The Pathway to Prayer and Piety, Prayer 4
A PRAYER TO BE VSED by a mans ſelfe, or with others changing the number.
O Lord my God, mercifull, and louing to all thy ſeruants, pitifull, and patient to mee thy child; I, with that poore Publican, caſt my ſelfe downe at the foot-ſtoole of thy Maieſtie: and with an vnfained ſorrow for all my ſinnes, do, as he did crie vntounto thée for fauour, ſaying; Lord bee mercifull to mee a ſinner. One déepe calleth to an other, the depth of miſerie to the depth of merciemercy. HaueHave mercy vponupon me, O Lord, according to thy great goodneſſe, and in the multitude of thy mercies doe away al mine offences.
Lord I acknowledge & confeſſe my ſins, and mine iniquities are not hid from thée. By creation, I confeſſe, thou diddeſt make me good, in righteouſneſſe and true holineſſe I was like vntounto thée: & if my firſt Parents had not defaced that image, I ſhould hauehave ſerued thée in truth all the daies of my life. But, they falling from thée, I fel with them: and, they ſinning againſt thée, I ſinned with them. And as when a great man is a traitor his blood is ſtained: ſo by Adams tranſgreſſion his poſteritie is tainted.
Thus, O Lord, I was conceiued in ſin, and brought foorth in iniquitie: and now I know that in mee, that is, in my fleſh, there dwelleth no good thing: yea, I am by nature the child of wrath: if I hauehave none other but my firſt birth, I may curſe the day that euer I was borne. I féele O Lord (but it is thy ſpirit that giueth me this féeling) that mine vnderſtanding is darkened, conſcience ſeared memorie decaied, will bewitched, heart hardened, affections diſordered, conuerſation corrupted: my thoughts, deſires, and beſt actions are abominable ſinnes in thy ſight. Mine eyes cannot ſée thée in thy creatures; mine eares cannot heare thée in thy word; my mouth cannot praiſe thée in thy workes; mine hands and féete cannot ſerue thée in my calling: deſtruction and calamitie are in all my waies, and the way of peace I hauehave not knowne.
For theſe ſinnes of mine, I am ſubiect to the curſe: for curſed are they that erre from thy ſtatutes: Curſed is the earth, with briers and barrenneſſe; and curſed is the heauen with often droughts and moiſtneſſe.
And for my ſelfe, what am I not ſubiect to by reaſon of ſinne? My bodie is ſubiect to all diſeaſes, my ſoule to all her ſickneſſes, my name to all reproches, mine eſtate to all caſualties, & I deſerue iuſtly to bee deliuered ouer to the illuſions of Satan, allurements of the world, corruptions of my fleſh, hardneſſe of heart, deſperation of thy goodneſſe, calamities in my calling, and to eternall deſtruction after I am dead.
VntoUnto whom now ſhall I come for comfort? vntounto whom now ſhall I ſue for ſuccour? I am ſtung with a Serpent; I will looke vp to the braſen Serpent: I am ſicke of ſinne; I will goe to the Phyſician of my ſoule: I lie dead in the graue of corruption; who ſhall raiſe mee vp but he that is the reſurrection and the life?
O bountifull Ieſu, O ſwéet Sauiour, O thou Lambe of God that takeſt away the ſins of the world hauehave merciemercy vponupon mee. Lord giuegive vntounto me a true and liuely faith, to apprehend and applie all the promiſes of ſaluation to my ſinfull ſoule: and to this purpoſe, illuminate mine vnderſtanding, confirme my memorie, purifie my conſcience inlarge mine heart, rectifie my will, order al the members of my body, and ſo ſanctifie me throughout, that my whole bodie, ſoule, and ſpirit, may be kept blameleſſe till the glorious appearance of my Sauiour Chriſt.
Grant me, I beſéech thée, knowledge of thy truth, faith in thy promiſes, feare of thy Maieſtie, zeale of thy glorie, obedience to thy ſtatutes, faithfulneſſe in my calling patience in troubles, hungring after righteouſneſſe, and a tender affection towards all my brethren. Grant me, I beſéech thée, the gift of Regeneration to become thy childe: of faith to beléeue thy promiſes: of obedience to doe thy will: of prayer to ſéeke thy preſence: of comfort to endure thy trials: and of ſtrength to continue thy ſeruant to my liues end
Grant me again, and grant it I intreate thée, the ſauing knowledge of thy word, let it bee in my minde by vnderſtanding, memorie by remembring, thought by meditating, heart by affecting, tongue by ſpeaking, and mine actions by performing it to my dying day.
