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	true_a	write_v	2,731	5	5.6927	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53906	Providence bringing good out of evil in a sermon, preached on the ninth of September, being the day of thanksgiving for the discovery of the late treasonable conspiracy against His Majesties person and government / by Richard Pearson ...	Pearson, Richard, d. 1734.	1684 (1684)	Wing P1014; ESTC R20743	16,944	45

shall turn to Gods Praise though we were not furnished with so many Examples of the thing nor were enabled to give any account at all concerning the manner how this should be brought to pass But Secondly For our more abundant satisfaction in so comfortable a Truth I shall in the next place endeavour more particularly to domonstrate some of the cheif ways and several manners how the outragious Actions and wicked enterprises of the Enemies of Religion are at last forced to turn to the Divine Praise and the real benefit of God's faithful People And this may come to pass First As such ruggid dealings with them tends more effectually to antidote them from being tainted and infected with the Errours and Corruptions of such Enemies For should wicked Men and false Worshippers ceasing to Persecute the true Professours allow them fair quarter and behave themselves kindly and courteously towards them there would then be far more danger of their being seduced and enticed to partake of the same Abominations and to enter upon such a familiarity as might prove very destructive and of the worst consequence But now the many injuries and ill turns which the Enemies of the Truth do usually offer to the Godly That Rage against them and Hatred which they are ready upon all occasions to shew is generally in it self a very powerful security from the former danger And this may be among many others one good Reason why God is pleased to permit those that are born after the Flesh to malign and Persecute those that are born after the Spirit viz. that thereby they might be free from the many Temptations and occasions of seduction which might attend a familiarity with such Men and be less subject to take the Infection of their Errours and bad Examples so that if no other good did accidentally come to us from the Rage of such Men this is certainly to be lookt upon as no small advantage But Secondly The Rage of such Persons is forced to turn to God's Praise as Persecutions tend to correct the failings of good Men and to exercise and illustrate their several Graces and Virtues By these good Men are usually made much better and more approved while they tend to exercise our Patience to quicken our Devotion to Evidence our Zeal and Christian Fortitude and to shew to the whole World what Love we bear to the Truth and how much we are willing to undergo for the Honour of God Till they have suffered something for it Truth is too apt to grow Cheap and be less priz'd many times even by those that are good Men for the main whereas we are Apt on the contrary never to value it at a higher Rate or to be more Zealous for it or to make better use of it than when it is opposed and persecuted What more truly Beneficial therefore or tending to the Divine Glory than for God Who useth to bring Good out of Evil To make use also of the Opposers of his Truth to Rouse up his Servants whom he sees growing more Remiss and Negligent than they should be and to Suffer such Temptations to assalt them by which their Drousie Minds may be Spurred on into a greater Love and Zeal for the Truth and a deeper Sense of the Divine Benefit in it and in general Excited to the more Diligent performance of their Duty In short so unable are Men generally to bear long prosperity without being the worse for it and of such Excellent use is Adversity to Purge away the ill Humours which the best Men are too Apt to contract that God sees it highly convenient for the general good of his Servants sometimes to make use of this Method and does therefore ever and anon within some few Ages permit ill Men to become the Rods and Instruments of Correction to his People and use them as Pruning-Hooks in his Vineyard Outward Trials and Adversities do usually most of all promote the true inward Spiritual Prosperity of God's Church Nor does any thing conduce more either to restore it or to keep it Sound and in Health than the due Exercises and Breathings of Persecution I shall Conclude this particular with that Notable passage of St. Hirom who in one of his Books has these Words Scribere disposui si tamen Dominus vitam dederit c. I determine with my self if God shall give me Life to write a History from the coming of our Saviour to our present Times that is from the Times of the Apostles to the Dregs of this Age in which I design to shew at large how and by whom the Church of God was Replinished how it was still encreased by Persecutions and crowned by Martyrdoms and when it came to Christian Princes How strangely it was diminished in Virtue while it encreased in Riches and Ease in External Power and Prosperity Thirdly Another manner after which the Wrath of Man is forced to turn to God's Praise is when he makes the very Execution of the Malice of Wicked Men against his Servants become the Effectual means or occasion of promoting their welfair and of bringing about that very good thing which the other desired and designed thereby to hinder And now as there are few good Men I 'm perswaded who diligently observe and take Notice of God's Providential dealings and wise disposal of Things but can readily find some happy Instances of this in their own Experience either in Relation to themselves or some other of their acquaintance so shall we not fail however of meeting with variety of Examples of this kind in Holy Scripture Thus while the Envy and Malice of Josephs Bretheren moved them to sell him to the Ishmaelites out of a design to prevent and hinder that Exaltation of his which had been signified to him in a Dream God was pleased in his wonderful Providence so to order all Circumstances as that they thereby put him into the direct Rode of his Preferment and far more Effectually tho Ignorantly indeed and full contrary to their own Will contributed thereto than if they had all laid their Heads together and Studied most industriously how to Effect the same And accordingly Joseph was so thorowly Sensible of Gods Over-ruling Providence and Gracious design from the very first in permitting them to put their Wicked design in Execution that he calls their Selling of him by the Name of Gods sending him into Egypt Gen. 45. 5. Be not Angry with your selves that you Sold me For God sent me before you to preserve Life And Gen. 50. 20. As for you you thought Evil against me but God meant it unto Good And thus also whilst Wicked Pharaoh contriving how to hinder the Children of Israel from so Multiplying and growing so mighty as that they might at last depart from him by a strong Hand and cast off the Yoak from them Commands his People to cast all the Male-Children of the Hebrews into the River God was pleased to make use of this very decree of the