Such distress he [Martin Luther] had to suffer, just as he himself said, “Many suppose that, because I sometimes act happy in my outward behavior, I walk in a world of roses. But God knows how it really is with me,” etc. And in the same year, for that matter, on the eve of Simon and Jude, he wrote to a good friend, “Pray devoutly for me, a poor, rejected worm, who am so harshly afflicted with melancholy and sadness of spirit according to the good, gracious will of the merciful Father in heaven, to whom be glory, honor, and praise, even in my great anguish and distress.” Mathesius also writes about this (Luther’s Life, fol. 56, 172, etc.). From all this we see how comforting Luther was able to address such people (ibid.; Jena, vol. 8, fol. 403). This essentially consists of six parts: (1) People under such temptation should not be left alone, but have the Scripture spoken to them, for it is the pharmacy of the Holy Spirit. Then they should be shown: (2) that their thoughts are only the attack of the devil; (3) that they should strike such thoughts from their heart and bluntly turn him away, for arguing with him will not help; (4) that they should receive the comforting saying of the Holy Scripture as though the God of heaven were speaking to them Himself; (5) that they should pray earnestly and not forsake the prayers of the gathered Church; and (6) that they should boldly seize the victory and not let the devil weary them.
Herberger, Valerius The Great Works of God: Parts One and Two: The Mysteries of Christ in the Book of Genesis, Chapters 1-15 388