Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	great_a	king_n	place_n	2,555	5	4.1871	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10027	A sermon of spirituall life and death Preached before the king, at White-Hal, Nouember, 1616 by the late faithfull minister of Iesus Christ, Iohn Preston, Dr. In Diuinity, chapplaine in ordinar[y] to his maiesty, Mr. of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher at Lincolnes Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.	1630 (1630)	STC 20278; ESTC S114308	21,702	38

his house Solomon how glorious was his rising like a bright morning without cloudes and so he continued till the euening of his life but when he begunne to suffer rebellions in his Kingdome against God in matter of religion as it is said Hee set vp Ashteroth the abhomination of the Zidonians and Milcom the abhomination of the Ammonites c. then God stirred vp rebellions against him Then it is said that Hadad and Reisin and Ieroboham his owne seruant lift vp his hand against him as it is said in the text the Lord stirred him vp for that cause so that as long as Solomon did the actions of this life God prospered him continually in high degree when hee fell from it he fell from his peace that hee had So God interlaceth the life of grace with the life of ioy and peace and outward prosperitie And the like you see in his son Rehoboā for 3. yeeres when hee sought the Lord saith the text and did the actions of this life 2. Chro. 11. 17. so long he prospered things went well with him and in Ierusalem but after 3. yeeres hee forsooke the Lord and suffered the people to make them high places then saith the text in the 5. yeere of his reigne God gaue him 2. yeeres respite hee powred out his wrath vpon him and vpon Ierusalem by the hand of Shishak King of Aegipt because they had transgressed against the Lord. Where it is to bee obserued that it was not because that Shishak the King of Aegipt was angry with Rehoboam for it is not said it was Shishaks wrath but the Lords wrath Shishak was but the instrument he was but the viol through which it was powred vpon him But an example you shall finde of this most cleare in Vzziah 2. Chro. 26. 5. it is said Vzziah sought the Lord all the daies of Zachariah the Prophet and as long as hee sought the Lord God made him to prosper As long as hee did the actions of this life the life of ioy prosperity and peace ran along with it But after in vers 10. when the Lord had helped him that hee grew mighty then saith the text his heart was lifted up to destruction that euen as you see blasings Comets though they be but Comets yet as long as they keepe aloft they shine bright but when they begin to decline from their pitch they fall to the earth So when men forsake the Lord and mind earthly things then they lose their light and are dissipated and come to destruction Whereas on the other side you see all holy and good Kings that liued the life of grace constantly they shined in the dark World as Stars in a dark night neither losing their light nor falling from their place And this you shall finde in al the Stories of the Kings of Israel Iudah that either the suffering of Idolatry and superstition at home or the resting vpon Ashur and Egypt abroad was the cause of all their miseries For when they were in distresses they sought to these nations that proued broken reeds that did not onely deceiue them but run into their sides On the other side you may obserue that those that liued this life of grace perfectly whose hearts were with God that they emptied out all the old leauen of Idolatrie and superstition at home and in all their distresses they trusted vpon God And you shall finde it proportionablie as they did it more or lesse so they prospered As you may see in Asa it is the Prophets owne speech to him from the Lord in the 2. Chron. 16. 7. 8. saith he Because thou hast relied on the King of Syriah not relied on the Lord thy God therefore is the hoast of the King of Syriah escaped out of thine hand were not the Aethiopians and the Lubims an huge hoast with very many chariots and horsemen Yet because thou reliedst vpon the Lord hee deliuered them into thy hand Asa when a mighty companie came against him of Lubim● and Aethiopians that were as it is in the chap. before as the sands because hee rested on the Lord he gaue him the victorie ouer them afterwards a small army escaped his hands why Because hee rested vpon the King of Aram. So likewise Iehosaphat when hee came back from helping Achab at the battell at Ramoth Gilead the Prophet Iehu meets him in 2. Chro. 19. 2. and saith vnto himthus Oh Iehosaphat wilt thou help the wicked wilt thou loue those that hate the Lord Wrath is gone out against thee So in the next Chap. ver 2. it is said that a great Army came from beyond the Sea and Iehosaphat was sore afraid and likwise when hee ioined with Ahaziah to make ships to goe to Tarshish the Prophet Eliezer goes to him and tells him that God bad broken the Ships at Ezion Geber because hee had ioined with Ahaziah the son of Achab 2. Chron. 20. the last verses I might giue you many examples I must not goe beyond my time Iacob though the thing that he did was good as you know hee might seeke the blessing lawfully for it was promised to him yet because hee vsed euill meanes Rebeccha and hee vsed ill means a lye you know what it cost him hee was banished from his Fathers house many yeeres and you know how much sorrow Rebeccha had for it euen for failing in the manner So Dauid looke what his intermissions were in doing the actions of this life this spirituall life you see likewise his troubles were and therefore let vs bee exhorted to liue this life of grace seeing we haue so great incouragements I say if you obserue throughout the scriptures and aboue all other places from the 2. Chron. 11. to the end of the book which is exceeding well worth the reading where you haue not onely the Stories of the Kings set downe but the causes of all the accidents that did befall them wee see all along as they liued this life of grace as they did the actions of this life that is as they kept their hearts perfect with God so their outward ioy and prosperity was accordingly and the interruption and intermission they found in that was according to their intermission in this And therefore let vs bee exhorted to liue this life For certainely euery life hath an excellency hath a sweetnes in it more then any meere being and as any life exceedes another so it hath it more as the life of a man exceeds the life of a beast so the life of grace exceeds the life of a man and therefore it is capacious of greater ioy and of greater grief On the other side as you know the ioy of the Saints is vnspeakable and glorious and passeth all vnderstanding so the despaire and horror of conscience againe exceeds as much And let vs marke this that as hee that liues the life of a beast destroies himselfe as a man So hee that liues the life of a man