the World 3465. As for the Books of Moses they were in one entire Volume long before the Captivity and it is probable that the rest of the divinely inspired Psalms and Prophesies that were written before the Captivity were laid up with them After the Captivity the Jewish Historians relate that the great Synagogue of which Ezra was President and at which Haggai Zâ—chariah Malachi and Nehemiah assisted compiled the Books of the Old Testament as we have them now divided into three parts and as they continued in our Saviour's time who himself refers to the Old Testament as consisting of the Law of Moses the Prophets and the Psalms and of each of these three parts they appointed certain Sections to be read in their Synagogues every Sabbath day Now that their Collection contained the same Books the Old Testament now consists of 22 in number is clear from Josephus contra Appionem quoted by Eusebius That these Books were kept with a Religious care we have the celebrated Testimony of Philo the Jew who wrote a little after the Ascension of Christ who saith That a Jew would rather suffer an hundred Deaths than allow the least alteration in one Letter of the Law And Buxtorf tells us in his Comment Masoreth Of their particular care in numbring the very Letters of every Book In the next place our blessed Saviour's miracles were so numerous so openly performed and before so many thousand Spectators both of the Jews and other Nations of which many were his implacable Enemies who wanted neither Learning Subtilty nor Malice to have soon discover'd any fraudulent Practices and those Miracles being such as could not be perform'd by Men or Devils or any thing less than a supernatural and Almighty Power it being never known since the World was created that the Devil ever open'd the Eyes of those that were born blind or fed so many thousands of hungry Persons with five Loaves and a few small Fishes or with the speaking of two or three Words raise Men out of their Graves who had been dead and buried four days there will be lest no reasonable or plausible Pretext for any sceptical Unbeleiver to call in question his divine Power I do believe that the Devil is a Spirit of wonderfull knowledge and mighty power and able when ever God permits him to blind the Eyes of us Mortals and so to counterfeit real Miracles as for a while Pharaoh's Magicians did in appearance perform some of Moses's Miracles and that which is no small help to the performance of his Sorceries and Witchcrafts and other of his diabolical practices he has undoubtedly a perfect knowledge of the Sympathies Antipathies and secret vertues that are either in the Bodies of all sorts of Animals and Plants or else in Minerals and inanimate things which if they should be publickly known or divulged Humane Society would be very much confounded if not utterly destroyed Who can give a rational accout of Straws jumping to the jett Or the Dust of Iron to the Load-stone Or of the needles turning to the North. What reason can any Philosopher give why the bark of a Tree in Peru should be a ready Cure for a Fever or Ague Or why the Skin of an Eele or Snake should give present ease to the violent pain of the Cramp Or which is yet more wonderfull why a small bit of Wood being cut and taken at such a criticall hour or minute and being gently rubbed upon a fresh wound should immediately staunch the Blood though issuing forth with great violence and perform the Cure in a few hours space the Wound being only wrapt up close and kept warm without any chyrurgical Operations I my self have seen and practised many strange Experiments of other kinds which I think not at all convenient here to publish And look upon it as an effect of God's wonderful Providence Mercy and Goodness that the Books which Solomon wrote concerning Plants and Herbs were concealed from or at least not made common or publick in future Ages And that several Experiments which some later and learned Authors such as Paracelsus Agrippa and others have published to the World have either been misunderstood or not at all believed As for the Miracles done by Moses there are two things very considerable and worth our notice First though the Magicians by the Devil's assistance did in appearance turn the Rods into Serpents and Water into Blood and bring up Frogs upon the Land of Egypt yet it is manifest that they were in no wise able to undo Moses's Miracles or to remove any of the Ten Plagues which would certainly have been a most acceptable Service to K. Pharaoh who had so much a do to bring his hard and stubborn heart to intreat Moses to beseech the Lord his God for the speedy removal of the Frogs the Flies the Hail and the Locusts Again it is no less observable That the Magicians counterfeited no more than two or three of Moses's Miracles and when they attempted to proceed they were forced to desist and confess it was the power and Finger of God Neither was the Devil with all his Magick-Arts able to help them to produce so vile and despicable a Creature as a Lowse or to give them afterwards a Receipt