An Alarm to the Last Judgment, Part 2
An effectuall Prayer according to the argument, and containing the Summe of the whole Treatise.
O LORD our God, and most mercifull Father, thou art indeed great and terrible, of pure Eyes, and canst not behold euill: Hardning, blinding, forsaking, punishing, and in thy Iustice taking vengeance on thy aduersaries,Nah. 1.2. and art in thy wrath a consuming fire,Heb. 12, 29 and art notwithstanding, in thy onelyonly begotten and most deerely beloued Son IESVS CHRIST, a most louing, gracious, and kind Father to all thy Church and children, not wishing, much lesse working, their misery, ruin, and destruction; but calling, iustifying, sanctifying, directing, protecting, and glorifying them; yea, thou dost most louingly fore-warne them of the euils to come,Psal. 46.1. and in the midst of their miseries and distresses, assist, comfort, sustaine, support, and deliuer them.Cant. 1.3. This sweete Ointment & perfume of thy mercies doth draw vsus after thee, & these thy high, and altogether vndeserued, fauours, wee confesse and acknowledge with all thankfulnesse, and acclamation. And more particularly, seeing that thou in thy wisedome (to check and correct, our vaine curiosity, & rash presumption) doth conceale & keep from vsus the knowledge of the set houre,Mar. 13.32 day, yea yeare, when the Sonne of man shall come to iudgement; that wee should be ready and prepared at eueryevery moment, and withall, that we (after the manner of the wicked thy enemies) should not bee suddenly surprised,Luk 21.25.26. nor distressed and perplexed with feare and astonishment, but bee encouraged in wel-doing.Mat. 24.32 And that wee should gather certaine signes of the Summer of solace, and Haruest of Happinesse at hand; and that we should be preserued from all atheisme, doubting, mis-beleefe, thou hast, in thine vnspeakeable mercy, left vsus in the sacred Scriptures sundry generall and vndoubted Signes, tokens, and Fore-runners, of the last Iudgement: Wherof diuersare already past, as the destruction of the foure mighty Monarchies; the desolation of Iudaea and Ierusalem, the extinguishing of the large Romane Monarchie,2. Thess. 2.6. whose power & Maiesty hindred the comming of the Romish Antichrist; the vniuersall and solemne Preaching of the Gospell by the Apostles and their Assistants and Successours vntounto all Nations;Mat. 24.14 Finally, the reuealing, yea, generall weakning & wounding of Antichrist:2. Thess. 2.8. And whereof some are yet in continuall motion and progresse, as the reiection, and dispersion of the Iewes;Rom. 9.27.31. the invndation and deluge of all impiety and iniquity;Rom. 8.22.23. the vanity, abuse, corruption, and decay of the creature: And whereof certaine remaine yet to bee accomplished; namely, the ruin of Rome; the ouerthrow of Mahomet and his Alcaron; the generall calling and conuersion of the Iewes vntounto the Christian faith;Rom. 11.25 26. & (that which is the plague and poyson of the declining, apostaticall, contemptuous and vnthankfull world) in the last age of the world,Mat. 24.21 the arising of False Christs and false Prophets, their instruments, that shall shew great (Diabolicall) Signes and Wonders; insomuch that (if it were possible) they shall deceiue the very elect: Lastly (neere the point of Christ his glorious appearance) the strange, sudden, and fearefull dimming and darkning of the Eyes, Ver. 29.Lamps, & Lights of heauen; therefore bee thou entreated (most mercifull Lord) to enlighten all our blind vnderstandings, to mollifie, purge, & prepare all our hearts, and effectually to stir vp and rectifie all our wils, desires, affections, that wee may make true, godly, and seasonable vse of all these soundings of the trumpets, and fore-running signes. Grant vsus grace, that by the due obseruance of the signes expired, and in continuall act, wee may certainely expect and waite for the performance of those, that are promised, and yet for to come: Heauen and earth shall passe away, Mat. 24 35but thy words shall not passe away. And because thy Church on earth,Eph. 6.10.11, 12, &c. is in such continuall trouble and warfare; thy Saints and seruants so much oppressed,Apoc. 6.9.10. wronged, yea, massacred and Martyred; and the world of the Atheists, Idolaters, Hypocrites, profane and wicked ones, liue in so dreadlesse security,1. Thess. 5.3. and thriue in all manner of sin and vngodlinesse: wee therefore, thy poore and vnperfect children, doe so much more humbly and earnestly beseech thy good Maiestie to hasten the comming of thy Son, to shorten (for thy Elects sake) these daies of sin,Mat. 24.22 bondage, corruption; and, in demonstration hereof, to destroy & abolish the tyrannie of the Turke and Pope thy Arch-enemies. For this end stirre vp the zeale and courage, & prosper the heroicall designes and endeuours of Christian Princes and Worthies;Apoc. 17.16. conuert (according to thy generall promise)Rom. 11.25 the long seduced and miserably scattered nation of the Iewes, and take away the vaile of Moses from their eyes, that their receiuing into the Church may be to them and vsus, the encrease of the Church,Ver. 12. life from death, the reuiuing of our faith, and the multiplication of the common ioy, when there shall be one Fold and one Shepheard. Likewise all the subsequent and neerest signes, in due time fulfil; and giuegive vsus such wisedome and due regard and attention, that when we see and obserue the last and most immediate generall signes to come to passe, we may be more vigilant and feruent, in piety, prayer, charity, & for ioy, lift vp our heads, knowing that our (full and finall) redemption, Luk. 21.28.from all sin and sorrow, draweth nigh.
But because it may bee that none, or not many of vsus, that are now liuing, shall surviue vntounto that day, but bee preuented by death; and seeing that the last day is but a manifestation of our estate in death, and as death shal leaue vsus, in such condition shall the last iudgement find vsus, therefore (good Lord) giuegive vsus grace and conscience to redeeme the time: to prouide our selues of the Oile of Faith in the Lampes of our profession;Mat. 25.4. to procure the wedding garment of holinesse, and with all expedition to make our selues ready against that day, that we may bee accounted worthy to escape al those things that shall come on the world,Luk. 21.36 and to stand before the Sonne of Man▪ and heare that gladsome sentence of Absolution; Come yee blessed of my Father, inherite yee the Kingdome prepared for you from the foundation of the world. As for all thy enemies, ô Lord, in whom thou hast no part, let them betimes heare and receiue that terrible sentence;Mat. 25.41 Go yee cursed into euerlasting fire prepared the deuil and his Angels: let them go to the place, in thy iustice, appointed for them, and let the smoake of their smoake ascend vp for euermore,Apoc. 14.11 that they for whom Christ neuer made any satisfaction,Iohn 17.9. and they that neuer rested in Christ his all-sufficient expiation, may by eternitie of torment satisfie for all their abomination.
GiueGive a blessed assent (most gratious Father) to these our vnperfect prayers: Pardon all our transgressions, supply all our wants, make vsus truely and euer thankefull for all thy blessings in heauenly and earthly things, fulfill all the remaining signes, and in the time appointed, after that wee hauehave suffered a while, and made our selues ready, bring vsus vntounto, and translate vsus into, thine euerlasting Kingdome of glory, for thy onelyonly begotten and most deerely beloued Sonne Iesus Christ his sake, merites and intercession, to whom with thy eternall Maiestie, and God the holy Ghost, bee giuen, rendred, and ascribed, all Power, Wisedome, Honour, Glory, Praise and Thanks in the Church, from Generation to Generation, Amen.
FINIS.
End of the text · Thomas Draxe, An Alarm to the Last Judgment (1615)