Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	ability_n	able_a	matter_n	32	3	4.8346	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A15013	Prototypes, or, The primarie precedent presidents out of the booke of Genesis shewing, the [brace] good and bad things [brace] they did and had practically applied to our information and reformation / by that faithfull and painefull preacher of Gods word William Whately ... ; together with Mr. Whatelyes life and death ; published by Mr. Edward Leigh and Mr. Henry Scudder, who were appointed by the authour to peruse his manuscripts, and printed by his owne coppy.	Whately, William, 1583-1639.; Leigh, Edward, 1602-1671.; Scudder, Henry, d. 1659?	1640 (1640)	STC 25317.5; ESTC S4965	513,587	514

and our wonder at him but such was our pride he gained our envy of him His Father whether because he was not resolved what calling to breed him to or for what other cause I know not after that hee had with credit proceeded Bachelour of Arts hee took him home where he abode some good time yet applying himselfe unto his studies While hee remained at home with his Father hee married the Daughter of one Master George Hunt the sonne of that tryed and prepared Martyr Iohn Hunt mentioned in the Book of Martyrs who was condemned to be burnt for Religion but was saved from the execution thereof by the death of Queene Mary This Master George Hunt was bred up in the Famous f●ee Schoole of the Marchant-Taylers in London and afterward by the incouragement of Master D. Humfry by occasion of a visit of that Schoole and by the furtherance of M George and Mr. Iohn Kingsmells and by the exhibitions of Bishop Pilkinton all which for their honour sake I name he was called unto and mainetained in that worthy Foundation of good Learning Magdalen Colledge in Oxford till hee was Fellow of that House where hee continued till hee had borne the offices of Deane of Arts and Deane of Divinity Afterwards by the meanes of those worthy Master Kingsmells hee was preferred to the Church of Collingborn-ducis in the County of Wiles where for the space of fifty and one yeares and five moneths he lived a sound and constant Preacher of the Word and was of an unblameable and holy life even untill the oyle of his radicall moysture was spent and the candle of his life of it selfe went out in a full and good old-age after a long and joyous expectation and longing for his blessed change which was in the eighty and third yeare and fift moneth of his age This Master George Hunt after that by importunity hee had got this his sonne in law to make tryall of his ability to preach he overperswaded him to intend the ministery And thereupon he entred himselfe into Edmund Hall in the famous Vniversity of Oxford and tooke his Degree of Master of Arts. Not long after hee entred into the Ministery and hee was presently called to be a Lecturer at Banbury which he commendably performed above the space of foure yeares and then was called to be Vicar of the same Church which office hee faithfully discharged neare thirty years till he died The abilities wherewith God had indued him for his work of the Ministery were more then ordinary For hee was of a quicke understanding of a cleare and deepe Iudgement of a most firme memory and of a lively spirit Hee was naturally eloquent a master of his words having words at will Hee had a most able body and sound lunges and till some yeares before his death he had a most strong and audible voice And according as his matter in hand and his auditory needed he was both a terrible Boanerges a sonne of Thunder and also a Barnabas a sonne of sweet consolation And which was the crowne of all God gave him an heart to seek him and to aime at the saving of the soules of all that heard him His speech and preaching was not with entising words of mans wisedome but in demonstration of the spirit and of power He was an Apollos not onely eloquent but withall mighty in the Scriptures He like some of the Ancient Fathers was as occasions fell out sometimes an every dayes Preacher He preached ordinarily in his owne Church twise each Lords-Day and catechized for above halfe an houre before evening Prayer examining and instructing the youth and once a weeke he preached the ordinary Lecture Hee was much against all such preaching as was light vaine scenicall impertinent raw and indigested His preaching was plaine but as much according to the Scripture and also to the rules of Art and of right Reason as any that ever I heard or have heard of In conference he hath told me what hee aimed at and what use he made of the Arts and what rules hee set to himselfe in the studying of his Sermons which was as followeth That he might better understand his Text hee made use of his Grammer learning in Greeke and Hebrew in which tongues the Scripture is written Also hee would use the helpe of Rhetoricke to discover to him what formes of speech in his Text was to be taken in their primary and proper signification and what was elegantly cloathed and wrapped up in tropes and figures that hee might unfold them and see their naked meaning Then well weighing and considering the context hee