Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	angel_n	earth_n	sin_n	2,922	5	4.1926	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64745	The Mount of Olives: or, Solitary devotions. By Henry Vaughan silurist. With an excellent discourse of the blessed state of man in glory, written by the most reverend and holy Father Anselm Arch-Bishop of Canterbury, and now done into English.	Vaughan, Henry, 1622-1695.; Anselm, Saint, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1033-1109.	1652 (1652)	Wing V122; ESTC R203875	62,277	216

might make our calling and election sure It is a fearful thing to die without reconciliation And with what confusion of face and horrour of spirit if we die in that state shall we appear before the Iudge of all the world when he shall come in the Clouds of heaven with his holy Angels and all mankind from the first man created unto the last that shall be borne upon the earth shall appear before his Judgement-seate Me thinks I see the remisse lukewarme professour and the hypocritical factious pretender of sanctity looking up to the Clouds and crying out O that throne that flaming white and glorious throne and he that sits thereon with the sharp sickle in his hand and the crown of pure gold upon his head Revel 14.14 from whose face the heaven and the earth flye away and the foundations of the world are brought to nothing Oh! is he the Lamb that was slain whose blood was poured out like water upon the earth to save his people from their sins Is he the Prince of life that was crown'd with thornes scourged spit upon crucified pierced through and murthered and comes he now to judge the world Oh! It is he It is he miserable wretch that I am What shall I do or whither shall I go Such will be the dreadful agonies and concertations in that day betwixt the Hypocrite and his conscience betwixt the enemies of Gods truth and their gasping undone souls When the people that forget God shall go down quick into hell and the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed and laid open before Angels and men For in that day all their dark and private lusts their closet-sins bosome-councels specious pretences and bloody machinations which now like so many foul spirits lurk in their gloomy breasts shall be forced out and will appear as visible to all mankind as if they were written with the beams of the Sun upon the pure and unclouded firmament In the mean while the very fowles of the aire and their own horrid guilt either in time of distraction which they are alwayes subiect to or in their sleep which is alwayes fraught with penal visions and spiritual tumults may make a full discovery of their most secret villanies before the appointed time It was a blessed and a glorious age the Primitive Christians lived in when the wildernesse and the solitary places were glad for them and the desert rejoyced and blossom'd as the rose When the blood of Christ was yet warme and the memory of his miracles and live fresh and vigorous what Zeale what powerful faith what perfect charity hearty humility and true holinesse was then to be found upon the earth If we compare the shining and servent piety of those Saints with the painted and illuding appearance of it in these of our times we shall have just cause to fear that our Candlestick which hath been now of a long time under a Cloud is at this very instant upon removing But I had rather you should be informed of their true holinesse and love to Christ by an Eye-witnesse that was conversant with them and went in and out amongst them then by a bare relation from my pen. Heare therefore what he saith Vidi ego verè vidi the saurum Christi in humanis absconditum vasculis c. vidi enim apud eos multos Patres in terra positos coelestem vitam agentes novos quosdam Prophetas tam virtut bus animi quàm vaticinandi officio imbutos c. Nonnullos namque ●orum ità ab omni malitia cogitatione suspicione vidimus alienos ut nec si aliquid mali adhuc in seculo gereretur meminissent tanta in eis erat tranquillitas animi tantúsque in eis inoleverat bonitatis affectus c. Commanent autem per cremum dispersi separati cellulis sed charitatis vinculo connexi Ob huc autem dirimuntur habitaculis ut silentii sui quietem intentionem mentis nec vox aliqua nec occursus ullus aut sermo aliquis otiosus obturbet Intentis ergo in suo quisque loco animis velut fideles servi adventantem dominum expectant Omnes hi nullam cibi aut indumenti aut ullius horum sollicitudinem gerunt Iustitiam regnum Dei requirunt armis orationum pugnant scuto fidei ab inimico insidiante protecti patriam sibi coelestem conquirunt I have seen saith he and I was not deceived the treasure of Christ laid up in earthen vessels for amongst those Christians in Egypt I have seen many Fathers who had here upon earth already begun the heavenly life and regenerate Prophets who were indued not onely with holy habits but had received therewith the Spirit of promise for I have known many of them that were so free from malice perverse thoughtfulnesse and suspition as if they had never known that there were such evill wayes to be followed in the world Such a great tranquillity of mind and such a powerful love or longing after goodnesse had wholly possessed them They lived dispersed up and down the wildernesse and separated from one another in several Cells or Cots but