Selected quad for the lemma: evil_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
evil_n	darkness_n	good_a	sweet_a	3,257	5	8.2420	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93062	The sinfulnesse of evil thoughts: or, a discourse, wherein, the chambers of imagery are unlocked: the cabinet of the heart opened. The secrets of the inner-man disclosed. In the particular discovery of the numerous evil thoughts, to be found in the most of men, with their various, and severall kinds, sinful causes, sad effects, and proper remedies or cures. Together with directions how to observe and keep the heart; the highest, hardest, nad most necessary work of him that would be a real Christian. / By Jo. Sheffeild Pastor of Swithins London.	Sheffeild, John, d. 1680.	1650 (1650)	Wing S3064A; Thomason E1863_1	165,696	337

to be cast out by prayer and fasting and the omnipotency of Christ A dumb spirit it is you can get nothing out of him and a deaf spirit too you can get nothing into him The fire burnes inward and there is no coming nigh with buckets or engines The saddest complection it is and the strangest Metamorphosis it makes in the mind turning all truthes into fables and all fictions and phancies into realities Evil he calls good and good evil sweet bitter bitter sweet light darknesse and darknesse light mirth joy cheerfullnesse company of friends he calls evil darknesse solitarinesse mourning sadnesse these are good and sweet yea hope faith hearing praying he calls bitter but reasonings of distruct doubting gainsaying oh how sweet To laughter he saith thou art madnesse to joy what meanest thou of himself he faith I am a companion to dragons and company for owles To the light he saith why is light given to him that is in misery and life to the sad in heart To his Job 3. 20. friends he saith turn away from me labour not to comfort me I will weep bitterly c. Esa 22. 4. To all Godly friends Ministers as well as others he saith you are miserable comforters all Physitians of no value o● that you would altogether hold your peace whither he would he cannot tell into any wildernesse or among tombes any where to be gone And it is well if he do not say unto God I am cast out of thy sight there is no hope I am like a broken vessel and instead of better prayers put up this passionate wish Oh that I might have my request and that God would grant me the thing that I long for Job 6. 8. 9. even that it would please God to destroy me that he would let loose his hand and cut me off The case of this person●● the more sad because having for no cause put all his old acquaintance and tried friends out of doors viz. faith hope prayer promises discourse enquiries he hath left himself onely two to consult with whom he reckons of as his best friends silence his ill counsell-keeper and sadnesse the ill counsell giver who are indeed his mortall enemies And which is worst of all over head lodgeth despaire and below self-murder Poor soul wherewith shall I bemoan thee or how shall I go about to comfort thee Sad sad is thy condition thou wishest night were day and day were night and every thing especially thy self to be any thing but what they are sleep departs joy is banished meat distastfull musick lothsome friends unwelcome employment torment holy duties irksome yea promises no more savoury then the white of an egge oh it is time to send for the Physitian of souls in this desperate case disciples can do nothing In this case it is hard to say what is to be done or spoken we speak not to men but to stockes and stones that have eares and hear not tongues and speak not reason but understand not and ofttimes faith but beleeve not Go not in this case to Cains land of Nod to retire thy self from society or tire thy self with employment To Sauls musick for diversion or to Endor in thy desertion nor to Judas's high Priests for satisfaction and exoneration nor to the Legionists Mar. 5. 5. mountaines or tombes no nor to Elias his cave or John Baptists wildernesse nay nor into the Incestuous penitents cloyster or closet to drown and macerate thy self in thy sorrowes But get thee into the sanctuary of God whatsoever be the occasion of thy griefe whether sin or misery pour out thy soul in prayers judging thy self flying to Christ looking up to the mercy seat staying thy self in thy darkest houres upon the name of the Lord Es 50. 10. and trusting upon him whom thou wouldest gladly find thy God Cast all thy care and burden even of sin and sorrow upon him and as he is faithfull he will not fuffer thee to be tempted 1 Cor. 13. 10. above thy strength But will make a way out of all temptation and trouble that thou mayest be able to bear it He that goes in trouble of mind to the Harp at first for ease commonly goes to Endor after and at last to the halter sword or knife And on the other side the Mad-merry The mad merry Thought thought or unsavoury lightnesse of mind is nothing better oft-times worse The former sad thought decayed the comforts of the soul this destroies the soul it self That lops off the fruit of peace this digs up the root of grace that abateth hope this subverteth fear Both bad this worse That like the Legionist runs away from Christ in fear among the Mountaines but is cured and recovered this Mar. 5. 13. runs with the possessed swine from Christ with joy and delight from the Mountaines Mar. 5. 5. amain into the sea and there they are choaked and perish As we say of presumption and despair despair kils more dreadfully presumption more unsuspectedly yet presumption kils the ten thousands and despair but thousands so for one that dies of sorrow going mourning to the grave ten die of mirth going laughing to hell These swine go in herds Yet am I not against all mirth but that which I called mad and unsavoury There is one mirth to be allowed another to be commended a third to be desired and increased a fourth to be checked reproved and suppressed 1. There is a naturall mirth which cannot Natural mirth be disallowed the weary man doth naturally rejoyce in rest the hungry in his meat the sick in health restored so we read of the joy of the harvest man in his harvest of the rejoycing Esa 9. 3. Esa 62. 5. Joh. 16. 21. of the bridegroom in his bride of the woman delivered of her child Honest and harmlesse joyes all 2. There is a better mirth to be commended Morall and civil mirth a Civil moral virtuous mirth an habituall pleasantnesse and alacrity of mind which is as much to be cherished as the health of the body and doth much conduce to it and to the carrying of us through the various conditions and exercises of this life with cheerfulnesse Thus the Lord would have his servants not onely to rejoyce in his service but to rejoyce in whatsoever we put Deut 12. 18. our hand unto And he is pleased not only to permit but more then once to command the husband to live joyfully with his wife he Deut. 24. 5. Eccl. 8. 7 8 9. Pro. 5. 18. Col. 3. forbids bitternesse sournesse and morosity and commands not onely love but delight joy and pleasantnesse to them in that condition whereby their lives should be made mutually more comfortable to each other 3. But there is a third better mirth commended Spirituall mirth and commanded to the people of God highly to be prized and desired a spirituall mirth and rejoycing their duty and priviledge their work and wages