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
A39570	The bishop busied beside the business, or, That eminent overseer, Dr. John Gauden, Bishop of Exeter, so eminently overseen as to wound his own cause well nigh to death with his own weapon in his late so super-eminently-applauded appearance for the [brace] liberty of tender consciences, legitimacy of solemn swearings, entituled, A discourse concerning publick oaths, and the lawfulness of swearing in judicial proceedings, in order to answer the scruples of the Quakers ... / by Samuel Fisher ...	Fisher, Samuel, 1605-1665.	1662 (1662)	Wing F1051; ESTC R37345	155,556	170

assuredly spue her out of his mouth But if we were to take a true cognizance of her State by those Lof●…y Scornful Strains of Derogation and deep Defiance into which this Bishop launcheth forth at large against the Quakers in these and some other of his Words that follow we might without censuring beyond what is meet conclude her to be of such a vaunting and self-glory strain The Bishop seems and that scarce without some indignation at the Quakers insolency to wonder our hearty desire for him is that he may not be found among them that despise and wonder and perish at that work that God is working in these dayes which it seems he does not believe yet as obvious as it is to any eye over which the vail does not remain in the very Letter of the Scripture which he accounts himself in comparison of the Quakers to be not a little skilled in viz. that men so mean as the Quakers so abrupt and obscure so far from that Beauty and strength of Religion which he Dreams is among themselves because perhaps of some outward Eloquence of Speech in respect of which he is counted as he sayes of himself at least not a barren or difident Speaker so far below the ordinary Symmetry of reason Lineam●…nts of common sence in their writings so Rude Silly Ignorant Uncatechised and Crude in ther 〈◊〉 should with so great Confidence in an age of so much Light and Learning take upon them to be as he at least supposes they are so blindly Censorious such bold Dictators of things for Truth which he deems to be but their own Dreames deceptions and dotages to men of such renown as himself for Beauty and strength of Religion Sence and Reason but surely if he did not Read the Scriptures by whole-sale more then by retail or did but heed the inside of that Book which he is so busie about the back-side of unless he be one of those Learned ones to whom that Book is sealed he might easily understand that it is those low silly mean wayes whereby God ever delights to do the greatest matters that no flesh might glory in his presence nor any man nor mans parts strength Learning Education or Wisdom be accounted of Have you never Read O obtuse Acuti Academici ye profound prudential Renowned Rabbies how great Goliah of Gath that defied the Armies of Israel and the Living God was of old brought down by a sling and stone in the hands of a Stripling that came not to him with Sword nor Spear but in the Name of the God of that People whom he defied have ye never 〈◊〉 in the last dayes of the deliverance of his People he will do 〈◊〉 like and make his weaklings as David to go forth and subdue wi●… aling-stones Zach. 9. 15. How he will draw out that Crooked Serpent Lev●… with a hook yea how the least of that little stock of his Shee●… 〈◊〉 hear his voice which the learned Scribes had not heard at a●…ime though they pretended to great skill in searching the Scriptures should draw him out how out of the mouths of Babes and sucklings he will perfect his own praise and ordain strength against the Persecutors to still the Enemy and the Avenger Psal. 8. Although the Chief Priests and Scribes Mat. 21. 15 16. Luke 19. 39. were sore displeased at it and would fain have had them been Rebuked and Commanded to hold their Peace how he will speak to the Drunkards of Epbraim that through the wine of their own wise dom and through strong drink are out of the way even the Priest and the Prophet that are out of the way through the strong drink of their own vain divinations and Err in Vision and stumble in Iudgement how he will speak to them with stammering lips and another tongue than they look for And how the Word of the Lord out of the mouths of his weaned Children shall be Precept upon Precept Precept upon Precept Line upon Line Line upon Line here a little and there a little that they may go and fall backward and be broken and snared and taken Isai. 28. How it seems good in his fight to hide the Glorious Mysteries of his Gospel and Kingdom from the Wise and Prudent while he reveals them unto Babes Mat. 11. How Christ himself and that Excellent Glory of his which was the fulness of that Grace and Truth that came and comes to his Saints in the Light by him the shadow onely of which Substantial Image of the Father came by Moses and is found among all that are Learned no higher then the Letter was hid under that mean outward appearance and Occupation of the Carpenter Mark 6. 