Selected quad for the lemma: friend_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
friend_n	abraham_n	call_v	faith_n	883	5	5.7042	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A04902	Lectures of John Knewstub, vpon the twentith chapter of Exodus, and certeine other places of Scripture Seene and allowed according to the Queenes maiesties iniunctions.	Knewstubs, John, 1544-1624.	1577 (1577)	STC 15042; ESTC S106684	202,339	374

that the word of the Lord came vnto Abraham in a vision saying Feare not Abraham I am thine exceeding great reward And Abraham said Oh Lorde God what wilt thou giue me seeing I goe childlesse Beholde to me thou hast giuen no seede wherefore a seruaunt of myne house shall be myne heire Then the worde of the Lorde came vnto him saying One that shall come out of thine owne bowells hee shall be thine heire Moreouer he brought him foorth and sayde Looke vp nowe vnto heauen and tell the starres So shall thy seede be And Abraham beleeued the Lord and he accounted that to him for righteousnesse By this testimonie we see that Abraham was accoūted righteous not in part righteous or half righteous but with out any addition it was sayde of him that he was righteous before he had any sonne and therefore before he could offer vp his sonne in sacrifice euen then when he made complaint vnto God for that he had no sonne and therefore a seruaunt must bee his heire beleuing the promise that thē was made vnto him for a seede and posteritie that shoulde come out of his owne loynes that fayth was reckoned vnto him for righteousnesse and hee him selfe accepted of as righteous before the Lorde Iames sayth that hee was iustified when his owne sonne Isaac was offered vppon the altar and that this deede of his in not refusing to kill his onely sonne for a sacrifice at the commaundement of God did so please the Lorde that he was iustified for it In the other place alledged the holy Ghost affirmeth that hee was iustified before his sonne Isaac was borne euen at that time when the promise was giuen forth that he should haue a sonne and that the beleeuing of this good will of God towardes him herein did so please the Lorde that he accounted of him as righteous for it Howe then Doth the holy Ghost differ from him selfe God forbid But the Apostle Sainte Iames attributeth that to the effect for being ioyned with his cause which the holy ghost in that other place giueth vnto the true and originall cause alone As if one man wold iustifie a workman and commend him aboue others for workes that hee hath seene him do and an other would in like manner iustifie the same but for the inward skill knowledge and conceiuing that he hath of the rules and principles of that trade or occupation what so euer which skill he may discerne by his speache albeit he neuer sawe him worke And albeit a man may say that he is a good workman bicause his worke is good yet if a man wil speake properly he must say he is a good workeman bycause his skill is good For his good skill in that trade is the cause of his good workmanshippe and the goodnesse thereof commeth from thence as from the proper founteine and cause Nowe euerie man knoweth that when any man is commended for his worke it is bycause of the skill and knowledge that appeareth therein and is ioyned therewith as the onely cause and occasion thereof Euen so bycause our fayth appeareth in our good woorkes as our skilfull knowledge dothe in our skilfull workmanship that is giuen to good woorkes which is peculiar vnto fayth as the proper cause thereof and a man shall bee called a skilfull woorkman for his skilfull workmanship when notwithstanding it is most assured that his skilfull knowledge is before his skilfull woorke as also the cause thereof and hee iustly may be called skilfull for it notwithstanding he should bee kept from vttering that his skill in worke many yeres after the perfect knowledge thereof The holie Ghost therefore in Genesis iustifieth Abraham as skilfull for his skill alone and in that epistle of Iames he iustifieth him as skilful of that worke wherein so much skil appeared For it may be lawfull vnto me for the better vnderstanding hereof to resemble fayth by skill and good deedes by skilfull workmanshippe bycause as good workmanship hath all the commendation for the good skill that appeareth in it so haue good woorkes all their praise from the fayth that hath begotten them and is necessarily ioyned with them This is also to be added that bycause there is not in our workes that perfection that is required we are constreyned to stand to the mercie of God and to seeke refuge there by a true fayth and this is the cause why we magnifie faith which otherwise is imperfect as be all things that are in vs bicause it applieth the mercy of God vnto vs wherby our sinnes are pardoned and the want that is in our worke not imputed And for proofe that the Apostle Sainte Iames giueth not that title vnto woorkes to iustifie but bycause of the fayth whiche hath begotte those workes and which is ioyned with them and couereth the imperfections that is in them in the same place where he ascribeth righteousnesse vnto Abraham for offering vp his sonne hee sayth that this scripture was fulfilled Abraham beleeued and it was reckoned vnto him for righteousnesse and he was called the friende of God So that all the commendation of this woorke is included in faith and giuen vnto it for the fayth of the doer For other wise hee should haue sayde Abraham wrought and that was receiued bycause it was righteous seeing hee had stoode vppon the commendation of his workes so muche immediately before and was euē yet in the same matter But he sayth Abraham beleeued and that was reckoned vnto him for righteousnesse They would match workes with faith in iustification and the Apostle when hee speaketh most of works doth shrowd them vnder fayth saying after mention of his best woorke that this Scripture was fulfilled in it Abraham beleeued and that was imputed to him for righteousnesse and not receiued in the righteousnesse and deseruing of it selfe and he was called the friend of God. And in the eleuenth Chapter to the Hebrues all the woorkes of the godly fathers are ascribed vnto fayth and by name in the seuenteenth verse of that Chapter this deede of Abraham is fathered vpon his faith For workes are so farre from iustifying vs that the cause why they them selues are iustified is in fayth For without fayth it is impossible to please God. And in this chiefe worke of Abraham that nowe wee haue heard of that Scripture of imputing righteousnesse vnto him was fulfilled Therefore the worke did not stande in any account for the worthinesse thereof but onely bycause the Lorde did impute it vnto him for righteousnesse which thing also it did not attaine vnto of it selfe but bycause of fayth whiche was ioyned with it It is to be noted that the Apostle Sainte Iames speaketh here but of one woorke as the offering vp of his sonne and that woorke also not done but onely purposed to be done If therefore his meaning had beene to debate the worthinesse of woorkes and what place they haue in the purchase of our saluation hee would haue taken woorkes