monftrous abfurdity is it, for a man knowingly and wilfully to do what he is convinced beforehand muft prove bitterness in the end; and if it do not confign him over to eternal misery, as there is too juft reafon to fufpect it will, muft however overwhelm his foul with confufion and terror, and be a vexation abundantly beyond all the pleasure he could ever hope for from it! Theoph. Upon the whole it is plain, beyond all dotibt, that it is every Chriftian's chief interest and concern, immediately, and in good earnest, to fet about this weighty and neceffary work, if he has hitherto neglected it; and upon the perfecting it, and rendering it as complete as may be, if he has it not now to begin. And I must therefore beg leave to recommend that excellent advice of the wife fon of Sirach, as well deferving every one's ferious attention and practice: (1) Return unto the Lord, and forfake thy fins ; make thy prayer before his face, and offend lefs. Turn again to the Moft High, and turn away from iniquity; for be will lead thee out of darkness into the light of health; and bate thou abomination vehemently. (m) Before judgment examine thyself, and in the day of vifitation thou shalt find mercy. Humble thyfelf before thou be fick and in the time of fins fhew repentance. Let nothing hinder thee to pay thy vow in due time, and defer not until death to be justified. (n) Think upon the wrath that shall be at the end; and the time of vengeance, when he shall turn away bis face. Anchith. And this good ufe I beg of God that I may be able to make of it. I thank God, I have not the bufinefs of my whole life now upon my hands: yet I cannot but pray moft fervently, That God will grant me his grace to carry me through my last conflict with that patience and refignation, and will fortify my good purposes with fuch courage and refolution, and give me fuch power over all my fins, as that I may retain no manner of inclination to them, but may be always improving in (1) Ecclus xvii. 25, 26. (m) Ibid. xviii: 20, 21, 22. (a) Ver.24. virtue and goodness, for the little time I have to ftay here; I and whenfoever I shall be taken bence, may be fet above the reach of all temptations, and continually employ'd in founding forth hallelujabs to the King of Heaven; to him who was, and is, and is to come, and to Jefus Chrift the faithful witness, the firft-begotten from the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth; who bath loved us, and washed us from our fins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and bis Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. A Prayer for Strength against Temptations, and My God, be thou merciful unto me, and help my poor endeavours to pleafe thee. I am earnestly defirous to approve myself unto thee. But, alas! the corruption of my nature, and the weakness of my faculties, are fuch, that the best of my performances are all polluted and defiled. And, to my unfpeakable grief, I find, that when to will is prefent with me, yet how to perform that which is good, I know not. Such is the wretched ftate wherein 1 am at prefent; and shouldest thou leave me to myself, I could never hope for an amendment. Wherefore, O Lord, be merciful unto me, and affift me with thy Spirit, which alone can carry me fuccessfully through the great work I am engaged in. Do thou but fpeak the word, and thy fervant Jhall be bealed. I am a poor, feeble, impotent creature, utterly unable of myself to do what thou requireft of me. But if thou once beftow thy grace upon me, that alone will be fufficient to carry me on against all oppofition, whether from men or devils, or from my own finful and vicious inclinations. Deny me not that affiftance which thou feeft needful for me, to enable me to do thy will; and which, to that end, I most humbly beg of thee. Let thy ftrength be made visible in my weakness. And whenever thou feeft me like to fall, by whatsoever fort of temptation, do thou Stretch forth thy Almighty Hand, and keep me up. Let nothing ever prevail against me, and draw me afide from F 3 that that duty thou requireft of me. But grant I may fet thee, the Lord, always before my face, that in nothing I fin against thee; that I may efchew evil, and do good; may work out my falvation with fear and trembling, and give the utmost diligence for making my calling and election fure, before I fhall go bence, and be no more feen; may be ftedfaft and unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forafmuch as I know that my labour fhall not be in vain in the Lord; and may daily improve in goodness, and continually advance from one degree of grace to another, till grace fhall at last be confummated in everlasting glory, through Jefus Christ our Lord and only Saviour. Amen. Theoph. I pray God to hear your Prayer, and that he will give each of us grace, not only to depart from all iniquity, but to perfect holiness in bis fear. There is an excellent meditation to this purpose, that I lately met with in a certain devout author, that might feem