Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	holy_a	read_v	word_n	3,200	5	4.0993	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89689	The life and death of Mr. Ignatius Jurdain, one of the aldermen of the city of Exeter; who departed this life July 15th. 1640. Drawn up and published by Ferd. Nicolls, minister of the Gospel at Mary Arches, Exon.	Nicolls, Ferdinando, 1598?-1662.	1655 (1655)	Wing N1139; Thomason E730_9; ESTC R206858	29,189	39

know not whether the City did more honour him in chusing him to be Major or he the City in his zealous and faithful discharge of his office and publick trust His Publike life in his Magistracy But I intend to limit my relation to his Acts and doings as a Magistrate yet therein he was most exemplary to all that succeeded in that place of dignity or the like in any other City or Corporation but shall declare that which hath been partly observed and testified by men of known Fidelity * Testes fide digni and Integrity and partly noted by mine own experience and observation which that I may the more distinctly record I shall refer all to three heads his Piety Justice and Charity shewing how he honoured God therein and then how God honoured preserved him when he was about his work 1. To begin with his Piety wherein he was most eminent there have been few men observed to walk so with God as Enoch 1. His Piety Gen. 9.5 and before him as it was enjoined to Abraham Gen 17. and to hold so constant and close communion with him as he did It was his constant practise (g) Gen. 5.22 Chap. 17.1 for many years together even to his old age to arise betwixt two and three of the clock in the morning and that in the coldest season of the year and then to meditate and pray in secret until sixe a clock the appointed time of the morning Sacrifice in the family when he was called from secret devotions to the exercise of religious family-duties rare and unparalled example of all that I have known or heard of And that at any time he had overslept himself as he accounted and did not rise untill four a clock he would much bemone himself for that he had lost so much time of sweet and comfortable communion with God And had he not experimentally found much sweetness in this his spiritual converse with God as David did (h) Psal 104.34 Psal 104. he could not have continued so constant therein And he thus awaking with God and renewing his acquaintance with him from day to day no marvaile that he did walke whith him all the day long His Sincerity His care was to walk very exactly and sincerely according to the Apostles direction (i) Eph. 5.16 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 See Dr. Prostons Sermon on that Text. Eph. 5. but though he studied to approve himself to God and to walk as in the sight of God (k) 2 Cor. 2.17 2. Cor 2. yet he could not escape the malicious censures of men if he did all in Hypocrisie he knew that he had the imputations of dissembling and hypocrisy cast upon him by men void of charity and sincerity but the testimony of his own conscience did more comfort him then the uncharitable censures of men deject him and he had wont upon that occasion to take up the words of Job Chap 27. (l) Job 27.5 Till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me and many have often heard him to professe that he would not willingly sin to get a world though the evil which he (m) Rom. 7.25 His sincerity questioned would not do that he did as it is incident to the best of men Rom. 7.1 and he did bewail it with griefe of heart The sincerity hoth of his intentions and actions have been questioned and some have not been ashamed to say that under colour of doing justice and providing for the poor he robbed the poore and helped to keep his own house with that mony which was due to the poore But for that falshood which was charged upon him there 's none could ever better clear him from it then himself not only his conscience witnessing for him before God but his books wherein he kept an exact record of the mony which he received for swearing and drunkennesse according to the penaltie of the law and the Officers that distributed the mony testifying his uprightnesse before men so that he might truly say with Jacob Gen. 30. (n) Gen. 30.33 My righteousnesse shall answer for me and so it did herein both before God and men His Conscience in the exercises of Religion He was a man that made Conscience of all exercises of Religion both in private and publick his frequent discourses of heaven and the way thereunto and assurance of interest therein did declare that his heart and conversation were much in heaven Matt. 12. (o) Mat. 12.34 35. And he had wont to take occasion to confer of spiritual and heavenly things with all sorts of men that he did converse with One should seldom hear him speak but of heaven and heavenly things his heart was so full of heaven that he could not but utter and breath it forth in his discourses with men and especially with those whose hearts and faces were towards heaven when he was at Table receiving his daily food he did usually minister occasion of holy discourse divert vain and unprofitable talke to edifying speeches that might minister grace to the hearers Eph. 4. (p) Eph. 4.29 and to take occasion from earthly things to speake of heavenly as from the sweetnesse of the Creatures to speak of the infinite sweetnesse which is in God from feasting on earth to the sitting down with Abraham (q) Mat. 8.11 Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of heaven and feasting with God and his blessed Saints there and when the Table-cloth was taken away he would often say In heaven there 's no taking away here we are soon satisfied and cloyed but there will be such a feash that we shall be continually delighting our souls in it without any cloying And his manner was to close his meales with the singing of some short Psalm His Reading good Books He delighted much in reading good and holy books but especially the Book of books the holy Scriptures wherein he most delighted he had taken therein the property of a godly person (r) Psal 1.2 Psal 119.97 Ps 1. and Psa 119. The word of God was his meditation all the day long yea day and night he did not onely read the scripture more then twenty times over but he read it with special observation as appeareth by the * Starres in the margent S. Senens Bibl. l. 3. or such like signal notes asterisks and markes in his Bible and application to himself The like course he took in reading over that useful book of Mr. Rogers his seven Treatises and other practical bookes wherein he was very conversant and his collections out of severall Authors do abundantly testifie And he took so much delight in reading that voluminous and excellent book of the Acts and monuments of the Church set forth by Mr. Foxe commonly called the book of Maertyrs that upon occcasion he told a Friend that he had read it seven times over His Zeal His zeal for God and his glory and against