THE 
 
 REPENTANCE 
 
 THE CELEBRATED 
 
 Earl of Rochester 
 
 TO WHICH IS ADDED, 
 
 Some suitable Verses on the Occurrence , 
 
 BY DR. ISAAC WATTS. 
 
 NOTTINGHAM : PRINTED BY SUTTON AND SON„ 
 REVIEW OFFICE. 
 
 14. l8if - 
 
++*++** 
 
 THE 
 
 Repentance and Happy Death 
 
 OF 
 
 THE EARL OF ROCHESTER. 
 
 T HIS nobleman was distinguished in his life as a gieat 
 wit, and a great sinner ; and, in his last illness, as a 
 great penitent. Such he is described by the excellent 
 Bishop Burnet, who personally knew him, and attended 
 him on his death -bed. 
 
 Before this period he had advanced to an uncommon 
 decree of impiety, having been a zealous advocate in the 
 black cause of Atheism. He had raked likewise in the 
 depths of debauchery, and had openly ridiculed all virtue 
 and religion. But wnen,dike the prodigal in the Gospel, 
 he came to himself, horror filled his mind, and drew from 
 him the keenest self-reproaches. He was in his own < j yes 
 the vilest wretch on which the sun ever shone i and often 
 wished, that he had been a link-boy, or a beggar, or a cap- 
 tive in a dungeon, rather than that he should so grossly have 
 offended God. 
 
 On a journey into thewest of England, some time before 
 his end, he had been arguing with pecuhar vehemence 
 against God and reVigon* not, however, without feeling, 
 even at the time, the sting of an accusing conscience. 
 
 One day, at an Atheistical meeting, in the house of a per- 
 son of quality, heundertcok to be the champion of infidelity, 
 and received the applauses of the company 9 but here again 
 his conscience reproached him, and he exc auned to himself, 
 « Good God l that a man who walks upright, who sees the 
 
^Ip1Xsu3 
 
 wonderful works of God, and has the u«e of his reason, that 
 such a one should bid defiance to his Creator l ** 
 
 These successive convictions, however, gradually wore 
 offt and, it was not, as before hinted, till his last ilhies* 
 which continued about nine weeks, that he appears to have 
 been truly convinced, and savingly, converted. Then h« 
 •aw the “exceeding sinfulness of sin,* 4 and learned the value 
 ^>f the atonement, on which his hopes of pardon were 
 founded. 44 Shall the joys of heaven (exclaimed he,) be 
 conferred on me? O! mighty Saviour l never, but through 
 thy infinite love and satisfaction ! O never, but by the pur- 
 chase of thy blood 
 
 The scripture?, which had so often been the subject of 
 his merriment, now secured his esteem, and impressed de- 
 light : for they had spoken to his heart. The seeming ab- 
 surdities and contradictions, fancied by men of corrupt and 
 reprobate judgments, vanished; and he was brought to 
 receive the truth in the love of it. The 53d chapter of 
 Isaiah, was particularly useful to him, as containing a pro- 
 phecy concerning pur Saviour’s passion, written several 
 ages before it happened ; which prophecy, the Jews, who 
 blaspheme Jesus, still keep in their hands as a book divinely 
 inspired. 
 
 He -acknowledged, that in the reading of it, he felt a 
 conviction So forcible, that he could not resist it. “The 
 words (said he) had an authority^ which did shoot like 
 beams into ray mind, so that 1 was convinced, not only by 
 the reasoning l had about it, which Satisfied my understand- 
 ing, but by a power which did so effctually constrain me, 
 that l did ever after as firmly believe in my Saviour, as if 1 
 had seen him in the clouds.”-^ He had this chapter read 
 so often to him, that he got it by heart, and went through 
 great part of it in discourse with Bishop Burnett, and others, 
 enlarging on U, with a degree of heavenly pleasure, and 
 applying various passages of it to his own humiliation and 
 
 comfort. “ O my God, (he would say,) can such a 
 
 creature as l, who have denied thy being, and contemned 
 thy power, be accepted by thee ? Can there be mercy 
 
 (JNfVERSBY OF 
 URBANA-CHAMPAIGN \ 
 
mnd pardon for me ? Will God own such a wretch as I f 
 am ? ** ’ ' 
 
 His faith now rested on Christ alone for salvation, and ; 
 often would he entreat God to strengthen it ; crying out, | 
 
