more aptly otherwise to denote with Mr. Mede and others the dispensations of God in the world as in Zach. 1.10 both towards the Church and others with whom they had to do namely the Roman Empire called the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the New Testament and though both the Books of the Seal-Prophecie and the little Book chap. 10. speak much in some sort of both yet each chiefly relates to one as namely the Seal-prophecy for the most part to the Empire and the Book-prophecie for the most part to the Church as after may more by Gods assistance appear which is to be observed until the Empire and Church become one under Christ's Kingdom in the time or haply after the time of the seventh Trumpet Therefore after the Lamb Christ Jesus had received the Book at the Hand of him that sat upon the Throne chap. 5. in the Chapter following John heard the thundring Voice of one of the Beasts saying Come and see when the Lamb opened the first Seal where he beheld a white Horse and he that sat on him had a Bow and a Crown was given to him and he went conquering and to conquer denoting the dispensations of God's Grace in the world through Jesus Christ who received of the Father this Book of Revelation of the things concerning the Church and her Enemies and hath all power to fulfil and execute them accordingly here first set forth by the white-Horse so tendering Peace by the Preaching of the Gospel which like a Bow shoots out Arrows as Psal 45. piercing the Hearts of all sorts it is sent unto and by which Christ will be Victorious and Glorious c. and therefore in the sending abroad of this Gospel he goes conquering of all sorts thereby and to conquer and subdue all such as shall oppose and persecute it This hath been his design ever since this white-Horse was sent abroad guided by that Rider and this is and will be pursued till he fully have the Crown of Victory when his Enemies shall become his Foot-stool Psal 110. at the day of the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ Titus 2.13 to begin at or about the destruction of Antichrist 2 Thess 2.8 when he will come with Clouds Rev. 1.7 and when all Families of the Earth shall mourn seeing the Son of man coming in the Clouds with Power and great Glory Mat. 24.30 and 26.64 of which design the Spirit of God by the Holy Prophet speaketh eminently Psal 45.4 saying Ride on in thy Majesty because of the VVord of Truth of Meekness and Righteousness viz. to subdue unto his Obedience by conquering and his right Hand will teach him terrible things by conquering and subduing his Enemies and such as withstand him And this in all parts of the Revelation will be evident for persecution will follow the Gospel as the Shadow the Substance so long as the Seed of the Serpent and the Seed of the VVoman have their aboad together in the world and therefore in this Book in the following Seals God seems thereby to manifest what dispensations be would shew towards such persecuting Enemies in all the following Seals and Trumpets till that time of eminent victory and conquest begin to be manifest unto men in the VVorld at the foresaid Period for the great comfort of his Church to be believed from his VVord and which should be applyed daily for the warning of wicked men if they will be admonished Mr. Mede doth very appositely apply the Red Black and Pale Horses to such purposes in the three following Seals observing from the Histories of the Primitive times how they were accomplished and as likewise Mr. Fox observes remarkably that after the Roman Governours had rejected the offer of receiving Christ and that Satan bad engaged them in Persecutions above thirty of their Emperours successively came to untimely deaths but how such Judgements of Sword Famine Pestilence followed one another upon the Empire and sometimes all together besides as may be observed from the first second and third Seals but especially from the fourth as more particularly is set down by the aforesaid Mr. Mede I would therefore have observed in the fifth Seal the remarkable different dispensation of God Rev. 6. when most of the ten Persecutions had raged and sent home such multitudes of believing Christians to blessedness by their sufferings that by the opening of that fifth Seal is signified to the Church how God was mindful of the Blood of the Martyrs by the crying of the Souls under the Altar for revenge not that they in Happiness then did complain or so did really cry for Vengeance but that God looked upon what had been done to them as an occasion whereupon he would revenge them but yet not presently but after their Brethren which should soon after suffer as they had done had been likewise killed which seemed to have been fulfilled in the Tenth Persecution under Dioclesian and Others which continued ten years together which probably was the ten days Tryal and Tribulation formerly spoken of Rev. 2.10 And accordingly in the sixth Seal came the great Earthquake when the Sun became like Sackcloth of Hair and the Moon like Blood and the Stars fell and the