Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	law_n	sin_n	transgression_n	1,540	5	10.6759	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65876	The path of the just cleared, and cruelty and tyranny laid open, or, A few words to you priests, and magistrates of this nation, (who say we deny the Scriptures, and that we are antichrists and deceivers, and that we deny the Word of God) wherein your oppression and tyranny is laid open, which by you is unjustly acted against the servants of the Living God, who by the world which hate the light of Christ, are in derision called Quakers : wherein also is something declared both to judges and justices ... : also the ground and cause of the imprisonment of George Whitehead and John Harwood ... / from the spirit of the Living God in me, whose name in the flesh is George Whitehead ... ; also a paper against the sin of idleness ...	Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.; Harwood, John. To all you rulers, gentry, priests, and people.	1655 (1655)	Wing W1944; ESTC R206645	17,128	27

that to your selves which belongs to God and this is He vvho reigns over the house of Iacob and is greater then Abraham Let the heathens bovv to him vvho hath redeemed us out of the heathenish nature for he wil break the limits of the heathen and dash them to peices and all your limits who live in envy and rage in the heathenish nature and plead for their customs and would limit the righteous to walk in their steps and to bow to your proud flesh for as I live saith the Lord every knee shall bow to me and every Tongue shall confess unto god as you may read Rom. 13. 11. Isai. 45. 23. Phil. 2. 10. Therefore bow to the Lord of hosts and let proud flesh stoop before him who seeks honour to your selves which belongs to God Fear before the Lord and tremble at which Name every knee shall bow and every tongue confess to the glory of God Then examine what will be the end of your Earthly glory whose honour must be laid in the dust who seeks your own glory and not the glory of God whose honour and glory we seek and not the honor of man and therfore we cannot stoop nor bow to your pride nor conform to your vanities which are acted in your wills contrary to the pure Law of God which respects no mans person and here you act for your own ends and punish the servants of the Lord who for his sake cannot submit to your deceit and heathenish vanities you act contrary to the Law of God and the Law of the Nation and for the Lords sake act not neither were you sent of God to this end therefore accuse us not for contempt of Authority neither say that we are not subject to every ordinance of man for the Lords sake for to every Ordinance of man which are for the Lords sake we are subject whether it be to supream or unto Governors as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers and for the praise of them that do well But you who are sent to judge of Causes between man and man according to the truth and equity by an outward Law which takes hold upon transgression and now execute power upon them who by the Law of the Spirit of life are made free from the Law of sin and death and so would usurp Authority over the consciences of the people of the Lord whose consciences is exercised by the Light of Christ which condemns the World with its deeds and so you go beyond your limits to judg in things pertaining to God who is Judge and Law-giver and so here you act in frowardness contrary to the Light of Christ in you and so would lord it over Gods heritage and here let the Rulers among the heathen which Christ spoke of condemn your practices who said the Kings of the Gentiles exercised Authority over them but ye would exercise Lordship over us who are not Heathens but Christians Therefore ye Magistrates of this Nation see whom you are acting for and what order is set up by you and whose glory it is you seek and who it is that you seek to exercise Authority over for when the Judgments of God comes upon you for acting in your wills and in your cruelty against the innocent you will witness them to be Just by that of God in your consciences and your Just reward And know that in as much as you persecute them whom Christ hath sent you persecute Christ therefore now while the Lord doth not speedily execute his Judgments upon you consider your wayes and see what you act and whom you act for as you will it eternally answer The ground of John Harwoods my imprisonment that Innocency may be cleared and the wicked bear their burthens UPon the 30 day of the 5th month being the 2d day of the week I my two Bretheren Jo Harwood Richard Clayton passing through a town called Bury in Suffolk about 5 Miles from Halstead in Essex where we were at a meeting the firstday before in the feare and service of the Lord and passing by the steeple house in the said Bury Richard Clayton was moved to set up a paper upon the steeple house door and John Harwood I passing on a litle before and seeing some people of the said Bury coming to Richard Clayton where he was seting up the paper and so we passed back to them who stayed him and were about him reading the paper who could find nothing contrary to Scriprure in it so John Harwood and I being to speake a few words to the people there present in the name of the Lord exhorted them to turne to the Lord from the vanities wickednesses they lived in which several of them was made to confess the truth of which was declared to them and the mouths of many who were in rage were stopped and so we passing from the people there present there came a Constable called Richard Hum who stayed us and said he had a warrant to stay us so we demanded to see his warrant but he had none to shew but said he had order from the Justice so carried us two before Harbert Pellam called Justice of peace in the said Bury whose office is for Essex so first I was carried before him and he examined me then John Harwood of our names and country and abode where we had been and what money we had when we came out of our own countryes which we answered as we were moved and had freedom and many other vain questions he asked in his b●sie vain Light mind which were not worth mentioning and when I was moved to speak a few words concerning his rage filthiness which he uttered forth he said he sent not for me to preach but he could lay no transgression nor the breach of any known Law to our charge but in his fury rage sent us by the Constable some others with him to one Thomas Walgrave who is called Justice of peace at Smalbridg in Suffolk about half a mile from the said Bury whose office is for Suffolk so when we came before the said Walgrave we were carried into the house they first examined Richard Clayton of his name and country and where he had been and what was the cause of his coming into that country and who sent him which he answered as he was moved and some other vain Questions were asked him when he had examined him he then examined me of my name country and where I was born and how long I had been acquainted with Richard Clayton and where I first met with him which I answered according to my freedom some other vain needless Questions were asked not worth mentioning so he could lay nothing to our charge concerning the breach of any Law we being free born English men and not Chargeable to any so then John Harwood was brought before him and Richard Clayton I commanded

