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Prayer both in publick and private, to hearing and reading God's holy Word, and exercising a most folemn Repentance for those Sins which crucified the Lord of Life. Thus with Abhorrence of Sin, and penitential Grief, did they celebrate the Memory of our Saviour's Sufferings.

Q. What Provifion bath the Church of England made to exercife the Devotion of ber Members all this Week?

A. She calls all her devout Members every Day this Week to meditate upon our Lord's Sufferings, having collected in her Offices most of thofe Portions of Scripture that relate to this tragical Subject; increafing their Humiliation by the Confideration of our Saviour's: That with penitent Hearts, and firm Refolutions of dying likewife to Sin, they may attend their Saviour through the feveral Stages of his bitter Paffion. And by encouraging a prudent Abftinence from innocent Pleafures, and the Cares of worldly Business, as well as from the common Liberties of Food, the directs their Thoughts and Affections to the ferious Confideration of fuch Things as concern their eternal Salvation; that by reflecting upon the Guilt of their Sins, and difpofing their Minds to an Abhorrence of them, they may be qualified for the Benefit of our Saviour's Expiation.

Q. Who was it that this Day fuffered?

A. Jefus Chrift, the eternal Son of God; begotten of his Father before all Worlds, God of God, very God of very God; the Prince of Glory, the Heir of everlasting Bliss, the premifed Meffias; who took upon hini the Nature of Man, and in that Nature being still the fame

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fame Perfon he was before, did fuffer for our 1 Cor.2.8.Salvation; for the Princes of this World cruciActs 20. fied the Lord of Glory, and God purchafed his Church with his own Blood.

Mat. 26.

Q. What was it our Saviour suffered?

A. When the bleffed Jefus took upon him human Nature, he was fubject to all thofe Frailties and Infirmities, thofe outward Injuries and violent Impreffions to which Mortality is liable; his whole Life was full of Sufferings, from his Birth in the Stable to his Death upon the Crofs; but particularly in his laft bitter Paffion he fuffered most exquifite Pains and Torments in his Body; and inexpreffible Fears, and Sorrows, and unknown Anguish in his Soul.

Q. What did our Saviour fuffer in his Body?

A. He was betrayed by Judas, and denied and 27. by Peter, both his own Difciples. He was apprehended and bound by the rude Soldiers as a Malefactor, accufed by falfe Witneffes, arraigned and condemned. He was buffeted, fcourged, and fpit upon, derided and mocked by the People, the Soldiers, and at laft by the High-Prieft. He was made the Scorn, and Contempt, and Sport of his infolent and infulting Enemies; was worried to Death by the Clamours of the Rabble, that cried out, Crucify him, crucify him. And accordingly he was nailed to the Crofs, on which, after having hung feveral Hours, he gave up the Ghost; a Death of utmoft Shame and ignominy, as well as of Torment infupportable.

Q. What was the Nature of Crucifixion?

A. It was a Roman Punishment, remarkable for the exquifite Pains and Ignominy of it, being the moft painful and the most shameful of all their Ways of dispatching Criminals. The Body

was

was laid upon a Piece of Wood, afterwards erected and fixed in the Earth, and the Hands nailed to a tranfverfe Beam faftened unto that towards the Top thereof; and the Body refted upon another Piece of Wood, fixed unto that which was erected towards the lower Part. The Torment of it appeared from the piercing those Parts of the Body with Nails, which are moft nervous, and yet did not quickly procure Death; and the Shame of it was evident from those upon whom it was inflicted, being only Slaves and Fugitives. But when the Roman Emperors became Chriftians, this Punishment was forbidden, out of a due Refpect and pious Honour to the Manner of Christ's Death.

