Selected quad for the lemma: majesty_n
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A18954
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Dauid's catechisme. By E.A.
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Alport, Edward.
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1623
(1623)
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STC 537; ESTC S115913
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13,035
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40
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carefull to obey and fearefull to offend by which we make conscience of all our words and works as standing in the presence of GOD Which ELIAH thought fit to produce as an argument the better to perswade ACAB to give faith unto the truth which hee did deliver 1. Reg. 17. And the good Theefe 's words unto the bad upon the Crosse were these Fearest thou not God seeing thou art in the same condemnation as if hee had said Art thou so destitute of grace as not to consider the place and case wherein thou art Hast thou no feare or awe of him who now taketh vengeance and executeth iudgement upon thee for thy former sinnes and iniquities How darest thou still persist to revile and raile upon this innocent and iust Man Fearest thou not GOD And by this Feare DAVID directeth all men erring in this vaile of misery saying Stand in awe and sin not Psal 4.4 PSAL. 4.4 Secondly Feare is taken for the whole worship and service of GOD And so it is to bee understood in this place as if hee should say Listen unto mee and I will teach you the true worship of GOD according unto that of the Prophet Isaiah 29 Isai 29.13 where God saith Their feare towards me was taught by the precepts of men id est Their Religion and manner of worship was taught by mans traditions and not by my word Mat. 15. Which our Saviour Christ himselfe interpreteth after the same manner saying In vaine do they worship mee teaching for doctrine the precepts of men And the oath that IACOB took Gen. 31.42 Gen. 31. was by the feare of his father ISAAC i. by the feare of GOD which was in his father ISAAC as if hee should say I sweare by that GOD whom my Father adores for God is sometimes called by names effective Our health wealth strength and salvation because all these come from him from whom proceedeth every good and perfect gift sometimes obiective Our Ioy our Hope our Love our feare because hee is the obiect of all these and therfore should be the scope and end of all our worship and service of GOD affective Secondly Tertull. Apol cap. 34. consider we then the Obiect of this Feare The LORD which Tertullian saith Is the very Surname of GOD and is most commonly in Scripture applied unto CHRIST the Second person and that by consent of the whole Trinity Ioh. 13.13 by CHRIST himselfe Ioh. 13. Yee call me Lord and master and yee say well for so am I by his Father Act. 2.36 who hath made him both Lord and Christ and by the holy Ghost in the mouth of men Hic est omnium dominus Act. 10.36 Psal 1 10. This Iesus Christ is Lord of all men And DAVID himselfe saith The Lord said unto my Lord c. Yet because the doctrine here is generall and also in the Epistle unto the Ephes 4. Eph. 4.4 the Apostle applyeth the word unto the whole Trinity Vnus Dominus it will not be amisse here so to doe â—â— Take then the Lord either as he is absolute entire of himselfe his most lively perfect essence Ens ille ille qui essentiam suam à seipso habet or take him in his attributes and properties wherein hee is the same with himself for Quicquid est in Deo Deus est Or view him in his Iustice a dreadfull GOD a God of vengeance Vengeance is mine I will repay saith the Lord. MOSES could not endure his sight nor the people his voyce O let not God speake unto us that is immediatly by himselfe lest we dye Or take notice of GOD in the sweetest property of his nature his infinite mercy and loving kindness not diminishing our accounts as the Steward in the Gospell who for a 100 sets down 50 but utterly can celling our bills blotting all our wickednesse our of his remembrance Consider the LORD I say either in his Maiesty or Mercy as he is a God of vengeance or patience hee is to bee feared This Feare of the Lord Psal 111.10 Eccles. 12.13 Psal 145.15 Psal 115.13 is the beginning of wisdome and the end of all Those which fear him shall be his schollers Psal 145. And he will fulfill their desire blesse them all great and small his hands is over them to defend them and his eye is upon them like a pitifull Father to extend mercy Psal 33.17 Psal 103.13 Psal 103.9 and the mercifull goodness of this Lord unto these endureth for ever and ever And therfore they lacke nothing i. nothing that is good for them View this by experience Was there ever any that feared the Lord disappointed How fared it with Iacob Iob and others his saints and servants Psal 12â— â— Hee hath given meat unto them that feare him yea they are all blessed for the Lord's delight is in them that feare him You have seene the benefit behold the beauty of this feare The beauty of God's