Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A02586
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The remedy of prophanenesse. Or, Of the true sight and feare of the Almighty A needful tractate. In two bookes. By Ios. Exon.
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Hall, Joseph, 1574-1656.
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1637
(1637)
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STC 12710; ESTC S103753
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54,909
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276
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liquid body and how tamed and confined by thine Almightinesse How justly didst thou expostulate with thy people of old by thy Prophet Ieremy Feare yee not mee saith the Lord will ye not tremble at my presence which have placed the sand for the bounds of the sea by a perpetuall decree that it cannot passe it and though the waves thereof tosse themselves yet they cannot prevaile though they roare yet can they not passe over it And what a stupendious work of omnipotence is it that thou O God hast hanged up this huge globe of water and earth in the midst of a yeelding aire without any stay or foundation save thine owne eternall decree How wonderfull art thou in thy mighty winds which whence they come and whither they go thou only knowest in thy dreadfull thunders and lightnings in thy threatning Comets and other fiery exhalations With what marvellous variety of creatures hast thou peopled all these thy roomy elements all of severall kinds fashions natures dispositions uses and yet all their innumerable motions actions events are predetermined and over-ruled by thine all-wise and almighty providence What man can but open his eyes and see round about him these demonstrations of thy divine power and wisedome and not inwardly praise thee in thine excellent greatnesse For my owne practise I cannot find a better notion wherby to work my heart to an inward adoration of God than this Thou that hast made all this great world and guidest and governest it and fillest and comprehendest it being thy selfe infinite and incomprehensible And I am sure there can be no higher representation of the divine greatnesse unto our selves Although withall we may find enough at home for what man that lookes no further than himselfe and sees the goodly frame of his body erected and imployed for the harbour of a spirituall and immortall soule can choose but say I will praise thee for I am fearefully and wonderfully made SECT III. SVrely could we forget all the rest of the world it is enough to fetch us upon our knees and to strike an holy awe into us to think that in him we live and move and have our being For in these our particular obligations there is a mixed sense both of the greatnesse and goodnesse of our God which as it manifestly showes it selfe in the wondrous work of our excellent creation so most of all magnifies it selfe in the exceedingly gratious work of our redemption Great is thy mercy that thou mayst be feared saith the sweet Singer of Israel Lo power doth not more command this holy feare than mercy doth though both here meet together for as there was infinite mercy mixed with power in thus creating us so also there is a no lesse mighty power mixed with infinite mercy in our redemption What heart can but awfully adore thy soveraigne mercy O blessed God the Father of our Lord Iesus Christ in sending thine only and coequall Sonne the Sonne of thy love the Sonne of thine eternall essence out of thy bosome downe from the height of celestiall glory into this vale of teares and death to abase himselfe in the susception of our nature to clothe himselfe with the ragges of our humanity to indure temptation shame death for us O blessed Iesu the redeemer of mankind what soule can be capable of a sufficient adoration of thine inconceive able mercy in thy meane and despicable incarnation in thy miserable and toilsome life in thy bloudy agony in thine ignominious and tormenting passion in thy wofull sense of thy fathers wrath in our stead and lastly in thy bitter and painfull death thou that knewest no sinne wert made sinne for us thou that art omnipotent would'st die and by thy death hast victoriously triumphed over death and hell It is enough O Saviour it is more than enough to ravish our hearts with love and to bruise them with a loving feare O blessed Spirit the God of comfort who but thou only can make our soules sensible of thy unspeakable mercy in applying to us the wonderfull benefit of this our deare redemption in the great work of our inchoate regeneration in the mortifying of our evill and corrupt affections in raising us to the life of grace and preparing us for the life of glory O God if mercy be proper to attract feare how must our hearts in all these respects needs be filled with all awfull regard unto thy divine bounty Oh how great is the goodnesse that thou hast laid up for those that feare thee even before the sonnes of men SECT IV. NOw we may not think this inward adoration of the greatnesse goodnes of God to be one simple act but that which is sweetly compounded of the improvement of many holy affections for there cannot but be love mixed with this feare The feare of the Lord is the beginning of love and this feare must be mixed with joy Rejoyce in him with trembling and this feare and joy is still mixed with hope For in the feare of the Lord is strong confidence and the eye of the Lord is upon them that feare him upon them that hope in his mercy As therefore we are wont to say that our bodies are not neither can bee nourished with any simple ingredient so may we truly say of our soules that they neither receive any comfort or establishment nor execute any powers of theirs by any sole single affection but require a gracious mixture for both As that father said of obedience we may truly say of grace that it is all copulative Neither may wee think that one only impression of this holy feare and inward adoration will serve the turne to season all our following disposition and carriage but there must be a virtuall continuation thereof in all the progresse of our lives Our Schooles do here seasonably distinguish of perpetuity of whether the second act when all our severall motions and actions are so held on as that there is no cessation or intermission of their performance which wee cannot here expect Or of the first act when there is an habit of this inward adoration settled upon the heart so constantly that it is never put off by what ever occurrences so as whatsoever we do whatsoever we indeavour hath a secret relation hereunto And this second way we must attaine unto if ever we will aspire to any comfort in the fruition of Gods presence here upon earth and our meet disposition towards him I have often thought of that deep and serious question of the late judicious and honourable Sir Fulke Grevil Lord Brook a man worthy of a fairer death and everlasting memory moved to a learned kinsman of mine much interessed in that Noble man who when he was discoursing of an incident matter very considerable was taken off with this quick interrogation of that wise and noble person What is that to the Infinite as secretly implying that all our thoughts and discourse must be reduced thither and
