The Practice of Piety at Meals, and the Manner of…
LEWIS BAYLY
THE PRACTICE OF PIETY
THE PRACTICE OF PIETY AT MEALS, AND THE MANNER
OF EATING.
Before dinner and supper, when the table is covered, ponder with thyself upon these meditations; to work a deeper impression in thy heart of God's fatherly providence and goodness towards thee.
LEWIS BAYLY
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Meditations before Dinner and Supper.
Meditations before Dinner and Supper.
Meditate that hunger is like the sickness called a wolf; which, if thou dost not feed, will devour thee, and eat thee up; and that meat and drink are but as physic, or means which God hath ordained, to relieve and cure this natural infirmity and necessity of man. Use, therefore, to eat and to drink, rather to sustain and refresh the weakness of nature, than to satisfy the sensuality and delights of the flesh. Eat, therefore, to live, but live not to eat. There is no service so base, as for a man to be a slave to his belly; the apostle terms such, belly-gods (Phil. iii. 19.) Therefore we may boldly term them, as the Scriptures do other idols, gillulim,49 dung-gods (Hab. ii. 18, 19; 2 Kings xv. 12.) And as no one action (God's ordinances excepted) makes a man more to resemble a beast, than eating and drinking, so the abuse of eating and drinking to surfeiting and drunkenness, makes a man more vile than a beast.
2. Meditate on the omnipotency of God, who made all these creatures of nothing (Heb. xi. 3)—of his wisdom (Psal. cxlv. 15, 16), who feedeth so many infinite creatures through the universal world, maintaining all their lives, which he has given them, which surpasseth the wisdom of all the angels in heaven—and of his clemency and goodness, in feeding also his very enemies
(Matt. v. 45, &c.; Acts xiv. 17.) 3. Meditate how many sorts of creatures, as beasts, fish, and fowl, have lost their lives, to become food to nourish thee; and how God's providence from remote places has brought all these portions together on thy table for thy nourishment; and how by these dead creatures he maintains thee in health and life.
4. Meditate that seeing thou hast so many pledges of God's fatherly bounty, goodness, and mercy towards thee, as there are dishes of meat on thy table, O suffer not in such a place, so gracious a God to be abused by scurrility, ribaldry, or swearing; or thy fellow-brother, by disgraceful backbiting, taunting, or slandering.50
5. Meditate how that thy master Jesus Christ did never eat any food, but first he blessed the creatures, and gave thanks to his heavenly Father for the same (Luke ix. 16; Matt. xiv. 19; xv. 36; Mark vi. 41; viii. 6; Luke xxiv. 30; John vi. 11.) And after his last supper, we read that he sung a psalm (Matt. xxvi. 30;
Mark xiv. 26;) for this was the commandment of God, "When thou hast eaten and filled thyself, thou shalt bless the Lord thy God," &c. (Deut. viii. 10.) This was the practice of the prophets; for "the people would not eat at their feast, till Samuel came to bless their meat," (1 Sam. ix. 13;) and saith Joel to God's people, "Ye shall eat and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your
God." (Joel ii. 26.) This also was the practice of the apostles; for St. Paul in the
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ship, gave thanks before meat, in the presence of all the people that were there (Acts xxvii. 35.) Imitate, therefore, in so holy an action, so blessed a master, and so many worthy precedents that have followed him, and gone before thee. It may be, because thou hast never used to give thanks at meals, therefore thou art now ashamed to begin. Think it no shame to do what Christ did; but be rather ashamed that thou hast so long neglected so Christian a duty. And if the Son of God gave his Father such great thanks for a dinner of barley-bread and broiled fish (John vi. 9, 11), what thanks should such a sinful man as thou art render unto God for such variety of good and dainty cheer?
How many a true Christian would be glad to fill his belly with the morsels which thou refusest; and do lack that which thou leavest! how hardly do others labour for that which they eat, and thou hast thy food provided for thee, without either care or labour! To conclude, if pagan idolaters at their feasts were accustomed to praise their false gods (Dan. v. 1, 4), what a shame is it for a Christian, at his dinners and suppers, not to praise the true God, "in whom we live, move, and have our being?" (Acts xvii. 28.)
