until such time as they have learned all that is here appointed to be learned '. How seasonable and necessary this injunction is, in these days, our woeful experience does sufficiently convince us, when we reflect on the gross ignorance and irreligion of persons in those places where cate- chizing is neglected, which all sober Christians do sadly deplore. 1 See the Rubric after the Catechism. r 210 DEDICATORY EPISTLE. Since then the providence of God, who is wont to glorify his strength in the weakness of the instru- ments he uses, has caught me up from among the meanest herdmen ] into the pastoral throne, and has been pleased to commit }Tou to my care ; the love I ought to pay to the chief Shepherd obliges me to feed all his lambs and his sheep 2, that belong to my flock ; and, according to my poor abilities, to teach them the knowledge and the love of God, and how they may make them both their daily study and practice. One thing only I most heartily beg of you all, whether old or young, that ye would help me to save your own souls ; that ye would learn and seriously consider, again and again, the terms on which your salvation is to be had. As for you who have families, I beseech you to instil into your children and servants their duty, both by your teaching, and your example. In good earnest, it is less cruel and unnatural to deny them bread for their mortal bodies, than saving knowledge for their immortal souls. Ye that are fathers or mothers, I exhort you to tread in the steps of Abraham, the father of the faithful, and the friend 8 of God, and like him, to command 4 your children and households to keep the way of the Lord. Ye that are mothers or mistresses, I exhort you to imitate that unfeigned faith 5 which dwelt in young Timothy's grandmother Lois, and his mother 1 Amos i. 1. 2 John xxi. 15, 16. i James ii. 23. 4 Gen. xviii. 19. 5 2 Tim. i. 5. DEDICATORY EPISTLE. '2 1 I Eunice, who taught him from a child l to know the Holy Scriptures, which were able to make him wise to salvation ; and like them, to bring up your chil- dren and servants " in the nurture and admonition of the Lord2." I passionately exhort and beseech you all of either sex, never to cease your conscientious zeal for their instruction, till ye bring them to confirmation ; to renew their baptismal vow ; to make open profession of their Christianity; to discharge their godfathers and godmothers ; to receive the solemn benediction of the bishop ; to share in the public intercessions of the Church, and to partake of all the graces of God's Holy Spirit, implored on their behalf; that God, who has begun 3 a good work in them, may perfect it till the day of Christ ; and that I myself at that dreadful day, may render 4 an account of you with joy. How much the Catechism of our Church may con- duce to so desirable an end, you will in some measure judge by the following explication, as imperfect as it is, and which, by God's gracious assistance, I have so contrived, that at one and the same time it may both inform your understanding, and raise your affections; and that it might the better suit with every one's leisure and infirmities, it is penned in short forms of devotion, to be used in whole, or in part ; in separate collects or ejaculations, or occasionally, as your spiri- tual necessities shall require. God of his infinite mercy bless the whole, to his own glory, and to your edification, through Jesus the beloved. Amen. Amen. 1 2 Ibid. iii. 1."'. 2 Epb. vi. 4. » Phil. i. 6. 4 Hcb. xiii. 17. p 2 The Author thinks himself obliged to declare, that he does now, and always did, humbly submit this Exposition to the judgment of the Church of England, conformably to whose articles he desires all good Christians to interpret it ; and to prevent all misunderstandings for the future, he has, in his revising it, made some few little alterations \ not at all varying his meaning, but his expressions, to render the whole as unexceptionable as becomes a book, not designed for dispute, but for devotion. The expressions used in the first edition are printed at the hottom of each page. EXPOSITION CHURCH CATECHISM " Question. What is your name ? " Answer. N. or M." Q. Why do you answer by that name, rather than by your surname ? A. Because it is my christian name, and was given me when I was made a Christian, and puts me in mind both of the happiness and duty of a Christian. The Happiness of a Christian. Q. Where do you learn the happiness, and the duty, of a Christian ? A. The very next answer teaches me the happi- ness, and all the rest of the catechism the duty, of a Christian. " Q. Who gave you this name ?" A. My Godfathers and Godmothers in my baptism, wherein I was made a member of Christ, the child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven. Q. Shew me from hence the happiness of a Christian. 214 AN EXPOSITION OF A. The happiness of a good Christian is altogether unutterable ; he is one who has Christ for his head, God for his father, and heaven, with all its joys and glories, which are all eternal, for his inheritance. Q. Shew me on the contrary the condition of a bad Christian. A. The misery of a bad Christian is altogether insupportable ; he has Christ for his enemy, the devil for his father, and hell, with all its miseries, and torments, and despair, which are all eternal, for his doom. The Christian's choice. Q. Which of these conditions do you choose ? A. I adore the goodness of God, who has set be- fore me life and death, blessing and cursing ] ; and in great compassion to my soul, has bid me choose life, and with all my heart I choose life,evenlife eternal. Q. Are there not many in the world that choose death ? A. It is too, too visible there are; such is the extreme madness and folly of obstinate sinners, that they choose the service of the devil before the service of God, and hell before heaven. The damnation of such men is wholly from themselves2; and having chosen death, even death eternal, it is most just with God to give them their choice. His Duty is Love. Q. Blessed be God, who has given you grace to make a right choice ! tell me what you must do to obtain that which you have chosen, life eternal. 1 Deut. \x\. lit. z Ezek. xxxiii. 1!.; Hos. xiii. ?». THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 215 A. All that I am to do is reduced to one word only, and that is, love ; this is the first and the great command, which comprehends all others, the proper evangelical grace ; and eternal truth has assured me, " this do, and thou shalt live '," so that if I truly love God, I shall live beloved by God, to all eternity. The Nature of Love. Q. Tell me wherein the love of God cloth consist. A. The love of God is a grace rather to be felt than defined, so that I can do no more than rudely describe it : it is the general inclination and tendency of the whole man, of all his heart, and soul, and strength, of all his powers and affections, and of the utmost strength of them all, to God, as his chief, and only, and perfect and infinite good. Q. Is this love of God taught in the catechism ? A. The catechism, having in the entrance of it presented to our choice the happiness of a christian, does throughout all the remaining parts of it, instruct us in the duties of a Christian, by which that happi- ness is to be attained ; which are all summed up in the love of God, which is here most methodically taught. The Method of Love. Q. In what method does the catechism teach the love of God ? A. In a method so excellent and natural, that if by God's help, I can but faithfully observe it, I shall not fail of the love of God. Q. Explain this method to me. 1 Luke x. 27, 28. 216 AN EXPOSITION OF A. It teaches me how the love of God is produced, how practised, and how preserved. Q. Shew me more distinctly, in what parts of the catechism each of these particulars is couched. A. If I seriously desire the love of God, I must first expel all contrary loves out of my heart, and then consider the motives and causes that excite it ; the former is taught in the vow of baptism, the latter in the creed. When divine love is once produced, my next care is to put it in practice ; and that is, by bringing forth the fruits or effects of love, which are all contained in the ten commandments. When the love of God is produced in my heart, and is set on work, my last concern is to preserve, and ensure, and quicken it ; it is preserved by prayer, the pattern of which is the Lord's prayer ; it is en- sured to us by the sacraments, which are the pledges of love; and more particularly, it is quickened by the holy Eucharist, which is the feast of love: so that the plain order of the catechism teaches me the rise, the progress, and the perfection of divine love ; which God of his great mercy give me grace to follow. Q. I beseech God to give you the grace you pray for, that you may prosecute this method with your heart, as well as with your words ! A. It is the full purpose of my soul so to do, and I trust in God I shall do it. lit pulsion of contrary loves in our Baptismal Vow. Q. You ;irc to begin with the vow you made at your baptism : toll me, THE CHURCH CATECHISM. '217 " What did your Godfathers and Godmothers then for you ? " A. They did promise and vow three things in my name. " First, that I should renounce the devil and all his works ; the pomps and vanitys of this wicked world, and all the sinful lusts of the flesh. " Secondly, that I should believe all the articles of the Christian faith. " And thirdly, that I should keep God's holy will and commandments : and walk in the same all the days of my life. " Q. Dost thou not think thou art bound to believe and to do as they have promised for thee ? " A. Yes, verily ; and by God's help so I will ; and I heartily thank our heavenly Father, that he hath called me to this state of salvation, through Jesus Christ our Saviour: and I pray unto God to give me his grace, that I may continue in the same unto my life's end." Q. The promises of faith and obedience, which you made in your baptism, will be mentioned in their proper places, when you come to the creed, and to the decalogue ; that which now lies before you is to shew, how your abrenunciation is prepara- tory to the love of God. A. As all particular graces are but the love of God, varied by different instances and relations, so all particular sins are nothing but concupiscence, or the love of one creature or other, in competition with, or opposition to, the love of God : now all the creatures on which we set our love, are reducible to these three, the devil, the world, and the flesh ; and my heart must be emptied of these impure loves, 218 AN EXPOSITION OF before it is capable of entertaining the pure love of God. Q. If you are conscious to yourself, that you have entertained these impure loves, and have violated your baptismal vow, and have in your heart re- nounced God, instead of renouncing his enemies, what must you do to recover that favour of God you have lost, and to be delivered from the wrath to come ? A. I must thoroughly repent of all the breaches of my vow, and I must seriously renew it. Repentance for our Vow broken. Q. Express your repentance for breaking it. A. I express it thus : O Lord God, with shame, and sorrow, and confu- sion of face, I confess and acknowledge thy infinite mercy and goodness to me, my infinite vileness and ingratitude to thee ! Thou, Lord, infinitely good and gracious, wast pleased, out of thy own free mercy, first to love me, to excite me to love again : glory be to thee. Thou, Lord, didst vouchsafe, of a miserable sinner, to make me a member of my Saviour, thy own child and an heir of heaven ; glory be to thee. I, infinitely wicked and unworthy, have despised, and rejected, and forfeited all the inestimable bless- ings, to which I was entitled by my baptism : Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me, wretch that I am ! I have cut myself off by my sins, from being a true member of Christ's mystical body, and from all the gracious influences I might have derived from my union to him; Lord, have mercy upon me. 12 THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 219 Woe is me, wretch that I am ! I have by my numerous provocations, lost that holy spirit of adop- tion, whereby I might become thy child, O God, and call thee Father, and am become a child of wrath ! Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me, wretch that I am ! I have, by my own wilful impiety, disclaimed my being an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven, and am become an heir to the kingdom of darkness ; Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me ! I have easily yielded to the tempta- tions of satan, and have wrought the works of my father the devil : Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me ! I have greedily coveted and pur- sued the pomps and vanity of this wicked world : Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me ! I have often indulged the sinful lusts of the flesh : Lord, have mercy upon me. Wroe is me ! I have loved all things which thou Lord hatest, and am myself become odious in thy sight : Lord, have mercy upon me. Woe is me ! I have neither believed in thee, O my God, nor obeyed thee, nor loved thee, as I ought and as I solemnly vowed I would : Lord, have mercy upon me. 0 Lord God, most gracious and reconcileable, pity and pardon me. 1 lament, O Lord God, my detestable impiety, for having so long, and so often, and so obstinately offended thee. In the bitterness of my soul, O Father of mercy, I bewail and abhor my unworthiness, and the hard- ness of my heart, that has despised the riches of 2*20 AN EXPOSITION OF thy goodness, and forbearance, and long suffering, which should have led me to repentance. ' 0 Lord God, whatever thou denyest me, deny me not " a broken and a contrite heart 2." " O that my head were waters, and my eyes foun- tains of tears 3," that I might weep much, and love much 4, having much to be forgiven ! Lord, hear me, help me, save me, for thy own gracious promise sake, for thy own tender mercies' sake, for the merits and sufferings of Jesus thy beloved, in whom thou hast made penitents ac- cepted. Amen. Amen. Our Vow renewed. Q. Having repented of the violations of your bap- tismal vow, show me how you will renew it. A. I shall do it after this manner : 1 have sinned, O Lord God, I have sinned, and done evil in thy sight ; but I repent, I turn to thee. " I confess, and forsake my wickedness, and am sorry for my sins 5." It grieves me, O most amiable goodness, it grieves me, that ever I offended thee. With all my heart, O my God, do I now renew the sacred vow, which, alas ! alas ! I have so often violated. O Lord God, I do for the future, renounce the devil, that arch-rebel against thee, with all his apos- tate angels. ' Rom. ii. 4. 2 Psalm li. 17 3 Jer ix. 1. 4 Luke vii. 17. ' Psalm xxxviii. IS. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. '221 I renounce all his worship ', all his impious sug- gestions 2, delusions 3, and temptations, for which he is called the tempter 4, and all the ways of consult- ing him, which ungodly men have taken 5. I renounce all his works, all those sins of the spirit, all pride 6, and malice 7, and envy ; all trea- chery 8 and lying, revenge and cruelty ; all tempting others to sin, hatred to holiness 9, and apostacy 10, which are his daily practice, and are truly diabolical. I utterly renounce, O Lord God, " the pomps and vanity of this wicked world ;" all covetous desires of honour, riches and pleasure n, all sinful excesses in things lawful 12. I renounce, Lord, all evil customs 13, all evil com- panions H ; all that is vain or wicked in the world 15, " all that friendship with the world, which is enmity with thee16", all things that may alienate my heart from thee. I renounce, O Lord God, all worldly comforts and possessions ; all my natural relations, and my own life 17, whenever they stand in competition with my duty to thee. I utterly renounce, O Lord God, " all the sinful lusts of the flesh," all the inordinate desires of my own corrupt nature, of my own carnal mind, which is enmity with thee18." 1 1 Cor. x. 20. ; Eph. ii. 2. 2 John xiii. 2. 3 2 Cor. iv. 4. 4 Mat. iv. 3. 5 Acts xix. 19. u 1 Tim. iii. 0. 7 John viii. 44. 6 John vi. 70. 9 Acts xiii. 10. 10 Jude 6. " Tit. ii. 12. 12 Cor. vii. 3<5, 31. I3 Rom. xii. 2. H Prov. i. 10. ; 1 Cor. xv. 33. 1S John xvii. 15. ; 1 John v. 10. 16 James iv. 4. 7 Luke xiv. 26. li- Rom. vii. IS. 25. viii. 7. 2*22 AN EXPOSITION OF I renounce, Lord, " all fleshly lusts, which war against thee \ and against my own soul ;'' all sloth, and idleness, and intemperance ; all lasciviousness ; all " filthiness of flesh and spirit 2", which render us unclean in thy sight. 0 Lord God, I utterly renounce all things that may any way displease thee ; from them all let it be thy good pleasure to deliver me. 1 know, Lord, that sin is the utmost abomination to thy purity 3, the most audacious outrage to thy adorable majesty, the perfect contradiction to thy deity, and therefore I utterly renounce and ab- hor it. I know, Lord, that sin exposes us to all the phials of thy wrath, and to vengeance eternal ; I know it sets the sinner at the extremest distance, and oppo- sition, and defiance to thee, and therefore I utterly renounce and abhor it. I know, Lord, I cannot love thee 4, but I must hate evil ; and therefore I renounce and detest it. " Turn thou me 5, O Lord God, and so shall I be turned." Turn, O Lord, the whole stream of my affections, from sensual love to the love of thee. O my God, let thy heavenly love be the constant bias of my soul ! O may it be the natural spring and weight of my heart, that it may always move towards thee ! Thy love, O my God, shall hereafter be the sole rule and guide of my life ; T will love thee, and love 1 1 Pet. ii. 11.; 1 John ii. 15. ; Gal. v. If). '2 Cor. vii. 1. ' l'rov. xv. 9. ' Ps. xcvii. 10. Jer. xxxi. I S. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 223 whatever thou lovest, and hate whatever thou hatest; I will believe all the articles of the Christian Faith, and I will keep thy holy will and commandments, and walk in the same all the days of my life. All this, O my God, I own myself bound to be- lieve and do, and though of myself I am impotent to all good \ yet by thy help I will perform it 2 ; and I heartily thank thee, O heavenly father 3, who, out of mere compassion to my soul, hast called me to this state of salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who hast indulged me this opportunity of repentance ; glory be to thee, who hast wrought in me this will, to renew my bap- tismal vow. O my God, I humbly, I earnestly pray unto thee to give me continual supplies of thy grace, that I may continue in thy love unto my life's end, that, being " faithful to death," I may receive " the crown of life V O Lord God, " I have sworn5, and I will perform it, that I wdll keep thy righteous judgments." My heart is empty and disengaged, and longs for thee ; my heart is entirely devoted to thee : enter, O my God ; possess it with thy gracious presence, and fill it with thy love. Lord, for thy tender mercies sake, restore me to thy favour ; to all the graces and privileges of my baptism, of which I have been spoiled by my sins. ' 2 Cor. iii. 5. ; John xv. 5. 2 Phil. iv. 13 3 Eph. i. 3. ; 1 Pet. i. 3. 4 Rev. ii 10. 5 Ps. cxix. 10(3. 224 AN EXPOSITION OF Lord, make me a living member of thy Church, the mystical body of thy Son '. O my God, unite me inseparably to Christ my head 2, and from thence let his gracious influences be ever streaming into my soul 3. " Father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son :" but I return with the prodigal 4, O let thy paternal bowels yearn on me, and graciously receive me. Lord, send thy spirit of adoption into my heart 5, to instil true filial affections, that I may again be owned by thee for thy child, and call thee Father, and share in the blessings of thy children, and at last become an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven6. O heavenly Father, accept my imperfect repent- ance, compassionate my infirmities, forgive my wick- edness, purify my uncleanness, strengthen my weak- ness, fix my unstableness, and let thy love ever rule in my heart, through the merits and sufferings, and love of the Son of thy love, in whom thou art always infinitely pleased 7. Amen. This office may be used in times of devout retirement, or on the Lord's Day, or in affliction, or sickness ; hat especially before the Holy Eucharist. 1 1 Cor. xii. 13. 27. s Eph. i. 22. :t Eph. iv. 15. Col. ii. 19, 4 Luke xv. 18. 5 Gal. iii. 26,27- G Rom. viii. 10, 17. 7 Mat. iii. 17. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 225 The Motives of Love. Q. Rehearse the articles of your Belief. A. I. " I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. II. " And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord. III. " Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary. IV. " Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was cruci- fied, dead and buried : he descended into hell. V. " The third day he rose again from the dead. VI. " He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. VII. " From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. VIII. " I believe in the Holy Ghost. IX. " The Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints. X. " The forgiveness of sins. XI. " The resurrection of the body. XII. " And the life everlasting-. Amen." Q. " What dost thou chiefly learn in these articles of thy belief?" A. " First, I learn to believe in God the Father, who hath made me, and all the world. " Secondly, In God the Son, who hath redeemed me, and all mankind. " Thirdly, In God the Holy Ghost, who sanctifieth me, and all the elect people of God." Q. What is the method of the Creed ? A. The Creed teaches me to believe in God, and to believe his Church. Q 226 AN EXPOSITION OF Q. How in God? A. It teaches me to believe in God, with respect to his unity, and then to the Trinity of persons in that unity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Q. How does it teach you to believe the Church ? A. It teaches me to believe the Church with re- gard to its two different states, either militant below, or triumphant above. Q. How are the articles of the Creed motives of love? A. Every article includes a blessing as well as a mystery, and is as proper to excite our love, as to engage our faith. Q. Give me such a paraphrase on the Creed that throughout the whole, your faith may work by love1. A. I shall do it to the best of my power, in such instructive and pathetical aspirations, as follow : — I BELIEVE. Faith working by Love. My Lord and my God, with a full, free, and firm assent, I believe all the articles of my Creed, because thou hast revealed them; I know thou art infallible truth and canst not 2 ; thou art infinite love 3, and will not deceive me : glory be to thee. With all my heart, 0 my God, do I love and praise thee, who art so infinitely amiable in thyself, and so full of love to us, that all I can know, or believe of thee, excites me to love thee. Lord, daily increase my faith ; make it active and 1 Gal. v. 0. 2 Deut. xxxii. 4.; Heb. vi. 18. 3 Psalm xxv. 8. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 227 fruitful \ that I may believe and love thee as entirely as becomes one entirely devoted to thee. "IN GOD." Its Objects. The Unity of God. I believe, O my God, that thou art one2, and that there is no other God besides thee ; thou art that one infinite and independent being, that one only true God, whom all men, and all angels, are to adore : all glory be to thee. 0 Lord God, help me to love and to praise thee with God-like affections, and a suitable devotion. The Trinity in Unity. 1 believe, O my God, that in the unity of thy godhead there is a Trinity of persons 3. I believe in thee, O Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, in whose name I was baptized, to whose service I am re- ligiously devoted : all glory be to thee. I believe, I admire, I love, I praise, I adore thee, O most blessed and glorious Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, for being the joint authors of our salvation : all glory be to thee. 0 sacred, and dreadful, and mysterious Trinity, though I cannot conceive thee, yet let me daily ex- periment thy goodness ; let thy grace, O Lord Jesus; let thy love, O God the Father4; let thy com- munications, 0 Holy Spirit, be ever with me. 1 Jam. ii. 20. 2 Deut. iv. 35. ; Isa. xliv. 6. xlv. 5, 6. 3 Matt. iii. 17. xxviii. 19. ; 1 John v. 7. 1 2 Cor. xiii. 14. Q 2 228 AN EXPOSITION OF " THE FATHER. The First Person of the Trinity. I believe, and love, and praise thee, O my God, the first person in the most adorable Trinity, the fountain of the Godhead, the eternal Father of thy co-eternal Son ', Jesus my Saviour. His distinctive Property, Father. Glory be to thee, O God the Father, for so loving the world 2, as to give thy only begotten Son to re- deem us, Glory be to thee, O heavenly Father, for first loving us, and giving the dearest thing thou hadst for us : O help me to love again, and to think nothing too dear for thee. " ALMIGHTY. His Attributes. I believe, O my God, that thou art a spirit 3 most pure and holy 4, and infinite in all perfections 5, in power 6, and knowledge 7, and goodness 8 ; that thou art eternal 9, immutable 10 ; and omnipresent " : all love, all glory, be to thee. 1 Johni. 18. v. 18. 2 John iii. 16. 3 John iv. 23, 24. ' 1 Pet. i. 16. 5 Ps. cxlv. .3. 6 Ps. cxv. 3. 7 Is;., xl. 28. " Matt. xix. 17. " Ps. xc. 2. '" James i. 17. " Ps. exxxix. 1, &c. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 229 I believe, O Lord, that thou art most wise ' and just2, most happy3 and glorious4, and all-sufficient5; most gracious, and merciful, and tender, and benign, and liberal, and beneficent ° : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe thy divine nature, O my God, to be in all respects amiable, to be amiableness in itself, to be love itself7 ; and therefore I love, I admire, I praise, I fear, and I adore thee. Thou, Lord, art my hope, my trust, my life, my joy, my glory, my God, my all, my love. MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH. His Works. 1 believe that thou, O Father Almighty, didst create heaven and earth, the whole world, and all things in it, visible and invisible, out of nothing, and by thy word only 8 : all glory be to thee. I believe, O thou great Creator, that thy divine love made thee communicate being to thy creatures ; that thou lovest all things, and hatest nothing thou hast made : glory be to thee. I believe, O God, that thou art the sole Lord and proprietor of all things thou hast made 9 ; that all things do necessarily depend on thee ; that it is in thee only we live, and move, and have our being 10 : all love, all glory, be to thee. 1 Ps. cxlvii. 5. 2 Rom. ii. 6. 3 Ps. xvi. 11. 4 1 Tim. vi. 10. 5 2 Cor. xii. 9. G Tit. iii. 4. ; Eph. ii. 4. ; Ps. Ii. t. 7 Cant. v. 16.; 1 John iv. 8. 16. 8 Gen. i. 1. ; Heh. xi. 3. ; Ps. xxxiii. 6. 9 Deut. x. 14. ; Ps. lxxxix. 11. 10 Acts xvii. 28. 230 AN EXPOSITION OF I believe, O thou communicative goodness, that thou dost preserve, and sustain, and protect, and bless all things thou hast made, suitably to the natures thou hast given them (read the cxlvth psalm) : all love all glory be to thee. I believe, O mighty wisdom, that thou dost most sweetly order, and govern, and dispose all things ' ; even the most minute 2 ; even the very sins of men3, to conspire in thy glory ; O do thou conduct my whole life, steer every motion of my soul, towards the great end of our creation, to love and to glorify thee. I believe, O Lord, that thy love was more illus- trious in the creation of man, than in all the rest of the visible world ; thou wert pleased to make him in thy own image 4, and after thy own divine likeness: all love, all glory, be to thee. Thou, Lord, didst make man for thyself, and all things visible for man ; thou designedest all crea- tures for his use 5, and didst subject them to his dominion ; the very angels thou didst charge to keep him in all his ways 6 : all love, all glory, be to thee. Thy works, O Lord, are wonderful and amiable 7. I love, and admire, and praise thy universal provi- dence over the whole world: the perpetual flux of thy goodness on every creature : all glory be to thee. I love and praise thee, O my God, for all the par- ticular vouchsafements of thy love to me 8, for all thy deliverances and blessings, either to my body or 1 Ps. civ. 24. 2 Matt. vi. 26. 28. ; x. 30. 3 Gen. 1. 20. * Gen. i. 26. 8 Ps. viii. 6 Ps. xci. 11. 7 Ibid. cxL 2. ;}, \. ' Ibid. Ixviii. 19. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 231 to my soul, known or unknown (read the ciiird Psalm) ; for all that I do not remember, or did not consider : all love, all glory, be to thee. The longer I live, O my God, the more reason 1 have to love thee, because every day supplies me with fresh experiments and new motives of thy mani- fold love to me : and therefore all love, all glory, be to thee. *'AND IN JESUS." The Second Person in the Trinity, God the Son, his Offices. I believe in thee, O Jesus, and I rejoice in that dear name, which is so full and expressive of thy love. Thou art Jesus our Saviour, because thou earnest into the world on purpose to save us from our sins ' : all love, all glory, be to thee. O be thou ever Jesus to me ; O let me feel the kind force of that sweet name, in which I and all sinners do read our danger, and our deliverance, our guilt, and our salvation. 0 most benign Jesu ! he well deserves to be ac- cursed, that does not love thee2: who, Lord, can ever hope to share in thy salvation, who does not love thee his Saviour ? " CHRIST." 1 believe, O merciful Jesus, that thou art Christ the true Messias 3, the anointed of the Lord, the 1 Matt. i. 21. 2 1 Cor. xvi. 22. 3 John i. 41.: Dan. ix. 26. 232 AN EXPOSITION OF promised seed, "which was to bruise the serpent's head1" long expected by the fathers 2, foretold by the prophets 3, represented by types 4, which were all fulfilled in thee, O thou the desire of all nations 5 : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, that thou, O Jesus, wert anointed with the Holy Spirit 6, that all his gifts and graces were poured out, and diffused like a sweet ointment on thy soul, without measure 7 ; thou art altogether lovely, O Christ, and of thy fulness we all receive 8 : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O thou anointed of God, that as kings 9, and priests10, and prophets11, were heretofore anointed with material oil ; so by thy heavenly anointing 12, thou wast consecrated to be our prophet, our king, and our priest, and in all those three offices, to manifest thy love to us ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O Christ, our prophet 13, who didst teach, and reveal, and interpret thy Father's will, and all saving truth, to the world. Glory be to thee, O Christ, our king 14 who dost give laws to thy people, dost govern and protect us, and hast subdued all our ghostly enemies. Glory be to thee, O Christ, our priest, who dost I Gen. iii. )5. 2 Luke ii. 25. 3 Acts x. 43. + Col. ii. 17. 5 Hag. ii. 7. 6 Acts x. 38.; Heb. i. 9. 7 John iii. 34. 8 John i. 16. 9 1 Sam. xv. 1. I0 Lev. iv. 3. 5. 1G. " 1 Kings xix. 10. 12 Matt. iii. 16. 13 John iv. 25. ; Acts vii. 37. ; Luke iv. 18. II Luke i. 33. 69. 71. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 233 bless us1, who didst offer thyself a sacrifice2, and dost still "make intercession for us3." Our redemption, our illumination, our support, is wholly from thy love, O thou Anointed of God : all love, all glory, be to thee. " HIS ONLY SON." His two Natures. 1. Of God. His eternal Generation. I believe that thou, O most adorable Jesus, art the Son of God by ineffable generation 4 ; thou didst from eternity derive thy godhead from the Father ; thou art " the brightness of his glory, and the ex- press image of his person 5 :" all love, all glory, be to thee. Thou, O blessed Jesu, art the only Son of God, " the only begotten Son, full of grace and truth 6 ;" thou art the only " beloved Son, in whom thy Father is well pleased ;" it is only in thee, and for thee, that sinners have hope ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. Thou art equal to thy Father 7, O Jesu, in ami- ableness and in love to us, and art equally to be loved by us ; and therefore, all love and praise be to the Father that eternally begat8, and to the Son eternally begotten. 1 Acts iii. 26. 2 Isa. liii. 10. ; Eph. v. 2. ; Heb. ix. 14. 3 Rom. viii. 34. ; Heb. vii. 25. 4 Heb. i. 5. ; Isa. liii. 8 ; John i. 1. 5 Heb. i. 3. * John i. 14. 18. v. 18. ; Rom. viii. 32. ; Mat. iii. 17. 7 Phil. ii. 6. 8 1 John v. 1. 234 AN EXPOSITION OF OUR LORD. His Deity. I believe, O thou eternal Son of the Father, that thou art " the great ," and " true God 2," " Jehovah our righteousness3," " over all, God blessed for ever 4," and mighty to save 5 : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O Lord Jesus, that thou didst make 6, " and dost sustain all things by thy power 7," and that thou art to be " honoured by men, and by angels, as thy Father is honoured 8 : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O thou " King of kings, and Lord of lords 9," that thou art the Lord, and the author of the new creation10, as well as of the old; that thou art more peculiarly Lord of us sinners by purchase n. O that I, and all that own thy dominion, may for ever love, and revere, and obey 12, so powerful and gracious a Lord ! " WHO WAS CONCEIVED BY THE HOLY GHOST." 2. Of Man in his State of Humiliation. His Conception. I believe, O most condescending Majesty, that 1 Tit. ii. 13. 2 1 John v. 20. 3 Jer. xxiii. 6. * Rom. ix. 5. 5 Isa. lxiii. 1. 6 John i. 3. 7 Heb. i. 3. 10. s Heb. i. 6. ; Phil- ii. 10. ; John v. 23. 9 Rev. xix. 16. 10 Eph. i. 21, 22. ii. 10. 11 I Cor. vi. 20. " Luke vi. 46. