⚫ousness and life, give unto him his Holy Spirit to create and ftrengthen faith, to lay hold upon Chrift, to work in him ' comfortable evidences of his love, to arm him against temptations, to take off his heart from the world, to fanctify his present visitation, to furnish him with patience and strength to bear it, and to give him perfeverance in faith to the end. That, if God fhall please to add to his days, he would vouchsafe to blefs and fanctify all means of his recovery, to remove the disease, renew his ftrength, and enable him to 'walk worthy of God, by a faithful remembrance, and diligent obferving of fuch vows and promises of holiness and obedience, as men are apt to make in times of fickness, that he may glorify God in the remaining part of his life.

And, if God have determined to finish his days by the prefent vifitation, he may find fuch evidence of the pardon ' of all his fins, of his interest in Christ, and eternal life by Christ, as may caufe his inward man to be renewed, while his outward man decayeth; that he may behold death without fear, caft himself wholly upon Chrift without doubting, defire to be diffolved and to be with Chrift, and fo receive "the end of his faith, the falvation of his foul, through the only merits and interceffion of the Lord Jesus Christ, our 'alone Saviour and all-fufficient Redeemer.'

The minifter fhall admonish him alfo, (as there fhall be caufe) to fet his houfe in order, thereby to prevent inconveniencies; to take care for payment of his debts, and to make reftitution or fatisfaction where he hath done any wrong; to be reconciled to thofe with whom he hath been at variance, and fully to forgive all men their trefpaffes against him, as he expects forgiveness at the hand of God.

Laftly, The minifter may improve the prefent occafion to exhort those about the fick perfon, to confider their own mortality, to return to the Lord, and make peace with him; in health to prepare for ficknefs, death, and judgment; and all the days of their appointed time fo to wait until their change

come,

come, that when Chrift, who is our life, fhall appear, they may appear with him in glory.

W

Concerning Burial of the Dead.

HEN any perfon departeth this life, let the dead bo

dy, upon the day of burial, be decently attended from the house to the place appointed for publick burial, and there immediately interred, without any ceremony.

And because the cuftoms of kneeling down, and praying by, or towards the dead corps, and other fuch ufages, in the place where it lies before it be carried to burial, are superstitious; and for that, praying, reading, and finging both in going to, and at the grave, have been grossly abused, are no way beneficial to the dead, and have proved many ways hurtful to the living; therefore let all fuch things be laid aside.

Howbeit, we judge it very convenient, that the Chriftian friends, which accompany the dead body to the place appointed for publick burial, do apply themselves to meditations and conferences fuitable to the occafion; and that the minifter, as upon other occafions, fo at this time, if he be prefent, may put them in remembrance of their duty.

That this fhall not extend to deny any civil respects or deferences at the burial, fuitable to the rank and condition of the party deceased, whiles he was living.

WHEN

Concerning Publick folemn Fafting.

7HEN fome great and notable judgments are either inflicted upon a people, or apparently imminent, or by fome extraordinary provocations notoriously deserved; as also when fome special bleffing is to be fought and obtained, publick folemn fafting (which is to continue the whole day) is a duty that God expecteth from that nation, or people.

A religious faft requires total abftinence, not only from all food (unless bodily weaknefs do manifeftly difable from holding out till the faft be ended, in which cafe fomewhat

may be taken, yet very fparingly, to fupport nature, when ready to faint) but also from all worldly labour, discourses and thoughts, and from all bodily delights and fuch like, (altho' at other times lawful) rich apparel, ornaments and fuch like, during the faft; and much more from whatever is in the nature, or use, scandalous and offensive, as gaudish attire, lafcivious habits and gestures, and other vanities of either sex; which we recommend to all ministers, in their places, diligently and zealously to reprove, as at other times, so especially at a fast, without respect of perfons, as there shall be occafion.

Before the publick meeting, each family and perfon apart are privately to use all religious care to prepare their hearts to fuch a folemn work, and to be early at the congregation.

