Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	body_n	part_n	soul_n	2,761	5	5.3627	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93242	Judgement and mercy: or, The plague of frogges [brace] inflicted, removed. Delivered in nine sermons, by the late reverend and learned divine Mr. Iosias Shute, Arch-deacon of Colchester, and preacher at St. Mary Woolnoth, in London: with his usuall prayers before and after sermon. Whereunto is added a sermon preached at his funerall, by Mr. Ephraim Vdall. Imprimatur. Ja. Cranford. Octob. 29. 1644.	Shute, Josias, 1588-1643.; Udall, Ephraim, d. 1647. Sermon preached at the funerall of Mr. Shute.	1645 (1645)	Wing S3715; Thomason E299_1; Thomason E299_2; ESTC R200245	134,491	230

behold this blessed light that shines to us much more unworthy to enjoy these conveniences and opportunities of meeting in thy house to know the way and means to a better life But most worthy of all thy plagues to be powred down upon us both in this life and that which is to come For besides that originall corruption wherein wee were borne and conceived and which like a leprosie hath over spread all the powers faculties both of soul and body we have heaped up a numberles number of actuall transgressions There is not any of thy holy Commandements but in thought word and deed most grievously and frequently we have violated And which advanceth our iniquity and heightens our rebellion these evills have not only escaped us in the times of ignorance but even since it hath pleased thee to inlighten us with the knowledge of thy truth so that notwithstanding thy mercies thy judgements the motions of thy good Spirit the blessed light of thy Gospell afforded to us we have continued the course of our rebellion against thee yea that we may be yet more vile in thy presence even at this time when we come before thee we are clogged with so many imperfections that if thou shouldest be extreame to marke what is done amisse how mightest thou plague us in our bodies in our goods in our good names how mightest thou fill us with the fury of an unpacified conscience and write bitter things against us and a wounded spirit who can beare How mightest thou give us up to a reprobate sence to commit sinne with greedinesse and punish one evill with another and after all this cast us into that place of torment to sucke out the dregs of thy vialls O God in all this thou shouldest be justified and clear when thou are judged and we deservedly punished Our sinnes our sinnes O Lord call to heaven for vengeance the pit is ready to shut her mouth upon us if thou wert not the Lord of mercies But thou hast opened a way for poore distressed sinners to come to thee through thy Son We flye to the horns of the Altar and intreat thee for Jesus Christ sake to be mercifull to us And thou sweet Saviour of the world whose name imports mercy and whose worke brought salvation for the sons of men thou knowest that we are but flesh and remembrest that we are but dust Thou that art a High Priest touched with our infirmities that knowest the power strength of old Adam how it leads us captive to sin and wickednes stand between us the wrath of thy offended Father mediate our cause with thy Father that all our iniquities may be done away by thy sufferings that we may ever finde to our comfort that though we have done ill we have an advocate with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous And doe thou dear Father every day more and more assure and perswade our souls that thou art reconciled to us in thy Son by sending his Spirit into our hearts to renue us to that glorious Image of thine from whence wee are fallen and which may enable us to performe every good duty that as heretofore we have given our bodies and soules to be weapons of unrighteousnesse so in every part and power of them we may glorifie thee our God and Saviour and as much time as remains in the flesh worke out our salvation with feare and trembling And be cause thou of thine infinite wisdome hast set apart the Ministery of thy Word for this purpose good Lord blesse it to us at all times and at this time Enable me that am to speake the most unworthy of all the sons of Levi Lord cover all my sins and manifold imperfections in that mercy of thine that hath no measure and be pleased so to assist me by thy more particular helpe that I may deliver thy word boldly truly feelingly and sincerely Circumcise the hearts and eares of this thy people that they may heare attentively treasure it up in their hearts carefully and bring it forth in their lives and conversations conscionably to thy glory and assurance of their owne salvation in the day of Jesus Christ to whom with thee O Father and thy blessed Spirit be ascribed as is most due all honour and glory both now and for evermore Prayer after Sermon VVEE returne unto thy Majesty O Lord our God most humble and hearty thankes for all thy mercies most plentifully bestowed upon us as election creation redemption preservation vocation for the time and means thou hast given us of repentance whereas thou mightest have took us away in the middest of our sins O God what are we or what is our fathers house that thou shouldest bee thus mercifull to us to prevent and to follow us with thy kindnesse we are lesse then the least of thy mercies yet suffer us to take the cup of salvation and to praise thy Name accept