Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
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A42063
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A thanksgiving sermon for the deliverance of our King from the late intended assassination of his sacred person and of the Kingdom from the French invasion preached by Francis Gregory.
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Gregory, Francis, 1625?-1707.
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1696
(1696)
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Wing G1906; ESTC R28684
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8,507
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28
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Deliverance is great in respect of that dreadful Danger which did attend us and was so near us Fourthly Our Deliverance is great in respect of its vast Extent and Latitude for it reacheth far both as to Time and Place First Our Deliverance is great in respect of our Enemies from whom we are delivered I mean the French King and his Myrmidons his Priests and Jesuits his Troopers and Dragoons those his late Reformers of Religion who have not one strong Argument against the Doctrin of our Church save only that which hangs by their Sides I mean their Swords and Pistols It is well known that the French King is a Potent Monarch his Dominion is large his Kingdom is rich his People are numerous his Army great his Fleet considerable and though he may have lost the Affections of his Subjects yet still hath he an absolute Command over their Persons and Purses But all this Greatness cannot satisfie this proud and ambitious King His Design is to make himself the sole Emperour of the West and because our present King by his extraordinary Courage and Conduct stands most in the French King's Way since his Armies had not the Luck to kill him fairly in the Field the Report is that the French King himself contrived the Way and encouraged bloody Villains to surprize our King at unawares and murder him in a Moment 'T is somewhat strange that so much as one Thought of such a vile and treacherous Act should have entred into a Crowned Head but it is much more strange that it should find such Entertainment and Welcome there 'T is for the Honour of Kings and Princes even when they deal with Enemies to be generous and noble but for a King and such an one as stiles himself the most Christian King and stands so much upon his Honour for him to sit down consult and contrive a Design and earnestly wait for its Execution a Design to murder a Neighbouring Prince sneakingly and in cool Blood it is an Act so base so ignoble that had there been nothing of Sin in it yet there is so much of Shame that I cannot call it by any Name that is bad enough And had this horrid Plot took that Effect which was designed by its Contrivers had the French Army suddenly surprized and overcome us with what Severity would the French King have treated the Protestants of England since he lately was so exceeding cruel to the Protestants of France who were his own natural and loyal Subjects In short this is the King who to enlarge his own Dominion hath unjustly invaded the Territories of other Princes surprized and burnt their Towns plundered their Villages destroyed their Country and drencht his Sword and made it drunk with the innocent Blood perhaps of Millions This is the devouring Lion from whose merciless Claws we are yet delivered an Enemy that is powerful an Enemy that is implacable an Enemy whose tender Mercies are but cruel And certainly a Deliverance from such an Enemy must needs be a great one Secondly Our Deliverance is great in respect of the Persons who are thereby delivered For these Persons are great either first in Point of Quality or secondly in Point of Number First Some Persons concerned in this Deliverance are great in Point of Quality Our Bishops and many other grave Divines are Persons somewhat considerable in the Church of England in regard of their sacred Employment our Gentlemen Knights Lords Earls Dukes are Persons very considerable in the State of England in regard of their great Estates and Titles of Honour our Judges in regard of their Office are great Men too but above all our King is very great indeed and that first in respect of his high Birth and Extraction as being born of Royal Blood and secondly in Respect of his high Station as being God's Vicegerent Now it is certain that if the late Conspiracy had succeeded all these great Men would have very sorely smarted by it but especially our King who was the first Man designed for Slaughter and consequently the first and the most concerned in this Deliverance Secondly Besides our King and the other great Men of our Nation the main Body of our common People are also concerned in this Deliverance And what they want in Weight they do certainly make up in Number And their Number is so very considerable that it doth much advance our Deliverance and make it very great indeed I remember Joseph told his Brethren thus Gen. 45. 