Selected quad for the lemma: fire_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
fire_n	earthquake_n	lord_n	wind_n	4,960	5	10.8107	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48445	Some genuine remains of the late pious and learned John Lightfoot, D.D. consisting of three tracts ... : together with a large preface concerning the author, his learned debates in the assembly of divines, his peculiar opinions, his Christian piety, and the faithful discharge of his ministry.	Lightfoot, John, 1602-1675.	1700 (1700)	Wing L2070; ESTC R12231	207,677	406

this Building of it was begun and set upon and it was not without the Dispensation of his Providence that it went so slowly on and was hindred What is the Providence of God at Variance with it self It was a Dispensation of Providence that Cyrus the first King makes Proclamation for the setting upon the Building and it was not without the Dispensation of Providence that Artaxerxes the second King made Proclamation for the stopping of the Work begun That great God that could build all the World in Six Days by Word of Mouth could have carried on this Building with a great deal more Quickness could have restrained all the Enemies that stopped it and could have taken away all Stops Therefore it was not without his Providence that it was so long in Building as it was by his Providence that it was begun Dispensations of Providence that seem contrary one to another To speak to this Point we may first fitly begin with that 2 Pet. iii. 19 The Lord is not slack concerning his Promise as some Men count Slackness Here was a thing of a clean contrary Tenor. The Place we are upon speaks of Building the Temple this of Peter of destroying it the City and the Nation God had promised and foretold of such a thing to come and it was long first and as yet not in Sight to the most Eyes Thereupon ungodly Men begin to mock Where is the Promise of his Coming to do that Work All things continue as from the beginning Here is no Sign no Shadow of any such Matter Well saith the Apostle yet for all this God is not slack of his Promise as you count Slackness So God had promised concerning the Building of the Temple that all Mountains of Hindrance should before Zerubbabel become a Plain and that he should bring forth the Topstone thereof with shouting crying Grace Grace unto it Zech. iv 7 And that greater should be the Glory of that Temple than the former Hag. ii 9 For that the Lord of the Temple himself CHRIST should come unto his Temple Mal. iii. 1 But where was the Performance of these Promises when all the Reign of Artaxerxes the Work wholly ceaseth and not one Stroke done of it all that while Ezra iv 24 And yet the Lord is not slack of his Promise as some count Slackness And how is that that some Men count Slackness As if God minded not his Promise or drowsily and carelesly delayed to perform what he had promised As that wretched Servant in the Gospel My Master delays his Coming and therefore he falls to eating and drinking and being drunk and beating his Fellow-Servants And those wretched ones in Esay v. 19 that make a Mock of the Promise as if it would never be performed because they saw it not performed already they said Let him make speed and hasten his Work that we may see it But God is not slack of his Promise as Men count Slackness God's Work is still going on towards the End promised tho' Men see it not but account him slack because they see it not In that Case that S. Peter speaks of the Promise of his Coming in Vengeance against Jerusalem the Wicked mocked and laughed and Where is the Promise of his Coming Why His Work towards that End was going on as fast as might be He was gathering in his own by the Gospel out of that wicked Generation that they should not perish with them And when that Work is done then his Promise will come with a Vengeance So in this very thing we are upon while the Building of the Temple is hindred God's Work towards the finishing it is going on But to take Notice more particularly of God's Providence and Dispensation in such Cases we shall do it from this Observation that all Times and Events are determined with God That nothing occurreth in the World without his Determination his Predetermination He had determined the Time when the Temple should be finished he had determined all the Events that should interpose before Some have emblemed or resembled God by a Circle And a Circle is so comprehensive that there is nothing in the World but is within the Comprehension of it The everlasting Arms reach to all things encompass all things tho' not all alike by way of Embracing yet by way of Comprehending Divine Providence is like the Universe nothing is on the outside of it but all things within Nothing occurrs without or beyond the Bounds of Providence but all within its Verge and Circumscription I say all Times and Events are determined with God And to give Proof of this in reference to both Times and Events need I to do any more but only to remind you of the Prophesies in Scripture wherein were foretold the Times and Events of Things that should come to pass Hundreds Thousands of Years after Did not God that by his Prophets foretold these things by his Providence determine foredetermine of those things V. How the Face and Backparts of God Exod. xxxiii 20 23. are to be understood GOD is the best Definer of himself And it is very remarkable there where God gives Account of what he is Exod. xxxiii he tells Moses that he cannot see his FACE for none can see his FACE and live But that he would hide him in the Rock and cover him with his Hand while his Glory passed by and when that was past by he would take away his Hand and he should see his BACKPARTS for his FACE could not be seen Now what was this GLORY of God this FACE of God that could not be seen It was the Dread and Terror and Severity of God as he is a Consuming Fire And when that Terror was past and over then upon the Discovery of his BACKPARTS Moses hears this Character of him The Lord merciful and gracious long-suffering and abundant in Goodness and Truth Keeping Mercy for Thousands forgiving Iniquity Transgression and Sin According to that Distinction Chap. xxxiii 18 19. Moses said I beseech thee shew me thy GLORY And the Lord answers him I will make all my Goodness pass before thee His GLORY that is his Dread and Terror is his FACE his FOREPARTS that that is first to be apprehended of us in our Conception of God before we come to conceive of his Mercy We are to look on his Foreparts first before we see his Backparts As in his Discovery to Elias he first came in Fire in an Earthquake in a great Wind and then cometh a still gentle Voice The Terror of the Lord is first to be studied to fit the Heart for the right studying 〈◊〉 ●is Mercy VI. An Enquiry What that first Resurrection is Rev. xx 5 THE Hour is coming and now is when the Dead shall hear the Voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall live John v. 25 That this means not the general Resurrection at the last Day is plain enough by this that he saith The Hour is NOW when the

