Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	faith_n	scripture_n	word_n	9,016	5	4.5069	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A18066	The voyage of the wandering knight. Deuised by Iohn Carthenie, a Frenchman: and translated out of French into English, by VVilliam Goodyear of South-hampton merchant. A vvorke vvorthie of reading, and dedicated to the Right worshipfull Sir Frauncis Drake, Knight; Voyage du chevalier errant. English	Cartigny, Jean de, 1520?-1578.; Norman, Robert, fl. 1590.; Goodyear, William.	1581 (1581)	STC 4700; ESTC S104901	93,834	138

Repentaunce taketh hir beginning at loue or at feare This question cannot be decided in fewe wordes but to be short I saye it may beginne at both For true Repentaunce being a worke of God he may beginne it as he lyst But when it comes from loue it is not ordinarie or common but meruailous Looke vpon the conuersion of Saint Paule of S. Mathew and the Theefe But ordinarily ●o GOD beginnes Repentaunce in vs by feare as in the third Booke of the Kings when he commaunded Helias to come out of his caue to remaine in the Mount before the Lord and a mightie strong winde passed by that rent the high hills and ragged Rockes before the Lord but the Lord was not in the winde After that came an Earthquake but the Lord was not in the Earthquake After that came a fire but the Lord was not in the fire After that came a softe sounde wherein the Lord was In such sort God sendes to sinners a winde of terrour to breake the mightie Mountaine of pride the heart more harde then the rocke After that comes the troubling of the soule after that comes the conscience grudging the hart of the sinner and accusing him of his euill life but yet the Lord is not there with his quickening Grace Neuerthelesse these be forerunners to prepare the way of the Lord. For when the peruerse will of man is mortified by seruile feare and led almost to hell after comes the swéete sound of Gods grace which reuiueth the soule saieng Lazarus come forth This is the voice that giueth consolation at the hearing whereof we may be bold to depart in peace with assurance of remission of our sinnes But it séemes that Repentance began first in the Knight at loue and that miraculously for he being in the filth of his sinne sodainly by Gods prouidence confessed his folly and loathing his lewde lyfe he required helpe and succour of Gods grace who presently assisted him and brought him out of the sinke of sinne But this manner of conuersion is not ordinarily vsed There are indéede certeine forerunners to the iustifieng of sinners which prepare the way to Gods reuiuing or quickening grace and offereth vnto God a renewed spirit and a pure and vpright heart which manner of conuersion godly people onely doe vse And héereof meaneth the Knight to speake purposing also to shew how it digresseth from Gods grace When Repentaunce had thus apparailed me with haire sackcloth I was set vpon a stoole then Gods grace appeared vnto me with two women one man which was a preacher Now one of the women held in hir right hand a sharp pricking yron rod called the gnawing of y e conscience and in hir left hande she had a red booke whereat I was affraid For as she beheld me my thought she threatened me The other woman was curteous milde and gentle holding in hir right hand a booke of golde couered with pearles and she was called Remembrance Gods grace placed Conscience on my left hand and Remembraunce on my right hand the Preacher Repentaunce and her Damselles about me and then commanded Conscience to open the red booke which when I perceiued and sawe the wordes written with bloud declaring all my offences with tormentes vnto them belonging for my following of Folly I was amazed and became speachlesse Then Conscience with hir yron rod toucht me prickt mee yea pearced my heart and cried aloud vnto me saieng Behold thou wretch view this booke thou shalt sée how thou hast liued euen against God and contrarie to right and reason Thou hast bene a proud arrogant ambitious spitefull at others prosperitie a prolonger of time wrathfull a backbiter iniurious traiterous hatefull couetous of gold more then of God gluttonous wanton shamelesse a stewes haunter giuen to all vices hast transgressed al the commandements of God leading a loathsome life denieng God swearing and blaspheming his name an hainous offender a false witnesse bearer a lyar a desirer of other mens goods disobedient to parents cursing them and wishing their death Furthermore thou hast had neither faith nor hope in God but rather in the force riches honour and friendship of thy kinred with their authoritie I cannot recken vp the rest of thy sinnes for they are vncountable Uerie little care hast thou had of Christs merites or of thy own soules helth but alwaies yéelding to Voluptuousnesse filthines iniquitie When Conscience had thus accused me sorrow for sin fel bitterly a wéeping and oftentimes stroke her brest Then Conscience shewed me what torments I had deserued for following voluptuous affections