of the living." The sun may cease to shine on man, and the earth to bear us; but God will never cease to live, nor to be faithful to his promises; blessed be the Lord, who hath commanded me so safe and quieting a duty, to trust him, and cast all my care on one who has promised to care for me.

HYMN.

My God! my everlasting hope,
I live upon thy truth;

Thy hands have held my childhood up,
And strengthened all my youth.

Still has my life new wonders seen
Repeated every year,

Behold my days that yet remain,

I trust them to thy care.

Cast me not off when strength declines,
When hoary hairs arise,
And round me let thy glory shine,
Whene'er thy servant dies.

Then in the history of the age,
When men review my days;
They'll read thy love in every page,
In every line thy praise.

A Thanksgiving Prayer for an aged, or dying Christian.

Alas! dear Lord, I am ashamed that to love and praise thee should be a work of difficulty! What should I love if not goodness and, love itself-that merciful Father who made me, that I might love him; who redeemed me, that by love he might win my love, and sanctified me to dispose my soul to love him? What shall I praise if not infinite perfection? the glory of whose power, wisdom, and goodness, shines forth in the whole creation! Heaven and earth praise thee! And am I no part of heaven or earth? The whole creation proclaims thy glory! And am I not a part of thy creation? Thy very enemies when redeemed, reconciled, and forgiven, praise the love and grace of their Redeemer! And am I not one of these? Thy saints all love thee; for it is the essence of a saint: they praise thee, for it is the work of saints and am I not one of these? I am less than the least of all thy mercies, but it is not the least of thy mercies which I have received; and if a life full of mercies has not brought forth a life full of love and praise, let it end in a loving and praising death.

A Prayer against Unbelief.

O Thou that knowest how deadly an enemy unbelief is to thy honour and my soul, send, I beseech thee, that heavenly light to my mind, which may banish and confound it. Let it not blaspheme thy truth, and imprison, and blind, and torment my soul. O thou

that givest the word, the Saviour, the heaven which I must believe, deny me not that faith by which I must believe them; it must be thy glory whose reflections must reveal thy glory to us; and a light from heaven that must shew us heaven! O send one beam, one beam, Lord, of that heavenly light into this dark sinful soul! that, with Stephen, I may see in my passage the glory of my blessed Lord to whom I go! and with Simeon may gladly say, "Lord, now let thy servant depart

in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation !" One beam of thine will drive away the powers of darkness, and banish all these doubts and fears, and let in some of heaven into my soul, before it is let into heaven! O thou blessed Spirit, the illuminator of dark imprisoned souls, remember not all my resistances of thy grace, and forsake me not in this last necessity of my life, and leave me

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not to the power of darkness and unbelief! Though glory is not openly seen till it is enjoyed let me now, when I am so near it, have such a sight of it by faith, as is suitable to this low and darker state. O thou that art the spirit of life, so quicken and actuate this sluggish soul, that the last part of my race may be run with vigour, and the last act of my life may be done in evidence of the heavenly influence, and may be more like the heavenly employment, than all the rest has been! O thou that art the sanctifier and comforter of souls, now kindle that fire of heavenly love in me, and give me some taste of the celestial joys, which may feelingly tell me that there is a heaven indeed; and may be the witness within, and the pledge and earnest that I shall live with Christ. My flesh and my own heart now fail me, the world and all therein is nothing to me, I am taking my everlasting farewell of them all but one beam of his face, and one taste of his love, who is my portion for ever, will be strength and joy to my departing soul, and better than this life and all its pleasures. Come, Lord, with all these seasonable comforts into my soul, that my soul may comfortably come to thee! My life had been but death, and darkness, and disaffection to God, if thou hadst not been in

me a spirit of life, and light, and love; the tempter would have been too strong for me; and how then shall I deal with him myself, when the languishings of my body shall disable my soul! Thou despisest not art and reason, I thank thee for the use I have had of them in their season; but one beam of thy light, one spark of thy love, one motion of thy heavenly life, will better confute the enemy of faith, than my disputes can do. Teach me effectually to love and praise thee, and it shall powerfully prove to me that there is a heaven where I shall joyfully love and praise thee.for ever.

The Prayer of a Christian near Death.

O thou Sovereign_of Life and Death, of Earth and Heaven! Thy mercy brought me i into the world, kept me from a thousand dangers, and gave me innumerable blessings of life and godliness. Thy mercy convinced and converted, me, renewed and sanctified my heart, and formed Christ in me. O amazing mercy, that I am not dying in an impenitent and christless state! I thank thee for the means of grace, and the hopes of glory. I thank thee for the fruits of Canaan through the wilderness, and now on the brink of Jordan. I thank thee for the cordials

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