THE great pains you have taken for my Information and Satisfaction in those controverted points relating to Witchcraft, whether it attain the end or not, cannot require less than suitable acknowledgments and gratitude, especially considering you had no particular obligation of office to it, and when others, whose proper Province it was had declined it. It is a great truth, [that the many Heresies among the Christians (nor the lying Miracles, or Witchcrafts used by some to induce to the worship of Images, &c.) must not give a Mortal wound to Christianity or Truth;] but the great question in these con[78]troverted points still is, what is truth. And in this search being agreed in the Judge or Rule, there is great hopes of the Issue. That there are Witches is plain from that Rule of Truth, the Scriptures, which commands their punishment by Death. But what that Witchcraft is, or wherein it does consist is the whole difficulty. That head cited from Mr. Gaule,[93] and so well proved thereby (not denied by any) makes the work yet shorter; so that it is agreed to consist in a Malignity, &c. and seeking by a sign to seduce, &c. not excluding any other sorts or branches, when as well proved by that infallible Rule. That good Angels have appeared, is certain, tho that instance of those to Abraham may admit of a various construction; some Divines supposing them to be the Trinity, others that they were Men-messengers, as Judges ii. 1. and others that they were Angels; but tho this as I said might admit of a debate, yet I see no question of the Angel Gabriel's appearance, particularly to the B. Virgin; for tho the Angels are Spirits, and so not perceptible by our bodily Eyes without the appointment of the most high, yet he who made all things by his word in the Creation, can with a word speak things into Being. And whether the Angels did assume matter (or a Vehicle) and by that appear to the bodily Eye; or whether by the same word there were an Idea fram'd in the mind, which needed no Vehicle to represent them to the Intellects, is with the All-wise, and not for me to dispute. If we poor shallow Mortals do not comprehend the manner how, that argues only our weakness. Two other times did this glorious Angel appear. Dan. viii. 16. Dan. ix. 21. The first of these times was in Vision, as by the text and context will appear. The second was the same as at the first; which being considered, as it will ascertain that Angels have appear'd; so that 'tis at the will of the Sender how they shall appear, whether to the bodily Eye, or Intellect only. Mat. i. 20. The appearance of the Angel to Joseph was in a Dream, and yet a real appearance; so was there a real appearance to the Apostle, but whether in the body or out of the body he could not tell; and that they are sent and come not of their own motion. Luke i. 26. And in the sixth Month the Angel Gabriel was sent from God. Dan. ix. 23. At the beginning of thy supplication the commandment came forth, and I am come, v. 21. Being caused to fly swiftly, &c. but from these places may be set down as undoubted truths or conclusions,
1. That the glorious Angels have their Mission and Commission from the most high.
2. That without this they cannot appear to mankind. And from these two will necessarily flow a third.
3. That if the glorious Angels have not that power to go till commissioned, or to appear to Mortals, then not the fallen Angels; who are held in Chains of darkness, to the Judgment of the great day. Therefore to argue, that because the good Angels have appeared, the evil may or can, is to me as if—[79] because the dead have been raised to life by Holy Prophets, therefore Men, wicked Men can raise the dead. As the sufferings, so the temptations of our Saviour were (in degree) beyond those common to Man; he being the second Adam, or publick head, the strongest assaults were now improved; and we read that he was tempted, that he might be able to succour those that are tempted, as also that he was led of the Spirit into the Wilderness, that he might be tempted, &c. But how the tempter appeared to him who was God Omniscient; whether to the bodily Eye or to the Intellect, is as far beyond my cognizance as for a blind Man to judge of Colours. But from the whole set down this fourth conclusion,
4. That when the Almighty free Agent has a work to bring about for his own glory, or Man's good; he can Imploy not only Blessed Angels, but the evil ones in it, as 2 Cor. xii. 7. And lest I should be exalted above measure, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the Messenger of Satan to buffet me. 1. Sam. 10. xiv, xv, xxiii. An evil Spirit from the Lord troubled him. It is a great truth, we understand little, very little, and that in common things, how much less then in spirituals, such as are above humane cognizance. But tho' upon the strictest Scrutiny in some natural things, we can only discover our own Ignorance, yet we must not hence deny what we do know, or suffer a Rape to be committed upon our Reason and Senses in the Dark; and say that the Devil by his ordinary Power can act a Vehicle (i. e.) some matter distinct from himself, who is wholly a Spirit, and yet this matter not to be felt nor heard, and at the same time to be seen; or may be felt, and not heard nor seen, &c. seems to me to be a Chimera, invented at first to puzzle the belief of reasonable Creatures, and since Calculated to a Roman Latitude, to uphold the Doctrine of Transubstantiation; who teach, that under the Accidents of Bread, is contained the Body of our Saviour, his humane Body, as long, and as broad, &c. for here the Power of the Almighty must not be confined to be less than the Devil's, and 'tis he that has said, hoc est meum Corpus. As to the consent of almost all Ages, I meddle not now with it, but come to the fifth Conclusion.
