Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
lord_n	blood_n	body_n	cup_n	12,251	5	9.5859	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89235	Miscellanea spiritualia: or, Devout essaies: composed by the Honourable Walter Montagu Esq.; Miscellanea spiritualia. Part 1.	Montagu, Walter, 1603?-1677.; Marshall, William, fl. 1617-1650, engraver.	1648 (1648)	Wing M2473; Thomason E519_1; ESTC R202893	256,654	397

of whom I may say with the Apostle That in the midst of a perverse generation they have shined as lights in the world their mindes seeming to be kindes of Spiritual fixed Stars which never altered their distances from the Earth and intended onely the finishing their course at the same time imparting light unto the world by divers irradiations respective to their positions therein either of Prayer or other Edifications Wherefore of such habits of minde the Holy Spirit saith The path of the just is as the shining light that proceedeth even to perfect day which is Contemplation consummated when the day-Star whereby Saint Peter expresseth it shall be risen in our hearts whereof these acts of our intellect seem to be some inchoative or imperfect rays and to give you as fair a view as I can of this abstruse object I shall set it in the most luminous definition I can deliver it out of the mouth of S. Augustine Contemplation is a clear in t 〈…〉 on and a delightful admiration of perspicuous Verities so that the minde in that state may be said to walk in the meridional light of Faith towards the incomprehensible clarity of perfect vision and this light of Grace wherein a pure Contemplative Soul inhabiteth may me thinks be said to hold some such proportion to the purer light of glory she expecteth as the sight which the three Apostles had of Christs Body transfigured on Tabor holds to that they are to have of it glorified in Heaven for as the brightness of Lightning and the cand or of Snow did in some measure represent to them the far transcending lustre and beauty that was to be looked for in his Body beatified so these admirable intellectual Verities which are the objects of a true Contemplative Soul in this life do in some degree figure to it the unexpressible notions rising out of a fruitive Contemplation of the increated Verity insomuch as these elevated Spirits may be conceived to have such a kinde of advantage over others who may also be faithful in lower stations of Christianity as the three Disciples called up to Tabor had of them that were left below the Mountain For certainly this sight must have imprinted in their mindes a more lively and affecting image of the amiableness of glorified Bodies then the others could apprehend But as Christ admitted few even of his Apostles to this sight of him so doth God vouchsafe to select and elevate but very few to this superlative pitch of Contemplation of whom we may say with the Psalmist This is the generation of them that seek the face of the God of Jacob who we know was one of the most eminent in this high vocation feeding on this bread of Angels and having this Spiritual Manna show●red down upon him while he was feeding the flocks of others in a servile obligation And holy David in all his exterior bitternesses tasting of this Spiritual reflection saith as it were this Grace to it How great is the multitude of thy sweetness O Lord which thou hast hid for them that fear thee thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy face from the disturbance of men This expresseth well their state of minde which is covered from the sight of the world in the secret of Gods face that is in his most private and reserved kindenesses and as God hideth himself in his own inaccessible light so such Souls adhering unto God and becoming as the Apostle ●aith one Spirit are hid to the world in the excessive light of their Graces which common apprehensions cannot penetrate of such mindes we may most peculiarly say Who knoweth the things of such men save the Spirit that is in them which searcheth the deep things of God while their apprehensive faculty perfecteth it self by extracting the pure species of Truth and their affecting power is perfected by transmitting it self exteriorly upon the object that attracteth it Thus the understanding is never satiated by a continual receiving nor the affection ever diminished by an incessant issuing it self out upon the object but doth rather acquire by this perpetual Self-alienation In this admirable commerce doth the true Contemplative Soul negotiate with her own Maker while what is imported from him into the Understanding obligeth the Will to export unto him her faculty of loving and thus knowledge infused draweth forth love and love efused remitteth back fresh illuminations This Angelical correspondence with God the Contemplative Man entertaineth and hath in proportion to his Nature the same priviledge that Angels have when they assume apparent Bodies for their ministery on Earth namely to finde no intermission of their seeing God So in all the exterior offices which the Soul acteth by the ministery of the Body in such persons the