Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Devotion 14
17. Nunc lento sonitu dicunt, Morieris. Now, this Bell tolling softly for another, saies to me, Thou must die.
17. MEDITATION.
PErchance hee for whom this Bell tolls, may bee so ill, as that he knowes not it tolls for him; And perchance I may thinke my selfe so much better than I am, as that they who are about mee, and see my state, may hauehave caused it to toll for mee, and I know not that. The Church is Catholike, vniuersall, so are all her Actions, All that she does, belongs to all. When she baptizes a child, that action concernes mee; for that child is thereby connected to that Head which is my Head too, and engraffe… into that body, whereof I am a member. And when she buries a Man, that action concernes me; All mankinde is of one Author; and is one volume; when one Man dies, one Chapter is not torne out of the booke, but translated into a better language; and eueryevery Chapter must be so translated; God emploies seuerall translators; some peeces are translated by Age, some by sicknesse, some by warre, some by iustice; but Gods hand is in eueryevery translation; and his hand shall binde vp all our scattered leaues againe, for that Librarie where eueryevery booke shall lie open to one another: As therefore the Bell that rings to a Sermon, calls not vponupon the Preacher onelyonly, but vponupon the Congregation to come; so this Bell calls vsus all: but how much more mee, who am brought so neere the doore by this sicknesse. There was a contention as farre as a suite, (in which both pietie and dignitie, religion, and estimation, were mingl…d) which of the religious Orders should ring to praiers first in the Morning; and it was determined, that they should ring first that rose earliest. If we vnderstand aright the dignitie of this Bell, that rolls for our euening prayer, wee would bee glad to make it ours, by rising early, in that application, that it might bee ours, as wel as his, whose indeed it is. The Bell doth toll for him that thinkes it doth; and though it intermit againe, yet from that minute, that that occasion wrought vponupon him, hee is vnited to God. Who casts not vp his Eie to the Sunne when it rises? but who takes off his Eie from a Com…t, when that breakes out? who bends not his eare to any bell, which vponupon any occasion rings? but who can remoue it from that bell, which is passing a peece of himselfe out of this world? No Man is an Iland, intire of it selfe; eueryevery man is a peece of the Continent, a part of the maine; if a Clod bee washed away by the Sea, Europe is the l…sse, as well as if a Promontorie were, as well as if a Mannor of thy friends, or of thine owne were; Any Mans death diminishes me, because I am inuolued in Mankinde; And therefore neuer send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee. Neither can we call this a begging of Miserie or a borrowing of Miserie, as though we were not miserable enough of our selues, but must fe…ch in more from the next house, in taking vponupon vsus the Miserie of our Neighbours. Truly it were an excusable couetousnesse if wee did; for affliction is a treasure, and …carce any Man hath enough of it. No Man hath affliction enough, that is not matured, and ripened by it, and mad… …it for God by that affliction. If a Man carry treasure in bullion, or in a wedge of gold, and hauehave none coined into currant Monies, his treasure will not defray him as he trauells. Tribulation is Treasure in the nature of it, but it is not currant money in the vse of it, except wee get nearer and nearer our home, heauen, by it. Another Man may be sicke too, and sicke to death, and this af…liction may lie in his bowels, as gold in a Mine, and be of no vse to him… but this bell that tels mee of his af…liction, digs out, and applies that gold to mee … if by this consideration of anothers danger, I take min… owne into Contemplation, and so secure my selfe, by making my recourse to my God, who is our onelyonly securitie.
17. EXPOSTVLATION.
MY God, my God, Is this one of thy waies, of drawing light out of darknesse, To make him for whom this bell tolls, now in this dimnesse of his sight, to become a superintendent, an ouerseer, a Bishop, to as many as heare his voice, in this bell, and to giuegive vsus a confirmation in this action? Is this one of thy waies to raise strength out of weaknesse, to make him who cannot rise from his bed, nor stirre in his bed, come home to me, and in this sound, giuegive mee the strength of healthy and vigorous instructions? O my God, my God, what Thunder is not a well-tuned Cymball, what hoarsenesse, what harshnesse is not a cleare Organ, if thou bee pleased to set thy voice to it? and what Organ is not well plaied on, if thy hand bee vponupon it? Thy voice, thy hand is in this sound, and in this one sound, I heare this whole Consort. I heare thy Iaacob call vntounto his sonnes, and …ay;Gen. 49.1. Gather your selues together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last daies: He saies, That which I am now, you must bee then. I heare thy Moses telling mee, and all within the compasse of this sound, This is the blessing wherewith I blesse you before my death;Deut. 33 1. This, that before your death, you would consider your owne in mine. I heare thy Prophet saying to Ezechias, Set thy house in order, for thou shalt die, and not liue;2 Reg. 20.1. Hee makes vsus of his familie, and calls this a setting of his house in order, to compose vsus to the meditation of death. I heare thy Apostle saying, I thinke it meet to put …ou in remembrance, 2 Pet. 2.13.knowing that shortly