Selected quad for the lemma: enemy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
enemy_n	army_n	little_a	time_n	983	5	3.1878	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89565	Emmanuel: a thanksgiving-sermon preached to the Honourable House of Commons upon their solemn day of praising God for the victory obtained by the Parliaments forces in Southvvales. In the church of Margarets Westminster, May 17. 1648. / By Stephen Marshall B.D. minister of Gods Word at Finchingfield in Essex.	Marshall, Stephen, 1594?-1655.	1648 (1648)	Wing M753; Thomason E443_3; ESTC R204197	25,337	44

people Thus was it to Pharoah and his hoast thus was it to Sisera and his army thus was it to Oreb and Zeeb who perished at Endor and became like dung upon the face of the earth thus with Senacharib and his great Army thus with all the Nations who were gathered together to defile Zion and thus shall it be with all the enemies of the Church so let all thine enemies perish O Lord Could the time permit me I would a little further instruct you out of the word in the severall wayes how Jesus Christ uses to affect this which are all unexpected wayes unto his enemies they are such as these Sometimes the Lord doth make some diversion for them calls them off that they cannot goe on though they fully purpos'd it 2 Kings 19. 7 8. Sometimes the Lord doth infatuate their counsels that they goe a simple way to worke in a businesse that else might bee carried easily Esay 19. 20 12. Sometimes the Lord doth breed divisions amongst themselves that they who thought to destroy Gods people help to destroy one another 2. Chron. 20. Sometimes the Lord strikes into them a spirit of terror and amazement that they doe not know whence it is nor why it is and yet their courage is wholly gone and so God threatned it should be both to Niniveh and Babylon Esay 13. Sometimes the Lord stirres up other creatures to doe it the Wind the Sun the Stars nay it may be the very insecta animalia Exod. 8. 9 10. the Rats and Mice and Frogs and such poore creatures and so delivers his people as he did Ieremiah out of a dungeon by rotten rags Sometimes the Lord Jesus doth it by his own immediate hand as in my Text here the hand of the Lord doth it as with devouring fire So hee did against Senacharib the Angel of God sent a plague that in one night kil'd a matter of ninescore thousand Esay 9. 6. and Esay 1. 3. 7. Sometimes the Lord doth it by giving mighty strength unto a handfull of his own people to bee able to tread downe and to breake through huge hostes of them who made account to lick them up as the Oxe should lick up a little fodder Iudges 1. Kings 20. there are plentifull examples of all these such wayes as these doth Jesus Christ delight to turn the plots of all the enemies of the Church upon their owne hands and for his peoples deliverance the ground of it in one word is this It all comes from that infinite love that Jesus Christ beares to his people my Text hath it you must be broken to pieces for Immanuel it is Immanuels land it is Immanuels cause it is Immanuels people the tender love that Christ beares to his people is the cause of all this though they are altogether unworthy of it With an everlasting love have I loved thee in Ier. 31. 3. therefore with loving kindnesse will I thus draw thee and in the 43. of Isaiah Since thou wast pretious in mine eyes saith God that is since I set my heart upon thee I will give men for thee and people for thy life the Lord cares not to give a mighty Army of enemies for the ransome of them that are pretious in his eyes and in another place I 'le make them of the Synagogue of Satan fall at thy feet and they shall know that I have loved thee for their sakes is hee Immanuel for their sakes is al power in heaven and earth committed to him the Father judgeth no man that is the execution of all the Soveraigne authority of God is now put into the hands of Jesus Christ for this very end God hath given him to be the head over all things to the Church they are all to be subordinate for the good of the Church his onely work and design is the welfare of his Church upon the Church hee hath set his heart the Church he carries in his bosome his Church he hath writ upon the palmes of his hands and the tablet of his breast and hee being furnished with all the power of God and all the wisdome of God and all the righteousnesse of God it can bee no otherwise but that all designes and plots that are against the Church must bee dashed and come to nought according to that promise in the latter end of the 54. of Isaiah No weapon that is formed against thee can prosper but every tongue that riseth up against thee in judgement thou sholt condemn this is the heritage of all Gods people saith the Lord these things I know you are not unacquainted with I shall now wind it up with an Application in two or three uses and they are all of them such uses which the Lord teaches his people to make of it in this very Chapter the first is A word of Caution because all plots and conspiracies against the Church must come to nothing therefore say you not a confedracy with them that say a confederacy this use of Prophet makes of it in the 12. verse assoon as the Lord had made this promise He presently with a strong hand instructs him not to walk in the way of that people saying say not a confederacy with them that say a confederacy that is when others doe either out of ill will against Gods people or from base feare or any other principle whatever associate themselves with the churches enemies do not you joyn in that confederacy with them the same caution I give you let it bee a watch-word to all of you to beware how you have your hand in any designe that is against the cause and people of God for certainly in it you can contrive nothing but your owne ruine Ahitophel was a wise man and hee would joyne with Absalon possibly onely out of policy because hee saw Absalon was the rising star and the people were discontented with Davids government and factions were spread and this man was like to carry it and what became of this wise man God turned his counsell into foolishinesse hee twisted a halter to hang himself and that was all Thou maist by such plots kindle a fire to burn thy owne house thou maist furbish a sword to run into thy owne bosome but all thy contrivements and joynings with them how wise or cunning so ever they are must turn upon thy own head to thy ruin if thou have any thing to doe with them therefore as Pilates wife sent to him have thou nothing to doe against that just man so say I to you have you nothing to do against Gods Servants it is a dangerous and a wretched thing to be ingaged against them it 's a wretched thing to carry the devill in ones brain to be plotting mischief but to be unsuccessefull in attempts yea to advance and doe good to them whom men would destroy and themselves to perish for their labour this

