Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	ancient_a	cause_n	great_a	172	4	2.0659	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19953	Gods mercies and Ierusalems miseries A sermon preached at Pauls Crosse, the 25. of Iune. 1609. By Lancelot Dawes, Master of Arts and fellow of Queenes Colledge in Oxford.	Dawes, Lancelot, 1580-1653.	1609 (1609)	STC 6388; ESTC S109409	43,755	146

Rome with Bonefires and Hymnes in most triumphant manner all which things when I consider I am fully resolued that a learned Diuine of later yeares doth not speake of any malitious humor when hee saith that there bee three points of diuinity Caluinus lib. 4. Iustit ca. 7. he calleth them Capita arcana Theologiae which go current in Rome The first that there is no God the Second that whatsoeuer is writen of Christ is lyes and deceits The third that the Doctrine of the resurrection and of the last iudgement is merely fabulous now then this being the case of that great and glorious Citie wee may well collect that her horrid desolation and fearefull downefall is at hand For there is no state so strong no Citie so fenced but the sinnes of the people will bring it vnto distruction which is my third and last Proposition out of the second generall branch of my text whereof I am now by your patience to intreat Proposit 3 That Kingdomes and common wealthes haue their periods and downefalls is a conclusion which the premises of all former ages doe demonstrate learned Athens stately Sparta rich Babylon victorious Carthage ancient Troy proude Niniue and a thousand more haue numbred their yeares and at this day haue no stronger fence then Paper walls to keepe their names from obliuion the great enemy of antiquitie Now for the true cause of their subuersions it is a truth which the greatest wisards of this world after much studie and many serious cōsultations which nature could neuer find out The Epicures attribute it to fortune the Stoicts to destinie the Pythagorians to numbers Which last opinion Plato made such reckoning of that he will haue numbers to bee the sole cause of the transmutations of common wealths Whose words bee so Aenigmaticall Plato lib. 8. de rep Cicero lib. 7. Epist ad Atticum that Tullie makes them a Prouerbe and Marsilius Ticinus inuocateth not Oedipus but Apollo to vnfold them Arist 5. lib. pollit cap. 12. Aristotle who of all others commeth nearest vnto the trueth makes the cause to be a disharmonie in the body politicke as too much wealth of some few the great miserie of many iniurie feare c. I little maruell that heathen Philosophers should shoote so wide when Christians haue so grossely mistaken their marke Bodin how wittie is hee in pleading for numbers Bodin Math. hist cap. 6. what vertue doth he attribute to 7. or 9. or 12. and the squares and cubiques How doth he shift himselfe to proue his opinion sound by instances of the most comon-wealthes that haue bene hitherto in account adding or detracting yeres at his pleasure from the calculation of the best Chronologers to make the number square or cubique or spherical or at the least some way consisting of 7. or 9. or of three rootes or squares Cardanus Cardanus hangeth all vpon the taile of the greater beare The common sort of Astrologians referre it to the planets and starres making such a scheme at the first foundation of any Citie which made Varro as Plutarch witnesseth so earnest with Taruncius Firmanus to enquire the opposition and aspect of the planets when Rome was first situated thinking hereby to coniecture how long that Empire should endure Copernicus Copernicus will haue the conuersion motion of the centure of his imaginarie excentricle circle which circle according to him is not caused by the heauens motion for the heauens in his opinion are vnmoueable but by the earth which he will haue to be cōtinually wheeled about to be the cause of these alterations of Common-wealths Thus while they groped in the darke they missed their marke Gen. 19. as the Sodomites did Lots doore and while they professed themselues wise Rom. 1.22 they became fooles And little maruaile for the wisedome of this world is foolishnesse with God None of all these haue happened on the true cause 1. Cor. 1. it is the sinnes of the people which bringeth euery common-wealth to ruine And how can it be otherwise for if thou lay more weight on the roofe then the pillars can support the house must needes fall Now sinne is of such an intollerable weight that no house nor Citie nor Common-wealth can stand vnder it but it will presse it downe it is a burden to the whole earth and makes it reele to and fro Isa 24.20 and stagger like a drunken man it is a burden to all the creatures Rom. 8.22 and maketh them grone and trauell in paine it is a burden to God himselfe which makes him crie out in the Prophet against the Iewes Amos 2.13 That they had pressed him with their iniquities euen as a cart is pressed with sheaues it lay so heauie vpon Christs shoulders that it made him sweat drops of blood Luke 22.44 This burden of it selfe so heauie like a malefactor that is pressed to death cries for more weight to presse the sinner to the pit of hell it cals to heauen for the burden of the Lord Iere. 23. that is for vengeance to be inflicted vpon the impenitēt sinner God in regard of his patience and long suffring is said to haue leadē heeles hee commeth slowly euen against his will to punish but in respect of his iustice he is said to haue yron hands He striketh with a witnesse when once hee begins to smite in his proceedings against the sinnes of men he hath a double method sometimes and this method is most vsuall when he proceedeth against the sinnes of his children he comes to them as he came to Elias 1. King 19. First he sendeth a mighty strong wind to blow downe the tall Cedars and cast them to the ground as Paul was before he was conuerted Then an Earth-quake Acts 24.26 to shake the flintie rockes I meane the stonie hearts of men to make them tremble as Felix did when Paul disputed of the iudgment to come then a fire to burne vp the stubble and consume the bryars and then when these forerunners like Iohn Baptist haue prepared a way for the Lord he comes himselfe in a soft voice the gratious and sweet promises of the Gospell to seale a pardon to such as by the former Iudgments are deiected and humbled And this may bee tearmed Gods Ordo compositiuus Sometimes and this is more vsuall especially when hee proceedes against the wicked hee taketh a contrarie course First he comes in a soft and still voyce to wooe them to himselfe But when they harden their hearts and will not bee reclaimed from their euill wayes then at length he will send a fire to deuoure them and an Earthquake and mighty strong wind to scatter them away like chaffe from the face of the earth Psal 1. to blow them downe euen in the bottome of hell and this I may fitly call Gods ordo resolutiuus it is sayd of Alexander Q. Curtius that when hee besieged a certaine