nor the slave of the devil, nor a servant of lust and unworthy desires: but do thou purify my love, and let me 'seek the things that are above,' 'hating the garments spotted with the flesh;' never any more grieving thy holy Spirit' by filthy inclinations, with impure and fantastic thoughts: but let my thoughts be holy, my soul pure, my body chaste and healthful, my spirit severe, devout, and religious, every day more and more; that, at the day of our appearing, I may be presented to God washed and cleansed, pure and spotless by the blood of the holy Lamb, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR WEDNESDAY.

A Prayer against Gluttony and Drunkenness.

I.

O ALMIGHTY Father of men and angels, who hast, of thy great bounty, provided plentifully for all mankind to support his state, to relieve his necessities, to refresh his sorrows, to recreate his labour; that he may praise thee, and rejoice in thy mercies and bounty: be thou gracious unto thy servant yet more, and suffer me not, by my folly, to change thy bounty into sin, thy grace into wantonness. Give me the spirit of temperance and sobriety, that I may use thy creatures in the same measures, and to the same purposes which thou hast designed, so as may best enable me to serve thee, but not to make provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof:' let me not, as Esau, prefer meat before a blessing; but subdue my appetite, subjecting it to reason and the grace of God, being content with what is moderate and useful, and easy to be obtained; taking it in due time, receiving it thankfully, making it to minister to my body, that my body may be a good instrument of the soul, and the soul a servant of thy Divine Majesty for ever and ever.

II.

Pardon, O God, in whatsoever I have offended thee by meat, and drink, and pleasures; and never let my body any more be oppressed with loads of sloth and delicacies, or my

soul drowned in seas of wine or strong drink; but let my appetites be changed into spiritual desires, that I may hunger after the food of angels, and thirst for the wine of elect souls, and account it 'meat, and drink, and pleasure to do thy will,' O God. Lord, let me eat and drink so, that my food may not become a temptation, or a sin, or a disease; but grant, that, with so much caution and prudence, I may watch over my appetite; that I may, in the strength of thy mercies, and refreshments, in the light of thy countenance, and in the paths of thy commandments, walk before thee, all the days of my life, acceptable to thee in Jesus Christ, ever advancing his honour, and being filled with his Spirit, that I may, at last, partake of his glory; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR THURSDAY.

A Prayer against Envy.

I.

O MOST gracious Father, thou spring of an eternal charity, who hast so loved mankind, that thou didst open thy bosom, and send thy holy Son to convey thy mercies to us; and thou didst create angels and men, that thou mightest have objects, to whom thou mightest communicate thy goodness: give me grace to follow so glorious a precedent, that I may never envy the prosperity of any one, but rejoice to honour him whom thou honourest, to love him whom thou lovest, to commend the virtuous, to discern the precious from the vile, giving honour to whom honour belongs, that I may go to heaven in the noblest way of rejoicing in the good of others.

II.

O dear God, never suffer the devil to rub his vilest leprosy of envy upon me; never let me have the affections of the desperate and damned; let it not be ill with me, when it is well with others, but let thy Holy Spirit so overrule me for ever, that I may pity the afflicted and be compassionate, and have a fellow-feeling of my brother's sorrows, and that I may, as much as I can, promote his good, and give thee

thanks for it, and rejoice with them that do rejoice; never censuring his actions cursedly, nor detracting from his praises spitefully, nor upbraiding his infelicities maliciously, but pleased in all things which thou doest or givest; that I may then triumph in spirit, when thy kingdom is advanced, when thy spirit rules, when thy church is profited, when thy saints rejoice, when the devil's interest is destroyed; truly loving thee, and truly loving my brother; that we may all together join in the holy communion of saints, both here and hereafter, in the measures of grace and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR FRIDAY.

A Prayer against Wrath and inordinate Anger,

I.

