A Child of Light Walking in Darkness, Part 1 · Chapter 10
CHAP. X.
The concluſion: 7. Advantages in common Satan hath over us, in all thoſe forementioned dealings.
ANd for a generall concluſion to this, and all the reſt of this diſcourſe about Satans working on us, I will but onelyonly mention ſome of thoſe great and many advantages hee hath in all theſe his falſe reaſonings, and accuſations over us, to ſet them on, to faſten his ſlanders and falſe concluſions thence deduced, and to perſwade the minde of them. Which I therefore bring in here, as being common to all thoſe particulars which have beene related.
Firſt,§ 1. it is no ſmall advantage, that he can familiarly,1. Advantage, that he can and doth ſuggeſt frequently and familiarly. and frequently ſuggeſt them again and againe unto us. The frequency of any thought that comes in againe and againe, that lies by us, and haunts us, hath ſecretly the force of an argument to perſwade us to thinke it is ſo. Wee uſe to ſay [I have thought ſo againe and againe] A cunning flatterer, that is continually ſuggeſting, and taking all hints and occaſions ſo to doe, may at laſt put hard to worke out a neare and a deare friend, and to make one jealous of him. As the Iudge yeelded to her importunity, Luke 18. 5. So is the minde apt to yeeld a ſuggeſtion that haunts it, and importunately preſents it ſelfe, yea though it be to paſſe a falſe ſentence againſt a mans ſelfe.
And 2. hee can alſo (and doth) repreſent a multitude of reaſonings,§ 2. and conſiderations together at once,2. That hee preſents a multitude of falſe reaſonings, &c. At once. all tending to confirme the ſame perſwaſion. He will ſometimes bring in a cloud of witneſſes, and inſtances to prove us hypocrites; and environ the minde round about with them, that looke which way it will, it ſees nothing elſe. As he repreſented to Chriſt, … glory of the world in the twinckling of an eye▪ So he can doe a mans ſinnes, &c. That a man ſhalt have a generall proſpect of them, and ſee nothing elſe, looke which way he will. And what force this muſt needs have to prevaile with the minde and judgement to aſſent, experience ſhewes. As when a man doubting of a truth in a thing controverted, reads an oppoſite party, preſenting all that can bee ſaid for the other ſide alone, it often ſtaggers him, and for the preſent wins and gaines his opinion to that ſide, till he reads and conſiders what is ſaid to the contrary: yea, though a man is confirme…, and ſetled in the truth, yet ſometimes a man ſhall have an army of arguments on the other ſide, come in upon him, ſo ranked and ordered, as for the preſent ſhall ſhake and ſtagger him: and ſo it muſt needs bee in the agitation of this great controverſie about a mans eſtate, when Satan ſhall muſter and marſhall up an army of objections once together, and not ſcatteredly; as he is able to doe.
And 3.§. 3. He is able to hold the intention of the minde ſo unto them,3. That he can hold the mind and the intention of it to them alone. as to keep off all that which ſhould any way comfort; hee can turne downe that columne in the leaves of our hearts, wherein grace, or any thing that may comfort is written, and turne over onelyonly, and hold our eyes fixt to reade nothing but that wherein our Errataes and ſinnes are written; ſo as to cauſe a mans ſoule to forget all good, as Lament. 3. 17. the Church in deſertion is ſaid to doe; and to forget his owne mercies, as Ionah ſpeakes, he can multiply ſuggeſtions ſo faſt; and come in with ſuch a tempeſt, that as Iob complaines. Iob 9. 17. hee will not ſuffer them to take breath: and therefore the Apoſtle calls them the buffetings of Satan. 2 Cor. 12. becauſe like unto buffetings, they come in, thick and threefold, upon a mans ſpirit; ſo as a mans ſpirit cannot take breath; hee raines downe temptations ſometimes, not by drops (as in ordinary raines) but by ſpouts (as marriners calls them, when a cloud melts) (as in hot countries) ſuddainly, and falls by whole ſale, and often ſinkes a ſhip) Hee breakes me with a tempeſt ſayes Iob, in the place forementioned, Chap. 9. 17.§. 4. He ſpeakes it of God, but ſuch like tempeſts Satan alſo raiſeth.