feare The feare of the Lord is a pleasant garden of blessing and there is nothing so beautifull as it is the fruit of this garden is blisse Heclus 40.27 nothing so beautifull as it is You have heard of the parties invited by Name and Direction if you did hearken to the word Hearken and of him that taught them DAVID a Prince and a Prophet of the benefit and beauty of God's feare the lesson for our learning by mee though neither Prophet Amos 7.14 nor Son of a Prophet yet by the grace of GOD I am that I am a Servant of GOD and Preacher and prisoner of Iesus Christ Paul to Philem. August Fam. 10. ser 16. p. 49. say with S. August Domino iubente loquor quo terrente non taceo The Lord commands mee wherefore I speake hee threatens if I forbeare and therefore I dare not keepe silence Learne this Lesson then Application for the worthiness of the Author and worth of the matter both giving life unto our learning But what can every man learne will some say I answer Hath God given unto every one an eare to heare a tongue to speake a heart to understand and a memory to beare away let him pray unto GOD who made the deafe to heare the dumbe to speake the simple to understand the sicke and the diseased to remember the great workes of the LORD hee will much rather open his ears that he may heare untye his tongue that hee may speake mollifie his heart that he may understand and strengthen his memory to retaine the same provided that herewithall he ioyne his owne industry and paines which is obediently and reverently to frequent the Congregation to be catechized and instructed Repetition is practised in other Arts and Sciences although in none as it ought more then catechizing in Divinity If we cannot repeat what we have learned in other Arts it is a plaine proofe wee have not learned them as wee should And shall wee be thought to have learned many things nay indeed any thing in Religion when we cannot render an account of the Articles of our Creed or the ten Commandements Give mee leave to propose the 400 Catechizing houses which were in Ierusalem as also our English trayterous Seminaries for an example of paines and industry unto you learne of those Schollers of Antichrist who are so studious in their generations to bee likewise studious painefull desirous to bee catechized and instructed in the wayes of godliness If you use the same diligence that they beare the world in hand they doe you may prove as learned as they are accounted As they be learned in the language of the Caldeans so may you bee learned in the language of Canaan as they are taught to maintaine the pride of that Romish Strumpet so may you bee furnished with all good knowledge to maintaine the simplicity of the Gospell and true Religion they Antichrist you our Lord and onely CHRIST they the Pope you the true ever living GOD. Wherefore in a word use all diligence and with diligence ioyne meditation and prayer that you may profit hereby in the feare of the Lord therin provoke others to doe the like and win our adversaries the Papists to the truth who seeing your increase in sound learning and fear of GOD may follow you in both That the idle may leave his sloath seeing your labours that the ignorant may bee ashamed beholding your knowledg the wicked liver reclaimed seeing your care to walk in the fear of the LORD that you your selves may bee edified and presented blamelesse at that great and fearfull day of the Lord IESVS To whom with the Father and the holy Ghost three Persons and one GOD be ascribed all power maiestie might and dominion both now and ever AMEN
of Aethiopia did well to bee Catechized by Philip and heare him expound the Prophet Isai unto him And it was the best houre that ever S. Augustine spent in his whol life when hee went to heare the eloquence of S. Ambrose for so of a Manachie hee became a true Christian and the rest of Infidels became faithful and by comming to heare obtayned mercy at the hands of GOD to understand that which was taught them and to beleeve in the name of CHRIST IESVS Wherfore I exhort all in the name of Iesus Christ that so often as they come or repayre to any divine exercise they come to heare and heare to understand what the Spirit of GOD saith unto them for when they come not heare they despise the ordinance of GOD when they heare and not understand or beleeve the Word becommeth unfruitfull unto them and all their hearing is in vaine which Catechizing will helpe Quid est audi Ambros 〈◊〉 25. in Psal 119. saith S. Ambrose non otiosè dicitur quod commune est omnibus suppetit umversis ipso jure naturae c. What is meant by Heare saith he It is not an idle charge when wee are commanded to heare since it is common unto all men to heare and it agreeth with every man naturally Therefore it is not without great cause that this charg is here given because many times men heare against their wills and when they are otherwise occupied yet are they wont to heare a sound and the voyce of him that speaketh Therfore it behoveth those that are present in body to bee present in minde and minde to understand that hearing