The teares or lamentations of a sorrowfull Soule Set foorth by Sir William Leighton |
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| Of Death. |
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 | The teares or lamentations of a sorrowfull Soule |  |
Of Death.
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What's death? a seperationof mortall body frō our breath:
What's that? but a Cessation,
from cares, and from a liuing death.
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What's that Cessation: it t'is a sleepe,by which we wholie are refreshed:
Yea but in sleepe, who shall vs keepe?
he that blest all, and is most blessed.
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But who made death? t'vvas made by sinne,& what is sin? the lawes transgression:
Of that how should I vauntage win?
all sinne is weakned by confession.
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But by death's dynt, t'is ouercome:and whence came sin? frō hell beneath?
Whē wa'st first bred? in mothers wombe:
when will it end? not till our death.
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This seemeth strange, but this is true,by nature sinne is hatcht in vs,
Old Adams rules, till God renue.
why then I see, the case stands thus:
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As sinne goes in, soe life goes out,as sinne goes out, so life comes in:
So by the Lord, t'is brought about,
sinne conquers life, Life conquers sinne.
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Though life by sinne be still anoyde,& sinne of death by strength & sting:
Yet Viprous sinne, by death's destroy'd,
life killeth death, whē death kill'th sin.
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The death of body, or of nature,is that, where to all subiect be:
Cause sinne hath tainted euery creature,
according vnto Gods decree.
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When bodies life doth fade away,and we giue vp our dying ghost:
And this our Corps is clad in clay,
and vnto God our soules doth poast:
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It is ordayned and decree'd,that all men by necessitie:
Through that first Adams sinfull deede,
are subiect made, the death to die.
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To dye for sinne, t'is due for sinne,to dye in sinne, a heauy case:
To dye to sinne is to beginne,
to leaue to sinne, and liue to grace.
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The death in sinne, without repenting,in affect, effect, and aspecting:
In thinking, doing, and frequenting,
and offred grace of God reiecting.
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I wretched wofull execrable,haue plague of God, by sinne for sinne:
Of miseries, most miserable,
to them that liue and die therein.
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But he that dies, before he dies,when he is dead, he is not dead:
But olde age dies, and he shall rise,
with glory from the graue his bed.
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And he that's toucht with conscience pricke,whose sence of sin is sharpe & quicke:
That man is sicke, ere he is sicke,
and when he's sicke, he is not sicke.
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I looke poore wretch on mine estate,and others monish, by mine harmes:
That was neere death but now of late,
by sinne inchaunted by her charmes.
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Had I not dyed, sure I had di'de,(oh happie Phenix liuing death)
Still let my flesh be mortified,
let my sp'rit, breath, by thy spirits breath
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Sweete Iesu thou didst die for me,and in thy death, with thee I di'de,
Oh liue in me, and I in thee,
shall liue, and euermore abide.
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And wormes meate thou, durt clay & slime,thy body kill, thy soule to saue:
Quaile vild affections, whil'st hast time,
ye life by death, through grace mai'st haue
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Shake hands with sinnes & all offencesand learne to dye before thou dye:
When bid'st adue vnto thy sences,
then shalt thou liue eternally.
The Cause of death.
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The cause of death is wicked sinne,for out of sin our death did flowe:
From thence our plagues did all begin,
cut of this tree, our ills did grow.
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Hunger, fire, death, and all,created were for punishment:
And laid on man for Adams fall,
and was the cause of our torment.
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God said to Adam, Scripture saith;what houre soeuer thou shalt eate:
Thou shalt be sure to die the death,
god made not death, but death did threat
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Through enuy, malice of the diuell,into the world came this estate:
Sinnes entred with all actions euill,
by Adams fault: not by our fate.
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Two sortes of death, frō death by sin,proceed, as effects from their cause:
The death of Nature doth begin,
& death of grace next by Gods lawes.
Death of two sorts.
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By which we are made slaues for euer,in darknes, called death eternall:
From worme of conscience freed neuer,
depriu'd of all the ioyes supernall.
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As by example, euident,two sorts of death approued well:
The Glutton rich, being dead was sent,
his body buried quicke in hell.
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And Lazarus poore, beggar dead,to Abrahams bosome caried is:
With Angells wings, with glory spread,
where is true ioye and comforts blisse.
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The one hath heauen, the other hell,the one hath blisse, the other bale:
The one in heauen still must dwell,
and th'other, Diuells pull and hale.
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He died with his conscience euill,in death he saw his wickednes:
And his dampnations with the diuell,
as holy Scriptures doe expresse.
To the elect and faithful.
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This is the consolation great,of the that in their death-beds lie:
Their mindes fly vp to'th mercy seate,
and there for mercy loudly cry.
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By Christ which death abollished,and sinne that's clensed by his bloud:
Whose merits, pardon purchased,
for all our sinnes, and death withstood.
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To vs his goodnes is imputed,to him the sinnes that we committed:
And we for righteous are reputed,
and all our sinnes, they are remitted.
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For he alone by death hath bought vs,from power and paine of deuill & hell:
& merly he through loue hath brought vs
with him in heauen to raigne & dwell.
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That no afflictions giue vs griefe,that Sathan should vs not destroy:
And giu'th to vs eternall life,
and filth our hearts with heauenly ioy.
