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The Future Punishment of the Wicked Unavoidable and Intolerable
by Jonathan Edwards
Ezekiel 22:14, "Can thine
heart endure, or can thine hands be strong in the days that I shall deal
with thee? I the Lord save spoken it, and will do it."
IN the former part of this chapter, we have a dreadful catalogue of the
sins of Jerusalem; as you may see from the first to the thirteenth
verse. In the thirteenth, which is the verse preceding the text, God
manifests his great displeasure and fearful wrath against them for those
their iniquities. "Behold, I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest
gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst
of thee." The expression of God's smiting his hand, signifies the
greatness of his anger, and his preparing himself, as it were to execute
wrath answerable to their heinous crimes. It is an allusion to what we
sometimes see in men when they are surprised, by seeing or hearing of
some horrid offence, or most intolerable injury, which very much stirs
their spirits, and animates them with high resentment; on such an
occasion they will rise up in wrath and smite their hands together, as
an expression of the heat of their indignation, and full resolution to
be avenged on those who have committed the injury; as in chap. 21:7. " I
will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I
the Lord have said it,"
Then, in the text, the punishment of that people is represented.
1. The nature of their punishment is more generally represented in that
therein God will undertake to deal with them: God here threatens to deal
with the sinners in Jerusalem. The prophets could do nothing with them.
God had sent them one after another; but those sinners were too strong
for them, and beat one, and killed another. Therefore now God himself
undertakes to deal with them.
2. Their punishment is more particularly represented in three things,
viz. The intolerableness, the remedilessness, and the unavoidableness of
it.
(1.) The intolerableness of it: Can thine heart endure?
(2.) The remedilessness, or the impossibility of their doing any thing
for their own relief: Can thine hands be strong?
(3.) The unavoidableness of it: I the Lord have spoken it, and will do
it.
DOCTRINE
Since God hath undertaken to deal with impenitent sinners, they shall
neither shun the threatened misery, nor deliver themselves out of it,
nor can they bear it.
In handling this doctrine, I shall,
1. Show what is implied in God's undertaking to deal with impenitent
sinners.
2. That therefore they cannot avoid punishment.
3. That they cannot in any measure deliver themselves from it, or do any
thing for their own relief under it.
4. That they cannot bear it.
5. I shall answer an inquiry; and then proceed to the use.
I. I shall show what is implied in God's undertaking to deal with
impenitent sinners...Others are not able to deal with them. They baffle
all the means used with them by those that are appointed to teach and to
rule over them. They will not yield to parents, or to the counsels,
warning, or reproofs of ministers. They prove obstinate and
stiff-hearted. Therefore God undertakes to deal with them This implies
the following things:
1. That God will reckon with them, and take of them satisfaction to his
justice. In this world God puts forth his authority to command them; and
to require subjection to him. In his commands he is very positive,
strictly requiring of them the performance of such and such duties, and
as positively forbidding such and such things which were contrary to
their duty. But they have no regard to these commands. God continues
commanding, and they continue rebelling. They make nothing of God's
authority. God threatens, but they despise his threatening They make
nothing of dishonoring God; they care not how much their behavior is to
the dishonor of God. He offers them mercy, if they will repent and
return; but they despise his mercy as well as his wrath. God calleth,
but they refuse. Thus they are continually plunging themselves deeper
and deeper in debt, and at the same time imagine they shall escape the
payment of the debt, and design entirely to rob God of his due.
But God hath undertaken to right himself. He will reckon with them; he
hath undertaken to see that the debts due to him are paid. All their
sins are written in his book; not one of them is forgotten, and every
one must be paid. If God be wise enough, and strong enough, he will have
full satisfaction: he will exact the very uttermost farthing. He
undertakes it as his part, as what belongs to him, to see himself
righted, wherein he hath been wronged Deut. 22:35. "To me belongeth
vengeance." Ibid. vii. 10. "He will not be slack to him that hateth him;
he will repay him to his face."
