Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	angel_n	descend_v	ladder_n	1,870	5	11.7110	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43133	The precious blood of the son of God shed without the gates of Jerusalem for the redemption of lost and undone sinners: whereby his great love to mankind is undeniably manifested, in these following particulars; his agony in the garden; being betrayed by Judas, being falsly accused before Annas, Caiaphas, Herod and Pilate; his being scourged, scorned, and spitefully used; his condemnation and going to execution; how he was crucified; of his being reviled, and pardoning the thief upon the cross; and of his giving up the ghost. All which is practically applyed and improved, for the bringing of sinners out of the way of sin and hell, into wisdom's ways, whose ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. By that eminent divine, Mr. John Hayward.	Hayward, John.	1695 (1695)	Wing H1231F; ESTC R215936	43,769	124

with all Fear and Reve●…ence we weep and worthless Worms prostrate our selves before thee O Lord Jesus Christ and give unto thee most humble Thanks for thy exceeding Mercy and Love towards us What have we Lord that we have not received from thee For thou art All our Creator Redeemer Sanctifier and Glorifier for thou hast given to us both the State of Nature and of Grace and hath also prepared for us the state of Glory and because to this high End many Means are required of thy infinite Goodness thou art unto us as well the Means as the End thou art our Defender our Keeper our Governour the merciful Scourge of our Sins the Curer of our Infirmities the Instructor of our Ignorance the Director of our Knowledge and Power thou sustainest thou stirrest thou orderest and helpest us in all our good Endeavours Thou art our Lord and our God even all the Goodness that we have and all that we can expect How our Saviour was crucified Matth. xxvii 35. And they crucified him and parted his Garments casting Lots that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Prophet They parted my Garments amongst them and upon my Vesture did they cast Lots WHen he came to Mount Calvary there was the bloody Banner displayed there planted he the Tree of Life the Fruit thereof expelled the Poyson which the Fruit of the forbidden Tree had wrought Gen. 28. 12. And he dreamed and behold a Ladder set upon the Earth and behold the Angel of God ascending and descending on it Then pitched he the Ladder which Jacob saw but in a Vision the top whereof reached up to Heaven whereupon not only the Angels go up and down with our Prayers unto God and his Mercies unto us but God himself descended to Man and Man ascended up to God And first to make his Death the more reproachful they stripp'd him of all his Garments which the Soldiers cast Lots for yet altho' the Law commanded that Malefactors should be crucified yet it did not command they should be crucified naked Wherefore then O good Jesus was this Extremity used against thee Were thy Executioners so covetous as to enjoy thy Apparel or were they so cruel to encrease thy Shame Or wouldest thou testifie thy Love in that thou wouldest not be exempted from any Ignominy we had deserved and in that thou didst discover thy naked Flesh and not hide any part of thy Body from us as before it had been covered with Figures and Ceremonies as with a Veil When Adam had sinned he would have hid himself from the Presence of God because he was naked being then attached with Impurity of Soul as well as Obscenity of Body which are the chief Causes of Shame but our Second Adam took both this Sin and this Shame upon his naked Body to carry them to the Cross and to crucifie them with him Assuredly O our Salvation howsoever thy Body was naked of Apparel it was loaded with our Sins as thy Apostle St. Peter saith 1 Pet. 2. 24. He bare our Sins in his Body on the Cross. For who could have violated thy Holy Members if thy Father had not found our Offences in them if he had not found this Accusation against thee This Man receiveth Sinners and harboureth Malefactors Didst thou not know O our Redeemer that in whose Hands the Thest is found he must be answerable for the same Should not the Father handle thee as a Sinner seeing he findeth thee so charged with Sins The Justice of thy Father findeth all our Sins upon thy Body executed upon thee and crucified them and thee together Hereby thou hast given us Example First to be merciful towards the Needy seeing that out of Compassion to us thou hadst no Pity upon thy self but wert cloathed with our Sins and our Shame to clothe us with thy Innocency and Glory Secondly To moderate our Desires in the vain either Bravery or Glory of this World the Bellows of Pride and of Presumption which do not only clog but quench the Devotion of our Spirits even as a Tree by having many superfluous Branches becometh less fruitful and as a Lamp which with a little Oyl is cherished but choaked with much For thou camest into the World to encounter their principal Evils Pride Avarice and Riot which proceed from the love of three things as Honour Riches and Pleasure all which are Branches of one Stock namely the love of our selves which is the universal Root of all Sins from these Branches all forbidden Fruit all the Choak Pears of this Life are gathered Against these thy Lise Doctrine and Death did chiefly tend Then they stretched his naked Body