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B04652
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Salvation improved: in a sermon upon the 16th of April, 1696. : Being the day of solemn thanksgiving for the preservation of His Majesty's sacred person, from barbarous assassination; and of this kingdom, from French invasion. / Preached at Oswestry, by J.O. minister of the Gospel.
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Owen, James, 1654-1706.
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1696
(1696)
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Wing O6; ESTC R181128
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15,594
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31
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Salvation Improved IN A SERMON Upon the 16th of April 1696. Being the Day of SOLEMN THANKSGIVING For the Preservation of His Majesty's SACRED PERSON from Barbarous Assassination and of this Kingdom from French INVASION Preached at Oswestry by J. O. Minister of the Gospel LONDON Printed for I. Salusbury at the Rising Sun in Cornhil 1696. SALVATION Improved In a Sermon on the 16th of APRIL 1696. Being the Day of Solemn THANKSGIVING c. Psalm 144.10 It is He that giveth Salvation unto Kings who Delivereth David his Servant from the hurtful Sword THESE Words Recommend unto us Two Remarkable Instances of Divine Providence First Toward Kings in general It is He i. e. The Lord That giveth Salvation unto Kings Secondly Towards David in particular Who Delivereth David his Servant from the Hurtful Sword David the Man after God's own heart had many Enemies neither his Piety towards God nor his Successes against the Common Adversaries of Israel could secure him from the Plots and Conspiraces of Evil Men among whom his own Father-in-Law King Saul made the first Figure But God delivered him from the hurtful Sword of Saul and other Enemies No Weapon form'd against him Prospered He wore a Protection against all the Attempts of Ungodly Persons by vertue of his Relation to God to whose Service he had Devoted himself and under whose Umbrage he found Shelter He was a Servant of God which contributed more to his Safety than his being King of Israel The Sense of the words may be summed up into this Proposition There is a Particular Providence that concerns its self in the Preservation of Kings and Princes especially of such as are Good Royal Persons are Guarded and Attended by a Numerous Train of Armed Men but their Salvation consisteth not in these an Arm of Flesh is no Defence without God Strong Guards have been the Ruin as well as the Support of Princes as they are more exposed than other Men so are they framed of the same mould with others they are as susceptible of Hostile Impressions as others being Vessels of the same Clay with other Mortals and easily crush'd and broken The Almighty King will make them acknowledge sooner or later That it is he that makes their Mountain Strong Psal 30.7 and if he hide his Face they are Troubled There is a Providence to which all things owe their Conservation the same power which produced this Vast World and its Innumerable Inhabitants Neh. 9.6 Matt. 10.29 Upholds and Preserves them all A Sparrow falls not on the ground without our Heavenly Father How much more doth the Divine Providence concern it self about Man The Darling of Heaven The Chief of God's Works The Object of Redeeming Love For whose Salvation the Son of God Assumed Flesh God stiles himself Job 7.20 The Preserver of Mankind It is his Prerogative and our Priviledge He is the Saviour of all men 1 Tim. 4.10 especially of those that Believe They are his by Covenant and he hath engaged all his Glorious Attributes for their Defence and Salvation He hath Promised to be with them in all Extreamities and never to leave nor forsake them The Lord preserveth the Faithful Psal 31 23. saith the Royal Prophet and in another place Psal 97.10 He preserveth the Souls of his Saints he Delivereth them out of the hand of the Wicked The same is acknowledged by Hannah in her Eucharistick Song 1 Sam. 2.9 He will keep the Feet of his Saints that is He will order their Steps and Establish their Ways or as the Wise Man expresses it He preserveth the way of his Saints Prov. 2.8 If there be such a Watchful Providence over Good Men how much more over Good Princes They have an interest not only in that Providence which respects Good Men in Common but in a more distinguishing one which is proper to themseves It is Recorded as the peculiar favour of Heaven to King David That the Lord preserved David whithersoever he went Isa 8.6 'T is True If Princes forsake God he also will forsake them and leave them destitute of desired help when Distress and Anguish