THE ACCOMPLISHMENT Of the SCRIPTURE PROPHECIES OR THE Approaching Deliverance of the CHURCH Proving that the Papacy is the Antichristian Kingdom and that that Kingdom is not far from its Ruin. That the present Persecution may end in Three years and half after which the Destruction of Antichrist shall begin which shall be Finisht in the beginning of the next Age and then the Kingdom of Christ shall come upon Earth Written in French by Mr. PETER JURIEU one of the present Ministers of the French Church at Rotterdam In two Parts Faithfully Englished from the New French Edition Corrected and Enlarged by almost a third part with the explication of the Visions of Daniel and the Revelation LONDON Printed in the Year 1687. TO THE NATION OF THE JEWS I Desire of that People that they would please to read this book attentively and without prejudice especially from the middle of the second Part to the end they will find nothing there that can irritate ' em I confess the hopes they conceive of a Kingdom of the Messiah which shall be chiefly for them is built upon express and unquestionable Prophecies that even their Ierusà lem should be rebuilt and that they shall be again gathered together in their own Land. And if any thing be capable to recover them from their obstinacy for the establishment of the Law of Moses and against the Law of Christ this is certainly the most likely method which we make use of because it grants them almost all the Advantages which they expect Advice to all Christians concerning the approaching End of the ANTICHRISTIAN Empire of the PAPACY and of the coming of the Kingdom of Christ THE Afflicted Church seeks for consolation where can she find it but in the Promises of God when the present prospect is sad and dolefull we must search for it in what is future The promises of God are either General or Perticular The general Promises are such as assure us in the general that God will not cast off his children that this Grace shall never forsake his Church that he will be with them to the end of the World that though the mountains be overthrown he will not depart from them But afflicted persons would be glad of something more perticular they would be willing to see in some particular Promises near about what Time they may expect the Period of their Calamities Now the Promises and this insight into the future is no where to be had but in the Prophecies They doubtless contain the promises which respect the Deliverance of the Church yea they set forth the very Time and the circumstances of it But as God hath caused the Prophecies to be written more for his own glory than for our sakes 't is almost impossible to dive into the meaning of them till their accomplishment The depth of the Prophecies And experience teacheth us that even after the Things are come to pass we do not well understand the Prophecies which foretold ' em Insomuch that it may be said that God hath rather concealed Things in the Prophecies than thereby revealed ' em He hath reserved to himself the knowledge of Futurity 'T is his Prerogative Nevertheless this is not to be taken in that strict and rigid sense as if we were to reckon all the Prophecies to be unintelligible to all men and in every age to be so As his providence hath presided in a peculiar manner in composing the Prophecies so 't is certain it doth perticularly direct and govern as to what concerns the interpretation of them God will not that they should be understood in every age But from age to age from year to year his Spirit discovers to Interpreters what he thinks fit and leaves the rest under a vail of Ignorance till the fixed time which his wisdom hath appointed shall come for the full and perfect revelation of it They are not Impenetrable We are not therefore to be discouraged by reason of the difficulty we are not to look upon the Prophecies as absolutely impenetrable We must seek that we may find we must ask that we may receive we must humbly and devoutly knock at the Gate of Heaven that it may be open'd to us We are obliged to those Interpreters who have gone before us for if they had discovered nothing it may be no entrance being made we should never have attained the knowledge of these mysterious truths But we are not to stop at their labours and acquiesce in what they have done as if they had succeeded well in every thing This is so far from being true that the contrary is much more so For one Truth which they have hit upon they have miss't several The misforture of other Interpreters hath not disheartn'd me hoping that I have discovered many things which to them were concealed But I may say that I did not out of choice apply my self to the study of the Prophecies I found my self forced to it by a kind of violence which I could not resist Two things led me to it 1. The cruel and horrible Persecution which at this day makes such terrible ravage and desolation in the Church Endeavouring some consolation under the deepest sorrow I ever felt by searching into the grounds we may have to hope for a speedy deliverance of the Church and not finding them other where I inquired after them in the Prophecies which foretell the destiny of the Church and the most remarkable changes through which she is to pass 2. The next thing that made me resolve to dive into these sacred Oracles was the concurrence of so many Prophecies obscure indeed of an uncertain and doubtfull original which fore-tell a speedy and perfect Deliverance of the Church For Example The concurrence of modern Prophecies concerning the fall of Antichrist the famous Prophecy of Vsher Arch-bishop of Armagh who fore-tells a most terrible Persecution at hand the most dreadfull of any which the Church hath suffer'd hitherto but withal the shortest after which shall come the fall of the Antichristian Empire The Prophecies of Cotterus Christina Poniatouski and those of Drabitius and several other more obscure ones which I have heard and considered without giving much credit to 'em I compared these Prophecies so universally spread and coming from so many several places to the general rumours about the time of the birth of Christ that were every where divulged throughout the Roman Empire of a Great King that should be born in the East to whom all the World should pay obeysance I did not find my self much disposed to give credit to those modern Prophecies Credulity being the ordinary source of much delusion I always stood upon my guard in that perticular as much as possible Nevertheless I could not but be toucht with a secret opinion that in all this there might be something more then humane something of an hand of Providence therein As the Holy Virgin I kept these sayings in my heart without passing a judgement
of the future prosperity of the Church upon Earth The 21 and 22. Chap. of the Apocalypse interpreted that in those Chapters the Church is described as victorious upon Earth and not as Triumphant in Heaven Pag. 357 Chap. XXIV The Characters of the Kingdom of the Church Eight are certain and five doubtfull What shall happen after this Kingdom What is meant by Gog and Magog There shall probably be a lesser kind of Antichrist a little before the end of the World. Pag. 375 Chap. XXV An Answer to the reasons of the Anti-millinaries against the Reign of a thousand years Pag. 388 THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE PROPHECIES OR THE Approaching Deliverance of the CHURCH THE FIRST PART Of the Establishment of the Antichristian-Empire its Characters CHAP. I. Of the Seven Epistles to the Seven Churches That in all probability they are not Prophetical The Thoughts of Interpreters thereupon WHen I undertook this Work I had no Design to make a compleat Commentary on that which is Prophetical in the Revelations as did appear in the first Edition However when I observed that without designing it I had explained almost the whole Apocalypse I did believe that as for three or four chapters that remained to be explained I ought not to leave them behind tho they had no respect to the scope of this book which is to find out Antichrist learn when his Empire must end When one sees a system that is very perfect well attended with all the events foretold in this book this will give such a fair aspect of truth to all the parts of it as will be most easily perceived Moreover the publick may have observed that in the pourtraiture of Antichrist I have referred the Reader in many chapters as in the 13th the 17th to my Book of Prejudices Now us I have promised to epitomize the book of Prejudices I thought it would be more proper to bring out of that book into this present work all that respects the Prophecies their Explication on the subject of the description of Antichristianism than to refer a part of this to another Book So that in this second Edition there will be found an explication of all that is prophetical in the book of the Revelation We believe with the learned Joseph Mede that this book is divided into two parts The first is contained in the book sealed with seven seals which is to be seen in the beginning of the 5th Ch. And the second in the book which the Angel gave to St. John in the 10th Ch. The two little books move upon the same time the one the other reach even to the end of the World but they donot say the same thing have not the same object For the first little book that appeareth sealed with seven seals principally respects the affairs the adventures of the first Period of the fourth Monarchy viz. the temporal Roman Empire And the second book contains the destinies of the Church corrupted during the same ages the same duration of time this is what we call the Spiritual Roman Empire I say that the first book contains properly the destinies of the Empire not but that those of the Church are included in it too For that which God foretold should befall the Roman Empire was always with respect to the Church to its Persecutions the great Changes that befall it So that to speak properly the whole work respects the Church But the second little book which reaches from the 10th Chapter to the end respects the Church what was to befall it much more particularly yea more clearly The first thing that appears in the book of the Revelation is the seven Epistles to seven principal Churches of Asia Q. Whether the seven Epistles are Prophetical contained in the three first Chapters T is very much question'd whether these Epistles are Prophetical or not Some maintain that they are with a great deal of heat others deny it As for me I have nothing certain to say upon it So that I would not raise a prejudice against any person or any opinion by my own tho I am much more enclined to believe that there is nothing of prophecy in them but that all that is said in these Epistles refers to things that had happened in those seven Churches It is certain that the Revelation is nothing but an Epistle This is clear by its beginning end Now it was not usuall with the Apostles to direct their Epistles to the Universal Church in generall of all places all times as some would have St. John here to have done The Apostles were wont in their Epistles to rank in the first place what they had which was dogmatical Prophetical to write of afterward came that which respected what was moral This is the method of St. Paul. St. John on the contrary in this Epistle sets that which is moral therein before that which is Prophetical The reason is because he little design'd to stay upon that which is moral his principal aim was to relate the visions which God had given him Therefore he dispatcheth in the beginning that which was to make the least part of his Epistle which was less important that without diversion he might stick to that which he principally intended therein I see but one thing that seems mightily to favour the opinion of those that believe that the seven Epistles are Prophetical Why the H. Spirit wrote but to seven Churches 'T is the number of seven Why did the H. Spirit write to no more than seven Churches Were there not many more in Asia Were these the only ones in which there was any thing to be reproved or to whom the H. Spirit had something to say It seems therefore that the seven Churches are the Universal Church of all Ages divided into seven Periods But this reason doth not appear strong enough to me First because the number of seven is evidently consecrated in the Revelation The holy Spirit useth it in counting up all things the seven Spirits seven Lamps seven Angels c. Surely whatever we understand hereby 't is certain that the number of Spirits of Lamps of Angells is not reduced to the number of seven Not but that oftentimes the number of seven in the Revelation must be taken for a determinate number as in the seven Seals in the seven Trumpets the seven Vialls but that is when the division of time into Periods is treated of Now this is that which is doubtful that by these seven Churches are meant seven Periods And we shall also see hereafter that what is said to these seven Churches doth not at all agree with the events in what manner soever the times be divided So that this only thing that the H. Spirit maketh here seven Churches doth not prove that they are so many Period's of the duration of the Church 'T is probable that by these he means all
Elias are transformed into those two witnesses that were to prophecy clothed in sack-cloth for three years and a half which are the days of Antichrist There was no colour for making Enoch and Elias sojourn on the Earth 1260. years So that it was necessary to take the 1260 years of which the Revelation speaks for so many natural days which make three natural years and a half The name of Antichrist made them believe he would call himself Christ The Temple of God where St. Paul saith that the son of perdition must sit hath made them think of the Temple of Solomon and they have concluded that Jerusalem was to be the seat of this Empire Consequently that Antichrist must be a Jew and for the reasons we have observ'd above he must moreover be of the tribe of Dan and by consequence a single person Behold the visions which St. Irenaeus vends in his fifth book against Haeresies Why Antichrist was not known fooner The Fathers did copy one another without consideration visions for which we are apparently indebted to him that forged the false Oracles of the Sibyls in the second age They that came after him adopted these vain imaginations and added others to them The Ancients did copy one another almost without any judgement and always without consideration Those that were very fond of this vain phantome of a Chimerical Antichrist could not discern the Character of the true Antichrist The later ages have been much more enlightned The differences of the Popes with the Kings of Europe particularly with the Emperors open'd the eyes of many and made them see the Antichristian Empire in Rome Christian But being in part very fond of the old Idea of Antichrist in part being kept in by that respect they had for a See which they believed was once the Chair of Saint Peter in part through cowardice and want of zeal and above all because the time designed by providence was not yet come they stopt in the way and never reached to a perfect Idea of the Antichristian Empire And in this manner the prejudices the ignorance the passions the interest of the flesh and the subtilty of the Devil have detain'd the truth in profound darkness till in these later times God hath set them in a perfect light But one can't sufficiently wonder that in so great a light yet there have been two persons sufficiently prepossessed or ill enough disposed for the mistaking this Antichrist The learned Grotius and Dr. Hammond have unhappily and to the scandal of all Protestants used great endeavours to turn these prophecies of the Revelation another way The one through his being wedded to the papism which he defended with all his might against the late Andrew Rivet And the other apparently for the same reason as Grotius and it may be so through his jealousy for the Episcopal order imagining that if the Pope who caâ—â—â— himself the head of the Bishops should be made Antichrist some disgrace would redound thence to the whole Episcopal order But Joseph Mede the learned Vsher Arch-bishop of Armagh the learned Andrew Willet and so many other learned English men that appear so zealously for the government and order of Bishops have continued to find Antichrist and the Pope in the descriptions which the prophecies have left us of him And to speak freely I am so strongly perswaded of this as an Article of the faith of the true Christians that I can't hold them for good ones who deny this truth after the events and the labours of so many great men have made it so very evident I reckon the blindness of the papists and of their favourers in this point among those prodigies wherein we must acknowledge something super-natural The end of the First Part. THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE PROPHECIES OR THE Approaching Deliverance of the CHURCH A work wherein it is proved that the Papism is the Antichristian Empire that that Empire is not far from its ruin that the present persecution may end in three years and a half After which the destruction of Antichrist shall begin which shall be finished in the beginning of the next Age and lastly the Kingdom of Jesus Christ shall come on the Earth The second Edition Corrected and Enlarged by almost a third part and the explication of all the Visions of the Revelation and of many Chapters concerning mystical Theology Tome the second Written in French by Mr. PETER JURIEU the present Minister of the French Church at Rotterdam And from this second Edition faithfully Englished LONDON Printed in the Year 1687. THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE PROPHECIES OR THE Approaching Deliverance of the CHURCH THE SECOND PART Of the end of the Antichristian Empire when it must be destroyed the circumstances of its ruin and what shall be the Estate of the Church after the ruin of that Empire CHAP. I. Of the duration of the Kingdom of Antichrist A refutation of that dream that it must last but three years and a half Ten Arguments which demonstrate that that supposition is false and impossible IN the First Part of this Work we have found Antichrist and the Antichristian Empire in this we proceed to seek out the time and the circumstances of its end That we may succeed well in this enquiry we must do four things I. We must know how long the Antichristian Empire must last II. We must see where we ought to begin the 1260 days which the Holy Spirit assigns it III. After-wards we shall see where they must end IV. And lastly we shall seek for that which hath not yet been found in the Revelation that is the circumstances of the fall of that Antichristian Empire We shall begin with that question which we have above laid down as the chiefest one that is The time of the duration of that Antichristian Empire The importance of this question whether Antichrist must reign 1260 days or 1260 years The Roman Church supposeth that this duration cannot be above three years and a half i. e. 1260. natural days and we pretend this must be understood of 1260. prophetical days which are 1260. years 'T is so important a matter that on this all the rest depends If this supposition of the duration of Antichrist meerly and simply for three years and a half be false all that the Roman Church saith of Antichrist is false And if we have reason to say that the Antichristian Empire must endure 1260. years this Empire must of necessity have begun a long time since and having begun a long time ago it must of necessity also be the papism This is therefore a particular which we must carefully mind and in the beginning we must lay down these three indisputable principles I. That the duration of the 1260. days wherein the woman in the 12th Chapt. of the Revelation must be fed in the desart which is also called in the same place a time The 1260 days The 42 months The three years and half a time
of the Gospell committed to their charge This Gospell is the Pearl of great Price which when one had found he went his way and sold all that he had to purchase it This is the Treasure of which S. Paul speaks when he saith we have this treasure in Earthen vessels The Apostles with Evangelical truth in their Breasts are the 12 foundations the 12 Gates and the walls of the City They are Every thing with this for Truth is every thing and without it they are nothing V. 22. And I saw no Temple therin for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its Temple This must be understood as the words of another Prophet who speaking of the Church in this period saith Every man shall not teach his Neighbour for they shall be all taught of God which doth not import that the Ministry shall be abolisht but that the increase of Knowledg shall be so great that ordinary men might rather be Teachers than need to be taught doubtless there shall be Temples to the end of the world and places set a part for publick worship But it shall hardly be necessary to distinguish places for divine service because God shall be every where served in perfection The Lord and the Lamb shall be its Temple God shall dwell in them and they in God the union of holy souls with God shall be most intimate and reciprocal V. 23. And the City had no need of the sun nor of the moon to shine in it for the glory of God did lighten it and the Lamb is the light therof Here the sun and the Moon do signifie created lights which cause a succession of day and night and these Luminaries are Emblems of the manner wherin the light of Grace is now dispenst There is now a mixture of Light and Darkness of Day and Night in the same Church and in the same soul It shall no more be thus in the Church of the seventh Period The air of that Church shal be always full of Light. God shall abundantly impart knowledge to the Souls of the Saints in a more immediate manner without any created Luminary V. 24. And the Nations of them which are saved shall walk in the Light of it and the Kings of the Earth do bring their glory and honour into it V. 25. And its Gates shall not at all be shut by day for there shall be no night there V. 26. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the Nations into it V. 27. And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth or that worketh abomination and a lie but they who are written in the Lamb's book of Life Here is the perfect and compleat calling of the Gentiles who shall joyn themselves with the converted Iews to compose this glorious Church The Holy Ghost seems to intimate as if there should be none but the Elect and no Reprobates At least if there be any Hypocrites that their number shall be so small as not worthy to be counted Then he shewed me a pure River of water of life clear as Chrystal proceeding out of the Throne of God and of the Lamb. 'T is so well known that water in the Scripture stile signifies grace and the Divine Spirit that 't is needless to remark it Ho every one that thirsts come to the waters out of his belly shall flow living waters but he spake of the Spirit which they should receive who believed on him So that the River which proceeds out of the Throne of God is that vital Spring of Spirit and Grace which God will most plentifully dispense to this Church It is the same River which the Prophet Ezekiel saw coming out of the Temple Chap. 47. at first it was no higher then the anckels but by little and little the increase was such that you must be obliged to swim to pass over it 'T is the Emblem of that measure of Grace which is always progressive and in theses last and happy days shall flow as the Sea. V. 2. In the midst of the street of it and of either side of the River was there the Tree of Life which bare twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every moneth and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the Nations This is almost copied from Ezekiel so that we may see it describes the same thing Ezekiel said that on the bank of the River were very many trees on the one side and the other fruit trees whose leaves shall not fade neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed it shall bring forth new fruit every moneth This farther denotes Grace which is our meat and drink to satisfy our hunger and quench our thirst which is the Manna in the Wilderness and Water out of the Rock The fruits of this tree shall be for the healing of the Nations Ezekiel saith the leaf thereof shall be for medicine v. 12. That Grace which shall be our food shall also supply the use of Physick Every one may see here a manifest allusion to the Earthly Paradise to its Rivers and to the Tree of Life that was there To denote that the Church in this her last Period shall be a true Paradise where plenty and abundance of all blessings may be met with 'T is of this reign and of this last Period of the Church that the last part of the eleventh Chapter is to be understood We have already seen how that Chapter is an Epitome of what shall befall the Church In the first part we have a short account of the happy state of the Church during the time of its purity In the second the reign of Antichrist is described and the last persecution which the Church shall suffer And in the Third we have the glorious state of the Church after she hath subdued her enemies This is the Prophecy V. 15. Chap. 11. And the seventh Angel sounded and there were great voices in Heaven saying the Kingdoms of this World are become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever V. 16. And the four and twenty Elders who sat before God on their seats fell upon their faces and worshipped God. V. 17. Saying we give thee thanks O Lord God Almighty which art and wast and art to come because thou hast taken to thee thy great Power and hast reigned V. 18. And the Nations were angry and thy wrath is come and the Time of the dead that they should be judged and that thou shouldst give reward unto thy Servants the Prophets and to the Saints and them that fear thy name smal and Great and shouldst destroy them which destroy the Earth V. 19. And the Temple of God was open'd in Heaven and there was seen in his Temple the ark of his Testament and there were lightnings and voices and thundrings and an Earthquake and great Hail We have observed that the seven Trumpets followed upon the seven seals and were
17. nor with Babylon chap. 18. The Fathers who lived near the Apostles time it may be heard some discourse of this and that probably gave occasion to the mistake This is the most that can be said with any pretence of reason to excuse St. Irenaeus and those of the Ancients who followed him in the description of Antichrist Gog and Magog are names borrowed from Ezekiel which in my opinion do not signify the same People in both places Here it denotes in general the Enemies of the Church Nevertheless I know nothing concerning it with any great certainty CHAP. XXV An Answer to the reasons of the Anti-millinaries against the Reign of a thousand years ACcording to the Method of a Regular Disputation I come now to answer the Reasons of the Anti-millinaries But most of them are so weak that they hardly deserve to be considered but that the mention of 'em will serve as a further proof to confirm the truth of our seventh Period For 't is a very good Argument for any opinion to be supported on the one hand by powerfull and weighty Reasons and to be opposed on the other by weak and slender ones Those Gentlemen have the plurality of voices on their side and are doubtless men of worth and learning 'T is nevertheless true that they have suffered themselves to be born down with the stream without much minding it First Objection Christ not to come but at the day of jugdment 1. First they say that the Scripture speaking of Christ's second coming never speaks of any other than that when he shall appear in the Clouds of Heaven attended with Angels and Archangels to raise mankind and judge the quick and dead Whereas we suppose a kind of a clandestine coming of Christ to settle a Kingdom upon Earth which the Scripture knows nothing of for it speaks of no future Kingdom of Christ that is yet to be save that which he shall have in Heaven after the distribution of Eternal Rewards and Punishments I answer 1. These men suppose by this Argument a Kingdom of Christ in Heaven after the last judgement but there is no such Kingdom neither shall there ever be any on the contrary St. Paul doth expresly tell us that he shall then cease to reign and give up the Kingdom into the hands of his Father 1 Cor. 17. So that since we are assured from Scripture of Christs coming to reign it must be before the end of the World for the Kingdom of Christ the Mediator shall then be finisht 2. 'T is supposed in this objection that the Scripture speaks of no more than one coming of Christ which shall be accompanied with the voice of the Arch-angel to summon the Dead to judgement This is plainly to suppose the thing in Question and those who have read the fore-going Chapters with attention and without prejudice will still believe that there is a first coming of Christ and it may be a first Resurrection 3. Lastly who can be certain that this coming of Christ to establish his Kingdom upon Earth shall not be in that manner with the voice of an Arch-angel and in great magnificence and Glory Who can prove that at that first coming of Christ he shall not raise some of the dead as St. Iohn seems expresly to have fore-told all the little reasons pretended from Conveniency and Inconveniency which are here alledged will have much ado to resist the evidence of so express a Text and of that Matth. 19. Verily I say unto you that in the Regeneration when the Son of man shall be sat on the Throne of his Glory you shall also sit on twelve Thrones judging the twelve Tribes of Israel 2. Object Christ is to remain in Heaven till the end of the world 2. The next thing alledged is that the Heavens are to contain Jesus Christ till the restitution of all things The restitution of all things that they say is the End of the World and so Jesus Christ must be confined to Heaven till the end of the world and consequently shall not come to settle a Kingdom upon Earth for a thousand years If this were true that Christ must stay in Heaven till the end of the World might he not destroy his Enemies give Peace to his Church and govern it in Peace by his Prophets and Servants without coming in Person from Heaven Moreover in case our Lord should for a short space come down from Heaven to establish a Kingdom for a thousand years and to give his seal to the Conversion of all Nations by some glorious Apparition returning back to Heaven immediately after might it not be said notwithstanding this that the Heavens shall contain him till the end of Time So small an interruption of his abode in Heaven could not hinder but that the heavens may still be reckon'd the place of his abode Lastly how will they prove that by the Restitution of all Things the end of the World is to be understood on the contrary that end is represented as the Overturning and not the Restitution of all things The Heavens the Stars the Elements shall be burnt up and destroyed by fire 'T is true after this there shall be new Heavens and a new Earth but the Scripture doth more frequently describe the end of the world by an universal confusion and Overturning than by the new Heavens which shall follow And the new Heavens in most places of Scripture signify the Renovation of the Church in its last Period of a thousand years So that I hardly make any doubt but that by the Restitution of all things Chap. 8. Acts we are to understand the Establishment of the Church before the end of the World. 3. Argum. Peace and Prosperity are not to be the Lot of the Church 3. The third Argument of the Anti-millenaries is this that such a state of Peace and tranquillity as we promise to the Church doth not at all agree with what the H. Scripture speaks of the Persecution and afflictions that the Church and the Faithfull are always to meet with in this World. 1. Ought not this to be mutually granted that the whole is to be denominated from the major part for six thousand years the Church was to be persecuted and in a low Condition and in a seventh Period she shall have Rest And shall we count it strange that the Holy Ghost doth for the most part speaking of the state of the Church here below as a low and miserable condition and that he saith very little of her state of Glory since the difference between the first and second state is as six to one 2. I answer that they suppose that which is not true viz. that the Scripture speaks of the Church as being alway in a state of suffering On the contrary more places can be brought wherein her Prosperity and Peace are promised than of those where she is threatned with calamity and persecution We may see the truth of this
