Ane treatise of conscience Quhairin divers secreits concerning that subiect, are discovered, as may appeare, in the table following.

CHAP. IX.

A Praier to be said by such, as are trobled in spirit & conscience, throgh sight of their sins.

IVst, dreadful, almightie, merciful, & e∣verliuing God! Who by thine al seing spirit, seest the deeds, hears the words, & knowes the secret thochts of al hearts: Be¦hold me poor wretch, in thy mercie, here on the face of this low earth, prostrat be∣fore thine holy & high throane. Alace! I confes Lord, that I am not worthie to lift vp my face to heaven, nor to receiue any comfort or good thing of thy hands: For I haue sinned, alace! I haue sinned aganis thee, I haue broken thy statutes, I haue abused thy clemencie & benefits, I haue committit abhomination, & followitthe

affections and lusts of mine owne heart. Wherefore, thou hast nowe, Lord, affli∣cted me, and that most justly: Thou hast made mine owne Conscience to accuse, & torment me: my soul is vehemently vex∣ed, and heauie vnto death, my heart is faint through anguish, and my flesh con∣sumes and pines for feare of the stroke of thy hand. Thou art angrie, O Lord? thou art angrie: but who is able to abide thy fearce wrath? Thou knowest that man is but a vaine thing,* 1.1 his life is like a vapour, or a shadow which vanisheth away in an instant, and the imaginations of his hart are euil and wicked.* 1.2 I am but dust, & like the flowre of the field which withers and decaies suddenly; I cannot abide the heat of thine anger. It is true, Lord, that I am inexcusable, and sinful out of measure; but mercie belongs vnto thee; let thy mercie therefore abound, and appear in∣finite in forgiving me many sins, I turne me vnto thee, O Lord, turne thee againe vnto me; I seeke thy face, hide not thy fa∣vourable face from me; but let the bright

blenks of thy loving countenance shine on me: For thou knowest, it repenteth me of the evil which I haue done, and that I trust in thee: But, Lord supply my defici∣ent repentance, and helpe my vnbeleefe: For my repentance is imperfect, and my faith is weake. None can come to thee, vnlesse thou draw them;* 1.3 nor can beleeue while they be conuerted by thy spirite: Draw me therefore vnto thee, and I shal come; convert me, and I shal be conver∣ted. O Lord, Thou knowest the dolour & sorrowe of my heart for my sinne, thou seest my miserie and trouble: Day and night I mourne and I lament, my face is al bedewed with teares, and my soul we∣rieth of my life: I am a monster to them that beholds me, and mine acquaintance wonders at my miserie. There is no help in man, neither doth any worldly conso∣lation availe me. No Man, nor Angell is able to releeue mee, but thou onely: without thy help, Lord, I am but lost for euer. But when did you ever reject the heauie heart, & the oppressed Conscience

quhilk did seek to thee with continuance? Thou delights not in the death of sinners but would haue al men to repent,* 1.4 and be saued:* 1.5 Thou art slowe to anger and redy to forgiue:* 1.6 Thy wrath is consaued in the morning and forgot in the evening: Thy mercie exceeds my sinnes, and all things in greatnes; and there is no end with thy compassion. Let not then, O Lord, thy mercie be shut vp in displeasure; be not angrie with me for ever, neither correct me any more in thy wrath: For I am no more in thy hands, nor the potshard is in the handes of the potter: But remember thy wonted mercies, and workes of olde shewed to thy servants Abraham, Isaac, & Iacob, to Moses, David; and to thy peo∣ple Israel: Remember the death and obe∣dience of thy deare sonne Iesus Christ; remember the anguish of his heart, when he praied vnto thee, that night he was be∣traied; & his cries on the crosse, when he cried vnto thee, My God, my God! why hes thou forsaken me? Was it not for my sin, O Lord, that he suffered these things?