cometh upon them Thus King Saul having abandon'd himself to Vile and Unmanly Passions was first given up to himself and afterwards into the hands of his Enemies when the Spirit of God had once left him 1 Sam. 16.14 it was not long until the Divine Protection also departed from him 1 Sam. 28.15 If Princes set themselves against God he 'll set his Face against them and who can Deliver out of his hand Who cuts off the spirit of Princes and is Terrible to the Kings of the Earth Psal 76.12 But Good Princes are the Special Care of Heaven God is with them his Eyes are upon them for good his Angels Encamp round about them they are as a signet upon his Right Hand Isa 22.23 which none can pluck thence He fastens them as a nail in a sure place and makes them a Glorious Throne to their Fathers House There is a particular Providence over them First In preventing Secret Conspiraces Secondly In Covering them from Open and Publick Dangers First In Preventing Secret Conspiracies Though the Plots of Cunning Enemies be laid as deep as Hell and cover'd with Infernal Darkness yet that All-seeing Eye before which Hell is Naked and Destruction hath no Covering Penetrates into them and exposes them to publick View Little did Moses and his Israelites suspect the Secret Intreagues of Balac and the Princes of Moah who were forming a Plot against them under the conduct of Balaam a false prophet but the Vigilant Providence which ever espouses the cause of Innocency and Truth rebukes the madness of the Prophet diverts his vile Inclinations and converts his intended Imprecations into Real Blessings There was a more Dangerous Plot against our Great Deliverer and our Protestant Israel the Method was To Assassinate his Royal Person to destroy his Friends to Involve these Nations in Blood and Misery to Overturn the Foundations of our Religion Laws and Liberties and enslave us to the worst of Tyrants the French King and to a forward Instrument of his Cruelties the Abdicated King James who was ready to Invade us with a French Power and to return like the Vnclean Spirit in the Gospel with seven other Spirits more wicked than himself to repossess his deserted Throne whereby our last state would have been seven times worse than our first All this was managed with the greatest Secrecy until things were come to such a ripeness that there wanted nothing but the Execution of an infallible design as they called it but blessed be God it proved equally infallible with the Romish Church whose distinguishing Character is to extirpate the best of Christians under the odious name of Hereticks Things were arrived to this perfection and no visible hand at work to prevent the Fatal Stroke we were in a deep security as Sheep devoted to the slaughter
tied as it were to the Horns of the Altar and ready to be Sacrificed But the Great Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls the Prince of the Kings of the Earth looked down from Heaven troubled the Hosts of these Egyptians and took off their Chariot-Wheels as they were driving on with the greatest Fury and assurance of Success Ps 2.4 He that sitteth in the Heavens did laugh the Lord had them in derision He Divided their Tongues Infatuated their Counsels and made the sworn Instruments of the Kings Destruction the happy means of preventing it He sent a spirit of Jealousie among them which occasioned the discovery of their execrable Intentions Ps 110.2 Thus Christ rules in the midst of his Enemies and over-rules their Hellish Policies to his own Praise Job 5.12 13 14 15. He disappointeth the Devices of the Crafty so that their Hands cannot perform their Enterprize He takes the Wise in their own Craftiness and the Counsel of the Froward it carried headlong When Balak practiced against Israel and took Balaam for his Counsellor neither the one or the other thought of the French Method of hiring a company of Desperadoes to Assassinate Moses who was a King in Jeshurun and so prepare a way for an easie and inglorious Victory over Israel No that Heathen Prince judged it the best policy to engage his Gods on his side and to expose Israel to a Prophetick Curse The World then was too innocent to entertain such devilish projects Royal Minds scorn such mean Arts of subduing their Adversaries The Assassinating Invention owes its Original to latter and more Brutish Ages the name and thing are derived from the barbarous Saracens among whom there is a Bloody Sect called Assassini living under a Senior or Ruler whom they honour as a Prophet by whom they are sent forth to murther such Princes as favour them not promising themselves the reward of Immortality by him in all things though with the loss of their Lives They are Mahometans by profession and one would be apt to think no other but