Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	affection_n	great_a	love_n	1,344	5	5.2785	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19016	The Countesse of Lincolnes nurserie	Lincoln, Elizabeth Clinton, Countess of.; Lodge, Thomas, 1558?-1625.	1622 (1622)	STC 5432; ESTC S116629	10,084	30

very willful or very ignorant if they make a question of it For it is proued sufficiently to be their dutie both by Gods word and also by his workes By his word it is proued first by Examples namely the example of Eue. For who suckled her sonnes Cain Abel Seth c. but her selfe Which shee did not only of meere necessitie because yet no other woman was created but especially because shee was their mother and so sawe it was her duty and because shee had a true naturall affection which moved her to doe it gladly Next the example of Sarah the wife of Abraham For shee both gaue her sonne Isaac suck as doing the dutie commanded of God And also tooke great comfort and delight therein as in a duty well pleasing to her selfe whence shee spake of it as of an action worthy to be named in her holy reioycing Now if Sarah so great a Princesse did nurse her own childe why should any of vs neglect to doe the like except which God forbid we thinke scorne to follow her whose daughters it is our glory to be and which we be only vpon this condition that we imitate her well-doing Let vs looke therefore to our worthy Pattern noting withall that shee put her selfe to this worke when shee was very old and so might the better haue excused her selfe then we yonger women can being also more able to hire and keepe a nurse then any of vs. But why is shee not followed by most in the practise of this duty Euen because they want her vertue and piety This want is the common hinderance to this point of the womans obedience for this want makes them want loue to Gods precepts want loue to his doctrine and like step-mothers want due loue to their own children But now to another worthy example namely that excellent woman Hannah who hauing after much affliction of minde obtained a sonne of God whom shee vowed vnto God shee did not put him to another to nurse but nursed him her owne selfe vntill shee had weaned him carried him to be consecrate vnto the Lord As well knowing that this duty of giuing her childe sucke was so acceptable to God as for the cause thereof shee did not sinne in staying with it at home from the yearely sacrifice but now women especially of any place and of little grace doe not hold this duty acceptable to God because it is vnacceptable to themselues as if they would haue the Lord to like and dislike according to their vaine lusts To proceed take notice of one example more that is of the blessed Virgin as her womb bare our blessed Sauiour so her papps gaue him sucke Now who shall deny the own mothers suckling of their owne children to bee their duty since euery godly matrone hath walked in these steps before them Eue the mother of al the liuing Sarah the mother of al the faithfull Hannah so gratiously heard of God Mary blessed among women and called blessed of all ages And who can say but that the rest of holy women mentioned in the holy Scriptures did the like since no doubt that speech of that noble Dame saying who would haue said to Abraham that Sarah should haue giuen children sucke was taken from the ordinary custome of mothers in those lesse corrupted times And so much for proofe of this office and duty to be Gods ordinance by his own VVord according to the argument of Examples I hope I shall likewise proue it by the same word from plaine Precepts First from that Precept which willeth the younger women to marry and to Beare children that is not only to Beare them in the wombe and to bring thē forth but also to Beare them on their knee in their armes and at their breasts for this Bearing a little before is called nourishing and bringing vp and to inforce it the better vpon womens consciences it is numbred as the first of the good workes for which godly women should be well reported of And well it may be the first because if holy Ministers or other Christians doe heare of a good woman to be brought to bed and her child to bee living their first question vsually is whether she her selfe giue it sucke yea or no if the answere be she doth then they commend her if the answer be she doth not then they are sorry for her And thus I come to a second Precept I pray you who that iudges aright doth not hold the suckling of her owne childe the part of a true mother of an honest mother of a iust mother of a syncere mother of a mother worthy of loue of a mother deseruing good report of a vertuous mother of a mother winning praise for it All this is assented to by any of good vnderstanding Therefore this is also a Precept as for other duties so for This of mothers to their children which saith whatsoeuer things are true whatsoeuer things are honest whatsoeuer things are iust whatsoeuer things are pure whatsoeuer things be worthy of loue whatsoeuer things be of good report if there be any vertue if there bee any praise thinke on these things these things doe and the God of peace shall be with you So farre for my promise to proue by the word of God that it is his ordinance that women should nurse their owne children now I will endeauour to proue it by his workes First by his workes of iudgement if it were not his ordinance for mothers to giue their children sucke it were no iudgement to bereaue thē of their milke but it is specified to be a great iudgement to bereaue them hereof to giue them dry breasts therefore it is to be gathered euen from hence that it is his ordinance since to depriue them of meanes to doe it is a punishment of them I adde to this the worke that God worketh in the very nature of mothers which proueth also that he hath ordained that they should nurse their owne children for by his secret operation the mothers affection it so knit by natures law to her tender babe as she findes no power to deny to suckle it no not when shee is in hazard to lose her owne life by attending on it for in such a case it is not said let the mother fly and leaue her infant to the perill as if she were dispensed with but onely it is said woe to her as if she were to be pittied that for nature to her child she must be vnnaturall to her selfe now if any then being euen at liberty and in peace with all plenty shall deny to giue sucke to their owne children they goe against nature and shew that God hath not done so much for thē as to worke any good no not in their nature but left them more sauage then the Dragons and as cruell to their little ones as the Ostriches Now another worke of God prouing this point is the worke of his prouision