I waited till farther Time which is the only true Touch-stone would distinguish foolish visions from real Prophecies I found something surprizing and extraordinary in the Prophecies of Cotterus Christina and Drabitius which are publisht by Comenius Cotterus who is the first of the Three is Great and magnifick the images of his visions have so much majesty and grandeur that those of the ancient Prophets have hardly more They are also admirably laid together every thing supports it self and one part doth not contradict another I cannot conceive how a simple Artisan could have imagined such great things without Divine assistance The two years of the Prophecy of Christina are in my judgement a train of as great Miracles as have ever been since the Apostles days and even the Life of the Greatest Prophets hath nothing in it more miraculous than what happened to that maid Drabitius hath also his Heights and Excellencies but for the most part he is obscure These three Prophets concur to fore-tell the Ruin of the Antichristian Empire as a thing that shall shortly come to pass but withal they have so many things that offend that no man can satisfy himself to rely upon what they say Therefore I resolved to look into the Fountain it self of the Holy Oracles to see if the Holy Ghost would not teach me something more certain and more exact concerning the approaching ruin of the Antichristian Empire than what other Interpreters have discovered from thence I will freely acknowledge that when I first lookt into the Divine Oracles my opinion was in favour of what I searcht for being altogether inclined to believe that we were near the end of the Kingdom and Empire of Antichrist I was also fully perswaded of this truth that the Papacy is the Antichristian Empire and that the principal Character of that Antichristianism is the superstition which for more than twelve hundred years hath disfigured the Church and made her desolate Many things without reckoning the modern Prophecies made me Hope that we were near the end of that Period of 1260 years at the close whereof Babylon must fall the Heathen be converted and the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ be fully settled First I reflected on the long duration of that Idolatry which hath been establisht in the Christian Religion I saw that it began about the end of the fourth Century that is thirteen hundred years ago it seem'd to me that no instance could be given where God suffered so great a Corruption for so long a time without giving some remedy and relief I considered farther that in the last age God gave a terrible blow to the Antichristian Empire and the Pagan Religion The Kingdoms of England Swede Denmark the Protestant States of Germany the Vnited Provinces the Switzers and a great part of France broke from the Papacy all at once appeared to me so considerable a matter that I could nor perswade my self but that God had made mention of it in the Revelations And yet I found no such thing among the Expositors of that Book or I found that they had lookt for it in those Places where I saw plainly that it was not Hereupon I suspected that that part of the Apocalypse which describes the degrees and Circumstances of the end of the Antichristian Empire was not well understood and consequently that it was much nearer than was commonly thought Considering the Reformation of the last Age as one half of the ruin of the Kingdom of Antichrist I supposed that the other half could not be far off there being already near 200 years from the one to the other When God makes great Empires fall and not all at once the distance is not commonly so great between the first part of the Fall and the second After this I considered the present posture of the World and it seem'd to me as if all things were prepared for some great Revolution 'T is as easy with God to work in one moment and without preceding dispositions as to take time and prepare the matter Nevertheless we see that by secret methods which men perceive not he opens the way to his greatest works For Example the Fall of Paganism by the preaching of the Gospel and the conversion of the Heathen World was a great Revolution God prepared all things for this great Event many ages before it came to pass by admirable means of which no man then knew the tendency and design 1. He reduced the World to two Languages which were almost universal the Greek and Latine that the knowledge of the Gospel might the more easily be communicated Difference of Languages being a great hinderance of such a communication 'T is true the Apostles had the gift of Tongues and could speak all Languages but we are not to imagine that all the Preachers of the Gospel had the same priviledge 2. The world was almost wholly united under one Empire viz. the Roman which was another means to facilitate the Conversion of the Nations For if the Earth had been divided into many little Principalities under several Soyeraigns as the West is at this day it had been as it were impossible but that divers of them if not the most part would have denied entrance to the Apostles who were the new Preachers Little Lords who have not much to do concern themselves more particularly about every part of their Territories than great Emperors who having the Government of the whole World to mind are forc't to remit the care of less important matters to their Deputies and Lieutenants 3. The dispersion of the Jews by their frequent Captivities was also a means which God made use of to prepare the way for the Conversion of the Gentiles they gave them the knowledge of the true God. 4. Another thing which contributed very much to this design of God was the Translation of the Bible into the Greek Tongue whereby the sacred Oracles became common among the Heathens And about the time of our Saviour's appearance in the World there were multitudes of those Proselites which are called Proselites of the Gate Such as were not really Iews but they ceas't to be Pagans They renounc't their Idolatry they were present every Sabbath day at the reading of Moses and the Prophets they had a distinct place in the Synagogues 'T is of them we so often read in the Book of the Acts under the name of devout and such as feared God among the Gentiles Cornelius was of that number It could not be difficult for them to abandon Paganism for they had already left it and they could not be hindred from becoming Christians by Judaism for they had never imbrac't it So that they became Christians without change or violence The greatest part of the converted Gentiles were such as these 5. And by the same good Providence of God Philosophy began to flourish among the Pagans a little before the coming of Christ which was of great use to refine the minds of men and
makes this renewed Paganism of Popery to be in less credit and esteem than formerly Men begin to disgust the popish superstitions They speak of the Invocation of Saints with contempt and boldly condemn the excess of it and call it Idolatry when they speak of it in private They wish Images were banisht from their Churches that it might not be a scandal and an offence to us They begin to confess that there was no necessity for the taking away the Cup. They acknowledge that a man may be saved without Indulgencies by the sole merit of I. Christ They would restore the reading of the Holy Scriptures to the People They suppress the Authority of the Pope and speak of it with scorn They despise his Thunders and if he begin to murmur they talk as loud or louder than he They indeavour to establish this Doctrine that under pretence of Religion or for the preservation of it 't is not permitted to subjects to take up arms They mollify and sweeten all the Doctrines of Popery I have taken notice of this in another place and again observe it this cannot hold long this state and posture of the Papacy is violent Since it is freely confest that the adoration of one God is sufficient without that of Saints and Images they must shortly conclude that for things unnecessary they ought not to scandalize one half of the Christian World and shut the Gate against the Iews and the Mahometans Never were there so many in the Church of Rome as now who acknowledge the vanity impurity of their Superstitions Every man hath the liberty of his own thoughts but I profess that to me these are great presages of the approach of the last work of God for the establishment of his Kingdom and the ruin of that of Antichrist My spirit was in this frame when this last and great Persecution in France began I therein took notice of several Characters that confirmed me in the belief that we were in the last times of the Period of 1260 years and that this is the last Persecution spoken of in the 11th Chap. Revel Singular Characters in the present persecution which presage that it shall be this last And when they shall have finiht their Testimony the Beast who ascendeth out of the bottomless Pit shall make war against them and shall overcome them and kill them And their dead Bodies shall lye in the street of the great City three days and a half For there are so many things singular and irregular in this Persecution that without prophaness and a denial of Divine Providence we cannot but acknowledge the hand of God therein 'T is singular and more than usual whether we consider the Authors of this Persecution and the manner of it or whether we consider the Subjects that suffer it and in what manner they suffer As to the Persecutors themselves There is First a Prince who hath the chiefest obligation to us for the Crown he wears which entred into his Family by the person of his Grand Father a Prince to whom we have always paid obedience and submission without the least shadow of Rebellion a Prince for whom we preserved the Crown in his minority and who hath not scrupled to testify that we did so a Prince who is wise and understanding as to his own Interests and those of the States of Europe who yet in despite of his own Interest hath done all that which the House of Austria would have dictated to him to do if she had imployed her Emissaries in his Council who destroys his own Subjects who makes innumerable Male-contents who throws eternal seeds of rebellion and war in his own Dominions who disobliges his Protestant Allies and alienates them in such a manner almost as never to be reconciled The Protestant States and Princes have been always the principal Allies of France Swede Denmark England the Low-Countries the Switzers and the Protestant Princes of Germany These are they that have supported it when the House of Austria threatned the liberty of all Europe And these are they who assisted France to humble the House of Austria so low as now it is and consequently that have advanced France to that point of Grandeur she is now at But Time will shew how great a wound France hath now made in the heart of all her ancient Allies We see already that this Persecution makes the discord and dissention cease that was between the Protestants and brings them nearer an union and reconciliation than before God will let us see something farther of that kind However it must be confest that there is something therein which is not to be understood by man that so wise a Court should violate all the rules of good policy which is the Soul of States and the spring of all their motions If we look upon the Clergy that seems to have been the Sollicitor of this Persecution it will appear no less extraordinary 'T is not an Ignorant and superstitious Clergy as was that of the last Century These are understanding and knowing persons Men of learning and prudence freed from the ridiculous affectation and prejudice of a Monastic Spirit who have little zeal for the Romish Ceremonies who flight their worship at least for the most part of it who have much knowledge of the Truth and at the bottom but very little Religion In a word they are such as know very well that we are not in the wrong or at least that altogether and in every thing we are not Nevertheless they persecute us more cruelly than the most furious Monks or inraged Inquisitors have ever done They act therefore against their own light which is so far very strange and surprizing But what is more astonishing they act against the most sacred Principles of their Religion There is nothing among them more venerable than the Sacraments and nothing esteemed more criminal than the violation of them To administer the Sacrament of Pennance to give absolution to a Sinner to an Heretick who is not penitent who saith and declares openly without hiding or concealing it that he perseveres from his very heart in his sin and Heresy and never renounc't it but by constraint and violence to give I say absolution to such a man according to the definition of their loosest Casuists 'T is Sacriledge to give the Sacrament of the Altar to a man that professeth he believes nothing of it and acknowledgeth nothing there but meer Bread 't is a Sacrilegious Communion Should it not affect the Hearts and even the Imaginations of those persecuting Bishops and Priests to think of the innumerable Sacriledges that by this means are every day committed They absolve a multitude of wretched People who protest that by meer force and violence they were constrained to sign the abjuration of their Religion and to get out of the hands of a thousand Executioners who devour'd and destroyed 'em and gave them no rest day or night The Priests and Bishops who
small number of True Believets remain'd victims exposed to the Rage of an Army of an hundred thousand men which were let loose upon the Kingdom This I say again is without Example in any Histsry S. Cyprian in his Treatise de Lapsis seems to say that some such thing happened in the persecution of Decius but he himself in his Epistles makes it evident that the Apostacy was not so general for he remits those who had fallen to be judged at the return of Peace in the Assemblics of the Faithful who persevered so that the number of those that persevered must have been considerable In our time it would be difficult out of every Flock to make up an Assembly of such as persevere to judge the rest 'T is therefore an Event wherein we must admire the depth of Divine Providence 'T is a speaking Prodigy which tells us we are now in those last days when Christ should come and not find true Piety or true Faith upon Earth This is a Touch-stone for all Protestants their Brethren of France were not more wicked than others Wherefore we may believe that the same thing would happen in any other place on supposition of the same Circumstances and consequently that Christian courage and true Faith are at this day very rare and few Instances to be found Lastly this Affair tells us that God would melt the Heart of that People and suffer them to sink and be swallowed up that he may shortly raise to himself another a new People These are the Characters of this persecution which makes me regard it as very singular and extraordinary in its kind and consequently as a presage that God will shortly finish the establishment of his Kingdom and the Ruin of that of Antichrist If we only consider how this Persecution hath been more effectual than any the Church ever suffer'd it were enough to make us judge that the Devil now imploys his utmost force and power as apprehending 't is the last Time and that the ruin of his Kingdom is at hand When Paganism was ready to fall under Constantine he then excited the sharpest persecution under the Emperor Dioclesian These are the different Reflexions that conspired to possess me that the coming of our Lord was near to destroy the wicked one by the Breath of his Mouth I had a strong inclination to be certain and assured of the truth of these Thoughts which could no otherwise be done but by finding in the Apocalypse the accomplishment of those Circumstances which were to precede and accompany the fall of the Babylonish Empire With this design I betook my self to read over the Apocalipse not the several Commentators on that Book but the Book it self only with the Exposition of Ioseph Mede whom I formerly look't upon as a man inspired for the Interpretation of the Prophecies His Key of the Apocalypse and annexed commentary did heretofore charm me I could find nothing like it in all the other Expositors I added that of his Chronicles and his Book called The Apostacy of the latter Times which is a large Commentary on 1 Tim. Chap. 4. v. 1 2 3 4. And the Spirit saith expresly that in the last times there shall be some who shall depart from the Faith. Besides several excellent and curious things a part whereof you will find in this Treatise I met with in that Author the thing which I so eagerly sought for viz. the true Epocha of the 1260 years during which Time the Antichristian Empire should last he makes them to begin about the year of our Lord 450. or 455. by dateing them from thence they must end about the year 1710 or 1715. which agrees very well with my conjecture But Ioseph Mede who set me right at first in the beginning of the true path forsook me in the middle of the way and when the circumstances and preliminaries of the fall of Babylon were to be adjusted according to this Calculation which are so exactly described in the Apocalypse I found no assistance at all from him on the contrary he led me out of the way wherin he himself had put me and to make me wander and go astray According to the Epocha which he himself had mark't for the beginning of the 1260 years for the reign of Antichrist I should see the end of it in 25 or 30 years but according to Mr. Mede there must be many Ages to accomplish all things which are to be fulfilled before the period of the Kingdom of Antichrist In the 11th 14th 16th Chapters we have an account of the Circumstances and degrees of the Fall of that Empire the Eleventh Chapter speaks of the death of the two Witnesses for three days and half of their Resurrection and of the fall of the tenth part of the City c. In the 14 Chap. where the Fall of Babylon is divided into two Acts one is called the Vintage the other the Harvest In the 16th Chap. where the seven Periods of the declension and Fall of the Antichristian Empire are set forth by seven viols and seven Plagues of all this Ioseph Mede understood nothing yea supposing as he doth that of those seven Plagues not above two or three were come to pass in his Time he remits us far enough off for the accomplishment of the five others The Periods described by every Viol are each of them more than one Age so that we should have four or five hundred years yet to come before the end of the Kingdom of Antichrist If every one of the four viols that remain to be poured out were but of fifty years we should have yet two hundred years longer to wait I confess that after having read those places of the Apocalypse and reviewed them twenty times I understood nothing more therin I was only more and more confirmed that no man had rightly understood them In the midst of these distractions I yet begun my work without knowing well where I went. But I can say that God so opened mine eyes in the way that gave me unexpressible consolation for after having consulted the Eternal Truth above an hundred times with a deep Humility and very great Attention at length I received an answer at least I believe so and think it very plain that all that must precede the last Fall of the Antichristian Empire is fully accomplisht I have no right to require the same assurance from others neither do I require it But that which I demand at least is a little of that attention which I imployed in the meditation of those divine Oracles and then I am perswaded that if you are not as fully convinc'd as I am you will yet see reason enough not to condemn me of rashness In the first part of this work you will find nothing new for the substance of it for 't is a long time that Rome hath been called Babylon and that the Characters of the Antichristian Empire have been confest to be found in the Papacy I
the other Churches of Asia and if any will have it so all those that were at that time in the world And he chose among these seven the names of the principal ones intending that the other lesser Churches should reckon that as spoken concerning their present estate which is spoken to the seven principal ones among them 2dly Who knows whether there were at that time more than seven considerable Churches in Asia The other were so very much below these for Dignity Grandure Excellency that the H. Spirit judged it not proper to make any account of them the Advertisements that he gives to these seven Churches being sufficient for the Disorders which might be in all the others which Disorders were apparently the same For 't is usuall enough for little flocks to follow the examples of the greater ones Lastly it doth not appear that the holy Spirit in what follows hath divided the duration of the Church since J. Christ's time to the end of the world or to the coming of Jesus Christ's Kingdom into seven Periods For the seven seals the seven Trumpets the seven Vialls do not each of them take up all time They succeed one another The seventh seal brings forth seven Trumpets the sixth Trumpet is subdivided into seven Vialls It had been very methodical in a Revelation after having obscurely mark'd out the seven Periods of the Church by the seven Epistles to describe the same times by seven other Characters more observable more distinct This is indeed what some modern writers do believe that God hath done pretending that the seven seals the seven Trumpets are co-temporary divide the duration of the Christian Church into seven Periods as the seven Epistles to the seven Churches do But this opinion will not appear probable to those that study the Prophecies the events with any application of mind I look on that as nothing that is said to support the mystery of the seven Churches viz. that we do not see that such things happened in the seven Churches of Asia which are there named as have any resemblance with what the H. Spirit saith to them How should we see it seeing we have not the particular History of those Churches in that time Besides tho we do not know the particulars of those events yet there is nothing in the seven Epistles which doth not very well agree with the Estate of the Church that then was without any necessity to seek out events mystically meant in future ages The applications that are made of the seven Epistles to the seven Periods are not happy The principal thing that hinders me from closing with the opinion of the Prophetical sense of the Epistles is that I do not find that the applications which are made of them to the Ages that have past since the Apostles do answer expectation 'T is true there are some places where the applications are not unhappy But seeing this is not to be met with every where I believe that they have hit luckily by chance Otherwise the Prophecy should every where agree with the events To the end one may better judge of the force of this last reason I shall set down two or three of the mystical interpretations that are given to these Epistles This will please those who cannot or will not go to seek them in their Springs I begin with that of Patrick Forbes a Scotch Divine The explication of the mystery of the seven Churches by Forbes that lived died in the beginning of this age According to him the Church of Ephesus signifies the Primitive Church of the three first Ages The Praises which the H. Spirit gives it I know thy works thy labour how thou canst not bear them which are evil c. These praises I say may well agree to the Church of the three first Ages But those which God gives to the Church of Thyatira afterwards are greater Yet 't is certain that the fourth Period of the Church did not come near the Church of the three first Ages in fervency purity The Nicolaitans that are spoken of in this Epistle to the Church of Ephesus may signifie all the Hereticks all the kinds being meant by one But seeing the Church of all Ages hath had its Hereticks this character can't distinguish this Period from the others The second Epistle is to the Church of Smyrna Forbes would have this to be the Period in which the Arrians Macedonians Nestorians Eutychians reigned That is to say that this Period will comprehend the fourth the fifth Age. But how can these words be applied to those Ages I know thy works thy Tribulation thy poverty but thou art rich I know the blasphemy of those that say they are Jews but are not but are the Synagogue of Satan See here are praises that are no whit inferiour to those that were given to the Church of Ephesus Yet 't is certain that the Church in these Ages was corrupted lost all the beauty it had in the three first Ages of the Church Its manners were corrupted its worship was marred by the invocation of Saints the worship of Reliques What will become of that Persecution of ten days that God predicts to this Church of Smyrna 'T is true the Church was persecuted under the Arrian Emperours but it doth not appear very well why this is described by number of ten days The third Epistle is directed to the Church of Pergamus according to Forbes this is the Period of the reign of Antichrist The foregoing Periods were but of two or three hundred years this must be above a thousand years Here is found something that is pretty like this Period I know where thou dwellest even where Satan's seat is To which may be added that the martyr Antipas spoken of in this Epistle signifies Anti-papa an Enemy opposing the Pope that this signifies all those that have opposed the tyranny of Antichrist But the rest doth by no means agree to this Period I know thy works that thou holdest fast my name hast not denied my faith These praises do by no neans belong to a Church so corrupt as was that of the third Period under the reign of Antichrist Thou hast them that hold the Doctrine of Balaam who taught Balak to cast a stumbling-block before the Children of Israel to eat things sacrificed unto Idols to commit fornication By this must be meant those evil Christians that joined in with the Antichristian Idolatry Now these people are not well described by thou hast them for this imports that it was not the body of the Society And on the contrary under the Antichristian Empire the greatest part of men did partake of his abominations The fourth Epistle is directed to the Church of Thyatira to which the H. Spirit gives these great praises I know thy works Charity service Patience that thy last works are more than the
first Forbes would have this be that Period of the Church in which the Church began to reform her self in which the good separated from the evil i. e. the Church from the Albigenses to Luthers time Now I leave every wise man to judge if a small number of Albigenses Waldenses that separated from the Church of Rome that endured so short a time could deserve from the whole Christian Church so generally corrupted the fairest of all the praises that the H. Spirit gives to the seven Churches Thou sufferest that woman Jezabel that calleth her self a Prophetess to teach to seduce my servants to commit fornication This Jezabel I confess very much resembles the Antichristian Church But Why should the Albigenses be blamed for suffering the Roman Church How could they destroy it who were so weak Did they not cry out upon her as Babylon as much as they were able Sardis is the fifth Church to which the H. Spirit writes according to Forbes 't is the Reformed Church in which neither Jezabel nor Balaam nor the Pope nor Popery are any longer tolerated because she broke with the Roman Church But why would we have the Ages of our Reformation since Luther to be branded with so black fatal a Character Thou hast a name to live but art dead Be watchful strengthen the things which remain are ready to dy for I have not found thy works perfect before God. I think our Reformation deserved at least as much praise as that of the Albigenses The Zeal thereof was great the Doctrine pure Philadelphia is the sixth Church signifies according to Forbes the Church that shall carry the Reformation to its greatest height that shall have but a small number of members but they shall be very Zealous Laodicea is the last Church or the last Period The Holy Spirit terribly blames it Thou art neither hot nor cold Thou saist I am rich have need of nothing c. dost not know that thou art wretched miserable poor blind naked According to Forbes this is those Churches that making all their glory to consist in their having quitted Babylon do fall back make Religion to consist in nothing but duties purely external This last Period must be placed at the end of the World. Thus you have Forbes's system Let us proceed to that of Cocceius According to this later Author the Church of Ephesus is the Apostolical Church i. e. that wherin the Apostles preached The Explication of the mystery of the seven Churches according to Cocceius So that this Period must be extended to the death of St. John. The Nicolaitans spoken of in this first Epistle are Hereticks in general Nicolaos in Greek signifies the Conquerour of the People 'T is the Character of Hereticks to make themselves masters of the people by seducing them The Church of Smyrna signifies the Church suffering in all places especially that of the three first Ages The persecution of ten Days according to this must signify the ten Persecutions which the Church suffered during those three Ages under the Pagan Emperours This doth not fall out ill but I fear it was chance that made this hit for the rest doth not fall out in the same manner The holy Spirit saith Some of you shall be cast into Prison that ye may be tryed This is very feebly to express the great number of Martyrs and the cruel Sufferings to which the Church was exposed during these three first Ages of the Church 'T is much more probable that this signifies some light Persecution that was to befal Smyrna in which Persecution the Evil should not go beyond the imprisoning some perticular Persons The Epistle to the Church of Pergamus is the third according to Cocceius 't is the Church from Constantine's time to the birth of Antichrist Pergamus is the name of a famous fortress of Troy. Rome signifies strength or fortress 'T is in Rome that satan's seat is But why should the seat of satan be fixed in Rome converted by Constantine It had been much better to have fix'd it in Rome Pagan or to reserve it for Rome Antichristian that was to follow immediately after Antipas the martyr signifies saith he the Orthodox that maintain'd the consubstantiality of the Son. Antipas for Antipatros Antipatros for Isopatros equal to the Father I have nothing to say hereupon but it doth not please me every well The Church of Thyatira is the fourth signifies according to Cocceius the Church under the reign of Antichrist Jezabel that appears in this Epistle is the Antichristian Church They that suffer Jezabel the Prophetess are the elect mingled among the Antichristian Idolaters That sickness that God would send on Jezabel in casting her on her bed are those mortifications which Antichristianism was to receive by the several disasters that befel the Roman Church till the Reformation This falls out pretty well but 't is by meer chance for how can that magnificent Elogy be applied to this period of the Antichristian church I know thy works thy charity thy patience that thy last works are more than the first Never was the church so void of saints of good works as in this sad Period Sardis is the fifth Church the fifth Period according to Cocceius as well as according to Forbes 't is the Reformed Church But I say hereto as I said before on occasion of Forbes why should we say of our Reformation thou hast a name to live behold thou art dead strengthen the things which remain are ready to dy Philadelphia signifies brotherly Love this is the sixth Church which carries in its name the character of a Church yet to come wherein love and charity shall reign but among a very small number of people This church shall be persecuted Attempts will be made to shut the door against its conversions Yet after this the Kings of the Earth shall submit themselves to it This is in after ages So that we have nothing to say about it Laodicea signifies the Church that shall immediately precede the time wherein God shall pass that judgment spoken of in the 11th ch v. 18. i. e. when the reign of J. Christ shall come to be establisht on the Earth That is to say that immediately before the Kingdom of J. Christ comes on the Earth the Church must fall into that dreadful decay meant by these words Thou art neither hot nor cold thou art poor blind naked I do not well understand how all this hangs together The Church oâ— Philadelphia which is the sixth after it hath been persecuted shall remain victorious over all the Kings of the Earth which signifies that all the nations of the Earth shall be converted see here the reign of J. Christ on the Earth And yet after this comes a seventh Period wherein religion shall almost entirely perish before the Kingdom of J. Christ comes on
