deserts, this earth it selfe the muckhill of the world, a prison, an house of correction?

1 Mentimur regnare Jovem, &c.

with many such horrible and execrable conceits, not fit to be uttered; terribilia de fide, horribilia de Divinitate. They cannot, some of them, but thinke evil; they are compelled volentes nolentes, to blaspheme, especially when they come to church and pray, reade, &c. such fowl and prodigious suggestions come into their hearts.

These are abominable, unspeakable offences, and most opposite to God, tentationes fœdæ et impiæ; yet in this case, he or they that shall be tempted and so affected, must know, that no man living is free from such thoughts in part, or at some times; the most divine spirits have been so tempted in some sort; evil custome, omission of holy exercises, ill company, idleness, solitariness, melancholy, or depraved nature, and the divel is still ready to corrupt, trouble, and divert our soules; to suggest such blasphemous thoughts into our phantasies, ungodly, prophane, monstrous and wicked conceits. If they come from Satan, they are more speedy, fearful and violent, the parties cannot avoid them they are more frequent, I say, and monstrous when they come; for the divel he is a spirit, and hath meanes and opportunitie to mingle himselfe with our spirits, and sometimes more slily, sometimes more abruptly and openly, to suggest such divelish thoughts into our hearts. He insults and domineers in melancholy distempered phantasies and persons especially; melancholy is balneum diaboli, as Serapio holds, the divels bath, and invites him to come to it. As a sicke man frets, raves in his fits, speakes and doth he knows not what, the divel violently compels such crazed soules, to thinke such damned thoughts against their wils; they cannot but do it: sometimes more continuate, or by fits, he takes his advantage, as the subject is less able to resist; he aggravates, extenuates, affirmes, denies, damnes, confounds the spirits, troubles heart, braine, humors, organs, senses, and wholly domineers in their imaginations. If they proceed from themselves, such thoughts, they are remiss and moderate, not so violent and monstrous, not so frequent. The divel commonly suggests things opposite to nature, opposite to God and his word, impious, absurd, such as a man would never of himselfe, or could not conceive, they strike terrour and horrour into the parties owne heart. For if he or they be asked whether they do approve of such like thoughts or no, they answer (and their owne soules truly dictate as much) they abhor them as hell and the divel himselfe, they would fain

1 Lucan.

1

thinke otherwise if they could; he hath thought otherwise, and with all his soule desires so to thinke again; he doth resist, and hath some good motions intermixt now and then : so that such blasphemous, impious, unclean thoughts, are not his owne, but the divels; they proceed not from him, but from a crazed phantasie, distempered humors, blacke fumes which offend his braine; they are thy crosses, the divels sins, and he shall answer for them; he doth enforce thee to doe that which thou dost abhor, and didst never give consent to: and although he hath sometimes so slily set upon thee, and so far prevailed, as to make thee, in some sort, to assent to such wicked thoughts, to delight in them, yet they have not proceeded from a confirmed will in thee, but are of that nature which thou dost afterwards reject and abhor. Therefore be not overmuch troubled and dismaid with such kinde of suggestions, at least if they please thee not; because they are not thy personall sins, for which thou shalt incur the wrath of God, or his displeasure: contemne, neglect them, let them go as they come, strive not too violently, or trouble thy selfe too much, but as our Saviour said to Satan in like case, say thou, Avoid, Satan, I detest thee and them. Satanæ est mala ingerere, (saith Austin) nostrum non consentire: as Satan labours to suggest, so must we strive not to give consent, and it will be sufficient: the more anxious and solicitous thou art, the more perplexed, the more thou shalt otherwise be troubled, and entangled. Besides, they must know this, all so molested and distempered, that although these be most execrable and grievous sins, they are pardonable yet, through Gods mercy and goodness they may be forgiven, if they be penitent and sorry for them. Paul himselfe confesseth, Rom. 7. 19. He did not the good he would doe, but the evil which he would not doe; 'tis not I, but sin that dwelleth in me. "Tis not thou, but Satans suggestions, his craft and subtilty, his malice comfort thy selfe then if thou be penitent and grieved, or desirous to be so, these hainous sins shall not be laid to thy charge. Gods mercy is above all sins, which if thou doe not finally contemne, without doubt thou shalt be saved. No man sins against the Holy Ghost, but he that wilfully and finally renounceth Christ, and contemneth him and his word to the last, without which there is no salvation; from which grievous sin, God of his infinite mercy deliver us. Take hold of this to be thy comfort, and meditate withall on Gods word, labour to pray, to repent, to be renewed in minde, keep thine heart with all diligence, Prov. 4. 23. resist the

