1st. The subtlety of Satan's temptation ; his wiles are worse than his darts. Satan's subtlety in tempting : (1.) He deals all a- long as an impostor, he ushered in his temp- tation by a lie. Gen. iii. 4., " Ye shall not surely die." 2d. Lie, That God did envy our first parents their happiness, v. 5., " God knows, that in the day ye eat, your eyes shall be opened ;" q. d. It is God's envying your felicity ; that he forbids you this tree. 3d. Lie, That they should be thereby made like unto God, v. 5., " Ye shall be as gods." Here was his subtlety in temj)ting : The devil was first a li.ar, then a murderer.
(2.) In that he set upon our first parents so quickly, before they were confirmed in their obedience ; the angels in heaven are fully confirmed in holiness, — they are called ' stars of the morning,' Job xxxviii. 7., and they are fixed stars. But our first parents were not confirmed in their obedience, — they were not fixed in their orb of holiness ; though they had a possibility of standing, they had not an impossibility of falling :
they were holy, but mutable ; here was Sa- tan's subtlety, in tempting our first parents before they were confirmed in their obedi- ence.
(3.) His subtlety in tempting was, That he set upon Eve first ; 1. Because he thought she was less able to resist. Satan did break over the hedge, where it was weakest ; he knew he couhl more easily insinuate and wind himself into her by a temptation. An expert soldier, when he is to storm or entei a castle, observes warily where there is a breach, or how he may enter with more fa- cility ; so did Satan the weaker vessel. 2. He tempted Eve first, because he knew, if once he could prevail with her, she would easily draw her husband. Thus the devil handed over a temptation to Job by his wife. Job ii. 9., " Curse God and di(^" Agrij)pina poisoned the emperor Conimodus with wine in a perfumed cup : the cup being perfumed and given him by his wife, it was the less suspected. Satan knew a temptation com- ing to Adam from his wife, would be more prevailing, and would be less suspected: O bitter ! Sometimes relations prove temp- tations : a wife may be a snare, when she dissuades her husband from doing his duty, or enticeth him to evil. " Ahab which did sell himself to work wickedness, whom his wife Jezebel stirred up," 1 Kings xxi. 25. She blew the coals and made his sin flame out the more. Satan's subtlety was in tempt- ing Adam by his wife, he thought she would draw him to sin.
(i.) Satan's subtlety in tempting, was in assaulting Eve's faith ; he would persuade her that God had not spoken truth, " Ye shall not surely die," Gen. iii. 4. This was Satan's master-piece, to weaken her faith : when he had shaken that, and had brought her once to distrust ; then ' she yielded,' — she presently put forth her hand to evil.
2dly. Satan's cruelty in tempting : as soon as Adam was invested in all his glory, the devil cruelly, as it were on the day of A- daui's coronation, would dethrone him, and bring forth him and all his posterity under a curse. We see how little love SatJin hath to mankind ; he hath an implacable antipa- thy agtiinst us, and antipathies can never be reconciled. So much for the occasion of Adam's sin, tempted by the serpent.
ADAM'S SIN.
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II. The sin itself, * Eating the forbidden fruit.' This was very heinous, and that ap- pears three ways : 1. In respect of the per- son that committed it. 2. The aggravation of the sio. 3. Tiie drcadfidness of the effect.
1*^. Very heinous in respect of the person that committed it : Adam liad excellent and noble endowments; he was illuminated with knowledge, — embellished with holiness, — he knew his duty, and it was as easy to him to obey God's command as to know it, — he might have chosen whether he would sin or no, — yet he wilfully did eat of the tree which he was forbidden.
2dly. The aggravation of Adam's sin.
Quest. Wherein did it appear to be so great ? 'Ticas but raptus pomi, teas this such a great matter to pluck an apple ?
Ans. Besides that, it was against an infinite God ; it was malum complexion, — a volumi- nous sin, — there were many twisted toge- ther in it, as Cicero saith of parricide, " he who is guilty of it, pturima committit pec- cata in uno, commits many sins in one ;" so there were many sins in this one sin of A- dam. A big-bellied sin, a chain with many links. Ten sins in it.
1. Incredulity. Our first parents did not believe what God had spoken was truth. God said. They shall die the death, in the day they eat of tliat tree. They believed not that they should die ; they could not be persuaded that such fair fruit had death at the door. Thus, by unbelief they made God a liar ; nay, which was worse, they believed the devil rather than God.