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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.
Sermon Summary
Thomas Brooks emphasizes the stark contrast between the holiness of heaven and the unholiness of sinful people, using vivid animal imagery to describe the nature of the unholy. He argues that just as various creatures symbolize different sinful behaviors, God has decreed that no unclean beings will enter His holy presence. Brooks asserts that heaven is a place reserved for the holy, and the presence of unholy individuals would be intolerable for the righteous. He concludes that the purity of heaven necessitates the exclusion of all who practice sin, reinforcing the idea that the eternal city is not meant for those with beastly spirits or practices.
No Dirty Dogs Shall Ever Trample Upon That Golden Pavement
Throughout the Scriptures, unholy people are branded, to their everlasting contempt—with the worst appellations. They are the most dangerous, and the most harmful beings in the world, and therefore are emblemized . . . by lions—for they are cruel, Psalm 22:21; by bears—for they are savage, Isaiah 11:7; by dragons—for they are hideous, Ezek. 29:3; by wolves—for they are ravenous, Ezek. 22:27; by dogs—for they are snarling, Rev. 22:15; by vipers and scorpions—for they are stinging, Mat. 12:34, Ezek. 2:6; by spiders and cockatrices—for they are poisoning, Isaiah 59:5; by swine—for they are intemperate, Mat. 7:6. Remember this—that all these stinging expressions and appellations which disgrace and vilify unholy people, were inspired by the Holy Spirit, and published in His holy Word. The glutton is depicted as a swine; the fraudulent person is depicted as a fox; the lustful person is depicted as a goat; the backbiter is depicted as a barking cur; the slanderer is depicted as an asp; the oppressor is depicted as a wolf; the persecutor is depicted as a tiger; the seducer is depicted as a serpent. Do you think that God will admit such vermin as unholy people are—to eternally inhabit His holy heaven? Surely not! God has long since resolved upon it—that no unclean beasts shall enter into heaven—that no dirty dogs shall ever trample upon that golden pavement. Certainly God will not allow such beasts and toads and snakes and serpents—to forever live with Him! Heaven is a too holy place to admit such vermin to inhabit! "Nothing impure will ever enter it." Revelation 21:27 "Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood." Revelation 22:15 All in heaven are holy: the angels holy, the saints holy—but the Lord Himself above all, is most glorious in holiness. Now certainly it would be a hell to these holy ones to have unholy wretches to be their eternal companions! When the holy angels fell from their holiness—heaven was so holy that it spewed them out! Certainly there will be no room in heaven for such filthy beasts as unholy people are! 'Jerusalem above' is too glorious a habitation for beasts—or for men of beastly spirits, or beastly principles, or beastly practices. The city of the great God was never built for beasts. A wilderness and not a paradise—is fittest for beasts.
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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.