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Well, notice being taken that a motion to sin is present, what follows but that the fancy or imagination of the soul taketh it home to it, and doth not only look upon it and behold it more narrowly, but begins to trick and trim up the sin to the pleasing of itself and of all the powers of the soul. That this is true is evident, because God findeth fault with the imagination as with that which lendeth to sin the first hand, and that giveth to it the first lift towards its being helped forward to act. "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth" (Gen. vi. 5, 12, 13); that is, many abominable actions were done; for all flesh had corrupted God's way upon the earth. But how came this to be so? Why, every imagination of the thoughts, or of the motions that were in the heart to sin, was evil, only evil, and that continually. The imagination of the thoughts was evil—that is, such as tended not to deaden or stifle, but such as tended to animate and forward the motions or thoughts of sin into action. Every imagination of the thoughts-that which is here called a thought, is by Paul to the Romans called a motion. Now the imagination should and would, had it been on God's side, so have conceived of this motion of and to sin, as to have presented it in all its features so ugly, so ill-favored, and so unreasonable a thing to the soul, that the soul should forthwith have let down the sluices, and pulled up the draw-bridge, put a stop with greatest defiance to the motion now under consideration; but the imagination being defiled, it presently, at the very first view or noise of the motion of sin, so acted as to forward the bringing the said motion or thought into act. So, then, the thought of sin, or motion thereto, is first of all entertained by the imagination and fancy of the soul, and thence conveyed to the rest of the powers of the soul, to be condemned, if the imagination be good; but to be helped forward to the act, if the imagination be evil. And thus the evil imagination helpeth the motion of and to sin towards.

the act, even by dressing of it up in that guise and habit that may best delude the understanding, judgment, and conscience; and that is done after this manner. Suppose a motion of sin to commit fornication, to swear, to steal, to act covetously, or the like, be propounded to the fancy and imagination; the imagination, if evil, presently dresseth up this motion in that garb that best suiteth with the nature of the sin. As if it be the lust of uncleanness, then is the motion to sin drest up in all the imaginable pleasurableness of that sin; if to covetousness, then is the sin drest up in the profits and honors that attend that sin; and so of theft and the like; but if the motion be to swear, hector, or the like, then is that motion drest up with valor and manliness; and so you may count of the rest of sinful motions; and thus being trimmed up like a Bartholomew baby, it is presented to all the rest of the powers of the soul, where with joint consent it is admired and embraced, to the firing and inflaming all the powers of the soul.

And hence it is that men are said to inflame themselves with their idols under every green tree, "and to be as fed horses, neighing after their neighbor's wife. Isaiah lvii. 5; Jer. v. 8. For the imagination is such a forcible power, that if it putteth forth itself to dress up and present a thing. to the soul, whether that thing be evil or good, the rest of the faculties cannot withstand it. Therefore when David prayed for the children of Israel, he said, "I have seen with joy thy people, which are present here to offer willingly unto thee;" that is, for preparations to build the temple. "O Lord God," saith he, "keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their hearts unto thee."1 Chron. xxix. 17, 18. He knew that as the imagination was prepared, so would the soul be moved, whether by evil or good; therefore as to this, he prays that their imagination might be engaged always with apprehensions of the beauteousness of the tem

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ple, that they might always, as now, offer willingly for its building. But,

3. As I said, when the imagination hath thus set forth sin to the rest of the faculties of the soul, they are presently entangled, and fall into a flame of love thereto; this being done, it follows that a purpose to pursue this motion, till it be brought into act, is the next thing that is resolved on. Thus Esau, after he had conceived of that profit that would accrue to him by murdering his brother, fell the next way into a resolve to spill Jacob's blood. And Rebecca sent for Jacob, and said unto him, "Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee." Gen. xxvii. 42; Jer. xlix. 30. Nor is this purpose to do an evil without its fruit, for he comforteth himself in his evil purpose: "Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee."

