Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	day_n	lord_n	week_n	2,075	5	9.7497	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A63767	A trumpet blown in Sion, sounding an alarm in Gods holy mountain: or, A voice lifted up as a trumpet crying aloud, and not sparing, to shew the Lords people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. By a poor worm, that through the Lords great grace, hath found great blessings among the Presbyterian ministry, and by conversing with some of the Lords upright ones of the Presbyterian way; and also choice blessings among the ministry of the Independant and Baptized congregations, and some of the faithful with them.	Poor worm.	1666 (1666)	Wing T3142C; ESTC R220929	125,364	105

never go to seek their stragling Souls by going to their Houses to endeavour their Return not once in twelve months but if they be lost lost they may be for you especially if they be some of the Poor of the Flock if mean in the World and they may wander from Mountain to Hill and be devoured of wild Beasts for you have neither cared to seek that which was lost nor to bring again that which was driven away nor to heal the Sick c. And WO BE TO YOU ye Shepherds of Israel saith the Lord Ezek. 34. 2. that do not the work of a Shepherd but take care to feed your selves and cloath your selves and if that be done whether you have it of the Sheep or any other way you are satisfied though you do not those Offices of Shepherds of the Flock as those that should watch for their Souls as those that must give an account of them to God O how sad an account have ye to make for these things Heb. 13. 17 These Sins of your Omissions unto whom so great a Charge is committed have been very great provocations of the Eyes of his Glory of whose blessed Service you have been so negligent and you must be told of it with a SPARE NOT. Again As this hath been the Sin of Prophets and Teachers so it hath been the Sin of others also even of many of all distinctions Presbyterians and Quakers c. for it is the concern of all that fear the Lord to endeavour the Reclaiming and Recovery of any that are fallen or overtaken with a fault and to endeavour the restoring of them with the spirit of Meekness But this hath been a general Sin among very many viz the Omission of this Duty It is true that many Professors are not gifted for such a Work as ●ohers are but every one ought to be found performing it according to their capacity as need ●equires and neglect of the discharge hereof in any of the Lords People hath been their sin which the Lord will have them humbled for But the great Sin among the Sins of Omission of the Lords People is the Sin of Omission of the constant attending of the Assemblies of the Saints in all times wherein that Assembly whereunto a person appertains doth appoint any solemn Assembly for the publick worshipping the Lord together waiting on the Lord to see his goings in the Sanctuary to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire into his Temple For the Lord is pleased to declare Rev. 1. 13 20 that his presence is in the midst of the Churches in the Assemblies of his Saints and there his people may inquire may seek after may find and obtain the Knowledge of the great Mysterie● of his Gospel and Kingdom and there the spiritual Eye may behold his Beauty And if some cannot see any Beauty there it is because their Eyes are blinded But every spiritual Eye may and doth behold in some measure the Beauty of the Lord in his Temple in his Churches But the reason why those that are truly spiritual see but a little is because there is a great defection in the very best of the Churches and most of the Elders of the Churches have their blots and some in particular are very ●oul ones as hath been said and may appear before this discourse be ended it being to shew the Lords People their Transgressions and the Churches and the Elders of the Churches their Sins But though there be a very great defection and backsliding in the Churches and the very Elders of the Churches to their shame yet there the Beauty of the Lord is to be seen if any where upon Earth though it be very much beclouded But though there be but a little Light yet some-Light and some spiritual Beauty there is among many Churches and Congregations of Saints and let particular Souls know that then they shall know if they follow on to Hos 6. 3. Prov. 10. 4. Isa 32. 20 Prov. 2. 4 know the Lord And he that improves a little well shall gain much more The diligent hand maketh rich and blessed are they that sow beside all Waters Blessed are they that improve all opportunities in publick and private to search for the Knowledge of the Glory of the Lord as for Silver and dig for it as for hid Treasures In all places or means in which there is any ground to expect the obtaining of that blessed Treasure But this hath been the Sin of the House of Jacob or those that pretend to be of that House viz. of the Israel of God That they have greatly neglected not onely other Duties in the performance whereof they might have been blessed but also this great Duty of attending the Assemblies of the Saints wherein in an especial manner they ought to ●e diligent For in the Assemblies of the Saints God is most evidently and visbly honoured and glo●ified by his People in the Eyes of the World And the more they have been