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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	house_n	king_n	lord_n	2,914	5	3.9837	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A73391	Five sermons, preached upon several texts by that learned and worthy divine, Thomas Wetherel, B.D. sometimes fellow of Gonevile and Caius Colledge in Cambridge, and parson of Newton in Suffolke.	Wetherel, Thomas, 1586-1630.	1635 (1635)	STC 25292.3; ESTC S125573	76,283	292

penalty of it But stop thy mouth whosoever intendest to dispute with God his judgements are often secret but alwayes just if he have done it that is warrant enough for thee to free it from injustice And yet because flesh and blood loves to be prying into the Arke to finde out the wayes of God and the reason of his doings he hath vouchsafed in Scripture to open his Iustice and to cleare himselfe from fond mens imputations For the understanding then of this course of Gods judgements wee are to know these two things 1. That God punisheth no man who is simply innocent and deserveth not punishment 2. That it is in his power to punish the nocent in what kind he himselfe pleaseth or to spare him 1. He punisheth none who is simply innocent and therefore justly findeth fault with that proverb taken up in Israel Ezek 18. 2. The fathers have eaten sowre grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge whereby the Israelites complayned that whereas they were all holy and no spot in them yet did they beare the transgressions of their fathers that whole Chapter hath God affirming that he which sinneth not shall surely live It is true that God visiteth the iniquities of the fathers upon the children but they are filii qui oderunt such as partake in their fathers sinnes for otherwise the sonne shal not beare the iniquity of the father God will absolve him from the punishment of sinne if hee be no way party in it When therefore the Par. ani in Bell. de amiss quae l. 4. c. 8 Iewes did beare the burthen of their fathers faults it was an evident signe that they were themselves a rebellious seed such as stood up in their fathers stead as heires of their land so of their wickednesse Thus it fared with Iehu's house of whom we may read in the book of Kings that they continued not his blood alone but his Idolatry also Every one of them did evill in the sight of the Lord and walked in the sinnes of Ieroboam who made Israel to sinne as their father Iehu had done so did they This punishment was therefore just in respect of them they well deserved it 2. God may punish the nocent as hee pleaseth or spare him for he is the Lord of all and hath the reines of all things in his hands who shal controule him in exercifing either his Iustice or his Mercy according to his owne mind So that when the father committeth a fault and God hath threatned vengeance against him for it he may if he will let the father passe and take the sonne who hath share in guilt as well as the father had and no man say to him why dost thou so There are many reasons why God passeth over the father and there is one reason why he punisheth the children The reasons why he passeth over the father as I have observed them are foure 1. Sometime the feare of punishment hath humbled him and moved him to repentance this effect the speech of Elias had with Ahab which was the cause that God brought not evill upon his house in his daies 1. King 21. 29. 2. Sometime the father hath some good things in regard whereof God will forbeare to lay heavy temporall judgments upon him thus did Ieroboams sonne come to the grave in peace because there was found some good in him toward the God of Israel 1 King 14 13. 3. Sometime God will gratifie the faithfulnesse of his deceased servant by sparing his sonne after him so dealt hee with Solomon Thou shalt bee Prince all the dayes of thy life for my servant Davids sake 1 King 11. 33. 4. Sometime God hath promised temporall prosperity to a man in regard of some good service done by him so God suffered Iehu to hold the kingdome for his time to make good his promise wherewith formerly hee had bound himselfe unto him for these causes God oft-times freeth the father that sinneth from vengeance The reason why he punisheth Aq. q. disp de po●u pec Ori. q. 5. a. 4. the children is for that they are aliquid patris a part as it were of their fathers and therefore it is not inconvenient that they be punished for their father no more then it is for the back to be scourged for the pilfering of the hand especially themselves being guilty likewise But why is it then sayd God punisheth the sinne of the fathers upon the children and not the sinnes of the children in themselves In my opinion if ever Bellarmine spake rightly he doth it in this point Children saith he are punished for their fathers not because their owne sinnes doe not deserve punishment but because Nisi praecessissent peccata parentum Lib de aemiss qua 4. 6. 8 Deus eos fortasse non puniret in hoc mundo God maketh the fathers sinne an occasion of inflicting that judgement upon the child which else peradventure hee would not have layd upon him These things being considered it will appeare hat God is just in punishing the blood of Iezreel upon the house of Iehu To conclude all the consideration of this point may teach us two things 1. It justifieth Lit. Aug. our ●iturgy in that prayer Remember not Lord the offences of our fore-fathers which though some mislike I know not upon what grounds yet seemeth to mee a fit prayer for every Christian for if God hath threatned that hee will avenge the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and hath frequently done so why may wee not pray against such an evill 2. It teacheth parents to have a care not to displease God if not for their owne sakes yet for their deare childrens cause whom they may by their disobedience bring into the same sea of misery into which they fall themselves Thou thinkest it thy duty to provide for their maintenance and lay up for them but take heed that thou fillest not the treasures of Gods wrath which though they misse thy head will fall upon the hairy scalpe of thy posterity and shall not then thy children have cause to curse their father that begat them their mother that bare them the time wherein they were conceived when they see themselves inherit the wickednesse of their Parents Labour to be of the number of those that love God and keepe his Commandements that he may shew mercy unto thousands of thy children that thy seed may stand fast in the Covenant that blessing may be upon thee and thine for ever And so I end God for his mercy sake grant that those few words which we have heard at this time with our outward eares may take deepe rooting in our hearts and bring forth in us the fruit of good living to the glory of his Name and the amendment of our sinfull lives through Iesus Christ our Lord and blessed Saviour To whom with the Father and the holy Ghost three persons and one God bee ascribed all honour and glory prayse power and dominion