God took him Gen. 5. 22 23 24. This was an Eminent Peice of that World to come Enoch was translated without seeing Death As the Apostle saith Some shall not Dye but be Changed and Caught up There were two Miraculous Appearances of Judgment The Lapse and Curse upon the Creation and Death upon mankind that Came in upon the Disobedience of the First Adam the grand Proâ—unciation of Judgment upon the whole State of the World of that First Adam and this compar'd with the First Glory of the Creation on which it Brake in is most justly to be esteemed Miracle tho now not so The so universal and general Judgment upon the Old World by the Flood of which was spoken before and how closely it Relates to the VVorld to Come as also of the Peculiar Miracle of Grace towards Noah and such a Remnant of the Creation with him as should give a present Restitution of all things and how Representative was that also of the World to Come in which the Servants of Christ shall be Saved from the Deluge of the Vials and of that Fire of the last Vial Now it was very Agreeable even to that Beginning of the World That it should not be left wholly without a Testimony of that Kingdom signified in the Promise of the Womans Seed wherein there is given the History of that Seed propagating it self as the almost whole History of that Time tho it was so very far off at that Time from Coming and was to pass through so many several Changes of Representation ere it came into its Glory The Confusion of Languages and the Division of the Earth in the Time of Shem the great Melchisedec and Eber the Holy Patriarch through whose Loyns the Holy Seed Ran and whose Son Peleg in an especial manner bore the Character of that Division had this Remarkable Relation to the Kingdom of Christ That it carried the Face of a Miraculous Judiciary Driving asunder the Nations and made the great Distinctiâ—n of Mankind That Kingdom hath made all along in the World and shall make For hereby the Oracles of God were so long committed to that particular Seed of the Hebrews of whom Christ God over All Blessed for ever came And hereupon arose that Temporary and present Remedy or Divine Expedient of the Gift of Tongues shewing the Miraculous Power of Christs Kingdom making way for its enlargement in the World and Foretelling also that Reunion of Languages At Pentecost in his Kingdom Thus the Time of the second Patriarchal Roll of Generation is Illustrated with a Miracle separating the Hebrews from all the Nations of the Earth The Time of Abraham with his Call to the Going out of Egypt was Enlightned with the continual Appearances of God to Abraham Isaac and Jacob which were indeed of the Naâ—ure of Perfect Miracle besides what was Miraculous in the Birth of Isaac of Jacob and that Miracle of Judgment on Sodom before spoken of Thus we see No Time hitherto to the Going out of Egypt hath been a Dark Place in Regard of Miraculous Appearances of God to his Servants because of the Great Son of Abraham according to the Flesh in whose Right of Inheritance as the Prince of the World to come Abraham is call'd Heir of the Worlds Rom. 4. 13. The Time of the Going out of Egypt from the Multiplication of the Children of Israel there to the very settlement in Canaan was one Continued Train of Miracles Nor was the Time of the Judges or of the Kings of Judah Un-illustrated by various Irradiations of the mighty Power of God towards his People in Fore-Assurances of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ which is much to be Remark'd Because the Law of God by his Servant Moses had Receiv'd the full settlement and Establishment by as high Testimonies from Heaven as serv'd not only the necessariness of its Sanction but the Glory and Grandieur of it And if only Prophets without any Power of Miracles had been Rais'd up in Addition to it There had been yet a Measure of Truth Shaken Down and Running Over For besides those Extraordinary Prophets there was the Standing Ministry as in Ordinary of the Priests Lips preserving Knowledg But that which is most Wonderful and Deserves particular Enquiry is That even in the Apostasy of the Ten Tribes besides the Communication of whatsoever great things God did in the Kingdom of Judah There were Those two Prophets Elijah and Elisha like two Witnesses after Moses and Aaron set out and Credential'd with a Mighty Power of Miracles to be as a Light shining in the Dark place of that Apostasy that was so great a Type of the Antichristian Apostasy and the Types of one are made by great Wisdom of the Divine Spirit Correspondent to the Types of the other even to so undoubted clearness and Certainty that I make no doubt to Assign it as one Reason Why there was such a Miraculous Presence there even that It with those witnesses at the Deliverance out of Egypt might be a Prophetical Plat-fotm of the Witnesses Appearing in the Twelve Hundred Sixty Days against the Antichristian Apostasy But besides that There was with Regard to Joseph of whom the Prophetick Benediction of Jacob and Moses spoke so great Things and who was so great a Type of Christ in his High Administration in Egypt and whose was as the Spirit of God Testifies the Birth-Right 1 Chron. 5. 2. There was a Type I say of the Kingdom of Christ necessarily to be Erected in his peculiar Posterity whereof he himself Foretold in Ephraim so that tho the Kingdom was Judah's and no one Good King of the House of Joseph over the Ten Tribes yet God being pleased to have some Representation of the Kingdom of Christ tho in so continued an Apostasy he was pleased also to Honour it with so peculiar a Prophetical Ministry and that so Illustrated with Miraculous Powers till he gave them a Bill of Divorce under the Name of those three Children of Whoredom Jezreel Lo-Ruhamah and Lo-Ammi Hosea 1. Yet because it was still a Type of the Kingdom of Christ There was an Eminent Type of the very Kingdom of Christ Elijah carried up to Heaven even above the Translation of Enoch in a Chariot of Fire without Dying Some years after the Captivity of the Ten Tribes when they were come under the very Perpendicular Influences of that Dreadful Lo Ruhamah and Lo-Ammi The Miraculous Power of God shone out with very Bright Rayes upon Hezekiah King of Judah a most Excellent Reforming Prince First in the Destruction of so great an Assyrian Army which threatn'd him with the Lot of the Ten Tribes and Immediately after with that Miraculous Sign in the Shadow that is as the Learned make manifest The Sun going so many Degrees back to assure his Life restor'd Then came on the Babylonish Captivity during the Time of which besides the Grandieur of the Spirit of Prophecy during that Time in Jeremiah Ezekiel and
by the Rising of our Lord from the Dead for our Justification which was in Daniels Phrase bringing in Everlasting Righteousness That then immediately sollows the Sealing Vision and Prophecy viz. The Vision and Prophecy of the Glorious Temple and Kingdom of Christ even to Ezekiel 40. c. Indeed there was a Gradual Unsealing that first Sealing in the Opening the Seven first Seals which produc'd the Appearance of the Kingdom of Christ in the Christian Empire of Constantine and his Successors but because under it the Antichristian State of the Empire made up every day nearer and nearer to Antichrist's 2 Thes 2. own Time wherein he was to be Revealed therefore there was a second sâ—aling of the Servants of God in their Forehead which sealing being contemporary with the Witnesses in Sackcloath and that contemporary with the Forty Two Months of the Gentiles and of the Beast and of the Woman in the Wilderness is by construction a Time of 1260 Days of Years So that the Glory of their State was indeed secur'd but Conceal'd also and Reserv'd Upon which the Kingdom of Christ could not be Reveal'd during that sealing also and this as I shall argue was the True Cause of the cessation of the power of Miracles And when there was a Challenge of the Kingdom of Christ Rev. 10. by the Roar of the Lyon and Seven Thunders uttering their Voices there was yet which shall be the last a sealing up the Voices of the Thunders So that there coald not be the mighty Works of Miracles shewing forth themselves notwithstanding the Reformation I have thus far now shewn the close connexion of Miracles and the Kingdom of Christ all along from the Promise of the Seed of the Woman breakiag the Head of the Serpent unto the very Kingdom of Christ appearing in far Greater Glory than ever yet it hath done and no Time excepted but the Time of Straits from the Restoring Jerusalem to Messiah and the Time of the 1260 Days of the Apostasy not expiring at the Reformation nor yet expired That I may then give what I account the True Reason of the Suspension rather than Cessation of Miracles I will lay down my sense of it in these Following Particulars 1. There is a solemn Oath of Christ That the Potentacy of the Beast would have Time Times and half a Time 42 months or 1260 Days 2. This Potentacy of the Beast was to attain its power by doing Great Wonders and working Miracles For that which is called The other Beast Rev. 13. 13. while he says to them that dwell on the Earth that they should worship the Beast and make an Image to the Beast that is give him in the Image of Spiritual Supremacy Imperial Power He works miracles tho false ones And thus it was to be because as hath been said the Kingdom of the Beast is the Counterfeit of the Kingdom of Christ and so must Appear with Miracles 3. The Kingdom of Christ cannot appear while â—he Beâ—st's Term lasts For those Two Kingdoms can no more stand together in Manifestation and Appearance than the Ark and Dagon 4. In the Kingdom of Christ then Miracles come when his Name in his Kingdom comes For where his Name is near in any Outward Lustre and Visible Glory of his Kingdom in that Psalm of his Kingdom Psal 75. 1. There his wondrous works must and shall declare it 5. Where True Miracles come False Miracles cannot Abide but Vanish as those of Simon Magus Acts 10. of Elymas the Sorcerer Chap. 13. 8. of the Exorcists Chap. 19. 13. as those of Jannes and Jambres before Moses 2 Tim. 3. 8. as the Priests of Baal whose God could not Answer by Fire before the True God by Elijah 1 Kings 18. 28. 38. When God indeed appears All Counterfeits are forced to cry out This is the Finger of God God cannot be out-shot in his own Bow 5. Where the Miracles proper to the Evangelical Kingdom and Glory of Christ come there is also a pouring out of the Divine Spirit in the Hearts of Men by mighty Operations of Grace according to his own Will and in proportion to the Appearance his Kingdom is to make at that time And this must prevail over All that stands in the way of it Lay then these together They make Demonstrative Proof There could be There can be no Miracles while the Antichristian Times last that is no open visible sensible Miracles For if the Beast must by the Oath tf Christ last 1260 Years If it must begin and be sustain'd by Lying Signs and Wonders And if where Christ's Kingdom comes in Glory Miracles come and his Spirit also If the False Miracles of Antichrist's Kingdom cannot stand before the True Miracles of Christ's Kingdom much more with his Spirit Then it necessarily follows there can be no Miracles no Divine Visible Miracles while the Kingdom of the Beast is by the Oath of Christ to continue It would presently break All in pieces over-throw All The Beast's Kingdom cannot stand before them His Kingdom having been so near to 1260 Years so long Miracles must have been suspended and the Miraculous Power have lain still and been quiet as in its Scabbard For what can such Lying VVonders as are done by the Dead Bones of Martyrs Relicks of this or that Saint the Virgin Mary or even pertaining to Christ's Garments VVood of his Cross before the mighty Power of Truly Evangelical Doctrine seal'd with Miracles such as were done by Christ and his Apostles together with the Inward Power and Grace of the Divine Spirit making obedient by Word and Deed What could All the Legendary Miracles of Transubstantiation do in Resistance to Divine Truth so armed or Brutish Excommunications effect before that True Apostolical Power of casting to Sathan The One True Fire from Heaven the other Brutum Fulmen False Fire though pretended to be brought down from Heaven where by the way I cannot but observe how Prophecy hath guided common Language For as Lightnings or Fulminations are Fire from Heaven so common Language hath styled Excommunications Fire as from Heaven though indeed only from the Magical Heaven of the Pope and most truly from the sulpâ—ureous smoak of the bottrmless Pit Revel 9. 1. Falling in with Revel 13. 13. to Great Exactness Now a due Consideration of what I have now Represented makes Full Solution to Two Objections that may arise from an overly Reflection upon it Object 1 It may be asked Why had the Apostasy of the Ten Tribes so Great a Type of the Antichristian Apostasy so many and so great Miracles by Elijah and Elisha Ans The Answer is already given because the Kingdom and Apostasy of Antichrist was sworn by Christ and therefore could not be broken till the End of the 1260 days but it would have been broken by Miracle whereas the Kingdom of the Ten Tribes being Israelitish and Appointed by God was not Touch'd by the Miracles of Elijah and Elisha altho their Paganiz'd Apostasy was
not come to his End so soon but must do at last as is intimated concerning the Turkish King of the North Dan. 11. ult Now to keep France so within its own Figure is a Service so considerable to Providence according to Prophecy that it should make Princes and Nations Patient under the inconveniency of War to such an End And it may Answâ—r for a Confederacy of Protestants with Popish Powers so far as that it may be made use of by Providence to such an End as Restraining France Agreeably to Divine Determination And it may justly call us to the Observation of Providence in Ballancing Things so as this Last and former Years it has done so that while as with one hand God is pleased to keep the French Power at such a Height with the other he so Ballances that it should not exceed its Figure So we see it in all the Disposes of Things to this Day So in the Wonderful Preservation of the Kings Person when danger was so every way about and Death so near him Because he hath raised Him up as so peculiar an Instrument to that purpose to give a stop to the Exorbitant Power of France as also to be an Interposer against the Return of Papal Power on these Protestant Nations of England Scotland and Ireland 3. As it was said to Barak This Journey or Expedition shall not be for thy Honour because God would fell Sisera into the Hands of a Woman Judges 4 9 So the great Success of Finishing the War upon France in Conjunction with the Turks God hath reserv'd for the Stone cut oâ—t of the Mountains who is not in any Human Hand No Greater nor more Victorious Atchievements have been therefore Granted to the Confederate Armies nor any gradual Appearances of the Kingdom of Christ because the Glory is reserv'd to Christ so that all shall be done by him in an instant on the sudden at the very Time Appointed by God viz. in the year 97. so near Approaching These things shall be done The French Grandieur as it now stands in opposition to the Kingdom of Christ shall be ground to Powder The Witnesses both the Vaudois and the French Protestants at this Time under his Power and Tyranny shall see the Morning Star Dawning They shall be with Christ when he Breaks the Nations with a Rod of Iron They shall feel a Spirit of Life Entring into them and Causing them to stand on their Feet and they shall hear a Voice from Heaven saying Come up hither The Turkish Woe shall be clear Remov'd But then together with this The Confederate Princes as giving their Kingdom yet to the Beast or Papacy and even the Protestant Princes so Far as they enter into the Constitution of a Nebuchadnezzars Image the Papal Hierarchic Clay where ever it is Found with iâ—s 7000 Names shall all be Ground to Powder also 5. The Supreme Sovereign Event of Events shall then come to paâ—s The Kingdoms of this World shall become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ He shall Reign in his own Name take to himself his Great Power and send out his Everlasting Gospel as on the Wings of Angels and Blessed is he who is not offended at these Things but Loves and Waits for them But indeed if God should please any way to bring down the French Power or Cause it but so much as to Lye still and to Dissolve the League between him and the Turkish Potentacy sooner my Hopes and Expectations might be that God were sooner also working by such Beginnings to much greater Things for the Change of the World In the mean Time I cannot but Represent things as Prophecy Represents them and I presume no further And that I find not to be till 97. Another Prophetical Note The Lord hath been pleas'd much to imprint upon my Spirit is that Habac. 2. 13 14. where the Prophet beholds in Litteral Babylon the Mystical Babilon the Town Built â—ith Blood the Intoxicating Soreeress Enchanting the Nations to the Exposing their Nakedness and Shame through Inebriating them with the Golden Cup of Fornication she holds in her hand and makes the Kings of the Earth Drunk with that they may commit the Whoredoms of Idolatry with her and in the beholding of this and the Foresight of the End and Destruction of it The Prophet is made to see in Spirit by the mighty Influence of that upon him while That bore and carried him alought and moved him and not any Created VVill but the Holy Spirit alone He speaks the State and Posture of Things that shall Confine and Border upon the Ruin and Destruction of that Babylon and the Manifestation of the Glory of the Lord Immediately Consequent upon it And this State he declares shall be by the peculiar Ordination and Constitution of the Lord of Hosts of him who has the Government of the whole Host of Heaven and Earth so that nothing shall be able to move to the Contrary The People shall Labour as in the very Fire the pure perfect Fire and shall weary themselves for very Vanity pure and perfect Vanity For so is it ordain'd by God that thus he may prepare for that great change of the World The very Reason why he orders it so is Because the Knowledg of the Glory of the Lord shall cover the Earth The Glory shall cover the Earth that the knowledg of the Glory of God may so cover it also even as the Waters the Sea that even as in the Sea there is nothing to be seen for Water even so in the Earth There shall be nothing to be seen for the Glory of the Lord it shall so take up the whole View througout all the Earth From hence therefore I Argue All kinds of Disappointment and Frustrations of All the Labour Undertakings Enterprizings that are in the World the Expectations from Princes Councels Governments From Trade and Commerce at Home and Abroad From Armies and Navies From Generals and Commanders of them and their whole Force and this not only in one part of the World but in the Nations and People taken together and in the Gross Such Labouring in the very Fire and wearying themselves for very vanity are no Argument against such a Glory of God being near and the Knowledg of such a Glory covering the Earth as the Waters do the Sea Such a Glorious Revolution and Change of the World being very nigh and at the doors so that they are rather an Argument for the nighness of it to us For God hath given us this as a Prognostick In the very same manner This Divine Prophet beholding that Great Vision of the Kingdom of Christ in its last Accomplishment when all his Enemies shall be under the Invasion with his Troops Intimates That even in the Labour and Service of Nature it self There shall be great Fâ—ustrations and Disappointments that the Fig Tree may not Blossom the Labour of the Olive may fail there may be no Fruit in the Vine
the Kingdom therefore continued notwithstanding those Miracles so long as God intended But after he Removed it as he saw good But if the Antichristian Apostasy had or should Fall before the Time the Papal Kingdom must fall with it Now the Power of Gospel Doctrine of Miracles of Powring out the Spirit must needs have Broken it without Remedy which had been contrary to the Oath of Christ There were yet Spiritual Miracles as is to be shewn together with the Doctrine of the Witnesses But they being not visible and so not Forcible on the Sense nor Joyn'd with the Spirit powr'd out as it shall be in the Succession of the Kingdom of Christ the Antichristian both Kingdom and Apostasy have stood notwithstanding Object Why had not the Reformation a proportionable appearance of Miracles with the Revival of the Doctrine of the Gospel and the Retrenchment of the Papal Kingdom in so many States and Kingdoms Ans It hath been already Intimated The Antichristian Potentacy and Apostasy were to continue not only Time and Times but the Half Time also the 180 as well as the 1080 Days of years Now at the beginning of Half Time the Reformation appear'd yet the Beasts Half Time was Remaining due Christ therefore Seales the Thunders Rev. 10. 4. Gives out no Miraculous Power nor Gifts of the Spirit in Extraordinary or according to his Kingdom but stays till the Expiration of Half Time also For if the Revival of the Doctrine only with ordinary Gifts of the Spirit hath so far prevail'd without these Mighty Powers How much more must These Joyn'd with Miracle and extraordinary Effusions of the Spirit have prevail'd even to the Ruine of the Papal Kingdom and taking away the Apostasy before the Time sworn by Christ And so I have settled what I had to say on the Various Times and the various appearances of Miracles in all Times CHAP. VII The Direct Proof of the Power of Miracles Returning by the following Arguments for it I Now Address my self to the Immediate proof That Miracles are not so Ceas'd notwithstanding an Interruption of 1260 years but that they shall yet Return when the Succession of the Kingdom of Christ and the service of that Kingdom shall Require it Argum. 1. The general Argument I give for it is this That Miracles have not perfected the End and Intention of God in that whereunto they are appointed Now all the Works of God are Perfect and shall attain their End If then they have not done it it is certain they must return to do it For God cannot be Disappointed or Frustrated in what he Designs There are two great Ends of Miracles which have not yet been Answered by them which are Assurances to us Miracles shall and must Return Partic. 1. Miracles are Appointed by God to Attend the Gospel in its motion to the Ends of the Earth as the Gospel is the Rod of Christ's Strength by which he is to Rule so Extensively to the Ends of the Earth That hath not yet been Done Therefore Miracles must Return to do it as I shall now Argue First I say the Gospel was and is to prevail to the very Ends of the Earth This we see is not yet done The Gospel is to Establish the Glory of Christ the Glory of his Sacrifice of his Righteousness of his Intercession the Greatness of his Kingdom These Things we know how Imperfect they are as yet both in the Clearness of their Knowledg in the Extensiveness of them and in the Vniversal Communication of the Gospel to all the World Now if any one will say why may not a mighty Pouring out of the Spirit of Christ together with greater Light and more Abundant Evidences of the Gospel and of the Truths of it serve in the place of Miracles seeing it is an Affirmation almost General God works no Miracles except upon Necessity I Answer It is True If it pleased God It might be so but then so It might have been in the Days of Christ and of the Apostles Do we not certainly know that the Power of Christ could in the Days of his Flesh and by the Preaching of his Servants with the Presence of his Spirit have done all He and they Did without Miracles and wrought yet even to the utmost Effect If he had not pleased and thought fit to make Miracles the Convoy and as it were the Triumphant Chariot in which That Power should Ride For when the Apostle saith God bare them Witness with Signs and Wonders and Divers Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Spirit He yet adds According to his own Will He saw no such Necessity of Miracles but all was according to his own Will his own pleasure It is most certain If he had not Freely chosen to Work by Miracles his Spirit would have immediately Reach'd any Heart without them we find it did so If Christ spake to any Person In the very moment he Rose up immediately and Followed him As Matt. 9 9. He saw Matthew sitting at the Receipt of Custom and he saith unto him Follow me and Immediately he made no more words of it but Rose up and â—ollowed Him He Conferr'd not with Flesh and Blood He was in a Profession that required much Intention He was in the Very Business of it and warm as we say in it and it was in such a Kind of Profession as Men do not use easily to be call'd off from to mind Things of a Religious Concernment For Publicans and Sinners often in the Gospel Joyn'd together were Men of no Tender or Scrupulous Consciences Yet when Christ Commanded and no Miracle was wrought he was Obeyed If a Man among us were waiting upon his main Business his way of Gain and Profit and one should come to him without such a Power as the Spirit of Christ Acts by and say to him suppose on any Gospel Account when the Man was a Stranger to it Leave that you are waiting upon tho it be your Office and your Interest and attend the Gospel of Christ what a Scorn would such a one make of such a Proposal But the Power of Christ can where he pleases Touch a Heart Bow a Heart without the outward conveyance of a Miracle But even a Miracle tho It may Amuse and Startle yet if the Power of Christ come not along with it it could not do more than amuse and possibly move for a while In Zaccheus it was the very like Case To Andrew and Peter Christ first gave his Commands and his Promise to make them Fishers of Men and they left their Nets and Follewed him without any Miracle at first because his Spirit wrought Effectually in all things But then on the other side as I have shew'd abundantly Miracles did not prevail when the Spirit came not For how many saw the Miracles of Christ and yet Believed not Indeed in the Conversion of the Apostle Paul Jesus Christ saw fit for the great purposes for the Honour and for the Manifestation
