Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A02565
|
One of the sermons preacht at Westminster, on the day of the publike fast (April 5. 1628) to the Lords of the High Court of Parliament and by their appointment published. By the B. of Exceter.
|
Hall, Joseph, 1574-1656.
|
1628
(1628)
|
STC 12692; ESTC S103757
|
26,047
|
120
|
wofull Bedroll of wickednesse Yet alas were these the sinnes of Ignorance of Infirmitie they might bee more worthy of pittie then hatred But oh the high hand of our presumptuous offences wee draw iniquitie with the strings of vanitie vp to the head vp to the eare and shoot vp these hatefull shafts against heauen Did wee sit in darknesse and the shadow of death as too many Pagan and Popish Regions doe these workes of darknesse would be lesse intolerable but now that the beames of the glorious Gospell haue shined thus long thus bright in our faces Oh me what can we plead against our owne confusion Oh Lord where shall we appeare when thy very mercies aggrauate our sinnes and thy iudgements Why shouldst thou not expect fruit from a Vineyard so chosen so husbāded wo worth our wretchednesse that haue thus repayd thee Be confounded in thy selfe O my Soule bee confounded to see these deplored retributions Are these Grapes for a God Doe yee thus requite the Lord O foolish people and vniust Hath hee for this made vs the mirrour of his mercies to all the World that we should so shamefully turn his graces into wantonnesse Are these the fruites of his choyce his Fencing his Reforming his Planting his watch Towre his Winepresse O Lord the great and dreadfull God keeping the couenants and mercies to them that loue thee we haue sinned and committed iniquitie and haue rebelled by departing from thy precepts and from thy iudgements Oh Lord righteousnesse belongeth to thee but vnto vs confusion of faces as at this day wee know we acknowledge how iust it may bee with thee to pull vp our hedges to breake downe our Wall to root vp our Vines to destroy and depopulate our Nation to make vs the scorne and Prouerbe of all Generations But O our God Let thine anger and thy fury bee turned away from thy Ierusalem thy holy Mountaine O Lord heare O Lord forgiue O Lord harken and doe deferre not for thine owne sake O our God for thy Citie and thy people are called by thy Name But alas what speake I of not deferring to a God of mercie who is more forward to giue then we to craue and more loath to strike then wee to smart and when hee must strike complaines Why will ye dye O house of Israel Let mee rather turne this speech to our selues the delay is ours Yet it is not too late either for our returne or his mercies The decree is not to vs gone forth till it bee executed As yet our Hedge stands our wall is firme our Vine growes These sharpe monitions these touches of Iudgement haue beene for our warning not for our ruine Who knowes if he will not returne and yet leaue a blessing behind him Oh that we could turne vnto him with all our heart with Fasting and with Weeping and with Mourning Oh that wee could truely and effectually abandon all those abhominable Sinnes that haue stirred vp the Anger of our God against vs and in this our day this day of our solemne humiliation renue the Vowes of our holy and conscionable obedience Lord God it must bee thou onely that must doe it Oh strike thou our flintie hearts with a sound remorse and melt them into teares of penitence for al our sins Conuert vs vnto thee and we shal be conuerted Lord heare our Prayers and regard our teares and reforme our Liues and remoue thy Plagues and renue thy louing countenance and continue adde to thine old mercies Lord affect vs with thy fauours humble vs for our Sinnes terrifie vs with thy Iudgements that so thou maist hold on thy fauours and forgiue our Sinnes and remoue thy Iudgements euen for the sake of the Sonne of thy loue Iesus Christ the righteous to whom c. FINIS Post-script SInce it seemed good to that Great Court to call this poore Sermon amongst others of greater worth into the publike Light I haue thus submitted to their pleasure And now for that they pleased to bid so high a rate as their command for that meane peece I do willingly giue them this my other Statue into the bargaine This worke preceded some little in time that which it now followes in place not without good reason Authoritie sends forth that this will and my will hath learned euer to giue place to authoritie Besides my desire to saue the labour of Transcriptions I found it not vnfit the World should see what preparatiue was giuen for so stirring a Potion neither can there be so much need in these languishing times of any discourse as that which serues to quicken our mortification wherein I so much reioyce to haue so happily met with those Reuerend Bishops who led the way and followed me in this holy Seruice The God of Heauen make all our endeauours effectuall to the sauing of the soules of his people AMEN A SERMON PREACH'T TO HIS MAIEstie on the Sunday before the Fast being March. 