Selected quad for the lemma: fire_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
fire_n	world_n	wrath_n	zeal_n	17	3	7.3090	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47646	Sermons preached by Dr. Robert Leighton, late archbishop of Glasgow published at the desire of his friends, after his death, from his papers written with his own hand.	Leighton, Robert, 1611-1684.	1692 (1692)	Wing L1031; ESTC R29941	164,938	342

believed and gave glory to God good Works the fruits of Faith praise him too Herein is your heavenly Father glorified says our Saviour that you bring forth much fruit But that the Inordinate wrath of man should praise him may seem somewhat strange were it Gods own wrath as wrath is attributed to him in Scripture that might praise him for it is always most Just. Or were it a due and moderate anger of Man upon Just cause that were fit for praising him too in despite of the Stoicks but that wicked and disordered wrath which is undoubtedly here meant that the wrath of men that is both uncomely and dishonourable for themselves though they think otherwise that even such a wrath should honour God and praise him argues well that he hath good right to Praises when every thing even things that seem contrary to his Nature as well as to his Law do pay them to him And that he hath great power and wisdom who obtains what is due to him even from those persons and things that of themselves are most unwilling and unfit to pay it This is the excellent skill of his wisdom to draw that which shall go into the making up of the precious Composition of his Praise out of this Poison for so the word here used for wrathful heat doth sometimes signifie and this wrath often proves so a deadly Poison both to those it is incens'd against and to the very Breast that breeds it and wherein it is kindled But for the clearer understanding of this I conceive it will be requisite to consider more distinctly 1 What this wrath of man is 2 How it can praise God And lastly the Infallibility of this event Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee In the 148 Psalm where David Summons the Creatures to meet in that Song of Praise to keep that full Consort he calls not only the Heavens and the Inhabitants of it Angels and Lights but these of the lower World to bear their part in it and not only Men Beasts Cattel creeping things and the flying of Fowl but these Creatures that do most resemble this wrath here spoken of Fire Stormy ' Tempest and Dragons c. The tenor of the Psalm doth shew that by the wrath of man is to be understood the undue rage of Evil and Ungodly men against those whom God owns for his People The word here used signifies a hot or inflaming wrath and indeed such is the feverish distempered Anger of the Churches Enemies And as too much heat is an Enemy to solid Reason this hot wrath of theirs makes them incapable of wise deliberation in themselves and inflexible to the good advice of others 'T is true they take Counsel how to execute their wrath as we shall hear anon but they take no Counsel that may cool it Anger described by its Material Cause is called a boiling of Blood the about the Heart but this ariseth from the apprehension of something offensive kindling a desire of revenge Now it is a wonder what the Powers of the World find in Christ and his harmless Flock that can incense them St. James says of the Tongue that it is set on fire of Hell The same is the Original of this wrath Why doth the Heathen rage saith the Psalmist That is only to what purpose Intimating that it is a fruitless rage and void of success in regard of Gods power But why That 's upon what occasion Checking the rage as groundless and without cause in regard of Christ and his Churches Innocency The cause is only within themselves to wit That unhappy Antipathy of the Serpents Seed against the Seed of the Woman Thus this wrath of man is the causeless malicious Enmity of the Wicked against the Church of God and under the name of this Passion I take to be here comprised likewise all the Attendants of it all their crafty Complo●ments and Devices for the acting of their wrath As there is mention of the Nations rage against Christ in the second Psalm so likewise of the Consultations of those that are of Quality fit for it The Rulers take counsel together Further this wrath is not barely their inward fire but the vent of it flames into cruel and outragious Practices including likewise all the Instruments they make use of And of all these its true that God shall gain Glory by them Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee The wrath of man says the Apostle accomplisheth not the righteousness of God how then can it accomplish his praises And this is the Second thing propounded Are Grapes gathered of Thorns or Figs of Thistles Surely no therefore I called this praise not the fruit or proper effect of mans wrath but the event or consequent of it by the efficacy of Divine Providence The wrath of man shall praise thee The use which thou wilt make of it shall tend to thy praise Thou wilt produce such affects from it both in the Church and upon thine Enemies when thou sufferest thy wrath to break forth as shall furnish more matter of thy praises than if thou hadst altogether restrained it To instance this in some few particulars 'T is the fury of the Churches Enemies that has made known to the World the Invincible Courage and Patience of the Saints Those Ages that have been most monstruous in Persecution have most of all grac'd Christianity Had there been no Persecuting Emperours who should have heard of those Primitive Martyrs that triumph'd over the Cruelty of their Torments Were there no Persecution nor Peril nor Sword against Believers we should not have heard the Apostle say immediately after the mention of those In all these we are more than Conquerours they could not have been so much as Conquerours had there been no Conflict Again as the wrath of man praises God in the Invincible Patience of the Saints so likewise in the unmoveable stability of the Church Is it not wonderful how so small and weak a Company as the Church hath often been reduced to yea hath always been in respect of the World could escape the mouths of so many Lions so many en●aged Enemies that were ready to devour it And that we may see that this tends solely to the praise of her great Protecto● look the Churches Song penned by the Royal Prophet it is the 124 Psalm If it had not been the Lord that was on our side when men rose up against us then they had swallowed us up quick The great Monarchies and Kingdoms of the World that have risen with so much splendour have had their periods and been buried in the Dust. That Golden headed and Silver-bodied Image degenerated into worse Metal as it went lower and the brittle feet was the cause of the fall and breaking of all the rest but the Kingdom of Jesus Christ though despicable in the World and exposed to the wrath of the World in all Ages stands firm and cannot be removed There is a common Emblem of the

