The Saints Sufferings and Sinners Sorrows, Part 15 – Part 16
Sinners Sorrow.
Where God begins to judge, hee makes not there an end.
The end of Iudgement is wofull; and the laſt laſh of Gods ſcourge workes the bittereſt ſmart. In the diſobedient or rebellious here mentioned, wee have a terrible patterne for ungodly men. The Iewes wiſhed the blood of Chriſt to be upon them and their children. Reade but their end in ſtory, and it will ſuffice to move a heart of flint, and make us compaſſionate to deſperate ſinners. Beſides, this their end was eternall perdition: for that is the end of ungodly men diſobeying the Goſpel. It is noted in ſtory, that when the Romans had ſlaine a great number of them upon the bankes of Iordan, and tumbled their carkeiſes into the river, they never left ſwimming till they fell into the lake of Sodom, where they were buried as in a grave: a tipe of the ſinking of their ſoules, into the gulfe of hell; for St. Iohn living to ſee their miſerable end, turnes the ſtile of hell, and tearmes it the lake of fire and brimſtone, Rev. 19.20. where I beleeve that he alludes to this fearefull preſage of the Iewes eternall perdition. The better to conceive of the end mentioned in the text, let us conſult with our Saviour, who by the end underſtands the deſtruction of Ieruſalem. Matth. 24.6.13.14. The end is not yet: that is, with the firſt ſignes foregoing Ieruſalems deſtruction. He that endures to the end ſhall be ſaved, i.e. he that houlds out in other ſignes of perſecution, ſcandall, apoſtacy, ſhall bee ſaved even temporally when the end of Ieruſalem is come; as all the Chriſtians were; being warned by a voyce from heaven to remoove to Pella. Then ſhall the end come: that is, no ſooner ſhall the Goſpell bee preached to the Gentiles, and the Iewes rejected, but the Romane Army ſhall come and deſtroy Ieruſalem, Dan. 9.26. Meſſiah being once cut off from the Iewes, they ſhall no longer bee his people, but another that he will chooſe ſhall come, and ſpread over them the wing of abomination: Notwithſtanding with many ſhall he confirme his covenant, and by ſeaven yeares labour gather a Church amongſt the Iewes, which hee will ſave, when hee ſuffers the reſt to periſh. This is likewiſe the end which Peter mentioneth, verſ. 7. before the text; by conſideration whereof, he exhorteth the Chriſtian Iewes to ſobriety, watchfulneſſe, and prayer. Iohn out living this Apoſtle, points it out by an houre, 1 Iohn 2.18.
This example of the end of the Iewiſh Nation, muſt become a rule to all Nations, to take heed of rebellion againſt the Goſpell: God that ſpared not the Iewes, will ſpare none, that long provoke his patience. And here let us obſerve foure things.
1. All the wicked muſt have an end; and that firſt, of Gods patience: 2. of their pleaſures: 3. of their lives. God will not alwaies beare the reproaches of ſinners, neither ſhall they alwayes injoy their pleaſures, which at the beſt are but pleaſures of ſinne for a ſeaſon; and with their naturall lives all their jollities in this world come to their period.
2. The end of the wicked is miſerable; for when it commeth it laſteth and continueth; one miſery overtaketh an other, they muſt drinke, and be drunke, and ſpue, and fall, and riſe no more; Ier. 25.27. Neither can they refuſe to drinke, becauſe Gods people have drunke before them; And if they drinke whoſe ſinnes are pardoned, then ſuch as have no pardon, muſt needs have judgement endleſſe, eaſeleſſe, and remedileſſe. Now the miſery of this end of the wicked conſiſts, 1. In the extreamity of it; hence compared to unquenchable fire, utter darkeneſſe, the never dying worme, and everlaſting perdition.
2. In the place, called hell, a priſon, tartarus, gehenna, and bottomleſſe pit. Hell is beneath all comfort: a priſon is a ſtreight cuſtody of the ſoule; tartarus foreign, a place of horror and fearefull ſpectacles: Gehenna, a vally, where Idolaters burnt their children with fire, and to prevent all pitty, drum… were beaten up, to drowne the horrible hideous cryes of Infants. No pitty in hell, for all the yelling of damned ſpirits: a bottomleſſe pit, out of which the damned ſhall never bee able to creepe or craule.
3. In their lamentation, they ſhall weepe their bellies full, and bee never the better. To weeping they ſhall adde wailing & wringing of hands: and the height of their lamentation ſhall be gnaſhing of teeth. Their teeth ſhall chatter, as if extremity of cold chilled them: much weeping cools the heart, daunts the ſpirits, and ſets the whole body in a ſhaking. Such cooling ſhal the wicked finde in the hotteſt fire.
