that paffion, and what may be effected in him by the influence of an invisible spirit.

In chap. i. 14, 15, the Apostle hath given a very plain account of what are the inward natural caufes in every man, of his being tempted, i. e. when he is drawn away of his own luft, and enticed. Then when luft hath conceived, it bringeth forth fin. This is fo entirely correfpondent to the natural and univerfal experience of every man, that I should judge it will be admitted is not only justly founded, but fo far as men really know what paffes within themselves, is the original, inward, and true cause of their being tempted to fin.

The Apostle John, in his 1 Epiftle iii. 8. 10, faith, He that committeth fin is of the Devil, for the Devil finneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifefted that he might destroy the works of the Devil. In this the children of God are manifeft, and the children of the Devil. Whoever doth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. Understanding thefe words literally and without limitation, and comparing them with chap. v. 18, 19, fome may be ready to fuppofe he believed and has afferted, that every wicked action men commit, originates from the influence or devices of the Devil in their heart, and that Jefus was fent to deftroy his power in them, or his work manifeft in their conduct.

The Apoftle faith of Cain, verfe 12, he was of that wicked one, or one of the children of the Devil; as v. 10. who flew his brother, or did not love him, and wherefore flew he him, becaufe his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous. These words may affift us in explaining those under confideration, and the laft cited text; for he himself has here affigned the real and true cause from

H

from whence Cain was excited to commit that wicked action. And this perfectly agrees with what is related in Gen. iv. 4, &c. where it is faid, The Lord had refpe&t unto Abel, and to his offering; but unto Cain and his offering he had not respect, and Cain was very wrath, and his countenance fell. To whom the Lord faid, Why art thou wrath, and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doft well fhalt thou not be accepted; and if thou doft not well, fin lieth at the door. Under this state of Cain's mind, and his fuffering his wrath to overcome his reason, and his not being influenced by what the Lord faid to him, it is manifeft he was excited to kill his brother; or, in the words of the Apostle James, juft cited, He was tempted being drawn away by his own luft, and enticed and when luft had conceived, it brought forth fin. In the above chapter it is indisputable that there is not the leaft intimation of Cain's being tempted to that action by the inftigation of the Devil, as a fallen angel, as was noted. The Apostle hath affigned the true caufe of his flaying his brother, which coincides with what is related in Genefis. Seeing then he speaks of Cain as of that wicked one, or one of the children of the Devil, though it doth in the laft appear from Genefis, nor his own words, that he was excited to it by him, but by his own wrath against his brother. Why fhould it be believed he attributes his fin, or that of all other men, to the wicked one, or the Devil. By either of those words one would therefore rather be led to belive the Apostle intends an adverfary like as was that to Cain, i. e. mens unfubdued paffions, or defires; and on that account he calls them the children of the Devil, or of the wicked one; and from mens having been influenced thereby, the world laid in wickedness, correspondent

to

to which the Apostle fpeaks of the Gentile world, Ephef. v. 6. Col. iii. 6. That they were the childred of difobedience. Or to the Theffalonians,

they were children of the night, and of darkness; or, in our Lord's words to the unbelieving Jews, That they were the children of those men who in ages paft killed the prophets. Compare what hath been obferved with Rom. vi. in which chapter the Apostle attributes the wickedness of the Heathen world to a like adversary that led Cain to flay his brother, i. e. they yielded their members or paffions as inftruments of unrighteousness unto fin; or by obeying the lufts of their mortal body, fin reigned in and over them. To reform men from their fins which arofe from thofe caufes, as their adversary was one of the primary ends and purpofes for which the Son of God was manifefted that he might destroy those works; or, in the words of the Apostle John, the works of the Devil.

That which will much illuftrate what I have obferved, are the exhortations of the Apostle Paul to those in whom Chrift, by his minifters, had destroyed their wicked works. And the whole of it is comprehended in the last cited chapter. To whom he faith, Let not fin reign in your mortal body, that ye fhould obey it in the lufts thereof, &c. and add, Ephef. v. 25, 26, 27. iv. 17-29. v. 3, &c. Col. iii. 5-10.

In further fupport and illuftration of the foregoing fcripture proofs and obfervations, fhewing it is at leaft highly probable, if not abfolutely certain, that the paffages I have quoted, are not to be understood, in the common acceptation, of the real existence of a fallen angel, and that he tempts men to fin, I will offer what the Apoftle faith, Gal. iv. 17. Rom. vii. 21, 22, 23, compared with vi. H 2

II-20.

11-20. In chap. vii. he clearly defcribes the Jews as finners under the law, wherein it is exceeding evident to me, he represents the inward man as confifting of two parts; one is, his reason and confcience; the other, his feveral paffions and appetites. The former are appointed by the Author of his being, to rule or govern the latter; and when they are not under its direction and control, they move and excite him to finful actions, in oppofition to his reafon and confcience. And he as plainly describes the inward struggle, or conflict between them; one as the law of his mind, and the other the law of his members; and that when the latter prevails over the former, he is brought into captivity to fin; or, in his own words, I find then a law, that when I would do good, evil is present with me; or, I fee a law in my members warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of fin, which is in my members; or, as he expreffes it in other words in the Galatians, The flesh lufteth, against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary the one to the other, fo that ye do not the things that ye would. The lufts of the flesh are particularly mentioned, Rom. i, 19, &c. Gal. v. 19,

20, 21.

I cannot avoid particularly observing, that in the fore-cited chapters the Apostle hath not even hinted that the members of the man who is captivated by fin, is excited or stirred up, or brought into that ftate by Satan, but entirely by his own ungoverned lufts, or inordinate defires warring against the law of his mind. And yet, I fhould think, it will be allowed to be natural to expect he would have mentioned this with the other caufes of it, especially confidering what he has particularly faid upon that fubject, had he been of the fame opinion with

most

moft men at this day, who attribute almost, if not all the fins which men commit, to the devices of Satan.

I fhall here fubjoin Mr. Farmer's explication of fome texts where the words Devil and Satan occur, and I will here produce feveral paffages from the New Teftament:-Have not I (faith Chrift) chofen you twelve, and one of you is a Devil?-He here refers to the traitor, who was not the chief of fallen angels, but one who acted the part of an enemy in betraying his mafter. Neither give place to the Devil; that is, give no occafion to the railer or flanderer to reproach your religion; which is the sense given of this paffage by Erasmus and others. A Bishop muft not be a novice, or a new convert, left, being lifted up with pride, he falls into the condemnation of the Devil, or calumniator. Moreover he muft have a good report of them that are without, left he fhould fall into reproach, and the fnare of the Devil, or the adverfary and the flanderer. It is hard to fay what peculiar advantage the Devil might derive from a Bishop's want of a good report of them that are without; but it is easy to fee that this would expofe him to the cenfure and to the ftratagems of the enemies of religion, who might try to fhame him out of those principles, which ferved only to reproach and condemn him. The term Devil, is ufed in the plural number, in the New Teftament, juft as Satan is in the Old; when it cannot refer to fallen angels. St. Paul, in two of his epiftles, forbids women to be Devils, rendered flanderers, and false accufers. 1 Tim. iii. 11. Titus ii. 3. In this sense it is ufed of men, 2 Tim, iii. 3, and rendered falfe accufers.

In the Epistle to the Corinthians, chap. v. 5, are these words refpecting the incestuous member

of