office under Diabolus, that he might (fuch a one as he was) be a petty ruler and governor in Mansoul; and (headstrong man that he was) thus he began betimes; for this man, when Diabolus did make his oration at Ear-gate, was one of the first that was for confenting to his words, and for accepting of his counfel as wholesome, and that was for opening the gate, and letting him into the town: wherefore Diabolus had a kindness for him, and for that reafon defigned him for a place; and, perceiving the valour and ftoutnefs of the man, he coveted to have him for one of his great ones, to act and do in matters of the highest concern. ›

So he fent for him, and talked with him of that fecret matter which lay in his breast; but there needed not much perfuafion in the cafe: for as at firft he was The will takes willing that Diabolus fhould be let into the place under Ditown, fo now he was as willing to serve him abolus. there. When the tyrant, therefore, perceived the willingness of my lord to ferve him, and that his mind stood bending that way, he forthwith made him captain of the caftle, (a) governor of the wall, and keeper of the gates of Manfoul: yea, there was a clause in his commiffion, that nothing without him fhould be done in all the town of Manfoul: fo that now, next to Diabolus himself, who but my lord Will-be-will in all the town of Mansoul! nor could any thing be now done, but at his will and pleafure, throughout the town of Manfoul, Rom. viii. 7. He had alfo one Mr. Mind (b) for his

Mr. Mind, my

lord's clerk.

clerk;

(a) By this, and the two following places, we are to underftand, the heart, the flesh, and the fenfes.

(b) The mind; i. e. the judgment, whereby we distinguish between good and evil, lawful and unlawful, 2 Cor. iii. 14. Tit. i. 5; it is the fource of ideas, fenfation, and recollection: it is alfo that faculty which acts in fubordination to the will, and determines on the mode of conduct to be pursued. This arbitrary principle is impatient of controul, and may not improperly be termed the eye of the fowl, as it refpects the intention;

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clerk; a man, to speak on, every way like his master; for he and his lord were in principle one, and in practice not far afunder, Eph. ii. 2, 3, 4. And now was Manfoul brought under to purpose, and made to fulfil the lufts of the will, and of the mind.

But it will not be out of my thoughts, what a defperate one this Will-be-will was, when power was put into his hand. First, he flatly denied that he owed any. fuit or fervice to his former prince and liege lord. This, done, in the next place he took an oath, fwore fidelity to great mafter Diabolus, and then being stated and settled in his place, office, advancement, and preferment, Oh you cannot think, unless you had feen it, the strange work that this workman made in the town of Mansoul.

his

The carnal will oppofes confcience.

First, He maligned Mr. Recorder to death; he would neither endure to fee him, nor hear. the words of his mouth: he would fhut his eyes when he faw him, and ftop his ears when he heard him fpeak. Alfo he could not endure that fo much as a fragment of the law of SHADDAI should be any where seen in, the town. For example, his clerk, Mr. Mind, had fome old rents, Nehem. ix. 26. and torn parchinents of the law of good SHADDAI in his houfe: but when Will-be-will faw them, he caft them behind his back. (a).

True;

intention: hence our Lord fays, Matt. vi. 12. "If thine eye be fingle [q. d. thy intention be upright and fincere], thy whole body fhall be full of light." "To be carnally minded, is death," Rom. viii. 6.

(a) Unconverted men have a rooted antipathy to the fcriptures; they come not to the light, left their deeds should be reproved, John iii. 20; and though there may be perceived, in the minds and confciences of fuch people, fome faint traces of the law of God, yet, through the corruption and depravity of the will, their conceptions of divine things are erroneous and unfcriptural; they call good evil, and evil good. Till the Lord the Spirit rectify the will and affections, ungodly finners defire not the knowledge of God and reject his word with contempt.

True, Mr. Recorder had fome of the laws in his ftudy; but my lord could by no means come at them: he allo thought, and faid, the windows of my old lord Corrupt will. mayor's houfe were always too light for the loves a dark profit of the town of Manfoul. The light understanding. of a candle he could not endure. Now nothing at all pleafed Will-be-will, but what pleafed Diabolus his lord.

There was no other like him to trumpet about the ftreets the brave nature, the wife conduct, and great glory of the king Diabolus. He would range throughout all the ftreets of Manfoul, to cry up his illuftrious lord; and would make himself even as an abject, among the Vain thoughts. bafe and rafcally crew, to cry up his valiant prince. And I fay, when and wherefoever he found those vaffals, he would even make himself as one of them. In all ill courfes, he would act without bidding, and do mifchief without commandment.