shouldest be afraid of a Man that shall die and of the Son of Man which shall be made as Grass and forgettest the Lord thy Maker that hath stretched forth the Heavens and laid the Foundations of the Earth c. Consider then that Men have no power of our present Life but by the appointment of God and beside that we have another Life which is infinitely more precious than this a Life spiritual and which is the begining of eternal Life and this is altogether out of their danger Col. 3. 3. Our Life is hid with Christ in God It is hid And wicked Men cannot so much as see it how then should they take it from us seeing it is hid and that not meanly it is hid with Christ in God What then shall become of it read the next verse and read it to your comfort for there is abundance in it if you look right upon it When Christ who is our Life shall appear we likewise shall appear with him in Glory They that are in God being united to him through Christ can never by any power be separated from him it is an indissoluble union death it self that is the great dissolver of all other unions civil and natural is so far from untying this that it consummates it it conveys the Soul into the nearest and fullest enjoyment of God who is its Life where it shall not need to desire that God would command or send his loving kindness as it were at a distance it shall be then at the Spring-head and shall be satisfied with his Love for ever c. SERMON VII PREFACE WHerefore do you spend money for that which is not Bread and your labour for that which satisfies not says the Prophet Isaiah 55. 2. All Men agree in this that they would willingly meet with some satisfying good and yet if you look right upon the projects and labours of the greatest part shall find them flying from it and taking much pains to be miserable And truly considering the darkness that 's upon the Soul of Man 't is no great wonder to see these miss their way and continue wandring that hear not the voice of the Gospel to recal them and and see not its Light to direct them But this is somewhat strange that where true happiness and the true way to it is propounded and set before Men so few should follow it in good earnest If the excellency of that good did not allure them yet one would think that their many disappointments in all other things should drive them home to it How often do we run our selves out of breath after shadows and when we think we have overtaken them and would lay hold on them we find nothing and yet still we love to befool our selves even against our own experience which we say uses to make Fools wiser still we chuse rather to shift from one vanity to another than to return to that Sovereign good that alone can fill the vastest desires of our Souls rather to run from one broken Cistern to another as the Prophet calls them yea and to take pains to hew them out than have recourse to that Fountain of living waters One main thing that makes Men thus rove and wander is that they do not reflect upon their own course nor themselves what 's the main end they aim at and then see whether their way be suitable to that end If they would be happy as who would not then sure things that are empty and uncertain and certainly perishing will not serve the turn And truly as this thought would be seasonable at any time so especially to us in these times wherein besides the common uncertainty of outward things there is an apparent visible hazard that Men's Lives and Fortunes are likely to be put to Will you make advantage and gain of your trouble Thus the looser you find other things tied to you and as it were upon a running knot secure that one thing and your portion in it which is worth all the rest yea far above them all and that alone which can be secured and made certain wanting this what though you had Peace and Health and all imaginable prosperity you would still be miserable being liable to the wrath of God and eternal destruction But if once united to Christ and in him reconciled to God and intitled to Heaven what can fall amiss to you You shall have Joy in the midst of Sorrow and Affliction and Peace in the midst of War yea and Life in Death But think not to attain this assurance while you continue profane and godless not seeking it in the way of Holiness for there alone it is to be found and withal beg it of God by humble prayer Psal. CXIX 136. Rivers of Waters run down mine eyes because they keep not thy Law LOve is the leading passion of the Soul all the rest follow the measure and motion of it as the lower Heavens are said to be wheel'd about with the first We have here a clear instance of it in the Psalmist testifying his love to God by his esteem and love of the Law or Word of God what is each of the several verses of this Psalm but a several breathing and vent of this love either in it self or in the causes or in the effects of it where he sets forth the excellencies and utilities of God's Law there you have the causes of his love his observing and studying it his desire to know it more and observe it better these are the effects of his affection to it The Love it self he often expresseth verses 47 48 113. and verse 140. Thy Word is pure therefore thy Servant loveth it And verse 127. I love thy Commandments above Gold yea above fine Gold But as scarce accounting that love which can be uttered how much it is verse 97. He expresseth it most by intimating that he cannot express it O how I love thy Law Hence are his desires which are love in pursuit so earnest after it Amongst many that is pathetical verse 20. My Soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy Judgements at all times Hence likewise his Joy and Delight which are love in possession verse 14. I have rejoyced in the way of thy Testimonies as in all riches And verse 16. I will delight my self in thy Statutes I will not forget thy Word We have his hatred of things opposite which is loves antipathy verse 113. I hate vain thoughts but thy Law do I love And 163 verse I hate and abhor lying but thy Law do I love And in the 139 verse you shall find his zeal which is no other but the fire of Love stirred up or blown into a flame My zeal hath consumed me because mine Enemies have forgotten thy Words And to omit the rest in the 158 verse ●is love to the Law shews its sympathy in sorrow for the violation of the Law I beheld the Transgressors and was grieved because they kept not