upon the hard Death-bed of the Cross and fastned it thereto with blunt and rough Nails driven through his Hands and through hi●… Feet out of which Wounds issu'd golde●… Streams Zacb 11. Like the four Rivers o●… the Garden of Eden to water and fructif●… the whole World And with such Rage did the murde●…ous Jews hunt and thirst after the Blood of Jesus that within the space of three Hours after they had brought him to Pilate he was accused condemned scourged despitefully used and lastly fastned to the Cross. Then they raised him up between two Thieves and placed him in open view to be tormented with a cruel ●…ingering Death the whole Weight of his Body bearing downwards and rending wider the Wounds of his Hands and Feet which by the Tenderness of the Sinews are the most sensible Parts of the whole Body Having also to encounter with he World and the Devil who is the Prince of the World with Death also and with Sin which is the Cause of Death Alas how far is the Madness of the World how far is the Love and Liberty of Christ extended Was God thus angry against Sin Would ●…o other Satisfaction se●…ve Was the Ju●…tice of God so rigorous Was the Re●…emption of Man so preciou●… One Diso●…edience was sufficient ●…osed th●…y Man●…nd and were all these ●…hese ●…equisite or their Redemption 〈◊〉 Lord for Experience teacheth us That it more easie to ruinate than to repair One Fire brand is sufficient to destroy a whole City which cannot without much Time Toil and Cost be repaired O most righteous and upright Judge how merciful wert thou towards Sinners and how severe against thy own Son He was born in great Baseness the World no sooner received him but i●… persecuted him and chased him into foreign Countries As his Body grew so encreased h●… Burden both of Labours and Wants u●…til in the end he was betrayed to h●… Enemies by one of those that were h●… Followers Is any thing more admirab●… than this Liberty was sold Liberali●… tied Innocency accused Justice co●…demned and Life executed Is any thi●… more admirable The Wisdom of t●… Father was derided his Power beate and bound his Beauty defiled his Gl●…ry with Reproaches and Reproofs obs●…red Is any thing yet more admirabl●… God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God was scourg●… God 〈◊〉

was Force so unfortunately applied Never was Prey so impossible to be held and so dangerous to be let go for he soon got out of your Hands but you shall never avoid his Curse O People well beloved thy malicious Madness hath made thee miserable thou art ruinously cast down thou art finally cast out and that which was no People is planted in thy place You came with Torches and Lanthorns to apprehend the Son of Truth but you would not see his glorious Light therefore you remain the blindest People in the World insomuch that all the Prophecies that have been spoken of you have been performed by you against your selves But what Folly is this O ye Jews how far is it beyond all Folly to carry him with Bands of Men that went of his own Accord into whose Brain could it sink that he would break away that went voluntarily himself He that hath power to give Life unto the Dead could he not have kept himself in Life He that delivered others from Devils could he not have delivered himself from you Assure your selves such was his infinite Charity wherewith he goeth to the Cross to appease his Father's Wrath and redeem the Sins of the World that you should have more to do to keep him in Life than you have to carry him to his Death He hath far greater both care and haste to redeem you than you can possibly have to murder him for he had not redeemed us if his Death had been forced upon him if his Sacrifice had not been voluntary it had not been satisfactory we could not have been saved by his Obedience if he had not died of his own accord and the●…efore his Father having given and he accepted of the Sentence of Death he used no means to escape for he was not driven by Force but drawn to it by his Obedience to his Father and Love to us There is no Man that fears Death but he whom Death is able to kill But Death had no such Power over the Son of God for he did voluntarily lay down his Soul even when he would himself O senseless Jews He that is to bury so many Figures to fulfil so many Prophecies to accomplish so great a Business as the Redemption of the whole World to what end should he run from you By all this you may see what base abuse was offered to the Son of God Certainly if it had not been the Will of his Father and of himself it had been better that Mankind should have rotted in their own Corruption than that infinite Vertue perfect Felicity the true Glory the eternal Word and Wisdom of the Father should be so basely and vilely abused by those Sons of Belial But since it was his Pleasure because by this way he would manifest his Love it is our part to accept it with thankful Hearts and with Reverence both to love honour and praise him for the same Therefore let us lift up our Voices at all times and in all places to the Praise of Almighty God for this his unspeakable loving kindness since he has so far pitied our Condition as to come into it himself to exalt us to his Glory O admirable Dispensation of Grace thou hast pour'd forth thy Treasures without measure upon us we can desire no more than we do enjoy in thee for thou hast exalted us above the Heavens Our Saviour was seated in Majesty and