6. Meditate that thy body, which thou dost now so daintily feed, must be, thou knowest not how soon, meat for worms, "When thou shalt say to corruption, Thou art my father; and to the worm,. Thou art my mother, and my sister." (Job xvii. 44.) 7. Meditate, that many a man's table is made his snare (Psal. lxix. 22;) so that through his intemperance and unthankfulness, the meat which should nourish his body, kills him with a surfeit; insomuch, that more are killed with this snare than with the sword (Gen. iii. 17.) And seeing that since the curse, the use of all creatures, so likewise of meat and drink, is to us unclean, till the same be sanctified by the word of God, and prayer; and that man liveth not by bread only, but by the word of God's ordinance, and his blessing, which is called the staff of bread: sit not therefore down to eat, before you pray, and rise not before you give God thanks. Feed to suffice nature, yet rise with an appetite; and remember thy poor Christian brethren, who suffer hunger, and want those good things wherewith thou dost abound (1 Tim. iv. 4, 5; Matt. iv.
4; Lev. xxvi. 26; Ezek. iv. 16; v. 16; 1 Sam. ix. 13; Matt. xiv. 19; Luke xxiv. 30; 1
Cor. x. 16; Rom. xiv. 6; 1 Thess. v. 18; Eccles. x. 17; Luke xxi. 34; Neh. v. 17;
Amos vi. 6.) These things, or some of them premeditated, if there be not a Samuel present (1 Sam. ix. 13), lift up with all comely reverence (Matt. xiv. 19) thy heart, with thy hands and eyes, to the great Creator and feeder of all creatures, and before meat, pray to him thus:—
49Of galal, which signifies dung, as Ezek. iv. 15.
50St. Austin had written over his table—Quisquis amat dictis absentem rode e amicum, Hanc mensam vetitam noverit esse sibi.—Possid. de vita Aug.
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Grace before Meat.
Grace before Meat.
O most gracious God, and loving Father, who feedest all creatures living, which depend upon thy divine providence, we beseech thee, sanctify these creatures, which thou hast ordained for us; give them virtue to nourish our bodies in life and health; and give us grace to receive them soberly and thankfully, as from thy hands; that so, in the strength of these and thy other blessings, we may walk in the uprightness of our hearts, before thy face, this day, and all the days of our lives, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and only
Saviour. Amen. (Psal. x. 17; Joel i. 10; Psal. cxlvii. 9; 1 Tim. iv. 5; 1 Kings xix.
8.) Or thus:
Most gracious God, and merciful Father, we beseech thee, sanctify these creatures to our use, make them healthful for our nourishment, and make us thankful for all thy blessings, through Christ, our Lord and only Saviour. Amen.
Another Grace before Meat.
O eternal God, in whom we live, move, and have our being, we beseech thee bless unto thy servants these creatures, that in the strength of them we may live, to the setting forth of thy praise and glory, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and only Saviour. Amen.
After every meal, be careful of thyself and family, as Job was for himself and his children (Job i. 4), lest that, in the cheerfulness of eating and drinking, some speech has slipped out, which might be either offensive to God or injurious to man; and therefore with the like comely gesture and reverence give thanks to God, and pray in this manner:—
Blessed be thy holy name, O Lord our God, for these thy good benefits, wherewith thou hast so plentifully at this time refreshed our bodies. O Lord vouchsafe likewise to feed our souls with the spiritual food of thy holy word and spirit unto life everlasting. Lord defend and save thy whole church.
Forgive us our sins and unthankfulness, pass by our manifold infirmities, make us all mindful of our last end, and of the reckoning we are then to make to thee, and in the meanwhile grant us health, peace, and truth, in Jesus Christ, our Lord and only Saviour. Amen.
Or thus:
Blessed be thy holy name, O Lord, for these thy good benefits wherewith thou hast refreshed us at this time. Lord forgive us all our sins and frailties; save and defend thy whole church; and grant us health, peace, and truth, in Christ our only Saviour. Amen.
Or thus:
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We give thee thanks, O heavenly Father, for feeding our bodies so graciously with thy good creatures to this temporal life; beseeching thee likewise to feed our souls with thy holy Word unto life everlasting. Defend, O
Lord, thy universal church, the queen, and the royal family; and grant us continuance of thy grace and mercy, in Christ our only Saviour. Amen.
LEWIS BAYLY
THE PRACTICE OF PIETY
The Practice of Piety at Evening.
The Practice of Piety at Evening.
