Selected quad for the lemma: evil_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
evil_n	evil_a	heart_n	thought_n	2,080	5	8.0009	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90672	A firebrand pluckt out of the burning. A sermon preached at Margarets Westminster, before the Honourable House of Commons, at their late solemn fast, Novemb. 27. 1644. By Benjamin Pickering, Minister of Gods Word at Buckstead in Sussex: and a member of the Assembly of Divines. Published by order of the said house.	Pickering, Benjamin.	1644 (1644)	Wing P2150; Thomason E23_4; ESTC R18962	22,587	38

men women and children Judg. cap. ult except some virgins reserved for the Beniamites I beseech you that my exhortation and advise may be acceptable I could multiply many other considerations to set you on in a course of zeale but if these I have spoke helpe not to bring you to a further degree of heate especially now that we are in the fire round about we may feare that gray haires are upon us we are in a decaying condition as David whom many cloathes could not make warme Let all malignant spirits marke Vse 6. let this consideration take them off from their malice in opposing Altaschith is the title of some Psalmes Destroy not as a caution and a confident expression of the boldnesse malice and deficiencie of the enemie Let the gold and silver vessels c. be every one in his place as it is by Darius Decree seconding Cyrus Now therefore Tatnai and Shethar-Boznai and so Rehum the Chancellour and Shimshai the Scribe and such companions must be farre from thence If thou oppose the peace of Gods people and the building of the Lords house it is in vaine thou wilt be found to fight against God It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks therefore meddle not to thy hurt the Lord will finish in despight of thee The Devil and his instruments could doe nothing when Israel was in Chaldea deprest and buried how much lesse now when they are delivered lift up to Heaven brought to Ierusalem and the Temple so the policie and power of the enemy could doe nothing when the faithfull were enthralled under the Hierarchie when they had all advantages how much lesse now when the Lord hath tooke off those yokes and advanced his servants as the starres into the right hand of Christ Rev. 1. But the Devils malice is such that although he know that his owne practises shall ruine his owne kingdome yet he will not he cannot desist from mischiefe for malice is naturall to the Devil and therefore he is necessarily malicious as the fire is naturally and so necessarily hot and burning Zanch. de malis angelis and as Zanch. saith id in angelis est casus quod hominibus mors therefore as men after death are either pertinaciously evill or constantly good so are the Devils after their fall pertinaciously wicked and malicious and so it is with Gods enemies in whom the devil workes with efficacie they are not onely devilish but even equalize the devill in malice and mischiefe Iudas was even a devil Iohn 6. The enemies know and see that the Lord is with his Parliament with his Armies yet they go on the devil drives them and thrusts them on as the Turkish horsemen doe their foot to their manifest inevitable ruine When thy hand is lifted up Isa 26.11 they will not see It is an evidence of and dealings as Revel 16. It is noted that notwithstanding the powring out of the vials they were vexed and pained and gnawed their tongues yet they repented not and they repented not O let this take thee off when the Lords hand is lifted upon to deliver his people or judge the enemies Thou wilt not see but thou shalt see to thy woe if thou goest on to oppose the Lord. It is usually askt Is the devill in such a one whom we see mad and maliciously bent what devil then shall we thinke is in those that will yet in malignitie of spirit oppose themselves * Qua voce adeo potenter fregit satanae vires ut nullum postea reliquum fuerit impedimentum Zanch. in loc This reprehension for ought we know took off the devil himselfe as thus doest thou not see that the Lord hath puld his people out of the fire he thinks they have burnt long enough he hath begun their deliverance and so is ingaged to perfect it then why wilt thou offer to be an adversary how transcendently devilish then are those enemies of all pietie they see that there is no wisdome nor understanding nor counsell against the Lord and yet they will continue obstinate in their malice The Lord rebuke them the Lord that hath chosen Ierusalem rebuke them Job 41.8 O consider ye that forget God whom you have to deale withall Remember the Battle and doe no more I adde to this an admonition to every one Vse 7. O let us take heed of hindering the good of Christs Church and chosen Know I beseech you that it is not onely hindered by Malignitie and Neutralitie but even the best have a hand in stopping God which causeth him after he hath begun so to pause and to be at a stand How First by our Infidelitie Thus were Moses and Aaron and all Israel kept out of Canaan after their deliverance out of Egypt Matth. 