Glory invironed with Angels hearing the sweet Harmony of his own Praise doing wonderful things in Heaven and in the Earth and in all the deep places But we lay in the Mi●…e of our Miseries just fallen into the bottomless Pit of everlasting Sorrow void of the poorest Comforts of Calamity either helpless pity or vain Hope But our Saviour bowed down the Heavens and came down not by changing place but by manifesting himself in a holy Humanity He was admirable in Heaven but he became miserable and contemptible upon Earth He changed the Name of Majesty into Mercy and did cover himself with the Sackcloth of Mortality and did enter as it were into Perdition wherein he did both willingly wallow and take delight But our Saviour received no Spot nor Soil but he did stretch forth his Hand to the Work of his Hands whereby he drew sorth he did cleanse he did cloath he did comfort and confirm us he did reach forth his Hand by his blessed Birth he did draw us by his Doctrine he did cleanse us by his Death he did cloath us by his Resurrection he did comfort us by his Ascension and he did confirm us by his sending of the Holy Ghost therefore let us praise and magnifie the Lord for his great Love towards us for in all his Works he was ours mo●…e than his own he took the Burthen of our Miseries upon him and laid the Benefits of his Merits upon us he heard the Cries of the Poor and came down from the highest Heaven to the D●…ngeen of this World to deliver them from their Distress and to restore them to that Innocency and Immortality from whence they were fallen He was sold to redeem us he was apprehended to discharge us and he was bound to unfetter us all which he did plainly signifie in what he said to those that came to take him John 18. 2 I say unto you that I am he therefore if you seek me let these go their ways Of our Saviour being had before Annas Caiaphas Herod and Pila●…e Matth. 26. 57. And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the High Priest where the Scribes and Elders were assembled AFter that Judas had betrayed him with a Kiss and they had taken him they led him away before Annas the Father-in-law to Caiaphas the High-Priest Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas where the Scribes and Elders were assembled He was accused of Blasphemy but very ●…sly and wrongfully And there an Officer in the Court in the full Face of Justice give him a Blow on the Face co●…trary to the Rules of any Court of Judicature Yet all these Ind gn●… did our blessed Saviour with ind●…gable Patience bear Which Patience if we observe together with all his Behaviours in the other Passages of hi●… Passion we shall find a perfect Cure for all our Impe●…fections and a straight Rule to direct us in all the Affairs of this Lise O Gracious Countenance which filleth the Heavens with Glory which the Angels with Joy and Ravishment do desire to behold O perfect Image of the Father how deeply was thy Beauty and thy Majesty over clouded with Disgrace O infinite Humility O f●…t Lord Is it possible that there should remain in the World any Footsteps of Pride after this admirable Example of Patience O Earth and Ashes thy God did with deep silence endure all these Indignities and thou stirrest thou starest and turmoilest thy self and tormentest others upon the least touch of thy Reputation God did pray for those that blaspheme him but we di●…d

●…in or scorn to look upon a Man that hath given us the least affront imaginable God would be esteeme●… a Sinne●… when he was pure from any soil of Sin But we although de●…ble Sinnars think much of any that do not think us Righteous God was abased to the lowest degree but we would be advanced above all Men above the Angels yea above God himself Ah proud Flesh it cannot swell so high but Vengeance will sit above it it cannot lift up it self so lofty but God's Hand shall strike it down God and Pride could not dwell together in one Heaven much less in one Heart Our Saviour hath taught us to love our Enemies Matth. 5. 44. to do good to them that hate and hurt us that we may be the Children of our Father which is in Heaven What shall we further say we are desirous to be esteemed the Sons of God we are ready to assume that Name unto us although it may be we are Hypocrites and Lyars And how can this be when we think our selves dishonoured if we revenge not the least Indignity that is done unto us yea when no moderate either Satisfaction of Revenge will suffice to appease us If it be so with us let us be ashamed to call God our Father and let us tremble to say unto him F●…rgive us our Offences as we forgive them that have offended us For this is as if we should say Forgive us not because we will n●…t forgive or in pl●…iner Terms Damn us Lord because we will be damned Undoubtedly they who are the Son●… of God and Christians in Deed and in Truth must not only a●…rive at this degree of Goodness not to return Evil for Evil but they must advance higher to return Good for Evil they must declare by their Actions that they have not only surmouned Evil but that they have attained to that which is good and in such a degree as to overcome Evil with Good Rom. 21. 8. Therefore let us learn to be of an humble Spi●…it if we did but know the Vertue of true Humility we should abandon the chiefest things in the World to a●…in it If we desire to have Mercy Humility will help us to it as it did the Publican If we desire the Grace of the Gos●…el our Lord saith He was sent to preach it to the poor It was hid from the wise and revealed to the little ones Would we have our Prayers heard Ecclus. 