often,if we defire to drefs our Souls, fo as they may be lovely in the eyes of God.Let us read it frequently, and confider well what manner of Perfons it requires us to be,and then pray and labour, that we may be fuch, fo fhall we certainly become Holy here and happy hereafter. Take the whole Petition together,and it is a compleat account of all that is to be done by us, or defired of God,in order to the making us fuch as he defires us,fo that if we can prevail in this last Requeft, we shall be fo dear to God,that he will grant us all the reft, if we can obtain this last, none of the former shall be denyed: Wherefore though this be the last, let us without any weariness or distraction feal this alfo with a most paffionate and hearty faying,We beseech thee,&c. S.XXIV.Dn of God,we beseech thee to hear us, Son, &c. D Lamb of God that taket away the Sins of the World.Grant us thy Peace, D Lamb of God, that takeft away the Sins of the world. Have mercy upon us. Christ hear us, Chrift bear us:] When we have presented so many excellent Supplications to the Throne of Grace,if we should conclude them here, and leave them abruptly, it might seem as if we were not much concerned what did become of them, wherefore the Church appoints us to pursue them with most vigorous importunities and redoubled entreaties, firft,that all our prayers may be heard; and fecondly, that we may find mercy.And moft of the antient Offices have a general Petition among their Litanick devotions, for these two things, Acceptance and mercy(b) Butthe very words which we ufe are an imitation of the Roman Litanies,but they are fo pious, & fo proper for this place,that none can except against them. We have been interceding for others, and for our felves, wherefore it is fit we should now look up to him, who doth Effectually intercede for all, and is the great Master of all (b) Nóμεθάσε ἐπάκεσον και ixingor Chorus. Kúçre ixinσov' Lit. S.Chryf, ita ferè Lit. S.Jac. Offic. Anbr. our our Requests, fo that if we can but prevail with him to joyn with us in recommending these our Prayers to his heavenly Father, they fhall infallibly be granted ; it were a great over-fight in us, if we having fuch an Advocate and Mediator continually before God,fhould come to present our Petitions, and not take particular notice of him, to oblige him to intercede with us: And doubtless, we cannot invent more engaging expreflions than the Church hath here taught us. II. We befeech bim by his Divinity; as he is the on of Bob,to hear our Prayers. We own him to be very' God, and give him divine Worthip, profeffing we do believe he is abundantly able to help us in all these things if he be but gracioufly pleafed to bear us; We have offended the Father, and were not the Son there to make our Peace, we durft not appear in his prefence, but he is our Redeemer and our Saviour, and therefore, Webefeech him to hear us, and then we know his Father will hear him. II. We invocate by his Humanity, calling him by that Title,which the Holy Ghoft gives him, John i.29., 36, c. Lamb of God, by which name St. John prophefieth, he fhould be worshipped in the Chriftian Church, Revel. 6.12,13. And indeed it is a fweet and comfortable appellation: We who make thefe Prayers were Enemies to God.but here we look at that innocent Lamb, who did no fault himself,but was flain as a Sacrifice to make Peace for us, and all the World, wherefore we beseech this Lamb of God to grant us his Peace, that is, the Peace he left to us, Peace of Confcience,and the Peace which he made for us, Peace with God; for if this Holy Lamb by giving us a fhare in the merit of his Sacrifice do but make our Peace, and make us friends to God, no doubt we fhall obtain all we ask. Again, we, importune him by the fame Title to have mercy upon us; he he that pitied us fo, as to dye for us, will doubtless have compaflion on us in all our Miferies, he that dyed to deliver all the World from eternal Mifery, will furely pity us in our Distress,he hath purchafed Mercy for all, and therefore let us befeech him to give us a fhare thereof: We have reprefented to him in this Litany the miferies which we,and all men groan under, and now beg his Mercy for us all. We fhall only add here, that an antient Author obferves that after [Lamb of God] the Custom was in both places to answer [have mercy upon us] till at length in a time,when the Christian World was miferably harrafed with bloody