the Earth Besides all other inconveniencies this system hath this further viz. that besides these seven Periods an eighth must be added for the reign of the Church on the Earth This is a thing that was never heard of the times were never in any prophecy divided into eight The mystery of the seven Churches according to Dr. Hen. More Dr. Henry More is one of the last that hath spent his Labours on the Revelation He believes also that these seven Epistles are mystical prophetical see how he understands them The Church of Ephesus is the Period that ran out from J. Christ's time to the tenth year of Nero's Empire See here a Period short enough There is not usually so great an inequality between the Periods that divide the times in the Prophecies Moreover one may be assured that there is not so much as one word in this Epistle that may not as happily be applyed to the two following Ages as to the first so that this Application is purely Arbitrary and without any Ground The Church of Smyrna is the Period from the tenth year of Nero to the year 324. i. e. to the Reign of Constantine and the Council of Nice This falls in with Cocceius's Notion wherefore I cannot approve of it for the Reason above-mention'd Pergamus according to Dr. More signifies the Church from the year 324. to the year 1242. during which time the Empire of Antichrist was establisht taking in the time in which the Waldenses and Albigenses appear'd in the World and were extinguisht The Foundation of this Explication is the Seat of Satan I know where thou dwellest even where Satan's Seat is And the Martyr Antipas that signifies according to this Author Anti-Pope or contrary to the Pope This is a little glittering Light but I am much afraid 't is a Deceitful one For First Why should we comprehend in this Empire of Satan the Reigns of Constantine and Theodosius which were so happy for the Church 2dly Why should it be said to this Antichristian Period I know thy Good Works and that thou hast not Denyed my Name seeing there never were fewer that made profession of the Truth than in this Period If ever the Church may be accused of having renounced the Name of Jesus Christ 't is in the time of Antichristianism which is called an Apostacy so that this Article doth not hit well but that which follows doth much worse Thyatira according to this Author is the Church from the time that the Albigenses were destroyed to that time that entire Nations abandon'd the Communion of Rome 'T is it may be a time the most barren in Virtue and the most overwhelm'd with Superstition that ever was since Jesus Christ yet must this great Praise be attributed to it I know thy Works and thy Patience and thy Charity and that thy last Works are more than the first What is said to the Church of Ephesus which 't is pretended is the Apostolical Church is not so honourable nor so great Thou sufferest the Woman Iezabel that calls her self a Prophetess How can this be applied to those Ages that have run out since the Ruin of the Albigenses to the Reformation Jezabel that Roman Whore hath not only been suffer'd and tolerated she hath reigned with less Contradiction than in any Age. Sardis is the fifth Church which signifies the fifth Period according to Dr. More and this Period is that of the Reformation to the last Vial i.e. to the last Ruin of Antichrist 'T is to this Church that the Holy Spirit saith Thou hast a Name to live but behold thou art dead Can it be imagin'd that God should give such great Praises to the Church that was since the Ruin of the Albigenses till the Reformation and that the Holy Spirit should be made to speak with so much Disdain of the Reformed Church What comparison is there between the Church in its Reformation that corrupted Church wherein hardly any was to be found that preserv'd himself from the mighty Corruption of Error and Vice Philadelphia which is the sixth Church signifies a sixth Period wherein Antichrist shall be entirely ruin'd and the Infidel Nations be converted This is to divine and that which the Holy Spirit saith to the sixth Church doth not exactly import any such thing Lastly Laodicea of which the Holy Spirit speaks in such disadvantageous terms is the Church that must fall into decay after the Fall of Antichrist and the Conversion of the People And this Decay must bring the Church to the coming of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ on the Earth See here a new Period and of which there is not the least foot-step in all the Prophecies 'T is a Period that must run out from the Ruin of Antichrist and the Conversion of the People All the Prophecies foretell that the Reign of Jesus Christ shall come immediately after the Fall of Babylon and the Fulness of the Gentiles Yet here behold a Period that separates these two Events which ought to be joyned together Lastly this System is subject to the same inconveniencies as that of Cocceius There must be supposed an eighth Period for the reign of the thousand years which Dr. More acknowledges Now it must be confessed that this eighth Period is altogether unknown to the Prophets for we do not any where find that the time hath been divided into Eight parts Those that will attentively reflect on what we have just now said will confess if I am not much mistaken either that these Epistles to the seven Churches are not prophetical or that the Mystery hath not yet been discovered For nothing that hath been said about them hath this certain Character of Truth which is obvious to every one The Prophecies must be like Aenigma's which till they have been well explained seem unintelligible but when one hath hit right upon them they appear so clear that they cannot otherwise be understood CHAP. II. An Explication of the Vision of the four living Creatures of the twenty four Elders contained in the fourth Chapter SEeing there 's nothing propheticall in the three first chapters of the Revelation we may go on to the fourth Chapter One may say that this is the opening of this great divine Theater on which these admirable prophetical Visions will immediatly appear The entrance is like that of the Prophet Ezekiel God appears in the Temple which is in heaven sitting on a magnificent Throne Round about the throne there is a Rainbow this is the Symbol of Peace Before the Throne there was a Sea of Glass like to Chrystal This may signify the Purity of the Doctrine of the Gospel by which we are washed justified It is of Glass of Chrystal because of its firmness For the Gospel is an eternal Covenant that shall not be done away by a new covenant But that which is most considerable here is the four living Creatures the twenty four Elders that are round about
pieces the whole Earth stamped the residue with the feet of it For it mortifyed all its neighbours whom it did not Subdue The 6th Ch. of the Revel belongs to this first part of the Prophecy of Daniel The 8th Ch. of the Revelation addeth to the Prophecy of Daniel for it shews the degrees wherby the Roman Empire was brought to its division into ten Kingdoms 8. It had ten horns I considered the horns behold there came up among them another little horn before whom three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots behold in this horn were Eyes like the Eyes of a Man a mouth speaking great things 24. The Angel explaining this place saith The ten horns out of the Kingdom are ten Kings that shall arise another shall arise after them he shall be diverse from the first shall subdue three Kings 25. And he shall speak great words against the Most High shall wear out the saints of the Most High think to change Times laws they shall be given into his hand untill a time times the dividing of time See the division of the fourth Monarchy into ten others which was made after the year 450. We shall see afterwards which are these ten Kingdoms From the midst of these ten comes up a little horn a Monarch that appears as nothing a Priest that insensibly encreases his power over these ten Kings so far as to take away the third part of their Demains Jurisdiction Power This is what hath been exactly accomplisht in the Papacy which hath taken away from the Western Kings more than a third part of their Estate which is become Church Lands dependant on the Church more than a third of their jurisdiction by the Tribunals of Bishops Officials who drew almost all causes to them under the pretence that there was something mingled with them that respected the Church the Sacraments or the Conscience Lastly more than a third part of their Power by the Usurpations of the Popes who have made Kings their Vassals a hundred ways Besides this the Popes have particularly overthrown these three Kingdoms that of the Greeks in Italy that of the Lombards that of Germany which they have made dependant on the Roman Church This little horn speaks words of blasphemy against God exalts it self above all that is called God against the Kings of the Earth It destroys the saints of the most high That is to say it persecutes them even to blood It thinks to change the Times the Law it makes attempts against the divine laws it destroys Gods Commands dispenseth with them It commands the adoration of images Creatures which God forbids It permits crimes which God abominates against which he hath made severe laws This also is the true description of the Pope the Papacy To this horn is given a time times the dividing or the half of a time one year two years half a year three years half in all 360. prophetical days to a year that is to say 1260. years See the text on which the 11th 13th 17. Ch. of the Revel are a comment I beheld till the Thrones were cast down v. 9. the Ancient of days did sit whose garment was white as snow the hair of his head like the pure wool his throne was like the fiery flame his wheels as burning fire A fiery stream issued came forth from before him v. 10. thousand thousands ministred to him ten thousand times ten thousands stood before him the judgment was set the books were open'd I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake v. 11 I beheld even till the beast was slain his body destroyed given to the burning flame In the explication which the Angel gives Daniel we read But the judgment shall sit v. 26 they shall take away his dominion to consume to destroy it unto the end And the Kingdom do minion v. 27. the greatness of the Kingdom under the whole Heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the most high whose Kingdom is an everlasting Kingdom all dominions shall serve obey him The judgment here spoken of is not the last judgment God appears sitting on a magnificent throne not to judg the whole world but to judg the Empire of the Beast the fourth Monarchy in its Antichristian Period to deal forth the various punishments that befall this Monarchy for 7 or 8 hundred years to bring it to its end This Fire these Flames these Wheels burning like fire on which the throne moves represent the greatness of those punishments And behold the Text of the 9th Ch. in which St. John presents to our view the Saracens the Turks that make desolate the Roman Antichristan Empire of the 14th 15th 16th 18th 19th where God in divers visions represents the different steps of the ruin of the Roman Antichristian Empire As for what is said here of the Kingdom given to the Saints 't is the matter Text of the end of the 11th Ch. of the 20 21 22. throughout So it will appear in following the path which we are entred into that the whole Revelation is a commentary on ten or twelve verses of the 7th Ch. of Daniel CHAP. IV. The systems of the seven seals the seven Trumpets that denote the great events bring the world to its end IN the 4th Ch. the H. Spirit open'd the scene the 5th is a preludium for the vision of the seven seals which is contained in the 6. Ch. The first book is sealed with seven seals that is to say 't is very obscure Indeed it is so to that degree that never will any thing be said on this first part of the Revelation that goes beyond conjecture probability Wheras as for the second I hold that one may attain to the true sense of it certainly know that one hath found it See what in my judgment may best be said on the seven seals How far the seven seals teach The seven seals certainly reach to the end of the world but not in that manner as the greatest part of our Interpreters have imagin'd in dividing the duration of the World from J. Christ to its end into seven Periods almost equal The six First seals do not go beyond 300. years But the seventh seal is subdivided into seven Trumpets doth produce them Now these seven Trumpets bring the events even to the last judgment the first not beginning till after the 6th seal So that these seven seals are as six branches that shoot forth from the body of a Tree with a seventh great branch which it self becomes a great arm shoots forth seven other branches As for this it cannot be doubted by any that read the beginning of the 7th Ch. with any attention
have already done 't is enough to fulfil the Prophecy which saith That God sent them to kill the men of the third part of the Earth i. e. of Europe And the number of the Army of the Horsmen was 200. Thousand Thousand The Turks certainly are originally Scythians Tartars and Nomades people that had nothing but Horsmen in their Armies The formidable Infantry of the Turks which they call the Jannizaries was not instituted till about the year 1300 by Ottoman the Founder of the Empire which at this day possesseth Constantinople Before that their chief strength was in Cavalry The Prophet maketh it prodigious for its number All the World knows the thing happen'd exactly according to the literal sense He also describes them in a hideous manner They that sate on the Horses v. 17. had Breastplates of Fire and of Jacinth and Brimstone That is to say the heads of these Horsemen were like globes of fire whence came forth flame and smoke The heads of the horses were as the heads of Lions out of their mouths issued Fire Smoke Brimstone This Fire this Smoke and this Brimstone seem to be a description of Gun-powder and its effects And this may well signify that the Turks should make their principal desolations in the Empire of the fourth Monarchy after the invention of canons and fire-arms whence come forth lightnings flames sulphur smoke which indeed did come to pass These horses that vomit up flame smoak have also tails like unto Serpents with which they do hurt viz. in spreading their poison And this is common to them with the Locusts of the fifth Trumpet 'T is the venom of the wicked Religion of Mahomet which the Turks have established spread in all places where they have establisht their dominion They that were not Killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands that they should not Worship Devills idols of Gold Silver Brass Stone Wood which neither can see nor hear nor walk Neither repented they of their Murders nor of their Sorceries nor of their Fornication nor of their Thefts This signifies to us that the Periods of the sixth Trumpet and the ravages of the Turks is that of the corruption of the Church in the fourth Monarchy in the Antichristian Kingdom a period during which there reigned Idolatry worshipping of Demons or second Mediatory Gods Images placed in the Temples Oratories depravation of manners by Poisonings Assassinations Sodomies Incests Adulteries and other impurities Thefts Robberies and Violent Dealings And in truth the Roman Church since the tenth Age fell into such shameful Idolatry and such horrible Corruption of Manners that never was any thing like it seen in the History of the World. This point may be seen justified at large in our just Prejudices against Popery CHAP. VIII The Explication of the Tenth Chapter of the Revelation THe ninth Chapter ends the first part of the Revelation and the tenth begins the second wherin is what we seek after viz. Antichrist the time of his continuance and the circumstances of his end This tenth Chapter is properly the preface to the second little book We must explain it here before we proceed And I saw another mighty Angel come down from Heaven clothed with a Cloud v. 1. J. Christ appears a second time for a second vision a Rain-bow was upon his Head his Face was as it were the Sun his Feet as Pillars of Fire 'T is clear by this Pomp that this Angel is Jesus Christ They are very near the same colours wherwith he was described in the first chapter of the book his Countenance was like the Sun his Feet like unto fine Brass This is an Argument that here a new Prophecy begins a second act of this great piece 'T is Jesus Christ the Prophet of Prophets that must cause these Visions to enter The differenes between the first little book of the Revelation the second He had in his hand a little Book open he set his right Foot upon the Sea his left Foot on the Earth See here a little book different from the first which was given to the Lamb in the fifth chapter Another argument that 't is a Revelation wholly new of another order The first book contained the Destinies of the Empire and this contains the Destinies of the Church The first book was Written without within by reason of the multitude of events that were to befall the fourth Monarchy the adventures wherof God would foretel until the coming of the fifth Monarchy that is to say the Kingdom of Jesus Christ The first book was Sealed with seven seals But this later one is a little book opened 'T is because the first part of the Revelation which respects the destinies of the Empire is incomparably more obscure more difficult to be understood than the second The destinies of the Church are more Clearly predicted than those of the Empire In this second part which respects the destinies of the Church Antichrist is very plainly seen all those things that must befall the Antichristian Empire But the first part of the Revelation which contains the destinies of the Empire is so obscure that hardly any thing of it is understood tho at this day all the events are come to pass the prophecies fullfilled Joseph Mede in my opinion is the first that understood any thing of it He set his right foot on the sea his left foot on the Earth This signifies his Empire over the whole terrestrial Globe composed of Earth and water it signifies also that what he was about to fore-tell respected all the men that dwell in the world He set his right foot on the Sea. The Sea in respect to the land of Canaan was on the West this signifies that the West should be the principal Theater of the Adventures of the Antichristian Empire which he was going to describe And he cried with a loud voice as when a Lion roareth v. 3. when he had cried seven Thunders uttered their voices This roaring of a Lion was a presage that that which he was about to predict was terrible As in truth nothing is more fatal to the Church VVhat voices thunders signify in the Revelation especally in the second part than the Empire of Antichrist Seven thunders uttered their voices In this Book Lightnings Thunders Voices always signify the words oracles of God. The seven Thunders of this second little book are exactly the seven Spirits of the former For both the seven Spirits the seven Thunders signify the divine Oracles Spirits because of him that dictates them Thunders because of their efficacy because they beat down to the ground they astonish they shake Seven because of their perfection When Jesus Christ by his roaring had given the presage of Future Events the Oracles were given pronounced concerning those Events
the Earth v. 11. and he had two horns like a Lamb and he spake as a Dragon The second Beast hath two hoths In the fore-going vision the Holy Spirit represented the fourth Monarchy in its two Periods and its whole extent by only one Beast We have seen more-than once that this Monarchy hath two periods very near of the same duration The first is from the birth of Rome to the ruin of the Imperial dignity and the division of the Empire into ten Kingdoms The second from the destruction of the Imperial dignity to the entire ruin of the Roman Church 'T is this second period which the Prophet here represents under the image of a second Beast 'T is another Beast because it is another name another sort of Empire an Empire hidden under the name of the Church 'T is a matter that begins again all anew As the City of Rome in its birth was little insensible a small matter in a word during two or three ages so this new Roman Empire that was to be brought forth again was to commence also from weak beginnings and to be but a very little thing for some ages As this later period of the fourth Monarch was to last as long as the other and was to have a form wholly different from it it deserved to be called another beast This second Beast ascends out the Earth and not out of the Sea. 'T is the same Beast that is spoken of in the eleventh Chapter that it ascends out of the bottomless pit that is to say from Hell. The one hinders not the other The Papism comes from Hell but not by the same means as the first beast did These two Empires come not from the same place The first Empire springs from the people and their ambition The second Empire proceeds from the Clergy and their ambition It springs from the Earth as a plant that shoots out small and becomes great insensibly without effusion of blood and without spoil He had two horns like a Lamb. The Roman Church calls her self the Spouse of the Lamb usurps his power the name of Jesus Christ is always in her mouth and if she may be believed she doth but exercise the power of Jesus Christ that hath been lawfully conferred upon her Jesus Christ hath two powers in Heaven and in Earth All power is given me in Heaven and Earth saith he The Roman Church saith the same thing of her self She ascribes to her self the temporal power and the spiritual one He speaks as a Dragon For he utters blasphemies against God and terrible threatnings against his Children And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him v. 12. The Papism hath re-establisht all the authority of the ancient Emperours The Roman Church causes her self to be served by Kings She takes away their demeauss she disposes of their Crowns she draws tribute from them and exerciseth jurisdiction in all their States The first Beast that is to say the Roman Pagan Empire did no more in the countries that were subject to it And causeth the Earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first Beast Raising up in her self the power of the ancient Empire she makes that ancient Empire be raised up again under a new name viz. that of the Roman Church be adored and served v. 13. And he doth great wonders so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on Earth in the sight of men We shall have occasion to observe and prove several times hereafter as we have already done before that in the style of the Prophets Heaven when an Estate and an Empire is treated of always signifies the soveraign region of those dignities The Sun is the Soveraign the stars are the Grandees Here an Empire a State is treated of under the name of a Beast The Soveraign region of that State is the Heaven from that State falls fire that is to say thunders It can't be doubted but this is what the Roman Church it self calls thunders and thundring Bulls 'T is those decrees and those Papal Bulls which proceed from the Court of Rome These are no other than Past-board thunders and artificial fire-works However 't is known that they have set Kingdoms is a flame a hundred and a hundred times and have may times thought to set all Europe on Fire To this are added Signs that is to say prodigies of pride ambition madness policy carnal weapons and other means by which the Beast of Rome hath used to establish its dominion and subject Kings to its self This doth not exclude the false miracles which the Papism hath used to establish it self But as it is here consider'd much more as a Kingdom than as a Religion by these signs 't is much better to understand the wicked means it hath employed to establish its tyranny than the lying miracles which it used to establish its false mysteries And deceiveth them which dwell on the Earth by the means of those miracles That is to say v. 14. he induced them by all the ways of deceit and violence to do homage to him and submit themselves to his dominion Saying to them that dwell on the Earth that they should make an image to the beast v. 15. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast that the image of the beast should both speak and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the Beast should be killed This here is an admirable place The Roman Church is an Empire However it is but an image of an Empire an imaginary Empire founded only on the deceived imagination of men They need but say NOT to destroy this Empire The reality of an Empire consists in citadells in fortresses in armies The Roman Church hath none of all this For the little armies that the Pope might raise is not that which secures his Empire 'T is not therfore a true Empire The Convents of the Monks are his Citadels The Monks are his Souldiers and Armies The Priests are his Emissaries The Bishops and Arch-Bishops are his Lievtenanis But all these are but images Nevertheless this image of an Empire speaks acts makes decrees raises all Europe and causes all those to be killed that will not pay it the like homage which was render'd to the ancient Roman Empire And he causeth all v. 16. both small and great c. to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads And that no man might buy or sell save he that had the mark or the name of the Beast The Forehead is the seat of profession Thence it came that ancient Christians signified their profession of Christianity by a sign of the Cross on the forehead The Hand is the instrument of action The inhabitants of the Earth can neither buy nor sell under the dominion of the Papism that is to say partake of its favours and its riches unless they have the Profession of a Papist
Let them inform us a little where are and who are the ten Kings that shall reign the same time with Rome Pagan who in Saint Iohns time had not begun to reign and who yet were to begin their reign at the same time with the Roman Emperours Is it not plain that these are ten Kings that must receive their birth from the ruin of the Roman Pagan Empire and compose an Antichristian Roman Empire under the rule of the prostitute and adulterous Woman i. e. the revolted Church and Spouse of Jesus Christ Sixthly v. 13. How can these words agree to Rome Pagan these i. e. these ten Kings have one mind and shall give their power and strength to the beast Did those Kings whose Kingdoms were conquer'd by the Roman Pagan Empire voluntarily give their power to the Beast Did not Rome Pagan by meer violence ravish away those great Estates of which she formed her Empire Can it be said that the Kings that were conquer'd and subdued had one mind Did they reign together with Rome Pagan were they not destroyed and their Kingdoms reduced into Roman Provinces This therefore can in no wise agree to the Pagan Period of Rome but doth very well to the Antichristian and Papal one For it is true that the ten Kings compose this Ecclesiastical Empire and submit themselves unto it It is true that they have one mind and that they have given their power unto the Beast For it was not by Force of Arms that Rome hath acquired this second Empire but by perswasion by illusion by the false religion by the communion of idolatry and by the Chimaera of an Empire of Jesus Christ on the Earth This is the only thing to be met with which the popish Interpreters have to oppose to prove that Antichrist must not sit at Rome and that Rome in this Chap. is Rome Pagan say they the ten Kings shall hate the Whore How the ten Kings shall destroy Antichristian Rome after they have built it C. 17. v. 8 16. De Rom. Pontif. l 3. cap. 13. sect 2. and make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire 'T is the Argument of Bellarmin which all the rest have adopted St. Iohn saith he predicts that the ten Kings that shall divide the Roman Empire and under the reign of whom Antichrist shall come shall hate the whore clothed in purple i. e. Rome and shall make her desolate and burn her with fire How then shall she be the Seat of Antichrist if in that very time she must be overthrown and burnt A mighty riddle hard to be solved We need but read on Saint Iohn immediately adds v. 17. For God shall put it into their hearts to fulfill his Will and to agree and give their Kingdom to the beast untill the Word of God shall be fulfilled Who doth not see that these are two distinct times In one of them the ten Kings shall give their power to the Beast by the cheat of a false piety and in the other being better instructed and recover'd foolish fondness they shall spoil that Empire which they shall have formed by their complaisance Men must be hardly prest upon that have recourse to such vain evasions as these The foolish self-contradiction of the Papists But observe their foolish self-contradiction Here Bellarmin and his adherents say that the ten Kings which shall divide the Roman Empire shall come in Antichrists time and that these are the same that shall make the Whore desolate i. e. that shall destroy the City of Rome viz. Rome that is here spoken of and which Bellarmin himself defines by the Whore clothed in purple that is to say Rome Now how will the ten Kings that must not come till the end of the World according to them be able to make desolate and burn Rome Pagan which hath no longer been in being for above 1300. years The ten Kings associated with Antichrist only three years and a half before the end of the World will be able to make desolate no other Rome than what will then be in being Now Pagan Rome will be no more it will be Rome Christian whose Empire he supposes must subsist to the end of the World and to the reign of Antichrist Men must have lost their understanding and be given up to a reprobate sense so to contradict both themselves and the Truth with so much dishonesty Lastly it is clear by the following Chapter which is the 18th that the great City which reigneth over the kings of the earth cannot be Rome Pagan but Rome Antichristian In the 18th Chap. he calls her Babylon whom just before he called the great city and even the popish Interpreters agree also that that Babylon is Rome Now he describes the fall of that Babylon i. e. of Rome in such a manner as cannot agree to any other but Rome Antichristian First He saith v. 3. that all Nations have drank of the wine of the wrath of her fornication We have already seen that this signifies that Idolatry to which Babylon hath drawn the Nations by her Charms and Enchantments which doth not agree to Rome Pagan Secondly v. 4. He saith come out of Babylon my people that ye be not partakers of her sins and that ye receive not of her plagues 'T is plain this cannot be understood of any thing but of an Idolatrous Church whence God would draw forth his Elect. God never commanded his faithful Servants to go out of Rome Pagan they always remained in it Thirdly and lastly the manner in which the ruin of this Babylon is described can by no means agree to Rome Pagan The Holy Spirit represents it as a City burnt and entirely reduced to ashes the Merchants whereof and they that gained by her behold her desolation and her burning afar off And to conclude he signifies that it must be such a fall from which she shall never rise again And a mighty Angel took up a stone like a great Mill-stone and cast it into the sea saying Thus with violence shall that great City Babylon be thrown down c. 18. v. 21. and shall be found no more at all Now this is not yet happened to Rome she hath been taken and retaken and pillaged several times but yet she subsists still so that this can't be understood but of the last ruin that must happen to Rome Antichristian And thus you have the proofs that shew that that Rome which all the popish Interpreters as well as we do find in the 17th and 18th Chap. of the Revelation cannot be Rome Pagan proofs which I call a demonstration for I maintain there is no man that can resist the force of them The confession of the modern Papists that Rome must be the seat of Antichrist Ribera Viega Cornelius à Lapide And the modern popish Interpreters have felt the force of them At this day they do confess that it is not Rome Pagan But
