Selected quad for the lemma: enemy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
enemy_n	wise_a	word_n	wound_n	11	3	7.1372	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A28643	Precepts and practical rules for a truly Christian life being a summary of excellent directions to follow the narrow way to bliss : in two parts / written originally in Latin by John Bona ; Englished by L.B.; Principia et documenta vitae Christianae. English	Bona, Giovanni, 1609-1674.; Beaulieu, Luke, 1644 or 5-1723.	1678 (1678)	Wing B3553; ESTC R17339	106,101	291

audible voices to the ears The pleasure which those senses receive from a beautiful sight or a sweet harmony may be called their life and their death or mortification in proportion to this is their being deprived of those objects whereon they act with delight which deprivation is very useful if not altogether requisite to arrive to a state of vertue and sanctification For nothing is more destructive of a Christian Life than a life of sense the imagination being as it were in the middle betwixt the soul and the senses when these work upon her as they are moved by outward objects she likewise works upon the soul and draws it to assent to the voluptuousness of lower faculties and this is not to be avoided without we bar our senses by a strict restraint from those things which affect them with sinful delights 3. In this consists the death of sense which is to be considered as twofold the first Natural when there is such a real separation betwixt sense and its object that they cannot possibly meet The second Moral when sense perceives but enjoys not its object being restrain'd from the pleasure of it The first some judge to be less difficult and more safe it being easier to avoid all occasions of sinful pleasure than to keep a due moderation when we ingage in them but in this discretion and due measures are to be observ'd The second is accordingly thought to be more dangerous because sensual pleasures are very inticing and insinuating and are known by sad experience to have a great prevalency over the Soul and nobler affections 4. And then farther it is to be consider'd that we suckt the poyson of voluptuousness together with our milk from our very infancy we learn'd to indulge sense and though we have often experimented that its delights and satisfactions are short and vain and unsatisfying and withal pernicious and highly afflictive to the Soul yet still we have the same notions of them they stick close to our mind and those pleasing though false apprehensions which first entred our hearts will not be rectified nor be gone till we have a long time used serious reflections and considerations till by many acts of self-denyal and contrary virtue we have imprinted in our minds the true principles of Christianity God is a Spirit and a spiritual life is the way to him to chastize and restrain the fancy to keep under the body and be guided by divine precepts is the way to spiritualize our selves and to come to God CHAP. VII Of denying our Sensual appetites especially Intemperance 1. IT is no difficult matter for a man who truly loves and fears God and studies to please him to despise and forsake all worldly pleasures pomps and vanities but to abstain from all food is not to be done for by it our bodies are rescued from death and the necessity of it returns upon us daily But because there is something of delight in the satisfying of this need there is danger also lest luxury mingle with it and pleasure which may follow after be the leading cause to our refection therefore though we cannot wholly forbear eating and drinking yet we must take great heed of the voluptuousness of it that necessity be not the pretence and pleasure the design of eating Nature is satisfied with a little but greediness or daintiness are always craving and sometimes we know not whether want or wantonness call for food and we are glad and willing to mistake that we may have an occasion to gratifie the unruly appetite In these we must daily watch our selves because these temptations do daily return and we must diet our selves with such moderation that we may nourish our bodies and not feed our lusts Plain abstemious and frugal food is the health of Soul and Body and he that pampers not his flesh by the quality or quantity of his meat and drink may easily master all carnal desires 2. To seek after feasts and dainties and to make them the matter of our discourse and our meditation is the part of an Epicure of one whose God is his belly and who minds earthly things but a Christian should be indeed and also live as a penitent pressing necessity should bring him to his table and thither he should come as if bread and water were his onely allowance that whatever is superadded may relish better and he may be more content and thankful and also moderate This we might easily do if we would duly consider how abstemious primitive Christians were how much our blessed Lord fasted and how for us he tasted vinegar and gall This if we would often call to mind and seriously set our selves to the imitation of their Blessed examples our conversation would be in Heaven and our thoughts would be far enough from dwelling in caves and kitchins As for the other fleshly lusts which also war against the Soul all occasions to them are to be avoided and idleness also a strict watch over our senses must be kept the rules of a severe modesty must be observed and especially we must shun all frequent and familiar converse with the other Sex for this without our knowledge and against our will kindles a dangerous and secret fire And lastly we must take great heed that we be not confident of our selves for in such a slippery way he is in some manner already fallen that fears not to fall CHAP. VIII Of Talkativeness and Silence 1. THE Evils of the tongue are past number therefore saith the wise man Prov. 10.19 In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin but he that restraineth his lips is wise Indeed talkativeness is a fountain and a torrent of iniquity It is a mark of ignorance it betrays much folly and is a great enemy to serious thoughts and recollection Mens words for the most part proceed from something of Pride for they commonly speak to teach others and to shew their own wisdom and great parts Every one thinks he knows much and to make it appear and be thought somebody he commonly outs with more than he knows As bad air drawn in doth in time affect infect the body so doth the breath of many words much prejudice the Soul It dissolves the spirit and breeds quarrels and contentions and utters lies and detractions and brings forth loose unseemly jesting and jeering and evils of all sorts In vain doth he indeavour to be devout and to have peace within who doth not refrain his tongue and set a watch before his lips In vain doth he endeavour to amend himself that censures and speaks ill of others This is a snare wherein many are caught to be indulgent to themselves and severe to others to boast and magnifie what is theirs and slight as much what relates to others Few there are that wholly renounce to this vice few that lead so uncorrupt a life as not willingly to tax others corruptions The propensity to this sin is so great that many counted good Christians

