Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	goodness_n	lord_n	psal_n	4,045	5	7.5057	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A16562	Remaines of that reverend and famous postiller, Iohn Boys, Doctor in Divinitie, and late Deane of Canterburie Containing sundry sermons; partly, on some proper lessons vsed in our English liturgie: and partly, on other select portions of holy Scripture.	Boys, John, 1571-1625.	1631 (1631)	STC 3468; ESTC S106820	176,926	320

But instantly and that constantly resolue with Dauid here let vs fall into the hand of God and not into the hand of man As we feele more sensible comfort of the Sunnes heate when we are cold So the greater our danger and extremity the greater is that power and piety that deliuereth vs. These vertues are the brightest starres in the sphere of maiestie manifesting Dauids duty to God and man and the reason of all this high and holy resolution is because the mercies of the Lord are great great in their nature as being riches of his goodnesse Rom. 2. 4. Exceeding riches of his grace Ephes. 2. 7. Great in their number as being multitudes of mercies Psal. 51. 1. Great in their continuance as being for euer and euer Psal 103. 17. That is as the doctours expound it from euerlasting predestination to euerlasting glorification euery way so great that our Prophet saith in the 145. Psal. at the 9. verse His mercies are ouer all his workes Of which I find a two fold construction and each of them exceeding comfortable 1. His mercies are ouer That is greater then all his works not in propriety for all the vertues of God are equal as being essential attributes But in effect and extent greater For whereas Gods indignation is but vpon the 4. generation of such as hate him his mercies are vpon thousand generations of those that loue him and keepe his Commandements Among the 13. properties of God Exod. 34. Almost all of them appertaine to his mercy whereas one concernes his might and only two his lustice The 2 construct on is his mercies are ouer all that is sh●…wed in all and towards all his works for the latter clause his mercies c is nothing else but a repe●…ition of the former The Lord is good vnto all His goodnesse is the same with his mercy and all is all his works The mercies of God then are great to the whole vniuerse more specially to the reasonable creatures and among those principally to such as loue him and feare him and call vpon him faithfully As our Prophet in the before cited Psalme verse 18. 19. 20. His mercies compasse them about on all sides and at all seasons on euery side for hee maketh an hedge about them and about their houses and about all they haue Iob. 1. 10. They bee his enclosed vineyards of whom hee saith Esa. 5. What could I haue done more for my vinyard which I haue not done for it and his mercies are toward them at al seasons as the blessed Virgin in her Magnificat throughout all generations To speake more distinctly the mercies of God toward vs are seene in two things especially donando et condonando That is in giuing vs whatsoeuer is good for vs and in forgiuing whatsoeuer is euill euill of sinne euill of punishment for sinne pardoning all our offences against himselfe against our other selfe against our owne selfe lastly his mercies are great in Inferendis Differendis Auferendis supplicijs Mercifull in inferring punishment for when as we deserue to be scourged with Scorpions he chastiseth vs only with the rod of men and with the stripes of the children of men 2. Sam. 7. 14. We confesse that we sinne greatly So Dauid verse 10. of this chapter But the Lord saith I was but a little displeased Mercifull in deferring punishment as being full of pitty slow to wrath long suffering of great goodnesse cito struit tarde destruit making the whole world in sixe dayes and yet was in destroying one citie seuen dayes Mercifull in remouing punishments as in this present example For the Rabbines haue a fable that the plague threatned here 3 dayes continued only for one houre Ioscphus writes that it continued only from morning till noone others conceiue that it continued onely till the time appointed for euening sacrifice that day when it begun They who stand vpon the precise letter of the text say that the time was shortned for the Lord repented him and sayd to the Angel that destroyed the people it is enough And that was in the beginning of the third day For had not the Lord stayed the Angels hand hee would haue gone on siniting till that day had beene