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PROJECT HERO
BRIAR PRESCOTT
CONTENTS

About this book

Prologue
1. Andy
2. Law
3. Andy
4. Law
5. Andy
6. Law
7. Andy
8. Law
9. Andy
10. Law
11. Andy
12. Law
13. Andy
14. Law
15. Andy
16. Law
17. Andy
18. Law
19. Andy
20. Law
21. Andy
22. Law
Epilogue

Acknowledgments
About the Author
ABOUT THIS BOOK

What if you accidentally fell in love with the right guy?

Andy:
If my life was a movie, I would be the sidekick. Not an especially
promising start when my plan is to finally let my best friend know I
have a crush on him. No worries, though. I have a plan. I just need
a complete makeover. Change everything about myself so that when
Falcon returns from his summer vacation, he can finally see I’m the
love of his life. I totally know what I’m doing here.
Well, not really.
If I knew what I was doing, I wouldn’t look like every nerd cliché
wrapped into one awkward package.
In short, I’m screwed.
But then Law Anderson enters the picture…

Law:
It’s all very simple. I need somebody to tutor my hockey team,
and Andy needs somebody to help him with his crush. Sounds like a
match made in heaven.
Only the more time I spend with Andy, the more I like this quirky
guy who makes me laugh, and pretty soon I’m the one who’s
tutoring Andy in way more than we initially agreed upon.
It’s fine.
I have it all under control.
But as weeks pass and the chemistry between us turns explosive,
I’m starting to think that I might be in way over my head with Andy.
If only I could make Andy realize that he doesn’t need to change
himself for love. If only I could make Andy see that he just needs to
be with somebody who has considered him perfect all along…
Copyright© 2020 by Briar Prescott

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or


transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or
other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of
the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in book reviews

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, events and incidents are either the
products of author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual
persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Any perceived
slight of any individual or organization is purely unintentional.

Cover by: Black Jazz Design

Editing by: Louisa Keller at LesCourt Author Services

Proofreading by: Jill Wexler at LesCourt Author Services

Formatting by: Leslie Copeland at LesCourt Author Services


PROLOGUE
ANDY

I was sixteen years old when I realized something life changing


about myself—I was the sidekick.
In hindsight, I’m forced to admit there were signs. I’m
unremarkable in every aspect of my life. Okay, fine, I’m decent with
numbers. Throw some physics at me, and I can chew my way
through it. It’s the reason I routinely exchanged the illusion of
friendship for help with homework while I was in high school.
Everything else, though? Mediocre city, population me. I’m not
particularly tall, nor am I noticeably short. I’m not fit. No six packs
or V-shapes have ever graced my body with their presence. My hair
is a very average brown and my eyes are an equally ordinary gray. I
don’t look repulsive, but there’s nothing about me that would catch
anybody’s attention.
I’m the guy who looks like the boring neighbor that lives across
the hall from you and later turns out to be a cannibal with a freezer
full of body parts in his spare bedroom. All the neighbors would be
completely surprised once the police came to arrest me, and they’d
say things like, but he was so ordinary. The old lady from upstairs
would wax poetic about how I helped her carry her grocery bags to
her apartment every Sunday, and to that I say, “That’s how they get
you, Mirna. That’s how they get you.”
So…
That’s me. Minus the people-eating part. I’m too average to be a
psycho.
I have no talents. My singing sounds like somebody is trying to
stuff a litter of angry cats into a wet bag. My drawings are at a
preschool level at best.
I once drew a bunny for my niece. She started crying when she
saw the result. My sister was pissed and refused to listen to my
explanation that I was not trying to scar her kid for life with my
rendition of mutant rabbits but rather, I was trying to educate Lily
and show her which rabbits to avoid should there ever be a nuclear
disaster. That’s what I get for trying to make the best of a bad
situation and turn a disaster of a drawing into a teaching moment.
As for other talents, I can’t dance, and I’m very much opposed to
public speaking, proven by the vomiting-onstage incident at the
seventh-grade debate. The accompanying stage fright was so bad
that I couldn’t even walk across the stage at my high school
graduation. I had an honest-to-God panic attack five minutes before
the principal called my name. My mom had to step in and claim my
diploma for me. Needless to say, acting, politics, and even teaching
are not viable career options for me.
I have glasses that are an absolute must, since otherwise, I’m
blind as a bat and walk into a lot of walls. I’ve tried not wearing
them in hopes of walking into a hot guy instead. Didn’t happen. I did
stumble into an angry janitor once, who sprayed me with a bottle of
Windex and yelled at me. It wasn’t a love match.
I wear sweats a lot. And I do mean a lot. I was actively
campaigning for wearing sweats to my high school graduation
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because those suckers are just that comfortable and nobody would
have even seen them under the robe. Unfortunately, I was
downvoted by every single member of my extended family. Even my
great-grandpa, the traitor. My closet holds a wide variety of physics-
themed T-shirts, and I can proudly say that I wore socks with
sandals before it was cool.
My hair is a curly mess, and when passing on genes, my dad
bestowed upon me the gift of multiple cowlicks. On a good day, I
look like I do not own a hairbrush. On a bad day, I look like the
lovechild of Albert Einstein and Edward Scissorhands. There are
more bad days than good ones.
The only remarkable thing about me is my best friend. Falcon
Asola. Even his name sounds like he’d be a good protagonist in any
story. He’s everything I’m not. Tall, handsome as hell, ridiculously in
shape. He’s the captain of Baril University’s basketball team, which is
a big deal, since they tend to win a lot. I mean, we’re a hockey
school, but Falcon has single-handedly brought basketball back to
everyone’s attention in Baril. They even renovated the courts last
year because winners get special perks like that.
Falcon is popular and there are no vomit-related episodes in his
past. Instead, he’s quick with a comeback, funny and smart. It
would be annoying as hell if he wasn’t my best friend since the
summer before ninth grade, and the coolest, nicest human being on
planet Earth.
He’s the Wayne to my Garth. Wallace to my Gromit. Shrek to my
Donkey. Batman to my Robin.
And sure, I guess you could argue that without Watson’s help,
Sherlock would be a neurotic mess who couldn’t even solve the case
half the time, but let’s face it, nobody would go see a film about Dr.
Watson. He’s not charismatic enough, hence, the position as a
sidekick.
Ever since Falcon’s family moved in next door the summer before
ninth grade, we’ve been best friends. He doesn’t mind that I’m
awkward and dress like a cross between a nerd and the thirty-five-
year-old whose parents just can’t seem to get him to move out of
their basement.
I had been deathly afraid my less-than-stellar situation in school
would make him drop me like a hot potato once he realized he’d
chained himself to his unpopular nerd of a neighbor by accident. But
Falcon had stuck by me. He’d also put a stop to the nickname
hurlmaster, which had taken off like a rocket when one of the jocks
had yelled it out after the debate that shall not be talked about.
The thing about sidekicks is, they are usually left in the hero’s
shadow. See, when I made my big, life changing discovery about
being a sidekick, it took me a while to come to terms with it.
Everybody wants to be a hero in their story. It’s human nature. But
like my grandma used to say, life is not a wish factory. If you want
something, you’ve got to be willing to work for it. And so, with those
words of wisdom in mind, I took a good, hard look at myself at the
end of my junior year of college. The results were disappointing, but
I had a quick fix—I decided to drown all my sorrows in alcohol.
The next morning, while battling the mother of all hangovers, I
came up with a plan. I’m a problem-solver at heart, so the way I
saw it, if I didn’t like myself that much, I could just change
everything about myself. My goal was to turn the sidekick into a
hero. And that’s how Project Hero was born. It was a brilliant stroke
of genius.
It would have been better if I’d done it just because I wanted to
be a better, more accomplished version of myself. Unfortunately, I
had a bit of a different goal in mind. Namely, I was in love with
Falcon Asola, and I would finally make him notice me.
1

