Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	knowledge_n	understanding_n	wisdom_n	6,916	5	6.5948	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64451	A testimony concerning the life, death, trials, travels and labours of Edward Burroughs that worthy prophet of the Lord who dyed a prisoner for the testimony of Jesus, and the word of God, in the city of London, the 14th of the 12th month, 1662 / [by] F.H.	Howgill, Francis, 1618-1669.; Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.; Coale, Josiah, 1632?-1668.; Fox, George, 1624-1691.	1662 (1662)	Wing T809; ESTC R34657	20,023	27

everlasting Light which thou hast often testified unto according to the Word of Prop●esie in thy heart which was given unto ●hee by the Holy Ghost and art at rest in the perfection thereof in the beauty of Holiness yet thy Life and thy Spirit I feel as present and have unity with it and in it beyond all created and visible thing● which are subje●t to ●utation and change and thy Life shall enter into other● to testifie unto the same truth which is from everlasting to everl●sting for God hath raised and will raise up children unto Abraham of them that have been as dead stones whose Po●er is Almighty great in his people in the midst of their Enemies This same Edward Burroughs was born in the Barrony of Kendal in the County of Westmoreland of honest Parents who had a good report among their Neighbours for upright and honest dealing among men who brought up Edward in his youth in learning and good Education as the Countrey doth afford He was a very understanding Boy in his youth and his knowledge and understanding did far exceed his years He had the Spirit of a man when he was but as a child and I may say grey h●irs was upon him when he was but a youth for he was cloathed with Wisdom in his Infancy for I had perfect knowledge of him from a youth He was inclinable from his youth upwards to Religion and the best way always minding the best things and the best and nearest way of Worship to the Scriptures of Truth and always did accompany the best men who walked in godliness and honesty insomuch I have often admired his discreet carriage and his great understanding of the things of God He was never known to be addicte● to any vic● or malignity or bad behaviour neither followed any evil course of life from his childhood but feared the Lord and walked uprightly according to the light and knowledge received in all things In his natural disposition he was bold and manly dexterous and fervent and what he took in hand he did it with his might loving kind and courteous merciful and flexible and easie to be entreated His whole delight was always ●mong good people and to be conferring and reading the Scriptures and little to mind any sports or pastimes which there is an infidency unto in youth but his very strength was bended after God and was separated I may say from his Mothers Womb and fitting for the Works sake whereunto he after was called And when it pleased the Lord to raise up the a●cient horn of salvation among us who were reckoned in the North part of England even as the out casts of Israel and as men destitut● of the great knowledge which some seemed to enjoy yet there was more sincerity and true love among us and desires ●fter the living powerful presence of God then was among many in that day who seemed to make a great flourish who ran into heaps and forms but left the Cross behind them and indeed were strangers to it God out of his everlasting love did appear unto us according to the desire of our hearts who longed after him when we had turned aside from the hireling Shepherds T●nts we found him whom our souls loved and God out of his great love and great mercy sent one unto us immediately by his Power a man of God one of ten thousand to instruct us in the way of God more perfectly who laid down the sure foundation and declared the acceptable year of the Lord who indeed made the mourners to re●oice and the heavy hearted glad which yet was terrible to all hypocrites and all formal profession which testimony reached unto all our consciences and entered into the inmost part of our hearts which drove us to a narrow search and to a diligent inquisition concerni●g our st●te which we did come to see through the Light of Christ Jesus which was testified of and found it to be even what it was testified of and the Lord of heaven and earth we found to be near at hand and as we waited upon him in pure silence our minds out of all things his dreadful power and glorious Majesty and heavenly presence appeared in our Assemblies when there was no language tongue nor speech from any creature and the Kingdom of heaven did gather us and catch us all as in a Net and his heavenly power at one time did draw many hundreds to Land that we did come to know a place to stand in and what to wait in and the Lord did appear daily to us to our astonishment amazement and great admiration insomuch that we often said one unto another with great joy of heart What is the Kingdom of God come to be with men And will he take up his Tabernacle amongst the sons of men as he did of old And what shall we that were reckoned as the outcasts of Israel have this honor of glory communicated amongst us which were but men of small parts and of little abi●i●i●s in respect of many oth●rs as amongst men Howbeit thus it seemed good unto the Lord to choose the weak things and the foolish things of this World as to the aspect of me● that no flesh might glory that no man because of his parts might glory or because of his streng●h or wisdom might glory but that the glory which is his might onely be given to him unto whom be the glory of all his Works for ever and ever Amen And from that day forward our hearts were knit unto the Lord and one unto another in true and fervent love not by any external Covenan● or external Form but we entered into the Cove●ant of Life with God and that was as a strong obligation or bond upon all ou● spirits which united us one unto another and we met together in the unity of the spirit and of the bond of peace treading down under our feet all rea●oning questioning debating and contending about Religion or any part or parts or practice or practices thereof as to any e●ternal thing and we waited at time and times as God did grant u● opportunities and the more we had a●d could obtain from our necessary occasions of this present life the better we were and the more we were confirmed and strengthened in our hope and faith and holy resolutions were kindled in our hearts as a fire which the Life kindled in us to serve the Lord while we had a being and ●o make mention of his Name and Power whilst we did live and to hold forth that Testimony which was committed to us in the sight of men and Nations by doctrine by practice by a holy conversation and mightily did the Word of God grow amongst us and the desires of many were after the Name of the Lord. Oh happy day Oh blessed day the memorial of which can never pass out of my mind And thus the Lord in short did form us to be a people for his praise in our

