a little higher and yet below God too in the use of Gods Ordinances but in an outward profession to the flesh living by sense through a meer form and custome and humane These meet with woe sorrow for a literall profession exposed them to the lash but to worship God in spirit carries away the smart when the flesh is let loose it prepares misery to it self and to all that live after the flesh The third woe is yet to come and I have nothing to say of it only I greatly rejoyce in expectation of that universall glory which God will reveal to his Saints and into which they shal be taken up when those dayes come But the middle woe or the second in course is now in being And there are great troubles to be acted in the world but yet for the comfort of the Saints two things are to be noted First that under the sound of the sixth Angel that pronounces the woe The death of the Beast is declared and that his determinate time is quite finished and though he strive mightily like a dying hog for life at the last gaspe yet he shall never reign again in Majesty established by an usurped Law over Christ and his Saints as he hath done for his time times and dividing of a time his 42. months and his three dayes and half are upon the point of expiring And the Lord Christ is beginning nay hath begun to take the Kingdom and to reign of whose Kingdom there shall be no end Secondly note that under the sound of the sixth Angel the Witnesses are to be killed but to arise from death and ascend up to God in the Cloud And their rising is the Inhabitant of the earths woe even to such as have no hope but in this life it will be and it begins to be a time of woe to them for all creature comforts helps and communion shall be taken away and dead to them And I believe we are under that sound oppression and injustice doth so mightily abound in the Kingdoms and Magistracy of the world for when the seventh Angel sounds then Christ or the Anointing â—ho is King of righteousnes and King of Peace shall reign in the Kingdoms and Magiâ—tracy of the world for a certain space or a thousand years as the Scripture speaks which yet generally doth not appear though this Kingdom of Christ doth begin to appear in among the Saints that are scattered abroad The Beast is giving up his last breath and his violent kicking and sprawling troubles the whole world for a little time for the spirit of the Beast is the life of the Inhabitants of the Earth therefore I believe the Witnesses are not in killing but in rising from death and that the world must see ere long which will be a third woe to them when they shall see poor despised Saints whom no man regards to partake of the glory of the City of God and they themselves put by There is one passage of Johns Vision while â—his sixth Angel sounds which gives light hereunto the words are these Loose the four Angels that are bound in the great Riverâ—uphrates And the four Angels were loosed c. These are four evill Angels as I conceive which stir up the four quarters of the Earth to enmity against every appearance of God so that there shall be risings up of much bitternes in the East West North and South among the Sons of men against God though they think not so for they think their cruelty is godlines and they think their malice is zeal and they think their oppressing imprisoning murdering the Saints under the name of erroneous Round-heads doth God good service And it appears they are four evill Angels because they were bound up like prisoners in so bad a place as in the River Euphrates and they were prepared for this time that is For an houre a day a moneth and a year to slay the third part of men It appears they are four evill Angels if we consider first what the great River Euphrates is I believe this Euphrates is the spirit of the Beast or the very Serpent himself which like a great River overflowes every Son and Daughter of the first Adam And this River Euphrates is to be dried up when the sixth Angel powres out his Violl so that the way of the Kings of the Earth might be prepared The meaning to me is this That when this spirit of the Beast is dried up destroyed and subdued then the Kings of the East or such in and upon whom the Son of righteousnes rises first which are the Elect or City Sion they come and take the Kingdom and the Anointing in them who is the Lord our righteousnes reigns in the earth that is in mankind forever and ever The spirit of the Beast or Serpent is called Euphrates because as the River Euphrates in the History overflowed a great part of the Earth So this spirit of darknes overflowes man-kind and drownes them in ignorance pride covetousnes malice disobedience discontent deceived zeale but when this is dryed up as it must be when the seaventh Angel sounds then the Nations appeare for God And the Saints are called Kings of the East for their knowledg and for their faithfulnes to God for as the wise men or Kings of the East found out where Jesus Christ lay when he was born but would not tell Herod who laid wait to kill him but went another way So these spiritual Kings of the East or as Daniel calls them the wise or understanding people They know where the Anointing appears and they know that the Kingdom of Christ is spirituall for the Anointing teaches them all things and they have experience of the love sincerity humility peace and the like which are the Laws and walls