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RELATION

OF THE

HOLY WAR,

MADE BY SHADDAI UPON DIABOLUS.

WITH NOTES,

EXPLANATORY, EXPERIMENTAL, AND

PRACTICAL.

IN

N my travels, as I walked through many regions and countries, it was my chance to arrive at that famous continent of Universe. A very large and

Defcription of

the world.

fpacious country it is: it lieth between the two poles, and juft amidst the four points of the heaven. It is a place well watered, and richly adorned with hills and vallies, bravely fituated; and for the most part (at least where I was) very fruitful; also well peopled, and a very sweet air. (a)

The

(a) This is the world described, in it's prefent ftate; wherein, notwithstanding the alteration incurred by fin, we may ftill difcern the most lively traces of the wisdom, power, and providence of God: fince, as St. Paul fays, Rom. i. 20. "the invifible things of him, from the creation of the world, are clearly feen and understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead."

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The people are not all of one complexion, nor yet of one language, mode, or way of religion; but differ as much (it is faid) as do the planets themfelves: fome are right, and fome are wrong, even as it happeneth to be in leffer regions. (a)

pleafing to the

In this country, as I faid, it was my lot to travel; and there travel I did, and that fo long, even till I had learned much of their mother-tongue, together with the customs and manners of them among whom I was. And, to speak A natural ftate truth, I was much delighted to fee and hear many things which I faw and heard among them yea, I had, to be fure, even lived and died a native among them (I was fo taken with them and their doings), had not my Mafter fent for me home to his houfe, there to do bufinefs for him, and to overfee bufinefs done. (b)

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Now there is, in this gallant country of Universe,

a fair

(a) Here the world (with respect to its inhabitants) is delineated in the disordered state it was reduced to by the fall of our frit parents, who involved all their pofterity. Before that fatal event, all was harmony, beauty, and united praises to the beneficent Creator; but fin introduced difcord, a comparative deformity, difeafe, and death, and entailed a curfe on the whole creation: thenceforward the mind became depraved, and debilitated in all it's faculties, fo that the understanding, will, and affections, were not only totally alienated and estranged from God, but branched out into various species of error and difcordancy, in proportion as mankind increafed, whofe hearts, being thus infected, became utterly blind, and their imaginations vain; giving themselves up to commit all kinds of abomination with greedinefs; which, in the early ages, Gen. vii. 23. provoked God, after much forbearance and long fuffering, to fweep them all off, from the face of the earth, by a deluge of water, except one family of eight perfons, Noah and his children.

(b) Certain it is, that, in our natural ftate, the luft of the fefh, the luft of the eye, and the pride of life, captivate and enfnare the foul; fo that, if the Lord did not work a miraculous change upon us by the quickening power of his Spirit, we could be content to take up with the poor, unfatisfying enjoyments of time and fenfe which this world affords, to remain unacquainted with, and regardless of, God and happiness; and, what is worst of all, (but inevitable, if unrenewed at death) to become certain heirs of eternal misery in a future life.

a fair and delicate town, a corporation called MANSOUL; a town for it's building fo curious, for it's fituation fo commodious, for it's privileges fo advantageous (I mean with reference to it's original), that I may fay of it, as was faid before of the continent in which it is placed, "There is not it's equal under the whole heaven." (a)

The Almighty.

As to the fituation of this town, it lieth between the two worlds: and the first founder and builder of it, so far as by the best and most authentic records I Scriptures. can gather, was one SHADDAI; (b) and he built it for his own delight, Gen. i. 26. He made it the mirror and glory of all that he made, even the top-piece, beyond any thing else that he did in that country. Yea, fo goodly a town was Manfoul, when first built, that it is faid by fome, the gods, at Created angels. the setting up thereof, came down to fee it, and fung for joy. And as he made it goodly to behold, fo alfo mighty to have dominion over all the country round about. Yea, all were commanded to acknowledge Manfoul for their metropolitan, all were enjoined to do homage to it. Ay, the town itself had pofitive commiffion, and power from her King, to demand fervice of all, and alfo to fubdue those that any-ways denied it.

