Selected quad for the lemma: nature_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nature_n	fire_n	set_v	tongue_n	3,652	5	9.4006	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A62612	A sermon preached before the King and Queen at White-Hall, February the 25th, 1693/4 being the first Sunday in Lent / by John Lord Archbishop of Canterbury.	Tillotson, John, 1630-1694.	1694 (1694)	Wing T1249; ESTC R33832	19,454	46

them and not without great force and straining and if any thing be fitly said in that kind it doth hardly relish with most men But in the way of Invective the Invention of men is a plentiful and never-failing Spring And this kind of Wit is not more easie than it is acceptable It is greedily entertained and greatly applauded and every man is glad to hear others abused not considering how soon it may come to his own turn to lie down and make sport for others To speak evil of others is almost become the general entertainment of all Companies And the great and serious business of most Meetings and Visits after the necessary Ceremonies and Complements are over is to sit down and backbite all the World 'T is the Sawce of Conversation and all Discourse is counted but flat and dull which hath not something of picquancy and sharpness in it against some body For men generally love rather to hear evil of others than good and are secretly pleas'd with ill reports and drink them in with greediness and delight Though at the same time they have so much Justice as to hate those that propagate them and so much Wit as to conclude that these very persons will do the same for them in another Place and Company But especially if it concerns one of another Party and that differs from us in matters of Religion in this Case all Parties seem to be agreed that they do God great service in blasting the reputation of their Adversaries And though they all pretend to be Christians and the Disciples of Him who taught nothing but kindness and meekness and charity yet it is strange to see with what a savage and murderous disposition they will flie at one another's Reputation and tear it in pieces And whatever other Scruples they may have they make none to bespatter one another in the most bitter and slanderous manner But if they hear any good of their Adversaries with what nicety and caution do they receive it how many objections do they raise against it and with what coldness do they at last admit it It is very well say they if it be true I shall be glad to hear it confirm'd I never heard so much good of him before You are a good man your self but have a care you be not deceived Nay it is well if to balance the matter and set things even they do not clap some infirmity and fault into the other Scale that so the Enemy may not go off with flying Colours But on the other side every man is a good and substantial Author of an ill Report I do not apply this to any one sort of men though all are to blame in this way Iliacos intra muros peccatur extra To speak impartially the Zealots of all Parties have got a scurvy trick of lying for the Truth But of all sorts of People I have observed the Priests and Bigots of the Church of Rome to be the ablest in this way and to have the strongest Faith for a lusty Falshood and Calumny Others will bandy a false Report and toss it from one hand to another but I never knew any that would so hug a Lye and be so very fond of it They seem to be described by St. John in that expression in the Revelation whosoever loveth and maketh a lye Another shrewd sign that ill-nature lies at the root of this Vice is that we easily forget the good that is said of others and seldom make mention of it but the contrary sticks with us and lies uppermost in our memories and is ready to come out upon all occasions And which is yet more ill-natur'd and unjust many times when we do not believe it our selves we tell it to others with this charitable Caution that we hope it is not true But in the mean time we give it our Pass and venture it to take its fortune to be believed or not according to the charity of those into whose hands it comes Secondly Another Cause of the commonness of this Vice is that many are so bad themselves in one kind or other For to think and speak ill of others is not only a bad thing but a sign of a bad man Our B. Saviour speaking of the evil of the last days gives this as the reason of the great decay of Charity among men because iniquity shall abound the Love of many shall wax cold When men are bad themselves they are glad of any opportunity to censure others and are always apt to suspect that evil of other men which they know by themselves They cannot have a good opinion of themselves and therefore are very unwilling to have so of any body else and for this reason they endeavour to bring men to a level hoping it will be some justification of them if they can but render others as bad as themselves Thirdly Another source of this Vice is Malice and Revenge When men are in heat and Passion they do not consider what is true but what is spiteful and mischievous and speak evil of others in revenge of some injury which they have received from them And when they are blinded by their Passions they lay about them madly and at a venture not much caring whether the evil they speak be true or not Nay many are so Devilish as to invent and raise false Reports on purpose to blast mens Reputation This is a Diabolical temper and therefore St. James tells us that the slanderous Tongue is set on fire of Hell And the Devil hath his very Name from Calumny and false accusation and it is his Nature too for he is always ready to stir up and foment this evil spirit among men Nay the Scripture tells us that he hath the malice and impudence to accuse good men before God as he did Job charging him with Hypocrisie to God himself Who he knows does know the hearts of all the children of men Fourthly Another Cause of evil-speaking is Envy Men look with an evil eye upon the good that is in others and think that their Reputation obscures them and that their commendable qualities do stand in their light and therefore they do what they can to cast a cloud over them that the bright shining of their Vertues may not scorch them This makes them greedily to entertain and industriously to publish any thing that may serve to that purpose thereby to raise themselves upon the Ruins of other mens Reputation And therefore assoon as they have got an ill Report of any good man by the end to work they presently go to send it abroad by the first Post For the string is always ready upon their Bow to let fly this Arrow with an incredible swiftness through City and Countrey for fear the innocent man's justification should overtake it Fifthly Another Cause of evil speaking is Impertinence and Curiosity an itch of talking and medling in the affairs of other Men which do no wise concern them Some persons