The Life and Works of Christopher Dock/7 Schriften with Translation

by Christopher Dock

SCHRIFTEN

WITH TRANSLATION

TRANSLATION OF THE

SCHRIFTEN

A.

Upon God 's grace and tender blessing

Everything is wholly and entirely dependent;

And without Heaven's help and favor

All the efforts of men are in vain.

Therefore, continue in the fear of the Lord

And cling to it throughout thy life,

Because it brings understanding and wisdom;

Also cause all things to prosper well.

B.

Consider well in all things

Which thou hast to do in this world;

That God who hears and sees everything

Also sees what is done by thee.

And that thou must of thy deeds and life

Render an account on the judgment day.

Therefore strive by day and by night

To keep, indeed, thy conscience well.

C.

Cross, discomfort, distress and trouble

Are well known to the pious on earth;

Therefore, be comforted and undaunted

If, at times, thou too art troubled.

God sends thee the pang of the cross

After the manner of the fathers, and for thy good,

That the world may displease thee

And may not keep thee out of Heaven.

D.

Humility is a lofty virtue

The charm of old age and the adornment of youth,

It leads mankind heavenward.

Therefore remain ever devoted to it.

Why should man, the little worm, be proud

Who has received his possessions from God,

Whom every disease promptly disfigures

And whom death strikes to earth?

E.

Honor every man according to his rank,

If thou wouldst turn love and praise upon thyself;

Especially, fear and love at all times

Teachers and those in authority.

Gray hairs with equal measure

Let honor be given by thee.

Who does not strive to do this,

Is himself not worthy of honor.

F.

Idling is a wicked life

To which no man should submit himself.

Sloth weakens mind and spirit,

On the contrary, work is very good.

One must consider St. Paul's words,

That who would not work should not eat;

Therefore, let each one follow the calling

For which God the Lord created him.

G.

Avarice is the root of all evil;

Let it by no means oppress thee,

Because it leads the soul from God,

And leads many into destruction.

What the hand of the Highest has given thee

Use that aright and be content.

Be pious and adhere to honesty,

Then great joy is prepared for thee.

H.

Whole-souledness in right things

Causes them ultimately to succeed.

Perseverance in the right track

Is indeed becoming to good Christians.

We shall fear God and not inquire

What weak man may say;

But he who has God for a friend

Is a man whom no one injures.

J.

The more thy enemies envy thee

The more shalt thou avoid the bad,

The more thou art despised and hated,

The more be armed with understanding.

A pious man will remain upright,

No matter what hate and envy do to him;

He who stands well with his Creator

Is a man who never sinks.

K.

Skill and understanding are precious gifts.

Thou, too, shalt strive to gain them,

Especially in the time of youth.

When everything is easily learned.

If God has given thee a pound,

Then shall it not be hid by thee.

Use it to the glory of God,

That thy neighbor may have use of thee.

L.

Let love possess thy heart,

Let love ever enkindle thee:

Not love that burns in lewdness

And runs after base lust.

The love of God shall impel thee

That thou mayst avoid evil,

That thou lovest thy neighbor as thyself

And bearest thy cross patiently.

M.

With moderation it is easy to thrive.

Poverty causes her no fear,

Because she does away with extravagance,

And keeps everything only according to need.

Health stands at her side,

Let her prepare also thy table,

And share with her thy food and drink.

Then thou wilt grow old and rarely ill.

N.

Envy is a poison and rust of souls

That alone enjoys to torture itself.

Therefore look to it with all diligence,

Bar for it the door of thy heart.

Let God's distribution satisfy thee;

He does not give all to every one,

He does not give all in one place,

He gives one thing here, another there.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. I Tim. vi, 6.

O.

To live in a house without order

Will never make a rich man,

Therefore take care of thy servants.

See what each does and follows,

Let them not exercise play and impertinence,

Let them stay at home at night,

Let there be heard God's word and prayer.

What will follow? Blessing will come.

Ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Ephes. vi, 4.

Make yourselves purses that do not grow old. A treasure that never diminishes in Heaven, where no thief breaks through and no moth corrupts.

P.

False display in gestures, actions, words,

Surely are injurious everywhere;

Likewise defiance and insolence

Have deprived many a man of his possessions.

Therefore be in all things modest.

Dress according to thy rank,

Estimate not too high nor too low,

The middle road is just right.

God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. James iv, 6.

Q.

Torment follows a life of lust;

Who then would strive for such?

After a joy that is short and slight

Follows long misery and bitter pain.

O how much better to avoid in the first place

Than afterward to suffer such great agony!

God let me stand by virtue,

And avoid base lust.

Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. Coloss. iii, 2.

(Short Summary of the 150th Psalm.)

And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. I John ii, 17.

R.

Revenge is a thing that God will take;

Therefore thou shalt leave it to Him.

If they do thee wrong and take advantage of thee,

Commend it to God, but in such form

That thou immediately layest hate away

And leavest gentleness in thy heart.

Forgive, for God forgives thee also

And charges thee to do the same.

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves. Romans xii, 19.

S.

Provide, but provide in such a way

That thou canst leave it to God.

Exercise everywhere industry and good sense,

Place the outcome in God's hand.

Thou must not let thy courage fail,

Though now and then things go wrong;

Who only can hope firmly in God

Will remain an unsullied man.

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. Psalm lv, 22.

