Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	consume_v	follow_v	great_a	14	3	2.1077	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91061	Englands impenitencie under smiting, causing anger to continue, and the destroying hand of God to be stretched forth still. Set out in a sermon preached before the Honourable House of Commons, at a publike fast, Sept. 25. 1644. By Nicolas Proffet, late rector of Peters in Marlebrough, now Minister of Edminton, and one of the Assembly of Divines. Published by Order from that House.	Proffet, Nicolas, d. 1669.	1645 (1645)	Wing P3647; Thomason E16_22; ESTC R18136	45,814	55

that smiteth them then it must needs follow that Germany smitten and miserably wasted it is the Lord that smote them Ireland smitten and allmost consumed the Lord hath smiten them England at this time smitten devided and much weakened it is the Lord that hath smitten us This Doctrine doth assure us as the woman of Tekoa doth informe David that the hand of Ioab was in all that so the hand of God is in all this his hand hath smitten both them and us The more therefore to blame wee and the greater our sin who looke much below the hand of God Isa 26.11 It was a just complaint of our Prophet Chap. 26.11 Lord when thy hand is lifted up they will not see and in this Chap. as was noted before he chargeth this people that they were so farre from turning to him that smote them as they tooke no notice of the hand that hurt them Israel lookes lower then heaven then the hand of God and lookes on other hands they could not see his hand that smote them I feare Israel and England are so like each other in this as England is the worse I remember what one hath noted of Israel and I pray let us consider whether it be not true also of England also at this day When the Iewes indured so many miseries even from their first plantation in the land unto their finall casting out they were seldome aware of this point c. If the Philistines Cananites and other borderers upon them doe spolle their Country tyrannize over them and oppresse them with cruell slavery as they did in the times of the Iudges they will interpret this to be nothing but an old grudge of these nations for dispossessing them of their Country for which they were hated and all occasions sought to worke revenge If the Kingdome be devided that is nothing but Rehoboams folly and ill counsell of ill advised Courtiers If Israel make warre on Iudah or Iudah upon Israel that is but policy to keepe downe one another least one should encroach upon both Kingdomes If there be civill warre that is through the factions of potent and ambitious Statesmen If a forraigner invade them it is nothing but the pride of ambitious tyrants that cannot be content with their owne but seeke after glory and greatnes in the ruine of other Kingdomes Yea if Salmanazer or Nebuchadnezzar carry them away captive out of their Land though they may thinke God not well pleased with them in the generall yet they would resolve these effects into other causes more proper as they conceive It was weaknes in their Kings ●●generating from their antient valour want of good considerates of good Councellours of skilfull and trusty Commanders or hardy Souldiers they were over-borne by multitude and these or some things like these were the cause of this misfor●●●e c. But the ●and of God they will not see they will ascribe ●●●ther unto any thing then unto the hand of God Iust as 〈◊〉 speakes of the people of his time in case of good suc●●●● Alius fortuna Alius eventui c. One doth ascribe it to ●●●●une another unto event a third unto the advice of their leaders a fo●tth unto good counsell c. nullus Deo Hardly a●y unto God How true this is of our times and whether this he not our National sin I shall leave you to consider and judge 〈◊〉 so it is very great and wee in it like Israel and not much b●yond the Heathen may much behind some of them who were wont to looke much higher then many of our people doe For to say nothing of him that having slaine a great Enemy of his Country and when there was a strife among the Officers who ●●old give him most honour did ascribe all to Heaven and would take nothing to himselfe and others but only the lending their hands unto the worke they ascribing victory and successe unto Fortuna and Victoria did as they imagined ascribe them to God For Fortune as they thought was a divine power and no lesse indeed then a God And the like they held of Victoria as Aug. noteth This sinne is so much the more to be noted and reproved as it is more sinfull and dangerous for it is a fault in the first concoction of the use which should be made of the judgements of God not to be recovered in the rest It is observed by two learned ●●xp●sitors upon the Text that Israel not acknowledging whence these stroakes came therefore they did not turne by true repentance unto the Lord neither did they seeke him And whereas these stroakes were laid on them that they might convert bring neglected they become more obstinate It is the policy of Satan not unlike to that of Ieroboam 1 Kings 12.26 27. 〈…〉 the people should goe up to Ierusalem to Sacrifice in 〈…〉 that their heart would turne againe unto their Lord the King of Iudah And therefore he doth set up Golden Calves and said unto them It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem behold thy Gods O Israel c. Thus the Devill well knowing it might proove dangerous if men should looke so high as the hand of God for then they might possibly lay to heart his hand and inquire into the cause and fall out with their sinne and fall off from Satan therefore he indeavours to make them to cast their eyes upon Golden Calves and doth fasten them on any thing on Earth that they may not looke up to Heaven And by this meanes it cometh to passe that God looseth all the glory and they all the gaine of his mercies and punishment upon them for their amendments Vse 2 Secondly This Doctrine may serve for comfort and support unto Gods people to remove and mitigate sorrow especially in the excesse in saddest times of smiting And truly such times call for cordials and such a use of this Doctrine For when the Lord cometh towards his owne in a warlike habite and posture when he approacheth neer unto them with wrath in his countenance and a destroying sword a bloudy rod in his hand the dearest of Saints falling into the hands and unto the mercy of barbarous and cruell bloudy men seemes to exceed in feare yea and fly in such trembling fits to try some ill conclusion if they stay not themselves they may feare the feare of the wicked and say A confedracy with them to whom they say a confederacy Isa 8.12 Their feare may drive them to make unlawfull leagues or to be of the opinion judgement or practice of the wicked in working out their way out of danger and at the least withdraw themselves from God in whom alone is helpe and comfort in time of trouble and danger As it is noted of Astianax when his owne father came towards him armed although it was to imbrace him yet being afraid at the sight of his head-peece and hairy plume bending towards him the child doth forthwith hide his face in

