favours will augment our Graces, and quicken our O bcdience,till his Goodness and our Duty both arrive to their perfection in the Kingdom of Heaven. S.IX. Through Jefus Chzif our Lozd, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glozy, world without end. Amen.] The preceding Petitions are fo excellent and fo neceffary that we recommend them by the dear Name of our Lord Jefus: He obtained all the former bleffings, and therefore through him we ask this one more, that we may have the Grace of fincere Gratitude; yet to fhew we do not forget the first defign of this Office, we conclude them, and the whole Form, with a most comprehenfive Doxology to the Son with the Father and the Holy Ghoft, that as all have united in doing us good, all may partake of our returns of Duty; even as St. Chryfoftom concludes a like Form of Praise in his Liturgy, For all thefe we give thanks unto thee, and to tby only begotten Son, and to thy Holy Spirit,for all that we know, and all that we know not, for the manifest and the Secret benefits which have been done unto us. Lit.S.Chryf. And fince this doth conclude both the Praifes and Petitions that went before; if we apply this Doxology to the Praises,it is a kind of brief recapitulation of all Mercies, and gives us an opportunity to fum up the particulars, and feal them with one hearty Thanksgiving to the whole Trinity; if we apply it to the Petitions, which went just before,it expreffeth our hope they shall be granted, because we fing praise to him as foon as ever we have asked them at his hands, in confidence we fhall not be denyed; it may be either an Act of gratitude or of Faith, or of both,as we apply it, the Good Lord accept it. Amen. The Paraphrafe of the general Thanksgiving. O[Almighty God,] who art the Author of all comforts, and the father of all mercies,] that any Creature doth enjoy, [we] our felves have received many from thee, though we are [tby unworthy Servants, who cannot deferve nor requite the leaft of thy favours; wherefore, as we are in all duty bound, we [do give thee] with great affection our [most humble and hearty thanks, which thou haft juftly deferved [foz all] thofe noble Acts of bounty, which have flowed purely from thy goodness and lovingkindness,] and are a continual refreshment [to us, and to all men] in the world befides. [Particularly] for the eminent Inftances of thy favour to thofe] thy Servants,[who defire us to joyn with them now,] that we may help them [to offer up their Praifes and Thanksgivings] in the publick Affembly [for thy late mercies] and deliverances fo graciously [vouchfafed unto them.] O Lorde bless thee] moft heartily for the temporal mercies fhewed to us all, even [for our Creation] out of nothing, and the making both of our bodies and fouls,and alfo for our [Paefer batton]from all the Evils of Sin or Mifery, which might have hurt us in either; [and] likewife for all the bledings] of food and raiment, health and wealth, friends and habitations, the peceffary fupports of this Life,] which would be miferable without them. [But above all other mercies, we must most highly bless thee for those that are fpiritual and eternal, even [for the Redemption,] which was wrought to deliver us,and all the Inhabitants [of the 02ld] from eternalvengeance [by our Logo] and only Saviour clus Chift] his bitter Death and Paffion: And we praise thee alfo [for] thy worship, and thy word, thy Sacraments and all holy Adminiftrations appointed to be [the means of] conveying thy [grate] to us at prefent: and finally we give thanks for thy preparing thy heaven=ly Kingdom for us, [and the hopes] that we shall :pafs through all troubles and dangers to the enjoyment [of glory] and Immortality at the last. [and] because we cannot rightly praise thee without the help of thy Grace, [me beseech thee,] who haft given us all thefe bleffings, [to give us] together with them [that due enfe] of the infinite number and excellent nature of all the mercies,that] our very Souls may be affected with a real gratitude, and [our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful] for them, fo that not being able to keep our joy within (we defire) that we may publish, [and that we may thew forth thy Paille] in our words by Hymns and manifold Thanksgivings. Yea further, we pray, that we may glorifie thee [not only with our Lips] by vocal praifes,[but in our Lives] and Converfations alfo, that it may appear we are fenfible of the Obligations thou haft laid upon us [by gtbing up our faldes] both in Soul and Body intirely [to thy Service, and the performance of all religious Duties [and by walking] in the whole courfe of our affairs, as being ever [befoze thee,] and accordingly fpending our time [in Hotinefs] towards thee, [and righteoufnels] toward our Neighbours, both now and [alt the days of our Life, for our gratitude ought to endure as long as thy mercies. Grant this therefore [through] the Interceffion of [Jefus Chzilt our Lozo,] who hath obtained all good things for us; [to whom] therefore [with thee, O Father, [and the Holy Ghost, be] afcribed and given [all honour and Glory] now in this World,and for ever in that [310] which is [without end,] Amen. SECT Rain Rain SECTION XIII. S.I.IT Of the Thanksgiving for Rain. S.I.IT will be needless to say much in the general either of this, or any of the following Mercies for which these Forms of Thanksgiving are appointed, because what is difcourfed before the feveral Prayers upon each of these occafions, together with our fad experience of the long want of thefe bleffings, will be fufficient (I hope) to make us heartily thankful for them, when our Prayers and our Defires are anfwered: So that we shall only note here, that the lxv.Pfalm feems to be a Form written by David(and perhaps used by the Jews) on this occafion, as we may gather from the 1, 2, 9,10, 11,12,13, Verses: And that the very Heathens were wont to build Altars unto the showring Jupiter (t), and Lucian `tels us, there was fuch an Altar in Mount Gargarus (u); Now though they were mistaken in the Object,because none of the Vanities of the Gentiles can give Rain, Jer.xiv.22.yet they were right in the Duty, and they become Monitors to us, who know the trueGod and real giver of Rain, Bpix Ai xit Paufan. in At tic. (u) Boudy &des Βωμόν είδες ἐν τῷ Γαργάρῳ τῷ Dial. Jov. Boys to give him hearty thanks for it in this Form which the Church hath provided, and the following Method doth explain. The §.2. This Thanksgiving hath two Parts. The Analysis of this Thanksgiving. 1.For Rain in Ordina D God our heaven- ` ri, The Caufe of it.ly Father, who by the gracious Pravidence doft caufe The former and the ry, intima- 2. The Kinds of it. latter Bain to de ting 2. For 3. The end of it. 1. The 1. In refpe&t mercy to be 2 In refpect the fe very of the fuffici and very fcend upon the Earth, That it may bring fozth fruit for the ufe of Man : We give thee humble thanks, that it hath pleased thee in our great neceffity o fend us at the lalt a joyfnl Rain upon thine Inheritance to refresh it, when it was DIÝ, To the great com Comfort of us, thy un worthy Servants, And to the glory of the Holy Name, cies in Jesus Christ 2. God's glo- though the Mer= good; our Lord, Amen, |