Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	lord_n	time_n	write_v	3,171	5	5.3797	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12819	Meditations, and resolutions, moral, divine, politicall century I : written for the instruction and bettering of youth, but, especially, of the better and more noble / by Antony Stafford ... ; there is also annexed an oration of Iustus Lipsius, against calumnie, translated out of Latine, into English.	Stafford, Anthony.; Lipsius, Justus, 1547-1606.	1612 (1612)	STC 23127; ESTC S1001	32,969	235

Meditations and Resolutions Moral Divine Politicall Century 1. Written for the instruction and bettering of Youth but especially of the better and more Noble By Antony Stafford Gent. There is also annexed an Oration of Iustus Lipsius against Calumnie translated out of Latine into English AT LONDON Printed by H. L. and are to be sold by Thomas Saunders 1612. To the Right Honourable FRANCIS Countesse of Hertford Daughter to the Right Honourable Thomas Vicount Bindon Antony Stafford wishes the effects of her wishes VVHat I had a long time sought for in others excellent Lady and could neuer find of my selfe at last I found in you I meane Madame a true definitiō of Honor Which as I first found in you so at last I honoured you for it and will do to my last And should I not I were as worthlesse as you are worthy sith I neuer in any but in you discover'd the height of Blood of Beauty of Vertue of Spirit and which vvonder at World or thou thy selfe wilt be wondred at with all these the height of lowe Humility Of Humility Madame in you to bee admired not to be imitated or if to bee imitated not to be equalled I know your Ladishippe in whom Mildness and Modestie haue made a Mariage will rather mislike than admit these prayses Pardon me Madam you should not doe so For as Vertue cānot be ouerpriz'd no more can she euer be ouer-prais'd Were it not the world would thinke that Partialitie did prompt mee I would yet ad to yo r praises not that you might reade them but that after Ages by them might knowe howe faire was the fairer part of fairest you and knowing it admire it with admiration imitate it It would be long incōparable Ladie it wold be very long before wee shold win any one to belong to Vertue vvith the meer praysing her in abstract should vve not praise her in som person gracious in Gods eye and the Worlds I know Madame I shall bee prays'd for praising you disprays'd for offring to expresse the infinite honour and seruice I owe you vvith so poore a present so little a labour as this vnlicked Work The truth is Madam that finding my Booke to haue little spirit or life in it I made vse of your Name to make it liue For it could not liue long without your euer-liuing vertues to relieue it I am so farre from expecting thanks as that I humbly craue pardon for presuming so much to abuse your Name as to sette it before so weake a Worke. If I liue most woorthy Lady I heer promise you and the Age a farre greater and a farre better If in the meane time I die I die infinitely indebted Thus with my vncessant prayers for your Ladiship and your thrice honorable Lord I rest Your Honors humble loyall Servant and vnwoorthy kinsman Antony Stafford TO THE Vnderstander VNderstander for to euery Reader I write not beholde this Booke with a gentle eye and entertaine it with fauour It was penn'd by him who had rather say Est iudicium in nobis than est furor in nobis Winke therefore at the want of witte thou shalt finde since it is a worke of iudgement onely As for the Asses of the Age I care as little for their censures as their companies Though they can pick out good sense yet they will not contrarie to the equity of a Reader who in a place doubtful should striue to vnderstand before he cry out Non sense They little knovve that hee who writes in euery thing properly shall neuer vvrite anie thing pleasingly If I were disposed to carpe I doe not thinke there are ten lines in any booke extant out of which I would not pick somthing to cauill at My greatest comfort is I neuer yet saw any carper that had any iudgement VVhich vvhosoeuer wants lacks the very salt of wit without which whatsoeuer is read lies ravve and vndigested But that which makes mee most merrie is that some of our printed puppies thinke themselues worthy to bee compared vvith the most authenticke auncient Authours vvhose vvittes they come as short of as of their vvorkes I haue heard some of them censure Authours vvhome they doe as little vnderstand as they doe themselues If they had but some small deale of matter vvith their manie vvordes they might I confesse rubbe-out reasonably vvell amongst coxcombes that are capable of no higher matters than themselues But as they are I vvould intreate them to content themselues vvith their Iigge-learning in which when they haue knowne all they can they then knowe iust nothing and as Seneca saith operosè nihil agunt I write not this out of Spleene for the wrong they haue done mee for my spirite is pearcht so farre aboue them that they cannot fling so high as to hit it Doe not I knowe that these Times let-loose literatores to set vpon literatiores Yes yes I knowe it and haue put-on a resolution to beare both vvith the iniquity and the stoliditie of the Times Farewell Vnderstander and vse mee wel The Authors request to the vnderstanding Reader THe materiall Faults escaped are here vnderwritten Do me the fauour to correct them with thy penne before thou read on Page 64. Line 14. for lowest read least p. 124. l. 17. for some read Sense p 163. l. 5. for not read nay MEDITATIONS MORAL DIVINE POLITICALL * ⁎ * WHen I consider in what estate Man was created I cannot but thinke of his folly who through a false hope of knowing good and euill lost the enough of good hee had and found too much euil This makes mee call to minde the vaine ambition of those who seeke to prie into that vnreuealed and therefore inscrutable knowledge of the Deity vppon whom GOD looking down saies in a pitifull derision as hee did to Adam Beholde the men are become as one of vs. This meditation stretcheth-out it selfe and biddes mee also consider the arrogancie of those who scorne to erre or to bee reprehended for their errours not-withstanding that they see Man to haue erred in the state of Innocencie I will therefore seeke to knowe my selfe the next and surest way to knowe GOD and by an humble Confession begge Remission of my faults I say I will confesse them vnto God not boast of them to Man 2 When I thinke who made me and wherfore hee made me I hold my selfe a glorious creature when I consider of what hee made mee I then thinke my selfe corruptible and miserable I will therefore temper the former with the later so shal I neuer grow too proud nor too abiect 3 When I behold Beauty it puts me in minde of my Glorification but withall I find that it hindereth much my Mortification I will therefore as neere as I can neuer fix mine eye vpon Beauty least by being neuer mortified I neuer be glorified 4 When a man is borne hee beginnes to die but when the iust man dies hee then but beginnes to liue I will therefore