but the End shall not be yet This Preaching shall be and the End shall be Nothing can be more Full that it is the Preaching of the Gospel at the End and no other that Christ speaks of The End must immediaiely Follow that Preaching And if any one should say By the End is not meant the End of this State of the World but the End of the Jewish State I Argue further If it be the Gospel of the Kingdom and be just before the End It must bring in the Glory of Christs Kingdom at that End or else the End comes and yet the Gospel hath not done its work and attain'd its End Why is it then call'd the Gospel of the Kingdom If it brings in an End and yet does not bring in the Kingdom Now we know the Kingdom was not brought in by the Jewish Desolations For besides that Israel must be a Glorious part of Christ's Kingdom as all Scripture Witnesses The Roman Pagan Monarchy kept out the Kingdom of Christ for near 300 years after the Destruction of Jerusalem and the Papal Roman Monarchy hath except a short Symbol of it in the Christian Empire kept it out ever since seeing therefore the Kingdom has not come The End has not come and if the End be not come that Preaching of the Gospel Christ intended has not yet been I Argue last of all the Gospel had not been Preached in All the World before the Destruction of Jerusalem nor so far as it hath been since Nor was any Thing but the Kingdom of Christ the proper Thing to be Witnessed to all Nations the concernment being small to several Nations in the Destruction of the Jews especially if compar'd with the Kingdom which the Gospel is the Gospel of or with the End of this World that is just before that Kingdom By all which it is most manifest there is yet the greatest Preaching of the Gospel to come that ever yet hath been why then should Miracles be Divided from it seeing all acknowledg they are so proper to it And why seeing it is the Gospel of the Kingdom and Miracles and the Kingdom are so together that Christ said If I do indeed Act by a Miraculous Power no doubt the Kingdom of God in a gracious Offer of it is come upon you And how seeing the End and the State after it depend on a Miraculous Power to bring them in can Miracles be divided from Them Another Scripture I Argue upon is Rev. 14. 6. After Christ had Risen After the Apostles Preaching some Numbers of years some reckon 70 years some more before the Revelation was given all which time the Gospel was Running and if at any time yet Flying through the World yet it is said After that I saw another Angel Fly through the midst of Heaven having the everlasting Gospel to Preach to them that Dwell on the Earth and to every Nation Kindred Tongue and People saying with a loud Voice Fear God and give Glory to him For the Hour of his Judgment is come I desire you would weigh this saith our Lord The Gospel must be Preached to All Nations and then the End shall be saith John I saw an Angel having the Gospel to Preach and to say the Hour of his Judgment is come therefore no Preaching of the Gospel but at the Hour of his Judgment is the Preaching here spoken of I appeal therefore if there Remain such a Preaching of the Gospel as never has been yet so Great so Mighty so Universal that should come to every Nation Tongue and Language whether then ought not to be upon All Christians an Expectation of the Return of Miracles I appeal to the Reason of All Men and most particularly to the Searchers of these Things For tho it may look like a singular Opinion that Miracles should return again yet it is no singular Opinion that Miracles should return again yet it is no singular Opinion That the great End of Miracles is to go along with the Preaching of the Gospel and to be a Testimony from Heaven to it This is generally Consented in If therefore there remains so great and universal a Preaching of the Gospel certainly Miracles shall return to wait upon it And how nearly this is Conjoyn'd with that World to come whereof we speak is Evident In that it is call'd the Everlasting Gospel even as the Restitution of All Things is that which hath been spoken of by the Mouth of all the Prophets since the World began Acts 3. 18. c. And as the Finishing of the Mystery of God is said Rev. 10. 6. to be that which he had Evangeliz'd or Preached as Gospel before or of old by his Servants the Prophets So the Everlasting Gospel must needs be that which hath been always Preaching and Declaring It must be therefore the Preaching of that Restitution of that Mystery always Preached as Gospel Again it is said The Hour of his Judgment that is of his Government or of his Kingdom is come For his Kingdom is both Judgment in a strict sense or the Universal Government of Christ So that it must be as Christ call'd it in the forenam'd Matth. 24. The Gospel of the Kingdom Thus it is every way prov'd there must be a Return of Miracles both in Regard the Intention of God in Miracles is not accomplished in the Universal Preaching of the Gospel or in the Kingdom brought in by the Preaching of the Gospel of which Kingdom the Gospel is the Gospel and for the Bringing in of which Kingdom or Restitution or World to come Miracles are so closely joyn'd with the Gospel Particular 2. But I come to a second Particular to shew Miracles must Return because the great End of Miracles in Bringing in the Kingdom of Christ the Restitution of All Things the World to come the New Heaven the New Earth is not yet Finish'd and Perfected seeing as I have I hope fully made out All Miracles are but Parts Portions Parcels of that New Creation Speciminous Appearances of that great Power on the Throne that said Behold I Create All New Now that Christ is to have such an Universal Kingdom and in a Restitution of All Things is so Evident that they who would deny it are Forc'd to Fly to a Spiritual Kingdom and to a Providential Kingdom In the Spiritual Kingdom they think all Things may be said to be now Restor'd and made New In the Providential Kingdom They think All Things Subdued under him and whatever is beyond These they Consign over to Eternity Now it is most True All these Kingdoms are to be acknowledg'd and I do Acknowledg them with all my Heart and I do confess It would be prejudice enough against any Doctrine that should deny that Christ hath now a Spiritual Kingdom a Providential Kingdom and a Kingdom in Eternity he shall most assuredly have But yet that he hath distinct from these a Kingdom of Resurrection of Restitution of Judgment putting All Things under
him a Kingdom of New Heaven and New Earth and before the State of Eternity I will endeavour to make out and that this being not yet accomplished There cannot be yet such a Cessation of Miracles but that they must Return to serve so great an End That hâ—s Providential Kingdom or Spiritual Kingdom if any should think of That have not brought all things under him is most Evident by two places of Scripture Heb. 2. 8. Thou hast put all Things in subjection under his Feet For in that he hath put all Things in subjection under him He left nothing that is not put under him but yet in the sense wherein All things are put under him It is my positive Doctrine saith the Apostle All Things are not yet put under him It was in the Time when Christ was Risen the Apostle said this when he was Ascended when he was Crown'd with Glory and Honour For this saith the Apostle we do see viz. by an Eye of Faith thus he Distinguishes between what we do see and what we do not see so much as by the Eye of Faith I am sure If All Things were not put under him then They are not put under him Now For there was a far greater Appearance of All things put under him at that Time Than of All things being put under him at this Time even in regard of his Providential Kingdom and much more in regard of his Spiritual Kingdom and that his Kingdom in Eternity is not the Kingdom wherein All things shall be put under him is most Evident For when All Things are put under him even the last Enemy Death then he delivers up the Kingdom to God and the Father that God may be all in all which surely If we can have any Apprehensions of the Eternal Kingdom must needs be that Kingdom of Eternity Before the Kingdom of Eternity therefore All Things must be put under him And seeing the last Enemy that is to be Subdued is Death The Spirit of God hath given us the exact Time of the Subduing the Last even Death And it is not till after the Thousand years of the Kingdom of the first Resurrection For then the Devil All the Dead and Death and Hell are cast into the Lake so that as it is so far Subdued in the beginning of the Thousand years as that the Dead Saints are rais'd the Living Saints Chang'd So at the End of the Thousand years it is utterly Abolish'd and can never again make the least appearance or possibility of Entrance any more for ever upon any of the Saints who are secur'd in an Eternity of Life so it remains shut up with its own Dead for ever And this is that Second Death oppos'd to the First Resurrection Rev. 20. 14 15. The second Scripture I Rely upon for the Proof that the Kingdom of Christ wherein All things shall be brought under him is not yet so Accomplished as that All Things should be indeed under him till the Time Appointed by the Father is that Evident one Heb. 10. 13. where the Apostle speaking of Christs sitting down on the Right Hand of God says He sits expecting till his Enemies be made his Footstool Expecting Now as the Apostle saith what we see fulfill'd and accomplished why do we yet hope for there is no more work for Hope If the thing be seen and Fullfilled so to what End is Expectation of a Thing already come to pass why should any one sit expecting for what he hath already in Hand It is as if a Man should say when the Sun is up and hath Fill'd the Air with Light and spread his Beams upon the whole Earth I am waiting to see when the Sun will Rise You know that Man would be counted a Fool or a Madman of any one that should hear him say when the Sun is in his Eye and its Rays spread on the Mountains about him I am waiting to see when the Sun will Rise so if Christ should sit in Heaven Expecting that his Enemies should be made his Footstool and they are already his Footstool would it not be to impute the greatest Folly to Christ Seeing therefore in this ordinary way of Gods Government of the World The Enemies of Christ are no more probable to be made his Footstool than they have been these so many Hundred Years now past There must be Miraculous Appearances of God for the bringing this great thing to pass and therefore they cannot be ceased so as not to return For All the Scripture Witnesses God will do this great Thing with great Wonders of Power He will be rais'd up out of his Holy Habitation when his Enemies shall fall before him Thus we find in the Revelation in the very beginning of the Kingdom of Christ or for the making way to its Succession there must be a Raising those Witnesses from the Death under which they had long lain and under which they continue to Lye Till a Spirit from God enter into them like a Resurrection which we all acknowledg Miracle even as the Ascension to Heaven in a Cloud Following upon it there must be a Dreadful Earthquake a Mystical Earthquake wherein the Powers of Nature have nothing to do and so it must must be immediately from the Power of Christ wherein that Gabalistick as I may call it or Figurative Tenth of the great City Falls that is all the Kings that now give their power to the Beast which Prophecy so often gives by the Number of the Toes of the Feet of the Image the Feet of Iron and of Clay These Ten shall Fall off from the Beast and that Roman Woman they call Holy Church sitâ—ing upon it whom then They shall hate Seven thousand Names those many Orders of Antichristian Founding from the Pope that sits on the Throne to the meanest of that Hierarchy the poorest Fryars that profess Mendicancy or Beggary All these shall lie like the Witnesses slain wholly dispirited but shall not as they ever any more be Visited with any Spirit of Life The Remnant shall be Affrighted and give Glory to the God of Heaven that is multitudes of the Proselites of Popery shall be Affrighted and give Glory to the God of Heaven The Second Woe that is the Tyranny of the Turks that hath hung like a Scourge over the Christian as we call it World and particularly lain with a full weight upon those we Stile Greek and Eastern Christians This shall pass off All these when we come to see them what Wonders will they appear when we see them we shall Account them Miracles and they shall bring in greater Works than these even the Kingdom of Christ in Succession proclaim'd by those Loud Voices in Heaven sounding down to Earth The Kingdoms of the World are become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ So while these things are to be done and yet are not done Miracles tho suspended are yet not ceased Argâ—m 2. The second Argument I give Miracles are
not Ceas'd However suspended is That Scripture Acts 2. 17. For there the Apostle Peter is giving an account of the same Things as in this Text Heb. 2. 4 Those Divers Signs and Wonders and Gifts of the Holy Spirit so says the Apostle out of Joel And it shall come to pass in those days I will powre out my Spirit on All Flesh and your Sons and Daughters shall Prophecy c. before that Emphatical that Illustrious day of the Lord come Indeed the Apostle does say This is that was spoken of It began then God gave a very bright show of it then It looked out upon the World with a great Glory at that Time But an Eclipse came upon it it is yet notwithstanding due to that great and Notable Day of the Lord that Day which he calls by a word that signifies Illustrious Apparent Glorious and so as we Translate Notable Day How Notable and so Illustrious but by many Wonderful Magnifyings of Divine Power upon it in so Immediate a way So indeed none can deny that Miraculous Powers must needs introduce that Day of Judgment according to the general Notion or Doctrine of it But saith the Apostle further Before that Notable and Illustrious Day of the Lord Come Now to have spoken this only of that Thing that was seventeen Hundred years ago already or very near it and we don't know how many more it may be if we have not a True Judgment upon Time by the Scripture Line of Time and the Exposition of the Sure word of Prophecy concerning the nearness of that Day we don't know how much longer how many years more it may be to it and yet to call this pouring out of the Spirit before it that was so long ago as if it were but just before it seeing God speaks to us as to Creatures of Time is a very unexpected way of speaking in any and not easy to be Allowed to be the way of the Divine Spirits speaking considering how often Scripture speaks of Great Things just upon that day and not so long before it This indeed seems so unreasonable to very sagacious Interpreters that they cannot acquiesce to before that Day so long before it and therefore have found this way to salve it to understand this Notable Day of the Destruction of Jerusalem and of the day of the Vengeance of God upon the State of the Jews I do not deny but that is made every where a Type of the very Day of Judgment But that Day of Desolation however on many accounts very great is not yet great enough to Answer as a Reason of so great a Thing as before that Day only nor will it be adjusted to the things spoken of in the Prophet Joel nor to the great Things every where spoken of in Scripture as coming near that day It cannot therefore in just Reason be understood only of that Day of the Judgment of God upon that City and Temple nor indeed at all of it but as of a Type and Symbol of that Day and yet if be not so understood except another powring out of the Spirit be understood before that day as near we make a wide breach and Gap of Inconsequence in the Apostles Discourse and yet still the general Opinion even of Christians and their usual way of Discourse makes that Notable Day of the Lord no nearer than it was a Thousand and more years ago So far are we from what the Apostle Requires of hastning on to that Day of God Argum. 3. I Argue from the great Truths that are yet to be Preached in Declaration of and order to this Kingdom of Christ For Miracles are to give Testimony to Truth when God hath great Truth to Communicate to the World and that Universally to be given As the great Things of the Gospel had such a Glory of Miracles to Seal them even so the Truths that are given proper to that Time shall be Witnessed and Sealed with mighty Power of Miracles The great Masters of Discourse concerning Miracles are herein Agreeing that one great Reason of Miracles is to recommend some Manifestations of God that had not been before made at least so far known or so plainly known or so convincingly known I doubt not therefore every One will be ready to say hath not God made known all Truth already In these last days hath he not spoken all Truth by his Son and by his Apostles that heard him hath he not Seal'd up as we say the Canon of his Word the Treasury and Standard of Truth What Truths therefore can there be expected that will need or require the presence of Miracles to give Honour and Assurance to them Is not this very thing a sufficient Argument against any Further Expectation of Miracles that there are no such New Discoveries of Truth to which they can be proper I will therefore give three Instances of the Truth that at least in the further more Glorious Manifestation of especially after the Time of the Apostasy God will grace with Miracles I. The first great Truth that shall be in a wonderful manner Preached is The Freeness of the Grace of God in Christ the riches of Redemption in his Blood I do acknowledg This is Preached now so that there is a very high measure as I may say of yea yea yea and Amen concerning it among the Servants of Christ both as to Conversion and Calling according to his purpose and as to the Justification of Sinners Freely by his Grace through the Redemption that is in Jesus Christ But it must needs be confess'd also there is a great deal of Cloud and Darkness concerning it It is much Contested and Encountred on all Sides This was the New Song that was Sung Revel 5. saying to the Lamb Thou art Worthy to take the Book of the Kingdom and to open the Seals thereof For thou wast slain and hast Redeemed us by thy Blood out of every Tongue People Kindred and Nation And this Redeeming by the Blood of the Lamb that was slain was the most especial Truth that Miracles at first gave Testimony unto in the Apolical Times Now in the Deep Times of the Apostacy this New Song was lost alltogether and tho at the Reformation it was in some measure Recovered yet even as â—he Reformation hath sunk as almost all Considering Men allow so hath the high and Lofty Ayres of this Song been Lowerd So that at the Time of the Witnesses coming out of their Sackcloth and when the Servants of God who have all this Time bore a Seal of Concealment on their Foreheads shall appear with the Fathers Name on their Foreheads in open legible Characters made so plain that he that Runs may read them This Song therefore shall be as it were a New Song I lay great stress on this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as it were a New Song It is not a New Song For it was Sung in the Days and Times of the Apostles but yet it hath
been so much lost that it is as it were a New Song And the Hundred forty four Thousand that bare the Seal of the Living God in their Foreheads shall now bear his Name openly on their Foreheads Now the Spirit of God hath assur'd us It is the Law of the Name of God that when that Name is Near His wondrous works shall declare it So then These Hundred forty four Thousand singing this though but as it were New Song shall sing it with the Fathers Name on their Foreheads That is with an open Manifestation of Miracles And it being as a New Song It calls for a Power of Miracles to make the manifestation of it Honourable in the Restoration even as it was in the first manifestation or singing of it by the Apostles and None then shall be able to open their mouths against it The Harpers Harping so sweetly and These Sweet Singers of Israel Taking this Song from them shall drown and overcome All other sounds And that this may be most Evidently The Fathers Name with his wonderful Works declaring it shall be on their Foreheads And so it shall go along with them in the propagation of that Doctrine or that Song And as the Sealing on the Forehead was an interruption and stop put on Miracles that there could be no Miracle wrought during the Time of that Sealing with which the Witnesses Sackcloath was concurrent So when the Seal is taken off and the Name Written on the Forehead Miracles cannot but be and then shall that New Song be Sung as one Principal Point to which Miracles shall give Witness And then shall no Dog move his Tongue against this Truth as the Apostle calls them Doggs that were of the Concision cutting short the Robes of the righteousness of Christ to the Dishonour of Christ and of his Saints for thereby the Saints shame is seen In that their own Righteousness is worse than Filthy Raggs Now such cut short I say the Robes of the Pure and Perfect Righteousness of Christ that they may find room and space for the Works of men And as Dogs they bark at the Free grace of God But then none shall so much as move their Tongue against that so Glorious Righteousness of Jesus Christ 2. The Second Truth to be Sealed and Witnessed to by Miracles shall be the Free Declaration of the Immediate Appearance of the Kingdom of Christ We know Any that now speak of it speak of it with greatest Disadvantage we are as the Jews to the Spiritual Kingdom of Christ they could not believe that So we cannot Believe this Spiritual Kingdom that hath been now in the time of an Adulterous and perverse Generation kept so low as to all Glory of Appearance that it shall now shine out and be seen in Glory the Kingdom of the great Son of Man that hath been spoken of by all the Prophets and by the Apostles of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ when therefore that Kingdom shall come into its Succession in the Days of the seventh Angel when he shall begin to sound and that Mystery of God be Immediately to be Finished a Miraculous Power shall Cleave this present World so that through the Clefts and Breaches of it we shall see the World to come on every side These Miracles Attending that Swift Ministry of the Flying Angel will make all indeed know that the Hour of his Judgment or Kingdom and Government is come For that is undoubtedly the great Truth of the Everlasting Gospel that the very Hour of his Judgment is come and if the Gospel in its First Preaching when that Hour of his Judgment was not come had Miracles to Seal it how much more when that Everlasting Gospel is Preached and the very hour of his Judgment is come shall Miracles certainly wait upon that Everlasting Gospel not only as the Gospel and as then more Admirably Appearing to be the Everlasting Gospel but as it Brings that great Truth that the Hour of his Judgment is come This Power of Miracles shall Exalt that Voice and make it a Loud Voice sounding through the midst of the Heavens of the Lord. Argum 4. A Fourth Argument that strongly perswades me There shall be a Return of Miracles is that Scripture Jerem. 16. 16. A place I desire we may often Meditate upon because the Time of its Fullfilling is very near and even at the very door Oh let us Pray that Prayer of Jeremy joyn'd with that great Assurance Oh Lord my Sâ—rength and my Fortress my Refuge in the Day of Affliction the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the Ends of the Earth and say Our Fathers have Inherited Lies and things werein there is no Profit Nothing will make God appear a greater Refuge in the day of Afflictipn than to be deeply apprehensive of this For God that can do this can be a Refuge in the most Extreme necessity How shall this Work on Men to hear such Gentiles saying Shall a Man make himself Gods and they are no Gods How will this Affect all that Hear and draw them off from their Idols of Silver and of Gold Or these words may be look'd upon as Gods words by the Prophet shall a man be so unreasonable or bruitish as to make Gods to himself of them that are no Gods And so they are rather to be taken but which way ever we take them Therefore or Because of this so great Misprision of me saith God I will this once cause them to know my Hand and my might and they shall know that my Name is Jehovah Now the Hand of God and Might and Power of God are every where in Scripture expressions of Miracles And they shall for this once know my might It is an expression to be paralell'd with that Heb. 12. 27. Yet once more I shake Heaven and Earth So once more the Nations shall know my Might God hath oftentimes in one way or other made the Nations know his might especially in the Days of Christ he made them know his might in a sense of Miraculous Power above any time before it but the making the Nations know for this once is the making them know for once that they shall never need to be made to know any more That Once shall be so Efficacious a making to know For so the Apostle hath Taught us to understand This Once or yet Once It is taking away or removing every thing that is to be moved out of its place by such shaking so the making the might to be known this once is the utmost removing all the Pagan Ignorance or Bruitishness of making Gods to themselves that are no Gods Now seeing the Gentiles have not yet been so made to know it is manifest It was not this Once that God here speaks of For it must needs have produced the Effect so that it never should have needed to be produced any more It must therefore be the last making known and consequently the Miraculous Power must Remain
the Blood as of a Dead man They hang out the Scarlet Thread of Christs Blood They set up Christ and Christ Alone and so there is none Barren among them They are blessed with doing Good to Souls made Wise to Win Souls and to turn many to Righteousness 4. The last Miraculous Power they Exercise is They smite the Earth with all Plagues as often as they will That is they may as Freely as They Desire Declare the Judgments of God even those seven last Plagues that shall make an end of the Antichristian State and of all the Enemies of Christ yea the whole Corrupted State of this Earth and all they say shall certainly be made good and Fulfill'd even as the Plagues Moses was Commanded by God to Smite the Land or Earth of Egypt with and which had their full effect are Recorded as Miracles of Judgment even so shall the smiting of Spiritual Egypt and its Earth be found to be when the Seal in their Forheads is Removed and all they have spoken and done fully understood in the Light of that Day But this as often as they will tho it seem altogether a word of Concession and Leaving the Matter to their Freedom and Choice yet it indeed gives the Faulty Reason on the part of the Witnesses why Popery has not been more prevail'd against even throughout the whole Time Times and Half Time of the Apostasy For the Wise and Holy Counsels of God do not Remove the Faultiness of Mens Actions which bring those very Counsels to pass as we see throughout Scripture in the greatest Instances as in Judas and all the Powers that Joyn'd in Crucifying the Son of God They were never the less wicked Hands because they did what God had determined in his Counsel and Fore-knowledg should be done And while the Jews heard the Voices of the Prophets they did notwithstanding most Evilly Fuâ—fill them Even so the Vâ—itnesses not having a Will to smite so much and so often as they should and ought have fallen under Blame by our Lord And this helps us to understand what Christ says to those Two Churches even the two Candlesticks slanding before the God of the whole Earth in the Time of the Apostasy Pergamus and Thyatyra To one it is said I have a few Things against Thee That thou hast them who hold the Doctrin of Balam c. To the other it is said I have a few Things against thee That thou sufferest the Woman Jezebel c. Now these small Things may be very well Interpreted They did not will so much as they should have willed However they are called small or Little Things because they were indeed under an Over-powering as well as an Under-willing But surely Sardis the Symbol of the Churches under the Reformation except in the Few and Small undefiled Names and yet more especially the They on the part of the Synagogue of Satan are under much severer Censure that they have not Will'd more to smite the Antichristian Earth with the Predictions of Divine Judgment upon them who have a Name to Live and yet are Dead who have not strengthen'd the Things that Remain but are ready to Dye in order to the Kingdom of Christ nor Fill'd up their Works before God who have not stamp'd with their Foot and with all possible Zeal Prophecyed Prophecyed as God Commanded Ezekiel the Ruin of Babylon the Great who as Jehoahaz have smote only Thrice and Staid when they should have smitten Six or seven Times till they had Consumed Babylon and cut it off Root and Branch For the Reformation was the Arrow of the Lord's Deliverance but not pursued to the utmost as 2 Kings c. 13 15. And this is signified by the Thunders that opened in the Reformation then Sealed and so it hath sunk and gone backward and not forward and so it will be to the End of the 1260 days we have rather been Giving back to Egypt this should stir up our Zeal to smite to the utmost now with the Arrows of the Lord's Deliverance and tho many who have gone further than others have been Laugh'd at Despis'd Persecuted by them Them especially of the Synagogue of Satan as Rash Heady Hot Fanatical Persons yet at Last it shall be found to be under a Divine Commission to smite as often as they would and all they have said shall have the full Effect even as greatest Miracles and Justified as true Interpretation of Prophecy Neglected too much by the Learned under pretence of a Sealed Book And thus far I have shewn That Miracles have not in the Inward Spiritual Part been cut off but have run along the whole Apostasy tho underground and Invisibly But they shall now within short Time appear in their Glory CHAP. IX An Enquiry upon some late Miraculous Appearances of God according to his own Will that look like a Beginning of Miracles Returning and how far they give Encouragement to wait upon God in any Case of Extremity to do for us above his ordinary Course of Providence or Government of the World TOuching the late Miraculous Appearances I will not say The Fr. maid Mrs. Salvage The Shepherd near Hitchin Hertfordshire Sir D. C. of Glocestershire more than we generally know of them that such things then were 1. Because the particular Instances altho an Atheist does not know I Believe what well to say to them yet they do not Rise to so great a Heighth as to Argue upon them alone 2. Because I do not observe God is pleas'd to go on and joyn them with others in a continued Series or Course that should strengthen one by the other and make All together more considerable remarkable and demonstrative of Divine Power 3. Because altho I see no more Reason to doubt of them than of any Miraculous Appearances of God that Rest on Human Testimony only yet I cannot but put a great difference between all Human Judgment on Miracles and those which the Holy Spirit hath Recorded as such I shall therefore Place no other sense upon them than this only that they are Providential Awaknings and Alarms of such a Returning Power of Miracles as upon all the fore-going Discourse and the Arguments of it we have Reason to expect As to the Question therefore propos'd I will give an Answer in Four Assertions how far we may in any Case ground Expectation of a Miraculous Power 1. The Time of the Return of Miracles is not yet because the Days of the Four Monarchies and particularly the Time Times and Half Time of the last State of the Fourth Monarchy or Roman Papal Apostasy are not yet expir'd nor the Kingdom of Christ yet in its Succession So that though our Time as the Lord speaks is always ready we have great need in all regards of the Miracles of Mercy But his Time is not always It is not yet If that Time be not yet we cannot look for any Miracle in our particular case with any certain Assurance we
