Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	lord_n	soul_n	time_n	6,068	5	3.8390	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09445	Of the calling of the ministerie two treatises, discribing the duties and dignities of that calling. Delivered publickly in the Vniuersitie of Cambridge, by Maister Perkins. Taken then from his mouth, and now dilligently perused and published, by a preacher of the word with a preface prefixed touching the publishing of Maister Perkins his workes, & a catalogue of all such particulars thereof, as are to bee expected.	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.; Crashaw, William, 1572-1626.	1605 (1605)	STC 19733; ESTC S102894	75,919	204

but execu●e theyr Commission High Com●issioners are worthy to be low Commissioners or rather no Commissioners if they will not put it in execution It is therefore lamentable to see that some by not prea●hing s●me by vaine preaching show that they intend any thing rather then the winning of soules to God Let then all good Ministers so preach as they may say with Esay Behold Lord heere am I the children whō thou hast giuen me And that they may returne theyr Commission thus Whereas thou O Lorde gauest mee this people and had me deliuer them that they goe not downe into ●ell Lord I haue doone it it is the thing my soule aymed at with all my desire and endeuour and by thy mercy I haue effected it accordingly And the rather must all Christian Ministers seriously intend the sauing of souls inasmuch as Antichrist doth so earnestly seeke the destruction of soules by winning them to his synagouge The Turke spares no labour no cost to infect young chyldren of Christians with his impure and blasphemous superstition The Pope and his vassals especially Iesuits vse al means deuise many stratagems spare no cost nor labor to seduce inueagle young men and the best wits Surely theyr care and policie heerein is admirable and yet alas when like the Pharisies they haue compassed sea and land to make a proselite they make him like themselues the child of hel And they are so farre from hauing any Commission from God to doe this or any blessing promised as contrariwise GOD forbids them and his curse lyeth vppon them for so dooing Shall they be so diligent to destroy soules without a Commission and incurre Gods curse for theyr labour and shall not Christian Ministers be much more diligent to winne and redeeme soules hauing so large a Commission for the purpose and so great a blessing promised thereunto In the next place this doctrine hath vse to the hearers First to let them see the excellencie of this calling which hath a Comission and power to redeem them frō hell damnation what honor is due vnto it to let the wicked man see which any way abuseth eyther the persons or the function howe base vnthankful men they are to recōpence euill for so great a good therfore no maruell thogh euil do neuer depart frō the houses families of such men and further to encourage all men to giue thēselues to God in this great calling for see here what they are euen the high Commissioners of God VVee haue in our estate a power delegated to certain men of worth it is called the high Commission because they haue power to do great things and that man thinks himself happy who can bring his son to this to be thought fit to be one of this Commission but behold heere a higher Commission a Commission from God to redeeme soules from the power of hell the deuils clawes this is indeed a high Commission and so high as this was neuer granted out of the Court of heauen to any creature but to Ministers they therefore are the High Commissioners of the high God Is it not then an honor happines vnto thee to bring thy sonne to this estate And lastly this must teach all hearers their dutie to Gods word namely to submit them selues vnto it for if the Minister haue a Commission to redeeme thy soule it must be by the word and holy discipline Therefore thy dutie is to heare Gods word patiently to submit thy selfe vnto it to bee taught and instructed nay to be checked and rebuked and to haue thy sinnes discouered thy corruptions ript vp If thou wouldst haue thy cause succeede well thy Lawyer must discouer the weakenesses of it if thy body to be cured thy Phisition must purge the corruption of it So if thy soule be to be redeemed thy minister must see the weakenes and purge the corruptions of it though his doctrine be harsh and hard vnto thy nature and the discipline of the Gospell seem rough vnto thee yet must not thou rage and rebell against it nor hate nor rayle at his person but submit thy selfe vnto it for it is the message and Ministerie of thy saluation if otherwise thou doost indeed a great wrong to the Minister for thou frustratest his Commission but alas a far greater to thy selfe for thou frustratest thine owne saluation FINIS THE SECOND Treatise of the duties and Dignities of the Ministerie by Maister Perkins To the right worshipfull and Reuerend Iudges Sir Iohn Sauile Knight one of the Barons of his Maiesties Exchequer and Sir Christopher Yeluerton Knight one of the Iudges of his Maiesties Court of Kings bench the late worthy Iudges of our Northeren Circuite The spirit of wisedome zeale and courage be multiplied RIght worshipfull it is sayd in other Nations and written in some of their bookes that there are three disgraces of the English Nation