weak. A blind horfe, of an high mettle, will carry the rider into any pit, and venture over the most dangerous precipices.

Such were the fuperftitious Jewish Zealots; they had a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. This xan, κακοζηλία, blind zeal, St Paul charges jufly upon the Jewish Bigots, Rom. x. 2. as the proper caufe of their dangerous errors about the great point of juftification; and furely no man understood the evil of it more than he, who in his unregenerate state, was tranfported by it to the moft furious perfecution of the faints, Acts xxvi. 11. and even to dotage, and extream fondness upon the erroneous traditions of his fathers, Gal. i. 14.

Blind zeal is a fword in a mad-man's hand. No perfecutor to a confcientious one, whofe erroneous confcience offers up the blood of the faints to the glory of God, John xvi. 2. The blind, but zealous Pharifees would compafs fea and land to make one profelyte, Matth. xxiii. 15. as our modern Pharifees, the Jefuifts, have fince done, who have mingled themselves with the remotest and most barbarous nations, to draw them to the Romish errors. Of the fame temper was the falfe teachers taxed by the apostle, Gal. iv. 17. they zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you (viz. from our fociety and ordinances) that you might affect them,

And as it is the great inftrument by which Satan propagates errors, fo it makes a fit temper in the fouls of the people to receive them: For, by this means error gains the poffeffion of the affections, without paffing a previous and due teft by the understanding, and fo gains the foul by the advantage of a furprize. Every thing, by how much the more weak and ignoble it is, by fo much the more it watcheth upon furpritals and advantages. Error cares not to endure the due examination, and test of reafon; and therefore feeks to gain by furprifal, what it defpairs of ever gaining by a plain and fair trial.

There be few Errorists in the world of Alexander's mind, who would rather lofe the day, than fleal the victory. Hence it comes to pass, that the greatest number of thofe they lead captives, are filly women, as the apoftie fpeaks, who are the most affecti onate, but leaft judicious, fex.

From this blind zeal it is, that they cunningly wind their erroneous opinions into all their difcourfes, where they have any hope to prevail. A rational and modeft contradiction puts, them into a flame, it breaks the nearest bonds of friendship and fociety.

Rabhekah in 2 Kings xviii. would not treat with Hezekiah's

counsellors of state, but with the common people upon the wall = And error cares not to treat with found reafon, able to fift it through the fcripture-fearch, but with the affections; as well knowing, it is in vain to make war in reason's territories without first gaining a party among the affections.

The remedies.

The best defenfatives against erroneous contagions, in this cafe, are to be found in the following particulars.

First Defenfative. Reflect feriously and fadly upon the manifold mifchiets occafioned every where, and in all ages of the world, by rafh zeal.

Revolve church-histories and you shall find, that fcarce any cruel perfecution hath flamed in the world, which hath not been kindled by blind zeal. Turn over all the records, both of Pagan and Popifh perfecutions, and you fhall ftill find thefe two obfervations confirmed and verified.

First, That ignorant zeal hath kindled the fires of persecution; and, Secondly, That the more zealous any have been for the ways of error and falfhood, ftill the more implacably fierce and cruel they have been to the fincere fervants of God. None like a fuperftitious devoto to manage the devil's work of perfccution thoroughly, and to purpofe. They'll rufh violently and head-long into the blood of their dearest relations, or moft eminent faints, to whofe fides the devil fets this fharp fpur. Superftitious zeal draws all the strength and power of the foul into that one defign; and woe to him that ftands in the way of fuch a man, if God interpose not betwixt him and the ftroke. It was a rational wish of him that faid, Liberet me Deus ab homine unius tantum negotii, God deliver me from a man of one orly defign.

Now confider, reader, if thy judgment be weak, and thy affections warm, how much thou lieft expofed, not only to errors which may ruin thyself, but alfo to tongue and handperfecution, wherein Satan may manage thy zeal for the injury or ruin of thofe that are better than thyself: And withal, con fider, how many dreadful threatenings are found in fcripture 2gainst the inftruments of perfecution, fo imployed and managed by Satan.

Certainly, reader, it were better for thee to ftand with thy paked breast before the mouth of a discharging cannon, than that thy foul should stand under this guilt, before fuch a fcripture-threatening as that, Pfal. vii. 13. "He hath also prepared for him the inftruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows

"against the perfecutors." And none more likely to become fuch, than those of thine own temper and complexion; especially if grace be wanting in the heart, whilft zeal for erroneous principles eats up the affections.

Second Defenfative. Confider what mifchief zeal for an error will do to thine own foul, as well as others.

It will wholly ingrofs thy time, thoughts, and strength: fo that if there be any gracious principle in thee, it fhall not be able to thrive and profper. For look as a fever takes off the natural appetite from food, fo will erroneous zeal take off thy fpiritual appetite from meditation, prayer, heart-examination, and all other the most neceffary, and nourishing duties of religion, by reafon whereof thy grace must languish.

When thy foul, with David's, fhould be filled and feafted, as with marrow and fatnefs, by delightful meditations of God upon thy bed, thou wilt be rolling in thy mind thy barren and infipid notions, which yield no food, or fpiritual ttrength to thy foul; thou wilt lie mufing how to diffolve the arguments, and objections against thine errors, when thou fhouldest rather be employed in folving the just and weighty objections that lie against thy fincerity, and intereft in Chrift, which were time far better improved.

