Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	bring_v	day_n	lord_n	1,882	5	3.6758	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89585	The sinne of hardnesse of heart: the nature, danger, and remedy of it. Opened in a sermon, preached to the Honorable House of Commons, July 28. 1648. being the day of their solemne monethly fast. By Stephen Marshall, B.D. minister of Gods Word at Finchingfield in Essex. Published by order of that House.	Marshall, Stephen, 1594?-1655.	1648 (1648)	Wing M783; Thomason E455_3; ESTC R204198	29,752	46

are brought to a meere formality but so did these Jewes in the Text threescore yeers and ten together Fast after Fast but God loathed them because they tended the ceremony and neglected the substance piety and justice and turning from wicked wayes and even so doe wee in the meane time like the Anvile grow harder for all the strokes are upon us surely Gods wrath is great against us Pharaohs hard heart was a worse plague then all his other plagues put together and the obstinacy and hardnesse of heart throughout the land is the greatest plague wee can lie under and will prove if infinite mercy prevent it not the sluce or floodgate to let in destruction let us sadly lay these things to heart and mourne before him because of them and rather wonder at Gods patience then at our plagues and certainely if God go on to lay our pleasant land desolate and to scatter us as with a whirlewind though now we can lay the cause of our calamities at one anothers doores God will make us all know that it was our obstinacy of heart against him that hath brought ruine upon us the Lord teach us to Iay it to heart upon this day of our humiliation Secondly Is the sinne of hardnesse of heart so destroying a sinne what cause then have they to blesse the Lord to whom God hath given a tender soft heart a heart of flesh such an heart as Ioshua had 2 Chron. 34. thy heart was tender and thou didst humble thy selfe who can say with Iob God hath made my heart soft if any soule in this Assembly hath obtain'd a soften'd heart let him know that in that one gift God hath given him the quintessence of all the grace of the new Covenant God made all the new Covenant good in that one promise I will give you a heart of flesh to have the heart of stone taken away and to have a fleshy heart in the roome of it is an unvaluable mercy God delights to dwell in a house thus broken where the floore is soft where the raine comes in and you have infinite cause to praise God for it but because I would not bee mistaken I pray you know that all tendernesse and brokennesse is not that heart of flesh that I meane There is a naturall tendernesse that some men have a compassionating spirit so that they can hardly see another in misery but will weepe with him and yet it may bee their hearts are as hard against God as Leviathans is against a Speare and there is another tendernesse that is a legall brokennesse when God it may bee seizes upon the heart with a spirit of trembling that they are stabbed with the apprehensions of wrath and so are like unto Cain that wheresoever he goes hee was in the land of Nod that is in the land of trembling this trembling heart is a curse threatned the Lord shall give thee a trembling heart I will send a faintnesse into their hearts in the land of their enemies and the sound of a shaking leafe shall chase them I meane neither of these but that Evangelicall broken heart that is contrary to the sinne of my Text is nothing but an heart willing to lay downe the bucklers before God that saith with Iob Lord I have done foolishly I will doe so no more the heart that yeelds to God and that will appeare by these foure things one is that To such a heart the reliques of the hardnesse of their hearts is a most uncomfortable burden the stone in their bladder or the stone in their kidneys though it afflict their sense more yet doth not afflict their inward man their heart so much as the obstinacy and obduratenesse and wretchednesse that they finde in their owne soule against God O Lord why hast thou caused us to erre from thy wayes and harden'd our hearts from thy feare so also Ephraim mourned I have been chastised but I am like an untamed heifer that will not carry Gods yoke a heart that mournes under his hardnesse is a tender heart to feele and complaine of hardnesse is softnesse it 's an evident signe that there is underneath a living and quick part upon which this hardnesse presses else there would be no complaining of it Secondly It is a heart that the meditation of Gods kindnesse and its owne unkindnesse maketh relent the thought that God should spare them pity them doth most affect them thus the harden'd Jewes in Zachary those that had been most hard against God yet when they look'd upon Christ whom they had pierced who came to save them they wept like a child this Lord we have pierced we have crucified the Lord of life If any arguments worke at all upon hardned sinners they are such as these Tophet is prepared for you you are going to a place of blacknesse and darknesse to a lake burning with fire and brimstone where you will waile and gnash your teeth but arguments taken from Gods love and bowels of mercy doe most melt a tender heart when the Lord had turned and softned that harlots heart Ezek. 16. this most affected her that hee was reconciled to her whom she had broken with her whorish heart this Evangelicall fleshly heart relents and bleeds at the thoughts of Gods kindnesse and its owne unkindnesse and then thirdly it appeares in this A Gospel-softned heart is afraid of sinne a very coward to any evill this heart hath not courage enough to try the power of Gods displeasure How can I how dare I doe this wickednesse and sinne against God hard hearted men dare venture upon such bloody things but a softned heart saith with Iob destruction from the Almighty is a terrour to me and by reason of his highnesse I cannot indure David whose heart was as a Lion feared not to incounter with Lions Beares Giants yet his flesh trembled at any thing which might offend his God this signe of a gratious tender heart you find Prov. 28. 14. in the opposition betweene a fearefull heart and a hard heart Blessed is the man that feareth alwayes but hee that hardneth his heart shall fall into evill the heart which feareth alwayes is the heart which out of the love of God would not sinne yet out of the consideration of its owne pronenesse to evill suspects it selfe and feares it shall bee surprized this frame of spirit is thus opposed to a hard heart This same fleshly heart is a heart upon which Gods seale leaves a print Gods counsell I meane his Word threatnings exhortations or whatsoever comes from him leaves a stampe upon him It is a heart that is wax to God willing to bee moulded resignes up it selfe to bee to God what God would have it to bee as well as it can if this heart be at any time drawne into sinne when God appeares displeased it saith I have done foolishly I will do so no more it layes downe the Buckler and yeelds

