Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	commit_v	great_a	sin_n	5,813	5	5.3912	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A63939	An essay upon the works of creation and providence being an introductory discourse to the history of remarkable providences now preparing for the press : to which is added a further specimen of the said work : as also Meditations upon the beauty of holiness / by William Turner ...	Turner, W. (William), fl. 1687-1701.	1695 (1695)	Wing T3346; ESTC R8093	77,474	214

always to the Divine Disposal but if God should spare him yet a longer time here he hoped to bring Glory to the Name of God in the whole course of his Life and particularly by his endeavours to convince others and to assure them of the danger of their condition if they continued impenitent and how graciously God had dealt with him The time of his Sickness and Repentance was just nine Weeks in all which time 30 hours about the middle of it excepted wherein he was delirous he was so much Master of his Reason and had so clear an understanding that he never dictated or spake more composed in his Life Three or four days before his Death he had Comfortable Perswasions of God's accepting him to his Mercy saying I shall Die but Oh what unspeakable Glories do I see What Joys beyond Thought or Expression am I sensible of I am assured of God's mercy to me through Jesus Christ O! how I long to die and to be with my Saviour His Dying Remonstrance For the benefit of all those whom I may have drawn into sin by my example and Encouragement The Lord Rochester's dying Remonstrance I leave to the World this my last Declaration which I deliver in the presence of the great God who knows the Secrets of all Hearts and before whom I am now appearing to be Judged That from the bottom of my Soul I detest and abhor the whole Course of my former wicked Life that I think I can never sufficiently admire the Goodness of God who has given me a lively sense of my pernicious Opinions and vile practices by which I have hitherto Liv'd without hope and without God in the World have been an open Enemy to Jesus Christ doing the Utmost despite to the holy Spirit of Grace and that the greatest Testimony of my Charity to such is to warn them in the name of God and as they regard the welfare of their immortal Souls no more to deny his being or his providence or dispise his Goodness no more to make a mock of Sin or contemn the pure and excellent Religion of my ever Blessed Redemer thro' whose Merits alone I one of the Greatest of Sinners do yet hope for Mercy and Forgiveness Amen Declared in the presence of Anne Rochester Rob. Parsons J. Rochester To this we shall add two Penitential Letters the one of Sir Duncomb Colchester late of Westbury in Gloucestershire a Gentleman well known to have been a person of Wit and Parts whose Repentance and Reformation may deserve a more perticular Relation then is proper for this place and occasion For the truth and certainty of it that is beyond all doubt there being Copies of it in many hands both in City and Country long before his Death and seen and perused by his acquaintance and by diverse persons of quality who visited him here in Town but little before he dyed c. He continued his Repentance and Resolution to the last often and very freely declaring upon all occasions the Horror he had suffered in his Soul for his sinful life past far exceeding all that he suffered in his Body which was very great his sense of the Wonderful Mercy of God to him and that he would die rather than commit the least wilfull Sin He dyed 25th May 1694. in his return from London toward Gloucestershire Sir Duncomb Colchester's Penitential Letter Gentlemen and Friends SInce it hath pleased Almighty God of his great and undeserved Mercy and Goodness to bring me one of the chiefest of Sinners Sir Duncomb Colchester's penitential Letter by a long and sharp Visitation to a sense of my Sins for which with all Humility of Soul I adore and praise him it is a Duty I know incumbent on me as ever I hope for his Pardon and Forgiveness to do what in me lyes to bring Honour to his Holy Name to make Reparation for the Mischief I have done by my former vitious Life and antidote as far as I can the Poyson which my Example has shed round about me In order whereunto I do hereby Declare that I am heartily sorry for all the Sins of my past life the remembrance whereof however pleasant they formerly seemed to be is now Grief and Bitterness to my Soul More particularly that I may take shame to my self I do with the deepest sorrow lament my Rioting and Drunkenness my Chambering and Wantonness those daring and presumptuous Sins which had so long dominion over me I do also most heartily lament that great sin which I was so frequently guilty of of encouraging and drawing others to Excess which has made me partaker O sad thought of other Mens sins and lyable to answer for more than mine own I am sensible that as it hath been my Practice so it is still of too many Gentlemen and that they as I did reckon excessive Drinking so far from a Fault as to be rather one of the best Indications of a hearty Respect and true Affection to the Persons they entertain But O false Love O treacherous Friendship to receive their Friends Men and send them out of their Houses Beasts I wish from the bottom of my Soul that any thing I could say would make all those whose Consciences accuse them of Guilt in this particular to loath and abhor this wicked Practice as I do And I do also heartily lament my great Neglect of putting the Laws in execution against common Drunkards Swearers and such like scandalous Sinners and do earnestly beseech all such as are in Authority and whose business it is to see the Laws executed if any such come to hear this Paper read that they will be more careful in that particular and consider that as their Power is a Talent entrusted in them whereof they must give a strict Account to their heavenly Lord so by their being duly conscientious in the discharge of their Duty herein we may hope for a Reformation amongst us and then with confidence expect God's Blessing to rest upon us And as I abhor my self for my Neglect in this particular now mentioned and all my great sins and Provocations against an Infinite Majesty so I do farther hereby deelare my full Purpose and Resolution if it shall please Almighty God with whom all things are possible to restore me to Health or prolong my days by his special Grace and Assistance without which I shall be able to do nothing to lead a New Life in all Holy Obedience to his Will and Commands and desire that this Declaration of mine if I fail to do so may be produced as a Testimony against me to my Shame and Reproach But since my Recovery is very uncertain and what I have the least reason in the world to hope for being heartily desirous to do what good I can in the Circumstances I am in I do hereby earnestly warn and beseech all Sinners especially those whom my Example has at any time encouraged the remembrance whereof still sills me with shame

