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	good_a	see_v	2,875	5	3.5208	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97221	Mans fury subservient to Gods glory. A sermon preached to the Parliament at Margarets Westminster Febr. 20. 1656. it being a day of publick thanksgiving. With the addition of an applicatory discourse about the mutuall animosities of Christians, which was omitted for want of time when the sermon was delivered. By John Warren, M.A. minister of the gospel at Hatfield Broad-oak in Essex.	Warren, John, minister of Hatfield Broad Oak, Essex.; England and Wales. Parliament.	1657 (1657)	Wing W974; Thomason E916_7; ESTC R207491	21,447	40

reall subjection of the soul to the Authority and power of Godlinesse and this I propound as a good way to safety among men Follow peace with all men and holinesse Heb. 12.14 Though Holinesse will make men angry with you yet which may seem a Paradox it is the way to overtake peace Meanes 2 Secondly Be Harmlesse to all men It is the Apostles exhortation Phil. 2.15 Be harmlesse as the sons of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation Indeed the word is Hornlesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Be not like Beasts that push and gore their fellows when they have got them in a corner Do violence to no man though you have the sword in your hands Be not oppressive be not injurious to the worst of men when it is in the power of your hand to do them hurt David sayes of his enemies They came about him like bees Psal 118.12 A man may passe through a great swarm of Bees if he goes calmly and quietly along but if he beats and laies about him he is like to have many stings in his skin quickly A man may walk much more safely among adversaries if he walks quietly and harmlesly among them but if he be rough and violent he shall find them as angry as Bees as we use to say David overcame Saul at last by sparing him when he had him in his power and disarmed him by sending him his spear again Meanes 3 Thirdly Be Kind to all not onely to the good but to the evil that you may be like your father which is in heaven We have a brave invitation to this duty Rom. 12.18 19 20. If it be possible as much as in you lieth live peaceably with all men Dearly beloved avenge not your selves c. If thine enemy hunger feed him if he thirst give him drink for in o doing thou shalt heap coles of fire on his head that is melt him if he be ingenuous or else burn him at the last Christians you never had and if you should live these hundred years for ought I know are never like to have a better opportunity to put this duty in practise then now Many of you are full of the goods of this world and many of your enemies are hungry feed them they want rayment clothe them they are reduced to extreme necessity relieve them You will say we have little encouragement to this we see their malice is invincible This is but a poor objection put on courage and charge them with love again be not overcome with evil but overcome evil with good I am speaking to you now as in the capacity of Christians onely not of Magistrates But say some in so doing we may be thought to flatter enemies and to dislike our former heartinesse in a good cause against them I answer You have wayes enough before you to manifest your constancy and fidelity to your principles if you will but if any man will refuse to act in good and just designes for his friends such a one may thank himself if he he suspected and misinterpreted in his charity to his enemies Truly it is a very bad nature which may not be overcome by kindnesse I believe the Devil as bad as men are has a pretty hard taske of it to move them to violence against those godly men that have used them kindly in their need Meanes 4 Fourthly Behave your selves wisely towards them that are without Coloss 4.5 The Apostle propounds this as a way to redeem the time that is to redeem it from the evil of it and make it better A wise carriage among men serves to make the worst of times much better to the godly then otherwise they would be David makes very good shift to live quietly by behaving himself wisely 1 Sam. 18.5 Yea he made Saul though his mortall enemy afraid of him because he behaved himselfe wisely ver 15. When our Saviour sent out his Disciples as Sheep among Wolves he bid them Be wise as Serpents and innocent as Doves I have spoke of the latter already Doubtlesse Christians by their froward rude and unstudied carriage towards wicked men do many times make them much more their enemies then otherwise they would be Meanes 5 Lastly Follow God with earnest prayer for protection This is of excellent use even when other means fail David complaines of his Enemies Psal 109.4 For my love they are my adversaries What should a man doe next in such a case If Love and Kindnesse will not overcome an Adversary what will But if it procures a man enemies or makes them more his enemies what can he doe then I le tell you sayes David what course I take I give my selfe to prayer The Hebrew is short and sweet