5. That when the Divine Being will imploy the Agency of Evil Spirits for any service, 'tis with him the manner how they shall exhibit themselves, whether to the bodily Eye, or Intellect only; and whether it shall be more or less formidable—To deny these three last were to make the Devil an Independent Power and consequently a God. As to the nature of possessions by Evil Spirits, for the better understanding of it, it may be needful to compare it with its contraries; and to instance in Samson, of whom it was foretold, that he should begin to deliver Israel, and how was he inabled to this work? Judges xiii. 25. The Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times in the Camp, &c. ch. xv. 13, 14. v. and they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock, and when they came to Lehi, [80] the Philistines shouted against him, and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his Arms became as Flax, that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from his hands, &c. I might instance further, but this may suffice to show that he had more than a natural strength, as also whence his strength was, viz. he was impowered by the Spirit from God. And now will any say, that it was not Samson, but the Spirit that did these things, or that there being things done, bonds broken, &c. by a force that could not proceed from human strength, and that therefore the Spirit entered into him otherwise qualified than as meer Spirit; or that the Spirit entered not without some Portion of Matter, and by the Intermediation thereof acted Samson's body. If any say this and more too, this doth not alter the truth, which remains, viz. that the Spirit of God did inable Samson to the doing of things beyond his Natural strength. And now what remains but upon parity of Reason, to apply this to the case of Possession, which may be summ'd up in this sixth Conclusion.
6. That God for wise ends, only known to himself, may and has impowered Devils to Possess and strangely to act humane Bodies, even to the doing of things beyond the Natural strength of that body. And for any to tell of a Vehicle, or matter used in it, I must observe that General Rule, Colos. ii. 8. Beware lest any spoil you through Philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of Men, after the Rudiments of the World, and not after Christ. To come next to that of Witchcraft, and here taking that cited head of Mr. Gaul, to be uncontroverted, set it as a seventh Conclusion.
7. That Witchcraft consists in a maligning and oppugning the Word, Work and Worship of God, and seeking by any extraordinary sign to seduce any from it. Deut. xiii. 12. Matt. xxiv. 24. Acts xiii. 8. 10. 2 Tim. iii. 8. Do but mark well the places, and for this very property of thus opposing and perverting, they are all there concluded arrant and absolute Witches; and it will be easily granted, that the same that is call'd Witch, is call'd a false Christ, a false Prophet, and a Sorcerer, and that the terms are Synonimous; and that what the Witches aim at is, to seduce the People to seek after other Gods. But here the Question will be, whether the Witch do really do things strange in themselves, and beyond their natural course, and all this by a Power immediately from the Devil. In this inquiry, as we have nothing to do with unwritten verities, so but little with Cabalistick Learning, which might perhaps but lead us more astray, as in the Instance of their charging our Saviour with casting out Devils by Beelzebub, his Answer is, if Satan be divided against himself, his Kingdom hath an end: But seeing all are agreed, set this eighth Conclusion.
8. That God will not give his testimony to a lye. To say that God did at any time impower a Witch to work Wonders, to gain belief to the Doctrine of Devils, were with one breath to destroy root and branch of all revealed Re[81]ligion. And hence 'tis clear the Witch has no such wonder-working power from God; and must we then conclude she has such a Miraculous Power from the Devil; if so, then it follows that either God gives the Devil leave to impower the Witch to make use of this Seal, in order to deceive, or else that the Devil has this Power independent of himself;[94] to assert the first of these were in effect to say, that tho God will not give his testimony to a lye, yet that he may impower the Devil to set to God's own Seal, in order to deceive; and what were this but to overthrow all revealed Religion. The last if asserted must be to own the Devil to be an unconquered Enemy, and consequently a Sovereign Deity, and deserving much thanks, that he exerts his Power no more. Therefore in this Dilemma it is Wisdom for shallow Mortals to have recourse to their only guide, and impartially to inquire, whether the Witches really have such a Miraculous or Wonder-working Power? And 'tis remarkable that the Apostle, Gal. v. 20. reckons up Witchcraft among the Works of the flesh, which were it indeed a Wonder-working Power, received immediately from the Devil, and wholly beyond the Power of Nature; it were very improper to place it with Drunkennness, Murthers, Adulteries, &c. all manifest fleshly works. 'Tis also remarkable, that Witchcraft is generally in Scripture joined with spiritual Whordom, i. e. Idolatry. This thence will plainly appear to be the same, only pretending to a sign, in order to deceive, seems to be yet a further degree, and in this sense Manassah and Jezebel, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 6. 2 Kings ix. 22. used Witchcraft and Whoredoms, Nahum iii. 4. The Idolatrous City is called Mistress of Witchcrafts. But to instance in one place instead of many, that 2 Thes. ii. from the 3 to the 12 v. particularly 9 and 10 v. Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusions that they should believe a lye, that they all might be damned, who believe not the truth, &c. This, that then was spoken in the Prophesie of that man of Sin, that was to appear, how abundantly does History testifie the fulfilment of it; particularly to seduce to the Worship of Images: Have not the Images been made to move? to smile, &c. too tedious were it to mention the hundredth part of what undoubted History doth abundantly testifie. And hence do set down this nineth Conclusion.
9. That the Man of Sin, or Seducer, &c. makes use of lying wonders to the end to deceive, and that God in Righteous Judgment, may send strong delusions that they should believe a lye, that they might be damn'd, who believe not the truth, &c.