knit all together in the perfect bond of Charity The reason of their distinct and distant habitations was because they would not have the silence of their retirements disturbed nor their minds diverted from the contemplation of heavenly things by any noyse sudden occurrence or idle discourse for this cause they have every one their particular mansion where with intentive or earnest minds they do like faithful servants expect and look for the coming of their Master They take no thought for meat and drink and cloathing nor for any such accommodations they seek onely the Kingdome of God and the righteousnesse thereof they fight with the weapons of prayer being guarded with the shield of faith from the devices of their spiritual enemies so travel on towards their heavenly countrey This was the old way and whether we are in it or out of it is not hard to be decided A pretended sanctity from the teeth outward with the frequent mention of the Spirit and a presumptuous assuming to our selves of the stile of Saints when we are within full of subtilty malice oppression lewd opinions and diverse lusts is I am sure a convincing argument that we are not onely out of it but that we have no mind to returne into it The way to heaven is wet and slippery but it is made so with teares and not with blood it is through the vale of miseries and the raine filleth the pooles Psal. 85. There is no voyce in those shades of Palme but the voyce of the Turtle which is alwayes groning and Naturalists say she hath no gall It is ill coming to the Lamb of God in a Wolfes skin They that do so must be taught that he hath another attribute and they shall finde him a Lion It is strange that after the experience of almost six thousand

with a loud voice saying Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb. 3. And one of the Elders answered saying unto me Who are these which are arayed in white robes and whence came they 4. And I said unto him Sir thou knowest And he said unto me These are they which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 5. Therefore are they before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his Temple and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them 6. They shall hunger no more neither thirst any more neither shall the Sun light on them nor any heate 7. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them and shall leade them unto living fountains of waters and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes MAny men when a holy conversation and good works are proposed unto them and when they are advised to exercise themselves therein and not to follow after the vanities of this world are wont to question for what end reward or retribution shall they do so The answer to these men must be this Because it is written that Eye hath not seen not eare heard neither have entred into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him 1 Cor. 2. Which words because they cannot plainly understand what is meant by them must be expounded to them by other circumstances and it must be told them that the reward which in the life to come shall be given unto those that serve God in this life is everlasting life eternal happinesse never-ending pleasures and a fulnesse and sufficiency of all accommodations to their own desires without any scarcity or want at all When these things are thus told them they seeme to be as they are indeed very great and very good But because that neither by this expression they do perfectly apprehend what those things are which they shall receive in the life to come nor can they of a sudden rightly perceive what is meant by a sufficiency of all accommodations without any want at all they continue still in a doubtful minde and are not effectually drawn to take any relish or delight in the things so told them What course then shall we take to render these eternal rewards more relishing and delightful to them I hold that the best way is to feed them as Nurses feed their little children who if at any time they give them a large faire apple which for the tendernesse of their teeth and the narrownesse of their mouths they cannot feed upon cut it according to the capacity of the child into several bits or parts and so give it them to eate by peece-meales We shall therefore divide this great sufficiencie of all accommodations in the life to come into several parts or portions that by so doing they may with those things we shall deliver be fed to eternal life And because they may appear more plainly to them we shall consider what those things are which the minde of man most affects in this life and by those as farre as we may we shall make it evident that they shall enjoy them after a more excellent manner in the life to come if being placed here in the midst of dangers and worldly temptations they stick fast to the precepts of Christ and when they have kept them they will of themselves quickly perceive that by no meanes they shall lose nor be deceived of the utmost of their desires This Course we shall take in the Explication of this Doctrine and beginning with the least passe on to our desired end That we may then in the first place briefly summe up all those things which have reference to the body I suppose them to be such things as are indeed desirable of themselves and for whose service or use all other