Selected quad for the lemma: justice_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A44311
|
Some necessary and important considerations (to be consider'd of by all sorts of people) taken out of (that late worthy and renowned judge) Sir Matthew Hale's writings, and therein his own experience of the inward and invisible guidance of the spirit of God.
|
Hale, Matthew, Sir, 1609-1676.
|
1697
(1697)
|
Wing H261; ESTC R17681
|
7,589
|
16
|
SOME Necessary and Important CONSIDERATIONS TO BE Consider'd of by all sorts of People Taken out of That late Worthy and Renowned Judge Sir MATTHEW HALE's WRITINGS And therein His own Experience of the Inward and Invisible Guidance of the Spirit of GOD. The Righteous shall be had in Everlasting Remembrance Psal CXII 6. Blessed are the Dead that Die in the LORD They Rest from their Labours and their Works follow them The Tenth Edition LONDON Printed 1697. And are freely given away by me who am given up to Spend and be Spent for the Everlasting Well-being of all Mankind John Pennyman Mr. Baxter's Character of Judge Hale SIR Matthew Hale That Vnwearied Student That Prudent Man That Solid Philosopher That Famous Lawyer That PILLAR and BASIS of JUSTICE who would not have done an Vnjust Act if or any Worldly Price or Motive That Godly Serious Practical Christian The Lover of Goodness and all Good Men. That great Contemner of the Riches Pomp and Vanity of the World Who while He fled from the Honour that persu'd Him was yet made Lord Chief Justice of the Kings-Bench after His being long Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer Living and Dying with the most Vniversal Love and Honour and Praise that ever did any English Subject in this Age or any that just History doth acquaint us with c. JUdge Hale was a Person well Known yet Unknown a Publick yet Hidden Man which State was and is as yet known but to few He that Reads this Little Book in a Serious and Weighty Mind may as in a Glass plainly see how it is betwixt GOD and his own Soul What Man is he that Feareth the LORD Him shall HE Teach in the way that HE shall chuse Psal 25.12 SOME Necessary and Important CONSIDERATIONS c. The following is taken out of The Great Audit With the Account of The Good Steward As Touching my Conscience I Have been very diligent to keep my Conscience Clean to Incourage It in the Vicegerency that THOU the great LORD of the World hast given It over my Soul and Actions I have kept It in the Throne and greatest Reverence and Authority in my Heart In Actions to be Done or Omitted I have always Advised with It and taken Its Advise I have neither Stifled nor Forced nor Bribed It but gave It a free Liberty to Advise and Speak out and a free Subjection of my Will Purposes and Actions to It. If through Importunity of Temptations c. I have at any time done Amiss I have not taken Her up short or stopped Her Mouth or my own Attention to Her Chiding and Reproof but I have with much Submission of Mind born Her Chastisement and improved it to an Humbling of my self before THEE for my Failings for I looked upon Her as Acting by THY Authority for THY Service and to THY Glory and I durst not Discourage Discountenance or Disobey Her When She was Pleased and gave me Good Words I was Glad for I esteemed Her as a Glass that represented to my Soul the Favour or Displeasure of GOD Himself and how HE stood affected towards me I have more Trembled under the Fear of a Seared or Discouraged Conscience than under the Fear of a Sharp or Scrupulous Conscience because I always accounted the Latter tho' more Troublesome yet more Safe I have been very jealous either of Wounding or Grieving or Discouraging or Deadning my Conscience I have therefore chosen rather to forbear that which seemed but Indifferent lest there should be some-what in it that might be Unlawful and would rather Gratifie my Conscience with being too Scrupulous than Displease Disquiet or Flat It by being too Venturous I have still chosen rather to Forbear what might be Probably Lawful than to Do that which might be Possibly Unlawful because I could not Err in the Former I might in the Latter I have been careful to advise Impartially with my Conscience before my Actions But lest I had commited any thing Amiss either in the Nature or Manner of the Action I commonly every Night brought my Actions of the Day past before the Judicatory of my Conscience and left Her to a Free and Impartial Censure of them and what She Sentenced Well Done I with Humility returned the Praise thereof to THY Name what She Sentenced Done