Mighty men hid themselves in the Caves of the Earth when the wrath of the Lamb was two ways manifest first In dethroning the Dragon and casting him down to the Earth in abandoning the Heathenish Idolatry and secondly By cutting off his Instruments the-then-wicked Rulers of the World by the means of that Reforming Victorious Conquerour the Emperour Constantine the Great when God's hand was so heavy upon Dioclesian Maximianus Galerius Maximinus Maxentius Licinius and many Governours under their Command with their Armies and particularly on Ponticius Culianus Theotimus with many others as Stories testifie And afterward by taking away by degrees the Seat and Throne of the former Beast who received afterward the deadly wound upon which the Dragon had so prevailed before to persecute the Saints as appears in the Trumpets following which proceeded out of that seventh Seal all of which sounded their several Wrath and Judgements against it till it went into utter perdition under every form both East and West But before the execution of that Wrath God would Chap. 7. Rev. 7. 14. have both his 144000's of the Faithful sealed where those Trumpets Blasts should come who should be saved from the spiritual mischief of them and after the sealing of those 144000 Cap. 7. are an innumerable company of Palm-Bearers of all Nations and Tongues which the said Author rightly conceives to be the great confluence of Christians when the Jews with the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in which will I doubt not be in the time of Christs powerful Reign for this is the course observable in this Book as may hereafter be more manifest that the Spirit of God first setteth down what Blessedness shall ensue the sufferings of his People before
to be applied by them Afterwards the sealed Ones in the East Chap. 7. under the wo-Trumpets as Rev. 9.4 they have the New Jerusalem habit upon them as they shall be there happy and celebrate Gods praise and so do the innumerable company of all Nations after them Chap. 7. as is evident in the last part of that Chapter Again The four Angels are stayed from their blowing the four first Trumpets which fell for the most part upon the Western Empire until the Angel Chap. 8.3 4 5. probably the Angel of the Covenant had made intercession for the faithful Christians under those four first Trumpets with much Incense with the Prayers of the Saints there abiding that they might be accepted who was their spiritual Priest to intercede for them and their King to protect them spiritually Again Chap. 11. the two Witnesses prophesying in Sackcloth 1260 days have as a general Consolation to the Church all that time foreshewed to them that they shall rise again and ascend into Heaven at the end of the days and soon after have the state of the Kingdom of Christ on Earth foreshewed unto them in the end of the same Chapter So likewise the other 144000 Lamb-Followers in the Western-Empire are set forth to be with the Lamb in Mount Sion and have this Character of the New Jerusalem upon them That they have his Fathers Name written upon their Foreheads Chap. 14.1 Again Those that should be Sufferers under Antichrist towards his fall they sing the Song of Moses coming out of their Wilderness-condition and praise God for his Judgements upon their Persecutors and have the entrance of Christs Kingdom upon Earth set before them for their comfort Chap. 15.4.5 so that unto this scope drive the Consolations of the Sufferers and faithful Christians of all Times since this most holy and comfortable Book was given to Christs Church and so both those Arms of that red Sea of Blood running through the Eastern and Western Empires in the Churches meet together at the borders of the Land of Canaan promised to the fore-Fathers and their Seed about the end of the sixth Trumpet and entrance of the seventh And whether it reacheth further then unto that New World may seem questionable first Because it is one of the Wo-Trumpets and no such things seem suitable to the Kingdom of Christ upon Earth in the thousand years secondly Because the whole continuance of that is set forth by another title for the Comfort of the Church namely Of the Saints reign with Christ a thousand years as it were by way of distinction from the former suffering Times of the Church thirdly There is nothing clearly said in the Text that it should continue longer than to bring the Woes upon Antichrists Kingdom other Enemies in the World and seems to end with the last Plagues so called because they are the portion of the Churches Persecutors before the thousand years and utterly bring them to perdition and as the sixth Vial seems to end with the Armageddon-Battel Chap. 19. so the seventh binds and shuts up Satan for that thousand years wherein he must no more seduce the Nations Chap. 20. And what this Author saith of Satans being cast into the Lake after the thousand years as a Vial and the last Vial of the seven is contrary to the Text Rev. 16. at the latter end of the Chapter where it is said That when the seventh Vial