Loose not then thy poor servant whome thou hes so dearlie bought with the blud of thy Lamb: Behold him, Lord, sitting at thy right hand, & let thy wrath be apesed with me, in regarding his humble coun∣tenance: Haue not respect to my deser∣uings, & vnworthines; but vnto his death and obedience: Impute his righteousnes vnto me, & let his justice, be made my ju∣stice; for he hes redemit me: yea, for thine own mercies sake, & merits of thine only Son, my saviour, cast my sins behind thy back, remember my iniquities no more, and haue pittie on my distres & miserie. Behold, Lord, I am here, what is thy will with me? what sal I do? what course sall I take? how sal behaue my selfe in this my troble, & during the whol pilgrimage of my life? Make answere vnto me: for I will not leaue crying vnto thee. Yea, though thou suld kil me, yet wil I not depart from thee, but will still trust in thee. My whole desire is to please thee, shew me thy will, therefore, & enlarge my hart, that I may obey thy voice, & fulfill thy commande∣ments.

O my God! Raise me vp in thy mercie, as thou hast casten me downe in thy ju∣stice: let me see thy salvation and delive∣rance from the bondage of Satan, of sin, and of mine owne concupiscence. I thirst for thy mercie and grace, O Lord, as the dry ground dois for the running waters: Redresse my faultes therefore, let them be freely forgiuen, as though they had never bene committed: And as thou hes giuen me a feeling of my sinne, and of thine indignation against sinne: So giue me a sure perswasion of the remission of my sin, and a feeling of thy favour, with∣out the quhilk I cannot liue. Driue away the darknes of my minde; Let all these troublesome cogitations, vaine feare, in∣credulitie and mistrust depart from me: Settle and pacifie my perturbed spirite, binde vp my wounded Conscience, heale my contrite & broken heart, restore my courage and my strength, restore me to that joye quhilk I was woont to finde in thee. And if it be thy pleasure, Lord, re∣mooue thy scourge from me: for I haue

felt enough thy hand: mitigate my pain, & let me see the issue of my troubles, that I may be able to beare them: yet, not as I will Lord, but as thou wilt: If thy glory may be advanced through my sufferings; or thy power made perfect through my infirmitie and weaknesse; let mee suffer whatsoeuer pleaseth thee: Try me, as the gold & as the silver, quhilk is purified in the fornace, while I be made a meet tem∣ple of thy holie spirit, and be well prepa∣red for thy kingdome. Alwaies acording to thy promise & faithfulnes, tempt me not aboue that quhilk I am able to beare: For thou knowest I am weak, and am but flesh. Giue me therfore patience, strenth, and constancie with the triall, that I may suffer, resist, overcum, & inherit al things. Let thy constant and good spirit rest in me, O Lord, that I may stand stedfast vn∣to the end of this battell; that I fret not with my self, after the maner of the wic∣ked, nor cast off thy crosse throgh impa∣tiencie: but that I may adhere firmly vn∣to thee, humblie submit my selfe to thy

will, patiently waite and watch for thy comming and deliverance, and be harti∣lie well content with thy good pleasure, whatsoeuer crosse or afflictioun it shall please thee to lay on me: For thou know∣est what is good for me, thou hes al pow∣er in heuen, and in earth, thou hes a con∣tinuall care and loue towards thy chosen Children, thou art constant, and true in thy promises, and thy mercie and loving kindnes indures for ever. I will alwaies waite on thee (my God) I will suffer thy stripes & correction: for I haue deserued them. I render my selfe vnto thee; I giue me over, soul & body, in thy hands; I sub∣mit me all whollie to thy will; rule, & vse the work of thy hands, as seems good in thine eies: For I am thy servant: yea, whe∣ther I be in prosperitie, or adversitie; in wealth, or in povertie; in estimation, or disesteemed; in joy, or in heavines; in ple∣sure, or in paine; in health, or in sicknes; whether I liue or die, I am alwaies thine, thy servant, & work of thine owne hands. Graunt me therefore, O Lord, onlie thy

