Athly^ Melancholy persons. Melancholy is atra bills, a black humour, seated chiefly in the brain. Melancholy clothes the mind in sable ; it doth disturb reason ; Satan doth work much upon this humour. There are three things in melancholy, which give the devil great advantage : 1. It unfits for duty, it pulls off the chariot-wheels, it dispirits a man. Lute-strings, when they are wet, will not sound ; when the spirit is sad and melancholy, a Christian is out of tune for spiritual actions. 2. Melancholy sides of- ten with Satan against God ; the devil tells such a person, God doth not love him, there's no mercy for him ; and the melan- choly soul is apt to think so too, and sets his hand to the devil's lies. 3. Melancho- ly breeds discontent, and discontent is a cause of many sins, unthankfulness, impa- tience, and oft it ends in self-murder. Judge then what an advantage Satan hath against a melancholy person, and how easi- ly he may prevail with his temptations. A melancholy person tempts the devil to tempt him.
5thl!/, Idle persons. lie who is idle, the devil will find him work to do. Jerome gave his friend this counsel : To be ever well-employed, that when the tempter came, he might find him working in the vineyard. If the hands be not working, the head will be plotting sin, Micah ii. 1.
Itk Subtilty of Satan is, to give some lit- tle respite, and seem to leave off tempting a while, that he may come on after with more advantage : as Israel made as if they were beaten before the men of Ai, and fled, — but it was a policy to draw them out of their fenced cities, and ensnare them by an am bush, Josh. viii. 15. The devil sometimes raiscth the seige, and feigns a flight, that he may the better obtain the victory. lie goes away for a time, that he may return when
OF THE SIXTH PETITION IN THE LORDS PRAYER.
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ne sees abetter season, Luke xi. 24., " ^^Ijen the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, lie walketh through dry places, seeking rest: and finding none, he saith, * I will return to my house, whence I came out.' " Satan, by feigning a flight, and leaving off tempt- ing a while, causeth security in persons, and thev think they are safe, and are become victors, when, on a sudden, Satan falls on, and wounds them. As one that is going to leap, runs back a little, that he may take the greater jump, Satan seems to retire and run back a little, that he may come on a- gain with a temptation more furiously and successfully ; therefore we need always to watch and have on our spiritual armour.
8th Subtilty of the old serpent is, either to take men off from the use of means, or to make them miscarry in the use of means.
First, He labours to take men off from duty, — from praying and hearing ; his de- sign is to discourage them ; and, to do that, he hath two artifices :
(1.) He discourageth them from duty, by suggesting to them their unworthiness ; they are not worthy to approach to God, or have any signals of his love and favour. They are sinful, and God is holy, how dare they pre- sume to bring their impure offering to God ? This is a temptation indeed. That we should see ourselves unworthy, is good, and argues humility ; but to think we should not ap- proach to God because of unworthiness, is a conclusion of the devil's making. God saith, " Come, though unworthy :" by this temptation, the devil takes many off from coming to the Lord's table. " O (saith he) this is a solemn ordinance, and requires much holiness ; how darest thou so unwor- thily come, lest thou eat and drink unwor- thily ?" Thus, as Saul kept the people from eating honey, so the devil by this tempta- tion, scares many from this ordinance, which is sweeter than honey and the honey- comb.
(2.) Satan endeavours to discourage from duty, by objecting want of success. Wlien men have waited upon God in the use of ordinances, and yet find not that comfort they desire, now Satan disheartens them, and puts them upon resolves of declining all religion ; they begin to say as that wicked king, 2 Kings vi. 33., " What should I wait
for the Lord any longer ?" * When Saul saw God answered him not by dreams and visions,' Satan tempted liini to leave God's worship, and seek to the witch of Endor, 1 Sam. xviii. 6. No answer of prayer comes, " therefore," saith Satan, " leave off praying ; who will sow seed where no crop comes up?" Thus the devil would, by his subtle logic, dispute a poor soul out of duty. But if he sees he cannot prevail this wav, to take men off from the use of means, then he labours.
Secondly, To make them miscarry in the use of means. By this artifice he prevails over multitudes of professors. Tiie devil stands as he did at Joshua's right-hand, to resist men, Zech. iii. 1. If he can't hinder them from duty, he will be sure to hinder them in duty, two ways.
1st, By causing distraction in the service of God ; and this he doth by proposing ob- jects of vanity, or by whispering in men's ears, that they can scarce mind what they are doing.