A12198:107
The Soul's Conflict with Itself
The souls conflict with it self, and victory over it self by faith a treatise of the inward disquietments of distressed spirits, with comfortable remedies to establish them / by R. Sibbs ...The soules conflict with it selfe, and victory over it self by faith a treatise of the inward disquietments of distressed spirits, with comfortable remedies to establish them / by R. Sibbs ...
London: printed by M.F. for R. Dawlman, 1635
THE SOULS CONFLICT with it self. › Chapter 3THE SOVLES CONFLICT with it selfe. › Chapter 3
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
There is cause oft in the body of those in whom a melancholy temper prevaileth; darkness makes men fearful: Melancholy persons are in a perpetual darkness, all things seem ⟨p. 22⟩black and dark unto them, their spirits as it were dyed black. Now to him that is in darkness, all things seem black and dark, the sweetest comforts are not lightsome enough unto those that are deep in melancholy. It is (without great watchfulness) Satan's bath; which he abuseth as his own weapon to hurt the soul, which by reason of its sympathy with the body is subject to be missed, as we see where 1there is a suffusion of the eye by reason of distemper of humours, or where things are presented through a glass to the eye; things seem to be of the same colour: so, whatsoever is presented to a melancholy person, comes in a dark way to the soul. From whence it is that their fancy being corrupted, they 2judge amiss, even of outward things, as that they are sick of such and such a disease, or subject to such and such a danger, when it is nothing so; how fit are they then to judge of things removed from sense, as of their spiritual estate in Christ?
There is cause oft in the body of those in whom a melancholly temper prevaileth; darknesse makes men fearefull: Melancholly persons are in a perpetuall darknesse, all things seeme ⟨p. 22⟩blacke and darke unto them, their spirits as it were dyed blacke. Now to him that is in darknesse, all things seem black and dark, the sweetest comforts are not lightsome enough unto those that are deepe in melancholly. It is (without great watchfulnesse) Satans bath; which hee abuseth as his owne weapon to hurt the soule, which by reason of its sympahy with the body is subject to be missed, as we see where 1there is a suffusion of the eye by reason of distemper of humours, or where things are presented through a glasse to the eye; things seeme to be of the same colour: so, whatsoever is presented to a melancholly person, comes in a darke way to the soule. From whence it is that their fancy being corrupted, they