An exposition of the Lords Prayer made in diuers lectures, and now drawne into questions and answers for the greater benefite of the simpler sort: whereunto is prefixed a briefe treatise of prayer for all men. Published at the request of diuers godly and well disposed: by W. B. minister of the Word at Reading in Barkshire.

Of Sathans tempting.

Q. HOwe proue you that Sathan tempteth any man to euill?

A. I proue it two waies:

• 1. By the testimonie of the worde of God, as in 1. Peter 5. 8. 1. Iohn 3. 8. Iohn 8. 44.
• 2. By his owne confession in Iob. 1. 7. 8. for when the Lorde asked him from whence he came, hee saide that he came from compassing the ear••h.

Q. What doth he meane by compas∣sing the earth?

A. Hee meaneth that hee came from tempting the inhabitants of the earth.

Q. Why did not Sathan tell the Lord a lye, as Cain did, but tell the trueth so plainely?

A. Because hee knewe that it was in vaine for him to lie vnto God, for he knew that God knewe well enough where hee had beene.

Q. Seeing Sathan told the Lord the trueth, why doth he teach men to lye?

A. By that wee may see that carnall men doe not know so much of God as the verie diuell doth.

Q. But why will the Diuell teach his schollers to doe worse then hee will doe himselfe?

A. That hee might bring them (if it were possible) into a worse plight then he is in himselfe.

Q. Where doth Sathan tempt men?

A. In all places.

Q. What in Temples, and Chur∣ches, and at holy exercises?

A. Yea, there hee is most busie, both at the exercises of prayer and preaching, and when they be done.

Q. What is his drift at the time of holy exercises?

A. His purpose is to compasse mens eyes with shewes, and their eares with soundes, and their sences with sleepe, and their thoughts with fancies, and all to hin∣der them from hearing.

Q. What if hee cannot preuaile that way? what doth he then?

A. Then, when wee are gone hee will compasse vs with business, and cares, and pleasures, and quarrels, either to make vs forget that we heard, or els to contemn it.

Q. Papists teach men that the diuell is afraid of holy water, and holy bread, and holy candles, and hallowed bels, & the name of Iesus, and the signe of the

crosse, and that these things will driue him away, what thinke you of that?

A. The diuell inuented those weapons himselfe for the Papistes to fight withall, because hee knew that they could neuer hurt him with them, but themselues.

Q. No? is not the diuell afraide of the name of Iesus?

A. If the diuell were afraid of the name of Iesus, hee would not haue tempted the Lorde Iesus himselfe: and how little the diuell feared the name of Iesus appeareth more largely and fully in Act. 19. 13. 14. 15. 16. by those vagabonds which tooke vpon them to vse his name without any lawfull calling.

Q. What say you to the signe of the crosse, or a crucifixe, is not the diuell a∣fraide of that?

A. No, for hee did helpe to set vp the crosse, and to naile Christ vpon the crosse.

Q. What say you to the holy water, and holy bels, &c.

A. They bee but childish toies, and strawes to fight withall instead of speares: for when the diuel depriued the Papists of true prayer, and the powerfull preaching

of the worde, he gaue them those bables to play withall, and made them beleeue that he was afraid of them.

Q. Whom doth the diuell tempt?

A. All men in generall, both the elect and reprobate.

Q. But is hée not more busie with some, then with other some?

A. Yes, his chiefest desire is to sifte the godly, as his desire was to sifte Peter, and his greatest malice is against the best men in the world, Luk. 22. 31.

Q. Why doth he not desire aswell to sifte the wicked?

A. Hee needeth not, for hee hath them already at commandment.

Q. How can Sathan tēpt al the world to sinne, seeing they be so many?

A. There be armies and multitudes of diuels and wicked spirits in all places, and these doe all conspire together the destru∣ction of mens soules.

Q. But how doe they know all men, and all mens affaires?

A. They are neuer at rest, but night and day doe labour, and one certifieth a∣nother most nimbly and liuely.

Q. But how can they knowe euery mans nature?

A. By obseruing their maners, and their customes, & their complexions, and their companie, &c.

Q. Doth the diuel know the thoughts of the heart?

A. No, that is proper to GOD one∣ly,* 1.1 who is called the searcher of the heart: but the diuell doth coniecture of mens thoughts by outward signes.

Q. Shew how that may be?

A. By his owne long experience of the worlde, he knoweth many thinges: for he is the oldest, and the greatest politique in the world.

2. By the words of a mans mouth, he can giue a gesse what is in mans heart, be∣cause he knoweth that it is written: Out of the aboundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, Mat. 12.

3. He obserueth what euery man doth most busie himselfe about, and by the out∣warde fruite hee iudgeth of the inwarde roote which is in the heart, and when hee knoweth the heart, he infecteth it, that it may bring forth eu••llactions.

