Book IJ. GOD To THll- WicKED IS A CoNsuMING FIRE. METAPHOR. for they are brittle Ware, and he is greatly offended wHh fuch as itrive to daJh then] to P1eces. METAPHOR. I. A Potter bath not his Skill in making Velfds from him– felf, but is taught by fome other Man. PARALLEL. not mi;ze Anointed, mtd do my Prophets no Harm, 1 Chron. xvi. 22. The Devil and wicked Men ihall one Day go to wreck, for that Violence of– feree) to thofe curious Veffels that God hath pre– pared to <;ilory : But he that troubles you jhal! bear his Judgment, whofoever he be, Gal. v. ro. D IS PAR IT Y. I. QOD bath his Wifdom of, and from Him– felf. II. A Potter many Times wants II. God is infinite inWifdom, loveth all Things Skill in framing of fome ~urious he goes about, and his Care is accordingly; a Velfels, and not only fo, but Care; God that is never unmindful of the Work of his and by this Means the Velfel is Hands; fo that if any Velfel is broke, the Fault is marred, and fpoikd in his Hand. not in him, but either in themfelves, or fome curfed Enemy. Ill. A Potter makes not all the Ill. God made all Things for himfelf, even Velfels which are upon the Wheel · the Wicked for the Day of Wrath. for his own Ufe and Profit, but for the Ufe of Others. IV. A Porter cannot mal<e Vef– fels, un efs he hath Clay or Mat– ter to make them w;th, or to work tlpon. V. A Potter makes Veffels that are very defeetive, as they firft come off the Wheel. IV. God 6r0: made the Clay, he created the DuO: of the Earth, and then out of it made or framed Man. V. God never made or framed any Veffel, but as it came out of his Hand it was well done, with– out Fault or Blemifh: And God Jaw all the Work of his Hands, and behold it was very good. A P P L I C A T I 0 N. t. JS God the Potter, and Man the Clay? This may teach Men to lie low before the God of Heaven and Earth; what is the Clay in the Potter's Hand ? 2. We may infer from hence, that Man is not made for himfelf, but for fome particular Ufe. , 3· And fince the Glory of God was the principal Thing he defigned, in making and forming of us; let us fee we do not rife up againfl: him in a finful Way, to his Difhonor. 4· You may know from hence how frail and brittle Man is, fooner broken than a Porter's Velfel. See more under rhe Metaphor of Vefi"el. G 0 D TO THE WICKED IS A CONSUMING FIRE. For our God is a Confuming Fire, Heb. xii. 29. WE meet with many Metaphors in the Sacred Scriptures, which fet forth the Terri– blenefs of an angry God ro impenitent Sinners, but none more difmal nor terri– ble than this: For our Godis a confuming Fire. Obferv. '!'he Great God is not only in Scripture-Phrafes compared to Fire; but he is com– pared (with ReJPeCI to wicked Mm) to a dewuring or confuming Fire. Amongfl: the Metaphors taken from elementary Things, we find that God is called Ftre, yea, a confuming Fire, Deut. iv. 24. ix. 3, and xxxii. 22. lfa. x. I 7· and lxvi. I 5, 16. Ezek. xxi.. 3r, &c. which denotes his Wrath againfl: Sin and wicked Men, ip whofe Power It IS to confumo thofe miferable Perfons againft whom it burns, as Fire does Stubble, or other combufl:ible Materials. See Pfal. xviii. 8. 4 C METAPHOR,
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