see what they say viz. that that Rome that now is towards the end of the World shall be corrupted become idolatrous debauched that she shall shake off the yoke of Jesus Christ and carry her disorders as far as Rome Pagan But yet however that it must not be the seat of Antichrist who must be accompanied with his ten Kings have his habitation at Jerusalem and come to Rome when it is turn'd Idolatrous and Pagan to destroy and ruin it as he will also do See the words of Viega on the eighteenth of the Revelation One may plainly gather from the infinite number of precious merchandises and of all sorts that are here noted that Rome in the last times after her Apostacy shall attain to soveraign power and great riches and that her Empire shall extend it self throughout the World upon the ten Kings so often named For that these mighty riches do not belong to Rome Pagan it is clear by these words Come forth of Babylon my people For this shews that 't is not ancient Rome that is here spoken of in which there were no faithfull ones but that Rome that shall flourish in the last times Then therefore the City of Rome shall greatly flourish and its Empire shall be very large She shall live in pleasures and have great abundance of all things And at the same time she shall be enslaved to Idolatry be full of Superstitions sacrifice to Doemons and false Deities And by reason of the vast quantity of the blood of the Saints that shall be shed by her under the Emperours of Rome by a terrible but a very righteous judgement of God she shall at last be made desolate and burnt by ten Kings See what the force and evidence of the truth hath drawn from the mouth of the worshippers of Rome What prodigious whimsies are these To what extremity must these men have been reduced The Scripture speaks of but one Antichristian Empire The Church never imagin'd there was more than one and lo here are men that make a couple The first shall be in Rome corrupted for according to them Rome in the last days must have a great Empire must subdue Kingdoms and draw them together with her self into a revolt from Jesus Christ Lo therefore there 's one Antichristian Empire at Rome what need have we of another Antichrist sitting at Jerusalem Moreover this Chimaera is founded on this principle that the Beast in the 13th Chapt. which according to them represents Antichrist is not the same with the Beast in the 17th Chap. with the great City that ruleth over the Kings of the Earth and with Babylon spoken of in the 14th and the 18th Chapt. Now we have confuted this ridiculous imagination and have demonstrated that Babylon the great City the Beast of the 13th and the 18th Chapter are the same thing This Chimaera is so ill to be defended that the more modern Papists have abandon'd it and at last have been forced to acknowledge that Rome must be the seat of Antichrist that the great City spoken of in the 11th Chapter where Jesus Christ was crucified is not Jerusalem but spiritual Babylon spoken of afterwards and Bernard de Montreuil that hath write since the rest though he retains that ancient dream that Antichrist must come out of Jerusalem yet he confesses however that the Babylonish Empire and the Antichristian are not two Empires that must succeed one another and the one destroy the other according to the supposition of those we were just now speaking of He confesseth that Rome shall be the chief City of Antichrist's party that Antichrist must defend it and that the ten Kings of the Beast are the subjects of its grandeure and that of Antichrist the head of the League the Monarch of the time He calls Antichrist the Prince of the Apocalyptical Babylon And he confesseth that this Babylon is Rome therefore he acknowledgeth that Rome must be Antichristian and the capital City of Antichrist Babylon saith he is the Mistress the Queen the Empress of the kingdom of Antichrist Not daring to call Rome Babylon On the 24. Chapt. he defines it however by Western Babylon who being perverted instead of obeying the Laws of the piety of the first age shall in her pride cause her self to be called the great and the independant and shall become much worse under the reign of Antichrist than ever Eastern Babylon was After these confessions there remains no other help for the popish Doctors to hinder their Rome from being acknowledged to be Rome Antichristian but the Chimaera of the three years and a half 's duration of Antichrists kingdom It is true say they that Rome must be possessed by Antichrist that he must establish Idolatry there that Rome must become worse than Rome Pagan was in the time of St. John and than Eastern Babylon in the time of the Prophets but this must last but three years and a half When therefore we have destroyed this ridiculous dream of three natural years and a half we shall have demonstrated that Rome at this day is the true Seat of Antichrist and then I shall make them this Argument Babylon in the Revelation is the seat of the Antichristian Empire the same thing with the prostitute Woman with the Beast with seven heads and ten horns All this is Rome become Antichristian and the seat of Antichrist Which is plain either by what hath been invincibly proved or what the Papists themselves have confessed Now this Antichristian Roman Empire must endure not 1260. natural days but 1260. prophetical days i. e. 1260. years Therefore it is evident that the Antichristian Empire which must be at Rome cannot be that chimerical Empire of Antichrist of three years and a half that must conclude 45. days before the end of the World and that 't is that of Rome which hath endured so long already The consequence is plain because all do acknowledge the World must not and cannot according to the decrees of God endure yet twelve or thirteen hundred years to make room for the reign of Antichrist and a thousand years more at the end of that to make room for the Kingdom of Jesus Christ the truth and certainty of which we shall prove So that if the reign of Antichrist must endure 1260. years it is necessary that it subsist at this present time and that it hath begun a long time since This is I say a demonstration which I have in readiness for these Gentlemen when I shall have proved the only thing in this argument that can be called in question viz. that the 1260. days of Antichrist cannot be understood of so many natural days I would prove this truth presently were it not that it regards the time of the duration of the Antichristian Empire of which we shall have occasion afterwards to speak Wherefore now we shall continue to give you the explication of the Prophecies that contain the Character of this Antichristian Empire CHAP. XVIII
payed Tribute And his being Hostage at Rome many years going to render Homage to this God even in his own seat makes the servitude and the homage principally fall on him and they may be justly attributed to him Thirdly Though the servitude began in the time of his father nevertheless the Prophecy particularly fixes it on the Son because of that pride which was peculiar to him As if the Holy Spirit would have said the Kingdom of Asia shall feel the force of the Romans for the mortification of this proud Antiochus who shall endeavour to exalt himself above all the Kings of the Earth This is an accident that to me seems marvellous that this prophecy found its accomplishment in Rome and in the Romans as well in the temporal as in the spiritual sense I said above that Antiochus was not a type of Antichrist but in the things he did against the Jewish Nation Because the strange Nations having no reference to the Church nothing that Tyrants do against the Nations is mystical Therefore we must not seek after a mystery in that which the Prophecy fore-tells that Antiochus should do against the Egyptians against Ptolomee and in reference to other people But 't is reasonable to except the Romans from this rule Though they then were a nation estranged from the Church yet however they had a reference to the Church For Rome was to be the head of the Antichristian Church And already in the Prophecies Rome Pagan that then was made but one beast i. e. one Empire with Rome Christian and Antichristian so that it was proper to the genius of the Prophecy that the type of the Roman Antichrist should be a type in what he did with respect to the Romans Besides it can't be thought strange that the same prophecy should have two prospects and consequently two accomplishments For so it is always in those Prophecies that turn on a typical subject That which may make some difficulty is that the temporal adventures of the type have usually their figurative respect to the spiritual adventures of the thing represented by the type Which doth not appear here for the homages which Antiochus rendred to the Romans do not appear to have any typical reference to the homages which the new Romans give to their Demi-gods They have however and it is certain that the homage which the new subjects of the Roman Empire do render at Rome to its head to its Saints and Idols have respect of a figure and the thing figured to the homage which the people of the world did render to ancient Rome whose Citizenship they did under-hand labour for and whose Eagles and other military Ensigns they worshipt Religio Romanorum tota castrensis Tertul Apolog. c. 1â— Signa veneratur signa jurat Signa omnibus Diis praeponit St. Peter and St. Paul and the H. Virgin at this day are in the banners of Rome just as the Eagles were heretofore and all the world gives homage to these banners and to that which is represented by them just as during the Empire of ancient Rome men did prostrate themselves before the Eagles I hold that the twelfth and last Chapter of Daniel The 12th Chapt. of Daniel respects also Antiochus Epiphanes doth also refer to Antiochus and Antichrist And at that time shall Michael stand up the great Prince that standeth for the children of thy people and there shall be a time of trouble such as nevey was since there was a nation even unto that same time and at that time thy people shall be delivered every one that shall be found written in the book of life This Prophecy literally respects Antiochus's last persecution of the Jews that was terrible and cruel but ended by the victories of the Macchabees This Michael is the Son of God himself who always watched for the preservation of his Church Spiritually and mystically this agrees to Antichrist and respects the last persecution that he must cause the Church to suffer after which he himself is to be ruin'd and the people of the Saints deliver'd 'T is the same victory as is described to us in the 19th Chapter of the Revel The words that follow make it very plain that this Prophecy must be understood of that victory that J. Christ must obtain over Antichrist at the end of the Antichristian Empire Daniel brings in the resurrection here to shew that he speaks of the victories of J. Christ over Antichrist And many of them that sleep in the dust of the Earth shall awake some to everlasting life and some to everlasting shame and contempt And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament and they that turn many to Righteousness as the stars for ever and ever What I pray should the resurrection do here in the middle of the Chap. in which the adventures only of Antiochus Epiphanes are spoken of 'T is plain that this is perfectly the same Prophecy as that of St. John in the 20th Chapt. of the Revel where the Apostle predicts the deliverance of the Church and the coming of the Kingdom of Christ by a resurrection They that were beheaded for the Name of Jesus must be raised up and reign with him a 1000. years This is what Daniel saith here that they that have turn'd many to Righteousness by their Doctrine and by their Martyrdom shall be as shining and ruling Stars in the Kingdom of J. Christ The Prophecy of Daniel joins together the two resurrections the first the second though they are distant each from the Other a 1000 years 'T is not the last resurrection nor the last coming of Jesus Christ that St. Iohn speaks of no more than Daniel 'T is of that coming that St. Paul speaks of when he saith that Jesus Christ shall destroy Antichrist by the brightness of his coming when he shall come to establish his Kingdom of a 1000 years on the Earth 'T is that resurrection which the Revelation calls the first resurrection And therefore Daniel doth not say And ALL those that sleep in the dust shall awake but he only saith MANY of those that sleep in the dust even as St. Iohn saith so expresly that then all the dead shall not arise 'T is true that Daniel also joins the resurrection of the wicked and some shall awake to shame and everlasting contempt But we must not conclude that this resurrection of the wicked must be at the same time one Prophecy must be explained by the other The resurrection of the wicked which Daniel joins here with the first resurrection is distant from it at least a 1000 years But he speaks of it as of two things joined together because he who speaks is God before whom a 1000 years are but as one day Besides this when our eyes look on things very far off always those things that are far from one another seem to be near The Stars seem to us to be near the Moon and yet
they are at a prodigious distance from it So the Prophet looking on these two resurrections the first and the last it is not strange that beholding them at so great distance he looked on them as joined together though they are a 1000 years distant from each other Moreover the H. Spirit from this first resurrection in which the Church must be deliver'd and which it may be is but a figurative resurrection would raise us up to the contemplation of the last and general resurrection because this first resurrection that must be before the 1000 years of the reign of Jesus Christ must be but an Embleme of the great deliverance of the Church when it shall be in one body translated from earth to heaven by the last resurrection 'T is usual with the Prophets to have holy sallies that from temporal things do transport them to spiritual and eternal ones Isaiah speaking of a sign that God would give to Ahaz and which he refused passes over many ages leaves there Ahaz and his sign Esai 7. and saith the Lord God shall give you a sign behold a Virgin shall bear a son The rest of the twelfth Chapter is not less profound but as it respects the duration of the persecution of Antiochus literally and mystically the time of the duration of the Kingdom of Antichrist we shall reserve it for that Chap. where we must speak of the duration of his Kingdom CHAP. XXIV In which are gather'd together 35. Characters of Antichrist that perfectly agree to the Papism and cannot agree to any but it A short portraiture of Antichrifi and his fearures AFter sounding all the fountains whence the pourtaiture of Antichrist is drawn I believe it will not be unuseful to gather together here all the strokes that we may see them all with one view and that we may discern the perfect conformity that is between that Antichrist and the Papism 1. It must be an Empire Rev. 13.1 for it is called a beast now in the Prophetick style a beast always signifies an Empire when Kings are treated of The Papism is an Empire in all the forms of worldly Empires ancient and modern We have proved it with the greatest evidence in our prejudices 2. It must also be a Religion 2 Thes 2. for it is called a mystery and it must be a false Religion for it is called a mystery of Iniquity and an apostacy There is only the Papism in which an Empire and a Religion are found both together 1 Tim. 4.1 8. 'T is true Mahomet made an Empire and a Religion at the same time But in Mahometanism the Religion is not the Empire nor the Empire the Religion and the Priests are not Soveraign Lords under the pretext of Religion Mahometanism is divided into many Aempires and yet there is but one Religion a proof that the Religion and the Empire are not the same thing The Papism is the only Religion that boasts of a Prophet always living Rev. 19.20 3. Antichrist must have a Prophet i. e. a man that saith he is infallible and that pretends to pronounce Oracles as well as the ancient Prophets For with the beast is joined the false Prophet The beast was taken and together with him the false Prophet that wrought signs before him There is no Religion in the World but the Papism that pretends to have an infallible head always pronouncing Oracles when it is necessary always speaking and always living This is a very peculiar Character and which should make us well discern him 4. The corruption of the Religion of Antichrist must principally consist in Idolatry 1 Tim. 4. 2 Thes 2. Rev. 17. for it is called apostacy a Doctrine of Daemons spiritual whoredom The Papism is a Religion in which Idols are re-establisht under new names We have also clearly proved it The Idolatry of Antichrist must be an idolatry of Christians Rev. 17. 5. This Antichristian Idolatry must be an idolatry of Christians which must be exercised in the Church and not without by the Spouse of Jesus Christ and not by a stranger For this idolatry is called adultery and conjugal unfaithfulness The Papism with its Idolatry retains the foundation of the Church and preserves Christianity 6. The chief City of this Empire and of this Religion must be a City seated on seven Mountaïns Rev. 17.9.18 and the great City which in the time of Saint John ruled over the Kingdoms of the Earth that is to say Rome The Papism hath for the capital of its Empire and Religion new Rome built where the ancient one was 7. This Empire was to form it self not by force but by craft by seduction and by the consent of the Kings of the West Rev. 13.13 that were to give their power to the beast The power of the Papism and the Bishop of Rome come by illusion rather than by the violence that both Kings and people have suffer'd 8. This Antichristian Empire must be a continuation of the fourth Monarchy which is that of the Romans Dan. 2.7 Rev. 13. as hath been shewn by the vision of Daniel's Statue by that of the four beasts and by the beast of the 13th of the Revel The Papism is a true continuation of the Roman Empire having the very same seat and very hear the same Provinces 9. This Empire must be only an Image of an Empire an Image of the Roman Empire Rev. 13.14 15. Yet this Image must speak and must be worshipped in all the Earth The Papism hath no arms nor citadels that really make an Empire it hath nothing but superstition and foolish fondness for all its arms however it speaks it threatens it promiseth it teacheth it seduceth and by this means it reigns 10. The Empire of Antichrist must have ten horns Rev. 13. end 17. that is to say ten Kings vassals and subjects props and upholders of its throne The Papism hath always had under it ten principal Kings that have worshipt and maintain'd its power 11. Antichrist must speak great things in his own behalf Rev. 13.5 but against God for they must be blasphemies The Papism saith of it self and its capital great and mighty things saying that Rome is eternal that she is infallible that the Pope is Superiour to all the Kings of the Earth the Spouse of the Church the Vicar of J. Christ God upon Earth his Holiness and most holy Lord. And these arrogant pretensions are true blasphemies against God against J. Christ and against the true Church the Spouse of J. Christ 12. Antichrist must raise wars and cruel persecutions on the account of Religion Rev. 13.7 For 't is given to him to make war against the Saints and to overcome them The Papism hath bathed it self in humane and Christian blood for six or seven hundred years 13. The Empire of Antichrist must be an Empire raised up again Rev. 13.3 an head mortally wounded but healed again The Empire of
the Papism is the Roman Empire that was brought to nothing by the Goths and Visigoths but is raised up again by the Popes 14. Antichrist must ascribe to himself two powers Rev. 13.11 like to those which J. Christ hath Now the Lord hath temporal and spiritual power There is no Potentate in the World that saith he hath this double power but the Pope the head of the Papism 15. Antichrist must be an Empire Rev. 13.18 as hath been proved and the name of this Empire must contain the number 666. The number 666. must be in the name of an Empire and not in the name of a man. There is no Empire in the World whose name contains 666 but that of the Latin and the Roman which is the name that the Papism glories in And this should be well observed to lay open the vanity of the observations of the Papists who to elude this so plain a Character seek for certain names of men in which they would find 666. They would fain find it in the name of Luther and very lately M. Simon would find it in Roterodami We must let them know they do nothing that here 't is not the name of a man but of an Empire that is treated of Now they will search in vain they will not find any Empire in the world whose name contains 666 besides the Roman or Latin Empire 16. The Kingdom of Antichrisi must be a Sodom Rev. 11. full of impurities and abominable crimes The Papism in all the fore-going ages hath been a sink of all the abominations of the Earth There are no filthy and odious crimes of which its Clergy and its subjects have not made themselves guilty The proof of it at large may be seen in our just prejudices 17. This Antichristian Empire must be a cruel Egypt a Babylon Rev. 18.4 in which God will preserve his people notwithstanding its corruptions Come forth of Babylon my people There is no false Religion that hath possessed the Church more ages and in which God hath been able to preserve his Elect than the Papism 18. Antichristianism must be establisht in the Temple of God i.e. in the Church There is no Kingdom Empire and corrupt Religion together with it that is establisht in the Christian Church but the papism 19. The Antichristian Empire must be exceeding proud 2 Thes 2. For its head must sit in the Temple of God as if he were God. The papism hath carried pride beyond whatsoever can be imagin'd 'T is notorious 20. Antichrist must worship Mahuzim i. e. Patrons and Protectors The Papism worship its Guardian Angels and Saints under whose protection it puts it self 21. Antichristianism must be a Paganism raised up again Rev. 11. For the outward Court must be left to the Gentiles for 42 months The Papism hath all the parts of a paganism built on Christianity as hath been so evidently proved 22. Antichrist must usurp the power of J. Christ For he shall have the horns of a Lamb Rev. 13.11 and shall speak as a Dragon The Papism hath usurp'd all the power of J. Christ The Pope acts speaks censures absolves damns dethrones Kings c. in the name and by the authority of J. Christ The Empire of the Papism ascended out of the Earth by little and little 23. The Antichristian Empire must not be formed with noise this beast must not ascend out of the sea as a monster that comes out of the deep very great and wholly formed in the twinkling of an eye and which devours as soon as it is on the Earth It must arise out of the Earth as a plant that is nothing in the beginning and which after many years grows a great Tree Rev. 13.11 For the second beast ascendeth out of the Earth and not out of the Sea. The Empire of the papism came by little and little as a Tree which for many years hath been but a little herb 24. The Empire and the Religion of Antichrist must be establisht by false signs and false wonders 'T is impossible to reckon up the false miracles Popety is the only religion that boasts of working signs and miracles which the papism hath produced to establish its superstitions and its power 'T is at this day the only religion in the World that pretends to work miracles 25. The Christian Apostacy must be promoted by persons given to lies lovers of fables 'T is the true signification of the word which St. Paul uses Pseudologoi 1 Tim. 4. There never was a religion in the World that hath produced so many fables as the papism I have proved it in my just prejudices 26. The Teachers of Antichristianism must have a great appearance of Austerity they must despise and discredit marriage and command abstinence from meats The Teachers of the papism make it necessary for them to remain unmarried and think they merit greatly by abstinence from meats 27. Antichristianism was to appear in the world when the head of the Roman Emperors was beaten down The papism in the time that the Roman Empire was destroyed by the Goths and the Vandals began to be sensible in its idolatry and its tyranny 28. This Empire must have its course in the later times 1 Tim. 4. It is unquestionable that we are in the later times therefore the Empire of the papism at this day subsisting is the Empire of Antichrist 29. The Antichristian Empire must subdue three Kings of the ten The Empire of the papism Dan. 7. besides that it hath subdued more than a third part of the temporal power of the Western Kings it hath actually subjected to it self in fief and temporal homage many Kingdoms Among others that of the Lombards of which he possesseth one part the City of Rome and its jurisdiction and the Kingdom of Naples for which even at this day he makes homage be paid him every year 30. The Antichristian Empire must put to death the Witnesses of the Truth of God. Rev. 11. The papism uses all imaginable attempts to extinguish those Societies that give testimony to the truth and that oppose Superstition and Idolatry 31. The Antichristian Empire must interdict fire and water Rev. 13. i. e. all commerce with those that will not pay homage to it and carry its mark and its name The Papism excommunicates damns proscribes and puts under interdict all those that will not submit themselves to its Laws and that will not bear the names of Roman Catholiques 32. Spiritual Babylon must be a Merchant Rev. 18. and there must be great traffique in all precious things even in souls Therefore they that live of its Traffique shall weep bitterly upon her ruins Of all the Religions in the World there was never any where avarice simony and the sale of spritual things reigned to that degree as they have done in the papism If any one can tell of any one they would much oblige us to
times and half a time are the same poriod times and half a time The 42 months during which the Court must be left to the Gentiles according to what is said in the 11th Chap. The 1260 days during which the two witnesses are to prophecy clothed in sackcloth as 't is fore-told in the same 11th Chapter And lastly the 42. months given to the first beast of the 13th Chapter of the Revel to excercise his power All these different periods I say are one and the same period and signify the duration of the Antichristian Empire This can't be disputed The second principle is this that in that Prophecy the days the years and the months may be taken for natural days months and years or for prophetical ones a day for a year Sometimes the Prophets count the time as other men do This might signify natural days for sometimes the Prophets do so speak they reckon the time as other men do Jeremy reckon'd 70 years for the duration of the captivity and these years are natural ones 'T is certain also that in the period of the thousand years designed for the reign of the Church after the destruction of Antichrist the years are taken for natural years But it is not less certain The Papists cannot deny but that the 1260 days may signify 1260 years Chap. 9. Chap. 4. v. 4.6 that these days and these years may be taken mystically for prophetical days and years 'T is confest that the 70 weeks of Daniel signify 70 weeks of years God said to Ezekiel Thou shalt sleep on thy left side and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it according to the number of the days that thou shalt lye upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity I have appointed thee each day for a year Numb 14.34 God said to the Israelites according to the number of the days in which ye searched the Land even 40 days each day for a year shall you bear your iniquities even 40 years This could not be obscure to the Israelites who were accustom'd to this style and who knew there were weeks of years in their Calendar as well as weeks of days and that a week of years answered to that of days one year for one day The third principle is this that here the number of three years and a half 42 months and 1260 days cannot signify an indefinite time As it sometimes happens The number 1260 must be a definite number not an indefinite one that the Holy Spirit by a determinate number means an undetermin'd one A way that would be extreamly advantagious to the partisans of Rome For when one shall have demonstrated that 't is absolutely impossible that that which is predicted concerning the Antichristian Empire can be fulfilled in the compass of three years and a half it would be very useful for them if they could say we must not take this so strictly in the literal sense that it may signify three times ten three times twenty or more according as the Holy Spirit oftentimes means an indefinite number by a definite one But here that cannot be There are certain numbers by which the Prophets use to describe an indefinite time by reason of a certain priviledge those numbers have As that of three because 't is the first odd number the number of the persons of the Trinity that of seven because of the seven days of the creation that of twelve because of the twelve Patriarchs the twelve Tribes and the twelve Apostles that of 100 and that of 1000 because these are numbers that according to the custome of men are often designed to signify a great undetermin'd quantity But we shall not find any examples of broken numbers as that of three and a half of 42 and 1260 taken for indefinite numbers 'T is true the Revelation speaks of the 144 thousand sealed ones Now the number of 144 is not less a broken one than that of 42. But 't is because 144 is the product of that of 12 multiplied by it self The Holy Spirit takes twelve thousand sealed persons of every Tribe 12 times 12 make 144. Here a reason can't be given why God should choose 1260 days to mark out an indefinite time There is no middle way therefore they must be so many years It must be 1260 years or 1260 days and no more or so many simple days So that when we shall have proved that the course of this Empire is not three years and a half we shall have proved also that 't is 1260 years To prove that 't is not three years and a half we need but run through the History of this Empire according as we find it in the book of the Revelation The first Argument against the three years and half One half of the Revelation would be taken up in giving an account of the events of only three years and a half First of all we must know that according to the greatest part of Interpreters almost the whole Revelation is spent in fore-telling us and setting in order the events that must happen to the Church during this reign of Antichrist At least it is certain that 't is the subject of one half of this book the 11th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th and 19th Chapters contain the birth progress finishing ruin and fall of this Antichristian Kingdom Let any one judge if there be any likelyhood that this only prophetical book which the Apostles have left us for the time of the N. Testament moves but upon three years and a half and hath omitted the events of almost two thousand years So that the general Idea of this Prophecy can't bear this imagination but let us come to particulars Second Argument these three years and a half can't agree with what is said of the first beast in the 13th Chap. of the Revelation Second The 11th Chapt. begins to speak of this Antichristian Empire but because this is but as a general History and an abridgement 't is in this general account that the vision of the three years and a half is hid and 't is from hence it hath been taken Let us see if this can agree with the places where the Prophet enlargeth this short description We have in the 13th Chap. a representation of this Empire under the emblems of two beasts of which one had seven heads and ten horns and the other but one head and two horns We there see in the first place a beast with seven heads and ten horns It hath been confessed to us that this is Antichrist We have proved that the word beast signifies an Empire consisting of a founder and his successors Now see a fine succession and a very considerable time that same of three years and a half to be called an Empire and to be meant by a beast Certainly this beast with seven heads and ten horns is the Roman Empire in its whole extent from its founder Romulus even to Antichrist who