Minde doth not remove out of that apprehended presence of God whereof her transitory state is capable insomuch as a profound Contemplator may be said to be never so much alive to this life as when he seemeth to be the most dead to it For in the image of Death when the other powers of his Minde cannot controul his Fancy that may introduce imaginations into him superfluously relative to this life and removed from the scope of all his reasonable cogitations which never move but in a presential reverence of God So that the Natural Man may be said to live in him no longer by the strength or power of his Nature but meerly by the infirmity of it that requireth such a suspension of the Spiritual Man which lives so powerfully in such a person as he seems fully in possession of Christs promise of his Fathers and his coming and making his ab●de with him which according to the division made by the Holy Ghost of the whole Man may be conceived to be done in this maner The Father residing in that portion called the Soul as it importeth the Origine of all vital operations the Son resting in the Minde as that is the seat of our actual intelligence or understanding and both of them may be said to expirate and breathe forth the Holy Ghost into the Heart as that is taken for the continent of our affections and by this means the whole Man cometh as near the loving God with all his Soul with all his Minde and with all his Heart as this traverse and interposed vail of Flesh and Blood can admit him forgetting with Saint Paul the things that are behinde and stretching forth himself to those that are before by this constant Application preserving the whole Spirit Soul and Body without blame to the coming of our Lord Christ Jesus Considering then the properties of these golden vessels of Charity placed within the outward vale of the Temple and looking continually towards the Propitiatory seated within the inward vale which figured the beatifical vision even their Bodies may be well compared to the grate upon the Altar of Incense from which all the ashes of carnal appetites

of Union so familiar Subversions of all Foundations of Government and Superiority such an alternative transmutation of all p●ivate Fortunes from one into another as they who look but upon the Theatre of this world which needeth but History for the maker of his Scenes cannot wonder justly at any part which is put upon their particular To those then that shall repiningly lament their turns or expect their exemption I may safely apply the Prophet Jeremy's Commission against this pretence The Lord saith thus Behold that which I 〈◊〉 built I will break down and that which I have planted I will pluck up over this whole Land and seekest thou great things for thy self seek them not §. VI. Some special Meditations proposed proper for the divertisement of our Minde I Have upon my ruminating on the Stories of the world been presented often with such an imagination as may prove Instructive as well as Recreative to such Moral Chymicks as can extract a ●alt out of the freshest matters their mindes do work upon I have thought one that had the Historical Map of the world lying before his thoughts might suppose himself seated upon a high Rock and looking down upon a fair and vast prospect divided into some Cities and Palaces of the one side on the other into lovely Gardens and pleasant Groves or fruitful Fields and Pastures and suddenly seeing a Mine playing upon the Cities and all sorts of things blown up confusedly into the Ayr where Princes and People are broken and mangled indifferently the Chains of the Prisoners flying up and shivering perhaps the Crowns that laid them on and many other civil dissipations that may be adapted to the confused eruptions of Mines and being affrighted at this dismal object he turneth his Eye upon the Fields Gardens and Groves as flying into priviledged Retreats exempt from such violent distractions and presently he findeth an Earthquake playing as I may say upon all of them successively in their several turns rending the Cedars deflowering the Gardens swallowing the fruits of the Campagnes and Vineyards leaving all the pleasure of his Prospect inverted into objects of Horror and Amazement The Story of the world doth often afford such a kinde of Representation sometimes it presenteth a fair view of glorious MONARCHS and flourishing Nations symbolized by the Magnificence of Cities and Palaces high and eminent Prosperity in the Grandees of the Earth figured by the Cedars plentiful and opulent private Estates emblem'd by the pregnancy of the Fields happy and easie 〈…〉 d ●y the orderly sweetness of Gardens All these conditions the Story of every Age sheweth shattered in pieces by some violent Changes and Subversions Thus much light may be derived from our ascen 〈…〉 the upper stories of this Fabrick of the Universe whi●● overlook this Earth by a narrative view onely of the condition and constitution of this world Surely the Prince of this World knew not who he carried to the top of the Mountain to tempt by the Glories of that Prospect ●e understood him better