Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	abimelech_n	abraham_n	servant_n	21	3	5.9187	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A14032	An exposition vpon the canonicall Epistle of Saint Iames with the tables, analysis, and resolution, both of the whole epistle, and euerie chapter thereof: with the particular resolution of euerie singular place. Diuided into 28. lectures or sermons, made by Richard Turnbull, sometimes fellow of Corpus Christie Colledge in Oxford· now preacher and minister of the word of God and the holy Sacraments, in the citie of London.	Turnbull, Richard, d. 1593.	1591 (1591)	STC 24339; ESTC S118931	472,056	683

their praiers The praiers of the righteous pearce euen Ecclus. 35. vnto heauen they reach vnto the cloudes they come vnto God himselfe they ascend to him and his graces discend vnto the righteous Though then there be infinite distance betwixt heauen and earth God and man yet heareth he from his holie hill the praiers of his righteous seruantes poured out vnto him Which Ieroboam that wicked king also knew who hauing his hand which hee thrust out to haue taken the 3. Kings 13 man of God dried vp he desired the Prophet and man of Exodus God to pray that it might be restored Pharao king of Egypt knew that the praier of Moses and Aaron the righteous seruants of God preuailed much wherfore when the plagues of God fel vpon him and his people then desired he Moses and Aaron to praie for him This the captaines Jerem. 4● and remnant of the people of Israel after their ouerthrow destruction by Nabuchodonozer right wel cōfidered how effectuall the praiers of the righteous we are with God for which cause they besought Ieremie the Lords seruant to pray for them This thing to teach Abimelech king of Gerar almightie God tolde him that Abraham whose Gen. 20. wife the king had taken away was a Prophet he should praie for him who praying the people and Prince were healed of their disease wherewith God for Sarah had plagued them To which purpose to shew of what weight the praiers of Gods Saints are with him he commaunded the three frends of Iob to goe and be reconciled vnto Iob Iob. 42. whom they had not comforted in affliction as they should haue done and telleth them that hee should pray for them at whose praier he would be intreated All which teacheth that onely their prayers are of force with God for good who are iust and righteous The praier saith Saint Iames of the righteous preuaileth much As in him that praieth it is required that he be righteous so is it required in the praier of the righteous that it be also feruent proceeding from a pure affection flowing from vnfeined faith kindled by a burning zeale influmed with feruent loue continued in great earnestnesse and constancie without which our praiers obteine little or nothing at the hands of God but being earnest constant and feruent they preuaile greatly When Moses continued Exod. 17. feruent in praier in the battell against the Amalechites the people of Israel prospered Our Sauiour Christ teacheth by two places in Saint Luke his gospell that our Prayers must be feruent and constant by the example of Luke 11. 18. the man that obteined the borowing of bread of his friēd by his feruencie and earnestnes in asking and would not take the deniall or repulse and so through importunitie obteined of the widow who solliciting the vniust iudge to auenge her cause vpō her enemie obteined her request at length with much a do through her constancie continuance in praier Wherby our Sauiour also teacheth vs that we must continue in praier and cease not if we wil obteine the petitions of our heartes with God The woman of Cannan often reiected yet still feruently persisting obteined Mat. 15 and had her request for her daughter from our sauiour Iesus Christ And the Apostle in this place teacheth that the praiers of the righteous auaile much if they be feruent Wherfore as he that praieth must be righteous so must his praier be feruent earnest and constant if hee wil obteine any thing at the hands of God Wherence we may learne that the wicked are out of hope of obteining for their comfort the things they praie for because it is said that the praiers of the righteous auaile much not the praiers of the wicked whose praiers being heard of God tend to their greater and iuster condemnation destruction and punishment And the praiers also of the righteous are then effectuall when they are feruent Let all them which hope to receaue their petitions at rhe hands of God in all things applie themselues to righteousnesse let them not be faint hearted of a wauering minde colde in asking easilie repelled soone discouraged