A godly and learned treatise of prayer which both conteineth in it the doctrine of prayer, and also sheweth the practice of it in the exposition of the Lords prayer: by that faithfull and painfull servant of God George Downame, Doctr of Divinity, and late L. Bishop of Dery in the realm of Ireland.

CHAP. XVI. Of the manner how we are to call upon God.

IN the fourth place we are to intreat of the man∣ner how we are to call upon God. The manner is set down Rom. 8. 27. according to God, that is, as S. John speaketh, according to the will of God, 1. John 5. 14. So I said in the definition, That invo∣cation is a religious speech of the faithfull made un∣to God in the name of Christ according to the will of God: where by the will of God we are to un∣derstand, not his secret will and counsel which we know not, but his will revealed in his word. Pray∣er is therefore made according to the will of God, when in our prayer those things are performed which God in his word prescribeth to be perform∣ed in prayer.

This and the former point are of great moment: for when a man prayeth and is not heard, it is, as Bernard saith, because aut praeter verbum petis, aut propter verbum non petis, that is, because thou prayest either beside the word or not for the word; where∣as on the other side we have this confidence in him, that if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us, 1. John 5. 14, 15.

Now for the manner of prayer there are duties to

be performed not onely in the action it self, but also out of the action, that is to say, both before and af∣ter. In the action of invocation the duties respecting the manner belong either to the internall form or externall. The former are the inward duties of the soul, the latter the outward speech and gesture of the bodie.

Unto the speech referre

• words
• ...
  • quantitie.
  • qualitie.
• voice.

In the soul we are to consider what is required first in generall, and then in particular. In generall it is required that our invocation be a speech of the soul: and therefore as I said in the beginning, some define prayer that it is 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, that is, the communication of the soul with God: Others, that it is 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, that is, the ascending of the mind unto God. David expresseth his pray∣er to be a lifting up of his soul unto God, Psal. 25. 1. and 86. 4. and elsewhere he calleth it a pouring forth of the soul before the Lord; as Anna also speaketh, 1. Sam. 1. 15. So that true prayer is not the lifting up of the voice, of the eyes, or hands alone; but a lifting up of the heart with the hands unto God that is in the heavens, Lam. 3. 41. To the same purpose in the Scriptures we are directed to pray in the heart, Col. 3. 16. and in the spirit, that is, the soul, Ephes. 6. 18. to pray with the whole heart, Psal. 111. 1. that is, with an upright heart, Psal. 119. 7. with unfeigned lips, Psal. 17. 1. in truth, that is, in sinceritie and uprightnesse of heart, Psal. 145. 18.

The necessitie of this praying in truth appeareth, 1. By testimonie of our Saviour Christ, John 4. 24. God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth: 2. By all those testimonies even now cited, wherein we are stirred up to lift up our hearts and to poure forth oursouls, &c. 3. If the Apostle require servants to perform their duties to their masters 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, as unto the Lord; how much more is it our duty to the Lord himself to perform our service from our hearts? 4. The uprightnesse and sinceritie of the heart is the soundnesse of all our worship and service of God, without which it is hypocrisie: therefore David professeth that he would call upon God with an upright heart, Psal. 119. 7. and with lips unfeigned, Psal. 17. 1. and to the same purpose we are exhorted to seek the Lord with an upright heart, Deut. 4. 29. Jer. 29. 13. 5. The promise of hearing our prayer is restrained to this praying in truth: Psal. 145. 18. The Lord is near to all that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth: for bodily exercise profiteth little, 1. Tim. 4. 8. and the Lord respecteth especially the voice of the heart. As for those that call upon him with their lips and not with their hearts, the Lord abhorreth their prayer, and taketh himself to be abused by them, and therefore he reproveth them by his Prophet Isaiah, chap. 29. 13. This people cometh near me with their lips, but their heart is farre from me: and else∣where he complaineth of the hypocrites of his peo∣ple, that when they howled unto him they cried not with their hearts, which he calleth speaking lies, Hos. 7. 13, 14. for what else doth a man but lie when

he speaketh otherwise then he thinketh? This di∣vorce of the heart and the tongue in all speech, even betwixt men, is detestable: Psal. 12. 2. it is called speaking with a heart and a heart: But when men speak so unto God it is ridiculous and impious: ridiculous, because they go about to deceive God, who be∣holding he heart as well as the tongue, seeth them dance as it were in a net: impious, because it is not to lie unto men but unto God. Both which folly and impietie the Psalmist noteth in the Israelites, Psal. 78. 36. That when the hand of God was upon them slaying divers of them, they sought him and called upon him: neverthelesse they did flatter, or go about to deceive him, with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues; for their heart was not right with him.

