The excellency of a gracious spirit Delivered in a treatise upon the 14. of…The excellency of a gracious spirit Deliuered in a treatise upon the 14. of…

3 The stream of times, and examples of men, are exceeding strong, and it is not a little matter that will carry on the soul against them. The dead fish is carried down the stream, though the wind serves to blow it up: all natural abilities of the soul, will no more help a man against the stream of examples, than the wind can carry the dead fish up the stream; but if there were life put into the fish, it were able then to move against the wind and stream too.

3 The streame of times, and examples of men, are exceeding strong, and it is not a little matter that will carry on the soule against them. The dead fish is carried down the streame, though the winde serves to blow it up: all naturall abilities of the soule, will no more helpe a man against the streame of examples, than the winde can carry the dead fish up the stream; but if there were life put into the fish, it were able then to move against the winde and streame too.

4 There are so many strong alluring temptations, where in the wiles, subtleties, depths of Satan, are very powerful to draw the heart away from God, that except there be some special work of Gods grace ⟨p. 417⟩to give wisdom to discern the deceits of sin, to make the soul spiritually subtle, to find out the cunning devices of Satan, and to discern the danger of them, the soul most certainly could never hold on in the way of its following after the Lord.

4 There are so many strong alluring temptations, where in the wiles, subtilties, depths of Satan, are very powerfull to draw the heart away from God, that except there bee some speciall worke of Gods grace ⟨p. 417⟩to give wisdome to discerne the deceits of sin, to make the soule spiritually subtill, to find out the cunning devices of Satan, and to discerne the danger of them, the soule most certainly could never hold on in the way of its following after the Lord.