Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	afflict_v	israel_n	zion_n	61	3	9.0292	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27017	The saints everlasting rest, or, A treatise of the blessed state of the saints in their enjoyment of God in glory wherein is shewed its excellency and certainty, the misery of those that lose it, the way to attain it, and assurance of it, and how to live in the continual delightful forecasts of it and now published by Richard Baxter ...	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.; Herbert, George, 1593-1633.	1650 (1650)	Wing B1383; ESTC R17757	797,603	962

this in Heaven Our eyes shall then be filled no more nor our hearts pierced with such lights as at Worcester Edg-hil Newbury Nantwich Montgomery Horn Castle York Naseby Langport c. We shall then have the conquest without the calamity Mine eyes shall never more behold the Earth covered with the carkasses of the slain Our black Ribbands and mourning Attire will then be turned into the white Robes and Garments of gladness O how hardly can my heart now hold when I think of such and such and such a dear Christian Friend slain or departed O how glad must the same heart needs be when I see them all alive and glorified But a far greater grief it is to our Spirits to see the spiritual miseries of our Brethren To see such a one with whom we took sweet councel and who zealously joyned with us in Gods worship to be now fallen off to sensuality turned drunkard worldling or a persecutor of the Saints And these trying times have given us too large occasion for such sorrows To see our dearest and most intimate friends to be turned aside from the Truth of Christ and that either in or neer the Foundation and to be raging confident in the grossest Errors To see many neer us in the flesh continue their neglect of Christ and their souls and nothing will waken them out of their security To look an ungodly Father or Mother Brother or Sister in the face To look on a carnal Wife or Husband or Childe or Friend And to think how certainly they shall be in Hell for ever if they die in their present unregenerate estate O what continual dolors do all these sad sights and thoughts fill our hearts with from day to day And will it not be a blessed day when we shall rest from all these what Christian now is not in Pauls case and cannot speak in his Language 2 Cor. 11.28 29. Besides those things that are without that which cometh upon me daily the care of all the Churches Who is weak and I am not weak who is offended and I burn not What heart is not wounded to think on Germanies long desolations O the learned Universities The flourishing Churches there that now are left desolate Look on Englands four yeers blood a flourishing Land almost made ruined hear but the common voyce in most Cities Towns and Countreys through the Land and judg whether here be no cause of sorrow Especially look but to the sad effects and mens spirits grown more out of order when a most wonderful Reformation by such wonderful means might have been well expected And is not this cause of astonishing sorrows Look to Scotland look to Ireland look almost every where and tell me what you see Blessed that approaching day when our eyes shall behold no more such sights nor our ears hear any more such tidings How many hundred Pamphlets are Printed full of almost nothing but the common calamities So that its become a gainful trade to divulge the news of our Brethrens sufferings And the fears for the future that possessed our hearts were worse then all that we saw or suffered O the tidings that run from Edghil fight of York fight c. How many a face did they make pale and how many a heart did they astonish nay have not many died with the fears of that which if they had lived they had neither suffered nor seen It s said of Melancthon That the miseries of the Church made him almost neglect the death of his most beloved Children to think of the Gospel departing the Glory taken from Israel our Sun setting at Noon day poor souls left willingly dark and destitute and with great pains and hazard blowing out the Light that should guide them to salvation What sad thoughts must these be To think of Christ removing his Family taking away both worship and worshippers and to leave the Land to the rage of the merciless These were sad thoughts Who could then have taken the Harp in hand or sung the pleasant Songs of Zion But blessed be the Lord who hath frustrated our fears and who will hasten that rejoycing day when Sion shall be exalted above the Mountains and her Gates shall be open day and night and the glory of the Gentiles be brought into it and the Nation and Kingdom that will not serve her shall perish When the sons of them that afflicted her shall come bending unto her and all they that despised her shall bow themselves down at the soles of her feet and they shall call her The City of the Lord the Sion of the holy One of Israel When her people also shall be all Righteous even the Work of Gods hands the Branch of his planting who shall inherit the Land for ever that he may be glorified When that voice shall sound forth Rejoyce with Jerusalem and be glad with her all ye that love her Rejoyce for joy with her all ye that mourn for her That ye may suck and be satisfied