and for louing them better then God Thou oughtest sayd she to burne in hell fire that neuer quencheth to be nipped with tormēts both of body and soule for euer more Thy laughinges shall be turned to wéeping thy ioye to sorrowe thy songs to cryes yea what paines can be named but thou art like perpetually to suffer thē without hope of redemptiō For this is the due reward of worldly Felicitie and following Folly Bethinke thée now and tell me if it be in thy power to rid thée from these gréeuaunces Hearing my conscience thus speak my thought I sawe hell open to swallowe me vp and with sorrowfull sadnesse I fell to the ground before Gods grace speachlesse but she had compassion vpon me and bad me rise the which I did though halfe in dispaire and to recomfort me shée opned the booke which Remembraunce held in her hand BY COMMAVNDEMENT OF GODS GRACE Remembraunce read to me the goodnesse of God with his promises made to repentaunt sinners The fift Chapter AFter Remembraunce had opened her booke I perceiued the letters were of golde and Azure conteining the great goodnesse and infinit mercie of God to repentaunt sinners with faire promises annexed thervnto Then at commaundement of Gods grace Remembraunce read out of that booke vnto me in this manner S. Paule writing to the Romaines saith Where sinne hath abounded grace hath more abounded He that mistrusteth the mercye of God mistrusteth God to be mercifull and in so dooing he doth God great iniurie For he denieth God to be Loue Truth and Power wherein consisteth all the hope of poore sinners For of his great loue he sent his onely son to take mans nature vpon him in the world that in the same he might suffer death vpon the Crosse for the remission of sinnes Consequently he promised for the loue of his sonne remission and pardon to all poore sinners so often as they require it in faith with a heauy and sorrowfull heart Now God is as true of his promises as he is of power able to performe thē And as he is of power so will he doe whatsoeuer pleaseth him God wil pardon sinners their sins Who then can let him from doing it To whom God pleaseth or hath promised to pardon their sinnes he forgiueth The truth héereof is written in plaine wordes shewed by examples in many places of the

the will worketh his feats at libertie And it is called Frée will because of the iudgement of the soule therefore Frée will is in the superiour part of the soule for thereby we differ from brute beasts who haue a sense as well as we but no iudgement of Frée will Nowe when we say that vertue is a good qualitie of the soule that is to saie of Frée will For vertue qualifies Free-will disposeth and prepareth it to doe and will well neither of which cannot be done without the aide and grace of God The second part of the definition is Wherby a man liueth rightly But no man liueth rightly vnles he liue iustly no mā liueth iustly w tout vertue Ergo no man liueth rightly without vertue Who so liueth rightly liueth wel who so liueth well if he continue in so doing atchiueth true felicitie It followeth then y t by vertue we atchiue true felicitie for vertue prepares Frée will which is corrupt depraued therfore vnapt either for well willing or well doing but the grace of God reseruing it by vertue it is made capable of perfect blessednesse The third part of y e definition is And committeth none euill Wherein is comprehended the excellencie of vertue great goodnes by the which none can do il Men may abuse al y e goods al y e arts sciences in the world as indéed very often they are ill vsed as with monie wine women but by vertue they be neuer abused who vseth vertue he doth y e works of vertue Who so vseth y e deeds of vertue he doth wel if by vertue none doth ill thou oughtest rather to loose all y t is in the world then to lose vertue seeing she excels in goodnesse all things in the world The fourth part of the definition is Which thing indeed is the only work of God in man Uertue thē is a work of God in vs as witnesseth S. Austen vpon y t sentence which is spoken in the 118. Psalme I haue done iudgement iustice Iustice saith he is a great vertue of the soule comming more then he sawe for he sawe a man and he beléeued that the same man was God also which he sawe not for he said Thou art my God and my Lord. In this consisteth the merite of faith when a man at y e commandement of God beleeueth that thing which he séeth not To beleeue saith Saint Austen is to thinke vppon a thing with consent to that thought as when thou thinkest the Son of God was borne of a Uirgin had tooke mans nature vpon him consentest to y e thought it is properly called beliefe This thought may come often by séeing and often by hearing And therefore Saint Paule saith that Faith commeth by hearing and hearing by the word of God He vnderstands that by hearing Faith comes into the minde and thought if we consent therevnto For we maye beholde a Preacher without consenting to that he saith because men doe not alwaies beleeue what the Preacher speaketh for y t the consent