a flame together For then the present frame of things shall be dissolved and the bounds set to the more subtile and active parts of matter shall be taken away which mixing with the more grâ—ss and earthy shall sever them from each other and by their whirling and agitation set them all on sire And if the Stars falling to the earth were to be understood in a literal sense none seems so probable as this that those aethereal fires shall then be scattered and dispersed thoughout the universe so that the earth and all the works that are therein shall be turned into one funeral Pile Then the foundations of the earth shall be shaken and all the combustible matter which lies hid in the bowels of it shall break forth into prodigious flames which while it rouls up and down within making it self a passage out will cause an universal quaking in all parts of the earth and make the Sea to roar with a mighty noise which will either by the violent heat spend it self in vapour and smoak or be swallowed up in the hollow places of the deep Neither are we to imagine that only the sulphureous matter within the earth shall by its kindling produce so general a conflagration although some Philosophers of old thought that sufficient for so great an effect but as it was in the deluge of water the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of Heaven were opened so shall it be in this deluge of fire as one of the ancients calls it not only mighty streams and rivers of Fire shall issue of out the bowels of the earth but the cataracts above shall discharge such abundance of thunder and lightning wherein God will rain down fire and brimstone from Heaven that nothing shall be able to withstand the force of it Then the Craters breaches made in the earth by horrible earthquakes caused by the violent eruptions of Fire shall be wide enough to swallow up not only Cities but whole Countries too And what shall remain of the spoils of this devouring enemy within shall be consumed by the merciless fury of the thunder and lightning above What will then become of all the glories of the world which are now so much admired and courted by foolish men What will then become of the most magnificent piles the most curious structures the most stately palaces the most lasting monuments the most pleasant gardens and the most delightful countries they shall be all buried in one common heap of ruines when the whole face of the earth shall be like the top of mount Aetna nothing but rubbish and stones and ashes which unskilful travellers have at a distance mistaken for Snow What will then become of the pride and gallantry of the vain persons the large possessions of the great or the vast treasures of the rich the more they have had of these things only the more fuel they have made for this destroying fire which will have no respect to the honours the greatness or the riches of men Nay what will then become of the wicked and ungodly who have scoffed at all these things and walked after their own lusts saying where is this promise of his coming because all things yet continue as they were from the beginning of the creation When this great day of his wrath is come how shall they be able to stand or escape his sury Will they flie to the tops of the mountains that were only to stand more ready to be destroyed from Heaven Will they hide themselves in the dens and the rocks of the mountains but there they fall into the burning furnaces of the earth and the mountains may fall upon them but can never hide them from the wrath of the Lamb. Will they go down into the deep and convey themselves to the uttermost parts of the Sea but even there the storms and tempests of these shours of fire shall overtake them and the vengeance of God shall pursue them to everlasting flames Consider now whether so dreadful a preparation for Christs coming to judgement be not one great reason why it should be called the terror of the Lord For can any thing be imagined more full of horror and amazement than to see the whole world in a flame about us We may remember and I hope we yet do so when the flames of one City filled the minds of all the beholders with astonishment and fear but what then would it do not only to see the earth vomit and cast forth fire every where about us and the Sea to boyl and swell and froth like water in a seething pot but to hear nothing but perpetual claps of thunder and to see no light in the Heavens but what the flashings of lightning give Could we imagine our selves at a convenient distance to behold the eruption of a burning mountain such as Aetna and Vesuvius are when the earth about it trembles and groans the Sea foams and rages and the bowels of the mountain roar through impatience of casting forth its burden and at last gives it self ease by sending up a mixture of flames and ashes and smoak and a flood of fire spreading far and destroying where ever it runs yet even this though it be very apt to put men in apprehensions and fears of this great day falls very far short of the terror of it Could we yet farther suppose that at the same time we could see fire and brimstone raining from Heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah the earth opening to devour Corah and his company Belshazzar trembling at the hand writing against the wall and the Jews destroying themselves in the fire of their Temple and City this may somewhat higher advance our imaginations of the horror of the worlds conflagration but yet we cannot reach the greatness of it in as much as the Heavens and the earth which are now are kept in store saith the Apostle reserved unto fire against the day of judgement and perdition of ungodly men even those heavens whole beauty and order and motion and influence we now admire and that earth whose fruitful womb and richly adorned surface affords all the conveniencies of the life of man must either be destroyed or at least purged and refined by this last and dreadful Fire The expressions of which in Scripture being so frequent so particular so plain in Writers not affecting the â—ofty Prophetical stile wherein fire is often used only to express the wrath of God make it evident that their meaning is not barely that the world shall be destroyed by the anger of God but that this destruction shall be by real fire which adds more to the sensible terror of it to all that shall behold it 2. The terror of Christs appearance in that day The design of the Scripture in setting forth the coming of Christ to judgement is to represent it in such a manner to us as is most