opposed the more ought his Saints to be diligent in giving up themsel●es by a faithful obedie●ce unto his Precepts in the observance of all his Ordinances and appointments blamelesly purely and not according to mens inventions for in vain do they worship him that teach ●or Doctrine the Precepts of men But instead of wai●ing on the Lord in the Assemblies of his Saints in former times wherein the Lords People enjoyed Prosperity and as much Liberty as they could desire they many of them followed the World and the Profits thereof and others for t●i●●●ng occasions neglected their Duties when it was not for matter of Gain unto them but meerly from a sluggish dull dead frame of spirit and Indifferency in the Lords Service And when Churches have appointed solemn days of waiting upon the Lord in solemn Assemblies besides the Sabbath or first day of the Week there have been slender app●●●ances of them of all Distinctions Even of some of the Baptised Churches I say not all of the Baptised Churches but some are very guilty hereof also and it is too well known to them that their solemn Assemblies being appointed have been slightly observed weekly ●n the week Days yea many times when days of Fasting and Prayer and days of Thanksgiving have been appointed upon solemn occasions they have been unworthily neglected by many Church-Members and by some Elders also some affording but half the day to the Lord and some no part at all O unworthy People Was the Lord a barren Wilderness unto you or a Land of Darkness Was there no pleasure to be found in waiting upon him Was he no more delightful to your Soul then a Land of Darkness which is very unpleasant to the Body Was he so to your Souls Was there no more in him then in a barren heathy Wilderness Who can chuse but have his heart rise against the unworthy doings of such a People as have by their A●●ions seemed to manifest no more regard unto the

ponder this great Consideration and fear and dread the continuing in any known sin and be fa● from deluding themselves with the vain thoughts of finding acceptance with God in spending a whole day or dayes in a week in the most solemn Church Assemblies or in any other duty which the Lord requires while they continue in sin as remembring what the Lord here speaks in these Scriptures and what is said Psal 66. 18. If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear my prayer And let them observe the gracious Exhortation of the Apostle Heb. 12. 28 29. Let us have Grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and Godly fear for our God is not like the vanities of the Heathens to be pleased with many Lip-Services without Reformation but a consuming fire II. Another great Consideration that may be of use to provoke the Consideration II Lords People to a thorow amending their wayes is this viz. That no persons that are not washed from the Pollutions and Iniquities mentioned in the preceding Discourse shall be admitted to be of the number of them that shall follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth or that ●hall be accounted worthy to serve him in the great work he hath to do in the latter day for it is evident that those that are his Followers are described to be such as have none of these Iniquities found in them as appears in the Description Rev. 14. 1 2 c. in these words And I looked and ●o a Lamb stood upon Mount Sion and with him a hundred forty and four thousand having his Fathers Name written in their Fore●eads and they were redeemed from the Earth These are they which were not defiled with Women for they are Virgins These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth These were redeemed from among men being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile for they are without fault before the Throne of God And Chap. 17. 14. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and they that are with him are Called and Chosen and Faithful In which great Characters of the Lambs Followers it is apparent That they are not defiled with any of those Pollutions which the greatest number of the Lords People are now defiled with For First It is said They have his Fathers Name written in their Foreheads Characters of the Lambs Followers Which is an evident Demonstration that they shall be of such Holy and Heavenly Conversation● as shall evidently manifest whose Children they are for it shall be as appa●ently manifest as any thing is manifest that is fixed in a mans Forehead Secondly In that they are said to be redeemed from the Earth it clearly manifests that they shall not be men of an earthly mind but be altogether disingaged in their affections from sublunary things as having their affections wholly set on things above and having their very hea●ts there and having their conversations there also For our conversation is in Heaven Phil. 3. 