of that Kingdom And likewise they know that the spiritual powers of darknes as ignorance pride envy discontent hypocrisie self-love and the like is the Serpent that would destroy Christ or the Anointing for if pride ruled which is the Serpent in the Children of disobedience then humility which is Christ in the Saints must be destroyed And if malice reign then love which is Christ in the Saints must die And so of all the rest And the Saints knowes this therefore in the second place they are called Kings of the East because they do not betray Christ into the hands of Herod the Serpent but they hold forth the power of Christ in faith and patience till God finish his work thereby destroys the enemies Now when pride covetousnes injustice envy self-love and the like is dried up like a River that cannot run Then the way is prepared for these Kings of the East to take the Kingdom and to reign in with Christ and righteousnes for ever and these four Angels were bound up in this River Euphrates and were
would cast God out not under the name of God but under the name of an Errorâ— For truly our flesh will envy Truth it will not envy Error the flesh will kill its enemy not its friend Barabbas must live and Christ must die and so Christ who is God blessed for ever is put to death under the name of a Deceiver and a man full of errors And thus the Flesh in every man labours to kill Gods witnesses even the Declarations of truth within it selfe by grudging because he cannot beare it Secondly this spirit of envie which ariseth in the flesh against Gods witnesses whose testimony honours God doth not onely appeare inwardly in the sensible feeling of a mans owne corruptions when God begins to teach him but it appeares outwardly likewise in other mens actings to the view one of another As the envy of Darius his counsellors against Daniel the envy of Herod against the Child Jesus and the envy of the Scribes and Pharisees against Christ his Apostles who threw down the letter of the Law which the Jewes doted upon and set up the spirituall practice of the Gospel which they could not endure This envie in the Flesh is the first on-set of the Beast to kill Gods witnesses A second disposition of the Beas is the spirit of subtill policy and hypocriticall craft that laies wait to ensnare Gods witnesses and makes his mountain strong against God And this crafty hypocrisie appears in every man likewise for when God hath found out a mans iniquity and begins to shame the Flesh that he may save the Soul the heart wil not with humility acknowledge it self sinfull but will have many turnings shifts and policies to justifie himself though his conscience tell him he is guilty So while the Witnesses of God prove the man a sinner his flesh still would fain be esteemed righteous and labours to kill the Witnesses If the heart be found guilty of pride coveteousnesse envie unfaithfulnesse or any uncleannesse it hath many winding pretences to cleare himself and so prove God the liar But well though the fleshly conscience smother and kill Gods Witnesses within it selfe and by his shifts avoids shame and so rejoyceth in his innocency got by lying craft yea and rejoyces over that testimony from God that bore witnesse against his conscience As when the witnesses were slain in in that 11. Revel. all that dwelt upon the earth that were tormented by them rejoyced at their death Even so all the wisdom love joy and peace in sin that were tormented in a man by the testimony of truth against them now they all rejoyce by the loud out-cries of the flesh God suffering it the truth is slighted and the conscience quieted upon carnall grounds through carnall policy But when the determined time is accomplished that God will raise up the spirit of his Son in thee who is killed by and lies buried under thy corruptions then God will destroy thy flesh all thy carnall joy peace and all thy own self-works shall be burned and he will make thee confesse thy selfe a sinner and a wicked man When God hath given thee experience that he hath broke the Serpents head in thee and so hath revealed his Son in thee and filled thee with joy and peace of himself taking thee into his rest into his kingdome and glory by the rising of the bright morning Star and the resurrection of Gods truth the Anointing within thee then the envy policy and all the wickednesse of the flesh acting against God shall be destroyed And the Anointing which is the Lord our Righteousnesse shall dwel and rule in thee for thee for ever which is thy redemption And secondly this spirit of hypocriticall craft against truth appeares in others likewise to the view one of another by slighting the testimony of God by a two-fold policy first by devising carnall customes and false formes of worship which are pleasing to the flesh not according to the command and example of Scriptures which the flesh pretends to follow and yet doth not Here is truth killed by the subtill inventions of the flesh which are cried up for sound learning Secondly the Flesh kils Truth by working subtilly with the higher powers of the earth the Magistracy which God hath set in the world by which he preserves peace and outwardly punishes them that doe evil I say the flesh works subtilly to deceive this and gets an Authority here-from to make Lawes Canons Directories Ecelesiastical or Classical Constitutions to compel all men