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	great_a	lord_n	1,960	5	3.5757	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A07198	Two sermons, preached at the Kings court, this Ianuary, 1620 Concerning Davids adultery, and his politick practices. By Francis Mason, Archdeacon of Norfolk, and Chaplain to his Maiesty in ordinary.	Mason, Francis, 1566?-1621.	1621 (1621)	STC 17600; ESTC S112434	36,020	128

David and Bathsheba To begin with the woman After a while she perceives that she had conceived with child and now shee feares lest the world would take knowledge of her lewd demeanor because her husband had bin so long from home Now therefore though secretly she begins to weepe to mourne and to make lamentation Here is a glasse for all women to looke in even Bathsheba the beautifull She that of late gave her cōsēt to lascivious dalliance now shee se'eth her owne folly now shee is cloathed with shame as with a garment Those radiant and sparkling eyes which so darted love into the eyes of David are now all bebleared and beblubbered with weeping the teares run downe her blushing cheekes she wrings her hands shee rents her goulden haire and with all possible speed she sends unto David saying I am with child as though shee should say ô wretch that I am now my sin can be concealed no longer the matter is plaine my very body will shortly bewray it I carrie my accusation about me on the one side I feare the shame of the world on the other the danger of the Lawe but ô how shall I looke my poore Husband in the face You you were the cause of all this and therefore to you I make my moane alas alas what shall I doe So shee that of late had no regard of conscience is now tormented with an accusing conscience and she that before was not ashamed to sinne now she is ashamed lest her sinne should be knowne But what sayd David to all this for now he is put to his shifts Truly hee sheweth himselfe a notable spectacle of humane frailty for he had a greater care of his credit then of his conscience he was more afraid of the shame of the world then he was of the displeasure of Almighty God and therefore he did palliate his sinne to avoid the shame but he did not repent to avoid the displeasure And so much of the first motive His second motive was the danger of his darling for by the Law of God the adulteresse was to be put to death and therefore lest shee whom hee loved so tenderly should lose her life and that by his meanes hee bends all the strength of his wits to conceale the matter Hitherto of the motives now I come to the meanes that is his politike practices His first policy was to cloake the matter by a false imputation for which purpose Vrias the husband was to bee called home from the campe to the end that he cōversing with his wife might be supposed and reputed the father of the childe Wherein David did not only sin against God and his owne soule but moreover hee intended three notorious iniuries the first against the poor babe the childe begotten of his owne body which by this means he would have disclaimed and renounced even before it was born the second against Vrias to whom he would have obtruded a child by fraud imposture the third against the heirs of Vrias which by this plot might have been disseised and defrauded of their inheritance Here was wisedome I confesse but it was the wisdom of the serpent there wanted the simplicity of the Dove Such was the wisedom of Pharaoh who said Com let us work wisely when hee intended to oppresse the children of God Such was the wisdome of Ieroboam who to establish his Kingdome erected a standard to Idolatry by setting up two goulden Calves in Dan and Bethel This was wisdome but not according unto godliness Wisedome did I say or rather folly for how can that be called wisdom when men are wise to doo evill but to do good they have no understanding And I dare be bold to say that the wisdom of Achitophel the wisdom of Matchiavel and all wicked wisdom howsoever it seeme angelicall howsoever it shine and glister in the eyes of the world yet in true judgement it is nothing else but meer folly for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisedome and therefore where there is not the fear of God there cannot possibly bee any true wisdom David himselfe could somtimes say I understand more then the ancients because I keepe thy precepts Wherfore if a man would be truely wise Let him fear God and walke in his precepts This is wisdome according to godliness which will make a man wise to salvation And as this is the wisdome of every private man so herein likewise consisteth the true wisedome of Kings and Kingdomes of States and Common-wealths For as Moses said to Israel Keep the statutes iudgements of the Lord and doe them for this is your wisedome and understanding in the sight of the nations which shall heare all these statutes and say Surely this great nation is a wise and an understanding people Even so I say to you Let all your wisedome be according to godliness let all your policie be ioyned with pietie in all your consultations aske counsaile of the Lord let the God of Iacob be present chiefe President in all your parliaments and then surely hee will blesse this Land and the nations shall see it and say Surely this nation of Great Brittaine is a wise and an understanding people But to proceed in the story The messenger is gone Vrias is sent for he is come to the Court brought to the King who asketh him how Ioab did and how the people did and how the wars prospered and after kinde communication he gave him a courteous dismission Goe home to thy house and wash thy feet and there followed after him a favour from the King a messe of meate no doubt dainty and delicate that hee and his wife might make merry together But for all this courtly and cunning invitation Vrias went not home to his wife but slept at the gate of the Kings palace Which David understanding sends for him againe and thus expostulates the matter with him in friendly manner d Camst thou not from thy iourney why then didst thou not goe downe unto thy house Thus David pretended great love and friendship unto Vrias whereas in truth hee intended onely to make him a cloak for their iniquitie And is not this the fashion of the world at this day Many will pretend great loue and friendship unto a man when if the truth were known it is onely to serve their owne turnes and in relation to their owne private endes and purposes Hitherto wee have seen Davids courteous invitation and friendly expostulation now let us hearken unto the answere of Vrias He said unto David The Arke and Iudah and Israel abideinaents and my Lord Ioab and his servants are incamped in the open fields shall I then goe home to my house to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife As thou livest and as thy soule liveth I will not doe it First let us cōsider what is meant by this that the Arke aboade in tents And it seemeth to

