Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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B02626
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The plain mans path-way to heaven wherein every man may clearly see whether he shall be saved or damned. / Set forth dialogue-wise for the better understanding of the simple, by Arthur Dent, preacher of the word of God at South-Shoobery in Essex.
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Dent, Arthur, d. 1607.
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1643
(1643)
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Wing D1052B; ESTC R174600
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204,325
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502
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I finde saith hee more bitter then death the woman whose heart is as nets and snares and her hands as bands Hee that is good before God shall bee delivered from her but the sinner shall be taken by her Wee doe therefore plainly see in what a labyrinth and dangerous case they be that are left of God and given over to whoredome and harlots and therefore it is said Prov. 6.5 Desire not her beauty in thine heart neither let her eye-lids catch thee for by a whorish woman a man is brought to a morsell of bread and the adulteresse hunteth for life which is precious Pro. 5.3 4. Againe hee saith Albeit the lips of an harlot drop as an honey-comb and the roofe of her mouth is softer then oyle yet her latter end is bitter as wormwood and as sharp as a two-edged sword All these prudent speeches of the holy Ghost doe most evidently shew unto us what a fearfull thing it is to commit whoredome and so to fall into the hands of whores and harlots Therefore Job saith of the wicked Job 36.14 Their soul dieth in youth and their life among the whoremongers Phil. You have very well shewed out of Gods book the great danger of whoredome and adultery And it is greatly to bee lamented that men in this age make so light of it as they do and that it is so common a vice nay that some alas with griefe I speak it do professe it live by it and prostitute themselves wholly unto it Theol. Such men and women may justly fear the plaguing hand of God for the Lord saith by his Prophet Though I fed them to the full Ier. 5.7 yet they committed adultery and assembled themselves by companies in harlots houses They rose up in the morning like fed horses for every man neighed after his neighbours wife Shall I not visit for these things saith the Lord Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation Phil. Me thinks if men were not altogether hardened in this sinne and even past feeling and past grace this threatning and thundering of God himselfe from heaven should terrifie them Theol. A man would think so indeed but now we may take up the old complaint of the Prophâ—t Ieâ— 8.6 I hearkened and heard and loe no man spake aright no man repented him of his evill saying What have I done Every one turneth to their race as the horse rusheth into the battell Antil Tush whoredom is but a trick of youth and we see all men have their in perfections Theol. You speake profanely and wickedly For shall wee count that but a tricke of youth 1 Cor. 1â— 8 for the which the Lord smote three and twenty thousand of his owne people in one day Shall wee count that but a tricke of youth for the which the Lord threatned David his owne servant 2 Sam. 12.10 that the sword should never depart from his house Shall wee count that but a tricke of youth for the which Hamor and Sechem the father and the sonne Gen. 34.25 and many other both men women and children were cruelly murdered by Simeon and Levi the sonnes of Jacob Shall wee count that but a trick of youth for the which the Lord slew Hophni and Phineas 1 Sam. 4.11 the two sonnes of Eli the Priest in the battell of the Philistines Shall we thus set all at six and seven and make light of such horrible villanies Doth not the severity of the punishment shew the greatnesse of the sinne Doth not the Apostle say 1 Cor. 10.11 These things came unto them for our examples upon whom the ends of the world are come And yet you passe it over with a tush and a trick of youth as if God were to be dallied with No no be not deceived God is not mocked They which will not bee moved now in hearing shall one day bee crushed in pieces in feeling And they which now call whoredome a tricke of youth shall one day howle and cry yell and yelp for such tricks with woe and alas that ever they were born Antil Oh Sir you must beare with youth youth you know is fraile and youth will bee youthfull when you have said all that you can Theol. Yea but God doth allow no more liberty unto youth then unto age but bindeth all upon paine of death to the obedience of his commandements Titus 2.6 The Apostle saith Let yong men be sober minded David saith Wherewith shall a young man cl anse his way Psal 119.9 In taking heed thereto according to thy word The wise man saith Remember thy Creatour in the dayes of thy youth Eccles 12.1 And further addeth that if they will needs follow their lusts their pleasures and their own swinge yet in the end hee will bring them to judgement arraigne them condemn them and tame them in hell fire well enough Phil. Yet wee see men are so violently carryed after their lusts and so desperately bent that they will have the present sweet and pleasure of sin come of it what will Come sicknesse come death come hell come damnation they are at a point they will pay the highest price for their lust They will purchase their plâ—asures with the losse of their soules O wofull purchase O damnable pleasures Thâ—ol Sweete meate will have sowre sauce and a dram of pleasure a pound of sorrow Such cursed câ—itifes shall at last pay a deare shot for their pleasures Such desperate wretches shall one day know to their everlasting woe what it is to provoke God and to sin with so high an hand against him They shall well know in spight of their hearts that vengeance is prepared for the wicked and that there is a God that judgeth the earth Heb. 1â— 4 Let all men therefore take heed in time for whoremongers and adulterers God will judge And the Apostle saith flatly That whorâ—mongâ—rs and adulterers shall not inherit the kingdome of God 1 Cor. 6.9 Heb. 12. Let therefore no fornicator or unclean person be found among us as was Esau but let us abstaine from fleshly lusts which fight against the soul 1 Pet. 1.2 And let every one know how to possesse his vessell in holinesse and honour and not in the lust of concupiscence as the Gentiles which know not God 1 Thes 4.5 Herein let us consider the wise speech of an ancient Father Sinne Chrysost in Matth. while it is in doing ministreth some pleasure but when it is committed the short pleâ—sure thereof vanisheth away and long sorrow cometh in stead of it Neither let us here reject the saying of a wise Heathen Isocrat ad Demon. Shun pleasure for fear of smart Sowr things follow sweet and joy heavinesse Antil Yet for all this you shall not make mee beleeve that whoredome is so hainous a matter You make more of it then it is Theol. True indeed for you and such as you are will beleeve nothing against your