expired and finished It is reported of one that hauing a booke of 2 leaues only hee could not in all his life read it ouer one leafe was red wherein was registred the Iudgements of God in consideration whereof he cryed out enter not into iudgement with thy seruant O Lord c. The other was white in which were written the mercies of God in admiration whereof hee cryed out what is man that thou art so mindfull of him as being lesse then the least of thy mercies If he could not read them in his whole life how shall I repeate them in this munite of time Giue mee leaue onely to conclude in the words of our mother Church O God whose nature and property is euer to haue mercy and to forgiue grant vs thy grace that in all time of our tribulation in all time of our wealth in the houre of death and as the day of iudgment we may put our whole trust and confidence in thee resoluing always as Dauid here let vs fall into the hand of the Lord and not into the hands of man for thy mercies are great 2. KINGS 19. 36. 37. So Senacherib King of Ashur departed and went his way and returned and dwelt in Niniue And as he was in the Temple worshipping Nisroth his god Adramelech and Sharezer his sons slew him with the sword THis scripture reports two things specially to wit the flight and fall of Senacherib King of Ashur a great Monarch and a great boaster of his greatnesse saying in the pride of his heart verse 23. By the multitude of my chariots I am come vp to the top of the mountaines by the sides of Lebanon and will cut downe the tall Cedars thereof and the firre trees thereof and I will goe into the lodging of his borders and into the forrest of his Carmel I haue digged and drunke the waters of others and with the plant of my feete haue dryed all the riuers of besieged cities Affronting Gods people with insolent language Let not Ezechia deceiue you neither let Ezechia make you to trust in the Lord saying the Lord w●…ll surely deliuer vs. Hath any of the gods of the nations deliuered his land out of the hand of the King of Ashur Where is the God of Hamath and of Arphad where is the God of Sepharuaim Hena and ●…ua How haue they deliuered Samaria out of mine hand Now the Lord when this huge Leuiathan had in his owne conceit swallowed vp Iuda put a hooke into his nostrils and a bit into his mouth and so brought him backe againe the same way that he came making him in the mids of his fury first to fly then afterward to fall His flight is reported here to bee full of

as they sell of their Lands Riches among worldlings are so honourable that it is exceeding hard to distinguish fortune and vertue The most impious if prosperous haue euer beene applauded and the most vertuous if vnprosperous haue euer beene despised Or riches are called Honour because being well imployed they keepe men in honest and Honourable courses whereas a man in extreame beggerie must doe not as hee should or as he would but as hee may pauperies inimica bonis est moribus omne labitur in vitium As it is in the prouerbe necessitie hath no law pouertie parteth all good fellowship An Ingenious man doth often that in his neede which is contrarie to his owne position and disposition Si miserum fortuna Sinonem Finxit vanum etiam mendacemque improba finget Bee prouident then in thy diuident so breake thy bread that thou breake not the staffe of thy store whereby the largesse which is vnto other a dole may turne to thy selfe a dolour The Lord loueth a cheerfull giuer and therefore that thou mayst euer giue giue frugally starue not thy selfe to feede others though hungrie let not the left hand of thy miserie know what the right hand of thy pittie doth If thou haue plenty giue much if thou haue but a little bee not affrayd sayd old Tobie to giue of that little Beneuolentia liberalitate potior quia ditior haec moribus quam illa muneribus Ambros offic lib. 1. c. 23. Secondly the word breake teacheth vs not to giue the whole loafe of our almes vnto some on but that wee should impart it to diuerse So Munster and Tremelius here translate vt partiaris es●…rienti panem and other vt impertias and our old translation Ezech. 18. 7. Part thy bread to the Hungrie So the Scriptures teach and the Fathers the Psalmographer saith of the godly man dispersit dedit pauperibus Hee dispersed abroad giuing rather a little to many then much vnto few so Saint Paul aduiseth the Romans to distribute to the necessitie of the Saints Almighty God is termed Luke 16. 