A Thanksgiving for the Waters, and a Prayer for Gods Blessing on them.

WIth all Humility of soul and of body, I praise, and adore, and wor­ship [Page 10] thee, O Lord God, All­mighty, and All-gracious, who hast mad [...] t [...]e Fountains of Waters; thou sendest the Springs into the Vallies which run among the Hills: some for our Refreshment, some for Medicine, and in parti­cular, thou hast sent us this Spring, as a general good to infirm persons. And therefore all Glory be to thee.

Thee only, O Lord, do I acknowledge the Author of the Sp [...]ing, thou only canst make it eff [...]ctual to my Cure in thee only I trust, on th [...] only I depend, to thee only, I commit my self, all my hope is only in thee.

[Page 11]Behold, O merciful Lord, I am come to the Bath, as Naaman to Jordan, O may I feel the like happy effect, O may I wash and be healed!

I come Lord, like the blind man to the Pool of Siloam; I come, for thou thy self hast sent me, as thou didst send him. Thy Providence by laying on me this Di­stemper, has bid me come hither. O may the Bath be as powerful to restore my Health, as the Pool was to give the blind man his sight.

I come Lord to the Bath, like the Infirm man to the Pool of Bethesda; O send thy Angel to move the Waters [Page 12] as I step into them, to move them, not only for me, but for all other Infirm persons also, whom thou hast sent hither, that we may be made Whole, of whatsoever Diseases we have, if it seem good in thy sight.

Lord be thou pleased to guide and counsel my Phy­sitian, that he may throughly discover the cause of my Di­stemper, and prescribe pro­per means for my Recovery, and do thou so bless those means, that in thy good time, they may become suc­cessful.

O my God, hear me, and help me, for the merits of Jesus thy beloved. Amen.

[Page 13]You have great reason to begin with God, not only because he is the Author of the Bath, and can only bless it to your Health; but also because he is the Author of that very Distem­per that brings you hither. For affliction cometh not forth of the dust, neither does trouble spring out of the g [...]ound, Job. v. 6. It is not a thing that hap­pens to us by chance: it does not proceed only from Natural Causes, which are secundary, and instrumental; we must look beyond all these, to the permission, and apointment of Divine Providence, from which it first took its rise, and by [Page 14] which it is wholly con­ducted.

Since then it is certain, that your Affliction comes from God, and it is as cer­tain that God does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the chil­dren of men, Lam. iii.33. but that he has always a most Righteous motive, to incline him to afflict them. It very h [...]ghly con­cerns you to examine your self with all the care you can, that you may disco­ver what there is in you, what you have done, to move the God of Mercy to grieve you.

There is no Calamity, whe­ther it be Sickness, or Pain, [Page 15] or Lameness, or the like, that can befall us, but it is the natural consequence of our depraved, frail, mortal condition, and is incident to good Men, as well as to bad; to the former, it is a punishment, to the latter it is a trial.

Holy Scripture teacheth us, that God has threatened very many, and very sore bodily Diseases to Disobedi­ence, Deu. xviii.58, 59, 60. and that they who are sick, are stricken by God, 2 Sam. xii.15. The Corinthians, who profaned the blessed Sacrament, were for that cause, many of them weak, and sickly, 2 Chron. xxi.18. [Page 16] 1 Cor. xi.30. And our Savi­our, in his advice he gives to the Man whom he cured of an Infirmity of thirty eight years continuance, in­timates that sin was the cause of that inveterate Disease, Jo. v.14.

But when God is pleased to afflict righteous persons with Sickness, as he did King David and Hezekiah, then Sickness is not an effect of God's Anger, but of his Pa­ternal disciplin towards them, Ps. xxxviii.7. Isa. xxxviii.1.

The like may be said of Lameness, which happens by the Divine Direction, to good Men, as well as to the wicked: King Asa who did [Page 17] that which was good, and right in the eyes of the Lord his God, in the time of his old, age, was diseased in his feet 1 King. xv.23. Mephibosheth was lame from five years old, 2 Sam. iv.4. And the poor Man whom St. Peter and St. John miraculously healed, was lame from his mothers womb, Acts iii.2.

