A Believers Triumph Over Death, Title page – Errata
A Believers Triumph OVER DEATH, Exemplified in a RELATION OF The LAST HOURS OF Dr ANDREW RIVET.
AND An Account of divers other Remarkable Inſtances.
BEING An Hiſtory of the Comfortable End, and dying Words of ſeveral eminent Men; with other Occaſional Paſſages: All tending to comfort Chriſtians againſt the Fear of Death, and prepare them for a like Happy Change.
He ſhall enter into Peace: They ſhall reſt in their Beds, each one walking in his Ʋprightneſs. Iſa. 57. 2.
London, Printed for Benjamin Alſop at the Angel and Bible in the Poultrey, 1682.
The PREFACE.
I Will not trouble the Reader with a long Preface to a little Book, nor waſte Time in an affected Apology for my Undertaking to publiſh the enſuing Stories in the Engliſh Tongue; for I doubt not but upon a ſerious Peruſal, the things here Related will be eſteemed by every Pious Chriſtian of that worth and uſe, as will ſufficiently recommend this Account of them to their good acceptance, who were not capable of reading them in another Language.
The firſt, and largeſt part, of what is here offered to your Service, (viz. The laſt Hours of Dr. Rivet) was firſt written, and publiſhed in the French Tongue, and ſoon after turned into Latine, and printed again in the laſt Edition of his learned and elaborate Works; from whence you have it now tranſlated into our own Language: I have added nothing of my own to it, nor omitted the mention of the leaſt circumſtance there ſet down, but have faithfully repreſented the whole in the ſame order as I met with it my ſelf: And I may modeſtly ſay, 'Tis as great … Story of this kind as moſt Age… can furniſh us with. That thi… might not go alone, I have in the Appendix added the Memorable Examples of the Bleſſed and Peaceful End of ſome others alſo, eminent for their Piety, and zealous Profeſſion of the Proteſtant Religion while they lived: In which (where no other Author is cited) I have followed the Authority of Melchior Adamus, or of thoſe from whom he made his Collections; and do aſſure you, that as there is nothing Reported without good Warrant, as to the truth of matter of fact, ſo I am confident nothing will occurre, but what is ſuitable to feed and increaſe thoſe holy Affections, and that Pious Zeal, which I hope the foregoing Narrative may enkindle in the Readers heart.
That which I aim at in the whole is, the Quickening and Encouragement of Chriſtians in their ſpiritual Courſe; and that the weighty Sayings, and happy End of theſe Great men may provoke us to imitate that worthy Pattern of Faith and Holineſs, which they have left us both living and dying: Inſtruction backt by Example is more powerful than that given by Precept alone: 'Tis truly ſaid, Verba docent; Exempla trahunt: i. e. Words teach, but Examples draw: Howbeit, even the Words of Dying men do uſually make a deeper Impreſſion upon the Heart, than other Diſcourſes can doe: The Sayings of one upon the brink of Eternity are next of kin to thoſe of one returned from the Dead, and ſent back from another World to give us Warning, and direction in our way thither, and therefore do juſtly claim a more than ordinary attention from us. Theſe men call to us from the borders of Light, having already taſted the Fruit of the heavenly Canaan; and have left behind them ſuch a feeling Teſtimony of its Sweetneſs and Glory, as may greatly engage our Souls in purſuit after that ſame Bleſſedneſs which they are arrived at. And if we would have our Death to be as Gainf… and Comfortable as theirs, w… muſt make the Glory of Chriſ… the higheſt End and Deſign o… our Lives, as they did. Wha… is the Talent of Time lent u… for, but that we might wor… out our own Salvation with fea… and trembling? We loſe all ou… time and pains that are not employed this way; and ſhall a… laſt be of his mind that ſaid upon his Death-bed, I repent Dr. Donn.of all my Life, but that part of it which I ſpent in Communion with God and doing Good. All the World will not relieve a Dying Man; For what will it profit a Matt. 16. 26.man if he Gain the whole World, and loſe his own Soul? or what ſhall a man give in Exchange for his Soul? The greateſt Monarch that dyes without Grace, muſt ſubſcribe to the laſt words of Sept. Severus the Roman Emperour, Pezel. Mellif.foreign. i. e. I have been all things, and nothing profits me.
I cannot but adde the Grave and ſerious words of Salmaſius, who was a Man of Great Learning, of extraordinary diligence in his Studies, and of Great Fame among the Scholars of this laſt Age; and yet upon his Death-bed he pours forth this bitter Complaint:
Oh I have loſt a deal of Time! Time! that moſt precious thing in the World, whereof had I but one Year longer, it ſhould be ſpent in Reading David's Pſalms, and Paul's Epiſtles: Oh Sirs, mind the World leſs, and God more; All the Learning in the World without Piety, and the true Fear of God, is nothing worth: The Fear of the Lord that is Wiſdom, and to Depart from Evil that is Underſtanding.
In like manner, the Great Hugo Grotius, after all his Labour, Study, and Proficiency in other Knowledge, at the cloſe of his Life told his Friends, That he would give all his Learning and Honour for the Plain Integrity and Piety of John Urick; who was a devout Poor man, that ſpent eight hours of his time in Prayer, eight in Labour, and the other eight he allowed for his Sleep and neceſſary Refreſhments.
Theſe Learned men found Religion to be the Trueſt and Beſt Wiſdom in a Dying Hour: This is the one thing needfull; and we ſhall all find it ſo, when we muſt take leave of this World, and make our appearance before God. That the following lines may thro' the Bleſſing of God be made uſeful to the awakening a ſence of Religion in thoſe that do peruſe them, is my Deſire, and ſhall be my earneſt Prayer to him who alone can bleſs the Seed ſown, and increaſe the Fruits of Righteouſneſs.
Nehemiah Coxe▪
ERRATA.
THe Errors of the Preſs which diſturb th… ſence, are thus to be corrected:
Page 19. l. 23. for Order r. Ardor, p. 20. … 10. for great very r. very great, p. 40. l. 19. … ſeeing, p. 133. l. 4. dele which, p. 200. l. 8▪ dele his.