20 contemning and despising any thing in the Earth when it comes in competition with the Service of their Lord and King for they shall not love the World nor the things that are in the World but shall trample upon them all having all things in the World under their Feet No fear of loss of earthly things nor hope of gain of worldly things shall either de●er them from the ser●ice of their Lord or induce them unto any unworthy complyance And in the service of their Lord they shall not expect great Earthly Rewa●ds nor desi●e any more thereof then Abraham did in his service in subduing the five Kings that desire nothing but what the young men had eaten as he said to the King of Sodom I will not take any more lest thou shouldst say I have made Abraham rich So shall the Followers of the Lamb say to the World to whom they may do good offices by the appointment of their Lord We will not take of you any reward for this Service but what we have eaten even what is enough to supply us and ours while we are about this Work And when our Work of this kind is done we would not have any thing left of what we take for our Service for we would not be one penny richer in estate then we were before but what we have more we shall account as a Canker and as a Moth to the rest of our Estates or to what the Lord may after give us in the lawful and moderate following our particular Callings but therewith we desire to be content whether it be little or much desi●ing to come off from publick Service rather with less then more then we had before And we desire to manifest to the World That we seek their Weal and not their Wealth their increase of Wealth Exte●nal and Internal and not the DIMINISHING OF ANY PART OF THEIR ESTATES It shall be manifest that they are ●edeemed from the Earth by their being every way loose from the things that are on the Earth and wholly set on the things that are above and rejoycing in that their Names are written in Heaven and in that they are sure of an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not awa● reserved in Heaven for them Thirdly It being said That they shall not be defiled with Women for they are Virgins It doth manifest that they shall not onely be pure from Fo●nications or Adu●teries in the Letter but also in a Mystical and Spiritual sence they shall not set up any other Lover in their hearts but ●emain chaste Virgins to Christ They shall be as pure as Virgins from having their hearts insna●ed with the Wo●ld or any other thing that defileth They shall not be defiled with the allu●ements of the Scarlet Who●e but shall hate to have any thing to do with the Cup of her Fornications Her Trumpery they shall not meddle with But as soon as it is discovered to them they shall detest it and shall give themselves up wholly to the Lord Christ to be guided by him alone cleaving to him as a faithful and loyal Spouse that abhors the thoughts of any but her onely Beloved but shall give themselves up wholly to the Lord Christ to be gu●ded by him alone and to follow him alone which is the next Character that 's given of them Fourthly They shall follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth He being their Leader they shall follow their Blessed Leader They shall not receive the Precepts of men in the Worship of God but the Rules of Christ alone and shall receive the Law from his mouth alone and not admit of mens inventions and mens interpretations further then they are perswaded it is according to his mind He alone shall be observed by them and whatsoever he reveals to them they shall do and into whatsoever Path he guides them they shall go and shall not be tyed and stinted by

your forsaking him and imbracing the present World Was he a barren Wilderness unto you or a Land of Darkness What Iniquity have ye found in him Jer. 2. 5 31. Will you say You were some of you poor in this World What then Did he not chuse you to be rich in Faith and Heirs of a Kingdom And was not your condition therein better then the greatest Emperours upon Earth Jam. 2. 5. Could ye not be content to be an Heir of a Kingdom but like foolish Children must sell your birthright for a mess of Pottage and chuse to fall in league into friendship with this World and consequently to enmity with God What have you done Know ye not what ye have done Know ye not that the friendstrip with this World is enmity with God Knew ye not that if ye fell in love with that Strumpet she would steal your Hearts from God Behold This is the plain assertion of the Spirit of God Jam. 4. 5. Whoseever therefore will be a friend of the World is the Enemy of God Where are ye now What a sad gulf have ye implunged your selves into ye Adulterers and Adulteresses that have treacherously departed from the Lord and are become very filthy very lewd very poluted very treacherous Creatures Whoremongers and Adulterers God will judge And where will ye appear that Heb. 13. 4 have been such Adulterers in grain and have so greatly provoked the Eyes of his Glory with your abominable Uncleannesses and sinful Dalliances with a deceitful Harlot and have not had so much as thoughts of forsaking her to return to your first Husband but you have loved Strangers and after them Jer. 2. 