five days The mystery of the four numbers I do not know whether any Interpreters have understood the mystery but see how I explain it First we must know that the first number of 2300 mornings and evenings must not be taken for 2300 days as Interpreters take it which forces them to go back to the very beginning of the reign of Antiochus Two thousand three hundred mornings and evenings taken for so many days 2300 mornings and evenings make but 1150 days make six years four months twenty days The prophanation ended in the 148th year of the Aera of the Seleucidae as we shall see So that we must go back even to the 142 year to find there the beginning of these six years four months and twenty days And it were necessary that the prophanation of the Sanctuary and the cessation of the daily sacrifice should then begin For the Prophet speaks expresly of the cessation of the daily sacrifice How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice And he receives this Answer for 2300 evening and mornings Yet 't is certain by the History of the Macchabees and by the Prophecy of the twelfth Chapter of Daniel that the prophanation of the Sanctuary and the cessation of the daily sacrifice begin not till three years after viz. the 145 year of the Aera of the Seleucidae I am perswaded therefore that we must understand by it two thousand three hundred sacrifices of the evening and the morning And this will not be scrupled by him that shall consider First That it is not usual in the holy Tongue nor in any other to say two evenings and mornings or three evenings and mornings meaning two days three days c. Secondly That the cessation of this daily sacrifice that was offered morning and evening being here spoken of to this question How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice a more proper and intelligible answer than this cannot be given viz. It shall be for two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings That is to say There shall be an interruption of two thousand three hundred sacrifices So that this number makes one thousand one hundred and fifty days See then these four numbers 1. Eleven hundred and fifty days which make three years two months and ten days 2. A time times and half a time which are three years and six months 3. One thousand two hundred fourscore and ten days which make three years and seven months 4. One thousand three hundred thirty five days that make three years eight months and fifteen days In the whole taking thirty days for every month a round number which the Holy Spirit hath chosen to avoid broken numbers arising from the inequality of the months Which appears by this that in the Revelat. 42 months and 1260 days are taken for the same thing 'T is so if 30 days be assigned to every month These four numbers are different and the later always exceeds the former There is six months and five days difference between the least and the greatest How can we reconcile this with the History We find this history in the four first Chap. of the first book of Macchabees The first Book of Macchabees is a book that deserveth esteem Though this book be not Canonical it deserves however a very great esteem and I do not at all doubt but it was left to the Church by a singular Providence of God that by it we might see the truth of Daniel's Prophecy and at the same time to instruct us in the different periods of the duration and end of Antichrist's Kingdom shadowed forth by that of Antiochus See then how we must frame the Chronology of the four first Chapters of this Book to the end we may find an admirable agreement between the events and these four numbers in the Prophecy To understand what we are about to say it must in the first place be observed that two things usually are Confounded that must be very carefully distinguisht in the persecution of Antiochus We must observe four periods in the persecution of Antiochus the first is the prophanation of the Sanctuary the second is the cessation of the daily sacrifice 'T is supposed that they are the same thing or at least that these two things lasted one as long as the other Which is not so for the prophanation of the Sanctuary began some months before the cessation of the daily sacrifice also it ceased sooner For the daily sacrifice began not again till some months after the sanctuary had ceased from being prophan'd see then the four Periods that must be observ'd in the persecution of the Jewish Church by Antiochus The first from the ceasing of the daily Sacrifice till its first beginning again The second from the beginning of the prophanation of the Temple by the Gentiles to the purification of the Temple begun by Macchabaeus The third from the beginning of the prophanation of the Temple by the Gentiles to the finishing the purification of the Temple by Judas Macchabaeus The fourth from the beginning the first prophanation of the Temple by the Geniles to its dedication consecration which was the very same day that the first daily sacrifice began again The four numbers in the Prophecy answer to these four Periods 1. The first number of 2300. evenings and mornings answers to the cessation of the daily sacrifice as is clear and this signifies that from the ceasing of the last daily sacrifice to the first beginning again of the daily sacrifice there was to be an interruption of 2300. sacrifices i. e. 1150 days which make three years two months ten days 2. The number of a time times and half a time i. e. three years and six months answers to the period that ran out from the first prophanation of the Temple by the Gentiles to the beginning of the purification of it by Judas Macchabaeus And this signifies that from the first prophanation to the beginning of the purification there were exactly 3 Years and 6 Months 3. The third Number which is 1290. days answers to the period that ran out from the first prophanation of the Temple by the Gentiles to the finishing the purification by Macchabaeus and this signifies that from the first prophanation of the Temple to the finishing its purification there were 1290 days i. e. three Years and seven months 4. Lastly the fourth number which is 1335. days answers to the period that ran out from the first prophanation of the Temple to its dedication and consecration And this signifies that from this first prophanation to the feast of the dedication there were 1335 days i. e. three years eight months and fifteen days The three last periods begin at the same point viz. the prophanation of the Temple by the Gentiles but they end at three different points One at the beginning of the cleansing of the Temple the other at the end of this cleansing and the third at the
had been either taken away or prophaned To do this no less than 45 days were necessary and these are the 45 days added to 1290 that make the number 1335 days of which the Prophet saith Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the 1335 days And 't is at the end of these 1335 days reckoning from the prophanation in the beginning of the year 148 that the dedication was made in the year 148. on the 25th day of the ninth month Therefore 't is the Prophet cries out Blessed is he c. because it was a great feast and great rejoycing in Israel See I say both the History and the Chronology and the duration of the cessation of the prophanation of the Temple and the interruption of the daily sacrifice made to agree with the Prophecy At present from the type we must in a few words make our conjectures touching that which must come to pass in the duration of the Antichristian Empire The prophanation of the Mosaical Sanctuary by Antiochus lasted three years and a half to the time that Judas Macchabaeus drove the Heathen out of Ierusalem and Paganism out of the Temple the cleansing of which he began To the end the truth may answer to the figure the Antichristian Empire must endure three years and a half consisting of 1260 days which are 1260 years during which the Sanctuary shall be prophaned by the Heathens i. e. the service of God shall be polluted by revived Paganism and the Temple of God possessed by a Tyrant At the end of 1260 day Judas Macchabaeus began the purification of the Temple and spent 30 days about it The cleansing of the Church must be begun the Idol must be cast out the Tyrant expelled after the 1260 years But as Judas Macchabaeus spent 30 days about purifying the Temple after he had taken away the Idol thence and had rescued it out of the hands of the Tyrant 't is propable that after the fall of the Papism of its tyranny and idolatry 30 years more will be spent in purifying the Church from all schisms heresies divisions and etrours Lastly as Judas Macchabaeus spent 45 other days to prepare all things for the consecration of the Temple in like manner after the Church shall have been cleansed from idolatry haeresy superstition schism and errours God will employ yet 45 years more to prepare all things for the consummation of the Church At the end of which time will be the dedication the solemn feast And 't is in my opinion in this last space of 45 years that God is to call the Gentiles and all the Nations of the Earth to the knowledge of himself this is that which the Apostle Saint Paul calls The fullness of the Gentiles For see as I believe the degrees by which the Church must arrive at it perfection 1. Babylon shall fall the Kingdom of Antichrist shall cease 2. The Church shall be reunited in the same opinion schisms and divisions shall be at an end 3. The Idolatrous and Infidel Nations especially the Turks who are at this day scandalized at the divisions manners and the false Doctrines of the Christians shall submit themselves at least the greatest part of them being prevailed upon by the purity of Doctrine and holiness of manners 4. Lastly The Jews overcome by so unanimous a consent and it may be by some glorious apparition of our Lord shall be converted and strongly labour to convert the rest of the Nations far distant and separated from us Then shall be the Dedication the consummation of the Church And blessed is he that shall wait and come to the 1335 days i. e. to seventy five years after the fall of the Popish Empire For he shall see the reign of J. Christ in all its Glory CHAP. III. What the Last time are It doth not signify the end of the World. There are many times with reference to the Church and with reference to the World. If Antichrist must reign 1260 years he is come Mahometanism is not Antichristianism THus much is enough to destroy that Chimaera of the duration of the Kingdom of Antichrist for three natural years and a half 'T is necessary only to answer a difficulty that may be raised from hence that the reign of Antichrist is called the last times which seems to mean the end of the World. And without doubt this is that which gave occasion to the ancient Writers to suppose that the end of this Empire was not to be above forty five days before the day of judgement But to fall into this errour a man must be little used to the style of the Scripture One thousand two hundred and sixty years 't is said can't be called the last times the period is too long 'T is necessary the reign of Antichrist should be nearer the end of the World and the day of judgement than so But what will those Gentlemen say that make this objection St. John calls his time the last time 1 Ep. 2.18 what will they say of Saint John who speaking of Antichrist and precisely of that tradition according to which he was to come in the last times saith Little children it is the last time and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come even now are there many Antichrists whereby we know that it is the last time 'T is above sixteen hundred years ago that Saint John said so and then from that time he counted the last times With much more reason may we reckon those ages that came not till four or five hundred years after for the last times The last day the last times are not the same thing John. 6.54 â— Neither must we imagine that the last times signify a short space We must well distinguish the last day from the last time When the Holy Spirit speaks of the last day he always means a short time He that eateth my flesh saith our Lord I will raise up again at the last day But the last time and especially the last times in the plural number always signifieth a long period See the proofs of both these things First that the last times signify not the end of the World. The last times doth not always signify the last day The last time in the singular number sometimes doth St. Peter saith that we are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time 1. Pet. 1.5 But it doth not always so signify as appears by that passage of St. John which we quoted a little before 't is the last time As for that in the plural number the last time and the last days we find they always signify a time far enough off from the end of the World. Saint Paul in the second verse of the Epistle to the Hebrews saith 1 Ephes 1.20 that God hath spoken to us in these last days by his Son. The Apostle Saint Peter saith that Jesus Christ was fore-ordained before the foundation of
Simon the Grammarian that not long since hath set up for an Interpreter of the Revelations His new lights do well deserve a particular Chapter by themselves But for the present we must follow on our way and shew that if the 1260 days be 1260 years then all that the Papists say of Antichrist is false and all that we say of him is true It being proved that the 1260 days are 1260 years the Papists Antichrist is a Chimaera If it be false that this Empire must last but 1260 natural days it is true that it must last 1260 years for I have proved there is no middle way to be taken And if it be true that Antichrist must reign 1260 years he can no longer be only one single man nor a revolted Jew nor a salse Messiah nor a man of the Tribe of Dan nor a Tyrant that must re-establish the Mosaical worship and rebuild Jerusalem to cause the Iews to reign there For it would be absurd to suppose that one man should live 1260 years that the reign of the Law of Moses should return for 12 Ages and that Iudaism for so long a time should oppress the Christian Religion If the Empire of Antichrist must last 1260 years it must necessarily be already come If his duration be 1260 years Antichrist is come For 't is to go against the general opinion of all men to suppose that before the reign of Jesus Christ comes we must yet expect a tyrannical Monarchy of 1200 years If the Antichristian Empire be come it must be either Mahometanism or the Papism Antichristianism can't be found among the Arri-ans for they have been extinct a long time and their reign did not come to near 1260 years We can't find him among the Athigenses who never reign'd who appear'd but for a little time and who were always oppressed He cant ' be found neither among the Lutherans nor Calvinists for none of the Characters of Antichristianism do agree to them and the Papists would not acknowledge that our reign should be for 1200 years There 's nothing remains but Mahometanism on which one can cast ones yes Mahometanism hath not the Characters of Antichristianism to seek out Antichristianism 't is indeed an Antichristian Sect because 't is an enemy to Jesus Christ and hath already subsisted above a 1000 years But we can't find therein the Characters of Antichristianism so as 't is described in the Prophets First Antichristianism must be an Apostacy and a revolt of men that formerly were obedient to the faith The Saracens Arabians and Turks the founders and preservers of this Sect never were Christians and are not Apostates Mahomet and the Arabians were Heathens Secondly Antichristianism must be an Idolatry for it is called a Whoredom and must teach the Doctrine of Daemons and mediatory spirits Now the Mahometans are not idolaters on the contrary they abhor the adoration of Images and 't is this that greatly scandalizeth them against the Christian Religion Thirdly In the name of Antichrist we must find the number 666. In the name of Mahomet and Mahometan Arabians and Saracens in any language this number is not found Fourthly Anchristianism was to have its seat in the great City which in St. Iohns time ruled over the Kings of the Earth That is Rome as all Interpreters unanimously acknowledge Mahomet and his Partizans never did possess the City of Rome and do not possess it Fifthly The Empire of Antichrist must be the Roman Empire continued the Empire of the Arabians is so far from being the continuation of the Roman Empire that it hath been the destruction of it in the East Sixthly Antichrist must sit in the Temple of God i. e. in the Church Mahomet and his Successors are out of the Church and do not belong to Christendom Seventhly Ten Kings must voluntarily give their power to Antichrist But the Arabians and Saracens have conquer'd all Kingdoms by meer violence none did voluntarily submit to them Eighthly Antichrist must be the seventh head of the Beast in the Revelation i. e. Of the Roman Empire Mahomet hath nothing in common with the Roman Empire Ninethly The Empire of Antichrist must be properly nothing else but the image of an Empire which yet however must be worship and obedience be given to it The Empire of the Mahometans is not an image but rather the most despotical and arbitrary Empire that ever was in the World. Tenthly The Antichristian Empire must have under it ten horns i. e. ten Kings Ten horns every one having his crown and his Royal power So far is the Empire of the Mahometans from suffering any vassal Kings to subsist that it hath destroyed all the great Lords In India in Persia in Turky every one of these Mahometan Empires hath but one only Lord. Eleventhly The Empire of Antichrist must be but one it must not be divided For the Kings that are to submit to him shall acknowledge him for their only head But the Empire of Mahomet is divided into many Empires The Empire of the Tartars the Empire of the Turks the Empire of the Persians the Empire of the Mogulls and these four Empires are not only different but always opposite and almost always enemies Twelfthly Antichrist must have two horns i. e. two powers like to the Lamb. 'T is notorious the Mahometans have nothing in common with Iesus Christ with his Religion and with his power Thirteenth Antichrist must excommunicate persecute take away liberty of commerce from all those that will not take on them his name and his mark in their fore-heads i. e. that will not follow his Religion The Mahometans suffer all sorts of Religions Heathens and Christians Fourteenth The Antichristian Empire must be a head i. e. a Kingdom hurt with a deadly wound and revive again This can by no means agree to Mahometanism which is a Religion wholly new and which hath formed Empires wholly new It was necessary to make these observations against those that greatly desiring to take Antichrist from Rome would fain place him among the Mahometans CHAP. IV. Some Principles to discover when the Antichristian Empire began and when it must end Three Characters of that Empire Idolatry Pride and corruption That these three Characters began to appear in the fourth Age and did infinitely encrease in the fifth HItherto we have discoursed on what is past now we proceed to treat of what is future or at least of those things that are believed so to be For we shall see that many things that are looked upon as future are already past 'T is the ruin of Antichrist and his Empire that we are now about to speak of And the first question that is asked thereupon is this When shall that Empire be destroyed A great question and which hath hitherto been looked upon as a thing that none could penetrate into 'T is certainly very difficult to be penetrated into but yet however I do not think 't is impossible to find
out the truth There is a particular Providence that presides over the the understanding of Prophecies as we have observed God would not have them understood in every age because this would hinder their accomplishment But when they are just ready to be fulfilled God permits them to be penetrated into and the things which we see come to pass from day to day open mens eyes The great point is to know where we must begin the 1260 years In this matter the whole depends on our knowing where we must begin the 1260 years that are assigned for the reign of the papism And there are as many opinions about that as there are men Some begin them with Boniface the third Successor to Gregory the great because they would be favourable to Gregory the first who seems to have had very good things in him And because his Successor was the first that assumed the name of Vniversal Bishop Others descend lower and begin the 1260 year at the time when Images were establisht Some come as far as to the 11th Age and to the reign of Gregory the seventh who was insolent to a higher degree than any of his Predecessors dared to advance themselves unto There are some also that come as far as to the 12th Age. The fountain of their errour that descend so low for the beginning of the 1260 years I shall not amuse my self with mentioning much less with confuting all these Opinions I shall only say this boldly that they who go so low to find out the beginning of the 1260 years are in an errour That which hath deceived them is this they imagine we must not begin the Antichristian Empire till the time that Idolatry and Tyranny were arrived to their height in the Church in which I am throughly perswaded they deceive themselves Another cause of their being deceived is this having this truth in mind that Rome must be the head of the Antichristian Empire they will not begin that Empire before the Roman Church was most notoriously remarkable for her pride among all the Churches When any make a history of an Empire they must begin it from its original Totally to remove these two mistakes it must be observed that in every country and in every language when any would make a History of an Empire and a Kingdom they begin it from its orginal They that make the History of the Franks or Frenchmen among the Gauls do not fix their beginning on that time when the French were masters of all the Gauls from the frontier of Flanders to the Alps and the Pyrenaean mountains For that happen'd very late But they begin with the first entry of the Franks into Gaul and their first establishment on this side the Rhine When any make a History of the Empire of Rome they begin the Roman History from the first foundation of that City so they reckon'd in Rome it self ab Vrbe Conditâ And this way of reckoning continued till the fifth age when the Christian account began to be in use and men reckon'd by the years of Jesus Christ Moreover 't is the custome of the Scripture and of the Holy Spirit as well as of the World 'T is said the sojourning of the Israelites in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years yet they were not in that slavery above 210 years But the Holy Spirit reckons from the time of the calling of Abraham and his passing into Canaan where he and his off-spring were strangers 'T is therefore all the time of the pilgrimage of the family of Abraham which God begins from its original Lastly 't is the stile of the Prophets and particularly in the Prophecy we are treating of The fourth Beast is the Roman Empire all the World agrees in that where doth the Holy Spirit begin the History of that Beast or of that Empire not at the point of its grandeur which happen'd not till above 400 years after its original but from the point of its birth and that is clear because he ascribes seven heads to that Beast Heads which signify so many Governments under which Rome hath passed Now the first of these Governments is that of Kings under whom Rome in the beginning was no more than a great Village and afterwards a very little City without dependencies This principle therefore must be supposed that the H. Spirit dates the Antichristian Empire from its original 'T is not necessary that the first seeds of Antichristiaenism should have been conceived at Rome The other mistake that we must get rid of is this that Rome is precisely the place where the Empire of Antichrist must have its birth 'T is not so Antichristianism is born every where and it might very well be born in the East before it came to fix its seat in the West That which makes men affix the birth of the Antichristian Empire precisely to Rome is because being struck with what Saint Paul saith that the man of sin must exalt himself above all that is called God they have confined Antichristianism principally and almost solely to tyranny and Pride and have imagined that the birth of Antichristianism was not to be found but in that City which had always been and which afresh was to be the Throne of Pride But herein they have been deceived Antichristianism consists no less in idolatry and corruption of manners than in tyranny in such a manner that in all places where we see the birth of Idolatry Superstition and Corruption there without doubt Antichristianism is born These principles being laid down the three Characters which we have affixed to the Antichristian Empire by reason of its three names must be remembred Idolatry because 't is called Babylon the mother of fornications and abominations corruption of manners because 't is called Sodom Pride and Tyranny The three Characters of Antichristianism began in the fourth Age and first of all superstition because 't is called Egypt When these three sins began to be establisht in the Church Antichristianism began to enter into it Now 't is certain it was towards the end of the fourth and in the whole fifth Age that these disorders received their birth The superstition of Reliques the veneration and worship of them and immediately after the invocation and intercession of the Saints were introduced about the year 360. or 380. Already before this time that superstition had begun among the people I do not at all doubt but that women and simple persons especially those that were but newly converted from Paganism were the first Authors of it Devout ignorant people easily fall into superstition It had been a very ancient custome to frequent the Martyrs tombs there to celebrate their memory to pray for them and there to pray for themselves For in Eusebius's time men were wont to assemble themselves at the sepulchers of the Martyrs to say their prayers upon their sepulchers and there to honour their most happy souls The Papists in this passage would
encrease of the papal Tyranny 'T is known this papal Tyranny had its degrees since Leo the first that sate in that See in the year 450 to Gregory the Great the Bishops of Rome endeavoured to arrogate to themselves a superiority over the Universal Church but yet however without desiring to be called Oecumenical Bishops After Gregory the first to Gregory the seventh the Popes called themselves Vniversal Bishops but without styling themselves Soveraigns and Masters of Kings and Kingdoms This Gregory was the first that endeavoured to depose Emperors and Kings This is Antichrist perfected Those also that did not know him when he was yet in his first periods did know him when he arrived to this We have many testimonies of the German Bishops of that time who profess that this Gregory the seventh and his successors were Antichrist CHAP. VI. The circumstances of the fall of Antichrist re-establisht in their order An explication of the fifteenth Chapter Principles for the right understanding the sixteenth Chapter Divers interpretations given of it and their visible faults AFter having seen the time in which the fall and last ruin of the Antichristian Empire must happen 't is time to see the circumstances of that fall and I am very well satisfied that therein we shall find what will confirm that which we have affirmed touching the approaching end of Antichristianism I pretend to improve my conjecture to a kind of demonstration by the full agreement there is between my hypotheses and the Prophecies The circumstances of the fall of the Antichristian Empire are to be found in the 11 14 15 16 17 18 and 19th Chapters 'T is certainly that part of the Revelation that hath been least understood I mean as to what respects the circumstances of the ruin of the Antichristian Empire For as for the Characters of that Empire which are also contain'd in those Chapters they have been well enough apprehended But as to the fall of that Empire the time and progress of that fall God would not let men hitherto be so happy in their conjectures I hope that in what I shall now say something shall be met with that shall much more bear upon it the Characters of truth Divers circumstances of the fall of Antichrist which the H. Spirit hath not pleased to put into one vision The H. Spirit 's so often repeating the prophecy of the fall of Babylon and the ruin of its Empire is not only to give us a perfect certainty of the event 't is principally to mark out unto us that fall by divers circumstances But it hath not pleased God to give us all these circumstances in one vision that so the Prophecy might not be too plain For it is not at all the intention of God to inform us clearly of things to come with respect to their circumstances But only as to the substance of the thing The fall of the Antichristian Empire is the substance that which is necessary to support the hopes of the Church Hence it is that there is no obsecurity in the prophecy with respect to this no more then there was in the Prophecies concerning the Messiah with respect to the substance of it and the certainty of his coming but there was much as to the circumstances of that coming Therefore God hath misplaced the circumstances in the visions that they might be obscure because God was willing that the circumstances of the fall of the Kingdom of Antichrist should be obscure he hath for this reason divided them into several visions And for the same reason that is that he might put a venerable veyle upon that which he was not willing that we should know before the time He hath not placed the circumstances exactly according to the order of their coming to pass The vision which marches fore-most contains things which ought not to come to pass till afterward and the visions which follow contain things which ought to come to pass before Therefore that we may place these adorable obscurities in such a Light as is necessary to pierce into them we must bring things into their natural order and explain the visions according to the order of those events which they fore-tell In doing this we will begin with the 16th Chapter of the Revelation which contains the admirable vision of the seven viols which are the seven periods through which the Antichristian Empire ought to pass to come to its fall God does ordinarily prepare for greater visions by lesser The fifteenth Chapter is nothing but a preparation for the vision of the sixteenth Where are the seven last plagues as the twelve first verses of the 14th are nothing but a preparation unto the vision of the harvest and vintage which is very evident from the beginning of the 15th Chapter which is And I saw another sign in Heaven great and marvellous seven Angels having the seven last plagues As a preparation unto the vision of these seven last plagues God does make the Prophet see a sea of glass or of chrystal mingled with fire that is a sea where ice and fire are mingled and them that had gotten the victory over the beast and over his Image that is them that had escaped his corruption and idolatry stand upon the sea of glass or of ice and they sung the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb Great and marvellous are thy works It is clear A lively Image of those who escape the corruption of Popery its persecutions that the Prophet does make an allusion unto the passage through the red Sea and unto the Children of Israel who being got upon the shore of that Sea sung the song which Moses composed for them The Sea of glass mingled with fire answers to the red sea they who had gotten the victory over the Beast answer to the Israelites who had overcome the Egyptians Egypt out of which the Israelites marcht answers to this Antichristian Empire out of which the Elect do escape Therefore as the red sea and its waves were the danger out of which the Israelites coming out of Egypt were deliver'd so this sea of glass mingled with fire represents the evils which the Faithful who leave Babylon do escape These evils are called a sea on the account of their greatness and bitterness my breach is great like the sea said Jeremy they are called a sea of glass or a sea of ice because of their hardness 'T is more easy to escape out of a sea of water because the liquidity of waters does make it possible to swim through them but if a sea was glass or ice it would be impossible to get out of it There is also fire mingled with glass to represent the burning and extream dolours of those evils Fire and Ice are two extreams in evil yet they are joyn'd in the description of the calamities of the Church though they seem inconsistent if it be a sea of ice there cannot be fire there and if
