Book II. T H E A R M 0 F G 0 D. 2 • All profane, debauched, and ungodly Men, who are Enemies to God and Re– li"ion, who live like brute Beafts upon the Earth, who mmd nothmg but to fattsfy tl;;,ir carnal Appetites, who wallow in the Lufts of U ncleannefs, Drunkennefs, Prid~, Coveroutnefs, &c. Without timely Repentance, as God IS, fo he Will for ever be to fuch a confuming Fire, &c. . 3· All Perfecutors, Tyra.nts, Murderers, Whoremongers, and all fuch that deftroy the Saints of God on the Earth; the Beaft, falfe Prophets, and myftical Baby/on ; to all fuch will God be continually a confuming Fire. 4 . All rotten and hypocritical Profeffors, and Unbelievers, whether in or out of the Pale of the Church. Yea, let the Sinners in Zion be afraid, for Fearfulnefs will foon jitrprize the Hypocrite, !fa. xxxiii.. 14. Thefe without Repentance mull: dwell with de– vouring Fire, and everlajizng Burnzngs. . Howmany Times cloth our Saviour fay, that Hypocrites and Unbeltevers }hall have thezr Portton tn the Fzre that cannot be quenched? 5 . To all Backftiders, Apofiates, and abominable Revolters, will God be a cM– fuming Ftre, Heb. x. 26, 27. But fome may object and fay, How can it be fo, feeing God faith of himfelf, Fury is not in me, !fa. xxvii. 4· and that one of his chiefefi Attributes is Love; and that God fo loved the World, that he gave his only begotten Son? &c. John iii. I 6. Anfw. God is fer forth as, and faid to be, a confuming Fire, in refpect to his J ufiice: God isj ufi, as well as gracious, a righteous and fevere Judge, and he will deal with Men according to the Penalties of his jufi Law: So that for rebelling againfi him, and not believing in the Lord Jefus Chrifi, his well·beloved Son, his Wrath is kindled, and !eizeth upon fuch Men. II. This terrible Doctrine of God's being a con fuming Fire, may jufily ftrike Terror into the Hearts of all ungodly Men : The Day is coming, that he will burn them up, and leave them neither Root nor Branch. Ill. An.Ufe ofConfolation to the Saints: This great God, who to the Wicked is a .confuming Fire, to them is a loving Father, and a reconciled God. THE ARM OF G 0 D. And underneath are the everla)fiizg Arms, Deut. xxxiii. 27. Be thou their Arm every Morning, !fa. xxxiii. 2. soMETIMES by an Anthropopathy, an Arm is attributed to God, by which we are to denote his Strength and Pou,er, becaufe the Strength of a Man is known by the Strength of his Arm, whether it be in Labor, Fight, &c. Exod. xv. r6. Job xi. 4· Pfal. lxxvii. r6. lxxix. 11. and lxxxix. Il, 14. !fa. xxx. 30. and li. 9, &c. Some– times a jfretched out Arm is afcribed to him, as Pfal. cxxxvi. "• 12. Jer. xxxii. '7· But here God is by a Metaphor faid to be an Arm; upon which we will produce the following Parallel. METAPHOR. I. THE A•·m is an effemial and noble Part of Man. ll. The Arm is a very ufeful Limb or Member of the Bodv; what can the Body do for itfelf, or other, that hath no Arms I Ill. The Arm guards, protects, defends, and faves the Body, from many Blows, and other imminent Dangers. PARALLEL I, poWER is an Elfential of the Divine Being, or one of the glorious Attributes of God. II. The Power of God is very ufeful and pro– fitable unto the Saints ; of the lame Ufe that the Arm is to the Body, is God to Believers. III. God guards, protects, defends, and faves the Church, which is his myftical Body, from thofe curfed Affaults and Blows of Satan, and other Dangers they are expofed to in this World, !fa. iv. 5· Pfal. xxi. x. and v. II. !fa. xxxi. 5· 4D IV. God's
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=