particularly and by name Antil Christ dyed for all men and therefore for me Theol. But all men shall not be saved by Christ How therefore do you know that you are one of them that have speciall interest in Christ and shall be saved by his death Antil This I know we are all sinners and cannot be saved by any other than by Christ Theol. Answer directly to my question How do you know in your selfe and for your selfe that you are one of the elect and one of those for whom Christ died Antil I know it by my good faith in God because I put my whole trust in him and in none other Theol. But how know you that you have faith or how shall a man know his faith Antil I know it by this that I have alwayes had as good a meaning and as good a faith to God-ward as any man of my calling and that is not book-learned I have alwayes feared God with all my heart and served him with my prayers Theol. Tush now you go about the bush and hover in the aire answer mee to the point How doe you know certainely and 〈◊〉 that Christ dyed for you particularly and by name Antil You would make a man mad You put mee out of my faith you drive mee from Christ But if you goe about to drive me from Christ I will never beleeve you For I know we must be saved onely by him Theol. I goe not about to drive you from Christ but to drive you to Christ For how can I drive you from Christ seeing you never came neere him How can I drive you out of Christ seeing you were never in him But this is it that deceiveth you and many others that you thinke you beleeve in Christ because you say you beleeve in Christ as though faith consisted in words or as though a man had saith because hee saith so If every one that faith he hath faith therefore hath faith and every one that saith hee beleeveth in Christ doth therefore beleeve then who will not have faith who will not beleeve But in very deed your faith and the faith of many others is nothing else but meere imagination But all this while you have not answered my question touching your particular knowledge of Christ Antil I can answer you no otherwise then I have answered you And I thinke I have answered you sufficiently Theol. No no you faulter in your speech your answer is not worth a button you speak you wot not what you are altogether befogged and benighted in this question But if there were in your heart the true knowledge and lively feeling of God then I am sure you would have yeelded another and a better answer then you would have spoken something from the sense and feeling of your own heart and from the worke of Gods grace within you But because you can yeeld no found reason that Christ died for you particularly and by name therefore I suspect you are none of them which have proper interest in him and in whom his death takes effect indeed Phil. I think this question would gravell a great number and few there be that can answer it aright Theol. It is most certaine I know it by lamentable experience that not one of a hundred can soundly and sufficiently answer this question none indeed but onely those in whom the new worke is wrought and do ty the inward worke of the Spirit feele Christ to be theirs I have talked with some which are both witty sensible and learned who notwithstanding when they have beene brought to this very point and issue have stuck sore at it and staggered very much And howsoever they might by wit and learning shuffle it over and in a blundering sort speak reason yet had they no feeling of that which they said and therefore no assurance and consequently as good never a whit as never the better It is the sanctifying Spirit that giveth feeling in this point and therefore without the feeling of the operation of the same spirit it can never be soundly answered Thus then I doe close up this whole matter As the Vine-branch cannot live and bring forth fruit except it abide in the Vine no more can wee except wee abide in Christ and be truly graffed in him by a lively faith None can have any benefit by him but they onely which dwell in him None can live by Christ but they which are changed into Christ None are partakers of his body but they which are in his body None can be saved by Christ crucified but they which are crucified with Christ None can live with him being dead but those which die with him being alive Therefore let us root downward in mortification that wee may shoot upward in sanctification let us die to sinne that we may live to righteousnesse let us die while wee are alive that wee may live when wee are dead Asun If none can be saved by Christ but onely these which are so qualified as you speake of then Lord have mercy upon us then the way to heaven is very strait indeed and few at all shall be saved For there be few such in the world Theol. You are no whit therein deceived For when all comes to all it is most certaine that few shall be saved which thing I will shew unto you both by Scripture reasons and examples Asun First then let us heare it proved by the Scriptures Theol. Our Lord Iesus saith Mat. 7.10 Enter in at the strait gate For it is the wide gate and broad way that leads to destruction and many there be which goe in thereat because the gate is strait and the way narrow that leadeth unto life and few there be that finde it Againe hee saith Many are called Mat. 20.16 but few chosen In another place we reade of a certaine man which came to our Saviour Christ asked him of purpose whether few should be saved To whom our Saviour answered thus Luke 13.14 Strive to enter in at the strait gate For many I say unto you will seek to enter in and shall not be able In which answer albeit our Saviour doth not answer directly to his question either negatively or affirmatively yet doth hee plainly insinuate by his speeches that few shall be saved For first hee bids us strive earnestly noting thereby that it is a matter of great griefe against the World the Flesh and the Divell Secondly hee affirmeth that the gate is very strait noting that none can enter in without vehement crowding and almost breaking their shoulder-bones Lastly hee saith that many which seeke to enter in shall not be able noting thereby that even of them that seek many shall step short because they seeke him not aright Esaias also saith Except the Lord of hosts had left us a seed Esay 1.9 wee had beene as Sodome and had beene like to Gomorrah The Apostle also alledgeth out of the Prophet Rom. 9 28. Esay 10.22