The Ignorance or that I may so call it the Vnlearnednes of our Gentry and Nobility the Be●gery of our poore and the Basenes of the body of our Ministery The first blot our Nobilitie and Gentrie haue well wiped off since the first daies of blessed Queene Elizabeth partly by studie at home partly by trauell abroade and I hope they will doe it more and more The second hath beene well l●ssened by good lawes of late and wou●d be more if the Execution were as good as our lawes bee and it were much honour to our Nation and more to our Religion if it were quite taken away for he that tells vs there shal be poore euer with vs saith also there shall not be a begger amonst vs If there were no poore what should become of Charitie for it is charitie to relieue pouertie not to maintaine beggery Pouerty may be a Crosse but it is no Curse but beggery is a fearefull curse threatned on the enemies of God and Dauid saith not bee neuer sawe a righteous mans child poore but that he neuer sawe him begge his bread The dayly cries in our streetes cry for yet further reformati●n heereof that the impotent poore may be sufficiently prouided for that he neede not and the s●urdy begger compelled to worke that hee may not bee suffred to begge Happie you or whosoeuer can haue a hand in effecting this blessed w●rke wee who can doe little else shall pray for it and for them that labour in it But now f●r the third I feare none but the very hand of God can wipe out that staine from our Church The bas●nes of the generall body of our Ministerie whence is it but either from the vnworthin●sse or pouerty thereof and the vnworthines thereof whence is it but from the pouerty and base maintenance of our Ministerie which was once robbed by the Abbies and after worse by some in our owne State and Popery that stands so much vpon Non dimittitur peccatum nisi restituator ablatum yet for all that would not restore

draw neere to God by entring into fellowship with his holy Prophets and godly Ministers And further if when they preach thou belieuest then GOD hath mercy on thee then learne what reuerence they and theyr word is worthy of which is thus accompanied vvith Gods mercy and forgiuenes and then learne to heare the Word with feare and trembling for it is Gods word and not theyrs when a true Minister sayth vnto thee on a true ground I denounce thee a sinfull man and vnder the curse or I declare thee to be righteous and a child of grace it is all one as though God from heauen had said so vnto thee If any man aske But is it not as good if anoth●● man pronounce forgiuenesse vnto mee vpo● my repentance I aunswer yes vndoub●edly if it be in extraordinary times or places wh●● there are no Ministers for otherwise cer●ainly this blessing is principally tyed vnto the Ministers calling for it is not sayd of any priuate mens calling any where in the Scripture as it is heere said of the Ministers If an Angell an Interpreter come to a man and declare vnto him his righteousnesse the●● marke the conexion then will GOD ha●● mercy on him and will say Deliuer him c. Whence comes this blessing from this promise of God If then other callings will challenge ordinarily the same blessing then must they haue the same promise Besides other Christians being priuate men though they be sanctified haue a good measure of knowledge yet haue they not the same spirit of discerning that godly Ministers haue nor can so fully and truly iudge when a man hath repented when not and therefore cannot so trulie pronounce the sentence of the Law or Gospell nor haue they abilitie ordinarily by their good conference and Christian counsel to con●●rt a soule but to confirme one conuerted but that power ordinarily belongs to the publick Ministery of the word therfore it followeth that ordinarily they haue not the power to pronounce the sentence of binding or loosing vpon any man I cōfesse in times or places where no Minister can be had God blesseth the labours of priuate men that haue knowledge somtimes euen for the conuerting of a man to God for comforting him at the howre of death and giues a vertue and power to that sentence which they shal pronounce one vpō anothers repentance but as this is extraordinary in the want of ordinary Ministers so in that case a priuate man of knowledge godlines is made a Minister for that time to himselfe or to another euen as a priuate man in cases of extreame danger when no magistrate is present is made a magistrate himselfe to defend his owne life So then as in vvant of a Magistrate the sword of the magistracie is put into the hand of a priuate man so in the want of Ministers the keyes of the Ministerie are committed and put into the hands of priuate men as in dayes of persecution that then they may vvith comfort admonish and aduise and with power pronounce mercy and forgiuenes one vnto another vpon theyr true repentance Yet alwayes remember that in so dooing a priuate man is as a Minister for that time and in that case but ordinarily and alwayes in setled Churches this power pertaineth to the Ministerie is theirs alone by ordination and to them belongeth the promise and the blessing that when hee hath declared to a man his righteousnesse then God will haue mercie on him And thus wee see also the blessing of God vpon the function of the Ministerie and conexed thereunto by the mercifull dispensation of God It followeth And will say