4. The purpose, therefore, being concluded, in the next place, the invention is diligently set to work to find out what means, methods, and ways will be thought best to bring this purpose into practice, and this motion to sin into action. Esau intended the death of his brother when his father was to to be carried to his grave. Gen. xxvii. 41. David purposed to make Uriah father his bastard child by making him drunk. 2 Sam. xi. 13. Amnon purposed to ravish Tamar, and the means that he invented to do it was by feigning himself sick. Absalom purposed to kill Amnon, and invented to do it at a feast. Judas purposed to sell Christ, and invented to betray him in the absence of the people. Luke xxii. 3-6. The Jews purposed to kill Paul, and invented to entreat the judge by a blandation to send for him, that they might murder him as he went. Acts xxiii. 12-15.

Thus you see how sin is, in the motion of it, handed through the soul-first, it comes into the fancy or imagination, by which it is so presented to the soul as to inflame it

with desire to bring it into act; so from this desire the soul proceedeth to a purpose of enjoying, and from a purpose of enjoying to inventing how, or by what means, it had best to attempt the accomplishment of it.

5. But, further, when the soul has thus far, by its wickedness, pursued the motion of sin to bring it into action, then it comes to the last thing—namely, to endeavor to take the opportunity which by the invention is judged most convenient. So to endeavors it goes till it has finished sin, and finished, in finishing that, its own fearful damnation. "Then lust, when it hath conceived, bringeth forth sin and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." James i. 15.

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And who knows, but God and the Soul, how many lets, hindrances, convictions, fears, frights, misgivings, and thoughts of the judgment of God, all this while are passing and repassing, turning and returning, over the face of the soul? how many times the soul is made to start, look back, and tremble, while it is pursuing the pleasure, profit, applause, or preferment, that sin promiseth, when finished, to yield unto the soul? For God is such a lover of the soul, that he seldom lets it go on in sin, but he cries to it by his word and providences-"Oh! do not this abominable thing that I hate!"—especially at first, until it shall have hardened itself, and so provoked him to give it up, in sin-revenging judgment, to its own ways and doings, which is the terriblest judgment under heaven. And this brings me to the third thing, which I now will speak of.

Thirdly, As the soul receives, retains, entertains, and wilily works to bring sin from the motion into act, so it abhorreth to be controlled and taken off this work. "My soul loathed them," says God; "and their soul also abhorred me." Zech. xi. 8. 'My soul loathed them, because they were so bad; and their souls abhorred me, because I am so good.' Sin, then, is the cause of the loss of the soul; because it hath set the soul, or rather, because the soul from love to

THE SOUL'S ENMITY AGAINST GOD.

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sin hath set itself, against God. "Woe unto their souls, for they have rewarded evil unto themselves." Isa. iii. 9.

That you may the better perceive that the Soul, through sin, hath set itself against God, I will propose, and speak briefly of these two things-the law and the gospel.

1. Of the law. God has given it for a rule of life, either as written in their nature, or as inserted in the holy Scriptures; I say, for a rule of life to all the children of men. But what have men done, or how have they carried it to this law of their Creator, let us see, and that from the mouth of God himself.

First, They have not hearkened unto my law. Jer. vi. 19. Secondly, They have forsaken my law. Jer. ix. 13. Thirdly, They have forsaken me, and not kept my law. Jer. xvi. 11.

Fourthly, They have not walked in my law, nor in my statutes. Jer. xliv. 10.

Fifthly, Her priests have violated my law. Ezek. xxii. 26. Sixthly, And, saith God, I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing. Hos. viii. 12.

Now whence should all this disobedience arise? Not from the unreasonableness of the commandment, but from the opposition that is lodged in the soul against God, and the enmity that it entertains against goodness. Hence the apostle speaks of the enmity, and says, that men are enemies in their minds (their souls), as is manifest by wicked works. Col. i. 21.

This, if men went no further, must needs be highly provoking to a just and holy God; yea, so highly offensive is it, that, to show the heat of his anger, he saith, "Indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil (and this is evil, with a witness), of the Jew first, and also of the Gentiles." Rom. ii. 8, 9. “That