Thirdly, The Priviledges and Graces of the Children of God, do ftir up Satan's Pride, Revenge, and Rage against them. And though he hath no encouragement to expect fo eafy a Conqueft over these, as he hath over others, who are captivated by him at pleafure; Yet hath he encouragements to attempt them, for the fingular Ufe and Advantage he makes of any fuccefs against them; the difficulty of the work being recompenced by the greatness of the booty. For the fall of a Child of God (efpecially of fuch as are noted above others) is as when a Standard-bearer fainteth; or as the fall of an Oak that bears down with it the lower Shrubs that ftand near it. How the hearts of others fail for fear, left they should also be overcome. How the Hearts of fome grow thereby bold and venturefome; How a general difgrace and difcredit thereby doth accrue to Religion, and the fincere Profeffion of it are things of ufual Obfervation. If fuch Men had not in. them fomething of fpecial Prey in cafe of Conqueft, his Pride, would not fo readily carry him against the heads and chief of the People, while he feems to overlook the meaner, and weaker. Out-Houfes, though more acceffible, are not the Objects of the Thief's Defign; but the Dwelling-Houfe, though ftronger Built, and better Guarded (because it affords hopes of richer Spoil) is ufually affaulted. Neither do Pirates fo much fet themfelves to take Empty Veffels, though weakly Manned; but richly loaden Ships (though better able to make refiftance) are the Ships of their defire.

Firft, This may be applyed for the Encouraging of thofe that pic.. think it strange that Temptations do fo haunt them; Efpecially, that they fhould (in their apprehenfion) be more troubled by him, when they fly furtheft from him. The confideration of this, will much allay these thoughts, by thefe Inferences which it affords:

First, There is nothing unusual befalls thefe Complainants. Satan frequently doth fo to others; they cannot juftly fay, their cafe is Singular, or that they are alone in fuch difturbances; It is but what is Common to Man. If they urge the unceffantness of the Devil's Attempts; Chrift and others have felt the like. If they' object the peculiar Strangeness and Horridnefs of the Temptation : (as most unfuitable to the ftate of an upright Soul) Chrift met ' with the like. He was tempted to Self-destruction, to Diftrust, to Blafphemy it felf in the highest degree.

C 2

Secondly,

Secondly, There is a good advantage to be made of them; they are Prefervations from other Sins, that would otherwise grow

upon us.

Thirdly, Thefe Temptations to the upright do but argue Satan's lofs of Intereft in them, and their greater Senfibility of the danger. Tentationem The captivated Sinners complain not fo much; because they are experiuntur ac fentiunt hi, fo Inured to Temptation, that they mind not Satan's frequent qui ex animo acceffes. He that ftudies Humility, is more fenfible of a Temptation to Pride, than he that is proud.

Pietati Stu

dent. Mufcu

lus in loc.

Secondly, This is alfo of use to thofe that are apt to be confident upon their Succeffes against Sin through Grace. Satan (they may fee) will be upon them again; So that they must behave themselves as Mariners, who when they have got the Harbour, and are out of the Storm, Mend their Ship, and Tackling, and prepare again for the Sea.

Laftly, If we confider the unspotted Holiness of Chrift, and his conftant Integrity under thefe Temptations, that they left not the leaft of Taint or finful Impreffion upon him; we may obferve,

That there may be Temptations, without leaving a touch of Guilt or Impurity behind them upon the Tempted.

'Tis true, this is rare with Men, the beft do feldom go down to the Battel, but in their very Conquests they receive fome wound. And in those Temptations that arife from our own hearts, we are never without fault; but in fuch as do folely arise from Satan,there is a poffibility, that the upright may fo keep himself,that the wicked one may not fo touch him, as to leave the print of his Fingers be-hind him.

But the great difficulty is, how it may be known when Temptations are from Satan, and when from our felves?

To Answer this,I fhall lay down these conclufions.

Firft, The fame Sins which our own natures would suggest to us, may also be injected by Satan. Sometime we begin by the forward working of our own thoughts upon occafions and objects presented to us from without, or from the power of our own Inclination,without the offer of external Objects, and then Satan ftrikes in with it ; fometimes Satan begins with us, and by his injected motions endeavours to excite our Inclinations; So that the fame thing may be fometime from our felves, and sometimes from Satan.

Secondly,

Secondly, There is no Sin fovile, but our own heart might poffibly produce it without Satan, evil thoughts of the very worst kind, as of Marthers, Adulteries, Thefts, Falfe Witness, and Blaf- Mar. 15. 19 phemies, may (as Chrift speaks) be produced naturally from our own hearts; for feminally all Sins, the very greatest of all Impieties are there: So that from the greatnefs and vileness of the Temptation we cannot abfolutely conclude, that it is from Satan, no more than from the commonness of the Temptation, or its fuitableness to our Inclination, we can conclude infallibly that its first rife is from our felves.

Thirdly, There are many cafes wherein it is very difficult, if not altogether impoffible to determine, whether our own heart, or Satan gives the first life or breathing to a Temptation. Who can determine in moft ordinary cafes, when our thoughts are working upon Objects prefented to our Senfes, whether Satan or our own thoughts do run fafter? Yea when fuch thoughts are not the confequent of any former occafion, it is a work too hard for moft men to determine which of the Parents, Father, or Mother, our own Heart,or Satan,is first in the fault; they are both forward enough, and ufually joyn hand in hand with such readiness, that he must have a curious Eye that can discover certainly to whom the first beginning is to be afcribed.