35. 17. The Prayers of the Humble shall pierce the Clouds and will not depart till the Highest regard it If we desire Glory and long Life an humble Spirit will help us to it Prov. 22. 4. They are the Rewards of Humility if we desire to live under the Protection of God and to participate of his Grace as no doubt there is none in the World but what does so Psalm 34. 17. 1. Pet. 5. 5. The Lord preserveth the lowl●… and giveth Grace to the Humble For as Water runs to the low Grounds so do the Graces of God flow to the humble Hearts In a Word if we are desirous to pass the time of this Life in Peace Mat. 11. 29. Learn of me saith our Saviour for I am ●…eek and humble of Heart and so you shall find rest in your Soul●… If we desire to be everlastingly happy in the Kingdom of God we must then humble our selves as little Children Motth 18. 4. For Heaven is like a stat●…ly Palace with a low Door wherein no Man can enter except he stoop Humility is not only a Vertue but a Vessel that contains all other Vertues This unquiet Night wherein they had our Saviour before Annas and Caiaphas being scarce ended they led him to Pilate the Roman President of the Province for the Jews at that time were under the Dominion of the Romans who although they allowed them the use of their Religion yet they barred them from all Civil Jurisdiction and all Cognizance of Capital Crimes as in other Provinces it was the custom so to do So although the Jews had condemned Jesus of Blasphemy and cryed out against him He is worthy to die yet they had no Authority to put him to death and therefore they led him to the Roman President for the Territory of Jud●…a But when Pilate understood that Jesus was born in Galilee which belonged to the Jurisdiction of Herod the Tetrarch he sent him to Herod who at that time was at Jerusalem Now Herod had been desirous of a long Season to see Jesus because of that admirable Report that run of him whereupon he was then joyful of his coming hoping to have seen him wrought some Miracle He questioned him concerning many things but he enquired out of vain Curiosity and with no true Intention or End Christ answered him nothing according to that which St. James saith Jam. 4. 3. Ye ask and do not receive because ye ask amiss Hereupon Herod with all his grave Counsellors and gallant Courtiers interpreting the Silence of Jesus for Simplicity did openly contemn him and for a plain Decla●…ation not of his Innocency but his Simplicity they arrayed him in White Rayment and sent him back again to Pilate that he who had been taken before for a Man of evil Behaviour and namely a Glutton a Drinker of Wine a Companion of Sinners a S●…irrer of Sedition a Blasphemer a Sorcerer possess'd with a Devil should then pass for a very simple Man O true Comfort of all Afflictions whether by publick Injustice or private Injuries let us learn by these Exemplary Instructions of our Master to make no account of the Judgments and Estimations of this World let us leave off to be so ambitious as to affect the vain Breath of humane Praise which is like to an Eccho a meer empty Sound without Substance which feeds and flatters us with wrong Names pleasing our foolish and idle Fancies till we fall into the Pit of everlasting Destruction For we may easily see and find by daily experience how variable Men are in their Opinoins constant only in unconstancy and persisting in nothing more than in change They who cryed Hosanna in the Highest soon after cry Let him be crucified They who saluted him for their King do presently profess That they have no King but Caesar They who met him with Olive Branches do now present him with Swords and Staves They who did spread their Garments before him now take his own Garments from him They who did acknowledge and adore him for the Son of God they in few days prefer Barabbas a Thief and a Murtherer before him Therefore by this you may see what cause we have to give credit to the Judgment of the Men of this World Who will trust the Love of this World which is so uncertain Who will be so base as to fawn upon it for a few crumbs of such fading Credits Who then will be so foolish to take all pains to please it nay to be more careful of what the world will say

so much as one Drop unto thee unless it be in exchange of everlasting Life Of the Death of our Saviour and how they opened his Side with a Spear Matth. 27. 50. Jesus when he hath crye again with a loud Voice y●…lded up the Ghost AFter when Jesus knew that all things were performed he cried with a loud Voice and bowed his Head and gave up the Ghost and the Sun was darkened the Veil of the Temple rent through the midst John 19. 30. And the Earth did quake and the Stones were cloven and the Graves did open and many Bodies of the Saints which slept arose and came out of the Graves after his Resurrection and appeared unto many Luke 23. Matth. 