how pleasant are the ioyes of heaven And what a madnesse is it for a little pleasure of sinne that lasteth but a season and bringeth nothing but repentance to endanger the losse of those eternall ioyes which never eye hath seen nor ever eare hath heard nor ever entered into the heart of man And not so only but also to bee cast into hell-fire there to burne everlastingly with the Divell and his Angels Besides all this what a blemish and scandall would this be to the Church of God How would it grieve the godly reioice the wicked and cause the holy race of God to bee blasphemed O but the matter shall bee carried in secret saith the flesh Alas there is nothing so secret saith the spirit which shall not be revealed if not in this world yet in the world to come before men and Angels And in the meane time hee that formed the eye shall not hee see Hee that planted the eare shall not he heare His eyes are ten thousand times brighter then the sunne all things are open and naked in his sight hee is about thy bedde and about thy path spyeth out all thy wayes While thus the flesh and the spirit were contending together in comes the woman and David beholding her was inflamed with her beauty So while hee looked lust kindled and the flesh prevailed against the spirit And now hee is come even to the brinke of the pit For behold here followeth the sixt step that is temptation Hee that should have beene the protector of her chastitie was not ashamed to tempt her unto folly Thus the infection spred from the eye to the fancy from the fancie to the heart frō the heart to the tongue That tongue which before was his glory is now become his shame and that tongue which had been a great and gracious instrument to sound out the praise of God is now become a wicked instrument to instill the poyson of the subtle Serpent And here somewhat would be said concerning the woman First the bathing of her selfe cannot be reprooved there were many legall impurities which so required But the place was not so secret nor the manner so wary as became the modestie of a woman shee should have considered that every windowe hath an eye and every Tower and Turret might overlooke her Secondly that being sent for shee came to her Soveraigne is not to bee reprehended She had no reason to suspect or imagine any vncleannesse from such a man But when shee saw his speeches tend to dishonestie then shee should haue fled away as from a Serpent shee should have endured a thousand deathes rather then have suffred her body to be polluted But who can tell what womanish cogitations might bewitch her Peter Martyr is of opinion that peradventure she thought a bill of divorce might bee procured from her husband Vrias and then shee by this meanes might become a Queen So dangerous a thing is it when great personages provoke unto sinne Their words are bewitching their perswasions are potent they fill unsettled heads with flattring hopes which blind the understanding and make bold to offend Wherefore all you to whom the Lord hath given honour and riches power and authority see that you perswade to that which is good but do not tempt to that which is evill Or if men should tempt yet women should esteeme their chastitie aboue all earthly treasure A shamefast and a faithfull woman is a double grace and her continent mind cannot bee valued But Bethsheba at this time wanted this grace So David tempted shee consented and then followed the last step that is perpetration so folly was committed in Israel But now mee thinkes I heare the licentious Libertine reioyce and say If David a man of such sanctitie commited adulterie why may not I What do I hear why may not I O wicked and profane wretch if a man of sanctitie commit a sinne wilt thou neglect his sanctitie and imitate his sinne Thou shouldest imitate his sanctitie and bewaile his sin But what a thing is this Wilt thou first observe in Gods Saints their falls of infirmitie and then encourage thy selfe to sinne by example of their frailtie and lastly shrowd thy sinne under the vaile of their sanctitie So did not David He sinned indeed but it was as Saint Austin truely saith Lapsucupiditatis non patrocinio sanctitatis that is He was drawne away by his owne concupiscence and inticed but hee did not provoke himselfe to sinne by other mens example Hee did not propose to imitate their frailtie and then hide his wickednesse under the vaile of their holiness Wherfore if thou commit adulterie by the example of David thy adulterie is farre worse then was the adultery of David Hee sinned of infirmity thou sinnest upon presumption Hee was surprized on a sudden thou sinnest upon premeditation He was carried away captive by a violent passion but thou pullest sinne unto thee as it were with cart-ropes But tell me did David scape unpunished for his sinne Thou knowest hee did not But as he defiled another mans daughter so his owne daughter was defiled even his daughter Thamar and that by her owne brother Ammon As he defiled another mans wife so his owne wife was defiled and that by his owne sonne Absalon upon the top of the house in the face of all Israel in the sight of the sunne Now if iudgement beginne at the sanctuarie of God where shall the wicked and ungodly man appeare If the Lord deal so with the trees of Paradise what will he doe to the bramble of the wildernesse If hee thus punished David dost thou thinke hee will spare thee If hee dealt thus with David dost thou thinke hee will dally with thee No no but rather if hee corrected him with rods hee will scourge thee with scorpiōs Wherfore as thou castest one eye upon the sinne of David so cast thy other eye upon the punishment of David then if there be any grace in thee thou wilt not imitate his sin but tremble at his punishment Now seeing these things were written for our learning therfore let there bee no adulterer no nor fornicatour amongst us but let men keepe themselves undefiled as it becommeth Saints He that commits fornication he wrongs his owne soule his owne body his owne credit and is a dishonor and staine to his fathers house He that commits fornication hee wrongs the woman which hee polluteth and brings a perpetuall disgrace upon her and this disgrace redounds to her father her friends and the whole familie He that commits fornication he wrongs his owne childe and brands it with a perpetuall reproach Finally he that commits fornication he violateth the fiery lawe of the most High and the royall commandement of his God and pulleth downe wrath and vengeance upon his owne head For no fornicator unlesse hee repent shall ever inherit the kingdome of heaven And if fornication be so execrable what shall we say