The Soul's Conflict with Itself

If those also of the younger sort, woul• ask of themselves, Why God should […] ¹have the flower and marrow of their age• and why they should give their strength t• the devil? It might a little take them off from the devils service. But sin• is a work of darkness, and therefore shuns not only the light of grace, b• even the light of reason. Yet sin s• dome wants a seeming reason, Men wi• not go to hell without a show of reason. B• ²such be sophistical fallacies, not reasons; and therefore sinners are said to play the sophisters with themselves Satan could not deceive us, unless we deceived our selves first, and are willingly deceived: wilful sinners are blind, because they put out the light of reason and so think God (like themselves) blind too; and therefore they are deservedly ³termed mad men and fools for, did they but make use of that spa• of reason, it would teach them to reason thus; I cannot give an account of […] ways to my self: what account shall I, […] can I give then, to the judge of all flesh […] it be long?

If those also of the younger sort, woul• aske of themselves, Why God should 〈…〉 ¹have the flower and marrow of their age• and why they should give their strength t• the devill? It might a little take them off from the devils service. But sin• is a worke of darknesse, and therefore shunnes not onely the light of grace, b even the light of reason. Yet sinne s dome wants a seeming reason, Men wi not goe to hell without a shew of reason. B