fo are Men Swallowed up by him, as with open Mouth; fo the à ai. word xaram fignifies, he can fup them up at a draught.

Thirdly; His Cruelty, a Roaring Lion, implying, not only his innate property to deftroy, which must be a ftrange fierceness, but also that this innate Principle is heightned and whetted on, as hanger in a Lion fharpens and enrages that difpofition, till he get his Prey; fo that he becomes raving and roaring, putting an awful Majesty upon Cruelty, and frighting them out of endeavours, or hopes of refiftance, and increafing their mifery with affrightments and tremblings. Thus Satan fhews a fierce and truculent temper, whofe power being put forth from fuch an implacable malice, muft needs become rage and fierceness.

Fourthly, His Diligence; which, together with his Cruelty, are confequences of his Malice and Power; he goes about, and feeks; he is reftlefs in his purfuit, and diligent, as one that promifeth himself a fatisfaction or joyful contentment in his Conquefts.

CHAP.

CHA P. II.

Of the Malice of Satan in particular. The Grounds and Causes of that Malice. The Greatness of it proved; and Inftances of that Greatness given.

I

Shall firft give fome account of his Malice, by which it shall appear, we do not wrong the Devil in calling him malicious; the truth of which Charge, will evidence it felf in the following particulars.

Firft; The Devil, though a Spirit, yet is a proper Subject of Sin. We need no other evidence for this, than what doth by daily experience refult from our felves; we have fins, which our Spirits and Hearts do act, that relate not to the Body, called a filthineẞ of the Spirit, in contradiftinction to the filthiness of the Flesh. 'Tis true it cannot be denyed, but that those Iniquities which have a neceffary dependance upon the Organs of the Body, (as Drunkennefs, Fornication, &c.) cannot properly, as to the formality of the Act, be laid at Satan's door, (though as a tempter and provoker of these in Men, he may be called the Father of these fins) yet the forementioned Iniquities which are of a Spiritual Nature, are properly and formally committed by him, as Lying, Pride, Hatred, and Malice. And this diftinction Chrift himself doth hint, Job. 8.44. When he fpeaketh a Lye, he fpeaketh of his own; where he afferts fuch fpiritual Sins to be properly and formally acted by himself. The certainty of all appears in the Epithites given him, the wicked One, the unclean Spirit, as also those places that speak his fall, They kept not their first Estate, Jude 6. The Angels that finned, 2 Pet. 2.4. If fins Spiritual are in a true and proper fenfe attributed to the Devil, then alfo may Malice be attributed to him.

Secondly; The wickedness of Satan is capable of increase, a magis & minus, though he be a wicked Spirit, and as to inclination full of wickedness, though so ftrongly inclined that he cannot but fin; and therefore as God is fet forth to us, as the Fountain of Holinefs, fo is Satan called the Author and Father of Sin. Yet

lentiam affe

ad cam oppug

tur. Am. med.

i. I. c. 11. Efa. 49. 23,

fecing we cannot afcribe an infiniteneß to him, we must admit, that (as to acts of Sin at leaft) he may be more or lefs finful, and that the wickednefs of his heart may be more drawn out, by Occafions, Motives, and Provocations: befides we are exprefly taught thus much, Rev. 12. 12. The Devil is come down, having great wrath, because his time is short: where we note (1.) that his wrath is called great, implying greater than at other times. (2.) That External Motives and Incentives, (as the shortness of his time) prevail with him to draw forth greater acts of fury.

Thirdly; Whatfoever Occafions do draw out, or kindle malice to a rage, Satan hath met with them in an eminent degree, in his Quia inordi- own fall, and Man's happineß. Nothing is more proper to beget natam excel- malice, than burts or punishments, degradations from happiness. &tando,ordina- Satan's Curfe, though juft, fills him with rage, and fretting tam amiferunt, against God, when he confiders that from the state and dignity of ideo de alio- a bleffed Angel, he is caft down to darkness, and to the bafeft conrum excellen- dition imaginable: for the part of his Curfe, (which concerned tia dolebat, & Satan as well as the Serpent) Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and duft nandam mali- shall be thy Meat, implies a state moft bafe; as the use of the phrase ciosè fereba- proves, they hall lick the dust of thy feet. Thine enemies shall lick the dust, Pfal.72.9. They shall lick the dust as a Serpent, Mich. 7.17. Where the Spirit is fo wicked, that it cannot accept the punishment of its iniquity. All punishment is as a poyfon, and invenoms the heart with a rage against the hand that afflicted it; thus doth Satan's fall enrage him, and the more, when he fees Man enltated into a poffibility of enjoying what he hath loft. The envy and pride of his heart boils up to a madness (for that is the only use, that the wretchedly miferable can make, of the fight of that happinefs which they enjoy not; efpecially if having once enjoyed it,.. they are now deprived): this begot the rage and wrath in Cain against Abel, and afterward his Murther. The eye of the wicked is evil, where God is good. Hence may it be concluded, that Satan (being a wicked Spirit, and this wickedness being capable of acting higher or lower according to occafions, and with a fuitableness thereto) cannot but fhew an unconceiveable malice against us, our happineß and his mifery being fuch proper occafions for the wickednefs of his heart to work upon.

