A companion to the temple and closet, or, A help to publick and private devotion in an essay upon the daily offices of the church.

TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE And most Truly Noble LORD, JOHN LORD FRESCHEVILE, Baron of STAVELY.

My Lord,

IF the judgment of some ex∣cellent Friends had com∣plyed with my first Reso∣lutions, this Mite had been cast in∣to the Treasury by an unknown hand; which seemed to me the more pious and the safer way, the more likely to gain acceptance with God(a) 1.1 who sees and rewards the most secret Virtue, and the more proba∣ble

to escape the censures of men, who shoot at Rovers, when the person designed is vailed in a happy obscurity. But they whose kind∣nesses and known experience had made me uncapable to resist their advice, alledged that this Essay was consonant to publick and esta∣blished Order; that the trifling and malicious oppositions of our Litur∣gy have born the names of their ill-imployed Authors;(b) 1.2 and that I should not fail of the favour of all the pious Sons of the Church, to excuse the failings, and vindicate the design of my un∣dertaking. Wherefore they said, I

need not scruple to allow the pre∣fixing of my Name to these Pa∣pers: To which I became more in∣clinable, when I reflected on my grand Obligations to your Lord∣ship, because I Judged this a fair Op∣portunity to give a publick Testi∣mony of that Duty which your pe∣culiar Favours challenge from me, of which I have so deep a Sense, that I would say more, if your Lord∣ships Modesty did not restrain my Pen. Wherefore I do here tender to your Lordship a Discourse upon the noblest of Duties, Prayer, and the life of that Duty, Devotion, and the best Rule of humane com∣posure for the Exercise thereof, the

Liturgy of the Church of Eng∣land, and though many would have performed this task better, yet none could have chosen a subject more ac∣ceptable to your Lordship, or more ex∣cellent in it self. So that I am incli∣ned to believe it cannot be more my delight to behold your Lordships name grace these Pages, then it will be your satisfaction that any thing which is yours may serve to recom∣mend the Concerns of Piety and the Church, to which your Lordship hath ever expressed so rare a Fide∣lity. For tis not alone the Honours, but the virtues of your noble An∣cestors (famous upon record for their affections to Religion) which your

Lordship doth inherit; which incli∣nations cannot but endear any design to illustrate and vindicate those Prayers in the defence of which your Lordships sword hath been im∣ployed, and in the practise whereof your Soul is daily poured out at the Throne of Grace. So that I do with much cheerfulness present this little Tract as a daily servant to your Lordship and of continual use in your converse with Heaven, suppo∣sing it may be both pleasant as it simpathises with your wel-grounded Principles, and profitable by adding wings to your Petitions, and casting oile on the flames of your daily Sacri∣fice. And sure if it might be so for∣tunate

to meet with that Candour and Piety (with which your Lord∣ship will entertain it) in all its per∣users, it would be universally succes∣ful and generally serviceable: for no∣thing but prejudice and carelesness can make it useless to any true mem∣bers of this Church, who are all ob∣liged to the performance of these Offices: and if the influence of these Papers might (by the Divine Mer∣cy) quicken so many Souls in their addresses to Heaven, it will be infi∣nitely pleasing to the Undertaker, and as delightful to your Lordships diffusive Charity to behold others Devotions kindled by a Taper first put into your hands. Nor should I

despair of so happy an issue to these Labours, if I might prevail so far as to engage men in an impartial and serious consideration of these excel∣lent Forms; because my own Ex∣perience hath taught me how much a clear understanding contributes to the deserved admiration, and the af∣fectionate recital of them, for when once we have throughly pondered them, and made our Souls fully ac∣quainted with these pertinent and comprehensive Expressions of our constant necessities, we shall find our hearts actuated with holy inlarge∣ments, and powerfully attracted in∣to the prosecution(c) 1.3 of

the requests made by our Lips; and our Minds would have no other im∣ployment in these Duties, but to an∣nex the sense to the words, and its most vigorous affections to that sense, which is true Devotion(d) 1.4. And if we would learn to pray with such a knowing and fer∣vent zeal, these thoughts would be more efficacious with God then the loudest clamours or the most char∣ming (as we count them) flourishes of Rhetorick(e) 1.5. For to think to prevail upon the searcher of hearts, by the methods used to work upon the frailties

of men, is to disparage the God we serve. Tis the motions of the Soul to which he attends; wherefore if we desire to pray acceptably, we must study our Petitions before we pre∣sent them; which not only enlivens our Devotion in the act of it, but makes our Prayers become the rule of our lives(f) 1.6 by mak∣ing us blush into amend∣ment(g) 1.7 when we find our practices the con∣tradiction, of what we have asked with so much passion. My Lord I hope this brief ac∣count may be sufficient to obtain your Lordships good Opi∣nion

of this attempt, and to excuse whatever can need a Pardon: but 'tis possible there may be some who are as much strangers to your Lordship as to Charity, who may censure a Manual of Prayers un∣suitable to your military Honours and Imployment; who may please to remember that Cornelius whose Name speaks him Noble, and whose office declares him to have been Martial, did observe the Canonical Hours of Prayer [Acts 10.3, and 30.] and though he commanded in the Roman Legi∣ons yet he was a Devout Servant of the Lord of Hosts; especially after his Baptisme, wherein he

took a more Sacred Military Oath to be true to Jesus, as well as to Caesar: and therefore whosoever judgeth this Discourse incongruous, I am sure your Lordship will not so esteem it; while it promotes your Imitati∣on of so excellent a Patern. I shall add no more but to beg my Imperfections may take San∣ctuary in the integrity of my Purposes which have armed me against all Detractions, because my Aim is the Glory of God, the encrease of Piety, and the Peace of this Church; for the obtaining whereof the Pray∣ers as well as the Patronage

of your Lordship are most earnest∣ly requested by,

My Lord,

Your Honours most obliged and Most faithful Servant, Thomas Comber.

Notes

• (a) 1.1

  Mat. 6.3, 4. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Plat. de Repub.
• (b) 1.2

  Ac si hone∣sta erubescenda sint, inhonesta glorianda. Aug.
• (c) 1.3

  Cum oratis Deum, hoc ver∣setur in corde quod profertur in Ore. Aug. reg. 3.
• (d) 1.4

  Jungamus verbis sensum sensui affectum. D. Bern. Ser. 13. in Cantic.
• (e) 1.5

  Nos nisi lo∣quentem audire non possumus: apud Deum non loquuntur verba sed Cogitatio∣nes. Amb. de Ca∣ri. & Abeli. c. 9.
• (f) 1.6

  Unusquis{que} nostrûm sic dis∣cat orare, & de orationis lege qualis esse de∣beat noscere. Cypr. de Orat.
• (g) 1.7

  Oratio de conscientia procedit; si con∣scientia erubes∣cat, erubescit oratio. Tert. ex. ad. Cast. cap. 10.