Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	punishment_n	sin_n	sin_v	1,923	5	9.5821	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88104	The a fury of vvarre, and b folly of sinne, (as an incentive to it) declared and applyed. For caution and remedy against the mischiefe and misery of both. In a sermon preached at St. Margarets Westminster, before the Honourable House of Commons, at their late solemne and publike fast, Aprill 26. 1643. By Iohn Ley Minister of Great Budworth in Cheshiere.	Ley, John, 1583-1662.	1643 (1643)	Wing L1879; Thomason E103_1; ESTC R11792	61,846	83

unreconcileable quarrell against us and all our fellow Professours of the same faith And what they have determined for the destruction of us all It is worthy the notice of those that have not read it in the Irish Remonstrance and of their remembrance that have read it what order they have agreed upon for our confusion which is this First They have resolved to extirpate all the English out of Ireland as hath been shewed ¶ Irish Remonstrance p. 31. That Kingdome setled and peopled only with sound Catholikes it is their title not mine for in very truth they are neither sound nor Catholike Thirty thousand men must be sent into England to joyne with the French and Spanish forces and the service they should say the Sacrifice for they meane a slaughter of the English in England performed then they will joyntly fall upon Scotland for the reducing of that Kingdome to the obedience of the Pope which being finished they have engaged themselves to the King of Spaine for assisting him against the Hollanders that was their plot discovered by examination taken upon Oath There is then more cause that England Scotland and the Netherlands should be united in a league of mutuall defence then that we of this Kingdome should first breake asunder by division and then breake in upon each other with enraged violence For if all the crafty Counsels of Spaine of the Conclave of the Pope and Cardinals of the Congregations of Iesuites and other Assemblies of pestilent Polititians our sworne Enemies should lay their heads together for an undoing device against us they could not imagne any one more dangerous and desperate then that which we are now acting upon our selves The Lord open the eyes and turne the hearts of those in whose power it is to found a Retreat to this Martiall fury That English valour may be diverted from the ruine of England to the recovery of Ireland or if the Sword of warre must be the Sword of divine Justice to avenge the quarrell of thy Covenant against a rebellious people Let it O Lord we beseech thee doe most execution upon thine obdurate enemies and sway thou the victory upon their side whose cause and persons have better title to thine Almighty protection Thus farre of the Question How long shall I see c. as importing the Prophets strong apprehension of and vehement aversion from the evill of warre Now of the Answer For my people is foolish they have not knowne me they are sottish children they have none understanding they are wise to doe evill but to doe good they have no knowledge They neither know God nor acknowledge or glorifie him as God but set their wits on worke for wickednesse therin having a kind of cunning which the unwise world calleth wisdome while they remaine ignorant inconsiderate dull and stupid towards the doing of good The words are considerable 1. In generall 2. In particular In generall they containe two parts 1. An Accusation My people are c. 2. An Exception They are wise to do evill Under the accusation are comprehended two points of Importance The one expressed The other implied that which is expressed is the cause of the calamities fore-mentioned For my people or because my people is foolish c. And that will direct us to a two-fold Observation First The one of the Malignant operations of sin in procuring heavy punishments upon a people 2. The other the disgracefull denomination of sinners or the contemptible titles given unto them as foolish sottish without knowledge or understanding The particular implied is the continuance of sin for the Question being expressely made of the continuance How long and implicitely of the cause the answer is satisfactory to both shewing not only why the people are plagued but that so long they shall be plagued untill they be reformed untill the cause of their sinfull folly be removed they shall not or not in mercy be eased of their misery as long as they be so bad in their disposition towards God they must looke for no better a condition from God First For the cause in the 18. verse the Indictment against them is framed under other titles Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee this thy wickednesse because it is bitter because it reacheth unto thine heart So likewise in the Lamentation of Ieremy Ierusalem saith the Prophet hath grievously sinned therefore shee is removed Chap. 1. ver 8. And that it is not the peculiar case of Ierusalem he sheweth in more generall tearmes Wherefore doth living man complaine and man for the punishment of his sinnes Lam. 3.39 or as the Geneva hath it Wherefore is the living man sorrowfull He suffereth for his sinnes And Ierusalem her selfe as if she made answer to some such Question as this pleadeth not any excuse of her ignorance but cleareth Gods Justice and freely and fully taketh the Accusation of her sinnes upon her selfe The Lord is righteous for I have rebelled against his Commandements Chapt. 1. ver 18. We have transgressed and thou hast not pardoned Chap. 3.42 Which is not to be understood of the people only but with them of the Prophets and the Priests for the sins of her Prophets and the iniquity of her Priests did Jerusalems misery come upon her Chap. 4.12 for the Prophets prophecied falsly and the Priests bare rule by their meanes Jer. 5.31 And they ruled with bloudy and unrighteous rigour For they shed the blood of the Iust in the midst of Jerusalem Chapt. 4. ver 13. And in the 30. Chapter God emphatically avoweth his owne Justice against their wickednesse in these words I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy with the chastisement of a cruell one for the multitude of thine iniquity because thy sinnes were increased Why criest thou for thine afflictions Thy sorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity because thy sins were inereased I have done these things unto thee ver 14 15. So that we must not take this Text though it impute ignorance unto these Jewes to import any extenuation of their transgressions which may serve to excuse them either a toto or a tanto as sometimes ignorance is pleaded by way of argument or inducement to compassion and pardon as it is by God himselfe in the Prophecie of Ionah Should I not spare Nineveh that great City wherein are more then sixscore thousand persons that cannot discerne betweene their right and their left hand and also much Cattell and by our Saviour Father forgive them they know not what they doe Luk. 23.34 and as S. Paul giveth instance in his own case I was before a blasphemer and a persecutour and injurious but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbeleefe 1 Tim. 1.13 for such ignorance was partly inevitable partly involuntary but this was neither and therefore it is urged rather by way of aggravation to augment their guilt as in the first of Esay Heare O ye Heavens and give

