Selected quad for the lemma: rest_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
rest_n	holy_a	keep_v	sabbath_n	4,666	5	9.3913	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48315	A monitor of mortality, the second sermon Occasioned by the death of Mrs. Harpur, a grave and godly matron (wife to Mr. Henry Harpur of the city of Chester) and of the death of their religious daughter Phœbe Harpur, a child of about 12. yeares of age. By Iohn Ley minister of Great Budworth in Cheshiere.; Monitor of mortalitie.	Ley, John, 1583-1662.	1643 (1643)	Wing L1884A; ESTC R216672	26,028	38

of her Sex and that age within the compasse of my acquaintance Her piety and charity were commendable in any age admirable in one so young as she was I will give a briefe touch of both since they are the principall qualifications of a Christian and the rather because though * In Chester here she was borne and lived to honour God with a singular example of sanctity for one so young yet here she dyed not and therefore had not here that commendable mention made of her which in this place was due unto her whereof I will give you such a report as is like unto an Eccho resounding back a few sillables for many words of her ¶ Preached at Alderley where she dyed and was buried Funerall Sermon and this for yours and your childrens sakes that they may be induced to become godly betimes and feare not the saying a young Saint an old devill for that is one of the old devills Proverbs and prophecies as false as himselfe who never speakes truth but to make way for beliefe of a lye and the contrary is regularly true A young Saint an old Saint a young Devill an old Devill First for her Piety it was such for a child as must needs argue her the child of God and by such evidences as these First she set her selfe an holy and daily taske for prayer and reading of the Scripture wherein if by any occasion she were interrupted she was very much troubled and this she did not formally but affectionately which may appeare by these particulars 1. By her serious enquiries and questions of the sense and meaning of that she read 2. By her constant care to keepe close to the rules of it for feare least in any thing she should doe contrary unto it 3. By her scruple and trouble of mind if in any thing she digressed from her duty to God or man commanded in the word Fourthly if any doubt or case of conscience arose where in favour to her selfe and honour to God by way of competition came in for preheminence as whether she should abridge her selfe of lawfull liberty on the Sabbath day or make a breach upon it by a prophane imployment of any part of it she was much more ready to be injurious to her selfe then sacrilegious to God Wherof I shall relate unto you a strange but a true Story which I know very well for it was in a passage of conference betwixt her and me yet in the presence of divers others who may yet remember it It was thus Upon some speeches against the violation of the religious rest of that day by carnall recreations she shewed her dislike of dancing on the Sabbath so farre as to say she would rather die then doe it I told her with commendation of her Christian care and zeale to keepe it not only holy for the manner but wholly for the measure that so she might make her selfe more guilty of the breach of the sixt Commandement by her rest then of the fourth by her motion for if her dancing were not an exercise of delight unto her selfe but done as a worke of mercy for preservation of her life and so professed to such as would compell her to doe it it was no breach of piety but an act of charity as lawfull as the labour bestowed to lift up an Oxe out of the pit least he should die there Luk. 14.5 which is allowed by our Saviour and so much more warrantable as the life of a Christian is of more worth then the life of a beast Against which though she could say little I found somewhat to doe to free her from the fetters of her former opinions so deeply did Doctrines of selfe-deniall sinke into her heart though she were yet but of that age which useth to make scruple of nothing and to deny nothing to it selfe which hath any savour of sensuall delight 2. Secondly for her Charity let her Piety stand for an abridgement of the first Table and her charity will serve for the same in the second she was kind and courteous towards all tender hearted to the distressed desirous if any breach were made betweene any of the family to make it up quickly by hearty reconcilement And to the poore she was exceedingly pittifull interceding for them giving of her own unto them For which purpose she got a little stock before hand for her Parents seeing she was so well-minded would not suffer her to be empty handed and that stocke sometimes she adventured all at once as goods in a weather-beaten Barke by way of loane to some poor person in extreame necessity where may we find so much upon record of Iacobs Beniamin On these two points Piety and Charity hang all the Law and the Prophets and these two were so habitually setled in her that in the exercise of both so farre as others could judge she took much delight How could it be but a delight to any godly Parents to have such a child How but a great griefe to be deprived of her who was like if she had lived to have