Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	good_a	sin_n	sinner_n	3,410	5	7.5691	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A51305	Letters on several subjects with several other letters : to which is added by the publisher two letters, one to the Reverend Dr. Sherlock, Dean of St. Paul's, and the other to the Reverend Mr. Bentley : with other discourses / by Henry More ; publish'd by E. Elys.	More, Henry, 1614-1687.; Elys, Edmund, ca. 1634-ca. 1707.	1694 (1694)	Wing M2664; ESTC R27513	57,265	148

So prayeth for you and for all Men as he desires that all Sincere Christians should pray for him Your faithful Servant in the love of the Truth Edmund Elys Tho' I grant that the Truth of those Seven Propositions may be known without external Revelation yet I assert That 't is Ten thousand times more casie to come to that Knowledge by the Revelation which Almighty God has given us in the Holy Scriptures than without it And therefore we ought to give continual Thanks to the God of Truth for vouchsafing to us so great a Blessing The Seventh Proposition is this That when we err from the Rules of our Duty we ought to repent and trust in God's Mercy for Pardon What it is to Repent no Man shall ever practically or effectually understand unless he be taught of GOD And 't is Ten thousand times more likely that such a Man will be taught of God who with an honest Heart reads or hears the Holy Scriptures than he who is altogether ignorant of them or who having read them will not believe that they were written by Divine Inspiration To Repent is to cease to live unto our selves and to live unto Him that dy'd for us and arose again of which Repentance we become capable only by the Death of Christ whom the Holy Scriptures call the Lamb slain from the foundation of the World The Apostle says expresly 2 Cor. 5. 15. That he died for all that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto him that died for them and rose again In the Ninth Chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews are these words If the blood of bulls and of goats and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh how much more shall the blood of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered up himself without spot to God purge your conscience from dead works to serve the livingood From this Concession of the Deists That God is infinitely just and insinitely merciful I infer That His Hatred to Sin and his Love to Sinners are both Infinite I suppose they will grant that He is Infinite in Goodness in Wisdom in Power and in all Perfection From hence I infer That in His Infinite Wisdom he hath-contriv'd some way by his Infinite Power to make a demonstration to Sinners of his Infinite Love Benevolence or Communicativeness of the True Good even to them so far as they are capable of it But it implies a contradiction that they should be capable of or in a power to receive the True Good or Intellectual Satisfaction but only by Repentance or turning of their Will or Intellectual Appetite to God as to its principal or ultimate Object It implies a contradiction to say That Infinite Wisdom could contrive a better way than this to bring Sinners to Repentance viz. to demonstrate to them that tho' the Hatred which the great and good God has to every Sin is Infinite nevertheless his Love to every Sinner capable of Repentance is also Infinite And this demonstration of the Infinite Justice and Infinite Mercy and Goodness of God those that believe the Gospel clearly perceive in the sacrifice of the Death of Christ. Whatsoever we find in the Holy Scriptures concerning the Death of Christ and the Benefits which we receiue thereby is most perfectly agreeable to all those notions of the Divine Justice and Mercy which are suggested unto us by the Innate Idea of God to the contemplation whereof I earnestly exhort all those Men who call themselves Deists beseeching Almighty God the Father of Mercies and God of all Consolation to lift up the light of his countenance upon them to give them the light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. I declare to all the World that I have not such Indignation to these Open Enemies as I have to such Traytors to the Church of Christ as the Author of that most execrable Pamphlet entituled The Naked Gospel I shall here impart to the candid Reader some of my Reflections on that Infamous Scribler tho' it has been already sufficiently confuted I consider that Saying of the Wise Man Prov. 10. 19. In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin And therefore I would rather chuse to be blamed by my best Friends for using so few words in any Theological Controversie than be ever guilty of publishing of any one Assertion especially concerning the Doctrin of the holy blessed and glorious Trinity which I should not be able to vindicate against a more subtile Sophister than Socinus himself A strange Confidence it is in this Anti-trinitarian to scoff at us for saying That the Doctrin of the Trinity is a Mystery Does not the holy Apostle say expresly 1 Tim. 3. 