Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
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A85880
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The trumpet in Sion, sounding a general alarm in the nation. By J.G.G.
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Gailhard, J. (Jean).
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1700
(1700)
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Wing G42A; ESTC R232835
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76,533
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150
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which is not corruptible even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit which is in the sight of God of great price But the more to confirm this Truth another witness joyns with this (h) 1 Tim. 2.9 10. I Will that women adorn themselves in modest apparel with shame fac'dness and sobriety not with broidered hair or gold or pearl or costly aray but which becometh women professing godliness with good works All Women that have some regard to God's words will mind this Many sins are committed in another kind of relation between Parents and Children often when Men want Children they desire to have some and when they have they look or ought to look upon 't as a Blessing of God for thereby they afford Church and State some Members but do they afterwards answer God's end in giving them Children Do they take due care to breed them in the fear of God and put them in a capacity to serve their Maker and their Country Sometimes they be very careful to gather an Estate for them but not to qualifie them how to manage it well If they have a sine Horse they look out for a good and skilful Groom to Break and Order him but often neglect the means to improve the Souls of their Children What they do for them is sometimes not with judgment and often it doth them more harm than good They ought to give them good Counsel and good Example not to fright but to entice them to good things bear with some Humane Frailties especially those which attend the Age but to make use of their Authority to curb and restrain them from evil things shew themselves enemies to every vitious course as much as may be infuse into them a love for Piety Virtue and Honour with a Hatred to all that is contrary to 't they ought to study their Tempers and Inclinations Reform what is Bad and improve what is Good in them When this foundation is laid and there are in a Family several Children 't is Prudence in Parents not to shew themselves too partial for some more than for others for such carriage hath caused great mischief in some Families Yet 't is fit Parents should shew their Approbation of those Children that do well and are virtuously inclined and wisely a dislike of those whose Dispositions are vicious (a) Coloss 3.21 yet do not provoke them but elsewhere I have abundantly written upon this Subject Farther 't is the Duty of Parents according to their Abilities and Quality to provide for Children and dispose of them in the World This Scripture presseth upon them (b) 2 Cor. 12.14 The children ought not to lay up for the parents but the Parents for the children And (c) 1 Tim. 5.8 If any provide not for his own and specially for those of his own house he hath deny'd the faith and is worse than an infidel On the other side How many Undutiful Disobedient and Rebellious Children in the World Some (d) Psal 58.3 are estranged from the womb they go astray assoon as they be born This is a most wicked and unnatural frame of Spirit abhorred by all Nations and by God's immediate Command the Offender was (e) Deut. 21.20 punish'd with death By a natural Right all Men are equal but only in this case there is by nature a subjection of one to another Children ought to Love Honour Obey and Help their Parents But how many now a-days who instead of being the Joy Help Comfort and Support are the cause of their Grief and of Trouble in many ways and instead of a staff in their Old Age especially to support it do rather serve to knock them down but God will judge for such wickednesses I shall now insist upon the sins here committed in another relation between Masters and Servants There are so many notorious examples as any one may see them on the Master's side are Hardness Injustice contrary to Scripture not only Threatnings which the Apostle exhorteth to forbear but also Blows and Violence not considering that (f) Coloss 4.1 their master also is in heaven On the other side Servants are Unfaithful Careless Vicious Despisers when they are Commanded (g) Ephes 6.9 to be obedient to their masters according to the flesh (h) v. 56. and Coloss 3.22 with fear and trembling in singleness of heart as unto Christ not with eye-service as men-pleasers but in singleness of heart as fearing God And they ought to (i) 1 Tim. 6.1 count their masters worthy of all honour 'T is a common guilt with many Servants when their Masters find fault with them to Reply which they are expresly forbidden to do (k) 〈◊〉 2.9 not answering again Another Relation there is between Rulers and the People which hath its Sins great and pernicious this being a slippery step one must be nice and wary upon 't howsoever it being of the highest concernment must not go untouched For suppose we should speak of the Throne but with a due Respect yet those who Sit upon 't are but Men subject to like Infirmities with us Humane Nature is in them attended with Frailties and imperfections for being Kings they cease not to be Men then sometimes happen such Conjunctures as Cross and are Le ts in the way of the Government which yet I say not to excuse those who might do better but only those that cannot help it Besides that in all things we must observe a Governing and Over-ruling Hand of God 'T is too usual and common for Authority to mind its own Honour more than the Glory of God and also not (l) John 5.44 to seek the honour that cometh from God only but that which cometh from men It was as truly as wisely said (m) Prov. 20.8 A king that sitteth in the throne of judgment scattereth away all evil with his eyes that is ought to do so and look upon Evil with a design to disperse it as the Sun doth the Clouds Nay 't is sin him Wisdom to do so these are the words of a Wise King and not mine (n) v. 26. A wise king scattereth the wicked and bringeth the wheel over them 't is not only his Duty but his Interest so to do for (o) Ch. 16.12 the throne is established by righteousness which he gives as a reason of what he said in the beginning of the Verse (o) Ch. 16.12 It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness they should mind Christ's Interest preferably before their own in this world which in effect is to promote their own if it be not contrary to the Lord's whereby they ought to begin (p) Mh 6.33 (p) Psal 103.13 Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you After that they must procure the good of their People whom they ought to Love and upon some occasions in imitation of God to pity as a father pitieth his children