Q. How doth it appear that our Saviour fuffered in his Mind?

. A. From thofe grievous Agonies he felt, first Mat. 25. in the Garden of Gethsemane juft before his Ap- 38. prehenfion, when his Soul was exceeding forrowful even unto Death; when he fweat as it were Drops of Blood, and prayed thrice with great Vehemence to his Father, that if it were poffible, that bitter Cup might pafs from him: And from that inconceivable Anguish which he expressed upon the Cross, when he broke out into that paffionate Exclamation, My God, my God, why bast thou forfaken me? So that Evil to come torment- 46. ed his Soul with Fear, and Evil prefent with Sadness, Sorrow, and Anguish.

Q. Did our Saviour fuffer the Torments of the Damned?

A. It is certain the Damned are the Objects of God's Wrath; and will remain fo to all Éternity; but our Saviour, in laying down bis Life, John 10. did an Act highly agreeable to God,

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and for 17, 18.

which

1 Cor. 15.

which the Father loved him; and whatever he fuffered was not of long Duration, in that he rofe from the Dead the third Day. And though he is faid to be a Curse for us, it is only upon the Account of that accurfed Death which he fuffered. And being thus highly obedient to his Father, and putting his Confidence in God, in the bittereft Part of his Paffion, by his ReMat. 26. fignation in the Garden, and by recommending bis Spirit into the Hands of his Father upon the Luke 23. Crofs; he did not defpair of God's Mercy, 46. which infeparably attends all thofe Torments the Damned endure.

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Luke 22. 53.

Q. Whence then proceeded that Horror and Dread which feized our Saviour upon the Approach of bis Paffion?

A. It is not reasonable to believe that this Horror and Dread proceeded only from the Prospect of Death; because Martyrs have embraced it with Joy as well as Refignation, when attended with grievous Circumftances of Cruelty. Therefore fome have thought that the Devil exerted all his Power and Malice to diftract and afflict our Saviour with difmal Apprehenfions and horrid Phantafms; and that it was this Conflict with the Powers of Hell, which caufed his inexpreffible Anguifh. And this Notion hath fome Countenance from our Saviour's calling the Seafon of his Paffion, the Power of Darkness. But if we confider how perfectly the bieffed Jefus understood the Evil and Guilt of Sin; how zealous he was for God's Glory, how defirous of the Salvation of Mankind; and yet withal that he knew how small a Number would be faved; how an ungrateful and rebellious World would fruftrate the End of his Death, and the Designs

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of his Mercy; we may in fome Measure guess at that Anguish that funk and depreffed him in fuch a wonderful Manner. For we may imagine how much he, who loved us fo well as to die to redeem us, might be grieved and afflicted, when he forefaw that even by his dying he should not fave us all.

Q. For what Reafon did our Saviour suffer the painful and fhameful Death of the Cross?

A. To deliver us from the Wrath to come, 1 Theff. and to purchase eternal Redemption for us.

And 1.10.
Heb. 9.

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to give us a perfect Pattern of Patience and Refignation to the Will of God, and of all those Chriftian Virtues which are neceffary to qualify us to receive the Benefit of his Expiation; leav-1 Pet. 2: ing us an Example that we should follow his Steps. 21. For when by our Sins we had juftly incurred the Displeasure of Almighty God, and were liable to eternal Mifery, our bleffed Saviour difcharged the Obligation; and by fhedding his moft precious Blood, as the Price of our Re- Mat. 20. demption, made Satisfaction to God for us: 28. He was contented to be fubftituted as a Sacrifice for us, to bear our Sins in bis own Body 1 Pet. 2. on the Tree, and to expiate the Guilt of our 24. Offences by his own Sufferings. He died not only for our Benefit and Advantage, but in our Place and Stead; fo that if he had not died, we had eternally perished. And the Blood of Chrift, which was fhed for us upon the Crofs, is called the Blood of the Covenant; because Heb. 10. thereupon God was pleased to enter into a 29. Covenant of Grace and Mercy with Mankind, 13. 20. wherein he hath promised and engaged, for the Sake of Chrift's Sufferings, voluntarily undergone upon our Account and in our Stead to

forgive

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