Chapter 10

The conclusion: Seven advantages in common that Satan has over us in all those aforementioned dealings.

For a general conclusion to this and all the rest of this discourse about Satan's working on us, I will mention some of those great and many advantages he has in all his false reasonings and accusations over us — to set them on, to fasten his slanders and false conclusions drawn from them, and to persuade the mind of them. I bring these in here as being common to all those particulars which have been related.

First, it is no small advantage that he can familiarly and frequently suggest them again and again to us. The frequency of any thought that comes again and again, that lies near us and haunts us, has secretly the force of an argument to persuade us to think it is so. We are accustomed to saying, 'I have thought so again and again.' A cunning flatterer who is continually suggesting things and taking all hints and occasions to do so may at last work hard to push out a near and dear friend and make one jealous of him. As the judge yielded to her importunity (Luke 18:5), so the mind is apt to yield to a suggestion that haunts it and importunately presents itself — yes, even to the point of passing a false sentence against oneself.

And second, he can also — and does — represent a multitude of reasonings and considerations together at once, all tending to confirm the same persuasion. He will sometimes bring in a cloud of witnesses and instances to prove us hypocrites, and surround the mind with them on all sides so that whichever way it looks it sees nothing else. As he represented to Christ the glory of the world in the twinkling of an eye, so he can do with a man's sins — that a man shall have a general prospect of them and see nothing else whatever way he looks. What force this must have to prevail with the mind and judgment to assent, experience shows. When a man doubting a truth in a contested matter reads only the opposing party presenting all that can be said for the other side, it often staggers him and for the present wins his opinion to that side — until he reads and considers what is said to the contrary. Yes, though a man is confirmed and settled in the truth, sometimes an army of arguments on the other side will come upon him so ranked and ordered as for the present to shake and stagger him. And so it must necessarily be in the contest over a man's spiritual state when Satan shall muster and marshal up an army of objections all at once, and not scatteredly, as he is able to do.

And third, he is able to hold the mind's attention so fixed upon them as to keep off all that should in any way comfort. He can turn down that column in the leaves of our hearts where grace or anything comforting is written, and turn over and hold our eyes fixed to read nothing but where our errors and sins are written. So he causes a man's soul to forget all good — as in Lamentations 3:17 the church in desertion is said to do — and to forget his own mercies, as Jonah speaks. He can multiply suggestions so fast, and come in with such a tempest, that as Job complains (Job 9:17) he will not suffer them to take a breath. Therefore the apostle calls them the 'buffetings of Satan' (2 Corinthians 12), because like buffetings they come in thick and threefold upon a man's spirit so that he cannot catch his breath. He rains down temptations sometimes not by drops as in ordinary rains, but by waterspouts — as mariners call them when a cloud suddenly bursts and falls by the wholesale and often sinks a ship. 'He breaks me with a tempest,' says Job in the passage mentioned.

Fourth, he adds weight to his lying accusations and false reasonings by an imperious and insistent affirmation that so it is. He suggests not reasons only to persuade, but sets them on with words of affirmation and persuasion suggested along with them. Just as in argument a weak spirit is often borne down by a stronger, not by force of argument so much as by strength and violence of spirit — for many, when the iron is blunt and their arguments lack edge, put on greater strength, as Solomon speaks (Ecclesiastes 10:10), and so prevail — so does Satan, being by creation a spirit of greater strength than ours, and our guilt further weakening us in arguing with him. Cunning pleaders may argue a case with such violence and confidence that, as Socrates said when his accusers had done, if he had not been very innocent he would have suspected himself guilty. How much more when this falls upon persons as guilty as we all are, and the thing being urged is that of which we are already suspicious? What a man already fears he easily believes — as what a man hopes he easily credits, for what we fear we quickly believe. There falls out often in opinions a preconditioned inclination — a giving of the mind that such a thing is so or so — and in such a case Satan can strike in exceedingly to strengthen such a conceit. I take this to be implied in that phrase in 2 Thessalonians 2:1, where the apostle warns they should not be troubled 'neither by spirit nor by word' to think the day of judgment was at hand. By 'spirit' he means a pretense of revelation joined with a man's own private conceit and imagination — thus also in 1 John 4:1. Oftentimes when Satan perceives the mind inclined to think or conceive thus or thus, he adds weight to the balance, and so a man is given up to the efficacy of delusion. We see this in the false prophets the apostle speaks of when he says, 'Believe not every spirit, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.' Those false prophets became confident in their prophecies — 'they walk in the spirit,' says the prophet Micah 2:11, but they lie. They took up such conceits, and the devil joined with them and confirmed them. And as Satan by such false revelations confirms enthusiasts in their opinions and conceits, so he joins with the jealousies of believers and puts weight into the balance, strongly swaying them to judge amiss of their spiritual state.

