Precious Remedies against Satan's Devices

The fifth Remedy against this Device¹ of Satan, is, solemnly to consider, that other Saints have chosen rather to suffer the worst of torments, rather then they would commit the least sin, i. e. such as the world accounts: so as you may see in Daniel, and his Companions, ⟨p. 29⟩that would rather choose to burn, and be cast to the Lions, then they would bow to the Image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up: when this peccadillo (in the worlds account) and a hot fiery furnace stood in competition, that they must either fall into sin, or be cast into the² fiery furnace; such was their tenderness of the honour and glory of God, and their hatred and indignation against sin, that they would rather burn, then sin; they knew that it was far better to burn for their not sinning, then that God and conscience should raise a hell, a fire in their bosoms, for sin. I have read of that noble servant of God, Marcus Arethusius, Minister of a Church in the time of Constantine, who in Constantine's time, had been the cause of overthrowing an Idols Temple; afterwards, when Julian came to be Emperor, he would force the people of that place to build it up again, they were ready to do it, but he refused; whereupon, those that were his own people, to whom he preached, took him, and stripped him of all his clothes, and abused his naked body, and gave it up to the Children, to lance it with their pen-knives, and then caused him to be put in a basket, and anointed his naked body with Honey, and set him in the Sun, to be stung ⟨p. 30⟩with Wasps; and all this cruelty they showed, because he would not do any thing toward the building up of this Idol-Temple; nay, they came to this, that if he would do but the least towards it, if he would give but a halfpenny to it, they would save him; but he refused all, though the giving of a half-penny might have saved his life; and in doing this, he did but live up to that principle that most Christians talk of, and all profess, but few come up to it, viz. That we must choose rather to suffer the worst of Torments that men and Devils can invent, and inflict, then to commit the least sin, whereby God should be dishonoured, our consciences wounded, Religion reproached, and our own souls endangered.