Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	church_n	true_a	visible_a	6,007	5	9.0633	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A66105	The man of war a sermon preached to the Artillery Company at Boston on June 5, 1699, being the anniversary day for their election of officers / by Samuel Willard.	Willard, Samuel, 1640-1707.	1699 (1699)	Wing W2284_VARIANT; ESTC R31017	12,138	38

10. 1 2. A devout man and one that feared God c. And he sought to instil devotion as well as the Rules of Military Discipline into his Souldiers whence that Character given of one of them Verse 7. A devout Souldier of them that waited on him continually And though profaness and debauchery may possibly stupify mens Consciences and so render them fool-hardy and desperate yet out of doubt that man who dwells in peace with God who enjoys the inward serenity of a good Conscience and is always in his heart pressed for the Glory of God is best armed against the fear of death when called to run into the mouth of danger and stand in the midst of Confused noises and garments rolled in blood when he seeth a thousand fall at his fide and ten thousand at his right hand But I proceed We may then in the third place remark the time in which Solomon appointed the Israelites to be men of War Had it been in the days of David his Father who was so often called into the Field who was environed with enemies on all sides and against whom he fought many a bloody Battel it had not been so much nay it had been necessary But that Solomon whose very name importeth Peace and who was in his reign to be a Type of Christ who is called the Prince of Peace Isa 9. 6. Of whose reign it was predicted that the mountains should bring forth Peace to the People Psal 72. 3. And that in his days there should be abundance of Peace Vers 7. And who could himself say in his Letter to Hiram 1 King 5. 4. There is neither adversity nor evil occurrent That he should be so careful to have his Subjects trained up in arms is a thing very remarkable and it will instruct us in this DOCTRINE It is a great point of Prudence in times of Peace to make Provision for War Prudence is a natural foresight of future Contingencies and providing our selves accordingly against the danger of them Prov. 27. 12. The Prudent fore seeth the evil and hideth himself Although the Providence of God Governeth and infallibly determineth all Contingencies yet they do not for that cease to be Contingencies as to the order of Second causes among which Peace and War have their Revolutions though known to God yet casual to us Eccl. 3. 8. A time of War and a time of Peace So that Peace is never so setled but that War may on a sudden arise and security which is the mother of negligence always exposeth a people unto danger It is an ill time when the Trumpet of War is sounded and Hannibal is at the gates for a people then to have their Forts to build their Arms Ammunition and Provision to seek and their Souldiers Untrained Nor is it less hazardous when once Peace is proclaimed for men to let their Fortifications fall hang up their Arms and let them grow rusty and useless and lay aside their Military exercises as things superfluous Arms are for the maintaining of Peace as wel as the suppressing of War for its preservation as well as recovery Nor will any thing strike more of terrour into our ill willers than to see us always ready for the worst hence such an expression Cant. 6. 10. Terrible as an army with Banners Whereas if they who watch for an advantage find us Laish like secure and no way provided nor expecting evil they will be ready to serve us as the Tribe of Dan did them Judg. 18. 27. They came unto Laish unto a People that were quiet and secure and they smote them with the edge of the Sword and burnt the City with fire It was an argument used by Asa that because all was quiet before them and God had given them rest it was their wisdom to take the Opportunity to build Cities and make walls and towers about them as if they had expected an attack from enemies 2 Chron. 14. 6 7. He did not think it to be an evidence of a strong faith for men to neglect the means on pretence of trusting in God The best way to prevent the occasion of using the Sword in earnest is to keep it always bright and surbished USE Which Consideration might be improved both for Rebuke Caution It hath doubtless been a fault among us that this Rule of Prudence hath been so poorly attended Peace hath bred Security and times of Trouble have found us unready and the most of our Surprizes and Defeatments by the Enemies have deserved to be imputed to this I spare to enumerate the many instances that are at hand Of how many of our surprized Garrisons in which our people have been miserably butchered may that of the Poet be asserted Invadunt urbem somno Sepultam And there have been complaints made that our very Trainings have been too often idle Complements or at least that there hath been in them too much neglect of and too little proficiency in the things that are properly designed by them And be we warned not to fall asleep because the Sword of War is at present sheathed remembring that the Book of the Histories of the Wars of the Lord is not yet compleated nor will be till the great Battel of Armageddon is fought Babylon is not yet fallen The Churches Adversaries are still in their strength God will call out his Armies e're long and then Cursed will he be who cometh not forth to the help of the Lord against the mighty Nor are we our selves secure and though it is but a little that we can do for our own safety and if God be not on our side we are an easy prey to any potent Devourer yet the Faith that nourisheth negligence is not indeed Faith but Presumption There is yet one farther Improvement of this Text which I would make and it will comprize the whole Auditory under it and give to every one their portion and that is the Mystical aim of this Typical Scripture in which I am satisfied that I shall not go beyond the mind of the Spirit of God in this part of the Scripture History Israel over whom Solomon Reigned were the then Visible Church of God and although not a Type of the Gospel Church in the strict sense of the word yet Gods treating with them in the Ceremonial and Judicial Law was in a more large and true sense Typical having under it a dark representation of Spiritual Things which were more fully to be revealed afterwards and so they have a more peculiar respect to the Church of Gods Chosen and Elected As Solomon was in a more peculiar respect the King of the Nation of Israel he so represented Christ as King of Gods true Israel and we are here given to understand what order he taketh about them or what business he assigns for them as they were the Subjects of this Kingdom Here then Observe this DOCTRINE Every true Israelite in the Kingdom of Grace is a Man of War The true