Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	cloud_n	earth_n	rain_n	2,189	5	9.5355	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64987	Fire and brimstone from heaven, from earth, in hell, or, Three discourses I. Concerning the burning of Sodom and Gomorrah formerly, II. Concerning the burning of Æetna, or Mount Gibel more lately, III. Concerning the burning of the wicked eternally, with fire and brimstone / by Thomas Vincent ...	Vincent, Thomas, 1634-1678.	1670 (1670)	Wing V437; ESTC R23063	78,865	146

did run into But the Sodomits slight all Lot's sayings they deafen their ears against his reproofs and will be led by none of his example nothing prevails with them to repent The second aggravation of the Sodomits Sins was th●…ir Incorrigibleness As it was said of the Jews aft●…rward Ier. 5. 3. So it might have been said of the Sodomits then Though God had stricken them yet they did not grieve though God had consumed them yet they refused to receive correction They did not take warning by lesser judgements so as to be corrected and amended thereby They were smitten before their enemies their City not long before had been sackt their goods taken away and themselves were led into Captivity with their Wives and Children and yet they were insensible of their Sins the cause of all this evil that came upon them and were so far from being bettered hereby that they grew worse than they were before The third aggravation of the Sodomits Sins was their Ingratitude They were not only ungrateful unto Lot upon whose account Abraham did deliver them out of the hands of their enemies which not only laid an obligation of respect to Lot upon them as long as they liv'd but chiefly they were ungrateful unto God the Author of this deliverance by Abraham and who moreover had been very bountiful unto them in giving them such a place of plenty and pleasure for their habitation that it was like unto the Garden of the Lord for fruitfulness the greater Gods Mercy and Bounty to them the greater was their ingratitude and the more highly aggravated were their Sins The fourth aggravation of the Sodomits Sins was the Universality of their Sins There were no righteous persons amongst them except it were Lot and his Family they were generally corrupt they were all dross and no Gold all Water and no Wine all wicked when Lot was departed As the Earth of old was filled with violence so Sodom then was filled with Filthiness which was very offensive unto the pure and Holy Eyes of God and provoked him to destroy them The fifth aggravation of the Sodomits Sins was their Shamlesness What was spoken of Israel Ier. 6. 5. Might have been said of Sodom were they ashamed when they had committed abomination nay they were not at all ashamed neither could they blush When the Prophet would set forth the shamlesness of Iudah's Sins he compareth them unto Sodom Isa. 3. 9. The shew of their countenance doth witnesse against them they declare their Sin like Sodom they hide it not None had more reason to blush and be ashamed than such filthy Sinners as they and yet none were so little ashamed instead of being ashamed of their Sins they gloried in their shame The sixth aggravation of the Sodomits Sins was their Security They eat they drank they bought they solde they planted they builded until the the judgement did overtake them Luke 17. 28. They were generally secure though they had so greatly sinned and by their Sins so highly provoked the Lord to take vengeance upon them They put the evil day far from them Lot's Sons in Law although foretold and forewarn'd by their Father would not believe it was so near much lesse did the rest of the Sodomits believe any such thing who had no intimation thereof given unto them they little thought what a day would bring forth their impunity for a while did encrease their security and their security under the guilt of such Heaven-dareing Sins did aggravate their Sins exceedingly And now the lusts of the Sodomits having conceived and brought forth such Sins and their Sins so aggravated do arrive unto perfection and they bring forth death Their iniquities now are full and the Viols of Gods wrath also are full and he poureth them down upon their heads which leadeth unto the next particular to speak of the judgement it self inflicted upon Sodom and Gomorrah CHAP. IV. A particular description of Sodom and Gomorrah's burning by Fire and Brimstone from Heaven COncerning the judgement it self which was inflicted on Sodom and Gomorrah It was Fire and Brimstone which was rained down from Heaven upon those Cities The morning was clear when Lot went forth of Sodom and the Sun was risen upon the Earth when he entered into Zoar But then a strange darkness did quickly fill the face of the Heavens and hide the Sun from the view we may conceive that the fashion of the Heaven was altered and that the clouds which carried this horrible Tempest of Fire and Brimstone in their Bowels were of another shape than those which carry in them ordinary storms of Rain or Hail of Thunder and Lightning It was over Sodom and Gomorrah that these dreadful clouds were gathered which upon the command of the Lord brake asunder and it is likely with fearful lightening accompained with great cracks and amazing noise as if Heaven and Earth and Hell had been coming together let down these flaming showers which strangely turned the Air into Fire and with such irresistible violence beat upon the Houses of the Sodomits that they were foreed to yield unto the fury of these devouring flames This Rain probably was not in small drops like that which falling upon the tender Grass causeth it to spring forth and flourish but in great flakes of of scalding Sulphurious matter enkindled by the breath of God great sheets of Fire it is likely came down from Heaven like the Flying Roll spoken of Zach. 5. 