Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	harden_v	pharaoh_n	plague_n	2,988	5	10.1557	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25426	The king's right of indulgence in spiritual matters, with the equity thereof, asserted by a person of honour, and eminent minister of state lately deceased.	Anglesey, Arthur Annesley, Earl of, 1614-1686.; Care, Henry, 1646-1688.	1688 (1688)	Wing A3169; ESTC R6480	75,236	84

third It should have been Cain's joy to see his Brother accepted It should have been his sorrow to see that himself had deserved a rejection His Brother's example should have excited and directed him Could Abel have stayed God's fire from descending Or should he if he could reject God's acceptation and displease his Maker to content a Brother Was Cain ever the further from a blessing because his Brother obtained mercy How proud and foolish is malice which grows thus mad for no other cause but because God or Abel is not less Good It hath been an old and happy danger to be holy This hath commonly been the ground of Persecution mens piety begets envy and envy raiseth persecution from proud and ungodly men who having the world at will because others are more acceptable to God than themselves therefore they in pride and envy persecute them as Cain here did his Brother Abel If there be an evil heart there will be an evil eye and if both these there will be an evil hand Cain persecuted and murthered his Brother Abel for his Religion How early saith our Bishop did Martyrdom come into the World The first man that died died for Religion Who dare measure Gods love by outward events when he sees wicked Cain standing over bleeding Abel whose Sacrifice was first accepted and now himself is Sacrificed Death was denounced to man as a curse yet behold it first lights upon a Saint How soon was it altered by the mercy of that just hand which inflicted it If death had been evil and life good Cain had been slain and Abel had survived Now that it begins with him that God loves Oh death where is thy sting This may comfort godly men being under Persecution and though it should reach to death yet it would be their happiness And for the condition of their Persecutors it will be like that of Cain who because he persecuted his Brother was cast out from the protection of God. He that feared not to kill his Brother fears now that whosoever meets him will kill him the troubled conscience projecteth fearful things and sin makes even cruel men cowardly God saw it was too much favour for Cain to die he shall live but for a curse banished from God carrying his Hell in his bosom and the brand of Gods vengeance in his forehead God rejected him the Earth repines at him men abhor him himself now wisheth that death which he feared and no man dares pleasure him with a murder How bitter is the end of him yea without end still Cain finds that he killed himself more than his Brother and in time all Persecutors will find that they have persecuted themselves more than their dissenting Brethren 2. The next Persecution which I shall mention is that of Pharaoh persecuting the Israelites and this was upon a Ground of Spiritual matters Exod. 3.18 The message which God sent by Moses unto Pharaoh was for an Indulgence in Spiritual matters Let us go we beseech thee three days journ●y into the Wilderness that we may sacrifice unto the Lord our God Exod. 4.3 and let my son go that he may serve me When Moses and Aaron had delivered their Message to Pharaoh and prayed his Indulgence to the Israelites to go and sacrifice to the Lord the Tyrant persecuteth them the more and says Ye are idle Exod. 5.3 ye are idle therefore ye say let us go and do sacrifice to the Lord. Exod. 5.13 Exod. 7.20 Exod. 8.1 4. Ver. 8. Go and work no straw shall be given you yet shall ye deliver the tale of Bricks Then is the River turned into Blood and Moses again demands the Kings Indulgence Let my people go that they may serve me But Pharaoh's heart is hardned and Frogs are sent this made him a little relent Intreat the Lord that he may take away the Frogs and I will let the people go that they may sacrifice The Frogs being taken away the Tyrants heart is again hardned He will not let the people serve the Lord. Then Lice are sent and before every new Plague leave is desired for the people to go and serve their God but Pharaoh would not grant this Indulgence as soon as the Plague was removed his heart was hardened and he would not let the Israelites serve the Lord their God. But upon the death of their first-born the King and his Servants are willing Go and serve the Lord as ye have said Exod. 12.31 No sooner are they gone and the Plagues ceased but Pharoah resolves to recall them and to continue his Persecution of them but therein the Judgment of God appeared against Persecutors and his zeal for his people to have this Indulgence by destroying the denyers of it Pharaoh and all his host perished in the Red Sea. 3. The next Persecution which was intended only Esth 3.5 6. was that of Haman against the Jews Such was his pride because