II.

1 Joh. 5. 4.

SERM by this he shooteth first even at the throat, and at that which is the life of a Christian, to wit, his "faith"-as a man would say, Jugulum petit-even at that which "overcometh the world." He tempted Him to such a distrust as was in the Israelites, Ex. 17.7. when they asked if God were with them or no? So he made Adam think, God cared not for him; so here the devil premiseth a doubt to shake His faith, wherein Christ made no doubt, Si Filius Dei es.

Indeed You heard a voice say, You were the "beloved Son" of God, but are You so indeed? or was it not rather a delusion? You see You are almost starved for want of bread: well, would God have suffered You so to be, if You had been His Filius dilectus? No, you are some hunger-starved child. So, Luke the twenty-second chapter, and thirty-second verse, Christ prayed that Peter's "faith might not fail:" it was 1 Pet. 5. 8. that the devil shot at. He is a "roaring lion, seeking to 1 Thes.3.5. devour" us, whom we must resist by faith. It is our faith that he aims at; for having overthrown that, disobedience soon will follow. Having abolished the establisher of the Rom. 3. 31. law, the breach of the law must needs follow. He hath then fit time to set us awork about making stones into bread, that is, to get our living by unlawful means. First, shipwreck of faith, then of obedience.

Gen. 12.

10.

The devil here seeing Him in great want and hunger, would thereby bring in doubt that He was not the Son of God which is not a good argument. For whether we respect the natural tokens of God's favour, we see they happen not to the wisest, and men of best and greatest knowledge, as appeareth in Ecclesiastes, the ninth chapter and eleventh verse, or the supernatural favour of God. We shall see Abraham forced to fly his country into Egypt for famine. So did Isaac: and Jacob likewise was in the same distress. NotGen. 43.1. withstanding that God was called "the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," yet were they all three like to be hunger-starved. Yea, not only so, but for their faith many were burned and stoned, "of whom the world was not worthy." So fared it with the Apostles: they were hungry, naked, and athirst. But what do we speak of the adopted sons of God, when as His own natural Son suffered as much, nay, far more? Here we see He was hungry, also He was "wearied" with travel, and

Gen. 26. 1.

[Exod. 3.

6.]

Heb. 11.

38.

1 Cor. 4.11.

Joh. 4. 6.

fain to rest; He had no house to hide His head in, whereas Lu. 9. 58. "foxes have holes."

"If Thou be the Son of God," &c. The heathens have observed, that in rhetoric it is a point of chiefest cunning, when you would outface a man or importune him to do a thing, to press and urge him with that which he will not or cannot for shame deny to be in himself: as by saying, If you have any wit, then you will do thus and thus; If you be an honest man, or a good fellow, do this. So here the devil, not being to learn any point of subtlety, comes to our Saviour saying, "If Thou be the Son of God,"-as it may be doubted, You being in this case-then "make these stones bread." No, no, it follows not; a man may be the son of God, and not shew it by any such art. So when Pilate asked who accused Christ, they answered, "If He had not been a male- Joh. 18.30. factor, we would not have brought Him before thee." They were jolly grave men, it was a flat flattery: and in John the twenty-first chapter and twenty-third verse there is the like. This ought to put us in mind, when we are tempted in like manner, that we take heed we be not outfaced.

In the matter itself, we are to consider these points: first, the devil sets it down for a ground that, follow what will, bread must needs be had. Therefore Christ first closeth with him. Admit He had bread, were He then safe? No, We live not "by bread only;" so that bread is not of absolute necessity. Well, what follows of that? Bread You must needs have, You see Your want, God hath left off to provide for You. Then comes the conclusion: Therefore shift for Yourself as well as You can. First, he soliciteth us to a mutinous repining within ourselves, as Hebrews the third chapter and eighth verse: "Harden not your hearts, as in the day of temptation," &c. whereby he forceth us to break out into such like conceits as, Psalm the one hundred and sixteenth and eleventh verse, "I said in my distress that all men be liars ;" and, Psalm the thirty-first, and twenty-second verse, "I said in my haste, I am cast off." Thus closely he distrusted God, in saying His prophets prophesy lies, till at last we even open our mouths against God Himself, and say, "This evil cometh from the Lord: shall I attend on the 2 Kings 6. Lord any longer?" hunger and shame is all we shall get at

33.

II.

