Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	begin_v	great_a	time_n	1,599	5	3.2122	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45740	A sermon preached at the Oxford-shire feast, at St Mary le Bow, November 29, 1683 by John Hartcliffe ...	Hartcliffe, John, 1651-1712.	1684 (1684)	Wing H968; ESTC R19398	18,299	43

in the Goodness Power and Providence of God in whom we Live Move and have our Being a sober Wisdom and the Discretion of good Society will shake off the Shadows and scatter the Mists which fill the Minds of Men with vain Consternations Let us be as Jonah was upright Men that worship and fear the Lord of Heaven and Earth then we shall contribute much to the Credit and Preservation of our Country For the World would sink as Sodom did under the weight of its own Wickedness were it not kept up by such as fear God and keep his Commandments Therefore the eminent Faith of Abraham and the sincerity of David had an Influence upon the Happiness of Israel for many Generations so the Example of Socrates had upon Athens and the severe Life of Cato upon the People of Rome For the Places where good Men are and the Persons among whom they live are Happy by Concomitancy they enjoy many Blessings and are freed from many Evils because of their Neighbourhood to good Men who contribute to the Happiness of the World by the good Offices which they are ready to do to all Men Is any one in Want They are ready to Relieve him Do their Enemies Hunger They will Feed them Is any Man in Misery They do not only pity him as the Priest and Levite did in the Parable but like good Samaritans they will bind up his Wounds and take Care of him are others at Variance they presently Interpose take up the Quarrel and endeavour to Reconcile them Now is not the World the better for such Men as these are It may be every Man's Case to be in Misery Affliction and Want is it not well then that there are some to Commiserate them in these sad Circumstances The Lips of good Men do also preserve Knowledg and they are continually distilling wise Counsel which by degrees get Possession of men's Understandings By their Examples likewise they mend and reform others for it is a greater Encouragement to go before a man and shew him the Way to Virtue than only to give him Direction In short good Men are the Fathers of their Country they are the only great and publick Benefactors to it because to them the World owes its continuance in Peace their Prayers and Tears defend it both from the Judgments of God and the hostile Incursions of Men Wherefore that we may not only bear the Name but perform the commendable Works of good Men in the World let us at this time endeavour to recover the Greatness and Reputation of the English Nation by uniting our Interests and Affections by laying aside all civil and religious Differences by Conversing together freely in Peace and Love which our Religion allows and commands us to use Thus we may rise to the bearing of each others Infirmities from thence to the exchange of good Offices from thence to real Friendship till at last by such a gentle and easie Method our several Interests may be joyned to promote the Welfare and Peace of our Country This our friendly Conversation with one another will wear off all the Roughness and sweeten the humorous Peevishness of our Minds Nay it will take away all Sharpness and Violence will teach us Humility by acquainting us with our own Imperfections and so it will remove all overweaning haughtiness of Mind and swelling Imaginations This is the way to be truly Great and Considerable in the World Indeed as some wise Men have observed there are many things in the natural Genius of the English which qualify them above any others for an eminent Nation because our Country is most advantagiously situated for Command its native Productions are most serviceable for Strength and Empire The Disposition of the People is bold in Dangers severe in Discipline valiant in Arms virtuous in Life relenting to the Afflicted and merciful in Conquest It is also affirmed by some that the Vices to which we are subject are not natural to our Soyl but were imported hither from forreign Countrys The English Generosity Fidelity Magnanimity Modesty Integrity they owe to themselves Their Luxury their Debauchery their Divisions their spiritual Schisms they have received from abroad But seeing now the Devil hath sown these Tares amongst us let us make it our Business to root them out by the constant course of a good and holy Life which will make such Impressions upon others that we shall recover and maintain the antient Honour of our Country and restrain our Brethren from degenerateing into base and unnatural Sins Let it be said that for this end we Converse together and indeed for this Purpose man was Created a sociable Creature that he might assist his Fellow-Creature and Propagate all manner of Goodness in the World For if we search backward to the original Causes of men's associating and dwelling together we shall find that in course of time the small Clans or natural Commonwealths were devoured by the strength of the greater Or else some of the wiser Men reduced the rule Multitude into one place and perswaded them to live quietly under Laws From thence Mankind began to have the Face of Civility which hath been continued ever since by the same means by men's living quietly under Laws and by being ready to help and support one another So that whilst I behold so many Christians met together to carry on this honest Design for whose Sake human Society was at first constituted It makes me believe that the Age is not quite so bad as some men think it to be who are apt to complain and find Fault with the Age and Place where they live as if it were worse than any that is passed To which censorious Humour many and those wise Men too are very subject For in the antient Authors which studious Men turn over they find Descriptions of Virtues more perfect than really they were The governments are represented better and the Ways of Life pleasanter than they deserved upon this these Bookish wise Men compare what they read with what they see and here beholding nothing so heroically Transcendent because they are able to mark all the Spots as well as Beauties of every thing that is so close to their Sight they presently begin to despise their own Times and to exalt the past to contemn the Virtues and aggravate the Vices of their Country But our Work must be to commend our Country and that not so much for our being Natives thereof or for our long and antient Pedigrees as that we have one Lord one Faith and one Mind like the Prophet Jonah we must consider that we are sailing thro this World with Persons of diverse Qualities and Dispositions that are contriving various Designs and have ranked themselves into several Orders Whilst we thus uncertainly float upon the Face of the Waters and are tossed up and down at the Pleasure of the Waves our chief care must be to direct our Prayers and Adorations to the Lord of Heaven and