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 235 when thou didst stoop so low as to assume our frail nature, the Holy Ghost came on thy sacred mother, and that " the power of the Highest did overshadow her \" and that she did conceive and lodge thee in her womb, where thou, who fillest heaven and earth, wert about nine months for our sakes imprisoned ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. " BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY." His Birth. I believe, O most adorable Humility, that thou wast at last born into the world 2 ; that thou having only God for thy Father, and Mary, a pure Virgin, for thy mother, whom all " generations do call blessed 3," both thy conception and birth were per- fectly immaculate ; that being without sin thyself, thou mightest be a fit sacrifice to4 atone for us sinners, who being born of unclean parents, were all by nature unclean 5 ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee, O immaculate "Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world 6." I believe, O blessed Saviour, that the two natures of God and of man, wTere in thee so mysteriously united, without either change or confusion, that they made in thee but one person, but one " mediator V "one Lord8:" Thou, O eternal Word, didst "become flesh, and didst dwell among us 9," on purpose to save us ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. 1 Luke i. 31. 34, 35. 42. 2 Luke ii. 6, 7. 3 Luke i. 48. 4 1 John ii. 1, 2. 5 Job xiv. 4. 6 John i. 29. ' 1 Tim. ii. 5. R Eph. iv. 5. » John i. 14. 236 AN EXPOSITION OF " SUFFERED." His Life of Sorrow. I believe, O adorable Love, that thy whole life was made up of sufferings, and that for sinful men, and in particular for me : O let me never cease to adore and love thee. It was for us sinners, O tenderest Love, that in thy very infancy thou wast circumcised \ and designed by Herod for slaughter, and forced to fly into Egypt2 ; and therefore I praise and love thee. It was for us sinners, that thou, O afflicted Love, wert all thy life long, " a man of sorrows and ac- quainted with grief 3 ;" that thou wast persecuted and reviled, despised and rejected, and hadst " not where to lay thy head4 ;" and therefore I am bound to praise and love thee. It was for us sinners, that thou, O compassionate Love, when thou tookest on thee our nature, " wast touched with a feeling of our infirmities, and wast in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin 5," that thou mightest the more affectionately pity the weak, and succour the tempted ; and therefore I praise and love thee. It was for us sinners, that thou, O beneficent Love, didst "go about doing good V' preaching repentance, publishing the glad tidings of salvation 7, sending thy disciples 8, confirming thy heavenly doctrine by 1 Luke ii. 21. 2 Matt. ii. 13. 10. 3 Tsa. liii. 3. * Matt. viii. 20. Net), iv. 15. " Acts x. 38. Matt. iv. 17.; Luke iv. IS. 8 Matt. x. 1, .r). THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 237 many glorious miracles \ and illustrating it by a god-like example ; all thy life is full of attractives of sweetest love and pity to us sinners 2 ; which kindly and forcibly constrain us to praise and love thee. O most exuberant Love, how amiable are all thy graces ! O fill my heart with thy love, and transform me into thy likeness 3, that I may all my life long imi- tate thy perfect obedience, unspotted holiness, un- changeable resolution, universal charity, uninterrupted devotion, contempt of the world, heavenly-minded- ness, gracious condescension, ardent zeal for thy Father's glory, and unbounded love, and that for the sake of that dearest love, which inclined thee to become incarnate forme. " UNDER PONTIUS PILATE. His Sufferings previous to his Crucifixion. I believe, O my Lord, and my God, that though thou didst suffer all thy life long ; yet thy greatest sufferings were under the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate ; I believe all those mighty sufferings ; but am as little able to express the greatness of them, as I am the greatness of thy love, which moved thee to suffer : all I can do is to love and to praise thee. How great were thy sufferings, O Saviour of the world ! when the very apprehension of them made thy " soul very heavy, exceeding sorrowful, even to death;" made thee "offer up prayers, with strong cry- 1 Matt. xi. 5. 2 2 Cor. v. 14. 3 Rom. viii. 29. ; Phil. ii. 5. 238 AX EXPOSITION OF ing and tears;" that if it were " thy Father's will, the cup might pass from thee ;" threw thee into an "agony and bloody sweat l ;" insomuch that there was an angel sent from heaven on purpose to strengthen thee. O thou agonizing Love ! impress on my heart so tender a sense of thy sufferings for me, that I may agonize with thee, that I may feel all thy sorrows, that though I cannot sweat blood like thee, I may dissolve into tears for thee, that I may love and suffer with thee throughout every part of thy passion. 0 suffering Jesus, when my meditations follow thee from the garden to mount Calvary, I grieve, and I love, all the way. 1 grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O incar- nate God, who couldst command more than twelve legions of angels for thy rescue ; out of love to sin- ners, and in particular to me, one of the vilest of all that number, humbling thyself to be apprehended, and bound by the rude soldiers, as a malefactor 2. I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O gracious Lord, for my sake, betrayed by the treacherous kiss of Judas 3, denied by Peter, and forsaken of all thy disciples. 1 grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O spotless Innocence, out of love to me, dragged to Annas 4, and Caiaphas 5, the high priest ; when I see thee accused by false witnesses, arraigned and con- demned. I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O divine Majesty, out of love to me, spit upon, and blind- 1 Heb. v. 7. ; Matt. xxvi. 38. ; Luke xxii. 43, 44. 2 Matt. xxvi. 47. 53. 57. ; John xviii. 4. " Matt. xxvi. 49. 50. 70. 4 John xviii. 12. 5 Matt. xxvi. 57. 59. ; Luke xxii. 00. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 239 folded, and buffeted, and mocked ', sent to Pilate, an infidel judge2, then to wicked Herod3, who with his men of war set thee at naught, arrayed thee in a white robe of mockery, and sent thee again to Pilate. I grieve, and I love, O injured Goodness, when I see thee, though declared innocent by the very traitor Judas, who out of horror for his crime, went and hanged himself, though declared innocent by Pilate himself, the Judge to whom thine enemies appealed, yet worried to death by the clamours of the rabble, that cried out, crucify, crucify ; when I see Barabbas a traitor and a murderer, preferred before thee *. I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O Lover of Souls, for my sake, most unjustly given up into the hands of infidel soldiers, to be stript naked, and tied to a pillar, and scourged 5 ; to see " the plowers plow- ing on thy back, and making long furrows." 1 grieve, and I love, O King of Heaven, when I see thee, out of love to me, humbling thyself to be arrayed in " purple, with a reed in thy hand 6 ;" when I see thee " crowned with thorns," to multiply thy torments ; when I see thee mocked by barbarous wretches, with their bended knee, and with " Hail, King of the Jews." I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O Lord God, whom the angels worship, spit upon again and buffeted 7, and for my sake made the extreme scorn, and contempt, and sport, of thy insolent and insult- ing enemies ; and though still declared innocent by i Matt. xxvi. 67. ; Luke xxii. 63. 2 Ibid, xxvii. 2. 3 Luke xxiii. 6. 11, 12. 4 Luke xxiii. 14. 18. 19. 21. ; Matt, xxvii. 3, 4, 5. 5 John xix. 1. ; Ps. cxxix. 3. c Matt, xxvii. 28, 29. 7 Mark xv. 19. 240 AN EXPOSITION OF Pilate1, yet surrendered to the unrelenting cruelty of the multitude to be crucified. My Lord, my God, my Saviour, with all my heart, I love and adore thy infinite love and benignity to sinners : with all my heart, I lament and detest the hatred and outrage of sinners to thee. " WAS CRUCIFIED." His Crucifixion. I grieve, and I love, O sorrowful Jesus, when I see thee, for my sake, oppressed with the weight of thy own cross2, till thy tender body, quite spent with sufferings, sank under it 3. I grieve, and I love, O thou great Martyr of Love, when, for my sake, I see thy virgin body stript naked, thy hands and thy feet nailed to the cross ; when I see thee " crucified between two thieves 4," and numbered with the transgressors ; when I see gall given thee to eat, and vinegar to drink 5. I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O incarnate Deity, hanging on the cross, and for my sake, by thy own people, in the height of thy anguish, derided, reproached and blasphemed, with " wagging their heads," mocked by the soldiers, and by the impeni- tent thief 6. I grieve, and I love, when I see thee, O God, blessed for evermore, O Fountain of all blessing, hang bleeding on the cross, and made " a curse for me V How does my indignation swell against the injustice, 1 Matt, xxvii. 24. 26. 2 John xix. 17. 3 Matt, xxvii. 32. ' Matt, xxvii. 38. 6 Ps. lxix. 21. 6 Matt, xxvii. 39. ; Luke xxiii. 39. 7 Gal. iii. 13. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 241 and ingratitude, and inhumanity of the Jews, who could thus cruelly treat so unreproachable an inno- cence, so amiable a charity, so compassionate a Saviour ! Alas ! alas ! it was the sinner, O Love Incarnate, rather than the Jew, that betrayed, and derided, and blasphemed, and tortured, and crucified thee ; the sins of lapsed mankind ', and particularly my sins, they were thy tormentors ; and therefore, from my heart, I bewail, detest and abjure them. My Lord, and my God, instil penitential love into my soul, that I may grieve for my sins, which grieved thee ; that I may love thee for suffering for us sinners, who occasioned all thy griefs ; O may I always love thee, O may I never grieve thee more ! DEAD. His Death. I grieve, and I love, O bleeding Love, when I see thee on the cross, quite spent with pain and anguish, when I see thee in thy dying pangs, com- mending thy spirit into the hands of thy heavenly Father2, bowing thy head3, and giving up the ghost. Thou, O Lord of life, didst for us sinners humble thyself to death, even to the death of the cross, a death of utmost shame and ignominy, and of torment insupportable : all love, all glory, be to thee. Was ever any sorrow, O crucified Lord, like that sorrow my sins created thee ! 1 Isa. liii. f>. 2 Luke xxiii. 46. 3 John xix. 30. R 242 AN EXPOSITION OF Was ever any love, O outraged Mercy, like that love thou didst shew in dying for sinners All the frame of nature, O dying Saviour, fell into convulsions at the crucifixion of their great Creator ; " the sun was darkened \ the veil of the temple was rent from the top to the bottom, the earth quaked, the rocks clave asunder, the bodies of dead saints rose out of their graves," insomuch that the centurion and infidel soldiers acknowledged thee to be the Son of God ; thou wast lovely, and glorious, and adorable, in thy lowest humiliation : all love, all praise, be to thee. His unknown Sufferings. Thy bodily sufferings, O Almighty Love, were intolerable, but yet thy inward were far greater. I grieve, I love, I melt all o'er, when I hear thee on the cross crying out, " My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me2?" Ah, sinful wretch that I am ! how infinite and unconceivable were the inward dolours and agonies thou didst undergo for us sinners, when thou didst tread the wine-press of thy Father's wrath alone 3, when it pleased thy own most beloved Father "to bruise thee, and to put thee to grief," when the iniquities of the whole world were laid on thee 4, and my numerous sins increased thy load, and heightened thy torment, when thy own Deity with- drew all consolation from thee, when God, offended by our sins, did " afflict thee in the day of his fierce anger5." No sufferings, no love, was ever like unto 1 Matt, xxvii. 51. 2 Ibid, xxvii. 4(5. 3 Isa. lxiii. 3. 4 Isa. liii. 6. 10. 5 Lam. i. 12. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 243 thine for me ; no grief, no love, but my own, should exceed mine for thee. For whom, O unutterable Goodness, didst thou suffer the extreme bitterness of sorrow, but for the vilest of all thy creatures, sinful man, and for me, one of the worst of sinners ? and therefore I praise and love thee. For what end didst thou suffer, O most ardent charity, but to save sinners from all things that were destructive, the curse of the law *, the terrors of death 2, the tyranny of sin 3, the power of darkness and torments eternal 4, to purchase for us all things conducible to our happiness 5. Pardon and grace, consolation and acceptance, and the everlasting joys and glories of the kingdom of heaven? And there- fore I praise and love thee. Out of what motive didst thou suffer, O boundless Benignity, but out of thy own preventing love 6, free mercy, and pure compassion? And therefore I praise and love thee. When no other sacrifice could atone thy Father's anger, O thou beloved Son of God, and reconcile divine justice and mercy together, but the sacrifice of God incarnate, who, as man, was to die 7, and to suffer in our stead ; as God, was to merit and make satisfaction for our sins ; it was then that thou, O God the Son, didst become man, the very meanest of men, didst " take upon thee the form of a servant 8," and didst on the cross shew us the mystery and the » Gal. iii. 13. 2 Heb. ii. 14, 15. 3 Rom. vi. 14. 4 1 Thess. i. 10. 5 Eph. i. 7. ; Heb. ix. 12. 15. 6 1 John iv. 19. 7 Heb. ix. 28. 8 Phil. ii. 7. r2 244 AN EXPOSITION OF miracle of love, God crucified for sinners, and sinners redeemed by the blood of God !. O thou propitious Wonder, God incarnate on the cross, by what names shall I adore thee ? All are too short, too scanty, to express thee ; love only, nothing but love, will reach thee ; thou art love 2 ! O Jesu, thou art all love ; O tenderest, O sweetest, 0 purest, O dearest Love, soften, sweeten, refine, love me, into all love like thee ! By the love of thy cross, O Jesu, I live 3, in that I will only glory, that above all things will I study 4, that before all things will I value 5 ; by the love of thy cross I will take up my cross daily 6, and follow thee ; I will persecute, and torment, and crucify 7, my sinful affections and lusts, which persecuted, tor- mented and crucified thee ; and if thy love calls me to it, I will suffer on the cross for thee, as thou hast done for me 8. How illustrious and amiable were thy graces amidst all thy sufferings, O thou afflicted Jesu ! I ad- mire, and I love, thy profound humility, unwearied patience, lamb-like meekness, immaculate innocence, invincible courage, absolute resignation, compas- sionate love of souls, and perfect charity to thy ene- mies. O my Love, I cannot love thee, but I must desire, above all things, to be like my beloved : O give me grace to tread in thy steps 9, and conform me to thy divine image, that the more I grow like thee, the more I may love thee, and the more I may be loved by thee. 1 Acts xx. 23. 2 1 John iv. 8. 3 Gal. ii. 20. vi. 14. 4 1 Cor. ii. 2. s Phil. iii. 8. c Luke ix. 23. 7 Rom. vi. 0. ; Gal. v. 24. B Acts xxi. 13. 9 1 Pet. ii. 21. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 245 " AND BURIED. HE DESCENDED INTO HELL." His Burial and Descent. I believe, O crucified Lord, that thou wast really dead, and that there was a separation of thy body and soul : that thy side was mortally wounded, and " pierced with a spear" on the cross l, and thy sacred body was buried 2, to assure us of thy death : all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O pierced, O wounded Love, that thy soul, in the state of separation, did descend into hell 3, to vanquish death, and all the spirits of dark- ness, in their own dominions ; and therefore I adore and love thee. Glory be to thee, O thou great champion of Love, who didst for our sakes singly encounter all our ghostly enemies, who didst thyself " taste of death 4," that thou mightest take away the " sting of death 5," who didst wrestle with " principalities and powers 6," and all the force of hell, that we might share in thy victory ; for which wonderful salvation, I will always praise and love thee. " THE THIRD DAY HE ROSE AGAIN FROM THE DEAD." In his state of Exaltation. His Resurrection. I believe, O Almighty Love, that according to the types and prophecies which went before of thee 7, and according to thy own infallible predictions, thou 1 John xix. 34. 2 Matt, xxvii. 57. 60. 3 Eph. iv. 9. 4 Heb. ii. 9. 5 1 Cor. xv. 55, 50, 57. 6 Col. ii. 15. ' Luke xxiv. 20, 21. ; Matt. xii. 40. -24 () AN EXPOSITION OF didst, by thy own power 1, rise from the dead the third day : all love, all glory be to thee. Glory be to thee, who didst lie so long in the grave to undergo the full condition of the dead, and to convince all the world thou wert dead ; and didst rise so soon, that thou mightest not see corruption 2, or retard our joy 3 : all love, all glory, be to thee. " HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN." His Ascension. I believe, O victorious Love, that thou, after thy conquest over death and hell, didst ascend in triumph to heaven 4, that thou mightest prepare mansions for us 5, and from thence, as conqueror, bestow the gifts of thy conquest on us 6 ; and above all, the gift of thy Holy Spirit 7 ; that thou mightest enter into the holy of holies, as our great high-priest 8, to present to thy Father the sweet-smelling sacrifice of his crucified Son, the sole propitiation for sinners ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who didst leave the world, and ascend to heaven about the thirty-third year of thy age, to teach us, in the prime of our years, to despise this world, when we are best able to enjoy it, and to reserve our full vigour for heaven, and for thy love. 0 thou, whom my soul loveth, since thou hast left the world, what was there ever in it worthy of 1 John ii. 19. 2 Acts ii. 31. 3 John xvi. 22. 1 Luke xxiv. 51. ; Acts i. 9, 10. 5 John xiv. 2. 6 Eph. iv. 8. 7 John xvi. 7. 8 Heb. vi. 19, 20. x. 20, 21. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 247 our love ! O let all my affections ascend after thee, and never return to the earth more ; for " whom have I in heaven but thee ? and there is none upon earth that I desire in comparison of thee ■." " AND SITTETH AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY." His Session. I believe, O triumphant Love, that thou now sittest in full and peaceful possession of bliss 2, and at the right-hand of God ; that thy human nature is exalted to the most honourable place in heaven, where thou sittest on thy throne of glory, adored by angels3, and interceding for sinners 4 ; and therefore, all love all glory be to thee. Glory be to thee, O Love inthroned ! thy resurrec- tion, ascension and session, are all signal instances of thy love, and earnests of our future felicity, the entire purchase of thy love ; all our hopes of heaven, our resurrection, ascension and glorification, depend on, and are derived from thine, and are all the trophies of thy love to us ; and therefore, I will ever praise and love thee. "FROM THENCE HE SHALL COME TO JUDGE THE QUICK AND THE DEAD." His coming to judgment. I believe, O glorified Love, that from thy throne, at God's right hand, where thou now sittest, thou 1 Ps. lxxiii. 25. 2 1 Pet. iii. 22. 3 Rev. v. 8, 9, 12. ' Rom. viii. 34. 248 AN EXPOSITION OF wilt come again ' to judge the world, attended with thy holy angels 2 : all glory be to thee. I believe, 0 thou adorable Judge, that all mankind shall be summoned before thy awful tribunal. All the dead, who shall be waked out of their graves, when the angel shall blow the last trump 3, and all that are then quick, and alive, shall then appear before thee : all glory be to thee. I believe, Lord, that I, and all the world, shall give a strict account of all our thoughts, and words, and actions : that the books will be then opened ; that out of those dreadful registers we shall be judged 4 ; that Satan and our own consciences will be our accusers. O let the last trump be ever sounding in my ears, that I may ever be mindful of my great account 5 : and that I may neither speak, nor do, nor think, any thing, that may wound my own conscience, or provoke thy anger, or make me tremble at the awful day. I know, O thou adorable Judge, that love only shall then endure that terrible test, that love only shall be acquitted, that love only shall be eternally blest ; and therefore, I will ever praise and love thee. Glory be to thee, O thou beloved Son of God, to whom the Father has committed all judgment G. How can they that love thee, O Jesu, ever des- pond, though their love in this life is always imper- fect, when at last they shall have Love for their judge, love that hath felt and will compassionate all 1 Acts i. 11. ; Phil. iii. 20. 2 2 Thess. i. 7 3 1 Cor. xv. 52. 4 Rom. xiv. 10.; Matt. xii. 36. ; Rev. xx. 12. '' Eccles. xii. 13, 14. 6 John v. 22. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 249 their infirmities: and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. " I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY GHOST. The third Person in the Trinity. I believe in thee, O thou Spirit of God, the third Person in the most adorable Trinity ; I believe, O blessed Spirit, that thou art the Lord \ that thou art God 2, eternal 8, and omniscient 4, a person distinct from both the father and the son, eternally proceeding from both 5, and equally sent by both 6, and joint author with both of our salvation; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O blessed Spirit, that thou art holy, essen- tially holy 7, in respect of thy own divine nature ; and being essentially holy, art infinitely amiable ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O blessed Spirit, that thou art personally holy, that thou art the author of all internal holi- ness, and of all internal and sanctifying grace 8 ; that thou art the principle of all spiritual life in us 9 ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O Love Incarnate, for sending the Spirit in thy stead, and for promising it to our prayers 10 : all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O Spirit of Love, for " shedding 1 2 Cor. iii. 17, 18. : John iv. 24. ; Acts v. iii. 3 Heb. ix. 14. '1 Cor. ii. 10. 5 Matt. x. 20. ; Rom. viii. 9. 6 John xiv. 26. xvi. 7. 7 1 Pet. i. 15. 8 Gal. v. 22. 9 John iii. 5. ,0 Luke xi. 13. 250 AN EXPOSITION OF the love of God abroad in our hearts '," for filling* all that love thee with exuberance of joy and consola- tion : all love, all glory be to thee. 0 thou blessed Spirit the Comforter, purify my soul, and infuse thy love into it, and consecrate it to be thy temple 2, and fix thy throne immoveably there, and set all my affections on fire, that my heart may be a continual sacrifice of love offered up to thee and the flame may be ever aspiring towards thee. " THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH." Our belief of the Church. 1. Militant. Its nature. 1 believe, O blessed and adorable Mediator, that the Church is a society of persons, founded by thy love to sinners 3, united into one body, of which thou art the head 4, initiated by baptism 5, nourished by the Eucharist 6, governed by pastors commis- sioned by thee, and endowed with the power of the keys 7, professing the doctrine taught by thee 8, and delivered to the saints9, and devoted to praise and to love thee. I believe, O holy Jesus, that thy Church is holy, like thee its author ; holy, by the original design of its institution 1() ; holy, by baptismal dedication ; holy, in all its administrations, which tend to produce holiness11; and though there will be always a mixture of good and bad in it in this world 12, yet 1 Rom. v. 5. 2 1 Cor. vi. If). 3 Matt. xvi. 18.; Eph. v. 25. • Col. i. 18. 5 Matt, xxviii. 19. ° Matt. xxvi. 26. 7 Ibid, xviii. 18. ; John xx, -22,23. 8 Acts ii. 41, 42. " Jude, ver. .5. 10 2 Tim. i. 9. " 2 Tim. ii. 19. '- Matt. xiii. 24. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 251 it has always many real saints in it ; and therefore, all love, all glory be to thee. I believe, Lord, this Church to be Catholic or universal, made up of the collection of all particular Churches ; I believe it to be catholic in respect of time, comprehending all ages to the world's end, to which it is to endure ] ; catholic in respect of all places, out of which believers are to be gathered2; catholic in respect of all saving faith, of which this creed contains the substance, which shall in it always be taught 3 ; Catholic in respect of all graces, which shall in it be practised ; and Catholic in respect of that Catholic war it is to wage against all its ghostly enemies for which it is called militant. O preserve me always a true member of thy Catholic Church, that I may always inseparably adhere to thee, that I may always devoutly praise and love thee. Glory be to thee, O Lord my God, who hast made me a member of the particular Church of England, whose faith, and government, and worship, are holy, and Catholic, and Apostolic, and free from the ex- tremes of irreverence or superstition ; and which I firmly believe to be a sound part of thy Church uni- versal, and which teaches me charity to those who dissent from me ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. O my God, give me grace to continue stedfast in her bosom, to improve all those helps to true piety, all those means of grace, all those incentives of thy love, thou hast mercifully indulged me in her communion, that I may with primitive affections and fervour praise and love thee. 1 Matt. xvi. 18. ; xxviii. 20. 2 Matt, xxviii. 19. 3 John xvi. 13. 12 252 AN EXPOSITION OF " THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS." Communion. I believe, O King of Saints, that among the saints on earth, whether real, or in outward profession only, there ought to be a mutual Catholic participa- tion of all good things !, which is the immediate effect of Catholic love. Thou, O God of love, restore it to thy Church. I believe, O thou God of love, that all the saints on earth, by profession, ought to communicate one with another in evangelical worship, and the same holy sacraments, in the same divine and apostolical faith2; in all offices of corporal 3 and spiritual charity4, in reciprocal delight in each other's salvation, and in tender sympathy as members of one and the same body 5 ; O God of peace, restore in thy good time this Catholic communion, that with one heart, and one mouth, we may all praise and love thee. 0 my God, amidst the deplorable divisions of thy Church, O let me never widen its breaches, but give me Catholic charity to all that are baptised in thy name, and Catholic communion with all Christians in desire. O deliver me from the sins and errors, from the schisms and heresies of the ap;e. O give me grace to pray daily for the peace of thy Church 6, and earnestly to seek it, and to excite all I can to praise and to love thee. 1 John i. 7. ' Acts ii 42, 46. 3 Gal. vi. 10. 4 Rom. xii. 9. &c, 1 Thcss. v. 14. ; Hob. x. 25. 4 1 Cor. xii. 13, 26. ° Ps. cxxii. 6. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 253 I believe, O most holy Jesu, that thy saints here below have communion with thy saints above \ they praying for us 2, in heaven, we here on earth celebrating their memorials, rejoicing at their bliss, giving thee thanks for their labours of love, and imitating their examples ; for which, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O gracious Redeemer, that thy saints here on earth have communion with the holy angels above; that they are "ministering spirits3, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation," and watch over us 4 ; and we give thanks to thee for their protection, and emulate their incessant praises, and ready obedience ; for which, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O my Lord, and my God, that the saints in this life have communion with the Three Persons of the most adorable Trinity5, in the same most benign influences of love, in which all three conspire ; for which, all love, all glory be to thee, O Father, Son and Holy Ghost, world without end. Glory be to thee, O Goodness infinitely diffusive, for all the graces and blessings in which the saints communicate, for breathing thy love into thy mys- tical body, as the very soul that informs it, that all that believe in thee may love one another, and all join in loving thee. 1 Heb. xii. 22. 2 That they pray for us, while we celebrate their memories, congratulate their bliss, &c. 1st Ed. 3 Heb. i. 14. 4 Ps. xxxiv. 7. 5 1 John i. 3. : Phil. ii. 1. 254 AN EXPOSITION OF " THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS." Reconciliation with God. I believe, O my God, that none can forgive sins but thou alone \ and that in thy Church forgiveness is always to be had ; and for so inestimable a bless- ing, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O thou Lover of Souls, that without true repentance we cannot hope for pardon2; that our repentance is, at the best, imperfect ; that it is out of thy mere mercy, O heavenly Father 3, and for the merits and passion of thy crucified Son4, that thou dost accept our imperfect repentance, and art pleased to forgive us ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O most adorable Trinity, for thy infinite love in our forgiveness 5 ; glory be to thee, O Father forgiving, O Son propitiating, O Holy Ghost purifying : I miserable sinner, who sigh and pant, and languish, for thy forgiveness, and to be at peace with thee6, praise, and adore, and love that most sweet, and liberal, and tender, and amiable mercy, that delights in forgiving sinners. " THE RESURRECTION OF THE BODY." Triumphant Resurrection. I believe, O victorious Jesu, that by the virtue of thv resurrection all the dead shall rise \ bad as ' M;irk ii. 7. 2 1 John i. 9. :i Tit. iii. 4, 5. A 1 Pet. i. 18. r' Rom. v. 8, 10. " Rom. v. 1. 1 Cor xv. 20.; John v. 28, 29. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 255 well as good : all love, all glory be to thee, by whom " death is swallowed up in victory V I believe, O Almighty Jesu, that by thy power all shall rise with the same bodies they had on earth 2 ; that thou wilt re-collect their scattered dust into the same form again ; that our souls shall be reunited to our bodies ; that we shall be judged both in body and soul, for the sins committed by both ; that the bodies of the wicked shall be fitted for torment, and the bodies of the saints changed in quality, and made glorified bodies 3, immortal and incorruptible, fitted for heaven, and eternally to love and enjoy thee ; for which glorious vouchsafement, 1 will always praise and love thee. " AND THE LIFE EVERLASTING." Happiness eternal. I believe, O great Judge of heaven and earth, that after all the quick and dead have appeared before thy judgment-seat, then the most just and unrepeat- able sentence shall pass, and be executed to all eternity, joyful only to those that love thee ; and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. I believe, O righteous Jesu, that the wicked shall be set on thy left-hand, and be damned to hell, to be tormented with everlasting and unconceivable anguish and despair, by the devil and his angels 4, and their own conscience, both in soul and body, in the lake of fire and brimstone 5, from which there 1 I Cor. xv. 54. 2 Job xix. 2(J. 3 1 Cor. xv. 53. ; Phil. iii. 21. * Matt. xxv. 41. 5 Rev. xiv. 10, 11. 256 AN EXPOSITION OF never can be any redemption ; O just Reward of those that do not love thee ! 0 merciful Jesu, how desirous art thou, that we shall be happy in loving thee, when thou hast created hell on purpose to deter us from hating thee, and heaven to compel us to love thee ! and therefore, all love, all glory, be to thee. 1 believe, O my Lord and my God, that the righteous shall be rewarded with " joys unspeakable and full of glory," with the beatific vision and love of thyself in heaven \ with a happiness of body and soul, which shall be in all respects most perfect, eternal, and unchangeable 2 ; that they shall never sorrow nor sin more 3, which is all the free gift of thy infinite love 4, O heavenly Father, and the pur- chase of thy blood, O God incarnate ; for which I will ever, to the utmost of my power, adore and love thee. O boundless Love, when shall I love thee in heaven, without either coldness or interruption, which, alas ! too often seize me here below ? When, O my God, O when shall I have the trans- porting vision of thy most amiable goodness, that I may unalterably love thee, that I may never more offend thee? 0 thou whom my soul loveth, I would not desire heaven but because thou art there ; for thou makest heaven wherever thou art. 1 would not, O Jesu, desire life everlasting, but that I may there everlastingly love thee. O inexhaustible Love, do thou eternally breathe ' 1 John iii. 2. ; 1 Cor. xiii. 12. 2 1 Pet. i. 4. 1 Rev. xxi. 4. 4 Matt. xxv. 3 I THE CHURCH CATECHISM. ^57 love into me, that my love to thee may be eternally increasing, and tending towards infinity, since a love less than infinite is not worthy of thee. " AMEN." O thou great Author and Finisher of our faith, do thou daily increase my faith, and heighten my love ; O grant, that in holy ardours of love, to love cruci- fied, my love may at last ascend to the region of love, that I may have nothing to do, to all eternity, but to praise and to love thee, Amen. O infinite Love. Amen, amen. This office may be divided into several parts, and used on the Lord's days, or on holydays, especially on the great festivals of Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, in Lent also, and particidarly on Good-Friday, and before the reception of the blessed Sacrament, as is most suitable to the occasion, or to the state, temper, and disposition, of every devout soul. The fruits of Love. Q. " You said that your Godfathers and God- mothers did promise for you, that you should keep God's commandments. Tell me how many there be? A. " Ten. Q. " Which be they ? A. " The same which God spake in the twentieth chapter of Exodus, saying, I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. I. " Thou shalt have none other gods but me, s . 