First, He doth industriously prompt us to felf-devifed inventions, fuch as were never appointed or bleffed of God to any fuch ufe, but only found out by the bold fuperftitions of Men. Of this we have an inftance in Balack, who carried Baalam from place to place in his profecution of his defign of curfing Ifrael neither can we imagine that a commodious profpect of Ifrael was all he aimed Numb. 23. 27. at, seeing he discovers his mind in this variation of places, Peradventure it will pleafe God that thou maist curse them from thence; clearly implying, that he had a confidence that the place might contribute fomething to his defign, and that there was fome inNumb. 22. 41. herent vertue in thofe confecrated places, and therefore did he be23. 14.28. gin with the high Places of Baal, and then to the Field of ZoPlurimumfunt phim, and then to the top of Peor. Among the Papifts we find too much of this, what Power they Attribute to Holy-Water, locorum,hominum,& jumen- Blessed-Salt, Sign of the Croß, Hallowed-Earth, Confecratrd Places, torum, verba Reliques, Baptized-Bells, Exorcifms, and abundance of fuch Stuff, may be seen in many of their Writings, too tedious to be related.

præfervativa

tituli trium

phalis noftri
Salvatoris,
dum fcilicet per

quatuor partes loci,in modum crucis infcribuntur Jefus + Nazarenus + Rex + Judeorumt,Ritibus Ecclefiæ fervatis & veneratis, ut aquæ benedictæ afperafionem per falis confeqati fumptionem & candelarum in die Purificationis & frondium in die palmarum confecratorum ufum licitum vires 1)æmonis immuniunt, fe muniunt. Spreng. Malleus Maleficarum Part 2. Q. 1. licitum est aqua benedicta, quæcunque honefta loca, hominum & jumentorum, in Salvationem hominum & jumentorum afpergere. id. ibid.

Secondly, He is alfo willing that Men ufe thofe real defences and helps which God hath commanded, fo that they use them in a formal manner, which indeed deprives them of all the Life and Efficacy, that might be expected from an instituted means; thus he readily permits ignorant Perfons without any disturbance or moleftation, to use the repetition of the Lords-Prayer, Ten-Commandments and Creed, or any other Prayer, while they perfwade themselves, that the very faying of the words, is a fufficient defence against the Devil all that day.

The reafons of Satan's Policy in fuch Gratifications are thefe :

First, While we are kept doing with thefe, we are diverted from that which might be really helpful; he puts a broken Reed into our hand, that we might be deprived of a Staff. Experience confirms this, those that with greatest devotion use these empty In

ventions

ventions, are usually careless in the use of Gr's own Appoint

ments.

Secondly, Besides that he thus betrays them by thefe lying helps, he doth by this means caft them on a further iniquity, of idolizing thefe foolish Calves of their own invention. In this cafe Men have a presumptuous expectation from fuch ufages, of that which God hever promised to do by them, neither ever entred into his heart foto dos feeing he answers them all with this, Who hath required these things at your hands? And accordingly their Confciences are more concerned for the Omiffion of one of thefe Fooleries, than for the neglect of the greater things of the Law; fuch are more troubled for the neglect of the Sign of the Crofs or Holy-Water, than for their conftant carelesnes, and want of Faith,by which their Heart's fhould be guarded against their Enemy.

Thirdly, In the mean time, he makes work for his own Triumph over them, that dote upon these fottish Inventions. If we can fuppofe Satan to have Pleafure or Mirth at any thing, we may be fure he will laugh at fuch preparations, for a Spiritual Welfare; it being as truly ridiculous for any Man to go out with thefe Weapons against Satan, as for a Combatant to affail a Gyant, with a Paper-Helmet, a Wicker-Shield,and a Wooden-Daggar. And indeed when Satan counterfeits a Flight, or fear of fuch matters, (as for his advantage he sometimes doth, it is but in defign to beget or confirm in Men a confidence of a Vertue or ftrength in thefe ufages against his Powers that fo they may fix upon them to the neglect of God's own Inftitutions, which he most dreads. Thus we read, that he cunningly ceafed his Oracle at Daphne, upon a pretence of the filencing Power of the Bones of the Martyr Babilas, which were buried near the place; on purpose to lead unwary Chriftians to the adoration of Saints and their Reliques. Many fuch inftances we have in Sprenger of the Devils feigned Flight at the Mal. Malific. Sign of the Cross, the fprinkling of Holy-Water, the Angelical Part 11. Q.11. Salutation, St. Bernards Staff, or certain Words and Verfes hung cap. 1, 3. about the Neck, and a great deal of fuch stuff we may meet with in most of their Writers; all which are but cunning contrivances of Satan, to advance a belief of the vertue of these things, and fo to stop Men there, to the neglect of thofe Spiritual Weapons, which the Scripture recom

mends.

Thefe

Zozomen, Ecclef. Hift. l. 5.

cap. 18.

Thefe we have obferved from the place in general, the Holy City: Let us go on to the place in particular, where Satan acted all this; the Pinacle of the Temple. Various are the conjectures of Men about this, whether it were fome Fane, or the top of fome Spire, or the place whence the Apostle James was thrown down, or the top of the Kings Perch, which was erected to a great height, over a deep Valley, or fome Battlement, &c. But we are not concerned in fuch inquiries, only here I shall take notice of Scultetus, who fuppofing the place to be the top of a Fane or Spire, and reading in Jofephus, that the points of fuch Broaches were so sharp, that a Bird could not reft upon them, without piercing its Foot; was therefore willing to conclude, that these Temptations were not really, and hiftorically acted, but in Vifion only; all this ariseth from a wrong interpretation of Tepúgov, which our English renders Spanhem. dub. Pinacle, whereas it properly fignifies any Battlement, or Angular Evan in loc. prominency, jutting out over the reft like a Wing, which would afford a fufficient footing and fupport.

