Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	father_n	love_v	world_n	20,571	5	5.9599	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12558	Munition against mans misery and mortality A treatice containing the most effectual remedies against the miserable state of man in this life, selected out of the chiefest both humane and divine authors; by Richard Smyth preacher of Gods word in Barstaple in Devonshire.	Smyth, Richard, preacher in Barnstaple, Devonshire.	1612 (1612)	STC 22878; ESTC S100020	65,151	158

sicke with ease prosperity more plagued with peace thē ever they had beene with wars And k Sen. ep 52. the Philosopher wittily saies of Hanniball effeminated by ease delicacie that he overcame by armes but was himselfe overcome by vices l Idem ep 19.115 who also notes that this was the spoile of Mecoenas and not only of him but generally of very many whō prosperity brought to a madnes of vanity luxury Againe they saw that sometime crosses occasioned encrease of iudgement and bred an experimentall knowledge which was not a little to be esteemed So m Chion in ep quadam Chion gaue harty thankes to the crosse windes that kept him at Byz ārium against his will because by this meanes he grew acquainted with Zenophon arrived there during his cōstrained stay greatly benefited him selfe by cōference intercourse with him And n Plutarch Apopht Regum Imperat Themistocles being banished by his vnkinde country was wont to say to his followers Except we had been vndone we had beene vndone So much did hee thinke hee had gained by his banishment because he thereby grew in favour with the king of Persia and was greatly advaunced and enriched by him 6 How much more thē may Christians picke profite out of adversitie yea such profit as the blinde Gentils never dreamed of For all that they gained or possibly could gaine by adversity was but a civill morall wisdome or reformatiō of their outward behaviour in this present worlde and in regard of men But the Christian taketh out farre higher lessons from adversity 7 For first hereby they learne cōtempt of the world which is no small matter For how dangerous a thing the loue of the worlde is appeares by this that it is incompatible with the loue of God cannot stand with it Know yee not saith o Iam. 44 S. Iames that the friendship of the worlde is enmitie vvith God Whosoever then will be n friend of the world becommeth the enemie of God And saith p Ioh. 1.2 vers 15. S. Iohn See that yee loue not the world nor the things of the worlde if any man loue the world the loue of the father is not in him Thus we see that of necessitie wee must bee out of loue with the world if we woulde bee in loue vvith God enemies with the world or else we cannot be friends with God The contempt of the world then toucheth vs as neerely as our verie salvation neither can there bee any salvation without it But now what can so well teach vs the cōtempt of the world as experience of the vanities and miseries of the world It is then a speciall token of Gods loue and favour when he by afflictions crosses makes the worlde bitter and vnsavorie vnto vs therby to waine vs frō the loue therof As mothers or nurses when they would weyne sucking children do vse to annoint their teates with wormewoode or some other bitter thing thereby to make them weary of sucking and to leaue the sweet for avoyding of the bitter so God when hee woulde weyne his children from the loue of the world by adversities and crosses maketh it bitter and vnsavory to them least they should too deepely sucke in the poyson thereof yea even sucke themselues to death as carnall men that liue in all prosperity iolity vsually doe according to that saying of wise q Pro. 1.32 Salomon that the ease of fooles killeth them and the prosperity of the foolish destroieth them by fools meaning the wicked whom prosperity makes wanton and foolish depriving them of all spirituall vnderstanding if they had any or else keeping them from ever having any And this as r Ier. 48.11 Ieremie or rather the Lord by Ieremie witnesseth was the over throw and ruine of the Moabits because r Ierem. 48. ver 11. Moab was quiet even from his youth and sate vpon the Lees nor was powred out from vessell into vessel nor lead into captivitie Thus a flattering world poysoneth but a frowning world preserveth a flattering world defileth a frowning world purifieth in a word a flattering world damneth a frowning world saveth And who woulde not bee content to haue the world his stepmother so that hee may haue God his father And how necessary it is that the world should bee a step-mother vnto vs that wee might not over loue it appears by that golden speech of ſ Augustine an ancient divine Behold saith he the world is stormie and tēpestuous and yet wee loue it what should we doe if it were calme How wouldst thou imbrace and cole a beautifull worlde that makest so much of a fowle and deformed world howe greedily wouldest thou gather the roses of it that canst hardly hold thy hands from the thornes of it That is how should we doare vpon the world if it were an indulgent mother that can scarse forbeare to loue it being a curst stepmother 8 Besides the miseries of this life do serue notably to mortifie our lusts and concupiscenses For as prosperity is oile to kindle them so adverfity is water to coole and quench thē Hereby anger is mitigated lust abated pride deiected and in a word all inordinate affections desires rectified Hence it is that affliction in holy scripture is often tearmed a fornace yea a fiery fornace because it purgeth out our corruptions and maketh seperation betweene the golde and the drosse of our soules betweene our vices and our vertues And hence it cōmeth that our very enimies are our servants and procure our good when they seeme most to hurt annoy vs. Wouldst thou know how this comes to passe saith t Augustin de tempor sermo 78 S. Augustine Why they so serue vs as files and hammers serue gold as milles serue wheate as ovens serue for the baking making of bread finally as straw and chaffe in the fornace serveth gold where the chaffe is co●sumed to nothing but the gold remaineth yea is made better then it was being purified thereby Which resemblances if wee well marke them are very proper excellent For one would thinke that the file by galling the hammer by beating should marre the golde yet they both better it one would thinke that the chaffe which nourisheth the fire in the Goldsmiths fornace should be hurtfull to the gold as also the mil to the wheate which it grindeth to powder and the oven to the loaues which it burneth and scorcheth with so violent heare and yet are all these things brought to their perfection by the things which in shew so much annoy them gold by the file hammer burning chaffe wheare by the mill loaues by the oven And so a true Christian is purified and perfected by the things that threatē him destruction namely by crosses and ●ffictions 9 Neither doe the miseries of this life only mortifie our vices but also either breed or at least increase many excellent vertues

