A Sovereign Antidote Against the Fear of Death, Tract · Meditation 9
MEDITAT. IX. Of Hell Torments the Reward of denying Chriſt.
OH my Soul, art thou yet at a ſtand, and knoweſt not yet whether 'tis beſt to loſe Chriſt, or to loſe thy Life? to go to Heaven, or to ſtay upon the earth? to forſake the Creator or the Creature? ſtand ſtill a little, and let us better conſider it; whether is it better loſe the Soul or the Body? the Jewel or the Box? the Wine or the Cask? but loſe the body thou wilt not, but only lay it to ſleep a little the ſooner; but conſider alſo what will be the reward of the one, and of the other, of dying for Chriſt and of denying him, and as thou likeſt thewages make choice of the work. If thou put thy hand to the Plow and look back, aſſure thy ſelf God will take no pleaſure in thee; if thou beginneſt in the Spirit, and endeſt in the Fleſh, of the Fleſh thou wilt reap corruption, but if thou ſow to the Spirit, thou wilt of the Spirit reap Life Everlaſting: though thou haſt Preached the Word to others, thou thy ſelf mayeſt be a Caſt-away: Thou maiſt be like to the Builders of Noah's Ark, and make a Ship to ſave others, and thy ſelf be in the Flood; or like unto the Sign at the Ale-houſe door, that tells the Paſſenger where he may have ſhelter, and yet thy ſelf remain in the ſtorm; if thou turn thy back upon Chriſt, notwithſtanding all the Profeſſion thou haſt made, he will turn his back upon thee; If thou deny him before men (and deny him thou doſt, if thou wilt not loſe thy life when his cauſe requires it) he will deny thee; if thou be aſhamed of him, he will be aſhamed of thee; and he will never admit ſuch to the Wedding; if thou knock he will not open, but bid thee an eternal farewell, with a Verily I ſay unto you, I know you not: View a little the place appointed for Backſliders, and ſee how thou likeſt of it; Jude 6.The Angels that kept not their firſt Station, but left their Habitation, are reſerved under blackneſs of darkneſs for ever; and doſt believe God will have more Mercy upon thee than upon them, if thou commit the like ſin; 'tis a folly for thoſe that remain all the day idle, and will not go into the Vineyard, and yet expect wages at night; but 'tis egregious folly for thee, that haſt born the burden and heat of the day, and when the ſhadows of the evening are ſtretched out, and the Sun is almoſt ſet, to depart in a pet, and leave thy Maſter, and loſe thy wages. God hath plainly told thee, Ezek. 33.12.that if a Righteous man ſhall leave his Righteouſneſs, and do that which is evil, all his Righteouſneſs ſhall not be remembred, in his ſin he ſhall dye. If now thou revolt, all thy pains for Heaven is loſt, and wilt thou wilfully loſe forty years work and wages? he that runs a race, though he run never ſo well, if he ſtop before he come to the end, or turn back, will loſe the Race, as ſure as if he had never ſet out: he that acts his part never ſo well upon the Stage, and fail in the laſt act, will miſs of his applauſe: If thou deny Chriſt thy life, thou wilt loſe it, but if thou be willing to ſacrifice thy life for his ſake, it may be he will never require it, yet ſhalt not thou loſe thy reward; but if thou deny it, thou wilt loſe it and thy ſelf with it; if God be not glorified by thee, he will be glorified upon thee in thy deſtruction; if thou loſe thy Soul to ſave thy life, thou makeſt a bad bargain: The loſs of a Joint or Limb may haply bring tears from thy eyes, Mat. 16.2….but what is this to the Soul? and this will neceſſarily follow upon denying of Chriſt. The eſſence and being of the Soul will not be loſt, this will be thy miſery, it ſhall not be annihilated or come to nothing, this would be good news to a wicked man, and the Atheiſt would willingly court himſelf into the belief, that the Soul of man is breathed out as the Soul of a beaſt, but this will not be; nay happy would it be for them if the Soul were diviſible as the body, and the infernal Spirits ſhould rend it into a thouſand peices, till it were rent to nothing; this then were the worſt it could ſuffer, but there is a living death and a dying life: if the Soul of man did expire with his breath as the ſoul of a beaſt, and the whole compoſitum, the whole man were reduced into the horrid eſtate of nothing, to feel neither weal nor wo, as the Atheiſt and Epicure perſwades himſelf, it were not