Deliuer him that he goe not downe into the pit for I haue rece●ued a reconciliation The fift and last part of this description is the Commission and authority giuen vnto him which is so great as neuer was giuen to any creature and is thus when a Minister of GOD hath declared vnto man his righteousnes hath brought him to the state of grace and God in his fauour hath had mercy on him then God saith to the Minister Deliuer that soule from hell for I haue pardoned him in Christ I am reconciled to him In which words authoritie is giuen to a Minister of God to redeeme a man penitent from hell damnation not that he is the meanes of working out this redemption for that wholy and onely is Christ himselfe but hee is Gods instrument and Christs instrument first to apply those meanes vnto him secondly to pronounce his safety and deliuerance when these means are vsed Here is the principall honour of all belonging to that calling and it is the greatest that euer was vouchsafed to any creature Man 〈◊〉 Angell for it is a plaine Commission to goe and deliuer such a man from the power of hell to redeeme him into the state of Gods children and to make him heyre of heauen Angels ne●er had this Commission they are Messengers sent out for the good of those whom Ministers haue redeemed and they haue brought many comfortable messages vnto them but it was neuer said to any Angell Deliuer that man that he goe not downe 〈◊〉 the pit as it h●●r● is saide vnto a Minister nor any men but Ministers haue this Cōmis●ion To some callings God saith work● thou for man build him houses prouide him sustenance to the Phisition heale that man to the Lawyer do that man iustice to the souldier fight for him to the Magistrate defend him to the King gouerne him and see that euery one doe his dutie ● to none but to the Minister dooth he say Deliuer him that he goe not down into the pit If this be so then for the vse first Ministers must learne heere that if they will haue the honour of Redeemers then must they doe the dutie of redeemers they must pray earnestly for the people for that is one meanes whereby they redeeme men They must say with Samuel God forbidde that I should cease to pray for you They must mourne for the impenitent vvhen they will not turne to God So did Dauid his eyes gushed out with riuers of waters because men kept not Gods law And Ieremie who w●shed a fountaine of water in his eyes that he might weepe for the sinnes of the people They must priuatly conferre ●●site admonish and rebuke and principally they must preach and that in such good manner and in so diligent measure as that they may redeeme and winne soules and the end that they must ayme at must be to winne soules Some preach for feare of the law to auoyd censure or punishment some for fashion sake that they may be like to others some for ostentation sake to win credite and prayse some for ambition to rise in the world all these forget theyr cōmission which is Deliuer him from hell This should be the end of their preaching to deliuer a soule from hell and what should Commissioners doe

vnto the Church her tenthes againe But as Popish Abbies stole them so a popish state kept them and to their shame some of th●se good Professors of our Religion haue restored such as were in their bands and there is hope that all our Professors vnlesse they care not to be accounted hipocrits will make some conscionable restitution We doe not craue that they wold with Zacheus restore ●oure●old though it is apparant that the Tenthes were got from vs in old time by most false and forged Cauillations we onely craue our owne we would aske no more nor willingly take lesse for our whole dutie is still required then why should not our whole due be payd And yet that the world may learne of vs contentednes as well by our practise as our doctrine we would for the present take in good part and rest contented with a part of our owne and some competent portions out of the Impropriations proportioned to the quantitie ●f the charge imposed and the gifts and paines required would for a time bee a reasonable satisfaction to our Ministerie vntill our state found it selfe either better enabled or more straightly tied in Conscience to full restitution But as I sayd this is a worke of God himselfe f●r if man could doe it so many Parliaments would not haue slipt it but some of them would haue ete●nized it selfe with this honorable name to all posterities The Parliament that restored Impropriations but till that or some other course as good be taken it is both vnseasonable and vnreasonable to complaine of the Ignorant or to c●aue a learned Ministerie For shall the Oxes mouth be mousled which treads out the corne or shall a man goe to warre at his owne cost and hath not God ordained marke it is his Ordinance that those who teach the Gospell shal liue of the Gospel But alas how shall the Ministerie of England liue of the Gospell when my small experience can showe that in one Corner of one County of this Kingdome wherein there are some 150. parishes or parochiall Chappell 's almost a 100. of them if not a full 100 are Impropriate and amongst them I can showe the most parishes haue but 10. pound or thereabouts some 8. li. some 6 li. some 5 li. some 4 pound some not 4 pound yearely liuing for the Minister and those impropriations worth some 300 pound many 200 pound almost all 100 pound per an yea