begging God to strengthen his faith, and often crying out, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

His mighty love and esteem of the holy scriptures, his refolutions to read them frequently and meditate upon them, if God should spare him, having already tafted the good word; for, having spoken to his heart, he acknowledged all the feeming abfurdities and contradictions thereof, fancied by men of corrupt and reprobate judgements, were vanished, and the excellency and beauty appeared, being come to receive the truth in the love of it.

His extraordinary fervent devotions, in his fre quent prayers of his own, moft excellent and correct; amongst the reft, for the king, in fuch a manner as became a dutiful fubject and a truly grateful fervant; for the church and nation, for fome particular relations, and then for all men; his calling frequently upon me at all hours to pray with him or read the fcriptures to him; and, toward the end of his fickness, he would heartily defire God to pardon his infirmities, if he fhould not be fo wakeful and intent through the whole duty as he wished to be; and that, though the flesh was weak, yet the fpirit was willing, and he hoped God would accept that.

His continual invocation of God's grace and Holy Spirit, to sustain him, to keep him from all evil thoughts, from all temptations and diabolical fuggeftions,

fuggeftions, and every thing which might be prejudicial to that religious temper of mind which God had now so happily endued him withal; crying out, one night especially, how terribly the tempter did affault him, by cafting upon him lewd and wicked imaginations! but I thank God, faid he, I abhor them all; by the power of his grace, which I am fure is fufficient for me, I have overcome them; it is the malice of the devil, because I am rescued from him; and the goodness of God, that frees me from all my spiritual enemies.

His great joy at his lady's converfion from Popery to the church of England, (being, as he termed it, a faction supported only by fraud and cruelty,) which was by her done with deliberation and mature judgement; the dark mifts of which had for fome months before been breaking away, but now cleared by her receiving the bleffed facrament with her dying husband, at the receiving of which no man could expreís more joy and devotion than he did; and, having handled the word of life, and feen the falvation of God, in the preparation of his mind, he was now ready to depart in peace.

His hearty concern for the pious education of his children, wishing that his fon might never be a wit, that is, (as he himself explained it,) one of those wretched creatures who pride themselves in abufing God and religion, denying his being or his providence;

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dence; but that he might become an honeft and religious man, which could only be the support and bleffing of his family, complaining what a vicious and naughty world they were brought into, and that no fortunes or honours were comparable to the love and favour of God to them, in whose name he bleifed them, prayed for them, and committed them to his protection.

His ftrict charge to thofe perfons, in whofe cuftody his papers were, to burn all his profane and lewd writings, as being only fit to promote vice and immorality, by which he had fo highly offended God, and shamed and blafphemed that holy religion into which he had been baptized; and all his obfcene and filthy pictures, which were so notoriously fcandalous.

His readiness to make restitution, to the utmost of his power, to all perfons whom he had injured; and, for those whom he could not make a compenfation to, he prayed for God's and their pardons. His remarkable justice in taking all poffible care for the payment of his debts, which before he confeffed he had not fo fairly and effectually done.

His readiness to forgive all injuries done against him; fome, more particularly mentioned, which were great and provoking; nay, annexing thereto all the affurance of a future friendship, and hoping he should be as freely forgiven at the hand of God.

How

How tender and concerned was he for his fervants about him in his extremities, (manifested by the beneficence of his will to them,) pitying their troubles in watching with him and attending him, treating them with candour and kindness, as if they had been his intimates !

How hearty were his endeavours to be ferviceable to thofe about him, exhorting them to the fear and love of God, and to make a good ufe of his forbearance and long-fuffering to finners, which should lead them to repentance! And here I must not pafs by his pious and moft paffionate exclamation to a gentleman of fome character, who came to vifit him upon his death-bed; "O remember that you con"temn God no more! he is an avenging God, and "will vifit you for your fins; he will, in mercy, "I hope, touch your confcience, fooner or later, "as he has done mine. You and I have been "friends and finners together a great while, there"fore I am the more free with you. We have "been all mistaken in our conceits and opinions, "our perfuafions have been falfe and groundless; "therefore God grant you repentance." And, feeing him the next day again, he faid to him, "Perhaps you were difobliged by my plainnefs to you yesterday; I fpake the words of truth and "foberness to you, and (ftriking his hand upon F 5

❝ his

"his breast) faid, I hope God will touch your "heart."

Likewife his commands to me, to preach abroad, and to let all men know (if they knew it not already) how feverely God had difciplined him for his fins by his afflicting hand; that his fufferings were most just though he had laid ten thousand times more upon him; how he had laid one ftripe upon another because of his grievous provocations, till he had brought him home to himself; that, in his former vifitations he had not that blessed effect he was now fenfible of. He had formerly fome loofe thoughts and flight refolutions of reforming, and designed to be better, becaufe even the prefent confequences of fin were still peftering him, and were fo troublefome and inconvenient to him; but that now he had other fentiments of things, and acted upon other principles.

His willingness to die, if it pleafed God, refigning himself always to the divine difpofal; but, if God fhould spare him yet a longer time here, he hoped to bring glory to the name of God in the whole course of his life, and particularly by his endeavours to convince others, and to affure them of the danger of their condition, if they continued impenitent, and how graciously God had dealt with

him.

great fenfe of his obligations to those excel

lent