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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	evil_a	good_a	tree_n	33,809	5	11.7409	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A42543	A bridle for the tongue, or, A treatise of ten sins of the tongue ... shewing the nature of these sins ... with the causes and aggravations of them, and remedyes against them : together with many considerations, rules, and helps for the right ordering of the tongue ... / by William Gearing ...	Gearing, William.	1663 (1663)	Wing G432; ESTC R8445	179,256	504

justly say withou● sin he is a bad fellow such as his mates are such is ●he man B●rds of a feather will fly ●ogether 2. If I hear one vomit out filthy unchaste speeches a Tongue fu●l of uncleanness a mouth running over with lewd and lustful words in this respect I may pass a censure up in him as a filthy person for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaket● 3. If I see a man receive the Sacramen● profess that he will amend all that i● amiss and lead a new life and seem t● rake up coals of malice under ashes that no spark appears to be left to kindle contention again but I shall se● him within a while after as full of malice cozenage and deceit as ever ● may well judge that he came to th● Sacrament without faith or repentance that he polluted the Lords Table eat and drank his own damnation being guilty of the Body and Blood of Christ 4. If I see any man to be a stickler in suits of Law that sets men together by the ears that might live quietly with his neighbours yet will not I may say that that man is a common Barratour and a pernicious person in the place and parish where he dwelleth where envy and strife is there is sedition and every evil work Jam. 3.16 Finally a man may judge the tree by the fruit and say that He that doth wickedness is wicked and he that liveth and dieth an Atheist Drunkard or Idolater c. shall be damned So in cleer cases we must not speak good of evil nor evil of good Jerem. 15.19 albeit we may not ●udge of the tree by the sap that is hid yet by his fruit which is manifest for a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit nor an evil tree bring forth good fruit by their fruits ye shall know them Mat. 7.16 But we may not judge all Object Love is not suspicious saith the Apostle it thinketh no evil 1 Cor. 13.5 As Charity is not suspicious Sol. so neither is it sottish as it doth not allow suspition so neither thrust out discretion as not so sharp sighted to see a mote where none is so neither is it purblind but it can discern a beam where it is Christ seeing the lives of the Pharisees that they did all to be seen of men prayed and fasted and gave almes to draw mens eyes upon them judgeth them and calls them Hypocrits When Elymas the sorcerer soughe to turn the Deputy from the faith Paul being full of the Holy-Ghost set his eyes upon him and said O full of all subtilty and all mischief thou child of the Devil thou enemy of all righteousness wilt thou not cease to pervert the right wayes of the Lord Act. 13.10 and St. Paul bids Timothy beware of Alexander the Copper-smith 2 Tim. 4.14 15. by warrant whereof a man may admonish his son servant or friend to beware of such and such persons whom he knoweth to be lewdly disposed and in so judging them he doth not wrong them as therefore we must not rashly condemn because we know not mens estates before God so we must not commend without good testimony to the world All judgement then whether publique or private is not forbidden but only rash unadvised and uncharitable judgement this was the fault of Eli the Priest toward Hannah the Mother of Samuel thinking and saying she was drunk when in pensiveness of spirit and heaviness of heart she poured out the sorrow of her soul before the Lord 1 Sam. 1.13 14 15. it was likewise the fault of Eliab the eldest brother of David telling him that the pride of his heart brought him from his business to the battle 1 Sam. 17.28 whereas in the verses foregoing we read his father sent him to visit him and the rest of his brethren and help victual the camp yea David himself was not free from this fault and it was some blemish in his government that he was over-hasty to hear a false information of that whibling Ziba against his own innocent and better deserving Master Mephibosheth 2 Sam. 16. Thus the Jews hearing the Apostles speak divers languages affirm them to be full of new wine Act. 2.13 Thus we see what kind of judgement is forbidden sc rash and uncharitable judgement SECT 6. Of the cure of the sin of censuring of the great difference of censuring mens persons and their actions what things are subject to mans judgement and what are not Judge nothing before the time either collatae p●testatis or cognitae veritatis Pet. Barker Exposit in praecept 9. I Shall in the last place prescribe those means by which we may through Gods blessing be preserved from this sin of censuring 1. See that you censure no man before you are fully convinced of the matter judge nothing before the time 1 Cor. 4.5 He that answereth a matter before he heareth it it is a shame and folly to him Prov. 18.13 The Poets feign of Jupiter that he would not destroy the old world till he had assumed a bodily shape and came down to Lycaons Cou●t and found the wickedness thereof to be greater then was reported but not to give credit to Fables we should do herein as the great God of heaven and earth before he passeth sentence upon mankind he first seeth that the wickedness of man upon earth was great Gen. 6.5 So Gen. 11. about the Builders of Babel he will go down and confound their language and he would not utterly destroy those sinfull Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah till he had taken a full and thorow view of their villanies Gen. 18.20 God dealeth thus in these matters that so he may give an example to others how they may walk toward their brethren that they should not be too rash in passing judgement consider well whether that you hear be truth before you pass sentence upon a bare report We read Levit. 13. that the Priests in the Law were not presently to judge of the p●ague of Leprosie but the party suspected must be shut up seven dayes for the better triall to teach us not to be too hasty and over-rash in censuring and giving sentence of mens persons and sins that are secret and hope the best in charity till we know the certainty 2. Let us look into our own hearts when we observe the temper of others and when we judge them whether we do it out of good will or out of ill will Sometime men have no good will to such a person and that makes them speak ill of them upon every slight occasion for malice never speaks nor thinks the best of those that they hate in their heart Now God forbids the hating of our brother in our heart and yet are we not to see sin to lye upon him but to rebuke him but this rebuke must be in love not in hatred nor must we avenge nor bear any grudge against the children of our people but love our neighbour as