wherin consisteth the perfection of Faith comes of the méere gift of God not from séeing nor hearing but frō the light of grace speking in the soule of the beleeuer beléeuing the principal truth which is God working in him a consent agreement w t that principal souereign trurh aboue al other things So that Faith is a foundation vnmoueable both of beleeuers and of truth by the which Faith when it is ioyned with Charitie our Lord Iesus Christ who is the onely foundation of true blessednesse dwelleth in the hearts of the beleeuers and so long as Faith is in man he shal be sure not to perish but Faith without Charitie is no foundation because such Faith is vaine and vnprofitable Faith then ioyned with Loue or Charitie belongs to good Christians and Faith without Loue belongs to euill Christians It is necessarie therfore that we note the difference in these three saiengs or speaches namely To beleeue a God to beleeue of God and to beleeue in God To beleeue of God is to beléeue that all is true which God saith so beleeue the euill Christians as well as the good vnlesse they be Heretikes To beleeue a God is to beléeue that he is the onely true and almightie God and so the Diuells doe beléeue as well as the euill Christians But to beléeue in God is to loue God and to trust in God and in beléeuing to ioyne thy selfe to God by loue and obedience incorporating thée with his mēbers that is to say his Church This Faith iustifieth and maketh righteous the sinner and this Faith being knit with Loue and with Charitie begins to doe good deedes which cannot be done without Loue. The Faith which euill Christians haue is indéede a qualytie of fréewill but it is not knit with Loue and Charitie which is the bonde of perfection and the life of Faith as Faith is the life of the soule And yet such an vnshapen Faith being naked and voide of Charitie may be termed a gift of God for that the euill man may haue some gifte of God but that cannot properly be called Vertue because that by Vertue we learne to liue rightly and for that the Diuels and euill Christians doe liue wickedly it is a signe that the faith which they haue is dead and therefore is not properly Vertue nor yet a worke of Vertue If thou wilt then haue thy Faith to be good and wholesome it must haue foure properties that is to say it must be plaine and simple it must be whole and sound it must be constant and vnmouable it must be quicke and liuely Touching the first that it must be plaine and simple that teacheth thée thus much in effect that thou must beléeue the word of God plainly simply whatsoeuer is therein contained without enquiring or searching in Gods mysticall matters by humaine reasons but simply beléeuing in thy heart that euery thing contained in the holy Bible is most true Secondly thy Faith must be whole and sound that is to say thou must not take parte with heretikes or leane to the erronious opinions of the enimies of Gods truth for this is no good or wholesome Faith And therefore for a testimonie of thy Faith be not ashamed to make open confession in the congregation of thy beliefe saieng with y e felowship communion of Saints I beleeue in the holy Trinitie as y e holy Church founded by Christ whereof he is y e head hath taught me so do I frame my faith· Thirdly it must be constant and vnmouable that is to say without doubting for any reson of mans braine that séemeth contrarie nor for any temptation promises or threatnings either of torment or of death And let not the obstinacie of such as inchaunt with the vaine pleasures of this life although they liue most ioyfully allure thee to leane to their opinion which is flat heresie For that

holy Scripture as well in y e old testament as y e new First Esay saith It is I my selfe It is I my selfe that doth blotte out thine iniquities for mine owne loue sake I will not haue thy sins in remembrance For the loue of me saith he not for the loue of thée meaning my goodnesse and mercie not for the loue of thy merits As if he said to all sinners in this sort If thou thinkest y t I pardon thy sins for thy merits sake thou art deceiued wallowest in dispaire no no but for my mercy infinit goodnes I remit forgiue Thou hast no cause to dispaire for y e least part of my mercie excéedeth all thy sinnes In an other place he saith by the same Prophet Turne your selues vnto me all the earth and you shall be saued for I am God and there is none other besides me What is the meaning of these words I am God anie thing els but that God is good mercifull If it be vnpossible but he should be God it is vnpossible but he should be good and mercifull The same Prophet speaketh vnto euerie one of vs sayeng Let the Infidell leaue his waye and the vniust man his thoughts let them turne to the Lord and he will haue pitie vpō him for he is redy to forgiue By his Prophet Ieremy hée saith to the people of Israel that he was wroth for their Idolatrie manie other sinnes neuerthelesse he said Turne Israel thou Rebell vnto me thy Lord and I will not turne my face from thee or