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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
earth_n	heaven_n	lord_n	word_n	16,216	5	4.2023	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A73841	Two sermons on the third of the Lamentations of Ieremie preached at Hanwell in the first yeare of his Maiesties raigne, 1602. / The one by I.D. the other by R.C.	Dod, John, 1549?-1645.; Cleaver, Robert, 1561 or 2-ca. 1625. aut; Winston, John, fl. 1614-1634.	1608 (1608)	STC 6951; ESTC S118445	50,535	72

withstand them hee notwithstanding comes confidently to God for helpe assuring himselfe that God could saue and deliuer with none 2 Chron. 14.11 as well as with many And so may it as truelie bee said that God can helpe by fewe friends as well as by many yea without all friends and meanes as if wee had all that the world could afford vs. Obiestion Oh but my miserie is desperate Answere Neuer say so What if you be in the low dungeon Was not Ionah so And yet hee prayed and was helped therefore neuer be dismayed Your troubles are great but your God is greater and mightier to helpe you out of them than they are to holde you fast still The Lord hath made the heauens and the earth by his worde and that drowned the whole world in his displeasure This mighty Lord I say rides vpon the heauens as it is Deut. 33. full of maiestie and full of abilitie to deliuer you and to set you free from the strongest bonds of affliction 3. Merciful 3 The third thing in Gods name is that hee is mercifull Which worde signifieth that God hath such bowels of compassion towards his seruants as a mother hath towards the child of her wombe There neede not many exhortations much lesse an eloquent oration to a mother to stirre her vp to succor and relieue her child when it stands in neede of her helpe and yet put all the kindnesse of all the men and women in the world together and it wil come but to a drop in comparison of that sea of mercie that is in our mercifull God Obiect And this propertie is well ioyned with the former for a poore afflicted soule hearing of Gods power might say I know God is powerfull but what is that to me perchance hee may vse his power to my ouerthrow Answer Nay saies he God is as mercifull as hee is powerfull why then should any bee discouraged by miserie sith that is the verie obiect of mercie Whence it is that this argument is often vsed in the scripture Psal 6.2.3 Ps 86.1.2 Lord helpe mee for I am sore troubled Lord saue mee for I am poore and needie And this mercie of God wee may more cleerely see in the Father of the prodigall sonne Luke 15. who perceiuing his lost child comming towards him hee runnes towards his sonne and falls on his necke and kisseth him giuing him all kinde entertainment that might bee his verie miserie was a sufficient motiue to worke vpon his fathers heart neither doth hee at all vpbraide him with his former leaud behauiour Now if any earthly father can bee and ought to be thus mercifull how much more will our heauenly father especiallie since that hee loueth vs better than any earthly father can loue his children and shews forth his loue vpon euery occasion as the Prophet Hoseah testifieth saying Hosea 14.4 In thee the fatherlesse findeth mercie Obiection Oh but I am worthy of no mercie 4. Gratious Answer What of that Gods name is also gracious That is louing and shewing mercie without any merit he will not tarrie till wee deserue it but will freely shew forth his goodnes towards vs. Doe not wee giue foode and raiment to little children that hang on the breasts If parents should stay till they deserue it they would neuer grow to bee men and women Therefore it is said of Abraham Rem 4.5 that hee beleeued in him that iustifieth the sinner Noting thereby that sinne cannot hinder Gods fauor from offenders but that through faith they shal be iustified and made innocent in Gods account as if they had neuer offended at all Let vs not then when wee are in distresse be discouraged by reason of our corruptions but goe to the Lord who wil shew himselfe gratious notwithstanding them all Obiection Oh but what comfort can I sinfull wretch haue to goe to so holy a God Answer Why doe you not know his name He is a gratious God and when wee can finde no matter of worthinesse in our selues he can finde matter enough in his owne nature and in his sonnes merits If wee could finde any desart in our selues or our workes God should lose his name of beeing gratious Obiection But alas I haue prouoked him and iustly drawne his hand vpon mee by mine owne sinnes 5. Slovv to anger What if you haue hee is slow to anger That is long ere hee be prouoked and when hee is prouoked easie to bee appeased Wee can no sooner fall out with our sinnes but hee falls in with vs. An earthly father will not take euerie aduantage against his child and when the child is grieued for a great fault will not good parents be easilie satisfied And why should wee thinke God harder than our selues At least let vs make him as good as our selues and be assured that when wee haue kindled his wrath against vs one teare of true repentance will quench all the flame thereof and draw downe his pitie and compassion vpon vs. To this Dauid giueth testimonie saying Ps 103.8.9 The Lord is slow to anger and of great kindnesse he will not alwaies chide nor keepe his anger for euer And this hee himselfe found by experience For when he beeing a King and that of Gods owne choise set ouer his owne people and withall a holy Prophet in both which respects hee was to bee a patterne of all godlines and righteousnesse vnto others when hee I say after many mercies receiued had grieuously prouoked the Lord insomuch as hee was angrie with him 2. Sam. 11.27 and then did not repent for his sinne but lay in it and added diuers other hainous offences vnto it yet after all this God doth not reiect him but sends his Prophet Nathan vnto him 2. Sam. 12.13 and is more readie to offer him pardon than hee is to aske it and when hee did but beginne to make confession of his sinne God tells him forthwith that hee had put away his sinne And this wonderfull readinesse in God to bee appeased towards penitent sinners the Prophet Isaiah maketh mention of bringing in God himselfe speaking in this manner Isa 57.16 I will not contend for euer neither will I be alwaies wroth For the spirit should faile before mee and I haue made the breath Where wee see that as Psal 103. there is a reason drawne from Gods nature why hee cannot deale rigorously with vs namely because hee pities vs as a father doth his child So here there is a reason brought from our nature why hee cannot be ouer-seuere to wit that then the spirit would faile before him and those whom hee hath made and redeemed would perish and bee vtterly consumed Men were not able to beare the continuance and grieuousnesse of his hand but would sinke vnder their burden and so should be a greater loser than they in that he should lose them whom hee hath so long and so intirely loued for whom hee hath so deerely paide

