Selected quad for the lemma: evil_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
evil_n	bitter_a	good_a	light_n	2,289	5	8.2364	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01759	The epistle of Gildas, the most ancient British author who flourished in the yeere of our Lord, 546. And who by his great erudition, sanctitie, and wisedome, acquired the name of sapiens. Faithfully translated out of the originall Latine.; Liber querulus de excidio Britanniae. English	Gildas, 516?-570?; Abingdon, Thomas.; Marshall, William, fl. 1617-1650, engraver.	1638 (1638)	STC 11895; ESTC S103163	93,511	458

led to death and forbeare not to redeeme them who are murthered because as the same Prophet saith Riches shall not profit in the day of wrath but justice delivereth from death And If the just truely be hardly saved where shall the wicked and sinner appeare If thou scornest us and all these the darkesome flood of hell shall without all doubt eternally drowne thee in that deadly whirlepoole and those most terrible fiery streames that shall ever torment and never consume thee and then shall the palpable knowledge of these paines and sorrow for sinnes bee altogether to late and unprofitable unto him who as now in this acceptable time and day of Salvation deferreth his conversion unto the righteous way of of life And here truely if not before was this so dolefull and lamentable an history of the miseries of our time to have received a conclusion that our mouth might no further discourse of the workes of men But that we may not be esteemed fearefull or overwearied whereby we might the lesse carefully avoyde that saying of Esay which is Woe be unto them who call good evill and evill good placing darkenesse for light and light for darkenesse bitter for sweete and sweete for bitter who seeing see not and hearing heare not whose he●rts are overshadowed with a certaine thicke and blacke cloud of vices We will breefely set downe what and how great threatnings are denounced against these five aforesayd lascivious horses the franticke followers of Pharaoh through whom his army is wilfully urged forward to their utter destruction in the red sea and also against such others by the sacred Oracles with whose holy testimonies as with a faire roofe the frame of this our little worke may be most assuredly covered that it be not subject to the showres of the envious which otherwise would be mainely powred thereupon Let therefore the holy Prophets who have beene unto mortall men the mouth in a sort of God and the Organ of the holy Ghost forbidding evils and favouring goodnesse answere for us as well now as in that before against the stubborne and proud Princes of this our age that they may not say we menace them with such threates and so great terrors onely of our owne invention and over-busie talking rashnesse For to no wise man is it doubtfull how farre more grievous the sinnes of this our time are than those of the first age the Apostle saying Any one transgressing the law being convicted by two or three witnesses shall dye how much worser punishments thinke ye then that hee deserveth who shall trample under his foote the Sonne of God And he first of all appeareth before us Samuel by the Commandement of God the stablisher of a lawfull kingdome dedicated to God before his birth undoubtedly knowne by admirable signes to bee a true Prophet unto all the people from Dan even to Bersheba out of whose mouth the Holy Ghost thundreth to all the Potentates of the world by denouncing unto Saul the first king of the Hebrews onely because he did not accomplish some matters commanded him from our Lord in this sort Thou hast done foolishly neither yet hast thou kept the Commandements of our Lord thy God that he hath given thee in charge which if thou hadst not commited even now had our Lord prepared thy raigne over Israel for ever but thy kingdome shall no farther arise And what did hee commit adultery or any abhominable murder like to the offences of this time No truely but broake in part a Commandement because as well one of ours noteth The question is not of the quality of the sinne but of the violating of the precept Also when he endeavored to answere as hee thought the objections and after the fashion of men wisely to make defences for his offences on this wise Yea I have heard the voyce of our Lord and walked in the way through the which hee hath sent me with this reprehension was he corrected by him What will our Lord have burnt offerings or oblations and not rather that the voyce of our Lord should be obeyed Obedience is truely better than oblations and to hearken unto him better than to offer the fat of Rammes Because as the sinne of Southsaying so is it to resist and as the offence of Idolatry not to obey in regard therefore thou hast cast away the Word of our Lord hee hath also cast thee away that thou be not King And a little after Our Lord hath this day rent the Kingdome of Israel from thee and delivered it up to thy neighbour a man better than thy selfe The triumpher of Israel truely will not spare and will not be bowed with repentance neither yet is hee a man that he may doe pennance supposed ever upon the hard stony hearts of the wicked Wherein it is to bee noted how he saith that to be disobedient unto God is the sinne of Idolatry Let not therefore our wicked transgressors while they doe not openly sacrifice to the gods of the Gentiles flatter themselves that they are not Idolaters so long as they treade like swine the most precious pearles of Christ under their feete But although this one example as an invincible affirmation might abundantly suffice to correct the wicked Yet that in the mouthes of many witnesses all the offences of Britaine may bee approved let us passe to the rest What chanced to David for numbring his people the Prophet Gad speaking unto him in this sort Thus saith our Lord. The choise of three is offered thee Elect to thee one of these which thou wilt that I may execute it upon thee Either shall there befall thee a famine for seaven yeares or three monethes shalt thou flye thine enemies and they pursue thee or certainely there shall be three dayes Pestilence in thy land For being brought into great streights upon this condition and willing rather to fall into the hands of God who is mercifull than into those of men he was humbled with the slaughter of LXX thousand of his subjects and unlesse with the affection of an Apostolike charity he had desired to dye himselfe for his Country-men that the Plague might not further consume them by saying I am the same person that have offēd●d I the sheepheard have dealt unjustly these who are sheepe what have they sinned Let thy hand I beseech thee be turned against mee and against the house of my Father He should have purged the unadvised pride of his heart with his owne death For what doth the Scripture afterwards declare of his Sonne And Solomon wrought what was not pleasing before our Lord and he did not supply in his place that hee might as his Father follow our Lord. And our Lord said unto him Because thou hast thus behaved thy selfe and not observed my covenant and precepts which I have commanded thee breaking it asunder I will divide thy Kingdome and give the same unto thy Servant