Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	heart_n	sin_n	smite_v	1,347	5	9.5535	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19281	A brand taken out of the fire. Or The Romish spider, with his webbe of treason. VVouen and broken together with the seuerall vses that the world and Church shall make thereof. By T. Cooper, preacher of Gods word.	Cooper, Thomas, fl. 1626.	1606 (1606)	STC 5693.5; ESTC S108666	97,414	114

generation and full of deadly poyson extreamly cruell where they can preuaile and yet by the Iustice of God breeding their owne bane when their sinne is full euen bursting a sunder with the poyson thereof and iustly confounded with their owne malice So is the Spider Yea as the Spiders Webbe is cunningly Wouen and quickly broken so are and shal be the deuises of our aduersaries they shall not be established by their iniquitie but their owne cunning hath and shall be their confusion And let this satisfie you concerning the Title As for the plainenesse and rudenesse of the matter if you doe duly consider the rule of my direction I trust you will acknowledge that the power of the spirit is best seene in weaknes and that plaine lines doe best answer a straight and euen leuell the euidence of the spirit is best seene in plainenesse You see I haue informed my selfe in these meditations by the most perfect Paterne a Psalme of that Princely Prophet Dauid that man of afflictions when his life was indangered by the subtiltie and violence of his close and trecherous enemies To be deliuered from these he flies vnto his God in prayer and the rather to preuaile he layes before the Lord the desperate practises of his enemies thereby implying that vnlesse the Lord stood vnto him hee iustly feared that they would swallow him vp This feare of his is the rather confirmed because he saw them soddaine and fearelesse in their mischieuous practises And why they should be thus fearlesse he discouers in the next words because they did by many sorts of incouragements meet with this feare And here begin our meditatiōs deriued as you see frō this pure fountaine and watered all along with the streames therof If this heauenly treasure hath so shined in this earthen ves sell that the excellencie of that power may appeare to be of God and not of vs giue God the glory in the treasure and be humbled in respect of the vessell If the vessell hath receiued that honour from this beauenly treasure as not to haue handled it craftily and deceitfully but in declaration of the truth shal be approued to euery mans conscience in the sight of God Then if our Gospell be hid it is hid to them th 〈…〉 〈…〉 ish But I perswade myselfe better things of you euen su 〈…〉 〈…〉 company saluation And let this be your triall that you are contented to heare the same things againe So accepting these paines according to the entent thereof you shall happily ease yourselues of the Mother and the Daughter forgetfulnesse and vnthankfulnesse and burthen me willingly with further paines for the further building of you vp in Iesus Christ. To whose protection I commit you I pray you to beare with the faults escaped in the printing and correct the grosser of them as followeth Pag. 19. lin 11. for rest read cost ead lin 21. for that may read that we may ead lin 1. for we read he ead lin 29. for bloudie execution read for the bloudie execution pag. 22. lin 30. for Rhamaes read Pharaoes pag. 23. lin 5. for perpetuall read externall ead lin 8. for framing read foaming ead lin 30. for so Satan read superstition pag. 29. lin 30. for thing read change pag. 34. lin 28. for saue read some pag. 35. lin 24. for life restored read life are restored pag. 43. lin 28. for meane read mayne pag. 44. lin 28. for the read these THE Romish Spider THE FIRST PART The weauing of the Webbe Psal. 64. Vers. 5. They encourage themselues in a wicked purpose they cōmune togeather to lay snares priuily and say who shall see them 6. They haue sought out iniquities they haue accomplished that which they sought out euen euery one in his secret thought and the depth of his heart THe holy Ghost hauing in the latter end of the former verse set out the desperate resolution of the wicked in their attempts against the Lords Annointed by two Circumstances The one That they are suddain in execution implying their desperatenesse The other That they feare not arguing their boldnesse and confidence in their proceedings doth in the two next verses yeeld a reason for this their desperate confidence by discouering their diuelish policie in the maner of their practising as also in the varietie and secrecie thereof For whereas of all other sinnes the sinne of treason hath cause most to affright the heart of man not onely in regard of the maiestie of the Prince who carries the Image of God full of terror and astonishment to the wicked but also in respect of the haynous punishment that attends the same not to omit the racking of the conscience in the horrour of the sinne may it not therefore seeme strange that wretches should not feare to commit so great a sinne that Subiects should runne of boldly and desperately to lay hands vppon the Lords annointed The Prophet Dauid was so affected when hee had but cut off the lappe of Saules garment a wicked and reprobate King that his heart smote him with conscience of some great euill in lifting vp his handagainst the Lords Annointed And when the Amalekite brought newes vnto Dauid that he had slaine his enemy Saule hoping to receiue some great reward the good King was so farre from delighting in the death of his enemie as that rather remembring him to bee the Annointed of the Lord hee not onely bewailes his death with a great lamentation but further reprooues the Amalekite with this seuere checke How wast thou not affraide to life vp thy hand against the Annointed of the Lord and rewards him with such wages as so haynous a murther did require To feare then in attempting against the li●e of a Prince as there is great reason in regard of the haynousnesse of the sinne and the Maiestie of the person against whome it is committed so there had neede be great policie vsed to banish this feare What this policie was the holy Ghost proceedes to relate vnto vs in these two verses following leading vs to the consideration of diuers notable points of policie in the practises of these Traytours against their Soueraigne to make them confident and secure therein that so they may bee taken in the pit which they haue digged for others The first whereof respecteth the manner of their plotting and it is here set out vnto vs to be two-fold First saith the spirit They encourage themselues in a wicked purpose they commune together wherein the meaning of the holy Ghost is to lead vs to a policie verie vsuall in great and desperate attempts that they are vndertaken and prosecuted by combination of all sorts of strength as so many helps to further the accomplishment thereof Secondly whereas close carriage conueyance is an especiall helpe to further dangerous designes therefore the holy Ghost addeth that the speciall matter of their counsell was how they might lay snares priuily signifying therein that they

