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	great_a	king_n	3,018	5	3.5536	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A42721	The great mystery of providence, or, The various methods of God in ordering and over-ruling the actions of wicked men and devils to great and glorious purposes with the vindication of his holiness therein : being the substance of several sermons / preached by George Gifford.	Gifford, George, d. 1620.	1695 (1695)	Wing G694; ESTC R25460	29,026	38

is constantly verified in Scripture and by Experience in the World that God may suffer good People to be afflicted and injuriously dealt with in just causes and wicked Men to prosper and bring wicked and unjust actions to pass so when God raises up a great King to be a Scourge to his Neighbors he will give him Wisdom Policy and Success and also when the Lord is resolved to punish a Nation he can take away their Wisdom and Success Thus God many times suffers the Tabernacles of Robbers to prosper and suffers good men for good causes to fall into the hands of wicked and unreasonable men Christ himself saith that the Power Pilate had to crucifie him he had it from God but you will say Is this no prejudice to his Holiness I answer no for God doth not give wicked men Success as a reward of their actions but to make use of them as the Instruments of his Providence as suppose a King should make use of a very wicked man to be his Hangman this doth not reflect upon the Goodness of the Prince The eighth way of God's Providence in governing wicked men and their actions and I desire you to take notice of it is by limiting governing and disposing wicked men and their actions that they shall not be able to hurt whom they will nor when they will but just so far as God would have it as we find in Joseph's Brethren their design was to murther him but 1. God stirs up Reuben to divert that purpose well afterwards God to bring his Ends to pass le ts them sell him and at that very moment orders the Midianites to come by How admirably was this matter ordered and limited by God So for the time God will not suffer wicked men to act at one time and yet will suffer the same to bring about their purposes at another time So it was with the Jews they would oftentimes have taken Christ but could not because the hour was not yet come but afterwards he tells them I taught daily in the temple and you laid no hands on me but now is your hour So we may observe how God doth sometimes stop Fire from doing Mischief and at another time suffers it to break out with irresistible violence so also for the continuance of wicked men in their actions it is said The Rod of the wicked shall not always rest upon the Lot of the righteous It may come upon them but it shall not rest upon them so God will not suffer good men to be tempted above what they are able wicked men shall not be able to put one dram into the Cup of bitterness more than what God has appointed Indeed this is the foundation of all our Comfort to remember that whatever we may suffer wicked men are but as an Ax in God's Hand they cannot as to time or continuance or degrees go beyond what God has purposed The last way is by God's over-ruling and ordering the Effects of Sin beyond and many times contrary to the purpose and design of Sinners and this makes up the compleat government of Sin So it was in Joseph's case As for you you thought evil but God meant it for good to bring to pass as it is at this day to save much people alive You meant it for evil and indeed beloved in one and the same action there are different ends proposed Many times wicked men design nothing but to bring about their own Malice Covetousness and Envy but God turns it to many wise and holy ends So in Job's case the Devil's design was to make him curse and blaspheme God but God's design was to make Job bless him So God is said to send Assyria against Israel to punish a hypocritical Nation but he thinks not so his design is to root up and destroy much People his design was to plunder and destroy but God's design was to correct Sin So it was in the Sufferings of our Blessed Saviour the Pharisees out of envy sought to murder him Pilate only for fear condemned him the Soldiers all that they meant was their Profit but now the Envy and Malice of the one and the Covetousness of the other God over-ruled to bring to pass the greatest Blessing that ever befel Mankind the Death and Resurrection of Christ so that God can make wicked men work his ends when they seem most to cross them Thus Physicians can make an Antidote to expel Poison out of Poison it self And I conclude this point in telling you that the most excellent Works of God's Providence that were ever brought to pass in the World are when He makes use of the sinful actions of Men to effect matters quite contrary to what they intended Thus I have endeavoured to clear the Providence of God from any mistake of Injustice or Unholiness and have shewn how the holy and wise God over-rules and governs the evil actions of wicked Men and Devils SECT III. I Come now to the third Point and that is That God Almighty can make good use of the sinful actions of wicked Men that what they intend for Evil that he can and often does turn to Good This is here expressed in the Text God sent me before you to preserve life and I will ground this upon another expression of Joseph Gen. 50.20 As for you you thought evil against me but God meant it for good You shall observe in this Story that the design of his Brethren was nothing but the gratifying their own Envy and Malice in sending him away the Ishmaelites in buying him meant nothing but their own profit Potifer's Wife we read minded nothing but her own Lust and yet all these things were over-ruled by God Almighty for the good of his Church I shall here handle that God Almighty doth turn the Sins of wicked men to good he makes them serve his designs for good I shall here vindicate the Providence of God from the great Quarrel that has been against it in all Ages by reason of the actions of wicked men and the great wickedness that is in the World for it is a Saying of the Atheists That if the World be governed by a God so just holy and wise why is there so much wickedness in the World Can he not hinder it I shall therefore shew you that God's permitting so much Sin in the World is a fruit of his infinite Goodness because he can bring so much good out of it St. Austin saith God that is infinitely good and powerful would not permit Sin in the World if he were not able to make that Sin turn to some great Good All wicked Men and Devils are under God's Dominion he over rules all their actions and there is no Evil in second causes but he makes it serve his own holy and wise ends It is true Sin as it is in the Creature is the greatest deformity darkness and disorder in the World but God Almighty is able to order it as a wise