2. He hath undertaken to vindicate the honor of his Majesty. His Majesty
they despise. They hear that he is a great God; but they despise his
greatness; they look upon him worthy of contempt, and treat him
accordingly. They hear of him by the name of a great King; but his
authority they regard not, and sometimes trample upon it for years
together. But God hath not left the honor of his Majesty wholly to their
care. Though they now trample it in the dust, yet that is no sign that
it will finally be lost. If God had left it wholly in their hands, it
would indeed be lost. But God doth not leave his honor and his glory
with his enemies; it is too precious in his eyes to be so neglected. He
hath reserved the care of it to himself: He will see to it that his own
injured Majesty is vindicated. If the honor of God, upon which sinners
trample, finally lie in the dust, then it will be because he is not
strong enough to vindicate himself. He hath sworn that great oath in
Numbers 14:2 1. "As truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with
the glory of the Lord."
Sinners despise his Son, and trample him under their feet. But he will
see, if he cannot make the glory of his Son appear, with respect to
them; that all the earth may know how evil a thing it is to despise the
Son of God. God intends that all men and angels, all heaven and all
earth, shall see whether he be sufficient to magnify himself upon
sinners who now despise him. He intends that the issue of things with
respect to them shall be open, that all men may see it.
3. He hath undertaken to subdue impenitent sinners. Their hearts while
in this world are very unsubdued. They lift up their heads and conduct
themselves very proudly and contemptuously, and often sin with an high
hand. They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongues walk
through the earth. They practically say as Pharaoh did, "Who is the
Lord? I know not the Lord, neither will I obey his voice." Job 21:4 1.
"They say to God, Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy
ways."
Some, who cover their sin with specious show, who put on a face of
religion, and a demure countenance and behavior, yet have this spirit
secretly reigning in their breasts. Notwithstanding all their fair show,
and good external carriage, they despise God in their hearts, and have
the weapons of war about them, though they are secret enemies, and carry
their swords under their skirts. They have most proud, stubborn, and
rebellious hearts, which are ready to rise in opposition, to contend
with him, and to find fault with his dispensations. Their hearts are
full of pride, enmity, stubbornness, and blasphemy, which work in them
many ways, while they sit under the preaching of the word, and while the
spirit of God is striving with them; and they always continue to oppose
and resist God as long as they live in the world; they never lay down
the weapons of their rebellion."
But God hath undertaken to deal with them and to subdue them; and those
proud and stubborn hearts, which will not yield to the power of God's
word, shall be broken by the power of his hand. If they will not be
willing subjects to the golden sceptre, and will not yield to the
attractives of his love, they shall be subject to the force of the iron
rod, whether they will or no.
Them that proudly set up their own righteousness, and their own wills
against God, God hath undertaken to bring down; and without doubt, it
will be done. He hath undertaken to make those who are now regardless of
God, regard him. They shall know that he is Jehovah. Now they will not
own that he is the Lord; but they shall know it, Isa. 26:11. "Lord, when
thine hand is lifted up, they will not see: But they shall see."
Now wicked men not only hate God, but they slight him; they are not
afraid of him. But, he will subdue their contempt. When he shall come to
take them in hand, they will hate him still; but they will not slight
him; they will not make light of his power as they now do; they will see
and feel too much of the infinity of his power to slight it They are now
wont to slight his wrath; but then they will slight it no more, they
will be infinitely far from it, they will find by sufficient experience
that his wrath is not to be slighted: They will learn this to their
cost, and they never will forget it.
4. God hath undertaken to rectify their judgments. Now they will not be
convinced of those things which God tells them in his word. Ministers
take much pains to convince them, but all is in vain. Therefore God will
undertake to convince them, and he will do it effectually. Now they will
not be convinced of the truth of divine things. They have indeed
convincing arguments set before them; they hear and see enough to
convince them; yet so prone are they to unbelief and Atheism, that
divine things never seem to them to be real. But God will hereafter make
them seem real.
Now they are always doubting of the truth of the Scriptures, questioning
whether they be the word of God, and whether the threatenings of
Scripture be true. but God hath undertaken to convince them that those
threatenings are true, and he will make them to know that they are true,
so that they will never doubt any more for ever. They will be convinced
by dear experience....Now they are always questioning whether there be
any such place as hell. They hear much about it, but it always seems to
them like a dream. But God will make it seem otherwise than a
dream....Now they are often told of the vanity of the world; but we may
as well preach to the beasts, to persuade them of the vanity of earthly
things. But God will undertake to convince them of this; he will
hereafter give them a thorough conviction of it, so that they shall have
a strong sense of the vanity of all these things.