258 AN EXPOSITION OF II. " Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven image, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down to them nor worship them. For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, and visit the sins of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and shew mercy unto thousands, in them that love me, and keep my commandments. III. " Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain : for the Lord will not hold him guiltless, that taketh his name in vain. IV. " Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath- day. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all that thou hast to do ; but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God. In it thou shalt do no manner of work, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, thy cattle, and the stranger that is within thy gates : for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day, where- fore the Lord blessed the seventh day, and hal- lowed it. V. " Honour thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. VI. " Thou shalt do no murder. VII. "Thou shalt not commit adultery. VIII. " Thou shalt not steal. IX. " Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. X. " Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, uor his THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 259 servant, nor his maid, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is his. Q. " What dost thou chiefly learn by these com- mandments ? A. " I learn two things : my duty towards God, and my duty towards my neighbour. Q. " What is thy duty towards God { A. " My duty towards God is, I. II. " To believe in Him, to fear Him, and to love Him, with all my heart, with all my mind, with all my soul, and with all my strength : to worship Him, to give Him thanks, to put my whole trust in Him, to call upon Him. III. " To honour His holy name and His word : IV. " And to serve Him truly all the days of my life. Q. " What is thy duty towards thy neighbour ? A. " My duty towards my neighbour is, "To love him as myself, and to do to all men as I would they should do to me : V. " To love, honour, and succour my father and mother : to honour and obey the King, and all that are put in authority under him : to submit myself to all my governors, teachers, spiritual pastors and masters : to order myself lowly and reverently to all my betters : VI. " To hurt nobody by word or deed : VII. " To be true and just in all my dealings : VIII. " To bear no malice nor hatred in my heart. IX. " To keep my hands from picking and stealing : X. " And my tongue from evil-speaking, lying and slandering: s2 260 AN' EXPOSITION OF XI. " To keep my body in temperance, soberness and chastity : XII. " Not to covet nor desire other men's goods, but to learn and labour truly to get mine own living, and to do my duty in that state of life unto which it shall please God to call me." Q. You have shewed me how the creed presents to us the motives ; shew me next how the ten com- mandments contain the fruits or effects of divine love. A. Jesus our love, the great prophet of love, has given us this trial of our love, " if ye love me keep my commandents V Q. Are there not some general rules, very useful to be observed, in expounding the commandments ? A. Divine love does suggest to us the best rules, and is the best expositor to teach us the full impor- tance of every command. Q. Shew me how. A. The love of God does necessarily include these two things ; a tenderness to please, and a fearfulness to offend our beloved : and this love will be a sure guide to us, in both the affirmative and negative part of each command. Q. Express this more distinctly ? A. T do it in these following particulars. Rules for expounding the Commandments. i. O my God, when in any of thy commands a duty is enjoined, love tells me the contrary evil is forbidden ; when any evil is forbidden, love tells me 1 John xiv. 15. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 261 the contrary duty is enjoined ': O do thou daily increase my love to good, and my antipathy to evil. ii. Though thy commands and prohibitions, O Lord, are in general terms, yet let thy love direct my particular practice, and teach me, that in one general are implied all the kinds, and degrees, and occasions, and incitements, and approaches, and al- lowances, relating to that good or evil, which are also commanded2 or forbidden, and give me grace to pursue, or to fly them. in. O my God, keep my love always watchful, and on its guard, that in thy negative precepts I may continually resist evil ; keep my love warm with an habitual zeal, that in all thy affirmative precepts I may lay hold on all seasons and oppor- tunities of doing good. iv. Let thy love, O thou that only art worthy to be beloved, make me careful to persuade and engage others to love thee, and to keep thy com- mandments as well as myself3. v. None can love thee, and endeavour to keep thy holy commands, but his daily failings in his duty, his frequent involuntary and unavoidable slips, and surreptions, and wanderings, afflict and humble him 4; the infirmities of lapsed nature create him a kind of perpetual martyrdom, because he can love thee no more, because he can so little serve thee. But thou, t) most compassionate Father, in thy covenant of grace dost require sincerity 5, not perfec- tion ; and therefore I praise and love thee. 1 2 Cor. vi. 11. 3 Matt. v. 21, 22, 28. ; 1 Thess. v. 22. 3 Heb. x. 24. ; Matt. v. 16. 4 Prow xxiv. 10. 1 2 Cor. viii. 12. 262 AN EXPOSITION OF O my God, though I cannot love and obey thee as much as I desire, I will do it as much as I am able : I will, to the utmost of my power, keep " all thy commandments, with my whole heart, and to the end V' O accept of my imperfect duty, and supply all the defects of it by the merits, and love, and obe- dience, of Jesus thy beloved. VI. Glory be to thee, O thou supreme Lawgiver, for delivering these commands to sinful men ; they are the words which thou thyself, O great Jehovah, didst speak. O let me ever have an awful regard for every word thou hast spoken : O let me ever love thee for speaking them, and for giving us the laws of love. vn. Glory be to thee, O Lord God, who, to make every one of us sensible of our obligation, hast given all thy commands in the second person, and by saying thou, hast spoken in particular to every soul, that every soul might love and obey thee. Glory be to thee, O my God, who in this short abstract, in these ten commandments, hast comprised the full extent of our duty, all the effects of divine love. Teach me, O Lord, to examine my love by thy commands, that I may know how to please thee, that 1 may know wherein I have offended thee, and grieve for my offences, that I may bewail all my commissions of sin, all my omissions of duty. Teach me, O Lord, by this thy law, which is the rule of love, and of all my actions, to examine not only my several sins, but also all their several aggra- vations, whether they have been wilful, or known, or 1 Psalm cxix. 2. 6. 112. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 263 frequent, or obstinate, or habitual, or ensnaring to others, that love may shed the more tears, and in some measure proportion my contrition to my guilt. viii. Glory be to thee, O Lord God, who givest us Christians higher obligations to keep thy com- mands, than thou didst to the Jews : they had only the memory of their temporal deliverance out of the land of Egypt, and the house of bondage, set before them ; we are delivered out of the spiritual Egypt, from the bondage of sin, the power of Satan, and the torments of hell. O give us grace to exceed them as much in our love, and thanksgiving, and obedience, as we do in our blessings. ix. Glory be to thee, O great Jehovah, who, to constrain us to love and obey thee, art pleased to honour every faithful soul with a near and intimate propriety in thyself, and graciously to declare, I am the Lord thy God. O merciful Lord, what is it possible for me to desire more than to have thee for my God 1 ? If thou be my God, the relation ought to be mutual, and I must be thy servant : Lord, be thou mine, and I will be for ever thine. My Beloved is mine, and I am his. My God, my Father, my friend, my love, whatever is thine I will love ; and particularly thy law will I love for teaching me to love thee ; thy law I will highly esteem, and diligently read and study ; thy law shall be daily " my delight, my counsellor, and my meditation 2." 1 Gen. xvii. 7; Deut. xxvi. 17; Exod. xix. 5, G. 3 Psalm cxix. 24. 97. 264 AN EXPOSITION OF O my good God, keep me always thine, and let nothing ever divorce me from thy love. Q. You have laid down proper rules for inter- preting the commandments : shew me how they are divided. A. Into two sorts, or tables, suitable to the two respects they have to God, and to our neighbour. The first table. Q. Begin with the first table, and shew me the number and order of the commands which it con- tains. A. It contains the four first commands, which relate to God, and teach us the worship of God, even that reverential love we are to pay to God, which naturally arises from a true sense of his infinite both goodness and greatness. This worship of God is either inward or outward. The inward worship, being that of the heart, is the nobler of the two ; and this, together with the right object of our worship, is taught, in the first commandment, as the foundation of all the rest. The outward is comprised in the three following, which teach us the regulation of God's worship in reference to our gestures in the second, to our tongues in the third, to our time in the fourth. Q. Which are the duties of the second table ? A. They are the six remaining commands, which do all relate to our neighbour, of which I shall speak in their due place Q. What have you farther to observe of the com- mandments in general ? A. It is observable, that those which refer to THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 265 God are put first, to teach us, that the love of God is the chief and original command, and ought chiefly to be studied; and to teach us also, that all the duties of the second table must yield to the first, whenever they stand in any competition1. Q. Go all over the ten commandments in parti- cular, and shew me how they are all the genuine fruits and effects of divine love, exercised either in doing good, or eschewing evil. A. I shall gladly do it, and as distinctly as I pos- sibly can, taking every commandment apart. THE FIRST COMMANDMENT. Duties commanded. O thou, who only art Jehovah, if thou be my God, and if I truly love thee, I can never suffer any crea- ture to be thy rival, or to share my heart with thee ; I can have no other God, no other love, but only thee 2. O infinite Goodness, thou only art amiable ; what- ever is amiable besides thee, is no farther amiable, than as it bears some impressions on it of thy amia- bleness ; and therefore, all love, all glory be to thee alone. O my God, O my Love, instil into my soul so entire, reverential a love of thee 3, that I may love nothing but for thy sake, or in subordination to thy love. O Love, give me grace to study thy knowledge 4, that the more I love thee, the more I may love thee. 1 Luke xiv. 2G. 2 Matt vi. 24. 3 Deut. x. 12. ' John xvii. 3. 266 AN EXPOSITION OF O my God, O my Love, do thou create in me a stedfast faith ' in the veracity, a lively hope 2 in the promises, a firm trust 3 in the power, a confident reli- ance 4 on the goodness, and satisfactory acquiescence 5 in the all-sufficiency of thee my beloved. O my God, 0 my Love, do thou create in me an ardent desire of thy presence 6 an heavenly delight in the fruition 7, of thee my beloved. O my God, O my Love, fill my heart with thanks- giving 8 for the blessings, praise 9 of the excellence, adoration of the majesty 10, zeal " for the glory of thee my beloved. O my God, O my Love, fill my heart with a repen- tance u for offending, with a constant fear 13 of pro- voking thee, my beloved. O my God, O my Love, fill my heart with an affec- tive devotion li in prayer, and with a profound humi- lity 15 in ascribing all honour to thee, my beloved. O my God, O my Love, create in me a sincere obedience 16 to all the commands, a submissive patience 17 under all the chastisements, an absolute resignation ,8 to all the disposals of thee, my beloved. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound 19 in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of thy love, our souls may be con- tinually employed to praise and to love thee. 1 Heb. xi. 1. G. 2 1 Pet. i. 4. 3 Ps. ix. 10. 4 Ibid, xxxiv. 8. 5 Ibid. lxii. 1.2.5. 6 Ibid. xlii. 1. 7 Ibid, xxxvii. 4. 8 Ibid, xxxiv. 1. ° Ibid, cxlvii. 1. 10 Ibid, xeix.5. " 1 Cor. x. 31. ,2 Ezek. xviii.21. 13 Ps. cxii. 1. " James v. 16. 15 Ps. cxv. 1. 6 Matt. vii. -21. ,? Ps. xxxix. 0. ,eMatt.xxvi..39. 1 Phil.i. f). THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 267 O my God, O my Love, let me ever be seeking occasions to excite all I can J to adore and love thee. Sins forbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and to thy glory, All self-love2, and inordinate love of things below 3. All wilful and affected ignorance 4. All atheism 5, or having no God, and polytheism 6, or having more gods than one. All heresy 7, apostasy 8, and infidelity 9. All presumption10 and despair11, distrust 12, and carnal security 13. All voluntary humility, and worshipping of angels M ; reliance on the creature 15, or recourse to evil spirits 16; All unthankfulness 17 and irreligion 18, lukewarm- ness 19 and indifference 20. All impenitence 21 and disregard of divine wrath 22. All indevotion23 and pride 24, disobedience 25, impa- tience and murmuring26. All the least tendencies 27 to any of these impieties. From all these and the like hateful violations of 1 Ps. xxxiv. 3 ; cvii. 8. 2 2 Tim. iii. 2. 3 1 John ii. 15. 4 2 Thess. i. 8. 5 Ps. xiv. 1. 6 Jer. xvi. 11. 7 2 Pet. ii. 1. 8 Heb. x. 39. 9 2 Thess. ii. 12. 10 Ps. 1. 21. " Matt, xxvii. 5. 12 Ps. lxxviii.22. 13 Eccles. viii. 11. u Col. ii. 18. ,s Ps. Iii. 7. '6 Lev. xx. 6. 17 2 Tim. iii. 2. ie Ps. x. 4. 19 Rev. iii. 15, 1G. 20 Zeph. i. 12. 21 Luke xix. 41. n Isa. v. 12. " Isa. xxix. 13. 2i Prov. viii. 13. n Roin. ii. 8, 2" 1 Cor. x 10. 27 Ps. exli. 1. 2G8 AN EXPOSITION OF thy love, and from that vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and deliver all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never provoke thee. THE SECOND COMMANDMENT. Sins forbidden. 0 my God, O my Love, I know the true love of thee is incommunicable to any but thee ; and there- fore I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and to thy glory, All making of idols or false gods, or of graven images, with intent of worshipping and bowing down before them !. All representations and picturing of thee, O my God, by visible likenesses of things in heaven or in earth. All corporeal shapes, which are infinitely unsuit- able to thy invisible and spiritual nature, and dero- gatory from thy adorableness 2. All idolatry 3, and religious invocation of crea- tures 4. All sacrilege 5 and profanations of thy house, and of things sacred °. 1 Dent. vii. 25, 26 ; xxvii. 15. 'l Dent. iv. 15. ; Isa. xl. 18. ; Acts xvii. 29. 3 Isa. ii. 8, <). * Rev. xix. 10 ; xiv. !), 10. ' Prov. xx. -J."). '■ Malt. xxi. 13. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 269 All abuse, or disesteem, or carelessness of thy word \ and contempt of thy ministers 2. All superstitious or unlawful rites 3, superfluities or mutilations 4, irreverence or indecencies 5, in thy public worship, by which thou art any way dis- honoured. All resting; in mere outward observances 6, or refusing to give thee bodily worship and to fall down before thee 7. All the least tendencies to any of these impieties. From all these and the like violations of thy in- communicable love, and from that vengeance they justly deserve ; O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and deliver all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties commanded. O my God, O my Love, imprint on my soul an awful love of thy majesty 8, that I may " worship thee in spirit and in truth9," and in a manner worthy of thee. 0 my God, O my Love, make me so tender of the honour of thee my beloved, that I may shew a due regard to all the parts of thy worship. That with lowest humiliation of soul and body10, 1 Matt. xiii. 15.; James i. 22. 2 Luke x. 16. 3 Jer. x. 2, 3. 4 Deut. iv. 2. ; Ps. cvi. 39. 5 Eccles. v. 1. ; Mai. i. 7, 8, 14. 6 Matt. xv. 8, 11. Isa. xlv. 23. R Isa. viii. 13- ? John iv. 24. 10 Ps. xcv. <>. ; Matt. xxvi. 39. 270 AN EXPOSITION OF whenever I appear in the presence of infinite Love, " I may fall down and adore thee." O my God, O my Love, O may I always enter thy house, the habitation of unbounded love, with recol- lected thoughts, composed behaviour, becoming reve- rence, and sincere intentions of love ' ! O my God, 0 my Love, O may I ever frequent the public prayers, and approach thine altar with fervent and heavenly affections, with holy impatience for the blessings of thy love 2 ! O my God, O my Love, O may I always read and hear thy word, the heavenly register of thy love, with a serious attention, and inflammable heart, and a particular application, and ever learn from it some lesson of thy love 3 ! O my God, O my Love, for thy dearest sake give me grace to pay a religious, suitable veneration 4 to all sacred persons, or places 5 or things 6, which are thine by solemn dedication, and separated for the uses of divine love, and the communications of thy grace, or which may promote the decency and order of thy worship, or the edification of faithful people 7. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of thy love, our souls may be con- tinually employed to praise and to love thee. 0 my God, O my Love, let me ever be seeking oc- casions to excite all I can, to adore and to love thee. 1 Gen. xxviii. 17 ; John ii. 17. 2 Ps. lxxxiv. 1, &c. xlviii. 9. xxxvi. 8. lxiii. 1, 2. 5. a Luke viii. 15 ; 1 Thess. ii. 13. 4 Matt. x. 40. 5 Lev. xix. 30. 6 Ezek. xxii. S. 26. 7 J Cor. xiv. 1. 26. 40. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 271 The reason of the Commandment. Thou, O my God, O my Love, art " a jealous God," jealous of thy own honour \ and of the chasteness of my love : O let me never run after other loves, or commit spiritual adultery against thee, to provoke thee to anger. Thou, O my God, O my Love, dost " visit the ini- quities of the fathers upon the children ;" thou, " when thy jealousy burns like fire 2," against idolaters, and those that rob thee of thy worship, art wont to punish them in their very posterity, with temporal evils, and with spiritual too, when their children tread in their steps; for then thou makest their fathers' sins occasions of hastening, or of increasing thy judgments, though thou always sparest the chil- dren that repent 3 : O let thy just indignation, against violating thy worship, deter me, and all that profess thy name, from such violations. Thy jealousy, O my God, O my Love, falls heavy " upon them that hate thee ;" but how is it possible for any one to hate thee, who art infinite love ? And yet, alas ! all that are enemies to thy divine worship; all that exalt any lust, any creature, into thy throne, to ascribe their happiness, to sacrifice their esteem, and zeal, and affections, and to ofter up sovereign honours to it ; what do they do but love false gods, and hate thee, and are therefore hated by thee 4 ? 0 Lord God, to hate thee is the proper character 1 Deut. iv. 24 ; Isa. xlii. 8 ; Exod. xxxiv. 14, 15. - Ps. lxxix. 5. :i Isa. lxv. 6, 7 ; Ezek. xviii. 17, 20 ; Jer. xxxi. 30. 1 Deut. vii. 10. 272 AN EXPOSITION OF of devils, and Lucifer himself cannot sin beyond that utmost extremity of evil, the hatred of thee ; and my heart is full of horror and grief, to think, that ever those that bear thy image, and daily subsist by thy love, should turn themselves into devils, and this world into a hell, by hating thee ' ; O boundless Love, turn them, O turn them into men again, and then they cannot choose but love thee. Glory be to thee, O my God, " who shewest mercy to them that love thee and keep thy command- ments:" love and obedience always go together, and entail a blessing on the posterity of thy lovers 2 : O keep me always one of that happy number ; O let me ever love and obey thee. Glory be to thee, O Lord God, whose love is more diffusive than thy anger ; thy vengeance extends but to the third, or, at most, " the fourth generation," thy " mercy unto thousands ;" and the more diffusive thy love is, the more powerfully it moves us to praise and to love thee. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT. Duties Commanded. 0 my God, O my Love, thy name is thy own glo- rious and amiable self3, thy divine nature, and per- fections, and works, most worthy to be adored, most worthy to be loved 4 ; and therefore I will always adore and love thy name. () my God, 0 my Love, may I ever have awful 1 1 John iii. 8. ; Rom. i. 30. ; John xv. 18. 5 Deut. iv. 40. a Ps. lxxxiii. 18 4 Ps. v. II. xxix. 2. Ixxii. lf». ; Ezek. xxxvi. 23. ; Neh. ix. .5. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 273 thoughts of thee l ! May I never mention thy vener- able name, unless on solemn, and just, and devout occasions ! May I never mention it on those occa- sions without acts of love and adoration 2 ! O my God, O my Love, to love and to glorify thy name, is the great end of our creation, which is still more enforced by our redemption : O let it be the greatest business of my whole life to love and to glo- rify it all the possible ways I can, by my mouth 3, by my conversation \ by my public confession of thee before men, even to death5, whenever thou art pleased to call me to it, by engaging all I can to glo- rify and love thee. 0 happy life, O blessed death, which is spent, and expires, in glorifying, in loving thee! O my God, O my Love, my heart shall ever be jealous of thy name 6. I can have no true love, no real concern for thee if I do not, to the utmost of my power, assert and vindicate the name of my beloved, whenever I hear it dishonoured. O my God, O my Love, fix in my soul an habitual pure intention of thy glory in all my actions " that whether I eat or drink, or whatever I do, I may do all to the glory7" of my beloved. OATHS. The Honour of God's Name is more 'particularly concerned in Oaths. 0 my God, O my Love, fill me with a religious 1 Ps. cxi. 9. 2 Isa. xii. 4. xlviii. 1. 3 Ps. li. 15. * Matt. v. 16. 5 Matt. x. 32.; 1 Pet. iii. 15. 6 1 Kings xix. 10. 7 1 Cor. x. 31. T 274 AN EXPOSITION OF awe of oaths, in which the honour of thy beloved name is so highly concerned. I know, O great Jehovah, that in an oath I solemnly invoke thee, as a witness to attest the truth of what I swear \ as a judge to punish me, if I swear falsely. Far be it from me, O Lord God, ever to swear, and in swearing to invoke thee, unless upon induce- ments lawful and important, when thy glory2, the command of my superiors, the visible good of my neighbour, " the ending of strife 3," or my own inno- cence, obliges me to do it ! O Lord God, whenever I am duly called to an assertory oath, grant I may swear " in truth, in righ- teousness, and in judgment V Whatever lawful promissory oaths I take, Lord, give me grace conscientiously to perform them, " (hough to my own hindrance V vows. And in Vows. The glory of thy most beloved name, O great Jeho- vah, next to the truth of our oaths we invoke thee to attest, is concerned in the sincerity of those vows we offer thee to accept 6 : O do thou therefore create in me a serious sense of the religiousness of vows, that my vows may not dishonour thee. 0 my God, O my Love, whenever I voluntarily vow a vow to thee, give me grace to vow with all the due caution I can, that I may vow those things only 1 Gen. xxxi. 50. 53. Deut. vi. 13. J Heb. vi. 16. ' Jer. iv. 2. " Ps. xv. 1. ; 2 Sam. xxi. 7. " Eccles. v. 5. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 275 which are lawful and acceptable to thee \ and which thou hast put in my power 2, that I may vow with deliberation and ghostly advice, and on weighty and considerable occasions only, and with a design of glory 3, and thankfulness, and love to thee. O my God, O my Love, give me grace faithfully to perform all the vows I make to thee \ especially my baptismal vow, and all my repeated vows of amend- ment, in which I have so often vowed to glorify and love thy name. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that pro- fess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possi- ble instances of thy love, our souls may be continually employed to praise and to love thee. O my God, O my Love, let me ever be seeking oc- casions to excite all I can to adore and love thee. Sins forbidden. O my God, O my Love, who is there that knows thy great, thy beloved name, can ever in the least dishonour it 5 ? 0 my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as di- rectly opposite to thy love, and to thy glory ; All " taking of thy name in vain." All use of it on trivial occasions, and without holy awe 6. All abuse of it in impious jests, in charms, or curses, or imprecations, or telling fortunes, or explo- 1 Gen. xxviii. 20, 21, 22. - Num. xxx. 5. 8. 3 Ps. cxxxii. 2. 4 Ps. lxi. 8. : Dcut. xxviii. 58. 6 Ps. cxxxix. 20. ■ 276 AN EXPOSITION OF ratory lots ' ; all irreverent thoughts of thy name 2, profaneness and blasphemy 3. All denying thee by my works 4, or refusing pub- licly to confess thee, when called to it 5, or tamely enduring to hear thee dishonoured 8. All heathenish, or customary, or rash oaths, or swearing in ordinary communication, or by any creature 7. All breaking of lawful oaths, perjury, false swear- ing, and invoking thee, O God of truth, to attest a lie, sins most destructive to public faith and society, and to our own souls, and most dishonourable and hateful to thee 8. All hasty, or unlawful, or superstitious, or impos- sible vows9, all breaking those that are regularly made10. All the least tendencies to any of these impieties. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and from that vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and deliver all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. The Threat annexed to the Commandment. 0 great Jehovah, thou art jealous for thy glorious and beloved name; and without a particular and 1 Deut. xviii. 10, 11, 12. v Ps. x. 11. 13. 1. 21. :' James ii. 7. ; Lev. xxiv. 10. 4 Tit. i. 10. ' John xii. 42. 0 Ps. cxxxix. 21. 7 Matt. v. 34,35, 36, 37. 8 Zech. viii. 17. v. 4. ; Jer. xxiii. 10. ; Hos. iv. 2, 3. • Mai. i. 14. ; Jer. xliv. 25. 10 Ps. xxii. 25. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 277 serious repentance, thou " wilt not hold him guilt- less, that taketh it in vain ;" thou wilt pour on him the phials of thy wrath, thy wrath eternal ' ; and yet thy ever blessed name, is, alas ! alas ! daily, hourly, blasphemed 2. O apostate, infamous world, wherein Infinite Good- ness is so often blasphemed ! Were not thy name Love3, O Lord, as well as Jehovah, thou hadst long ago avenged thyself of the blasphemous world, with a vengeance worthy of God. Glory be to thee, O long-suffering Love, for thy forbearance, efficacious of itself to convert the whole world, did the world but seriously consider it. O Almighty Love, thou canst as easily diffuse thy love over the world, as thou didst at first diffuse light : O let thy fear, and thy love, so universally affect the age, that thy great and beloved name may be universally adored and loved. THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT. Duties Commanded. Glory be to thee, O my God, O my Love, who, in compassion to human weakness, which is not capable of an interrupted contemplation of thee, such as the saints have above, hast appointed a solemn day on purpose for thy remembrance. Glory be to thee, O my God, my Love, for propor- tioning a seventh part of our time to thyself, and liberally indulging the remainder to our own use. 0 my God, O my Love, let me ever esteem it my privilege, and my happiness, to have a day of rest set apart for thy service 4, and the concerns of my own 1 Ps lxxiv. 10. 18. 22. 23. a Isa. lii. 5. 3 1 Johniv. 8. 4 Isa. lviii. 13. 278 AN EXPOSITION OF soul : to have a day free from distractions, disengaged from the world, wherein I have nothing to do, but to praise and to love thee. Lord grant, that I may not only on thy day give thee due worship myself, but may give rest and leisure also to my family, to all under my charge, to serve thee also \ to indulge ease to my very beasts, miicc good men are merciful even to them 2. Glory be to thee, O blessed Spirit, who on the first day of the week didst descend in miraculous gifts and graces on the apostles 3 : O descend upon me, that I may be always " in the Spirit on the Lord's Day." O my God, O my Love, give me grace on thy day to worship thee in my closet, and in the congrega- tion, to spend it in doing good \ in works of neces- sity, devotion and charity, in prayer, and praise, and meditation: O let it ever be to me a day sacred to divine love, a day of heavenly rest and refreshment. Thou, O my God, O my Love, didst ordain the Judaical Sabbath as a shadow of the true Gospel- sabbath 5 : O may I every day keep an Evangelical Sabbath, and rest from my sins, which are my own works, while I live here : and may I celebrate an eternal Sabbath with thee 6 in heaven hereafter ! O my God, O my Love, for the like purposes of piety, and of thy glory, give me grace to sanctify the feasts and fasts of thy Church 7, as in the number of ' Josh. xxiv. 15. - Prov. xii. 10. ; Acts ii. 1. * Mark iii. 4. Col. ii. 10, 17. Heb. iv. 9. T xlii. 1. : Isa. lviii. 0. 7, 8 10 THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 279 those Happy days set apart for the remembrance of thy love. Reason of the Commandment Glory be to thee, O Lord God, who didst com- mand the " Sabbath or seventh day to be kept holy," and strictly observed by the Jews as thy Sabbath, in memory of the creation ' ; of thy " making heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and of thy resting the seventh day, of thy blessing the seventh day and hallowing it." We Christians, O Lord God, following the moral equity of thy command, and authorized by apostoli- cal practice2, " celebrate the Lord's Day 3 " "the first day of the week," in memory of our redemption, in memory of thy resurrection from the dead, O most beloved Jesu, when thou didst rest from the labours and sorrows of the new creation 4 : O may I ever remember thy day, and thee ! Glory be to thee, O my God, my Love, who hast under the gospel delivered us from the rigours, but not from the piety of the Jewish Sabbath. Lord, since the blessing of everlasting salvation, which we Christians on thy day commemorate, does wonderfully exceed the creation commemorated by the Jews ; O let our love, and praise, and devotion, and zeal, proportionably exceed theirs also 5. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound G in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and all other pos- : Gen. ii. 2. Acts xx. 7. ; 1 Cor, xvi, '.'. :i Rev. i. 10. ' Luke xxiv. 1. Matt. v. 20. r' Phil. i. 9. 280 AN EXPOSITION OF sible instances of thy love, our souls may be con- tinually employed to praise and to love thee. O my God, O my Love, let me ever be seeking oc- casions to excite all I can, to adore and love thee. Sins Forbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly op- posite to thy love, and to thy glory, All profanations of thy hallowed day, and of all other holy times1 dedicated to thy praise and thy love. All Judaizing severities 2, all worldly-mindedness, and unnecessary business3, or not allowing those under my care, liberty and leisure for thy service 4 on thy day. All unmercifulness to my very beasts 5. All indevotion, or forgetfulness of thee 6. All the least tendencies to any of those impieties. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and from that vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and deliver all faithful people. 0 my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. The Seco?id Table. Next to thy glorious self, O my God, O my Love, 1 Ezek. xx. 13. 1G. 24. 2 Mark ii. 24. ; Luke vi. 7. 3 Neh. xiii. 15. l Deut. xii. 7. 8 Luke xiii. 15. 8 Deut. vi. 12. viii. 14. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 281 and for the sake of thy supreme, independent love, thou hast commanded me to love my neighbour, allied to me by nature, or by grace, all strangers and enemies, as well as friends ' ; "to honour all men," as being made after thy likeness, and the greater likeness they retain to thee, to honour them the more 2 : glory be to thee. Thou, O my God, O my Love, hast commanded me to love my neighbour as myself : O for the sake of thy love, give me love to relieve and assist him in all instances wherein he may need my help, as freely, as fully, as affectionately, as I myself would desire to be treated, were I in his condition 3. 0 my God, O my Love, for the sake of thy dearest love, give me grace to love my neighbour, " not in word, and in tongue only, but in deed and in truth4;" to wish well to all men, and to contribute my hearty prayers and endeavours, to give them, for thy sake, all lawful, and reasonable, and necessary succours 5. Glory be to thee, O my God, O my Love, who commanding me to love my neighbour as myself, dost imply the regular love of myself6 ; that I should do all I can to preserve myself free and vigorous to glorify thee in my station : it is for thy sake only I can love myself, and he does not wish or endeavour his own happiness, he really hates himself, that does not love thee. Thou, Lord, by enjoining me to love my neigh- bour as myself, has intimated my duty of loving those best, which either in blood are nearest my 1 Lukex. 