First, Satan makes choice of persons of place and power. These are either in the commonwealth or church ; if he can, he will secure the throne and the pulpit, as the two forts that command the whole line. First, men of power in the commonwealth. It is his old trick to be tampering with such. A prince, a rulei', may stand for a thousand, therefore saith Paul to Elymas, when he would have tiu-ned the deputy from the faith, ' O full of all subtilty, thou child of the devil,' Acts xiii. 8. As if he had said, You have learned this of your father the devil, to haunt the courts of princes, wind into the favour of great ones. There is double policy Satan hath, in gaining such to his side. First, none have such advantage to draw others to their way ; corrupt the captain, and it is hard if he bring not of!" his troop with him. When the princes, men of renown in their tribes, stood with Korah, Numb. xvi. 2, 10, presently a multitude are drawn into conspiracy. Let Jeroboam set up idolatry, and Israel is soon in a snare ; it is said the people 'willingly walked after his commandment,' Hos. v. 11. Secondly, should the sin stay at court, and the infection go no fin-ther, yet the sin of such a one, though a good man, may cost a whole kingdom dear ; 1 Chron. xxi. 1, ' Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number the people.' He owed Israel spite, and he pays them home in their king's sin, which dropped in a fearful plague upon their heads. Secondly, such as are in place and office in the church. No such way to infect the whole town, as to poison the cistern at which they draw their water. Who shall persuade Ahab that he may go to Ramoth Gilead and fall ? Satan can tell : ' I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of his prophets,' 2 Kings xxii. 21. How shall the profane be hardened in their sins ? Let the preachers sew pillows under their elbows, and cry. Peace, peace, and it is done. How may the worship of God come to be neglected ? Let Hophni aiul Phinehas be but scandalous in their lives, and many both good and bad will ' abhor the sacrifice of the Lord.'
Secondly, He employeth persons of parts and policy ; if any hath more pregnancy of wit and depth of reason than other, he is the man Satan looks upon for his service; and so far he prevails, that very few of this rank are found amongst Christ's disciples, ' not many wise.' Indeed, God will not have his kingdom, either in the heart or in the world, maintained by carnal policy ; it is a gospel command that we walk in godly simplicity, sine plicis; though the serpent can shrink up into his folds, and appear what he is not, yet it doth not become the saints to juggle or shuffle with God or men ; and truly, when any of them have made use of the serpent's subtilty, it hath not followed their hand ; Jacob got the blessing by a wile, but he might have had it cheaper with plain dealing. Abraham and Sarah both dissemble to Abimelech, God discovers their sin, and reproves them for it by the mouth of an heathen. Asa, out of state policy, joins league with Syria, yea, pawns the vessels of the sanc- tuary, and all for help; and what comes of all this? ' Herein thou hast done foolishly,' saith God, ' from henceforth thou shalt have wars.' Sinful policy shall not long thrive in the saint's hands well, but Satan will not go out of his way; he inquires for the subtilest-pated men, a Balaam, Ahithophel, Haman, Sanballat, men admired for their cormseland deep plots, these are for his turn. A wicked cause needs a smooth orator ; bad ware a pleasing chapman, as in particular, his instruments he useth to seduce and corrupt the minds of men are commonly subtil-pated fellows, such, ' that if it were possible, would deceive the very elect.' This made the apostle so jealous of the Corinthians, whom he had espoused to Christ, lest as Eve by the serpent, so their ' minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.' He must be a cunning devil indeed that can di-aw off the spouse's love from her beloved; yet there is such a witchery in Satan's instruments, that many have been brought to fly on the face of those truths and ordinances, yea, Christ himself, to whom they have seemed espoused formerly. Now in three particulars this sort of Satan's instruments shew their master's subtilty.
First, In aspersing the good name of the sincere messengers of Christ. It is Satan's old trick to raise his credit upon the ruined reputation of Christ's
AGAINST THK WILES OF TlIK DEVIL. 53