Edwards a Master of Arts of Trinity College in Cambridge, being reclaimed from Conjuration, declared in his Repentance, that the Dæmon always appeared to him like a Man of good Fashion, and never required any Compact from him; and no doubt they sort themselves agreeably to the State, Port, and Genius of those with whom they converse; yea 'tis like, as I conjectured, are assistant sometimes to those, to whom they dare not shew themselves in any oppenness of appearance, lest they should fright them from those ways of Sin and Temptation, so that we see that Men may act by evil Spirits, without their own knowledge that they do so.
And possibly Nebuchednezzar's Wisemen might be of this sort of Magicians; which supposal I mention the rather, because it may serve me against some things that may be objected: For it may be said, If they had been in Confederacy with Devils, it is not probable that Daniel would have been their Advocate, or in such inoffensive Terms have distinguisht their skill from Divine Revelation; nor should he, one would think, have accepted the Office of being Provost over them. These Circumstances may be supposed to intimate a probability, that the Magi of Babylon were in no profest Diabolical Complotment, and I grant it. But yet they might, and in all likelihood did, use the Arts and Methods of Action, which obtain Demoniack Co-operation and Assistance, though without their privity, and so they were a less Criminal sort of Conjurers; for those Arts were convey'd down along to them from one Hand to another, and the Successors still took them up from those that Precede without a Philosophical Scrutiny or Examen. They saw strange things were done, and Events predicted by such forms, and such Words; How they could not tell, nor 'tis like did not enquire; but contented themselves with this general account, That 'twas by the power of their Arts, and were not sollicitous for any other Reason. This I say, was probably the case of most of those Predictors, though it may be, others of them advanced further into the more desperate part of the Mystery. And that some did immediately transact with appearing evil Spirits in those times, is apparent enough from express mention in the Scriptures I have alledg'd.
And the Story of the WITCH of ENDOR, 1 Sam. XXVIII. is a remarkable demonstration of the main Conclusion; which will appear when we have considered and removed the Fancy, and glosses of our Author about it, in his DISCOVERY where to avoid this evidence he affirms, This WITCH to be
