Selected quad for the lemma: fire_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
fire_n	body_n	soul_n	world_n	2,436	4	4.6901	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A00972	The historie of the perfect-cursed-blessed man setting forth mans excellency by his generation, miserie [by his] degeneration, felicitie [by his] regeneration. By I.F. Master of Arts, preacher of Gods word, and rector of Wilbie in Suff.	Fletcher, Joseph, 1577?-1637.; Cecil, Thomas, fl. 1630, engraver.	1628 (1628)	STC 11078; ESTC S105608	35,115	104

MISERIE By His DEGENERATION Mortalis vitae vitalis Mortis amara Illicitum gustans gustat avarus Homo MANS MISERIE BY HIS DEGENERATION The Argument Above which height of Bliss when He would rise Headlong He fell to depth of miseries BVt fickle Man ambitiously bent With glorious state not holding Him content Proud Lucifer-like greedy to arise To higher pitch of glorie did devise To throw Him-selfe and his Posteritie Into the lake of all extremitie Their Bodies Soules their Persons their estate By Sin Death Hell for aye to ruinate For here this Man must be considered As the main root from whence are issued The sev'rall branches of each sev'rall Man Which shall are have bin since the World began When root 's corrupt then must the branches needs Corrupted be for root the branches feeds So is 't with Him and His He drank corruption Which poys'ned Him and all his Generation For soon as He his great Creatours will Having full pow'r it freely to fulfill Did wilfully reject to choose a toy He ther-upon bad farewell to all joy By which first fault He shook hands with the Devill And promist wel-come t'ev'ry kinde of Evill For He blinde Soule misled by fond conceipt Thought Evill Good and Good a plain deceipt Then Sins like Caterpillers 'gan to swarm Or Souldjer-like by strength and mighty arm Came rushing-in upon Him and with snares Of guilt and Death bound Him and all his Heirs Foes now He finds them whom He took for friends Though all too late He sees it by their ends For though Sins seem to better our estate They are of utter ruine but the bait And Satan Syren-like doth us allure With flatt'ring shows Sins poison to procure For all Mans Pow'rs and Pers'nall Faculties Were pois'ned all chang'd their Abilities In doing well He once did well resemble The glorious God but now woe 's me I tremble So horrid thing to tell of myne own Kin He rightly represents the Devill in Pravitie of perverse disposition And active Pow'r of Dev'lish expedition Those some-time sweet abilities of Soule Not one but now deserves a sharp controwle In stead of divine knowledge th' Intellect Gross errour interteins in which respect The Rationall Pow'rs the Sensitive The Concupiscible th' Operative Are disaffected all disabled so That'mongst them all not one their office know His Wit deviseth Will resolveth Ill Reason mainteins his Act expresseth still For 's Body too his Soules fit Organon Is made unfit by his transgression To doe its office well yea well how can it Sith all corruption since hath seazed on it Its Members all must needs be slaves to Sin When all the Bodie 's held captive ther-in Which makes him to all Ill be ready bent But unto Good alwaies malevolent Such is this Monster-Cripple Devill-Man That all things ill but nothing well He can Hence errours schismes heresies in Religion Hence murthers thefts fraud in his conversation Hence to a cursed Death his Body's thrall And so 's his Soule to Death Death Infernall Where damned Ghosts of dead men raging cry They doe at once in torments live and die They die they think flames of eternall fire So burne their Soules but Death 's no whit the nigher The Man thus plung'd by cruell Sins invasion Tries though in vain to scape by sly evasion Here close He creeps lurks there behinde the trees In 's levie suit and thinks that no eye sees His Consc'ence tould Him He had God offended And if He stir He will be apprehended Yet out alas He felt within his brest The sting of guilt of horrour and unrest So restless there He could not rest at all For when He heard his dreadfull Maker call As his fear-strucken heart had made Him skour So now again the same fear driv ' Him out Grace and the fear of God who have forsook For plagues and vengeance cannot choose but look And as He fear'd so forth with it befell For this great God with wrath and fury fell Did not long hold the Man in deep suspense But censur'd Him for 's disobedience Yet first enquired how the Sin was wrought Not that He knew not but to show we ought Not rashly unto Iudgement to proceed Till that we know both circumstance and deed And as we finde by certain information Then loe to judge with due deliberation The fact with all the passages b'ing scand The Actours with their Accessaries stand All present there found guilty at the barre Hearing how they in order censur'd are Old Satan first sometime an Angell bright Like Serpent now for so He seem'd in sight 'Cause He was first of all Sin the Deviser Pretending Man ther-by should be made wiser Hence Sins of all kindes He shall covet still But above all