Secondly, When true grace is under the foot of a temptation, yet then it will stir up in the heart a vehement desire of revenge, like a prisoner in his enemy's hand, who is thinking and plotting how to get out ; and what he will do when out, waiting and longing every moment for his delivery, that he may again take up arms : ' O God, remember me,' saith Samson, ' this once, I pray thee, and strengthen me, that I may be at once avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes,' Judges xvi. 27. Thus prays the gracious soul, that God would but spare him a little, and strengthen him but once before he dies, that he may be avenged on his pride, unbelief, and those sins whereby he hath most dishonoured his God ; but a false heart is so far from studying revenge, that he rather swells like the sea, against the law, which banks his lust in, and is angiy with God, who hath made sin such a leap, that he nmst hazard his soid if he will have it.
CHAPTER IV.
OP THE ENTIRENESS OF OUR FURNITURE; IT MUST BE THE WHOLE ARMOUR OF GOD.
3. The third branch in the saint's furniture is, the entireness thereof, ' The whole armour of God.' The Christian's armour must be complete, and that in a threefold respect.
Section I. First, He must be armed in every part 'cap-a-pie,' soul and body, the powers of the one, and senses of the other, not any part left naked. A dart may fly in at a little hole, (like that which brought a message of death to Ahab, through the joints of his harness,) and Satan is such an archer, who can shoot at penny-breadth. If all the man be armed, and only the eye left without, Satan can soon shoot his fire-balls of lust in at that loop-hole, which shall set the whole house on a flame. Eve looked but on the tree, and a poisonous dart struck her to the heart. If the eye be shut, and the ear be open to corrupt coimnunication, Satan will soon wriggle in at this hole ; if all the outward senses be guarded, and the heart not kept with all diligence, he will soon by his own thoughts be betrayed into Satan's hands. Our enemies are on every side, and so must our armour be, ' on the right hand, and on the left,' 2 Cor. vi. 7. The apostle calls sin, an enemy that surrounds us. If there be any part of the line unguarded, or weakly provided, there Satan falls on ; we see the enemy often enter the city at one side, whilst he is beat back on the other, for want of care to keep the whole line. Satan divides his temptations into several squadrons ; one he employs to assault here, another to storm there. We read of fleshly wickedness, and spiritual wickedness ; whilst thou repellest Satan, tempting thee to fleshly wickedness, he may be entering thy city at the other gate of spiritual wickedness. Perhaps thou hast kept thy integrity in the practical part of thy life ; but what armour hast thou to defend thy head, thy judgment? If he surprise thee here, corrupting that with some error, then thou wilt not long hold out in thy practice. He that coidd not get thee to profane the sabbath among sensualists and atheists, will, under the disguise of such a corrupt principle as Christian liberty, prevail. Thus we see what need we have of universal armour, in regard of every part.
Section II. Secondly, The Christian must be in complete armour, in regard of the several pieces and weapons that make up the whole armour of God. Indeed there is a concatenation of graces, they hang together like links in a chain, stones in an arch, members in the body ; prick one vein, and the blood of the whole body may run out at that sluice ; neglect one duty, and no other will do us good. The Apostle Peter, in his second Epistle, chap. i. ver. 5- — ^7, presseth the Christian to a joint endeavour to increase the whole body of grace ; indeed that is health when the whole body thrives. ' Add,' saith he, to your faith virtue;' faith is the leadhig grace. Well, hast thou faith ? add virtue : true faith is of a working, stirring nature ; without good works it is dead or dying. Fides pingiiesclt uperibits. — Luther. It is kept in plight and
PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOUR OK GOD. 37