oor Man in such a furious
manner, was afraid, and petition'd Christ not to chain him up for it,
and as the Text says, _They besought him to suffer them to go away_, &c.
that is to say, when they say, art thou come to torment us before the
Time? the Meaning is, they begg'd he would not cast them into Torment
before the Time, which was already fix'd; but that if he would cast them
out of the Man, he would let them go away, _&c._

The Evangelist St. _Luke_ says, the _Devil besought him that he would
not command them to go out into the Deep_: Our learned Annotators think
that part is not rightly render'd; adding, that they do not believe the
_Devil_ fears drowning; but with Submission, I believe the meaning is,
that they would not be confin'd to the vast Ocean, where no Inhabitants
being to be seen, they would be effectually imprison'd and tied down
from doing Mischief, which would be a Hell to them; as to their going
into the Swine, that might afford us some Allegory; but I am not
disposed to jest with the Scripture, no nor with the _Devil_ neither,
farther than needs must.

It is evident the _Devil_ makes Use of very mean Instruments sometimes,
such as the Damsel possess'd with a Spirit of Divination, and several
others.

I remember a Story, how true I know not, of a weak Creature next Door to
an Ideot, who was establish'd in the Country for an Oracle, and would
tell People strange Things that should be, long before they came to
pass; when People were sick, would tell them whether they should live or
die; if People were married, tell how many Children they should have;
and a hundred such Things as fill'd the People with Admiration, and they
were the easier brought to believe that the Girl was possess'd; but then
they were divided about her too, and that was the finest spun Thread
the Devil could work, for he carried a great Point in it; some said she
had a good Spirit, and some a bad, some said she was a Prophetess, and
some that she was the _Devil_.

Now had I been there to decide the Question, I should certainly have
given it for the latter; if it were only upon this Account, namely, that
the Devil has often found Fools very necessary Agents for the
propagating his Interest and Kingdom, but we never knew the good Spirits
do so; on the other Hand, it does not seem likely that Heaven should
deprive a poor Creature of its Senses, and as it were take her Soul from
her, and then make her an Instrument of Instruction to o