Selected quad for the lemma: judgement_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
judgement_n	alive_a	good_a	great_a	52	3	2.0868	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A11603	Sermons experimentall: on Psalmes CXVI. & CXVII. Very vsefull for a vvounded spirit. By William Sclater D.D. sometimes rector of Limsham, and vicar of Pitmister, in Summerset-shire. Published by his son William Sclater Mr. of Arts, late fellow of Kings Colledge in Cambridge, now a priest, and preacher of the Gospel in the city of Exeter, in Devon-shire.	Sclater, William, 1575-1626.; Sclater, William, 1609-1661.	1638 (1638)	STC 21844; ESTC S116824	112,358	217

carefull to seek God in likelihood such as would have made better use of his mercies as Matth. 11.21 These are grounds of this holy Rhetorique which if by your selves you will work upon by meditation Trust me no more if ye finde them not such as will sweeten Gods favours towards you Reasons pressing the performance meditate these First Nothing sooner stops the fountain and current of Gods bounty then doth unthankfulnes this hazards to an utter deprivall as Rom. 1.21 Secondly Or else the blessing shall be scanted in the measure as to the Jews Amos 8.11 Thirdly or else the blessing continued shall turn to a curse and snare unto thee as riches reserved for hurt Eccles 5.13 The word to harden Isa 6.10 knowledge to aggravate sinne and punishment Ioh. 9.41 Secondly according to the measure of bounty and favour contemned or slighted so usually is the measure of wrath in the day of visitation Matth. 11.23 Jews highliest advanced in Gods favours Never did Nation under the sunne drink deeper of his wrath see Deuter. 28. Levit. 26. And my feet from falling Whether means he into penall misery and mischief or into sinne There is Lapsus moralis as 1 Cor. 10.12 Erre I or would David here be understood of sinning so Psal 73.2 My feet were almost gone my steps had wel-nigh slipt And if I be not deceived the cariage of the Text swayeth to such understanding rising still from the lesse to the greater First It is more bounty to be kept from grief then from death for there is a greater enlargement from misery but it is not more bounty to be kept from the sense of affliction then to be kept from death which is the greatest of temporall evills but it is more bounty in a gracious eye to be kept from sinne then from death Secondly How his eyes from tears If not kept from sinne That had sure cost him many a tear as Peter Matth. 26.75 But understand it De lapsu morali so still riseth the gradation to enlarge Gods bounty yea which I count the greatest blessing in these afflictions he kept me steady in my course of piety and suffered not afflictions to sway my heart from him still in a gracious eye the benefit seems greater to be delivered from sinning then from greatest outward affliction that is the reason Saint Paul Rom. 8.37 triumphs over all afflictions 2 Cor. 11. and 12. He counts them his glory his crown but speaking of the prevailing of corruption in particulars he bemoans himself as the miserablest man alive Rom. 7.24 The reason of this is for that rectitude of judgement is so farre vouchsafed that such men sanctified can discern twixt good and evill twixt evill and evill and in their eye Malum culpae is greater then Malum poenae The evill of sinne then the evill of pain For First That makes evill not this Puniri non est malum comparative scilicet sed fieri poena dignum Secondly In afflictions they know they may retain favour of God not so in sinning Thirdly That opposite to increated this to created goodnesse And besides this hahaving tasted the smart of sinne in the soul as who hath not that is Gods What affliction is comparable to that of an accusing conscience When may we hope to fasten this opinion in our multitude to think sinne greater then povertie then death then bonds c. The source of all sinnes is this in the people that in their sensuallity and Epicurisme they will redeem the least affliction with the greatest sinne Rather then want steal kill what not rather then loose life countrey liberty commit idolatry deny Christ rather then be counted odde or singular runne into any sinne of good-fellowship swear swagger drink and be drunken c. rather then feel a little sicknesse runne to sorcerer rather then a little losse in their goods to a Cunning-man a Witch that is saith Isa 8. from the living to the dead from God to the devill Oh that Christians had learned but what some heathens thought that to be vertuous is more happinesse then to have the wealth of Xerxes the pleasure of the Epicure the Dominions of Alexander the honour of the great Cyrus or Darius That it is more miserable to be vitiously inclined then to endure the poverty of Irus Learn I beseech you learn herein to reform and rectifie your judgements see Ioseph Gen. 39.9 How shall I commit this great wickednesse and sinne against God To this end meditate First The unavailablenesse of all outward benefits to stead us in the day of Gods wrath What then can be like to this Isa 38.3 I have walked before thee in the truth and uprightnesse of my heart Secondly What hazard thou makest of soul for fulfilling the lust of the body thou wilt be enclined to make Moses his choice Heb. 11.25 To suffer afflictions then to enjoy pleasures of sinne Thirdly How do we forget That for all these things the Lord shall bring us to judgement Eccles 11.9 Fourthly Fear him that can cast body and soul into hell Luke 12.5 c. Secondly Try we our selves by this I do not say all grace stands in this for I know a naturall mans judgement may be so farre cleared as to confesse it is greater evill to sinne then to be afflicted and yet it is something as Paul speaks * Phil. 1.10 To dis●ern the things that differ And surely He is not farre from the kingdome of God who hath his judgement thus farre rectified But First In whom judgement so farre works that when the least sinne is offered or a great affliction chuseth rather to be afflicted then to sinne against God he hath in him something supernaturall Secondly He that can more heartily thank God for this that he hath delivered from the power of sinne then from bodily calamities he hath in him something supernaturall Thirdly He whom this meditation calms in his pressure Well though God suffer me thus to be afflicted yet he hath delivered from the power of darknesse he hath kept me from sinning against him and in that meditation findes contentment that man hath in him something supernaturall And tell me thou that art so much discontented at the course of Gods providence in dispensing outward blessings To whether of the two thinkest thou is he most bountifull To thee whom he hath made rich in faith though poor in this world or to those Epicures and worldlings whose bellies he fils with his hid treasure yet suffers to live in dominion of the * 2 Tim. 2.26 Devill Lazarus or the Glutton Say not therefore Gods wayes are not equall even now thou mayest discern betwixt the righteous the unrighteous if thou knowest how to value blessing with blessing and to give the spirituall preheminence above the temporall My feet from falling Yet warily understand Not as if David had not at all sinned under his afflictions for see vers 11. his extravagancie in his passionate censures and story testifies

