Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	aaron_n	office_n	strange_a	14	3	9.8707	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A11454	Ten sermons preached I. Ad clerum. 3. II. Ad magistratum. 3. III. Ad populum. 4. By Robert Saunderson Bachellor in Diuinitie, sometimes fellow of Lincolne Colledge in Oxford.; Sermons. Selected sermons	Sanderson, Robert, 1587-1663.	1627 (1627)	STC 21705; ESTC S116623	297,067	482

by their Power nor their wisest Counsellors by their Policie nor Balaam himselfe by his Sorcery could bring vpon them This damned counsell was followed but too soone and prospered but too well §. with the successe thereof both in their Sinne The daughters of Moab come into the Tents of Israel and by their blandishments put out the eyes and steale away the hearts of Gods people whom besotted once with lust it was then no hard matter to leade whither they listed and by wanton insinuations to draw them to sit with them in the Temples and to accompanie them at the a Num. 25.2 feasts and to eate with them of the sacrifices yea and to bow the knees with them to the honour of their Idols Insomuch as Israel b Psal. 106.28 ioyned themselues to Baal-peor and ate the sacrifices of that dead and abominable Idol at the least for all Idols are such if not as most haue thought a c quem Graecia Priapum dixit Hist. Scolast in Num. c. 34. alij secuti Hieronymum in c 9. Osee 1. cont Io. 12. See Vatabl. in Num. 25.3 Seldem Synt. 1. de DIs Syr. c. 5. Lael Biscio● 3. hor. subces 20. beastly and obscene Idoll withall That was their sinne And now may Balak saue his money §. 8. and Punishment and Balaam spare his paines there is no need of hiring or being hired to curse Whoremongers and Idolaters These are two plaguy sinnes and such as wil bring a curse vpon a people without the helpe of a Coniurer When that God who is a a Exod. 20 5. iealous God and iealous of nothing more than his b Esa. 42.8 honour shall see that people whom he had made c Deut. 7.6 choise of from among all the nations of the earth to be his owne peculiar people and betrothed to himselfe by an euerlasting d Ezek. 16.8 Couenant to e Ibid. 38. breake the Couenant of Wedlocke with him and to strumpet it with the daughters and Idols of Moab what can bee expected other than that his iealousie should be turned into furie and that his fierce wrath should f Psal. 106.29 breake-in vpon them as a deluge and ouerwhelme them with a sudden destruction His patience so farre tempted and with such an vnworthie prouocation can suffer no longer But at his command g Num. 25.4.5 Moses striketh the Rulers and at Moses his command the vnder-Rulers must strike each in their seuerall regiments those that had offended and hee himselfe also striketh with his owne hand by a plague destroying of them in one day h 1 Cor. 10.8 the other thousand Num. 25.9 it seemeth were those that were hanged vp by Moses and slaine by the Rulers three and twentie thousand §. 9. Zimri's prouocation If that plague had lasted manie dayes Israel had not lasted manie dayes But the people by their plague made sensible of their sinne humbled themselues as it should seeme the verie first day of the plague in a solemne and a Num. 25.6 generall assembly weeping and mourning both for Sinne and Plague before the doore of the Tabernacle of the Congregation And they were now in the heat of their holy sorrow and deuotions when loe b Ibid. 14. Zimri a Prince of a chiefe house in one of their Tribes in the heate of his pride and lust commeth openly in the c Ibid. 6. face of Moses and all the Congregation and bringeth his Minion with him Cosbi the daughter of one of the d Compare Num. 25.15 with Num. 31.8 fiue Kings of Midian into his Tent there to commit filthinesse with her §. 10. and his execution Doubtlesse Moses the Captaine and Ele●zar the Priest and all Israel that saw this shamelesse pranke of that leud couple saw it with griefe enough But Phinehes enraged with a pious indignation to see such foule affront giuen to God the Magistrate and the Congregation at such a heauie time and in such open manner for that verie sinne for which they then lay vnder Gods hand thought there was something more to be done than bare weeping and therefore his bloud warmed with an holy zeale hee a Num. 25.7.8 starteth vp forthwith maketh to the Tent where these two great personages were and as they were in the act of their filthinesse speedeth them both at once and nay●eth them to the place with his Iaueline And the next thing wee heare is God well pleased with the b ibid. 11. zeale of his seruant and the execution of those malefactors is appeased towards his people and withdraweth his hand and his plague from them And of that deliuerance my Text speaketh Then stood vp Phinehes and executed iudgement and so the Plague was stayed The Person the instrument to worke this deliuerance for Israel was Phinehes §. 