A New Pathway Unto Prayer, Part 2
Of what vertue and strength the true and Christen Prayer is.
¶ The. x. Chap.
IN declaryng the efficacye, vertue, strength, & power of the true & chrishen Prayer, I woulde gladly wysshe vntounto me the pleasaunt speache & sugred vtteraunce of the moost famous & excellent Oratoure Pericles. whose eloquence was so great & wonderous, as it is reported, that euen of very nature it semed incomparable; and not of ī any part able of ony mortal man to be followed & practised, of so great admyracion, yea & estimacion in the syght of all men was it recoū ted. But seynge that my wysshe in this behalfe is vayne, & that ther is no man more barbarous and of lesse duplicate page duplicate page eloquēce then I am.1. Cor. 1. Iaco. ii. Agayne, seyng that God hathe euer chosen the fooles & vnwyse of this worlde to sette forth his glorye & to confounde the wisdome of the worldelye wyse, and the vnderstandynge of the flesshelye mynded, seynge also that the trueth of Gods wisdome hath no nede of or nate eloquēce nor painted coloures, which of the faythful for all the simplicite of it,The prayer of the Author. is euer amplexed & receiued ioyfully, I shall moost instantly desyre God, that he may so direct my pen & instyll on such maner into my brest the knowledge of the moost holy Hystories of the sacred scriptures, which aboūdantly declare how mighty in operacion the true & christen prayer is, that I by rehearsyng them, & Gods mooste holye Spiryte workynge therwith also maye so accend, kyndle, inflame, & fette on fyre Christen mennes hertes with ye louelove of faythfull prayer, that they maye vnfaynedly reioyse in the continual exercyse & godly meditacion therof.
By prayer Abraham delyuered kyng Abimelech frō deth,Gen. xx. which god thretened hī, bycause he had takē to him Abrahams wyfe. And where as God had stryken the kynges wyfe & handmaydens with the vyce of sterilite and barennes for the aforesayde fault, at Abrahās prayer they were made whole.Exo. viii. By prayer Moses ceased and turned awaye the plages of Egypte.Exo. …vii. By prayer Moses caused ye water to flowe oute of ye hard rocke. By prayer Moses obtayned the victory for the Israelites against Ameliche, but whan he ceased to praye, than dyd theyr enemies preuayle & get the victory.Exo. xxxii. By prayer, whē god was full determined to slaye the Israelites, bycause they worshypped the golden caulfe, Moses apeased ye diuine wrath, & recōcyled the people to the fauoure of God. By prayer Moses caused the fyre sodenly to be in alowed vp, whiche deuoured the tentes of the murmurers.Num…. xi. By prayer Miriā, which spake agaynst Moses was deliuered frō her leprosi.Num. xxi. By prayer ye people which were greuously stryke & woūded of ye fyry serpētes for theyr disobedience, were delyuered frō thē & made whole.Iosus. x. By prayer Iesus caused the Sōne & ye Moone to stonde styll by ye space of an whole daye, vntyll he was reuenged of his enemies.1. …. i. By prayer Anne ye wyfe of Helcana beynge baren longe before was made as a fruytfull vyne. By prayer the people of Israel dyd baleauntly ouercome theyr enemies y• Philistines.ii. Reg. xii. By prayer Dauid obtayned the fauoure agayne of God, although he had cōmytted ye mooste haynous synne both of man slaughter & whoredome.iii. Re. xvii By prayer Helias raysed from death to lyfe the sonne of the wydowe of Sarepta. By prayer he in lyke maner caused yt great plente of rayne came downe from heauen vponupon the earth,Iaco. v. where as before it hadde not rayned by the space of thre yeres & syxe monethes. By prayer Iosaphat obtayned god mercyful to hym,ii. Pat. xx. so ye easelye he had ye victory ouer his enemies By prayer Ezechias ouercame hys proude aduersary Sennacherib & all his armye.iiii. Re. xx. By prayer the same Ezechias dyd prolonge his lyfe. xv. yeares, By prayer Manasses was delyuered out of captiuite,Esa. xxxiii. ii. pa. xxxiii & restored agen vntounto his kyngdome.ii. Eso. ii. By prayer, Nehemias obtayned of the Kynge all his desyre.Iob. viii. By prayer all good thynges chaunsed vntounto Thoby & Sara the doughter of Raguell. By prayer Iudith ouercame Holofernes & his armye.Iudit. xii. Hest. xiiii. By prayer quene Hester had her desyre for ye Israelites of ye kynge Assuerus.Da. vi. xiiii By prayer Daniell was preserued from the cruell fearcenes of the Lyons.Dan. xiii. By prayer Susāna was delyuered from the moost bytter death pretensed agaynst her. By prayer Ionas was delyuered out of the whales belly.Ionas. ii. By prayer Iudas Machabeus gatte the victorye ouer his enemyes,i. Mat. iiii but in two battayles when he should fyght wt Antiochus, & prayed not,i. mat. ix. he fledde awaye. And when he dyd syghte with Bachides & Alcimus, he was slaine, because he dyd not praye, as before. By prayer Ionathas,i. mat. xi. whā al had forsaken hī except a few, obtayned ye victorye. By prayer ye Iewes were delyuered frō death & trouble,ii. mat. iii. & ye goodes of tēple preserued. Diuers histories ther be more of ye old testamēt which declare of how great vertu & strēgth ye true & christen prayer is, but thes at this presēt may seme abūdātly to satisfy: I wyl therfore reherse a fewe of the new testamēt, cōcerninge this matter also, & than make an ende, that mē in fewe wordes maye se of what efficacy & power faythful prayer is.