there is one worth 400 pound per an where there were but 8 pound left for the Minister vntill of late with much adoe 10 pound more was obtained for a preacher and so there is out of 400 pound 8 pound shared for a Minister and 10 pound carued for a preacher in that parish where there are 2000 Communicants Of all the rest the Crowne hath some 100 pound rent or not so much and the remainder of 280 pound being a rich liuing for a worthy learned Minister a competent liuing for 2 and more then some 7 painfull and able Ministers 〈◊〉 I knowe not what becomes of it vnlesse it goe to the feeding of Kits and Cormorants Are not these goodly liuings for learned men and may not wee expect a learned Ministerie where there is such maintenance and I hartely wish that other countries be not able to showe the like Presidents haue the rather made relation heereof that our high Court of Parliament may see how great cause they haue to goe forward with that motion already by them made for the establishing of a learned Ministerie But if they bring it not to passe what then remaineth but to hope that the great God of heauen will put into the hart of the God on earth our noble King into wh●se hands he hath put the sword of soueraigne authoritie an irreuocable and vnresistable resolution to execute his supreme power for the reformation of this euill which as Maister Perkins saith in this treatise may well be called the Kings euill for it will hardly be healed but by the will and powere of a king In the meane time this Treatise of that worthy man may be a motiue to our zealouse professors who haue any impropriations in their owne hands to excite and prouoke them to a conscionable restitution in whole or in part as their estates may beare or their conscience shall mooue them For heerein are layd downe and mixed together both the duties to be done by faithfull Ministers and the Dignities due vnto them for their duties and so seeing the dignities of that calling to bee most honorable and the duties so chargeable it cannot but grieue their Christian harts to see the maintenance so miserable This Treatise I first of all send to you and vnder your names to the world and to you first for as I am sure you loued the Author and honored those excellēt gifts of God in him so you cānot but accept this after birth of his as a fatherlesse child for the fathers sake And for my selfe to conceale all personall and priuate respects in the name of many thousands in the Northeren Countries I praise God for the good done in those parts by your painfull courses and religious care not doubting but if your selues or the like be imployed there to asist our Honourable and Religious Lord President that the multitude of Popish Priests there lurking will bee daily lessened the number of painfull preachers augmented Poperie put d●wne and the Gospell maintained more and more Which blessing God grant to that and all other Countries of this Kingdome for his mercies sake giue vnto you all others in your place the spirit of courage and constancie in these declining daies that beeing faithfull in your great charges vnto the end you may receiue the Crowne of life for which he hartily prayeth who will euer rest Your Worships in the Lord W. Crashawe A TREATISE OF the dignitie and dutie of the Ministrie Esay 6.5 Then I said woe is me I am vndone for I am a man of pollut●d lips and dwell in the midst of a people of polluted lips for my eyes haue seene the king and Lord of hosts 6 Then flewe one of the Seraphins vnto me with an hotte coale in his hand 7 Which he tooke from the alter with the tonges and touched my mouth and saide Loe this hath touched thy lips thy iniquity shall be taken away and thy sin shall be purged 8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shal● I send who shal go for v●●●hen said I here am I send me and he saide goe IN the fiue former Chapters are contained such Sermōs as the Prophet had made vnder Vzziah king of Iuda At this Chapter begin such as he preached in the raign of Iotham so forward But before he either preach or prophecie of any thing in King Iothams dayes or his successors the Lord in this Chapter giues a new cōmission to the Prophet a new confirmation to this calling the old

beside themselues at the appearing of a little part of the glorie of Christ in his transfiguration Either therefore must it followe that these men haue no sinne in them which dare and can behold Gods glory so easily and so ordinarily which is impossible or rather which indeede is truth it appeares that these are but deceitfull fancies and forgeries of their owne deuise to deceiue the world and to magnifie themselues before the eyes of the common people for it is first of all most false that apparitions are so common as they make them for if they were then are they more ordinary in the new Testament then in the old For whereas the scripture hath one their legions haue 20. and whereas one namely Saint Paul was once rapt into heauen they haue 20. that were rapt thither And as that is false so is it impossible that any man cloathed with fleshe can endure an extraordinary apparition of Gods glory without extreame amazement as is plaine here in the Prophet who I hope was as holy a man as the holiest monke that euer was I haue noted this that yong Diuines may be occasioned to looke a little into their fabulious legends that so they