call'd Prophets v. 10. because they not only taught People to worship God according to his Rule so the Church in the Wilderness all along nourish'd with the sincere Milk of the Word Rev. 12.6,14 but also foretold the fall of Antichrist out of the Word 398. 2ly Their Number two which is the lowest number for one is but the Root of numbers to shew the paucity of them that witness to the Truth under Antichrists Reign and that is intimated in Rev. 11.1,2,3 where the inner Court is only reserved for the Holy People that keepeth the Truth when the outward Court a large spacious place is given up to Antichrist for the Witnesses should be as few as the Priests and Levites that worshipped in the Inner Court in comparison of Antichristian Idolaters that worshipped in the Outward Luk. 12.32 Rev. 1.6 Priests to God 399. And yet they should not be so few as to be below a full Confirmation of the Truth for two witnesses are sufficient to confirm any truth Deut. 17.6 Mat. 18.16 2 Cor. 13.1 God orders it so by his over-ruling Providence that his truth shall not be starved no not in the worst of times by want of Witnesses or a sufficient Confirmation or this number two is an Allusion to those 3 famous Pairs the first to Moses and Aaron the Churches Prophets in Egypt and the Wilderness 2ly to Elijah and Elisha Prophets to Israel under the Idolatry of Baal when the Church was not visible and only 7000. left that was hid in Corners 3ly to Zerubbabel and Joshua Prophets in Babylon and in Rebuilding the Temple 400. That there is such an Allusion in this Number to those 3 famous Couples it is probable because in the following description the turning of waters into blood and smiting the earth with Plagues often v. 5. hath relation to the first of them Moses and Aaron and shutting up heaven and destroying Men by fire v. 5 6. to Elijah and Elisha and the Olive-trees and Candlesticks to Joshua and Zerubbabel v. 4. Zech. 4.3,11,14 The 3d thing in the description of their Condition 't was sad and mournfull Sackcloth is the covering that is worn in bad times Amos 8.9,10 2 Kin. 6.30 they mourn in Sackcloth while Antichrist triumphs in his Silken Copes and costly Garments and all because Idolatry hath spread it self so fast and so far and because of the troubles of the true Church 401. 4ly Their Actions which they perform'd with that power which the Lord gave them were eminent Exploits and that of two sorts one against Antichrist and the other for the Church 1st against Antichrist they have power to do very great things which carrying such a fair correspondency with the 4 first Vials in Rev. 16. hath made a late learned Critick take those exploits of the Witnesses to be the powring forth of the 4 first Vials as 1. Plagues on the Earth v. 6. ch 11. as in the first Vial Rev. 16.2 2ly Water into blood v. 6. as in the 2d Vial ch 16.3 and in the 3d Vial v. 4. and 3ly A tormenting of Men with fire as in the 4th Vial chap. 11.15 with chap. 16.8 402. Which Interpretation though very ingenious yet seems it to me a little doubtfull not only because 1st the Order of the Vials is inverted by it as the plagues on the earth the first of the Vials is the last in this description of the exploits of the Witnesses and tormenting by fire the first of those Exploits is the last of the 4. Vials But 2ly it seems somewhere too narrow in leaving out that eminent action of shutting Heaven up from rain which none of the 4 first Vials correspond with And 3ly somewhere too wide in making one of those exploits to comprehend two distinct Vials to wit the 2d and 3d. to say nothing of the time of fixing them 403. The service 2ly which they do for the Church is 1st a power of Prophecying whereby they both instructed the Church in the knowledge of the Truth and comforted her by predicting the ruine of Rome which notwithstanding all her rage against the Church could not yet deprive her of the help of those Witnesses for God gave them power to Prophesie all Antichrists Reign 2ly to supply the Church with Oil sufficiently that is with Grace enough for this hard time of Persecution that they might not be like the foolish Virgins whose lamps went out for want of Oil. 404. The two Olive-trees and the two Candlesticks some reads The two Olive-trees with the two Candlesticks with for and justifying that Reading from that in 1 Sam. 14.18 where and is read with the Children of Israel because Candlesticks in Rev. 1. 20. is meant Churches and though the Churches were 7. then in Johns time yet Antichrist reduced them to two and yet those two should be supply'd with grace to hold out all the wills of God Acts 13.22 those two Sons of Oil the Witnesses are not branches but Trees to nourish their Graces in that evil day and to pour in Oil into their Lamps continually which was Aarons work Exod. 27.20 405. The fifth particular in the description of the Witnesses is their slaughter and death wherein consider 1st the time when 2ly the place where and 3ly the manner how 1. Of the time when the Holy Ghost tells us when they shall have finished their Testimony Rev. 11.7 when their Prophecying-work is done for if God had given them power to Prophesie longer as v. 3. they should have continued in their Prophecying work longer Maugre the malice of all their enemies God permits them to be slain because their Prophecying-work was done thus their Lord and Master could not be slain till his hour was come John 8.20 and in that hour of darkness he was put to death Luk. 22.53 406. Mr. Mede reads 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when they shall be about to finish their Testimony because the Greek Verb is not of the Praeter-perfect but of the Future Aorist Tense which is incertae significationis of an uncertain time making the time of this Slaughter to be when part of the Holy City or Christian World repent of their Idolatry casts off the yoke of Antichrist and reforms the Temple within themselves the Witnesses getting heart by all this begins to put off the Sackcloth and to lay aside their Mourning Prophecy which they have done ever since the Reformation then comes the Beast as it were ascending afresh into the Throne enraged with the success of their Mourning Prophecy he overcomes and kills them 407. Mr. Brightmans opinion was that the slaughter of the Witnesses were past and fulfilled in the Smalcaldian War in that great Overthrow of the Protestant Party by Charles the fift Anno 1547. and in condemning the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament which he makes the Witnesses about that time in the Councel of Trent which is now above an hundred and twenty Years ago other later Writers apply this Slaughter to those ruined Churches