O make good this thy promise to thy servant here, who stands in so much need of it.

"Hide thy face from his sins, and blot out all his iniquities:" though they be "red as scarlet," yet do thou make them "white as snow," by repentance, which we beg of thee to give him, and to accept, though late, through thine infinite mercies.

Simon Magus, though in the " gall of bitterness, and the bond of iniquity," was exhorted to repent, and to pray for pardon: and therefore we hope the gate of life is still open for our brother, though he hath so long shut himself out of it, by going on in a course that leadeth to the "chambers of death."

Blessed Lord, let thy terrors at length awaken him out of this lethargical condition, before he is overtaken by thy judgements. Afflict him here, that thou mayest spare him hereafter. Soften his heart, that he may bewail his ill-spent life, like Mary Magdalen, with tears of contrition.

O quicken him to a sense of his duty, and of his danger, before it be too late: and when thou hast brought him to his right mind, receive him, we beseech thee, as the compassionate father did his prodigal son, or the shepherd his lost sheep.

Thou, O Lord, who didst pardon the thief upon the cross, hear our prayers for our brother, in these his great, and, for any thing we know, his last agonies.

And as the fore-mentioned instances are lively significations of thine unbounded goodness, and were written for our comfort and instruction, that none should despair of pardon; so with the great

est confidence we now recommend this our distressed brother to thy divine protection, beseeching thee to forgive all that is past, and to receive him at last into thine "everlasting habitation." Amen.

A Prayer for one who is hardened and impenitent.

LORD God Almighty, who art the "Father of our spirits," and who "turnest the hearts of men as thou pleasest; who hast mercy on whom thou wilt have mercy, and whom thou wilt thou hardenest;" let thy merciful ears be open, we pray thee, to the supplications which we now offer to thy Divine Majesty, in the behalf of this thy servant, who appears insensible of his sin and folly, and on whom all means to lead him to repentance have hitherto seemed vain and ineffectual. Take from him, we humbly entreat thee, all ignorance and hardness of heart: remove from him all prejudice against, and contempt of, thy sacred word and ministry: let him no longer " make a mock of sin," but be sensible that the wisdom he has hitherto gloried in, is the greatest and most dangerous folly. Open thou his eyes, that he may see the wonderful things of thy law." Show thy mercy upon him, and grant him thy salvation. Convince him of the vanity and madness, as well as danger, of his past ways.

His understanding, we fear, is now darkened, and his heart hardened through the deceitfulness of sin: O, do thou enlighten his dark mind, and let him at last see the beauties of holiness, which have so long been hidden from his eyes. Take

from him this" stony heart, and give him a heart of flesh." Awaken his slumbering and inattentive soul, that it may delight in things agreeable to its nature, and be employed in things that make for its everlasting peace. O give him understanding, and he shall yet live. Thou that canst revive souls which are dead in sin and trespasses, and make even such as lie in the grave of corruption to become glorious saints and even martyrs for religion, hear our prayers for our brother, who seems to be on the brink of destruction; and pity poor sinners that have not pity on themselves.

It is the unhappiness of being long accustomed to sin, that we are not soon made sensible of our errors, nor easily made to know them. It is the pride of our nature to be unwilling to acknowledge our faults, and to confess our sins: but let thy grace, O God, teach us to deny this ungodly lust. Do thou humble in us all high and vain imaginations; suppress all proud thoughts and haughty opinions of ourselves. Give us all (and particularly thy servant, for whom we are now interceding) a sense of our own vileness; give us unfeigned repentance for all the errors of our life past; that, being cast down, thou mayest raise us up, and become merciful to us, miserable sinners.

Let us all find, by blessed experience, that "we grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ;" and that " his commandments" are not "grievous" to us, but rather the delight and desire of our souls; that so at last we may be presented to him "holy and unblameable, and unreproveable in his sight." Amen.

A Prayer for a sick Woman that is with Child.

O GOD, the help of all that put their trust in thee, the support of the weak, and the relief of the needy; look with pity upon this woman thy servant, who at best acknowledgeth herself but a weak and helpless creature, but much more so now in her present condition, when thou hast added weakness to weakness, and made her to travail with much sickness, together with the burthen of child-bearing.

O Lord, be thou graciously pleased to proportion thy strength to her weakness, and as pains and sorrow take hold upon her, inspire her with fresh vigour and courage to rely upon thee, her only support in time of need, and the rock of her salvation.

Let her not be disquieted with the fear of any evil, since none can happen unto her without thy permission; but give her grace, patiently to resign herself to thy blessed will in all things, who knowest what is best for her, and wilt lay no more upon her, we trust, than thou wilt enable her to bear.

Bring strength, O Lord, out of weakness, and health out of sickness; and make her, in thy good time, a joyful mother of a hopeful child, which may do good in its generation, and be an instrument of thy glory here, and a blessed inhabitant of thy heavenly kingdom hereafter. Amen.

A Prayer for a Woman in the Time of her Travail.

(From Bishop Patrick.)

O MOST Mighty Lord, who hast given us innumerable pledges of thy love, and encouraged us to trust in thee for ever, and to expect with quiet and patient minds the issue of thy wise and good providence; we most humbly commend thy servant, in this her extremity, to thy care and blessing; beseeching thee to give her a gracious deliverance, and to ease her of the burthen wherewith she labours. We ourselves are monuments of that mercy which we beg of thee. Thou didst preserve our weak and imperfect frame, before we were born. Thou hast succoured and supported us ever since, many times beyond our hopes, and always beyond our deservings. We commit ourselves and every thing belonging unto us, most heartily into thy hands; remembering that thou hast the same power and goodness still, by which we came into the light of the living. We cannot desire to be better provided for, than as thy infinite wisdom judgeth most convenient for us; unto that we refer ourselves, beseeching thee, if it be thy good pleasure, that her deliverance may be as speedy as her cries unto thee; or her patience as great and long as her pains. Thou who ripenest the fruits of the earth, and then givest us the gathering of them to our comfort, blast not, we beseech thee, the fruit of the womb; but bring it to maturity, and deliver it safe into thy servant's hand as a new pledge of thy goodness to her, to be an instrument of thy glory, and a future com