Fifth, in that he backs his false conclusions drawn from these reasonings with terrors, this becomes an argument to sense, and such things exceedingly carry the judgment in forming our opinion of things. A notion that comes in with joy we are apt to conclude is true; and so likewise what comes in with terror. Such impressions are as it were a seal to what is suggested, to confirm it. As the Holy Spirit seals his instructions (Job 33:16) with impressions of joy, so Satan seals his temptations with impressions of fear and disquiet. If a man has a dream with any strong impression, he is apt to give heed to it and think there is something in it. What made Nebuchadnezzar think there must be something in his dream (Daniel 2 and 4) — when he had actually forgotten what it was — was that it made him afraid and his thoughts troubled him.

A sixth advantage is that he suggests and works all these impressions without being detected as their source, so that we do not know but that they are our own thoughts — yes, sometimes thinking they are from the Holy Spirit working as the Spirit of conviction within us. This is also an exceedingly great advantage, as it would be to an enemy to have obtained the opponent's own watchword and their own colors — this causes us readily to yield and open the gates to him. And though when the temptation is over we perceive his delusion in it, yet still, because we cannot discern his suggestions from our own thoughts when we are in the midst of them and in the eclipse, he can come again and again with the same temptation — today, and tomorrow, and the next day — and we perceive it not. If we did perceive it, we should not listen, any more than we would to someone who had formerly deceived us. Thus Ahab's prophets did not know that Satan was a lying spirit in them, for one of them said to Micaiah, 'When did the Spirit of God depart from me to go to you?' Those 'strong delusions' of 2 Thessalonians 2:10 could not have prevailed upon their minds to believe a lie, had they discerned that Satan had suggested them. Peter did not know that Satan used him to tempt his Master to spare himself, which yet Christ perceived, and therefore called him 'Satan.'

Last of all, a man can in no way avoid Satan's suggestions, nor withdraw himself from them; and none can take Satan off from a man but God — he must rebuke him; none else can. A poor soul fights with Satan in this darkness like a man assaulted by one who carries a dark lantern — the assailant can see the one he attacks and how to buffet him, and follows wherever he goes, whereas the poor man cannot see him, nor who it is that strikes him, nor be aware of how to ward off the blow. Therefore the apostle when buffeted by Satan knew not what to do but only to have recourse to God by prayer, for he could no more avoid or run away from those suggestions than from himself. Nor could all the saints on earth have freed him any other way; none could, until God should cause him to depart (2 Corinthians 12).

The conclusion: seven advantages Satan has over us in common, in all the dealings described.

As a general conclusion to this and all the rest of this discussion about Satan's working on us, I will mention some of the great advantages he has in all his false reasoning and accusations — in pressing them home, fastening his slanders and false conclusions drawn from them, and persuading the mind to accept them. I bring these forward here since they are common to all the particulars already described.

First, it is no small advantage that he can suggest the same things to us familiarly and repeatedly. The frequency of a thought that keeps returning — that hovers close and haunts us — has a hidden power to persuade us that it must be true. We commonly say, 'I have thought this again and again.' A persistent flatterer who keeps suggesting the same thing and seizes every occasion to do so may at last work hard enough to drive out a near and trusted friend and cause one to become suspicious of him. As the judge gave in to the widow's persistence (Luke 18:5), so the mind is prone to yield to a suggestion that keeps pressing itself upon it — yes, even to the point of passing a false verdict against itself.

Second, he can also — and does — present a multitude of arguments and considerations all at once, all pointing toward the same conclusion. He will sometimes bring in a cloud of witnesses and instances to prove us hypocrites, surrounding the mind with them on every side so that whichever way it looks it sees nothing else. Just as he showed Christ the glory of all the kingdoms of the world in a single moment, so he can do the same with a person's sins — presenting a sweeping panorama of them so that a person sees nothing else no matter where he looks. The force this must have in persuading the mind and judgment to assent is shown by experience. When a person doubting a contested question reads only the opposing side presenting everything that can be said against the position, it often staggers him and for the moment wins his opinion over — until he reads and considers what can be said in reply. Yes, even a person settled and firm in a truth is sometimes struck by such an array of arguments on the other side, arranged so forcefully, as to be shaken and staggered in the moment. And so it must necessarily happen in the contest over a person's spiritual standing when Satan marshals and deploys an entire army of objections all at once — not scattered piecemeal, as he is fully capable of doing.

Third, he is able to hold the mind's attention so fixed on these things as to shut out everything that might in any way bring comfort. He can turn down that page in the book of our hearts where grace or any encouraging thing is written, and hold our eyes fixed to read only the pages where our errors and sins are recorded. So he causes a person's soul to forget all that is good — as the church in desertion is said to do in Lamentations 3:17 — and to forget its own mercies, as Jonah describes. He can multiply suggestions so quickly and come in with such a storm that, as Job complains (Job 9:17), he will not allow them to catch a breath. Therefore the apostle calls them Satan's 'buffetings' (2 Corinthians 12), because like blows raining down in a fight they come thick and fast upon a person's spirit so that there is no time to recover. He sometimes pours down temptations not as ordinary drops of rain but as waterspouts — as sailors call them when a cloud suddenly bursts and releases a massive torrent, often enough to sink a ship. 'He breaks me with a tempest,' says Job in the passage mentioned.

