thou ask? what releafe canll thou expect from fucha prifoq? the dif~a,fe is pall: c,ure, the ficknelfe wants remedy; Alas ! what may recover now the heart-finngs break afun– der ?Thy date expires,thy lall: brcath.goes,and now is thy Soul and Body reqmred of thq. I have hitherto with Nathan beat finful Davidon a !hangers co~t. You mull: gtve me leave to take off the mask, and !hew you your..own faces jn this glafs. . Believe thou who readell: this, that lhortly there will be two holes where thme eyes 'fl now fiand, and then others may take ~p thy sku_ll, and fpea~.of thee dead, asI have V '· 1 • done to thee living: how foon I know not, but thts I am fure of, .Thy""" u appo.nted, thy monuhs arc determined, thy dayes are numbred,thy very lt!jf ho~tr.u lmmed.. Al)d what Job. , 4 • ~~followes,but that thy body lie cold at the root •f the rockJ,at the foot of the mou~tan)s? Job 14 5 • Go to the graves of thofe that are gon7 before us , and there fee ; are not thw e_yes P{al9o. 12. wall:ed, their mouths corrupted, thetr bones fcattered? Where be.thofe r11ddy hps, ] obn• •· 9· J'ovely cheeks, fparkling eyes, comely nofe, hatry locks? A,re not all goqe as_ a dream in the night, or as a !hadow in the morning ?_ Alas ! that we neglect thefe thoughts, and fer our minds wholly upon the world and tts vantty! Weare careful, fearful, and immoderately painful to get tranfitory riches, like children following Butter-flies; we run and toil, and perhaps mitre our purpofe: but if we catch them, what is it but a flic to befmear our hands? Riches are but empty,and yet be they what they will be, all at !all: will be nothing. Saladine that great Tur~, after all hi~ conque~s, gets his lhir; fallened tQ his fpear in manner of an Enfigne; this done, a Pnell: l'(lakes Pr9clamation; • 'Thi; ts all that Saladine carries away with him,of all theriches he bathgottm.fihall aTurk Knsd; Turklfu fay thus,& do Chri!Hans forg~t their duties?Remen>ber your felves ye fons of earth,of Hillory p. 73· fidam, what is this earth you dote on? Befure you !hall have enough of it, when your · mouths mufl: be filled and crammed with it,and(as yourfouls defire it, fo) at that day lhall your bodies turn to it. 0 that men arc thus given to gafping greedine£re. \ .there is a generation, and they arc too common amongll: us, that we may preach a'\d preach (as theyfay)our hearts out,yet will notthey ll:ir a foot farther from the world,or an inch nearer unto God; but could we fpeak with them on their death be.d, .when their confciences are ·awaked, then fhould we hear them yell out thofe CO\llplalnts, what bath pride profited us i Or whatgood bath richn with Mr vaunti'lg. brought J<S l AJfure your WiCJ. s. SI fdves this da.y,!lr this night willcome,and image (I pray) that the ten;twenty, thirty, fourty years., or moneths, ot dayes, or hours, which y<,Ju have yet.to live, were at an end; were you at this prefent ll:retched on your beds, w~aried with ll:ruggling ag~it1tl: your wearied pangs ; wer'! your friends weeping, y~tir Phyficians parting, your children crying, your wives houling, and your felves lyirig mute and dumb in a moll: pitiful agony?--- · . . Belo~ed Chrill:ian! (whofoever thou art) ltay a while (I pray thee) and praOife this medttatton: S~tppofe thot< mw feltefl the cramp of death wrefting thy heart-firing;, and ready to n;ak! tb4t mjiel divorce bmtixt thy body and thyJoul;fupp•fe thou layeft nolV pant– wgfor br~ath,fwimming in a coldfa(~ljweat ;jitppofe thy words were jled,thy tongueffruck_ dmnb, thy foul am4z.ed, thyJenfesJrtghted; jitppofe 1hy feet begmnmg even to d,e, thy k!tees to wax cold andfliff, thy noflrils to run out, thine eyes to fink_into thy head, and all the parts of the body to lofe their office to aJ!ijl thee ; ttpoit thisJi•ppofallift up thy foul, and look..abollt thee, ( 0 I can tell thce,ifthoulivefl tJnd diej/ infin) there would be no where mry comfort, but a worldofterrour andperplexity ; look..upwards, there Jhouldft thoufee the temble [word of Gods jujlice threatning; lo•k.. downward;, th<re jhouldft thou fee the grave in_expefJation reildy g11ping; look_within thee, there fhouldft tho!< feel the WDY1fl of confc,.nce btttergnawing; look without thee, there Jhouldjl ebQufee good and evil An– gels on both fide;, waiting whether ofthem jlmtld have the prey: now 11las! (then wo!'ldfo tboJt fay)Tbe foul to depart from the body were a thing intolerable, to contimtc flill therein. were a thmg impoJlib!e; and to deferre this deparmre any longer (fuppofin,r this hour thy 14 hour) 110 Phyjick_could prevail, it were a thing Jtnav•idable : What then lVOitld thy poor foul ~o, thMinvJroiJed .with (o 1m111y ftraits ? 0 fond fools of Adams·Ceed, that negletl the tune till this terrible paft'age! how much wouldll: thou give (if thus it were) for an hours. repentance?at what rate wouldll: thou value adayes contritioa?wqrlds are worth– lelfe m refpeCl: ofa little refpite, a !hort truce would feem more ·precious thali the treafures of Empires; nothing would then be fo much efteemed as a tri~e. of time, w~ich before by_mon.eths and years thou liivifhly Iilif-fpcnt;. Think on thy fin,, nay., thou coul<\ll: not choofe but thi.nk Satan w<;>uld write them on the curtains of thy bed, and thy agalhedey~would be force~ to look upori them;there wouldlt th~u fee thoufands F f f 2 com!.Dit,ted,
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