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A42550 Londons remembrancer, or, A sermon preached at the Church of St. Mary Le Bow on September the 3d, 1688 (the second day being the Lord's Day) which was appointed by act of Parliament for the citizens of London and their successors to retain the memorial of the sad desolation of the city by fire in the year of our Lord 1666 / by William Gearing ... Gearing, William. 1688 (1688) Wing G435E; ESTC R40472 20,624 36

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of Fire when heated Seven times botter than ordinary These are the greatest of all Fires and their burnings are the greatest scorchings when the sparks of God's fiery Wrath and Indignation fall into it 2. There is the Fire of Bodily Distempers Such Fires are threatned Deut. 28.22 The Lord shall smite thee with the Consumption and the Fever and with an Inflammation and an extream burning How many Persons both young and old doth God consume by such Fires as these are 3. The third Judgment of Fire may be taken for the Extream Heat and Burning of the Sun such as we had in some part of this Summer And this in Scripture is called by the Name of Fire Joel 1.20 The Beasts of the Field cry unto Thee for the Waters are dryed up and Fire hath devoured the Pastures of the Wilderness This Fire is only the heat of the Sun which scorched and burnt up the Pastures of the Wilderness and this the Prophet calls by the name of Fire And God many times sends a blasting by which the tender Fruits of the Earth are burnt up which the Latines call by the Name of Vredo that is a burning 4. There are extraordinary Fires which God sometimes sends from Heaven Such was the Fire of God that destroyed Job's Sheep Job 1.16 which burnt up his Sheep and his Servants and consumed them such was that Fire that went out from the Lord and consumed Nadah and Abihu for offering strange Fire before the Lord Levit. 10.2 Elijah procured Fire from Heaven to consume the Captains that came to apprehend him from the King 2 Reg. 1.10 12. And it is said That the Lord did raign down Fire and Brimstone from the Lord out of Heaven upon Sodom to consume it Gen. 19.24 and burnt up the Cities of the Plain And the Psalmist speaking of the Plagues of Egypt Psalm 105.32 saith That the Lord sent flames of Fire in the Land. So some Expound that place Psalm 104.4 He maketh His Angels Spirits and His Ministers a flame of Fire i.e. say they He useth flames of Fire for His Ministers for His Messengers He sends a Fire on His Errand to do His Work. But we know that place is applyed to the Holy Angels by the Apostle Heb. 1.7 The Fire of God which burnt up Job's Sheep and Servants is conceived to have been some terrible flash of Lightning which in a moment destroyed and consumed the Sheep and the Shepherds And this is more probable because it is said to fall down from Heaven that is out of the Air for so often in Scripture Heaven is put for the Air the middle Region of the Air where Satan hath great Power Eph. 2.2 therefore he is called the Prince of the Power of Air and he can do Mighty things command much in that Magazine of Heaven where the dreadful Artillery which makes Men tremble those fiery Meteors Thunder and Lightning are lodged This Fire that consumed Job's Sheep and Servants is called the Fire of God not only because it was sent from God as all other Afflictions are but it may be called the Fire of God because of the strangeness of it it was a Wonderful an Extraordinary Fire And so it is usual in the Hebrew to use the Name of God as an Epithete as an Additional Word to heighten the Excellency Greatness and Rareness of things We find that Phrase often A Man of God. The Hebrews say to call one a Man of God is as much as to say he is an Extraordinary Man a Man of an Excellent Spirit a Prophet an Holy Man a Man inspir'd of God. In that Psalm where the Church is shadowed under the similitude of a Vine it is said She did send forth her Branches like the goodly Cedars so we translate it It is in the Original She sent forth her Branches as the Cedars of God that is Excellent Cedars tall and Extraordinary Cedars The Psalmist in Psal 36. comparing the Love of God to great Mountains saith Thy Righteousness is like the great Mountains Psal 36.6 The word is like the Mountains of God. So in Psalm 65.9 Thou visitest the Earth and waterest it thou greatly enrichest it with the Rivers of God that is with an Excellent River So here the Fire of God that is a strange Fire a vehement Fire an extraordinary Fire an unusual and unheard of Fire Therefore the Hebrews call Extraordinary things the things of God because all the Wonders and Excellencies all the Beauty and Glory that is in Creatures is but a foot-step and drop of that Excellency Glory and Power that is in God therefore every thing that is most Excellent is ascribed unto God. This Fire being a strange and Extraordinary Fire is said to be the Fire of God. But here it may be demanded why Satan chose to consume Job's Sheep with Fire Why did he not rather make use of Spoilers and Robbers to take them away He could have drawn the Sabeans to have carryed away the Flocks of Sheep as well as the Droves of greater Cattle he could easily have procured them why then doth he cause Fire from Heaven to come down even the Fire of God to consume them I Answer The Reason of it was to make the Affliction more sharp and grievous He would not have the Sheep to be taken away after the same manner that the Oken and Camels were that he might aggravate Job's Trouble and stir him up to murmur against God yea and to blaspheme His Holy Name for that was his Design and thereby to beget an Opinion in God that God was become his Enemy as well as Man. Those Afflictions are most grievous wherein God appeareth to be against us It may be demanded further Why the Sheep were consumed with Fire rather than any other of his Cattle Expositors answer this in two things 1. The Sheep were used in Sacrifice when the days of the Feasting of Job's Children were ended Job 1.5 Job offered Sacrifice he offered Burnt-Offerings according to the Number of them all And the Sheep chiefly were offered in Sacrifice Now Satan by consuming the Sheep hoped to fasten this upon Job if he could possibly do it that God was not pleased with his very Sacrifices that He was angry with his Duties and Services As if he should say Dost thou think that the offering up of thy Sheep in Sacrifice hath been acceptable unto God Doubtless if the Fire of those Sacrifices had been pleasing to God if he had smelt a savour of rest in them as He is said to have done when Naah offered Sacrifice after the Deluge Gen. 18.11 He would never have sent a Fire from Heaven to consume them But Origen brings in Job excellently retorting this suggestion upon Satan I sacrificed now one and then another of my Sheep to God but now blessed be God who hath accepted all my Flock as one Burnt-Offering Moreover Job's Sheep were consumed by Fire as to make Job think his former services were rejected of God