30. at White-hall In way of preparation for that holy Exercise By the B. of EXCETER LONDON Printed by M. F. for Nath. Butter and are to be sold at his shop at St. Austins gate 1628. GALAT. 2. 20. I am crucified with Christ Neuerthelesse I liue c. HEE that was once tossed in the confluēce of two Seas Acts 27. 41. was once no lesse straited in his resolutions betwixt life and death Philip. 1. 23. Neither doth my Text argue him in any other case here As there he knew not whether hee should choose so here hee knew not whether hee had I am crucified there hee is dead yet I liue there he is aliue againe Yet not I there he liues not but Christ in mee there hee more then liues This holy correction makes my Text full of wonders full of sacred riddles 1. The liuing God is dead vpon the crosse Christ crucified 2. St. Paul who dyed by the sword dyes on the crosse 3. St. Paul who was not Paul till after Christs death is yet crucified with Christ 4. St. Paul thus crucified yet liues 5. St. Paul liues not himselfe whiles he liues 6. Christ who is crucified liues in Paul who was crucified with him See then here both a Lent and an Easter A Lent of mortification I am crucified with Christ An Easter of resurrection and life I liue yet not I but Christ liues in mee The Lent of my Text will bee sufficient as proper for this season wherein my speech shall passe through three long stages of discourse Christ crucified St. Paul crucified St. Paul crucified with Christ In all which your Honorable and Christian patience shall as much shorten my way as my care shall shorten the way to your patience Christs crosse is the first lesson of our infancy worthy to bee our last and all The great Doctor of the Gentiles affected not to fly any higher pitch Grande crucis sacramentū as Ambrose This is the greatest wonder that euer earth or heauen yeelded God in carnate was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
made thee Noble thee Rich thee Potent I made this Country populous that Citie wealthy this Kingdome strong Bee sure if we be forgetfull God will not mis-reckon his owne mercies Our fauours are like our selues poore and impotent worthy to bee scribled vpon the Sand that they may bee washt off with the next waue his are full of goodnesse and infinite compassion fit for the Marble of an eternall remembrance Honourable and beloued Why doe not we keepe one part of the Tally as hee keepes the other that so wee may hold eeuen reckonings with our munificent God How should wee meditate continually of the gracious and wonderfull works of his bountie knowing that God hath so done his great works that they ought to bee had in perpetuall memory How should wee gratefully recount his fauours and call the World about vs with the sweete singer of Israel Come hither and heare all yee that feare God and I will tell you what hee hath done for my soule Psal 56. 16. O God it is a iust quarrell that thou hast against vs for our vnthankfulnesse the familiaritie of thy blessings haue drawne them into neglect Alas thy mercies haue not beene sowne but buried in vs We haue beene gulfes to swallow them not repositories to keepe them How worthily do we smart because wee forget How iustly are thy iudgements seene vpon vs because thy mercies are not Away with this wretched ingratitude Oh loue the Lord all yee his Saints for the Lord preserueth the faithfull and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer What then is it O Lord what is it that thou hast done then which more could not bee done for thy Vineyard Thou best knowest thine own mercies and canst best expresse them thou that wouldst not haue vs search into thy counsels wouldst not haue vs ignorant of thy fauours those are particularized in the foregoing words In thy choice In thy fence In picking In planting in ouersight in pressing First there is the aduantage of the place chosen where hath hee setled his Vineyard but vpon a very fruitfull Hill A double aduantage An hill and very fruitfull Hils are held best for Vines the decliuitie whereof giues much strength to the reflexion so as the most generous Vines are