things are desired of men and those are Beauty Activity Strength Liberty Health Pleasure Long Life But if amongst these we have reckoned there are some things which the servants of God have no respect to but take special care to neglect and avoid them as for instance sake beauty and pleasure are yet do they not therefore despise them because that naturally they affect them not but because they would not offend God in them for if they certainly knew that by caring for such things they could not offend God nor have their affections with-drawn from heavenly things without doubt they would take more delight in the fruition of them then in a contrary state These things being now thus premised I shall as briefly as I may treat of every one of them distinctly or by it self and labour to demonstrate unto you as God shall enable me after what manner they shall be enjoyed by us after the resurrection of the body To begin then Beauty is a certaine good which all men naturally desire to have But in the life to come the beauty of the righteous shall shine equally with the Sunne this the sacred Scripture testifies Matth. 13. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdome of their Father Adde to this that the body of our Lord Jesus Christ which none I hope will deny shall out-shine the brightnesse of the Sun But by the testimony of the Apostle we shall be made like unto him for he saith He shall change our vile bodies that they may be fashioned like unto his glorious body and this is the confession of that authority which to contradict is blasphemy Now if any man would have this proved to him by reason I beleeve it ought not to seeme incredible to any that the righteous in that life which is to come when this mortality shall be swallowed up of life shall shine as bright as the Sun seeing they are truly called and truly are the temple and the seat of God himself which as I remember is no where in sacred Scripture spoken of this visible Sun As for Activity which is every way as desirable as Beauty we shall be indued with such a measure of it as shall render us equall for swiftnesse to the very Angels of God which in a moment passe from the highest heaven unto the earth and from the earth again into heaven which swiftnesse if it were necessary to prove it so in the Angels we might for instance produce that place of Scripture where it is written that the Angel of the Lord took Habakkuk the Prophet by the haire of the head and carried him through the vehemency of his spirit when he was yet in the flesh from Iury into Babylon and having delivered the dinner unto Daniel brought him again immediately to his own place Therefore I say again that a swiftnesse every way equal to that which is in them shall be given to those who labour in their lives here to be like unto them The Apostle also who affirms

that our bodies shall in the twinkling of an eye be perfectly raised notwithstanding that our limbs be separated or dispersed one from another and the distance of place never so great hath thereby sufficiently proved that our very bodies which in that day shall be raised incorruptible shall be gifted with the very lame swiftnesse for he testifies that this corruptible shall put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality 1 Cor. 15. An instance or demonstration of this swiftnesse we have in the beams of the Sunne which as soone as ever the body of that Planet appears above the earth in the East passe in a moment to the utmost West By this consideration we may conclude that what hath been spoken touching our velocity in the life to come is not impossible especially because that animated bodies have in them a greater agility then those which are inanimate To this instance of the Sun-beams we may adde another of the like nature which we have in our selves for the beams or ray of the Eye when we open our eye-lids passeth immediately to the utmost point of the Horizon or visible part of the sky and when we shut them returnes wholly and unimpaired into it self Again it is a thing certainly known that the souls of the Elect which are in the hand of the Lord have not yet enjoyed the fulnesse of felicity untill their bodies shall be restored unto them incorruptible which when they shall enjoy there will be nothing more left for them to wait for and desire But these bodies whose redemption they long and grone for if they would retard of hinder their swiftnesse they would rather abhorre their fellowship then long for it therefore it is certain that such a swiftnesse or agility as we have spoken of shall be given us of God in the life to come The next thing we are to treat of is Fortitude or Strength which most men affect as it is opposite to imbecillity and faint-heartednesse But they who shall be worthy to walk with the Citizens of the new Ierusalem shall excell so much in strength that nothing can have power to resist them whether their desire be to remove or over-turn any thing out of its station or by any other way to divert it nothing can hinder them nor shall they in compassing their desire be put to any more trouble or pains then we are put to at present when we move an Eye or turne it towards any object we desire to look upon But let us not in this place forget to instance in the Angels to whom we labour in this life to assimilate our selves for if in