the command, the rule of duty. A lust and corrupt affection to the tree seized them, discovering itself at the eye, in a lustful looking at it, Gen. iii. 6. So the hand took it, and the mouth ate it, and the fatal morsel was lodged within the body.

Thus the cool of temptation raised a flame, which quickly spread itself over the whole soul and body. The which is often reached in the case of their sinful posterity, who by these means are frequently cast down from their excellency as it were in a moment, and plunged into a gulf of misery.

There is more ill in doubting and unbelief than men are aware of. It was the devil's master-piece for the ruin of souls under the covenant of works; and so it is still under the covenant of grace; Mark xvi. 16, "He that believeth not shall be damned." Men were first ruined by their doubting and unbelief of the threatening of the first covenant; now men are ruined by their doubting and unbelief of the promise of the second covenant; Isa. liii. 1, "Who hath believed our report?" says the prophet. And what that report is, see 1 John v. 10, 11, "He that believeth on the Son of God, hath the witness in himself; he that believeth not God, hath made him a liar, because he believed not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record that God hath given to us eternal life; and this life is in his Son." Though doubting may consist with faith, so that it be not reigning; yet it belongs not but is contrary, to the nature of faith, which in itself is a firm persuasion, more or less firm, according to the strength of it.

The Ingredients of this Sin.

Secondly, Let us consider the ingredients of this sin. If it is opened up, one may see it to be a complication of evils; not a little sin, but a great one, and in some sort the greatest sin.

1. Horrid unbelief was in it. By it the truth and faithfulness of God to his word was questioned, disbelieved, and denied; the lie was given to the God of truth, 1 John v. 11, forecited. And to make the affront the blacker, the devil was believed in his contradiction to God. God said, Yea; Satan said, No; and the decision was in favour of the latter.

2. Pride, ambition, bold presumption, and curiosity, took place in this sin. No less was attempted by it, than to be like God himself; Gen. iii. 5, "Ye shall be as gods," said the old serpent. God had set them in paradise; but they would, in a manner, ascend above the height of the clouds, and set their throne above the stars, as the proud monarch of Babylon did, Isa. xiv. 13, 14. They had full li berty as to the use of all that was in paradise; only God locked up

from them that one tree; and they boldly forced the lock, and ate that which God forbade them to touch; as if nothing was to be hid to them.

3. There was in this sin monstrous ingratitude, and discontent with their condition. They wanted nothing for necessity, convenience, or delight, beseeming their state of trial. A bountiful God had heaped favours on them; they bore God's image, were fit to be companions of angels, were the envy of devils, had the dominion of the lower world, and were God's confederates. But all this was sunk and lost in unthankfulness; and they were so little contented, that they would needs have that in very deed which they had no want of, as is often the case with their children.

4. This sin contained in it contempt of God, rebellion against him, and downright apostasy from him, going over to the devil's side. Thus it was a renouncing of the covenant, and a conspiring with Satan against God. They carry themselves as if they had been decoyed into a foolish bargain; and, forgetting the majesty of God, and their own dependence on him, they break his bands, and cast his cords from them; pretending they would see better to themselves, and so they cast off his yoke at one touch.

5. Lastly, In one word, this sin was a breaking of the whole law of God at once. By this one deed, not only was the positive law trampled under foot, but the natural law written in their hearts was broken in all the ten commandments of it at once, as I have shewn elsewhere.*

The Aggravations of this Sin.

Thirdly, Let us view the aggravations of this sin.

Consider,

1. The person who did it; righteous Adam; one who was not tainted with original sin, as others now are, but was endued with original righteousness; one in whom Satan had nothing, till he winded it in by his subtilty. There was no blindness of mind, perverseness of will, or unholiness of affections, to graft his temptation on. So having these advantages, the sin was in that respect of all sins the most heinous. And therefore he having found mercy, is a pattern of mercy to all who will believe in Christ.

2. The object by which he was enticed, and for which he broke God's law. It was not a wedge of gold, as in Achan's case; nor thirty pieces of silver, as in that of Judas; but a morsel of fruit. The smaller the thing was, the greater the sin; and the more inexcusable the sinner, whom Satan catched with so sorry a bait. What

See Fourfold State of Man, state 2. head 1, under the title, "How man's nature was corrupted."

need had he of that, who had enough besides? But when once the mind is bewitched with temptation, it is enough to stir up a longing after fruit, if it be but forbidden; as the wayfaring man in Nathan's parable was entertained by the rich man with his poor neighbour's lamb, though he had a flock of his own.

3. The nature of the thing. Though it was a small thing, yet it was a sacred thing, set apart for a holy use, not to be touched. This sin was theft, and theft of the worst kind, namely, sacrilege. It was a profanation of holy things, and that of the worst kind; profanation of a sacrament, a seal of the covenant. No wonder it brought on a curse.

4. The place where it was committed. In paradise, where every flower was proclaiming the glory of God, where he wanted nothing necessary for him, but was surrounded on every hand with tokens of the Lord's kindness to him. Eden was the pleasantest spot of the virgin earth, and paradise the pleasantest spot of Eden. But there the rebellion was begun against God, who set him in that delightful place. In the presence-chamber, as it were, rebel man, by this act of his, struck at his sovereign Lord. So it was aggravated like the murder of Zacharias, who was slain between the temple and the altar, Matth. xxiii. 35.

