Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	vanity_n	young_a	youth_n	99	3	8.0509	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39761	The dead saint speaking, or, A sermon preached upon occasion of the death of that eminent man, Mr. Mathew Newcomen ... wherein is succinctly discoursed (to a popular auditory in Dedham) what instructions are given and sealed to the living by the death of the righteous servants of God / by J.F., Minister of the Gospel.	Fairfax, John, 1623-1700.	1679 (1679)	Wing F127; ESTC R16035	17,568	32

is made of the noble Acts Victories and Triumphs of the faith of the ancient Patriarchs Prophets and Martyrs the Worthies of God of whom the world was not worthy Among these Abel hath the Priority and leads the Van to the honour of whose faith three Things are here spoken First The excellency of his sacrifice above his Brothers By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain Secondly The justification of his person in the sight of God By which faith he obtained witness that he was righteous God testifying of his Gifts Thirdly The preciousness of his memory the voice and virtue of his remembrance after death By it he being dead yet speaketh This last as being suitable to our occasion shall be the subject of our discourse which must be not according to the merit of the occasion but according to the weakness of the Orator and the short time you thought fit to allow me for this solemn service By it he being dead yet speaketh At the very first reading of these words there may seem a paradox in the Text much greater than in the Pulpit Behold here a person naturally dead Abel the second man that was born into the world and the first that dyed having been dead now five thousand years and upward he yet speaketh The dead are indeed altogether deaf they cannot hear there is no speaking to them in vain are prayers and supplications made to Saints departed Abraham is ignorant of us and Israel knoweth us not they are as deaf to their Petitioners as Baal to his Priests but yet they are not altogether dumb they may and they do speak not formaliter not vitally and syllabically by the instruments of the throat tongue teeth and lips as a living man doth but effective eminenter in effect comprehensively as the man is said to speak with his feet Prov. 6.13 Formal speech is that which holds forth somewhat to the ears of others which is to be known and understood by them Now when a visible argumentative signification of such things is made to us by the dead then are they said to speak what the living do learn or may learn or ought to learn from the dead that the dead speak Being dead he yet speaketh the word may be rendred passively he is yet spoken of he being dead there is an honourable mention made of him The active sense seems more probable but we shall not exclude the passive Abel being dead he yet speaketh What! is this peculiarly attributed to Abel Is he the only man that speaketh and are all the rest dumb No what is here spoken of Abel is common unto others but it is peculiarly attributed unto Abel for a double reason 1. Because Abel was the first dead it is spoken of Abel as the first as the representative of all that follow in the estate and condition of Abel 2. It is peculiarly attributed to Abel because it is especially recorded of him that after his death he speaketh Gen. 4.10 The voice of thy brothers blood crieth unto me from the ground That dead Saints do yet speak is the general truth from the Text which is peculiarly exemplified in the instance of Abel Abel being dead yet speaketh Speaking in the Text must be understood in a sense of eminency and dignity speaking somewhat worthy to be heard and observed This is not an attribute to be allowed to every dead person Alas what do the ignorant worldling debased debauched prophane generation of men being dead speak They speak it may be as the Psalmist saith Psal 36.1 The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart There is no fear of God before his eyes They speak folly vanity violence wickedness and forgetfulness of God nothing else do they speak worthy to be heard God indeed sometimes by his remarkable Providences and some notorious Judgments makes them to speak when they are dead but as a wrecked Ship upon the Sands or Rocks speak unto the Mariners that is in a dangerous Sea or Voyage so Achan being dead spoke unto the covetous Zimry and Cozby speak unto the adulterer so Herod being dead speaks to the proud so Ananias and Saphira speak to the lyars but of themselves freely directly and intentionally they speak nothing they are silent in the grave Psal 31.17 They neither speak to the profit of others nor are they spoken of to their own honour This is the honour of the Saints of God to speak when they are dead By faith Abel being dead yet speaketh By the precious Graces with which the Saints are enriched by the holy life they have expressed by the good works they have wrought by the pious examples they have set before their generation by the eminent service they have done to God and his Church by their sharp tryals and temptations by their bitter Sufferings and Martyrdoms wherein they have been more than Conquerors By these the Saints being dead yet speak they speak to purpose for the vindication of truth to the shame of wickedness they speak to the honour of Religion they speak to the furtherance of the Gospel they speak to the conviction correction instruction edification and salvation of the living they speak to the glory of God This general truth we shall speak of in the particular instance of Abel Abel being dead yet speaketh he speaketh to us and he speaks to God Abel speaks to us in a fivefold respect or under a fivefold consideration Abel yet speaks Abel a man being dead yet speaks Abel a believer being dead yet speaks Abel a worshipper of God being dead yet speaketh Abel a Priest or Teacher being dead yet speaketh Abel a Martyr being dead yet speaketh 1. Abel a man being dead yet speaketh and this is it he speaks he speaks death to us all Oh my Brethren and Sisters the Sons and Daughters of my Father Adam ye are all mortals mortality is your property there is a principle of corruption in you and death hastneth Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return said God to Adam Gen. 3.19 Probatum est saith Abel being dead Gods word is truth take me for an instance Abel vanity is the signification of it and that is my name Every man at his best estate is altogether vanity Psal 39. Particularly Abel a man being dead yet speaketh He speaketh unto the young man death may overtake thee in thy youth Abel he might be forty or fifty or sixty years of age when he dyed but this was a young man then that was a small age in that age of the world when the age of man was seven or eight or nine hundred years or upward Why then what assurance canst thou have that thou art far from death who in the course of nature hast forty or fifty years to live before thee when Abel is cut off from the land of the living who had in the same course of nature as many hundreds of years of life before him as thou hast half