16. Without controversie great is the mystery of godliness God was manifest in the Flesh c. Is not the Nature of God incomprehensible to any Finite Understanding And shall any Man undertake to determine how GOD could be made Man how the Creator could assume a Created Nature But that Christ is GOD and Man is a Truth as certain and unquestionable as it is that these Texts of Scripture were written by Divine Inspiration Iohn 1. 1 2 3. Col. 1. 16 17. Acts 20. 28. I shall here recite some of the words of this Antitrinitarian whom surely we may most justly call Anti-christian P. 48. To this Objection of the Romanists and to others of the Unitarians we have found an Answer That we must not infer from our own Nature to God's for that ours is Finite and Gods is Infinite Three Persons among Us are three Men because they agree in one common nature but the Divine Nature is not a common one but a singular and therefore three Persons do not make three Gods If you understand not this you must not wonder at least you must not gainsay it for it is a Mystery which Reason may not presume to fathom Is there any thing more reasonable than to conceive that in God the One Infinite Essence there may be a certain Trinity which cannot in any wise appertain to any Three Persons of a Finite Nature Can there ever be a more impious Absurdity than this to deny the Truth of that which the Almighty and Incomprehensible GOD Father Son and Holy Ghost in whose Name we are baptised has reveal'd unto us concerning Himself because we cannot find any thing perfectly like it even amongst the best of his Creatures To say That we ought not to believe any thing but what our Reason can fathom or comprehend is in effect to say We ought not to believe there is a God it being Essential to the Deity to be infinitely beyond the comprehension of our Reason P. 40. The great Question concerning the Godhead of Christ is impertinent to our Lord's Design 2. Fruitless to the Contemplator's own purpose 3. Dangerous P. 53. There is danger of Blasphemy in examining the silly Question concerning

Divine Inspiration will readily grant that in two or three Lines I destroy your Hypothesis viz. That there is no other Difference or Distinction betwixt the Father Son and Holy Ghost than there is betwixt Infinite Goodness Wisdom and Power It is most agreeable to the Holy Scriptures to say That Infinite Goodness is Infinite Wisdom and Power and that Infinite Wisdom is Infinite Goodness and Power and that Infinite Power is Infinite Goodness and Wisdom But it is most contrary to the Holy Scriptures to say That the Father is the Son and the Holy Ghost and that the Son is the Father and the Holy Ghost and that the Holy Ghost is the Father and the Son Your ridiculing the Heavenly Senniments of St. Augustin concerning the Divine Beauty is such an Abomination that I cannot recite it without an Horresco Referens as a Preface to the Recitation of such a Blasphemous Harangue P. 4. Let us seriously consider How could Epicurus more Graphically describe his Idle Voluptuous Deity than by comparing him to a Beautiful Lady pleasing her self with the Image of her fair Face reflected in a bright smooth Glass or How could he give a better Account of his regardlesness of the World than by saying his Life his Glory and his Pleasure are all his Interest and and these are determined to one another Now I pray thee Reader what is all this to thee or me but a Discouragement from hoping any good from such a God and consequently from paying him any Love or Service Be the Lady never so perfect in Beauty her Glass never so exactly clear her Delight in it never so ravishing what is this to the well-ordering of her Family but an hindrance A Noble Eloquent and Judicious Writer in his Advice to a Daughter telleth her That her Servants will more value her House-keeper than her Ladyship if they find she takes no care of them And some will say It is not so unreasonable to Worship the Sun who is the World 's great Benefactor as that Sun ' s Creator if he leaves them without farther regard to their happiness Now I pray thee Reader What is all this to thee or me Is it nothing to me that my God is the Infinity of True Beauty that He is all that I can desire all that deserves my Love The Divine Beauty implies the Glory of infinite Goodness Wisdom and Power and is all this nothing to me It implies the Glory of the Justice of the Divine Vengeance on Impenitent Sinners as they are Impenitent and the Glory of Infinite Mercy towards Sinners that repent or such who tho they do not truly repent have not so hardened their hearts but that they are capable of Repentance And is all this nothing to me Is it nothing to me that the Divine Beauty being Infinite is in all Things and Events Sin only excepted so that whilst I sincerely believe in IESUS all the Objects of my Thoughts are Matter of Joy and Satisfaction unto me The King of Terrors ceases to be terrible and becomes a most useful Subject to those that obey the Royal Law of Liberty and so become Kings and More than Conquerors over all their Enemies This Happiness they attain unto by a true Sense or Practical Knowledge of the Divine Beauty the Infinity of Light