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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 delivers a sobering sermon on the nature of hell, emphasizing that unlike earthly fire, the flames of hell do not consume but perpetually torment the damned. He illustrates the eternal suffering of those in hell, who will long for death but find it elusive, enduring a state of perpetual anguish without annihilation. Brooks highlights the despair of being eternally burned yet never consumed, a fate that underscores the severity of divine judgment. He contrasts this with the hope of salvation through Jesus Christ, who rescues believers from such wrath. The sermon serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of sin and the importance of seeking redemption.
Perpetual Fuel to the Flames of Hell!
Our earthly fire destroys and consumes whatever is cast into it. It turns all combustibles into ashes. But the fire of hell is not of that nature. The fire of hell consumes nothing which is cast into it. It rages—but it does not consume or destroy either bodies or souls. "Men will seek death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them." Revelation 9:6 They shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. They shall cry to the mountains to fall upon them and to crush them to nothing! They shall desire that . . . the fire which burns them—would consume them to nothing, the worm which feeds on them—would gnaw them to nothing, the devils which torment them—would tear them to nothing! They shall cry to God, who first made them out of nothing, to reduce them to that first nothing from whence they came! But "their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor." Isaiah 27:11 They shall always be burned—but never consumed. Ah, how well would it be with the damned, if in the fire of hell, they might be consumed to ashes! But this is their misery—they shall be ever dying, and yet never die; their bodies shall be always a-burning—but never a-consuming! It is dreadful to be perpetual fuel to the flames of hell! What misery can compare to this—for infernal fire to be still a-preying upon damned sinners, and yet never making an end of them! The fierce and furious flames of hell shall burn —but never annihilate, the bodies of the damned. In hell there is no cessation of fire burning, nor of matter burned. Neither flames nor smoke shall consume or choke the impenitent. Both the infernal fire, and the burning of the bodies of reprobates in that fire—shall be preserved by the miraculous power of God! "Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath!" 1 Thessalonians 1:10 "For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thessalonians 5:9
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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.