1. A rich man as being infinitly rich in goodnes and mercy towards all and euery man is there called his Steward as hauing much of Gods rich treasure committed to his charge which hee may not expend as hee will in idle prodigallity but as his Lord will in workes of piety and pitty Novv then as Saint Paul telleth vs it is required of a Steward that hee bee found faithfull Hee must therefore deale his Lords bread like Caius faithfully not onely to some few whom hee most affects but hee must in due season and in due proportion also feede the whole family To breake Bread is to giue euery one his due portion of meate and potion of drinke Christ and his Apostles haue taught this Lesson also by their practise Christ in the 8. of Saint Marke feeding a great many with a few loaues after he had giuen thankes brake the bread and so all did eate and were sufficed and it is reported of the blessed Apostles Acts. 2. 45. That they parted the Churches stocke to all men as euery one had neede Saint Ambrose to the same purpose pithily non sunt profundendae opes sed dispensandae to breake bread lauishly without discretion and order is not as Bernard sayd in another case dispensatio but dissipatio The Stewards of God ought to haue great care saith Gregorie the great hovv they distribute to the necessities of the Saints Vt ne quaedam quibus nulla ne nulla quibus quaedam ne multa quibus pauca ne pauca praebeant quibus impendere multa debucrunt For it is Lawfull and expedient too sometime to conferre much vpon one person or vpon one worke as to preferre a poore Mayden in marriage to redeeme a Captiue to repayre high wayes or to build a Synagogue Wherein euery good Christian is a learned schoole-man and a speaking Law to himselfe In his priuate distributions hee may deale his bread when hee will and where he will as his owne Charity directed by Gods holy word moueth him But in our publique contributions euery man is to be sessed by his neighbours and in such a case not to bee ruled by the best and most is a breach vndoubtedly both of Law and Loue. How Christ hath a long time beene taught among you brethren I well vnderstand but how you haue learned him I know not I hope the best onely this I wish that some whom it concerneth as an act of Iustice or other to whom it appertayneth as a matter of mercy would as occasion is offered ouersee those which are appoynted ouerseers for the poore Whereby the common loafe may bee so parted that our eares may not heare the lamentation of Ieremy the young Children aske bread but no man breaketh it vnto them The second point to bee discussed is Cui dandum and that is here sayd indefinitely to the Hungrie Whether hee bee good or bad of whatsoeuer Condition or Countrey Nation or Fashion It is an apostolicall precept that we should doe good vnto all especially to those which are of the Houshold of faith Humanity bindeth vs to performe the one Christianity to the other Ecclesiasticus in saying giue not to the vngodly seemes to confront our text But his meaning is plaine that wee should not helpe him as wicked but as a man His naughtinesse ought to bee declined but his nature cherished his proper iniquity to bee persecuted but his common condition to bee pittied as being our owne flesh saith our Prophet in the latter end of this verse Created according to Gods owne Image and happily for any thing wee know heereafter to bee sanctified and in fine to bee saued In the battaile fought against Cinna at Ianiculum one of Pompeys souldiers slew his owne brother and when hee saw what hee had done instantly slew himselfe Wherevpon Tacitus obserued that our ancestours exceeded vs not onely in glory of their vertue but in griefe also for their faults Holcott makes mention of a certaine sauage beast that hath a face like a man and yet in his hunger hee kills men and feedes on their flesh but afterward going into the water to drinke and there beholding his own face so remembering that he had killed one like himselfe presently forbeares his meate and for very sorrow pineth vntill hee perisheth All men are our brethren as being lineally descended from our great Grandfather Adam He therefore that denyeth any man his helping hand in extreamity murthereth a brother according to that of Saint Ambrose si non pavisti occidisti in such a case not to fill him is to kill him Solomon in the 11. of Ecclesiastes compareth a wight in distresse to the water cast thy bread saith hee vpon the waters And why so because as in the water brookes so in the watrie lookes of a poore Lazare thou mayst cleerely see