Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	bear_v	witness_n	witness_v	2,163	5	8.9383	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97215	Spiritual thrift. Or, Meditations wherein humble Christians (as in a mirrour) may view the verity of their saving graces, and may see how to make a spirituall improvement of all opportunities and advantages of a pious proficiencie (or a holy growth) in grace and goodnesse. And wherein is layd open many errours incident to these declining times, / by Elizabeth Warren, a lover of truth and peace. Imprimatur, James Cranford.	Warren, Elizabeth, of Woodbridge.	1647 (1647)	Wing W960; Thomason E373_7; ESTC R201328	87,311	89

aspersions like mire in the face of transparent verity that her glorious lustre being thereby obscured shee may seeme contemptible in the view of the vulgar but contrarywise hee adornes soule errour in the grave and near mantle of a seeming sanctity and so covers her deformity with a vail of vertue that shee may in the darke be admired as amiable The Scripture is cl●●re in proving this assertion from the deceit he used in beguiling our first parents to whom he accuseth even the God of truth as maligning the fruition of their attainable happinesse whereas himselfe was that cursed Apolyon that bereft them of felicity by his murtherous lying R vel 9.11 tempting them to taste of forbidden fruit which wrapt man in darknes thus wofully lost Serò te amavi ô pulch●itudo antiqua ●●nova tu●intus eras ●●●go f●ras Aug. Thus hath he ever obscured the beauty and depraved the dignity of divine truth by casting an odium on the most illustrious as we formerly shewed in collecting observations for the lustre of verity is so transcendingly ravishing as all should be taken with the admiration of it if the malice of Satan did not darken her resplendence by casting in some prejudice to prevaricate our judgement Mihi satis est si Christo Domino meo sanctis suis placueto Diabolo suis squamis invisum me esse ex animo laetor gratias ago Deo me● Lutherus Iohn 8.40 It were easie to accumulate in the series of History many severall examples to prove this maxime for did he not move the Patriarks to envie against poore Joseph who told but the truth they thought to have prevented his Propheticall predictions revealed in his dreams which hee told unto them but the Lord would not lose one tittle of that truth which they sought to exterminate by their cruell malice Gen. 50.20 De tenebris euntes in tenebras nesciunt ubi corruant Miseri qui nesciunt quid amittant miseriores utique quisciunt quid amittant qui cadunt apertis oculis descendunt infernum viventes The voyce of him who is truth it selfe confirms this conclusion instead of many witnesses when he tels the Jews that they sought to kill him because he was a man that had told them the truth against him as a man they could finde no accusation but they stumbled at the truth which discovered their darknesse for they could not endure to heare of that excellence the divine Deity that dwelleth in his manhood nor patiently would suffer the balme of his truth to breake the head or heart of their vices This was the originall of all those aspersions and bitter calumnies they fastned upon him their hatred of that truth which so shone in his doctrine that it bewrayed the darknesse which they lived and lay in Which was obvious to Pilate that unjust Judge who knew the high-Priests had delivered him for envie and yet had not courage to vindicate his innocencie but cruelly condemned him against his own light Matth. 27.18 Matth. 5.10 yet our Saviour told him though he were a King his regall power was not of this world Iohn 18.36 37. but that he was borne and came among men to bear witnesse to the truth Heb. 9.16 which he sealed with his bloud and as himselfe so many of his Saints have lost their lives for witnessing the truth Diaboli filii sunt qui homines ab Ecclesia seducendo interficiunt Cyril their cruell enemies the ch ldren of darknesse declaring against them by malicious slanders And as Satan is malicious in depraving pure truth so he paints out errout to advance his darke Regiment and is very ambitious and active to adore her to delude the simple with her seeming beauty for these shee incounters like that impudent harlot with flattering kisses and insinuating postures making an ample and elegant Narration Prov. 7.1 Serpens nisi edit Serpentem D●aco non fiet of the pleasure and profit is gained by her enjoyment but that shee may bring in the prey to her net shee promiseth peace offerings and paying of vowes