Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	bind_v	earth_n	loose_v	17,667	5	10.9453	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A06106	A retractiue from the Romish religion contayning thirteene forcible motiues, disswading from the communion with the Church of Rome: wherein is demonstratiuely proued, that the now Romish religion (so farre forth as it is Romish) is not the true Catholike religion of Christ, but the seduction of Antichrist: by Tho. Beard ...	Beard, Thomas, d. 1632.	1616 (1616)	STC 1658; ESTC S101599	473,468	560

Prophet Esay saying Behold I will lay in Sion a stone a sure foundation which is a playne and manifest Prophecie of Christ and not of Peter as the Apostle Peter himselfe expoundeth it where by the way we may note the feareful outrage of these Romish Rabbies against the truth of God and the God of truth whilst to the end they may aduance their Popes dignity by Peter they wrest and peruert the Scriptures and apply the Prophecies belonging to the Sonne of God to his seruant Peter and so make Peter himselfe nay the holy Ghost a Lyar. It were not credible that such blasphemous thoughts and words should nestle in the heart and issue out of the mouth of any but that the Apostle Saint Paul hath fore-told vs that in the time of Antichrist because men would not receiue the loue of the truth that they might be saued therefore God would send them strong delusions that they should beleeue lyes c. But to the point If Christs person be the onely true foundation of the Church in whom all the building being coupled together groweth vnto an holy Temple in the Lord and that not the persons but the doctrine and faith of the Apostles are those secundary foundations which the Scripture speaketh of as hath beene proued out of the Fathers then the opposition is vndefeasible namely that there is but one person the foundation of our Church which is our Lord and Sauiour the Sonne of God Christ Iesus and yet that Peters person should be the foundation of the Church also together with Christ 45. Thirdly I answere that both in truth and also in proprietie of speech there can bee but one foundation of one building those stones that are layd next to the foundation are not properly a secundary foundation but the beginning of the building vpon the foundation and for that cause when Peter and the rest of the Apostles are called twelue foundations it cannot bee vnderstood that they were any wayes properly foundations of the Church either first or second but that our Sauiour who is the substance and subiect of their doctrine is the onely true and singular foundation of the Church and that there is none other besides him for if when it is said that we are built vpō the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles is meant the doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles as must needes bee because the Prophets are coupled together with the Apostles which liued not in the Christian Church and therefore could not be personall foundations of it and Christ crucified is the substance of their doctrine then it must needes follow that the Apostles meaning is nothing else but that we are built vpon Christ whom the Prophets and the Apostles preached and beleeued in And thus S. Hilary vnderstood it and Saint Ambrose and Anselmus who giuing the foundation of the Church to Peter expoundeth it sometimes of his faith in Christ and sometimes of Christ himselfe in whom he beleeued And thus doe also Salmeron the Iesuite and Cardinall Caietane in their commentaries vpon that place and Peter Lumbard together with the glosse vpon the place interpret And so this distinction of a primary and secundary foundation hath no foundation in the word of God 46. The Gospell teacheth that no Apostle or Bishop or other Minister of the Gospell is superiour to another of the same ranke or hath greater power and authority then another in respect of their ministerie but that all Ministers in their seuerall degrees haue equall power of preaching the Gospell administring the Sacraments binding and loosing But the Bishop of Rome challengeth to himselfe a supreme power ouer all other Bishops and ouer the whole Church and braggeth that he hath by right a title to both the swords both spirituall and temporall and that both iurisdictions doe originally pertaine to him and from him are conueyed to others c. 47. Bellarmine heere first confesseth and secondly distinguisheth hee confesseth that the Bishop of Rome hath a supreme power ouer all other Bishops and the whole Church and denyeth that eyther those places here quoted or any other doe prooue the contrary 48. To which I answere first that whereas out of Luke 22. 26. and 1. Cor. 3. 4. he extracteth a disparity and an inequality I answere that no man denyeth it and therefore he fighteth with his owne shadow hee should prooue not a bare superiority which wee confesse but a superiority in the same degree as of one Bishop to another and that in power not in execution wherein standeth the point of opposition 49. Secondly whereas he saith that though the power of remitting and retayning finnes and binding and loosing was communicated to all the Apostles yet Peter was ordayned chiefe Pastor ouer them all because our Sauiour Christ sayd vnto him alone Feede my sheepe and To thee will I giue the Keyes of the Kingdome of heauen I answere that in this hee crosseth both himselfe the Fathers and the truth himselfe for elsewhere hee confesseth that the keyes both of Order and Iurisdiction were giuen to all the Apostles indifferently and therefore it must needes follow that Tibi dabo claues was not spoken singularly to Peter but generally to them all for if Christ gaue the keyes to them all as he confesseth then without doubt he promised them to them all or else his word and his deede should not accord together And againe hee acknowledgeth that all the Apostles had both power and commission to feede the sheepe of Christ when Mat. 28. he bade them all Goe teach and baptize and they all did put that commission in execution therefore it must needes follow that no singular power was giuen to Peter when as Christ said vnto him Feede my sheepe vnlesse we will say that the rest had not the same commission 50. The Fathers for Saint Cyprian saith plainely that all the Apostles were the same with Peter indued with equall fellowship both of honour and power and that a primary was giuen vnto Peter that the Church might appeare to be one Saint Hilary is of the same minde You O holy and blessed men saith he for the merit of your faith haue receiued the keyes of the kingdome of heauen and obtained a right to binde and loose in Heauen and earth Saint Augustine saith that if when Christ said To thee will I giue the keyes of the kingdome of Heauen he spake onely to Peter then the Church hath not the power of the keyes but if the Church hath it then Peter receiuing the keyes represented the Church And lastly Leo one of their owne Popes confesseth asmuch when hee affirmeth that the strength of this power of the keyes passed vnto all the Apostles and the constitution of this decree vnto all the Princes of the Church 51. Lastly the truth for when the Apostles stroue for superiority Christ who is truth it selfe and would not haue concealed so necessary a trueth if

