128                   193              1682.

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Graciously own accept, & confirm, what has bin done this day, both as to thy pps call & thy servants

acceptance therof oh doe thou the God of y^e spirits of all flesh set a man over y^e congregation, what is

our setting apart or laying on of hands If thou be not pleased to lay on y^e hand of thy Spirit upon thy

servants heart to strengthen it, incorrage & assist him, As thou art laying a great load of duty & a solemn

charg upon thy servant, soe doe thou undertake for him, for without thee we can doe nothing

much less soe great things as thou hast charged us, in most solemn wise to attend, both as to y^e salva

=tion of our own soules, & y^e soules of them that hear us : oh strengthen thy servant in thy self, &

put underneath thine Everlasting armes: Thou sendest y^e treasure in Earthen vessells that y^e Excellen

cy of the power might be of thee, both as to assistance as well as to success

oh lord Jesus thou y^t sendest thy servants & this thy servant to soe great a work thou hast promised y^t

we shall not be alone but shall have thy sweet company, thou wilt be with us to y^e end of the

world, let this thy servant as we desire for our own soules, have his portion in that promise to

the End of his life : oh be with us as thou hast bin with our fathers, & doe not leave us nor for

=sake us, nor leave us to forsake thee

when thou didst call a Saul to a great Imploy he had another spirit given to him & will not

thou not much more fill thy servants who desire to fear thy name, & y^s thy servant (whom as a

chosen vessell thou art sending to bear thy name unto thy pp) with thy holy spirit

give we pray thee an abundant supply of gifts & graces to thy servant wherby he may be inabled to

fulfill y^e ministry y^t he has received of y^e lord Jesus

Thou seest what thornes in y^e flesh we have, & what a body of death we are weighed down with, soe

that we cannot serve thee with y^t delight, unweariededness, humility fervency as we ought, oh doe thou

purifye the sons of Levi that we may be inabled to offer a pure offering : As thou sendest us with thy

truth, so hear our great intercessor for us, who hath prayed for us, that we may be sanctified by y^t

truth, doe thou say to us as thou didst concerning Josuah, take away his filthy garments, & put chang

of Rayment upon him[134]

And though y^t didst help thy Levites of old to bear y^e ark, & did fit Bezaliel & Aholiab for the service of

thy sanctuary,[135] doe thou poure down an abundant portion of thy spirit & grace according to y^e admea

=surement of y^e gospell, y^t soe we may be all ministers of y^e New Testament not of y^e letter only but of

the spirit : Help thy servants & y^s thy servant soe to discherg our cherg & betrustment from

thee, y^t we may be clear from y^e blood of all men

Our work is of Eternal consequence, o^r time very short y^e reward great & glorious, oh let us be up

and be doing & let thy presence be with us, & let that give us rest

Inable thy servant & servants justly to take care to save our selves least whilst we preach to others we

our selves should be cast awayse, let us not consent our selves to dress glad food for others, but give us

power to eat y^e roul our selves

And as for thy pp inable to trevall in birth till X^st be formed in y^m & theirs : o^r lord Jesus thought

not his blood too dear for his pp & shall we think any poor prayers or labours of ours too much for

thy peoples good, If by any means we might be instruments to save soules & be helpers of thy pps fayth

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oh help us to put on bowels of compassion to poor soules, shall nature teach us to pitty a body without a

soul & shall not grace much more teach us to pitty soules without X^st, let our Wyse & ears affect our hearts

whilst we se & hear of soules going on still in y^r trespasses & cannot be awakened out of y^r sleep of sin & secu

rity

oh our blessed God let Sathan be brought down & his kingdome by y^e power of thy word y^e scepter of thy

kingdome, oh y^t we may not still se y^t sad sight, even Sathan driving a great part of our poor flocks

down hill into y^e gulf of eternal perdition, as he did y^t haerd of swine into y^e sea & we like

those keepers look on with amazement but cannot help, low long shall Sathan work such sad work

in thy harvest to carry away the shokes[136] & sheaves & we get but a pore gleaning :

Lord pitty us, we have ordinations & labourers sent to us, but what is done how little is thy kingdome

increased, we beseech thee pity us thy pore husbandmen, let us not be sent to plow & sow all day upon

the rocks, to harden & blind thy people, or to be a savour of death unto death to any If it were thy holy

will : That was not y^e end of thy sons ascention to give gifts to men, for thy pps greater ruin, oh

leav not us by o^r sins to procure soe sad an event to our selves.

Let we beseech thee the principle of all our labours be fayth, working by love to thee, & to thy pps soules

for thou hast say^d it & again & again say^d it, If thou lovest me feed my sheep, feed my lambs, oh

let it have great designe with Abrahams steward to provide a wife for our Masters son, y^t we may

not woe for our selves but for him. give us such an understanding to know how y^t is true, & such

help from him y^t we may be enabled soe to woe pore sinners as to prevail w^th y^m & to present thy pp as

a chaste virgin unto christ

And seeing thou hast called y^s thy young servant to soe great a stewardwhip, grant such mercy to thy

servant that be found faythfull to y^e soules of thy people, yeah we bless thee y^t thou hast accounted

him faythfull putting him into this ministry . oh inable him & us to lift up our voyces like a trumpet

to declare to Israel y^r sin, y^t we may distinguish between y^e clean & unclean, y^e precious & y^e vile y^t we

may never daub with any untempered mortar nor sew pillows under sinners arms: make thy servant

a Boanerges as to y^e impenitent & a Barnabas to y^e bowed down & penitent[137]

oh let him & us have the benifitt of thy peoples prayers as we have been called on y^s day to be much

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