At evening when the due time of repairing to rest approaches, call together again all thy family; read a chapter in the same manner that was prescribed in the morning; then, in a holy imitation of our Lord and his disciples, sing a psalm: but in singing of psalms, either after supper, or at any other time, observe these rules:
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Rules to be Observed in Singing of Psalms.
Rules to be observed in Singing of Psalms.
1. Beware of singing divine psalms for an ordinary recreation, as do men of impure spirits, who sing holy psalms intermingled with profane ballads: They are God's word: take them not in thy mouth in vain.
2. Remember to sing David's psalms with David's spirit (Matt. xxii. 43.) 3. Practise St. Paul's rule—"I will sing with the spirit, but I will sing with the understanding also." (1 Cor. xiv. 15.) 4. As you sing uncover your heads (1 Cor. xi. 4), and behave yourselves in comely reverence as in the sight of God, singing to God in God's own words; but be sure that the matter make more melody in your hearts (Eph. v. 19; Col. iii. 16) than the music in your ear; for the singing with grace in our hearts is that which the Lord is delighted withal, according to that old verse:
Non vox, sed votum; non miisica chordula, sed cor:
Non clamans, sed amana, psallit in aure Dei.
'Tis not the voice, but vow; Sound heart, not sounding string; True zeal, not outward show, That in God's ear doth ring.
5. Thou mayest, if thou thinkest good, sing all the psalms over in order, for all are most divine and comfortable; but if thou wilt choose some special psalms, as more fit for some times and purposes, and such as, by the oft usage, thy people may the easier commit to memory.
Then sing:
In the morning, Psalm iii. v. xvi. xxii. cxliv. In the evening, Psalm iv. cxxvii. cxli. For mercy after a sin committed, Psalm li. ciii. In sickness or heaviness,
Psalm vi. xiii. lxxxviii. xc. xci. cxxxvii. cxlvi. When thou art recovered, Psalm xxx. xxxii. On the Sabbath day, Psalm xix. xcii. xcv. In time of joy, Psalm lxxx. xcviii. cvii. cxxxvi. cxlv. Before sermon, Psalm i. xii. cxlvii. the 1st and 5th parts of the cxix. After sermon, any Psalm which concerneth the chief argument of the sermon. At the communion, Psalm xxii. xxiii. ciii. cxi. cxvi. For spiritual solace, Psalm xv. xix. xxv. xlvi. lxvii. cxii. cxvi. After wrong and disgrace received, Psalm xlii. lxix. lxx. cxl. cxliv.
After the psalm, all kneeling down in a reverent manner, as is before described, let the father of the family, or the chiefest in his absence, pray thus:
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Evening Prayer for a Family.
Evening Prayer for a Family.
O eternal God and most gracious Father, we thine unworthy servants here assembled, do cast down ourselves at the footstool of thy grace, acknowledging that we have inherited our fathers' corruption, and actually in thought, word, and deed, transgressed all thy holy commandments, so that in us naturally there dwelleth nothing that is good; for our hearts are full of secret pride, anger, impatience, dissembling, lying, lust, vanity, profaneness, distrust, too much love of ourselves and the world, too little love of thee and thy kingdom, but empty and void of faith, love, patience, and every spiritual grace. If thou, therefore, shouldst but enter into judgment with us, and search out our natural corruption, and observe all the cursed fruits and effects that we have derived from thence, Satan might justly challenge us for his own, and we could not expect anything from thy Majesty but thy wrath, and our condemnation, which we have long ago deserved; but, good Father, for Jesus
Christ thy dear Son's sake, in whom only thou art well pleased, and for the merits of that bitter death and bloody passion which we believe that he hath suffered for us, have mercy upon us, pardon and forgive us all our sins, and free us from the shame and confusion which are due unto us for them, that they may never seize upon us to our confusion in this life, nor to our condemnation in the world which is to come. And forasmuch as thou hast created us to serve thee, as all other creatures to serve us, so, we beseech thee, inspire thy Holy Spirit into our hearts, that by his illumination and effectual working, we may have the inward sight and feeling of our sins and natural corruptions, and that we may not be blinded in them through custom, as the reprobates are, but that we may more and more loath them, and be heartily grieved for them, endeavouring by the use of all good means to overcome and get out of them. O let us feel the power of Christ's death killing sin in our mortal bodies (Rom. vi. 6; Phil. iii. 10), and the virtue of his resurrection raising up our souls to newness of life: convert our hearts, subdue our affections, regenerate our minds, and purify our nature, and suffer us not to be drowned in the stream of those filthy vices and sinful pleasures of this time, wherewith thousands are carried headlong to eternal destruction; but daily frame us more and more to the likeness of thy Son Jesus Christ (Rom. viii.
