Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
lord_n	david_n	king_n	solomon_n	11,542	5	9.1098	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61211	A sermon preached before the General Assembly of the colony of Connecticut at Hartford in New England, May 13, 1697 being the day for electing the governour, deputy govenour and assistants, for that colony.	Saltonstall, Gurdon, 1666-1724.	1697 (1697)	Wing S510; ESTC R40168	41,524	82

Blessings and condemn others as the Causes of a Peoples ruine What an honourable Character doth the Spirit of God give us of Moses Joshua and Samuel among the Judges Of David Solomon Jehosaphat and some others among the Kings And what an everlasting Brand of Infamy the Scripture hath set upon those Kings of Judah and Israel that were not so qualified as you have heard is obvious to every one that reads the Chronicles of those times with Observation To this therefore I shall add only these two or three Particulars wherein you may see the Lord commending able and faithful Rulers to us as rich Blessings and condemning others as ruinous 1. It is recommended in Deut. 1.13 and Exod. 18.21 to all that have the liberty and power of Electing Civil Rulers that in their designation of Persons to Places of Authority they should have special regard to their being so qualified And that which then contributed to the happiness of a People cannot now be thought to cross it 2. The Lord gives such Rulers in Mercy to a People In 2 Chron 9.8 It is said concerning Solomon Because thy God Loved Israel to establish them for ever therefore made he thee King over them to do Judgment and Justice It was a blessed Promise that God supported his people with when they were languishing under the miseries of a Government not regarding the Administration of Justice That he would restore them Judges as at the first and Counsellers as at the Beginning Isa 1.26 i. e. such as Moses and Joshua David and Solomon And when such as these are removed from a People their case is awful and God threatens it as a sore Judgment Isa 3.1 2. 3. God sends other Rulers in wrath to a People I gave thee a King in mine anger saith the Lord concerning Saul Hos 13.11 And again Isa 3.4 God threatens that People with this Curse I will give Children to be their Princes and Babes shall rule over them Dreadful are the consequents of this mentioned in the next verse The people shall be oppressed every one by another and every one by his neighbour The Child shall behave himself proudly against the Ancient and the base against the honourable In a word Violence and Insolence will bear down all before them 4. Able and Faithful Rulers have the Promise of God's Presence and Blessing Prov. 29.14 The King that faithfully judgeth the Poor his Throne shall be established for ever 2 Chron 19 ult Deal Couragiously and the Lord shall be with the good And God in blessing them blesseth the whole People When their methods are Prudent their aimes Right their endeavours Vigorous their hearts Valiant their hands Strong and God is pleased to be Crowning them with Success the Publick will reap the benefit It is said Judges 2.7 The People served the Lord all the days of Joshua Joshua faithfully endeavoured it and God smiled upon his endeavours God was with him and the People flourished in Piety and Prosperity but it was not long after Joshua's Head was laid in the Grave before they knew the difference The APPLICATION of the Doctrine may be USE 1. By way of INSTRUCTION Learn hence 1. That it is a signal token of the Divine Favour to a People when they have such men to rule over them Their Promotion cometh not from the East or from the West c. Psal 75.6 7. 'T is God that sets them up and His Love is to be seen in it and ought to be acknowledged 2. What matter of humbling it is to a People when such are either denied unto them or removed from them When the Elders were ceased from the Gate Lam. 5.14 The Prophet saith upon it v. 16. The Crown is fallen from our Heads when good men are taken away it is a sad Omen but when such good men thus removed were good Rulers too it 's much more ominous Such losses are hardly repaired therefore they are a Lamentation and shall be for a Lamentation 3. How much it concerns Rulers to be and approve themselves such men Strong Rods as they would not be charged with the Ruining of their People And that being themselves rich Blessings they themselves might be blessed both of God and men 4. That Those that are Professed Enemies to such a Government as hath Strong Rods to rule or to such Rulers as these are upon no Terms to be born withal But I may not enlarge on these Particulars the chief that I aim at in the Present Improvement of this Truth shall be in two words farther Of Direction and of Exhortation USE II. Of Direction This Doctrine affords Excellent Counsel to all such as have the Power of Choosing and Liberty by divine Providence and the Royal favour of Electing Persons into any Office of Civil Rule and Government among this People And it ought to be taken notice of by you as a necessary Direction in the work that is now before you It highly concerns you to be very careful of not abusing so great a Trust It is a piece of Service that requires your utmost Care and Conscience You are this day to transact a matter of great Importance to the Weal of this People and the Eyes of God and men is upon you Of God to observe your S●i●its Designs and Ends in this Days work to bless you accordingly and the Eyes of Men are upon you some to rejoyce in all the happy effects that may follow your prudent choice others to take advantage of all the follies that you may this day be guilty of I may well conclude my self very much a Stranger to the particular Methods and Customs usual in the manner of your Elections But I suppose whatever s●ep● have been already taken in other places of this Government there are many in this Assembly who are still to give in their Suffrage To whom therefore I would more particularly recommend this Rule that the Doctrine layes before 〈◊〉 and in them to all others that may hereafter be concerned in the same or like aff●●● as that which you ought to attend to It you would not this day do that which will be for a Lamen●ation to this People and remain so ●et your Care then be to Elect such as may be Able for their Places and Faithful in them Don't think your Voices are so your own that you may bestow them upon whom you will meerly because you will Let not that Liberty you have be abused to an undoing Licentiousness Beware of those corrupt and sinister Ends which are too too apt to blind your Judgments and biass your Affections from the Rule thus set before you I shall but hint at some of them There are some of plausible pretences indeed but ungoverned Spirits who in Affairs of this nature consult only their own Humours and choose for such as they hope will most indulge them These had rather they should be in Authority then such as have Wisdom and Spirit to controul them if they have