Now ministers often tell sinners of the great importance of an interest
in Christ, and that that is the one thing needful. They are also told
the folly of delaying the care of their souls, and how much it concerns
them to improve their opportunity. But the instructions of ministers do
not convince them, therefore God will undertake to convince them.
Impenitent sinners, while
in this world, hear how dreadful hell is. But they will not believe that
it is so dreadful as ministers represent. They cannot think that they
shall to all eternity suffer such exquisite and horrible torments. But
they shall be taught and convinced to purpose, that the representations
ministers give of those torments, agreeable to the word of God, are no
bugbears; and that the wrath of God is indeed as dreadful as they
declare. Since God hath undertaken to deal with sinners, and to rectify
their judgments in these matters, and he will do it thoroughly; for his
work is perfect; when he undertakes to do things, he doth not do them by
halves; therefore before he shall have done with sinners, be will
convince them effectually, so that they shall never be in danger of
relapsing into their former errors any more. He will convince them of
their folly and stupidity in entertaining such notions as they now
entertain.
Thus God hath undertaken to deal with obstinate unbelievers. They carry
things on in great confusion; but we need not be dismayed at it: Let us
wait, and we shall see that God will rectify things. Sinners will not
always continue to rebel and despise with impunity. The honor of God
will in due time be vindicated; and they shall be subdued and convicted,
and shall give an account. There is no sin, not so much as an idle word
that they shall speak, but they must give an account of it; Matt. 12:
36. And their sins must be fully balanced, and recompensed, and
satisfaction obtained. Because judgment against their evil works is not
speedily executed, their hearts are fully set in them to do evil. Yet
God is a righteous judge; he will see that judgment is executed in due
time.
I come now,
II. To show, that therefore impenitent sinners shall not avoid their due
punishment....God hath undertaken to inflict it; he hath engaged to do
it; he takes it as his work, as what properly belongs to him, and we may
expect it of him. If he hath sworn by his life, that he will do it; and
if he hath power sufficient; if he is the living God, doubtless we shall
see it done. And that God hath declared that he will punish impenitent
sinners, is manifest from, many scriptures; as Deut. 32:41. "I will
render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me."
Deut. vii. 10. "He will not be slack to him that hateth him: He will
repay him to his face." Exod. 34:7. "That will by no means clear the
guilty." Nahum 1:3. "The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and
will not at all acquit the wicked. "God saith in the text, "I the Lord
hath spoken it, and will do it;" which leaves no room to doubt of the
actual fulfillment of the threatening in its utmost extent....Some
wicked men have flattered themselves, that although God hath threatened
very dreadful things to wicked men for their sins, yet in his heart he
never intends to fulfill his threatenings, but only to terrify them, and
make them afraid, while they live. But would the infinitely holy God,
who is not a man that he should lie, and who speaketh no vain words,
utter himself in this manner: I the Lord have spoken it, and will do it;
I have not only threatened, but I will also fulfill my threatenings;
when at the same time these words did not agree with his heart, but he
secretly knew that though he had spoken, yet he intended not to do it?
Who is he that dares to entertain such horrid blasphemy in his heart?
No; let no impenitent sinner flatter himself so vainly and foolishly. If
it were indeed only a man, a being of like impotency and mutability with
themselves, who had undertaken to deal with them; they might perhaps
with some reason flatter themselves; that they should find some means to
avoid the threatened punishment. But since an omniscient, omnipotent,
immutable God hath undertaken, vain are all such hopes.
There is no hope that possibly they may steal away to heaven, though
they die unconverted. There is no hope that they can deceive God by any
false show of repentance and faith, and so be taken to heaven through
mistake; for the eyes of God are as a flame of fire; they perfectly see
through every man; the inmost closet of the heart is all open to him
There is no hope of escaping the threatened punishment by sinking into
nothing at death, like brute creatures Indeed, many wicked men upon
their deathbeds wish for this. If it were so, death would be nothing to
them in comparison with what it now is. But all such wishes are vain.
There is no hope of their escaping without notice, when they leave the
body. There is no hope that God, by reason of the multiplicity of
affairs which ho hath to mind, will happen to overlook them, and not
take notice of them, when they come to die; and so that their souls will
slip away privately, and hide themselves in some secret corner, and so
escape divine vengeance.
