SAINT BERNARD HIS MEDITATIONS: OR Sighs, Sobs, and Tears, upon our saviours PASSION: In Memorial of his Death. ALSO His Motives to Mortification, with other Meditations. The third Edition, much amended. By W. P. Mr. of Arts in Cambridge.  1 COR. 2.2. 
I esteem not to know any thing amongst you save jesus Christ, and him crucified.  
LONDON: Printed by T. S. for Francis Burton, dwelling in Paul's Churchyard at the sign of the green Dragon. 1614   

TO THE Right Worshipful, Mr. JOHN BULLOCKE, of the Inner Temple, ESQUIRE.  
SIR, it was my purpose when I first undertook to translate these divine and comfortable Meditations on the Lord's Passion, and Motives to Mortification, (selected out of the works of S. BERNARD, and other ancient Writers, not verbally turned into English, but augmented with such other Meditations, as it pleased God to infuse into my mind) to have dedicated them unto your worthy Father, who (both in respect of his near alliance, and other reasons of moment) might by his own right have challenged that duty at my hands.  
But since it seemed good unto the Divine Majesty, to remove him from earth, out of the society of mortal men, to live for ever in the company of the blessed Angels in Heaven, before I could attain to the accomplishment of my wished desires: I could find none more near and dear unto me then yourself, who might vouchsafe to give the first kind entertainment to my well-intended labours, when they should come forth into the light. For as the Lord hath blessed you with a peaceable fruition of your Father's possessions: so no doubt you are also a true heir of his commendable Virtues.  
My desire is to profit all, yet I am obliged by many private respects, to commend my labours, (such as they are) in a more special manner unto yourself, that thereby I might seal unto you, a true assurance of my grateful affection towards you, For far be it from my thought, that either I should forget your kind speeches, or bury your good deed in the dark grave of Oblivion, expressed to me, and extended towards me at my last conference with you.  
I know you cannot but kindly accept my small mite, if you balance it with the willingness of my mind: and I am assured you will not mislike it, in regard of the matter, though happily you may find some distaste in respect of the style. For what can be more fit for these times, than Motives to Mortification? or more comfortable to the soul of a sorrowful sinner, than a serious Meditation of the bitter Passion of our Crucified Redeemer, who being God, became man for our sakes: suffered a most cruel death on the Cross for our sins: and being buried, rose again for our justification?  
But it is not my purpose here to relate what sweet streams do flow from this crystal and pure Fountain, what wholesome fruits may be gathered from this fruitful Tree, or what rich Treasure may be found in this golden Mine. I desire to contain my lines within the bounds of Mediocrity: especially when the Current of my words turneth towards One whom God hath blessed with capacity, able to conceive the great commodities which do proceed from such Christian exercises: Yet before I make a full period, give me leave (I pray you) to let you understand, that I have much endeavoured, so to express the grievous Passion of our gracious Redeemer, as if it were now in present action before our eyes, that I might the better stir up fervent motions of Piety in the mind, and kindle the sparks of true devotion in the heart of the Reader. For indeed, the full scope of my desire is, to glorify GOD, and benefit my brethren. And that your own soul, (as also the soul of every religious Reader,) may be the more nearly and deeply touched, and wounded with a feeling consideration of our saviours death, I suppose it the best way, after a due preparation thereunto by prayer (without which nothing can be sanctified unto us,) to begin at the first Meditation, and so taking the History of his Passion before you, to proceed until you come unto the yielding up of his Ghost upon the Cross.  
In the progress whereof, it may please God so to touch your heart with sorrow, that your eyes, (with those in the Gospel, who came to see his death, Luke 24.48.) may gush forth Tears for grief, that so innocent a Lamb should be so despitefully and cruelly tortured, tormented, and crucified. Where also you (in whose person I speak unto all) may justly conceive a double grief.  
First, that jesus Christ (the Righteous,) was killed for sin.  
Secondly, that he was killed for our sin.  
The consideration whereof, should move all, with weeping Peter, Luke 22.62. to shed salt and brinish tears of contrition, in remembrance of our offences, that being therewith pricked at the heart, Christ jesus may say unto our sorrowful souls, as sometimes he did unto the Israelites, I have heard your groaning, and will have compassion on you, judge 2.18. And may also thereunto add, Son, be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee, Matth. 9 2. Come hither and taste how sweet I thy Lord am: with me there is plenteous redemption.  
And as in matter of sorrow, it more deeply pierceth the soul of the hearer with grief, or in matter of delight, more affecteth the mind with joy, to hear the particular relation of some Tragical event, or the parts and particles of some delightful accident reported, then only to hear a bare narration of either in gross, without expressing the parts thereof: so likewise it cannot choose, but more deeply wound the soul of every Christian, to hear, or read, the special and several sufferings of Christ in his Passion, then if it were only said thus, Christ died for us.  
But lest I draw my lines beyond the limits of due measure, I here conclude: desiring the LORD to bless you, and the rest of your Father's issue, with many happy days upon earth, and when they are ended here in peace, to receive you all into his heavenly Kingdom of everlasting Glory.  
Yours ready at command, W.P.   

A Table of the Meditations upon the Lord's PASSION.  

1 A Meditation of the coming of the Lord JESUS into Jerusalem, riding upon an Ass, etc. page. 1  
Med. 2. Of the returning of the Lord jesus into jerusalem, and of his often preaching in the Temple, etc. page. 30  
Med. 3. Of the preparation of the Lords Supper, and washing his Disciples feet, etc. page. 57  
Med. 4. Of the institution of the blessed Sacrament, of the body and blood of Christ, etc. page. 72  
Med. 5. How the Lord jesus told his Disciples, that one of them should betray him, etc. page. 89  
Med. 6. Of the going of Christ into the Mount-olivet, and of his praying thrice in the Garden, etc. page. 104  
Med. 7. How jesus arose from prayer, and went to meet judas, who with a multitude came to apprehend him, etc. page. 130  
Med. 8. How the Lord jesus was led to Annas, and how he was there beaten and buffeted, etc. page. 152  
Med. 9 How the Lord jesus was led from Annas to Caiphas, and of his scourging there, etc. page. 172  
Med. 10. How Peter denied his Master thrice, & of his repentant weeping, etc. page. 184  
Med. 11. How jesus was sent unto Pilate, & of his usage there. pag. 205  
Med. 12. How Pilate caused jesus to be scourged, and then pronounced sentence of death against him. pag. 213  
Med. 13. How Christ bearing his cross on his shoulders, is led to Mount Caluarie to be crucified. page. 250  
Med. 14. Of the cruel and bitter crucifying of our Lord jesus, performed on Mount-Caluary. page. 285  
Med. 15. Of the derisions and scornful speeches uttered to the Lord jesus, when he was nailed on the Cross. page. 319  
Med. 16. Concerning the lamentation of the Virgin Mary, beholding her Son upon the Cross. page. 331  
Med. 17. Of the Eclipse and obscuration of the Sun about the ninth hour, and of the fourth speech which Christ used upon the Cross. page. 343  
Med. 18. Of the fift & sixth words which the Lord jesus spoke upon the Cross, to wit, I thirst, and it is finished. page. 355  
Med. 19 How Christ gave up the ghost, & of the wonders then wrought and his death. page. 369  
Med. 20. Of jesus Christ his burial, and of the lamentation of his Mother, and other women for his death. page. 381  
Med. 21. Of the Lord jesus his Resurrection, of his appearance to his Disciples, of his ascension into heaven, and of his coming to judgement. page. 397   
FINIS.   

 engraving of two Garden of Gethsemane scenes from the Passion of Jesus Christ 
O my Father, if it be possible, let this Cup pass from me.  
He kneeled down and Prayed, but being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood, trikling down to the ground. Luke. 22.44.  
Sat ye here, while I go and Pray yonder.    

MOST DEVOUT MEDITATIONS, upon the most holy and bitter Passion of our Lord jesus Christ.  

MED. I. A Meditation of the coming of the Lord jesus into Jerusalem, riding upon an Ass, and the bringing in of him into the City, with Songs and Praises, and of his return into Bethany the same day.  
Into 
a Mat. 21.5.  Jerusalem our Saviour rides  
Upon an 
b Mat. 21.7.  Ass, (a simple harmless beast:)  
The people spread their 
c Mat. 21.8.  clothes and boughs beside,  
Crying 
d Mat. 21.9.  Hosanna, Thou in Heaven highest.  
THe time approaching, which the Divine providence had from eternity prefixed, in which my most kind and loving jesus should come to his preordained Passion, & cruel death of the Cross, which he willingly came to undergo, being the only begotten of God, incarnated in the womb of the Virgin, as through the whole course of his life he showed exceeding great humility, so toward the hour of his Passion, coming to the place where he should endure the torments of a most shameful & cruel death, he took his entrance from humility, when riding meekly upon an Ass, he came to the City, where he should sustain the undeserved punishment of the Cross.  
Therefore when the Lord jesus, six days before the Passeover, had made his Supper with his Disciples in Bethanie, the town of Marie and Martha, in the house of Simon the Leper, which was a friend to the said Mary and Martha, (where Mary also had powered an Alabaster box of precious ointment upon his head) the morning following very early, most kind jesus calling two of his Disciples, said, Go into the town which is over against you, where you shall find a she-Asse tied and her Colt, lose them and bring them unto me: And if any man shall say any thing against you, say that the Lord hath need of them, and straightway they will let them go. The lowly, and loving Disciples obeying the commandment of their Master, licence being freely granted to them by the Lord of all creatures, they presented the shee-Asse and her Colt, to their beloved Redeemer. Then jesus riding upon the Ass, directeth his journey towards Jerusalem: And when he came to the going down of the mount Olives, many people which were come thither, having heard of the strange miracle of Lazarus, whom jesus raised out of his grave, went forth to meet him: And that they might do him the greater honour, some spread their garments upon the ground, others cut down boughs from the Trees and strewed them upon the earth, and all of them, some going before, and some coming behind, cried, Hosanna to the Son of David, blessed is he which cometh in the name of the Lord. And with these praises and jubilees they brought loving jesus, even to the Gates of Jerusalem, following after him with his Disciples.  
And after jesus beheld the City, he now foreknowing the destruction of it to come (moved with compassion) powered forth tears over it, but the Pharisees and Scribes inflamed with the fire of envy, seeing jesus to be extolled with admiration and honour, rebuked sole redemption, to deliver us out of the bondage of eternal death, and from the intolerable pains of everlasting damnation, to be made coheirs with him of a most blessed life in the Kingdom of Heaven.  
Learn therefore (oh my soul) to imitate thy blessed Saviour, who abstained from meat to do the will of his heavenly Father, by seeking by all means to win their souls, who being void of all humanity, sent him fasting out of their City. Oh hardhearted jews, to give such unkind entertainment to my bountiful Lord and loving jesus! But be thou kind (oh my soul) like Lazarus, and ready like Mary and Martha, to receive thy Saviour, that he may give thee everlasting bread for thy food, and water of eternal life for thy drink. Come and sup with me (my sweet Saviour,) vouchsafe to enter into my simple cottage: I confess I am unworthy that thou shouldest come under my roof, yet I know that thou art always willing to come, where thou art kindly and friendly invited. Open thou the door of my heart, that thou mayst enter and dwell with me for ever: then salvation shall come to my whole house, than I shall lie down to sleep in peace, and rise again without any dread of danger: for I shall be safely covered under the shadow of thy wings, and remain in peaceable security under thy mighty protection.  
Consider (Oh my Soul,) and meditate often in thine inward thoughts, of the strange ingratitude of the stonyhearted jews toward thy Saviour JESUS, who would not afford him so much as a meals meat at night, for his great pains he took with them all the day; but he was constrained to return hungry with his Disciples, from so oppulent and populous a City, to Bethanie, a poor and small village, there to refresh his weary and weak body: where he made so small a supper, that he returned hungry to Jerusalem the next morning; and spying a Figtree which had only fair leaves, 
Beware of hypocrisy.  but no fruit to slake his hunger, or to afford him any refreshing in his journey, he was so highly displeased, that it made so fair a show, and bore no fruit, that he cursed it, and so it withered, and became barren for ever.  
Wert thou (oh my gracious Lord) so highly displeased with this fruitless Tree, and wert thou not grievously offended with the unthankful jews? No doubt but thou hadst just occasion to have cursed that ungrateful Nation, whose hearts were so barren, that they did bear no fruit, and their minds so devoid of all common humanity, that although they ever stood in need, yet they did never deserve any drop of thy sweet and comfortable mercy.  
Oh Lord, who can worthily land the immeasurable largeness of thy infinite mercy? who can thoroughly taste the sweetness of thy most excellent bounty? It was thy desire to have won them by mildness: it had been thy delight to have converted them by kindness: thou didst curse that barren tree which had store of leaves, but no profitable fruit: to teach that graceless Nation what thou did dost expect at their hands, and what thou mightst have justly inflicted upon them, for the hardness of their hearts, whose mouths were often filled with religious words, their hearts and hands being evermore empty of charitable works.  
Be thou wise therefore (oh my soul) think not that thou hast done enough if thou utterly condemn those inhuman and hardhearted jews, who had not so much kindness, as to offer thy Saviour a crumb of bread, or a cup of cold water, unless thou thyself make some provision to entertain thy loving jesus, whensoever he shall vouchsafe to come into thy Cottage, to visit thee in kindness: Oh how happy shalt thou be, if thou art provided to welcome so good a Guest, whose acceptance shall bring thee eternal blessedness, and who is so kind, that he will dwell with thee for ever: and where he remaineth, their store is always increased, their riches are multiplied in abundance: he cannot, he will not be chargeable unto thee, if thou wilt show him infallible tokens of thy true love, and make any provision, be it never so mean, to receive him with cheerfulness: he expecteth no sumptuous preparation, he longeth for no dainty cates, he regardeth no magnificent pomp, he hateth vain ostentation and outward glory, he can never abide to make any abode in that house which is not furnished with true humility. Oh happy is that soul that is not unprovided at his coming, but standeth always ready at the door to open unto him, whensoever he knocketh, and is willing to enter.  
Consider also, o my soul, the great pains and diligent labours of thy industrious Saviour, who continued the day time in the Temple, preaching, and teaching the people; and in the night, praying, or instructing his Disciples: therefore if thou wilt show thyself a faithful servant to so good a Lord, and a loving Disciple to so kind a Master, set him always before thine eyes, as a perfect pattern and lively example, to imitate him in the careful execution of thy lawful calling.  
Wear not out the moment of thy posting life in carnal delights, fulfilling the lewd desires of the wanton flesh, accounting worldly pleasure thy chiefest treasure, and making thy belly thy God, for the end of such is eternal damnation.  
God hath given man an upright countenance, that he should lift up his head, and look towards Heaven, therefore derogate not so much from thy dignity, as to have thine eyes, and thy thoughts, still fixed upon the earth, like unto the bruit beasts, never well pleased, but when (like a Mole) thou art turning over thy silver and golden heaps.  
Thou seest (oh my soul) that thy loving Saviour jesus, did seek by all means to benefit the jews, his unnatural Countrymen, and to do them all good, but they were always so froward, that they were evermore forward to do him nothing but mischief and hurt, who having exiled tender pity from their eyes, & all human compassion from their hearts, had not only so much kindness, as to offer him a morsel of meat to refresh his weary body at night, when he had laboured all day to feed their souls with spiritual bread: but most unkindly their chief rulers and the Scribes, held a Council against him, complotted many strange inventions, forged many odious calumniations, and imagined many false crimes, cruelly to deprive him of his harmless life, and to accelerate his speedy death: because the good deeds which Christ did daily to the people, were unwelcome news to their ears, and bred nothing else, but sorrow in their envious minds.  
Therefore they raged with fury, and conspired in bitterness of their malice, how they might entrap Christ jesus by craft and subtlety, and so like an innocent Lamb, lead him away to the slaughter: for so fell was their hatred to the life of our Saviour, & so greedy were they to hasten his death, that had they not feared that the people would have hindered their wicked purposes, interrupting the course of their malicious practice, they would have vented their swelling spite, and disgorged their full stomachs, surcharged with malice against him, on the feast-day: but they suspected their cruel deed, at that time, would have stirred up greater tumults amongst the people, which did reverence jesus, as a Prophet: for if they might have had their own will, and satisfied the longing of their envious humour, they would have spared no day, nor regarded any place, so they might have split his innocent blood.  
Oh with what damnable counsel and devilish devices, do I hear thy furious enemies consulting against thee, my innocent jesus, thou Lord of eternal glory?  
What false imaginations, what monstrous inventions, what hellish stratagems, what forged accusations, did they coin against thee, their hearts burning, and their hands itching, to cut off thy blessed life, to stain the earth with thy precious blood, and to work (as they wickedly wished) thy final destruction?  
How cruelly do these faithless jews conspire against thee? those impious wretches said within themselves (carried away with the violent current of their ireful imaginations) let us oppress that righteous man, let us swallow him up in our rage, let us suddenly devour him in our madness, let us set traps to take him, and lay snares to entangle him: let us root him out from the land of the living, that his name may never be remembered any more, because he is obstinate in contradicting our words, and peremptory in carping at our works. We cannot, we may not tolerate his arrogancy, we will not brook his oppositions.  
He layeth open our sins, to increase our shame, he professeth that he hath the knowledge of God, and nameth himself the Son of God: He discloseth our secret thoughts, he is loathsome to our eyes, we cannot abide him in our sight, the course of his life is opposite to our Laws, he is an open adversary to our Decrees, he abstaineth from our ways, as though they were wicked, defiled with uncleanness, and polluted with vices.  
We are reputed of him as men of no worth, he standeth not in awe of our authority, he esteemeth our threatenings of no moment, and he arrogantly boasteth, that he hath God for his Father.  
Let us see if his protestations be faithful, and if his speeches be true: and let us assay and make trial what things will happen unto him.  
If he be the true Son of God, he will receive him into his protection, deliver him out of the hands of his foes, and keep him safe from danger: Let us examine him churlishly, and torment him cruelly, to make trial of his meekness; let us condemn him to a most shameful death, that we may prove his patience.  
Such were the bitter words of the cruel jews, who sat in counsel to kill my Saviour jesus, the true Lord of life, whose good deeds were so odious to their vicious sight, and his sweet breath so noisome unto their stinking nostrils, that they would not suffer him to live any longer.  
Oh that hellish envy should so pervert the understanding, and enrage the minds of men to do such mischief!  
Why did the jews so furiously rage together? why did they imagine a vain thing against the Lord and his anointed? saying, Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their cords from us: But, the Lord had them in derision: he spoke unto them in his wrath, and vexed them in his sore displeasure, and placed his King upon his holy hill of Zion for ever.  
Now, although the bloody minded jews longed for the death of my innocent jesus, yet they were loath he should suffer on the day of their Feast, not for any favour they bore unto him, but for fear of the people.  
But thou my loving Lord, didst make choice of that time to offer up thyself a Sacrifice for our sakes, that thou mightest receive greater reproach, and that thy death might be acted with more shame, suffered only for our sins.  
Thy righteous life being not only always free from any evil action, but evermore so pure, that it never was tainted with evil cogitation. And also that thy death might be known unto many (although lamented of few which did behold thee) the concourse of people being great, that flocked from many bordering towns and villages to Jerusalem, at the day of that great solemnity: who seeing with their eyes, had not Grace been wanting, might have understood in their hearts, that thou wert the true substance, whereof the Paschall Lamb was but a figure.  
Oh Lamb of God which takest away the sins of the world, sprinkle my soul with some drops of thy precious blood, that although it have lain long buried in the grave of sinful iniquity, yet at last it may be revived and live again by virtue of thy quickening mercy.  
Now the bloody jews holding a wicked consultation, how they might deprive my beloved Saviour of his life, even than came cursed judas, and offered them (for money) to betray his loving Master to death: saying, What will ye give me and I will deliver him unto you?  
Nor was he a more greedy Traitor, to set his kind masters blood to sale, than they ready chapmen to entertain so bloody an offer, seeing one of his own family so forward to deliver him up into their hands, whom they had already murdered in their hearts: So they proffered him thirty pieces of silver; Oh cursed judas to make such an offer! Oh execrable jews to accept it. But most damned judas to perform it.  
Had Malice (oh ye bloody jews) so hardened your hearts? had Fury so blinded your eyes? had Envy so fired your grudging affections, that contrary to the law of God & Nature, you should animate such a damnable Traitor to perpetrate so horrible a treason, against your Messiah, your master?  
For what could be more hateful to God, more odious to good Men? what more opposite to Nature? what more contrary to good Nurture, then that one of a man's own household should prove so unfaithful, as to sell at so wild a price the dearest blood of his loving Lord? or that any men should be found so monstrous, as to allow and like of such a damnable offer? Oh thou most wicked traitor! oh thou most ingrateful and graceless Servant! Oh ye generation of Vipers, cursed jews, damned judas! Oh thou dissembling Disciple by name, but indeed a most bloody enemy! are these the thanks thou dost give to thy Master for his kindness? is this the requital of his love? are these the most worthy rewards that thou canst spare him for his liberal bounty? are these the best arguments of thy gratuity, for all his benefits bestowed upon thee? Oh thou Son of perdition, execrable Traitor, and damnable Merchant, to sell the sacred blood of thy faithful Master! Had my kind jesus committed any offence against thee? or had he discontented thy mind, and vexed thy heart, that thou shouldst treacherously betray him into the hands of his foes, to be tortured and put to a most cruel and shameful death? nay rather, what large liberality had he not used towards thee? what store of benefits had he not heaped upon thee? Oh thou ungrateful wretch! Oh thou hateful traitor! my loving jesus made thee one of the little number of his Disciples: admitted thee into the blessed society of his elected, and made thee Steward of his family, to keep the bag, and bestow the money which was given to him and his Disciples: and dost thou in requital of his favourable love, and in recompense of his extraordinary kindness, post to the cruel jews, whom thou, thou I say, knewest did always prosecute him with deadly hate, and eagerly sought his innocent life) to offer them open sale of the blood of thy loving Master, alured with the unsatiable desire of money, (a pleasant bait to take a covetous mind) bewitched with Satan's enticements, and instigated with the unquenchable thirst of damnable lucre, that distempered thy understanding, and clean put out the eye of thy natural reason?  
Oh how doth covetous lust tyrannize over our souls, and captivate our senses, if it once seize upon our hearts, and take possession in our breasts! It maketh us violate our Faith towards God, our Fidelity towards Men: it maketh Parents unkind to their Children, and Children undutiful towards their Parents: it armeth the wicked to commit bloody murder: it maketh Subjects disloyal to their Prince, it eggeth and edgeth them to attempt the utter ruin of their Country: it kindleth the fire of civil and intestine Seditions: it bloweth up the sparkles of horrible Treason: it excludeth kind Hospitality, it is the cut-throat of Christian Charity: it pampereth all vices, it starveth all virtues. What is it but a Hellish Fury, the author and actor of human misery? Oh how happy is the heart that is not affected to it! Oh how peaceable is the conscience that is not infected with it! Tell me thou bloody Traitor judas, didst thou not see many wonderful Miracles done by thy loving Master before thine eyes? didst thou not hear many divine speeches uttered by his blessed mouth? didst not thou attend upon him preaching in the day? didst thou not accompany him praying in the night? hadst thou so soon forgot his blessed Sermons? went all in at one ear and out at the other? didst thou remember no better his heavenly Exhortations? hadst thou quite razed out of thy memory his general compassion towards all, and his particular goodness towards thee? why was thy soul starved for want of food in the midst of plenty? why were thy spirits dried up with thirst, being so near a pure fountain? It was because thou hadst no grace to taste of that sweet celestial Manna, or to drink of that rock of living water. Couldst thou esteem so rare a jewel, as my Saviour jesus, at so base a rate? wouldst thou sell his precious blood at so low a price that was sufficient to pay the greatest price of our Redemption? What base opinion mightest thou think the high Priest might have of thee, proving so wild a Traitor, (although to serve their own turns they allowed thy Treason?) Didst thou not think the whole World would daily hate thee, when being a Disciple, thou hadst so vildly betrayed thy loving Master, and craftily plotted the death of thy gracious Benefactor? But woe be unto thee, and to all of thy condition: it had been better for thee thou hadst never been, then being, to have been an instrument of such heinous, such detestable, such horrible Treason: Keep my soul (oh Lord) set a Watch before the door of my heart, that no covetous desire may have passage into my bowels, or enter into my breast to get dominion over my reason, to wound my conscience, to inflict my mind with noisome lusts, and to confound my understanding with greedy desires. Let the memory of this sorrowful day, wherein thy covetous and damnable disciple judas sold thee, my innocent and loving Saviour jesus, unto the murmuring and murdering jews, draw out floods of tears from mine eyes, and fetch out sorrowful sobs and deep sighs from my repenting heart, to bewail the horror of my transgressions, and to lament the innumerable multitude of my many most monstrous iniquities, which brought thy most sacred body to the market, there to be sold, and from thence to be led to the slaughter, cruelly to be slain; that with thy most precious blood thou mightest pay the price of my Redemption, which am a most wretched and sinful creature: yet let the sweet recordation of thy immutable love, and the joyful remembrance of thy immeasurable mercy, so comfort me in the midst of my misery, that although I find much matter in myself to make me fear, yet that I may never despair, knowing that thou art always willing to apply a sovereign salve to a wounded soul, and sweet consolation to a woeful conscience, whensoever (oh blessed Saviour) we acknowledge our malady, and faithfully desire thy saving help in our misery.   

Of the Preparation of Christ's last Supper by the Disciples on Thursday: of the washing of the Disciples feet, performed by jesus himself: and of many exemplary actions of jesus at the Supper. MED. III.  
Christ jesus 
a john 13.5.  washed his Disciples feet;  
They loathe, 
b john 13.8.  refuse; but he enforceth it:  
For 
c john 13.2.  Supper done, to Simon thus said he,  
Unless I do't, thou hast no part with me. 
d john 13.8.   
THe first day of the sweet bread, that is to say, the fift day of the week, in the evening of which day the Paschall Lamb was slain, and sweet bread was eaten, according to the custom of the jews, the Disciples came to jesus, seeing it was the time of the Feast, and that their Master had no resting place of his own, where he might lay his head, and said unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the Paschall Lamb? Teach me here (my sweet Saviour, by thy example) so to live in the world, that I may be prepared every day to leave the world, esteeming myself as a Pilgrim, still traveling, and every day removing, & not to build my palace of pleasure here in this transitory world, where all things are uncertain, subject every moment to misery, changes and mutability.  
Let neither the pleasant baits of prosperity, nor the bitter brunts of adversity, hinder me in my journey, whilst I travail toward the heavenly jerusalem.  
Let thy humility be my greatest honour in time of prosperity; let thy poverty be my chiefest riches in time of adversity; and let thy patience be my only comfort in the sorrowful day of affliction: let thy quiet contentment calm the tumults of my grudging mind, and bar out all repining thoughts, seeing thou the Lord of all, hadst not so much as a Cottage, to cover thy head from the dew of heaven, or to shadow thy face from the beams of the Sun. But my sweet Saviour, although thou wert poor in respect of thy Humanity, that thy poverty might be our consolation in time of our distresses, and to teach us to bear with patience the heavy burden of our afflictions, yet thou didst show the bright beams of thy Divinity to thy Disciples, when they saw that performed indeed, which thou hadst told them in word, when they met with the man in the City, a mere stranger unto them, whose heart thou hadst prepared to make provision for thee and thy Disciples, to celebrate the Feast of the Paschall Lamb.  
Oh happy man (whom thou didst vouchsafe to choose for thy Host! Oh blessed house prepared to receive such a Guest! Send thy holy Spirit (my loving Saviour) as a Harbinger, to prepare a lodging for thee in my heart, and so furnish my mind with thy heavenly graces, that I may be able to give thee such entertainment, that thou mayest like and love to dwell with me for ever. Now, when the Table was prepared, the Paschall Lamb made ready (with other necessaries) at evening, jesus came thither with his disciples, and when the hour was come, he sat down to the Table. Oh happy feast! blessed are they (my loving Saviour) which sit down to meat at thy Supper. Most happy and blessed are they (oh most merciful JESUS,) who are so dearly beloved of thee, and so highly honoured by thee, as to be made worthy to sit at thy Table.  
Thou wilt give them everlasting food for their meat, and water of life for their drink, so that after thy bountiful Feast, they shall never know any hunger, nor feel any thirst.  
Grant me (Oh bountiful Lord) to taste of that heavenly food, and to drink my fill of that Celestial water, so that my body may be thy holy Temple, and my soul thine everlasting habitation. Behold (oh my soul) how thy loving JESUS sitteth amongst his Disciples; a meek Lamb among meek sheep, except cruel judas, who although he were a devouring Wolf, sat down to the Table in their holy society. Oh most holy society of thee, and thy faithful Disciples! Oh most glorious company of all but one, who had a Devil!  
These thy children, my most loving jesus, do sit like Olive branches round about thy Table: They sat down with thee linked together with the bond of perfect love, the minds of all them being faithful unto thee, and all their affections longing after thee, only judas was an odious Traitor, and thou knewest well enough that he should betray thee.  
They all eat with thee the meat set before them, and they eat the pure Paschall Lamb, after the manner of the jews.  
Oh blessed house, oh happy supping-parlour, worthy of great honour, in which my gracious Lord vouchsafed to make his blessed Supper.  
Wherefore was not I there then, my sweet Saviour, to attend upon thee, and thy faithful Disciples? I would have esteemed it as my greatest honour, to have done thee any service. Certainly, I would have gathered up some of the crumbs which fell from the Table of my Lord.  
Oh how joyful would it have been to my heart! Oh how would it have pleased mine eyes, to have had but a view of thy amiable countenance! I would have fallen down flat at thy feet, and with Mary Magdalene, I would have washed them with my tears. And thou oh my most merciful Lord, which didst not despise the tears of a sinful and a sorrowful Woman, wouldst not have rejected me, a poor Publican, and grievous sinner: and as thou wert compassionate towards her, so thou wouldst also have been merciful to me.  
Oh how comfortable would thy most pleasant speeches (my sweet Saviour) have been to my sorrowful soul? how quickly would thy most wholesome words wherewith thou didst refresh thy loving Disciples, have healed the wounds of my grieved conscience? What did my Lord begin to speak? what were thy first words when thou wert set at the Table? Thou sayst, I have earnestly desired to eat this Passeover with you before I suffer: Oh how great is thy Charity? how immeasurable is thy love, my loving jesus? Thou didst earnestly desire to eat with thy Disciples, but it was not to slake thy hunger, or to refresh thy feeble nature: thou hadst no such need of corporal food, but it was thy meat to do the will of thy Father: Thou wert desirous to leave some tokens of thy exceeding love, with thy loving Disciples, before thy departure, and to seal them an everlasting assurance of thy continual providence over them.  
let the precious balm of thy sovereign mercy, heal the deep and deadly wounds of mine iniquity: Oh my God, open thy pitiful ears to hear my petition, answer me graciously, and despise not my prayer.  
Command my wandering heart to come out of the broad way that leadeth to Hell and damnation, and to return into the narrow path, which conducteth to heaven and everlasting salvation: so that being once again returned into it, it may never hereafter wander out of it.  
Shut all worldly cares and wicked cogitations out of my heart, that neither the heavy burden of them may so depress my mind, that the devotion of my Prayer cannot ascend up unto thee, nor so stop the passage of my soul, that the comfort of thy grace cannot descend down upon me.  
Draw me unto thee, my most loving jesus, thou which art mine assured salvation, in the day of my greatest misery, and my only comfort and consolation in the last and latest hour of my deadly agony: for I am wounded, and my heart is consumed, because I have forgotten to eat my bread, which should have nourished me to everlasting life.  
Indeed, I have been altogether forgetful of thee, my beloved jesus, for I have not called to my mind thy most holy Passion with any zealous or serious meditation: I have had no delight to think upon thy precious wounds, which thou didst suffer to heal my sores: neither have I found any comfort in the pure streams of thy innocent blood, powered out to wash away my sins, and to purge my corrupted soul: I have not looked after my beloved in the day, I have not longed for my Bridegroom in the night.  
I confess my gracious Lord, I have not been mindful of thee, my thoughts have been wandering abroad, my mind hath not been exercised with any sweet meditation of thy mercy: my spirit hath not been troubled with sorrow for my sins, mine eyes have shed no tears, nor my heart sent forth any sighs for my manifold transgressions. Therefore what shall I do? I will return to the Lord my God, and I will call upon him, I will not cease to reiterate the most holy Name of jesus, until thy voice sound in mine ears, there, there. Come therefore (oh good jesus) and have mercy upon me. Hear (oh sweet jesus) the prayer of thy servant: infuse and dip my heart in thy blood, and diffuse thy grace into my soul oh most merciful jesus: let my heart oh most loving jesus) be like wax melting in the midst of thy bloody side.  my mind with the mourning garment of thy Passion, and let my zealous affections burn like fire in my serious meditation.  
Lead me (oh my most mild and kind jesus) to thy most holy Supper, where I may hear thee speaking to thy Disciples, sitting at thy Table, after thou hadst washed their feet.  
Tell me (oh my soul) if thou hast read what the Lord my jesus did when he sat down again to the Table, after the washing of his Disciples feet. Verily, while they were yet eating, jesus took bread, and giving thanks, he blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his Disciples, and said: Take and eat this is my body which is given for you, do this in remembrance of me. And when he had given every one a morsel, he took the cup, and pouring wine into it, giving thanks, he likewise gave it to them saying: Drink ye all of this, for this is my blood of the new Testament which is shed for you, and for many, for the remission of sins, and they all drank of it. Let us pause a while (oh my soul) and with devout meditation ponder in our minds, and treasure up in our hearts, the wonderful things which our blessed JESUS hath done for us; for our merciful and gracious Lord hath made a memorial of his wonders, he hath given meat to them which fear him. Oh wonderful Supper, in which so many admirable things were done and effected! This was thy last Supper (oh most sweet jesus) which thou didst make when thou wert about to departed out of the world to thy Father. How many admirable wonders of thy exceeding love? how many miracles of thy infinite mercy are presented unto us in this thy blessed Supper: but thou hast most specially ordained this mystical, sweet, delightful, and heavenly sacrament of thy body and blood, that the memory of thy Passion might remain for ever in the minds of the faithful: Oh wonderful Sacrament, in which is contained such abundance of all kind of sweenesse! no sweetness be it never so dilicious can come near it in goodness; no pleasure, be it never so incomparable, is worthy to be compared unto it.  
Oh most sweet jesus, how pleasant, how sweet art thou, if we might have a true taste of thy exceeding sweetness? In this thy wonderful Sacrament, thou dost feed us with corporal bread, but after a spiritual manner. What therefore can I want to satisfy my what may I wish to augment my joy, if I have my jesus present with me? Though now I see thee darkly through a glass, yet hereafter I shall see thee face to face. I cannot satisfy my mind (oh my most bountiful jesus) with admiration of thy unmeasurable liberality: I cannot wonder enough at the exceeding largeness of thy bounty.  
What greater gifts couldst thou have bestowed upon us? what more excellent benefits couldst thou have derived unto us? For in this thy blessed Testament, thou hast bequeathed great and precious Legacies to all thy Brethren that faithfully love thee, and constantly believe in thee: In very deed thou hast left them a rich inheritance, we cannot estimate the price, we can make no true account of the greatness. Some at their death leave to their heirs, Cities and towns, great possessions and store of money: some build them sumptuous houses, and erect stately sepulchres, that their name might remain among men, and their memory continue upon earth. But thy bounty, my most kind and loving jesus, doth far exceed and surmount them all: for thou hast left thy own self unto us, that we should have a continual spectacle of thy most holy Passion in our minds, and often think upon thy innocent death in our repenting hearts. And in thy blessed Sacrament, which is so highly to be honoured of us, and most reverently to be celebrated by us, thou dost give thyself for food to be received of us by faith, which may nourish us to everlasting life, and deliver us from the doom of eternal death. Oh my most bountiful Lord, oh exceeding, admirable, and incomparable love of my loving Saviour, my beloved jesus! But how odious is mine ingratitude, my kind and loving jesus, how great and grievous is my forgetfulness, that I do not continually remember the pangs of thy Passion, and evermore meditate on the pains of thy bitter death, when I participate thy wonderful Sacrament, and celebrate thy blessed Supper, seeing by thy death thou hast merited for me everlasting life, and by thy Passion hast purchased for me eternal redemption.  
Why do I not remember that thou wert wrongfully accused, scornfully derided, spitefully reviled, cruelly scourged, and crucified as a heinous malefactor, and put to a shameful death as a wicked doer: and how patiently thou didst endure the bitter pains of the cross, to deliver me a most wretched sinner, from the curse of eternal death, justly pronounced against me, and ready to be inflicted upon me, if thy obedience had not appeased the wrath of thy heavenly Father, and thy gracious mercy salved the wounds of my misery.  
Oh my dry head, why dost thou not draw water with joy out of the fountains of thy Saviour, for he is a Well of living water? Oh tears, why do ye not stream forth in great abundance, with exceeding joy and exultation, while I call to mind the exceeding sweetness of mine everlasting liberty, and meditate upon the greatness and goodness of my eternal Redemption, in this most sacred, holy, and wonderful Sacrament represented unto me? Why do not my spirits faint with exceeding joy? and why is not my mind ravished with excessive mirth, when I consider the immeasurable greatness of thy love; and the incomprehensible largeness of thy bounty, whereby thou hast been moved to give us thyself for everlasting meat, to nourish us to eternal life? Have mercy upon me (oh my most merciful Lord) because by reason of the imbecility of my dull understanding, and by the hardness and dryness of my heart, I am notable to relish the goodness, nor taste the sweetness of the wholesome fruit of thy holy and blessed Sacrament: yet I (most wild wretch) presume to come to thy Table, and to receive this holy food, though most unworthy of so great a mercy.  
But woe be unto my conscience, and horror unto my wounded soul, because I have approached unto thy holy Table, and taken of thy sanctified meat with polluted hands, and unwashed feet, and yet I have not blushed for shame, nor bewailed the folly of my intolerable Presumption. For I consider my most sweet JESUS, that in this thy most glorious Supper, before thou didst institute the most blessed Sacrament, as a memorial unto us of thy bloody Passion, thou the true Christall-glasse of Humility, taking the shape of a Servant, didst wash the feet of thy Disciples, saying moreover unto Peter, If I shall not wash thee, thou shalt have no part with me. Shall it not therefore be my great presumption, and shall I not incur the danger of a most grievous offence against thee, if I would have any part with thee, when I approach unto thy holy Table with unwashed feet, and participate thy blessed Sacrament with defiled hands?  
I know therefore (my gracious Lord) who, and what a one I ought to be, when I come to such an excellent Sacrament.  
I know my loving Lord that I should first wash my feet, heart and hands, and purge all my corrupted affections, before I should presume to receive thy pure and holy Sacrament. I know my good and gracious jesus, that it is needful for me every night to wash my Bed, and water my Couch with my tears: Yea, and to wash my feet with tears of true compunction, and with streams of sorrow, flowing from the inward devotion of a relenting and repenting heart.  
But woe be unto me (most unhappy wretch) because that I a most wild creature, do not fear to approach unto such an excellent Majesty, infected from the crown of my head, to the sole of my foot, with sores and loathsome diseases, and being a most wicked sinner, wholly overspread with corruption, and stained with filthy pollution: do not blush to come into thy presence, but presume to intrude myself into thy blessed society, and to sit down at thy holy Table, which art a divine Spirit, always pure from the spots of sin, and stains of iniquity. I come unto thee my meek and loving jesus, puffed up with pride, and lifted up with rebellious thoughts, and I presume to eat with impure hands, and unwashed feet.  
Notwithstanding my most merciful JESUS, I know that thy clemency is far greater than mine indignity, and thy mercy far exceeding my misery. And therefore confident in thy great benignity, and relying wholly upon thy immeasurable mercy, I am bold to receive thee, and being infected with so many dangerous and deadly diseases, I come unto thee, being a skilful and loving Physician: that I may be cured from my grievous maladies, by thy sovereign medicines. For by how much the more weak I am, and by how much the greater the malady is which doth afflict me, by so much the more I stand in need of thy help, that the infiniteness of thy mercy may appear the clearer in the cure of my grievous malady, and the beams of thy glory shine the brighter by my deliverance.  
Therefore I will come confidently unto thee (my most mild and merciful jesus) because thy mercies are infinite, that I may enjoy with thee, the everlasting delights of the blessed.  
Give me therefore thy heavenly bread, oh my good jesus, thou which art the life of the world, and grant (oh bountiful Lord) that I may be enabled by thy grace, to eat worthily, that I may remain in thee eternally, and thou in me everlastingly: for I desire this one thing, it is the joy of my heart, and the contentment of my longing affections, that I may dwell inseparably with thee for ever, and I will cleave unto none other but only unto thee, oh my sweet jesus, because with thee is the fountain of life, and in thy light, I shall see light.   

A Meditation how the Lord jesus foretold his Disciples that he should be betrayed by one of them that same night. MED. V  
Amongst the 
a Mat. 26.20.21.  twelve, as jesus sat at meats,  
At his 
b Mark 14.14.  last Supper; thus to them he said;  
Who 
c Luke 22.22.  dips his hand in dish, and with me eats,  
By 
d john 18.5.  him the Son of man shall be betrayed.  
AFter our most loving and most gracious jesus had fed his Disciples with his precious Body, and refreshed them with his Blood, he was troubled in spirit, and said to his Disciples: Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me, which eateth with me, that the Scripture may be fulfilled: he which eateth my bread, shall lift up his heel against me: Oh how hard is this saying, my blessed and bountiful Saviour! Oh how harsh and bitter meats hadst thou reserved for thy Disciples, at the end of thy Supper? Thou didst feed them with sweet milk in the beginning, and thou gavest them delicious honey in the middle, when thou didst wash their feet; and refreshedst them with thy precious body for their meat, and with thy royal blood for their drink.  
But now in the end thou hadst reserved gall and Wormwood, sour sauce for their sweet meat, when these sorrowful words did pass out of thy blessed lips, and that dreadful speech was uttered, by thy honie-flowing mouth.  
Woe is me (my sweet and loving jesus) I seem to see the cheerful countenance of thy dear disciples suddenly changed, their heart's overwhelmed with floods of sorrow, their minds perplexed with excessive grief, the heat of their desires quite extinguished, and all their hopes wholly dashed so soon as those fearful words had passed through their ears, and pierced their hearts; who of so sweet a beginning, little expected so sour a conclusion.  
Had they not much matter of mourning, and was it not a world of sorrow unto them, that thou being their Master, Captain, Governor, Guardian, and Ruler, shouldst be betrayed to death? and it did much more augment the matter of their woe, and increase the heaps of their grief, that one of them should contrive this horrible Treason, and be the Author of this bloody attempt.  
The first was a violent motive, to move them to exceeding sorrow, because they so dearly loved and were so entirely beloved of their loving Master: But the latter was so horrible to their ears, and so terrible to their hearts, that it quite abated all their former joy, & utterly amazed their perplexed minds, marveling in their troubled cogitations, who amongst such a little flock of Sheep, should prove so wolvish, as to devour so good a Shepherd: admiring that any one in their holy society, should so far degenerate from his faithful fidelity, as to betray the life of so bounteous, so mild, and so merciful a Master. But hear oh my soul, what his faithful Disciples answered, when they heard those lamentable words pronounced. They looked one upon another, their faces being pale with fear, and their hearts full fraughted with sorrow, and scarcely could their tongues utter any part of their inward grief, the flood of their woes did flow fast, and rise to so high a tide in their hearts, and they said with a trembling voice, what sorrowful words are these which our dear Master doth utter? Who amongst us shall prove such a cursed wretch, as once to imagine or such a horrible traitor as once to complot such a detestable deed and execrable fact?  
Such a heinous intention, said every one of them, was far from my thoughts, such a hellish motion did never enter into my breast. For how should such a Devilish cogitation enter into our minds, or find any harbour in our hearts? but our Lord cannot be deceived. Wherefore every one of them turning to the Lord, said: Is it I Rabbi? to whom blessed jesus answered, One of the twelve which dips his hand with me in the dish shall betray me.  
But peradventure many of them shoving their hand in the dish at that time, they were not able to discern who it should be.  
Wherefore judas said: What is it I Rabbi? But loving jesus, otherwise not discovering him, answered, Thou hast said: as though he should say, thou hast said and not I: for we may think truly, that if my loving jesus had plainly discovered that cursed man to the rest of his loving and beloved Disciples, they (if we should compare their affections with other men's passions) had not been able to have contained their hands, but with one accord would have assailed that most wicked traitor, and have ended his hateful days, with a speedy death, who alured with the baits of the Devil went about to make sale of the blessed life of their dear and best beloved Master. For how wouldst thou have been able, oh bold and courageous Peter, to have cooled the heat of thy fury, and to have held thy hands from taking vengeance upon such a damnable Traitor, when as thou didst not fear to make resistance against a great band of Soldiers, in the defence of thy beloved Master? For as their love toward loving jesus was without mean, so their hatred toward hateful judas would have been without moderation, if his treacherous plot had been openly discovered unto them. But I pray thee stay here a while, (oh my soul) and ponder within thy inward thoughts, with devout meditation, the sacred words and divine speeches, more sweet than honey & the honeycomb, which my most sweet jesus uttered to his faithful Disciples, as he went to the place of his unjust apprehension, which the Evangelist john retaining in his memory, through the holy Ghost, hath faithfully recorded in his heavenly and most sacred Gospel. Meditate there seriously upon the wonderful love which he had towards his loyal Disciples: he was their Lord and Master, yet he did not disdain to eat meat, comforting with the meanest of them: he washed their feet, he gave his body and blood unto them: and after all these things, did not cease to teach them the way of truth, and to feed their souls with the spiritual food of his celestial doctrine.  
Oh most merciful and blessed jesus, thy words are spirit and life, which thou dost speak to thy Disciples: and that knew thy Servant Peter, when he said; Thou hast the words of eternal life: For thy words are pure and sweet to the taste of them that love thee; yea, more sweet than honey and the honeycomb. They also knew, that those who were sent by the chief Rulers, to lay hands upon thee, were taken with such wonderful admiration at the gracious words which did proceed out of thy blessed mouth, that they were constrained to proclaim thy worthy praises, telling them, That never any man spoke so graciously: Oh most eloquent Orator! streams of sweetness do flow from thy lips, Honey and Milk are ever plentiful under thy tongue: Oh how powerful, how eloquent, how wonderful were the words which my Lord uttered to his Disciples in the end of his sweet Oration! He exhorteth them to sow the seeds of true love in their hearts, and to show forth the fruits thereof one to another.  
After, he admonisheth them, that they should be constant in their love, and permanent in their Faith towards him their loving Saviour. For he that is destitute of the former can never be possessed of the latter.  
And after those things, he foretelleth them what great dangers they should pass, what tribulations, troubles, afflictions, and calamities, they should suffer after his departure, that being forewarned, they might be better armed.  
Lastly, he poureth forth his prayer unto his heavenly Father for them, that they might not shrink back like cowards in the day of their trial, nor their Faith fail them in the bitter storms of affliction, but above all things, oh my most sweet JESUS, I am not able to wonder enough at thy earnest Exhortations, which thou didst use to kindle the sparks of fervent love towards thee in the hearts of thy faithful Disciples, thou dost specially above all things, charge and command thy Disciples, that they love thee, and covet after nothing but thee! Oh how great is the excellency of true love! Oh how fervent is the vehemency of a devout spirit: Oh how forcible is the pre-eminence of a charitable affection! Thou didst commend, and leave love (my beloved jesus) as a most rare and precious jewel to thy dear Disciples.  
Therefore this is highly to be extolled of us, and chiefly to be desired by us, as our greatest riches, and only treasure: Let him oh loving jesus, be abjected out of thy gracious favour, let him have no taste of thy kindness, that doth not honour thy name, and possess his heart with thy love.  
Truly, many rivers of water, have not been able to put out the fire, nor quench the flame of true love: for love is as strong as death.  
Verily, if I should give all my substance, were it never so great, I would regard it as nothing, rather than I would want or forego my true love: for he that loveth thee faithfully (my most loving Saviour) will leave all things willingly, take up his Cross cheerfully, and follow thy steps constantly.  
Therefore, who shall separate me from thy love, Oh my most sweet Lord? What shall divert the current of my affections from thee?  
Shall tribulation or anguish? shall persecution or hunger? But because I can do nothing without thy grace (my gracious JESUS) nor perform any thing without thy power, set such a deep stamp of thy love in my heart, that the print of it may never be razed out, but abide in it for ever; yea, so wound my heart with thy sweetest love, that all my desires may be turned towards thee, and that I may find no ease, but when I think upon thee, that I may love thee with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my strength: & that my whole will, desires, and affections, may covet nothing but thee.  
Let all my cogitations be only occupied in the meditation of thy love. Separate and remove from me all other desires of the flesh, oh my sweet jesus, that my whole heart may be solely conjoined to thee in the day, my soul humbly attend upon thee in the night, and that my spirit and body may cheerfully seek after thee when I awake early in the morning: for my soul thirsteth after thee, oh God, which art a living fountain, oh when shall I come before thy face? when shall I appear in thy presence?  
And I doubt not oh most merciful Lord, but that I shall be loved of thy Father, if I shall love thee as thou hast taught thy Disciples; and that thou and thy Father will come to me, and make your dwelling place with me!  
And what do I crave more, what do I covet so much as that my jesus may dwell and remain in me? Oh how happy were my state, how blessed were my condition, if I could truly say, my beloved (as a bundle of Myrrh unto me) will remain between my breasts.  
If I could embrace my beloved jesus, I would hold him fast betwixt mine arms, I would never let him departed any more from me, his presence should be my pleasure in the day, his society should be my solace in the night. Kindle my reins, oh most loving jesus, with the burning sparkles of thy love, inflame my heart with the fire of an ardent devotion towards thee, so that I may long after thee alone, my dear beloved Christ jesus, and evermore search for thee, and never cease to seek thee, until I find thee, which by the vehemency of thy love, and compassion of thy mercy wert willing to be cruelly crucified for my grievous transgressions, and to die a shameful death for my sins: Engrave the memory of this thy great love, so deep, in the Table of my heart, that it neither decay by length of days, nor be worn out by the iniquity of the time.   

