Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	aaron_n	keep_v	silence_n	37	3	12.0209	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A94070	XXXI. select sermons, preached on special occasions; the titles and several texts, on which they were preached, follow. / By William Strong, that godly, able and faithful minister of Christ, lately of the Abby at Westminster. None of them being before made publique.	Strong, William, d. 1654.	1656 (1656)	Wing S6007_pt1; Thomason E874_1; ESTC R203660	309,248	523

to stop their mouthes therefore if you would not have Judgements encreased take heed when you see the Lord appearing for his Church providentially acting the Lord is up then Say to thy own soul Let all flesh be silent before him That is the first looking upon these words as referring to the Churches enemies A word I shall add looking upon these words as referring to the poor distressed Jews who were now returned out of the Land of their Captivity but there was a mighty power of the enemy against them why yet saith the Lord do you keep silence silence your doubtings silence your frettings Silence your doubtings It it said of Abraham Rom. 4.20 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he did not dispute the business pro and con and truly neither must you if God be up leave the work in his hand leave off your doubtings leave off your doubtings upon conjectures and suppositions That is the first Let all flesh keep silence silence your doubtings Secondly Let all flesh keep silence silence your frettings saith David Psal 39. I kept silence I was dumb saith he for it was thy doings A terrible Judgement befell Aaron two sons were taken away by an immediate stroke from Gods hand and Aaron held his peace his spirit did not rise and discontentedly fret at the present dispensation Oh ye that fear God take heed when the Lord ariseth for his people keep silence before him silence your doubtings silence your fret tings That I press by four considerations and so I shall conclude I beseech you mark them You that fear God that know his name that expect an interest in all that mercy that the Lord intendeth for his people in the latter daies take heed I say that ye keep silence before the Lord. First Consider but this will you contend with God will you I say contend with God in Judgement the Lord challengeth that Who will appoint me a time who will contend with me in Iudgement Will you dispute the business out with God Consider Gods Judgement is the last Judgement and his Judgement is an eternal Judgement from his Sentence there is no appeal it is the worst course that a man could take that is to be Judged to undertake to contend with his Judgement before God therefore take heed of it you cannot contend with God in Judgement Iob 9.32 Secondly should not the Sove●aignty of God put you to silence though it may be all the actings of God be not according to your will should not the Soveraignty of God I say stop your mouthes ● hath not the Lord reserved to himself the power of Kingdoms Depoint Reges disponit Regna he it is that disposeth Kings he it is that disposeth Kingdoms now I beseech you observe this seriously this did silence David I was dumb and opened not my mouth it was thy doings truly had I looked barely upon man it was such a thing I could not have born if I had looked only upon instruments but when I looked upon him as my Soveraign and absolute Lord then saith he I was silent before him In the third place consider this A fretful spirit even in Gods own people doth strangely blind their eyes that they cannot see the goodness of God in the mercy but take many times that which is a high and glorious mercy they take it to be a cross and an affliction My Brethren observe envy will strangely hoodwink a man when the hand of the Lord is lifted up they will not see why for their envy at the people they text saith it is an evil frame of spirit in a Christian a froward discontented fretful spirit a spirit ill becoming a Saint your wisdom should hinder it Solomon tels you a man of understanding is of an excellent Spirit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 frigidus spiritu he is a man of a cool spirit a man of understanding a great many men will speak of their understandings and their zeal many times but know that a man of understanding is of a cool spirit Consider the Spirit of Christ comes in the form of a Dove be innocent as Doves without gall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sine felle sine dolo so the word signifies the Dove is without gall as well as without guil and truly that is a spirit becoming a Christian and the want of this my Brethren makes many deny the most glorious actings of God towards his people when many times even an Heathen man a stranger standing by is ready to cry out as he did truly it is a glorious God the God of the Christians Alas they will not look upon it they cannot see it envy I say strangely bleareth the eyes take heed of it therefore In the last place and so I have done Consider doth the wrath of man work the righteousness of God the Apostle S. Iames tels you clearly the contrary certainly you that will maintain Gods cause you must do it by Gods means the Lord needs no carnal weapons no help of any body no fleshly interest to maintain his spiritual cause no I entreat you consider it when if ever you will carry on the cause of God let it be done by the means and with that spirit that God requireth I dare undertake you shall find that of Nazianzen a good rule Nazian Let us be weak that we may overcome I that is the way the way to overcome men or to mannage a cause though you say it is the cause of God I say it is not to be done by humane heats and fleshly animosities therefore this is that I shall leave with you for the present in these five considerations farther and so have done First God hath never set up any authority or way of government but he hath reserved to himself in his providence a power to change it at his pleasure Zach. 21.10 Remove the Diadem take away the Crown God will shew himself to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords Secondly it is his ordinance that there should be a Magistracie they are called the shields of the earth the stay of your tribes the foundations of the earth and it is not good there should be an Anarchie for God hath set Rulers over men some by providence some by promise But yet God sets them over them that should be enough to restrain men of giddy spirits who are like the children of Belial without a yoak therefore let us not go about to pluck up our own bedge and destroy our own foundations Hab. 1.13 The fishes of the Sea have no Ruler over them but devour one another The Persians at the death of their Kings have 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 on purpose that men might find the evil of it therefore be not unruly boysterous spirits like the raging Sea But be content to submit to the bounds that God hath set you Thirdly though this Government be an Ordinance of God yet the extent and specification of it is but an humane creation 1. Pet. 2.13 〈◊〉