Priesthood any pretence for Rebellion But all these pretences would not serve to make them escape the severe hand of divine justice for in an extraordinary and remarkable manner he made them suffer the just desert of their sin for they perished in their contradiction which is the next thing to be considered viz. 2. The Iudgement which was inflicted upon them for it They had provoked Heaven by their sin and disturbed the earth by their Faction and the earth as if it were moved with indignation against them trembled and shook as Iosephus saith like waves that are tossed with a mighty wind and then with a horrid noise it rends asunder and opens its mouth to swallow those in its bowels who were unfit to live upon the face of it They had been dividing the people and the earth to their amazement and ruine divides it self under their feet as though it had been designed on purpose that in their punishment themselves might feel and others see the mischief of their sin Their seditious principles seemed to have infected the ground they stood upon the earth of a sudden proves as unquiet and troublesome as they but to rebuke their madness it was only in obedience to him who made it the executioner of his wrath against them and when it had done its office it is said that the earth closed upon them and they perished from among the Congregation Thus the earth having revenged it self against the disturbers of its peace Heaven presently appears with a flaming fire taking vengeance upon the 250. men who in opposition to Aaron had usurped the Priestl office in offering incense before the Lord. Such a Fire if we believe the same Historian which far outwent the most dreadful eruptions of Aetna or Vesuvius which neither the art of man nor the power of the wind could raise which neither the burning of Woods nor Cities could parallel but such a Fire which the wrath of God alone could kindle whose light could be outdone by nothing but the heat of it Thus Heaven and Earth agree in the punishment of such disturbers of Government and God by this remarkable judgement upon them hath left it upon record to all ages that all the world may be convinced how displeasing to him the sin of faction and sedition is For God takes all this that was done against Moses and Aaron as done against himself For they are said to be gathered together against the Lord v. 11. to provoke the Lord v. 30. And the fire is said to come out from the Lord v. 35. And afterwards it is said of them This is that Dathan and Abiram who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Corah when they strove against the Lord. By which we see God interprets striving against the Authority appointed by him to be a striving against himself God looks upon himself as immediately concerned in the Government of the world for by him Princes raign and they are his Vicegerents upon earth and they who resist resist not a meer appointment of the people but an Ordinance of God and they who do so shall in the mildest sense receive a severe punishment from him Let the pretences be never so popular the persons never so great and famous nay though they were of the great Council of the Nation yet we see God doth not abate of his severity upon any of these considerations This was the first formed sedition that we read of against Moses the people had been murmuring before but they wanted heads to manage them Now all things concur to a most dangerous Rebellion upon the most popular pretences of Religion and Liberty and now God takes the first opportunity of declaring his hatred of such actions that others might hear and fear and do no more so presumptuously This hath been the usual method of divine Judgements the first of the kind hath been most remarkably punished in this life that by it they may see how hateful such things are to God but if men will venture upon them notwithstanding God doth not always punish them so much in this world though he sometimes doth but reserves them without repentance to his Justice in the world to come The first man that sinned was made an example of Gods Justice The first world the first publick attempt against Heaven at Babel after the plantation of the world again the first Cities which were so generally corrupted after the flood the first breaker of the Sabbath after the Law the first offerers with strange fire the first lookers into the Ark and here the first popular Rebellion and Usurpers of the office of Priesthood God doth hereby intend to preserve the honour of his Laws he gives men warning enough by one examplary punishment and if notwithstanding that they will commit the same sin they may thank themselves if they suffer for it if not in this life yet in that to come And that good effect this Judgement had upon that people that although the next day 14000. suffered for murmuring at the destruction of these men yet we do not find that any Rebellion was raised among them afterwards upon these popular pretences of Religion and the Power of the People While their Judges continued who were Kings without the state and title of Kings they were observed with reverence and obeyed with diligence When afterwards they desired a King with all the Pomp and Grandeur which other Nations had which Samuel acquaints them with viz. the officers and Souldiers the large Revenues he must have though their King was disowned by God yet the people held firm in their obedience to him and David himself though anointed to be King persecuted by Saul and though he might have pleaded Necessity and Providence as much any ever could when Saul was strangely delivered into his hands yet we see what an opinion he had of the person of a bad King The Lord forbid that I should do this thing against my Master the Lords Anointed to stretch forth my hand against him seeing he is the Anointed of the Lord. And lest we should think it was only his Modesty or his Policy which kept him from doing it he afterwards upon a like occasion declares it was only the sin of doing it which kept him from it For who can stretch forth his hand against the Lords Anointed and be guiltless Not as though David could not do it without the power of the Sanhedrin as it hath been pretended by the Sons of Corah in our age for he excepts none he never seizes upon him to carry him prisoner to be tryed by the Sanhedrin nor is there any foundation for any such power in the Sanhedrin over the persons of their Soveraigns It neither being contained in the grounds of its institution nor any precedent occurring in the whole story of the Bible which gives the least countenance to it Nay
