Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	effect_n	good_a	reason_n	2,537	5	5.2979	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34668	A censure of that reverend and learned man of God, Mr. John Cotton, lately of New-England, upon the way of Mr. Henden of Bennenden in Kent, expressed in some animadversions of his upon a letter of Mr. Henden's sometimes sent to Mr. Elmeston (2) a brief and solid exercitation concerning the coercive power of the magistrate in matters of religion, by a reverend and learned minister, Mr. Geo[r]ge Petter ... (3) Mr. Henden's animadversions on Mr. Elmestons's epistle revised and chastized.	Elmeston, John.; Cotton, John, 1584-1652. Censure ... upon the way of Mr. Henden.; Petter, George. Brief and solid exercitation concerning the coercive power of the magistrate in matters of religion.	1656 (1656)	Wing C6415; ESTC R20949	43,719	60

restrained from evill than that they be permitted willingly to rush into it It is also an Antinomian misconceit to think that nothing is done willingly and out of love to God which is done out of obedience and respect to a commandement enjoyning or prohibiting it 2. Gods people were to be a willing people in his service and to act out of love under the Law also as well as the Gospel For there must be a willing mind● and working out of love before any thing will be accepted And yet Abraham is commended that he would not onely exhort and perswade but out of his authourity command his houshold to feare God and Asa likewise that he commanded Judah to seek the Lord God and to doe the Law c. Which course of theirs had it hindred the willingnesse of those that were commanded in Gods service or their acting out of love it may seem strange that those so godly persons should pract●ce it stranger that it is recorded to the praise of both 3. It is as much required that men should be willing to abstain from foule sins against the second Table and to doe the good duties of it and that herein they should act out of love about which yet you allow the Magistrate to make lawes to r●straine men from Murder Fornication Theft c. and to cause them to be sober honest and just And how then doth this willingnesse and acting out of love hinder Mag●strates from making meet Lawes in matters of Religion Last Nothing can be spoken more punctually than that of the Apostle concerning Servants that what they doe in the Masters service they should doe it heartily and willingly Notwi●hstanding surely you will grant Masters that authority over Servants as to lay their command upon them to doe them just service and to punish the neglect of it Willingnesse to doe good and acting out of love is nothing hindred but may be promoted by the command of Authority It is true that if a thing be done onely out of obedience and respect to mans command it wants its acceptance with God but it is good in it selfe and though an humane command may give some occasion to the doing of it yet a godly person will doe it also yea and more out of the love of God and to shew his ready obedience to him But here we have a Criticisme cast in by the way viz. that the Hebrew Text carries it to signifie voluntaries as well as willing people as if forsooth there were some great and observable difference between these two words when the one is but our common English word the other coyned out of the Latine and are both the same in sense and signification Next we have a silly cavil about the Errors named as coming out of the womb of an univers●ll toleration Nay say you they were long extant before such a toleration was granted and so that could not be a womb to breed and bring them forth Answ. 1. It is more than we know that such a Toleration is yet granted If it be shew us the act for it It is and hath been indeed long pleaded for and practised 2. For those Errours and Heresies I speak not of their first rising which was heretofore in forraigne parts and those perhaps where too much way was given for such a Toleration but of their int●uding spreading and multiplying in ou● Land Concerning which if we look back unto the writings and practises of some later yeares it will appeare that if the one were not extant before the other that yet like two bad weeds they grew up together and that this Toleration did if not give them their first birth yet conferre much to their growth and enlargement What then becomes of that clamour that I have here non-pluss'd all Logicians as denying the cause to precede the effect and am one unworthy to be disputed with is denying the maine principles of Reason Good words I pray you be not so eager but let me in cold blood argue the matter with you If I were palpably mistaken in the rise and beginning of these things which you have not proved but barely ●ffi●med the mistake were onely in my calculating the time of their Nativity not in my denying that Logicall Axiome Causa est prior effectu If this Axiome were alledged to confut● me I should as readily receive the Axiome as you onely the question would be which of these were the cause which the effect and which was before the other whether that Toleration or these Errors and Heresies in nature and time I may here then return you some of your own language that my intellectualls as you jeere were not so much disturbed with any heat of passion against S●ctaries as your braines were taken with the whirligig out of your eager humour to carp and snarle What followes is more serious If Errours arise say you not carnall but spirituall weapons must beat them down Answ. I grant that spirituall weapons as preaching conference Church-censures and prayer are the most proper and effectuall for this work as more directly tending to informe in the Truth convince of Error and perswade mens hearts and minds and such are first and most to be used in this case But by your leave no these onely Spiritual weapons must be used against sinnes against the second Table as preaching admonition Church-censures to convines men thereof to restrain them and bring them to repentance But if these aloue should be used such sins and sinners would not so fully and effectually be repressed as when withall civill Lawes are made against them and such punishments prepared for them So here Spirituall weapons alone may be too weak to beat downe Errors and Heresies and keep them from breaking out and spreading abroad But if with these Spirituall weapons the carnall as you in some scorne call them viz. the prohibition of the Magistrate and some moderate punishment be added they will doe good as otherwise so to make erroneous persons the more seriously to consider of their wayes whether they be right or wrong and the more ready to receive the truth manifested to them which otherwise out of pride and selfe-conceit they will reject It is too well known that most erroneous persons are of the nature of the Servant Solomon speaketh of who will not be corrected with words though he understand well enough his Masters minde yet upon b●re words he will not answer nor be brought unto his duty So is it with these persons for the most let them be never so fully convinced let the truth be never so clearly manifested to them so that they cannot put it off but with grosse shifts yet for all words and spiritual weapons they will not yeild to it but of haughtinesse of spirit persisi in their errors and be oft more pertinatious and turbulent in their way Errors and Offences you say must come according to the Scripture to manifest the approved and to