Distressed Sion Relieved Or, The Garment of Praise for the Spirit of Heaviness. Wherein are Discovered the Grand Causes of the Churches Trouble and Misery under the late Dismal Dispensation. With a Compleat History of, and Lamentation for those Renowned Worthies that fell in England by Popish Rage and Cruelty, from the Year 1680 to 1688. Together with an Account of the late Admirable and Stupendious Providence which hath wrought such a sudden and Wonderful Deliverance for this Nation, and Gods Sion therein. Humbly Dedicated to their Present Majesties. By Benjamin Keach |
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The Churches Song of Praise and Thanksgiving to God for her late Gracious deliverance.
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The Churches Song of Praise and Thanksgiving to God for her late Gracious deliverance.
Oh matchless Grace; Oh Love beyond degree,
Now I am certain there is none like thee,
In Heav'n or Earth; I will Praise thee therefore,
For thou a Salve hast now found for my sore,
Transported by thy Love, with Joy I cry,
My ravisht Spirit must exalt the High
And Mighty God, by whose unbounded grace,
My heart's enlarg'd to run the blessed race.
Thou shalt conduct me to the Living Springs,
From thence I'le rise up as with Eagles Wings
Unto that heavenly Mount of Faiths desire,
Where thy Transcendent Glory I'll admire;
And in those happy Seats of Bliss above
I'l be imbraced in thy Arms of Love.
I'l hold thee fast, and never let thee go,
For by thy loss, Oh what a depth of woe
Did I fall into? What a dreadful case
Was I in, when thou Lord didst hide thy face?
If I have thee, I nothing else need crave,
Without thee (if all else) I nothing have;
Nothing without thee is of worth to me,
All things are vanity, compar'd to thee.
To be thy Portion, Lord, thou didst me chuse,
And sure so great a grace I'll ne're refuse,
Thou art my Saviour, and my Heritage,
My Sanctuary too, from Age to Age;
I therefore evermore will dwell with thee,
And thou alone my hiding place shalt be.
When I was fal'n, thou raisedst me on High
For which thy blessed name I'll magnify,
Thou didst in mercy look on my distress,
When I, Lord, was in woful heaviness,
Beset with cruel Foes, and could not see
The many dangers that incompast me;
Thou didst observe my ruin very near,
And thou didst suddenly for me appear,
Didst send thy Servant speedily away
To save me from the ravenous Beasts of Prey;
Thou, like a tender Father, couldst not see
Thy Children fall by Romish Cruelty;
Thy special favours may I ne're forget,
Let them with Power on my heart be set.
Now I am certain there is none like thee,
In Heav'n or Earth; I will Praise thee therefore,
For thou a Salve hast now found for my sore,
Transported by thy Love, with Joy I cry,
My ravisht Spirit must exalt the High
And Mighty God, by whose unbounded grace,
My heart's enlarg'd to run the blessed race.
Thou shalt conduct me to the Living Springs,
From thence I'le rise up as with Eagles Wings
Unto that heavenly Mount of Faiths desire,
Where thy Transcendent Glory I'll admire;
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I'l be imbraced in thy Arms of Love.
I'l hold thee fast, and never let thee go,
For by thy loss, Oh what a depth of woe
Did I fall into? What a dreadful case
Was I in, when thou Lord didst hide thy face?
If I have thee, I nothing else need crave,
Without thee (if all else) I nothing have;
Nothing without thee is of worth to me,
All things are vanity, compar'd to thee.
To be thy Portion, Lord, thou didst me chuse,
And sure so great a grace I'll ne're refuse,
Thou art my Saviour, and my Heritage,
My Sanctuary too, from Age to Age;
I therefore evermore will dwell with thee,
And thou alone my hiding place shalt be.
When I was fal'n, thou raisedst me on High
For which thy blessed name I'll magnify,
Thou didst in mercy look on my distress,
When I, Lord, was in woful heaviness,
Beset with cruel Foes, and could not see
The many dangers that incompast me;
Thou didst observe my ruin very near,
And thou didst suddenly for me appear,
Didst send thy Servant speedily away
To save me from the ravenous Beasts of Prey;
Thou, like a tender Father, couldst not see
Thy Children fall by Romish Cruelty;
Thy special favours may I ne're forget,
Let them with Power on my heart be set.