as his most good most ill For dust of Sin and sins the dregs of Dust Though deadly poyson be his diet must But when by Sin He ayms at greatest spoil From Womans Seed He shall have greatest foil Yet He in h's horrid Den will peevish lurk And all un-seen promote his cursed work As here his foule intent He made seem fair And catcht the simple Woman by the snair Of Serpents subtiltie for which pretence Twixt their two Natures grows such hatred thence That Serpents and such creeping things shall fright Mankinde but women most upon the sight And 'bove all cattle He is cursed so He shall most basely feed most beastly goe These Accessaries served thus may serve To make 's take-heed how we make other swerve The Woman next for she t' was next offended Stood after them the first to be condemned Though Satan Father she was Mother first Of Sin and so for Sin was next accurst She had indeed both formerly conceiv'd And brought-forth Sin to Man but was deceiv'd For when she lookt for joy it turn'd to pain Not only to her selfe but to remain· To Hers and theirs for ever for our God Did lay it on that Sexe as a just rod That Women all with bitter gripings wrung With throws pangs should breed bear their yong That they should also live in strict subjection Vnto their Husbands will whose sweet direction Must be their law And so their whole desire Must subject be to what their Lords require Ye lovely Women when yee 'r loving Wives Your Husbands then doe not disquiet your lives By any kinde of unkinde imposition Nought wins them so as your kinde disposition What boots it them o're you to play the Rex Since for their help they chiefly choose your Sex To joyn with them and be their Comforters In woe at least their fellow-sufferers For see how God be-set the Man with woes Making all Natures Children turn his foes 'Cause Man Himselfe from God was now declin'd God made the Creatures all goe-out of kinde He curst the Ground or with sterility Or else with hurtfull weeds fertility Which once b'ing blest to bring-forth wholsome meat Of

constantly the same Hee was according to that stamp and tincture which Hee received from God in his Creation So that Mans perfection is not so excellent as his Makers no nor any whit equivalent ther-unto because perfection in Man is but as a beame of glorie issuing from God the fountain of glory wheras in God it is originally essentiall and everlastingly infinite Again Man is not so excellent as his Maker for wee must consider his originall matter wher-on He was made which was Nothing now this Nothing by the operative Goodness of God was made something and this something was made Man bearing the stamp of his Creators goodness Yet this goodnes in Man though derived from the unchangeable goodness of God was not otherwise than changeably good because it was now seated or inherent in a dissoluble subject of a changeable disposition able to stand in or fall from its goodnes as it selfe should resolve Now I say the receptivitie of created matter affords no room for unchangeable goodnes As it stood with Gods goodnes to make Man good yea and very good so it stood with the nature of Mans essence being a made matter not to be capable of unchangeable goodnes For unchangeableness and immutability in goodness is proper onely to Omnipotency or the creating Power because that onely hath subsistence in it selfe which subsistence in it selfe is that onely which gives life and being to unchangeablness Nor againe can the thing created comprehend the Creators goodness because that is finite this infinite and it is a certaine rule Minus non habet in se majus and therefore Man cannot comprehend his Makers goodness Which if we should fondly imagine that God if Hee had pleased might have made Man absolutely and constantly good like Him-selfe no way liable to change or alteration then we must also imagine that Man should have bin more than made in the image of God or after his likeness for then hee should have bin all one with his Creatour both in Essence and qualitie for there is less difference betwixt the Essence of God and unchangeable goodness than betwixt fire and the heat thereof or the Sunne and the light thereof though the one really and inseparably express the other For set any subject in such an equall distance to the fire as that it shall receive the heat thereof and yet not be enflamed therewith or conveigh the light of the Sunne by a reflecting object to enlighten a darke body yet that heat or this light thus divided from their proper seats and subjects is neither the heat of the fire nor yet the light of the Sun their subjects being hot or light remissis gradibus perhaps that but warme it may be this but dim Whereas the true heat of the fire in its proper nature and quality doth alwaies burne and consume and the true light in the body of the Sun doth alwaies dazle and confound the sense of all humane sight to behold it And yet it must be confessed that that heat being but warm and this light being but dim did both of them come originally the one from the very fire the other from the very Sun So likewise