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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nature_n	bind_v	law_n	moral_a	2,795	5	9.5816	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A04629	The court of conscience: or, Iosephs brethrens iudgement barre. By Thomas Barnes	Barnes, Thomas, Minister of St. Margaret's, New Fish Street, London.	1623 (1623)	STC 1475; ESTC S114798	47,631	166

doe as they did but to make thee the more obseruant of thine owne waies least that thou shouldest doe as they did For euery fatte stands vpon its owne bottome and little peace wilt thou haue to imitate any mortall man in that which is offensiue to thy God 5. Conclude not that thou wilt but doe the deede once or twice or seldome For sinne is like a serpent if it gets but in the head it will get in the whole body and it is a clinging and encroaching guest whereof thou canst not be so soone rid as thou listest after thou hast giuen entertainment vnto it neither thinkest thou maiest be the bolder because thou art in Gods fauour which can neuer change nor alter thou art not so sure of heauen but that the deuill though he cannot robbe thee of it yet can make thee question it to the perplexing of thy soule Take heede I say that by these steps thou climbest not vp the ladder of presumption for then that there is no greater enemie to an holy and blamelesse life the maintaining of which holy life is the greatest preseruatiue to a good conscience that can be Secondly as thus by presuming thou must not stretch thy conscience Subordinate helpes to the second generall rule So to the end thou mayest not streighten conscience thou must doe three things First get a sound knowledge and right vnderstanding of the binding and subiection of the conscience to wit whereby and how it is bound wherein and how it is to be subiect Now for thy better information in this know that some things binde the conscience immediately or properly What binds the conscience immediately viz. Law Gospell some things mediately or improperly First immediately that doth binde the conscience which hath most absolute power and authoritie in it selfe ouer the conscience and thus the Law and Gospell bindes the conscience or the word of God comprehended in the bookes of the Old and New Testament First for the Law That is three-fold morall iudiciall ceremoniall 1. Law and that either as morall iudiciall ceremoniall The morall Law respecteth the duties of loue which wee owe to God and our neighbour comprised in the first and second table now to know how this binds conscience 1. How the morall Law bindes the conscience these two rules must bee obserued Rule 1 First That the second table must giue place to the first insomuch that if two duties come in opposition one to the other and the first table binds the conscience to the one Two rules to show how the morall law bindes the conscience the second to the other simply by it selfe that duty which is inioyned in the first must be performed rather then that which is prescribed in the second The rule amplified To amplifie it The second table binds me to performe all testimonies of loue to my neighbour the first to execute all offices of pietie towards God Such and such a testimony of loue to my neighbour may in some case not stand with my piety towards God in this case my conscience must submit it selfe rather to the pleasing of God then pleasing of man Albeit in some case we are to neglect some duties to God that wee may releeue the present necessitie of our brother which is warranted by that rule of Christ I will haue mercy and not sacrifice Rule 2 The second rule is this That the generall Law must giue way to the speciall Take an example or two Thou shalt doe no murther The rule examplified Thou shalt not steale are generall lawes Abraham take thy sonne thine onely sonne Isaac and offer him vp in sacrifice x Gen. 22.22 Euery woman shall borrow of her neighbour and of her that soiourneth in the house iewels of siluer and iewels of gold and yee shall spoile the Egyptians y Exod. 3 22. were speciall commandements Both of these euen generall and speciall doe binde the conscience In this case which must Abraham and the Israelites chiefely submit vnto To the speciall he must attempt to sacrifice his sonne notwithstanding this Thou shalt doe no murther They must rob the Egyptians of their iewels and treasures notwithstanding that precept Thou shalt not steale Why because the speciall had at that time more power ouer the consciences of Abraham and the Israelites then the generall 2. How the iudiciall law bindes the conscience From the morall to come to the Iudiciall law which was of vse to prescribe the Mosaicall forme of ciuill gouernment concerning the order offices of Magistrates and Magistracie iudgements punishments contracts difference of gouernment to the end that publike iustice might bee maintained peace continued and the contempt of Gods law reuenged This Law so farre bindeth the conscience now as it is euer duely grounded vpon the morall and where the same reason holdeth thus as it did in them and other nations by the light of nature practised in the same manner 3. How the ceremoniall law bindes conscience Thirdly the ceremoniall Law which treateth of rites and ceremonies enioyned in the Old Testament to be obserued about the outward worship of God is to bee reduced to three distinct times according to which times three rules may bee giuen to shew how farre forth conscience is subiect to that Rule 1 The first rule is this Before the death of Christ the ceremoniall law did binde the consciences of the Iewes and the Iewes onely not of the Gentiles For betwixt Iewes and Gentiles there was a wall of separation Rule 2 The second this From the death of Christ to the ouerthrow of the Iewish gouernment the ceremoniall law lost the force of binding and became an indifferent thing either to be vsed or not to be vsed Hence it was that Paul circumcised Timothy but would not circumcise Titus And the z Act. 15. councell at Ierusalem decreed that the Church should abstaine for a time from things strangled and from blood the cause of which decree was the weakenesse of some who of Iewes were made Christians As yet they did not fully vnderstand the libertie of the new Testament therfore for their weaknesse sake it was granted that they might vse some Iewish ceremonies for a time Rule 3 But thirdly after the euersion of the Iewish gouernment and the promulgation of the Gospell more largely and cleerely the ceremoniall law altogether ceased For from that time the libertie of Christians and freedome from Iewish ceremonies was so conspicuous that none of the godly could alleadge their ignorance heerein Wherefore very well say the Schooles * Leges ceremoniales iam sunt mortuae mortiferae Ceremoniall lawes are now dead and deadly Thus we see the nature of the lawes authority ouer the conscience 2. How the Gospell bindes Now we will see how the Gospell bindes the conscience For the better vnderstanding of which we must know that the Gospell doth not binde the consciences of those that are not