2 3 4. the length whereof was twenty Cubits and the bredth thereof ten Cubits which entered into the House of the Thief and False-swearer and consumed the Timber thereof and the stones thereof So did these sheets and rolls of fire fly about the Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and entered into the houses of the unjust and profane the filthy and unclean smiting and consuming Inhabitants with their Habitations This storm of Fire and Brimstone coming down with a commission from God to destroy the whole Place doth arm it self with unexpressible rage and fury and first smiting the heads and tops of all the houses in the City setteth them on fire together which mounting a great flame upward and that mingling with the sulphurious fire which came downward was exceedingly the more enraged and we may conceive that from thence came such horrid blazes to the eye and such dreadful roarings to the ear as awakened all the wicked Inhabitans of the City out of their sleep and security and filled them with unconceiveable horrour and perplexity when they saw inevitable ruine so near unto them Then the streets of the City were filled with flames and the Rain from Heaven likely did raise Floods and Streams of burning Brimstone which poured into the houses on every side such fire as no Water could quench no Stone Walls nor Iron Bars or Gates could resist or defend any of the Inhabitans from being devoured thereby thus Gods hand did find out all his enemies in these wicked Cities together

any place or Town which was in it's way remains nothing being to be seen but confused heaps of ragged stones which yeilding a noisom fume strick terrour and astonishment in all that behold it The first breaking forth of this burning Flood of Fire was on the Munday t●…e 11th of March which in it's progress devided it self into several lesser streams and filled the whole Countrey therebout with Fire and Brimstone in many places where these streams did come great flames were seen to arise together with thick smoke as from the mo●…ths of so many great Furnaces After the Flood of Fire was come down the Mountain and towards the foot which is not so steep it did not move with that swiftness as before yet nothing could divert it's course but it overturned and consumed all where ever it came The first streams continued their course for twelve days together and after hopes that the fury was now spent on Fryday the 22d of March the Mountain Aetna roared and thundered smoked and flamed again most hideously at the mouth shook trembled throughout most dreadfully unto the very foundations and cast forth such heaps of scinders stones and ragged Rocks out of it's bosom and bowels at those breaches before made in it's sides that they grew together and were raised into two large and high Hills and this acccompanied with another stream of it's liquid melted matter which overtook the former currents and thrust them forward with great fury But on the 25th of March the Mountain bellowed with a greater noise than ever before and was shaken with such violence and force that a large part of the head and top fell into the breast a●…d bowels and that the depth of half a mi●…e as some do judge And then issued forth fiery streams in so great abundance that joyning forces with the former they made great havock and desolation destroying the habitations of no lesse than seven and twenty thousand persons the Towns of La Guardia Malpassa Campo Rotundo La Potielli Antonino Pietro Mosterbianco Monpileri Falicchi Placchi were wholy consum'd and ruin'd Yea the Image of the blessed Lady of the Annunciata ●…o highly reverenced by the Superstitious Papists unto which many resorted in Pilgrimage from remote parts was not spared whatever power the Intercession of that Virgin Lady hath with her Son in Heaven for persons here upon the Earth as the Papists ridiculously fancy yet nothing could now avail to secure her Image from being swallowed up by this devouring fiery stream whereby all may see that there was no difference between the stones of that Image and those of the other buildings in that place which equally felt the fo●…ce of the fire Other places were ruin'd in part as Ma●…calucia Giovanni de Galermo with many other and at length the burning streams do approach near unto Gates and Walls of the City Calania in their course destroying Fields Gardens Orchards and Vineards about it which filled the Inhabitants with such fear that far the greatest part of them removed themselves and their goods out of the City Yet what ever the danger and fear was the Lord preserved the City from being swallowed up by these devouring streams part of these streams were congealed on the Land one of them emptied it self under the Wals of the Castle into the Sea in four fathom Water which held it's current in the Sea two fathom high above it and to the astonishment of all spectatours burned in the Sea it self for a great while and making progress into the Sea a mile in length and a mile in bredth was not quenched by the water of the Sea until having spent