"Give us day by

our daily bread;" Luke says, day our daily bread." Again, Matthew says, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;" Luke says, "Forgive us our sins," &c.

Had it been the mind of Christ that believers should be tied up to that form of words in praying, the unerring Spirit, whereby the two evangelists were actuated, would have been more exact and accurate, in setting down the words of that form. But the design of Christ being only to lay down a general rule or platform, according to which he would have believers to frame their prayers, there was not that regard had to the placing of the words as otherwise would have been, had it been his will that that form of words should be used by believers as their prayer; but, the words being designed only as a general rule or platform of prayer, what was omitted by one evangelist is supplied in the other.

ARG. 2. The shortness of that form, in reaching the several cases of every believer in particular, is a convincing argument that the wisdom of Christ never designed that form of words to be imposed on believers as their prayer.

It is certain that the case and condition of believers, while in a state of imperfection, is various and changeable; so must their prayers be. It would be altogether inconsistent with the wisdom and faithfulness of Christ to tie up believers to any prayer or prayers whatever which are not full

to the purpose, in suiting or answering the particular case of every believer.

This is plain from the practice of God's church in all ages, who always suited her prayers to her present condition. Read what is set down in 1 Kings viii. 38. "What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands towards this house. Then hear thou in heaven," &c.

By this scripture now quoted, and many more which may be offered to the same purpose out of the Old Testament, it is most evident that the church had no such thing as a set or stinted liturgy by which she prayed.

From this I do most rationally infer that, if the church of God was, while in the state of her minority, enabled to pray without a set or stinted liturgy, it must unavoidably be the highest reflection upon, and the greatest dishonour imaginable to, the Son of God, that his church, being now come to the state of manhood in spirituals, and being so plentifully enriched with those gifts of the Spirit which he bequeathed to his spouse at his ascension, should be less able to make her addresses to God than she was in her state of non-age before his coming in the flesh.

Agreeing herewith is that of Paul, Ephes. vi. 18. " Praying alway with all prayer and supplica. tion in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints."

This scripture, with many more of the same import in the New Testament, makes it plain, beyond all contradiction, that in the apostolical days there was no such thing as a stated and stinted liturgy; but that the apostles and primitive churches did frame their prayers according to the present circumstances they were in, which leads me to a third argument to confirm the truth of that sense and explication I have given of the so much abused text above mentioned, Luke xi. 2.

ARG. 3. The example and practice of Christ himself and his holy apostles, who, beyond all contradiction, framed their prayers according to the present occasion they had in hand; a few instances hereof may be seen on record.

First, When Christ designed to raise Lazarus miracle he did not use those words, Our Father, &c. nor yet any stinted liturgy, but framed his petitions to God his Father according to the design he had in hand, John xi. 41, 42. "And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee," &c.

Again: When in that bitter agony in the garden, "He fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.”

And when he came to give the finishing stroke to the work of our redemption on the cross, "He cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabacthani? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

And a littte before his suffering, when he puts up his most solemn and heavenly prayer for his disciples, and all other believers to the end of the world, it is evident he did not use the form of words so much boasted of by the advocates of liturgies and stinted forms of prayer, but frames his incomparable and most excellent prayer to his Father, according to the present occasion: this appears in the 17th chapter of John to the end. And, although he did not, on any of these occasions, make use of the form above mentioned, yet it is not to be questioned but that he framed all his prayers according to that general rule or platform of prayer laid down by himself, which is the thing I contend for; and which, if granted by the adversaries, as I cannot see how they can avoid it, the chief hold and refuge they have to fly to, is blown up, and they themselves, being driven from that hold, put to their shifts and obliged to take sanctuary under the shadow of the church's pretended power, from whence I doubt not I shall be enabled by him who is the head and king of the church, to drive them, forcing them to quit that hold also, as they have done the former. As the scriptures make it plain that Christ himself did not, on any of the before-mentioned occasions, use the form so mightily contended for, but did, as hath already been observed, frame all his prayers to the several occasions which lay before him, so his holy apostles did, by the unerring influence of the Holy Ghost,

follow the blessed example of their Lord and Master in this very matter.

Two most plain instances of this truth we find on record; the one is the occasion they had of choosing an apostle to succeed Judas the traitor, Acts i. 24, 25; " And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen;" the other is the occasion they had of electing deacons, Acts vi. 6. In neither of which, nor in the prayer they put up to God against their persecutors in Acts iv. 24-32, did they use the form of words in Luke xi. 2, but framed their prayers to suit the matter in hand.

ARG. 4. The fourth argument shall be the command of Christ to shun and avoid tautologies and vain repetitions, Matt. vi. 7. "But, when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathens do; for they think they shall be heard for their much speaking."

Now what can be more plain than that such men prove themselves extremely guilty of vain repetitions, who multiply words in their prayers, repeating the very same words over and over, even to weariness, and concluding the several short prayers and responses, wherewith the liturgy abounds, with, "Our Father, which art in heaven," &c. and that several times in the same morning and evening service?

I speak not these things out of prejudice to the