Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	good_a	king_n	lord_n	4,716	5	3.8323	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A70295	The humble petition and representation of the sufferings of several peaceable, and innocent subjects, called by the name of Anabaptists, inhabitants in the county of Kent, and now prisoners in the goal of Maidstone, for the testimony of a good conscience. Together with their free and faithful acknowledgement of the King's authority and dignity in civil things, over all manner of persons, ecclesiastical and civil, within His Majesties dominions. With their reasons, meriting the King's protection in their civil and spiritual rights, equal with other His Majesties obedient subjects. Humbly offered to the King's Majesty, and the consideration of our fellow brethren and subjects. Well worthy general observation.	Jeffery, William, 1616-1693.	1661 (1661)	Wing H3444; ESTC R214927	7,358	20

The HUMBLE PETITION AND REPRESENTATION OF THE Sufferings of several Peaceable and Innocent Subjects Called by the Name of ANABAPTISTS Inhabitants in the County of Kent and now Prisoners in the Goal of Maidstone for the Testimony of a good Conscience Together with their Free and Faithful Acknowledgement of the King's Authority and Dignity in Civil things over all manner of Persons Ecclesiastical and Civil within His Majesties Dominions With their Reasons Meriting the King's Protection in their Civil and Spiritual Rights equal with other His Majesties Obedient Subjects Humbly Offered to the King's Majesty and the Consideration of our Fellow Brethren and Subjects Well worthy General Observation Act. 17. He hath made of one Bloud all Nations of men c. Job 4.7 Remember I pray thee who ever perished being Innocent or where were the Upright destroyed Job 34.28 So that they have Caused the Voice of the Poor to come unto him and he hath heard the Cry of the Afflicted Rom. 14.3 Let not him that Eateth despise him that Eateth not and let not him which eateth not condemne him that Eateth for God hath received him London Printed for Francis Smith at the Elephant and Castle near Temple-Bar 1660. TO HIS MAJESTY Charles the Second KING of England Scotland France and Ireland and the Dominions thereunto belonging May it Please Your MAJESTY FOrasmuch as by Authority derived from your Self several of us your Subjects inhabitants in the County of Kent are now imprisoned it therefore much concerns Thee O King to hear what Accompt we give of our present distressed Condition Thou hast already seen our Confession of Faith wherein our peaceable Resolutions were declared we have not violated any part thereof that should cause that Liberty promised from Breda to be with-drawn And now for our Principles that most particularly relate to Magistrates and Government we have with all clearnesse laid them here before Thee Humbly beseeching they may be Read patiently and what we say weighed in the ballance of the Sanctuary and then judge how worthy we are of either Bonds or Imprisonment and this we the more earnestly desire because not only our own lives is in danger but also an irresistable Destruction cometh on our Wives and little Ones by that violence which is now exercised on us Disdain not our plainness of Speaking seeing the Great God accepts of the like And now O King that all Thy Proceedings both towards us and all men may be such as may be pleasing unto the eternal God in whose hands your and our breath is who ere long will judge both quick and dead according to their works is the Prayers of Thy Faithful Subjects and Servants The Prisoners in the Goale of Maidstone for the Testimony of a good Conscience A free and faithful acknowledgement of the Kings Authority and Dignity in Civil things over all manner of Persons Ecclesiastical and Civil within His Majesties Dominions c. GOD that hath made of one Bloud all Nations of men Acts 17.26 for to dwell on all the face of the Earth and hath determined the Times before appointed and the bounds of their Habitation hath made this Land the Place of our Nativity and Abode by which we have an Interest in Common with others Thy Subjects in this Nation so that none can Deprive us of that which is our Propriety and Native Birth-rights without violating the Laws of God and Nature Yet may it please Thee O King as if that Law of doing unto others as we would be done unto had never been Written neither any Bounds set unto the Wills of men We Thy Imprisoned Subjects have some of us had our Houses broken open in the dead of the Night without producing any Authority from Thee or any inferior Minister under Thee our Goods and Cattel taken away from some others and yet detained from us Our Bodies some taken from our own Dwellings and others from our peaceable Meetings and made Prisoners