of our poor acknowledgement adde one mercy more deare God to the common heap grant that we may expresse our thankfulnesse in a godly care of all holy obedience Blesse that part of thy word that we have heard delivered at this time Good Lord make it effectuall to our souls to salvation grant that it may bring forth fruit in some twenty in some thirty in some sixty in some a hundred fold though in some more and in some lesse yet in all some to the henour of thy Name Blesse with us thy whole Church wheresoever dispersed or howsoever distressed on the face of the earth and prosper O God the cause of the same where ever it is maintained in all the world as may be for the confounding of the Kingdom of Sin and antichrist and for the encouragement of all such as professe thy Gospel in sincerity Blesse us in these Kingdomes continue to us our liberty forgive our crying sinnes turne away thy judgements open our eyes at last to see the day of our visitation Blesse thy servant our Sovereigne Charles by thy Grace King of England Scotland France and Ireland in all causes and over all persons as well Ecclesiasticall as Civill next and immediately under thy Son supreme governour Blesse the Queens most excellent Majesty Prince Charles the Princesse Palatine and her issue The Lords of his Majesties most honourable Privy Councell The whole Nobility Blesse thine owne inheritance the Tribe of Levi by what names or titles soever they be called And for a supply of Davids Towers with Worthies blesse all Schooles of Learning the two Vniversities of this Land Cambridge and Oxford Blesse all Congregations this committed to my charge Remember all that are in affliction in mercy whether outwardly in body or inwardly in minde or for the testimony of a good conscience Lord draw neare to every of them according to their desires Receive us Deare God and all ours and all thine into thy love and favour and protection therest of this day and for ever Let thy holy hand protect us let thy blessed

his power to mischiefe to plague Gods people so as he provoked God to plague all Egypt And my observation shall be this Multitudes are punished oft-times for one mans sinne The borders of Egypt all of them all the places and inhabitants were plagued for Pharaohs offence Examples in Scripture are frequent to prove this Abimelech was the faulter the party that faulted and behold all the wombes in Abimelechs family were shut up Gen. 20. So in Ios 7. Ay was besieged and some were to goe up against it but some of the men come out of Ay and slay 36 of the Isralites It troubled Ioshua and the Elders and they fall downe before the Lord and he satisfies them presently There is an accursed thing among you seeke it out or else you shall not prevaile So there was one Athan that had stollen a Babylonish garment and a wedge of gold Saith Salvianus One mans sinne was many mens misery Saul was the man that sinned against the poore Gibionites you see how all Israel was plagued with three yeares famine 2 Sam. 21. So we finde David whether out of curiosity or vain-glory he would needs number the people yet seventy thousand were slaine by the pestilence 2 Sam. 24. Ionah was the man that faulted and all the ship and the people in the ship were in danger and he himselfe ingeniously confessed that it was for his sake that the storme came and that they should prosper and doe well if they were disburthened of him Therefore the heathen could say the whole City must suffer for one mans ill And another of them observed of the Greeks unius obnoxa furia c. one mans wickednesse is all mens trouble Now will some man say if it may be lawfull to aske the question what justice is there in this that one man should sinne and other folke be punished will not this justifie the cavill of the old Atheists That one man was sicke and another tooke the physicke Doth not God say in Ezekiel The soule that sinneth shall dye and would he not have that cursed proverb suppressed The fathers have eaten soure grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge And doth not St. Paul say Gal. 6 Every man shall beare his owne burthen Why then if Pharaoh sinne let Pharaoh alone be punished why should God smite all the borders of Egypt David said when he saw the Angell forrage the whole Army and the people What have these sheep done 2 Sam. 24. Now for the answer to this there must be one ground necessarily laid in the first place and that is this That however things appeare to us God neither is nor can be unjust as in nothing else so not in punishing God forbid that the judge of all the world should be unjust Gen 18.25 Is God unrighteous Rom. 3.5 when he executes vengeance It is true the wayes of God are far beyond out apprehension beyond the possibility of our attaining we may as well empty the Ocean into a cockle shell The righteousnesse of God is a high mountaine the judgements of God is a great deep Psal 36. The well is deepe and wee have not wherewith to draw Ioh. 4. But this is ever certaine though we doe not alway see the reason there is a reason that we cannot see That God is righteous in all his wayes and holy in all his works Psal 145.17 That is the ground that I lay in generall More particularly now for the answer some will say That a King and his People make but one person or one body therefore it is free for God since Pharaoh sinned to plague all Egypt since