The displaying of supposed witchcraft

by John Webster

Reas. 3.

3. Have there not been many thousands of true and faithful Martyrs, that have suffered and been condemned in many Ages, in many and several Countries, at many different and distinct times? And some of these have been condemned by such as were called and accounted General Councils, Parliaments, High-Courts of Justice, and other places of great Judicature, before Judges that were accounted wise, grave, and learned, and by Juries of honesty and understanding: were there therefore no true Martyrs, and were they all justly condemned and put to death? or is it absurd to be guilty of such incredulity, as to think and hold, that so many grave and wise Judges, and knowing Juries were deceived, and did unjustly? Let Mr. Glanvil or any other solve this Argument; and carry the cause; or else we must necessarily conclude, that opinio quæ à se non propellit absurda, per absurda non premit adversarium.

Now having given a full and satisfactory Answer to their main and strongest Objections, and defeated the whole force of their first and most furious Charge, we shall proceed to overthrow their main Battel, in proving the four Particulars mentioned in the beginning of the Chapter, to be false and impossible. And in doing of this, we shall handle the three first promiscuously and all together, and the fourth about Transubstantiations or Change of Witches into Cats, Hares, Dogs, Wolves, or the like, we shall handle by it self.

Eph. 2. 2.

2 Thess. 2. 4.

Luk. 22. 2.

Chrys. in Luc. 22. 3.

Joh. 13. 2.

1. And first we acknowledge an internal, mental, and spiritual League or Covenant betwixt the Devil and all wicked persons, such as are Thieves, Robbers, Murtherers, Impostors, and the like, whereby the temptations, suggestions, and allurements of Satan, spiritually darted, and cast into the mind, the persons so wrought upon, and prevailed withal, do assent and consent unto the motions and counsels of the evil Spirit, and so do make a League and Covenant with the said evil Spirit, as saith the Text: According to the Prince of the power of the air, that now worketh in the children of disobedience. He doth not only rule over them, but also worketh in them; for men are either the Temples of God, or the Temples of Satan and Antichrist, who sitteth in the Temple of God, and opposeth and exalteth himself above all that it called God or worshipped. Such a spiritual League or Covenant as this did Judas make with the Devil, whereby he agreed to betray his Master Christ. Then entred Satan into Judas: not that essentially or personally he entred into Judas, but that he put it into his heart, βεβληκότος, to betray him: which wrought so effectively in him in a spiritual manner, that he took up that Diabolical resolution to betray his innocent Master: and this was entring into a spiritual League with the Devil. For as Theophylact saith upon the place. Hoc enim significat, spospondit, hoc est, perfectam promissionem & pactum fecit. And another saith: In Judam Satanas intravit, non impellens, sed patulum inveniens ostium: nam oblitus omnium quæ viderat, ad solam avaritiam dirigebat intuitum. And again: Missio ista spiritualis suggestio est, & non fit per aurem, sed per cogitationem: diabolicæ enim suggestiones immittuntur, & humanis cogitationibus immiscentur.

2. We acknowledge that this spiritual League in some respects and in some persons may be, and is an explicit League, that is, the persons that enter into it, are or may be conscious of it, and know it to be so; for when a person resolves to murther, he cannot but know that he then maketh a League with the Devil, who was a Murtherer from the beginning. And it is manifest, that in this League, and in no other, were all the Priests that belonged to the Oracles, who knew well enough that the Idols or false Gods they worshipped, did give no answers at all, but the responsions given were only of their own devising and framing, to uphold their credit; and more colourably to cozen and deceive the people, they did pretend that they had answers from their Gods or Idols, and thus far the Devil was in all their impostures and jugglings. And so all the several sorts of the Diviners or Witches mentioned in the Old Testament, were under a spiritual League with the Devil, and did very well know, that what they did, was not by the finger of God, but either by the help of Art, Nature, Leger-de-main, Confederacy, or such like impostures and cheats: and yet they pretended, as did Simon Magus, and gave out that they were some great men, thereby to deceive others, when explicitly they plainly knew that themselves were but dissemblers and lyars, and that for gain, credit, and vain-glory they pretended to do those things, which they could never truly perform. And under this spiritual League, explicitly considered, are all our Figure-flingers contained, who take upon them (far beyond the Rules of the true Art) to declare where stollen Goods are, and to cause them to be brought back again, and many other such vain and lying matters, which they well know they have no power to perform, but that they willingly and knowingly take upon them to pretend to do these things for vain-glory and filthy lucre sake. And of this sort are all our pretending Conjurers, Diviners, Wizards, and those that take upon them to reveal things by looking in Crystals, Beryls, and the like, (of which we may perhaps speak more largely hereafter) that indeed know well enough they do but deceive and cheat others: of all which we could recite very lepid and apposite stories, certainly known unto us, or discovered by us; but Mr. Glanvil would account them but silly Legends and old Wives Fables, and therefore we shall supersede here, and leave them to a fitter place.