7. God sent me before you to save your Lives by a great Deliverance If the Deliverance of one single Family deserved to be called a great Deliverance how much the Deliverance of so many thousand Families as are in England Thirdly Our Deliverance is great in respect of the Danger which did attend us and that was very dreadful and very near to us too We were in Danger of a French Invasion a French Religion and a French Government A Religion which is Idolatrous a Government which is Tyrannical by the one we must have lost our Consciences or our Lives and by the other we must have lost our Laws Estates and Liberties So that I may say we were in Danger to lose whatever is and ought to be dear to us And as this Danger was very great so was it very near us too For the French Fleet and Army were ready abroad and the Traytors at home were prepared to kill the King the Day appointed for the Murder was come the Design was every way ripe and there wanted nothing but a fit Opportunity for its Execution Now in this critical Juncture of Time there appeared for us as the Greeks speak 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the unexpected Providence of God stept in and interposed betwixt us and Ruin discovered the Conspiracy and so prevented its Execution So that we may say as David did in a like Case Psalm 124. 7. The Snare is broken and we are escaped God was pleased to snatch us as so many Brands designed for the Fire as it were out of the Smoke just before the Flame should have been kindled to consume us And may we not upon this Ground also very justly stile our Deliverance as the Text doth that of David a great Deliverance Fourthly Our Deliverance is great in respect of its Extent and Latitude for it reacheth very far both as to Time and Place We must not think that we of this present Age and this particular Nation are the only Persons concerned in it the Benefit of it is like to redound to other Kingdoms and other Ages First To other Kingdoms for had the French King invaded and conquered England as he designed he would easily have over-run the Territories of the Allies and Confederate Princes who are not able by their own Strength to withstand the Power of France Secondly To other Ages for had this cursed Plot took that Effect which was designed by its Contrivers we cannot doubt but our conquering Enemies had they proved such would have derived and transmitted both Popery and Slavery two detestable Names quite down to our Posterity Now then if other Ages if other Nations and Churches but especially those of the Reformed Religion be concerned as doubtless they are in this Deliverance as well as we then certainly the more extensive this Deliverance is 't is so much the greater And now what remains but that we render great Thanks for our great Deliverance to that great God who is the undoubted Author of it Since God hath done his Part in Point of Mercy let us now do ours in Point of Gratitude Nor is it enough for us to bless our God with our Tongues for one single Day but let us glorifie him in our Lives as David did even whilst we have a Being The Benefit of this Deliverance is like to redound to our Posterity and why should not our present and grateful Sense of such a Mercy be conveyed down to After Ages Certainly a Deliverance of this Nature deserves a Solemn Day of Thanksgiving Year by Year For it is said that this late Conspiracy was laid as deep and might have proved as fatal even as the very Gun-powder Treason it self And if so since we observe the Fifth of November in Memory of that why should we not as well observe the Fifteenth of February in Memorial of this But in the mean time let us take heed that we do no more provoke the God of our Deliverance by our repeated Crimes let us remember that France is like to be France and Rome is like to be Rome I mean our implacable Enemies still And if Old England will be Old England still if we still resolve to continue as profane and vicious as ever what may we expect at last but utter Ruin and Desolation To this Purpose tends that Address which Ezra made to God in a like Case and upon a like supposition Ezra 9. 13 14. since thou our God hast given us such a Deliverance as this should we again break thy Commandments wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us so that there should be no remnant nor escaping But that we may keep God our Friend and so need not fear the Power or the Plots of our Enemies Let us take that advice which our Lord gave to that impotent person whom he had miraculously cured John 5. 14. Behold thou art made whole What then Sin no more So say I Behold we are this Day Dlivered and that by little less than a Miracle well and what if we be Sin no more There is danger in it for as the Text intimates God hath yet in store 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 some worse things which may yet befall us even a small Excision and Destruction of our Persons Church and Nation But that our selves our Families and our Kingdom may flourish let us by our religious holy and vertuous Lives engage our God to be still our great Protector and in order to our common Safety let us close our Thanksgivings with that solemn Petition which our Liturgy puts into our Mouths O Lord save the King And let every good Man who loves our Church and Nation subscribe or say Amen FINIS
the Hopes not only of Pardon but of a considerable Reward might much incline him But above all it is most probable that such a Man 's own Conscience being awakened by God whose Vicegerent it is might so confound and terrifie him at the Prospect and with the Guilt of so great a Crime that he could find no Rest in his Bosome till he had both disclaimed and revealed it But whether it were Fear or Hope or Conscience which prevailed with this Man to make this Discovery we must conclude that God Almighty by his wise and over-ruling Providence raised and used him as his Instrument to do this happy Piece of Service For without the Divine Influence neither Fears nor Hopes nor Conscience can move the Heart of a Wicked Man to renounce his Sin and do such a blessed Act as this Man did by this Discovery It was indeed this Man 's great Sin to engage himself in such a detestable Conspiracy and to involve himself in so deep a Guilt but since he had unhappily