they were his dominion and people it was free for him for a paine in the head to open a veine in the arme As men take liberty when the hand is faulty to put the feet in the stockes But this comes not home sufficiently though it may hold in regard of Pharaoh and his people making one body or in regard of a Master and his family that make but one body or of a Father and his childe because as Aquinas saith The childe is part of the parent But how doth it hold when men are in the same ranke and condition and multitudes of them are punished for one mans sin Therefore to salve it fully know that there is a double impulsive cause of punishment First that that is called pro 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Secondly pro 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Not to perplex you with the nycities of the Schooles thesetwo causes differ thus as the cause and the occasion To put an instance A man that hath fed full a long time comes to have a pletory fulnesse of crude and raw humours in his stomach It falls out that this party riding after in the wet taking cold he begins to shiver and shake and after he falls into a durable lasting Feaver If the Physitian be a wise and understanding man aske him what was the proper cause of this sicknesse and he will tell you the inward ill humours of the body and the abounding of them yet it is like enough that it had not turned to a Feaver so soone if he had not tooke cold of his feet or beene some way troubled in his journey So when God brings punishment upon people the proper cause is in every mans selfe There are personall sins inevery man to make him obnoxious to the curse of God yet may the sinnes of the father or parent or neighbour be the occasion that God will punish sin So that we say the personall sinnes of men are the primary internall antecedent dispositive cause of Gods judgements but the sinnes of other men they may bee the externall irritating exitating cause of Gods judgements for these are the tearmes of the Schoole-men And this helpes to salve that great question Why the children are punished for the fathers sinnes For God in just judgement oft-times gives up the chile to follow the steps of the father There is something in nature for especially those sinnes that are sensuall that symbolize with the predominant humour in the body may prove oft as diseases in the body hereditary Secondly sometimes example that workes much vitius corrumpunt vitia c. examples that are so neare us often corrupt sooner and taint deeper Sometime education may helpe the father may instruct his childe in Idolatry in the rudiments of covetousnesse and the like So many beggars bring up their children to idlenesse and theeving But suppose the childe be free from the fathers iniquity which hee hath committed yet he hath sinnes enow of his owne that may justly cause the wrath of God towards him yet it may be when he shall be punished in such a time in such a measure and manner and other circumstances the sinnes of the father may be the occasion of the childs punishment the remembrance of that may cause God to punish him at that time and with those circumstances Now for the use of this to our selves

submit to the government of the Shepherd That as Justinian the Emperour saith there may be a sweet harmonie between Prince and people that no string may be too high or too low that is the best musique in the eares of God If Pharaoh desire for his people how should they beg of God in the behalfe of their Soverain Paul when he wisheth that Prayers should be made for all men in the first place he puts Kings And it was the practise of holy people of God in former time Cyprian when they were charged with some rebellion We are far from that we wish well to the King saith he And his Master before him for so he calls Tertullian he professeth concerning the Christians that they begged of God in the behalfe of the Emperour they desired long life a secure regiment and reigne a safe house worthy Counsellors strong and valiant Souldiers c. Let not this be forgotten by us we are too defective in this many of us pray in private for our selves but when doe we remember our Governours O the light of our eyes and the breath of ournostrills is deprived of our prayers If it be a sin to forget a naturall father certainly it is no lesse to forget our politicall father The next thing to be observed which is the second generall is the promise that he makes I will let the people goe I will but touch one thing and so conclude you see here that now he cannot get from under the judgement what evapourates from him he will let the people goe that they may sacrifice If god reserve us God willing we shall observe that he did flie off from this But in the meane time somewhat he saith and promiseth and It is no strange thing that the worst of men have good motions sometimes This Pharaoh saith another time I have sinned And the sorcerers say after It is the finger of God And Balaam saith Let me die the death of the righteous Num. 23. And Saul may say he hath sinned and Ahab may humble himselfe and Felix may sometimes tremble and Agrippa will cry out he is almost made a Christian by Paul And it was never known of the most desperate adulterers the most bloudy men or oppressors or excessive persons but some time or other they did thinke ill of their own courses and did think