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The General CONFESSION, to be repeated after the Minifter, by the whole Congregation, All kneeling.

LORD God Almighty, and most merciful Father,

We acknowledge and confefs our manifold Sins and Wickedness, that render us unworthy of thy Goodness and Mercy towards us: We have erred and ftrayed from thy holy Ways; we have followed too much the evil Defires and Inclinations of our own Hearts; we have offended against many of thy righteous Laws; we have left undone. many Duties which we ought to have done, and we have done many Things which we ought not to have done, and juftly deferve to be punished for our Tranfgreffions. But bleffed be thy Name, with Thee there is Forgiveness upon Repentance and Amendment of Life. We would therefore now humble ourfelves before Thee, and be fincerely forry for all our Mifdoings; and we earneftly implore thy Pardon and Acceptance of us, according to the Riches of thy Grace in Jefus Chrift our Lord. O God of Mercy, have Mercy upon us miferable Offenders; enter not into ftrict Judgement with us, but forgive us all that is past. And grant that this thy Grace and Forbearance may work in us true Repentance, and engage us to lead a righteous. and holy Life for the Time to come. May thy good Spirit guide us into the Way of Truth, and graciously affift our fincere Purposes of Amendment; purifie our Minds from every evil and corrupt Defire, that being delivered from the Bondage of Corruption, We may be admitted into the glorious Liberty of the Children of God, and henceforth denying all Ungodlinefs and worldly Lufts, may walk worthy of our Chriftian Profeffion, that at length we may obtain everlafting Life, through Jefus Chrift our Savior and Redeemer. Amen.

Min. As I live, faith the Lord, I have no Pleafure in the Death of the Wicked, but that he turn from his Ways and live. (Ezek. xxxiii. 11.)

Peop. To the Lord our God belong Mercies and Forgiveness, though we have rebelled againft Him. (Dan. ix. 9.)

M. Teturn, ye backfliding Children, and I will heal your Backflidings.

P. Behold,

P. Behold, We come unto Thee, for Thou art the Lord our God. (Jerem. iii. 22.)

M. God fo loved the World, that He gave his only be gotten Son, that whofoever believeth in Him should not perifh, but have everlasting Life (John iii, 16.)

P. Lord, We believe, help Thou our Unbelief. (Mark ix. 24.)

M. Let us pray.

'A'

LMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, who art good and ready to forgive, and plenteous in Mercy to All that call upon Thee in Truth, and hast sent thy Son Jefus Chrift into the World, to redeem us from Iniquity, and to declare the Remiffion of Sins unto them that fincerely repent; grant us, We humbly befeech Thee, a well-grounded Hope of thy Pardon and Reconciliation, by enabling us to do thy Will in all Things. May we break off our Sins by Righteoufnefs, and forfake them by a true Repentance: and may we forgive All those who have any ways offended or injured Us, as entirely and heartily as We ourfelves do defire or expect Forgivenefs; that thus following thy Commandments, O God, thefe Things may please Thee which We do at this present, and the reft of our Life hereafter may be pure and holy, fo that at the laft we may come to thine eternal Joy, through the Mediation of Jefus Chrift, thine only Son, our Lord. Amen,

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Then All standing up, the Minifter fhall fay,

HEN the wicked Man turneth away from hist Wickedness which he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he fhall fave his Soul alive. (Ezek. xviii. 27.)

Peop. In this the Children of God are manifeft, and the Children of the Devil; whofoever docth not Righteousness, is not of God; neither he that loveth not his Brother. (I John iii. 10.)

M. Be ye therefore kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Chrift hath forgiven you. (Ephef iv. 32.)

P. One Man beareth Hatred against another, and doth he feek Pardon of the Lord? He fheweth no Mercy to a

Man

Man like himself, and doth he ask Forgiveness of his own Sins? (Eccluf. xxviii. 3,4.)

M. If Ye forgive Men their Trefpaffes, your heavenly Father will alfo forgive You: But if Ye forgive not Men their Tiefpaffes, neither will your Father forgive your Tref•pafles. (Matth. vi. 14, 15.)

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P. He that hath Ears to hear, let him hear. (Luke viii. 8.-Matth. xi. 15.)

M. Now unto God and our Father, who hath manifested his Love towards us, in fending his only begotten Son into the World, that We might live thro' Him, and unto Him who died, and rofe again and revived, that He might be Lord both of the dead and the living, be Glory and Thankfgiving for ever and ever.

