Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	good_a	great_a	know_v	5,049	5	3.5427	3	true

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A59651	Divine providence, the support of good men under all events a sermon preached before the Lord Mayor, &c. at Guild-Hall Chappel, June 20th, 1680 / by William Shelton, rector of St. James, Colchester.	Shelton, William, d. 1699.	1680 (1680)	Wing S3098; ESTC R37383	13,523	41

Transgression so that this Objection overthrows it self The very being of Sin in the world supposes Providence but I add to that answer God has done so much to prevent Sin and to over-rule it and will do so much in the punishing of it that this can be no reasonable Objection against Providence 1. In order to the prevention of Sin God has declared his pleasure in Commanding the contrary he has offered the assistance of his Holy Spirit that Sin may not have Dominion over us He withholds no help or aid that he is bound to give but if in the offering or bestowing this Assistance he think not fit to do violence to the nature of a reasonable Creature it ought not to be wondred at He forbids sin and makes known the danger of it and earnestly sollicits men to turn from their evil ways Why will ye die O House of Israel But if men will abuse their own liberty this is enough to vindicate the Providence of God toward those that remain wicked he deals with them as with reasonable Creatures Men are wanting to themselves God is not wanting to them 2. As God has done much to prevent Sin so does he likewise over-rule it He restrains it and makes it serve his own Glory so succeeded the Envy of Joseph's Brethren and the malice of the Jews to our blessed Saviour And in many other cases God has brought good out of evil and thereby declared that his Providence governs the world Especially when 3. It is considered that God will punish the sin he so much hates But this is of it self another Objection 2. If God govern the world why does Providence seem so lame and unconcern'd when men dare the Justice of God and defie Heaven and grow enormously wicked Yet The wicked live become old and are mighty in power Their Houses are safe from fear neither is the Rod Job 21. of God upon them I answer as followeth 1. Who can tell that the Vengeance of God does not often overtake wicked men when to outward appearance they brave hector and live as if nothing disturbed them There are secret throbings of Conscience which men strive to preserve from outward notice and so long as those inward Horrors do not approach very near dispair they may be undiscerned But the Heart knows its own bitterness the mind of man doth severely lash itself And from hence may it rationally be argued to the conviction of those that quarrel at Providence Juven Satyr 13. Cur tamen hos tu Evasisse putes quos diri conscia facti Mens habet attonitos surdo verbere caedit Occultum quatiente animo tortore flagellum Do you think wicked men escape the vengeance of God No the Viper gnaws and torments within Dreadful are the Agonies Bitter is the distress and anguish that men feel in their own minds Or if this do not always happen yet for ought a by-stander knows it may happen and even then when men outwardly ruffle and seem to sin without fear But 2. is our Eye evil because God is good What if the long-suffering of God wait upon men that his goodness may lead them to Repentance this must not be accounted an Imputation upon Providence 3. God has it in his power to animadvert when he pleases And therefore no wonder if he delay that execution which he can hasten at his own pleasure For 4. Punishment shall come and the longer it is deferred the more dreadful it shall at last be Sometimes Providence justifies it self and meets with men in this world by many strange discoveries of Treasons and Murders and Robberies and other licentious practices God has honoured the Justice of his Administrations or if he sometimes delay Yet 5. The revelation of the Righteous Judgment of Rom. 2. God at the last and great day will give all men satisfaction that the righteous God is not now an Idle and unconcern'd spectator of the wickedness of men for then he will reward every man according to his deeds 3 There remains but one thing more to be argued in this matter Why does a gracious and good God so little regard holy men in the midst of those tribulations they suffer in this World A common objection and some have boldly expressed it When Lucan finds Pompey whom he thought the better man and to have the juster cause ruin'd by Caesar how does he exclaime and blaspheme Lucan Lib 7. Sunt nobis nulla profectÃ² Numina cum caeco rapiantur saecula cursu Mentimur regnare Jovem So Atheistical men may talk but holy men notwithstanding all they suffer in this world are not dissatisfied in their Religion Though God slay them yet they will trust in him And by Job 13. their casting all their care upon him it appears they 1 S. Pet. 5. believe he takes care of them If we consider farther that no man suffers more than he deserves that it is good for men to be afflicted If Psal 119. we can believe that the promises which suppose that holy men may be afflicted shall be fulfilled to them God will never leave them nor Hebr. 13. Psal 46. Rom. 5. forsake them He will be a present help in trouble and will work all things for good And if we can rise up to St. Pauls confidence about the happy issue of our present sorrows That our light Affliction which is but for a moment shall work 2. Cor. 4. for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory I say if we can believe these things then neither is this any sufficient prejudice against Providence I may conclude then the first part of my undertaking The Lord Reigns the Providence of God governs the World 2 This is a great satisfaction to the mind of man The Lord Reigns let the Earth rejoyce We meet with enough in this world to make it a vale of Tears Sometimes we foresee a storm sometimes we sail in the midst of Rocks and are just ready to strike upon the Sands Few are so over-happy as not to be often ingaged in considerable difficulties but we may always Hebr. 6. ride at Anchor such is our hope in God an Anchor sure and stedfast Yea we may weather out the Storm for if we can trust our Pilot he will never fail us Under all our sorrows and fears it is an unspeakable satisfaction to commit our selves to the never failing guidance of the good Providence of God And of this I say three things 1 Those things of which we are ignorant are known to a wise God 2 Those things which are against our wills which we apprehend evil for us are guided and ordered by the will of a good God 3 Those things which are out of our power are within the Power of Almighty God 1 Our Ignorance is one great cause of our sollicitude and dissatisfaction What would some men give certainly to foreknow their own fortune Alas In many cases

