The Christians Defense Against the Fears of Death, Chapter 24 · Prayer
A Prayer and a Meditation for a Believing Soul that rejoyceth and comforts it ſelf, in looking upon Deaths Deſtruction, and the everlaſting and Bleſſed Life which we hope to injoy, both in Soul and Body after the Reſurrection.
O Great Judge of the World, bottomleſs Fountain of Life and happineſs, thy Gracious hand hath put into mine Heart, the ſeeds of Immortality, the firſt-fruits of Heavens Glory, and the foretaſts of everlaſting Delights. Thou haſt made me to behold by Faith, the joys and happineſs of Paradice, where thou ſhalt receive my Soul when it ſhall depart out of this wretched World, and to Meditate upon the Glory which thou prepareſt for my Body, when thou ſhalt take it to thy ſelf, to make it like to thy Glorious Body. Now raiſe my thoughts and my hopes to this higheſt glory and happineſs which thou haſt promiſed to our Souls and Bodies, when thou ſhalt come down from Heaven with Flames of Fire, to revenge thy ſelf of ſuch as know thee not, and will not obey thy Holy Goſpel, and to be glorified in thy Saints, and become wonderful in all Believers. Let me ſometime conſider that glorious Throne, where thou ſhalt ſit to judge the quick and the dead, before which the greateſt Princes, Kings, and Monarchs, as well as the vileſt Servants, Subjects, and Slaves; and generally all the Men of the World ſhall appear to receive in their Bodies, according as they have done, whether it be good or evil. O that I might rejoyce in an expectation of ſeeing the total and intire deſtruction of all the Enemies of thy Glory, and of our Salvation. That I might look upon Satan his wicked Angels, his Agents, and the inſtruments of his Kingdome, at if they were already bound up in everlaſting Chains, caſt into the Lake of fire and brimſtone, and ſhut up in that bottomleſs pit, from whence they ſhall never be releaſed. That I might think upon that Bleſſed time, when Death ſhall be no more, when all the living ſhall be Immortal; but chiefly give me Grace to behold with the eye of that precious Faith which thou haſt formed in my Soul, the joy and Coronation of thy Church, to conſider that Divine dwelling, where the ſtately and moſt magnificent City is built, with pure Gold, Pearles, and Precious Stones, where thou thy ſelf art the Light and the Sun, where the uncorruptible inheritance is, which cannot be defiled and cannot fade away, where the River of living water runs, which is as bright as Chryſtal, where the Tree of Life is, which yields fruit every Month of the year, whereof the Leaves are for healing of the Gentiles. Give me Grace to comfort my ſelf, in the expectation of that bleſſed eſtate, where we ſhall neither hunger nor thirſt, where there ſhall be neither giving nor taking in Marriage, but where we ſhall be as the Angels of God, where thou ſhalt cloath us with Light, and incompaſs us about with the beams of thy Glory, where thou ſhalt put into our hands Palmes of Victory, Crowns upon our Heads, and in our mouths the Songs of the bleſſed, and of all the Holy Angels, where we ſhall ſit with the Patriarcks, Prophets, Apoſtles, Confeſſors and Martyrs, and with all the Princes, Kings, and Monarchs that have lived in thy fear, and that are dead in thy favor. Where we ſhall for ever ſolemniſe the Divine Nuptials of the Lamb, and ſhall be inflamed with his love, where we ſhall behold God face to face, and ſhall be changed into his glorious Image, and ſatisfied with his Divine likeneſs. O Lord give us Grace to think continually upon his glorious and joyful day, which ſhall put a period to the current of time, which is the accompliſhment of all the Prophecies and Promiſes, the body and reallity of all types and figures, the Crowning of all our Works, the fulfilling of all our deſires, the higheſt of all our hopes, and the perfection of all the deſigns intended by God the Father from all Eternity. And ſeeing that we know not when this beautiful day ſhall break forth, which ſhall never end, give us Grace to expect it at every moment, and behave our ſelves in ſuch a manner, as if we were already at the Eve of this everlaſting Sabbath, and of this glorious Reſt. That we may provide holy oyl in our Lamps, faith, hope, and charity in our hearts; that theſe Lamps may be ready and