Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	affliction_n	lord_n	sin_n	1,503	5	4.9511	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A23734	The government of the thoughts a prefatory discourse to The government of the tongue / by the author of The whole duty of man.	Allestree, Richard, 1619-1681.; Pakington, Dorothy Coventry, Lady, d. 1679.; Fell, John, 1625-1686.; Sterne, Richard, 1596?-1683.	1694 (1694)	Wing A1131; ESTC R16378	90,774	192

thereof 2. JOY and Rejoicing in God in things Divine and Spiritual we are secure and happy The end of Temporal Rejoicing is many times clouded in sudden and unexpected Sorrow Such was Belshazzar's Feast with a thousand of his Princes Dan. 5.1 5 6. The scene of Joy was changed into sudden Astonishment at the sight of that dreadful Hand which decypher'd his doom upon the Palace Wall Secular Joy entertaineth deluded Men as that old lying Prophet of Bethel did the Man of God first feeding then afflicting with the sad Intimation of ensuing Destruction 1 Kings 13.11 22. Acquaint thy self with true good that thou mayst rejoice securely They most delight in Secular things who are ignorant of Eternal 3. LET not thy Heart be too much transported with Secular Joy they that superabound in Mirth and Joy in Prosperity are too much cast down and dejected in Adversity For both Extreams proceed from impotency of Mind In every Exultation look with a thankful Heart on the Lord that gave it and with a prudent Heart on that which may quickly change this Scene of Mirth into Heaviness Taste thy Joy as the Israelites did their Passover with bitter Herbs and prepared to be gone Exod. 12.8 Let the thoughts of Sorrow season all thy Mirth lest a sudden Surprizal astonish and vanquish thee For foreseen Dangers least prejudice the Wise. 4. KEEP Innocency and a good Conscience These shall Comfort thee as Lamech said of his Son Noah Gen. 5.29 The Wise Man tells you Prov. 15.15 All the days of the afflicted are Evil but he that is of a Merry heart that is a good Conscience hath a continual Feast Wicked Mirth Sardonick Laughter and foolish Jesting as they demonstrate much Levity so do they dangerous Uncomposedness Vanity and weakness of Mind In such Laughter the heart is Sorrowful says Solomon Prov. 14.13 And the end of that mirth is heaviness And Eccl. 2.1 Behold this also is Vanity Again The heart of the wise is in the House of Moorning But the Heart of Fools is in the House of Mirth Eccl. 7.4 5. WE read that Christ Wept over Jerusalem Luke 19.41 and over Lazarus John 11.35 But we never read of his Laughter 'T is a rare Government of the Mind to have Mirth season'd with Wisdom wherein a prudent Cheerfulness commendeth Mirth well regulated in an holy thankful use of that we enjoy as the best of things meerly Secular To imitate the Austerity of Cato or the Sullenness of Crassus who is reported to have Laughed but once in his Life or to be an ever Weeping Heraclite or an ever Laughing Democritus is to launch out into vain and unsafe Extreams Indeed of the two Tears are to be preferred before excessive Laughter For too much Mirth is a symptom of Folly which fluctuates from the Heart and a true Signet of Forgetfulness or ignorance of this mutable Life 6. AND indeed Voluptuousness is Satan's Hook which produces to Destruction it is the Mother of Sin and the Nurse of the never dying Worm And as Oil killeth Insects but Vinegar restores them so Joy and Pleasure destroy incautious Sinners but sharp Afflictions safely Cure them So that they at last arrive to that apprehensive sense of understanding That it is good for them to be Afflicted Psal. 119.71 Never rejoice at anothers Affliction for it is Odious to the Almighty and seldom evadeth such Revenge as pointeth out the Sin 7. IT is a Maxim of Wisdom to weigh the Joy which will prove an excellent Gage for thy Heart For the Prophet Jeremy tells you Chap. 17.9 That The Heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can know it If thou rejoicest in Evil thy Heart must be agreeable to it but if thou delightest in Goodness then a secret Power and Spirit of Sanctity ruleth in thee Observe in Musical Instruments how some Strings sound at the Moving of others and accord very Harmoniously So it is with the Strings of thy Heart which internally Assenteth to any wicked external Action The uncircumcised Heart rejoiceth at that Obscenity that vexed Righteous Lot The Holy are cheerful and glad like the wise Merchant Matt. 13.44 45 56. Who when they find the treasure of God's inestimable Mercy opened to them go away rejoicing with that happy Convert Acts 8.39 While he