Chapter 3: Petition

Of the third part of prayer, which is Petition and Supplication for the good things which we stand in need of.

Having opened the wounds of sin, both the guilt of it, and the power of it, and its remainders in us, we must next seek unto God for the remedy, for healing and help, for from him alone it is to be expected, and he will for this be inquired of by us. And now we must affect our hearts with a deep sense of the need we have of those mercies which we pray for, that we are undone, for ever undone, without them; and with a high esteem and value for them, that we are happy, we are made for ever happy if we obtain them; that we may, like Jacob, wrestle with him in prayer, as for ~ our lives, and the lives of our souls. But we must not think in our prayers to prescribe to him, or by our importunity to move him. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and knows what he will do. But thus we open our wants and our desires, and then refer ourselves to his wisdom and goodness; and hereby we give honour to him as our protector and benefactor, and take the way which he himself hath appointed, of fetching in mercy from him, and by faith plead his promise with him, and if we are sincere herein, we are, through his grace, qualified according to the tenor of the new-covenant, to receive his favours, and are to be assured that we do, and shall receive them. Ezek 36:37. John 6:6. Mark 11:24.

The heads

• Opening words
• 1. We must earnestly pray for the pardon and forgiveness of all our sins.
• For the encouraging of our faith, and the exciting of our fervency in this petition for the pardon of sin, we may plead with God.
• 1. The infinite goodness of his nature, his readiness to forgive sin, and his glorying in it.
• 2. The merit and righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ, which we rely upon as our main plea in our petition for the pardon of sin.
• 3. The promises God hath made in his word to pardon and absolve all them that truly repent, and unfeignedly believe his holy gospel.
• 4. Our own misery and danger because of sin.
• 5. The blessed condition which they are in, whose sins are pardoned.
• 2. We must likewise pray that God will be reconciled to us, that we may obtain his favour and blessing, and gracious acceptance.
• 1. That we may be at peace with God, and his anger may be turned away from us.
• 2. That we may be taken into covenant with God, and admitted into relation with him.
• 3. That we may have the favour of God, and an interest in his special love. We entreat thy favour, O God, with our whole hearts; be merciful to us according to thy word, for in thy favour is life, yea, thy loving kindness is better than life itself. ; ; .
• 4. That we may have the blessing of God.
• 5. That we may have the presence of God with us.
• 3. We must pray for the comfortable sense of our reconciliation to God, and our acceptance with him.
• 1. That we may have some evidence of the pardon of our sins, and of our adoption.
• 2. That we may have a well-grounded peace of conscience; a holy security and serenity of 7 * mind arising from a sense of our justification before God, and a good work wrought in us.
• 4. We must pray for the grace of God, and all the kind and powerful influences and operations of that grace.
• 1. We must pray for grace to fortify us against every evil thought, word, and work. Having been earnest for the removing of the guilt of sin, that we may not die for it as a crime, we must be no less earnest for the breaking of the power of sin, that we may not die by it as a disease, but that it may be mortified in us.
• And that the temptations of Satan may not overtake us.
• 2. We must pray for grace to furnish us for every good thought, word, and work, that we may not only be kept from sin, but may be in every thing as we should be, and do as we should do.
• 1. That the work of grace may be wrought there where it is not yet begun.
• 2. That where it is begun, it may be carried on, and at length perfected, and the foundation that is well laid may be happily built. upon.
• More particularly we must pray for grace.
• 1. To teach and instruct us, and make us ‘knowing and intelligent in the things of God. Give us so to cry after knowledge, and to lift up our voice for understanding, to seek for it as silver, and to search for it as for hid treasure, that we may understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. .
• 2. To lead us into, and keep us in the way of truth; and if in any thing we be in an error, to rectify our mistake.
• 3. To help our memories, that the truths of God may be ready to us, whenever we have occasion to use them.
• 4. To direct our consciences, to show us the way of our duty, and to make us wise, knowing, judicious Christians.
• 5. To sanctify our nature, to plant in us all holy principles and dispositions, and to increase every grace in us.
• 1. We must pray for faith.
• 2. We must pray for the fear of God.
• 3. We must pray that the love of God and Christ may be rooted in us, and in order thereunto, that the love of the world may be rooted out of us.
• 4. We must pray that our conscience may be always tender, and that we may live a life of repentance.
• 5. We must pray to God to work in us charity and brotherly love.
• 6. We must pray for the grace of self-denial.
• 7. We must pray for humility and meekness.
• 8. We must pray for the grace of contentment and patience, and a holy indifference to all the things of sense and time.
• 9. We must pray for the grace of hope ; a hope in God and Christ, and a hope of eternal life.
• 10. We must pray for grace to preserve us from sin, and all appearances of it, and approaches towards it.
• 11. We must pray for grace to enable us both to govern our tongues well, and to use them well.
• 12. We must pray for grace to direct and quicken us to, and to strengthen and assist us in, our duty, in the whole course of our conversation.
• 1. That we may be prudent and discreet in our duty.
• 2. That we may be honest and sincere in our duty.
• 3. That we may be active and diligent in our duty.
• 4. That we may be resolute and courageous, in our duty, as those that know that though we may be losers for Christ, we shall not be losers by him in the end.
• 5. That we may be pleasant and cheerful in our duty.
• 6. That we may do the duty of every condition of life, every event of providence, and every relation wherein we stand.
• 7. That we may be universally conscientious.
• 13. We must pray for grace to make us wiser and better every day than another.
• 14. We must pray for effectual support and comfort under all the crosses and afflictions that we meet with in this world.
• 15. We must pray for grace to preserve us to the end, and to fit us for whatever lies before - us betwixt this and the grave.
• 16. We must pray for grace to prepare us for death, and to carry us well through our dying moments.
• 17. We must pray for grace to fit us for heaven, and that we may at length be put in possession of eternal life.
• 18. We must pray for the good things of life, with an humble submission to the will of God.
• 19. We must pray to be preserved from the calamities to which we are exposed.
• 20. We must pray to be supplied with the comforts and supports we daily stand in need of.
• 21. We must plead the promises of God, for the enforcing of all our petitions, put these promises in suit, and refer ourselves to them.

Henry’s text is in the public domain. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, No. 265 Chestnut Street. Undated, about 1840 to 1860. The preface is dated Chester, March 25, 1710. From the Internet Archive scan. The KJV text is in the public domain.