There is no hope that they shall be missed in a crowd at the day of
judgment, and that they can have opportunity to hide themselves in some
cave or den of the mountains, or in any secret hole of the earth; and
that while so doing, they will not be minded, by reason of the many
things which will be the objects of attention on that day....Neither is
there any hope that they will be able to crowd themselves in among the
multitude of the saints at the right hand of the Judge, and so go to
heaven undiscovered....Nor is there any hope that God will alter his
mind, or that he will repent of what he hath said; for he is not the son
of man that lie should repent. Hath he said, and shall he not do it?
Hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? When did God ever
undertake to do any thing and fail?
I come now,
III. To show, that as impenitent sinners cannot shun the threatened
punishment; so neither can they do any thing to deliver themselves from
it, or to relieve themselves under it. This is implied in those words of
the text, Can thine hand. be strong? It is with our hands that we make
and accomplish things for ourselves. But the wicked in hell will have no
strength of hand to accomplish any thing at all for themselves, or to
bring to pass any deliverance, or any degree of relief.
1. They will not he able in that conflict to overcome their enemy, and
so to deliver themselves. God, who will then undertake to deal with
them, and will gird himself with might to execute wrath, will be their
enemy, and will act the part of an enemy with a witness; and they will
have no strength to oppose him. Those who live negligent of their souls
under the light of the gospel, act as if they supposed, that they should
be able here after to make their part good with God. 1 Cor. 10:22. "Do
we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he? "...But they
will have no power, no might to resist that omnipotence, which will be
engaged against them.
2. They will have no strength in their hands to do any thing to appease
God, or in the least to abate the fierceness of his wrath. They will not
be able to offer any satisfaction: they will not be able to procure
God's pity. Though they cry, God will not hear them. They will find no
price to offer to God, in order to purchase any favor, or to pay any
part of their debt.
3. They will not be able to find any to befriend them, and intercede
with God for them. They had the offer of a mediator often made them in
this world; but they will have no offers of such a nature in hell. None
will befriend them. They will have no friend in HELL; all there will be
their enemies. They will have no friend in heaven: 'None of the saints
or angels will befriend them; or if they should, it would be to no
purpose. There will be no creature that will have any power to deliver
them, nor will any ever pity them.
4. Nor will they ever be able to make their escape. They will find no
means to break prison and flee. In hell, they will be reserved in chains
of darkness for ever and ever. Malefactors have often found means to
break prison, and escape the hand of, civil justice. But none ever
escaped out of the prison of hell, which is God's prison. It is a strong
prison: it is beyond any finite power, or the united strength of all
wicked men and devils, to unlock, or break open the door of that prison.
Christ hath the key of hell; "he shuts and no man opens."
5. Nor will they ever be able to find any thing to relieve them in hell.
They will never find any resting place there; any place of respite; any
secret corner, which will be cooler than the rest, where they may have a
little respite, a small abatement of the extremity of their torment.
They never will be able to find any cooling stream or fountain, in any
part of that world of torment; no, nor so much as a drop of water to
cool their tongues. They will find no company to give them any comfort,
or to do them the least good. They will find no place, where they can
remain, and rest, and take breath for one minute: For they will be
tormented with fire and brimstone; and will have no rest day nor night
for ever and ever.
Thus impenitent sinners will be able neither to shun the punishment
threatened, nor to deliver themselves from it, nor to find any relief
under it.
I come now,
IV. To show, that neither will they be able to bear it. Neither will
their bands be strong to deliver themselves from it, nor will their
hearts be able to endure it. It is common with men, when they meet with
calamities in this world, in the first place to endeavor to shun them.
But if they find, that they cannot shun them, then after they are come,
they endeavor to deliver themselves from them as soon as they can; or at
least, to order things so, as to deliver themselves in some degree. But
if they find that they can by no means deliver themselves, and see that
the case is so that they must bear them; then they set themselves to
bear them: they fortify their spirits, and take up a resolution, that
they will support themselves under them as well as they can.