that another way was better and it may be have had motions and resolutions tending to reformation The ground is the light that God puts into the consciences and the power that he hath indued it with that will sometimes put a man in minde of his abberations from the right way that this is not the course hee should take Again there is a generall illumination in the world that enlightens every man by this they come to have some notions But as Bernard saith in another case they come in frequently and passe away as speedily They are like the morning dew or the morning cloud soon dissipated not so good as Ephraims cake that was halfe baked they are soon gone as Tertullian saith of the flower it is a thing to look on and breath on and smell to and it is gone So it is with these motions of the wicked they passe away as smoke Therefore for the use of it Let us not be confident of the motions and flashes of the wicked unlesse they persist and continue in them there is little hope Nay let us not please our selves for motions that are like flashings of lightning in the soule they are not worth the talking of When motions come that are good cherish them keep them on foot that they may be actuated and perfected Thus God would have us to doe it is a sparke of the divine fire therefore the Lord would have it blown till it come to a flame If at any time we finde it dying as like enough the dear Saints of God may doe we must stir it up and excite the grace of God by the use of the Ordinances of God as the Apostle speaks And likewife by reflecting upon our many omissions and neglects and it may be suppression of motions by the cons●●●●●tion of the fearfull account we must give one day for these neglects stir it up and keep it fresh and by the blessing of God there may come great matters That that is now a sparke may be a flame that that is like a cloud no bigger then a hand it may after mask the whole heavens That that is now as a grain of mustard seed it may be a great tree wherein the fowles of the air may make their nests Of all take heed of quenching and suppressing this Spirit of puting it out and that is done by wilfull grosse sins When God gives good motions if men would cherish them and keep them alive there might be much good in them but when they run into foul sins that waste conscience the graces of God die and all good motions are as far to seek as if they never had been This will add to a mans judgment when God shall put these things in his heart and he by untimely frosts nipps them in the bud whereas if he would cherish them they would come to great perfection and improvement THE EIGHTH SERMON Vpon EXOD. CHAP. 8. VERS 8.9 And I will let the people goe that they may doe sacrifice unto the Lord. And Moses said unto Pharaoh Glory over me when shall I intreat for thee and for thy servants and for thy people c. THere is one thing that remaines of the eighth Verse remaining that I will speedily dispatch and so go on Pharaoh saith here I will let them goe that they may sacrifice to the Lord. Ubi potentiae Ubi superbiae saith one upon my Text. How now Pharaoh what is become of thy power what is become of thy pride not long since thou wast in thy ruffe and said Who is the Lord that I should seare him or let Israel goe Thou wert so farre from dismissing them that thou eldst more intensively hate them and multiply their sorrowes Thou didst contemne Moses and Aaron that came with a Commission from God and now behold thou art under a judgement and knowest not how to extricate thy selfe from this perplexitie now thou wilt let the people goe now thou acknowledgest God now thou suest to Moses and Aaron now thou art glad to dismisse the people Even thus it was and in that it was thus my observation must bee concerning The necessitie of afflictions All faire meanes would do no good with this man God was faine to take the rod in his hand and then wee see the issue so great is the necessitie of afflictions And it drives at divers things First afflictions make a man see his sinnes as wee see in the brethren of Joseph Gen. 41.21 In their trouble in Egypt they reflect upon their unnaturalnesse to their brother they confesse that the cause of this trouble and distresse was because they did not hearken to

him when he cried in the anguish of his soule You may gather so much from the speech of the widow of Sarepta when her child was dead she comes to Eliah and saith Art thou come to call my sinnes to remembrance and to kill my child Affliction is that that will call a mans sinnes to remembrance And out of all doubt next to the Law of God there is no glasse wherein a mans sinnes are more impartially represented to him then the glasse of afflictions Therefore Elihu saith Job 36.8 When the Lord hath a man in the cords of affliction hee shewes him his sinnes and transressions then he can talke with him and tell him from point to point what he hath done and set his sinnes in order before him Hence it is that the ancients compare afflictions to the smiting of the Flint that fetcheth out a sparke of fire that gives the good man light They compare them to the wood that Elisha cast into the water by which hee raised the head of the hatchet that was sunke Those sinnes that are sunke to the bottome that lie buried in the mud and there is no notice taken of them afflictions will raise them up and discover them They have