For the imagination
is such a forcible power, that if it put forth itself to dress up and present a
thing to the soul, whether that thing is evil or good, the rest of the
faculties cannot withstand it. Therefore, when David prayed for the children of
Israel, he said, 'I have seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to
offer willingly unto thee;' that is, for preparations to build the temple. 'O
Lord God,' saith he, 'keep this forever in the imagination of the thoughts of
the heart of Thy people and prepare their heart unto Thee' (1 Chron 29:17, 18).
He knew that as the imagination was prepared, so would the soul be moved,
whether by evil or good; therefore, as to this, he prays that their imagination
might be engaged always with apprehensions of the beauteousness of the temple,
that they might always, as now, offer willingly for its building.
But, as I said, when
the imagination hath thus set forth sin to the rest of the faculties of the
soul, they are presently entangled, and fall into a flame of love thereto; this
being done, it follows that a purpose to pursue this motion, till it is brought
unto act, is the next thing that is resolved on. Thus Esau, after he had
conceived of the profit that would accrue to him by murdering his brother,
fell the next way into a resolve to spill Jacob's blood. And Rebecca sent for
Jacob, and said unto him, 'Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth
comfort himself, purposing to kill thee' (Gen 27:42). See also (Jer 49:30). Nor
is this purpose to do evil without its fruit, for he comforted himself in
his evil purpose: 'Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to
kill thee.'
The purpose, therefore,
being concluded, in the next place the invention is diligently set to work to
find out what means, methods, and ways, will be thought best to bring this
purpose into practice, and this motion to sin into action. Esau invented the
death of his brother when his father was to be carried to his grave (Gen
27:41). David purposed to make Uriah father his bastard child by making him
drunk (2 Sam 11:13). Amnon purposed to ravish Tamar, and the means that he
invented to do it were by feigning himself sick. Absalom purposed to kill Amnon
and invented to do it at a feast (2 Sam13:32). Judas purposed to sell Christ
and invented to betray him in the absence of the people (Luke 22:3-6). The Jews
purposed to kill Paul and invented to entreat the judge of a blandation26 to
send for him, that they might murder him as he went (Acts 23:12-15).
Thus you see how sin
is, in the motion of it, handed through the soul—first, it comes into the fancy
or imagination, by which it is so presented to the soul, as to inflame it with the desire to bring it into the act; so from this desire the soul proceeded to a
purpose of enjoying, and from a purpose of enjoying to inventing how, or by
what means, it had best to attempt the accomplishing of it.
But, further, when
the soul has thus far, by its wickedness, pursued the motion of sin to bring it
into action, then to the last thing; to wit, to endeavors, to take the
opportunity, which, by the invention, is judged most convenient; so to
endeavors, it goes, till it has finished sin, and finished, in finishing of
that, its own fearful damnation. 'Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth
forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death' (James 1:15).
And who knows, but
God and the soul, how many lets, hindrances, convictions, fears, frights,
misgivings, and thoughts of the judgment of God, all this while are passing and
repassing, turning and returning, over the face of the soul? how many times the
soul is made to start, look back, and tremble, while it is pursuing the
pleasure, profit, applause, or preferment that sin when finished, promised to
yield unto the soul? for God is such a lover of the soul, that He seldom lets
it go on in sin, but He cries to it, by His Word and providences, 'Oh! do not
this abominable thing that I hate!' (Jer 44: 4); especially at first, until it
shall have hardened itself, and so provoked Him to give it up in sin-revenging
judgment to its own ways and doings, which is the terrible judgment under
heaven; and this brings me to the third thing, the which I now will speak to.
3. As the soul
receives, detains, entertains, and wilily worketh to bring sin from the motion
into act, so it abhorrent to be controlled and taken off of this work—' My soul
loathed them,' says God, 'and their soul also abhorred Me' (Zech 6:8). My soul
loathed them, because they were so bad, and their souls abhorred Me because I
am so good. Sin, then, is the cause of the loss of the soul; because it hath
set the soul, or, rather, because the soul of love to sin hath set itself against
God. 'Woe unto their soul, for they have rewarded evil unto themselves'(Isa
3:9).
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