The Pathway to Prayer and Piety, Prayer 13 – Grace
A THANKESGIVING FOR our late Deliuerance from that vnnaturall conſpiracie againſt our King and State.
ALmightie Lord God, Father of our Lord Ieſus Chriſt, and in him our moſt gracious and mercifull Father, many are thy mercies towards vsus: and that our ſoules know right well. And as we cannot be ignorant of them, vnleſſe wee bee ſenſeleſſe: ſo, we may not be forgetfull vnleſſe we be thankleſſe. By thée our lot is fallen into a good ſoile; and by thée wée hauehave a goodly inheritance; by thée are our bodies deliuered from ſickneſſe, and by thée are our ſoules deliuered from ſinne; by thée our names are not a reproch vntounto our enemies; and by thée our eſtates are not a prey vntounto the Idolatrous. Thou, euen thou haſt done great things in our land, and thy right hand amongſt vsus hath brought mightie things to paſſe. What is it, O Lord, that thou haſt not done vntounto this vine of thine Engliſh Iſrael? and what couldeſt thou doe more for it then thou haſt? Thou haſt planted it by thy hand, placed it in thy vineyard, hedged it by thy prouidence, garded it by thine Angels, watred it by thy Spirit, pruned it by thy rods, ſupported it by thy power, committed it to thy huſbandmen, beautified it by thy mercies, and fructified it by thine abundance, not of ſowre, but ſwéete grapes. The wilde Boare of the woods can neuer roote it vp, the beaſts of the forreſt ſhall neuer deuoure it. Lord continue ſtil to viſit this vine, which without thy viſitation, muſt be fruitleſſe and ſtrengthleſſe. Thou haſt caſt out the heathen, and planted vsus in: thou haſt ſubdued our enemies, and made vsus the mirror of the whole world: Thou haſt giuen vsus thy Sonne to be our Sauiour; thy word to bee our inſtructor; thy Spirit, to be our ſanctifier; thy Preachers to be our monitors, thy Sacraments to be our ſeales, and Kings to be our nurſing Fathers,1588. Q. Elizabeth. K. Iames. 1603. and Quéenes to be our nurſing Mothers. When our enemies came againſt vsus, thou ſubduedſt them; when our light was extinguiſhed, thou diddeſt ſet vp a greater; when the Plague was amongſt vsus, thou calmedſt it; and when our Countrie was to bee betraied, then waſt our deliuerer. What ſhall wee render vntounto thée for all theſe fauours? or what can we render for all theſe mercies? O our ſoules praiſe the Lord: and all that is within vsus, praiſe his holie Name. O our ſoules praiſe the Lord; and let vsus neuer forget his benefits. We, Lord, had béene blowen vp with the powder of rebellion, had not the power of thy prouidence watched ouer vsus. We therefore, our Princes, Nobles, Clergie, Commons, our Wiues, Children, Seruants and all, are heere before thy Maieſtie this day, & now render vntounto thée (for more we cannot, and more thou deſireſt not) the ſacrifice of praiſe, the calues of our lips, for this wonderfull deliuerance, ſhewed vntounto our gracious King and Countrie. Lord teach vsus thereby to bee thankfull vntounto thée, obedient to our Gouernours, frequent in prayer, feruent in the ſpirit, and zealous in good workes, leſt a worſe thing hereafter happen vntounto vsus. Make vsus to deteſt Poperie, the poyſon of Authoritie; Ieſuites, the bellowes of ſedition; Papiſts, the plotters of rebellion, & to thinke better of our Chriſtian Brethren, & this, not new, but moſt ancient Religiō of ours, by which we are taught pietie to God, loyaltie to Gouernors, peace to the Church, reuerence of ſuperiority, charitie to our inferiours, amitie to our equals, louelove to our enemies, patiēce in tribulation, thankfulneſſe in proſperitie, faithfulneſſe in our calling, and honeſtie to all. And ſéeing of late thou haſt deliuered our backes from whipping, our libertie from ſeruing, our ſoules from dying, our country from conſuming, & our King and State from a ſudden blowing vp; Lord, wee pray thée, that the meditation of this mercy may neuer depart out of our mindes, but that wée may bee thankfull vntounto thée, for mercies receiued, and feareful of thée, for iudgements eſcaped. Teach vsus to pray vntounto thée alone, who canſt heare and grant our requeſts, to kéepe our Countrey from inuaſion, our Church from diſſenſion, our houſes from infection, our State from alteration, and people from the cruell mercies of the Italian Popedome, whoſe faith is fancie, whoſe force is fraud, whoſe truſt is treaſon, whoſe obedience is hypocriſie, whoſe lawes are traditions, whoſe pardoners are Prieſts, whoſe ſauiour is the Pope, whoſe god is an idoll, whoſe ſeruice is ceremonies, whoſe glorie is their ſhame, and whoſe end is damnation, except they repent. Let the Sunne of the Goſpell be neuer eclipſed, the light of thine Iſrael neuer bee extinguiſhed, the hope of our happineſſe neuer be ſubuerted, nor the branches of our vine euer cut off. Thus we thy people, and ſhéepe of thy paſture, ſhall hauehave iuſt occaſion to prayſe thy great Name, in the face of thy Congregation, from this time forth for euermore. Lord kéepe in our King the ſpirit of Maieſtie, in our Quéene the ſpirit of Chaſtitie, in our Prince the ſpirit of Pietie, in our Nobles the ſpirit of loyaltie, in our Counſellers the ſpirit of Prudencie, in our Clergie the ſpirit of Vigilancie, and in vsus all, the ſpirit of Fidelitie. And as for ſuch as wiſh euill to this Sion of ours, the Honor of thy Name, the Palace of thy pleaſure, the Place of thy protection, and the wonder of the world, if they belong to thée, giuegive them hearts to repent, and to returne to vsus: if not, or euer their pots be hot with thornes, let indignation vexe them, as a thing that is rawe. Euen ſo let all thine enemies periſh, O Lord. And, vnleſſe their Children be better than the Parents, as the Prophet prayeth, deliuer them vp to famine, let them drop by the force of the ſword, let their wiues be robbed of their children, and be widowes, and let their huſbands bee put to death: let their confederate yong men be ſlain by the ſword, let them be ouerthrowne in the day of thine anger, and let none be left to make lamentation for them, and to ſay, O my brother, O my ſiſter. Lord roote all Cananites out of this land of the liuing, that ſuch as feare thée may dwell ſafely. Bleſſed be the Lord God of our ſaluation, for euer and euer, and let all the people ſay Amen Amen.