this branch or in any of the rest which we are to handle we can finde no other example or demonstration we must apply to them I suppose there is none will deny but that the Angels excel so much in strength as to be able to effect whatsoever shall be enjoyned them But here some body may ask of what use shall this fortitude or strength be unto us in that life when all things shall be put in such perfect order that there cannot be a better when there shall be no need of mutations eversions or reformation wherein this fortitude or strength may be imployed Whoever shall ask this question let him attend a little to me and consider what use we make at present of the faculties given us in this life and he shall finde that we do not alwayes imploy some of those abilities with which we are now gifted in the body as the faculty of seeing our utmost strength and our knowledge of some select things with many more In the like manner shall it be then with this fortitude we are now speaking of for the onely possession of it will be an incredible pleasure and joy unto us though we shall have no use for it all things being as it is said before in the state of perfection If this objection be made concerning velocity or any of the other branches which are to follow in this discourse I hold this solution if we finde not a better satisfactory enough We are now come to the fourth branch which is Liberty and is no lesse desired then any of the former Whoever then shall leade and Angelical life here upon earth shall without doubt be admitted into an equal liberty with the Angels in heaven Therefore as nothing can resist hinder or confine the Angels but that they may passe freely through all things according to their own desires so shall there be no obstacle or restraint of the Elects there shall be no inclosure that can hold us nor any Element which shall not be pervious or passable for us when and how we please An eminent and most certain example of this we have left us in the body of our Lord Jesus Christ to which blessed body Saint Paul affirms that our vile bodies shall be fashioned and made like according to the working whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself Now the Scripture beares record that he rose from the dead after the Sepulchre was made sure and sealed and that he came in to his Disciples the doors being shut upon them and at the same time caused Thomas to thrust his hand into his side all which without doubt was laid down for a strong and comfortable demonstration to us of the glorious liberty of the children of God Rom. 8. In this fifth place comes Health which of all temporal blessings is the principal and the most to be desired And of this what can be better said then that which hath been already spoken by the Psalmist The salvation of the righteous cometh from the Lord Psal. 37. What infirmity then can lay hold upon those whose health or salvation is from the Lord But what example or similitude to introduce whereby you may perceive what manner of health that shall be which we are to enjoy in the world to come I do not know for neither I in my own body nor the holiest man that ever lived in the flesh can finde in himself any state of health which may be compared or liken'd to this eternal and incorruptible health For in this life when we finde our bodies without any paine or disturbance we conclude that we are in health and yet are we therein oftentimes deceived For it happens very frequently that we are infirme or sickly in some particular member which yet we can by no means discover but by motion of the said member or by touching the place affected But to come to those that are not thus affected but seeme to themselves to be in perfect health what shall we judge of them that they are in health or that they are not Propose to thy self some one of a most healthful constitution and that thou shouldst enquire of him concerning the state of his body he will tell thee that in his own judgement he finds himself in perfect health But let his body be examined and

pleasures of the world I strongly endeavoured and earnestly desired to be perfectly reconciled unto my Saviour But you never suffered any of these things for his sake you dwelt alwayes in glory and the joyes of heaven The arme of God alwayes sustained and defended you from being assaulted by any sinne so that you were never stained with the least spot of it Wherefore it is his owne free gift whose hand with-held you from it that hath kept you from falling away from his will But because this way of reasoning may be onely used by those who have forcibly resisted their owne damnation and taken the kingdome of heaven by violence they that shall enter into it upon other conditions must finde another reason by which they may claime a parity or equal degree of glory with the Angels And if they desire to know what manner of reason that is it may be this which followes They may tell them that the ground upon which they lay their just claime to an equality of blisse with them in the kingdome of God is the free mercy and donation of Iesus Christ who for that very end vouchsafed to be made man and to suffer death upon the Crosse that being saved from our sins and justified through his blood we might be with him where he is and be partakers of his kingdome consider you therefore if the blood of