I to prayer That was my fefuge presently when other helps failed and proved inefficacious Were the spirit of Prayer in as much vigour among us now as it was some yeares agoe we might confidently expect it would as powerfully keep our adversaries down now as it brought them down then These and such like may be good meanes to keep the fire of mans wrath from breaking out into a slame upon us but yet if it should get an egresse as I confesse its very like it will ere long Christians be not discouraged let not your hearts be troubled There are indeed very threatning clouds gathered over our heads and there is much danger unlesse we could accord better in the means of prevention that our Cities and Townes must feel the fire again shortly our Streets be washt with blood our Fields made fat with the bodies of the slain and our selves and those that are dearest to us be made the subjects of such cruelties as were lately acted upon the poore English in Ireland and the Protestants in Piedmont But I should draw too many black lines upon the face of this dayes Solemnities if I should more fully speak my apprehension of the state of things God grant us many more Thanksgiving daies But yet Christians be not terrified at the wrath of man be it never so hot it is and shall be so managed by the power of God that in all its issues and results it shall contribute to and promote his praise Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee This is the second thing propounded to your consideration in the Text and I confesse the principall Doctrine of it but I must handle it very briefly having exceeded in the former Doctr 2 The wrath of wicked men against the people of God is very tributary to his praise I shall first prove it by some instances in which the wrath of man against the godly turns eminently to the glory of God and then conclude in a word or two of Application First It puts them upon many subtil Devices and cunning Stratagems in frustrating of which the wisdome of God and his care of his Church is very much illustrated Hamans anger made him tenter his wit and policy to contrive that wicked plot

MANS FURY SUBSERVIENT TO GODS GLORY A SERMON preached to the Parliament at Margarets Westminster Febr. 20. 1656. it being a day of publick Thanksgiving WITH The Addition of an Applicatory Discourse about the Mutuall Animosities of Christians which was omitted for want of time when the Sermon was delivered By JOHN WARREN M. A. Minister of the Gospel at Hatfield Broad-oak in Essex LONDON Printed by J.G. for Nathanael Webb and William Grantham at the black Bear in Paul's Church-yard near the little North door 1657. CELSISSIMO HONORATISSIMOque SENATUI TOTIUS ANGLIAE SCOTIAE ET HIBERNIAE IN PUBLICIS CONCILIIS REPRAESENTATIVO CONCIONEM HANC QUALEM QUALEM NUPER APUD EUNDEM HABITAM IN HUMILLIMAE OBSERVANTIAE ET OFFICII MONUMENTUM D.D.D. Servorum Christi Minimus JOHANNES VVARREN A SERMON Preached before the PARLIAMENT FEBRUARY 20. It being a Day of THANKSGIVING PSAL. 76.10 Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee the remainder of wrath wilt thou restrain THe Psalm is for the day Eucharisticall a Psalm of Praise and hath as many learned men conceive a Propheticall Respect to the great Deliverance of Ierusalem from the Assyrian Army and the miraculous Destruction of that Adversary by the hand of an Angel of which we read 2 King 19.35 Indeed some passages in the Psalm seem to look a little that way Non est ut pro certâ aliquâ historiâ assignandâ ad quam hic psalmus respiciat anxiè laboremus Muscul and the Septuagint have added to the title these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Song against the Assyyrian which 't is like hath carried some Interpreters But whether the Psalm were calculated purposely for that point in the circle of Providence or no a question in which I labour not it may serve indifferently for the use and comfort of the people of God in all ages upon all rejoicing occasions especially such as respect their preservation against their enemies In the Psalm we have Ecclesiae omnium aetatum psalmus est intelligendus Moller 1. Materialls of Gods Praise propounded in the 10. first verses 2. An Exhortation to it subjoyned ver 11. The Matter of praise here gathered up may be reduced to two Heads 1. Gods gracious Presence and Manifestation of himself in his Church v. 1 2. 2. His eminent Appearance for them against their Adversaries v. 3 to 11. In the Latter he is celebrated under a double habitude 1. Of a Mighty Champion discomfiting the Enemies v. 3 4. to 8. 2. Of a Supreme Judge deciding the Quarrel between them his people v. 8 9 10. And in his Judgement observe 1. The publicknesse of it It was heard from Heaven 2. The Majesty of it It imprest fear and silence on the earth v. 8. 