eare O earth for the Lord hath spoken I have nourished and brought up children but they have rebelled against me the Oxe knoweth his owner and the Asse his Masters cribb but Israel doth not know my people doth not consider ah sinnefull Nation a people laden with iniquity c. chap. 1. ver 2 3 4. Now since the Prophet the people and God himselfe so expresly put together the cause and the effect sinne and punishment and that the punishment expressed in the question sinne is implied in the Answer for not to know and acknowledge God as God is a sinne as sure as well as a folly we must first observe the Malignant operation of sinne in procuring punishment upon a people and it is doctrinely or historically so universally diffused throughout the whole Bible from Gen. 2.17 to Revelations 22.19 that besides the testimonies alleadged there will be no need of farther proofe from divine Authority to confirme it though some parts of it doe more fully cleare and presse this point then others doe as the 26. of Levit. the 28. of Deut. the Lament of Ieremy And for them who never read a leafe of these divine Dictates as they have by the light of nature discerned a great difference betwixt Vertue and Vice as their Bookes of Ethicks or morall Philosophy sufficiently shew so have their consciences cheared them up in well doing and checked them for evill Rom. 2.15 and by the same light they have apprehended “ Ammian Marcelli an Heathen Souldier observeth the just judgement of the Almighty-powers in punishing Maximinus and other bloody butchers Marcel hist l. 25. c. 5. See also the discourse in Plutarchs Moralls de Sera numinis vindicta a divine Judge or Justiciarie observing the minds and wayes of wicked men and imprinting his displeasure upon them in outward plagues and have thence inferred their duty to addresse themselves unto him in supplications and other meanes of pacification of his anger as the Mariners in whose Ship Ionah would have sayled to Tharshish shewed by their inquiry by Lotts for the guilty person who was the cause of the Tempest Ionah cap. 1. ver 5 7. and by the continuall practice of the Heathens in sacrifices to the gods they served acknowledging sinne to be the cause of their common calamities and offering them up for pacification of an offended Deity I need not then spend time either in clearing of this observation by examples or assuring it by Authorities and reasons nor will it be necessary to bring downe the generall guilt and hurt of sinne by shewing how troublesome a thing it is in breaking peace betwixt God and man Lament 2. ver 4 5 6 7 8. and 17.21 chap. 3. ver 3 5. and 15. chap. 4.11 Esay 57.20 a man and his owne conscience and betwixt Man and Man in Forraine and Civill Warre Hab. 1.8 Esa 19.2 this I doubt not is done to mine hand already neither is there cause I should be copious in application of it to your consciences since some of my reverend Bretheren I conceive who have had precedence before me in this place have anticipated the delivery of this doctrine and driven it home to your hearts All I conceive requisite for this point at this time will be to make a briefe Application of it to our present state and so to proceed to the other point of the folly of sinne and sinners which I suppose hath been lesse insisted on by any though it be not lesse worthy of prosecution at large nor will be lesse profitable to those that give due attendance unto it First then for the present point the guilt of sinne being expressely shewed by this answer of God to be the cause of all the evill which was so grievous to the Prophet It is our parts what tribulation soever light upon us to give God the glory of his Justice without murmuring at any thing he doth or we suffer under his correcting hand and to make a free confession of our sinnes without mincing as Dan. 9. the holy Prophet having a joint apprehension of the peoples provocation of God by their sinnes and of Gods indignation against them expressed in his punishment of them for that cause maketh his confession to God in this manner We have sinned and have committed iniquity and have done wickedly and have rebelled the abundant hatred of sinne in his heart made him so full in the mouth with multiplication of words of the same sence for the aggravation and detestation of sinne yet he goeth on we have rebelled even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgements ver 5. and then he cometh to the cause whereby they came to such a guilt of sinne it was from their refusall of their guidance whom God had sent to leade them in the right way and how could they but wander when they forsooke the light neither have we harkened saith he unto thy servants the prophets which spake in thy Name to our Kings our Princes and our Fathers and to all the people of the land ver 6. he spareth no person great or meane past or present ver 6. Because of all this hee taketh both the sinne and the shame upon himselfe and his Countreymen and giveth God the due glory of his owne Justice in their punishment O Lord Righteousnesse belongeth unto thee but unto us shame and confusion of face as at this day because of their trespasse that they have trespassed against thee ver 7. And from this generality of sinners and sinnes to descend to a search of particulars in both both for every man that sinneth and every sinne that he committeth and then if we looke back upon our precedent carriage towards God and his present dealing towards us we may have cause to conceive not only that the burden of our sinnes in common have pressed him even as a Cart is pressed with Sheaves Amos 2. ver 13. and that he hath great cause in the generall to ease himselfe by diseasing them who overloaded him with such a wicked weight as he saith he will doe Ah I will ease me of mine adversaries and avenge me of mine enemies Esa 1.24 But withall that there be some sins in particular more provocative then others which spurre on vengeance to a swifter pace and those were come to some height in our State before these calamities which many have felt and all have feared came downe upon us and chiefely these three First Idolatry Secondly Prophanation of the Sabboth Thirdly Contempt of Gods most faithfull servants and then wee shall proceed to a confutation of the misconceits of the wicked touching the cause of calamity and so conclude with an apology for the godly First For Idolatry I will not tell you of my selfe how much it hath increased in a few years before the summons of the Honourable Senate now assembled you may receive information for that See Ord p. 143 144. by better warrant then any private or particular intelligencer can