Discourse of the Subtle Practices of Devils, Chapter 4
The nature of deuils described with there operations and effectes. The 4 Chapter.
THe Deuils being the principall agents, & chiefe practisers in witchcrafts and sorceryes, It is much to the purpose to descrybe and set thē for wheree by we shall bee the better instructed to see what he is able to do, in what maner, and to what ende & purpose. At y• beginning (as Gods word doth teach vsus) they were createdholy Angels, full of power, & 2 Pet. 2. Iude.glory. They sinned, they were cast downe from heauen, they were vtterly depriued of glory, and …reserued for iudgement. This therfore, & this change of theirs, did not destroy nor take away their former faculties: but vtterly corrupt, peruert, and depraue the same: the essence of spirits remayned, & not onelyonly but also power & vnderstanding, such as is in Angels▪ y• heauē ly Angels are very mighty & strong, far aboue all earthly creatures in the whole world: The infernall angels are for their strength called principalityes & powers: those blessed ones applye all their might to set vp & aduaunce the glgry of God, toEphes. Psalm. 34. Heb. 1. Reuel. 21. 1. Pet. 5. defend & succour his children▪ the deuils bend all their force against God, agaynst his glory, his truth & his people. And this is done with such fiercenes, rage, & cruelty, that the holy ghost paynteth them out vnderunder the figure of a great red or fiery dragon, & roaring lyon, in very deed any thing comparable to thē: He hath such power and autority indeede, that hee is called the God of the world. His kingdome is bound and inclosed within certayne limits, for he is ye prince but of darknes: but yet within his sayd dominion (which is in ignorance of God, he exerciseth a mighty tyrany▪ our Sauiour compareth him to a strong man armed which kepeth his castle.
And what shall we saie for the wisedome and vnderstandingMat. 12. of Angels, which was giuen them in their creatiō, was it not far aboue that which men can reach vntounto? When they became diuels (euen those reprobate angels) their vnderstanding was not taken awaie, but turned into malicious craft and subtiltie. He neuer doth any thing but of an euill purpose, and yet he can set such a colour, that the Apostle saith he doth change himselfe into the likenesse of an angell of light. For the same cause he is called the old serpent, he was subtill at the beginning, but he is now growne much more subtill vp long experience, and continuall practise, he hath searched out and knoweth all the waies that may be to deceiue. So that if God should not chaine him vp, as it is set forth Reuel. 20. his power and subtiltie ioined together, would ouercome and seduce the whole world.
There be great multitudes of infernall spirits, as the holy scriptures doe euerie where shew, but yet they doe so ioine together inone, that they be called the diuell in the singular number. They doe all ioine together (as our sauiourMat. 12. teacheth) to vphold one kingdome. For though they can not louelove one another indeede, yet the hatred they beare against God, is as a band that doth tye them together. The holie angels are ministring spirits, sent foorth for their sakes which shall inherit the promise. They hauehave no bodilie shape of themselues: but to set foorth their speedinesse, the scripture applieth it selfe vntounto our rude capacitie, and painteth them out with wings.
When they are to rescue and succour the seruants of God, they can straight waie from the high heauens, which are thousands of thousands of miles distant from the earth, bee present with them. Such quicknesse is also in the diuels: for their nature being spirituall, and not loden with any heauie matter as our bodies are, doth affoord vntounto them such a nimbleues as we can not conceiue. By this they flie through the world ouer sea and land, and espie out al aduantages and occasions to doe euill.
Now to declare what these malignant wicked diuels hauehave effected & brought to passe, or what great successe they hauehave attained, would be a long and tedious piece of worke. A few short sentences of the word of God onelyonly to note theGen. 3. same, may suffise in this behalfe: he preuailed by his great craft against our first parents: he is called the prince of this2. Cor. 4. world, and the God of this world. The Gentiles did worship… ▪ Cor. 10. diuels, since the comming of our Sauiour Christ, when hee was bound for a thousand yeares, being let loose againe, heeReuel. 20. seduced the world: yea he was the means, and it was by the efficacie of his power, that Antichrist the Pope and his false2. Thes. 2. religion was set vp. And so all the world woondered and followed the beast (for so the holy ghost termeth Antichrist) and they worshipped the beast, and they woorshipped the dragonReuel. 1…. which gaue power to the beast.
This seemeth horrible and monstrous, that all nations of the world should worship the diuell: doubtlesse they neuer meant it, but when they forsooke the true worship prescribed in the holie word, and imbraced idolatrie, and woorship deuised by man, whatsoeuer intent they had, God laieth to their charge that they woorshipped diuels. What victories the diuell hath gotten at other times in the world, doth sufficiently appeare by this, that he is described with seuen crownes. He hath raised vp all kinds of heretikes, he hathReuel. 12. stirred vp sore persecutions against the Church, and caused the seruants of God to be cruel…ie murthered. Thus much touching Diuels.