was poured out the great City was divided into three parts and then great Babylon came in remembrance before God executed Chap. 18. which will be done above a thousand years before Satans casting into the lake of fire where the Beast and the false Prophet were cast so long before Besides Satans casting into the lake seems not to be reckoned in the nature of such Vials as gradually brought destruction on the Beast and other persecuting Enemies on Earth but as his last doom at the consummation of all things and the dissolution of the World which is as much a mercie to such as are saved as a beginning of wo and wrath to Satan and all damned Men and Devils but an end onely to the being of inferiour Creatures which had long before in the thousand years enjoyed the liberty of the Sons of God as is said Rom. 8.21 Again The drift of the Trumpets were to blow out Wrath and Judgement upon the Earth and Grass and Trees Chap. 9.4 c. and such things as were upon the Earth belonging to wicked men till they should be destroyed from off the face of it and there to end and Satan was then bound in the pit when there was no work for him to seduce such after their destruction who was their Captain and Counsellor before It is likewise observable what Mr. Mede saith of the thousand years wherein the Saints were to reign That Satan aforehand in the time of Antichrist set them up in a false way of reigning to eclipse their true reigning that afterward they should have on Earth and therefore taught Antichrists Followers to set them up superstitiously and idolatrously to worship and pray to them and before their Shrines and Images making them sinfully to have a reign with Christ on Earth in shew but really against him and his Father And all that said time of Antichrist he hath played the Ape in seeking to pour out the Vials upon Christs Kingdom to come as Christ had before declared that he had seven Angels in their times to pour out seven Vials to the destruction and ruine of Antichrist The first of Satans seeming Vials was By imposing Chiliasm upon it by carnal pleasures and typical Worship though upon slight unjust and false pretences as Mr. Mede manifests Secondly By the advantage thereof he obtained that some of the ancient Fathers were so prejudiced that they wrote against it though the former for the most part were for it Thirdly By such prejudice and the like he obtained that good men all along misplaced the thousand years by way of anticipation though differing in the time they began and expounding them all along the Popes time onely of a Spiritual Reign Fourthly By Popish false Glosses and Expositions upon all the Revelation and that part in Particular c. Fifthly By seducing men of latter times since the Light of Truth began more then of a long time before to break forth to seek disorderly to set up Christ's Kingdom which will be Gods own work in his own time to anticipate the same and that by acting against the Divine precepts that Christ came to establish in casting off due Obedience unto Magistrates and endeavours to suppress the Ministry thereby to scandalize the Doctrine of Christ's Kingdom on Earth Sixthly Gr. Ha. More lately by such as this Author names in the end of his Book concerning whom he declares much in a few lines who would make the Revelation an History of things past rather then a Prophesie of things so long to come so that
pass through that momentany change and be wrapt up with the Faithful likewise then raised to meet Christ in the Air in a glorious condition For though such as were raised before in the beginning of Christ's Reign were before in an excellent state in regard of their bodies suitable to what Christ's was in before he ascended unto the Father yet then it seems probable they will be more glorious bodies than formerly mortal eyes could endure to behold therefore saith the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 15.51 We shall not then all sleep but we shall all be changed both living and dead All be changed both living and dead or raised before namely all that are faithful and he repeats it again the more strongly to assertain it ver 52. latter part of the verse for the Trumpet saith he shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed It seems also necessary that there be a distinct consideration of the state of such as are of the New-Jerusalem come down from Heaven which seems to be the City whose Maker and Builder is God as it is said Heb. 11.10 which is again said ver 16. to be prepared by him for the faithful Fore-fathers that dyed not having received the Promises ver 13. who without us will not be made perfect ver last having all dyed in Faith which is probable to he meant by our Saviour when he calls it the City of the great King Mat. 5.35 where his Deputies the twelve Apostles shall sit on twelve Thrones judging the twelve Tribes of Israel Luke 22.30 on whose twelve foundations of the Wall thereof shall be written the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb Rev. 21.14 and seems to be the chief mansion-place