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Now if the anguish of a truly penitent heart S ER M. be thus great, while men are in this world, and XXIII. have it in their power to repent; then what must it be hereafter, when there is no room left for repentance?

II. Another thing, which may help us to conceive what that worm of confcience shall be hereafter, is the fearful condition of persons in despair. I am not inclined indeed to think, that all those perfons do indeed despair, who affirm it; nor that the condition of thofe is defperate who obftinately decline all comfort, and can entertain little or no hope of the mercy of God. While their fears are all on their own fide, and they do not abate of their endeavours to amend, others may reasonably conceive good hopes of thern, and may justly have entertained a great charity for them, though they will have none for themselves.

Yet it is not unlikely, that even in this life, God may give over a perverse and obftinate finner, to the malitious infinuations of the Devil, and the lafhes of an evil confcience; and perhaps we are not without some terrible inftances of fuch black despair in wicked men, especially near their death; when the grace of God is entirely withdrawn, the time of repentance past, and all degrees of hope entirely cut off, fo that the wretch hath nothing left to reflect upon but his fins, and that eternal vengeance that expects him. When a dead and hardened confcience is thus awakened in the last extremity, it is vifible how the terrors

of

SER M. of the Lord are let loose upon him; he is then XXIII. in the gall of bitterness, and this worm of con

science torments him before his time, as if it were in hafte to devour him. He raves inceffantly of the wrath and fury of God, of vengeance and damnation; he breathes out nothing but horrid execrations; and scarce names the name of God but to blafpheme.

Rage and madnefs are terms of peace and mildness to this, infomuch that he fcares and confounds all about him; his very filence is full of horror, and his looks betray a legion of tormentors within. To To express compaffion would be to mock him; for there is no ufe of pity from men where there is no hopes of mercy from God.

I must confefs all impenitent finners at their death, have not this amazing fense of guilt, and the vengeance that belongs to it; the nature of their diftemper, a fudden violence, and many accidental caufes may prevent it; and where there is none of these, the confciences of fome finners are fo ftupid and benummed that they continue infenfible to the laft, and go with a fullen filence, into the regions of darkness. But the gnawings of this worm will be more furprizing and never the lefs fierce and violent in another world; though wicked men feel it not at prefent; yet like thofe rotten carcaffes in the valley of Hinnom, they are engendering those worms that shall eat through their own bowels; and the fierceft fting of that worm will be the fad reflections

reflections upon their own madness and folly, S E R M. who, for want of bearing a little trouble and XXIV. uneafiness in this world, quitted heaven, and loft the kingdom of God; and for those short momentary pitiful pleasures, which did not deferve the name of fuch, are now caft into hell fire.

II. Another aggravation of that future ftate of mifery is, that their fire is not quenched. This expreffion of an unquenchable fire took it's firft rife from a fire which confumed fo intirely, as to leave no memory or remains of what was cast into it, as it is faid, Ifai. xxxiv. 10. Speaking of the deftruction of Idumea, He fays it's fire fhall not be quenched, night nor day, the Smoak thereof shall go up for ever, from one generation to another it fall lie wafte. So Sodom and Gomorrah are faid to be fet forth as an example, fuffering the vengeance of eternal fire; (i. e.) a fire which consumed them, fo as that they fhall lie eternally waste: From hence it became the ufual phrafe, to exprefs thofe torments of wicked men in another world, which fhall never have an end. And thus it is used by our Saviour in his last fentence upon the wicked, depart ye curfed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and bis angels, and in the 20th of the Revelations, it is called a lake of fire wherein the wicked shall be tormented for ever and ever: And in this fenfe hell fire is faid in the text not to

be quenched.

Now whether it be a real fire or no, is not
VOL. II.

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SER M. at all material for us to determine; for if it be, XXIII. and if the flames of hell are literally to be understood, then who will be able to dwell with everlasting burnings? And how dear will the finful pleasures of this world be bought, at fuch a monftrous price? Men fhrink at the thoughts of burning alive, and nature ftarts at the mention of it; and therefore it is strange that people fhould have fuch a mighty dread of fire here, and yet be fo little moved with the burning for ever hereafter. Nothing can poffibly be the reason of this, but because they do not believe it, or do not confider it. But whether men have any hearty perfwafion of the truth of this or no, it is better to part with all the pleasures of this life, than run fo great a hazard.

If it be not literally a fire, it is certainly called fo for want of fomething on earth more dreadful, and of a pain more exquifite, whereby to reprefent it, fo that this inftead of leffening the terror adds extremely to it. Whether it be one or the other, it is furely infupportable and eternal, and therefore as our Saviour fays here, it is better, infinitely better, to part with all our deareft fins, and pluck out the very eye that offends us, and enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having too eyes to be caft into hell fire, where their worm dies not, and their fire is not quenched.

I fhould now proceed to make fome obfervations and inferences from this text; but this I shall defer to the next opportunity.

SERMON

SERMON XXIV.

The duty of plucking out the eye explained.

MARK ix. 47, 48.

And if thine eye offend thee pluck it out: It is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be. caft into bell fire; where their worm dieth not, and their fire is not quenched.

I

HAVE already fpoke to thefe words, SER M. which whether they are an answer or not XXIV. to any objection made, or defigned to obviate one which might reasonably be expected, yet, they suppose the duties our Saviour had been difcourfing of, to be of fome difficulty and uneafinefs. But though they are hard, yet he fhews in these words that they are neceffary and poffible, if men will do as much for the innocence of their fouls, as they ordinarily do for the health of their bodies.

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