An exposition of the prophecy of Hosea begun in divers lectures upon the first…An exposition of the prophesie of Hosea begun in divers lectures vpon the first…

By being lively and active, we shall prevent abundance of temptations, that otherwise will befall us: a dead luskish spirit is liable to a thousand temptations: as when the honey is scalding hot and boiling, the flies will not come to it; when it is set in the window and grows cold, then the flies come to it: so when the spirits of men are boiling hot for God, Beelzebub the god of flies with his temptations, comes not then upon them, but when their spirits begin to cool, and grow dull and heavy, then comes Beelzebub, then comes all manner of temptation upon the soul. The breath that comes from life, we know it is warm breath, but artificial breath that is cold; the breath that comes from the body of a man, that's hot, but the breath that cometh from a pair of Bellows, that is cold, because it is artificial breath: so when men are cold in the services of God, it is to be feared that their breath in praying and other duties, it is but artificial breath, it is not the breath of life, if it were living, it would be warm. That was the reason why God would not have an ass offered him in the Law in sacrifice, but his neck must be broken, because the ass is a dull creature, God loves not dull creatures in his service.

By being lively and active, we shall prevent abundance of temptations, that otherwise will befallus: a dead luskish spirit is lyable to a thousand temptations: as when the honey is scalding hot and boyling, the flies will not come to it; when it is set in the window and grows cold, then the flies come to it: so when the spirits of men are boyling hot for God, Belzebub the god of flies with his temptations, comes not then upon them, but when their spirits begin to cool, and grow dull and heavy, then comes Belzebub, then comes all manner of temptation upon the soule. The breath that comes from life, we know it is warme breath, but artificiall breath that is cold; the breath that comes from the body of a man, that's hot, but the breath that cometh from a paire of Bellows, that is cold, because it is artificiall breath: so when men are cold in the services of God, it is to be feared that their breath in praying and other duties, it is but artificiall breath, it is not the breath of life, if it were living, it would be warm. That was the reason why God would not have an asse offered him in the Law in sacrifice, but his neck must be broken, because the asse is a dull creature, God loves not dull creatures in his service.