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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93062	The sinfulnesse of evil thoughts: or, a discourse, wherein, the chambers of imagery are unlocked: the cabinet of the heart opened. The secrets of the inner-man disclosed. In the particular discovery of the numerous evil thoughts, to be found in the most of men, with their various, and severall kinds, sinful causes, sad effects, and proper remedies or cures. Together with directions how to observe and keep the heart; the highest, hardest, nad most necessary work of him that would be a real Christian. / By Jo. Sheffeild Pastor of Swithins London.	Sheffeild, John, d. 1680.	1650 (1650)	Wing S3064A; Thomason E1863_1	165,696	337

for us How slightly do they speak of God Who is the Lord And what can he do for us So in Zephany The Lord will neither do good nor evill These men Zeph. 1. 11. are settled on their lees and dregs of impiety and irreligion whereas it is the language of the Godly Who is like unto thee O Lord Who is like the God of Israel And Ex. 15. 11. Psal 89. 8. Deut. 33. 26. hereby do the Godly know they have been spirituall in their duties if they rise up in the duty to or depart from the duty with higher more raised admiring and exalting thoughts of God in their hearts and more low and self abasing thoughts of themselves CHAP. VIII Of Atheisticall thoughts HAving before spoke of severall kindes of Atheists I shall here speak of the Atheisticall thought A thought so black Irrationall Bruitish and horrid as can be thought A thought which may be darted and haply glance at a gracious heart but can onely find footing and stick with a heart altogether gracelesse To shew the heinousnesse and hatefullnesse whereof I may boldly say five things 1. That it cannot possibly be received but where the man hath first worne out his conscience and all principles of religion It doth ipso facto unsaint a Saint upon its first admission Some other Errors possibly may stand with grace this entertained cannot 2. Nor doth it ever stick but where the man hath lost his reason and his braines too as well as his conscience It is not onely against the light of Scripture but nature even corrupted nature and doth consequently not onely un-saint the Christian but un-man the man Some other Errors have some seeming reason on their side This utterly none It is the fool onely who saith that is imagineth in his heart There is no God And have they no knowledge saith he afterwardes No indeed none Psal 14. 1. and 4. at all either spirituall or so much as naturall The whole Host of heaven and earth and all the creatures animate and inanimate combine together to bear witnesse against this folly and impiety They are all Gods witnesses and say to man if thou denyest a God thou art a lyar or if thou doubtest thou art a fool and we will prove it For who could make these visible heavens but the invisible Deity Who could make the eye but he who is all eye and give the understanding but he who is all understanding Though many of the creatures are mute and cant speak another word they all plainly pronounce this one word A God a God This is the sound of the harmony of the heavens and the note of the whole universe there is no speech nor language where this voice is not heard So much Divinity at least is received for Orthodox among all Nations established not by particular nationall or general Counsells convened as some other points but by the Oecumenicall counsell of mankind though never convened together and subscribed to man by man all the world over and hath gained universall consent in all ages and places as the first if not onely principle of naturall beliefe and our mother natures Creed Some Nations have one Creed some another some have altered their present Creeds this was never altered but received by all without dispute or contradiction There be some people that admit of some books of holy Scripture onely as the Samaritans of old and the Turk at this day of the five books of Moses Some receive the Old Testament entirely as the Jowes Some receive the old and New Testament both as the sound Christian Churches Some admit the Apocrypha and unwritten Traditions too as the Papists Some reject all the whole Bible and have no written Scripture But all have this Scripture written in their hearts the most ancient Scripture in the world before there were any penman of holy Writ And this is universally received and read in all nations in their mother Tongue and expounded in their several and different the most corrupt exercises of religion and worship There have been several Sorts of Philosophers in the