merite of condignitie bringeth foorth a like monster for they build it vpon two foundations whereof one ouerwhelmeth the other to wit the dignity of the worke and the promise of God for what can be more contrary then mercy and iustice Now if it depend vpon the dignity of the worke then it is a due of iustice and so they call it Meritum ex iustitia A merite by iustice but if it rely vpon the free promise of God as they call it then it must needs be Meritum ex misericordia A merite by mercy for Gods promise is a voluntary fruit of his mercy They answer that they may both well stand together for say they God dealeth with vs as we deale with our hyred labourers we agree with them for a certayne price for doing a peece of worke and when they begin we giue them an earnest penny and when the worke is done according to the couenant we giue them their wages So dealeth Almighty God with Christians he first maketh a couenant with them that for labouring in his Vineyard they shall haue a penny that is eternall life then he giueth them the earnest of his Spirit to assure them thereof and lastly at the end when they haue done their worke hee payeth them their wages But by the Iesuites leaue this similitude is lame of all foure for first when a man hyreth a labourer and bargaineth with him for wages for his worke this is a couenant of iustice and no promise of mercy and therefore if he performe this bargaine hee is not therefore called mercifull but iust but Almighty God as they themselues confesse promiseth freely and is bound to none and therefore this must needs be a worke of mercy and not of iustice Secondly there is a proportion betwixt the labourers worke and his hire but betwixt the Kingdome of heauen and our good works there is no proportion no more then betwixt a finite and an i● finite thing or a drop of a B●cket and the huge Ocean And third y a man standeth in need of his workman his worke but God hath no need of vs. And hence it must of necessitie follow that the labourers hire i● a debt of iustice but a Christians hire is a reward of mercy And so I conclude that being of mercy it cannot be of iustice too or if it be of iustice it cannot be of mercy t●o f●● what need● iustice if it bee of mercy and what need mercy if ●● b● of iustice And therefore if this merit● of condignitie be grounded vpon the worth and valour of he worke done as they teach 〈…〉 cannot bee grounded vpon the promise of God as the● teach also because the dignitie of the worke requires ●● as a d●● by iustice and the gracious promise of God imparts it as a ●eward of mercy 41. Againe in their merite of congruitie there is another contradiction for they teach that the who●e dignitie of the worke dependeth vpon grace and therefore that it is not so much man that meriteth as Gods grace in man And yet the same affirme that this grace doth not inhabitare that is awell in a man but onely outwardly mooue and helpe him and that it is in mans power either to accept or reiect the●s me Now how can the power of meriting issue from grace alone and the whole dignitie of the worke depend vpon grace when as that grace is not in vs and when as our owne free will is the chiefe worker being able of it selfe either to vnlocke the dore and let it in or ba●re the doore and shut it out And besides if the whole dignitie of the worke depend vpon grace why doth he call ●t Meritum in●hoatum imperfectū A lame and vnperfect meri●e I Gods grace ●ame and imperfect eyther therefore that grace dwelleth in vs and is the chiese worker or else it doth not wholly depend vpon grace And againe if it wholly proceede from grace then it is not a lame and imperfect but a complete perfect merice See ● beseech you how falsehood needeth no other Engine but it selfe to ouerthrow it 42. Lastly concerning works their doctrine is that the good works of the regenerate are fully and absolutely iust and perfectly good and yet neuerthelesse that they may grow in goodnesse and are also mixed with many veniall sinnes If they bee perfectly good how can they grow in goodnesse and if they increase in goodnesse how are they perfectly good seeing that onely is perfect to which nothing can be added If they say that this perfection is but begun and not finished why then also they should say that they are imperfectly perfect or else they pull downe with one hand that which they build with the other And againe if they most holy and iust men haue their works intermixed with many veniall sins for which they need to cry daily Forgiue vs our trespasses how can they either perfectly fulfill the law of God or doe such works as may bee able to abide the censure of Gods iustice seeing Saint Iames saith that he that transgresseth one Commandement is guiltie of the whole law because he violateth the body of iustice contained in the law as he which hurteth the little toe doth herein wrong the whole bodie It is a contradiction therefore to say that the works of the regenerate are perfect and yet are intermingled with many sinnes and it is all one as if a man should say that his face is perfectly cleane and yet hath many spots or that the bodie is perfectly in health and yet is pestred with many diseases 43. And thus much of good works Now besides these there are certaine works in their Religion which are more then good and more perfect then perfection these be their works of Supererogation arising from three grounds First when the Saints in this life do more good works then are necessarie for themselues to the attainment of saluation And secondly when they suffer more and greater punishments then are due vnto them for their sinnes And thirdly when they vndertake no● onely works commanded by the law of God but also such as are commended by the Euangelicall Councells as voluntary pouertie abstayning from marriage and regular obedience These superabounding actions and passions of Gods Saints are the works of supererogation spoken of and magnified so much in the Church of Rome which both are the Churches Treasure mingled with the superabounding merits of Christs passion and are layd vp in a Treasury the keyes whereof and dispensation is committed to the Pope of Rome that hee either by himselfe or his Factors may dispence them at his pleasure that is to them that will buy the same for money and also as they say are more excellent and perfect and meritorious of a greater reward This blasphemous doctrine might easily be woūded to death by the Sword of the Spirit for it is contrary to all