Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	civil_a	magistrate_n	matter_n	3,433	5	6.0251	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85688	Vox cœli, containing maxims of pious policy: wherein severall cases of conscience are briefly discussed; as I. In what subject the supream power of a nation doth reside. II. What is the extent of that power, and in what causes it doth appear, with the due restrictions and limitations thereof according to the Gospell. III. What obedience is due unto that power from all persons, superiour and inferiour, with other cases of great weight, very necessary to reconcile our late differences judiciously stated and impartially ballanced in the scale of the sanctuary. / By Enoch Grey minist	Grey, Enoch.	1649 (1649)	Wing G1968; Thomason E565_20; ESTC R202336	50,311	67

use the exercise of ●ha● power by and according unto the rule of the Word and to the honor of God only a ●●der the Gospel Magistrates 〈◊〉 nursing fathers to take care that no saving administrations b● wanting to the people and what is destructive to their spirituall and eternall good rather then what is prejudiciall to their corporall or temporall The soul being of infinite value beyond the body they are to inhibite and restrain As fathers they are to encourage those which are obedient to the will of the Lord and those that are apparently rebellious and disobedient they are to censure Job was a King amongst his people a Father and a Master in his family and he left not his family to choose their own way to walk therein at their own liberty but he chose out their way for them and appointed the same unto them positively and determinately that they might walk therein a I might instance in Moses a As● a Jehosap●at a Hezekia● a J●●ia● a besides these forementioned If it be said these were types of Christ I answer that it is true in their persons rather then in their power for why they should be types in that power which is sacred rather then in that which is Civill some reason must be given or else both powers being then though typically equally inherent in them by this argument must now determine in Christs person and then no humane authority is to be improved under the Gospel to any end either sacred or eivil which is against all scripture reason and by this argument and such like produced all occonomicall rule must also end with politicall and if so the world would soon be involved in all prophanenesse and wickednesse And besides neither Job nor Moses nor Cyrus nor Artaxerxes nor Nehemiah were types of Christ yet these improved this civill authority in causes sacred and without sin 4. It is an Accumulative authority the power of a Magistrate is to strengthen and encourage Churches and the Saints the members thereof in their due Liberties powers and priviledges to the preservation of them in peace and order the end of all magistraticall authority a so far as any matters of Religion coming under cognizance of the Civill Magistrate as a publick officer of the State do further or hinder that peace so far the Magistrate may use his civill power and if matters of Religion be pertinaciously and tumultuously upheld to the disturbance of the publick peace he may censure such persons and acts in reference thereto and without the exercise of this power Churches would assoone decay as States That vast authority that some Sycophants against all reason and rule have attributed unto Magistrates hath much prejudiced their due power in the opinion of some whose affections are good but grounds weake wanting the serious and judicious consideration of these foure subsequent limitations the qualifications of that foure-fold forementioned Authority 1 This power is not absolute the Magistrate may not do quod libet nor quod expedit but quod lic●t a he may not appoint what forme of Doctrine Worship and Government in Churches he pleases not what he judgeth to be sound and Orthodoxall nor what others advise him unto as regular nor may he dispence with any divine command nor can hee alter the nature of things to make that absolute which the Lord Christ hath left indifferent that lawfull which is scandalous that expedient which is lawfull neither must hee be obeyed in any such commands because contrary to divine authority the word only being his rule a the Apostles had no such power a therefore Magistrates much lesse Secondly this power is privative 't is not a power to infringe the Liberties of the Saints the due priviledges and power of Churches but rather a power to strengthen the immunities thereof he may not forbid any thing but what is forbidden by the word directly or by expresse consequence a Pray saith the Apostle that yoú may live under his government 1 In all godlinesse 2 In all honesty 3 In both peacably he doth not say pray that he may not meddle in matters of Religion and godlinesse that being sacrilegious usurpation but pray that in using this authority in things sacred as civill pious as just you may peaceably exercise all Acts of Religion under such a Magistrate that by his improvement of his authority against those that should disturb you in the profession and practise of Religion as well as of honesty you may live in godlinesse peaceably in all godlinesse in the highest degree as well as in all honesty 2. He doth not say pray that the Magistrate may not hinder you in a contrary practise to godlinesse if according to the light of your conscience no more then he sayes pray that he may not restraine you in any course of dishonesty though to your conscience a supposed case of honesty which cases may be incident sometimes to godly men for this were to pray that we may be left to all ungodlinesse and dishonesty if we understand the Scripture in the genuine sense thereof and do not wrest it unto our own destruction if we set not up an Idoll in our hearts and put the stumbling block of our iniquity before our face when we come to the word to require the will of the Lord therein Thirdly this power is not ecclesiasticall the Magistrate can force no Order or Ordinances upon Churches contrary to divine Order no person to become a Member of a Church who is unworthy no Church to do any Act against the will of Christ nor may he intermeddle in Church affairs to administer officially the word the seals or censures but he must leave Church Officers to discharge their duty therein as called thereunto by God and himselfe as a Member thereof must humbly submit thereunto in feare and reverence to the KING of Nations Fourthly This power is not wholly spiritual neither in respect of the object nor secondly in respect of the subject First Not in respect of the object The Magistrate cannot restrain or censure the inward lusts of the heart nor the corruption of the judgment When acts are externall doe infringe liberty doe violate the publick peace and become pernicious and destructive to others then do they fall under the civill jurisdiction of the Magistrate Such things as appertaine to the outward man such things only are within the cognizance of the civill Magistrate Secondly The Magistrate cannot constraine to the inward exercise of religion with spirit and power he cannot compell any man to bel●eve or yet to repent that being the especiall gift of grace and worke of divine power The Magistrate as the King of Nineveh did may make use of his coercive authority to compell his subjects to the externall meanes of faith and repentance as to the hearing of the word by which such may be saved as are enemies to Christ and to their own soules