29), that in righteousness and true holiness (Eph. iv. 24), we may so serve and glorify thee, that living in thy fear and dying in thy favour, we may in thine appointed time attain to the blessed resurrection of the just unto eternal life.
In the meanwhile, O Lord, increase our faith in the sweet promises of the gospel, and our repentance from dead works, the assurance of our hope in the promises, our fear of thy name, the hatred of all our sins, and our love to thy children, especially those whom we shall see to stand in need of our help and
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comfort; that so by the fruits of piety and a righteous life, We may be assured that thy Holy Spirit dwells in us, and that we are thy children by grace and adoption: and grant us, good Father, the continuance of health, peace, maintenance, and all other outward things, so far as thy divine wisdom shall think meet and necessary for every one of us.
And here, O Lord, according to our bounden duty, we confess that thou hast been exceeding merciful unto us all in things of this life, but infinitely more merciful in the things of a better life; and therefore we do here from our very souls render unto thee all humble and hearty thanks for all thy blessings and benefits bestowed upon our souls and bodies, acknowledging thee to be that Father of lights from whom we have received all those good and perfect gifts; and unto thee alone for them we ascribe to be due all glory, honour, and praise, both now and evermore; but more especially we praise thy divine
Majesty for that thou hast defended us this day from all perils and dangers, so that none of those judgments, which our sins have deserved, have fallen upon us. Good Lord, forgive us the sins which this day we have committed against thy divine Majesty and our brethren, and for Christ's sake be reconciled unto us for them; and we beseech thee likewise of thine infinite goodness and mercy, to defend and protect us, and all that belong to us, this night from all dangers of fire, robbery, terrors of evil angels, or any other fear or peril, which for our sins might justly fall upon us; and that we may be safe under the shadow of thy wings, we here commend our bodies and souls, and all that we have, unto thine almighty protection. Lord bless and defend both us and them from all evil; and whilst we sleep, do thou, O Father, who never slumberest nor sleepest, watch over thy children, and give a charge to thy holy angels to pitch their tents round about our house and dwelling, to guard us from all dangers, that sleeping with thee, we may in the next morning be awakened by thee, and so being refreshed with moderate sleep, we may be the fitter to set forth thy glory in the conscionable duties of our callings.
And we beseech thee, O Lord, to be merciful likewise to thy whole church, and to continue the tranquillity of these kingdoms wherein we live, turning from us those plagues which the crying sins of this nation do cry for.
Preserve our Queen, with the rest of the royal family; all our magistrates and ministers; all that fear thee, and call upon thy name; all our Christian brethren and sisters, that suffer sicknes6, or any other affliction or misery, especially those who anywhere suffer persecution for the testimony of the holy gospel: grant them patience to bear thy cross, and deliverance when and which way it shall seem best to thy divine wisdom. And, Lord, suffer us never to forget our last end, and those reckonings which then we must render unto thee. In health and prosperity make us mindful of sickness, and of the evil day that is behind, that these things may not overtake us as a snare, but that we may in good measure, like wise virgins, be found prepared for the coming of
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Christ, the sweet bridegroom of our souls. And now, O Lord most holy and just, we confess that there is no cause why thou, who art so much displeased with sin, shouldst hear the prayer of sinners, but for his sake only who suffered for sin, and sinned not. In the only mediation, therefore, of thine eternal Son Jesus our Lord and Saviour, we humbly beg these, and all other graces which thou knowest to be needful for us, shutting up these our imperfect requests in that most holy prayer which Christ himself has taught us to say unto thee:—
"Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name," &c.
Thy grace, O Lord Jesus Christ; thy love, O heavenly Father; thy comfort and consolation, O holy and blessed Spirit, be with us, and remain with us, this night and evermore. Amen.
Then saluting one another, as becometh Christians who are the vessels of grace, and temples of the Holy Ghost, let them in the fear of God depart every one to his rest: using some of the former private meditations for evening.
Thus far of the householder's public practice of piety with his family every day: Now follows his practice of piety with the Church on the Sabbath-day.