ANDY

I, like a lot of people, am a creature of habit. I eat oatmeal for


breakfast every morning. I take an eighteen-minute nap every
afternoon. When I go to the library, I sit in a certain spot.
Some people don’t like the routine. Me? I love it. It helps me
concentrate and makes my brain less crowded if I have all the
everyday decisions made beforehand. Which is why it throws me for
a loop when I get to the library on a sunny Friday afternoon, only to
find that my usual seat has already been taken.
I come to a complete standstill and stare at the behemoth of a
guy who occupies the corner that usually belongs to me. It’s not like
there’s a sign with my name on the desk, but damn, not many
people even step foot into the science wing. Most students in my
department know each other. If not by name, then by face and also
by where we like to sit.
Rebecca, the biology major, likes to sit by the window that faces
the lake. Tyson, another physicist, prefers the desk that is an equal
distance from the physics shelves and the rows dedicated to math.
He’s a double major and coincidentally also a major overachiever.
The redheaded freshman likes to be close to the information desk.
Lots of questions and awkward flirting with the help desk lady for
that one. And I like the back corner of the library because it’s quiet
and very few people venture this way, so I can concentrate better
while studying.
Baril U is a small university in the state of Vermont. The physics
department is tiny, one of those everybody-knows-everybody type of
deals. It’s a decent program. It’s not the best in the world, but it’s
far from the worst. Definitely the best Vermont has to offer, and
since my parents have six kids, with me in the fourth position, there
isn’t exactly money to spare for college. Am I a tiny bit bitter about
not attending MIT? I guess a minuscule part of me had dreamed
about going, but there’s always a chance I’ll go for my PhD. At least
that’s the plan right now. Anyway, what matters is here and now,
and right now, out-of-state schools are a definite no. Besides, Baril
offered me a generous scholarship, so long story short, here I am.
And here is also this other dude I’ve never seen before, sitting in
my chair, in my corner, like he owns the place. Unfortunately, a sign
with my name hasn’t magically appeared out of thin air, so first, I
make a mental note to create a sign.
Right now, I have to come to terms with the fact that,
technically, it’s a free country, and the dude can sit wherever he
wants. I huff under my breath as I find a free seat. I make sure to
keep my seat in my line of sight. The goal is to observe and when
baseball cap here leaves, I’ll be on it like cream cheese on a bagel,
before some other idiot with bad manners seizes the opportunity to
snatch the best desk in the library. Not that there is exactly a line
out the door, but you never know. I didn’t expect Mr. I’ve-Got-An-
Incredibly-Firm-Ass over there either, and yet, here we are…
I take out my laptop and my books and notes and lay them out
on the desk in front of me, all the while throwing icy glances at the
guy. He doesn’t even seem to register that somebody else has
entered the room. He’s hunched over, but his back is so wide that it’s
impossible to say what he’s doing. I glare at the massive shoulders.
Nothing happens. Guess I can cross off freezing people with my
eyeballs from my potential list of superpowers. Bummer.
The unexpected seating complication has thrown me off my
game, but I open the research proposal I have to perfect and get to
work. It takes a while to get going, and I’m not concentrating as
well as I usually do because I’m busy glaring at the intruder and
swearing under my breath. There’s no way I’ll finish the task I’ve set
for myself on time, which means I’ll have to cut my eighteen-minute
nap from my schedule, and it annoys me to no end.
I grumble and huff like I’m the big, bad wolf, ready to blow down
the straw house. The guy straightens himself and I’m pretty certain
he’s heard me, but he only adjusts his headphones and leans
forward on his elbows. There’s some space left between the elbow
and his side, and fuck it, it looks like he’s not studying at all. I have
no idea what possesses me to do it, but I get up from my chair and
move closer until I’m standing right behind the guy. I look over his
shoulder, and just as I suspected, he’s scrolling through his phone.
There are no books, no pens, no laptop, not even a smell of a
notecard anywhere in his vicinity. The bastard is occupying my seat
to waste time on social media. Fucking perfect.
I grit my teeth and turn around, but before I can go back to my
seat, I reconsider. This is supposed to be the new me. I’m not
supposed to blend into the tapestry any longer. A hero has a can-do
attitude, and he fights injustice, so that’s exactly what I’m going to
do. With epic tunes playing in my mind as an encouraging
soundtrack for my act of bravery, I straighten my shoulders and
prepare myself to stand up for my rights.
“Excuse me,” I say. I’m louder than I should be, considering it’s a
library. Already I’m getting annoyed looks thrown my way. The seat
stealer doesn’t react at all. He has his music turned up so high I can
hear the aggressive guitar riffs floating around him.
I tap on his shoulder and bark, “Hey!” with a firm voice that
would make a drill sergeant proud.
The guy jumps, tears his earbuds out, and slams them on the
desk in front of him. “What the hell?” he snaps and glares at me.
He takes off his baseball cap and drags his hand through his dark
hair, and I wince. The guy sitting in front of me is none other than
Law Anderson. He’s my nemesis. Well, as much of a nemesis as
someone can be when they don’t even know you exist.
Law used to be the star of the hockey team, and since the
hockey team and the basketball team don’t like each other because
of some stupid prank from freshman year, I’m forced to dislike the
guy too. Falcon claims it’s the bro code, and so far, it hasn’t been a
challenge to honor it, since I’ve never actually talked to Law. I’ve
seen him at a couple of parties Falcon has dragged me to, but Law
has never noticed me. He’s usually busy with being in the spotlight
with people scrambling to get his attention.
Now that Law has quit the team, I should probably ask Falcon if
the feud still stands. As of last season, Law is the assistant coach
and not a player anymore, so that might change the situation a bit. I
make a mental note to check. Just in case. Putting all those