3. The Effect of it The salvation of the Meek on earth v. 9. So the people of God are often called in Scripture O that the Character were more agreeing to us in these dayes 4. The End and Design of it exprest in the manner of an Epiphonema a Rhetoricall closure to the rest in the words which I have chosen Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee c. Though the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be usually causall Explication yet is it many times and especially in the beginning of a Sentence apertive onely and little more then expletive as Prov. 30.2 and so our Translatours with others render it here Certè furor hominis Surely the wrath of man c. But if we read it Quoniam as Hierom and many others do and so run the sense of the former part of the verse into the latter it may seem very convenient thus Because the wrath of man shall praise thee thou wilt restrain the remainder or excesses of it and so it makes the praise of God the finall cause of his restraint upon the wrath of man However the import of the words is the same both wayes The wrath of man is not so well understood in a passive sense according to the Chaldee for the wrath of God upon Man as in the Active signification Vide Musculum in locum as it notes wrath subjected in man and so the word Man is to be limited or extended rather to wicked men in their wrath against the godly and so the word Man and Men is often used as Mat. 10. Beware of men i. e. of Wicked men And Psal 9.19 Let not man prevail i. e. Evil men c. Shall praise thee It is a Tropical Expression in which the Production of the Effect is imputed to that which doth but administer some kind of cause or occasion to it Verbum quod actum ceu effectum denotat de occasione ejus aliquando intelligendum est Glassius So Judas is said to purchase a Field Acts 1.18 because he provided the Money And Zedekiah is said to burn Jerusalem Jer. 38.23 Dignitatem tuam illustrabit hominum injuria Cic. ad Lentul see the Margin because as our Translation has it in the line he occasioned it to be burnt So the wrath of Man shall praise God That is it shall afford matter for his praise and occasion men to praise him The remainder of wrath may be taken for the people of God that out-live the wrath of men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Joel 1.4 The remainder of the Palmer worm signifies that which the Palmer worm hath left so Iunius and others understand by the remainder of wrath the godly that escape the wrath of wicked men But our English Bible goes the plainer way taking The remainder of wrath for those excessive Eruptions of it which might redound to the dishonour of God or which are more then he will use to his praise The remainder of wrath wilt thou restrain Maldonat c. Pontif. Restrain The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies to Gird and is here used for a coercive girding such as that of Peter when he stretched out his hands another girded him Joh. 21.18 i. e. bound him as a prisoner or tied him to the Cross as some will needs have it Yet they that take it for a corroborative girding and refer it to the godly whom the wrath of enemies leaves undestroyed as Junius and others do in the result resolve the words into the same sense viz. That the wrath of man shall by the over-ruling hand of God be made to conduce to his praise and that it may do so and not proceed to his dishonour he will restrain it from excesses and confirm his people against it So much for Explication In the words thus expounded note 1. The Evil Affection of men to the people of God They are angry with them The wrath of man 2. The good Event of that Evil. It shall praise God 3. Gods Restraint upon it to that end The remainder of wrath thou wilt restrain Of the first of these The evil affection of men to the godly And it gives us ground for this Doctrinall

a man doth not speak as much evil and as bitter words against others as we our selves do men must reproch with us those whom we reproch and revile with us those whom we revile or we shall be angry with them Is this to be angry at Sin or will you call this good Anger Secondly We are often angry with our Brethren for those things in which we do but suppose them to be sinners And this 1. Sometimes supposing that to be sin in them which is not And 2. Sometimes supposing them to be in that sin in which they are not 1. Sometimes we are angry at that which we do but suppose to be sin in our brethren as their lawfull liberty yea sometimes their very duty We are offended at them as if they had sinned highly against God in that wherein they have not exceeded the bounds of the liberty which God allowes them Nor it may be of the duty which he injoynes them Thus Moses was angry with the sons of Aaron Lev. 10.16 for not eating the Sin-offering in the holy place as if they had sinned beyond all defence And yet when Aaron had plainly opened the matter to him and shewed him the reason of it Moses was content v. 19 20. That Anger might well have been spared for a fitter occasion So the weak is angry with him that eats flesh Rom. 14. And so the Jewes were offended with Peter for eating with the Gentiles Act. 11. Though it was not his liberty onely but his duty to do it Of this sort are most of our angry prejudices against our brethren in point of