Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n
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A27626
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A sermon upon Revel. II, 11, &c. summoning the expectation of the witnesses rising and of the great concurrent works daily shewing forth themselves, and to be compleat by 1697 : together with the surprizing confirmations of the line of time and the 1260 days of years ending 1697 ... / by T. Beverley.
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Beverley, Thomas.
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1692
(1692)
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Wing B2176; ESTC R5617
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10,974
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18
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or Glorious Assembly Representing the Arche-Type or Original Pattern of a truly Glorious Christian Church-state which we have given Rev. c. 4. c. 5. 2. It signifies the enjoying this pure Church state and Worship with the Favour Countenance and Encouragement of Supreme Power and Authority carrying and bearing them out in what they do For so Heaven in this Prophecy often signifies even Power and Authority Thus Heaven signifies Rev. 12.4 where the Stars of Heaven mean Supreme Princes that the Roman Dragon or Imperial Power Brushed down with his Tail or Train of Armies and there is an Eye of the same sense in the naming Heaven all along in that Context Now for Those who are Trodden down by Power and Strength and have either been Affrighted from Worshipping God according to his Word to the great Wounding of Consciences Harrass'd and Dragoon'd as they speak into Idolatry and Superstition or Galley'd Imprison'd and Tortured to Death for Refusing whenever you shall see these Call'd up by a Loud Voice into Heaven into such an open avowed Worship of God according to his Word and according to their Protestations for Him and have Power and Authority in and with and of Themselves so to do This will be a great Effect of and according to Prophecy and because it is to Lead and Go before the Face of many other great Effects of Prophecy and All before 97. It therefore requires to be done within a Little Time and when you see it Know that it is a Dawn of the Morning-Star and that one of the Foremost in the Train of these Great Effects for the Kingdom of Christ is in your Eye and so that the Rest are coming on and the very Kingdom it self Coming upon us Effect 3. There must according to the Prophecy be such an Earthquake that the Great Cities Tenth shall Fall where by Tenth as I have always declar'd I understand its Decem Principality that Complex of Ten Kings that gives it its Grandeur For they giving their Power to the Beast or Pope of Rome and its Call'd Catholick Church and He bearing up that City and Church that sits upon His Supremacy as on a Mountainous Heighth whenever the Words of God are so fulfill'd in the Beast's having had his Forty Two Moons that they shall give their Power no longer but withdraw their Kingdoms from the Beast that Tenth of the Great City must needs Fall And it is very Remarkable that as here it is said The Tenth of the City Falls first in c. 17. it is said first They shall hate the Whore that is the Church of Rome But then it is intimated that the Reason is the Words of God are fulfilled concerning their giving their Kingdom Power and Might to the Beast for such a Time viz. the 42 Moons So these Two Things are made Reciprocal For whenever They Hate the Whore Then will be a withdrawing their Kingdom from the Beast the Words of God being at the same time Fulfill'd When they withdraw their Kingdom from the Beast They presently will hate the Whore and make her Desolate and Naked But either and both ways the Tenth of the Great City Falls That is the Greatness whose Symbol or Figure in Prophecy is Ten or Tenth because of the Ten Toes Ten Horns Ten Kings made Essential to the Antichristian State by Prophetick Oracles and within this Time Dan. 2. c. 7. even before 97. All these Kings shall thus hate the Whore shall thus Reverse Recall and Reprize their Force Power and Kingdom from the Beast because the words of God will be fulfill'd Some have done it at least in great part All shall do it then together and All shall do it to Perfection And it appears by this Prophecy they shall bring some Ruine and Desolation by Ravage and Fire on Rome it self as a prelude and fore running of that Final Desolation and Fire c. 18. And what will you say when you shall see the Empire Spain Portugal Poland the Catholick as they are call'd Cantons and even France and that first of the Rest do this You will Remember what I have this Day spoken in your Ears and you will then believe the Kingdom of God is coming nigh to you when you compare what I declare to you from the Word of God and what you see come to pass and you will easily allow That according to the usual Progress of Providence if This be to be done by 97 there had need be a speedy Beginning For you at this time I am sure will be more ready to say The Time is too short and strait even already for it to come so soon to pass And yet I must confess either this must be by 97 or the Exposition and Line of Prophetick Time I have given must Fall Effect 4. Seven Thousand Names of Men shall be slain in the Earthquake this mighty Change and Shake of Things There is I make