A77614:370
Precious Remedies against Satan's Devices
Precious remedies against Satan's devices or, salve for believers and unbelievers sores. Being a companion for those that are in Christ, or out of Christ; that are high, or low, learned, or illiterate, staggering, or wandering; that slight, or neglect ordinances, under a pretence of living above them; that are growing (in spirituals) or decaying; that are tempted, or deserted, afflicted, or opposed; that have assurance, or that want assurance; that are self-seekers, or the common-wealths caterpillars; that are in love sweetly united, or that yet have their spirits too much embittered, &c. By Thomas Brooks, a willing servant unto God, and the faith of his people, in the glorious gospel of Christ, at Margarets fish-street hill.Precious remedies against Satans devices or, salve for believers and unbelievers sores. Being a companion for those that are in Christ, or out of Christ; that are high, or low, learned, or illiterate, staggering, or wandering; that slight, or neglect ordinances, under a pretence of living above them; that are growing (in spiritualls) or decaying; that are tempted, or deserted, afflicted, or opposed; that have assurance, or that want assurance; that are self-seekers, or the common-wealths caterpillars; that are in love sweetly united, or that yet have their spirits too much imbittered, &c. By Thomas Brookes, a willing servant unto God, and the faith of his people, in the glorious gospel of Christ, at Margarets fish-street hill.
London: printed by M. Simmons for John Hancock, 1653
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
The second Remedy against this Device1 of Satan, is, seriously to consider, that self-seeking doth exceedingly abase2 a man; it strips him of all his royalty, and glory; of a Lord, it makes a man become a servant to the creature, I often to the worst of creatures; yea, a slave to slaves, as you may see in Judas, Demas, Balaam, and the Scribes and Pharisees. Self-seekers bow down to the creatures; as Gideons many thousands bowed down to the waters; self-seeking will make a man say any thing, do any thing, and be any thing, to please the lusts of others, & to get advantages upon others; self-seeking transforms a ⟨p. 267⟩man into all shapes, and forms; now3 it makes a man appear as an Angel of light, anon as an Angel of darkness; now self-seekers are seemingly for God, anon they are openly against God; now you shall have them crying Hosanna in the highest, and anon crucify him, crucify him; now you shall have them build with the Saints, and anon you shall have them plotting the overthrow of the Saints, as those self-seekers did in Ezra, and Nehemiah's time. Self-seekers are the basest of all persons; there is no service so base, so poor, so low, but they will bow to it. They cannot look neither above, nor beyond their own lusts, and the enjoyment4 of the creature, these are the prime and ultimate objects of their intendments.
The second Remedie against this Device1 of Satan, is, seriously to consider, that self-seeking doth exceedingly abase2 a man; it strips him of all his royalty, and glory; of a Lord, it makes a man become a servant to the creature, I often to the worst of creatures; yea, a slave to slaves, as you may see in Iudas, Demas, Balaam, and the Scribes and Pharisees. Selfe-seekers bow downe to the creatures; as Gideons many thousands bowed down to the waters; self-seeking will make a man say any thing, do any thing, and be any thing, to please the lusts of others, & to get advantages upon others; self-seeking transforms a