Secondly, The Apostle calls it a falling into the Hands of the Living God. And this denotes to us the ⟨p. 88⟩Perpetuity and Eternity of this Vengeance. God for ever lives to inflict it, and Sinners shall for ever live to suffer it; for they fall into his Hands. God hath, as it were, leased out a Life to every wicked Man, he hath his Term of Years set him, wherein he lives to himself, enjoying his Lusts, and the Pleasures and Profits of this present World; and all this while Vengeance intermeddles but little with him: but when his Life is expired, and his Years run out, he then falls into the Hands of the great Lord of all, and becomes the Possession of his Vengeance and Justice for ever. And then, he is the Living God, and such wicked Wretches must for ever live to endure the most dreadful execution of his Power and Wrath. Were there any Term or Period ⟨p. 89⟩set to their Torments, should they when they have endured them thousands of thousands of Years, afterwards be annihilated, the expectation of this Release, at the last, would give them some support; yea, it would be some solace to them in their Sufferings to think that at last they should be freed from them: But this is the Accent of their Misery, and that which makes them altogether desperate, that it is for ever; for ever they must lie and wallow in those Flames that shall never be quenched, and shall always be bit and stung with that Worm that shall never die, they are fallen into the Hands of the living God, who will never let them go as long as he lives, that is, never to all Eternity. He is a consuming Fire, but yet spends not any part of his Fuel, ⟨p. 90⟩he consumes without diminishing them, and destroys, but yet still perpetuates their being. A wise and intelligent Fire, (as Minutius calls him) that devours the Damned, but yet still repairs them, and by tormenting still nourishes them for future Torments. Sapiens ille ignis, urit & reficit, carpit & nutrit. And when they have lain burning in this Fire all the Ages that Arithmetic can sum up, Millions after Thousands, and Thousands of Millions, yet still it is but the beginning of their Sorrows.
Secondly, The Apostle calls it a falling into the Hands of the Living God. And this denotes to us the ⟨p. 88⟩Perpetuity and Eternity of this Vengeance. God for ever lives to inflict it, and Sinners shall for ever live to suffer it; for they fall into his Hands. God hath, as it were, leased out a Life to every wicked Man, he hath his Term of Years set him, wherein he lives to himself, enjoying his Lusts, and the Pleasures and Profits of this present World; and all this while Vengeance intermedles but little with him: but when his Life is expir'd, and his Years run out, he then falls into the Hands of the great Lord of all, and becomes the Possession of his Vengeance and Justice for ever. And then, he is the Living God, and such wicked Wretches must for ever live to endure the most dreadful execution of his Power and Wrath. Were there any Term or Period ⟨p. 89⟩set to their Torments, should they when they have endured them thousands of thousands of Years, afterwards be annihilated, the expectation of this Release, at the last, would give them some support; yea, it would be some solace to them in their Sufferings to think that at last they should be freed from them: But this is the Accent of their Misery, and that which makes them altogether desperate, that it is for ever; for ever they must lie and wallow in those Flames that shall never be quenched, and shall always be bit and stung with that Worm that shall never die, they are fallen into the Hands of the living God, who will never let them go as long as he lives, that is, never to all Eternity. He is a consuming Fire, but yet spends not any part of his Fewel, ⟨p. 90⟩he consumes without diminishing them, and destroys, but yet still perpetuates their being. A wise and intelligent Fire, (as Minutius calls him) that devours the Damned, but yet still repairs them, and by tormenting still nourishes them for future Torments. Sapiens ille ignis, urit & reficit, carpit & nutrit. And when they have lain burning in this Fire all the Ages that Arithmetick can sum up, Millions after Thousands, and Thousands of Millions, yet still it is but the beginning of their Sorrows.