25 will ye go And what will ye do in the end thereof But that they may not be charged with this great Sin of Covetousness which is more hateful in the Lords People then Idolatry or Adultery in others whom it may be the Lord will not charge with it Let me now declare before I proceed any farther who they are that in the clear Light of the Scripture do appear to be guilty of it not naming Persons but leaving them to acknowledge themselves to be the men or women before the Lord and before some of his People if they have a Heart so to do to the end he may be glorified And first They that having made a Profession of being Saints and have some of them been Members of Churches and have for a time been great Lovers of the Word of God and with desire have desired to be fed with the sincere Milk of the Word in Lectures and other Sermons and in several Meetings and having been so fed it hath been sweeter unto them then the Honey and the Honey-Comb And yet afterwards having opportunities of trading and imployment in the World or of Offices Military or Civil have found Wealth coming in thereby and by degrees have weaned themselves from the blessed Paps of Sion's Consolation and from the Milk of the abundance of her Glory whereof they might have suck'd and been satisfied and have gone to the Brests of this World and taken pleasure in them and her Brests have satisfied them almost at all times Having had the World flowing in upon them plentifully and delighting themselves therein although they have been sensible of great ●eanness and barrenness of Spirit and have lost in a great measure their first Love But the pleasures of this new Lover hath so taken away their hearts as they have therewith contented themselves though without the Heart solacing Comforts of their true Husband which sometimes they enjoyed I say such as these have been guilty of this great Sin as appears by these following Scriptures Hos 2. from vers 5. to 16. Ezek. 16. from vers 15. to 30. Jer. 2. 11 12 13. Ezek. 23. 35. Deut. 33. 15 18 19. And secondly They are those covetous persons that out of eager and thirsting desires of heaping up more and more of the Wealth of this World though they have had comfortable Estates for the supply of themselves and theirs already and have had no need so to do yet have neglected almost all opportunities of enjoying Communion with their God their first Husband either in hearing Lectures or Sermons or in meeting together in Church-Meetings or in taking any solemn constant times of waiting upon their Lord in Closets or in family-Family-Duties And if sometimes these things have been done yet it hath been but when worldly business would admit o● it and many of these Opportunities have been neglected week after week and day after day The which many of those that have lived in the Families with them and have bin in Church-fellowship with them can plentifully witness And it is known how many days have bin past by some of these idolatrous adulterous covetous Persons and but one half hour in a day spent in any Religious performance yea sometimes not that and that in the Evening when they have been wearied with other business and been fit for nothing ●ut to sleep and dream or in the Morning when haste about other business hath hurried them away And when done done with formality coldness and dead heartedness enough I say Those that have so greatly neglected these and many other religious Duties to pursue the Worlds Profits though they have had no necessity so to do having comfortable Estates these are the Covetous Persons by the World condemned and not those whose necessities constrain thereto at sometimes for many blessed Servants of the Lord have been so put to it for want of dayly supplies for themselves and Families as they have been fain to work morning early and evening late to provide daily Bread for their Family having onely had from hand to mouth Some single Persons and some that have had others depending upon them and if some of these should be charged with this Sin they that so charge them may wrong the Generation of the Just and condemn the Innocent But m●ny of these that have had very little of this World and have received no Contributions from others have appeared at Lectures and Church-Meetings mo●e constantly and far more diligently then they who have had twenty times their Estates And therefore they that are and have been in a mean condition and unavoidably are compelled to much dayly Labour are not hereby so much condemned But many of these will rise up in Judgement against their Brethren and condemn them in that though they have been very needy and necessitous yet they have been more constant Attendants upon the solemn Worship of God then them And that these that though not for need but for desire of much Wealth have made so bold as to neglect holy Duties are the sinful Covetous Persons appears by these several Scriptures 1 Tim. 6. 10. Heb. 13. 5. Col. 3. 5. Demas hath forsaken us and loved this present World 2 Tim. 4. 10. Luk. 16. 13. Jam 4. 5. But thirdly Another character of a covetous Person

Jesus Christ And for those that pretend Faith in Christ for such to live in sin because Grace h●th abounded it is the more an abomination unto the Lord and of such he will say That he hates and despises their Services and he will not smell any sweet ●avour in their performances neither can they make any mellody in their Hearts to the Lord. And as it is said here Take away from me the noise of thy Songs I will not hear the mellody of thy Viols So may he say to such And to this purpose the Lord expresses himself also by his Prophet Jeremiah ●er 14. 12. When they fast I will not hear their cry And when they offer burnt Offerings and an Oblation I will not accept them but I will consume them by the Sword and by the Famine and by the Pestilence And Jer. 6. 