technicalities aside, though, if Law doesn’t get out of my seat, I’ll
have to start a whole separate feud for a completely different
reason.
I channel my best Sheldon Cooper impression as I stare at Law.
“You’re in my seat.”
He frowns. “I didn’t know there was assigned seating.”
“There isn’t,” I reply with as much dignity as I can muster.
“This is my regular seat, and you’re not using it for its intended
purpose anyway, so I figure you might as well ‘study’ your phone
somewhere else.” I add finger quotes around the word study to fully
express my disdain.
Law leans back in his seat and looks at me.
“Is that so?” he asks. Law is fighting a smile, and I make a
valiant effort to not let it get to me. I’m supposed to be authoritative
and resolute, but so far, Law only looks amused at my tentative
display of alpha-maleness and shows no sign that he’s planning to
move anywhere. Even so, I persevere.
“There’s an unwritten understanding that there are some seats
that are always taken.” I point to the one Law is using. “That’s one
of them.”
Law’s smile widens. “That seems unfair. How am I supposed to
know about this nonverbal, non-written agreement?”
“You’re not. What you are supposed to do is free the seat when
the official owner shows up.”
“The library?” he asks. He’s full-on laughing at me now, and if I
felt indifferent toward him before, I now fully support Falcon in his
hate for the guy.
“Me,” I snap.
He cocks his head to the side and studies me like I’m a
fascinating creature on display in a circus. “Nah,” he finally says. “I
don’t feel like it.”
“But… you’re not even using it for its intended purpose,” I
sputter. “You can notify your followers or stalkers or whoever of your
whereabouts from anywhere. You don’t need to be in this particular
seat for it. I’m sure they’d be happy to murder you in a place that
has fewer witnesses.”
“There are available seats all around here. I don’t see why you
need that specific seat either,” he reasons. My hackles rise because
he’s so calm, and I’m teetering on the edge of losing it.
“But it’s my seat,” I grit out, well aware that my argument is as
thin as a layer of graphene but not ready to give up yet either.
Law leans back in his chair with a calculating look in his eyes.
“What is this seat worth to you?” he asks.
I’m not an idiot. I guess I have above-average intelligence in
some areas of my life, but most of that pertains to science. That
intelligence, however, is counterbalanced by my complete and total
lack of understanding when it comes to social situations. Like right
now. What does Law mean? Does he want me to offer him money
for the seat? Is this a thinly veiled threat and I’m supposed to start
running so I don’t get beaten up? Or is he…
“Are you coming on to me?” I blurt out the most ridiculous option
that comes to mind and immediately wish the library floor would
open up and suck me into a black hole because the guy loses it.
There’s no other word to describe what is happening to him. He
laughs so hard there are actual tears running down his cheeks. If
there ever was a time to carry out seppuku, this is it. If only I had
something sharp within reach.
“Okay. Thanks for the humiliation,” I say. “This should last me a
good while.”
I turn around to flee the premises, and jump in a lake while I’m
at it, but Law stops me with a hand. “Don’t leave. I’m very sorry. I
didn’t mean to laugh or insinuate that the idea is ridiculous. It was
just unexpected. You surprised me. Not many people manage to do
that. Let’s just say that your guess was the opposite of what I was
planning.”
I squint. His fingers are wrapped around my wrist, and although
I’m now officially a first-class passenger on the Law Anderson hate
train, it’s hard not to get sidetracked by how freaking handsome the
guy is.
His black hair is messy like he’s in the habit of combing through it
with his fingers. He has that whole square jaw, high cheekbones
look going on, which is my kryptonite. And as if that wasn’t enough,
he has the most piercing, emerald-green eyes I’ve ever seen on a
person. There must be some Irish somewhere in his gene pool
because he definitely looks the part.
I frown. Good looks will not sway me. I’m not that shallow of a
person. I pull my hand free and glare at Law.
“What exactly were you planning, then?” I ask because, damn it,
I’m curious.
“You’re Andy Carter,” he says. He doesn’t ask it. He’s stating a
fact.
I stare at him. It’s my turn to be surprised. Law Anderson knows
my name? How? Why? Since when? And, oh yeah, how?
Immediately, my brain decides that over-the-top paranoia is the
way to go. Has he been following me? Did he know it was my seat
before he took it? Why is Law Anderson even here, talking to me? It
could be an elaborate prank. Why on earth he’d want to prank me is
a mystery on its own, but thanks to my sisters, I’ve seen a lot of
romantic comedies set in high school, so I’m willing to entertain
outlandish scenarios. Of course, pretending to be interested in me
just to humiliate me later doesn’t seem like it would serve any
purpose. There’s nothing interesting about me. I did get some
fascinating results in my experiment on lattice vibration last week,
but I doubt Law is here for that information.
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Unless he’s doing it to find out something about Falcon. Why
would he, though? It’s not like he’s a spy and Falcon is some kind of
secret agent with classified information hidden in a briefcase under
his bed.
Or is he?
I force my errant mind to stop throwing idiotic thoughts at me
because it’s getting ridiculous even for my standards. Coming for me
because of Falcon still seems plausible, though. Granted, it seems
farfetched and like a waste of time on his part. Then again, what the
hell do I know about feuds? The whole not-liking-a-person-because-
he-plays-a-different-sport thing is pretty stupid, to be honest. Not
that I would ever tell that to Falcon. Go Wildcats.
While I’m busy reeling in the crazy, Law starts to look unsure of
himself. Whether it’s because he’s questioning if he has the right
person or if he is realizing the right person is a head case is
anybody’s guess.
“I am,” I finally say.
He nods, still weary, but I can’t really blame him. “Good. Okay.
This is going to sound weird, but I would like to offer you a job.”
He’s right. It does sound weird. And my brain is off again,
conjuring up another set of ideas that are way too out there for even
the most dedicated conspiracy theorists.
What a great day it is turning out to be.
2