noted to grow vpon the hils Yet there are barren hils nothing but heapes of vnprofitable sands this is a fruitfull hill yea superlatiuely fruitfull the home of the Son of oyle as it is in the originall that is by an Hebraisme an hill eminently fat and fertile But what would it auaile the ground to bee fruitfull if it bee vnfenced that the wild Bore or the Foxes may spoyle it as good no fruit as to no purpose Loe then here Secondly both an hedge and least that should not bee sufficient a Wall But to what purpose should it be fenced with stones without if it bee choaked with stones within As therefore thirdly the stones were laide together in the Wall for defence So they were gathered off from the soyle to auoide offence But to what purpose is the fruitfulnesse fencing stoning if the ground yeeld a plentifull Crop of Bryers Thistles Weedes Iniussa virescunt gramina ill Weedes grow fast here is therefore Fourthly the maine fauour to this Vineyard that the owner hath planted it with choisest Vines It is the praise of the Earth to softer any Plant that is put into the bosome of it it is the chief care of the Husbandman to store it with Mants of worth Now all this prouision of soyle Fencing Stoning Planting were nothing without a continual ouer-sight the wise owner therfore Fiftly builds not a Bowre not a Banqueting house for pleasure but a Towre for suruay and that not in some obscure Angle but in the midst of the Vineyard that hee may view the carriage of his labourers and descrie the first danger of the annoyances Lastly to what purpose were all this choyce Fencing Stoning Planting ouer-sight if when the Grapes are grown to their due ripenesse they should not bee improued to an vsefull Vintage this must be done by the Wine-presse That is set vp and now what can remaine but the setting vnder of Vessels to receiue the comfortable iuice that shall flow from these so well husbanded clusters All this hath God done for his Vinyard what could haue beene done more Not to dwell in the mysts of Allegories God himselfe hath reade this Riddle The Vineyard of the Lord of hoasts is the house of Israel And the house of Israel is his Church The Church is Gods hill conspicuous for his wonderfull fauours though not euer euen to the eye of the World not an hidden vnheeded Valley A fruitfull Hill not by nature but by grace Nature was like it selfe in it in the World God hath taken it in from the barren Downes and gooded it his choice did not find but make it thus Thus chosen hee hath fenced it about with the hedge of Discipline with the wall of his Almightie protection Thus fenced hee hath ordained by iust censures to picke out of it those stones of offence which might hinder their holy proceedings and keepe downe the grouth of the Vines whether scandalous Men false Opinions or euill Occurrences Thus cleared he hath planted it with the choysest Vines of gracious motions of wholsome Doctrines Thus planted hee hath ouerlookt it from the Watch-towre of Heauen in a carefull inspection vpon their wayes in a prouident care of their preseruation Thus ouer-looked he hath indeuoured to improue it by his seasonable Wine-presse in reducing all these powers and fauours to act to vse whether by fatherly corrections or by suggesting meet opportunities of practice And now hauing thus chosen fenced cleared planted watched and ordered to straine his Vines hee sayes most iustly what could haue beene done more that I haue not done Certainely it is not in the power of any humane apprehension to conceiue what act could be added to perfect his culture what blessing could bee added to the indearing of a Church If hee haue made choyce of a people for his owne If he haue blessed them with good gouernement with safe protection If he haue remoued all hinderances of their proficiencie If hee haue giuen them wholesome instructions and plide them with solicitations to good If his prouident eye haue beene euer ouer them for their deliuerances If lastly he haue vsed both faire foule meanes to wring from them the good iuice of their obedience Say men are Angels What could haue beene done more What Church so euer in the World can make good to it selfe these specialities of mercie Let it know that God hath abated nothing to it of the height of his fauour These are the fauours wherewith God hath begun to Israel now turne your eares to the answere that Israel returnes to God see the mercies of a good God requited with the rebellions of a wicked people wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes brought it forth wilde grapes A