Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	great_a	life_n	live_v	12,000	5	5.3253	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34573	Stafford's memoires, or, A brief and impartial account of the birth and quality, imprisonment, tryal, principles, declaration, comportment, devotion, last speech, and final end, of William, late lord viscount Stafford, beheaded upon Tower-hill on Wednesday the 29. of December 1681 hereunto is also annexed a short appendix concerning some passages in Stephen Colleges trial.	Corker, James Maurus, 1636-1715.	1681 (1681)	Wing C6306; ESTC R20377	92,206	80

may see how the Priests treat their Penitents in the condition and circumstances my Lord was in My Lord THE Character I bear gives me some Title And the singular esteem I have for your Noble and Truly virtuous Person and Family gives me Confidence to present your Lordship in this your last and Grand Affair with a Consolatory or rather Congratulatory Letter As I daily make my Supplication to God on your behalf so I hope I may make my Addresses to you on Gods behalf You are chosen by the King of Kings to share with him in Immortal Crowns You are called from an Abisse of misery to the top of Felicity You now pay a debt on the score of Grace which is due and which you must shortly have paid to the course of Nature And herein my Lord you are adorned with all the Trophies of Jesus's Victory He was Condemned of High Treason by false Witnesses for the love of you And you stand Condemned of the same Crimes by the like Evidence for the love of him Yet you shall not die my Lord 'T is a mistake of this blind World you shall only pass from a state of Death to a state of Life True Life Eternal Life you shall be Transformed into him whose essence is to live In whom with whom and by whom you shall enjoy all that is good all that is lovely alt that is pleasant And this enjoyment shall be in all its fulness altogether all at once without Interruption without Bound Limit or End The Omnipotent Creator● of Heaven and Earth The searcher of Hearts The dreadful Judge of Men and Angels He who justly might otherwise peradventure have cast you into Eternal Fire From whose Sentence there is no Appeal He I say will now be forgetful of past Frailties regard you with a merciful Eye with a pleasing Countenance a loving heart an open Arm an endeared affection Millions of Lawrels hang over your Head Thousands of Millions of Glories and Sweets attend you which neither Eye hath seen nor Ear hath heard nor hath entered into the heart of man The Virgin Mother shall meet and conduct you to her beloved Son The Apostles Martyrs and Confessors shall receive and accompany you And all the blessed Quires of Saints and Angels shall Celebrate your victory and Sing Halleluja's to their celestial King for his Inspeakable goodness to you My Lord You were made for the enjoyment of God and now you arrive at the accomplishment of that End you owe to God all you have and all you are And now you restore to him all both what you have and what you are O happy Restauration where the advantage is wholly yours where Misery is turned into Bliss where Temporal into Eternal where God is found where Death as the Apostle saith is Gain The Innocence of your Cause The Dignity of your Religion for which you Suffer entitles you to the merits of the Cross and Incorporates You to the Bloud and Passion of Jesus your Saviour If we shall be dead with him saith St. Paul we shall live together with him If we suffer with him we shall Reign with him Hence our Saviour himself He that looseth his Life for me shall save it Again If any Man will serve me let him follow me And where I am there shall my Servant be also You are going to the Nuptials of the Lamb. God who is all good is pleased to Impart himself entirely to you Love hath made him wholly yours What need you fear What can you desire He that dyed for the love of you will now reap the Fruits of his pains and joy himself in you with delights proportionable to his own Goodness and Merits You are Select from amongst Thousands for the Espousals of Love Let nothing either past or present deject you nothing disturb you nothing retard you Let not your heart be troubled saith our Saviour nor let it be afraid As for the Crimes for which you stand Condemned God and your own Conscience knows you are Innocent All un-interested Men believe you so Passion and prejudice against your Religion hath advanced the credit of Perjured Persons and influenced your Adversaries to carry on your Death Had you been no Catholick we all know you had never been a Condemned Man So that it is palpably manifest you Die for your Religion and for your Religion wrongfully traduced What greater comfort What greater glory What greater happiness can arrive to a true Christian Blessed shall you be saith our Saviour when Men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you Falsly for my sake Rejoyce and be glad for great is your reward in Heaven Concerning your real defects and frailties Take courage take confidence in God my Lord I have already told you what right you have to the Passion of Christ Your present Death is more then a Pledge of future Pardon Many sins are forgiven her saith our Saviour to Magdalen because she loved