there be fire how can it subsist with ice This is to express that the calamities of the Church are extream and that they include all kinds of evils There is Ice that is Irreligion a privation of the Fire of Piety There is fire through the cruelty of persecutions 'T is for this that the Spirit used the term glass instead of ice to signify that it should be a frozen sea which should subsist with fire I know not what they had in their thoughts who have said that this sea of glass signified the Church The Israelites who are escaped out of the spiritual Egypt are represented upon the sea of glass that is upon its shore and as those who come out of the water In the style of the holy language upon the river upon the sea is upon the shore of the river and upon the shore of the sea After this come out of the Temple which is in Heaven the seven Angels appointed to pour out the seven vials of the wrath of God. They are clothed in white v. 6. to denote their purity they had their loins girt after the fashion of the ancients who girt themselves when they made themselves ready for a combate or any other difficult work v. 7. One of the four beasts gives to each of them one viol a bottle out of which we pour into a cup. This Figure of speaking is common we pour out of a viol into a cup. Now a Cup in the figurative and Prophetick style signifies the judgements of God in allusion unto that stupifying cup which was given to Criminals condemned to dye that they might be less sensible of the pain of their punishment Or rather which I judge more probable God in this vision makes an allusion to hour-glasses in which water did run out to mark the hours and duration of time as now adays this is done by the running of sand And this later explication is to be preferr'd because by this we shall more easily distinguish the Periods from the judgements which are executed during those periods Viols or hour-glasses are appointed to measure periods and times and the plagues naturally signify the judgements of God upon men For these seven viols signify seven Periods of time which God designed to run out during seven or eight Centuries leasurely as water and sand run out in hour-glasses The Temple was fill'd with smoke from the Glory of God v. 8. and from his power and no man was able to enter into the Temple till the seven plagues were fullfill'd 'T is a manifest allusion to that which happen'd in the Tabernacle when it was dedicated by Moses and in the Temple when it was dedicated by Solomon such a cloud and smoke did at that time fill the Temple that Moses could not enter into it nor the Priests were able to stand there Both here and there this signifies the extraordinary presence of God there for the consecration of the Tabernacle and Temple here for the accomplishing his decrees and the executing of his judgements I do not believe that we ought to search after any other mysteries here After this begins the 16th Chapter Ch. 16. and the vision of the viols it is one of the most august and excellent visions in the whole Book but withal the least understood Till now nothing hath been understood of the sense of the 16th Chapter of the Revel which is the Key of the fall of Antichrist I am fully perswaded that Interpreters have understood nothing of the meaning of this Chapter Gods knows whether we shall be more happy if we are mistaken as others are this must be charged on us if we light upon the truth this must be ascribed to God. But I am perswaded that God hath heard me in this thing and hath answer'd the very ardent desire which I have had to pierce into these profound mysteries to the end that I might descry the deliverance of his Church There cannot be a greater mistake then that of some modern Interpreters who make these seven plagues to be poured out during seven ages either of the Church in general or of the Christian Church in particular All that others seem to have understood as to this Chapter is that it contains the History of seven degrees or seven periods through which the Antichristian Kingdom ought to pass before its fall every period containing dismal judgements of God which are to afflict the Empire of the Beast This carries such evidence along with it that it is almost impossible not to see it but yet this hath been seen very confusedly and the application which hath been made hath been very unhappy Now since others have understood nothing of the sense of this Chapter we must not wonder that they have said nothing pertinently concerning the fall of the Antichristian Empire concerning the time in which it must come to pass for here is the Key of all this is a compleat History or its calamities 'T is the most important Chapter of all and from which we may learn the time of the ruin of popery If these plagues are not yet pour'd out if they are all yet to come as Monsieur de Launay asserts we are then indeed a great way behind and very far from the end of our reckoning We must yet tarry many ages Those that are more liberal and judicious do allow us two or three viols already run out but they will have that four or five are yet to come I admire that the piercing Joseph Mede should entertain this opinion if he was now alive one might convince him that this cannot agree with the other Principles which he hath laid down with so much exactness and depth of judgement As to my self I assert that the seven plagues are already past and hope to prove it with all that evidence which can be given to explications of Prophecies about which it is very difficult to frame demonstrations And 't is from hence that I intend to draw my strongest proof wherewith to sustain my general hypothesis That the Empire of Popery is just come to its end We shall see such an admirable agreement between the events and the Prophecies explain'd that shall abundantly convince that what I am about to say is not simple conjecture But we must not pass judgement upon one piece we must see the whole Now that I may assist my Readers the more easily to comprehend the true sense of the seven viols and the seven plagues because upon them depends our whole Systeme of the approaching Fall of the Antichristian Empire I intend to do two things The first is to lay down certain Principles which must serve us as guides The second is to do that very briefly which I have omitted in other places I mean to relate the various Interpretations of Divines For that which they have said is so far from the likeness of Truth that it may be opposing my Commentaries and theirs easily be seen who
Constantinople against the Turks But they leapt over this barriere and spread themselves as far as the Euxine Sea and the Bosphorus and the Aegean Sea or the Archipelago The Croisades about the end of the eleventh Age drove them back took from them Nice and a part of the lesser Asia But afterwards they came again and wasting the Grecian Empire they took all away from it as far as the Sea called Bosphorus and as far as the Archipelago Behold these are the Kings of the East which appear again in our sixth viol behold the Euphrates which again comes upon the stage But what is this Euphrates Here Euphrates is the Thracian Bosphorus the second barriere of the Turks In this Prophecy whatever serves as a barriere to the Turks is called Euphrates because this River was the first barriere which did seperate that people from Christendom After the Turks had got over that River they find another Euphrates viz. the Bosphorus This in their last irruptions was the same that Euphrates had been in their first namely a barriere that for a little while stopt their course though at last they leapt over it This figure is very ordinary in Orators and consequently there is ground to seek it in Prophets whose style is much more figurative Thus one will say Here are my Herculis's pillars meaning here I will bound my conquests another will say Here are my East-Indies meaning here I will bound my longest voyages A third says This is my Louure meaning this is my Palace or residence So it might be said of the Turks stopt behind the Bosphorus This was their Euphrates therefore the Sea call'd Archipel and the Bosphorus of Thrace in the thirteenth age were the barriere that parted the remainder of the Greek Empire and the Empire of the Turks But at the end of the 14th age the Turks under the conduct of the proud Bajazet and by means of the treachery of the Genuese who let their Gallies to them they passed the Bosphorus made themselves masters of all Thrace fixed the Seat of their Empire at Adrianople and plundred all Greece insomuch that the Greek Emperor had scarce any thing left besides the City of Constantinople Tamerlain tamed the pride of Bajazet and for a while stopt the fury of this torrent But the Children and Successors of Bajazet soon after carried on their conquests and 50 years after quite ruin'd the remainder of the Greek Empire Mahomet II. took Constantinople in the year 1452. After which the Turks overflowed as a torrent conquer'd all Greece Macedonia Albania Slavonia Croatia Bulgaria Hungary and extended the bounds of their Empire even unto the borders of Germany Here therefore the Archipel and the Bosphorus which is joyn'd to it are called Euphrates because this Sea served as a barriere against the Turks as Euphrates formerly had done this was the Euphrates of that time and the Holy Ghost kept the name of Euphrates in this second barriere that we might in this Text the more certainly discern the Turks who had passed over Euphrates when they first invaded the Greek Empire and Christendom The Latin Church suffered infinitely by the passage of the Turks into Europe This is the sixth plague which may be well called the plague upon the Kingdom of the Beast for that Kingdom did infinitely suffer by it 'T is true the first desolations fell upon the Greek Empire but as I have already remarkt the great Idolatries which reigned in the Greek Church had made it become a Province of the Antichristian Empire it was indeed separated by a schisme from the Latin Church notwithstanding it was a Province Besides this the Latin Church the Kingdom of the beast was infinitely a loser How many fair Provinces and brave Kingdoms were rent off from the West by the Turks How often have the Turks vexed Italy nay even Christian Princes have used them to mortify the Popes besides what they have already done we know not what they must do hereafter The Holy Ghost seems to intimate that God hath placed them there for some greater work than that which they have already performed for the Spirit saith that the way of the Kings of the East might be prepared without telling us what work they are to do and the reason is because their greatest work must not be done under the sixth plague but at the end of the seventh God hath thought it sufficient to tell us that he hath placed them on this side the Bosphorus and brought them even to the borders of Germany to be the instruments of his great work at least this is the opinion of many who are taken with the Prophecies of Drabicius They are perswaded that the Turk must destroy Rome The present state of his affairs does not promise this for since the Ottoman Empire was founded he was never brought so low But I confess that this is far from weakning my opinion that the Turk must be the Instrument of the vengeance of God against Rome for 't is this that does confirm me in it for I look on this year 1685 as a Critical year in this great affair God hath brought low the Protestants and the Turks at the same time that he may raise them up at the same time and make them the Instruments of his vengeance against the Babylonian Empire Notwithstanding as I do not found my predictions upon the visions of Drabicius but upon those of Saint John and he saith nothing that does determine me I am in suspence whether the Turks have been placed so nigh the Kingdom of the Beast to bear a part in destroying him or to be honoured with the blessing of conversion upon the sight of that great work of God. I am perswaded that a few years will inform us which of these is the truth From 1390 until 1526. The duration of this period is about 125 or 130 years In the year 1529 the Turks came and besieged Vienna Charles the fifth made them raise teir siege Since that time they have not made any great progress into the Kingdom of the Beast And this sixth plague exactly brings that Kingdom unto the time of Luthers preaching of which the consequences are fore-told in the seventh plague as I hope a Parenthesis of a great depth and obscurity V. 13. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the Dragon and out of the mouth of the Beast and out of the mouth of the false Prophet V. 14. For they are the spirits of Devils working miracles which go forth unto the Kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them to the battel of that great day of God Almighty V. 15. Behold I come as a thief c. V. 16. And he gathers them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armegeddon Behold great affairs untill now finding nothing better I was contented with the conjecture of those who by these three unclean spirits understand the
pass over the Archipel and the Bosphorus they went still forward untill the year 1526. when they ceased to gain ground upon the West Now 't was at this time that the body of the papal Laws styl'd the Canon Law was compleated the Clementines had been publisht by John XXII about the year 1320. he likewise publisht the Extravagants But the Common or the common Extravagants appeared not nor were compiled till the end of the fifteenth Century So that 't is properly in this sixth period of the viols that this work of darkness was wholly finisht Now 't is natural when something is to be brought upon a great Theatre that it may be shown to stay till it be finisht and therefore the Prophet ought not to speak sooner of these papal Laws Second reason The 15th Censury was an Age of Excommunications Besides there never had been any age or time wherein there were more Armageddons Anathema's and Excommunications then in this period The Popes at Rome and Avignon did excommunicate one another Within this period the Councils of Pisa Constance Basil Florence and the Lateran under Julius II. and Leo X. were held and it s was nothing but anathema's excommunications canons decisions censures either against Popes or pretended hereticks as the Wickliffites Bohemians Taborites and lastly against Luther c. Lastly these spirits are most fitly placed under the period of the sixth viol because then the Bulls Third Reason decisions decrees of the Church of Rome gathered the Kings of the Earth to battel against the Bohemians And Zisca having gain'd such signal victories that they might well be called the battels of the great day of God Almighty a Croisade was publisht against him and all those who stood for the Truth in Bohemia and the neighbouring Countries CHAP. X. The seventh plague is the preaching of Luther and other Reformers by which the Latin Church was divided into three parts Papists Lutherans and Reformed ANd thus behold we are come to the seventh and last viol V. 17. And the seventh Angel pour'd out his viol into the air and there came a great voyce out of the Temple of Heaven from the Throne saying It is done It is done does not signify the final ruin of Antichrist This expression It is done hath deceived all the Interpreters who have confounded this moment or space of time with that of the seventh trumpet when it must be proclaim'd It is done the Kingdoms are brought under our Lord Jesus Christ The great Babylon is wholly destroyed c. They have believed that this expression It is done signified the total destruction of the Antichristian Kingdom at that very moment But certainly they are mistaken It is done is nothing else but It is done with the viols The viols comprehend and signify periods of some length this is the last this is the last period of the Antichristian Kingdom and which shall comprehend its total ruin We have remarkt already that every period contained in every viol took in a considerable space of time a hundred a hundred and forty a hundred and fifty years and more Therefore there is no reason not to allow some length of time to this seventh viol it ought to have as much as least as the others yea more because 't is the last and consequently it must have about two hundred years allowed to it And this is the period that comprehends the total ruin of Antichrist which ruin as we shall see anon is divided into two parts the harvest and the vintage the harvest hath been in the age last past the vintage must be at the end of this and the beginning of the next age This last viol begins exactly at the preaching of Luther and as an hour-glass must run untill the total destruction of popery And I hope none will doubt of this when we shall have made out how exactly all that follows in the Prophecy agrees with the times and things which have been seen since the Reformation This seventh viol is pour'd not upon the Earth or the Sea or the Sun or the Seat of the Beast as the others were but on the air which is the seat of the voyce of sounds and thunders and we shall presently give you the reasons V. 18. And there were voyces and thunders and lightnings and there was a great Earthquake such as was not since men were upon the Earth so mighty an Earthquake and so great These voyces The seventh viol raiseth Preachers and voyces for the ruin of Antichrist these lightnings and these thunders are the voyces of Preachers who labour'd in Reforming the Church we shall afterward see that there are three ways of Reforming the Church the way of Inspiration the way of Authority the way of Preaching this last is signified by voyces and thunders And 't was this way that God used to reform the Church in the last age These voyces glittered like lightnings and passed with a prodigious swiftness from one end of the Antichristian Kingdom to the other All men saw them and would see them men studied Religion The very Grandees of the World persons who despise knowledge were concerned in these affairs Henry VIII wrote a book against Luther Charles the fifth made Laws about Religion now on the account of these lightnings i.e. the voyces of Preachers this seventh viol is said to be poured on the air for the air is the seat and vehicle of the voyce There was a great Earthquake In the Prophetick style this signifies a change of the face of the World the Earth plainly signifies here the frame and face of the Antichristian Kingdom We have already seen and shall afterward have occasion to see that Earthquakes in the figurative style of the Prophets always signify a change of the face of the World because Earthquakes do overturn not only Cities but Mountains Forrests hilly Countries and Vallies they set Mountains where Vallies stood and Vallies where Mountains stood in so much that the face of a whole Country is changed Now all know what a change the reformation made in the face of popery It took away from it at one clap several Kingdoms and a great number of Soveraign States And this Earthquake i. e. this change of affairs was so great that there had not been such since men were upon the Earth This may be truly spoken without any exaggeration For we must observe that this last period comprehending the harvest and the vintage the first and last destruction of Antichrist 't is undoubted that the face of the World was never so changed as it shall be changed after the total ruin of Antichrist the time of the first establishing of Christianity not excepted For at that time there were great numbers of men converted up and down among the Nations But at the time we speak of all the Nations and whole Nations shall submit themselves to the Faith. And thus this period shall make greater changes in the World then
were ever seen Nay if we should interpret these changes which ought to happen onely by those which fell out in the last age surely we may say that never were greater and more surprizing alterations The Earthquake signifies the great change of the world by the Reformation In less then twenty or thirty years a great part of the Christian World was Reformed And at the same time there were dreadfull wars troubles and sheddings of blood in Germany in Flanders in Holland in England and in France as every body knows V. 19. And the great City was divided into three parts Behold something which does furnish us with a plain Character of this last period and of this last viol These words have not hitherto been understood but I perswade my self that it will be judged that they can be understood We have already said and shall hereafter prove it that the great City is not Rome strictly taken but Rome made up and joyn'd with its whole Empire In a word this City is the Antichristian Kingdom otherwise called the Latin Church A remarliable prediction of the division of the Latin Church into three principal parts Papists Lutherans and Reformed This City upon the pouring out of the seventh viol was to be divided into three parts This is exactly come to pass at the preaching of the Reformers the Antichristian Kingdom was divided into three one part remain'd with Antichrist one part did separate from him under the name of the Ausburg Confession A third part did separate under the Confession of those who are barely styled the Reformed Sweden Denmark and a great part of Germany make the second part England the Vnited Provinces the reformed part of France a part of Germany make the third part These are the three grand parts that divide the Western Church which is the great City Let this be attentively minded for I affirm that this passage does as it were speak with a tongue and is able alone to convince that our System of the seven plagues is a most undoubted truth This division of the great City into three parts so clearly points out the three Communions of the Latin Church that to deny it can proceed onely from unreasonable passion and opiniatrety And if we have hit upon the truth in this point we have done so in all for if this Character of the seventh plague is true and is already accomplisht all the other plagues are also accomplisht and if they are accomplisht I do boldly affirm they cannot be apply'd to any other events then those to which we have apply'd them And it must not be hoped that to obscure this evidence a fourth part may be made viz. the Church of England because of the controversies about Church government for the Church of England never refused to receive other Reformed ones into her Communion nor have these again ever refused to receive her into theirs We have alway professed the same Religion with the Church of England on the account of the perfect agreement of our Doctrine notwithstanding the difference of discipline and government When as the Lutherans have constantly refused to receive the Reformed into their Communion There is among the Lutherans themselves a difference in point of government Sweden hath Bishops Denmark hath none at least not such Bishops as those of Sweden and England and nevertheless this makes not a different Sect. There is also the same difference among the Reformed on this side the Sea for the Superintendants who are in many Reformed Churches of Germany are real Bishops and notwithstanding the Reformed are not divided one from another Thus in truth there are but three grand parts into which the Latin Church is divided i. e. Papists Lutherans and Reformed as they are called by one another or Catholiks Reformed Evangelici as they style themselves And the Cities of the Nations fell i. e. they fell with respect to Popery they departed out of the Antichristian Kingdom in the same sense that in the eleventh Chapter 't is said that the tenth part of the City fell And great Babylon came in remembrance before God to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath These words let us see that the expression It is done did not signify the very point of the final ruin of the Antichristian Kingdom For behold after 't was said It is done Babylon comes in remembrance before God to give her the cup. Now these expressions signify both the future and the present time And indeed 't is within the duration of this period that God will remember Babylon to give her the last cup of his wrath And observe it that the great Babylon comes not in remembrance before God to give her the cup i. e. the last cup of her ruin till after her dividing into three parts This division is not her total ruin but after that she shall be thus divided into Papists Lutherans and Calvinists then God will prepare to give her the last cup of his wrath Which signifies that the division of the Latin Church into three parts must continue untill the compleat ruin of popery V. 20. And every Island fled away and the mountains were not found This is nothing but a Paraphrase and a description of the Earthquake which he had spoken of a little before for these are the effects of Earthquakes where mountains once stood they are not to be seen new Islands are produced and the old ones are often swallowed up But yet if any will interpret Islands to signify lesser States and Mountains great ones I do not contradict it for 't is really true that the Reformation hath already taken away from the Popedom and shall yet take away all States both small and great V. 21. And there fell upon men a great hail out of Heaven i. e. upon the Subjects of Antichrist this signifies the judgments of God which fall upon this Kingdom and these judgements are well known for it hath suffered of all kinds wars famines pestilences mortalities And men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail The Subjects of the Popedom have not hitherto been converted by all these chastisements but have always stuck firm to the Kingdom and Seat of the Beast whose head is cover'd with names of blasphemies The seven hour-glasses being run out the Kingdom of Autichrist must be at its end This is the seventh and last viol or hour-glass which thanks be to God will in a little time be run out now we have that which we seek namely an evidence that the Antichristian Kingdom is near its end We need not longer wait for the accomplishment either of all the seven plagues as some of our Interpreters say or of some of the seven plagues as others say It is done all is accomplisht we are in the last period of the seven yea we are at the end of the seventh period I am informed that since the first Edition of this work some
whether the Antichristian Kingdom shall be destroy'd by sword fire and bloodshed I see nothing in the whole Revelation which obliges us to believe so for though in this and several other passages the ruin of popery is painted out in expressions borrowed from war slaughter and bloodshed yea in the most terrible and high expressions nevertheless this may very well be understood figuratively for the destruction of Paganisme is painted out in almost the same expressions by the Prophets though it was brought to pass without bloodshed As the Kingdom of the Beast was formed without war by the sottish complaisance of the Kings of the Earth who suffered their power to be snatcht from them or rather did voluntarily surrender it so this Antichristian Kingdom may perish without weapon by a word of two Letters The Princes of the Earth need onely say NO and the tyranny of Antichrist will fall to the ground And as for Idolatry which is the other part of Antichristianism the word and grace of God must destroy it Nevertheless I am willing to submit to the general consent of Interpreters of both Communions who unanimously hold that in the ruin of the Antichristian Kingdom there shall be a great effusion of blood and that Babylon the capital City of that Kingdom shall be laid in ashes I am willing therefore to believe that there shall be some bloodshed not for any passages in the Revelation but for these two Reasons Rome must be miserably destroyed 1. The first that 't is not probable that the Pope and his Partisans will yield without resistance they will stand out and in defending themselves will attaque in which attaque they shall perish 2. The second it seems agreeable to the Divine justice that the City of Rome that for two thousand years is the Mistress of the World the tyrant of the universe which hath shed so much blood and has bin delug'd with so many impurities should be overwhelmed and the World be avenged Ierusalem who was not guilty of such excess is ruined by a dreadful destiny 'T is not probable that God makes ready a less destruction for the City of Rome Here the last lacking of Rome is fore-told If this be so this passage without doubt is one of those that foretell this bloody Tragedy The City which is spoken of here without the City must be Rome But we have said before and shall hereafter prove that this word ought to be taken only for Rome in conjunction with her Empire Here 't is Rome alone and not her Empire 'T is true but the reason is that when she shall be laid waste in the manner that is mention'd here she shall have no more any Empire all her Provinces shall be revolted she shall be left alone of her whole party so that in this place she ought to appear all alone And the City cannot signify any more then the City of Rome because she shall have no more any dependent Provinces excepting that which is called the patrimony of St. Peter which Joseph Mede believes is meant by these thousand six hundred furlongs For he saith that the Countrey that reaches from the walls of Rome unto the river Po contains 200 Italian miles which make exactly 1600 furlongs If this conjecture be true as 't is probable this signifies that all the forces which the Pope shall be able to get together shall be wholly destroy'd without the City i. e. without Rome in that part of the Country which lyes betwixt Rome and the River Po. CHAP. XII The explication of that part of the eleventh Chapter where the last persecution made by Antichrist is fore-told which is the present persecution in France The death of the two witnesses who shall not be buried by means of the succour brought by the enemies of France THe first Chapter in the Revelation where the ruin of Antichristianism is fore-fold is the eleventh We passed over it for the reasons above mention'd We come again to it at present and place it the last that we may place it according to the order of events We have observed that there is found in it an Epitome or short draught of the whole History of the Church from the resurrection of Jesus Christ untill his coming into the World to erect his Kingdom there The pure Church of the three first ages is hid under these words measure the Temple and the Altar and those that worship therein And the corrupted Antichristian one under the Gentiles who must tread under foot the holy City forty and two months That is the outward Court but the Court that is without the Temple leave out and measure it not for it is given to the Gentiles This outward Court as Vsher hath divinely explain'd it in his Prophecy signifies Christians in appearance whose Religion consists in the performance of some external duties of Christianiâ—y without having the inward life or the true Faith which should unite them to Jesus Christ But those who worship in the Temple and before the Altar are those who sincerely worship God in spirit and truth whose souls are his Temples in which he is adored and honoured with the most inward thoughts of their hearts and who offer unto him a constant sacrifice not onely of their lusts but of their whole selves Thus this holy man speaks and I confess that I see in his words the Character of the spirit of God. These are the true worshippers whom God does measure and whom he makes account of and these are those who possessed the Church during the three or four first ages But afterward the Church became an outward Court was filled with feigned worshippers who made Christianity to consist in an appearance of piety and in external Ceremonies Then God pronounc'd concerning this Court let it be given to the Gentiles for forty and two moneths Then Paganism Idolatry the worship of subordinate Gods Mediators and a thousand heathenish Ceremonies were introduced into Christianity And this outward Court these formal outside worshippers were given up to a spirit of error and superstition to begin Antichristianism and make it continue twelve hundred and sixty years We have also in this Chapter the Church under the Cross persecuted and hid in Babylon in the two Witnesses who prophesied cloathed in sackcloth a thousand two hundred and sixty days We have in it the sound of the last Trumpet and the thousand years reign of Jesus Christ and the Church For at the sound of the seventh Trumpet the Kingdoms of the Earch become Gods and his Christs Lastly we have in it a remarkable event which must come to pass at the end of the reign of Antichristian popery and 't is expressed in these terms V. 7. And when they shall have finisht their testimony the Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them and shall overcome them and kill them V. 8. And their dead bodies shall lye in the street of the great City