But it will be utterly in vain for impenitent sinners to think to do
thus with respect to the torments of hell. They will not be able to
endure them, or at all to support themselves under them: the torment
will be immensely beyond their strength. What will it signify for a
worm, which is about to be pressed under the weight of some great rock,
to be let fall with its whole weight upon it, to collect its strength,
to set itself to bear up the weight of the rock, and to preserve itself
from being crushed by it? Much more in vain will it be for a poor damned
soul, to endeavor to support itself under the weight of the wrath of
Almighty God. What is the strength of man, who is but a worm, to support
himself against the power of Jehovah, and against the fierceness of his
wrath? What is man's strength, when set to bear up against the exertions
of infinite power? Matt. 21:. 44, "Whosoever shall fall on this stone
shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to
powder."
When sinners hear of hell torments, they sometimes think with
themselves: Well, if it shall come to that, that I must go to hell, I
will bear it as well as I can: as if by clothing themselves with
resolution and firmness of mind, they would be able to support
themselves in some measure; when, alas! they will have no resolution, no
courage at all. However they shall have prepared themselves, and
collected their strength; yet as soon as they shall begin to feel that
wrath, their hearts will melt and be as water. However before they may
seem to harden their hearts, in order to prepare themselves to bear, yet
the first moment they feel it, their hearts will become like wax before
the furnace. Their courage and resolution will be all gone in an
instant; it will vanish away like a shadow in the twinkling of an eye.
The stoutest and most sturdy will have no more courage than the feeblest
infant: let a man be an infant, or a giant, it will be all one. They
will not be able to keep alive any courage, any strength, any comfort,
any hope at all.
I come now as was proposed,
V. To answer an inquiry which may naturally be raised concerning these
things.
Inquiry. Some may be ready to say, If this be the case, if impenitent
sinners can neither shun future punishment, nor deliver themselves from
it, nor bear it; then what will become of them?
Answer. They will wholly sink down into eternal death. There will be
that sinking of heart, of which we now cannot conceive. We see how it is
with the body when in extreme pain. The nature of the body will support
itself for a considerable time under very great pain, so as to keep from
wholly sinking. There will be great struggles, lamentable groans and
panting, and it may be convulsions. These are the strugglings of nature
to support itself under the extremity of the pain. There is, as it were,
a great lothness in nature to yield to it; it cannot bear wholly to
sink.
But yet sometimes pain of body is so very extreme and exquisite, that
the nature of the body cannot support itself under it; however loath it
may be to sink, yet it cannot bear the pain; there are a few struggles,
and throes, and pantings, and it may be a shriek or two, and then nature
yields to the violence of the torments, sinks down, and the body dies.
This is the death of the body. So it will be with the soul in hell; it
will have no strength or power to deliver itself and its torment and
horror will be so great, so mighty, so vastly disproportioned to its
strength, that having no strength in the least to support itself,
although it be infinitely contrary to the nature and inclination of the
soul utterly to sink; yet it will sink, it will utterly and totally
sink, without the least degree of remaining comfort, or strength, or
courage, or hope. And though it will never be annihilated, its being and
perception will never be abolished, yet such will be the infinite depth
of gloominess that it will sink into, that it will be in a state of
death, eternal death.
The nature of man desires happiness; it is the nature of the soul to
crave and thirst after well-being; and if it be under misery, it eagerly
pants after relief; and the greater the misery is, the more eagerly doth
it struggle for help. But if all relief be withholden, all strength
overborne, all support utterly gone; then it sinks into the darkness of
death.
We can conceive but little
of the matter; we cannot conceive what that sinking of the soul in such
a case is. But to help your conception, imagine yourself to be cast into
a fiery oven, or of a great furnace, where your pain would be as much
greater than that occasioned by accidentally touching a coal of fire, as
the heat is greater. Imagine also that your body were to lie there for a
quarter of an hour, all the while full of quick sense; what horror would
you feel at the entrance of such a furnace! And how long would that
quarter of an hour seem to you! And after you had endured it for one
minute, how overbearing would it be to you to think that you had it to
endure the other fourteen!
But what would be the effect on your soul, if you knew you must lie
there enduring that torment to the full for twenty-four hours! And how
much greater would be the effect, if you knew you must endure it for a
whole year; and how vastly greater still, if you knew you must endure it
for a thousand years! O then, how would your heart sink, if you thought,
if you knew, that you must bear it forever and ever! That there would be
no end! That after millions of millions of ages, your torment would be
no nearer to an end, than ever it was; and that you never, never should
be delivered!
