muft fuffer for us even the pains of death? no, graciousLord, thy mercy ftill obferveth many wants in our nature as yet unfupplied; thou faweft our too much fondness of life needed thy parting with it, to reconcile us to death; thou faweft our fear of fufferings could no way be abated but by freely undergoing them in thine own perfon: thou faweft our fouls fo deeply ftained with guilt, that without fhedding thy blood we could have no remiflion.

6. Can we thus remember the labours of our redeemer for us, and not be convinced of our duty to him? can my cold heart recount his fufferings, and not be inflamed with the love of him that fuffered for me? can I believe my falvation coft him fo dear, and live as if to be faved were not worth my pains? ungrateful man, how doth he flight the goodness of our God! how carelefly comply with his gracious defigns! for all his gifts he requires no other return, than that we hope ftill more, and defire ftill greater bleffings, and improve them all to our own happiness: for all his favours he feeks no other praife, than our following his steps till we mount up to his glory.

7. O my adored redeemer, behold to thee I bow, and humbly proftrate myself in ho

nour

nour of thy death: behold thus low I bow to implore thy bleffing, and the affiftance of thy fpecial grace, that I may wean my affections from all vain defires, and cleanse my thoughts from all impertinent fancies: that my life may be entirely dedicated to thee, and all the faculties of my foul to thy holy fervice: that my mind may continually study the knowledge of thee, and my will grow every day ftronger in thy love, and my memory faithfully recount thy mercies, and both tongue: and heart be continually disposed and habitually employed to praise thee; to praise thy incomparable love, which has done and fuffered fo much for lost mankind.

Here obferve the directions given on page 8, and more particu larly endeavour to improve your foul by reading a lesson out of the New WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 4. Section I, &c. Aprayer on Friday evening for faith and repentance, and a due preparation to the holy facrament.

Repent and believe the gofpel. Mark i. 15.

Gracious God, and moft kind and merciful father, who of thy tender love to mankind, didft give thine only fon Jefus Chrift to fuffer death upon the cross for our redemption, who made there by his one oblation of himself once offered, a full, perfect, and fufficient facrifice, oblation and fatisfac

tion for the fins of the whole world; grant that the effects of this redemption may be as univerfal as the defign of it, that it may be to the falvation of all: O let no perfon by impenitence and wilful fin forfeit his part in it, but by the power of thy grace bring all, even the moft obftinate finners to repentance.

More especially, I beseech thee, to give me, thy finful creature, a right understanding of the urgent need I have of a faviour, and of all thofe things which thy fon hath done and fuffered, and is ftill doing at thy right-hand, in order to the cleanfing of my guilty and polluted nature, and the reftoring me to thy grace and favour: and let not all this be in vain and useless to me, left I become eternally miferable, and loft to all hopes and poffibilities of comfort; give me grace to accept of, and embrace the tenders of thy love, and to comply with thofe gracious terms of falvation, which thy fon hath procured for, and proposed to me in the gospel..

I acknowledge, O Lord, that I have too much neglected this great falvation, but thou with infinite patience doft still wait to see if I will accept of mercy: O that thy forbearance and long fuffering may foften my heart, and melt me into shame and tears of penitential

for

forrow, for having fo long abufed the tender mercy of fo good a God. I defire now to refign and give up myfelf to the conduct of thy holy fpirit. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me, for thou art the God of my falvation. Let thy word be my rule, thy grace my guide and affiftance, thy goodness my pattern and example, thy promifes my encouragement, and thy' joys my everlasting recompence and reward, thro' the merits and interceffion of thy bleffed Son, my Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.

See the concluding Prayer and bleffing on page 36 and 37.

* The Meditation: Saturday Morning.

On the excellency of the holy facrament.

This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. John vi. 50.

I.

ye

Ome unto me all Co that are weary and heavy laden, fays the bleffed Jefus, and I will refresh you; take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find reft unto your fouls; for my yoke is eafy, and my burthen is light.

2. Does my Saviour invite me: and fhall I go? fhall a finner dare to fit down at his table?

Here you may obferve the directions given on page 3.

does

does he invite, and fhall I not go? fhall a wretch prefume to refuse his call? rife then, my foul, and take thy fwifteft wings, and fly to the participation of this great mystery. A feaft of holy bread and holy wine, in reprefentation of Chrift's moft facred body broken, and blood fhed for us, where thou, deareft Jefu, doft freely give thy felf to the meaneft guest; a feast of peace and love, and incomparable sweetness, to which thou haft thus kindly invited us.

3. Come to me, ye that labour for holineis, and are oppreffed under the weight of your fins; ye that hunger after heaven, and thirst to drink of the fountain of blifs, come to me, and I will refresh you with the wine of gladness, and the bread of life.

4. But stay, am I arrayed like a friend of the bridegroom, that I may fafely come to this marriage-fupper? have I confider'd how chafte thofe eyes fhould be, which go to behold the God of purity? have I confider'd how clean that mouth fhould be, which prefumes to eat the bread of heaven? but most of all, have I confider'd how all-celeftial that foul fhould be, which afpires to an union with the body of Christ?

5. Look, my heart, look well into thyself,