with the brests of her consolation that ye may milk out and be delighted with the abundance of her glory Thus shall we Rest from our participation of our Brethrens sufferings SECT XVI 8. WE shall Rest also from all our own personal sufferings whether natural and ordinary or extraordinary from the afflicting hand of God And though this may seem a small thing to those that live in continual ease and abound in all kinde of prosperity yet me thinks to the daily afflicted soul it should make the fore-thoughts of Heaven delightful And I think we shall meet with few of the Saints but will say That this is their own case O the dying life that we now live As full of sufferings as of days and hours We are the Carkasses that all Calamities prey upon As various as they are each one will have a snatch at us and be sure to devour a morsel of our comforts When we bait our Bulls and Bears we do but represent our own condition whose lives are consumed under such assaults and spent in succession of fresh encounters All Creatures have an enmity against us ever since we made the Lord of all our enemy And though we are reconciled by the blood of the Covenant and the price is paid for our full deliverance yet our Redeemer sees it fit to leave this measure of misery upon us to make us know for what we are beholden and to minde us of what we would else forget to be serviceable to his wise and gracious designes and advantagious to our full and final Recovery He hath sent us as Lambs among Wolves and sure there is little Rest to be expected As all our Senses are the inlets of sin so are they become the inlets of our sorrow Grief creeps in at our eyes at our ears and almost every where It seiseth upon our head our hearts our flesh our Spirits and what part doth escape it Fears do devour us and

of Life and the naked to be cloathed from above for the children to come to their Fathers house and the dis-joyned members to be conjoyned with their Head me thinks this should be seldom unseasonable When the Atheistical world began to insult and question the Truth of Scripture promises and ask us Where is now your God where is your long lookt for glory where is the promise of your Lords coming O how seasonable then to convince these unbelievers to silence these scoffers to comfort the dejected waiting believer will the appearing of our Lord be we are oft grudging now that we have not a great share of comforts that our deliverances are not more speedy and eminent that the world prospers more then we that our prayers are not presently answered not considering that our portion is kept to a fitter season that these are not always Winter fruits but when Summer comes we shall have our Harvest We grudg that we do not finde a Canaan in the VVilderness or cities of Rest in Noahs Ark and the songs of Sion in a strange Land that we have not a harbor in the main Ocean or finde not our home in the middle way and are not crowned in the midst of the fight have not our Rest in the heat of the day and have not our inheritance before we are at age and have not Heaven before we leave the Earth and would not all this be very unreasonable I confess in regard of the Churches service the removing of the Saints may sometimes appear to us unseasonable therefore doth God use it as a Judgment and therefore the Church hath ever prayed hard before they would part with them and greatly laid to heart their loss Therefore are the great mournings at the Saint departures and the sad hearts that accompany them to their graves but this is not especially for the departed but for themselves and their children as Christ bid the weeping women Therefore also it is that the Saints in danger of death have oft begged for their lives with that Argument What profit is there in my blood when I go down to the Pit Psal. 30.9 Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead shall the dead arise and praise thee shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave or thy faithfulness in destruction shall thy wonders be known in the dark and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness Psal. 88.10 for in death there is no remembrance of thee in the grave who shall give thee thanks Psal. 6.5 And this was it that brought Paul to a streight because he knew it was better for the church that he should remain here I must confess it is one of my saddest thoughts to reckon up the useful instruments when God hath lately called out of his Vineyard when the Loyterers are many and the Harvest great and very many Congregations desolate and the people as sheep without shepherds and yet the laborers called from their work especially when a door of Liberty and opportunity is open we cannot but lament so sore a judgment and think the removal in regard of the Church unseasonable I know I speak but your own thoughts and you are too ready to over-run me in application I fear you are too sensible of what I speak and therefore am loath to stir in your sore I perceive you in the posture of the Ephesian Elders and had rather abate the violence of your passions our applications are quicker about our sufferings then our sins and we will quicklier say This loss is mine then This fault is mine But O consider my dear friends hath God any need of such a worme as I cannot he a 