afterward when he begg'd of him not to be cast out of the world himself and ●●ed to him but for a few Swine to whom he had before offered the whole world But when the Holy Spirit carrieth any o●● up to the Mountain of Contemplation the object 〈…〉 poseth of the subjacent Earth is not onely illumi●a 〈…〉 but operative he doth not simply inform the understanding in the estate but rectifieth the will in the estimation of this world Saint Paul looked down upon the Earth from 〈◊〉 Mountain when he proclaimed that The figure of t 〈…〉 world passeth away And Saint John whose Spirit was 〈◊〉 were exhaled above the Earth by that heat it felt always of the Divine bosom dis●●rned clearly this 〈…〉 uctuant state of our Globe when he advertiseth us Th●s the world pass 〈…〉 away and the concupiscences thereof They who take then either of these guides Reason o● Grace to carry them up to this cli●● of Meditation may ●ast down their thoughts in a ●alm despection of all tho●e shining attractives which they see to be so 〈…〉 y they that contemplate this universal undermining of all 〈◊〉 stations need no● wonder nor complain to ●●●de them 〈…〉 ●●rn from the upper part of the world and ●unk under the earth in the playing of the Mine They who are as it were thus 〈…〉 and b●●yed in a prison let them imagine themselves in that posture where in the playing of the Mine hath laid them and so be conf 〈…〉 d as involved in the general constitution of this hollow and unfaithful world and by figuring to themselves this 〈◊〉 of the Universe they may conclude That the wall● which inclose them are undermined also by the common instability of all Fortunes and when the time co 〈…〉 h that the Train of Change taketh fire then they are to be carried in●● another position So that the impermanency of all thing● 〈…〉 y which doth deduct so much from our Temp●●ary ●elicity may be by these thoughts made to 〈◊〉 proportionably the sence of our secular adversity Thus by the advice of Natural Reason we may derive much stability of minde from the infidelity of all 〈◊〉 ‑ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Na● Philosophy proposeth to 〈◊〉 a firmer settlement of our Spirits upon our duty to Nature and ●h●rgeth any 〈◊〉 or 〈…〉 lousness in what state soever of distress with sedition and 〈◊〉 even against the Laws of N 〈…〉 ●●●ce it is by the order of the Universe we stand 〈◊〉 with all o●● private grievances insomuch as to di 〈…〉 fro 〈…〉 tha● order see 〈…〉 an a 〈…〉 mpt of our wishes to confuse and discompose the whole frame of Nature These and many other 〈…〉 adings do the S●o●c●s make to intitle rectified Reason to this power of con●erving the minde in an estate of imperturbation amidst the changes and translations of all vicis●●●udes But to Christians these melodious voyces of the Philosophers serve but as Musique to their Church Anthemes for they are the sacred words of our Faith put into the airs of Humane Elegancy that make the Musique Religious nor the 〈◊〉 of their sweet perswasions whereunto single Philosophy doth but report I may therefore ●itly present you with this holy Lesson of the great Apostle St. Peter We have a firmer word of Prophesie which we do well to attend to as unto a light that shineth in a dark place in all the obscurities of our Fortunes we have the day-Star of Faith shining in our hea 〈…〉 in respect of which all Philosophy is but Lamp-light that giveth us a clear sight of the Providence of God in all our turnings and transportations we have this Word even of God himself organized by the voyce of the Evang 〈…〉 Prophet I form the light and create darkness I make 〈◊〉 and create evil 〈…〉 I the Lord do all these things The answer of a Christian therefore is well made for us by the Prophet

●eremy in Prison and in all the bitter tastes of these cups of Gods mingling as the Psalmist found before him My 〈◊〉 is g●ie 〈…〉 but I have said Truly this is my grief and I ●ust bear it The belief of Gods special design in all things 〈◊〉 befal us must answer all the perplexities of a Christian and we have not onely this order but this ability imparted to us from our suffering Head whose members working by 〈◊〉 vertue of his animation cannot say●less to God the Father then Not my will but thine O Lord be done This little intermixture of a Garden-plat or patern 〈◊〉 both with the flowers of Nature and the fruits of Grace may be no unpleasant walk or 〈◊〉 for the uncon●●ned 〈◊〉 tion of some solitary Prisoner to whom I dedicate 〈◊〉 piece of Entertainment which I hope may in some 〈◊〉 water and refresh his minde and help to keep it in this temper of the Prophet Her leaf green in this time of droug 〈…〉 and not ceasing to yield fruit §. VII Some speculations suggested to recreate our Spirits in sufferance and to invigorate our Faith IF I have made any extraordinary discovery of Springs passing so long through this Desert in my journey ou● of Egypt unto the Land of Promise I hold my self bound to set the best marks I can upon all such Refreshments that they may the easilier be resorted to by such as by any accident shall be engaged in this desolate Peregrination and I need not fear