Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	hand_n	heaven_n	lord_n	3,518	5	3.6493	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61254	A treatise of God's government and of the justice of his present dispensations in this world by the pious, learned and most eloquent Salvian ... ; translated from the Latin by R.T. ... ; with a preface by the Reverend Mr. Wagstaffe.; De gubernatione Dei. English	Salvian, of Marseilles, ca. 400-ca. 480.; R. T., Presbyter of the Church of England.; Wagstaffe, Thomas, 1645-1712.	1700 (1700)	Wing S519; ESTC R16712	155,065	281

you are a Christian must of necessity believe your self to be govern'd by God But if you do not believe with other Christians that you are govern'd by God you must of necessity know that you are separated from all other Christians But if you desire to be inform'd as we have hinted above what is the State of all Mankind in general and not of the Christians in particular the Holy Scripture will solve your Doubt which affirms that all things are continually and without intermission order'd and govern'd by God For he loveth Council and Discipline Nor is there any other God whose Care is Wisd 12. v. 15 18. Universal For so much then as thou art righteous thy self thou orderest all things righteously and orderest us with great favour Here you see God always disposing Affairs and always governing and besides there is not only in this place a Declaration of his Governning but also an Exaltation of Humane Nature For in the words Thou orderest us is the Force of God's Power but in those with great favour is the height of Humane Honour So in the Prophet Do not I fill Heaven and earth saith the Lord And He himself declares Jer. 23. V. 24. why he fills all things Because I am with you says he and will save you God Jer. 42. v. 11. do's not only barely declare his Power and his filling all things but shews the Efficacy and Benefit of such his filling For the Divine filling brings this Advantage with it that it saves every thing which it fills And therefore the holy Apostle St. Paul in the Acts of Acts 17. v. 28. the Apostles says In him we live and move and have our Being Certainly he is more than a bare Disposer of Life in whom is the Principal of Motion of the Creature that lives For he do's not say that we are mov'd by him but in him thereby informing us that the Substance of us All is engraffed in the Divine Perfections Because we plainly live in him from whom we receive even our very Existence So our Saviour himself in the Gospel Loe I am with you alway Matth. 28. v. 20. even unto the end of the world He did not only say that he was with us but that he was with us always And do you ungrateful Man venture to say that he who is always with us do's neither regard nor care for us What do's he stay with us for no other end but to despise and neglect us How are these Things consistent that he should afford us his Presence out of Love and yet hate us by his Neglect For he says Loe I am with you always even unto the end of the world We put a very pretty Meaning on the loving-kindness of God by slandering him for neglecting us when at the same time he openly declares that he do's never leave us He would by this shew us that he would never depart from us in Affection and Protection because his Presence should be always with us And we convert this Divine Charity into Contempt of us and change these Marks of Love into Arguments of Hatred For this His saying that he would be always with us we make a Testimony of Hatred rather than of Love For if the Lord had said he should be absent there would be less Reason to accuse him of disregard in Absence It shews a much greater Slight and Contempt if he should always neglect us who always remain'd with us 't is great aggravation of Hatred to us if he should stay with us only for this End always to let us have his Presence and yet never to love us Far be it from us to have such Thoughts of the most Loving and merciful God that he should be always near us only that by such nearness he might slight and neglect us the more and far be it from us to speak it I am perswaded there is scarce such a Varlet to be found among all Mankind that desires to be near another Man purely because he do's not love him and that would covet to enjoy his Company meerly that he might have the better opportunity to hate and despise him Let therefore Humane Nature either inform or convince us For if we do not desire to be with any Man unless such as we have Respect for and because we have such respect we endeavour that our Company may be as grateful and advantageous to him we do so love How come we then to take away that from God which you must allow to a wicked Man and to depress him beneath even the very worst of Men that he should tell us that he would be always with us that he might use us with the greater Scorn and Contempt But enough of this III. It remains that since I have prov'd by How great things David suffered Testimonies