of Christ in his Time and in the Time of the Apostles There was such Evident Matter of Fact it could not be denied by Sense in what pertain'd to Sense or by the Mind in what pertain'd to Mind Infrence 2. This Ponderous and Tremendous Consideration Rises from hence We ought to give the more Eaynest Heed to the things that have been spoken lest at any time we should let them slip For if the Word spoken by Angels was stedfast and Every Transgression and Disobedience received a Just Recompence of Reward How shall we escape if we neglect so Great Salvation c. If the Salvaâ—ion was so great and God brought it in and surrounded it on every side with Miracles or Miraculous Power Oh how shall we escape if we neglect so great Salvation so Almightily Testifyed I appeal to All whether we do not Think God dealt Righteously with Pharoah whether he had not a great deal of Patience with him to shew him Miracle after Miracle although he after Buried him in the Red Sea and whether he did not deal Righteously with Israel in the Wilderness that for Forty Years saw his Works and yet did alway Err in their Hearts and did not know the ways of God though their Carcases Fell in the VVilderness and whether seeing the Miracles of Christ and yet Rejecting him They Crucified him and were delivered up to the Romans not many Years after and are now scattered over the Face of the Earth because they sinn'd with so high a hand against a Miraculous Power so exalted before them Now if God bare so Great Witness to that very Gospel we have now confirm'd with Signs and VVonders and divers Gifts of the Holy Spirit How shall we escape if we neglect so great Salvation Oh therefore let us look to it continually If God hath been at so great Expence as I may call it in the manifestation of Himself as to give us the Gospel sealed with such a curious Needle-Work of Miracles with such a Rich Explication of the manifoid VVisdom of God Oh how shall we escape if the Gospel-Faith Repentance Holiness be not found in us which will convince us of Great Neglect of it If it be said what was Miracle undeniable to the Beholders hath lost the Force of Miracle to us to whom it is gone out of Matter of Fact into Htstorical Account Tradition and Discourse I answer to this in a Third Inference Infer 3. That which presses forward the Exhortation and Answers the Objection is Let us consider and deeply weigh that God sealing any Doctrine with Miracles declares the Intrinsick Value and worth of that Doctrine the Fitness of it to bring Souls into the Kingdom of Christ Miracles are only a sensible Declaration of the Intrinsick Excellency of the Doctrine whether They are present or absent The Excellency of Divine Truth is still the same For Miracles are never a Seal to a Blank The Writing hath the Essence of the matter whether the Seal be at every Line or not It is enough It is once set It needs not be set a new every Time It is Read The Fine of Miracles once pass'd the Gospel as a Deed of Uses imports the Sense and Virtue of All and carries it and the Fine of Miracles as I may call it along with it however but once pass'd Miracles are no more necessary continually than One Rising on all Occasions from the Dead But the Divine Excellency and Truth of the Doctrine is always the same Christ coming and speaking Things of so Supreme Excellency that never man spake like him did also the works that no man else ever did Hence it is alike Infer'd If I had not come and spoken they had had no Sin but now they have no Cloak for their sin and if I had not done among them the VVorks no man ever did they had had no sin Conversion therefore hath been without Miracles and with Miracles Not therefore by the Vertue of Miracles which of themselves raise no more than Wonder without the Spirit of God working with the Truth of the Gospel and that without Miracles is most Efficacious Miracle can do nothing without the principal Truth even the Divine Spirit never works by Miracles without the Divine Doctrine It continually works by that without Miracles many who themselves wrought Miracles shall yet have that dreadful Sentence upon them I know you not depart from me you that work Iniquity A man may have a Faith Removing mountains and yet be nothing Matt 7. 22. 23. 1 Cor. 13. 1. It is certain therefore Conveâ—sion follows not Miracles But Miracles have and shall indeed Follow the mighty Power of Converting Grace working with the Gospel as at the Time of Christs Appearance in the Offertures of his Kingdom when here upon Earth and by the Apostles so at the Glorious Appearance of his Kingdom Great and many workings of Miracles so great Conversions many Converts and therefore by the way let me give this very Serious and Practical Notion It may be we should look upon our Selves as Persons highly Favoured of God If we could Heal Diseases or do any thing that would look like Miracle But it is not so great a Thing as a Power to Touch Christ and Believe in him To Conquer the Lusts and Corruptions of our own Hearts and the Impurity of our own Spirits The Faith that Touches Christ and Draws Vertue from him is a far more Excellent Faith than that which can Remove Mountains or Heal Diseases If we had a Power of Miracles it would indeed amaze the World with the View and be a kind of Nine days Wonder But it would Flatten upon the Hearts of Men by being daily They would grow familiar with it and Resist it as the Jews did as Pharaoh did If the Power of Converting Grace did not go along with it But this Inward Power is all pure perfect Spirit and never fails Tho Christ will say to many that had Cast out Devils and did many wonderful works in his Name I never knew you depart from me you workers of Iniquity yet to them who have by Faith Deriv'd from him Righteousness Holiness Victory over Sin Vanity Lusts and Corruptions over the World that have Receiv'd Renovation Mortification Heavenliness of Heart Christ will never Profess I know you not depart from me you workers of Iniquity Agreeably therefore to this when the seventy Returned and gave Account of their Success and Christ gave them Power to Tread on Serpents and Scorpions c. Yet saith he In this Rejoyce not but Rejoyce that your Names are written in Heaven Oh! what an Admirable Thing is True Grace Faith Repentance Love Hope Obedience How curious is the Inlay and Variety the Curious Needle VVork like the Variety of Miracles in the Times of the Apostles or as Solomon speaks in his Song there are all Spices and Perfumes all the Richest Perfumes and Powders of the Merchant in the various Graces of the Spirit of which the
Prophets that Restitution of All Things in that Kingdom spoken of by All the Prophets since the World began Now of this Kingdom and the Time of it The Apostles Affirmation The Prophecies of Scripture are not of any private Interpretation when and in what they speak of it hath the chief and most eminent place And therefore the Discourse upon so great a Scripture so levelled and prepared as I may say to all intents and purposes for the Justification of search into Prophecy concerning the Kingdom of Christ and what or what manner of Time the Spirit of God hath signified is indeed a Magna Charta for Interpretation of it Now then the occasion of all the Context is the mention of the Abundant Entrance into the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and That an Everlasting Kingdom Now of this Kingdom there is a Twofold state That which is now at present and by way of preparation or the Ministration of an Entrance and concerning that The Apostle says They were established in the present Truth 2. There is a Future State and Glory of that Kingdom which is that Everlasting Kingdom and to which this present Kingdom of Grace Ministers an Entrance and of this saith the Apostle I will not be negligent to put you in remembrance Upon this Basis or Foundation laid then I will first give great Arguments That through the whole Epistle and particularly in this Context the Apostle hath very great Relation to this Kingdom and most particularly to the Time of it 2. That the Context having so great Relation to this Kingdom and particularly to the Time of it also there is great Reason the Apostle should speak concerning the Interpretation of Prophecy as the principal Point and that Inspiration should Attend upon it In the first Part I will give Arguments First That the Kingdom is intended And then in the second place for the Time as intended also Argument 1 That which I have already said is most manifest That the mention of the Kingdom of Christ to which the Apostles Discourse before made haste and to which the whole Epistle after issues hath immediate Relation to this Context For the Connexion and Coherence is so close and strict that there is no dividing the one from the other as will appear in the following Particulars For 2. The Apostle gives notice what Kingdom of Christ He had regard to when He Styles it in Remembrance of that Kingdom Promised in Daniel the Everlasting Kingdom as it is there Styl'd C. 7. an Everlasting Dominion and a Kingdom that shall not be destroyed 3. In that so Emphatically He gives the Title of Saviour to Christ as the Apostle Paul joyns the appearance of the Great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ together For therein above All Christ is seen and will be known to be the Saviour Restoring All that was Ruined by the sin of the First Adam 4. The great care the Apostle expresses They should have that Kingdom in remembrance although they were establish'd in the present Truth that Ministers but an entrance into that Kingdam as was intimated before 5. The Apostle as the New-Testament generally does calling the Kingdom of Christ his coming remembers the Admonition Christ gave him of hss dying or putting off that Tabernacle before he should so come whereas the Apostle had an expectation of that Kingdom immediately as they said Wilt thou at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel 6. The Apostle giving so full a Representation of the Transfiguration which was it self an admirable Landskip and a Model of it gives it on purpose to foreshew it the Apostle therefore gives it in Terms most expressive of the Kingdom of Christ v. 16. to v. 19. 1. It is called the Power and Coming of Christ and the word Majesty imports Royal Grâ—atness v. 16. 2. The sollemn Inauguration of Christ by the Voice from â—he excellent glory This is the beloved Son in whom I am well pleased like unto that other so great Declaration of him Thou art my son this day have I begotten thee when he set his Kingdom on his holy hill of Sion v. 18. 3. As the New-Jerusalem the Palace of the Kingdom of Christ is an exceeding high and holy Mountain so all this glory was on the holy Mountain 4. In that the Apostle is so apprehensive it might be suspected to be a cunningly devised Table which Caution of the Apostle is indeed a great Key of this whole Discourse and will lead us into the reason of this Context as shall appear after 5. In that the Apostle passes so immediately from the Transfiguration to the sure Word of Prophecy and to prophecy shining as a light in a dark place by which two Characters put together it manifestly appears the Kingdom of Christ inâ—ended is neither the Kingdom of Grace the Spiritual Kingdom the Gospel of Grace as we generally speak not the Kingdom of Eternity not the Kingdom of Grace because not only Prophecy looks to things to come if still in Prophecy and to be fulfilled but also if it should be suppoâ—'d That Prophecy shin'd in that Kingdom of Grace and of the Gospel by the Aposâ—les so Illustrious Ministry that could be by no mean called a dark or squalid or foul place For it was the Gloriousest State of the Kingdom and of Prophecy fulfill'd in it that had been ever before or hath been since or that shall be till that very Everlasting Kingdom of Christ come into its succession then it could not be the Kingdom of Eternity For the Kingdom of Eternity is not the manifestation of Prophecy but one of the plainest and most Fundamental Doctrines of the Gospel and of Christianity I come therefore to the second thing that this Epistle of the Apostle Peter is adjusted to and that is to the shewing the time of the Kingdom for which I give these Arguments 1. That the Apostle calls it the Everlasting Kingdom by which as was before intimated he refers to Daniel's Prophecy of that Everlasting Kingdom and Dominion Dan. 7. 27. which is postpon'd to four Kingdoms and Monarchies the last of which was then in course when the Apostle wrote this and to the last state of which viz. the Feet of Iron and Clay and the ten Horns and a little one chief of the Ten there was an allowance of Time Times and Half a Time before the Kingdom of Christ could come into its Succession 2. The Apostle by saying The sure word of prophecy shines as a light in a dark place intimates it foretels the time of that glorious Kingdom how could it shine so effectually as to enlighten the dark place if it gave no Knowledge when Prophecy should be fulfill'd For that Prophecy does not pass immediately into effect made the space between the appearance of Christ in Flesh and in Glory dark and therefore the light of Prophecy gives us a direction upon the Time when the eflect of Prophecy shall be the hope and
A DISCOURSE UPON THE Powers of the World to come AND The Great Charter FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE Prophecy of Scripture ADVERTISEMENT THere is an Exposition upon the whole Book of the Revelation Explaining the Sacred Text Word by Word and opening and arguing the Divine Senses of that great Prophesy Sold by Richard Wellington at the Lute in St. Pauls Church-Yard and are to be had at Mr. Marshals at the Bible in Newgate-street and of Mr. Salisbury at the Rising-Sun in Corn-hill A DISCOURSE UPON THE Powers of the World to come OR The Miraculous Powers of the Gospel and Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ And their Certain Return at the Kingdom of Christ in its Succession To which is Adjoyn'd The Great Charter FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE Prophecy of Scripture And more particularly of the Prophetick Numbers of Time Evincing the Kingdom of Christ in Succession at 1697. And Consequently MIRACLES shall then Return By T. Beverley London Printed for the Author and are to be Sold by W. Marshal at the Bible in Newgate-street 1694. TO The Right Honourable Sr. John Somers THE Lord Keeper My Lord THAT I take the Boldness to make this Dedication to your Lordship is not that I can make the least pretension to be Known to or to Know your Lordship but as you are on such an Eminence you cannot be hid and as a Luminary of the Nation every Eye is upon you But yet I have made this Presumption on Great Reasons First That the Truths I offer in the ensuing Treatise are so little consider'd or Receiv'd that they are under a Necessity to remove from the Rigor of Prejudicate Opinion and to make Appeal to the Chancery of a most Equitable Review Then that I have much Reason to be perswaded your Lordship hath in peculiar manner in the Greatness of your Apprehension the Noble Freedoms of a solid Judgment and most condescending Christian Temper a truly High Court of Chancery in your own Breast and will allow it to sober Proposals of Truth Analogous to Faith and Christian Morality however Old Bottles and Palates refuse New Wine New to them not so in it self but spoken of by All the Prophets since the World began Another Great Reason I have is That tho I pretend to no Prognosticks except Justified by the Sure Word of Prophecy yet speaking humanely it is very probable your Lordship shall continue in your High Administration till 97. and then I have Great Assurance it will be capable of being made much Higher and more Honourable by the Kingdom of that Great Prince of the Kings of the Earth coming into its Succession Wherein undoubtedly every Character of Humane Honour Appointed and Justified by his Word and seated in Persons ready to Kiss the Son and pay Homage to him will receive unexpressible Additions And hereunto I add That it is most Reasonable so publick a Personage and that bears as is said the Conscience of the Government and so fittest to make Judgment on such a Point should have both the Notices and the State of so great a Thing laid before him and before the whole Nation in him Lastly Although I very well know how Great a Prince I herein serve and do most Freely submit as to my self to his turning your Heart this way or that way as the Rivers of Water yet I think it no way disagreeing to my Duty according to his present Dispose to desire such a Patronage as that of your Lordship that I might rest under your shadow and wait for the mighty Ratifications of All I have writ on so great a Subject by Mighty Power It is now My Lord Ten Years since I first made Publick the Prophetick Calendar of Time and I have not found Reason to Vary from the First Moments on which I Fix'd it but have receiv'd Greater Additions of Light and Assurance as I have continually and publickly Remonstrated and yet I have always and do ftill disown all things Enthusiastick and am upon the plain Principles of Letter of Scripture Scripture Arguments according to the most undoubted Chronology and History and so offer my self Freely to the Attack of All that can bring Contrary Reasons And have now as in a Chancery Proceeding presented the Case to your Lordship Let him that finds Reason in the same Way put in his Answer A Greater Cause than this cannot come before your Lordship Whether the Books of the Prophets of the New and Old Testament have declar'd such a Glorious Visible Kingdom of Christ Whether they have declar'd it shall be First in Succession preparing for its Glory by an Universal Preaching of the Gospel as by a Flying Angel seal'd with the Return of Miracles For All this I affirm And whether they have given a Line of Time Determining that Succession to 1697. For such a Line I affirm also and have produc'd it from the Sure Word oâ— Prophecy by a Charter for Interpretation Now may that Supreme Prince whom I declare who is Essential Wisdom by whom Kings Reign and Princes Decree Justice Even the Judges and All the Counsellors of the Earth see in his Light And who is so nigh Coming as I affirm to Reign in his own Name Guide your Lordship in all the things that concern your own immortal Spirit in all the Arduous Matters of so High a Judicature and particularly a Rich and Glorious entrance into his Everlasting Kingdom I now present as My Lord Your Lordship 's most Humble Servant In the Kingdom of Jesus Christ T. BEVERLEY TO My Very Esteemed Auditory at the Lecture at Cutlers-Hall and in them to Every Reader I Have indeed in several Treatises my most Esteemed Christian Friends made publick before this Asserted Things of the same Tendency But I never yet Attempted in a Set and Solemn Discourse to Argue this Grand Point of Miracles that shall so Distinguish and Assure such a Succession of the Kingdom of Christ as I give now before-hand the most Open Notices of God any way enables me to Now if that his Name as King of Kings and Lord of Lords shall be declared by his Wondrous Works at 97. to be so near as that his Kingdom is in Succession If besides the mighty Revolutions in the World that shall bring it into Succession and be brought in by it That Time shall be severed from All other Time by Miracles as Great and Greater than in the Times of the Apostles as the Kingdom that was then was to be under Patience and Delay particularly of the Times and Half Time shall then by the Oath of Christ Allow no such further Time nor Any Delay whatever but the Mystery shall be Finished with all speed I Appeal to All Whether Any One Declaring this can be suspected of an Intention to Deceive and if the Events do not Answer to shuffâ—e under any Plausible Appearances and so to Abscond There are and may be Great Changes in the World by that time and speaking but after the manner of
men It is more than probable there will be and one might take Sanctuary to salve Appearances at some of them But so Great a Revolution as the Return of Miracles is such as will Allow no Subterfuge Either it is or it is not will presently decide Now this Test I have most Freely in the following Discourse put my self upon It is true there is yet a Distance of Time to 97. but not so far off now at 94. as it was at 84 when I Fiâ—st Publish'd that very Year and when it was as Little All will commonly think I Hope Less Acceptable than under the present Reign And have not now nor ever since either mov'd it nearer or further off And I most humbly bless God it is so much nearer that we All write now 1694. The Substance of the Discourse of Miracles was Preach'd in your Hearing to whom I especially write and hath for the most part undergone only such Alterations Additions or Detachments as the Difference between a Free way of Speaking and a more settled Writing requires The Adjoyn'd Treatise Entuled The Great Charter for Interpretation of Prophecy hath been occasionally interspers'd in many Discourses to you though more Compacted in Another Assembly But the Matter being so much Allied and so necessary to Direct Expectation as to the Time of the Return of Miracles Though it be an Addition to what I propos'd and Receiv'd the Contribution of so many for Yet the Discourse propos'd Leaving Room for it so as that it will come just up to the Proposal with this Adjoyn'd and no more I hope it will not be misinterpreted and the rather because it is the Authority I show for All I have Written and Preach'd concerning the Kingdom of Christ in Succession at 1697. And I am so far satisfy'd in what I have through Gracious Assistance been enabled to say that if I may be so Bold to make an Humble Allusion to what our Lord said concerning the Passover I would not set my self to Write I do not say declare any more concerning it Except Any one should call Publickly and in Print for an Answer of Any Objection made to it till it be Fullfill'd in the Succession of the Kingdom of Christ I Know many will be very Forward to blame me in this Confidence as I know it will seem also of Boasting But I have well weigh'd my Grounds and do not Fear I know whom and what I have Believed upon and Rest Secure He will bring it to pass and Hasten it in its own Time I have declared Yet According to the very Infirmity of the Present State I have ballanc'd the matter I know if Things which can neither Deceive nor be Deceived Ratifie what I have written God hath not vouchsafed by Any to Declare Them so Publickly Appearing as he hath by one most Unworthy and Desirous to Lye in the Dust before him and All his People in the Sence of my own Unworthiness If so Whatever hath or shall befall me None shall take This Glory from me nor from the Remembrance of me That I have beon thus Enabled by Him to Speak and Write thus concerning the Kingdom of Christ and the Time of its Succession I Remember yet with due Honor that Fellow-Helper in his Annotations on the Revelation Yet the least in the Succession of that Kingdom shall be much greater than Any can be now But if on the other side I may have been Deceiv'd on such Grounds as I Rest upon I should neither Expect nor Desire to have the mercy so Great a Confidence should be covered in Silence But that my so Great Assurance should he set as a Sea-mark to Caution All Others and to rest as an unremovable Shame and Confusion on my self and Name But I hope better Things and such as shall Lay fast hold on the Kingdom of Christ though I thus speak and as I most Humbly Sollemnly Affectionately Pray for your Abundant and Rich Entrance into this Everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ So I most earnestly desire your Prayers for the bringing forth that Kingdom that you would look for and hast on to it even on my behalf also as the Minister of it and that I may so Preach it and all the Doctrines pertaining to it which are indeed all the Doctrines of the Gospel that I may both save my self and them that hear me and that while I Preach it to others I my self may not become a Cast-away from that Kingdom and that you may be Found worthy to stand before the Son of man at that day My most Honoured This 7th Month 7th Day 1694. Your most Faithful and Humble Servant in this Ministry of the Gospel and of the Kingdom of it T. BEVERLEY THE CONTENTS OF THE Discourse upon Miracles CHap. I. The Opening of the Text and the Heads of the Discourse given Page 1 Chap. II. Of the Nature of Miracles and the due place of them p. 4 Chap. III. Giving yet a more Strict and Exact Description of Miracles in Five Particulars p. 15 Chap. IV. Of the Reasons or ends of Miracles as they are generally Assign'd by those who have VVrit upon them p. 23 Chap. V. VVherein the Grand Scope of the Discourse is Endeavoured to be truly Fixed viz. That the Chief and Adequate End and Reason of Miracles is That they are Portions and Pledges Peices and Parcels and Portions of the Kingdom of Christ or of the World to Come and to Bring it in at Last p. 30 Chap. VI. A Discussion of the Times wherein Miracles have been most Illustrious and when there hath been greatest Darkness among the People of God in Relation to them Preparatory to the Asserting That Miracles are not ceas'd but a Return of Them is to be Expected p. 46 Chap. VII The Direct Proof of the Power of Miracles Returning by the following Arguments for it p. 58 Chap. VIII Of that Power of Miracles that always Accompanies the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and hath rested upon the Witnesses and yet Rests upon them During the whole Time past and to the End of the Twelve Hunâ—â—ed and Sixty Days of the Woman in the Wilderness and the Witnesses in Sackcloath and the Forty two Months of the Antichristian Apostasy p. 75 Chap. IX An Enquiry upon some late Miraculous Appearances of God according to his own Will that look like a Beginning of Miracles Returning and how far They give Encouragement to wait upon God in any case of Extremity to do for us above his ordinary Course of Providence or Government of the World p. 85. Chap. X. Wherein a Representation of the Excellency of the State of Miracles in the Days of Christ and of the Apostles is given That we may thereby Judg of the Return of such a State of Miracles excelling even that in Vniversality and reaching the utmost Effects p. 88 Chap. XI The Inferences from the whole Discourse of Miracles Tending to make Wise to Sobriety concerning Them and