contrary he reckons these to be a victory which they gain over the World and the Devil He speaks of Martyrs when he saith He that overcomes I will make him sit down on my Throne So that when 't is here said that the Beast shall overcome the witnesses this signifies that he shall make them faint under the tryall Which thing ought to be well observed that we may discern the singular Character of this present persecution that hath conquer'd and overcome above a million of souls 3. This victory of the Beast must prevail even to a total extinction of profession there shall remain no more signs of outward life in the faithfull who shall stand for the Truth they shall lye on the ground as dead bodies 4. This murther and the effect of this persecution shall be done in the street of the great City 5. The death of these witnesses must last three years and a half denoted by three prophetick days and a half 6. During these three years and a half the Truth shall remain as it were dead but not withstanding not buried men shall not dare to make profession of it notwithstanding it shall be visible the people who are neighbours of them who shall have stain it shall hinder it from perishing and putrefaction to which the bodies that are in the grave are obnoxious 7. At the end of these three years and a half the faithfull who are oppressed and whose profession shall have been violently suppressed shall rise again after that shall ascend to heaven and shall be exalted in the world 8. At the same time and after the exaltation of the faithfull there shall be an Earthquake i. e. a great emotion and trouble in the World and in the Antichristian Kingdom 9. In this emotion a tenth part of the City shall fall i. e. a tenth part of the Antichristian Kingdom shall be take away from it 10. Seven thousand men shall perish in this Earthquake and be buried under the ruin of the City i. e. that this shall be brought about with some blood shed though not considerable in that part of the City which shall be taken away from the Pope and the Popedom 11. And lastly within a little while this tenth part of the City which shall be taken from the Popedom shall give glory to God and be converted Behold what are the Characters of this last Antichristian persecution Now when I search after the time in which this persecution must happen I cannot doubt but that it is that in which we now are After this persecution shall be over God will begin to strike those sore blows to destroy the Antichristian Kingdom which must be destroyed within 25 or 30. years That the present persecution is the last That none may wonder that I speak so positively about a thing which seems to be as yet hid in futurity I entreat all equitable minds to consider that I have as I think with great evidence proved 1. That the reign of the Popedom must last 1260 years 2. That these 1260 years began about the year 450 or 455 and consequently they must end about the year 1710 or 1715. this being so we are but 25 or 30 years from the end of the Popish Kingdom And if this be so the present persecution must needs be the last since there is no probability that this present persecution being ended the calm restored to the Church should leave room for another persecution which must happen before the fall of the Popish Kingdom For we must allow the space of at least 20 or 25 years in which popery shall be persecuted and attacqued and not be the aggressor and the persecutor And certainly a shorter time cannot serve for the utter destruction of this vast Kingdom For it shall not be destroy'd in a way of violence but in a way of perswasion and because the charm that holds men enchanted cannot cease in a moment The harvest is past a long while ago the vintage must come speedily I have further proved that the fall of this Popish and Babylonian Monarchy is divided into two parts the harvest and the vintage that the harvest is the Reformation of the last Age and the vintage is the Reformation that must be made in this that is present Now the space of time that is already run out since the Reformation of the last Age does already equal the proportion of time that is between the natural harvest and vintage and consequently we must be very near the vintage i. e. the time wherein God will begin the first blows in order to the final destruction of the Babylonian Kingdom These things being so this persecution must be the last and immediately after it shall be ended begin the first events which shall bring the Popish Kingdom to its final fall A time of some length must be assigned for the last fall of popery I have lastly observed that the Holy Ghost hath styled these two parts of the fall of the popish Kingdom harvest and vintage to let us understand that as the harvest and the vintage are not reapt in a moment but require many dayes nay weeks so the two overturnings of the Babylonian Kingdom must not be made in the twinckling of an eye but in several years This hath been already verified in the harvest i. e. the fall which happened to popery in the last Age for this took up five and twenty or thirty years and more And no fewer can serve to compleat the ruin of this Kingdom But if this be so this must needs be the last persecution yea it cannot last a great number of years longer For if the Babylonian Kingdom begin to decline 25 or 30 years before its last and final destruction it must begin to decline and fall within four of five years supposing that it be true that it cannot last longer then the year 1710 or 1715. We must therefore see if the Characters of this present persecution that the Church suffers agree with those of the last persecution which the Church must suffer from the Beast according to the Text of the Revelation And we are about to find these Characters so agreeing and like that what at first seem'd only a conjecture will be able to become a kind of certainty The last Antichristian persecution of which this Chapter speaks must happen when the witnesses shall be almost at the end of their testimony and Antichrist near the end of his reign Now we have proved by the Predictions and Types of the foregoing Chapters that Antichrist is finishing his reign therefore this must be the last persecution It hath already lasted 30 years for it began in the year 1655. when the Duke of Savoy undertook to destroy the faithfull of the Vallies of Piedmont he sent thither Souldiers who made a great massacre but because the time of slaying the Witnesses was not as yet come God raised deliverance for them they defended themselves with success and
elevation of Elijah and of Jesus Christ who were lift up above the clouds And their enemies beheld them Popery shall not as yet be destroy'd in France when this shall happen The Priests the Clergy and Monks shall be spectators of this great work But the end of popery in France shall come quickly after For the same hour-there was a great Earthquake mark the same hour he saith not and after as he had said to express a space of time between the resurrection of the witnesses and their ascending up even to the Throne But he saith the same hour to signisy that assoon as the Reformation shall be establisht by a solemn Edict of the Prince as by a great voyce from heaven the total destruction of popery shall happen as we are about to shew And the same hour there was a great Earthquake I will not spend time upon the signification of this representation an Earthquake For 't is known by all who are versed in the Prophets See Isa 170 13. and 24.19 20. Jer. 4.24 and 49 20. that in the Prophetick style an Earthquake signifies a great commotion of Nations that must change the face of the World because Earthquakes do overturn Cities Mountains and wholly change the face of a Countrey make Valleys where there were Mountains and Hills where there were Valleys and Lakes which were dry Land before and deserts of Countries which were inhabited so that 't is certain that according to this Prophesy in a very few years the face of the Antichristian Kingdom shall be changed but not every where It shall be only in the tenth part of the City which shall fall by this Earthquake The City signifies the Roman Antichristian Empire and not Rome alone And the tenth part of the City fell This is a passage where Interpreters have been short sighted not excepting our Joseph Mede who often hath so quick a sight To understand this we must first know what the City is Joseph Mede is mistaken together with all the rest when he understands this to mean precisely the City of Rome 'T is a truth which must be held as certain being one of the keys of the Revelation that the City the great City signifies in this book not Rome alone but Rome in conjunction with its Empire The name of this great City is Babylon Now 't is clear that Babylon is the whole Babylonian Kingdom Come out of Babylon my people 'T is not from the City of Rome that the Holy Ghost invites his Elect to come out 't is from the Church of Rome from the Babylonian Empire This passage alone together with that in this eleventh Chapter v. 8 And their dead bodies shall lye in the street of the great City which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt where also our Lord was cruicified are enough to prove that the Babylonian City is not Rome alone Our Lord was not crucified in Rome and if we should here take crucifying in a figurative sense for the crucifying of the Religion of Jesus Christ this hath been sacrificed at Rome no more than in other places of the Latin Church In the 14th Chapter the Holy Ghost describes the fall of this City of Babylon Babylon is fallen is fallen that great City and in the same vision he fore-tells the ruin of the Antichristian Empire under the Metaphors of an harvest and a vintage which proves that this City is nothing else but the intire Kingdom of Babylon In the 18th Chapter the Prophet makes a long description of the desolations of this City under the Metaphors of a City of Merchandise which had a great traffick and was fill'd with pleasures and delightfull things Now 't is certain that the shamefull simony the wicked pleasures of the Papacy have not reigned less in the Provinces of the Babylonian Kingdom than in the Capital City from whence 't is again evident that the City signifies the whole Antichristian State. Lastly the constant opposition between the Holy City and the great City proves that the City includes the whole Antichristian Church even as the Holy City signifies the whole Christian Church De Launay hath confessed this in the eleventh Chapter of the Revelation and in the 16th but no exception is to be made every where the City and the great City Babylon signifies the intire Kingdom of the Papacy And the reason of this is evident old Rome made her whole Empire to be one only City by means of that right of citizenship which she bestowed on all who were of some considerable quality though they dwelt in the Provinces The citizens of Rome dwelt in all Countries now where the citizens of a City dwell there is the City this made Rutilius say Dumque offers victis proprij consortia juris Vrbem fecisti quod prius Orbis erat Thus it goes exactly in the Church of Rome which hath re-establisht the Roman Empire All those who are members of this Church are citizens of her capital City The Church of Rome is but one City Persons of all Nations are admitted into her Senate or Colledge of Cardinals The Tribunal which is called the Rota is constituted of Councellors taken out of all the Provinces which pay subjection to Rome Every Forreigner may come to be a Cardinal and every Cardinal may come to be Pope Therefore there are properly no Forreigners in that State no Papist is a Forreigner to the Church of Rome and that which they call the holy See. That which hath deceived Interpreters v. 9 1â— is the 17th Chapter where the City is called the Woman which sitteth on seven Mountains and that great City which reigneth over the Kings of the Earth This say they is the City of Rome and the Papists themselves do grant it and without doubt 't is Rome and we have above proved it but 't is Rome conjointly with her Empire Babylon signifies the whole Antichristian Empire and this Antichristian Empire is said to sit upon seven Mountains and to rule over the Kings of the Earth Rome must always be considered together with her Empire because this is true of its Capital City Nothing is more ordinary not to add that 't is constantly used than to denote a whole Kingdom by the ruling City Thus men always spoke of Rome Rome hath conquered the Nations Rome hath enlarged her Empire to the end of the World this signifies that the Roman Empire hath subdued all Nations and extended its bounds even to the utmost parts of the Earth The tenth part of the City is one of the ten Kingdoms that make up the Empire of the Papacy Chap. 17.12 13. This being supposed and proved that the City is the whole Babylonian and Antichristian Empire it must be remembred that this Empire of Antichrist is made up of ten Kingdoms and ten Kings who must give their power to the beast The ten horns which thou sawest are ten Kings These have one mind and shall give their power unto the
whose number 't is not easie to define and which the Holy Ghost denotes by the number seven which is the number of perfection to signify that the orders of Monks and Nuns shall perish for ever This is an Institution so degenerated from its first Original that 't is become the arm of Antichrist These orders cannot perish one without another If any will have it that these seven thousand slain signifie that there shall be bloodshed it shall not be great for the number seven put for an indifinite number never signifies a great one De Launay is very much mistaken when he sayes that the seven thousand who had not bowed the knee to Baal â— King. 19.18 signified a great multitude on the contrary the signified a very small number indeed the number was so small that Elijah did not know of them he sayd I am left alone The Kings of France at this day do lift their authority so high that nothing can resist it 'T is therefore probable The authority of the Kings of Francs shall prevail over the ruling Religion that every thing will bend under the yoke of their Will when they shall resolve to break with Rome and it seems as if the Providence of God was preparing the way unto this thing by the Clergies Declaration confirmed by that of the King viz. that Kings depend on none in any thing which concerns Temporals and that 't is never lawful to deny obedience to them upon a pretext of Religion For if this be once fixed when ever it shall please the Kings of France to forsake the Communion of Rome by this Principle of the present Bishops it cannot be allowed that the People should rebell against them I look on that which is happened in England as another preparation unto this Event A King of a Religion contrary to that of the State reigns peaceably the reason is that Providence will accustome the subjects to pay subjection to Princes who are enemies of the Ruling Religion And the remnant were affrighted and gave glory to the God of heaven This is the total conversion and reformation of the tenth part of the City i.e. of the Kingdom of France that shall quickly follow after the Kings of France shall have broken with the Bishop of Rome V. 14. The second Wo is past and behold she third Wo cometh quickly namely the second of the three Woes which had been denounced after the sound of the fourth Trumpet Chap. 8.13 And I heard an Angel flying through the midst of Heaven crying with a loud voyce Wo wo wo to the inhabitants of the earth by reason of the other voyces of the Trumpet which are yet to sound The first of these three woes was the Grashoppers Saracens denoted by Grashoppers who came up out of the bottomless pit with their Head Apollyon and in Hebrew Ahaddon These Grashoppers are plainly the Saracens Chap. 14. Arabians with their Head Mahomet The second Wo is the domination of the Turks who passed from the other side of Euphrates at the sound of the sixth Trumpet And the third Wo is the fall of the Antichristan Empire These three great events deserve to be distinguisht from all others for they have changed or shall change the whole face of the world And the seventh Angel sounded c. this which follows concerns the Kingdom or reign of Iesus Christ and the Church and consequently must be reserved to another place CHAP. XIV Observations upon the 17 18 19. Chapters of the Revelation concerning the fall of Antichrist's Kingdom A brief Methodizing of the events which the Holy Ghost had displaced in the Visions THe seventeenth Chapter contains something that relates to the destruction of Antichrists Kingdom V. 16. And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast these shall hate the whore and make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire V. 17. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will and to agree and give their Kingdom unto the beast untill the words of God shall be fulfilled There 's nothing in this passage that hath not been opened or is obscure 'T is clear that these Kings who through ignorance or weakness suffer'd their power to be usurped by the Empire of the papacy shall take it again they shall eat her flesh i.e. shall enrich themselves with her benefices revenues and burn her with fire i.e. shall abolish the the memory of this Romish Empire so that nothing but ashes shall remain of it The 18th Chapter is a long description of the ruin of the Antichristian and Babylonian Empire I have no need to enter into this Chap. because I find nothing in it of that which I principally seek which is those certain characters which can inform us of the time of this fall namely whether it be night at hand or afar off There is nothing there concerning it except that which is general As to this Chapter I will say only First We must remember the remarque which hath been often made by us that Babylon here does not signify strictly the City of Rome as most have imagined 'T is the whole Babylonian Empire as appears from these words Come out of Babylon my people I do not think that any great number of Gods people hath come out of the City of Rome hitherto we have not seen it My second remarque is we must not as is usually done over much press the mystical sense of divers merchandises which are reckon'd up and were sold it that City I do not believe VVe must not over much seelt mysteries in the particular merchandises of Babylon that there is any other mystery in this thing than that this Babylonian Empire being set forth under the Emblem of a great City it was necessary to represent it as a City of great commerce for that is inseperable from great Cities Not but that these merchandises and the many instruments of Luxury and pleasures which are said to have been in this City do not very fitly signify and according to the design of the Holy Ghost both the Simony and debaucheries of this corrupted Church in the general But I believe not that 't is necessary to enquire particularly what is meant for example by the silk the precious stones the fine linnen c. The burning of Babylon must not be understood literally My Third Observation upon this 18th Chapter is we must not interpret literally the Metaphors of burning fire blood and slaughter which the Holy Ghost set before us Certainly these are not the Methods which God makes use of to establish his Kingdom I think indeed as I have already said that God will suffer Rome to be sackt as he suffer'd Jerusalem to be I further believe that this great change in Religion will not be made without blood shed as it hapned in the last age But seeing the City in this Chapter and generally in the Revelation take in
the whole Babylonian Empire we must not imagine that all this great circuit of Countries shall be laid desolate The 19th Chapter is the last in which mention is made of the destruction of Antichrists Kingdom The ten first Verses of this Chapter must not be disjoyned from the fore-going Chapter for they are only the continuation of it The solemn rejoycings of the Elect after the ruin of Babylon and the consummation of the Christian Church here below upon Earth The eleven last Verses of the Chapter contain a wonderful vision wherein Jesus Christ appears sitting upon a white Horse having the titles of faithfull of true of the word of God of King of Kings of Lord of Lords He gathers his armies together to fight against the Beast and against the false Prophet An Angel stands in the Sun and calls to all the fowls of Heaven to come and eat the flesh of those men that must be slain in that great battel which was to be fought On the other side the Beast and the false Prophet gather their forces the battel is fought the Beast and Kings are overcome he is taken with his false Prophet both are cast into the lake of fire and brimstone together with all those who had worshipt the Image of the Beast And this is magnificent and the Figures are lofty But there is nothing new in this and in my judgement 't is nothing but a recapitulation of the fore-going visions concerning the ruin of Antichrists reign The vision of the eleventh Chapter is an Epitome of the visions that follow and this is properly an Epitome of the visions which went before therefore I do not judge it necessary to insist upon it Especially seeing nothing is found of that which we seek for namely the signs and marks by which it may be known when and at what time the reign of Antichrist must end 'T is in the 11 14 and above all in the 16th Chapter that we find the Characters of this end and of the time in which it must come to pass Therefore it was necessary only that we should insist upon those Chaters The slaughter and murthers in the 19th Chapter must nor be understood literally I will only make the observation upon this Chapter which I made upon the fore-going That we must not understand literally the expressions of war and destroying that are used here for example that Iesus Christ must tread the wine-press of the wrath of God that he must give to be eaten by the fowls the flesh of Kings of Captains of mighty men of Horses of free and bond c. These are Metaphors borrowed from war and must be understood surably to the nature of this spiritual war which Jesus Christ must make against Idolatry Superstition Heresies and Tyranny his quarrel is with these and not with men Besides the reasons alledged we have here a convincing one that the Instrument of so many victories and which must make such a slaughter Vers 15. is the sharp sword that comes out of the mouth of him who sitteth upon the white horse And the remnant was slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse and all the folws were filled with their flesh Now all know that this sharp sword that comes out of the mouth of Jesus Christ is the Word of God a spiritual sword which must act only spiritual slaughters and which does not destroy the lives of men but their manners and Idolatries So that I fear lest those are mistaken who hope to render to Babylon that which we have received form her and in the cup which she hath filled to fill to her double i. e. to give her blood for blood torment for torment This is not the spirit of the true Church I have now done with this subject and I think there remains but one thing to do that I may give a clear Idea of our prophecies and that is to Epitomize and rank according to the order of time the various events which relate to the ruin of Antichrists Kingdom which the Holy Ghost displaced and confounded to the end that the prophecies might not be clearer than God did intend they should be As for the seven plagues of the seven viols they are perfectly ranked according to their order and according to their times A commendious Methodizing of the events which must bring Antichrist's Kingdom to its ruin 1. The first plague of the first viol begins about the year of our Lord 900. it lasts almost 150. years and ends under the Popedom of Leo IX about the year 1050. 2. The second and third plagues which are the Croisades begin at the end of the eleventh age and end at the going out of the thirteenth in the year 1270. or 1292. For till then some of the Latins kept possession in Palestine so that they take up the space of about two hundred years 3. The fourth plague begins before the Croisades but if we please we may place its beginning where the foregoing ends This fourth plague is the encrease of the Papal yoke and this Period beginning at the year 1270 shall continue untill the year 1378 when the consequent of the fifth plague begins namely the weakning of the Papal reign by the schism Therefore this Period will contain 108 years 4 The fifth plague is the removing of the Popes to dwell at Avignon and the grand Schism of the West It begins in the year 1305 and lasts untill the year 1440. This Period being a little jointed within the former shall last 130 or 135. years 5. The sixth plague which is the passage of the Turks into Europe and the desolations which they made in the Popes Dominion and in the Latin Church beginning towards the end of the fourteenth Age about the year 1370. and lasting untill the siege of Vienna under Charles the fifth in 1529 this Period will be 150 years 6. The seventh plague beginning about the year 1520 and lasting untill the end of our Age and the beginning of the next must last about 190 years This last Period is longer then the rest because God intended to subdivide it into three other Periods 7. The first Period of this last viol is the harvest which lasted 30 or 40 years from the year 1520 until 1560 when all the Countreys which were to be Reformed had embraced the Reformation 8. The second period of this seventh viol is that season and state of rest and victory which the Papacy regain'd and this period lasts from 1560 or 1570 for since that time Popery hath received no considerable check but rather hath much prevailed it hath made war against the saints had hath overcome them 9. Towards the conclusion of this second period of the seventh viol a sore persecution must happen The Witnesses clothed in Sackcloth i.e. the faithful who are under the Cross shall be oppressed and remain dead in the street of the great City for three years and a half That is the profession
by the Croisades The encrease of the Sun's heat in the fourth plague is the encrease of the papal authority the Ecclipse and darkning of this Sun in the fifth plague is the grand Schism between Rome and Avignon the Kings of the East who pass over Euphrates in the sixth plague are the Turks who pass over the Bosphorus to invade the remainder of the Greek Empire and a part of that of the Latins and lastly the dividing of the great city into three parts in the seventh plague is the dividing of the Latin Church into three Communions Papists Lutherans and Reformed I lay down as a principle which I cannot doubt of that I have it the mark in the explication of these plagues But this 't is said seems rash to assert so confidently that which can only be a strong conjecture Men may object what they please against this exposition but I cannot recant it And I desire the World seriously to consider only these two things 1. That my explications very well agree with the words and Metaphors of the prophecy 2. That 't is impossible that chance should produce an explication so universally lucky It must be remembred what we said concerning the Epistles to the seven Churches on the question whether they are Prophetical We granted that there are some passages that agree well with the applications which are made but we observed that these applications are far from being universally true 't is therefore chance that produced those lucky agreements But if any one comes who shall make such a measured division of times and such a just application of these times and the events in them unto the Characters with which these seven Churches are marked so that nothing is defective then I shall remain perfectly satisfyed that this last Interpreter hath exactly hit the truth it will be no longer a conjecture Let me therefore be permitted to remain perswaded that I have hit the truth as to the seven plagues seeing they so perfectly agree with tho events which are past My fifth Principle is that I have not been less happy in hitting the true sense of the harvest and vintage in the fourteenth chapter A man must be blind if he sees not that these are the two parts of the fall of Babylon Babylon is fallen is fallen that great city and immediately after this fall is divided into harvest and vintage I cannot hinder my self from seeing that this signifies the first fall of Popery by a first Reformation which certainly is come to pass and the final fall of Popery by a second Reformation which must come to pass None can I think seriously consider the perfect agreement between the representations and the Original but be will be perswaded that 't is so 6. My sixth and last Principle is that we are in the last Persecution which the Church must suffer from the Kingdom of Antichrist And this last conclusion so naturally and necessarily flowers from the foregoing ones that none can acknowledge the preceding but he must likewise own the truth of this Let us now see whither these Principles do lead us All our Principles lead us unto the eighteenth Age to find the end of Antichrists reign If the Papacy be the Antichristian Kingdom then certainly the period of 1260 prophetick dayes or 1260 years which are assigned to the duration of the Kingdom of the Beast belong to it If the principal Character of this Kingdom is Idolatry 't is clear we must begin to reckon the duration of this Kingdom from that time in which Idolatry was set up in the Church Now 't is certain that the Idolatrous worship of Reliques and of Saints was fully establisht in the fifth Age Reckon 1260 years since the fifth Age this will bring you to the beginning of the eighteenth Age. If the Empire of the Papacy be the Empire of the Beast we must begin it at the time when the Roman Empire was divided into ten Kingdoms Fore the Holy Ghost speaks so in express and clear terms Reckon 1260 years since the division of the Roman Empire into ten Kingdoms which was done in the fifth Age and this will lead you to the eighteenth Age. If the Roman-papist See is that man of sin of whom St. Paul speaks in the 2d Chap. of the Epist to the Thessalonians we must reckon the 1260 years assigned to his Empire from the time that the Imperial dignity which held at Rome ceased to hold â— 6 7. or withhold which happened in the fifth Age. Reckon again your 1260 years since that time and you will see that you fall upon the eighteenth Age. If we have hit right in explaining the seven viols and the seven plagues the last viol hath been poured out since the time of Luther and its influence is running still according to the proportion of the preceding viols it cannot be running out above two hundred years Reckon again by this rule and you will fall into the eighteenth Age. If the harvest and the vintage in the fourteenth chapter are really the first and second part of the fall of the Antichristian Papacy which must be produced by as many Reformations then the Reformation in the last Age must have been the harvest lengthen as much as you please the space of time between the harvest and vintage you cannot make it longer than two hundred years Reckon and you will fall upon the eighteenth Age the find there the vintage and the final ruin of the Papacy Lastly if all that we have said is rational 't is impossible that this should not be the last persecution for the Reformation cannot be raised again so as to fall down a second time seeing we have proved that the Period of 1260 years is about to expire therefore reckon this persecution as the last and make it to be as long as you will provided you observe the measure which God hath set to the longest persecutions that the Church hath suffered and this however will bring you unto the eighteenth Age. Observe I pray you how many things do bring you to this eighteenth Age. Admire the meeting of so many paths which do all bring you to the same point And remember this undoubted Principle that 't is impossible that false conjectures should hit right in every thing I entreat above all the Roman-Catholicks to consider seriously this Principle How can they perswade themselves that system of lyes and false suppositions should hang well together That we should find in their Roman See exactly all the Characters which are given to the man of sin to the Beast in the Revelation to spiritual Babylon to the whore clothed in scarlet that â—ve should meet with the Characters of the Papacy in its birth exactly in the time that the Prophets have markt out for the birth of the Antichristian Kingdom that we should find so exact these seven great judgments of God denoted by seven plagues that God should exactly at this time permit that F.