of the blessed holy then raised Saints having part in that first Resurrection wholly then freed from the second death Rev. 20.6 upon which the Glory of the LORD will then eminently shine continually to the eclipsing of the glory of the Sun and Moon Isa 60.19 Rev. 21.23 22.5 Very glorious things saith the Psalmist in a prophetical rapture are spoken of thee O City of God Psal 87.3 as is observable in that whole Psalm Again the then happy estate of the converted and reduced twelve Tribes of Israel and Judah those two sticks united into one Ezek. 37. together with the converted Gentiles in their fulness then come in Rom. 11. who together with very large endowments of inward spiritual Grace and therewith abundance of temporal prosperity which the Prophets largely spake of with very much exemption from the evil of sin and suffering when Satan is bound the Churches enemies destroyed or subdued and brought under which happy estate they and their posterity will successively enjoy through all the Generations of the said thousand years according to the Prophecies or Promises Deut. 30. ver 1 to 11. Isa 61.9 The Seed which the Lord hath blessed Ezek. 37.25 They and their Childrens Children for ever and my Servant David that is Christ the Messiah shall be their Prince for ever Isa 59. last Deut. 4.30 31. with many texts more and which were theirs not in a mortal that is a changeable condition from a natural life by some removal or Translation as otherwise they should have no Seed or Posterity to enjoy those many Promises all the thousand years so neither should they at last be lyable to any evil attempt of Satan and wicked men called Gog and Magog though by gracious Promise such as live at that last Period of time are secured from the evil even of the attempt likewise Many other things the holy Scripture seems to hold forth in reference to the differing state of the naturally living and the Saints raised at the beginning of the thousand years and as for the restitution of all things in respect thereof without Scripture-Warrant why look we for any more than Gods removing the Curse as the inflicting that from the Fall hath been the efficient Cause of all that Bondage that hath been ever since upon the Creatures held on by the means of Satan till then when he shall likewise be bound Thus in such a way if the distinction between the last mystical Trumpet and the last said sounding Trumpet and the state of the raised Saints and such as then will remain in their natural Life be well observed it may greatly make way for the clearing by degrees by the help of Gods Word and Spirit many excellent Truths respecting these things wherein much caution and moderation will still be very useful and necessary in what things are not clear and evident c. Decemb. 7. 1664. This Paper sent upon occasion of a Book to be perused not having the right Series or Order of the Book of the Revelations and is added here as a Supplement to the former Letter AS for the perused Author he was manifestly a man of great Abilities Worth and Piety as is evident from his grave judicious and truly pious Determinations Discourses Cases and Treatises of several Subjects and many Expositions along that large Book of his upon the Revelations and first more particularly in the most things handled by him on the three first Chapters to the seven Churches of Asia and on the fourth and fifth Chapters setting forth the Glory of God the Creator and Christ the Redeemer But as for the right series of things following in that Divine Book he appears not to have attained the right Key so far as I can by the guidance of God's Word and Spirit as I believe with such other helps which in special mercy have hitherto been afforded me discern and to this purpose I shall endeavour by his Grace to set down some brief hints of Differences between him and others which upon the former accounts I much rather approve of as namely of judicious Mede and some others since him yet living though haply in some things I may differ from all yet I conceive Light and Darkness may so thereby the better discover themselves and illustrate each other that whoso like the Noble Bereans shall search the Scriptures answerably concerning what shall be set down may probably find whether all these things be so for as no mans eminency should lead us into error so no mans meanness should make us neglect or despise the Truth he tenders especially the Divine and Heavenly Truths which God hath set forth in his Word for the true Comfort and Edification of his Church I shall briefly for what is past give onely some hints of both for the most part refering to a former Letter to such purposes dated May 20. 1664. which this Paper may be a supplement unto but haply somewhat more largely of what is to come as God shall direct and enable me whose assistance I must confess to his Glory I have formerly experimentally found First then What this Author understandeth in the Seals That the Horses signifie the Church and the Persecutions thereof along the Primitive Times seem to me