ſo much; but it muſt run parallel with the longeſt line of eternity, and ſhall neither dye nor ſleep with the body; for this Lamp of Gods own lighting, this fire of his kindling, will not out; the matter of it cannot be conſumed; hell fire will ſoon awaken thoſe Atheiſts and light them to ſee their own folly and miſtake, yet the flame thereof cannot conſume the Soul, for it will prove fuel to feed thoſe infernal and eternal flames the fire whereof never goeth out, neither will the powers and faculties thereof be loſt; the fire will not conſume them, but they will be heightned and made capable of theſe eternal miſeries and helliſh torments; the underſtanding, which now is dark, and by them purpoſely blinded, ſhall then be inlightened, they ſhall then better know the worth of the things they have ſlighted, the vanity of the things they have choſen, the Happineſs they have loſt, and Miſery that they are like to ſuffer. The memory then will be enlarged, and tell them of the means of Grace they have had, and ſlighted, the motions of the Spirit they have rejected, the ſins they have committed, the duties they have omitted, the covenants they have made, the reſolutions they have had of better obedience; and by how weak temptations they have been overcome, the threatnings they have had if they went on in a ſinful way, all which are now made good on them, their conſcience then will fly in their face, and will not be quiet; then will their evil deeds ſtare them in the face, and ſay we are thy works, and we will follow thee; then they will call to mind at how low a rate Heaven and happineſs, God and glory were ſold by them; then their ſins will cry out, we are thine, Jer. 17.1.and they will be ingraven upon the conſcience with a pen of iron, and the point of a diamond, which cannot be blotted out. Now thou canſt lull conſcience aſleep, or check it that it may hold its peace; but then it will not be bribed, but will be like a waking Lion, rending the very caul of the heart, and prove a never dying worm, which ſhall feed upon thee for ever. All the faculties of thy ſoul will then bear a part in this tragedy; theſe will then tell thee; thy God, thy Saviour, thy Redeemer, thy Heaven, thy happineſs, thy All is gone, everlaſtingly gone, paſt all hopes of recovery, and all thy hopes are daſht, and nothing left but endleſs, eaſleſs, and remedileſs torments. This is the news that will continually ring in thine ears. Oh what a ſad, what a ſorrowful parting, will there then be, between the Soul and Body, expecting a ſad meeting! O curſed body, may the ſoul ſay, for thy ſake and at thy requeſt I have denyed my God, and now will he deny me: I was ſo indulgent to thee, I have undone my ſelf: to ſpare thee, I have wounded my ſelf: to ſave thee a little longer, I have procured eternal torments to us both: to ſave a temporal life, we are like to dye eternally. Oh my ſoul! if by denying to dye for Chriſt, thy natural life be prolonged, yet thy ſpiritual death will be haſtned, and after a few dayes this natural life, which now thou purchaſeſt at ſo dear a rate, will be required of thee, and God will ſend ſuch a meſſenger that ſhall not be reſiſted; Iſa. 5.11.and notwithſtanding all thy ſhifts and evaſions thou muſt obey, and notwithſtanding all the ſparks of thine own kindling, thou muſt lye down in ſorrow. And whatſoever bait it was the Devil took thee with, and perſwaded thee by it to make ſuch a fooliſh bargain, this will be gone alſo: if it were thy Eſtate that thou waſt loth to leave, leave it thou muſt: and if thy Relations tempted thee to ſtay, ſtay thou canſt not with them when thy time is come, nor ſtay them with thee when God commands them hence: Nay the world it ſelf to thee ſhall be no more: Nay the time is coming, the World and all the works therein ſhall be burnt up. And where is thy happineſs then? Thou muſt at death (and that is not far off) bid an everlaſting farewell to all earthly enjoyments, never more to ſolace thy ſelf in any earthly enjoyment: But were this the worſt, both the good and bad would fare alike; but here lyes the difference, the one parts with what he can well ſpare, the other with all his portion: the wicked at death part with all that is really as well as imaginarily good, not only temporals, but ſpirituals alſo. Thou muſt bid farewell to all the Holy Angels and glorified Saints, never