An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…An exposition with practicall observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…

Angels having no tempter without them, no flesh about them, turned themselves away from God, merely upon the freedom of their own wills. As every good action is by so much the better, by how much it hath a freer concurrence of our wills: so is every evil action so much the worse. The sin we commit is the greater, by how much we have had the less provocation to commit it. The sin of our first parents in eating the forbidden fruit, was aggravated in it self, because God gave them such plenty and variety of other fruits to eat: but it was lessened in comparison of the Angels sin, because they had more provocations to sin, then the Angels had. The bait of the temptation against our first parents, was laid in their constitution, which being corporal and earthly, must needs be delighted with earthly objects. The forbidden fruit was pleasant to the eye, there the flesh took it, And it was pleasant to the taste, there the flesh took it again. These provocations man had over and besides that of the Angels, a hope or a desire to mend his condition, and to become like unto God. A body of earth hath a suitableness to all earthly allurements. Every like hath a natural tendency and motion towards its like. This moves the Lord to pity sinful man, though man must not hence plead impunity for sin. The measure and degrees of sin upon such actings are abated, but the acts do not therefore put off the nature of sin. A sinner in dust and clay cannot be excused, yet is not so much polluted, and more to be pitied then a sinning spirit. And that's a third notion in which we may expound Job, beseeching ⟨p. 507⟩God to remember, that he hath made him as the clay.

Angels having no tempter without them, no flesh about them, turned themselves away from God, meerly upon the freedom of their own wils. As every good action is by so much the better, by how much it hath a freer concurrence of our wils: so is every evil action so much the worse. The sinne we commit is the greater, by how much we have had the lesse provocation to commit it. The sinne of our first parents in eating the forbidden fruit, was aggravated in it self, because God gave them such plenty and variety of other fruits to eat: but it was lessened in comparison of the Angels sinne, because they had more provocations to sinne, then the Angels had. The bait of the temptation against our first parents, was laid in their constitution, which being corporall and earthly, must needs be delighted with earthly objects. The forbidden fruit was pleasant to the eye, there the flesh took it, And it was pleasant to the taste, there the flesh took it again. These provocations man had over and besides that of the Angels, a hope or a desire to mend his condition, and to become like unto God. A body of earth hath a sutablenesse to all earthly allurements. Every like hath a naturall tendency and motion towards its like. This moves the Lord to pity sinfull man, though man must not hence plead impunity for sinne. The measure and degrees of sin upon such actings are abated, but the acts do not therefore put off the nature of sinne. A sinner in dust and clay cannot be excused, yet is not so much polluted, and more to be pitied then a sinning spirit. And that's a third notion in which we may expound Iob, beseeching