and then a legge you may be sure the child or patient is yet in an ill case if you should see a loving father lay on his sonne and bruise yea breake the very bones of his owne child you could not but thinke there is some great fault committed if that should not alwayes hold yet this is certain our heavenly Father hath no passion to transport him nor doth he afflict willingly man doth sufer for his sinne such an effect as punishment on a nation doth infallibly conclude such a cause as sinne and the Lord doth manifestly reveale his wrath from Hewen against our sinnes for he hath drawne two swords at once against the nation and whereas of the two that of warre is the worst yea the heaviest of God his sore punishments Civill warre is of all warres the worst In which as the Latine Orator said in bellis civilibus omnia sunt misera sed nihil miserius quàm ipsa victoria for as it is said of K. Ed. the second Tuno verè victus quando tot vicit milites prudentes In these warres although every thing be unhappy yet nothing more miserable then victory it selfe because by victory such a body doth overcome it selfe These heavy judgements bring with them a sad report of wrath as he that writes of strange Grashoppers that did depopulate England which had written upon the one wing in black letters ira and upon the other Dei how truly he reports that I stand not to avouch but these judgements have ira Dei wrath and wrath of God as it were written upon their wings and such wrath as will depopulate and ruine the land if the wrath be not appeased and these judgements removed for these divisions are fatall to this Iland and will be its infallible ruine England being as a great and strong body that will not dye unlesse it kill it selfe our Lord himselfe hath said A Kingdome divided against it selfe cannot stand and as the land was darkned when Ephraim was against Manasseh and Manasseh against Ephraim Isai 7.9 10 so is our land under this kind of smiting in which the Lord doth chastise us with Scorpions and not with whips with destroying swords and not with chastising rods Thirdly but for further conviction and neerer Application of this Use it is granted that we doe keepe dayes of Humiliation and we seek the Lord c. And admit Israel did not so much although there were no doubt among them that did unto whom as the most Expositors thinke the former cordials were sent howsoever this is not enough to take off this charge for under such smiting as is now upon us hypocriticall Israel might seek unto the Lord for helpe as Psal 78.34 where it is said of them That when he slew them then they sought him and they returned and enquired early after God And they remembred that God was their rock Ver. 35. and the high God their Redeemer Never thelesse they did slatter him with their mouth Ver. 6. and they lied unto him with their tongues For their heart was not right with him neither were they stedfast in his Covenant Ver. 37. There is much deceit in such constratned turning and seeking God The faithfull Ministers of God who have occasion to visit many on their sick beds and when the hand of God is heavie upon them find by sad experience how men will at such times flatter with their lips when their heart is not right they will sigh groane and sometime weep abundantly in the confession of their sins and promise amendment it God will please to spare them but hardly one of ten I had almost said of twenty it may be an hundreth that remaineth stedfast in those resolutions if they doe recover For this turning and seeking God was not free but rather forced by the whip and smart and as Chrys observed long since 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●●●●s in Matt 6.17 He that is made good by constraint by necessity he is never good as you shall see for being loosed from that constraint he doth returne againe unto his own disposition and the reason is manifest his affection is not changed only his action constrainedly intermitted But the bulk and body of the people of this land come farre short of this and seeme rather to come home to Israel who did not so much as seeke the Lord of Hosts c. they observe not these dayes of Humiliation unto this end at least this is certain they turne not to him that smiteth them and the better to cleare this I pray note the manner of speaking here it is said they returned not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●sque ad as one observeth on the Text they did not returne unto him 〈◊〉 i.e. they did not repent and although they seemed to turne from their trade and wicked way yet usque ad Deum non redierunt i.e. they did not turne truely seriously fully constantly and closly or wholly and altogether they came not fully home but did as it were stand still in the way and were but hypocrites feigning repentance but persevering in their impiety as they Psal 78.36 and Isa Cap. 29.13 men may bring shadowes of turning ceremonies of repentance and thinke with them to flatter away the rod from their backs and continue still as sinfull as ever Men may and oft times doe turne yet not to him that smiteth them As for instance Versum quidem puto qui dolet de crimine conversum qui dolet de animi vanitate Vertitur qui jam vult demittere peccatum convertitur qui jam totus omnino vertitur qui jam non tantum paenas non timore sed ad bonum domini contendere fest inat De vera falsa paenitent First Some turne but do not returne as August hath noted a man is said to be turned who grieveth for the offence or crime but he is returned who doth bewaile the vanity of his mind he is turned from sin who will part with it he is returned who is wholly and altogether turned who doth not only not feare punishment but doth diligently make hast to observe the goodnesse of God Men may seeme to turne from all their sinnes and yet not turne so farre as unto the Lord. Secondly Some turne not unto the Lord nor yet from all their sinnes they still keepe some Delilah as Herod they may as Saul slay the leane and keepe the fatt at least keepe Agag alive some speciall sinne Now these turne not to him that smiteth for Conversion must be from all sinne Thirdly Some come short of both the former for they turne not to him that smiteth although it cannot be denied but that such an one doth turne yet it is either from God to sinne or from one sinne unto another And these in their practise contradict what duty calleth for in returning and truly as hath bin observed wee have many examples of such turnings our times are turning times