touching the Goodness that is in Man though it came originally from the unchangeable Goodness that is in God yet being now seated or inherent in a created substance whose continent is infinitly less than the originall of the thing infused it is no more of that unchangeable condition which is in God than either the forementioned heat or light can truly and properly be said to be either Sun or fire But here I know some object the condition of the blessed Angels saying that sith they kept their first station and perfection and never lost that goodness and holiness they were created in therfore their goodness is unchangeable to which I answer it followes no more that because they have not fallen from their goodness that therefore their goodness is unchangeable then because a cleare Cristall glass is not yet broken or a faire timber-house is not yet burnt that the one is not brickle nor the other combustible Though we grant that the blessed Angels neither ever did nor ever shall fall from their goodness yet we must know it was in their nature to have fallen as well as the Angels that did fall who as some are bold to affirm were not inferiour but more excellent in glory than the constant Angels But these good Angels have resisted all inducements and allurements to procure their change and happily by their resistance are now so confirmed in their goodness or else by some other than by an infused or created power are now so upholden and enabled that they shall never fall the Providence of God over them enabling them to stand But to returne to the goodness in Man let us know it was changeable that is might continue or vanish even as him-selfe would as that warm heat or dim light might last or be extinct as their subjects were kept to or removed frō their originall causes So whiles Man kept that state disposition that God created him in so long he continued cōstant perfectly such as he was created but going-about to alter or ad any thing to his state being which by Satans procurement he did he ther-upon did alter his qualitie and condition the image of God in him after which he was made to wit in his Naturall Personall Essence remaining what it was but the likenes or similitude of God in that image being altogether depraved and spoiled in the beautifull form qualities ther-of his Good being turned into Ill his Knowledge into Ignorance his Holines into Pollution his Domination into Subjectiō his Glory into Shame his Life into Death and all his Felicity into extreme Misery Now this change was simply Man 's owne act and no way imputable to his Creatour for God had made Him such as if Hee had would Hee might as well have stood stedfast in his perfection and integritie as thus to have fallen into this state of corruption and iniquitie But He lost that heat of Life which hee had received from the all-quickning fire of Gods breath Hee put-out that light of Grace which reflected upon him from the all-enlightning Sun-shine of Gods Love and all because hee tooke-upon him-selfe contrarie to Gods will to alter his state and being from that which God had set him in This extinguishment came from him-selfe and not from the will of God God had indeed given him freedome of Will but hee used it in pejorem partem to his owne destruction not for that God had made him for that end to destroy him but for that he used not his freedome to stand and continue in that state of holy Life and light of Grace which Hee might have stood and continued in if him-selfe had would And thus He made not Him-selfe onely but all his Posteritie subject to Death and Damnation For as by his Creation He had received

its accord without Mans care or sweat Now yeelds Him nought or things that are worth nought Till by his pains to goodnes they be brought He 's therefore forc't with sorrow and with toile For his reliefe to digge and till the Soile Lest by Life-wasting hunger raw-bon'd Death Through want of Bread do bring him to want breath The Living-creatures also once all tame Now refractary and all wilde became All things b'ing harmless now all harmfull grew And still than old more harmfull is the new For Natures selfe and all that 's naturall Vnnat'rally prov'd all unnaturall Thus all for Him and He for his offence Became accurst loe here Sins recompence But this not all for ev'n in h's Person He Is made a prey to endless miserie While that He lives Life Nat'rall in the flesh Diseases or inveterate or fresh Doe daily vex his Body more or less And crosses eke his Soule with care oppress For God who in bestowing gifts takes pleasure Doth look for a proportionable measure Of strict and exquisite obedience As homage due in lieu of recompence In stead of which when He beholds that we Delight our selves in thankless jolitie And wilfull disobedience to his Lawes Then loe in furious anger down He throwes Vpon our heads the fire-brands of his wrath That He for our destruction treasur'd hath He makes the Creatures of all kindes to swell With raging zeal each other to excell In prodigall effusion of their ire By thunder tempests lightning water fire The