Amiss I did humbly sue unto THEE for Pardon and for Grace to prevent me from the like Miscarriages By this means I kept my Conscience Active Renewed and preserved my Peace with THEE and learned Vigilance and Caution for the Time to come Touching THY Creatures I have not only looked upon THY Blessings and Bounty in Lending me THY own Creatures for my Use but I have sought unto THEE for a Blessing upon them in my Use of them I did very well observe That there is by my Sin a Curse in the very Creatures that I receive unless THY Blessing fetch it out an Emptiness in them unless THY Goodness fill them Tho' THOU shouldest give me Quails and Manna from Heaven yet without THY Blessing upon them they would become Rottenness and Putrifaction to me and therefore I ever begg'd THY Blessing upon THY Blessings as well as the Blessings themselves and attributed the Good I Found or was to Expect in them to the Same HAND that Gave them I received and used THY Creatures as committed to me under a Trust and as a Steward and Accomptant for them and therefore I was always careful to use them according to those Limits and in order for those Ends for which THOU didst commit them to me 1st With Temperance and Moderation I did not use THY Creatures to Luxury and Excess to make Provision for my Lusts with vain Glory or Ostentation but for the convenient Support of the Exigencies of my Nature and Condition and if at any time THY Goodness did indulge me an Use of them for Delight as well as Necessity I did it but Rarely and Watchfully I looked not upon the Wine when it gave its colour in the Cup nor gave my self over either to Excess or Curiosity in Meats or Drinks I checked my Self therein as being in THY Presence and still remembred I had THY Creatures under an Accompt and was ever careful to avoid Excess or Intemperance because every Excessive Cup and Meal was in danger to leave me some-what in Super and Arear to my LORD 2dly With Mercy and Compassion to the Creatures themselves which THOU hast put under my Power and Disposal When I considered the Admirable Powers of Life and Sense which I saw in the Birds and Beasts and that all the Men in the World could not give the like Being to any thing nor restore that Life and Sense which is once Taken from them When I considered how Innocently and Harmlesly the Fowls and Fish and Sheep and Oxen take their Food that THOU the LORD of All hast given them I have been apt to think that surely THOU didst intend a more Innocent kind of
Food to Man than such as must be taken with such Detriment to those Living parts of THY Creation and although THY wonderful Goodness hath so much Indulged to Man-kind as to give up the Lives of these Creatures for the Food of Man by THY express Commission yet I still do and ever did think that there was a Justice due from Man even to these Sensible Creatures that he should take them Sparingly for Necessity and not for Delight or if for Delight yet not for Luxury I have been apt to think That if there were any more Liberal use of Creatures for Delight or Variety it should be of Fruits or such other Delicacies as might be had without the loss of Life But however it be this very Consideration hath made me very Sparing and Careful not Vainly or Superfluously or Unnecessarily or Prodigally to take away the Life of THY Creatures for Feasting and Excess And the very same Consideration hath always gone a long with me in reference to the Labour of THY Creatures I have ever thought that there was a certain degree of Justice due from Man to the Creatures as from Man to Man and that an excessive immoderate unseasonable Use of the Creatures Labour is an Injustice for which he must Accompt To deny Domestical Creatures their convenient Food to exact that Labour from them that they are not able to perform to use Extremity or Cruelty towards them is a breach of that Trust under which the Dominion of the Creatures was committed to us and a breach of that Justice that is due from Men to them and therefore I have always esteemed it as part of my Duty and it hath been always my Practice to be Merciful to my Beasts and upon the same Account I have ever esteemed it a breach of Trust and have accordingly declined any Cruelty to any of THY Creatures and as much as I might prevented it in others as a Tyranny inconsistent with the Trust and Stewardship that THOU hast committed to me I have abhorred those Sports that consist in the Torturing of the Creatures and if either Noxious Creatures must be Destroyed or Creatures for Food must be Taken it hath been