1000 wayes supply your wants you know when your case was worse and yet he provided Hath he work to do and will he not finde instruments And though you see not for the present where they should be had they are never the further off for that Where was the world before the creation and where was the promised seed when Isaac lay on the Altar Where was the Land of Promise when Israels burden was increased or when all the old stock save only two were consumed in the Wilderness Where was Davids Kingdom when he was hunted in the Wilderness or the Glory of Christs Kingdom when he was in the Grave or when he first sent his 12. Apostles How suddenly did the number of Labourers encrease immediately upon the Reformation by Luther and how soon were the rooms of those filled up whom the rage of the papists had sacrificed in the flames Have you not lately seen so many difficulties overcome and so many improbable works accomplished that might silence unbelief one would think for ever But if all this do not quiet you for sorrow and discontent are unruly passions yet at least remember this suppose the worst you fear should happen yet shall it be well with all the Saints your own turnes will shortly come and we shall all be hous'd with Christ together where you will want your Ministers and friends no more And for the poor world which is left behind whose unregenerate state causeth your grief why consider shall man pretend to be more merciful then God Hath not he more interest then we both in the Church and in the world and more bowels of compassion to commiserate their distress There is a season for Judgment as well as for mercy and if he will have the most of men to perish for their sin and to suffer the eternal tormenting flames must we question his goodness or manifest our dislike of the severity of his judgments I confess we cannot but bleed over our desolate congregations and that it ill beseems us to make light of Gods indignation but yet we should as Aaron when his sons were slain hold our peace and be silent because it is the Lords doing And say as David If I and his people shall finde favor in the eyes of the Lord he will bring me again and shew me them and his Habitation But if he thus say I have no delight in thee behold here am I let him do with me as seemeth good unto him I conclude then that whatsoever it is to those that are left behinde yet the Saints departure to themselves is usually seasonable I say usually because I know that a very Saint may have a death in some respect unseasonable though it do translate him into this Rest. He may dye in Judgment as good Josiah he may die for his sin For the abuse of the Sacrament many were weak and sickly and many fallen asleep even of those who were thus Judged and chastened by God that they might not be condemned with the world He may die by the hand of publike Justice or die in a way of publike scandal He may die in a weak degree of grace and consequently have a less degree of glory He may die in smaller improvements of his talents and so be Ruler but

moment he hide his face yet with everlasting compassion will he receive and imbrace us when he shall say to Sion Arise and shine for thy light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee Isa. 60.2 SECT XI 3. WE shall rest from all the Temptations of Satan whereby he continually disturbes our peace VVhat a grief is it to a Christian though he yield not to the temptation yet to be still solicited to deny his Lord That such a thought should be cast into his heart That he can set about nothing that is good but Satan is still disswading him from it distracting him in it or discouraging him after it VVhat a torment as well as temptation is it to have such horrid motions made to his soul such Blasphemous Idea's presented to his fantasie Sometime cruel thoughts of God sometime under-valuing thoughts of Christ sometime unbelieving thoughts of Scripture sometime injurious thoughts of Providence to be tempted sometime to turn to present things sometime to play with the baits of sin sometime to venture on the delights of flesh and sometime to flat Atheism it self Especially when we know the treachery of our own hearts that they are as Tinder or Gunpowder ready to take fire as soon as one of these sparks shall fall upon them O how the poor Christian lives in continual disquietness to feel these motions But more that his heart should be the soyl for this seed and the too fruitful mother of such an off-spring And most of all through fear least they will at last prevail and these cursed motions should procure his consent But here is our comfort as we now stand not by our own strength and shall not be charged with any of this so when the day of our deliverance comes we shall fully Rest from these Temptations Satan is then bound up the time of tempting is then done the time of torment to himself and his conquered captives those deluded souls is then come and the victorious Saints shall have Triumph for Temptation Now we do walk among his snares and are in danger to be circumvented with his methods and wiles but then we are quite above his snares and out of the hearing of his enticing charms He hath power here to tempt us in the VVilderness but he entereth not the Holy City He may set us on the pinacle of the