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He made vs free-men, heires to God,which captiue bondslaues were to hell:
Beate Sathan downe with iron Rod,
to place where dampned diuels dwell.
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Eternall death could not preuaile,gain'st him, nor ouer him haue power:
christ strēgthned those whō sin did quaile
his might, the mighty did deuoure.
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O're death o're sinne & hidious hell,he gaue vs life and victory:
T'all those that keepe his precepts well,
and them installes in endles glory.
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For as by Adam all men dy'd,for sinne and by iniquity:
In Christ shall all men be reuiu'd,
to liue with him eternally.
FINIS.
Although the body die yet they shall liue.
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The Godly and iust people haue,most cōsort though with paine & griefe:
They suffer death & lie in graue,
and seeme forsaken sanz reliefe.
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They are as sheep which men ordaine,to death and slaughter to be put:
As silly guiltles Lambes are slaine,
when Butchers knife their throates doe cut.
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For we which liue shall giuen bee,to death for Iesus Christ his sake:
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noe feare of death can cause thē quake.
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But rest assured they shall passe,through death to life eternally:
Who aske for mercy and for grace,
and vnto God for faith doe cry.
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They suffer both his hand and Rod,and when he strikes, are patient:
They put their hope and trust in God,
who comforts thē with hearts content.
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Their death is good, & of great price,they also know through Christ his passiō
Death's ouer come, in wond'rous wise,
and soe, receaue they consolation.
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If any touch't in latest paines,of dierfull death, this faith hould fast:
In mid'st of death, his life attaines,
and shall haue lasting life at last.
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The Christians surely doe belieue,that whē they seeme to be most dead:
That then, they most of all doe liue,
and soe with ioy lift vp their head.
FINIS.
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The death of the Godly is a sleepe.
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Christ calls the death of godly men,a sleep, his owne a death, & why?
The Souldiers speare was made a Pen,
his bloud the Inke to write thereby.
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Quietus est, for Christians all,and then the same to vs was sealed:
A sleepe, he iustly may it call,
cause by his stripes our wounds were healed.
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His was a death, cause death was due,in him died all, he di'd for all:
Gods Iustice vs to death doth sue,
he pay'd it and repair'd the fall.
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that we moight sleep, he suffer'd pains,that we mought laugh, he oft did weepe
His was the losse, ours was the gaines,
thus did he change, Death to a sleepe.
FINIS.
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To whom they that die ought to commit their Spirit.
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To Christ did Stephen yeald vp his spirit,for hee's the way the truth & life:
He purchast life by death and merrit,
the husbandes he, the Church his wife.
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He is that Noah, his Church ye doue,that houldes his hand for to receaue vs:
He bids vs come to imbrace his loue,
we fly to him when all deceaue vs.
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The heauens & earth the Lord commaundes,to him all Creatures runne but wee:
None can vs take out of his handes,
in life and death to him we flee.
FINIS.
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The bodie is buried but shall be raised vp againe at the last day.
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Pillor of faith, Basis of blisse,of true religion sure supporter:
The pointe of Resurrection is,
in death it is the chiefe comforter.
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If this doe fall, all faith may faile,what article doth vs refresh:
When life and health, and strength doth quaile:
the Resurrection of the flesh.
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Our bones shall blossom as the grasse,we shall be raised out of dust:
The bodie that before time was,
by power of Christ's spirit rise it must.
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The first fruit's Christ, ye head is rais'd,the members shall the same likewise:
The Lord God for the same be prais'd,
we know that we shall also rise.
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If head, aboue the water bee,how can the body then be drowned:
We shall arise, and Iesus see,
and with him shall be kingly crowned.
FINIS.
In the pangs of death and in all tribulations, the remedies be to be learned in the sufferings of Christ.
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Of life and death the true director,who in his life and his dying:
Of our misdoing is corrector,
and into all our actions prying.
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Christ is afflicted for our sake,left vs, example that we should:
Follow his stepps and his way take,
thy Crosse to beare with courage bould
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Our Sauiour Iesus teacheth thee,how can that be (say'st thou) behold:
Example, if thou punisht bee,
with sicknes, hunger, thirst, & colde.
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With thy selfe reccon and accompt,how it cannot compared be:
with his thornes, yea his nailes surmount,
the greatest payne that paineth thee.
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Art thou restrain'd of thy desire,& lusts yt draw thou know'st not whether
Thinke on Christs crosse, Gods wrath & ire,
& put his tortures all together.
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If prid puffe vp thy mind with motiōs,looke on Christ, nailed on the Crosse:
And thinke as bound by due deuotions,
of our great gaine, by his great losse.
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If thou in filthie lust dost burne,or any other ill desire:
Thinke but how Christ his flesh was torne,
to saue thy soule frō flames of fire.
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With stripes thrust through, and all to brokēhis drinke was Ezell mixt with Gaule:
With his last gaspe, ye earth was shoken,
who suffered for the sinnes of all.
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If enuy, hate, reuenge, thee grieue,thinke with thy selfe how Christ did pray
(O Father, doe them all forgiue)
for them that tooke his life away.
FINIS.
| The teares or lamentations of a sorrowfull Soule | |