Fourthly This Malice in Satan muft be great:

Firti; If we confider the greatneß of his wickedness in fo great

and

and total an Apoftacy. He is fo filled with iniquity, that we can expect no fmall matters from him, as to the workings of fuch curfed Principles; not only is he wicked, but the Spirit and extract of wickedness, as the phrafe fignifies, Ephef. 6. 12..

Πνευματικά Secondly The Scripture lays to his charge all Degrees, Aus, & mornelas. and Branches of Malice; As (1.) Anger, in the impetuous haft and violence of it, Rev. 12. great wrath, Juuós there fignifies Excandefcentia, the Inflammation of the Heart, and whole Man; which is violent in its motion, as when the Blood with a violent ftream rufheth through the Heart, and fets all Spirits on fire; and therefore this Wrath is not only called great, but is alfo fignified to be fo, in its threatning a wo to the Inhabitants of the Earth. (2.) Indignation is more than Anger, as having more of a fixed fury; and this is applyed to him Ephef. 4. 27. in that thofe that have this me pods, are faid to give place to the Deyil, which is true, not only in point of temptation, but alfo in refpect of the refemblance they carry to the frame and temper of Satan's furious heart. (3.). Hatred is yet higher than Wrath or Indignation, as having deeper roots, a more confirmed and implacable reSolution; Anger and Indignation are but fhort Furies, which like a Land Flood are foon down, though they are apt to fill the Banks on a fudden; but Hatred is lafting, and this is fo properly the Devil's difpofition, that Cain in bating bis Brother, is (1 John 3. 12.) faid to be the proper Off-fpring and lively Picture of that wicked One, who is there fo called, rather than by the name of the Devil, because the Apoftle would alfo infinuate, that hatred is the Mafter-piece of Satan's wickedness, and that which gives the fullest Character of him. (4.) All Effects of his cruelty arise. from this Root; this makes him accufe and calumniate; this puts him upon breathing after thofe murthers and deftructions. which damned Spirits are now groaning under.

Thirdly This Malice is the refult of that Curfe laid upon Satan, Gen.3. 15. I will put enmity betwixt thee and the Woman, between her Seed and thy Seed: Which implies (1.) a great enmity;. and fome render it, inimicitias implacabiles, implacable enmities. (2.) A lafting enmity, fuch as fhould continue as long as the Curfe fhould laft. (3.) That this fhould be his work and exercife, to. profecute and be profecuted with this enmity; fo that it fhews, the Devil's whole mind and defire is in this Work, and that he is whetted on, by the oppofing cnmity which he meets withal, it is.

furor.

Vid. Pool Synop. in loc,

2 Pet. 2.4.

the Work of his Curfe, of his Place, of his Revenge, and that wherein all the delight he is capable of, is placed. In that part of the Curfe, Duft fhall be thy Meat; 'tis implyed, (if fome interpret right) that if Satan can be faid to have any delight or cafe in his Condition, 'tis in the eating of this Duft, the exercise of this Enmity: No wonder then if Chrift fpeak of his defires and follicitations with God, to have a liberty and Commiffion for this Work; Satan bath defired to have thee, that he may winnow thee.

That this Curfe relates not only to the Serpent who was the Inftrument, but also to Satan who was the Agent, is agreed by all almoft, that it was not the Serpent alone, but the Devil speaking by it, is evinced, from its fpeaking and reafoning; and that the Curfe reached further than a natural Enmity 'twixt a Serpent and a Man, is as evident, in that Chrift is exprefly held forth, as giving the full accomplishment of this Curfe against Satan, 1 John 3. 8. The Devil finneth from the beginning: for this purpose was the Son of God manifefted, that he might destroy the Works of the Devil; which is a clear Expofition and Paraphrafis of the Womans Seed bruifing the Serpents head.

Fourthly; I fhall add to this fome few Inftances of Satan's Malice, by which it will appear to be great.

First; That Malice muft needs be great, which fhews it self, where there is fuch a load of anguish and horror that lies upon him; he is now. referved in Chains of Darkneß in Hell; he is in Hell, a place of Torment; or which is all one, Hell is in him, he carries it about him in his Conscience, which by God's decree binds him to his horror like a Chain. "Tis fearce imaginable that he should have a thought free from the contemplation of his own mifery, to spend in a malicious purfuit of Man. What can we think lefs of it, than a defperate madness and revenge against God, wherein he fhews his rage against Heaven, and hunts after our Blood, as for a little Water to cool his Tongue; and when he finds his hand too fhort to pull the Almighty out of his Throne; he endeavours (Panther-like) to tear his Image in Man, and to put Man, created after his Image, upon blafpheming and dishonouring his Maker.

Secondly; That Malice muft needs be great, that feeks its own Femel, and provides or begs its own Occafions; and thole, fuch as give no proper provocation to his anger. Of this temper is