A Meditation concerning jesus his going up into Mount-olivet, and of his praying thrice in the Garden. MED. VI  
My 
a Mark 14.34.  soul is heavy, even unto death:  
Man's sin doth 
b Luke 22.44.  blood and water from me drain:  
For sin I feel my Father's angry 
c Mark 14.35.  wrath;  
For sin I drink this cup 
d Luke 22.42.  of deadly pain.  
IT was the custom of our loving jesus, to ascend up often unto the Mount Olivet, which was distant the space of a mile from jerusalem, that he might pray. There also was a Town named Gethsemani, where there was a Garden, situated on the Mountains, into the which, beloved jesus was accustomed to enter, specially at night time, with his Disciples to pray.  
Wherefore after he had ended his glorious and blessed Supper, and also his sweet and comfortable exhortations made to his beloved and faithful Disciples, he resorted towards this place, late in the night, accompanied with them.  
Here (oh my soul) behold thy jesus, look upon that innocent Lamb, which goeth of his own accord to the slaughter.  
Take a view of his Disciples which follow him, having their faces pale with fear, their minds perplexed with doubts, and their hearts drowned with floods of sorrow.  
Oh that thou mightst be so happy as to have a little taste of the sweetness of his words, and to have some relish of his comfortable Admonitions, which he made by the way to his sorrowful Disciples, to refresh their fainting spirits, and to establish their doubtful minds.  
What plenty of bitter tears did the Apostles pour down by their cheeks, when they saw and heard their Lord and Master speaking so gently unto them? He propounded unto them (as I suppose) all things which he had done with them at his last Supper, and the words he had spoken unto them, and also after what manner he should be delivered to death that night.  
Behold, his Disciples amazed at his woeful words, and hearing with attentive ears, the sweet admonitions of their careful Master: They all gave heedy attention to every word that came out of the mouth of their beloved Lord, communicating so gently with them.  
Oh woeful separation! oh lamentable departure! Now a most kind and loving Master shall be separated from his beloved Disciples, a wakeful Shepherd from his harmless sheep, yea, a loving Father from his beloved Children.  
What marvel is it then if their mirth be changed into mourning, their joy into sadness, and their solace into sorrow? They knew well by experience, how joyful, how pleasant it was to remain with their beloved jesus, and to enjoy his blessed society: therefore they had good cause to be amazed with sadness, and to be wounded with sorrow, for the loss of their loving Redeemer.  
Oh what pitiful words (as I suppose) what lamentable voices did they utter, saying; Wilt thou leave us (our most gracious Master) like silly Orphans deprived of comfort? Wilt thou leave us in a Sea of sorrow without a Pilot?  
Where shall we hope for consolation? where shall we seek for help in thy absence?  
And as they could not refrain themselves from sorrow, so he their most loving Shepherd was ready to give them sweet comfort, cheering up their drooping minds, with assured hope of his powerful help, and comforting their sorrowful hearts with his neverfailing promise of his everlasting love; telling them, that although he were absent from them in body, yet he would always be present with them, by his holy Spirit.  
I think our most merciful LORD could not contain his tears, he had such tender compassion towards his sorrowful Disciples, so kind was his affection towards them, so great was their reciprocal love towards him.  
Cleave thou also (oh my soul) to this most holy and heavenly company, and follow thy Lord, weeping and sighing, sorrowing and lamenting for him which goeth to die for thy transgressions, and to be sacrificed for thy sins, say unto him faithfully, Lord, I will follow thee wheresoever thou goest, I am ready to go with thee into prison, and to death.  
Now alas, (oh my loving jesus) thou dost arm thy beloved Disciples with spiritual weapons, and dost labour by comfortable exhortations to expel cowardly fear out of their hearts, and to settle a constant courage in their doubtful minds, that they might not be dismayed in the day of peril, nor falsify their Faith for dread of any worldly affliction.  
But most wicked judas was busied to furnish the jews with deadly weapons, that they might wrongfully apprehend thee, and cruelly condemn thee to a shameful death.  
What damnable deed hast thou done thou detestable Traitor? What infernal Frenzy possessed thy mind? What hellish fury perverted thy understanding?  
Thou didst leave a most gentle Master, sitting at the Table with his Disciples, friendly eating, and familiarly talking with them (the KING OF HEAVEN, and sovereign Lord of the whole earth) who was able to have made thee partaker of his eternal kingdom, where thou mightest have lived in happiness without measure, and joy without end: and thou didst follow the Devil, who led thee to the jews, to bargain with them, to betray into their hands thy gracious Lord and bounteous Master.  
And as thou hast been obedient to his will, so shalt thou be partaker of his reward, who abideth in the prison of everlasting darkness, tormented in the fire, whose flame is never slaked, nor shall ever be extinguished.  
But now (oh my soul) let us leave damned judas, a fearful spectacle for all horrible Traitors, and let us return to innocent JESUS, entering into the Garden with his Disciples, where he exhorted them to watch carefully, and to pray earnestly that they might not fall into temptation, nor run into danger.  
Here my Saviour began to taste of the bitter Cup of sorrow, and to feel the pangs of human affliction, his spirits wearied with heaviness, and his mind tired with sadness, so that he craved comfort of his Disciples, saying: Can ye not watch with me one hour?  
Stay here (oh my soul) strain forth tears from thine eyes, and throng forth sighs from thy heart: draw near and express thy compassion towards thine afflicted jesus.  
Behold how his countenance is changed, & his face covered with paleness, he is scant able to utter in words, the sorrow of his heavy heart. And what doth he say? My soul is heavy, even unto death.  
Thy words (oh my most merciful jesus) do not a little amaze my mind, and affright my perplexed thoughts. For, what dost thou fear? why art thou touched with sorrow? why art thou pressed with heaviness? From whence (oh my loving Lord) doth arise the cause of thy sadness? dost thou fear any imminent danger? Dost thou dread the punishment which thou art about to suffer?  
But for what other thing (oh sweet Lord) didst thou come into the world? For what other end (most blessed Saviour) didst thou assume flesh unto thee in the womb of the blessed Virgin, but that by thy death thou shouldest destroy our death, and save that which was lost?  
What benefit had we reaped by thy birth? how could we have rejoiced for the happy day of thy blessed Nativity, if our condemned souls had not been redeemed to life by thy most precious death? If thou (oh my loving JESUS) hadst refused to die for me, who should have satisfied for my sins? what could have cured my loathsome Leprosy, but the drops of thy Blood? What could restore me to life, but thy innocent death?  
What did move thee to die for me, but thy exceeding mercy? whereas (my loving Saviour) thou wert subject to fear, and heavy with the terror of death: there appeared unto us the verity of thy Humanity, not exempted from the passions of our nature, yet always free from the infection of sin, and clear from the spots of iniquity.  
Wherefore we may the more boldly, be most earnest Suitors, unto thee, to obtain thy succour in the time of our necessity, and to call for thy sweet mercy in our bitter misery, because we are assured, that thou in thy Humanity, hast had a sense of our sufferings.  
Behold also now my soul, his faithful and sorrowful Disciples! look upon them, and view what store of tears do fall from their eyes; hear what pitiful sighs and grievous groans do come from their hearts, while they see their loving Master vexed in his body, and afflicted in his soul, suffering the wrath of his Father for the guilt of our sins. After my loving JESUS had told his sadfull Disciples the heaviness of his soul, pressed with the ponderous weight of our sins, he departed from them about a stones cast, and kneeling on the earth, prayed unto his heavenly Father, saying: My Father, all things are possible to thee; if it be possible, remove this Cup from me, yet not my will, but thy will be done.  
Learn here (oh my soul) of thine afflicted Saviour, where to seek a salve for thy wounds, and from whence thou mayst hope for help, when any fearful danger doth hang over thy head, or any present anguish torment thy heart, pour forth thy prayers in his holy Sanctuary; let thy devotion ascend up to him, that his benediction may descend down upon thee: learn always to submit thy wish to his will, for if it be not his will to deliver thee, it will be his will always to comfort thee, if thou continue thy prayers with perseverance, and attend his appointed time with patience.  
Consider how thy Saviour prayed three times, uttering the same words, when his pangs in his Agony were so grievous, and his pains so dolorous, that his sweat ran down like drops of blood: so heavy was the displeasure of his Father against him for our sins, so great was the burden of our iniquities imposed upon his shoulders.  
But in the extremity of his passions, and sorrow of his soul, his heavenly father sent down an Angel from heaven to comfort him, for the Lord will never leave them forsaken in their sorrow, that call upon him faithfully: he hath commanded us to call upon him in our trouble, and he will deliver us; and as he hath commanded the one, so will he never fail to perform the other.  
Draw me (oh my loving Lord) to the Garden where thou wert, that I may see thee praying, and suffer with thee in thy afflictions: call me and say, Come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: make haste oh my Soul, to come to thy Beloved, because thy Beloved is gone up into his garden, to his bed of spices, that he may feed there, and gather Lilies.  
Let us consider, oh my Soul, and meditate attentively upon all things which our jesus hath done, let us ruminate his feveral actions, which may afford us consolation, and tend to our instruction. For we may take many examples from our loving Master, which should evermore be proposed before our eyes, that we might always imitate them in the course of our life.  
Thou seest how our most gentle Master hath commanded his Disciples to link their hearts together with the bands of true love, and to arm themselves with patience against the days of danger, when he went to the mount Olivet to pray. Wherefore being about to enter into a fearful fight, to begin a dangerous battle, and to encounter many deadly foes, he animateth his courage, and armeth himself with prayers.  
Learn thou also by this his example, in the day of thy tribulation, and hour of thy affliction, to have thy speedy recourse unto Prayer: We can find no better weapon wherewith to offend our foes. We can use no better shield wherewith to defend our friends.  
Thou seest also my soul, how thy Saviour jesus preparing himself to Prayer, did leave the company of his Disciples, and he only selected three out of his number, so that they three which before had been spectators in mount Tabor, of his glorious Transfiguration, might now be companions and eye-witnesses of his grievous Passion: that in the mouth of two or three every word might be established.  
Learn thou also to leave the society of men, when thou dost address thyself to talk with God. When thy Saviour did pray, he ascended up into a mountain, to teach us that although our bodies do remain upon earth, yet our cogitations should mount and soar up into heaven by the wings of devout prayer: he poured forth the compassion of his heart, he being a good Shepherd doth diligently watch over his flock: the extremity of his own passions do not make him forgetful of his Brethren.  
Oh great love! how constantly, even unto the end, did he tender and love the little flock of his faithful Disciples, being indeed their most kind and loving Pastor, when in the most grievous fits of his heavy Agony, and greatest pangs of his Passion, he was careful to procure their rest in that little time which was limited unto them.  
Teach me (my merciful jesus) not only to be tenderhearted towards my poor Brethren, in the bright days of my flourishing prosperity, but breed also within my bowels, such a feeling compassion towards them in the hard time of my cloudy adversity, that I may not only wish mine own ease, and labour for mine own cause, but also that I may be mindful of others afflicted, and do for them what I may, which are in the like woeful case.  
Attend also to the lowly demeanour and humble gesture of thy gentle Lord when he prayeth, who kneeling meekly on his knees, and falling flat on the earth with his face, Luke 22.41. Mark. 14.35. doth plainly discover by the submissive humiliation of his body, the sincere humility of his mind.  
Oh great, worthy, and wonderful humility! when as he being equal and coeternal with God, doth prostrate himself to the earth, when he prayeth his father, as though he were a most base and wretched creature, and submitteth the issue of his Petition, to the pleasure and will of his Father.  
Oh how should I learn to humble my soul, and prostrate my body, which am indeed nothing else but a sink of sin, and an unsavoury lump of iniquity! When I address myself unto holy prayer, and come to put up my petition to a God of such infinite glory, should I not cast down my high looks; should I not curb mine aspiring thoughts; should I not lay aside my proud attire, and put on the mourning garment of sorrowful and true Repentance?  
Oh how should I which am but dust and ashes; yea, indeed nothing else but a very mass of grievous misery, humble and cast down myself, when I approach to speak to such a glorious Majesty? I confess I must stand aloof off with the poor publican, terrified with the horror of my sins, which lie so heavy upon my head, that I cannot lift up mine eyes unto heaven. Teach me (oh Lord) for none but thou can teach me to learn this hard lesson of true humility. This is the Ladder by which my prayers must ascend up unto thee, and thy Graces descend down upon me: I cannot enter into the Palace of thy most joyful and glorious Eternity, unless I pass through the strait door of selfe-debasing humility.  
But now (oh my soul) turn thine eyes from thy saviours humility, and take a survey of his bitter pangs in his grievous Agony; whose heart was inflamed with heat, and all the parts of him so vexed with pain, that streams of sweat, mixed with drops of blood, ran down from his sacred body, Luke 22.44. Oh would my head might be turned into a fountain or tears, and my bowels melt with tender compassion in this my sorrowful meditation, when I think upon the dolorous pangs, and doleful pains which pressed drops of blood out of the innocent flesh of mine afflicted jesus.  
Oh how was thy body pained? how was thy mind perplexed? how were all thy senses tired in this great work of our Redemption? How heavy is the weight of my sins, that dissolveth the blessed body of my Lord unto such a wonderful sweat? How is the beauty of thy face, which the Angels do behold with joy and gladness, changed with redness, through excessive heat? how immoderately is it moistened with showers of waterish and bloody sweat? Thou didst but speak the word, and thy word was a work at the first Creation, Gen. 1.3. But now I see thee sweeting, toiling, yea, thy heart aching, while thou art acting the work of our Redemption.  
Oh wretched man, why am I so careless of the health of my soul, when it cost thee so dear a price to redeem it? What shall I say? what shall I do (my good jesus) my heart is as hard as iron, and my bowels no softer than brass, I have no sense of tender compassion, nor any feeling of sorrowful compunction: mine eyes are as dry as the Pumise stone, I cannot shed one tear, to weep for my sins, which were the source of thy sorrow, and the cause of thy passion. Indeed, my heart should distill drops of blood, and mine eyes should trickle down tears, when I meditate in my mind on the intolerable pains which thou didst suffer to satisfy the justice of thy Father for my grievous sins, and to save my guilty soul. Oh how can I excuse; nay rather, how should I but accuse my wretched and vile ingratitude?  
Where shall I hide my head for shame? where shall I shroud myself from thy presence? My conscience is a continual witness against me, that I am an unclean and polluted creature: I may not, I dare not approach unto thee, unless thou wash me in the sacred Laver of thy precious blood, for than I dare and may appear before thee.  
Wherefore, have mercy upon me, show me some pity, my compassionate jesus: give me a Fountain of tears, that I may weep for my forgetfulness towards thee all the day, and water my bed for mine ungratitude, with my weeping, all the night: and so deeply imprint in my mind, the pains of thy Passion, that I may account all the time ill spent, and the day quite lost, wherein I do not meditate on them: teach me to imitate thee, my merciful JESUS, that with bended knees, and an humble heart, I may make my earnest prayer before thee; inspire my mind with thy holy Spirit, and then tears of true Repentance shall flow from mine eyes.  
Send thy Angel (oh Lord) to bring me consolation in the distressful time of my tribulation, for thou hast ordained them to assist us in our prayers, and to comfort us in our sorrow.  
And as thy Angel appeared to comfort thee, Luke 22.43. so also thou wilt never fail to send thine Angel to comfort us, if we pray unto thee with true humility of mind, and sue unto thee with hearty sorrow for our sins.  
Instruct me also, after thine example, (my blessed Saviour) not to despair of thy mercy, although it be long before I receive any comfort.  
Thou didst pray three times before thou hadst any consolation in thine Agony, or any answer from thy heavenly Father; and as the fierceness of thy grievous Passion was augmented, so the fervency of thy most holy prayer was increased. Mat, 26.44. that by thy patience, our courage might the better be cheered, and our Christian Magnanimity more firmly resolved to tolerate Famine, Nakedness, Persecution, or any affliction whatsoever, with constancy and meekness: building our hope upon a firm rock of a steadfast resolution, that we shall either have deliverance out of trouble, or comfort in our tribulation, all in good time, day, hour; yea, minute and moment, which the Lord hath appointed.  
It is thy own work, it is thy only mercy, my merciful Saviour, to corroberate our minds, and confirm our hearts, with this constant and Christian resolution.  
Wherefore I beseech thee for thy bountiful mercy, for thy mercy is my only merit, to work such a resolute constancy in me, that in the bitter brunts of affliction, I may depend upon thy wakeful providence, and wholly submit myself unto thy divine will, knowing that nothing can happen to thy Children, but that which thou hast determined to be most expedient for them, whether they live at rest in prosperity, or be tried like gold in the fire of adversity.   

A Meditation how JESUS arising from Prayer, went to meet judas, and of the multitude which came to apprehend him, and how Peter cut off one of their ears. MED. VII.  
The Prince of peace, the Lamb of God 
a Math. 26.47.  betrayed:  
Exposed to murderers, by a traitors 
b Matth. 26.49.  kiss:  
judas 
c Matth. 27.3.  restores the price the Priests had paid:  
Despairing 
d Matth. 27.5.  hangs himself. Traitors mark this.  
AFter JESUS had received consolation by his Prayer, he went forth to meet falsehearted judas, who had sold him for a prey to the blood-thirsty jews, for he knew that the time did approach, and that the hour drew near, wherein he should glorify his heavenly Father, and accomplish the wonderful work of our Redemption.  
Here (oh my Soul,) the first matter of our Meditation, is the monstrous ingratitude of a graceless Disciple towards his gracious and loving Master: how odious is his deed unto my thoughts? how doth his hellish madness torment my mind?  
Oh that my tongue might be more bitter than gall, to exclaim against the dissembling hypocrisy of such a deceitful Disciple: and my speech more sweet than honey, to proclaim the singular sincerity of so loving a Master, that our souls might abhor the infidelity of the one, and our hearts for evermore, embrace the faithfulness of the other.  
Oh thou most wicked wretch, thou wretched, stubborn, and obstinate Traitor, thou Child of the Devil, thou Son of perdition, what furious malice hardened thy heart?  
How wert thou brought to such raging madness? how could the light of thy reason be so darkened? how couldst thou be so grossly seduced, that thou shouldst betray thy most loving Master, and my most gracious Lord?  
Was there no spark of grace left in thy breast? had impudence so blinded thine eyes, and cruelty taken such sure possession in thy heart, that nothing could change thy bloody mind, and stay the rage of thy frantic mood, wherewith the Devil had bewitched thy soul, and poisoned thy affections?  
Thou goest about in thy monstrous madness, and unbridled fury to kill the immortal Lord, who is Truth itself, to direct us; and Life itself to quicken us: and to bring him to the slaughter, who only is able, and none but he, to bring all men to death, & to restore all men to life.  
Tell me (I pray thee) thou wicked and foolish madman, wert not thou also, as well as the other Disciples, with the Lord JESUS, when he revived the maiden which was dead; when he cured the Son of the Ruler; when he raised Lazarus out of his grave; when he cleansed the Lepers, healed the man sick of the Palsy; delivered them which were possessed with Devils; when he made him to see, which was borne blind, and restored many others to their sight?  
Tell me I pray thee, had he been able to have done these miracles, if God had not been with him? What Egyptian darkness had blinded thine eyes, that thou couldst not see his divinity? what Ignorance had blindfolded thy understanding, that thou couldst not know him to be the Son of God by his admirable works? Where wert thou, when at two sundry times, he fed a great multitude of people, with a little bread and a few fishes?  
But to let these merciful and miraculous works pass, which he did for others; why did not these gracious and charitable deeds which he performed toward thee, so move thy mind, that although thou hadst imagined, yet thou mightest not have practised thy horrible intended mischief against him?  
Remember thou most wretched creature, and ungrateful Disciple, how thy humble Master washed thy feet. john 13.5.  
How should this wonderful humility of so great a Master have humbled thy mind, being so base a Servant? Remember how he always extended the tokens of his love to thee, as he did to the other Apostles, yet no kindness could restrain thy wicked will, nor change thy covetous mind.  
Consider thou most ungrateful and cruel Traitor, how often my loving jesus did mildly admonish thee, that thou shouldest retire from thy wicked purpose, whose allseeing eye was able to penetrate into the darkest corners of thy heart, and to search the secrets of thy inward bowels.  
It might have checked thy guilty conscience, when he said (after he had washed his Disciples feet) Ye are clean, but not all: john 13.11. And again, I speak not of all of you, I know whom I have chosen, john 13.18.  
But although these general reprehensions were motives of small moment, to mollify thy stony heart, yet he spoke unto thee particularly, saying: Do that quickly which thou art about to do, john 13.27. Didst thou not clearly see that he knew thy inward thoughts, and the secret plot of thy wicked counsel?  
And who but God is able to know the secrets of the heart, and to discover our hidden cogitations?  
But was not thy heart as flinty as an Adamant, that it did not relent with sorrow? was not thy forehead as hard as brass, that thou didst not blush for shame? Were not thine eyes more dry than a rock, that they could shed no tears, when thy loving Master, and my beloved Lord said mildly unto thee, What judas, dost thou betray the Son of man with a kiss? Luke 22.48.  
Oh great humility! exceeding meekness! most admirable clemency of my Saviour jesus! Yet neither the mildness of his words, nor wonderfulness of his works could soften thy obdurate heart, or reclaim thy obstinate mind, oh thou pernicious Traitor! My Saviour called him friend, Mat. 26.10. whom he knew to be a direful foe, that the meekness of the name, might have a little calmed the fury of his nature: but the Devil had sowed such naughty seed in the furrows of his covetous heart, that he became a wicked guide, to deliver his loving Master into the hands of his bloody enemies, who hating his innocent life, had longed for opportunity, to put him to a cruel and shameful death.  
Tell me thou damned judas, what brought thee into such an hellish Frenzy, that thou didst complot with the bloody jews to betray thy gracious Lord with a token of kindness? Had thirsty Covetousness so inflamed thy mind that thou didst run headlong to sell thy soul for a little piece of money.  
If thou hadst come like a foe, thy crime had not been so heinous, nor thy cruelty so odious: But thou like a cozening hypocrite, didst cunningly mask thy deadly hate with the vizard of counterfeit love.  
Thou didst salute my loving jesus with no friendly, but a deadly kiss, that with this token of peace and kindness, thou mightest cast a mist before the eyes of his faithful Disciples, that they might think thou hadst nothing to do with those wicked persons who came to apprehend their Lord & Master: thou thoughtest thou hadst complotted so cunningly, and contrived thy matters so carefully, that all should have been hidden in darkness, and no man have known thy damnable practice, but only the cursed crew of thy confederates: but the Devil who was the author to allure thee to this mischief, did beguile thee with a deceitful imagination, and so he will do all others that follow thy crooked steps, and walk in thy cursed ways. Such juggling hypocritical tricks may often be hooded from the dim sight of men, but they can never be hidden from the allseeing eye of Almighty God: thou camest with a word of peace in thy mouth, when thou didst pretend nothing but war in thy heart: thy speech was as soft as Butter, but thy inward thoughts were more sharp than a Raisor: thou didst presume to offer a Traitor's kiss, Mat. 26.49. to my blessed Saviour, when thy lips were full of poison, and thy throat an open Sepulchre: thou camest like a subtle Fox to salute him with a word of health, when thou wert a wicked guide to a hand of cruel Soldiers, who meant him nothing but hurt; so strong was the desire of filthy lucre to hale thee to mischief, so eager was thy greedy appetite to bite at this pleasant bait, that thou couldst not see the kill hook. For when thou didst sell the precious life of thy loving Master, thou didst give thy damned Soul to the Devil, to be tormented with him for ever, in the fire which flameth continually, and burneth so extremely, that the pains of the least sparkle of it are more than intolerable: wherefore my sweet jesus, so mollify my heart, and moderate my mind, which am thy most unworthy Servant, that I may not give such direful and deadly kisses unto thee, which art my most kind and loving Master. And grant unto me by thy gracious clemency, that I may offer unto thee the sweet kisses of loyal Obedience and constant Love, that my Soul may say unto thee, Kiss me with the kisses of thy mouth, Cant. 1.1. for thy love is better than wine. Run (oh my soul) and neither let the baits of terrene pleasure, nor the brunts of worldly sorrow hinder thee in thy way, when thou goest to kiss thy sweet and loving jesus. But first of all kiss his blessed feet, and bathe them, as Mary did, with the tears of true repentance, sighing and groaning with sense of thy sins, that the comfort of his mercy may be extended unto thee, when such welcome tokens of thy love are bestowed upon him. Prostrate thyself (oh my Soul) on the earth, that thou mayst cease to be wretched. Embrace the feet of thy JESV, pacify them with thy tears, who spared not to pour forth blood out of his feet, hands, heart, and side, to cleanse thy pollution, and to wash away thy sins: so that after thy sorrowful contrition, thou mayst hear him pronounce unto thee, the joyful word of salvation; saying, Thy sins are forgiven thee. And now my Soul, after we have fallen down before the Lord in true humility, and have powered out before him the tears of an unfeigned contrition: let us arise with a comfortable heart, to kiss his blessed hands. And then do we kiss his gracious hands with a reverent and lowly heart, when our mouths are filled with his worthy praises, for his bountiful benefits freely bestowed upon us, proclaiming his wonderful mercy, and disclaiming our unworthy merit, whose hand hath raised us up out of the mire, and hath advanced us to everlasting honour. Lastly, after we have reverently kissed his hands, we may more boldly approach to kiss his blessed mouth; to behold the glory of our Creator, that the bright beams of his countenance may illuminate our obscure understanding, and that his sweet breath may so inspire our souls, that all our cogitations may be consonable, and our actions conformable to his most holy will.  
Show us the light of thy countenance, oh my loving jesus, and then our hearts shall be filled with gladness, and we shall be satisfied with the abundance of thine everlasting goodness: for to see the beauty of thy face is our chiefest felicity, and to be banished from thy face is our endless misery. Therefore kiss the Son lest he be angry, for if his wrath be kindled (yea but a little) blessed are all they that trust in him. Psal. 2.12. Thou hast heard, oh my soul, how traitorous judas betrayed my innocent jesus: consider the cruelty of the one, wonder at the mildness of the other.  
Oh that all treacherous persons and bloody minded Traitors might have a view of desperate judas, strangling himself with an Halter; that the horror of his cursed death upon earth, and the terror of his continual pains in hell, might stay the rage of their furious minds, and manacle their bloody hands: For although desperate judas was so tormented with horror of a guilty conscience, that he could have no peace in his fearful thoughts, nor choose but cry in his tormenting miseries, deprived of all hope of comfortable mercy, I have sinned in betraying the innocent blood, Matth. 27.4. and could find no other medicine to cure his desperate malady, but the help of an halter, being his own Hangman, to shorten his woeful days upon earth, that he might make the more haste to abide everlasting torments in hell: yet there are many whose hearts are so sore infected with his venomous humour, and their thoughts so poisoned with greedy desires of unlawful gain, that they make no conscience to betray their Prince and Country, to prove disobedient and cruel to their natural Parents, and faithless to their dearest friends: yea, to sell Heaven, their souls, and themselves, for a base piece of money: but woeful is their inheritance which buy Hell for their purchase. Yet let me not so bitterly inveigh against the monstrous fact of cursed judas, that I forget the mildness of my merciful JESUS, who did not rate and revile him, calling him in name (as he was indeed) a damnable Traitor, saluting his Master with a kiss as a token of his love: but (alas) it was only to betray him.  
My patiented Saviour jesus called him by the name of a friend, Mat. 26.50. whom he knew to be a deadly foe, that the mildness of the name might have bred remorse in his heart, but that the Devil had taken full possession in his mind, and ruled powerfully over his thoughts.  
But why did my loving Saviour use such affable words to such a detestable Traitor? It was to teach me to repress mine affections from raging fury, when any of his wicked brood lie in wait to take away my life, and secretly seek to contrive my death.  
Teach me my jesus, to imitate thy patience, when my courtesy is rewarded with cruelty, when supposed friends prove faithless, and when my kindness is recompensed with bad words, and rewarded with worse deeds. Thou hast willed us to bless them that curse us, and to pray for our persecutors, Mat. 5.44. But our flesh is wayward, and it cannot away with this doctrine, wherefore I beseech thee my gracious Lord, to lend me thy helping hand, it is thine own work to conform my mind to thy blessed will, that I may be made obsequious and obedient to thy sacred Law.  
But now (my Soul) turn aside thine eyes from hateful judas, to look upon loving Peter, who began to be touched with the heat of true love, when he saw his Master attached by the hands of his enemies, and did boldly object his own life unto danger, that he might deliver his harmless Master out of peril, and that he might perform in deed that which a little before he had professed in word, Mat. 26.35. joh. 18.10. As his love was much, so his courage was great in the defence of his dearly beloved Master, he regarded not the multitude that came against him, he respected not how well they were armed, his true heart dreaded no danger.  
But so soon as he saw his dread master judasly betrayed, and cruelly apprehended by his malicious foes, he drew out his sword and laid about him, and cut off Malchus his ear.  
Thy love was strong, loving Peter, although thy strength was feeble, to resist so many, so ill-minded, and so well armed: I cannot but commend thee for thy love, although thy loving Master doth not praise thee for thy deed; thou didst show a token of thy fervent love and affection, although (alas) he stood not in need of thy weak protection: my loving Saviour came to fulfil the will of his Father, to suffer death; yea, to suffer a cruel and shameful death on the cross, that we might be restored to life, be freed, and delivered from the curse.  
It was the fervency of thy love, that had inflamed thy aged heart with courage, thou couldst not hold thy hands, when thou didst see thy beloved Master so violently apprehended, so currishly handled, and haled to the slaughter.  
For whosoever (my loving Saviour) hath his heart knit unto thee with bands of true love, he dreadeth no danger for thy sake, but will be more willing to forego his life, then to leave his true love. But thou didst not desire (my loving jesus) nay, thou didst not allow that Peter should show his manhood, or attempt by any force to rescue thee out of the hands of thy cruel foes: thou didst disclose unto thy faithful Disciples, the dangerous days that were to come, and tell them of the bitter afflictions which were to ensue, and that they should be like Sheep scattered without a Shepherd. But it was not that they should arm their bodies with weapons, but their heads and souls with patience. So indeed the love of thy Apostle was full of zeal, but yet it was barren & void of knowledge, who had been often forewarned that thou shouldest suffer a cruel and shameful death to fulfil the scripture, and do the will of thy Father.  
Wherefore (oh my most merciful jesus) so inflame my heart with thy love, that I may freely confess it with my mouth, and so perform it with my heart, that I may not only be prepared to lose my liberty, but to forego my life for the name of my Lord jesus, who is blessed for ever.   

A Meditation how the Lord jesus taken and bound, was led to Anna's his house, where he was buffeted, and how all his Disciples fled from him. john 18.13. MED. VIII.  
To 
a joh. 18.15.  Anna's first is Christ in 
b Io. 18.12.20  fetters lead:  
From thence to 
c john 18.24.  Caiaphas, where he beaten is,  
And 
d Mat. 26.67. Mark 18.22.  scourged, and mocked, spit on, and almost dead:  
All which h'endured to bring us unto bliss.  
SO soon as falsehearted judas had saluted his faithful Master jesus with a deadly kiss, the hardhearted Soldiers laid violent hands upon my kind Saviour, and did cruelly bind him.  
Oh ungentle cords! oh cruel hands and cursed hearts, that did bind my Lord jesus!  
Come hither therefore (oh my Soul) and with inward sorrow of heart, and with weeping eyes, lament with tender compassion for the currishness in words, and cruelty in deeds, used against thy merciful Saviour, which patiently suffered so many bitter words and cruel blows, for thee and thy sins: for it was now the hour of darkness, and they began to act with their merciless hands, that which was conceived in their malicious minds, reviling him with blasphemous speeches, and afflicting his precious body with deadly blows.  
And thus they never ceased all that night long, both with their venomous tongues and villainous hands to torment my meek and patiented jesus.  
Tell me (my sweet Saviour) what were the contumelious words, what were the outrageous deeds which thou didst suffer of those dogged Soldiers, when they had laid their tormenting hands upon thee?  
For truly, the wicked rose up against thee, and the Synagogue of the mighty, they sought thy life, and set not God before their eyes.  
They compassed thee about like Bees, and burnt with fury against thee, like fire among the Thorns.  
Oh let some spectacle of their barbarous cruelty be presented unto me, that mine eyes may wax dim with weeping, that my heart may be wounded with sorrow, & all my senses afflicted with mourning: for my guilty conscience doth tell me, that my sins were as fuel to kindle their rage, and mine iniquities, like wood to maintain the fire of their fury.  
Behold, Oh my Soul, with attentive devotion of mind, and with store of tears flowing from thine eyes, how furiously they rush upon thy loving Saviour, and how cruelly with their bloody hands, they torture and vex his blessed body.  
One tuggeth him by his garment, another haileth him by the arms: one taketh hold of his neck, another pulleth him by the hair: and lest he should get from them, they bind him, and drag him like an untamed Bull to the shambles.  
Oh most meek Lamb! Oh most mild sheep! how currishly, how cruelly art thou handled like a wicked thief?  
Yea, was ever any common thief so inhumanly and shamefully used, although his life was odious, and his deeds never so desperate?  
Some hale him on this side, some thrust him on that side, some buffet him on the face, others thump him on the back: After they have reviled and railed against him with most opprobrious words, they pass from devilish words, to deadly blows, so that they never cease by word nor deed to grieve and vex mine innocent jesus, but employed all the faculties of their mind, and all the forces of their body, to do him all hurt, who never meant them any harm.  
I am not able to tell thee, my sorrowful soul, one half of the odious words, nor one moiety of the horrible deeds which those damned wretches used against thy harmless and loving Saviour: my tongue doth falter for grief, and my speech doth fail me for sorrow, for all of them bitterly cursing him, and cruelly beating him, void of all mercy, and raging with hellish fury, they hale him (like a most innocent Lamb) to the slaughter.  
And amongst all that cursed crew, there was none so soft-hearted, that either would pity the woeful case, or speak in the cause of my gracious Lord.  
Oh how should mine eyes have been watered with tears, and my heart have been wounded with sorrow, to have seen my merciful jesus so unmercifully abused, so ignominiously and hatefully misused, whiles they hurry him in their madness, and hale him in their fury towards Jerusalem; who went as an innocent Lamb, among a company of devouring Wolves, not once opening his mouth to reprove them for their barbarous cruelty, but did willingly sustain the extremity of their malice, with a patiented mind, sometime haled by one, and sometime thrust forward by another, thinking the time long, till they might bring him where they would have him: so greedy was their desire to do a bad deed, and they made such post-haste, to hasten the death of the Lord of life.  
Oh my most sweet jesus, what hast thou done? What hast thou deserved, that thou shouldest endure the sting of their malice, and abide the tempest of their madness?  
Verily my Lord, thou didst never offend them in thought, but thy exceeding love did move thee to suffer all things with patience, that thou mightst redeem me a most wretched sinner, & all others, that with a contrite heart & a broken spirit, sue unto thee for grace, having an assured hope in thy blessed word, and confidently believing in thy gracious promises.  
I am that woeful man, which have been the occasion of thy torments, and the cause of thy grievous Passion. The wicked man hath sinned, and the righteous is punished. The guilty hath trespassed, and the innocent is tormented. The ungodly hath offended, and the godly man is condemned.  
Oh my most loving Lord, I have eaten a sour grape, and thy teeth are set on edge. I have committed the trespass, and thou hast suffered the punishment.  
Blush therefore (oh my soul) for shame; smite thy heart for sorrow: let thine eyes be dissolved into tears, and sacrifice thyself upon the Altar of true repentance, because thou hast been so forgetfully ungrateful towards thy loving JESUS, for his marvelous kindness, and so excessively unmindful of his excellent love.  
Oh my (good jesus) what shall I render unto thee, for thy great bounty? What shall I yield unto thee, for thy gracious mercy?  
I have nothing, O Lord, thou knowest my poverty; I acknowledge my needy necessity: I have confessed my most heinous sins and grievous offences before thy face.  
I have not hidden mine unrighteousness out of thy sight.  
Wherefore (oh my most bountiful Lord) supply that by thy infinite liberality, which is wanting by reason of my vile ingratitude: And thou which art only able, create a thankful heart in me, thy poor unworthy servant, that it may evermore be delighted with the remembrance of thy goodness, and still be joyful with the sweet meditation of thy mercies.  
But now, oh my Soul, meditate a while, how sudden fear had quailed the love of the Disciples of my distressed Saviour. For being terrified with his unexpected and cruel apprehension, and dreading their own danger, they fled away, leaving their Lord and beloved Master. Mark. 14.50.  
Then thou mightest truly say (oh most sweet jesus) They which saw me, fled from me, I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind.  
And again, Thou hast put my friends, my neighbours, and acquaintance far from me. Also, that was verified which the Prophet had foretold, All my friends have forsaken me, and they that lay in wait have prevailed against me: He whom I loved hath betrayed me. For so wert thou left alone my loving jesus, and they which were near unto thee made haste to be gone, and would tarry no longer with thee.  
Consider further, oh my soul, the disciples of my Saviour flying for fear, and lamenting with sorrow, when they saw their most beloved master traitorously betrayed, ignominiously abused, and led like an innocent Lamb to the shambles.  
Attend to their sighing and groaning, to their weeping and moaning, for loath they were, to leave so loving and so well beloved a Master.  
But why should fear of danger have been so violent, or dread of death so strong, as to pull them from so dear a friend?  
They professed they would remain constant, and that no affliction should abate their courage, but their words proved no deeds, and all was but vain presumption: Self-love of their own security, made them forsake their distressed Master in his captivity.  
But tell me bold-hearted Peter, why didst thou like a coward forsake thy faithful Master? Didst thou profess so much, and perform so little? Was thy manhood so soon quailed, when thou was put to thy trial? I know thou didst show some sign of courage, and thou beganst to play the man when thy Master was first apprehended, but it was but done in a fit of thine anger, and thy heat was soon cooled: thy promise great, and thy performance little: when thou wert in mount Tabor, and saw but some beams; yea, rather some sparkles of the eternal glory of thy blessed Master, than thy senses were so ravished, and thy mind so amazed, that thou didst cry out, Bonum est esse hic, Mat. 17.1. Mark 9.2. Luke 9.28. It is good to be here, let us build three Tabernacles: but now thou dost not say, Bonum est esse hic: It is good to tarry here with my poor disgraced Master.  
Say thou didst love thy Master well, yet it appeareth thou didst love thyself better: oh why didst thou make such a vain ostentation of thy courage, and yet afterwards show thyself such a coward?  
But take heed, oh my soul, that thou dost not so vehemently inveigh against fainthearted Peter, and the rest of his fearful fellows, that thou forget thyself, and pass by thine own infirmity.  
We all love Christ, when our cups may overflow with wine, and our bellies be filled with the finest wheat, but the heat of our love is quickly cooled, if but a small blast of stormy persecution do bluster against us.  
We all desire to dwell with him, as did ravished Peter, when his eyes were dazzled with the beams of his glory, appearing unto him on Mount Tabor.  
But all of us fly from him, or follow him a-loofe-off, when we see him going to Golgotha: We dare presume to say with forward Peter; Lord, if all leave thee, I will not forsake thee. Mat. 26.33. Mark. 14.29. john 13.37. But alas when we come to the trial, we are ready to fly and leave the field, at the first alarm.  
We could all be content to eat pleasant honey, and to feed ourselves with sweet milk: but our mouths are filled with murmuring, and our hearts with grudging: the time is long, and the journey tedious, while we travel in the wilderness of this world towards heavenly Canaan. Exod. 17.2.  
Alas, were the Disciples of my Saviour, so fearful at the first encounter, who had been so often foretold of that day, and had been so well instructed by their loving Master, to arm themselves against the assaults of affliction?  
Then how can I poor worm boast of my strength, and vaunt of my manly courage? How should I hold out unto the end, when such stout Soldiers begin to shrink at the beginning of the battle?  
I know mine own imbecility, my powerful Lord, I confess mine infirmity, I feel my heart quake, and I perceive my courage to quail, so soon as I see but a dark cloud of affliction, and stand in dread of every storm of persecution.  
Strengthen my heart, oh Lord, with Christian Fortitude, that my mind may not be dismayed with fear, nor my senses drowned with the streams of immoderate sorrow, whensoever I must drink of the bitter waters of affliction for the profession of thy name, or feel the pricking thorns of persecution in my sides, for the confession of thy truth.  
Teach me to take up my cross, and to follow thee, and that I may not be ashamed of this noble badge of true Christianity.  
Instruct me to know that affliction is the lot of thy Children, and that thou wilt have their Faith tried in the fiery furnace: and grant me (oh Lord) such a plentiful measure of thy quickening grace, that although my frail flesh begin to tremble, and my weak heart to faint at the first assault of danger, and I seek a corner to hide my head in, in the time of trouble, yet that I may not fly so far from thee, but that I may quickly return to thee as Peter and john did, who loved, and were so dearly beloved of thee, and as the rest of thy Disciples did, after thy glorious resurrection, and in the sorrowful time of calamity, trouble and persecution, so mitigate the dolour of my passions, that I may endure all extremities with Christian patience, knowing that all the afflictions of this world are but momentary, and that the joys prepared for the faithful after this life, are innumerable, and shall endure eternally.  
Now let us leave the sorrowful Disciples, and come to our loving jesus, who being bound was presented to Annas by the wicked jews, who examined him concerning his Disciples, and concerning his doctrine. joh. 18.19. And although the humility of my Saviour was great, and his modesty no less in returning a gracious answer unto him: yet Malchus (whose ear he had a little before restored, which Peter cut off) gave him a blow on the face, saying, Answerest thou the high Priest in that manner? john 18.22.  
Here my soul thou hast good occasion to eat thy bread with tears, and to mingle thy drink with weeping, when thou dost meditate of this cruel blow, given by a most wicked ungrateful wretch, to my innocent jesus.  
And here thou mayst admire at the incomparable mildness, and wonder at the wonderful patience of my gentle Saviour, who did modestly bear so great an injury, that he gave not him an evil word, who had done him such a cruel deed, but said to him mildly: friend, if I have spoken evilly bear witness of evil: but if I have said well, why smitest thou me? john 18.23. Oh how great was thy humility always my good jesus? how exceeding was thy patience in all things even unto death?  
But what shall I say, oh thou barbarous & ungrateful wretch, how shall I speak bitter enough of thy monstrous cruelty, which didst smite him on the face contrary to all humanity, who of his own accord did speedily heal the hurt, and salve the wound which his disciple had given thee? Oh monster amongst men, unworthy of any pity, whose name shall be odious to all that are good, when they hear of thy cruelty! Behold, oh my sweet jesus what plentiful matter is offered unto me, to breed a serious meditation in my mind, and to engender a sincere compassion in my heart, when I remember (oh that I could continually remember it) what clemency, what benignity thou hast used towards me, what calamity, what indignity thou hast suffered for me: for thou wert so treacherously betrayed, so wrongfully apprehended, so injuriously bound, so currishly haled, so cruelly tormented, and so unmercifully beaten for the sins of my guilty soul. But I pray thee, my merciful and gracious JESUS, that as thou didst yield thyself a captive to the jews, so thou wilt grant me thy grace to subjugate all my senses to do thy blessed will, and to keep them in true subjection, to obey thy holy law, and that I may captivate all my understanding, to perform the duties of thy happy service, which shall redeem me from bondage, and bring me an everlasting freedom as thy faithful Apostle hath taught me.   