to cure their Boils and Blains which Moses had fixt upon their bodies so that they were no longer in a condition to stand before Pharaoh and his Servants neither do we hear any more of their appearance in all those Transactions whereas Moses went on triumphantly with his Miracles till he had safely landed all the Israelites on the other side of the Red-Sea and left Pharaoh and all his Host overwhelmed with the returning Waters and become dead Carkasses Reflections If God should permit real Miracles to vouch diabolical Delusions or indeed suffer any of the Devil's Magick-Arts to stand in competition with his own Almighty works upon such extraordinary Occasions of either revealing or confirming any new Truth or Doctrine it would soon overthrow throw Christian Religion But we always find the contrary throughout the Holy Scriptures Pharaoh's Magicians were soon put to silence Their Rods were swallowed up by Aaron's Rod They were at a Non-plus in producing a Lowse and at last were forced to withdraw and disappear with shame and disgrace The priests of Baal though they cut and mangled their flesh with sharp knives and from morning to Evening made bitter Cries were not able to bring down Fire from Heaven upon their Altars The Sorcerer Elymas was by St. Paul struck blind at Salamis and St. Peter more than once publickly baffled the famous Sorcerer Simon Magus So that whatever was done by Pharaoh's Magicians which is one of the most remarkable Instances of the Devil's power and Enchantments or whatever was at any time after done by any of his Sorcerers does not in the least derogate from any of our blessed Saviour's Miracles or the Miracles afterwards performed by any of his Apostles or Disciples which
to all intents and purposes most spiteful and malicious O cruel Satan Was there not room enough for thee and all thy Infernal Crew to range up and down in the vast and wide Expanse without intruding so rudely and abruptly into Paradise O spiteful old Dragon What Wrong or Injury did our first Parents do to thee while they were dressing the Garden which their MAKER had so lately placed them in that thou shouldest invent so hellish a Stratagem and in Masquerade make so fatal an Address at once to rob them of their Innocence disturb their present Peace and disappoint them of their future Happiness Be therefore for ever accursed O Beelzebub Thou Prince of Devils and true Original of all Sin and Wickedness for thy malicious Practises to deceive all the Nations of the World for so many Thousand Years whenas thou canst not be ignorant but that the Sins of every Soul that thou has tempted be it Saved or be it Damned shall one Day be set to thy Accompt and add Degrees to thy Eternal Torment From all Evil and Mischief and from all the Crafts and Assaults of the Devil and all his Infernal Spirits Good Lord deliver us Now here I doubt not but that the ingenious Reader will expect I should insert some short Discourse concerning Blessed and Apostate Spirits and I could heartily wish I had a sufficient Knowledge of and Insight into those Mysteries to answer fully his desires But I am afraid on the one side that he would be very little satisfied with my Endeavours in case I should in imitation of a late learned Author try to squeeze a plausible Description of LOST PARADISE out of St. John's Vision in the Isle of Patmos and fancy to my self a formal and pitcht Battle upon a vast and wide Plain in the North part of Heaven fought between two mighty Hosts of Blessed and Revolted Spirits conducted and led up by mighty Arch-Angels for their Generals riding in Brazen Chariots drawn by foaming Steeds and clad with Adamantine Coats one of which was by a massy Sword cut down to the wast and stain'd with Angelick blood Where the one of these Armies dug up the Terrain of Heaven and with the Materials they there found made Powder Bullets and great Guns it is pity that Bombs were not in use when he wrote that Treatise and with them did great Execution upon their Enemies who in Revenge tore up great Mountains by the Roots and hurl'd them at their Heads with a great number of other Romantick Stories which is Ludere cum Sacris and much fitter for Poets and Painters who when they are got to the top of their Pâ—rnassus frame to themselves Idea's of what Chimera's or Goblins they please And on the other side I judge it altogether needless to make use of the Dark-Lanterns of Homer Ovid Virgil or any of the old Heathen Poets or to borrow the dim Tapers and blinking Lights of Plato Aristotle Seneca or any of those Half-Divine Philosophers or to be beholding to the School-men for their vain Distinctions and splitting of Hairs with their lame Definitions and Explanations of Obscurum per Obscurius Neither am I willing to tire my Reader with endless Quotations out of the Ancient Pious and Learned Fathers who were for the most part somewhat tender in delivering their Opinions about the Doctrin of Spirits but wisely waved the positive Determination of Questions relating to the Invisible World and those deep Mysteries of Incorporeal Beings as not to be fathom'd by the Line and Plummet of Human Understanding And therefore I shall content my self with what Light I can get from the Holy Scriptures and where those are either obscure or silent to be very cautious sober and modest 1. That there were are and ever shall be true and real Subsistencies of Good and Evil Angels the following Passages of Sacred Writ do plainly inform us viz. Before the Angels of God 12 Luke 8. He shall come with all his holy Angels 25 Matth. 