and Love And is all this nothing to me Certainly the Divine Beauty is All Things to me One Glympse of it is enough to quench all such burning desires which torment the Souls of Covetous Ambitious and Voluptuous Men. This Beauty do I see in the Image of the Invisible God the Brightness of the Glory of the Father of Lights and the Express Image of his Person Your kind Reflexion upon the Mahometans p. 19. puts me in mind of that most Remarkable Passage in a Learned Book Entituled A Discourse of Natural and Reveal'd Religion Chap. 26. Before 〈◊〉 take my leave of Mahomet it will not be amiss to Advertise my Reader if he be a Christian of the Danger both he and all other Christian are in of being reduc'd under the Slavery of this Mortal and Common Enemy so that how prosperous soever the Christian Arms are or have been we are still in greater danger than ever of being ruin'd by the Legions of these Infidels not those of their Spahi's or Ianizaries but by those of another Order far more mischievous forasmuch as they fight under our Colours and pretend to be of our Party such Enemies are ever look'd upon as the most dangerous for they are rarely discovered till they have given the Mortal Blow Now these are the Socinians which tho exploded the World above a Thousand Years ago under the Appellation of Arians are in these our days risen again from the Grave and like Spectrums appear every where in the dark P. 29. You say That St. Gregory Nazianzen in his 35th Oration maketh the Unity no other than p●cifical wherein he agreeth with his great Friend St. Basil as appeareth by the Letter sent him expresly upon this Subject by that great Father Have you any Fear of God or Shame of the World who have the Impudence to publish so Notorious a Lye These are St. Gregory Nazianzen's Words in his 38th Oration and there is nothing in his 35th but what is fully agreeable to them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 This is the first Verse of one of his Hymns 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That Unity cannot be Specifical or under any Genus which is above all being Absolutely Infinite There is not one Word in any one of St. Basil's Epistle to St. Gregory Nazianzen that might give any Man an Occasion to conceit That he thought the Unity no other then Specifical Blush and be confounded at the reading of these Words of that Holy Father wherein he expresses his Sense of the Divine Unity De Spiritu Sancto Cap. 18. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Where the Unity is Specifical there are Actually or Potentially more than one of the same Kind I shall now give you some of my Reflections upon the Conclusion of your Sophistical Essay Some I hope say you will find satisfaction in the very Doctrine as now stated Those that cannot fully grant their Assent and Consent to the Doctrine for its own sake may find some Ease if not full Cure of their Scruples when they Conform to our Establish'd Worship for Peace sake The former indeed is the best Fruit but the later is not contemptible If I obtain either of them I have already a sufficient Reward Yet I hope for a greater from that Lord whom I have thus endeavoured to serve and who hath said Blessed are the Peace-makers Here you plainly discover your Develish Design to bring the Socinians into the Communion of the Church of England and consequently to Corrupt and Destroy Her I grant That an Unlawful Petition in the Public Prayers is no sufficient Cause for any Man to separate himself from such a Religious Assembly which otherwise he should he obliged

the Eternity of the Godhead of Christ. Answ. Certainly it was most pertinent to our Lord's design that we should worship the Father Son and Holy Ghost as the Only True God and this we cannot do unless we believe Him to be Eternal To question the Godhead of our Saviour is not only fruitless and dangerous but diabolically impious and pernicious But nothing can more require the greatest ardency of our most zealous Endeavours than to suppress the confidence of those Men who pretend by their Reason to baffle the Divine Wisdom and by the force of a little Sophistry to eclipse the Eternal Brightness of the Glory of the Father of Lights It is fruitless to the Contemplator's own purpose to consider that He whom he believes to be his Saviour is a Person of Infinite Power and Majesty Will not the genuine force and efficacy of this consideration produce in a true Believer the Fruit of the Spirit viz. Love Ioy Peace Long-suffering Gentleness Goodness Faith Meekness Temperance Most certainly he 's in great danger of Hell-fire that calls this Truth into question that our Lord Iesus Christ is the true and eternal God But nothing can more conduce to our Safety and Everlasting Consolation than a firm adherence to this Assertion That our Saviour is Almighty which he could not be if he were not the True and Eternal God For as there is but One Eternal so there is but One Almighty I have seen divers Excellent Books that have been written against this wicked Pamphlet therefore I shall say no more of it but only this That I wish its being burnt may mind