Selected quad for the lemma: judgement_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
judgement_n	according_a	good_a	lord_n	1,970	5	3.5728	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64860	Christs counsell to poore and naked soules that they might bee well furnished with pure gold, and richly clad with white raiment : delivered in a sermon before the honourable House of Commons at their publique fast, in Margarets church in Westminster, Septemb. 29, 1647 / by Thomas Valentine ...	Valentine, Thomas, 1585 or 6-1665?	1647 (1647)	Wing V25; ESTC R5046	17,438	28

CHRISTS COVNSELL TO Poore and naked Soules that they might bee well furnished with pure Gold and richly clad with white Raiment Delivered in a SERMON before the Honourable House of Commons at their Publique Fast in Margarets Church in Westminster Septemb. 29 1647. By THOMAS VALENTINE one of the Assembly of Divines and Minister of Chalfout in the Countie of Buckingham LONDON Printed for Iohn Rothwell at the Sun and Fountaine in Pauls Church-yard 1647. Die Mercurii 29 Septemb. 1647. Ordered by the Commons assembled in Parliament That Mr. Wheeler doe from this House give thankes unto Mr. Valentine for the great paines he tooke in his Sermon Preached on this day at Magarets Westminster before the House of Commons and that he desire him to Print his Sermon wherein he is to have the like priviledge in printing of it as others in the like kinde usually have had H. Elsynge Cler. Parl. Dom. Com. TO THE Honourable House of COMMONS Assembled in PARLIAMENT I Was called upon a short warning to attend you in your Publike Fast I presume that tooke off your expectation which was some advantage to me a Learned man whispered to one going up in publike and said wee have entertained your Enemie namely a great expectation and this proves prejudiciall You have by your acceptance of my Labours and requiring the publication of these plaine Meditations gone beyond my expectation I obey your command and offer to the publique view under your Patronage what God on the sudden brought to hand I was bold in the end of my Sermon in the last Use to represent the sad Condition of the people of this Land give me leave in a word or two to adde somewhat to the same purposs Wee may looke upon the great Citie of our Land and all the rest as Christ did upon Jerusalem Luk. 19.41 and if wee had the like Spirit wee should poure out our dolefull expressions even with teares as he did Divers have shed teares when they have seene sad Spectacles before their eyes Titus the Roman Generall wept when he heard of the Calamities of the besieged in Jerusalem Marcellus wept when he saw the blood of the Syracusans Scipio Africanus wept over Carthage but none of these like the teares of Christ for he mournes for their desolation before it came upon them he lookes with sorrow upon their sins that did not beleeve in him and laments their eternall perdition and these did well become the teares of the Sonne of God If we had the like Spirit wee have the like occasion Jerusalem was destroyed by Division and so were the Romans that conquered it there were three companies that held out one against another to the very last most of our Cities have more Divisions then three thrice told they had signes from Heaven to give them warning Armies of fight●ng men appeared in the Aire and a Comet like a flaming Sword over their Citie Wee have had Armies and a bloody Sword in the bowells of the Kingdom which have done that indeed which was represented unto them they had a voice in the Temple saying Migremus hinc Let us remove hence wee see it done already in a great Measure the glory is departing from us not onely to the threshold but even to the Mountaines Looke upon the highest Isa 23.9 and goe downeward and you may truely say the Lord hath stained the pride of all our glory Jordan as some affirme was turned out of its course foure yeares before the destruction of Jerusalem All things are out of course with us Rev. 11.13 the foundations of the earth are shaken wee are under the earthquake and yet few men tremble before the Lord. I am afraid it is a fore-runner of our destruction and the rather because that which should unite us is likely to divide us more You make a rule in matter of Religion and Government and withall you make so many exceptions which will be as large as the rule and it is hard to tell whether the greater number will come under the one or other Were it not better to take into consideration those things wherein all the godly or most agree Phil. 3 16. according to that of the Apostle Whereunto wee have already attained let us walke by the same rule and mind the same thing rather then lay the foundation of a perpetuall division How this should be done requires time and the most serious thoughts of wise man yet in my poore judgement I thinke it might be done The Lord direct you that are appointed to be the publike instruments of our good that some way may be found out to take away the envy of Ephraim Isa 11.13 and then I shall not much feare the adversaries of Judah And this shall be the prayer of him that rests Your unworthy Servant in the Gospel THO. VALENTINE A SERMON Preached at Westminster before the Honourable House of Commons at their Publike Fast Septemb. 29. 1647. REVEL 3.18 I counsell thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire that thou mayest be rich and white raiment that thou mayest be clothed and that the shame of thy nakednesse appeare not and anoint thine eyes with eye-salve that thou mayest see THe Title of the Booke tells you It is the Revelation of John and John tells you chap. 1. vers 1. It is the Revelation of Jesus Christ which he vouchsafed to his Servant John when he was banished into the I le Patmos by the crueltie of Domitian the Emperour Wherein all things necessary to be knowne from that time to the end of the world are revealed In which Booke as in Pauls Epistles many things nay almost all are hard to be understood Yet that part which containes the Epistles to the seven Churches having in it Reproofes Admonitions Exhortations and Counsell is more easie and plaine This Text is part of that Epistle which was sent to the last of the seven Churches viz. luke-warme Laodicea the particulars charged upon this Church and the rest are more easie to understand The difficultie is in determining whether these Asian Churches doe typifie other Churches and what they are and where they are planted For the probabilitie of the opinion that some were aimed at in them divers reasons might be alleged as this that this Booke is not a bare Narration of things heard and seene but a Prophecie of things that were afterward to come to passe Others would have the state of the Church in generall deciphered out but with Reference to particular times as Ephesus points out the purer primitive times which did retaine their integritie but yet the mystery of iniquitie began to worke so that there was need of caution Pergamus and Smirna point at those times when Arianisme and Popery got up and did domineere Thiatira resembles the times wherein the Church began to rise and get from under the power of Antichrist and they being in their rise their workes are commended to bee more at last than first