Mine heart O Lord is deceitfull, let mée watch ouer it: my will is vnwilling to all goodneſſe, let it run the way to thy commandements: Many behold my life & conuerſation, let it I beſéech thée be ordered aright.
To this end, teach mee to ſanctifie thy name, aduance thy kingdome, doe thy will: Thou haſt placed me in a calling: make me painfull in it, that thereby from thée I may hauehave my daily bread. If I hauehave it, kéepe me from pride: if not, kéepe me from deſpaire. And forgiue mee the abuſe of all thy good bleſſings.
And howſoeuer I muſt néeds liue in this world, yet let me vſe it, as though I vſed it not: let my conuerſation be in heauen, mine eyes on thy preſence, my truſt in thy prouidence, my delight in thy word, and the communion of Saints. Make me thinke often of heauen that I may louelove it, of hel that I may feare it, of death that I may exſpect it, of iudgement that I may eſcape it, and of the vanitie of this preſent world; that thereby I may learne to contemne it.
I liue by thy prouidence a life of nature, I deſire by thy ſpirit to liue the life of grace: put on this deſire, O my God, by thy ſpirit, and draw me from good deſires, to delights, from delights to actions, from actions to continuance in dooing that which is good.
And becauſe Satan, the aduerſarie of thine elect, goeth about as a roring lion ſéeking whom he may deuoure, let mee not be ignorant of all his enterpriſes. Make mee wiſe to foreſée his ſtratagems, vigilant to beware his pitfals, circumſpect to preuent his practiſes, couragious to reſiſt his temptations, and conſtant to ouercome his ſuggeſtions. He is ſtrong, be thou ſtronger in me: he is wiſe, be thou wiſer for me: hee is watchfull, be thou more watchfull about mee: hee is malitious, bee thou mercifull vntounto me. Let him neuer finde me idle, for then he will allure: nor careleſſe, for then he will ſurpriſe: nor ſinning, for then hee will ſubdue.
O Ieſu, be thou Ieſus vntounto me: ſaue me O Lord from this enemie of mine, that this Dragon neuer infect mee with his poyſon, this Serpent neuer kill mee with his ſting, this Lion neuer teare mee with his teeth, and this aduerſarie neuer hauehave power to ouerthrow me.
O Chriſt, bee thou Chriſt vntounto mee, and anoint mee ſo with the oile of thy Spirit, that of thy fulneſſe I may bee filled with grace, euen that grace which may further my ſaluation. By it I acknowledge my miſery, by it let mee féele thy merciemercy: giuegive mee by it a broken heart, a contrite ſpirit, a ſorrowfull ſoule, an humble minde, a liuely faith, that by humbling my ſelfe, I may bee lifted vp by thée; and by beléeuing thy promiſes I may come vntounto thée: and that as by the one I may mourne for my ſinnes, ſo by the other I may beléeue they are pardoned.
I durſt not bee ſo bold as craue this thy fauour, but that I am incouraged by confidence of thy merciemercy. Doe the ſimple beg wiſdome? thou giueſt it: doe the afflicted beg deliuerance? thou granteſt it: doth he that is troubled with his ſinnes come vntounto thée? thou ſéeſt him a farre off thou embraceſt him in thine armes, receiueſt him into thy grace againe. Thou commandeſt, why ſhould I not obey? thou promiſeſt, why ſhould I not beléeue? thou heareſt, why ſhould I not ſpeake? I ſpeake vntounto thée in the language of Canaan, kéepe not ſilence at theſe my prayers.
Thou O my Sauiour haſt died for my ſinnes: let the power of thy death make me die vntounto ſin, eſpecially to my beloued ſins, and ſuch as I can hardly get the maſtery of. Thou, O Lord Chriſt, art riſen from the dead, let the power of thy reſurrection make mee to riſe vntounto newneſſe of life. And that which is impoſſible to fleſh and blood, make it poſſible by the vertue of thy blood.