it self it did of it self congeal CHAP. V. Concerning the Concomitants of the Eruption and burning of Aetna WHilst the Mountain of Aetna or Gibel did thus vomit flames of fire at the top and streams of fire at the side accompained with such horrid noise and cracking in the Air such dreadful trembling and shaking of the Earth other things also were very observable at the same time such as the swelling of the Sea unto a great and unaccustomed height with great raging and roaring Waves the Floods of Water did seem to lift up their heads to see this dreadful spectacle of the Floods of fire and the Waves of the Sea did lift their voice in great tumult as being amazed at the horrid aspect of the Waves and Streams of Flames and Brimstone The Winds also which raised this Tempest in the Sea were high having broken loose from their habitation and with great noise and blustring whirled about the Land in fierce blasts beating upon the houses and unsheltred people in the Fields as if they would contend for force with the raging and irresistable fire The Clouds were gathered thick in the Sky and arrayed the Heavens with black attire hiding the comfortable and refreshing beams of the Sun from the sight which if sometimes it deed peep thorow the Clouds it was with a pale countenance as if it had been struck with fear and dared not to appear in such a dismal place Storms of rain often powred down from the Clouds which seemed in compassion to weep to weep Floods of tears endeavouring thereby to contribute some help for the extinguishing of the flames but all the Rain which fell was so far from quenching or allaying that it did but the more encrease and exasperate the fury of the Fire which hereby burned so much the more feircely In the City there was danger of the Houses overthrow by the Winds and Earth-quak or their being devoured and swallowed up by the Deluge of Fire In the Fields and Countreys there was danger of being destroyed by Thieves and Robbers who took advantage of the peoples confusions to set upon them murdering many and spoiling them of their choicest things which they had saved out of their ruin'd houses Great was the dread and terrour which now did possess the hearts of the people Our Saviour foretells Luke 21. 25 26. That on Earth there should be distresse of Nations with perplexity the Sea and the Waves roaring and men●… hearts failing them for fear and for looking after those things which are coming upon the Earth Such was the distresse and perplexity of these people It is said in the Relation That people ran with cryes and lamentations about the City and Countrey expecting nothing but to be swallowed up or consumed by the Fire having no other apprehensions bu●… of death and a general Conflagration Had the Christian religion taken place there in the purity and power thereof it might have born up the spirits of the sincere and established Christians against overwhelming fear and amazement in all those storms and danger If of the vertuous Man much more may it be said of the truely Religions Si fracitus illabatur orbis impavidum ferient ruinae though the frame of the Earth and World should crack and be dissolved yet such a one would be undaunted under it's ruines

his right hand did lay hold on them that hated him and took no heed to his Laws and making Sodom and Gomorrah as a fiery Oven in the time of his anger he swallowed up all the Sinners of those Places in his Wrath and devoured them with this unquenchable fire the Place now is like a fiery Oven or like a great fiery Furnace the smoke of whofe flame was so great that far and near it might be seen concerning the horror of the Sodomits when compassed about with Flames I shall speak more under the third particular only here add these things which were remarkable in in this judgement First The strangeness of it Secondly The suddenness and unexpectedness of it Thirdly The dreadfulness of it First This Judgement was very Strange It is the nature of Fire to ascend towards Heaven but here Fire and Brimstone together do descend from Heaven this is very strange the Sodomits had an unnatural Fire within them and they have an unnatural Fire sent upon them they lust after strange Flesh Iud. 7. And God punished them with strange Fire Iob 31. 3. Is not destruction to the wicked and a strange punishment unto the workers of Iniquity But of all strange punishments this is one of the most strange never such a thing was heard of before or hath been known since as I may apply what Moses speaketh on another occasion Deut. 4. 32. Aske now of the days which are past which were before since God Created Man upon the Earth and ask from one side of Heaven unto the other whether there hath been such a thing as this great thing or hath been like it that God should Rain Fire and Brimstone from Heaven to punish wicked Cities We read of Fire sent down from Heaven by the Lord upon the request of Elijah which consumed his Sacrifice although he had drenched it often and surrounded it with Water all which was licked up by the fire unto the wonder and astonishment of the People whereby the Lord discovered his power beyond Baal whose Priests could not by all their prayers and cutting themselves prevail with their God to effect any such thing 1 Kings 18. 