LAW

The guy stares at me like jobs are a foreign concept. It goes on for a
long time, but eventually, he snorts and rolls his eyes. “Hah. Good
one. And now, would you please be so kind as to get the hell out of
my seat?”
What is this weird obsession he has with this damn chair? I have
no idea, but it seems like it’s the bargaining chip I have for this
exchange, so I stay put. I do stand up, though. To even the playing
field. I plant my hands on the back of the chair and lean forward.
“I need help,” I say.
He snorts again. “Do I look like somebody who’s good at sports?”
he asks.
“No,” I say way too quickly and immediately wish I could take it
back. I should be buttering up the guy, not insulting him.
He doesn’t seem to be that bothered, though, as he nods and
says, “Exactly.” He moves to his desk, which is right behind the one
I’ve been using for the past hour and a half while I waited for him to
show up. I’ve gone full-on stalker on the dude. I have a picture of
him, taken at some kind of a party, and I’m armed with the
knowledge that I’ve gathered over the last few days.
Andy Carter. Twenty-two. Majors in physics. Can be found in the
library every day, even though it’s the end of the semester, and
we’re heading for the summer break. I’ve been trying to track Andy
down for three days. It hasn’t been smooth sailing. I’m volunteering
at a hockey camp this summer, and the meetings and preparations
have taken up a lot of my time. Still, I’ve been in the library every
day, waiting for Andy.
It seems like a lot of trouble to go through for one guy, but
there’s a reason for that. Baril University prides itself on giving all
the students a well-rounded education, which is not a bad thing at
all. Baril has prerequisites for math and science, and there are
several core subjects everybody has to take. It’s not exactly stuff for
beginners most of the time and bad news for those who hoped they
could leave physics and chemistry behind them once high school was
over. Most people can deal with it because Baril U is a good school,
and you need a certain amount of gray matter to even get in.
There have always been people who need a little extra help, and
it’s generally easy enough to find tutors. That is to say, it was easy
enough until the appointment of Professor Robert Shaw last year. He
teaches physics, and he’s the sole reason every one of our rookies
flunked physics this spring term. All seven of them. Rumor has it the
dean forced Shaw’s hand so he would take on the class in the first
place, which is why he’s failing people as revenge.
I’m not sure if it’s that, or if he’s just a mean old bastard, and the
reason doesn’t really matter. What matters is that he’s failed a good
number of people on my team, and if they don’t get their shit
together, come fall, we’ll fail on ice because I won’t have players.
The rule is, you can’t play when your GPA is lower than 3.0, and a
failing grade in physics brings some of those guys dangerously close.
So far, I’ve found them a couple of different tutors, but they’ve all
been more or less useless. I was getting desperate until I went to
the physics department in person and started harassing people. It
turns out Shaw has a student who helps him in the lab, and who
Shaw seems to like. Every person I talked to said that Andy Carter is
essentially the Holy Grail and the solution to all my problems.
And that’s the short version of how I ended up stalking Andy
Carter. The way I see it, Andy is my last hope. He knows Shaw.
Knows his demands. He has never failed Shaw’s class, and I’m
hoping he can explain the material so that the guys will get it. He’s
my Hail Mary.
I sound dramatic, but there’s a reason for that, too. I need the
team to be successful because my career depends on it. If I’m ever
going to coach an NHL team, I need a fantastic track record. I’m
already at a disadvantage because I’m twenty-four and was forced
to quit playing before I ever got to set skate on NHL ice, but I’ll be
damned if I let that stop me. I will fight, and I will succeed, and the
first step on that journey is to get Andy Carter to help me.
Now that I’m face to face with Andy, I have to admit, there’s
something vaguely familiar about him. I’m about seventy percent
sure I’ve seen him before, but for the life of me, I can’t remember
where.
He looks pretty… scruffy, for lack of a better word. He’s wearing
sweats and a T-shirt that has a large picture of Beyoncé with the
words Who run the world? Physicists! on it.
He has a lot of hair. And I do mean a lot. It’s around his head like
a lion’s mane, only darker, and I don’t think any self-respecting lion
would keep it that messy. He’s kind of skinny, although it’s hard to
tell because of the large T-shirt, but if there’s any muscle mass
under the clothes, it’s well hidden. He’s shorter than me by a few
inches, so he has to lift his head a bit to look at me. The move
makes the hair fall back and gives me the opportunity to see that
eyes are definitely Andy Carter’s best characteristic. They’re silvery
gray. Lighter than most eyes that color, piercing and intense. They’re
mesmerizing, and due to the glasses, the eyes only seem that much
bigger.
He’s scowling at me, which reminds me, I should explain my offer
before he takes off. “I need a physics tutor,” I say, hoping there’s
some kind of magic in the air that would make Andy smile and go
all, Sure, dude. When and where? I’m your guy.
Alas, that does not happen, and Andy scowls harder. “I’m not a
tutor,” he says instead and tries to leave. Again.
I stop him. Again. At this point, we’re pretty much holding hands.
“I don’t need just any tutor,” I say. “People tell me you’re the best,
so I want you.”
There was a TA who told me Andy is working for Shaw and
possesses a magical ability to, and I quote, dumb things down to an
extent that everybody gets them. From what I’ve seen so far with
the tutoring sessions, I’m in desperate need of that exact quality.
I have no idea how I’ll get this guy to agree to help me, but for
starters, I figure a little flattery goes a long way. It seems to work
because Andy flushes and blinks, but just as quickly, the scowl is
back, bigger and meaner than ever.
He shakes his hand loose and glares at me. “That’s not possible.
People don’t know who I am.”
The weird way he phrases it stumps me for a second, but I wave
it off and persevere. I need him, damn it, and I’m going to get him.
Andy marches to his desk and starts stuffing his belongings in his
backpack. I follow him there. “Hear me out. Let’s get a coffee and
I’ll explain the situation.”
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suitably proportioned to fulfil and accomplish those ends, as doth
most manifestly appear by the bodies and organs of all other
creatures, which are most wisely and fitly framed by the Almighty,
according to the several ends and uses they were created and
ordained for. 2. It is most probable that considering there are
creatures that as their wills are moved by their passions and
affections can alter the colours and figures of their own bodies, as is
manifest in worms, and in the colours of the Chameleon, as it is
asserted by the experience of the learned Physician Dominicus
Panarolus, so from the less to the more, that Angels have bodies of
far more excellency to perform their ministrations in, than those
gross and terrestrial bodies have that are here below. And it is no
small wonder to observe our ordinary Gallus Turcicus vel
Gallopavus, how quiet and demissly sometimes he goes, and then
again upon the suddain by some emotion of spirit, how will his train
be advanced and extended, his barbles swelled and puffed up, and
the appendicle that comes over the bill or rostrum, be extended or
contracted at the pleasure of the animal: And much more to consider
the quick and suddain change of the colours of both those parts, as
sometimes to a whitishness, or an ash-colour, sometimes purple,
sometimes blewish, and sometimes pure red, so quick a motion that
creature can give to the spirits and blood, that they can so quickly
alter and change, not only the colours, but also the magnitude. And
much more may we rationally believe that Angels can alter and
change the figure and colour of their bodies according to the
ministrations they are imployed about.
3. The Scripture 1 Cor. 15. 44. Mark 12. 25.
informeth us that
in or at the resurrection, the bodies of men shall be as the Angels
that are in heaven, sicut Angeli: Now this Analogy, comparison, or
assimilation, would be altogether false if Angels had no bodies at all,
but were meerly incorporeal; then it would follow, that the bodies
after the resurrection were made meer Spirits, and so ceased to be
bodies, which is false according to the doctrine of S. Paul, who
sheweth us plainly that after the resurrection they are changed in
qualities into σώματα πνευματικὰ spiritual bodies, for there is a
natural Soul or Animal body, and so likewise, there is a spiritual
body. From whence we necessarily conclude that Angels have Bodies,
and that they are pure spiritual ones.
Now we shall come to the other point intended in this Chapter,
that is to shew that the opinion of Angels assuming bodies of the
Elements here below, is a meer figment, as must of necessity follow if
this be a truth that we have proved, to wit, that they have bodies; for
then assuming of other bodies must needs be in vain and to no
purpose: but we shall also shew the weakness and folly of that
Tenent by these positive reasons following.
1. Those that maintain the assumption of bodies dare not affirm
that they are so invested with those bodies, as are humane souls with
their bodies: for then there must be vital union, which cannot be but
by Divine Ordination: But it doth not any where either by Scripture,
or sound rational consequence, appear that either God appointed, or
gave power to Angels to assume to themselves bodies of what shape
they pleased, or that he ordained a vital union, betwixt the Angels
and those bodies they are supposed to assume either by Creation, or
Generation, and therefore if they did assume any such bodies it must
but be as we put on and off our Garments, or as Players put on and
off their Perukes, Vizards and Garments according to the several
things or persons they intend to represent and personate.
2. But the great question will be, who are the Taylors that shape
and frame them these vestments? what! must it be themselves that
shape and figurate these bodies, as snails are supposed to frame and
make their shells and houses? Surely not, because if they be simply
incorporeal, then they can make no contact with corporeal matter,
and without a corporeal contact there can be no alteration nor
organization of matter, and consequently, they cannot frame or
shape themselves such vestments; neither can any other actor or
agent be assigned that can frame them, and therefore the Tenent is a
most ridiculous figment. And again if they should have such solid
bodies framed of the inferior Elements, as the body of a Serpent, as
the Witchmongers do suppose the Devil assumed when he deceived
Evah, and such bodies as Demons are vainly supposed to assume to
carry the heavy bodies of Men and Women in the air, then those
bodies must needs be of that solidity and compactness that they
cannot suddainly be wasted and dissipated, and then doubtlesly we
should find them sometimes, as we do the sloughs, Exuvias, or skins
of Snakes, for they could not be consumed in a moment. And it were
horrid to suppose that God should instantaneously create them, and
as suddainly dissipate and waste them. So that in verity there is
nothing of certitude, but it may be looked at as a Chimera and a
Poetical Fable.
3. And if the Angels had not such bodily organs wherein they could
move, walk, speak, and perform other such actions withal, before
they assumed or crept into such vestments, their being inclosed and
invested with them and in them would no more fit and inable them
to walk or speak in them, than would an hollow Image inable a lame
Man to walk, or a dumb Man to speak that were inclosed in them.
Therefore (suppose) as the Witchmongers hold, that the Devil should
appear to a Witch in the assumed shape of a Cat, Dog, Foal or such
like, and walk and talk with him or her, if before that assumption of
such a shape, the Devil could not walk and speak, the having crept
into such a vestment would no more inable him to speak, than a dead
Cat in an empty hogshead, or wind pent in an empty bladder.
CHAP. XI.

Of the Knowledge, and Power of faln Angels.