P. Amen. Bleffing and Honor and Glory and Power be unto Him that fitteth upon the Throne, and to the Lamb for ever and ever. Amen. (Rev. v. 13.).

Upon the First Day of every Month, as alfo on every Sonday, let the Minifter read the COMMANDMENTS, making a fhort Paufe betwixt each, in which Every One. that bears fhould filently reflect, particularly confefs and mentally beg Pardon of his own Sins, and at the End of the Whole, feriously join in the Petition annexed for the People to repeat.

N. B. dt feems also very fuitable for the Minifter to read the following Verfes from Deuteronomy iv. as prefatory to the Commandments, at leaft fometimes, if not always.

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1.)TTEARKEN now, O ye People, unto the Statutes which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live.

2.) Ye fhall not add unto the Word which I command you, neither fhall you diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the Commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you.

6.) Keep therefore and do them; for this is your Wifdom and your Understanding in the Sight of the Nations, which fhall hear all thefe Statutes, and fay, furely this great Nation is a wife and understanding People.

7.) For what Nation is there fo great, who hath God fo nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all Things that we call upon him for? 8.) And

8.) And what Nation is there fo great, that hath Statutes and Judgements fo righteous, as all this Law which I fet before you this Days

9.) Only take Heed to thyfelf, and keep thy Soul diligently, left thou forget the Things which thine Eyes have feen, and left they depart from thy Heart all the Days of thy Life; but teach them thy Sons, and thy Sons' Sons.

39.) Know therefore this Day, and confider it in thine Heart, that THE LORD HE IS GOD, in Heaven above, and upon the Earth beneath; there is none else.

40.) Thou shalt keep therefore his Statutes, and his Commandments which I command thee this Day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy Children after thee, and that thou mayeft prolong thy Days upon the Earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for ever. Peop. Amen.

Min. GOD fpake all thefe Words, faying, I AM THE LORD THY GOD; (Exod. xx.)

1. THOU fhalt have no other Gods before ME.

I.

II. THOU fhalt not make to thyself any graven mage, or the Likenefs of any Thing, that is in Heaven above, or that is in the Earth beneath, or that is in the Water under the Earth. Thou fhalt not bow down thyfelf to them, nor ferve them: For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, vifiting the Iniquity of the Fathers upon the Children, unto the third and fourth Generation of them that hate me; and fhewing Mercy unto thoufands of them that love me and keep my Command

ments.

III. THOU fhalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his Name in vain.

IV. REMEMBER the Sabbath-Day, to keep it holy. Six Days fhalt thou labor, and do all thy Work; but the Seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou fhalt not do any Work, Thou, nor thy Son, nor thy Daughter, thy Man-Servant, nor thy Maid-Servant, nor thy Cattle, nor thy Stranger that is within thy Gates. For in Six Days the Lord made Heaven and Earth, the Sea, and all that in them is, and refted the Seventh Day:

Where

Wherefore the Lord bleffed the Sabbath-Day, and hallowed it.

V. HONOR thy Father and thy Mother, that thy Days may be long upon the Land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

VI. THOU fhalt do no Murder.

VII. THOU fhalt not commit Adultery..

VIII THOU fhalt not fteal.

IX. THOU fhalt not bear falfe Witness against thy Neighbor.

X. THOU fhalt not covet thy Neighbor's Houfe, thou fhalt not covet thy Neighbor's Wife, nor his Man-Servant, nor his Maid-Servant, nor his Ox, nor his Ass, nor any Thing that is thy Neighbor's.

THESE are the TEN COMMANDMENTS delivered unto Mofes at Mount Sinai, written with the Finger of God himself upon two Tables of Stone, which were to be kept and obferved for ever by his People. Our bleffed Savior hath confirmed the fame, and given us also a new Commandment, that We love one another as He hath loved Us. (John xiii. 34) And the SUM of the Whole is this; Thou fhalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Mind. This is the First and: great Commandment. And the Second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy Neighbor as thyfelf: And all Things whatfoever We would that Men fhould do unto Us, We fhould do even fo unto Them; (Matth. xxii. 37-40-vii. 12.) treat them in every Inftance, juft as We would think it reafonable to be treated by them, if, We were in their Cir cumftances, and They in Ours. On these two Commandments, (faith our LORD,) hang all the Law and the Prophets.--And to encourage our Obfervation of thefe Rules, we fhould remember, that to obey God is happy Life eternal; but to difobey him is Death and Condemnation, if not repented of: And the Apostle James (ii.

jo.)

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