of holy Writ that all things are order'd and govern'd by God I should shew in like manner that many things in this world have been adjudged by him When holy David was abus'd and affronted by Nabal the Carmelite he forbore to resent the Injury and had his Cause immediately avenged by God When therefore his Adversary was dead and smitten by the hand of Heaven he spoke after this manner Blessed be the Lord 1 Sam. 25. v. 39. that hath pleaded the Cause of my Reproach from the hand of Nabal When his Son became his Persecutor and turn'd him out of his Kingdom the Lord as Judge in a short time avenged his Cause and not only barely avenged it but in a much higher degree than he in whose Vindication it was would have had it that God might shew that the Injustice done to the Injur'd and Oppressed is more grievous to Himself than to those that bear it For he who punishes beyond the Desire of the Injur'd Party shews plainly that such overplus of Correction is in his own Quarrel His undutiful Son therefore being snapp'd up by the growing Gallows holy Writ relates the Account then given of this Punishment that fell upon him from above Thus Tidings my Lord the King for the 2 Sam. 18. v. 31. Lord hath avenged or judged for thee this day of all them that rose up against thee IV. Here you see not only from the nature of Things and Examples as I shewed before but also from the very Name and Term of Judgment how the Scriptures prove by holy Witnesses that God do's Judge even in this present World But you think it may be this was a singular Instance a particular Favour granted to so Great and Good a Man that God by his Judgments should deliver him from his Adversaries The whole day would not be sufficient for me to ●●eak of the Sentences and Judgments pass'd by God in this present World However that you may plainly discern that he do's not pass his Censures and Judgment so much for the sake of Persons as the Justice of their Causes pray mark how the same God as

Judge who so constantly gave Sentence for David has often in other Cases given it against him and this not in the Concern of Numbers of People or which perhaps might seem to incline God Almighty that of holy and good Men but in the Cause of a single Person and he an Alien too and where in all probability he would not have born so hard on so great a Man if his Cause had not condemn'd him Having kill'd Vriah the Hittite a Gentile and a Foreigner the Word of the Lord comes to David Thou hast killed Vriah the Hittite with the Sword and hast taken his Wife to be 2 Sam. 12. v. 9. thy Wife and hast slain him with the Sword of the Children of Ammon Now therefore the Sword shall not depart from thine House v. 10. Behold I will raise up evil against thee out of v. 11. thine own House and I will take thy Wives before thine eyes and give them unto thy Neighbour and he shall lye with thy Wives in the sight of the Sun in that thou didst it secretly but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the Sun What say you to this you that are so far from believing that God do's exercise Judgment in this World that you don't think he minds it at all Don't you see that God's eyes were present at this private and single Sin of David's So that you who I suppose comfort and solace your self in your Wickedness with the hopes that God do's not at all weigh any of our Actions do by this find that Christ plainly sees you and is ready to pour down Vengeance on your Head for 't was not possible for David a holy Man to conceal one single Sin committed with all the privacy imaginable nor by the Merit of all the good Works he had ever done to free himself from present Punishment For what says the Lord to him I will take thy Wives before thine eyes and the Sword shall not depart from thine House Here you see how quick a Sentence is pass'd on so Great a Man for one single Fault his Condemnation immediately follow'd his Crime a Condemnation with a Punishment not to be deferr'd but immediately affecting the guilty Person leaving none of the Guilt to be answer'd for hereafter And thefore he did not say because thou hast done this Thing thou shalt feel God's future Judgment and shalt be tormented in Hell-fire hereafter but thou shalt be punish'd in this World and shalt immediately feel the Sword of God's Wrath hanging over thy head And what Example of repentance was the Effect of this Why the Criminal acknowledges his Fault is humbled suffers Compunction Confesses Mourns and Repents throws by his Royal Gemms puts off his Massy Embroider'd Robes uses no Purple lays by his Diadem changes his Habit and his Heart casts off the Crown with all its Gay Attendance becomes a formal Penitent and flies for Refuge to a mean Attire is wasted with Fasting and dry'd up with Thirst is drain'd with Weeping and shut up in Secret And yet so Renowned a Prince as this greater in Piety than in Power extraordinary deserving in all his former Conduct when he prays and sues with so much Court yet cannot be