In Delic.
Evang.

Lightfoot
Harm, in loc.

'Tis more profitable to enquire after Satans Reafon for the choice of fuch a place; no queftion but it was upon design; for else he might with equal convenience, have tempted Chrift to caft himfelf down from fome Tree or Precipice in the Wilderness; but then what that defign was, is not so easy to determine, it seems plain, that he might fuppofe that Chrift might be the rather animated to the undertaking of flying in the Air,by the hopes of Glory, which might be expected from fuch a performance, before fo many Spectators. But fome think that he had a defign also upon the Men of Jerufalem, and intended fome delufion to the Jews, which I am not unwilling to clofe with, partly because the Experiences that we have of his devices, affure us that in one Temptation, his ends are oft manifold, and I cannot but think that Satan would make all things fure, and provide (in his projecting Mind) against allevents; for if Chrift fhould have yeilded and evidenced fo greata Power in the fight of all the People, it might have been a conviction general, that he was the Meffias, about that time univerfally expected; and partly I am ready to think fo, because (in cafe Christ had done fo) it lay fo fair, to confirm the Jews in a misapprehenfion of the perfonal coming of Elias, of whom they unDr. Kimchi. in derstood the Prophecy of Mal. 3. 1. Behold, I will fend my Messenger, and be hall prepare the way before me; and the Lord whom ye feek fhall fuddenly come to his Temple, even the Messenger of the Covenant.

Joc.

If the Jews expected Elias to come from Heaven to the Temple, how ftrongly would they have been confirmed in this opinion, if they had seen a Man fly from the Temple in the Air, and by this means John the Baptift (who was the Elias that was to come) fhould have been neglected, and Christ himself (though honoured as Elias) not owned for the Meffias.

Obferve then, That Satan's defigns are large, and that he projects Obs. 6. the enfnaring or deluding of others, by fuch Temptations, as feem only to concern thofe that are under the immediate trouble of them. He tempts Christ to caft himself down, and alfo by it (at least) intends a delufion to the Jews, he tempts one Man upon the back of another, one is tempted to Errour, another by that Mans Temptation, is tempted to Atheism, and rejecting of all Religion. One Man is tempted to Prophaneness, another is tempted by that to an uncharitable disrespect of him; 'tis Easy to multiply Inftances of this.

CHA P. XIV.

That prefumption was the chief defign of this Temptation. Of tempting to extreams. What prefumption is. The Several ways of prefuming. The frequency of this Temptation, in the generality of Profeffors, in Hypocrises, defparing Perfons, and in the Children of God. The reafons of Satans Industry in this Defign. His deceitful contrivance in bringing about this Šin. Prefervatives against it.

N

TExt to the preparation which Satan made for the fecond conflict, (already explained) the Temptation intended offers it felf to our view, which is this: Caft thy felf down. What Satan chiefly intended by it, we may collect from Chrift's answer, as well as from the thing it felf, for he thus replys; It is written,thou fhalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Chrift doth not use this Scripture to any fuch fenfe as this, that he should hereby prohibit Satan to

N

tempt

Obf. 7.

Joh. 13.9.

on.

tempt him, because he was Satan's Lord and God, but he mentions this Scripture as a rule of Obedience, as if he should fay, I may not caft my felf down, and fo rely on extraordinary help, Seeing I can go down another way, for the neglect of ordinary means, when we have them, is a tempting of God, which may not be done. So that it appears by this, that Satan here tempted Chrift to prefumptiThere is only this objection in our way; that Deut. 16. 16. (the place by Chrift cited refers to the Temptation of the Ifraelites in Maffah, mentioned Exod. 17.2. where they chide with Mofes for Water; and there it would feem their tempting the Lord, was rather in defpairing of his power and help, than prefuming in the neglect of the ordinary means. I Anfwer, though the occafion and matter of that Temptation be different from this of Chrift's, yet the presumptuous Experiment that they there made of God's Prefence and Power was the fame with this which Satan defigned: for ver. 7. (where the account of that tempting is given) 'tis said, because they tempted the Lord,faying,Is the Lord among us or not? they put it to this iffue, that the Being and Power of God fhould be tryed by the giving or not giving of Water. The manner then of that Temptation being fo agreeable to this, Chrift very pertinently applies that command to it, prefumption being the thing which Chrift was tempted to. It might occafion fome wonder in us to fee Satan take fuch ftrange fteps: He was before tempting him to defpair, now to prefumption,but 'tis no Argument of his lightness or uncertain roving in his way of tempting, but rather of his depth and fubtilty. Note then,

That 'tis Satans Policy in tempting, to run from one extream to another. The Corinthians were firft tempted to a finful complyance with the adulterous Person, and were averfe to his Excommunication; afterwards they were tempted to the contrary Severity, and were as backward to receive him again. The fame Men that have been overcome by Prodigality and Excefs; when they begin to fee the Evil of that,are oft tempted to Worldinefs or Covetousness,the contrary difpofition. Reasons of this Policy are,

Firft, The avoiding of one Extream gives the Soul fuch a swing, (if care be not used to prevent it) that they are caft more than half way upon the other. Peter in an Extream of Modefty, refufed the washing of his Feet by Chrift, but when he understood the danger, then he runs as far wrong another way, Not my Feet only, but my Hands and my Head. Thus fome are fo for purity of Churches

that