his word and in it the denunciations and threatnings of wrath and vengeance they are as a hammer to breake this Rock Is not my word a hammer saith God doe not I breake the rockes would'st thou have the stone in thy heart broken bring it under the bout-hammer of Gods Word sit thee under a plaine and faithfull Ministery and apply to ●hy soule the denunciations of wrath and judgement due to thy sinne and pray God to set it home to thy soule leave not till thy heart sink under the stroke of the Word as the Butcher followes the hard head of the Bullock with blow after blow untill it lie along upon the floore follow thy heart thus with blow upon blow read over thy wayes and thy doings that have not been good and say not this will bee a very hard taske thou hadst better doe this then perish better turne then burne and besides the Word Take the judgements or corrections of God that are upon thee to breake thee a good shower and a plough together helpes notably to breake the clods in the fields Blessed is the man whom God chastiseth and teacheth when God followes thee with corrections consider of them say thus God visits mee my family my wife my state my soule my children c. I am never from under the rod what is the matter Lord what is it Shew mee why thou contendest with mee Surely for my iniquity I am smitten all this is come upon me for my rebellion O my soule I shall finde it hard striving against the Lord I doe but kick against prickes in the time of adversity consider these are meanes to breake the stone but Above all I commend the sweet way of cure by the dissolving of it and that is onely by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ lay hold upon Christ by faith I know not how true it is but some say the blood of a Goat will in time dissolve an adamant but certainly there is a slaine Goate the Lord Jesus Christ whose blood is able to dissolve the heart that is like an Adamant Christs blood will turne a heart of stone into a heart of flesh you see it in the Jewes those hard hearted wretches that when they were put in choice whether they would have Christ or Barabbas spared Barabbas and crucified Jesus yet these hard hearted sinners when they come to heare from Peter that they had crucified the Lord of life who yet was willing to save them they cry out Men and brethren what shall we doe crucified the Lord of life Lord are we guilty of such a thing against a Saviour and in the 12. of Zachariah which place intends the conversion of the whole nation They shall looke upon him whom they have pierced and shall weepe as one weepeth for the losse of an onely child if then thou would'st have thy obdurate heart thy harden'd heart if thou woul'dst have it in truth yeeld to God goe and sit thee with Mary neer Christs Crosse and heare him say behold thy Saviour as he spake to Mary behold thy Sonne and to Iohn behold thy Mother so sit thou and thinke that thou diddest heare Jesus Christ calling to thee Behold thy Saviour see the Sonne of God dying shedding his blood that thou maist not die and be damned though thy sinnes have nail'd mee here this blood that flowes from me shall wash thee and shall keepe thee that thou shalt not perish looke thus upon him this will doe the deed this will melt thy heart this will dissolve it so that thou canst not chuse but goe alone and say Ah unkind wretch that ever I shall beare armes against such a God! This is the way to dissolve the stone to melt thy heart I have one thing more when God hath cur'd it Beware that hardnesse grow not upon thee againe though thou drive it away once it will turn againe Know all ye people of God that though a converted man cannot become a rock againe yet he may become very hard he may bee frozen as hard as ice though good ground will never bee a rock yet good ground may bee very hard for want of plowing and lose many a season and it must be torne and torne againe before ever it will bee fit for seed againe thou maist bee so farre harden'd as to have cause to cry out with the Church Lord why is my heart harden'd from thy feare therefore when God hath made thy heart tender and softned thee labour to keep it so watch over thy selfe that thou doe not depart from it and to helpe you remember these few briefe directions Observe thy heart very diligently when it growes lazie as the Church did who when her beloved came and would have come to her she had put off her coat and shee was loth to foule her feet when I say thou findest thy heart grow lazie thou beginnest to harden When thou findest thy appetite gone that thou dost not relish the Ordinances of God and communion with him when thou canst turne thy back upon those fellowships and communions with God that heretofore have been more pretious to thee then thy life or When thou findest thy heart growne selfe-conceited that thou art some body in thy owne eyes When thou growest pettish and wayward to them that admonish thee that thou growest cholerick and art impatient to be plainly dealt with then is thy heart hardned and looke to thy selfe betimes let it not grow upon thee doe as men will doe in other diseases I finde the stone growing upon me I shall have another terrible fit of it if I prevent it not I must take a little timely physick use the meanes before prescribed both to breake it and dissolve it yea before these things grow upon thee use these former prescriptions for preventing it and be very much in prayer to thy tender hearted Saviour to keepe thy heart tender he onely can doe it and he will doe it if thou seeke to him and rely strongly upon him to doe it according to his Covenant of Grace wherein he hath bound himself to take away the heart of stone and to give his people a heart of flesh use I say again these meanes carefully otherwise if thou harden thy heart against God God will harden his heart against thee and he will make thy heart ake and thy bones quake before thy peace shall be made the Lord give you to consider of these things There is another Use of this Lesson to the whole kingdom how to prevent our threatned desolation O how glad would we all be to find some expedient to save the kingdom why certainly this would doe it could we think of a way how this Brasse and Iron this rock of England might relent before God and lay down the Bucklers that would save England and nothing else will doe it What might be of use to England over and above what