and sorrow to repent of all their sins and provocations least God's Vengeance overtake them in their Security and there be no Remedy And I beseech them farther to take Notice that if this Warning be slighted the wilfull neglect and Refusal thereof will at last be charged upon them as a heinous Aggravation of all their Sins they shall hereater commit will encrease their Condemnation and make their Doom more dreadful and terrible But that it may have a contrary effect and be a means to reduce 'em from their Sins to a Holy and Religious Life that so their Souls may be saved in the great Day of the Lord is the earnest desire of their Languishing and sorrowful Friend Duncomb Colchester Who desires this may be read in the Parish Churches of Michel Dean and Westbury and shewn to such Gentlemen Friends and others as may bring God most Glory Nov. 1693. Signed and Delivered in the presence of several of his Friends The other Letter is written by a Woman The remarkable penitence of J. H. and one of inferior quality in the World but not at all inferior in her Repentance It was that and the Grace of God in her Heart which moved her to do it long before it wasdone and it was the pure effect of that when at last it was done and all her own composure we are assured by a credible person who hath most reason to know it who gave her absolution approved her purpose in it and perused it when she had done it and hath seen other Letters of her writing by which he could easily discern the Composure of this if there had been any other hand in it or any reason to suspect it It is published with her consent who is very ready to embrace any Motion tending to the Honour and Service of God or her own Humiliation Her Letter was directed to Mr. Minister in Portsmouth and is as follows viz. Reverend Sir I Have put Pen to Paper humbly beseeching you to hear me of your Charity a few Words The Enemy of my Soul hath raised many Objections to hinder my intended purpose and I have been almost perswaded to give it over but now having the advice of a Pious Holy Minister of God who says it may be of great use I desire to take shame to my self and to give Glory to the Majesty of Heaven who in great Love and Pitty hath pluckt me as a Firebrand out of the Fire and I am this day a Living Monument of Mercy I cannot but be grieved at the many sad Examples I have given at Portsmouth My Sins have have encreased the heap of the publick Impieties and made them cry the louder to Heaven for Vengeance both there and here too It is very meet right and my duty to confess to the Glory of God and Praise of his Grace my crying sins committed in that place that some of my Companions in evil may hear and fear and do no more such wickedness About 9 or 10 years agone I came a young Woman if I deserve that name to P my Husband Cook of a Ship in that Harbour a very ill Husband no excuse for me Almighty God did suffer two sinners to come together to plague one another and whilst he acted the part of a Drukard with shame and confusion of face be it spoken I acted the part of a Harlot giving my self over to work all uncleanness with greediness insomuch that my very Name was a Proverb of Reproach to all Civil Women Two or three years I lived openly scandalous and then it pleased the Almighty to visit me with a sore fit fit of Sickness even to the loss of my Limbs for a Season at which time I did beg of God to restore me to my Health and did faithfully promise never more to defile my Marriage Bed and the Lord was intreated at that time also and hath added to my life these remaining years Some time after it pleased the All-wise Providence to make me a Mother I was very thankful for the Mercy and was much reclaimed and I was in some measure convinced of the great Evil of sin and did put pen to paper with intent it should come to the Ministers hand but the Enemies of my Soul prevented and hindred that reasonable design and I was again lull'd to sleep in the Bed of Carnal Security where I continued three or four years with little Interruption in which time I buried my Husband and two Children After this I was in danger of being as bad as ever living at Service in the very midst of Temptation at Porthridge I continued there but a short space for the good hand of Providence brought me to London where I had time and opportunity to reflect upon my ill spent life O that I might improve the mercy O that I could tell you what God hath done for my Soul He hath brought me out of Darkness into his marvellous light O that I could prevail with my Companions in evil to seek the Lord while he may be found and call upon him while he is near Some of them are old Sinners grey hairs are upon them and they know it not I could be content to stand in a white shet in your Church if I might but prevail with any one Soul to see the heinousness of my sin Nay I could be content to be stoned without the walls of the Garrison so I might but be a means of the Conversion of any one Sinner O that I could write these Lines with my purest Blood I am grieved for the Dishonour I have done to God by my abominable sin and heartily wish my Head were Waters and mine Eyss were a Fountain of Tears that I might weep day and night for abusing mercy O Sir you live in a place relating to Sodom cry aloud spare not to tell the Flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you Overseer their Sins and my Companions in evil their Sins The Lord is coming to reckon with the Nations and with you God grant you may be found among the Faithful Shepherds watching them and giving them their meat in due Season I humbly beg your Blessing desiring to be remembred in your Prayers and I humbly beseech the Almighty that this poor paper may have its designed effect that God may be glorifi'd and our Souls saved in the day of the Lord Jesus Amen and Amen J. H. Jan. 22. 1693 4. To this SPECIMEM we designed to have added several other Remarkable Instances of this nature never yet in Print but for want of room cou'd not insert 'em here But though this Specimen will not allow of instances under every head for if it wou'd we had added Specimens upon the Works of Nature and Art as we have done here upon Providence having prepared materials for that end yet b y what is here exhibited the ingenious Reader may easily perceive the usefulness of our design and as a farther Evidence thereof we shall only add That under