done so he could never have took a better Course to expiate his Crime in some Degree than by confessing lamenting and discovering it and for his so doing he hath Reason to bless that God who inclined him to it as well as we But the Discovery of this secret Plot is not the only Evidence that God is the undoubted Author of our Deliverance For when the French Troops were gathered together with a Design to invade us when their Fleet was ready when their Men Horses and Arms were imbarqued put to Sea and thought to surprize us Who drove their Ships back to their own Coasts save only that great God whose Command the Winds and the Seas obey Nay more when before this Plot was known a considerable Number of our own Ships were sailing to the Streights a Place very far from England that God who knew the French Design was pleased by turning the Wind to send our Ships home again that in such a dangerous Juncture of Time we might not want and be without them So that confess we must that it is God who gives great Deliverances And if so how are we obliged this Day to bless him for it Secondly The Second thing considerable in this Deliverance is the Person therein concerned and that is David here stiled his King and his Anointed First God's King and God's Anointed And indeed David was so in an extraordinary Way and peculiar to those Times wherein God was pleased now and then once particularly to name his own Vice-gerents Of this Number David was one God's King by Nomination and God's anointed by his own immediate and special Command But in these Days of ours there is no such King to be found in all the World none named from Heaven none anointed or crowned by God's own immediate Institution And yet since God Almighty tells us Prov. 8. 15. By me Kings reign and since St. Paul saith Rom. 13. 1. There is no Power but of God We may conclude that our present King is His King and His Anointed Though not as David was by Nomination yet by the secret Direction and Guidance of his over-ruling Providence For pray tell me who was it that inclined the Prince of Orange with the Hazard of his Life and Fortunes to venture into England to secure us from Popery which then threatned our Religion and that arbitrary and despotical Government which then threatned our Laws and Liberties And when this Prince was come over who inclined several Regiments that were sent out against him to run into his Assistance And when this was done who moved our Nobility and Gentry to place this Prince upon that Throne which the late King had deserted and left vacant and quite empty And since the King hath been so crowned who is he that hath generally inclined the Hearts of Subjects to own him for their Sovereign Lord and pray for him as such If it be God that hath done all this methinks we may conclude from such a Concurrence of Divine Providences that our present King who is highly concerned in the Deliverance of this Day is owned by Almighty God to be according to the Expression in my Text His King and His Anointed And if so 't is not our Business to dispute his Title but to acquiesce under his Government to submit to his Laws to furnish him with necessary Supplies to pray for his Life Health and Prosperity and to obey his just Commands True it is the Deliverance of this Day doth plainly shew that some Men are of another Mind but were it put to the general Vote of this Nation whether the late King should be restored or the present King be continued if we set aside the Roman Catholicks and the debauched Russians of this Age I am perswaded that of twenty Religious and sober Protestants nineteen would vote for King William And by the way I am apt to think that this late Attempt to Murder our present King hath given him a greater Share in the Affections of his loyal Subjects and thereby settled him the more firmly upon his Throne even as a Tree which being shook now and then by the Wind is abought to root the deeper and consequently to 〈◊〉 â—…and the faster But Thirdly The third thing considerable in the Text is the Motive which inclined God Almighty to work this Deliverance for David and that is intimated in those two Expressions He gives Deliverance and again He sheweth Mercy which imports that David's Deliverance did not arise from any Worth or Merit of his own upon Terms of Justice but barely from the free Grace and Kindness of God And if it were so with David it cannot be otherwise with us David was One who loved his God and took Pleasure in his Service but as for us of this Nation there is amongst us such a general Corruption of Manners so many gross Errours and Heresies about Matters of Faith so much Carelessness and Irreverence such Schisms and Factions about Matters of Worship nay such down-right Atheism and Irreligion that we deserved a final Destruction rather than a Deliverance That sober Man who considers the reigning Vices of this Age the Swearing the Drunkenness the Whoredom and other Debaucheries of England whereby the Laws of God are miserably transgressed and the Majesty of Heaven basely affronted must needs confess as the Prophet did Lam. 3. 22. It is of the Lord's Mercies that we are not consumed that we are not yet given up as a Prey to cruel and blood-thirsty Men. We must needs say as David here doth God gives Deliverance And He doth it because He sheweth Mercy Fourthly The fourth and last thing considerable in this Deliverance is its Nature and Quality the Text stiles it great Deliverance And certainly such is Ours great in four Respects First Our Deliverance is Great in Respect of our Enemies from whom we are delivered Secondly Our Deliverance is great in respect of the Persons who are delivered Thirdly Our