A sermon preached at the funeral of reverend Mr. Will. Whitaker, late minister of…

I Have more Arguments against, than for, the Printing of this Sermon; but yet there's one Argument, from time to time thundered in mine ears, which I must confess I cannot answer, and that is, if I will not Print it my self, it shall be Printed without me, by the Notes taken at the preaching of it: And this was sent me, by Word, by Writing; by Ministers, by private Christians: But this doth not (there's no reason it should) make me think the better of the Sermon, as well knowing, it is the Excellency of the Person at whose Funeral 'twas preached, not any thing in it self, that rendered it desirable. I must not conceal one reason I had against it, which is earnestly pleaded for it; viz that I more privately preached something of it, some years before, after ⟨image 3⟩the Funeral of my precious and dear Friend Dr. Roger Drake, a Person of so transcendent worth, that were I an Orator fit for it, I could not forbear to set his Funeral Oration before this Funeral Sermon: Let it pass therefore for a pardonable rarity (for I have not two such Friends on this side Heaven) to gather a Nosegay off one Grave, to strew upon another, (though the other doth not need it.) They were so intimate while waking, that the same Sheets may shroud them now they sleep in Jesus. I shall not speak much of either, where was nothing common, but every thing worthy of Wonder and Imitation. For the Doctor, consider him every way, and his Worth was unexpressible. For his Personal Graces, during his forty years standing in Christ, he was eminently blameless, and singularly free from the defilements of Sin, and the buffetings of Satan; and above all this, his humility was unparalleled. For his relative Piety, besides the family-duties that are common to all serious Christians, he kept a set-time of praying with his Wife every day. And for his way of instructing, reproving, convincing, and counselling every person of his family, severally and privately in his Study as occasion required, praying with them ere he dismissed them, that his words might abide; I never heard the like of any