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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	woe_n	word_n	wrath_n	25	3	7.5287	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09364	The first part of The cases of conscience Wherein specially, three maine questions concerning man, simply considered in himselfe, are propounded and resolued, according to the word of God. Taught and deliuered, by M. William Perkins in his Holy-day lectures, by himselfe revised before his death, and now published for the benefit of the Church.; Cases of conscience. Part 1	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.; Pickering, Thomas, d. 1625.	1604 (1604)	STC 19668; ESTC S114413	95,900	200

liue by his faith When we haue neither sight nor sense nor any tast of Gods mercie but onely apprehend his wrath euen then we must labour to lay hold of mercie in his word and promise Sense and feeling are not alwaies fit directions for the time of this life For he may be the deare child of God that in prsent feeleth nothing but his wrath and indignation This indeede is the true triall of our faith when euen aboue and against reason we relie on the mercie of God in the apprehension of his anger So did Dauid Out of the deepe saith he that is beeing nowe deepely plunged into the pangs of a distressed conscience haue I called vpon thee O Lord and Iob in the like case Lord though though thou kill me yet will I trust in thee Abraham is commended by the holy Ghost amongest other things for this that he beleeued in God aboue hope that is against all matter of hope that might possibly be conceiued vpon the consideration of the strength of naturall causes The theife vpon the crosse feeling nothing but woe and seeing nothing in Christ but misery contempt yet he beleeued in Christ and was saued In a word Christ himselfe when he was forsaken of all men and voide of all worldly comfort and felt nothing but the depth of the wrath of God in his agonie and passion yet by the faith of his manhood he staied himselfe and said My God my God Thirdly they vse to plead that their case is desperate that neuer any was in such a state as they are neuer any touched with the like distresse of minde Answ. It is false For the holy Ghost hath penned three notable places of Scripture the booke of Iob two Psalmes of Dauid wherein are propounded vnto vs the examples of Iob and Dauid Gods owne deare seruants who were in as great distresse as euer they or any other haue beene And they may not thinke that they euer could be able to indure greater paines then Christ who notwithstanding in the anguish of his soule vpon the Crosse cried out My God my God why hast thou for saken me And thus much touching the first kind of trouble of conscience called the diuine temptation The second kind of Distresse is that which ariseth from outward afflictions By Afflictions I vnderstand all manner of miseries and calamities in this life from the least to the greatest from the paine of the little finger to the very pangs of death Nowe the Question is howe the Trouble of minde arising by Afflictions may be remedied For the answer of which question two things are required of the partie distressed Practise and Meditation The Practise is that which is to be vsed in all distresses of minde whatsoeuer And it is a diligent examination of the conscience in regard of sinne an earnest and heartie confession thereof vnto God deprecation that is earnest praier vnto him for the pardon of the same These three things beeing done truely and vnfainedly from the heart are a present remedie against this trouble and bring with them much comfort Manasses the king of Iudah that had committed much wickednesse when he was carried captiue to Babel and there put in chaines he humbled himselfe acknowledged his sinnes and praied earnestly vnto the Lord and the issue was good for God was intreated of him gaue him deliuerance Iob beeing long in outward affliction humbled himselfe in like manner and at length receiued comfort Daniel humbled himselfe before God for his owne sinnes and for the sinnes of Gods people making request vnto God earnestly for them and euen when he was in the acte of praying the Lord sent his angel Gabriel to giue him notice of deliuerance Lastly the Church of God vnder the crosse performed the like dutie Let vs search and trie our waies and turne to the Lord and God in mercie gaue an eare vnto her mourning and lamentation By all these places it is apparent that there is no better remedie in the world for the minde of man grieued by meanes of outward afflictions then the practise of the duties before named The next thing vnto Practise is the Meditation of the comfortable doctrines that are set downe in the word of God touching afflictions All which doctrines may be reduced to fiue principall and maine grounds of comfort shall be laid down in their order The first Ground is that All afflictions from the least to the greatest doe come to passe not by accident chance or fortune but by the speciall prouidence of God I explaine it thus In euery particular crosse and affliction there is the hand of Gods particular prouidence and that in three regards First because God decreeth and foreappointeth euery particular crosse Marke the wordes of Paul Whome God hath foreknowne them he hath predestinate to be made like vnto the image of his sonne and what is this image nothing else but a conformitie vnto Christ in afflictions for this life and in glorie for the life to come Nowe if God hath decreed that those whome he foreknewe should be conformable vnto his sonne in these respects then hath he also decreed the afflictions themselues Secondly God doeth not onely barely permit afflictions to be but also he effecteth them and brings them into execution as they are crosses corrections trialls and punishments I make peace saith the Lord and I create euill that is not the euill of sinne but of punishment which is euill in our sense and feeling For things are tearmed euill two waies some are euill indeed some are euill not indeed but in regard of our sense apprehension and estimation and of this latter sort are afflictions which God is said to create And to this purpose is the saying of the Prophet Amos Shall there be euill in the citie and the Lord hath not done it Thirdly as God causeth afflictions so he ordereth and disposeth them that is he limiteth appointeth the beginning the end the measure or quantitie and the continuance thereof Yea he also ordereth them to their right endes namely his owne glorie the good of his seruants and the benefit of his Church Thus God is said to correct his people in iudgement that is so as he will haue the whole ordering of the correction in his owne hand Ioseph tells his brethren that when they intended euill against him in selling him to the Ishmaelites for siluer God disposed it for good When Shemei cursed Dauid he forbade his seruants so much as to meddle with him and why because saith he the Lord bade him to curse and who then dare say vnto him why hast thou done so And to this purpose the Prophet Dauid saith I held my peace and said nothing why because thou Lord hast done it Psal. 39. 9. Here some will say if Afflictions did come onely from God it were somewhat but oftentimes they come from men that beare vs no good