and this done unto many of us some Dayes before Thy Proclamation was Published which proceedings doth bring great Distress and Ruine to our selves and Families for such is our mean Condition in this World that almost all of us have our outward Subsistance through the blessing of God on our daily Labours Also some amongst us that were Employed in the Publick Service at Chatham and at Sea being yet unpaid The Bread which our Families have Eat this 10 or 12 Months hath been taken up upon Credit and all of us being detained from our Employments the Cryes of our Families who suffer Hunger becomes great And now O King that the Oppressed may be Relieved and Justice and Judgment Executed amongst men and the Creation of God kept from being a Chaos of Confusion The God of Order hath Ordained Government and setteth up Magistrates to Execute such Power as is given from himself for the Ends aforesaid And this we have alwayes Asserted in our Discourses and Writings as appears in our Declaration of Faith Printed about Three Months before Thy coming over and Re-printed and Presented to Thy Self above Four Months since And as for Thy Self O King we do believe and do freely acknowledge That the Authority and Dignity that Thou now hast in being Chief Governour over this Kingdom and its Dominions is given Thee of God whose the Kingdomes of the World are and he giveth them unto whomsoever he vvill Dan. 5.21 And Promotion cometh neither from the East nor from the West nor from the South but God is the Judge he putteth dovvn one and setteth up another Psal 75.6 7. So saith the New Testament The Povvers that be are ordained of God Rom. 13.1 And seeing the Lord Jesus hath commanded us his Servants To give unto Cesar the things that are Cesars Mat. 22.21 Therefore shall we pay Custome and Tribute unto Thee and in all temporal Causes and Things shall we yield cheerful obedience not onely to thy self as Supream but also to all inferiour Magistrates sent by thee and this we do not only for wrath but also for Conscience sake knowing that God hath given thee Power to punish any that shall do that unto another which he would not have done unto himself and in so doing thou wilt be a Minister of God to us for good a revenge to execute wrath upon him that doth evil And whereas it is alleged against us as a Crime that we cannot acknowledge any Authority that God hath given Thee in spiritual Things or Causes yet if thou wouldst condescend to the reading and ferious considering our ensuing Reasons it is possible we may be justified by Thee as in this matter we are in the sight of God whose Word not onely in this but in all other Causes we desire to make our Rule O King we therefore beseech Thee to consider if Thou hast any power to be a Lord over our Faith or by outward force to impose any thing in the Worship of God on our Consciences it is given unto Thee as

Generation and there will be no remedy 4. To inflict temporal punishments upon any of us thy Subjects for not conforming to Thy Decrees that restrains us from the Worship that we know to be of God Is it not a breach of that Royal Law that commands Thee That vvhatsoever ye vvould that men should do to you do you even so to them for this is the Lavv and the Prophets Mat. 7.12 And we would in all humility offer to Thy consideration if Thy Soul were in our Souls stead wouldest thou be satisfied with the same measure as is now dealt unto us when neither the God of Heaven nor our own Consciences doth condemn us of any evil intended against Thy Person or Authority nor can the greatest of our Enemies make any due proof of any Combination or Plotting with any upon the face of the Earth for the disturbance of the publick Peace And this we can with boldness say because we know our own Innocency But whereas it is Objected That the Kings of Israel and Judah under the Old Testament had power in spiritual Causes and did punish Blasphemy and Idolatry which are crimes of the highest nature against God we confess they had such power which was given to them in plain Precepts written in the Law of Moses but the Gospel that we live under is another Dispensation in which the Lord Jesus is the onely Law-giver who doth not as Moses proceed against the Transgressors of his Precepts by external force and power to the destroying them in their Bodies and Estates in this life 1 Thes 1.9 2 Pet. 3.9 Acts 17.31 but in long-suffering waits on men not willing they should perish but rather that they should repent and be saved and when any continues in disobedience to the Gospel his punishment is eternal in the world to come the Apostle Paul testifies of himself That he vvas a Blasphemer and Persecutor 1 Tim. 1.20 And if the mind of God had been that he should have suffered death in that condition How should he have had