Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	dead_a	life_n	open_v	5,463	5	8.1685	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26786	The four last things viz. death, judgment, heaven, hell, practically considered and applied in several discourses / by William Bates.	Bates, William, 1625-1699.	1691 (1691)	Wing B1105; ESTC R15956	218,835	562

which ungodly Sinners have spoken against him And all the good Works of the Saints shall then be remembred even to the least work of Piety the giving of two Mites to the Treasury of the Temple and the least work of Charity the giving a Cup of cold Water to a Disciple upon the account of his relation unto Christ. All their secret Graces and Duties shall then be rewarded The manner of this Judicial Evidence is set forth to us in Scripture by the opening the Books congruously to proceedings in humane Judgement wherein the Information and Charge is produc'd from Writings for the conviction of the Accused Thus it was represented to St. John in a Vision I saw the Dead small and great stand before God and the Books were opened and the Dead were judged out of the things that were written in the Books according to their Works 1. The Books of the Law and Gospel shall then be open'd in all the Injunctions and Prohibitions and our Lives compar'd with them Our Saviour told the Jews Do not think that I will accuse you to my Father there is one that accuseth you even Moses in whom you trust not the Person but the Law of Moses And he denounced against those that reject the Gospel the Word that I have spoken the same shall judg them in the last Day The Law is the exact Transcript of God's Sacred Will the natural and immutable Rule of Righteousness 't is pure forbids all Sin and enjoins universal Holiness 't is spiritual requires not only a conformity in Words and Actions but inward Sanctity in Mind and Heart for the Soul is the principal part of Man entirely open to God's Eye the Maker and Judg of it And the most enlightned Saints have but an imperfect knowledg of it here This made holy David after his meditation upon its Purity and Perfection to cry out in an Agony Who can understand his Errors cleanse thou me from secret Sins This when opened in its spiritual and comprehensive Nature by a wise and zealous Preacher darts a Light into the Conscience and discovers many secret Sins that like so many Serpents were still and quiet in the dark but upon the sudden breaking in of the Light fly upon the Sinner and torment him with their mortal Stings But when the Law-giver himself shall expound the Law in its full extent and perfection with respect to all the Duties it commands and Sins it forbids how guilty will Men appear how unable to answer one Article of a thousand charg'd upon them 2. The Omniscience of God will give most convincing Evidence of all our Works All things are naked and open to his Eyes with whom we have to do in Judgment The Psalmist declares the infinite perspicacity of his sight The Darkness hides not from thee but the Night shines as the Day As his Light and transcendent Brightness is invisible to us so our thickest Darkness is visible to him We cannot see things in the Night because it hinders the reception of the Rays that insinuate into the Eye and causes sight but the Eyes of our Judg are like a flame of Fire dispelling all Darkness From his Throne in Heaven his piercing Eye sees thro' all the concealments of Mens Sins Thou hast set our Iniquities before thee and our secret Sins in the Light of thy Countenance He discovered the Sacriledg of Achan the Lie of Gehazi the Deceit of Ananias Saul's Disobedience in sparing the Amalekites devoted to Destruction had the colourable pretence of Piety and as a Sacrifice was laid on the Altar And David's Murder of Vriah was imputed to the chance of War as a sufficient excuse But though they might have deceiv'd others they could not deceive God He is intimately present with the Souls of Men that are unsearchable to the most discerning Angels of Light and knows all their most secret Designs and Desires the deepest Seeds of their Actions He alone has exact Scales to weigh the Spirits of Men all the Principles Aims and Affections that are inseparable from their Works The Pharisees in whom Pride was the first Property and Hypocrisy a second Nature could not with all their Saintly shews impose on our Saviour for he knew what was in Man He discovered their Alms to be not the effect of Charity but Ostentation and their specious Acts of Devotion to be a train to surprize some rich Prey And this Divine knowledg of Men and their Actions is in order to Judgment Thus the wise King declares Doth not he that ponders the Heart consider it and he that keepeth thy Soul doth not he know it And shall not he render to every Man according to his Works And God himself testifies I the Lord search the Heart even to give to every Man according to his Works For this reason he is said to keep a Register of Mens Sins Thus he speaks of the impure Idolatries of the Jews Behold it is written before me to signify his exact and actual knowledg I will not keep silence but will recompense even recompense into their Bosoms And at the Day of Judgment he will declare his Knowledg of their Sins before all and the most secret shall be made evident as if written in their Foreheads in the most plain and legible Characters And all the Goodness of the Saints shall then be revealed by the Judg. Their greatest Excellencies are invisible to the Eyes of Men the Sanctity of their Aims and Affections which gives Life and Value to all the Acts of Obedience their secret Duties wherein the sincerity and ardency of their Souls is most express'd are only known to God And such is the excellent humility of the Saints that the more they are enrich'd and abound with the gracious Influences of the Spirit the less they discover to the World as the Celestial Bodies when in nearest conjunction with the Sun and most fill'd with his Light are least in appearance to the Inhabitants of the Earth But there is a Book of Remembrance before him for them that feared the Lord and thought upon his Name And they shall be mine saith the Lord of Hosts in the Day when I make up my Jewels and I will spare them as a Man spares his Son that serves him 3. The Conscience of every Man shall then be open'd and give an accusing or excusing Testimony of all things for these Acts of Conscience in the present Life have a final respect to God's Tribunal And though the Accounts are so vast there shall be an exact Agreement between the Books of God's Omniscience and of Conscience in the Day of Judgment Now indeed the Conscience of Man though never so inquisitive and diligent in examining and revising his Ways is unable to take a just account of his Sins As one that would tell the first appearing Stars in the Evening before he can reckon