 “Lord, I believe! help thou my unbelief/* in this j 
 
 state, however, the grand enemy of souls failed not to as- 
 sault him with many temptations, often suggesting ideas j 
 highly prejudicial to that happy temper of mind with which 
 God had now endued him. “But I thank God, (said "he* 
 on one of these occasions,)! thank God* that l abhor them 
 all, and, by the power of his grace, which I am confident 
 is sufficient for me, 1 have overcome them It is the malice 
 ot the devil, because I am rescued from him ; and it is the 
 goodness of God, that frees me from all my spiritual ene- 
 mies/* 
 
 This noble convert gave many proofs of the sincerity of 
 his faith, and the soundness of his repentance ; among which, 
 his earnest desire to prevent the evil effects of his formec 
 writings and example is particularly to be remarked. He 
 gave a strict charge to the persons in whose custody he left 
 
 his papers, that all his profane and lewd writings, and 
 
 pictures should be burned And he desired ail who at- 
 tended him, to publish abroad, that all men might know, 
 “how severely God had disciplined him fotL his sins, by his 
 afflicting hand;*’ acknowledging, that his sufferings would 
 have been most just, had they been ten times more heavy. 
 His former vsitations, he confessed, had produced some 
 slight resolutions of reforming, arising from the present 
 ainful consequences of his^sins; but now he declared that 
 ehad other sentiments of things, and acted upon othe< 
 principles; that, in short, he possessed so great an abhor ! 
 rence ot all sin, that he would not commit a known one t« 
 gain a kingdom. 
 
 To his former companions in sin, he sent awful mes 
 sages ; and to some who visited him he gave the most solemi 
 warnings. To one gentleman in particular he said. 4 ‘0 
 remember that you contemn God no more. He is ai 
 avenging God, and will visit ,ou for your sins; and will 
 I hojfe, in mercy touch y#ur conscience, [sooner or later, as 
 
5 
 
 he has done mine. Y ou and l have been friends and sinners 
 together a great while, therefore 1 am the more free with 
 you. We have been all mistaken in our conceits, and our 
 persuasions hove been false and groundless ; therefore, God 
 
 grant you tepentance !” Seeing the same person again 
 
 the next day, he said, “Perhaps you were disobliged by 
 my plainness yesterday ; 1 spake the words of truth and 
 
 soberness.” And, striking hi* hand upon his breast, said, 
 
 4< I hope God will touch your heart ! v 
 
 Knowing the rock on which himself had foundered, he 
 expressed an earnest wish that his son might never prove one 
 of those profane and licentious 'wits, who pride themselves 
 in denying God, and scoffing at Religion ; but that he 
 might become an honest and religious man ; and that all 
 his family might- be educated in the fear of God. 
 
 Further, that none, whom he had been the instrument 
 of drawing into sin, might lo^e the benefit of his sincere, 
 though late, repentauce, he subscribed the following recan- 
 tation, and ordered it to be publshed to the world. 
 
 44 For the benefit of all those whom I may have drawn 
 44 into sin, by my example and encouragement, I leave to 
 44 the world this my last declaration, whic h 4 deli er in pre« 
 44 sence of the Great God, who knows the secrets of all 
 44 hearts, and before whom I am to be judged; that, front 
 44 the bottom of my soul, l detest and abhor the whole course 
 44 of my former wicked life ; that I think I can never suf- 
 ficiently admire the goodness of Go£, w ho has given me 
 44 a truesenseof my pernicious opinions, and vile practices; 
 44 by which 1 have hitherto lived without hope, aud with- 
 44 out God in the W'orld ; have been an open enemy io 
 44 Jesus Christ, doing the utmost despite to the Holt 
 44 Spirit of grace; and that the greatest testimony of my 
 44 charity to such i$, to warn them, in the name of God, 
 44 and as they regard the welfare of their immortal souls, no 
 44 more to deny His being, or His providence, or despise 
 44 His goodness ; no more to make a mock of sin, or con- 
 44 ttmn the pure and excellent Religion of my ever blessed 
 
<5 
 
 •• Rede* mki, through whose merits alone, I, one of the 
 44 greatest of sinners, do ye; hope for mercy and forgiveness, 
 
 44 —A men. 
 
 44 }. ROCHESTER." 
 
 Delivered and Signed in the presence of 
 
 Ahn Rochester, 
 
 R, Parsons. 
 
 June io, 1680. 
 