But your torment in hell will be immensely greater than this
illustration represents. How then will the heart of a poor creature sink
under it! How utterly inexpressible and inconceivable must the sinking
of the soul be in such a case!
This is the death threatened in the law. This is dying in the highest
sense of the word. This is to die sensibly; to die and know it; to be
sensible of the gloom of death. This is to be undone; this is worthy of
the name of destruction. This sinking of the soul under an infinite
weight, which it cannot bear, is the gloom of hell. We read in Scripture
of the blackness of darkness; this is it, this is the very thing. We
read in Scripture of sinners being lost, and of their losing their
souls: this is the thing intended; this is to lose the soul: they that
are the subjects of this are utterly lost.
APPLICATION
This subject may be applied in a use of awakening to impenitent sinners.
What hath been said under this doctrine is for thee, O impenitent
sinner, O poor wretch, who art in the same miserable state in which thou
camest into the world, excepting that thou art loaded with vastly
greater guilt by thine actual sins. These dreadful things which thou
hast heard are for thee, who art yet unconverted, and still remainest an
alien and stranger, without Christ and without God in the world. They
are for thee, who to this day remainest an enemy to God, and a child of
the devil, even in this remarkable season, when others both here and
elsewhere, far and near, are flocking to Christ; for thee who hearest
the noise, the fame of these things, but knowest nothing of the power of
godliness in thine own heart.
Whoever thou art, whether young or old, little or great, if thou art in
a Christless, unconverted state, this is the wrath, this is the death to
which thou art condemned. This is the wrath that abideth on thee; this
is the hell over which thou hangest, and into which thou art ready to
drop every day and every night.
If thou shalt remain blind, and hard, and dead in sin a little longer,
this destruction will come upon thee: God hath spoken and he will do it.
It is vain for thee to flatter thyself with hopes that thou shalt avoid
it, or to say in thine heart, perhaps it will not be; perhaps it will
not be just so; perhaps things have been represented worse than they
are. If thou wilt not be convinced by the word preached to thee by men
in the name of God, God himself will undertake to convince thee, Ezekiel
14:. 4, 7, 8.
Doth it seem to thee not real that thou shalt suffer such a dreadful
destruction, because it seems to thee that thou dust not deserve it? And
because thou dust not see any thing so horrid in thyself, as to answer
such a dreadful punishment? Why is it that thy wickedness doth not seem
bad enough to deserve this punishment? The reason is, that thou lovest
thy wickedness; thy wickedness seems good to thee; it appears lovely to
thee; thou dust not see any hatefulness in it, or to be sure, any such
hatefulness as to answer such misery.
But know, thou stupid, blind, hardened wretch, that God doth not see, as
thou seest with thy polluted eyes: thy sins in his sight are infinitely
abominable.-Thou knowest that thou hast a thousand and a thousand times
made light of the Majesty of God. And why should not that Majesty, which
thou hast thus despised, be manifested in the greatness of thy
punishment? Thou hast often heard what a great and dreadful God Jehovah
is; but thou hast made so light of it, that thou hast not been afraid of
him, thou hast not been afraid to sin against him, nor to go on day
after day, by thy sins, to provoke him to wrath, nor to cast his
commands under foot, and trample on them. Now why may not God, in the
greatness of thy destruction, justly vindicate and manifest the
greatness of that Majesty, which thou hast despised?
Thou hast despised the mighty power of God; thou hast not been afraid of
it. Now why is it not fit that God should show the greatness of his
power in thy ruin? What king is there who will not show his authority in
the punishment of those subjects that despise it! And who will not
vindicate his royal majesty in executing vengeance on those that rise in
rebellion? And art thou such a fool as to think that the great King of
heaven and earth, before whom all other kings are so many grasshoppers,
will not vindicate his kingly Majesty on such contemptuous rebels as
thou art?-Thou art very much mistaken if thou thinkest so. If thou be
regardless of God's Majesty, be it known to thee, God is not regardless
of his own Majesty; he taketh care of the honor of it, and he will
vindicate it.
