Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	king_n	law_n	subject_n	4,008	5	6.9192	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A31907	A full and final proof of the plot from the Revelations whereby the testimony of Dr. Titus Oates and Mr. Will. Bedloe is demonstrated to be jure divino, and all colours and pretences taken away that might hinder the obstinate from assenting to the truth and sincerity of their evidence : dedicated to all Roman-Catholicks and infidels / by E.C., Doctor of the civil law.	E. C., Doctor of the civil law.	1680 (1680)	Wing C23; ESTC R9091	13,342	20

and that whatever they say in reference to the Plot can be no Contrivance or Figment of their own but the Dictate of a Spirit long since promis'd out of the Revelations by John the Divine My intended Explanation of the Text I hope will put the Plot out of all Controversie and force us all to confess that Dr. Oates and Mr. Bedloe discover by Illumination or a Supernatural Light and thereby render their Evidence unquestionably true Jure Divino To be short the Holy Record in John is this And I will give power unto my two Witnesses and they shall prophecie one thousand two hundred and threescore days cloathed in Sackcloth Revelat. Chap. 11. v. 3. Ruminating with my self upon the aptness of these words to the present times I was invited by my curiosity to reflect and dive into their sense whereupon I found they related to other Chapters as well as the matter in this their Latitude comprehending all the remarkable Revolutions foretold by John But above all this Verse has such a direct immediate aspect and intuition upon the Fall of Babylon threatned in a following Chapter which our Protestant Divines conclude to be the Church of Rome that it seems to squint only and look awry at other Passages but to appear with a full and gazing face upon this Prediction The Prophecy of the Down-fall of the See of Rome we all know to be yet uncompleated the foreboding Signs and Tokens of this Calamity are two preliminary Witnesses that shall prophecy and as it is Gods usual Method when He intends to strike to give warning of the Blow so here it was reveal'd to John to declare That the Almighty would send two Witnesses to prophecy and give Evidence of the Whoredoms and Villanies of this Spiritual Strumpet to discover the dark Intrigues of this Hellish Plot to bring the Conspirators to a just Punishment to free us all from the Tyranny and Yoke of Popery and finally to batter down that Monster of Religion and Bawd of Sin and Iniquity the Pope himself It may perhaps be ask'd why Holy John mentions two Witnesses indefinitely without offering at some description of the Instruments in this Great Work I answer 't was policy in him to mention them by the general character of Witnesses he would not give plain and signal Marks of the Persons that were by an Eternal Providence pitch'd upon to over-turn this damnable Design an Ignatian sort of People whom he well knew to be ready charg'd with revenge and malice by such a light given of the Discoverers might have murdered or strangled them as Instruments intended to mischief their Cause and quench the red-hot Iron upon the Anvel Without doubt he could have supplied us with their Names at least their two first Letters for this any ordinary Jugler can do by erecting a Scheme or casting a Figure but then this would have expos'd the Divine Mysteries to the busie curiosities of prying Men who too often impiously attempt to rifle the Cabinet of Heavens Decrees and prostitute them to humane Knowledge I cannot believe that John talk'd at random as Men do in their Dreams many of his Prophecies have been fulfilled and to say he was not privy to the mystick Sense he uttered were to make no more of a Prophet than a Puppet that squeaks by the Voice and moves by the Hand of the Manager The next thing to be explained is the latter part of the Verse which says They shall prophecy one thousand two hundred and threescore days cloathed in Sack-cloth By this is suggested Dr. Oates's first disclosing the Intrigue and heard with prejudice and aversion to his great discouragement telling a wonderful and strange Story a hideous and dismal Conspiracy and not believ'd at length they shall both be received as Oracles of Truth by the Parliament but by reason of some Occurrences and Conjunctures of State that Great Council shall be Prorogued and afterwards Dissolved then shall these two Witnesses Prophecy in Sack-cloth i. e. they shall be for some time under a Cloud expos'd to the publick Censure and Infamy of Cheats being deprived of that which chiefly invigorated their Evidence However they shall still prophecy and stoutly adhere to their first Affirmations though sorrowful and dejected and with heavy Hearts and sad Countenances for the safety of the Kingdom preach up the imminent danger of a Plot and so from Parliament to Parliament till one thousand two hundred and threescore days are expired they shall with great constancy and hopes of Justice expect to have a final Period put to it And this I dare avouch is no distorted or wrested Sense of this branch of the Verse but a free and natural understanding of the Metaphor And Ver. 7. of the same Chapter When they have finished their Testimony the Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless Pit shall make War against them c. which interpreted is the Jesuites with the Remains of an inveterate and cruel malice shall persecute and be ever attempting to revenge the ruine of their Cause upon the Persons of these two Witnesses But I foresee it will be ask'd by the Curious and Inquisitive why are only two Witnesses nam'd by the Diviner when there is so great a Herd of guilty Reformades come in to give their Testimony of and assert the same numerical Plot why should these be omitted who are certainly assisting to win our perswasion of it and but two mention'd why I 'le tell you Dr. Oates and Mr. Bedloe were the Principal Men commission'd by Providence to unravel this Bottom of Iniquity the rest were only followers appointed by secret Purposes of the Divine Will to Corroborate and Dignifie the Evidence of the former it being rather an attendance of State and Triumph annex'd to their Testimony for the greater splendor of the Protestant Cause for 't was not necessary to intimate any but the Capital Witnesses the Evidence of Dr. Oates and Mr. Bedloe being in Law sufficient to hang all the Subjects in England if they were guilty Two Oaths in Court for the King and Country are like a brace of Dragons that depopulate whole Cities and devour all they approach the zealous breath of honest Witnesses in point of Treason carrying the same force with a strong West-wind of Aegypt that in a trice scours and cleanses the Land from Locusts Malefactors and Traitors Thus I hope I have made out the sense of John's Prophecy and I appeal to all the Orthodox Divines in Europe if this be not the most proper and genuine Exposition of the Text. And now what strange Impiety will it be for any body to deny or question the Truth of this Plot We must not censure where Heaven has set his Stamp when the Testimony comes from the Eternal source of Truth and Wisdom 't is our duty to believe though we despair to apprehend for where we cannot rely upon our Reason we must exercise our Faith Every good Christian and Loyal Subject ought to believe