that seeming sa●ctity thus placed in the front unhallowed policy may bring up the reare after shee proceeds to ensnare with her ornaments Prov. 7.16 17 18. the tapestry carved works fine linnen of Egypt the perfuming of her bed with myrrh aloes and cynamon Majoris minor esca ferae and with all this variety satiety of love So he followeth her indeed as an oxe to the slaughter or a fool that goeth to the stocks for correction not aware of a dart which strikes through his liver nor knowing that her guests are in the depth of hell Prov. 9.18 for errours den is both darke and deadly being a lively embleme of the bottomlesse pit for if any fall into it they neither know when nor where they shall stay in that dolefull danger The way of the wicked is resembled to darknesse Hic est spiritus vertiginis quo reprobos dementat Satan ubi in coecitatem à Domino projectisunt because they know not whereat they stumble and those that are involved in the darknesse of errour have the feet of their affections tript up in their stumbling so that they fall from one evill to another and hardly are reduced into paths of truth or peace unlesse mercy dart in some cleere Gospel light to dispell that darknesse in which they were lost The Philosophers say there is no pure darknes wherin there is not some mixture of light so we may say there is no errour Non dantur gurae tenebrae wherein there is not some mixture of truth for erroneous spirits have boasted of this that they hold many principles of undoubted verity yet the leven of their errour so sowreth the lump that it makes no sweet bread of sincerity and truth For as darknesse is a privation of light so is sin or errour there is nothing positive Mala voluntas est effici●ns causa operis mali male autem voluntatis efficietem causam nemo quaerit non enim est efficiens sed deficiens causas vero deficientes velle invenire tale est ac si quispiam veli● videre tenebras vel audire silentium quod tamen utrumque nobis notum est neque illud nisi per oculos neque hoc nisi pet aures Aug. de Civit. Dei lib. 12. cap. 3. Luke 18.33 Iob 38.1 neither are they efficient but rather deficient the evill of defect not admitting definition yet we know there is darknesse where we see no light and perceive there is silence where we heare no sound but to see the darknesse or to heare the silence transcends the activity of our eyes or ears The darknesse of errour is a dolefull condition beset with dangers which are almost inevitable because being insensible of this mentall malady they seldome seek to the heavenly Physician it is easie to convince grosse sinners of their

branded or stigmatized with a note of infamy describing their folly Prov. 2.13 in that they decline the streight wayes of righteousnesse to walke in the by paths of darknesse and errour Latet anguis in herba mertem species fallere saepe solet which I wish were well considered of many in our times who looke not upon errour in the notion of sin and therefore slight it with some poore evasion as not guilty of censure by our selves or others Christ is the way the truth and the life by whom alone we must go to the Father therefore they that have no interest in Jesus Christ are out of the way of life and salvation the excellencie of his wayes are set forth unto us Prov. 3.17 Quod malum in se est non potest esse modaliter bonum as wayes of pleasure and paths of prosperity which caused the godly to bee ever solicitous of walking sincerely in that sacred way Mistakes in our way are the originall of errours and the leading cause of our many aberrations and therefore the godly have frequently inculcated their desires herein by various expressions somtimes by option breathing their devotions Psal 11● 4 O that my wayes were direct say in the Psalmist somtimes by question in a case of such concernment wherewith shall a young man clense his way Psal 119 9. Psal 119.30 somtime declaring their constant resolution I have chosen the way of truth sayth holy David as most eligible 〈◊〉 petitioning divine direction to be taught the way where he should walke Psal 142.8 somtime professing his provident caution Psal 39.1 I sayd I will take heed to my wayes somtime affirming by a positive conclusion they doe no iniquity that walke in his wayes Psal 119.3 for the way of the just is like the shining light which shineth more and more unto the perfect day Prov. 4.18 Have wee not cause then to use all endeavour to be rightly informed concerning our way Ier. 6.16 fith the Lord himselfe by his Prophet commands us to aske and enquire for the old and good