Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	know_v	see_v	world_n	2,634	5	4.4966	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A44146	Our Saviours passion delivered in a sermon, preach'd in the cathedral church of Saint Peter in Exon. On Good Friday, the first of April, 1670. By Matthew Hole, Master of Arts, and Fellow of Exeter Colledge, Oxon.	Hole, Matthew, 1639 or 40-1730.	1670 (1670)	Wing H2411; ESTC R215768	11,909	18

of Gethsemane his Soul felt greater tortures than his body on the Cross there it was that he drunk that bitter Cup which set him in an Agony and caus'd him to sweat great drops of blood which made him pray three times most eathestly Father if it be possible let this Cup pass from me then did he appear forsaken of his friends and in his apprehension deserted of God too which made him in the anguish of his Soul to cry out My God My God why hast thou forsaken me and sure if we consider these things we must needs say that there was no death like unto his nor any sorrow like unto his sorrow But Secondly as his death was thus painful so was it no less shameful and ignominious too Our Saviour having humbled himself to the form of a servant was condemn'd to be crucified which Tacitus calls Servile supplicium a punishment inflicted onely on servants or slaves never on any freeman or cirizen but before he underwent this infamous and slavish death they kept him a while to sport themselves in his misery to that end they stript him of his clothes and in derision put on him a scarlet robe the true emblem of their crimson sins and having accus'd him as one aspiring to be King of the Jews they platted for him a Crown of Thorns setting it on his head because he should not want a Scepter they put a reed into his right hand after which they in mockery bow their head to him saying Hail King of the Jews and when they had spotted their fill with him they carried him away to be crucified where as he hung on the Cross they reproached him with all his former Miracles and Prophesies saying he saved others himself he cannot save if he be the Son of God let him now come down from the Cross and wagging their heads at him they said thou that destroyest the Temple and buildest it in three dayes save thy self Mat. 27. After all which he laid down his life and drank up this bitter Cup even to the very dregs And now one would think that these bloody instruments of his death should feel within them some sting of Conscience and conceive some remorse after so black and tragical an enterprize but these alas as if they were what was said of Tiberius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. but so many clods of earth kneaded and cemented with blood remain as senceless unrelenting after all this as the Tree on which he hung or the Grave-stone that covered him they think of nothing but casting him into the earth and securing his Grave with a Band of Souldiers however since these remorsless Jews could conceive neither sorrow nor repentance the whole Creation seem'd concern'd to lament the fall of so great a Person the Sun drew in its Light as unwilling to behold so sad a spectacle the earth trembled and quak'd as impatient of bearing up those persons that occasion'd it the heavens were all overcast and cloath'd in black as the chief mourners at his Funeral the Vail of the Temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom the hard Rocks clave the Graves opened and all things but these unrelenting Jews were appall'd and confounded at the Passion of our Lord. And thus have we gone through the several acts or scenes of this direful Tragedy having seen him taken and by wicked hands crucified and slain which every one that hath heard will be ready to inquire into the cause for which he suffer'd all this For answer whereunto we must know First of all that sin is the sole meritorious cause of all sorrows and sufferings which appears not only because before sin entred into the world these things were altogether unknown and strangers to humane Nature but likewise because ever since its entrance they have ever gone hand in hand together to this purpose is that of St. Paul Rom. 5.12 As by one man sin entered into the World and death by sin even so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned But Secondly to prevent an Objection Heb. 7.26 that may be taken from the High Holy and harmless Nature of Christ separated from sinners and made higher than the Heavens who though he assum'd our Nature Heb. 4.15 Yet was sin and all kind of irregularities excepted I say to prevent this we must know that though the immaculate Son of God had no sins of his own to be laid to his charge and consequently was not liable to punishment or the displeasure of Heaven upon his own score yet when he graciously undertook to be our surety or Saviour the whole burden of our sins lay upon his shoulders and he became answerable to the justice of God for the transgressions of mankind and hence was that harsh saying of Luther who styl'd our Saviour peccatorum maximus the greatest of sinners viz. not by any actual guilt of his own but only by imputation Now since the wages of sin is death Rom. 6.23 And without shedding of blood there is no remission Heb. 9.22 Therefore our Saviour must and accordingly was content to die that he might become our sufficient ransom and atonement And if one sin were enough to turn Adam out of Paradise and to set up a flaming sword to prevent his return if one sin whatever it were were sufficient to throw the laps'd Angels out of Heaven and to reserve them in Chains of darkness to the judgment of the great day as we read in the Epistle of St. Jude what an unsupportable weight think we must be the concurrent guilt of all mankind's transgressions a pressure sure that must sink the stoutest Atlas and disorder the whole frame of Nature So that we may cease our wonder at the severity of Christ's sufferings when we reflect on that complicated guilt which was the cause of them 'T were our debts for which Jesus Christ was arrested and imprisoned by the Souldiers and which by his consequent sufferings he paid to the utmost farthing our sin was the Spear that pierc't his side and the nails that fasten'd him to the Cross which leads us to the Last thing to be spoken to concerning our Saviours Passion namely the end or design of his undergoing all this which was the expiation of sin and the restoring us again to the lost love and favour of God he wore a Crown of Thorns only that we might wear a Crown of Gold and those drops of blood which his enemies drew from him are turn'd into so many pearls to bestud and adorn ours that scarlet Robe which the Jews put on him dy'd as it were in his own blood serves to hide our shame and to cover for us a multitude of sins that bitter Cup which he drunk off to the very dregs is our Nectar and a glorious Potion of immortality the Vinegar and Gall which made him to faint is become our most reviving Cordial his Cross the cursed instrument of his death is to us

