(5.) The pains and torments of the wicked angels come immediately from God. He holdeth them in chains of darkness, 2 Peter ii. 4. These chains of darkness are God's irresistible power and terrible justice, overtaking, tormenting, and restraining them. It will be worse with them at the last day, their torments will be increased, and that from the hand of Christ himself. They seem to acknowledge so much when they say, Mat. viii. 29, ' Art thou come to torment us before the time ? ' They know there is a time coming when they shall be tor- mented more than they are yet, and tormented by Christ. Now this showeth whence wicked men also shall be punished ; for they are cast forth with the devil and his angels, to endure the same torments they do, from the same hand, the glorious power of Christ.
(6.) The agonies of Christ, whence came they but from the wrath of God ? The devil might stir up outward trouble against him by his in- struments, but whence came his agonies in the garden, where there was no enemy to molest him ? yet his soul was heavy unto death, and he did sweat drops of blood. The scripture telleth you, Isa. liii. 10, ' It pleased the Father to bruise him, to put him to grief.' Now this giveth light to the case in hand, for he carried our sorrows and bore our griefs, Isa. liii. 4, that is, the curse due to our sin. And what was done to the green tree, to such an innocent person as Christ was, showeth what will be done to the dry, what will be the portion of the impeni- tent, God will bruise them and break them by the power of his own wrath.
[2.] Now that it is <f>oftepbv, a very dreadful thing to be punished by the glory of his power, will easily appear if we consider —
(1.) The party punished, the impenitent and obstinate sinner in his whole man, both in body and soul. Both are fellows in the sin, and both partake in the punishment : Mat. x. 28, ' Fear him that can cast both body and soul into hell.' The body is not only the instrument but the occasion of many sins ; we obey many brutish motions to please and gratify the body, therefore the body hath its share in these pains. Christ telleth us the whole body of the wicked is cast into hell- fire, Mat. viii. 29. Then for the soul too, woe, wrath, tribulation, and anguish is the portion of every soul that doeth evil, Rom. ii. 9, 10. And this arising not only from the reflections of our conscience, but the power of God ; the soul is scorched by the wrath of God ; and by remembering what is past, feeling what is present, and expecting what is future, their anguish and horror is increased.
(2.) The party punishing, God or Christ, by his own immediate power. Now God's power is invincible and infinite, far beyond our
VER. 9.] SERMONS UPON 2 THESSALONIANS I. 261
conceiving: 'Who knoweth the power of thine anger?' Ps. xc. 11. As the glory of the Lord is great and infinite, so the effect must be. As that Midian king said to Gideon, when he was afraid to be hacked and mangled by his young son, ' Fall thou upon me thyself, for as the man is so is his strength,' Judges viii. 21. So as the agent is, so must the act be. Man's anger is like himself, weak and finite ; so God's anger is like himself, infinite and powerful : Nahum i. 6, ' Who can stand before his indignation, and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger ? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.'
(3.) The end of his punishing, which is to manifest the glory of his own strength in the just confusion of wicked men. Sometimes God showeth his power, but now he will show the glory of his power ; as it is in the text, 'Punished from the glory of his power.' So Eom. ix. 22, ' What if God, willing to show his wrath, and make his power known?' The world shall see what he is able to do in punishing sinners, what he can inflict and make the creature bear, rrjv ho%av t?}? laxvoi civtov. He will now stir up all his wrath, Ps. lxxviii. 39. Now when God shall fall upon a sinner with all his might, how woful will his condition be !
(4.) The pledges of this punishment. I shall name some.
(1st.) When God's anger is but kindled a little, when a spark of his wrath falls upon the conscience of his own children, their souls are troubled so that they choose strangling rather than life. In his fatherly corrective discipline, how are poor creatures at their wit's end ! This is but a drop of that horrible tempest which shall be the portion of their cup.
(2d.) The Lord Christ's soul was troubled. Though he were the Son of God, perfect in faith and patience, wanted no courage or forti- tude, yet when he felt the wrath of God, his soul was heavy unto death ; he was afraid, he was amazed, the human nature of Christ was never so much put to it as then. What then will the power of God 's wrath accomplish in the wicked ?