last will turn them into joy 2. Let us therefore look upon afflictions as very necessary and useful to us and let us receive them as pledges of Gods love and assurances of his care for us according as St. James exhorts Jam. 1.2 My Brethren count it all joy when you fall into divers Temptations knowing this that the tryal of your Faith worketh Patience but let Patience have her perfect work that ye may be perfect and intire wanting nothing Reproaches slanders persecutions and all other evils we suffer in this world are to be lov'd by pious men and to be counted good for though they be afflictive to flesh and bloud yet they proceed from the divine pleasure they come to us from God and as our Blessed Saviour told his unjust Judge John 19.11 They could have no power at all against us if it were not given them from above So that in all events we may meekly submit and rest satisfied considering this power from above And if we do not thus consider and receive our sorrows if we view them by themselves and not in their first cause that wise God who is the contriver of them and the fountain of all goodness then our minds will be afflicted with a thousand grievous fancies of things past present or to come which yet never were or shall be and we shall be sleepless and restless full of anguish and fears and distractions Whereas if we used our selves to refer all things to God and did look up to him in our Tribulations we should find rest and tranquillity his gracious will and appointment would answer and silence all our objections and whatever hapned we could quietly say with patient Job Shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive evil the Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord. That God who will have me to be afflicted is gracious and compassionate and hath a tender care of me He hath laid this cross upon me which I resolve to bear till he himself is pleased to take it off CHAP. XXII That Detractions and Derisions must be indur'd and derided 1. IF we grieve more for the Evil men speak against us than for the Evil we our selves commit against God then 't is a plain demonstration self-love prevails in us above the love of God He infinitely perfect and holy bears patiently with innumerable blasphemies and provocations and all the while bestows many blessings upon the offenders And we wretched sinful creatures who can hardly hear worse than we deserve a disobliging word or the least mention of our faults puts us into a fit of anger and fury though we infinitely deserve it we will not bear with reproof or contempt Whereas indeed we should rather fear the undeserved praise of men lest the prosperity and honour of the world cut off our communion and fellowship with the Cross of Christ Should the pains which our sins deserve and the Torments Christ suffered for them be laid in one scale and in the other the evils and injuries we suffer these would have no weight and be nothing compar'd to the other And farther if it be consider'd that the injuries we receive are made grievous according to our own apprehensions and not according to the intention of our enemies the disproportion betwixt our sufferings and deserts will appear yet greater For he cannot be injur'd that slights injuries and he is not wounded that will not by his impatience tear open his wounds The soft flesh not the angry hand that flings the dart is the cause of the hurt Should a mans body be hard as a rock arrows thrown against it could never enter and 't is from the softness and frailty of our minds that reviling words and affronts have power to make impression 2. Blessed is he that so orders his life that malice it self cannot fasten a calumniation upon him and next to him blessed is he that indeavours to be innocent and to have a good conscience in all things otherwise he is a peevish fool that will not hear what he delights to do But if it so happen that notwithstanding our Christian prudence and our perseverance in well doing men will speak ill of us then this is our comfort that we suffer with Christ undeservedly and we must remember his saying Mat. 5.11 Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsly Let men think and say what they will we are happy if our conscience doth not accuse us before God Mens opinions and their judgments are false and inconstant and vain and can make us neither better nor worse and therefore St. Paul saith that if we seek to please men we cannot be the servants of Christ Gal. 1.10 For it is impossible for one to please all mens thoughts differ as their inclinations and what some admire others will censure When a Philosopher was told that others laugh'd at him he answer'd At ego non derideor that others might laugh but he was not laugh'd at for it neither did hurt nor afflict him Meaning that those injuries are nothing for which we our selves will not be concern'd CHAP. XXIII Remedies against Discontent and Anger for what abuses we receive 1. IT would be much to the purpose of comfort and patience in all our adversities to fix our minds stedfastly upon God and take it off of our trouble which we increase by reflecting on it for whilst we affect our selves with pitty at the consideration of what we suffer we soften our spirits and the sense of our misery makes the deeper impression upon them Now all our afflictions proceeding from a present or a feared loss the best and most universal remedy against them would be to set our affections upon that supreme increated Good which is subject to no change and can never be taken away from them that love it And that we may also observe an outward Decorum and not disgrace our selves by giving way to impotent passions we must refrain and quite hold in our tongue as soon as we find our selves provoked by any word or deed for as it is a symptom of a weak stomach not to be able to digest harder meat so 't is a certain sign of a poor and weakly spirit not to have strength enough to bear with a cross word or a cross accident and it was the saying of a Wise and Religious man that he never found any thing so grievous but by silence he did overcome it For whatever others do to vex us comes to nothing if we slight it and if we shew our selves much concern'd we betray our weakness or our guilt and we make it appear that we well deserve the abuse 2. But 't will not be enough thus to repress our grief and our talkativeness we must farther reprove and humble our selves with the consideration of our sinfulness and unworthiness acknowledging we deserve more contempt than can be