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 |
|
A28819
|
An antidote against swearing to which is annexed an appendix concerning an assertory and promissory oath in reference to the stature of the two now flourishing sister universities : also a short catalogue of some remarkable judgments from God upon blasphemers, &c. / by R. Boreman ...
|
R. B. (Robert Boreman), d. 1675.
|
1662
(1662)
|
Wing B3755; ESTC R18222
|
86,033
|
206
|
6. To speak nothing but what is Necessary to be spoken Profitable to be heard 7. To bridle our Passions chiefly that of Anger the cause of as many other sins so especially that of Swearing 8. To avoid Drunkenness and to be lovers of Temperance 9. To shun the Company and Society of those that are given to Swearing 10. To consider the manifold and great miseries such blasphemers bring upon the Kingdom Places and Families wherein they live 8. A Diet for the Tongue being cured consisting in these three things 1. To be slow to speak 2. To be circumspect in speaking 3. To use few words when we speak 9. The benefit that will redound to us by observing this Religious Diet which is two-fold If we respect First our bodily Estate we procure to our selves hereby reputation and peace Secondly if we respect our Souls health hereby we shall free it from the guilt of many a sin 10. The Conclusion of all comprising an exhortation to this duty of not Swearing in regard that we are Gods Saints elected His Sons adopted His Servants redeemed by the blood of his Son Christ Jesus Therefore in all and for all God is to be glorified by us which is chiefly done by Invocation and Thanksgiving the two parts of Prayer and the Christians best Sacrifice A Prayer To be used by one that is addicted to the Sin of Swearing O Eternal Omnipotent Lord God who in thy self art the fulness and perfection of Glory and Happiness who needest no Tongue to praise thee no Pen to express thee and no Work to magnifie thy Greatness before whose glorious Name that is * Vid. Psal 20.1 Rom. 10.13 thy self an infinitely Great and Glorious God Angels and Arch-Angels bow with an humble lowly dejected reverence to which thy blessed Spirits and Saints of thy Triumphant Church sing perpetual Hallelujahs Rev. 19.1 so that Heaven rings and resounds with their Hymns Praises I a poor sprig of disobedient Adam who am as vile as sin can make me and deserve what curse thy wrath can lay upon me do here presume to take thy holy Name into my defiled lips that Name which I have dishonoured in my words disparaged in my thoughts and profaned in my actions yet knowing that thou art a jealous God and a consuming fire burning with love to a poor humble sinner and believing that as thou art fearful in thy Judgments so faithful in thy promises I fly upon the wings of this Faith from mount Ebal to mount Gerizim Deut. 11.29 from the dreadful Name Jehovah which I have abused to that gracious Name of Jesus wherein thou art well pleased In that most sweet and soul-refreshing Name O God I present my supplications unto thee beseeching thee not to remember what I have said or done but what my Saviour hath suffered for me in his Agony and bitter Passion O let his bloody sweat anoint my bleeding wounds and accept of his death as a full satisfaction to thy Justice for my sins Cleanse thou my heart O God from the stain of this bosom-darling-sin whose custom begun with a wanton imitation and being continued with an habitual presumption had almost taken out of my guilty Soul a sense of it and of thy displeasure against it O my God now that I have begun to have a taste and sight of the foulness and danger of my crying sin afford me I beseech thee that measure of thy Grace which may work in my heart a fear of thy displeasure and beget in me an awful reverence of thy Name Let all my communication be ordered as in thy presence let thy Holy Spirit govern the words of my mouth and so sanctifie my thoughts with the continual meditation of thy Commandments and of those fearful plagues which thy word denounceth against Swearers that I may be ever hereafter of the number of those thy servants who sanctifie the Lord in their Hearts 1 Pet. 5.15 who love and fear thee above all things in Heaven and Earth who delight with trust and affiance in thee above all worldly stayes and comforts and praise thee evermore with joyful lips Lord I desire to praise thee O heighten these desires I resolve by thy assistance no more to blaspheme thee O strengthen this good resolution for the time to come and avert those judgments from me which thy word hath threatned and my sin my black and filthy sin hath deserved And mortifie all those unruly passions which provoke me to offend thy Goodness especially that of Anger which if immoderate and carried on with precipitate rashness benights the Soul darkens Reason and hurries a man to the acting of those things that displease thee Therefore dear God kill this Fury in me and leave only so much life in it as to be zealous for thy Glory Quicken my Soul with faith in thy promises inflame my affections with love of thee for thy mercies fill my mouth with prayers to thee and praises and crown my weak desires of praising thee with the all-sufficient power and strength of thy Grace that glorifying thy Name with my Tongue and by an holy conversation I may escape that vengeance which thy Justice threatens against my sin here and obtain that happiness which thy mercy hath promised hereafter Lord grant these my requests for the merits of thy Son Christ Jesus in whose Name and Prayer sanctified with his sacred lips I beg these mercies and whatsoever else thou knowest requisite for me and for thy Church saying Our Father c. A Prayer For the whole Kingdom MOst glorious Lord God who delightest not in the death of one single sinner nor takest pleasure in the destruction of any Creature thou great and mighty God Jer. 32.18 whose name is the Lord of Hosts who rulest over all and governest all things in Heaven and Earth look down I humbly pray thee from the Throne of thy Glory and behold this sinful Kingdom wherein we live with an eye of mercy and pity Thy goodness and bounty O Lord have displayed themselves to us in many great and undeserved National mercies by restoring to us our most gracious King and Him to His Royal Dignities and redeeming thy Church from that Disorder and Confusion by means of proud and unquiet men whicn threatned our utter ruine and vastation for so great deliverances we are obliged to make returns unto thee of a thankful obedience by reforming our sinful lives and obeying thy commands But we as if we had forgot what thou hast done for us have done nothing for thee but rather much against thee by rebelling against thy word by resisting thy holy will by abusing thy Creatures through our wanton excess by profaning thy Sabbaths and blaspheming thy most sacred Name which ought to be ever hallowed and had in an awfull reverence by us These are our National personal crying sins which like so many infectious Vapours have mounted up to Heaven and being condens'd into a thick Cloud of
