Background Image
Table of Contents Table of Contents
Previous Page  623 / 674 Next Page
Basic version Information
Show Menu
Previous Page 623 / 674 Next Page
Page Background

DISC.

1il.j

THE NATURE

OP TFIE

PUNISHMENTS IN

HELL. 603

fest the

vengeance

of God

pursuing the iniquities

of

men,

by

wars,

and

famines,

and pestilences, and every

thing

that

is

bitter

and

dreadful

to

human

.nature.

See

Jeru-

-sa,lem,

the, city

of God,

all

in

flames,

and

the whole

land

of Judea

laid desolate with

deepest

distress, diffused

and

reigning among

all the

inhabitants

of

it

:

Above

a

million

of

them

were

actually slaughtered and consumed

by

fa-

mine and

sword, as

a

sacrifice to

the anger

of

God, for

their

long provocations, and the

cruel barbarous

murder

of

his

Son

Jesus..

And

when,

you have

taken

all

these

surveys, then

tell

me

if

such

terrors

of

the Lord

do

not

give us sufficient

warning what

unknown agonies

and

destructions

may be

expected

by.

obstinate and impeni-

tent

sinners_

from

the

hand of God,

when

the

utmost

limits

of

his

patience restrain

his

wrath

no

longer,

but

his

wisdom

gives

a loòse

to

all

his fiery

indignation.

.

-

To

enforce

this

yet upon

your

hearts,

think again

of

all

the pains

and torments

of

flesh

and

spirit,

which arise

from the distempers

of

body,

a

from

the anguish

of

soul,

even

in

this

present state of trial,

this land

of

hope,

this season of

divine long

-

suffering.

Go

to

the hospi-

tals, where the

gout

and stone,

and rheumatism, and

a

thousand

maladies

torture

the nerves

and

the

points.

of

men

with

intolerable

smart;,

and

infer

thence what

God

will

inflict both on the

flesh

and

spirit,

or the soul

and

body

of

sinners,

in

the

day;

of

his

complete vengeance,

when

his offers

of

mercy and the years

of

his

grace are

come

to

their

last

period.

-Go and survey

the

fields

of

battle

and slaughter, where

thousands

of

the

dead and

the

dying

are

mingled

in

confused heaps,

and groan out their

souls

in

long angúish and extreme

torture,

with

bruises

and

wounds, and

all.the

smarting

effects

of

the

instru-

ments

of

war.

Now

if

all

these things come

under the

conduct of

divine

providence

in

a sinful world, which

is

yet

in

a

way

of

hope,

What

may

those resolved and obsti-

nate

rebels expect, when

all the

doors

of

hope are

shut

up for

ever,

and providence

has

nothing

to do

on earth,

or

in hell,

but to-execute

the vengeance

of

a

God.

Shall we

take one step yet further, and

think of

the

inward

pangs

of

conscience, which some

awakened

cri+

minals have felt in this

life

on the

account

of

sin,

when

the

arrows

of

Goal

have been shot.

into.

their

souls,

and

'the

poison

thereof

lies

drinking

up

their

spirits:

?..

Think