more to enjoy their ſociety: They will be aſhamed of thoſe that are aſhamed of Chriſt, yea and rejoyce in thy deſtruction. Thou muſt then bid farewell to all thy carnal delights, to all thy merry company, and Jovial companions, and to all the things thou tookeſt delight in here below; yea to all the pleaſures, delights and Joyes, at the right hand of God for evermore, thoſe rivers of unmixed Joyes and delights, which eye hath not ſeen, ear heard tell of, neither hath it entred into the heart of man to conceive of; to theſe thou muſt bid an eternal adieu, and in the room of them thou muſt have eternal miſery, wo and alas for evermore: And inſtead of this bleſſed company and holy ſociety, and theſe Celeſtial Joyes, be hurried with the Devil and the damned into the Lake of fire and brimſtone, out of which is no hope of redemption; and theſe ſhall be thy tormenting, and tormented companions. The place whither thou art to go is not any lightſome dwelling, but a dark dungeon, a diſmal priſon, the tongue of man cannot deſcribe it. Jovim.'Tis reported that Actiolinus a tyrant of Padua had a priſon, wherein the priſoners were laden with irons, ſtarved with hunger, eaten with vermin, and poyſoned with ſtench, for the dead bodies lay rotting among the living. Here death might come in without knocking, and thoſe were moſt miſerable that lived longeſt, and thoſe beſt that dyed firſt; but this was a Paradice compared to hell: The others puniſhment was ſhort, this to eternity; that reacht only the body, this the ſoul alſo; death quickly enters into the one, but cannot enter into the other, for they ſhall be tormented for evermore; Oh gulph full of horror and deſpair! Oh eternity of torments! the very thoughts thereof may make the ſtouteſt ſpirit quake and tremble. Here Dives lodgeth in flames of fire, inſtead of his ſoft bed; he is ſcalded with thirſt, and his ſweet cups are taken from him, and his food is new fire and brimſtone; and for his inſulting joy, he hath now gnaſhing of teeth. In hell there are no Holy-dayes, no Feſtivals, no ſet times in which the fire ſhall ceaſe burning. Here thou muſt for ever ſwim naked to all eternity in this lake of fire and brimſtone, where thou canſt find neither bank nor bottom: here the wicked as tares, ſhall be bundled together: Drunkards with Drunkards, Swearers with Swearers, and one Apoſtate with another. But the greateſt loſs, which the damned have, yea the very top of their miſery, is the loſs of God himſelf bleſſed for ever, in whoſe favour there is light, and his loving kindneſs is better than life; if thou miſcarry, thou ſhalt loſe Father, Son and Holy Ghoſt, the beatifical viſion wherein conſiſts a believers happineſs: thou ſhalt never ſee his face in glory, but ſhalt be everlaſtingly ſeparated from him; thou ſhalt never come into his preſence, never enter into his Courts, never tread upon that pavement where the Angels and glorified Saints do inhabit: there is a vaſt gulph fixed between you, Luk. 16.26that thou canſt not paſs; thou wilt never enjoy one ſmile from the face of God, or one kiſs from the mouth of Chriſt, but muſt go from him with a curſe, and not a bleſſing: Goe ye curſed into everlaſting fire, Mat. 25.41together with the Devil and his Angels. Oh fearful ſentence! a thouſand thouſand rentings of the ſoul from the body is not ſo bad as one renting of the ſoul from God, which is the life of it. The loſs of God will prove the greateſt loſs; the loſs of life is but a flea-biting in campariſon of it: for with him the ſoul is loſt alſo, yea the body which hath put thee upon ſo many temptations, and for whoſe ſake thou denyeſt Chriſt, ſhall then be loſt alſo; and both ſoul and body to thy eternal horror ſhall be made capable of theſe helliſh and eternal torments. For there ſhall be pain of ſenſe, as well as pain of loſs. 