in praying but let them be feruent and constant therein if they look to be regarded for our Apostle affirmeth that the praier of the righteous auaileth much if it be feruent And that the praier of the righteous auaileth much being feruent the Apostle proueth by the example of Elias at his praier the heauen was as it were shutte vp for a time and againe thereat opened Whereof thus saith S. Iames Elias was a man subiect to like passions as we are and praied earnestly that it might not raine and it rained not on the earth for 3. yeares and 6. moneths he praied againe and the heauen gaue raine and the earth brought foorth her fruite This storie touching Elias is recorded in the book of 3. Kings 17. 18. Kings where it is mentioned that in the daies of Achab Iezabel there was great and extreame famine drought vpon the land so that men perished for want of food cattle died for lacke of water in the Countrey of Samaria In which distresse Achab and his seruant Obadia deuided the land to seeke for water for the residue of their cattle and horses least they also for want of water should pearish At what time Obadiah met with Elias Elias talked with Ahab whom he councelled to make hast and to get home least the raine should stay him After which raine ensued immediatly in the land Which storie James here citing faith that Elias praied and it rained not for 3. yeares 6. moneths and he praied againe and it rained In the story there is no mention of his praier neither for drought neither for raine concerning the drought this only is said that Elias tolde Ahab the king that there should neither raine nor dewe fall but according to his word for certaine yeares yet the Apostle saith he praied and it rained not for 3. yeares and 6. moneths Cōcerning the raine he is said to haue tolde this to the king whom he biddeth to haste least the raine did stay him he is saide to haue couched vpon the ground to haue put his head and face betwixt his knees and to haue commaūded his seruante to looke to the sea ward but mention of his prayer is none But hereby is it manifeste that in both cases he praied when he saw the horrible idolatrie of the princes and people and the bloudie persecution where vnto the Church and Saintes were subiecte for zeale to Gods glorie for care ouer the church he praied for famine and drought frō the Lord that thereby they being punished might remember them selues repente of the wickednes they had committed and retourne vnfainedly vnto God Whose prayer God heard and brought famine drought vpon the lande for three yeares and sixe monthes And afterwardes either seeing their repentance or hoping for

large discourse sheweth that by patience we are commended and presented to God that anger is repressed the tongue refrayned the minde gouerned and man thereby on euery side perfect True then is the Apostles saying auouching that patience maketh vs perfect and entire lacking nothing But now that the Apostle here saith that by pacience we are made perfect we may note that perfection is double One perfection there is of the substance of thinges as he that beleeueth constantly vpon Christ without wauering is perfect in faith for hee hath the perfection of the substance of faith Who so holdeth the doctrine of Christ as the infallible word of trueth and therunto cleaueth immoueably as to the anchor of the soule both sure and stedfast hee hath the word of God perfectly concerning the substance Who so constantly continueth in the Heb. 6. profession of his religion that neither with blast of vayne perswasion neither with storme of cruel persecution he be remoued is perfect Thus men in this world may be perfect in vertues when they haue the true substance of the vertues for which they are commended There is another perfection which is of degrees which is such as cannot be encreased in any degree as to haue such faith as that we need not to pray Lord increase Luke 17. our faith to haue such knowledge as wee neede not with Dauid desire further to be enstructed in the wayes of the Psal 25. 119. 