yet this in parte insinuates the greatnes of Gods mercie namely that it is as great as himselfe and that no mar● vaile sith it is himselfe But first let vs heare what himselfe testifieth of himselfe that way that only is able perfectly to know himselfe 2 The Lord a Psal 113. ver 8. seq saith David is mercifull and gratious of long suffering and pienteous with goodnes hee chideth not for ever nor keepeth his anger alwaies hee dealeth not with vs according to our sinnes nor rewardeth vs according to our iniquities but as high as the heavens are aboue the earth so much doth his mercie gue beyond them that feare him as far as the East is from the w●st so far doth he remoue our sinnes from vs as a father hath pitty on his children so hath the Lord pitty on them that feare him for he knoweth whereof we are made hee remembreth that we are but dust Here we haue not only a profession of the greatnes of Gods mercy in expresse words but also a liuely resemblance thereof by most proper comparisons yea most forcible arguments also and reasons for proofe thereof as God vvilling shall hereafter be observed b Esai 49. vers 15. Againe saith the Lord Can the mother forget her young childe and not haue pitty of the son of her wombe but be it that a mother may forget yet will not I forget thee saith the Lord. And c Esay 55. v 7. ●9 in the same Prophet to weete Esay Let the wicked forsake his evill waies the vngodly his imaginations retur●e vnto the Lorde and hee will haue mercie on him and to our God for he is full of compassiō For my thoughts are not as your thoughts nor my waies as your waies but as high at the heavens are aboue the earth so high are my waies aboue your waies and my thoughts aboue your thoughts And so d ser 3. ● in Ieremie If a man bee divorced from his wife shee departing from him shall bee marryed to an other shall he take her againe should not the land be defiled thereby But thou hast plaide the whore with many lovers y●t returne to me ●aith the Lord. And in e Ezech 18. ver 23 31. Ezechiell hee even mourneth for the follie and obstinacie of his people that woulde not returne vnto him and liue Am I delighted with the death of a sinner saith the Lorde and not rather with this that hee should returne from his waies and liue Why will yee die ô house of Israell Out of these Scriptures the like we may gather many consolations wherby to be perswaded of the forgiuenesse of our sins And first let vs cōsider that Gods loue infinitely exceedeth any loue that is to be found in the creatures being as farre aboue it as the heavens are aboue the earth or the vtmost endes of the worlde are distant one from an other And yet wee see that the loue which is in the creatures is of greate force and produceth very strange effects and speciallie that loue wherewith God here compareth his namely that of parents towards their children who loue thē yea tenderly loue them even when they are vnworthy of their loue and gladly embrace any submission from them f Teren. Andr●a Act. 5. scen 3. Propeccato magno paulum ●upplicii satis est patri Even nature hath taught men to plead this * That a father is satis fied with a little punishment for a great offence Nay we see that fathers cānot but loue their stubborne children that refuse to submit themselues yea that stand at open defiance with them whereof the Scripture affordeth vs a notable example g 2. Sam. 15 ver 1.2 c. Absalon most vnnaturally rebelled against his father king David after that hee had pardoned him for a cruell and odious murther and sought to depriue him both of crowne and life For ●in kings these both goe togither vvho leaue to bee men when they leaue to be kings can no longer hold their liues than they hold their soveraignety Hee I say vnnaturally rebelled against so kinde a father and was vp in armes against him And yet see howe his father was affected towards him Having raised an armie to suppresse him h Chap. 18.5 12. hee chargeth his two principall captaines that they should deale gently with Absalon for his sake i Vers 31.32 33. And when afterwarde he had newes that he was slaine he made most pitifull lamētatiō for him crying out My son Absalon my son my son Absalon woulde God I had dyed for thee would God I were in thy steed ô Absalon my sonne my sonne Thus nature forced him to loue even a rebellious sonne But most memorable is that which happened in our age at Castillion vpon Loing in France k Bodin de repub lib. 1. cap. 4. A father offering to giue his son a blow for some misdemeanor the sonne ran him through with his sword Here the miserable father perceiving himselfe woūded to death never left crying after his son as long as he coulde crie that hee should flie and shift for himselfe least iustice shoulde take hold on him O admirable force of fatherly loue that the father shoulde tender the sonnes life that deprived the father of life But God doth not only cōpare his loue to a fathers loue but also to a mothers loue vvhich commonly is the more tender of the two that sex being passion arely indulgent And of what force a mothers loue is even towards wicked and vngratious children the same author in the same place specifieth by the example of a womā of the same natiō who having a sonne that vsed her most outragiously reviled her beare her threw her at his feete and amongst many other indignities committed one against her which I thinke vnmeet to be mentioned in particular yet would never complaine to authority of him and when the magistrates of their owne accord tooke notice thereof and holding the example into lerable convented him before thē gaue sentence of death against him the mother came crying and howling in most pitifull sort denying all the wrongs and outrage he had done vnto her And no marvell that the parents loue of their children is so tender and vehement sith wee see howe strong and strange the affection of very beastes is towardes their young ones The loue of their young ones l Sen ep 75 saith Seneca forceth wild beasts to runne vppon the hunters iavelin or speare m Nat. Comes de venat lib. 2. and they vsually either recover them or die in attempting to recover them Nowe these strong instincts of loue in the creatures are derived from God and infused into them by him I speake of the substance and soundnesse thereof For as for the irregularitie of it specially in men it proceedes not from creation but from corruption depravation But I say this loue yea this fervency of loue