3. And did any of the Rulers of the Pharisees believe in him but onely that People of whom they said according as they also thought they knew not the Law and were accursed how by the foolishness of Preaching sith in the Wisdom of God the World by Wisdom knowes not God it pleased him to save them that believe how he will save the Tents of Iudah Rude Rusticks honest poor plain-hearted Country men first that the Glory of the house of David and of the Inhabitants of Ierusalem Kings and Princes chief Priests Renowned Doctors wise Counsellors deep Studied Schollars noble rich proud self-conceited Citizens and such like may not magnifie themselves against Judah How he makes foolish the Wisd●… of the Wise and Prudent●…ow ●…ow he sends his Treasure which is the vessels●…hen ●…hen the Babylonish Trash of Abomination and filthiness 〈◊〉 Whores Spiritual Fornications is exhibited in the golden Cup 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 her hand Rev. 17. How he delights to provoke a Nation that ha●… ●…rovoked him to anger by their own inventions to Iealousie by a foolish Nation and to weary them by a People that are not a People in their eyes Deut. 32. 21. Rom. 10. 19. How he made use of Aquila a Tent-maker and Priscilla his Wife to take to them Apollo then a more Eminent Preacher of Christ then any Parish Priest is in these dayes though he knew him yet but as it were after the flesh and to instruct him in the way of God more perfectly And what if God who as to the substance of it is Eternal and unchangeable in his way will go the same way now as ever he has done and befool the Learned Grecian the Scholastical Scribe and disputer ●…f this world by his foolishness which is wiser then man and by his weakness which is stronger then man and put out the eyes of those men that are so wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight as the whole Fraternity of the Clergy are that seem to themselves as So●…s of Anack whilst the Quakers are lookt upon by them with disdain as no other then meer Grashoppers in their eyes so that they shall call good evil and evil good put darkness for Light and Light for darkness bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter what if he

and as King Iames said in one of his Speeches to his Parliament It is a pure rule in divinity that God never loves to plant his Church with Violence and Blood and that it was usually the condition of Christians to be Persecuted and not to Persecut●… And King Charles the first in his Eikon Basilike pag. 67. in his complaint to God Thou feest how much cruelty amongst Christians is acted under the colour of Religion as if we could not be Christians unless we crucifie one another and pag. 28. Make them at length seriously to consider that nothing violent or injurious can be religious So is it God knowes what ever mistrustful minds may think who measure others corn by their own Bushel a pure Rule Principle and Resolution in our Church as knowing nothing else but patience toward all even ill men will prosper finally and overcome and that we are not to be overcome of Evil but to overcome Evil with Good to make no violent resistance if we could against those under whom we suffer singly for our Consciences much less to exercise Violence in order to the forcing of any against their Consciences to be of us Nor do we build up the City Zion by Blood nor Ierusalem by any Iniquity and Deceit and who ever are otherwise minded how Apostolick so ever they may pretend to be have relinquisht aposta●…ized and degenerated from not that which is ours alone but from that pure Principle of the primitive Pastors who had no dominion over the Faith of any that were within much less any that were without the pale of their Church whom they left to God to Iudge which said Principle can possibly stand no more with Persecution than God himself can stand in Union with the Devil Bish. Or fourthly By way of discreet connivance and charitable indulgence so far as the civil peace of the Nation will bear untill reason and religion of whose prevalency wise and good men never dispair have by ealme and charitable methods recovered People from the error of their waies by the Sacred doctrine and good examples of those who conform to the established Laws in Church and State Ans. It is remarkeable that all of those four waies of treating any party that dissen●…s from themselves which this Bishop hath prescribed three whereof are discreet good and justifiable and two of them justified by himself and but one very bad and condemned by him as barbarous and unchristian he himself is found witnesse his assent to the Act following and assenting to no other then the very worst viz. to Impoverish Imprison Banish and so destroy dissenters a course dissallowed as he confesses by all wise men of all perswasions for I appeal to all wise men to judge whether so much discreet connivance and charitable indulgence hath been used as yet to the Quakers untill reason and religion of whose prevalent ey wise and good men we confesse never dispair though evil men dispair of overcoming by their evil manners and so betake themselves to sharper courses have by calme and charitable methods recovered the People from that which he calls the error of their way by any either Sacred doctrines or good examples of