There

(a) The foul of man, being immortal, is of ineftimable value. It is the breath of God, a particle of the divine nature; created, at first, in righteousness and true holiness, but now dreadfully disfigured and defiled by fin; very far (not to fay wholly) gone from original righteoufnefs. The foul is all that is intrinfically and fupereminently valuable in the human compofition; for according to the nature, difpofition, and bias of it, fo is the whole man. The body dies, and moulders to duft: but the foul lives for ever, and, if re-united to God here, will flourish in immortal youth in a better world. The care of that precious deposit (if I may so term it) is therefore of the utmolt confequence; for "what will it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and lofe his own foul? or what can he give in exchange for his foul?" Matt. xxvi. 25. O may the promoting it's internal and best interests be our principal object and concern!

(6) All-fufficient; or almighty, as in the margin. Grammarians differ with refpect to the etymology of this word; fome deriving it from the Hebrew, others from the Greek.

The heart.

There was reared up,, in the midft of this town, a most famous and ftately palace: for ftrength, it may be called a caftle; for pleasantnefs, a paradife; for largenefs, a place fo copious as to contain all the world, Ecclef. iii. 11. This place, the King SHADDAI intended but for himself alone, and not another with him: (a) partly because of his own delights, and partly because he would not that the terror of ftrangers fhould be upon the town. This place SHADDAI made alfo a garrifon of; but he committed the keeping of it only to the men of the town. The body, The walls of the town were well built;. yea, fo faft and firm were they knit and compacted toge-ther, that, had it not been for the townfmen themselves, they could not have been fhaken or broken for ever.

The powers of

the foul.

For here lay the excellent wifdom of him that built Manfoul, that the walls could never be broken down nor hurt, by the most mighty adverfe potentates, unless the townfmen gave confent thereto.

This famous town of Manfoul had five

The five fenfes, gates, at which to come out, and at which to go in; and thefe were made likewife answerable to the walls, to wit, impregnable, and fuch as could never be. opened nor forced, but by the will and leave of those within. The names of the gates are thefe: Ear-gate, Eyegate, Mouth-gate, Nofe-gate, and Feel-gate.

Other things there were that belonged to the town of Manfoul, which, if you adjoin to thefe, will yet

give

(a) The heart of man, in it's incorrupt state, was ever afpiring towards God in adoration, love, and praife; extolling and admiring his divine perfections, and the wonders of creation, in his various works. Such a heart alfo God himself delighted" to dwell in, Prov. viii. But alas! how is the pure gold become dim! how is the fine gold changed! By loving the creature more than the Creator, the heart of man is become deceitful, and defperately wicked, a cage of unclean birds!'

Profeffor, if thy heart be idolatrous, or devoted to the world and thy lufts, thy religion is vain, thou deceivest thine own foul; for God fays to all, "My fón, give me thine heart," Prov, xxiii, 26,

give further demonftration to all, of the glory of the place. It had always a fufficiency of provifion within it's walls; (a) it had the best,

and strength,

'The state of

Manfoul at firfts

most wholfome and excellent law, that was then extant in the world. There was not a rogue, rascal, or traiterous perfon then within it's walls: they were all! true men, and faft joined together; and this, you know, is a great matter. And to all thefe, it had always, fo long as it had the goodnefs to keep true to SHADDAI, the king, his countenance, his protection, and it was his de light, &c.

Devils, the

fallen angels.

Well, upon a time there was one Diabolus, (b) a mighty giant, made an affault upon the famous town of Manfoul, to take it, and make it his own habitation. This giant was king of the Blacks or Negroes, and a moft raving prince he was. We will, if you please, firit difcourfe of the original of this Diabolus, and then of his taking of this famous town of Manfoul. This Diabolus is indeed a great and mighty prince, and yet both poor and beggarly. As to his original, he was at firft one of the fervants of king SHADDAI, by whom he was made, and raised to a moft high and mighty place, yea, and was put into such principalities as belonged to

The origin of

Diabolus.

the

(a) That man, as he came from the hands of God, was endued with power fufficient to enable him to remain happy in the divine favour, though ftill liable to fall by the prevalence of temptation, ought to be univerfally allowed, as being con fonant with fcripture, and agreeable to well informed reason. This fentiment is very elegantly expreffed by our own poet, MILTON, in the angel Raphael's address to Adam:

"God made thee perfect, not immutable:
And good he made thee; but to perfevere,
He left it in thy pow'r: ordain'd thy will
By nature free, not over-rul'd by fate
Inextricable, or ftrict neceffity."

(b) The devil; a fallen angel, an evil spirit; Satan, the adverfary of God and man,

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