Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A93761
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A word to both houses of Parliament.
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Stafford, Richard, 1663-1703.; England and Wales. Parliament.
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1692
(1692)
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Wing S5150; ESTC R184567
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7,112
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4
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from any kind of Slaughter This seems to be the very Reason why at this day they do not cease from but they go on still in the Prosecution of the War notwithstanding it hath been declared unto them that the Lord will make Inquisition for Blood Psal 9.12 And He will require at the hands of such who have the outward Power to proclaim War or treat of Peace the life of every man Gen. 9.5 which hath been already or shall yet be lost in these unnecessary Wars For so they are in as much as they might have been avoided at first and even now or at any time an End may be put unto them Nevertheless Our chief Men and Rulers do not regard the Word of God nor what is here truly alledged from thence concerning the Future Account themselves must give for the same but they go on still in their own ways after their own Wisdom and Will and they think or say We will venture the Consequent thereof Some of them know that their own heart is disobedient to the Law of God in other things and so they are as it were blinded and do not throughly understand what this means Others brave it off with a high hand of Presumption Contempt and Disobedience It is a sad and marvellous thing to consider that now The Sword the Sword is drawn the Holy Ghost â—…th twice Repeat it because of the continuance and succession thereof for Slaughter it is fourbished to â—…sume because of the glittering Whiles they see Vanity unto thee whiles they Divine a Lye unto thee to â—…ing thee upon the Necks of them that are slain of the Wicked whose day is come when their Iniquity â—…ll have an End Ezek. 21.29 This again is to be applied to our Bishops Priests and Deacons and to the other Writers and Teachers for these exactly like the false Prophets there intended do sute and model their Doctrine and Discourse which they deliver in their Pamphlets Sermons and Personal Conversation according to the Corrupt Will and Doings of the Rich and Mighty People But now be it known unto you all which yet ye will not believe though a Man declare it unto ye That God hath sent forth a Word and published a Truth by his Servant Richard Stafford which if throughly understood and universally received It would cause the Sword to return into his Sheath Ezek. 21.30 and preserve Life Gen. 45.5 according to that Expression of the Patriarch God doth send out his Truth by some Instrument or other to save the lives vers 7. of those who are not yet killed Now in that Case if they had Imprisoned Joseph a second time for Prognosticating evil Things to their Country and if they had given no heed to his Words then all or most of the Egyptians had perished in the seven Years of Famine Mark this well But this the Heathen did not do whereas contrariwise the People of this Generation and Nation have done both with Me for when they ought to have obeyed the Truth of God which I wrote down and published They did by the Instigation of the Devâ—… cast me into Prison for the same And thus They are of their Father the Devil and the Lusts of their Father they will do Observe that He was a Murtherer from the beginning and abode not in the Truth because their is no Truth in him When He speaketh a Lye He speaketh of his own for He is a Lyer and the Father of it John 8.44 For the making and averring of a down right Lye was the Pretence whereby they held Me almost Eight Months in Bethlehem-Hospital During all which time I was for a Stone of Stumbling and for a Rock of Offence to both the Houses of England for a Gin and a Snare to the Inhabitants of London God permitting it so to be for a Proof and Tryal whether They could know and put a difference between the certainty of the Words of Truth and the Imaginations of a disordered Understanding But it was therefore thus pervertly done with Me of set purpose That the Residue of the People who are Men of War might be consumed because they Obeyed not the Voice of the Word of the Lord. And then by putting Me down into a dark lowermost Room That the Sound and Voice of my Words should not be heard distinctly and clearly was that Scripture fulfilled It cast down the Truth to the Ground and it Practised and Prospered Dan. 8.12 Which word Prosper though it is harped upon so mightily and in their way of Blasphemy and evil Speaking ascribed to God's Blessing wherein they think him to be altogether such an one as themselves Psal 50.21 imports to be further enabled to shed more Blood For who gets the Victory but he that kills most and then by committing further Sin and Transgression They do only heap upon themselves more Guilt sad Account and Misery for the last days Shall the Sword devour for ever know We not it will be bitterness in the End Now the Sword is as certainly a Judgment of God as the Fire Plague or Famine When a Fire is broken out People do whatever lies in their power to extinguish it again as soon as they can They provide against a Famine and seek Remedies for Prevention or Cure of the Plague But wherefore do they not in like manner endeavour to stop the People from pursuing to follow their Brethren and Fellow-Creatures and to cause the drawn Sword to be put up and that the Grievousness of War might cease The Reason of this great Diversity may be hence conceived and understood because Satan the Executioner of God's Wrath and Judgments doth here make Men themselves the Instruments for carrying on the Destruction of one another and in order to that he doth instil such and such things into the Minds of Men to the contrary And whereas some say Let it alone till that day comes or we will venture the Consequent thereof Would ye know ye vain deceivers of your own selves That day will as certainly come as it is certain that ye now live or shall one day die There is no great daring in all this for through their Ignorance and Unbelief every Persecutor Oppressor Murtherer Robber Yea all the Sinners and Transgressors thoughout the Earth do run the venture of their own Damnation But I must tell ye all in sober truth and sadness That this is the most dreadful Adventure in the World for any one to run either God must love a Lier or those that do such and such things shall go into Hell They might as safely throw themselves into the Fire to try if it will not burn for our God is a consuming Fire and so He will at length appear to devour his Adversaries A Word to all Soldiers There are many People who fulfil the Scriptures when they know not that they do so and even whilst they Act perversly against God and disobedient to his Law It comes so upon them according