for God and desire to do good to his Church willingly suffering the respit of their own glorious reward to the end they might though on hardest tearms bring glory to God and do him service in the land of the living Therefore this reason themselves give alwayes First For that they saw the one half then of them which also was made to be an instrument of Gods service to lie brute and senslesse in the grave Secondly For that they desired to benefit the generation then living and to propagate Gods praise to succeeding posterities Psal 71.18 Isa 38.19 20. See also Psal 30. and 88. and 6. and 115. Beloved Remarkable is Gods providence to me in casting me without any thought or choice of man upon a Text presenting to my memorie even according to the time this great mercy of God to my soul delivering my soul from the pit of corruption that I might yet live to do him service in the land of the living Worthy were my tongue to cleave to the roof of my mouth my right hand for ever to forget her cunning if I should now forget or passe over with silence the great love God hath shewen to my soul in delivering it from the pit of corruption O Lord enlarge my heart to praise thee At Bristoll Even upon this day according to the time of life this time twelve moneths was I in the jaws of death none that beheld me saw so much as the least hope of life my soul had not the least commerce with the body so farre as I know Much about this hour God was pleased graciously to look upon me to shew me some glimpse of his mercy some beginnings of life some hope that I should walk before him in the land of the living and hitherto by Gods mercy I live performing him weak but hearty service in his Church Lord what is man that thou so visitest him Who am I the least of all Saints the chief of all sinners on whom thou thus magnifiest thy mercie What is that service poor I have done What that service thou reservest me to do O Lord be pleased to reveal it unto me to make me worthy by thy grace chearfully to perform it Da quod jubes jube quod vis for thou hast redeemed my soul from hell my life from death thou hast continued abilities and opportunity to do thee service to walk before thee in the land of the living Blessed be thy glorious Name O Father of mercies and God of all consolation blessed be thy Name for ever and ever and let all thy people say Amen Secondly Correct that errour of your judgements wherein I know you please your selves many of you ignorantly as if it were a matter of grace more then ordinary to pray for death untimely in respect of the tearm of nature This hold for a Rule I dare say it is certain While God gives ability to do him service or opportunity or hath use of us in meanest service be it but as David to declare Gods righteousnesse to the generation present as Hezekiah the father to the childe to shew Gods truth Isa 38.19 so long ought we to desire to live we sinne in wishing our premature death And well weigh it and tell me whether such desires upon what ground soever argue not rather self-love more love of our selves then of our God when God hath use of our service on earth to wish our selves out of the world Who can shew me any Saint of God in old or new Testament who ever made prayer to God or approved himself in the desire of death when God had use of him here in the land of the living without apparant fault Elias * 1 Kings 19.4 14. he indeed in a passion prayes unto God for death and his reason mark which should have been a reason rather to move him to pray for preservation of life because now there was so great use of his service for the benefit of the Church That of Iob and Ier. 3. and Ier. 20. are apparantly passionate wishes of flesh and blood arising from discontent at their crosses which I think no gracious man allows in himself or another And make what pretences you will I dare undertake to evidence the prayers the desires are sinfull to wish death as long as there is ability or opportunity to do God any service upon earth or use of service upon earth First That of * Iob 6. Iob upon this ground I have not yet denied the words of the holy One seems fair neither can I blame his fear of his own infirmity but yet there was faithlesnesse in the wish for hath not God promised to support 1 Cor. 10.13 Secondly That of imperfection of grace and sinnes by defect in the service of God is as plausible as any thing to legitimate the desire yet it proceeds from a false ground It is false that the longer we live the more we sinne if we be Gods the longer we live the lesse we sinne sinne is mortified daily and we bring forth * Psal 92.14 more fruit in our age Thirdly That of evills to come from which to be taken away aforehand is promised as a favour Isa 58.1 and 2 Kings 22.20 yet warrants not the wish This let us be assured of First Simply if we speak Proroguing of life to the utmost tearm of nature is the blessing untimely death simply considered is the judgement That it turns to a blessing is by accident it is a blessing by accident Secondly I do not think but Iermi●hs blessing was in the fruit as great as Iosiahs for though Iosiah saw not the evill yet Ieremiah endured the evill with patience in the mean time did service to God in sustaining his Church I●siah went before Ieremiah to heaven Ieremiah had more glory in his time In a word Some God takes away from evills to come in mercy and favour they are such as he sees likely to be overcome of the evills in that respect he shews them favour others he reserves to taste the evills to give testimony to his truth To them this is a favour yea and simply the greater favour Is the question which is rather to be desired Answ Simply if we speak Prerogation of life for that is natively the blessing Secondly For the comparison it is to be me●sured by the quality and state of the persons Hath God use of their service upon earth First They ought to preferre Gods glory before their own salvation Secondly They shall be assured God will give issue with the temptation 1 Corinth 10.13 Thirdly Neither loose they ought in the measure of their reward as according to pleasures in sin so much torment so according to pains in this life is the measure of our glory If you will ask me how we shall know whether God hath use of our service upon earth Surely The question is obscure and curious to be measured onely by continuance of abilities opportunities or calling from God