2

:

1 Perkins. 2 Hemmingius. Nemo peccat in Spiritum Sanctum, nisi qui finaliter et voluntarie renunciat Christo, eumque et ejus verbum extremo contemnit, sine quo nulla salus; a quo peccato liberet nos Dominus Jesus Christus. Amen.

divel and he will flye from thee, pour out thy soule unto the Lord with sorrowful Hannah, pray continually, as Paul injoyns, and as David did, Psal. Î. meditate on his law day and night.

Yea, but this meditation is that that mars all; and mistaken, makes many men far worse, misconceiving all they reade or hear, to their owne overthrow. The more they search and reade Scriptures, or divine treatises, the more they puzle themselves; as a bird in a net, the more they are intangled and precipitated into this preposterous gulf. Many are called, but few are chosen, Mat. 20. 16 and 22. 14. with such like places of scripture misinterpreted, strike them with horrour; they doubt presently whether they be of this number or no. Gods eternall

decree of predestination, absolute reprobation, and such fatall tables they form to their owne ruine, and impinge upon this rocke of despair. How shall they be assured of their salvation, by what signes? If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear? 1 Pet. 4. 18. Who knowes, saith Solomon, whether he be elect? This grindes their soules; how shall they discern they are not reprobates? But I say again, how shall they discern they are? From the divel can be no certainty, for he is a lyar from the beginning: If he suggest any such thing, as too frequently he doth, reject him as a deceiver, an enemy of humane kind; dispute not with him, give no credit to him, obstinately refuse him, as St. Anthony did in the wilderness, whom the divel set upon in severall shapes; or as the collier did, so do thou by him. For when the divel tempted him with the weakness of his faith, and told him he could not be saved, as being ignorant in the principles of religion and urged him moreover to know what he beleeved, what he thought of such and such points and mysteries: the collier told him, he beleeved as the church did; but what (said the divel again) doth the church beleeve? as I doe (said the collier) and what's that thou beleevest? as the church doth, &c. when the divel could get no other answer, he left him. If Satan summon thee to answer, send him to Christ he is thy liberty, thy protector against cruell death, raging sin, that roaring lyon; he is thy righteousness, thy saviour, and thy life. Though he say, thou art not of the number of the elect, a reprobate, forsaken of God, hold thine owne still,

hic murus aheneus esto,

Let this be as a bulwark, a brazen wall to defend thee, stay thy selfe, in that certainty of faith; let that be thy comfort, CHRIST will protect thee, vindicate thee, thou art one of his flocke, he will triumph over the law, vanquish death, over