the Author of that Fire which shall never be quenched Since the writing hereof I have read a Pamphlet with this fantastick Title The Antapology of the Melancholy Stander-by In Pag. 41. I find such a scandalous Objection against the Creed of St. Athanasius that I think it my Duty with all possible speed to publish my Answer to it and Resentment of it as coming from one who professes himself to be a Son of the Church of England He recites these words of the Creed The Father is eternal the Son eternal and the Holy Ghost eternal and yet they are not Three eternals but One eternal As also there are not Three Incomprehensibles nor Three Uncreated but One Uncreated and One Incomprehensible Suppose now says this Anonymus a Man should thus argue hence If there are Three yet not Three Uncreated but One Uncreated then Two of the Three must be Created for the Three must be either Created or Uncreated that is eternally existent I affirm That if any Man should thus argue the Answer would be ready That the Epithets Incomprehensible and Uncreated are attributed to the Father Son and Holy Ghost as these Three are One and have one Essence Uncreated Infinite or Incomprehensible It does no more follow That if there are Three yet not Three Uncreated but One Uncreated and then Two of the Three must be Created than that if there are Three yet not Three Gods but One God then Two of the Three must not be God Here the Anonymus plainly discovers the falseness of his Heart whatever he pretends he is a Deserter of the Catholic Faith As for his most Impious Endeavours to make his Reader to disgust that most wholsome Petition in the Litiny which being rightly used cures the Soul of all Sin and Error O holy blessed and glorious Trinity Three Persons and One God have mercy upon us miserable Sinners I shall say no more at present but only this That if this Writer receive any Temporal Benefit as a Priest of the Church of England he deserves the Character of a Thief and a Robber And as I profess my self to be a True Son of the Church of England and consequently of the Universal Church of Christ I make my Appeal against him to the King of kings and Lord of lords who is ready to judge both the Quick and the Dead 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 BOOKS Printed for John Evering● at the Star in Ludgate-street 1. MIscellany Essays by Monsieur De 〈◊〉 mont upon History Philosophy 〈◊〉 Morality Humanity Gallantry c. 〈◊〉 with a Character by a Person of Hono● 〈◊〉 England continued by Mr. Dryden 2. A new Family-book or the true 〈◊〉 of Families Being Directions to Pa● 〈◊〉 Children and to those who are inst●ad of 〈◊〉 shewing them their several Duties with 〈◊〉 and Meditations To which is annexed 〈◊〉 course about the right way of improvin● 〈◊〉 Time with a Preface by Dr. Horneck 3. An Answer to the brief History of the 〈◊〉 tarians called also Socinians By William 〈◊〉 Rector of St. Swithin London 4. An Enquiry into several remarkable 〈◊〉 of Scripture in the Old and New Testam● which contain some difficulty in them with 〈◊〉 probable Resolution of them By Iohn Edwar● B. D. sometime Fellow of St. Iohn's College in Cambridge 5. Moral Maxims of Reflections in four Parts Written in French by the Duke of Rochefoucault now made English 6. The Gauger and Measurer's Companion being a compendious way of Gauging Superfice and Solids with the Reasons of most Multiplicators and Divisors used in Measuration all difficult Points made easie with a way to Gauge all Quantities under a Gallon also a brief Description of the Gauge-point with a Direction to find the same and the Content of a Circle in all its parts The exact Method of measuring Land Board Glass Pavement Stone be it of what form soever together with a Globe and Round Timber with a Table of Cylinders c. 7. The Royal English School for Their Majesties three Kingdoms being a Catalogue of all the Words in the Bible with a Praxis in Prose and Verse all beginning with one Syllable and proceeding by degrees to eight divided and not divided whereby all Persons both Young and Old of the meanest Abilities may with little help be able to read the whole Bible over distinctly easily and more speedily than in any other Method with Directions to find out any word together with an Exposition on the Creed and variety of Pictures By Tobias Ellis late Minister of the Gospel 8. Monarchia Microcosmi The Origin Vicissitudes and Period of Vital Government in Man for a further discovery of Diseases incident to Human Nature By Edw. Maynwaring M. D. 9. The Divine Art of Prayer containing the most proper Rules to Pray well with divers Meditations and Prayers suitable to the Necessity of Christians useful in every Family with several Prayers for Souldiers both in Their Majesties Army and Fleet. By Marius d' Assigney B. D. 10. Phrascologia Generalis A full large and general Phrase-book comprehending whatever is necessary and most useful in all other Phraseological Books hitherto here published and methodically digested for the more speedy and prosperous progress of Students in their Humanity-Studies By William Robertson M. A. * T.P. H.M. S. T. Doctores