they may heare and seeing they may see the wondrous things of the Law the power of the Gospell the feare of the Lord the efficacy of the Spirit and the strange and admirable operation of the feare and word of the LORD It is written of the Iewes that they heard the mysteries of the Law but they did not understand the same wherefore the Lord saith Heare O my people and I will speake unto you Now the word of GOD is spirituall therefore heare spiritually When the Voyce spake from heaven what did it say Surely nothing else but This is my beloved Sonne in whom I am well pleased Mat. 17.3 heare him to shew That wee are sooner drawne to beleeve in the Sonne of GOD by hearing then by any sense besides Provided Mat. 4.24 Luk. 8.18 that wee take heed what wee heare how wee heare and whom wee heare for many are night walkers but light talkers Philip. 3.18 being enemies of CHRIST's Crosse have the shewe of godliness but deny the power thereof in their heart whose meat is their maker and belly their god whose body being given to ease and minde to content shunne labour be it never so wholsome fly affliction be it never so holy Tel them of catechizing they will say It is novelty informe them of right hearing they wil answer It is foolishness though indeed it bee the same which makes us wise unto salvation Theophrastus in Plutarch could say Plutarch de Auditione that Hearing of all other Senses especially engendreth greatest motions and perturbations of the minde and I may say that It bringeth greatest ioyes and delights unto the Inner man and unto the spirit for hereby our faith in and feare of the LORD is bred in us our hope is increased our patience confirmed our godly meditations enlarged our affiance strengthened sinne abated Sathan foyled and the powers of Hell and Darkenesse vanquished and overcome Wherfore I say no more then the Spirit hath said in the Revelation Rev. 2.29 Let him that hath an eare heare And thus much bee spoken of the parties who are to heare and consequently of their name Invitation and Direction Now of the person whom they are to heare in this word MEE or the party who wil teach them in these I wil teach you which because they belong both unto one person I will not sever them but for unity and peace sake conioyne them and as M. Curius saith Duos parietes de eadem fideliâ dealbare where you may see the blessed Prince of peace and lover of unity proposing unto his people a rule in Divinity Those then who desire to know this was whom they were to hear here my Text tels them DAVID himselfe Come yee children and hearken unto mee MEE your Prince MEE your Prophet And I your Preacher I your Father for so hee was unto them will be your Teacher I will teach you Hee having as it were the Sword in one hand and the word in the other one teaching the other terrifying them for terrifying and not teaching may savour of tyranny and to teach and not to terryfie may make them lazie Therefore hee uses his Princely power in his Propheticall Office I will teach you c. Here is teaching with authority This perfect patterne of a compleat Prince not pictured in Plato nor fayned in Xenophon but formed according to GOD's owne heart is here really and royally parallel'd by his sacred Maiestie our Gracious SOVERAIGNE informed by Gods Spirit in all holy knowledge and conformed unto DAVID himselfe in all godly practice His sanctified wisdome and knowledg my heart doth rather ioyfully conceive then my pen can sufficiently expresse his holy Commaunds divine Expositions and sacred Directions in his severall Bookes doe best expresse What zeale hee hath ever had and still hath unto Gods House and to set forth his Glorie what dangers he hath escaped thankefulnesse unto GOD the Author thereof ordayned what a blessing Hee hath been unto this Kingdome disioynted when it was in danger of inundation and innovation after the late Queenes death of blessed memorie in his peaceable entrance comfortable union continuance of peace and prevention of warre preserving the truth and confuting error If any bee ignorant of the translated BIBLE his owne Workes wholsom Lawes to the ioy of all loyall hearts will ever testifie him Wife Learned Good and Godly And how in this particular his most Excellent Maiesty de jure hath resembled this princely Prophet all Iurisdictions within his Maiesties Dominions de facto can witnesse Since then this notable authority is not built upon the notable foundation of hearesay but of the knowne truth not denied by her adversaries it ought much to move all loyall hearts to remove all lets that may hinder this godly Exercise with all alacrity to stirre them uppe with an earnest desire for Gods glory and their owne good to bee instructed thereby And so I come to the doctrine which this princely Prophet will preach or Lesson that hee will teach them The feare of GOD I will teach you the feare of the Lord. First I will speake of the Quality then of the Obiect The quality Feare in holy Scripture is diversly taken but especially two wayes First it is taken for an awfull dread and reverence of GOD which makes us