Since then both Sickness and Lameness are strokes given us by God, to him we must chiefly, and in the first place, betake our selves for Cure; and the Holy Ghost has set a mark of spiritual disgrace on Asa, who was otherwise a good King, That in his disease he [Page 18] sought not to the Lord, but to the Physicians, 2 Chr. xvi.12.

Not that the Scripture does in the least condemn, or discourage our going to the Physicians when we are sick, or our use of all due means for our Recovery. Our Saviour himself, when he says, They that are whole need not a Physician, but they that are sick, Mat. ix.12. suf­ficiently intimates, that they that are sick did need one.

The Son of Sira [...]h gives excellent advice to both the sick and the Physician: Ho­nour a Physician with the ho­nour due unto him, for the uses which you may have of him, [Page 19] the Lord hath created him, the Lord hath created Medi­cines out of the earth, and he that is wise will not abhor them, and with such doth he heal men, and taketh away their pains, Ecclus. xxxviii.1. &c. But then he adds, My son, in thy sickness be not negligent, but pray unto the Lord, and he will make thee whole; leave off from sin, and order thy hands aright, and cleanse thy heart from all wickedness; give a sweet sa­vour, and a memorial of fine flower; then give place to the Physician. There is a time when in their hands there is good success; for they also shall pray unto the Lord, that [Page 20] he would prosper that which they give for ease and remedy, to prolong life.

I earnestly recommend to you this Counsel of the Son of Sirach; and therefore to you that are sick, or infirm, or lame, I recom­mend Repentance, and Pray­er, and Sacrifice; the Sacri­fice of Alms, by which you will offer to God a sweet savour. To your Physician I also recommend devout Prayer to the Author of Health, and Sickness, that his Physick may pros­per; and then is Physick like to procure a Blessing, when both the Patient, and [Page 21] the Physician joyn in their Prayers for it.

I exhort you to begin with Repentance, and to read De­votional Books on that Sub­ject, of which, blessed be God, there are good store; for it is Repentance that must dispose you for Pray­er.

The Prophet complains of the obdurateness of those, who, when God had stricken them, did not grieve, Jer. v.3. God forbid you should be thus obdurate. God forbid! but since he has stricken you, you should grieve, and grieve with that godly sorrow which worketh Repentance to Salva­tion, not to be repented of.

[Page 22]I [...]seech you then to examine your selves very seriously, whether you have ever repented of your sins, so as to bring forth fruits meet for repentance; for if you are guilty either of to­tal Impenitence, or of an universal relapse into your old sins, or if you lie under the dominion of any one wilful sin, look no further for the original cause of your Distemper: God has in Justice sent it you for your punishment.

But the most merciful God, who delights not in the death of a sinner, in his very Punishments designs rather to awaken, than to destroy [Page 23] us; and if this punishment, by which God calls you to repentance, does awaken you out of your former se­curity, it turns to a Blessing, to a happy occasion of your eternal Bliss; be of good cheer then, and repent.

Your very bodily Distem­per will present you with a lively Idea of your sins, and Holy Scripture makes use of the former, to picture out to us the latter. Think then of the weakness, and the pain, and the indisposed­ness, and the restlessness, and the danger that afflict the sick Man, and compare them with that impotence to good, that anguish of a [Page 24] wounded Spirit, that universal indisposedness to Duty, that restlessness of Conscience, those horrors of eternal tor­ment, which attend the sin­ner, and which without Repentance are for ever incurable; and make this reflection with your self, that if we are so very sol­licitous for the cure of our Bodies, much more ought we to be sollicitous for the cure of our Souls.

But if your heart does not condemn you, if you are conscious to your self, you have truly repented, and have never returned to your vomit again, and in­dulge no one wilful sin, [Page 25] and have nothing to accuse your self of, but your daily failings; which are the un­avoidable infelicities of lap­sed nature, and for which you daily beg pardon, then is your Distemper a father­ly Chastisement only, and you ought to rejoyce in it rather than in the least to regret it. However it is your best way to renew your repentance on this oc­casion, and to be sure to bear[?] Gods Rod, and to learn that[?] Lesson from it, in which you are sensible you were deficient before, and which God has sent this [...]ffliction on purpose to [...]each you.

