Pietas in patriam the life of His Excellency Sir William Phips, Knt. late Captain…

BEHOLD the great Things which were done by the Sovereign God, for a Person, once, as little in his own Eyes, as in other Men's. All the Returns which he had hitherto made unto the God of his Mercies, were but Preliminaries to what remain to be Related. It has been the Custom in the Churches of New-England, still to expect from such Persons, as they admitted unto constant Communion with them, That they do not only Publicly and Solemnly Declare their Consent unto the Covenant of Grace, and particularly to those Duties of it, wherein a particular Church-state is more immediately concerned, but also first Relate unto the Pastors, and by them unto the Brethren, the special Impressions which the Grace of God has made upon their Souls in bringing them to this Consent. By this Custom and Caution, though they cannot ⟨p. 27⟩keep Hypocrites from their Sacred Fellowship, yet they go as far as they can, to render and preserve themselves Churches of Saints, and they do further very much Edify one another. When Sir William Phips was now returned unto his own House, he began to bethink himself, like David, concerning the House of the God, who had surrounded him with so many Favours in his own; and accordingly he applied himself unto the North Church in Boston, that with his open Profession of his hearty Subjection to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, he might have the Ordinances and the Privileges of the Gospel, added unto his other Enjoyments. One thing that quickened his Resolution to do what might be in this Matter expected from him, was a Passage which he heard from a Minister, Preaching on the Title of the Fifty First Psalm: To make a public and an open Profession of Repentance, is a thing not mis-becoming the greatest Man alive. It is an Honour to be found among the Repenting People of God, though they be in Circumstances never so full of Suffering. A famous Knight going with other Christians to be Crowned with Martyrdom, observed, That his Fellow-Sufferers were in Chains, from which the Sacrificers had, because of his Quality, excused him; whereupon he demanded, that he might wear Chains as well as they. For, said he, I would be a Knight of that Order too; There is among our selves a repenting People of God, who by their Confessions at their Admissions to His Table, do signalize their being so;