generation Howbeit after all this and much more which time would fail me to write of neither is the purpose of my spirit bent that way at this time we did come through very great tribulations extream distresses great perplexity and passed out oftentimes hungry and hard put to it both within and without yet such wa● our love to the Lord and such fervency in our he●rts that we rather chused to dye and to undergo every difficulty than to dishonor or deny the Name of Christ in the midst of suffering because of that taste that we had of his goodness and immortal life revealed in our hearts this young man of whom I am speaking had his share though but a youth at that time of 16. or 17. years of age because of the Truth which crossed all the Worlds way his nearest Relations even his own Parents cast him off as an Alien and turned him out from their House as not to have any part or portion therein as a son nay not so much as a hired servant which this young man bore very patiently without murmuring or complaining having a taste of that then which was better than all the World and through conversing with his people and among them the Spirit of the Lord came upon him and the Spirit of Wisdom and understanding entered into his heart and the spirit of knowledge and sound judgment came to be seated in his reins and the Spirit of Prophesie came upon him like as it did upon many more through the Holy Ghosts power and operation and he spake of the wonderful things of God amongst them that believed and was one of the first among us which the Lord opened the mouth of to shew forth his praise and to speak of the things of his Kingdom to as many as he met with who waited for the consolation of Israel for the riches of the Gentiles and to as many as desired and hoped after eternal life At last the Lord singled him out commanded him to go forth into Countreys unknown to him as he did some more besides upon whom he laid a necessity to preach the Gospel freely without money without price without tythes augmentations gifts or rewards and in that he was as faithful a man none exceeding him in his generation for those things were an abhorrency to his heart where he met with any such hireling Shepherds deceitful workers which had gull'd the Nations and cheated the people for dishonest gain and kept them in blindness the indignation of the Lord was kindled in his heart and the sword of the Lord was very sharp in his hand and whomsoever he met with which walked after this sort they were sure to feel the weight of his Weapon and the force of his blow by which many have been deeply wounded that they have grinned like Dogs on him as greedy Dogs indeed because of their present wound blow that he did give them and though he was but young in years yet he was full of fortitude and true valour The Lord often times when he exercised him in such War as this hath filled his Qui●er full of polished shafts and made his Bow to abide in strength and he was as dextrous and as ready handed as any that I knew in his day against the Dragon and his Power against the Beast and his followers and indeed he was very even-handed and had a special good arm and seldome mist the Mark God had fill'd his mouth with arguments so that he hath often made a breach a breach in the face of an Host. And it was my lot which I cannot but say fell in a good ground to be his companion and fellow-labourer in ●he Work of the Gospel whereunto we were called for many years together And oh when I consider my heart is broken how sweetly we walked together for many Months Years in which we had perfect knowledg of one anothers hearts perfect unity of spitri not so much as one cross word or one hard thought of discontent ever rose I believe in either of our hearts fo● 10 years together but our souls were bound up in unity and peace having the frame of our hearts bent after one and the self same thing to wit the propagation of that Truth by which liberty was obtained and salvation received through Jesus Christ the true Light of the World seeing through his Light ●he whole World to lye in wickedness a necessity laid upon this person of whom I am speaking being constrained by the Spirit of the Lord by which he was made an able Minister of the everlasting Gospel to preach repentance conversion salvation and remission of sins and accordingly he went forth in ●he Name and Power of the Lord Jesus the Saviour of mankind and was an able Minister of the glad tydings of salvation in many or most parts of this Land and also he travelled thorow again and again the whole Nation of Ireland and in some part of Scotland and some part of Flanders and his Ministry ●as made effectual through the Almighty Power of God in turning many from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God there are many thousands who are living in the body and alive in the Truth who can in the Spirit of the Lord bear testimony to the power and verity of his Ministry in many Countreys where he travelled for he laboured much in divers places even in the heat of the day though he began early in the morning and in the beginning of his travels and labours it was his share to break up rough places and un●illed ground to walk amongst many bryars and thorns which scratched and pricked and teared and travelled with some other not without great opposition and he often trod the pathes and wayes which had not been occupied in the Truth and where darkness had the Dominion and was as a covering he brake through as an armed man not minding the opposition but the victory and the good of all souls though to my knowledg his sufferings and trya●s hath not been small nor his exercise a little on the right hand and on the left in travels often often times buffered sometimes knocked down by unreasonable men who had not faith loaded with lyes slanders calumnies and reproaches often in weakness yea in deaths often in watchings fastings and temptations often in straits and necessities in perils among rude multitudes in perils in Idol-Temples in perils in Streets and Markets where the Lord did move him often to go in the beginning of his time besides the exceeding weight of service from Weeks end to Weeks end in so much that he had seldome many hours of repose and of●en suffered by those spirits who lost their first love and rose in opposition He was very diligent and faithful true-hearted and valiant and the yoke at last came to be easie unto him though no ease at all in the body as to the outward man for he made the