Mordecai the Jew did not bow to him and do him reverence that he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone but thought to destroy all the Jews And his pretence for this Persecution was by suggesting to the King Ahasuerus That there is a certain people in all the Provinces and their Laws that is the Laws of their Religion are divers from all people they were Dissenters neither keep they the Kings Laws Esth 3.8 they were absolutely Nonconformists and therefore he concludes and counsels the King It is not for the Kings profit to suffer them The King himself was contented to indulge them but this great Favourite out of pride and his malice to Mordecai and for his sake to all the Jews perswades the King thus If it please the King let it be written that they may be destroyed The King hearkens to Haman's advice and a Decree is sent out to persecute all the Jews to their utter destruction but afterwards through Divine mercy by the means of Queen Esther and Mordecai miraculously prevented And altho here was only a design and intention of persecuting Gods people and not put in action yet such was the jealousie and wrath of God against the Enemies of his people Esth 9 25. that the chief contrivers of this Persecution Haman and his Sons were hanged on the Gallows and near eighty thousand of the Persecutors slain by those whose ruin they designed And the King commanded by his Letters That Haman's wicked devise which he devised against the Jews should return upon his own head which may terrifie all malicious or impious men from persecuting of their Brethren 4. The Persecution which Nebuchadnezzar made may likewise afford us an observation The King made an Image of Gold Dan. 3.1 4 5 6. and had a solemn Dedication of it and a Decree was made and proclaimed That all people when they heard the Musick should fall down and worship the Golden Image which Nebuchadnezzar the King had set up Then this Decree and Law of Conformity highly

Unbelievers neither did any of them disturb him tho his Perswasion differed much from theirs in Spiritual Matters but he was indulged therein both while he was there and when he was in Egypt and in his return to Canaan After * Gen. 19 1 〈◊〉 de 〈…〉 15 Be●eshith R●●●●a Parash f. 56. col 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Lot parted from him he was not only indulged in wicked Sodom but preferred by them to be Chief Justice in the City as their Rabbins and other Authors and the Original it self in this Signification of the Words used in this Chapter do testifie Abraham was also indulged by the King of Gerar Gen. 20.11 tho he thought surely the fear of God is not in this place Isaac injoyed his Freedom with a succeeding Abimelech King of Gerar who saith We have not touched thee Gen. 26.29 23. we have done unto thee nothing but good and have sent thee away in peace Even Philistines indulged this Servant of God and amongst them he built an Altar and worshipped his God without disturbance Jacob payed his Devotions at Bethel and had his Liberty and Indulgence in Labans House from whose perswasion in Spiritual Matters he much differed In his return from thence in the Land of Canaan Gen. 33.18 19 20. he purchased a Field and built an Altar and was indulged by Hamor the Hivite Prince of the Country He enjoyed the like Freedom at Bethel Gen. 35.5 and in Egypt after he went down thither both he and all his Family enjoyed their Liberty in Spiritual Matters and were not disturbed for many years Hereupon it may be observed That this Indulgence was given by Kings and allowed to the Servants of God even by Philistines much more may the like be expected from Protestants to their Brethren The next Indulgence that we meet with in time the holy Story was that given by Pharoah King of Egypt to the Israelites The Lord was with Joseph and he was a prosperous man Gen. 39.2 4. and the Egyptian his Master not only gave him the Liberty of his Conscience but preferred him to be Overseer of his House and his godly Disposition appeared in his Carriage to his Mistress After he had interpretd Pharaohs Dream tho he much differed in his perswasion in Spiritual Matters from the Egyptians yet the King seeing his Wisdom and Spirit made him ruler of the Land Gen. 41.41 42 43. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chaldees of Onkeles and Knathan Hierosol Targum and to ride in the second Chariot and they cried before him Bow the Knee The Hebrew word for which Abrech signifies Father of the tender King or the tender Father of the King which was the highest Title and Honour whereof a Subject was capable among them and the highest trust that could be under the King was conferred on Joseph tho he was a Nonconformist And the difference of Perswasion in Spiritual Matters between the Hebrews and the Egyptians was such That they would not eat together as appears in the Entertainment which Joseph made for his Brethren When they set on bread for him by hemself Gen. 43.32 and for them by themselves and for the Egyptians by themselves because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews for that is an abomination to the Egyptians The reason whereof as Pererius notes was because the Hebrews killed the Cattle for their food and sacrifice Coment Pererii in Gen. 43.33 and eat of them which the Egyptians worshipped as their Gods therefore the perswasion of Joseph and of his Father Jacob and of his Brethren was sufficiently different from that of the Egyptians in Spiritual matters yet were they therein indulged by Pharaoh and his Successors And we read of no disturbance of them in those matters until Moses required of Pharaoh an Indulgence for them to go into the Wilderness to sacrifice to their God which the King denied because God had hardened his heart and purposed to manifest his own power and his mercy to his people in delivering them from bondage and what was the issue of the denial of that Indulgence is set forth by Moses in his Story of it 4. This may lead us to a consideration of what Indulgence was granted by Moses to the Israelites themselves being next in order of time It is agreed by all Authors that Moses had Supreme Spiritual Jurisdiction in him as his judgments in Spiritual Cases given by him do testifie But in his judgments in Spiritual Cases we find none against any ones freedom of Conscience and Opinion except in case of Idolatry Breach of some positive Law of God or for Blasphemy And in that of Blasphemy in the case of the Israelitish Womans Son whose Father was an Aegyptian Moses would adjudg no punishment of him till first the mind of the Lord might be shewed who commanded that he should be put to death Many Egyptians and Strangers came out of Egypt with the Israelites but we read of no Persecution of any of them for different Opinions nor any punished for any Spiritual matter but in the cases before mentioned But it may be objected That Moses was not a Soveraign King and could not Exercise that Jurisdiction as other Kings might in such cases which perhaps was the reason that such Dissenters were not punished To which is answered That Moses was a Soveraign King as Absolute as any other Prince and knew as much of the mind of God as ever any King did which was revealed to him and accordingly he Exercised his Kingly Authority both in this matter of Indulgence and in all other matters That he was King Deut. 33.5 appears in the express terms of the Text And he was King in Jeshurun So the Hebrew reads it and the Chaldee Syriac 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Yfue en Ysrael Roy. Deut. 32.15 Impinguata est gens Judaica Isa 44.2 and Persick Versions for Jeshurun do read Israel So do the Spaniards And he was King in Israel The Germans agree herewith and a little before in the Song of Moses But Jeshurun waxed fat and kicked The Mauritanians read it The Nation of the Jews waxed fat and upon that in I said the Greek Version hath a Note for Jeshurun understand Israel The Old English Translation under Hen. 8. for Jeshurun hath Israel Both Christians and Jews agree that where it is said He was King in Jeshurun it is the same thing as if it had been said He was King in Israel The Hebrew Authors often call him King Levis Gerson in Perushtera f. 245. col 3. Aben Ezra Maimon Tract Beth Habentura c. 6. Sect. 1. as Moses our Master was King. And Moses was King. And the like Expressions often occur in them Another calls him Prince of Princes and a King over Israel Philo de vita Mosis l. 2. c. 3. Jure regio populum Gubernavit Nazianzen Orat. 6. Oxtius saith That in Kingly right he governed the people Nazianzen affirms that he

imposeth on the Consciences of all his Subjects and that upon a most severe and capital punishment Whoso falleth not down and worshippeth Dan. 3.6 shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace All conformed to this Law except a few godly Jews and against them some envious pick-thank Caldeans complained to the King and accused Shadrach Meshach and Abednego that they would not conform and designed to persecute them to their destruction They informed the King Dan. 3.12 13 14. These men O King have not regarded thee they serve not thy gods nor worship the Golden Image which thou hast set up Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded them to be brought before him and examined them who stoutly professed their Religion and confidence in God. Then the King commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heat and these men were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace But to the astonishment of the King and all the Persecutors they were delivered and the King blessed the God of Heaven Blessed be the God of Shadrach Dan. 3.28 Meshach and Abednego who hath sent his Angel and delivered his servants that trusted in him and have changed the Kings word and yielded their bodies that they might not serve nor worship any God except their own God. The King and the Persecutors were convinced and a Decree was made that none should speak amiss of the God of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego Of this King it is said When his heart was lifted up