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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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Thomas Brooks emphasizes the necessity of true penitential confession, which must be accompanied by a genuine desire to reform and forsake sin. He asserts that mere confession without the intention to abandon sin is futile, as God requires both elements for forgiveness. Brooks likens confession to a spiritual vomit, where one must earnestly wish to rid themselves of the burden of sin, just as a sick person desires relief from their discomfort. He stresses that true confession involves a heartfelt commitment to not repeat the sins confessed, highlighting the importance of both confession and reformation in the believer's life.
Spiritual Vomit
"He who covers his sins shall not prosper; but whoever confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy." Prov. 28:13 True penitential confession is joined with reformation. That confession of sin which carries forgiveness of sin with it, is attended with serious desires, and earnest endeavors of reformation. Confession of sin must be joined with forsaking of sin—or all is lost. God will never cross the book, He will never draw the red lines of Christ's blood over the black lines of our transgressions—unless confessing and forsaking of sin, goes hand in hand. He who does not forsake his sin, as well as confess it, forsakes the benefit of his confession. Indeed, there is no real confession of sin, where there is no real forsaking of sin. It is not enough for us to confess the sins we have committed—but we must peremptorily resolve against the committing again the sins we have confessed. We must desire as freely to forego our sins, as we do desire God to forgive us our sins. Confession of sin is a spiritual vomit. Now you know, a man who is sick in his stomach, is heartily willing to be rid of that load on his stomach; and so a man who is real in his confession of sin, is as heartily willing to be rid of his sin, that lies as a load upon his conscience, as any sick man can be heartily willing to be rid of that load that lies upon his stomach. The penitential confessor does as heartily desire to be delivered from the power of his sins—as he does desire to be delivered from the sting and punishment of his sins.
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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.