A Meditation how the Lord jesus was led from the house of Annas to the house of Caiaphas, and also of the derisions, railing speeches, and cruel scourging done unto him there by the jews. MED. IX.  
To 
a Mat. 26.57.  Caiaphas' house (where Scribes assembled are,  
And 
b Mark 14.55.  Priests, and Elders,) jesus Christ is led:  
After to 
c john 18.28.29.  Pilate, where he meekly bore  
Their scoffs, and 
d john. 19.2.  thorny Crown upon his head.  
A Wake now, (oh my Soul,) sleep no longer in the bed of wanton sensuality, drive away drowsiness from thine eyes, and careless slothfulness out of thy mind, and turn thyself wholly to thy most sweet JESUS, disdainfully despised, scornfully derided, cruelly tormented, and unmercifully scourged. Oh how should thy heart be fraughted with sadness, and thy mind be filled with sorrow, when thou shalt find thy Lord thy God subject to pains and afflictions, blows and reproaches? For he was whipped all the night, and he was chastised in the morning.  
Therefore let thine eyes wax dim with weeping, let thy joy be turned into mourning, & the voice of melody into woeful lamentation; when thou dost meditate upon the sorrowful miseries, and scornful reproaches which thy innocent Saviour did suffer for thy sake.  
Let all vain cogitations, and idle thoughts be chased out of my mind, by which it may be fond distracted, and vainly shivered in this godly Meditation, so that it may be wholly reflected towards thee, and think upon nothing but thee, my most merciful jesus.  
Let it think upon the contumelious reproaches, odious railings, and grievous blows, which thou didst suffer, being under the hands of the wicked Priests, as a harmless Sheep amongst ravenous Wolves, or in the midst of devouring Lions.  
And grant me, oh my sweet Lord, that while I ponder these things in my mind, tears of true repentance may fall from mine eyes, and sighs of unfeigned sorrow arise from my heart, to bewail the horror of my sins, which were as cruel tormentors to afflict thy body, and as sharp-pointed needles, to enter into thy tender flesh.  
Lastly, let us meditate devoutly (oh my soul) how my kind jesus was posted over unto Caiaphas, after he had been derided and buffeted in the house of Annas.  
Behold how this innocent Lamb was haled to the shambles, by the hands of those bloody Butchers!  
Behold thy beloved JESUS, brought with his hands bound before Caiaphas the high Priest, environed with a great multitude of Scribes and Pharisees: all cry out against him: the base people rail upon him, with vile and odious words: banning and cursing him for his blessed deeds, they maliciously accuse him, & wrongfully charge him, but their testimonies were found to be false, and their witnesses untrue.  
Truly thou mayest say that which the Prophet spoke of thee, They delivered me into the hands of the ungodly, and they cast me forth among the wicked, and they have not spared my life. The strong were gathered against me, and they stood like Giants against me.  
But although their demean our towards thee (my loving Saviour) was without all piety, and their words and deeds without all pity, yet thou didst not open thy mouth, to utter any word of reproof, but thou didst hear their spiteful taunts with patience, and answer their malicious calumniations with silence: and therefore the high Priest began to be displeased: and rising up from his seat, asked thee in his anger, why thou didst not answer to those things which were objected against thee? Mat. 26.62.  
Attend (oh my soul) and consider the unspeakable mildness of my sweet jesus, how patiently, how humbly he holdeth his tongue, as one that were dumb, and could not speak, and remaineth as one that were deaf, when they revile him in their madness, and rail upon him in their fury, sustaining with patience their false calumniations, and forged objections.  
And therefore his wonderful patience did make them more mad, and his silence did the more exasperate them in their fury, when they saw him so meekly to digest the venom of their virulent tongues, and so mildly to suffer the blows of their violent fists, so that being transported with choler, beyond the limits of modesty, & carried with rage, beyond the bounds of reason, they belched out such impious and clamorous speeches against him, Hast thou no tongue, thou most wicked wretch? Behold, art thou dumb, and canst not speak one word? What is become of thy babbling? Where are thy long discourses, and plausible speeches, which thou didst make to the multitude in the Temple, and to the seditious people in the streets?  
Then thou wert full of words, and thy tongue did not cease to prattle, when multitudes did flock after thee through the Cities, and when the base people did swarm after thee, through the villages and deserts.  
And art not thou he which preaching to the rude multitude in the Temple, and pleasing their giddy humour with thy long orations, was so impudent to inveigh against us, Pharisees, Doctors of law, and Rulers of the people, calling us hypocrites? checking us rudely for our Manners, and reproving us rashly for our Doctrine, neither respecting the dignity of our persons, nor dreading the force of our authority?  
Now behold, we have thee sure enough, thou canst not escape our hands, thou art bound for fear of starting, we are no babes, to be won with fair words? Now we have thee, thou wretch, as thy wicked deeds have deserved, such shall be thy recompense.  
We are none of the rude and base multitude, thou canst not gull us with thy flattering speeches, nor beguile us with false apparitions.  
Suppose (oh my woeful soul) that thou dost hear the cruel jews, bellowing out such bitter taunts against my harmless and innocent jesus, in the heat of their rage, adding more cruel deeds, to their cruel words, for all of them like madmen rush upon him in their violent fury: Some thump him with their hands, some spurn him with their feet, some strike him on the neck, and as their hands were nimble to load him with blows, so their tongues were not idle, from railing and reviling him, with scornful words.  
Oh how wonderfully is my Lord derided, how unworthily is he scorned! Yea, some (so barbarous was their minds, and so brutish was their manners) do spit in his face: Who ever did see such gross inhumanity? who doth not abhor such beastly incivillitie? They all strive who should do him most hurt, and contend one with another, to do him most mischief, seeking by spiteful words, to vex his mind, and by cruel blows, to wound his body.  
Oh my loving jesus, how bitter are their speeches, irefully breathed out against thee?  
How terrible are their practices, so bloody inflicted upon thee?  
Why are not my vital spirits damped with woe? why are not mine eyes drowned in a flood of tears? and why is not my soul overwhelmed with the waves of sorrow, in this my sad Meditation of thine afflictions, and devout contemplation of thy human miseries?  
Wherefore gush forth, oh ye tears, from the inward fountain of my heart, and overflow mine eyes with your plentiful showers.  
But art thou made of flint, Oh my hard heart, that thou dost not break into pieces? Is thy substance of marble, that thou dost not cleave asunder, when I meditate upon these cursed invective reproaches, and wicked deeds, done to my innocent jesus, by the stonyhearted jews.  
Alas for me, a most wretched sinner, that my Lord should suffer such great and grievous affliction for my sake, and yet, that I should still remain senseless in my sins, and have no remorse of conscience for my heinous offences?  
Have mercy upon me, most merciful Lord, because I call all these things to mind, and have them in my meditation: but for want of true love, I am deprived of true devotion, and my hard heart is without all sense of sorrowful contrition. Therefore wound my heart, my loving jesus, that I may be grieved with thee, and suffer for thee, that thou mayst vouchsafe to show me mercy, & that I may with more boldness approach unto thy Majesty. Thou wert humbled, and I disdain my brethren with pride: Thou wert pinched with hunger, and I surfeit with abundance: thou wert afflicted with torments, and I spend my days in wanton pleasure. Thou didst weep, to think upon the woeful destruction of jerusalem, but I am not touched with any tender affection of mercy, when I see thousands oppressed with misery.  
I can find no place, my sweet jesus, to hide my face from confusion. I can find no remedy for my deadly malady, but in the virtue of thy comfortable mercy.  
Oh, cure my disease with this excellent medicine, and salve all my wounds with this precious Balm, that all mine affections may be so kindled with thy love, that I may rejoice to suffer, and suffer with rejoicing, for thy glorious name, who wert content to be scorned and scourged, to be accounted as an abject amongst the vile and wicked, that I might be raised out of the pit of endless misery, to be exalted for ever with thee, in the Palace of eternal glory.   

A Meditation how Peter denied his Master three times in the house of Cayphas, and of his weeping for the same. MED. X.  
Trembling with fear, caused by a silly 
a john. 18.17.  Maid;  
Once, twice, yea 
b Luk. 22.60.61.  thrice, Saint Peter doth deny  
His blessed Lord: 
c Mar. 14.72.  Remembering what Christ said,  
Goes forth, reputes, and 
d Mat. 26.75.  weeps most bitterly.  
NOw let us cease a while to meditate on my Saviour, and consider how Peter carried himself in the afflictions of his Master.  
He was loath to leave him, because he did love him, and therefore although at the first he fled, yet he returned again with the other Disciple, who by friendship brought him into the Palace of the high Priest: and as Peter stood there by the fire, a maid looked upon him, and said to them that were by, This man also was with jesus of Nazareth. But Peter, who not long before had made such great brags of his love, was now so daunted with fear, that he flatly denied his service, saying: I know not the man. And a little after, another said unto him, Art not thou also one of his Disciples?  
So that now Peter was not content simply to deny him, but he began earnestly to forswear him.  
Now within a while after, another came and said: Verily, thou art one of them. And then Peter began to curse and swear, saying: I know not the man whom thou speakest of, and immediately the Cock crew. And the Lord who stood not far off in the hands of the wicked, looked back upon Peter, not refusing fainthearted Peter to be his servant, although he had denied, and abjured him for his Master.  
Then Peter remembered the words which jesus had spoken to him, and he went out & wept bitterly. Mat. 26.  
Now let us seriously meditate on the frailty of Peter, that seeing so stout a Soldier so soon daunted with fear, we may take heed, not to presume too much upon our own weakness, lest we play the cowards, and start back as he did, when we are put to our trial.  
Consider (oh my soul) the fervency of his love, and greatness of his fear, the willingness of his mind, and weakness of his might.  
I dare not say but that Peter did love his Lord, and was sorry for the distressed estate of his master, although his heart fainted, and his stomach failed in the time of danger: he thought he should have been able to have performed in deeds, that which he had so boldly boasted in words: but alas, he did not know his own imbecility, his eyes were blinded that he could not see his own infirmity, the spirit indeed was willing, but the flesh was weak.  
He began to show some courage when he drew his sword, and cut of Malchus his ear, but alas, it was soon abated, and he fled from his Master, when he saw him in the hands of his enemies, and surprised by his cruel foes. And albeit he was so bold spirited then, that he durst resist a multitude of men, yet he was so timorous now, that being terrified with the voice of a Maid, he did renounce his gracious LORD, and flatly deny his loving Master, so soon were his boasting words turned into cowardly deeds, & the professed constancy of his love found most inconstant in the day of trial.  
So we may note, that Peter presumed he was able to have done great exploits while he was with jesus, but we see the vigour of his courage was soon diminished, and the heat of his love cooled when he was separated from his Lord jesus: so long as he did enjoy peaceably his blessed society, so long he dreaded no danger, he lived in security. In time of peace, he thought of no war: In time of calm weather, he feared no sudden storm: But when he entered into the house of the high Priest, where he saw his poor Master spitefully derided, mocked, and cruelly scourged, than his courage was cooled, his haughty words proved no deeds, and he became a stark coward.  
Learn thou also (oh my soul) by the example of Peter, to love thy Lord jesus, but so to love him, that no affliction or calamity may compel thee to leave him. But say with the Apostle, Who shall separate me from the love of Christ? shall tribulation or anguish? shall persecution or hunger? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord jesus. Learn likewise by the example of Peter, not fond to vaunt of thine own courage, or to boast of thy strength: let the remembrance of his fall be as a bridle, to restrain thee from running headlong into the like fault.  
Say not in the prosperous time of thine abundance (when all things succeed happily according to thy wish, and nothing falleth out contrary to thy desire) I shall never be moved, lest afterward thou be constrained to change thy note, weeping with bitter tears for thy folly, and lamenting for thy presumption, with sorrowful sighs: saying, Thou didst turn away thy face from me, and I was troubled.  
Teach me, oh Lord, to know mine own weakness: open the eyes of my understanding, that I may see the frailty of my flesh, and fickleness of my mind, when any cloud of persecution doth appear over my head, or any dread of future affliction trouble my heart.  
I often presume with Peter, that I could go to prison with thee, abide any torment for thy sake, yea lose my life for thy love, my loving Saviour: but (alas) I see by the frailty of thy beloved Disciple, that I should prove but a dastard, when I come to fight thy battle, and begin to seek some coverture, to hide my head from danger.  
For how can I boast of my valour, or brag of my manhood, when as one of thy stoutest Soldiers, who had been so long trained up under thee, and had received so many encouragements by thee, began to faint, at the word of so weak an enemy, that he did deny the service of so good a Master, only for fear, before he felt the bitterness of affliction: What is man that he may boast of his strength, or be proud of his virtue, when the best is so unable to perform a good action, that he is altogether unable to conceive a good motion?  
Lighten thou (oh my gracious Lord) my dark and obscure understanding, that I may not fond run into the snares of temptation, through a vain confidence of my own power, or through a fond presumption of my own strength, seeing I am so weak that I cannot conceive any good thought in my heart, nor do any good deed with my hands, unless thy divine grace do govern mine affections, and direct the course of my actions. But oh my most merciful Saviour, although the allurements of the flattering world should so entice me, the pleasures of the wanton flesh so overcome me, and the fear of persecution so terrify me, that I should be ashamed of thy livery, and deny so gracious a Lord: yet vouchsafe oh my sweet jesus, to turn thy favourable eyes towards me, that my faith may not utterly fail, though it begin to quail, and that thou wilt never leave me when I begin to shrink from thee. Oh let me not presume of thy love, nor despair of thy mercy.  
Let remembrance of thy words wound my heart, and awake my sleepy conscience, that my soul may be cast down with true sorrow, and that I may weep, yea weep bitterly with sorrowful Peter. Luk. 22.62. for my sins, that I may be made partaker of the benefit of thy comfortable mercy, and obtain remission of my grievous transgressions, by true Repentance as he did.  
Thou hast left this example of the fall of thy loving Disciple, recorded in thy holy word, not to animate us to commit the sin of presumption, but to comfort us that we run not into the pit of woeful desperation, when we are overtaken with the like fault, and have committed the like folly: therefore teach me (oh Lord) so to presume of thy mercy, that I may always stand in awe of thy justice.  
I am not assured that thou wilt turn thine eyes towards me, as thou didst towards him, so that my heart may be smitten with sorrow, and mine eyes stream forth bitter tears of true Repentance, and that thou wilt receive me into thy blessed service again, as thou didst him, after I have denied thee to be my Lord and Master.  
It was thy free mercy to afford unto him such an unspeakable grace of thy extraordinary love: he could plead no worthiness of words, nor merit of works to deserve thy favour.  
But (oh most gracious Lord) if my guilty conscience do at any time tell me that I have or do commit the same offence, yet vouchsafe, that I may resort to the everlasting fountain of thy plentiful mercy, that there my thirsty soul may be refreshed with the sweet waters of comfort, so that it may neither be drowned in the Sea of excessive sorrow, nor wounded with the Darts of cureless despair.  
Now consider thou, (oh my soul) the place where Peter was, and the conditions of the people who were with him, when he made such a fearful defection, from his gracious Lord, and failed in his love, towards his kind and loving Master: He was in the Palace of the high Priest, who sat in counsel with the Scribes and Pharisees, against the Lord and his anointed, amongst a wicked crew of these cruel Ministers, whose minds were incensed with fury, and hands armed with cruelty, to torment my innocent Saviour.  
Mark how soon he was infected by their wicked manners, how soon his soul was corrupted with their naughty conditions: for now he began to protest with swearing, and to affirm with cursing, that he knew not his loving Master, to whom not long before, he had made a solemn vow, not only to forego his liberty, for his cause, but also to lose his life for his sake. Luke. 22.33.  
Oh fearful downfall, of so great an Apostle! for if his loving Master, and merciful Saviour, had not been more constant towards him in his love, and tenderly compassionate towards him by his mercy, he had never recovered himself, but had perished for ever.  
No man can touch Pitch, but he shall be defiled: no man can tread upon thorns with barefeetes, but he shall be pricked, nor any man hold his hands amongst fiery coals, but they will be burned: Even so, no man can remain amongst lewd persons, and converse in the company of the wicked, but his mind shall be stained with the spots of impiety, his conscience wounded with the thorns of sin, and his soul made loathsome with the botches, and blains of iniquity.  
But so soon as my beloved jesus had turned his eyes towards Peter, and with his looks had awakened his drowsy memory, then perplexed Peter remembered the words of his Master, so that his heart being surcharged with sorrow, and his eyes flowing with tears, he left that wicked company, and went out and wept: yea he wept bitterly. Luk. 22.62. Teach me oh Lord, to leave the dangerous society of the wicked: neither let me desire, or delight to dwell in the Tents of the ungodly: Let me also learn, by the example of thy sorrowful Disciple, to go into some secret place, and withdraw myself from the people, when I call my self to reckoning for my transgressions, (but alas, I am negligent in casting up this account) and begin to sorrow for my sins, and to shed tears for my grievous offences, that all impediments may be removed from mine eyes, and as much as is possible, all vain and wicked cogitations out of my heart, when I come before thy presence (oh Lord) to prostrate myself before thee, in submissive humility, desiring thee to pass over mine offences, and to forgive me my sins, through thy infinite mercy.  
Then (oh my good Lord) so deeply wound my conscience with horror of my detestable sins, that I may offer up a broken and contrite heart unto thee, because thou art always well pleased with such a Sacrifice, and it sendeth up a sweet savour into thy nostrils.  
Now consider (oh my soul) that as the trespass of Peter's denial was great, so his sorrow was grievous: as the remembrance of his fall was sour, so the streams of his tears were bitter: yet they were not so bitter unto him for fear of punishment, as they were bitter, because he had denied so sweet and so loving a Master: the remembrance of his horrible ingratitude was more bitter unto him then gall, and more unpleasant than wormwood: his tears were bitter unto him, in respect of his presumption, who promised so much, and performed so little: and they were bitter unto him, when he thought upon the sweet love of his Master, and the great benefits he had received of him.  
And yet their bitterness was mixed with sweetness, because they were signs of his hearty sorrow, and tokens of his true repentance, for where true repentance goeth before, remission of sins always followeth after. Eze. 33.19.  
Thou seest also, that the looks of the Lord, did draw out tears from Peter's eyes; Neither is it any wonder, for the eyes of the Lord were as a flame of fire, and the eyes of Peter as Ice, which began to melt into tears, by the influence of their heat, as true tokens of his sorrowful, relenting, and penitent heart.  
Oh happy are thine eyes, my blessed Saviour, which do so warm the coldness of our hearts, that they may be able to have some sense of thy love, and do so illuminate our dim understanding, that we may see our errors, and seeing, may sigh and weep for our transgressions. Oh how soon do they dissolve the Ice, and melt the frost of our hard hearts, and turn it into the waters of bitter lamentation, and sorrowful devotion!  
Oh my most bountiful jesus! oh my most merciful Lord, have mercy upon me, pity my woeful case, shut not the door of thy compassion against me; oh let me taste of the sweetness of thy wont clemency, which have so often, so stubbornly renounced thee, through the peevishness of my will, so often denied thee by my wicked words, and most often forsworn thee by my wretched deeds.  
Have mercy upon me, oh my most sweet jesus, let the beams of thine eyes make their reflection towards me, that mine eyes may melt into tears, as the rock did gush forth water, when Moses smote it with his rod, Exod. 17.5. that I may weep for my sins, and bewail my transgressions, which have so often refused thy service, because I was loath to leave the vanities of the wicked world, or to forsake the pleasures of the wanton flesh.  
heal me (oh Lord) for I am full of sores, and my bones do rot away with corruption. Stay me up (oh Lord) when my feet begin to slide, and lift me up when I am down: unless thou support me I cannot but slide, and unless thou do lift me up, I cannot rise again when I do fall: I can do nothing without thee, thou only dost heal those that are bruised, and thou alone dost raise them up that are fallen.  
Therefore look towards me, and have mercy upon me, for I am desolate and poor.  
Neither turn away thy face from me, but let thine eyes be fixed upon me. If thou wilt vouchsafe (oh my most kind and loving Lord) to show me this mercy, and to regard the woeful estate of me a most wretched creature, then oh Lord, I shall call my transgressions to remembrance, & mourn for my grievous offences that I have committed against thee.  
Raise me up (oh Lord) out of my dead sleep of careless security, as thou didst Lazarus out of his grave: joh. 11.43, 44. open the eyes of my understanding, that I may see to tread in the paths of thy commandments.  
Be thou as a strong Pillar, to support and stay me in my weakness, for I am so feeble that I cannot stand without thy help, and every moment I shall be overwhelmed, unless thy strong hand do support me.  
Let thy eyes (oh my loving JESUS) be evermore turned towards me, that I may every day return unto thee, by true and hearty repentance, sorrowing for my sins that are past, and endeavouring by thy grace to take better heed to my ways in time to come, so that I may do that which is agreeable to thy sacred law, and acceptable to thy holy will.  
Oh my GOD, let thy servant Peter his falling, put me in continual mind to take heed to mine own standing, and his Repentance, arm me with strong confidence in thy mercy, against desperation. AMEN.   

A Meditation, how jesus was sent unto Pilate. MED. XI.  
Like an offender jesus Christ is 
a Mat. 27.2.  bound,  
And 
b Mark. 15.1.  sent to Pilate: Pilate doth confess  
That Christ is 
c Math. 27.24.  guiltless: Nothing could be found  
To prove that Christ their 
d Luk. 23.14.  law, did ere transgress.  
NOw let us return from weeping Peter, to meditate upon my loving jesus, who remained all night in the house of Cayphas, where he was scorned with opprobrious words, and buffeted and beaten with cruel blows, no man spoke in his cause, no man pleaded his case, he sustained their injuries with meekness, he did bear their intolerable reproaches with mildness.  
Now in the morning, my innocent jesus was brought before the high Priest and others, who sat in counsel, to examine him as a pernicious traitor, not worthy to live, but worthy of a most cruel death.  
And after they had reviled him with proud words, and haled him too and fro with cruel hands, they cried out in their madness, and roared out in their fury, he is worthy of death, let him be led bound unto Pilate, that he may pronounce judgement against him, to die a most shameful & cruel death.  
Oh how was my sweet Saviour molested for my sake! how was his soul afflicted for my sins! I was the cause that thou wert convented before the counsel of the high Priest, and my sins did send thee to Pilate.  
Oh let me weep in the morning when I awake out of sleep, and make my bed to swim with tears, when I lie down to rest, because I have been delighted with that, as my chiefest felicity, which caused thee to abide the bitterness of all their cruelty, and will be the cause of mine own endless misery, unless my wounds be healed, and my sores salved with the precious balm of thy saving mercy.  
Teach me, oh Lord, to suffer any affliction for thy sake, with alacrity, and to sustain the malice of persecution with cheerful humility, which shallbe by Satan raised against me, or by his instruments inflicted upon me for thy cause.  
Let the pattern of thy perfect humility, be always placed before mine eyes, let the memory of thy patience, never depart out of my mind. Oh ye wicked jews! Oh ye false accusers! oh ye lying caluminators! oh ye perjured wretches! How maliciously, how unjustly, how spitefully, how impudently do ye accuse my Lord? ye rail upon him as if he were a most damnable traitor, ye revile and curse him, as if he had complotted some horrible treason, or invented some notable mischief, when as his hands were never stained with any evil action, nor his heart tainted with any wicked cogitation, his words were nothing but verity and truth, and there was no guile to be found in his mouth: who alone is good, the author of goodness, and the fountain of everlasting happiness. Tell me ye deceitful and spiteful accusers, what evil hath he done? what wicked deed hath he committed? Inquire of them whom he delivered from the unclean spirits wherewith they were miserably tormented? ask the blind whom he had made to see? demand of the deaf whom he made to hear? ask the Lepers whom he cleansed, and the dead persons whom he revived? let them answer your false accusations, and overthrow the forged testimonies of your criminal objections? Are ye so wilful that ye will not acknowledge his mercy? are ye so blind that ye cannot see his miracles? If an ungodly man can perform such merciful deeds, than you may justly accuse him as a wicked doer, and condemn him as a dangerous malefactor. Thou seest my soul, what cause thou hast to water thy cheeks with continual tears, and to overwhelm thy heart in deep streams of woeful sorrow, when thou dost think upon the afflictions of thy blessed Saviour, and meditate on the cursed torments executed by the cruel jews against thy innocent jesus.  
Was there ever any Traitor so execrable to men for his bloody deeds? or any vile wretch so odious for his vicious life, which sustained so many opprobrious words, scornful derisions, bitter taunts, and grievous torments, as the furious jews inflicted upon my merciful jesus?  
Oh my blessed Saviour and loving Redeemer, what did move thee to sustain such a heavy burden of afflictions? what was the cause that thou didst submit thyself to so many miseries? I know my most gracious Lord, it did flow from the fountain of thy unmeasurable love, in tendering the woeful estate of me a most wretched sinner: and because thou wert moved with the bowels of compassion towards me, a most forlorn and miserable creature.  
Thy exceeding love was the cause of thy admirable humility: and thy unspeakable mercy, the sovereign medicine to cure my misery. Therefore grant me, my humble and lowly jesus, which am thy poor and most unworthy servant, that I may suffer any contempt with humility for thy cause, & endure any vile reproach with alacrity for thy sake, esteeming it my chiefest honour to be scorned for thy love, and accounting myself most happy, when I suffer any persecution for thy holy name.  
Possess my heart with true humility, that my thoughts may not thirst after vain glory, nor mine affections hunt after worldly honour. For I know (oh Lord) that thou dost resist the proud, and that thou givest grace to the humble: james. 4.6. Pro. 15.25. and I know (oh Lord) that he which desireth to ascend to the place of everlasting glory, must ascend unto it by the steps of humility; Therefore thou (which art only able) teach me that I may be truly humbled, so that my mind may not swell with pride in time of my prosperity, nor any ambitious thoughts find any harbour in my heart in the time of my peaceable tranquillity, that I may sing with the sweet singer David, It is good for me that thou hast humbled me. And that I may more easily learn to level my thoughts by the rule of humility, inflame my heart with thy love, for if my heart be incensed and kindled with thy love, my desires will be ready to perform thy will, and I shall be cheerful to walk in thy ways, which dost teach me to be lowly in mind, and humble in heart.   

A Meditation how Pilate caused jesus to be scourged, and how afterwards he pronounced sentence of death against him. MED. XII.  
though pilate's mouth did jesus 
a Luke 21.4.14.  justify,  
And pilate's 
b Mat. 27.19.  wife the like did testify,  
Yet 
c Mat. 15.15.  scourged he is: therewith not pleased, they cry:  
His blood on 
d Mat. 27.25.  us and ours, him crucify.  
WHen Pilate had strictly examined my innocent jesus, and could find no cause why the cruel jews should so grievously accuse him, but knew that they had delivered him for envy, and did spite him for malice: he was willing to have set jesus at liberty, but the furious jews did so greedily thirst after his innocent blood, and so eagerly desired to have him put to a shameful death, that they cried out in a rage, and exclaimed in their fury: Set Barrabas at liberty, and crucify jesus.  
But when Pilate perceived that nothing could calm the storm of their rage, and repress the violence of their madness, but effusion of his innocent blood, than he commanded that my harmless jesus should be cruelly scourged, thinking that the streams of blood running down from his sacred body would have allayed the heat of their malice, & quenched the flame of their fury. But alas, it was his life that they only sought: nothing but his innocent death could satisfy their bloody minds: yea, nothing but cruel death could tame their brutish rage, Matth. 26.  
But stay here my soul, that thou mayest review again thy innocent jesus, accused unjustly, reviled maliciously, spitefully scorned, and cruelly scourged by the commandment of Pilate: they crowned his head scornfully with pricking Thorns, and did tear his tender flesh with their cruel whips. Oh my most loving Lord! oh my most merciful jesus! mollify my hard heart that it may be wholly dissolved into streams of sorrow, with the memory of thy bitter scourging, and that my soul may be wounded so that it may send forth deep groans at the meditation of thine afflictions. Grant me oh my most merciful LORD, that my thoughts and affections may be so seriously affected with the remembrance of thy tedious Passion, that my senses may be made partakers of thy grievous pains: for I myself, most loving Lord, am nothing able to perform that indeed, which I do desire, and conceive in my mind.  
I do often times purpose with myself to meditate on thy Passion, and to think seriously upon thine affliction, and to ruminate in my secret thoughts, what ignominious cruelty was acted against thee, when thou didst finish the work of my redemption: But (alas) my senses are replenished with such stupidity and dullness, that I am not touched with any sensible compassion, because my understanding is distempered with vain and fond cogitations, and my heart is become so hard that it is unapt to conceive any tender affection, while I meditate upon the grievous pains, and muse on the great afflictions which thou didst sustain, and patiently endure to satisfy the wrath of thy Father, due unto me for my sins. I cannot taste the sweetness, I cannot relish the goodness of thy passion, because the matter is tedious to my corrupted thoughts, and unpleasant to my carnal desires. For so unconstant and instable is my heart, so mutable and variable are the motions of my mind, that they are both soon distracted, alienated and divorced from that heavenly meditation by swarms of idle fantasies, & foolish cogitations. But from whence, oh Lord, do these noisome weeds grow up in my heart? how is it that they find such a fertile soil in my mind? truly, because my heart is not planted with thy love, nor my mind furnished with thy graces. For I can never have my fill of those things wherein I take too much delight: my mind cannot be drawn from their society, because they have won my favour, & have gotten my love. Wherefore, oh my most merciful jesus, because I love thee so little, and dote upon worldly vanities so much, my heart slideth away from thee, & mine affections are diverted from thee; and I know oh Lord, how prone & ready I am to consent to every wicked motion, and how impotent and feeble I am, to go about any good action.  
Therefore I pray thee, not to correct me in thy wrath, nor to proceed against me with severity of thy justice, but to have pity on me a most miserable sinner, and to confirm my unconstant heart with a steadfast delight in thy love, & to establish my wandering mind, according to the multitude of thy mercies: so that no pleasure, be it never so sweet, may be able to allure me to leave thy blessed love: nor any tribulation, be it never so bitter, constrain me to forsake thy happy service: drive all idle cares out of my mind, & purge all corrupt thoughts out of my heart, and draw me wholly unto thee, that I may remember with a devout compassion, & call to mind with a serious meditation, how many, what great & grievous torments, what scornful derisions thou didst suffer in thy most precious body, by the commandment of Pontius Pilate, who contrary to the equity of thy cause, and testimony of his own conscience, joh. 19.4. commanded thee to be scourged without all pity, when as he himself with his own words had justified thy innocency.  
Oh what a flood of tears should stream from mine eyes, what groans and sorrowful sighs should arise from the depth of my heart? how should all my senses be overwhelmed with a sea of sorrow, when I meditate on the flinty hearts, and cruel hands of those tormentors, who scourged my loving Redeemer?  
My heart cannot conceive the outrage of their tyranny: my tongue is too weak to express their barbarous inhumanity: Who were as eager to lay violent hands upon my poor jesus, as ravenous Wolves are greedy to devour a tender Lamb, or hungry Lions to cease upon their prey.  
They make haste to unbind his arms, and to untie his hands, but it was not done to release him of his cruel bands, or to afford him any little ease: but that they might strip him of his garments, to scourge his naked body with their tormenting whips, and to make his veins spout out blood with their cruel stripes.  
Ah ruthful spectacle to pitiful eyes, and able to have made a deep impression of tender compassion in their hearts; if they had not been more heard than Marble! What savage thoughts reigned in their murdering minds? What monstrous indignity was done unto my loving Redeemer, to be stripped of his garments, and to stand naked before such vile and base vassals, who clothed the Heavens with exceeding glory, and adorned the earth with admirable beauty?  
Now, when they had stripped him of his clothes, they bond him to a pillar, to endure their cruel stripes, having banished pity from their hearts, and embraced cruelty with their hands: sometime they lash him on the back, sometime they scourge him on the breast: Now they let their smarting whips fly on his shoulders, anon they strike him on his arms: they suffer no part of his body to be free from blows, and they grieve his righteous soul with bitter words, whilst yet they are executing their cruel deeds.  
But what Tigers heart harboured in their breast (oh my innocent Saviour) which rob them of grace, and they disrobed thee of thy clothes? What hellish fury armed their hands which bond thee to a pillar, and scourged thy blessed body? how exceeding execrable is their savage cruelty? How rare and admirable is thy silent patience? It was I, it was I, oh my most sweet jesus, which deserved to be scourged with the whips of everlasting torments.  
And thou my most merciful Saviour, looking upon my miserable, woeful and distressed estate, with thine eye of pity, wert willing to be scourged for me a most wretched sinner, and being innocent, to suffer for mine offences, that the streams of thy precious blood, might wash away the filthy stains of my heinous sins: Alas, how is the wonderful glory, oh my most sweet Lord, of thy superexcellent beauty decayed? how is the graceful decency of thy amiable feature diminished? And how much is the delightful comeliness of thy most sacred body disgraced? Oh let mine eyes send forth a sea of tears, and let my perplexed heart break into pieces with exceeding sorrow, to see my beloved Saviour stained with his own blood, and leopardlike bespotted with deformity, who did far excel all the sons of men with his glorious beauty.  
Now thou seest oh my soul, how the snowwhite skin of the body of thy Saviour, is changed into a bloody tincture: Thou mayst see, and sigh when thou seest how his tender flesh is made black and blue with the cruel blows which cruel tormentors inflicted upon him, whose stony hearts had no sense of his grievous pains, when they saw with their eyes (and yet alas they would not pity his woeful case) how the blood ran out of his veins, as water floweth out of a fountain.  
Mourn and lament, oh my soul, send forth deep groans and sorrowful sighs at so pitiful a sight. For now thou canst not say, My beloved is white and ruddy, Cant. 1.14. as sometime thou mightest: But rather say, my beloved is black and blue, his precious blood gushing out of his veins, and his tender flesh mangled with grievous wounds.  
Who is so cruelly minded, and so stony-hearted, which cannot be moved to shed plentiful tears, when he vieweth my sweet Saviour jesus so savagely abused without any pity, and so spitefully taunted, and maliciously tormented without any mercy?  
Now when those cursed Tormentors had almost tired their hands, but yet not tamed the cruelty of their hearts, they clothe him with a vesture of purple colour, set a crown of sharp thorns on his head, and put a Reed for a Sceptre into his hands, calling him King in derision with their blasphemous mouths, whom they accounted more base than the meanest abject in all the world, Mat. 27.2. Is it possible for thee, my sorrowful soul, to keep back the tide of thy streaming tears, when thou dost meditate in thy perplexed mind, and as it were, view within thy secret thoughts how cruelly thy harmless Saviour was tortured by those bloody tormentors: how spitefully he was tanted, and shamefully mocked by those blasphemous wretches?  
There was no man, oh my sweet jesus, that did afford thee so much as a sign of pity in thy greatest pains: thou mightest not have a Chirurgeon to staunch thy bleeding wounds, no man sought to ease thy smart, nor to bathe thy scourged body: no man offered thee a cup of water to refresh thy fainting spirits:  
Oh let showers of tears trickle down my cheeks, and let a sea of sorrow overflow my heart, when I enter into a serious meditation of the grievous pains, derisions, and afflictions, which my innocent redeemer patiently endured. Oh then let mine eyes send forth a flood of tears, because my merciful & loving jesus suffered all those intolerable extremities for me, a most wretched sinner, that he might pay the price of my redemption, and deliver my soul from everlasting captivity!  
Oh how should I, my bountiful jesus, sound the bottomless profundity of thy unspeakable mercy?  
And how can I search the endless depth of mine own wretched misery?  
Touch my heart oh Lord, by the virtue of thy holy spirit, and teach me by the sacred documents of thine unsearchable wisdom, so that the affections of my heart may be faithfully affianced, and for ever affixed unto thy immeasurable love, and my mind evermore employed in the divine meditation of thy holy law.  
Instruct me to lay up in the storehouse of my perpetual memory, how many, how great and grievous pains thou hast endured for me. What should I render unto thee in requital of thine immeasurable love? how should I be able to demean myself thankfully unto thee, when of myself I am so vile a creature, that I cannot think dutifully of thee? Wherefore open mine eyes (oh my sweet jesus) that I may see the inestimable riches of thy bounty.  
Infuse thy working grace into my understanding, that I may know & acknowledge the greatness of thy love, and goodness of thy gracious benefits. Grant me such a portion of thy grace, that in the highest degree of my prosperity, I may meditate on thy poverty, so that my mind may be bridled from ambitious thoughts, and my actions never transgress the bounds of moderate humility.  
And when I deck my body with costly attire, let me think of thy nakedness, that it may assuage my swelling pride, and induce me to abate somewhat of my superfluity, to clothe and relieve my poor brethren in their naked necessity.  
And when my Table is furnished with delicate meats, and my cup filled with delicious wine, then oh my loving Saviour, let me remember thy hunger. Oh let me not forget thy thirst, that I may be sober in my diet, and temperate in my drink, and remember to refresh poor hungry Lazarus, when he lieth crying and craving at my gate.  
When I enjoy my liberty, let me think of thine imprisonment, that I may not let mine affections run riot, but tame their wild motions before they break forth into desperate actions. Let not worldly pleasure have such sovereign dominion over my peaceable thoughts, but that I may always have some taste of the pains which thou didst suffer for my sins with patience, and sustain for my transgressions with silence.  
Lastly, let me never despair of thy potent mercy, though by my own merit I find I have deserved nothing else but hell and damnation. Now that this blessed work of thine excellent goodness (oh my gracious Lord) may be affected in me, make a deep impression of thy love in my bowels, and engrave the true character of thy kindness on my heart, so that nothing may please my taste, nothing breed my delight, nothing affect my desires, but only thou my King & God, my Saviour and my Redeemer. Kindle the fire of thy love within my bones, that my ardent zeal may never be quenched towards my beloved Lord jesus, who did willingly abide the curse, and die on the cross to pay my debt, and to deliver my soul out of the prison of eternal death.  
But stay not here my soul, turn thine eyes toward thine afflicted jesus, view him harmless and innocent, and see in what scornful habit injurious Pilate doth present him to the bloody-minded jews: his body is arrayed in a robe of purple: his cheeks bedewed with blood, running out of the veins of his head, wounded with a Crown of sharp thorns: A ruthful spectacle, which might have made their stony-hearts have melted with compassionate pity.  
But (alas) what can mollify those hearts which are full fraughted with cruelty? think oh my soul, thou dost hear Pilate that unjust and wrongful judge, uttering these or the like words unto the muttering jews.  
Behold, I bring him forth unto you, that ye may know I can find no cause to pronounce judgement against him, but because ye pretend some matter: Behold how I have punished the man, to calm the tumults of your enraged minds.  
Look upon him with your eyes, see how miserable, woeful, base, and contemptible he appeareth in your sight! You need not stand in fear that he will seek to rule over you as a king: you may see his power is too weak to compass a kingdom: you may see how bitterly he hath been scourged, scoffed at by the people, scorned of the multitude, rudely haled, and roughly handled by the Soldiers: you need not dread him as a man dangerous to the State: though he had a mind, yet he hath no might to raise up any tempest of sedition: Wherefore, ye may now set him at liberty after he hath been scourged, without any fear of peril, and let him go without any dread of danger.  
But consider here my soul, that although unjust Pilate, contrary to equity of law, testimony of his own conscience, and sentence of his own mouth, had extremely punished my loving Saviour, and had authorized his basest officers to use him at their pleasure, and to abuse him in their jesting humour: And although their taunts were bitter without mean, their derisions intolerable without any spark of modesty, and their torments excessive without measure, yet none of them, nor all of them could once delay the fury of the hasty executioner, nor allay the heat and fiery hatred of the envious cruel jews, kindled in their burning breast without cause against my innocent jesus: but although they saw him so deformed, so ignominiously disgraced, and grievously afflicted, yet it could not satiate, no it could not so much as slake the thirst of their bloody minds: they were so far transported beyond the limits of reason in their choleric mood, and fretting without measure, to see his life prolonged the space of a moment, that they exclaimed in their madness, Crucify him, crucify him: his very breath is odious unto us, If thou let him go, thou art not Caesar's friend, joh. 19.12. Oh ye perverse and peevish nation! Oh ye wicked and viperous generation! was it not enough to have stopped your clamorous mouths, to have mollified your flinty hearts, and to have stayed your bloody hands, when ye saw my meek and kind Saviour so cruelly scourged, currishly scorned, and pitifully tormented, as though he had been a man dangerous to your state, and a pernicious foe to your country?  
But although all those insupportable injuries, and opprobrious indignities were contrary to all piety, and without any pity inflicted upon him, when as by the testimony of Pilate, a stern & severe judge, he was pronounced to be innocent and clear from all offences, joh. 19.6. yet ye supposed that all those torments were too little, and nothing too much, which was unjustly done to that innocent Lamb, who opened not his mouth once to murmur or mutter against his cruel persecutors.  
Here hast thou cause (oh my soul) to admire the unspeakable mildness of my jesus, and to stand amazed at the implacable cruelty of the jews. When Pilate perceived that his words could not prevail to slake the flame of their envious minds, but rather added more fuel to their boiling fury, and that delay of his death did so mad, & vex their confused thoughts, that they would not be quieted before they had shed his innocent blood: then he willing to satisfy their frantic humour, and to show himself a friend unto Caesar, presumed against the contradiction and care of his own conscience, to pronounce sentence of death, yea of a most vile and shameful death against the innocent Lamb, my loving Lord jesus.  
Nevertheless he would make a fair show to the world, that he did acquit him in his heart, although he condemned him with his mouth: And taking water, he washed his hands before the people, saying: I am innocent from the blood of this just man, look ye unto it: Mat 27.24. Then all the people cried out aloud with open mouths and bloody minds, His blood be upon us and our children, Mat. 27.25.  
And indeed at last they found the woeful effect of their bloody wish, they felt the smart of their bloody desire, though then in the heat of their fury they dreaded no danger, nor dreamt on the day of their sorrow, wherein their City was filled with slaughtered bodies, and the channels of their streets streamed with blood. Although my tender hearted Saviour had foretold them of their woeful desolation, and with weeping tears forewarned them of their doleful destruction: but they stopped their ears and would not hear his voice, flattering themselves in their deceitful security, and laughed at his words in the fair days of their prosperity.  
But here cease a while my sorrowful soul, to meditate on the malicious madness of the blood-thirsty jews, whose clamorous voices could not be pacified before the corrupted judge (cursed Pilate) had condemned my dear and innocent jesus: and consider the heinous and hateful condition of pilate's sin, and view the woeful horror of his wretched soul, who for fear of Caesar, and favour of the people, did contrary to the knowledge of his conscience, and custom of law, pronounce sentence of death against my poor jesus, who never meant hurt, nor thought any evil.  
Tell me (thou wicked judge) how couldst thou pretend any shadow to cover thy sin? where couldst thou think to find a place of refuge for thy guilty soul?  
Didst thou more dread the displeasure of the people, than the horror of a guilty conscience? didst thou stand in more awe of mortal men, then of the Eternal God? didst thou more regard to protest thyself a friend unto Caesar, (who although he were a great King, was but a feeble creature) than thou hadst care to discharge thine office to God, thine omnipotent Creator?  
Tell me, did not thy heart ache, and all thy body tremble, so soon as wrongful judgement had passed out of thy lips against my innocent Saviour? Wert thou not tormented with the sting of thy wounded conscience? Or wert thou deprived of all thy senses, so soon as thou hadst uttered that wrongful sentence? Thou didst know that the jews had delivered him of envy: Matth. 27.28. and wouldst thou be an instrument to satisfy their wicked malice? Thou wert ordained a judge, to execute justice, and to give righteous judgement, wherefore how horrible was thy sin? how woeful was the state of thy guilty soul, when thou hadst condemned my innocent jesus.  
Bitter and sweet water doth not flow out of the self-same fountain: yet thou (with the self-same mouth) didst justify my Saviour, as an innocent person, and by and by (with the self-same mouth) condemn him, as an heinous malefactor?  
How odious should the crying voices of murdering jews have been to thy ears? how shouldst thou have hated their bloody hearts, detested their unlawful requests, and loathed their malicious desires, when they cried out unto thee in their fury, & exclaimed in their madness: Let Barrabas go free, let Barrabas go free: Crucify, crucify jesus? Matth. 27.21.  
Thou knewst well enough, that wicked Barrabas had made an insurrection, disturbed the peace, and committed murder, and that thou couldst find no fault, nor ferret out any offence in the life of my blessed Saviour, but that the spiteful jews had accused him for envy, and sought his death, to satisfy their malice, for indeed his whole life was a Mirror of excellent virtues, his hands were clean from evil actions, his heart was pure from sinful cogitations: Say thine eyes were so blinded that thou couldst not see the bright beams of his Divinity; yet thou didst see, and thy mouth did testify, that thou didst see the apparent Virtues of his innocent humanity.  
What did move thee to pronounce false judgement, to shed his innocent blood? Wert thou so fond to purchase favour of the high Priests? Didst thou so dote after the love of the people, whose minds are more mutable than the wind, altering their affections every moment, that contrary to the sense of Law, testification of thy conscience, and approbation of thy own words, thou wert seduced to condemn such an innocent person?  
Thy wife did admonish thee that thou shouldest have nothing to do with that Righteous man, who suffered many things because of him in her sleep, and therefore forewarned thee by her fearful dream. Matth. 27.19.  
But neither the Caveat of thy wife, nor chastisement of thy own conscience, could stay thy false judgement, but at last the envious jews had what they would at thy hands, and thou didst give them thy consent, to execute the extreme malice of their wicked hearts.  
What hadst thou gotten, if thou hadst gained the whole world, with lose of thy soul? Woeful is the purchase which is bought at so dear a rate.  
Before thou wouldst vouchsafe to give judgement against my harmless Redeemer, thou didst make a solemn protestation before the multitude, that thou wouldst not be guilty with them in the shedding of his innocent blood, thinking by washing thy hands with a little water, to take away the deep stains of thy conscience. Oh how may all the world wonder at thy madness? How may all posterities condemn thee of folly? Well might a little water clear the spots of thy hands, but all the water in the Ocean could not wash away the blots of thy soul: Such pretty slights may pass without contradiction amongst men, but alas, they cannot blind the all-piercing eyes of the Eternal judge, who knoweth the secrets of every man's heart, searcheth the reins, and understandeth all our thoughts: It was horrible cruelty, yea, it was a cursed deed, void of all common humanity, to command my Lord jesus to be stripped out of his clothes, and to have his naked body wounded with stripes, when thou sawest he could not be convicted of any wicked act, nor justly reproved for any evil word: and to licence thy lewd Officers to gibe at him, at their wills, and to jest at him like a fool at their pleasure, and by aggravating his miseries to make themselves merry: yet so popular was thy mind, and thine affections so glued to the humour of the people, that when thou sawest that those streams of his precious blood, could not extinguish the flame of their fury, thou didst doom him to a most scandalous and ignominious death, who was honourable above all the sons of men for his righteous life, and declared to be faultless, by thy voluntary confession, after thy strict examination.  
Oh happy are the eyes of those which sit on the seat of judgement, which can see the deformity of thy sin, that their hearts may be replenished with integrity, and their hands with innocency, not stained with the spots of Innocent blood.  
Curb thou oh Lord the furious passions of my mind, and quench the flame of bloody wrath, when it beginneth to be kindled in my breast, that my heart may not imagine to slay the innocent, nor my hands be defiled with their blood: Keep me that I walk not in the counsel of the wicked, when they lay snares, and dig pits for the destruction of any of thy dear children. I know oh Lord, that I am ready every moment to wander astray, unless thou direct my feet by thy holy Spirit, and guide me in thy path, by the light of thy word.  
I confess my heart is tainted with original vices, and my hands are stained with actual offences: all my parts are defiled, yea my whole body is nothing else but a vessel full of corrupted liquor.  
I am prone to commit all evilness with greediness; But alas, I find in myself not so much as a motion to do any goodness.  
I am forward to persecute thee, with the cruel jews, and to give my consent to shed thy innocent blood, with cursed Pilate: yea, I daily crucify thee by my sins, and pierce thy blessed side, with mine iniquity: I caused thee to be unjustly accused, and wrongfully condemned: Have not my cursed words, and bloody oaths been like sharp spears to wound thy heart, and my cruel deeds, like nails, to fasten thee to the Cross? Wherefore wound thou my heart, that I may not lie still snorting in the bed of careless security, and continue senseless in the lethargy of sin.  
Purge the dross of my vicious heart, with the fire of thy holy spirit, and purify my corrupted cogitations, by the bright beams of thy grace.  
Oh let this holy fire be still burning in my breast, that it may consume the corruption of mine infectious sin, that cleaneth so fast unto my bowels! Bow down thine ear (oh my merciful Saviour) unto my humble petition, and give a gracious answer to my earnest supplication; then I shall be emboldened to come before thy Majesty, and to approach near unto thy seat of mercy. Oh let my morning and evening Sacrifice of thanksgiving (my loving LORD, and bountiful jesus) send up a sweet savour into thy nostrils, which didst suffer thyself to be scorned, scourged, and condemned, by the sentence of wicked Pilate, only for my sake, and my sins, to set my captive soul at liberty, and with the effusion of thy most precious blood, to pay so dear a price, for the purchase of my Redemption.  
Grant that the remembrance of such a worthy, and more than wonderful benefit, may evermore be fresh in my memory, and laid up as a most precious jewel, in the safest closet of my thankful mind. And at the day of thy last judgement, and general Assizes, when thou shalt come to judge the quick and the dead, enter not into judgement with thy servant, nor remember mine iniquities, but judge me with thine elected, according to thy mercy, that I may possess the kingdom with them, which thou hast prepared for them from the beginning of the world. Oh let my Prayer come before thy presence, let the zeal of my heart, and lifting up of my hands, towards thy Throne of mercy, move thee to grant the request of my humble petition. Amen.   