THE REMEDY OF PROPHANENESSE OR OF The true sight and feare of the ALMIGHTY A needfull Tractate In two Bookes BY IOS EXON LONDON Printed by Thomas Harper for Nathanael Butter and are to be sold at his shop at the signe of the pyde-Bull at S. Austins Gate 1637. Imprimatur SA BAKER Octob. 11. 1637. The Contents THe Remedy of Prophanenesse A Sermon Preach't in the City of Excester at the consecration of a new Buriall-place there Gen. 23.19.20 Reader I Had meant to take leave of the Presse as one that repented to bee guilty of this common surfet Yet once againe my zeale urges me to breake silence I finde so little feare of God in this world which I am shortly leaving that I could not forbeare after my tears to bestow some inke upon it Every man can bewaile it I have studied to redresse it Wee may indevour that which GOD onely can effect I humbly leave this to the worke of no lesse then an omnipotent grace In the meane time it is both holy and laudable to project the remedies and it shall bee the no-small comfort of my death-bed that I have left behind me this seasonable advice of better thoughts which when I am gone may survive to the benefit of many Know withall that this Treatise entred the Presse under the honored name of my deare Lord the Earle of Norwich whose death preventing the publication hath sent it forth Patron-lesse Mee thought I should not indure that what was once his in my destination should ever bee any others Let this blanke be as my last memoriall of the honour that I justly beare to that incomparable friend both alive and dead serve to professe unto the world that these papers yeeld themselves not unwilling Orphans upon his losse But why doe I so mis-name his glory That blessed soule not staying the leisure of my present directions hasted up to the free view of the face of his God which I could onely shew dimly and aloofe There will be more use of the imitation of his practice then of the honour of his protection Let us goe cheerefully on in the steps of true piety and conscionable obedience untill our faith likewise shall shut up in an happy fruition The Contents of the severall Sections BOOKE I. Proem THe occasion need and use of the Treatise ensuing Sect. 1. No one word can expresse that grace which we treat of what it includes and intimates Feare is no fit terme for it Affections well imployed turne vertues Wherein holy feare consists What is required to the attaining of it The sight of God The sight of our selves Sect. 2. Of the sight of the Invisible Moses a fit patterne for it Two waies wherein he saw the Invisible Our felicity consists in the sight of God the degrees of our spirituall sight how sight and invisibility may consist together Sect. 3. How wee may not think to see God Not by any fained representation Not by the worke of improved reason Not in a full comprehention Not here in his divine essence or height of resplendence How Moses desired to see the face of God Sect. 4. How we must indeavour to sâ—e the Invisible 1. That our eyes must be cleared from all hindrances of sight 2. That blessed object must bee set before our eyes Sect. 5. 3. There must be an exaltation and fortification of our sight 4. There must be a trajection of the visuall beames of the soule thorow all earthly occurrences 5. A divine irradiation of the mind must follow what light wee must conceive Sect. 6. 6. The eye must be fixed upon this blessed object unremoveably How this may bee effected and how farre Three waies of our apprehention of God Sect. 7. 7. There will follow a delight and complacency in that God whom wee see Reprobates doe rather see Gods anger than himselfe Sect. 8. Motives to stirre us up to strive to this happie sight The act is reward enough to it selfe 1. This sight frees us from being transported with earthly vanities Sect. 9. 2. It is a prevalent meanes to restraine us from sinning 3. It upholds us in the constant suffering of evill Sect. 10. 4. It enters us into our heaven This vision is not without a fruition not so in other objects Sect. 11. Of the casting downe our eyes to see our owne wretchednesse How fraile we are how sinfull in how wofull condition by our sinne BOOKE II. Sect. 1. WHat the feare of God is A double stamp or signature in this impression of feare 1. An inward adoration of God 2. A filiall care of being approved to God Sect. 2. What inward adoration is wherein it consists and how to be wrought Of Gods infinite greatnesse shown in the Creation of the world and the government thereof in the frame of the heaven earth sea man himselfe Sect. 3. Of Gods infinite mercy shown in the redemption of mankind Sect. 4. Of the holy mixture of this feare Of the continuation and perpetuily of it Sect. 5. Religious adoration diffused through our whole outward cariage in our respects 1. To the holy name of God The Iewes scruples our carelesnesse Sect. 6. 2. To the word of God Sect. 7. 3. To the services of God Prayer Preaching Administration of Sacraments Sect. 8. 4. To the house of God Sect. 9. 5. To the messengers of God Sect. 10. Of the humble subjection of our selves to the hand of God 1. In suffering from him meekely and patiently The good examples thereof 2. In all changes of estates Sect. 11. Of our child-lik care of a secret approving our selves to God and avoyding his displeasure How wee are affected after wee have beene miscarried The holy jelousy and suspicion of Gods children This feare a retentive from sinne Rifenesse of sinne an argument of the want of this feare Wicked hearts must have terrible remedies The misplaced feare of prophane men Sect. 12. Of the filiall indevour of obedience in particular callings arising from this feare The happy effects and issue of this feare Sect. 13. Of the extreames of this feare on both sides 1. Whereof the first is Security whence it ariseth Of the abuse of Gods mercy in giving and forgiving 2. Of the custome of sinning Sect. 14. Of the remedies of Security Meanes to keepe the heart tender Meditations of Gods judgements and of our owne frailties A resolution to repell the first motions of sinne Care of speedy recovery after our fall Due heed not to check the conscience A right estimation of worldy things Sect. 15. Of Presumption another opposite to feare Presumption of the way Presumption of the end 1. In matter of event 2. In matter of ability Sect. 16. The remedies of Presumption in the severall kindes of it 1. In respect of outward events of our due valuation of them Sect. 17. 2. In respect of abilities An exact survay of our graces The differences betwixt counterfeit vertues and true Sect. 18. The remedy of our presumption of the end which is