 We now return to the death-bed experience of this eon- 
 verted nobleman, and mafk the power of Religion upon hi» 
 mind, in that important season. — He seemed to have no 
 desire to live, but to testify the truth of his repentance, and 
 to bring glory to God. 
 
 44 U God (said he) should spare me yet a little longer 
 *• time here, 1 hope to bring glory to his name, propor- 
 44 tionably to the dishonor ! have done him, in my whole 
 “ life past ; and particularly by endeavouring to convince 
 • 4 others, and to assure them of the danger of their condition, 
 44 if they continue impenitent ; and to tell them, how gra* 
 “ ciously God hath dealt with me/* 
 
 And when he came within the nearer views of death, 
 about three or four days before it, he said, 44 I shall now 
 44 die. But, O, what unspeakable glories do l see ! what 
 44 joy$, beyond thought or expression, am l sensible of! I 
 * 4 am assured oTGod’s mercy to me, thro^jEsus Christ. 
 44 O ! how 1 long to die, and to be with my Saviour P* 
 Thus died this eminent subject of regenerating grace; 
 July the 26 tb. If 80 , being only in his thirty fourth year; 
 yet so was life worn away by his long illness, and the ef- 
 fects of his torrmr licentious course, that nature gave up 
 without a struggle In him was strikingly verified the 
 remark of the Apostle in another case, that 44 where sin 
 abounded, grace did much more abound." The account 
 • published by Bishop Burnet, gives the particulars of his 
 conversion more at length, and the various conversations 
 on divine things between them, under the title of "Some 
 
7 
 
 Passages intheLifeand Death of John, Earl of Rochester ; M 
 of which the late Dr. Johnson entertained so high an opinion, 
 that he says, “the critic ought to read it for its elegance; 
 the philosopher for its arguments, and the saint for its 
 piety.’* 
 
 Mr. Parsons, chaplain to Lady Rochester, preached and 
 printed a funeral sermon for His Lordship.; in which, after 
 mentioning many of the same or similar circumstances with 
 the bishop, he makes the following application to thecon- 
 sciences of his hearers, whioh will apply equally to the 
 readers of this abridged account. 
 
 “Having thus, says he, discharged the office of an [his- 
 torian, in a farthful representation ol the conversion and 
 death of this great sinner, giife me leave now to bespeak 
 you as an ambassador of Christ, and, in his name ear- 
 nestly to persuade you to be reconciled to him, and to 
 follow this illustrious person, not in his sins any more, but 
 
 in his sorrows for them, and forsaking them If any 
 
 have been drawn into sin from his example, let them be 
 persuaded to break off their sins by repentance, by the 
 
 same example. God knows there are too many that are 
 
 wise enough to discern and follow the examples of evil,— 
 but to do good from these examples they have no desire ; 
 like those absurd flatterers we read of, who could imitate 
 Plato in his crookedness, Aristotle in his stammering, and 
 Alexander the Great in the bending of his neck and shrill- 
 ness of his voice ; but not in any of their perfections. 
 
 Such as these i would beseech, in their cooler seasons, 
 to ask themselves, “What fruit had you in those things 
 whereof ye are now ashamed ? for the end of these things is 
 death.”— Be persuaded then, with humble ana obedient 
 heart, to meet the blessed Jesus, who is now on the way, 
 and comes to us in the bow els of a Saviour, beseeching us to 
 accept the pardon and peace offered in the holy Gospel.” 
 
THE FOLLOWING 1INES 
 
 WERE WRITTEN BY DR. WATTS, 
 
 In reference to this Event; the name St REP HON bein i 
 intended for the Earl of Rochester* 
 
 STREPHON of noble blood and mind, 
 
 (For ever shine his name!) 
 
 As Death approach'd, his Soul refin'd. 
 
 And gave his looser sonnets to the flame. 
 
 “Bum, burn, he cry’d, with sacred rage, 
 
 “Hell is the due of every page ; 
 
 “Such be its fate.” — But, O indulgent Heaven! 
 
 So vile the Muse, and yet the man forgiven! 
 
 “Burn on my songs ; for not the silver Thames, 
 
 4 Nor Tyber, with his yellow streams, 
 
 “In endless currents rolling to the main. 
 
 “Can e'er dilute the poison, or wash out the stain.**— » 
 So M »ses by divine command. 
 
 Forbade the lep’rous house to stand ; 
 
 When deep the fatal spot was grown : 
 
 “Break dovfci the timber, and dig up the stone,** 
 
 SUTTON AND SON PRINTERS,