selves, advantage our enemies, that they may fall upon us in our trenches. But as the Lord commanded, so did they, they were circumcised; neither did this act of religion hinder their business. And therefore let none say, If I stay upon prayer my business will take despair; no, no, precedent prayer will make it prosper: trust God and you will find it.

Solomon saith, "All things are beautiful in their season: there is a time for all things," Eccl. iii. 1, 11. Therefore a time for prayer; and though we are to pray continually, yet there is some time wherein we are especially to draw near to God. Saith the psalmist, Ps. xxxii. 6, " For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee, in a time that thou mayest be found." Grace maketh one pray; the wisdom of grace maketh one know the occasion, season, and time of prayer.

Fearing times are times of prayer.

Saith the psalmist, "At what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee;" and true faith soon worketh itself into prayer.

"Seek ye

Tropical uncertain times are times of prayer. the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, if so be that ye may be hid in the day of the Lord's wrath," &c. Zeph. ii. 3. When the world laboureth under uncertainty, then should the saints labour in prayer. Again, the morning time is a time of prayer: "My voice shalt thou hear in the morning; O Lord, in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee," Ps. v. 3. There is a morning of every year, as well as a morning of every day; there is a morning to every business, as well as a morning to every day: now is the year's morning, now is the morning of our great business; wherefore now up in the morning of this great work, let us direct our prayers to the Lord, and look up. Pray now, my brethren, for now it is seasonable.

As the promise is the only hold that we have on God, so prayer is the only odds that we have of our enemy. Beloved, the enemies have most commonly the outward advantage of God's people; look upon both, and you shall find that outwardly they have much odds, either more men, more money, or more munition: what shall weigh down this odds but prayer? Many times prayer doth more than the whole army. Consider Ps. lxxvi. 3; "There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, the sword, and the battle." Where?

In Salem, in Sion, ver. 2. He doth not say in the field. The arrows are first broken in the assemblies by the saints' prayers, after that in the field by the Lord's soldiers. It is said of Archimedes, being a mathematician, that he did more by drawing his lines, than any soldier did by his valour. So God's people may do more by the lines they draw, and the prayers they make, than others can do any other way. Prayers are the saints' scaling ladders, wherewith they leap over walls, and their strength whereby they break through hosts. You know usually there is much disorder in armies; the soldiers have much evil and sin among them; though the soldiers be outwardly strong, yet many of them are inwardly weak, and prayer cometh in to gather up the weak forces. Numb. xii. 15, you may see how that for the sin of one woman, the whole host of Israel was stayed, and could not march on. Her sin hindered their march; she was but one, and a woman. It may seem therefore strange, that the whole body of the army should stay upon her; yet so it was, and they could not remove until prayer came in: ver. 13, “ Moses cried to the Lord, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee." Then she was healed, and the people journeyed. Thus prayer ordereth the ranks, fetcheth up the weak forces, leadeth on the army upon the enemy, and cometh in the rear. Without prayer then there is no footing. We are not fit to strike until our armies be in joint, and prayer jointeth us; we are not fit to be exalted until we be humbled, and prayer humbleth us; and if it be so, then by way of use:

You may see what work we have to do this day, we are to lead forth this well-formed army, as you heard in the mandate sent unto us by the States, of a well-formed leaguer, under the command of that noble and worthy general, the Prince of Orange; and methinks he doth, as it were, put prayer in office, and saith, I will not be commander, prayer shall; I will be only lieutenant unto prayer; let prayer go first, let prayer strike the first stroke. Methinks I hear a dialogue and conference between him and the country. We desire you, Sir, to take the care of this great army; we commit it to your wisdom; go and prosper. But, saith he, I dare not go until prayer go; I am under prayer; give me prayer first, and then I will go: first smite with your prayers, and then we will smite with our weapons, Smiting prayers

are now expected; and though there are divers motives which I have used, to stir up your hearts to pray for the churches in general; yet take three or four more, which may have some special relation unto this people, and you amongst them.

The enemies which you pray against, are the most wicked enemies that God hath. Of all enemies, those are most wicked that are most crafty; the artificial sinner is the worst sinner, as the naturalized grace is the most gracious; such are the antichristian enemies of the church: for aş, (Gregory observeth it,*) Jesus Christ did choose simple, poor men, to preach the truth; so antichrist chooseth those which are crafty, subtle, to disperse errors. Of all enemies those are most vile which are most cruel; and those are most cruel unto the churches, that have once made profession of the truth and proved apostates. The Scripture pointeth at three especially in this particular, the devil, the Jews, and antichrist. The devil is cruel unto mankind, he is the grand apostate; the Jew is cruel unto all christians, he is a vile apostate; antichrist is cruel to all the present churches, and he is a great apostate, yet not only an apostate, but apostacy in the abstract, 2 Thess. ii. 3, and therefore cruelty itself. In the book of the Revelation, Rome and the antichristian party is called Sodom, it is called Egypt, and it is called Babylon. You know the unkindness of Egypt, the cruelty of Babylon, and the villainy of Sodom unto God's people. Why should Rome and the antichristian party stand under all these names, but because they are guilty of all their evils. And the worse they are, the more hold you have on them to pray against them. Arius was a vile enemy to the churches, and very cruel; yet he was destroyed. How so? Historians tell us, orationis opus fuit, non morbi; his death was the work of prayer, not of his disease. Such effects may your prayers have; what stubble can stand before the flame of prayer. Oh that our hearts were much inflamed in this great service.