come the divel, and destroy hell. If he say thou art none of the elect, no beleever, reject him, defie him, thou hast thought otherwise, and maist so be resolved again; comfort thy selfe; this perswasion cannot come from the divel, and much less can it be grounded from thy selfe; men are lyars, and why shouldest thou distrust? A denying Peter, a persecuting Paul, an adulterous cruell David, have been received; an apostate Solomon may be converted; no sin at all but impenitency can give testimony of final reprobation. Why shouldest thou then distrust, misdoubt thy selfe, upon what ground, what suspition? This opinion alone of particularity? Against that, and for the certainty of election and salvation on the other side, see Gods good will towards men; hear how generally his grace is proposed to him, and him, and them, each man in particular, and to all. 1 Tim. 2. 4. God will that all men be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth. 'Tis an universall promise, God sent not his son into the world to condemne the world, but that through him the world might be saved. John 3. 17. He then that acknowledgeth himselfe a man in the world, must likewise acknowledge he is of that number that is to be saved. Ezek. 33. 11. I will not the death of a sinner, but that he repent and live: But thou art a sinner, therefore he wills not thy death. This is the will of him that sent me, that every man that beleeveth in the Son, should have everlasting life, John, 6. 40. He would have no man perish, but all come to repentance, 2 Pet. 3. 9. Besides remission of sins is to be preached, not to a fewe, but universally to all men. Goe therefore and tell all nations, baptizing them, &c. Matth. 28. 19. Goe into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature, Mark 16. 15. Now there cannot be contradictory wils in God; he will have all saved, and not all; how can this stand together? be secure then, beleeve, trust in him, hope well and be saved. Yea that's the main matter, how shall I beleeve or discern my security from carnall presumption? my faith is weake and faint; I want those signes and fruits of sanctification,' sorrow for sin, thirsting for grace, groanings of the spirit, love of Christians as Christians, avoiding occasion of sin, endeavour of new obedience, charity, love of God, perseverance. Though these signes be languishing in thee, and not scated in thine heart, thou must not therefore be dejected or terrified the effects of the faith and spirit are not yet so fully felt in thee; conclude not therefore thou art a reprobate, or doubt of thine election; because the elect themselves are without them, before their conversion. Thou maist in the Lords good time be converted, some are called at the 11th hour: Use, I say,

Abernethy.

the meanes of thy conversion, expect the Lords leisure, if not yet called, pray thou maist be, or at least wish and desire thou maist be.

2

Notwithstanding all this which might be said to this effect, to ease their afflicted mindes, and what comforte our best divines can afford in this case, Zanchius, Beza, &c. this furious curiosity, needless speculation, fruitless meditation about election, reprobation, free-will, grace, such places of scripture preposterously conceived, torment still, and crucifie the soules of too many, and set all the world together by the eares. To avoid which inconveniences, and to settle their distressed mindes, to mitigate those divine aphorismes, (though in another extream some) our late Arminians have revived that plausible doctrine of universal grace, which many fathers, our late Lutheran and moderne Papists do still maintain, that we have free-will of our selves, and that grace is common to all that will beleeve. Some again, though less orthodoxicall, will have a far greater part saved then shall be damned, (as 'Cælius Secundus stifly maintains in his book, De amplitudine regni cœlestis, or some impostour under his name) beatorum numerus multo major quam damnatorum. He calls that other tenent of speciall election and reprobation, a præjudicate, envious and malitious opinion, apt to draw all men to desperation. Many are called, few chosen, &c. He opposeth some opposite parts of scripture to it. Christ came into the world to save sinners, &c. And foure especiall arguments he produceth; one from Gods power. If more be damned then saved, he erroneously concludes, the divel hath the greater soveraigntie: for what is power but to protect? and majestie consists in multitude. If the divel hath the greater part, where is his mercy, where is his power? how is he Deus Optimus Maximus, misericors ? &c. where is his greatness, where his goodness? He proceeds, We account him a murderer that is accessary onely, or doth not helpe when he can; which may not be supposed of God without great offence; because he may doe what he will, and is otherwise accessary, and the authour of sin. The nature of good is to be communicated: God is good, and will not then be contracted in his goodness: for how is he the Father of mercy and comforte, if his good concern but a few? O envious and unthankfull men

5

4

1 See whole books of these arguments. 2 Lib. 3. fol. 122. Præjudicata opinio, invida, maligna, et apta ad impellendos animos in desperationem. 3 See the Antidote in Chamiers, tom. 3. lib. 7. Downams Christian warfare, &c. 4 Potentior est Deo diabolus, et mundi princeps, et in multitudine hominum sita est majestas. 5 Homicida, qui non subvenit quum potest; hoc de Deo sine scelere cogitari non potest, utpote quum quod vult licet. Boni natura communicari. Bonus Deus, quomodo misericordiæ pater, &c.