High Ends to be hereafter assign'd For I have been thus large in this matter it being both so Noble a Point as also because it makes much to the True Consideration of the Chief End of Miracles 2. I come therefore to a Second Consideration of Creation and Providence as giving Space and Room for Miracles to enter and that I shall represent First In the General and then be more particular with relation to Miracles 1. When Man had sinned and forfeited the Glory of that State of the Creation that had Respect to him That all things did not immediately as I may say tumble about his Ears dash in peices upon him or fall into an Universal Hell is owing to the Mediator who therefore is said Heb. 1. to Vphold all things by the Word of his Power even he who purged our sins by his own Blood thus upholds All that the Sun shines and invigorates all the Lower Creation with its Light and Beams that the Fruitfulness of the Earth and the Courses of Water remain All is due to the Glory of the Mediator Else All had return'd to the First Tohu Bohu its first dark and desolate state And yet notwithstanding it is so ordered in the Wisdom and Righteousness of God and by the Counsel between him and the Mediator or as Zachary says between them both that there should be many Interspers'd Appearances of the Curse as we all know by abundant sad Experience which are become so setled and expectable that we call such Appearances of the Curse Nature or are so frequent as we account them at least common to Man or Humane Nature such as Sickness Death Lameness Blindness many Insults of the Enemy or the Diabolical Nature either in plainer Possessions or more secret Impressions upon the Mind and Body Now if such Appearances of the Curse had not been there had been no place for many Miraculous Appearances of God and of Christ in Mercy and Grace and so if there had not been General Judgments and more solemn Appearances of the Curse there had not been such Miraculous Acts of Grace as the Ark was to Noah Zoar to Lot Goshen to the Children of Israel Had not there been such Strokes of the Curse there could not have been such Miracles of Healing Restoring Sight Raising the Dead All these Miraculous Acts of Mercy come in by way of Relief against the Curse There could have been no change â—n Exalting the Creation if it had continued according to the First State Good and very Good Except we suppose any Openings to an higher Advancement of Adam and his Posterity in the Kingdom of the Second Adam of whom the First Adam was but a Type and the First Sabbath a Type of that Great Sabbatism of the Lord from Heaven as the Apostle expresly asserts Rom 5. â—2 Heb. 4. 7. Let us therefore I humbly beseech attend to this very thing that there are such Remains of the Excellent Frame of the First Creation Dâ—e and Acknowledgable to the Grace of the Mediator and yet such Mixtures of the Curse as give Place or Room for Mirâ—cles For if all were Judgment there were no Place for Miracles of Mercy except of a Total Restoration For All had been One Peice of Wrath and so must be wholly Restor'd or not at all Or if All had been in the First State of Integrity there had been no need of Exalting the Creation till that Glorious Kingdom I can suppose of the Mediator of Amity or Conciliation tho not of Reconciliation But as Things are now That All Things do not unite in a State of Wrath and Ruine is because the Mediator purging our sins upholds All with the Word of his Power Else as God said when Wickedness had broken into the World to so great an heighth I even I do bring a Flood upon the World So he had put an End to it at the first coming in of sin had not the Mediator come between in the Seed of the Woman breaking the Serpents Head But when Noah had offered a Sacrifice an undoubted Type of the Sacrifice of Christ God then promis'd he would not Curse the Ground so any more but there should be Summer and Winter Spring and Harvest Day and Night until the very coming in of the Restitution of All Things And God set the Rain-Bow to be a Sign of that Covenant as we find Gen. 9. 13. and Ezek. 1. 28. and Revel 4. 3. The Rain-Ron encirculed the Throne All which shews the great Prevalency of the Mediator in the upholding the World in its present State That though God the Creator be to be acknowledg'd yet Creatorship and Providence are now Vested in the Redeemer But yet still there are such legible Characters of the Curse in innumerable Kinds that they give full place to Miracles in further and higher Grace to relieve against that Curse 2. There being such a State of Mercy and Grace through the Mediator there is place also given to another sort of Miracles viz. Miracles of Greater and more Extraordinary Strokes of Wrath than generally we observe in the World wherein the Mediator so far deserts his Interposal of Mediation and then Miracle of Judgment immediately enters so far also as may appear in several Great Instances to be given And this I desire you would seriously attend to because it will be found to contribute very much to the clearing the Great Point of Miracles I begin therefore the clearing this Matter in that first Judgment of the Flood upon the Old World In which as also in the Judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah the Apostles Peter and Jude instance because as is after to be shewn they have Great Concernment in making it appear That Miracles appertain to the world to come whereof we are speaking I begin therefore with this Flood on the World of the Vngodly for which whatever Preparations there might * According to the most Learned and Ingenious Theory of Dr. Burnet be yet to shew Gods own supreme Hand in it he thus expresses I even I do bring a Flood And to shew how far the Mediator did desert and how far he did not undertake is made more manifest He did undertake for Noah and his Family Noah is therefore said to find Grace in the Eyes of the Lord an Expression proper to the Mediators Undertaking The Rest even the World of the Vngodly not finding Grace were swallowed up Lo here a Miracle of Judgment For this was beyond the ordinary proportion of the Curse upon the Fall as bounded by the Mediator a Curse on the Earth far Greater than usual Again if we consider this in relation to Sodom Gen. 19. 23. The Sun was risen upon the Earth so far the Mediator undertook for Sodom Then Lot entered into Zoar At that very same time God Rain'd upâ—n Sodom and upon Gomorrah Brimstone and Fire from the Lord out of Heaven It could not be done before For says the Angel to Lot Haste thee Escape thither
hereunto also may be reduced the many Policies and curious Designs of Men of Power and great Motion in the World that amuse ordinary Beholders but all these with the Artifices of men of lower Figure are no moâ—e than greater or lesser Puppet play moving things by Wires unseen and unobserv'd but God does indeed thâ—ngs truly great and New and puts thereby a New Song of Praise into the mouths of his Servants for they are indeed Signs and Wonders and mighty Acts. And they are indeed New because as I have said they are all Peices Parcels Portions of that New Creation the New Heaven and New Earth that New World the World to come the Restitution of All things whereof we speak as is further to be shewn But at the present I rest upon that which hath been already nam'd as the steaddy Representation of a Miracle in strict speaking to us it is the Lords Creating a New Thing in the Earth I only add that proportionably to the New Heaven and the New Earth â—od makes in the Souls of his what he calls A new Creation a new Heart and a New Spâ—rit Old things passing away all becomes New 3. The more proper and Adequate Character of Miracles is that they are Pâ—rtions and Parcels Pledges and assurances of the World to come and of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ of the New Heaven and of the New Earth of the New Creation of God whoever looks closely and Intentively into them shall find that because the Old Creation as under the Curse through Sin and Apostasy of the First Adam will not cannot serve the Ends of the Glory of God of the Creator and of Jesus Christ the Lord and Heir of All by whom and for whom they were all made and of his Body the Church the fulness of him that filleth All in All. Therefore a new Creation is to be brought in and it is to be brought in by a Dissolution of the Old a Total Dissolution of the Old Creation the World of the First Adam and a Restitution of all things and even an Exaltation into a far Higher and more excellent State than the first Now this is to be done by Immediate Power in both Parts of Mercy and Judgment else neither Could be done No Hand but that which put together this Frame can Dissolve it no Hand but that which holds it together can either let it go or stir up those Tumults and Combustions that shall bring it to its End which is a further Argument that Creation and dayly Sustentation are Miracle Effects of immediate Power for else some however unknown to us Disorders and Crâ—ss and Counter Motions of Second Causes had Defeated the Frst Creation or long since brought this Frame to Ruine if there had been none to Guide or Sustain them but themselves And hereby it is also Evident the low State in which the Creation is is Miracle or Immediate Power of Justice for else the Goodness of the Creator had undoubtedly kept it up to its first Being in all things Good and very Good Infinite Immediate Power hath let it down so low and no lower Again on the side of Mercy and Grace so far and so much as the Creation is gone down and fallen from it self through Divine Justice Retiring the Omnipotâ—nt Conserving Hand of Power that would have kept it up or suffering thosâ— Destructive Counter-Motions in the Parts of it or in the Principles of Motion Omnipotency alone can Repair and Fill uâ— those Gaps and Hollows in the Present State and effect a Restitution of All Things and Deliver the Creation now in Bondage from that Servitude under which it hath so long and yet Grones and much more That Almighty Hand alone can Raise it above what it was at First so that Miracle runs through all Now seeing such a Boâ—h Dissolution and Restitution and Exaltation of the Creation is Decreed by God It becomes him by whom are All Things and for whom are All Things and by whom and for whom this very Dissolution and Restitution is to give warning to make Credit and Assurance of These even of Both and therefore as I have already Argued and shall much further Argue in the Part of this Discourse allotted to it That Miracles are Powers of the World to come every way proper and peculiar to it 4. Miracles are therefore Conjoyned with some Eminent and Notable Appearance of the World to Come As at the bringing of the People of Israel out of Egypt and into the Land of Canaan the Promised Land and so when Christ was here in the World and the Apostles so Preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom as if it had been immediately to appear and so much more when that Kingdom shall indeed appear For else Miracles would be as Seals to a Blanck This therefore Detects all False Miracles and Lying Wonders that they are not in pursuance of the Kingdom of Christ And this is most Evident as was said before by our Saviours Inference from the Truth of that mighty work of Casting out the Deaf and Dumb Devil and that is was done by the Finger of God that no doubt the Kingdom of God was come upon them as he shews Luke 11. For Miracles cannot be without the Kingdom of God in Eminent Appearance 5. Miracles must being Parts and Peices of the World to come give greatest Assurance of themselves to be the mighty works of God this Assurance must be given to the whole man to the Mind Understanding inward and outward Senses for this is Assurance to the whole Man The Understanding is oft under Error and mistake wherein it is not Serv'd and Ministred to by Sense Sense is oft deluded when the mind does not make a Judgment When both make a full Judgment This is as great Assurance as the Intellectual sensible Being of Man is capable of and therefore Resistance to such Light is Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which is Blaspheming against full Conviction of Divine Power and Appearance Mat. 12. 31. Mark 3 18. Luke 12. 10. The Miracles therefore proper to the Kingdom of Christ are Armed at all Points by Infallible Proofs as that grand Miracle of the Resurrection of Christ was Acts 1. 3. And thus they ought to be from their Relation to the Kingdom of Christ which shall give all assurance of it self to the whole Man and for ever remove all possibility of doubt from Saints who shall see then Eye to Eye and from wicked Men who would not see but shall see in that day CHAP. IV. Of the Reasons or ends of Miracles as they are generally Assign'd by those who have Writ upon them I Come now to shew the Ends and great Uses and Purposes of God in Miracles what he intends towards the Children of men by them And I will Argue the thing Freely both on the one side and the other because I know the generality of Christians and of the Interpreters and Teachers of the Doctrine of
Miracles almost of all Judgments and persuasions are very narrow and confined in their Apprehensions concerning the Reasons or ends of Miracles and have not consider'd this great End of them their relation to the World to come or to the Kingdom of Christ Far be it from me to take upon me but I say By evidence from the Word of God it will appear that this is the far greatest End of Miracles which hath been Overseen not considered nor looked into altho the Head of the Corner and yet other Ends or Reasons of them are to be duly considered also 1. A great end of Miracles is to call Men to an immediate Consideration of God For Men can put off God in Ordinary Things and say Nature did it this or that Natural Cause Did you not see say they how this or that Natural Cause wrought and take away say they the Natural Cause and the Effect will not be produced As if a Man lies still and does nothing he doth not grow Rich if he had not Riches and an Estate before and so let a man be under a Disease if he does not send for a Physician then Nature and the Disease must Contest it and dispute it together and it is odds against Nature it will be overcome if you take away the Fire say they there shall be no Warmth if you take away the Sun there can be no Light so men leave God out and therefore to awaken Bruitish Men that do not consider God is at the Spring of all and that he concurs with all that Reaches any End God very often crosses and thwarts what we count the Course of Natural Causes The Race is not to the Swift nor the Battle to the Strong nor Bread to the Wise nor Favour to the Men of understanding but the Wise and their Works are in the Hands of God the God of Nature Eccles c. 9. v. 1. 11. All this notwithstanding most men do not perceive God therefore hath not been wanting to the World to give some extraordinary Appearances and to make himself known by a Hand and Arm stretched out and made bare and it is a great Aggravation if Men do not take notice hereof This was the great sin of Pharoh that he harden'd his Heart against all those mighty Works of God done before him and upon him This sin highly provoked God against the Israelites That they saw his Works forty years and yet always Err'd in their Hearts and did not know the ways of God Heb. 3. 9 10. So says Christ If I had not come and done among them the works that no other Man did They had had no sin but now they have both seen and hated both me and my Father John 15. 24. From all this It is very Evident Miracles ought to be vehement Persuasions to Faith Love Obedience Self-Resignation according to any Manifestation of God to Men with which Miracles go along But yet consider on the other side That though this is one great end of Miracles yet it is not worthy to be the chief or Adequate End of Miracles For let these two or three things stand in Counter-ballance to supposing so 1. That the general Works of God and those in ordinary or Constancy are so great that Men are without excuse in not Fearing God and Loving and Obeying him altho there had never been a Miracle in extraordinary in the World as I have shewn from Rom. 1. 20. The invisible things of God even his Eternal Power and Godhead are so manifest from the Creation All Men who do not Glorify him as God and who serve the Creature more than the Creator blessed for ever are without excuse if God had not done enough without Miracles then indeed there would certainly have been Miracles upon this only account that men might have no just Reason to complain of God And so let us consider that of Jerem. 10. 6. Who would not fear thee Oh Lord King of Nations For to thee doth it appertain For as much as there is none like unto thee For thou art Great and thy Name is great in might When he uttereth his Voice There is a multitude of Waters in the Heavens And will ye not fear me saith God who have placed the Sand for a bound to the Sea that though the Waters toss themselves they cannot pass over Are ye so Bruitish so inconsiderate so unreasonable that ye will not fear me Every day God doth Great Things and Miracles and that without number It is not therefore that God hath not given Evidence enough for he hath given abundantly enough yea though Men had not the Light of his Word They are without Excuse How much more are they without Excuse who have the Light of that even of the Gospel of Glory I do not deny that God makes a greater Offer of himself by Miracles considering Mens great Stupidity They are to excite them who Believe not I grant yet I am much perswaded there is so much enough and to spare of Evidence and Assurance of God that if that hâ—d bâ—en the sole end of Miracles to offer a further Evidence or Motive of acknowledging God if there had not been a greater End than that There had never been a Miracle in the World shewn on that Account 2. Let it be well weighed that as Christ says If I had not done among them the Works that no other Man did they had had no sin So he says If I had not come and spoken to them they had not had sin but now they have no Cloak for their Sin tho he should have done no Miracle That also weighs much with me That the great End of Miracle is not to Convince Men or move them home to God Luke 16. ult They have Moses and the Prophets if they will not believe them neither will they be perswaded though one Rose from the Dead I do most sincerely and with All clearness and fairness desire to Reason these things that I may see whether the things I design in this Discourse will hold or not I am very confident Take any man of the Family where there has been a great deal of Wickedness and Prophaneness and loosness of Living and so the Courts where there has been successive Debauchery carelessness of all Religion abundance of Pride Luxury and Sensuality and if God should bring back any of those Princes or Coâ—rtiers or Family-Relations from the Dead and he should say I was within such a Space of time as you are now Walking in the same Vanity of Mind giving my self over to work all Vncleanness with greediness running into all excess of Riot All for the present Enjoyment never thinking what would come after what would become of me for ever but now I feel the Torment and Woe of it and have obtain'd Liberty to come to Advise you that you would Repent and Reform that you may not come into the same state of Torment we should be ready to think this would certainly
move us and reclaim us but you see what he says that Knew all Men and that knew what was in Man and needed not that any one should Testify to him of Man what he would do in such a Case he Assures us This would not perswade Now the very same thing by all proportion of Sense Reason Experience may be said concerning the Works of God the Providence of God the Word of God If Men are not perswaded by these neither would they be perswaded by Miracles werâ— they never so great and many this thereâ—ore Argues to me To move Men to Conversion and Repentance is not the proper and Adequate Reason of Miracles 2. I would further strengthen this by the observation of the Behaviour of those to whom Miracles were more immediately Directed and we may find how they stood up like Rock against the Force of them as we see in Pharoh Would any one think God should send upon him Ten Miraculous Plagues one after another to take him down and bring him into Subjection to God and that at last we should find him Driving into the Heart of the Sea after the People of God and then overwhelmed the sin God had so often warn'd him of and Plagued him for and yet thus it was I acknowledg God magnified his Power and got himself a great Name in his Destruction but we may see there was a further Relation to the World to come by the Recalling the Song of Moses at the Red Sea the place of his Perishing and Joyning it with the Song of the Lamb and by the paralel Course of the seven Vials destroying Spiritual Egypt as was before intimated Rev. 15. In the same manner the Miracles of Christ and of the Apostles were Directed first and immediately on the Jews of That time But how little they Avail'd to Conversion we know beyond Doubt I do not deny God Justified himself more abundantly thereby in their utter Destruction by the Romans about forty years after But the Interest the Kingdom of Christ prevail'd beyond that End of Conversion For It Faild But when that was first Proposed How Proper it was to make so glorious an appearance of that Kingdom that shall fully appear in its own time tho not then that not being the proper Time in a like but much greater and more Illustrious Efficacy of Miracles 3. The moving men home to God cannot be the adequate end of Miracles God hath been pleased to bring some Home suddenly without Miracle as Matthew the Publican Matt. 9. 9. and the Apostle prefers 1 Cor. 14. 23. Prophecy or Powerful Preaching the Gospel as above Miracles for the End of Conversion or a more Spiritual Inward Miraculous Power above a Miracle that seems more wonderful to sense viz. a Speaking with all manner of Tongues or â—anguages And indeed That great and mighty Work of Conversion whatever service it may receive from Miracles yet is much more to be acknowledged to the Spirit of God powr'd out and laying hold on those Ordain'd to Eternal Life than to Miracles which much assures This working upon the Hearts of Men to a sense of God is not the End of Miracles in a full direct Adequation to it 2. It is assigned as a much more Agreable and Commensurate end of Miracles that they are Given as a Testimony from Heaven of the truth of any Divine Revelation from Heaven of the will and mind of God Touching any Law or Rule of Faith worship and Life in order to Eternal Life especially when the Points of that Revelation are above over and super-added to the Law and Light which we Call of Nature or to any former Manifestation and Declaration of the Will of God that had been fixed and setled in the Church and among the People of God throughout their Generations such Miraculous Power is therefore given into the Hand of such Ministers of Divine Pleasure as he hath Chosen for it Thus a great Presence of Divine Power was with Moses the Servant of God in the fixing that whole Frame of the Ceremonial Law Thus the Tabernacle and Service of it was fill'd with the glorious coming down of God into it so Solomons Temple was as we may say Consecrated by God himself And thus Especially and much more That supreme Revelation of the Gospel for the Excellency of the Declaration it self for the Glory of the Lord by whom it began to be spoken for the sake of so great and Antient a Sanction as that of the Mosaick Law which it gave a Cessation to not so much by Abrogation as fulfiling it was so Seal'd in all these Regards God bare Witness to Christ and to the Apostles by Divers Signs Wonders Miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his Will In the assured Knowledg hereof Châ—ist said The Works which the Father hath given me to do bear Witness of me Believe me for the Works sake John 5. 36 c. 14. 11. The Apostle Peter signifies the Boldness in speaking the word of God arising from the signs and wonders that were done by the Name of the Holy Child Jesus Acts 4. 30. Paul and Barnabas spake the word of God boldly the Lord giving Testimony to that word of his Grace and granting Signs and Wonders to be done by their Hands Acts 14. 3. These moved men to Believe This beginning of Miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee and manifested forth his Glory and his Disciples believed on him John 2. 11. Christ makes it the great Aggravation of the unbelief of the Jews that he did the Works among them that no man else ever did John 15. 24. Now from all these Scriptures Joyn'd with the Reason of the thing it self It is undeniable The Confirmation of the Truth of the Gospel was a principal end of Miracles and that hereby men might be made obedient by Word and Deed through mighty Signs and Wonders by the Power of the Spirit of God Rom. 15. 19. But all thiâ— notwithstanding which I most Fully and Humbly Acknâ—wledg I have yet many things to observe upon by which it may Appear This is not the Adequate end of Miracles Now that wherein It appears The confirmation of the Doctrine of the Gospel is not the chief end or Reason of Miracles is That Miracles need a Confirmation from the Doctrine Preached with which they go along and are Joyn'd as well as the Doctrine needs a Confirmation from Miracles Nay Doctrine may Prove it self by it self when Miracles cannot prove themselves without the Doctrine This appears from many Great Scriptures as Deuteronomy 13. 1. If there Arise among you a Prophet and He giveth thee a sign or a wonder and the sign or wonder come to pass whereof he spake unto thee saying Let us go after other Gods which Thou hast not Known and let us serve them Thou shalt not Hearken to the words of that Prophet c. For the Lord your God proveth you c. You shall therefore walk after the Lord your God
Soul an Offering for Sin This foreshewed the Dread of the Vengeance of God for sin burning upon the wicked to the Neithermost Hell setting on Fire the Foundation of the Mountains Burning up the Earth and the Works of it and the wicked becoming as Bryars and Thorns Burnt on that their own Earth For as Christ said in a Foresight of the Destruction of Jerusalem If these things were done in the Green Tree what shall be done in the Dry This ought to be carried to all Desolations and Destructions the Manifestation of the Righteous Judgment of God shall make in his Holy Indignation against the Posterity and World of the Apostate Adam not Reconciled by the Second Adam The Lord from Heaven and Father of the world to Come whereof we speak The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ the great Miracle as all that speak of Miracle acknowledg is a Glorious Pledg of the World to Come and an entry into the very State of it This World knew no such thing before nor had any such Thing in all its Treasure Riches or Variety He was the First Born the First begotten from the Dead Such was his Ascention his Glorious Entrance into the Tabernacle made without hands not of this Building his sending down the Spirit as the Apostle hath said in the Context I am upon in divers Signs and Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his own will And all this in Connexion with the World to Come not in Subjection to Angels but the Kingdom of the Son of God All which comes home to this That Miracles are proper to the World to Come as the Reason and end of it Now there is nothing wherein I can more Humbly and earnestly Intreat you that Read these Things and wherein you can yeild a greater Acceptance to what I am now Discoursing than that you would Search these things and Compare them and Argue them to your selves For I know they will and must bear weight with you Argum. 2. The Second Argument I would give you is the Consideration of the way by which God will save All and every one of us whom he will save by the second Adam and fits them for that World to Come for that everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ He saves them he does all for them in a way of Miracle This I will endeavour to make plain to you by considering That God would not save Men by the First Covenant the Covenant of Creation the Law of Creation They cannot be Saved by that They must be saved by a New Covenant a Covenant that is all Miracle This I will shew you in two Parts of it 1. When God Justifies Sinners by the Righteousness of another by the Obedience and by the Suffering and by the Death of another This is Miracle and it is as great Miracle as any of the Things that Men allow to be Miracle and indeed in Regard of the Internal Excellency the Intrinsick worth of the Thing It is far greater than any Miracle except what concerns the very Excellency and Glory of the Person of the Mediator Those Wonders of Miracle if I may so speak Oh therefore that we could consider it If we are Pardoned in Christ if we are Justified by Christ If we are Saved from Hell from Wrath to come by him or from the Curse of the Law This is all Miracle For I would Ask any Man I am sure None of the Men of Reason and that seem to understand Miracle Best can deny it Is not Miracle a Lifting up of the present State of the World above the first Law and Order of the Creation sure this cannot be Denied Now that Law of Righteousness that was given to Man at first Thâ—t Law Do this and Live Be thou Holy be thou Perfect and thou shalt have the Reward of it Thou shalt Live by it This was the First Law and Constitution of God upon Mankind Now if Men were saved any way by this Law of VVorks and Righteousness in themselves Let it be what way it will Here were nothing Answering to Miracle to the Powers of the world to come only God may have Moderated the Point Take a little in the place of a great Deal Sincerity in the place of Perfect Obedience But still that great Point of Doing of Doing that is the Thing For there lies the Point of Miracle of New Creation That it is of Grace and not of Works For the Apostle hath Fixed the Firmament as I may say between Works and Grace He hath Established the two Worlds the World of the Old Adam the World to come of the Second Adam in saying If it be of Wrk s It is no more of Grace otherwise Grace is no more Grace or work is no more work Now Work was the very Foundation of the First Creation Man made in Knowledge Righteousness and True Holiness and then working according to it acting from and by himself according to the Law of his Creation I doubt not indeed that Man was made with the Knowledge of Christ the Mediator of Amity and Conciliation and Sustentation in the state wherein he was made seeing all things were made by and for our Mediator and that Adam himself was the Type of him to come and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and of the Tree of Life pointed to him and the very Image wherein Adam was made was Christ the Image of God But this being not of the present Intention I only intimate and stand not to prove it But Adam not keeping close to the Mediator was wholly upon his own Bottom of Creation and the Self Subsistence he chose out of a Mediator Whatever therefore God does in Grace through a Mediator to Man Fallen is Miracle of Grace and though it may seem in all Spiritual Concernments the Concernments of the Inward Man there is not Miracle because they do not at the present come into sense yet in regard of the present state they are of as Real Inward Deep Sense and Peace of Conscience and External Evidence in the Change of the Life and Conversation and shall in the Future State appear in Glory and illustrious Vâ—sibility and so are now by the Apostle call'd a being chang'd into the same Image from Glory to Glory as by that Spirit who is Jehovah I think This may be most justly called Miracle throughout and so great Miracle that all outward Miracles are but the Outside Case and Representations of them Now then if it come to Grace and to Faith to receive Righteousness by another it must needs be Miracle We are saved by Miracle in the pardon of sin and being accepted through the Righteousness of Jesus Christ I think the Apostle guides us to this very Apprehension For what saith he the Law could not do in that it was weak through the Flesh God sending his own Son and for sin condemned sin in the Flesh so that it might not be imputed