13. ult The Lord cannot do many moe mightie works for us because of our unbeliefe Thus when things are adverse we give our selves for lost our hope is cut off as though God were not all-sufficient when things are prosperous we do nothing lesse then rest on God we leane on an arme of flesh we have a prudent Parliament a potent Army we have counsell and strength for warre so the Lord is deprest and these exalted which provokes the Lord to let us see the vanitie of these without his helping band and may provoke him to reject our confidences and sweare in his wrath that we should never prosper in them Secondly there hath been but bad use made of Gods beginnings First we have despised the day of small things Thankfulnesse would make us account small beginnings great favours yet what the Lord hath already wrought should not seeme small in our eyes considering what the Lord hath pull'd down and what he is setting up what he hath pluckt up and what he is about to plant what task-masters we are delivered from and what blessed freedome we enjoy Successes have made us more insulting then thankfull and tooke us off from our dependance on God who wrought for us Secondly we are a stubborn people now that Christ would reigne amongst us we say this man shall not reigne over us now Christ is coming toward us we bid him depart out of our coasts we are loath to subject our necks to his yoke our pride is such This makes him also at a stand Thirdly since the Lord hath multiplyed mercies we have multiplyed divisions and keepe in and foment such fires of dissention among our selves as justly provokes the Lord to let us lye in the burning Such a fire was kindled between Abimelech and the men of Shechem fire went out from Sechem and devoured Abimelech and fire went out from Abimelech devoured the men of Shechem Judg. 9. the Lord quench the fire threatening the like evils amongst us It is a fearefull signe of the fire of Gods anger ready to kindle on us when he sends and suffers an evill spirit to prevaile so between King and people but for the

divisions of Gods people there should be great thoughts of heart as for the divisions of Reuben there were great thoughts and great seachings of heart It is to be lamented with the teares of us all to see brethren agreeing in all substantials serving one God having one Father and Hope c. yet for some circumstances in matters of Discipline their contentions are as the barres of a Castle and the heat is increased as betweene Guelphs and Gibellines Honourable Senators here your Wisdome yea a Divine Wisdome from above must be obtained for you would shine if you could repaire all these breaches and compose things so that brethren might with peace of conscience dwell together in unitie then we should see that the Lord would delight over us to goe on to doe great things for us and the graces of God would then shine in his servants when they would in the spirit of meeknesse yeeld one to another so that the unitie of the spirit might be kept in the bond of peace This onely I adde If ye bite and devoure one another Gal. 5. take heed that ye be not consumed one of another Fourthly when we have had mercies showring down from heaven we have slackt our hands in prayer when Moses hands fell downe Amalek prevailed and so through our slacknes coldnesse in this dutie and others more then through the slacknesse of our Armies the enemies who were not long since even prayed downe have strengthened themselves to our reproach and danger Fifthly Selfe-love which sets us upon selfe-seeking and selfe-ends is so predominant that the publique concernments are not so promoted If we had publique concernments are not so promoted If we had publique spirits our endevours would have had a further influence into the publique good then yet they have had And many provocations there are amongst us to bewaile many Achans amongst us many cursed things not onely hid in the tents but brought forth in the sight of the Sunne they declare their sinne as Sodome and hide it not much cause of humiliation these are unto us all this day and we must not looke to see Gods work-perfected till we All mourne and repent for the many evils in the midst of us How long shall I see the Standard and heare the sound of the Trumpet Jer. 4.21 It is answered in the next words by the Prophet My people is foolish c. Junius reads it So long as my people is foolish and sottish and wise to doe evill And Honoured Worthies I beseech you to admit of me that I may use boldnesse This burden concerns all and cals upon all it is for admonition to all but especially You When Israel had provoked the Lord by their spell and