A Meditation how the Lord jesus carrying his Cross on his shoulders, is led to Mount Caluarie to be crucified, and of those things which happened by the way. MED. XIII.  
Our blessed Saviour (Christ the perfect 
a john 19.17.  gain)  
Doth 
b Matth. 27.32.  bear the cross whereon himself must die:  
Simon of 
c Luk. 23.26.  Cyrene sometimes they constrain  
To do 
d Mark. 15.21.  it. So saith the truth that cannot lie.  
HE which will come after me, let him deny himself, take up his Cross, and follow me. Matth. 16.24. Run and make haste, oh my soul, at the voice of our most sweet Redeemer, who bearing his Cross on his own shoulders, joh. 19.16.17. doth invite thee to carry thy Cross, if thou desire to follow his steps. Oh how sweet, how delectable, how delightful is it to carry the Cross after my jesus! His happiness cannot be uttered, his blessedness cannot be imagined, which doth follow thee, my Lord jesus, in thy blessed paths: he walketh not in darkness, he cometh not near the shadow of death, but shall have the light of life.  
Come therefore oh my soul, let us follow our jesus, bearing his Cross on his own shoulders: let us leave all and follow him with alacrity, let nothing stop our passage, let not any thing hinder us in our course: Look upon thy Lord, thy Creator, thy Redeemer.  
Consider his tedious labour, his grievous afflictions, his intolerable torments, all of them without any mean, none of them having any moderation: let thy whole mind be pondering on them, let them be the continual matter of thy daily meditation.  
Let thy heart be wounded with the sword of sorrow, and let thine eyes be drowned with a flood of tears: let thy heavy groans and sorrowful sighs begin in the morning, and let them not cease in the evening: Oh let the fervency of thy lamentation, demonstrate the burning zeal of thy compassion, which thou dost bear to mine afflicted jesus.  
Mourn with true contrition of heart for thine iniquities, and weep with hearty sincerity for thy sins, which caused thy Christ to carry so heavy a cross.  
Here is plentiful matter for thy meditation: here wanteth no motives to stir up in thee a feeling compassion, for thou seest how he is scorned and despised, how cruelly, how currishly he is abused by the perfidious jews.  
Who is so obdurate in heart, oh my most patiented jesus? who hath his affections so barren of compassion, that he hath no sense of sorrow, when he entereth into a serious contemplation of the multitude of thine afflictions, and meditateth on the bitterness of the passions which thou didst suffer to pay the ransom of our sinful souls, and to deliver them out of the bands of eternal captivity?  
For all the night thou wert wearied with the outcries of contumelious tongues, and tired with the violence of cruel hands, hurried and haled from the Garden, where thou wert with thy loving Disciples: and although thou wert willing to go of thyself, yet the churlish crew of hard-hearted Soldiers were so froward, that their sturdy hands were always ready to tug and pull thee forward, to vex thy feeble body, and to grieve thy righteous soul. For it was their solace to procure thy sorrow, it was their pleasure to augment thy pain, and they thought every moment a month before they did present thee to Annas, where thou wert rebuked with taunting checks, & buffeted with ungentle blows on thy tender cheeks, and after that thou hadst with exceeding patience, endured the bitter tempest of their fury, they brought thee from thence to the house of Caiphas, there to abide another storm of their malicious cruelty. Sometime they rail upon thee with their cursed tongues, sometime they thump thee with their cruel hands, their speeches were full of odious spite, their words were infected with malicious venom which they belched against thee my loving Saviour: their deeds were nothing else but deadly cruelty, their words savoured of nothing but barbarous inhumanity, they scoffed and derided thee with bitter jests, they defiled thy comely face with their filthy spittle. Then without any pity (alas how should they show any pity, whose hearts were hardened with blood-thirsty cruelty?) they bring thee in haste to the Court of King Herod, where thou wert flouted at, reputed as a sottish fool, scorned, contemned, and derided like a simple Idiot: their mirth was Bedlam-madnes: their jests were full of gall and bitterness.  
Now when they had acted their outrageous villainies against thee, and executed their devilish devices upon thee my innocent jesus, yet all of them were too little to calm the tempest of their hateful fury, but then this cursed crew doth hurry thee from the ungracious Court of proud Herod, to the graceless house of Pontius Pilate, where thou wert taunted and checked again with cruel quips, and sharply scourged with smarting whips, stripped naked, contrary to all humanity, and beaten with bitter blows without any pity: their whips were sharp to tear thy flesh, their tongues were as keen as razors to wound thy soul, they pierced thy head with a crown of thorns, & putting a feeble reed in thy hands, flouted thee with the name of a King; and bending their knees, did worship thee in derision, offending thy sacred ears with their cursed words, and afflicting thy wounded body with their bloody hands, and when thou hadst been so spitefully scorned, bitterly scourged, and vilely contemned, at last thou wast wrongfully condemned to suffer a most shameful and doleful death.  
But (oh my sweet jesus) who did afford thee any comfort in thy exceeding sorrows? who did approach to cure thy bleeding wounds? Alas, there was no man by, which was moved with any sorrowful compassion for thy undeserved calamity, but every man was forward to augment thy misery. Now they lay a most huge and heavy cross upon thy wounded shoulders, the weight of it doth make thy knees to tremble, thy legs to fail, and thy whole body to faint. And thus thou dost go forward to the place of execution, guarded with a band of armed Soldiers, and hemmed in on every side with a rabble of bloody tormentors, multitudes of the base and rude people do flock together out of every quarter, they crowd and thrust one another to see thee, but (alas) it was not to afford thee any compassionate pity, but to laugh and rejoice at thy misery. They proclaim out the malice of their heart against thee in their madness, and rail and revile thee in the heat of their fury: They all strive like Bears and fierce Lions to approach near unto thee: oh what opprobrious speeches, what hateful and odious railing, what cursed words, what uncharitable deeds, did my most humble and patiented jesus suffer by those wicked & desperate people, whose eyes were more hard than a rock, that they could not yield forth one tear for pity, and hearts more unapt than Adamant to relent with any tender compassion, when they saw so woeful and doleful a spectacle?  
But for all the venomous speeches uttered out of their railing mouths, and for all the brutish deeds done unto thee my loving jesus with their cruel hands, thou didst not once open thy mouth to contradict them in their raging madness, or once to blame them in the heat and hate of their greatest fury, but didst go forward with meekness to the doleful place of their bloody execution, to suffer the painful pangs, not for thy own faults, but for mine iniquities, and that with thy precious blood thou mightst make a wholesome Bath, to cure the spots, and heal the blains of my sinful soul.  
Teach me, oh my sweet Christ and loving jesus, by thine example so to master mine affections, and to direct mine actions, that when mine enemies do insult over me with slanderous words and slavish deeds, I may walk and tread in thy paths with meekness of heart, and trace out thy steps with humility of mind, hearing their devilish curses with silence, and bearing my heavy Cross with patience, committing my cause unto the GOD of vengeance, who heareth the cries of the silly orphan, putteth the tears of the weeping widow into his bottle, and delivereth poor captives out of prison when they call upon him.  
But tell me oh ye generation of vipers, tell me oh ye bloodie-hearted, and bloodie-handed jews, why were ye so bloody minded against my innocent jesus? what horrible conspiracy had he plotted or practised against you, that ye were so eager to undermine his life, and so greedy to hasten the bloody day of his death? Is this the honour that you give to my Saviour? Is this the glory you vouchsafe my Redeemer? Is this the kind entertainment you afford to your Prophet, whom the day before you received with such joy, spreading your garments on the ground, and covering the earth green boughs, when he entered into Jerusalem. Oh most ungrateful, unconstant, ungracious and graceless people! Is your love so soon changed into deadly hate? is your late courtesy converted into cruelty? were your favours so quickly turned into frowns? Is your honour altered to shame? are your plausible speeches changed into bitter curses?  
Do ye to day lift him up as high as Heaven, and to morrow throw him down as low as Hell? Do ye bless him to day, and curse him to morrow? Do ye flock after him to day (that your tongues may sing forth his praises) and to morrow do ye crowd after him to fill his ears with reproaches? Do ye to day entertain him into the City (as desirous of his life) and to morrow do ye lead him out of the City as a malefactor, to suffer a shameful death? Did ye but now like him, and by and by do ye loath him? Is the mild complexion of your love, altered in a moment, into deadly hate? What was the cause of your mutability? What was the occasion of your instability? Were the affections of your hearts so mutable, and your unconstant desires so moneable?  
So soon as you perceived that my loving jesus began to be hated of your envious magistrates, and cruelly handled by their wicked ministers, scorned and scoffed at by the Soldiers; tanted with proud and malicious words, beaten and buffeted with cruel blows, scourged with whips, spitted upon by the scum of the people, disdainfully contemned of the high Priests, and lastly, condemned by Pilate: than ye began to like of their choleric humours, and to play the executioners of their bloody hate: This day ye misuse and abuse him most vilely, whom but yesterday ye honoured and exalted so highly: Now your malice towards him is without mean, and your cruel deeds without moderation. The cruel Envy of the high Priest kindled the fire, and ye cast Oil into it, to increase the flame.  
Oh what extreme cruelty? what cruel extremity? what ignominious indignity, was done unto my afflicted jesus? Was not the edge of your malice yet rebated? Did the stream of your hatred grow to be more violent? Was there no little corner left for pity to lodge in your breasts? Was there no motion of compassion within your bowels?  
Tell me then, how could ye be so harsh-harted, and hardhanded, as to lay so heavy & huge a cross upon the shoulders of my poor afflicted Christ, whose blessed body was disquieted for want of sleep, being cruelly tormented all the night, faint with loss of blood, and sore with store of cruel blows?  
Had Envy so rob your hearts, and despoiled all your senses of common humanity, that you were now so poor, that ye were not able to bestow upon him so much as one mite of mercy?  
What infernal Frenzy, what Tyrannous impiety, what execrable Tyranny can be compared to this jewish cruelty?  
But alas, was there not one amongst so many, which was so kinde-harted, as to lend a helping hand to ease the weary shoulders of my Saviour Christ, when his knees bended, and his legs trembled under the burden of his heavy Cross? Oh let the lamentable relation of their furious ferocity to my jesus, be so odious unto our ears, that it never find any harbour in our hearts.  
Behold oh my sorrowful soul, the monstrous atrocity of the stiffnecked jews, and the miraculous mildness of thy lowly jesus! Consider his humble obedience, view his obedient humility, who was ever truly obedient even unto death, and ever was willing to offer up his life, as a sure pledge of his infinite love, towards his beloved.  
Behold, thou seest how mine afflicted Lord, wounded with the teeth of Envy, and pierced with the darts of malice, grudgeth not at the pain, nor refuseth the tedious labour, to carry the heavy burden on his feeble neck, contrary to all humanity, and without any pity, so spitefully imposed upon him.  
But how should my sinful tongue divulgate the incomparable merit of thy admirable patience, my most kind, sweet, and humble jesus. How should my unworthy words utter the worthiness of thy unspeakable humility, which wert willing to undergo the burden of so heavy a Cross, to deliver me a most wretched sinner from a bitter curse, when the vigour of thy natural faculties was decayed, thy human strength weakened, and thy whole body wearied, with the grievous pains, torments & afflictions, which the wicked jews (not fleshy, but flinty-hearted) without any mercy of theirs, and merit of thine, did cruelly heap upon thee?  
Oh let my heart be deeply wounded with ceaseless compunction. Let mine eyes be darkened with continual weeping: Yea, let all my senses be afflicted with mourning: that my sorrows may be great, because my sins are so grievous: For they indeed were the Tyrannical tormentors that laid so heavy a Cross on thy tired shoulders: who out of the abundance of thy infinite love, taking pity on my wretched misery, didst willingly submit thyself to such slavish cruelty, not sparing to shed thy most precious blood, to compound of it a most sovereign Medicine, to cure my desperate malady.  
Now what measure of words can be so great, or what voice so vehement, as may fully express the extreme impiety of the bloody jews, towards my blessed jesus. When such hellish fury did rule and revel in their fiery hearts, that in the midst of so many bitter pains and pangs of his body, and insupportable anguish of his soul, they did impose so ponderous and heavy a Cross, on his faint and feeble shoulders, being framed extraordinarily in respect of the matter, and also unusually in regard of the form.  
More gently were the two thieves used, which were led along with him; who were constrained to endure no such labour: for we may well think they would use more kindness to those wicked persons, then to my holy jesus.  
For we do not read that they were put to the toil to bear their Crosses, whose bodies were more able, because they had not felt one fit of the grievous pains, nor suffered one jot of the great tortures wherewith my sorrowful Saviour had been all the night before extremely vexed and cruelly tormented.  
Hear thou hast just cause oh my soul, to cry out against the monstrous inhumanity, and brutish cruelty of the jews, acted against thy despised jesus.  
What imagination can sound the bottom of their savage tyranny? What tongue is able to make a perfect relation of their horrible fury? Was it not a most ruthful Spectacle, forcible enough to have drawn streams of tears out of the dryest eye, and to have incited a multitude of heavy groans out of the hardest heart, to see my beloved Lord carry so heavy a burden upon his painful shoulders, yet bleeding with cruel wounds, lately, without any mean, or mercy inflicted upon them: was there ever cruelty like unto this?  
Oh my loving Lord! Oh my most beloved jesus, thou art now become a laughingstock to the barbarous Gentiles, and matter of derision to the perfidious jews.  
They scorned, despised, flouted and derided thee, bearing thy heavy Cross with patience towards the place of execution, whereon thou shouldest suffer a most bloody, bitter, and shameful death.  
And so went my Lord jesus, with constant humanity towards the place where he was to suffer the deadly pangs of their extremest tyranny, whose knees were so weak, and legs so feeble, that they were not able to support the weight of so heavy a burden, which with such disdainful indignation they had imposed upon him, that thereby they might so much the more increase his derision, and multiply his dolorous affliction. Oh ye most cruel tormentors, do ye never cease to molest & vex my humbled Lord jesus? Can not one cruel death have quenched the flame of your blood-thirsting malice? Oh why do you abuse his meeke-minded patience, by compelling him to feel so many deadly passions?  
Now when those malicious persecutors saw that my wearied Christ was so surcharged with his heavy Cross, being so weighty in respect of the ponderous substance, and also so cumbersome, in regard of the extraordinary length, that although he had a willing mind, yet that he had not sufficient strength to carry so heavy a load: then they compelled Simon of Cyrene (the father of Alexander Rufus) to ease him of his burden, and to follow my tired Christ with that painful Cross. What, did their stony hearts now begin to relent, with any motive of compassion towards my poor afflicted jesus?  
No, for the Curs were more courteous, that licked the loathsome sores of hungry Lazarus, that lay crying, and dying for want of food at the gate of their churlish master, than those uncircumcised Gentiles, and stiffnecked jews were to my innocent jesus.  
For how should their minds be affected with any spark of pity, whose hearts were drowned in so deep a sea of impiety?  
But because they were loath that my Saviour should end his tedious life before he came where he should suffer a most painful, pitiful, and shameful death, they granted him a little ease, that he might go with better speed, and make a little more haste to the place of execution, where they should play, like the infernal Furies, the last act of their bloody Tragedy.  
Oh my sad and sorrowful soul, how canst thou calm the waves of thy flowing sorrow? how canst thou how canst thou assuage the pangs of thy turbulent passions, when thou dost meditate how many miseries, & mischiefs, calamities and distresses, were violently inflicted upon my beloved jesus, by the hateful hands of those bloody tormentors?  
Oh my most merciful jesus! Oh my most loving Lord! Oh why was not I with thee at that time, my sweet Christ, that I might have carried thy heavy Cross?  
Oh, how happily should I have shut up the last evening of my short and gloomy days?  
Oh how blessedly should I have finished my restless course, if I had died with thee on thy sacred cross?  
Oh how sweet had the sharp deadly pangs and dolorous pains been unto me, how joyful had doleful death been unto me a sorrowful sinner, if I had died with thee my bountiful Lord, and blessed Redeemer!  
It may be thou wouldst have bequeathed me some liberal gift of thine indulgent mercy: as thou didst unto that true, though late repenting thief, which was crucified with thee. For at that hour thou didst frankly bestow the riches of thy bountiful mercy, and then thou gavest the treasure of thy merciful bounty.  
Then sweet streams of pure water did flow out of the clear fountain of thy mercy, comfortable to cool the heat of a thirsty tongue, and medicinable to cure the spreading malady of a leprous soul, infected with sin. Oh would I had been there to have had some sweet taste of that blessed fountain! If I had drunk never so little, it would have been enough to have quenched my thirst, and yet I should still have thirsted to drink more, although I had drunk never so much: If the cursed churl & damned glutton had had but one drop of this celestial water, it had been sufficient, not only to have cooled the tip of his flaming tongue, but also to have extinguished the fire of his ever & never-dying soul, and of his continual burning and never consuming body, tormented in Hell: fill my soul, oh my sweet Christ, with this comfortable water that may cure my sinful sores, and mitigate my deserved sorrow.  
But as thou didst go toward the place where thou shouldst offer up thyself for a complete sacrifice to appease the wrath of thy angry Father, & to make an everlasting atonement between him and us his disobedient children: thou saidst unto those mourning women, who could not contain their trickling tears, nor detain their sorrowful sobs, to see their loving and dearly beloved Lord so doggedly haled and currishly handled: Weep not for me ye daughters of jerusalem, weep for yourselves, & your children. Luk. 23.28. And now thou sayest unto me, Weep for thyself, bewail thy sins, lament thy transgressions, for they indeed were the tyrants that compelled thee to bear so heavy a Cross, they urged thee to abide the penalty of so bitter a curse. Touch my heart oh Lord, touch my heart with the sting of a serious and restless compunction, that I may no longer lie lulled a sleep in the lap of careless security: fetter my feet that I may run no more in the broad way of iniquity. Mannacle my hands that they may be detained from cruel and impious actions: Snaffle the unbridled motions of my mind, that it may be restrained from all idle, scelerous, and wicked cogitations: keep the door of my lips, and hedge in my tongue that it may not run without the bounds of reason: Stop the passage of mine ears, when they are alured to listen to any lose or lewd discourses.  
Dispel, and disperse the thick clouds of blindness from mine eyes, take away the gross scales, that darken my sight, so that now I may see the ugly and deformed shape of my sins, that I may cease to love them, begin to dislike and to loathe them, which caused my Saviour to endure the heavy wrath of his Father, which lay so heavy upon his soul and body, that the weight of it pressed blood out of his veins mingled with water, Luke 22.44. so ponderous was the burden of our iniquity, so dolorous was the extremity of his bitter agony: for never was there sorrow like unto this sorrow.  
Let my sweetest music be continual mourning, let my songs of joy be turned into woeful lamentations, let it be all my pleasant melody to muse on the misery of my soul, and multitude of my sins, which made thee descend from the highest heavens, and will throw me down to the lowest hell, where the fiery lake burneth that shall never be extinguished, whose flames is so fierce that it cannot be greater by any augmentation, neither is it subject to any diminution.  
If all the torments which bloody Tyrants have invented could be inflicted upon me at one time, and my body were able to feel the pains of all them at once, yet all of them would not be so horrible, as one sparkle of this terrible fire: it needeth no fuel to nourish the flame: as itself never is wasted, so nothing injected into it is ever consumed. No tongue is able to express the horrible pangs of the damned souls which are tormented in this everlasting and unquenchable fire.  
Let the horror of it be fresh in my memory, and the meditation imprinted in my thoughts, so that my hands may tremble and shake for fear, and my whole body quiver and quake with terror of it, when any evil imagination is hatched in my heart, or any wicked deed should be acted with my hands, that I may be terrified from nourishing sin within my bosom, that laid so heavy a Cross upon thy shoulders: yet when fear hath cast me down, let the gentle hand of thy mercy raise me up, so that in my last deadly agony, I may still lift up my heart and hands towards the seat of thy mercy: and though remembrance of my heinous transgressions do present nothing unto me but cause of fear and terror, yet all my unfeigned repentance cause me to taste of thy infinite love, and boundless mercy.  
Teach me (oh my sweet Saviour) to follow thee with fearfulness to the place of execution, and to take up my Cross with alacrity on my shoulders. But if thou wilt have me to follow thee (oh my most gracious Lord) then draw me after thee: For unless thy Father and thou do draw me, I am not able to follow thee, john 6.44.  
I see mine own infirmity, I feel the defects of my great imbicility, the cup of affliction is bitter unto my taste: if it do but once touch my lips, I am ready to refuse it, I will none of it, I am loath to feel any pain, I covet nothing but wanton pleasure.  
Oh how do I begin to storm if I be but crossed with an unkind word? much less am I able to bear the cross of a malicious deed.  
How is my mind troubled, & the temper of my senses distempered, if any thing fall out cross to mine expectation, or contrary to my desire, so that oftentimes my mouth is filled with cursing, my heart with grudging, and all my words savour of nothing else but bitter repining? I am willing to be thy disciple my blessed Saviour, so long as I may dwell in peace, and reap a plentiful harvest of prosperity, but alas, I am weary of thy company, if I feel but a little blast of adversity: teach me oh my sweet jesus (and I shall learn if thou be my schoolmaster) to know that it is the lot of those which will be trained up in thy school, to be under the rod of correction, and that none are worthy thy to receive a Crown, unless they be willing to take up thy Cross, those that belong unto sweet spices, which send forth always the most odoriferous smell, when they are brayed and bruised in the mortar, they are like unto stones which must be hammered, hewed, and squared, before they can be fit for the building of thy holy Temple: yea they are like unto gold mixed with much dross, and can have no glory before they be fined and refined seven times, yea scutcheon times seven times, in the fire of affliction.  
Arm thou my heart with christian fortitude, & my mind with constant patience, oh thou which art mine omnipotent Redeemer, that no torment may be so great, no affliction so grievous, no misery so unmeasurable, but I may courageously suffer it to publish the glory of thy name, and constantly endure it, to manifest the fidelity of thy love.  
Teach me so to carry thy Cross in my heart, and let the remembrance of it be so deeply imprinted in my mind, that I may daily crucify my carnal concupiscence, wanton vanities, and worldly desires. Oh let my soul be so ravished with joy, by the sweet meditation of thy mercy, and all my senses so well pleased and joyfully delighted with the odoriferous sent of thy love; that I may seek nothing, think of nothing so much, or speak of any thing so often, as of my crucified CHRIST, who, only of his free mercy and gracious bounty, died a most vile, painful, and ignominious death for me a most wretched, miserable, and desperate sinner, that by his precious blood, and blessed (though bitter PASSION) I might be made partaker of Everlasting Salvation.  
Grant me, oh my sweet CHRIST, some taste of it here upon earth, that I may patiently wait for the full fruition of it, hereafter in HEAVEN. Amen.   

A Meditation, declaring the bitter and cruel crucifying of our Lord jesus Christ, performed on Mount Caluarie. MED. XIIII.  
View here the wounds of Christ upon the 
a Luk. 23.33.  Cross.  
His head, his hands, his feet, also his 
b joh. 19.33.  side  
Bleeding amain. Consider eke the loss 
c Luk. 23.46.   
Of his dear life; What more could he 
d joh. 19.30.  abide?  
NOw blessed jesus, and my beloved Saviour, is come unto Mount Caluarie, where he was to make the last period of all his human misery, by suffering a most bloody, vile, and violent death, being cruelly nailed to that Cross, which of late lay so heavy upon his shoulders, that his whole body did shake and tremble under the burden.  
Oh blessed Mountain! happy for thy dignity, happy for thy fertility, because it pleased the Lord Christ to suffer upon thee. But who shall ascend up to the Hill of the Lord, where the Lord jesus is crucified? Truly he that hath innocent hands, and a clean heart.  
He which loveth the Lord jesus, with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his strength, he shall ascend up to his Mountain, and shall be crucified with the Lord jesus. He which hath crucified his flesh, and the concupiscence thereof, shall be crucified and suffer with his beloved jesus. I desire to be crucified with thee, (oh my most sweet jesus) I long to suffer on the cross with thee, that I may be crowned by thee, but I know that first it is needful for me that the world be crucified unto me, and I unto the world. Gal. 6.14.  
But now let us see (oh my sorrowful soul) how my innocent jesus was used by the rough-handed and cruel hearted tormentor, when he was come to the place of execution, where malefactors did suffer grievous punishment for their heinous offences.  
First, having exiled all compassion and pity from their heart, they lay hold upon him with their bloody and polluted hands, and then they hastily rob and disrobe him of his garments, before a rude multitude of the basest and meanest of the people, yea, they strip him stark naked, that he might appear more vile and contemptible in their eyes.  
Here hast thou good cause, and just occasion my perplexed soul, to overflow thy cheeks afresh with a flood of tears, and to dilate and open thy heart, that thy heavy groans, and sorrowful sighs, may have their free passage, when thou seest thy loving jesus stripped naked by the hands of such dogged and cruel tormentors, exposed to the eyes of the pitiless people, and extreme coldness and roughness of the weather.  
Oh how was the beauty of thy excellent composed body obscured with spots of blood? how was the pure-white colour of thy skin made black and blue with bitter blows, my most beautiful jesus?  
Oh how spiteful and unappeasable was their indignation! how bitter was the misery? how great, yea exceeding great was the ignominy of thy grievous passion, my loving Christ, my merciful jesus? For so sharp was the edge of their cruelty, so eager was the malice of their hearts, and inhumanity of their hands against thee, that thou art laid naked upon the Cross, when as such extremity was not used, but to most wicked, vile, and abject persons, who for their notorious crimes deserved no pity: such was their damnable impiety.  
But what a spring of bitter tears might arise in the weeping eyes of thy sad and mourning Mother? what sword of sorrow did pierce her tender heart, when she saw her deerely-loving, and dearly beloved Son, so roughly disrobed of his clothes, and nakedly exposed to the view of the rude, base, and common people, who came not with relenting hearts to show any sign of sorrow at the execution of such bloody cruelty, but rather to solace themselves, and to laugh, deride, and rail upon thee, in this extremest misery?  
Now when those cruel tormentors had speedily turned my innocent jesus out of his clothes, they laid his naked body upon the Cross, and first they nailed his innocent hands, and after his blessed feet, with long & strong nails; So that the streams of blood, spouting out of his veins, changed the hue of his Cross, into a crimson colour. Oh what grievous pain, what horrible tortures, did those wicked wretches procure to my blessed Saviour?  
Oh what infernal fury had incensed their bloody minds? what devilish madness enraged their hearts so far to degenerate from the civil nature of men, into the savage nature of beasts? Oh spectacle full of sorrow! oh sight full of ruth, how grievous would that pitiful sight have been to mine eyes, when the very Meditation of it doth so deeply wound my heart.  
Though I know that the immaculate Lamb was sacrificed on this wooden Altar, that he might wash and cleanse my polluted soul with his precious blood, take away the foul stains of my defiled flesh, and by suffering so vile a death on the Cross, to deliver me from a bitter curse, due unto me for my great and grievous sins: Yet needs must mine eyes have melted (like Ice) into tears, my heart have been consumed with sobs, and all my bowels pained with compassion, if I had been a woeful beholder of his doleful Passion; unless mine eyes had been more dry than a flint, my heart more hard than iron, and my bowels composed of brass.  
But indeed, what rivers of streaming tears should water my cheeks? what heavy groans, and lamentable sighs should sound out of the bottom of my heart? How should all mine affections be drowned in the waves of afflictions, when I contemplate the hideous deformities of my ugly sins, and seriously meditate on the cruel tyranny of my traitorous transgressions, which indeed were nothing else, but cruel hands, and a hard hammer, to drive the iron-nailes into thy blessed hands, and innocent feet, and to crash their tender bones into pieces.  
Wound my soul (oh my sweet jesus) pierce my heart, that it may stream forth blood, let nothing but mournful sighs be pleasant unto my weeping eyes: let nothing but voices of horror and lamentation be delightful unto my doleful ears, so that all my senses may be true mourners, to bewail the cruelty of my sins, and to show some tokens of true repentance for the multitude of my transgressions, which so pitifully wounded thy sacred body, and so grievously vexed thy righteous soul.  
Crucify my heart, that it may die to wicked cogitations: Crucify my hands, that they may have no power to commit evil actions: Crucify mine eyes, that they may want light (in taking delight) to gaze upon worldly vanities: Crucify mine ears, that they may be dull and deprived of hearing, when they should listen to fruitless and frivolous words, unsavoury speeches, lascivious, and wanton discourses: Crucify my tongue, that it may have no motion to utter any opposite thing to the pure Law of my God, or hurtful to the commodity of those which are godly and good. Crucify my Taste, that it may not be alured with the wanton enticements of delicate meats, nor so overcome with the baits of pleasant wine, that the eyes of my understanding be dark with the fumes of gluttony, or my soul be polluted, or my body defiled with filthy adultery.  
Crucify the old man (sin) that hath been my Tenant so long, and hath had his habitation in my bosom, that being dead, he may be carried out to his grave, that my soul may be infected no longer with his carnal impiety, and that I may no longer wilfully love, but willingly loath, and for ever leave his damnable company.  
But now (oh my sorrowful soul) turn thine eyes towards thy crucified jesus, meditate seriously in thy mind, & let it be the perpetual matter of thy thoughts, to think how thy loving Saviour was most pitifully martyred, and cruelly mangled, tortured without any pity, scorned at his death with vile indignity, and thought unworthy of any mercy or kind humanity, that thou mayest mourn for thy sins in the morning, and repent for thy misdeeds in the evening, which were hardhearted, and bloudie-handed executioners, to crucify thy innocent jesus.  
Cry out, oh my wretched, and wicked soul, trembling at the ugly sight of thy grievous sins, and troubled with the horror of thy guilty conscience. Cry out saying: Oh my sweet jesus! oh my mild and merciful jesus! how exceeding painful are the pangs of thy Passion? how violent are the streams of thy afflictions? how cruelly is thy body wounded, and thy soul pressed with the heavy weight of my sins? Oh how horrible, how detestable, how innumerable are my transgressions, that tormented my Saviour with so many heavy afflictions? What a dear price didst thou pay for my Redemption? At what a high rate hast thou bought me a most wretched sinner? no sums of gold had it been never so much, no heaps of silver had they been never so great could rid me out of Captivity: It was only thy precious blood that might pay the price of my ransom. It was only thy innocent death that was sufficient to purchase my freedom.  
How is the naked body of my loving Redeemer and kind Reconciler, stretched out upon the Cross, to deliver me from the bitter curse which was due unto me for my monstrous impiety, and the execution of it ready to be served upon me for my intolerable iniquity?  
How firm are thy harmless hands fixed unto thy Cross? how hard are thy innocent feet nailed unto it? Thou hast only liberty to move, but (Alas) no where to lay down thy weak, and weary head. Thou liest naked, objected to the blasts of the wind and storm of the weather, thou hast no clothes to keep thee warm, thou hast no shelter to keep thee from harm.  
Thou wert poor indeed at thy birth, but now thou art more poor at thy death: for at thy birth thou hadst a Stable for thy Chamber, and a Manger for thy Cradle: thou hadst swaddling clothes (although they were course) that might defend thee from cold, and cherish thy tender body. But at thy death thou art cruelly rob of all thy garments, thou hast not so much as a rag to lay upon thee, the sharpness of the air nippeth thy skin, the fury of the winds stormeth against thy naked body, thou hast no roof to cover thy head from the blustering winds: thou hast no place of harbour to protect thy body from the stormy weather: Oh how hard is the bed thou liest upon at the hour of thy death? How hard is the pillow that lieth under thy head, when thou art ready to yield up thy breath? How is thy blessed body debased by wretched men here upon the earth, which is so highly honoured by the Angels in Heaven? Oh how should my heart faint with bleeding wounds of sorrow for my sins? How should mine eyes make my bed to float with a flood of tears, when I begin to call to an audit my heinous trespasses, and to cast up the infinite sums of my transgressions, which caused my Lord to pass through such a great Camp of miseries, and to abide the bitter brunts of so many calamities? for what hadst thou done, oh my most sweet Lord? what hadst thou done, that thou should be so spitefully despised, so maliciously martyred, so extremely tortured, and so cruelly tormented? What wicked action had thy pure hands committed, nay what good deed had they omitted, that they should be so pitifully wounded? How had thy innocent feet transgressed, that they should be so severely punished? How had any little particle of thy blessed body offended, that it should be so grievously tormented? Truly, thy deeds, my blessed Saviour, were always acted with integrity, and thy words did utter nothing but truth and sincerity: thy hands were always clean from sinful actions, thy heart was always pure from wicked cogitations: It was thy marvelous love, thy miraculous mercy, thine unspeakable pity, that did induce thee to suffer those torments which were due unto me for mine offences. It was I my sweet Saviour, it was I myself that had so grievously sinned: It was thy wonderful charity, it was thy charitable mercy, to shed thy precious blood, to cure the desperate disease, of my deadly misery.  
But such, oh such, and so vile is the horrible ingratitude of my mind; such, and so great, is the dullness of my memory, such and so hard, is the stupidity of my heart, that I am unthankful for thy mercy, forgetful of thy bounty, senseless without any compassion, yea quite cold, without any zealous meditation of thy grievous Passion.  
Have mercy upon me, oh my most merciful Lord, have mercy upon me, Oh let the sweet dew of thy infinite mercy, distill down upon my head: yea rather let it be infused into my heart, that it may mollify the hardness of mine affections, moisten the dryness of my bowels, and fructify my mind with the fruits of thy love because I cannot, yea rather because I am unwilling to suffer with thee, and love thee so little, who hath always loved me so much: for I freely confess, I have no sense of thy innarrable, and innumerable sorrows, which thou didst suffer for the multitude of my sins. Alas mine eyes are dry without tears, my kind jesus, my heart is so dead, that it cannot breathe forth any heavy groans: mine affections are stark cold, without any heat of true devotion, so often, yea rather so seldom, as I enter into a meditation of thy bitter Passion, and ruminate thy tedious pains and terrible pangs which thou didst feel in thy most precious body, to reverse the sentence of damnation pronounced against me for my sins, and to purchase a gracious pardon for my condemned soul.  
But pardon me, forgive me my most merciful Lord, I have a heart of Iron, my bowels are more hard than Marble, unless thou mollify them, they are unapt to receive any print of thy mercy, or any impression of thy grace.  
Take away from me I pray thee my stony heart, give me a fleshy and tender heart, that may be wounded with the thorns of sorrow for my rebellious thoughts, yield forth doleful groans for my grievous sins, and bleed with the wounds of compunction, when my mind doth meditate on thy heavy Passion.  
Oh why should not my heart, my wretched heart, be pinched with some pain for the love of thee, which didst willingly vouchsafe to die for the love of me? Wherefore have the sparks of my love lain so long covered in the embers? Or rather why are they almost extinguished? Oh what severe punishment should I take of myself, for my monstrous ingratitude? How is my tongue able to utter one word, yea one syllable of a word, to excuse the coldness of my love? How may I blush, nay how may my face be confounded with shame which am so wayward, and unwilling to suffer any little affliction for thy sake, who endured so many extreme torments for my sin? I lie on featherbeds, covered warm with clothes, and thou didst lie naked, nailed to a wooden Cross, and that in the time of cold weather, when others do warm themselves at a fire.  
If my head begin to ache, I lay it down upon a soft pillow, to ease my pain, & lessen my grief: But thou oh my loving Lord, hast not so much as a bolster of straw whereon thou mightest lay thy dying head, pierced with sharp thorns, and bleeding with many wounds.  
When I am sick, my friends about me bestir themselves to ease my diseased body, and to revive my fainting spirits. But alas (my sweet Saviour) there was none about thee at the hour of thy pitiful and painful death, which would proffer thee any kind deed, no, not so much as a comfortable word.  
They offer thee bitter wine mixed with myrrh, and mingled with Gall. But although thy thirst was great, caused by the extremity of thy pains, and immoderate effusion of thy blood, yet when thou hadst tasted of it, thou didst refuse to drink of their bitter potion.  
How hard were their hearts? yea how dead, without any feeling of common compassion, that could give unto my sweet Saviour no better than such a bitter Potion?  
Such was the succour that they would afford thee at the hour of thy death: This was the best Cordial they would give thee a little before the parting of thy breath.  
What just occasion hadst thou my merciful Redeemer? yea, what admirable patience hadst thou, that thou didst not bitterly inveigh against the bloody Gentiles, and unbelieving jews, who were so maliciously madded, and bloodily minded against thee, that all which they sought, and all which they wrought, was to augment thy sorrow?  
But whilst their hearts were inflamed with malice against thee, and their hands labouring to crucify thee, thou wert so far from accusing them for their savage cruelty, that thou didst pray unto thy heavenly Father, that he would remit and forgive their iniquity, saying: Father pardon them, because they know not what they do. Luk. 23.34.  
And this oh my sweet Christ, was the first words which thou spakest upon thy bitter Cross: Indeed they knew thee not, for their eyes were blinded that they could not see, and their hearts were hardened that they could not understand.  
Hear mayst thou meditate (oh my soul) with exceeding comfort upon the wonderful patience, admirable mercy, & sweet words of thy loving Saviour, who was not so much grieved with pain of his own afflictions, as he was earnest to pray for the remission of their sins. He did not once open his mouth, to make any just Apology, for his own innocency, nor to denounce any deserved malediction: No, not one bitter word against them, for their dogged cruelty. But in the extremest pangs of his bitter Passion, his tender heart was moved with pitiful compassion towards them, he opened the fountain of his mercy, that the sweet streams of his Benediction might flow upon them. He blessed them that cursed him, he showed them a true token of his entire love, for their cruel hate, he prayed for them as if they had been his dearest friends, when indeed they were his deadly foes.  
How should my feeble tongue, like a trumpet (oh my bountiful jesus) sound forth the wonderful worthiness of thy surmounting mercy? How should mine unable and barren heart, conceive the dignity of thine uncomparable meekness? How should the weak sight of my dark understanding pierce into the hidden mysteries of thy gracious mildness, which surpasseth all understanding.  
How affable and ineffable is the sweetness of thy charitable prayer? how bottomless is the depth of thy clemency? how unexhaustible is the treasure of thy benignity?  
How large and spacious, yea how infinite are the bounds of thy mercy? For with what tranquillity of mind? with what piety and pity of heart? with what sweet, mild, and persuasive words didst thou sue for their pardon, who now were breathing out nothing else but curses against thee, with their malicious tongues, and even now acting the extremity of their Tyranny against thee with their bloody hands?  
Thou wert not discouraged by their injuries, thou wert not hardened with their reproaches: thou didst not rebuke them for their evil words: thou didst not check them for their wicked deeds: thou didst seek to salve their sores, who gave thee deadly wounds: thou didst make intercession for their life, who cruelly put thee to death: thou wert full of pity towards them, whose hearts were empty of all compassion towards thee. Oh with what wonderful mildness of mind, with what great devotion of spirit, in what abundance of love didst thou cry, Father, forgive them? Oh wonderful work of thy worthy mercy! oh rare and memorable example of exceeding pity! oh perfect pattern of excellent charity! oh let me poor wretched sinner, taste the sweetness of this honey, revive my dying heart with this cordial compassion, relieve my sick soul with this comfortable confection. Cry out so for me, my sweet Lord, and kind Mediator: commend my woeful case, and plead my cause unto thy Father, saying, Father forgive him.  
For in truth, I know not what I do: love of the world hath blinded mine eyes, desire of carnal pleasures, is rooted in my heart, and all manner of wanton vanities are rife in my mind: I run headlong in the broad way of destruction: I cannot find the narrow path, which leadeth to Salvation.  
Open mine eyes (oh Lord) that I may see to walk in thy ways, and direct my feet, that I may tread in thy paths.  
Teach me to follow the pattern of thy excellent patience, so that I may not wish well only to my dearest friends, which dearly love me, but also pray for my cruel enemies, who deadly hate me.  
But alas, how soon am I displeased? how long is it before I will forgive, if I be once offended? I am prone with envious Cain, to slain my hands with horrible murder. I long for a day with rough Esau, wherein I may slay my innocent brother. I oftentimes fall out with my friend for a cross word, so that oftentimes in requital, I seek to do him a mischievous deed: I think myself the worse when I see him: Oh how do I disdain to speak unto him?  
Teach me to learn this hard lesson of patience: purge the seed of malice out of my mind, mellow the ground of my heart with the dew of thy graces, that it may not only be tender, to give my beloved poor Friends, but that it may also be pliable to forgive my hateful Foes: seeing that thou wert not so much touched with the sense of thy own afflictions, (and no doubt the pains of them were most grievous unto thee) as thou wert moved with zeal to pray for thy bloody enemies, when they made a prey of thy garments, and cast lots for thy unseamed vesture, joh. 19.24.  
Now though Pilate gave wrongful judgement against thee, to take away thy innocent life, yet he seemed to honour thee at the hour of thy death, when he wrote on the Cross, jesus of Nazareth, King of the jews, Matt. 27.37. Mar. 15.26. Luk. 23.38. john 19.19. It pleased him to entitle thee a King by name, but alas, he had no such conceit of thee in his secret thoughts. But indeed thou wert worthy of a far more honourable Title, being not only King of the jews, but also of the Gentiles: Yea, Creator and Governor of every creature.  
Nevertheless, thou didst not cloth thyself with the vesture of our Humanity, that thou shouldst be honoured with any worldly dignity.  
It was thy chiefest honour to do the will of thy heavenly Father; joh. 14.31. thou camest not to deprive Herod of his Kingdom, nor to gather any forces to deliver the jews, as they fond dreamt of their Messiah, & vainly expected at the coming of their King.  
Thou camest to deliver the people from the Captivity of their sins, and by shedding thy precious blood to save their souls. Grant me oh my sweet Saviour, that I may set open the door of my heart, that thou mayest enter, which art the true King of glory, and that I may still desire (although I am unable) to show myself a loving and loyal subject to receive thee.  
Send thy holy spirit, as a Harbinger before thee, to give me warning of thy coming, and then I shall be prepared to entertain my gracious Sovereign; with humility of mind, and tokens of sincere love.  
I long (oh my King) for thy coming, for I am assured if thou vouchsafe to enter into my cottage, thou wilt bestow such a royal gift upon me, that I shall begin to disdain the pomp of the world, and account nothing so dear unto me as thy love.  
Oh would my loving Saviour would embrace me between his blessed arms! Oh I wish to live, I long to die betwixt thy loving embracements: thy arms were stretched out on the Cross, as if thou wert ready to receive any penitent sinner, refuse not to receive me a wretched sinner, who wounded with the horror of my sins, do come unto thee as my Physician, who is only able and willing to heal my wounds. Let thy precious blood stop the bloody issue of my sins: thy mercy, and nothing but thy mercy can cure my malady: that one, and that alone, is all my remedy.  
Grant me (oh my sweet jesus) that I may be able to say with thine Apostle, I am crucified with thee. Crucify my wanton flesh with the nails of thy fear: mortify my rebellious thoughts with dread of thy justice, and Meditation of thy judgements. Let it be the joy of my heart: let it be the daily exercise of my mind: let it be the object of all my thoughts to think on my Lord jesus, and him crucified.  
I cannot wonder enough, though I never cease to wonder at thee, my jesus, my Saviour, and my Redeemer: yet let me never cease to marvel at the wonderful work of thy Passion, which thou didst so patiently suffer, that by thy innocent death, thou mightest cancel the obligation of our infinite debt, & affix it to thy Cross, that thou mightest deliver us poor and miserable wretches, from the danger of the curse, which was gone out against us: Oh how can my meditations attain to the length of thy admirable love? how can my cogitations measure the breadth of thy clemency? how should my deepest imaginations dive into the depth of thy mercy?  
My eye is too dim, to perceive the beauty, my ear is too dull, to hear the greatness, my heart is too gross, to conceive the goodness, my taste is too weak, to relish the sweetness, my tongue is too feeble, to declare the worthiness of thy love: no words, be they never so many, can express the quantity, no eloquence, be it never so excellent, can relate the quality.  
Oh with what humility of mind, with what exceeding patience, with what kind and tender affections didst thou suffer the extremest pangs of thy bitter afflictions?  
How is my mind amazed with the bright beams of thy love? How are all my thoughts confounded with the greatness of thy clemency?  
How is my soul ravished with the goodness of thy mercy? What did move thee, oh my sweet Saviour, but thy unspeakable love? what did induce thee, but thy incomparable mercy, to pay so dear a price for my Redemption?  
Oh let the remembrance of thy infinite bounty never departed out of my mind: Let all my affections be inflamed with the fire of thy love: Let the sweetness and greatness of thy mercies be my chiefest Meditations: Mortify my disobedient cogitations with thy fear, and crucify my rebellious actions on thy Cross: that although sin must dwell and remain in me, yet it may not reign and rule over me.   

A Meditation concerning the derisions and scornful speeches, uttered to the Lord JESUS, (when he was nailed on the Cross) by the jews, and one of the thieves which were crucified with him; and of the second words he spoke on the cross. MED. XV.  
Twixt 
a Mat. 27.38. Mark. 15.27.  thieves Christ suffered. For no fault he shed  
His precious blood. The 
b Mark. 23.4. john 19.6.  Sun thereat ashamed  

c Mar. 15.33, Matth. 27.45. and 27.52.  Ore-uaild his face. The graves gave up their dead:  
With wonders more, that cannot here be named.  
NOw ruminate (oh my sorrowful and lamenting soul) what scornful speeches, what spiteful derisions, and bitter reproaches, were breathed out of the mouths of the envious jews against my patiented and silent jesus, after they had nailed his pure hands, & blessed feet to the Cross.  
Call home all thy wandering cogitations, that they may be solely and wholly intentive to this heavenly and divine meditation.  
Let streams of tears gush out of my melting eyes, let them penetrate into my bosom, that they may mollify my stony heart, so that it may be so deeply wounded with sorrowful compassion, as if I had been an eye-witness of his painful Passion, when his innocent hands, and blessed feet streamed forth precious blood: yet the streams of it could not quench the fire of their malice, they could not calm the rage of their stormy minds, nor breed any one thought of pity in their cruel hearts: It was not sufficient for them to torment him with their bloody hands, but now at his undeserved death, they rail and revile him with their blasphemous mouths: for as their hearts were stony, not apt to take any print of compassion, and their hands filled with savage cruelty without mercy, so their words and speeches were uncivil, void of all modesty. Some cry out, He saved others, let him save himself if he be the Son of God the Soldiers disdainfully deride him, and scornfully mock him, saying: If thou be king of the jews save thyself. Also they that pass by, nod their heads at him, revile him bitterly, and blaspheme him, saying: Ah thou which dost destroy the Temple of God, and in three days dost build it again, save thyself: If thou be the Son of God, come down from the Cross: Oh how cruelly was my innocent Saviour tormented with their unmerciful hands? oh how was his righteous soul wounded with their malicious tongues? their words do savour of Gall, and their speech is more bitter than wormwood. But so great was their malice, so grievous was their indignation, so deadly was their hatred against my loving jesus, that they thought all their cruel deeds were too little to be inflicted upon him: and that all their words were not half bitter enough, which their venomous mouths did spew out against him.  
But as my blessed Redeemer did patiently suffer the extreme tortures of their merciless hands, so he did meekly bear the bitter taunts of their reviling tongues. Oh let the memory of this thy exceeding patience be so deeply sealed in my mind, that my thoughts may still meditate on thy infinite love! let my tears (often flowing out of my eyes) be true tokens of my inward sorrow, and let my grievous groans be as faithful messengers to declare my true repentance: For it was my horrible transgressions and heinous offences, my kind and loving Saviour, that made thee to abide the tyranny of their bloody and murdering hands, and to feel the sting of their sharp and malicious tongues.  
But (alas) mine eyes are so dry, that they cannot shed a tear, and my heart so hard, that it cannot yield a groan, unless thou moisten the one with the gracious rain of thy graces, and mollify the other, by the virtue of thy spirit.  
Now not only the irreligious Gentiles who were actors of this bloody Tragedy, and the envious jews who were authors and Spectators of all their cruelty, did disgorge the bitter choler of their malice against my crucified jesus, but also one of the malefactors having no remorse of conscience for his own offences, nor pity on my Saviour, so grievously taunted, and spitefully scorned of the basest of the people, began to rail upon him without modesty, & to use these terms against him, full of vile indignity: If thou art Christ, save thyself and us, Luke 23.39. But his other fellow touched with sorrow for his sins, and freely confessing that they had both worthily deserved, & did justly suffer death for their transgressions, began to reprehend him for his blasphemous impiety, and to justify my jesus for his blameless innocency.  
And when he had rebuked his fellow for such great inhumanity, he turned to my Saviour to implore his mercy, that he might be made partaker of the joys of his heavenly Kingdom, uttering this short and sweet prayer: Lord remember me, when thou comest into thy Kingdom. And he had scant ended his short petition, but my merciful Saviour made him this gracious answer; Verily I say unto thee, this day thou shalt be with me in Paradise, Luke 23.43.  
But now let us consider, oh my soul, with devout attention, and behold with attentive devotion, what riches of infinite bounty, what large promises of unmeasurable liberality, what a blessed inheritance, my bountiful redeemer doth promise unto this poor, naked, and true, though late repenting sinner.  
How might this blessed promise mitigate the sorrows, (Oh thou sorrowful sinner,) of thy perplexed mind? How might it ease the sores of thine afflicted body? for as faith bred in thy heart a true contrition, and opened thy mouth to make that humble petition, so no doubt it sealed such an assurance unto thy wounded conscience, that thou didst steadfastly believe his promise, and faithfully look for the performance. But how may my speech extend itself to the length of thy boundless liberality (my most liberal Redeemer?) How may my words measure the breadth of thy unlimited mercy? yea how can my thoughts sound the bottomless Sea of thy benignity? in thy first words uttered on the Cross, thou dost pray thy Father to forgive thy cruel tormentors, and in thy second words thou dost bountifully give Paradise unto a sorrowful sinner.  
Oh who can worthily estimate the dignity of the gift? who can sufficiently extol the bounty of the giver? although (my sweet jesus) thy whole life was the merit of our salvation, yet at thy bitter death thou didst pay the full price of our redemption. Oh happy thief that had such a sweet taste of thy mercy! Oh blessed soul, that wert made partaker of such infinite bounty! Oh what great graces & excellent virtues were infused into thee, that thou didst believe my jesus to be the true Son of God thy Creator: whom thou didst see to die the death of a miserable creature?  
As thy faults were intolerable in thy dissolute life, so thy faith appeareth admirable at thy sorrowful death. For what but faith was the motive to move thee to sue to him to be remembered in his kingdom of eternal felicity, who to thy outward eyes appeared nothing else but a spectacle of woeful misery? and as thy confidence was great, and thy love much, so thy jesus doth speedily assure thee to enjoy a bountiful reward.  
Therefore I pray thee my most bountiful jesus, so to inspire my mind with thy grace, and so to kindle thy love in my breast, that I may be contented to be crucified with thee here upon earth, that I may be received by thee into thy kingdom of heaven.  
And grant that I may so truly lament for my trespasses, and shed such bitter tears for my sins that I may faithfully say with this penitent thief: Lord remember me when thou shalt come into thy Kingdom. For I confess O Lord, I have been no better than a Thief, for I have rob thee of thy honour, I have been untrue unto thee concerning thy glory. My lips are defiled with lying, my hands have wrought the works of deceit, I have often beguiled the widow, and defrauded the Orphan. I have sought to make myself rich by oppression, I have been disobedient to my governors, and would not live under their lawful subjection. Oh Lord remember not my great and grievous offences, let thy mercy blot them out of thy memory, that they may not be laid against me, when I shall be summoned to appear before thee: Remember me according to the multitude of thy mercies, as thou didst this late-repenting malefactor, whom thou hast left unto me as one rare example of thy infinite mercy, that I should not despair in regard of thy justice, and that I should not presume to sin in respect of thy mercy. Oh let me remember this rare example of thy extraordinary goodness, so that I may neither despair with the heavy burden of my sins, nor presume without fear to transgress the bounds of thy holy law: that although I have run long the wild race of unbridled iniquity, yet at last I may return home unto thee out of the way of impiety, with this faithful and true repenting offender, and be a companion with him in thy Paradise of everlasting felicity.   