to an uniforme conformity to all her inventions customs and formes of worship agreed upon And this is the subtilty of the little Horn or the King of a â—erce countenance which Daniels vision speaks of whose power shall be mighty but not by his own power For truly this Ecclesiasticall power is no power which God did ordaiâ— or make but is a power which the crafty Flesh hath got from the Kings of the earth whereby the Flesh doth destroy wonderfully the mighty and the holy people And likewise through his policy God still suffering it and having appointed a time for the Flesh to act its part in against God mind that He causes craft to prosper in his hand and he shall magnifie himselfe in his heart and by peace or by pretending of peace shall destroy many he shall also stand up against the Prince of Princes here is the up-shot of the Fleshes malice and policy But he shall be broken without hand Now mark All this crafty hypocriticall policy of the Beast is not to move Gods witnesses to be faithfull to give God all the glory but to intangle them in and by the usurped power and unjust Lawes and Constitutions of the Flesh because the Witnesses beare testimony that the Flesh woâ—ld reigne as God and would sit in the Temple of God that is in created man but their testimony is that God will destroy this Serpent and will reigne himselfe in his own House even Man And this we have experience of that the Canons and Lawes that have been made and confirmed by humane Authority to maintain Directories and Ecclesiasticall forms of worship did not suppresse wickednesse for ungodly men that wondred after the Beast and honored the Flesh still have their liberty in sinfull practices But they have insnared and suppressed the Saints that worship the Lamb that is God in Man or the holy breathing in mans flesh And this is the second on-set the Beast makes to kill Gods witnesse As Darius his crafty counsellors got the King to signe a Decree which they pretended would be for his honour and welfare but the subtill intent was to entrap and kill Daniel who was Gods friend A third disposition in the Beast is the spirit of cruelty which puts all those Lawes and Canons in execution to kill Gods Witnesses And the flesh in every man is very
ready to assent hereunto even to stop the mouth and to kill Truth And this is cruelty the flesh would not have Truth to live but is still heart-burning against it Truth must be kild because it testifies against the flesh that the deeds thereof are evill If thou be vain-glorious and the flesh be proud of Learning gifts preaching praying actings and set a man tell thee never so mildly of thy pride coveteousnesse and oppression or self-worship and blind devotion and though the inward conscience tell thee thou art scuh a one yet thy flesh burnes and swels presently and nothing wil satisfie thy disquiet flesh if it might have its will but the imprisonment and death of him that speakes the truth And is glad to heare of any Glosse or subtill invention or authoritative Law that doth seem to kill Truth and countenance a vain and empty form of Gods worship If God give thee a discerning heart thou wilt acknowledge that thy own flesh within as well as the flesh of other men is very cruel against truth and rejoyces in its death And when the Flesh gets a power into his hand as it hath a power when the Kings of the earth give their authority and power to it then it puts all politick Lawes and Ecclesiasticall Constitutions into execution to kill the appearances of Truth every where The Jewes by the envy and policy of their flesh first made a Canon-Law that whosoever acknowledged Iesus the Anointed should be put out of the Synagogue And within a littie time after did put this Law into execution and did cast the poor man out whom Christ had cured of his blindnesse because he testifies love to Christ and said he was no sinner whom their flesh said was a sinner Likewise they did imprison and beat the Apostles by the same Ecclesiasticall Law because they preached the Name of Iesus And have we not all experience how this selfe-honoring Beast in her three shapes already past hath mightily suppressed martyred and worn out the Saints of the most high God by executing her Canon-Lawes by Inquisitions High Commissions and Classicall Censures upon those innocent Lambs of Christ that could not conform through their love to God unto her fleshly forms of worship and Carnall Customes which he hath with a great confidence declared to be according to the Scriptures which upon examination appears to be her own invention and fancy and not agreeable to the sense of the Scriptures in any kind And here lies the great mystery of all God the Father will have his Son Iesus Christ to be advanced King Priest and Prophet for God in Flesh must rule and this is Gods Kingdome But the corrupt felsh or rather the Serpent in flesh would be God therefore all the wisdome and power of it sets it selfe as God and strives to advance it selfe â—above God and denies and persecutes Gods Anointed ones in whom God delights And this Mystery of iniquity did work in Daniels time by envy and craft against the appearances of God in Daniel And it prevailed in the time of Caiaphas the High Priest to kill the Man Christ Iesus who was Gods faithful and true Witnesse And as the Beast had got a humane corrupted power to put Christ to death yet an illegal