such as conform so freely to that religion that is now establisht What such sound doctrine have we seen delivered by any of the Bishops or by this Bishop either in these his pretended undertakings thereof sufficient to convince any rational man of the Legality of that sort of swearing he so pleads for 2. What good examples have we from the lives and conversations of the Conformists to gain us to the belief of it that their most solemn swearing is the will of God concerning whom though they speak much against the Quakers the Bishop himself by way of discommendation saith pag. 17. that the Quakers shall rise in Iudgement at the last day against many of those their accusers for this very thing in that whilest others are common swearers against Gods own Command and so such as are disposed to false swearing and grosse perjury sins of the first magnitude yea such as to whom when they swear never so solemnly in Iudicature no more credit is to be given then to Lyars the Quakers for which no good men can blame them as he saith have a just abhorrency of the sin of prophane easie trivial familiar false and inconsiderate swearing for which the Land mourneth and whilest the others have no reverence of the Majestie of God nor the Sacrednesse of an Oath the Quakers have so great a fear of an Oath that out of a jealousie of swearing amiss they will not swear at all Do we not see Iniquity abounding beyond all bounds of modesty and common honesty People wallowing in the mire of Lust Voluptuousnesse Uncleannesse Drunkennesse Excesse of Riot Pride Prophane and Predigious Swearing by new coyn'd new invented and before unheard of Oaths in a way of Bravado as if they would dare God to Damne them and engage him to do it before their time Lying Consening Chea●…ing Defrauding countenancing all manner of Lewdnesse and Debauchery among that People who are found the most forward and Zealous Conformitants to what ever Image the Bishops shall set up in the Church 2. Will the ill and beas●…ly manners of bruitish minded men ever win the Quakers from that good conversation which they have in Christ Iesus which is the end of all that Religion that lies in outwards yea as Christ sayes the very Law and the Prophets will it ever gain them back to the old forms upon which God hath stretched forth the line of confusion and the stones of emptinesse to live there with the old meer Formalists their old wretched and unprofitable lives over gain Doth not that sound doctrine and good example the Bishop speakes of remain yet invisible to the eyes of any save such as call evil good and good evill put darknesse for light and light for darknesse hath it ever yet been seen among the generality of Parish People whereby to render dissenters from them inexcusable and justifie that severity which is now by Law to be inflicted on the Oppinions and Actions of those which are true just honest and in no wise so extravagant to the prejudice of the Kingdome as the Bishop makes them But the Bishop who is so wise as to insert in the midst of every of them some odd clause or other whereby to make himself a creep-hole out of the censure of that absurdity which otherwise would fall upon his sayings hath one here also whereby to escape Ob●… For saith he discreet connivance and charitable indulgence is to be used so far onely as the Civil peace of the Nation will bear but the permission of the Quakers Opinions and Actions unlesse they be reduced to obedience do many wayes perturb the publike peace affront the established Religion threaten to subvert our Laws by their disobedience thereunto and to obstruct all Iudiciall proceedings Ans. The Civil Peace hath been

will turn wise men backward and make their knowledge foolish and carry away Counsellors spoiled and send his Son a new as a Light into the world that those that see not may see and that those that see as the Seers seem to themselves to do may be made blind Does he any more then was wont to be done of old Is there any new thing thereby done under the Sun Is it any more then what hath said he will do And must he cease to do as he ever hath done and hath said he ever will do because the wise men in their own eyes cannot trace him in his footsteps which are in the great deep Alas poor foolish men that are glorying in your own wisdom and strong men in your strength while Gods People glory in the Lord alone and rejoyce in his highness who is the God of their Salvation Little do you think how he that sits in Heaven hath them that oppose his Image in derision how the Virgin Daughter of Zion shakes her head as she did of old against the Insolent Assyrian at the Arogant Antichristian which Reproaches and Blasphems and Exhalts himself and lifts up his haughty Eyes on high for so the Eminent Ecclesiasticks now do against the Light of Israel that is as a Fire and his Holy One that is as a Flame that shall kindle upon Thickets of the Forrest even all that vast wast Wilderness of External T●…tionary Religion that is sprung up out of the bottomless Pit of ●…er mans Invention and Imagination which knows no bounds of adding Ceremony to Ceremony till the Substance and Power of Godliness is