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	good_a	work_n	2,437	5	5.8344	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60655	A spiritual prospective glass Through which the rulers and people of England, may plainly see those things which concerns their peace. Being a manifestation from the Spirit of God, in love to all people. By one that desires the prosperity of truth, and the peace of the nation. W.Smith.	Smith, William, d. 1673.	1670 (1670)	Wing S4333; ESTC R216948	15,398	21

if you come to love this and live in this and walk in this your souls will come into Righteousness Unity and peace and so into a comfortable and happy being but if you gain-say resist and withstand the light of Christ when it testifieth in your consciences and love darkness rather then light your souls are in sorrow and heaviness whatsoever you may profess of Christianity in your judgement and opinion for there can be no sound judgement or opinion but in the Light and power of Christ Jesus and they that resist the Light they err in what they hold as to their Judgement and opinion in spiritual things for the ground of Error is ignorance and the ground of ignorance is darkness and then such as love darkness rather then light must needs live in Error and not in the truth whatever they profess and Righteousness unity and peace will never spring out of darkness and error for where ignorance maintains an error it usually maintains it by violence and force against such as hold the contrary and that will never do the thing that is right and so cannot be Righteous or bring forth Righteousness nor never will bring into unity and peace but provokes unto Wrath Envy and Strife and so it is plain that error in Judgement and opinion touching the way and worship of God is the veryground of persecution for as darkness vaileth the understanding from the true knowledge of spiritual things so it causeth ignorance and error in Judgement and opinion and then worketh violently against all dissenters or opposers of that which it formeth and setteth up to be observed as the way and worship of God and this breaks the harmony that stands in Righteousness Unity and peace and can never bring comfort and happiness to any Soul and is it the way and manner of Christians to practice the way of the heathens by whom they were first persecuted and many destroyed for did not the heathen Emperors cause the Christians to be persecured and destroyed for above 3 hundred years after Christ and doth it become Christians to walk in the heathens way of outrage and cruelty one amongst another or should they not love one another as Christ commandeth and live in Righteousness Unity and peace together and so judge the Heathens cruelty and not justifie them in it O that the Rulers of England would stand still and consider the beginning and end of persecution in matters of Faith and Religion for if the beginning of persecution be well pleasing unto God then Cains slaying his brother is no sin but that Cains action did nor please God is plain from the displeasure of God against him the judgment of God that came upon him therefore Cain slaying his Brother is a sin that did not go unpunished and so neither the beginning ofending of persecution that can in any wise be profitable to those that are exercised in it and the Innocent Quakers could not have believed that the King and great Counsel of Parliament would have put such an opportunity into the hands of violent persons to ruine their estates for worshipping the living God for it is the living God that those people do worship and they worship him in the spirit and in the truth which is peaceable whatsoever you do reckon their meetings to be in your natural eye seeing that such a violent use is made of the safe act as tendeth to the utter ruine of honest peaceable Subjects it can no way be dishonourable to your dignity to repeal it make it void which if you do not your agreement in the execution will 〈◊〉 in the consequence and that will fall hard upon your selves when the Lord makes inquisition after such as spoils his people but if you do repeal it and make it void as seeing how destructive it is to the Nation in the using and execution of it then you will manifest some tenderness of heart in your great assembly and also demonstrate that it was not by you enacted with that intention as it hapneth in the execution and this would be great satisfaction unto the Nation for what conclusion can you make to your selves by suffering such proceedings or do you conclude that it may be a benefit unto such as comes under the punishment by working their Reformation if there be neither benefit to your selves nor those you punish as offenders it cannot be beneficial unto any others for that by which any hath benefit must come as a clear thing or otherwise it is no benefit at all for if a man must answer as much or more in consideration of what he receives he hath no benefit but rather looseth by what he receives and if such amongst whom fines are to be divided must answer the receipt unto God with a greater consideration they will be loosers by what they receive for what doth it proffit a man to gain the whole World and loose his own Soul or what shall a man give ●n exchange for his Soul so if a man loose his own Soul in consideration or what he receives in such a manner for his benefit his loss is far greater then his gain and therefore no benefit at all unto him and that no benefit can come to the sufferer by working reformation is very clear for violence was never known to work a true reformation in any and seeing no benefit will arise to any party according to what may be expected then it is altogether an unproffitable thing which unto Christians should be detestable and however you may be incouraged by Prelates and Clergy in such a work upon a Christian account yet you will not find it to your Souls benefit and comfort and they that incourage you in any thing that will not bring comfort to your Souls you have good cause to let there counsel fall at your feet and not to make it a head to rule over you for indeed most men of that sort have sought for worldly preheminence honour and proffit for many ages past and the more you adhere to their Councel the more will they seek their own interest by you and good dominion over you for how doth the Pope exalt himself over Emperors and Kings who by the Emperor was first enstalled in his pontifical dignity and so experience may teach you that it is not altogether your safety to set up Prelares and Clergy above you or to follow their advice and counsel in things that properly concerns your own authority but rather mind your own power in all civil concernments and there is nothing further wherein either they or you are to concern your selves by the power of any outward law and as you mind the Light of Christ Jesus it will direct you to act in your proper places whereby your souls may have peace and comfort and that councel you are to receive by which you may come to allow to all tender consciences the just priviledge of liberty in things pertaining to their