'Tis true, Divines do think the former is the worſt, the loſs of God, and all that good is; this ſets the worm of conſcience a gnawing which will never dye; but there is alſo fire which will never out: there is pain of ſence, as well as pain of loſs: And this is another part of Hell, let me lead thee a little by the hand, and let's take a view of this part alſo; let us look a little beyond death, at the dangers that follow it, and conſider when this earthly habitation ſhall moulder into duſt, where thy dwelling ſhall be for ever. Let us take a view of Hell, which thou art to have into the bargain when thou ſoldeſt thy ſoul to ſave thy life, and with Judas and Demas choſeſt the world inſtead of Chriſt: let us view this region of the ſhadow of death, which is thrown in to thy bargain. But had I the tongue of men and Angels, I were never able to deſcribe the miſery of the damned in Hell, for no words in humane language can ſet it forth; the Devil himſelf whoſe portion it is, and the damned that feel it cannot do it, they cannot fully diſcover the worſt of a miſcarrying ſouls condition. If I could deſcribe eternity I might do ſomething to it, and yet I ſhould be at a loſs as to the torments themſelves: yet perhaps I may lead thee by the hand, and ſhew thee enough to convince thee that thou haſt made a fooliſh bargain, when thou denyedſt Chriſt to ſave thy life, and loſt thy ſoul to gain a little longer time in the world; and that this time thus gained was bought at a very great rate. The miſery of a miſcarrying ſoul is ſuch, that the conſideration of it may ſend thee trembling to thy grave. Here thou truckleſt under a little pain, and groaneſt out thy complaints, Oh my Head! Oh my Heart! Oh my Bones! Oh my Bowels! But all this while thou haſt ſome part free, no diſtemper ſeizeth univerſally upon all parts at once: or if it did, it reaches only to the body; the ſoul which is the nobleſt part is free, this is not toucht: Thoſe that kill the body can do no more, they cannot reach the ſoul, but only as it ſympathizes with the body; but in hell there is no part free, either of Soul or Body, but all under helliſh torments: Here if thy back ake, thy head may be well, or if thy bones ake, the heart may not be toucht; but in hell all parts are affected, not a finger free; the rich Glutton had not his tongue excepted, Luk. 16.25neither could he get one drop of water to cool it, but he was wholly tormented in this flame. And not the body only, but the ſoul alſo muſt ſuffer torments, and that in every part, power and faculty of it, no part of the ſoul or body free; and theſe helliſh pains are not only univerſal, but intolerable alſo, and yet muſt be endured: for the mighty God will preſerve the ſoul and body in being, inable them to live under theſe helliſh ſufferings. Here the poor creature falls under the infinite wrath of the Great God, which like a river of brimſtone kindles this flame, which ſhall never go out, Iſa. 30.25.which while God is God ſhall never ceaſe; and this helliſh fire ſeiſeth upon the ſoul and body as the fire doth upon the lump of pitch or brimſtone, which being once kindled never ſhall expire. Now though ſome few ſparks of this wrath have faln upon the world, yet the whole torrent of it is reſerved for hell; but we may judge of the Lion by his paw; one drop of this Ocean drowned the whole world, except eight perſons: and another drowned Pharaoh and his army in the red Sea; one ſpark of it burnt up Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboim, a little of it ſwallowed up Corah and his complices into the earth; ſlew twenty four thouſand Iſraelites at one time, and one hundred fourſcore and five thouſand of Senacheribs Army in one night; and many times ruines Kingdoms, depopulates Countries, and layes a fruitful land waſte for the wickedneſs of the inhabitants. Hundreds of examples may be given of this nature, but all this is but a flea-biting to Hell torments, which damned ſouls muſt undergo: all this reaches but the body, yet ſometimes ſome flaſhes light upon the ſoul, as fire into the the conſcience, as upon Cain, Judas, Spira, Satomias a Louvain Divine, which have made them weary of their lives; yea to chuſe ſtrangling rather than life, a wounded Spirit who can bear? But all this is ſhort of the torments of Hell, which make up a compleat miſery; but what they are, we are at a loſs to know, and becauſe we cannot reach them, let us yet reach a little towards them. Thou haſt heard of, and in ſome meaſure felt tormenting diſeaſes, ſuch as the Stone, the Gout, the Strangury, the raging pain of aking teeth, &c. theſe make mens lives uneaſy, yea ſometimes death deſirable; thoſe thus tormented deſerve pity, yea and are pitied by thoſe that ſee them: but alas this doth but darkly ſhaddow out theſe torments; but we have read of ſome that have ſuffered greater than thoſe, inflicted by men haply