much to him that loveth less less is forgiven Now what it is to love much he himself sheweth saying No Man hath greater Love then this That a Man lay down his Life for his Friend Hence the Spouse in the Canticles Love is strong as death c. And our Saviour in express terms assureth us He that looseth his Life for me shall find it First therefore acknowledge your faults with a Penitent Heart and firmly believe what the Scripture avoucheth If we confess our Sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our Sins and cleanse us from all Iniquity Next offer with a chearful Heart your Life to God In satisfaction for your offences In union of the Sufferings of Jesus Christ In a Sacrifice of Love And then doubt not in the least but that Dying as you do in and for the Profession of your Faith Jesus hath signed your Pardon and pronounced upon your Soul those Life giving words Thy Sins are forgiven thee Thy Faith hath saved thee Go in Peace Neither let any endearments towards your Wife Children Friends or Family enfeeble your mind check your Love or imbitter your Joy Remember that Sentence of our Saviour He that loveth Son or Daughter above me is not worthy of me Again Every one that hath forsaken Houses or Brethren or Sisters or Wife or Children or Lands for my Names sake shall receive an hundred fold and possess eternal Life You cannot give God too much You can bestow nothing on him but what you have received of him and what upon many accounts is infinitly due to him But in reality my Lord you do not desert your Friends nor they you by rendring your self and them to God suffering for Jesus He it is standeth Charged with the care of your Wife Children and Family He stileth himself The Father of Orphans and Judge of Widdows As he punisheth to the

Constitution of the Government of this Kingdom is the only way to continue peace and quietness which God long continue Next to Treason I hold Murther in Abhorrence and have ever done and do And I do sincerely profess that if I could at this time free my self Immediatly and Establish what Religion I would and what Government I would and make my self as great as I could wish and all by the death of one of these Fellows that by their Perjuries have brought me to the place where I am I so much abhor to be the cause of any Mans death that I would not any way be the cause of their Murther how much less would I endeavour the Assassination of his Majesty whom I hold to be a Gracious a King as ever this or any other Nation had And under whom the People may enjoy their Liberties as much as ever any did And if it please God to grant him Life and Happiness according as I have always Wished and Prayed for I am morally perswaded that he and all his Dominions will be as happy and prosperous as ever People were Which I beseech God grant I do most humbly ask Pardon of the Almighty and All-merciful God for all the great Offences I have committed against his Divine Majesty and I know he would not have the Death and Confusion of a Sinner but that he may Repent and Live In that assurance I hope knowing he never despiseth a Contrite Heart And though I have not so feeling a Contrition as I would yet I have it as well as I can and I doubt not but that God will accept of the Good Will I do desire that all People will forgive me any Injury that I have done them in any thing either Wilfully or by Chance and I do heartily forgive all People in this World that have Injured me I forgive even those Perjured Men that so Falsly have brought me hither by their Perjuries I do now upon my Death and Salvation aver That I never spoke one Word either to Oates or Turbervil or to my knowledge ever saw them until my Tryal And for Dugdale I never spoke unto him of any thing but about a Foot-boy or Foot-man or Foot-race and never was then alone with him All the Punishment that I wish them is that they may repent and acknowledge the Wrong that they have done me then it will appear how Innocent I am God forgive them I have a great Confidence that it will please Almighty God and that he will in a short time bring Truth to Light then You and all the World will see and know what injury they have done me I hope that I have made it appear that I have some Conscience for if I had none certainly I would have saved my Life by acknowledging my self Guilty which I could have done though I know I am not in the least Guilty And I having some Conscience make very ill use of it for I throw my self into Eternal Pain by thus plainly and constantly denying thus at my Death the knowledge of what I am accused of in the least I have said thus much in discharge of my Conscience and do aver upon my Salvation what I have said to be really true I shall say little of my Tryal and whether it were all according to the known Law I am too much a Party to say much of it if it were not so God forgive him or them that were the cause of it My Judges were all Persons of Honour who were all as much bound to Judge rightly as if they had been upon Oath upon what was legally proved And not to Vote but according as in their Consciences they were satisfied And if any of them did otherwise upon any account whatsoever I beseech God forgive them I do heartily I shall end with my hearty Prayers for the happiness