opinion meer mistakes we think their principles corrupt because they do not use just our terms and notions when upon enquiry they prove as sound in the Faith as our selves and count them dissenters who are of the same mind with our selves if we were but cool enough to hear or willing to understand one another It was Theodosius his penance injoyned by Ambrose for a rash piece of cruelty that alwayes when he condemned an offender he stould stay thirty dayes before he executed the sentence And by this means upon wiser second thoughts many a mans life was saved O how much of our anger might be prevented if we would but take time to consider the cause before we admit the passion It 's an easie matter to grow hot against a man for his opinion his action or practise which we allow not but it is not alwayes so soon proved to be sin unlesse we think our selves fit to be other mens Oracles and count it necessary that their judgements should be immediately determined by our own But we are presently angry at a venture if men seem to vary from us Were we as free of our purses as we are of our passions we should be the most generous people in the world And yet if Christ himself misreckon it not a man had better part with many summes of money for nothing then be once angry with his brother without a cause He that is angry with his brother without cause shall be in danger of the judgement Mat. 5.22 2. Again Sometimes we are angry with our brethren for sin when we do but vainly suppose them to be in it or guilty of it So Eliab was angry with David for pride and naughtinesse of heart which he supposed brought him to the army and made him neglect his calling when if he had been calm enough to consider it he might have found another cause of his coming 1 Sam. 17.28 29. Thus when we see men willingly undertake publick employments presently we judge they are proud and do it for honour or covetousness and do it to enrich themselves and this supposed pride and covetousnesse of their hearts suffices us for a cause of anger Do we observe men kind and courteous to enemies presently we think they fall into a compliance with them Do men carry themselves gently and tenderly towards erroneous persons immediately we suppose them to be of their party Or if we see a man peaceably moderating between dissenters endeavouring to bring them to a good accord among themselves he is condemned as a Mongrel an Ambodexter or a Neuter a man that is any thing and nothing in his principles Thus we make men sinners in our own conceits and then grow angry with them or which I doubt is more usuall first we are angry with them and then we imagine them to be sinners Shall we call this a good Anger Or do we well thus to be angry Secondly Anger is good ratione egressus when it uses good means to exert and put forth it self otherwise let the cause be what it will the anger is naught Good Anger expresses it self in Christian reproofs and admonitions and makes a man vehement in perswasions to reformation yea vents it self in prayers and teares for the offending party It 's said of our Saviour that when he was angry with the Pharisees he was grieved for the hardnesse of their hearts Mar. 9.5 And when he could not but be angry with Jerusalem for killing the Prophets and stoning them that were sent unto it he beheld the City and wept over it Lu. 19.41 You that are angry with your Brethren have you plainly admonished them or do you indeed hate them in your hearts It 's Gods own Antithesis Levit. 17.19 If you have not done the former you are guilty of the later In this sense the Philosophers words agree well to good anger that it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Arist Rhet. and he that hates his Brother is a Man-slayer O that men would seriously consider it Again have you mourned over your offending brethren and prayed for them in relation to their sin If your Anger be good it will make you mourn in earnest desires for them with whom you are angry that their sin may be pardoned and removed But do not your hearts tell you that you are angry many times for things of which you cannot for shame complain to God You dare not you dare not tell those angry stories to God in prayer which you will passionately rattle over to your friends behind the offenders back Again Have you used the properest means to reduce the offending party and to gain him off from that which you conceive to be his sin This is to some purpose there is some wisdome in such anger But from whence come the wars and fightings that are among professed Christians not from any pious Zeal or good Anger but from your lusts that warre in your members Jam. 4.1 What must we think of that Anger which spends or rather feeds it self in brawlings raylings bitter invectives and biting language God will not justifie such anger no not in Moses himself though it be occasioned by sin Heare now ye rebels said the good man once in his haste but he had better have bit his tongue and held his peace God gave him a sad remembrance of it afterward What kind of anger