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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	according_a	doctrine_n	word_n	2,065	5	3.8689	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A55028	The necessity and encouragement, of utmost venturing for the churches help together with the sin, folly, and mischief of self-idolizing applyed by a representation of 1. some of the most notorious nationall sins endangering us, 2. the heavy weight of wrath manifested in our present calamities, yet withall, grounds of 3. confidence, that our church shall obtain deliverance in the issue, 4. hopes that the present Parliament shall be still imployed in the working of it : all set forth in a sermon, preached to the honorable House of Commons, on the day of the monethly solemn fast, 28. June, 1643 / by Herbert Palmer ...	Palmer, Herbert, 1601-1647.	1643 (1643)	Wing P243; ESTC R21704	67,757	76

virtuall promise to England 3 3. But I take it for a much stronger ground and more undoubted That the word of God in the Story and in the threatnings together hath an epitome of all that God will do to his Church planted in my Nation And that God will never deal more severely with any Nationall Church then his Word which is every way most perfect relates or threatens Therefore if it cannot be found in the Scripture that God did ever bring destruction upon his Church planted in a Nation or transplant his Church wholly out of such a Land while they were in such a condition as ours is then will he not do it now But contrarily if he hath alwayes in such a case as ours is now afforded his Church deliverance this I beleeve to be a very strong promise that he will afford us the like now Logicians say that even one example of a thing and no instance to the contrary is a sufficient argument And if it hold not in Scripture examples when none of a divers kinde can be produced I know not what use can be made of the greatest examples of mercy as meer examples which yet were all written for our learning as all Scriptures are that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope Rom. 15. 4. 4 4. In speciall If God did never destroy a Reforming Nation never wholly transplant a Reforming Church then will he not do so to us because we are such And for this there is speciall Reason whether we consider the Reformation to be the speciall work of God and little of the Nation in it as in Josiahs time God wrought it by a speciall work upon the King who saw all done himself and the people shewed little concurrence in it yet God would and did carry it through Because he that loved the people so wel being yet corrupted as to begin to reform them in a manner himself when he had begun it once would make somewhat of it and not let it altogether come to nothing OF whether God though he ever be the Author and finisher of all good yet act the reformation much by the peoples hands as it was in Hezekiahs Reformation 2 Chron. 30. 1. Here again the same reason holds He who loved the Nation so well as to put such a beginning of grace into them would not let that fail suddenly But he made the work prosper in their hands and no enemie hindred them And now to apply this to our selves 1 If ever a Nation or Church in affliction and danger were a reforming Church and Nation we are such and that in all the parts of Reformation 1. For purity and clearnesse of truth of Doctrine 2. Purity of Worship freed from all superstitions and mans devices and compleat in all the Ordinances of God 3. Purity of Church government and discipline according to the word and rule of Christ 4. Purity of life and conversation 5. Particularly the Sabbaths sanctification the greatest pledge of mercy to a Nation and to ours experimentally in speciall according to Esay 58. 13 14. All this Reformation we apparently labour for in our Church and so are doubtlesse a reforming Church and Nation and shall not be destroyed at this time 2 2. All this is striven for not simply for the liberty of private persons that they may be free from persecution but for the glory of God and the saving of others souls throughout the Nation Which disposition of his servants being much above all self-respects God doth highly esteem and so will blesse it with prosperous successe in the issue 3 3. This Reformation Gods servants have striven for and panted after Ministers and people eighty years together more or lesse and have appeared for it in a considerable party though not joyned and associated as now by the happy advantage of this Parliament and have been much persecuted even for it And therefore now when God hath given them to attempt further and with more hopes and greater beginnings then