eaten out of doors as Pharoahs seven thin ears of Corn and lean Kine did devour the Fat and and Well-liking Yea verily a little of that Honesty Simplicity and Truth in the inward Parts which is the Sacrifice God delights in and of that harmless Simplicity which with the Bishop goes for Silliness and never well Catechised Ignorance Plain Breeding Unpollished Manners and suck like of that Wisdom that makes Poor men and Women Wise to the Salvation of their Souls from their Sin will in the day that 's coming weigh down in the Ballance of the Sanstuary all that Subtilty Pollicy Prudential Piety and Wisdom of Words wherein the greatest Doctors and Dictators who are out of the Spirit are found Teaching and Dictating by which they never obtain or bring others to obtain the Conquest over their own hearts Lusts and Corruptions nor bring themselves or others forth of all Iniquity into God's Righteousness nor as that Primitive Bishop Timothy was bid to do ever save either themselves or those that hear them witness their belief of a necessity of Sinning and non-belief of any possible attainment by the gift of Gods Grace to live without Sin while there is any Being in the Body So that however the Bishop Jeers at the Quakers Writings and Undertakings as some odd Way of Folly drest up with some Scripture Phrases void of any true Life and Beauty within yet so much more efficacious are the meanest of their Testimonies to the Light not only to the Convincing but Converting men from Sin and Errour and to the vindicating of Truth and omiting the impertinencies of outward Ceremonies which are not so much as accessary to Salvation the necessary Points of Duty and Morallity then all the Life-less Preachings of those Painted Sepulchers which flourish their Sermons as with Sweet Flowers and fair Colours with Phrases of Iunior Fathers and Sententious Sayings of more modern Authors that in the Name of the whole Body of that People we say to the Bishop of that strange hidden Divinity of the Quakers which he scoffs at as nothing but Canting and Chymical in the Words of the Poet Hoc ego opertum Hoc ridere meum tam nil nulla tibi vendo Iliade Bish. My design is not to ravel into all the petty Opinions Enthusiastick raptures and odd practises of the Q●…ers nor will I severely perstringe them c. Answ. We would have the Bishop to understand that there is not any no not the most petty Opinion nor odd practice that is owned by the Body of that People called Quakers though every thing that 's done by every one that may possibly bear that Name may not be owned by them which however Jeer'd at by him under that old Scholastick scoffing term of Enthusiastick rapture will not be made good against the whole Body of those Bishops that believe they have so much ground to except against it were they once made as willing to condescend from their high-mindednesse as the Scriptures require they should Rom. 12. in all plainnesse of speech which most becomes the weighty matters of the Gospel to be discussed in to confer with men of no evill minds though of such low Estates plain breading and unpollished manners as the Quakers for the most part seem to him to be and whom he perstringes much more severely by his condemning of their Opinions and practises by whole-sale and in the Lump as odd heriticall and erroneous which yet is the wonted way of all the Clergy with those they Quarrel with then if he took account of us concerning them in particular Bish. I have a great pitty for them First because I perceive them to be very unlearned and unstable People ever Learning but never coming to any solid knowledge of the Truth or any great improvements in Christian gifts men of low parts and small capacities as to any point of true Wisdome and Understanding in things Humane or Divine tossed to and fro with every Wind of Doctrine easily seduced with specious pretentions and strange notions even to Raptures and Enthusiasms which are presented to them as novellies by some that are Masters of that Art and Agitators for that Party for what designe Private or Publick Forreign or Domestick God knowes some suspect Iesuitick Arts to be amongst them Answ. If these and such like Contemptuous Disdainfull and I●…onicall terms as he uses here as well as before and after were at all seemly from a Bishop yet are they so much the lesse sav●…ry and seemly from him in sundry Respects First because these expressions which savour of nothing lesse then such a thing proceed from him under a Pious pretence of his great pitty towards the Quakers Secondly because himself hath declared this his own practice to be contrary to that of the Holy men and Fathers of Old whom he commends as men guided by the Word and Spirit and so worthy to be imitated by him for those holy men saith he did not at any time despise the meannes of any Christians outward Condition or the fatuity of their Opinions Thirdly For as much as himself elsewhere brands it as a prophant and Atheisticall Carriage to disdain the plainnesse of the way which the Wisdome of God sees fit to hold forth the Gospel of Salvation in witnesse his own words then which we scarce need any other in most Cases