Wars, they began to fay [ant as thy Peace] which hath continued ever fince.Innocent.de myfter.l.6. cap.4. Our Saviour had promised that in him they should have Peace, although they could not have it in the world, John xvi.ult. Wherefore they pray, that when they have Tribulation: without, they may have peace within, when from men they have War, they may have peace with God. Lastly, We entreat him by the name of [Chi] the anointed of the Lord; as he is that perfon, whom God hath chofen and appointed to receive the Prayers of his people,and prefent them unto him; By this Office of his, we engage him to receive thefe Supplications, he is a Prophet, and knows our neceffities; a Prieft, and hath made an attonement; a King, and fo is able to help us, and therefore to whom fhould be feek, but unto him, who is fo fit and fo likely to hear us. Let Prieft and People therefore joyn hearts and voices in these moft fervent addreffes, let them unite all their forces and ftrive to enkindle each others affections, till they have prevailed, and fuch a holy importunity, preffing fuch a Saviour with fuch Intreaties,cannot fail of it's defired end, Amen. S.XXV. Di babe mercy upon us. Lord have mercy, &c. Chall have mercy upon us. Christ have, &c. We may particularly befeech the Son, as he is our only Interceffor to have mercy upon us, and to hear us; but left we might feem to neglect any of the Perfons of the glorious Trinity in this addrefs, we do now lastly call upon them every one,in this moft primitive form of Prayer, by the firft Lord have mercy,&c.meaning God the Father; by the fecond,Chrift,&c. God the Son; by the laft, Lord have mercy, &c. intending God the Holy Ghoft;from every Perfon we defire mercy. And this is called the little Litany, being an Epitome of the whole, which is aSupplication for mercy according to our feveral neceffities;but there is a peculiar refemblance between this Lord have mercy and the first part of this Office,viz. the Invocation; fo that thofe parts of Litany, whofe Method is much the fame, as hath been thus far, do end juft as they began in a Petition for Mercy:This was that which David beggeth fo frequently, Pfal.iv.2.& vi.2.4. & xxxi.16. and which all the antient Chriftians repeated fo often in their Devotions: This is that requeft,which the greateft Sinner may fay fucceffively, if with true penitence, and yet which the greatest Saints (i) had need to fay daily, confidering their continual infirmities: Some may think we ask it often, but I am fure we need Gods mercy much oftner,than we do or can pray for it, fo that we must never think it a needlefs repetition for fuch miferable finners as we, though never fo often to cry Lord have mercy. More of this may be feen Comp. to Temple, Part I. Sect.XII. §.3. SECT. (i)Taurns mayτες δεόμεθα της φω -xav pòs nav йxovtes the dexawing Chryf. in Pfal.6. S.I.W Hen the Litany came to be used as a distinct Office, and was faid apart in times of Calamity, thefe Supplications feem to be added unto it in the Western Church: The exact time is not known,but it is fuppofed about 600 years after Chrift, in the time of St.Gregory the great, and doubtless these were first ufed in a time, when the Enemies of the Church prevailed, probably when the barbarous Nations overran the Empire, and harrafed all these Parts of the World,for most of these Petitions do fuppofe us to be in danger of Enemies: And verily if we confider the Condition of the Church militant, and of every particular Member thereof, we fhall foon difcern that in this miferable World, they are never quiet long together; fo that although the Supplications were primarily calculated for fuch a time,they may fute all our Conditions fometimes, and moft of our Conditions alwaies. But as to the Original of thefe Requefts, we muft note, that they are most of them taken out of Holy Scripture, or elfe out of very antient Forms, fo that it is the Method rather than the Materials, which is to be afcribed to St. Gregory, or whofoever did firft bring them into publick ufe; and truly it is very prudent, if not neceffary, in fo large an Office to vary the manner of our Addrefs as often as conveniently we can, to prevent weariness and distraction, and to give a new vigour to our affections by a new manner of praying. The End of all these Supplications in general is to enforce the fore-going Deprecations and Interceffions by the greatest importunity imagina ble, |