together that ever in four dayes time not a fourth part of the City should be left standing For when were they ever more secure and inapprehensive of their danger than at this time they had not been long returned to their Houses which the Plague had driven them from and now they hoped to make some amends for the loss of their Trade before but they returned home with the same sins they carried away with them like new Moons they had a new face and appearance but the same spots remained still or it may be increased by that scumm they had gathered in the Countries where they had been Like Beasts of prey that had been chained up so long till they were hunger-bitten when they once got loose they ran with that violence and greediness to their wayes of gain as though nothing could ever satisfie them But that which betrayed them to so much security was their late deliverance from so sweeping a Judgement as the Plague had been to the City and Suburbs of it they could by no means think when they had all so lately escaped the Grave that the City it self should be so near being buried in its own ruines that the Fire which had missed their blood should seize upon their houses that there should be no other way to purge the infected air but by the Flames of the whole City Thus when the Mariners have newly escaped a wreck at Sea the fears of which have a long time deprived them of their wonted rest they think they may securely lye down and sleep till it may be another storm overtake and sink them We see then there is neither piety nor wisdom in so much security when a great danger is over for we know not but that very security it self may provoke God to send a greater And no kind of Judgements are so dreadful and amazing as those which come most unexpectly upon men for these betray the succours which reason offers they insatuate mens councils weaken their courage and deprive them of that presence of mind which is necessary at such a time for their own and the publick interest And there needs no more to let us know how severe such a Judgement must be when it comes upon men in so sudden and unexpected a manner but that is not all for the severity of it lyes further 2. In the force and violence of it and surely that was very great which consumed four Cities to nothing in so short a time when God did pluere Gehennam de Coelo as one expresses it rained down Hell-fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah And this is that which some think is called the vengeance of eternal fire which all those in Sodom and Gomorrah are said to suffer i. e. a Fire which consumed till there was nothing left to be consumed by it Not but that those wicked persons did justly suffer the vengeance of an eternal fire in another life but the Apostle seems to set out and paint forth to us that in the life to come by the force and violence of that fire which destroyed those Cities and it would be harsh to say that all who were involved in that common calamity who yet were innocent as to the great abominations of those places viz. the Infants there destroyed must be immediately sentenced to eternal misery But although God since that perpetual monument of his justice in the destruction of those Cities hath not by such an immediate fire from Heaven consumed and razed out the very foundations of other Cities yet at sometimes there are fires which break out and rage with a more than ordinary violence and will not yield to those attempts for quenching them which at other times may be attended with great success Such might that great fire in Rome be in Nero's time which whether begun casually or by design which was disputed then as it hath been about others since did presently spread it self with greater speed over the Cirque as the Historian tells us than the Wind it self and never left burning till of fourteen Regions in Rome but four were left entire Such might that be in the Emperour Titus his time which lasted three dayes and nights and was so irresistible in its fury that the Historian tells us it was certainly more than an ordinary fire Such might that be in the same City in the time of Commodus which though all the art and industry imaginable were used for the quenching it yet it burnt till it had consumed besides the Temple of Peace the fairest Houses and Palaces of the City which on that account the Historians attribute to more than natural causes Such might that be which comes the nearest of any I have met with to that Fire we this day lament the effects of I mean that at Constantinople which happened A. D. 465. in the beginning of September it brake forth by the water side and raged with that horrible fury for four dayes together that it burnt down the greatest part of the City and was so little capable of resistance that as Evagrius tells us the strongest Houses were but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 like so much dryed stubble before it by which means the whole City was as he calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a most miserable and doleful spectacle so that as Baronius expresses it that city which before was accounted the wonder of the world was maâ—… like unto Sodom and Gomorrah Such likewise might those two great Fires have been which have formerly burnt down great part of the then City of London but neither of them come near the dreadfulness of this considering how much bigger the habitations of the City were now and how much greater the riches of it then could be imagined at those times How great must we conceive the force of this Fire to have been which having at first gotten a head where there was little means of resisting it and much fuel to increase it from thence it spead it self both with and against the wind till it had gained so considerable a force that it despised all the resistance could be made by the strength of the buildings which stood in its way and when it had once subdued the strongest and the tallest of them it then roared like the waves of the Sea and made its way through all the lesser obstacles and might have gone on so far till it had laid this City level with the ruines of the other had not he who sets the bounds to the Ocean and saith thus far shalt thou go and no farther put a stop to it in those places which were as ready to have yielded up themselves to the rage of it as any which had been consumed before 3. The severity of it will yet more appear from all the dread ful circumstances which attend and follow it Could you suppose your selves in the midst of those Cities which were