world one opposing and thwarting anothers Axiomes there have been several sects of Hereticks in the Church all opposing other truthes and rejecting the soundest Creeds There have been oppositions in all sciences disputes against every thing said or practised in all arts trades professions But all sorts of Philosophers hereticks of all arts trades professions and sciences have unanimously concurred in this when nothing else There is a God However People are divided by Lands and Seas dissonant in their Language and complections more different in their lawes customes manners apparell yet in this all Nations by a divine instinct harmoniously agree there is and of force must be acknowledged There is a God And a little reason will serve to prove it for as when I see a son I must needs yeeld this child had a Father so when I see the creatures I must needs grant a Creator who is the Lord. Therefore hold this fast 3. This is the most Destructive thought and error in the world Some errors are about the Superstructure this a fundamentall error some fundamentall errors impugne some one article of faith or principall doctrine This is destructive of all Religion destroyes all divinity and humanity too it leaves us never an article of faith never a command in the Decalogue and never a point of doctrine It leaves not a stone upon a stone but pulls down all This smites the glorious Statute of Body of Religion upon his feet and breaks all to pieces and brings it down to the ground destroying piety civility humanity curtesy and the improvements of common reason as that stone which smote that Image in Daniel so that Gold Dan. 2. 24. silver brasse iron and clay all crumbled in pieces and became like the chaffe in the summer threshing-flore 4. This Atheism in the thought is a Mother sin a big-bellied monstrous sin having in its womb all manner of impiety and like Babylons Cup is full of all manner of abominations Atheism never goes alone Therefore it is added Psal 14. 1 2. The fool said there was no God Corrupt are they and have done abominable works c. 5. The fifth and last thing I shall observe is that there is so much Irrationallity in this thought that it is banished the world and excluded the society of man and so much of Impiety in it that it is not onely excluded heaven but this of all other sins is excluded out of hell too There is no Atheism to be found in hell there is blasphemy malice envy c. no Atheisme The Atheist goes to hell Atheisme doth not Nullus in Inferno est Atheos ante fuit And is not this a mad and monstrous impiety which can be harboured in the heart when neither heaven earth or hell it self will own it The devils and damned are herein sounder then thou art they believe and tremble And

wilt prove but a piece or shadow of a Professor But bring Scripture and Providence Conscience and Scripture and Christ and Conscience together and thou hast done thy work so shalt thou come behind in no gift waiting for the appearing of Jesus Christ Which is the Prayer of Thy Companion in the Spirituall Warfare Jo. SHEFFEILD The Contents Chap. 1. Context opened in sundry observations and the grand observation the subject of the whole discourse propounded pag. 2 Chap. 2. The Doctrine explained proved and confirmed by sundry arguments in the Text. p. 14 Chap. 3. Severall other reasons from other Scriptures 22 Chap. 4. The severall kinds of evil Thoughts whereof some transient some deliberate 39 Ch. 5. The several kinds of deliberate Thoughts referred to three heads 45 Ch. 6. Sins of thoughts in respect of God and first in having no thoughts of God 50 Six kinds of Atheisme ibid. Ch. 7. Of Low thoughts of God 58 Ch. 8. Of Atheistical thoughts 61 Chap. 9. Of Injurious and Erroneous thoughts 68 Ch. 10. Of Blasphemous thoughts 70 Ch. 11. Of Politick thoughts 76 Ch. 12. Of Grosse and Superstitious thoughts 81 Ch. 13. Of Hard thoughts of God 84 Ch. 14. Of Despairing thoughts 87 Ch. 15. Of Presumptuous thoughts 98 Ch. 16. Of Murmuring thoughts 110 Ch. 17. Of Carefull thoughts 112 Ch. 18. Of Carnal thoughts 127 Ch. 19. Of Doubtfull distrustfull and fearfull thoughts 128 Ch. 20. Of Reasonings and Irrationall thoughts 132 Ch. 21. Of Hypocriticall thoughts 139 Ch. 22. Of Evil thoughts in reference to our Neighbour 142 The Evil Eye 143 Eight evil eyes ib. Ch. 23. Many other Evil thoughts 1. Censorious 151 Sevenill Judges 152 2. Contemptuous thoughts 154 3. Over weening thoughts 155 4. Cunning craftinesse 156 5. Revengfull and malicious 158 7. Uncompassionate ib. 8. Vile and sinfull wishes 159 Ch. 24. Of Evil thoughts in respect to our selves 160 1. Impure thoughts 161 2. Ambitious 162 3. Thoughts of