¶ The. xi. Chapter.
BY prayer the Lepers were delyuered from theyr leprosy.Luk. xvii. math. ix. By prayer the blynde were restored to theyr syghte.mat. ii. By prayer they yt were sycke of ye palseye, were made whole. By prayer the womā of Canane obtayned health for her doughter.mat. xv. By Prayer dyuers men obtaynedmath. viii. helth for theyr sonnes & seruauntes By prayer the lame were restored to the ryght vse of theyr lymmes.math. iiii. By prayer ye deafe were made to heare.mat. xxi. By prayer the dumme recouered theyr speache.mat. xii. mat. ix. mat. xi. Lu. vii. xviii. By prayer the dead were restored to lyfe. By prayer synners obtayned remissiō of theyr synnes. By prayer Mary Magdalene had seuen dyuelles caste out of her.Luk. xviii. By prayer the Publycanne wente home more iustifyed then the Pharise. By prayer the fayth of Peter sayledLuk. xxii. not.Ioan. xv. By prayer the holy Ghoste was purchased for the Apostles and all the faythfull.Mat. xxvi. Act. vii. By prayer Christe & Stephen obtayned remission for theyr enemies.Act. …x: By prayer Peter he led Aeneas of the palseye. By prayer he raysed by Tabiths from death to lyfe.Act. x. By prayer also he learned ye all meates are pure, & none comone or vncleane.Act. x.xi. By prayer Cornelius deserued to receyue the holy Ghoste before he was baptised.Act. xii. Act. xxvii. By prayer Peter was delyuered oute of prysō. By prayer Paule saued so many as were with him in the shyp from the daunger of drownynge.…. Tim. ii. By prayer we lyue vnderunder the magistrates and head officers of the publigue weale peasably & quietly with al godlynes & honesty. By prayer the Gospell of Christe hath euer had felyce & fortunate progresse.…a…o. v. By prayer we … made safe in our syckenes. By … ex the conuersyon of the Gentyles came fortunately to passe. By prayer the glory of God hath euer be promoted. By prayer ye chyrch of Christ hath euer had the victory ouer Antechristes Sinagoge. To conclude, by prayer all good thynges chaunse vntounto vsus, & without prayer nothyng prospereth with vsus fortunately. If I shoulde go forth to recyte all ye Histories of the holye Byble, ye make to the auaūcement of prayer, I should contexe & make a worke longer thā the Iliades of the Greke Poet Homere. But of these fewe Histories heretofore rehearsed, the faythful & Christen reader maye ryght well deprehende & perceyue, what efficacy, vertu, strength & power is in ye true & Christen prayer. Howe can prayer be onye otherwyse then a thynge of great excellency, seynge that the holy Ghost was the Author of it, seing also that so many īcōperable thīges by it haueben obtained & so many deuine matters brought to passe?Luk. xvi: mat. xxvi. No man therfore oughte to doubte of ye dignite of it, seyng ye Jesus Christ godsowne son dyd both very diligēt lyat al times, & in al fortunes & chaū ses, yea & ye both night & day exercise it, & also not only comaund other to pray,mat. vi. but lykewyse taught & prescribed the moost godly way of prayēg. Christes Apostles also with Marye the mother of Jesu,Act. i: & other holy womē perseuered togyther very much in fastinge & prayeng after Christes Ascencion, as we read in the Ac…es of the Apostles.
I could gather here many thiges out of ye olde Histories, which should declare vntounto vsus howe greatly ye auncient fathers of Christes chyrch delighted i this godly exercyse of prayer,Df…. Iames Note as we reade in S. Iames, whose knees thorowe the continuall vse of knelynge in his prayers had greate wrattes or wennes, call them what ye wyll for all me, growynge vponupon them after the maner as Camelles hauehave, but my mynde is not to sette forth ye cōmendaciō, prayse & auaūce mēt of prayer by ony Histories, but only those, whiche are cōtayned in ye holy scripture. Notwithstandynge seyng that hytherto I hauehave fortressed this my treatise wt the sayenges of ye godly learned Doctors, I wyll therfore nowe rehearse a sentence or two of the golden mouthed Doctor S. Iohn̄ Chrisostome, whiche shall not a lytle make to the auauncemēt of ye true and christen prayer.
¶ The. xii. Chapter.