The lord Will-be-will also had a deputy under him, and his name was Mr. Affection: one that was alfo greatly debauched in his principles, and anfwered thereto in his life, Rom. i. 25: he was only given to the flesh, and therefore they call him Vile Affection. Now there was he, and one Carnal-Luft, the daughter of Mr. Mind (like to like, quoth the devil to the collier), A match bethat fell in love and made a match, and were married; and, as I take it, they had feveral fections and children, as Impudence, Black-mouth, and Hate-reproof. These three were black boys; and, befides these three, they had three daughters, as Scorn-truth, SlightGod, and the name of the youngest was Revenge; (a)

tween Vile-Af

Carnal-Luft.

thefe

(a) A goodly progeny! but the genuine fruit of fin, which is of an impudent, fcornful, and revengeful nature, and has made the foul an avowed enemy to juftice, mercy, and truth. The intent of the gofpel is, to deftroy the works of Satan in the foul, and erect on their ruins a kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy. This is the fole work of Chrift by his Spirit, when he becomes our prophet to inftruct and direct, our prieft to atone for and pardon our fins, and our king to rule in our fouls, the Lord of every motion there! Even fo, come,, Lord Jefus !

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these were all married in the town, and alfo begot and yielded many bad brats, too many to be inferted. But to pafs by this:

When the giant had thus ingarrisoned himself in the town of Mansoul, and had put down and fet up whom he thought good, he betakes himself to defacing. Now there was in the market-place of Manfoul, and alfo upon the gates of the caftle, an image of the bleffed king SHADDAI; this image was fo exactly engraven (and it was engraven in gold), that it did the moft refemble SHADDAI himself, of any thing that then was extant in the world. This he bafely commanded to be defaced, What No-truth and it was bafely done by the hand of Mr. No-truth. Now you must know, that as Diabolus had commanded, and that by the hand of Mr.. No-truth, the image of SHADDAI was defaced; he likewife gave order that the fame Mr. No-truth fhould set up, in it's ftead, the horrid and formidable image of Diabolus; to the great contempt of the former King, and debafing his town of Manfoul.

did.

All law-books destroyed that

Moreover, Diabolus made havock of all remains of the laws and ftatutes of SHADDAI, Could be found. that could be found in the town of Manfoul; to wit, fuch as contained either doctrines or morals, with all civil and natural documents: alfo relative feverities he fought to extinguifh. (a) To be fhort, there was nothing of the remains of good in Manfoul, which he and Will-be-will fought not to destroy; for their defign

(a) When Satan has obtained full poffeffion of the heart, he gradually draws it off from the observance of those duties we owe to God and man, as reasonable creatures; such as ordinances, public and private prayers, obedience and affection to parents and relatives; and alfo from that important duty, effential to the welfare of our immortal fpirits, SELFEXAMINATION. These being neglected, the finner becomes at length, by evil courses, to every good work reprobate, Tit. i. 16. May the Lord ftir us up to use the means of grace, that we may not thus make hipwreck of faith and a good confcience!

fign was, to turn Manfoul into a brute, and to make it like to the fenfual fow, by the hand of Mr. No-truth.

When he had deftroyed what law and good orders he could, then further to effect his defign, namely, to alienate Manfoul from SHAD- The edicts of Diabolus fet up DAI her king, he commands, and they set up his own vain edicts, ftatutes, and commandments, in all places of refort or concourfe in Manfoul, 1 John ii. 16, to wit, fuch as gave liberty to "the lufts of the flesh, the lufts of the eyes, and the pride of life, which are not of SHADDAI, but of the world." He encouraged, countenanced, and promoted, lafciviousness and all ungodliness there. Yea, much more did Diabolus to encourage wickednefs in the town of Manfoul; he promised them peace, content, joy, and blifs, in doing his commands, and that they fhould never be called to an account for their not doing the contrary. And let this ferve to give a tafte to them that love to hear of what is done beyond their knowledge, afar off in other countries. (a)

Now Manfoul being wholly at his beck, and brought wholly to his bow, nothing was heard or feen therein but that which tended to fet up him.

They have a new lord-mayor, and a new recorder.

But now, he having difabled the LordMayor and Mr. Recorder from bearing any office in Manfoul, and seeing that the town, before he came to it, was the most antient of corporations in the world; and fearing, if he did not maintain greatnefs, they at any time fhould object that

he

(a) Mere fpeculative knowledge is hurtful, and often deftructive, to many fouls. Be it remembered, that man loft happiness by afpiring to know beyond the bounds of his duty, Self-knowledge, i, e. a due sense of our wretchedness and wants, is a blessed means, through grace, of regaining a happier paradife than we loft; fince it leads to the Saviour, who is the fullness of every defireable bleffing. Hence, the moft profitable science is, to know the only true God, and Jefus Chrift whom he hath fent: this is eternal life, Joha xvii. 3. May we fo run, as to obtain the glorious prias!