[Page 26]True Repentance will rightly dispose you for Pray­er, and you will come with boldness, with an humble, but firm confidence to the throne of Grace, when you can look on God as recon­ciled to you in Jesus, and shall be sure to obtain help in time of need. To obtain either the Cure of your Di­stemper, or if God sees th [...] continuance of it to be mor [...] for your spiritual advantage such Grace which is sufficien [...] for you, such Consolation i [...] your own Soul, and satis­faction in God's good pleasure, as shall abundantl [...] over-balance your Calamity [...]

Prayer is a Duty alway [...] [Page 27] obliging, and to be practised by all, because all stand a­like in need of the Divine Mercy, and Benediction; but it is more especially the Duty proper for the time of affliction, because our needs are then most pressing, and therefore says St. James, Is any afflicted, let him pray, Jam. v. 14.

Nor is it enough for you to pray for your selves, but according to the same A­postle's advice, and as soon as you come to this place, whether you are poor, or rich, send for, or if you are able, go your self to the El­ders of the Church, to pray over you as God's Ministers, [Page 28] and to give you Ghostly Counsel, as they are Guides of Souls; desire them that you may have the daily Prayers of the whole Con­gregation for you, that the Waters may be blessed to you, and be sure you daily frequent the publick Prayers your self, or as often as your Infirmity permits.

In all your Prayers, for deliverance from your pre­sent affliction, you must al­ways remember to pray with resignation of your own will, to the Divine Will, as our Lord hath taught us, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will bu [...] [Page 29] thine be done, Luke xxii.42. This short affectual Heaven­ly Prayer I beseech you to have always in your Heart, and in your Mouth; and the oftner you repeat it, endeavour to repeat it with more and more fervency, committing your condition, all your sorrows, and the answer of all your Prayers wholly to God, Committing your soul entirely to him in well-doing, as into the hands of a faithful Creator, 1 Pet. iv.19.

Of the two Prayers which follow, you may use daily one, or both, in whole, or in part, as they best suit with the temper of your [Page 30] Soul, and with your par­ticular condition.

A Prayer for Repentance when God is provoked to punish us.

O Holy Lord God, I wretched Sinner, hum­bly acknowledge, that thou in thy Justice hast laid this Calamity on me for my sins. Glory be to thee, O Lord, that thou hast not given me over as incorri­gible, that thou hast sent this Punishment to awaken, and to humble me. O may it have that blessed effect on me, that from my very misery, I may date my sal­vation!

[Page 31]Thou Lord hast stricken me (with Sickness) (with Lame­ness) and it is just I should bear thy Indignation, because I have sinned against thee.

Blessed be thy infinite Goodness, that my Punish­ment is not greater, that Thou hast not suffered thy whole displeasure to arise.

O Lord God, in the midst of Iudgment remember Mercy, that Mercy which is over all thy Works, that Mercy in which thou thy self delightest; Be­hold, a great, a miserable sinner, a fit Object of that Mercy here prostrate before thee: Lord have mercy on me.

Ah Lord, my spiritual [Page 32] Distemper, is infinitely more mortal than my corporal; O that it might be thy good pleasure to forgive the one, and to remove the other.

O thou that art rich in Mercy, give the Grace of true Repentance to all that come to the Waters; and give it to me, the greatest sinner of them all.

Lord, give me Grace to examine all my mis-spent life, in the bitterness of my Soul to confess my sins, with a broken and contrite Heart, to bewail them with utmost abhorrence to forsake them, and do thou so order my steps in thy Word, that for the time to come, no [Page 33] wickedness may have Dominion over me, that I may bring forth fruits meet for repentance.

I confess, Lord, that I have abused my members, and made them Instruments of un­righteousness to sin, Rom. vi.13. and thou hast most just­ly punished them for it; O restore them to me again, and I will endeavour all my life, to make them Instru­ments of Righteousness to thy Glory.

Ah Lord, it is the Cure of my Soul, for which I pray more earnestly, than for the Cure of my Body. I go to the Bath for my bodily Health, and bless it, if it be thy will to my per­fect [Page 34] Recovery, and to the Recovery of all those that come thither with me: But for the Health of my Soul, I fly to the blood of Jesus, to the Fountain set open for sin and for uncleanness: I consult my bodily Physitian for my Distemper, but with much greater concern, I fly to thee, O Lord, who art the Sove­reign Physician of Souls.