THE FIRST PART OF THE CASES OF CONSCIENCE Wherein specially three maine Questions concerning Man simply considered in himselfe are propounded and resolued according to the word of God Taught and deliuered by M. William Perkins in his Holy-day Lectures by himselfe revised before his death and now published for the benefit of the Church PRINTED BY IOHN LEGAT Printer to the Vniversitie of Cambridge 1604 And are to be sold in Pauls Church-yard at the signe of the Crowne by Simon Waterson TO THE RIGHT Worshipfull Sir Edward Denny Knight THere is no one doctrine reuealed in the word of God or dispensed by the Prophets and Apostles of greater vse and consequence in the life of man then is that which prescribeth a forme of releeuing and rectifying the conscience The benefit which from hence issueth vnto the Church of God is vnspeakable For first it serueth to discouer the cure of the dangerousest sore that can be the wound of the Spirit Which how great a crosse it is the wise man reporteth out of true experience when he saith that the Spirit of a man will sustaine his infirmitie but a wounded Spirit who can beare it And his meaning is that no outward griefe can fall into the nature of man which will not be with patience indured to the vtmost so long as the minde is not troubled or dismayed But when once the Spirit is touched and the heart which beeing well apa●ed is the very foūtaine of peace to the whole man smitten with feare of the wrath of God for sinne the griefe is so great the burden intolerable that it will not by any outward meanes be eased or asswaged Secondly it giueth for all particular Cases special and sound direction whether man be to walke with God in the immediate performance of the duties of his seruice or to conuerse with man according to the state and condition of his life in the familie in the Church or in the Common-wealth The want of which direction of what force it is to turne the actions of men which are good in themselues to sinnes in regard of the agents S. Paul affirmeth in that generall conclusion Whatsoeuer is not of faith is sinne Wherein he would teach vs that whatsoeuer is done or vndertaken by men in this life whether it concerne the knowledge and worship of God or any particular dutie to be performed by vertue of their callings for the common good whereof they haue not sufficient warrant and assurance in conscience grounded vpon the word that it is to be don or not to be done to them it is a sinne Thirdly it is of all other doctrines if it be rightly vsed the most comfortable For it is not founded in the opinions variable conceits of men neither doth it consist of conclusions and positions that are onely probable and coniecturall for the conscience of the doubting or distressed partie cannot be established and rectified by them but it resteth vpon most sufficient and certaine grounds collected drawne out of the very word of god which as it is mightie in operation ●earcing the heart and discerning the thoughts and intents thereof so is it alone auaileable and effectuall to pacific the minde and to giue full satisfaction to the conscience And as the benefit is great so the want of this doctrine together with the true manner of applying the same is and hath beene the cause of many and great inconueniences For euen of those that feare God and haue receiued to beleeue there be many who in the time of their distresses when they haue considered the waight and desert of their sinnes and withall apprehended the wrath of God due vnto them haue beene brought vnto hard exigents mourning and wayling and crying out as if God had forsaken them vntill they haue beene releeued by the Spirit of Christ in the meditation of the word and promise of God But those especially who haue not beene instructed in the knowledge of the truth nor beene acquainted with the course of Gods dealing with his distressed children by reason of ignorance and blindnes in matters of religion and pietie when the Lord hath let loose the cord of their consciences and set before their eyes both the number of their sinnes committed and the iust anger of God purchased thereby what haue they done surely despairing of their owne estates and of the mercie of God they haue either growne to phrensie and madnes or els sorted vnto themselues fearefull ends some by hanging some by drowning others by murthering their owne selues And if not in regard of griefe and trouble of minde yet for want of better resolution in particular cases within the compasse of their generall or personall callings though otherwise men indued with some measure of knowledge and obedience herein they haue failed that they haue either abused or els quite relinquished forsaken their callings and thereby haue become scandalous offēsiue vnto others Now as this is a matter of great waight importance so is it most meete that the best and fittest course should be taken in the teaching and inforcing of the same In which regard we haue iust cause to challenge the Popish Church who in their Case-writings haue erred both in the substance and circumstances of this doctrine as shall appeare in the sequele First because the dutie of releeuing the Conscience is by them commended to the sacrificing Priest which though according to their owne Canons he should be a man of knowledge and free from imputation of wickednes yet oft times it falls out that he is either vnlearned or els wicked and leud of conuersation and consequently vnfit for such a purpose Secondly they teach that their Priests appointed to be comforters releeuers of the distressed are made by Christ himselfe iudges of the cases of conscience hauing in their owne hands a iudiciarie power and authoritie truly and properly to binde or to loose to remit or to retaine sinnes to open or to shut the kingdome of heauen A blasphemous doctrine Considering that Christ onely hath the keyes of Dauid which properly and truly openeth and no man shutteth and properly and truly shutteth no man openeth And the Ministers of God are not called to be absolute Iudges of the Cōscience but only Messēgers Embassadors of recōciliatiō wherupon it followeth that they cānot be the authors and giuers of remission of sinnes but onely the Ministers and Dispensers of i●●e same Thirdly the Papists in their writings haue scattered here and there sundrie false and erronious grounds of doctrine much preiudiciall to the direction or resolution of the Conscience in time of neede as namely I. That a man in the course of his life may build himselfe vpon the faith of his teachers and for his saluation rest contented with an implicite vn-expressed faith Which doctrine as it is an onely meane to keepe men in perpetuall blindnes and ignorance so it