Sighs from Hell, Commentary · Verse 23
Verse 23.
And in Hell he lift up his eyes, being in torment, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his Bosom.
THE form… Verse speaks onelyonly of the departure of the ungodly out of this life, together, with the glorious conduct that the godly have into the Kingdom of their Father. Now our Lord doth shew in this Verses partly, what doth, and shall befall to the Reprobate after this life is ended, where he saith, And in Hell he lift up his eyes.] That is, the ungodly after they depart this life, do lift up their eyes in Hell. From these words, may be observed these things.
1. That there is an Hell for Souls to be tormented in, when this life is ended. Mark, after he was dead and buried. In Hell he lift up his eyes.
2. That all that are ungodly, and do live and die in their sins, so soon as ever they die, they go into Hell: he died, and was buried. And in Hell he lift up his eyes.
3. That some are so fast asleep, and secure in their sins, that they scarce know well where they are, till they come into Hell, and that I gather from these words, In Hell he lift up his eyes. He was asleep before, but Hell makes him lift up his eyes.
As I said before, it is evident, that there is an Hell for Souls; yea, and Bodies too, to be tormented in after they depart this life, as is clear. First, because the Lord Jesus Christ that cannot lie, did say, that after the sinner was dead and buried, In Hell he lift up his eyes.
Now if it be objected, that Hell is here meant the Grave, that I plainly deny.
First, Because there the Body is not sensible of torment or ease; but in that Hell, into which the spirits of the damned depart, they are sensible of torment, and would be very willingly freed from it, to enjoy ease, which they are sensible of the want of; as is clearly discovered in this Parable. Send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, to cool my tongue.
Secondly, It is not meant the Grave, but some other place, because the Bodies, so long as they lie there, are not capable of lifting up their eyes, to see the glorious condition of the Children of God, as the souls of the damned do. In Hell he lift up his eyes.
Thirdly, It cannot be the Grave, for then it must follow, that the Soul was buried there with the Body, which cannot stand with such a dead state as is here mentioned; for he saith, The rich man died; that is, his soul was separated from his body. And in Hell he lift up his eyes.
If it be again objected, that there is no Hell but in this life, that I do also deny, as I said before; after he was dead and buried, In Hell he lift up his eyes. And let me tell thee, O soul, whoever thou art, that if thou close not in savingly with the Lord Jesus Christ, and lay hold on what he hath done, and is doing in his own person for sinners, thou wilt find such an hell after this life is ended, that thou wilt not get out of again for ever and ever. And thou that art wanton, and dost make but a mock at the Servants of the Lord, when they tell thee of the torments of hell, thou wilt find, that when thou departest out of this life, that Hell, even the hell which is after this life, will meet thee in thy Journey thither, and will with its hellish crew give thee such a sad salutation, that thou wilt not forget it to all eternity, when that Scripture comes to be fulfilled on thy soul, in Isa. 14. 9. Hell from beneath is moved for thee, to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth: it hath raised from their Thrones all the Kings of the Nations. All they, that is, that are in hell shall say, Art thou become weak as we? Art thou become like unto us? O sometimes when I have had but thoughts of going to hell, and considered the everlastingness of their ruine that fall in thither; it hath stirred me up rather to seek to the Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver me from thence, than to slight it, and make a mock at it.
And in hell he lift up his eyes.] The second thing I told you, was this, That all the ungodly that live and die in their sins, so soon as ever they depart this life, do descend into Hell. This is also verified by the words in this Parable, where Christ saith, He died and was buried, and in hell he lift up his eyes. As the Tree falls, so it shall lie, wh…er it be to Heaven or Hell, Eccl. 11. 3. And as Christ said to the Thief on the Cross, This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise. Even so the Devil in the like manner may say unto thy Soul, Tomorrow shalt thou be with me in hell. See then what a miserable case he that dies in an unregenerate state is in; he departs from a long sickness to a longer hell; from the gripings of death to the everlasting torments of hell. And in hell he lift up his eyes. Ah Friends! if you were but your selves, you would have a care of your Souls; if you did but regard, you would see how mad they are that slight the salvation of their souls. O what will it profit thy soul to have pleasure in this life, and torments in hell, Mark 8. 36. Thou hadst better part with all thy sins and pleasures, and companions, or whatsoever thou delightest in, than to have Soul and Body to be cast into hell. O then, do not now neglect our Lord Jesus Christ, lest thou drop down to hell, Heb. 2. 3. Consider, would it not wound thee to thine heart, to come upon thy death-bed, and instead of having the comfort of a well-spent life, and the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ, together with the comforts of his glorious Spirit: to have, first, the sight of … ill-spent life, thy sins flying in thy face, thy conscience uttering it self with Thunder-claps against thee, the thoughts of God terrifying of thee, death with his merciless paw seizing upon thee, the devils standing ready to scramble for thy soul, and hell enlarging her self, and ready to swallow th…e up; and eternity of misery and torment attending upon thee, from which there will be no release. For mark, death doth not come alone to an unconverted soul, but with such company, as were thou but sensible of, it would make thee tremble. I pray consider that Scripture, Rev. 6. 8. And I looked, and beheld a pale horse, and his name that sate on him was Death, and hell followed with him. Mark, death doth not come alone to the ungodly; no, but hell goeth with him. O miserable Comforters! O miserable Society! here comes death and hell unto thee. Death goeth into thy body, and separates body and soul asunder; hell stands without (as I may say) to embrace, or rather to crush thy soul between its everlasting grinders. Then thy mirth, thy joy, thy sinful delights will be eased when this comes to pass; so, it will come. Blessed are all those, that through Christ Jesus his merits, by saith, do escape these soul-murthering companions. And in hell he lift up his eyes.