So large a portion of the day, as conveniently may be, is to be spent in public reading and preaching of the word, with finging of pfalms, fit to quicken affections fuitable to such a duty: but especially in prayer, to this or the like effect;

Giving glory to the great majesty of God, the Creator, preferver and fupreme ruler of all the world, the better to 'affect us thereby with an holy reverence and awe of him. Acknowledging his manifold, great and tender mercies, efpecially to the church and nation, the more effectually to foften and abase our hearts before him. Humbly confeffing ' of fins of all forts, with their several aggravations; justifying God's righteous judgments, as being far less than our fins do deferve; yet humbly and earnestly imploring his mercy and grace for ourselves, the church and nation, for our king and all in authority, and for all others for whom 'we are bound to pray (according as the prefent exigent re'quireth) with more fpecial importunity and enlargement ' than at other times; applying, by faith, the promises and goodness of God, for pardon, help, and deliverance from the evils felt, feared, or deferved; and for obtaining the 'bleffings which we need and expect, together with a giv

⚫ing up of ourselves wholly and for ever unto the Lord.' In all these, the minifters, who are the mouths of the people unto God, ought so to speak from their hearts, upon ferious and thorough premeditation of them, that both themfelves and their people, may be much affected, and even melted thereby, especially with forrow for their fins, that it may be indeed a day of deep humiliation and afflicting of the soul.

Special choice is to be made of such scriptures to be read, and of fuch texts for preaching, as may best work the hearts of the hearers to the special business of the day, and most dispose them to humiliation and repentance: infifting most on those particulars, which each minifter's obfervation and experience tells him are most conducing to the edification and reformation of that congregation to which he preacheth.

Before the close of the publick duties, the minister is, in his own and the people's names, to engage his and their hearts to be the Lord's, with profeffed purpose and refolution to reform whatever is amifs among them, and more particularly fuch fins as they have been more remarkably guilty of; and to draw near unto God, and to walk more closely and faithfully with him in new obedience, than ever before.

He is alfo to admonish the people with all importunity, that the work of that day doth not end with the publick duties of it, but that they are fo to improve the remainder of the day, and of their whole life, in reinforcing upon themfelves and their families in private, all those godly affections and refolutions which they profeffed in publick, as that they may be fettled in their hearts for ever, and themselves may more fenfibly find that God hath fmelt a fweet favour in Christ from their performances, and is pacified towards them, by answers of grace, in pardoning of fin, in removing of judgments, in averting or preventing of plagues, and in conferring of bleffings, fuitable to the conditions and prayers of his people, by Jefus Chrift.

Besides folemn and general fasts injoined by authority, we

judge that, at other times, congregations may keep days of fafting, as divine providence fhall administer unto them fpecial occafion; and alfo that families may do the fame, so it be not on days wherein the congregation to which they do belong is to meet for fafting, or other publick duties of worship.

Concerning the Obfervation of Days of public Thanksgiving.

WHEN any fuch day is to be kept, let notice be given

of it, and of the occasion thereof, fome convenient time before, that the people may the better prepare themfelves thereunto.

The day being come, and the congregation (after private preparations) being affembled, the minifter is to begin with a word of exhortation, to ftir up the people to the duty for which they are met, and with a fhort prayer for God's affiftance and bleffing, (as at other conventions for publick, wor fhip) according to the particular occafion of their meeting.

Let him then make fome pithy narration of the deliverance obtained, or mercy received, or of whatever hath occafioned that affembling of the congregation, that all may better un derstand it, or be minded of it, and more affected with it.

And, becaufe finging of pfalms is of all other the most proper ordinance for expreting of joy and thanksgiving, let fome pertinent pfalm or pfalms be fung for that purpose, before or after the reading of fome portion of the word suitable to the present business.;

Then let the minifter, who is to preach, proceed to further exhortation and prayer before his fermon, with special reference to the prefent work: after which, let him preach upon fome text of fcripture pertinent to the occafion.

The fermon ended, let him not only pray, as at other times after preaching is directed, with remembrance of the neceffities of the church, king, and state (if before the fermon they were omitted) but enlarge himself in due and folemn thanksgiving for former mercies and deliverances, but more espe