forgiven However he gain'd that mighty The advantage of repentance Great Advantage from his Repentance that he was not adjudged to Eternal Punishment altho' he could not escape in this World For after all thus saith the Prophet to him Because 2 Sam. 12. v. 14. by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the Enemies of the Lord to Blaspheme the Child also that is born unto thee shall surely die Beside the severe Penalty inflicted in taking away the Child God seems so to have order'd it that the fond Father should have the tenderest Sense of the Judgment that the Father himself who griev'd and fear'd the Loss should be the very Cause of the beloved Infant 's Death and even the Crime that brought him into the World the Occasion of throwing him out of it V. This therefore was the first step of the Divine Judgment the first but not the only One for there follow'd a whole Series of Troubles and Afflictions and a continued Chain of Misfortunes never after departed from his Family Tamar is ravish'd by Amnon 2 Sam. 13. Amnon is murder'd by Absalom A Grand wicedness was committed by one Brother but yet a greater by the other in Revenge of it And David the Father a Sufferer in both their Crimes two of his Sons transgress and he loses three Children by the Offence Tamar loses her Virginity and in Amnon's Murder the loss of Absalom is bemoan'd And 't is not easie to guess which of his two Sons Loss the indulgent Father took most to heart whether his who fell by his Brother's hand in this World or his who perish'd eternally by his own in the other And now according to the Word of God after this there follows a whole heap of extraordinary Misfortunes the Father is for a long time beset by his Son is abdicated and driven out of his Kingdom and to save his Life sneaks off like a Fugitive The Son would puzzle half Mankind to tell whether he were more lewd or cruel For when he fail'd to kill his Father by base Patricide he throws Dirt upon him by Incest and by such sort of Incest which beside the Sin was industriously design'd to express and exalt the Villany for that very Wickedness which is most abominable tho committed with the greatest Secrecy this Persecutor of his Father acted openly that not only his absent Father might be dishonour'd by the prodigious Sin but also the eyes of the whole City be defiled with his publick Incest If to this we add the manner of his Flight how hard it was when so Great a King of so Great Fame greater than all his neighbour Kings and above the World fled from his own Children and Subjects with scarce a Servant to attend him become now in comparison of what he was lately a Beggar and deserted flying in Fear in Disgrace in Sorrow going as the Scripture says with his Head cover'd and barefoot 2 Sam. 15. v. 30. Beside these driving from himself the Thoughts of what he was formerly living now as it were after himself become so low which is grievous to a Prince as to be liable to the Affronts of his own Servants or which is still more grievous to need their Pity so that Siba now might bring him Victuals nor Simei fear to curse him publickly 2 Sam. 16. v. 1 7. being by God's Judgment so much alter'd from himself that one single Enemy might openly insult over him whom all the neighbouring World before trembled at VI. Where are they now that deny that God regards Humane Affairs Behold how often the Scriptures have inform'd us in the person of this one Man not only that God do's regard them but that he do's adjudge

chance to be present at a Robbery you are not stain'd by the Fact because you abhor it inwardly They are only the Uncleannesses of publick Sights which make the Actors and Spectators culpable alike For whilst those who see them do approve and see them willingly they do All by such Sight and Approbation act them So that that of the Apostle do's truly in a peculiar manner fall Rom. 1. v. 32. upon them that they are worthy of death not only they who do such things but also they who consent and have pleasure in them that do them And therefore in the Representations of Fornication all the whole Body of the People are mental Fornicators and they who it may be came clean to the Play return Adulterers from the Theatre But it is not only then when they return that they are Fornicators but even when they come For for that very Reason that any one desires an obscene Thing whilst he hastens to such Unncleanness he is unclean IV. Things being thus loe what are the Actions of all the Romans or at least of almost all And since they are such we who do these fine things complain that we are neglected by Heaven and say that we are deserted by our God when 't is we our selves that leave him For let us suppose that our Lord had a mind to regard us tho' we do not deserve it let us see whether he could do it There are many thousands of Christians every day at the beastly publick Shews Can God think we look upon such People as they are Can he regard those who revel in the Cirque and fornicate