Dead shall hear c. and he speaks distinctly of the General Resurrection at ver 28. But the raising of the Dead that he means here is the raising of the Heathen from the Death of Sin to the Life of Righteousness The Heathen that had lyen 2200 Years in Darkness and the Shadow of Death that had been dead in Trespasses and Sins Eph. ii 1 Buried in all Idolatry Ignorance Darkness Wickedness and Abhomination from the Confusion at Babel When Christ came and sent his Voice among them by the Gospel these dead Souls lived as it were come out of Death and the Graves to the Life of Grace Holiness and the Obedience of the Gospel And this is that first Resurrection mentioned Rev. xx 5 when the old Serpent the Devil was bound up by the Chain of the Gospel So that he could no more deceive the Nations as ver 3. That he should no more delude the poor Heathen with Idols and Oracles and Miracles and such Delusions as he had done This is the first Resurrection Here is a Resurrection the great Work of Christ and a great End of his Coming But it is a Resurrection of Souls vile Souls to make them Glorious like his Soul Souls changed with a great and blessed Change from Death to Life This is the mighty Work of a Resurrection Observe how the Apostle sets it out Eph. i. 19 What is the exceeding Greatness of his Power to usward that believe according to the working of his mighty Power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the Dead God's bringing Men to believe his changing them from the State of Nature and Unbelief into the State of Grace and Faith is the great exceeding great Work of God's Power Such a mighty Working as that was when God raised Christ from the Dead A first Resurrection And take that withal Rev. xx 6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the First Resurrection On such the Second Death hath no Power Either we must have a Part in the First Resurrection the raising of the Soul from the Death of Sin and Unbelief or never Blessed never Holy never escape the Power of the Second Death VII An Examination into the Reason of that Eruption of the Apostle O! the Depth of the Riches both of the Wisdom and Knowledge of God! Rom. xi 33 THE Cause of which Admiration lyes in the Verse before For God hath concluded them all in Unbelief that he might have Mercy upon all A strange Conclusion Doth it not almost speak to this Sense they all became Unbelievers that they might become Believers He hath concluded all under Darkness that he might bring them to Light Like Elias pouring Water where he meant to fetch out Fire The 25th Verse of that Chapter will help to clear this Matter very pregnantly Brethren I would not that ye should be ignorant of this Mystery that Blindness in part is happened unto Israel until the Fulness of the Gentiles be come in Blindness 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In Parts is happened unto Israel for that is his meaning And for the Observation of it take notice of these two Things I. That the Apostle throughout the whole Chapter never names the Jews but Israel Because he is treating of the whole Seed of Israel Not the Jews only of the two Tribes but the Israelites of the ten Tribes also II. The Seed of Israel then considered in general had Blindness happened to them In Parts First The ten Tribes were blinded by Jeroboam's Idolatry and that was their Ruin and Casting off Then the two Tribes were blinded by their Traditions And that was their Ruin also and Casting off Now this is the Mystery which he would not have them ignorant of that whereas the Gentiles were blinded also as well as Israel and before and longer than Israel and that there were many Prophesies and Predictions that they should be at last unblinded and come to the Light it pleased God to conclude Israel under Blindness too first the ten Tribes and then the two till the Gentiles should be unblinded by the coming in of the Light of the Gospel and then Israel is unblinded also Viz. That Remnant of them that belonged to the Election of Grace as he speaks ver 5. Thus God concluded all under Blindness all under Unbelief that he might have Mercy upon all the Gentiles under Unbelief the ten Tribes under Unbelief and the two Tribes under Unbelief that at length he might as he did at the bringing in of the Gospel shew Mercy unto all in bringing Jew Gentile and Israelite to believe And observe what he saith in the next Verses before As ye O Romans who are Gentiles in time past have not believed yet now have obtained Mercy through their Unbelief So these Israelites also now have not believed that through your Mercy they might obtain Mercy Their Unbelief hath caused God to hearken unto you O Gentiles for his Church and to bring you to believe hereby was great Mercy to you And through this Mercy to you the Gospel rising and shining to you thus bringing you to believe Mercy also ariseth to them in the same shining of the Gospel that they also may believe Here is Mercy to Gentile Mercy to Jew Mercy to Israelite God hath concluded all under Unbelief that he might have Mercy upon all And therefore O! the Depth of the Riches of the Wisdom and Knowledge of God VIII Asa's perfect Heart how reconcileable with his Sufferance of the High Places IT is said concerning Asa King of Judah Nevertheless Asa his Heart was perfect with the Lord all his Days 1 Kin. xv 14 A Humane Chronicler is not able to say Such an one's HEART was perfect 〈…〉 because he is not able to discern what the Heart 〈◊〉 He writes the Story of a Man's Actions he cannot write the Story of his Heart because he cannot know it But he that held the Pen and wrote these sacred Chronicles the Holy Ghost saw the Carriage of all Actions saw the secret Frame and Temper of all Hearts and he was able to give Judgment of them whether they were good or evil and he could not but give right Judgment How happy then is this good Man of whom he gives this true and most noble Testimony Asa his Heart was perfect with the Lord all his Days A more renowned Memorial than what all your Chroniclers can say concerning Alexander the Great Julius Cesar Tamerlane or the great Conquerors of the World Their Story is like that Appearance of Elias at Mount Horeb a dreadful Earthquake a tearing Wind a devouring Fire In their Story nothing but blustering in the World and blundering of Nations Sword and Blood and Fire and Plunder This is all the Noise and Sound of their Fame But happy is he that comes off with such a soft sweet still Voice as this Nevertheless Asa 's Heart c. The first Word Nevertheless doth bring in an Excuse or Pleading for Asa in