That by how much the stronger the bondes be By offering wrong to breake the bonds of vnion is an aggrauation of the hearts horrour whereby men are tyed to one another by so much the sorer the torment is like to be in the conscience for the wrongs they offer to one another It was the breach of the bond of brother-hood that no doubt encreased the horror of these brethren in this their distresse doth not their speech bewray as much We are verily guilty concerning OVR BROTHER this same BROTHER stucke much in their stomacke It was the wronging of his Father his louing Father who had giuen him his patrimonie affected him deerely showne kindnesse to him continually which made the inward gripes the stronger and the outward cries the louder of the yong prodigall e Luke 15.18.21 It was the betraying of his Master his kinde Master who had called him to an Apostleship betrusted him with the Stewardship whom he was so bound vnto that if neede had required he should rather haue beene prodigall of his owne blood for his sake then haue betrayed his innocent blood that encreased the horrour the heart-smart of Iudas f Math. 27.3 It was no doubt the spoiling of the life the defiling of the wife of his Seruant his trusty and faithfull seruant Vriah who lay watching and warring in the open fields for Dauids sake whom Dauid was beholding vnto for his loue and seruice that did augment the trouble of Dauids conscience when the Lord in mercy awaked him g 2. Sam. 12.13 Psal 51. Did you neuer reade nor heare of Nero how that the murther of his mother whom nature bound him to and the slaughter of his kindred whom the same bond tyed him to did so vexe and torment him that neither day nor night could hee be quiet but still he thought his mothers ghost did appeare vnto him and the furies of hell were ready at hand to torment him h Sueton. in vit Neronis c. 34. 35. The like is storied of Alexander who hauing slaine a deere friend of his named Clytus who had in loue showne his readinesse to haue died for Alexander i Curt. lib. 8. p. 119. si moriendum est pro te Clytus est primus was so terrified in his minde that hee would haue killed himselfe with that weapon wherewith hee slew Clytus if his guard had not preuented him he lay groueling vpon the earth filled the whole court with miserable howling and out-cries asked those that stood by him whither they could suffer such a wretch as himselfe was to liue cloistered vp himselfe in his tent and would haue pined himselfe to death if his seruants had not by strong hand compelled him to take meate still this being his pittifull song k Et ego seruatorum meorum latro reuertar in patriam Curt. lib. citat pag. 120. 121. 122. I shall returne into my owne countrey a murtherer of my SAVERS my Sauers this aggrauated his horror this questionlesse added to his terrour that hee should so wrong one that had rather beene his sauer then his enemie whose loue hee was bound as the light of nature taught him to haue rewarded in a better kinde Thus we see the truth of the point how that the strength of bonds to tie vs to one another doth encrease the perplexitie of the conscience for those iniuries we doe or shall offer to one another Vse Heare this all you whom no bonds no not of nature of blood it selfe can keepe within the compasse of loue of equitie whose hearts are malignant whose tongues are virulent whose courses are violent against your owne kinred the father rising vp against the sonne the sonne against the father the mother against the daughter the daughter against the mother husband against wife wife against husband brother against brother sister against sister a mans enemies being not onely of his owne house but also of his owne blood Heare you I say this word of the Lord take it in by the eare and apply it to the heart Poore wretches what wrong doe you offer your owne consciences you pile vp horror for them you treasure vp terror against them The stronger the knots be to binde you to vnity the sorer shall your anguish be for your fruits of enmitie Achitophel stood but in a ciuill relation to Dauid as a subiect to his Prince yet hee was terrified for giuing euill counsell against him l 2. Sam. 17.23 They Iaylor but in a domesticall relation to Paul and Silas as a Iaylor to his prisoners yet hee was affrighted for laying bolts vpon them m Act. 16.24.30 And doe you thinke that you may offer vnnaturall violence to those betwixt whom and you there is naturall reference and your consciences will neuer accuse you as sure as can be you are deceiued Let but brethren in the same Ecclesiasticall function fellow Magistrates in the same temporall vocation fellow seruants in the same family fellow neighbours in the same countrey offer wrong to one another I cannot warrant THEM securitie from stings of conscience But to deale cruelly with thine owne yoake-fellow to hate to reuile to abuse thy parents whom thou oughtest to loue honour and obey to be with out naturall affection to thine owne children who are thine owne bowels to deale doggedly with thy neere kinred and vnkindly with those of whose kindnesse thou hast so bountifully tasted is a thing so horrible so iniurious that I dare warrant thee will cost stings intollerable yea without repentance wounds of conscience incurable For if it be n Illa est vera innocentia quae nec inimiconocet August in Psal true innocencie not to hurt a deadly foe then it must needs be iniurie in graine to wrong a deere friend and the greatest sinnes must haue the greatest punishments of which punishments torture of conscience is one yea the greatest in this life if it produceth despaire as it many times doth If therefore it bee thy hap to heare or reade this who art at enmity with those to whom thou art tyed by the bonds of nature or kindnesse let mee entreate this at thy hands that thou wouldest labour with the serious meditation of this vpon thine inordinate and violent affections that it may cause thee to relent for thy former enmitie and breake in sunder those barres of contention whereby thy heart hath beene bolted vp against thy brother so long a time Doct. 6 That Retaliation is Gods Law The fourth point followeth That the Lord requites like for like to the wrong doer Iust as these brethren had dealt with Ioseph so so in their owne apprehension at least are they dealt withall themselues Therefore is this distresse come vpon vs. As we sowed so we reape as we measured so is it measured to vs againe We looked vpon Iosephs distresse this man lookes vpon our wee would not heare our brother speaking for himselfe this man now will not heare vs we carryed home