These evil Angels of which we treat, did doubtless, before they left
their habitation and did not keep their first estate, participate of the
same knowledge and power, that those Angels still retain that did not
fall into that defection and rebellion; so that our disquisition must
be, what knowledge and power they have lost, and what they still do
retain, and this we may consider in these particulars. 1. That there
are many things of which they are totally ignorant and nescient. 2.
The knowledge that they have is dark and confused.
1. Concerning 2 Chron. 6. 30. 1 Cor. 2. 11.
the first, this must Isai. 41. 21, 22, 23. Jer. 17. 9, 10.
of necessity be a Matth. 2. 13.
certain rule that what the holy and elect
Angels do not know, the evil and faln Angels must much more
ignore, except the knowledge of evil and guilt, from which the good
Angels are free; and these may be reduced to these few points. 1. We
here may consider that the knowledge of Angels, is to be restrained
into these three ranks; first either their innate and congenerate
knowledge, or secondly their infused or revealed knowledge by God
in his Son Jesus Christ, or thirdly their experimental knowledge that
they gain by observation and experience, and it is of the first only
that we speak in this Paragraph, and the rest we shall handle anon. 2.
That our cogitations, desires and affections are not known to the
Angels, unless they manifest themselves either by external signs, or
effects, or be revealed from God; And these ways they may be known,
but not otherwise; for it is manifest that Satan had darted it, or put it
into the mind of Judas to betray Christ, yet had he so cunningly
carried himself, that neither by any effect nor sign did the Disciples
know it until our Saviour did reveal it unto them. So that the
Scriptures do plainly inform us of the truth in this particular, as, For
what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man
which is in him? For this is only proper to God to search the heart,
and to understand the cogitations, as saith the Text: For thou only
knowest the hearts of the children of men, he only knoweth them,
and neither Angels nor men: and though the heart be deceitful and
desperately wicked, yet God doth search the heart, and try the reins.
So that if the good Angels do not know the cogitations, desires and
affections of Mens hearts, except God either reveal them unto them,
or they be made manifest by signs and effects, much less must the
bad Angels know or understand them. 3. Those things that are
meerly contingent, and those which depend upon free will, cannot be
known of the Angels, unless they be revealed by God, as is manifest
by the Text. Produce your cause, saith the Lord, bring forth your
strong Idols, or Diviners, saith the King of Jacob. Let them bring
them forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the
former things what they be, that we may consider them, and know
the later end of them, or declare us things for to come. Shew the
things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are
Gods: yea, do good, or evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it
together. And as the good Angels know not contingent things, or
those that depend upon free will, much less do the faln Angels
understand them, as is manifest in these examples. The Angel that
was sent of God to warn Joseph to take the child Jesus, and fly into
Ægypt, did not of his own innate knowledge, either in it self, or in its
cause (as the Schoolmen speak) know that Herod would seek the
child to destroy him, because it was truly a contingent thing, and did
only depend upon the free act of Herods will, and therefore by Divine
Goodness and Providence it was revealed to the Angel, thereby to
preserve the life of the child, and to fulfil the Scriptures. Neither do
the faln Angels know future events that are contingent, or depend
upon the free will of men, as is manifest in Satans tempting and
afflicting of Job, which he intended to have been his destruction, and
therefore did falsly divine and foretel that Job would curse God to
his face, but the event was not according to his lying conjecture, but
to the manifestation of Jobs Faith and Patience, and produced his
glorious restoration. So the lying spirit in the mouth of Ahabs
Prophets, did not know that Ahab would go up to Ramoth Gilead, or
that he should be slain there, but that God did reveal it unto him, and
sent him forth with a powerful commission to prevail. So that all the
predictions and Divinations of the Devil or his Angels are nothing
but lying guesses and uncertain conjectures; for what can be
expected from him who was a liar from the beginning, and the
father of lies? Neither were his Idol-priests, Wizzards, Diviners or
Prophets any better but meer conjecturers and lyars, as was most
manifest in all those Oracles that were amongst the Grecians, which
uttered nothing but cheats, lies, equivocations and ambiguous
responsions. And those amongst the Jews were no better, who took
upon them to foretel and divine for others, but could not or did not
foresee their own destruction, as is manifest in Ahabs Prophets slain
by Elijah, and the Priests of Baal slain by Jehu, and therefore must
all those needs be deceived that run to Divining Witches and
Wizzards, of which sort of couzeners we have too many.
And if against this it be objected that the Object.
Devils did know and confess that Jesus was
the Son of God, and therefore if they could tell this that was so great
a mystery, much more easily may they know other inferior things,
and so may foretel future contingencies, to which we give this
responsion.
1. We only affirm that Devils did not know Christ by their innate or
inbred knowledge, but they might know him by the revelation of the
Father, and by the things that were written of him by the Prophets,
and by the observation of those things that were manifested at his
birth, and shewed and done in his life time.
2. And it is Luke 8. 31. Matth. 8. 29.
manifest that God
did not altogether intend to have him hidden from the knowledge of
Devils, because he ordered that the spirit should lead him into the
wilderness, that he might be tempted, that his power and victory
might be shown over the Prince of darkness. And the end that the
wisdom of God had in this, was that the Devils to their greater terror
and horror might know their Conquerour, and by whose power they
should be tormented and thrown into the Abyss or bottomless pit,
and this made them cry out saying, Art thou come to torment us
before the time, and also force us not into the Abyss or deep.
Math. 3. 17. Luk. 2. 11.
3. The Devils might know this because the Angels had proclaimed
his birth to the Shepherds, and told them, that unto them was born
that day, in the City of David, a Saviour which was Christ the Lord:
And they might know it from the appearing of the Holy Ghost in the
form of a Dove, and resting upon him, and by the voice which said
from Heaven, this is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.
And they might know it by the conquest that Christ had over the
Devil, and by their daily being cast out by the power of his word,
and command, as by the finger of God.
4. The mysteries of Salvation cannot be 1 Cor. 2. 11.
known unto the good Angels, but by Divine
Revelation, much less unto the bad ones, as witnesseth the Text: For
what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man
which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the
spirit of God. The mysteries therefore of Salvation, as they have been
decreed by himself in his eternal counsel, are not known unto the
Angels, but by the revelation of the spirit of God and the complement
and fulfilling of his promises. So concerning the restauration or
precise day and hour of the coming of Christ, do not the Angels in
Heaven know, though their knowledge be vast and great, and
therefore much less those faln and rebellious Angels that are chained
in everlasting darkness, untill the judgment of the great day.
5. And as that Revel. 12. 9. Math. 18. 10.
which is not Heb. 1. 14. 2 Pet. 2. 4.
understood of the Acts 12. 7. Josh. 5. 13.
blessed and elect
Angels must needs be unknown unto the faln Angels, so likewise
there are many things known to the good Angels, that are hidden or
but conjectured at by the bad ones, as may be manifest in these
instances. 1. The blessed Angels know and see the face of the Father
in beatifical vision, as saith the Text: Take heed that ye offend not
one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in heaven their
Angels do alwayes behold the face of my father, which is in heaven.
Upon which Beza hath this note: Loquitur more seculi hujus, ubi
consistere in conspectu regis faciemq; ejus perpetuò videre posse,
signum est domesticæ intimæq; familiaritatis. But the faln Angels
are totally deprived of this blessed Vision, being cast forth of Heaven,
as saith the Text. And the great Dragon was cast out, that old
Serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the world: he
was cast out into the earth, and his Angels were cast out with him.
And S. Peter tells us, that God spared not the Angels that sinned, but
cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness.
2. And as they have lost the vision and fruition of the mercies of God,
so they have utterly lost the knowledge of his will, concerning his
Covenant of Grace and mercy to the elect, for they are only
ministring spirits sent forth to tempt to sin, to afflict and punish, and
have still enough for the advancing of the Kingdom of darkness, but
have no knowledge of saving grace nor the mysteries of the Gospel,
but are all enemies and adversaries to God and the Kingdom of
Christ, and goeth about seeking continually whom he may devour.
But it is the blessed elect Angels that are ministring spirits, sent
forth for to minister to them, who shall be heirs of Salvation. 3. The
good Angels have the blessed messages revealed unto them for the
assisting and delivering of the godly. So an Angel did comfort
Joshua, and another warned Joseph to take the child Jesus, and to
fly into Ægypt, thereby to preserve the childs life; and an Angel
