Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	life_n	name_n	write_v	18,504	5	6.4426	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57934	A sermon preach'd at St. Mary-Le-Bow to the Societies for Reformation of Manners, June 28, 1697 / by John Russell.	Russell, John, fl. 1660.	1697 (1697)	Wing R2346; ESTC R26224	19,860	54

A SERMON Preach'd at St. Mary-Le-Bow TO THE SOCIETIES FOR Reformation of Manners June 28. 1697. By JOHN RVSSELL Rector of St. John of Wappin LONDON Printed by J. Darby for R. Mount at the Postern on Tower-hill 1697. TO THE READER HE that will look over the Histories of the most famous Kingdoms and Governments of the World will find that they have been rais'd and carried on to their most exalted Heights altho estrang'd to the Knowledg and Worship of the True God by the Rules and Practices of Moral Vertues And that when the Babylonian the Persian the Grecian and Roman Monarchies fell to decay it was Luxury and Vice that open'd the Door to let in that Ruin which transplanted the Scepter from one Kingdom to another People For as long as they kept to their Antient Vertue which laid the Foundation and also built up the Edifice of their Strength and Grandeur they maintain'd their Power they continu'd their Empire but as soon as they grew loose and vicious when Bribery and Corruption Softness and Flattery seiz'd upon the Court and Debauchery and Fraud and contempt of Religion altho a false one had infected the People they quickly grew ripe for those Judgments which swept them into that Pit of Destruction which their Immoralities had been digging as the Grave of their dying Glory and Greatness And tho I do not affirm that Dominion is founded on Grace yet I assert That all flourishing Kingdoms are established by Vertue And that what People soever depart from that they cut down the Props and remove the Pillars that support their own Strength and Felicity And this is not only historically true in respect of the Ages that are past and gone but actually so in respect of our selves and the very Age and Day in which we live and it 's not only so in respect of the Nature of Vertue which gives Men a noble and elevated Mind carries them thrô the greatest Difficulties and by Justice and Honesty must necessarily cause the Sun of Prosperity to shine upon them And on the other side in respect of the Nature of Vice which enervates and softens those that are its Vassals takes away their Courage brings on Fear and creates those Jars and Jealousies among a People which makes 'em divide and become an easy Prey to the next bold Invader I say Ruin is not only the Consequent of Vice and Debauchery in respect of the thing it self but much more in respect of God whose Justice and Holiness cannot allow that a wicked People should long be happy or flourish in the enjoyment of those Favours which they have forfeited by their Impieties And to render this applicable to our selves it 's too apparent that we are a People fallen into a most wretched and degenerate State extreamly debauch'd both in Principles and Practices And notwithstanding God has gone on in a long course of Mercy towards this Nation in delivering us 1st From Idolatrous Worship I mean that of the Church of Rome when others are still blinded with it 2dly In saving us from Despotick Tyranny and Arbitrary Power which has prey'd upon some of our neighbouring Countries 3dly In rescuing us from our late Fears and Dangers from the sad apprehensions of the breaking in of both I mean Idolatrous Worship and Arbitrary Power when we had little hope of preserving our selves from either Tho we have enjoyed these Favours and have pretended too to be sensible of them yet we have behav'd our selves under these Deliverances and great Enjoyments with great Ingratitude and loud Provocations so that we seem by our Deeds to say with the Jews of old Jer. 7.10 We are delivered to do all these Abominations For where is there any publick sense of our preservation to effect a change of life from Profaneness to Holiness to testify we are grateful to our Deliverer And that we look upon it as the Hand of Heaven that has sav'd us from our Fears Should one enquire after the Returns of Repentance and Reformation in respect of the main Body of our People I am too sensible they cannot be found or perceived amongst us But on the contrary that we are as lewd as vile as vicious as ever and that in some Sins we outstrip the Iniquities of our Fathers in that the Hireling is opprest in his Wages and we sell the Poor for Silver and the Needy for a pair of Shoes we make merchandize one of another and have no farther any regard to the Publick Interest than as it's subservient unto our own Private We have lost that publick Zeal and Affection which every Man ought by Nature to express to the Land of his Nativity When I have read some Sayings of the old Prophets describing the great Degeneracy of the Jewish State in that Age of the World I have been affected with melancholy thoughts that our Condition is but too near a Copy of that foul Pattern But however if by Melancholy and the Cries of the Poor which are very loud and clamorous in all our Streets I am sure at lest in those that I daily walk I may be mistaken yet the scandalous Debaucheries which are too notorious and all are sensible of all I mean that are the Friends of Piety and Vertue give a just cause to fear that notwithstanding we whisper to our selves Peace and Safety some heavy Judgments from the Justice of Heaven are yet approaching And since nothing but Reformation can fit us for Mercy since 't is not our being Protestants that can screen us from the Fire of Destruction if we are reform'd only in our Doctrines but not in our Lives Therefore it has and will be the Eternal Honour and Reward of some among us whose Names are written in the fairest Characters in the Book of Life That God has made them sensible of our Degeneracy and has stirr'd them up to undertake this great and noble Work of checking the predominant Vices in and about this great City Such as profanation of the Lord's Day the execrable Sin of Cursing and Swearing Houses of Lewdness and notorious Uncleanness Drunkenness Whoredom and the like by endeavouring the execution of those good Laws which have piously been enacted for this End and Purpose And this Vndertaking which at first was but like Elijah's Cloud no bigger than a Man's hand has by the Divine Blessing so enlarg'd it self that there are now above twenty Societies in and about this Great City who have dedicated themselves to this Good Work And that it might be made the more manifest to the terror of evil doers it has been resolv'd that Four Sermons a Year viz One on the Monday next ensuing after the four usual Quarter-Days should be preach'd by some Minister of the Church of England to shew and justify the Excellency of this Design and to encourage to a resolution in its execution And being requested to perform this Office and also to make publick what I deliver'd I have now perform'd both tho