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Thomas Brooks
Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680). English Puritan preacher and author born in Glastonbury, Somerset. Likely educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, he entered ministry during the English Civil War, possibly serving as a chaplain in the Parliamentary navy. By 1648, he preached in London, becoming rector of St. Margaret’s, New Fish Street, in 1652, where he ministered through the Great Plague and Great Fire of 1666. A nonconformist, he was ejected in 1662 under the Act of Uniformity but continued preaching privately. Brooks wrote over a dozen works, including Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices (1652) and The Mute Christian Under the Rod, blending practical theology with vivid illustrations. Known for his warm, accessible style, he influenced Puritan spirituality, emphasizing repentance and divine sovereignty. Married twice—first to Martha Burgess in 1640, with whom he had four sons, then to Patience Cartwright—he faced personal loss but remained steadfast. His sermons drew crowds, and his books, reprinted centuries later, shaped Reformed thought. Brooks’ legacy endures through digital archives and reprints for modern readers.
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Sermon Summary
Thomas Brooks warns against the grave danger of neglecting our immortal souls in favor of worldly pleasures and trivial pursuits. He emphasizes that trading our souls for temporary satisfaction is a grave mistake, as our souls are invaluable and eternal. Brooks vividly describes the torment that awaits those who prioritize sin and the fleeting joys of this world over their relationship with God. He urges listeners to consider the eternal consequences of their choices and to seek true fulfillment in Christ rather than in trifles. Ultimately, he calls for a deep reflection on the value of the soul and the importance of making spiritual provisions.
For Toys and Trifles
If they deserve a hanging, who feast their slaves, and starve their wives; who make provision for their enemies—but none for their friend; how will you escape hanging in hell, who make provision for everything, yes, for all your lusts—but make no provision for your immortal souls? What shall we think of those who sell their precious souls—for toys and trifles which cannot profit? Ah! do not pawn your souls, do not sell your souls, do not exchange away your souls, do not trifle and fool away your precious souls! They are jewels, more worth than a thousand worlds! If they are safe—all is safe; but if they are lost—all is lost: God lost, and Christ lost, and heaven lost—and that forever! Now if you are resolved to spend your strength in the service of sin and the world; then know that no tongue can express, no heart can conceive that trouble of mind, that terror of soul, that horror of conscience, that fear and amazement, that weeping and wailing, that crying and roaring, that sighing and groaning, that cursing and howling, that stamping and tearing, that wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth—which shall certainly attend you, when God shall bring you into judgment—for all your looseness and lightness, for all your wickedness and wantonness, for all your profaneness and baseness, for all your neglect of God, your grieving the Comforter, your trampling under foot the blood of a Savior, for your prizing earth above heaven, and the pleasures of this world above the pleasures which are at God's right hand. Oh! how will you wish in that day when your sins shall be charged on you—when justice shall be armed against you—when conscience shall be gnawing within you—when the world shall be a flaming fire about you—when the gates of heaven shall be shut against you—and the flame of hell ready to take hold of you—when angels and saints shall sit in judgment upon you, and forever turn their faces from you—when evil spirits shall be terrifying you—and Jesus Christ forever disowning you; how will you, I say, wish in that day—that you had never been born, or that you might now be unborn, or that your mothers' wombs had been your tombs! Oh, how will you then wish to be turned into a bird, a beast, a stock, a stone, a toad, a tree! How you will say, Oh that our immortal souls were mortal! Oh that we were nothing! Oh that we were anything but what we are!
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Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680). English Puritan preacher and author born in Glastonbury, Somerset. Likely educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, he entered ministry during the English Civil War, possibly serving as a chaplain in the Parliamentary navy. By 1648, he preached in London, becoming rector of St. Margaret’s, New Fish Street, in 1652, where he ministered through the Great Plague and Great Fire of 1666. A nonconformist, he was ejected in 1662 under the Act of Uniformity but continued preaching privately. Brooks wrote over a dozen works, including Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices (1652) and The Mute Christian Under the Rod, blending practical theology with vivid illustrations. Known for his warm, accessible style, he influenced Puritan spirituality, emphasizing repentance and divine sovereignty. Married twice—first to Martha Burgess in 1640, with whom he had four sons, then to Patience Cartwright—he faced personal loss but remained steadfast. His sermons drew crowds, and his books, reprinted centuries later, shaped Reformed thought. Brooks’ legacy endures through digital archives and reprints for modern readers.