XI. The most Accomplished Dr. _Horneck_ inserts a most wise caution, in

his preface to this Narrative, saies he, _there is no Public Calamity, but some ill people, will serve themselves of the sad providence and make use of it for their own ends; as_ Thieves _when an house or town is on Fire, will steal what they can_. And he mentions a Remarkable Story of a young Woman, at _Stockholm_, in the year 1676, Who accused her own Mother of being a Witch; and swore positively, that she had carried her away in the Night; the poor Woman was burnt upon it: professing her innocency to the last. But tho' she had been an Ill Woman, yet it afterwards prov'd that she was not _such_ an one; for her Daughter came to the Judges [51] with hideous Lamentations, Confessing, That she had wronged her Mother, out of a wicked spite against her; whereupon the Judges gave order for her Execution too. But, so much of these things; and, now, _Lord, make these Labours of thy Servant, Profitable to thy People!_ [205]_Matter Omitted in the Trials._ NINETEEN Witches have been Executed at _New-England_, one of them was a Minister, and two Ministers more are Accus'd. There is a hundred Witches more in Prison, which broke Prison, and about two Hundred more are Accus'd, some Men of great Estates in _Boston_, have been accus'd for _Witchcraft_. Those Hundred now in Prison accus'd for Witches, were Committed by fifty of themselves being _Witches_, some of _Boston_, but most about _Salem_, and the Towns Adjacent. Mr. _Increase Mather_ has published a Book[206] about _Witchcraft_, occasioned by the late Trials of Witches, which will be speedily printed in _London_ by _John Dunton_. THE DEVIL DISCOVERED. 2 Cor. II. ii. _We are not Ignorant of His_ DEVICES. OUR Blessed Saviour has blessed us, with a counsil, as Wholsome and as Needful as any that can be given us, in Math. 26. 41. _Watch and Pray, that yee Enter not into Temptation._ As there is a Tempting _Flesh_, and a Tempting _World_, which would seduce us from Our Obedience to the Laws of God, so there is a Busy _Devil_, who is by way of Eminency called, _The Tempter;_ because by him, the Temptations of the _Flesh_ and the _World_ are managed. It is not _One Devil_ alone, that has Cunning or Power enough to apply the Multitudes of _Temptations_, whereby Mankind is daily diverted from the Service of God; No, the _High Places_ of Our Air, are Swarming full of those _Wicked Spirits_, whose Temptations trouble us; they are so many, that it seems no less than a _Legion_, or more than twelve thousands may be spared, for the Vexation of one miserable man. But because those Apostate Angels, are all _United_ under one Infernal Monarch, in the Designs of Mischief, 'tis in the Singular Number, that they are spoken of. Now, the _Devil_ whose Malice and Envy, prompts him to do what he can, that we may be as unhappy as himself, do's ordinarily use more _Fraud_ than _Force_, in his assaulting of us; he that assail'd our First Parents, in a _Serpent_, will still Act _Like a Serpent_, rather than a _Lion_, in prosecuting of his wicked purposes upon us, and for us to guard against the Wiles of the _Wicked One_, is one of the greatest cares, with which our God ha's charged us. We are all of us liable to various _Temptations_ every day, whereby if we are carried aside from the strait _Paths of Righteousness_, we get all sorts of wounds unto our selves. Of _Temptations_, I may say, as the Wise Man said, of _Mortality; there is no discharge from that war_. The _Devils_ fell hard upon both _Adams_, nor may [52] any among the Children of both, imagine to be excused. The _Son_ of God Himself, had this Dog of Hell, barking at Him; and much more may the Children of _Men_, look to be thus Visited; indeed, there is hardly any _Temptation_, but what is, _Common to Man_. When I was considering, how to spend one Hour in Raising a most Effectual and Profitable _Breastwork_, against the inroads of this Enemy, I perceived it would be done, by a short answer to this CASE. _What are those Usual Methods of_ Temptation, _with which the Powers of Darkness do assault the Children of Men?_ The _Corinthians_, having upon the Apostles Direction, Excommunicated one of their Society, who had married his Mother-in-law, & this, as it is thought, while his own Father was Living too; the Apostle encourages them to Re-admit that man, upon his very deep and sharp _Repentance_. He gives divers Reasons of his propounding this unto them; whereof one is, _Lest Satan should get advantage of them;_ for, had the man miscarried, under any Rigour of the Sentence continued upon him, after his _Repentance_, 'tis well if the Church itself had not quickly fallen to pieces thereupon; besure, the Success of the Gospel had been more than a little Incommoded. The Apostle upon this Occasion, intimates, That _Satan_ has his _Devices;_ by which word are meant, Artifices or Contrivances used for the _Deceiving_ of those that are Treated with them well, But what shall _we do_ that we may come to this _Corinthian Attainment, We are not Ignorant of Satan's Devices?_ [_Non cuivis homini Contingit!_] Truly, the Devil has _Mille Nocendi Artes;_ and it will be impossible for us, to run over all the _Stratagems_ and _Policies_ of our Adversary. I shall only attempt a few Observations upon the _Temptations_ of our Lord Jesus Christ: who was _Tempted in all things like unto us, except in our Sins_. When we read the _Temptations_ of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Fourth Chapter of _Matthew_ There, Thence, you will understand, what was once counted so difficult; Even, _The way of a Serpent upon the Rock_. There are certain Ancient and Famous _Methods_ which the Devil in his _Temptations_, does mostly accustome himself unto; which is not so much from any Barrenness, or Sluggishness in the Devil, but because he has had the Encouragement of a, _Probatum est_, upon those horrid Methods. How did the Devil assault the First _Adam?_ It was with Temptations drawn from _Pleasure_, and _Profit_, and _Honour_, which, as the Apostle notes, in 1 Joh. 2, 16. are, _All that is in the World_. [53] With the very same temptations it was, that he fell upon the Second _Adam_ too. Now, in those _Temptations_, you will see the more _Usual Methods_, whereby the _Devil_ would be Ensnaring of us; and I beseech you to attend unto the following Admonitions, as those _Warnings_ of God, which the Lives of your souls depend upon your taking of. There were especially Three _Remarkable_ Assaults of _Temptations_, which the _Devil_ it seems, visibly made upon our Lord; after he had been more invisibly for Forty dayes together _Tempting_ of that Holy One; and we may make a few distinct _Remarks_ upon them all. § The first of our Lords three Temptations is thus related, in Mat. 4, 3. _He was an Hungry; and when the Tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, Command that these Stones be made Bread._ From whence, take these _Remarks_.