in thy word shall be fulfilled in those counterparts of thy word, thy works of providence and grace; we ask for thy Spirit, and for faith and love. More especially we pray for the image of Christ, that his meekness, gentleness, holiness, patience, zeal, and every other lovely part of the Saviour's character may be inscribed upon our hearts, may direct our words, and be manifest in our actions. Thou hast said, "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his;" O give us the spirit of the Saviour. May we abide in him like the branch in the vine, that we may derive from him strength, support, and beauty, and bring forth much fruit, Hear our prayer for his name's sake. Amen.

CCXVI.

FOR GRACE TO FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF A SUFFERING SAVIOUR.

O Lord, who hast shown many wonders of love in creation and providence, yet none so wondrous as the history of the sufferings of thy beloved Son, give us to know more of his love and patience, and may we learn from him patiently to receive whatever strokes our heavenly Father may send as the chastisement of our sins. May we remember that we are called as his disciples to suffer for well doing, and that it is a privilege and happiness to suffer for his sake. And may we copy not only the meekness and gentleness of Jesus, but his true and holy zeal,

May we remember how great was the burden of our sins that lay upon him, and yet how being strong in the Lord, he endured even to the end. O teach us that the fountain of his eternal strength is open to us also, and may we yield to no temptation, but be delivered from the fear of our enemies, and fight manfully under his banner against the world, the flesh, and the Devil. May we know that Jesus is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever; that the good Shepherd is watching with tender care over his sheep in the wilderness of this world; that he walks in the midst of the golden candlesticks, and is with us every hour in the fulness of his dying love, the riches of his grace, and the depth of his heavenly wisdom; and so may we be strengthened to endure joyfully his cross in the way to his eternal joy, for his name's sake.

CCXVII.

FOR HOLINESS.

O holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty, who hast commanded us to be holy, for thou art holy, and hast assured us that without holiness no man shall see the Lord, we, thy sinful creatures, whose hearts are deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, come together to thy mercy-seat to obtain mercy and to find grace to help in time of need. Help us, we beseech thee, to come out and be separate from an evil world, and not to touch the unclean

thing. Help us to believe thy loving-kindness in redeeming us from all iniquity, and pardoning all our sins, and in assuring us that thou wilt receive us and be a Father unto us. Having these promises, O may we cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and of the spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of the Lord. Write these thy laws in our hearts, we beseech thee. O thou very God of peace, sanctify us wholly, and grant our whole spirit, soul, and body, may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

CCXVIII.

FOR HOPE.

O God of hope, fill us with all joy and peace in believing, that we may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. May we know that when Christ shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; and may we hope to the end, for the grace which is to be brought unto us at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Amidst all the delay of our hope, may we still continue to expect and quietly wait for thy salvation, knowing that we are saved by hope, and if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Give us then, we beseech thee, this sure anchor of the soul and this helmet of our salvation, that we may be preserved steadfast, immoveable, and always abounding in thy work here, till our hope be realized in the full fruition of thy glory in the world to come.

CCXIX.

FOR JOY AND PEACE IN BELIEVING.

O thou who hast called us always to rejoice and in every thing to give thanks: we know, O Lord, that thou art our God, our Father, and our portion, and that we are each exactly in those circumstances which thou dost in thy deep wisdom see best for us. May we then glorify thee by joy and peace in believing. Thou hast commanded us to rejoice; give what thou dost command, and then command what thou wilt. May this joy be our daily strength for every duty. And O that thou wouldest also grant that our joy and peace may be the means of bringing others unto thee. May they say, We will go with you, for the Lord is with you. Enable us to say unto them, as Moses did unto Hobab, Come with us, and we will do thee good; for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel. Hear us for Christ's sake,

CCXX.

FOR PREPARATION FOR THE COMING OF CHRIST.

Give unto us, O Lord, a simple faith in the testimony of thine own word, and a real expectation of those great, awful, and blessed events which are coming upon the world. May we know that thou comest speedily; may we watch the signs of the times, and prepare for thy return. Teach us how

overwhelming to our earthly sight, our timorous hearts, our sin-burdened consciences, would be any glimpse of that glory which thou art preparing for us, that we may seek to have our sins cleansed in the blood of the Saviour, and our hearts filled with that perfect love which casteth out fear, that we may be more and more prepared to stand in thy holy presence. O grant us such grace, that when thou dost come and knock, we may be ready to open unto thee, to dwell for ever with thee, and for ever behold the glory of the Lord. Hear us for thy great name's sake.

CCXXI.

PRESERVATION FROM THE PECULIAR ERRORS OF THESE TIMES.

O Lord, thou God of all truth and holiness, who hast charged us not to believe every spirit, seeing that many false prophets are gone out into the world, but to try the spirits whether they are of God, give us grace to prove all things by thy law and testimony, and to hold fast that which is good. Preserve thou us from every unclean spirit, whether of infidelity, or lawlessness, or Popery, or any other false spirit which comes out of the mouth of the dragon, or of the beast, or of the false prophet.* May we constantly be looking for the coming of Christ, and know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. Grant us grace to watch and

Rev. xvi. 13-15,