Ah! how unworthy was this sinful Land,
For whom thou didst stretch forth thy mighty hand,
To save and help them in that dreadful hour,
When all their hope was lost, and all their power?
Though thy own Children too unworthy were,
This did not hinder thy Parental care;
How earthly, unbelieving, Ah! how vain?
How did their Lives their Holy Calling stain?
Cold, Carnal, Senseless, dead; They seem'd to be
A People laden with iniquity.
Deserving nothing at thy hands O Lord,
When thou this great deliverance didst afford,
I then did much bewail their faults and crimes,
Both those of old, and those of latter times;
Yet thou o'relookedst their unworthiness,
And camest down to save them ne'retheless.
For whom thou didst stretch forth thy mighty hand,
To save and help them in that dreadful hour,
When all their hope was lost, and all their power?
Though thy own Children too unworthy were,
This did not hinder thy Parental care;
How earthly, unbelieving, Ah! how vain?
How did their Lives their Holy Calling stain?
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A People laden with iniquity.
Deserving nothing at thy hands O Lord,
When thou this great deliverance didst afford,
I then did much bewail their faults and crimes,
Both those of old, and those of latter times;
Yet thou o'relookedst their unworthiness,
And camest down to save them ne'retheless.
Thou wonderfully didst make it appear,
That these strange works which thou hast shewed here,
Were like to those in Egypt long ago,
When thou didst Pharaoh utterly o'rethrow.
For when we thought we should have been destroy'd,
And their dire vengeance never could avoid,
We saw them suddenly before us fall,
And could not do us any hurt at all.
That these strange works which thou hast shewed here,
Were like to those in Egypt long ago,
When thou didst Pharaoh utterly o'rethrow.
For when we thought we should have been destroy'd,
And their dire vengeance never could avoid,
We saw them suddenly before us fall,
And could not do us any hurt at all.
A raging sea we seem'd, before, to see,
Behind us was a raging Enemy,
But when thy chosen Servant did draw near,
The threatning waters soon divided were,
A sure presage Gods presence too was there,
Who sav'd us from what we so much did fear;
These are thy doings, Lord, and Marvellous
Are all thy Dispensations unto us.
Behind us was a raging Enemy,
But when thy chosen Servant did draw near,
The threatning waters soon divided were,
A sure presage Gods presence too was there,
Who sav'd us from what we so much did fear;
These are thy doings, Lord, and Marvellous
Are all thy Dispensations unto us.
Nay let us not forget, this one thing more,
As worthy notice, as those nam'd before,
The People of the Land divided were,
Nay to each other did much hatred bear,
Yet thou no sooner sent'st thy Servant hither
But they united, and were join'd together
All as One man against their comon Foe,
In prayers, in wishes and in Arms also,
Which gave me hopes that the set time was come,
Of thy great wrath against the Whore of Rome.
As worthy notice, as those nam'd before,
The People of the Land divided were,
Nay to each other did much hatred bear,
Yet thou no sooner sent'st thy Servant hither
But they united, and were join'd together
All as One man against their comon Foe,
In prayers, in wishes and in Arms also,
Which gave me hopes that the set time was come,
Of thy great wrath against the Whore of Rome.
Our Nobles and our Gentry did their part,
Assisting both with counsel, hand and heart,
Like our Old English Heroes they did rise,
And chearfully espouse this enterprize.
Undauntedly they undertook the Cause
Of our Religion, Liberties, and Laws,
Their free-born Souls contemn'd the Romish Yoke,
And to a just revenge it did provoke
These Gallant Spirits who could not endure
The Jesuits should our slavery procure,
With so much impudence; that they seem'd to laugh
At all our Laws, and at our Parliaments Scoff.
Assisting both with counsel, hand and heart,
Like our Old English Heroes they did rise,
And chearfully espouse this enterprize.
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Of our Religion, Liberties, and Laws,
Their free-born Souls contemn'd the Romish Yoke,
And to a just revenge it did provoke
These Gallant Spirits who could not endure
The Jesuits should our slavery procure,
With so much impudence; that they seem'd to laugh
At all our Laws, and at our Parliaments Scoff.
A great Convention, Lord, thou didst convene,
And didst unite them so that like brave men,
The Throne they did declare Vacant to be,
And it to fill again, did soon agree,
To the great Satisfaction of the Land,
And with their Lives they did ingage to stand
By William thy Servant and our King,
Whom for our safety thou didst hither bring.