of his Majesty that he may enjoy all happiness in this World and the World to come and govern his People according to the Laws of God and that the People may be sensible what a Blessing God hath so miraculously given them and obey him as they ought I ask Pardon with a prostrate Heart of Almighty God for all the great Offences that I have committed against his Divine Majesty and hope through the Merits and Passion of Christ Jesus to obtain everlasting Happiness into whose hands I commit my Spirit asking Pardon of every Person that I have done any wrong unto I do freely forgive all that have any ways wronged me I do with all the Devotion and Repentance that I can humbly invoke the mercy of our Blessed Saviour I beseech God not to Revenge my Innocent Bloud upon the Nation or on those that were the Cause of it with my last Breath I do with my last Breath truly assert my Innocency and hope the Omnipotent All-seeing Just God will deal with me accordingly HIS Speech being ended he delivered several Written Copies of it to the Sheriffs and others near him one of which Writ with his own hand he sent to the King Then he returned to the middle of the Scaffold where encompassed by his Catholick Friends He kneeled down and reverently making the Sign of the Cross pronounced aloud with exceeding Devotion this following Prayer AGnosco Domine Jesu peccata mea multa magna pro quibus timeo sed spero in misericordiâ miserationibus tuis quarum non est numerus Secundum igitur magnam misericordiam tuam miserere mei secundum multitudinem miserationum tuarum dele iniquitatem meam Si Peccata mea magnasunt major est misericordia tua Si multae infinitae sunt miserationes tuae Si ego commisi unde me possis condemnare Tu non amisisti unde potes soles salvare Credenti in potentiâ tuâ dicenti Domine si vis potes me mundare tu statim respondisti Volo mundare Credo quod ipse credidit Spero quod ipse speravit Imploro quod ipse imploravit Dic igitur animae meae Salus tua ego sum Sana me Domine Jesu sanabor Salvum me fac salvus ero misericordias tuas in aeternum cantabo Ne projicias me igitur à faciê tuâ Spiritum sanctum tuum ne auferas à me Sed redde mihi laetitiam Salutaris tui Spiritu principali consirma me Tu dixisti dulcissime Jesu Convertimini ad me ego convertar ad vos Ego me ex toto corde meo ex totâ animâ ex totâ mente meâ converto ad te Converte te igitur misericordissime ad indignum famulum tuum quem pretioso sanguine redemisti Tu dixisti Omnis qui confitebitur me coram hominibus consitebor ego eum coram Patre meo qui in coelis est Ego te Sanctam tuam Religionem Catholicam vivens confiteor moriens adjuvante gratiâ tuâ confitebor dignare me igitur suscipere ponfiteri coram patre tuo qui in Coelis

Mort who sayeth That being at Deep Turbervil told him if they went to Calais they might go over with my Lord in the Yacht so that in the whole Mr. Turbervil may be said to have been peradventure something unwary in expressing himself but not Perjured in his Evidence To which the Papists answer To excuse a man from Pejury by pretending an occuls meaning and intention in the Swearer not expressed in the words of his Oath is such an Evasion as if admitted would destroy the Integrity of an Oath and elude all proof of Perjury whatsoever Turbervil Swears in down right terms my Lord came over by the way of Calais in the Company of Count Gramount without any addition That he was Informed so In which Oath he is directly Perjured for he Swears as an absolute Truth and without Restriction what of it self is an absolute Lye and what at best he could but Guess at by report and hera-say It is true indeed he contradicts himself in the sequel of his Information by saying He came away before my Lord and had not his Passage with him but it is connatural to Perjury to include contradictions Wicked Men are often blinded with Malice Passion or Interest And no wonder to find Incoherence of parts in a Story divested of Truth The only thing can be collected of Probability in this whole matter is That Turbervil being at Paris in an Indigent condition and desirous to return home got imperfect Intelligence that an English Lord whose name as yet he knew not and a French Count called Gramount had a Yacht waited for them at Diep And having also a Brother then in Paris he sought by his means to gain admittance for a Passage in the said Yacht This design of his he imparts to Mort a Person in the same condition and who had the same purpose with himself Hereupon Mort and he go to Diep in hopes to find the Yacht there but they fail'd of their expectation and Turbervil missing the Yacht would have perswaded Mort to go in the search of it to Calais Whilst they were in this debate they lighted on a Fisher-Boat and so came over in it into England Thus much may be conjectured from the Relation of Mort. But that Turbervil during his stay at Diep reccived a Letter from my Lord intimating his intention of coming for England by the way of Calais and that he should hasten to meet him at London is a most palpable Forgery For neither could Turbervil when required produce any such Letter nor did my Lord come over by the way of Calais as Turbervil would have us believe that Letter Imported And indeed who can imagine my Lord should send word to his