Selected quad for the lemma: saint_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
saint_n	bishop_n	church_n	ephesus_n	1,251	5	11.4920	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A06108	The theatre of Gods iudgements: or, a collection of histories out of sacred, ecclesiasticall, and prophane authours concerning the admirable iudgements of God vpon the transgressours of his commandements. Translated out of French and augmented by more than three hundred examples, by Th. Beard.; Histoires memorables des grans et merveilleux jugemens et punitions de Dieu. English	Chassanion, Jean de, 1531-1598.; Beard, Thomas, d. 1632.	1597 (1597)	STC 1659; ESTC S101119	344,939	488

much lesse will he spare any other kingdome and monarchie which continue by their images and idoll worship to stirre vp his indignation against them CHAP. XXVII Of many euils that haue come vpon Christendome for idolatrie IF wee consider and search out the cause of the ruine of the East Empire and of so many famous and florishing Churches as were before-time in the greatest part of Europe namely in Greece wee shall find that Idolatry hath beene the cause of all for euen as it got footing and increase in their dominions so equally did the power of Saracens and Turkish tyrany take root and foundation amongst them and prospered so well that the rest of the world trembled at the report thereof God hauing raised and fortified them as beforetime he had done the Assyrians and Babylonians as whips and scourges to chasten the people and nations of the world that wickedly had abused his holy gospell bearing the name of Christians had become idolaters for no other name then this can be giuen them that in deuotion do any maner of homage to images pictures whatsoeuer may superficially be alledged to the contrary For be it the image either of Prophet Apostle or Christ Iesus himself yet it is necessary that the law of God stand whole and sound which saith Thou shalt make thy selfe no grauen image nor any likenes of things either in heauen aboue or in earth beneath Epiphan Iohn Bishop of Ierusalem thou shalt not bow downe to them nor worship them c. Wherefore he perfourmed the part of a good bishop that finding a vaile spred in the entrance of a Church dore wherein the image of Christ or of some other Saint was pictured rent it in peeces with these words That it was against the authoritie of the sacred scripture to haue any image of Christ set vp in the Church After the same manner Serenus bishop of Marseilla beate down banished all images out of his Churches as occasions of idolatry to shun them the more it was ordained in the Elibertine councill that no image nor picture should be set vp in any Church for which cause also the Emperour Leo the third by an open edict commanded his subiects to cast out of their temples all pictures and statues of Saints Paul Diacon Lib. 6. cap. 14. Angels and whatsoeuer to the intent that all occasions of Idolatry might be taken away yea and he burned some and punished diuers otherwise that in this regard were not pliant but disobedient to his commaundement After which time when images were recalled into Greece into Constantinople the chiefe city and seat of the east Empire it came to passe by a great and dreadfull yet iust iudgement of God that this famous and renowmed city in the worlds eie impregnable after long siege and great and furious assaults was at length taken by the Turkes who hauing wonne the breach and entred with fury droue the poore Emperour Paleologus euen till then fighting for the cities defence to that extremity that in retiring among the prease of his owne souldiers he was thronged and trampled to death and his slaine body being found was beheaded and his head contemptuously caried about the city vpon a launce Now after the massacre of many thousand men to make vp a complete and absolute cruelty they drew the Empresse with her daughters and many other Ladies gentlewomen to a banquet where after many vile and horrible wrongs and disgraces they killed and tore them in pieces in most monstrous manner In all which the execution of Gods most iust wrath for idolatry did most liuely appeare which sinne accompanied with many other execrable and vile vices must needs draw after it a grieuous and terrible punishment to serue for example to others that were to come neither was it a thing by chance or haphazzard that the christians were made a mocking stocke vnto them in that wofull day when in their bloody triumphes they caused a crucifixe to be caried through the streets in contempt and throwing durt vpon it cried in their language This is the gallant God of Christians And thus did God license and permit these sauage Turkes to commit eueryday grieuous