26 28 37 38. And we read of Fire sent down from Heaven which destroyed two Captains and their fifty's upon the request of the same Prophet these things were exceeding strange but the rain of Fire and Brimstone from Heaven which consumed several Cities and all their Inbitants together was far more strange Fire hath come from Heaven but never so great Fire Fire hath come down from Heaven but never Fire mingled with Brimstone Fire and Brimstone hath come forth of the bowels of the Earth of which in the second discourse but never did Fire and Brimstone come down from Heaven either before or since Secondly This judgement was sudden and unexpected It was like the Flood to the old World which was drowned or like the coming of Christ to the Sinners on Earth which shall be damned when the greatest judgements are most near the Sinners which shall be destroyed thereby are most secure and thus it was with the Sinners of Sodom the day before there was no appearance of any such destruction near there was no sign in the Earth or in the Heavens of any such thing the night before also was like other nights no fire beginning in any place only the fire of lust which burned and raged in the hearts of that wicked people but they had no apprehension of danger from those flames when the morning was come it was like other mornings there were no fiery dews or fore-drops of the fiery rain to give them warning of what would follow The shaddows of the night were chased away by the beams of the morning Sun there was no appearance of the shaddows of the night of Death ready to stretch forth themselves upon all the Inhabitants of Sodom and Neighbour Cities together But so soon as Lot was entered into Zear the Lord rained Fire and Brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah and brought such a sudden destruction upon them as they could not escape Even as it will be ere long with Babylon Rev. 18. 7 8. So it was with Sodom she lived deliciously and securely and in one day death and mourning came upon her and she was utterly burnt with Fire Could the Sodomits have foreseen and certainly foreknown what destruction would have befallen their City that day they would have hastened out of the place the day before at furthest they would have delayed no longer than that morning when Lot did depart they would have flocked about him old and young from every quarter and have departed with him they would not have vallued houses of goods so that they might have but sav'd their lives But the Sodomits did not in the least apprehend their destruction to be so near The Angels knew it but they discover the thing unto Lot only if they had made it know unto the Sodomits it is most likely they would not have believed it any more than Lot's Sons in Law did believe Lot when from their mouth he did declare it The Sodomits are jovial and secure as if their life and mirth should continue many a year when neither of them were a days standing longer Thirdly This judgement was most dreadful we read in the Scriptures and have seen with our eyes very great judgements but none so dreadful all things considered as this of Fire and Brimstone from Heaven Indeed the Flood which devoured the whole old World together Noah and his Family excepted did strike the most universal dread upon the children of men of any judgement that ever hath been since the Worlds Creation yet the Fire and Brimstone from Heaven which devoured Sodom and Gomorrah with all their Inhabitants Lot only and his Family excepted had more of particular dread in it in as much as death by Fire is more painful than death by Water especially such Fire as came down from Heaven It was a terrible day to the old World when they saw the Windows of Heaven opened and Water to come forth from thence in such great abundance as to swell into a Flood and that so great a Flood as drowned all Man-kind which were not found in the Ark But it was a more terrible day to the Sodomits when they saw the Windows of Heaven opened and Fire to come forth from thence Fire mingled with Brimstone and Gods fiery indignation which falling upon their Houses and heads put all into flames this last judgement as it had more strangeness in it so it did strike more terrour into the hearts of those which did endure it When the ground clave asunder and the Earth opening her mouth swallowed up Corah Dathan and Abiram with all that appertained to them when they went thus down alive into the pit and the Earth closing upon them again they perished from the Congregation Num. 16. vers 32. 33. This was a very feaful judgement but the opening

be three or four miles Towards it's head it is rocky and steep and some part of it is always covered with Snow towards the middle it is beautifyed with Trees and Woods towards the bottom it is enriched with Corn and Vines and exceeding fruitful The Hill hath two shoulders Eastward and between both an eminent head in the middle which may be seen at the distance of fifty leagues as some affirm by Sailors on the Sea But that which hath rendered this Mountain most famous hath not been so much the height and bigness of it as the smoking head and flaming mouth thereof of which both ancient and modern Authors have written I shall instance in some few D●…genes Laertius in his 8th Book de viris Philosephorum maketh mention of Mou●…t Aetna into the 〈◊〉 mouth of which Em●…edocles the Philosopher he sai●… was ●…am'd to have thrown himself that not 〈◊〉 found by his companions they might think he was translated to Heaven and made an immortal God but the Fire of the Hill casting forth one of his br●…zen San●…ls the d●…ceit was discovered and so instea●… of