omnipresent and that what-ever Sin is done though in the deepest and darkest recess is manifest to him have no need of Lucian's Lamp to make our Judg to be feared by us 3. The Impartiality of the Sentence will make the Justice of God conspicuous before the whole World This consists in two things 1. There will be no distinction of Persons 2. There will be a distinction of Causes in that Judgment and according to their Nature the Sentence will pass upon all 1. There will be no distinction of Persons In humane Courts the Judges sometimes extend and amplify sometimes contract or smother the Evidence and are more rigorous or favourable in their Sentence as they are biass'd towards the Persons before them But the Righteous Judg of the World is uncapable of being inclin'd to Favour or Severity upon such base Motives This is frequently declared in Scripture to possess us with his Fear If ye call upon the Father who without respect of Persons judges according to every Man's Work pass the time of your sojourning here in fear No spiritual Priviledges upon which Men are so apt to presume viz. that they are Members of the Reformed Church that they are enrich'd with excellent Gifts that they enjoy the Ordinances in their purest Administration will avail them without real Holiness in their Hearts and Lives The being united to Societies of the most glorious Profession of strictest Purity and sublime Devotion does no more prove one to be a real Saint than the being of an eminent Company of Merchants proves one to be a rich Citizen Those that bow the Knee and not the Heart in faithful Reverence that give the empty Title of Lord to Christ without the tribute of Obedience will be rejected by him Many shall say at the Day of Judgment Lord Lord we have prophesied in thy Name and done many wondrous Works Then will the Judg say I know you not Depart from me ye Workers of Iniquity No degrees of Civil Greatness will be of any moment and advantage in that day Saint John testifies I saw the Dead small and great stand before God in an equal Line to receive their Trial. Kings shall then be devested of their Imperial Titles of their Crowns and Scepters and their Robes of State and only be accompanied with their Works Of this we have an undoubted Proof in that they are no more exempted from the common Law of dying than the meanest Slave Death that rugged Officer arrests them without Ceremony and summons them to appear before that Tribunal The Royal Purple could not protect Herod from being devoured by Worms The Apostle speaks indefinitely in the fore-cited Place He that does wrong shall receive for the wrong he has done and there is no respect of Persons No circumstantial Accidents can derive true worth or truly debase Persons but inherent Qualities and the Actions that flow from them and accordingly the High and Holy God will accept or disapprove them What St. Paul observes of the saving Grace of the Gospel being indifferently offer'd to all is applicable in this case He tells us There is neither Greek nor Jew Barbarian nor Scythian Bond nor Free that are preferr'd or excluded upon a Carnal account but that all may equally partake of spiritual Blessings Thus the difference of Nations will be no Priviledg or Prejudice to any in the Day of Judgment The most rude and contemptible shall have as fair and equal a Trial as the most polite and civiliz'd The ignorant Barbarians as the Learned Grecians that so much boasted of their vain Excellencies above them The Negroes in Africa as the People of Europe for they have the same Relation to God their Maker and as truly bear the impression of God stamped upon the Humane Nature in the Creation and therefore common to the whole species of Mankind An Image may be fashion'd in Ebony as well as in Ivory Briefly all Men are equally subject to his Laws and shall be equally accountable for their Actions The Rich and the Poor shall then meet together without distinction before God the Maker and Judg of them all 2. There shall be a distinction of Causes and every Man be judged according to his Works the tenour of good Works and the desert of bad The Apostle assures us That whatsoever a Man sows that shall he reap He that soweth to the Flesh shall of the Flesh reap Corruption but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap Life everlasting The Harvest shall be according to the Seed both in kind and measure 1. Those who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for Glory and Honour and Immortality shall obtain eternal Life Indeed eternal Life is the Gift of infinite Bounty nay of pure Mercy and Mercy excludes Merit 'T is said of the blessed Martyrs who contended for the Truth and Purity of the Gospel to the Death that their Robes were wash'd white in the Blood of the Lamb not in their own Blood Their Right to Heaven was from the application of his Merits to them But the Reward is dispens'd from God according to the Evangelical Law not only as a magnificent Prince but as a Righteous Judg. All those to whom the Gospel promises eternal Life shall infallibly obtain it and none that the Gospel excludes Those who were sensible of their Sins and cordially forsaking them did humbly and entirely depend upon the Grace of God through the blessed Reconciler and Saviour shall be justified and glorified Then the Judg will discern between unfeigned Faith and vain Presumption and will justify the Faith of the Saints by the genuine Fruits of it the Godliness Righteousness and Sobriety of their Lives and a victorious perseverance in their Duty notwithstanding all the pleasing Temptations or Tortures to withdraw them from it Thus the Apostle expresses his humble Confidence I have fought the good Fight I have finish'd my Course henceforth there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness which God the Righteous Judg will give me at that day and not only to me but to all that love his Appearance We read in the Description of the Last Judgment That the Book of Life was opened the Names of all that were written in Heaven shall then be declared that it may appear they are saved by Grace For it was his most free pleasure to select some from the common Mass of Perdition who were naturally as guilty and corrupted as others and to predestinate them to Eternal Glory and effectual persevering Grace to prepare them for it The Saints are created in Christ Jesus unto good Works which God hath before ordained that they should walk in them And the New Creation is as undeserved and entire an Effect of God's Love as the first was But 't is said That every Man was judged according to his Works For Eternal Election does not entitle a Person immediately to Heaven but according to the