outrages and to make great wastes and desolations in all Christendome till that they grew so mighty that it is to bee feared least the saying of Lactantius touching the returne of the Empire into Asia be not verified and accomplished verie shortly if there bee no amendment practised for we see by wofull experience that almost all the forces which Christian Princes haue mustered together from all quarters in pretence to resist their furie and rage haue not onely beene bootlesse and vnprofitable but also that which is worse giuen them further occasion by their bloodie victories and wonderfull slaughter of so many millions of men to make them more obstinate in their detestable Mahumetisme and Turkish religion then they were before for they make their boasts thereof and reare vp trophees of their cruelties taking no more pittie of the vanquished then a butcher doth of sheepe alotted to the slaughter Whereof we haue a pittifull example in rhe ouerthrow of the French armie which Iohn the sonne of Philip duke of Burgundie led against the Turke Pazaite and by the trecherie and cowardise of the Hungarians who in the time of battaile turned their backes and fled was ouercome in that this wicked and cruell tyger expresly charged that all the prisoners in number many should be murdered one after another which was readily executed before his eies so that sauing the chiefe captaine and certain few lords of the companie that were spared in respect of great ransoms there scaped not one aliue Besides these generall calamities the Lord hath particularly showne foorth his indignation against priuate persons and places for Idolatrie Cent. 4. cap. 3. as in Spoletium at one rime there perished by an earthquake three hundred and fiftie whilst they were offering sacrifice vnto their Idols At Rome vnder the empire of Alexander Seuerus after that the left hand of the image of Iupiter was miraculously melted Cent 3. cap. 14. the priests going about to pacifie the anger of their gods with Lectisterns and Sacrifices foure of them togither with the altar and Idoll were stricken in peeces with a thunderbolt and sodenly such a horrible darkenesse ouerspread all the Citty that most of the inhabitants ran out into the fields all amazed Moreouer did not the Lord send lightning from Heauen to inflame that notorious Temple for Idolatrie of Apollo Theodor. lib. 3. cap. 9. 10. or rather the Deuill of Delphos in the time of Iulian the wicked Apostatae whilest hee was exercising tortures vpon one Theodorus a Christian and did it not consume the image of Apollo to ashes The famous and rich Temple of Iupiter at Apamea how strangely did it come to ruine and destruction Nic●phor lib. 12. cap. 27. For when the President and Tribunes

not of God but of men and therfore must needs come to naught Act. 13. After Christ in the Apostles time there was one Elimas a sorcerer that mightily withstood the doctrine of Paul and Barnabas before Sergius Paulus the Deputy and sowed a contrarie heresie in his mind but Paul full of the holy Ghost set his eies on him and said O full of all subtiltie and mischiefe the child of the Deuill and enemie of righteousnesse wilt thou not cease to peruert the straight waies of the Lord Now therefore behold the hand of the Lord is vpon thee and thou shalt be blind for a season And immediately there fell vpon him a mist and darkenesse and he went about to seeke some to lead him by the hand And this recompense gained he for his erronious and hereticall practise Euseb lib. 4. cap. 6. Philip. M. chron A while after him vnder the Empire of Adrian arose there another called Bencochab that professed himselfe to bee the Messias and to haue descended from Heauen in the likenesse of a Starre for the safetie and redemption of the people by which fallacie hee drew after him a world of seditious Disciples but at length hee and manie of his credulous rout were slaine and was called by the Iewes Bencozba that is the sonne of a lie and this was the goodly redemption which this Heretike brought vpon his owne head and many of his fellowes It is reported of Cerinthus an Heretike that hee denying and going about to darken the doctrine of Christs euerlasting kingdome Euseb was ouerwhelmed by the sodaine fall of an whote house which fell vpon him and his associates assoone as Saint Iohn was departed from it for Ireneus saith that hee heard Polycarpus often report how Saint Iohn being about to enter into the bathes at Ephesus when hee perceiued Cerinthus alreadie within departed verie hastily saying to those that bore him companie that hee feared that the house would fall vpon their heads because of Cerinthus the Heretike that was therein at that instant Manes Euseb Socrat. of whom the Maniches