I must goe out of this Tabernacle. This is the publishing of his will, & this bell is our legacie, the applying of his present condition to our vse. I heare that which makes al sounds musique, and all musique perfit; I heare thy Sonne himselfe …aying,Ioh. 14.1. Let not your hearts be troubled … Only I heare this change, that whereas thy Sonne saies there, I goe to prepare a place for you, this man in thi… sound saies, I send to prepare you for a place, for a graue. But, O my God, my God, since heauen is glory and ioy, why doe not glorious and ioyfull things leade vsus, induce vsus to heauen? Thy legacies in thy first will, in thy old Testament were plentie and victorie; Wine and Oile, Milke and Honie, alliances of friends, ruine of enemies, peacefull hearts, & cheerefull countenances, and by these galleries thou broughtest them into thy bed-chamber, by these glories and ioies, to the ioies and glories of heauen. Why hast thou changed thine old way, and carried vsus, by the waies of discipline and mortification, by the waies of mourning and lamentation, by the waies of miserable ends, and miserable anticipations of those miseries, in appropriating the exemplar miseries of others to our selues, and vsurping vponupon their miseries, as our owne, to our owne preiudice? Is the glory of heauen no perfecter in it selfe, but that it needs a foile of depression and ingloriousnesse in this world, to set it off? Is the ioy of heauen no perfecter in it selfe, but that it needs the sourenesse of this life to giuegive it a taste? Is that ioy and that glory but a comparatiue glory and a comparatiue ioy? not such in it selfe, but such in comparison of the ioilesnesse and the ingloriousnesse of this world? I know, my God, it is farre, farre otherwise. As thou thy selfe, who art all, art made of no substances, so the ioyes & glory which are with thee, are made of none of these circumstances; Essentiall ioy, and glory Essentiall. But why then, my God, wilt thou not beginne them here? pardon O God, this vnthankfull rashnesse; I that aske why thou doest not, finde euen now in my selfe, that thou doest; such ioy, such glory, as that I conclude vponupon my selfe, vponupon all, They that finde not ioy in their sorrowes, glory in their deiections in this world, are in a fearefull danger of missing both in the next.
17. PRAYER.
O Eternall and most gracious God, who hast beene pleased to speake to vsus, not onelyonly in the voice of Nature, who speakes in our hearts, and of thy word, which speakes to our eares, but in the speech of speechlesse Creatures, in Balaams Asse, in the speech of vnbeleeuing men, in the confession of Pilate, in the speech of the Deuill himselfe, in the recognition and attestation of thy Sonne, I humbly accept thy voice, in the sound of this sad and funerall bell. And first, I blessethy glorious name, that in this sound and voice, I can heare thy instructions, in another mans to consider mine owne condition; and to know, that this bell which tolls for another, before it come to ring out, may take in me too. As death is the wages of sinne, it is due to me…; As death is the end of sicknesse, it belongs to mee; And though so disobedient a seruant as I, may be afraid to die, yet to so mercifull a Master as thou, I cannot be afraid to come; And therefore, into thy hands, O my God, I commend my spirit; A surrender, which I know thou wilt accept, whether I liue or die; for thy seruant Dauid made it,Psal. 31.5. when he put himselfe into thy protection for his life; and thy blessed Sonne made it, when hee deliuered vp his soule at his death; declare thou thy will vponupon mee, O Lord, for life or death, in thy time; receiue my surrender of my selfe now, Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit. And being thus, O my God, prepared by thy correction, mellowed by thy chastisement, and conformed to thy will, by thy Spirit, hauing receiued thy pardon for my soule, and asking no reprieue for my body, I am bold, O Lord, to bend my prayers to thee, for his assistance, the voice of whose bell hath called mee to this deuotion. Lay hold vponupon his soule, O God, till that soule hauehave throughly considered his account, and how few minutes soeuer it hauehave to remaine in that body, let the power of thy Spirit recompence the shortnesse of time, and perfect his account, before he passe away: present his sinnes so to him, as that he may know what thou forgiuest, & not doubt of thy forgiuenesse; let him stop vponupon the infinitenesse of those sinnes, but dwell vponupon the infinitenesse of thy Mercy: let him discerne his owne demerits, but wrap himselfe vp in the merits of thy Sonne, Christ Iesus: Breath inward comforts to his heart, and affoord him the power of giuing such outward testimonies thereof, as all that are about him may deriue comforts from thence, and hauehave this edification, euen in this dissolution, that though the body be going the way o… all flesh, yet that soule is going the way of all Saints. When thy Sonne cried out vponupon the Crosse, My God, my God, Why hast thou forsaken me? he spake not so much in his owne Person, as in the person of the Church, and of his afflicted members, who in deep distresses might feare thy forsaking. This patient, O most blessed God, is one of them; In his behalfe, and in his name, heare thy Sonne crying to thee, My God, my God, Why hast thou forsaken me? and forsake him not; but with thy left hand lay his body in the graue, (if that bee …hy determination vponupon him) and with thy right hand receiue his soule into thy Kingdome, and vnite him & vsus in one Cō munion of Saints. Amen.