Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	earth_n	eye_n	see_v	8,993	5	3.6630	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65297	Gods anatomy upon mans heart. Or, A sermon preached by order of the Honorable House of Commons, at Margarets Westminster, Decemb. 27. Being a day of publick humiliation By Thomas Watson, pastor of Stephens Walbrooke, London.	Watson, Thomas, d. 1686.	1654 (1654)	Wing W1125A; ESTC R220974	18,171	56

all written in thy Book 2. Afarre off that is either 1. God knows our thoughts before we our selves know them He knows what designes are in the heart and men would certainly pursue did not he turne the wheele another way God knew what was in Herods minde before Herod himself knew it viz. that he would have destroyed the childe Jesus God knew his thoughts afarre off he sees what blood and venome is in the heart of a sinner though it never comes to have vent he looks at the intention though it be not put in execution Secondly Afarre off that is God knows our thoughts when we have forgotten them they are afarre off to us but they are present with him These things hast thou done and I kept silence thou thoughtest I was such a one as thy selfe c. That is that I had a weak memory but I will reprove thee and set thy sinnes in order before thee * Millions of years are but as a short Parenthesis between and that we may not thinke God forgets he keeps a Book of Records Rev. 20. 12. I saw the dead small and great stand before the Lord and the Books were opened God writes down Item such a sinne and if the Book be not discharged there will be an heavy reckoning to every beleever the debt-book is crossed the black lines of sinne are crossed out in the red lines of Christs blood To instance in one Scripture more The night shineth as the day Psal. 39. 12. The Cloudes are no Canopy the night is no Curtain to draw between or intercept his knowledge we cannot write our sinnes in so small or strange a character but God can read he hath a key for them Indeed we know not sometimes what to make of his Providences His way is in the Sanctuary * we cannot read his hand-writing but He understands our Hearts without a commentary He is privy to all our treachery though we think to keep it under lock and key We cannot climb so high but he sees us we cannot dig so low but he takes notice The men of Babel were climbing very high they would make a City and Tower the top whereof should reach to heaven and so indeed it did for God saw them all the while and what became of it He divided their language * Achan digs deep to hide his counsels saying No eye shall see he takes the Babylonish garment and hides it in the earth with the wedge of Gold but God unmasks his theevery * If there be any here that when they should have been doing Gods work have been by stealth hiding the Babylonish garment making themselves rich feathering their own nests instead of driving in nailes into Gods Temple to fasten it have been driving a wedge of gold into their chests God sees it let me tell you all the gaine you get you may put in your eyes nay if you belong to God you must and weep it out againe God hath a window that looks into your hearts Momus complained of Vulcan that he had not set a grate at every mans breast God hath such a grate he is the great Superintendent we come into the world as upon a Theatre every man acts his severall Part or Scene God is both the Spectator and the Judge You have seen the Doctrine proved For the Amplification let us consider what the knowledge of God is it is a most pure act by which he doth at one instant know himselfe in himself and all things without himselfe not only necessary and contingent but which shall never be after a most perfect exquisite and infallible manner Out of this description we may gather two things 1. That there is no Succession in Gods knowledge it is uno intuitu our knowledge is per ●rius posterius from the effect to the cause it is not so in God 2. Things that are not have an objective being in his knowledge Rom. 4. 17. He calls things that are not as if they were even these non entia have an Idea in his knowledge Quest Here a question may be started If there be such perfection in the knowledg of God then he knows sin Resp. The Schools distinguish of a double knowledge in God There is 1. Scientia simplicis intelligentiae a knowledge of pure intelligence and thus he knows evil by a contrary good as the light discovers the darknesse So we say Rectum est index sui obliqui The straight rule shews the crooked 2. There is a knowledge of approbation Thus God doth not know sinne for he hates it he punisheth it Christ was made sinne yet he knew no sinne he did know it so as to hate it not so as to act or approve it I passe to the Reasons 1. Reason From his creation God is the Father of lights therefore must needs see It is his own Argument He that planted the eare shall he not heare he that formed the eye shall he not see He that makes a Watch knows all the pins and wheels in it and though these wheels move crosse one to another he knows the true and perfect motion of the Watch and the spring that sets these wheels a going He that formed the eye shall he not see Man may be compared to a spiritual Watch The affections are the wheels the heart is the spring the motion of this Watch is false the heart is deceitful but God that made this watch knowes the true motion of it be it never so false and the spring that sets the wheels a going God knows us better then we know our selves He is as Ezekiels wheels full of eyes and as Augustin saith he is totus oculus all eye * 2. Reason From his ubiquity He is Omniscient because Omnipresent Ier. 23. 24. Do not I fill heaven and earth He is no where included and yet no where excluded His circumference is every where God hath an eye in Councels in Armies he makes an Heartanatomy he sees what mens designes are and whither they are driving If hatred weares the livery of Friendship if Ambition comes masqued with humility if Religion be made a stirrup to get into the saddle of preferment God sees it And though they dig into hell thence shall my hand take them Amos 9. 2. God can unlock hell Plato saith of the King of Lydia he had a Ring when he turned the head of it to the palme of his hand he could see every one but himself walk invisible Thus God observes all our actings but himselfe is not seene as the Apostle argues 1 Tim. 6. 16. Therefore the Schoolmen say well Deus est in loco repletivè Man may be circumscribed the Angels may be defined but God is in every place by way of repletion His Centre is every where and his eye is ever in his Centre Object 1. But is it not said Gen. 18. 21. I will go down and see whether it be

