Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	good_a	life_n	sin_n	13,827	5	4.6650	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90715	The lawfulness of the celebration of Christs birth-day debated, in case it be annnally [sic] known or not known. Discussed by Scripture, and consequence of Scripture; and many objections answered, and refuted by reasons. By George Palmer, wel-willer to a particular and solemn joyous-thankfulness to God, for his several special mercies in Christ; by way of gradation.	Palmer, George, b. 1596 or 7.	1648 (1648)	Wing P228; Thomason E476_10; ESTC R204341	11,240	16

The Lawfulness of the CELEBRATION OF CHRISTS BIRTH-DAY Debated In case it be Annnally known or not known Discussed By Scripture and Consequence of Scripture and many Objections answered and refuted by Reasons By George Palmer Wel-willer to a particular and solemn joyous-thankfulness to God for his several special mercies in Christ by way of Gradation Job 32. 7 8. Daies should speak and multitude of yeers should teach knowledge but there is a spirit in man and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding Isa. 29. 13 14. 1 Cor. 1. 19 20. For as much as this people draw neer me with their mouth and with their lips do honour me but have removed their heart far from me and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men Therefore behold I will proceed to do a marvellous work and wonder For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shal be hid LONDON Printed in the Yeer 1649. To the READER BEloved It may seem strange to many that I am intermedling with Controversies amongst the Learned in Divinity And therefore it is likely that some will say of me as it was somtime said of one Thou art but a stripling but they are men of War from their youth and therefore not to be encountred with by thee And they will think it more safer for me to be employed about meaner matters of a lower Nature rather than to encounter with gyants And perhaps give me a nipping check like that of Eliab to David viz. Where are those few sheep left in the Wilderness It is thy pride that moved thee to come and see the battel But my answer is as that which then was made What have I now done Is there not a cause c. There were Israelites on the one side that stood for the glory of God and the lawful liberty of his children and there were Philistines on the other side that did defie Christ and his redeemed Ones and they had one great Goliah on whom they did cast their confidence and he did approach towards the Israelites with reproach and defiance and yet those Israelites remained in a kind of astonishment Our condition is somwhat like theirs if well examined And although I am not furnished with such complete Armour as some other spiritual Warriours are yet if the stone of Israel be with me I shall have good success You know a jaw-bone was but a strange peice of Armour yet a thousand Philistins could not stand against it for God was with it And his riddle did occasion the quarrel between them for they brake the Covenant of Garments and Sheets as some have done in a Covenant with me here I will not compare my self with any of those Warriours yet give me leave to put forth a Riddle By weakness comes strength Yet strength beareth down weakness Canterbury May 1648. Yours for Truth GEORGE PALMER THE LAWFVLNESSE OF THE CELEBRATION OF CHRISTS BIRTH-DAY Debated c. IN the second Chapter of the Gospel by Saint Luke from the tenth verse to the fourteenth verse you may find that the Angel of the Lord the same day that Christ Jesus was born did incite the Shepherds to rejoyce by reason of the good tydings which he then the same day brought them concerning the Birth of Christ the Lord And for their Example and greater Encouragement thereunto the Lord our God had then the same day appointed a multitude of holy Angels to begin the songs of praise with joy praising God and saying Glory to God in the Highest and on earth Peace good will towards men Yea the first Angel did render them an exceeding strong reason to move their affections and wills thereunto in these words For unto you is born this day a Saviour which is Christ the Lord From whence I will note one thing by the way from the speedy delivery of this message to the Shepherds That if it had not bin the Will of our God that that day should be the day of their solemn joyous praise then the Angel might have divulged the Birth-day of our Saviour afterwards only and not soo speedily in the same day of his Birth but he was speedy in the delivery of his message and emphatical in his expression viz. This Day is born unto you a Saviour which is Christ the Lord And very great reason there was that men should then so rejoyce For if the Angel told Zechariah that many should rejoyce at the birth of John the Baptist who was but the fore-runner of Christ to prepare his way before him as in Chap. 1. verse 14. you may see then much more cause had the children of God had to rejoyce at the Birth of Christ their Saviour In the next place I will observe what our Lord God hath caused to be written for our instruction in this particular by the Evangelist S. Matthew in Chap. 2. and some of the former verses There we may see how the Lord God would cause the wise men of the East to honour Christ being new-born with precious Gifts Gold Franckincense and Myrrhe yea you may see in the second verse that the Star that appeared unto them did denote to them his Birth These are the words Where is he that is born King of the Iews For we have seen his Star in the East and are come to worship him This birth of Christ was much respected by the Prophet Isaiah as in the ninth chapter of his Prophesie doth appear For he seeing it by faith admired it in these words Behold unto us a Child is born c. Many Scriptures might be brought in to prove the excellent esteem or account of his Birth The Apostle took good notice of the excellent resemblance that is between Christs bodily-birth and our spiritual-birth as well as of his Circumcision and our heart-circumcision and of his death and our dying to sin and of his resurrection and our rising again to newness of life And farther the excellencie of his birth was typified before-hand to be very much esteemed of in a particular respect For every male that first opened the womb was to be accounted holy to the Lord And if the type was to be accounted holy then much more was the thing typified to be esteemed holy Thus I have noted to you the message of the angel to the shepherds inciting them to rejoyce with the reason to move them to perform that their duty and also the example set before them to encourage them therein by a multitude of Angels singing out his praise proclaming his Glory at his birth And how the wise men did honour him being moved by a Star denoting his birth in an especial manner And how the Prophet Isaiah admired and esteemed of it he seeing it but by faith And how his birth was esteemed in the Types of it viz. The first born male was to be esteemed holy to the Lord Therefore I cannot but conclude that Christs