ever before He will not now at this time give them wholly over to enemies to ruin all utterly 4 4. The rather because the enmity of the enemies is specially provoked even by the desire and attempt of Reformation some in one point some in another They pretend as was noted before to fight for the true reformed Protestant Religion But except some ease about Ceremonies and the like to tender consciences they evidently oppose any further reformation then was in Queen Elizabeths time and reproach the Parliament as intending to alter Religion because they professe to purpose an endeavour of a through reformation Therefore God will not take his enemies part against his people but his peoples against his enemies in the issue at least in giving them the Reformation contended for 5 5. He hath shewed a greater spirtuall love to this Nation for eighty years and more together thou to any in the Christian world in raising up so many excellant Lights for powerfull preaching and for holinesse of life above all other Churches and given us above all others also the Doctrine and practise of his holy Sabbath And all this notwithstanding our Nationall grievous provocations fore-mentioned Therefore when now the Nation is working into the best way of being generally better he will not suffer them to become now irrecoverably for continuance worse But at least this time try the whole Nation with a generall Reformation 6 6. Himself hath mainly and manifestly given the first hopes of this and raised up not the desires onely but the expectation of his servants by wayes farre beyond their contrivances and wonderfully beyond their very thoughts ordered by himself And namely marvellous much by his very enemies plots and counsels turned upon themselves As 1. Their attempt against Religion and Liberties both together whereas if they had undertaken either alone they never in likelihood had had any considerable party appearing against them as now is by uniting the patriots and zealots both in one and shewing to either the necessity of such union 2. In their attempt against the two Nations at once England and Scotland so grasping at both they could hold neither 3. Yet beginning first with Scotland to impose Popish practises upon them the more manifestly who were more impatient of Popery then our Nation was and so provoking them to stand upon their guard link themselves suddenly in a Nationall Covenant against them which also much weakned their attempts upon us 4. Breaking the first Pacification with Scotland which forced them to prevent their being invaded with comming with a powerfull Army into this Kingdom and to refuse to be satisfied without an English Parliament our onely remedy too under God did ratifie the peace with them 5. Their frequence breakings of Parliaments rendring them justly suspected that they meant so by this as soon as the Peace was made counselled to

THE Necessity and Encouragement OF UTMOST VENTURING FOR THE CHURCHES HELP TOGETHER WITH The Sin Folly and Mischief of Self-Idolizing Applyed by a Representation of 1. Some of the most notorious Nationall sins endangering us 2. The heavy weight of wrath manifested in our present Calamities Yet withall grounds of 3. Confidence that our Church shall obtain Deliverance in the Issue 4. Hopes that the present Parliament shall be still imployed in the working of it All set forth in a Sermon Preached to the Honorable House of Commons on the day of the Monethly solemn Fast 28. June 1643. By HERBERT PALMER B.D. and Minister of Gods Word at Ashwell in Hertfordshire Published by Order of that House MARK 8. 35. Whosoever will save his life shall lose it and whosoever will lose his life for my sake and the Gospels the same shall save it JER. 18. 7 8. At what instant I shall speak concerning a Nation and concerning a Kingdom to pluck up and to pull down and to destroy it If that Nation against whom I have pronounced turn from their evill I will repent of the evill that I thought to do unto them London Printed for JOHN BELLAMIE in Cornhill at the three golden Lyons neer the Royall Exchange 1643. TO THE HONORABLE the House of Commons now Assembled in PARLIAMENT THe God of Heaven hath called you to a work of the greatest Honour and greatest Difficulty that lies upon any number of men throughout the whole world at this day To heal the wounds of Zion and be her instrumentall Saviours the Repairers of the breach and the Restorers of paths to dwell in and to build up the old wasts and lay the foundations even of many generations To save and rescue two Kingdoms as you have helped to do a third already from most desperately-endangering ruin and make way in them for that blessed Proclamation