cover them and ver 10. he compares them to one in a deep pit without water that cannot get out when a shower of fire is falling down upon his head God will root out such from among the living for the backbiter shall not be established in the earth evil shall hunt a man of a violent tongue to overthrow him ver 11. God will throw them down as it were from the top of a Rocky-cliff or steep place where with the fall they must needs break their bones 3. It is a most dreadful and a damnable sin whisperers and backbiters are mentioned by St. Paul as such that regard not to know God and to be delivered up to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient Rom. 1.28 29 30. whispering and backbiting are there ranked among many other great sins which are the effects of a reprobate mind this was a damnable sin deadl● in the very Heathen of whom the Apostle there speaketh how much more those that profess themselves to ●e Christians and the same Apostle bids Timothy refuse the younger widowes that wax wanton against Christ that are idle and go about from house to house yea not onely idle but also pratlers and busy-bodies speaking things which are not comely and of these he saith they have damnation because they have broken the first faith 1 Tim. 5.11 12 13. 4. Slandering makes a man more like the Devil then any other sin doth for the slanderer hath the Devil in his tongue and the spirit of God gives the same name to a slanderer that is given to the Devil he is called Diabolus a slanderer he is the patron of all evil speaking he spared not God himself but spake evil of him to our first Parents Adam and Eve in Paradise Gen. 3.4 5. and slanderers are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 false accusers or devils 2 Tim. 3.3 Tit. 3.2 So our Saviour in this respect calleth Judas a Devil because he acted the part of the Devil in slandering his Master in secret Joh. 6.70 and from this sin he came to betray his Master for 30 pieces of silver slanderers are the Devils journey-men they are Canini dentes Diaboli The Devils sharpest teeth as Parisiensis speaks Parisiens Struth observ Calumniation is the Devils mind in mans mouth and his Arrow shot by Mans Bow as another observeth SECT 3. Of speaking evil of God himself shewed in four things THere is another branch of this sin which is grearer then the former as when men speak evil of God and his wayes and proceedings or any that receive any power authority or Commission from God as Magistrates and Ministers and also when men speak evil of the Saints and people of God 1. When men slander God himself and speak evil of his doings as 1. when we debase or undervalue the excellency of Gods works which were all made in wisdom or when we do obscure or extenuate the gifts of God that are in any of our Brethren or when God hath given us variety of his good creatures for our daily refreshment yet we slight them and discommend such meats as God hath sent us to eat this is to reproach God himself 2. When we either take no notice of or lightly pass over the judgements of God as the wicked man in the Psalms of whom it is said Thy Judgements are far out of his sight and when men so pass them over as that they apply them to others not to themselves as they did Luk. 13.1 2 3. 3. Men slander the justice of God when they say that Gods wayes are not equal that God dealeth partially unequally with those that are equal that he dealeth ill with good men well with evil men the wicked have the world at will the Godly are grievously afflicted when men count the proud happy and in discontent say Malach. 3.14 15. They that work wickedness are set up and they that tempt God are delivered Jerem. 12.1 2. Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper why are all they in wealth that rebelliously transgress Thou hast planted them and they have taken root they grow and bring forth fruit Psal 73.4 5 7. there are no bonds in their death but they are strong and lusty they are not in trouble as other men neither are they plagued with others their eyes stand out for fatness they have more then heart can wish 4. Men slander and dishonour God when his name is used in prophane prayers for wicked purposes and in praises and thanksgivings for some evil that is done as when the Pirate and the Thief prayes that he may meet with a good booty as Camden speaks of the wild Irish so when Theeves having gotten their prey or Gamesters and Cheaters when they have gotten much money of a man when they might as well have cut his purse give thanks to God for their theevery I thank God I have sped well I have had good luck to day I thank God thus Saul gives thanks to God for the discovery of David when the Ziphims brought him word where he was 1 Sam. 23.21 Blessed be ye of the Lord Thus Adulterers make God as it were their Bawd common cutters make him their abettor or receiver Dicers make him a Gamester and all wicked men make him accessary to their sins These things hast thou done I held my peace or did not rebuke thee but gave thee success i. e. I suffered thee to prosper and thou wickedly thoughtest that I had been altogether such a one as thy self Psal 50.21 Hereunto may be referred the notable abusing of Gods name by evil Magistrates in making wicked decrees and by the Pope and his adherents in making wicked Canons and Constitutions countenancing and authorizing them with the name and authority of God In nomine Dei Amen which gave occasion to the common by-word In nomine Domini incipit omne malum now the greater the person is that we defame or speak against the greater is the offence and deserveth the greater punishment as to speak evil of any man be he never so mean is a fault but to speak evil of a Noble-man is scandalum magnatum and deserveth punishment or imprisonment but to speak evil of the King is crimen or scandalum laesae Majestatis Treason and deserveth death therefore to speak against God deserveth both temporal and eternal death SECT 4. Of speaking evil of Rulers and Dignities A Second sort of men there are that upon every small discontent are ready to speak evil of Rulers and Governours and those whom God hath set over them a sin forbidden expresly Exod. 22.28 Thou shalt not speak evil of the Ruler of thy people and Solomon saith Revile or curse not the King no not in thy heart Eccles 10.20 for the birds of the air shall bewray it God hath commanded us in Scripture to be subject to the higher powers Rom. 3.1 therefore we ought to give them Titles of Honour according to