XII. The Directory for Family

Worship.
CHRISTI
HEADS O
A S we cannot but with grief of soul lament those niuhi- •^^ tudes of errors, blasphemies, and all kinds of profaneness, wliich have in this last age, like a mighty deluge, overflown s nation ; so, among several other sins which have helped iv> open the flood-gates of all these impieties, we cannot but esteem the disuse of family instruction one of the greatest. The two great pillars upon which the kingdom of Satan is erected, and by which it is upheld, are ignorance and error; ' '• first step of our manumission from this spiritual thraldom iisists in having our ci/cs opened, and being turned from dark- V to light, Acts xxvi. 18. How much the serious endeavours godly parents and masters might contribute to an early isoning the tender years of such as are under their inspec- n, is abundantly evident, not only from their special influ- ce upon them, in respect of their authority over them, in- terest in them, continual presence with them, and frequent opportunities of being helpful to them ; but also from the sad effects which, by woeful experience, we find to be the fruit of the omission of this duty. It were easy to set before you a cloud of witnesses, the language of whose practice hath been not only an eminent commendation of this duty, but also a serious exhortation to it. As Ahel, though dead, yd sjjeaks by
A 2 his
! The Episllc to llic Reader.
Ifis f.\:i!ii{ile to US for imitation of Iiis faith, cjr. Heb. xi.4.; so Solomon, of the grandmother and mother of Timothy, the Hiolhcr of Augustine, whose care was as well to nurse up the souls as the bodies of their little ones ; and as their pains herein was great, so was their success no way unanswerable. We should scarce imagine it any better than an imperti- nency, in this noon-day of the gospel, either to inform or persuade in a duty so expressly commanded, so frequently urged, so highly encouraged, and so eminently owned by the Lord in all ages with his blessing, but that our sad ex- perience tells us, this duty is not more needful, than it is of late neglected. For the restoring of this duty to its due observance, give us leave to suggest this double advice. The first concerns heads of families in respect of them- Ives ; Tliat as the Lord hath set them in place above the rest of their family, they would labour in all wisdom and s])iritual understanding to be abme them also. It is an un- comely sight to behold men in years babes in knowledge ; and how unmeet are they to instruct others, who need them- selves to be taught which he the first jjrincipies of the oracles 4)f God ? Ileb. V. 12. Knowledge is an accomplishment so desirable, that the devils themselves knew not a more taking bait by which to tempt our first parents, than by the fruit of the tree of knowledge ; So shall yon be as gods, hioW' i')}g good arid evil. When Solomon had that favour shewed him of tlie Lord, tliat he was made his own chuser what to ask, he knew iio^reater mercy to beg than wisdom, 1 Kings iii. 5, 9- The iiiKlerstanding is the guide and pilot of the whole man, that factnty which sits at the stern of the soul : but as the most expert- guide may mistake in the dark, so may the understanding, when it wants the light of know- ledge : Without knowledge the mind cannot he good, Prov. xix. 2,; nor the life good, nor the eternal condition safe, Eph. iv. 18. Ml/ people are destroyed for lack of knowledge, Hos. iv. 6.- It is ordinary in scripture to set profaneness, and all kind it^ miscarriages, upon the score of ignorance. Diseases in the body have many times their rise from distempers in the head, and exorbitancies in practice from errors in judgment : and indeed in every sin there is sometliing
J)oth
^fftstle to the Reader.
'h of ignorance and error at the bottom : for, did sinners truly know what they do in sinning, we might say of every sin what the Apostle speaks concerning tliat great sin, Had thcii/ known him, tkei/ tcould not have crmijitd the Lord of^lon/ ; did they truly know that every sin is a provoking the Lord to jealousy, a proclaiming war against Heaven, a crueify-y in^ the Lord Jesus afresh, a treasuring up wrath unto them- stloefi against the daj/ of wrath ; and that, if ever they be pardoned, it must be at no lower a rate than the price of his blood; it were scarce possible but sin, instead of alluring, should afi'right, and instead of tc^ipting, scare. It is one of the arch devices and principal methods of Satan to deceive
Kinto sin: thus he prevailed against our first parents, not lion, but as a serpent, acting his ei;niity under a pre- ; of friendship, and tempting them to evil under an a\h- pearance of good; and thus hath he all along carried on his designs of darkness, by transforming himself into an angel of light, making poor deceived men in love wiih their mise- ries, and hug tlieir own destruction. A most sovereign anti- dote against all kind of errors, is to be grounded and settled in the faith : persons unfixed in the true religion, are very receptive of a false; and they who arc nothing in spiritual knowledge, are easily made any thing. Clouds without water are drictn to and fro teith euery wind, and ships without ballast liable to the violence of every tempest. IJut yet the knowledge we especially commend, is not a brain-know- ledge, a mere speculation; this may be in the worst of men, nay, in the worst of creatures, the devils themselves, and that in such an eminency, as the best of saints cannot attain to in this life of imperfection; but an inward, a savoury, an heart knowledge, such as was in that martyr, who, though she could not dispute for Christ, could die for him. This is that spiritual sense and feeling of divine truths the Apostle sjH'aks of, Heb. v. 14. Having your senses exercised, &:c.