And didst unite them so that like brave men,
The Throne they did declare Vacant to be,
And it to fill again, did soon agree,
To the great Satisfaction of the Land,
And with their Lives they did ingage to stand
By William thy Servant and our King,
Whom for our safety thou didst hither bring.
All this we saw perform'd by thee alone
Who dost abase, and set upon the Throne,
To every man dost measure what is right,
And actest still what seems good in thy sight;
Ah! how didst thou confound, ev'n in an hour,
Those dark Intrigues, contrived by the Power
Of bloudy Rome, and carried on so long,
And by such Aids, that they grew mighty strong
Here and abroad; So that they durst to say,
All was their own, and they should have the day;
When in her heart she said; I fit a Queen,
And ne're shall loss of Children see agen:
Yet then, Oh blessed Lord, thou heardst our cries,
And suddenly our Enemies didst surprize.
Who dost abase, and set upon the Throne,
To every man dost measure what is right,
And actest still what seems good in thy sight;
Ah! how didst thou confound, ev'n in an hour,
Those dark Intrigues, contrived by the Power
Of bloudy Rome, and carried on so long,
And by such Aids, that they grew mighty strong
Here and abroad; So that they durst to say,
All was their own, and they should have the day;
When in her heart she said; I fit a Queen,
And ne're shall loss of Children see agen:
Yet then, Oh blessed Lord, thou heardst our cries,
And suddenly our Enemies didst surprize.
As soon as thy poor Protestants abroad
Heard these Strange wonders of our Gracious God.
It did their Spirits raise, and them enliven,
To sing the Praises of the God of Heav'n;
Poor Holland that was so much threatned,
And to effect the work, all ventured,
Began thereat again to raise its head.
When we were sore distressed, it was they
That to relieve us hastened away;
They 'gainst our Foes for our defence did stand,
Let them be dear to thee, and to this Land,
How were thy People strengthened thereby,
Who did before like withered branches lye,
Expecting mischief would upon them fall,
And Popery would overwhelm us all.
Heard these Strange wonders of our Gracious God.
It did their Spirits raise, and them enliven,
To sing the Praises of the God of Heav'n;
Poor Holland that was so much threatned,
And to effect the work, all ventured,
Began thereat again to raise its head.
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That to relieve us hastened away;
They 'gainst our Foes for our defence did stand,
Let them be dear to thee, and to this Land,
How were thy People strengthened thereby,
Who did before like withered branches lye,
Expecting mischief would upon them fall,
And Popery would overwhelm us all.
All Praise and Glory therefore now be given
Unto the Lord of Lords, and King of Heaven;
O let the Throne surely establisht be
In righteousness; which will Establish me:
And let the King so wisely all dispose,
To please his God, and disappoint his Foes:
Let his Court still with Virtuous Men abound,
And let no vitious Persons there be found;
This will most happy days to him procure,
And cause his Government long to endure.
Unto the Lord of Lords, and King of Heaven;
O let the Throne surely establisht be
In righteousness; which will Establish me:
And let the King so wisely all dispose,
To please his God, and disappoint his Foes:
Let his Court still with Virtuous Men abound,
And let no vitious Persons there be found;
This will most happy days to him procure,
And cause his Government long to endure.
Let Scotland to his Crown united be,
That we may live in peace and amity,
Incline their minds their Interest to discern,
And that our Union is their great Concern.
That we may live in peace and amity,
Incline their minds their Interest to discern,
And that our Union is their great Concern.
Do not forget poor Irelands sad fate,
Destroy those Rebels who disturb that State,
O give our Armies Victory and Success,
Thy People save; Their Enemies distress:
This is my Prayer, and when this is done,
I'le sing the Praises of the Three in One.
Mean while let us our best Affections raise
To celebrate, in grateful Songs, his praise
Who has been our deliverer in these days.
Destroy those Rebels who disturb that State,
O give our Armies Victory and Success,
Thy People save; Their Enemies distress:
This is my Prayer, and when this is done,
I'le sing the Praises of the Three in One.
Mean while let us our best Affections raise
To celebrate, in grateful Songs, his praise
Who has been our deliverer in these days.
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