from the stroakes of God as the pestilence or the like yea from the furie of Satan and from the assaults of sinne All other towers are but poore weake cotages Let men dwell where they will whither can they goe but death wil finde them out They may flie from the Plague but God will pursue them for he is not an archer that hath but one arrow or such arrowes onelie as will reach those that are neere but though they should runne to the end of the world hee is able to shoote at them and the arrowes of his vengeance will finde them out No strength can defend them when he comes against them with his strength nay all the power of men is but a broken reede and all meanes of no force in themselues If wee onelie vse them in obedience they will bee as a staffe to leane vpon if wee rest on them they will be as a broken staffe that will deceiue vs and giue vs a fall Vers 56. Thou hast heard my voice stop not thine eares 57. Thou drewest neere c. Whence this doctrine ariseth Doct. 3 That Gods children in their prayers and seruices doe marke and know how they speed VVe must obserue how we speed in religious exercises so that they cannot onlie say I thanke God at such and such a time I prayed but O Lord thou diddest then heare my voice then diddest thou draw neere vnto mee at such a time I was put to it and thou deliueredst mee out of great danger This wee see in the spouse who when her beloued was departed from her saith In my bed night by night I sought him Cant. 3.1.2 whom my soule loueth and found him not Shee had not that ioy and refreshing as she was wont to haue from the vse of the priuate meanes and shee knew it and obserued it full well Then she went abroad and there found as little successe Afterwards shee comes to conferre with Gods Ministers how she might recouer her loue to Christ and the feeling of Christs loue vnto her and yet there shee had not that full successe as she expected Then she goes a little further that is as was before shewed waits patiently vpon God and then she found him whom her soule loued and tooke hold of him that is faster hold then euer she had done before She had paid so dearely for her negligence that she would be warie how she failed in her dutie any more So that when she sped well or ill she knew how it went with her This point is further proued vnto vs out of another verse of this Chapter of the Lamentation Lament 3.8 where these words are vsed VVhen I cry and shoute hee shutteth out my prayer Not but that God tooke notice of it and had a time to reward it but for the present he gaue them no answere They had hard hearts and God saw that one crie and shoute would not be sufficient to mollifie and soften them and therefore he lets them pray and cry againe and againe and yet still they had the repulse and they obserued to their great griefe Psal 66.18.19 Answerable to this is that in the Psalme where Dauid saith If I regard wickednesse in my heart the Lord will not heare me But God hath heard me and considered the voice of my prayer Reason And there is reason why as they did marke how they sped so should wee also For vnlesse wee doe so it is impossible that wee should euer bee thankfull for that wee receiue or lay vp any store of comfort against the time to come If wee speed ill wee shall goe away without any care or studie to grow better if wee speed well wee shall depart without any desire of glorifying God or of confirming our hearts for afterwards Whereas diligent obseruation how God deales with vs would worke in vs great experience both for our humiliation and consolation For sometimes Gods seruants haue a comfortable answere to their sutes and then they come away as fresh and nimble and ioyfull as if their hearts had beene made glad by sweet and pleasant wine Ps 109.15 At another time they come limping and fainting away as if they had beene strucke on the head So for the Sermon now and then they depart from it as from some notable feast so merrie and comfortable as if they had made the best bargaine that euer they did in their liues at some other times they come out of the church hanging downe their heads and full of pensiuenesse as if they had receiued the sentence of death What is the cause hereof Profane persons thinke they are the melancholiest and vnconstantest people in the world But will not they themselues looke heauilie on the matter when they are crossed in things that are most deere vnto them And why then should they blame Gods seruants if they be sometimes merrie and sometimes heauie according as they are crossed or comforted in the worde of life which is more deare vnto them then all the treasures of the earth Howsoeuer they may charge them to be vnconstant yet indeede they themselues are more vnconstant For let them haue to deale with some great Iudge about matters of their estate and let them be told this day that they are likely to haue good and fauourable hearing that the Iudge likes well of them and of their cause how ioyfull and iocund will they be How will they talke of it and in a sort boast of it But let them come to the Iudge themselues the next day and let him frowne vpon them and tell them I vnderstand you are a leaud fellow I know your practises well inough looke to your selfe and acquite you well lest I strip you of your lands and life together Will not such a salutation cast them into their dumps and make them looke heauie and sad as if they were halfe dead And if one should aske them why are you so variable They would wonder why he should make such a question Haue wee not iust cause to bee cast downe would they say when the Iudge that gaue mee such good hopes before doth now looke and speake so wrathfullie against mee And wherefore then will you finde fault with Gods seruants who deale with the King and Iudge of heauen and earth in the matter of their saluation whose fauor they esteeme more than all things in the world and whose displeasure they feare more then all the mens in the world yea then death it selfe Why I say doe you finde fault with them if their comforts ebbe and flow as matters goe better or worse betwixt God and them Vse 1 This is for cōfutation of carnall hearers who are affected at all times alike They haue heard many hundred sermons but they were neuer more comforted at one than at another They are none of these changelings but the same men still But let such know that hee that doth neuer feele himselfe sicke it is greatly to bee doubted hee