to the Believer in Christ Rom. 8. 3. I would but parallel it thus A Man is Blind or Lame or Sick or Lunatick or any of those things we read of in the Gospel All the Power of Nature summoned together the whole Colledge of Physicians and of all the Wise Men in Nature being summoned together they could not have healed a Man born Blind They could not have interposed in the Case of those persons at all much less in an Instant as Christ healed them in the Instant I say therefore what Nature could not do and all the Power of Art joyn'd with it could not do that God sending his Son in the likeness of sinful Flesh did He hore away our Sicknesses carried our Sorrows so as to heave them off from us upon himself This we greedily enough allow to be Miracle In the same manner whatever the Law the Eternal Rule of Righteousness cannot in regard of the Sinfulness and Guilt of the Nature and of the Transgressions and Iniquities of Men do in the point of Justification before Gâ—d when this Justification is accomplished by the Righteousness of God in the Mediator it must needs be Miracle For as is the Power of God and his Omnipotency in Point of Efficiency such is the Righteousness of God in the Point of Justification and as is the Loss or Deprivation of any of the Faculties of the Soul or Body of the Power due to Innate or Connatural to Them So is the want of a Righteousness of Approbation or Acceptaâ—ce in a Man wherein he may stand before the Just Jâ—dg as of full Number Weight and Measure according to that Law of Righteousness Given to Man and by which his Righteousness shall be Judged whether it be a Righteousness or not If therefore there had been any Law or Rule of Righteousness that Mans Sin being consider'd could have given Righteousness let it have been the First Law or any After Law Verily Righteousness should have been by it Gal 3. 21. He Brings in these Words Is the Law against the Promises of God God forbid it is as if he had said Is there any Reason the Eternal Law of Righteousness should speaking of it as of a person Weighing its own Honour Reputation have Inclination against the promises of God as undermining it and surprizing that Honour and Glory from it of giving Righteousness or as if God to speak with Reverence were fond of Justifying men by the Righteousness of another or as if for the Glory of his Grace and of his Son he had brought in his Righteousness and begg'd of Men to take it when there was a Law that was worthy to be call d a Law of Righteousness by which they might better or but as well have had it of their own All this saith the Apostle be far from God to bring in his Promises in so Precarious a manner But the Case of Man Absolutely Requires it he could not satisfy he could not Answer any such Law of Righteousness by himself The Scripture â—ath concluded or shut up every way on every side all mankind under sin It must be by Miracle by Free Justification by the Righteousness of Another and by Free Pardon upon that Righteousness wholly out of the Creature and by the Creator Jehovah our Righteousness and this is Miracle It is therefore said Scripture hath shut up men under sin that the promise by Faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that Believe Now what is given by promise is Miracle as Isaac a Son of Miracle Miraculously Given was a Son of Promise as we find Rom. 9. 9. The Promise was At this Time will I return und Sarah shall have a Son And as it is thus in the Point of Acceptance as Righteous before God So it is in the Point of Conversion Regeneration Sanctification It is all by Miracle For it â—s by Promise It is by a covenant of free Grace therefore it is by Miracle A new Heart and a New Spirit will I Give you I will take away the Heart of stone and Give you a Heart of Flesh I will write my Laws in their Heart and put my Fear in their Inward parts and they shall not depart from me Ezâ—k 36. Jerem. 31. Heb. 8. All This is by promise Therefore It is by Miracle It is by a New Covenant as I have said Miracle is a New thing therefore it is All Miracle Both then even Justification and Renovation they look toward the Kingdom of Christ toward the World to come So they are by Miracle For Miracle and the World to come turn one upon another Therefore as Justification so Renovation is by promise by Free Grace and so by Miracle Free Will is according to the Law of the First Creation and not Miracle in any other way than as hath been said before the First Creation and the first Spring of All is Miracle There are Two Frees as I may so speak that make a Great Noise among us Free Grace and Free Will And although they do not so in themselves yet Men set them into an Encounter one with the other They do not so in Themselves any more than the Law and the Promises of God which the Jews Rencountered one against another do For if there had been a Free Will that could have produc'd Faith Repentance Renovation Verily they should have been by Free Will But God hath concluded All under Vnbelief that he might have mercy upon all If therefore the Men of Free Will were speaking of the State of the First Creation I confess they discours'd well excellent wâ—ll but because it is the World to come of which we speak Therefore All Free Will in such sense falls to the Ground All is by Miracle by Miracle of Grace by Miracle of the New Creation For the making tfiis plain by Scripture we shall see how Duely this arises from John 3. 1 c. Christ had a Learned Man in the Jewish Law to deal with Nicodemus a Ruler among the Jews and I doubt not He might have sate among the Doctors of the Chair for Free Will and he would have voted no doubt in all they said with them He came with a Great Complement to Christ calling him Rabbi We know saith he Thou art a Teacher come from God For no man can do the Miracles thou doest except God be with him Here you see he had a great sense of Miracles and of the Miracles of Christ that is his Miracles especially on the Outward Man Christ therefore as it were withdraws him from the Outward Court of Miracles into the Inner Court of Spiritual Miracles that yet as I have said give both inward and outward Assurance of Themselves Christ instructs him therefore in the Point of Regeneration Except a man be born again a new or from above Either way signifies Miracle he cannot see the Kingdom of God What says Nicodemus to this This Great Man that came to acknowledge the Miracles of Christ Oh saith
Nicodemus How can these things be Thou speakest of impossible things How can a man be born again Can he enter the Second Time into his Mothers Womb and be born We see this great Acknowledger of Miracles when he came to a Point of Miraculous Power indeed that is the Renovation of Man the giving a New Heart and a New Spirit He is Puzzled He is Posed He do's not know what to say I cannot forbear to take notice That the great Men of Free-will are the greatest Arguers of the Truth of Christianity by Miracles and yet notwithstanding they are as much puzzl'd and Blunder as much concerning the very Miracles of Regenerating Grace the Regenerating Spirit as this great Man Nicodemus did It is true to hear them speaking of it as it is not Miracle but according to the Law of the First Creation or very little Differing They may speak more Tollerably of it But saith our Lord to him That which is Born of the Flesh is Flesh According to the Law of the First Creation Let Flesh be your Spring and Well-Head you shall never rise above it do what you can Therefore marvel not saith Christ I said you must be Born again This Regeneration is by the Spirit alone no man can Beget himself but he must needs beget himself the very same He was before The New Birth is as Isaac was the Child of Promise It is as the Birth of our Lord and several of his Progenitors was by Miracle He can Communicate no New principle to himself And just as the Apostle says here Divers Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his own will So in this Miracle of Regeneration saith Christ The Spirit bloweoh where it Listeth To shew It is all immediate power that is Miracle Thus also the Apost Discourses 2 Cor. 5. If any Man be in Christ he is a new Creature or a new Creation All Old Things are past away behold all Things are become New I would ask any one whether this is Miracle or not If it be only according to the Law of the First Creation It is not Miracle but if it be entirely and perfectly a new Creation It must needs be Miracle Argum. 3. The Resurrection is agreed to be Perfect Miracle The Kingdom of Christ is the Kingdom of the Resurrection From hence appears the strong and close Connexion between the Kingdom of Châ—ist and Miracle I could Heartily Pray the Threed and Train of the principles Arguing from the Râ—surrection as Miracle were closely pursued and followed Home The Apostle says Acts 17. 31. God hath appointed a Day in which he will Judg the World by that man He hath Ordain'd whereof he hath given Assurance unto All men whereof saith he God hath made Credit He hath offered greatest Reasons of being assured of what he had so Ordained by Raising the Lord Jesus from the Dead and therefore he is so often called He that is Risen from the Dead and the First Born the First Begotten from the Dead God says to him Thou art my Son this day of the Resurrection have I Begotten Thee and so Royal Power is more solemnly settled upon Him I was Dead and am Alive and behold I Live for evermore I have the Keyes of Hell and Death the Prince of the Kings of the Earth Now this Resurrection is the very Finger of God and therefore It iâ— justly acknowledged the Principal Miracle It is indeed the Center Miracle in which all Lines meet as all the greatest Reasoners on Miracles do also Fix in it as so Now that the Kingdom of Christ is the Kingdom of the Resurrection of all his Servants is plain For he Rose First His Saints Rise at his Coming 1 Cor. 15. 23 His Coming and his Kingdom are Conjoyn'd 2 Tim 4. 1. So it is the Kingdom of the Resurrection But I would expresly Establish it on that Revel 20. 4. I saw Thrones and they sate upon them And I saw the Souls that is the whole Persons of Saints Souls Re-united to their Bodies of them who were Beheaded for the Word of God c. Now these Lived They Lived and they Reign'd with Christ a Thousand years And the rest of the Dead That is all those who were not in a State of Blessed Life but under the Condemnation of Christ during the Thousand Years They Lived not again after the Thousand Years were fulfilled This is the first Resurrection the Kingdom of the Resurrection Blessed and Holy is he who hath his Part in this First Resurrection as all the Living Remaining Saints have Over them the Second Death shall have no Power For they in a Paradisiac State on the New Earth chang'd into Bodies of Paradise are Priests of God and Christ for the Thousand Years Fitted to be Caught up and to be together with the Saints Dead in Christ Raised to Enjoy the Kingdom of the Resurrection as the Children of the Resurrection the Principals of the First Resurrection in the New Heaven I have often Heard and Read the Discourses of the Men of Reason Magnifying the Resurrection as is most Due As the Hand of God stretched out in the Highest manner as the Greatest of Miracles But oh why should they not follow on to the Kingdom of the Resurrection the World to Come of the Resurrection during its Thousand Years the New Creation the New Heaven the New Earth the Kingdom of all Miracle and then All delivered up to God and the Father that he may be All in All. For from all this I conclude the Kingdom of Christ is the Kingdom of all Miracle Every Miracle therefore that hath been in this World is but a Peice a Parcel a Portion of that so vast and entire Sum. Argum. 4. I have now Argued The New Creation The New Heaven and the New Earth are certainly Miracle because above the Constitution and Law of the First Creation and that therefore all Miracle is but part and parcel a peice and portion of the Great State of the Kingdom of Christ For he that is upon the Throne says Behold I Create all New And he adds Write For these Words are True and Faithful Why did he say so But because he knew very well what an Opposition what a contrary Sentiment even Christians would be of to this Truth Be assur'd therefore saith the Great Prince upon the Throne These Things are Faithful and True and shall have their full Accomplishment in their own proper Times But now as there is in The Kingdom of Christ so Miraculous a State of Mercy and of Grace to his Servants so there is a Miraculous State of Judgment Desolating and Dissolving the Present State of this World even as it is upheld now by the Grace of the Mediator and that in the Introducing the World to Come whereof we speak and also to settle such a Counter-state of Wrath and Judgment wherein all the Wicked that have been in the World shall be in a most Visible State of Contempt
brought forth as you know so many great Instances of the Redemption of Mankind in Carrying our Sorrows and bearing our Sicknesses till there be that perfect Restitution of All Things named before and the Creatures or Creation it self be Delivered from the Bondage of Corruption into the Manifestation of the Glorious Liberty of the Children of God Now these things joyn'd together seem to me so full of Evidence that my heart is while I speak of them so satiated with them that I cannot but hope they will be also most Acceptable and satisfactory to them that read them so as to conclude how close Miracle and the Kingdom of Christ are Related one to another and that the Chief and Adequate End and Reason of Miracle is that they are Portions and Parcels Peices and Pledges of the Kingdom of Christ or of the World to come and shall bring it in at last CHAP. VI. A Discussion of the Times wherein Miracles have been most Illustrious and when there hath been greatest Darkness among the People of God in Relation to them Preparatory to the Asserting That Miracles are not ceas'd but a Return of Them is to be Expected SEeing from All I have Discours'd it appears very undoubted that a Return of Miracles is and ought to be expected because the Great and Adequate End of Miracles is a Connexion with and even an Introduction of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ and the World to come which Kingdom and World to come is not yet come and when it shall indeed come it shall have a mighty Power of Signs Wonders Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his own Will to appear with it to introduce settle and establish it in the Order and Glory of the New Creation I shall therefore before I come to the down-right Proof endeavour to anticipate or to be before hand with the greatest Objection I meet with to it Object The Great Objection I find in my own Thoughts and which Raises and Confirms I doubt not in others a Resolved Pre-judgment that Miracles shall not Return is Because that now for a Thousand Two Hundred and Sixty Years or near about Miracles except the Lying and Legendary ones the Antichristian Apostasy hath pretended to there hath been a going off and a Cessation of the True Power of Miracles and the Reason to be assign'd for it hath been thought Because the Doctrine of Salvation in the Gospel and the Canon of Scripture and particularly of the New Testnment hath been so summ'd up finish'd setled and sealed so confirm'd and assur'd by undoubted Power of Miracles that brought it into that Settlement and gave it so large a spread in the World that any further use or service of Miracles seems wholly superfluous and unnecessary For if it were not so it looks very strange and there seems no Reason to be given why God should be pleased to order so long a Parenthesis so Long and Dark an Interval such a long space and as I may call it Gap between the Power of Miracles in the Days of Christ and the Apostles and some space after and the present Time And indeed I would add To give the Objection all the strength I can That the Papists or the Antichristians both pretending Themselves to Miracles and finding among the Protestants and Reformed Churches no such Power nor so much as Pretension to it have been Loud and Clamorous upon it and have hereby assum'd it as a Good Reason to Damn the Reformation because it hath come Naked and Unarm'd of Miracles From whence the Reformed not having considered enough the True Reason of Miracles nor of their Cessaâ—ion have been under a Necessity to Defend Themselves by asserting Miracles are wholly ceas'd and no Return to be expected and that the Popish Pretences have been but so much Counterfeit and Falshdod In which Last Part they have spoken most Evident and undoubted Truth and this Defence hath also in the First Part seem'd so necessary that it could not be but it must sink Deep into the Minds of All the Most Holy Sober Serious Wife Protestants as well as the more General Profession of the Reformation and hath brought All Discourses of a Return of Miracles under Great Disrepute as Wild and Fanatical Altho indeed this part â—f the Defence arose from a not due consideration of the Reasons of the Cessation and of the certain Return of Miracles when the Force of those Reasons shâ—ll expire And I cannot but acknowledge It may seem strange according to the very Reason I am to lay down why there hath been such a Cessation of Miracles And there does arise a Difficulty upon it That there was not any Return of the Power of Miracles with the Reformation But I hope to give Fairest Solution to it In the mean time I cannot but take nâ—tice that the Popish Pretensions to a constant Power of Miracles does very notably not only agree with the Character of Prophecy in their Lying VVonders but also that they make indeed a Counterfeit Kingdom to the True Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ both in Prophecy and in their own Pretences and so far Counterfeit proves what ought to be in the Truth and the Life of That It is the counterfeit of and by Prophecy It was to counterfeit They give a Proof by the By That Miracles do indeed appertain to the Kingdom of Ghrist But to come to the main Answer to this Objection I propose upon it First To observe the State of Miracles or Miraculous Power in all the several Ages or Times Recorded to Us in Scripture and to collect the Light that may from thence be received to shew that Miracles shall certainly Return and Introduce the Kingdom of Christ 2. I will lay down what upon Great Reason I Esteem to be the True Cause of the Cessation of Miracles these Last Twelve Hundred and Sixty Years and why especially since the Reformation Miracles have not return'd seeing as Miracles pertain to the Kingdom of Christ so the Reformation it self was an appearance of that Kingdom Wherein I will consider any Collateral Objections that may spring up from any Discourse in this Answer That therefore which in general I pitch upon is that when we look upon the several Varieties of Appearances of Miraculous Emanations or Flowings out from the Divine Gloâ—y and Power in Miracles according to the Records of Scripture there have been no Times wholly without them of which Any Records of Scripture have given us the Memorials Because there was always a certainty of that Kingdom Coming and the moâ—e Notable and Remarkable Manifestations have been prepared for those more Noble and Remarkable Manifestations of the Kingdom of Christ. The History of Scripture is indeed very short in the Time before the Flood yet we have an Eminent Instance of a Miraculous Power of Grace in the Translating Enoch to Heaven without any sight of Death Enoch walked with God so many years and was not For
Daniel there were very Resplendent Signatures of the Mighty Power of God in Nebuchadnezzar's Dream and Image both Retrieved by Daniel when He had lost all Lines of it as also Expounded to him which both satisfied and convinced that Insolent Monarch into an acknowledgment of God the Miraculous Chaining up the power of the Fire upon the Three Servants of God in that so over-heated Furnace while yet it had Full Force to Fly out and Ravage upon the Servants of the Idolatrous Furious Prince that doted upon that very Image of Vast Arbitrary Dominion most probably which being so Miraculously Represented and Expounded had Extorted from him the Confession of the one True God That immediate Hand of the most High upon him in such a Deliration and Phrensy which turn'd him to Grass with the Beasts and as wonderfully Restor'd him with a Mouth so full of acknowledgments of the God of Heaven The Dreadful and Astonishing Starting of the Hand and Fingers out of the wall to that Intemperate Sacrilegious and Idolatrous King Belshazzar with the Affrightful Comment of Daniel upon the writing of them The preserving Daniel in the Den of Lyons when their Rage was yet so quick upon the men that gave him as a prey to their intended Ravenous Teeth All these very stupendious and Mighty Works of God were undoubtedly on purpose provided for that very Time wherein These most Admirable and Truly more Miraculous Visions of the Kingdom of Christ were in Giving and as most Connatural to them so for a Confirmation of them They lasted therefore so long and were succeeded by not so many Miracles as very wonderful and Mighty Providences in the Restoring Judah and Jerusalem by such Signal and almost miraculously moved and Ingaged services of so many Princes of Persia together with the Glorious Prophecy of Haggai and Zechary which lasted till Judah and Jerusalem were Restor'd and so long continued the Spirit of Prophecy Then immediately came on those Strait Cramped Times both as to the Prophecy the Miraculous Power and all Appearances of the Kingdom of Christ One Rising and Setting with the other as by the strongest Sympathy and Configuration or most Wise Disposals to for and with one another For when those Straits of Time under the Power of Heathen Princes and the more settled Times of the Gentiles came in the Spirit of Prophecy Retired in Malachies Prophecy and took as it were its Leave and gave its Fare-well in those Words ending it Remember ye the Law of Moses my Servant in Horeb for All Israel with the Statutes and the Judgments viz. As Enlarg'd upon by the Prophets Let my Written Word be your Rule Thus there was a Sealing up Prophecy till the sending of Elijah the Prophet which Elijah the Prophet our Lord Assures was John the Baptist in One Degree but not in the Highest For another Elijah like Ministry and of an Higher Elevation or exaltation shall yet Arise as our Lord hath Intimated also in saying Elijah truly Cometh and shall Restore All Things even before that Notably Great and Terrible Day of the Lord And when the mighty Converting Power the Power of Miracles being also Joyn'd with it shall be abundantly given out For John did no Miracle to shew the Prophecy was not in him Fullfill'd to the utmost then shall indeed the Heart of the Fathers be Turn'd to the Children and the Heart of the Children to the Fathers or of the Disobedient to the Wisdom of the Just However in the mean time The Beginning of the Gospel in every Evangelist is plac'd in John to whom says Luke The Word of God by immediate Mission came and he was a Man sent from God as the Evangelist John says And the very Beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God is Fix'd in Him by Mark cap. 1. 1 2 As if he would have Joyn'd the last words of Malachi and the first of his own together and in a Continuation as one and the same Holy Scripture But notwithstanding all this tho John was so great a Prophet Yet he saith Christ that is Least in the Kingdom of God is Greater than he His Greatness above all that were Born of Women stood in this That he prepar'd the way to Christ and to that great Power with which the Son of God came He was so Great in his being so near the Kingdom of God yet because he was so near and not in that very Kingdom It was not fit for him to do any Miracle That was a Glory Proper only to the Kingdom of God it self Now it was just in its Appearance And thus I have brought Time down to its Fullness just to that very point wherein our Lord Jesus Christ Appearing there were so great Reasons of Expectation that his Kingdom should also have then Appear'd Immediately and all Miracles have been summ'd up in its Coming with Power But tho in the Days of those Kingdoms I mean of those Four Monarchies in Daniel that were so Determin'd by God and by Christ a Room was reserv'd That the God of Heaven should set up a Kingdom and a Dominion never to End yet it was in Infinite Wisdom and Counsel so Determin'd that it should shew it self and its right and so withdraw again because the last of the Four Monarchies even the Roman Monarchy had that large Stage of Time allow'd to it to run over and concerning the last State or Part of which Christ had Sworn There should be Time Times and half a Time e're the Wonders or Miracles proper to the Introducing his Kingdom should be Finished Dan. 12. 6. However for that very Appearance of that Kingdom set up so great a Power of Miracles as were wrought in the Days of Christ and of the Apostles of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was so shewn both in regard of that Kingdom of Faith and Holiness that did then actually show it self and which indeed can never suffer a Total so much as Interruption much less an End But yet an Apostasy from it even a General Apostasy the Apostasy of a Generation the Antichristian Generation express'd by the Apostle 1 Tim. 4. 1. by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 was to come as the Apostle does with so great an Earnestness and Zeal Assert 2 Thes 2. And by the same degrees the Mystery of Iniquity wrought in order to that and to bring it forth by the very same the Kingdom of Christ withdrew and Retired in the Spiritual Vertue and Power of it and also in the Miraculous Power that comes along with it This stop to its present glorious Appearance is very Forcibly Express'd by Daniel in these words Dan. 9 24. The Sealing Vision and Prophecy at the very Time of making an End of Sin and Finishing Transgression shewing that whereas the Glory of the Kingdom was in strict Justice due to Christ at the very Time of the Sacrifice offered and Reconciliation made and the great Assurance God gave of his Acceptance of it