loving countenance, thy blessing, thy fa∣uour, and thy grace; and then I sall haue ynough; they salbe sufficient for me; that is all that I craue: For thou sall make my heart more joyful therby, nor they quhilk possesseth great kingdomes. O louing fa∣ther, hide mee vnder the shadowe of thy wings, and performe that worke quhilk thou hes begunne in me, to thy glorie to my comfort and salvatioun; that I may praise thee, & thy deare son Iesus Christ, in whose name, & for whose sake I craue these things at thy bountifull handes,* 1.7 as he hes taught and commanded me. To thee throgh him, be al honor & glorie, in heaven and in earth, for euer. Amen.

O holy Lambe, and only sonne of the everliving God! The light of the world, and redeemer of mankind; (my sweet Sa∣viour Iesus Christ) I come vnto thee, as vnto my onlie stay and refuge, wearie, & laden with sorrow, and with sin, and sore thirsting for thy grace & mercie. There∣fore, according to thy promise, ease me of my burden;* 1.8 and giue me of the water

of life to drink,* 1.9 whereby my thirst may be quenched for ever. Thou hast promised likewise, O Lord, to be with vs vnto the end of the worlde: Be with me then, as thou hes promised, now in my extreame trouble, and vrgent necessitie: For I am thine, & I trust in thee. Behold (my God) I haue gone long astray, like a lost sheep, my sinnes hes almost deceiued mee; For through the multitude thereof, I haue provoked & kindled the wrath of thy Fa∣ther against me▪ Wherefore I am broght wondrous low, and am reduced to great extremitie: my soule is wo and sore grie∣ued, that I haue offendit his Majestie: but thou art able to raise me out of the dust, & to reconcile thy Father with me: For thou art his anointed: Hee hes sent thee to bind vp the broken harted,* 1.10 to preache libertie to the captiues, to preache good tydings to the poore, the recovering of sight to the blind, the opening of the pri∣son to them that are bound, to preache the acceptable year of the Lord, to com∣fort them that morne, to giue them bew∣tie

for ashes, the oyle of joye for mour∣ning, and the garment of gladnes, for the spirit of heavines. O gracious Saviour! thou came not in the worlde to saue the righteous, but to bring sinners to repen∣tance, whereof I am one of the greatest: Raise me vp therefore O my God, be thy mightie hand, wash away my sinnes with thy precious blood, make mee white, as the snowe and wooll, cloth me with thy righteousnes, pacifie the wrath of thy fa∣ther conceiued aganis me for those sins, for the quhilk thou hes alreadie made ful satisfaction. Stand betwixt him and mee that his burning yre consume me not: O gracious mediator! make intercession to his diuine Majestie for me: present mee faltles vnto him: And let the comforter comfort me, & put me in remembrance of al things; that through his governance I may be safely conducted through al the perrels and temptations of this world, to thy celestiall kingdome, there to glorifie thee, the father, and the holy spirit, in e∣ternall vnitie, with all kind of praise, and

exaltation for ever. Amen. Make hast, O Lord, and tary not; that hauing obteined new experience of thy mercie, I may de∣clare the same to my bretheren, that o∣thers through my example may flie sin, & they quhilk are likewise dejected, may learne to seek help, and comfort in their trouble, where it is to be found; even at thy hands, O Lord, to thy perpetual glo∣rie, to the comfort of thy Kirk, and over∣throwe of the kingdome of Satan.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Psal. 39. 5
• * 1.2

  Genes. 8. 21
• * 1.3

  Iohn. 6. 44.
• * 1.4

  Eze. 18. 23
• * 1.5

  1. Tim. 2. 4.
• * 1.6

  2. Pet. 3. 9.
• * 1.7

  Ioh. 16. 24
• * 1.8

  Mat. 11. 28
• * 1.9

  Iohn. 4. 14
• * 1.10

  Esai. 61. 1