tooke their name and first oririginall forged in his foolish braine a fiction of two gods and two beginners and reiecting the old Testament the true God which is reuealed in the same published a fifth Gospell of his owne forgerie yea and was so besotted with folly as Suidas testifieth of him that hee reported himselfe to be the holy Ghost when hee had thus with his deuelish heresies and blasphemies infected the world and was pursued by Gods iust iudgement at last for other wicked practises hee had his skin pulled ouer his eares aliue and so died in miserie Montanus that blasphemous caitife of whom came the Montanistes or Pepuzian heretikes of a towne in Phrigia called Pepuza denied Christ our sauiour to bee God and said he was but a man only like other men without any participation of diuine essence hee called himselfe the comforter and holy spirit which was forepromised to come into the world and his two wiues Priscilla and Maximilla hee named his prophetisses and their writings prophecies howbeit all their cunning could not foretell nor preuent a wretched and desperate end which befell him for hee hong himself after he had deluded the world a long seasō proued by his end his life to haue beene vile and damnable according to the Prouerbe Nicephor lib. 4. cap. 22. Centur. 2. cap. 8. Qualis vita finis ita A cursed life and a cursed death Of all Heretikes that euer troubled and afflicted Gods church the Arians were the chiefe the author and ringleader of which crue as by his vainglorious pride and ambition he sought to extoll himselfe aboue the clouds bosting and vaunting in his damnable error Socrat. Theod. Sozom. so by the iust vengeance of God he was abased lower then hell and put in euerlasting shame opprobrie for he had long time as it were entered the list and combated with Christ was condemned for an Heretike by the Nicene counsell and his books burned and then afterwards making shew before Constantine the Emperour with a solemne oth to recant his old errors and approue the profession of faith which the counsell of Nice had set forth concerning Christs diuinity whereunto also he subscribed his name but all that he did was in hipocrisie to the end to renue and republish the more boldly his false and pernicious doctrine But when hee thought himselfe neerest to the attainement of his purpose and braued it most with his supporters and companions euen then the Lord stroke him with a soddaine feare in the open street and with such horrible panges in his guts and vehement desire of disburdening nature that hee was faine to come vnto the publike houses appointed for that purpose taking them which were next at hand for a shift but he neuer shifted from them againe for his breath went out of his mouth and his guts ran out of his fundament and there lay hee dead vpon his owne excrements As the Emperour Gonstantius was a great fauourer and supporter of this sect and maintained it against and in despight of true Christians and by that meanes stirred vp schismes and dissentions throughout all Christendome Socrat lib. 2. cap. 47. so the Lord to requite him stirred vp one Iulian whom he himselfe had promoted to honour to rebell against him whose practises as hee went about to suppresse and was euen readie to encounter a grieuous apoplexie suddenly surcharged him so sore that he died of it before he could bring his purpose to passe The Emperour Valence was infected also with this poison R ff lib. 2. c. 13. Iornand wherewith likewise hee infected the Gothes who by his meanes were become the greater part Arrians and not Christians but neither went he vnpunished for when hee marched forth to represse the rage of the furious Gothes who were spred ouer all Thracia and had giuen them battell hee lost the day and being shamefully put to flight was pursued so fiercely that he was faine to hide himselfe in a litle house which being set on fire by the Gothes he was burnt therein As for Nestorius which would maintaine by his foolish dangerous opinions that the diuinitie of Christ was deuided from his humanity making as it were two Christs of one and two persons of one Niceph. lib. 14. cap. 36. and so turned vpside downe the whole ground worke of our saluation escaped no more the iust vengeance of God then all other heretikes did for first hee was banished into a farre countrey and there tormented with a strange disease the very wormes did gnaw in pieces his blasphemous tongue and at length the earth opened her mouth and swallowed him vp Concerning the Anabaptists which rose vp about fiue hundred yeres since it is euidently knowen how diuers waies God scourged and plagued many of them some of them were destroied by troupes and by thousands others miserably executed and