4. He addes weight to his lying accuſations,4. That hee backs all with an imperious affirmation. and falſe reaſonings by an imperious and obſtreperous affirmation [that ſo it is,] hee ſuggeſts not reaſons onelyonly, that ſhould perſwade, but ſets them on with words of affirmation, and perſwaſion therewithall ſuggeſted: and ſo, like as in reaſoning, often a weake ſpirit is borne downe by a ſtronger, not by force of argument ſo much, as by ſtrength and violence of ſpirit; for many when the iron is blunt, and their arguments want edge, put to the more ſtrength, as Solomon ſpeakes. Eccleſ. 10. 10. and ſo prevaile: and ſo doth Satan; being a ſpirit of greater ſtrength then ours by creation; and guilt alſo, further weakning us in arguing with him. Cunning pleaders may ſo argue the caſe, with ſuch violence and confidence, that as Socrates ſaid when his accuſers had done, that if he had not been very innocent, hee ſhould have ſuſpected himſelfe guilty: how much more, when this ſhall fall upon perſons that are ſo guilty, as we all are; and the thing alſo impleaded be that which wee are already ſuſpitious of? What a man feares already, he eaſily beleeves, as what a man hopes, quod metuunt facile credunt. There falls out often in opinions a preconceit which alſo exceedingly ſwayes the minde, a giving of minde that ſuch a thing is ſo or ſo; and in ſuch a caſe Satan can ſtrike in exceedingly to ſtrengthen ſuch a conceit: this I take to be implyed in that phraſe. 2. Theſ. 2. 1. I Where the Apoſtle gives warning they ſhould not be troubled neither [by ſpirit] nor by word, to thinke the day of Iudgement was at hand: By ſpirit he meanes a pretence of a revelation, joyned with a mans owne private conceit and imagination; thus 1 Iohn 4. 1. Spirit is alſo taken. And oftentimes when Satan perceives the minde inclined to thinke or conceit thus or thus, he addes weight unto the ballance, and ſo a man is given up to the efficacy of deluſion: as wee ſee in falſe Prophets which the Apoſtle there ſpeakes of, when he ſayes, Beleeve not every ſpirit, becauſe many falſe Prophets are gone out into the world. Thus thoſe falſe Prophets became confident in their prophecies: they walke in the ſpirit ſayes the Prophet, Micah 2. 11. But doe lye. They tooke up ſuch conceits, and the devill hee joyned with them, and confirmed them in them. And as Satan by ſuch falſe revelations confirmes Enthuſiaſts in their opinions and conceits: ſo he joynes with the jealouſies of beleevers, and puts weight into the ballance, ſtrongly ſwaying them to judge amiſſe of their eſtates.
And 5. in that hee,§. 5. as was ſaid, backeth his falſe concluſions thence deduced,5. That his reaſonings are backt with ſenſe of terrours. with terrours, &c. this becomes an argument to ſenſe; and ſuch doe exceedingly carry on the judgement in our opinion of things. A conceit that comes in with joy, we are apt to conclude is true; and ſo in like maner what comes in with terrour: ſuch impreſſions are as it were a ſeal to what is ſuggeſted, to confirm it. And as the holy Ghoſt ſealeth his inſtructiōs, Iob 33. 16. with impreſſiōs of joy, &c. ſo doth Satan his temptations with impreſſions of feare and diſquietment. If a man hath a dreame with any ſtrong impreſſion, a man is apt to give heed to it, to thinke there is ſomething in it: that which made Nebuchadnezzar thinke there muſt needs bee ſomething in his, Daniel Chap. 2. and Chap. 4. When yet hee had forgot what it was, was, that it made him afraid, and his thoughts troubled him. ver. 5.
A 6.§. 6. Advantage is, that hee ſuggeſts and workes all theſe impreſſions undiſcerned at all to be from him,6. That he ſuggeſts all undiſcerned by us. ſo as we know not but they are our owne thoughts, yea ſometimes thinke that they be from the holy Ghoſt, working as the Spirit of bondage in us. This is alſo an exceeding great advantage, as it would be to an enemy to have gottē the oppoſites own watchword, their owne colours: this cauſeth us readily to yeeld and open the gates to him: and though when the temptation is over we perceive his deluſion in it, yet ſtill becauſe we cannot diſcerne his ſuggeſtions from our owne thoughts when upon us, when we are in the miſt and eclipſe, therefore hee can come againe and againe with the ſame temptation, to day, and to morrow, and the next day, and we perceive it not; which if we did, we ſhould not liſten to it, no more then wee would to one who had formerly deceived us. Thus Ahabs Prophets knew not that Satan was a lying ſpirit in them, for ſayes one of them unto Micaiah, When went the Spirit of God from me to you? Thoſe ſtrong deluſions, 2. Theſ. 2. 10. could not have prevailed upon their mindes to have beleeved a lie, had it beene diſcerned by them that Satan had ſuggeſted them. Peter knew no that Satan did by him tempt his maſter to ſpare himſelfe; which yet Chriſt perceived, and therefore called him Satan.
Laſt of all,§. 7. a man can no way avoide his ſuggeſtions,7. That his ſuggeſtions cannot be avoided. nor ſubduce himſelfe from them; neither can any take Satan off from a man but God; he muſt rebuke him, none elſe can. A poore ſoule fights with Satan in this darkneſſe, like unto a man that is aſſaulted by one that carries a darke lanterne, who can ſee the aſſaulted, and how to buffet him, and followes him where ever he goes, whereas the poore man cannot fee him, nor who it is that ſtrikes him, nor be aware how to award the blow. Therefore the Apoſtle when buffeted by Satan,2 Cor. 12. knew not what to doe, but onelyonly to have recourſe to God by prayer: for he could no more avoid or runne away from thoſe ſuggeſtions, then from himſelfe. Nor could all the Saints on earth any other way have freed him; none, till God ſhould cauſe him to depart.