law for the Judge confessed he found no fault in Christ yet the Beast had no law to put such to death as acknowledged or beleeved in Christ for the Anointing in Saints was not yet known so manifestly in the world Therefore she began to creep in in Rauls time to spy out the Saints liberty and to bring them into bondage and after some few years she commits fornication with the Kings of the earth and they gave their authority and power to the Beast and then an universall Bishop was set up at Rome and a compulsive power was put into his hands to compell all men and women to conforme to what Divine government or worship he and his Colledge made or else to suffer punishment And now the Beast makes Directories and Church-governments not according to Scripture but by her Conclusions and Inferences from Scripture that agree not with the Mystery of God but with her own Being maintenance And likewise she hath power in her hand to make laws and Canons and Ecclesiastical censures to inforce a conformity hereunto The first of these is to insnare the Saints and to catch them within the limits of a law and in the next place to kill them And thus the Beast hath killed and worn out the Saints and made warre with Christ Gods two Witnesses a long time And the Beast hath killed them by her Ecclesiasticall lawes an ordinance of government which God never made but is a corrupt power cunningly juggled out of the hands of civill Magistrates of the earth which is Gods Ordinance which he appointed for the government of the world And by this Ecclesiasticall Bastardly power which was got in fornication with the Kings of the Earth The Beast hath reigned and lived in pomp like a delicate Whore first killed and then trod the Witnesses under her feet For now she doth what she will she sits like a Queen and knowes no sorrow for she hath a power from the Kings of the earth and this power is permitted and limited by our God to tread them under foot 42 months which beare testimony of her ruine For this is the testimony of the two Witnesses That God will reigne and dwell in Flesh and tread the Beast under his feet And this is Gods Kingdome but this the Beast cannot indure to heare of Therefore she envies Gods two Witnesses and uses all her policy to kill them and tread them under her Whorish feet that she might prove God a liar and reign her selfe as God in Gods Temple It is not any particular man or office that kils Gods witnesses but it is the Serpentine flesh in every man that advances it self in men and offices above God and this must be till God take him away or tread this wicked one under his feet But one thing note that the slayiug of the witnesses is not a slaying of the Bodies of their flesh onely but a slaying of their actions and testimonies by reproaches oppression and Ecclesiasticall laws not suffering them to act ike themselves according to their testimony of the Father in the view of the world so that they ly like dead bodies in the worlds account though they be still living in themselves and will appeare to the world to be alive ere long For first the humane body of Christ was kild by the Jews that was the History but this is not the onely killing for afterwards when the Beast had committed fornication with the Kings of the Earth then he killed the Lawes Ordinances and Commands of Christ by seting up Lawes Ordinances and Commands of his
in the Earth-quake which are these very master-builders and upholders of the Beast as I shall shew anon Well here is a great Cloud of trouble arises nay it is risen And these four evil Angels subtilty hypocrisie malice and cruelty are very bitter in the spirits of men whom they torment day and night and kill And they have condemned to death all the Saints of God in the Kingdom under the name of Round-heads and they are boldly confident they shall compasse their murther-intent but they shall never do it For the day of the Beast is ended his reign is done and the Saints shall sing that Song in experience Babylon is faln is faln For the spirit of life appears in some already and will appear in more ere long when the showre of hayl falls And God takes up his Saints to himself for the Witnesses are not in killing bnt in rising from death and ascending up to God in this Cloud the Cloud of woe shall not now fall upon them but upon the Inhabitants of the earth who have no other hope or comfort but in this life There are a few words more mentioned in Johns Vision in that eleaventh of the Revelatiticons which being fulfilled declare that the witnesses are not in killing but in rising from death It is said That they of the Nations Kinred Tongues and People shall see their dead bodies lie in the street of the great City three dayes and an half c. These two appearances of God in flesh which testifie of God that is The appearance of God in the man Jesus and the appearance of God in the Saints are said to be dead bodies when they do not act and operate like themselves in the view of them whose names are not written in the Lambs book of life so long as the Beast hath a time to fit in the Temple of God and to shew himself as God no more then the dead bodies of men can do the actions of living men God the Father hath made Christ his Anointing the King Priest and Prophet to bring sinners to God but these Offices of Christ have been trampled upon by the Lawes Canons Acts and Ordinances