The fourth part of the true watch containing prayers and teares for the churches. Or A helpe to hold up the hearts and hands of the poorest servants of God, untill our Lord Iesus Christ shall have rescued his glorie, kingdome, and people in all the world, and fully prepared the way to his most glorious appearing.

The seuenth particular Meditati∣on, of the second generall: how Sathan exerciseth all his power and tyranny against all the Churches spiritually.

SEuenthly, wee are withall* 1.1 to betake our selves to a serious Meditation, and to bring our hearts likewise to a right feeling hereof: That as* 1.2 the Lord hath in his iust and heavy displeasure left his poore afflicted Churches and children to be thus pursued by Sathan, and driven into the wildernesse; so Sathan having gotten them thither, he there principally exerciseth his po∣wer & tyranny against them,

even spiritually against their seules and consciences, so farre as God permits him, as well as against their bodies.

How hee thereby bestirres himselfe to bring them into all* 1.3 spirituall miseries, & to cause them either to fall away from the Lord Iesus Christ, and the soundnesse and sincerity of his heavenly Gospell, which they have received & professed, or to vse dissembling, even to de∣ny the Lord Iesus, or other vn∣lawfull meanes for their reliefe and succour; thus to wound their weake cōsciences & •…•…o get more advantage against them, both to accuse them before the Lord, and so to provoke* 1.4 his Maiesty to leave them up into his hands; and even to drive many of them to utter and endless despaire of the Lords helpe & succour, which is the height of miseries, and the very entrance into the lake.

Or at least (which is his u∣suall* 1.5 manner with every one of us, and wherein he can, and doth oft prevaile with manie of the deerest Saints and Chil∣dren of the Lord) he settes on them day and night to cause them to doubt of the Lords favor and love, & of the truth of their Religion, the good∣nesse of their cause, the sound∣nesse of their Faith and repen∣tance; or whether they have any Faith or no, seeing hee so* 1.6 leaves them to so many mise∣ries, which if hee loved them he would not doe. Then, hee makes them possess the verie sinnes of their youth, setting all of them before their faces, which ever they fell into in their whole lives, so much as he is able, and aggravating e∣very least slip or fayling, as if it were the most heynous sin, that ever was committed.

Then, through melancholy

passions and distempers into* 1.7 which hee can driue thee best by long affliction, and by still urging his temptations & ter∣rors) hee can, and useth to cause them to accuse them∣selves* 1.8 falsely, and for those things wherein they are most innocent, or for y^e best things that ever they have done, and so can increase their miseryes both bodily and spirituall. The right meditation of these and other like miseries which* 1.9 he drives them into, m•…•…st needs cause us to commiserate their poore and wofull estate, and the due consideration of the present danger to our selves of the like, will make us cry loud day and night, both for them and for ourselves.

Yea moreouer, heerein wee* 1.10 are to striue to bring our harts to a right and wise considera∣tion; That as the Lord being displeased against Israel, gave

Sathan liberty to stand up a∣gainst David, to move him to number his people, so to make a way to the just execution of his displeasure for their sinnes, and thereby to awake them, & bring them to repentance; so he might thus most justly for a long time have given him liberty to stand up against all the Churches, for our cold∣ness and security, but against us especially of this sinnefull* 1.11 Nation, having so long gree∣ved him by all our heynous prouocations, even these threescore yeeres and more; and much more may he doe it now most righteously, for our so unspeakeable impenitencie and senselesness at this day, & for that nothing els hath hi∣therto, or can yet awake us.

And withall, we are to la∣bour to bring our hearts to a wise and right consideration of the extreame rage and fury

that Sathan now exerciseth,* 1.12 roaring upon all the true Churches of Christ, as if hee would devoure us at once, knowing he hath but a short time: and how he hath heere∣upon thus lately begun to cast out this floud of bloody per∣secution out of his mouth, to carry away all the Churches and Children of God at this once together, as he hath done* 1.13 some already. How he and his bloody Instruments haue de∣creed the certaine effecting heereof, as God hath made it manifest even by themselves, and that to all the world; I meane to every one whose eyes the God of this world hath not utterly shut up.