upon the Church yet the Lord sets bounds to them that they cannot go so far as the enemy would here the waters should come up to the chin but yet not over head and eares the Lord often afflicts his people but he will not give them up to a totall spoile and desolation all these things deserve to be handled more fully but the time will not allow it I come now therefore to that onely lesson that I intend more full to insist upon and that is this Immanuel our blessed Saviour doth turne all the plots and conspiracies that are against his Church upon the heads of the contrivers and makes them for the salvation and deliverance of his people that is the lesson That all the associations and plots that are against Gods people Jesus Christ doth so order the matter that in the result and event they shall be all turned upon the heads of the adversaries and for the welfare of those that are his servants there is no one argument in the whole booke of God more frequently repeated in various instances then this doctrin which I have propounded that of Aegypt of Sisera of Senacherib of Haman of the conspiracie against Christ and a hundred others more some relating to the Church in generall some relating to particular godly men in all of them the Lord hath ever made it good that the mischief intended against his people turns upon the heads of the contrivers But to make it a little clear to you I pray you note these four or five conclusions which all lie in my Text First That all the plots and conspiracies that wicked men have against the Church and people of God Jesus Christ hath a hand in the contriving of them here was Senacherib he and his people had confederated and associated in this plot but God sent him verse 7. Now therefore the Lord bringeth upon them the King of Assyria the Lord had determined how far he should goe how hee should spread over all the land and his waters should reach up to the neck in the next Chapter but one in the 10 Isa. God saith of him I sent him against them though he did not thinke so So also in the 4. of Micah Many nations are gathered together against thee c. but it followes presently I gather them as sheaves so in the famous case of the death of Christ Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered together against the Lord and against his Christ but it was to do what Gods hand and counsell had before determined to be done Secondly In this contrivement Jesus Christ intendeth one thing and the enemies intend another thing each of them working according to their owne principles that you have plain here the Assyrian comes in his intent is to swallow up all the Lords intent is that he himself and all his company shal be broken to pieces thus Iosephs brethren thought evill against him but God meant good to him thus Pharaoh intended the extirpation of Israel by that which God intended their propagation thus Haman intended the ruine of Mordecai and all the Iewes when God intended light and gladnesse and a good day to them thus the nations Micah 4. intended to tread down Zion when God intended they themselves should be threshed out and a hundred examples more might be given but I can only point at these things Thirdly That Jesus Christ doth very frequently let the designs of the adversaries of his Church goe on with a great deale of successe and prosperity untill they think themselves cock-sure of the whole businesse this you may see in the Text here they came with such a mighty Army that they made no question of carrying all before them made account all was their own thus Pharaoh went on till he was confident his wrath should be satisfied upon them Exod. 15. So Haman had got his decrees signed by the Kings letters which by the law of Persia was irrevocable thus was Peter kept in prison untill the very night before he should be executed and so in abundance of other designs against the Church you may see the like though it is very true that sometimes the Lord crushes them in the egge and will not let them break out into Serpents yet very often as we say in the Gunpowder-treason there wanted nothing but to put the match to the powder and the blow had been given so God lets the plots and contrivements of the enemies of his Church go on untill they make account that there be no way in the world to stop them or to prevent them so that if Gods people be delivered their soules must escape as a bird out of the snare of the Fowler The next conclusion is That when the enemies make account all is sure that they question not but the day is their owne then doth the Lord in some unexpected way dash all their plots bring them to nothing thus God defeated Pharaoh Exod. 15. thus was Haman defeated thus was the conspiracy against Paul defeated Acts. 26. a hundred instances might be given but I shall only open one similitude which God use to set down the manner of the destruction of Nineveh Nahum 1. 10. Nineveh was then the head of this Assyrian Empire and God expresseth the ruine of Nineveh thus when they are folden together like thornes and when they are drunken like drunkards then shall they be devoured as stubble fully dryed that is when their plots are curiously weaved and set so that no man shall dare to touch them no more then he would touch a wreath of thornes they have so contrived the businesse that they would faine see the man that durst appeare against them They are folded together as thornes and when they are drunken like drunkards that is they are drunken with pride and confidence of their successe they can hardly speak or goe they are so drunken with confidence when they are come thus to the top then shall they be devoured like dry stuble some way or other fire will be put to the thatch of the house and set it a burning and in a moment all is gone off Thus when the enemy is come in like a floud the spirit of the Lord lifts up a standard against him Thus God delights to take his time when they are at the highest and feare the least then God breaks their design the last conclusion is That when God breaks their designes hee delights to break themselves not onely to frustrate their designes but to ruine them too and deliver his people so it is here Associate your selves gather your selves gird your selves take counsell but still you shall be broken to pieces ye shall be broken to pieces ye shall be broken to pieces three times it is in one verse all breaking to pieces ruin and destruction to them and salvation and deliverance to Gods