Temple in the earthly Jerusalem but the new Jerusalem he may not approach Perhaps he may bring us to an exceeding high Mountain but the Mount Sion and City of the living God he cannot ascend Or if he should yet all the Kingdoms of the world and the glory of them will be but a poor despised bait to the soul which is possessed of the Kingdom of our Lord and the Glory of it No no here is no more work for Satan now Hopes he might have of deceiving poor Creatures on Earth who lived out of sight and onely heard and read of a Kingdom which they never beheld and had onely Faith to live upon and were incompassed with flesh and drawn aside by sense But when once they see the Glory they read of and taste the joyes they heard of and possess that Kingdom which they then believed and hoped for and have laid aside their fleshly sense its time then for Satan to have done it s in vain to offer a Temptation more What draw them from that glory draw them from the Arms of Jesus Christ draw them from the sweet praises of God draw them from the blessed Society of Saints and Angels draw them from the bosom of the Fathers Love and that to a place of Torment among the damned which their eyes behold why what charms what perswasions can do it to entice them from an unknown Joy an unknown God were somewhat hopeful but now they have both seen and enjoyed there is no hope Surely it must be a very strong temptation that must draw a blessed Saint from that Rest. We shall have no more need to pray Lead us not into Temptation nor to watch and pray that we enter not into Temptation nor shall we serve the Lord as Paul did Acts 20.19 in many tears and Temptations no but now they who continued with Christ in Temptation shall by him be appointed to a Kingdom even as his Father appointed to him that they may eat and drink at his Table in his Kingdom Luke 22.28 29 30. Blessed therefore are they that endure temptation for when they are tryed they shall receive the crown of life which the Lord hath promised to them that love him Jam. 1.12 And then they shall be saved from the hour of temptation Then the malignant Planet Saturn shall be below us and loose all its influence which now is above exercising its enmity and Satan must be suffering who would have drawn us into suffering As Bucholtzer wittily Vbi Saturnus non supra nos sed infra nos conspicietur luens poenas pro sua in nos soevitia malitia SECT XII 4. WE shall Rest also from all our Temptations which we now undergo from the world and the flesh as well as Satan And that is a number unexpressible and a weight were it not that we are beholding to supporting grace utterly intollerable O the hourly dangers that we poor sinners here below walk in Every sense is a snare Every member a snare Every creature a snare Every mercy a snare And every duty a snare to us VVe can scarce open our eyes but we are in danger If we behold them above us we are in danger of envy If them below us we are in danger of contempt If we see sumptuous buildings pleasant habitations Honour and Riches we are in danger to be drawn away with covetous desires If the ragges and beggery of others we are in danger of self-applauding thoughts and unmercifulness If we see beauty it s a bait to lust if deformity to loathing and disdain VVe can scarcely hear a word spoken but containes to us matter of temptation How soon do slanderous reports vain jests wanton speeches by that passage creep into the Heart How strong and prevalent a Temptation is our appetite and how constant and strong a watch doth it require Have we comliness and beauty What fuel for pride Are we deformed What an occasion of repining Have we strength of Reason and gifts of Learning O how hard is it not to be pufft up To seek our selves To hunt after applause To despise our brethren To mislike the simplicity that is in Christ Both in the matter and manner of Scripture In Doctrine in Discipline in Worship and in the Saints to affect a pompous specious fleshly service of God and to exalt Reason above Faith Are we unlearned and of shallow heads and slender parts How apt then to despise what we have not And to undervalue that which we do not know and to erre with confidence because of our

is the Fathers good pleasure to give thee this Kingdom Seest thou this astonishing Glory above thee Why all this is thy own inheritance This Crown is thine these pleasures are thine this company this beauteous place is thine all things are thine because thou art Christs and Christ is thine when thou wast married to him thou hadstall this with him Thus take thy heart into the Land of Promise shew it the pleasant hills and fruitful valleys Shew it the clusters of Grapes which thou hast gathered and by those convince it that it is a blessed Land flowing with better then milk and honey enter the gates of the holy City walk through the streets of the New Jerusalem walk about Sion go round about her tell the towers thereof mark well her bulwarks consider her palaces that thou mayest tell it to thy soul Psal. 48.12 13. Hath it not the Glory of God and is not her light like to a stone most precious See the twelve foundations of her walls and the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb therein The building of the walls of it are of Jasper and the City is of pure gold as