The soul's communion with her savior. Or, The history of our Lord Jesus Christ, written by the four evangelists digested into devotional meditations. The first part.

Cap. I.* 1.1 Of His Retirement, Fasting,* 1.2 and Temtation.* 1.3

§. 1.

O Blessed Iesus, who, being* 1.4 ful of the Holy Ghost, immediatly after thy re∣turn* 1.5 from Iordan, wast led by* 1.6 the Spirit into the Wilder∣ness: [ 12]

I prais and magnify thy Name,

For thus chalking out the Way to divine and spiritual Atchiev∣ments. O thou, the only Com∣fort of all my Solitudes, giv me Grace to set apart fit times for Prayer and Contemplation, af∣ter thine Exampl, before I en∣ter upon any great Emploi∣ment; that what I undertake with du and devout Conside∣ration may be so blest and ac∣cepted by thy Goodness, as may render it succesful to thine Ho∣nor. And, whensoever it shal pleas Thee to inspire me with holy Thoughts and Resolutions, incline my Heart cheerfuly to follow the Motions of thy B. Spirit, that I may never in∣cur the Guilt of Resisting the H. Ghost.

§. 2.

O thou high and holy One of Israel, who hast abased thy self to co-habit with the wild Beasts* 1.7 of the Desert for my sake, whose [ 13] nativ fierceness was so much awed by thy Sacred Presence as left them neither Power nor In∣clination to hurt Thee:

I glorify thy Great Name,

For submitting to the discon∣solat Inconveniences of that in∣hospitabl Place and Company. Lord, disdain not to visit the un∣cultivated Wilderness of my Soul too; and subdu therin all those brutish Appetits, those untamed Passions, that would utterly de∣stroy me, til thou bring all the Imaginations of my Heart into Subjection to thy H. Will.

§. 3.

O my most Gracious Re∣deemer,* 1.8 who didst fast 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Days and forty Nights, and 〈◊〉〈◊〉 afterward an hungred.

I prais thy H. Name,

For teaching me both the Du∣ty and Benefit of Fasting. Lord, let me not at any time eat or drink without such a Temper and Moderation as may better enabl me for thy Service: but on all the Seasons and Occasions of Fasting prescribed either by Thee or thy Church, make me impartialy strict and severe to my self, in Communion with thy Saints, in Sorrow for my Sins, and in Memory of Thy Sufferings; denying my self not only pleasant Bread and palata∣bl Drink, but all manner of Suste∣nance, for a time proportionabl

to my frailty, (in Conformity to thine Exampl who in those* 1.9 days 〈◊〉〈◊〉 eat nothing) as a just [ 2] Acknowledgment how unwor∣thy I am of enjoying that Privi∣ledg which the first Man's un∣ruly Appetit forfeited in Para∣dise, and a fit Occasion to re∣mind me of Hungring and Thir∣sting after Righteousness by the Sens of my bodily Wants. And whensoever thou givest me Grace or Leisure to retire my self for the Exercise of Devotion, help me both to sanctify my Retirement by Prayer and Fa∣sting, and to spend my Time in judging my self that I be not judged of the Lord, in punishing my self that Thou may'st spare me, and in turning from my Sins that thy Judgments may be averted from me. O my Dear Jesu, be thou my Company in Solitude, my Food in Fasting,

and the sublimest Joy of evry Feast I celebrat: Be thy divine Graces my choicest Viands, thy Laws my Study, thy Works my Praises, thy Mercies my Enjoy∣ments, thy Majesty my Fear, thy Lov my Comfort, thy Wis∣dom my Instruction, thy Good∣ness my Guide, and thy sacred Presence my Guard all the days of my Pilgrimage in the Wilder∣ness of this World.

§. 4.

Most Holy and Invincibl Sa∣vior, thou didst not only fast but wast forty days temted of the Devil, whose Craft and Impor∣tunity thou hast utterly defeated by the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God:

I magnify thy Name,

That being assaulted with the subtil Insinuations of Necessity,

Curiosity, Vain-glory, Presum∣tion, Ambition, &c. thou hast experimentaly discover'd with what Weapon I may best resist and subdu all manner of Temta∣tions. Lord, whensoever I am to encounter with any of those Enemies which war against my Soul, let me never be sollicitous for any other Armor of Defence than thy Word; but hav Recours therunto, in a du Sens of my own Weakness, by such devout Fasting and Prayer as may endu me with an holy Reverence to what is written, the du Remem∣brance and Application wherof may at all times secure me from the mischievous Influence of any Temtation, and succesfuly enabl me at once to resist and conquer the Temter. And since we hav an High-Priest which can be touched with the feeling of our Infirmities, having been in all

points temted like as- we are yet without Sin, so that we may com boldly to the Throne of Grace to obtain Mercy and Favor for an 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Relief; I humbly be∣seech Thee, O faithful God, suf∣fer Vs not to be temted abov that we are abl, but with evry Temtation make a way for our escape, that we may be abl to bear it. Let no Arguments drawn from any sensual Wants or Comforts with-draw me from my Duty to Thee or Confidence in Thee, since it is written, that* 1.10 Man shal not liv by Bread a∣lone,* 1.11 but by evry Word that 〈◊〉〈◊〉 out of the mouth of God. Let not the bewitching Prospect of worldly Power and Glory ever make me stagger in [ 8] mine Obedience to that divine Command, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him 〈◊〉〈◊〉* 1.12 shalt thou lerv: And let 〈◊〉〈◊〉 [ 10]

soothing Flatteries seduce me to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 the Lord my God by any* 1.13 unwarrantabl Act of Presumtion, [ 12] lest by leaving those Ways wher∣in [ 10] thou hast given thine 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Charge over me to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 me, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 lose the Benefit of their Prote∣ction and dash my foot against [ 11] a Stone.

