Christ's certain and sudden appearance to judgment. By Thomas Vincent, sometime Minister of Maudlins…

Thus concerning the punishment which the wicked shall go into.

•. Concerning their entrance into this punishment; when the whole crew of wicked and ungodly persons, together with the whole Flock of Devils are departed from the presence of Christ, and the glorious Saints; and Heaven •s now upon their backs, and Hell before their face; and they are now come to the very mouth of the bottomless Pit, unto the Doors and great Gates of Hell; and now they are opened before them, and unto them, and for them; and they see the black smoke ascending up from thence, and smell a horrible stink from the sulphurous Fire; which they must be throw into; and when they ⟨p. 115⟩behold the horrible flakes of Fire flashing forth from the Furnace of Hell, ten thousand times more dreadfully than those which were seen to arise from London on the Monday night; and now begin to feel the heat; and see others tumbling in before them, and they following of them; and when they begin first to put their hands and their feet into the Fire; and now they are in and covered with flames, and begin to boil and fry, and when they perceive the Gates of Hell to be shut upon them, and great Stones rolled before them which can never be removed, and great Bars put upon them which can never be broken, and they are out of all hopes of ever breaking Prison, and getting forth; O how will they sh•e•k, and roar, and cry out in the the anguish of their souls, and torture of their bodies, Woe, Woe be unto us miserable sinners! and is this the Hell which Ministers warned us to fly from? and yet would we needs run out selves into such flames? Is this the wages of our si•? ••hath our drunkenness, and swearing, and whoring and lying, and unrighteous dealing, such a dreadful consequent as this? Is this the company we must take up our eternal abode, withal? and this the place of our eternal habitation? must we then dwell in this devouring Fire? and inhabit these everlasting burnings? O miserable! miserable! forlorn wretches we! would God we had never been born! O that we bad been Dogs or Swine! O that we had been Serpents or Toads! O that we had been the meanest wrs, or Stones, or any thing without Souls who are now annihilated! O that we had been nothing, or might be turned to nothing! O that we could recall our time! how would we improve it.