Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	earth_n	heaven_n	lord_n	4,502	5	3.6160	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53927	A sermon preached at St. Edmonds-Bury, in Suffolk, at the assizes, March 18th, 1692/3 before Lord Chief Justice Holt and Judge Rokeby and William Hammond, Esq., high-sheriff for that county / by Samuel Peck, lecturer of Ipswich.	Peck, Samuel.	1693 (1693)	Wing P1037A; ESTC R35100	10,033	32

keep himself from his Iniquity And for Men in Authority not to bear the Sword in vain but to use their utmost Diligence and Power for the Punishment of Wickedness and Vice and maintenance of Religion and Vertue And here I Crave leave for a few Words to you My Lords the Judges and those Worshipful Gentlemen who help to fill up the Seat of Judgment Being hereto Encouraged by your Commendable and Religious Practice to Enter into the House of God to ask his Direction and Benediction before you proceed to Execute your Commissions Not that I shall Presume to dictate or Direct in the Discharge of your Honourable and Weighty Trust or to Meddle with things I understand not your distinct Offices and Duties And surely 't is no diminution to a Divine that he is not a compleat Lawyer But my desire as well as Duty is Right Honourable to excite your Zeal for God and his Cause for the Prosperity and Peace of their Majesties and their Kingdoms Your Lordships have heard somewhat of our publick Grievances and understand more than I can inform you and what the Consequences are like to be Now whether next to God should we betake our selves to offer our humble and earnest Addresses for help but to your Lordships and the rest of those Worthy Magistrates who have Power and Authority put into your Hands by God and the King that you would in your respective Places by a due Execution of our wholsom Laws for Laws not executed are as Laws repealed endeavour to put a stop to that Deluge of Wickedness that threatens our Destruction It is observable That God in Scripture ascribeth to Magistrates the most Honourable Names among Men as Great Men Nobles Princes Kings Chief of the People Heads over the People Dignities and Glories yea they are styled Angels 2 Sam. 14 20. nay they are called Gods Psal 82. 6. and that you answer these Titles of Honour Trust and Power God both requires and expects as you will answer it to Him who hath thus Honoured you in his Word And if you consider what the Apostle Rom. 13. saith of Magistrates their Office Power and Authority he seems to speak you no less than the Keepers of our Liberties the Safety of our Persons the Security of our Possessions the Terror of Sinners the Defence of Saints the Nerves and Sinews yea the vital Spirits of the Body Politick without whom all things would quickly run to disorder and Confusion now how becoming how necessary is Religion and Righteousness Courage and Zeal for God in such Persons which only can make your Authority serviceable to the Divine Majesty Wherefore we and the whole Countrey yea the whole Kingdom Cry to you and such as you Right Honourable and Right Worshipful in the Language of the distressed Disciples Save us we perish help or we are ruined Help us against Impostors and Seducers prophane Sabbath-breakers common and false Swearers against Swinish Drunkards Heaven-daring Blasphemers and bold Atheists who industriously labour in the Devils Service and who seek to laugh and banter all true Notions of God all practice of Religion yea all Honesty and Sobriety out of the World Let not my Lords be Angry if I say once more Help us against the Murmurers and unreasonable Male-contents at our present Governours and Government the greatest Blessing of that sort that ever our Kingdom enjoyed My Lords and Gentlemen Can you do any thing We know you can we hope you will and pray you may help us against these grand Impeders of our Peace and Tranquility who retard our full Deliverance and Salvation and hasten Misery and Destruction upon us more by their Sins than they could do by their Hands Conscience I Confess cannot be compelled to love Vertue but Restraints may and ought to be laid upon the openly Vitious Arise therefore Honourable and Beloved for your own sakes for the Lands sake for the Lord's sake arise put on a Spirit of Zeal and Resolution for God 't is good to be zealously affected in a good thing suppress all topping Vice and Profaneness and lift up fallen despised trampled-upon Religion and Godliness in your respective Stations and Places and shew your selves Valiant for God upon Earth The Sword of the Spirit the Word of God may do somewhat to the Amending the Manners of Men but it will do more when the Sword of the Magistrate is joyned with it A Magistrate Conscientious and Zealous for God may in his place do God more Service in giving check to open Vice and encouragement to Vertue than many Ministers can do most Men living