or whether to affault it with words and ways of deceit ?

Fourthly, Whether they had not beft give out private orders, to fome of their companions, to take the advantage, if they fee one or more of the principal townfmen, to fhoot them; if thereby they fhall judge their caufé and defign will the better be promoted.

It was anfwered, to the firft of these proposals, in the negative; to wit, that it would not be beft that all should fhew themselves before the town, because the appearance of many of them might alarm and frighten the town; whereas a few, or but one of them, was not fo likely to do it. And to caufe this advice to take place, it was added further, that if Manfoul was frighted, Diabolus gives or did take the alarm, it is impoffible, faid his advice, Diabolus (for he fpoke now), that we should whichisadopted. take the town: for that none can enter into it without it's own confent. (a) Let therefore but a few, or but one, affault Manfoul, and, in my opinion, faid Diabolus, let me be he. Wherefore to this they all agreed: and then to the second propofal they came, namely,

II. Whether they had beft to go and fit down before Manfoul, in their now ragged and beggarly guife?

To which it was anfwered alfo in the negative, By no means; and that becaufe, though the town of Manfoul had

(a) Satan could gain no advantage over Adam in para dife, without the concurrence of his judgment, and consent of his will; but these being weakened, and at length overcome, by liftening to the temptation, he became an caly prey to his fubtle and powerful enemy. Even fo it is now: fnalmuch as Satan cannot compel men to commit fin, but only tempt them to it; for, as the apoftle James remarks, ch. i. 4. Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own luft, and enticed:" the tempter works upon our corrupt nature, which is ever prone to, and fufceptible of evil; for, by reason of that depravity inherent in, and ever cleaving to us, even believers themfelves are equally liable with the unregenerate, were it not for the reftraining power of divine grace, to yield to any temptation, as tinder is apt to catch the fpark.

典

had been made to know, and to have to do with, before now, things that are invifible; they never did as yet fee any of their fellow creatures in fo bad and rafcally a condi

Alecto.
Apollyon.

tion as they: and this was the advice of the fierce Alecto. (a) Then faid Apollyon, (b) The advice is pertinent; for even one of us appearing to them as we are now, muit needs both beget and multiply fuch thoughts in them, as will both put them into a consternation of fpirit, and neceffitate them to put themselves upon their guard and if fo, faid he, then, as Diabolus faid but now, it is in vain for us to think of taking the town. Then faid that mighty giant Beelzebub, (c) The advice that is already given is fafe; for though the men of Manfoul have feen fuch things as we once were, yet hitherto they did never behold fuch things as we now are. And it is beft, in my opinion, to come upon them in fuch a guife as is common to, and most familiar among them. (d)

Beelzebub's advice.

To this

when

(a) An heathen appellative for one of the furies of hell. (b) A name given to one of the devils: a deftroyer. fc) Or Belzebub, the lord of flies a fuppofed prince of devils, next in command to Satan.

(d) We perceive, above, the unanimity that prevailed among thofe malevolent fpirits, in conferring about the mode of attack to be made on man; and, for that purpose, their agreeing to prefer the affumed form of one of the creatures, to fuch an appearance as might create a fufpicion of their hellish intentions.-Would to God there were as firm Concord and union amongst chriftians, to promote the glory of God, his intereft, and their own happiness in the world! and this the rather, as the devils are as full of subtlety and malicious rage now, in their attempts to prevent the good of mankind, and destroy immortal fouls, as they were upwards of 5000 years ago: they also well know the believer's weak fide, his most predominant appetite, which they ftimulate and work upon: it therefore behoves all who belong to Chrift, and are not ignorant of Satan's devices, to be sober and vigilant, as well as earnest at the throne of mercy, for grace, wisdom, and the whole armour of God, wherewith to oppose and frustrate all the mischievous attempts of this restless and irreconcileable foe to our peace and falvation; so that we may be enabled to withstand in the evil day; and having done all, to ftand, Eph. vi. 13.

Lucifer alfo

gives his advice, which is applauded by all.

when they had confented; the next thing to be confidered, was, in what shape, hue, or guife, Diabolus had beft to fhew himself, when he went about to make Manfoul his own. Then one faid one thing, and another the contrary. At laft Lucifer (a) anfwered, That, in his opinion, it was beft that his lordfhip fhould affume the body of one of those creatures that they of the town had dominion over: for, quoth he, thofe are not only familiar to them, but, being under them, they will never imagine that any attempt fhould by them be made upon the town; and, to blind all, let him affume the body of one of those beasts that Manfoul deems to be wifer than any of the reft, Gen. iii.. 1. Rev. xx. I, 2. This advice was applauded of all; fo it was determined that the giant Diabolus fhould affume the dragon; for that he was, in those days, as familiar with the town of Manfoul, as now is the bird with the boy; for nothing that was in it's primitive state was at all amazing to them. They then proceeded to the third thing, which was,

III. Whether they had beft fhew their inclinations, or the defign of their coming to Manfoul, or no?

This also was answered in the negative, because of the weight that was in their former reafons, to wit, for that Manfoul were a strong people, a strong people in a ftrong town, whofe wall and gates were impregnable (to say nothing of their caftles), nor can they by any means be won but by their own confent. Besides, faid (b) Legion (for he gave answer to this), a difcovery of our intentions may

make

(a) Literally, light-bearer; the morning-ftar: the name of one of the fallen angels; the arch-devil.

