Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	flesh_n	life_n	spirit_n	9,701	5	5.4408	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91726	The benefit of afflictions. By Edward Reynell Esqu.	Reynell, Edward, 1612-1663.	1660 (1660)	Wing R1217; Thomason E1914_2; ESTC R209996	20,418	46

the benefit of Gods house of Correction was their School of Instruction The justest man then alive was fought against by his Terrors Job 6.4 He that walked before him in truth and with a perfect heart had his bones broken by the anger of the Almighty Isa 38.13 Yea the man after Gods own heart was so wasted with grief as that His moisture was turned into the drought of summer Psal 32.3 4. Nay his own son though without sin must bleed upon the Cross and those whom he hath chosen for himself be tryed in the Furnace of Affliction Isa 48.10 The Dung-hill of this world will annoy thee while thou dwellest in this house of clay The just have not only an Egypt of sin to encounter with but Israel even in Canaan is not in rest Nay our Saviour himself first tasted the bitter Gall of the unmercifull Cross before he eat of the Hony-comb It is thus that our Sorrows must be turned into Sweets The corn is not separated but by threshing nor men drawn nearer to heaven by worldly impediments so much as by tribulation Acriora Orexim excitant embammata Sharp Sauces beget good Appetites and the Thorns at last prove Roses in the same place where innocence hath sighed so much But oh how basely do we startle at every trouble How do we endeavour to dry up those Tears before they have sufficiently cleansed our filthiness whereas Afflictions should not be resisted but with great Pre-caution What part soever God hath appointed us we must be contented to act it faithfully If it be long it is usually light if grievous it cannot last Dies dolorem minuit time will wear it out we can never loose our selves in the pure and innocent Tracts of vertue Grave nihil est homini quod fert necessitas that which is necessary cannot be any way burthensom Besides It is Gods Prerogative and not thine to chuse thy condition whither to be sick or healthy a mourner or afflicted Is it his pleasure to to make thee the Drunkards Song or a Reproach to Abjects envy not those Shimeis which thus rail on thee considering whose doing it is bite not the stone but look unto him that throwes it keep close to thy Station and thou shalt find no small comfort at last patience will digest thy misery Sure all is not lost after a little forbearance we shall come out from these vapours of Calumnie as the Sun out of a Cloud at noon-day The Afflictions of man I confess are more moving then of any other creature for he only is a stranger here All things else are at home but Ardua florifera Crux The painfull Cross shall at last be crowned with Palms and Flowers A joyfull heart will at last prove the fruit of his innocence though grief and sorrow be the Bud and Prim-rose thereof our Mansion is in heaven where our Saviour is gone to prepare a place for us The Martyrs were wont to mitigate their pain with the thought of home and immortality every punishment as Tiburtius faith being poor where a good conscience keeps us company When we shall be freed from this dark Lant-horn of flesh and frailty and when we shall be raised from death we shall not grieve so much because the joyes of this life were not real as we shall rejoyce because they were none at all That lump of misery holy Job whose spirit was nothing but patience as his body was nought but Sores retained alwayes his Affections in an equal Resignation Came I naked into of the world so shall I go out Job 1.21 There is as much valour to be shewed in a Bed as in an Army But alas though we cannot avoid Evils how are we afraid to bear them Indeed we interpret out Afflictions amiss and therefore are cast down we take every whipping to be an effect of Anger when it is a sign of Love God makes us sick in our body to cure some disease in our Soul Can we attain to Tabor before we pass by Calvary Shall we not first tast Gall with our Saviour before we receive the sweet benefits of his blessed Resurrection Ah! is there any such precious thing to be gotten in the world that we should forsake Jesus in the wilderness of Temptation and please our selves in the vain and transitory hopes of our own unbridled Fancies How do we know whither in desiring to be delivered from Affliction we do not ask of God to take away a gift which is necessary to our salvation seeing that Malady or Affliction which makes us distate worldly pleasures gives us a disposition to tast the joyes of Heaven The brave and happy men of this world enjoy their wishes but their Ship doth perish in the harbour as it is sporting whereas God by his infinite Providence gives Tempests to his Elect that he may work a miraculous Calm by his Almighty Power And though the waters seem to reserve their choler to vent it only upon the Ship which carries just persons yet is it alwayes accompanied with that happy and comfortable voice It is I be not afraid God takes off his own people from the ilness of their wayes By hedging them up with Thorns Hos 2.6 But it is to bring them into a Bed of Roses and by the wormwood of this world to shew the sweetness of himself He is pleased to draw the Instruments of his Power out of the Objects of our Infirmities where he comes the Tempest ceaseth and they know Jesus very ill who with his Disciples in the Storms of Affliction take him for an Illusion and cry out for fear of his presence which should make them most rejoyce Affliction opens the eyes of man and makes him come to himself that he may the better return to God and it is a great offence to break that glass which representeth us to our selves by a friendly correction Why should I be afraid to shew my heart stark naked to him whose Arrowes no sooner pierce but heal who tells us Afflictions and Scourges in this life are like to be our portion And shall we think to speed better then our Master who at last intends us a Crown will turn our water into wine and according to Sampsons Ridle Out of the Eater shall come meat and out of the strong sweetness David had forty years Reign for seven years Banishment and Joseph though thirteen years under a Cloud through false imprisonment reigned fourscore years a King in Aegypt And surely Gods ends are no other then to wean us from the world to draw us nearer to himself to humble and to prove us that he may do us good at the later end Deut. 8.16 Oh Happy Afflictions to keep the heart pliable and tender towards our God! yea thrice happy is he who can say with the Prophet Remembring mine Affliction and my misery the wormwood and the Gall my soul hath them still in Remembrance and is humbled in me Lam. 3.19 20. And hence is it that the Apostle