A Meditation, concerning the lamentation of the Virgin MARY, beholding her Son, lifted up upon the Cross, standing by it, accompanied with john the Evangelist, and Mary Magdalene. MED. XVI.  
The blessed Virgin 
a john 9.25.  standing by the Cross  
Of Christ our Lord; Behold thy 
b Ibid. 26.  Son, said he  
Unto his Mother; Oh most grievous loss,  
That he must die, who from all 
c Luke 23.14.  faults was free!  
NOw turn thy thoughts (Oh my sorrowful soul, from the blasphemous reproaches, scornful derisions, and malicious slanders of the wicked jews, insulting against my innocent JESUS.  
And now thou hast heard how bountiful thy Saviour was unto the penitent Thief, that was sorrowful for his own iniquity, and courageous to justify my merciful Redeemer, for his unspotted innocency: Meditate a while on the Lamentation of his blessed Mother, whose heart was wounded with sorrow, to see her Son so cruelly tormented, when he had never offended in word, nor imagined any evil in thought.  
How sharp was the sting of dolour to wound her heart? how intolerable was the grief that did trouble her mind, when she saw his body bleeding with so many wounds, before her woeful eyes, and heard their bitter words and devilish reproaches cast out against him, in the audience of her doleful ears.  
As she had cause to rejoice at his blessed Birth, so now she had good occasion to mourn for his cruel death.  
For though no doubt she was anointed with oil of graces above her fellows, yet we may not think she was quite exempted from the passions of a woman, or void of the tender affections of a Mother, when she saw the harmless head of her loving and beloved Son bleeding with a Crown of Thorns, & his innocent hands, and blessed feet, fastened to the Cross with iron nails.  
Certainly she knew that his Conception was so sanctified by the holy Ghost in her womb, that his most blessed body was always free from the infection of impiety, and his flesh never tainted with the corruption of iniquity.  
But yet she knew he did not suffer without sense of his pains, and although he was endued with a supernatural patience, yet she knew that he felt the pangs of his bitter Passion, subject by his human nature to many infirmities as we are: yet ever having a pure heart and clean hands, from the spots of sin, wherewith our souls are polluted, & our bodies continually infected.  
Wherefore think oh my soul, that as her afflictions were grievous, so her lamentation was great: suppose that thou dost see her, with her face discoloured with paleness, discovering her motherly sorrow to thy outward eyes, and that thou didst hear her mournful tongue, telling this doleful tale to thy attentive ears, which should cause thee to be a partner with her in her woe, and sigh for thy sins, which were the cause of her sorrow, to see her beloved Son so cruelly crucified by the Gentiles, and so disdainfully derided by the jews.  
Think (I say) that thou dost see her watering her eyes with store of tears & uttering these or the like words, with her sorrowful lips to her dearly beloved Son, (which words should draw out tears from thine eyes, and drive out groans from thy heart) which she pronounced with a doleful accent in this or the like manner.  
Oh what medicine, (be it never so sovereign) can assuage the rigour of my malady? what salve (be it never so precious) can heal the wounds of my bleeding heart? what words (be they never so comfortable) can cheer up my doleful mind, when I see thee my beloved Son, so cruelly tormented, and so ignominiously taunted? Alas for me poor wretch thy sorrowful Mother.  
How intolerable is the pain? how grievous is the punishment that is inflicted upon thee? Thy death is not so bitter unto me, (and yet how loath I am to forego thee,) as these cruel torments which I see, do torture thy innocent body, and do greatly augment the sorrow of my perplexed mind. As thy blessed life was the cause of my chiefest felicity, so will thy bitter death be the beginning of my misery.  
Who shall afford me comfort in the time of my calamity? who shall give me counsel? who shall be my succour in the time of my necessity, when I am separated from thee? How shall I spend the days with sorrowing, and pass through the tedious nights with mourning?  
But thou oh my GOD omnipotent, which art his eternal Father, who canst not shut thine eyes of compassion from thine afflicted Son, comfort me his sorrowful Mother.  
Thou seest the wounds of his body, thou knowest the sorrows of my heart, and because thou art a Father of mercies, and a GOD of all consolation, look down upon me out of thy holy Sanctuary, and as thou hast proved me to be thy faithful Handmaid, so let the sweetness of thy Fatherly love, temper the bitterness of my grief, that although I be deprived from the human society of my Son, yet the wings of thy providence, may still overshadow me, and thy omnipotent arm safely protect me.  
But as the Virgin Marie did bewail the cruel and bloody death of her innocent Son, so Marry Magdalene, with many tears gushing out of her eyes, began to lament the woeful case of him her loving Master, on this or such like manner.  
Oh my dear Master! oh my gracious Lord! oh my blessed and bountiful benefactor! I cannot live without thy loving company: I cannot abide, without thy amiable Society: What tongue, though it speak never so doleful, can truly relate my sorrow? What words, be they never so rhetorical, can ease my inward grief, when I see I shall be separated from so loving and so kind a Master?  
Oh how tyrannous are the torments wherewith the bloody tormentors do torment thine afflicted body? How sharp are the arrows of their malice, wherewith they wound thy righteous soul? How grievous is the sight of their cruel deeds unto mine eyes? How odious are their dogged words unto mine ears? Yet my constant love unto thee, will not give me leave to leave thee, (though it be a death unto me to see thy calamity) so long as mine eyes may behold thee.  
The sight of the bitter pangs of thy Passion doth affright me with horror: The signs of thy approaching death, doth confound my senses with continual terror: I see thy head which I anointed with precious ointment, cruelly pierced with Thorns, & pitifully bleedihg with many wounds.  
I see thy harmless hands pierced with iron nails, and thy innocent feet stained with blood, which I bathed with the tears of mine eyes, and wiped with the hair of my head.  
Oh how should I sufficiently bewail the innocent death of my loving jesus?  
How doth my heart faint with sorrow, and my senses fail me for grief, when I see the torments of his body, and when I think upon the affliction of his soul? But alas, the waves of sorrow do stop the passage of my words, my speech faileth, and my voice fainteth for grief.  
Now thou hast heard (my sorrowful soul) the lamentation of the Virgin Marie, as a kind Mother, sorrowing for the death of her dearest Son: and the pitiful mourning of Marie Magdalene, sighing for the loss of so loving and kind a Master; Cease not thou to shed tears, with thy weeping eyes, and to sob with a broken and contrite heart, for the cruel and shameful death of thy loving Saviour, who died for thy heinous sins, and suffered for thy horrible transgressions.  
Grant me, oh my most gracious Lord, that my head may flow with water, and that mine eyes may be turned into a fountain of tears: For where shall I go to draw water, but to the fountain of my Saviour?  
Oh why should I cease to weep for thy sake, when thou didst weep so often, because of my sins? Thou hast told me, that they are happy, and blessed, that mourn for their sins, and lament for their offences, and that they shall be comforted in the day of their trouble, and receive consolation at the hour of their affliction.  
Draw me (oh Lord) unto thee, that I may behold thee, and take such hold of thee, that thou mayst never departed from me.  
Receive me into the little number of thy loving and faithful friends, who would not leave thee in thy extremest misery, but did weep and sigh to see thy calamity: so that being partaker with them of their sorrow, by my meditation of thy bitter Passion, suffered here upon earth, I may be made copartner with them of thine unspeakable joys, in thy blessed Kingdom of heaven. Oh let thine ears be open to the petition of my lips, and let thy mercy grant the desire of my heart.   

A Meditation concerning the obscuration and Eclipse of the Sun about the ninth hour, and of the fourth speech which the Lord spoke on the Cross. MED. XVII.  
When Christ upon the 
a Mar. 15.20.  Cross for us was nailed,  
And that his Ghost was ready to 
b Mat. 27.50.  departed.  
The 
c Luk. 23.45. and Math. 27.45.  Sun ashamed his splendent beams ore-vaild,  
As blushing to behold so vile a part.  
NOw call to mind my sinful soul, how the firmament was darkened, the Sun eclipsed, and his beams obscured at the bitter Passion of thy Saviour. And marvel not that the brightness of the Sun was dimmed, and that his golden beams, did not show forth their glory, when as the Son of righteousness, my innocent jesus had his beauty obscured, and his glory darkened with the clouds of his grievous and bitter Passion. And if thou consider the cruelty of his enemies, and the malice of his foes, so virulent in the devilish cogitations of their hearts, and so violent in the bloody actions of their hands: thou mayst think that the Sun did as it were disdain to afford them his comfortable heat, or deny them his cheerful light, that so their eyes might be overshadowed with darkness, as the light of their understanding was obscured with malice.  
But meditate not only oh my soul, on the horrible cruelty of the barbarous Gentiles, and on the execrable spite of the bloody jews, and that their facts were so odious, and their deeds so detestable, that they seemed to deprive the Sun of his splendent brightness, and to rob the earth of her chiefest comfort: but more often think seriously of thy sins, & meditate sincerely of thy transgressions, which darken the light of thy mind, & eclipse the beams of thy understanding, so that thou dost not see to tread in the path of harmless piety, but dost wander beside it, into the dangerous ways of damnable iniquity.  
Wherefore let the light of thine eyes be obscured with weeping, and thy heart ache with groaning, as outward signs of thy inward sorrow, as faithful witnesses of thy serious and true repentance: so that the bright beams of the comfortable love of thy Redeemer may still enlighten thy heart, and the light of his cheerful countenance evermore shine upon thee. Oh let not the misty vapours of my gross offences, my merciful Saviour, so obscure the beams of thy mercy, but that their gracious influence may still have their powerful operation in my mind, and revive my dead heart with the lively motions of fervent and true devotion. Let the virtue of thy Spirit so dispel and dispierce the thick clouds of my sins, that my soul may be cherished with the heat of thy love, and see the brightness of thy glory.  
But now cease thou my soul, to behold the darkened Sun with thine amazed eyes, and attend to thy voice of thy crying Saviour with thine attentive ears. What mournful tongue can utter the sharpness of his agony? what thought can conceive the greatness of his pain? Oh how grievous was the extremity of his pangs, which made him lift up his eyes unto heaven, and his earnest and loud voice unto his Celestial Father, crying out in this woeful manner: Eli, Eli, lammazabatani? my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Oh how vehement was the wrath of thy angry Father against thee my merciful jesus, my loving Saviour? how violent were the torments that vexed thy body? How grievous were the afflictions that pressed and perplexed thy mind, groaning under the heavy burden of our sins, imposed upon thine innocent shoulders? Indeed our heinous sins, our horrible transgressions, moved falsehearted judas to betray thee, and induced the stubborn-minded jews to reject thee: they made thy Disciples to fly for fear, and to leave their loving Master in time of danger: they compelled thy head to be crowned with pricking thorns, thy face to be defiled with spittle, thy body to be scourged with whips: they pierced thy hands, and nailed thy feet, they were the hammer and nails that fastened thee to the Cross. These caused thy Father to punish thee with the severity of his justice, that thou being innocent, mightst make satisfaction for our trespasses, suffering a shameful and cruel death to finish the great work of our redemption, and to deliver our bodies and souls from eternal destruction. These made thy loving Father seem to withdraw his cheerful countenance from thee, because thou didst appear so deformed to his eyes, and ugly in his sight, having put on the filthy rags of our iniquity: although he did always love thee, and could never leave thee, being always beautiful with the true ornaments of thy own integrity. Oh how should mine eyes water my bed with flowing tears, and my heart labour with continual groans, to weep for the cruelty of my sins, and to lament for the tyranny of my transgressions: which were such cruel tormentors, to torture thy body, and such furious tyrants to vex thy soul? how great oh my sweet jesus, are the tortures which thou dost patiently endure for my sake? how painful, how shameful, and cursed was the death which thou didst suffer for my sins? the punishment was great wherewith thy body was afflicted, the anguish was grievous, wherewith thy soul was affected, the thorns were sharp, that wounded thy sacred head, the whips were terrible that scourged thy naked body, the nails were painful that entered through thy hands and pierced thy feet: nothing but marks of cruelty appeared to thine eyes, nothing but scornful reproaches of thine enemies sounded in thy ears. But as thy outward afflictions were unspeakable, so thy inward sorrow was more intolerable, when thou didst think how forgetful we would be of thy mercies, and how unthankful we would be for thy benefits.  
And as thou, my most dear jesus, in the fiercest fits of thine agony, and sorest pangs of thy Passion, didst call, and cry to thy heavenly Father for succour, so teach me to lift up my devout heart, pure hands, and a loud voice, towards the seat of mercy, when any outward affliction doth pinch my body, or any inward tribulation press my soul: teach me oh Lord in the stormy days of my greatest persecutions, to meditate on thy wont goodness, and when my soul is most perplexed with the horror of my guilty conscience, to think on the multitude of thy mercies.  
But forsake me not, my sweet jesus, when my strength faileth: uphold me when my feet begin to slide, and raise me up when I begin to fall: thou dost never leave them without comfort in time of their trouble, who come unto thee with confidence of thy promises, and faithfully crave thy succour: Oh suffer not my soul to be cast down with immoderate mourning, or my mouth to be filled with murmuring, when thy hand lieth heavy upon me. Comfort my drooping heart with some taste of thy heavenly consolation, when either the sword of persecution doth wound my body, or sorrow for my sins doth afflict my mind. Let me remember that thy children are in this world as the Israelites were in the Desert: they shall have many cruel foes, abide hunger and thirst, run through many dangers, and drink of the bitter waters of Mara, before they can come into heavenly Canaan, and chaw the Wormwood of affliction, before they can eat of the fruit of the tree of life, more sweet than milk, and more delicate than honey. Let me remember, that Abraham the Father of the faithful, was often afflicted: that jacob thy beloved, was constrained to fly for fear of Esau, his rough-handed, and hard-hearted brother, and then ungently entreated, and unjustly rewarded for his faithful service, by Laban his churlish Uncle. That David thy chosen was often in danger of his life, pursued and persecuted by furious Saul, before he was advanced to his Kingdom. Oh let me not forget the many miseries, and bitter afflictions, which tumbled in heaps upon job thy faithful servant: Let their patience calm the turbulent motions of my repining mind, and let the remembrance of their deliverance arm my heart with a confident and steadfast resolution, that the eye of thy careful providence never sleepeth nor slumbereth, but continually watcheth over thy faithful and beloved, and that thine omnipotent arm is then stretched out to rid them out of peril, when they seem to be in a desperate case, past all hope, and farthest from succour.  
And let me know that affliction is the best hope that thy children may expect in this worldly Lottery, but yet let the anchor of my hope take such sure hold on thy promises in the time of my misery, that I may always be assured, that thou art able, and never unwilling to cure my malady, if I call faithfully upon thy name, and wait thy appointed time with patience, abiding constant in thy love, and confident in thy word. Grant me oh my Lord jesus, to cry out unto thee in the days of my trouble, & to crave thy strong aid in the hour of my tribulation. O let me drink a deep draft of the fountain of thy mercy, when my poor heart is parched with thirst, in this world of misery: Hear me from Heaven, and let my voice sound in thine ears, that I may receive comfort when I am distressed, help me when I am oppressed, and peace of conscience when my soul is afflicted, that when I feel the sweet taste of thy mercy, my lips may show thy praise, and my tongue declare thy glory, saying: With my voice I cried unto the Lord, with my voice I prayed unto the Lord, and he heard me.   

A Meditation, concerning the fift and sixth words, which the Lord jesus spoke on the Cross; to wit, I thirst, and It is finished. MED. XVIII.  
When Christ our Lord, the 
a Zach. 13.1.  fountain of all bliss,  
Had said, I 
b joh. 19.28.  thirst; and that the hour was come  
That he to Death must yield for our 
c Rom. 4.25.  amiss,  
He said: It's 
d joh. 19.30.  finished now; and all is done.  
Here (Oh my soul) consider not only the woes, but mark the words of thy dying jesus: thou didst hear him cry unto his heavenly Father, with fervency of his affection, uttering the vehemency of his affliction, and now hear thy woeful jesus, speaking unto the wilful deafe-eard, and dead-hearted jews, saying, I thirst.  
And although envy had so parched up their hearts, that they had no sap of relenting pity, yet let his words pierce so deep into thy tender heart, that it may be wounded with true compunction, and stir up active and lively motions of compassion within thy bowels, so often as thou dost think on his necessity, and so often as thou dost meditate on his calamity: but alas, thou dost seldom or never meditate on his human misery.  
Oh what grievous infirmities, miseries, distresses, and calamities, did our frail assumed nature bring upon thee, my loving, sweet, and merciful jesus?  
How many great and unsupportable torments did our sin, (yea my sins, made thine by imputation) compel thee to suffer?  
What did cause thee to do it my blessed Saviour, but the ardent fervour of thy exceeding love? What worthiness of merit was there in us, as a motive to move thee? it was thine unspeakable mercy, and nothing but thine inestimable mercy, which did induce thee.  
But canst thou (oh my sorrowful soul) contain thy tears within the little cave of thine eyes, and suppress thy groans, and repress thy sighs within the hollow corners and caverns of thy heart, when thou dost think on the extreme thirst of thy loving jesus, and of the small compassion that was showed unto him by the unmerciful jews? wherefore cry out with the voice of mourning, and lament in thy crying, & say unto thy beloved jesus, Oh my most loving Lord, oh my most gracious Reconciler, oh my most merciful Redeemer, how should my sad & sorrowful soul be afflicted with heaviness? how should all my senses be afflicted with mourning, when my mind doth contemplate the wounds of thy body, and meditate the sorrow of thy soul, afflicted with the deadly pangs of thy bitter passion, which inflamed thy heart with excessive heat, and dried up the moisture of thy bowels, with immoderate thirst? And how should mine eyes swell with weeping, and my heart be wearied with groaning, to bewail my sins, which so sharpened the hearts of the Gentiles, with the eagerness of cruelty, and so shortened the hands of the jews, with the malice of impiety, that they retained no spark of pity in their hearts, nor would extend their hands to give thee any comfortable refreshing in thy greatest extremity? But as their hearts and bowels were filled with sharp, sour, and malicious humours, so they give thee a sour and bitter drink, compounded of Gall and Vinegar.  
Oh nefarious & horrible impiety! oh detestable cruelty of the perfidious jews, to be so stony-hearted, as not to afford so much as a draft of cold water to my dying jesus, who is able to give water of life, which shall so plentifully satisfy the longing desire of those that drink of it, that they shall never after be molested with thirst, nor have any necessity to drink.  
Oh would I had been there my bountiful jesus, that my weeping eyes might have afforded thee store of water, to have slaked thy dryness, and quenched thy thirst. Oh how extreme was the grief of thy tenderhearted Mother! Oh how sorrowful was the sadness of john thy loving Disciple, who loved thee so tenderly, & was beloved of thee so entirely?  
Oh how dolorous was the lamentation of Mary Magdalene, mourning for thee her kind distressed Master, who had forgiven her many sins, because she had showed thee much love! Who all did behold thee with their woeful eyes, and did hear thee with their doleful ears, complain that thou wert dry and thirsty, and no doubt but they did all wish with sighs, & desire with heavy groans, that they had been able, (but alas, they might not be suffered) to give thee some comfortable refreshing.  
When the Devil our ancient enemy did tempt thee in the Wilderness, thou wert pinched with hunger, & at thy death thou wert parched with thirst, thy moisture dried up like a pot-shard, and thy tongue cleaving to the roof of thy mouth.  
Now what are these natural wants and weak infirmities found in thy body, but strong arguments unto us of thy true manhood, and true testimonies of thy human nature, that we might know, that although thou wert endued with exceeding patience, yet that thou being man, wert subject to our passions: but as thy sacred Conception was free from all carnal corruption, so thy pure Life was always free from all sinful infection.  
Thou hadst great cause (my loving Saviour) to be molested with dryness, and grieved with thirst, when as thy body was distempered with watching, bruised with cruel blows, and thy blood exhausted with thy bleeding wounds: yet such as was the inhumanity, such was the cruelty of the pitiless jews, that in this extremity they would not afford thee a cup of cold water. But is it credible, yea, is it possible, that my Saviour should be afflicted with thirst at his death, who hath told us (and it is true that he hath told us) that he hath the water of life?  
Tell me my bountiful jesus, how was thy moisture consumed? what caused thy thirst? art thou not he which cried, If any man thirst, let him come to me & drink? joh. 7.37. art thou able to satisfy others that are thirsty, and art thou thyself oppressed with thirst? art not thou he my loving Saviour, which said to the woman of Samaria, that thou hadst the water of life, & that he which should drink of this water, should never thirst any more, but that it should be a well of water in him, springing up unto everlasting life.  
Thy speech (my Saviour) is verity: and thy words are truth: thou hast the water of life, thou art able, and as thou art able, so thou art most willing, to refresh our thirsty souls, with this blessed water, if we will resort to drink of thy pure and Crystal fountain: I will come unto thee (my sweet jesus) that thou mayest satisfy my soul with thine everlasting bread, and quench my thirst with this Water of life: for my soul thirsteth after God, which is a living Fountain.  
I will cry unto thee, the Lord my God, my Saviour, my protector, and I will say, I thirst, I thirst, my bountiful jesus: Oh that I might have but so much as a little taste of this Celestial water: Oh how do I long to drink of this fountain! quench thou my thirst, oh my sweet jesus, with this living Water, for thou only art able to quench my thirst, because with thee there is the fountain of life.  
And grant that my soul may still thirst with such a longing after thy love, that it may make haste to these waters of comfort.  
Oh how dangerous and deadly were my malady? how unsufferable were my misery? how damnable were my state? how desperate were my case, if I should not drink of this heavenly Fountain?  
But as the spring of these blessed and wholesome waters doth ever flow, and as thy unstinted bounty (oh my merciful Saviour, ever aboundeth) so thou dost never deny any thirsty soul to drink of this living water.  
Wherefore let the fervency of thy love so inflame my soul, that it may thirst, and thirsting, may run unto thee, to be refreshed with this comfortable water.  
I know, oh my blessed Redeemer, that thou wert not only afflicted with thirst in thy body, but that thou wert more affected with thirst in thy spirit.  
Hear thou, (oh my thirsty soul) the sweet word of thy Saviour! Oh with what exceeding mercy is it replenished? with what inestimable Charity is it uttered?  
He saith, I thirst: but he saith not, I am pained, grieved, or afflicted: And what dost thou thirst for so much, oh my loving Lord? Thou dost not thirst so much for wine which is pressed out of the grapes of the Vine: or for water which floweth out of the River: but thy thirst is my salvation, thy meat is my redemption. Thou dost thirst for my faith, my salvation, my joy: this spiritual thirst did more affect thy soul, than any natural or human thirst could afflict thy body: Therefore thirst thou (oh my soul after thy loving and merciful Saviour) as the thirsty Hart desireth the water. Oh how canst thou but thirst after him, who hath thirsteth so much after thee? Let all things (be they never so sour) be pleasant unto thee for his sake: let all things (be they never so bitter) be most sweet unto thee for his love. Refuse not to drink of the bitter cup of affliction for his cause, and he will not fail to refresh thee in the time of thy calamity, his hand shall be stretched out to deliver thee in thy necessity.  
Grant me my Lord, that I may offer unto thee the wine of my true devotion, with the Myrrh of mortification, and gall of hearty contrition. But as it might be doleful unto thee my soul, to hear thy loving jesus cry out, Sitio, I thirst: so let it be joyful unto thee, to hear him take his farewell with Consummatum est, It is finished, joh. 19.30. Oh let the Meditation of this word be more sweet unto me, than the honey which Samson found in the carcase of the Lion, when he was hungry, judg. 14 8. and more delectable unto me, than the water which he found in the jaw-bone of the Ass, when he was thirsty, judg. 15.19. For now had my blessed Redeemer fulfilled the sacred decrees of the holy Scriptures, concerning my salvation, and appeased the wrath of his Father, kindled against me for my sins.  
Now he had canceled the Obligation of my infinite debt, and not with silver and gold, but with his own most precious blood purchased my Redemption: And by his death, conquered death, hell and the devil.  
Oh happy death that hath redeemed me to eternal life! Oh glorious victory, although my Saviour obtained it so dearly! Therefore let me not be careless to sell that so cheap, which my Saviour hath bought so dear. Let me consecrate my soul and body wholly to him, for they are his own, he hath dearly bought them.  
Direct my spirit, oh Lord, by the level of thy perfect word: let the meditation of my heart be day and night in thy sacred law, that I may offer up unto thee daily the calves of my unfeigned lips, speaking of thy marvelous kindness early in the morning, and telling of thy manifold mercies late in the evening: send down a gracious rain of thy holy Spirit into the furrows of my heart, that the memory of thine innumerable benefits, may perpetually flourish in my mind, and thine everlasting praises evermore sound in my mouth, for thou alone art my Redeemer, oh Lord God of my salvation.   

A Meditation how CHRIST gave up the Ghost, and of the wonders which were seen at his death. MED. XIX.  
Strange 
a Mar. 15.38.  wonders at our saviours death were wrought,  
The graves did 
b Matt. 27.51.  open, and the dead came forth:  
The Temple rend in 
c Luke 23.45.  twain. Dumb creatures sought  
T' express to blinded 
d Luk. 19.40  jews, their maker's worth.  
LIft up thine eyes, oh my soul, and behold how the countenance of thy Saviour is covered with a deadly paleness, his sight beginneth to fail, and his heart to faint, yet a little before the departure of his soul, and in his greatest pangs, he cried out with a loud voice, as if he had felt no pain, saying: Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and when he had said thus, bowing down his head, and closing his eyes, he gave up the Ghost, Luke 23.46. Now so soon as his blessed soul was dissolved from his breathless body, the vail of the Temple was rend into two pieces from the top the bottom, the earth did quake, the stones were rend, the graves opened, and many bodies of the Saints, which slept, arose out of their graves, came into the holy City, and appeared to many.  
Awake thou now oh my soul, lie no longer snorting in the bed of careless security: what wilt thou say? what wilt thou do, oh my soul?  
Thou seest that the earth trembleth, & quaketh, that the stones do cleave in pieces, and that the beholders are all amazed at the death of the Lord jesus.  
Oh! why art thou so senseless oh my soul, and as it were dead without motion at the recordation of the death, and meditation of the Passion of thy Saviour? Oh let the sinful vail of the Temples of thy head rend into pieces, which covereth the eyes of thy understanding! let thy earthly body tremble with horror, and thy stony heart cleave in sunder with terror of thine impiety: and now arise thou out of the grave of thine iniquity, let thine eyes waste and consume away with weeping, and let thy heart melt away with sighing, that thou mayest show some signs of sorrow for thy sins, and some tokens of true repentance for thy transgressions, which caused the bitter Passion, and procured the cruel death of thy innocent JESUS: and cry out with the astonished Centurion, Verily this man was righteous, He was the Son of GOD, Mat. 17. Lift up thy hands & cry out with a faithful heart, Oh my gracious Lord, my sweet Saviour, and loving Redeemer, how terrible were my trespasses, how heinous were my transgressions, that nothing but thy precious blood could wash out the stains of mine iniquity? and nothing but thy death deliver me out of the chains of everlasting captivity? What shall I do to gratulate the greatness of thy love? how shall I perfectly relish the goodness of thy mercy? how shall I thoroughly taste the sweetness of thy compassion? For how doth thy love exceed in greatness? how doth mercy abound in goodness? and how doth thy compassion excel in sweetness, that thou being the true and natural Son of God, shouldst be made man, that we being sinful men, should be made the sons of God? yea, when we were thine enemies, vessels of sin, and vassals of Satan? And that thou being man, shouldest be made subject to the same passions, to the same affections, to the same afflictions, that we are? yea, obnoxious to death to pay our debt: but yet thy life was never infected with any sinful action: no, not so much as affected with any evil cogitation.  
Oh my kind jesus! Oh thou innocent Lamb! Oh my most loving Lord! by how much the more I consider thy calamity, by how much the more I ruminate thy mercy, by so much the more cause I find to be faithfully affected towards thee for the greatness of thy love, and to be afflicted with thee for thy grievous torments. Oh let me behold in my serious meditation, and see with the eye of mine understanding, how thy most sacred body is bruised with cruel blows, thy tender flesh mangled with bleeding wounds, thy venerable head perfored and pierced with a Crown of pricking thorns, thy beautiful forehead spotted, and thy comely hair knotted with congealed blood, thy nostrils offended with stinking spittle, and thy blessed mouth distasted with gall and vinegar, thy most bright eyes obscured with a vail, thy amiable face buffeted with fists, and defiled with dust, thy chaste ears filled with reproaches, thy naked body scourged with whips, thy weary shoulders shrinking, and thy weak knees failing under the heavy burden of the cross, thy most holy hands pierced, & thy blessed feet bored with sharp iron nails, thy blessed side opened, and thy heart wounded with a spear. Oh let the remembrance of thy grievous torments my loving jesus, let the memory of thy bleeding wounds and scornful reproaches, wound my heart with woeful compunction, and pierce into my hardened bowels, that they may relent with tender compassion, that I may feel some sense of painful sorrow for thy sake, seeing thou hast suffered so much for my sins.  
But before thou pass any further, (oh my soul) do thou not let it pass without earnest meditation, how that although the hearts of the tormentors of mine afflicted jesus, were so poisoned with impiety, and their hands so polluted with cruelty, that they grieved his righteous soul with their scorns and reproaches: killed his innocent body with their tortures, yet that the fury of their malicious hearts was so restrained, and the violence of their cruel hands so repressed, that they could not break one bone of his blessed body, as they did of the malefactors, which were crucified with him, because the sacred scripture had said they should not, and therefore their hands were fettered that they could not: Exod. 12.46. Num. 9.12. Zach. 12.10. Wherefore let this meditation comfort thy drooping heart (oh my soul) and consolate thy fainting spirits in the sourest fits of any worldly misery, and in the sorest conflicts of any affliction that can betide thee: that no Tyrant, be he never so mighty, or his heart never so malicious, can imagine more in his cruel thoughts, or act any more with his bloody hands against thee, than the Divine providence hath predestinated, and the counsel of the highest hath always determined.  
Let this resolution be as a precious Balm to heal the wounds of thy sorrow, and as a sovereign Salve to cure thy sores, that they may not fester with dispairefull repining, or rancour with impatient mourning.  
Let no dread of danger throw down the Fort of thy hope: let no Tempest of persecution shake the foundation of thy Faith, and let no waves of affliction quench the flame of thy love towards thy Saviour, but let the oil of his sufficient grace so strengthen the sinews of thy Faith, when it waxeth feeble, that thy heart never fail, nor thy courage quail, when thou art molested with any sickness, or affliction of body, or moved with any malady of thy mind, being faithfully persuaded, that no calamity can betide thee without his will, nor no danger can come near thy dwelling without his good pleasure: and that no Tyrants, (although they be never so mighty) can do but so much, and no more against thee, than he in his wisdom knoweth to be profitable for thee.  
For neither the profane Gentiles, nor the superstitious jews, could do any more unto my innocent jesus, than he was willing to suffer, who came to die for the sins of the people: they could not do one jot more than was enacted in the highest Court of the Celestial Parliament, determined by the secret Counsel of the Trinity, & confirmed by the everlasting Statutes of the sacred Scriptures.  
Confirm my mind (oh Lord) with a steadfast persuasion of thy power, and comfort my weak nature with a resolute confidence in thy word, that in the time of my adversity, and day of my tribulation, yea, at the hour of my death, I may commend my spirit into thy hands, as thou didst thine into the hands of thy heavenly Father.  
Oh what a consolation & comfort may it be unto me in my greatest misery, to commend my soul into thy custody, for there it shall remain in the safe harbour of eternal tranquillity, no more subject to misery, no more obnoxious to vanity: the joy that it shall possess is unspeakable, the felicity incomparable, the continuance of it never decaying, but always durable without any change, or ending.  
Receive my soul (oh my loving Saviour into thy hands, that it may be safe, under the shadow of thy wings: it is thine own, it came from thee, and therefore let it return unto thee: receive my gift, my bountiful giver.  
But because (oh Lord) nothing that is impure may appear in thy sight, neither canst thou behold any unclean thing with thine eye, purge my soul with the fire of thy spirit, and wash away the spots of it with thy precious blood, that being beautified with the pure white rob of thy mercy, Reu. 12.18 it may confidently approach unto the Throne of thy Majesty.  
Oh let the affection of my love be never defective towards thee, and infuse that into me, by the gift of thy grace, which I am not able to obtain by my own strength, captivate all my senses, that they may be obsequious to do thy will, and frame all the members of my body, to perform thy law, that being partaker of thy death, by true mortification of my flesh, I may also be made partaker with thee of thy glorious Resurrection, by the vivification of thy blessed Spirit.   

A Meditation, how the Lord jesus was buried, and of the lamentation of his Mother, and other women, for his death. MED. XX.  
Within a 
a Mar. 15.46.  Tomb, which in a Rock was wrought,  
joseph 
b Mar. 27.90.  enshrines the body of our Lord.  
Wrapped in a 
c Luk. 23.53. Mark. 15.46.  cloth, which he of purpose bought.  
Oh happy man, that did such love afford!  
AS there was a wicked and covetous judas, (oh my soul) amongst the faithful Disciples of thy loving JESUS, to betray him to a cruel death, so there was a kind joseph found among the jews, who brought him honourably to his grave.  
Oh who is able to relate the lamentation, to express the sorrow, and utter the grief of the Virgin Marie, mourning for the death of her dear Son, and other women, who did behold him with their compassionate eyes, when (like an innocent Lamb) he gave up the Ghost, and bewailed his departure from them, with floods of tears!  
Now think that thou dost hear the Virgin Marie discovering the inward sorrows of her heart, (of her grieved and wounded heart) uttered out of her doleful mouth, passionate, as she was a tender hearted woman, and more compassionate, as she was a loving Mother, when she saw the wounded and breathless body of her Son, taken down from the Cross.  
Let her sorrowful words penetrate thine ears, and pierce thy heart, that thou mayst bewail the debts of thy sins, as she lamented the death of her Son, in this or the like manner.  
Oh my most sweet Son, what is my felicity, which I had by thee in thy life? Is it any thing else but extreme misery at thy death? how is my chiefest joy changed into sorrow? my mirth into mourning? how is my rejoicing turned into lamenting, my cheerfulness turned into heaviness? nothing can mitigate my calamity, nothing can ease my malady.  
What hadst thou done (oh my most dear Son) what heinous crime hadst thou committed? what odious treason hadst thou perpetrated, that thou wert condemned to die such a shameful and bitter death?  
Thy pure hands were never defiled with any evil actions: and thy harmless heart did never harbour any wicked cogitations: thine eyes were never bewitched with worldly vanities, nor thine ears delighted with lewd discourses: thy mouth did utter forth wisdom, and thy tongue spoke nothing but the truth: thy whole life was a Mirror of piety, thy words deserved no reprehension, thy deeds were without all exception. Oh how bitter was the malice? how horrible was the envy? how blind were the eyes? how bloody were the hearts of the cruel jews, to crucify my dear Son, my innocent jesus? how doleful is it to mine eyes, and dolorous to my heart, to behold thy bright eyes obscured with deadly darkness! thy blessed hand deprived of action, and thy beautiful feet senseless without any motion! to see thy cheerful countenance covered with an ashy paleness, thy skin black and blue with blows, and thy flesh mangled with wounds.  
This spectacle is so woeful, that I can no longer behold thee with mine eyes, and the waves of sorrow do overflow my heart so fast, that they stop my words, and stay the current of my mournful speech.  
Now as Marie Magdalene did behold the blessed body of my Saviour with his mourning Mother, so she did not cease to lament his death, who had been so kind a Master unto her in his life: What a plentiful stream of tears ran down her cheeks? What a spring of sorrow arose in her heart? How did her sorrowful sighs second her heavy sobs? How did her doleful sobs prevent her lamentable sighs? Think thou dost see her kiss his senseless hands: think thou dost see her kiss his breathless feet, speaking unto her loving Master, with her trembling voice being dead, as if he did hear her, and were alive, bathing them with her tears, and giving a little ease to her sore diseased heart, by uttering these or the like words, with her feeble lips.  

Marry magdalen's lamentation for the loss of her Master.  Alas (my sweet Master) alas my most loving Lord, the staff of my stay, the only joy of my heart, the sole comfort of my perplexed spirit; Alas for me, how comfortless dost thou leave me? how sorrowful shall I be by being without thee? To whom shall I have recourse for comfort in the straightness of my sorrow? To whom shall I go for secure in time of my trouble?  
How lamentable is the view of thy wounded head unto mine eyes? How grievous is the view of thy sacred hands and feet unto my sight, pierced with iron-nailes and deprived of sense, which I so carefully anointed, bathing them with the tears of mine eyes, and drying them with the hairs of my head? joh. 11.2. and 12.3. Mat. 26.7. But now alas, in stead of odoriferous ointment, they are mangled with wounds, and spotted with blood: Oh wretched woman, oh miserable creature, because I am deprived of such a loving and well-beloved Master.  
Where shall I find one who will love me so dearly, and regard me so entirely? Thou art he which didst often vouchsafe to come into my cottage, and to sit down at my Table, and didst vouchsafe to honour my poor house with thy gracious presence, when alas I was not able to afford thee any such entertainment as might in any sort requite thy kindness, or recompense thy love, john 11.28. Oh my most sweet jesus, thou didst defend me from the Pharisie who disdained me for my trespasses, and loathed me for my sins. Thou didst kindly excuse me, speaking in my cause, and pleading my case, when my sister began to be angry with me, and to conceive displeasure against me: Thou didst commend me when I did anoint thee with a precious ointment, washing thy feet with my tears, and wiping them with my hair, thou didst mitigate my sorrow, thou didst remit my sins, thou didst kindly ask for me when I was not present with thee, and commanded my sister to call me unto thee.  
Oh what great, and how many demonstrations of thy love, how many tokens of thy kindness, how many signs of thy charity, how many arguments of thy mercy, Oh my most sweet Lord, hast thou showed unto me? what a rich treasure of thy bounty, hast thou conferred upon me? When thou didst see my mourning for the death of my Brother, thou didst comfort me in my sorrow, thou didst assuage my grief, thou didst weep with me, such was thy kind affection towards my loving brother, such was thy tender compassion towards me his sorrowful sister: and thou didst not only shed tears, as signs of thy love, but thou didst raise my dead brother out of his grave for my consolation, and restored him to life again for my comfort: john. 11.35. Ibidem, 43. As nothing was more sweet and pleasant unto me, then to enjoy thy blessed company, so nothing can be more sour and sharp unto me, then want of thy comfortable society.  
But alas, sorrowful words are too weak a medicine to cure my malady: and although I have cause to say much, yet extremity of grief will suffer me to say no more.  
Now thou hast heard oh my soul, the lamentation of a tender Mother, deploring the death of her Son, and also the pitiful mourning of a faithful servant, bewailing the want of him, who was her loving Master, and bountiful benefactor: canst thou be so stonie-hearted, that thou art moved with no feeling compassion? Is thy heart so hard that it cannot give a groan? Are thine eyes so dry, that they will not yield a tear, at the meditation of the death and burial of thy Saviour, who died for thy sins, and was slain for thine iniquities?  
I fly unto thee my most merciful Lord, that thou mayst mollify and moisten, my hard, and dry heart with plentiful showers of thy graces: turn my head into a spring of water, and change mine eyes into a fountain of tears.  
I know not how to excuse myself, because I have been so unthankful for thy benefits, so forgetful of thy mercies, and so unkind unto thee for thy love.  
What shall I say, but woe and alas for me, a most wretched and wicked sinner? Who can measure the quantity of mine infelicity? Who can describe the horror of my misery? Who can quiet the troubles of my mind? Who can pacify my troubled conscience, because my hard heart hath not been touched with any compunction, nor my bowels moved with any compassion, when I did think on thy cruel death, and meditate on thy bitter Passion?  
Oh wretched man that I am! oh miserable creature! for when others do mourn at the meditation of thy Passion, shed tears, and send forth sighs at the remembrance of thy death: my heart is so overgrown with hardness, that it cannot be touched with sorrow, and mine eyes are so dry without moisture, that they will not send forth a tear. Oh why do I not sigh, sob, and weep in my Meditation of the bitter Passion of my Saviour, my gracious and bountiful benefactor, who did abide so many painful torments and reproachful taunts for my sins, and suffered a most shameful and cruel death on the Cross for my transgressions? How can I excuse the coldness of my love? How should I clear my unthankful mind? If Death take away my Father, or deprive me of my Mother, I water my cheeks with tears, and weary my heart with groaning. I can weep for the death of a Brother, and wring my hands for sorrow at the burial of my sister: I cannot but mourn when I follow my friend to his grave, my tears do testify my love, my voice doth utter words of lamentation, my heart is sad with sorrow, and all my senses are disordered with grief.  
But alas, how is the moisture of mine eyes consumed, that they cannot yield one tear? How obdurate is my heart that it will not groan when I think on the deadly pangs of my Saviour, and when I meditate on the grievous passion, and bitter death of my Redeemer, who hath been more beneficial unto me then any loving Father! and more kind than any tenderhearted mother: what kindness of a Brother, or mild affection of a Sister, can equal his love? What friend can be so glad for my prosperity? who of mine acquaintance can be so sad for my adversity? Who can be so constant unto me in affection? Who can be so faithful unto me in compassion, as my merciful Saviour? My Parents gave me my flesh, polluted with sin, and defiled with vices: I receive from my Saviour, Memory, Will Understanding, and Reason: yea, what is there in me which is good, but it cometh from my GOD? My Parents have been an occasion to throw me down into hell, but my Redeemer did shed his precious blood to bring me into the Kingdom of heaven: Therefore why do I not sigh and lament for the death of my Lord, my Saviour, my Redeemer, who is my solace in time of sorrow, my consolation in my misery, and my refuge in the hour of my necessity? But oh my most bountiful jesus, father of mercies, I mourn with sorrow, and lament with tears, when death doth rob me of my receive them to dwell in thy Celestial City, which is stored with all abundance: But who can describe the beauty, or demonstrate the glory of this heavenly Jerusalem? for it is made of pure gold, the foundation of precious stones, the walls of jasper, & the gates of pearl. In needeth no Sun to give light unto it in the day, or any Moon by night, for the glorious presence of the Lord doth fill every place with his shining brighssetne. Revel. 21.18.19.20.21.23.  
What eye hath seen one spark of the glistering clearness? what ear hath heard one title of the greatness? what heart can conceive so much as a grain of the goodness of this eternal City? Oh happy are the people that shall enter into thy beautiful gates! Oh happy are the Citizens that shall dwell within thy precious walls! for they shall live with the Angels in eternal peace and security, and see God in his glorious Majesty. Entertain me (oh Lord) into thy gracious service, and grant me grace, that I may serve thee all the days of my life in fear, and honour thee with my love: that when I have served out my time as thy faithful servant here on earth, I may be incorporated into this heavenly City, and admitted into the freedom of this blessed society. Come (oh my Lord JESV) come unto us quickly, and receive us to dwell with thee eternally, Amen.   
FINIS.  
Soli Deo gloria.   

MOST DEVOUT and Divine MEDITATIONS OF Saint BERNARD. Concerning the knowledge of human Condition. Serving as so many Motives to MORTIFICATION.  
LONDON: Printed by T.S. for Francis Burton, dwelling in Paul's Churchyard at the sign of the green Dragon. 1614   

A Table of the Motives to MORTIFICATION.  

Mo. 1. OF the similitude of man to God. page. 1.  
Mo. 2. Of the misery of man, and of the examination of the last judgement. page. 10.  
Mo. 3. Of the dignity of the soul. pag. 20  
Mo. 4. Of the reward of the heavenly Country, the which all Christians ought to endeavour to obtain. page. 33  
Mo. 5. How a man ought to examine himself. page. 44  
Mo. 6. That a man ought to be diligent and devout in performing of Divine exercises. page. 48  
Mo. 7. A consideration of death. page 59  
Mo. 8. In what manner a man ought to pray devoutly. pag. 63  
Mo. 9 Of the instability and wandering of the heart. page. 66  
Mo. 10. That Sin is not to be excused. page. 74  
Mo. 11. What a great evil it is not to correct or reprehend others. page. 75  
Mo. 12. How every man ought to consider himself. page. 83  
Mo. 13. Of the presence of the Conscience every where. page. 85  
Mo. 14. Of the three Enemies of man.. page. 87.  
Mo. 15. From whence the flesh of Man proceedeth, and what it bringeth forth. page. 93  
Mo. 16. Of the short life of man. pag. 96    

Other Additions.  

A Most zealous and devout lamentation of blessed Anselmus, sometime Archbishop of Canterbury, for the loss of his Souls virginity, appliable unto the soul of every mortified Christian. page. 111  
A Meditation of S. Bernard, concerning the Passion and sufferings of jesus Christ, divided into twenty and one Sections. page. 139  
The Author's deprecation or Petition for himself. page. 236   
FINIS.   

 engraving of two Garden of Gethsemane scenes from the Passion of Jesus Christ 
O my Father, if it be possible, let this Cup pass from me.  
He kneeled down and Prayed, but being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood, trikling down to the ground. Luke. 22.44.  
Sat ye here, while I go and Pray yonder.    

Of the similitude of Man to God.  

