Selected quad for the lemma: justice_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
justice_n	death_n	mercy_n	sin_n	3,579	5	4.7173	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97283	The penitent murderer. Being an exact narrative of the life and death of Nathaniel Butler; who (through grace) became a convert, after he had most cruelly murdered John Knight. With the several conferences held with the said Butler in Newgate, by the Right Honorable the Lord Maior, and several eminent ministers, and others. As also his confession, speech, prayer, and the sermon preached after his execution; with several useful admonitions, and excellent discourses. / Collected by Randolph Yearwood, chaplain to the Right Honorable, the Lord Major of the city of London.	Yearwood, Randolph, d. 1689.	1657 (1657)	Wing Y23; Thomason E1660_2; ESTC R209007	51,603	133

The Penitent Murderer BEING AN Exact Narrative Of the Life and Death of NATHANIEL BVTLER Who through Grace became a Convert after he had most cruelly murdered JOHN KNIGHT With the several Conferences held with the said Butler in Newgate by the Right Honorable the LORD MAIOR and several eminent Ministers and others As also his Confession Speech Prayer and the Sermon preached after his Execution with several useful Admonitions and excellent Discourses Collected by RANDOLPH YEARWOOD Chaplain to the Right Honorable the Lord Major of the City of LONDON Deut 13.11 And all Israel shall hear and fear and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you London Printed by T. Newcomb for J. Rothwell at the Fountain in Goldsmiths-Row in Cheapside and Tho. Matthews at the White-horse in the New Buildings in Pauls Church-yard 1657. London Saturday Sept. 12. 1657. Reader THis is that Exact Narrative concerning Nathaniel Butler which was some time since promised to come forth by my appointment under the hand of Randolph Yearwood Robert Tichborne Major To the Right Honorable Sr ROBERT TICHBORNE Kt Lord Major of the City of LONDON My Lord You have done being directed and enabled from on high many noble and good actions for this City the Government whereof is yet yours But really my Lord the right honorable act was this your personal and frequent visiting Nathaniel Butler when he lay a prisoner in Newgate His soul certainly was precious in your eyes and this engaged you to send others and to go your self to see him several times I verily believe you will see him yet once more not as a Malefactor in an obscure disparaging Goal but as an Angel of God in the Kingdom of Christ whither I am confident he is gone and you are going Before he went he desired me to give you humble thanks for all the favor he had received from you or by your means from others He was very thankfull to your Lordship and the rest of the Honorable Bench for his Fortnights Reprieval confessing that Court to be both just and merciful Just in condemning his body to death and merciful in sparing his life for some weeks after the Sentence upon design to save his soul And truly you may safely conclude that his soul is safe And is not such a Conclusion a rich Requital of all your Exhortations Tears and Prayers My Lord I shall rejoice to see you grow and abound yet more and more in Righteousness Holiness and as the Elect of God bowels of Mercies which will render you like unto and well liked of by the LORD of Lords To whom I leave you and remain Your Lordship's Servant RANDOLPH YEARWOOD THE EPISTLE TO THE READER Reader THE Malefactor mentioned in this following Narrative was none of mine acquaintance till for his horrid fact he was apprehended and imprisoned So that it was not any Relation of mine to him that put me upon this publication but I undertook this work as judging it of general concernment to all men both good and bad 1. As to the bad If thou art an evil wicked man er woman then this Narrative with the annexed admonitions and sermon c. much concern thee to make thee if possible penitent and truly reformed 2. Art thou a gracious good man or woman then thou hast reason to rejoyce on carth as God himself and the Angels of God rejoyce in heaven ever one repenting sinner Luke 15.7 and 10. I doubt not but thou wilt be well satisfied by the following Lines concerning the true conversion of a very hainous Offendor Now good Reader grant me one request not to look upon the following Discourses as a bare story or a piece of News and so having read and seen it there is an end But read and consider read and pray that this great and extraordinary passage of divine Providence may profit thy Soul which is the desire of my heart and Soul to God himself Otherwise I could not be as indeed I am thy Well-wisher Friend and Servant RANDOLPH YEARWOOD Three Conferences held with Nathaniel Butler during his Imprisonment by the Right Honorable the Lord Major under his Lordships own hand WHen Nathaniel Butler was first apprehended and brought before me he was in exceeding great burden of Spirit full of tears free to confess the Fact with all the aggravations thereof and was sollicitous for nothing but a few days respit for his poor Soul it seeming to me that nothing at that time was on his thoughts but what should become of his Soul At my first Conference with him which was about five or six days after his Condemnation I found him very ready to acknowledge his actual sins and to charge himself with them and the aggravations that did accompany them and this with sad tears of complaint and indignation against himself and his sins but did take no notice of his sinful Nature Which my self and a Friend with me Mr Griffith of the Charter house perceiving We endeavoured by Scripture to shew him his sinful Nature as the Root of all his sinful actions which he diligently hearkened to and was affected with but acknowledged his former Ignorance herein and that he had not so expresly before thougth hereof or been instructed hereabout and what he heard and received at this time among other Particulars was so far blest and wrought into his soul that to our selves and as we heard to others he did from that Night following much insist upon and bemoan his sinful nature and the state of sin he was born in as well as or together with those sinful acts he was guilty of At my second being with him after applying the free grace of God and Christ crucified to his faith for the pardon of his sins I asked him whether his heart could most willingly receive that pardon or a pardon for his life and bid him consider and tell me what his heart said in that Point After a little pause he made me this Answer That indeed he did not desire to live longer in this world for he had found sin so bitter a thing and himself so prone to sin that if he should live longer and sin against God it would be much more bitter to him then death and he did heartily Blesse God that had brought him to the hand of Justice and did truly love the party who as he thought was the Instrument to discover him acknowledging that the Devil had tempted him to lay violent hands on himself and after that temptation to fly beyond the Sea which if God had suffered him to do and so escaped Justice he might have gone on in his former course of sin without Repentance but did truly bless God that had delivered him from these temptations and had brought him to that condition that then he was in he did acknowledge with much thankfulness to God man the mercy of a few days between death and judgement and that God had given him so great a share in