not left us without balme in this our Gi●●ad When the Lord sent his Son out of his bosome to undertake the work of salvation he fitted him a body for that work he is not as a stranger in our land as a way faring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night as one astonied as a mighty man that cannot saves that is he is not as a man that hath no calling no opportunity no wil to meddle he is not a● one deprived of power and strength by astonishment but the Lord our God in the midst of us hath been mighty for to save us he hath not broken the staffe and stay of this Nation the mighty man the man of war the Judge the Prophet the prudent and the ancient but hath given us as wise and honorable a Parliament as ever any age since the creation enjoyed and therewith such an Army our adversaries being Judges for piety and justice for prudence and courage as no storie since the dayes of Joshua can parallel their noble heroick acts this Army under God the arm of our Salvation the dread of Rome the crown of this Nation that had not the Lord delighted in us he would not have raised us up such Saviours nor have performed these mighty works for us by such honored instruments he doth not extraordinary things for ordinary ends upon these grounds who after all these considerations professing godlinesse will dare to be so unnaturall as to lay violent hands upon their best friends to violate the bonds of nature of grace to conspire against the lives of such who have fought for their liberties thereby betraying their owns persons with their posterities to certaine ruine to subject both to the servitude of any Imperious Lords or Law-givers rather then to their own who intend them the greatest felicity Oh my soul enter not into their secret mine honor be not thou united into their Assembly said that good Father cursed bee their anger for it is fierce and their wrath for it is cruell It is more honorable in any who apprehend themselves injured to bear with patience rather then to remedy or reform what they conceive irregular by any one act of hostility such may learn of Heathens rather to suffer many then to offer any injuries So saith Socrates upon private discontent upon particular revenge to contrive the ruine of a Nation though themselves perish therewith is prodigious and stupendious wickednesse the event of war is uncertain but this is certain if that work which these would overturne bee of men it will of it self come to nought but if it be of God it cannot be overthrowne and they shall bee found fighters against God Besides more is lost by spoyl in one yeers war then would be in many yeers due observance of the just commands of State although to some personall prejudice It is reported that when Aristides perceived the ill effects of some differences which arose between Th●misteel●s and himself to compose them he 〈…〉 by this argument we are not mean in this Common 〈…〉 will prove no small offence to others disparagement to our selves and prejudice to the publick I● we must need●●●rive 〈…〉 contend who shall ex●ell 〈…〉 It were a 〈◊〉 to 〈◊〉 Christians if the Gospel should not teach us better O● thee we did convert our reasonings into re●●dies our 〈◊〉 into ●●ty The envy of Ephraim●●all depart and Judah 〈◊〉 no more ve●Ephraim the adversaries to both shall bee 〈…〉 and the stick of Ephraim and of Judah shall be one 〈◊〉 in the hand of the Lord In these divided and distracte● 〈…〉 grace of the heart the holinesse of the life appears in the 〈◊〉 studious desire and diligent endeavour to make peace ●o maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace there is but one God one Faith Oh that there were in us one heart it is a sad token that the Lord will see an idol shepheard over the land or leave such to that tyranny and bondage which shall be worse to them then Prelacy and if the staffe of bonds continue broken by as if we stil divide in our opinions in our affections and wound each other with the tongue and with the pen which wounds are sharper then swords we may justly fear and must expect a more smarting scourge then ever we yee felt a Kingdome divided against it self a Parliament an Army a People divided how can they stand Remember the miseries of the Pal●tinate of Germany how civill discords and disagreements in matters of Religion exposed them to thirty years wars and miseries thereby Oh that we were wise to know in this our day the things of our peace Why did the Lord Christ die to reconcile us who are but a remnant preserved from death reserved to life to eternity and shall we bite and devour and destroy each other the Lord give us humble and self-de●ying hearts that we may not seek our own but the things of Jesus Christ The Lord is now shaking heaven and earth and what befell the civil S●me of Rome Pagan shall befall the State of Rome Papal● All Magistratical all Ecclesiasticall all authority opposite to Christs Ministeriall S●ep●er must and shall be thrown downs All Kings Princes and States in this last age shall be subjected to the Government of our Lord Christ or perish Therefore bee silent all flesh at the presence of the Lord because the day of the Lord is at hand a day of darknesse and darkenesse because the way of the Lord is in the whirle-wind his footsteps in the mighty waters out of a Chaos the Lord framed heaven and earth out of confusion and irregularities hee can extract peace and order The greatest mercies arise from the most hopelesse beginnings a dead people shall bee a glorious Nation Faith subdueth Kingdomes conquereth the hearts of mutinous men Therefore pray for the good and for the peace of England O let them prosper who love it For our Brethren for our Companions sake Pray that peace may bee within the walls and prosperity within the palaces of the Nation Because of the House of the Lord our God let us seek the good of England in the peace whereof is our peace the peace of our pretious wives and of our dear children Oh that fatall simplicitie which is in our hearts whereby we wrangle our selves into blood whereby we countenance and by our divisions confederate with apparent enemies against reall friends against those who are Hujus Reipublica Restitutores as was said of Vale●tinianus sanctorum refugium Oh the senslesse stupidity of this Malignant generation who are like those Pears that Solinus speakes of which although they be wounded yet cannot be awakened Oh the horrible ingratitude of this Nation to the Lord about to deliver it from bondage to conduct us into Canaan and because of some disappointments some difficulties wee murmur and rebell against those raised up by God