Page:History of the devil, ancient and modern (3).pdf/12

 (13 ) his race, and drove them from his preſence - Thus the Devil too ſucceſsfully practiſed his wiles on the Antedeluvians; for though Seth, the third Son of Adam, had Enos, in whoſe days we find " that men began to call on the name of the Lord; tracing the ſucceflion of blood in the royal original line of Adam, brought down as low as Noah and his three ſons, for it continued a ſeries of 1450 years, ſay ſome 1640, ſay others; in which time, ſin ſpread itſelf ſo generally through the whole race; and the ſons of God, ſo the ſcripture calls to men of the righteous feed, the progeny of Seth, came in unto the daughters of men, that is joined themſelves the curſed race of Cain, and married promiſcuouſly with them, according to their fancies--the women, it ſeems, being beautiful and tempting: and though the Devil could not make the women handſome or ugly in one or other family, yet he might work up the guſt of wicked inclinations on either ſide, ſo as to make both the men and women tempting and agreeable to one another, where they ought not to have been ſo, and perhaps, as it is often ſeen to this day, the more tempting for being under a legal reſtraint. Thus having completely debauched them the whole 1500 years: he led them to ſcorn and contemn Noah, and treat him as a frantic religious fool for building the ſhip in which he and the ſtock on board were to skip over hills, and dance over plains : but ſoon were they left in the Devil's lurch; and he, no doubt amazed and non pluſed to gueſs what would enſue from this inundation. No ſooner did the Devil ſee the Ark reſting on Mount Araret, and Noah, his family, and every liv- ing creature deſcend from it; and knowing all his infernal work was to begin, that he might again ſrike at the root, inſtantly commences with Noah, who had been a very great preacher; and, by means of his wick- ed child Canaan gets him drunk, and ſo ſtopt his