no great Doubt some Allusion in these Seven Thousand to the Sabbatick Number of so great Use in All Things that concern the Kingdom of Christ as it is said Ezek. 39.9 They shall be Burning the Weapons of Gog Seven Years and cleansing the Land of Gog's Remains Seven Months v. 12. But how Admirably also does this set out the Multitude of Names Offices and Places in the Roman Papacy Hierarchy and Grandeur so great a Multitude that One would be Tempted to think the very Letter of 7000 is fulfill'd therein It requires much Learning in those Names of Men to make a Register of their Quality and Number Cardinals Archbishops Bishops Abbots Priors c. are known as Stars of greater Magnitude But there are those so out of common Ken and the Sporades the innumerable Lesser Stars that he must be more than ordinarily Learned that can call them All by their Names Now if you Live to see all these Slain as the Witnesses have been and as yet they lie Slain in France utterly Dispirited and with Them what ever is Deriv'd not to say Spawn'd from Them or bears Allyance or Affinity with Them even among those who are on the Part of that Synagogue of Satan Venerated under the Hoary Vizor of Antiquity shall Fall at the very same Time by 97. or very soon after and They be Bowing and Valing at Philadelphias Feet You will then say I have truly Expounded the words of the Lord to you But if you find no such thing I must lye Down in shame and confusion of Face and own to you I am found a False Witness of God and think my self indeed of all men most Miserable in saying God hath Declar'd he will do such things and by such a time in the sure Word of Prophecy which he hath not Declared nor will do But I have no Fear nor Distrust herein and yet I am very sensible as Jeremy Speaks When the word of the Prophet shall come to pass then it will be known The Lord hath spoken by him So I that pretend to no
the Lamb on Mount Sion 3. If we consider the more particular precise Time In the same Hour it may yield us some further Light Now tho I would not be too curious and precise in Minute Points of Time yet I have Accounted the Hours of the Half Day which are 12 according to the Natural Distribution of Time and in â—80 years there are 15 years to an Hour so that we are somewhat past the Last Half Hour We may then hope that as there was Half an Hours Silence set for the Churches continuing in the Worship of God so as not to suffer the Taking away the Daily Sacrifice and at the Half Hours End the Apostacy entred and as at that Half Hour made an whole Hour Antichrist himself Rev. 8.1 c. 17.12 call'd the Beast entred with his Ten Kings so within this Last Half Hour The Apostacy shall cease and at the End of the Hour viz. at 97. The Kingdom of Christ shall be in its Succession Object There is one Objection These Hopes of so soon Appearances of God in the Witnesses may seem to be encountred by viz. seeing the Witnesses are to be in Sackcloth during the 1260 Days and that a Day for a Year is so Precise and Limited a Time it will allow no such Latitude as that before the last Year there should be any so Advantageous Change in the Witnesses Condition as this Discourse Represents Answ This Argument is I confess so pressing that it must be acknowledg'd The Witnesses cannot come out of their Sackcloth till that very 1697. For all these Effects I have now Nam'd being in a Concatenation and then that greatest Effect of the Kingdom of Christ coming into its Succession not being till that very End of the 1260 days The Witnesses are till then willingly and even desirously in a State of Waiting and of Prophecy in Sackcloth Even tho call'd up into such a State in Heaven as I have Describ'd Yet they Humble themselves in Fasting Sackcloth and Ashes till that very Time is come when the Kingdoms of this World shall be Proclaim'd to be the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ The more the Light and Power of Christ Appears on the Witnesses the more they Prophecy in Sackcloth that is Foretel Desire and in Humiliation wait for that Kingdom so to be Proclaim'd and cannot be satisfied without it But that there might be such a Freedom left by God to himself to make a change of the Witnesses State so much for the better as He did in the Beginning so in the End of Half Times He cast the Time of the Antichristian Tyranny and of the Witnesses Sufferings into Three Times and an Half and nearer into Three Days and an Half That there might be a Conformity to the Faithful Witness Christ Jesus of whom it is said It was impossible he should be holden of Death but must overcome it in the very first Minute of Time and so far as could consist with the Wisest allowance for the satisfaction of Divine Justice for mans sins and Truth of Prophecy So the Witnesses must in and through Him and in Conformity to Him have a partial Rising at the very begining of Half Time and a Full one before the End of Half Time There remains only to draw up the Discourse into particular Use and Application Vse 1. Let us upon this Discourse diligently wait and observe what God will please to be doing this and the following years to 97. It is a Sin at any time not to Regard the Works of the Lord and the Operations of his Hand But it is much more so when we are Warned and Admonished and assur'd that the Kingdom of God is come nigh to us It is then such a sin that there is great Reason to Fear God will pull such Down from their Present State