bodily uncleanesse the people were plagued in a fearefull manner there fell in one day foure and twenty thousand Moses was not blamed Num. 25. but the Heads of the people Hang up the heads of the people that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel Why the Heads of the people They should have lookt better to the people in governing so to prevent sin or they should have beene more swift to execute judgement when they fell into sinne It is not enough that you are not grosse sinners that you are reformed so long as there are in the midst of Citie and Kingdome even where your Power also reacheth many abominations there are as Ezekiel speakes Ezek. 22. in thee in thee much excess many profanations horrible uncleannesse I speake what I know even abominable incest not onely acted once or twice but continued in to the just provocation of Gods anger against you and all of us and there is no course for redresse none to punish or put them to shame there is in the midst of us oppression and crueltie there are in the midst of us many Innocents whose faces are ground and their bones crusht and broken most injuriously they cry for reliefe they stretch out their hands to you for helpe O releeve the oppressed and judge the cause of the helplesse lest the Lord heare their cry and it be sinne unto you Delay not make speed to seeke judgement to bring the wheele upon the wicked put not off such things the delaying of which delayes all your hopefull proceedings delay not one day to trouble those that trouble Israel but as Ioshua said so doe ye God shall trouble thee this day These and many such things lye upon you therefore provoke your spirits to zeale and courage feare not faint not if Christ had fainted in the worke of our Redemption what had become of us he fainted not not was discouraged till he set judgement in the Earth do ye likewise Observe how the Lord describeth the Horse Iob 39. His neck is cloathed with thunder he paweth in the valley and rejoyceth in his strength he goeth out to meet the armed man the quiver rattleth at him the glittering speare and the shield he saith among the Trumpets aha and doth God care for horses glorifie God in the creature and learne courage from him break through all like lightning as in naturall motion so the neerer you come to your haven where you would be let your motion be swifter The Lords beginnings engage him to finish ye are Gods as Psalme 82. Follow God the Lord hath beene very zealous for you and us take heed of coldnesse in this heat labour to hasten Reformation in the Church that it may be the gladnesse of Gods people to goe to the beautie of holinesse that the Tribes may goe up to the Testimony of Israel and for the better governing the Common-wealth let there be set thrones of judgement in all places as Psal 122. And to conclude Let us all put to our helping hands armes purses counsell encouragement for the helpe of the Lord against the mightie let the Ministers of Christ be carefull to maintaine unitie to provoke Christians to peace to unite against the common Enemie on some have compassion making a difference and others save with terrour pulling them out of the fire O let all be humbled before our God this day and put our mouthes in the dust and then our prayers will be very prevalent with God our legions would be thundering legions as Christian armies of old dreadfull to the enemie let us all helpe with our constant prayers be the Lords remembrancers give him no rest till he refine his Church and pull it out of the fire he that hath neither purse nor weapon nor hands nor counsell to helpe hath a heart O poure it out in prayer give not over till the Lord hath made Ierusalem a praise in the earth It is usuall to put words into a Delinquents mouth whereby he is delivered from death The Lord deales thus with us he bids us take words and he also suggests words whereby we may be delivered from iniquity received graciously Hos 14.2 So Ier. 3.19 He deviseth a way for us how we should obtaine the lengthening of our tranquillitie It is the Lord that asketh the question How shall I put thee among the children and give thee a pleasant land even a goodly heritage of the hostes of nations And I said thou shalt call me My Father and shalt not turne away from me This then is the Lords way that he would have us take to cry Father Abba Father to pray to devote our selves to God and never to turne from him No people ever had more encouragements and more needs then we have to wrastle with God O wrastle with God leave him not till he blesse us give him not over till we prevaile when we are Princes and prevailers with God then shall we see Mercy and Truth meeting Righteousnesse and Peace kissing then would the Lord be with us in these fires or pull us as brands out of the fire and then and not till then we shall be prevailers over men FINIS