SERM. God's hands. And so, casting off God, betake themselves to some other patron, and then the devil is fittest for their turn. For when we are fallen out with one, it is best serving his enemy, and to retain to the contrary faction. Then we seek 1 Sam. 28. a familiar (with Saul) to answer us.

7, 19.

But what did the devil then tell him? did he bring comfort with him? No: he tells him that to-morrow he and his sons So here doth the devil bring a stone with him. Mat. 7. 9. "What father," saith Christ, "if his son ask him bread, would

should die.

give him a stone ?" Yet the devil doth so; Christ was hungry, and the devil shews Him stones.

Here is the devil's comfort. Here be stones for Thee: if Thou canst devise any way to make these stones bread, Thou art well. Whereas we do not use to make bread of stones, but of wheat, to work it with the sweat of our brows; to get it so, we learn from Genesis the third chapter and nineteenth verse.

By extortion and usury we may make stones into breadthat is the devil's alchemistry; or haply we may make bread Gen.42.12. of nothing, when a man gets a thing by another's "oversight." Or else, what and if we can overreach our brother in subtlety, 1 Thes. 4. and go beyond him with a trick of wit or cunning? "Let no man defraud or oppress his brother in any matter; for the Prov.4.17. Lord is avenged of all such." The one is called "the bread of violence" and oppression; the other, "the bread of deceit."

6.

Prov. 20.

17.

They are indeed both made of stones, for they still retain their former property, as the event will declare. For though in the beginning such bread be pleasant, yet after, his mouth is but filled with gravel. After which will consequently follow gnashing of teeth.

SEVEN SERMONS

UPON THE

TEMPTATION OF CHRIST IN THE
WILDERNESS.

SERMON III.

MATTHEW iv. 4.

But He answering said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

[Qui respondens dixit, Scriptum est, Non in solo pane vivit homo, sed in omni verbo quod procedit de ore Dei. Lat. Vulg.]

[But He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Eng. Trans.]

It was a good service that Elisha did, to tell the king of 2 Kings 6. the trains laid for him, when they lay in ambush against him.

And even this is the first use that we have of our Saviour's temptations.

It warns us aforehand of the devil's coming, so that we may have time to prepare ourselves accordingly. For as at that time the devil came upon Christ when hunger pinched Him, so where we are in any distress we are to look for tempta

tions.

This temptation hath two parts: first comes Si, a distrust; secondly follows unlawful means. Having laid this foundation, that bread is necessary to be had when one is hungry, he inferreth that God helpeth not nor supplicth the want:

5.

SERM. therefore God is not Thy Father, and therefore depend no longer on Him, but shift for Yourself. This is the effect of the devil's argument.

Mat. 7. 9.

Eph. 6.16.

The Fathers upon the words, "Take the shield of faith, to quench all the fiery darts of the devil," do note that about every one of the darts or temptations of the devil there are, as it were, balls of wildfire. For being to assault our obedience, and knowing that faith is our shield, to that end he useth the arrow-head, which is distrust in God, about which is fire; to wit, the using of unlawful means to consume our obedience, which will consume our shield of faith, and so make way for the dart to kill or wound us. So that his drift is, to bring our adoption or son-ship to a Si.

There is no doubt but Christ was able to have turned stones into bread: but why would He not then follow the devil's advice? The devil by saying, "Say unto these stones," scemeth to acknowledge that He had the force to have done it, even by His bare word: for even stones are said to hear the voice of God and obey His commandment,

1 Kings 13. and not only God's but even God's servants; as when the man of God had pronounced that the altar should rent in Mat. 27.50, sunder, it did so. And when Jesus cried out with a loud voice, the veil of the temple rent in twain, the earth did quake, and the stones were cloven." The dead men are worse than stones, yet they in their graves heard His voice.

51.

And not only was He able to turn stones into bread, but Mat. 3. 9. into men also; as "children to Abraham, of stones." If therefore it had pleased Him, He was as well able at this time to Joh. 2. 10. have turned stones into bread, as after He turned water into wine.

It was no less possible to Him, no doubt, to have saved Mat. 27.42. "Himself" when the Jews scoffingly bade Him, as to have "saved others;" and to have "come down from the cross" being alive, as it was after for Him, not only being dead and buried, but a great stone being over Him, to remove it and come out Mat. 28. 2. of the grave. He had power to both, but not will alike to both. But why would He not here use IIis power for the satisfying of His hunger, and follow the devil's advice? In setting down the history of turning water into wine it is thus further Joh. 2. 11. said, that He did it that IIis disciples might believe in