cleer as glass The foundation is garnished with pretious stones and the twelve gates are twelve pearls every several gate is of one Pearl and the street of the City is pure Gold as it were transparent glass There is no temple in it for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it It hath no need of Sun or Moon to shine in it for the Glory of God doth lighten it and the Lamb is the light thereof and the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it These sayings are faithful and true and the Lord God of the holy Prophets hath sent his Angels and his own Son to shew unto his servants the things that must shortly be done Rev. 21.11 12 13. c. to the end 22.6 What sayest thou now to all this This is thy Rest O my soul and this must be the place of thy Everlasting habitation Let all the sons of Sion then rejoyce and the daughters of Jerusalem be glad for great is the Lord and greatly is he praised in the City of our God Beautiful for scituation the Joy of the whole earth is Mount Sion God is known in her palaces for a refuge Psal. 48.11 1 2 3. Yet proceed on Anima quae amat ascendit c. The soul saith Austin that loves ascends frequently and runs familiarly through the streets of the heavenly Jerusalem visiting the Patriachs and Prophets saluting the Apostles admiring the Armies of Martyrs and Confessors c. So do thou lead on thy heart as from street to street bring it into the Palace of the Great King lead it as it were from chamber to chamber say to it Here must I lodge here must I live here must I praise here must I love and be beloved I must shortly be one of this Heavenly Quire I shall then be better skilled in the musick Among this blessed company must I take my place My voice must joyn to make up the Melody my teares will then be wiped away my groans are turned to another tune my cottage of clay will be changed to this Palace and my prison rags to these splendid robes my sordid nasty stinking flesh shall be put off and such a Sun-like spiritual body put on For the former things are done away Glorious things are spoken of thee O City of God There it is that trouble and lamentation ceaseth and the voice of sorrow is not heard O when I look upon this glorious place what a dunghil and dungeon me thinks is earth O what a difference betwixt a man feeble pained groaning dying rotting in the grave and one of these triumphant blessed shining Saints Here shall I drink of the river of pleasure the streams whereof make glad the City of our God For the Lord will create a New Jerusalem and a New Earth and the former shall not be remembred nor come into minde we shall be glad and rejoyce for ever in that which he creates for he will create Jerusalem a rejoycing and her people a joy And he will rejoyce in Jerusalem and joy in his people and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her nor the voice of crying there shall be no more thence an infant of days nor an old man that hath not filled his dayes Isa. 65.17 18 19 20. Must Israel on earth under the bondage of the Law serve the Lord with joyfulness and gladness of heart because of the abundance of all things which they possess sure then I shall serve him with joyfulness and gladness who shall have another kinde of service and of abundance in Glory Deut. 28.47 Did the Saints take joyfully the spoiling of their goods Heb. 11.34 and shall not I take joyfully the receiving of my good and such a full reparation of all my losses Was it such a remarkable celebrated day when the Jews rested from their enemies because it was turned to them from sorrow to joy and from mourning into a good day Est. 9.22 What a day then will that be to my soul whose Rest and change will be so much greater When the wise men saw but the Star of Christ they rejoyced with exceeding great Joy Mat. 2.10 But I shall shortly see the Star of Jacob even himself who is the bright and morning Star Numb 24.17 Rev. 22.16 If they returned from the Sepulchre with great Joy when they had but heard that he was risen from the dead Mat. 28.8 What Joy then will it be to me when I shall see him risen and reigning in his glory and my self raised to a blessed communion with him Then shall we have Beauty for ashes indeed and the oil of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness Isa. 61.3 When he hath made Sion an eternal excellency a joy of many generations Isa. 60.15 Why do I not then arise from the dust and lay aside my sad complaints and cease my doleful mourning note Why do I not trample down vain delights and feed upon the foreseen delights of Glory why is not my life a continual Joy and the favor of Heaven perpetually upon my spirit And thus Reader I have directed thee in Acting of thy Joy SECT X. HEre also when thou findest cause thou hast a singular advantage from thy Meditations of Heaven for the acting of the contrary and more mixed passions As 1. Of thy hatred and detestation of sin which would deprive thy soul of these immortal Joyes 2. Of thy godly and filial Fear least thou shouldest either abuse or hazard this mercy 3. Of thy necessary grief for such thy foolish abuse and hazard 4. Of thy godly shame which should cover thy face for the forementioned folly 5. Of thy unfeigned repentance for what thou hast done against thy Joyes 6. Of thy holy anger or