enough Gen. 33 9. but Jacob hath all None so rich as the people of God they have in their possession all the fine gold and rich raiment they are well clad and richly furnished and they should live answerably they have got such a bargaine at the hands of Jesus Christ as hath made them for ever and they should rejoyce in their condition rich men please themselves in telling their gold and thinking of their wealth let the Christian looke upon his graces and priviledges with delight and take great contentment in them Secondly He that hath tryed gold needs not feare the touch-stone he that hath tryed graces needs not feare further tryalls It ought to be the care of every one to see that his graces be of a right kind that he have gold not brasse Many Protestants in the Church of England have too much pleased themselves with Copper Faith or they have taken a guilded glistering piece of wood for gold there is that which lookes like faith and zeale and love but is not so indeed Wee should try all things wee take not a piece of gold or silver but weigh and ring it because wee would not be deceived and it were a shame for a man to put off his Commodities and thinke he hath made a good bargaine when the money that he receives is false and counterfeit Coine It is an evill thing to rest in a shew or forme of godlinesse all that comes of it is to be thought by out selves and others that wee are Religions The Pharisees had a name they were esteemed by the ignorant people to be devoute but what will that availe in the day when our workes must be tryed by fire It is onely gold a solid metall that will indure the fire hay and stubble and all light stuffe will burne and consume away Luther speakes of one Arsenius that had eminent gifts and made a profession of Religion and was more forward then others who being sick his friends and acquaintance visited him and for his comfort told him that he could not but have a great deale of joy and peace that was farre before many others in Religion he answered them That he had not so much comfort as they imagined and he now found it to be with his soule not according to what they thought of him but according to the judgement that God passed upon him and God judgeth said he not after an outward appearance but with a righteous judgement It were a vain thing in a man that being Arrested and going to Prison should charge the Officers with doing him wrong because he was esteemed by all his nighbours a rich man and worth many thousand pounds in such a case the name of a rich man will neither free from danger nor pay debts But he that hath this tryed gold hath enough to pay his debts and a stock to live upon besides he feares no danger no trouble no persecution not death no not the fiery tryall for his tryed gold will hold out and passe for currant when all gilding will wash off and waste away Great then may be the comfort of such as looke after truth and the realitie of graces they are happy both in life and death they are rich and shall carry their wealth with them into Heaven You must part with your friends when you dye and you must leave your riches behind you but your graces shall goe with you Vincent in Specul Mora. To set out the dignitie of them above your materiall gold One tells you a Story of a man that had a Suit and when his Cause was to be heard he applyed himselfe to three friends to see what they would doe with him one answered him he would bring him as farre on his journey as he could the second promised him to go with him to his journeys end the third ingaged himselfe to goe with him before the Judge and to speak for him and not to leave him till his Cause was heard and determined These three are a mans Riches his friends and his graces his riches will helpe him to comfortable accommodations while they stay with him but they may take their wings and flye away from him before he dye His friends and kindred they will goe with him to his journeys end bring him to the grave and interre his body then they leave him to his graces Misericordia comes desunctorum It is true of that and all other graces Rev. 14.13 they go further accompany the soule when it goes before God and speake for him and doe more for him then the other can doe Blessed are the dead that dye in the Lord they rest from their labours and their workes follow them But sad is the condition of evill men for when they appeare before God there will be no Intercessor for to speak for them their sinnes will dogge them even unto the Tribunall Seat of God and drag them downe to Hell Wee have done with the tryed gold now a word or two of the white raiment by which is understood our Justification and Sanctification Ordinances and Graces and to shew the glory and puritie of them they are set out under white raiment White is a pure colour and betokens innocencie by nature wee are naked but here is a glorious garment White is more excellent then Scarlet for it is a naturall colour and all naturall beautie is above that which is artificiall Mat 6 29. Mat. 17.2 Solomon in all his glory was not like the Lillies of the Field When Christ was transfigured on the Mount his raiment was white and the glorious condition of the Saints in Heaven is set out in this Rev. 19.14 that they shall be clothed with fine linnen white and cleane No doubt this Church was exhorted to looke after their Justification to joyne nothing with the righteousnesse of Jesus Christ who is set out to be white and ruddy Cant. 5.10 and to preserve the doctrine of it pure and cleane and also Sanctification is herein comprised so that the former point is now propounded under another comparison of white raiment and wee are to be perswaded to buy it And therefore consider First It is of necessitie to have raiment wee must not goe naked It is a shamefull imagination in such as in imitation of Adams perfection will pray and preach and heare naked they should be ashamed of it August 14. de Civit. dei c. 12. And wee see that nature teaches us to looke for a covering for the body and the Text perswades us to get this white raiment for the soule food and raiment must be had and men of quality will have garments answerable to their condition and whereas there is varietie of clothing for the body nothing will serve the turne for the soule but this white raiment Rev. 3. wee must have long white robes the righteousnesse of Jesus Christ is long enough to cover us all over Rev. 7. but