Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	law_n	liberty_n	parliament_n	4,902	5	6.1958	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A55028	The necessity and encouragement, of utmost venturing for the churches help together with the sin, folly, and mischief of self-idolizing applyed by a representation of 1. some of the most notorious nationall sins endangering us, 2. the heavy weight of wrath manifested in our present calamities, yet withall, grounds of 3. confidence, that our church shall obtain deliverance in the issue, 4. hopes that the present Parliament shall be still imployed in the working of it : all set forth in a sermon, preached to the honorable House of Commons, on the day of the monethly solemn fast, 28. June, 1643 / by Herbert Palmer ...	Palmer, Herbert, 1601-1647.	1643 (1643)	Wing P243; ESTC R21704	67,757	76

be lightly passed over but put beyond all gain-saying I come now to the Use of it The Use that I shall make of this first Doctrin by it self is onely to provoke us all to a serious consideration of our Church and Nations dangers calling for our utmost help as also what help is possible and necessary for us to afford taking in Ireland also into our thoughts though I cannot at every turn name it but it must never be forgotten specially on these solemn dayes of seeking God their unhappinesse affording us the first advantage of enjoying this publike happinesse of these dayes of humiliation towards our own good as well as theirs Where we ●we help we must needs consider the need of help and the means of it The Churches dangers needing help are reducible to two heads Judgments and Sins Both together put us into the condition of Isreal Nehem. 9. 37. whose sad expression is We are in great distresse Indeed far greater then theirs was then as a comparison would fully clear but that I have no leasure for it neither shall I now say all that I intend on either Head because the following Points require a reservation of somewhat of each kind to re-inforce them But yet even to make further way for them and in the mean time for a brief discourse of the means of help somewhat also must here be premised of the Churches dangers both in regard of judgements and sins For our dangers in regard of Judgements I may thus recapitulate them First An attempt upon a deep-rooted long-projected designe to ruin Religion Gods true Religion our Laws and Liberties and in and for all this this present Parliament 2. An Army raised for this by Papists-counsels enemies to the true Religion and consequently to our State and Laws by which it is established Made up for the most part of men of desperate spirits enemies to Parliaments and Laws because themselves are Delinquents and resolve to be Libertines and men of desperate fortunes and therefore enemies to the propriety and true liberty of the Subject without the violation of which they cannot subsist in their broken condition 3. These enemies possessing the Person of our King abusing his minde by their wicked suggestions and counsels his Name to countenance all their lawlesse outrages and to cast all manner of reproaches upon the Parliament And particularly upon prime Members of both Houses 4. These enemies having prevailed in many places to rob and spoil houses villages towns countreys to carry away Prisoners and use them with more then barbarous cruelty to kill and destroy many in the field in open war some in cold blood if their boyling rage and malice can ever be said to be cold blood and not a few by worse then brutish usage in their Prisons to violence and violate mens consciences by forcing upon them the Protestation against the Parliament 5. These enemies being in themselves many in number and of great strength in divers places apparently stronger then we in all kinde of strength except spirituall and in the whole powerfull enough to put all into exceeding hazard by force and fraud arms and conspiracies witnesse Bristoll and the late damnable Plot against the Parliament and City specially considering the multitude of secret enemies seeming but Neuters intermingled every where with us specially in all considerable places the City is not the Parliament it self hath not been free and not a few even almost professed enemies let alone and suffered in the very City and much more in the Countreys and too many false and treacherous friends in the Armies and every where Besides multitudes of professed Neuters ready to fall to the enemies where ever they shall appear stronger and in the mean time affording as little help as possible they can the rather because the worst of the Parliaments exclaimed against severity is courtesie to the ordinary usage of their adversaries against any that have in the least opposed them 6. Our friends impoverisht daily without means of restauraration disheartened by mutuall jealousies divided by differences in opinion diminished by deaths and captivities without hopes of ransom and few grow up in their rooms 7. Forrain States and Countreyes at the best no friends while in the mean time Papists in severall parts afford great assistance to our enemies by contributions of Moneys and Arms And so have some of our pretended Friends done too whose consciences will one day pay them to the full for it on earth or a worse place or both as fighters against God and his true Religion and self-condemned in their own hearts for worse rebells if we be thought by them to be so at all then any rhetorick can make us 8. Ireland not onely affords us no help but helps to wast our Estates our Provisions Arms Ammunition while the Rebels there are in part furnisht from sorrain States and now at last threatning us also with an actuall Invasion and at least some of those Rebels being actually in Arms against us Lay now all these together and we must needs acknowledge that our danger is exceeding great and we all In great distresse in regard of the Judgments that lie upon and threaten our Church and Nation and Ireland with us And now it is time that we come to consider our Nations sins a little as the provoking Cause of all these Judgments For so the Prophet resolves the Question why the sword was sent against Judah Jer. 4. 