(b) A military term; it antiently fignified a body of Ro. man foldiers, confifting, according to fome, of about five thousand men. We find this name affumed in the New Teftament, by the furious dæmoniac who iffued from the tombs, of whom Jefus afked, faying, "What is thy name? And he faid, Legion: because many devils were entered into him." See Mark v. 9. and Luke viii. 30.

and craft. 1

make them send to their King for aid; (a) and if that be done, I know what time of the day it will be with us: therefore let us affault them in all pretended fairness, coLegion advifes vering our intentions with all manner of lyes, diffimulation flatteries, delufive words: feigning things that will never be, and promifing that to them which they fhall never find: this is the way to win Manfoul, and to make them willingly open their gates to us; yea, and defire us alfo to come in to them. And the reason why I think that this project will do, is, because the people of Manfoul are now every one fimple and innocent; all honeft and true: nor do they as yet know what it, is to be affaulted with fraud, guile, and hypocrify. They are ftrangers to lying and diffembling lips; wherefore we cannot, if thus we be difguifed, by them at all be difcerned; our lyes fhall go for true fayings, and our diffimulation for upright dealings. What we promise them, they will in that believe us; efpecially if in all our lyes and feigned words we pretend great love to them, and that our defign is only their advantage and honour. Now there was not one bit of a reply against this, for it went as current down as doth the water down a steep defcent: wherefore they go to confider of the laft proposal, which was,

"

IV. Whether

(a) Craft and diffimulation are here defcribed as destruc tive weapons in the hand of our grand adversary, in which he placed his chief hopes of fuccefs. The danger, weakness, and ruin of our firft parents arofe, if not from too great confidence in their own ftrength, yet at leaft from not fufpecting the baneful views of the tempter; therefore Satan accosts them in fuch a guise as might beft cover his defign, induce them to turn away their eye from God, and confent to a parley with a too potent enemy.-May this teach us, who are by nature infinitely weaker than they were, to look to the trong for ftrength, and apply inceffantly to the God of all grace, by prayer; which as we fhall find it a fource of new ftrength, fo it will be a certain forerunner of victory: "Pray without ceafing," fhould be the chriftian's motto, engraved upon his shield of faith,

IV. Whether they had not beft to give out orders to fome of their company, to fhoot fome one or more of the principal of the townfmen; if they judge that their caufe might be promoted thereby.

fiftance.

This was carried in the affirmative; and the man that was defigned by this ftratagem to be destroyed, was one Mr. Refiftance, (a) otherwife called Captain ReOf captain Refiftance, and a great man in Manfoul this captain Refiftance was; and a man that the giant Diabolus, and his band, more feared, than they feared the whole town of Manfoul befides. Now who should be the actor to do the murder; that was the next: and they appointed one Tifiphone, (b) a fury of the lake, to do it. They thus having ended the council of war, rose up, and affayed to do as they had The refult of determined: they marched towards Manfoul, but all in a manner invifible, fave only one; nor did he approach the town in his own likenefs, but under the fhape and in the body of the dragon.

their council.

So

(a) OBSTA PRINCIPIIS, withstand the beginnings,' is a wife maxim among physicians; because it is much easier to nip a diforder in the bud, than to remove it when it has taken root in the conftitution. This rule is not less useful in fpiritual concerns: Had Eve refifted with abhorrence the first fuggeftion of the tempter, she would undoubtedly have repulfed him, and retained her integrity.. In like manner,

for our better fecurity, we are exhorted to refift the devil, and he will flee from us, James iv. 7. Satan is a coward, when manfully refifted; but grows bolder, and the tempted foul weaker, by yielding. But a victory cannot be obtained, unless we be strong in the LORD, and go forth in the power of his might, Eph. vi. 10. In our own ftrength, which is perfect weak nefs, we fhall be unequal to the combat; but in the strength of Chrift, the captain of our falvation, we fhall come off more than conquerors. The Lord give us watchful hearts, and an earneft looking for grace and strength in every time of need, that, being ftedfast in the faith, we may be enabled to refift, and escape the fnares of the wickedone! 1 Pet. v. 9.

(b) Literally, the avenger of murder. In heathen mythology, one of the furies, whofe head was said to be covered with fnakes inftead of hair.