compared it likewise to the clay and spittle that Christ anointed the eyes of the blind man with that hee restored to sight Joh. 9. This is that that Gregory hath oculis culpa c. that eye that was shut with sinne is opened by punishment and hee hath it from David Afflictions give understanding The trouble that was upon the hoast of God urged them to scrutiny Achan that was the cause of that discomfiture And the tempest that the mariners were in caused them to find out Jonah that was the author of the tempest of whom the ship must be discharged Secondly afflictions as they are necessary to bring us to the sight of sinne so to humiliation for it and the wicked of the world if the hand of God bee on them will confesse their sinnes So you see in Saul so in Achab so in Judas when terrour of soule was on him hee cries out I have sinned in betraying innocent blood The spirit of a man will be tooke downe by afflictions be hee never so great for in the time of prosperitie we are apt to be proud In regard of God In regard of Our brethren In regard of The things in our selves Wee are apt to be proud in regard of God as wee see in Nebuchadnezzar in Psal 10. God is not in a wicked mans thoughts men thinke not of God in prosperitie Nebuchadnezzar thought not of heaven but when the Lords hand was upon him hee saw whom he had provoked and how vaine it was to lift up himself against God Secondly a man in time of prosperitie is apt to bee proud in regard of his brethren David while he was in prosperitie he greatly cared not for that wrong that hee did to his servant faithfull Uriah but when the hand of God was upon him hee was afraid to doe the least harme to his mortall enemy as appears in that instance betweene him and Saul in the Cave And he would not suffer the railing dog Shimei to bee punished when he came barking fearfully 2 Sam. 16.11 affliction upon him mortified his spirit and killed his pride Thirdly when wee are in prosperitie we are proud of those things that are in us people sometimes are proud of beautie sometimes of strength sometimes of apparell sometimes of wealth Now all these things are layd low therefore it is very necessary the woman that was proud of her beautie if the hand of God seize on her by a sharpe acute feaver when her feather is brought to a Kercheife there is no more talke of the pride of her beautie that is taken off So the strong man that bragged of his strength when a feaver hath grappled with him and laid him all along and tooke him off from his feet then hee acknowledgeth the vanitie of this house of clay this body of humiliation as the Apostle calls it Phil. 3.21 So for apparell when Gods hand is upon people they more desire an easie pillow then gay cloths And for wealth it doth but little comfort in a sharp sicknesse a man would give all for one nights rest for one dayes ease Thirdly beloved affliction is necessary to work a man to good resolutions and purposes So Nebuchadnezzar being in affliction and trouble hee will have none acknowledged but the God of heaven So likewise the prodigall sonne being in trouble hee resolves to goe to his father and say Father I have sinned against thee To go no further when the hand of God was upon Pharaoh and his people hee cries out I will let the people goe And I will bee so charitable that for the present hee might speake uprightly For the use of this It should teach us First to justifie God when hee inflicts judgements for how should God make good his justice to the world if he should not punish sometimes if offenders should goe alwayes free How should God make good his power to the world if hee should not shew himselfe able to subdue the contumacious how should hee make good his wisedome to the world if having used many faire invitations and plausible meanes and those contemned hee should not draw out the sword against rebellious ones Solomon makes it a part of wisedome to use severity in the right place Secondly wee should justifie God in inflicting of judgements because they are so necessary for us for wee have proud hearts of our owne and God knows they are not easily subdued before they bee brought downe the flesh must smart to some purpose And this smoake is not onely found dwelling in the wicked but in the habitations of the righteous Looke on Hezekiah after God had added a lease to his life of 15. yeares more the Text saith his heart was lifted up 2 Chron. 32. And this sinne of pride is so naturall to us that when all other sinnes decrease this is improved Nay the Devill will watch us such a turne to continue the sinne of pride that rather then wee shall not bee proud hee will make us proud because wee are humble Therefore the Lord laies his hand on us by spirituall and temporall and corporall visitations that hee may bring us to be humble I beseech you observe that place Jer. 9.7 the Lord saith there that he will melt and trie the people for saith he what else should I doe to the daughter of my people As if he had said I know no better way to cure them then to put them into the melting pot of affliction there I must purge them from their drosse certainly they must have some sharpe medicine for the purging out of the malignant humour Secondly since afflictions are so necessary labour in the feare of God that they may be profitable And then afflictions are profitable when they bring us to a sight of our sinnes