that hath no interest therein sitteth numbring the Minutes and thinking every Divine Exercise long goeth away either as Ahab with Indignation or with Sorrow like the rich young Man in the Gospel Matt. 19.22 8. DANGEROUS Perturbations of the Mind are in the dominion of Sorrows and there is as much occasion of prudent Rules to be used as of a Rudder in a Storm In every affliction examine well thy Heart for the Cause Wherefore is the living Man Sorrowful Man suffereth for his Sin Let us search and try our ways and turn again unto the Lord Lam 3.39 40. It is a vain attempt and a high presumption to seek for any Relief from Affliction but by this means all other Lenitives are as Draughts of Cold Water in a hectick Fit it is more Inflaming like David's Harp to a moody Saul where the vexing Spirit returneth with greater Violence 9. PLACE thy Sorrow upon Sin which is the right Object It is the vulgar Error and danger of many to be dejected for that loss which indeed cannot prejudice their Bodies but take a delight in Sin which woundeth the Soul and may make them for ever Unhappy We many times grieve for that which should occasion us to Rejoice And St. Paul tells us Rom. 8.26 That all things work together for good and whom the Lord loveth he Chasteneth Heb. 12.6 Next let us consider the comfortable effects of God's Chastisements It yieldeth the peaceable fruit of Righteousness unto them which are Exercised thereby Heb. 12.11 We are impatient and roar out as Men under the hands of a skillful Chirurgeon when he exerciseth the Lancet or Cauterie to Cure us It was David's Complaint who said I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my Heart Psal. 38.8 Yet in the issue confessed It is good for me that I have been Afflicted and declares this Experience Before I was afflicted I went astray but now have I kept thy Word Psal. 119.67 71. 10. GIVE not thy Heart over to excessive Sorrow for there is a Worldly Sorrow to Death and a Sorrow to Repentance not to be Repented of 2 Cor. 7.10 Exorbitant Grief is like the immoderate Overflowing of Nilus a presager of dangerous Sterility Stand ready prepared for sharp Encounters Ships are built to endure Storms and raging Seas And prudent Minds are composed to endure and make good use of Sorrows Let every Distress awaken thy mind to fly to thy Redeemer And then Afflictions will appear like that Rain which fell on the Ark the more it poured down the more that was lifted up and saved from the fury of the Waves Or like Moses Rod to open a way through the briny Floods to

God has promised Remission of Sins Grace Glory and all things necessary for this present Life and the future and the instrumental Motive is justifying Faith from whence it springs for the Apostle tells you Heb. 11.1 Faith is the Substance of things hoped for The supream end God's Glory the subordinate our own Salvation and present Comfort whereby we may effectually offer up our Thankfulness to God to who begetteth us again to a lively hope in Christ 1 Pet. 1.3 8. St. John tells you in his first Epistle 3.3 That he which hath this Hope is purified and the Psalmist animates you saying It is an Expulsion of servile Fear Psal. 5.6.4.5 As also a dependance on God and casting all our Care upon him a Fortitude in bearing Afflictions and a Joy in Adversity The Subject of this Hope are God's Saints Faith and Hope accord in the Cause and God's Spirit giveth both and in the certainty as we believe so we hope All they differ in is this That Faith begetteth Hope whereby Faith hath the Preference Secondly Faith beholdeth the the verity of God's Promises Hope on the Goodness of them as Faith can entertain nothing but infallible Truth for its Object so Hope can enjoy nothing but Goodness Faith apprehendeth the Truth and Hope patiently expects the fulfilling of it Now the Object of this Hope hath four Qualifications Good Future Difficult and Possible 9. GOOD Whatsoever is contrary to it may be an object of Fear which has no coherence with this Hope Now whereas there is a real Good so there is an appearing or seeming one which being not sincere creates a vain or impious Hope as if a Man hopes for Ease Pleasure Riches and Honours These are not Verities nor good of themselves but in their use and so their hopes may be vain and of no duration A Man hopes a Revenge on his Enemy a Satisfaction of his Lusts or the like This Hope is impious and not durable and must in the end render a Man unhappy But if we hope for the Glory of God our Soul's Health and Comfort or what is really good in it self this is true Hope and shall attain to that heighth of