Here therefore two faults are to be avoided: the one, praying with feigned lips; the other, praying with wandring thoughts. He is said to pray with feigned lips whose lips agree not with his heart, nor his words with his desires and thoughts: So saith Be∣da, Labiis dolosis or at quis, cùm vox oris non convenit voci cordis; A man prayeth with deceitfull lips, when the voice of the mouth agreeth not with the voice of the heart. This is to pray with an heart and an heart, and thus prayeth every one which asketh that with his mouth which he doth not desire with his heart, and pretendeth that in his prayer which he doth not intend, which promiseth that in his prayer which he meaneth not to perform, or praiseth God for that whereof his conscience doth not acknow∣ledge either God to be the giver or himself the re∣ceiver.

This is the condition of all impenitent sin∣ners, to play the hypocrites before God in all their prayers concerning spirituall things.

We must learn therefore with David to pray with unfeigned lips, Psal. 17. 1. and to praise God with an upright heart, Psal. 119. 7. For if it be the propertie of a sound Christian, to speak unto his neighbour the truth which is in his heart, Psal. 15. how much more shall we think it to be our dutie when we call upon God who trieth the heart and search∣eth the reins, to speak from the ground of our hearts. And if we will not stick to speak dissemblingly un∣to the Lord, who seeth our thoughts long before, Psal. 139. 2. what hope is there that we will make conscience to speak the truth unto men, who see no further then our mouthes? Let us therefore avoid∣ing this leaven of hypocrisie, which sowreth our prayers, imbrace integrity and uprightnesse of heart, setting the Lord before our eyes, and behaving our selves in our prayer as those who sought to approve themselves to him who trieth the heart. Thus seek∣ing the Lord with upright hearts we shall be sure to find him, and calling upon him in truth we shall ob∣tein our desires.

The second thing to be avoided is praying with wandring thoughts: Which fault ariseth partly from the suggestions of Satan, who is most busie to with∣draw our minds from this heavenly exercise; partly from our own spirituall sluggishnesse and carnall se∣curitie, and the worldly vanitie of our minds; whereby it cometh to passe that we behave our selves as those who neither have reverence of the

majesty of God to whom we speak, nor sense of those things whereof we speak: For if we consider∣ed that we are speaking to the most mighty and glo∣rious God, could we imagine that we ought to think of any thing rather then of that which we speak un∣to him? Do not men (as it were) gather their wi•…•…s and cogitations together, so that no part thereof be derived to any thing else, when they do speak be∣fore any whom they do reverence? Or if our affe∣ctions were unfeignedly set upon those heavenly things whereof we speak, would we suffer our co∣gitations to wander about trifles on the 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Wherefore as at all other times so especially when we pray we must (as the Wise man adviseth) above all observations observe and keep our hearts, Prov. 4. 23. that they wander not from God, (for, as Bernard saith, nihil corde fugacius, nothing is more fugitive then the heart) and that with David, 2. Sam. 7. 27. we may find our heart to call upon God. And to the same purpose let us pray, that as at all times so espe∣cially in prayer the Lord would knit our hearts unto him, Psal. 86. 11. that they go not astray after vani∣ties. Let us resist the suggestions of Satan, let us shake off our own sluggishnesse; and to that end let us set before us the infinite majestie of God to whom we speak, the excellencie and necessitie of those graces for which we pray and give thanks: l•…•…t us also pray with David, Psal. 141. 3. that the Lord would set a watch before our mouthes, and keep the doore of our lips, that neither our minds go a whoring af∣ter vanities, nor our tongues, which should be as the pen of a ready writer, be rash to utter any thing before