Thou haſt redéemed me, ſuffer me not to be in ſinnes captiuitie: thou haſt triumphed ouer Satan for me, ſuffer mee not to be vnderunder his tyrannie. Thou haſt couered mee with the robes of righteouſneſſe, teach mee to caſt off the rags of iniquitie. Thou haſt waſhed me, and I am cleane: kéepe me that I return not with the ſwine to my wallow. Thou haſt begun thy good work in me: performe the worke that thou haſt begun, and ſtrengthen mee in the workes which I doe, hauehave or ſhall take in hand.
Kéepe mée good Lord in my old age, forſake mee not when I am gray-headed. And when it ſhall pleaſe thée to caſt me vponupon my ſicke bed (as what man liueth who ſhall not ſée death?) grant that I may take my ſickneſſe patiently: and at the laſt gaſpe, let not either ſinne or Satan take ſuch hold vponupon me, that I depart this life with crying, and ſcrichings, and words of deſpaire; but that beleeuing thy word, and yéelding to thine ordinance, my laſt houre may bee my beſt houre, and I may ſay with the Pſalmiſt; Lord into thine hands I commend my ſpirit: for thou haſt redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.
Thus I ſtill crie vntounto thée for merciemercy becauſe my ſins crie againſt mee for iuſtice. Preſerue me O Lord, for I truſt in thée, and let me in all things ſee that I am preſerued by thee: let me ſee it in the health of my body, the peace of my conſcience, the gifts of my minde, the credit of my name, the works of my calling, and vponupon all ſuch as are neere and deare vntounto me.
Thou haſt beene good vntounto me in times paſt, O that I could depend vponupon thee for the time to come. Thou haſt by thy merciemercy kept mee from groſſe ſinnes, cleanſe mee, I pray thée, from my ſecret ſinnes: eſpecially ſuch as put forth their heads when I am but a little moued. Am I prouoked? ſtay mine anger: is my enemy aduāced? …ſſwage mine enuie: hauehave I abundance? temper mine intemperance: am I in want? mitigate my feares: doeſt thou exalt me? keepe me from pride: doeſt thou humble me? kéep me from impatience: doeſt thou withdraw thy ſelfe from mee? let mee euer ſay, Vp Lord, why ſleepeſt thou? doth Satan aſſault mee, becauſe I am rich in grace? preſerue me O Lord that I loſe not thy grace. For woe is mee, if I fall from thée. I hauehave promiſed that I will not fall, thou haſt promiſed I ſhall not fall, leade mee by thine hand that I do not fall.
Finally, becauſe thou haſt been good vntounto me many waies, Lord make me thankful for all thy fauours. Thou haſt made mee a man, not a beaſt; a Chriſtian, not an Heathen; a Proteſtant, not a Papiſt. Whileſt many are ignorant, I hauehave knowledge: whileſt many are profane, I hauehave been obedient to thy will: whileſt many want the ordinarie meanes of ſaluation, thou affordeſt me meanes for ſaluation of my ſoule. Many are bound, I am free: in priſon, I hauehave libertie: in want, I hauehave ſufficiencie. They liue in warres, I in peace: they in perſecution, I in free profeſſion of the truth: they in ſickneſſe, I in health. And although by my ſinnes I deſerue to bee conſumed, yet thou haſt ſpared me a great while, and giuen me a long time of repentance. What ſhall I giuegive vntounto thee for all theſe mercies and fauours of thine? I will take the cup of ſaluation, & praiſe thy great and glorious name; and moſt humblie entreate thée, that as thou neuer ceaſeſt to bee good vntounto me, ſo I may neuer ceaſe to be thankfull vntounto thée. Pardon, good God, my loſſe of time, my abuſe of thy creatures my negligence in my calling, my vnthankfulneſſe for thy kindneſſe: and whatſoeuer is wanting in my perſon, practiſe, prayer, or thankſgiuing, make a ſupplie of it in the merit of Chriſt Ieſus: to whom, with thée, and thy bleſſed ſpirit, be all praiſe, and glorie, now and for euermore. Amen.