Think it not strange that God should deal so severely with thee, or that
the wrath which thou shalt suffer should be so great. For as great as it
is, it is no greater than that love of God which thou hast despised. The
love of God, and his grace, condescension, and pity to sinners in
sending his Son into the world to die for them, is every whit as great
and wonderful as this inexpressible wrath. This mercy hath been held
forth to thee, and described in its wonderful greatness hundreds of
times, and as often hath it been offered to thee; but thou wouldst not
accept Christ; thou wouldst not have this great love of God; thou
despisedst God's dying love; thou trampledst the benefits of it under
foot. Now why shouldst thou not have wrath as great as that love and
mercy which thou despisest and rejectest? Doth it seem incredible to
thee, that God should so harden his heart against a poor sinner, as so
to destroy him, and to bear him down with infinite power and merciless
wrath? And is this a greater thing than it is for thee to harden thy
heart, as thou hast done, against infinite mercy, and against the dying
love of God?
Doth it seem to thee incredible, that God should be so utterly
regardless of the sinner's welfare, as so to sink him into an infinite
abyss of misery? Is this shocking to thee? And is it not at all shocking
to thee, that thou shouldst be so utterly regardless as thou hast been
of the honor and glory of the infinite God?
It arises from thy foolish stupidity and senselessness, and is because
thou hast a heart of stone, that thou art so senseless of thine own
wickedness as to think thou hast not deserved such a punishment, and
that it is to thee incredible that it will be inflicted upon thee.-But
if, when all is said and done, thou be not convinced, wait but a little
while, and thou wilt be convinced: God will undertake to do the work
which ministers cannot do. -Though judgment against thine evil works be
not yet executed, and God now let thee alone, yet he will soon come upon
thee with his great power, and then thou shalt know what God is, and
what thou art.
Flatter not thyself, that if these things shall prove true, and the
worst shall come, thou wilt set thyself to bear it as well as thou
canst. What will it signify to set thyself to bear, and to collect thy
strength to support thyself, when thou shalt fall into the hands of that
omnipotent King, Jehovah? He that made thee, can make his sword approach
unto thee. His sword is not the sword of man, nor is his wrath the wrath
of man. If it were, possibly stoutness might be maintained under it. But
it is the fierceness of the wrath of the great God, who is able to
baffle and dissipate all thy strength in a moment. He can fill thy poor
soul with an ocean of wrath, a deluge of fire and brimstone; or he can
make it ten thousand times fuller of torment than ever an oven was full
of fire; and at the same time, can fill it with despair of ever seeing
an end to its torment, or any rest from its misery: and then where will
be thy strength? What will become of thy courage then? What will signify
thine attempts to bear?
What art thou in the hands of the great God, who made heaven and earth
by speaking a word? What art thou, when dealt with by that strength,
which manages all this vast universe, holds the globe of the earth,
directs all the motions of the heavenly bodies from age to age, and,
when the fixed time shall come, will shake all to pieces? There are
other wicked beings a thousand times stronger than thou: there are the
great leviathans, strong and proud spirits, of a gigantic stoutness and
hardiness. But how little are they in the hands of the great God! They
are less than weak infants; they are nothing, and less than nothing in
the hands of an angry God, as will appear at the day of judgment. Their
hearts will be broken; they will sink; they will have no strength nor
courage left; they will be as weak as water; their souls will sink down
into an infinite gloom, an abyss of death and despair. Then what will
become of thee, a poor worm, when thou shalt fall into the hands of that
God, when he shall come to show his wrath, and make his power known on
thee?
If the strength of all the wicked men on earth, and of all the devils in
hell, were united in one, and thou wert possessed of it all; and if the
courage, greatness, and stoutness of all their hearts were united in thy
single heart, thou wouldst be nothing in the hands of Jehovah. If it
were all collected, and thou shouldst set thyself to bear as well as
thou couldst, all would sink under his great wrath in an instant, and
would be utterly abolished: thine hands would drop down at once and
thine heart would melt as wax.-The great mountains, the firm rocks,
cannot stand before the power of God; as fast as they stand, they are
tossed hither and thither, and skip like lambs, when God appears in his
anger. He can tear the earth in pieces iii a moment; yea, lie can
shatter the whole universe, and dash it to pieces at one blow. How then
will thine hands be strong, or thine heart endure?
Thou canst not stand before a lion of the forest; an angry wild beast,
if stirred up, will easily tear such a one as thou art in pieces. Yea,
not only so, but thou art crushed before the moth. A very little thing,
a little worm or spider, or some such insect, is able to kill thee. What
then canst thou do in the hands of God? It is vain to set the briers and
thorns in battle array against glowing flames; the points of thorns,
though sharp, do nothing to withstand the fire.