Heal my soul, O God, for I have sinned, grievously sinned against thee, and by my sins have provoked thee, who art the God of Mercy, to anger. O Heal my backsliding, and love me freely, and take away mine iniquity, and receive me grati­ously, and turn thine anger from me.

[Page 35]I humbly pray to thee, O Lord, for my Bodily Cure; but because I know I may be eternally happy hereafter without Health of Body here, I pray for it with a resolu­tion, to acquiess in thy good pleasure, shouldst thou think fit to deny it. But, O my God, when I pray for the Cure of my Soul, I resolve I will not be denyed, I will never give over im­portuning thee, till thou givest me that Godly sorrow, which worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of, till thou hast begun to kindle thy love in my Heart.

[Page 36] Turn thou me, O Lord, and I shall be turned. I will give thee no rest, till thou hast turned me to thy self. Turn me then, O my God, O Turn me, O Pardon me, O Succour me, O Heal me, O Save me, for thy own infinite mercies sake, and for the merits of Jesus thy beloved, in whom thou hast made sinners accepted. Amen. Amen.

A Prayer for Amendment when God is pleased to Try us.

I Know, Lord, that thy Iudg­ments are right, and that [Page 37] thou of very faithfulness hast caused me to be troubled, for before I was afflicted I went a­stray, but now have I learned to keep thy Word, blessed be thy goodness for afflicting me.

True it is, O my God, that thou hast most season­ably sent me this affliction, (this Sickness, Lameness,) be­cause thou in thy propitious Wisdom didst see that I want­ed it. O may it have its most gracious, and full in­fluence on my soul, that I may be bettered by it.

I humbly beg of thee, O merciful Father, that this af­fliction may strengthen my Faith, which thou sawest [Page 38] was growing weak: fix my Hope which was staggering, quicken my Devotion which was languishing, unite me to my first Love which I was forsaking, rekindle my Charity which was cooling, revive my Zeal which was dying, confirm my Obedience which was wavering, reco­ver my Patience which was fainting, mortifie my Pride which was presuming, and perfect my Repentance which was daily decaying: for all these and the like In­firmites, to which my Soul is exposed, O make thy Af­fliction my Cure.

Grant, O my God, that this Affliction, thou hast in [Page 39] mercy laid on me, may wean all my affections from the World, which I was apt to grow too fond of; rescue me from those occa­sions of evil, of which I was in danger; secure me from those temptations which were ready to assault me; restrain me from those sins, to which my nature most strongly inclin'd; pre­serve me from all those abu­ses of Health, I am apt to incur; and purifie my Soul, from all that dross, and from all those vitious pro­pensions, which either my Repentance had left behind, or which I have since con­tracted.

[Page 40]O my God, let thy Af­fliction produce my Amend­ment, and all the happy ef­fects in me, which it is wont to do in thy Children, and which thou in mercy doest design it should; and then continue thy Affliction, if it seem good in thy sight: behold, Lord, Happy is the man whom thou thus correctest, Job. v.17.

What is best for me, O my God, I know not, my Flesh desires a deliverance from this Distemper, and if it be thy pleasure, O Lord deliver me: my Spirit de­sires that thou only wouldst choose for me: do thou then O Heavenly Father choose [Page 41] for me; choose for me be­cause thou art my Father, and out of thy Fatherly ten­derness, wilt be sure to choose what is the best for me: I resign up my own will entirely to thine. Fa­ther if, thou be willing, remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will but thine be done.

O my Father, if it be thy blessed will the Waters should not be effectual to me, make them effectual to all other Infirm Persons be­sides: I will rejoyce in thy goodness for removing their Affliction, I will acquiesce in thy goodness for continu­ing mine.

[Page 42]Hear, Lord, and have Compassion on me, for the Merits and Sufferings of Jesus, whose perfect Resig­nation may I always imi­tate. Amen. Amen.

Next to the great Duties of Repentance, and Prayer, I am to exhort you to Sacrifice of Alms-giving, which is a Duty appropriate to the Rich, or to those who have a Competence of the things of this World, so that as hitherto I have united the Rich and Poor together, because both are alike obliged to Repent and to Pray, I must now seperate them, and give distinct Exhortations to them both.

An Exhortation to the Rich.