also bids us Call to remembrance the former dayes in which after we were illuminated we endured a great fight of afflictions partly whilest we were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions Hebrews 10.32 33. God is thus pleased to mind us of the frailty of our condition since when we are in Prosperity we are ready to kick the heel and forget him Where did Adam take his Fall but in Paradice the midst of the Trees of pleasure Where is the poor Bee more subject to be drowned then in a Pot of honey Neither are we ever nearer a Surfeit then in the midst of Delicacies We find Flowers to be ever sweetest after a Shower yea to drop the sweetest water when fire is under them The Gold loseth its dross by refining and the Corn its Chaffe by the Flail Who then would not be willing to be under Gods pruning knife that he may bring forth more fruit John 15.2 Who would not be content to sit with Job on the Dung-hill bereav'd of all his goods and comforts when they shall be redoubled yea not only to receive manifold more in this life but everlasting life hereafter Luk. 18.30 Surely none me thinks should repine to drink of Christs Cup here since at last it will be sweetned with such good Ingredients It was the saying of one that all the pleasures injoyed by all men of the world were not worth one hours in Heaven the thought whereof made that great Marquess Galeaceus Caracciolus though rich and of much esteem in the world so strongly to with-stand those who tempted him to return to his own Countrey Alas said he let their riches perish with them who esteem all the gold in the world worth one dayes society with Jesus Christ and his holy Spirit Answerable whereunto is that sweet and heavenly language of the Apostle I account not saith he the Afflictions of this life worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us Rom. 8.18 Yea He esteemed all things but loss for the excellency of Christ for whom he had suffered the loss of all things accounting them but dung that he might win Christ Phil. 3.8 He well knew that comfort was not the standing dish of a Christian in this life nor Cordials to be fit but for those that are fainting Raw flesh saith a Reverend Bishop is noisome to the stomack and yields no good nourishment before it be sodden so are we to God before we are soked and boiled in Afflictions Christ died and bled and wept for our souls and shall not we suffer a little with him since it is especially for our own advantage at last Which of the Saints of the world was without Crosses and Tribulations and shall we think to escape that which no man could ever avoid The Disciple it seems made too much hast back from the Sepulcher to find Christ Joh. 20.10 11. but Mary standing there weeping saw her Saviour And certainly he that sigheth not here with him as a Pilgrim shall never rejoyce with him hereafter as a Citizen Was it not he our Captain who shew'd us the way He that could make Orators out of those that were speechless had nor one word to say against the Revilers He which could command Frogs and Flies to overthrow mighty Armies would not have one Disciple to draw his Sword He that was without spot by his unparallel'd Sufferings took away our stains and through his innocency anvanc'd the Standard of the Cross He that was the Fountain of Glory descended to the lowest abasements He that had life at command was ravished by the Object of his death and transported by the Idea of his Sufferings Shall we not then love that Cross which he hath cherished as his Spouse Surely we shall never be worthy of him untill we bear as well the Ensigns of his War as the Ornaments of his peace Let our care be that we suffer not for evil doing which is the way not to carry the Cross of our Lord but of the bad Thief Neither-be thou troubled for suffering for thy Innocency which is greater honor then to suffer for a direct Offence Christ was not the less the King of Heaven for suffering himself to be crowned with Thorns in this world nor his Servants the worse for the Reproaches of his enemies which he long since told them they must expect The Viper would sooner light upon St. Paul then the Barbarian Neither do Pirates use to set upon empty Ships but pursue those which are richly loaden Satan is quiet with those that he hath got into his possession his Temptations are a sign that God loves where he hates and though he should winnow thee with the Fan and bruise thee with the Flail yet thy faith shall not fail but at last be sure the Salt-sea of thy Tears shall become a flourishing Field as it did to Gods people of old The Cloud which appeared to Ezekiel carried with it storms and winds but it was withall incompassed with a golden Circle to teach us that Storms of Afflictions are at last accompanied with brightness and felicity and the greatest losses with the best advantages Our Saviour chose the places of delight for suffering of pains and never looked upon those dainty Sweets but to draw out of them most bitter Sorrows Gardens indeed were made for Recreations but our Saviour there finds only Desolation The Plants whereof did groan the Roses seemed flowers of death and the Springs belonging to them fountains of Tears sweat and blood Heaven wore mourning on the Cross all the Citizens of heaven wept over his Torments The Earth quaked the stones rent themselves Sepulchers opened the dead arise only Jesusdies immovable upon his Thron of patience Who then alas can chuse but be astonished at the tranquillity of his Spirit that amongst those great convulsions of the world which accompanied him all his life and moved all about the Cross at his death amongst such bloody dolours insolent cries and unsufferable Blasphemies bleeding weeping and praying he should shew such a serenity of Spirit in the very gulf of Afflictions to which all the sufferings in the world are but so many Flea-bitings This indeed was that bloody Sacrifice which hath been expected from all Ages And what soul is not ravished with admiration and carried beyond it self to behold those spectacles of horrour that bottom of endless goodness and mercy It s a great way of Remedy Similes aliorum respice casus mitius ista feres to compare our condition with those whose sufferings we find to be greater And can we think on a deeper Pattern of griefes and sorrow what though we receive no comfort from the Creature is it not enough that we have it from the Creator The infusion of the least piece of his Cross I mean a true interest in his merits and Passion being able to make the bitterest afflictions of this world to become sweet and pleasant And can we think on that depth