Q. Doth Sathan tempt al men alike?

A. No, not so, but hee marketh how euery man is enclined, what hee loueth, what he hateth, what he feareth, and what wantes, and when hee hath found him then he fits him.

Q. How doth he fit them?

A. He prouideth for euery one accor∣ding to his humour. The tyrant shal not wāt flatterers, the wanton shal not want a mate, the Vsurer shall not want a broker, the theefe shall not want a receiuer, he is a factor betweene the merchant and mer∣cer, hee is a makebate betweene the man and his wife: he is a talebearer betweene neighbour, and neighbour.

Q. Hath hee but one sute or shifte for one man.

A. Yes, the diuels riches is in baites, whereof he hath great varietie and store.

Q. As how, for example?

A. For euery one that will sweare hee hath a packe full of othes: for euery one that will deceiue, hee hath a packe full of lies: for euery one that will dissemble, he hath a packe full of excuses.

Q. Hath hee but one may to compasse

one and the same man?

A. Yes, he hath many waies & sleights to deceiue one man withall.

Q. Shew how hee dealeth with one and the same man.

A. If hee cannot compasse him with I∣dolatrie, nor adulterie, nor theft, nor any grosse sinne, then he will see if he can poi∣son him with vaine glory, if not with care∣lesnes, then with distrust: if not with de∣spaire, then with presumption: if he can∣not keepe men in poperie, then hee will draw them to be Atheists, or libertines, or Neuters, or Protestantes at large, as the time serueth: if he see any desire reforma∣tion, he will labour to drawe them from the Church by schisme and separation, and he is alwayes in his extremities, either going too farre, or comming too short.

Q. Will the diuell be willing that a∣ny should embrace religion?

A. Yea that he is, for he hopeth there∣by to giue them the greater fall (except God by his grace do mightily keep men) especially inconstant men hee will per∣swade to become religious, but he hopeth afterwarde by one meanes or other to

make them Apostataes, and blacksliders from the truth.

Q. Dooth the diuell neuer cease from tempting one man?

A. Yes, sometime he will leaue a man, as it is said,* 1.2 hee left the Lord Iesus, that is, for a season.

Q. What? is his malice then at an ••nde?

A. No, but he doth it onely in poli∣cie, to bring the heart asleepe, and to make men secure, that hee may come vp∣on them afterward with greater force when they mistrust nothing, as the chil∣dren of Dan came vpon the people of La∣ish, and destroyed them when they were quiet and mistrusted nothing, Iudg. 18. 27.

Q. How doth he set vpon a man when he comes againe?

A. Where he seeth a man most careles, or most weake, there he makes the assault, like souldiers that inuade a castell.

Q. How may a man knowe that Sa∣than hath béen with him?

A. If God shoulde make vs see our countrey naked, our temples desolate, our cities ruined, and our houses spoyled, we

would say, the Spaniards haue been here: so when wee see our mindes corrupted, our hearts hardened, our willes peruerted, our charitie cooled, our rulers persecu∣tors, our lawyers brablers, our patrons sy∣monists, our pastours loyterers, and our people obstinate, wee may say the diuell hath been here, and so he hath indeed, for these be his foot steps, and surely, in euery place where he comes (like a foggy mist) he leaueth an euill fauour behinde him.

Q. Why dooth Sathan séeke to bring men to a custome in sinne?

A. That he may the more easily drawe men to hardnes of heart, and so to impeni∣tencie, Rom. 2. 4. 5.

Q. Dooth the diuell preuaile against all that he tempteth?

A. No, for although God suffereth Sa∣than to tempt, and to vexe, yea and often∣times to torment his children, yet he doth not suffer him to destroy them.

Q. But would Sathan destroy vs if he might be suffered?

A. Yea surely, that hee would, and not leaue one aliue.

Q. How proue you that?

A. By the scripture: 1. Pet. 5. 8. for which cause hee is also called by these names following, a lyar, a deceiuer, a temp∣ter, an accuser, a deuourer, a murtherer, an aduersarie, a viper, a lyon, a dragon, a wolfe, a serpent, &c. by which names appeareth his vnspeakable malice against man.

Q. The diuell neuer called himselfe by any of these names, did he?

A. No: for hee which is euill it selfe doth shun the name of euill, because he would not be hated.

Q. Thats a trick of the diuell indéed, but I thinke no man will doe so but the diuell himselfe?

A. Yes, all the wicked and vngodly haue learned of their master the diuell, to call euill good, and would be counted ho∣nest, though they be neuer so lewd.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Ieve 17.
• * 1.2

  Luk. 4. 13.