A Word to both Houses of PARLIAMENT THERE is a very great Malignity considering which see Rom. 1.29 for it arises from all Vnrighteousness Covetousness Maliciousness Envy Murder Debate Deceit there mentioned when people will not Obey God and they refuse to come into the way of his Commandments And this is so much the more provoking and worthy of sorer Punishment by much the longer and more continued it is So that Let none hence think that we recede or go aside from what we have received of God nor do we hereby make that part of his Word which is committed to our Ministration low and precarious Nor yet do We use it as an artifice or trick to get them off sooner from their Rebellion when we make that Proposal and Overture of a General Act of Oblivion and Indemnity to all the Workers of Iniquity See my Books Entituled Things Plain and Weighty c. The Mystery of Iniquity somewhat laid open c. That they shall be every one forgiven for whatever They have done as to Man's Punishment Which offer they think that we therefore make because we have not Power or Numbers to subdue them But this is to suppose and talk after the manner of Men for strong is the Lord God Almighty who will Judge them Nevertheless because Sentence against an evil Work is not executed speedily therefore the Hearts of the Sons of Men are fully set in them to do evil and they do in the mean while take up Proud Pharaohs Method and Resolution as to lay more Burden and Oppression on the true Israelites that they may Suffer if they will not sin and cast in their Lot among us and they think or say Let us not regard vain words Exod. 5.9 But they are not vain Words for though the Kingdom of God is in Word and is called the Weakness of God 1 Cor. 1.25 It is also in Power and in the Holy Ghost and in much Assurance that it shall be all found me For whatever some would imagine or desire not one tittle thereof shall fail until all be fulfilled Hereby is evident and also seen that God is stronger for He doth continually send forth his Messenger uâ—…on the Pale Horse whose name is Death which notwithstanding all their Multitude and Power dothâ—â—…est them severally to bring them before his Judgment Seat Is not this laid up in store with me 〈◊〉 sealed up among my treasures To me belongeth Vengeance and Recompence their foot shall slide in duâ— time observe that for the day of their Calamity is at hand and the Things that shall come upon them make haste Deut. 32.34 35. Dearly beloved Avenge not your selves but rather give place unto Wrath for it is written Vengeance is mine I will repay saith the Lord Rom. 12.19 In these things Man hath nothing to do to take Vengeance or proceed to Punishment and yet if any should be so Presumptuous as to intermeddle with this sealed Treasure and Prerogative of Almighty God He will again recompence to such Person or Persons accordingly So that whereas the People of this Nation did call their King to Account and punish him with Depriâ—…tion for those unlawful things He is supposed and charged to have committed which yet by the Laâ—… God and of this Realm they ought not to have done I thought at that very time He was driven aâ—… from his Kingdom That this Act of theirs would somewhat take off and lessen from what He 〈◊〉 unto in the Future Account in that God would so over-rule this Malice and Rebellion of Mâ—… to change it into a Temporal Chastisement and Punishment of his Iniquity if He hath accepted it as such Levit. 26.41 As indeed to live in outward Mirth and Recreations or to seek to recover his Kingdom again by Blood is not consistent with that state of Humiliation and Waiting on the Lord He should have been in all along and He should be in yet Our God doth once more seem to shew forth thâ—… shedding of Blood is not his Way and Method of bringing back his Anointed as appears somewhat bâ—… the late Victory had over the French Fleet. But if still God is pleased to devise other means that hâ—… banished be not expelled from him 2 Sam. 14.14 and He cause Judgment to return to Righteousness And this be done not by Power nor by Might but by his Spirit and the Manifestation of his Truth which every Son and Daughter of God ought to strive to the utmost that it go forth continually and every Soul that will not yield Obedience unto it shall be Miserable for ever Here again great heed is to be taken that the last Errour be not like unto the first for the Wrath of Man worketh not the Righteousness of God and therefore this hath nothing to do or inflict And though our Nature as it is Corrupt may meditate of Vengeance and as it is wise according to the Flesh It may think some Punishment necessary as to Future Security and Prevention of the like Things yet the Language of Faith and the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord saith on this wise that the more We let alone and refrain from these Men they will meet a more severe Judgment from the Lord and there can be no such sure Establishment for the time to come as by Righteousness and to Order it with Judgment and with Justice according to the Rules and Directions of God's Word If any part hereof doth seem somewhat strange or unintelligible so may any any Truth when it is first brought to our sight and apprehension or when that is throughly and clearly manifested which was but imperfectly and confusedly Thought of before A Word to the Members of the Privy Council as they do Sit to Advise and give Orders in Matters of War It is written that after Herod killed James He proceeded further to take Peter also Acts 12.2 3. and of one who strengthened himself in his Wickedness Psal 52.7 Which is done only by committing the several successive and repeated Acts thereof for thus they are the more confirmed and hardened yet and encouraged in an evil Matter There is in Men by Nature an awful Apprehension of God and they are at first fearful to offend againg him But when they see others provoke him and no harm happen unto them Yea commonly These Vngodly do prosper in the World They increase in Riches then they take heart by little and little to Sin against him especially if they find no hurt upon themselves as presently they do not and when they are some what habituated and accustomed to it They go on to Transgress more and more As it is said in the Proverb Over Shoes over Boots when once they are throughly in they think that must and they do go on in the same When an Army is once blooded as we say then they are more desperate and cruel and they having been used to so much Murther already they do not refrain