An expository comment, doctrinal, controversial, and practical upon the whole first chapter to the…An expository comment, doctrinal, controversal, and practical upon the whole first chapter to the…

2. Though prayer be the means whereby God accomplisheth great things ¹for his people, yet we must not put any merit or confidence in our prayers. To be proud of thy prayers, is a great absurdity; for thy prayer to God doth testify that thou art nothing, that thou canst do nothing: for if thou canst do things of thy self, why needest thou pray? That is the reason, the Socinians ⟨p. 362⟩give, why in the Old Testament, there needed no precept of prayer, because there was then nothing promised; but they were able to fulfil the condition thereof by their own power. But the foundation of that is rotten, for they had the same spiritual things promised only more obscurely, that we have; and were no ways of themselves to perform their conditions: otherwise we will grant that what a man can do of his own power independently upon God, he needeth not pray for it; but there is nothing wherein man doth not need the gift of God, whether for temporal, or necessary things: and seeing the way to have it is only by prayer, this exalteth God, and debaseth man, so that it is a contradiction to the duty in hand, when we rest upon our prayers, as if the beggar should be proud from his asking of alms.

2. Though prayer be the meanes whereby God accomplisheth great things ¹for his people, yet we must not put any merit or confidence in our prayers. To be proud of thy prayers, is a great absurdity; for thy prayer to God doth testifie that thou art nothing, that thou canst do nothing: for if thou canst do things of thy selfe, why needest thou pray? That is the reason, the Socinians ⟨p. 362⟩give, why in the Old Testament, there needed no precept of prayer, because there was then nothing promised; but they were able to fullfill the condition thereof by their own power. But the foundation of that is rotten, for they had the same spirituall things promised only more obscurely, that we have; and were no wayes of themselves to performe their conditions: otherwise we will grant that what a man can do of his own power independently upon God, he needeth not pray for it; but there is nothing wherein man doth not need the gift of God, whether for temporall, or necessary things: and seeing the way to have it is only by prayer, this exalteth God, and debaseth man, so that it is a contradiction to the duty in hand, when we rest upon our prayers, as if the beggar should be proud from his asking of almes.