The third thing you know that we did observe from these words, was this, That some are so fast asleep, and secure in their sins, that they scarce know where they are, untill they come into hell. And that I told you I gather by these words, In hell he life up his eyes. Mark, it was in hell that he lift up his eyes. Now some do understand by these words, that he came to himself, or began to consider with himself▪ or to think with himself in what an estate he was▪ and what he was deprived of; which is still a confirmation of the thing laid down by me. There it is that they come to themselves, that is, there they are sensible where they are indeed; Thus it fares with some men, that they scarce know where they are, till they lift up their eyes in hell. It is with these people, as with those that fall down in a swoun; you know if a man do fall down in a swoun in one room though you take him up, and carry him into another, yet he is not sensible where he is, till he cometh unto himself, and lifteth up his eyes.
Truly thus it is to be feared, it is with many poor souls, they are so sensless, so hard, so feared in their Conscience, 1 Tim. 4. 2. that they are very ignorant of their state; and when death comes, i… strikes them, as it were, into a swoun, (especially if they dye suddenly) and so they are hurried away, and scarce know where they are, till in hell they lift up their eyes; this is he who …ye…h in his full strength, fully at ease and quiet, Job 21. 23.
Of this sort are they spoken of in Psalm 73. where he saith. There are no bonds in their death but their strength is firm. They are not troubled as other folk neither are they plagued like other men. And again, they spend their dayes in wealth, and in a moment, mark, in a moment, before they are aware, they go down to the grave, Job 21. 17.
Indeed this is too much known by woful and daily experience, sometimes when we go to visit them that are sick in the Towns and places where we live, Oh how sensless, how feared in their Consciences are they? they are neither sensible of heaven, not of hell▪ of sin, nor a Saviour: speak to them of their condition, and the state of their souls, and you shall find them as ignorant as if they had no souls to regard. Others, though they lye ready to dye, yet they are busying themselves about their outward affairs, as though they should certainly live here, even to live and enjoy the same for ever. Again, come to others, speak to them about the state of their souls, though they have no more experience of the new birth then a beast, yet will they speak as confidently of their eternal state, and the welfare of their souls, as if they had the most excellent experience of any man or woman in the world, saying, I shall have Peace, Deut. 29. 19. When as I said even now, the Lord knows they are as ignorant of the new birth, of the nature and operation of Faith, of the witness of the Spirit: as if there were no new birth, no faith, no witness of the Spirit of Christ in any of the Saints in the world. Nay, thus many of them are, even an hour or less before their departure. Ah poor souls, though they may go away here like a lamb, as the world sayes, yet if you could but follow them a little, to stand and listen, soon after their departure; it is to be feared, you should hear them roa… like a Lyon at their first entrance into Hell, far worse then ever did Corah, &c. when they went down quick into the ground, Numb. 16. 31, 32, 33, 34▪ 35.
Now by this one thing doth the devil take great advantage on the hearts of the ignorant, suggesting unto them, that because the party deceased, departed so quietly, without all doubt they are gone to rest and joy; when alas, it is to be feared, the reason why they went away so quietly, was rather because they were sensless and hardned in their Consciences; yea, dead before in sins and trespasses. For had they had but some awakenings on their death beds, as some have had, they would have made all the Town to ring of their doleful condition: But because they are seared and ignorant, and so depart quietly, therefore the world takes heart at grass, (as we use to say) and make no great matter of living and dying they cannot tell how, therefore pride compasseth them as a chain, Psal. 73. 5, 6. But let them look to themselves, for if they have not an interest in the Lord Jesus, now while they live in the world, they will, whether they dye raging or still goun…o the same place, and lift up their eyes in hell.
O my friends, did you but know what a miserable condition they are in, that go out of this world without an interest in the Son of God, it would make you smite upon your thigh, and in the bitterness of your souls cry out, Acts 16. 29, 30, 31. Men and brethren, what shall we do to be saved? And not only so, but thou wouldest not be comforted, until thou didst find a rest for thy soul in the Lord Jesus Christ.