to you and so Rule this People according to the Laws of God and the King than which nothing can be a stricter tie to those that know and believe that the same God whom they have thus called upon to be a witness of the sincerity and integrity of their hearts in what they are undertaking will if they be either careless or false not suffer them to escape his Righteous Judgment and most severe Reflections 5 Shall I add this one consideration further both to stir you up to and strengthen you in your publick work It is this You have the Royal Favour of a most Gracious Soveraign whom the Divine Providence hath in a wonderful manner raised up and hitherto preserved to be the Bulwark of Religion and Property to the English Israel We are a little Branch of that Vine our Civil Life and Liberty is bound up in theirs we have felt the warmth of those benign Influences which have refreshed the wearied Land of our Fore fathers Sepulchres and as the Prophet Ezekiel speaks chap. 34.27 God hath broken the Bands of the Yoke that were upon us and delivered us out of the Hands of those that would have served themselves of us God who hath the Hearts of Princes in his Hand hath whatever our Enemies have endeavoured to the contrary given you Favour in the sight of the King You have in this respect great opportunity and advantage to be consulting and promoting the things which will be for the Gl●ry of God the Interest of his Kingdom and the Weal of his People According as it is improved we may hope God will prolong it He will not take it well at our hands if it be neglected Give me leave then to say to you that are or may this Day be Rulers over us as once it was said to Ez●a chap. 10.4 This matter belongeth unto you It is your part principally to take care for the Improvement of such an Opportunity and ours to be with you in it When the Lord by whom Princes ●●le maketh them Nursing Fathers to his People it op●●eth a wide door of Liberty and Power to all that derive Authority from them to be in their respective places Rods of Strength for desending and encouraging the Good for suppresling and punishing the Wicked for promoting Piety and Rightcousness and if there be an heart wanting to improve such an advantage we may probably repent it when we can do nothing else Suffer then the Exhortation I beseech you in the words of the Lord which you have in Hag. 2.4 Be strong O Zerubbabel and work Do the work of your publick Capacities with Prudence Honour and Fidelity I am with you saith the lord of Hosts Thus if you approve your selves it will be Honour to God your Comfort our Weal and the rejoycing of all that love God his People There are a sew thing● which I would crave your Patience Honoured and much Respected that I may briefly recommend unto you as needful to be much in your Eyes and upon your Hearts if you would thus acquit your selves be Strong Rods to us at such a Day as this 1. Let the Interest of Religion and Holiness be your principal care Labour the reviving and promoting of it with all your strength This is both our Decus Tutamen we may truly say of this great Article that it is Articulus stantis et cadentis Nov Angliae It is this that engageth the Lord to deal g●aciously with his people and to be their Saviour in Isa 63.7 When the Church had reckoned up the Loving kindnesses of God many ways expressed we have in the following verse the consideration intimated upon which the Lord proceeded in deing those great things for his people verse 8. For he said surely they are my People Children that will not lie so ●e was their Saviour q. d. They will not be salse to my Covenant they will walk in my ways and keep my Commandments they will remember their Engagements and fulfil them and upon their so doing he had and would shew them his Salvation In this way they might hope for it but if they should prove lying unholy backsliding Children they would but deceive themselves to expect it Upon this ground hath the Lord been proceeding with our Fathers in time past and upon the same will he deal with us at this Day If we consider the things that were at the beginning when God first laid the Foundations of Gospel work in these Ends of the Earth if we remember the Wonders of old which we have heard and our Fathers have told us we may say of those Providences where by God through many Difficulties brought a Remnant of his faithful People into these remote corners of the World planted and preserved them here as David doth Psal 44.7 That the Lord did it By his Right-hand c. because he had a favour for them By great Deliverances and Salvations did the Lord manifest his Presence among them and Loving-kindness to them and they were all u pon this account Psal 22.4 Our Fathers trusted in thee they trusted and thou d●lst deliver them They had Holiness to the Lord Engraven upon their hearts designs and ways and God was with them If we are true to this Interest and Cause of God and walk in the Covenant of the Lord God of our Fathers it shall be well with us Exod. 20.6 But if there be a declining backsliding apostatizing Spirit in us if we give the Lord cause to take up that Complaint concerning us in Mal. 3.7 Even from the dayes of your Fathers ye are gone away from mine Ordinances and have not kept them Oh! what Presumption what Madness will it be for us to hope that as he was theirs so he will be our Saviour Alas How many are there that have forgotten forsaken this great Interest of the Lord among us Beyou intreated therefore who shall have the rule of this People to consider it and engage your hearts to the advancing of it Remember that there is a Solemn Covenant between God this his People God hath taken them to be his they have owned themselves to be the Lords upon this Foundation stand all our Mercies Priviledges Enjoyments whatsoever can contribute any thing to our present or suture Felicity and therefore the recovering of us from all our Apostasies and the maintaining promoting of serious Godliness among us should will be the chief Scope of such Rulers as make Conscience to Serve either God or his People 2. Express a high Veneration for and Regard unto Gods holy Ordinances Let them have all that Security from the Blasphemous Reproaches and Abuses of Ungodly men that either your Laws or your Examples can afford them If they that go before a People go out of this way sad Experience proves it but too natural a practice for them to follow their Leaders So Jeroboam the son of Nebat made Israel to Sin 1 King 16 26.