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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 emphasizes that true satisfaction cannot be found in wealth or material possessions, as illustrated by Ecclesiastes 5:10. He argues that no amount of money can fulfill the deeper needs of the soul, which can only be satisfied by an infinite God. Brooks warns against the futility of pursuing worldly riches, comparing it to Oramuzes' happiness egg, which, when broken, revealed only emptiness. He concludes that the pursuit of earthly things leads to vanity and vexation, and true contentment lies in spiritual fulfillment rather than material gain.
Scriptures
Oramuzes' Happiness Egg
"Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income." Ecclesiastes 5:10 He who is not contented with a little, will never be satisfied with much. Money of itself, cannot satisfy any desire of nature. If a man is hungry, money cannot feed him; if naked, money cannot clothe him; if cold, money cannot warm him; if sick, money cannot cure him. A circle cannot fill a triangle; no more can the whole world fill the heart of man. A man may as soon fill a chest with grace—as a heart with wealth. The soul of man may be busied about earthly things—but it can never be filled nor satisfied with earthly things. There is many a worldling who has enough of the world to sink him, who will never have enough of the world to satisfy him. The more money is increased—the more the love of money is increased; and the more the love of money is increased—the more the soul is unsatisfied. It is only an infinite God, and an infinite good, which can fill and satisfy the precious and immortal soul of man. The sum of all that the creatures amount to, according to Solomon's reckoning, is vanity and vexation of spirit. Vanity and vexation is the very quintessence of the creature, and all that can possibly be extracted out of it. Now if vanity can satisfy, or if vexation can give contentment; if you can gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles—then go on and dote upon the world still, and be always enamored with a shadow of perishing beauty. Oramuzes the enchanter boasted that in his egg all the happiness in the world was included; but being broken, there was nothing in it but wind and emptiness.
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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.