and his mind hardned in pride he was deposed from his Kingly Throne Dan. 5.20 21. and they took his glory from him and he was driven from the sons of men and his heart was made like the beasts and his dwelling was with the wild asses they fed him with grass like an ox and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till he knew that the most high God ruled in the Kingdoms of men and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will. 5. Dan 6.4 5 c. In the time of King Darius there were envious Persecutors of godly Daniel who sought occasion against him concerning the Kingdom but they could find none occasion or fault They would fain have removed him from his Preferments to have made way for themselves and when they could find no default in him as to his Civil imployments forasmuch as he was faithful as most Nonconformists are neither was there any error or fault found in him Then the Persecutors said We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel except we find it against him concerning the Law of his God. Hereupon they sought to intrap him and acquaint the King That all the Presidents Princes Governours Councellors and Captains a great publick Councel had consulted together to establish a Royal Statute and to make a firm Decree That whosoever shall ask a Petition of any God or man for thirty days save of thee O King he shall be cast into the den of Lions and they prevailed with the King to sign the Decree Then Daniel when he knew that the Writing was signed he went into his house and his windows being open in his Chamber towards Jerusalem he would avow his profession and worship not withstanding the Law to the contrary he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime This provoked the Persecutors they inform the King of it who was willing to save Daniel but they insisted on the Law of the Medes and Persians which altereth not Hereupon Daniel was cast into the Lions Den but his God preserved him and he was taken forth again the next day but the Persecutors and their Wives and Children were cast into the Lions Den and the Lions had the mastery of them and broke all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the Den. 6. We may come to the highest of Persecutions to that of our blessed Lord and Saviour Christ Jesus His persecution began betimes shortly after he was born and continued till his Death and will continue against his Members till his coming again in Glory Matt. 2.13.16 Herodes Ascalonita sought the young Child to destroy him and when he saw that he was mocked of the Wisemen he was exceeding wrath and sent forth and slew all the Children that were in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof from Two years old and under according the the time be had diligently inquired of the Wisemen This bloody persecutor as Josephus relates was severely punished by God for his barbarous persecution of our Saviour Josephus Antiquit. l. 17. c. 7. l. 17.7 De Bello Judaic c. 21. Mat. 4.1.2 Mat. 12.14 Matt. 22.15 Matt. 26.3.4.59 47. and of these innocent and young Martyrs The grand Persecutor Satan tempted the Lord of Life in the Wilderness when he fasted Forty days and Forty nights After the Miracles which he had wrought it is said that then the Pharisees went out and held a Councel against him how they might destroy him Then they consulted how they might intangle him A publick Councel of the chief Priests Scribes and Elders consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty and kill him and to this end all the Councel sought false Witness against him to put him to death His own Servant betrays him the Multitude with Swords and Staves from the chief Priests and Elders of the People apprehend him and lead him to the Councel Matt. 26.66.67 who pronounce their Sentence against him He is guilty of death then they spit in his Face buffet him and smite him After all this they still take councel against him to put him to death they bound him and led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the Governour who when the Rabble cried out Crucifie him Matt. 27.28 29.30 34. released Barrabas and scourged Jesus and delivered him to be crucified but of all others the Soldiers used him most spitefully they mocked him put a Crown of Thorns upon his Head spit upon him Jo. 19.34 smote him and led him away to crucifie him They gave him Vinegar to drink mingled with Gall and pierced his side with a Spear after he was dead Thus was our blessed Redeemer rewarded by men for all the good he did for them they persecuted him to death who brought them Eternal life and glory But it were presumption to speak of that glorious Passion and all the Persecution of the Lord of Life in this small Treatise and by so weak a hand which the Pen of the Holy Ghost hath described Joseph Antiq l. 18. Eutropius L. 7. We may only Observe of his Persecutors that Judas hanged himself Pilate and most of the Councel that condemned him were as Eutropeus and others affirm afflicted with many and sharp miseries in th●ls life and with violent deaths besides their