comfort your selves with this the Lord is raised up out of his holy habitation he hath begun and he will carry on the work And so much now for the first branch of the Text the Proposition the Lord is raised up out of his holy habitation The inference that followeth upon it I shall speak but briefly to only I pray you lend me your diligent ear and with that I shall conclude I would be loth to trespass in respect of time The Lord is raised up out of his holy habitation what then be silent Oh all flesh before him That is the inference be silent O all flesh before the Lord. These words Interpretets referr both to the Churches enemies and to the people of God who were returned from the Land of their captivity The particle Interjectio est silentium Imperans Jerom. Ierom. Oh that is here used is a kind of Interjection by which the Lord commandeth silence and not a silence of the tongue only but silence of the soul My soul keep silence unto God There is a double silence in the world Some men keep silence in policy because they would not discover themselves till a convenient time But all the people of God that will approve themselves they must keep silence in duty Well First then Let us look upon enemies and as it is a direction to them a command laid upon them Oh all flesh be silent before the Lord. I here is a double ground of all ungodly mens silence and I find it used so in Scripture First there is a silence from shame Psal 31.19 let the lying lips be put to silence that cruelly and despightfully speak against the righteous silencing may be by shame Secondly there is a silencing of men wi●h fear and astonishment Psal 107.41 he setteth the poor on high with Princes the righteous shall see this and rejoyce and all wickedness shall stop their mouth men shall be amazed to see it There is a silence from shame there is a silence from fear then it is as if so be the Lord should have said unto all the Churchs enemies for shame or if not for shame for fear suppress your murmurings away with your boastings your censurings your slanderings Keep silence Oh all flesh before the Lord why now give me leave to inforce it a little All those that are enemies unto Gods actings among his people give me leave to speak a word to you if any such are here as in most of our Congregations it is like there are When the Lord is raised up out of his holy habitation doth gloriously appear in providential actings for his people then see that you keep silence I say away with your murmurings your disputings your censurings your slanderings and let me inforce it upon these four grounds remember them First know the Lord hears all your murmurings the Lord takes notice of all your censurings sometimes men in design keep silence because they dare not speak out But remember what the Lord told his people when they murmured against Moses Exod. 16. the Lord tells them that they have not murmured against thee at the 7. ver they have not murmured against thee but they have murmured against me When God appears in Instruments and you evidently see the hand of God with them then when you murmur at these Instruments you murmur against God remember that and the Lord takes notice In the second place It is a far greater Judgement for a man to be given over to a froward fretful spirit under an affliction then any affliction that can befall him I desire that it may sink deep into all your hearts I say to be given over under an affliction to a froward and a fretful spirit is a greater judgement then any affliction can befall him for a man to be like a wild Bull in a Net full of the fury of the Lord the cross he cannot bear and yet he cannot avoid it I intreat you consider it is worse then any other judgement can befall you it is the Devils sin and it is the Devils punishment mark this I say it is the Devils sin and it is the Devils punishment the Lord crosseth him in all his designs and yet notwithstanding for all that still his spirit risseth up against all his acting and so envy is his sin and his plague now do you mark it is true all sins are from the Devil but yet some are from him per modum servitutis others per modum Imagini in some sins you do the Devils work but in some sins you bear the Devils image and I beseech you consider this is the condition of every man so far as he is given over to a froward fretful perverse discontented spirit under the providential actings of God towards his people Consider I beseech you it is this that makes Hell this makes Hell when a man is under the hand of God that yet he cannot bear it nor he cannot avoid it It was a good speech of Bernard Bernard Ubi non est propria voluntas non erit infernum take away a mans self-will and truly you take away hell this is that my Bretheren makes it be so when an affliction lies upon a man all that while his will continually riseth against the dealings of God and he frets against the hand of God upon him it is the greatest Judgement could befal him In the third place This will certainly hinder your repentance It is a sad Scripture that so much the more sad because it hath an aspect upon the times in which we live Rev. 16.9 you read of the Vial poured out upon the Sun the highest authority in Church and State so far as it holds to Rome Now the Text saith that men should be scorched the same Vial that was poured out upon the Sun I say now that men should be scorched exceedingly fretful perplexed in spirit and what follows why the text saith they blasphemed God that had power over these plagues and they repented not to give God the glory My Brethren there is not a greater Judgement befalls men in these daies then through a fretful spirit against the instrument to neglect the hand of God and not repent and turn Yea in the last place that I may draw to wards a conclusion This will provoke the Lord I assure you for to bring greater plagues upon you therefore take heed to it to keep silence before him when you see Gods hand upon you Isa 26.11 When the hand of the Lord is lifted up they will not see but they shall see and be ashamed for their envy at the people saith the Text. My Brethren God worketh Judgements in lesser characters at first and truly if men cannot read it he will write them in more eminent and capital Letters small judgements they will not open wicked mens eyes truly neither will they stop wicked mens mouthes and if they will not do so assuredly God will have a way for all wicked men