Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	let_v	life_n	see_v	7,907	5	3.2906	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A81897	The Parliaments commission: delivered in a sermon, upon Nehemiah chap. 2 vers. 19, 20. / By J. Durham.	Durham, James, 1622-1658.	1643 (1643)	Wing D2821; Thomason E246_10; ESTC R3805	10,053	8

to him so that he might run his race and testifie the glorious Gospel of God Be not ashamed of thy master for our Saviour Christ saith that whosoever denieth him before men he will deny him before his father in Heaven Worldly masters will not cast a way their faithfull servants but maintaine them as they may and thinkest thou that God will forsake his servants Thinkest thou a mortall wretched man to be more loving to thee then the eternall God and mercifull father that made thee feedeth thee and defendeth thee when man cannot help thee yea loveth the better then thou lovest thy selfe and stayeth thee from running from him when thou wouldest willingly seek thine own destruction wilfully Stand to him boldly forsake him not cowardly Polycarpus an old man when he should suffer martyrdome was advised by some to have pitie on his old age and not so stiffely to stand out Nay saith he I have served my Master Christ these 86. yeares and he did me never harme I will not forsake him now in my last dayes Thus Nehemiah stoutly answering them and boldly incouraging his fellowes goeth forward with the work contemneth their mocking and false accusations and falleth to his building again so must all good builders of Gods house neither be afraid nor weary of scornfull mockers threatnings accusations or violence but manfully go forwards to the end knowing that their God is stronger wiser and more willing to defend his people then his enemies shall be to hurt them He that putteth his hand to the plough and looketh backward is not meet for the Kingdome of God saith Christ our Lord Luke 9. And he that continueth to the end shal be safe Mat. 25. 20. Our Saviour Christ when he preached that whatsoever went in at the mouth did not defile a man was told by his disciples that that doctrine offended the Pharisees but he answered them and said Every plant that my father hath not planted shal be plucked up c. As though he should say their doctrine is not from my Father and therefore cannot stand let those blind guides alone seeing they wil be wilful and obstinate and will not learn go ye forward with preaching of the Gospel care not for them So every good man must continue that he may say with S. Paul I have kept my faith I have run my race the crown of righteousnesse is laid up in store for me c. After that Nehemiah had thus boldly answered them and encouraged his countrey-men to their work he now turneth him to Sanballat and his fellowes and sheweth himselfe to make as little account of them as they made of him and saith As for you ye have no right part nor remembrance in Ierusalem as though he should say what have you to do with us in this building ye are not Iewes borne as wee bee yee belong not to Israel nor are partakers of his blessing Yee bee Samaritans strangers to his City and common-wealth ye be none of Gods houshold if ye will be doing meddle where ye have to do This City God himselfe did chuse for his people to dwell in and serve him Ye be idolaters and worship not the true God of heaven if ye will be building build ye Samaria your own head City ye are no Citizens here nor have any freedome liberty or priviledge granted unto us ye be none of our corporation nor denizons ye shall have nothing to do here All that build here have their portion of land and living in this city and countrey appointed for them they shall have justice right and law ministred unto them and for a perpetuall remembrance of their faithfull service unto the living God their names shal be registred that all posterity may know their doings and praise the Lord that strengthened them to this building but ye have none of all these for when the land was divided by lot and measure by Ioshua ye had no part appointed for you under the Law ye do not live but have lived after your own device nay ye beare such hatred unto us that ye will not willingly eat drink nor keep company with us friendly let us alone trouble us not get you hence and let us fall to our building again It is no small blessing of God when he calleth any to be a builder of his house for both in this world his name shal be had in perpetuall remembrance and he is written in the book of life where no death can prevaile David saith The righteous man shal be had in perpetuall remembrance Psal. 112. and S. Iohn saith that He that is not found written in the booke of life shall be cast into the fierie lake Rev. 20. The builders of this city now have their names written in the next Chapter following for their perpetuall praise in this world to teach us that as the builders of this worldly Jerusalem have their names registred here much more the builders of the heavenly Jerusalem have their names written in the Book of life for their salvation Ill men and troublers of Gods building have their names written in this book too What more blessed then is he that hindreth Salomon teacheth and saith The remembrance of the righteous is to his praise but the name of the wicked stinketh This is then the difference and thou mayest chuse whether thou wilt be remembred to thy praise or to thy shame and with the good will of the living or hatred But by this answer of Nehemiah when he saith that they have no part right nor remembrance in Ierusalem it is partly given us to understand that when they could not hinder this work by big brags and threatnings they offered themselves to joyn with them in this building to take their part and beare the charges fellow-like for why should he deny them these except they required it But Nehemiah a wise man would neither be afraid of them as open enemies nor receive them into his fellowship as feigned friends wherein he teacheth all true Christians how to behave themselves in building of Gods house that is neither to fear the one nor to receive the other S. Paul saith Be not yoked with infidels what hath righteousnesse to do with unrighteousnesse light with darknesse or Christ with Belial Gods people are knit together with two bonds the one is Christ their head who giveth life to all members of the body the other is brotherly love among themselves but neither of these can be found in Idolaters for they neither take Christ for their head and live by him nor they love not Christians as their brethren but dissemble with God and man All Christians have one God one faith one baptisme one Religion one law to live under and one heavenly Kingdome to look for but infidels and hypocrites have many gods all religions be alike unto them they live as they list and that is their law and will to go to heaven after their own device if they can get it Yet they have a delight to thrust themselves in among Gods people pretending a love unto them where indeed it is for no good will but to learn their secret counsels and purposes that by such means they may betray them when occasion serveth But wise builders wil admit them into no fellowship nor friendship as Nehemiah here utterly refuseth them and wil have nothing to do with them But this case is more plainly propounded to Ezra and there I have spoken more largely of it and Ezra plainly determineth the matter there who so list to read and consider God be praised FINIS Printed by R. AUSTIN and A. COE 1643.