would by the helpe of Logicke finde out the scope of the Holy Ghost in that Scripture Hee would endeavour when he began to enter upon the preaching of any Chapter to Analise and take the Chapter into its severall branches and parts Then he would if it were a doctrinall Text note the Doctrine as it lay in the Text and so prosecute it Or if the Text consisted of illustrations or circumstances of some principall truth there prosecuted hee would then gather from some notable part or branch of his Text an apt Doctrine or Divine Truth which should so immediately follow that the Truth observed in the Text should be the argument or middle terme wherby in a simple Sillogisme he could conclude his Doctrine Next hee would seeke for apt proofes out of Scripture to confirme it Fewer or more as hee thought best which done because other arguments according to Scripture and right Reason are forcible to convince and confirme reasonable men in any truth hee would find out Reasons of his Doctrine but he aimed that they should bee strong Arguments or middle termes by which hee might likewise Sillogistially conclude his said Doctrine Then according to the nature of the Doctrine and the need and aptnesse of his Auditory hee would as from an infallible consequent of his Doctrine by way of Application confirme some profitable Truth which yet by some might happily bee questioned or else convince men of some errour or reproove some vice or exhort to some Dutie or resolve some doubt or case of conscience or comfort such as needed Consolation In all which sorts of Applications hee did make use of more or fewer of them as there might bee cause and hee would bee carefull that his Doctrine should bee the Argument or middle terme whereby hee might sillogistically conclude the maine Proposition of any of his said uses And if the reproofe or exhortation did need pressing home upon the conscience then hee would study to enlarge his Speech shewing motives to induce to such a duty and allso disswasives from such a vice taking his Arguments from dutie to God decency or shamefullnesse pleasure or paine gaine or losse And here again he would use the help of Rhetorick but all for the most part in a concealed way without all affectation And sometimes he would shew the effectuall meanes of attaining of the Grace and

used due speede in fulfilling his oath for without more then necessary deferring hee addressed himselfe to the performance of his oath having thoroughly understood it for knowing his Masters will to be that he should fetch the woman and not bring Isaac backe againe thither and that if they would not give him a wife for Isaac without his owne comming then he should be free from the oath and withall being incouraged by Abrahams words that God would send his Angell before him and prosper his journey he made all good speede to take his journey about that weighty service and went unto Mesopotamia to dispatch it taking to that end ten Camells with all other things necessary seeing all his Masters estate was at his command Here learne that when you have sworne you must not delay the performance of it but so soone as shall be convenient and as you have power must settle to doe the thing sworne to All you that have sworne any lawfull and possible thing looke on Abrahams godly servant and be mindfull of your oathes consider the greatnesse of God to whom you are tied and put not off the worke from time to time seeke not needlesse delayes make not fearefull or sloathfull excuses but free your faith and pull your selves out of the danger of Gods displeasure by a conscionable fulfilling of your oathes The Pharisees could say thou shalt not forsweare thy selfe but fulfill thine oathes to God Let us shew our selves at least as wise and conscionable as a Pharisee could teach us to be But what if we perceive the oath to have beene of an unlawfull thing I answer then we must repent of our naughtinesse in taking it and so forbeare to add a second sinne in doing that which is unlawfull For it is impossible that an oath should be of more force to binde a man to a thing then Gods Commandement is to restraine him from it Nothing can have more force to binde conscience then Gods Commandement But what if it proove impossible I answer if that impossibility might have beene foreseene our rashnesse in not foreseeing it must be repented of but if it could not have beene foreseene we must rest our selves satisfied in this that our minde was faithfully to have fulfilled it if God had not cast in our way such an impediment but no hazard no cost no labour must stand betwixt us and the accomplishing of our oathes for David saith that a good man sweares to his hinderance and yet fulfills 'T were better for a man to be undone in the world or to loose this naturall life then to breake his oath for feare of losse or death So much of this mans conscionablenesse in regard of taking and keeping an oath Now see his vertuous carriage in the thing 1. His great diligence in the maine worke 2. His discretion 3. His piety and religiousnesse To begin with the last he served his Master religiously First he thanked God for his good successe 