IF you are Rich, or have wherewithal to relieve others, then be sure to be rich in good works, and accor­ding to your ability give alms, Luke xi.41. and give them in this place to those poor Christians, who come to the Bath for the Cure of the like Distempers as the Rich do, but have nothing to sustain them, or to defray the Char­ges of their Cure.

From what you feel your self, learn to compassionate [Page 44] the like Miseries in others; that Relief you would desire others should shew to you, were you in want, do you shew to the Poor; Those Blessings, that Ease, that Health, and that Patience, you beg of God for your self, beg of God for all others, which you see are in the like distress, and beg it as you would for your self, and with a like concern.

Such Charity as this will be an unspeakable Comfort to you, whatever your Di­stemper is; there is a present Temporal Blessing promised to it, and promised to Chari­table persons in that very time, when they most of all [Page 45] want it, namely in the time of their trouble, and on their sick Beds: For Blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy, the Lord shall deliver him in the time of trouble, the Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing, thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness, Psal. xli.1, 3.

Learn then of our most Compassionate Saviour to shew Mercy to the Sick, and the Lame, and to con­tribute all you can to their Healing; lay aside mony for that very Use, and pray to God to direct your Charity to those who most want it, and who are most worthy to be relieved: by this means [Page 46] you will be able Conscienti­ously to say with Job, I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame, Job xxix.15.

A Prayer for the Rich.

ALL Glory be to thee, O Lord God, for that portion of the good things of this Life, thou hast been pleased to vouchsafe me; Thou Lord hast made me thy Steward of them, and at the great day, I must give an account to thee of my steward­ship. O make me a faithful Steward of them, that I may [Page 47] give an account to thee with joy, and not with grief.

Thou Lord hast made it an argument of my love to thee, to open my bowels to my Brother in need. Behold, Lord, I see many of my Brethren and Sisters here in need, and destitute of those Con­veniencies for using the Waters, which thou in great goodness hast vouchsafed me, and out of a grateful sense of thy infinite Love to me, I desire to shew Love to them, and to my power to contribute to their Comfort, Support, and Cure: Glory be to thee who hast enabled me to do it.

O Blessed Saviour, I see thee, in every one of thy [Page 48] poor Members, here lying at the Pool, and thou hast none to help thee in. O give me grace to undertake that mer­ciful Office; to open my Bowels, and my Purse wide to help thee; and do thou vouchsafe help to me, in my time of need.

O my God, do thou di­rect me, in the distribution of my Alms to those who most want, and who best deserve relief; that I may dispose of them most agre­able to thy will, and to those who shall most glori­fie thee for them.

O make me ever merciful, as thou, O Father in Heaven art merciful; indulge me a [Page 49] share in that mercy, with which thou hast promsed to bless the merciful, and send me deliverance in the time of trouble.

Hear Lord, forgive, and save me, for thy own infi­nite mercies sake, for thy truth, and promise sake, and for the merits of Jesus thy beloved. Amen. Amen.

Ejaculations at the giving of Alms.

BLessed be thou, O Lord God, for ever and ever; for all things come of thee, [Page 50] and of thy own do I now give thee, 1 Chr. xxix.

Lord, let these Alms be an odour of a sweet smell, a sa­crifice acceptable, well peasing to thee, through Iesus the son of thy love, Phil. iv.18.

If your own Charitable disposition incline you, and your Spiritual Guide do al­so advise you, to devote a particular Sum to Pious Uses, you may express your Vow, in this or the like manner:

O my God, if thou wilt be with me in this place, and keep me in thy way, and de­liver me from my (Sickness, Lameness) and bless the Waters to me, then shalt thou, [Page 51] O Lord, be my God, and of that thou hast given me, I will surely give (here name the Sum) to thee, and to the Poor, that they may be re­lieved by it, and Glorifie thee for it.

A Prayer for the Poor.

O Lord God, the Refuge of all mankind, but especially of the miserable look down with thine Eye [...] of tenderest pity, on my low and destitute condition.

[Page 53]Thou Lord, hast been plea­sed to deny me the good things, the Conveniencies of this Life, blessed be thy Name for it; thou sawest I should abuse them, and therefore hast in mercy with-held from me those occasions of sin. But since thou art pleased, beyond my poverty to lay this further Calamity, (this Sickness, Lameness) on me, which has brought me hither, O be thou also plea­sed to succour, and to sup­port me under it.