delivered the Apostles forth of prison, and many such happy errands
are made manifest unto them, and they imployed about them, of all
which the faln Angels are utterly ignorant, and they are concealed
from them.
6. There are some things that the evil Angels know of, which the
blessed ones have no sensibility of, that is the knowledge of their own
guilt, and the experimental sense of the loss of Gods Favour, Love,
Grace and Mercy.
2. The second De Civitat. Dei, l. 9. Jude 6.
thing that we
proposed to handle, is, that the knowledge that the faln Angels have
is dark and confused, which is plain because they are reserved in
chains under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day. Now
those that are kept or reserved in darkness, must of necessity have
their knowledge dark, and consequently confused; and he also that is
the Prince of darkness, and the Father and Author of the works of
darkness, must needs like his children have his understanding
darkned also. And therefore we will conclude this point with the
opinion of S. Augustine who speaking both of the Angels that stood,
and those that fell, saith thus: Ante peccatum autem tam isti quam
illi perfectè omnia intelligebant. Accessit igitur istis propter
peccatum aliquid tenebrarum. Proindè etiam tenebræ appellantur,
& in tenebris esse dicuntur, cœlesti illa luce destituti, & in locum
caliginosum præcipitati. Ut indè intelligamus nonnihil tenebrarum
naturali etiam illorum menti accessisse, in pœnam admissi peccati
in Deum, Deiq; filium. But we shall only here speak of their
knowledge in reference to things acted in this elementary and
sublunary world, and that in these particulars.
1. Though they retain the same faculty of understanding that they
had before their fall, of the generation, motion and mutation of
natural things here below, yet is it much darkned, and far inferior to
the knowledge of the good Angels in natural things, the one sort
living and abiding in light, and the other being shut up in darkness.
2. What knowledge soever they have by their natural faculties, or
that they may be supposed to gain by acquisition, is by them gotten
or learned for no other end, but for the hurt and destruction of
mankind, and not as the good Angels who make use of theirs for the
benefit of those that shall be heirs of Salvation. For as a good
Physician labours and studies to know the nature and virtues of
Animals, Vegetables and Minerals, and their parts and products, for
the good and benefit of mankind, but a Witch or poysoner laboureth
to know their virtues thereby to destroy and kill; even so do the evil
Angels, and not otherwise.
3. The 2 Thes. 2. 9, 10, 11. John 8.44.
knowledge of
Devils whether natural or acquisitive is spurious, erroneous,
fallacious, deceitful and delusive; both in respect of themselves and
others, for as saith the Scripture: He was a murderer from the
beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in
him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar,
and the father of it. Therefore saith learned Rollock upon this very
place: Hoc est loqui ex ingenio suo, quod naturale est sibi facere;
suum enim & quod ex sese deprompsit, non autem quod aliundè
accepit, profert. For as all the endeavours of the faln Angels tend to
the seduction and delusion of others, so are they, and were they the
deceivers and deluders of themselves: For it is most manifest that
their minds are so obcæcated and covered over with darkness, that
although they be not altogether in general destitute of the knowledge
of that which is just and unjust, good and evil, pious and impious, yet
they do not acknowledge their own sin, as they ought, for they are so
pertinacious in their sin and wickedness, that they do not attentively
perpend and consider their own evil, and therefore are not truely
sensible, or do understand that it is evil, and therefore are by the just
judgment of God so absolutely obcæcated that they cannot
acknowledge their own evil and sin. And as that knowledge they have
is so darkned that they have deluded and deceived themselves, so all
their knowledge in respect of others is erroneous, fallacious and
lying, as the Text witnesseth of Antichrist: Even he whose coming is
after the working of Satan, with all power and signs, and lying
wonders: And with all deceiveableness of unrighteousness, in them
that perish. And for this cause God shall send them strong
delusions, that they should believe a lie.
4. In regard of the words, intentions and actions of wicked Men
they both know and may foretel much, because they are the Authors
and devisers of those evils and wicked thoughts; as it was the Devil
that pushed on the Scribes and Pharisees to accuse and put Christ to
death, for it was their hour and the power of darkness, and it was
Satan that had darted it into the mind of Judas Iscariot to betray his
Master: And therefore the Devils might probably (if not certainly)
know that his death would be brought to pass; so that they may
easily foretel what themselves have projected and prepared
instruments to accomplish.
5. The acquired knowledge of the faln Angels must needs be great
in regard of their vast multitudes and their being dispersed in this
caliginous air or Atmosphere, for the Devil is called the Prince of the
air (if that be literally to be understood) and he compasseth the earth
and walketh to and fro in it, and goeth about, seeking whom he may
devour, and therefore by their agility of body and celerity of motion
may easily know what is done and spoken, and may so very quickly
convey it one to another, and so may most readily communicate
things that are acted or spoken at an incredible distance one from
another; but yet all this no further than Divine Providence will
permit and allow of.
6. The Witchmongers and others do De ver. influ. rer. l.
attribute a kind of omnisciency to Devils in p. 425.
respect of their acquired knowledge, which we by no means can allow
them, and that for these reasons. 1. Though it be granted that they do
grow and increase in the knowlege of sin, evil, and wickedness,
therewith to hurt, devour and destroy, or gain more skill and craft to
lie, cheat, delude and deceive; yet that they either gain or gather any
knowlege that is good, or for any good end, is absolutely false, for
they abode not in the truth, neither are they lovers of truth, but are
utter Enemies to all good knowledge and verity. 2. That they may be
Masters of all the arts or wayes of deceit, lying, cheating and
delusion, is no way to be denied; but that they should (as many
suppose) by reason of their longevity and duration, learn and be
perfect in any or all of the good Arts or Sciences, is to me utterly
incredible, because they are the Corruptors of all, but the perfectors
of none, else should they be the greatest Philosophers in the World,
which is false. And therefore most Christian and pious was that
Sentence of that unjustly censured Person Paracelsus in these
words: Et licèt Diabolus quidem plurima machinetur: hoc tamen
cum omnibus suis legionibus præstare minimè potest, ut vel
abjectam ollam frangat, nedum eandem faciat: multò is minùs
quenquam occidere, aut jugulare potest, nisi id mandato, permissu
jussuq; ac vi divina faciat.
The other main point that we undertake to handle in this Chapter,
is, touching the power of the faln Angels, and that is to be considered
in these three particulars: 1. In general in respect of their power,
either in spiritual and moral things, or in things natural. 2. Or in
respect of spiritual and moral things in particular. 3. Or in respect of
Physical and sublunary things.
1. And for the Ephes. 2. 2. John 12. 31.
first it must of Ephes. 6. 12. Rom. 14. 17.
necessity be Vid. Caten. Aur. Heb. 2. 14.
granted, that their Tho. Aquin.
power since their Psal. 147. 8. 16, 17, Psal. 119. 89.
fall is much 18.
diminished, or at Ephes. 6. 12. Psal. 148. 8.
least restrained Jo. 8. Homil. 22. p. 257.
and chained and
fettered up. For they becoming Rebels against the Almighty, and not
keeping their first Estate, but having left their own habitation, it was
most agreeable to the wisdom and justice of God to take away from
them the greatest part of that power and authority that he formerly
had given them, and so to imprison and chain them up, that they
might never be able to attempt or perform the like Rebellion again;
otherwise the Almighty should not have used that wisdom that is
ordinary with earthly Princes, who haveing overcome those that
rebelled against them, do not only disarm them, but also confine or
imprison them. And to this very thing do the Scriptures allude, when
they say, that they are delivered into chains of darkness, and that
they are reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the
judgment of the great day. So that though the Devils still retain their
cruel, wicked and devouring will and mind; yet they are but like the
Lyon within the Bars of Iron, or Bajazet in the Cage of Iron led about
by Tamberlan, and so though they be never so cruelly bent to do
mischief, yet they are under the Chains and cooped up in the Grates
of Darkness, and kept in Everlasting Chains that they are never able
to break or unloose. And though he be called the God of this World
and the Prince of it, yet that is not to be understood, that he is the
Prince and Ruler of the Creatures of the World, or that he giveth
riches, health, honour or the like, for those are the gift of God only
and not of the Devil; but he is the God and Prince of the evil and
wickedness that is in the World, for in that, and by that, he reigneth
and ruleth; and to this purpose saith Rollock: Damnatio est Satanæ,
qui peccati author est. Nam vita hujus mundi est secundum
principem cui potestas est aeris, &c. Dicitur autem Princeps hujus
mundi, quia per peccatum, & mortem regnat in mundo: ut enim
teste Paulo, Regnum Dei positum est in justitiâ, & pace, & gaudio
per spiritum sanctum, sic regnum Satanæ positum est in injustitia,
& morte. Vnde ipse propter peccatum per quod regnat, dicitur
rector tenebrarum. Propter mortem per quam regnat, dicitur
imperium mortis habere. And upon this place St. Augustin saith
thus: Nunc Princeps hujus mundi ejicietur foras, absit ut Diabolum