11. The Person of Phinebes considered Hee was the sonne of Eleazar who was then High Priest in immediate succession to his father Aaron not long before deceased and did himselfe afterward succeed in the High Priesthood vnto Eleazar his Father A wise a godly and a zealous man employed afterwards by the State of Israel in the greatest affaires both of a Num. 31.6 Warre and b Ios. 22.13.31.32 Ambassy But it was this Heroicall act of his in doing execution vpon those two great audacious offenders which got him the first and the greatest and the lastingst renowne Of which Act more anon when we come to it In his Person wee will consider onely what his calling and condition was and what congruitie there might be betweene what he was and what he did He was of the Tribe of Leui and that whole Tribe was set apart for the c Num. 1. ●9 c. seruice of the Tabernacle And he was of the sonnes of Aaron and so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the Familie and Linage of the High Priests and the Priests office was to offer sacrifices and to burne incense and to pray and make attonement for the People Neither Leuite nor Priest had to intermeddle with matters of Iudicature vnlesse in some few causes and those for the most part concerning matters either meerely or mixtly Ecclesiasticall but neither to giue sentence nor to doe execution in matters and causes meerely Ciuill as by any right or vertue of his Leuiticall or Priestly office §. 12. The Spiritual Power doth not include the Temporall The more vnreasonable is the High Priest of Rome to challenge to himselfe any temporall or ciuill iurisdiction as virtually annexed to his spirituall Power or necessarily deriued thence Templū and Praetorium the Chaire and the Throne the Altar and the Bench the Sheepehooke and the Scepter the Keyes and the Sword though they may sometimes concurre vpon the same person yet the Powers remaine perpetually distinct and independant and such as doe not of necessity inferre the one the other Our Sauiours a Luk. 22.26 Vos autem non

Hypocrite as Ahab here notwithstanding all this his solemne humiliation was Here is Ahab an Hypocrite and yet humbled before the Lord. §. 16. The opening of the second Obseruation But yet now this Humiliation such as it was what should worke it in him That wee finde declared at verse 27. And it came to passe that when Ahab heard these words c. There came to him a message from God by the hand of Eliah and that was it that humbled him Alas what was Eliah to Ahab a silly plaine Prophet to a mighty King that hee durst thus presume to rush boldly and vnsent-for into the presence of such a potent Monarch who had no lesse power and withall more colour to take away his life than Naboths and that when hee was in the top of his iollity solacing himselfe in the new-taken possession of his new-gotten Vineyard and there to his face charge him plainly with shake him vp roundly for and denounce Gods iudgements powerfully against his bloody abominable oppressions Wee would thinke a Monarch nusled vp in Idolatry and accustomed to blood and hardened in Sinne and Obstinacy should not haue brooked that insolency from such a one as Eliah was but haue made his life a ransome for his sawcinesse And yet behold the words of this vnderling in comparison how they fall like thunder vpon the great guilty offender and strike palsie into his knees and trembling into his ioynts and tumble him from the height of his iollity and roll him in sack-cloth and ashes and cast him into a strong fit of legall Humiliation Seest thou how Ahab is humbled before mee And here now commeth in our second obseruation euen the Power of Gods word ouer the Consciences of obstinate sinners §. 17. Obseru 2. the Power of Gods word powerfull to a 2 Cor. 10.4 5. cast downe strong holds and euery high thought that exalteth it selfe against God That which in Heb. 4. if I mistake not the true vnderstanding of that place is spoken of the Essentiall Word of God the second Person in the euer-blessed Trinitie is also in some analogie true of the reuealed Word of God the Scriptures of the Prophets and Apostles that it b Heb. 4.12 is quicke and powerfull and c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 more cutting than any two-edged sword piercing euen to the diuiding asunder of the soule and spirit and of the ioynts and marrow d Ier. 23.29 Is not my word like as a fire saith the Lord and like a hammer that breaketh the rocke in pieces Ierem. 