31. If God spared not the Angels that sinned 2 Pet. 2. 4. The Angels that kept not their first Estate Jud. 6. The Angels came 4 Matth. 11. Out of whom went 7 Devils 8 Luke 2. Everlasting Fire Prepared for the Devil and his Angels 25 Matth. 41. But are as the Angels in Heaven 22 Matth. 30. 2. As concerning the Time when the Angels were Created it may be conjectured by comparing several Texts of Scripture and making the following Inference viz. The Sons of God and the Morning-Stars are put together and the Morning-Stars were made before the Earth Job 38. And the Earth was made three Days before the Stars in the Firmament Gen. 1. And consequently Morning Stars cannot be meant Stars of the Firmament Again by Stars are meant Angels 12 Rev. 4. And by the Heavenly Host are meant Angels 2 Luke 13. and 1 Kings 19. 21. And the Heavens and Heavenly Hosts are joined together 2 Gen. And the Heavens said to be Created the First Day Therefore it seems probable that the Sons of God otherwise the Morning-Stars or which is the same thing Angels or the Host of Heaven were created on the first of the Six Days in the Morning 3. That there were great Numbers of both Blessed and Apostate Angels we are assured from several Passages in the Old and New Testament More than 12 Legions or as some compute it 79992 Angels 26 Matth. 23. Thousand Thousands ministred unto him and Ten Thousand times Ten Thousand stood before him 7 Dan. 10. and 5 Rev. 11. An innumerable Company of Angels 12. Heb. 22. A multitude of the Heavenly Host 2 Luke 13. His Tail drew a Third part of the Stars of Heaven 12 Rev. 4. My Name is Legion for we are many 5 Mark 9. Now if Solomon who was LORD but of a very small Spot of the Terrestrial Globe which Globe is by us thought to be little more than a Point if compared with the Starry Firmament had so many Attendants What Number should we think a fit Retinue for the KING of KINGS and LORD of LORDS Myriades Myriadum will be too small a Summ And so will our ordinary Terms of Arithmetick and we must be forced to borrow some of the learned Commentator upon Archimedes his Arenarius and say Billions Trillions Quadrillions c. of blessed Angels to attend his Throne and to make up the Court of Heaven 4. That there were different Orders and Degrees of Good and Evil Spirits we have reason to believe from the following Texts viz. The great Prince Michael 12 Dan. 1. Beelzebub the Prince of Devils 11 Luke 15. The Prince of the Power of the Air 2 Ephes 2. The Voice of the Arch-Angel 2 Thess 4. 16. Thrones or Dominions Principalities or Powers 1 Coloss 16. Michael and his Angels and the Devil and his Angels 12 Rev. 3. 9. 5. That all the blessed Angels which attend God's Throne are Ministring Spirits and sometimes appeared in Humane shapes we find in the following Texts
the pious Examples of the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles and others of God's chosen Saints and Servants But above all of our blessed Saviour Jesus In the next place a great number of passionate and earnest Exhortations to incite us to fight manfully as valiant and good Souldiers under Christ's Banner all our Lives to which are annexed large Promises of spiritual Graces and Comforts to support us during our Pilgrimage in this Valley of Tears and after this painful Life ended Crowns of Glory and Everlasting Happiness with blessed Saints and Angels in the highest Heavens But on the other side to deter us from continuing in Sin and Disobedience we have in the last place not only Threats but also Examples of God's dreadful Judgments here in this Life upon wilful Offenders and the Vengeance of Eternal Fire denounced against all impenitent Sinners in the World to come with the Devil and his Angels Ejaculation and Prayer O blessed JESUS whose coming down from Heaven to take upon Thee our Nature for the Redemption of lost Sinners was the true foundation of the Holy Scriptures and of the Promises therein contained of Eternal Life and Happiness to all true Penitents and Believers Let therefore O Lord this holy Word of Thine be from henceforth a Lamp unto my feet and a Light unto my Paths And O that my ways were so directed that I might keep thy Statutes and never more turn aside unto lying Vanities Honnēni elohim keckhasdēkah kerov Rahamēka pheseangāi kerov kabbesseni mengavoui ou meckhatāti taharēni Have mercy upon me O God according to to thy loving Kindness according to the Multitude of thy tender Mercies do away my Offences wash me throughly from mine Iniquities and cleanse me from my Sin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Forsake