my Practice to do it in that manner that may be with the least Torture or Cruelty to the Creature and I have still thought it an Unlawful thing to Destroy those Creatures for Recreation-sake that either were not Hurtful when they Lived or are not Profitable when they are Killed ever remembering that tho THOU hast given us a Dominion over THY Creatures yet it is under a Law of Justice Prudence and Moderation otherwise we should become Tyrants not Lords over THY Creatures and therefore those things of this nature that others have practised as Recreations I have avoided as Sins Touching my Body My Body which was given to Serve and Obey became the Empress and Commanded and Corrupted my Soul Embased and Enslav'd It to Lust and Disorder and my Soul which was given to Rule became but the Slave of my Body I Consider'd That if the business was thus carried my Happiness must be only in this Life and that when Death seiz'd upon me I had an Immortal Soul that had lost Her time wholly in this World and therefore could expect nothing but Vexation and Everlasting Confusion to all Eternity c. Upon these and the like Considerations I Resolved and Practic'd Severity over my Body and refused to Gratify her Intemperate Desires Deny'd them kept them in Awe and under Dissipline and because I found that my Lusts grew Unruly by Variety and Curiossity of Meats and Drinks I Subdued them by Moderate Dyet and Temperance My Table was Sparing to my Self my Cloaths Plain my Retinue and Attendance but Necessary I chased away my Lusts with the Contemplations of the Presence of GOD the End of CHRIST's Sufferings the Certainty yet Uncertainty of Death the State after Death and mingled all my Enjoyments and Desires with these serious and cleansing Considerations and I Peremptorily refused to gratify the cravings of an Inordinate Sensual Appetite and did resolutely let them know they should not might not expect any better dealing from me and my Practice was accordingly Concerning my Wealth The more I had the more was my Care and the greater the Charge that I had under my Hands and the more was my Solicitude to be a Faithful Steward of it to the Honour and Use of my MASTER but my part was the least that was in it Indeed I rejoyced in this that my MASTER esteemed me Faithful committing the Dispensation thereof to my Trust but I thought it no more mine than the Lords Baily or the Merchants Cash-keeper thinks his Masters Rents or Mony his And therefore thought it would be a breach of my Trust to Consume or Embezil that Wealth in Excessive Superfluities of Meat Drink or Apparel or in advancing my Self or my Posterity to a massy or huge Acquest Touching my Reputation Tho' I have loved my Reputation and have been vigilant not to lose or impair it by my own Default or Neglect yet I have looked upon it as a brittle thing a thing that the Devil aims to hit in a special manner a thing that is much in the Power of a False Report a Mistake a Mis-apprehension to wound and hurt Notwithstanding all my Care I am at the Mercy of Others without GOD's wonderful over-ruling Providence And as my Reputation is the esteem that Others have of me so that Esteem may be Blemished without my Default I have therefore always taken this care not to set my Heart upon my Reputation I will use all Fidelity and Honesty and take care it shall not be lost by any Default of mine and if notwithstanding all this my Reputation be soiled by Evil or Envious Men or Angels I will patiently bear it and content my Self with the Serenity of my own Conscience Hic murus ahenius esto The aforesaid Author in His Book Of the Nature of True Religion c. p. 17. c. TRue Religion Teaches and Tutors the Soul to a high Reverence and Veneration of Almighty GOD a Sincere and Upright Walking as in the Presence of the Invisible All-Seeing GOD It makes a Man truly to Love to Honour to Obey HIM and therefore careful to know what HIS Will is It renders the Heart highly Thankful to HIM both as his Creator Redeemer and Benefactor It makes a Man intirely to depend upon HIM to seek to HIM for Guidance and Direction and Protection to Submit to HIS Will with all Patience and Resignation of Soul It gives the Law not only to his Words and Actions but to his very Thoughts and Purposes that he dares not entertain Thoughts unbecoming the Sight and Presence of that GOD to Whom all our Thoughts are Legible It teacheth and bringeth a Man to such a deportment both of External and Internal Sobriety as may be Decent in the Presence of GOD and all HIS Holy Angels It crusheth and casts