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Practice of Piety 64 - A Prayer to Be Said of One That Is Like to Die.

By Lewis Bayly


      A Prayer for a sick Man, when he is told that he is not a man for this world, but must prepare himself to go unto God.

      O heavenly Father, who art the Lord God of the spirits of all flesh, and hast made us these souls, and hast appointed us the time, as to come into this world, so having finished our course, to go out of the same, the number of my days, which thou hast determined are now expired, and I am come to the outmost bounds which thou hast appointed, beyond which I cannot pass. I know, O Lord, that if thou enterest into judgment, no flesh can be justified in thy sight; and I, O Lord, of all others should appear most impure and unjust; for I have not fought that good fight for the defence of thy faith and religion, with that zeal and constancy that I should; but for fear of displeasing the world, I have given way unto sins and errors; and for desire to please my flesh, I have broken all thy commandments, in thought, word, and deed; so that my sins have taken such hold on me, that I am not able to look up, and they are more in number than the hairs on my head. If thou wilt straitly mark my iniquities, O Lord, where shall I stand? If thou weighest me in the balance, I shall be found too light.

      For I am void of all righteousness that might merit thy mercy, and loaden with all iniquities that most justly deserve thy heaviest wrath. But, O my Lord, and my God, for Jesus Christ thy Son's sake, in whom only thou art well pleased with all penitent and believing sinners, take pity and compassion upon me, who am the chief of sinners. Blot out all my sins out of thy remembrance, and wash away all my transgressions out of thy sight, with the precious blood of thy Son, which I believe that he, as an undefined Lamb, hath shed for the cleansing of my sins. In this faith I lived; in this faith I die; believing that Jesus Christ died for my sins, and rose again for my justification. And seeing that he hath endured that death, and borne the burden of that judgment which was due unto my sins; O Father, for his death and passion's sake, now that I am coming to appear before thy judgment seat, acquit and deliver me from that fearful judgment which my sins have justly deserved. And perform unto me that gracious and comfortable promise which thou hast made in thy gospel, that whosoever believeth in thee hath everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but shall pass from death unto life.

      Strengthen, O Christ, my faith; that I may put the whole confidence of my salvation in the merits of thy obedience and blood. Increase, O Holy Spirit, my patience; lay no more upon, me than I am able to bear; and enable me to bear so much as shall stand with thy blessed will and pleasure. O blessed Trinity in unity, my Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier, vouchsafe, that as my outward man decays, so my inward man may more and more, by thy grace and consolation, increase and gather strength. O Saviour, put my soul in a readiness, that like a wise virgin, having the wedding-garment of thy righteousness and holiness, she may be ready to meet thee at thy coming with oil in her lamp. Marry her unto thyself, that she may be one with thee in everlasting love and fellowship.

      O Lord, reprove Satan, and chase him away; deliver my soul from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion's mouth. I thank thee, O Lord, for all thy blessings, both spiritual and temporal, bestowed upon me; especially for my redemption by the death of my Saviour Christ. I thank thee that thou hast protected me with thy holy angels from my youth up until now. O Lord, I beseech thee, give them a charge to attend upon me, till thou callest for my soul; and then to carry her, as they did the soul of Lazarus, into thy heavenly kingdom. And as the time of my departure shall approach nearer unto me, so grant, O Lord, that my soul may draw nearer unto thee, and that I may joyfully commend my soul into thy hands, as into the hands of a loving Father, and a merciful Redeemer; and at that instant, O Lord, graciously receive my spirit. All which that I may do, assist me, I beseech thee, with thy grace; and let thy Holy Spirit continue with me unto the end, and in the end, for Jesus Christ's sake, thy Son, my Lord and holy Saviour, in whose name I give thee the glory, and beg these things at thy hand, in that prayer which Christ himself hath taught me:-Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, &c.