cristall Heav'ns whose kinde benevolence Mans life maintain'd by wholsome influence Left all their proper offices to powre Deserv'd destruction in a flaming showre Of fire and brimstone on a reachless Rout Whose sins for vengeance lowd to Heav'n did shout Thus Hell from Heav'n God sent to punish Sin A Hell in deed to those whose lot was in The fruitfull show'rs and mollifying Rain Forsook likewise their fructifying vain And fell so fierce at Gods just indignation That by an universall Inundation All living things and whatsoever grew Where all destroy'd of all kindes save a few Observe we here the different respects Of what Gods love and what his wrath effects It is our wealth if God in Mercy rain But if in Wrath alas it is our bain The Earth also that sluggish Element Not able longer through sad discontent To bear rebellious Sinners weight did cleave Asunder in the midst and so bereave Them of them-selves their houses goods and all For down alive into the pit they fall Since wrong to God dead things did thus aright O let us fear Gods all revenging might Who can as well by any other thing On careless Sinners dreadfull judgements bring As here by these For how did He alas Strike dead a company as they did pass Neare to the towre of Silo which did fall With violence on them and slew them all Not that they were of some abomination More guilty or more lewd in conversation Than other men that scaped that mischance But that his glory God might so advance Full many have the secret judgements been And still are many fearfull to be seen That God inflicts on Man by Sea and Land To show the pow'r of Gods reveng'ing hand All which undoubtedly for Sin are wrought Though that not alwayes unto light be brought For Sin no sooner had the pow'r t' invade us But to Gods judgements straight it subject made us Sometimes by Dearth by bloody Wars sometimes Sometimes by Plagues God punisheth our crimes Sometimes by Shame by Griefe by slandr'ous lies Sometimes by Lions Bears by Frogs and Flies Sometimes by mighty troupes of Rats and Mice And schoals of Wormes and huge armies of Lice Which little vermine are the full'st of wrath And fierce revenge as the old Poet saith The basest ever is the most severe Once having got the pow'r to dominere All other Creatures likewise of all kindes Both quick and dead have shown revengefull mindes 'Gainst Man for Sin so that He 's in that case That surely safe He 's not in any place His wife besides which is his other selfe Doth often play the Chang'ling and the Elfe Not caring how she vex nor how she grieve Him Wher-as with comfort she should still relieve Him And yet here-in she does but as did He He to Himselfe was foe and so is she His Children also blossoms of his strength His present hope of future joy at-length Doe often prove unruly and doe vex Him VVith rude exploits which inwardly perplex Him For He in them Himselfe beholds aright How sleightly He respected God All-might Preferring more his longing Wifes desire Than love of Heav'n or fear of Hellish fire Right so his Sons they think themselves so wise That folly 't were to follow his advise And as for Neighbour-people round about Him It is a world to see how they doe flout Him If He be great a King a Duke a Lord They basely praise his indiscreetest word If He be born a man of low degree They keep Him down in base servilitie If rich they rob Him lest too well He fare If poor then hang Him such but vermine are If He doe well through envie they doe carp If ill it is their tabret and their harp Let Him be great or good or friend or foe He wants not them that will procure his woe VVhat e're He be He 's not without this cross He 's sensible of griefe or pain or loss Now loe the Man that whilom was so neat So glorious so God-like and so great Is now become most vile yea most abhorr'd Of those Creatures of whom He was the Lord. As He to God rebellious was first So they to Him ere since He was accurst O cursed Man ô miserable wight On whom all plagues of Hell Earth Heav'n are light Both what He hath without or Him within Are all ore-thrown through guilt of deadly Sin Look-on his person look-on his estate That 's totally deprav'd this desperate So that He must in grievous miserie First spend his daies then die eternally From Grace and Glory being once depos'd To shame and woe for ever He 's expos'd For'ts not in Him to work a remedie B'ing quite depriv'd of all abilitie THE BLESSED MAN Setting-forth MANS FELICITIE In that His REGENERATION Is consulted-of by the Heav'nly POWERS Ejus commiserens Sortis Divina Potestas Vt redeat Civis consulit Exul Homo MANS FELICITIE CONSVLTED-OF The Argument Whose wofull state the Heav'nly Powers pitie And doe consult to bring Him to their Citie LOe then th' All able God the God of Love To help this helpless Wight Himselfe did move VVhich caus'd immediately ev'n with th'intentiō 〈◊〉 and sweet but yet a sharp contention Amongst the Pow'rs of Gods own Hierarchie Some said it could some said it could not be Some wisht it might but knew not how it could Some knew it could and also that it should About this wretch