§. 5.

O B. Lord, With what gra∣dual Artifices did Satan attack thee? With how great a Stock of Impudence did he renew his Sollicitations? He begins to work upon thy Need, expecting that an hungry Appetit would soon induce thee to swallow his first Bait, Command that these* 1.14 Stones be made Bread: Then [ 5] 〈◊〉〈◊〉 taketh thee up into the H. 〈◊〉〈◊〉 and sets 〈◊〉〈◊〉 on a Pinacl of the Templ, in hopes to see [ 6] thee cast thy self 〈◊〉〈◊〉 from

thence, craftily gilding over these two devilish Suggestions with so plausibl an Argument as that of proving whether Thou be the Son of God or no: And at last, as if the Want of Success had animated him to greater Villa∣nies, [ 8] he proceeds to shew thee all the Kingdoms of the World; falsly supposing the Glory of them might induce [ 9] thee to depend upon his falser Promise, All these things will 〈◊〉〈◊〉 giv thee, tho it were upon the basest Condition imaginabl, if thou wilt fall down and wor∣ship me.

I celebrat thy great Name,

For thine unparallel'd Patience in bearing with his irksom Im∣portunity, and that powerful Se∣verity wherwith thou didst re∣buke his Impudence. Enabl me also, I humbly beseech thee,

whensoever the Temter seeks to delude me by his glosing Falla∣cy in mincing the Truth of God revealed in Scripture, or impose upon me by any gross and ap∣parent Falshood forged in his own Mint of Lying, of the same nature with what he affirms concerning the Disposal of this World's Pomp and Power, That* 1.15 is delivered unto me, and to whomsoever I will I giv it; so to descry his Fraud and detest his I alshood as to defeat his Ma∣lice and be released from his fur∣ther Sollicitations by thy divine Aid, who didst banish him and his Temtations from thee with a word, saying unto him, Get* 1.16 thee 〈◊〉〈◊〉 me, Satan. [ 10]

§. 6.

My B. Redeemer, when the* 1.17 Devil had ended all the Tem∣tation, [ 13] thy Constancy having

rather baffled his Attemt than abated his Malice, he departed from thee for a Season; and no sooner did the Devil leav thee, but behold Angels came and 〈◊〉〈◊〉* 1.18 unto thee: [ 11]

I prais and magnify thy Name,

For this glorious Issu of thy Conflict with our Arch-enemy, and for the grand Encoragement thou hereby givest us to perse∣vere unto the end, having thus made that inspired Advice an ex∣perimental Truth, Resist the De∣vil and he wil flee from you. Lord, whensoever thy Grace hath suc∣cesfully armed me against the fiery Darts of the Wicked One, so that he retires with Disappoint∣ment; let me not grow secure as one ignorant of his Devices, but be the more cautious in expecta∣tion of his speedy Return, and vi∣gilant in preparing to frustrat

his next Assault; for, if when he lost the day, he did not quit the field without thoughts of rallying his shatter'd Forces a∣gainst the Captain of our Salva∣tion, What shal deterr him from re-attacquing such pusillanimous Soldiers as we are? And, as we hav all the Reason imaginabl to stand upon our Guard in respect of the danger we are in, so we hav no small Encoragement to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 our selvs like Men in regard of the Recompence attending it; for, as soon as we can get rid of the Temter's Sollicitations, we shal be refreshed with the conso∣latory presence of the Holy An∣gels, the Operations of Grace herein conforming to the Laws of Nature which admit of no Vacuity.

Notes

• * 1.1

  S. Mat. 4. 1, — 11.
• * 1.2

  S. Mark. 1. 12, 13.
• * 1.3

  S. Luke 4. 1, — 13.
• * 1.4

  S. Luke 4. 1,
• * 1.5

  S. Mat. 4. 1,
• * 1.6

  S. Mark 1.
• * 1.7

  S. Mark 1.
• * 1.8

  S. Mat. 4. 2,
• * 1.9

  S. Luke 4.
• * 1.10

  S. Mat. 4. 4,
• * 1.11

  S. Luke 4. 4,
• * 1.12

  S. Mat. 4.
• * 1.13

  S. Luke 4.
• * 1.14

  S. Mat. 4. 3,
• * 1.15

  Luke 4. 6,
• * 1.16

  S. Mat. 4.
• * 1.17

  S. Luke 4.
• * 1.18

  S. Mat. 4.