18. Thy wayes and thy doings have procured these things to thee This is thy wickednesse because it is bitter and because it reaches unto thy heart To shew this we will scan first how many wayes a Nation may be called sinfull according to the phrase Esay 1. 4. and a people laden with iniquity And then see whether in all those respects our Land be not undeniably sinfull and laden with transgressions Five wayes a Nation may deserve the name of sinfull First when all sorts and ranks that is many in each of them are apparently tainted with sinne 2. When particular sins as ignorance drunkennesse swearing prophanenesse any one such notorious sin and much more if divers doe visibly taint the greatest number in a Nation every where according to the expression Ezek. 22. Thou hast done thus and thus 3. When any visible iniquity though practised but by some few is not at all punisht though there be law against it This comes under another phrase in the forementioned chapter Ezek. 22. In thee in thee have they set light by Father and Mother in the middest of thee have they done thus and thus We know the very not enquiring after Achan there having been a particular warning that one such man would make all Israel accursed made God charge his single fact upon all the Nation Israel have sinned and they have trangressed c. Ios 7. And accordingly he threatens not to be with the

I mean the Chancellours and Commissaries c. who managed all Men that usually bought their Offices and so most likely to sell the sinnes of the people And who had more reason for their gains-sake to be skilfull in the Popes Canon Law then in Gods Canonicall Scripture And who might usually do what they lift securely because all appeals were for the most part made to men of their own profession and like themselves and yet they had not so much power to do good as to do evill Finally the want of a publike care to breed up children the poor specially and neglect of visiting Schools and Vniversities whereby a seed of evill doers hath still sprung up to fill the Land with corruption And of all this there is scarce any thing but to a rationall observant man hath been and is notorious or may be soon made so and declared to be abominable in the sight of God For which we may well fear his speaking against us as against his people of old Jer. 5. 9. Shall I not visit for these things saith the Lord shall not my soul be avenged on such a Nation as this Doubtlesse he hath begun to visit us for these things besides many other our wickednesses and that his soul may not be avenged on us we had need exceedingly to affect and afflict and humble our souls with a holy fear of his displeasure already manifested unto us and proclaimed against us and namely by a tenfold Consideration of the dreadfulnesse of the judgment which we all lie under and are in extream danger of 1 1. The judgement in it self touched a little before A sword drawn against us with so much advantage for our enemies and disadvantage to our selves and with such desperate purposes of our utter ruine You have more then once heard of the calamities of warre therefore I insist no further upon that onely remember that when God is most angry he threatens that Esay 1. 20. and often else where 2 2. The kinde of the judgment a civill war or rather an unnaturall intestine war a war against our own bowells Scarce a family in the whole Kingdom that is not engaged against it self This is according to the heavy curse of filling Kings Princes Prophets inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem with drunkennesse Politick drunkennesse and dashing one against another the brother against the brother the fathers and the sons together Jer. 13.13 14. and observe what follows in the end of ver. 14. I will not spare nor have pity not have mercy but destroy them And if we be not all utterly destroyed yet manifold families will undoubtedly and those that remain will be such enemies to their neighbours and one to another in the same family as God alone knows when the direfull effects of that drunkennesse will cease even though the war be ceased 3 3. The occasion was most dreadfull That which was meant and hoped to have been our safety the setling of the Militia petitioned by all Countries acknowledged by the King necessary to be done seemed to be granted and then refused whereby the Parliament saw themselves forced to settle it This proved the pretence and occasion of all our unsetling Answerable to that heavie curse even against the enemies of Christ Psal. 69. 