Some of you have seen buildings on fire; imagine therefore with
yourselves, what a poor hand you would make at fighting with the flames,
if you were in the midst of so great and fierce a fire. You have often
seen a spider, or some other noisome insect, when thrown into the midst
of a fierce fire, and have observed how immediately it yields to the
force of the flames. There is no long struggle, no fighting against the
fire, no strength exerted to oppose the heat, or to fly from it; but it
immediately stretches forth itself and yields; and the fire takes
possession of it, and at once it becomes full of fire. Here is a little
image of what you will be the subjects of in hell, except you repent and
fly to Christ. However you may think that you will fortify yourselves,
and bear as well as you can; the first moment you shall be cast into
hell, all your strength will sink and be utterly abolished. To encourage
yourselves, that you will set yourselves to bear hell torments as well
as you can, is just as if a worm, that is about to be thrown into a
glowing furnace, should swell and fortify itself and prepare itself to
fight the flames.
What can you do with lightnings? What doth it signify to fight with
them? What an absurd figure would a poor weak man make, who, in a
thunder-storm, should expect a flash of lightning on his head or his
breast, and should go forth sword in hand to oppose it; when a stream of
brimstone would, in an instant, drink up all his spirits and his life,
and melt his sword!
Consider these things, all you enemies of God, and rejecters of Christ,
whether you be old men or women, Christless heads of families, or young
people and wicked children. Be assured, that if you do not hearken and
repent, God intends to show his wrath, and make his power known upon
you. He intends to magnify himself exceedingly in sinking you down in
hell. He intends to show his great majesty at the day of judgment,
before a vast assembly, in your misery; before a greater assembly many
thousand fold than ever yet appeared on earth; before a vast assembly of
saints, and a vast assembly of wicked men, a vast assembly of holy
angels, and before all the crew of devils. God will before all these get
himself honor in your destruction; you shall be tormented in the
presence of them all. Then all will see that God is a great God indeed;
then all will see how dreadful a thing it is to sin against such a God,
and to reject such a Saviour, such love and grace, as you have rejected
and despised. All will be filled with awe at the great sight, and all
the saints and angels will look upon you, and adore that majesty, and
that mighty power, and that holiness and justice of God, which shall
appear in your ineffable destruction and misery.
It is probable that here are some, who hear me this day, who at this
very moment are unawakened, and are in a great degree careless about
their souls. I fear there are some among us who are most fearfully
hardened: their hearts are harder than the very rocks. It is easier to
make impressions upon an adamant than upon their hearts. I suppose some
of you have heard all that I have said with ease and quietness: it
appears to you as great big sounding words, but doth not reach your
hearts. You have heard such things many times: you are old soldiers, and
have been too much used to the roaring of heaven's cannon, to be
frighted at it. It will therefore probably be in vain for me to say any
thing further to you; I will only put you in mind that ere long God will
deal with you. I cannot deal with you, you despise what I say; I have no
power to make you sensible of your danger and misery, and of the
dreadfulness of the wrath of God. The attempts of men in this way have
often proved vain.
However, God hath undertaken to deal with such men as you are. It is his
manner commonly first to let men try their utmost strength: particularly
to let ministers try, that thus he may show ministers their own weakness
and impotency; and when they have done what they can, and all fails,
then God takes the matter into his own hands. So it seems by your
obstinacy, as if God intended to undertake to deal with you. He will
undertake to subdue you; he will see if he cannot cure you of your
senselessness and regardlessness of his threatenings. And you will be
convinced; you will be subdued effectually: your hearts will be broken
with a witness; your strength will be utterly broken, your courage and
hope will sink. God will surely break those who will not bow. God,
having girded himself with his power and wrath, hath heretofore
undertaken to deal with many hard stubborn, senseless, obstinate hearts;
and he never failed, he always did his work thoroughly.
It will not be long before
you will be wonderfully changed. You who now hear of hell and the wrath
of the great God, and sit here in these seats so easy and quiet, and go
away so careless; by and by will shake, and tremble, and cry out, and
shriek, and gnash your teeth, and will be thoroughly convinced of the
vast weight and importance of these great things, which you now despise.
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