O ALMIGHTY Judge of men and angels, whose anger is always the minister of justice, slow, but severe, not lightly arising, but falling heavily when it comes: give to thy servant a meek and a gentle spirit, that I also may be slow to anger, and easy to mercy and forgiveness. Give me a wise and a constant heart, that I may not be moved with every trifling mistake, and inconsiderable accident, in the conversation and intercourse of others; never be moved to an intemperate anger for any injury, that is done or offered; let my anger ever be upon a just cause, measured with moderation and reason, expressed with charity and prudence, lasting but till it hath done some good, either upon myself or others.

II.

Lord, let me be ever courteous, and easy to be entreated; never let me fall into a peevish or contentious spirit, but follow peace with all men, offering forgiveness, inviting them by courtesies, ready to confess my own errors, apt to make amends, and desirous to be reconciled. Let no sickness, or cross accident, no employment or weariness, make me angry or ungentle, and discontent, or unthankful, or uneasy to them that minister to me; but, in all things, make me like unto the holy Jesus. Give me the spirit of a Christian,

charitable, humble, merciful and meek, useful and liberal, complying with every chance; angry at nothing but my own sins, and grieving for the sins of others; that while my passion obeys my reason, and my reason is religious, and my religion is pure and undefiled, managed with humility, and adorned with charity, I may escape thy anger which I have deserved, and may dwell in thy love, and be thy son and servant for ever; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR SATURDAY.

A Prayer against Weariness in well-doing.

I.

O MY GOD, merciful and gracious, my soul groans under the loads of its own infirmity; when my spirit is willing, my flesh is weak; my understanding foolish and imperfect, my will peevish and listless, my affections wandering after strange objects, my fancy wild and unfixed, all my senses minister to folly and vanity; and though they were all made for religion, yet they least of all delight in that. O my God, pity me, and hear me when I pray, and make that I may pray acceptably. Give me a love to religion, an unwearied spirit in the things of God. Let me not relish or delight in the things of the world, in sensual objects, and transitory possessions; but make my eyes look up to thee, my soul be filled with thee, my spirit ravished with thy love, my understanding employed in the meditation of thy law, all my powers and faculties of soul and body wholly serving thee, and delighting in such holy ministries.

II.

O most gracious God, what greater favour is there, than that I may,—and what easier employment can there be than to pray thee, to, be admitted into thy presence, and to represent our needs,-and that we have our needs supplied only for asking and desiring passionately and humbly. But we rather quit our hopes of heaven, than buy it at the cheapest rate of humble prayer. This, O God, is the greatest infirmity and infelicity of man, and hath an intolerable cause, and is an unsufferable evil.

III.

O relieve my spirit with thy graciousness, take from me all tediousness of spirit, and give me a laboriousness that will not be tired, a hope that shall never fail, a desire of holiness not to be satisfied till it possesses, a charity that will always increase; that I, making religion the business of my whole life, may turn all things into religion, doing all to thy glory, and by the measures of thy word and of thy Spirit: that when thou shalt call me from this deliciousness of employment, and the holy ministries of grace, I may pass into the employment of saints and angels, whose work it is with eternal joy and thanksgiving to sing praises to the mercies of the great Redeemer of men, and Saviour of men and angels, Jesus Christ our Lord: to whom, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and worship, all service and thanks, all glory and dominion, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Prayer to be said by a Maiden, before she enters into the State of Marriage.

I.

O MOST glorious God, and my most indulgent Lord and gracious Father, who dost bless us by thy bounty, pardon us by thy mercy, support and guide us by thy grace, and govern us sweetly by thy providence; I give thee most humble and hearty thanks, that thou hast hitherto preserved me in my virgin state with innocence and chastity, in a good name, and a modest report. It is thy goodness alone, and the blessed emanation of thy Holy Spirit, by which I have been preserved; and to thee I return all praise and thanks, and adore and love thy goodness infinite.

II.

And now, O Lord, since by thy dispensation and overruling providence I am to change my condition, and enter into the holy state of marriage, which thou hast sanctified by thy institution, and blessed by thy word and promises, and raised up to an excellent mystery, that it might represent