of his Kingdom of the New Creation there should be a Miraculous Appearance A Light therefore shone round and other Manifestations of the Powerful Visible Presence of Christ were given at it All this shews then another great Reason why God is pleas'd to make Miracles the Conveyance as I have said the Chariot of his Mighty Spirit and what End but that God would give Testimony That a New Creation a New Heaven a New State of Things a World to come shall be when the Gospel shall attain its Glory Then shall be a Visible Representation of the Inward Spiritual Glory The Case and outside to the Inward Glory shall be the outward Glory the outward Glorious State of all Things some Parcels and Portions of which are according to the Word of God shewn with the Gospel at such Times and in such Cases on such occasions as the Lord sees meet For this is Demonstration If without Miracles Christ drew Souls when he pleased even whole Cities as that of Samaria John 4. without any Miracles we Read of And if notwithstanding Miracles he left many to the Blindness and Hardness of their Heart It is then Evident There is no necessity of Miracles but the Spirit powr'd out from on High is Enough and only Enough with Miracles or without for Conversion It follows then Miracles are wrought chiefly because God would give Pledges and as I said Parts and Peices of the World to come before hand that shall be a Visible Glory over and upon the Spiritual Invisible Glory of the Gospel at its Height and Perfection Tho it may Collatterally serve for Confirmation and a Testimony to it now Yet still Miracles duly attend the Gospel in the World in the Days of Christ and of the Apostles in All its Grander Appearances in the World as is allowed and agreed on all sides I Argue then seeing the Gospel is yet in a very Imperfect State of Acquist or of getting the whole World into its possession therefore when ever the Gospel is to come out again in that Glory and Power as to bring the uttermost Ends under it Then even in Course there must be there shall be a return of Miracles Tho as I shall Argue much more because the Gospel shall then Introduce the Kingdom of Christ and the World to come It must be attended by Miracle But to Argue first according to the Allowances of Men with whom we now deal let us look on the second Psalm v. 7. saith Christ I will declare the Decree the Lord hath said unto me Thou art my Son This Day have I begotten thee Ask of me and I shall give thee the Heathens for thy Inheritance and the uttermost ends of the Earth for thy possession This shall indeed be done by Angry Power by a Rod of Iron where the Gospel does not prevail but yet it is to be done also and principally too by the Gospel For Psal 110. When the Lord shall send the Rod of Christs strength out of Zion That he shall Rule in the midst of his Enemies and even as other Scriptures say to the very Ends of the Earth His People shall be willing in the Day of his Power and through the Power of Converting Grace he shall as in regard of Abundance of Converts have the Dew of his Youth the Children of his Youth Renewed at that Time Like the Eagles as numerous as the Drops of Dew from the dawn of the Morning His People perswaded by the Gospel shall come in as Free-will Offerings in so great numbers When this Day of Christ's Power therefore shall be and the Effects of the Gospel Preaching so mighty then according to all Rules of Proportion Miracles shall return to attend the Gospel But I Argue further from positive and Express Scriptures beyond Contradiction and indeed I do not find many that are so unreasonable as to disagree however they may think that Miracles shall not Return that the Gospel must have yet a greater Publication to the ends of the Earth than it yet hath had For we know what vast parts of the Earth there are now that are without the Gospel not only without the Belief of it but without the very Sound of it or at least a Sound that is at all Considerable if any at All Yet few think it shall be so to the very End Few think God hath done what he intends to do that God hath gone over the World with the Gospel as far as he hath any purpose to go and that he intends to go no further But whoever may think so Christ Discoursing concerning the End hath told us Matt. 24. 6 14. There shall be Wars and Rumors of Wars but yet we must not be so shaken in Mind as to think therefore The End must needs be For saith he The End is not yet It is True saith Christ I have been Prophecyed of as the Prince of Peace and that under my Government Wars should be made to Cease to the Ends of the Earth that the Nations should learn War no more but beat their Swords into Plowshares and their Spears into Pruning hooks That I should Break the Bow and Cut the Spear and Arrows Asunder and Burn the Chariots in the Fire And therefore when ever you have Wars and Rumors of Wars you may think that it must needs be I must Come and put an End to all Things as in this State of the World that I may put an End to Wars But saith Christ These things must be yet the End shall not as yet be And therefore I freely profess though we see the World at this Day almost All in a Combustion in a Flame Every one knows what an Universal State of War there is at this Time yet I should not look on this as an Argument of the near Approach of the Kingdom of Christ if there were not more Assured Arguments from the Scripture Line of Time For Christ hath told us that there shall be such Things all along and we may see by the History of All Nations There have been Wars and Rumors of Wars all along and yet this is no Argument The End shall yet be But v. 14. Christ tells us what shall be an assured Argument The End shall be that is The End of this State of the World For saith he v. 14. This Gospel This very Gospel of the Kingdom it is very Remarkable It is the Gospel of the Kingdom of Christ It shall be Preached in all the World for a Witness unto all Nations and then shall the End Come Surely there can be nothing more Express and Full to the purpose That there must be just upon the End a Preaching of the Gospel in all the World Take what Preaching of the Gospel you will that hath been before if the End hath not Followed upon it That is not the Preaching of the Gospel on which the End Follows that is here spoken of This must needs be granted For when Christ says such things shall Be
to that last making known which is therefore great Proof the Power of Miracles is not so ceas'd but that it shall Return Argum. 5. Another Argument I would give for the return of Miracles is that Prayer Acts 4. 29 30. Lord grant unto thy Servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word and that Signs and Wonders may be done by the Name of thy Holy Child Jesus I desire to know what words of Limitation are to be found in this Prayer or where any place of Scripture can be found where the Servants of God are Discharg'd from expecting Miraclâ—s any more Where is it said Hitherto shall Miracles go and no further Where is it said they shall cease here or here They are ceased here are the Bounds I have given Leave They shall reach unto this Point but no further There was a Sealing up Scripture from the Day of Malachy the Prophet until John the Baptist his Times With him Scripture began again by the Evangelists There is a sealing up Scripture again by the Apostle John in the end of his Gospel c. 20. 39. c. 21. 25. These things are written that ye might Beleive and if All things were written the World could not contain them It seems order'd by Peculiar Disposes of Providence that the Books of Scripture should be clasp'd up with that End of the Revelation c. 22. 18 19. But there is no bound set to Miracles or Miraculous Power It is true it hath ceased but by no Act cutting off as I may say the Entail tho there is a suspension This Prayer therefore altho it hath had a long Interruption in its effect yet it hath no cessation put upon it but It shall prevail unto the Kingdom of Christ from the Promise of which Psal 2. it was taken The Hand of God we know is not shortned that it should work no more Miracles but the Apostasy fallen upon the Profession of Christianity hath brought forth this long Interval yet the Lords Hand shall be again stretched out and shall not be called back till he hath accomplished the thoughts of his Heart and whatever he hath spoken concerning the Glory and Kingdom of Christ and of that World to Come whereof saith the Apostle we speak when we speak of the various Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his own will there being so close a Connexion between the one and the other CHAP. VIII Of that Power of Miracles that always Accompanies the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and hath Rested upon the Witnesses and yet Rests upon them During the whole Time past and to the end of the Twelve Hundred and Sixty Days of the Woman in the Wilderness and the Witnesses in Sackcloath and the Forty two Months of the Antichristian Apostasy IT may seem that by giving such Accounts of the Cessation of Miracles and such Arguments for the Return of Miracles that it is the Intention of this Discourse to deny all Miraculous Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ now with his Gospel I shall therefore to clear that Part spend this Chapter in the Stating and Vindicating so weighty a point in these following Particulars shewing the Constancy of Spiritual Miracles 1. Those Mighty Miraculous Spiritual Powers of the Gospel never remove from it wherever the Gospel comes they come wherever the Gospel-Styl'd the Kingdom of God Removes being taken from any they Remove also And tho these are not accounted Miracles because they do not assure themselves to sense yet the Intrinsick Inward excellency of them is such that they are indeed the true Miraculous Nature if I may so speak both as they are Effects and Emanations of Immediate Power from Heaven and as they are so many essential Parts and peices of the World to come And First The Gospel is its own Miracle so rich a Manifestation of Truth that had been Hid from Ages and Generations and now manifested in these last Times But besides It is Truly Miraculous in its Effects 2. The Acceptance of Believers in Jesus Christ to Righteousness before and with God through Free Pardon and Justification by the Blood and Obedience of Jesus Christ. 3. The Renovation and change of the Whole man and of the Action and Conversation by the Spirit of Jesus Christ mortifying the corrupt Lusts Inordinate Affections and filling the Soul with every Grace to Newness of Life and Obedience 4. Dying or Sleeping in and by Jesus Christ when Saints Spirits call'd out of the Body go up to God and Christ 5. When any one is Assured in his own mind hath full Evidence when he Finds all he ever did is brought under Conviction and Confession as in the Woman of Samaria and that the Heart and Life are chang'd why should Miracles be narrowed so much to sense while thus there is surmounting Evidence to the whole man Now altho the Working and Actings hereof are Invisible and Indiscernible by Sense yet they are as Spiritual greatest Realities every way above the Power of Nature or its Comprehension Asserted in all Scripture to be the mighty Power of God and giving a Rich or abundant Entrance into the Kingdom of our Lord und Saviâ—ur Jesus Christ and therefore wanting only the Externe Appearance and Assurance but giving greatest Inward Assurance For they are Acknowledged and Comprehended by All Saints even this Heighth Depth Breadth and Length of which the Apostle speaks Ephes 3. 18. As if he hereby intended Mathematical Assurance They are Inwardly Seen Heard Tasted and Felt and they have the Odours the Flavours of the Kingdom of Christ causing the Triumphs of his Servants the certain Observation of all by standers who cannot but acknowledg their good Conversation the Holy Lives and Comfortable Dying of the Saints of Christ and many have been wrought upon hereby to Faith in Jesus Christ the acknowledged Principal End of Miracles But besides these which are always Inseparable from the Gospel There are those the Spirit of God hath told us are proper to the very Time of the Apostasy as a Counterpoison to it manifested in and by the Witnesses of that Time I would therefore open as I have before shewn Miracles are to be Divided into Miracles of Mercy and of Judgment How far Miracles continue even all the Time of the Antichristian Apostasy in each way or manner of Exercise But it is Heedfully to be Remembred They were not Represented and Counterparted with those open and sensible Miracles which are indeed the Miracles that more properly we are now in Discourse of such as force the Sense and call upon men Universally to say Here is the Finger of God For the Witnesses and their Miracles were under the Seal of the Living God as I have already Reason'd and so were not seen and acknowledged but by comparing Spiritual Things with Spiritual and therefore not by Natural Men even Men of Sense great Reasoners as they are Reputed without the help of the Divine Spirit 1. It was truly a Miracle to
a Spiritual Eye and wherein the Power of God appear'd That He held up a pure and sincere state of Christianity in the midst of all the Roman Apostasy altho it was so dark and Dangerous a Time or Place as the Spirit of God calls it by the Apostle Peter 2 Pet 1. 19. And as he assures it must needs be because the Witnesses were in Sackcloth and War made upon them and they were kill d and the Woman or the Witnesses Collectively taken were in the Wilderness Rev. 11. c. 12. or as Daniel speaks the Power of the Holy People was scattered Dan. 12. 7. God was pleas'd to keep it up not only since the Reformation but throughout the whole Time or space of the Time and Times from 437 to 1517. the 1080 as well as the 180 of the 1260 Days when by the Reformation there was a Party-Rising of the Witnesses and Party-Retrenchment of the The Fresh Memorial of Christs Kingdom Papal Power and Apostasy at the Half Time according to the two Oaths of Christ Dan. 12. and Rev. 10. Allowing it as I have made out in a Discourse wholly to that purpose 2. For this is that which is spoken of Rev. 1â— 3. And I will give Power to my two Witnesses and they shall Prophecy in Sackcloâ—h a Thousand two Hundoed and Threescore days cloath'd in Sacâ—cloth I will give them Power but yet that Power shall be hid they shall be Cover'd or Cloath'd with Sackcloth So a place shall be prepared for the Woman the Church where she shall be nourished but it shall be in a Desert State not known or acknowledged it shall be in the Wilderness But saith God I will give Power to my Witnesses Now Power is one of the Words expressive of Miracles They are call'd Power and by that we have had the Great Truth of the Gospel Continued so as to be Restor'd to us in the Reformation by their Constancy of Declaring and Maintaining Professing and Teaching the Truths after Godliness the Doctrine of Salvation by Christ And this in Regard of the Darkness of that Time is call'd Prophecy and Power to Prophecy in regard of Miraculous Virtue in so doing For there hath been a Connexion a linking between Witness and Witness between one Age of Witnesses and another Age and with the Reformation it self which we are All so willing to acknowledg It hath been from the Power God gave to his Two Witnesses in the midst of all the Barrenness and Darkness of the Papal Apostasy These are the Two Olive-Trees the Two Green Olive-Trees Emptying their Oyl into the Two Golden Candlesticks that stand before the God of the Whole Earth not by might nor by Power but by my Spirit saith the Lord of Hosts These were the worthy Witnesses of Christ throughout that Dark Time when no man could any sooner look out with any of the purest Truths of the Gospel that stem'd that Apostasy but presently Heretick Heretick was cryed out upon him or â—ince the Reformation among those who hold of the part of the Synagogue of Sathan some Finer parts of that Apostasy venerated as purer Antiquity Schismatick Schismatick was as vehemently Fasten'd on any one if he broach'd any thing as they call it against the Hierarchic Church They have been Anathematised Excommunicated Prosecuted with Corporal or Pecuniary Punishments even to the most cruel Deaths and Imprisonments Fire hath been call'd down from Heaven and fetch'd up from Hell against them yet notwithstanding a Miraculous Power hath been given to them to Prophecy for the 1260 Days I know Many cannot understand how these Witnesses could be said to Prophecy while they lay Dead Three Days and an Half But I have endeavour'd in a peculiar Discourse to Assoyle that also in the Vision of the Witnesses and to shew that as it is said of Abel the first Martyr Being Dead he yet speaketh so of these his Successors although Kill'd they yet Prophecy And it is much more plain on their side For their Death however Violent-Natural also yet is chiefly Mystic They were Kill'd as Witnesses Hateful and Cursed Hereticks being the Sambenito the Disguise whereinto they were presently put but still they Prophetied tho they were slain And in this Sense also they continued Prophecying because as any were Naturally Killed others still rose up in their Room and which is great Miracle They were Dead yet they could never be Buried The People Nations Tongues and Languages would not suffer them to be Buried because their Doctrine however Condemned before hand was still kept above-ground as we speak in several parts of this Universal Roman Empire under the Pope and his Ten Kings the Princes of Europe notwithstanding all their Fury against it their Joy in hopes they had suppressed their Prophecy and their sending Gifts one to another for it yet it hath and shall continue to the Kingdom of Christ in regard of which to Come till it comes Their Doctrine is call'd Prophecy also And All this may be most justly Styled Miracle because it is not in the Train and Connexion of Things according to the general Order and Government of the World For so when Men Dye even all the Living World is in hast They be Buried what way soever it be But these Witnesses were not suffered to be Buried Their Doctrine their Slain Testimony must Remain Above to Annoy and Nusance the Papal and half Reform'd World And with these Gospel Witnesses Those Gospel Miracles before Named were Deposited all this Time the Turning and Changing Men from Sin and Sathan to God which must needs be Miracle For in the Train and Order of Things a wicked Man will go on in his Wickedness and Lewdness and not be purged from it till he Dye All the Justifying Sanctifying Grace of the Gospel the Dying and Sleeping in and by Jesus tho by Violent Deaths under the Rage of Persecutors was all in the Tenure in the Conveyancings of these VVitnesses Churches are Candlesticks Fed from these Sons of Oyl Ministerily Originally from Christ and his Spirit Consider then Spiritual Inward Miracles Miracles apprehended by Faith and Scripture-Reason never ceas'd For if they had the Everlasting Kingdom given to Christ must have Ceased And this is an Infallible Argument there shall be a Return of Miracles in an outward and Glorious Appearance because inward Miracles to which the outward as an externe Transparent Air are Due have never ceased The outward shall whenever the Reasons of State as I may say in that Kingdom shall Require it appear greater than ever yet and this I propose to Universal Consideration but more especially of the Wise Judg you what I say 2. In the Second Place I will propose the Judiciary Miraculous Power The Spirit of God affirms the Witnesses to have had and this consists of several Particulars 1. Fire proceeds out of their Mouths and Devoureth their Enemies And if any one will Hurt them in this manner must he be Killed Rev. 11. This was
was a great Offer of the Kingdom of God and of Christ at that Time to have Appear'd as Christ says Be sure the Kingdom of God is come upon you and Christ Commands the Apostles to Preach the Kingdom of God in the Doing of Miracles as I have fully shown And it did indeed then come in the Spiritual State of it so at the return of Miracles that Kingdom shall indeed without any further Delay come in the Highest both Spiritual Glory and outward Manifestation of it in which regard Miracles as I have manifested through this Discourse shall be most Universal and to the highest Efficacy Because the world to Come which is the Kingdom of the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven shall be prepared for and effectually brought in thereby so that till the Time of that Kingdom be in its Succession There can be no such return of Miracles expected and that as I have shewn cannot be till the Four Monarchies are fully Expired For the Kingdom of Christ and of this Monarchy cannot mingle As therefore the Miracles proper to this Kingdom have been more Interrupted by the Course of those Monarchies and especially the Three Times and Half of the Last State of the Last Monarchy than at any other Time so they must be fully ended and the Kingdom of Christ be Proclaimed according to Rev. 11. The Kingdoms of this World are become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ and he hath taken to himself his great Power to Reign and then shall Miracles the mighty Powers of the VVorld to come Return again to Huisher it in even a Stated Power of Miracles as in thr Days of Christ and of the Apostles as our Lord says I work Cures to day and to morrow c. A continuity a Connexion of one Miracle with another a Miraculous Power waited at his Hand at his Right Hand a state of Miracles there was that God was Magnified who had given such power to men a settled Power the Account he sent to John the Baptist of himself was The Blind receive their Sight the Lame walk the Lepars are Cleansed and that great Spiritual Miracle running along The Poor are Evangeliz'd and under the Power of the Gospel Messiah and his Kingdom and the Power of Miracles are always joyn'd mighty in word and deed in doing good Full of Compassion because he himself took our Sickness and carried our Sorrows and so heal'd as in Mercy to himself that it might be truly said Physitian Heal thy self The Apostles as Ministers of State in his Kingdom were Ministers of Miracles Freely Received of this Power aâ—d commanded Freely to give and so we find they did and with that Power that the Shaddow of Peter and the very Linnen touch'd by the Apostle Paul conveyed Cure insomuch that the very Pagans in sense of Divine Power said The Gods are come down among us Acts 14. 28. And surely when that Kingdom of the Restitution of all things shall actually appear then in all things It shall be fulfilled that our great Prince hath Received Gifts for men even for the Rebellious also that the Lord God may dwell among them Miracles shall Husher it in and Miraculous Powers shall Found and Settle it CHAP. XI The Inferences from the whole Discourse of Miracles Tending to make Wise to Sobriety concerning Them and to all Holiness and Heavenly Conversation are Recollected and Presented Inference 1. MIracles indeed from Divine Power are able to bear the severest Tryal and Examination because they give Evidence of themselves to the whole Man not always to the outward Sense For as hath been before remarked the Words of Christ are Works Now Words of Great and Supernatural Efficacy are Miracles to and before the sense of Mind but not to the Outward Sense So they were to the Woman of Samaria Behold a Man saith she that hath told me All that ever I did Is not this the Messiah or the Christ John 4. 29. and the Samaritans said to the Woman We believe not for thy Words or saying but we have heard him our selves and know that This is indeed the Christ the Saviour of the World v 42. And yet here was no Miraculous Appearance to the Outward Sense and so our Lord says Blessed are They who haâ—e believed and yet have not seen Now whatever produces Faith is Miracle before the Mind For it is the mighty Power of God that works in all them that believe Even as Miracle before the Eye is sensible Miracle Yet generally Miracles did commend Themselves to both the Inward and the Outward Sense and so that their most obstinate Opposers could not Resist their Evidences They could bear the severest Scrutiny sustain the uttermost Test and Tryal When the Enemies of Christ of his Doctrine and Miraculous Power at any Time sate in Judgment on Christ and his Miracles They were Confounded and Amazed They were forced to lay their hands upon their mouths and to keep silence This is the Excellency of the Miracles of the Gospel when the Juggles and Cheats and Tricks of the Devil and of All Deceivers may be easily found out if they are but search'd into They must be swallowed in silence and believed in the Dark or they vanish What an Abundance of the Popish Miracles have been Trac'd and Tracked Like their Story of Bell and the Dragon that they Fathally put in their Scriptures or Bible the very semblance of their Miracles to the Juggle and Cheat that lay under Them But the Miracles of the World to come and of the Kingdom of Christ are the Greater the more they are Eyed They have no Enemies but Ignorance Stupidity and Vnbelief or Counterfeit We have an Admirable Instance of this John 9. in the Cure of the Blind Man The Neighbours had it in question and were convinced first the Pharisees emptied it from Vessel to Vessel They Examin'd it at all Lights the Man being Blind himself his Parents were every way sifted and the Matter canvass'd and all they could do was to drop the Cause as they say and in their own defence to Excommunicate the Person on whom the Miracle was wrought They cast him out Juridically v 34. Again We shall find the Jews sitting in Judgment upon a Miracle wrought by the Apostles And what was the Great Effect of it Acts 4. 21. The people Glorified God seeing the miracle of Healing that was done The Apostles Peter and John had by the power of Christ heal'd a man Lame from his mothers Womb c. 3. v. 1 c. Now They beholding the man which was healed standing with them They could say nothing against it Observe They fain would have Remonstrated unto it but could say nothing against it and the Result was What shall we do with these men For that indeed a Notable Miracle hath been done by them v. 16. is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem and we cannot deny it So that here was the Great Excellency of the Miracles