well worthy of your attention, but for the length of it; which I doubt you cannot difpenfe with at prefent. Anchith. Yes, very well; and pray let us have it: for I am defirous to hear any thing that tends to promote fo good a defign. Theoph. He (o) reprefents a penitent finner bemoaning his own folly, and declaring how exceedingly miferable he must have been, had it not been for the unfpeakable goodness and clemency of Almighty God towards him: There is not a moment paffed, Jays be, from my coming into the world to this time, wherein I might not have died. Many caufes, fome of which I know, tho' others I do not, might easily have wrought this effect upon me. This is a certain and undoubted truth. And yet how very few of thefe many moments have there been, wherein I could have died without being utterly loft! For, alas! how incapable have I been of dying the death of the righteous? How have I wanted that repent(0) La Mort des Juftes, par Monf. la Placette, 1. 2. c. 4. 6 ance, that faith, that charity, and those other virtues, without which it is not poffible for me, not to ⚫ be the object of the divine wrath, whether in life or death! A great part of my time has been spent in a fenfelefs negligence and oftentimes I have fallen into grofs fins; and have not prefently applied myfelf to God for the pardon of them; or if I have fought to him for pardon, it has been coldly and indifferently, without the forrow and fervency which are neceffarily required in order to it. And when I take a review of the moft confiderable ftages of my life paft, how little of it does there appear, of which I can fay, that it has not been fullied with fome habitual fin! It from the reft of my life all that be taken away, wherein my mind had entertained any refentment, or hatred, or quarrel, against any of my brethren, or wherein I have unjustly detain'd what of right belonged to him, or have been under the power of a finful affection for this world's goods; and have been ready to facrifice my falvation, and my confcience, to them, by known and deliberate fins; how very fmall will the remainder be! And had I died in fuch an eftate, how deplorable a cafe must I have now been in! I had undoubtedly been now in Hell, fuffering the fame tortures, with thofe the divine juftice has condemn'd to that doleful place of punishment. How am I then indebted to the immenfe goodness of my Creator, for preferving me from what might fo eafily and naturally have befallen me! A favour that has not been granted to divers others that I have known, and than whom I have not better ⚫ deferv'd it at his hand; whom I have seen taken hence either by fickness, or fuch unforeseen accidents. ' as I have been fuffer'd to escape. And can I ever fet too high a value upon fuch abundant clemency and compaffion? Yet to what purpofe does all this kind⚫nels ferve, if it do not put me upon a conftant care, never to run the fame danger again, whereto I have hitherto been expos'd? As I might poffibly have died in any moment of my life paft, fo may I, for aught I know to the contrary, at this present instant, or at any time yet to come. There is no one minute of my life, that may not be that of my Mafter's coming, And can I then forbear always to behave myself so, as that, whenfoever he fhall appear, he may find me watching, and in a readiness for his reception? How am I concerned, either to procure a peace and re⚫ conciliation with God, or at leaft to get myself affured, upon good ground, that I am already in that bleffed ftate, and moreover to guard myfelf with the utmoft diligence, against whatever might endanger the lofs of fo ineftimable an advantage! In a word, How am I obliged to renounce all fort of wickedness, to caft off the love of the creatures, and give myself intirely up to God, and make it my only study to please and serve him! The only difficulty I observe ⚫ in refolving this, is from the power these outward good things have got over me, and my averfeness to the thoughts of parting with them; together with the vain and false hope I have, of making the intereft of earth and Heaven confift together, either by allowing the prefent feafon to the former, and futurity to the fecond, or by taking pains by turns, fometimes for the one, and fometimes for the other. But can I ftupidly fuffer myself to be drawn afide by fuch grofs delufions? Can I, in the firft place, weigh the interests of this life, against thofe of the life to come? How hard muft I work, before I can let the defire of gaining earth make me venture the lofs of Heaven, and, to enjoy a little the more pleasure during the few moments that remain of my lite here, dare to be miferable through the vast extent of a • boundless eternity! On the other fide, if I wholly • employ my present time in purfuit of the things of this world, what affurance can I have of an opportunity hereafter, wherein to fecure an interest in • Heaven? If the future feafon I promise myself should never come, but death fhould fnatch me away in the mean |