repentance given him and been such a glorious Instrument in the Church as afterward he was Furthermore it is too well known that the Jews are the greatest Blaspemers against our Lord Jesus Christ as is on the earth yet it is not the Mind of the Lord they should be destroyed from the Face of the Earth for how then should the Scripture be fulfilled wherein God hath promised to call them and make them the most glorious Nation in the World Oh how can they be converted if they be not permitted where the Gospel is Preached We speak not this in favour of any blasphemy for our Souls abhors it but because we would have the Lives of men as pretious in Thy Eyes O King as they are in the Eyes of the Righteous and most Holy God 5. As it is no wayes lawful from the Word of God for Christian Magistrates to destroy and root out the contrary minded in Religious Matters although Idolaters So such proceedings may many times prove inconsistent with the very being of Nations for suppose any Nation were wholly Heathenish Idolators and the Word of God coming in amongst them should convert the chief Magistrates and twentieth part of the Nation more must he with that twentieth part destroy all the other nineteen if they will not be converted but continue in their Heathenish Idolatry It cannot possibly be supposed to be warrantable From all this that we have said thou O King mayest see that not without Grounds do we deny the taking the Oath of thy Supremacy which calls for obedience as well in Spiritual Ecclesiastical things and Causes as Temporal not but that we can freely acknowledge thee to be Supream Governour of all Persons as well Ecclesiastical as Temporal but still in temporal Causes and things We do also as freely Renounce all forreign Jurisdictions and Powers whatsoever that any on the Earth may pretend to have over any of thy Dominions or Subjects And whereas some have said that no more is required in the Oath Considered together with the Proviso in the Statute of the 5 Elizabeth and the Queens Admonition Yet we Humbly conceive there is Because the Queen both in the Proviso and Admonition Challenges such a Power as was Challenged by her Father King Henry the 8. which was to Burn his Subjects at the Stake for their Dissenting from him in Religious Matters as by his practice appeared And the Queen her self exercised the same Authority in putting some to Death for their Conscience in Religion And whereas many of us that are now prisoners cannot take the Oath of Allegiance because we cannot swear at all the Lord Christ having forbidden in that fifth of Mat. 33. compared with Iames 5.12 not onely vain Oaths but also such swearing as was delivered of old time and lawful under the Law as in our Consciences we are perswaded and therefore before now under former powers have denyed to swear Yet God is our Witnesse who is the Searcher of all Hearts we deny not this Oath because we would not yield due Subjection and Obedience to Thee and Thy Authority for this we say in the presence of him that shall judge the quick and dead we do without any deceit promise to live peaceably under Thy Government and in case any thing should be by thee cōmanded in Spiritual Matters wherein we cannot obey we shall not then take up any Carnal or Temporal Weapon against Thee or Thy Authority but patiently suffer such punishment as shall be inflicted on us for our Consciences And now may it please Thee O King that these Engagements which we Humbly tender unto Thee may be accepted of by Thee and not destruction brought on us our Families for not taking of an Oath when the engagements before recited taken before some Justice of the Peace in a solemn manner with calling God to witnesse to the truth of what we say without doubt answers the end of the Law that enjoyns the Oath of Allegeance and may be as much security from us to Thee as if we took many Oaths Why should the very rigor of the Law be exercised on us Yea but that we fear we are too tedious unto Thee we could make it clear that the late dealing of thy inferiour Ministers hath been such tovvards us as neither Lavv nor custom hath prescribed And novv having faithfully laid our condition and Principles so far as they relate to Magistrates or Government before thee We therefore beseech Thee O King that Liberty may be given us to vvorship our God and such bovvels of compassion be in Thee as to give us such speedy relief as may be agreeable to the Mind of God which made Heaven and Earth which executed judgement for the oppressed which giveth food to the hungry the Lord looseth the Prisoners Psalm 146.7 Signed by us in the Name of the Baptists now Prisoners in the Goal at Maydstone William Jeffery John Reve. George Hammon James Blackmore Dated the 25th day of the 11th moneth commonly called January FINIS