of the seventh Trumpet Now are the Kingdoms of this world become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ To strengthen your hearts and hands in this sacred imployment as this Sermon by your call first presented it self to your attentive ears so by a second command of yours it is now tendred to your favourable eye and withall exposed to the publike view of all whether friends or foes to the Peace and welfare of our Ierusalem or Neuters In it I have laboured so to speak to every ones conscience that did hear it or shall read it as to make them 1. Sensible of what they should have done and what they have done and then 2 Apprehensive of what God hath done and means to do with the generall and with them in particular according to both his threatnings and promises and 3. by all Zealous for God and his Church and confident of his grace to his Church and all her faithfull helpers In the mean time since it hath pleased him who is the onely wise God and the ruler of all things All whose paths are mercy and truth to such as keep his Covenant and his Testimonies to exercise your humility fidelity faith and patience by tidings unexpected from divers parts of the Kingdom And you have so far apprehended his purposes in it as to call us all in and about the City with your selves to a solemn and extraordinary publike Humiliation before the Monthly day comes about I trust there is and will for ever be written upon your hearts that holy care which I was bold to recommend unto you to enquire where the cause is why God at any time expresses his displeasure and that not onely in reference to the Nation generally or any particular persons in it but even to your own selves and that as a Body that so you may thereby be both directed and excited to fulfill the will of God according to whatsoever you do or shall finde amisse in any In all which give me leave once more to beseech you in the Name of God and his Churches to make us and your selves at once happy You are our Healers and while you subsist as we shall not be altogether miserable so neither without your speciall faithfulnesse and zeal can we attain to any setled prosperity I shall not now instance in any other particulars having touched upon divers in this discourse which you are now pleased to make one of your spirituall Remembrancers In it I have taken the freedom of others to insert a few things which either straits of time or shortnesse of memory forced an omission of in the delivery * The God whose truth it is sanctifie You and us all by it as by all the rest of his Word of truth● So shall the Truth make us and you free from all our dangers and fears of all kindes temporall and spirituall and finally glorifie us all in and with him who is the eternall Truth and eternall Life the Lord Jesus Christ In whom I am ever Your most humble and Devoted Servant HERBERT PALMER A SERMON PREACHED AT THE last Fast before the Commons House of PARLIAMENT ESTHER 4. VER. 13 14. Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther Think not with thy self that thou shalt escape in the Kings house more then all the Jews For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Iews from another place but thou and thy fathers house shall be destroyed And who knows whether thou be come to the Kingdom for such a time as this BEhold I set before you this day a blessing and a curse saith the holy Prophet Moses unto all the Congregation of Israel now upon the borders of the promised Land Deut. 11. 26. Ever since Moses knew them they had not been in so good a temper as they were at this instant when he spake these words and yet he holds it no discourtesie in him nor disparagement to them to set home his Exhortations with these incentive quicknings which he after pursues with a great deal of variety and emphasis in the latter end of that Book Chap. 27 28 29 30 31 and 32. We are fallen into times wherein if ever Gods people need all manner of quicknings from Gods word when as his providence is about to do some terrible thing for or against the Church or both I would hope we are upon the borders of that promised blessing which we at least have made to our selves many a time And I do hope we are not now in the worst temper that ever we were Though on the other side it is altogether apparent we are still upon the borders of ruine and of one of the wofullest curses that ever befell a Nation professing Gods Name Let it not then sound harsh to any ear specially on so solemn a day of Humiliation that a Text is presented which carries not a blessing onely but also a curse in the very Forehead of it It is that we may take our choise as Moses afterward amplifies the like speech chap.