to be tedious in this office no more then Physicians in their attendances upon Patients I will impart therefore another Receit I have found very efficacious which is mixed with the wine of Philosophy and the oyl of Divinity it hath both the quickness and vigor of Reason to work upon our Fancy and the unction of Faith also to supple and molifie the unpleasantness of our Nature in these constraints of Solitude This is then the prescript to make even the multiplicity of the evils and diseases of this life medicinal unto us by considering how many we are free from of those we might easily have altogether as for Example If we are in Prison and in health to remember we have a greater blessing then that we want and how much ●reer we are then diseased Princes close Prisoners within their Curtains If we chance to be sick and in Prison both at once we may consider That we have as much of this violent restraint taken off from us as is imposed upon us by this Natural one in which we are cōmitted by our own body since in this case all states are reduced to the same confinement being under the Arrest of Sickness and therefore our liberty may seem as it were recover 〈◊〉 by our infirmity since no body is in pain to want what they could make no use of if they possessed it The more then we have of this evil of sickness the lest we have of this other of imprisonment for the sicker we are the less capable we become of the use of liberty so that we may say Nature seem●th to have provided that the 〈…〉 of our bodily evils should cure the next worst of our corp 〈…〉 su 〈…〉 s since the wa●● of health 〈◊〉 prop 〈…〉 nately to remedy the privation of liberty And again if this violent separation from the world ●e but the policy of an adverse party to intercept all ou● contributions to the promoting of the cause which they impu 〈…〉 then we may reflect how much better our condition is then if we were under the indignation of some inh 〈…〉 tyrannies which use tor●●res as instruments which 〈…〉 curiosities play upon to draw those tunes out of th 〈…〉 their fancies or their fears have set and ●o such mis 〈…〉 we may remember our selves to be exposed thus we 〈◊〉 discourse over all the mischiefs of this life wh 〈…〉 we might have ben condemned and it is likely we shall finde upon this accompt the number of our exemptions in our present stare a just mitigation of our senten 〈…〉 this ingenious diligence of our reason we may finde 〈…〉 be●s enough of miseries that stand as I may say Neu 〈…〉 and levying them thus by our meditation we may bring th●● in to our succor to defeat those which are actually declared against us whereby we may be said to overthrow 〈…〉 the multitude of her own forces while by ou● 〈◊〉 ptions from so many of the worlds greater ●alamiti●s 〈…〉 facilitate the cariage of our owne portion and by the 〈…〉 of the Gospel we may properly make in this occa 〈…〉 those which are not against us to be with us This little hint will serve to lead our thoughts into 〈…〉 fields of meditation upon the numerous in 〈…〉 of 〈…〉 Age which surrounding by enemies the more it 〈…〉 the likelier it is to draw our eyes up to the mo 〈…〉 with the Psalmist from whence we may expect our 〈…〉 and looking faithfully up to those hills with the 〈…〉 we shall de●ery supernatural Auxiliaries whereof we may truly say ●o our fearfull se●ses as to our amazed servants 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for there are more with us then against us I have set most of my spiritual notions with the foilies of humane perswasions considering how much such conjunctions conduce to a be●tering the water of the jewels of Divinity into the eyes of our nature S. Paul used this art when he was content to speak after the maner of men for the infirmity of our flesh But now I will present you with an advise sincerely Divine without any plau●ible adjunction to illustrate it which is in this order of distributing the day I have proposed to assign some special part of every day the measure whereof I do not define to a serious meditation upon the immensity of eternity and the momentariness of this life we may consider the time of all ages like a little globe of smoke vanishing into the vast region of air for all time holds less proportion to eternity then the least vapor doth to the whole air into which 〈…〉 s vanished if then the duration of all time be so disproportioned to eternity when we sever our single part in this point of time how neer a Nothing must it appear to us and it may be the time of our suffering is but a small parcel even of our own life This computation must needs shew us the shortness of that time which our weak Nature thinks often long measuring it not as it is in flu● but as it seemeth staying in our ●aney and distant from some earthly de●ire whereunto we would be carried and so this our miscounting of the length of time ariseth always from this error that we do not reckon upon it as it is in motion towards eternity but rather regard it under the notion of a remora or retardment in that haste we have to satisfie some passion in pursuit whereof Time it self seemeth too slow