much more able is he to draw forth its power. Again, over the sensitive world liis power is great; not only the beasts, as in the herd of swine hurried by him into the deep, but over the bodies of men also, as in Job, whose sore boils were not the breakings out of a distempered nature, but the print of Satan's fangs on his flesh, doing that suddenly, which in nature would have required more time to gather and ripen ; and the demoniacs in the gospel, grievously vexed and tormented by him. But this the devil coiuits small game ; his great s^jite is at the souls of men, which I call the intellectual world; his cruelty to the body is for the soul's sake. As Christ's pity to the bodies of men, when on earth, healing their diseases, was in a subserviency to the good of their souls, bribing them with those mercies suitable to their carnal desires, that they might more willingly receive mercies for their souls from that hand which was so kind to their bodies ; as we give children something that plcascth them, to persuade them to do something that pleaseth them not, go to school, learn their book: so the devil, who is cruel as Christ is meek, and wisheth good neither to body nor soul, yet shews his cruelty to the body, but on a design against the soul, knowing well that the soul is soon discomposed by the pertur- bation of the other ; the soul cannot but lightly hear, and so have its peace and rest broken by the groans aiul complaints of the body, under whose very roof it dwells ; and then it is not strange, if as for want of sleep the tongue talk idly, so the soul shoidd break out into some sinful carriage, which is the bottom of the devil's plot on a saint. And as for other poor silly souls, he gains little less than a godlike fear and dread from them by that power he puts forth, through Divine permission, in smiting their goods, beasts, and bodies, as among the Indians at this day. Yea, there are many among ourselves plainly shew what a throne Satan hath in their hearts upon this account, such who, as if there were not a God in Israel, go for help and cure to his doctors, — wizards I mean. And truly, had Satan no other way to work his will on the souls of men, but by this advantage he takes from the body, yet considering the dege- neracy of man's state, how low his soid is sunk beneath its primitive extraction, how the body, which was a lightsome house, is now become a pi-ison to it; that which was its servant, is now become its master ; it is no wonder he is able to do so much. But besides this, he hath, as a spirit, a nearer way of access to the soul, and as a superior spirit yet more over man, a lower creatui'e. And above all, having got within the soul, by man's fall, he hath now far more power than before ; so that where he meets not resistance from God, he carries all before him ; as in the wicked, whom he hath so at his devotion, that he is, in a sense, said to do that in them which God doth in the saints. God works efl'ectually in them. Gal. ii. 8; 1 Thess. ii. 13. Satan worketh effectually in the children of disobedience, Eph. ii. 2, energountos, the same word with the former places; he is in a manner efficacious with them, as the Holy Spirit with the other. His delusions strong, 2 Thess. ii. 11. They returned not re infecta. The Spirit ' enlightens ; ' he ' blinds ' the minds of those that believe not, 2 Cor. iv. 4 . The Spirit 'tills' the saints, Ephes. v. 18; 'Why hath Satan filled thy heart?' saith Peter to Ananias, Acts v. 3. ' The Spirit fills with knowledge, and the fruits of righteousness ;' Satan fills with envy and all unrighteousness. The Holy Spirit fills with comfort ; Satan the wicked with terrors : as in Saul vexed \t\ an evil spirit ; and Judas, into whom it is said he entered, and when he had satisfied his lust upon him, as Amnon on Tamar, shuts the door of mercy upon him, and makes him that was even now traitor to his Master, hangman to him- self. And though saints be not the proper subjects of his power, yet they are the chief objects of his wrath; his foot stands on the wicked's back, but he wrestles with these, and when CJod steps aside, he is far above their match : he hath sent the strongest among them home, trembling and crying to their God, with the blood running about their consciences. He is mighty, both as a tempter to and for sin, knowing the state of the Christian's affairs so well, aiul able to throw his fire-balls so far into the inward senses, whether they be of lust or horror, and to blow up these with sucli unwearied solicitations, that if they iit first meet not with some suita])le dispositions in the Christian, at which, as from loose corners of powder, they may take fire, which is most ordinary, yet in time he may bring over the creature by the length of the siege, and
H 2
IPQ AGAINST POWERS.