29,30. 2 1 Pet. ii. 17. 8 Matt. vii. 12. 4 1 John iii. 18. 5 Col. iii. 12. ' Eph. v. 29. 282 AN EXPOSITION OF natural self, or in grace nearest my Christian self: O let thy love teach me to observe the true order of charity in loving others. O thou Eternal Source of Goodness, give me grace to imitate that boundless goodness ; let thy love work in me an universal propension to love, and to do good to all men, to be merciful to others, as thou, Lord, " art merciful V Q. Shew me how the love of your neighbour is in the second table divided. A. The love of my neighbour, which is the ful- filling of the law of all the commands of the second table, is divided according to those different condi- tions of our neighbour, wherein we most exercise our love or hatred to him. Q. In how many ruling instances may we exercise that love or hatred ? A. Either in outward acts, or inward disposition. Q. How in outward acts ? A. Five several ways, in respect of his superiority in the fifth commandment. His safety, in the sixth. His bed, in the seventh. His property, in the eighth ; or, His good name, in the ninth. Q. How in our inward disposition ? A. By regulating our very desires in relation to him, as the tenth obliges us to do. Q. Let me hear how divine love moves in each of these commands? A. It moves in such acts as follow. ' Luke vi. ;j(i THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 283 THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT. Duties commanded in general. Let thy reverential love, O my God, teach and incline me to show respectful love to all my supe- riors, in my inward esteem, in my outward speech and behaviour1. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who hast comprehended all that arc above me, under the tender and vener- able names of father and mother, that I looking on them as resemblances and instruments of thy sove- reign power and paternal providence to me, may be the more effectually engaged for thy sake to reve- rence and love them. In particular ; of natural Parents. O my God, give me grace to imitate thy paternal goodness, and for the sake of thy love, to love and cherish, and provide for, to educate, and instruct, and pray for my children2; to take conscientious care to give them medicinal correction, and good example, and to make them thy children, that they may truly love thee. Of Children. 0 my God, give me grace, for the sake of thy love, to honour my father and mother, to render them all love, reverence, and thankfulness, and all that regard which is due from a child 3, that I may 1 1 Pet. ii. 17. 2 Dcut. vi. 6, 7. : Eph. vi. 4. ; Col. iii. 21. ; 2 Cor. xii. I J. Eph. vi. I 2, 3. ; Col. iii. 20. 284 AN EXPOSITION OF pay obedience to their commands, submission to their corrections, attention to their instructions, and succour to their necessities \ and may daily pray for their welfare. Of political Parents. The King. Thou, O Lord, hast set our most gracious king over us 3 as our political parent, as thy supreme mi- nister, to govern and protect us, and to be a terror to those that do ill : O grant him a long and happy reign, " that we may all live a peaceable and quiet life under him, in all godliness and honesty 3." De- fend him from all his enemies ; let him be ever be- loved by thee, and let him ever love thee, and ever promote thy love. The Royal Family. Multiply, O Lord God, the blessings of thy love on his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, the Princess Dowager of Wales, and all the royal family : give them grace to exceed others, as much in good- ness as in greatness, and make them signal instru- ments of thy glory, and examples of thy love. Of Subjects. 0 my God, give grace to me, and to all my fellow subjects, next to thy own infinite self, to love and honour, to fear and obey our sovereign lord the king, thy own vicegerent, " for conscience-sake 4," 1 Matt. xv. 4. &c. J Prov. viii. 15. 3 1 Tim. ii. 1, 2. 4 Rom. xiii. 1, &c. ; 1 Pet. ii. 13. ; Tit. iii. 1. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 285 and for thy own sake, who hast placed him over us : O may we ever faithfully render him his due tri- bute ; O may we ever pray for his posterity, sacrifice our fortunes and our lives in his defence, and be al- ways ready rather to suffer than resist. Of Ecclesiastical Parents. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who hast ordained pastors, and hast given them the power of the keys; to be our ecclesiastical parents ; to watch over our souls ; to instruct us in saving knowledge ' ; to guide us by their examples ; to pray for, and to bless us ; to administer spiritual discipline in thy Church, and to manage all the conveyances of thy divine love. Of the People under their Care. O my God, for thy love's sake, let me ever honour and love the ministers of thy love, "the ambassadors thou dost send in thy stead, to beseech us sinners to be reconciled to thee 2 ;" to offer thy enemies condi- tions of love, of love eternal : O may I ever hear them attentively, practise their heavenly doctrine, imitate their holy examples, pay them their dues, and revere their censures 3 ! Of (Economical Parents, Master and Mistress. O my God, for the sake of thy love, grant I may ever love, and provide for my servants, [servant] and may treat them like brethren ; let me never exact from them immoderate work : O may I always give them just wages, and equitable commands, and good 1 Mai ii. 7. 3 2 Cor. v. 20. 3 Heb. xiii. 7. 17.; 1 Tim. v. 17. 28G AN EXPOSITION OF example, and merciful correction : grant, Lord, T may daily allow them time for their prayers, indulge them due refreshments, and may take care of their souls, and persuade them to love thee; remembering "that I also have a master in heaven V Of Servants. Give me grace, O my God, for the sake of thy love, to honour, and love, and obey my master, [and mistress] and to serve him [her] with diligence and faithfulness, and readiness to please 2 and to pray for him [her, them] ; " and whatever I do, to do heartily, as to thee, O Lord, and not to him" [her, them]. Of other Superiors. O my God, let thy love incline me to love, and to honour all whom thou hast any way made my supe- riors, suitable to their quality 3, or age, or gifts, or learning, or wisdom, or gravity, or goodness. O my God, grant that, for thy sake, I may ever love and honour all that are, or have been, instru- ments of thy love to me, in doing me good : O may I reverence my teachers \ be grateful to my benefac- tors, and may I have always a peculiar respect to my particular pastor ! Of equals and inferiors. 0 my God, let thy love engage me to love those whom thou hast obliged to love me; to shew con- 1 Col. iv. 1. ; Eph. vi. 9. 2 1 Tim. vi. 1,2.; Col. iii. 22, 23, 24. ; Eph. vi. 5, (i, 7, 8. 8 Lev. xix. 32. ; 1 Tim. v. 1, 2, 3. ; 1 Pet. v. 5. 1 Gal. vi. 6. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 287 stancy, and fidelity, and sympathy, and love, and communicativeness to my friend ; to be affectionate to my brethren and sisters ; to be kind and affable to my equals, condescending to my inferiors ; to be, all the possible ways I can, universally helpful, and obliging, and loving to all \ O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of duty, our lives may be continu- ally employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour and to excite our neighbour to love thee. The several forms which contain the duties of parent and child, of master and servant, Sfc. are to be used by every one according as may suit with his circum- stances, or as he stands in any of those relations. Sins forbidden. 0 my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and the love of my neighbour, for thy sake ; All dishonour to our superiors, in either despising them, speaking evil of them, or in irreverent be- haviour. All unnaturalness to children. All undutifulness, or stubbornness, or disobedience, or disrespect, to parents 1 Rom, xiii. 10. ; 1 Pet. iii. 8. 2 2 Tim. iii. 2, 3, 4. 12 288 AN EXPOSITION OF All rebelling, or reviling, or murmuring against the king, or against his ministers !. All defrauding, undervaluing or rejecting lawful pastors 2. All schism8, and contempt of their regular censures. All falseness, or negligence, or refractoriness to masters or mistresses \ All rudeness, ingratitude, treachery, want of bro- therly love, and unfaithfulness. All the least tendencies to any of these impieties. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and of the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Promise annexed to the Commandment. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who, to teach us the importance of this duty of subjection, hast placed it the first of all the second table, of all that relate to our izeighbour, and hast made it the first command- ment with a promise 3 to every soul that conscienti- ously keeps it, that " thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.'' Who would not love and obey thee, O my God, 1 1 Sam. xxvi. 9. ; Eccles. x. 20. ; Acts xxiii. 5. J Matt. x. 14. 3 1 Cor. i. 10. ; 3 John 9. * Tit. ii. 9, 10. ; Mai. ii. 10. 5 Eph. vi. 2. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 289 and for thy sake his superiors, when thou hast pro- mised to reward our duty with a long happy life here, or if thou seest it best for us, and to " take us away from the evil to come x," by living a long tract of holiness in a little time, and at last, by prolonging our bliss to all eternity in heaven ? for which gracious promise, all love, all glory, be to thee. THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT. Sins Forbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as di- rectly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbours, for thy sake, All duels and unlawful war 2. All doing hurt to the body and life of my neigh- bour, directly, by wounding or murdering him 3. Indirectly, by contriving or employing others to harm him \ All the ways of procuring abortion 5. All malice and envy, hatred 6 and revenge, conten- tion and cruelty. All injury and violence, all rash, causeless, immo- derate or implacable anger7, or contumelious speak- ing or reviling 8. All wilful vexing, grieving or disquieting him. All threatening, ill-wishes, or curses9. ' Isa. lvii. 1. 2 James iv. 1, 2.; Gen. iv. 10, 11. 3 Gal. v. 21. 4 Luke xxii. 2. 5 Exod. xxi. 22, 23. 6 Tit. Hi. 3. 7 Eph. iv. 26.; Rom. i. 30, 31. 8 Matt. v. 22. 9 Eph.iv. 29. 31. U 290 AN EXPOSITION OF All needless endangering ourselves, and self- murder1. All murdering of souls 2, by encouraging, ensnar- ing, tempting, commanding them to sin. All the least tendencies to any of these impieties. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and of the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and ab- hor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties Commanded. O my God, O my Love, let thy unwearied and tender love to me, make my love unwearied and tender to my neighbour, and zealous to procure, pro- mote, and preserve his health, and safety, and happi- ness, and life, that he may be the better able to serve and to love thee. 0 my God, O my Love, make me like thy own self, all meekness and benignity 3, all goodness and sweetness, all gentleness and long-suffering. Fill me full of good wishes and compassion, of liberality in alms-giving, according to my abilities 4, and of readiness to succour and relieve, and comfort, and rescue, and pray for all, whom thy love, or their own necessities, or miseries, or dangers, recommend to my charity \ 1 1 Tim. v. 23. ; Eph. v. 29. 2 1 Tim. v. 22. 3 2 Cor. x. 1. ; Gal. v. 22. * 1 John iii. 17. 5 1 Cor. xiii. -1. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 291 O let thy love, thou God of love, make me peace- ful and reconcileable, always ready to return good for evil, to repay injuries with kindness \ and easy to forgive, unless in those instances, where the impunity of the criminal would be injustice or cruelty to the public. O thou Lover of Souls, let thy love raise in me a compassionate zeal to save the life, the eternal life of souls 2 ; and by fraternal, and affectionate, and seasonable advice or exhortation, or corrections, to reclaim the wicked, and to win them to love thee. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of duty, our lives may be continu- ally employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT. Sins fwbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as di- rectly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbour, for thy sake, All adultery, and violations of my neighbour's bed, in the gross act, robbing him of that he loves best. All adultery and unchastity of the eye, or the hand 3. * Matt. v. 44. ; Rom. xii. 20 3 Dan. \ii, 3.: ; Jam. v . 20. 3 Matt. v. 29. u2 2!)2 AN EXPOSITION OF All the kinds or degrees of lust, fornication, pol- lution of our own bodies, and works of darkness, which it is a shame to mention '. All things that provoke or feed lust, impure com- pany, discourse, songs, books, or pictures 2. All lascivious dresses 3, or dances, or plays ; all idleness or luxurious diet 4. All the excesses or abuses of lawful marriage, all unreasonable jealousies, and all things that lessen the mutual kindness, or alienate the affections, of those that are married 5. All the least tendencies to any of these impurities. From all these and the like hateful violations of thy love, and the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me and all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties commanded. 0 my God, O my Love, let thy purest love, who art purity itself, create in me a perfect abhorrence of all impurity, that I may purify myself as thou, Lord, art pure ,;. 1 know, O Lord, that I can never be partaker of the divine nature, unless I escape the pollution that 1 Eph. v. 11, 12. ; iv. 19. s Eph. iv. 29. 3 Eph. v. 3, 4, 5. ; 1 Tim. ii. 9. ; 1 Pet. i. 4 Rom. xiii. 13, 14. ; 1 Pet. iv. 3. - 1 Tim. ii. 12. ; Matt. xix. <>. 6 1 John iii. 3. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 293 is in the world through lust ' : O do thou therefore " cleanse me from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, that I may perfect holiness in thy fear 2 :" give me grace "to possess my vessel in sanctification and honour3," and to keep thy temple holy, that thy Spirit of love may always there inhabit. O my God, let my love be chaste to thee, chaste to myself, chaste to my neighbour. O my God, may thy love set a strict guard on my senses, turn away mine eyes *, stop mine ears, bridle my tongue, and restrain my hand, from all unclean- ness ! Lord, give me grace to fly 5 all incitements, or opportunities, or instruments of defiling either my neighbour or myself, to beat down my body, and to bring it into subjection 6. O my love, let me live ever watching or praying, or profitably employed or busied in thy love, that I may leave no room, if possible, for any unclean spirit to enter into my soul, and tempt me. O my God, O my Love, let thy all powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of duty, our lives may be contin- ually employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. Duty of married Persons. O thou God of love, who hast ordained the mar- 1 2 Pet. i. 4. 2 2 Cor. vii. 1. 3 1 Thess. iv. 4. 1 Job xxxi. 1.7. 5 2 Tim. ii. 22. ■ 1 Cor. ix. 27. 294 AN EXPOSITION OF riage state for the cure of our passion \ and the comfort of our life 2, and hast made it the emblem of that divine love and union thou art pleased to bear towards thy Church 3 : let the force of thy mystical love teach us to love each other, and both of us to love thee. O thou, who hast made us one flesh, make us but one soul also ; let our love be mutual, constant and inviolate \ full of compliance, and condescensions, and sympathy, and forbearance towards each other. Fill us, O God of love, with reciprocal care, and zeal, and charity, for each other's happiness, tempo- ral and eternal, and with a delight in each other, exclusive of all loves but thine. Lord, give us grace to keep our " marriage always honourable, and our bed undefiled 5 ;" let the affec- tionate authority of the one, and the submissive sweetness of the other, produce an entire friendship and harmony of dispositions, and fervent intercessions for each other : give us, O Lord, an unafflicting fore- sight of our parting here, and a passionate longing to be beatified near each other, in neighbouring mansions above, that from henceforth our love to each other, and to thee, maybe co-eternal with thine. THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT. Sins fwbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as di- . 1 Cor. vii. 2. 2 Gen. ii. 20. : Eph. v. 22, 23, 24, &c. 1 Col. iii. 18, 19. ; 1 Pet. iii. 1, 17. ; 1 Cor. vii. 3, 4, .5. Ilcb. xiii. I. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 295 rectly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbour, for thy sake, All kinds of stealing, by open robbery, violence, or invasion1. All oppression, or extortion, or rapine 2, vexatious law-suits, or griping usury. All fraud in trade and contracts, false weights, and measures, and coin 3. All concealing the defects of our own goods, or depreciating those of our neighbour 4. All making haste to be rich, or taking advantage of the ignorance or necessity of the persons we deal with. All withholding our neighbours' dues, or detain- ing the " hire of the labourer \" All borrowing and not paying, injurious keeping the goods of others 6, and refusing to make resti- tution 7. All breach of trust, or removing of land-marks 8, wasteful prodigality, avaricious gaming, or idle beg- ging. All outrages to the fatherless, the widow, and the stranger 9. All the least tendencies to any of these acts of injustice. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and of the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and all faithful people. 1 Eph. iv. 28. ; 1 Pet. iv. 15. 2 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10. 3 lThess. iv. 6.; Amos viii. 5. 4 Prov. xx. 14. 5 James v. 4. 6 Ps. xxxvii. 21. 7 Luke xix. 8. 8 Prov. xxii. 22, 23. 28. 9 Jer. vii. 6. 296 AN EXPOSITION OF O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties commanded. 0 my God, O my Love, let the love of thy eternal and amiable justice teach me a steady justice in giv- ing all men their due, since I cannot love my neigh- bour, if I am unjust to him. Lord, give me grace to use my neighbour as my friend, as myself, to buy and sell by just weights and measures, and to be content with moderate gain l. To pay debts and wages, and conscientiously to make restitution for injuries or wrongs, or for goods unlawfully gotten *. Teach me, O my God, to use this world so as not to abuse it 3 ; to receive and manage all thy temporal blessings with thankfulness to thee, sobriety to my- self, and charity to all besides 4. Make me ever, 0 my God, upright and faithful in trusts, and trade, and agreements, diligent and honest in my station and calling5, and according to my ability, willing to lend and remit to my poor neigh- bours 6. Whenever, O my God, I am forced to go to law, 0 let me ever contend more for right than victory, and in all prosecutions preserve a charitable and an equitable disposition 7. 1 Prov. xi. 1. xx. 10. 17. 21. 2 Matt. v. 23. 3 1 Cor. vii. 31. ' Luke xi. 41. 5 2 Thess. iii. 10. 12. " IV xxxvii. 26 7 Luke xvii. 3, 4. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 297 O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and all other pos- sible instances of duty, our lives may be continually employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. THE NINTH COMMANDMENT. Sins Forbidden. O my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbour for thy sake, All manner of " bearing false witness against my neighbour," all false accusations, or glosses, or plead- ings, or testimonies, or sentences in courts of judica- ture !, by concealing or over-speaking, or perverting right and truth. All things prejudicial or destructive to my neigh- bour's good name. All censoriousness 2 and slander, detraction and calumny, forced consequences, or invidious reflec- tions. All scoffing, or exposing the infirmities of others. All whispering 3 and tale-bearing, or raising of evil reports, suspicions or jealousies, and all evil- speaking. 1 Ps. lxxxii. 2. ; Matt. xxvi. GO. ; Tit. ii. 3. ; Micah iii. 9. 2 Matt. vii. 1. ; Prov. xxvi0 18, &c. ; James iii. 6. ; 2 Pet. ii. 12. 18. 3 Rom. i. 29. ; 1 Tim. v. 13. ; Exod. xxiii. 1. 298 AN EXPOSITION OF All equivocations and dissembling, flattery and lying1. All the least tendencies to any of these injurious falsehoods. From all these, and the like hateful violations of thy love, and of the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties Commanded. O my God, O my Love, who dost love truth, and dost hate a lie as perfectly diabolical, instil into my soul an unalterable love of truth, that nothing may tempt me to deviate from an entire veracity 2, in my whole conversation, or become a liar, which thy soul abhors. O Lord, give me grace ever to speak the truth, and let my heart and my tongue always go together. 0 my God, give me grace to be tender of my neighbour's good name 3, since I cannot love him, if I take that from him which I know to be most dear to him. Grant, O my God, for the sake of thy own love, that 1 may be always ready to vindicate my neigh- bour's good name on all occasions, that I may judge the best4, and speak well of him, and conceal or 1 Eph. iv. 15. 21. 8 Prov. xxiii. T?>. ; Ps. cxix. 163. : John viii. 11. 3 Prov. xxii. 1. ; Eccles. vii. 1. ' 1 Cor. xiii. b. 7. VI THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 299 excuse his infirmities ; that I may be impatient to hear, slow to believe, and unwilling to propagate evil reports ; that I may put candid interpretations on his actions, since the more he is defamed, the less able he is to serve thee, the less credit he has to persuade others to love thee. O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that pro- fess thy name, that in all these, and in all other pos- sible instances of duty, our lives may be continually employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. THE TENTH COMMANDMENT. Sins forbidden. 0 my God, O my Love, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbour, for thy sake, All the inordinate desire of what is my neighbour's, all coveting his house, or wife !, or servant, or maid, or ox, or ass, or any thing that is his. All discontentedness with my worldly condition, and worldly solicitude 2. All covetousness, or repining at the happiness of others 3. All taking pleasure in sin, or complaisance in past impurities 4. 1 Matt. v. 28. 2 Matt. vi. 24, 25, &c. xiii. 22. 1 1 Kings xxi. 4, 5. 4 Rom. i. 32.; James v. u. ; 2 Pet. ii. 13. 300 AN EXPOSITION OF All the first motions, all the least tendencies to concupiscence l. From all these and the like hateful violations of thy love, and of the love of my neighbour, and from the vengeance they justly deserve, O my God, O my Love, deliver me, and all faithful people. O my God, O my Love, I earnestly pray, that thy love, and the love of our neighbour, may so prevail over our hearts, that we may sadly lament and abhor all these abominations, and may never more provoke thee. Duties Commanded. O my God, O my Love, thou art the great searcher of hearts, and dost not only require outward acts of duty, but the inward disposition of the heart ; the heart is the chief sacrifice 2 thou requirest, the heart is the proper seat of thy love, and my heart I wholly devote to thee. 0 my God, "create in me a clean heart3," that the fountain of action being clean, the streams may run clean also. Give me a heart, O thou, who only canst change the heart, entirely turned to thee ; that may suppress and resist all the first springings of lust, before they shoot up into consent *, approbation and desire ; be- fore lust conceiving brings forth sin. Lord, make me contented 5, and thankful, and well pleased with that portion thy providential love has allotted me, and to acquiesce in thy choice ns best for me. 1 Matt. xv. 19. 2 Prov. xxiii. 2(i. iv. 23. ; Matt. xv. 19. 3 Ps. li. 10. •' .lames i. 11, 15. 5 Heb. xiii. 5. ; Phil. iv. 11, 12. : 1 Tim. vi. fi. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 301 O great Lord of hearts, lodge my neighbour in my heart next to myself; let all my desires be for his good, and let it be the subject of my joy \ and praise, and love, to see thy love liberal to him, to see him abounding in thy blessings. O my God, my Love, what can a soul enamoured of thee ever desire but thee ? O let the world never more have place in my heart : all my affections I withdraw from that to fix on thee. Forgive me, O my God, if I am immeasurably ambitious, it is only of thy favour ; forgive me, if I am insatiably covetous, it is only of thy fruition; forgive me, if I am perpetually discontented, it is only because I cannot love thee more. O inconceivable happiness of heaven ! where my ambition shall rest on a throne, where my covetous- ness shall be filled with the beatific vision, and where I shall be eternally satisfied with love ! O my God, O my Love, let thy all-powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and in all other possible instances of duty, our lives may be continu- ally employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. Q. " My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of thyself, nor to walk in the commandments of God, and to serve him, without his especial grace, which thou must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer. Let me hear there- fore, if thou canst say the Lord's Prayer. 1 Rom. xii. 15. 302 AN EXPOSITION OF A. " 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. — Amen. Q. " What desirest thou of God in this prayer ? A. " I desire my Lord God, our heavenly Father, who is the giver of all goodness, to send his grace unto me, and to all people, that we may worship him, serve him, and obey him as we ought to do. And I pray unto God, that he will send us all things that be needful both for our souls and bodies ; and that he will be merciful unto us, and forgive us our sins ; and that it will please him to save and defend us in all dangers, ghostly and bodily ; and that he will keep us from all sin and wickedness, and from our ghostly enemy, and from everlasting death. And this I trust he will do of his mercy and goodness, through our Lord Jesus Christ. And therefore I say, Amen. So be it." Previous Considerations. O infinite Love, it is my duty and my happiness to love thee ; but, alas ! my own sad experience teaches me how little able I ani to love. Our Impotence to Good. Ah, Lord! there is a dark cloud of ignorance spread over my soul, thai intercepts thy beams: f cannot clearly see, I cannot fully know, how lovely tlion art. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 303 Ah, Lord ! whenever any gleams of thy loveliness break in upon my spirit, and attract my will, a crowd of strange loves importune and tempt me to wan- der after them. God is our Refuge. Since, O my God, I can of myself neither know nor love thee, since I cannot by my own strength do " those things thou requirest, nor walk in thy com- mandments, nor serve thee," nor think so much as one good thought ' ; whither can I fly, but only to thy free and unbounded love ? Thou art my hope, my help, and my salvation 2 ; thou only canst teach and enable me to know and to love thy own goodness. Our Assistance from God. By thy special grace, O my God, by thy particular assistance, by the strength of thy love, " I can do all things 3 :" O let thy grace ever enlighten and inflame me ; let it ever prevent, and accompany and follow me ; let it ever excite, and increase, and support thy love in my heart : 0 let it ever work in me both " to will and to do of thy good pleasure V Gained by Prayer. I know, Lord, that thy grace, and all other bless- ings, " I must learn at all times to call for by dili- gent prayer ;" and I adore and love thy infinite be- nignity to sinners, in indulging us the privilege, the honour, the happiness, to pray to thee 5, to pour out 1 2 Cor. iii. 5. 2 Ps. Ixii. 7. ; John xv. 4, 5. 3 Eph. iii. 16. ; Phil. iv. 13. i Phil. ii. 13. 5 Rom. x. 13. 304 AN EXPOSITION OF our souls, to breathe out our desires, to present our wants, and to unbosom our griefs, at thy throne of love. Encouragements to Pray. I praise and I love thee, O sovereign Love, for not only permitting us miserable wretches to pray to thee, but also for giving us all imaginable encourage- ment to so important and divine a duty. I adore and love thee, O munificent Goodness, for inviting !, for commanding us to pray 2. I adore and love thee for pouring out thy holy " Spirit of grace and supplication 3 " on us, to help our infirmities, to assist us in praying, to make " intercessions for us, with sighs and groans that cannot be uttered 4," with the utmost ardours of a penitential and indigent love. I adore and love thee for giving us so many glorious promises 5 of hearing our prayers, so many firm assur- ances of a gracious acceptance. A Pattern of Prayer. O thou great Prophet of Divine Love, who, as if thy invitation, and command, and assistance, and promise, were not enough to move us to pray, hast condescended to teach us this duty thyself, and to give us a perfect pattern of prayer; for which I adore and love thee. A Form most Condescending. Glory be to thee, O blessed Master of Devotion, who in dictating a form of prayer, and enjoining us to 1 Ps. 1. 15. 3 Phil. iv. 6. 3 Zech. xii. 10. 4 Rom. viii. 26. s Matt. vii. 7. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 305 use it \ hast complied with our weakness, and warned us not to rely on rash and unpremeditated effusions ; who, in dictating a short form, hast taught us to avoid " vain repetitions," or " thinking we shall be heard for much speaking," and to measure our prayers rather by their fervency than length. Most Divine. That prayer, which was composed by thy own self, O God, that nearest prayer, we are sure is most di- vine and excellent, and perfect like its Author, and most agreeable and acceptable to thee ; for which I adore and love thee. Most Acceptable. O blessed Jesus, the only beloved of God, thou best understandest the language of love, and in that language thou hast taught us to pray ; and whenever we pray in that language, we have an humble confi- dence thy heavenly Father will hear us, who with the words of his own beloved Son will ever be well pleased ; and therefore I adore and love thee. Necessity of Prayer. Thou, O heavenly Guide of our devotion, and our love, by teaching us to pray, hast shewed us, that prayer is our treasury where all blessings are kept, our armoury where all our strength and weapons are stored, the only great preservative, and the very vital heat of divine love. Give me grace therefore to call on thee at all times by diligent prayer. 1 Mutt. vi. 7, 8, 9. ; Luke xi. 2. 306 AN EXPOSITION OF Misery of those ivho do not Pray. O the unspeakable misery of those, who either totally neglect the duty of prayer !, or else profane it by drawing near to God with their lips, when their hearts are far removed from him, whose prayers, being void of all devotion and concern, are turned into fresh sins 2 ! How deservedly shall he have God for his enemy, who would not beg pardon of a most reconcileable Father ? How deservedly shall he suffer eternal wrath, who thought heaven not worth the asking ? Prayer ought to be Daily. O my God, let me daily offer up to thee my morn- ing and evening sacrifice 3 in private, and in public too, if my circumstances permit ; and, as near as I can, let me omit no opportunities of praying, or of praising thee. Incessant. O my God, may I ever "keep myself in thy love, by praying in the Holy Ghost V and by "praying without ceasing5," since I incessantly want the suc- cours of thy love. Ah, Lord ! I know my devotion lias daily many unavoidable and necessary interruptions, and I can- not always be actually praying ; all T can do, is, to beg of thy love to keep my heart always in an habi- tual disposition to devotion, and in mindfulness of 1 Ps. x. 4. 2 Ps. cix. 7. 3 Ps. v. 3. cxli. 2. ' Jude 20, 21. 5 1 Thess. v. 17. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 307 thy divine presence, that I may perpetuate my prayer by frequent ejaculations. O my God, as thy infinite love is ever streaming in blessings on me, O let my soul be ever breathing love to thee. Joined with Reading and Meditation. 0 my God, to prayer, whereby I address to thee, give me grace to add the daily reading and medita- tion of thy word \ whereby thou art pleased to con- verse with me. It is of thy abundant love to us, O Lord, that thou indulgest us thy word in our own mother tongue, that from those dear volumes of thy love, every devout lover may daily, and on all occasions, supply proper fuel to his love ; for which, all love, all glory, be to thee. The Method of Prayer. 1 adore and love thee, O heavenly Oracle of Love, for contriving this prayer in that admirable method ; that thou hast withal taught us all the requisites of an acceptable prayer; thou, in the preface, hast taught us " how to pray :" in the petitions, for what to pray : and in the conclusion, what ought to be the end of our prayers : for which, I adore and love thee. FATHER. The Preface teacheth how to pray. To whom. To God only. Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who hast taught us to 1 Psalm i. 2. x2 308 AN EXPOSITION OF whom to direct our prayers, to God only \ since he only is omniscient to know, and all-sufficient to suc- cour us in, all our necessities. For Jesus' Sake. Glory be to thee, who hast taught us, for whose sake only we can hope to be heard, even for thy own, O blessed Jesus ; for it is through thy alone media- tion 2 that we sinners can call God Father, or have access to his throne. With the affections of a Child. Glory be to thee, O beloved Jesu, who, in teach- ing us to call God Father, hast taught us to pray with the affections of a child, with reverential love, and reliance on the paternal care, and benignity and love of our heavenly Father 3. OUR FATHER. Of a Brother. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who in teaching me to call God our Father, hast taught me not to confine my charity to myself, but to pray also with the affec- tions of a brother, and to enlarge it *, to all mankind, who are children by creation, to all Christians, who are children by adoption, of the same heavenly Father. O give me that brotherly kindness to them all, that I may beg the same blessings for them as for myself, 1 Ps. lxv. •_>. 2 John xvi. 23. ; Ephes. i. 6. ii. 18. ' Isa. lxiii. 15, 16. ; Luke xi. 13. ; Mai. i. C. 4 Ephes. iv. 6. ; 1 Pet. iii. 8. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 309 and earnestly pray, that they may all share with me in thy fatherly love. WHICH ART IN HEAVEN. With the Humility of a Suppliant. Glory be to thee, O thou Beloved of the Father, who, in teaching us to pray to "our Father in heaven," hast taught me the infinite distance between God and us, and to pray with the humility of a sup- pliant \ with that awe that becomes a frail creature, a miserable sinner, before his Creator and his judge. O Father Almighty, though thou fillest all places, yet thy glory is most manifested in heaven, and there thy majesty does most illustriously dwell, and to thy throne there 2 are we to lift up our hearts when we pray: O let my soul fly up to thee, when I pray, in heavenly thoughts, and desires, and love : O let me savour nothing of the earth, whenever I treat with thee in heaven ! Petitions in general teach us for what to pray. For things lawful. Glory be to thee, O gracious Lord, who, in the petitions of thy most divine prayer, hast taught us for what we are to pray ; for all blessings, temporal and eternal ; for all things lawful, " and according to thy will 3." And in what order. Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who, in ranking the 1 Eccles. v. 1. ; Heb. xii. 28, 29. 2 Ps. xi. 4.; Isa. lvii. 15. 3 1 John v. 14, 15. 310 AN EXPOSITION OF petitions for spiritual blessings first, hast taught us to seek heaven in the first place '. Grant, Lord, that I may always beg thy blessings in their due order, that I may pray for blessings spiritual with holy violence 2, with importunity, and resolution not to be denied, as being the proper ingredients of thy love, and absolutely necessary to my eternal welfare 3, and for temporal, with indifference and resignation to thy will, since I may love thee, and be eternally happy without them. HALLOWED BE THY NAME. In 'particular for blessings spiritual relating to God. O Lord God, may " thy name V thy own glorious and amiable self, have a love and honour separate, and incommunicable. May thy infinite goodness and greatness be for ever, by all men, and all angels, confessed, and admired, and adored, and magnified5, both in private and public, in our hearts, our mouths, and our lives. All creatures share in thy goodness 6, O God : O let all creatures help us to glorify thy name. " O may every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord!1' PHY KINGDOM COME. 0 thou King of kings, may "thy kingdom of grace 7," the church militant, the catholic seminary of divine love, come to its utmost evangelical per- fection in this life. 1 Matt. vi. 33. 2 Matt. xi. 12. :! Gen. xxxii. 20. 1 Psalm viii. 1. 9. ; cxi. 9. ' Psalm cxlviii. 8 Ps. cxlv. <>, 10. 7 Luke i. 32. Matt. iii. 2. Col. i. 13. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 311 O may thy gospel, Lord, be daily propagated, un- believing nations converted ', and the number of thy saints augmented. Grant, O Lord God, that thy true religion, thy word, thy conveyances of grace, all the holy institu- tions, laws and governors, fixed by thee in thy spi- ritual kingdom 2, may be loved, and honoured, and obeyed ; and that thy faithful subjects may be pro- tected against all the malice of wicked men, or the powers of darkness 3. O my God, let it be thy good pleasure to put a period to sin and misery, to infirmity and death ; to complete the number of thine elect, and to hasten thy kingdom of glory 4 ; that I, and all that wait for thy salvation, may, in the Church triumphant, eter- nally love and glorify thee. THY WILL BE DONE IN EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. 0 my God, thy will, and thy commands, " are most holy, just and good 5," and condescending to our weakness, and by no means grievous 6 : O give me grace conscientiously to observe them. Thy blessed angels, O Lord, " always behold thy face in heaven 7 ;" they have the beatific vision of thy incomparable amiableness ; they cannot but unalter- ably chuse thee ; they must needs, to the utmost of their capacity, praise and love thee; they cannot possibly offend thee 8 ; they ever perfectly obey thee, and are always upon the wing at thy command. 1 Isa. ii. 2, 3. 2 John xviii. 36. :J 1 Pet. iii. 13. ; Matt. xii. 28, 29. * 2 Pet. i. 11. b 1 Rom. vii. 6 1 John v. 3. 7 Matt, xviii. 10. s Psalm ciii. 20. 312 AN EXPOSITION OF Lord, give me grace, in imitation of the blessed spirits above, to set thee always before me ; 0 fix my serious contemplation on thee. Ravish my soul with a lively sense of thy infinite amiableness ; O vouchsafe me one short glimpse of thy goodness. O may I once " taste and see how gracious thou art !," that all things besides thee may be tasteless to me ; that my desires may always fly up towards thee ; that I may render thee love, and praise, and obe- dience, pure and cheerful, constant and zealous, uni- versal and uniform, like that the holy angels render thee in heaven. GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD. Petitions relating to ourselves. Glory be to thee, O heavenly Benefactor, "who openest thy hand, and fillest all things living with plenteousness 2." 0 let it be thy good pleasure to give me, and all that wait on thy beneficent love, our food in due season; "give us bread," and all that is compre- hended by it, health, food, raiment, and all the neces- saries of life. Give us, O heavenly Father, " daily bread," no- thing to gratify our luxury, but such a competence as thy divine wisdom sees fittest for us. Give us, O bountiful Creator, "daily bread this day;" teach us to live without covetous anxiety for to-morrow, with a fiducial dependence on thy fatherlj goodness, and to be content and thankful for the present portion ' thy love has indulged us. 1 Ps. xxxiv. 8. 2 Ps. cxlv. 16. 3 Prov. xxx. 8, 9. 1 1 Tim. iv, I. ; vi. (J. 1 Pet. v. 7. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 313 O merciful Lord, give us " our bread," that which is our own bread, by honest labour1, or a lawful title ; and grant, that we may never eat the bread of idleness, or of deceit. Do thou, Lord, give us our bread ; for unless thou givest it, we cannot have it ; and together with our bread give us thy blessing 2, otherwise our very bread will not nourish us. Above all, O Lord God, give us the bread of life, the bread that came down from heaven, the body and blood of thy most blessed Son, to feed our souls to life eternal. Blessed Jesus, O that it might be "my meat," as it was thine, " to do the will of thy heavenly Father3." AND FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES, AS WE FORGIVE THEM THAT TRESPASS AGAINST US. For thine own infinite mercies' sake, and for the merits of the Son of thy Love, " forgive me," and all penitent sinners, " our trespasses," our sins, known or secret, of omission or commission, which are the vast debts 4 we owe to thy vindictive justice. " Forgive us," O Lord, " as we forgive all them," even our greatest enemies, that " trespass against us," their trespasses, which are infinitely inconsider- able in comparison of our trespasses against thee. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who, to teach us cha- rity, hast made our forgiveness of others the con- dition of obtaining thine. 1 Gen. iii. 19. Deut. xxi. 17. 2 Eccles. v. 19. ; iMic. vi. 14. 3 John i v. 34. 4 Mutt. vi. 12. Luke xi. 4. 314 AN EXPOSITION OF O easy, O gracious condition of pardon ! Who would not forgive his brother a few pence in this life, to have " ten thousand talents ' " forgiven in the next ! O let my love, Lord, learn from thine, not only to forgive my enemies, but to be zealous also to do them good. AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION. 0 Lord God, thou seest how our ghostly enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil, are every moment soliciting, enticing, alluring, or tempting us to evil : O be merciful to us, save, and help, and deliver us. Thou seest, O my God, how infirm I am, and how ready my own deceitful heart is ' to surrender itself to the tempter ; and I know, that Satan cannot tempt me without thy permission 3 : 0 lead me not, if it be thy good pleasure, suffer me not to foil into violent or lasting temptations, that may endanger my perseverance. 1 know, ( ) heavenly Father, that to be tempted is no sin, for thy own beloved Son, God Incarnate, was tempted 4 to the most horrid of all sins, to fall and worship the very devil ; I know, Lord, the sin lies in yielding to the temptation. 0 my God, if thou, for trial of my love, lead me into any great temptation, and let me continue under it, thy will, Lord, be done, not mine 5 : O let thy paternal ii'iiderness limit and control the tempter : <) let thy all-sufficient grace restrain my consent, and keep me 1 Matt, xviii. 22. 24. 28. 2 Jcr. xvii. f). Matt. viii. 31. ' Matt. iv. 1. !>. 1 Cor. \. 1.3. ; 1 Pet. v. 8. ; 2 Cor. xii. 7. !). ; James iv. 7 12 THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 315 always on my guard, watching and praying, and let me at last be more than conqueror. I am content, Lord, to be tried and assaulted, so I be not wicked, though it be grievous for those that love thee, to be tempted to offend thee. BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL. O Father of mercy, if thou thinkest fit to " lead me into temptation, deliver me from the evil" to which I am tempted : deliver me from the evil of sin, and the evil of punishment, from the evil one ', from the evil world 2, and from my own evil heart 3, and from all suggestions to evil ; for all that is evil is most hateful to thee, who art infinite goodness, and most destructive of thy love. And therefore, from all that is evil, O Almighty Lord, defend me. FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM, AND THE POWER, AND THE GLORY, FOR EVER AND EVER. The conclusion teaches to pray for a right end, God's glory. I adore and love thee, O Jesu, who, by concluding this prayer with a doxology, hast taught us, that the right end of our prayers should be the glory of God, that we should be ever careful to mix praise with our prayers, and to be as zealous to give thanks for what we receive 4, as to pray for what we want. To thee, O Lord God, do we pray, on thee only we rely and depend for acceptance, to thee only we offer up our praises ; for " thine is the kingdom 5 " and 1 1 John ii. 14. 2 Gal. i. 4. 3 Heb. iii. 12. 4 Phil. iv. 6. ; Neh. ix. 5, G. 5 Psalm xlvii. 2. 7. 316 AN EXPOSITION OF sovereign right to dispose of all things ; thine is " the power1" Almighty, to relieve and bless us; "thine is the glory V All the communications of thy good- ness, as they flow from thee, return to thee again in sacrifices of love, of praise and adoration. AMEN. For the sake, O heavenly Father, of thy Beloved 3, in whom all " thy promises are Amen," and who is Himself " the Amen, the faithful and the true wit- ness" of thy love to us. Hear me, and pardon my wanderings and coldness, and help me to sum up and enforce my whole prayer; all my own wants, and all the wants of those I pray for, in a hearty, and fervent and comprehensive Amen. The Pledges of Love. The Sacraments. Q. " How many sacraments hath Christ ordained in his Church? A. " Two only, as generally necessary to salvation, that is to say, Baptism, and the Supper of the Lord." Their Number. Glory be to thee, O crucified Love ; out of thy wounded side flowed water and blood 4, the two sacraments which thou hast ordained in thy Church, baptism, and the supper of the Lord, the one to initiate, the other to confirm us, in our Christianity. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who having ordained two sacraments only, and made them "generally necessary to salvation 5," are yet pleased to " have ! Psalm exxxv. 6. Psalm xcvi. 7, 8. 2 Cor. i. 20; Rev. iii. 11. ' John xi.\. 34. John iii. •"). ; vi. 53. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 317 mercy rather than sacrifice :" in cases where they cannot be had, and where a surprise of death may prevent their administration, thou dost supply the want of them by thy merciful acceptation of those persons, who earnestly desire, and who are disposed to receive them. 0 blessed Jesu, the greater thy compassion is to those sincere persons who want thy sacraments, by reason of their infelicity, not their choice, the greater will be thy indignation against those who wilfully neglect or contemn ' what thy adorable love has ordained to be throughout thy whole Church used and revered ; from which neglect and contempt of thy love, good Lord, deliver me. Nature. Q. " What meanest thou by this word sacrament? A. " I mean an outward visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace, given unto us, ordained by Christ himself, as a means whereby we receive the same, and a pledge to assure us thereof. Q. " How many parts are there in a sacrament ? A. "Two: The outward visible sign, and the inward spiritual grace." Glory be to thee, O tenderest Love, who, to stoop to our weak and gross apprehension, hast in the two sacraments made " an outward and visible," and familiar thing, to be the " sign," and memorial, and representation, "of an inward and invisible" myste- rious and spiritual "grace." Glory be to thee, O bountiful Love, for ordaining and giving us the holy sacraments 2 : thou thyself 1 Luke xiv. 24. 2 Matt. xxvi. 26, 27, 28. 318 AN EXPOSITION OF only art the Author and Fountain of grace, and thou only hast the right of instituting the conveyances of thy own grace : all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O mighty Love, who hast ele- vated these obvious and outward signs, to an efficacy far above their natures, not only to signify, but to be, happy means and instruments to convey thy grace to us, to be seals and pledges to confirm and assure to us the communications of thy love, that our sight may assist our faith, that if with due preparation we receive them, both parts of the sacrament will go together ; as certainly as we receive the " outward and visible sign," so certainly shall we receive the " inward and invisible grace ;" for which, all love, all glory, be to thee. Baptism. Q. " What is the outward visible sign, or form in baptism ? A. " Water ; wherein the person is baptized, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Q. " What is the inward and spiritual grace ? A. " A death unto sin, and a new birth unto righte- ousness : for being by nature born in sin, and the children of wrath, we are hereby made the children of grace. Q. " What is required of persons to be baptized ? A. " Repentance, whereby they forsake sin; and faith, whereby they stedfastly believe the promises of God, made to them in that sacrament. Q. " Why then are infants baptized, when by reason of their tender age they cannot perform them? THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 319 A. " Because they promise them both by their sureties : which promise, when they come to age, themselves are bound to perform." The outward Sign. Glory be to thee, O Lover of Souls ; it was by thy preventing love, that I was baptized with the " out- ward sign, water, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ! ;" that I should believe in the most Holy Trinity ; that I should entirely live devoted to the three most adorable Persons, that I should wholly depend on their gra- cious assistances, and that it should be my chief care to love and glorify that triune Love, the Author of my salvation. The Invisible Grace. Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who by water, that washes away the filth of the body, dost represent to my faith thy "invisible grace in baptism2,'' which spiritually washes and cleanses the soul. Glory be to thee, O blessed Lord, who in baptism savest us, not by the outward washing, but by the inward purifying grace accompanied with a sincere vow, and " stipulation of a good conscience towards God 3 ;" by which thy propitious love brought me into thy Church, the spiritual ark, to save me from perishing in the deluge of sin, which overwhelms the generality of the world ; and therefore all love, all glory, b.e to thee. Glory be to thee, O all-powerful Love, by whose " invisible grace " we in baptism die to sin 4, to all 1 Matt, xxviii. 19. 2 Ezek. xxxvi. 25. * 1 Pet. iii. 21. ' Rom. vi. 3, 4. 320 AN EXPOSITION OF carnal affections, renouncing and detesting' them all, and resolving to take no more pleasure in them, than dead persons do in the comforts of life. O may I ever thus die to sin ! Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who, from our " death to sin" in our baptism, dost raise us to a new life, and dost breathe into us the breath of love ; " 'tis in this laver of regeneration V' we are " born again by water 2, and the Spirit," by a " new birth unto righte- ousness :" that as the natural birth propagated sin, our spiritual birth should propagate grace ; for which all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O most indulgent Love, who in our baptism dost give us the holy Spirit of love, to be the principle of new life, and of love in us, to infuse into our souls a supernatural, habitual grace, and ability to obey and love thee ; for which all love, all glory, be to thee. Glory be to thee, O compassionate Love, who, when we were conceived and " born in sin 3," of sinful parents, when we sprang from a root wholly corrupt, and were " all children of wrath V' hast in our baptism "made us children" of tin own hea- venly Father by adoption and " grace 5 :" when we were heirs of hell, hast made us heirs of heaven, eveE joint heirs with thy own Self, of thy own glory; for which, with all the powers of my soul, I adore and love thee. Conditions required. 1. Repentance. I know, O dearest Lord, that \ am thine no longer than I love thee; I can no longer feel the saving ' Tit. iii. ,'). 2 John iii. ."). J Psalm li. o. 1 Eph. ii. 1. 5 Rom. viii. 15. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 321 efficacy of my baptism, than I am faithful to my vow I there made ; no longer than I am a penitent, no longer am I a Christian : if I " name the name of Christ, I am to depart from iniquity l ?" O do thou give me the grace of true repentance for all my sins, for my original impurity, and for all my actual transgressions, that I may abhor and forsake them all ; wound my soul with a most affectionate sorrow, for all the injuries, and affronts, and dishonours, I have offered to infinite love. 2 Faith. Glory be to thee, O most liberal Jesu, for all those exceeding great and precious " promises 2 " of pardon, and grace, and glory, which thou hast made to us Christians in the sacrament of baptism : O may I ever stedfastly believe, O may I ever passionately love, may I ever firmly rely on thy superabundant love in all these promises; for which I will ever adore and love thee ! Glory be to thee, O sweetest Love, who in my infancy didst admit me to holy baptism, who by thy preventing grace, when I was a little child, didst receive me into the evangelical covenant, didst take me up into the arms of thy mercy, and bless me 3. Glory be to thee, who didst early dedicate me to thy- self, to prepossess me by thy love, before the world should seize and defile me. Ah, gracious Lord ! how long, how often have I polluted myself by my sins ! but I repent, and de- plore all those pollutions, and I consecrate myself to thee again : O thou most reconcileable Love, pardon 1 2 Tim. ii. 19. 2 2 Pet. i. 4. 3 Mark x. 10- Y 322 AX EXPOSITION OF and accept me, and restore me to thy love : O let the intenseness of my future love, not only love for the time to come, but retrieve all the love I have lost. Sureties. Glory be to thee, O tenderest Jesu, who, when by reason of my infancy I could not promise to repent and believe for myself, didst mercifully accept of the promise of my sureties, who promised both for me, as thou didst accept for good to the para- lytic \ the charitable intentions of those that brought him to thee, and of the faith of the woman of " Canaan 2," for the cure of her daughter ; for which merciful acceptance all love, all glory, be to thee. O my God, my Lord, the promise which was made by my sureties for me, I acknowledge, that as soon as I came to a competent age, I was bound myself to perform, and I own and renew my obliga- tion : I promise, O my Lord, with all the force of my soul to love thee ; O do thou ever keep me true to my own promise, since thou art ever unalterably true to thine ; for which 1 will ever adore and love thee. The Supper of the Lord. Q. " Why was the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper ordained ? A. "For the continual remembrance of the sacri- fice of the death of Christ, and of the benefits which we receive thereby. Q. " What is the outward part, or sign of the Lord's Supper \ 1 Mark ii. 5. a Matt. xv. 22. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 323 A. " Bread and wine, which the Lord hath com- manded to be received. Q. " What is the inward part, or thing signified ? A. " The body and blood of Christ, which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the Lord's Supper. Q. " What are the benefits whereof we are par- takers thereby ? A. " The strengthening and refreshing of our souls by the body and blood of Christ, as our bodies are by the bread and wine. Q. " What is required of them who come to the Lord's Supper? A. "To examine themselves, whether they repent them truly of their former sins, stedfastly purposing to lead a new life ; have a lively faith in God's mercy through Christ, with a thankful remembrance of his death, and be in charity with all men." Institution. Glory be to thee, O crucified Love, who at thy last supper didst ordain the holy Eucharist, the sacra- ment and feast of love. It was "for the continual remembrance of the sacrifice of thy death," O blessed Jesu, " and of the benefits we receive thereby," that thou wast pleased to ordain this sacred and awful rite : all love, all glory, be to thee. Ah, dearest Lord ! how little sensible is he of thy love in dying for us, who can ever forget thee ! Ah, woe is me, that ever a sinner should forget his Saviour ! and yet, alas ! how prone are we to do it ! Glory be to thee, O gracious Jesu, who, to help our memories, and to impress thy love deep on our y 2 324 AN EXPOSITION OF souls, hast instituted the blessed sacrament, and commanded us, " Do this in remembrance of me." O Jesu, let the propitiatory sacrifice of thy death, which thou didst offer upon the cross for the sins of the whole world, and particularly for my sins, be ever fresh in my remembrance. O blessed Saviour, let that mighty salvation thy love has wrought for us, never slip out of my mind ; but especially, let my remembrance of thee in the holy sacrament be always most lively and affecting. 0 Jesu, if I love thee truly, I shall be sure to fre- quent thy altar, that I may often remember all the wonderful loves of my crucified Redeemer. 1 know, O my Lord and my God, that a bare remembrance of thee is not enough ; O do thou therefore fix in me such a remembrance of thee, as is suitable to the infinite love I am to remember : work in me all those holy and heavenly affections, which become the remembrance of a crucified Saviour. Parts outward. Glory be to thee, O adorable Jesus, who under the outward and visible part, the " bread and wine," things obvious and easily prepared, both which " thou hast commanded to be" received, dost communicate to our souls the mystery of divine love, the "inward and invisible grace," thy own most blessed "body and blood, which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in thy supper ;" for which all love, all glory, be to thee. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 325 Invisible. 0 God incarnate \ how the bread and the wine, unchanged in their substance, become thy body and thy blood; after what extraordinary manner thou, who art in heaven, art present throughout the whole sacramental action, to every devout receiver ; " how thou canst give us thy flesh to eat, and thy blood to drink ; how thy flesh is meat indeed, and thy blood is drink indeed ; how he that eateth thy flesh, and drinketh thy blood, dwelleth in thee, and thou in him ; how he shall live by thee, and be raised up by thee to life eternal 2 ;" I can by no means compre- hend ; but I firmly believe all thou hast said, and I firmly rely on thy omnipotent love, to make good thy word ; for which all love, all glory, be to thee. Real Presence. 1 believe, O crucified Lord, that " the bread which we break" in the celebration of the holy mysteries, is the communication of thy body 3, and the " cup of blessing which we bless," is the communication of thy blood ; and that thou dost as effectually and really convey thy body and blood to our souls by the ' O God incarnate, how thou canst give us thy flesh to eat, and thy blood to drink ; how thy flesh is meat indeed, and thy blood is drink indeed ; how he that eateth thy flesh and drinketh thy blood, dwelleth in thee, and thou in him ; how he shall live by thee and be raised up by thee to life eternal ; how thou who art in heaven art present on the altar, I can by no means explain ; but I firmly believe it all, because thou hast said it, and I firmly rely on thy love, and on thy omnipotence to make good thy word, though the manner of doing it, I cannot comprehend. Ed. lma. 2 John vi. 54. ' 1 Cor. x. 10. 32G AN EXPOSITION OF bread and wine, as thon didst thy Holy Spirit x, by thy breath to thy disciples ; for which all love, all glory, be to thee. Lord, what need I labour in vain, to search out the manner of thy mysterious presence in the sacra- ment, when my love assures me thou art there ? All the faithful who approach thee with prepared hearts, they well know thou art there ; they feel the virtue of divine love going out of thee, to heal their infirmi- ties, and to inflame their affections ; for which all love, all glory, be to thee. O holy Jesu, when at thy altar I see the bread broken, and the wine poured out, " O teach me to discern thy body there 2 :" O let those sacred and sig- nificant actions create in me a most lively remem- brance of thy sufferings, how thy most blessed body was scourged, and wounded, and bruised, and tor- mented ; how thy most precious blood was shed for my sins ; and set all my powers on work, to love thee, and to celebrate thy love in thus dying for me. Both kinds. Glory be to thee, O Jesu, who didst institute the holy Eucharist in both kinds, and liast u commanded" both "to be received8," both the bread and the wine, both thy body broken, and thy blood shed: thy love, O Lord, has given me both, and both are equally significative and productive of thy love : I do as much thirst after the one, as I hunger after the other ; I equally want both; and it would be griev- ous to my love to bo deprived of cither. ' John xx. -2-2. I Cor. xi. 29. \l.nt. xwi. 2(1, 27. ; .Mm vi. 53. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 327 Ah, Lord ! who is there that truly loves thee, when thou givest him two distinct pledges of thy love, can be content with one only ? What lover can endure to have one half of thy love withheld from him ? and therefore all love, all glory, be to thee, for giving both. Benefits. O my Lord, and my God, do thou so dispose my heart, to be thy guest at thy holy table, that I may feel all the sweet influences of love crucified, " the strengthening and refreshing of my soul, as our bodies are by the bread and wine ;" for which I will ever adore and love thee. O merciful Jesu, let that immortal food, which in the holy Eucharist thou vouchsafest me, instil into my weak and languishing soul, new supplies of grace, new life, new love, vigour, and new resolution, that I may never more faint, or droop, or tire, in my duty. O crucified Love, raise in me fresh ardours of love and consolation, that it may be henceforth the great- est torment I can endure, ever to offend thee, that it may be my greatest delight to please thee. O amiable Jesu, when I devoutly receive the out- ward elements, as sure as I receive them, I receive thee, I receive the pledges of thy love, to quicken mine : O indulge me, though but for a moment, one beatific foretaste of the deliciousness of thy love, that in the strength of that deliciousness I may persever- ingly love thee. Preparation. Glory be to thee, my Lord, and my God, who hast now given me an invitation to thy heavenly feast ' : all love, all glory, be to thee. 1 Matt. xi. 28. ; Luke xiv. 17. 328 AN EXPOSITION OF 0 Lord, give me grace, that I may approach thy awful mystery, with penitential preparation, and with a heart fully disposed to love thee. Examination. O my God, my Judge, give me grace, I most humbly beseech thee, to " examine ! " my whole life past, by the rule of thy commandments, before I presume to eat of that bread, and drink of that cup ; give me grace sadly to reflect on, and deplore all my provocations, lest, coming to the holy Eucharist impe- nitent and unprepared, I receive " unworthily, and eat and drink my own damnation." O thou great Searcher of hearts, thou knowest all that load of impiety and guilt under which I lie : O help me so impartially to judge and condemn myself, so humbly to repent and beg pardon, that I may not be condemned at thy tribunal, when I shall appear there at the last day, that I may be set at thy right hand amongst thy lovers. Lord, give me grace to search every secret of my heart, to leave no sin, if possible, unrepented of; fill my eyes full of tears of love, that with those tears I may lament all the indignities I have offered thy love. But, alas, alas ! after the most strict examination we can make, who can number his impieties, " who can tell how oft he offendeth 2 ?" Lord, therefore, cleanse me from my secret faults, which in general I renounce and bewail. Repentance. O my God, thou who alone changes! the heart, 1 1 Cor. xi. 28. a Psalm xix. 12. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 329 O be thou pleased to change mine, change my aver- sion to thee, into an entire love of thee. O give me a filial repentance, that with a broken and contrite heart I may grieve, and mourn, and repent, for all my former sins, and may for ever forsake them, and return to my obedience. Amendment. Let thy love, O my God, so perfectly exhaust my soul, that I may for the future " stedfastly pur- pose to lead a new life," that I may renew my bap- tismal vow, that I may hereafter live as a sworn votary to thy love. Faith. O heavenly Father, settle in my soul a " lively faith in thy mercy through Christ," a steady belief of all thy love to sinners, and an affectionate reliance on the merits and mediation of thy crucified Son, of my being " accepted in the beloved '," for whom I will ever adore and love thee. Thanksgiving. O my crucified God, thou sovereign inflammative of love, let the " remembrance of thy death " set all the powers of my soul on work, that I may desire and pant after thee 2, that I may admire and adore thee ; that I may take heavenly delight in thy gra- cious presence ; that with praise and thanksgiving, with jubilation and triumph, I may receive thee into my heart ; there I will have Jove, only love, always love, to entertain thee. 1 Eph. i. 0. 2 Psalm xlii. 1, 2. lxiii. 1. 330 AN EXPOSITION OF Charity. Lord, when I present myself, and my love, as all the gift I have to offer at thy altar, next to my love to thee, and for the sake of thy infinite love to me, which I there remember, give me grace to love my neighbour, " and to be in charity with all men, and to walk in love \ as thou hast loved us, and hast given thyself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God, for a sweet-smelling savour ;" for which all love, all glory, be to thee. In forgiving. O most reconcileable Jesu, in this memorial of thy sufferings I see how thou didst forgive me, and didst love me when I was thy enemy : O for thy dearest love to me, give me love to forgive all my enemies 2, and to be at peace with the world, as I desire to be loved and forgiven, and to be at peace with thee. All that have any way injured me, O my God, I freely forgive, for thy sake ; O do thou also forgive them : incline them to brotherly charity, and let them at last feel the comfort of that reconciliation thou didst make upon the cross ; for which I will ever adore and love thee. Restoring. O my God, if I have wronged or injured my neighbour, O give me grace to begins pardon, and, as I have opportunity, to make him satisfaction and restitution, according to my power. ' Eph. v. •_>. Matt. vi. 14, l.r). THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 331 Giving. O crucified Love, whenever I see thee in any of thy poor members, hungry, or naked, or in distress \ O let the remembrance of thy love, in dying for me, engage me to contribute all I can to thy relief; O may I ever be liberal in my alms to thee, who wert so liberal of thy inestimable blood for me ! It is very adviseable, that persons, before they commu- nicate, should read over the whole Communion Office, or at least the exhortations there, which they will find to contain very proper, and plain, and excellent in- structions. It were much to he wished, that people would make more use of their Common Prayer books than they do, and apply the prayers they meet with there to their own particular conditions; for the book is always at hand, and the prayers are most safe, and familiar, and devout ; and the more they affect us in our closet, the more they will affect us in the con- gregation ; and iv ell-meaning souls will reap great spiritual advantage from this practice. For example ; an humble poor Christian, who, it may be, has no other book but his Common Prayer book, and who intends to come to the Holy Communion, may learn to turn the Communion Office to his own private use, after this maimer. Prayer for the Holy Spirit. Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid, cleanse the thoughts of my heart by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that I may perfectly love thee, 1 Matt. xxv. ;3j. 12 332 AX EXPOSITION OF and worthily magnify thy holy Name, through Christ our Lord. Amen. Thanksgiving for our Redemption. I give most humble and hearty thanks to thee, O God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, for the redemption of the world by the death and pas- sion of our Saviour Christ, both God and man, who did humble Himself even to the death upon the cross for us miserable sinners, who lay in darkness and the shadow of death, that He might make us the chil- dren of God, and exalt us to everlasting life. Glory be to thee, O Jesus, our Master and only Saviour, who to the end that we should always re- member thy exceeding great love in thus dying for us, and the innumerable benefits which by thy pre- cious blood-shedding thou hast obtained to us, hast instituted and ordained holy mysteries as pledges of thy love, and for a continual remembrance of thy death to our great endless comfort. To thee, therefore, O blessed Saviour, with the Father, and the Holy Ghost, I will give (as I am most bounden) continual thanks : I submit myself wholly to thy holy will and pleasure, and will study to serve thee in true holiness, and righteousness, all the days of my life. Confession. Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men, T acknowledge and bewail my manifold sins, &c. r raise. I lilt up my heart unto thee, <) Lord; 1 give thanks unto thee, (> Lord our God : it is meet and THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 333 right so to do; it is very meet, right, and my boimden duty, that I should at all times, and in all places, give thanks unto thee, O Lord, holy Father Almighty, everlasting God. But chiefly am I bound to praise thee for giving thy only Son Jesus to die for my sins, and to rise again for my justification. Therefore, with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, I laud and magnify, &c. Prayers for our communicating worthily. I do not presume to come to thy table, O merciful Lord, trusting in my own righteousness, &c. Praise. Glory be to God on high, and on earth peace, good-will towards men : I praise thee, &c. To these, as you see occasion, you may add many very good prayers, short and plain, and pertinent to your purpose, which you may collect out of the Common Prayer, and which will much further your devotion, such as these. For Fear and Love. O Lord, who never failest to help and govern them whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast fear and love ; keep me, I beseech thee, under the pro- tection of thy good providence, and make me to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. For Love. O God, who hast prepared for them that love thee, such good things as pass man's understanding, pour 334 AN EXPOSITION OF into my heart such love toward thee, that I, loving thee above all things, may obtain thy promises, which exceed all that I can desire, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Lord of all power and might, who art the Author and Giver of all good things, graft in my heart the love of thy name, increase in me true religion, nourish me with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep me in the same, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. For Charity. O Lord, who hast taught me, that all my doings without charity are nothing worth, send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into my heart that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace, and of all virtues, without which, whosoever liveth, is counted dead before thee. Grant this for thy only Son Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. For Imitation of Christ. Almighty God, who hast given thy only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an exam- ple of godly life ; give me grace, that I may always most thankfully receive that his inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavour myself to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. They that arc ignorant, or that cannot read, should go to then parish priest, <>r to some other discreet and learned minister at' God's word, ami desire him to teach them their duty in private ; ami the// that THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 335 thus sincerely seek the law at the priest's mouth, shall find that the priest's lips do preserve knowledge, and shall not go away without a blessing. To God the Father, who first loved us, and made us accepted in the beloved ; to God the Son, who loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood ; to God the Holy Ghost, who sheds the love of God abroad in our hearts, be all love, and all glory, for time, and for eternity. Amen. DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, DIOCESE OF BATH AND WELLS. TO THE POOR INHABITANTS WITHIN THE DIOCESE OF BATH AND WELLS, THOMAS, THEIR UNWORTHY BISHOP, WISHETH THE KNOWLEDGE AND THE LOVE OF GOD. Dearly Beloved in our Lord. The Catechism truly teaches all Christians, that they are " not able of themselves to do those things" they have vowed in their baptism to do, namely, " To walk in the Commandments of God, and to serve him" without his special grace, or favourable assist- ance ; and this " they are to learn at all times to call upon God for, by diligent prayer." How good and seasonable this advice is, you will all see, if you consider what helpless and needy crea- tures the very best of men are. Alas ! our weak- ness is very great, our wants are very many, our dependence on God for all things, all our lives long, is entire, and absolute, and necessary, and there is no way in the world to gain help and supplies from God, but by prayer; so that it is as easy and as pos- OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 337 sible to preserve a natural life without daily bread, as a Christian life without daily prayer. It was for this reason that our Saviour himself took a particular care to teach "his disciples to pray ! ;" and it is for the same reason, and in imita- tion of our heavenly Master, that I have joined these directions for prayer to the catechism. Sure I am, the zeal I ought to have for your sal- vation, can suggest to me nothing more conducing to the good of your souls, than to exhort and beseech you all, of either sex, to learn how to pray. This is the first general request I shall make to you ; and I am the more earnest in it, because my own sad experience has taught me, how strangely ignorant common people usually are of this duty ; insomuch that some never pray at all, pretending they were never taught, or that their memories are bad, or that they are not book-learned, or that they want money to buy a book ; and by this means, they live and die rather like beasts than men ; nay, their condition is much worse than that of beasts, for the misery of a beast doth end at death, but the misery of a wicked man, does then begin, and will endure to all eternity. To prevent, then, as much as lies in me, the dam- nation of those souls which God has committed to my care, and to cure that lamentable ignorance and forgetfulness of God, which is the cause of the damnation of so very many, I do not only inces- santly pray for you myself, but I beg of you all to pray for yourselves, and I beseech you to read the following instructions ; or if you cannot read your- 1 Luke xi. 1 . Z 338 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN selves, to get some honest charitable neighbours to read them often to you, that you may remember them ; and God of his great mercy reward the charity of such neighbours. If any of you, either by your own negligence, or by the negligence of your parents, or for want of catechizing in your parish, are wholly ignorant of your duty, — though it be a most shameful and dan- gerous thing for one who calls himself a Christian, to know nothing of Christ or Christianity, — yet, if you are willing to learn, and beg pardon of God for your wilful ignorance hitherto, and will sincerely do your endeavour to get saving knowledge, and heartily pray to God to assist you, you shall find, that the very entrance of God's word giveth light, "that it giveth understanding unto the simple 1." I must warn you beforehand, that corrupt nature will be very busy in hindering the learning of your duty, and thoughts will arise in your mind, that the task will be too hard and too tedious for you to un- dertake; but I faithfully promise you, to impose no hard or tedious task on you, but such as you your- selves shall confess to be very complying with your infirmities ; for our most compassionate Saviour teaches me to say no more to you, than "you can bear2." All I shall exhort you to, is to learn your cate- chism, which you may do by degrees: if you learn but a line or two in a day, you will, by God's bless- ing, in ;i very short time learn it all over; and you will rejoice, and thank God, for the sudden and happy progress you have made. 1 Ps. cxix. 130. John xvi. 12. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 339 God forbid you should ever think yourselves too old to learn to serve God, and to be saved, both which are taught in the catechism, and therefore the catechism is of necessity to be learned ; for how can you go to heaven, if you never learned the way thither? How can you be saved, if you do not know your Saviour ? It is a great error to think, that the catechism was made for children only ; for all Christians are equally concerned in those saving truths which are there taught ; and the doctrine delivered in the catechism is as proper for the study, and as necessary for the salvation, of a great doctor, as of a weak Christian, or a young child. But you will be the more encouraged to learn your catechism, when you see how excellent a help it will be to prayer ; for it will at the same time further your knowledge, and your devotion, both together ; and the prayers I intend to commend to you, are chiefly the very answers in the catechism, which being daily repeated, will be the better fixed in your memory ; and you cannot imagine any advice for prayer can be more easy and familiar, than that which directs you to turn your very catechism into prayers. You are by this time, I hope, satisfied, that the duty to which I exhort you, is no hard task ; and yet I will endeavour, by God's assistance, to make it more easy, by putting you into an easy method to attain it. If you are wholly ignorant of your catechism, let it be your first care to learn such ejaculations, such short prayers, as these, and say them often and heartily. z2 340 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN " Lord, have mercy upon me. " Christ, have mercy upon me. " Lord, have mercy upon me. " Lord, pardon all my wilful ignorance, and gross carelessness of my duty, for the sake of Jesus my Saviour. Amen." " O my God, assist me in the learning of my duty. " Lord, help me to know, and to love thee. " Lord, pity me ; Lord, save me ; Father, forgive me. " Glory be to thee, O Lord, who hast hitherto spared me. " O that I might at last learn to glorify, and love, and serve thee !" Such short prayers as these, you may easily get by heart ; and the method in which I advise you to proceed, is that in which children are commonly taught, in regard I am now to look on you as a child; for there are two sorts of children ; there are chil- dren in age, and children in understanding ] ; and in this latter respect you are children, and the same method for the most part is proper for you, which is proper for those that are children in age. I must therefore feed you with milk, before you can be capable of strong meat 2 ; and I must look on you as lambs of my flock, which I am to use ten- derly : and these following directions, which T give to parents, for the training up their children in piety, I do equally design for the training up of you. God, of his infinite goodness, bless them to you both ! 1 1 Cor. xiv. 20. * Heb. v. 13. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 341 I exhort all you who are parents, to instil good things into your children as soon as ever they begin to speak ; let the first words they utter, if it be pos- sible, be these, " Glory be to God :" accustom them to repeat these words on their knees, as soon as they rise, and when they go to bed, and oft-times in the day ; and let them not eat or drink, without saying, " Glory be to God." As their speech grows more plain and easy to them, teach them, who made, and redeemed, and sanctified them, and for what end, namely, to glorify and to love God ; and withal, teach them some of the shortest ejaculations you can, such as these : " Lord, help me ; Lord, save me. " Lord, have mercy upon me. " All love, all glory, be to God, who first loved me. " Lord, keep me in thy love." Within a little time you may teach them the Lord's prayer, and hear them say it every day, morn- ing and evening, on their knees, with some one or more of the foregoing ejaculations ; and by degrees, as they grow up, they will learn the creed, and the whole catechism. Be sure to teach your children with all the sweet- ness and gentleness you can, lest if you should be severe, or should over-task them, religion should seem to them rather a burden than a blessing. As their knowledge increases, so let their prayers increase also, and teach them, as they go, to turn their catechism into prayers, after the manner which I shall show you ; and to confirm and improve their knowledge, bring them duly to the Church to be 34*2 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN catechized by the parish priest, that by his familiar and devout explications of the catechism, they may learn to understand it, and may be capable of read- ing the exposition on it, and other books of piety. Take conscientious care to season your children, as early as you can, with the love of God, which is " the first and great command V' and with " the fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom 2 ;" for the awful love, and the filial fear of God, must always go together. The same method you observe in teaching your children, the same you may observe in teaching your servants, according as you see they want teaching ; and you yourselves will reap the benefit of it, as well as your servants ; for the more devout servants they are of God, the more faithful servants will they be to you. Remember, you must teach both your children and servants by your example as well as by your instruc- tion ; for they learn best by example : and if they see you give an example of fraud or lying, of re- venge or calumny, of uncleanness or drunkenness, of cursing and swearing, and irreligion ; instead of teaching them to obey God, you teach them to pro- voke him ; instead of teaching them to honour God, vou teach them to blaspheme him ; instead of lead- ing them the way to heaven, you lead them the way to hell ; and you will increase your own damnation, l»\ furthering theirs, which God forbid you should ever do ! Now, that you may the better give a good example to your family, I will (by God's help) give you a 1 Matt. xxii. 38, J Ps. cxi. 10. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 343 method of daily devotion, taken for the most part out of the catechism, which will be suitable to all Christians, be they never so well instructed, and which you may by little and little teach your chil- dren ; and which those who have been bred up in ignorance, and are children in understanding, and yet willing to be taught, may learn to say also, as the capacities of either do increase : for a Christian must never stand at a stay, but must be always " growing in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ V A METHOD OF DAILY PRAYER. As soon as ever you awake, offer up your first thoughts and words to God saying, " Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, three persons and one God, blessed for evermore : all love, all praise, be to thee." As you are rising, say, " I laid me down and slept, and rose up again, for the Lord sustained me : all love, all glory, be to God2." As soon as you are dressed, kneel doivn, as our Saviour himself kneeled 3 at his prayers, and re- member you are in God's presence, and say your prayers with reverence and devotion. MORNING PRAYER. " Glory be to thee, O Lord God, for my preservation and refreshment, and for all the blessings of the night past ; for which all love, all praise, be to thee. 1 '2 Pet. iii. IS. - Ps. iii. 5. 3 Luke xxii. 41. 344 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN " Father, forgive me all the evil of the night past, for the merits of Jesus Christ my Saviour. Amen. " O merciful God, keep and protect, and bless me this day, and prosper me in my calling, and preserve me from sin and danger, for the merits of Jesus my Saviour. Amen. " I believe in God the Father Almighty, &c. " All love, all glory, be to thee, O God the Father, who hast made me and all the world. " All love, all glory, be to thee, O God the Son, who hast redeemed me and all mankind. " All love, all glory, be to thee, O God the Holy Ghost, who dost sanctify me, and all the elect people of God. " All love, all glory, be to thee, O Father of mercy, who in my baptism didst make me a member <»f Christ, thy own child, and an inheritor of the king- dom of heaven. " O my God, I do this day dedicate myself to thy service, and do renew the promise and vow of my baptism. " I do from my heart renounce the devil and all his works, the pomps and vanity of this wicked world, and all the sinful lusts of the flesh ; from all which, good Lord, deliver me. " I believe all the articles of the Christian faith, and I will keep tliy holy will and commandments, and walk in the same all the days of my life. " All this, O Lord, I am bound to believe and do, and by thy help so I will; and I heartily thank tine. () heavenly Father, who hast called me to this state of salvation, through Jesus Christ my Saviour; and I pray unto thee to give me thy grace, that I nia\ continue in the same unto my life's end. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 345 " Lord, hear me, help me, pardon my failings, supply all my wants, and the wants of all faithful people, which I sum up in the words of thy own be- loved Son ; " Our Father, which art in heaven," &c. After the like manner you may pray at night. EVENING PRAYER. " Glory be to thee, O Lord, for my preservation, and for all the blessings of the day past ; for which all love, all praise, be to thee. " Father, forgive me all the sins I have this day committed, either in thought, or word, or deed, either against thee, or against my neighbour, for the sake of Jesus my Saviour. Amen, Amen. " It grieves me, O merciful God, that I should daily offend thee : but I repent. O pity and pardon me, for the sake of Jesus thy beloved. Amen, Amen. " O my God, keep and protect, and bless me this night, and preserve me from sin and danger, for the sake of Jesus. Amen, Amen. " Lord, refresh me this night with seasonable sleep, that I may rise the next morning more fit and able to serve thee in my calling, for the sake of Jesus thy beloved. Amen, Amen. " I believe in God the Father, &c. " All love, all glory be to thee, O God the Father, who," &c. as in the morning. " I desire thee, O Lord God, O heavenly Father, who art the giver of all goodness, to send thy grace unto me, and to my wife and children, to my hus- band and children, father and mother, brethren and 346* DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN sisters, kindred and friends, master and mistress, [you must name these relations, according as you stand related] and to all people, that we may worship thee, serve thee, and obey thee, as we ought to do : and I pray unto thee, that thou wouldst send us all things that be needful, both for our souls and bodies; and that thou wilt be merciful unto us, and forgive us our sins ; and that it will please thee to save and defend us in all dangers, ghostly and bodily; and that thou wilt keep us from all sin and wickedness, and from our ghostly enemy, and from everlasting death : and this I trust thou wilt do of thy mercy and good- ness, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen, Lord, so be it. " Lord, hear me, help me, pardon my failings, supply all my wants, and the wants of all for whom I pray, which I sum up in the words of thy own beloved Son : " Our Father, which art in heaven," &c. As you are going to bed say, " I will lay me down in peace, and take my rest ; f< >r it is thou, Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety '." As you began the day, so end it with glorifying God ; and when you are in bed, say, " Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, three persons and one God, blessed for evermore : all praise, all love, be to thee." I earnestly beg of God, to make you sensible your- selves, and to give yon grace to make your children ' Psalm iv. !». OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 347 and servants sensible also, how necessary and happy, and heavenly a duty prayer is, and how many " ex- ceeding great and precious promises" God has made to them that devoutly pray to him ; and if you are thus sensible, you will not content yourselves with morning and evening prayer only, but you will be desirous, if you have opportunity, to retire about mid-day, for a few minutes, that you may imitate the devotion of holy David, and of Daniel, and pray " three times a day ' ;" and that you may not want a help for noontide prayer, the catechism shall supply you. Prayer at Noon. " At evening, and at morning, and at noon-day will I pray, and that instantly : Lord, hear my voice2." " 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. " All love, all glory, be to thee, O God the Father, who hast first loved us, and hast given thy beloved Son to die for our sins, and to rise again for our justification. " Have mercy upon me, O God, after thy great goodness ; according to the multitude of thy mercies do away mine offences. " Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness, and cleanse me from my sin. " Make me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me, for the sake of Jesus thy beloved. Amen. " O Lord God, who seest I am not able of myself ' Dan. vi. 10. 2 Ps. lv. 18. 12 348 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN to walk in thy commandments, and to serve thee ; be pleased to help and strengthen me by thy special grace, that I may daily and sincerely perform my duty towards thee, and my duty towards my neigh- bour, for the sake of Jesus my Saviour. Amen. " O my God, give me grace to believe in thee, and to love thee with all my heart, with all my mind, with all my soul, and with all my strength ; to wor- ship thee, to give thee thanks, to put my whole trust in thee, to call upon thee, to honour thy holy name, and thy word, and to serve thee truly all the days of my life, for the sake of Jesus thy beloved. Amen. " O my God, give me grace to love my neighbour as myself, to do to all men as I would they should do to me; to love, honour, and succour my father and mother, [this clause must be left out, if your father and mother be dead] to honour and obey the king, and all that are put in authority under him ; to submit myself to all my governors, teachers, spiritual pastors and masters ; to order myself lowly and reve- rently to all my betters ; to hurt nobody by word or deed ; to be true and just in all my dealing; to bear no malice nor hatred in my heart ; to keep my hands from picking and stealing, and my tongue from evil speaking, lying and slandering ; to keep my body in temperance, soberness, and chastity, nor to covet or desire other mens' goods, but to learn and labour truly to get mine own living, and to do my duty in that state of life unto which it has pleased thee to call me, for the sake of Jesus thy beloved. Amen. " Lord, hear me, help me, pardon my failings, supply all my wants, which I sum up in the words of thy beloved Son : " Our Father, which art in heaven," &c. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 349 Instead of these two last prayers, you may some- times say the Ten Commandments, which you may turn into a very good prayer, by saying after every one, " Lord, have mercy upon me, and incline my heart to keep this law." Where you not only beg pardon for the sins you have committed against each commandment, but you also beg grace to keep it. At the end of them you may say, " Lord, have mercy upon me, and write all these thy laws in my heart, I beseech thee." And so conclude with the Lord's prayer. Do not think that this practice of prayer will be too hard, or too long, for young persons, or for labouring people ; for if you cannot say them all, say as much as you can ; or if you are at day-labour, or have not time or convenience to say them, offer up to God two or three hearty ejaculations in their place ; but if you can get time and convenience, say them all ; and I dare assure you, that all the three forms of prayer, which I commend to you, will not in all take up a quarter of an hour : and certainly, that person has very little sense of his duty, very little concern for his immortal soul, very little honour for God, or value for heaven, who will not spend one quarter of an hour in the space of four and twenty hours, in the service of God, and the salvation of his own soul. I do by all means exhort you to give your servants a few minutes' leisure at noon, to pray after your ex- 350 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN ample, and to use your children to do the same ; for they will soon be able to say the Lord's prayer, and two or three ejaculations; and teach them to say these at noon, as well as at morning and at night ; and it is incredible to think how much good this practice will do them, and what great comfort you yourselves will reap from the early devotion of your children. To further this devotion in your children, instead of idle tales and songs, which pollute their souls, and when they come to be serious, will take them great pains to unlearn, you must teach them short psalms by heart, which will exercise their memories and piety both together. As you teach the psalms to your children, I exhort you to learn them yourselves. You cannot imagine the great benefit of learning psalms by heart ; for when you are under any temp- tation, or are in any affliction, or when you lie wak- ing in the night, or when sick, these psalms will come into your mind; and the devout repeating them, will yield you most seasonable consolations. The very common people, in the first and purest ages of the Church, were so sensible of the spiritual advantages of learning psalms, that they learned the whole psalter by heart, and sung or said the psalms in their shops, and at the plough, insomuch that St. James makes it the proper expression of Christian mirth, "If any man be merry, let him sing psalms1." This is the way to store your own and your chil- drens' minds with ejaculations, or short prayers for all occasions, which I advise both old and young to accustom themselves to. because it is the true w.-i\ of praying without ceasing, and it is a kind <>t' prayer 1 Jam. v. 13. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 351 more easy, and may be used at any time of the day, or in any place, and is one of the most efficacious means in the world, to keep us in God's favour, which is of all things most desirable. EJACULATIONS. At going out, or coining in. " Lord, bless my going out and coming in, from this time forth for evermore 1." At Meals. " Lord, grant, that whether I eat or drink, or whatever I do, I may do all to thy glory 2." At Work. " Prosper thou the works of my hands, O Lord ; O prosper thou my handy-work 3." In the Shop or Market. " Lord, give me grace to use this world so as not to abuse it 4." " Lord, grant that I may never go beyond, or de- fraud my brother in any matter ; for thou art the avenger of all such 5." In Temptation or Danger. " O God, make speed to save me : O Lord, make haste to help me." At any Time of the Day. " Wherever I am, whatever I do, thou, Lord, seest me : O keep me in thy fear all the day long 6." 1 Psalm cxxi. 8. 2 1 Cor. x. 31. 3 Psalm xc. 17. ' lCor. vii. 31. 5 1 Thess. iv. 6, 6 Prow xxiii, I J 352 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN " Lord, give me grace to keep always a conscience void of offence towards thee, and towards men V " Lord, teach me so to number my days, that I may apply my heart to wisdom 2." " O let my mouth be filled with thy praise, that I may sing of thy glory and honour all the day long 3." " All love, all glory, be to thee, O God, who didst first love me. " Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen 4." " O blessed Spirit, shed abroad the love of God in my heart. " Praise the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, praise his holy name V " 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 6." You that have families, I do further exhort, that besides your private prayers, you would offer up to God a morning and evening sacrifice in your fami- lies, and that every one of you would take up the holy resolution of Joshua, " As for me, and my house, Ave will serve the Lord 7 :" and the prayers I advise you to use, are taken out of the Common Prayer, as being most familiar, and of greatest authority withal. If any of your family are gone abroad to their work before the rest can be ready, call that little congregation about you that is at home ; and you that are present, pray for those that are absent ; and 1 Acts xxiv. 16. 2 Psalm xc. 12. 3 Psalm lxxi. 7 1 Kev. i. 5. 5 Psalm ciii. 1. *"' Psalm cxlvi. 1. 7 Josh. xxiv. 15. OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 353 by this means, those that are absent upon necessary employments, will share in the blessings for which you pray. Morning Prayer for a Family. " Let the words of our mouths, and the medita- tions of our hearts, be always acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. " O God, the Father of heaven, have mercy upon us miserable sinners. " O God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy upon us miserable sinners. " O God the Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, have mercy upon us miserable sinners. " O Holy, blessed and glorious Trinity, three per- sons and one God, have mercy upon us miserable sinners. " O Lord, we beseech thee, mercifully hear our prayers, and spare all those who confess their sins unto thee ; that they, whose consciences by sin are accused, by thy merciful pardon may be absolved, through Christ our Lord. Amen. " Almighty God, who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves, we give thee humble thanks for thy preservation of us this day past, [or this night past,] and for all the blessings thou daily vouchsafest us ; and we beseech thee to keep us both outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. " Almighty God, whose kingdom is everlasting, a a 354 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, TAKEN and power infinite, have mercy upon the whole Church, and so rule the heart of thy servant James, our king and governor, that he (knowing whose minister he is) may above all things seek thy honour and glory ; and that we, and all his subjects, (duly considering whose authority he hath,) may faithfully serve, honour, and humbly obey him, in thee, and for thee, according to thy blessed word and ordi- nance, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth ever one God, world without end. Amen. "Unto thy gracious mercy and protection, O Lord, do we commit ourselves this day, [or this night] and all our relations and friends : Lord, pros- per us in our callings : Lord, bless us and keep us : Lord, make thy face to shine upon us, and be gra- cious unto us : Lord, lift up thy countenance upon us, and give us peace, both now and evermore, for the sake of Jesus thy Beloved, in whose own blessed words, we sum up all our wants : " Our Father, which art in heaven," &c. The same form, changing but one word, is proper for the night as well as the morning, to make family prayer the more easy to you. That prayer which I have set down, wherein you pray for the king, and pray for yourselves also, that you may be good subjects, I exhort you never to omit, because you know, that the country wherein you live, was the only seat of the late rebellion, and the tares of sedition have been industriously sown among you ; and you have the greater reason to pray, that you may continue firm in your allegiance ; be- sides, St. Paul teaches you, that "to pray for kings, OUT OF THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 355 is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour V To your Family Prayers you may add, as you see occasion, one of these following : " Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. " Lord, we beseech thee, grant thy people grace to withstand the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil ; and with pure hearts and minds, to follow thee, the only God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. " Prevent us, O Lord, in all our doings, with thy most gracious favour, and further us with thy con- tinual help, that in all our works, begun, continued, and ended in thee, we may glorify thy holy name ; and finally, by thy mercy obtain everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." These, and the like short prayers, may be said alone in the closet, as well as in the family, by changing only the number, and for (we) saying all along (I), and for (us) saying (me). As for example, when you read any part of the Holy Scripture, either alone, by yourselves, or with your families, both which you should do daily if you have leisure ; but if you have not, see that you do both on the Lord's days, and on holy days ; and before reading, say this prayer : 1 1 Tim. ii. 2, 3. A a 2 356 DIRECTIONS FOR PRAYER, &C. " Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scrip- tures to be written for our learning, grant, that we [I] may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them ; that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we [I] may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen." God of his infinite mercy bless these instructions to his glory, and to the furtherance of your devotion, through Jesus the Beloved. Amen. Amen. MANUAL OF PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF THE SCHOLARS OF WINCHESTER COLLEGE. AND ALL OTHER DEVOUT CHRISTIANS. TO WHICH ARE ADDED, THREE HYMNS FOR MORNING, EVENING, AND MIDNIGHT. MANUAL OF PRAYERS USE OF THE SCHOLARS OF WINCHESTER COLLEGE. AN EXHORTATION TO YOUNG PHILOTHEUS. If you have any regard, good Philotheus, to your own eternal happiness, it ought to be your chiefest care to serve and glorify God. It is for this end God both made and redeemed you ; and two excel- lent rules He hath given you in Holy Scripture, by the conscientious observation of which you will be able, through his grace, to dedicate your tender years to his glory. The one teaches you what you are to do, " Re- member now thy Creator in the days of thy youth 1." The other teaches you what you are to avoid, " Flee youthful lusts ;" that is, all those sins which are usually incident to young persons 2. You cannot imagine the unspeakable advantages 1 Eccl. xii. 1. J 2 Tim. ii. 22. 