Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	body_n	part_n	soul_n	1,351	5	5.0190	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45125	The axe laid to the root of separation, or, The churches cause against it by the author who wrote in the late Times for free admission to the Lord's Supper.	Humfrey, John, 1621-1719.	1685 (1685)	Wing H3670; ESTC R225063	79,856	182

Nations as He did Israel to come in to the Christian Church and to enter Covenant with Father Son and Holy Ghost If the Gospel be Preached and they Believe that these Three Persons are the only true God they are to be Baptized into their Name They are to Come and to come So as to be Sincere Converts They are to Engage and to engage So as to resolve upon the Performing the whole Condition on their Parts that they may be Saved If they fail in the Manner and do not Engage so as they ought or do not resolve upon the Performance supposing it a Conditional Engagement or rather resolve not Entirely but in Part or so far as to take God for their God and King in opposition to other Gods which is the main thing of that Covenant as the Israelites for the most of them at this Time we may be sure Did so that there is a Partial but not Total Hypocrisie to make it Evil in it self in their Engagement I Quaere Whether the Matter is not yet still what they are called to And if it be they Must and for ought I see they May engage as Israel did Where they fail then in regard to the Manner they are to be Reformed but what Their Duty is must be done If they Resolve not as they ought they sin I suppose in the Manner of their Engagement But I must ask Whether they shall not sin more if they Engage not at all if they quite turn their Back upon God and the Gospel and leave both the Manner and Matter undone You may object But can we think that the People could say They Would do all God commanded and God approve of it as Well said of them Deut. 5.27 or that they should make a Covenant by Sacrifice passing between the Parts thereof Jer. 34.18 and Enter into a Curse and Oath to walk in God's Law Nehem. 10.29 and yet intend nothing but a Conditional Dis-junctive Obligation to Do it or be subject to the Penalty Answ I say not so They did all take God to be the True God and their God in opposition to all false Gods And as for these Words here which they Said and God Approved I must first premise This That to engage a Man's self under the Curse of God to Do any thing must be laying the greatest Obligation on his Soul that can be to the Performance and if it were God's Will that the whole Body of Israel should engage to their Part of the Covenant so as to say Amen to the Curses which I think is not to be denyed it does appear that this Obligation by Covenant must be their Duty even the Duty of the Whole Body and consequently their Doing it and God's Command of them to do it must be Justified Which being premised I say that when these Words All that God hath said we will do are attributed to the Whole Body they were all under great Commotion that we know for certain at the Terrible Appearance of God as ever was and some of them I doubt not said So with a present Resolution of Sincere Obedience and did Perform it as Zachary and Elizabeth walked in all the Ordinances of the Lord blameless Others of them I believe said So out of that present Fear only and Awe of God upon them as the Seed that fell on the Stony Ground sprung up Presently but for want of Root Withered The Generality it is like had the Idea of a General Implicit Obedience in their Thoughts which they did also endeavour I suppose in their Lives but it was External altogether thinking That sufficient to their Justification before God And such an Obedience the Vnregenerate Man we know can Engage to and Perform all alike with the Regenerate there being no Duty in the Outward Matter or Outward Act but he can do as well as the other he can Hear Read Pray give Alms as well as the other when yet he cannot do it out of that Principle to that End and after that Manner as the other which is the Doing it so as to be acceptable to Salvation Now if I should rest here and say That these Words All that God commandeth we will do are to be understood of such an Engagement and that such an Obedience which is External only and Insincere is yet in the Matter or in Its self good and Man's Duty so that notwithstanding the Failure in the Manner it must be Engaged to and Done I do apprehend the Cause were carried But because my chiefest Cause ought to be Truth I must yet add That a great many of this Multitude I believe did say I for Company that is they consented with others in the General Terror without any formed Consideration of what they promised or Resolution to perform it nay their Hearts bring wicked they could have no mind to do it whatsoever Fear might constrain from them And when we see well how the First sort could say these Words with the Acceptation of God and how the Second might say the Same without any present Lie yea how the Third also might engage so Far and God in Tantum approve it I would fain know in respect to the Fourth sort of them how God and Moses could require of the Whole Body any Engagement to the keeping all God's Precepts but upon the Account I have offer'd that is upon this Account That it was a Covenant-Engagement which being of Validity for obtaining the Blessings to all those that Perform it was not in Vain as to those whom He deals withal still as Men that perform it Not because they were thereby even according to Agreement yet obliged to the Penalty and God was Righteous as their Lord and King to make every one of them Subscribe to it I will add a Simile that will come a little more near the Matter than some One we have had before In an Oath of Allegiance to a Prince a Man cannot swear to the King's Government but it includes Subjection to his Laws which Laws perhaps he knows not or if he do he knows he Breaks many and yet so long as the Substance of that Oath lies in the Owning his Authority against all Foreign Jurisdiction and being True to the Crown which one that is no Popeling does heartily consent to he makes no Scruple to take it notwithstanding those Laws for he makes this Account that if he submit to the Penalty in case of Transgression or can escape without Resistance that is consistent with his Allegiance So in the Covenant of the Jews which was a Covenant of Fealty to God as their King so long as they could freely and absolutely Consent to take God for their Lord and to serve Him alone in his Appointed Worship in opposition to ull other Gods their Submission to the rest of God's Precepts we may conceive to be under such Political Terms as in this Instance is signified See I have set before thee Life and Good Death and Evil therefore