of Imagination, are not (without difficulty) drawn over to the acknowledgment of the truth of things, and the true understanding of Matters; neither is the Understanding only liable to a more than ordinary heat and rapture by it, but the Will is allo quickned and harpned in its defires by this means: Hence is it as one of the fore-cited Authors obferves) that Fancy doth Reynolds ibid. often more toward a Perfwafion by its infinuations, than a cogent Argument, or rational Demonftration.

This is no lefs a powerful Inftrument in Satan's hand, than commonly and frequently made ufe of; who amongst us doth not find and feel him dealing with us at this Weapon? When he propounds an Object to our Luft, he doth not ufually expofe it naked under the hazard of dying out for want of profecution, but but prefently calls in our Fancy to his aid, and there raifeth a Theatre, on which he acts before our Minds, the Sin in all its ways and postures. If he put us upon Revenge, or upon Lufts of uncleanness, or Covetoufnefs, or Ambition, we are fure (if we prevent it not) to have our Imagination prefenting these things to us, as in lively Pictures and Resemblances, by which our defires may be enflamed and prepared for confent.

Fifthly, Sometime he fhews his Art in preparing and fitting our Bodies to his defigns, or in fitting Temptations to our Bodies, and the Inclinations thereof. The Soul though it be a noble Being, yet is it limited by the Body, and incommodated by the crazyne and indifpofitions thereof, fo that it can no more act Strenuously or evenly to its Principles in a difordered Body, than it can rightly manage a Member of it (in its natural motions) where the Bones are Winted. Hence, Sicknefs or other bodily Weakneffes do alter the Scene, and add another kind of byafss to the Soul than what it had before. This Satan takes notice of, and either follows his advantage of the prefent Indifpofition, or (if he hath fome fpecial defign) endeavours to caft our Body into fuch a diforder as may beft fute his Intention. Afa was more easily drawn to be overfeen in peevifhnefs and rafh anger in his latter days, when his Body grew difeafed. Satan had his advantage against Solomon to draw him to Idolatry when old and uxorioufne had made him more ductile to the follicitations of his Wives; When Solomon was old, bis Wives turned away his Heart, 1 King. i. 4. The Devil, when he took upon him to foretel Job's blafpheming God to his Face, yet he attempted not

age,

the

Gal. 5. 24.

the main defign till he thought he had throughly prepared him for it, by the anguifh and fmart of a diftempered Body and Mind; and though he failed in the great bufinefs of his Boast, yet he left us an experiment in Job, that the likelieft way to prevail upon the Mind in hideous and defperate Temptations, is to mould the Body to a futable frame: He prevailed not against Job to caufe him curfe God, yet he prevailed far, he curfed the day of his birth, and fpake many things by the force of that distress, which he profeffeth himself afhamed of afterwards. The Body then will be in danger (when 'tis difordered) to give a tincture to every action, as a diftempered Palat communicates a bitternefs to every thing it takes down.

Sixthly, Evil Company is a general preparatory to all kinds of Temptation: He enticeth ftrongly that way. For (1.) Evil Society doth infenfibly dead the Heart, and quench the heat of the Affections to the things of God; it hath a kind of bewitching power to eat out the fear of the Lord in our hearts, and to take off the weight and power of religious duty; it not only stops our Tongues, and retards them in fpeaking of good things, but influenceth the very Heart, and poyfons it into a kind of deadnes and lethargy, fo that our thoughts run low, and we begin to think that severe watchfulness of Thoughts, and the guard of our Minds to be a needlefs and melancholly Self-impofition. (2.) Example hath a ftrange infinuating force to inftamp a Refemblance, and to beget Imitation. Jofeph living where his Ears were frequently beaten with Oaths, finds it an eafie thing (upon a feigned occafion) to fwear by the Life of Pharaoh. Evil Company is Sins Nursery, and Satan's Academy, by which he trains up thofe whofe knowledg and hopeful beginnings had made them fhy of his Temptations; and if he can prevail with Men to take fuch Companions, he will with a little labour presently bring them to any Iniquity.

Seventhly, But his highest project in order to the enticing of Men, is to engage their Affections to an height and paffionateness. The Scripture doth diftinguish betwixt the mulas and xpala, the Affections and Lufts; clearly implying, that the way to procure fixed defires and actual luftings, is to procure thofe paffionate workings of the Mind.

How powerful a part of his Defign this is, will the nature of thefe Paffions: which are,

appear from

First,

fe&tion.

First, Violent Motions of the Heart, the very Wings and Sails Vid. Fenner of the Soul, and every Paffion in its own working doth exprefs Treat. of Afa violence. Choler is an earneft Rage; Voluptuoufneß is nothing lefs; Fear is a defperate hurry of the Soul's Love strong as Death; 7. F. Senault Jealoufie cruel as the Grave: each of them ftriving which fhould of Paffions. excell in violence, fo that 'tis a question yet undetermined which P. 30. Paffion may challenge the fuperiority.

Secondly, Their Fury is dangerous and unbridled, like fo many wild Horfes let loose, hurrying their Rider which way they please: They move not upon the command of Reason, but oft prevent it in their fudden rife; neither do they take Reasons advice for their courfe proportionable to the occafion, for often their humor, rather than the matter of the provocation, gives them Spurs ; and when they have evaporated their heat, they ceafe, not as following the command of Reason, but as weakned by their own violence.