T.

Fidelity is rare in these times

And deceit is found on every hand ;

Therefore guard thyself well,

And be cautious in confiding.

An attorney often leaves undone

What is to thee most important,

And no errand is so satisfactory

As the one we attend to ourselves.

Take ye heed every one of his neighbor, and trust ye not in any brother. Jeremiah ix, 4.

U.

Dissension and wrangling are fellows

Which cause great wrath and anger.

Folks swear and scold,

Men are degraded, conscience dulled;

Therefore, thou shalt flee from quarrel and dissension.

Nor drag everything into court.

Further, if thou art angry,

Do nothing rash with mouth or hand.

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Romans xii, 18.

V.

Depend not upon the strength of men,

For the flesh is but a weak thing ;

Who seeks protection in it

Such a man will be accursed,

But who depends upon God

And submits himself wholly to Him,

Will be blessed here in time

And also in eternity hereafter. — Jerem. xvii, 5, 7.

The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe. Prov. xviii, 10.

W.

To be truthful and act righteously

Is becoming to young and old.

Avoid hypocrisy and false appearance,

Let mouth and heart be together,

The devil is the father of lies;

Therefore flee from them as from an adder.

Truth will endure forever,

Lies will perish.

Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbors: for we are members one of another. Ephes. iv, 25.

X.

Xantippe was in olden times

A bad woman, scolding and quarrelling;

But Socrates, her wise husband,

Accepted it as a pastime.

Pray to the founder of marriage,

When thou wilt enter upon the marriage state,

That He may be thy best support,

Then will there be joy and blessing in it.

Y.

Exercise diligently and with pity

Charity toward pious poor,

Who giveth to the poor lendeth to God,

And is protected from distress and ridicule.

The wretched are not to be despised,

God can alter thy affairs.

Fortune is round, it loves unrest,

Who builds on it builds on sand.

Z.

Finally, live so upon the earth

That thou mayest become a citizen of Heaven.

What thou seest here, far and wide,

Is all pure vanity.

Death will not forget thee,

Keep it constantly in mind.

Which perhaps to-day

May hit thee with his arrow.

---

Who would learn to read and write

Must at first abide by A. B. C.

And become well acquainted with this,

Then learning will progress well.

The copy has many good teachings

For thee and me and others also.

It is instructive.

Employ it for thy instruction

And the glory of the one God.

Otherwise, none

But God deserves the glory.

For all the good that we have,

By which we refresh body and soul,

Comes from the Giver of good gifts.

The good that we enjoy from God

Must flow back into its first source.

In heartfelt humility

And childlike obedience

To praise God at all times

For His great goodness,

Grace and mercy.

Then our gifts remain pure

When they flow back

To the spring from which

They came.

Bless the Lord, my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, my soul, and forget not all His benefits. Psalm ciii.

1768, July 18.

Peace be to the brethren; love and faith from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Jesus Christ; who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. (I Phil, ii, 5-13.)

For consider him that endureth such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. (Hebrews xii, 3, 4.)

Repent

Consider what thou must flee, that is, all sin; what thou must do, the commandments of God; what thou must fear, the cross, death and eternal damnation; what thou must desire and hope for, spiritual things in this life and eternal things in the life to come; attentiveness in prayer, patience in misfortune, unity of heart and word, a goodconscience with every act. Such a life stands the test before God and man. As thou believest thou livest. As thou livest thou diest. As thou diest thou farest. As thou farest thou remainest.

Help then, dear Lord, that we so believe and live that we need not fear to die. Time passes away. Where does it lead our footsteps? Are we on the right path to the heavenly Canaan? A stork and a crane are prepared. They point to their time. Likewise the swallow and the turtle-dove do not let themselves be robbed of their time. The little animal and the like teach us a nice lesson, how we in the time of grace should gather for eternity. Motto 25. For one sees it and finds it recorded how great a factor time is. Therefore guard it well and be diligent in seeing how the same is spent in order that thou mayest enter into His rest.

And when he had called the people unto Him with His disciples also, He said unto them, as follows: Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for My sake and the Gospel's sake the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Whoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels. (Mark viii, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38.)

Oh, my God, help us to live a Christian life and to die a blessed death, for a Christian life and a blessed death are sufficient rewards here upon this earth.

To follow Jesus in precept and example merits the greatest gain, eternal life.

Christ, our Head and King, we should follow obediently in word and deed. We should renounce our own unregenerated life and restrain it. We should take up willingly the cross of Christ and not be ashamed to follow Him. Oh, dear Jesus, support us and grant us Thy spirit and power. Oh, help us to overcome all that would bind us to this world. What does it amount to if we achieve great success through which the soul is lost? What does it amount to if we love the world with all its splendor and despise humility? This militates against the glory of Christ. It reaps its reward accordingly.

But whoever in the time of grace feels his many short-comings, that he is heavily laden with sin, will enter with the lost son, in true penitence, the throne of grace. What heretofore was to him a joy, that now is for him a heartfelt sorrow and sadness. He will now gladly renounce the world and carry the cross for Christ. He who can thus surrender himself to God, him will God help from death into life.

Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered; let them also that hate Him flee before Him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God. But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. (Psalm lxviii, 1, 2, 3.)

Joy and love for each task, maketh light all effort and labor.

Jacob Harley.⁠

His signature, February 7, 1798.