and not Build them up in his New Jerusalem If we then shall observe these Things coming to pass How should It Convince and Assure us of the Word of God in all its Truth and certainly if God Answers us now by Terrible things in Righteousness which we could not have Looked for had we not been thus Awaked by his Prophetick Oracles if we shall see the Mountains of the Present State Flow Down at his Presence and the Mountain of his Kingdom not only Standing Fast being Girded with Power but beginning to Fill the Earth while the Vallies grow to such a Fruitfulness as to Laugh and also to Sing How will it Assure us of All Things else we Find in Prophecy Vse 2. Let us by earnest Prayer stand upon our watch Tower and wait to see what God will say to us And if we seem to be Reproved by contrary Appearances of Providence what we shall Answer I have Endeavour'd to write the Vision and to make it plain upon Tables that he may Run that Reads it I have been Bold to Declare the Time the Vision is Appointen for If any Mans Heart be Lifted up in Scorn and Vnbelief of it It is not upright in Him For the Vision will Speak and will not Lye Tho it should seem to Tarry this Year Yet it will not Tarry God hath given me herein I Bless his Holy Name the Spirit not of Fear or Distrust but of Love and Desire These Things may come to pass for the Glory of Christ and his Kingdom of Power to Declare them and of a sound sober Mind not Phantastry or Enthusiasm but of Reliance upon what is Written and I am waiting at the Foot of God to see whether these Matters will hold Good or not I beseech your Help by Prayers and Earnest striving therein All you who wait for the Consolation of Israel It will not hinder but promote your Salvation since waiting for the Kingdom of Christ is both so great a Grace and Duty pray for the Peace of Jerusalem They shall prosper that Love it There are set Thrones of the Judgment of Christ and his Saints Psal 122.6 There is the General Assembly of Brethren and Companions of Saints For all these Sakes Let us not hold our Peace at such a Time as this Let us give God no Rest till Jerusalem's Salvation go forth as a Lamp that Burns and become a Praise in the Earth If you say The Profaneness Carnality Wickedness of Protestants and even of Professors of all sorts is so great we are Riper for Judgment than Mercy and can expect that only Remember This Day that is a coming whoever are not Reform'd by the Methods of Grace before it It will flame out upon Them as an Oven And why should it be strange There should be a mighty Grace of the Gospel first a Ministry in the Spirit and Power of Elijah to Turn the Hearts c. lest Christ come and smite the Earth with a Curse And that for this God should as all along Ezek. 20. work for his Names his Kingdoms sake notwithstanding all Provocations Vse 3. This is the great Hopes we have of good Success upon the Undertaking of Protestant Princes and their Arms and that such a Confederacy as they are in shall be Bless'd as a Means to Turn the Hearts of Princes yet joyned to Rome and its Papacy to Hate it particularly of All Blessing on our Princes and Nation and Forces by Land and Sea Yea it is the Universal Hope and Happiness of all the Servants of Christ of all his Witnesses in whatever Suffering Condition They are They shall all Rise by a Spirit of Life from God and stand upon their Feet under whatever Oppression whether of the Throne or of the They on the part of the Synagogue of Satan or their own private Unhappinesses They shall All be Ascending into Free Worship of God and with All Authority and Amplitude of Condition Let us therefore earnestly cry out Awake Awake O Arm of the Lord make thyself Bare as in the Days of Old the Years of Ancient Times Object Whereas we may be Ready to say Why is not this Time then more generally Understood Ans I desire your Consideration Haggai 1.2 It was much such a Time in Relation to Jerusalem and the Temple of Old They were between Cyrus his Decree and the Complemental Accomplishment of it as we are between the Beginning and upon end of the Half Time There had been about 20 years from the end of the 70 of Captivity set so often by Jeremy The Vessels of the Lord's House had been Visited and Restored by Cyrus Ezra 1.7 Daniel had Computed and Found the Time of the Desolations at an End so long ago Yet they said The Time is not yet come to Build the House of the Lord What Argument then is this Men generally know not this Time But God Derides and Scorns their Hipocrisy as I make no doubt He does Theirs who Live in their Cieled Houses by the Benefit of the Reformation so far Vochsafed to us and God's Care over our Protestant Nation And says the Time for the Kingdom of Christ is not yet Is it for you Oh ye pittiful ungrateful Ones And is it not Time for me Is it a Time for your Lordships Dignities Grandieur Palaces and is it not yet Time for my Glory for my Kingdom This Causes All the Blasts Comings to nothing of our great Expectations because the House of God lies Wast The Kingdom of God is not Minded This Causes all the Misery Poverty Complaint of Taxes Wants because we do not look to God's Kingdom When we do From that Day let us Count God will Bless us Oh! when will This Spirit be given to Zerubbabel and Joshua Surely it will come as a Spirit of Life from God very suddenly upon his Witnesses and stir Them Up and all shall Work together for the House of our God and of his Kingdom FINIS