22. Let that which should have been for their welfare become atrap 4 4. The humane means of prevention seeming most sufficient yet rather causing and encreasing the mischief A Parliament sitting Chosen with the greatest care that ever the Countries took in any Age Never a choyser company of wise and good men seemed to be gathered together and all the wisdome of the Land besides contributing to the counsels of the one side and the other in Parliament and on t of Parliament and engaging themselves to the utmost and having a long time of debate by words and messages and writing space to see the wisdome and faithfull intentions of each other and to manifest their own and after all to agree in nothing but disagreement and confusion like drunken men as before what a wofull curse is this specially being fore-prophesied against Israel Esay 19 14. Behold I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people even a marvellous work and a wonder for the wisdome of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid Many confounded that they gave nothing but mischievous counsell which onely was beleeved and others so confounded that their faithfull counsels were discredited as when God meant to bring a scourge on Rehobo●● and vengeance on Absalom 5 5. All this aggravated by example of others finding that favour with God that we could not finde according to the difference between * Judah and Israel or Goshen and AEgypt Exod. 9. and 10. that we and they both could then be wise and prosperous and we so unhappy in and among our selves Our brethren of Scotland had much the same Cause God then let us be wise for them and our selves together and the danger of those warres between them and us after neer three years hazard ended with very little blood and with great peace and amity But God hath denied us this favour this wisdome so that his anger appears to be the more against us and we seem still the more filled with drunkennesse 6 6. The ground of the quarrell as held forth on both sides makes still the mischief a greater prodigie The honour dignity of the king the Priviledges of Parliament the Law of the Land the property and liberty of the Subject are fought for on both sides and which is most admirable the same Religion the true Religion Protestant Religion except onely that the Popish Army in the North are so honest or so impudent as to disclaim that Cause and professe to fight for their own Religion And all this is Protested before God and man heaven and earth all the world is called to witnesse of their faithfull purposes and intentions And is not here then a strange drunkennesse at least on one fide and a strange curse scarce the like ever heard of in the world What! are both sides hypocrites or one onely or neither Every way it is most dreadfull and wofull 1. If both sides bee generally hypocrites or the chief of both Can God but resolve to destroy us all as a most perfidious Nation unworthy to live in the world and deal with us as Esay 10. 5 6 Even send a forrein enemy to take the prey and take the spoil and to tread us all down like the mire of the streets 2. If one side be faithfull and the other not yet is it not most dreadfull that God should let hypocrites so far prevail as first to seduce many well meaning people as Absalom under pretence of a vow he had made carried away 200. honest Citizens of Ierusalem who went with him in

once a just reward of our too much tolerating them from the very first but much more of late years and a strange symptome of strange lukewarmnesse in us to suffer such enemies to God and our selves so much while yet they so often and so desperately refused to suffer us to be at quiet in our condition notwithstanding The 2. Ignorance is very much aggravated by the innumerable multitudes tainted with that soul-killing sin in which of all others it is impossible for any to be saved And yet scarce a fist I may say a tenth man or woman through the whole Kingdom in a better condition as will be found to our incomparable grief and shame specially the Lawes and persons have been so extremly wanting to remedy this all this while when once an effectuall course comes to be taken to make this Land a Christian Nation in earnest by bringing the generality of our people to knowledge The 3. is a wickednesse unheard of I think in the world among any people of any religion whatsoever unlesse in Italy where yet it is not comparable to what is among us and most audaciously and uncontrolledly practised in our England every where even by no beggers neither And this I rank under the 1. Commandement though immediatly seeming to be against men because it is against men meerly for Gods sake because they shew some respect to his Law and Word and so most properly against God himself I know not whether a formall Atheist known to be so but keeping himself quiet would do the one half of that mischief that this Atheisticall scorner doth Against the second I name superstition and the heavy weight put upon ceremonies and circumstances and humane ordinances while the holy Ordinances of God have been shamefully neglected by an Ignorant-pluralizing-nonresident-carelesse and unsufficiently-maintained-Ministery and a prophane people that liked all this well enough and even loved to have it so Against the third 1. Vain oaths cursings and blasphemies in infinite multitudes 2. And either unnecessary oaths in Universities and upon Officers and Inquests and private persons Or 3. at least no regard of their observation in those that take them or in those that give them 4. Extream prophanenesse in the common-sort and others in the very publike Assemblies and the most solemn services of God by sleeping going out and in at their pleasure talking and laughing oft-times and no redresse of it by Officers care or Magistrates endeavour 5. A twisted cord of Simony