will not pardon thy old ones not passe by thy former transgressions Secondly compare thy great unthankfulness with thy Makers bounty and goodness this may beget in thee a detestation or loathing of thy former sins and lewdnesse whereby thou didst reject Gods commands who if thou servest Him will save thee and obeyedst the Devils suggestions who will for thy service everlastingly torment thee When thou hast attain'd to this the first and best ingredient of Repentance a Detestation of thy former impieties as Cursing Swearing Lying and the like then draw near to the Throne of Grace meekly upon thy bended knees with teares in thine eyes and sorrow in thy heart saying with blind Bartimaeus in the Gospel Mark 10.48 Jesu thou Son of David have mercy on me forgive me all my sins past whereby thy holy name has been dishonour'd thy word ill spoken of and my Neighbour injur'd When thou hast thus made thy approach to God with hearty sorrow for thy sins doubt not but that he will draw near to thee with mercy and forgiveness Jam. 4.8 doubt not of a pardon since Truth itself has made the promise Ezek. 18.27 28. Ezek. 18. When the wicked turneth away from his wickednesse c. Because he considereth and turneth away from all his wickednesse which he hath committed he shall surely live he shall not dye he meanes the death of the Soul which is an eternal separation of it from God the fountain of joy and happiness which in the Word are implyed under the name of life He shall surely live he shall not dye a sweet and gracious promise distrust not Gods performance of it if thou truly repentest Daturus est non fallet quia veritas promisit ask and thou shalt receive Aug. for he that is most true will perform what he has promised because he will not he cannot deceive nor be deceived And thus relying upon his gracious promise of hearing and granting our devout Prayers and Petitions our humble requests for his pardoning and purifying grace in the third place beg earnestly of him the assistance of the same grace which is likewise preventing and strengthning to keep thy tongue from all profanenesse cry with holy David Psal 141 3. Set a watch O Lord before my mouth and keep the door of my lips From which humble request of the Prophet we may collect this that as our lips in that they open and shut are the Souls gate through which our inward thoughts break forth apparel'd in the dresse of outward words so as a gate is for the most part shut our lips should never open but to the glory of God and our Neighbours good 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Naz. This by the way 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is a learned Rabbies glosse on the Text. Now if you demand what kind of watch it is which David desires God to set before his lips the acute Eusebius Emissenus shall answer this Quaere Euseb Homil cont diversa vitia p. 138. and clear this doubt Si cordi statueris adhibere custodiam ori non laborâris imponere disciplinam i.e. set a watch to guard thy heart and there will be no need to fence thy mouth Illud siquidem voce depromitur quod prius in officinâ cordis formatur The heart is as it were the Master of the Mint which first sets a stamp upon thy words which are current if they bear Gods image if they carry in their sound the note or mark of Piety and goodness if otherwise i.e. if they be profane and impious they are not allowed of by God being condemned in the holy Scriptures The Tongue is the Hearts servant Mat. 12.36 37. which like that Centurion saies to the Tongue by a kind of command Speak this and it speaks it Run in the Praises of God and it runneth Swear and it sweareth Say nothing and it is silent The Tongue is but as the hammer in the Clock which strikes not of it self but keeps time and moves according to the motion of the wheels within The VI. Gen. part The method which is to be used in the Cure To cure then the unbridled motion of the Tongue begin with the Heart the which if it be as Davids was fixed upon God Psal 108.1 the tongue will cease to lash out into Cursing and Swearing but will as it followes there in the same verse sing and give praise to God for his manifold mercies and blessings which we have received By the heart as hath been explain'd is to be understood the whole Soul which is fixed and setled upon God when it seriously considers his Almighty wonder-working Power and Greatness who created out of nothing this great Universe consisting of Heaven and Earth by his powerful word and sustaines all things in being by his providence This Meditation is an act of the Intellect and may beget in us an awfull fear of his Majesty which ought to be feared The will is fixed upon God when considering and weighing his many and great benefits we devote our selves wholy to his service submitting our wills to him in all things loving him without wavering praise him without ceasing for his mercy goodness And lastly the Affections are fixed upon God when they wander not through loose desires of fading earthly vanities but are chiefly taken up and possessed with an holy delight in God and his Saints on Earth and fed with a firme hope of enjoying Gods presence of seeing Him one day face to face in his Celestial Paradise This Hope is not a barren grace but begets in a man a religious Care not to offend God and to abstain from any the least Sin to which his Nature is most prone because it may lead him into other sins and separate him from the love of God and at last procure his everlasting banishment from those joyes which he believes are unspeakable and hopes to enjoy in the glorious presence of the blessed Trinity together with the blessed Angels and company of the elect Saints to all eternity Which most happy and joyful Fellowship rather then he would lose a good Christian if he were put to his disposall would choose to suffer all the most exquisite torments that ever have been invented by the bloody wit of Tyrants nay he would rather sustain for many thousand yeares even Hells paines Let fire and wild beasts racks and strapadoes yea and all the torments of Hell seize upon me and torment me so I may win Christ it is the triumphant saying of Ignatius the martyr recorded by Eusebius This holy martyrs brest burnt with a love of God and a desire of Heavens happinesse That love caus'd him to feare nothing but Gods displeasure which followes upon our sins by means whereof he might be deprived of everlasting joyes and debarr'd from the enjoyment of Gods most glorious presence In a word the soul that hopes to attain Heaven and desires to reign there for ever with God will