been an excellent patterne to both Sexes and every age to which she attained And the better she was the more lovely in the eyes of God and of all that are good and her goodnesse doubtlesse was that which so united the soule of her good mother to hers that they could not part but as Iacob and Beniamin with the perill of life By this child you may make some conjecture of her Mother for children especially in their minority owe much unto their Mothers for their godly education so did King Lemuel to his Prov. 31.1 and Timothy to his Mother and Grand-mother both 2 Tim. 1.5 And though grace be of God it is regularly conferred by meanes and religious instruction of children and exemplary conversation of their Parents is a meanes which God many times blesseth with gracious effects So that wheras most make boast of their Parents as * Iosephus in the beginning of his life written by himselfe Iosephus of his Know therefore that I am not basely but nobly descended being both on the Fathers and Mothers side derived from the line of the Priests in reason there is cause rather for Parents to glory in good children since God many times maketh them usefull instruments of their goodnesse But seldome on the contrary is the Parents goodnesse effected by any means either of example or instruction of their children Howsoever she this grave Matron I meane had not bin so happy as to be the Mother of so religious a daughter she was in her self well worthy both of our commendation and of others imitation First as a Woman Secondly as a Wife Thirdly as a Mother Fourthly as a mistresse Fiftly as a friend Sixtly which is the chiefest of all as a Christian Under these particular Titles we might make discourse for a whole houre but I will wind up all as many long threds into a little clew First as a

the creator alone and if so we are spirituall adulterers and adulteresses James 4.4 and God is a jealous God Exo. 20.5 who discovering a decay of our love that we might love him better will take away the impediment betwixt him and us which was as a curtain or screene to intercept our sight and the heate of our hearts towards him As a discreet Lady if she should perceive that her Waiting-woman stole any part of the Nuptiall affection of her Husband from her would find some meanes to put her away And God very well knoweth that our hearts are narrow our love but little and faint a great deale too little for himselfe if it went all one way and therefore if he love us he will take away that which steales away our affections from him that our love being set upon him more intentively he may returne more kindnesse to us againe and so his end may be to crosse us in our way that he may blesse us in the end that he may doe us the more good at our latter end as is promised Deut. 8. v. 16. Thirdly Gods intent in taking away may be in favour to the deceased parties to set them safe out of perill the Righteous is taken away from the evill to come Isa 57.1 and of this the cause is so evident in reason that he that never saw the Bible nor read that sentence of the Prophet could say who knoweth that God hath not taken away in favour to man-kind from the evill to come So * Plutarch consolat ad Apo●on pag. 528. Plutarch in his Consolations to Apolonius And this cause is especially considerable in these times wherein many good people have of late been taken away and we may have cause to conceive from the evill to come there may come much evill without any preface or premonition at all but we see nothing but dismall clouds gathering in our horizon and as it were preparations for terrible stormes Our sinnes doubtlesse are come to a very great height and who knoweth whether their guilt be not more clamerous for vengeance then our prayers are importunate for pardon We see things grow worse and worse with us a few grow better and better to pacifie Gods displeasure by due reformation And therefore for such of the better sort as are taken away in those times as this vertuous Matron after the course of an holy life on earth wee may conceive it is done that they may live in rest and peace and joy and glory with God for ever There is cause then to give thankes to God for their happy change since they are set up so safe that they shall never feele nor feare the evill to come and to mourne not for them but for our selves that we are left below in a state of subjection to all sorts of sorrowes which may the sooner overwhelme us because they are taken away as Lot out of Sodome for whose sakes haply hath the judgement been suspended hitherto And hitherto having had your presence and I hope your attentions also to what I have delivered I shall now commend you to the gratious favour of the Lord of life and death Deut. 32.29 beseeching him to teach you to number your dayes that you may apply your hearts unto wisedome Psal 90.12 and to give you wisedome to consider your latter end Deut. 32.29 and all the while that you are in the way unto it that you may by an holy life get sound assurance to your soules that when your mortall bodies are laid asleepe in the dust of the earth they may be received to a most happy conabitation with God in Heaven in his presence to be possessed of the fulnesse of joy and of the pleasures at his right hand for evermore Ps 16.11 Amen FINIS