86. Lord to haue such patience as that cannot be augmented such perfection as in nothing canbe encreased thus no man is perfect in this infirmitie and weaknes of nature by patience we grow to perfection of the substance of sundrie vertues but not to perfection in degrees but to such a measure as of men in this life may be attayned whereunto the name of perfection is geuen Thus both men in holy Scripture and things are sometimes called perfect as Iob Zacharie and Elizabeth and others yet not absolutely but either in comparison of the wicked and vngodly then whom the Saints are more holy and in comparison perfect either because the Saintes excell in the greater part of their life in excellent vertues as S. Augustine auoucheth and another father to like purpose Men 2. De meritis remis c. 2. are called perfect not that there is no imperfection in thē but because they are commended with a great heape of vertues Or finally because that measure whereunto wee grow and those vertues whereunto we aspire and clime are reputed in the Saints for perfect by the imputation of the perfection of Iesus Christ whereby all the vertues of the Saints are accepted with God Seeing then by patience vnder the manifold afflictions of this life we increase in vertue and growe to be entire perfect and as lacking nothing shall we not thereby be moued to holde fast the exhortation and proposition of the Apostle Brethren count it exceeding ioy whē you fall into diuers temptations knowing that your triall of faith bringeth foorth patience and let patience haue her perfect worke that you may be perfect and entire lacke nothing And these are the three reasons wherefore wee ought to count it exceeding ioy when we fall into diuers temptations These things thus set down the Saints might haue obiected 3. A preoccupation against his doctrin It were good thus to do we deny not but it is not so soon done as easilie spokē as thogh we were able of our selues thus in our afflictions to moderate our selues that whensoeuer we be afflicted to accoūt it exceeding ioy This obiection the Apostle answereth I know this is not a qualitie in the power and strength of nature but it is a speciall grace and gift of God in our affliction to comfort our selues that we be not cast downe nor faint hearted but rather be glad and reioyce Therefore it is to be asked of him which onely geueth this heauenly wisdome In which place there may two things be obserued 1. The obiectiō which might haue been made 2. Then the answere thereunto 1 The obiection is Wee cannot of our selues thus beare the crosse we haue no such strength in nature there is nothing more vnpleasant or vnsauourie to the flesh then is the crosse We know that in vs that is in our flesh Rom. 7. dwelleth no good thing of our selues as of our selues wee cannot so much as thinke a good thought How vnequall 2. Cor. 13. are we then to the bearing of so heauie a burthen Wee must needes sinke vnder the crosse wherefore in vaine O holy and blessed apostle in vain assuredly is this doctrine preached vnto vs. 2 The answere hereunto is this I know that this is a hard doctrine to the flesh I confesse wee are vnable of our selues to performe it this is the speciall grace gifte of God to account our afflictions exceeding ioy vnto vs. Therefore is it not to be hoped for in our selues but from him to be praied for wherfore if any man lack wisdome let him aske it of God which geueth to all men liberally and reproacheth none and it shal be geuen him but let him aske it in faith and wauer not In which answer foure things are to be considered 1 What this wisdome is It is the doctrine of the crosse here specified namely to endure patiently whatsoeuer God layeth vpon vs and to know that God in singular loue correcteth all those with the rodde of affliction whom he purposeth to make heires of his eternall glory This to knowe is wisdome farre greater then the wisdome of men This wisdome standeth in two things 1. In knowledge that we wisely vnderstand the causes for which we are thus afflicted of God as that partly for the punishmēt of our sinnes as the princely Prophet recordeth For iniquitie Psal hast thou chastened man partly for the more manifestation and plainer triall of our faith as Abraham Iob Israel the seruant and people of God partly for the aduauncement of Gods greater glory that thereby in the deliuerance of men from their calamities hee might be more glorified Finally that hereby wee being touched 1. Cor. 11. might repent lest that wee perish with the worlde Hereof to haue true vnderstanding and knowledge is a great point of wisdome euen of this wisdome whereof the Apostle speaketh As the wisdome how to beare the crosse consisteth in knowledge and vnderstanding of the ends wherefore it is inflicted and laide vpon vs so also it consisteth in an inward feeling and iudgement when in our heartes soules and consciences we haue sense and feeling of the comfort of the spirite which in afflictions of this life and in the crosse wherunto we are subiect vpholdeth and supporteth vs and with assured hope of safe deliuerāce in due season vnderproppeth vs This point of wisdome to feele inwardly the comfort of the spirite was in holy Iob who therefore in the Iob. 19. midst of all his miseries and in the