may discouer the false trickes and iuggling casts of that religion which euil shifts it needed not if it were of God Thirdly the people may here learne First in that Gods presence is so glorious and fearefull to mans nature how mercifully God hath delt with them in teaching them not by himselfe or by his Angels from heauen which they could neuer endure but by men who are like themselues and how vaine and fond these men are who would be taught from heauen and not by men who are so ful of wants In the old Testamēt when the people receiued the lawe from Gods owne mouth it is said they ranne away and cryed out why should we dye if wee heare the voice of God any more wee shall dye for what fleshe euer hard the voyce of the liuing God liued therfore they said to Moses Goe thou neare and heare all that the Lord shall say and declare thou vnto vs what God saith to thee and we will heare it and doe it And then saith the text the Lord said I heard the words of this people they haue said well in all that they haue spoken And so from that day forward God ordinarily taught his church by men like thēselues we see that the beg●nning of it was not in iudgement but in mercy vnto thē It is is therefore the dutie of all men both to acknowledge this mercy of God in due thankefulnesse and withall to remember when they see infirmities in Ministers that they are but men and that if they had not the Ministry of men how hard it would goe with them considering that the least measure of Gods owne presence cannot bee endured by any man 2. Inasmuch as gods presēce is so glorious in it self feareful to our nature al men are taught to prepare themselues by holy prayer by humiliation and confession of their sinnes and vnworthinesse afore they come to Gods word or sacraments for they come at that time into Gods presence they therefore are not to come in their securitie nor in their ordinary sins vnrepented of least God strike their consciences with a sence of his fearefull displeasure and make them cry out vpon farre greater cause then here the Prophet did Thirdly and lastly wee learne here the different natures and properties of sinne and holinesse Sinne euen the least sin nay a very sinfulnesse of nature makes a man afraid of Gods presence That sinne vnrepented of doth so appeares in Adam who as in his integrity he spoke and conuersed euen in a familiar sort with God so no sooner had hee sinned but he ranne from God and hid himselfe and that euen the least sinnes not repented of do so also appeares in this Prophet who being a holy man yet his conscience being priuy to it selfe of some small omissions or negligences in his calling he cryeth out he is vndone because he seeth the Lord of hosts But contrariwise the state of perfect holinesse and the want of all sinne makes a man bold in Gods presence and rather desirous then afraid to behold Gods glorie which shall be most apparant at the last day for when the wicked shall desire rather to be couered with the hills and ground to dust by the mountaines then to appeare before the face of God then shall the Godly whose holinesse shall then be perfect looke vp and ●ift vp their heades because their redemption is so nigh And Iob testifieth of himselfe that hee knoweth his redeemer liueth that he shal stand before him and looke vppon him with his eyes Thus as guiltinesse driues a man from the Kings presence but innocencie makes him bold before him So sinfulnes makes a man auoid Gods presence but holinesse makes him drawe neare vnto God and to reioyce in his presence Then for a conclusion of this point let all men here learne the way to true courage and boldnesse before God namely to repent daily of their sinnes and labour to growe in true holinesse wealth nor wit learning nor autho●itie can do this for thee but onely a good cōscience which must be made good by grace by repentance then shalt thou reioyce in Gods presence in this world and delight to thinke of God to speake of God to pray vnto him to meete him in his word and Sacramēts and at the last day shalt thou stand with confidence before the throne of his glory Hithereto of the feare and astonishment of the Prophet and of the causes thereof Now followeth his consolation Then flewe one of the Seraphims c. In these two verses is laid down the second generall point namely the consolatiō of the Prophet cōcerning which there are two points in the text 1. the ground matter of his consolation that is the forgiuenesse of his sinnes 2 Diuers circumstances of that consolation 1 The time Then 2 The minister by whom it was done an Angell one of the Seraphims 3 The manner how he did it speedily He flewe 4 The instrument or outward signe a Coale from the alter 5 The outward action or application of it He touched his lips The matter of the consolation is last in order Let vs therefore first speake of the Circumstances The first circumstance is the time when this Prophet was comforted and raised from his feare Then saith the text that is after his feare and astonishment but not afore Thus dealt God alwaies with all his Saints he bestoweth no graces on them pertaining to saluation but after he hath by some meanes or other brought them to true humiliation in themselues and to sorrow for their sins Humiliation is the preparatiue for grace for when by sight and sence of their sinnes and their owne misery by sin hee hath euen driuen