always burning; that our Souls may be cloathed with the Wedding Garment, with Righteouſneſs and innocency; that we may not ſtumber in the vain Delights of the World, in the pleaſures of the fleſh, but that we may ſpend the days and the nights in watching and Prayers. Give us Grace to lift up our heads, looking for our Redemption, as if we did already bear the ſound of the laſt Trumpet; as if we did ſee already the Lord Jeſus coming in the Clouds of Heaven. O that we might not only expect him, but go to meet him, and haſten his coming by our continual Prayers and earneſt deſires. O moſt powerful and merciful Lord, forgive our impatient wiſhes, and haſten that day for the elects ſake. Lord Jeſus come with the Angels of thy power, and the thouſands of Saints, and cauſe thy glory to appear, and thine eternal Happineſs. Come with the Weapons of thy juſt reſentment to require Juſtice, and to deſtroy all the ungodly, for there is no Faith amongſt Men, nor charity: All fleſh is become corrupt. Come and deſtroy this World, which is as an Houſe, infected with a ſpreading Leproſie, but rather come to free it from corruption and vanity, unto which our Sins have made it ſubject. Come and purifie with an univerſal fire this wretched Earth; which was curſed for our Crimes. Come Almighty Lord, come and trample upon the pride of the World, and of all the Enemies of thy Sacred Truth. Come and execute judgement upon her that is drunk with the Blood of thy holy Martyrs. Come and bind the roaring Lyon in Chains, and ſhut him for ever in the bottomleſs pit. Come and put to Death the Murderer of thy Brethren and Members, and totally aboliſh it. Lord Jeſus hearken to the crying of thy people, and to the groans of thine inheritance. Come and take thy Church out of this cruel Egypt, where our Sins have inthralled it, deliver it out of this Babylon, where it hath been kept ſo long in Bondage. O merciful Lord, it is high time that thou ſhouldſt introduce it into thy Celeſtial Canaan, where the Milk and Hony of the moſt refined joyes and divine comforts flow continually. That thou ſhouldſt bring it into the holy Jeruſalem, the City of Peace and of everlaſting Reſt. Come therefore to wipe away the Tears, and ſtop the crying of thy afflicted Children. Come and take them out of this cruel and infamous Priſon, open to them the Gates of thy glorious Palace. Come and cloath them with thy Light, cauſe them to drink of the Rivers of thy pleaſures, and Crown them with thine Immortal Glory. Lord Jeſus haſten this day of this Divine Coronation and magnificent Rejoycing. We have been fighting and travelling upon this Earth, long enough ſeparated from thee, our Souls long for thee, they can no longer live without thee. O wonderful Lord, whoſe Works are ſo great, that they are paſt finding out, and whoſe Wonders are ſo many, that they are not to be numbred; thou haſt with the Father perfected the Creation of the World; thou haſt performed all the Works of our Bleſſed Redemption, perfect alſo the Works of the future Glorification of thy Church. Take us up to that higheſt Glory and Happineſs which hath beex prepared for us from the beginning of the World; and which is the price of thy Blood, and the fruits of thy Death. O bountiful and glorious Lord, put us in a condition, that we may have nothing to dread, nor nothing to deſire, nor nothing to pray or wiſh for, but that we may only have cauſe to return to thee Thankſgiving, and to celebrate thy Divine praiſes. That in this glorious and everlaſting day, we may ſing continually with the Seraphims that flie about thy Throne, holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God of Hoſts, all that is in the Earth is his Glory, and with the Bleſſed Saints; now is come to paſs Salvation and power, and the Kingdom of our God, and the power of his Chriſt, for Death is ſwallowed up into Victory; the accuſer of our Brethren, is ſhut up in the bottomleſs pit; he that accuſed them day and night before God. They have overcome him by the Blood of the Lamb. They have not loved their own Lives unto Death. Ʋnto him who hath loved us, and waſhed us from all our Sins in his Blood, and hath made us Kings and Prieſts unto God his Father, to him I ſay, as to the Father and the Holy Ghoſt, be Glory, power, and Dominion … ever Amen.
FINIS.