Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	day_n	good_a	lord_n	2,726	5	3.8026	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A87186	Considerations tending to the happy accomplishment of Englands reformation in church and state. Humbly presented to the piety and wisdome of the High and Honourable Court of Parliament.	Hartlib, Samuel, d. 1662.	1647 (1647)	Wing H981; Thomason E389_4; Thomason E397_25; ESTC R201517	28,652	73

Parliament and the Power and Abilities in it which are under God to be the Meanes of our Happy Settlement there can be nothing conceived or proposed of greater importance and more befitting the thoughts of Wise and Conscionable Men in Parliament then the Determination of these Duties If therefore any respect either to God or to Our selves or to Posterity can raise Mens thoughts above Particular and Private Interests to minde the settlement of a Publike Good in a Way which is unblamable the worth of these Duties and the obligation whereby God doth engage Us all but chiefly our Leaders to desire the fulfilling of them should raise both their and our thoughts to the entertaining of such deliberations Certainly Gods Aime in bestowing upon Us this Parliament and upon the Parliament all Power and Ability to Act whatever it will in the Kingdom is none other then this to make them and Us under Himself Instrumentall in Our owne Felicity by serving him in his Kingdom but if we should not care to minde the settlement of his Kingdome amongst Us are we not unworthy of all these blessings And shal they not be taken from Us deservedly if wee serve our selves only or a particular Party of Men which wee affect with our Interest in the Publike Power and if we make Use of the Means which we are intrusted withall and set our thoughts onely to finde Wayes thereby to make Our selves and Our Party great we shall be found in the day of Accounts Unfaithfull Stewards and naughty Servants to so good a Lord and Master For it is most Undeniably apparent that these fore-mentioned Duties are the true and proper Workes of his service whereunto wee are called and the onely Meanes to deliver Us from the danger of our Confusions will bee to Deliberate maturely of the performance therof Therefore as Mordecai said to Ester in another case so we may say with a small charge of the expression to those that fit in Parliament He said to her And who knoweth whether thou art come to the Kingdome for such a time as this But we must say to Our Senators And Who knoweth not that the Kingdome is come unto You for such a Work as this Therefore You are bound to mind it and use Meanes to advance it and if You will not know neverthelesse that this dispensation is committed unto You and that God will find some others to do this Work without You but that You and the People which is led out of this Way will certainly be destroyed But wee will cheerfully Hope and by the Grace of God confidently Expect that upon a more full discovery and faithfull Insinuation of the Way How to proceed in the prosecution of this Enterprize there will bee ho neglect in the Undertaking nor impediment in the execution Let Us then proceed to the Fourth and Last Point in hand to shew How the Parliament should apply their Authority Counsell and Abilities to the accomplishment of these Duties and this we shal intend to doe if God permit by shewing the true Contrivement the right Use and the Incredible Advantages and Benefits of an Office of Publike Addresse which may be easily and without delay erected and set afoot among Us. Of the Fourth THe Honourable House of Parliament are the Great Committee of the whole Kingdom for the Universall Reformation therof and by the Deputation of Power given to them in their Members from every part of the Kingdom the whole Power of all is contracted in their Body as in the Headship of the Nation for Counsell and Justice and from thence all Power hath again an influence upon every part of the Kingdome as need required Now by vertue of this Supremacy or Power summed up in them and in reference to the necessity of things to bee done under them they have a right to confer Power and make Deputations of Authority unto others to Act for a Reformation so as by them they shal be directed nor is it lawfull for any without leave and commission from them to act towards a Reformation in a Publike Way so that properly the Worke of Reformation is radically seated in the Body of the Houses and no Committee can bee with any just title termed a Committee for Reformation but the Houses themselves because none have any right to minde and act a Reformation in the Generall but They. Yet this notwithstanding it is Lawful no doubt for all Men to entertaine the thoughts and wishes of a Generall Reformation and would to God every one in his place were acting something as a preparative towards it more then seemes to be intended If then it should be moved that the Houses would depute some of their Members without excluding any from partaking of the same cares to mind not so much a particular Taske in the Work of Reformation which is Ordinary in the appointment of all Committees as to seek out the Generall Rules and Maximes by which the Course of a setled Reformation should be steered guided at all times that those Maximes might be proposed and debated in the Houses and laid as Grounds of the Righteous Wayes by which all their Government is to be established under God I suppose it would bee a great advantage both to their proceedings in Counsel and to the direction of all such as being subordinate unto their Power desire to act knowingly according to their just intentions For the Main Fundamentall Rules of all just proceedings once being setled and received not only the Subordinate Agents but the Senators themselves in doubtfull Cases of Advice will be therby able to find Light what to resolve upon and in dark matters of Judgement they will be directed thereby What Sentence to give Conscionably according to their own Uncontroulable Principles This Committee for Rules of Reformation should have power and be ordered to call unto them for Consultation the most Learned Godly and Experienced Divines of the Kingdome whether in or out of the Assembly to put them upon the thoughts of Resolving such Queries and Doubts from the Word of God and cleer Principles of Reason as they shall think fit to propose unto them for the framing of those Maximes of Reformation which they shall prepare to be proposed unto the Houses to be upon debate received as Universall Rules to walk by in the pursuit of such an Evangelicall Settlement and Reformation as wee should now aime at And although Men be never so able in Parts never so much read in all Authors never so deeply grounded in all Sciences never so largely experienced in all Affairs and never so much seen in all the World and consequently every way as much qualified as men can be for a work of such high Consequence as this will be to this State yet except they have some helps to enable them to look upon Matters neer at hand with some speciall relation to the changes of Times Things Persons and Occasions whereunto their endeavours are to be applyed