new Confederate at Diep to hasten to meet him at London when he himself remained at Paris as hath been proved above a month after and at length also came not to Calais but to Diep and from thence home so that here is nothing but contradictions in the whole course of Turbervil's Evidence SEventhly Turbervil in the last mentioned Information positively Swore That the Lord Castlemain was present at certain Fraiterous Consults at Powis-Castle several times within the years 72 or 73 Now my Lord proved that the said Earl of Casilemain was never at Powis-Castle within the compass of that whole time This was demonstrated by the Attestation of Mr. Lidcot a Protestant and Fellow of Kings-Colledge in Cambridge who having Lived with the Earl Nine years and particularly Accompanied him in all his Journeys and Residences during those two above named years gave this distinct account out of his Book of Journals viz. My Lord set forth from Liege to Paris January 1st 72. Stilo novo where he remained three Weeks and from thence arrived at London January 24. Stil ' vet there he staid till May 73 from thence he went to Liege again in June and from Liege he set forth to London in August and returned back to Liege October the 3. Stilo novo 73. where he remained till January 74. c. Thus much to the charge of Perjury UPon this proof of Perjury the Mannagers made this Observation Mr. Lydcot the Fellow of Kings-Colledge as he call'd himself was indeed so out in his Arithmatick so mistaken in the year And used the Roman stile or date so much more then the English That they suspected he was not so great a Protcstant as he pretended to be To which the Papists answer That a solid Witness ought not be Railed out of his Evidence in a matter of Life and Death Mr. Lydcot however skilled in Arithmatick however great or little Protestant substantially proved the Earl of Castlemain never was at or near Powis-Castle from the first of January 72 till past December 73. the inclusive time wherein Turbervil Swears He was at a Consult there And it is strange so weighty and convincing a proof of Perjury in a matter of so high and serious a concern should be shifted off by a trissing Jest LAstly My Lord upon occasion made some Remarks upon Turbervil's Beggery Loose manner of Life and divers odd Circumstances in the course of his Evidence which much reflected upon his Reputation To support it therefore the Managers produced these Witnesses Mr. Arnold Jones Hobby and Scudamore Deposed That they knew Turbervil but for their parts never heard or saw any evil by him Mr. Matthews a Minister Deposed the same as to Turbervil's Reputation and added That Turbervil a little before he made his Discovery owned himself a Roman-Catholick but seemed to have a mind to quit that Religion being convinced by the Arguments Matthews gave him of the Excellency of the Principles and Practices of the Protestant Church yet would never acknowledge he knew one Syllable of the Plot. UPon these several Remarques the Mannagers made this Observation The good Character here given of Turbervil by four Witnesses shew him a Man of much Vertue and Integrity And it ought to be considered as a farther addition to his Praise that he had the grace though indigent to refuse the proposal made to him by my Lord of Killing the King To which the Papists answer It is no sufficient proof of Turbervil's Vertue and Integrity that four Persons say They know no ill of him He may be guilty nevertheless of a Thousand Crimes unknown to them few or none are so intirely abandoned or detested by all Mankind as not to find four Persons in the World who will make a favourable report of them But it is evident from what hath been already proved That Turbervil was a man in all points compleatly equipped for a Knight of the Post For first he was indigent Secondly he was horridly addicted to Cursing and Swearing Thirdly he looked upon feigning Discoveries as the only way to get Moneys All this is manifested by his own Words and conversation with Mr. Yalden and Mr. Porter before mentioned As I hope for Salvation said he I know nothing of the Plot. The

fourth Generation of them that hate him So he blesseth unto thousands of them that love and follow him Assure your self my Lord That for this one Heroick Act of giving your life for Justice for Innocence for God and Religion you will not only secure to your self everlasting Salvation but draw upon all your Family and Posterity thousands of Benedictions The Justice of our Lord saith David upon the Childrens Children of them that keep his Covenant Again Blessed is the Man that feareth the Lord that delighteth in his Precepts his Seed shall be powerful on Earth the generation of the just shall be Blessed Lastly that Sentence of Ecclesiastes will fittly appertain to you His memory shall not pass away and his name shall be preserved from Generation to Generation Nations shall declare his Wisdom and the Church shew forth his Praise I shall not undertake to dictate unto your Lordship what Prayers or Elevations of heart are most proper on this occasion The Holy Ghost whose Spouse whose Son whose Temple whose Victim you are will inspire you with better thoughts then I can suggest I shall therefore here content my self with some few