1. Sam. 12.24.25.
Now therefore feare yee the Lord, and ſerue him in the truth with all your hearts, and conſider how great things hee hath done for you.
But if yee doe wickedly, yee ſhall periſh, both yee and your King.
GRACES.
He that eateth and drinketh,
and letteth Grace paſſe;
Sitteh downe like an Oxe,
and riſeth like an Aſſe.
Grace before meate.
WE acknowledge and confeſſe this fauour of thine, eternal God and gracious Father, that it pleaſeth thy Maieſtie to giuegive vntounto vsus ſo many opportunities to méet together, we beſéech thée to bleſſe vsus, & our méeting at this time, & all thy good creatures prouided for vsus; and grant that we may vſe them ſoberly as in thy preſence, and receiue them thankfull, as from thine hand, to the glory of thy Name, the good of our bodies, & the future ſaluation of our ſoules, through Chriſt our Lord, and alone bleſſed Sauiour. Amen.
Grace before meate.
ALmightie Lord God, & our mercifull Father, we beſéech thy Maieſtie to bee good vntounto vsus, in the pardon and forgiueneſſe of our ſinne paſt; and by the aſſiſtance of thy good and holy Spirit, to preuent all them that are to come: to watch ouer vsus as thou haſt done by thy ſpeciall prouidence: to direct vsus continually by thy holy word: to bleſſe vsus in thy vſe of all thy good creatures, that now wee ſhall receiue from thy bountifull hand, giuing ſtrength to them to nouriſh vsus, and giuing hearts vntounto vsus, to bee thankfull vntounto thée for the ſame. And grant, that whether we eate or drinke, or whatſoeuer we do elſe, we may do all to the glorie of thy moſt holy Name, through Chriſt thy Sonne, and our only Sauiour. Amen.
Grace after meate.
WE beſéech thy Maieſtie, eternall God & gracious Father to make vsus truly and vnfainedly thankfull vntounto thée, for all thoſe mercies that we hauehave receiued, and for all thoſe iudgements that we hauehave eſcaped, both temporall, concerning this life, & eternall, concerning that life to come: for thy gratious prouidence this day paſt, for our comfortable, and peaceable, & chéerefull méeting together in thy feare at this time, and for all thy good creatures beſtowed vponupon vsus, for the comforting & refreſhing of theſe feeble and weake bodies of ours. Now we humbly intreate thée, that as thou haſt fed them with that foode, which is conuenient and neceſſarie for the ſame, ſo it would pleaſe thée to féede our ſoules with that foode which periſheth not, but endureth to eternall and euerlaſting ſaluation; ſo as we may ſéek ſo to paſſe through theſe things temporall, that finally we loſe not things eternall.
Bleſſe with vsus thine vniuerſall Church, our Kings & Quéenes Maieſtie, the Prince, and their Realmes: O Lord continue thy truth and peace amongſt vsus with the pardon and forgiueneſſe of all our ſinnes, this day, at this time, and héeretofore committed againſt thée, through Chriſt our Lord and bleſſed Sauiour. Amen.
Another after meate.
O Lord of eternall glorie, who haſt elected vsus in the louelove of a Father, redeemed vsus by the obedience of thy Son, ſanctified vsus by the operation of thy Spirit, preſerued vsus hitherto by thy gracious prouidence, inſtructed vsus many times by thy good and holy word, and now at this preſent and often heeretofore, moſt gratiouſly and bountifully refreſhed & comforted vsus with thy good creatures, and with the mutuall, ſocietie and comfort one of another, and haſt beſtowed many other good bleſſings and benefits vponupon vsus, as health of bodie, peace of conſcience, and abundance of thy good creatures, which thou haſt denied to many of thy ſeruants and déere children, which deſerue the ſame, as well as our ſelues: thy Maieſties Name be bleſſed and praiſed of vsus and thy whole Church both now and for euer-more. Amen.
FINIS.
End of the text · Robert Hill, The Pathway to Prayer and Piety (1613)