to go out of doors with a keeper so the said Waldegrave asked John Harwood if he would answer him all the Questions that he should demand of him But Jo. denyed to be limited to his will but as he had moving so the said Harbert Pellam being there present who before had examined us and had our examination in writing John Harwood told Walgrave that Pellam had his examination in writing and bad him if he had any thing to accuse us of to declare what he had against us so then the said Waldegrave being in a great rage would not suffer him to speak but caused him to be haled out of doors so he and the said Pellam consulted a great vvhile together so after a time Walgrave came forth and spoke to John Harwood and in a fury put off his hat and cast it dovvn and asked him his name and country vvhich Questions John ansvvered so he came to me and asked me if I would work at hay so I denyed to be bound to such task-masters for I was in that Calling whereunto God hath called me wherein I was chargable to no man for he had nothing to do to lay any task upon any of us who was brought out of Egypt from under Pharoahs Task-masters so he went in and sent out a Warrant to imprison John Harwood and another to have Richard Clayton whipped at Bury and sent from Constable to Constable till he came at his outward being so he charged the Constable to keep me that week till another Justice came from the Assizes at Bury so we demanded of him what Law we had transgressed But he would shew us none neither declared unto us any transgression that we had acted But called the paper that Richard Clayton set upon the steeple-house door a seditious paper and non-sence which he could not prove nor shew any thing in it contrary to the Scripture But he would scarce suffer us to speak but did stamp and rage and caused us to be haled out of doors so we were had back again to the said Bury and according to the Warrant Richard Hum the said Constable the same night in the open street whipping Richard Clayton he being stript naked to the midle about the wast so presently after he had whipped him he sent him away that nighr according to the warrant and John Harwood and I was kept at an Inn in the same town that night and early in the morning John was sent with 2. men to the prison of Bury St. Edmonds in Suffolk about 16. miles from the said Bures so until the next day under the Constables custody I remained so in the morning there came a warrant from the said Waldegrave to the Constable to send me to the said prison of Bury so accordingly I was sent the same day where we remaine in bonds by the cruelty of these called Justices to wit Harbert Pellam and Thomas Waldgrave and are not convinced of the breach of any known Law of the Nation But in patience we suffer and in our sufferings have peace our bonds being unjustly laid upon us by them who profess Justice but here they and their profession is seen and with the light of Christ condemned to be contrary to the law justice and equity Therefore let the supreme and governors who are in Authority consider for all your professing Liberty to tender consciences and Religion what Liberty by you is brought forth when as we who are sent of the Lord to bear witness unto pure religion and to witnesse forth a good conscience and our labour and travel is that justice and equity might be set up and deceit confounded and also we being free born English men may not have freedom to passe the high-way about our lawful calling But have such bonds and snares laid upon us both contrary to the Law of God and the law of the Nation and contrary to that liberty which hath been promised to them professing Godlinesse by the supreme of this Nation As in the act for the government of England Scotland and Ireland in Article 36. That to the publike profession held forth none shall be compelled by penalities or otherwise but that endeavours be made to win them by sound doctrine and the examples of a good conversation Article 37. That such as profess faith in God by Jesus Christ though differing in Judgment from the doctrin worship or discipline publickly held forth shall not be restrained from But shall be protected in the profession of the faith and exercise of their Religion so as they abuse not this Liberty to the civill Injury of others and to the actuall disturbance of the publique peace on their part provided that this liberty be not extended to Popery or Prelacy nor to such who under the profession of Christ hold forth and practise Licentiousnesse Article 38 That all lawes statutes ordinances and clauses in any law statute and ordinance to the contrary of the aforesaid liberty shall be esteemed Nul and ●oyde Now let the Supreme and Magistrates see and examine what performance there is acted by you of these solemne promises which hath beene promised for the liberty of Godlinesse in this Nation when such injustice is winked at and acted by you who professe justice and are set in authority to act according to the law of justice and to remove unjust causes when now both contrary to the law of God and contrary to your own law you cause the servants of the Lord to suffer Whipping and Imprisoning them which you cannot charge which the breach of any law here be ashamed of your unjust actings ye oppressors and persecutors of the innocent and know that at your cruelty the Lord will not winke but though you joyne hand in hand you shall not go unpunished and the very heathens may condemn you that whip and act contrary to your own law against them whom the law condemnes not for when they were ready to Whip Paul he said to the centurion Is it lawfull for you to scourge a man that is a Roman and uncondemned and said he was free borne and so both the centurion and the chiefe Captaine who bound Paul were afraid after they knew that he was a Roman and caused him to be loosed but though we be free-borne English men and uncondemned by the law you are not ashamed to Whip and act in cruelty against us therefore see what equity is owned by you and see whethe● you do as ye would be don by yea or nay and let al● people who have any feare of God in them see you● shame and envy you utter forth and have acted againe the innocent For they who are authorised to beare this sword of justice ought not to be a terrour to good work-but to the evill and saith the Lord by his prophet David he that ruleth over men must be just ruling in the feare of God and such who rule in the feare of God are not persecutors of the innocent but