MOTIVE. I.  
MAny know many things, 
False knowledge.  and know not themselves: they pry into others, and leave themselves. 
The ready way how to know God.  They seek God by those outward things, forsaking their inward things, to which God is nearer, and more inward. Therefore I will return from outward things, to inward, and from the inward I will ascend to the Superior: that I may know from whence I come, or whither I go; who I am, and from whence I am: that so by the knowledge of myself, I may be the better able to attain to the knowledge of God. For by how much more I profit, and go forward in the knowledge of myself, by so much the nearer I approach to the knowledge of God. Concerning the inward man, 
Three things in us, whereby we remember, behold, and desire God.  I find three things in my soul, by which I remember, behold, and covet God. But these three things are, the Memory, Understanding, Will, or love. By the Memory, I remember him: by the Understanding, I behold him: by the Will, I embrace him. When I remember God in my Memory, I find him: and in him I am delighted, because he vouchsafeth to give himself to me. By the Understanding, I view and contemplate what God is in himself, what he is in the Angels, what he is in the Saints, what he is in Men, what he is in the Creatures. In himself, he is incomprehensible, because he is the beginning and end, and the beginning without beginning, the end without end. By myself, I understand how incomprehensible God is, when as I cannot know, and understand myself, whom he hath made. In the Angels he is desirable, because they desire to behold him. In the Saints he is delectable, because being happy in him, they rejoice continually, in other creatures he is admirable, because he createth all things powerfully; governeth all things wisely, disposeth all things bountifully. In men he is amiable, because he is their GOD, and they are his people. He dwelleth in them, even as in his Temple, and they are his Temple. He disdaineth neither particular, nor universal. Whosoever is mindful of him, and doth both know, and also love him, 
Motives to move us to love God.  he is with him. We ought to love him, because he hath first loved us, and hath made us after his Image and similitude, which thing he would not impart to any other creature. We are made according to the Image of GOD, that is, according to the understanding, and knowledge of the Son, by whom we understand, and know the Father, and have access unto him.  
So great is the affinity between us and the Son of God, as that we are the image of him, who is the image of God. Which affinity also, the similitude doth testify: because we are not only made according to his similitude, but also to his likeness. Therefore it behoveth, that that which is made according to his image, do agree with his Image, and not participate only a vain name of the Image. In which regard, let us represent, and express his Image in ourselves, in the fervent desire of peace, in the beholding of truth, and in the love of Charity.  
Let us hold him in our memory, let us carry him in our conscience, and let us adore and worship him every where, who is present every where. For our understanding in that same respect, is the image of him, in which it is capable of him, and may be partaker of the same. The mind (or soul) is not therefore the Image of him, because the mind remembreth itself, 
How the soul is said to be the Image of God.  understandeth and loveth itself: but because it may be able to remember, understand, and love him, of whom it was made. The which when it doth it becometh wise.  

The three faculties of the soul, to wit, Memory, Will and Understanding: resembling the Trinity.  For nothing is more like to that most excellent and highest Wisdom, than a reasonable Soul, which through Memory, Understanding, and Will, consisteth in that unutterable Trinity.  
But it cannot consist and abide in the same, unless it remember, understand, and love the same. Let it therefore remember her God, love and worship him, after whose Image it was made, with whom it may always be blessed. Oh blessed Soul, with whom GOD hath found rest, in whose Tabernacle he dwelleth and remaineth: 
How the soul is said to be truly blessed.  Blessed, which may say, and he which created me, resteth in my Tabernacle: For he cannot deny the rest of HEAVEN unto her. Therefore why do we forsake ourselves and seek God in these external and outward things, who is at home with us, if we will be with him?  
Verily he with us, and in us, but as yet by faith, until we shall see him face to face. We know (saith the Apostle) that Christ dwelleth in our hearts by faith. 
How God dwelleth in us.  Because Christ is in our Faith, Faith in our Understanding, our Understanding in the heart, the heart in our breast.  
Through Faith I call God to mind (as a Creator) I adore him as a Redeemer, I attend and wait for him as a Saviour, I believe to behold him in all his Creatures, to have him in myself, and that which is more pleasant, and blessed then all these (unspeakable) to know him in himself. 
What life everlasting is.  For to know the Father, Son, and the holy Ghost, is life Everlasting, perfect blessedness, 
What life everlasting is.  chiefest pleasure.  
The eye hath not seen, the ear hath not heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man, what great love, what great sweetness, and what great pleasantness doth remain unto us by that vision, when we shall see God face to face. Which is the light of those which do enlighten, rest to the labouring, a Country to them that return from exile, life to the living, a Crown to the conquering. Therefore in my understanding, I find the Image of that most high and supreme Trinity: to the which most supreme Trinity always to be remembered, looked upon, and to be loved, that I may remember it, be delighted with it, embrace and view it, I must refer and employ that time which I live.  
The mind is the Image of GOD, 
The faculties of the soul resembled to the Father, the Son, & the holy Ghost.  in which are these three things, Memory, Understanding, and Will, or love. We attribute to the Memory, all which we know, although we think not of it. We attribute to the Understanding, all which we find to be true in thinking, which we also commit unto Memory.  
By Memory, we are like to the Father, by Understanding to the Son, by Will to the holy Ghost. Nothing in us is so like to him, as Will, Love, or Charity, which is a more excellent will. For Love or Charity, is the gift of God.  
So that no gift of GOD, is more excellent than this: For the love which is of GOD, and which is also GOD, is called properly the holy Spirit, by whom the love of God is disfused in our hearts, by whom the whole Trinity doth inhabit and dwell in us.   

Of the misery of Man, and the examination of the last judgement. MOTIVE. II.  
COncerning the outward man, I proceed from those parents, which made me to be worthy of damnation before I was borne. Sinners begot a sinner, and nourished me with sin: the miserable brought a miserable creature into the misery of the light. I have nothing from them but misery, sin, and this corruptible body which I carry about me. And I hasten to go to them, which through the death of the body, are departed from hence. When I look upon their Graves and sepulchres, I find nothing in them but ashes, worms, stink, and loathsomeness. What I am, they have been, and what they are, I shall be.  
What am I? Man, proceeding from a liquid humour: For in a moment of conception I was conceived of human seed, afterward, that froth congealed, increasing a little, was made flesh, 
Man's corruption.  and afterward crying and lamenting, I was delivered to the banishment of this World: and behold, now I die, full of iniquities and abominations. Now, even, now I shall appear before a severe and strict judge, to render an account of my works. Woe be to me miserable wretch, when that day of judgement shall come: and the Books shall be opened, in which all my actions, and cogitations shall be recited, in the presence of the Lord.  
Then hanging down my head, with confusion of an evil conscience, I shall stand in judgement before the LORD, trembling and sorrowful, to wit, reckoning up my wicked deeds which I have committed: 
The conscience of the wicked shall be their own accuser.  and when it shall be said of me, behold the man, and his works: then I shall reduce and bring again before mine eyes all my sins, and offences. For it shall be brought to pass, by a certain divine power, that good and evil works shall be recalled to the remembrance of every one, and shall be seen in the view of the mind, with a wonderful speed and celerity: that the knowledge of them may accuse, or excuse the conscience; and that so both every man severally and generally, may be judged together. Every man shall be judged for his deeds. And all the secrets of all men shall appear and lie open unto all. For that which we are ashamed, 
At the day of judgement, all things shall be made manifest.  and blush at to confess now, shall then be manifest and apparent to all. And there the revenging and devouring fire shall burn and consume whatsoever here we cloak and flatter by dissembling. The swift fire shall rage's, and reign every where, having gotten free scope and liberty.  
And by how much the longer the Lord doth wait, and tarry for our amendment; so much the more strictly he will judge us, if we shall abuse and neglect his patience.  
Why therefore do we so earnestly covet this life, in which the longer we live, the more we sin? For by how much the more the days of our life are lengthened, 
Nothing more mutable than human condition.  by so much the more our faults and transgressions are augmented. For evil things do daily increase, but good things decay and are diminished; Man's state doth never stand at a stay, but is continually changed by prosperity and adversity, and he knoweth not when he shall die.  
For as a blazing star in the sky runneth swiftly, and vanisheth away suddenly; 
The shortness of man's life shadowed out by a double similitude.  or as a sparkle of fire is suddenly extinguished, and turned into ashes: so we may see this life quickly ended, and suddenly consumed. For while man tarrieth willingly, and liveth most pleasantly in this World, and supposeth that he shall live long, and purposeth many things to be done in long time, he is suddenly snatched away by death, and the Soul is taken from the body, before he beware of it. Yet the soul is separated with great fear, much pain, and bitter grief from the body. For the Angels come to take her, that they may bring her before the Tribunal seat of a most fearful judge; then she calling to mind her evil and most wicked works, which she hath done day and night, trembleth, and seeketh to shun and avoid them, and to desire a truce of them, saying; Grant me the space, yea but of one hour.  
Then her works, as it were, 
Our works will follow us to judgement.  speaking together, shall answer, and say; Thou hast made us, we are thy works, we will go forward with thee to judgement. Vices also shall accuse her with many and manifold crimes, and shall bring many false testimonies against her, although one sufficeth to her damnation. The Devils also shall terrify her, with their ghastly countenance and horrible aspect they shall persecute her, and take hold of her, as terribly, so also horribly, desirous to retain her, unless there be one who can deliver her from them.  
Then the Soul, finding the eyes shut, the mouth, and other senses of the body, by which she was wont to have passage, and to be delighted in these outward things closed, 
The state of a damned soul.  shall return to herself, and seeing herself alone, and naked, stricken with exceeding horror, she shall faint in herself, and fall down with desperation.  
And because for the love of the world, and pleasure of the flesh, she forsook the love of God, she wretched shall be quite forsaken in the hour of such great necessity, and shall be delivered to the Devils to be tormented in Hell: So the soul of a sinner, in the day wherein he is ignorant, and hour in which he knoweth not, is snatched away of death, and is separated from the body, and proceedeth forward full of miseries, trembling and sorrowing; and when she hath no excuse, which she may allege for her sin, she fainteth, and faileth with dreadful fear, to appear before GOD; she is shaken, and quaketh with exceeding horror, and is tossed and troubled with manifold tempests of perplexed thoughts, and dispairefull cogitations; the dissolution and separation of the flesh grieving her, and all being removed out of her sight, she considereth herself, and that time to which she approacheth, and after a little while, she findeth in that, that which can never be altered nor reversed. She considereth thoroughly how severe the eternal judge cometh, and what strait accounts she must make before the severity of such great justice.  
For although she have escaped all the works which she could understand, yet for all that, coming before a strict and severe judge, she dreadeth those more, which she understandeth not in herself. Fear increaseth, when she thinketh she could not pass through the way of this life without a fault, neither that time, which she hath lived commendably is without offence, if it be judged, pity and mercy excluded. For who is able to consider how many, and how great evils we commit in moments of times, 
Sins are of two sorts of commission and omission.  and what great good things we neglect to do? For as the commission of an evil thing is sin, so the omission of a good thing is an offence.  
For great is the loss and damage, when we neither do, nor think good things, but suffer our heart to wander & stagger abroad, through vain and unprofitable things.  
Nevertheless, it is a very hard and difficult thing to bridle the heart, and keep it from an unlawful cogitation. Also it is a thing overhard, to execute earthly affairs without sin. Wherefore no man can perfectly comprehend and discern himself. But being busied & toiled with many thoughts, and cogitations, he remaineth in some measure unknown unto himself, that he knoweth not all those things which he tolerateth. 
Why man is at his death fearful.  Wherefore, his departure out of the world being instant, and pressing him, he is terrified with a more exact fear: because, although he remembreth that he hath not omitted those things which he knew, yet he dreadeth those things which he knoweth not.   

Of the dignity of the Soul. MOTIVE. III.  
OH Soul, sealed with the Image of God, adorned with his similitude, 
Excellency of the Soul.  betrothed to him by Faith, endowed with the Spirit, redeemed by blood, associated with Angels, capable of Beatitude, heir of Goodness, partaker of Reason, what hast thou to do with the flesh, of whom thou sufferest so many evils?  
Because of the flesh, the sins of another are imputed to thee, and thy virtues reputed as a stained and filthy clout, and thou thyself art brought to nothing, and reputed as nothing. The flesh is no other thing, with which thou hast so great society, but a foam, become flesh, clothed with beauty, frail, and every moment decaying. But it shall be truly, it shall be a miserable and rotten carcase, and meat for the worms. For how much soever it be decked and adorned, it is always flesh.  
If thou dost consider, what issueth out by the mouth, nostrils, and other passages of the body, thou shalt never see a more filthy dunghill. If thou wilt reckon up all her miseries, thou shalt find how she is fraughted and laden with sins, provoked with vices, itching with concupiscences, possessed with passions, polluted with illusions, always prone unto evil, and bending towards all kind of vices, full of all confusion and ignominy. By the flesh, man is made like unto vanity, because from it he hath drawn the vice of lustful concupiscence, by which he is held captive, and abased, that he loveth vanity, and worketh iniquity.  
Consider oh man, what thou art from the first beginning, 
The beginning of a proud man.  and day of thy birth, unto thy latter end, and day of thy death, and what thou shalt be after this life.  
Truly, thou hast been that which in time afore thou wert not, afterwards made of base matter, & wrapped in a homely cloth, thou wast nourished with unclean blood in thy mother's womb, and a thin skin was thy best Garment, thou camest unto us, being so clothed and attired, neither art thou mindful of thy base, vile, and contemptible beginning: beauty, favour of the people, youthful heat and riches, have stolen from thee the knowledge to know what man is. 
Man's vileness.  For man is no other thing but corrupt seed, a vessel of uncleanness, and meat for the Worms. After he is a man, he becometh a Worm, after the worm, cometh stink and loathsomeness: So every man, is turned into no man. Wherefore is man proud, whose conception is sin, whose birth is punishment, whose life is a turmoiling labour, and death an inevitable necessity? Why therefore art thou proud, oh man? Consider what thou wert in thy Mother's womb, 
Means to pull down pride, to humble us.  how afterwards thou wert exposed and objected to the miseries of this life, and to sin: and after that to become a worm, a d worms meat in the grave? Why art thou proud, dust and ashes, whose conception is sinful, whose birth is misery, life a punishment, and death, anguish and calamity? Wherefore dost thou feed, and pamper thy belly with delicate meat, and deck thy back with sumptuous clothes, which within few days after, the worms shall devour in the grave? But thou dost not adorn thy soul with good works, which is to be presented unto God, and his Angels in Heaven. Why dost thou basely esteem thy Soul, and prefer the flesh before her? That the Mistress should wait and play the Maid, and the Maid bear all the sway, like the Mistress, is a great abuse. The whole world verily cannot countervail the price and value of one soul. Therefore the price of the Soul is far dearer, and is at an higher rate, which could not be redeemed but with the blood of CHRIST.  
What wilt thou give for exchange to redeem thy soul, which dost give her for nothing? Did not the Son of GOD, 
The soul of man invaluable.  when he was in the bosom of his Father, descend from his royal Throne for her, that he might deliver her from the power of the Devil? The which when he saw fettered with the ropes and chains of Sins, and forthwith to be delivered to the Devils, that she might be damned to perpetual death, he wept over her, which knew not to weep for herself. Neither did he only weep, but suffered himself to be slain, that he might redeem her with the precious price of his blood.  
Behold oh mortal man, for whom such a Sacrifice is given. Acknowledge (oh man) how noble thy Soul is, and how grievous her wounds were, for whom there was such necessity, that the Lord Christ should be wounded. If her wounds had not been to death, 
The heinousness of sin.  and to everlasting death, the Son of God would never have died to have cured them.  
Do not therefore carelessly esteem the passion of thy soul, to whom thou seest such great compassion to be yielded, from such a great Majesty. He poureth forth tears for thee, wash thou also every night thy bed with compunction of thy heart, and continual streams of thy tears. He powered forth his blood for thee, shed thou also thine, rather than for any worldly affliction to start from thy Christian profession.  
Do not regard what the flesh will, but what the spirit may: then shall the soul be glorious, when she shall return to her God. Yet so, if she shall carry no sin with her from the body, and shall wipe away all filthiness. But if thou say, this is a hard saying, I cannot despise the World, and hate my flesh. Tell me, where are the lovers of the world, which were with us a little while ago? 
Motions to despise the flesh.  Nothing remaineth of them, but ashes & worms: mark diligently what they are, and what they have been.  
They have been men, as thou art, they have eat, drunk, laughed, and spent their days in prosperity, and in a moment are gone down all to the Grave, many to Hell. Hear their flesh is bequeathed to the worms, and there their Soul to the fire: until they two being bound again with an unhappy conjunction, be overwhelmed in everlasting flames, which were before companions together in vices. For one punishment doth entangle them in the end, whom before one love had bound together in a wicked deed. What hath vainglory availed them, their short joy, worldly power and authority, the pleasure of the flesh, deceitful riches, their great household, and evil concupiscence? Where is their laughter? Where is their boasting? Where is their pride and arrogancy? Of such great mirth, what great mourning? After so little pleasure, how grievous misery? They are fallen from that exceeding rejoicing, into great misery, into great ruin and grievous torments. Whatsoever is happened to them, 
A good catuion.  may happen to thee, because thou art a man of the same earth, slime of the same slime.  
Thou art from the earth, thou livest of the earth, and thou shalt return into the earth. When that last day shall come, which will come suddenly, peradventure it shall be to day. 
The certainty and uncertainty of death.  It is certain that thou shalt die, but it is uncertain when, or how, or where, because death doth always attend and wait upon thee every where. Thou also, if thou wilt be wise, 
Those which fulfil the lusts of the flesh, must be punished with the flesh.  shalt look for death every where. If thou wilt follow the flesh, thou shalt be punished in the flesh: if thou art delighted with the flesh, thou shalt be tormented in the flesh.  
If thou shalt require fine and costly apparel, in stead of thy brave garments, the Worms shall be spread under thee, and the Worms shall be thy covering. For the justice of God can judge and determine no other thing, but that which our works do deserve. For he which loveth the world more than God, a place of pleasure, 
The marks of a wicked worldling.  more than the House of Prayer; gluttony more than abstinency; lechery more than chastity; followeth the Devil, and shall go with him to everlasting punishment.  
What mourning do you think there shall be then? what lamentation, what sorrow and sadness, when the wicked shall be separated from the fellowship of the righteous, and from the sight of God, and shall be delivered into the power of the Devils, and shall go with them into everlasting fire, and shall be there with them always without end, in perpetual mourning and lamentation? Because being banished far from the blessed Country of Paradise, they shall be tormented in the place of never-ceasing torments, never to see the light any more, never to obtain any releasement, or refreshing: but by thousands of thousands of years to be tormented in Hell, never to be delivered from thence: where the tormentors are never tired nor wearied: neither he which is tormented ever dieth. For the fire there so consumeth, that it always preserveth. The torments are so acted, that they are always renewed. 
The quality of the pain shall be fitted to the quality of the offence.  But every one shall endure pain of torment, according to the quality of the fault and they that are guilty of the same sin, shall be sorted and joined to their like, to be tormented. No other thing shall be heard there, but weeping and mourning, groaning and howling, lamentation, and gnashing of teeth. And nothing shall be seen there, but Worms, and the terrible faces of the tormentors, and most hideous monsters of the Devils. Cruel Worms shall bite the innermost parts of the heart, here shall be pain, there fears, sighing, astonishment, and horrible terror. And they being miserable and wretched, shall burn in everlasting fire for ever; 
The condition of the damned after death of the body.  and beside, they shall be tormented in the flesh by fire, in the spirit by the Worm of conscience, there shall be intolerable grief, horrible fear, incomparable stink, death both of soul and body, without hope of pardon or mercy. Nevertheless, they shall so die, as they may always live, and shall so live, as they may always die. 
The difference of a repenting and an obstinate sinner.  So the soul of a sinner is tormented in hell for his sins, or being converted from her sins, is placed in Paradise.  
Now therefore let us choose one of the two, either always to be tormented with the wicked, or to live in joy with the righteous. For good and evil, life and death, are set before us, that we may put forth our hand to which we will. If torments cannot terrify us, at least let rewards allure us.   

Of the reward of the heavenly Country, the which all Christians ought to endeavour to obtain. MOTIVE. FOUR  
IT is a reward to see God, to live with God, to live of God, to be with GOD, to be in God, which will be all things in all: To have GOD, which is the chiefest good; where the chiefest good is, there is the chiefest felicity, chiefest pleasure, true liberty, perfect charity, eternal security, and secure eternity: there is true joy, full knowledge, all beauty, and all beatitude. There is peace, piety, goodness, light, virtue, honesty, joys, mirth, sweetness, everlasting life, glory, praise, rest, love, and sweet concord. 
The exceeding joys of the righteous.  So the man shall be blessed with GOD, in whose conscience sin hath not been found.  
He shall see God at his desire, he shall have him at his pleasure, he shall enjoy him to his everlasting delight.  
He shall flourish in eternity, he shall be glorious in truth, he shall shine in glory, he shall rejoice in goodness, so he shall have eternity of continuance, so he shall have facility of knowledge and wisdom, and felicity of rest and quietness. For he shall be a Citizen of that Holy City, of which the Citizens are Angels, God the Father the Temple, his Son the glory and brightness, the Holy Ghost the love and charity.  
Oh heavenly City, 
A description of the celestial City.  secure Mansion, fertile and ample Country, thou containest all which delighteth, the people live without mourning, the Inhabitants are quiet and peaceable persons, having no want, or necessity: How glorious things are spoken of thee, oh City of God So that the Habitation of all which rejoice, is in thee. All rejoice with mirth, and exceeding joy: All are delighted and made joyful by God: whose looks are beautiful, face fair and comely, speech sweet, and delectable: he is delightful to be seen, pleasant to be drunk, sweet to be enjoyed: He pleaseth by himself alone, he both sufficeth of himself for desert, and also sufficeth of himself for reward: neither is any thing sought without him, because it is wholly found in him, whatsoever is desired.  

I● God is all good.  It is always pleasing and delightful to behold him, always to be delighted in him, and always to enjoy him. In him the understanding is clarified, and the affection is purified, to know and love the truth. And this is the sole and whole good of man: namely, to know and love his Creator. Therefore what madness of vices doth move us, to thirst after the bitter Wormwood of this World, to follow the shipwreck of this sliding life? To suffer calamity, to endure the Dominion of a wicked Tyranny: and not rather to fly and flock together to the felicity of the Saints, to the society of the Angels, to the solemnity of supernal and heavenly joy, and to the pleasantness of a contemplative life, that we may enter into the Dominions of the LORD, and see the superabundant riches of his goodness.  
There we shall be freed from toiling cares, and shall see how sweet the Lord is, and how great the multitude is of his exceeding sweetness. We shall see the beauty of his glory, 
The happy estate of the just in heaven.  the brightness of his Saints, and honour of his Royal Majesty. We shall know the power of the Father, the wisdom of the Son, the most liberal clemency of the Holy Ghost: and so we shall have knowledge of the most high Trinity.  
Now we see bodies by the body, also we see the Images of bodies by the Spirit: but then we shall see the Trinity with the pure sight of the mind. Oh happy vision to see God in himself, to see him in us, and to see us in him. In which vision, with happy pleasure, and pleasant happiness, we shall have all whatsoever we shall desire, desiring nothing else beside, and we shall love whatsoever we shall see: blessed with the love, blessed with the sweetness of the love, and pleasantness of the contemplation. This shall be the end of that contemplation, this shall be the sum of that felicity. Because the sincere Divinity shall be understood to be in his purity, the incomprehensible Trinity shall be comprehended in it.  
The Mysteries of the Divinity shall be made manifest, God shall be seen, and shall be loved. Also this vision and delight filling and satisfying the whole heart of man, shall be the whole perfection, and summary consummation of that blessedness. All shall speak with one tongue and language: there shall be rejoicing without wearisomeness: one affection: Love eternal. Truth shall appear openly, charity shall fill them immeasurably, and there shall be a perfect and sound society of body and soul. The Humanity being glorified, shall glister like the Sun, the fellowship of the flesh and Spirit shall be quiet and peaceable, and there shall be one joy of men and Angels, one feast, one speech and communication. Love shall not languish, nor charity melt away, all good things being present. There shall be no affliction of delay, because the blessed presence of the Divine Majesty, shall be all things unto all; and there shall be a common omnipotency of wisdom, peace, righteousness, and understanding unto all. There shall not be a diversity of tongues in that eternal peace, but a peaceable and tunable concord of manners and affections.  

A description of perfect peace.  In that flood and stream of felicity, abundant satiety shall covet nor desire nothing else: there shall be great happiness, for there shall be a heaped store of felicity, glory evermore increasing, and joy superabundant: but who shall be fit for these things? 
Who is capable of heavenly happiness.  Verily, the true Penitent, the good Obedient, the loving Companion, and faithful Servant. For a true Penitent is always in labour and grief, he is grieved with things that are past, he laboureth to prevent and avoid evils to come. 
What true repentance is.  For it is true repentance, without intermission of time, to be grieved for our sins and offences. And he repenteth truly, which doth so bewail his trespasses committed, that he doth not afterward commit things to be lamented: he is a scoffer, and not a true Penitent, which doth that still, which he may repent, and that may grieve him. If therefore thou wilt be a true Penitent, cease from sin, and offend no more. Because that repentance is vain, which afterward is stained with some ensuing trespass. Every good Obedient, 
A good Obedient.  yieldeth up his consent and denial, that he can say, My heart is ready, oh God, My heart is ready. Ready to do whatsoever thou hast commanded, ready to obey at thy beck. It is prepared to attend upon thee, to minister to my Neighbours, to keep and watch myself, and to rest and dwell in the contemplation of heavenly things.  
A loving Companion, 
A loving Companion.  is dutiful and beneficial to all, burdensome to none. He is dutiful to all, because he is devout before God, kind towards his Neighbour, sober towards the World, the Servant of the Lord, the Companion of his Neighbour, the Lord of the World. He hath things that are above him, for his solace; things that are equal to him, for his fellowship; things that are beneath him, for his service: he is a burden to none, but reduceth those things which are beneath, to the profit of the mean, and to the honour of the superior, following superior things, drawing the inferior, possessed of the former, possessing the latter: he is a faithful servant, in the Meditation and contemplation of God, and in the care and custody of himself. Therefore first use all diligence, to keep and watch thyself, afterward understanding that thou canst not be able to keep and preserve thee by thy own industry, humbly entreat for the aid of the Divine clemency. Therefore that thou mayest behold the good, 
We must fly unto GOD in the time of necessity.  wellpleasing and perfect will of thy Creator in thee, faithfully in thy prayers solicit him, that his royal Camp of Angels may pitch their Tents round about thee. Desire zealously the protection of Christ thy Redeemer.  
Cry unto him and say, Behold a poor sinner standeth at thy door of mercy, open to him that knocketh, open thou oh sweet Saviour, which hast said, Knock and it shall be opened: that I may declare unto thee all my miseries and necessities which I suffer. power out the secrets of thy heart before him, and crave pardon for thy transgressions, by a sorrowful and true Confession. Let jesus Christ keep the door of thy heart. For when jesus Christ keepeth the door of the heart, and is the Porter, so that all of the Household of the heart, enter in and come out by him, Thousands of Angels forthwith are present, rejoicing at the gates of the outward senses: so that no Stranger dare break into those terrible Armies, because of the reverence and Majesty of the Doorkeeper, and the Watch and Ward of the Angels.   

How a man ought to examine himself. MOTIVE. V  
THou being a curious and strict examiner of thy integrity, examine thy life by a diligent and daily inquisition. Mark carefully how much thou dost profit and go forward, or how much thou dost decay, and go backwards: what thou art in manners, what thou art in affections; how like thou art to God our Redeemer and Saviour, or how unlike; how nigh, or how far, not by distances of places, but by affections of manners.  
Endeavour with all thy forces and all thy industry to know thyself; because thou art much better, and more laudable, if thou know thyself, then if thy own self being neglected and not regarded, thou shouldest know the course of the Stars, the virtue of herbs, the complexions of men, the natures of beasts, and shouldst have the science and knowledge of all celestial & terrestrial things. Therefore restore thyself to thyself, and if not always or often, at least sometime. Rule thy affections, direct thy actions, and correct thy footsteps: let nothing remain in thee, which is not rectified with necessary Discipline: place all thy transgressions before thy eyes: place thyself before thyself, as it were before another, and so bewail thyself. Lament thy iniquities and immeasurable sins, with which thou hast offended thy God, declare unto him thy miseries, show unto him the malice of thy adversaries. And when thou shalt humble thyself with tears before him, I pray thee that thou be mindful of me. 
How we ought to be mindful one of another in our prayers.  For I, since the time I have known thee in Christ, do love thee, and send up mention of thee thither, where both an unlawful thought doth deserve punishment, and an honest thought is not unrewarded. For when (like a spiritual Priest) I offer up the calves of my lips, and a sorrowful heart, upon the Altar of God, I do remember thee.  
Thou also shalt do the like office for me, if thou wilt love me, and make me partaker of thy prayers: I desire and covet to be present there with thee by remembrance, when thou pourest forth devout Prayers before God for thyself, thy familiar acquaintance, Parents, and Friends.  
Neither marvel, 
The just are all the Image of God.  if I have said, I desire to be present, if thou love me; and therefore dost love me, because I am the Image of God, I am as present to thee, as thou art to thyself, for whatsoever thou art, I am the same substantial.  
For every reasonable soul is the Image of God: wherefore he which seeketh the Image of God in himself, doth as well seek his Neighbour as himself. And he which shall light upon it, and find the same Image by seeking, knoweth the same in every man. For the sight of the soul is the understanding, therefore if thou seest thyself, thou seest me, because I am no other thing than thou art. And if thou lovest the most righteous and great GOD, thou lovest me, being the Image of God: 
The love toward God, appeareth in the love of our brethren.  And also I, if I love God, do love thee. And so while we seek one thing, and bend and incline to one thing, we are always present together, but in GOD, in whom we love one another.   

That a man ought to be diligent and devout in singing of Psalms, and in performing other Divine exercises in the Church, or elsewhere. MOTIVE. VI  
WHen thou shalt enter into the Church to pray, or to sing, leave the tumultuous, and disquietfull motions of thy wavering cogitations without doors, 
Cares of external things stop the passage of our prayers, that they cannot ascend into Heaven.  and utterly forget the care of external things, that thou mayest be at leisure to God alone. For it cannot be, that he can talk with God at any time, which holding his peace, doth also prattle to the whole World. Be therefore earnest and devout towards him, which is earnest and intentive towards thee, hear him speaking to thee, that he may hear thee speaking to him. And this shall be effected, if thou shalt be present at the performing of Divine praises, and holy exercises, with due reverence, and diligent carefulness, and attend to the divine Scripture. I do not say that I can do these things, but that I would, and it repenteth me, that I have not done them, & it doth not grieve me to do them. But thou, to whom greater grace is granted, by vows and devout prayers, turn the kind ears of the Lord to thee, with thy tears and sighs, and entreat him gently, for thy grievous transgressions, and with spiritual songs, laud, and glorify him in his works.  
For the heavenly Citizens are delighted in nothing so much as to behold it, nothing can be performed more pleasant & delightful to the King of Kings, as he doth testify: The Sacrifice of praise shall honour me.  

A Consort of heavenly Music.  Oh how happy shouldest thou be, if thou mightest once behold with spiritual eyes, how the Princes go before, joined to the Singers, in the midst of the Damosels, playing on the Timbrels. Thou shouldest see without doubt, with what care, with what dancing and rejoicing, they are present among the Singers: with what care and dancing they are present to them which are silent, to them which meditate; They are present with them which are silent, they rule over them which provide and govern all things in order. 
Angels rejoice for the salvation of men.  For the supernal powers do love their fellow-Citizens, and they all do seriously rejoice together for them, which receive the inheritance of salvation: they comfort, furnish, defend, and provide for all. For they desire our coming, because they expect the ruins of their City shall be thereby repaired. They diligently inquire, and willingly hear good things of the good; they run carefully too & fro, in the midst of us, between God and us, carrying our sighs and groans to him most faithfully, bringing back again to us, his grace and favour most devoutly. They will not disdain to be our companions, which are made our servants, we make them to triumph with joy, when we are converted to repentance.  
Therefore let us make haste to fulfil their joy by us. Woe unto thee, whosoever thou art, which dost desire to go again to thy vomit, and to return to the mire? Dost thou think thou shalt have them pacified and pleased at the day of judgement, whom thou wilt deprive of so great, and so long hoped for joy? They exceedingly rejoiced, when we came to the profession of true Religion, even as for them whom they did see called back from the very gate of Hell.  
What will it be then, when they shall see us return from the gate of Paradise, and that they should go backwards again, which had one foot in heaven? For although we have our bodies here beneath, yet we may lift up our hearts above. Therefore let us run, not with the steps of the body, but with the affections, but with the desires, but with sighs of the soul, because not only the Angels, but also the Creator of the Angels doth wait for us. GOD the Father doth wait for us, as children and heirs, that he may put us in possession of all his good.  
The Son of God doth wait for us as Brethren, and coheirs with him, that he may offer us to GOD the Father, the fruit of his Nativity, and price of his blood. The holy Ghost doth wait for us, for he is love and benignity: 
God's election irrevocable.  in which we are predestinated from Eternity, and there is no doubt, but he will have his predestination to be accomplished. Therefore because all the heavenly Court doth expect, and desire us, let us desire it with as great desire as we can.  
For he shall come to it with confusion and blushing, whosoever doth not vehemently desire to see it. But whosoever is conversant in the same, by continual prayer and daily meditation, he doth both depart from hence without grief, and is also received into it with great joy. Therefore, wheresoever thou shalt be, pray within thyself. If thou shalt be far from the place of prayer, thou thyself art a place. If thou shalt be in thy bed, or in some other place, pray thou: and where the Temple of prayer is, thou must pray often, and the body being bowed down, the mind is to be lifted up to God. 
What gesture is to be used of him which prayeth.  For as there is no moment, in which man doth not use, or enjoy the goodness and mercy of GOD: So there ought to be no moment, in which he should not have him present in memory. 
Objection of a faithless petitioner.  But you will say, I pray daily, and see no fruit of my prayer: but as I come to it, so I return from it: no body doth answer me, no body speaketh, none giveth any thing at all, but I seem to have laboured in vain. So speaketh man's foolishness, nor marking what the Truth afterward promiseth: saying, Verily I say unto you, that whatsoever ye ask praying, believe that you shall receive it, and it shall be performed to you. Do not therefore make slight account of thy prayer, because he to whom thou prayest, doth not make slight account of it, but before it passeth out of thy mouth, 
God giveth that he knoweth to be best for us.  he willeth that it should be written down in his Book. And we must undoubtedly hope for one thing of two, that either he will give us that which we ask, or that which he knoweth to be more profitable for us. Think therefore the best, whatsoever thou canst, of God, and the worst of thyself that thou mayst; thou oughtest to believe of him more copiously and amply than thou canst think. Make account that thou hast lost all that time in which thou dost not think of God. For all other things are none of our own, but the time only is our own. Therefore find leisure to serve GOD, and wheresoever thou shalt be, there be thou safe without danger. Do not wholly deliver up thyself to worldly affairs, but use the world as if thou usedst it not. In what place or state soever thou dost consist, cast thy thoughts upon God, and ponder something belonging to thy Salvation, in thy mind. 
We must rely only upon God.  Therefore with all facility, gathering thy mind together, dwell freely with thyself, and walk in the latitude and breadth of thy heart, there prepare, and make ready a large supping parlour for CHRIST: for the mind of a wise man is always with God. We ought to have him always before our eyes, by whom we are, live and understand. For we have him our Creator, that we should be, we also ought to have him our Teacher, that we should be wise, and the giver of inward sweetness, that we may be blessed, and in this we know his Image in us, that is, the Image of the most high Trinity. For as he is, he is both wise and also good; so also we, according to our small measure, both are, and know that we are, and both love to be, and to know the same. Therefore use thyself as the Temple of GOD, because of that which is in thee like to God. For it is the greatest Honour which can be performed to GOD to worship and to imitate him. Thou dost imitate him, if thou art godly, for a godly mind is a holy Temple to God, and the heart of a godly man, the best Altar. Thou dost worship him, if thou art merciful, 
He worshippeth God truly, that doth the deeds of charity.  as he is merciful unto all. For it is an acceptable sacrifice to God, to do good to all in regard of God. Do all things as the child of God, that thou mayst be worthy of him, who hath vouchsafed to call thee child. But in all things which thou dost, 
God is present every where.  know that God is present. Beware therefore, that neither thy eyes, nor thy thoughts, be fixed on that which breedeth a sinful delight: neither say nor do that which is unlawful, although it like thee, neither offend God by any deed, or gesture, which being present every where, beholdeth whatsoever thou dost any where. Thou hadst need to watch and look to thyself narrowly, because thou dost all things before the eyes of a judge, which seethe all things clearly. Nevertheless, thou needest not to stand in dread of him, but art secure with him, if thou prepare thyself to be such a one, as he may vouchsafe in favour to be present with thee; but if he be absent by grace, yet is he present with thee by revengement. 
God correcteth them whom he loveth.  But woe be to thee, if it be so with thee: yea, rather woe be unto thee, if he be not so with thee. For God is angry with him whom he scourgeth, not when he sinneth, for he condemneth him in time to come, perpetually, whom he doth not amend by scourging when he liveth wickedly.   

A Consideration of Death. MOTIVE. VII.  
IT is certain that Death threateneth thee every where, the Devil lieth in wait, that he may snatch away thy soul when it departeth out of thy body, but fear thou not, for GOD which dwelleth in thee (if he yet dwell in thee) will deliver thee from death, 
God forsaketh none but such as willingly forsake him first.  and from the Devil. For he is a faithful friend, neither doth he forsake them which trust in him, unless he be first forsaken of them. But he is forsaken when the heart, through wicked, vile, and unprofitable cogitations, roaveth hither and thither with a wandering understanding.  
Therefore thou must with all carefulness and vigilancy watch and keep it, that God may rest and remain in it. For in every Creature, which is busied and toiled in the vanities of the world under the Sun, 
Nothing in the world more noble than the heart of man.  nothing is more excellent than man's heart, nothing more Noble, nothing is found more like unto God, wherefore he requireth no other thing of thee, but thy heart. 
How to purify the heart.  Therefore cleanse the same by pure and sincere confession unto God, and continual Prayer, that thou mayst see God with a pure and clean heart, by a continual looking upon God.  
In every place be thou subject and intentive to him, and frame thy manners, that he may be pleased in thee. Love all men inwardly, and show thyself loving to all, that thou mayst be a peacemaker, and the child of God. So thou shalt be a good child, like unto thy heavenly Father, also holy, humble, and righteous. And when thou shalt be such a one, be mindful of me, to commend me to GOD in thy prayers. Woe be to me which say those things, and do them not, 
Good words must be seconded with good deeds.  and if I do them sometime, I continue not long in them, I have those things in my memory, and do not observe them in my life; I have them in my words, and not in my conditions; I ruminate and ponder the Law in my heart and my mouth all the day, and do things contrary to the law; I read of Religion in it, and I love Reading more than prayer.  
Notwithstanding, the holy Scripture doth teach me no other thing, but to love Religion, to preserve Unity, and to have Charity. Some body waiteth and attendeth for me, desirous to speak to me concerning his want and necessity, but I take some idle book or other, 
Immoderate reading must not let the practice of Charity, nor the exercise of Meditation.  which this man or that man commends unto me, I read in it, and by immoderate reading, I lose the practice of the fruits of Charity, the affections of piety, the lamentation of compunction, and hearty sorrow, the profit of the holy Sacraments, and contemplation of heavenly things. Nevertheless, nothing is found more sweet in this life, nothing is received more delicious, nothing doth so separate the understanding from the love of the world, nothing doth so fortify the mind against temptations, 
The profitable fruits of devout meditation.  nothing doth so stir up man, and further him to every good work and labour, as the Grace and benefit of divine meditation, and heavenly contemplation.   

In what manner a man ought to pray devoutly. MOTIVE. VIII.  
Have mercy upon me, oh God, because I offend there most where I ought to amend my sins. For while I pray often, in the place of prayer, I do not mark what I say, I pray truly with the mouth, but my mind wandering abroad, I am deprived of the fruit of prayer. With my body I am within, but with my heart I am without.  
And therefore I lose that I say. For it profiteth little to sing, or pray with the voice only, without the devotion of the heart. Therefore it is great foolishness, yea, rather great madness, when we do presume to speak with the Lord of Majesty in prayer, 
It is presumption to pray without hearty and true devotion.  and being without understanding, do turn our mind from him, and turn our heart, I know not to what fooleries and toys. It is also great madness, and grievously to be punished, when most vile and base dust, doth disdain to hear the Creator of the whole world speaking to it.  
But it is an unspeakable grace of the Divine goodness, which doth daily behold us unhappy wretches, turning away our ears, hardening our hearts, and nevertheless crieth out to us, saying: Return ye Transgressor's with your heart, attend and see, because I am God.  
God speaketh to me in a Psalm, neither yet when I say a Psalm, do I consider whose Psalm it is. Wherefore I do great injury to God, when I pray to him to hear my prayer, which I do not hear myself, who do utter the same.  
I entreat him that he attend to me, 
The prayer of the wicked is turned into abomination.  but I neither attend to myself, nor to him, but that which is far worse, by thinking filthy and unprofitable things within my heart, I bring an horrible stink before his sight.   

Of the instability and wandering of the heart. MOTIVE. IX.  

The heart of man is tossed to and fro in the stream of evil cogitations.  NOthing is more unconstant, instable, and fugitive in me, than my heart, the which so often as it leaveth me, floweth and fleeteth away by evil cogitations, so often it offendeth God. My heart, great heart, wandering, unstable while it is led by his own will, cannot remain constant in itself, but being more movable than any movable thing, is distracted and drawn through infinite things, and runneth up & down, hither and thither, through innumerable matters.  
And while it seeketh rest and content by divers things, it cannot find the same: but continueth in the labour and turmoil of misery, void of rest and contentment. and seeketh here and there, where it may rest, and findeth nothing which may suffice it, until it doth return to him back again, who gave it.  
It is led from cogitation to cogitation, and it is altered and changed, by divers employments and affections, that at least it may be filled with variety and change of those things, with whose quality it cannot any way possibly be satisfied.  
So the heart is troubled with its own illusions and fantasies; 
The heart revolting from God, can find no rest, until it return to God. All that we have is Gods own, yet he saith, give me thy heart.  the Divine grace being removed and substracted. And when it is returned to itself, and discusseth and examineth that which it thought, it findeth nothing, because it was not a work, but an unsavoury and unseasonable thought, which compoundeth and frameth many things of little or nothing at all.  
And lastly, imagination deceiveth it, which the illusion of the Devil formeth and shapeth. God commandeth me that I give him my heart, and because I am not obedient and subject to God, commanding, I am rebellious, and contrary to myself. Whereby I cannot be brought in subjection to myself, until I shall be subject to him, and serve myself with an evil will, which would not serve him with a good will. Therefore my heart plotteth, endeavoureth, and goeth about more things in one moment, than all men are able to perform in a year; I am not united with God, and therefore I am divided in myself. I cannot be truly united with him, but by love: neither be subject to him, but by humility: neither can I be truly humble, but by truth.  
It is expedient therefore that I examine myself in Truth, and know how vile, how frail, how unconstant and slippery I am. Afterwards, when I shall know all my wants and miseries, it is needful that I cleave unto him, by whom I am, and without whom I am nothing, and can do nothing: and because I have departed from the Lord by sinning, I cannot return unto him but by true confession. Therefore I must now confess in truth and sincerity, because I have never confessed my sins, in that measure and manner, in which I have sinned, neither have I remembered all; either because of the antiquity or multitude of them. But if I have confessed them, I have not sincerely confessed them, but have flattered the flesh in my confession, and have dealt falsely in casting up the sum of my great and grievous transgressions. And it is a cursed dissimulation, to make but a slight and counterfeit confession of our rebellions towards GOD, and of our injurious and uncharitable actions towards men, and only to pair the outside of sin away, and as it were, to wash our hands with a little water, & not to pluck up sin by the roots, that it may never afterwards grow up in our hearts.  

Our Confession must be true and sincere.  For confession is not profitable, but in the Truth and purity of the heart, that there may be three which may bear us witness in Heaven: The Father, and the Son, and the holy Ghost. And as men have been beholders of our manifold transgressions, so let us make them witnesses of our humble repentance, and hearty contrition. And although we must, and aught to acknowledge GOD alone to be All-sufficient to grant us free pardon and absolution, yet we should not refuse to show forth manifest testimonies to men, of our true and sincere Humiliation. To which, the Apostle Saint james, doth counsel and persuade us, saying: Confess your sins one to another.  
For it is very convenient, that we, which have been stubborn and rebellious by sinning against GOD, should be humble also towards men, whom we have offended, either by the evil example of our wicked life, or else by our wrongful dealing and false deeds.  
For it is most healthful to the soul, that a man repent in heart, and acknowledge his fault with his mouth, so that God, which is present in Mercy and Grace, may prick his heart by compunction and bitter repentance, and afterward may be also present and ready to give him full pardon of his sins. But if a sinner do truly repent, and yet by some accidental necessity be prevented that he cannot make any acknowledgement to such men as he hath offended, we must confidently believe that whatsoever is defective in him concerning such acknowledgement, is fulfilled by Christ, who hath made a full satisfaction. For GOD accepteth that as done, which a man hath been willing, although not able to perform.   

That Sin is not to be excused. MOTIVE. X.  
IN the account of my sins, where I should have amended, I have augmented my sins, and added sins to sins. When I have been accused of them, I have either by some means excused them, 
An unrelenting sinner will either cunningly excuse or flatly deny his sin.  or wholly denied them, or that which is worst, I have maintained and defended them, and have answered impatiently, when indeed there is no sin with which I am not, or may not be polluted. It is just therefore, all occasion being removed, that I promise amendment, howsoever, or of whatsoever I am accused, to the end that I may be delivered from sin committed or to be committed.   

What a great evil it is, not to correct or reprehend others. MOTIVE. XI.  
I Greatly dreading the multitude of my own iniquities, have been afraid to reprehend the transgressions of others, 
By silence we make ourselves guilty of other men's sins, when we ought to admonish or correct them.  and therefore have been the Author of death, because I have not expelled the poison, which I might have purged by crying out unto them.  
I have stormed against others, and have been incensed with fury, when they have reprehended me for my vices, and I have hated them whom I ought to have loved: I desired that those things might not be, which did hurt or displease me.  
Nevertheless, I did know that in their own Nature they were good, and made of a good Maker; and therefore they did hurt me, because I was evil, and did use them evilly. For nothing is contrary or hurtful to myself, 
Good things are made evil by abuse.  but I myself. For that is with me and in me, whatsoever is able to hurt me, and I myself am a burden to myself.  
I wished also that God might not know my sins, or that he would not, or could not punish them, and so I would have God to be foolish, unjust, and impotent. Which if he were, he were not a God. There is no Pride above my Pride, therefore the words of my transgressions are far from my salvation: 
Pride and God cannot dwell together.  For Pride is suspected and hateful to GOD, neither can it be, that it may return into favour with him. They lodge in divers Inns, neither do they dwell together in one and the same mind, which might not dwell together in HEAVEN. She was borne in Heaven; but being as it were unmindful, by what way she fell from thence, she hath not been able to return thither afterward.  
When as the Air hath been at sometime troubled with Raine, or else with too much cold or heat, I murmured wickedly against God. For all things which we received for the use of life, we revert, or rather pervert, to the use of wickedness. Wherefore it is just, that we which have sinned in all things, be smitten and wounded in all things. Oftentime in singing divine Psalms, 
God more respecteth a true mourning heart, than a sweet melodious voice.  I was more delighted with the tune of my voice, then in the compunction of my heart. But God, to whom nothing is hidden, which is wickedly committed, doth not so much require the sweetness of the voice, as the purity of the heart. For while the Singer doth tickle & delight the people with melodious voices, he moveth God to wrath, with his evil conditions.  
I have oftentimes extorted of my Governors and Rulers licence to speak, or to do something by overmu h importunity, or by crafty subtlety, not considering miserable wretch, that he couseneth and deceiveth himself which laboureth privily, or secretly that the Magistrate or Minister may enjoin him that which may best sort and most please his corrupt desire. I have often coveted and desired a Needle or a Knife, or some base thing, and I have not been touched with any sense of sorrow for my covetous desire, because I did not esteem it a sin, by reason of the baseness of the matter. 
Concupiscence is not to be judged by the estimation of the thing, but by the corruption of the desire.  But there is no great difference, what substance so ever be desired, base or precious, if the affection be equally corrupted. For the Knife is not in fault, but the covetous desire of the Knife is to be condemned. Neither is Gold in fault, but the greedy desire of Gold is vicious and sinful.  
In my labour, I have not laboured so much as I should, or so much as I could.  
In silence also I have been idle, which is a most great sin. For in silence no man ought to be so idle, that in the same leisure he thinketh not on the profit of his Neighbour: nor so busied, that he require not the Meditation, and contemplation of God. For he doth not profit himself much, which doth not profit another when he may.  
I have boasted myself of my Vices, thinking that to be a sign of Virtue, which was a criminal Trespass. Of Virtues also I have made Vices. For justice, while it exceedeth due mediocrity and measure, engendereth the Vice of all bad and hateful cruelty: and too much pity, bringeth forth the dissolution and overthrow of discipline, and necessary correction, so oftentimes that is vice which is supposed to be virtue. 
Vices are taken, (or rather mistaken) for virtues.  So careless remissness, is supposed to be gentle mildness, and the vice of slothfulness doth imitate the virtue of quietness. I feigned myself to be that which I was not, or that I would not do that which I would, said one thing with my mouth, and willed another thing in my heart, and so under the skin of a Sheep, I shrouded the conscience, indeed of a subtle Fox. 
* Notes of a deceitful Conscience.  For indeed a lukewarm conversation, and a more natural and corrupt cogitation, joined with a feigned confession, a short compunction, obedience without devotion, prayer without earnest intention, reading without edifying, speech without careful circumspection, are properties of a Foxlike and crafty conscience. Oh how hard are these things to me which I speak, because I smite & wound myself by speaking them: notwithstanding, because I do not deny myself to be a sinner, but do acknowledge my sin, peradventure the acknowledgement of my faults, shall be the obtaining of my pardon with GOD, a merciful and pitiful judge. 
The confession of sins is a ready way to obtain remission.  Therefore I will declare my misery, if peradventure his kindness and pity may move him, I will confess my sin, because the acknowledgement of sin is the beginning of salvation. I carry myself kindly towards men, I exceed not in my garments, I am careful to observe Ecclesiastical Orders, to pray and sing at hours appointed, but my heart is far from my God. I looking upon the outward part, think all things are safe and well to me, not feeling the inward Worm which gnaweth the inward bowels. As it is recorded in the seventh Chapter of Oseas, Strangers have eaten up my strength, and I knew it not.  
And therefore, wholly occupied and employed about those things which are without, and altogether ignorant of the things within me, I am powered out like water, and brought to nothing, forgetting things past, neglecting things present, not foreseeing things to come: I am unthankful for benefits received, prone to evil, and slow to good.   