and perjury for Benefices 6. Also a flood of riot and drunkennesse overflowing all places and bearing down all reproof 7. And finally the most horrid prophanation of the Sacrament of the Lords Supper by the unworthy receiving of ignorant and apparently godlesse persons The inexcusable fault of persons in authority and even of Laws too in suffering such pollution of so sacredan Ordinance Pollution I say to those prophane receivers of it to their own damnation though not to others who have no authority to keep them back And yet that heart-grief that they who are the most zealous for Christs honour and other mens souls herein have taken for such Prophanation and the grievous scandall that this hath continually given and doth give to this day to many thousands perhaps of weak ones whom this alone hath driven from our Church is a fearfull aggravation of this sinne of our Nation Against the fourth there hath been most notorious prophanations violations of the Sabbath the Lords day and notwithstanding the Doctrin of it more clearly among us even authorized then anywhere else in the world as also the practise of it more glorious here then anywhere and an answerable prosperity ever since Queen Elizabeths time according to the prophesie Esay 58. 13 14. yet the prophanation had been more impudent and outragious then anywhere else Men having undertaken to make void Gods holy Commandment as it were by a Law and even by persecuting all that would not consent to such violation Then which scarce so great affront was ever put upon God by any Nation professing his Name Against the fift Clandestine marriages without and against Parents consent for which the Lawes have no sufficient prevention nor redresse Against the sixt The fearfull guilt of innocent blood of the Martyrs shed of old in time of Popery and the fresh bleeding wounds though not to the extremity because power was wanting of Gods faithfullest Ministers and people persecuted to the utmost extremity of colour of law and oft a great way beyond law Many pincht themselves and families next to utter undoing if not altogether with sore wants by that means Thousands of late driven out of the Kingdom into America and threatned even theretoo And by and with all this That scarce at all feared or thought of but most prodigiously frightfull guilt of the blood of souls Thousands and Millions so far as can be judged by any rules of Scripture gone to hell out of this Kingdom even since the reformation for want of good lawes and through wicked Magistrates Civill and Ecclesiasticall and wicked Ministers and Neighbours in stead of good ones Millions I say now howling in hell in those infernall flames from whence there is no redemption damned through the undeniable defect of sufficient means of salvation in an ordinary way and through the damnable persecution made against all shew of godlinesse A wickednesse for which alone it is next a miracle that God hath not sunk the whole Kingdom into the bottom of the Sea long ere this Against the seventh The abominable filthinesse of whoredom and adultery specially never sufficiently shamed or frighted but of late years grown beyond all shame And the wickednesse of Play-houses suffered which though generally against all the Commandments one way or other yet for the most part more immediatly against this Against the eighth The oppression usury racking of Rents Inclosures depopulations defrauding of Creditors by lands paying no debts and of Purchasers by preconveyances Perverting of justice Ingrossing commodities enhaunsing of prises every where cried out upon Against the ninth All kinde of lying and slandering And finally against all the Commandments The generall lukewarmnesse of all our Lawes against sinne either belonging to the first or second Table I cannot now instance in the particulars But if it be seriously considered it will be found as I say That scarce any one Law made since the Reformation for Religion or against any particular sin but hath a deep taint of Laodicean lukewarmnesse something is said as to restrain wickednesse but so weakly as there is much to be considered even about our best Laws But withall there hath been generally a great want of a godly Discipline for the Church all this while The government being left in the hands of men who were scarce so much as likely in reason to use that power they had according to God

virtuall promise to England 3 3. But I take it for a much stronger ground and more undoubted That the word of God in the Story and in the threatnings together hath an epitome of all that God will do to his Church planted in my Nation And that God will never deal more severely with any Nationall Church then his Word which is every way most perfect relates or threatens Therefore if it cannot be found in the Scripture that God did ever bring destruction upon his Church planted in a Nation or transplant his Church wholly out of such a Land while they were in such a condition as ours is then will he not do it now But contrarily if he hath alwayes in such a case as ours is now afforded his Church deliverance this I beleeve to be a very strong promise that he will afford us the like now Logicians say that even one example of a thing and no instance to the contrary is a sufficient argument And if it hold not in Scripture examples when none of a divers kinde can be produced I know not what use can be made of the greatest examples of mercy as meer examples which yet were all written for our learning as all Scriptures are that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope Rom. 15. 