3. Though the damned feele exquiſite torments, yet they ſhall never know their full extremity. Peter ſtands amazed in expreſſing their end, and ſmothers the terrour under a queſtion, as unutterable: What ſhall the end be? Good men can fathom the depth of their ſoreſt calamities, and Peter here determines their croſſes with a beginning; but when hee commeth to decipher the end of the wicked, as being at a non plus hee ſtops the currant of his diſcourſe and conceales the reſt under a cloud of admiration. A wicked mans end is unknowne, from the capacity of the ſubject: he ſhall never know, what his ſtrength is able to beare. He might count himſelfe happy, if hee were as a ſtone in a rocke of flint, which as it taſteth no joy, ſo feeles no paine. 2. It is not to bee expreſſed for the extremity of the torment; So that a wicked man ſhall never know his worſt. 3. It cannot be knowne for the perpetuity of it, whence wee may ſay of their torments, as of the joyes of heaven: The eye of man never ſaw them, yea, ſuch as the eare hath not heard; nor (which ſurpaſſeth the higheſt ſtraine) they never entred into the heart of man; which of all things created, approacheth neereſt to an infinite nature.
4. That which ſhall bee knowne, ſhall be enough to cruſh and confound every wicked ſinner. He ſhall not know where to appeare or hide his head. Happy man, if the mountaines would overlay, and the rocks cruſh him in pieces: no burthen would then be too heavy, no waight or preſſure too painefull, no puniſhment too great, that would ſhelter him from the piercing eye and revenging ſtroke of his angry judge. Alaſſe, how can men living conteſt with the Almighty, outface his word, outbrave his juſtice? who when they are dead, cannot brooke the frowne of his countenance, nor put to ſilence the voyce of deſpaire. I ſhould now conclude this point with the counſell of Chriſt, Math. 5.25. Agree with thy adverſary quickely, whilſt thou art in the way, leaſt at any time, (for thou knoweſt not when thy appearance ſhall be) he deliver thee to the Iudge, the Iudge to the laylor, the laylor to the priſon, where thou muſt lye for ever.
But in the cloſe of this verſe and that which followeth, mention is made of the true cauſe of all this miſery, & that is eſpecially the diſobedience of the Goſpel. The Law is added as a light of former ſinnes, conſiſting of impiety againſt God, and cruelty againſt man. The Iewes crucified Chriſt, a legall ſinne, but they crucified themſelves in rejecting his bloud, and the Goſpell that offered them pardon for that ſinne and all others. The fault was foule enough to murther Chriſt, but to murther their ſoules in denying ſalvation by his blood, was of all ſinnes the greateſt. They are branded for ungodly perſons by the teſtimony of the Law, and their owne wicked actions, of Idolatrie and obſtinacy. They are ſinners deepe ſeyzed in ſingular bloodſhed and butchery of Chriſt and his Saints: but the tranſcendent ſinne is here fairely characterized by a ſpeciall act, and by a ſpeciall object. The act is Evangelicall diſobedience; and the object, the Goſpell it ſelfe.
The Goſpell.
In giving the Goſpell to a Nation, it is more than he does to all Nations: where the Goſpell is given, faith and obedience are but given to ſome in that Nation. The Goſpell diſtinguiſheth Nations; faith and the gift thereof, the men that profeſſe it. Grace is given where it is not received. Given to a Nation, of which it may more eaſily bee rejected than embraced. Pſal. 147.19, 20. here the Word is not revealed alike to all. Pſal. 81.11. here rejected by them to whom it was given. Pſal. 119.70. Davids heart being pined with want, takes pleaſure in the Word; others having their hearts fat and greaſie, deſpiſe it. Iſai. 6.9, 10. Men have hearts too fatte to beleeve, eares too heavy to heare, and eyes cloſed up from ſeeing. The Goſpell is as ſtrange to ſome that heare it, as thoſe that never heard it, Hoſ. 8.12. Chriſt came to his owne, and yet was not owned by them, Iohn 1.11. Some received him, verſ. 12. when the nation rejected him. Theſe 1. had power to beleeve. 2. to receive. 3. to be ſonnes. In the myſteries of the Goſpell, prudent men come ſhort of Infants, Luke 10.12. and receive in parrables, what others receive in power, Luke 8.10. yea, finde that ſavour death unto death, which to others is life unto life, 2 Cor. 2.15, 16.