How every man ought to consider himself. MOTIVE. XII.  
IF I do not look upon myself, I know not myself, but if I look upon myself, I cannot tolerate or endure myself: because I find such great things in myself, which are worthy of reprehension and confusion: and by so much the more narrowly and more often I examine myself, by so much the more are the abominations I find in the secret corners of my heart. For from the very first moment I began to sin, I could not let one day pass without sin.  
Neither as yet do I cease to sin, but from day to day, I add sins to sins, and I have them before mine eyes. 
When we sin without sense of sin, our soul is sick, even unto death.  I behold them, yet I do not groan nor sigh for them. I see things to be blushed at, neither do I blush: I look upon things to be grieved at, neither am I grieved: which thing is a sign of death, and a token of damnation. For a member, which feeleth not the pain, is mortified and dead: and a disease insensible, is always incurable. I am unconstant, and dissolute, neither do I reform myself, but I return daily to the sins I have confessed: neither do I take heed of the Ditch, into which I wretched creature have fallen, or into which I have made or seen another fall into. And when I should have wept and prayed for the evils I committed, and for the good things I neglected (oh grief) it turned to me into the contrary: For I was lukewarm, and I was quite cold from the fervent heat of prayer, and now have remained cold without sense; and therefore I cannot bewail myself, because the grace of tears is departed from me.   

Of the presence of the Conscience every where. MOTIVE. XIII.  
I Cannot conceal my sins, because wheresoever I go my conscience is with me, carrying with it whatsoever I have laid up in it, either evil or good. It keepeth the pledge which it hath received from me, being alive, it will restore the same to me being dead. If I do evilly, it is present: If I seem to do well, and therefore am lifted up, it is present. Is present to me being alive, it followeth me being dead: there is inseparable confusion to me everywhere, according to the quality of the pledge it hath received. So, so, in my own house, 
A sinner hath his accusers within himself.  and from my own family, I have mine accusers, Witnesses, judge, and Tormentors.  
My Conscience doth accuse me, my Memory is the witness against me: Reason, the judge: my Will, the Prison: Fear, the Executioner: and my delight the Torment.  
For how many wicked delights there have been to procure my carnal pleasure, so many Torments there shall be in my grievous punishment: for we are thereby punished, from whence we delighted.   

Of the three Enemies of man.. MOTIVE. XIIII.  
Help me oh my God, because mine enemies have besieged and compassed my soul round about namely the Body, the World, and the Devil. 
The flesh, the first enemy of man.  I cannot fly from the body, nor drive it away from me. I must needs carry it about me, because it is fast tied and bound unto me, I may not destroy it, I am compelled to nourish and sustain it. And when I make it fat, I nourish mine adversary, against myself. For if I shall pamper myself, and that I shall be lusty and strong, the health and strength of it doth trouble and molest me. 
The world the second enemy of man.  Likewise the world doth hem me in, and besiege me on every side, and by five gates (to wit) by the five senses of the body; namely, the sight, hearing, tasting, smelling, and touching, doth wound me with his arrows, and Death entereth by my windows into my soul.  
Mine eye looketh back, and turneth away my Understanding. Mine ear heareth, and turneth aside the intention of my heart. Smelling hindereth my devout cogitation. My mouth speaketh, and deceiveth. By touching, the burning of Lust is stirred up, by any small occasion, and unless it be quenched, it suddenly possesseth, burneth, and inflameth the whole body.  
First, it tickleth the flesh a little with thought, afterward it defileth the mind with filthy delight, and at last it subiugateth and captiveth the mind by consent unto wickedness.  
Further, the Devil whom I cannot see, 
The Devil, the third enemy of man.  and therefore can the less be wary of him, he hath bend his Bow, and made ready his Arrows in it, that he may suddenly wound me: He hath declared that he would hide his Snares, and hath said, 
The Devil useth gold and silver for alluring baits, to procure the soul's bane.  Who shall see them? He hath laid a snare in gold and silver, and in all things which we abuse, with them we are evilly delighted, and are ensnared. He hath not only laid a Snare, but also Birdlime.  
The love of possessions is Birdlime, the affection of kindred, 
The devils Bird lime.  the desire of Honour, and the pleasure of the flesh, by which the soul is glued and entangled, that it cannot 〈◊〉 through the streets of heavenly Zion, with the wings of Contemplation. 
The Arrows of 〈◊〉 Devil.  The Arrows and Shafts of the Devil are, Anger, Envy, Concupiscence, and other vices: with which the soul is wounded. And who is he which is able to quench his fiery Darts? Oh lamentable grief! a faithful soul is often wounded with these Darts, and overcome with these temptations. Alas for me, because I see wars prepared for me on every side, Darts fly about every where, on every side assailments, on every side dangers, wheresoever I shall turn myself there is no safety, no security: I fear both those things which delight me, and also those things which make me sad, and molest me. I fear all things: Hunger and refection, sleep and watching, labour and resting do fight against me. jesting is no less suspected of me then anger: for I after given offence unto many by jesting: Neither do I less fear prosperity then adversity: For prosperous things, with their sweetness, make me careless, and deceive me: but adverse and contrary things, because they have some bitterness, as bitter Potions, do make me suspicious and fearful. I fear the evil more which I do privily, then that which I do openly. For the Temptor cometh boldly to the evil, which no man seethe, which no man comprehendeth, and where no man is feared which should find fault with it, and so iniquity is more easily committed.  
Truly, there is War on both sides, danger on both sides, to be feared on both sides. And even as they which remain in the Land of their enemies, must look on this side, and that side, and must turn their head about at every noise: So the flesh suggesteth pleasant things to me, the world vain things, the Devil bitter things, because so often as a carnal cogitation doth importunately move & assail my mind, concerning meat and drink, sleep, and other like things, belonging to the care and provision of the flesh, the flesh speaketh to me. When a vain thought is busied in my heart concerning worldly Ambition, bragging and boasting, it proceedeth from the world: But when I am provoked to anger and wrath, and to bitterness of mind, it is a devilish suggestion, the which I must resist no otherwise, than the Devil himself, neither must I any otherwise take heed and beware of it, then of damnation itself. It is the office of Devils to bring in false suggestions: it is our duite not to consent to them; For so often as we resist them, so often we overcome the Devil, we glad the Angels, we honour God. For he doth exhort and encourage us that we may fight: he helpeth us, that we may overcome: he beholdeth us fight: he succoureth us fainting: he crowneth us conquering.   

From whence the flesh of Man proceedeth, and what it bringeth forth. MOTIVE. XV.  
MY flesh proceedeth from the clay, and therefore I have voluptuous thoughts from it, vain and curious cogitations from the world, 
Three cruel enemies of man.  evil & malicious suggestions from the Devil. These three enemies do assail & persecute me, sometime openly, sometime secretly, but always maliciously: For the Devil trusteth most in the help of the flesh, because a domestical enemy doth most hurt, and procureth greatest harm. For she hath entered a league with him for my ruin, overthrow, and destruction: to wit, being borne of sin, and nourished in sin, corrupted with vices from the very beginning: 
Flesh is corrupted, be birth, nurture, and custom.  but made a great deal more vicious by evil custom. From hence it proceedeth, that she coveteth and lusteth so eagerly against the spirit, that she continually murmureth, and cannot abide good discipline and wholesome correction, because she suggesteth unlawful things, will neither obey reason, nor is bridled with any fear. That wretched Serpent approacheth to her, he aideth her, he useth her being the old and deadly enemy of mankind: who hath no other desire, no other business, no other exercise, but to destroy ourselves. 
The continual practice of the Devil.  This is he which imagineth mischief continually, speaketh subtly, suggesteth artificially, deceiveth craftily. He inspireth wicked and unlawful motions, raiseth wars, nourisheth hatred, stirreth up gluttony, incenseth lust, pricketh forward the unbridled desires of the flesh, and prepareth baits and occasion of sin, and also assaulteth without ceasing, the hearts of men with a thousand slights, to hurt and destroy them. From hence it falleth out, that he beateth us with our own staff, bindeth our hands with our own girdle, and cutteth our throat with our own knife, so that the flesh which is given to us for a help, becometh to us ruin and hurt, and is as a block in our way, to make us to stumble. It is a grievous combat, and a great danger to fight against such a domestical enemy, especially, seeing we are strangers, and he a Citizen; he inhabiteth his own Country, we are banished men and strangers. It is also great peril and danger to endure so often, yea rather such continual conflicts of his devilish policy, whom, as well subtle nature, as long exercise of his inveterate malice, hath made so politic and crafty.   

Of the short life of man. MOTIVE. XVI.  
THe day of man is as it were a shadow, or rather a shadow upon earth, it hath no continuance: and then it is properly nothing, and more vain than any thing, when it seemeth to stand surest, and to rest upon a sound foundation.  
Therefore why doth a covetous man hoard up treasure here upon earth so greedily, 
The folly of rich men.  when both he himself must pass away so suddenly, & also the treasure which he hath stored up so carefully? And in truth (oh foolish man) what fruit canst thou expect in the world, whose sweetest fruit is utter ruin; whose end is death and woeful destruction? Would to GOD thou wert wise, could understand and carefully provide in thy short life, against the day of thy certain and uncertain death. 
A notable description of the old man, or sin.  I know one who many years hath lived familiarly with thee, hath sat down at thy Table, hath received meat from thine own hand, hath slept in thy bosom, and when he would, hath had private conference with thee.  
He by hereditary law is but thy servant. But because from his tender years, thou hast pampered him delicately, brought him up very wanton, and hast spared the rod foolishly, he is now become stubborn and rebellious against thee.  
He hath lifted up his heel above thy head, he hath brought thee into slavish bondage, and doth cruelly tyrannize over thee. But peradventure thou wilt say; Who is he? It is thy old man, which treadeth and trampleth thy Spirit under feet, who disdaineth, contemneth, and reputeth less than nothing that blessed Land, which is solely and wholly to be desired, because nothing can give a sweet taste, or procure a pleasing relish to his corrupted humour, but only such things as may please the wanton flesh, and her untemperate desires. This man is blind and deaf from his Nativity, dumb, ancient with days many and evil, rebellious against virtue, opposite to verity, an Enemy of the Cross of Christ. He scorneth, derideth, and flouteth the innocent, and that man which walketh uprightly in truth and sincerity. He busieth himself, and intermeddleth with great and wonderful matters, which do far exceed his weak capacity, and much surpass the short reach of his dull & doltish understanding. His arrogancy and impudent boldness, is more than all his fortitude and forces: he dreadeth none, nor standeth in awe of any: but saith proudly in his doting foolishness, There is no God. He pineth and consumeth with good things, he is also fed and nourished with other men's evils, he is fatted and cherished with unclean thoughts, and impure cogitations, he is never tired, nor wearied with them, rebelling and transgressing even unto the end: he disperseth & scattereth abroad his own, like an unthrifty & wasting Prodigal: he coveteth and raketh to himself other men's goods, like a covetous and greedy Miser; he heapeth up to himself Ignominy and foul reproach, by his odious fraud and dissimulation, and through his malicious subtlety, kindleth the wrath of God against him, and daily addeth more fuel to augment the flame.  
This man was conceived, bred, and borne in sin, and so being nurtured, and nuzzled in sin, is become a friend of iniquity, the child of death, the vessel of wrath, exposed to contumelious reproach, and final destruction. Who, although he be so corrupted with wicked manners, depraved with vile conditions, and deprived of all commendable virtues, yet he uttereth forth the sacred justice of God, with his dissembling words, and taketh his holy covenant in his profaned mouth. He hateth discipline, and scorneth correction, he dishonoureth his sovereign Lord, and casteth his commandments contemptuously behind his back.  
When he spieth a Thief, he entereth a league of society, and runneth to mischief with him, he shareth and hath his portion with filthy and unclean Adulterers, he is wholly delighted with their scandalous amity, he always frequenteth their damnable society. He forgetteth many false accusations and criminal objections against the son of his own and only mother; he also treasureth wrath upon thee against the day of wrath and vengeance, to work and contrive thy woeful and eternal perdition: he would rob and quite deprive thee of thy rich and royal inheritance, and would banish thee for ever from thy heavenly and most happy Country, to dwell in a land of perpetual darkness, full of everlasting woes and lamentations.  
Yet thou art so blinded with self-conceited folly, and so besotted with thy doting affections, that thou wilt not lift up so much as thy little finger, to revenge so great, so notorious, and grievous an injury, but are content to dissemble thy hurts, and to put up all his wrongs he hath done unto thee, to hold thy tongue, and so to let them pass away in silence; neither dost thou speak an unkind or froward word, nor show him a frowning or sour look, but thou smilest upon him with a joyful face. When he flattereth & sootheth thee in thy dangerous follies, thou dost sport, play, dally, and solace thyself with a scornful mocker, thou knowest not that it is a deriding Ishmael, which sporteth and playeth with thee.  
This is no Childish sport acted in simplicity, and qualified with harmless innocency: but the beginning of it is bloody persecution, and the end of it everlasting death and damnation: he hath tumbled thee down headlong into the deep pit which he digged and made for thy eternal destruction: now thou art become an effeminate Coward, and hast lost the vigour of thy manly forces: now thou being a wretched Captive, pressed down with the grievous yoke of most miserable and slavish bondage art basely dejected, trampled, and trod upon under his feet.  
O wretched, woeful, and miserable man, who shall deliver, rescue, and redeem thee from the heavy band and bondage of this ignominious, and opprobrious Nickname? Let God arise, and let that armed man fall down to the ground, 
If God be on our side, we need not care who be against us.  let him fall flat on the ground, & let that direful foe, and bloody Tyrant be beaten into pieces, as small as the dust, to be scattered abroad with the violence of the stormy winds. A proud contemner of God, and all that are good; a worshipper of himself; a friend of the world, a servant of the devil. What thinkest thou? What is thy opinion? How inclineth thy mind and affection? If Reason be thy Pilot to direct the course of thy opinion, and Wisdom the Master to stir the helm of thy Understanding, thou wilt say with me, He hath committed most vile and horrible treason against the highest Majesty, he is guilty of death, let him be crucified, and let him suffer (as he hath well deserved) the extreme rigour of most bitter and painful Torments of the flesh.  
Do not therefore play the Hypocrite, and mask thy counterfeiting affections with the vizard of dissimulation, defer not his execution from day to day, by a fond reprivall, spare him not for foolish pity, but speedily, boldly, & instantly crucify that sinful and guilty Traitor.  
But on the Cross of Christ, by whose death we are restored and raised to life, made coheir with him of his glorious Kingdom, and of everlasting Salvation: to whom if thou shalt cry with a sorrowful compunction of a groaning heart, and with the deep sighs of a grieved and penitent mind: then thy crucified Christ will hear thee speedily, answering thee kindly: To day thou shalt be with me in Paradise.  
Oh wonderful pity of Christ, a most loving Saviour! oh undeserved, nay unexpected Salvation of a great and grievous Sinner! So bountiful, so graceful, and so delightful is the exceeding love of God: so admirable is his sweetness, so far beyond our opinion is his favourable kindness, so immeasurable is his meekness, that his ears are always open to hear the complaints of his people: he is always at leisure to receive with kindness, and to answer with speediness, the humble petitions of those which in time of their distresses, will faithfully call upon him, and with contrite and relenting hearts, will reverently approach near unto him, because his mercy toward us, is without measure, and his tender compassion knoweth no bounds.  
Oh how great, worthy, and wonderful is the mercy of our gracious God Oh how unutterable is the powerful alteration of the right hand of the highest? Yesterday I was fast fettered in the Prison of darkness, under the check of a cruel and merciless Murderer: 
How pleasant is the freedom of sin.  to day I am in the hand of a pitiful and merciful Mediator. Yesterday I was in the gate of devouring hell, on every side affrighted with fear, and afflicted with misery: to day I am in the pleasant Paradise, of eternal delights and pleasure, totally replenished with never-decaying joy, endless delight, and everlasting felicity. But how may these Letters of admonition prevail? how may they profit? unless thou raze out of the Book of thy Conscience, the black letters of thy bloody death, and sinful debt? How can these sentences afford thee any solace, procure any profit, or bring any comfort when they are read and understood, unless thou read thyself truly, know and understand perfectly? Do thy best diligence, afford thy chiefest endeavours to internal and mental reading: 
The true end and use of reading books.  that thou mayest read thyself truly, look into thyself circumspectly, and know thyself thoroughly.  
Read, that thou mayest love God unfeignedly, that thou mayest fight, and hold out until the end of the battle courageously, and that thou mayest overcome the world, and every cruel enemy victoriously: so that thy toiling labour may be turned into eternal rest and quietness: thy woeful mourning into mirth and gladness, thy streams of tears, into rivers of comfortable waters: and that when Death hath quite put out the twinkling Lamp of thy daily consuming life, thou mayest see the bright and glorious appearing of that evershining Morning; whose ever-glistering Sun shall never set, nor his golden beams be ever obscured with any cloudy Evening.  
And that thou mayest also see with thy clear-sighted eyes, never wearied in beholding, to thy Souls eternal solace, to the infinite joy of thy triumphing mind, and constant delight of all thy purified senses, the resplendent and radiant beams of the gliftering Sun of conspicuous righteousness, in which thou mayest behold the bountiful, the beautiful, the glorious Bridegroom, the Lord jesus Christ, united with his everlasting, most dear, best, and only beloved Spouse, whom he hath decked with his rich and royal Robes, adorned with superexcellent and admirable beauty, having with his own precious Blood, yea, 
We are cleansed by Christ's blood.  his heart-blood, washed, cleansed, and rinced her from all the foul stains, spots, and blemishes of her former sinful deformity: He that is one, and the same Lord of Eternal glory, who liveth and reigneth, by Times which are without any bounds of measure, and whose ever-durable continuance shall never have any ending.   
FINIS.   

A most zealous and devout Lamentation of blessed Anselmus, sometime Archbishop of Canterbury, for the loss of his Souls virginity, appliable unto the soul of every mortified Christian.  
OH my soul, sorrowful soul! 
job 14.1.5.7. Eccles. 1.13 & 3.10.  Oh miserable soul, of a miserable, wretched, and contemptible Creature! Arise out of the bed of senseless security, and narrowly examine the particulars of thy great and grievous transgressions, 
Great sins desire and deserve great sorrows.  rouse up thy drowsy understanding, let the sense of thy heinous sins wound thy heart with such a doleful compunction, that thy deep fetched sighs may pierce the skies with the sharp accent of thy sorrows. Let the greatness of thy 
b Ezech. 18.4.5.  wickedness affright thee with dismaying horror, and deeply wound thee with intolerable dolour. 
The terror of a wicked conscience.  Thou, I say, which sometime being made as white as Snow with the 
c Eph. 2.22 Rom 3.25. and 5.10.  celestial Fountain and Lavor, endowed with the holy Spirit, bound by a sacred oath to maintain thy Christian profession, being a Virgin hast been obedient, espoused to Christ thy glorious, 
d Mat. 19.15 & 25.1.5.6.  Bridegroom.  
Alas! too well I remember it. Oh whom have I named? verily not so kind a Spouse, of my chaste Virginity, as a terrible 
e Wis. 17.1. Mat. 16.27. Rom. 2.1.  judge of my odious impurity! Alas, woeful is the remembrance of my decayed pleasure. Why dost thou more and more increase the sorrow of the possessor? How miserable is the lot of wicked and heinous offences, to whom both good and evil, do breed nothing else, but torment and torture? For an evil 
f Wis. 17.10.  Conscience doth trouble and vex me, and horror of that unquenchable fire doth terrify me, in which I fear I shall burn continually, and never be consumed. The remembrance of a good Conscience, and of the rewards of it, doth afflict and affright me, which I know I have lost, and shall never repossess or recover.  
Woe is me to lose, to lose that without hope of recovery, which should have been carefully 
g Acts 23.16.  preserved for ever. Oh comfortless sorrow, to lose that which doth not only deprive me of good things, but doth also multiply my torments? Oh Virginity, now not beloved of me, but lost & departed from me, thou art now not my only solace, and felicity, but alone my only sorrow, and incurable misery; how is thy former beauty changed into disdainful deformity? Into what deep pit of calamity hast thou dejected me?  
Oh thou hateful Fornication, which hast defiled my mind with thy contagious uncleanness, and infected my soul with deadly diseases; how and from whence didst thou creep into my wretched bosom, to vex and molest me? From what glorious and delightful state of Felicity hast thou tumbled me headlong, to languish in continual misery? On this side bitter sorrow doth sting me, on the other side extreme pangs and terrible fear doth torment me, while my mind is distracted with heavy meditations upon my unrecoverable losses.  
And as my losses are void of hope and consolation, so my torment will admit no moderation; and a Sea of woes doth overflow me. But if that which is good, and that which is evil do both alike punish, and justly afflict me, so that I often feel the horror of death, while I live in this wretched life, my guilty conscience doth tell me, and my perplexed thoughts teach me, that I have worthily deserved it.  
For thou my Soul, disloyal, perjured against God thy Creator, and become a filthy strumpet, to the dishonour of Christ thy loving Lord and Redeemer; art woefully thrown down from thy glorious & high estate of unspotted Virginity, into the bottomless lake of loathsome Adultery. Thou, sometime espoused to the King of Heaven, art now become an Harlot to the tormentor of Hell.  
Alas, for thee that art cast out of the favour of God, who did so kindly regard thee, and art exposed to the malice of the devil, who will most cruelly torment thee! Nay, rather thou which hast cast away God, and embraced the devil. For thou being changed most miserably from a virtuous Virgin, to a vicious strumpet, and an impudent Harlot; thou first hast offered an unkind refusal of thy first love to God, thy gracious Creator: and wilfully and willingly hast prostituted thyself to the lust of the devil, a cunning deceiver, and thy cruel murderer.  
Oh damnable exchange, most miserable, and more than most miserable alteration! Alas, from what high seat of blessedness art thou thrown down? into what deep dungeon of cursedness art thou overwhelmed? Alas, how kind and loving a Husband hast thou treacherously rejected? how malicious, merciless, and dreadful a Tyrant hast thou accepted! Ah, what hast thou done, thou furious madness of my doting understanding, thou doting uncleanness, and unclean impiety, what hast thou done? Thou hast utterly forsaken thy chaste and faithful Spouse, who gloriously raineth in Heaven, and hast eagerly followed the Author of thy odious uncleanness into hell: and in that deep gulf of everlasting darkness, hast not prepared for thyself a Bride-chamber, to solace thyself with thy true and chaste beloved; but a filthy brothelhouse, where thou mayest be defiled, and polluted with incurable uncleanness.  
What wonderful horror doth attend upon thee? what perverse will and lustful desires hath bewitched thee? Oh horrible wonder, oh voluntary madness!  
How, oh God, am I fallen into the corruption of such great impiety? How oh Lord God, shall I make satisfaction unto thee for my grievous iniquity? Throw thyself down, thou miserable and cursed Creature, into the depth of immoderate mourning and misery, who hast willingly cast thyself down into the Gulf of immeasurable and horrible iniquity. Let the weight of thy wickedness overwhelm thee, let the heavy burden of thy unsupportable sorrow wholly depress thee which art willingly tumbled into the filthy Mire of infernal stink, and hellish savours: be thou overwhelmed with the horrible darkness of comfortless and in consolable sorrow, which hast wittingly cast thyself down into a gulf of such beastly and luxurious pleasures. Wallow thou in the whirepoole of bitterness, which hast sported and delighted thyself in the puddle of lascivious filthiness. Oh ye horrible terror, terrible sorrow, uncomfortable mourning, muster yourselves against me, assault, overwhelm, vex, cover, trample upon me. It is just, it is just, my wicked deeds have deserved it.  
I have with impudent boldness disdained and contemned your forces, and with shameful sensuality have procured your displeasure: yea, rather I have provoked God, and not you, and now with lamentable repentance I desire you to pour your full measure of vengeance upon me. Torment and torture the guilty, that my sovereign Lord may be avenged, whom I have so highly offended. Let the vicious fornicator feel before hand the Torments of Hell, which he hath deserved: let him taste before hand, that which he hath prepared: let him have some smack of those tormenting pangs and passions, which he shall abide and suffer hereafter.  
Extend and augment, (thou immoderate and unsatiable sinner) thy sorrowful and doleful repentance, which hast so far enlarged the leprous uncleanness of thy odious and detestable vices. Tumble thyself, and throw thyself again into the whirl pool of ceaseless sorrow, bitterness, and doleful distresses, which hast so oft thrown down thyself into the filthy pit of thy lustful desires, and carnal pleasures. Consolation, security, delightful pleasure, and joy, do ye now no more approach near unto me, I hate and loathe your delectable company, unless pardon of my sin shall reconcile and restore you. Let heavy pensiveness and bitter mourning, be still at hand, like cruel Tormentors, and bloody executioners, to vex me in my growing youth, and to trouble me in my wearisome age. Would to God, would to God it may be so, I wish, pray, desire it may be so. If I be not worthy to list up my eyes towards HEAVEN, when I put up my humble supplication, truly I am not unworthy to obscure them, and to put out their light with the streams and fountain of tears, and lamentable weeping.  
If my mind be confounded with great shamefulness of my guilty Conscience, that it cannot pray and crave for mercy: it is meet that it should be overwhelmed with the tempest of exceeding sorrow and doleful sadness. If it fear to come in the sight of God grievously offended: it is just that the unsufferable torments prepared for rebellious sinners, should always appear, and be presented before it. Therefore let my heart think, and think again, what heinous treason it hath committed, what endless torments it hath deserved.  
Let my understanding descend into itself, & make a privy search in every corner, before it go down into the land of darkness, which death obscureth with his gross and misty vapours, and meditate who doth attend and wait there for my wicked soul: let it behold and view, see and be troubled. What is it, oh God, what is it, which I behold in the Land of misery and darkness? Horror, Horror. What is it which I do view, where no order, but woeful confusion inhabiteth?  
Woeful are the outcries of some, howling out with lamentable voices: Woeful is the noise of others, gnashing their teeth, tortured with intolerable torments. Lamentable is the sight of the confused multitude, sobbing, and sighing out, woe, woe! How many, and how many woes? Woe for that fire, which burneth with brimstone, whose flame is never extinguished: and woeful is that obscure and dark Dungeon, where there dwelleth everlasting darkness! With what terrible roaring do I see you, oh Worms, tossed and turned about, living in that flaming fire which continually burneth? What direful and greedy desire doth inflame you to return out of it, whom yet that fire of fires cannot so burn, as that ever ye shall be consumed? Oh ye Devils, burning together with them; roaring with burning, and raging with fury; wherefore are ye so terrible and cruel to them, which are tumbled, and rolled up and down among you? Oh torments intolerable! Oh extreme sentence of justice insupportable, shall no mean, no remedy, no end mitigate or assuage you? Are these the things, oh great and powerful God, which are prepared for filthy Fornicators, and wicked contemners of thee, of which I am one? I, I am verily one of those.  
Oh my soul, tremble thou with terror: faint and fail thou my understanding, with quaking fear; and thou, oh my heart, cut and wound thyself with immoderate sorrow. Whither do ye hale and tog may cruel tormentors, while you execute your fury and wrath against me, for my great and grievous offences? Whither dost thou deliver me, oh my sin? Whither dost thou deliver me, oh my God? whither dost thou deliver me? If I have effected by my heinous and detestable rebellions, that I should be thy guilty offendor, could I also bring it to pass, that I should not be thy Creature? If I have rob myself of my chastity, have I also rob thee of thy Mercy? Oh Lord, Lord, if I have lost that, for want whereof thou mayest condemn me a grievous offender, hast thou also lost that, whereby thou art wont to save a penitent sinner?  
Do not, Oh LORD, do not so narrowly attend to my wickedness, that thou forget thy wont goodness. Where is it true, oh true GOD, where is, As I live, I will not the death of a sinner, but rather that he be converted and live?  
Oh Lord, thou which dost not lie, Lord, what is, I will not the death of a sinner: If thou dost bury in Hell a sinner which crieth unto thee? or is it to throw a sinner into the Lake of never-ceasing Torments, I will not the death of a sinner? Or is this, I will that a sinner be converted and live?  
I am a sinner, oh Lord, I am a sinner. If therefore thou wilt not the death of a sinner, what doth compel thee (which thou wouldst not) that thou deliverest me to death and destruction? If thou wilt that a sinner be converted, and live, what doth let thee to perform that which thou willest; namely, that I be converted, live, and be saved?  
If the enormity of my sin doth constrain me to do that which thou hatest, doth it also hinder thee to do that which thou desirest, when as thou art a God omnipotent? far be it, oh God, far be it oh Lord my God, that the wickedness of a repenting and lamenting Sinner, should prevail more, than the sentence the Omnipotent.  
Remember, oh just, holy, and merciful God, that thou art merciful, and also my Creator, and Recreator. Therefore good Lord, remember not thy justice against thy sinner, but remember thy wont clemency, towards thy poor creature. Remember not thy anger against a guilty offender, but be mindful of thy accustomed commiseration, and mercy towards a miserable sinner.  
It is true, that my conscience doth merit damnation, and that my repentance doth not suffice for satisfaction: But it is certain, that thy exceeding mercy, doth surpass all my vile iniquity. Therefore good Saviour, spare that of which thou art the Salvation; yea, thou that desirest not the death of a sinner: Spare, oh spare, my sinful soul; for it being utterly dismayed, flieth from thy terrifying justice, to thy comforting mercy, that because the reward of her virginity being corrupted, (oh heart-wounding sorrow) is unrecoverable: the punishment of hateful Fornication, to her repenting, at least may not be unevitable; because it is not a thing impossible to thy omnipotency, neither unseemly to thy justice, nor unaccustomable to thy mercy: Both because thou art good, and because thy infinite mercy endureth for ever. Which art blessed, world without end, Amen.   

A Meditation of S. Bernard, concerning the Passion of jesus Christ. Divided into twenty and one Sections.  

SECTION. I.  
LEt us who are true Christians, graced with so noble a name, so high a style, and so glorious a title, honour and celebrate, with true, sorrowful, relenting, & repenting hearts, the Funeral Obsequies of our noble Lord, jesus of Nazareth, that meek, spotless, innocent, and harmless Lamb, who did not so much as open his mouth, being under the hand of the Shearer; maliciously accused, odiously reviled, innocently and wrongfully condemned of the furious and bloody jews, extremely tortured, spitefully disdained, shamefully spetted upon; and lastly, cruelly crucified, by the barbarous and brutish Gentiles.  
It is an exploit full of honour, full of renown; it is most healthful and wholesome for our sickly souls, that we Christians, deigned worthy of such a gracious and honourable Name, should reverently adore, lovingly embrace, valiantly imitate, the weak infirmities, scornful disgraces, base poverty, painful labours, sore and sorrowful agonies, the deadly pangs of the bitter Passion of our loving Redeemer, and sweet Saviour, Christ jesus the righteous. For these are the powerful instruments, and most strong weapons, by which the omnipotent virtue, and the infinite investigable, and unsearchable wisdom of God, hath mightily and wonderfully effected, and wrought the restoration, and renovation of the decayed World, the eternal Salvation of us men; yea, of us most miserable and wretched men, and the endless and utter destruction of Hell, Death, and the Devil: Heb. 2.14. Luke. 1.71. And in the working of this great work, and admirable mystery of our Salvation, the Lord Christ was made lesser than the Angels, that he might make us equal with the Angels, he descended from his Throne of glory, that he might deliver us from ignominy. Heb. 2 9 He being Lord of Lords, took upon him the shape of a servant, that he might make us honourable: he willingly dispossessed himself of all his Royalties, that he might eternally possess us with the everlasting treasure, and full inheritance of his heavenly Kingdom. 2 Cor. 8.9. And who is he if he could taste his infinite kindness, (but alas, who is able to sound the bottomless depth, of this more than marvelous, yea miraculous love?) but would willingly forsake his goodly earthly possessions, leave all his worldly honours and dignities, subject every moment to decay and vanity, as soon gone as they are gotten, disrobe the stout Bride of her gay and gorgeous apparel, and strip her naked from all her borrowed feathers; cloth himself with the sackcloth of lowly humility, cut off his curled locks, and sprinkle his head with ashes, that he might truly humble, prostrate, and debase himself; cast down his high looks, curb his proud aspiring and untamed thoughts: for Christ jesus, his meek and merciful Saviour, who came down from Heaven, out of the bosom of his Father, being coeternal, and coequal with him in everlasting glory, leaving the joyful society of blessed Angels above, to converse here below amongst cursed men; nay, to abide and patiently to bear, the curses and bitter taunts of blasphemous and fiery-minded men.   

SECTION. II.  
THis Lord Christ, was tyrannically tortured, & cruelly crucified for our, yea rather for my sins, and hath sweetened his bitter cross to all that zealously love him, & faithfully believe in him. He died a most shameful, cruel, & cursed death on the Cross, that he might deliver us from the curse of the condemning and killing Law, and taken us out of the jaws of the devouring Lion, redeemed us from Hell, from infernal fire, and everlasting perdition.  
He shed, yea powered out his most precious blood, spouting out the same from all the veins of his pierced and martyred body, that with his precious and sovereign Balm, he might salve all our deadly wounds, and save our dying souls. He died, and by his death, killed death, that we might live eternally in him, and by him.  
And who may not amazedly admire, the incomparable love of so mild, so merciful, and so potent a Saviour? Who cannot, at least, who ought not, with ravished affections to love (and like joyful Simeon, with both arms to embrace) so magnificent, but for us sinful men, and for our sakes, made so humble and lowly, and yet a most powerful Redeemer? The dulcet taste of whose love, doth far exceed the Honey, and the Honeycomb in sweetness.  
And although the least drop of it, be sufficient to fill all, and every part of an hungry soul, yet it hath in it such a savoury relish, and an appetite procuring quality, that the more the desirous soul eateth, the more it coveteth, the more it feedeth, the more eagerly it longeth and thirsteth after it. Why should we not patiently suffer, and constantly endure whatsoever the inveterate malice of the Devil can imagine against us, or the furious madness of wicked men, (his wilful Ministers) can lay, or impose upon us, for Christ jesus his cause, for the honouring of his truly and honourable name, and for our constant profession of a true Christian Faith? Christ passed through the ignominy, shame, & contempt of the Cross, to supernal dignity, infinite Majesty, and endless glory, & all power & authority was given unto him, for the advancement of his everlasting dominion, both in heaven above, and in earth beneath, by God his heavenly Father: all the Angels, God's heavenly Heralds, with joyful humility, melodious Harmony, and with continual laud and thanksgiving, do worship and adore his incomprehensible, exceeding-glorious, and eternal Majesty, and at the honourable name of jesus, let every knee be bowed of things in Heaven above, and things in the darkest Caves of Hell below: Where is thy glory (oh Christian?) Where is thy rejoicing? Where is thy boasting? not in Nobility, honour and riches, but in the glorious name of thy crucified Lord, thy eternal God, and everlasting Saviour, and in the gracious, graceful, and sweet name of Christ, which is a name above all names, far surpassing all Noble, honourable, and glorious earthly titles, and the highest style of worldly Majesty. And whosoever is blessed in this name, shall be truly blessed here upon earth, and afterward shall be eternally happy in Heaven.  
Let us glory, rejoice, and triumph in the blessed Name of our mighty Redeemer, and give all honour, jurisdiction, dominion, and majesty, to our merciful Saviour, which hath done great, marvelous, and admirable things in us, and for us, exalt, extol, and magnify his glorious Name, together with me, and let our tongues tuned with one Harmonical concord, like Golden Trumpets, sound forth his meritorious, immeasurable, still increasing and never-diminishing praises, saying; we adore and worship thee, oh Christ, King of Israel, and also of all the Nations, Prince, and Monarch of Kings, Lord of the Earth, GOD of the Sabaoth, the most powerful power of GOD omnipotent. We adore thee being the precious price of our Redemption, the all-sufficient Sacrifice of our peace, atonement, and peaceable reconciliation, which alone with the inestimable, most pleasant, and fragrant sweetness of thy odoriferous savour, hast moved and induced the Father of eternity, which dwelleth and resideth in the highest Heavens, to turn his eye of providence, and compassion towards base, vile, and contemptible things upon earth, and hast reconciled and pacified him towards the sons of wrath, Hell, and damnation: to enter a new covenant of grace with them, to forgive and forget all their rebellious trespasses, and treacherous transgressions, and to extend the tender bowels of his most desired and ever-undeserued mercy towards them.  
We joyfully proclaim, oh Christ, the worthiness of thy merit, the multitude of thy mercies, and magnificence of thy commiseration, we sound and echo forth; we record the sacred memory of thy eare-delighting and heart-pleasing sweetness.  
We clearly offer unto thee, oh Christ, the Sacrifice of everlasting praise and hearty thanksgiving for the innumerable multitude, and immeasurable magnitude of thy goodness, which thou hast vouchsafed, showed, manifested, and extended to us, as a wicked seed and graceless generation, sons of wickedness, and heirs of hell and damnation.   

SECTION. III.  
WHen as yet, oh gracious Lord, we were thy cruel enemies, by our treasonable practices, and monstrous ungrateful unkindness, daily kindling thy consuming wrath against us, and when as devouring death exercised his rage, fury, and dominion against all mortal flesh, and upon every miserable creature, to which all the seed of Adam was obnoxious and subject, tainted with the leprous infection of his first deadly transgression: thou didst kindly remember the most infallible word of thy infinite mercy, when we were ready to be drowned and swallowed up (like proud hardhearted Pharo) in the bloody Sea of our swelling, and overflowing iniquities. Thou didst look from thy holy and high habitation, and cast down the pitiful eye of thy saving, tender, and mellow-hearted compassion upon this valley, streaming with rivers of tears, showers of ceaseless weeping, and deluge of our overflowing misery. Thou sawest the heavy affliction, afflicted condition, imminent danger, nay the instant destruction of thy distressed people, and touched with a true-delicious sweetness of thy inward love, and bountiful charity, did think & ponder, to medicine, heal & recure the deadly-diseased state and desperate condition of thy forlorn and languishing people. Mat. 9.13. 1 Tim. 15. moved & incited towards them with amiable thoughts of a new perpetual peace & eternal redemption. And thou being the only and dearly beloved Son of God, the very true God, coeternal & substantial to God the Father, & the Holy-ghost, inhabiting the light, to which no man may approach, dazzling the eyes of every mortal creature with the superexcellent lustre, and governing all things with the creating word of thy omnipotent power; thou hast not despised to subject thyself to the close & noisome prison of our base estate, where thou mightest taste, and also swallow up our misery, and so restore us to glory. It was enough, oh sweet Saviour, to demonstrate thy incomprehensible and unspeakable mercy, it was too little, Oh thou mirror of mercy, to cool the ardent heat of thy burning love.  
It was not sufficient for thee, our gracious Redeemer, to appoint a Cherubin, Seraphin, or one of the Angels to consummate and finish the work of our salvation: thou thyself being king of kings, and God of eternal glory, hast vouchsafed to come to us, thy poor vassals, and captive creatures, by the commandment of thy supernal Father. Psal. 40.8.9. Acts. 2.23. Whose unlimited mercy, bottomless bounty, immutable love, we now plentifully enjoy in thee, and hereafter shall joyfully, fully, and everlastingly possess by thee.  
Thou cam'st unto us I say, not by changing the place, but by yielding thy presence unto us by the flesh.  
Thou cam'st from the regal Throne of thy most high Glory, into an humble, lowly, and abject Maiden, in her own eyes, although indeed she was most honourable for her chaste virtues, and of the blood Royal by her Noble birth, whose life was adorned with the precious gem of undefiled virginity; in whose sacred womb, the sole, wonderful, and unspeakable power of the holy-ghost, caused and effected thy sanctified and blessed conception, and that thou shouldst so be borne in the very nature of true humanity, that the occasion and manner of thy pure Nativity should neither violate the Majesty of Divinity in thee, nor the integrity of undefiled Virginity in thy blessed Virgine-Mother. Oh amiable! Oh admirable favour! Thou being God of immeasurable glory, infinite power, and most magnificent Majesty, hast not disdained, nor despised to become a contemptible worm, and to put upon thee the ragged garment of our frail and miserable nature. Thou being God of all, didst appear as a fellow-servant of servants, unto all. It was too little to satisfy thy loving affection, and to quench the thirsty desire of thy love towards us, to be a kind Father unto us, and a gracious Lord, but thou hast vouchsafed to be our dear and well-beloved brother. What mind is not overjoyed with the delectable meditation of thy wonderful favour? What heart is not ravished with the sweet sent of thy admirable humility? And what soul can ever be satisfied with the sweetness of thy exceeding mercy? When all our obedience towards thee, be it never so great, or our praises, be they never so many, cannot parallel and equal the least jot of thy infinite goodness towards us.   

SECTION. FOUR  
ANd thou Lord of all things, possessor of the highest heavens, and sole Commander of the whole earth, which hast no need of any thing, because the fowls of the air fishes of the Sea, beasts of the field, are all at thy prudent and provident disposition: yea, the greatest worldly Monarch, is but thy poor slave and submissive Vassal: at the beginning of thy birth, and first entrance into this transitory world (the sweetest joys whereof are soon soured with sudden misery, and the chiefest treasures liable every moment, to wavering mutability) thou didst not abhor to taste the bitter gall of pinching necessity, and to feel the irksome discommodities of beggarly, base, and abject poverty: so ill was thy entertainment, so bad was thy welcome, and vile was thy estimation amongst ungrateful men.  
For as the thrise-holy, and Divine Scripture testifieth, when thou wert borne, there was no room in the Inn to receive thee, nor any Cradle, wherein they might repose thy tender body, but thou wert thrust unkindly into a noisome Stable, in stead of thy Princely Chamber, and laid in a homely Manger, for thy bed of honour, wrapped in swatheling clouts, and fettered like a prisoner, whose greatness cannot be contained of the heavens, and whose hand in the palm of it doth comprehend the whole earth. And thy blessed Mother did borrow this homely Chamber and hard bed, of bruit beasts, who were more willing to show her a kind favour, than any hardhearted men, though he came to be their servant.  
Comfort yourselves, cheer up your dismayed minds, and banish away all pensive thoughts, whosoever have had your drink mingled with tears, and have been long fed with the bread of affliction, being scorned, disdained, rejected of the proud and wealthy, because you have been pined and pinched with needy poverty, when as Christ, who as the never-dried Fountain of everlasting plenty and abundance, did willingly undergo, and patiently bear the heavy burden of needy want and grievous necessity.  
In the time or his blessed birth he did not take his rest in a sumptuous Chamber, adorned with carved Wainscot, or furnished with gorgeous and costly hangings, neither was he found in the land of them which solace themselves with variety of pleasant delights, and spend their days in continual sport and pleasure.  
Why dost thou boast, oh thou wanton rich man, when-thou stretchest thyself upon thy bed of ivory, painted with the choicest colours that may please the eye, beautified with the rarest devices that Art can invent, and garnished with the most delicate furniture that may breed wanton and carnal delight: when as the King of Kings did rather choose a noisome Stable, than a Princely Palace; a homely Manger, than a stately Cradle; rather hard straw to lay his tender body upon, than a bed stuffed with Down, or soft feathers? Luk. 2.7.8.  
Why art thou then so proud that thou scornest to lie upon straw, with contented humility? when as this tender Infant, who had all things under his hand and jurisdiction, preferred hard straw before thy costly silks, and soft feathers?   

SECTION. V  
But this thy tender and weak infancy, oh Christ, was not safe from the malice of thy furious foes, nor murdering swords of bloody persecutors, who craftily complotted, greedily sought, and would have most grievously wrought, thy cruel, bloody, and sudden death, so soon as thou beganst to draw thy breath. For as yet thou wert sucking the sweet breasts of thy loving Mother; when as an heavenly Messenger appeared to joseph in his sleep, saying: Arise, and take the Child and his Mother, and fly into Egypt, and tarry there until I shall bring thee word: For it shall come to pass, that Herode shall seek the Child to destroy him. Matth. 2.13.14.15.  
Since that time, oh sweet jesus, thou beganst to taste of the bitter Cup of human misery, to be touched with sense of our sorrow. and patiently to bear the heavy burden of our infirmities. For when bloody Herod had heard unwelcome news of the birth of an other King dreading he should be forced to forego his royal dominions, goodly kingdoms, and golden Crown (for Tyrants dream always of their downfall, at the surmised noise of any little rumour) he quickly unsheathed his cruel Sword, to make a speedy end of thy beginning days, and to cut asunder the slender thread of thy Infant life, played the bloody Butcher, and made a most cruel slaughter of many thousand of innocent Babes, sucking the nourishing breasts of their loving and lamentable Mothers, Matth. 2.16. so that he died the streets with the streams of their guiltless blood, mingled with the tears of lamenting mothers, Mat. 2.18. thinking to murder thee in this great slaughter of so many harmless sucklings.  
Oh miraculous immanity! monstruous murder! more then brutish, yea, hellish Tyranny! And when thou hadst escaped the sting of this Tyrant's malice, being appointed to be transported into Egypt, to be safe there, without the bounds of his bloody mischief, and not without care of thy Father, and sorrow of thy Mother, wert delivered from storms of thy persecuted Infant-age: thou didst meekly give us an example of truth, worthy to be praised of us, and to be seriously practised by us: for thou didst not sit in the counsel of idle vanities, nor follow the vile and wild affections of unbridled desires, but wert found in the midst of the Doctors, propounding questions to them, and attentively hearing their discourses, although in thy breast did ever flow a continual Spring of infinite knowledge, being the Lord of all hidden sciences, and the most perfect and absolute wisdom of God the eternal Father.  
Also thou hast showed us a perfect pattern of due obedience, to be truly performed, and duly observed of Children towards their Parents, when thou being the great commander of the whole World, and Supreme head in all causes, and over all persons within thy boundless Dominions, didst yet humbly obey the commandment of thy parents, in performing the deeds of willing obedience towards them, in whatsoever the duty of a Child might enjoin thee, or the just commandment of thy earthly Parents impose upon thee: But when by the course of Nature, thou camest to the fullness of a stronger age, about to take in hand things of greater weight, to be acted with greater might, thou didst come forth for the salvation of thy people, like a valiant and stately Giant, to run the way of all our misery, & pass through the race of human calamity.  
And that thou mightest make thyself like unto thy brethren in all things, and in thyself make a resemblance of their depraved nature, thou as it were a sinner, didst go to thy Servant, baptizing sinners unto true repentance, thou, oh innocent Lamb of God, didst require to be baptized. Mat. 3.13.14.15. who ever wert free from the least stain of iniquity, and never subject to any little spot of our sinful infirmity, but having put on thee the fleshly garment of our weak nature thou didst still continue pure, clean, and undefiled. And being baptised in the waters, thou dost not sanctify thyself with the waters, but dost sanctify the waters by thee, that by them thou mightest sanctify us.   