2. He prayed to God for good successe His prayer is Gen. 24.12 13 14. Wherein he besought God to cause him to meete with a fit wife for Isaac We must all learne specially servants for of such a one we speake now to commend our Masters businesses to God praying him to prosper us A good and godly servant when he imployeth himselfe in his Masters worke must shew himselfe to be Gods servant and to have faith in his providence trusting in his goodnesse and blessing more then in his owne ability Indeed such a particular begging of such and such occurrents to shew us Gods minde was peculiar to him and is not required of us for he did it by the peculiar inspiration of Gods Spirit but in generall to beg Gods assistacce that belongs to all good Servants You that would be counted godly servants have you thus sanctified your indeavours by prayer have you thus called on his name to guide and speed you if you have you have done well take comfort in it it is a testimony that you serve for conscience sake not as men-pleasers and that you serve the Lord in serving your Masters if you have not be humbled and lament it as a matter of prophanesse and a cause of many crosses and a meanes to make you proud of your selves if good successe attend you And now tread hereafter in the steps of this godly Servant Pray pray to him for his assistance and blessing upon your selves and the workes you take in hand for your Masters that so it may appeare you doe all in faith and obedience to God Againe this man finding that God did answer his requests blesseth God verse 26 27. Where is his reverent behaviour outwardly hee bowed and then the matter of his thankes he said blessed be the Lord you must learne with all humble behaviour of body and consequently of mind and with all sincerity and heartinesse to praise God for your good successe and so it will appeare that you ascribe all to God and not to your selves If you have beene thus thankfull it is an excellent thing in which you must take comfort nothing is a truer proofe of true goodnesse then a constant care to blesse and praise God for his perpetuall goodnesse in prospering us if not lament the want of it as a manifest proofe of pride and want of faith And now let us all learne to be particularly thankfull to God for particular benefits yea even such outward benefits much more for inward This is the way to continue to sanctifie and increase benefits God loveth thankfullnesse as men also doe If we improove his benefits to so good a purpose we shall not want them in due time onely see that your thankes be not alone verball You have seene his piety now his discretion shewes it selfe first in setting downe what a woman he would have for Isaac viz. a courteous and laborious woman one that came out to draw water and one that would respect a stranger and give him to drinke and his Camels also truly a woman courteous of disposition and of body strong and healthy and painefull is a fit woman to make a wife Againe he proceeds discreetly in his carriage to winne her and her Parents he gives her gifts and them also and truly relates the prosperous estate of his Master all which tend to perswade them to yeeld her and her selfe to give her selfe to Isaac for a wife So must every servant use discretion and prudence in his Masters affaires taking the best course he can to make them sort well in the end Another part of his good behaviour is care of his Camels to which he lookes to give water and provender in due time So should a good servant and every good man in his travells have a due care of his beasts and looke that they have things fit for them Yea first should hee looke to them unlesse necessity compell otherwise and then to himselfe not like to them

and such quantity of griefe as is requisite for that end may well be entertained though it swell not so big as to write it selfe upon our cheekes and countenance But these two men whom imprisonment could not make to change countenance yet became sad when they wanted interpreters of their dreames It was one of the waies by which the Lord was pleased to reveale himselfe in those times this was a divine dreame offered unto each of them by God of purpose to finish the thing he had intended about Ioseph and hence they cannot be cheerefull till they know the meaning of the dreame To be heavie when we want fit meanes of making us understand that which much concernes us to know is not blame-worthy If these were sad for want of a fit Interpreter of dreames how much more cause have they to be sad that want an Interpreter of Gods Word unto them Did they as well know the neede of knowing the Scriptures as these knew the want of an Interpreter they would be sad upon a juster occasion But it may seeme much that we meete with interpreters of dreames yet it is likely nay certaine that there were some which undertooke that office as there were that exercised other curious arts I suppose that God who gave dreames to some gave then to others the knowledge of interpreting of dreames and hence the Divells imitating God did set his Idolatrous Priests a worke to doe the same thing and hence the Interpreters of dreames among