27. When the Centurion and they that were with him watching Jesus saw the Earthquake and the things that were done they feared greatly and said Truly this Man was the Son of God What is this O gracious Lord God! who ever saw two such Contraries combined together Whoever saw such Misery joyn'd to such Might when was so great Glory accompanied at any time with so great Grief Who is he that is so humble and yet so high Who is so powerful and yet so poor He that is contemned on Earth is honoured in Heaven he that is fastned naked to the Cross maketh the Earth to quake he that died raised the Dead to Life O our sweet Saviour thou didst now manifestly declare who thou wast and wherefore thou camest into the World The Centurion and they that were with him did acknowledge thee to be the Son of God and the Dead whom thou raisedst to Life did testifie that thou camest to overcome Death We will make no account of the Jews scoffing at thee seeing the Heavens the Earth the Living and the Dead did witness for thee And thus likewise in all the other Passages of his Life our Saviour did so bear and behave himself that he never did so high a Miracle but therein his Humanity did appear nor did he ever so mean a Work but his Divinity did therein shine All his Actions participated of both his Natures in every thing that he did or suffered the Glory of the one was joined with the Humility of the other It was great Humility to be conceived but it was great Glory to be conceived by the Holy Ghost It was great Humility to be born but it was great Glory to be born of a pure Virgin It was great Humility to be born in a Stable but it was great Glory to be worshipped of the Wise Men. It was great Humility to lie among Beasts but it was great Glory to be honoured by the Angels It was great Humility to be circumcised but it was great Glory to be named Saviour It was great Humility to be baptized among Sinners but it was great Glory that the Heavens opened and that the Spirit visibly descended upon him Lastly it was great Humility to die upon the Cross but it was great Glory that both Heaven and Earth were disturbed thereat That all Creatures adored his Death except Man only for whom he died The Sun beholding his great Creator naked drew in his Light to cover him with Darkness for as our Saviour was betrayed apprehended scorned reviled spit upon and buffeted in the Night so it was not inconvenient that the residue of this Work of Darkness should in Darkness be accomplished even as he said to the Jews Luke 22. 52. This is your very hour and power of Darkness But let us consider here are three Miracles before us First That this Eclipse of the Sun happen'd on the Fourteenth Day of the Moon that is in the full Opposition of the Sun and the Moon Whereas natural Eclipses happen in their Conjunction when the Moon is directly interposed between the Sun and our Sight It continued the space of three Hours whereas natural Eclipses continue not above the fourth part of an Hour and hardly that It was a total Eclipse which never happened by the Interposition of the Moon by reason it is so far inferiour to the Sun in magnitude What then shall we say but that the Sun drew in his Light because it should not display so sad a Spectacle That the Heavens hid their Beauty and suited themselves to their Makers State that they covered the Body of Jesus that was sacrilegiously used with Darkness as with a Veil One Star shewed the Glory of the Lord at his Nativity but the most glorious Star pe●…formed this Service at the time of his Death neither was this Darkness ever better resembled than by the Darkness that was spread over the Land of Egypt but now over Goshen where the Jews did inhabit At this time the Land of the Jews only was darkned and all other Countries remained Light And that time the true Light was only among the Jews since this time they have been the greatest Strangers to it And at the end of this Darkness when Jesus cried with a loud Voice and yielded up the Ghost the Earth trembled also and the Rocks did rend whereof in the Land of Jewry in the Kingdom of Damascus and in the Mountains of Arabia Monuments and Accounts of it remain unto this Day Therefore do not think O ye Jews as his Life ended so did his Power He that laid down his Life retaineth his Power both in the Heavens and upon the whole Earth and was a less Matter to rise again than to suffer himself to die You cannot say that these things which were done at the very Hour of his Death were done by any ordinary means wherefore you must acknowledge in him Divine Majesty or Devilish Malice in your selves You were maliciously bent against him indeed but if all Men in the World oppose and be against him you see by what means he is able both to declare his Glory and his Power when no Man either durst or would open his Mouth in his Defence He did but utter his Voice and Five great and terrible Tongues did speak for him The Sun which is the lively Lamp of the World the Earth the Rocks the Veil of the Temple and the Dead when all Men were silent the Elements the Stones the Dead did speak they all preached his Mercies and thundered forth his Threatnings O good Jesu it was a great Voice indeed whereat the principal Powers of Heaven Earth and Hell di●… sh●…ke which did astonish the Living and the Dead As the Cry of our Sins did reach to the Justice of thy Father so did thy Voice reach to his Mercy Thou didst cry with a great Voice to call the Living and summon the Dead that if any should lose himself if any would not be converted to thee it should not be because he was not called but because he would not come But woe be to every Soul which is not converted which will not come woe be to every Soul that is not moved at this Voice this mighty Voice O crucified Jesu have Mercy upon us poor