Consider you are here in your possessions, in your lot; hidden when others of your brethren are not come to their * Sicut pauperes spiritus et simplices ad predicandum elegit, ita astutos et duplices antichristus ad falsitatis predicationem assumet.-Greg. mor. lib. 12, cap. 5.

lot. Mark that place in Deut. iii. 18, Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh were come into their lot and inheritance, before the rest of the children of Israel: what then, should they sit down quietly? No, at ver. 18, they were not to sit down, but they were to pass over armed before their brethren. So God having provided for you, before many of your dear brethren and his good people, you are not now to sit down quietly in your own lot, but to go up armed before the rest of God's people, and prayer is your best harness.

You are here on purpose to pray; it is the end why you are come hither, that you might have liberty to pray. I am loth to speak it, I would I might not, you had praying liberty denied to you; when any met together in private to pray, you know it was their and your reproach. This place is your Gilgal, wherein the Lord hath rolled away that reproach from you. Oh, that your liberty might not degenerate into licence. You have now praying liberty, and if this be the thing you are come for, and now you have such an opportunity, will you not improve it? If a man leave one place of trading, that he may set up his shop with more freedom in another; and in the second place money be brought unto him, will he refuse to take money? This is your case, you could not have so free a trade for heaven as you desired, here you have leave to open your shops, and behold this day a praying opportunity, which I call money, is put into your hands; will you refuse it? consider you are come on purpose to pray.

In all likelihood the country shall be hidden, and you shall not lose your prayers. I will tell you what Mr. Brightman saith, whose memory is sweet and precious, he saith, There are three sorts of reformed churches: the first, the German; the second, the French, the Swedish, the Scottish, and Holland; the third the English; which are all different. For the English is ruled by prelates; the French, the Scottish, Swedish and Holland, is governed by presbyters; the German hold consubstantiation, and other things, which other reformed churches do not. Germany therefore he compared to Sardis, and thence foretold all the evils that have come upon it. Holland, Sweden, Scotland and the French, he compared to Philadelphia, and saith, though they have but a little strength, and the hour of temptation shall come, and some shall labour to shut their door, yet none shall shut it. It is

the rather to be considered, because he foretold the evils that came upon Germany. And why may he not speak true in this also? and then who would not pray for this people, seeing that he may not lose his prayers. Wherefore I entreat you in the name of God, now, up and be doing; arise, O daughter of Sion; arise, oh hearts of the people of God, that God might arise, and his enemies might be scattered. Awake, awake, and now up to prayer.

You will say to me, we are agreed, we must go to prayer both now and at home; but what shall we speak, that God may arise and that his enemies may be scattered.

Bring forth the Lord's engagements, and tell him how much he is engaged to help the churches: the Lord saith in his word that Babylon shall fall, Rev. xviii. 8, for strong is that God that hath condemned her; the Lord saith, Psalm cxxi. 4, "He never slumbereth or sleepeth;" the Lord saith in his word, 2 Chron. vi. 34, 35, "If his people pray when they go forth to war, he will hear and maintain their cause:" go and tell God, Lord, thou hast said thus and thus: thou hast said thou wilt neither slumber nor sleep; thou hast said thou wilt maintain thy cause; oh, then, arise, O Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered.

Tell the Lord how long he hath seemed to sleep, and that the time appointed for the church's deliverance is now at hand. Saith the Psalmist, "It is time for thee, Lord, to work, for they have made void thy law," Psalm cxix. 126. And again, “Have mercy upon Zion, for the time to favour her, yea the set time is come, for thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favour the dust thereof," Psalm cii. 13, 14. This is the reason why the time is come. and tell him, Lord, thou hast stood still a great while, oh, now the time is come, men have made void thy law, the saints pity the dust and take pleasure in the stones of the wasted churches; it is time for thee to rise, "Arise, O Lord," &c.

So go to God

Tell the Lord that the enemies are up already abundantly; tell him that ere long he will rise, though you do not pray: Lord, if we should never pray, wouldst not thou help the churches; and wilt not thou arise a little the sooner for our prayers? wherefore, "Arise, O Lord," &c.

Tell the Lord that all things are now ready; it is