converted becomes an Apostle and the instrument of the conversion of the Gentiles the converted Iews shall compleat the conversion of the most remote Pagan Nations in the utmost corners of the World. This doubtless is that admirable return of the Iews and their advancement to the Soveraign dignity of the Church which Ezekiel represents in the 37. Chapter of his Prophecies under the Image of a Resurrection This also is that which St. Paul calls Life from the Dead Ezekiel saw a large Valley covered with dead Bones These dead Bones are the House of Israel saith the Holy Spirit They came together and sinews and flesh came upon them and the Spirit of the Lord entred into them The Prophet speaks farther in the following Chapters of the Victories this renewed Israel should obtain over Gog and Magog the Enemies of the Church After which in the nine last Chapters he makes a figurative description of this Kingdom of the Iews and of the Messiah and of the Church perfected upon Earth under the Emblem of a magnifick Temple whereof he describes the Parts the Apartments and several Buildings the Altar Priests Victims the Land of their possession and a new division of it This in my opinion is the mystery of the nine last Chapters of Ezekiel Chap. 45. which have appeared so unintelligible to most Interpreters I conclude this Chapter by saying that the Papism makes it hereby plain that it is the true Kingdom of Antichrist by their cruel persecution of the Iews That Mystery of iniquity comprehends nothing of the Mystery of Godliness and sees not that God hath reserved that Nation to manifest in them his greatest wonders and consequently that they ought not to be destroyed by flames as in Spain and in those Countries where the inquisition is in force CHAP. XVIII The third Head of Arguments for the future Kingdom of Christ and the Church So many Prophecies which concern the compleat Victories of Jesus Christ the Holiness of the Church and its perfect prosperity which have never yet been accomplisht MY third Head of Arguments to show that we are to expect a Kingdom of Christ upon Earth are the Prophecies not yet accomplisht and which cannot be fulfilled unless such a Kingdom do come This would be a large subject and yield matter for several books and those good ones too whereby the World might be informed of several things they know not But this Book is larger already then I would have had it I shall therefore content my self briefly to show and endeavour to perswade that there must be a Time which we have not yet seen for the fulfilling of several Prophecies which were delivered on purpose to describe the Kingdom of our Lord Iesus and give us the Characters of it The most ancient Oracles are not perfectly fulfilled The most ancient and most remarkable of all the sacred Oracles is that which God himself pronounc't to Adam The seed of he Woman shall bruise the Serpents head and â—hee shall bruise his heel 'T is agreed that the Head signifies Empire and Power So that Prophecy imports the victory of Christ and his Children over the Kingdom of the Devil and that they shall destroy it Now this is a promise not yet accomplisht in the History of the Church we have no age wherein it could be said that the Kingdom of Christ prevailed over that of Satan It is an observation we cannot mind too much that we must carefully distinguish here between Life and Kingdom or Reign Life signifies existence but Reign imports actual Domination and Rule Iesus Christ 't is true in every age hath had a party subsisting in the World and in that respect hath been victorious over all the attempts of Satan whose end was to destroy him and 't is some kind of victory over an Adversary to prevent him from attaining his end but this can never be called a full and compleat Victory It is necessary to that to be the predominant prevailing Party whereas that of Iesus Christ hath alway been opprest either by Paganism or by Mahometanism or by Antichristianism Such a time therefore is to be expected wherein the party of true Christianity shall prevail over and utterly extinguish the Empire and Kingdom of the Devil All the nations of the earth have not been blessed in Christ 49 Gen. The second Prophecy is that which was given to Abraham In thy seed shall all the Nations of the Earth be blest which signifies that the righteousness of Christ shall spread it self over all Nations to the same sense is that other Prophecy Shiloh shall come and to him shall the gathering of the People belong 'T is true almost all Nations have been invited to the knowledge of God many have been actually brought to it but many have not yet been called much less converted And among those Nations which have been converted the Bad hath so far exceeded the good that it cannot be truly said that the multitude of the People belong to Christ Nevertheless I am confident that shall come to pass and that the number of the Good shall one day as much exceed that of the wicked as now the number of the wicked doth that of the Good. But that these Oracles are not accomplisht we shall be fully convinc't if we proceed to those Prophets who were sent on purpose to Characterize the Kingdom of J. Christ Among whom the Prophet Isaiah shines as a Sun among the Stars It would be necessary to make a just Commentary on all his Book to make it plain that what he fore-told is not come to pass For most of his Prophecies have for their object this glorious and blessed state of the Church in its last Period But to be as short as may be I shall reduce all that he hath said of the Church under the Messiah to these two Articles 1. It s Righteousness and Holiness 2. It s Peace and Prosperity and shall make it evident that neither the one or the other have been fulfilled to that degree which they ought to be fulfilled according to those Prophecies For the Righteousness and Holiness of the Church Chap. 11.6 c. Prophecies of the future Holiness of the Church the Prophet Isaiah saith That the woolf shall feed with the Lamb the Leopard lie down with the Kid the Calf and the young Lion and the Fatling together and a little child shall lead them The Cow and the Bear shall feed their young ones shall lie down together and the Lion shall eat straw like the Ox And the sucking Child shall play on the hole of the Asp and the weaned Child shall put his hand on the Cockatrice den They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy Mountain for the Earth shall be full of the Knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the Sea. Behold the most ravishing and fair description of it that can be seen It amounts to a return of the State of Innocence 'T
In the sixth Period near the end whereof we now are God will compleat his Church by the ruin of Antichrist and bring the Kingdom of Christ upon Earth to its perfection This should be well remembred that the Church in the Type of the Creation appears under four Emblems 1. As the Earth buried and covered under waters 2. As a dry Land above the waters and bearing fruit 3. As a Moon inlightened by the Sun. 4. And lastly as the Woman And our Lord Jesus appears there under three Emblems 1. As the Light of the first day without or before the Sun. 2. As the Sun. 3. Under the Emblem of the Man. The Church in her first state before the Law was as the Earth under water she was obscure and as it were buried among the Nations In her second state under the Law she was as a discovered Land distinguisht and known and bearing fruit but yet she was but Earth i. e. not very considerable In her third state under the Gospel she appears as a Moon a rival of the Sun imitating his Light and therein she is more glorious than the Earth This is the Apostolical Church so glorious and full of knowledge In the fourth state she appears as the woman taken out of the side of Adam closely united with him being one Body and one Flesh 'T is in the last Period that she shall be more united to Christ than before In the fourth Period she is as the Moon and notwithstanding the nearest approaches of the Sun there remain vast distances between them But towards the end of the sixth Period and throughout the seventh her union unto Christ shall be immediate and intimate as that of a Wife with her Husband therefore the Church in this seventh Period is represented as a Spouse which was to be brought to the Lamb. On the other hand Jesus Christ appears under three Emblems In the fourth Period as a Sun which scatters the darkness of Idolatry Paganism and Ignorance that covered the face of the Earth This Sun is plac't in the fourth point just in the middle of the seven to let us know that he is the Center of the Church the Sun which gives light before and behind to the preceding Ages and to those which follow him Towards the end of the sixth Period and throughout the seventh he is A man to whom God gives dominion over the Fowls of the Air the Fish of the Sea and creeping things and four-footed Beasts i. e. That Christ in this last Period shall be Lord and King who shall rule over the Birds tame the boldest and most aspiring spirits who mount even unto the Heavens he shall humble them and keep 'em within the bounds of their duty over the Fish of the Sea to deliver'em from their corruption over Creeping things to destroy the influence of their poison over wild Beasts to tame their fierceness and render them meek as Lambs In the first day Jesus Christ was figured but by a dim Light because in the first Period of the Church he vouchsaf't her but a very imperfect knowledge of himself This methinks is the Mystery of the six days which way well serve as a favourable omen in reference to the seventh day The mystery of the seventh day of the Creation because every thing therein seems to accord well what then is wanting to the World after the works of the six daye to render it perfect Holiness and Rest and these are the two Things which God added on the seventh day Holiness for he Sanctified the seventh day and thereby the rest of the World. Rest for till then God had been at work and the World in Motion Now God gave the World that Rest which it wanted in that he himself rested on the seventh day All this is an admirable Emblem of our seventh Period for the sake whereof all this explication of the Type of the Worlds Creation hath been given During the six days God made the Church to pass through several changes he will bring it to perfection at the end of the sixth by the ruin of the Antichristian Kingdom and by the Conversion of all Nations What then is wanting to it Rest and Holiness Rest for hitherto she hath always been in toyl and Travel Holiness for she hath alway been imperfect We must therefore look for a seventh Period which shall be a Kingdom of Rest and Holiness wherein the Church shall no more be persecuted either by Fire and Sword or by Heresy and Idolatry wherein also there shall be a plentiful effusion of the H. Spirit to produce a great degree of Holiness and Sanctification among men This mystery shall be accomplisht upon Earth We must not say that the accomplishment of this Type will be found in Heaven where is Rest and Holiness and that therein is the mystery of the seventh day I say again that cannot be meant because this seventh Period must be of the same kind and order with the other six We even now observed that the Sun was created on the fourth day there are three days before and three after exactly in the middle of the seven to signify that Christ the Son of Righteousness is the Center of the intelligible World. If he be the Center of the seven Periods he must certainly have an equal reference to all the points of that Circumference Now what relation can he have to the seventh day if Eternity be meant by it In that Eternal abode Christ shall have no more the relation of a Center a Sun and a King. For St. Paul tells us that then God shall be all in all and Christ shall deliver up the Kingdom again to his Father Moreover 't is certain there ought to be a proportion between the seventh Period and the six fore-going ones Now there is none between Eternity and the duration of the Church upon Earth And lastly I am bold to say that the ancient Types were not establisht by God immediately to figure Heavenly Things but only the Graces and Favors of God in this World under the Kingdom of the Messiah You cannot show me any one of the ancient Types which hath an immediate relation to the glories of the Heavenly Paradise The marriage of Adam and Eve was the immediate Type of the Vnion between Christ and his Church in the Kingdom of his Grace It did only mediately typify their Vnion in the Kingdom of Glory By consequence this seventh day which all acknowledge to be Typical must have its immediate relation not to the Sabbath of the Church in Heaven but to its State of Rest upon Earth CHAP. XXIII A farther Confirmation of the future prosperity of the Church upon Earth The 21 and 22. Chap. of the Apocalypse interpreted that in those Chapters the Church is described as victorious upon Earth and not as Triumphant in Heaven WE may not pass from the Apocalyps without saying somewhat concerning the last Chapters If we needed another Head of Arguments to
prove our notion of the Reign of Christ for a thousand years and the Triumphant state of the Church upon Earth before its final glorious Triumph in Heaven we might be furnisht from these last Chapters For they are not as is commonly supposed a description of the Church in Heaven The Prophecy of the nine last Chapters of Ezekiel is the same with that of the last Chapt. of the Apocalypse They exactly answer to the nine last Chapters of the Prophecy of Ezekiel That Prophet in those nine last Chapters sets forth in a figurative manner the condition of the Church of Israel after its restoration their glorious Kingdom and the wonderful Peace they should injoy after their return which return or recalling was to be after the fall of Antichrist St. John gives an account what the Church shall be after with relation to that Fall after it shall have bin accomplisht so that both these Prophets describe the Church as to the same Period and the same condition This will easily appear if we briefly run over that which remains of the Apocalypse It cannot be questioned but that our Prophet concludes the 20th Chapter with a description of the last day of Judgement The war of Gog and Magog follows upon the reign of a thousand years to the revolt of Gog and Magog succeeds their defeat after their defeat there is nothing but the last day which shall come and surprize the World in the twinkling of an eye This is signified by those words V. 11. Chap. 20. Then I saw a great white Throne and him that sat on it from whose face the Earth and Heaven fled way and there was found no place for them White as well as Purple is a Royal colour and withal a Priestly for the Priests were clothed in white The Holy Priest's garments on the day of Expiation according to the tradition of the Iews were called Bigdei Lavan white garments In like manner he that sat upon the Throne is our King and Priest The Earth and the Heaven fled from his face for they shall be burnt that they may be renewed V. 12. And I saw the dead small and great stand before God c. 'T is a description of the last Judgement to the end of the Chapter all this is plain The 21. v. 1. Chapter begins with these words And I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth for the first Heaven and the first Earth were passed away The first Vision of 21 Chapt. to the 9th V. respects that which follows the end of the world These words do evidently allude to what he had said just before and the Heaven and the Earth fled away As that was interpreted of what should happen at the last day of Judgement it is clear that these new Heavens and this new Earth must be understood in a literal and not a figurative sense for the new World after it hath been refined by fire And so the description we read of here even to the ninth Verse is that of eternal Rewards and Punishments 'T is true that which is spoken of the H. City v. 3 4. of the new Ierusalem coming down from Heaven prepared as a Bride adorned for her Husband of the Tabernacle of God with men of his dwelling with them and they with him and that God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and that there shall be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain All this I say might very well be applied to the Church as victorious upon Earth but this description is determin'd by what precedes and by what follows to Eternal Glory by that which precedes which is the description of the last day of Judgement and by that which follows which is the description of everlasting Punishment but the fearful and unbelieving c. v. 8. shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone which is the second death The 9th v. begins a new Vision The ninth Verse begins a new Vision and a more perticular description of the blessed Reign of Christ upon Earth In the same manner as the H. Spirit after he had in the 13th Chapter given an enigmatical and general description of the Antichristian Empire under the image of the two Beasts gives a more ample account of it in the 17th Chapt. So having in the 20th Chapt. described the reign of Christ though in few words he set forth that reign more at length afterwards that state of the delivered Church under the image of a great City called Ierusalem as after having set out the Antichristian Church under the image of a Beast and of an Empire he represents it under the Emblem of a great City called Babylon V. 9. And there came unto me one of the seven Angels which had the seven Viols full of the seven last plagues and talked with me saying come hither I will show thee the Bride the Lambs wife 'T is in all likelyhood the last of those seven Angels who had poured out the Viols and the same who show'd unto the Prophet the great City the mother of Fornications Cha. 17.1 Then came one of the seven Angels unto me which had the seven Viols and talked with me saying Come hither I will show thee the Judgement of the great Whore that sitteth on many Waters As it was this seventh and last Angel who had the Viols by whom the ruin of Antichrist was effected it doth most properly belong to him to show Babylon faln and Ierusalem rebuilt V. 10. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high Mountain and showed me that great City the Holy Jerusalem descending out of Heaven from God. This is somewhat like what the Devil did unto Jesus Christ when he carried him up into an high Mountain and shows him all the Kingdoms of the world what the Devil makes appear by illusion St. Iohn sees by vision That he was carried or seemed to be carried up into an high Mountain makes it plain that the Ierusalem he was to be made see from thence was here upon Earth and not the Triumphant Church in Heaven though it be called the Holy Jerusalem descending out of Heaven from God. She shall be descended from Heaven because she shall abound in Graces which come from thence she is called the great City and 't is the first time she is so called 'T is a detestable name which in all the preceding Prophecy is given only to Spiritual Babylon But 't is on this account that then the Church shall possess the multitude of the Nations as Antichristianism doth at present V. 11. Having the Glory of God and her Light wus like unto a stone most precious even like a Iasper stone clear as Cristal V. 12. And had a Wall great and high and had twelve Gates and at the Gates twelve Angels and names written thereon which are the names of the twelve Tribes of the children of Israel V. 13.
not contemporary with 'em the seven seals carry the Prophecy almost as far as the fall of Paganism unto Constantine the first Christian Emperor The seven Trumpets divide the rest of the Time between Constantine and his Christian Successors to the end of the World. And the seventh Trumpet that sounds here is the beginning of the last Period which comprehends the fall of the Empires of the World and particularly that of the Antichristian Kingdom or the Papacy The seventh Angel sounded and there were great voices These are voices of Acclamation and joy That Thunders and Lightnings are joyned to those voices signifies the preaching of the Gospel And the four and twenty Elders who sat before God on their seats fell upon their faces and worshipped God saying we give thee thanks O Lord God Almighty c. 'T is the Song and subject matter of thanksgiving wherewith the Holy People should praise God during the reign of a thousand years when God shall have subdued all their Enemies Observe here that the four and twenty Elders appear alone and begin the Song whereas in the first Vision the living Creatures begun the Song and the Elders followed ' em 'T is not to exclude the living Creatures and the Ministry in the last Period of the Church but to signify that then the People shall be so filled with the Divine Spirit that they shall not need to wait the inspiration and assistance of the Holy Ministry to ingage them to praise God and perform holy duties The Nations were angry and thy wrath in come i. e. the Nations of the Antichristian People have executed their malice and fury and thou hast avenged it by destroying their Empire And the Time of the dead that they should be judged and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy Servants the Prophets and to the Saints and them that fear thy name small and great This doth not signify the last judgement or the last Resurrection 'T is the first Resurrection the Deliverance of the Church her coming to the expected Kingdom This is set forth after the same manner in the 20th Chapter of the Apocalyps as hath been already seen The Time of the Dead to be judged he saith not the Living and the Dead or all the Dead but speaks of the Church which lay as dead during the reign of Antichrist and shall rise again when that Kingdom is destroyed The Dead shall be judged And how 't is God will reward the faithfull and the Church by giving them Peace and a Kingdom 'T is a judgement of Grace and of Beneficence He speaks not of eternal Rewards as appears by what follows and to destroy those who destroyed the Earth Which is not a proper term to signify eternal punishments wherein nothing is destroyed men continue under them for ever so that the ruin of the Antichristian Empire must be here meant V. 19. Chap. 11. And the Temple of God was opened in Heaven and there was seen in his Temple the Ark of his Testament The Ark is the sign of God's Covenant with the Iews so this Prophecy of the Ark in the Temple of God signifies the recalling of the Iews The Temple of God was open The Church shall be open to all Nations all People shall resort to it and among others we shall see that People who derive their Glory from the Ark of the Covenant CHAP. XXIV The Characters of the Kingdom of the Church Eight are certain and five doubtfull What shall happen after this Kingdom What is meant by Gog and Magog There shall probably be a lesser kind of Antichrist a little before the end of the World. HAving confirmed the Truth of this Reign of Christ upon Earth we ought now to consider the Nature and Characters of it they may be divided into two Classes some that are doubtful and others certain It is fit that we begin with the certain We are not to reckon among the Characters of this Reign either the fall of the Babylonish Empire or the conversion of the Iews or the conversion of the remaining Gentiles For these three things are to go before it They can never be brought about but with confusion and Tumult The Popish Empire cannot fall but it must cost blood and make a mighty noise The conversion of the Iews must needs be attended with great Commotions among the People and it may be violent contradictions 'T is likewise impossible to conceive that the Conversion of the Gentiles can be brought about without the utmost endeavours of the Devil to hinder it he will raise all his forces every where to hinder the last establishment of this Kingdom of Christ as he did in the first Ages of the Christian Church So that we cannot doubt but he will cause great opposition not only by words but it may be blows Now this cannot belong to the Kingdom of Christ whereof the principal Character is Soveraign Peace Insomuch that we thus conceive of it 1. The Papal Empire shall fall 2. After that some years will be necessary to abolish Sects and Parties and compose the differences among Christians 3. That after this many Heathen Nations and the Iews shall be converted for it cannot be thought that they should be converted while Christians are so much at variance among themselves and seeking the destruction of one another 4. After the Conversion of the Iews the remainder of the most remote Nations shall also be converted Now for all this there must be time for should we think that God will act in a more miraculous manner in this than in the establishment of the first Christian Church Wherefore as the Christian Church was near an hundred years in its first setling no less will be necessary perfectly to resettle it and then shall that blessed Kingdom come which we expect not but that there is some probability that God may begin to compute the thousand years from the fall of Antichrist even before the Conversion of the Iews and Gentiles and so the fall of the Antichristian Kingdom and the Conversion of the Nations may in some sort be comprehended within the Reign of Christ for a thousand years But when we speak here of the Kingdom of Christ we speak of it as in its perfection which will not be till after these things are come to pass An extraordinary effusion of the Spirit the first certain Character Chap. 2.28 29. The first certain Character of this reign of Christ is the plentifull effusion of the Spirit of God upon men The Prophecy of Ioel to this purpose is one of those which is but in part accomplisht hitherto I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh and your Sons and your Daughters shall prophecy your old Men shall dream dreams and your young Men see visions also on the servants and the hand-maid in those days will I pour out my Spirit That lesser effusion of the Spirit which the first Christians experienc't is not enough to fill up the
in the preceding Chapters where I have shown that Empire and a Kingdom Peace and Prosperity are promised to the Church of Christ in such a manner as hath never hitherto been fulfilled Object VVhen Christ shal come the Church shall be most corrupt 4. After this they tell us that when God describes those Times which shall immediately precede the end of the World instead of representing them as a golden Age they are painted out as an Age of Iron and darkness Iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold false Prophets and false Christs shall arise they shall work signs and wonders to deceive if possible the very Elect. Math. 24. v. 12.24.37 The coming of the Son of man shall be as the days of Noah When the Son of man shall come Luke 18. c. 8. he shall not find faith upon Earth And 2 Ep. Thessal 2. chap. 't is said the Lord shall destroy the man of sin by the brightness of his coming But all this is grounded on a false supposition viz. that there shall be no other coming of Christ but for the last final Judgement which is not true the coming of Christ here spoken of is that to settle the Peace and Glory and Kingdom of his Church and we may be certain that this is meant in almost all the Passages where the coming of Christ is spoken of It is true that when Christ shall come to destroy the Antichristian Kingdom he shall not find true Faith upon Earth that is very little of it Experience confirms this for we are now in that very time Farther when Christ shall come the third and last time for the last Judgment it may well be that there shall be a great scarcity of faith piety in the World at that time for Gog and Magog shall be increas't there shall be a great seduction upon Earth and a great affliction upon the Church So that these Prophecies shall have their accomplishment whenever Christ comes They were fulfilled at his first coming when he came in the flesh for the Church was then exceedingly corrupted and so at his second coming when he shall come to destroy the Antichristian Kingdom For in our days there is a very great corruption and shall be at his third coming for at the end of the world there shall be an Insurrection against the Church and against the Son of God. 5. Object The day of Judgement would not then be unknown 5. It will farther follow say these Gentlemen that the Hour and the day of Iudgement would not then be unknown as our Lord J. Christ hath said it is For if just after the fall of the Antichristian Empire the reign of Christ for a thousand years must take place we likewise know that at the end of that Reign of a thousand years shall be the day of Judgment First you must know that our Lord J. Christ saith not that the day of the last Judgment shall be alway concealed he only saith that no man then knew it concerning that day saith he knoweth no man. That depends on the fixing the time of the 1260 years for the reign of Antichrist Now no man knew for certain at that time when the 1260 years should begin God did not permit that it should be well known till this last Age which is as also the last of the reign of Antichrist for 1260 years Moreover after having well fixt the Epocha of the birth of Antichrist that we may discover his end yet can we not thereby come to the exact knowledge of the day of Iudgement 1. Because we know not whether the thousand years of the reign of the Church must begin just at the end of the 1260 years of the reign of Antichrist We may say the contrary without saying any thing that is improbable that the thousand years are not to be computed but from the compleat establishment of the Kingdom of Christ 2. We cannot tell whether the Period of a thousand years is to be exactly so much neither more or less for the H. Ghost is not so critical and precise and often makes use of a round and certain number to signify one that is uncertain unless when he makes use of a broken number as three and half for then we cannot doubt but we are to reckon exactly so much So that these two things being always doubtfull we can never know the precise time of the Judgement day 6. Object The world would then last a long while 6. After this they say that if the Church must reign a thousand years on Earth the World is yet to last for a long time which is not likely it should because the Apostles even in their days spoke of the end of the world as a thing approaching and near at hand We are in the last times saith St. Paul. The coming of I. Christ is at hand saith St. James My littie children It is the last time saith St. John. They ought to confess that these passages make against them instead of being for them The Apostles called their Days the last times and the last hour and yet almost two thousand years have passed since Those Texts therefore must not be taken in too rigid a sense We have spent one Chapter on purpose in this Book to explain those Passages 7. Object The Scripture speaks but of one Resurrection 7. Lastly they tell us that according to the Scriptures at the coming of our Lord J. Christ All the Dead must be raised at once the Righteous and the Wicked which agrees not with the supposition of the Millenaries who would make one part of the Dead to rise at the beginning of the reign of a thousand years and the rest at the end of it But how can any one say that the Scripture saith that when it speaks the quite contrary that one part of the Dead must rise first which is the first Resurrection and that the Rest of the Dead are not to rise till the thousand years are fullfilled There are some passages 't is true wherein the Resurrection of the Good and Bad is spoken of as that which shall be at the same time and so it shall accordingly be for this first Resurrection will be but of a very few viz. of the Ancient Martyrs The remainder of the Faithful shall not be raised till the end of the World. Many Dead were risen with Christ when he rose and are certainly with him body and soul in Heaven Notwithstanding this the Scripture speaks of the Resurrection of all the Dead as a thing deferr'd and adjourn'd to the last Day because one little Exception destroys not a general Rule 'T is strange that these Gentlemen find so much difficulty in this first Resurrection Methinks they should remember the many Saints who were raised with Christ Why may not Christ raise some of the New Testament Saints at the coming of his Kingdom as well as raise some of the Ancient Patriarchs when he rose from the Grave However notwithstanding all that I have said on this subject of that first Resurrection I once again declare that I am not sollicitons to decide it Therefore I have and do again place it among those things which are doubtful I am informed that the learned and famous Prof. Mr. Witsius of Vtrecht hath thought fit to declare his mind on this subject in some publick Lectures I am told that he agrees with me concerning a great change which is to be in the Church before the end of the World with respect to Manners Union in Doctrine and the spreading of the Christian Faith as well among the Iews as among the Nations which as yet are Pagan He is also willing De X Tribubus Israelis c. 9. §. 1. cap 11. § 17 that the Iews should hope to return to their own Land and rebuild Ierusalem I would ask no more and am more rejoy't to meet with the concurrence of so great a man in that which is Essential than I can be troubled that he differs from me concerning that first Resurrection for I must acknowledge that I meet with very great difficulties about it But when I look upon it on that side and in that manner as I have represented it I find it to be very probable Nevertheless I am far from being fully perswaded of the Truth of it as I am concerning those Arâ—â—cles wherein we two agree These I think are all the Objections wherewith these Gentlemen oppose us For I regard not what they say when they tell us That this Reign of a thousand years is a Iewish vision a Fancy derived from the impure Fountain of their Traditions This is to declaim and not to prove 'T is not impossible but there may remain something that is good among the Traditions of the Iews at least St. Paul and St. Iude believed so The first learnt from their Tradition the names of the Magicians of Aegypt who opposed Moses and likewise those words of Moses I exceedingly quake and fear which we no where read in the Old Testament And St. Iude learnt from thence the combat of Michael the Arch-angel with the Devil for the body of Moses also the Prophecy of Enoch They urge likewise against us a multitude of ancient and modern Authors But I had rather give credit to Iustin Martyr and Papias who might have seen St. Iohn than to all those who have wrote since God hath his particular reasons why he will not that the Prophecies should be understood in every Age. FINIS
and his followers The other sort of Creatures are Fishes Creatures that make their abode in the waters that swim and descend into the Deep Creatures among whom there are some of a monstrous bigness Creatures that live upon filth and mud and are the lively image of the second sort of People to be seen in the fifth Period which is that of Antichrist rising and growing to perfection We there see the great Leviathan of the Abyss Antichrist himself the Monster of the great waters who devours all the other Fish and subjects them to his Government There we see all the followers of Antichrist Fishes of the second order All these Creatures i. e. all these men 1. Have their abode in the waters which denotes a Collection of much People they have the multitude on their side they reckon it their honour they glory in it 2. They descend into dark Abysses for whereas the Doctors of the fourth and fifth Century would be too knowing those of the following ages fell into a most stupid Ignorance They descend into the darkness of superstition and as for the most part Fishes adhere to the rocks or to the mud so those false Doctors addict themselves to Creatures and rise not towards Heaven where is the Creator In those times sprung up the adoration of Reliques the invocation of Saints the worship of Images and even the sublime wits who are the Birds of the fifth Period who flie so high by their lofty speculations as did Gregory of Nazianzen and Ambrose of Milan do sometimes fall from their elevation into the mire of a carnal and superstitious worship as Eagles after a flight into the highest regions of the Air fall down as it were in a moment to fix upon Carrion Lastly Fishes puddle and roll themselves in the mud and slime a good Emblem of that dreadful corruption into which the last ages of this fifth Period were plunged viz. the nineth and tenth we have already spoken of that corruption and you need but look back to what hath been said to perceive how justly we may compare the men of those Times to Fishes that live in mire and dirt Some will doubtless make an objection here on this account that God is said to be the Author of these Birds and Fishes Which there is no reason for in the thing represented by the Type because God is not to be lookt upon as the Author of the Heresies Idolatries and corruption of the Papacy I might reply that no Typical relations ought to hinder but that God may be said the Author of and give his blessing to those Creatures which were good in respect of their natural being he did not bless the Chaos 't is true but it was because that in its natural being it was neither fair nor good no more than in its typical relation But if any will that the mystery be carried farther it may be observed that God saith Let the waters bring forth every moving Creature c. 'T is the waters that immediately produce'em To the same effect as he said before Let the Earth bring forth Plants For this end that God would our works should be reckon'd as our own that we might receive the rewards of 'em So the waters i. e. the multitude of degenerate mankind are said to produce those corruptions and false Doctrines that they might suffer the punishments annexed to 'em and that it might not be imputed unto God. But it will be said that God blessed these works He saw that it was good Once more I may ask why should not God approve those Creatures which in their own natures were good and which were typically to represent such Events as the Providence of God would appoint for his own glory For doubtless the false Teachers who corrupted the Christian Religion in the fifth Century must come within the decree of God as such things whereby he would glorify himself Mysteries of the sixth day In the sixth day God made two works 1. Insects creeping things and four-footed Beasts 2. The Man and the Woman This sixth day answers to the sixth Period of the Church from the tenth Century to the Period of the Reign of Antichrist These four-footed Beasts Insects and Creeping things cannot be thought to signify any thing that is good under Creeping things are comprehended Serpents venemous and the most accursed Creatures among Insects are Caterpillers and a thousand other hurtfull Creatures among four-footed Beasts are Wolves Lions Tygers Leopards and Bears all cruel and bloody Creatures which live upon prey This is the true Character of the Men who lived in the sixth Period of the Church which is the second of the Antichristian Empire There we meet with Men like Bloodsuckers Caterpillers Worms devouring Insects that ravage and consume and destroy and gratify their Covetousness by a cursed Simony There we meet with Doctors like Serpents and Basilicks who poison by their very breath and spread the venom of their false Doctrines with piercing sharpened tongues I mean the Schoolmen who with subtile Arguments whetted and set in order as so many darts and spears diffuse Heresy Impurity Poison and Idolatry Moreover we there meet with wild Beasts bloody and cruel Men who delight in blood and slaughter and glut themselves therewith as so many Lions and Tygers We may there see multitudes ingaged in an Holy war against Infidels who went to the Holy Land to conquer it but carried with them the Lions Tooth for they rent and devoured every thing which came in their way Especially may we there take notice of those cruel Persecutors of the Church killing burning and committing outrage and massacres in all places This should be carefully observed that we meet with Birds and Fishes in the fifth day answering to the first Period of Antichrist or the fifth of the Church and some of those Creatures live upon the spoil but do not prey upon Man. We do not see that Birds and Fishes go out of their own Element to fall upon men and destroy them So in the fifth Period there were 't is true some Hereticks and a great corruption but there was not much persecution little blood spilt at that time upon the account of Religion That sort of rage began not to be much imployed but since the eleventh Century in the sixth Period Mysteries of the creation of the Man and Woman In the same day God created the Man and the Woman who are the Images of Christ and of the Church his Spouse The Parrallel between the first and second Adam and between the Woman and the Church hath been made so often and is so easy to make that I need not dwell upon it and therefore shall only take notice that the Type doth exactly correspond with the Mystery At the end of the sixth day God finisht his work he then gave the last stroke to it by the Creation of the Man and the Woman an Emblem of Christ and his Church and of their Union