Diversities of Miraculous Operations were but the outward Counter point And therefore herein we may understand the Supernatural Excellency of Grace and Salvation by Christ Even as we Acknowledg Miracle far above Nature so the Salvation of the Gospel being most Perfect Miracle is in every Thing above Nature VVorks of Righteousness we have done is Nature If we are sav'd by them It is then indeed no other than Nature but if by the Free Grace of God Pardoning and Accepting through the Righteousness of Christ This is Miracle Works done by Free VVill is Nature Works done by the Grace and Power of the Divine Spirit is Miracle Oh! how great a Tryal is this of Doctrines whatever enters into that VVorlâ— to come whereof we speak with Acceptanee is Miracle a part of that VVorld to Come And though what we call Nature now is indeed Grace from the Mediator yet It is so mix'd with the Apostasy that if it is not sublimated Raised to the Height by Grace it will subside sink down to the very Bottom of the Apostasy Lastly Miracles Rightly considered shew the Order even the Primary Oorder of Grace For as Miraculous Power was first in Motion and Manifestation of it self ere there could be particular Application and not only so but there was a particular Approach of such Grace ready to Work which excited the Faith of the Person that was to Receive the Benefit of the Miracle and so the Miraculous Power Entred where Miraculous Power had no Place there Unbeleif prevail'd and no mighty Works were or could be done Even so in all the Spiritual Miraculous Powers The Grace given and Working Faith and Repentance and Obedience first Enâ—er and then the Graces Themselves For Grace even as Nature Fabricates and Raises its own Habitation or Reception Even by it Self So it is not of him that willeth or of him that runneth but of God who sheweth mercy Yet it is our Duty to pray earnestly for Grace in ourselves and others even as it is our Duty to wait upon All Means to wait especially on Grace it self Infer 4. How admirable is the Gift and Grace of God in Removing out of the World that Diversity and Strangeness of Tongues that both in different Words and Sounds as well as different Pronunciations of the same Words came in by a Miracle of Judgment on the Builders of Babel and hath continued a certain Diagnostick or Brand of the State of Confusion whose Base and House is in the Land of Shinar the Antichristian Babylonian Kingdom most contrary to the Kingdom of Salem and to the True Melchisedec Jesus Christ King of Righteousness King of Peace Now therefore at his first Appearance in his Kingdom and the Preaching of the Everlasting Gospel by the APostles in an Offerture of it at that time and a Pledg of what shall be There was a very Illustrious Specimen of the Babelism or Confusion of Languages Removed Yet it shall be much more illustrious at the utter Faâ—l of Babylon and its Kingdom For then the Lord shall shall turn to the People universally a pure Language They shall All speak the Language of Canan And this must needs be so when the Everlasting Gospel shall be Preached to Every Tongue and Language under Heaven Then must there be either one Vniversal Language spoken and understood by All to Preach it in or else there must be an Immediate Passing out of one Language into Another both in Speaking and Understanding Either of which is most undeniably the Work of that Infinite Power that made mans mouth that gave it speech and then Activity of Reason Turning every way and guiding that Speech This alone can Conciliate those both Different Voices Sounds Accents and manners of Pronunciation that are found in Different Languages or Tongues and the Different Formings of the same Language and Frame all into one Universal Character or Sound and Expression of Truth of the Gospel most suitable to the Glory of that Vniversal Monarch King of Kings Lord of Lords Then also shall all that Babelism or Confusion of Opinions so proper to Babylon concerning the Truths of the Gospel be Reconcil'd into Speaking one Thing being of the same Mind and Judgmen tand that perfectly or to Perfection Infer 5. And to conclude this Discourse Seeing the Messiah the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven and his Kingdom his World to come and these Miraculous Powers even to the bringing forth the New Heaven and the New Earth are always together Oh that moved by the Blessed Spirit who says Come and Joyning with the Bride which says Come we also Hearing and Sympathizing or moved Alike may say Come Oh let it be said Oh Zion Thy King cometh The Flock of Saints the multitude of Them Come The Lord our God shall come and all the Saints with Thee The Breaker shall come up before them They have broken through They have passed through the Gate and are gone out by it and their King shall pass before them the Lord even Jehovah on the Head of them Mic. 2. 13. Even so Come Lord Jesus Come quickly And thus I have Finished the Proof of the Return of Miracles I shall in this following Discourse Essay a Full and Satisfactory Proof by the Sure Word of Prophecy That The Return of Miracles shall be in the Succession of the Kingdom of Christ 1697. THE Great Charter FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF ALL Prophecy of Scripture AND OF The TIMES Defined by it PLEADED In Justification of what hath been Written thereupon against the several Imputations of Curiosity Groundless Presumption Phantastry or Enthusiasm 2 PET. I. 20. Knowing this first That no Prophecy of Scripture is of any private Interpretation IT is very Notorious there is nothing Learned and good Men are more Scandalized at or give slighter Regard to throughout all that is offered to them from the Word of God than the Interpretation of Scripture Prophecy especially if Any come to the Interpretation of those Prophecies that Define Time Now this arises from a strong Pre-judgment or Pre-possession of Mind That such Prophecies and most particularly concerning Time are not possible or hardly Lawful to be Interpreted and that it is presumption to offer at it and that all that is drawn from such Interpretation is no other than Groundless Phantastry I have therefore Resolved since the Lord as I Trust hath Himself engaged my Labours in this his Vineyard to make it my Humble endeavour to Explorate and to Find out by this Scripture How far such Attempts of Interpretation are Justified and the Success assur'd by the Word of God Now this Text and the whole Context seem even at the first sight to give Highest Countenance and Favour hereunto for it expresly affirms No Prophecy of Scripture not of Daniel or of the Revelation or any other Scripture Prophecy nor of the Numbers relating to Time in those Prophecies and wherein the preciseness of Times is Deposited and Lay'd up is of Private Interpretation I
assurance of which Enlightens 3. The Apostle according to other Scriptures distinguishes between the day dawning and the Day-Star arising one signifying the succession of the Kingdom of Christ the other the glory of that Kingdom So the Mystery of God is to be fulfilled in the days of the Seventh Angel and then Christ appears in his Glory So the Apostle distinguishes between Christ blasting the man of sin with the Breath of his Mouth which is by the mighty power of the Everlasting Gospel and then utterly consuming and annihilating Him with the Brightness of his Coming or Appearanee 4. The Apostle describes the Apostacy that should so long delay the Kingdom of Christ in mystical Terms under the shade of Nicolaianism and Gnostiscism so fit to type out the Idolatry impurity of Manners and all the Abominablenesses of the Antichristian State of which Antichrist the little Horn in Daniel whose representation Daniel gave as thinking to change Times and Laws until the time of the Kingdom of Christ Now of this very changing Times and Laws is the Second Chapter of this Epistle a delineation and most prophetically and at greatest advantage after the mention of Prophecy it is given 5. His Third Chapfer most plainly and exprsly refers to Time for he answers not as some think the Atheists but the Antichristians Objection those great Burlesquers of Christianity into Fables called therefore Scoffers who say That all things from the Flood having continued as they were there is no such change as of the Kingdom of Christ to be expected and so all that which concerns the Kingdom of Christ hath passed with them for Millenarian Heresie The Apostle hath therefore laid down the Rule and Standard of Time accounting the Six-days of Creation each as at a Thousand Years and in the Evening or as between the two Evenings of the sixth Millenary begins the Sabbatical Milenary or the Seventh Thousand which is with the Lord that is with relation to the Lord or the Lord Jesus Christ in relation to his Kingdom but as one day often called the Day of Judgment and that Sabbath Day in which Saying of the Apostle That a Thousand Years is as one Day there is a manifest foresight of the Diâ—ine Spirit what it would make known by John even that number'd exactly Numbered Time of a Thousand years which the Apostle Peter affirm'd to be with the Lord viz. as Time designed and set out to the Lord as his own Times That one Day Now as this view of this Epistle gives us a clear apprehension how full to the purpose of Prophetical Scripture this Epistle is written how it simpathizes and is contemporate with the whole Scope and Spirit of it so the Words and Sense of Interpretation is exactly fitted to all and no other can fit it For there were two things all the Hebrews both unbelieving and believers were fully agreed in 1. That the Prophecies of Scripture were of Divine Inspiratien that Prophecy of Scripture came not by the will of man but was from the Holy Spirit This the Believing and Unbelieving Jews were both most zealous of 2. That Messiah had a Kingdom assured to him in the Propheâ—ies of Scripture This even the Unbelieving Jews were all in â—ighest expectatâ—on of at that very time and the Believing Jews also were earnestly at that time in expectation of To these the Apostle therefore cannot be supposed to direct the force of his Discourse But that Jesus Christ was not to be owned as the true Messiah the Son of God and the King of Israel notwithstanding his Kingdom did not immediately appear was a Point the Unbelieving Jews are to this day scandalized at even to their rejection of Christ the True Messiah and the Christian Hebrews were very tender in Therefore that Jesus Christ was the True Messiah and that great Prince the Apostle gave first the pâ—oof of the Transfiguration as hath been shewn And that he with James and John were Eye and Ear-Witnesses Three Witnesses in the Mouths of whom it was establish'd and no Cunningly devised Fable to shift off the Scandal of the mean Appearance of our Lord in the days of his Flesh But saith the Apostle We have a more sure word of Prophecy as hath been opened to which you do well to take heed But the Objection still remains That the Prophecys run all upon a Glorious Kingdom of Messiah at that time to appear as the Unbelieving Jews thought and therefore the Scribes Pharisees Chief-Priests Elders their whole Sanhedrim determin'd against him with a high hand that he was a Deceiver The asserting therefore the Divine Inspiration of Prophecy could not be to the main purpose but that it is not of Private Interpretation but that serious Christians may find the sense and meaning of it and that it is not within the Enclosure or Embarasse of any Sanhedrim Council or Infallible Breast This is indeed highly to the purpose and that according to the Sense and Meaning of the Divine Spirit in it one part compared with another by the Assistances of the same Spirit it would appear that as Daniel's Seventy Weeks brought down Time to its fulness viz. at the Death Resurrection and Ascention of Christ that a dark place or Interval of delay and patience for that Kingdom must needs be for a long space but that yet that all Takers heed to prophecy Prophecy leads through the dark place with the Illumination of that Course of Time and how long it shall be until the dawning of the day and the shining of the day Star into the hearts of all his Saints by the glorious appearance of Christ and in the fulness of times or all Times Now all this is very evidently to a great and admirable end purpose and â—ffect in the Apostle's Discourse in this Context and whole Epistle viz. to settle the hearts of the Believing Hebrews and of all Christians in the comfortable Expectations of that Kingdom in the midst of the greatest Darkness of the worst Times and it is with the greatest Wisdom of the Divine Spirit of Prophecy that at this very Advantage the Apostle goes on to set out this Apostacy at this very Joint of Discourse of the dark place which that very Apostacy was to create and at naming of prophecy and tells them that there shall be false Prophets among Christians as there were among the People of Israel of old So the Apostle John in the Revelations joins the Antichristian Beast and False Prophet in several Particulars opposite to the Apostles Doctrine concerning Prophecy and Interpretation of Scripture wheâ—ein they have Antichristianiz'd as the Pharises at that time had Prevaricated 1. In that insolent Pretence to Infallibility of Interpretation by a Pope and Council and their Clergy would engross Interpretation and the Power of Interpreting Scripture as their own Propriety Right and Dominion 2. In their Locking up Scripture from the people under this very Pretence They cannot interpret nor have right to interpret it
fulfilled as he hath spoken or Evangelized as Happiest Tydings by All his Strvants the Prophets Rev. 10. 7 Prophecy is therefore a Light shining till then and guiding to the Time when iâ— is to begin and then falls in One with it as the sorenam'd Scâ—iptures shew 2. There is a very particular dark place that Prophecy shines as a Light in tfll then and it is indeed the whole Time from the Delay of the Kingdom of Christ at his Resurrestion and â—scension till it dawns and rises as a Day-star but it is yet more particularly the Time and State of the Apostacy which is as a Smoak darkning the Air even the whole State of Christianity in the very Heavens of it Prophecy shines therefore as a Light in a dark place giving Assurance of and shewing the Time of that Day and Day-Star dawning upon the World till it shall Illuminate into the very Heart with its mighty Influences and Beams of Glory Object 4 It is to be further urg'd If the Time of this Kingdom and Glory be not generally known and agreed upon it can do but little Service for the Inlightning the dark place of the Apostacy and that we do not find it hath been and if Prophecy be not in its own Constitution of private Interpretation yet if it hath Eventually proved so how is the Light of it seen Answ 1 It is very agreeable to the Wisdom and Glory of God that the Fountains of Truth should be running and the Lights of it shining though the Streams and Rays are not received nor have their kindly Effect as the Evangelist John says The Light shineth in darkness though the darkness comprehend it not God lâ—ft not himself without Witness among the Heathen though we know of Few who received the Testimony Acts 14. 17. How many have the Gospel-Light wâ—thout its proper saving Effect Answ 2 There hath been a sâ—range Collineation or Levelling and Aiming of the Servants of God upon the Years of this Last Part of this Seventeenth Century for the Glory of Christ's Kingdom and besides some Later a Prophecy found in the Study of Justus Lipsius transcrib'd into the Preface of Dr. Mayer to the Volume of his Interpretation on the Prophets Great and Small is perpendicular on the Year Ninety Eight in such a Language as speaks Effects begun and in their Course as at Ninety Seven as shall Appear in a short Appendix to this Treatise Buâ— to All that hath been said it may be added in satiâ—faction of the Principal Objâ—ction that supposes â—roâ—hecy hath not been understood tâ—ll fullfillâ—d It is very plain we cannot give a certain Account what Light God may have given his Servants into Pâ—ophecy in any Times He gave Noah the Exâ—ct Time of an Hâ—ndred and Twenty Years before the Flâ—od to Abraham Four Hundred years from the Time of that Oracle to his seed Returning from the Egyptian Nation after God had Judg'd them Till which time They were under that oppression According to which Moses very Probably thought His brethren would have understood God would deliver his people by his hand Because it grew so near the time and Moses was a person so signalized by God in his miraculous preservation and his having the offer of being called the Son of Pharoahs daughter and yet Refusing that Glittering Honour as mark'd out by God for much Higher viz. In the deliverance of his People with whom he Chose to suffer Affliction rather then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season Of all which I have no doubt He had the notices from the four hundred years He knew were Given to Abraham The Children of Issachar were men that had Knowledge and understanding of Times and Knew what Israel ought to Do 1 Chron. 12. 32. And undoubtedly some Oracular Instructions they had Joyn'd with Jacobs Prophecy by which they knew Judahs being a Royal Tribe and that the Lyon of the Tribe was the Emblem of it even till Christ the Lyon indeed of it and they Collected Davids Royalty should then begin Daniel understood by Books not onely the Book of the Prophet Jeremy But as we may very Reasonably suppose by the Books of other Servants of God that Kept or Searched Records of Times according to Jeremies Prophecy I doubt not Simeon Waited for the Consolation of Israel according to Daniels Seventy Weeks What Light God gave to his servants in the First times of Christianity we have not such certain accounts as might be desired But as it is reported to us by Ecclesiastick History It was foretold of Julian he was Nubecula cito Transitura a Cloud tbat would soon vanish But this I am sure was according to Prophecy that Sathan being cast down by the change of the Pagan Empire into the Christian Empire After Constantine there could be in the Roman Empire no place found for him any more of continuance in its Heaven though some short Attempts there might be as of Julian Eugenius Argobastes Maximus in his Pagan Supremacy altho under the Name of Christ as it were in his Right and as the Vicar of the Fifth Monarchy â—f him the Manly Birth on the Thâ—one Satan crept in as an underminer and in the Anti-Christian Supremacy He hath a Throne as on Earth whether therefore the Speaker had his Ground it self in Prophâ—cy The thing it self had and it could not be otherwise but that the Empire of an Apostate to Paganism must be very Short evâ—n as of a Prince relapsing to Popery in these Nations It was the business of Anti-Christianism to suppress the Interpretation of Prophecy that had so dreadful an Aspect upon it self as much as it could yet the common Fame and Bruit of Anti-Christs coming was spread far and near when the Christian Empire which was the Let according to Thes 2. c. 2. was taken out of the way the joynt being so Natural between the Christian Ceasing and the Anti-Christian Beginning to supplant having so much of the Name Christian The Voicing the Papacy to be that Antichrist lifting up himself above what ever was called Sebast or August as he did about that Time was heard all along from the time of Petrus Waldo till the Reformation and since the Reformation how many Eminent Servants of Christ have Labour'd with success in the Interpretation of Prophecy notwithstanding some particular mistakes with whom I humbly joyn my self a Fellow Labourer and one that hath taken part of their Labour and now the Fields are white unto the Harvest when many others shall enter into our Labours according to that saying One soweth and another Reapeth and yet he that Reapeth shall yet receive wages unto Life Eternal so that they who have sown and they that reap may Rejoyce together And indeed the Time is now so near that whatever Influence That nearness may be hop'd to have upon Interpretation of Prophecy according to Truth I may humbly hope for For tho the Time of Daniels public Interpretation upon the Seventy Years was
and stable 3. When the Prophetical Numbers being by Fair and Just Commissures Joyn'd to and United with the Plain Historical first Part of the Scripture-Line of Time Run on together in a strait even progressive Motion from the Creation and first Sabbatism so as to Run upon a Last Issue and Event Great enough to be that Last and to constitute a Fullness of Times or of All Times the New Creation and its Sabbatism the Apocatastasis or Restitution of All Things to the First State and much above it the Anacephalaiosis or Bringing All under Christ as the Head And all This as I said in a Strait Even Progressive Motion Taking in at their Just and Proper Seasons All other Great and Cardinal Events Embossing the Line of Time and principally that Great and Soveraign One the Coming Dying Rising and Ascension of our Lord Jesus into Heaven styl'd by the Apostle the Fullness of Time the greatest Honour of Time except the Forenamed Fullness of All Times These Two The Fullness of Time and the Fullness of Times or of All Times stand thus Distinguished Gal. 4. 4. and Eph. 1. 10. and Fix all Time Now This Constant Even Progression of Time keeps All Interpretation at a Gauge and at a Certainty from a Fugitive or Arbitrarious wandring hither and thither and is the greatest security for the Truth of it both to the Interpreter himself and to All that would put his Interpretation to the Test that can be For thus Nothing can be taken in nor thrust out at pleasure nor can there be Any Other Events shuffled in but what are found in that very Just and Natural Order of Time according to all History Thus Interpretation comes to the same Certainty as the Progresses of Time it self from Day to Day Month to Month Year to Year and Century to Century or as the parts of the Body in their True Situation one to another Whereas any other way of Interpretation hath its Starts and Leaps its Subterfuges and Evasions without Certainty or Fixedness 3. Another Standard of Interpretation of Prophecy is when there are found in the Interpretation some surprizing Transcendencâ—es in the Contrivances and as one may humbly say Artifices which the Spirit of Prophecy hath inlaid the Prophetical Frame with and engraven upon it as upon the Stone that hath seven Eyes throughout Perspicuous as well as Perspicacious And these falling in with the more Essential and Substantial Parts of Prophecy and the Events Answering in not only those Substantials but those Extraordinaries as it were Peices of Art in the Frame of Prophecy They must needs give sometimes even Ravishing Transports of Satisfaction and Assurance That one hath the True Key of Interpretation of Prophecy by the Becomingness of the Work to the Great Artist when Materiam fuperat Opus The Curiousness of the Work excells the very Materials wrought upon Even as besides the main Pillars and Rafters of the Creation and the more Bulky Parts of the Animal Creatures such Exquisite Curiosities are found herein They as much as is possible give Scientific Proofs of the Supreme and Divine Workman and when any one hath found them he cannot but break out into a Kind of Ecstatical 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or as Galen I have Found into an Hymn to the Creator upon beholding the Admirablenesses of his Divine Hand in the Animal Contextures For both in the Works of God and in his Prophetick Word such Wonders plainly discovered give greatest pleasure both in regard of the Beauties of the Hand of God and in regard of the Joy that we have receiv'd the Key of Natural or Prophetick Knowledge For these are Great Things we looked not for and meeting with them unexpectedly we become more than Assured even Triumphantly Assured For thus it becomes him whose Vnderstanding is Infinite both in Creation and Prophecy to abound to us beyond All we could Ask or Think and though our Assurance might be solid without these yet it would not be vivid and so high 4. A Fourth Standard of True Interpretation of Prophecy is When there is Found in All Parts of the Interpretation of Prophecy a perfect Agreement between Prophecy Interpreted and the Grand Principles of Scripture which the Apostle calls Prophecying according to the Analogy of Faith When Prophecy is so Interpreted concerning the Kingdom of Christ that it be not Represented as a Carnal Sensual Kingdom but like it self Holy and Spiritual That it Agree with the Apostles and our Lord's Doctrine concerning the Resurrection both as to the Saints dead and sleeping in and by Jesus Incorruptibly Raised and the Living Remaining Saints Changed and as to the wicked Rising to Condemnation to Shame and Contempt that Prophecy is not made to call the Proud happy or to make sad the Souls whom God would not have made sad that Darkness is not put for Light nor Light for Darkness That those Black Names in Scripture-Prophecy as Beast False Prophet Whore Horns Giving their Power to the Beast be applied to such Persons and Things as the Constant and most Avowed Doctrine of Scripture makes worthy to be so Character'd however call'd by Great and Glorious Names in this Dark place of the Apostasy And on the other side that Persons and Things be Cloathed with the Honourable Names Prophecy hath put upon them as the Woman Cloathed with the Sun Witnesses Martyrs of Jesus to whom the same Constant and Allowed Doctrine of Scripture will Allow them although in this Thick and Gross Atmosphere they are Bandenitoe'd with other Names as Hereticks Schismaticks Factious or Fanaticks 5. The Crowning and Topping and most Assuring Standard for the Interpretation of Prophecy is when a Thread and Line is Laid from some Plain and Litteral Interpretation of Prophecy by the Holy Spirit of Prophecy it self in one Place to such Litteral Interpretation in another place till we come at last to that Issuing Point of All Prophecy The Glory of the Kingdom of Christ We have the Beginning of the Four Monarchies in Nebuchadnezzars Image by very Litteral Interpretation settled in Nebuchadnezzar himself For Daniel said to him Thou art this Head of Gold Dan. 2. The Persian and Grecian Monarchies are in the same manner by Littteral Interpretation of Prophecy assured Dan. 8. In the same manner the Epoch of the Revelation is Assured by the Apostles being in the Spirit on the Lords Day of the Resurrection Rev. 1. c. 5. By the Mention of the Lamb Newly Slain The Fourth Monarchy is Assured to be Current in the Time of the New Testament by Augustus Caesar Censing all the World Luke 2. By the Litteral Interpretation of the Great Whore to be the City Reigning then or that at that present was Holding the Kingdom over the Kings of the Earth which could be no other than Rome For no other had then the Kingdom besides the Seven Mountains on which she Sate is Litteral The Seven Successions of Government are given Litterally And that under the
that just at the Time when the Lord for the Interpretation of Prophetical Time should to Allude to the Need Christ had of the Asse in the Gospel have need of such an Adjustment to be sollemnly brought in and Avowed in the profession of Christianity Antichristianized which is the Outward Court given to the Gentiles viz. the Antichristian Gentiles to Tread under Foot it was so done For then Forty two Months of the Gentiles Precalated to the Forty two Months of the Beast This was very observable 1. Because hereby Providence gave notice that this was the very year that by Prophecy according to the Foundations upon which a setled Time of Easter is Found viz. by Conforming Lunar and Solar Time one to another The Moons of the Gentiles and the Beasts Moons are together made just even to the 1260 Solar Years And which is very wonderful just so many years as the Beasts Moons want to make them equal to 1260 Solar years of the Witnesses and the Woman according to that Golden Number the very Ground of any Cyclus Paschalis viz. 38 years and something more Just so many are Found between 437 when the Paschal Cycle was as I say first brought forth and the Cessation of the Christian Empire when the Beasts Succession and so Time Dated from him as the Supreme or Seventh Head and Eighth King for so it ought to be began viz. at 475 ending or 476. 2. It is very observable Because as hath been also more Fully spoken of elsewhere and as is very well known The Apostasy hath in regard of Shrivings or Confessions Pennances Indulgenceo Pardons the so superstitious Sollemnities of its Good Friday the Idolatry of its High Easter Day Mass such deep Interests in Easter and the Moveable Feasts dependent upon it But altho I cannot but think this very Remarkable when I find 437 the very year Determin'd upon by the Line of Time yet I could not dare to rest upon it without that For some Attempt the Predecessor of Cyril Theophilus Bishop of Alexandria had made this way and Dionysius Sirnam'd Exiguus perfected upon what Cyril had done But when the Line of Time concurs with such a Note of Lunar Time proper to Moons Equated to Solar Time It appears to me very great Event 2 The Barbarians or Goths this year made an Excursion upon the People of the Empire call'd the Arverni with all manner of Calamities This was a Type of the Hail mingled with Fire in the First Trumpet yet so that this is not to be taken but in Conjunction as hath been already said with what went before and followed after For it could not be in one year that the whole third part of Trees and of Green Grass that is the Territories of so great an Empire of which Empire Third part is made by this Prophecy as a Hieroglyphic should be destroyed But a Resemblance of this Any part of the Empire and at what distance soever from Rome the Further the more Lively the Emblem might be of the Hail Dishevelling it self year after year through the whole Empire Yet on this neither dare I rely alone For as great Events of this Kind and much Greater before and after There were yet this however a small Figure coming in its just Place after so great a Figure as the Line of Time Directing perpendicularly upon 437 as the Epoch of the Time Times Half Time is very puissant Assurance of that very year Event 3. As a Resemblance of the Gentiles Entring into the Outward-Court this very year Gensericus the King of the Vandals set himself to Extirpate for the sake of Arrianism the Faith of Jesus Christ the Eternal Son of God and Raised in Africk where he had planted himself within the Roman Empire a Cruel Persecution upon it Now as in the Former I do not Lay stress upon this without that principal Figure Testimony and Evidence from the Line of Time But that lying in the Foundation I Reflect in these Observations upon this as Agreeing to this Epoch of this Time 1. That taking the Arrian denial of Jesus Christ the Son of God it was in two Regards a most fit Type to give notice by of the Antichristian Apostasy 1. That tho it be not a plain Point of that Roman Antichristian Apostasy yet in that it is a Denial of Christ being come in the Flesh which the Apostle John saith is the very Spirit of Antichrist â—t is most Fit as a Type to Represent that which in many grand Instances has overthrown Christs coming in the Flesh in the Scripture sense of him as the One Mediator a Point as Fundamental in Christianity as the one God is in Natural Religion 2. It was Fit in this Regard that it might give notice of Antichrist in that Antichristianiz'd Age in a Point wherein they were veâ—y Zealous that is the Eternal Godhead of Christ in other points of Antichristianism found in Themselves they could not discern it 2. There could not be a fitter Type of the Witnesses putting on Sackcloath than the Spread of the persecution and several Excellent Persons Ecclesiastical History makes mention of who suffered even to Death in that persecution though I own it but a Type And this gives also the Fourth Event viz. of the Witnesses putting on Sackcloath and the Church flying into the Wilderness 3. Africk was a very fit place to be used in such a Type both as it was one of the Three Parts of the Knâ—wn World and as it was a worthy and excellent part of the Christian Church where God had setled so great a Light in the Ministry of Augustine Bishop of Hippo who had in his Epistle to Januarius Remonstrated against that Throng of Ceremonies Crowding in upon Christianity in that Time and in that a place was most Fit to be Chosen that should not it self be the Seat of either pretenders of Rome or Constantinople 4. Gensericus being King of the Vandals was a fit Type of the Gentiles coming into the Outer Court and Holy City as he was one of those that came in upon the Christian Empire that had been made an Emblem of the Kingdom of Christ and as those Irruptions Caused great Mourning of all the Servantâ— of Christ from a Sympathy with those Calamities upon their own Country and the Profession of Christianity 2. As the People he brought in were to Coalesce and become Incorporated with the People of the Roman Empire and so to be the Beasts People and to Constitute the ten Kingdoms under the ten Kings that should receive Power with the Beast And tho all these are thus very Worthy to be Consider'd and It Appears when once the Line of Time hath pointed upon them They fall in with great Conformity to the shewing the Epoch of the Time Times Half a Time the Forty two Months and the 1260 days of years to be 437. Having then an undoubted Assurance of 97 as the Period of the 1260 years It lies with some Pressure
