Haft thou fquandered away thy husband's sub

ftance?

Haft thou kept thyself within those bounds, which both reason, religion, and the condition of thy husband require? Or, 30

Haft thou been indifferent and careless in thy carriage towards him, not forecafting to do what thou didst or mightest know would oblige and pleafe him?

Haft thou been unconcerned in his joys and for

rows?.

Haft thou neglected to recommend him to the grace and protection of God in thy prayers?

The duty of a husband to his wife.*

AST thou been faithful to the folemn contract

made in the prefence of God,

at the entering upon the state of matrimony?it Doft thou love thy wife, and fhew it in a kind, tender, and gentle behaviour towards her?

12

Art thou faithful to her bed?

Haft thou neglected to defend and protect thy wife, to maintain and provide for her?

bar

Haft thou been peremptory, rigorous, and ma gifterial in thy commands?

Haft thou omitted to pray for her, and to fhare with her in all her reasonable joys and forrows

The

*This duty may be found explained at large in the tw WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 9. Sections IV. and V. 277

174

The duty of a fervant to his mafter or mistress.*

FAST thou been faithful and industrious in

Hote
ferving thy master and mistress?

Doft thou obey them in all lawful commands chearfully, and in obedience to God, whofe providence hath fet them over thee?

Haft thou purloined, or ftole, or any way defrauded them of their goods, or been carelefs and wafteful of them?

Doft thou not take the advantage of their abfence, to be idle, or unjust to them?

Haft thou any ways injured them in their repu tation?

Haft thou as much as in thee lay, lived quietly and peaceably with thy fellow-fervants?

Haft thou not been fpiteful and malicious against them?

Haft thou exercised that tenderness to the children in the family, that was juftly and reasonably expected from thee?

Haft thou prayed for thy master and mistress, and the reft of the family, in thy private prayers? The duty of a mafter or miftrefs to a fervant. thou treated thy fervants as a chriftian,

Hand like one who believes that he has a mafter

in heaven, to whom he must render an account?

Haft

This duty may be found explained at large in the Meto WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 9. Section VHI.

This duty may be found explained at large in the et WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 9. Section IX.

Haft thou performed the condition thou waft obliged to, when thou tookeft them into thy fervice? Haft thou taken care of their bodies, by providing what food was fitting for them?

Art thou reafonable and moderate in the commands which thou layeft upon them?

Doft thou admonish and correct them with calmnefs and gravity, when they tranfgrefs their duty?

Has not thy feverity put them upon cheating and lying? for that will make thee a partaker with them in their fin.

Haft thou been remifs in fuffering them to neglect their duty to God?

Haft thou afforded them time and opportunities for the fervice of God in publick and private?

Doft thou fet them an example of sobriety and godliness in thy own life and conversation? and doft thou encourage their living foberly and religi oufly, by proper marks of thy kindness and favour? Haft thou been constant in thy daily devotions with thy family?

The duty of a magiftrate.+

AST thou made it thy endeavour to be a ter rór to evil-doers, and a praise to them that do well?

HAS

Haft thou not been more intent upon thy own private intereft, than in advancing the common good?

Haft

+ This duty may be found farther explained in the New WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 8. Section III.

Haft thou endeavoured to inform thyself of thy duty, in order to the doing of it, when thou haft been called to the office of conftable, church-warden, or any other public office?

To thefe duties in general, we might add the particular duties of the people to their prince, and the laity to their minifters; but to prevent tedioufnefs, which often cools devotion, I fhall refer thofe that defire Information upon these heads, to the NEW WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, Sunday 8. Sections I. II.and LV.

Directions.

When you have once thoroughly examin'd yourself, and made a particular confeffion of the fins of your whole life, and begged pardon ; there is not the fame abfolut ineceffity of fuch a laborious examination, at your next communication; fpecially if you examine yourself carefully every night, and daily repent of the evil of the day past, and are not confcious to yourfelf of any great and notorious fins, fince your laft confeffion: for if you are not, the examination, and confeffion, only of what paft fince your laft communicating, together with a general confeffion of your former fins, and a folemn renewing of your former acts of repentance, may ferve the turn. But if your confcience accufes you of any culpable neglect in your last examination, or of any great relapfes, or of any wilful violations of your loft vows and refolutions; in thefe, and the like cafes, it is the jureft way to begin all your repen tance again.

I am fenfible it is not eafy to enumerate all the inflances of duty reducible to these three heads, concerning GOD, one's neighbour, and one's felf; nor to fet down the feveral branches and violations of them: but the method here propofed, will, I am perfuaded, (if carefully attended to) affift any one in getting a competent knowledge of his own flate and condition. And as the foregoing examination of our lives, is in order to the confeffion of our fins, and that fuch a diftinct fight and confideration of them may breed in us humble and contrite hearts; fo when we are come to a fufficient knowledge of our fins, by the foregoing method of examination, our next step is to repent of them; and the first part of our repentance is to make an humble con→ feffion of our vileness and unworthiness in committing them.

J

7

A profeffion of godly forrow for our fins, and a refo lution of new obedience towards God, to be made on Monday evening.

mw

and will fay unto him, faand before thee, and am no Luke xv. 18, 19.

I will arife and go to my father, ther I have finned against heaven, more worthy to be called thy fon.

Lord! ways to remembrance with a troubled heart; my evil doings are before mine eyes; they are a burthen upon my fpirits, afore burthen too heavy for me to bear. But now, O my God, with a heart truly for rowful and penitent, I turn from my evil ways, refolving by thy grace to become a new creature; from this day forward I am fully determined to betake myfelf to a religious courfe of life; O let not iniquity be my ruin.

O Lord, I am not worthy fo much as to lift up mine eyes unto thee; but whether should a wretch in guilt and mifery look, but unto thee, the fountain of all mercy? whither, but to a God, whofe mercy is greater than my wickednefs? to a God, whose property it is to be kind to his enemies; and whofe patience to bear with my fins, is as great as his power to punish them; and who had much rather be reconciled to me, than take vengeance upon me? whither indeed, but to thee, O God of all grace and comfort! who fheweft mercy to the un

worthy,