speciall weight comes to be put upon the meer using it And while a root of superstition is nourisht in men Idolatry will soon be graffed upon it with a little help Besides that a little of this leaven will greatly sowr Mens Consciences and in stead of the power of godlinesse leave nothing but a Form I may not amplify this but I hope it will be considered and consulted of 5 5. Make all men feare an Oath 1 by a more ready and certain penalty for rash swearing 2 by taking away unnecessary Oaths My soul blesses you blesses God for you for the taking away the Oath of Churchwardens as well as that Ex Officio and the late Canonicall Oath Oh doe the like to other Officers and in Universities and Corporations and Courts by causing a review to be made what Oathes are unnecessary and how the use of them may be other wayes supplyed 3 And what Oathes you see necessary to be continued or added make them dreadfull Let them be administred ever in an awfull manner that they may consider what they doe when they pawn their souls and all things else that they speak truth and will doe as they say 4 And let no ignorant person be trusted to swear more then a childe But of that a word more anon I will use no other motive then that one Jer. 23. 10. Because of swearing the Land mourneth the pleasant places of the wildernesse are dryed up and their course is evill and their force is not right So that you do not help the Church if you remedy not this what you can if you did all things else 6. Make a Law for preaching There was never any yet that I could ever hear of in this Kingdome since the Reformation which is such a prodigy such a peece of Laodicean Lukewarmnesse as I beleeve the like was never heard of in a Reformed Christian Kingdom or Church unlesse Ireland perhaps too What the effects have been of the want of it all the world fees And to me it sounds among the worst of Omens that I have heard of some disputing against such a law I will say but this 1. If God have not had dishonour enough by some mens preaching against Preaching because our Law commanded it not and by all the reproach cast upon his faithfullest Ministers for their double diligence which hath also been prohibited thē by those that ought to have promoted it And 2 if the people of God have not by this been sufficiently scattered abroad as sheep without a Shepheard and torn by dogs for seeking their food abroad when they had none provided for them at home And 3 if enough have not gone to hell under unpreaching Ministers in more then eighty yeares And 4 finally if God have not put more weight upon this one ordinance under the N.T. then all other Ministeriall works together to teach all that have Authority under him to doe the like to make them beshrew themselves that preach not the Gospel Then let there be still no law to enjoyn it nor for any thing else belonging to the worship of God and mans salvation by as good reason But if all be contrary then once more let me call to Humiliation for this neglect these eighty yeares and upward and promise my selfe that a Reforming Parliament will not cannot but compose such a law as shall be abundantly sufficient for ever hereafter 7. Make Simony impossible To swear the Clerk is to swear the buyer to prevent a dearth It is to forbid those that fear an Oath and set open the door to those that dare be wilfully false And the present penalties of the statute doe seldome reach cunning chapmen This I will be bold to say if every Minister that hath the charge of soules and discharges that duty conscionably be not worthy of all that due which the law anywhere allowes him take it away in Gods name and employ it to a better use if you can find it out But if he be worthy of it by the sentence of God and man both a high way-robber or one that breaks into a house at midnight is not so great an offendor as a Simoniacall Patron whether he presents a man otherwise worthy or one that is altogether unworthy and if you make not as sufficient a law against the one as the other I say not for the penalty but which may be as effectuall or rather more and so it may be I durst undertake you will no more answer it to God then if you made not a sufficicient law against those outrages if there were none 8. Make Clandestine Marriages impossible They are so in the Reformed Churches in France they may be so here when the King and you please It is meer humane law the common law among us not Gods law that calls it a marriage if two be joyned by a Minister a Popish Priest hath served the turne in any house or room or place and at midnight or any time if with such and such words Why is such a wilde Authority given to robbe Parents of their children and Masters of their Apprentices and children of themselves against Gods expresse word and no Penalty that I know of in our law upon such a Minister or such Parties How many Noble Families besides others have been by this Licence and that which hath been next door to it in use the Licences of Ecclesiasticall Courts which last to this day where such disobedient children will goe seek them shamed and grieved and mischiefed This may be remedied instantly if the law ratify no marriage but Publike after Banes with Parents or guardians consent or some higher Power if they should be Tyrannicall and altogether unreasonable I am amazed that the Gentry having so smarted by this licence to their children to be disobedient have not long since in Parliament taken an order for it But I hope God hath raised up you at last to do him this piece of service among a great many others I may not enlarge my self upon any more particulars I will sum up all the residue that I have thought of in almost as few words as there be matters 9. Keep all the holy Ordinances of God from prophanation the Word read and preacht prayer singing Sacraments punishing sleepers and all other rude persons 10. Secure the Lords day fully from working and playing and buying or selling and as much as may be from apparent idlenesse 11. Encourage a faithfull Ministery particularly with sufficient maintenance for wives and children 12. Secure youth in the Universities and Schools with the utmost of care and even in Parents houses what you can specially the poorer sort The young ones are the hopes or the bane of the Church and State in the next 20 or 10. or 7. years 13. Represse drunkennesse by a better composed Law then any yet is extant and the haunting of the shops of that wickednesse 14. Suppresse