upon my Thoughts to make a Judgment according to the greatest Light I can Obtain from Prophecy upon these Three Years or till 97 what we may humbly Expect and especially under the great Phenomenon the Blazing Star as I may call it of the French Power here the Doubt Hangs between two Points which should cast the Scale 1. Whether the Progression of Providence in Preparation to the Kingdom of Christ may be expected to be Gradual or whether the Motion may be expected to be sudden whether things may continue much at a Ballance till upon that Time and that then the Divine Power may as all on the Sudden manifest it self and like it self work in an Instant and as it were in one Day I must Acknowledg as I have also publickly Declared I have been much more inclined to Hope tho not without as Freely Professed Fears and Doubts for Reasons as openly given that we should in these years have seen much greater Works of God because I estimated the Pace I thought Providence would choose and the steps it would take according to what hath been generally hitherto in the World But it Pleased the Wise and Holy and Gracious Governour of All things so to Direct that One peculiar Advertisement of Prophecy should even start out to me that tho I do not profess the same Confidence upon it as upon the Scripture Line of Time I have given yet I am Reduced by it to another kind of Expectation till 97 than I have had For in place of the wonderful Progress of Providence for the Pulling down the French Power the Change of the ten Kings and other the great Effects I expect at 97. I have now far greater Reason to Beleive There shall at present be only a Divine Interposition for the staying things much where they are and that there shall be neither a Remarkable going forward or backward VIZ. 1. That none of the Eminent Kingdoms that have Revers'd their Powâ—r from the Beast shall ever be Re-Enthrall'd under that Power or shall Re-exchange their Protestant and as we stile it Reform'd State for a Papal Government which I now find to be the great Account of these so many late Extraordinary Revolutions within the Nations of England Scotland and Ireland and yet the Dawns Appearances and the very so much as Apprehensions of the Kingdom of Christ are so Reserv'd and make so small Offertures to the World or so much as to these Nations 2. That no one of the Ten Kings shall so much Exceed his Figure as to be more than one of Ten However some one may stretch himself every way to Grasp at Vniversal Monarchy and be so far succssful as to draw great Powers to himself that he may answer one Peculiar Note in Prophecy presently to be given in Memorial And this is that most Acquiescible and Satisfactory Resolution of the Mysterious Providence in Twisting a Confederacy betwixt Protestant Nations and so many of the Vowed Tributaries of the Antichristian Supremacy of the Beast whose Interest Lies as Deep in the Extirpation of Protestancy which they call Heresy as that of France and in Pure Bigottry to Rome much deeper and have been and now are as great tho more silent Oppressors of the Reformation within their own Territories and Persecutors of it if any appear for it But thus Infinite Wisdom hath Harmonized this State of the European Nations for his own Wise and Holy Ends according to Prophecy that the French Aspirings to Universal Monarchy may be Embarrass'd These things then being Premis'd I have very great Reason to Doubt and Fear The Protestant Princes and the Reformation under them shall Advance little higher till the Period it self 97 which I ground upon singular Remarks in that Prophesy of the Vision of Nebachadnezzars Image Dan. 2. First I observe in that grand Calendar of Time for the Kingdom of Christ The Descent of Time is by the parts of the Image and so by the Metals Assigned to the several as I may call them Regions or Parts the First or Beginning Point of Time is in the Gold of the Head or the Babylonish Empire Thence it goes down to the Breast and Arms of Silver the Persian Kingdom and from thence to the Belly and Thighs of Brass the Kingdom of Greece and so comes down to the Legs of Iron the First part of the Roman Pagan Empire and lastly To the Feet and Ten Toes part of Iron and part of Clay that is the Ten European Kingdoms into which that Pagan Empire was Divided when joyn'd with the Papacy and Hierarchy the Clay proper to each of those Kingdoms Now the Order and Distinction of the Parts and of the Metals of the Image is so Essential to the Vision and Prophecy is so exact there can be no change without great Reason and even great signification Designed by that Change and no chance in it The Order of the Parts and the Metals is given first Synthetically or Constitutively v. 32. 33. The Image's Head was of Fine Gold his Breast and Arms were of Silver His Belly and his Thighs of Brass his Legs of Iron his Feet part of Iron part of Clay The Conjunction therefore between the Iron and the Clay tho they did not mix one with the other must needs be very close in the Constituting the Feet and yet to make more clear this conjunction and order It is said when the Stone cut of the Mountain came to smite the Image the stroke was upon the Feet that were of Iron and of Clay Again v. 35. when the Method is given as they say Analytically or the Image in the Breaking is Resolv'd from its Bottom to its Top from the Foundation to the Nâ—ck It is said Then was the Iron the Clay the Brass the Silver and the Gold Broken to Peices together and became like the chaff of the Summer Threshing Floor Before the Image was given from Head to Foot Here from Foot to Head But the Conjunction is kept most Inviolate and the Order considering forward First and then backward is the very same Now this Conjunction and order are so Essentially and Substantially Fix'd They can never be unfix'd any more This must be the Conjunction this must be the Order and nothing that Comes after it can Disannual it And yet when it comes to the last Catastrophe in the Interpretation of the Dream and so when the Event is suppos'd to come to its Complement that the Stone cut out of the Mountain without Hands Falls upon All and Grinds them to powder Then the Iron and the Clay are separated by the Brass that has nothing to do in the Feet but with the Belly and the Thighes only For they only were of Brass This is the very Order given by the Spirit of God in this last part of the Vision I Find upon search no Reason to doubt in the least there appearing no demurr on a Different Reading as it stands in the Chaldee Verity or the Syriac Version as
may be seen in B. Walton's Polyglot Bible And yet it is as if the Feet of Iron were joyn'd immediately with the Thighs of Brass and the Clay removed out of their place and as if the stroke were on the Brass before it was on the Clay whereas it was made again and again and a third Time Certain The stroke is on the Feet of Iron and Clay before the Brass should feel the Force of it Now all these are so great Points of the Vision that nothing can unsettle them without subverting the whole Frame For thâ—n the Dream could not as he hath said be Certain nor the Interpretation be sure nor what is grounded upon it be unshaken It must needs therefore be That for the Truth of the Conjunction the Order of the Metals and of the Parts and the Order of the Stroke were all given before as they are were and shall be And that the Spirit of Prophecy presumes that none would think It either on purpose or Casually would Destroy its own Frame I offer therefore to deep search of others and the Considâ—ration of All who have Regard for the sure word of Prophecy to Attend to the Reason He hath Assisted me the Unworthiest of all his Servants to give and I am Humbly perswaded he Foresaw He would so Assist me to give it in so publick a Ministry to his Servants in general And the Reason is this That God might make known to the King and in him to after Ages what should be hereafter As Daniel assures us Now the very utmost of that Hereafter is very near Come Even as Near as Ninety Seven as I have fully set out By comparing therefore the state of Things now with this Change in the Vision we may arrive to some good degree of Understanding in the Reason of the Change I say comparing it with the present State I look then upon the present state of the Ten Horns as Prophecy calls them or Kings and their Kingdoms I consider which of them of All others bears the Metal Iron at the greatest Lustre of Appearance at this Time and by plain matter of Fact that is the French Power and Kingdom Then I consider where that which was heretofore call'd the Brass in the Image of the Four Kingdoms now Resides and the Brass being the Grecian Kindom as All Interpreters agree The Grecian Empire is beyond all Contest known to be in the Hands of the Turk whose Port is known to be at Constantinople There are then two things God makes known to us by this Change in the Vision concerning that last State of this Image when the Stone shall fall upon it 1. That the Stroke shall be struck and the Fall of the Stone Grindâ—ng the Image to Powder shall be when the Iron in the most Illustrious Appearance of it near the very End shall be joyn'd to the Brass and in League with it So that tho the Iron even the whole Iron together with the Clay shall be broken before the Brass yet the Brass is Transferred out of its proper both Conjunction and Order not indeed so but as in a Figure to give a Watchword that when the Iron in an Eminency shall be signally Conjoyn'd with the Brass viz. That Turco-Grecian Power Then the Blow shall be given and the Brass not before the Clay but in its own Order shall be Broken viz. The Feet of Iron and Clay First and in their own Conjunction then the Brass and the Silver and Gold immediately upon it Now therefore observing the Iron in so Illustrious Appearance joyn'd with the Brass at a Time we know by the Line of Time the Blow is so near to be given It is a Concurrent Assurance It is very near 2. The Spirit of Prophecy is pleas'd hereby to Brand the Unnaturalness of the Conjunction of France with the Turkish Power a Kingdom belonging to the Feet and Toes mixed with the Hierarchic Antichristian Clay and giving Power to it and yet Uniting with the Brass or Mahometan Power a Woe upon that Antichristian State A thing as Monstrous as if the most Eminent Toe should separate it self from the Feet to joyn it self immediately with the Belly and Thighs so is the Papacies most Christian King Leagued with the Mahometan Enemy of Christianity as in the Antichristian State Rem 2. The second Remark I make on that Vision is from yet more undeniable if possible Letter of Prophecy that the management of the last Stroke when the Stone by its own Direction of it self shall fall on the Image and Smite it It shall be not by Humane but by Immediate Divine Power that tho it will Raise and Fit what Instruments it pleases Seven Shephards and Eight Principal Men yet the Stone it self will be Visibly seen Illustrious above All altho there shall be with the Lamb the Faithful and Called and Chosen yet the Lamb himself as by his Immediate Power shall be seen above All For the Stone that is Cut out of the Mountains is said to be in no Hand or which is not in Hands according to the Strictness of Translation or in any Hand of Man And when he comes to work it shall be as on the sudden and at an Instant For when Divine Power works Nullum Tempus Occurrit Regi Nothing can Lett Divine Power Altho then I most Sincerely and Earnestly Pray that the Lord of Hosts would Please to give Success to the Arms of the Protestant Princes and States and most particularly to our own So far as may possibly consist with his own Wise and Holy Determinations Yet I am Bold to make these Prognosticks from this Light of Prophecy I have first Receiv'd and now Offer'd Partly to Arm with Patience and Submission to the Delay of such an Issue as we Naturally Desire partly to Encourage and Assure as to some great Points at the Present and Especially to Ascertain that Grand Issue of the Kingdom of Christ in the End Prog. 1. Seeing the Time of the Fall and Stroke of the Stone is not upon the Iron and Brass till 97. and that it is to be upon them in Conjunction and upon the Iron as it shall in any Part in an Eminency be Conjoyn'd Therefore neither the Eminency of France as the Iron and so in League with the Turk nor the Potentacy of the Turk who is so to continue a Woe upon the Antichristian State shall be brought down till 97. Let therefore no Impatience at the Disappointment of an Expectation herein seize us For thus it is Determin'd by the sure word of Prophecy They must both continue in a Conjunction till that Time and the Stroke with it so fall upon Them so far as can be Found by Prophecy Prognos 2. Notwithstanding this Let what can be done France shall be kept within his own Bounds to be but one of Ten and the Turk shall be but in a Low Tottering Condition to be Supported only upon the Aides and Help of France that he may
the Flock may be cut off from the Fold and the Heard from the Stall And yet saith he will I Rejoyce in the Lord and Glory in the God of our Salvation For tho I do Acknowledg the World is always so full of Disappointments in all these Kinds that what the Prophet speaks is most suitable to all Times All is full of Labour and Vanity as Solomon speaks Vanity of Vanities All is Vanity and Vexation of Spirit All is made subject to Vanity and to Corruption yet as if God would wind up the whole Web of Vanity before the Time of the Salvation of the Restitution of All Things The Prophet thus speaks and goes on That the Lord will make his Feet like Hinds feet and set them upon the high places the Mountain of Spices and that then the Time of Songs shall indeed come in and of Singing to the Stringed Instruments Like David at the Kingdom of the True David the Root and Off spring of David together in comparison of which All songs are but Howling and Lamentation now Now if we were to Judg of Things by the present Aspect of Things and of what is in Prospect we may have Reason to hope That the Change of the World is near and I should Rejoice to be so happily Mistaken that it is indeed nearer than according to the Line of Time I can conclude it There is every where such Labouring in the very Fire and Wearying our selves for very Vanity In the last place to conclude the whole Argument from the sure Word of Prophecy I would in brief present the whole Table of Time The whole ground Plot of Prophecy is the State of Things from the First Creation and Sabbatism under the First Adam to the New Creation and Sabbatism of the Second Adam First Design'd but Remaining to be Accomplished even from the Foundation of the World even when God on the Seventh Day Rested from the Works which He had made according to Heb. 4 5 7. It began to Remain to be Accomplished This Sabbatism Comprehends the Highest and most excellent Temple State or a State of Enjoyment of God and also a Dominion Lordship Throne and Kingdom of the Second Adam and of his Seed over the Creation of God All things being put under the Feet of him and of his Seed in the Sabbatism which remains to the People of God God the Lord of Time hath made and given in his word an exact Line of Time from Sabbatism to Sabbatism of near or to the Evening or between the two Evenings of the Sixth and Last Milenary and allotted a Just Cubical Thousand years the perfection of Time to that Sabbatism it self or Kingdom of Christ This Line is at this Day to be Found in Scripture made up of Historical Time reaching as far as it was necessary to Reach to make up such a space of Time Till by Fair Commissures Prophetic Time came in and joyn'd it and made up the Rest even 5759 years to the great Sabbath To the two great Types of this Temple and Kingdom expiring viz. The Reigns of David and Solomon at Solomons Death This Line of Time is given plainly and Historically Emboss'd only with some Ornamental Resemblances of that Kingdom and Temple-State All which I have made out according to the very Letter of Scripture and Fortified our Hebrew Copy as truly the Word of God by great Evidence as I hope of Argument from Scripture and Scripture-Reason And those several Historical Lines to Solomons Death make 3029 years These I do not particularize because they do not so properly fall under the sure word of Prophecy but the sure word of Scripture-History From thence even at Solomons Death begins Prophetical Time however Historically Supported in many great Branches of it yet the Ministration and Representation of it is All Prophetical and Mystical All and Each of these are of great Consideration to him whoever he be that would understand Prophecy This general Plat-form being now laid according to and in my Line of Time I here present it in brief to View together THE Prophetical Scripture Line of Time As it is Given from the Death of Solomon to the Temple New Jerusalem and Throne of the great Solomon Son of David in purely Prophetical Numbers FRom Solomon's Death when the Types of the Kingdom of Christ in David his Father and himself Ceas'd to Ezekeil's Temple c. The first Time of Sollemn Bearing Iniquity or the Punishment of it in the delay of the Kingdom of Christ the Antitype giving Spring to all Prophetick Time Days of Years 390 Ezek. 4. 5. c. 40. c. In that Ezekiels Temple was but a Visional Temple the former 390 years are made according to the Standard of Seven given by God * Levitic 20. 18 c. seven times three Hundred ninty days of years of bearing Iniquity in the Delay of the Kingdom of Christ to Ezekiels Sanctuary Cleans'd or Expiated and Justified in that Kingdom Days of Years 2340 From Ezekiel's Vision of the Temple after Forty Days of years Bearing the Sin of Judah and stoping any so much as Appearance of a Temple-state to a Faint Appearance of that Vision in Cyrus his Decree for Building the Temple the first 40 of the 2340. Days of Years 0-40 Ezek. 4. 6. From the End of the 40 days of years at Cyrus his Decree to the Sanctuary Cleans'd Days of Years 2300 eves morns Dan. 8. 14. From the Decree of Cyrus the first going out of the word for the Restoring the Temple by the God of Israel and Cyrus King of Persia to the full going out of that word by Artaxerxes Longimanus the first Days of Years 75 Made out by Scripture Argument and Chronology 75 of the 2300 Eves Morns of years a Time of the Treading it under foot this Time therefore is Detach'd from the 2300. From the word fully gone Forth to the Time of Annointing the Sanctuary by the Powring out the Spirit on the Apostolick Church at the Ascension of Christ Represented in the midst of the Half week by the Vision Revel c. 4. c. 5. And so the other Half Week continues the Time of the Confirming of the Covenant a Time cut off from the 2300 of Treading the Sanctuary under Foot Days of Years 490 Dan. 9. 24. Of these 490 years or 70 Weeks seven of them were a Time of Building the Walls and Streets of Jerusalem according to all History Assuring the former 75 with these 49 years to reach ten years within the Reign of Darius Nothus and to be 124 years and therefore the First seven weeks are so cut off from the seventy Dan. 9. 25. Ezr. 6. 14. Fsther 1. 1. Neh. 12. 22. Weeks and so many Persian Princes expresly nam'd in sacred History From the end of the First forty nine years of the Weeks are Sixty two Weeks distinctly nam'd a Time of Vassalage Tributariness Straits and Difficulties under Heathen Princes especially Antiochus
Epiphanes a great Type of treading the Sanctuary under foot by Antichrist until the Publick Ministry of Messiah the Prince Days of Years 434 Dan. 9. 25. From Messiah the Prince Appearing in his Ministry to the end of confirming the covenant to the Jews at the last week in the midst of which he Died the other half week by the Apostles and their Beginning Desolations Days of Years 0007 Dan. 9. 27. The Duration of the Force of Annointing the Sanctuary was to continue during the Sealing of Vision and Prophecy viz. That great Vision of Ezekiels Temple which Sealing was both of Reserve from Immediate coming to pass of that Vision and of securing Days of Years 400 Rev. 6. c. 7. it from Antichristian Violation for that Time Therefore this Sealed time is Divided into two halves The First of which was of the Purer time of the Sanctuary when the Annointing was most upon it And this the Wisdom of the Spirit of Prophecy has set out by Ballances in the hand of that Just Emperor Alexander Severus weighout the time of the Purity of the Sanctuary according to the weights of the Sanctuary Days of Years 202 Rev. 6. 6. The Sealing was to secure till there was a Full and Perfect Emblem of Christs Kingdom in the Christian Empire The other half from Alexander Severus his Death till the taking away the Daily Sacrifice when the Annointing pass'd off and the Sealing as to the Security went off from the Outer-court and Rested Days of Years 202 Rev. c. 6. to c. 8. and c. 11. 1. on the Inner-court and Persons Worshiping in it From the end of sealed time began Indicted time or time times half time so stil'd in Chaldee Hebrew Greek so call'd because sworn Time or Time declar'd by Oath Dan. 12. 7. Dan. 7. 25. c. 12. 7. And Accordingly God Provided by Constantine a Character of Time to be an Agreeable Distinction of Time viz. Indictions of 15 y. to Ascertain when the Indicted time times and half time should have place there are therefore twenty four Indictions that make the first Time or Third of 1080 Days Days of Years 360 Rev. 11. 3. c. 12. 16. The two Times or two Thirds of 1080 Days are twice 24 15 of years or 24 Indictions Days of Years 720 The last half of Indicted Time or an 180 years in twelve Indictions making up 1260 y. Days of Years 180 At Rev. 10. Half Time begins as hath been shewn The Epoch or beginning of the Time Times and half Time is to be taken from the 42 Moons of the Gentiles as hath been shewn Beyond the time times and half time or the 1260 days of years are the Thirty days of years of the Voices making 1290 by the Addition of two Fifteens or Indictions Days of Years 30 Dan. 12. 11. Rev. 14. The last part of Time till the Fullness of Time makes the 1290 1335 by the Addition of three Fifteens or Indictions or 45 Days of years and are the time of Powring out the Vials Days of Years 45 Dan. 12. 12. Rev. 16. Now these two last parts of Time are Indicted Time also because they come under the Oath of Christ that in the Days of the Seventh Angel and his beginning to Sound the Mystery of God shall be Finished Then follows the Thousand years the Glorious Kingdom of Christ the Fullness the Perfection of time Stild Rev. 20. Thrice The Thousand Years Days of Years 1000 I am now come to the last Head of this Discourse I proposed Some Brief Reflections by way of Inference upon the whole Infer 1. This shews the great Price God hath put into our Hands in the Profession of Christianity of giving mighty Evidence to the Truth of the Scriptures if the Apostacy that hath come upon our Profession had not Robbed us of the Hearts to make use of it For God hath given us a Sure werd of Prophecy that cannot Fail nor deceive us in any of the great Futurities the things to Come It hath Foretold They shall certainly be Fulfill'd each in their Season For Infinite Wisdom hath disigned and contrived them that cannot upon any Emergent Unconsidered Change its Counsel For it calls the End at the very beginning Infinite Veracity or Truth hath Declared them which cannot deceive it is a sure word and Allmighty Power will bring them to pass Now Prophecy or Declaring things to Come is by God insisted upon as the greatest Assurance of the Divine Being Declare to us says God Things to Come that we may know you are Gods Yea do good or evill viz. When you have Foretold them Let the Things Foretold come to pass by your power Now seeing our Scriptures are full of Prophecies on which these Evidences must be Founded There wants nothing but Interpretation Adjusting what is past to its Just Times of Coming to pass according to Prophecy and History and thereby laying assured Grounds of Interprâ—ting Prophecy concerning what is to come Oh why do we not then concerning Things to Come which Christ hath Promised the Spirit shall lead us into and shew us engage our selves in Interpretation Seeing the Apostle Peter hath assur'd No Prophecy is of Private Interpretation or Reserv'd even as in things past Relating to Christ which we so vehemently Argue upon against the Jews and with so great Reason why not in things to come concerning his Kingdom Infer 2. We have hence Authority to Joyn Interpretation of Prophecy and the Expectation of the Return of Miracles together that when in Daniel c. 12. 6. It is Enquired How long shall it be to the End or to the Perfecting of Wonders Those great Numbers of Time leading to the Blessed Time of the 1335 Days that shall make every one Blessed that Comes to them are Given Certainly therefore Wonders shall be or Miracles Return when the Time of Finishing is And those numbers must Lead to that Time Infer 3. How Earnest and Diligent should we be to be Found of him in Peace without Spot and Blameless not in a state of War when that Prince Comes with his Name written on his Vesture and on his Thigh King of Kings Lord of Lords who in Righteousness Judges and makes VVar and slays with the Sword that proceeds out of his mouth Oh Let us therefore be Diligent we may be found of him in Peace and not in the Army of Armageddon in that Battel with God Almighty this is the coming to the 1335 Days A Blessedness is pronounced upon in Daniel A Coming with Christ with the Armies of Heaven in white Linen on white Horses as his Called Faithful and Chosen with him on his side How looking and considerate should we be upon this Concernment That we be found truly Fix'd in the Firmament of Christianity that neither in Regard of the fowl Antichristian Errors nor the inward Impurities of Heart and Life we are as wanding and Falling Stars for whom is reserv'd the blackness of Darkness for