inſtigated by the Devil; ſome have had their joints crackt upon the wheel, tortured upon the rack; others fleyed alive, ſome have had their fleſh pull'd off their bones with red hot pincers, ſome have been pull'd in pieces with Wild Horſes, or the Arms of trees drawn together for that purpoſe, ſome have been burnt at the ſtake, ſome boiled in lead, ſome roſted alive upon Gridirons, iron chairs, or in frying pans, ſome hang'd up by the hand till they were dead, ſome ſawn aſunder, ſome famiſnt, ſome ſtarved to death, ſome put to one torture, ſome to another, whatever the wit of man or the policy of hell prompted the perſecutors to, to make their lives miſerable and their deaths painful; and this moved pity in ſome of the ſpectators: but ſhall we chuſe out the moſt exquiſite of all thoſe, and compare it with the torments of hell, alas it bears no proportion; for though they were ſharp, yet ſhort. I have indeed read of ſome, by the great Tyrant commanded to be fleyed alive, and that they might be ſenſible of death, as he ſaid, it was done by degrees, that they were fourteen daies in dying: this was ſavage cruelty, but as the pains were ſhort of hell torments, for it only reacht the body, ſo fourteen dayes was far ſhort of eternity: but if all thoſe forementioned pains and tortures had been inflicted upon one man, and all the reſt that ever poor wretch ſuffered, and if this mans life had been preſerved under theſe torments one whole year, what heart, if not made of Adamant, but would lament him? moſt men would think him miſerable; yet this comes ſhort of the caſe in hand. Thoſe pains that reach the body only, and touch not the ſoul, come ſhort of hell torments that reach both body and ſoul; and what is one year to eternity? theſe are invented by men, haply not without the advice of the Devil, but hell torments are deviſed by God, as a ſufficient recompence for the breaking of his laws by men and Devils, where the ſoul, the nobler part of man, as well as the body, ſhall be tormented, which neither man nor Devil, but only God alone could do: the ſoul which ſhould have done God the greateſt ſervice, ſhall no doubt have the greateſt puniſhment; becauſe it ſhould have ruled the body, and yet did God the greateſt diſhonour, and the Devil the moſt work. The never dying worm, like Titius's Vulture, will alwaies feed upon them, and yet they ſhall never be conſumed. It cannot be a hard bargain to part with a temporal life for an eternal. Nay it is not at thy diſpoſe, whether thou wilt dye or no; then it were not ſo much, though yet too egregious folly, for dye thou muſt; but the buſineſs is, whether thou canſt prolong thy life with the loſs of thy ſoul, a little longer, and but a little? In all other ſufferings thou mayſt have ſome reſpite, ſome eaſe, but in hell there is none; now thou grapleſt with a diſeaſe, or at worſt with a man, but in this with the Almighty. Here thou haſt ſome friends to comfort thee, to pity thee at leaſt; but there is neither comfort nor pity. The Devil and his Angels will rejoice in thy torments, for being tormented themſelves, they have no greater ſolace than in tormenting thee; here thou wilt be for ever helpleſs, and comfortleſs, and ſhalt not have ſo much as one drop of water to cool thy tongue. Lu. 16.24Oh the folly of men, thus to fear a temporal death, and not to matter death eternal! to fear the wrath of man, and not the anger of Almighty God; to fear the death of the Body, and deſpiſe the death of the Soul; to fear the creature more than the Creator; that feareth the rage of man, and not the wrath of Almighty God. Gregory.In hell there is death without death, and end without end, becauſe death ever liveth, and the end ever beginneth, for death will never dye. Oh how ſweet would death be there accounted, if it would take away life, and not compell thoſe to live that would fain dye. Oh the ſtupidity of men, when a ſmall loſs will wring tears from their eyes, and an infinite and irrecoverable loſs is not regarded, yea the ſpeech of it they can digeſt with laughter. Many quake and tremble to come before an earthly Judge, and when they are going before the eternal Judge can ſport themſelves in the way; they fear to lanch forth into the Sea, and not to lanch forth into this infinite Ocean of Eternity: for hell torments are not only eaſeleſs, but endleſs and remedileſs. While