our Ignorance is a great advantage to us Horat. Carm. lib. 3. Prudens futuri temporis Exitum CaliginosÃ¢ nocte premit Deus God does wisely and mercifully conceal some things a foreknowledge of which would add to our sorrow But take the case as it is we are utterly uncertain about the time to come But how will this consideration calme those troubled thoughts that upon this account arise within us The wise God knows what shall befall us tho' we do'n't Great are the anxieties upon the minds of men in the present posture of Affairs But now try we if this will not relieve us What time I Psal 56. am afraid I will trust in thee Thou O Lord Job 5. art able to take the wise in their own craftiness In Psal 31. thee O Lord have I put my trust let me never be confounded Is not this now an ease to our minds A wise God governs the World He knows what shall come to pass and why It is not blind chance but infinite wisdom that superintends and governs all things If men go down to Hell God is there The most probable contrivances of desperate Ahitophel's whose Counsel among men is received as the Oracle of God may yet be turned into foolishness 2. Sam. 17. and end in their own confusion and in a rage impatient to see their Plots miscarry they may save the labour of publick Justice and hang themselves The subtilest platform of Policy of the most Atheistical Machiavels may be as unfortunate as that of his wretched Duke Valentine and may prove abortive from some unforeseen accident to which they themselves may yet contribute The mysterious Intrigues of the most villanous Jesuits or if there be any other name among men that signifies greater Apostacy from Faith and Truth and closer confederacy with Hell that were ever hatched in the most inward Recesses of the depth of Darkness these all are but like Spiders Webs thin and transparent and as easily swept down when Infinite Wisdom shall think fit to make use of Almighty Power This then is our Comfort and our Joy when they who are too cunning for us have advantages upon us he who is wiser than the wisest takes care of us Yea moreover when we are disappointed in our expectations this may satisfy us It is with us as it pleases the all-wise God Peradventure we are mistaken in our own business and may passionately desire what may be to our loss However shall we have less Religion than the Heathen shall it be harder for us to resign our wills and wisdoms to God Juveâ— Sat. 10. Permittes ipsis expendere Numinibus quid Conveniat nobis rebusque sit utile nostris It may come to pass that our very Errors may be happy for us as was St. Austin's being Posidonius de vitÃ¢ August led out of his way by the error of his Guide and thereby he was preserved from the fury of the Circumcellion's that way-laid him Whatever befalls us God is wiser than we he who knows all things best knows what is fit and convenient for us 2. That which is against our wills which we apprehend evil for us is guided by the will of a good God and this is marvelously to our satisfaction Now we may rejoyce in tribulation because the hand of a good God is still upon us and he will work even this for good the Life of Dr. Hammond Incomparable Dr. Hammond's word Even this for good When our affairs succeed not according to our expectation shall we quarrel at Providence and disquiet our selves and add to our own Afflictions by the fretfulness and impatience of our minds No say we every one to our selves why should I entertain any suspition that a merciful God who has made so many gracious promises which my dear Saviour dyed to confirm will be wanting to me No never let me distrust that God whom I have so much reason to love Wisdom and goodness joyn together in the dispose of all that befalls me therefore will I rejoyce in the Lord Habak 3. and joy in the God of my Salvation 3. Those things that are out of our power are within the Power of Almighty God We are troubled upon many accounts and can't help our selves and because we can't help our selves we are troubled but he that governs us and our affairs can do all things by the word of his power When we come into Jehoshaphat's case then are we to behave our selves as he did Neither know we what to do but our Eyes are 2 Chron. 20. upon thee The Lords hand is not shortned that it Isa 59. cannot save Nothing is too hard for him to do God Almighty has undertaken our protection wherefore when we consider these in conjunction the wisdom and goodness and power of God are sufficient reasons for our satisfaction and joy And if we extend these latter Considerations as well as the former beyond our private Concerns and suffer our thoughts to travel the world we shall indeed find that the follies and passions and interests of men bear great sway here below and in a great measure turn the world upside down Restless Ambition insatiable Envy greedy Covetousness and Implacable Revenge have often disturb'd the peace and quiet of Mankind yet sure we are God has not let loose these Furies and discharged them of his super-intendence nor privileg'd them from his Controul We shall too curiously pry into the Arcana Imperii if we will not be satisfied till we can always render a reason why things are thus or so The Judgments of God are often unsearchable and his ways past finding out but an humble Soul can trust it self and the whole world with God can believe that all things are well and wisely order'd is secure that the all-wise God can commit no errors that a good God cannot be chargeable with any male-administrations and that God Almighty does not suffer things to run at random because of any impotency to mend what is amiss It would be uncomfortable living in the world if all things were left to the arbitrement of meer men who at best are too weak to bear so great a burthen and often are so corrupt that Maximilian's Exclamation may suit other times as well as his own when he was Emperor and Julius 2d Pope Deus Aeterne nisi tu vigilares quam malÃ¨ effet Morn Histor Papatus mundo quem regimus nos ego miser venator ebriosus ille sceleratus Julius But God retains his Supremacy over all the Kingdoms and Nations of the Earth he does never sleep nor intermit his care it shall not be intirely as men please He that stills the raging of the Sea restrains the madness of People A great part of mankind know not of what manner of Spirit they are and how much mischief they should do if they had power to fulfil their own wills But when it pleases God to put an hook

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