God; and to utter nothing but that which the min•…•… doth indite. And therefore we must take heed that the speech of the mouth do not go before but al∣wayes follow the conceit of the mind. For many times it cometh to passe, that as the musicians fin∣gers will run over a song which he hath been used to play although his mind be otherwise occupied, so in prayer the tongue will run over that form of words which it hath been used to utter, though the mind be roving about other matters. But this ought not so to be: for howsoever the Schoolmen do not require an actuall intention of the mind in pray∣er, but onely a purpose to pray in the beginning (therein framing their doctrine to their practice, and not their practice to Gods word) yet seeing this kind of prayer proceedeth from the mouth and not from the heart, it is but lip▪ labour in the sight of God. For as Cyprian saith, Quae est enim segnitia abalienari & capi ineptis cogitationi∣bus & profanis cùm Deum deprecaris, quasi sit aliud quod magis debeas cogitare, quàm quod cum Deo loquaris? Quomodo t•…•… audiri à Deo postulas, cùm te•…•…ipse non audias? Vis enim Deum memorem tui▪ cùm rogas, eùm tu ipse memor tui non sis? that is, What a negli∣gent sloth is this, to be alienated and carried away with foolish cogitations and profane when thou prayest unto God, as though there were something else which thou oughtest rather to think on then of that whereof thou speakest with God? How dost thou desire that God should heare thee, when as thou dost not h•…•…are thy self? For wilt thou have God mindfull of thee when thou askest, seeing thou

art not mindfull of thy self? And so G. Baldwin; Quomodo se audiri postulat •…•…ui seipsum non audit & quidloquatur ignorat? Nunquam enim orare dicitur qui flexis genibus orat, si vagatione distrahatur. Nihil igitur aliud cogitare debet animus orantis quàm quod precatur: that is, How doth he desire to be heard who doth not heare himself, & is ignorant of what he speaketh? For he cannot be said to pray who prayeth with bended knees, if he be distracted with wandring thoughts: and therefore the mind of him that prayeth ought to think of nothing else then what is prayed. And likewise Chrysostome, Si cor∣pore humi prostrato & ore incassum nugante mens totam domum & forum circumeat, quomodo talis dicere pote∣rit, quòd in conspectu Dei precatus sit? Nam orat in conspectu Dei totam colligens animamsuam & nil habens cum terra commune, sed in ipsum se transferens coelum, & omnem ex animo pellens humanam cogitationem: that is, If the bodie lying prostrate upon the ground and the mouth vainly trifling the mind wandreth throughout the whole house and market, how can such a one say that he prayeth in Gods sight? For he prayeth in the sight of God who recollecteth his whole soul, that he may have nothing to do with the earth, but may wholly raise himself into heaven, and banish all humane cogitations out of his mind.

And to conclude, let the absurditie of the fault it self, and the grosse abusing of the majestie of God, breed in us a lothing of this fault and a care to shun it. For when at any time our minds have wandred in prayer, let us endeavour to joyn into one speech the prayer of the mouth and the speech of the heart,

both which do sound in the eares of the Lord, and then consider whether we would make such a speech, I say nor, according to Malachi's rule, to our Prince, but, to any man whom we regard, which we are not abashed to offer unto the Lord.

And thus have you heard the two faults opposed to praying in truth: whereof the former is a note of hypocrites and impenitent sinners; the latter, though a foul fault and carefully to be avoided, yet incident to the children of God: For even in this sense the best of us may complain with David that our heart forsaketh us, Psal. 40. 12. and as Augustine citeth out of Ambrose; Ipso in tempore quo elevare mentem paramus, insertis inanibus cogitationibus adterrena ple∣runque dejicimur: In the very time wherein we in∣deavour to lift up our minds, vain thoughts being inserted we are for the most part cast down unto earthly things. Wherein if we please our selves and are satisfied with such wandring prayers, as though su•…•…h wandring thoughts were not to be regarded, as the Schoolmen teach, we also play the hypocrites in our prayers, and speak in vain in the aire without fruit or efficacie; for such a prayer is dead and with∣our life.

But if we come with upright hearts, intending a religious service unto God, though sometimes our devotions be hindred with wandring thoughts, yet if we be grieved for them and pray and strive against them, this infirmitie through Gods mercy and in∣tercession of Christ shall not be imputed unto us.

Notes

• 1. In respect of the soul, in truth and uprightnesse of heart.
• That our prayer must be the speech of the soul.
• Psal. 62. 8.
• The necessity of praying in truth proved by divers reasons.
• Ephes. 6. 6.
• Praying with feigned lips to be avoid∣ed, and what it is.
• 2. We must not pray with wandring thoughts.
• Serm. de O∣rat. Domini.
• Inter Ortho∣doxogr. 1399▪
• Tom. 4. Ho∣mil. 79. 641. B. in F.
• Contra Juli∣an. lib. 2. ex Ambros. De suga seculi.