4. 4 4. In speciall If God did never destroy a Reforming Nation never wholly transplant a Reforming Church then will he not do so to us because we are such And for this there is speciall Reason whether we consider the Reformation to be the speciall work of God and little of the Nation in it as in Josiahs time God wrought it by a speciall work upon the King who saw all done himself and the people shewed little concurrence in it yet God would and did carry it through Because he that loved the people so wel being yet corrupted as to begin to reform them in a manner himself when he had begun it once would make somewhat of it and not let it altogether come to nothing OF whether God though he ever be the Author and finisher of all good yet act the reformation much by the peoples hands as it was in Hezekiahs Reformation 2 Chron. 30. 1. Here again the same reason holds He who loved the Nation so well as to put such a beginning of grace into them would not let that fail suddenly But he made the work prosper in their hands and no enemie hindred them And now to apply this to our selves 1 If ever a Nation or Church in affliction and danger were a reforming Church and Nation we are such and that in all the parts of Reformation 1. For purity and clearnesse of truth of Doctrine 2. Purity of Worship freed from all superstitions and mans devices and compleat in all the Ordinances of God 3. Purity of Church government and discipline according to the word and rule of Christ 4. Purity of life and conversation 5. Particularly the Sabbaths sanctification the greatest pledge of mercy to a Nation and to ours experimentally in speciall according to Esay 58. 13 14. All this Reformation we apparently labour for in our Church and so are doubtlesse a reforming Church and Nation and shall not be destroyed at this time 2 2. All this is striven for not simply for the liberty of private persons that they may be free from persecution but for the glory of God and the saving of others souls throughout the Nation Which disposition of his servants being much above all self-respects God doth highly esteem and so will blesse it with prosperous successe in the issue 3 3. This Reformation Gods servants have striven for and panted after Ministers and people eighty years together more or lesse and have appeared for it in a considerable party though not joyned and associated as now by the happy advantage of this Parliament and have been much persecuted even for it And therefore now when God hath given them to attempt further and with more hopes and greater beginnings then ever before He will not now at this time give them wholly over to enemies to ruin all utterly 4 4. The rather because the enmity of the enemies is specially provoked even by the desire and attempt of Reformation some in one point some in another They pretend as was noted before to fight for the true reformed Protestant Religion But except some ease about Ceremonies and the like to tender consciences they evidently oppose any further reformation then was in Queen Elizabeths time and reproach the Parliament as intending to alter Religion because they professe to purpose an endeavour of a through reformation Therefore God will not take his enemies part against his people but his peoples against his enemies in the issue at least in giving them the Reformation contended for 5 5. He hath shewed a greater spirtuall love to this Nation for eighty years and more together thou to any in the Christian world in raising up so many excellant Lights for powerfull preaching and for holinesse of life above all other Churches and given us above all others also the Doctrine and practise of his holy Sabbath And all this notwithstanding our Nationall grievous provocations fore-mentioned Therefore when now the Nation is working into the best way of being generally better he will not suffer them to become now irrecoverably for continuance worse But at least this time try the whole Nation with a generall Reformation 6 6. Himself hath mainly and manifestly given the first hopes of this and raised up not the desires onely but the expectation of his servants by wayes farre beyond their contrivances and wonderfully beyond their very thoughts ordered by himself And namely marvellous much by his very enemies plots and counsels turned upon themselves As 1. Their attempt against Religion and Liberties both together whereas if they had undertaken either alone they never in likelihood had had any considerable party appearing against them as now is by uniting the patriots and zealots both in one and shewing to either the necessity of such union 2. In their attempt against the two Nations at once England and Scotland so grasping at both they could hold neither 3. Yet beginning first with Scotland to impose Popish practises upon them the more manifestly who were more impatient of Popery then our Nation was and so provoking them to stand upon their guard link themselves suddenly in a Nationall Covenant against them which also much weakned their attempts upon us 4. Breaking the first Pacification with Scotland which forced them to prevent their being invaded with comming with a powerfull Army into this Kingdom and to refuse to be satisfied without an English Parliament our onely remedy too under God did ratifie the peace with them 5. Their frequence breakings of Parliaments rendring them justly suspected that they meant so by this as soon as the Peace was made counselled to