have been misunderstood though the ignorance and darkness of men's minds, to think that the soul or spirit of man doth not die, but slip out of the body; but to imagine that spirits may walk without bodies, or that any witch can raise any spirit without a body; and many other conceits that do arise out of the dark mind of man which have been grounded upon those Scripture words; therefore I have given the interpretation of all those places of Scripture that are of most concernment, and seem to bear such sense, as is generally conceived among professors of the Scriptures: so that whoever understands the interpretation, may receive great satisfaction in their minds in this point; so much for satisfaction of the understanding in heart, and for the discontent of the ignorant and dark minded people, who believe by tradition that their spirits do not die, but slide out of the body at the time of death; and if they have been evil and wicked livers, their spirits do walk afterwards and cannot be at rest. These conceits have been exceeding brief in the world heretofore, when people were in darkness, and so is still where the darkness of mind ruleth.

CHAP. XVI.

1

THERE is one thing more that would be necessary for the wise in heart to know, which the Scriptures speak of in several places; but I never heard any of the ministry tell what that satan is the Scriptures speak of, therefore I shall speak a word or two to shew what satan is, and so conclude. 1 Chron. xxi. 1. And satan stood up against Israel;' and Job i. 6. And satan came also among them;' and chap. xxi. 22. And the Lord said to satan, from whence comest thou? and God said to satan, hast thou considered my servant Job?' Ezek. iii. 1. ‘And satan standing at his right hand.' Mat. xxvi. 23. Get thee behind me satan.' Luke x. 18. 'I beheld satan as

lightening fall from heaven.

1 Chron. xxi. 1. And satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel. This satan that provoked David, it was the motions of reason in himself being lifted up in his own mind, in that he had overcome the children of Ammon, he thought to make nothing of the Philistines; therefore the thoughts of his heart moved him to number the people to know his strength. And this motion that did arise in his heart it was satan, it is called satan, because those motions proceed from the spirit or seed of reason in him. In 2 Sam. xxiv. 1. it is said, 'The anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel,' that is, the Lord suffered the motions of reason in David to be powerful and strong in him, that no arguments should dissuade him from it, but the people must be numbered; and this was that satan in David, and no spirit without him.

So Job i. 6. The sons of God came to present them

selves before the Lord, and satan came also among them.' To this I say, the book of Job is no Scripture, neither are men to build their faith upon it, because the book of Job was written before Moses, therefore no Scripture; for Moses his writing is the first foundation of Scripture. Yet this I do confess that Job was a good and faithful man; and because he was afflicted by satan, and satan is spoken of in several places of Scripture, yet none of them did declare what this satan is, therefore I shall declare now what that satan was, that came among the sons of God.

I declare, the sons of God they were the sons of Job, who feasted their three sisters, as you may read. They were called the sons of God, because they were that good and faithful man Job's sons; as the sons of Seth were called the sons of God, and they looked upon the daughters of men and saw that they were fair, Sc. as you may read in Genesis. Now that satan came amongst them when they presented themselves before the Lord, it was the spirit of reason in Job's seven sons, when they feasted their three sisters, they were moved in their minds, to voluptuousness, drunkenness, and lust, as the rest of the heathen were where they lived; so that they did wickedness in the absence of Job their father; and Job fearing in their wickedness his sons had cursed God in their hearts, as you may see in the verse before, so Job caused his sons to present themselves before the Lord and to worship the Lord, as it was the manner for Job to do in those times, and satan came with them, that is, the spirit of reason in his sons came with them, reasoning in themselves; why should their father Job reprove them. for their wickedness in their feasts; this was that satan that came amongst them, for he was in them and no other satan but what was within them.

And this is that satan that goeth, to and fro, in the

earth, to tempt and destroy those that are faithful: so that this spirit of reason, this satan, it goeth to and fro in the earth, to tempt and destroy the faithful.

It was that satan that did motion the Sabeans and Chaldeans to take away Job's oxen, and slay his servants as they were plowing, and fired the sheep, and burnt up Job's servants; and the Chaldeans came with a band of men seeing Job smitten and destroyed by the Sabeans; and they came with three bands of men and destroyed the Camels and the rest of his servants.

For this must be minded, that in those times there was no law to deliver or help the innocent, but he that had the strongest sword carried the day. And the Lord for trial of Job's faith and patience, and for a pattern for the ages to come, he suffered the spirit of unclean reason in the Sabeans and Chaldeans to go to and fro in the earth, to stir up their people to destroy Job and all his house and cattle.

Also God suffered the natural wind to blow down the house where Job's sons were feasting, and destroyed them according to the desire of the spirit of unclean reason in the Sabeans and Chaldeans. For the sons of Job were wicked children though called the sons of God.

And last of all the spirit of unclean reason in Job's wife, was that satan that tempted Job to curse God and die: so that there is no other spirit or satan without man but that satan spoken of in Job, it was the spirit of unclean reason in the minds of the Sabeans, Chaldeans, and in Job's wife and sons, that was the satan and no other.

And as for those disputes, God had with satan, and satan with God; it was nothing else but the motions of Job's heart passing through his troubled soul, the

seed of faith disputed in him for God, persuading him to be patient, and let that have its perfect work, and so hope did encrease in him, and the seed of reason, which was satan in him as well as in others, it pleaded against God, reasoning in him as if God did not do. well or justly by him, that had been so righteous in his life, one who never did no wrong to his neighbour, but always feared God; yet that God should suffer the wicked to destroy his cattle and servants, and suffer the wind to blow down his house, and destroy his children, and not only so, but suffer his body to break out with boils and blotches most loathsome, as if he had been the greatest sinner in the world; so that he thought that God dealt more cruelly with him than with any other creature. And further, he thought God dealt hardly with him, that he would neither take away his life that he might die out of this troubled mind and pains of body nor restore him to health. These and such like reasonings and thoughts passed through Job's troubled soul even from the spirit or seed of reason in him," which is the dispute of satan; for as the seed of faith in Job disputed for God, so did the seed of reason in Job dispute for satan; for there is no other satan but what is in man as I said before.

So in Zach. iii. 1. here Zachariah the prophet saw in a vision the redemption of the seed of faith by Christ under the type of Joshua the high priest, standing before the angel of the Lord, and satan standing at his right hand to resist him. This high priest was Christ clothed with filthy garments, when he became flesh, when on earth he appeared unto men to be clothed in filthy garments, being so mean and had not a place to lay his head, yet professed himself to be the Son of God, the high priest that should offer up himself for to save his people; for high priests in former times did appear to the people with rich and glorious garments; but this high priest doth appear to the seed of reason, to be