Ah, Lord, I come to my Remedy, but have not where­withal to apply it: I come to the Waters, but have none to assist me, none to help [Page 54] me into the Bath; O let thy infinite Love, kindle a com­passionate Charity in the Hearts of the Rich, and in­cline some merciful persons, to relieve me.

Send seasonable relief, O my God, to all other poor and needy persons, who come hither calamitous like my self! O bless the Waters to our Cure, that being re­stored to our health, and strength, we may return to our Labour, and according to thy Divine Appointment, In the sweat of our brows may eat our bread; Bless the Wa­ters, O Lord, to all other infirm persons, but especially bless them to my Benefactors.

[Page 55]Lord, sanctifie my poverty to me, that I may be hum­ble and constant under it, and submissive to the Disposals of thy most wise and graci­ous Providence.

O my God, though I am poor in this World, make me rich in faith; I will gladly want Riches here, so I may have Treasure in Heaven hereafter, and be an Heir of the Kingdom, which thou hast promised to those that love thee. Lord pity me, Lord hear me, Lord help me, Lord save me, according to the multitude of thy Mercies, and the Merits of my Saviour. Amen. A­men.

The Poor Man's Prayer for those that relieve him.

GLory be to thee, O Lord, for my Benefactors; Glory be to thee who hast given them ability, and in­larged their Hearts, to re­lieve the poor and needy; Glory be to thee for direct­ing them in particular to relieve me.

O my God, I earnestly beg of thee, to shew mercy to them, who have shewed mercy to me: I have had the comfort of their Alms, Blessed be thy Name: O [Page 57] give them a plentiful recom­pence for it, reward them sevenfold into their Bosom, through Jesus thy Beloved. Amen. Amen.

Ejaculations for the Poor.

AS for me I am poor and needy, but thou Lord, carest for me, and on thee, Lord, I cast all my cares.

Glory be to thee, O Lord, who deliverest the poor in his affliction: O let it be thy pleasure to deliver me.

O Lord, the poor committeth himself to thee, for thou art the helper of the friendless; [Page 58] and to thee, poor as I am, I wholly commit my self. O be thou my Helper, O be thou my Friend.

Thou, O God, hast of thy goodness prepared for the poor, and the poor and needy shall give thanks unto thy Name.

O my Soul, put thy trust in the Lord, and by doing good dwell in the Land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

Having thus allotted to you that are Rich, and to you that are Poor, your di­stinct Duties, I must now again joyn you together; and I most passionately be­seech you, if you have a concern for the eternal well­fare of your Souls, any Hon­our [Page 59] for that most Holy Re­ligion you profess, any Re­verence for the Pure All-see­ing Eyes of God, to take all imaginable care, that you do not abuse the Bath, by any Lasciviousness, or Im­purity, which may defile your selves, or others: for this is the way to turn the means of your cure, into an occasion of the more out­ragious sin; and to provoke God to send you away with a dreadful Curse, instead of a Blessing.

If after a due use of the Baths, you find any benefit by them, and that your Di­stemper is either removed, or abated, as you desired [Page 60] the Prayers of the Congre­gation at your first coming, for God's Blessing on the Waters; So it is most just you should desire the Con­gregation to give thanks for you, and to render to God a publick acknowledg­ment for the Mercy he has vouchsafed you.

Be very careful, that when you are well, you do not forget you were sick: but let that advice which our Lord gives to the impotent Man, be deeply impressed on your mind, say it often to your own Soul, Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.

[Page 61]Renew all those good Re­solutions you made in the day of your distress; be very watchful and jealous over your self for fear of Backslidings; avoid all oc­casions of sin for the fu­ture; and dedicate that Health, to which God has in tender mercy restored you, to his Glory.

A Thanksgiving

ALL Praise, all Glory be to thee, my Lord and my God, for hearing my Prayers in the time of my trouble, for blessing the [Page 62] Waters to my Good, (to my Ease) (to my Cure;) O, may I never forget this Blessing, O may I ever give thee thanks for it.