to vse these blessings aright so by scattering thus the blessings that the Lord hath bestowed vpon vs on our selues soberly on others plentifully on our God thankfully the holy Ghost witnesseth that wee shall haue plentie and aboundance the oyle in the cruse and the meale in the battell shall not be wasted vntill the Lord bring thee to that plentie where there shall bee no more neede of these things Thus shall thou fight the good fight of faith against all the difficulties that may assault thee in these outward things and so ouercoming such euilles as by abuse they are incident vnto that little which thou hast shall be better then great riches of the vngodly as being a furtherance vnto thee of that durable riches and neuer fading honour which remaines with thee for euer in the kingdome of heauen And now enlarge thy heart and consider yet further the wonderfull conquests of thy faith What good thing is there which heauen and earth doeth afford which is not ours by the power of a liuely faith What should I tell you of the creatures of GOD the Creator himselfe is ouercome by faith Howe doeth the prayer of the faithfull preuaile if it be feruent are the heauens opened and shut by faith Yea hell it selfe and all the powers thereof are subiect thereunto Is this the victorie of our faith that it ouercometh the world Nay herein behold the glorious conquest thereof that it ouercometh him that made the world Let me alone saith God vn●o Moses where he p●aied vnto him for the people So strongly had Moses tied the Lord vnto him by his faithfull prayer What can wee desire more Behold heere the victorie of faith and learne to try thy selfe by these things whether this deliuerance hath confirmed thy faith in God whether thou bee in the faith or no And for our further triall and conclusion of these meditations consider wee what the holy Ghost addeth And all that are vpright in heart shall reioyce Therein as I take it giuing vs a notable touchstone to discerne that true righteousnesse which is of faith namely by the soundnes and vprightnesse of the heart So doth the spirit describe those that are truel● righteous so may true righteousnesse best be iudged euen frō the soūdnes sincerity of the heart for as the heart is that which principally God requires as knowing that if it be giuen vp vnto him the rest will follow So is it that which first he fittes that it may be yeelded vp vnto him as an acceptable sacrifice vnto his Maiestie by purifiing the same by faith through the Ministerie of the word And seeing the heart is the fountaine and originall of all our actions therefore the fountaine being purged the streames must needes be pure and though happily through imperfection they may in part be polluted yet seeing the fountaine is purged therefore certenly shall the streames one day bee clensed also and in the meane time wee shall bee accepted not according to the streame of our outward actions but answerable to the fountaine euen the purpose of our hearts And surely seeing we haue heerein onely boldnesse before GOD ene●y the testimonie of our conscience that it doeth not condemne vs and this not so much in regard of the present puritie thereof which is imperfect as in that by faith wee still lay hold vpon Iesus Christ in whome onely we haue boldnesse to approach the throne of grace and by whome we are assured of full perfection And seeing wee can haue no comfort in what wee doe nor incouragement to goe forward vnlesse wee haue the approbation of our conscience for the same if now our righteousnesse should only bee measured by the outward action and not by the inward purpose of the heart what boldnesse could wee haué before GOD seeing our best righteousnesse so measured is as a menstrous cloath What comfort could wee haue in our outward well doing seeing our vines bring forth so small grapes Besides this howe should I cleare my self from the note of hypocrisie if I had not an euidence frō my heart to iustifie my sinceritie seeing the hypocrite may for a time make a fairer shew then possiblely the sound Christian Nay howe shall I bee established against such slanders and reproches as are fastned vpon me how possibly shall I not sinke vnder the burden of these imputations if my righteousnesse were onely measured by my good name which is procured by my outward actions and not by the sincerity of my heart in the sight of God Oh this is it that makes the children of God not to esteeme to bee iudged of men because their hearts are cleare they know nothing by themselues this makes them to disclame the verdict of men in the court of the world and to flie to the approbation of the Lord in the court of their consciences By which as deceiuers in the opinion of men yet they are true in the sight of God their conscience bearing them witnesse of the sinceritie of their outward action though it bee mingled with much corruption and performed with much weakenesse So the sinceritie of their heart doeth not onely approue them in the sight of God but doeth also imbolden them euen against the forces of men that so they may not be discouraged in their greatest weakenesse but the power of their sound conscience approuing what is done doeth thereby prouoke them to a further measure of well doing that so hauing finished their course with ioy they may in the end attaine that crowne of glory which is laid vp for them which Iesus Christ the iust shall giue them at that day Behold here the euidence of this truth concerning the triall of our righteousnesse namely the foundnesse and sinceritie of our hearts If now hauing proued a soūd heart to be the touchstone of true righteousnesse a further triall shall bee required howe this sound heartmay bee knowne surely seeing the heart of man is deceitfull aboue al things who can know it and the searching thereof doeth onely belong to God therefore as we dare not vndertake herein any certen determination concerning the hearts of others yet because the Lord doth vouchsafe vs the assurance of our saluation in this life the test mony whereof especially proceedeth from the spirit of God witnessing vnto our spirits that we are his children as by this we are sure of the soundnesse of our owne hearts so do we not want many excellent markes of this inward sincerity Wouldst thou therfore know whether thy heart be sincere or no Consider first the meanes whereby it is purged namely by faith applying vnto vs the blood of Christ Iesus and ●eeing that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God Therefore if thou wouldst haue a testimony of the ground worke of sincerity in thy heart thou must be sure to fetch it from the power of the word