Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	harden_v	heart_n	pharaoh_n	2,001	5	11.6391	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A08849	[A Paraphrase vppon the epistle of the holie apostle S. Paule to the Romanes ...]	Palfreyman, Thomas, d. 1589?; Zwingli, Ulrich, 1484-1531.; Borrhaus, Martin, 1499-1564.; Somerset, Edward Seymour, Duke of, 1506?-1552.	1572 (1572)	STC 19137.5; ESTC S4810	168,483	223

thing It is therfore méete that he take our faults to him selfe and not lay them to our charge when it shall chaunce vs at any time to doo amisse But I beséeche thée marke diligently and that with reuerence the truthe in this case For albeit that no man is of power nor can once resiste the holy will of God yet for all that his will is neuer so mercilesly bente agaynst vs that he is found the cause of our perdition neither did he harden the heart of the proud Egyptian Pharao to that ende he would in déede make him stubborne and stifnecked and therby wilfully damne him but well foreséeing and knowing by hys omnipotencie and godly wisedome that his heart was already hardened and that through his owne wilfull malice and great pride which though at that tyme it deserued at the hande of God by his iustice shorte and sodayne destruction yet he for a space dyd suffer it to continue in him and in the meane tyme through gentlenesse by lyttle and lyttle dyd punishe and correcte it bothe that Pharao shoulde the better perceyue and knowe in him selfe hys owne wylfull wickednesse throughe hys malyce pryde and stoutenesse and also for the more playne manyfestation vnto all generations of hys owne omnipotencie gentlenesse and great clemencie throughout the whole world The whiche bycause he dyd so abuse the greate gentlenesse then offered hym of GOD and thereby the rather tooke proudely vppon hym further occasion to bée a wylfull repugner of hys Godly wyll then ryghtely obedient or subiect to his seruice God therfore most worthil● made of his fixed mischeefe pride and malice great glory an● immortall fame towards him selfe And so that which in one case was of it selfe vtterly nought and so knowen of God procéeding from a contemptuouse proude and maliciouse heart he moste aptely tourned in an other respecte to his owne perpetuall renowme and glory Thus if I woulde I coulde here aunswere other things moste truely in the behalfe of the righteous God but shortly to conclude God hath in any creature all pride and contempt in vtter detestation And I pray you what thing in al this world can be more proude or reprochefull before God than for a man which is of him selfe but a very vile creature to take any matter in hande agaynst God and his maker or to contende and striue with him as one equal vnto a god of such maiestie For what potter or other the like artificer would take it wel at his pottes hande at the hand of his creature to be checkt and reasoned withall saying Why madest thou me thus why hast thou formed me on this wise for suche a purpose Truely it behoueth all creatures of mankinde to consider moste reuerently with thē selues that as the earth and clay is in the hands of the potter and to worke it for his owne prayse to what vse he will euen so are men in the hands of the almightie God our creator to be turned delt withal at his owne pleasure The potter tempereth the clay and maketh therof such kind of vessels as shall beste like him some for seruice at the table and for the like clenly vses and some agayne he maketh to serue for such purposes as be more vncleane and filthy for both must be and are to be vsed of necessitie as it always lieth in the potters arbitriment to make of clay what vessels he will without the controlement of the potte And muche more vile is a man in relation to God than the clay in comparison to the potter Wherfore if it be an argument of gret stubbornesse pride for the clay to endente with his potter and maker for this fashion or that vse muche more monstruous shall be the pride of man vnreuerently to argue and descant vpon the secret counsels of God the creator towards him which be so muche aboue the capacitie of vs wretched creatures that scarsly we be able to attayne to a shadow or once to dreame of them Here is to be noted that the potter maketh not his pottes to the ende he woulde foorthwith haue them broken or caste away from him agayne after he hath once made them but to serue him rather at his commaundement in suche offices as he first appoynteth them with whose seruice he holdeth him selfe wel contented if so be they do it vnto him as he hath taken order and placed them euen so God doth not create man to any suche entente that he should after his creation fall into sinne and be damned but cleane contrary he maketh all men and putteth them in sundry degrees and orders and will that they serue and obey vnto him eche of them in his vocation accordingly as he hath shewed vnto them his godly will and pleasure and not to fall from him and to serue the diuell for that commeth onely of their owne stubborne malice and not of his will and appoyntment Therfore O thou man thou creature thou dust and ashes be stayed in thy selfe towards thy maker apply enforce thy selfe with humblenesse and prayer that the spirite of grace may worke a liuely and true fayth in thée towards him yelde to his will thinke none euill of him and in any wise not to dispute in thy selfe agaynst him and so shalt thou best know him find him always thy louing God reioyce onely in him and extoll from thine hart the holy name of thy maker Yet further way with thy self that the potter in his facultie may chaunce to erre and do amisse but God can not possibly so do Let this then be a sufficient persuasion for thée to beleue that as God euen thy God in his almightinesse omnipotencie can do may do al things at his own good wil and pleasure euen so likewise the same God forasmuch as he is most good moste gentle iuste and bountifull he will do nothing but that which is beste most expedient and profitable vnto mankinde his most deare welbeloued creature neither can we blame god or iustly reproue him though he vse conuert our euils to a speciall good ende purpose yea we should rather worthily count it for an high token of his great loue and benignitie towards vs in that he maketh the missehap or falling of some men to tourne to the good and fortunate ende of others Also reason thus with thy self if thou be deformed and filthy in the fight of God through thine inclination to sinne O miserable creature that I am I must duely acknowledge and confesse that god of his onely great mercy and goodnesse hath miraculously wrought his good worke vpon me beautified me both in soule body with innumerable of his good graces blessings benefits not made me a deformed creature or vessell of dishonor vnto filthinesse vnclennesse but I my selfe through the diuell and mine owne consente haue made my self filthy and vncleane and defiled most lothsomly the beautifull worke of God with the dirte stinch of sinne