there is life there is hope, but where the breath is gone, the hope is paſt: while the door is open there is entrance, but when 'tis once ſhut though thou knock it will not be opened. When the ſoul is ſeparated from the body of a wicked man, God will be ſeparated from the ſoul, and an uniting time will never come. Chriſt ſtands now to receive repenting Sinners, but his Spirit will not alwayes ſtrive with them, the door will be ſhut, and only thoſe that are ready will go in to the marriage. This is the time when the Father will receive a repenting returning prodigal, but it will not laſt long, God will put an end to the day of grace, the night comes when no man can work; the Sun will ſet that ſhall never riſe, and the day end that ſhall never dawn again, and then all hopes of wicked men will be daſht; for as the tree falleth, whether to the north or ſouth, eaſt or weſt, there it ſhall lye. That tree that falls hellward, there it will lye for ever. For after this life is no redemption for ever, let the Pope ſay what he will to the contrary, their feigned Purgatory will prove a deluſion, the fire thereof was only kindled to make the Popes Kitchin warm: but hell fire is of another nature, for all their Maſſes, Dirges, and Prayers, cannot deliver one ſoul from thence: But if the ſentence of condemnation be once paſt, and damned ſouls delivered up to their tormentors, there is no help, all conclude, this decree is irrevocable, and hell torments remedileſs: Here the worm (ſaith Chriſt) dyeth not, Mark 9.44.and the fire never goeth out; Mat. 25.41, 46. Rev. 20.10, 15.and Chriſt calls hell torments, everlaſting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels: yea he calls it everlaſting puniſhment; the Devil that deceived the world ſhall then be caſt into the lake of fire and brimſtone, where the beaſt and the falſe Prophet are, and ſhall be tormented day and night for ever and ever, into which lake of fire, whoſoever is not found written in the book of life ſhall be caſt: and many the like expreſſions we may find in Scripture, which plainly tells us the perpetuity of hell torments; where 'tis called Everlaſting darkneſs, Jude 13. 2 Theſ. 1.7.8.eternal fire, everlaſting deſtruction from the preſence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. How little foundation is there then for Origens opinion, that after a time the Devils and the damned ſhould be refined by this fire, and ſhould be delivered? but what Scripture ſpeaks thus? and if the Scripture be ſilent, nay ſpeak point blank contrary, where is the foundation of this fancy? Micah 6.7.it is not with thouſand of rams, nor with ten thouſand rivers of oyl, that they can be redeemed: the firſt born of their bodies will not be taken as ſatisfaction for the ſin of their ſouls; Mat. 16.26.and what (ſaith Chriſt) ſhall a man give in exchange for his ſoul? The rich glutton with all his wealth, Luk. 16.with all his prayers and intreaties, could not purchaſe one dram of water to cool his tongue; and this was far ſhort of ranſoming his ſoul. Prayers and tears then will not ſerve turn, they are good preventing phyſick. Though (as one ſaith) we ſhould wear our tongues to the ſtump, Shepard Sincere convert.and weep more tears than there is water in the ſea, it will do no good. It was not with corruptible things, as ſilver and gold, thou waſt redeemed from thy vain converſation received by tradition from thy Fathers, but with the precious blood of Chriſt, as of a Lamb without blemiſh and without ſpot; but if we now neglect this great Salvation, and deſpiſe the offers of mercy in the daies of our life, what remains for us but a fearful looking for of judgment? and if the earth were turned into a globe of Gold, or an heap of Diamonds, and all offered for the redemption of a loſt ſoul, it would be rejected, for this is not the blood of Chriſt; nay this blood it ſelf though more precious than the world, would not ſerve in this caſe neither, for it was never ſhed to this end, to redeem ſouls out of hell, though it was ſhed to keep them from hell, and is of infinite value to this end; nay if damned ſouls ſhould obtain the prayers of all the Saints, yea Angels in heaven, it would do them no good. Prayer here, if pointed by faith, may pierce heaven, and prevail for a bleſſing: Jam. 5.15.The Prayer of faith may ſave the ſick, and if he have