of the Beast and have not visibly appeared to the world but the anointing of the Father in Jesus and the Saints have been like dead bodies in respect of such operations and have not acted publikely like themselves but have lain all the time of the Beast dead in the eye of the unbelieving world who have rejected them and stumbled at them till the spirit of life from God rayses them up and sets them upon their feet that is till God subdue all enemies under Christs feet the Anointing and give all rule and all authority to him But though the Beast have allowed Christ the name of King Priest and Prophet yet he hath denied Christ both the operation and honour of these three Offices and hath set the Crown of these upon his own head For whiles the Beast declares himself to be so quick-sighted that he can presently discerne what is truth and what is errour and take upon him by his usurped power to punish errours with plundering prisons and death Does he not thereby declare himself to be as God in knowledg knowing good and evil And as God likewise in Majesty by punishing every one that opposes his beastly being and so he declares himself to be an absolute infallible prophet to teach men A King to rule and punish men and a Priest to save men from death by his skil and operation And thus the Beast hath a long time acted these three Offices of Christ as himself pleased and the Anointing in Jesus and the same in the Saints have lain like two dead bodies killed under the hand of the Beast And these two dead bodies were to lie dead three dayes and an half that is the whole reign of the Beast in his three ages and an half As first the time and age of the Dragon which was Majestracy out of joynt that persecuted Christ and his Saints by open violence before the universal Bishop was lifted up by the Dragon and this is the first shape or time or age in which the Serpent appeared to kill the Witnesses Secondly The time and age of the Leopard which is that we call grosse Popery when the universall Bishop bare rule by the authority of the Dragon before there was any Church reformation And this was not so down-right violent but kils the Witnesses by a pretended Law under the names of error for indeed the appearance of God in flesh is far different from the appearance of the Serpent in flesh And the Serpent having a time to act himself and to maintain his being labours to destroy the being of God and calls the appearance of God an errour or deceiver Thirdly The time and age of the Beast with two horns like a Lamb but spake like a Dragon And this is that we call reformed Episcopacy which was of the same nature and had the same authoritive power from the deceived Kings of the earth to make war with Christ his Saints as the former had though a little more hypocritical for it came in sheeps cloathing but it spake like a Dragon for it devoured the sheep by his common Lawes Ecclesiasticall power and high Commission Courts And these two shapes of Popery and Episcopacy are called times because they are two ages or dayes of the Beast maintaining one and the same nature and compulsive and coersive power the one being more grosly abominable the other more hypocritically abominable so that here is time the Dragon and times Popery and Episcopacy faln in the world or three dayes which are visibly past and gone already in this one tenth part of the Citie England c. Here remains in being the dividing of time or halfe day which is called the Image of the Beast because it hath not the Authority of the Beast though it have the Nature and Spirit of the Beast in it And this halfe day or this dividing of time is the age of the Beast under which England Scotland and Ireland doe now groan and it may be a very hot time for the length of it but it will be but short And I have some hopes that God will make this three-fold kingdome being under one Magistracy the tenth part of the City Babylon that shall fall off first from the Beast And this is called the dividing of time because the witnesses are neither under an absolute bondage by Ecclesiasticall Lawes as formerly neither in absolute freedome because the boylings of the foure evill Angels mentioned before in mens spirits both in Magistrates common people and such as they call Ministers are so opposite against them And I beleeve that Gods two witnesses do yet lie dead publickly under the heart-burning power of discontent both of out-side professing
forms Customs and oppressions for when the Witnesses are raised the limited power of the Beast is ended and he shall reign no longer and so the seaven thousand or the compleat number of such as mannaged the cause of he Beast have no more work to do And these are said to be slain in a twofold respect First when they shall see the cause of the Beast is destroyed and they are like to have no more gain come in for they have no work to do for they cannot work in Christs Vineyard Now their hearts are filled with anger madnes and vexation to see that inferiour people even the fools of the world but the babes and sucklings of Christ are raised up to speak the deep things of God which those Masters of Art understand not And so the seaven thousand seeing their Trade go down they grow very angry and that beastly spirit in them opens his mouth in balsphemy against God and blasphemeth his Name and his Tabernacle and them that dwell in Heaven calling