done altogether according to the cry Resp. It could not be that God was ignorant because there is mention made of a cry but it is spoken {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} after the manner of a Judge who will first examine the cause before he wil pass the sentence Therefore to answer that Scripture I will go down and see It implies two things First The moderation God useth when he is upon a work of Justice God doth not make the sword the Judge he doth first weigh things the balance he doth ever lay judgement to the line before he draws the line of confusion God when he is upon a work of Justice is not in a Ryot as if he did not care where he hits but goes in the way of a circuit against offenders I will go down and see He doth not punish rashly and this may be a good hint to them that have power in their hand they must work by line and plummet judging the Cause rather then the Person they must proceed in righteousnesse else seeming Zeal is no better then Wild-fire it is not justice but violence Secondly I will go down and see It denotes Gods patience in waiting for sinners He staid till the cry came up God puts up a great deal of injury at our hands before Justice draws the sword He spins out mercy into patience and eekes out patience into long-suffering Oh had not Gods patience been infinite we have spent so long upon it that we had quite spent the stock But let no sinner presume Though God be long-suffering he doth not tell us how long When the cry comes up God comes down If pride lust oppression abound God will heare the cry and will quench the fire of sinne with a showre of blood Object 2. Zeph. 2. 1. I will search Hierusalem with candles Implying that something is hid out of his reach Resp. Not that God needs any candles to see by for though it be said The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord * This candle is not for him to see by but for us Therefore this searching implies two things First The exactnesse of Gods knowledge He hath such a deep insight as usually men have upon search 2. God threatens to search because he would have us search As Lam. 3. 40. Let us search and try our wayes Gods searchers are now abroad his Iudgements let us finde out our sinnes or else our sinnes will finde us out Information And this hath two branches 1. What manner of persons ought we to be * hath God a window that opens into our breasts Doth he make a critical descant upon our actions Oh what holinesse what sincerity what exemplary piety becomes us being in such a presence Were we to come before some great Monarch what solemne preparations would we make Shall the eye of a King do so much and not the eye of God The King can only see the outside there may be treason within for ought he knows but God hath a key for the heart Ier. 17. 10. I the Lord search the heart And will not this command reverence In these dayes of solemn Humiliation Gods eye is principally upon the heart God looks there most where we look least some have no heart at all * sinne hath stollen away their heart others have an heart too much An heart and an heart * others have hearts good for nothing earthly hearts like Saul that was hid among the stuffe * some have Angels tongues but as Nebuchadnezzar he had the heart of a beast given to him Brethren did our hearts stand where our faces do this would be a day of blushing we should be ashamed to look one upon another remember God hath a key for the heart When we come to these solemne duties God asks that question as Iehu did Iehonadab 2 King 10. 15. he saluted him and said to him Is thy heart right as my heart is with thy heart And he said It is If it be give me thy hand And he took him up into the chariot This is Gods question You come this day to humble your selves and make atonement Is your heart right with me if we can answer as he did Lord thou knowest it is Though I have much weaknesse yet my heart is right I have no false byasse upon it though I am not perfect I hope I am sincere Then will God say Give me your prayers give me your tears now come up with me into the chariot A tear from a bleeding heart is a precious perfume in heaven Oh did we consider this all-seeing eye we durst not bring so much strange fire into the Divine presence We read of Ezekiels wheels they had a wheel within a wheel * Thus God hath a thought within a thought He doth intervenire * he comes between us and our thoughts The goddesse Minerva as the Poets feign was drawn in such lively colours that which way soever one turned still Minerva's eye was upon him Thus turne which way you will fall in love with any sin still God looks upon you He hath an eye in your heart He is {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} What manner of persons ought we to be Of how dangerous consequence is it to act any thing against God He sees it and his knowledge is armed with Power He that hath an eye to see will finde an hand to punish If there be any designes against God though carried on never so subtilly remember there is a Councel of War sits in Heaven Against GOD Will some say By no means There are foure Things and if we act either directly or indirectly against any of these we act against God and he sees it He writes it down 1. If we act against his truth we act against God truth is a beame of God it is his essence he is called {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} the truth it is the most orient Pearle of his Crown take away his truth and we ungod him Truth is the precious seed by which we are begotten to life * it is the pillar of our salvation it is not only norma fidei the rule of faith but it is radix fidei the root out of which faith grows take away truth and what is faith but fancy we believe our selves into hell Truth is the great purchase of Christs blood and it hath been transmitted to us in the blood of many Saints and Martyrs if we strike at truth we strike at God and doth not God see this Give me leave to plead in Gods cause is not this pure wine of truth mixed with water nay with poison How are the truths of God almost lost in the croud of errours what truth in Divinity but is now called in question some denying the Scriptures others denying the Lord that bought them not only the foundations of the earth are out of course but even the