Iesus Christ which was shed for us is not a sufficient price for our salvation and for an equality of glory with you What reply now can the Angels who because they are good of themselves will be therefore the sooner won with reason make unto this truly none at all unlesse by way of Confession that men redeemed with so high a price may justly claime and partake with them an equal glorification When therefore both Angels and men whom thou didst judge more righteous then thy self shall consent unto thy glory and hold thee worthy in all things of those true and eternal honours conferred upon thee consider if thou canst how acceptable and pleasing such a knowledge will be to thee which shall make thee known to all men and all men to be known of thee And shall not consequently out of that mutual and perfect knowledge arise a certaine inestimable and inviolable friendship which shall so warm the hearts of every one towards another that the love which every one shall have for another shall be eviedent and convincing in the knowledge of all Neither do I see how it can be otherwise seeing that all in that kingdome are but one body and Christ himself who is very peace the head thereof neither will they with lesse affection imbrace one anothtr then the members of one natural body are united to one another Thou wilt therefore in that state love all men as thy self and every one will love thee as dearly as himself O now thinkest thou how full of love shall I be towards all men if I were in that happy state But passe by that Meditation and consider him by whose mediation and grievous sufferings all these blessings were purchased for thee and thou wilt then perceive that he will love thee incomparably more then any others yea more then thou canst love thy self and so wilt thou with a certaine inward inexpressible delight come to love him more then any others yea infinitely more then thou canst love thy self But seeing it fals out very frequently amongst men that those persons who continue in a reciprocal and unanimous love do not in all circumstances accord and consist but differ in opinion and sometimes also in their passions while that which seems right to the one appears clean contrary to the other and the one may affect something which the other hath no appetite at all unto It follows of necessity that to this perfect friendship in the state of glory we must adde perfect concord or agreement There will be therefore such perfect agreement and unity there betwixt all that none shall dissent from that which another desires As many as shall be counted worthy of that kingdome shall be one body one Church and one Spouse of Iesus Christ and there shall be no more discord betwixt them then there is betwixt the members now in the natural body But as you see in the motion of the Eyes that which way soever the one is turned the other immediately followes so whatsoever any one in that state shall delight in he shall finde all the rest to consent to it Seeing then that God himself with all the Angels and Saints will be propitious and favourable to thy desires it is cleare that thou wilt desire nothing which thou mayst not obtaine So that in a modest sense it may be said thou shalt be Almighty in respect of thy will because the Almighty God will in all things consent to it for thy will shall be then his will and his will shall be thine Seeing then that they shall excell so much in power there is no doubt to be made but that an honour proportionable to that power shall be given unto them Now what manner of honour that shall be we shall labour to demonstrate by this following similitude Let us suppose there were laid before our eyes some poore begger destitute of all comfort and smitten in every part with ulcerous biles corrupt sores and all manner of infirmities and having not so much as a rag to cover or defend him from the cold If some mighty and mercifull King passing by should look upon this begger lying in so miserable a condition and having compassion on him should give command to heale his infirmities and being afterwards recovered should give order to have him cloathed with his own royal apparel and being brought before him in that habit should adopt him for his son and give strict command that he should be received and acknowledged by all men for his son and that he should be contradicted in nothing by any of his subjects he having adopted him for his son and made him coheire with his onely begotten and calling him after his own name You would easily grant that this were a great honour to be conferr'd upon so despicable and loathsome a begger But all this and more will the merciful God most certainly confer upon his faithful servants for of his own free mercy will he receive us who being born of the corruption of the flesh are surrounded with many miseries in which we are estated as it were and destitute of all comforts but alwayes subject to overcome by many noxious passions which fill us up with foule and ulcerous sins and most odious corruptions from all which he will purge and heale us and being restored to perfect health he will cloath us with the ornaments of true righteousnesse and incorruption and adopt us for his sons making us his Consorts in his own kingdome and coheires with his only begotten Son who is in every thing coequal with himself changing our