or not to do some things and therefore David inciteth us to it in Psal 50. 14. in these words Offer unto God thanksgiving and pay thy vows to the most high And in Colos. 27. Paul will have us to abound in thanksgiving And likewise they might offer some burnt-offerings of their voluntary free will without any strict injunction in that particular as in 2 Chron. 22. 31. you may see And in the New Testament it is said that Paul had a vow and in Acts 21. 23 it is said that there were foure men that had a vow on them for we have liberty to vow to humble and afflict our souls as they of the Jews had when we please upon divers occasions as in Numb. 30. 13. and Act. 21. 23. c. And so likewise have we libertie to give thanks with joy to God particularly and specially upon divers occasions concurring and solemnly too For although all kinds of sacrifices might not be offered at mans choice of times yet some kinds of sacrifices might be offered at mans choice and choice of times for the more part and voluntarily of their free will onely as in Deut. 23. 23. What think you of that which the Israelites did in the time of the Reign of King Hezekiah as in 2 Chron. 30. 23. you may read for they kept other seven dayes festivally to the Lord after they had kept the feast of the Passeover And that 7. dayes feast was of their own free will and affections by their own counsell saith the text there And you may there perceive that the holy Ghost noteth it to their commendation And truly if this solemne joyous thankfulnesse in a festivall way was so acceptable to God without any speciall command then much more will the joyous and thankfull celebration of Christs birth-day in a festivall way be acceptable upon a more warrantable ground namely the proclamation from God by his holy Angel to the shepherds at first to rejoyce for a great good given for the good of all people for we must abound in thanksgiving and rejoyce evermore these being our spirituall sacrifices as those corporall sacrifices were for them then Besides all this alreadie premised let us take notice of the great inconveniences that cometh to the Civill State of the whole Kingdom by the endeavouring to overthrow the joyous observation of this birth-day of our Saviour and especially in these times wherein the State standeth so fickle wicked men being apt to make an insurrection upon the least occasion and much more upon such an occasion as this wherein ungodly men may procure so great a partie of better men to joyne with them though not to so bad an end but in an holy indignation for many of those that love Christ with a well-informed judgement in this particular upon the consideration of the great love that Christ hath shewed to them in coming to be their Saviour taking flesh in and of the Virgin will be apt to be jealous of the losse of the occasion of the especiall remembring of his coming in the flesh And besides wicked men will be forward to take this occasion as a cloak to put on to make a par●ie for a worse end when they see the observation thereof so much opposed Therefore it is fitting that we i 〈◊〉 itate the Apostle in the cutting off occasion from them that seek occasion to do wickednes and mischief and especially in a matter that is so clearly lawfull and convenient too as the speciall giving of thanks with joy is or as the joyous celebration of Christs birth-day is to the Spouse of Christ For although the Leviticall-ceremoniall daies times months and yeers are abolished being but types of those things that are fulfilled by Christ as is mentioned in Gal. 4. 10. see v. 3. yet the same Apostle affirmeth confidently that he that thinketh he may not set apart some dayes now under the Gospel to celebrate Evangelicall duties as hearing the Word and receiving the Sacraments and offering the sacrifice of speciall thanksgivings for some speciall mercies of God is as weak as he that thinketh that he may eat but hearbs as you may see in Rom. 14. 1 2 3 4 5 6. And therefore I entreat all well affected people to use their endeavour to get vitious men to be restrained from their abusing of themselves and the time to the dishonour of our Saviour the wounding of their own souls to everlasting death and to the scandalizing of good men and the perverting of others And this may be done sometimes by gentle means and sometimes by chastisements and punishments provided that the fault be a notorious sin or at the least more then an ordinary blemish for I know that some make mountains of mole-hils comparing one sin to another against some men And truly I beleeve that some do rejoyce to see some men transgresse against God in that day because they would thereby take an occasion to make the observation of it to be odious to some that may be a mean to take it quite away out of a malignant spirit towards the observers of it I hope better of many I entreat you to consider that when men are restrained from the libertie of timely recreation they then for a time will be the more unruly when first they come to obtain it again and especially from youths and young raw-manner'd men as it is with horses and cows that have been stalled up c. If we under the Gospel be not afforded daies of refreshing yea and somewhat often too we shall be in greater bondage in this kinde then the Jews in or under the Old Testament for they had many festivals and they were much refreshed by them shall we be in greater bondage to labour then they were And shall not we have liberty from sparing dye● for feasting as well as they They feasted divers dayes together sometimes and thereby love and good will was the better occasioned in many that were godly and we may do so too though not with all the same ceremonies as they did because not altogether to the same end as they did And at such times the poore may be the more easily relieved and give thanks to God and pray for us And by this means men will not be so forward to borrow so much of the Sabbath or Lords day to prophane it as perhaps now they do when they shall have other convenient time for their necessarie recreation I do confesse that some things that are lawfull to be observed and celebrated may for a time be suspended and not celebrated provided that it be not forborn as a thing unlawfull but as a thing inconvenient as to prevent a farther mischief for the present time but if that which in it self is lawfull be forborn as a thing unlawfull then will honest knowing men be offended and so it will breed a great disturbance in the State evill men taking that occasion as a fair cloak to put on for to begin a