A66111:929
The truly blessed man, or, The way to be happy here, and forever being…
The truly blessed man, or, The way to be happy here, and forever being the substance of divers sermons preached on Psalm XXXII / by Samuel Willard.
printed by B. Green and J. Allen for Michael Perry, 1650
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1. Learn hence the folly and unprofitableness of praying for the Dead. If the day of grace, the opportunity of seeking and finding God be over with all men, when time is done with them, and death wastes them over into eternity, what then can our prayers any more avail them? either they sought God and sound him in their life time; an• if so, they are now in glory, and in full fruition o• that God whom they so sought, and out of danger of ever losing him again, and so have no need […] our prayers; but if they sought him not here, […] so did never find him, but died strangers to him ⟨p. 317⟩they are gone to their own place, to the generation of their fathers never to see light: they are beyond recovery hopeless; there is no more mercy for them: what good then can our prayers do them? If all the prayers of all the Saints on earth, could fetch one soul out of hell, something might be pleaded, but it is impossible. Let us then pray for poor Sinners with the greatest importunity so long as they are alive; but when once they are gone, we must leave them till the Great Day, when we shall be satisfied about them.
1. Learn hence the folly and unprofitableness of praying for the Dead. If the day of grace, the opportunity of seeking and finding God be over with all men, when time is done with them, and death wasts them over into eternity, what then can our prayers any more avail them? either they sought God and sound him in their life time; an• if so, they are now in glory, and in full fruition o• that God whom they so sought, and out of danger of ever losing him again, and so have no need 〈…〉 our prayers; but if they sought him not here, 〈…〉 so did never find him, but died strangers to him ⟨p. 317⟩they are gone to their own place, to the generation of their fathers never to see light: they are beyond recovery hopeless; there is no more mercy for them: what good then can our prayers do them? If all the prayers of all the Saints on earth, could fetch one soul out of hell, something might be pleaded, but it is impossible. Let us then pray for poor Sinners with the greatest importunity so long as they are alive; but when once they are gone, we must leave them till the Great Day, when we shall be satisfied about them.