Perfection tho to transitory Eyes it seems not to be durable as when we invocate for some Temporal Things which Omnipotency discerneth not to be agreéable to our Necessities or for him to grant as when Christ prayed that the Cup might pass from him and when Moses hoped to go into Canaan Christ was heard and Moses not defeated of his hope because in both God decreed that which was best and that is ever consistent with true Hope which gives not the Deity Prescriptions but confidently expecteth either what it hopeth or something better 10. FUTURE Rom. 8.24 25. Joy is of things Present or so represented as when we rejoice in Hope Rom. 12.12 Hope maketh that present by a Prepossession of that which is to come for Hope acts contrary to that which is present Difficult Such are all things Excellent perhaps deluded Hope makes it an easie step to Heaven and Salvation But they that indeed go that Path shall find it narrow and inviron'd with a World of Difficulties Lastly Possible That which is impossible to Carnal Reason may be hoped for because 't is possible to God therefore Abraham believed above Hope And we expect the Resurrection of the Dead and some things which sinful Men think possible are impossible 11. ALL things are possible to Omnipotence which he 'll perform and he will perform what he has Promised But some things he disannuls and so are impossible Omnipotency will not lie nor be unjust for that importeth Impotency and is a declining of his Attributes To hope that those Asseverations God hath pronounced concerning Supine Sinners shall not be accomplished is a Hope altogether vain and fruitless for it is impossible for the Divine Majesty to be untrue To be resolute in Sinning and yet to hope for Pardon is a frivolous Hope because it is impossible for God to be unjust a severe Lesson for Presumptuous Sinners who resolve to enjoy their Lusts and Pleasures glut themselves with Revenge and yet hope when this Life's Scene is ended the few Petitions of their Epilogue shall purchase favour 12. IF thou goest on in this Career thou wilt be guilty of a gross Absurdity for if thou resolvest to Sin and invocatest the Almighty to be Merciful thou dost in effect beseech God to unthrone himself of his Justice and to be indulgent to an Impenitent Sinner This being impossible it concerns thee to arise from sleep and shake off all vain and deluding Hopes that thou mayst fix on the true and never failing which is the Anchor of the Soul a laying hold on the Land of the Living it is the ease of Sorrows Grief's Asswager Affliction 's Comforter and Despair's Antidote Again it is Faith's Perspective the Nebo where we take a view of the Promised Rest and the Faithful Spy to discover the Holy-Land bringing us the Tastes from Escoll the Fruits of the Spirit the Possession which they hold who enjoy no more and yet are Rich in all Things CHAP. XVII Rules to govern our Hope IN order to this Governance endeavour to fortifie thy Mind with Resolution and Sobriety which will guide to Purity of Life For every one that hath this Hope purgeth himself as he is pure 1 John 3.3 A true Hope with a Resolution to persist in any known Sin is incompatible The Devout Man's Hope never faileth of which Seneca could say That Fortune hath often deserted the Innocent but good Hope never Hope to the End for the Perfection of that Virtue is Perseverance We must wait for the Adoption to wit the Redemption of our Body Rom. 8.23 Though deferred Hope disturbs the Heart Though it tarry wait for it shall surely come Hab. 2.3 What ever Tryals we undergo let us put on Job's Resolution Chap. 13.15 Though he stay me yet will I trust in him We belong to him that Redeemed us If we hold fast the Confidence and the rejoicing of the Hope firm unto the End Heb. 3.6 2. THOUGH through Humane Frailty thou sometimes art assaulted with Fear yet be confident and pursue the Psalmists Rule who expresses What time I am afraid I will trust in thee Psal. 56.3 Fear and Hope may inhabit together especially where the fear of the Lord doth not abrogate Faith's Confidence but Carnal Security Treasure up the Promises of God to that intent were they written and divulged That we through Patience and Comfort of the Scriptures might have hope Rom. 15.4 Fix not thy rest on this World or place thy Confidence on any thing in it it is but comparable to a broken Reed a slack Rope on the raging Sea or a false Friend in Adversity and like the Quick-Sands on which infatuated Builders lay their Foundations As Moses told Israel Ye are not come to your rest Deut. 12.9 3. ALL temporal Enjoyments are liable to Vicissitudes