under that bloody butcher Bonner that the most ignorant if he will open his eares and eyes might heare and see great plenty But alas the fiery fagots of those dayes were not so grievous then as the slandrous tongues be now in our dayes Nebuchadnezzar made a Law that if any did blaspheme the God of Sidrach Misach and Abednego he should be slaine and his house made a dunghill Moses made a law that every blasphemer should be stoned to death Seeing God and Princes have made such straight Laws against such lewd railers good Rulers should see some correction done and not with silence to suffer ill men to talke their pleasure on Gods City Religion and ministry while others possibly made courtesie to speak and answer these busie braggers and quarrelers Nehemiah steppeth forth boldly defendeth this cause stoutly answereth their false accusation truly incourageth the people manfully to go forward with their work despiseth their brags and telleth them plainly that they have no part nor right nor are worthie to be remembred in Ierusalem The effect of Nehemiahs answer was that the God of heaven had given them good successe hitherto in moving the hearts of King Cirus and Darius first to the building of the Temple and now of Artaxerxes to restore the City they were his servants and worshipped him and he stirred them up to this work for of themselves they were not able to do such things They served no Idols nor false Gods they needed not to be ashamed of their master the God of heaven was their Lord and they his people he was their Master and they his servants he their King and they his subjects they would go forward with their work they must have a City to dwell in to serve their God who would defend them in this their wel doing these men had no authority to stop or forbid them to worke they had nothing to do in Jerusalem nor any authority they would not obey them but with all diligence apply this work until it be finished T●e Apostles when they were forbidden preached and would not obey but said they must obey God that bad them thus must all they that take Gods work in hand confesse it to come from God and that he blesseth their doings that all the praise may be his and that they of themselves be weak and unable to doe such things without his speciall grace and assistance All good men in such enterprises wil say with David not unto us O Lord not unto us but unto thy name give all the glory Psalm 125. If these wicked men had had any worldly shame or fear of God in them they would have quaked and trembled as the good men rejoyced to heare God on their side to further them so they when they heard the God of heaven named to be against them and that it was his doing they would have forsaken their Idols and have furthered thi● building or at least have sitten stil and not hindered it For who is able to withstand his will or hinder that he wil have forward The devils in hel quake and tremble at the naming and considering of Gods Majesty but these wicked Imps not only now but sundry times as appeareth hereafter in this book most cruelly spitefully and craftily go forward in their old malice and by al means seek the overthrow of this building so far worse is a devil incarnate in an ill man then by himselfe in his own nature When the Devil wil worke any great mischief he taketh commonly one man or other Angel or creature to doe it by knowing that hee shall doe it more easily that way then if he should attempt it by him himselfe How is every murther false witnesse whoredome robbery c. committed but when the Devill stirreth up one man against another Let every good man therefore take heed unto himselfe how he yeeldeth unto sin For in so doing he maketh himselfe a slave to the Devill and his instrument to worke by One Devill will not offer that villany to another Divel to make him his slave but if he can bring men unto it there is his rejoycing Take heed therefore O man In that they confesse themselves to be the servants of the God of Heaven it is as much to say as they wrought not for themselves nor at their owne appointment nor for their own profit they wrought for their masters cause and for his glory Gods servants in all their doings will seek their masters profit and praise not their owne they live not for themselves but all the profit of their doings returneth to their Masters If they take any thing to themselves more then their master giveth them they be theeves unto him they do him no true service Let all the builders of Gods house therefore whether they be rulers in the Common-wealth as Nehemiah was now or of the learned sort in the Ministry or elsewhere not only confesse in words that they be servants to the God of heaven but most humbly simply and boldly shew it in their deeds that they seek their masters praise and glory the common profit of their Country and not their own that they worke for him and not for themselves and that they serve him not for any worldly respect or gaine or honour but uprightly for conscience sake serve and obey him yeeld all praise to his glorious name taking nothing to themselves and being not afraid to go forward in his building for any braggers knowing that all the pride of mans heart which setteth up himselfe against the God of Heaven is vile and vaine and that their God will defend his servants and confound his foes It is no rebellion against Princes to do that which God commandeth for Princes themselves are bound as well as other meaner degrees to serve the Lord God of Heave● with all their might and maine and unto the same God they must make account of their doings as all other must For this building they had the Kings Commission and therefore it was no Treason to do it It is more glorious to be called Gods servants then to have all the titles of honour and dignity that the world can give He that serveth the Lord truly is master of sin hell death and the divell and by the assistance of Gods holy spirit shall not be overcome of them but shall overcome and conquer them which is a greater honour then any worldly Prince can give The woman that had an evill spirit in her confessed Paul and his fellowes to be the servants of the mighty God and that they taught them the way of salvation Acts 16. See then how devils are affraid of Gods servants Paul in all his Epistles rejoyceth in nothing more then terming himselfe an Apostle and servant of Christ Iesus The holy Ghost told Paul Acts 20. that in every City where he should come there were chayns and troubles ready for him but he said he cared not for them for his life was not dear