It is by the mixture of counterfeit religion with true, not discerned and distinguished that the devil has had his greatest advantage against the cause and kingdom of Christ all along hitherto.

It is by this means, principally, that he has prevailed against all revivings of religion that ever have been since the first founding of the Christian church.

By this, he hurt the cause of Christianity in and after the apostolic age, much more than by all the persecutions of both Jews and heathens. The apostles, in all their epistles, show themselves much more concerned at the former mischief than the latter.

By this Satan prevailed against the Reformation, begun by Luther, Zwinglius and others, to put a stop to its progress, and bring it into disgrace, ten times more than by all those bloody, cruel, and before unheard-of persecutions of the Church of Rome.

By this principally, has he prevailed against revivals of religion, that have been in our nation since the Reformation.

By this he prevailed against New England, to quench the love and spoil the joy of her espousals, about a hundred years ago. And I think I have had opportunity enough to see plainly that by this the devil has prevailed against the late great revival in New England, so happy and promising in its beginning. Here, most evidently, has been the main advantage Satan has had against us; by this he has foiled us.

It is by this means, that the daughter of Zion in this land now lies on the ground, in such piteous circumstances as we now behold her, with her garments rent, her face disfigured, her nakedness exposed, her limbs broken, and weltering in the blood of her own wounds, and in no wise able to arise; and this, so quickly after her late great joys and hopes:

Lam 1:17, “Zion spreadeth forth her hands, and there is none to comfort her: the Lord hath commanded concerning Jacob, that his adversaries shall be round about him.”

— Jonathan Edwards, from the preface of The Religious Affections, 17-18.

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