360 A MANUAL OF PRAYERS a pious youth gains by the practice of these two rules; and how many ghostly dangers that soul escapes, which is seasoned betimes with the fear of God, before he is sullied with ill company, before he hath contracted vicious habits, which will cost him infinite pains to unlearn, before his affections are too far engaged in the world, to be easily recalled, and before the devil hath got too strong a hold in him, to be suddenly dispossessed. O Philotheus, do but ask any one old penitent, what fruit, what satisfaction he hath purchased to him- self, by all those pleasures of sin which flattered him in his youth, and of which he is now ashamed. Will he not sadly tell you, he has found them all to be but vanity and vexation of spirit ? How will he befool himself, for the many good opportunities he hath lost, and wish a thousand times that he were to live over his misspent days again? And how bitterly will he, with David, bewail the sins of his youth \ Learn then, good Philotheus, by the dear-bought experience of others, to accustom yourself to bear Christ's yoke from your youth, and his yoke will sit easy on your neck ; for your duty will grow natural to you by beginning betimes. Do but consider, how welcome a young convert is to God ; it was to young Samuel that God revealed himself, and that at such a time too, when the word of God was precious and very rare, to shew how much God honoured a young prophet 2, and you know that St. John, the youngest of all the disciples, is the only person of all the twelve, who was permitted to lean 1 l's. xxv. (k 2 1 Sam. iii. 1. FOR WINCHESTER SCHOLARS. 361 on our Saviour's bosom, at the last supper, as dearest to him in affection, and who is emphatically called the disciple whom Jesus loved * : and this is suitable to that gracious promise which God hath made to encourage all young persons to serve him ; " I love them that love me, and they that seek me early shall find me 2." O Philotheus, let this heavenly promise excite in you a great zeal to seek God, and seek him early ; for if you do seek, you are sure to find him ; you are sure, when you have found him, he will love you ; and you shall reap all the happy effects of God's infi- nite love, and of an early piety. An early piety ! than which, nothing will make you a greater comfort to all your friends, or a greater blessing to the very college where you are bred; nothing will make you more universally esteemed, and beloved by all men, or more successful in your studies : and besides that peace of conscience, and the pleasure of well-doing you will at present feel ; think, if you can, how unconceivable a joy it will be to you when, in your elder years, you can reflect on your well-spent time, and the innocence of your youth ; how great a consolation it will be to you on your death-bed, how easy it will render your ac- compts at the great day of judgment, and how much a whole life spent in God's service, will increase your glory in heaven. God of his great mercy, Philotheus, make these and the like considerations effectual to create holy resolutions in you, and give you grace to make good use of these following directions, which are designed 1 John xiii. 23. 2 Prov. viii. 17. 362 A MANUAL OF PRAYERS to teach you to fear the Lord from your youth, and are suited to your particular age and condition, in hopes they may the more affect you. God grant they may \ Amen. DIRECTIONS IN GENERAL. As soon as ever you awake in the morning, good Philotheus, strive as much as you can, to keep all worldly thoughts out of your mind, till you have presented the first fruits of the day to God, which will be an excellent preparative to make you spend the rest of it the better ; and therefore be sure to sing the morning and evening hymn in your chamber devoutly, remembering that the psalmist, upon happy experience assures you, that it is a good thing to tell mark what 1 1 Cur. xi. 29. : John vi. .".3. FOR WINCHESTER SCHOLARS. 411 is done amiss. Alas ! alas ! I am then unfit, not only to communicate, but to say even my daily prayers. I know, Lord, that if I should stay till I am worthy to come, I should then never come ; and therefore though I am unworthy of so unspeakable a mercy, yet I come to beg thy grace to make me worthy, or at least such as thou wilt accept ! O blessed Jesus, do thou so open my eye of faith to discern thy body and blood in the holy sacrament, do thou so dispose my soul at this time to commu- nicate, that I may feel all the happy effects of thy own divine institution, that my soul may receive such lasting impressions of thy goodness, and be so ravished with the love of thee, and with the incom- parable delights of thy service, and with such an early foretaste of heaven, that all the pleasures of sin, which in my growing years may tempt me, may appear to me tasteless and unwelcome. 0 heavenly Father, clothe me with the wedding- garment, even the graces of my blessed Saviour, for then am I sure to be a welcome guest to thy table, when I shall come thither in the likeness of thy only well-beloved Son in whom thou art always well pleased. O heavenly Father, fill me with a lively faith, pro- found humility, filial obedience, inflamed affections, and universal charity ; O raise in my soul all those heavenly transports of zeal and devotion, of love and desire, of joy and delight, of praise and thanksgiving, which become the remembrance of a crucified Saviour, which become one redeemed by the blood of God, and that for his sake only that redeemed me, in whose holy words I sum up all the graces and bless- 412 A MANUAL OF PRAYERS ings I stand in need of. Our Father which art in heaven, &c. This prayer, Philotheus, is proper for you to add to your morning prayer, the day on which you are to receive. DIRECTIONS IN TIME RECEIVING. In time of receiving, good Philotheus, labour all you can to keep your heart affected with the public prayers, and to fill up all the vacant minutes with holy ejaculations, such as these which follow. At going to the Altar. In the multitude of thy mercies, O Lord God, do I now approach thy altar. O pardon my sins, and receive me graciously. Amen, Amen. At the Offertory. Blessed be thou, O Lord God ; for all things come of thee, and of thy own do I now give thee ' ! O let this alms be an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, and well-pleasing to thee 2 ! At Consecrating. O blessed Jesu, in the bread broken, I call to mind thy body torn with whips, and thorns, and nails ; and in the wine poured out, I call to mind thy pre- cious blood, shed for my sins ! Glory be to thee, 0 Lamb of God, that didst offer thyself a sacrifice, to take away the sins of the whole 1 1 Chron. xxix. 14. 2 Phil. iv. 18. FOR WINCHESTER SCHOLARS. 413 world : Lord, have mercy on me, and take away mine also. Whilst others are communicating. O my God, whom have I in heaven but thee, and there is none on earth I desire, in comparison of thee x ! As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God 2 ! My soul is a thirst for thee, O God, my God ! Blessed Saviour, I am thine, I am wholly thine, for thou hast bought me with a price, with the ines- timable price of thy own blood 3 ! Lord, suffer not the price of thy own blood to perish, and I will always glorify thee in my body, and in my spirit which are thine. If there be many communicants, and thou hast much vacant time, Philotheus, and dost want devout matter to employ thy thoughts, till all have commu- nicated, thou mayest then repeat the thanksgiving for Christ's sufferings, (p. 405.) either in whole, or in part, as thou seest it needful. When the priest cometh towards you. 0 Lord God, I now desire to renew my covenant with thee, and to seal it in this sacrament ! Lord, put thy laws into my mind, and write them in my heart, and for the passion of thy Son, which I now commemorate, be merciful to my unrighteous- ness, my sin and my iniquities remember no more, and be thou my God, and I will be thy servant. Amen, Amen 4. 1 Ps. lxxiii. 25. 2 Ps. xlii 1. ;i 1 Cor. vi. 20. 4 Heb. viii. 10. 414 A MANUAL OF PRAYERS O my soul, taste now, and see how gracious the Lord is l ! After Receiving the Bread. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who feedest me with the bread of life 2. O Lord God, who didst sanctify us by the offering of the body of Jesus once for all, sanctify me, even me, O heavenly Father. After Receiving the Cup. Glory be to thee, O Lord Jesus, who permittest me to drink of the fountain of life freely ! My beloved is mine, and I am his ! Blessed Saviour, thou hast loved us, and washed us from our sins in thy own blood, and therefore to thee be glory and dominion, for ever and ever. Amen, Amen 3. Glory be to thee, O Jesus my Lord, and my God, for thus feeding my soul with thy most blessed body and blood ; O let thy heavenly food transfuse new life, and new vigour into my soul, and into the souls of all that communicate with me, that our faith may daily increase, that we may all grow more humble, and contrite for our sins, that we may all love thee, and serve thee, and delight in thee, and praise thee more fervently, more incessantly than ever we have done heretofore ! Amen, Amen. After the congregation is dismissed, Philotheus, if you cannot get privacy in your own chamber, I ad- vise you at the first opportunity to go into the chapel, 1 Psalm xxxiv. - Hob. x. 10. J Rev. i. . 5 2 Chron. xvi. 12. 6 Matt. ix. 12. 7 Eccles. xxxviii. 1, &c. WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 451 doth he heal men, and taketh away their pains." But then he adds, " My son, in thy sickness be not negligent, but pray unto the Lord, and he will make thee whole ; leave off from sin, and order thy hands aright, and cleanse thy heart from all wickedness ; give a sweet savour, and a memorial of fine flour ; then give place to the physician. There is a time when in their hands there is good success ; for they also shall pray unto the Lord, that he would prosper that which they give for ease and remedy to prolong life." I earnestly recommend to you this counsel of the son of Sirach ; and therefore to you that are sick, or infirm, or lame, I recommend repentance, and prayer, and sacrifice, the sacrifice of alms, by which you will offer to God "a sweet savour." To your physician I also recommend devout prayer to the Author of health and sickness, that his physic may prosper ; and then his physic is like to procure a blessing, when both the patient and the physician join in their prayers for it. I exhort you to begin with repentance, and to read devotional books on that subject, of which, blessed be God, there are good store ; for it is repen- tance that must dispose you for prayer. The prophet complains of the obdurateness of those, who, " when God had stricken them, did not grieve 1." God forbid you should be thus obdurate ! God forbid but, since he has stricken you, you should grieve, and grieve with that "godly sorrow which worketh repentance to salvation, not to be re- pented of !" I beseech you then to examine yourselves very 1 Jer. v. 3. G g 2 452 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS seriously, whether you have ever repented of your sins, so as to " bring forth fruits meet for repent- ance ;" for if you are guilty either of total impeni- tence, or of an universal relapse into your old sins, or if you lie under the dominion of any one wilful sin, look no further for the original cause of your distemper : God has in justice sent it you for your punishment. But the most merciful God, " who delights not in the death of a sinner," in his very punishments de- signs rather to awaken than to destroy us ; and if this punishment, by which God calls you to repent- ance, does awaken you out of your former security, it turns to a blessing, to a happy occasion of your eternal bliss : be of good cheer then, and repent. Your very bodily distemper will present you with a lively idea of your sins, and Holy Scripture makes use of the former, to picture out to us the latter. Think then of the weakness, and the pain, and the indisposedness, and the restlessness, and the danger that afflict the sick man, and compare them with that impotence to good, that anguish of a wounded spirit, that universal indisposedness to duty, that restlessness of conscience, those horrors of eternal torments ; which attend the sinner, and which with- out repentance are for ever incurable, and make this reflection with yourself, that if we are so very soli- citous for the cure of our bodies, much more ought we to be solicitous for the cure of our souls. But if your heart does not condemn you, if you are conscious to yourself you have truly repented, and have never "returned to your vomit again," and indulge no one wilful sin, and have nothing to accuse yourself of, but your daily failings ; which are the WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 453 unavoidable infelicities of lapsed nature, and for which you daily beg pardon, then is your distemper a fatherly chastisement only, and you ought to re- joice in it rather than in the least to regret it. However it is your best way to renew your repent- ance on this occasion, and to be sure to " hear God's rod," and to learn that lesson from it, in which you are sensible you were deficient before, and which God has sent this affliction on purpose to teach you. True repentance will rightly dispose you for prayer, and you will come with boldness, with an humble, but firm confidence " to the throne of grace," when you can look on God as reconciled to you in Jesus, and shall be sure " to obtain help in time of need." To ob- tain either the cure of your distemper, or if God see the continuance of it to be more for your spiri- tual advantage, such grace which is sufficient for you, such consolation in your own soul, and satis- faction in God's good pleasure, as shall abundantly overbalance your calamity, Prayer is a duty always obliging, and to be prac- tised by all, because all stand alike in need of the Divine mercy and benediction ; but it is more espe- cially the duty proper for the time of affliction, be- cause our needs are then more pressing, and there- fore says St. James, " Is any afflicted, let him pray1." Nor is it enough for you to pray for yourselves, but according to the same apostle's advice, and as soon as you come to this place, whether you are poor or rich, " send for," or, if you are able, go yourself to " the elders of the church," to pray over you, as 1 Jam. v. 13. 454 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS God's ministers, and to give you ghostly counsel, as they are guides of souls ; desire them that you may have the daily prayers of the whole congregation for you, that the waters may be blessed to you, and be sure you daily frequent the public prayers yourself, or as often as your infirmity permits. In all your prayers, for deliverance from your present affliction, you must always remember to pray with resignation of your own will, to the Divine Will, as our Lord hath taught us, " Father, if thou be wil- ling, remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will but thine be done V This short effectual hea- venly prayer I beseech you to have always in your heart, and in your mouth ; and the oftener you repeat it, endeavour to repeat it with more and more fer- vency, committing your condition, all your sorrows, and the answer of all your prayers, wholly to God, '■' Committing your soul" entirely to him in " well- doing, as into the hands of a faithful Creator2." Of the two prayers which follow, you may use daily one, or both, in whole, or in part, as they best suit with the temper of your soul, and with your particular condition. A Prayer for Repentance when God is p'ovoked to punish us. O Holy Lord God, I, wretched sinner, humbly ac- k now ledge, that thou in thy justice hast laid this calamity <>n me for my sins; glory be to thee, O Lord, that thou hast not given me over as incorrigible, that thou hasl sent this punishment to awaken, and <«• 1 Luke xxii. 12. I Pet. iv. 19. WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 455 humble me. O may it have that blessed effect on me, that, from my very misery, I may date my sal- vation ! Thou, Lord, hast stricken me [with sickness,] [with lameness,] and it is just I should " bear thy in- dignation, because I have sinned against thee." Blessed be thy infinite goodness, that my punish- ment is not greater, that " Thou hast not suffered thy whole displeasure to arise." O Lord God, " in the midst of judgment remem- ber mercy, that mercy which is over all thy works, that mercy in which thou thyself delightest;" behold a great, a miserable sinner, a fit object of that mercy here prostrate before thee : " Lord have mercy on me." Ah Lord, my spiritual distemper is infinitely more mortal than my corporeal : O that it might be thy good pleasure to forgive the one, and to remove the other! 0 thou that art " rich in mercy," give the grace of true repentance to all that come to the waters ; and give it to me, the greatest sinner of them all. Lord, give me grace to examine all my mispent life ; in the bitterness of my soul to confess my sins, with a broken and contrite heart to bewail them : with utmost abhorrence to forsake them : and do thou so " order my steps in thy word," that for the time to come, " no wickedness may have dominion over me," that I may " bring forth fruits meet for repentance." 1 confess, Lord, that I have " abused my members, and made them instruments of unrighteousness to sin V and thou hast most justly punished them for it ; 0 restore them to me again, and I will endeavour 1 Rom. vi. 13. 456 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS all my life, " to make them instruments of righteous- ness" to thy glory. Ah Lord, it is the cure of my soul, for which I pray more earnestly, than for the cure of my body. I go to the bath for my bodily health; and bless it, if it be thy will, to my perfect recovery, and to the recovery of all those that come thither with me : but for the health of my soul I fly to the blood of Jesus, " to the fountain set open for sin and for un- cleanness :" I consult my bodily physician for my dis- temper, but with much greater concern, I fly to thee, O Lord, who art the sovereign Physician of souls. " Heal my soul, 0 God, for I have sinned," griev- ously sinned " against thee," and by my sins have pro- voked thee, who art the God of mercy, to anger. " O heal my backslidings, and love me freely, and take away mine iniquity, and receive me graciously, and turn thine anger from me." I humbly pray to thee, O Lord, for my bodily cure ; but because I know I may be eternally happy hereafter without health of body here, I pray for it with a resolution to acquiesce in thy good pleasure, shouldest thou think fit to deny it. But, O my God, when I pray for the cure of my soul, I resolve I will not be denied ; I will never give over importuning thee, till thou givest me that " godly sorrow, which worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of," till thou hast begun to kindle thy love in my heart. " Turn thou me, O Lord, and I shall be turned." I will give thee no rest, till thou hast turned me to thyself. Turn me then, O my God, O turn me, O pardon me, O succour me, O heal me, O save me, WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 457 for thy own infinite mercies' sake, and for the merits of Jesus thy beloved, in whom thou hast made sinners accepted. Amen, Amen. A Prayer for Amendment when God is pleased to try us. " I know, Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou of very faithfulness hast caused me to be troubled," for "before I was afflicted I went astray, but now have I learned to keep thy word," blessed be thy goodness for afflicting me. True it is, O my God, that thou hast most season- ably sent me this affliction, [this sickness and lame- ness,] because thou in thy propitious wisdom didst see that I wanted it. O may it have its most gra- cious and full influence on my soul, that I may be bettered by it. I humbly beg of thee, O merciful Father, that this affliction may strengthen my faith, which thou sawest was growing weak : fix my hope which was staggering, quicken my devotion which was languish- ing, unite me to my first love which I was forsaking, rekindle my charity which was cooling, revive my zeal which was dying, confirm my obedience which was wavering, recover my patience which was faint- ing, mortify my pride which was presuming, and jjer- fect my repentance which was daily decaying : for all these and the like infirmities, to which my soul is ex- posed, O make thy affliction my cure. Grant, O my God, that this affliction, thou hast in mercy laid on me, may wean all my affections from the world, which I was apt to grow too fond of; rescue me from those occasions of evil, of which I 458 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL FERSONS was in danger ; secure me from those temptations which were ready to assault me ; restrain me from those sins, to which my nature most strongly in- clined ; preserve me from all those abuses of health I am apt to incur ; and purify my soul from all that dross, and from all those vicious propensions, which either my repentance had left behind, or which I have since contracted. O my God, let thy affliction produce my amend- ment, and all the happy effects in me which it is wont to do in thy children, and which thou in mercy doest design it should ; and then continue thy afflic- tion if it seem good in thy sight : behold, Lord, " Happy is the man whom thou thus correctest V What is best for me, O my God, I know not ; my flesh desires a deliverance from this distemper, and if it be thy pleasure, O Lord, deliver me : my spirit desires that thou only wouldest choose for me. Do thou then, O heavenly Father, choose for me because thou art my Father, and out of thy fatherly tender- ness wilt be sure to choose what is best for me. I resign up my own will entirely to thine. " Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me ; never- theless not my will but thine be done." O my Father, if it be thy blessed will the waters should not be effectual to me, make them effectual to all other infirm persons besides : I will rejoice in thy goodness for removing their affliction, I will ac- quiesce in thy goodness for continuing mine. 11 ear, Lord, and have compassion on me, for the merits and sufferings of Jesus, whose perfect resig- nation may I always imitate. Amen, Amen. 1 Job v. 7. WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 459 Next to the great duties of repentance, and prayer, I am to exhort you to sacrifice, the sacrifice of alms-giving, which is a duty appropriate to the rich, or to those who have a competence of the things of this world, so that as hitherto I have united the rich and poor together, because both are alike obliged to repent and to pray, I must now separate them, and give distinct exhortations to them both. An Exhortation to the Rich. If you are rich, or have wherewithal to relieve others, then be sure too " to be rich in good works, and according to your ability give alms V and give them in this place to those poor Christians, who come to the baths for the cure of the like distempers as the rich do, but have nothing to sustain them, or to defray the charges of their cure. From what you feel yourself, learn to compassion- ate the like miseries in others ; that relief you would desire others should show to you, were you in want, do you show to the poor ; those blessings, that ease, that health, and that patience, you beg of God for yourself, beg of God for all others which you see are in the like distress, and beg it as you would for yourself, and with a like concern. Such charity as this will be an unspeakable com- fort to you, whatever your distemper is ; there is a present temporal blessing promised to it, and pro- mised to charitable persons in that very time, when they most of all want it, namely in the time of their trouble, and on their sick beds : " for blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy, the Lord shall 1 Luke xi. 41. 12 460 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS deliver him in the time of trouble, the Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing, thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness V Learn then of our most compassionate Saviour to shew mercy to the sick, and the lame, and to con- tribute all you can to their healing ; lay aside money for that very use, and pray to God to direct your charity to those who most want it, and who are most worthy to be relieved : by this means you will be able conscientiously to say with Job, " I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame 2." A Prayer for the Rich. All glory be to thee, O Lord God, for that por- tion of the good things of this life, thou hast been pleased to vouchsafe me ; thou, Lord, hast made me thy steward of them, and at the great day, " I must give an account to thee of my stewardship :" O make me a "faithful steward" of them, that " I may give an account to thee with joy, and not with grief." Thou, Lord, hast made it an argument of my love to thee, " to open my bowels to my brother in need." Behold, Lord, I see many of my brethren and sisters here in need, and destitute of those conve- niencies for using the waters, which thou in great goodness hast vouchsafed me, and out of a grateful sense of thy infinite love to me, I desire to shew love to them, and to my power to contribute to their comfort, support, and cure : glory be to thee who hast enabled me to do it. O blessed Saviour, I see thee, in every one of thy poor members, here lying at the pool, and thou hast 1 Psalm xli. 1. 3. : Job xxix. lo- WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 461 " none to help thee in." O give me grace to under- take that merciful office ; to open my bowels, and my purse wide to help thee ; and do thou vouchsafe help to me, in my time of need. O my God, do thou direct me, in the distribution of my alms, to those who most want, and who best deserve relief; that I may dispose of them most agreeably to thy will, and to those who shall most glorify thee for them. O make me " ever merciful, as thou, O Father in heaven, art merciful;" indulge me a share in that mercy, with which thou hast promised "to bless the merciful," and send me deliverance in the time of trouble. Hear, Lord, forgive, and save me, for thy own in- finite mercies' sake, for thy truth, and promise' sake, and for the merits of Jesus thy beloved. Amen, Amen. Ejaculation at the giving of Alms. " Blessed be thou, O Lord God, for ever and ever ; for all things come of thee, and of thy own do I now give thee V Lord, let these alms be "an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing to thee, through Jesus the Son of thy love 2." If your own charitable disposition incline you, and your spiritual guide do also advise you, to devote a particular sum to pious uses, you may express your vow, in this or the like manner. O my God, if thou wilt be with me in this place, and keep me in thy way, and deliver me from my 1 1 Chron. xxix. 14. - Phil. iv. 18. 