more by Sense than Faith dreading a good Judge or Justice of Peace more than God and are more afraid of a present Temporal Punishment than of a future tho' an Eternal Misery Continual Experience proves it true that the Price and Penalties for Oaths Drunkenness Sabbath-breaking c. duly exacted and called for by you according to Law prevail more upon such Offendors than all the Penalties threatned against them in the Word of God So powerful is the Sword of the Magistrate where the Sword of the Spirit can make no Impression work no Reformation Wherefore with all Humility and Earnestness and as the Apostle speaks in Christ's Name and stead I once more Address my self to you Honourable and Beloved That you would afford us your Assistance in this great and necessary Work We preach against Wickedness and Vice and we beg of you to punish it We in our places press and exhort Men to the observation of the Laws of God and we humbly pray you in your Places to put in Execution the good and commendable Laws of the Land against open Enormities and Prophaneness For till this be done we are still in danger of Divine Judgments We may look for peace and behold trouble for salvation but behold destruction and tho' brought out of Egypt may perish in the Wilderness But if this be universally and heartily endeavoured we may yet hope to see Religion lifting up her languishing Head and recover a repute amongst us equal at least to what Looseness and Debauchery have had for divers years past We may then hope for success against our Enemies hope to see Mercy and Truth meet together Righteousness and Peace kiss each other yea and Glory to dwell in our Land However Your Reward shall be sure for them that honour me will I honour saith the Lord 1 Sam. 2. 30. A great Word a Promise whose Contents neither Words nor Thoughts can fully reach And he that spoke it hath Earth and Heaven too at his dispose and Heaven and Earth shall pass before it shall fail O that it may prevail with you to stand up for God for his Cause his Truth this Day Worship and People else were you greater than you are the following Threatning shall overtake you here or hereafter They that despise me shall be lightly esteemed Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord be upon you take heed and do it for there is not Iniquity with the Lord our God nor respect of Persons nor taking of Gifts 2 Chron. 19. 7. FINIS There is Published by the same Author the 3 Books following sold by Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside THe Best way to mend the World by perswading the Rising Generation to an Early and serious practice of Piety With Answers to the principal Cavils of Satan and his Agents against it c. A Dialogue between Timothy and Titus about the Articles and some of the Canons of the Church of England Wherein Super-Conformity is Censured and Moderation Recommended With a serious perswasive to all the Inferior Clergy of that Church By one that heartily wisheth Union amongst Protestants Jericho's Downfall In a Sermon Preached upon Jan. 31. 1688 9. Being a Day of Publick Thanksgiving to God for our Deliverance from Popery and Arbitrary Power

destroying Resolutions As 1. When a People seek and expect Salvation or Deliverance where it is not to be had as Ahaziah seeks Health and Recovery not from the God of Israel but the God of Ekron for which the God of Israel by Elijah sends him word that he should never come down from his Bed but certainly dye When a Nation or People sick wounded and languishing with foreign Wars and domestick Divisions shall seek to any for Health and Salvation save to the Lord they provoke him to withhold Salvation from them and to pronounce Sentence of Death and Destruction against them He who is styled the God of Salvation will not have his Honour and Glory given to Men or Money to Armies or Navies or any other Instrument whatsoever without making that People sensible of their Fault and Sin by a deserved frustration and disappointment of their Hopes and Expectations Especially where the Hand of his Providence and its saving Operations are so visible and apparent that we may as well deny the deliverance it self as deny it to be the Lords doing That Martial King Edward the III. was accounted more commendable for this than for his Victories that having vanquished the French King by force of Battel he put off from himself the whole Glory and devoutly gave it unto God by causing to be Sung Non Nobis Domine non Nobis c. Not unto us Lord not unto us but unto thy Name be the Glory given And in Justinians Law it was decreed that no Workman should set his Name upon that Building which he made at another Mans cost God is more jealous of his Honour than Men can be of theirs and will not suffer that Presumption to go unpunished that writes our Names upon his Works When a People therefore rob God of his Honour no wonder if God delay their Hopes and disappoint their Expectations for he hath said I am the Lord that is my Name and my glory will I not give to another Isa 42. 