Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	abel_n	adam_n	eve_n	83	3	10.6161	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A74656	Expository notes, with practical observations; towards the opening of the five first chapters of the first book of Moses called Genesis. Delivered by way of exposition in several lords-dayes exercises. By Benjamin Needler, minister of the gospel at Margaret Moses Friday-Street, London.	Needler, Benjamin, 1620-1682.	1654 (1654)	Wing N412; Thomason E1443_2; ESTC R209640	117,247	301

onely earthly punishments as ver 11 12 Because wicked men are not so greatly Resp feared with the punishments of the life to come as carefull to avoid calamities for the present and indeed herein man becomes like the beasts that perish which are carried with an hurry to things present and sensible Quest 19. vers 13. Whether that saying of Cain be well translated My punishment is greater then I can beare Some say it should be rendred my sin Resp is greater then can be forgiven but the context seemes to favour our translation for in the following words he speakes not of his sinne but of his punishment vers 14. Behold thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth and from thy face c. here sinne is taken for the punishment of sin as in severall other places of Scripture The greatnesse of Cains punishment will appeare if you compare it with Adams 1. God did not curse Adam but the earth was cursed for Adams sake but God sayes to Cain vers 11. And now thou art cursed from the earth 2. That which is included in Adams curse viz. That though he should labour and sweat yet he should have bread for it In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat thy bread is denyed to Cain for saith the Lord vers 12. When thou tillest the ground it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength 3. Though Adam was expelled out of Paradise yet there was a commodious place assigned him by God where he and his family might reside and till the earth but the Lord saies of Cain that he should be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth ver 12. Oh have a care of blood What hast thou Gen. 4.7 done the voice of thy brothers blood crieth to mefrom the ground God will give a tongue to the earth speechlesse creatures shall speake rather then blood shall be concealed It is an excellent observation of a learned Author upon that text of Scripture When he maketh inquisition for blood he remembreth them Saith he doth not the Psal 7.12 Lord make inquisition for all sin Or is there any sin that God doth not enquire after Surely no but when it is said God makes inquisition for blood it argues the greatnesse of that sinne We finde not the like expression about any other particular sin in all the whole book of God Though God makes inquisition for all sin yet as if he would let all other sinnes past unsought and uniquired after it is said onely of this sinne that he makes inquisition for it Quest. 20. vers 14. Cain sayes From thy face I shall be hid and yet the Psalmist saith Psal 139.7 Whither shall I go from thy Spirit or whither shall I flee from thy presence God is present every where in regard of Resp his essence and therefore the Psalmist saith Whither shall I flee from thy presence We may run from God as our friend but we cannot escape him as an enemy A man pursued in an Island when he runnes from one end to the other runs from sea to sea if you should flee from one end of the earth unto the other you would run from God unto God The meaning then of this phrase I shall be hid from thy face is this I shall be deprived of communion with God in his Ordinances Though Cain was a wicked man yet he was taught by his parents that there was no way of enjoying God in this world but in and by his Ordinances And he speakes this not from a principle of love to God or his Ordinances but upon the account of education Learne from hence The condition of a person excommunicated is very sad Christ tells us we cannot serve God and Mammon and therefore when we are cast outof Gods service we are said to be delivered into the hands of Satan Hymeneus and Alexander excommunicated persons are 1 Tim. 1. 20. said to be delivered up unto Satan Learne also If the casting out of the Church a particular member though it be in order to cure and repentance be so dreadfull what a black day would that be when the Ordinances of Jesus Christ should as it were be excommunicated and cast out of the Church of Christ Quest 21. vers 14. Cain saith It shall come to passe that every one that findeth me shall slay me The question is who those were whom Cain feared that if they met him they would slay him Some think that Cain speakes this Resp 1 meerely upon the account of terrours of conscience for say they there were none but his Father and Mother living and was it likely they would be his executioners and yet Cain imagines multitudes to meet him and slay him Every one that findeth me shall slay me Prov. 28.1 The wicked fleeth when no man pursueth onely his owne guilt pursues him and makes him flee But this opinion hath not the savour of truth in it for Cain doth not onely suppose a considerable number of persons to live at that time in the world but God himselfe as appeares by what the Lord said unto Cain vers 15. Whosoever slayeth Cain vengeance shall be taken on him seven fold Some are of opinion that this is to be expounded of the beasts every one that findeth me shall slay me that is say they I shall be torne in pieces by every beast I meet But this cannot be the meaning of the words as appeares by that which followes for it is said The Lord set a mark upon Cain lest any finding him should kill him which cannot with any shew of reason be applied to the beasts Others hold that Cain in these words had respect to those that should afterwards be borne But neither can this be for what needed there a present law for those who as yet were not in being Another sort are of opinion that these words are to be applied to the Daughters of Adam and Eve for that Adam had Daughters at that time is more then probable from that which followes for it is said Cain had a wife which must needs be his sister and that she was come to yeares appeares because it is said ver 17. that Cain knew his wife From the whole I conceive we may more then probably conclude that Adam and Eve at the time when Cain spake these words had many Sonnes and Daughters although the Spirit of God doth not make mention of them the History mainly referring to Cain and Abel And to me it seemes very unlikely that Adam and Eve should have no more children after Cain and Abel till they came to yeares of discretion when at the beginning we finde God did make especiall provision for the encrease of the world as appeares by Gods sparing Cains life and his dispensation of his marriage with his sister However we may take notice of the terrours of Cains conscience for those that were in the world were either his parents brethren sisters or neere kindred