462 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS [sickness, lameness] and bless the waters to me, then shalt thou, O Lord, be my God, and of that thou hast given me, I will surely give [here name the sum] to thee, and to the poor, that they may be relieved by it, and glorify thee for it. An Exh&rtation to the Poor. You that are poor, though you cannot exercise your charity in giving to others, yet you may, and ought to do it, in praying for them, especially for your benefactors. The greater your temporal wants are, the more they should teach you to depend on God, and the fewer are your temptations ; and your very poverty, if you make a sanctified use of it, will teach you poverty of spirit, humility, heavenly-mindedness, a lively faith, and a firm confidence in God, who is your only refuge, and help in your greatest need. A Prayer for the Poor. O Lord God, the refuge of all mankind, but espe- cially of the miserable ; look down with thine eyes of tenderest pity, on my low and destitute condition. Thou, Lord, hast been pleased to deny me the good things, the conveniencies of this life, blessed be thy name for it; thou sawest I should abuse them, and therefore hast in mercy withheld from me those occasions of sin. But since thou art pleased beyond my poverty to lay this further calamity [this sickness, lameness,] on me, which has brought me hither, O be thou also pleased to succour, and to support mi' under it. All, Lord, I come to my remedy, but have not wherewithal to apply it ; 1 come to the waters, but WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 463 have none to assist me, none to help me into the bath ; O let thy infinite love kindle a compassionate charity in the hearts of the rich, and incline some merciful persons to relieve me. Send seasonable relief, O my God, to all other poor and needy persons, who come hither calamitous like myself; O bless the waters to our cure, that being restored to our health and strength, we may return to our labour, and according to thy Divine appointment, " in the sweat of our brows may eat our bread ;" bless the waters, O Lord, to all other infirm persons, but especially bless them to my benefactors. Lord, sanctify my poverty to me, that I may be humble and constant under it, and submissive to the disposals of thy most wise and gracious Providence. O my God, though I "am poor in this world," make me "rich in faith;" I will gladly want riches here, so I may have " treasure in heaven" hereafter, " and be an heir of the kingdom, which thou hast promised to those that love thee." Lord, pity me; Lord, hear me; Lord, help me; Lord, save me, according to the mul- titude of thy mercies, and the merits of my Saviour. Amen, Amen. The Poor Man's Prayer for those that relieve him. Glory be to thee, O Lord, for my benefactors ; glory be to thee who hast given them ability, and enlarged their hearts to relieve the poor and needy ; glory be to thee for directing them in particular to relieve me. O my God, I earnestly beg of thee, to shew mercy to them who have shewed mercy to me : I have had the comfort of their alms, blessed be thy name : O give them a plentiful recompence for it ; reward them 464 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS sevenfold into their bosom, through Jesus thy be- loved. Amen, Amen. Ejaculations for the Poor. " As for me I am poor and needy, but thou, Lord, carest for me, and on thee, Lord, I cast all my cares." Glory be to thee, 0 Lord, " who deliverest the poor in his affliction," O let it be thy pleasure to deliver me. " O Lord, the poor committeth himself to thee, for thou art the helper of the friendless ;" and to thee, poor as I am, I wholly commit myself. O be thou my helper, O be thou my friend. " Thou, O God, hast of thy goodness prepared for the poor, and the poor and needy shall give thanks unto thy name." " O my soul, put thy trust in the Lord, and by doing good dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed." Having thus allotted to you that are rich, and to you that are poor, your distinct duties, I must now again join you together; and I most passionately beseech you, if you have a concern for the eternal welfare of your souls, any honour for that most holy religion you profess, any reverence for the pure all- seeing eyes of God, to take all imaginable care, that you do not abuse the bath, by any lasciviousness, or impurity, which may defile yourselves, or others : for this is the way to turn the means of your cure, into an occasion of the more outrageous sin ; and to provoke God to send you away with a dreadful curse, instead of a blessing. If after a due use of the baths, you find any benefit by them, and that your distemper is either WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 4(h'j removed, or abated, as you desired the prayers of the congregation at your first coming, for God's blessing on the waters ; so it is most just you should desire the congregation to give thanks for you, and to ren- der to God a public acknowledgment for the mercy he has vouchsafed you. Be very careful, that when you are well, you do not forget you were sick ; but let that advice which our Lord gives to the impotent man, be deeply im- pressed on your mind, say it often to your own soul, " Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee." Renew all those good resolutions you made in the day of your distress ; be very watchful and jealous over yourself for fear of backsliding ; avoid all occa- sions of sin for the future ; and dedicate that health, to which God has in tender mercy restored you, to his glory. A Thanksgiving. All praise, all glory be to thee, my Lord and my God, for hearing my prayers in the time of my trouble, for blessing the waters to my good, [to my ease, to my cure] ; O, may I never forget this blessing ! O may I ever give thee thanks for it. Lord, I am jealous over my own treacherous heart, that now thou hast [abated,] [freed me from] my calamity, I shall grow cold in my devotion, and that the sense of my duty will be apt to wear oft* with my affliction : but my sure and only trust is in the assistances of thy grace. " O, hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not, O, keep me as the apple of thine eye." O, may I " sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto me." Hh, 46C) PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS " Praise the Lord, 0 my soul ; while I live will I praise the Lord ; as long as I have my being, I will sing praises unto my God." " I called upon the Lord in my trouble, and the Lord heard me at large, therefore will I praise him." " Thou art my God, and I will thank thee ; thou art the Lord, and I will praise thee." " Praised be the Lord, who hath not cast out my prayer, nor turned his mercy from me." " O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is gracious, and his mercy endureth for ever." I will not praise thee, O Lord, in private, but " I will tell abroad what thou hast done for my soul." " I will give thanks unto thee in the great con- gregation ; I will praise thee amongst much people." Accept, O my God, this my sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving ; and since the longer I live, the more I experience thy most adorable boundless goodness, the more devoutly may I daily praise thee, the more intensely may I daily love thee, through Jesus thy beloved. Amen, Amen. To this you may properly add the Hundred and third Psalm. If after you have used the waters, you find no relief by them, be not discouraged : it may be, God designs to effect your cure some other ways; it may be he sees it best for your spiritual good, that your distemper should continue, and it is your duty pati- ently to submit to his good pleasure. If you are conscious to yourself, that you have truly repented of all your sins past, and that the desire of your soul is towards God, you may be then assured, that God " chasteneth" you because lie WHO COME TO THE EATHS FOR CURE. 4G7 "loves" you, that he dealeth with you as "with a child" and that his paternal bowels are ever yearn- ing on you. It is most true in common experience, what the apostle affirms, " That no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous 1," and so will your chastening seem to you ; " nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness, unto them which are exercised thereby ;" and such fruit it will in the end infallibly yield to you. Believe me then, that you will at last, to your un- utterable joy, experimentally find, that " all things," even the sharpest and the most continued afflictions, " work together for good, to those that love God 2." Ejaculations for the Afflicted. " Deal thou with me, O Lord, according to thy name, for sweet is thy mercy." " Thou hast been my succour, leave me not ; neither forsake me, O God of my salvation." " I should utterly have fainted, but that I verily believe to see the goodness of the Lord, in the land of the living." " I will wait on the Lord, from whom cometh my salvation." " Though I am sometime afraid, yet put I my trust in thee." " Thou shalt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is staid on thee, because he trusteth in thee." " O what great troubles and adversities hast thou shewed me, and yet didst thou turn and refresh me." " As for me, I will patiently abide alway, and will praise thee more and more." 1 Heb. xii. 11. 2 Rom. viii. 28. H h 2 4G^ PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS " In the multitude of the sorrows I had in my heart . thy comforts have refreshed my soul." Unto thy entire disposal I resign my spirit, " for thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of truth." O, may I always do and suffer thy will. " My God, though thou slayest me, yet will I put my trust in thee." It is the Lord, it is my God, it is my Father, it is my friend, it is infinite love that afflicts me : " let him do what seemeth him good ;" he can will nothing but good for me ; he can do nothing but good to me; his will be ever done, and not my own. To these ejaculations may be added that prayer for amendment when God is pleased to try us, which went before. If want of children, good Christian, and hopes of benefit from the waters bring you thither, then I beseech you, as I did those who were sick or lame, to begin with God : repentance, and prayer, and resig- nation, and charity, are all as proper for your condi- tion, as for them. Be assured, that children are the "gift of God," and let your first and chief recourse be to him, and from him only expect a blessing. It is true, the blessings of the womb are temporal only, vet they are such which all married persons re- gularly ought to desire, and for which they ought with humility, and submission to pray. Though the blessing of children is very often in- dulged to wicked persons as well as to good, yet we see many times that God denies them to both, though they never so passionately desire them. When God denies children to wicked persons, it WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 469 is in his anger, and for punishment. Thus Nadab, and Abihu " for offering strange fire, died before the Lord," and as an aggravation of their punishment it is remarked, "that they had no children1." And the doom that God pronounced against wicked Coniah was1, "thus saith the Lord, Write this man childless2." God threatens incestuous persons, " that they shall die childless 3." And sometimes when hopes of issue appear, he gives the wife " a miscarrying womb, and dry breasts 4." It is therefore most needful, that you should ground your hopes of children, on a previous repentance. Children are no certain marks of God's favour, and therefore the good often want them. Never were there two better married couples, than Abraham, "the friend of God," and Sarah ; than Zachary and Elisa- beth " who were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments of the Lord blameless," and yet Sarah and Elisabeth were both "barren," and never had been mothers but by miracle. Rebekah, and Rachel, and Hannah, had all for a long time " their wombs shut up," and by prayer they were all at last " opened." However, when God foresees children like to prove, either temptations, or calamities, or curses to their good parents, it is a great blessing then to deny them : which our Lord intimates to the daughters of Jerusalem, when he told them, " the days were coming in which they should say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps that never gave suck 5." But when God denies children to holy persons, 1 Num. iii. 4. 2 Jer. xxii. 30. a Lev. xx. 20, 21. 4 Hos. ix. 14. 5 Luke xxiii. 29. 470 PRAYERS FOR THE USE OF ALL PERSONS he makes up the blessing some other way, and "gives them a name better than of sons and of daughters, an everlasting name that shall not be cut off1:" so, that, which way soever God thinks fit to deal with yon, yon have all the reason imaginable to assure yourself that what is God's will is best for you, and cheerfully to acquiesce in his good pleasure. A Prayer for a Wife. 0 Lord God Almighty, who " formest us from the womb, who coverest us there, and seestour substance when imperfect, and all our members, and how they are curiously formed2." All glory be to thee. 1 know Lord " that children, and the fruit of the womb, are an heritage and gift that cometh of thee," and therefore of thee only I beg it ; O vouchsafe me that gift in thy good time. Glory be to thee O Lord, " who makest the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children." O that it might please thee, to make me " a joyful mother." Deliver me, O my God, from either " a barren, or from a miscarrying womb, and from dry breasts ;" and if it be thy will, bless the waters, that they may dis- pose me to be fruitful, and to conceive: and do thou, 0 Lord, most tenderly preserve " the fruit of my womb," that I may at last happily bring forth, and may forget my pangs, and may praise thy name, " for joy that a child is born into the world " To thee, O Lord God, "do I vow this vow, that if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and wilt give unto thy handmaid children, then will I give them unto Hue :" 1 will 1 Isa. Ivi. 5. Psalm cxxxix. 10. ' 1 Sam. i. 11. WHO COME TO THE BATHS FOR CURE. 471 early devote them to thee in holy baptism : I will do my utmost to bring them up, in thy nurture and admonition, in thy filial fear and reverential love, that they may become instruments of thy glory on earth, and may at last become saints in heaven, to sing praises to thee eternal there. Bless me, and my husband, " O Lord God Almighty, bless us with the blessings of heaven above, and with the blessings of the deep that lieth under, bless us with the blessings of the breasts, and of the womb," if it be thy will. O Lord, if thou art pleased, for most wise and gracious purposes, to deny us the blessings of chil- dren ; thy most holy will be done : O give us an en- tire contentedness without them ; and though it is not thy pleasure to make us fruitful in our bodies, yet make us fruitful in our souls, fruitful in all saving graces, which will in the end prove a much greater joy, and comfort, and blessing to us both, than chil- dren. Hear me, O Lord, and help me, and grant my petition if it be thy will, for thy infinite goodness sake, and the sake of Jesus the Son of thy love. Amen, Amen. If it please God to bless the waters to your fruit- fulness, then use the foregoing form of thanksgiving. And if you, or any one besides, who have made use of this paper, have received the least good from it, to God be all tho glory. Amen. PASTORAL LETTER, FROM THE BISHOP OF BATH AND WELLS, TO HIS CLERGY, CONCERNING THEIR BEHAVIOUR DURING LENT. [Printed for Charles Brome, 1G88.] PASTORAL LETTER, " All Glory be to God." REV. BROTHER, The time of Lent now approaching, which has been anciently and very Xtianly set apart, for peni- tential humiliation of soul and body, for fasting and weeping and praying, all which you know are very frequently inculcated in Holy Scripture as the most effectual means we can use, to avert those judgments our sins have deserved ; I thought it most agreeable to that character which, unworthy as I am, I sustain, to call you and all my brethren of the clergy to mourning; to mourning for your own sins, and to mourning for the sins of the nation. In making such an address to you as this, I follow the example of St. Cyprian, that blessed Bishop and Martyr, who from his retirement wrote an excellent epistle 1 to 1 Ep. iv. Edit. Oxon. 47 () A I'ASTORAL LETTER TO HIS CLERGY, his clergy, most worthy of your serious perusal, ex- horting them, by publick prayers and tears to appease the anger of God, which they then actually felt, and which we may justly fear. Remember that to keep such a fast as God has chosen, it is not enough for you to afflict your own soul, but you must also according to your ability, " deal your bread to the hungry ' :" and the rather, because we have not only usual objects of charity to relieve, but many poor Protestant strangers are now fled hither for sanctu- ary, whom as brethren, as members of Christ, we should take in and cherish. That you may perform the office of a publick intercessour the more assi- duously, I beg of you to say daily in your closet, or in your family, or rather in both, all this time of abstinence, ye 51st Psalm, and the other prayers which follow it in the Commination. I could wish also that you would frequently read and meditate on the Lamentations of Jeremy, which holy Gregory Nazienzen was wont to doe2, and the reading of which melted him into the like lamentations as affected the prophet himself when he pen'd them. But your greatest zeal must be spent for the publick prayers, in the constant and devout use of which, the publick safety, both of Church and State, is highly concerned : be sure then to offer up to God every day the Morning and Evening Prayer, offer it up in your family at least, or rather as far as your circum- stances may possibly permit, offer it up in the Church, especially if you live in a great town, and say over the Litany every morning during the whole of lent. This I might enjoin you to doe, on your canonical ' Isa. Jviii. 5. 7. : Orat. xii. CONCERNING THEIR BEHAVIOUR DURING LENT. 477 obedience, " but for love's sake, I rather beseech you," and I cannot recommend to you a more devout and comprehensive form of penitent and publick in- tercession than that, or more proper for the season. Be not discouraged, if but few come to the " solemn assemblies," but go to the " House of Prayer," where " God is well known for a sure refuge ;" go, though you go alone, or but with one besides yourself; and there as you are God's "remembrancer, keep not silence, and give him no rest till he establish, till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth1." The first sacred council of Nice, for which the Xtian world has always had a great and just veneration, ordains a 2 provincial synod to be held before Lent, that all dissentions being taken away, a pure oblation might be offer'd up to God, namely of prayers, and fasting, and alms, and tears, which might produce a comfort- able communion at the following Easter : and that in this diocese we may in some degree imitate so primi- tive a practice, I exhort you to endeavour all you can to reconcile differences, to reduce those that go astray, to promote universal charity towards all that dissent from you, and " to put on as the elect of God 3, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, hum- bleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing one another and forgiving one another, even as Christ forgave you3." I passionately beseech you to reade over daily your ordination vows, to examine yourself how you observe them ; and in the prayers that are in that office, fervently to importune God for the as- sistance of His good Spirit, that you may conscien- tiously perform them. " Teach publickly, and from 1 Isa. Ixii. 6, 7. 2 Can. v. 3 Col. iii. 12. 478 A PASTORAL LETTER TO HIS CLERGY. house to house, and warn every one night and day with tears ;" " warn" them to repent, to fast and to pray, and to give alms, "and to bring forth fruits, meet for repentance ;" " warn" them to continue steadfast in that " faith once delivered to the saints ;" in which they were baptiz'd "to keep the word" of God's patience, that God may keep them in the hour of temptation ; " warn" them against the sins and errours of the age ; " warn" them to deprecate pub- lick judgments, and to mourn for publick provoca- tions. No one can reade God's holy word but he will see, that the greatest saints have been the greatest mourners ; David " wept whole rivers ' ;" Jeremy " wept sore, and his eyes ran down in secret places day and night like a fountain 2 ;" Daniel " mourned three full weeks, and did eat no pleasant bread, and sought God by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth and ashes 3 ;" St. Paul was humbled, and bewailed and wept for the sins of others4; and our Lord himself when he "beheld the city wept over it5." Learn then of these great saints, learn of our most compassionate Saviour, to weep for the publick, and weeping to pray that " we may know in this our day, the things that belong to our peace, lest they be hid from our eyes." To mourn for national guilt, in which all share, is a duty incumbent on all, but especially on priests, who are particularly commanded " to weep and to say, Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that God may repent of the evil and be- come jealous for his land and pity his people fi." Be 1 Psal. cxix. 136. 2 Jer. ix. 1. — xiii. 17. 3 Dan. ix. 3. x. 2. ' 2 Cor. xii. 21. ; Phil. iii. 18. 1 Luke xix. 41. "Joel ii. 17, 18. CONCERNING THEIR BEHAVIOUR DURING LENT. 479 assured that none are more tenderly regarded by God than such mourners as these ; there is " a mark *" set by him on " all that sigh and cry for the abominations of the land," the destroying angel is forbid to " hurt any of them," they are all God's pe- culiar care, and shall all have either present deliver- ance, or such supports and consolations, as shall abundantly endear their calamity. " Now the God of all grace, who hath called you unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you" in the true Catholick and Apostolick Faith, profess'd in the Church of England and enable you to adorn that apostolick faith with an apostolick example and zeal, and give all our whole Church that timely repentance, these broken and contrite hearts, that both priests and people may all plentifully sow in tears, and in God's good time may all plentifully reap in joy. Your affectionate friend and Brother, THO. BATH & WELLS, From the Palace ia Wells, Feb. 17, 1687. 1 Ezek. ix. 4. LETTER, EXHORTING THE CLERGY OF THE DIOCESE OF BATH AND WELLS, TO COLLECT IN BEHALF OF THE FRENCH PROTESTANTS, i 1 J, E T T E R, 8?c. " All Glory be to God." SIR, His majesty in these his letters patent, which I now send you, having given a fresh and great assu- rance of his graciousness to his own subjects, in shewing himself so very gracious to Protestant strangers, and having required me to give a particular recommendation and command to my brethren of the clergy within my diocess, to advance this so pious and charitable a work ; I think it my duty, with my ut- most zeal to further so godlike a charity ; and I do therefore strictly enjoin you, that you most affection- ately and earnestly persuade, exhort, and stir up all under your care to contribute freely and cheerfully to the relief of these distressed Christians, and to do it with as well tim'd an expedition as you can. And that his majesty's royal goodness may have its full effect, I beseech you, for the love of God, to be exemplarily liberal towards them yourself, according to your abi- lity : remembering how blessed a thing it is to be ii2 484 A LETTER, &C. brotherly kind to strangers, to Christian strangers, especially such as those whose distress is very great, and is in all respects most worthy of our tenderest commiseration, and how our most adorable Redeemer does interpret and does proportionably reward all the good we do to them as done to himself. God of his infinite mercy inspire this fraternal charity into your own soul, and into the souls of all your parish. Your affectionate friend & brother, THO. BATH & WELLS. Wells, April 15*A, 1686. ARTICLES OF VISITATION AND ENQUIRY, CONCERNING MATTERS ECCLESIASTICAL, EXHIBITED TO THE MINISTERS, CHURCHWARDENS, AND SIDESMEN OF EVERY PARISH WITHIN THE DIOCESS OF BATH AND WELLS, IN THE VISITATION OF THE RIGHT REVEREND FATHER IN GOD, THOMAS, (BY DIVINE PROVIDENCE,) LORD BISHOP OF BATH AND WELLS. THE TENOR OF THE OATH OF THE CHURCHWARDENS, AND SWORN MEN. " You shall swear, that you, and every one of you, shall faithfully execute your several offices of church- wardens and sidesmen, according to the King's laws, and to the best of your skill and knowledge. So help you God, and the contents of his Holy Gospel." ARTICLES OF VISITATION AND ENQUIRY, WITHIN THE DIOCESE OF BATH AND WELLS1. TIT. I. Concerning Churches, Chappek, with the ornaments and furniture thereunto belonging. 1. Is your parish church, or chappel, in good and sufficient repair, both for the roof, windows, floors and seats. •2. Hath any part of your church, chappel, or steeple, been demolished, or pulled down ? What part, and how long since ? — or any of the lead, tim- ber, or bells, thereunto formerly belonging, any way embezzled, or sold, and by whom ? 3. Is there a decent font of stone, with a cover ? Doth the minister baptize publicly only in the font ? Is there a decent communion-table in your chancel, with a decent carpet, and another covering of white linen to be spread thereon at the time of the admini- stration of the Lord's Supper ? And have you a fair 1 Printed in the year 1683. 488 ARTICLES OF chalice, or communion cup, with a cover, and one or more flagons? have they been prophaned by common use? 4. Have you a convenient seat or pew, wherein to read divine service, a pulpit with a decent cloth, or cushion, a large bible of the last translation, and a book of common prayer, lately published, Anno 1662, the book of homilies set forth by authority, and a printed table of the degrees wherein marriages are prohibited, and a book of canons, and constitutions ecclesiastical, and a decent surplice ? 5. Have you a register book in parchment, of christenings, burials, and marriages ? and is the same kept in all points, according to the ancient use ? 6. Have you a book of paper, to record the names and licences of such strangers, as are admitted to preach in your church or chappel? and do such strangers subscribe their names ? as also a book for the churchwardens' accounts ? as also a chest, with locks and keys, wherein to keep the said books, and the aforementioned furniture? TIT. II. Concerning the Church-yard, the houses, glebes, and tithes belonging to the Church. 1. Is your church-yard sufficiently fenced, and decently kept? Hath any person encroached upon the same, or made any door in it, and how long since ? — 2. Is the house of your parson, vicar, or curate, and the out-houses in good repair? Have any of VISITATION AND ENQUIRY. 489 them been defaced, or pulled down without license ? Have there been any encroachments made upon the same? or any of the ancient marks or bounds re- moved or changed ? and by whom ? 3. Have you a true and perfect terrier of all the glebe lands, gardens, orchards, tenements, or cottages, belonging to your parsonage or vicarage, also a note of such pensions, rate-tithes, and portions of tithes, or other yearly profits, (either within, or without your parish) as belonging thereunto ? Have any of the same been withheld from your minister, and by whom as you know, or have heard ? — TIT. III. Concerning Ministers. 1 . Is your minister resident amongst you ? How many weeks hath he been absent from you, without urgent necessity ? 2. Hath your minister a curate resident in your parish ? Is he in holy orders, and conformable to the laws of the Church? Is he allowed by the ordinary. 3. Doth your parson, vicar, curate, or lecturer, if you have any, perform his office in all things, accord- ing to the rubrick of the book of common prayer, lately established, and the act of uniformity pub- lished therewith, without either diminishing, in regard of preaching, or in any other respect, or adding any- thing in the matter or form ? 4. Doth your minister at the reading of divine service, or administrating the sacraments, wear a surplice ? 5. Is your minister licensed to preach ? if so, doth 490 ARTICLES OF he constantly (not having reasonable impediment) preach one sermon in your church or chappel every Sunday ? or if he be not licensed, or be hindred, doth he procure one to supply his office, by preaching or reading one of the homilies ? 6. Doth your minister instruct the youth in your parish in the church catechism, and prepare, and present them to be confirmed by the bishop ? 7. Doth he neglect or delay to visit the sick, or to baptize any infant that is in danger of death ? doth he baptize any without godfathers and god- mothers, or admit either of parents to be godfather or godmother to their own children ? 8. Hath your minister married any persons with- out publishing the banns on three Sundays or holidays unless he had a license, or dispensation so to do ? or hath he married any in private houses, or not between the hours of eight and twelve in the morn- ing? 9. Is your parson, vicar, curate, or lecturer, a man of sober life and conversation ? or is his carriage in any kind disorderly, or scandalous, and unbeseeming a minister ? TIT. IV. Concerning the Parishioners. 1. Is there any person in your parish that lieth under a common fame or suspicion of adultery, for- nication, or incest? Are there any common drunk- ards within your parish, or common swearers, or blasphemers of God's name ; or any that are noted VISITATION AND ENQUIRY. 491 to be railers, unclean, and filthy talkers, or sowers of sedition or faction among their neighbours. 2. Are there any living in your parish who have been unlawfully married, contrary to the laws of God, or any that being lawfully married, and not separated or divorced by course of law, do not cohabit to- gether \ 3. Are there any that refuse to pay their duty for Easter offerings ? or refuse to contribute to the rates made for the repair of your church or chappel, or any thing thereunto belonging? 4. Are there any wills or testaments of persons dead in your parish that are yet unproved ? or any goods administered without a due grant from the ordinary? Did any dying in your parish, or else- where, leave any legacy to your church or chappel, or to the use of the poor, or to any other pious or charitable purposes ? What were those legacies, and how have they been bestowed ? 5. Is there any strife or contention among any of your parish, for their seats or pews in your church ? Have any new pews been erected in your chancel, or in the body of your church or chappel, without leave from the ordinary. tit. v. Concerning Parish Clerks and Sextons 2. 1 . Have you belonging to your church or chappel, a parish clerk, aged twenty-one years at the least ? Is he of honest life and conversation, and sufficient or 1 Exprest in a table set forth by authority, a.d. 1563. 2 Can. 91. 492 ARTICLES OF able to perform his duty, in reading, writing, and singing ? Is he chosen by your minister, and doth he duly attend him, in all divine services at the church ? Are his wages duly paid to him, or who withholdeth the same from him ? 2. Doth he diligently do his duty in keeping the church clean and decent, in tolling and ringing the bell before divine service; and when any person is passing out of this life, doth he, upon notice, toll a bell, that the neighbours may be thereby warned to recommend the dying person to the grace and favour of God? TIT. VI. Concerning Schoolmasters, Schools, Physicians, Chirurgeons, and Midwives. 1 . Doth any man keep a publick or private school in your parish, who is not allowed thereunto, by his ordinary ? 2. Doth any in your parish practise physic, or chirurgery ? or any woman take upon her to exercise the office of a midwife, without license from the ordinary ? TIT. VII. Concerning Churchwardens and Sidesmen. 1. Are the churchwardens of your parish yearly and duely chosen, by the joint consent of your minister and parishioners? or one of them by your minister, and the other by the parishioners \ VISITATION AND ENQUIRY. 493 2. Have the former and last churchwardens given up their accompts to the parish ? and delivered up to the succeeding churchwardens the monies remaining in their hands, together with all other things belong- ing to your church or chappel? 3. You are further to understand, that according to your office, you are to provide against every com- munion appointed in your church or chappel, a suffi- cient quantity of fine white bread, and of good wine, according to the number of your communicants. 4. You the churchwardens and sidesmen are to maintain the church in sufficient repair, which is to be done by a tax, made by the churchwardens, and parishioners, after publick notice given of the time and place where they meet ; and those that refuse, are to be sued in the Ecclesiastical Court only. And for the better direction of persons concerned, here followeth the particular consultation of the learned civilians about church rates. 1 . Every inhabitant dwelling within the parish, is to be charged according to his ability, whether in land or living within the same parish, or for his goods there ; that is to say, for the best of them, but not for both. 2. Every farmer dwelling out of the parish, and having lands, or living in the said parish, in his own occupation, is to be charged to the value of the same lands or living or else to the value of the stock thereupon, even for the best, not for both. 3. Every farmer dwelling out of the parish, and having lands or living within the parish, in the occu- pation of any farmer or farmers, is not to be charged ; but the farmer, or farmers, thereof, are to be charged, in particularity, every one according to the value 494 ARTICLES OF VISITATION. &C. of the land which he occupieth, or according to the stock thereupon, even for the best, but not for both. 4. Every inhabitant and farmer, occupying arable land within the parish, and feeding his cattle out of the parish, is to be charged with the arable lands within the parish, although his cattle be fed out of the parish. 5. Every farmer of any mill within the parish is to be charged for that mill, and the owner thereof, if he be an inhabitant, is to be charged for his liability in the same parish. 6. Every owner of lands, tenements, copyhold, and other hereditaments, inhabiting within the parish, is to be taxed according to his wealth, in regard of a parishioner, although he occupy none of them him- self; and his farmer, or farmers, also are to be taxed for occupying only. 7. You are also to exhibit a bill of presentments to this court of the offenders in your parish, and therein to take the assistance of your minister. THE END. LONDON : GILBERT & KIVINGTON, PRINTERS, sr. John's SQUARE, BOOKS LATELY PUBLISHED, BY J. G. & F. R1VINGTON, ST. HAUL'S CHURCH YARD, AND WATERLOO PLACE, PALL MALL. I. The REMAINS of the Rev. RICH. HURRELL FROUDE, M. A. Late Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. Contents : — Private Journal — Occasional Thoughts — Letters — Sermons. In 2 vols. 8vo. II. The THIRD EDITION of PAROCHIAL SERMONS. By JOHN HENRY NEWMAN, B.D. Vicar of St. Mary the Virgin's, Oxford, and Fellow of Oriel College. Vol. I. 8vo. 10s. 6d. Lately published, New Editions of Vols. II. and III. Price 10*. 6d. each. III. A VIEW of the EVIDENCE afforded by the LIFE and MINISTRY of ST. PETER to the TRUTH of the CHRISTIAN REVELATION. By PHILIP STANHOPE DODD, M.A. Rector of Penshurst, Kent, and Chaplain in Ordinary to the King. 8vo. 10*. 6d. IV. ANCIENT HYMNS from the ROMAN BREVIARY, For Domestic Use, Arranged for every Morning and Evening of the Week, and on the Holidays of the Church. To which are added, Original Hymns, principally of Commemoration and Thanksgiving for Christ's Holy Ordinance. By RICHARD MANT, D.D. M.R.I.A. Lord Bishop of Down and Connor. In a pocket Volume. 3s. dd. THE SICK MAN'S GUIDE. To Acts of Patience, Faith, Charity, and Repentance: together with Two Short EXERCISES, 1. Against unreasonable Fears in Sickness; 2d. Against Despair. Extracted and Abridged from Bishop Jeremy Taylor's Holy Dying. By the Rev. WILLIAM HALE HALE, M.A. Prebendary of St. Paul's, Preacher of the Charter-House, and Chaplain to the Lord Bishop of London. 8vo. 3i. BOOKS PUBLISHED BY J. G. & F. RIV1NGTON. VI. The APOCALYPSE of St. JOHN. or Prophecy of the Rise, Progress, and Fall of the Church of Rome ; the Revolution of France ; the Universal War; and the Final Triumph of Christianity. Being1 a New Interpretation. By the Rev. GEORGE CROLY, LL.D. Rector of St. Stephen's, Walbrook. Third Edition. Small 8vo. 8s. 6d. VII. SERMONS. By the Rev. JAMES S. M. ANDERSON, M.A. Chaplain in Ordinary to the Queen, and Perpetual Curate of St. George's, Brighton. In 8vo. 9s. 6d. Lately published, by the same Author, DISCOURSES on ELIJAH and JOHN the BAPTIST. Second Edition. 8vo. 10s. 6i7. VIII. The CHRISTIAN EXPOSITOR, or a Practical Guide to the Study of the NEW TESTAMENT : intended for the use of General Readers. By the Rev. GEORGE HOLDEN, M.A. Though many Expositions of the Bible of great and deserved celebrity exist in our language, a Commentary sufficiently short to be read by those who have not leisure to consult learned works, yet sufficiently comprehensive to serve as a guide to the Study of the Sacred Scriptures, appears to be still wanting. To supply this deficiency is the design of the present work, in which it has been the aim and study of the Author to embrace, in a condensed form, such in- formation as will enable the general reader to ascertain the real meaning of the Inspired Writers. Second Edition. 12mo. 12s. Lately published, by the same Author, The CHRISTIAN EXPOSITOR of the OLD TESTAMENT- In one large Volume. 12mo. 12.v. 6