20. To what purpose cometh there to me Incense from Sheba and the sweet Cane from a far Countrey Your burnt Offe●ings a●e ●ot acceptable nor your Sacrifices sweet unto me It is well known that this People were the Lords People ●hey were the House of Jacob and they frequently drew near to God to ●●rship him according to his own appointments offering burnt Offerings and Sacrifices and Oblations and Fasted and Prayed and yet the Lord sayes To what purpose do you do all this It is not acceptable unto me I will not accept them nor hear your cry And he speaks also to the same pu●pose by the Prophet Isai●h Isa 1. 11 12. c. To what purpose is the multitude of your Sa●rifices unto me saith the Lord. I am full of the burnt Offerings of Rams and of the ●at of fed Beasts I delight not in the Blood of Bul locks or of Lambs or of He-goats When ye come to appear before me who hath required this at your hand● that ye tread my Courts Bring no more vain Oblations Incense is an abom●nation unto me The new Moons and Sabbaths The calling of the Assemblies I cannot away with it is iniquity even your solemn Meetings Your new Moons and your appointed Feasts my Soul hateth they are a trouble unto me I am weary to bear them And when you spread forth your hands I will hide mine eyes from you Yea when ye make many prayers I will not hear your hands are full of blood Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well c. Here it is plain that though there be a multitude of Duties performed yet if a People be polluted with Sin and Defilement it is to no purpose To what purpose is the multitude of your Sacrifices to me saith the Lord The Lord desires Holiness more then Sacrifices and Purity of Heart more then Prayers For if a People be full of sin and iniquity and hugg that and keep that in their bosoms still though they make many Prayers he will not hear them and for the fastings of such a People they are not at all acceptable unto him When they fast I will not hear their cries because they do not put away the evil of their doings from before his eyes the evil of their Coverousness and hardness of heart c. But he tells us what Fast will be acceptable unto him Isa 58. 6 7. Is not this the Fast that I have chosen To loose the bands of Wickedness to undoe heavy burthens and to let the oppressed go free and that ye break every Yoak Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy House When thou seest the naked that thou cover him and that thou hide not thy self from thine own flesh This is the Fast that God hath chosen such a day of Fast as wherein a man doth so truly repent of sin as ●o put it quite away and never return to it any more but to be greatly exercised in the contrary vertue for ever after And dayes of Humiliation and Fasting are appointed for this end that persons may be so truly humbled under the sence of sin as to loath themselves for it and to acknowledge that they are not worthy to ear Bread or to ●eceive any mercy for their refreshment And if we ought to loath our selves for sin much more should we ●oath all our abominations in the sight of the Lord and this the Lord requires Put away all the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well to be free-hearted tender-hearted compassionate Deal thy Bread to the hungry bring the poor that are cast out to thy House cloath the naked and hide not thy self from thine own flesh from the pinching streights of thy Brother whose pinching necessiries should be on thy heart with as much sence as if it were on thine own flesh for their flesh is as our flesh and their Neh. 5. 5. Children as our Children Wouldst thou suffer thine own Body or thine own Wife or Children to be in such streights and distresses as tho● seest some of the Lords dear Servants sometimes a●e in O hide not thy self from thine own flesh put away covetousness and hardness of heart cease from that and all other Evils and learn to do well in these and all other blessed deeds Remember them that are in bonds as bound with them and them that be in adversity as being your selves also in the Body Heb. 1● 2. And to do good and to communicate forget not For with such Sacrifices God is well pleased vers 16. Such Fastings as are accompanied with such Sacrifices with a liberal and bountiful doing of these things ●e the * * Fastings that God expects and accepts and otherwise when person● Fast and bow down their hands as a Bull-rush for a time and continue in sin though they should pray till their voice and strength should fail and Fast till their bodies were fainting and dying it would find no acceptance with God but be loathsome unto him Your new Moons and your appointed Feasts my Soul hateth they are a trouble unto me I am weary to bear them Why doth the Lord so loath these performances which were of his own appointments Because they were a sinful People a People laden with iniquity a seed of Evil doers Children that were Corrupters that had forsaken the Lord and provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger and were gone away backward Isa 1. 4. Which are the direct Characters of many of the Lords People now though they continue worshiping of him in his own appointments as they did them for they did come to appear before the Lord and tread his Courts and frequent the solemn Assemblies and observe the new Moons and offer a multitude of Sacrifices and burnt Verses 11 12 13 14 15. Offerings of Rams and of Bullocks and Lambs and of He-Goats and did spread forth their hands and make many Prayers Now let all the Lords People seriously