The difficulty is fo great, that fome have judged it altogether Impoffible to give any certain marks by which it may be determined Capel. Tempt. when they are ours,and when Satans. And indeed the difcove- Part 1. c. 4. ries laid down by fome are not fufficient for a certain determinati- §. 1. on, and so far I affent, that neither the fuddenness of such thoughts (for the motions of our own Lufts may be fudden) nor the horrid nefs of the matter of them, are fufficient notes of diftinction. That our own corrupt hearts may bring forth that which is unnatural and terrible, cannot be denyed. Many of the Sins of the Heathens mentioned in Rom. 1. were the violent productions of Luft against natural Principles, and to afcribe these to the Devil as to the firft Inftigator, is more than any man hath warrant to do; Yet though it be confeffed that in fome cafes it is impoffible to diftinguish,and that where a diftinction may be made, these notes mentioned are not fully fatisfactory, there may (I believe) be fome cafes wherein there is a poffibility to difcover when the motions are from Satan, and that by the addition of fome remarkable circumstances to the forenamed marks of difference.

Fourthly,

Capel. Tempt. Fourthly, Though it be true (which fome fay) that (in most Part I.4. cafes) it is needlefs altogether to spend our time in difputing whether the motions of Sin in our minds are firftly from our felves or from Satan, our greatest business being rather to refift them, than to difference them; Yet there are special cafes,wherein it is very neceffary to find out the true Parent of a finful Motion, and these are, when tender Confciences are wounded and oppreffed with violent and great Temptations, as Blafpemous Thoughts, Atheistical Objections, &c. For here Satan in his furious moleftations aims mainly at this, that fuch Afflicted and Toffed Souls fhould take all these Thoughts which are obtruded upon their Imaginations, to be the Ifue of their own Heart. As Jofephs Steward hid the Cup in Benja mins Sack,that it might be a ground of accufation against him: so doth the Devil firft oppress them with fuch Thoughts, and then accufeth them of all that Villany and Wickedness, the Motions whereof he had with fuch Importunity forced upon them; and fo apt are the afflicted to comply with Accufations against themfelves, that they believe it is fo, and from thence conclude that they are given up of God, hardneḍ as Pharaoh, that they have finned against the Holy Ghost, and finally that there is no hope of mer cy for them. All this betalls them from their Ignorance of Satans dealings, and here is their great need to distinguish Satans Malice from their guilt.

Fifthly, Setting afide ordinary Temptations, wherein it is neither fo poffible, nor fo material to bufy our felves to find out whether they are Satan's or ours in extraordinary Temptations (fuch as have been now inftanced); we may difcover if they proceed from Satan (though not fimply from the matter of them, not from the Suddennefs and independency of them, yet) from a due confideration of their nature and manner of proceeding,compared with the prefent temper and difpofition of our heart As

Firft, When unufual Temptations intrude upon us with an high Illæ plerumque Impetuofity and Violence, while our Thoughts are otherwife confoggerunt,quæ cerned and taken up. Temptations more agreeable to our Inclinaturæ gratio- nation, though fuddenly ariling from Objects and occations prera,idque placide & grada- fented, and gradually proceeding, after the manner of the worktim, ita ut ing of natural Paffions, may throng in amidst other Thoughts, or

mens fui com

pos maneat in ipfo eft, he autem impetu plufquam humano irruchtes, fulguris inftar, ocyus : quam folent pattiones dianoetice, &c. Arrowsmith. Tratt: 1. lib. 2. c. 7.5, 6.

Actions

Actions that have no tendency that way, and yet we cannot fo clearly accufe Satan for them: but when things that have not the encouragement of our Affections are by a fudden violence enforced upon us, while we are otherwife concerned, we may justly fufpect Satan's hand to be in them.

Horrore fui fi

rare videantur,

Secondly, While fuch things are born in upon us, against the actual loathing, ftrenuous reluctancy, and bigh complainings of the implent aniSoul, when the Mind is filled with borrour and the Body with mum, ut tantrembling at the prefence of fuch Thoughts. Sins that owe their tum nonpectus firft original to our felves,may indeed be refifted upon their first rifing ipfum expectoup in our Mind; and though a Sanctified Heart doth truly loath dum ea perpethem,yet are they not without fome lower degree of tickling delight tim dictitari upon the Affections for the Flesh (in thofe cafes) prefently rifeth fentit,& dolet, ad quoque up with its luftings for the finful Motion: but when fuch unnatu- præfentiani, ral Temptations are from Satan, their first appearance to the mind natura vel deis an horror without any fenfible working of Inclination towards pravatiffima them; and the greatnefs of the Soul's difquiet doth fhew, that it contremifcet. hath met with that which the Affections look not on with any amicable compliance.

Thirdly, Our Hearts may bring forth that which is unnatural in it felf, and may give rise to a Temptation that would be horrid to the thoughts of other men, but that it fhould of its own accord. (without a Tempter) on a fudden bring forth that which is directly contrary to its prefent Light, Reafon, or Inclination; As for a man to be haunted with thoughts of Atheism, while he is under firm perfwafions that there is a God; or of Blafphemy, while he is under defigns of honouring him, is as unimaginable, as that our thoughts should of themselves contrive our Death, while we are moft Solicitous for our Life; or that our thoughts fhould foberly tell us it is Night, when we fee the Sun fhine. Temptations that are contrary to the prefent ftate, pofture, light, and difpofition of theSoul, are Satans. They are fo unnatural, as to its prefent frame, that the production of them must be from fome other. agent.

Fourthly, Much more evident is it that fuch proceed from Satan, when they are of long continuance and conftant Trouble, when they fo inceffantly beat upon the Mind, that it hath no reft from. them, and yet is under greivous perplexities and anxieties of mind about them.

The

idem. ibid.