committed ſins they may be forgiven; but prayers for the damned are out of ſeaſon; there is a time when God will be found, and a time when he will not be found. When the door is once ſhut, it is not knocking then will open it; yea the Angels and glorified Saints will then rejoyce in their damnation, that God is glorified by it; and thoſe Miniſters that now weep over their people, and pity them, will then pity them no more for ever; yea, to ſpeak with reverence, God himſelf cannot then help them: not that he wants power; for he could turn Heaven and Hell and all into nothing; but he is infinite in juſtice and truth as well as power, and this would intrench upon his Juſtice and Truth; his word is out to the contrary, and he may as well deny himſelf as his word; yea he will be ſo far from an inclination this way, Pro. 1.24.that he will laugh at their deſtruction, and mock when their fear cometh; in a word, there is no ranſome for a miſerable ſoul; the blood of Chriſt was of ſufficient price to have ſaved the world, had it been applyed for the end it was ſhed for; but loſt ſouls and damned Spirits have no intereſt in it, and there is no redemption for ſuch; the redemption of the ſoul is precious, Pſal. 49.8.and it ceaſeth for ever; Luk. 16.26. Mat. 16.26.no one can get over that great gulph that lies between heaven and hell, neither can any price be found out to redeem a loſt ſoul: here is no Writ of Error can be had, for the priſoner is laid in by an unerring Judge, that cannot be deceived; there is no Appeal to be made to any other Court, for this i… the Supream, where the Cauſes tried in all other Courts are called over again and fully determined, and the Judge of all the earth will there do juſtice; here can no force hinder the execution, and free thee out of priſon, for thou haſt an omnipotent God to grapple with; ſee now what a rock of ruine thou haſt run thy ſelf upon, what a remedileſs condition thou art plunged into: for if thou deny the Lord that bought thee, thou wilt run upon ſwift deſtruction, and all the friends thou haſt cannot help it. Well but though the pains be ſharp, yet if they be but ſhort here is ſome comfort; there is ſome hope that an end will come, though it be long firſt; but alas this comfort here is daſht. Theſe torments are eternal, as is already proved, and ſhall never end in the pangs of death. 'Tis true there is hopes, for though they are ſharp they are momentany; yet ſome Tyrants have kept men many daies in a dying life, or living death. Tiberius Caeſar being petitioned by one to haſten his puniſhment, and give him a ſpeedy diſpatch, made him this anſwer; Nondum tecum in gratiam redii: Stay Sir, you and I are not yet friends. Such an anſwer will God give to a damned ſoul, if it deſire God to put an end to his torments by death; thoſe lingring deaths either inflicted by God or man, though they ſeem long to ſence, yet what are they to eternity? the word for ever, will be a Hell in the midſt of Hell; for when the ſoul cryes out in anguiſh and bitterneſs of ſpirit, How long Lord, how long? the conſcience anſwers again, Ever, ever: while God is God, and Heaven is Heaven, and Hell is Hell, the miſcarrying ſoul muſt remain fuel to maintain this fire, that ſhall never go out. To this ſecond death the firſt is but a flea-biting; this is Mors ſine morte, finis ſine fine; this is that which is call'd Everlaſting deſtruction from the preſence of the Lord; where the poor ſoul muſt be tormented ſine intervallo, without eaſe or end: for when the years of a thouſand Generations are whirl'd about, thy torments will be as freſh as the firſt day thou waſt caſt into them, and not one farthing of the ten thouſand Talents paid off, nor one moment of eternity taken off. Oh Eternity, eternity, how amazing art thou? how ſhall we conceive of thee? how ſhall we caſt thee up? Oh my ſoul, if thou ſubſtract from eternity an hundred thouſand millions of years, the remainder will not be the leſs, 'tis infinite ſtill; for two finites cannot make an infinite; for what is infinite is indiviſible, it cannot be made leſs; ſhould a poor creature upon the rack under exquiſite tortures, have his life prolonged for twenty years together without any intermiſſion of pain, we might well account him the moſt miſerable man alive, and whoſe heart would not ake for him? but what is this to eternal torments, and