me not O God in mine Old Age now that I am gray-headed and my Strength faileth me and the Light of mine Eyes is gone from me Now that I am as a Pelican in the Wilderness as an Owl in the Desert and as a Sparrow upon the House top Behold thou hast made my Days as an hand-breadth and mine Age is as nothing before Thee O spare me a little that I may recover my Strength before I go away from hence and be no more seen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In thee O Lord I have trusted let me never be confounded And here I crave leave before my Departure out of this World to leave behind me a friendly Caution to all young Gentlemen and Students to beware of a certain pernicious Treatise which does in effect make a Jest of the Holy Scriptures and turns Angels and Spirits into Phantasms and Heaven and Hell into meer Metaphors It is a Book that very well deserves a Noli me tangere or a Caveat Emptor to be stamped in Capital Letters upon its Cover I am very tender of naming the Author who now stands or falls to his own Master and hope that he made his Peace with Heaven by a sincere and hearty Repentance before he went from hence besides that Christian-Charity obliges me to make very soft and gentle steps over dead Men's Graves though at the same time Christian-piety prompts me to declare to all the World That had I the vanity to think my self equal to him both for Natural Parts and acquired Learning I would not have been the Writer and Publisher of such a Discourse to have gained the Wealth of both the Indies The Company of Stationers may do God and their Country very signal Service and possibly not at all impair thereby their private Fortunes if instead of applauding and vending that impious Treatise they would join together in buying up all the Copies and converting them to Ashes The Psalmist speaking of the vast and wide Ocean tells us of a Leviathan that God had made to play therein But sure I am that God could never be pleased that any Man should make a Leviathan here upon Earth to play with his Divine Attributes and Holy Scriptures This Treatise may not be improperly called the Authors 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or The Sinner's Common-Hall where all Persons concerned may be furnished at very easy Rates with new invented Mattocks Spades and all other Instruments and Utensils of politick Pioneers to undermine Civil and Church-Governments I must needs acknowledge That the Method of this Treatise is very pleasant the Stile elegant and the Expressions very proper and significant and is interlaced with specious Touches of Learning and that of divers kinds politely extracted and wittily digested but let me tell thee mi figliolo mi Jovane and timely forewarn thee Guardati d' aceto di vin dolce It is only to beguile the Readers and ere they are aware to lead them into Labyrinths and make them swallow down most pernicious Principles Thus the skilful Angler covers the fatal hook with a pleasant Bait and the cunning Fowler carefully hides the Snare from the unwary Bird. Thus the appearance of a Sepulchre is oft times very glorious when the inside is full of Rottenness dead Men's Bones and all Uncleanness Thus a lewd Strumpet being adorned with gay Cloths and set off with rich Jewels false Teeth Hair and Eye-brows and a painted Face seems beautiful to the beholders who if she did but once lay aside those Ornaments and Disguises would soon affright her most voluptuous Lovers and become a Soveraign Remedy for their incontinence Leviathan It is the Devil 's Alcoran Beware ingenious young Men There 's Death in the Pot There 's Poison in the Cup There 's a Snake in the Grass You are near the Hole of an Asp And the Den of a Cockatrice Leviathan It s the Author's imaginary Golden Image set up in the Year 52 in a place which he then lookt upon as the English Babylon whose height of Impudence was much more than thirty Cubits to which he did then really believe that both the Leaders and the Populace of those Times being wonderfully charm'd with his witty Fancies and pleasing Novelties would as readily fall down and do Obeisance as Nebuchadnezzar's Subjects did of old to his real Golden Image at the sound of the Sackbut Psaltery Dulcimer and other Musical Instruments Reflection How apt are frail Mortals on whom God has at any time bestowed some extraordinary Gifts of Nature to be transported with their own wild Fancies and to be drunk with the New Wine 't is what the Author calls his own Treatise of their vain and foolish Imaginations and then How ready is Satan at hand who too well knows their Nature and Constitutions their Tempers and Dispositions with their Inclinations and Infirmities to improve those humane Frailties and to push and drive them to all manner of extravagant Actions and presumptuous Undertakings Ejaculation King of Kings and Lord of Lords Who pullest down the Mighty from their Seats and exaltest the Humble and Meek whenever Pride and Vain-glory puffs us up and makes us become wise in our own Eyes Let the remembrance that we