as the Hebrew text saith I will not lay mine ire vpon thee for I am saith the Lord holy and gentle and keepe not mine anger foreuer By the Prophet Ezechiel he sath If the euill man repent him of his sinnes and keepe my commaundemants doing righteously he shal liue and not dye neither will I haue his former offences anie more in remembraunce Doe you thinke saith the LORDE that I delight in the death of a sinner nay rather that hee shoulde turne from his wickednesse and liue Repent you then and you shall liue The Prophet Dauid said That from morning till night Israel hoped in the Lord. What doth this signifie but that the faithfull from their natiuitie and birth vntil their verie death haue hope in the Lord. There is mercy in the Lord and great redemption attendeth vpon him In Ioel it is writtē Turne your selues vnto the Lord with all your heart in fasting praieng weeping sorrow tearing your hearts and not your garments so shall you be turned vnto the Lord your God for he is ful of clemencie mercie great grace slowe to ire redie to forgiue or as the Hebrewe text saith such a one as repents him of euill that is to say is loth to execute the punishment vpon sinners which he hath denounced and threatened Micheas the Prophet sayth What God is there like vnto thee which takest awaie iniquities forgiuest sins for the rest of thine heritage sake He keepeth not his ire for euer but of his compassion mercy wil haue pitie vpon vs. He will put out our iniquities and throw all our sins into the bottome of the sea What sinner is ther that hearing these wordes hath so heauie a heart as to dispaire séeing that God is more readie to forgiue then the sinner to aske forgiuenesse Now let vs come to the new Testament to trie if there be not testimonies to the same effect The sonne of God which is the infallyble truth spake this to Nicodemus God so loued the world that he gaue his onelye begotten sonne to the end that whosoeuer beleeued in him shoulde bee saued and not perish but haue euerlasting life God sent not his sonne into the world to condempne the world but to the end the world shuld be saued by him To the Scribes and Pharesies which murmured because he did eate drink among Publicans and sinners Christ said Those that bee whole need not the Phisition but such as be sicke Againe I came not saith the Lord to call the iust but sinners to repentaunce Not as a Iudge but as a Phisition For such as languish in their sinnes came I into the worlde not that they should remaine sinners but to turne them from their sinnes that béeing penitent they might be made righteous Likewise he tolde the Pharesies That the Angells in heauen doe more reioyce in one penitent sinner then in .99 iust persons which needes no repentance God saith Saint Paule spared not his onely sonne for vs but that he shoulde rather die then we be vnpardoned If God spared not his onely sonne to dye for sinners what thing is more worthy and precious vnto him that he should refuse them And therefore the same Apostle speaking of Iesus Christ saith thus We haue not an high priest which cannot haue compassion of our infirmities but such a one as in all points was tempted as well as we sinne excepted Let vs goe then boldly to the seate of grace that we may obteine mercie find grace in time conuenient If I shuld reherse al the places of the Scripture to this effect the time would faile me Thus we sée thē none hath cause to distrust y e goodnes of God or to dispaire of the greatnesse of his sins seeing that God hath made so many faire promises to pardon the penitent sinner there be many examples in the olde new testament of the performance of Gods promises as namely to Dauid who committed both adultrie murther he euen he by sorrowing for his offences and crieng Peccaui obteined mercy and pardon of all his wickednesse Manasses the son of Ezechias restored the false worship of God which his father had defaced of an euill zeale to infidelitie he himselfe offered vp his own children in fire for sacrifice He persecuted the Prophets slew innumerable innocents amongst all which he caused the Prophet Esay to be sawne in péeces In the end he was takē by the enimies and lead captiue to Babilon But when he was in his extremitie he acknowledged his offences asked forgiuenesse of God of whom he was receiued into fauour restored to his kingdome againe The people of Niniue whom God threatened by y e Prophet Ionas vtterly to destroy for y e multitude for their sins they repented praid so God forgaue them The Samaritane also the Cananite notwithstanding their horrible sins when they asked God mercy he forgaue them Mathew Zachee diuers other publicans vpon their repētaunce were receiued into fauour Peter y t denied his Maister thrée times gaue himself to the diuell if he knew him whē he wept bitterly for his sins he was receiued into mercy The theefe also vpon the crosse being at point of death euē this fellow who liued vppon nothing but robberie manslaughter all his life time acknowledged his hainous sins asking pardon God