sting of this punishment made use of these four circumstances toward those on whom it was inflicted all which were improv'd to the very highest degree of cruelty in our Saviour's Crucifixion First those that were condemn'd to this punishment were made to bear their Cross upon their shoulders to the place of execution which was ever without the City So Plutarch tells us expresly Plutar. de his qui sero puniuatu● 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. malefactors when they are led forth to execution each one bears his own cross and Artemidorus Artem. lib. 2. cap. 42. is as plain 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i.e. the Cross resembles death and he that was to be crucified did first bear it in complyance with which custom the barbarous Jews leading forth our Saviour forc't him to bear his own Cross as we read John 19.17 as if it were not enough to be thus shamefully executed unless he bare the unhappy instrument of his shame or because the Cross was shortly to bear him therefore he should be constrain'd to bear it It is indeed said that Simon the Cyrenian was compelled to bear his Cross Mat. 27.32 but that was onely when our Saviour through weariness had almost fainted under the burden else had his strength held out he had found none to have eas'd him of that reproachful weight Now this act of bearing his Cross was represented to us in the Old Testament by Isaack's bearing the wood for Sacrifice of which we read Gen. 22. in allusion and imitation hereof it was that our Saviour told his followers that if they would be his Disciples they must take up their Cross and follow him in the patient bearing of distress and infamy Secondly Those who were to undergoe this punishment were commanded to be stript of their clothes and to suffer naked for so Artemidorus assures us 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they that were to be crucified were stript naked Sutable whereunto we read concerning our Saviour Mat. 27.28 that they stript him of his clothes he who was cloth'd with Light as with a garment and invested with the glorious robes of immortality was pleas'd for a while to lay these aside and put on the rags of humane flesh together with those outward coverings that were ordain'd to conceal our shame but of these too did unthankful mortalls unworthily strip him and as if he had aspir'd too high when he parted with his glory for these inconsiderable ornaments he was wholly depriv'd of them and expos'd naked to all their scoffs and revilings and having thus stript him They parted his Garments among them and upon his Vesture did they cast lots Mat. 27.35 Thirdly Those who among the Romans were condemn'd to this punishment were first of all to be whipt and scourged So St. Jerome informs us Sciendum est legibus Romanis sancitum esse ●t qui crucifigitur prius flagellis verberetur i. e. It was decreed by the Laws of the Romans that they who were to be crucified should be first scourg'd accordingly Valerius tells us of one qui servam suum verberibus multatum ad supplicium egisset and Artemidorus of another 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. who being ty'd to a Pillar receiv●d many stripes this circumstance of Barbarity too was exercised towards our Saviour Mat. 27.26 When they had scourged Jesus they delivered him up to be crucified Having stript him naked they lash and scourge him on every side the bitterness whereof was encreas'd by that reproachful taunt us'd at every blow now prophesy who it is that strikes thee of this did the Evangelical Prophet Isaias plainly foretell in Isai 53.5 The Chastisement of our peace was upon him and by his stripes we are healed Fourthly Those who were wont to be fasten'd to the Cross had the cause of their punishment writen over them in Capital Letters that so the equity of it might the better appear to the World Hence Di● tells us of a servant hanging on the Cross 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with letters declaring the cause of his death this piece of pretended justice too was not omitted towards our Saviour for having hail'd his body to the Cross all besmear'd in blood and gore which the nails and scourges drew from him they set over his head this accusation written THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS Mat. 27.37 Which that it might be the more generally known and understood by all St. Luke tells us it was written in three Languages viz. in Latine Greek and Hebrew Luke 23.38 Thus did the malicious Jews improve this Romane punishment to the height of cruelty upon our Saviour crucifying him between two thieves as if he had been the Arch-malefactor where after he had hung on the Cross from the sixth to the ninth hour upon the tenderwounds of his hands and feet he gave up the Ghost which was the last act of this dolefull Tragedy and leads us to the third step or degree of his Passion mention'd in the Text to wit his death or being slain Him ye have taken and with wicked hands have crucified and slain As we shewed before that the taking of any prisoner doth not necessarily suppose any farther censure much less crucifixion so neither doth crucifixion necessarily import death for they on whom it is inflicted being fasten'd to the Cross not by any vital part die so leasurely that being taken from thence may easily be suppos'd to live but neither did the malice of the Jews nor our Saviours sufferings end here but proceeded to the very extremity of this punishment and fulfill'd the utmost intention of Crucifixion hence St. Paul tells us Philip. 2.3 That he became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross which of all the Romane ways of excution was the most painful and the most ignominious First of all I say his death was exceeding painful and dolorous for he was nail'd to the Cross not by those parts that might have inferr'd sudden death and so quickly have dispatch't his pain but by his hands and feet which are of all other the most nervous and consequently the most sensible parts by which means they made him as Nero afterward did the Christians sentire se mori feel himself dying and endur'd the racking torments of a lingring death their cruel scourges in the mean while fetching blood and making long furrows upon his back the Souldiers pierc't his side with spears and his Soul with scoffs and mockings more sharp then they the multitude came about him hanging on the Cross not to pity but deride him and as if he had been the vilest miscreant upon earth they spit in his face and in the midst of all his pain and anguish pour'd on him not tears but scorn and contempt In his bitter Agonies they deny'd him a drop of water a courtesie never denied any but the damned in hell and instead thereof filled him a spunge of Vinegar and Gall on purpose to encrease the bitterness of his Passion In the Garden