23. Like a soft fire to dissolue and melt the hearts of relenting sinners and true conuerts but like a strong hammer to batter and breake in pieces the rockie and flintie consciences of obstinate and hardened offenders Examples hereof if you require behold in the stories of the kings e 1. Sam. 15.24 Saul whining when Samuel reproueth him in the bookes of the Prophets the f Ion. 3.5 Nineuites drooping when Ionas threatneth them in the Acts of the Apostles g Act. 24.25 Felix trembling when Paul discourseth before him in the Martyrologies of the Church Tyrants and bloudy Persecuters maskered at the bold confessions of the poore suffering Christians in this Chapter proud Ahab mourning when Eliah telleth him his sinne and foretelleth him his punishment §. 18. with the Causes thereof ● in the Instrument Effects which might iustly seeme strange to vs if the Causes were not apparant One Cause and the Principall is in the Instrument the Word not from any such strength in it selfe for so it is but a dead letter but because of Gods ordinance in it For in his hands are the hearts and the tongues and the eares both of Kings and Prophets and hee can easily when he seeth it good put the spirit of zeale and of power into the heart of the poorest Prophet and as easily the spirit of feare and of terrour into the heart of the greatest King He chooseth weake Instruments as here Eliah and yet furnisheth them with power to effect great matters that so the glory might not rest vpon the instrument but redound wholly to him as to the chiefe agent that imployeth it a 2 Cor. 4.7 We haue this treasure in earthen vessels saith S. Paul that the excellency of the power may bee of God and not of vs 2 Cor. 4. Wee say Words are but winde and indeed the words of the best Minister are no better as they are breathed out and vttered by sinfull mortall man whose breath is in his nostrils but yet this winde as it is breathed in and inspired by the powerfull eternall spirit of God is strong enough by his effectuall working with it not only to shake the top branches but to rend vp the very bottome-roote of the tallest Cedar in Libanon b Psal. 29.4.5 Vox Domini confringens Cedros Psal. 29. The voyce of the Lord is mightie in operation the voyce of the Lord is a glorious voyce The voyce of the Lord breaketh the Cedars yea the Lord breaketh the Cedars of Lebanon Another Cause is in the Obiect §. 19. 2. in the Obiect and that is the force of Naturall Conscience which the most presumptuous sinner can neuer so stifle though hee endeauour all hee can to doe it but that it will bee sometimes snubbing and stinging and lashing and vexing him with ougly representations of his past sinnes and terrible suggestions of future vengeance And then of all other times is the force of it most liuely when the voyce of God in his word awakeneth it after a long dead sleepe Then it riseth and Sampson-like rouseth vp it selfe and bestirreth it selfe lustily as a Gyant refreshed with wine and it putteth the disquieted patient to such vnsufferable paine that he runneth vp and downe like a distracted man and doth he knoweth not what and seeketh for ease he knoweth not where Then hee would giue all Diues his wealth for a Luk. 16.24 a drop of water to coole the heate hee feeleth and with b Gen. 25.30.31 Esau part with his birth-right for any thing though it were neuer so little or meane that would giue him but the least present refreshing and preserue him from fainting Then sack-cloth and ashes and fasting and weeping and mourning and renting the garments and tearing the haire and knocking the brest and out-cryes to heauen and all those other things which hee could not abide to heare of in the time of his former security whilest his conscience lay fast asleepe and at rest are now in all haste and greedily entertained and all too little if by any meanes they can possibly giue any ease or asswagement to the present torment he feeleth in his soule §. 20. 3. in the fit application of the one to the other A third Cause is oftentimes in the Application of the Instrument to the Obiect For although Gods word in the generall bee Powerfull and the Conscience