5. The time when it was committed. He had not been long in the world, till he lifted up his heel against his Creator. He had stood short while, till, being giddy with pride and ambition, he fell into disgrace. What time Adam fell, is a question. It is the common opinion, that he fell the same day he was created. Some think he stood longer, supposing the events recorded about him. Gen ii. and iii. to require more time than one day. And the deists improve that against the credit of Moses' history, but entirely without ground, I think the common opinion is true. The devil's envy and malice would set him a-work on the first occasion to ruin man; and, for all that appears, whenever he tried it, he carried his point. If our first parents had stood longer, the blessing of marriage would have taken place in a state of innocence. The scripture says, Satan was "a liar, and a murderer from the beginning," John viii. 44. Yet "Adam in honour could not night; he became like as the beasts, they were alike," Psalm xlix. 12. From this text the Hebrew doctors gather, that the glory of the first man did not night with him; and the ancient translators understand it of Adam. The work of redemption is the more illustrious, that man could not stand one day without the Mediator's help.*

*See more on this subject in the author's notes on the "Marrow of Modern Divinity."

6. Lastly, The effects and consequents of this sin. These are all evils that came on Adam himself, and on his posterity to this day, and that will come, even to the end of the world. Hereby all mankind were ruined. That sin was the wide gate at which sin and death entered into the world. It spread its malignant influence over the creation, loosed the pins of the fabric of the world, which it will pull down at length altogether, according to the import of the threatening.

How the Fatal step, in the breach of the covenant of works, was

brought about.

II. I shall consider how this fatal step was brought about. For clearing of this, three things are to be considered; Satan's tempting to it; God's leaving man to the freedom of his own will in the matter; and man's abusing this freedom of will, and complying with the temptation.

Of Satan's tempting to this Sin.

First, Satan tempted to it. God created all the angels holy spirits, yet mutable, as the event in some of them has proved. Some of them were elected to eternal happiness from eternity, and some of them not elected, 1 Tim. v. 21, where the apostle speaks of elect angels. They were all created the first day, as appears from Gen. i. 1, 2, compared with Job xxxviii. 7. In the former it is said, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” And in the latter place it is said that, when God "laid the foundations of the earth, the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy;" by whom are most certainly to be understood the angels. The reprobate angels were not fallen before the sixth day; for it is said, Gen. i. 31, that, on that day, "God saw everything that he had made, and behold it was very good." On the sixth day man was made, and the same day he fell, as has been shewn before. The reprobate angels were fallen before him, and therefore they fell the same day too. And it seems they lost no time, but immediately, with the first occasion, one of them sets to work against man, and gained his point by temptation, John viii. 44, forecited.

Concerning this temptation we may remark,

1. The instrument of the temptation was a serpent, Gen. iii. 1. And,

1st, It was a true and real serpent, as appears from Moses comparing it with the rest of the beasts; Gen. iii. 1, "Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field." What sort of a ser

pent it was is not determined. Some think it to have been a beautiful creature of a shining colour; for there are serpents mentioned, Deut. viii. 15, called in the original text Seraphim, which is a name given to angels. And so possibly Eve might take the serpent to have been acted by one of the good angels, or Seraphims. What, ever sort it was of, serpents have been of great note in the kingdom of the devil since. The Egyptians worshipped serpents. The genius of a place was painted as a serpent. And in the old Greek mysteries they were wont to carry about a serpent, and cry, Evah -a memorial of the extraordinary service it had done the devil.

2dly, It was acted by the devil. For since serpents could not speak, and far less reason, neither of which was wanting in this case, one may surely conclude, that it was the devil who abused the body of the serpent to his wicked purpose, and therefore is called that old serpent the devil and Satan, Rev. xii. 9, and chap. xx. 2.

2. Satan set upon the woman first, the woman the weaker vessel, that having once overcome her, he might by her means the more easily conquer the man. And thus he readily manages his temptations still, observing where the wall is weakest, that there he may make his attack with the more success. And he chose the time when she was alone, not with her husband, from whom she seems to have had the knowledge of the covenant God entered into with him. Had they been together, they might have jointly withstood him who conquered both, one after another.

3. He moveth a doubt concerning the command; Gen. iii. 1, "Yea hath God said ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" And thus he does subtilly and ambiguously. He does not at first bring forth the whole venom of the temptation, but pretends, as one in doubt, that he would be informed by the woman. It is hard to tell whether he meant this of God's forbidding to eat of any, or only not of every tree of the garden. It is the design of the tempter to draw us unto a contempt of the commands of God. The woman, however, gives him a round answer, wherein she makes a very ample profession of the truth; vers. 2, 3, " And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” They may resist at first, who are afterwards overcome.

4. Quitting the attack on the command, which he perceived her to adhere to, Satan falls on the threatening, and contradicts it, Gen. iii. 4, " And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die." He tells her it was not so sure as she imagined, that God