OFFICE

OF

PENITENCE AND HUMILIATION,

ON

DAYS OF RETIREMENT

FOR THE

MORE SOLEMN EXERCISE OF REPENTANCE.

IN EIGHT SECTIONS.

VIZ.

SECT. 1. RELIGIOUS FASTING.-2. EXAMINATION.-3. CONFESSION.-4. RESOLUTIONS.-5. PRAYER.-6.

INGS.-7. INTERCESSIONS.-8. CONCLUSION.

THANKSGIV

SECTION I.

PRECEPTS and DIRECTIONS for RELIGIOUS Fasting;-with a PRAYER.

Jesus said, the days will come when the Bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast'.

When ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father Which is in secret; and thy Father Which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly 2.

Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection.

Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth Him of the evil 1.

1 Matt. ix. 15.

3 1 Cor. ix. 25-27.

2 Ibid. vi. 16-18.

4 Joel ii. 12, 13.

They that sow in tears, shall reap in joy. He that now goeth on his way weeping, and beareth forth good seed, shall doubtless come again with joy, and bring his sheaves with him'.

Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted 2.

Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of Him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance 3. So we fasted, and besought our God for this; and He was intreated of us *.

Cornelius said, four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing, and said, Cornelius, thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God".

Prayer for God's assistance and acceptance of our Humiliation.

O ALMIGHTY and ever-blessed God, Who art infinitely holy and happy in Thyself, and of Thine abundant goodness hast given us a capacity, and made it our duty to imitate Thy holiness, in order to make us partakers of Thy happiness; I a wretched sinner, sorrowfully reflecting upon my life past,-how careless I have been to answer the end of my creation; how sluggish and inconstant in my endeavours to please Thee; and how eager in gratifying my own inclinations; what great portions of my time I have thrown away in vanity, and how little of it I have employed in working out my salvation;-present

1 Psalm cxxvi. 6, 7. Ibid. ver. 23.

2 Matt. v. 4.

3 Ezra viii. 21.

5 Acts x. 30, 31.

myself now before Thee, sincerely desirous, and resolved through the assistance of Thy grace to retire for some time from the cares and pleasures of the world, in order to exercise a more solemn humiliation and repentance for my sins; and to apply myself more diligently to the serious consideration of those things that concern my everlasting salvation.

O most gracious Lord God, from Whom alone are the preparations of the heart, and the good dispositions of our mind for Thy worship and service; vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, to make Thyself present to my soul; and so to fix my thoughts, to purify my affections, and to regulate and govern my whole spirit, that the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart may be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer.

O may all worldly thoughts and imaginations be entirely shut out of my mind; and I so intimately united to Thee, and filled with such a delightful sense of Thine adorable perfections, as may leave a lasting impression upon my soul, and make it henceforward the joy and rejoicing of my heart to praise and worship Thee; and my meat and drink to do Thy will.

Help me, O Lord, to be sincere, and hearty in the dedication of myself, and of all the powers and faculties of my soul and body to Thine obedience and service and grant that I may always carry about with me such a lively sense of the infinite obligations I lie under to be Thine for ever, that as long as I live I may daily offer up myself to Thy Divine Majesty more pure and holy, more humble and meek, more devout and thankful, more cheerfully disposed to every good work, and better prepared to bear a part in the hymns and service of the glorious company above, who are evermore praising Thee, and saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hcsts: heaven and earth are full of Thy glory: Glory be to Thee, O Lord most High. Amen.

SECTION II.

The humble PENITENT'S Examination of himself.

Preparatory sentences of Scripture.

THUS saith the Lord of Hosts; consider your ways'.

Let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another for every man shall bear his own burden 2.

Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord3.

Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.

I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto Thy testimonies".

I have considered the days of old, and the years that are past.

I commune with mine own heart, and search out my spirits'.

If our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things 3.

8

Try me, O God, and seek the ground of my heart: prove me, and examine my thoughts'.

Who can understand his errors? cleanse Thou me from secret faults 10.

Look well if there be any way of wickedness in me; and lead me in the way everlasting ".