Citations of sacred Texts out of which you may upon occasion draw the comfort of Devotion Evil Witnesses have risen up against me and iniquity hath belyed it self I believe to see the goods of our Lord in the Land of the Living I am the Resurrection and the Life He that believeth in me shall not dye for ever Fear not for I have redeemed thee I have called thee by thy name thou art mine Do not fear for I am with thee do not decline for my right hand hath sustained thee Because he hath trusted in me I will deliver him I will protect him because he hath known my name He shall cry unto me and I will hear him I am with him in Tribulation I will deliver him and will glorisie him with length of days will I replenish him and will shew him my Salvation In perpetual charity have I loved thee therefore I have drawn thee to me taking Compassion on thee My heart and my flesh hath fainted O God of my heart my inheritance God for ever The World shall rejoyce and you shall be sorrowful But your sorrow shall be turned into Joy and your Joy none shall take from you Be confident I have overcome the World Be thou my helper do not forsake me neither despise me O God my Saviour In thee O Lord have I trusted let me not be confounded I live and you shall live You shall know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you Certain I am that neither Death nor Life c. can seperate us from the Love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Whether we Live or Die we are our Lords To me to Live is Christ and to Die is gaine I desire to be Dissolved and to be with Christ Into thy hands O Lord I commend my Spirit Come ye blessed of my Father possess the Kingdom prepared for you This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise The God of hope fill you with all Joy and Peace in believing that you may abound in hope and vertue of the Holy Ghost Your Lordships most devoted Servant in our Lord. N. N. THose hours he spared from Prayer or necessary repose he bestowed part in the entertainment of his Friends though indeed none were permitted to come at him but under severe Provisoes and Restrictions amongst whom he demeaned himself with exceeding Sweetness Candor and Alacrity of Spirit Connatural to him always but more especially after he had an assurance of his Death Insomuch that he could not endure to see any in grief of dejection on his account For this reason his sad and disconsolate Lady who alone touched his heart and who could no longer support the weight of her affliction was forced entirely to absent her self from him the day before his Passage out of this World Some moments likewise he allowed to give his last Adieu by Letters to his nearest Relations particularly to his aforesaid most Dear Lady whose incomparable vertue and above forty years experienced constant affection to him had taken a deep impression in his Soul But because the Letters themselves express his mind and disposition better then I can describe it Read here these few Copies which good fortune brought authentick to my hands To my most Dear and Kind Wife My Dear and most Kind Wife GOD of his Mercy and Goodness I mest humbly beseech him to reward you for your extraordinary Kindness and Love to me I am sure no Man ever had a better Wife in all kinds then you have been unto me I am most heartily sorry that I have not been able to shew how happy I have held my self in the great blessing which God was pleased to afford me in having you not only for the great Family to which you are the undoubted Heir and Estate you brought me and mine but for the great Love you have always born me I sincerely ask you Pardon with all my heart for all that I have done to give you any dislike I know you will forgive me out of your kindness and affection you have so often shewn unto me more then I deserved If I should repeat all the kindness and affection you have shewn unto me and of all which I am most sensible I should not know when to end God reward you You were present this day when Mr. Lievtenent brought me word of the day of my Death I know the trouble it brought unto you I do most willingly submit my self to Gods Holy will and since he know how Innocent I am and how Falsly I am Sworn against I am most confident that the most Blessed Trinity will through the Merits and Passion of our Saviour Jesus Christ grant me a place in Heaven of happiness to glorify God to all Eternity amongst his Angels and Saints the lowest place in Heaven being an happiness above all the Kingdoms of the Earth I give God most humble thanks that I am absolutely quiet within my self from being guilty even so much as in a thought of that Treason I am accused of and never had a thought of any thing against the Person or Government of his Majesty And what I did towards the introducing of the Catholick Religion was no way but that which I thought to be for the good of the Kingdom by Act of Parliament I do ask of the Eternal and Merciful God most humbe Pardon for all my great Sins hoping in the mercy of Christ Jesus through his most sacred Passion to obtain remission of my Sins and Life everlasting in Heaven God protect and keep you and ours in his holy grace My dear I beseech you by the love you always bore me afflict your self as little as you can for the