And to bee euer thinking heereof: That onely our bles∣sed* 1.14 God & tender Father▪ hath caused the earth hitherto, to helpe his Churches and all of us his Children, in •…•…o opening

her mouth and swallowing up the waters, albeit so very many of our Brethren abroad haue bin already carried away ther∣by. That our course is now (as we haue just cause to feare)* 1.15 comming amaine like the ra∣ging Sea: Sathan standing up day and night against every one of us, to tempt us all, each according to our places, cal∣lings, & occasions to provoke him by our sinnes more and more, especially by our indu∣ration and security dayly in∣creased; that so the Lord may leave us likewise into his hand, which wee haue just cause to feare; according to all his se∣vere denunciations and threats so neerely executed, and that to as great miseries, as they or any other Churches or people euer indured before, as he had almost done.

The right Meditation of all these will make us cry aloud:

Lead us not into temptation but* 1.16 deliver us from euill. Lord de∣liver us not over to the temp∣ter for our sinnes, to bee thus indurate and prepared for de∣struction, but deliver us from him and from the innumera∣ble evils which he so furiously seekes to bring upon us and upon all our Brethren, and which so many other Chur∣ches so groane under.

And yet more then all this,* 1.17 wee are never to rest day nor night, till our heartes rightly understand and conceiue here∣of, that as all the miseries now* 1.18 upon or towards the Chur∣ches, are wholly or principally from the Dragon, who hath thus inraged all those whom he hath deceiued to fight a∣gainst* 1.19 them; so our God hath also heerein ordained Pastors and Watchmen both spiritu∣all and temporall to preserve his Children from him; and

those his Pastors and Watch∣men to bee awaked and made more vigilant heereunto, by the instant Prayers and cries of his poore people committed to their charge.* 1.20

We are ever likewise to be thinking heereof; that he that cannot cry for himselfe, and for the Watchmen and Chur∣ches to be delivered from the tempter, and from all these e∣vils. Especially, from the evill of sinne, that it reigne not o∣ver him, but suffers himselfe to be a servant, though it be but of any one sinne, and a slave of Sathan therein, must indure e∣ternall evils and miseries with him in the Lake for ever and ever.

Notes

• * 1.1

  L•…•…ad us not into tempta∣tion b•…•…t de∣liver us from evill.
• * 1.2

  To Meditate how Sathan having got∣ten the Church into the wildernes there exerci∣seth his tyra∣ny on it.
• * 1.3

  Sathan seekes to cause all Gods people to fall away or to dissem∣ble for fear•…•…, by their mi∣series.
• * 1.4

  To provoke the Lord more against them.
• * 1.5

  Or to doubt of Gods fa∣vor & sound∣nesse of their religion or faith.
• * 1.6

  Or whether they haue a∣ny Faith.
• * 1.7

  Thence to melancholy distempers.
• * 1.8

  To accuse themselves falesly.
• * 1.9

  The effect of the right Me∣ditation of these.
• * 1.10

  How iustly God may leave Sathan to stand up a∣gainst us as against Israel.
• * 1.11

  Euen against all the Chur∣ches, but us p•…•…ially.
• * 1.12

  How Sathan roares uppon the Churches
• * 1.13

  See States∣mysteries of the Iesuites.
• * 1.14

  The earth hitherto cau∣sed to helpe the Church.
• * 1.15

  Iust feare left our course should bee comming thorow Sa∣thans won∣derfull pre∣vailing.
• * 1.16

  The right Meditation heereof will make us to cry loude. Leade us not &c.
• * 1.17

  The fourih branch.
• * 1.18

  All the mise∣r•…•…es of the Church chief ly from the Dragon.
• * 1.19

  Pastors and Watchmen ordained to preserve Gods Chil∣dren to bee stirred up heer •…•…unto at their cries.
• * 1.20

  They that cannot cry to be delivered from the tempter, to helpe to de∣liver their brethrē, must endure all miserie with him.