Security 164 4. Self-magnifying 165 5. Projecting thoughts 166 Ch. 25. Of the Melancholy thought 167 And the sinfull Merry thought 171 Four kinds of Mirth 172 Four kinds of Evil Mirth 176 Chap. 26. Of thoughts of Self-Murder 181 Ch. 27. Of Carefull thoughts 186 Vain thoughts 196 Ch. 28. The first Use 200 Thought is not free ib. Ch. 29. All are to be humbled for their thoughts 204 Ch. 30. Third Use of Information 1. Of the difference between the Lawes of Men and the Law of God 214 2. A worse difference between Gods holy Law and our vile hearts 215 3. Where the difference lies between the unfound and the sincere 216 4. What a busie work it is to be a Christian 217 5. How far a Hypocrite may go instance in Simon Magus 219 Ch. 31. Containes 1. A Use of Terror to such as harbour Evil thoughts 226 2. Comfort to the godly soule whose good thoughts are the best part of his sanctification 229 3. Resolution how to judge of the thoughts 230 Ch. 32. Use of Exhortation 1. To know and keep the heart 238 2. To repent of Evil thoughts 242 3. To Fly to Christ 244 Ch. 33. An Use of Examination with certain notes to try whether the thoughts be good or evil 246 Ch. 34. Of good desires 253 Eight Conclusions concerning good desires 253 Four Rules to know them by 260 Rule 1. Desires good when the Object good 260 What their Object is ib. Rule 2. When they flow from a right spring 263 The right spring of desires ib. Rule 3. When their properties and effects are right 265 Sundry properties of such desires ib. Rule 4. When attended with their right Companions 273 The many Companions of such desires ib. Chap. 35. Directions how to keep the heart 276 Prov. 4. 23. Explained and enlarged upon ib. How the heart is to be observed if evil 279 How to be preserved if good 280 1. In Tendernesse ib. Four Notes of a tender heart ib. 2. In Humility 281 Three Considerations to keep the heart humble ib. 3. The heart must be kept up in due height 282 Three Helps hereto ib. 4. The heart must be kept clean 282 Three Helps thereto ib. 5. To be kept in Faith ib. Three Helps thereto 283 6. To be kept in holy fear ib. Three Helps thereto ib. 7. To be kept in readinesse and willing nesse ib. Three Helps thereto 284 8 To be kept in steadinesse ib. Three times especially when to be so kept ib. Severall helpes to prevent evil thoughts 285 Ch. 36. An admonition to Simon and his followers 292 Ch. 37. A sad Soliloquy or meditation upon the evil of the thoughts 296 THE SINFULNESS OF Evil Thoughts Act. 8. 22. Repent therefore of this thy wickednesse and pray God if perhaps the thought of thy heart may be forgiven thee NONE will think this passage The Preface of Scripture at the first sight to be like the Carcase of the Judg. 14. 8. Lyon which Sampson found and therein a swarm of Bees and so sweet an Hony-comb but more like the Carcase of a Dead Dog wherein is to be seen nothing but a Swarm of Vermin and a Comb full of the Gall of Bitternesse But wait a while and I hope you will find out of this Eater may come Meat and out of this stro●g unsavoury smell may come some sweet It is not like I confesse to that sight which Moses beheld with admiration and delight a Bush burning not Consumed wherein the Exod. 3. 2 4. Lord was present and out of which he spake But here you may see one of Satans Hell-bushes Burning with sin nor yet Consumed out of whom Satan spake yet be not afraid to draw neer and I hope we shall hear the voice of the Lord speaking if not out of the Bush yet to the Bush or at least to us Repent of this thy wickednesse and pray God if perhaps the thought of thy heart may be forgiven thee CHAP. I. THIS Book of the Acts of the Apostles is as it were the New Testaments book of Kings and Chronicles containing the Authentick Records of the most remarkable Passages in those Primitive and purest times and may deservedly be stiled The Acts and Monuments of the Apostles and of the first Apostolicall Churches Wherein we have summarily set down the manifold Pains Travell Successe or opposition which the Apostles met with in their propagating the Gospell at first and laying the happy foundation of Christian Churches amidst a world of Infidells and Pagans Yet among the Famous Acts of the Apostles and memorialls of some particular Saints you find inserted now and then the foul and infamous storyes of some bloudy Persecutor or black hypocrite a worse shame and greater Blot to the Christian name and profession yea we have inserted among the lives of Blessed Saints Act. 13. 8. and 16. 16. the story of severall execrable Sorcerers the worst of men as Elimas and the Pythonisse and this Simon who made a stir in those Early dayes to the