sin upon him Endeavour to get it removed either by good and brotherly Counsel and if those cannot serve by Punishment This is a Rule under the Gospel aswell as under the Law represented as a most important Service attended with a great Reward (b) Jam. 5 19 20 Brethren if any one of you do err from the truth and one converteth him let him know that he which converteth the sinner from the errour of his ways shall save a Soul from death and shall hide a multitude of sins Then 't is a Christian Duty in one's station to use means to make a Sinner leave his sins if not out of Love yet out of Fear which not to do draws God's Censure upon the best of Men The Son of God having highly commended the Angel of the Church of Thyatira for his Charity Service Faith Patience and Works yet finds fault with him which is of the same nature with that we now are upon Rev. 2.20 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee and what are these Because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel to teach and to seduce my servants to make them commit fornication and to eat things sacrificed unto Idols This Indulgence and Toleration of evil Practises and Doctrines is condemned so that no Man ought to suffer but to the utmost of his Power within his station to hinder with Accusing Condemning and Punishing publick sins He which declares not Treasonable Words and Designs which he knows deserve's to be severely punished So doth he who hearing Blasphemy Impiety and Wickedness spoken and committed against God conceals it which is no small Guilt 'T is a kind of Rebellion against the most High Eternal and Almighty God and Treason in the Highest degree therefore every Pious Man for all the talk and frowns of the World is in his capacity but without self-ends bound to appear either as a Witness to convince or a Judge to Condemn and upon this account God saith (a) Isai 51.7 Fear ye not the reproach of men neither be ye afraid of their revilings Another Sin very common I must not forget 't is Want of Charity which thô expressed in Negative terms yet contains a positive Evil in the bottom for it usually arises out of a principle of Envy and Malice or at least of Imprudence when some Men wrest and give a misconstruction to the Words and Actions of others and like Spiders turn all into poison they take pleasure to hear their Neighbour ill spoken of and slander'd which they promote and encourage Love or Charity which in Greek the Language of the New Testament is one and the same is the fulfilling of the Law for (b) Rom. 13.8 He that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law so the want of it is the breach of the whole Law which is by our Saviour reduced to these two Heads to love God with all our Heart with all our Soul and with all our Mind and our Neighbour as our selves Now if we do not perform this last which cannot be when we are uncharitable to him we will never do the first for (c) 1 Joh. 〈◊〉 He that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath nos seen Charity is what God requires of us for (a) 1 Tim. 1.5 The end of the Commandment is Charity And we are exhorted (b) Coloss 3.14 above all things to put on Charity which as another Apostle saith (c) 1 Pet. 4.8 Shall cover a multitude of sins And without it every thing else is insignificant (d) 1 Cor. 13.1 2. Thô I have the gift of Prophecy and understand all Mysteries and all Knowledge and thô I have all Faith and have no Charity I am nothing saith the great Apostle of the Gentiles (e) v. 3 And thô I bestow all my goods to feed the poor and give my body to be burned and have no Charity it profitteth me nothing Charity not only doth no evil but also thinketh no evil There are Men in the World who measure and judge of others by themselves and so think evil of others because they do evil themselves such should remember what saith our Blessed Lord (f) Matt. 7.1 2. Judge not that ye be not judged for with what judgment ye judge ye shall be judged (g) Rom. 14.4 and Who art thou that judgest another Man's servants to his own Master he standeth or falleth The Advice which the Rabbies say Moses gave the children of Israel at his coming down from the Mountain before the reading of the Law to them would in these uncharitable times be very necessary be quick to hear slow to speak slower to anger and slowest of all to judge The Duty of every Christian is not hastily to judge or rashly condemn one another but rather out of a principle of promoting his Neighbour's good friendly and gently in private to Advise and Admonish him not with Authority and Magisterially which doth more harm than good and commonly produces rather a bad than a good Effect but with a Christian Prudence by all means avoiding to expose his good Name For if he be not tender of his good Name 't is in vain he will pretend to be his friend or to do 't for his good and any one thô indifferently clear-sighted shall easily perceive Malice and some ill Design in the bottom of it I say that gentle ways ought to be used though the Party was in fault and deserved to be reproved for it according to the Apostles Rule (a) Gal. 6.1 Brethren if a Man be overtaken in a fault ye which are spiritual restore such an one in the Spirit of meekness considering thy self lest also thou be tempted Those Sons of Thunder who would bring down fire from Heaven and destroy all know not what Spirit they are of sure I am 't is not the Spirit of Christ This must also be done in a fit and proper time thus Abigail finding (b) 1 Sam. 25 36. Nabal in drink told him nothing more or less of his folly against David until the Morning light 'T is the Character of a good Man to be discreet in the management of his Concerns either in relation to himself or neighbour (c) Psal 112.5 A good man will guide his Affairs with discretion He who cares not how he treads upon his Neighbour's Reputation doth thereby discover Venom in the Heart let his pretences be never so plausible and specious In this World every Man hath Two general Parts to act which thô in some things opposite yet may well agree being brought under a due Subordination and in relation to their respective Objects I mean that of a Christian and of the Rank and Quality which God hath placed him in the World and he may well satisfie both and with Prudence perform his Duty to God and what his station requires of him and as primarily he ought to mind the Glory of God and Good of his