yet who pities them that are like to endure them? nay who pities himſelf that lies under the danger? if a man under ſome raging pain, as of the Cholick, Stone or Gout, lie upon a Featherbed for many years in tormenting pain, though he have friends to viſit him, meat and drink to ſupport him, and what comfort Nature or Art could help him to, yet we look upon him as a ſpectacle of miſery, and one that deſerves pity; Job 9.14.to him (ſaith Job) that is afflicted, pity ſhould be ſhewed from his friends: But what is this to hell? or what is a few years to eternity? for in hell is no comfort, no eaſe, no refreſhment, neither any friend to pity; nay, if all the torments that ever poor creatures indured upon earth, whether inflicted by God himſelf, by man, or by the Devil, could all light upon one man, and ſhould lye under them for hunderds of years, yet would it fall ſhort, for this would neither reach the pain, nor reach the duration; for when the miſcarrying ſoul hath lain in hell as many years as there are graſs piles upon the earth, drops of water in the Ocean, ſands upon the ſea ſhoar, hairs on all the mens heads in the world, and Stars in Heaven, yet the hundred thouſandth part of Eternity is not over: Oh eternity, how ſhall finite apprehenſions conceive of thee? how ſhall we number thee, or find out what thou art? we that live in time, and have but a little time given us here, cannot conceive of thee but by a long ſpace of time, as we cannot of Infinity of Eſſence, but by a vaſt quantity; we know God doth not number Eternity as we do Time; one day is with him as a thouſand years, and a thouſand years as one day. For in eternity we need not trouble our ſelves to count the fleeting hours, neither daies nor years, for there is no Sun, Moon or Stars to be ſet for times and ſeaſons, or for daies or for years; but in hell is horrid darkneſs, blackneſs of darkneſs for ever. And whoſe heart may not tremble at the apprehenſion of it? ſhould all the Arithmeticians in the world joyn heart and hand and head and all, to caſt up the greateſt ſumme poſſible that each one ſeverally could reach, and when this is done, ſhould add all theſe together into one ſumme, yet it would fall ſhort; nay, ſhould the circumference of Heaven be written about with Arithmetical figures, from eaſt to weſt, from north to ſouth, and all brought into one ſumme, it would yet fall ſhort; for what is infinite cannot be diminiſhed or increaſed, ſuch a ſumme added to it would not increaſe it, ſuch a ſumme ſubſtracted from it would not diminiſh it. Oh my ſoul, what think'ſt thou of it? wilt thou venture upon the pikes of danger? wilt thou deny the Lord that bought thee, and the God that made thee, to preſerve a miſerable life a little longer? Thou ſeeſt thy wages, and knoweſt thy reward; hadſt rather chuſe everlaſting damnation than a little temporal pain? and rather thruſt ſoul and body into eternal flames, and ſuffer the vengeance of eternal fire, rather then the pangs of a temporal death? Oh what madneſs hath bewitched thee! what folly haunts thee? how doth the Devil and the world delude thee? Thou that wouldſt cut off a limb or joint to preſerve the body from greater torture, wilt not be willing to endure a little to preſerve both body and ſoul from eternal ruine? Heaven and Earth, and all wiſe men may ſtand amazed at thy folly. If thou turn thy back upon Chriſt, he will turn his back upon thee, and be aſhamed of thee: If thou make light of his Supper, thou ſhalt not taſt of his daintes. The queſtion, thou ſeeſt, is not whether death be deſirable or no, Nature it ſelf anſwers the contrary; but whether the firſt or ſecond death be the greater evil; and ſo whether is to be choſen, when both cannot be avoided? The queſtion is not, whether pain be eligible, but whether the pains of death or hell be the greater? Not whether life be deſirable, but whether life or Chriſt be the better? Whatever thy ſenſes may ſay, rectifyed Reaſon which ſhould govern the ſenſitive faculties will tell thee, the ſecond death is far more formidable, and that 'tis better to deny thy ſelf than deny thy Redeemer. Oh my God, is this the reward of Apoſtacy? is this the wages the Devil gives his beſt ſervants? Through thine aſſiſting grace I will be thine. Lord I reſolve I will never forſake thee; Lord do thou never leave me to my ſelf, nor forſake me.