not obeyed the voice of our Teachers nor inclined our car to them that instructed us This Great Offendor was one of your Rank had he taken the advice of Gods Word his sin had not been so great nor his punishment so terrible Of all we fear our counsel to you will be the most successless Youth is rash inconfide ate vain proud but sometime or other you will remember what we say Take heed of lesser sins Little sins will make way for greater sins if you sip of sin you ll be drunk of it at last How modest is sin at first but when 't is gratified it growes impudent This poor man lately executed first he began to game then to steal then to Whore and then to Murder Be careful of your company associate with them that fear God say unto them that are vain and wicked Depart from us for We will keep the Commandments of God Psal 119.115 Bad company is the way to corrupt and spoil you Can a man touch pitch and not be defiled Read the Scriptures much by them you must stand or fall to all eternity when we walk by you in your Shops we see many have their Play-Book in their hands but few have the Bible in their hands the Shop-Book is open but the Bible is shut Entertain high thoughts of Holiness and holy men The froth of your wits runs out too often in jeering godlinesse but take heed that 's not a thing to be so dealt withal Many of you count sin to be gallantry and Religion but a low and disgraceful thing God convince you of your folly Frequent Publick Ordinances especially upon the Lords day because you have not opportunity so to do upon the week days You 'l find more comfort in the Word and Prayer then in all your youthful delights Keep the Sabbath You have six dayes let God have one can he have lesse God out of special respects to servants hath instituted and sanctified this day How can you hope to keep an everlasting Sabbath in heaven if this Sabbath on earth be profaned by you Many go to Tiburn lamenting the profanation of the Lords day as that which ushered in all their wickedness Every day spend some time in private prayer 't is but rising a little the earlyer and going to bed a little the later you shall never be the worse for that time you spend in the Service of God Be subject and obedient to your Masters study how to please them bear with their passionate infirmities Do not purloyn but shew all good fidelity that the doctrine of God our Saviour may be adorned Tit. 2.9 10. Be diligent in your Callings if you be idle Satan will get an advantage The sitting bird is easily shot and the standing water gathers filth Love those that curb you and restrain you in wayes of sin they are your best friends 't is better to beheld in then to have a wicked liberty 't is better to have lust restrained then satisfied Be not angry with those who cannot see you damne your souls and let you alone Enter upon the wayes of God betimes the sooner the better Shall the devil have the best draught and shall God be put off with the Lees and Dregs Eccl. 12.1 Live alwayes as in Gods sight and know if you sin God will certainly sind you out one time or other Alas how many wayes hath God to bring the most hidden works of darkness to light sometimes by startling mens own consciences to an accusation of themselvs sometimes by awakening some of their complices to the discovery of the rest If you sin together you shall smart together Let this sad example never be forgotten by you for this Those that were Confederates in sin are made instruments and occasions of misery each to other Look not upon sin in the pleasure of it but in the danger of it The Wine sparkles in the cup but 't will be poyson in the belly Fear the strokes of God more then the stroaks of man What 's a fetter a dungeon a gallows to hell fire Mortifie a spirit of pride Never such pride amongst the youth of the City as now What vanity in apparel what superciliousness in carriage what contempt of Authority Oh be clothed with humility 1 Pet. 5.5 Give not way to imaginaay speculative heart sins Murder in the heart will soon be Murder in the hand uncleanness allowed in the thoughts wil come to bodily uncleanness at the last Keep Satan at a distaace if he get in he 'l be too hard for you To sum up all A dreadful spectacle of Gods Justice and of the fruit of sin bath been lately set before you we beseech you in the Bowels of Jesus Christ break off from all your sinful wayes by repentance One is smitten that many may fear He 's a warning to you take heed lest you be made a warning unto others If you would avoid his end walk not in his sins as secure as you are if you will allow your selves in that which is evil you do not know whither the divel wil carry you in a way of sin or to what God will bring you in a way of punshment Stand in aw therefore and sin not Ps 4.4 Flee youthful lusts 2. Tim. 2.22 Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he sal 1 Cor. 10.12 Every day pray that God will keep you from and strengthen you against temptation Say not 't is not possible I should ever be so vile as this Malefactor was Alas if God leave you you 'l be as bad as he Blessed is the man that feareth alwayes Prov. 28.14 In all things so carry your selves according to the rule of the Word that you may neither fall into the hands of men nor into the hands of God which is far the most dreadful 'T is a fearful thing to fal into the hands of the living God Heb. 10.31 That Governors and Governed may thus discharge their duties shall be the great design of our Ministrie by Gods assistance and our constant prayer at the Throne of Grace Septemb. 11. 1657. Edmund Calamy Arthur Jackson James Nalton Tho. Jacomb Robert Hutchison Thomas White Thomas Parson Thomas Doelittle Simeon Ashe Thomas Case Will. Taylor Roger Drake Geo. Griffith Matthew Poole Dan. Batcheler Finis