J}ut, alas, we may say of most men's religion what learned Hi vet * speaks concerning the errors of the fathers, " They '• were not so much their own errors, as the errors of the " times wherein they lived."" Thus do most men take up their religion upon no better an Recount than Turks and Pa-
A 5 pists
* Rivet. Crit. Sacr.
b The Kpistle to the Reader.
pists take up theirs, because it is the religion of the times and places wherein they live; and what they take up thus slightly, they lay down as easily. Whereas an inward taste and relish of the things of God, is an excellent preservative to keep us settled in the most unsettled tunes. Corrupt and unsavoury principles have great advantage upon us, above those that are spiritual and sound; the former being suitable to corru})t na- ture, the latter contrary; the former springing up of them- selves, the latter brought forth not witliout a painful industry The ground needs no other midwifery in bringing forth weeds than only tlie neglect of the husbandman's hand to pluck Iheni up; the air needs no other cause of darkness than the absence of the sun ; nor water of coldness than its distance i'rom the fire ; because these are the genuine products of nature. Were it so with the soul, (as some of the philoso- phers have vainly imagined,) to come into the w'orid as an abrasa tabula, a mere blank or piece of white paper, on which neither any thing is written, nor any blots, it would then be equally receptive of good and evil, and no more averse to the one than to the other : but how much worse its condition indeed is, were scripture silent, every man's. experience does evidently manifest. For who is there that knows any thing of his own heart, and knows not thus much, that the sug- ■gestions of Satan have so easy and free admittance into our y liearts, that our utmost watchfulness is too little to guard us ^ from them? whereas the motions of God's Spirit are so un- acceptable to us, that our utmost diligence is too little to get our hearts open to entertain them. Let therefore the ex- cellency, necessity, difficulty of true wisdom stir up endea- vours in you somewhat proportionable to such an accom- plishment ; Above, all geltwg^ get understavdiug, Prov. iv. 7. and search for ivisdom as for hidden treasures^ Prov. ii. 4. It much concerns you in respect of yourselves.
Our second advice concerns the heads of families, in respect of their families. Whatever hath been said already, though it concerns eveiy private Christian that hath a soul to look after; yet, upon a double account, it concerns parents and masters, as having tliemselves and others to look after: some there are, who, because of their ignorance, cannot ; others, because of their sluggishness, will not mind this duty. To the
former
The i.piMi^ to the Reader. 7
former we propound tlie method of Joshua, who first began with himself, and then is careful of his family. To the latter we shall only hint, what a dreadful meeting those parents and masters must have at that great day, with their children and servants, when all that were under their inspection shall not only accuse them, but charge their ?rnal miscarrying upon their score.
• Never did any age of the Church enjoy such choice helps [this of ours. Every age of the gospel hath had its Creeds, onfessions, Catechisms, and such breviaries and models of
\ iiiity as have been singularly useful. Such forms of sound words (however in these days decried) have been in use in the Church ever since God himself wrote the Decalogue, as* a summary of things to be done ; and Christ taught us that » prayer of his, as a directory what to ask. Concerning the usefulness of such compendiary systems, so much hath been said already by a learned divine * of this age, as is sufficient to satisfy all who are not resolved to remain unsatisfied.
Concerning the particular excellency of these ensuing trea- tises, we judge it unneedful to mention those eminent testi- monies wnich have been given them from persons of known worth, in respect of their judgment, learning, and integrity, both at home and abroad, because themselves spake so much their own praise ; gold stands not in need of varnish, nor diamonds of painting ; give us leave only to tell you, that we cannot but account it an eminent mercy to enjoy such helps as these are. It is ordinary in these days for nwn to speak evjl of things tliey know not ; but if any are possessed with mean thoughts of these treatises, we shall only give the
ine counsel to tliem that Philip gives Nathanael, Came and MT, John i. 46. It is no small advantage the reader now hath, by the addition of scrii)tures at large, whereby with little pains he may more profit, because with every truth he may behold its scripture foundation. And, indeed, consider- ing what a Babel of opinions, what a strange confusion of tongues, there is this day among them who profess they .speak the language of Canaan, there is no intelligent person but v/ill conclude that advice of the prophet especially suited to such an age as this, Isa. viii. 20. To the law and to the
A 4 testimony;
* Doctor Tuckney in his sermon on 2 Tiro. i. 13.
f
testimony ; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. If the reverend and learned com- posers of these ensuing treatises were willing to take the pains of annexing scriptnre proofs to every truth, that the faith of people might not be built upon the dictates of men, but the authority of God, so some considerable pains hath now been further taken in transcribing those scriptures ; partly to prevent that grand inconvenience, (which all for- mer impressions, except the Latin, have abounded with, to the great perplexing and disheartening of the reader,) the misquotation of scri])ture, the meanest reader being able, by having the words at large, to rectify whatever mistake may be in the printer in citing the particular place ; partly, to prevent the trouble of turning to every proof, which could not but be xery great ; partly, to help the memories of ^:uch who are willing to take the pains of turning to every j>roof, but are unable to retain what they read ; and partly, that this may serve as a Bible common-place, the several passages of scripture, which are scattered up and down in the word, being in this book reduced to their proper head, and thereby giving light each to other. The advantages, you see, in this design, are many and great ; the way to spiritual knowledge is hereby made more easy, and the ignorance of tliis age more inexcusable.
If, therefore, there be any spark in you of love to God, be not content that any of yours should be ignorant of him vv'hoiii you so much admire, or any haters of him whom you so much love. If there be any compassion to the soids of them who are under your care, if any regard of your being found faithful in the day of Christ, if any respect to future generations, labour to sow these seeds of knowledge, which may grow up in after-times. That you may be faithful herein, is the earnest prayer of.
Henry Wilkinson,