way Porro non mirum est tantam errorum ac superstitionum caliginem in mundo grassari ubi tam pauci in Christum aspiciant Cal. in Ioh. The immortall soule created for felicity by her naturall instinct seekes the sovereign good but having by sin lost her pristine way shee wanders like a vagrant till rectified by grace for Adam lost by his sinfull defection the way of his comfortable created excellence a Christian standing with a flaming sword to keep the way of the tree of life but now Christ hath paved us a fresh and living way to the Throne of Grace through the vaile which is his flesh and hath left us his Word and Spirit to direct us in a perfect way to the heavenly Canaan Scianus erga quum lucis obtinendae ratio nobis in Christo ostenditur but every errour is a crooked way diametrially opposite to the rectitude of verity which neither declines to the right hand or left but as a rule of righteousnesse still shews us our way Immortale odium nunquam fanabile vulnus Iuven. Satyr Much is the trouble which at this time the Church grones under concerning a way which though Satans malice and mans miserable at axie hath ministred the matter of uncomfortable contests for what can be more grievous to godly souls then to see faithfull brethren fall out by the way Difficilimum est eos reconciliare qui ex arctissima familiarita te in mutuum odium venerint when they that are one in fundamentall truths shall yet be divided in circumstantiall differences this is not to contend for the precious faith delivered to the Saints in the sacred Scriptures ●o it rather a deviation by unnecessary bitternesse from walking in the wayes both of truth and peace which makes the hearts of the righteous sad and strengthens the wicked in their pride and prophanesse who tell it in Gath to disgrace the Gospel Operarius iniquitatis in mala gaudet Haeresia-machia instar sagittarum ipsorum corda vulnerant and publish it in Ashkelon to reproach our Religion The fruit which grows on this tree of contention hath a noxious quality and of dangerous consequence and may be resembled to those poysonous plants whose shadow proves deadly to those that sleepe under them so dissentions have ushered in pernicious errours which haue slain and wounded many sleeping souls Error magistri tentatio discipuli rendring them obnoxious to those secret pitfalls into which they are plunged t●a● erre from their way And as errour is a maze wherein we lose our way so is it darknesse which involves us in danger Arius in Alexandria seintilla una fuit sed quia non statim oppressa totum orbem ejus flamma populata est 2 Thess 2.11 Haeret lateri lethalis arundo by the first we are transported from the path of precious truth by the latter entangled in the trains of errour for those strong delusions have prevailing influence especially on them who believe not the truth and the Word doth witnesse they are sent of God as judgements to punish their impious aberrations O then beware of rejecting verity and slighting Christs voyce in his lively Oracles lest indulging a lye thou be made an example of his justice in punishing one sin with another There is nothing more contrary then light and darknesse Hieronymus Augustino gra●●lans illi quod haereticorum omnium moruit odium quod quidem gaudet sibi cum illo esse commune nor any thing more opposite then truth and errour now for falsehood to put on the shape of verity needs the cunning contrivement of some great Archimaga and therefore Satan that subtile Sophister comes in with his fallacies to circumvent us and pretending new light so wraps us in darknesse as we cannot discover our approaching danger His stratagems are many and of direfull cons●quence Laqueos posuit in verbo in opere in omni via nostra ad capiendas animas nostras all tending to the eversion of our spirituall comfort not enduring the sway of Christs sacred Scepter the Word of truth to direct and guide us and therefore as he blindes the wicked and prophane with the filthy foggs of all grosse abominations so he darkens light to delude the simple that errour embraced may render them lost One engine which he useth to advance his enterprizes Venit tentator tenebrosus non defuit locus non defuit tempus Exit quidem aliq●● splendoris specie● fed fulgori sim●l● quae nihil quàm oculos praestringat Cal. in Ioh. cap. 3. Diversa Daemonum genera sunt qui nihil aliud die noctuque operantur Gen. 3.5 hath a double edge to circumvent and slay us turning two wayes both besmearing the truth and painting out errour in a borowed beauty for one of his methods into cast