Lord, I am jealous over my own treacherous Heart, that now thou hast (abated) (freed me from) my Cala­mity, I shall grow cold in my Devotion, and that the sense of my Duty will be apt to wear off with my affliction: but my sure and only Trust is in the as­sistances of thy Grace. O, hold up my goings in thy paths, that my foot-steps slip not, O, keep me as the Apple of the Eye.

O, may I sin no more, left [Page 63] a worse thing come unto me.

Praise the Lord, O my Soul, while I live will I praise the Lord, as long as I have my Being, I will sing Praises unto my God.

I called upon the Lord in my trouble, and the Lord heard me at large, therefore will I praise him.

Thou art my God, and I will thank thee; thou art the Lord, and I will praise thee.

Praised be the Lord, who hath not cast out my Prayer, nor turned his mercy from me.

O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is Gracious, and his mercy endureth for ever.

[Page 64]I will not only praise thee, O Lord, in private, but I will tell abroad what thou hast done for my Soul.

I will give thanks unto thee in the great Congregation, I will praise thee amongst much people.

Accept, O my God, this my Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving; and since the longer I live, the more I experience thy most ador­able, and boundless Good­ness, the more devoutly may I daily praise thee, the more intensely may I daily love thee, through Jesus thy Beloved. Amen Amen.

[Page 65]To this you may proper­ly add the hundred and third Psalm.

IF after you have used the Waters, you find no relief by them, be not discouraged: it may be God designs to effect your Cure some o­ther ways; it may be he sees it best for your spiritu­al good, that your Distem­per should continue, and it is your Duty patiently to submit to his good plea­sure.

If you are conscious to your self, that you have truly repented of all your sins past, and that the de­sire of your Soul is towards God, you may be then as­sured, [Page 66] that God chastened you because he loves you, that he dealeth with you as with a Child, and that his paternal Bowels are e­ver yearning on you.

'Tis most true in com­mon experience, what the Appostle affirms, That no Chastning for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grie­vous, and so will your Chastning seem to you; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceble fruit of righteousness, unto them which are exercised thereby, Heb. xii.11. and such fruit it will in the end infallibly yield to you.

[Page 77]Believe me then, that you will at last to your unutterable joy, experimen­tally find that all things, even the sharpest and the most continued afflictions, work together for good, to those that love God, Rom. viii.28.

Ejaculations for the Af­flicted.

DEal thou with me, O Lord, according to thy Name, for sweet is thy Mer­cy.

Thou hast been my Succour, leave me not, neither for­sake [Page 68] me, O God of my Sal­vation.

I should utterly have faint­ted, but that I verily be­lieve to see the Goodness of the Lord, in the Land of the Living.

I will wait on the Lord, from whom cometh my Sal­vation.

Though I am somtime a­fraid, yet put I my trust in thee.

Thou shalt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is staid on thee, because he trusteth in thee.

O what great Troubles and Adversities hast thou shewed me, and yet didst thou turn, and refresh me.

[Page 69] As for me, I patiently a­bide alway, and will praise thee more and more.

In the multitude of the sorrows I had in my heart, thy comforts have refreshed my Soul.

Unto thy entire dispo­sal I resign my Spirit, for thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of Truth.

O, may I always Do and Suffer thy will.

My God, though thou slayest me, yet will I put my trust in thee.

It is the Lord, it is my God, it is my Father, it is my Friend, it is in­finite Love that afflicts me: let him do what [Page 70] seemeth him good, he can will nothing but good to me; his Will be ever done, and not my own.

To these Ejaculations may be added that Prayer for Amendment when God is pleased to try us, which went before.

IF want of Children good Christian, and hopes of Benefit from the Water, bring you hither, then I be­seech you, as I did those who were sick or lame, to be­gin with God: Repentance and Prayer, and Resignation and Charity, are all as pro­per for your condition, as for them.

[Page 71]Be assured, that Children are the Gift of God, and let your first and chief re­course be to him, and from him, only expect a Bes­sing.

'Tis true, the Blessing of the Womb are temporal only, yet they are such which all married persons regularly ought to desire, and for which they ought with hu­mility, and submission to Pray.

Though the blessing of Children is very often in­dulged to wicked persons as well as to good, yet we see many times that God denies them to both, though they never so passionately desire them.