DErely beloued prayer vndoubtedly,Hom. lxxix. De oratiōe sayth he, is an exceading good thynge and great treasure. For yf he that talketh with a vertuous man receyueth by that meanes no small profytte, howe many cōmodities then shall he enioye, to whom it is gyuen to talke wt GOD? It is impossible forsoth it is impossible for that mā which prayeth aryght and maketh continuall supplicacion vn to God, for to synne at any tyme. For the fountaines of water do not make gardyns so fertyle, and fruytfull, as the foūtaynes of teares wateringe the plante of prayer, make it to exercyse & growe vp vntounto a bery great heyght, & sette hym ye prayeth before the LORD. Hereof cōmeth it to passe yt he must neded … heard.
Ser primo De o…a.Agayne he sayth, as the Sonne is the light vntounto the body, so is prayer vntounto the soule. Prayer getteth an holy lyfe, & the congrue, decente and semely worshyppyng of God, & after a meruaylous manner it layeth vp treasure for our soules. For whither that a man wyll labour to kepe virginite,By prayer al thinges are easye. or in mariage reuerentlye to mayntayne continencye, or to suppresse wrath, & to lyue mekely, or to repurge enuy, or to do any other decent & comely thynge, prayer beyng his guyde, & preparyng such a way to the life, he shal vndoubtedly hauehave a quiet & easye passage vntounto Godlynes. For it is not possible, but that they whiche aske of God purenes of lyuynge, iustyce, mekenes & benignite, muste nedes obtayne it by prayeng.Mat. vii▪ Luke. x. For he sayth, aske & it shal be giuen you. Seake and ye shall fynde. Knocke & it shall be opened to you. For eueryone ye asketh, receyueth, & he that seaketh fyndeth, & to hym ye knocketh, it shall be opened.
Prayer receaueth vsus full of synnes,Ser Serf… do De o…, and streyghtwayes maketh vsus cleane. Prayer is the presente remedy for ye soules of thē that are sycke. Prayer doth not onlye make cleane frō sin, but also put a backe great perelles. Prayer is & is truly called a celestiall panoply & heauenly armature, & that alone is able valeaūtely to preserue thē, which hauehave consecrated them selues vntounto it. So that wt oute prayer no good nor wholesome thynge shall chaunse vntounto vsus.
Ibidem.Prayer is the head of all goodnes & the conciliatryce and purchaser of helth & euerlastynge lyfe. Prayer is the cause of all vertue and iustyce. Prayer is the occasion of health, the purchaser of an immortal soule, the …ure bulwarke of the Chyrche, the in concusse, vnshakē & puissaunt custody or watch of the faythful, terrible to the dyuelles, but healthful to the godly. Prayer hath wayting on her all vertues. To be breue, loke what the foundaciō is in an house, ye bery same is prayer in the soule.
Hytherto hauehave I rehearsed ye wordes of the golden mouthed Doctor, whiche declare manifestlye of howe great vertue and strength the true and Christen prayer is.
Of these thynges thē heretofore rehearsed, hauehave we sufficiently learned what an excedynge and incōpa…able treasure prayer is to ye soule of … christen man. Certes whyther we …aue respecte to the commoditie of …ur body or of oure soule, prayer is …he only meanes, wherby it is obtained & broughte to passe.Dui…ius martiali…s Be God ne…ter so angrye with vsus, prayer apea…ed his wrathe, as the Poet sayeth. …lectitur ixatus, uoce rogante Deus. Et. Domi …um mundi flectere uota ualent. Beholde what prayer dothe.If we be si…ull, prayer purifyethe vsus. If we be…arrē, prayer maketh vsus fruytfull. …f we be sycke, prayer makethe vsus whole. If we be ygnorāt, prayer engraffeth knowledge in vsus. If we be …lynd, prayer illumineth our senses. If we be cōfortles, prayer is redy to …ssyst & helpe vsus. If we be sorowfull, prayer cōforteth vsus. If we be poore, prayer entychethe vsus. If we be prophane, prayer maketh vsus holye. If we be carnall, prayer maketh vsus spirituall. If we be captiues of Satā, praier maketh vsus the derely beloued sōnes of god. If we wāte ony thing Prayer is redy to get it for vsus. To conclude, yf we be euell, prayer maketh vsus good. If we be good, prayer maketh vsus better, & neuer forsaketh vsus vntyll he hath broughte vsus vntounto the presence of almighty God in his eternal glory. What would we hauehave more? Seyng that so large cōmodities & great profittes come vntounto vsus by the true & christen prayer, let vsus cast awaye all sluggyshnes, and exercyse our selues maynly in the moost godly meditacion of vertuous prayer. By this meanes doubteles shall vyce decrease & minish in vsus, & cōtrarywyse vertue shall augment & encrease very muche bothe in bodye & soule. And ye this thing may be done the more conueniētly, I wyll nowe by Gods fauour declare howe a christen man should prepare hymselfe to pray, ye by no meanes he maye abuse this great and syngulare treasure.