But* there is a diflerence betwixt Christ and us in this case, by reason that Satan had nothing of his own in Christ, his suggestions left no impres- sion at all in his holy natm-e ; but, as sparks falling into the sea, were presently quenched. Satan's temptations of Christ were only suggestions on Satan's part, and apprehensions of the vileness of them on Christ's part. To apprehend ill suggested by another, is not ill. It was Christ's grievance, but Satan's sin. But thus he yielded himself to be tempted, that he might both pity us in our conflicts, and train us up to manage oui- spiritual weapons as he did. Christ could have overcome him by power, but he did it by argument. But when Satan cometh to us, he findeth something of his o^ti in us, which holdeth correspondency and hath intelligence with him ; there is the same enmity in om- nature to God and goodness in some degree, that is in Satan himself; whereupon his temptations fasten for the most part some taint upon us. And if there wanted a devil to suggest, j-et sinful thoughts would arise fi'om within us ; though none were cast in from without, we have a mint of them within : these thoughts, morosa cogitatio, if the soul dwell on them so long as to suck or draw from and by them any sinful deUght, then they leave a more hea^y guilt upon the soul, and hinder our sweet communion with God, and interrupt our peace, and put a contrary relish into the soul, disposing of it to greater sins. All scandalous breakings out are but thoughts at the first. Ill thoughts are as little thieves, which, creeping in at the window, open the door to greater ; thoughts are seeds of actions. These, especially when they are helped foi-ward by Satan, make the life of many good Christians almost a martyrdom. In this case it is an unsound comfort that some minister, that ill thoughts arise from natiu-e, and what is natural is excusable ; but we must know, that nature, as it came out of God's hands at the first, had no such risings out of it : the soul, as inspu-ed of God, had no such unsavoury breathings ; but since that by sin it betrayed itself, it is in some sort natural to it to forge sinful imaginations, and to be a furnace of such sparks ; and this is an aggravation
* ' But' to ' subjection in himself.' This long paragraph first intro- duced in B.
64 THE BRUISED KEED
of the sinfulness of natural corruption, that it is so deeply rooted, and so generally spread in our nature.
It furthereth humiliation to know the whole breadth and depth of sin ; only this, that our nature now, so far as it is unrenewed, is so unhappily fiTiitful in ill thoughts, ministers this comfort, that it is not our case alone, as if our condition herein were severed from others, as some have been tempted to think, even almost to despair ; none, say they, have such a loathsome nature as I have. This springs from ignorance of the spreading of original sin, for what can come from an imclean thing, but that which is xmclean ? < As in the water face answers face, so the polluted heart of one man answereth to the heart of another,' Prov. xxvii 19, where grace hath not made some ditference. As in annoyances from Satan, so here, the best way is to lay open our complaints to Christ, and ciy with St Paul, Domine simpatior, ' 0 miserable man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death ?' Eom. vii. 24, 25 : upon this venting of his distressed soul, he presently foimd comfort ; for he breaketh into thanksgiving, ' Thanks be to God,' &c. And it is good to take advantage from hence to hate this noisome body of death the more, and to di-aw nearer unto God, as that holy man after his ' foolish and beastly thoughts,' Ps. Ixxiii. 22 and 28, did, and to keep our hearts closer to God, seasoning them with heavenly meditations in the morning, storing up good matter that our heart may be a good treasury, and begging of Christ his Holy Spirit to stop that cursed issue, and to be a Hving spring of better thoughts in us. Nothing more abaseth the spirits of holy men that desire to delight in God after they have escaped the common defilements of the world, than these imclean issues of spirit, as being most contrary to God, who is a pure Spirit : but the very irksomeness of them yields matter of comfort against them ; they force the soul to all spiritual exercises, to watchfulness, and a more near walking with God, and to raise itself to thoughts of a higher nature, which the truth of God, works of God, communion of saints, the mystery of godliness, the consideration of the terror of the Lord, of the excellency of the state of a Christian, and con- versation suitable, do abundantly minister. They discover tons a necessity of daily purging and pardoning grace, and of seeking to be found in Christ, and so bring the best often upon their knees.
But our chiefcomfort is, that om' blessed Saviour, as he bade Satan avaimt from himself after he had given way awhile to his impudency. Mat. iv. 10 ; so he will command him to be gone from us, when it shall be good for us ; he must be gone at a word. And he can and will likewise in his due time rebuke the rebellious and extravagant stirrings of our hearts, and bring all the thoughts of the inner man in subjection to himself.