Fourth, he adds weight to his lying accusations and false reasoning by an imperious and forceful assertion that it is so. He not only suggests reasons to persuade, but accompanies them with words of affirmation and insistence. Just as in argument a weaker spirit is often overpowered by a stronger — not so much by the force of the argument as by the strength and intensity of the person's manner, since many, when their logic is blunt and their arguments lack edge, bear down with greater force, as Solomon says (Ecclesiastes 10:10), and so prevail — so Satan, being by creation a spirit of greater power than ours, and our guilt further weakening us in contending with him, presses his accusations with overwhelming insistence. Skilled lawyers can argue a case with such confidence and forcefulness that, as Socrates said after his accusers had spoken, if he had not been entirely innocent he would have suspected himself guilty. How much more when this falls upon people as guilty as we all are, and the thing being pressed is something we are already suspicious of? What a person already fears, they easily believe — just as what a person hopes for, they readily accept, for we are quick to believe what we dread. There is often in our opinions a prior inclination — a quiet readiness of the mind to think that such and such is so — and in such a case Satan can strike in powerfully to strengthen that conceit. I take this to be what is implied in the phrase in 2 Thessalonians 2:1, where the apostle warns that they should not be troubled 'neither by spirit nor by word' to think the day of judgment was at hand. By 'spirit' he means a pretense of divine revelation joined with a person's own private conceit and imagination — as also in 1 John 4:1. Often when Satan perceives the mind inclined to think or feel a certain way, he adds weight to the scale, and so the person is given over to the force of the delusion. We see this in the false prophets the apostle speaks of when he says, 'Do not believe every spirit, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.' Those false prophets became confident in their prophecies — 'they walk in the spirit,' says Micah 2:11, but they lie. They took up those ideas, and the devil joined with them and confirmed them. And as Satan by such false revelations confirms enthusiasts in their opinions and conceits, so he joins with the jealousies of believers and adds weight to the scales, powerfully pulling them toward a false judgment of their spiritual standing.

Fifth, because he backs his false conclusions with terror, this becomes an argument to the feelings — and such things carry enormous weight in shaping the mind's judgment about things. A thought that comes in accompanied by joy we are prone to accept as true; and likewise what comes in accompanied by terror. Such impressions are like a seal stamped on what is suggested, confirming it in the mind. As the Holy Spirit seals His instruction with impressions of joy (Job 33:16), so Satan seals his temptations with impressions of fear and distress. If a person has a dream accompanied by any strong feeling, they are prone to give attention to it and think there must be something in it. What made Nebuchadnezzar certain that his dream had significance (Daniel 2 and 4) — even when he had forgotten what it was — was that it had frightened him and troubled his thoughts.

A sixth advantage is that he plants and works all these impressions while remaining undetected as their source, so that we do not recognize them as anything other than our own thoughts — and sometimes even take them to be the Holy Spirit working within us as the Spirit of conviction. This is an enormous advantage, comparable to an enemy obtaining the opponent's own passwords and their own regimental colors — it causes us to readily open the gates and yield to him. And though when a temptation is over we sometimes perceive his deception in it, still, because we cannot distinguish his suggestions from our own thoughts while we are in the midst of them and in that eclipse, he can return with the same temptation — today, tomorrow, and the next day — and we do not recognize it. If we could recognize it, we would not listen, any more than we would give attention to someone who had already deceived us. So Ahab's prophets did not know that Satan was a lying spirit speaking through them — one of them said to Micaiah, 'When did the Spirit of God depart from me to go to you?' Those 'strong delusions' of 2 Thessalonians 2:10 could not have prevailed to make people believe a lie if they had discerned that Satan had suggested them. Peter did not know that Satan was using him to tempt his Master to spare Himself — yet Christ perceived it, and therefore called him 'Satan.'

Last of all, there is no way for a person to avoid Satan's suggestions or escape from them — none but God can take Satan off a person; God alone can rebuke him; no one else can. A poor soul fights with Satan in this darkness like a person attacked by someone carrying a dark lantern — the attacker can see the one he is striking and knows exactly how to hit, and follows wherever the person goes, while the poor man cannot see his attacker, does not know who is striking him, and has no idea how to ward off the blows. Therefore the apostle, when buffeted by Satan, knew nothing to do but to turn to God in prayer, for he could no more escape or flee those suggestions than he could flee from himself. Nor could all the saints on earth have freed him in any other way — no one could, until God chose to cause Satan to depart (2 Corinthians 12).