A treatise of original sin ... proving that it is, by pregnant texts of Scripture vindicated from false glosses / by Anthony Burgess.

¶. 1.

SOmething being already premised about the nature of the Affections, we shall in the next place consider the horrible and general depravation of them, and that originally.

First, The great pollution of them is evidently and palpably manifested in the do∣minion and tyranny they have over the understanding and will, which are the supe∣riour magistrates (as it were) in the soul. Thus the Sunne and Starres in the souls orbs are obscured and obnubilated by the misty vapours and fogs which arise from this dung-hill: A man doth now for the most part reason, believe and will according to his affections and passions; Aristotle observed this, That Prout quisque affectus est it a judicat, As every man is affected, so he judgeth; They are sinfull affections which make the erroneous and heretical judgements that are, they are sinfull affections, which make the rash, corrupt and uncharitable judge∣ments that are: Thus the vanity may be observed in the soul, which Solomon took notice of to be sometimes in the world, Princes go on foot, and servants ride on horsback; God did at first implant affections in us for great usefulness and ser∣viceableness, that thereby we might be more inflamed and quickned up in the ser∣vice

of God; They were appointed to be hand-maidens to the rational powers of the soul, but now they are become Hagars to this Sarab, yea they are become like Antichrist, for they lift themselves up above all that is called God in the soul. The understanding and conscience is made to us, as God appointed Moses to Pharaoh, it is ordained as a god to us; but these passions will be exalted above it, and so man is led, not by reason, not by conscience, but by affections; This is the very reason, why either in matters of faith towards God, or in mat∣ters of transactions with men, our judgements are seldome partly and sincerely carried out to the truth, but some affection or other doth turn the balance in all things; Therefore as Abraham was to go out of his own Countrey, and so to worship God in a right manner: Thus if we would ever have a sound faith, a right judgement, we must come out of all affections that may prepossess us; What a wofull aggravation of our sinfull misery is this, that our affections should come thus boldly and set themselves in the throne of the soul, that they should bid us judge, and we judge, that they should bid us believe, and we believe? So that we most justly in a spiritual sense complain, as the Jews in a temporal one, Servants have ruled over us; Is not this a more troublesome judgement then that of the Aegyptians, when Frogs came croaking into their very chambers, or when vermine and lice assaulted them every where? But who it there by nature, that though he be tossed up and down by these storms and tem∣pests and ready to sink into hell, yet doth not lie fast asleep, not thinking he is ready to perish?