[Page 72]When God denies Chil­dren to wicked persons, it is in his anger, and for punishment. Thus Nadab and Abihu for offering strange fire, died before the Lord, Num. iii.4. and as an aggravation of their punishment it is re­marked, that they had no children. And the doom that God pronounced against wicked Coniah was, Thus saith the Lord, write this man childless, Jer. xxii.30. God threatens incestuous persons, That they shall die childless, Lev. xx.20, 32. And some­times when hopes of Issue appear, he gives the Wife a miscarrying womb, and dry [Page 73] breasts, Hos. ix.14. It is therefore most needful, that you should ground your hopes of Children, on a previous Repentance.

Children are no certain marks of Gods Favour, and [...]herefore the good often want them. Never were [...]here two better married Couples, than Abraham the friend of God, and Sarah, [...]han Zechary and Elizabeth; [...]ho were both righteous be­fore God, walking in all the Commandments of the Lord [...]lameless, and yet Sarah, and Elizabeth were both barren, [...]nd never had been mothers [...]ut by Miracle.

[Page 74] Rebeckah, and Rachel, and Hannah, had all for a long time their wombs shut up, and by Prayer they were all at last opened.

However, when God fore­sees Children like to prove either Temptations, or Ca­lamities, or Curses to their good Parents, it is a grea [...] blessing then to deny them which our Lord imitates t [...] the Daughters of Jerusalem when he told them, Th [...] dayes were coming in which they should say, blessed are th [...] barren, and the wombs th [...] never bare, and the paps th [...] never gave suck. Luk xxiii.29 [...]

But when God denie [...] Children to Holy Persons [Page 75] he makes up the blessing some other way, and gives them a name better than of sons, and of daughters, an e­verlasting name, that shall not be cut off, Isa. lvi.5. so that, which way soever God thinks fit to deal with you, you have all the reason imaginable, to assure your self that what is Gods Will is best for you, and chearfully to ac­quiesce in his good plea­sure.

A Prayer for a Wife.

O Lord God Almighty, who formest us from the womb, who coverest us there, and seest our substance when imperfect, and all our Members, and how they are curiously formed, Ps. cxxxix.16. All Glory be to thee.

I know Lord that Chil­dren, and the Fruit of the womb, are an heritage and gift that cometh of thee, and therefore of thee only I beg [Page 77] it; O vouchsafe me that gift in thy good time. Glo­ry be to thee O Lord, who makest the barren Woman to keep House, and to be a joyful Mother of Children. O that it might please thee, to make me a joyful Mother.

Deliver me, O my God, from either a barren, or from a miscarrying womb, and from dry Breasts; and if it be thy will, bless the Wa­ters, that they may dispose me to to be Fruitful, and to Conceive; and do thou, O Lord, most tenderly pre­serve the Fruit of my womb, that I may at last happily bring forth, and may for­get [Page 78] my pangs, and may praise thy Name, for joy that a Child is born into the World.

To thee, O Lord God, do I Vow this Vow, that if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and wilt give unto thy handmaid Children, then I will give them unto thee, 1 Sam. i.11. I will ear­ly devote them to thee in Holy Baptism: I will do my utmost to bring them up in thy nurture and ad­monition; in thy filial Fear, and reverential Love, that they may become instru­ments of thy Glory on [Page 79] Earth, and may at last be­come Saints in Heaven, to sing eternal praises to thee there.

Bless me, and my Hus­band, O Lord God Almighty, bless us with the blessings of Heaven above, and with the blessings of the deep that lyeth under, bless us with the bles­sings of the Breasts, and of the Womb, if it be thy will.

O Lord, if thou art plea­sed, for most wise and gra­cious purposes, to deny us the blessings of Children; thy most Holy Will be done: O give us an entire contentedness without them; [Page 80] and though it is not thy pleasure to make us Fruit­ful in our Bodies, yet make us Fruitful in our Souls, Fruitful in all saving Graces, which will in the end, prove a much greater joy, and comfort, and blessing to us both, than Children. Hear me, O Lord, and help me, and grant my Petition if it be thy Will, for thy infinite Goodness sake, and the sake of Jesus the Son of thy Love. Amen. A­men.

If it please God to bless the Waters to your Fruit­fulness, then use the forgo­ing Form of Thanksgiv­ing. [Page 81] And if you, or any one besides, who have made use of this Paper, have received the least good from it, to God be all the Glory. Amen.