Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	evil_a	evil_n	sin_n	4,011	5	5.5536	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53084	A sermon preached in the parish-church of Aldenham, in the county of Hertford, on Thursday, April 16, 1696 being the day of thanksgiving to almighty God for discovering and disappointing a horrid and barbarous conspiracy of papists and other trayterous persons to assassinate and murder His Most Gracious Majesty's Royal Person, and for delivering this kingdom from an invasion intended by the French / by Peter Newcome ... ; published at the request of the inhabitants of the said parish.	Newcome, Peter, 1656-1738.	1696 (1696)	Wing N903; ESTC R42212	15,546	31

contriving again for Bondage in confidence to succeed by the frail Inventions and Endeavours of Man so as to overthrow what had been effected by the miraculous Power of the Omnipotent God And what could not be done without so many Miracles they attempt to undo by their own Contrivance As if God would work Miracles to make them again Miserable who had but just been at that expence to deliver them from Misery For how otherwise could the Israelites hope to get into Egypt who got not thence without Manna to feed them a Cloudy Pillar to conduct them and a Sea divided and dry'd up to procure them a Passage thro' it which were all Miracles wrought immediately by God for them and were necessary for their Deliverance and without which or some other such Assistances from God their Return would be impossible For they could not hope to get back without God who were so much obliged to him to get thither where they now were And what an impious and unreasonable Attempt was this in the Israelites to propose to do as much by their own Skill and Power as God had done for them by Miracle Nor is the Rebellion of the Male-Contents in our Israel short of a Parallel herein who 's Attempt was not only to overthrow a Revolution that was visibly effected by an Over-ruling Providence but to bring about another in opposition to it wherein they must hope either to do as much and great things as God without him or presume upon him to contradict himself and to shew himself as signally to help their Return into Slavery as he had done to assist their escape and deliverance from it Both alike impious and vain to expect from God For as Man is not a Match to oppose God in his designs so is he not able to do any thing without his Assistance nor can he reasonably expect this in any thing that is not according to his Holy Purpose Our late Deliverance was visibly the work of God impossible to have ever been effected in such a manner without an Over-ruling Providence and is it not impious folly to Attempt the Undoing of it as it were in spight thereto or to hope that God would so far contradict himself as only for the gratification of a few unreasonable Murmurers to go back with his own work and be ready to shew himself as visibly in another Revolution to Slavery as he did in that for our Deliverance from it And what then is this in the Attempt but a fighting against God as being dissatisfyed with his Providences towards us and presuming upon his subjecting his Councils to ours or else venturing to Act without and against him by undermining and defeating the declared Purposes of his Will What the final Council of the Lord is in this or any other Providential occurrence none can tell But what he hath discovered and we can tell it is not for us to oppose or be discontented with much less to wrest the work out of his hands and of our own heads plot to return whence he hath brought us which is to Oppose our Councils and Power to His or rather to oppose him to himself and is Illegal in the very Attempt both to the Israelites and to our Conspirators And much more then 2. The Fact it self was Wicked Being designed in an Illegal Manner to an ill End by Vnjust Means For it is said to be done in Rebellion contrary to Faith and Allegiance engaged to the Government ordained by God in opposition to Authority owned and accepted of by themselves and which was the Crime as of those Israelites so of our Delinquents For as they had groaned under their Bondage and longed for freedom before Deliverance came and thanked God for the same after they had it and submitted themselves to the Authority by which God wrought it out for them so no less did These whom no remembrance of their former fears nor sence of their late Joy in the Revolution nor Obligation to the present Government by Fealty sworn or Protection accepted could contain in due Obedience But in their Rebellion against Heaven and Earth Interest and Duty Vows and Obligations they Conspire the Disturbance and overthrow of the present Settlement not to Reform and Amend or to proceed in our Deliverance But Oh strange Madness to return to their Bondage Resolving to be Miserable if they may not be just as themselves would be To so ill a purpose do they do so ill and indeed an ill thing cannot be done otherwise and so unreasonable are the Projects of men that regard not or oppose the Council of the Almighty And then to bring about this what is it such stick at The Israelites indeed in their Rebellion the Text tells us appointed a Captain to return to their Bondage They would no longer submit to Governors of Gods appointment but would chuse for themselves as more able and wise to do so after all that had been done for them to provide for their better Settlement Which certainly had Folly and Sin enough in it But yet herein the Parallel seems to outrun the Original For our Conspirators have not only done this but more Intending not only to appoint a New Captain and forsake and depose whom God had appointed for them but Treacherously and Cowardly in cold blood to Murder and Assassinate their old one whom they had no fault to find with but that he was not of their own appointment whom alone God had made the Instrument of all their Blessings and only from whom they could expect the continuance thereof to them A Villany that no pretence whatever can be able to justisy That is not consistent with the Principles of Humane Nature much less of true Religion And therefore henceforward the pretences of Conscience must surely be stifled in a Cause that espouseth so unconscionable Designs It is the Apostle s Doctrine that we must not do evil that good may come thereof Rom. 3.8 the most blessed consequences not being sufficient to Authorize or Justify a wicked Deed much less design evil for evil's sake and attempt a sin in a sinful manner and Rebel for Ruine And therefore this also further illustrates and compleats the Evil and Folly of this Conspiracy both in the Rebellious Israelites and our own Countrey-men That 3. Lastly The Consequences thereof were unavoidably Ruinous and Miserable both to themselves and the whole Nation Because it was not only a frustration of Deliverance but a return to Bondage that was aimed at Egypt and Slavery was to be the Consequence and a subjection to a Government whence neither Liberty nor Religion nor Reward which are the Dearest things men have to be fond of but only a Divine Displeasure and Vengeance might reasonably be expected 1. The loss of all Liberty was the certain consequence of such a Return Exod. 20.2 For Egypt was the House of the Israelites Bondage the most grievous state of their Affliction where they found no Mercy