for euery kinde to be apt and able to nourish their own fruit there is no beast that feeds their young with milke but the Lord euen from the first ground of the order of nature Growe and multiplie hath prouided it of milke to suckle their owne young which euery beast takes so naturally vnto as if another beast come toward their young to offer the office of a Damme vnto it they shew according to their fashion a plaine dislike of it as if nature did speake in them and say it is contrary to Gods order in nature commanding each kinde to increase and multiplie in their owne bodies and by their owne breasts not to bring forth by one Damme and to bring vp by another but it is his ordinance that euery kinde should both bring forth and also nurse its owne fruit Much more should this work of God prevaile to perswade women made as man in the image of God and therefore should be ashamed to bee put to schoole to learne good nature of the vnreasonable creature In vs also as we knowe by experience God prouideth milke in our breasts against the time of our childrens birth and this hee hath done euer since it was said to vs also Increase and multiply so that this worke of his prouision sheweth that hee tieth vs likewise to nourish the children of our owne wombe with our own breasts euen by the order of nature yea it sheweth that he so careth for and regardeth little children euen from the wombe that he would haue them nursed by those that in all reason will looke to them with the kindest affection namely their mothers in giuing them milke for it hee doth plainely tell them that herequires it Oh consider how comes our milke is it not by the direct prouidence of God Why prouides he it but for the child The mothers then that refuse to nurse their owne children doe they not despise Gods prouidence Doe they not deny Gods will Doe they not as it were say I see O God by the meanes thou hast put into me that thou wouldst haue me nurse the child thou hast giuen me but I will not doe so much for thee Oh impious and impudent vnthankfulnesse yea monstrous vnnaturalnesse both to their own natural fruit borne so neare their breasts and fed in their owne wombes and yet may not be suffered to sucke their owne milke And this vnthankfulnesse and vnnaturalnesse is oftner the sinne of the Higher and the richer sort then of the meaner and poorer except some nice and prowd idle dames who will imitate their betters till they make their poore husbands beggars And this is one hurt which the better ranke doe by their ill example egge and imbolden the lower ones to follow them to their losse were it not better for Vs greater persons to keepe Gods ordinance to shew the meaner their dutie in our good example I am sure wee haue more helpes to performe it and haue fewer probable reasons to alleage against it then women that liue by hard labour painfull toile If such mothers as refuse this office of loue of nature to their children should hereafter be refused despised and neglected of those their children were they not iustly required according to their owne vnkind dealing I might say more in handling this first point of my promise but I leaue the larger and learneder discourse hereof vnto men of art and learning only I speake of so much as I reade and know in my owne experience which if any of my sexe and condition do receaue good by I am glad if they scorne it they shall haue the reward of scorners I write in modestie and can reape no disgrace by their immodest folly And so I come to the last part of my promise which is to answer obiections made by diuers against this duty of mothers to their children First it is obiected that Rebeckah had a nurse and that therefore her mother did not giue her suck of her owne breasts and so good women in the first ages did not hold thē to this office of nursing their owne children To this I answer that if her mother had milk and health and yet did put this duty from her to another it was her fault so proueth nothing against me But it is manifest that she that Rebeckah calleth her nurse was called so either for that she most tended her while her mother suckled her or for that she weaned her or for that during her nonage and childhood shee did minister to her continually such good things as delighted and nourished her vp For to any one of these the name of a nourse is fitly giuen whence a good wife is called her husbands nourse and that Rebeckahs nourse was only such a one appeareth because afterward she is not named a nourse but a maide saying Then Rebeckah rose and her maides now maids giue not suck out of their breasts never any virgin or honest maide gaue suck but that blessed one from an extraordinary blessed power Secondly it is obiected that it is troublesome that it is noysome to ones clothes that it makes one looke old c. All such reasons are vncomely and vnchristian to be obiected and therefore vnworthy to be answered they argue vnmotherly affection idlenesse desire to haue liberty to gadd from home pride foolish finenesse lust wantonnesse the like euills Aske Sarah Hannah the blessed virgin and any modest louing mother what trouble they accounted it to giue their little ones sucke behold most nursing mothers and they be as cleane and sweet in their cloathes and carry their age and hold their beautie as well as those that suckle not and most likely are they so to doe because keeping Gods Ordinance they are sure of Gods Blessing and it hath beene obserued in some women that they grew more beautifull and better fauoured by very nursing their owne children But there are some women that obiect feare saying that they are so weake so tender that they are afraid to venter to giue their children suck least they indanger their health thereby Of these I demand why then they did venter to marry and so to beare children and if they say they could not chuse and that they thought not that marriage would impaire their health I answere that for the same reasons they should set themselues to nurse their owne children because they should not chuse but doe what God would haue them to doe and they should beleeue that this worke will be for their health also seeing it is ordinary with the Lord to giue good stomach health and strength to almost all mothers that take this paines with their children One answere more to all the obiections that vse to bee made against giuing children sucke is this that now the hardnes to effect this matter is much remooued by a late example of a tender young Lady and you may all be encouraged to follow after in that wherein she