purchasing to himself the repute of a God he discovered himself in that respect to be beneath a man Hora●…e also recordeth the same lib. de Arte l'●…etica Deus immortalis hal eri Dum cupit Empedocles ardentem frigidus Aetnam Insiluit Empedocles himself into the mouth doth thr●…w Of burning Aetna that not being found below He might be fam'd a God immortal Pliny in his second Book of natural History doth discourse of this Hill In montium 〈…〉 Aetna noctibus semper tantoque aevo ignium materiae sufficit Amongst the miracles of Mountains Aetna doth flame always by night and doth afford matter for perpetual fire Iustins in his 4th Book of History Chap. 1st giveth the reason why Aetnae Montis per tot secula durat incendium the burning of Mount Aetna hath lasted for so many ages Strabo in his sixth Book of Geography telleth us of Aetna's open mouth whereby it doth breath forth flames and cast forth fiery stones Ovid concerning Aetna saith Flammam fero vomit ore It vomits fire out of it's feirce mouth Seneca in his Thyestes describeth Aetna Ignis aeternis res●…nans caminis Resounding with eternal tunnels or breathing holes of fire Claudian de raptu Proserpinae lib. 1. Aetnaeos api●…s sols cognoscere visu Non aditu tentare licet Quae tanta cavernas Vis glomerat quo fonteruat Vulcanius igni●… None may approach Mount Aetna's head to know With foot 't is only reacht with th' eye below Great force within round caverns makes From whence rush forth Vulcanian flakes Of fire as from a Fountain But Virgil giveth the most notable decription of Aetna's burning in his third Book of Aeneids Sed horrificis juxta tonat Aetna ruinis Int●…rdumque atram prorumpit ad aether a nubem Turbine fumantem piceo candente favilla Attollitque globos slammarum sidera lambit Interdum scopulos avulsaque viscera montis Erigit eructans liquefactaque saxa per aur as Cum gemitu glomer at fundoque exaestuat imo Fama est Enceladi semustum ful●…ine corpus Urgeri mole hâc ingentemque insuper Aetnam Impositam ruptis flammam expirare caminis Et fessum quoties mutat latus intremere omnem Murmure Trinacriam caelum subtexere fumo In English thus Through horrid falls within like noise of thunde●… Mount Aetna sounds as if 't would break asunder Thence first a cloud break forth as black as night With pitchy curls with sparks like stars to sight Then follow globes of flames which mount a loft As if to kisse the Orbes of Heaven they sought The bottom-fire like boiling furnace glowes Which melts the hardest stones and upward throwes Great Rocks through th' air with groans The fame doth go That great Enceladus do lye below Who being thunder-struck and on him thrown Huge Aetna Mount with weight to keep him down When weary he shifts sides and turns about He shakes the Mount his breath in flames goes out As at a Furnace mouth the Heavens above Are cloth'd with smoak Trinacria trembles I shall add but one Author more and that is of a late Geographer namely Varenius who in his first Book of Geography page 105. doth both describe this Mount and giveth relation of one no●…able eruption of fire not much above a hundred years since Celeberrimus est Aetna Siciliae Mons hodie Gibel e cujus vertice flammae fumi longissima distantia in Mari Mediterraneo cernuntur Etsi continua sit flammarum fumor●…m ejaculatio tamen interdum majori impetu furit Anno 1537 a primo die Maii ad duodecimum tremuit 〈◊〉 Sicilia deinde ingens horrendus 〈◊〉 fragor auditus est quasi magna tormenta bellica exploder●…tur 〈◊〉 est multorum aedificiorum per totam insul●…m 〈◊〉 Hae●… sae●…itia per undecim dies cum conti●…nasset 〈◊〉 fuit vel hiatu se ap●…ruit hic ind●… terra un●… magna vis s●…amma ig●…is pr●…rupit qu●… intra quatuor dies omnia absumpta sunt 〈◊〉 quae 〈◊〉 ultra quinque leucarum distantia●… ab Aetna aberant P●…lo p●…st crater qui est in vertice montis per tres int●…gros dies ingentem copiam Fa●…illae ●…inerum ejecit quae non tantum per totam in●…ulam aispersa fuit sed etiam trans Mare in Italiam dela●… Naves in Mari cum ducentis leucis a Sicilia abessent Venetias tenderent damnum passae sunt That is Aetna in Sicily now called Mount Gibel is most famous from whose top the flames and smoak may be seen at a very great distance on the Mediterranean Sea and although the casting forth of fire and smoak be continual yet sometimes it breatheth forth with more force and fury In the year 1537. from the first day of May until the 12th the whole Island of Sicily trembled and then was heard a great roaring and cracking noise as if great pieces of Ordinance had been discharged after this followed the ruine and overthrow of many buildings thorowout t●…e whole Island This raging continued for eleven whole days together in which time the Earth on the side of the Mount was rent and opened it self in wide clefts from whence did issue forth flames of fire with such force and strength that all things within 15. miles of Aetna were thereby consumed and burnt up A little after the Cup which is on the top of the Mount for three whole days together did cast forth such a large quantity of burning coals and ashes that they were dispersed not only throughout the whole Island but they were also carried over Sea into Italy yea some Ships two hundred leagues from Sicily received damage hereby in their voyage to Venice Thus Varenius There have been other great eruptions of fire from this Mountain besides what is ordinary which Writters record but none that I ever read of like unto this