Third Defenfative. Confider how baneful this inordinate zeal hath been to Chriftian fociety, lamentably defacing, and almoft diffolving it every where, to the unfpeakable detriment of the

churches.

We read, Mal. iii. 16. of a bleffed time, when they that feared the Lord fpake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him, for them that feared the Lord, and thought upon his name. Oh happy time! Halcyon days! I myself, remember the time, when the zeal of the faints fpent itself in provoking one another to love, and good works, in joint and fervent prayer, in inward, experimental, and edifying communion; my foul hath them ftill in remembrance, and is caft down within me for alas! alas! how do I fee every where Christian communion turned into vain janglings? Churches and families, into mere cockpits? Mens difcourfings falling as naturally into contentions about trifles, as they were wont to do into heavenly and experimental fubjects, to the unspeakable difgrace and damage of religion.

Fourth Defenfative. That opinion is juftly to be fufpected for erroneous, which comes in at the poftern-door of the affections; and not openly and fairly at the right gate of an enligh

tened and well-fatisfied judgment. It is a thief that cometh in at the back-door, at leaft ftrongly to be fufpected for one. Truth courts the mistress, makes its firft, and fairest addresses to the understanding. Error bribes the handmaid, and labours first to win the affections, that by their influence it may corrupt the judgment.

And thus you fee, befides the innocent occafion, viz. God's permiffion of errors in the world, for the trial of his people, nine proper caufes of errors found in the evil difpofitions of the minds of men, which prepare them to receive erroneous doc trines, and impreffions, viz.

1. A wrangling humour, at the pretended obscurity of Scrip

ture.

2. The abuse of that Chriflian liberty, purchased by Christ, 3. Slothfulness, in searching the whole word of God. 4. Fickleness, and inftability of judgment.

5. Eagerness after anodines, to eafe a diftreffed confcience. 6. An eafy credulity, in following the judgments, and examples of others.

7. Vain curiofity, and prying into unrevealed fecrets.

8. The pride and arrogancy of human reason.

9. Blind zeal, which ipurs on the foul, and runs it upon dangerous precipices;

We next come to confider the principal, impulfive caufe, by which errors are propagated, and diffeminated in the world.

Caufe 10. Come we next, in the proper order, to confider the principal, impulfive caufe of errors; which is SATAN, working upon the pre-difpofed matter he finds in the corrupt nature of man. The centurifts, fpeaking of the strange, and fudden growth of errors, and herefies, immediately after the planting of the gofpel by Chrift, and the apoftles, afcribe it to Satan.

Satan was a liar from the beginning, and abode not in the

*Which thing indeed, doth abundantly fhow that the malice of Satan is dreadful, who being conquered and overthrown by Chrift, hath nevertheless attempted to fully, rent, and almoft overturn his word, and the whole frame of religion, by horrible opinions and blafphemies. But we fhould have in view thefe monttrous inventions of this malignant fpirit, and, as it were, these first springs of many herefies, which afterwards increased in a wonderful manner, like rivers receiving others into them, &c. Hift. Magdeb. cent. 1. lib. 2. cap. 5. p. 368.

truth: He hates it with a deadly hatred, and all the children, and friends of truth. And this hatred he manifefteth fometimes by railing furious forms of perfecution against the fincere profeffors of it, Rev. iii. 10. and fometimes by clouds of herefies, and errors, with defign to darken it. In the former he acts as a roaring lion; in the latter as a fubtle ferpent, 2 Cor. xi. 5." I fear, left as the ferpent beguiled Eve through his fubtilty; fo your minds fhould be corrupted from the "fimplicity that is in Chrift."

He is exceeding fkilful, and dexterous in citing, and wresting the fcriptures to ferve his vile defigns and purposes; and as impudently daring, as he is crafty, and cunning; as appears in the hiftory of Chrift's temptation in the defart, Mat. iv. 6. where he cites one part of that promife, Pfal. xci. 11. and fuppreffeth the reft; shews the encouragement, viz. He fhall give his angels charge over thee; but clips off the limitation of it, viz. to keep thee in all thy ways: In viis, non in praecipitiis, In our lawful ways, not in rash, and dangerous precipices; as Bernard well gloffeth.

And 'tis worth obfervation, that he introduceth multitudes of errors into the world under the unfufpected notions of admirable prophylactics, and approved prefervatives from all mifchiefs, and dangers from himself. Under this notion, he hath neatly, and covertly flided into the world, holy-water croffings, reliques of faints, and almost innumerable other fu perftitious rites.

Erroneous teachers are the minifters of Satan, however they transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, 2 Cor. xi. 15. and the fubtle, dangerous errors they broach, are fitly ftiled by the Spirit of God, ra ban rov Zalavov, the depths of Satan, Rev. ii. 24, The corrupt teachers, the Gnoftics, &c. called them depths, i. e. great myfteries, high and marvellous attainments in knowledge; but the Spirit of God fits a very proper epithet to them. They are fatanical depths, and mysteries of iniquity. Now the level and defign of Satan herein, is double.

1

First, He aims at the ruin, and damnation of thofe that vent, and propagate them; upon which account the apostle calls them, apertis anwhs, 2 Pet. ii. 1. deftructive, or (as we render

* When Swinkfield fent his books to Luther, he told the meffenger, the devil was the author of them and the Lord rebuke thee, Satan, was the answer he returned to them,