own tears. When the springs of sorrow rise high, a christian turns his back upon company, and retires himself into places of greatest privacy, that so he may the more freely, and fully vent his sorrow and grief before the Lord. Ah, England, what pride, luxury, lasciviousness, licentiousness, wantonness, drunkenness, cruelties, injustice, oppressions, fornications, adulteries, falsehood, hypocrisy, bribery, atheism, horrid blasphemies, and hellish impieties are now to be found rampant in the midst of thee! Ah England, England, how are the Lord's sabbaths profaned, pure ordinances despised, scriptures rejected, the spirit resisted and derided, the righteous reviled, wickedness countenaneed, and Christ many thousand times in a day by these cursed practices afresh crucified! Ah, England, England, were our fore fathers alive, how sadly would they blush to see such a horrid degenerate posterity, as is to be found in the midst of thee! How is our forefathers hospitality, converted into riot and luxury, their frugality into pride and prodigality, their simplicity into subtilty, their sincerity into bypocrisy, their charity into cruelty, their chastity into chambering and wantonness, their sobriety into drunkenness, their plain dealing into dissembling, their works of compassion into works of oppression, and their love to the people of God, into an utter enmity against the people of God? And what is the voice of all these crying abominations, but a call of every christian to his closet, and there weep (with weeping Jeremiah) bitterly, for all these great abominations, whereby God is dishonoured openly. O weep in secret for their sins, who openly glory in their sius

which should be their greatest shame. O blush in secret for them that are past all blushing for their own sins; for who knows but that the whole land may fare the better for the sake of a few that are mourners in secret; but however it goes with the nation, such as mourn in secret for the abomination of the times, may be confident that when sweeping judgments shall come upon the land, the Lord will hide them in the secret chambers of his providence, he will set a secret mark of deliverance upon their fore-heads, that mourn in secret for the crying sins of the present day, as he did upon theirs in Ezek. ix. 4, 5, 6.

XVII. Consider, That the near and dear relation that you stand in to the Lord, calls aloud for secret prayer. You are his friends. Now a true friend loves to visit his friend when he may find him alone, and enjoy privacy with him. A true friend loves to pour out his heart into the bosom of his friend, when he hath him in a corner, or in the field, or under a hedge. You are his favourites, and what favourite is there that hides his secret from his prince? Do not all favourites open their hearts to their princes, when they are alone? You are his children, and what ingenious child is there, that doth not delight to be with his father when he is alone, when no body is by? O how free and open are children when they have their parents alone, beyond what they are when company is present. You are the spouse of Christ; and what spouse, what wife is there that doth not love to be with her husband when he is alone? True lovers are always best when they are most alone,

Cant. vii. 10-12. "I am my beloved's, and his desire is towards me. Come my beloved, let us go forth into the fields; let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vines flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates bud forth: there will I give thee my loves." The spouse of Christ is very desirous to en joy his company in the felds, that so having her beloved alone, she might the more freely, and the more secretly open her heart to him. As wives when they are walking alone with their husbands in the fields, are more free to open their minds and the secrets of their hearts, than they are when in their houses with their children and servants about them; so it was with the spouse. Without peradventure, they have very great cause to question, whether they are Christ's real friends, favourites, children or spouse, who seldom or never converse with Christ in their closets, who are shy of Christ when they are alone, who never accustom themselves to give Christ secret visits? What Dalilah said to Sampson, Judg. xvi. 15. "How canst thou say, I love thee, when thou hast not told me, wherein thy great strength lieth," (the discovery of which secret at last cost him his life) that may Christ say to very many in our days, How can you say you love me, when you never acquaint me with your secrets? how can you say you love me, when you never bestow any private visits upon me ? how can you say that you are my faithful bosom friends, when you never in private unbosom yourselves to me? how can you say that you are my favourites when you can spend one month after another and yet

not let me know one of all your secrets, when every day you might have my ear in secret if you pleased? How can you say you are my children, and yet be so close and reserved as you are? How can you say you are my spouse, and that you lie in my bosom, and yet never take any delight to open your hearts, and your secrets to me, when I am alone? What Alexander said to one that was of his name, but a coward, "either lay down the name of Alexander, or fight like Alexander;" that I say to you, Either be frequent in closet duties, as becomes a christian, or else lay down the name of a christian; either unbosom yourselves in secret to Christ, as friends, fa vourites and children, or else lay down these names. But,

XVIII. Consider, that God hath set a special mark of favour, honour, and observation, upon those that have prayed in secret. As you may see in Moses, Exod. xxxiv. 28, in Abraham, Gen. xxi. 33. in Isaac. Gen. xxiv. 63. in Jacob, Gen. xxxii. 24-29, in David, Psalm lv. 16, 17. in Daniel, Chap. vi. 10. in Paul, Acts ix. 11. in Cornelius, Acts x. 2, 4. in Peter, Acts x. 9—12. in Manasseh, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 18, 19. God hath put all these worthies that have exercised themselves in secret prayer, upon record, to their everlasting fame and honour. The Persians seldom write their king's name but in characters of gold. God hath writ (as I may say) their names in characters of gold, who have made conscience of exercising themselves in private prayer. The precious names of those that have addicted themselves to closet duties, are as statutes of gold, which the polluted breath of G

men can no ways stain; they are like so many shining suns that no clouds can darken; they are like so many sparkling diamonds, that shine brightest in the darkest night. A christian can never get into his closet, to pour out his soul before the Lord, but the Lord makes an honourable observation of him, and sets a secret mark of favour upon him, Ezek. ix. 4—6. And how should this provoke all christians to be much with God alone. The Romans were very ambitious of obtaining a good name, a good report in this world; and should not christians be as divinely ambitious of obtaining a good name, a good report in the other world. A good name is always better than a great name, and a name in heaven, is infinitely better than a thousand names on earth: and the way to both these is to be much with God in seeret. But,

XIX. Consider, that satan is a very great enemy to secret prayer. Secret prayer is a scourge, a hell, to satan; every secret prayer, groan or sigh, adds to the devil's torment. When a child of God is on his knees in his secret addresses to God, O the strange thoughts, the earthly thoughts, the wandering thoughts, the distracted thoughts, the hideous, the blasphemous, and weary thoughts, that satan often injects into his soul! and all to wean him off secret prayer. Sometimes he tells the soul that it is in vain to seek God in secret; and at other times he tells the soul it is too late to seek God in secret, for the door of mercy is shut, and there is no hope, no help for the soul; sometimes he tells the soul that 'tis enough to şeek God in public; and at other times he tells the soul, that it is but singularity to seek the Lord in