a Mahometan were capable of such Villany Our Noble King Edward the first when he was at Acon was dangerously wounded by an Assassine and had undoubtedly died of the Wound which the Saracen had given him with a poisoned Knife had not Queen Eleanor of immortal memory sucked out the poison with her Tongue when no Medicine could extract it She licked his rankling Wounds whereby they perfectly closed and yet her self received no harm The Spirit of this Barbarous Sect is since enter'd into the Jesuits and other Popish Orders who have by their Writings and Actions proved themselves the genuine Off-spring of the Mahom tan Assassines Henry the 3d. of France and his Successor Henry the 4th a great Prince both fell by base assassinating One would think the present French King whose Grandfather was stabbed by Ravaillac should above all Men abhor Assassinations especially towards a Prince who exposes his Person to the utmost hazards of Battle but we have have strong Presamptions that the design upon King William's Life was carried on with his Knowledge and Approbation nor could the late King be ignorant of it or less innocent than his mighty Guardian For the Success of the intended Invasion depended upon the taking away of the Kings Life The Army at Calais under the Conduct of Monsieur Bouflers and K. J. waited only for the welcome news of the King's Death to give Life to all their motions The discovery of the Plot broke all their measures and spoil'd the infallible design The French King's Ambassadours at the Courts of Sweden and Portugal and in some other Courts of Europe gave sufficient hints of their knowledge of it Besides Grandval who was Executed in August 1692. in Flanders for being in Conspiracy to assassinate King William confessed that he was put on by Monsieur Barbesieux the French King's Secretary who promised he should be made a Count and by the late K. J. of whom he had Audience in Presence of his Queen and was assured by him he should never want provided he did his work effectually They who have been concerned in a design against the King's Life may be justly suspected to have a hand in the late Conspiracy which was undertaken in favour of them both and who were like to be the Principal if not only gainers by it 2. There is a particular Providence over Princes in covering them from open and publick dangers King David often recognizeth the divine Goodness in delivering him from his strong Enemies even when they were too strong for him They compassed him about like Bees Ps 18.17 and 118 12. and were quenched as the fire of Thorns When he was surrounded with the snares of Death God made a way of escape for him When good King Jehoshaphat was inclosed by the Syrian Army 2 Chro. 18.31 he cried out unto God and he helped him and moved them to depart from him King Richard the first who was hunting carelessly near Joppa with a few of his Nobles about him was surprized by a company of Turks who lay in Ambushment for him and had inevitably fallen into their Hands had not one of the Company walsh hypod neustr p. 454. William de Pratellis cried out in the Turkish Language That he was the King which the Turks believing carried him away in Triumph and neglected the rest whereby King Richard had his opportunity of escaping their Hands and returned safe to his own All Histories are full of Instances of a particular vigilancy of Providence over Princes but no Age hath afforded more pregnant ones than those that concern the Person of our Illustrious King William A Narrative of all the remarkable deliverances of his Life would fill up a just Volumn None can be more conversant with dangers none more secure in the midst of them He walks without fear in the Valley of the Shadow of Death he passes untouched through the midst of the Enemy's Fire guarded by invisible Powers as the three young Men in the Fiery Furnace he advanceth with an Heroick Courage before the Mouths of roaring Canons those Artificial Vulcano's that vomit out Fire and Smoak and flying Globes the irresistible Messengers of a terrible and present death His trust is in the name of the Lord which is a strong Tower a Shield of defence and a sure Refuge which no adverse Power is able to penetrate He believes that every Bullet has its Commission 2 Kings 22 3â— and is directed by unerring Providence This is not to ascribe events to a Turkish Fate as his Enemies have invidiously and basely traduced him but an entire dependance upon the Divine Will to whose Conduct the most fortuitous Events ought to be ascribed How wonderfully has God preserved him at the Boyn A Canon-Ball gently salutes him to give him a sensible Impress of his mortal state and of his immortal Obligations to his Almighty Preserver In Flanders another Canon-Bullet