principem mundi ita dictum existimemus, ut eum Cœli & terræ
dominari posse credamus: sed mundus appellatur in malis
hominibus, qui toto orbe terrarum diffusi sunt. Sic ergò dictum est:
Princeps hujus mundi, id est princeps malorum hominum qui
habitant in mundo. Appellatur etiam mundus in bonis, qui similiter
per totum orbem terrarum diffusi sunt: Ideò dicit Apostolus, Deus
erat in Christo mundum reconcilians sibi: Hi sunt ex quorum
cordibus principes mundi ejicientur foras. And whereas also Satan is
called the Prince of the power of the air, that worketh in the
Children of disobedience, it is not literally so to be understood, as
though he had the natural power of ruling the air, and causing of
winds, hail, snow, frost, rain, thunder and lightning, for these are all
ordered according to the will of divine providence and the causes
that he hath established in the Elements: So David speaking of the
Heavens, the Earth, and the Elements, doth conclude thus; They
continue this day according to thine ordinances, for all thy
servants: And it is he that ordereth all these, as saith the Text: Who
covereth the Heavens with Clouds, who prepareth rain for the
earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. He giveth
snow like wool, he scattereth the hoary frost like ashes. He casteth
forth his ice like morsels: Who can stand before his Cold? He
sendeth forth his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to
blow, and the waters flow. And all these fulfil the will and command
of God, and not the will of the faln Angels; for the Text saith: Fire
and hail, snow and vapour, stormy wind fulfilling his word; so that
if they have any thing to do in the sublunary changes or motions of
Meteors, it is but only as instrumental and organical Causes, working
meerly as they are ordered and acted by the first cause that worketh
all in all, as the Christian Philosopher Doctor Fludd hath most
learnedly proved in his Treatise of Cosmical Meteors, which I
seriously commend to those that desire full satisfaction in this
particular. But the Devil is chiefly called the Prince of the power of
the air, because he is the proud, high, airy and spiritual Prince and
Ruler of wickedness in high or super-cœlestial places, by which
proud, airy, and spiritual wickedness, he worketh in the Children of
disobedience. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the
darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places,
ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις. Upon which learned Beza saith thus: Homines
quorum fragilis & caduca est natura, cui opponuntur versutiæ
spirituales, infinitis partibus potentiores. And again, Ista nomina
tribuit Angelis malis, propter effectus, non quod eos suâ vi possint
præstare, sed quia illis Deus laxat habenas. And therefore S.
Chrysostom upon this place saith thus: Mundi verò dominos eos
vocat, non quod mundum gubernent, sed solet scriptura malos
actus hunc mundum vocare, ut quando Christus dicit, vos non estis
ex hoc mundo quemadmodum ego non sum ex mundo.
2. To consider Jo. 17. De operib. Dei l. 4.
their power in c. 6. p. 175.
spiritual and moral things particularly, we shall find they have no
power in some things, but by their fall have utterly lost it, as is
apparent in these few points. 1. They have lost that freedom of will
that they had by Creation, and were partakers of before they fell, and
agreeable to this is the Thesis of learned Zanchy, which is this: “That
all Devils have so far their wills made obstinate in sins, the hatred of
God, Christ, and of Mankind, that from this evil they cannot will to
repent, and thereby be saved;” and this he thus proveth. 1. Because in
the Scriptures they are called, πονυροὺς κατ’ ἐξοχὴν, for they are
now become such, that they cannot be changed from their malice and
wickedness; because it is become natural unto them. 2. From whence
it is manifest, that the whole time since their fall, never yet any of
them hath given any sign of resipiscence. 3. If they could repent and
believe in Christ, then for them and their sins Christ also should have
died; for he saith, that he prayed for those that were to believe in
him; but they neither believe in him, neither did he die for them. 4.
But the chief cause of their impenitency is the just judgment of God,
that hath given them up to hardness of heart, because they sinned
knowingly and wilfully against the truth. And this point is sufficiently
proved by Thomas Aquinas, the rest of the Schoolmen and many
others. 2. So that as they have lost freedom of will, so they cannot at
all will or act to be saved, or to repent. 3. And as they cannot will or
act to repent or be saved, so the whole acts of their wills are evil,
malicious and wicked, being liars and murtherers from the
beginning.
3. The third is to consider their power in sublunary and
elementary things which is the most pertinent to our present
purpose, it being the thing that some have magnified even to a kind
of omnipotency, and therefore we must the more narrowly ventilate
and examine it, which we shall do in this order.
1. How great soever the power of the faln Angels may be supposed
to be, yet neither in knowlege can they be deemed to be omniscient,
or in power to be omnipotent, because they are created Beings,
circumscribed, limited and finite, and consequently can perform no
act that necessarily must require an omnipotent power, and so can
neither create things de novo, annihilate or transubstantiate any
Creature or substance, or pervert or put forth of order, the things
that God by Creation, Decree and Providence hath set into their
certain orders of Generation, alteration and corruption.
2. How great soever their power may be Ut supra.
supposed to be, yet rationally it must be
taken for a truth, that they have not the same power that they had
before their fall. For as Zanchy saith: Certum est enim in universum,
& in genere, hac etiam in parte illos punitos fuisse, ut non possint
quicquid poterant, cum boni essent, nec etiam quicquid nunc velint.
Because the Holy Ghost beareth witness, that they are bound in
Chains, and that Satan begged leave of God to invade Job, that they
fought with the good Angels, but were overcome, and that they may
be so resisted of believing men that they may be overthrown. Ac væ
nobis, nisi potentia Dæmonum infirmata esset, & à Domino
comprimeretur, & compesceretur.
3. And what power soever be granted to Zanch. de op. Dei ut
the faln Angels, yet it is by the opinion of all supra.
the learned, restrained only to these sublunary and inferior bodies,
and that they have neither power by Creation or Ordination, to work
upon, move, or alter things that are Angelical, Celestial, Ethereal and
Superior, but only are chained in this Caliginous Atmosphere, and
impure air. For it is manifest, that superior bodies work upon those
that are inferior, but not on the contrary, neither have we any
examples that can prove that they do operate upon Celestial bodies,
and so their power (how great soever some may suppose it to be) is
only restrained to these inferior sublunary things.
4. The Isai. 37. 36. Gen. 19. 24.
operations and
actions performed by the faln Angels, may be considered, either in
the simple respect of their natural and created power, and this how
great soever it was before their fall, is not only lessened, but that
which remains, is limited and restrained with the Adamantine
Chains of the decree of divine providence: or in respect of what
power they may have superadded by God, when they are
Commissionated and sent by God to effect some particular actions,
as for example, Moses and Aaron had but the ordinary strength and
power that was common to other men, before they were sent upon
the message to Pharaoh, and made Instruments to deliver the
Israelites, for then were they armed and indowed with the power of
working great and stupendious Miracles. So it cannot rationally be
imagined that the two Angels that were sent as Instruments to
destroy Sodom and Gomorrha, did or could of their own proper,
individual and created power, bring down Fire and Brimstone from
Heaven to burn those two Cities, but that it was brought to pass by
the Power of the Almighty, as granted and given to them for that
judgment only, and not by that ordinary power that they could
always exercise, for the Text saith: Then the Lord rained upon
Sodom, and upon Gomorrha brimstone and fire from the Lord forth
of heaven. Neither can it rationally be supposed that one Angel hath
by his created power, that ability, that he can slay in one night an
hundred fourscore, and five thousand, as it is written the Angel did
in the camp of the Assyrians, but that it was brought to pass by the
power of Jehovah superadded unto him, to work the great
deliverance of Hezekiah and his people. Upon which place the
learned Expositor John Calvin saith thus: Solus quidem dominus
satis per se potest, ac certè solus nos servat: Angeli enim, manus
quodammodo sunt ipsius: Unde etiam Virtutes & Potestates
vocantur. Interim hæc vis soli Deo tribuenda, cujus organa
tantummodo sunt Angeli, ne in superstitionem incidamus. From
whence we may note these two things. 1. That even Devils are but the
organs and instruments by which God accomplisheth his will, and
executeth his wrath and justice, and so are but as tormenters and
executioners to act no more than what they are appointed and
commanded to do. 2. We may observe that in times past they had
large Commissions given and great power superadded to perform
great wonders for the destruction of the wicked, which was done for
great and extraordinary ends, such as in these days the Lord doth
seldom or never use, and therefore there can be no reason now
shewed why Devils should have any extraordinary power added unto
them in working strange feats for Witches and Sorcerers.
5. It will much 2 Pet. 2. 4. De op. Dei l. 4. c. 4.
conduce to the Jude 6. p. 174.
clearing of this Matth. 25. 41. Loc. Com. p. 12.
point of the power
of Devils to examine into what place they are faln, or since their
rebellion into what Prison they are shut, and this we shall give in the
Thesis of learned Zanchy who saith thus: “All the evil Angels were