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See Also:
   Practice of Piety 1 - Directing a Christian How to Walk, that He May Please God.
   Practice of Piety 2 - A Plain Description of the Essence and Attributes of God
   Practice of Piety 3 - Meditations of the Misery of a Man Not Reconciled to God in Christ.
   Practice of Piety 4 - Meditations of the Miseries of Man from Infancy to Old Age.
   Practice of Piety 5 - Meditations of the Misery of the Soul in this Life.
   Practice of Piety 6 - Meditations of the Misery of the Body and Soul in Death.
   Practice of Piety 7 - Meditations of the Misery of a Man after Death.
   Practice of Piety 8 - Blessedness of the Regenerate
   Practice of Piety 9 - Meditations of the blessed state of a Regenerate Man in his Death.
   Practice of Piety 10 - Meditations of the blessed state of the Regenerate Man after Death.
   Practice of Piety 11 - Meditations of the blessed state of a Regenerate Man in Heaven.
   Practice of Piety 12 - Of the Prerogatives which the Elect shall enjoy in Heaven.
   Practice of Piety 13 - Of the Effects of those Prerogatives.
   Practice of Piety 14 - Meditations directing a Christian how to apply to himself.
   Practice of Piety 15 - Meditations on the Hindrances which Keep a Sinner from Piety.
   Practice of Piety 16 - How a Private Man Must Begin the Morning with Piety.
   Practice of Piety 17 - Meditations for the Morning.
   Practice of Piety 18 - Brief Directions How to Read the Holy Scriptures Once A Year
   Practice of Piety 19 - A Prayer for the Morning.
   Practice of Piety 20 - Meditations to stir us up to Morning Prayer.
   Practice of Piety 21 - Another short Morning Prayer.
   Practice of Piety 22 - Farther Meditations to stir up to Prayer in the Morning.
   Practice of Piety 23 - A brief Prayer for the Morning.
   Practice of Piety 24 - Meditations Directing a Christian How To Walk All the Day with God
   Practice of Piety 25 - Secondly, for thy Words.
   Practice of Piety 26 - Thirdly, for thy Actions.
   Practice of Piety 27 - Meditations for the Evening.
   Practice of Piety 28 - A Prayer for the Evening.
   Practice of Piety 29 - Another shorter Evening Prayer.
   Practice of Piety 30 - Meditations for Household Piety.
   Practice of Piety 31 - Morning Prayer for a Family.
   Practice of Piety 32 - The Practice of Piety at Meals, and the Manner of Eating.
   Practice of Piety 33 - Grace before Meat.
   Practice of Piety 34 - The Practice of Piety at Evening.
   Practice of Piety 35 - Evening Prayer for a Family.
   Practice of Piety 36 - Meditations of the True Manner of Practising Piety on the Sabbath-Day.
   Practice of Piety 37 - Ten Reasons demonstrating the Commandment of the Sabbath to be moral.
   Practice of Piety 38 - The True Manner of Keeping Holy the Lord's Day.
   Practice of Piety 39 - A Morning Prayer for the Sabbath-day.
   Practice of Piety 40 - Duties in the Holy Assembly.
   Practice of Piety 41 - A private Evening Prayer for the Lord's day.
   Practice of Piety 42 - Of the Practice of Piety in Fasting.
   Practice of Piety 43 - Of the Public Fast.
   Practice of Piety 44 - Of the Practice of Piety in Holy Feasting.
   Practice of Piety 45 - Of Preparation.
   Practice of Piety 46 - Of the Worthiness of the Sacrament.
   Practice of Piety 47 - Of the first End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 48 - Of the second End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 49 - Of the third End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 50 - Of the fourth End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 51 - The fifth End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 52 - The sixth End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 53 - Of the seventh End of the Lord's Supper.
   Practice of Piety 54 - A Confession of Sins before the receiving of the Holy Communion.
   Practice of Piety 55 - Of the Means whereby thou mayest become a worthy Receiver.
   Practice of Piety 56 - Of the Second sort of Duties which a worthy Communicant is to perform
   Practice of Piety 57 - A sweet Soliloquy to be said between the Consecration and Sacrament.
   Practice of Piety 58 - Duties After Communion.
   Practice of Piety 59 - The Practice of Piety in Glorifying God in the Time of Sickness or Death
   Practice of Piety 60 - A Prayer when one begins to be sick.
   Practice of Piety 61 - A Prayer before taking of Medicine.
   Practice of Piety 62 - Meditations for the Sick.
   Practice of Piety 63 - Meditations for One That Is Like to Die.
   Practice of Piety 64 - A Prayer to Be Said of One That Is Like to Die.
   Practice of Piety 65 - Meditations against Despair, or doubting of God's Mercy.
   Practice of Piety 66 - An Admonition to them who come to visit the Sick.
   Practice of Piety 67 - A Prayer to be said for the Sick by them who visit him.
   Practice of Piety 68 - Consolations Against Impatience in Sickness.
   Practice of Piety 69 - Consolations Against the Fear of Death
   Practice of Piety 70 - Seven Sanctified Thoughts and Mournful Sighs of a Sick Man Ready to Die.
   Practice of Piety 71 - Of the Comfortable Assurance of God's Forgiveness of Sins.
   Practice of Piety 72 - Meditations of Martyrdom.
   Practice of Piety 73 - A Divine Colloquy Between the Soul and Her Savior
   Practice of Piety 74 - The Soul's Soliloquy, ravished in contemplation of the Passion of our Lord.

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