8. 2. A People may look for Salvation and it may be far off when they desire it chiefly or only for Natural or which is worse for sinful Ends desire and wish for an end of their Troubles that they may not lose their Estates exhaust their Treasure or to recover what they have expended and lost which is in it self lawful but if this be all if we rest here and look no further in our pursuits after Tranquility and Salvation it is sinful As if a Man should desire the quenching of a Fire in his Neighbours House only to save his own and so that were secured he would not care if the rest were laid in ashes And worse still when the end is that they may have the more to spare and expend upon their Lusts their Pride Drunkenness their Lasciviousness and Wantonness Malice and Revenge and take their sinful Pleasures and Delight with greatet liberty and boldness being at present under some restraint or awe by Divine Judgment felt or feared There is as much Religion in such desires of Salvation and Deliverance as there is in some Malefactors who wish for the Assizes in hopes they may be set free and return to their old Trade again And as these latter Offendors are oft-times cut short of their hopes by the just Sentence of a Judge on Earth so must the former expect to be by the Righteous proceedings of that Judge that sitteth in the Heavens 3. When a Nation or People generally are more solicitous for a Temporal than an Eternal Salvation seek Peace more than Truth Earth more than Heaven and their own things more than the things of Jesus Christ which he himself tells us ought to have the preference in our desires Matth. 6. 33. assuring us that whatever we thus desire shall be given that if we first seek peace with God he will give us peace with men make our Enemies to be at peace with us Prov. 16. 7. Every Sin is a Make-bate between God and Men but Worldly-mindedness especially sets God and a Land at difference When the Jews built and cieled their own Houses letting the House of God lye waste the Prophet Haggai 1. 2. tells us God blasted them blasted their Comforts and Enjoyments their Hopes and Expectations And when they began to build God's House and to mind those things that were of highest concern God began to bless them Ye● from this forward I will bless them saith the Lord Haggai 2. 19. The just and due regard of Truth and Righteousness of God and Religion is the direct method to Salvation Temporal as well as Eternal and the promoting of true Piety and the power of Godliness the ready way too sit under our own Vines and Fig-trees in pea … but when the Grand Inquest and general Cry of a People is Who will shew us any good when greedy desires after Earth eats out all true Affections after Heaven and heavenly things when God is neglected his Sabbaths prophaned his Word and Ordinances flighted all the Interests of Religion Christ and his Kingdom are disregarded no wonder that the Expectations of such a Nation are disappointed and their hoped for Deliverance and Salvation delayed 4. When a People have been in distress groaning some time under heavy Yokes and Burdens and have cryed unto the Lord who hath heard their Cry began to shew them Mercy and send Salvation to them and instead of Praises behold new Provocations instead of returning unto God revolting more and more Isa 1. 5. And is not this our Case How long is it since our Peace and our Properties of which our Religion is the principal were invaded and in a great measure it rested from us by an Arbitrary Power When we sighed under Romish Task-masters whoseavery Mercies are Cruel when divers Champions for their Religion and Countrey were basely and inhumanely made away and murdered in several places as well as publick Scaffolds When Horror lay down with us in the Evening and Fears rose with us in the Morning When Wickedness possessed the place of Judgment Eccles 17. 16. and Iniquity the place of Righteousness In a word when our Sorrows and Sufferings our Perplexities and Griefs were too many and great to be expressed tho' not to be forgotten by many amongst us and God was pleased to remember us in our low Estate to raise up and send a Deliverer to us and give us hopes of a full Salvation from all our Troubles and instead of returning to the God of our Salvation we return anew to our Sins and Abominations in his sight what can we expect but new strokes new Judgments new frustrations and disappointments For God doth neither send nor continue troubles to us because he delights in them but because he would humble and reform us by them Heb. 12. 10. Old Sins therefore repeated and continued in call for new Arrows of Divine Vengeance Levit. 26. 23. our renewed trespasses as vapours ascending up to the Heavens bring down