thrust down from Heaven, into places that are below the Celestial
Orbs, to wit into this air, and below, as it were into a caliginous
Prison, where they are reserved unto the Universal Judgment as
bound with chains.” And this is plain from the words of S. Peter, who
saith: For if God spared not the Angels that sinned, but cast them
down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness to be
reserved unto judgment. To which accordeth that of Jude: And the
Angels that kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation,
he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness, unto the
judgment of the great day. For as learned Musculus tells us: Decet
Christianum hominem ea modestia, & cautio, ut nihil affirmet, nec
si quis alius affirmaverit, inconsideratè recipiat, quod non certo
veritatis testimonio è sacris literis desumpto, confirmari queat. To
this we shall only add what the acute and learned Theologue Amesius
notes upon this place of Peter, which in English is this: “In general
(he saith) we are taught, that they did not keep their first estate, that
is, they did forsake righteousness and that station in which they were
placed of God, and afterwards they have exercised from the
beginning, envy, lies and murther against Men. Also (he saith) we are
taught, that they were a great number that were partakers of this
defection, and therefore the Apostle speaketh in the plural number.
1. They are said to be thrust down in Tartarum into Hell by reason of
the commutation of estate and condition, because that from a most
high condition, which they received by creation, they were cast down
to an estate most low. 2. By reason of commutation of place, because
they were thrust down from a place of beatitude, where they were
conversant about the Throne of God with the rest of the Angels, into
an inferiour place subject to sin and misery. But that this place is in
the lowest parts of the earth, as the Papists do hold, cannot be made
forth from the Scriptures, but rather the contrary, for they are said to
be conversant, and to rule in the air, and to walk to and fro in the
earth seeking the subversion of Men. This at the least is manifest
from the Scriptures, and ought to satisfie those that are not too
curious. 1. That they suffer a great change of estate and condition. 2.
That they are excluded and shut out from their first habitation. 3.
That they are in such a place where they suffer both the pain of loss
and of sense. They are said to be delivered over to darkness, partly in
respect of sin, and partly in respect of misery; for darkness in
Scripture doth denote both: and they are said to be delivered in
chains, by a metaphor taken from facinorous persons, that are
condemned and kept bound in prison with chains, and the chains are
these. 1. Obfirmation or obduration in sins. 2. An utter despair of any
freedom or deliverance. 3. A terrible, expectation of extream misery,
and an horrid fear of being cast into the abysse or deep. 4. The
Providence of God which continually watches over their custody,
imprisonment, and punishment. They are said to be reserved to
damnation, because they are so bound up in these evils and miseries,
that they never can escape; and yet these are but the beginnings only
of their miseries, for they are hereafter to go into that everlasting
fire, that is prepared for the Devil, and his Angels.”
6. Though the 1 Pet. 5. 8. Job 1. 7.
Devils be said to be 1 Kings 22. 22.
reserved in everlasting chains of darkness,
yet are they said sometimes to be loosed, and to go to and fro in the
earth, and to walk up and down in it, and that Satan doth like a
roaring lion walk about seeking whom he may devour. Which must
be understood (as we have shewed before) that in respect of his evil
will, malice and envy, he seeketh and desireth the overthrow of all
mankind, but yet is so restrained that he doth but act, what, where,
when and so far only as God doth limit and order him. For though it
be usually said that God doth permit him, yet it cannot be
understood as a bare and nude permission, as though God should
suffer him to go so loose and at liberty, that he may exert and
exercise his power to the uttermost, for then all the godly should be
destroyed both in Souls and Bodies, and God should only sit by as a
bare spectator, not as an Orderer, Ruler and Governour, even as
though an hungry fierce Lion that had been chained up in a grate,
should be let loose to rage and run where he would, and to kill and
devour what he could, and thus the Witchmongers do suppose of
him, which is false and contrary to the testimony of Gods word. But
when the Almighty maketh use of Satan or his Angels, they are only
so let loose that he hath a hook in their Nostrils, and their Necks in a
chain, that they can act no more nor no further than he ordereth, and
gives them leave to accomplish, and thus are they limited not only by
his irresistible will and decree, but they are also watched over and
ruled by the good Angels that are as it were their keepers and
overseers. So when the Devil is used as an instrument to afflict Holy
Job, he is first let loose to afflict him in his Children and Goods, but
not to touch his Body; and the second time he hath leave and power
given him to lay his hand upon Jobs Body, but not to take away his
life: which do plainly shew, that he is not only and barely suffered to
do what he will, but hath his limits set how far he shall act, and no
farther. And when God maketh use of him for the punishment of the
wicked, he giveth him power, and ordereth him how far to act or
prevail. As in the case of the lying spirit in the mouth of Ahabs
Prophets, the evil spirit is sent forth with this commission, And God
said thou shalt perswade him and prevail also: go forth and do so.
By which it is manifest that he prevaileth more by the virtue of Gods
command and commission, than by his own proper created power.
7. It is manifest 1 Cor. 10. 13. Vid. Lambert. Dan.
that as the good Exages. Aphor. 14. Isagog. c. 24. p. 68.
Angels are the p. 133.
Ministers of God
for the Salvation of mankind, so the evil Angels are ministring spirits
only seeking the destruction and damnation of Men; and though God
doth use the Ministry of these that are evil and have an evil will, yet
he useth them well, and to good ends, that is, as the executioners of
his justice to chasten the godly, and to restrain, or destroy the
wicked. Therefore God and the Devil do not afflict, tempt or do any
other thing for the same ends; for God acteth to prove, preserve, and
stir up to goodness, but the Devil acteth to bring into sin and evil, to
destroy and to bring to despair, as is manifest in the History of Job.
And therefore here we may consider the several ways wherein God
useth the evil Angels as his instruments, and that is in these
particulars. 1. God useth him generally for temptation both of the
good and the bad; so he tempted David, Christ and the Disciples, for
Satan had desired to sift them as wheat, and therefore he is called ὁ
πειρόζων, the tempter: and these temptations are internal and
spiritual, for we fight not against flesh and blood, but against
spiritual wickedness in high places. And in these as far as
concerneth the faithful, he acteth but only as God permitteth or
ordereth him, as is plain in the case of David, where one Text saith,
Jehovah moved David to number the people, and in another place,
and Satan stood up, and moved David to number the people: where
it is to be noted that God did it as the director and orderer, and Satan
performed it as his instrument and servant. And the Apostle telleth
us; that God is faithful, and would not suffer the believing
Corinthians to be tempted above what they were able, but would
with the temptation also make a way to escape, that they might be
able to bear it. 2. God maketh use of him for the chastisement and
affliction of the godly, as is most manifest in that of Job; but this only
so far as he is limited, ordered and commanded from God and no
further. 3. When Satan as a tormenting or punishing instrument is
used of God, he hath his commission given him how far only he shall
act and proceed, beyond which he cannot go one hairs breadth, as is
manifest in the case of Ahab and the Gadarens Swine, so that we
may conclude this with the learned Aphorism of Piscator in these
words: Etsi autem Satan seu Diabolus cum suis Angelis Deo et filiis
Dei adversatur quantum in ipso est, nimirùm voluntate et conatu:
non tamen effectu; ita nimirum ut vel fidelibus perniciem afferre,
vel quicquam efficere possit quod Deus nolit. Deus enim illum
potentiæ suæ fræno vinctum constrictumq tenet: ut ea modò
exequatur quæ ei divinitùs mandata, aut concessa fuerint.
8. Lastly, we shall now examine the particulars wherein learned
Zanchy doth acknowledge the faln Angels to have power over our
and other sublunary bodies, and they are principally these.
1. Upon the Acts 8. 39, 40. De oper. Dei. l. 4. c.
supposition 10. p. 186.
granted that the faln Angels have permission, he holdeth that by
their own proper created natural power, they can as they please
move in place: as to lift a Body up from the earth on high, and then
to let it fall or throw it down to the earth; that they can transfer or
carry a body from one City to another in a very short space of time:
Lastly, that they can move and agitate bodies with every kind of local
motion that none can resist them. And that therefore all those
strange transportations of Witches in the air into forraign and far
distant places (he holdeth) need not be thought strange or
impossible, and that they may be done with great celerity, and in a
short time. And this he thinketh he proveth by the example of Philip,
who when he had instructed the Eunuch in the faith and baptized
him, was caught away by the spirit of the Lord, that the Eunuch
saw him no more, and that he was found at Azotus. Upon which we
must make these animadversions. 1. That upon the supposition or
ground that faln Angels are simply and meerly incorporeal, this must
be false, for then they cannot move in place, nor agitate any bodies,

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