SECTION. VI  
AFter thy Baptism by the spirit of invincible fortitude, thou didst enter into the solitary desert, Mat. 4.1. that by thy example thou mightest teach us, to departed as it were, out of the World, when we give ourselves to divine Meditations, that worldly impediments being removed from our outward senses, the zeal of our Spirits might the better be inflamed, our prayers have freer passage, and the devotion of our willing hearts less hindered. Thou didst constantly endure, and patiently bear what discommodities soever the uncouth wilderness might bring, or the bitterness of fasting for the space of forty days and forty nights breed unto thee, Mat. 4.2. Thou didst mildly suffer the temptations and illusions of the Devil, and at last with thy holy word, didst put him to a shameful foil, and forced him like a coward to fly the field, Matth. 4.10.11. to make such bickerments more tolerable and easy unto us, and to instruct us, that whensoever Christian warriors shall manage this double-edged sword aright, that their common enemy will soon be daunted, take himself to flight, and they always obtain a glorious conquest.   

SECTION. VII.  
AT length thou camest to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, lifting up the bright lamp of thy divine word, openly to give light to the world, which was obscured with thick clouds of sinful darkness, that men seeing their sins, might then sigh for their forepast iniquities, & seek by speedy and true repentance to save their souls, Matth. 5.1.2.3.4.5.6.7. etc. And thou also proclaiming the Kingdom of God, to all obeying the word, didst confirm the verity of thy infallible words, with many wondrous and miraculous deeds: thou didst plainly declare the virtue of thy divinity, and manifest the incomprehensible essence of thy Godhead in all things, to those which were diseased, and were affected and grievously afflicted with many infirmities, Luke 5.12.18. Performing all things of thy free mercy, without any merits, to all nations, that by thy gracious words, and merciful works, thou mightest gain the Salvation of all, truly repenting for their sins, & seeking by thy only mercy to save their souls. But their foolish heart, oh Lord, was darkened, their reason infatuated, & their understanding blinded, they maliciously despised, proudly contemned, and carelessly rejected thy blessed words behind them, neither did they, Oh Lord, admire, no, not so much as regard thy wondrous works, which by the Finger of thine own hand, thou hadst powerfully wrought among them, except a few Noble Champions, which thou didst choose among the weak and abject things of the World, that by them thou mightst batter down strong holds, & throw down high Towers, that thy invincible power might appear in their weakness, & so the glory of thy Majesty might shine the brighter. Neither were they only unthankful to thee, for thy gracious benefits and great kindness, but they did very spitefully reproach thee, oh Lord of Lords, and spit out the Gall of their malice against thee, plotting in their Devilish minds, and performing with their desperate hands, whatsoever their unbridled lust did command them. For thou doing the works of God, which no other hath done, how malignant were their words? How malicious were their speeches? For they said in their mad mood and furious folly, This man is not of God, he casteth out Devils by the Prince of Devils, he hath the Devil, he seduceth the people, he is a Glutton and a Drinker of Wine, a Friend of Publicans and sinners, Matth. 11.9. Why dost thou weep (oh man) why are thy thoughts perplexed, and the peace of thy mind disturbed, when thou dost feel the sting of venomous tongues, or endure the stormy tempest of injurious words? Dost thou not hear what monstrous slanders, bitter taunts, and opprobrious speeches were belched out against the Lord thy God, only for thy cause and thy sins, yet he did patiently digest the extreme bitterness of their cruel malice, and did always seek by gentle mildness, and works of mercy, to mollify their hard hearts, and to induce them to true repentance: If they have called the Master of the house Belzebub, how much more will they call them of his household? Mat. 10.25. Luke 11.15. But thou, oh righteous and innocent jesus, didst patiently hear, and constantly sustain their blasphemous words, spiteful derisions, and taunting speeches; although oftentimes they were carried with such a violent stream of raging fury against thee, that they assailed thee with stones, hating nothing so much as thy blessed life, and hastening nothing so much as thy cursed death. And thou becamest before them as a man which heareth not all, and as one that is dumb, having no word of reproof in thy mouth.   

SECTION. VIII.  
LAstly, they valued thy righteous and precious blood, but at thirty pieces of silver, betrayed unto them by thy unkind Disciple, the son of Perdition; greedily desiring with extreme hate, without any shadow of just cause, to hasten thy cruel death.  
It was not a strange thing, or a concealed secret excluded from the search of thy knowledge, (because the most covert cogitations of every heart, are open unto thee,) that one of thine own Disciples should prove disloyal, treacherously conspire against thee, and like a Traitor, sell thee his gracious Lord & kind Master, for a small piece of money. When as at the Supper, where thou didst wash thy Disciples feet, thou didst not disdain to handle, wash, and wipe with thy most holy hands, the cursed feet of that damned Traitor, swift to shed blood, kneeling down before him, john, 13.4.5. Oh wonderful example of humility! oh patience most worthy of continual admiration! But why dost thou walk with thy outstretched neck, oh earth and ashes? Doth Pride still lift thee up? Doth fretting anger evermore molest thee? Behold, and look upon the Lord jesus, the mirror of Humility and Meekness, the Creator of every Creature, the fearful judge of the quick and the dead, bowing his knees before the feet of a man, that should traitorously betray him into the hands of his deadly Foes, who long thirsted for his innocent blood, loathed his godly life, and could never quench the raging flame of their fury, until they had acted the lamentable Tragedy of his most cruel death.  
Learn therefore of him, because he is meek in mind, and lowly in heart, debase thy high and lofty looks, and let the feeling sense of thy scornful Pride, confound and cast down thy haughty thoughts, and blush at thy furious madness, and sigh at the inward sight of thy impatient folly.  
This also (oh loving Lord) was a plain argument of thy marvelous kindness, and extraordinary favour, that thou wouldst not publicly detect the mischievous malice, and openly disclose the horrible Treason of thy graceless Disciple, and odious Traitor, but didst only in the assembly of his brethren, very slightly admonish him to hasten his intented purpose, john 13.27. Nevertheless, neither the sweet streams of thy mercy could quench the burning fire of his fury, nor the graces of thy Humility, stay the rage of his madness: but he departing out of the house, laboured diligently to bring his wicked designment into act, which as yet lay covered in his treacherous heart, john 13.30.   

SECTION. IX.  
HOW didst thou fall from Heaven, oh cleere-shining Lucifer, which didst appear so bright at thy rising in the morning? Thou once wert beautiful with exceeding glory, placed in pleasant Paradise, where all things were abounding which might breed delight, whose happy state did stand still at a stay, subject to no contrary change, having the Citizens of Heaven for thy loving companions, & pure Manna of the Divine Word for thy daily food: How art thou now tumbled down, and consorted with the sons of darkness?  
Why hast thou refused sweet Honey, to feed on Gall, and wholesome food to cloy thy stomach with stinking dung?  
At that time, oh sweet Christ, thy Family was cleared, & thy Household purged, when such a leprous person, and deadly diseased creature, went out into the world, from the company of the Angel's society.  
For then at last were the thirsty souls of that blessed company, plentifully filled with sweet flowing streams of thy Divine Word, and with the most pleasant liquor of thy true celestial Nectar, (which thou art always able, and evermore willing to give unto thy faithful Servants,) when he was worthily cast out from thy most holy and blessed Family, whom thou didst know to be unworthy, to taste one drop of that living water which quencheth the thirst of all sinful souls for ever: when thou of thy free love, dost afford them to drink of that blessed Fountain, be their thirst never so great, or the people never so many, which resort to receive refreshing by it.   

SECTION. X.  
NOW when thou hadst given a new Commandment to thy loving Disciples, that they should knit their hearts together, with the true union of perfect love, john 13.34. and arm themselves with patience against the approaching day of their fiery trial; and also hadst disposed the kingdom of thy heavenly Father to thy faithful Brethren, thou camest to the place with them, well known unto covetous judas, that Traitor, which did betray thee into the hands of the cruel jews, who were as greedy to buy, as he was covetous to sell thy innocent and precious blood.  
Yet thou didst not audaciously object thyself unto sudden danger, or desperately throw thyself into peril, but thou wert willing to offer and lay down thy own life, to deliver us poor condemned vassals from the heavy doom of eternal death; knowing all things which should come upon thee, john 18.4.  
Oh unsearchable profundity of thy infinite love! Oh glorious beams of thy gracious mercy! For like a tenderhearted Father, thou hadst willingly cast thyself into sudden danger, to have delivered thy Children from some imminent peril: or if thou hadst adventured thy life, to have rescued thy friends from threatened death, this without doubt had been a deed of true natural affection, and excellent love. But that thou shouldest of thine own accord offer thyself to death, to save thy deadly enemies, and willingly shed thy blood, to ransom thy mortal foes: This, oh sweet Saviour, is a miracle of superadmirable kindness, beyond the compass of all understanding.   

SECTION. XI.  
WHen thou wert come to the place where wretched judas had bargained to betray thee into the hands of the wicked jews, thou wert not ashamed to confess the heavy pangs which thou didst sustain by thy approaching Passion, in the audience of thy Brethren, which thou wert willing to endure, not for thy own desert, but by thy own desire, for our sakes, and our sins, saying; My Soul is heavy, even unto death, Mat. 26.38. So ponderous was the burden of our iniquities; so heavy was the weight of mine, yea of all our sins, laid upon thy shoulders. And there bowing thy knees on the ground, and falling down with thy face on the earth, thou didst in thy bitter agony offer up thy humble petition to God thy Father, saying: My Father, if it be possible, let this Cup pass from me, Matth. 26.39.  
Indeed that Cup contained a deep draft to be taken of thee, for the health of our languishing souls; more bitter than Coloquintida to the mouth, or Gall in the maw.  
And no doubt but the bloody sweat, which trickled down on the earth by drops from thy most holy flesh, did plainly declare the sorrows of thy perplexed mind, and the anguish of thy sorrowful Soul, Luke 22.44.  
Oh powerful Lord jesus, what meaneth, or what is the cause of thy lamentable supplication? Didst thou not wholly of thine own accord offer up thyself, for a Sacrifice to thy Father, and willingly shed thy blood, to pay the price of our ransom?  
Yes verily, oh gracious Lord, it was thy exceeding great love, and only mercy, that did move thee so patiently to undergo the wrath of thy Father, that thou mightest deliver us condemned sinners, from his just and heavy displeasure, that by thy stripes we might be healed, and that by thy free and voluntary death, we might be restored to a second and everlasting life.  
But we think, that thou didst willingly taste the bitterness of our miseries, and in thyself express unto us a true passion of our weakness, for the comfort and consolation of all thy feeling members, that no man might despair, or let go the Anchor of steadfast Hope, when our weak flesh fainteth, and our natural faculties faileth; but yet the spirit is ready to abide the painful pangs of any passion, and to suffer the conflicts of any affliction whatsoever. Truly thou didst express the natural weakness of the flesh in thyself, by those tokens unto us, that we might the sooner be provoked to embrace thee with more love, and gratefully to yield thee greater thanks. Whereby also we are taught, that thou didst truly bear our diseases, and infirmities, and that thou hast not run through the thorns of grievous passions without the sense of painful afflictions. For that voice seemeth to be the voice of the flesh, not of the Spirit, by that which thou hast added, The Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak: Mark 14.38. And thou didst openly declare, that the Spirit was willing to suffer the deadly pangs of thy grievous passion, when thou didst go forth of thine own accord, to meet those bloody minded persons, conducted by their damnable General traitorous judas, in the night time, furnished with lanterns, torches, and weapons, seeking without any cause, raging with malice to destroy thy harmless life, and cruelly to shed thy innocent blood, and there didst openly discover thyself to their eyes, and offer up thyself to their bloody hands, lest they might think themselves beholding to their bloody guide, and that by his crafty policy, thou hadst been suddenly and unwillingly apprehended. For thou didst not repel, or put back that cruel monster, coming to kiss thy most holy mouth; but didst gently put thy mouth, in which there was found no guile, to his mouth abounding with venom, and filled with malice, who under token of love, pretended nothing but deadly hate; and with a dissembling kiss, to betray thee into the hands of those, who were ready armed to kill thee.  
And although desperate judas became his own hangman, Mat. 27.5. yet many do follow his steps, and desperately run to their wilful & woeful destruction. Oh innocent Lamb of GOD, how couldst thou endure that such a ravenous Wolf should come near unto thee, that came so greedily to devour thee?  
What fellowship hath light with darkness? What agreement hast thou with Beliall? But this, oh Lord, was a deed of thy gracious benignity, and an act of thy exceeding bounty, that thou mightest show unto him all tokens of thine accustomed favour, which might mollify the hardness of his wicked heart, and quail the malice of his covetous mind.  
For, thou not forgetful that once he was sorted among thy Friends, & had tasted of the sweet fruit of thy former love, admitted into the holy society of thy faithful Disciples, didst kindly admonish him, saying, Friend, wherefore comest thou? Mat. 26.50. And thou wouldst have smitten the guilty conscience, and wounded the hardened heart of that odious dissembler and damnable Traitor, with the horror of his hellish deed, and detestation of his execrable fact, when thou spakest to him, saying: judas, dost thou betray the Son of man with a kiss? Luk. 22.48. And behold, the Philistines are upon thee Samson.   

SECTION. XII.  
IT did nothing mitigate the rage of their furious minds, nor stay the audacious attempts of their bloody hands, when in the hour of thine apprehension, thou didst throw them flat on the ground with thy omnipotent arm, and make them to fall backward with the breath of thy mouth: yet it was not done to defend thyself from the edge of their malice, or to make an escape out of their cruel hands, but that human presumption might know, that it could devise nothing, nor act any thing against thee, but whatsoever was permitted by thee.  
And who can restrain his eyes from showers of tears, and his heart from the overflowing waves of sorrow, when he heareth how violently they were carried against thee, and how furiously they laid their murdering hands upon thee; and how quickly binding thy tender and innocent hands, they currishly haled thee, a most meek Lamb, not once opening thy mouth against them, to bring thee (who never had offended,) to a most bloody slaughter: As if thou hadst been (most innocent and loving jesus) a cruel Thief, a cursed Traitor, or a bloody murderer. Their outrageous usage towards thee was so far out of measure, and their mischievous deeds so far void of reason.  
And then (oh Christ) thou didst not cease to power down showers of mercy, and to let the honey-deaw of thy abundant sweetness to distill upon the head of thy cruel enemies, when thou didst with mild words and gentle speeches, calm the burning zeal of thy forward Disciple, who drew forth his sword, and began to lay about him in the defence of his loving Master. Luke. 22. verse 49.50. For he had no sooner given a wound, but thou didst miraculously heal the hurt. Luke. 22. verse. 51. willing him to put up his sword, keep the peace, and make no resistance.  
But such cursed fury had blinded their eyes, such stubborn grossness overclouded their understanding, and such stony hardness had overgrown their hearts, that neither the Majesty of the miracle, nor mercy of the benefit, could chase away the hellish vapours of their frantic fury, or soften the extreme hardness of their hearts; that seeing their Bedlam folly, they might have relented with pity.   

SECTION. XIII.  
THou wert brought before the High-Priests, john 18.24. who maliced and hated thy unblamable life, wickedly imagined, and cruelly sought thy bloody death.  
When thou wert churlishly examined, and falsely accused, thy modest reply was void of bitterness, and thou didst confess the truth with much humility and mildness: yet they cried out in their raging madness, He speaketh blasphemous words; What need we stand upon further trial? He is worthy of a shameful death.  
Oh most loving Lord, how shamefully wert thou handled, how despitefully wert thou scorned, how cruelly wert thou abused of thine own people? They polluted thy amiable face with their noisome spittle. Mat. 26.67. which the Angels do always desire to behold; and which hath filled the heavens with joy; and shall be desired of the most rich & Noble of the people: And which not long before, shined more bright than the Sun, & appeared most beautiful in glory, they did beat, and strike it with their sacrilegious hands. They covered it with a vail, to flout and deride thee, and did cruelly buffet thee with their fists, being Lord of every creature, like a base and contemptible servant. Yea, they delivered thee to be swallowed up, and devoured of the uncircumcised.   

SECTION. XIIII.  
FOr after they had railed upon thee with reviling words, and buffeted thee with store of blows, they brought thee bound like a Thief before the face of Pilate, Mark. 15.1. requiring in their frantic fit, and heat of their fury, that he would pronounce sentence of death against thee. And they would never cease their clamorous voices, neither were their outrageous outcries appeased, before thou wert condemned to suffer a most cruel and cursed death of the Cross, which never knew sin, or thought any evil.  
And although that wicked judge had certain knowledge, and his own conscience did testify unto him that thou were falsely accused, brought like an innocent Lamb to the slaughter, and that all these things were forged of envy against thee, when those hardhearted jews earnestly desired, that a Murderer might be given them, and have pardon for his bloody offence, and that thou mightest unjustly be condemned, to suffer a most cruel death, preferring a devouring Wolf, before an innocent Lamb, and dirty dross before pure gold: yet his words towards thee were without any mildness, and his deeds quite without mercy, filling thy soul with gall and bitterness, when as he could find no cause, or ferret out any occasion, whereby he might justly reprove thee. Luk. 23.14.  
He received thee at their hands, after they had tauntingly flouted, bitterly derided, and scornfully disgraced thee, and commanded thee to stand in the midst of those malicious scoffers, who had used thee for a fool, to cause their mirth, and to increase thy sorrow. Neither did he spare to tear thy undefiled flesh with most bitter blows; multiplying stripes upon stripes with excessive cruelty, and bleeding wounds upon wounds, without any human pity. Matth. 26.67. Oh thou beloved Son of my God what hadst thou committed worthy of such barbarous immanity? What hadst thou done worthy of such woeful and bitter confusion? In very deed nothing at all. I wretched man, I alone a most horrible sinner, have been the sole cause of all thy painful sufferings: my grievous sins have hardened their hearts, and armed their bloody hands against thee. I oh Lord, have eaten a sour Grape, and thy teeth are set on edge; because than thou didst make satisfaction when thou hadst done no injury, and paid my infinite debt with thy most innocent death. But all these injurious deeds, proceeding from malicious hate, and acted with cruel hands, could not satisfy the unsatiable impiety of the perfidious & unfaithful jews, against thee most righteous and innocent jesus; who didst never cease to do them good, but evermore healed their incurable diseases: making the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dumb to speak, and the deaf to hear.  
Thou didst cleanse loathsome Lepers, cure dead Palsies, and raise from death to life. Mat. 4.24. john. 7.23. Yet for all thy pains, kind benefits, and store of good works, some for fear of their imperious Rulers, durst not, and the greatest sort would not scarce afford thee a good word; For they that of late sung joyfully, Hosanna, Hosanna, calling thee happy and blessed: soon changed their note, and blasphemously termed thee Beelzebub, Prince of Devils.   

SECTION. XV.  
ANd lastly, thou wert hurried and haled with the murderous hands of the bloody uncircumcised Soldiers, to die on the Cross, a most shameful, cruel, cursed death.  
But it was not enough for those unbelieving miscreants, and bloody wretches, to torment thee without any pity, and to nail thee to the Cross with most hateful cruelty, but before hand they vexed, and filled thy heavy soul with blasphemous speeches, outrageous railings, and despiteful disgraces.  
For what saith the Scripture concerning them? And they gathered about him the whole Band: And they stripped him, and put upon him a purple garment, and a robe of scarlet, in their mad merriment, to flout, deride, and scoff him.  
And plaiting a crown of Thorns, they put it upon his head, in steed of a golden Diadem, that being pressed down with their buffeting hands, might enter the flesh, and make the veins to spout out blood.  
And then they put a feeble Reed in his right hand, (in stead of his royal Sceptre) and bowing their knees before him, saying: GOD save the King of the jews. And they did buffet him, and spitting upon him, took a Reed and smote him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they put his own raiment upon him, and led him away to crucify him, bearing his own Cross. And they brought him to a place named Golgotha, and they gave him Wine tempered with Myrrh, and mingled with Gall. And when he had tasted of it, he would not drink. Then they crucified him, and also two thieves with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left, and jesus in the middle. But jesus said, Father forgive them, for they know not what they do. Afterward jesus knowing that all things were finished, that the Scriptures might be fulfilled, he said, I thirst: And one of them running, took a sponge, and filled it with Vinegar, and put it on a Reed, and they gave it him to drink. When he had received the Vinegar, he said, It is finished. And crying with a loud voice, he said, Father into thy hands I commend my spirit. And bowing his head, he gave up the ghost. Then one of the hard-hearted Soldiers with a Spear pierced his side, and forthwith there came out blood and water, for the redemption of our salvation: john. 19 Crystalline water, to wash away the stains of our sins, and pure blood, to nourish our souls.  
Awake now my soul, rise out of the dust, stir up all thy faculties, and behold this memorable man in the Christall-Looking-glasse, of the evangelical word, as it were present before thee.  
Consider (oh my soul) who he is, which cometh, having the Image of a King, and nevertheless is filled with the scornful reproaches of a most base and contemptible servant: He goeth with a Crown, but that Crown of his is his cruel torment, and woundeth his beautiful and blessed head with a thousand sharp-pointed prickles.  
He is clothed with a royal robe of purple, but is rather flouted and despised, then honoured by it.  
He beareth a Sceptre in his hand, but his blessed head is cruelly smitten with it. They adore him, bending their knees to the ground, and with loud voices call him King, but they do disdainfully deride him, and proudly contemn him, with their counterfeit worship, for by and by they spit upon his amiable face, buffet his lovely cheeks with their merciless hands, and load his neck with their cruel blows.  
Behold (oh my soul) with what extreme cruelty, immeasurable impiety, and barbarous inhumanity, that most holy and sacred person is vexed, tormented, and despised of that irreligious people, who in all their odious actions, belched out the Gall of most bitter malice against him with their venomous mouths: and inflicted the most grievous torture of their damnable mischief upon him, with their blood-thirsty hands. He seemeth to faint, and his legs to fail him under the burden of his heavy Cross, which they had unmercifully without any compassion imposed upon him, while he beareth the burden of thy shame, and is pressed down, with the weight of thy ignominious reproaches.  
Being brought to the place of execution, they gave him Myrrh, mingled with Gall to drink, in stead of a comfortable Cordial, he is lifted upon the Cross, and saith: Father forgive them, because they know not what they do. Luke 23.34.   

SECTION. XVI.  
WHat admirable spectacle of rare mildness, doth he afford to our eyes? with what courageous magnanimity doth he animate our hearts? which in all the horror of his intolerable torments, and in the midst of his painful Agonies, and most bitter afflictions, did not open his mouth to utter forth so much as one word, either to complain against them for their beastly cruelty, to speak in his own defence, justifying his innocency, or to use any bitterness of commination, or malediction against those cursed Dogs, for all their monstrous and brutish immanity?  
But lastly, he poureth forth such sweet words of blessed Benediction, for the good of his deadly and devilish foes, as were never heard since time had a beginning, or the world a foundation.  
What may be conceived, more mild than this blessed Martyr, and our loving Saviour, the true mirror of wonderful meekness? Didst thou ever see, oh my soul, a more rare example of excellent bounty? Or was there ever presented before thine eyes a more lively Image of exceeding benignity? And this may teach thee to bear thy Cross with patience, and to follow the steps of Christ with constant perseverance, to forgive and pray for our bloody persecutors. For God will reject our petitions, if they be soured with the leaven of maliciousness, and our sacrifices of thanksgiving, can send up no sweet smelling savour into his nostrils, if we dare approach near his holy Sanctuary with hearts affected with hate, or minds infected with malice.  
As yet, oh my soul, turn hither thine eyes, and more steadfastly behold him, how worthy he appeareth of wonderful admiration, and most tender compassion. Behold him naked, beaten, bruised, and mangled with stripes, nailed to the Cross with iron nails, most shamefully between two thieves, having Vinegar given him to drink without any compassion, in the extreme fits of his bitter Passion on the Cross. Oh hard-hearted wretches, to give such a sour Potion, to so mild a Patient!   

SECTION. XVII.  
Look upon him, my weeping soul, being wounded after his death with a sharp-pointed spear, thrust into his side, by the hand of a violent Soldier, john. 19.33. View him, pouring out plentiful streams of blood, gushing out from the five wounds of his tender hands, feet, and side, pitifully wounded, and cruelly pierced: so that in thy serious Meditation, thou mayst be touched to the quick, with a pathetical compunction, and bathe his bleeding wounds with the streaming tears of thy true and zealous repentance.  
Weep forth showers of tears, and melt thou also my soul with the fire of compassion, and sigh with hearty contrition, and make deep wounds in thyself with a sharp point of sorrowful compunction, when thou dost meditate of the bitter Passion of this lovely and worthy person, whom thou seest afflicted with such terrible torments, and wounded from the crown of the head to the sole of his feet, that with the plentiful streams of his most precious blood, he might wash away the multitude of thy sins. And now my perplexed soul, thou hast seen the sorrows, distresses, weakness, and misery of thy loving Saviour, as he was the seed of the Woman, ordained to break the head of the Serpent: who clothed with the base garments of our frail humanity, was subject to all our infirmities, (the infection of our sins only excepted) and seeing him languishing on the Cross, tormented, flouted, scorned, and villainously handled by the barbarous multitude, thou hast had cause to groan, sigh, and sob, moved with a sensible pity, and touched with a feeling and woeful compassion.   

SECTION. XVIII.  
But now direct thine eyes from his lamentable misery, and seriously contemplate the mighty power of his magnificent Majesty, and then all thy senses will be amazed with sudden fear, and thyself astonished with wonderful admiration.  
For what saith the Scripture? Now from the sixth hour was there darkness over all the land, until the ninth. And the Sun was darkened. And the vail of the Temple was rend in twain, from the top to the bottom, and the earth did quake, and the stones were cloven. And the graves did open themselves, and many bodies of the Saints, which slept, arose. Matth. 27.  
What manner of man is he? what kind of Person? Because Heaven and Earth hath such a Sympathy of his Passion: The Sun mourning with his darkness, for his woeful misery, and denying the light of his beams to the cruel tormentors, at the execution of their bloody Tyranny.  
How powerful? how potent? how available was his death? which opened the Graves, raised and revived the dead conquering Sun, death, hell, and the devil? Oh work of more than admirable wonder! Oh honourable conquest and glorious victory! For in the thickest clouds of his darkest misery, there appeared clear beams of his brightest Majesty.  
Know my soul, know thou my soul, this is the Lord our God, jesus Christ thy Saviour, the only begotten Son of God, 
Christ perfect God, and perfect man.  true God true man, who alone under the Sun was found pure from the spots of sin, and only clear from the stains of iniquity, among the Sons of men. And behold how he is sorted in the damnable rank of the wicked, excluded like a loathsome Leper from the fruition of common society, reputed as an abject, and one of the worst among the basest people; cast out from the womb of the unhappy Synagogue his Mother, like an abortive, projected out of the womb of a woman. How is he that was so beautiful above the Sons of men, become so deformed and uncomely to the eyes of them that behold him? How are the Ornaments of his amiable feature diminished? How is his royal dignity disgraced? How is he become a subject of nothing else but of sorrow & calamity, and a woeful object of lamentation and pity? He is wounded for our iniquities, he is bruised for our wicked offences, and is made an acceptable Sacrifice of a most sweet smelling savour in thy sight, oh God of eternal glory; that thou mightest avert thy indignation from us, and reverse the sentence of thy heavy displeasure gone out against us, and make us Coheirs with him for ever, in his heavenly habitation.  
Look down, oh Lord, holy Father, from thy holy Sanctuary, and from the high Throne of thy infinite Majesty, and behold this holy Sacrifice, which our great high Priest doth offer unto thee, thy holy Child, the Lord jesus, for the sins of his brethren, and let thy wrath be appeased, which our iniquities have most justly procured against us, removing far out of thy sight, the multitude of our innumerable transgressions.  
And let his innocent death pay the full sum of our heavy debt. Behold the voice of the blood of our jesus, doth cry unto thee from the Cross, begging mercy at thy hands for our many misdeeds, pardon for all our heinous sins, and speaking better things than the blood of Abel. What meaneth this, Oh Lord? Doth he still hang naked and nailed on the Cross? Are his veins newly lanced, will his bleeding wounds never be staunched? Shall his side remain evermore pierced, and his skin always died with blood? Did not his Disciples behold him with their eyes, ascending above the Clouds, really and royally, into the Mansion of eternal glory, and now hath he not his residence in Heaven, sitting at the right hand of thy Omnipotent Majesty, leading Captivity Captive, and giving gifts unto men? We know oh Lord, and are certainly assured, that our blessed Saviour ruleth and reigneth with thee in everlasting glory, and yet he remaineth fixed on the Cross, his wounds still streaming out precious blood, to wash away our sinful blots, 
All times are present with God.  because his painful passion, with thee is evermore in action, and things long passed are always present before thee.  
And we daily see him crucified, paying the price of our Redemption, in our spiritual contemplation & divine Meditations. Know thou, oh heavenly and loving Father, the Coat of thy true Son joseph. Alas, a most cruel Beast devoured him, and hath trodden his Garment under feet in his fury, and hath stained all the beauty, and disgraced all the glory of it, with spots of gorebloud.  
Behold, that ravenous beast hath left five pitiful rents in it. This, oh Lord, is the Garment which thy innocent Child left in the hand of the Egyptian Harlot, choosing rather to lose his Cloak, then to forego the precious jewel of his unspotted Chastity, by polluting his undefiled body with filthy adultery, choosing rather being spoiled of garment of the flesh, to descend into the prison of death, then to obey that adulterous voice, by which it was very well said, All these things I will give thee, if thou wilt fall down & worship me, Mat. 4.9. As joseph did willingly forego his cloak when he was alured to have committed folly with his adulterous Mistress. And now omnipotent Lord, and gracious Father, we know that thy Son liveth & reigneth over all the land of Egypt, & in every place of thy universal Monarchy, for he is brought out of the prison of death & hell, into thy glorious Kingdom, crowned with the Imperial crown of eternal immortality, and having changed his Garment of the flesh, immortality flourisheth for ever, being received of thee with exceeding glory. For he hath subdued and conquered the kingdom of Pharo, and with his own noble valour, with an honourable triumph hath entered the heavens. And behold, he being crowned with glory and honour, sitteth at the right hand of thy Majesty, who being our Advocate, maketh continual intercession for us, that we being the children of wrath, and disobedience by Nature, may be reconciled unto thee for ever, by the exceeding riches of thy grace: For he is flesh, & he is our brother. Look, oh Lord, upon the amiable face of thy sweet Christ, which became obedient unto thee, even unto death, that thou being well pleased in beholding him, mayest send down the comfortable dew of thy mercy upon us: neither let his scars depart for ever out of thy sight, that thou mayest remember what a great satisfaction thou hast received of him for our sins. I wish it might please thee to balance the sins, wherewith we have deserved thy wrath and indignation, together with the calamity and sorrow, which thy innocent Son hath suffered for us. Certainly the weight of his heavy misery, will more than counterpoise the weight of all our iniquities, and it hath rather deserved, that thou shouldest rain down the sweet showers of thy mercy upon us, then that our sins have demerited to kindle the fire of thy devouring wrath against us, that we should utterly be deprived of thy wont clemency, which should slake the fury of thine incensed ire, and put out the flame of thy burning indignation.  
But; oh gracious and merciful Father, let every tongue proclaim immortal thanks unto thee, and sound forth aloud thine eternal praises; for the exceeding largeness of thine immeasurable bounty, which hast not spared thine only Son, which was as dear, and near as thine own heart unto thee, but hast delivered him up unto death for us all, that we might have him as a faithful Advocate, and loving Mediator before thee in Heaven.  
And to thee, oh Lord jesus, a most courageous and constant Lover, and my gracious Redeemer, what thanks be they never so many, can I return, or what praises, be they never so great, may I utter, which might countervail the least jot of thy worthy merit? when as I am but a base creature, made of dust, and shaped out of the clay, whose breath is in my Nostrils, and I subject every moment to forego it, (although I commonly forget it) and to return again into the womb of the Earth, from whence I was taken.   

SECTION. XIX.  
FOR what, oh sweet Saviour shouldest thou have done, which thou hast not willingly done, to finish the great work of my salvation? Thou hast dived and cast thyself over head and ears into the troublesome Ocean of thy stormy Passions, that thou mightest draw me wholly out alive, from those perilous Waters, when the waves have entered even into thy Soul? For thou didst willingly subject thyself to the pains of Death, that thou mightest restore my soul unto me, which I had so wilfully lost, Luke 1.71.  
And now behold, I am obliged unto thee by a double debt, because thou hast twice given me my soul, once by Creation, and once by Redemption: what have I, that I may more justly give thee then my soul? But for thy precious soul, vexed, perplexed, and troubled with so many, and such heavy tribulations, I find not what recompense man can be able to render unto thee, in any sort to gratify the worthiness of thy desert. For if I should be able to give thee Heaven and Earth, and all their beautiful furniture, and the glorious ornaments of them, I could in no wise attain the measure, or discharge the infinite sum of such an everlasting debt: But that I may render both that which I own, and also that which is possible for me, is a matter wholly belonging to thy liberal bounty, and must only flow from the sweet fountain of thy beneficial goodness.  
Thou art to be loved, oh Lord, with all my heart, with all my strength, I must tread in thy path, and follow thy steps, which hast endured all the extremities of thy bitter Passions, with exceeding patience, and being Lord of life, hast of thine own accord, vouchsafed to yield thyself unto death, to redeem me, and all faithful repentant sinners, to the joys of eternal life. And how shall that thing be effected and wrought to me, but only and wholly by thee, through thy mighty power, which is able to work all things in Heaven above, and in the Earth beneath?  
Let my Soul cleave unto thee, let it be united unto thee, with the bond of everlasting love, because all the virtue and faculties of it depend only upon thee, and because it must needs sink into a bottomless pit of endless misery, if it be but a moment debarred from thy loving mercy.  
And now, oh Lord, my gracious Redeemer, I worship thee as true God, I trust in thee, I hope in thee, I covet & long to approach so near unto thee, as the feeble wings of my mounting desires will carry me; Let thy strong hand support my weakness: Let the rich treasure of thy mercy supply the wants of mine infirmity. Let the greatness of thine unsearchable goodness never departed out of my remembrance. Let a memorial of thy bitter passion, by which thou hast wrought mine everlasting Salvation, be perfectly written within the palms of my hands, so that mine eyes may still be viewing it: and let it be deeply engraven in my heart, that mine inward thoughts and cogitations may evermore be meditating and musing upon it.  
Let thy Crown of Thorns, thy red bloody nails, thy pierced side, thy grievous wounds, thy precious blood, thy death and burial, be evermore presented before the eyes of mine understanding, that I may water my Couch, and make my bed to swim with tears of true sorrowful repentance, that I may duly and truly bewail the multitude of my heinous sins, which have been like so many Iron-nayles, to enter through thy harmless hands and innocent feet, and like so many sharp Spears, to pierce thy blessed side, to make thy wounded heart send forth plentiful streams of thy dear and precious blood.  
Lastly, let the fresh remembrance of thy most glorious and victorious Resurrection, and the blessed memory of thy triumphant Ascension, comfort the fainting Spirits of my drooping soul, & with a sweet taste of joy, mitigate the sorrows of my perplexed mind. For in all these, the sweet odour of life doth ascend up into my nostrils. Raise thou, (oh Lord) my spirit, with their reviving odour, from the death of sin, and out of the Grave of perpetual darkness.  
Touch my heart, oh Christ, that I may touch thee: yea, although it be but the hem of thy Garment, that Virtue may come out of thee, Matth. 14.32. Mark 6.56. Which may keep me from the snares of Satan, and comfort me in the hour of tribulation, so that the yoke of thy commandments may be made easy unto me, and the burden of the Cross, which thou commandest me to carry after thee may be light to my soul.  
What am I a silly worm? What is my strength? What are mine united forces, to sustain so heavy a burden of worldly miseries, with such an invincible mind, and peaceable patience as thou hast commanded? How can I sail in this troublesome Ocean, but I must needs run against the rocks of woeful Desperation, unless thou be my Pilot, and guide my stern?  
It is fond to put any confidence in men; It is vain to put any trust in Princes. For although thou hast called them Gods, to teach them how high thou hast exalted them, (and they indeed are truly honourable, that remember thee to be the author of their exaltion) yet by and by thou hast given them a cooling Card, to quail and qualify their haughty pride, telling them plainly, that for all that, they shall die like men, and return, and be turned into dust, as well as the meanest of the people.   

SECTION. XX.  
ARE my feet (oh Christ) like unto the feet of a swift heart, that I should be able to follow thee, so swift a runner, through the thorns and pricking Bushes of thy painful Passion? Do I not walk upon the Water, always ready to sink with fearful Peter, unless thou put forth thy powerful hand to secure me? Mat. 14.29.31. But hear my voice (oh thou Son of David) my merciful Saviour, infuse the precious Quintessence of thy celestial Graces into my bosom, and then lay thy sweet Cross upon thy servant, which is the Tree of Life, to them which apprehend it, than (as I hope) I shall run forward cheerfully, and I shall carry that Cross after thee with great willingness, which thy cruel enemies did maliciously impose upon thee.  
Lay that most hard Cross (I say) upon my shoulders, whose breadth is Chastity, whose length is Eternity, whose height is Omnipotency, whose depth is unsearchable Wisdom. Nail my hands and my feet unto it, and make thy servant, oh LORD, in all things conformable to thy Passion.  
Grant me (oh Lord) to abstain from the works of the flesh, which thou hatest, and to do righteousness, which thou lovest, and in both to seek thy glory. Nail my left hand with the nail of temperancy, and my right hand with the nail of justice, upon that high Cross.  
Grant my mind continually to meditate on thy holy Law, and to cast all my cogitations upon thee; and fasten my right foot to the same tree of life, with the nail of wisdom. Grant that the unhappy happiness of this life, sliding away every moment, may not allure me like an enticing Harlot, to yield to the wanton inducements of carnal sensuality, and to weaken his vigour, by the intemperate abuses of unlawful pleasures. Neither let pining cares, pensive thoughts, and sudden unhappy chances trouble the peace of it, or procure any turbulent motions: but let my Spirit, as well in the Sunshine days of calm prosperity, as in the blustering weather of stormy adversity, be fastened to thy Cross with the nails of prudent moderation, and Christian fortitude, that neither in prosperity I may soar too high, with the wings of aspiring pride, nor in the adversity be depressed too low, with the weight of dispairefull care: But that there may appear some similitude of the pricking thorns, which piercing the veins of thy head, made a passage for thy precious blood, to run down to the skirts of thy clothing; grant I pray thee, that my mind may be so deeply wounded, with the forcible compunction of healthful repentance, that mine eyes may shower down plenty of tears, to wash away the spots of my defiled Conscience: So mollify the hardness of my heart, that it may be pliaable to receive the impression of tender pity, so that it may still have a feeling compassion of other men's misery.  
Let an earnest zeal, to emulate and imitate that which is righteous before thee, so prick forward my mind, that I may always place thy perfect Law before mine eyes, and walk in the way of thy Commandments; and that in the extremest fits of my greatest sorrow, I may turn unto thee for my consolation and comfort; and that despairing of my own merit, I may be relieved by thy Mercy.  
I am well pleased, that thou put a Sponge by a Reed to my mouth, and that thou give sour Vinegar to my taste. It liketh me, that thou shouldest teach my reason by thy holy Word, that the glorious pride of the World, is nothing else but an empty Sponge, which appeareth more in show than it is in substance, and that the sweetest taste of it, is more sour than vinegar, which exceedeth in sharpness, and all the concupiscence of it, more bitter than gall or wormwood.  
Even so, oh heavenly Father, let the cup of Babylon be bitter unto me, let not the pleasant colour of the wine allure me to taste of that poisoned liquor, neither let the deceitful sweetness of it overcome my understanding, nor drown my reason, as it hath done theirs, which think darkness to be light, and light to be darkness, bitter to be sweet, & sweet to be bitter. I dare not drink of the wine tempered with Myrrh, and mixed with gall, because thou wouldst not drink of it, Mark. 15.23. For thereby appeared the bitterness of the envy and malice which thy furious Foes did bear against thee, who would afford thee no human pity in thy greatest extremity, no not so much as to give thee a cup of sweet water. Fashion thy servant, oh Lord, like unto thy quickening death, that according to the flesh I may die daily, crucifying my carnal lusts, always loathing the thing that is evil, and that according to the Spirit, I may daily be revived, embracing and loving the thing that is righteous and good. And that I may rejoice to carry in me the perfect Image of thee my Lord and crucified Saviour, express also a similitude of that in me, which the unsatiable cruelty of the evil ones acted against thee, after thy cursed and yet most blessed death: Let thy lively and powerful Word pierce into my side, and wound my heart: For thy word, oh Lord, will sooner enter than a double-edged sword, and penetrate deeper than the sharpest spear, even to the division of my soul, and the marrow enclosed in my bones, that in steed of blood and water, there may issue forth continual streams of love, towards thee and thy brethren. So that as thou hast not spared to shed thy heart blood for me, I may always be willing to express my gratuity towards thee.  
Lastly, wrap my Spirit in the pure linen cloth of thy righteous garment, in which I may safely rest, coming out, and going into the place of thy holy Tabernacle, and wherewith thou mayest hide me until thine anger be appeased, and thy heavy displeasure removed. But the third day, after the day of labour and punishment, early in the dawning of the Sabbath day, raise me everlastingly amongst thy children, that in my flesh I may see thy brightness, and be filled with the joy of thy countenance.   

SECTION. XXI.  
OH my Saviour and my God, let the time come I pray thee, let that blessed time come, wherein I may see that with my inward eyes, which now I believe by faith, which now I enjoy by hope, and apprehend a far off.  
And that I may embrace that with mine arms, and kiss that with my joyful lips, which I now long to have, with such thirsty desires, as will never be satisfied, until they be wholly possessed of it, and that I be swallowed up in the deep Sea of thine infinite goodness, oh my Saviour and my God. But praise thou, oh my Soul, my God my Saviour, and magnify his Name. For it is holy, replenished with store of most holy delights, whose quantity is stinted with no measure, nor quality subject to any mutability.  
Oh how good, how sweet art thou, Lord jesus, to the soul that seeketh thee? Oh jesus, the Redeemer of those which were lost, the Saviour of those which are redeemed, the hope of the banished, the strength of those that are troubled, the liberty of a Spirit afflicted with bondage, the comfortable solace, and sweet refreshing of a sorrowful Soul, which sheddeth tears, and sendeth forth sweat, while it runneth after thee; the Crown of the Triumphing, the only reward and joy of all celestial Citizens, the most plentiful Fountain of all Graces, the glorious Son of the highest God, and also the highest God, Roman. 3.25. Matth. 9.12. Zach. 13.1. Psal. 16.5. john 10.7.9. Let all things praise thee, which are in Heaven above, and which are in Earth beneath. Thou art great, and thy name is wonderful. Oh exceeding glory of the high God, and most pure brightness of eternal light; oh life quickening every life; oh light illuminating every light, and preserving them in eternal brightness. A thousand thousands of glistering lights are before the Throne of thy Divinity for ever.  
Oh eternal and unaccessible substance, the most clear & sweet stream of a Fountain hidden from the eyes of all mortal Creatures, whose water is without beginning, profundity without any bottom, depth without any end, amplitude unsearchable, purity uncorruptible. The heart of the highest God hath sent thee out from his bottomless deepness; life hath sent forth life, light hath sent forth light, the Eternal hath sent forth the Eternal, the incomprehensible hath sent forth the incomprehensible, and coequal to himself in all things; all of us receive from thy fullness. For thou a most plentiful Fountain, dost send out from thy Treasures, a precious River of every good thing of thy seavenfolde Graces; with whose pleasant sweetness thou dost vouchsafe to sweeten the saltness of the salt Sea of our infirmities. A river of the oil of gladness, a river of pure Wine, a river of fiery courage. The holy spirit, the comforter, is poured forth from thee and the Father into the World, equal to both, filling all things, containing all things, the Spirit proceeding from thee, proceeding from the Father; one Spirit proceeding from both, uniting both; to wit, the unseparable connexion; the glue of perfect Union; the Cement that can never be dissolved; the everlasting knot of eternal conjunction of both; and peace passing all understanding.  
This is the flood, oh Lord, of abounding and exceeding pleasure, wherewith thou dost water continually that pleasant, and glorious City jerusalem, which is above, so that the furrows thereof are filled with the streams of eternal delight: Where the bright and glistering Organs sound out sweet songs of continual rejoicing, whose melody exceedeth in sweetness, never ceaseth, but hath an everlasting continuance. With the sweet drops of this pleasant river, the thirsty jaws of thy banished people, oh Lord, do wait continually to be refreshed by thee. Suffer, oh Lord, the whelps to drink up the drops that fall from the Table of their Masters.  
Let the Heavens send down from above, the comfortable dew, and let the clouds pour forth a gracious rain, oh Lord, of that righteous Spirit, which thou didst cause to stream down upon the famous first fruits of thy people; an evident demonstration of our future triumphing.  
With the heavenly distillation of those fiery drops, we pray thee, oh Lord, that thou wilt vouchsafe to purge, renew, illuminate, inflame, to make joyful, confirm and unite the hearts of them which believe in thee, that they may be one, savour one thing, require, and apprehend one thing, with one mind, that they may see and laud thee the GOD of Gods in Zion. Glory, thanksgiving, honour, and dominion be ascribed to the inseparable Trinity, now and for ever, AMEN.  
Daemona non armis, sed morte subegit jesus.    

The Author's deprecation, or Petition, for himself.  
Deliver me from mine enemies, oh my God, and from them which hate me; because of their multitude I dread them, and because of their might I am too weak to encounter them. And I, which even until this day have lived against myself, will even now begin, through thy grace, to live to myself.  
For we ought to live so here in this World, that when the body shall be devoured of the Worms in the grave, the soul may rejoice with the Saints in Heaven. 
We ought to seek after the heavenly jerusalem.  The Spirit is to be directed towards that place to which it shall go, and we ought to make hast thither, where we may always live, and never stand any more in fear of our love.  
If we so dearly love and highly esteem this sliding, fickle, and frail life, in which we live with toil & labour, and yet by eating, drinking, and sleeping, can scant satisfy the necessities of the flesh, and supply her daily wants, we ought far dearer to esteem and fervently to desire, to attain to eternal life in the Haven of rest, where we shall sustain no labour, where is always the chiefest pleasure, greatest happiness, happy liberty, and endless blessedness; where men shall be like unto the Angels of God, and the righteous shine like the Sun in the Kingdom of their Father. How wonderfully and gloriously dost thou think, that the souls of the just shall excel in brightness, when as the light of their bodies shall equal the splendour of the Sun, when as his golden beams do shine clearest?  
There shall be no sadness, no pensiveness, no pain, no fear: there shall be no labour, no death: but perpetual health dwelleth there, and abideth for ever: there breedeth no spiteful malice, no misery of the flesh, no doleful calamity. There is no grievous sickness, no pinching want, no careful necessity. There is no hunger, no thirst, no cold, no heat, no wearisomeness of Fasting, no temptation of the enemy: neither is there any will to sin, nor faculty to offend, but joy and gladness overspreadeth all, rejoicing and exultation possesseth all. Men there also associated with the Angels, and freed from all fleshly infirmity, shall remain and continue for ever. There shall be infinite pleasure, everlasting blessedness, in which whosoever shall once be happily invested, he shall surely and securely live, possessed with it for ever. There shall be quiet rest, from our toiling and tiring labours, perpetual peace without any dreadful fear of our enemies, delightful pleasantness, proceeding from flourishing and continual newness: security arising from Eternity: delectableness and sweetness, flowing from the glorious vision of GOD, our omnipotent Creator. And who doth not hourly long, and daily desire, to dwell and remain in this heavenly Paradise, and celestial Palace, of true and everlasting pleasure, both in regard of that perpetual peace, delightful pleasantness, never-decaying eternity? and also in respect of the glorious Vision and sight of God; who shall replenish us with infinite joy and immeasurable gladness. No man shall be there a Pilgrim and Stranger, but whosoever shall be admitted, as worthy to come and enter into this celestial City, they shall dwell there for ever in their own Country, secure from all fear of any dreadful danger, always joyful, always satisfied with the most delightful sight of GOD their Creator.  
And by how much the greater obedience any one shall perform towards God here; by so much the more bountiful reward he shall receive of him there: and by how much the more entirely and dearly he shall long after God, by so much the nearer he shall approach unto him, and see him, whom so exceedingly he coveteth to view, and desireth to behold. To this Kingdom bring me oh God, by the merits of thy Son Christ JESUS.  
FINIS.