yè eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the Glory of God.

Laftly, from that eternity which we here acknowledge in all the divine attributes and perfections, we are taught to worship God continually, to praife him evermore, and to give divine honours to none befides him; because he is God from everlasting to everlasting, the only God, and will nat give his Glory to another.

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As to the word Amen, it fignifies verily, truly, or the like; a phrase often used by our Saviour at the beginning of his speeches, to engage the attention of his hearers to what he was going to fay. This being the proper meaning of the word Amen, the design of adding it at the conclusion of any discourse, is to affirm what had been before faid, thereby declaring our approbation and

confent thereto. Thus when we repeat the Creed, we fay Amen; where it fignifies fo it is, this is the true Faith, or all this I ftedfaftly believe. And in like manner is the word used, in the Commination ordered to be read on the first day of Lent.

When we fay Amen at the end of the Creed, or any profeffion of our belief, it means the fame as if we repeated over again all that profeffion of our Faith, which we had before made in feveral words and fentences, and is a frefh declaration of our confent to fuch articles of our Belief. But

when the word Amen, is joined to the end of a Prayer, as here, it then means to exprefs our wifh and defire that what we have requested may be granted. Thus when our Lord faid, furely I come quickly, the Apostle immediately adds, Amen, even fo come Lord Jefus ; that is, may it be as thou

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hast promised; and of the like use is this word when added at the end of thofe benedictions, wherewith most of the Epistles in the New Teftament are concluded.

If therefore a Prayer is faid by one, and Amen added to it, is faid by another, as is common in our publick prayers, where the minifter only fpeaks, and the people fay Amen, then it fignifies their confent to, and concurrence with the whole prayer uttered by the minifter; and is the fame as when in the Litany we befeech God to hear us; but if Amen is faid by the fame person who speaks the Prayer, as when we add it to our private devotions, then Amen is a repetition in one word, of all that has been before said in the Prayer; 'tis a fresh breathing forth of all thofe pious defires and affections of the mind, that had been before

before more largely expreffed. Thus much for the meaning of the word Amen.

And as we are here taught by our Lord himfelf to add this word at the end of our prayers, to teftify our confent thereto, it from hence plainly appears, that all publick prayers ought to be expreffed in fuch a language and ftile, as they may all understand them; or otherwife they cannot fay Amen, as it means their approving of, and giving a rational confent thereto. It is therefore highly expedient, nay, abfolutely neceffary for the edification of the Church, that the publick prayers which are intended for the ufe of all, fhould be fuited to the capacities of all, and be as plain, easy, and familiar as poffible, not only carefully avoiding all high flights, rhetorical figures, and flourishes, but all fuch words as are not of very easy

meaning,

meaning, and common ufe. In a word, the publick Prayers should be like thofe of our Church; the words common, the ftile eafy, the fentences fhort, the whole phrase and compofure fuited to the meaneft capacity; and in general is a great advantage which premeditated Prayers have over fuch as are conceived extempore, fince he that makes a prayer for publick use, takes time to study plainness and perfpicuity, which he that prays extempore cannot do.

But above all, it is manifefty moft abfurd, that the publick Prayers in which all are to join, fhould be in an unknown tongue, in a language not understood perhaps by one in twenty in the whole congregation. The most ridiculous folly of this is fufficiently expofed by St. Paul, and among other arguments by this; that no man can rationally fay Amen to a prayer uttered in

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