the Gentiles It was not to be discommended but rather approoved in these men that having had dreames they would have sought to the Interpreters and were sad that their opportunity served them not How much more should we seeke to those that can teach us better things and are appointed for that purpose and even be sorry that wee want such helpes But another thing commendable is that they despised not Iosephs either youth or meane condition but open their dreames And indeed this is a thing which adversity will worke men even of high spirits unto not to deny familiarity unto those that be farre meaner then themselves It is a matter of necessity for a great Officer in prison to carry himselfe affably and sociably to a poore youth attending in the prison but to be affable to meane persons when preferment and liberty meete together that is a point of morall vertue at least It is more beautifull in a great mans carriage then any jewell or multitude of jewels in his apparell whosoever desireth to be had in good account let him shew forth this vertue Another good act we have in the chiefe Butler that when he was put in remembrance of Ioseph by the falling out of the dreame of Pharaoh and the insufficiencie of the other Wise-men to interpret then he did a good office to his King though I cannot call it a good office to Ioseph as he did it even to informe the King of it and bring Iosephs ability to light and make this gift of his serviceable to Pharaoh in this exigent They doe a good office to a King or any other man who helpe them to men of commendable sufficiencies to doe any necessary service for them and who certifie those with whom they live what benefits themselves have received by another that others may receive the like benefit in the like necessity All men should be so charitable to their neighbours as to commend unto them the spring from whence themselves have dranke refreshing waters But see the faults of these men first they both seemed to have committed some trespasse some matter of treason likely it was because the one died for it and the other should have died had he beene found guilty you see how dangerous a thing it is to commit trespasses against a Soveraigne King by any kinde of treacherous attempts or carriages yea so much as in thought or word for this is such a thing as indangereth the offendor both in liberty and life Therefore Salomon warneth us not to meddle with seditions and telleth us that the wrath of a King is like the roaring of a Lyon and that whosoever sinneth against him sinneth against his owne soule It may befall an innocent man to be suspected of this crime as here it may seeme the Butler found by experience but it is needfull that we carefully shunne the crime though we cannot shun the suspition Feare God and honour the King let your hearts be subdued to his Majesty and your tongues and much more your hands Doe nothing by which you may sinne against him or cause him to be wroth against you Kings are a little Modell of Gods Soveraignty he hath made them his deputies S. Peter calleth them the Supreame S. Paul the higher Powers How ill speed had Absalom and Shebah and Bigtam and Zeresh and others that attempted against Kings Learne to be duly subject unto them by whom the God of Heaven doth as it were keepe his possession of the world Hitherto their common faults Now the speciall fault of the Butler was forgetting of Ioseph though Ioseph had besought him to remember him signifying also the wrong that he had in being brought either as a slave into the countrey or as a prisoner into that place but the words of Ioseph vanished and the chiefe Butler had quite forgotten him whom he left in prison now that himselfe was gotten out of prison So is the guize of men when themselves have escaped crosses they remember not to be helpfull to others that are in like calamity yea though they have beene beholding to them in the time of their misery and have found them instruments of great comfort in their misery This is an unthankfull kinde of unmercifullnesse it is a compound of two faults want of pitty and want of gratitude I pray if any be guilty of this fault let him not forget it now but being put in minde of it by the hearing of a like offence in this Officer of Pharaoh let him see it to be as bad a vice in himselfe as at the reading of it he cannot choose but judge it in this Courtier Had he seene so much serviceablenesse so excellent skill in so hidden a thing as interpreting of dreames and such excellent parts in Ioseph and had himselfe found him so true an Interpreter as that all things came to passe according to his word and was he not worth once thinking of for a whole yeares space together Sure he was glutted with his owne prosperity that in all those daies could not find in his heart to cast one thought backe againe to the prison and thinke of the wrong done to that so worthy a young man who both ministred unto him in prison and foretold his deliverance out of prison This forgetfullnesse of a man to whom we have beene indebted in misery is a testimony that selfe-love hath so abounded in him as that it hath choaked and consumed all charity It