Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	england_n	true_a	2,893	5	5.1810	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27544	The providences of God, observed through several ages, towards this nation, in introducing the true religion and then, in the defence of that, preserving the people in their rights and liberties, whilst other kingdoms are ravished of theirs, as our counsellors designed for us.	Bethel, Slingsby, 1617-1697.	1691 (1691)	Wing B2074; ESTC R18802	50,816	66

THE PROVIDENCES OF GOD OBSERVED THROUGH Several Ages TOWARDS THIS NATION In Introducing the True Religion AND THEN In the Defence of that preserving the PEOPLE in their RIGHTS and LIBERTIES whilst other KINGDOMS are ravished of theirs as our COUNSELLORS designed for US LONDON Printed for R. Baldwin near the Oxford-Arms in Warwick-Lane 1691. TO THE READER THERE being found amongst us a certain sottish Generation who out of Love to Slavery and Hatred to our Legal and Natural Rights do disown any Miscarriage or Error in the Ministers and Instruments of the Two last Reigns I thought it necessary to make some Observations upon the Transactions of those Times to the end to raise our Hearts to a thankful Admiration of God's Grace and Goodness in preserving us in our Priviledges by his over-ruling Hand of Providence through many Ages whilst other Kingdoms have been ravished of theirs and to discourage the like Attempts against us for the future by Men of ambitious selfish and depraved Principles And because I know this will meet with many Enemies who as concerned will be ready to cavil at it I have for the farther Proof of the Subject Matter relating to the Two last Reigns and the Inquity of them annexed hereunto two Affidavits which together with the uncontradicted Information of that eminently honest Captain Henry Wilkinson a true Son tho' no Bigot of the Church of England will I suppose be sufficient to make good the Truth of what is here suggested And if any desire farther satisfaction concerning the Four last Kings I referr them for James the First to that Book called The Court of King James writ by Sir Anthony Welden who being a Courtier writ his Knowledg and Experience For Charles the First to Rushworth's Authentick Collections For Charles the Second and James the Second to that Book called The Display of Tyranny where you will find named the Judges Juries Witnesses and Council made use of in several Trials upon Life and Death as well as for pretended Misdemeaners some of which Verdicts have been since reversed by Act of Parliament declaring several Men murthered and some of the Verdicts for Misdemanors reversed by Judgment in the House of Lords to the Credit of the Sufferers but little to the Credit of those Juries who found them guilty c. THE PROVIDENCES OF GOD OBSERVED THROUGH Several Ages TOWARDS THIS NATION AS it is the duty of Man to contemplate the various Dispensations and Workings of God in the World so no Country under Heaven affords more Matter than England for raising our Souls to the highest admiration of his Greatness and Goodness and that as well in reference to Civils as Spirituals To look no further back than William the First who some call Conquerer the Mercy of the Lord towards this Nation hath ever since been to a Miracle in preserving their Rights and Privileges through so many Ages and Reigns of covetous and ambitious Princes who never wanted evil Counsellors to joyn with them for Arbitrary Power and Government they knowing that he that makes no Conscience of cousening the Community for whose good he is ordeined must suffer them in their degree to cousen him as he doth the other and tho' we find they have for the most part first or last failed in their Attempts it hath not frightened others from the like Designs the Examples of Gavestone Lord Spencers c. in former times nor of Strafford and Laude since being any caution to those whose Pride and Covetousness overballanceth such Presidents and it 's no wonder that all times should furnish bad Kings with evil Counsellors there being more Men in the World of Parts without Honesty than there are of both Parts and Honesty and more of Honesty without Parts than of th' other two whose weakness the first makes use of to support themselves in their tyrannical practices and tho' through Mercy we do at present injoy our Liberties the preservation of them from the First William down to this time hath been almost by perpetual Contests with our Kings and their pernicious Instruments In times of Popery the Clergy who are always governed by their separate Interest owning the Pope for their Head were tenacious of their English Priviledges equal to any and from thence were the greatest supporters of them and the greatest Checks to our aspiring Princes for which reason they were then so much honoured and adored but since the Reformation in Religion hath changed their Interest in making them dependent upon the Crown from whence issues all their Preferments they have been the greatest Flatterers of our Princes and Enemies to our English Liberties it being hard for a Flatterer to be an honest Man And this may be made an additional Reason to Dr. Itchards several Causes of the present Contempt of the Clergy for as it 's natural to Mankind to reverence those from whom they receive good so on the contrary to have an aversion for those from whom they derive their miseries and tho Statists would monopolize beyond contradiction all knowledge in Government to themselves as a defence for their evil practices The wiser sort of Men of both Parts and Honesty see easily thorough their tricks and the rest feel where the Shooe pincheth and in truth Politicians without Honesty are but like Mountebanks on a Stage to cheat the Ignorant For as King James the First used to say Honesty is the best Policy and whether he had the Vertue to follow his own Maxim he was able to judge of what was good and vertuous and surely all Governments thrive best that make Honesty the rule not only as a blessing of God may be expected from such proceedings but also from Natural and Human Reason the worst of Men liking Honesty best in others tho' they do not practise it themselves And therefore all Vertuous Princes will be careful to make choice of Counsellors of upright and just Principles as such may be well known by their Creatures for if their Favorites are Men of Immorral depraved and debauched Lives as to Tyranny and Oppression they must be the same in their own Nature and who they are that are such the late Times have so sufficiently discovered as is beyond concealing And now as this may serve to raise our hearts in a thankful remembrance to Almighty God for Temporal Mercies so I shall observe that which is of greater concern our Eternal Being which requires our most serious Meditation as That the Lord by his over-ruling Hand of Providence should make a professed Enemy to the Truth Henry the 8th his first Instrument of bringing us out of Darkness into Light cannot be sufficiently admired who being followed by that Miracle of Piety especially for his Age Edward the 6th he made so grounded a Reformation in his short time that his merciless and persecuting Successor of the Popish Communion could not get totally over in her Reign but was forced to leave in a great measure his Pattern of Church Government for