Thirdly, They are not eafily conquered, not only because they renew their ftrength and onfet after a Defeat, and like fo many Hydra's heads fpring up as faft as cut off, but they are our felves, we can neither run from them, nor from the love of them.

Fourthly, And confequently highly advantageous in Satan's Defign and Enticement, when they are driven up to a Fury and Paffionatenefs; for befides their inward rage (which the Scrip- 1 Cor. 7. 9. ture calls burning) by which Men are pricked and goaded on Rom. 1. 27. without reft or ease, to make provifions for the Flesh, and to enjoy or act what their unbridled violence will lead to in the execution of their defires: They carry all on before them, and engage the whole Man with the higheft eagerness to fulfil every Luft, to go up Eph. 2. 3. to the highest degrees, and with an unfatiable greediness to yield themselves fervants of Iniquity unto Iniquity.

Rom. 6.19.

CHAP.

CHAP. XI.

That Luft darkens the Mind. Evidences thereof. The five ways by which it doth blind Men (16) By preventing the exercise of Reason. The ways of that prevention. (1.) Secrefy in tempting, Satan's fubtilty therein. (2.) Surprifal. (3.) Gradual Intanglements.

T

"Hat Satan doth entice us by firring up our Luft, hath been difcovered it remains that I next (peak to the fecond thing propounded which was,

That by this power of Luft he blinds and darkens our Mind. That the Lufts of Men are the great principle upon which Satan *Ego autem proceeds in drawing on fo great a blindness, (as we have fpoken feram immor- of) I fhall briefly evince from thefe few Obfervations.

talitatem præ

cor Regi.- Firft, From the unreasonableness and abfurdity of fomé Actions Hominem con- in Men otherwife fufficiently rational. He that confiders the acts fequitur ali- of Alexander in murthering Calisthenes, for no other crime than quando, nun- defending the caufe of the Gods, and affirming that Temples could tur Divinitas, not be built to a King, without provoking a Deity; and yet this Curt. lib. 8. fo fmoothed, (if Quintus Curtius reprefent him right) that he +Immoderata feemed to flatter Alexander with an opinion of Deification after animi concita- his death: Whofoever (fay) fhall confider this cruelty, will tione impul fus facinus condemn Alexander as blind and irrational in this matter, and crudele ut ne- yet no other caufe can be affigned hereof, but that his luft after fariumcommi- Glory and Honour darkned his Reafon. The like may be faid of his Iracundia killing Epheftion's Phyfician,because he died.The brutal fury of that velut Tyrannus Conful, that made a Slave to be eaten up with Lampreys, for no omnia fuo me- other fault than the breaking of a Glafs,can be afcribed to nothing tu gubernans clfe but the boyling over of his Paffion. A fadder inftance of ruptis habenis, & jugo rationis this we have in † Theodofius fenior,who for an affront given to fome excufto gladies of his Officers in Theffalonica, commanded the deftruction of the inique contra City, and the flaughter of the Citizens to the number of 7000, xit. Theod. Without any diftinction of nocent and innocent: This blind rage Hift. Ecclef. the Hiftorian notes, as the fruit of violent and unbridled Luft in 1. 5.1.587.

fit.

omnes diftrin

a

a Man, otherwife juft and gracious. Thousands of Instances of this nature might be added. But,

Secondly, If we confider the known and vifible hazards to Life and Eftate, and (that which is more,) to that part of them which is Immortal; upon all which, Men do defperately adventure,upon no other ground or motive than the gratifications of their Lufts: We may eafily conclude that there is a ftrange force and power in their Paffions to blind and befot them; and this notwithanding, is the common practice of all Men, where Grace (as the only Eye-falve) doth not reftore the fight. The Heathens in all thefe practices of Filthiness and Folly, recorded Rom. 1.29. They had fo far a discovery of the danger (if they had not imprifoned that Truth and Light in Unrighteousness, verf. 18. ) that they knew the judgment of God, that they which commit fuch things are worthy of death, verf. 32. Yet notwithstanding, the vanity of their Imaginations (influenced by Luft) darkned their heart fo much, that they did not only do these things (of fo great vilenefs and unspeakable hazard,) but had pleasure in thofe that did them.

Thirdly, The blinding power of Luft is yet more remarkable: When we see Men glorying in their Shame, and mounting their triumphal Chariots to expofe themselves a Spectacle to all, in that garb of deformity which their Lufts have put them in. 'Tis a blindness to do any act against the rules of Reason, but 'tis a far great blindness for Men to pride themselves in them. What have the iffues of moft Wars been, but burnings of Cities, devastations of flourishing Kingdoms, fpilling the blood of Millions, befides all the Famine and other miferies that follow; yet these actions (that better befeem Tigars, Lions and favage Bruits, than Men of Reason) are honoured with the great triumphant names of Vertue, Manhood, Courage, Magnanimity, Conqueft, &c. If the power and humor of their Lufts of vain-glory and revenge had not quite muffled their understandings, these things would have been called by their proper names, of Murther,Cruelty,Robbery, &c. and the Actors of fuch Tragedies, inftead of triumphal Arches and acclamations of Praife, would have been buried under heaps of Ignominy and perpetual Difgraces, as Prodigies of Nature, Monfters of Men, and Haters of Mankind.

Fourthly, But there is yet one Evidence more plain and convincing. When our Lufts are up, though Reason offer its aids to allay the Storm, yet the wifeft of Men (otherwise composed

and