was a beast Resp yet the most sagacious and subtile beast of the field as in the text in the opinion of some the most excellent creature next unto man wit unsanctified is a fit toole for the Devil to work withal Quest 3. verse 1. Why did not Satan rather appear in the shape of a man or woman for so he might have gained an opinion with Eve of more excellency and knowledge then appearing in the forme of a Serpent 'T is answered by Learned men that the Resp Devil could not appear in humane shape whilest man was in his integrity because he was a spirit fallen and therefore God would not suffer him to appear in any shape but that which might argue his imperfection and abasement which was the shape of a beast it is observed that the good Angels can take upon them no other shape then the shape of a man the shape of an inferiour creature would be unsuitable to their excellent and glorious state so the Devill could not appear in the shape of a man because he was fallen from that state wherin he was created 'T is true since the fall of man the case is altered yet it is said the Devill cannot take upon him the shape of a compleat man but appears with some deformity or other Quest. 4. verse 1. Seeing it is cleare by the Scripture that our first parents were seduced by the Devil the Question is why we finde no mention of the Devil in this Chapter but onely of the Serpent Some conceive because Moses herein Resp 1 would conforme himself to the weaknesse of the infant state of the Jewish Church as formerly he made no mention of Angels so neither here of Satan being a spirit Others say Moses did not write as an Interpreter but as an Historian and therefore layes downe the matter of fact as it was presented to Eve she saw the Serpent heard the Serpent treated with the Serpent therefore Moses in this place makes mention onely of the Serpent So he relates unto us the story of Abraham entertaining three men which were onely in the shape of men but indeed Angels yet he so gives us Gen. 8. the history that by the circumstances we may easily gather that it was not the Serpent alone that seduced our first parents but the Devil in the Serpent for the Serpent being an irrationall creature could not speak at least not so as to discourse by way of question and reply and therefore must be acted by some being of an intellectuall nature now if what had been said had been good and holy we should in reason have ascribed it to God or a good Angel but being a Lie and sinfull we ascribe it to Satan Quest 5. verse 1. How could the Serpent be said to speake The Devil spake by the Serpent as he Resp did afterwards by those that were possessed Persons possessed had naturall Organs Object fit for the forming of speech so had not the Serpent 'T is true they had but the Devil hath Resp spoke in them whether they would or not yea when their mouth hath been shut and their teeth set now as to the matter in hand it is all one to have no proper Organs for speech and not to make use of them Thus by the eare death is brought into the world but blessed be God through Christ life is brought in by the same doore Quest 6. verse 1. How came it to passe that Eve was not astonished to hear the Serpent speak and so dreaded to treat with him Some conceive that in the beginning Resp 1 it was natural for Serpents to speak Julian laughs at this conceit and saith he Quo idiomate usus est serpens This I am sure it was not naturall for the Serpent to speake after this manner by way of rationall discourse Some say that Eve knew that a spirit spake in the Serpent and upon that account treated with him but this ties the knot faster then it was for she might and indeed she ought before she entered into a treaty to consider why a spirit good or bad should make use of such an instrument What if it should be asserted that Eve did not know but that other creatures might have a faculty to speake as well as man Was knowledge imperfect in innocency Object Say some It is probable Eve had lesse Resp knowledge then Adam and yet had as much as was required to the perfection of a woman and that state and condition that God had placed her in It was not necessary for her to know things by their causes and to understand the naturall properties of all the creatures but she was skilled in those things that concerned her family and related to her husband and children The state of innocency was free from Object all kind of evill both of body and minde error is an evill of the minde now if Eve did not know but that other creatures might speak as well as the Serpent she was in an error There is a twofold ignorance Resp 1 Ignorantia pravae disposi●ionis when we are ignorant of that we are bound to know and this indeed was repugnant to the state of innocency 2. Ignorantia purae negationis which is when a person barely not knowes a thing this the Learned call Nescience this was not repugnant to the state of innocency Christ as man might be said Nescire not to know some things viz. the day of judgement and yet Christ as man was without sinne so children in the state of innocency should not have known so much as men yea for ought I know Adam himself might have attained to a greater measure of knowledge by experience 3. Though I have high thoughts of those learned Authors that are of this perswasion yet dogmatically to affirme that Eve was created with lesse knowledge then the women of after-ages have attained to is an assertion hard of digestion to my understanding c. 4. It is likely therefore Eve was something astonished at first at the speech of the Serpent but being desirous to heare what the Serpent would say the understanding of a rationall creature being as much delighted with knowledge as the stomack with meat engaged in a treaty with the Serpent which was the occasion both of her sinne and punishment Quest 7. verse 1. Why Satan setteth upon the woman and not upon the man 1. Because the precept was given to Adam by God himselfe say some Adam Resp 1 had the precept from God immediately and so had deeper impressions of it in his soul then Eve that had it by tradition from her husband The woman was the weaker vessell and the Devil delighteth to set upon us where we are weakest as he set upon Christ when he was an hungry the Devill will be sure to force us there most where we are least able to resist Adam would sooner be seduced by his wife then by the Serpent Saul knew what he did when he married his daughter unto