in the Theatres Or have we a mind and think it very fitting that when God beholds us in the Cirques and Theatres he should be a Spectator of the Sights together with us and should look upon all the Uncleannesses of the place as well as our selves One of the two must necessarily be done For if he vouchsafes to behold us it follows that he must likewise behold the things where we are or if which is most certain he turns away his eyes from them he turns them likewise from us who are present at them And tho' matters are thus yet we do all this that I have mention'd and that without ceasing What do we think we have such a God as the old Pagan Theatres and Cirques had For they did all these things heretofore because they thought they were very pleasing to their Idols But on what account can we pretend to do these things who certainly know that they are odious to our God Or at least if we are sure that these Filthinesses are pleasing to God I am not against the continual acting of them But then if we find in our own Consciences that this is what God abhors that he abominates them that as there is in them the repast of the Devil so they are an Abuse to God how do we pretend we worship God in His Church when we are continually serving the Devil in these obscene Plays and that wittingly and knowingly advisedly and on set purpose And what hope and confidence then can we have in God who offend him not by Accident or Imprudence but like those antient Gyants who we read madly attempted Heaven and endeavoured to step into the Clouds So we by the Affronts which all over the World we offer to God do as by universal Consent offer Violence to Heaven To Christ then O prodigious Madness to Christ we offer the Games of the Cirque and Mimickries and then chiefly when we have receiv'd some Favour from him some Blessing is bestowed upon us or when he has given us Victory over our Enemies And what is this but to offer Injuries to ones greatest Benefactor or scurrilously to abuse one who treats us civilly or to wound the very face of one who would salute us For I desire to know of the Rich and Great Men of this World of what fault they take that Servant to be guilty who devises Mischief against a kind and loving Master who offers Abuses to him who deserves well of him and for the Liberty which he has gain'd returns only Injuries and Affronts He will doubtless be thought guilty of the greatest Crime who returns Evil for Good who ought not to have return'd so much as Evil for evil But this is what all we who are call'd Christians do By our Impurities we provoke a most merciful God against us by our Uncleanness we offend him who has tenderness for us and by our Injuries wound him who obliges and courts us V. To Christ then O prodigious Madness to Christ we offer Cirque plays and Mimickries we render to Christ for all the Benefits we have receiv'd from him the Filthiness of the Theatres to Christ we offer the Sacrifices of these most abominable Pastimes Undoubtedly our Saviour became incarnate for us that he might teach us this Certainly he preach'd this either by himself or his Apostles For this he underwent the Shame of his Humane Nativity and took upon him the debasing Principles of an earthly Birth For this he lay in the Manger and had Angels ministring unto Him whilst he lay there For this he would be wrapp'd in Swadling-Clouts who rul'd Heaven in Robes of Glory For this he hung upon the Cross whom all the World even hanging dreaded Who says the Apostle though 2 Cor. 8. v. 9. he was rich yet for our sakes he became poor that we through his Poverty might be rich And when says he he was in the Form of God he Phil. 2. v. 6 8. humbled himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross To be sure Christ instructed us in these Matters when he underwent all these things for our sakes We make most admirable Returns to His Passion who having receiv'd Redemption by His Death requite him with a most Scandalous Life For the Grace of God says the blessed St. Paul Titus 2. v. 11 12 13 14. hath appear'd to all Men teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly Lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present World looking for that blessed Hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ who gave Himself for us that he might redeem us from all Iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar People zealous of good works Where are they who do these things for the which the Apostle says Christ came into the World Where are they that deny worldly Lusts where are they who live soberly righteously and godly where are they who by their good Deeds shew that they look for that blessed Hope and by the Innocence of their Lives demonstrate that they for that Reason expect the Kingdom of God because they are fit and qualified to deserve to receive it Our Lord JESUS CHRIST came he says to purifie unto himself a peculiar People zealous of good works Where is that pure People where is that acceptable