light darknes and darknes light and calling every truth an error because it is too high for their understanding and in this sense they are flain and their hearts die within them with discontent and vexation and so they lie in hell or under the dispensation of wrath But secondly these or some of these shall be slain in another sense That is they shall even burn their books forsake their private Chambers and Colledges and deny their Ecclesiastical Trade which their Fathers and friends for worldly living sake have bred them too and shall come in and joyn with the Saints to wait upon God and to give glory to him and some shall by the spirit of burning or bright appearing of God in them be thus slain and happy it will be for those among the seaven thousand that shall be thus slain for they have escaped the woe which the other that are disconted and angry lie under And the remnant were affrighted and gave glory to the God of Heaven by remnant are meant the common people that have been deceived by the false Prophet or 7000 that mannaged the cause of the Beast for when they shall see that Husbandmen and Tradesmen in every corner are able to speak in experience of things and truths which they have heard and seen from God their learned Clargy begin to be sleighted in their Office and be ashamed in their own visions though their persons be tender in the eyes of Saints c. Why now the ignorant common people are afraid that all Lawes and Governments shall be thrown aside nay the Beast doth buz them in the head with such a conceit to make the appearance of God odious as if men now should live in sin and error as they list without controle this the Beast pretends but inwardly her fear is she shall be destroyed her self because the Lawes forms directories and customs of the flesh are denyed by the Saints and Mordecaie that loves God will not bow to proud selfish Hamon and this is the remnant shall be afraid of But when God is pleased to put it into the hearts of Governours and Kings of the earth to take their Authority out of the hands of the Beast as our Governours in this tenth part of 〈◊〉 City have done in part and when God is 〈◊〉 sed to shake down all injustice in the civil â—â—istracy and restores that to the beauty and â—â—â—â—ty of justice and tendernes as I am confident 〈◊〉 is about that work then we shall have no â—se to fear or be troubled that we shall have 〈◊〉 Laws and Government for we shall then 〈◊〉 Laws and Governments according to truth 〈◊〉 Magistrates that will tender love and delight to be executing justice for the good and â—â—â—â—ry of the Common-wealth But this is the misery of our age men strive to uphold the usurped Ecclesiastical power which God never made only he determined to 〈◊〉 way it should rise and reign too forty two months over his Witnesses And in upholding of this which God is in throwing down because the time is near expired men are so maâ— and ignorant as the Beast hath deceived them that they will throw down the lawfull poweâ— too even Magistracy which is the higher power God hath ordained and commands every man to be obedient too And they count Magistracy no Government unlesse the Beast reign cheek by chaw by it as formerly in the dayes of ignorance but it must not be so for Magistracy in the Common-wealth must stand its Gods Ordinance But this Ecclesiastical beastly stoleâ— power in and over the Saints shall fall for the seven Angels of God are sent to powre out seaven Viols of wrath to blast curse and destroy all the glory of the Beast And when Christ comes in brightnes and consumes the remnant that is when Christ by his bright appearing burns up and consumes allâ— the ignorance envy discontent unbelief and alâ— the drosse of the flesh in all people and teacheâ— them to knowledge of his will Then this remnant shall give glory to God they shall then falâ— down before God and acknowledg him Lord oâ— Lords and King of Kings they shall acknowledge all Gods Ordinances and forsake the Beast and rejoyce and sing songs of praise because the Lord God omnipotent reigns This Ecclesiastical power hath been a great troubler of Magistracy ever since the deceived Magistracy set it up for when tender hearted Magistrates have sat in the seat of Magistracy it hath been a grief and burden to them witnes Queen Maries dayes as in the book of Martyrs To imprison banish fine and sometimes put to death peaceable quiet men that have no offence laid to their Charge but about the matters of their God as Darius bad Councellers troubled Daniel who indeed were a type of this Ecclesiastical troubler For while the Serpent ruled still in particular persons he was every foot put to his shifts to deceive and stir up new enemies against God and his Saints when the old ones returned to dust therefore he wrought very subtilly to deceive the Kings of the earthâ— that by them might be established this Ecclesiastical troubler to be a standing Law for as Daniel speaks this King of a fierce countenance reigns by a power that is none of his own but by the power of Magistracy out of whose hand the Serpent hath got it by his craft And so though persons die that mannage the cause of this troublesome Beast and others come in their roome yet still the Office and trouble remains And it hath been observed that when some Bishops have first been made Bishops they were tender hearted and zealous but after a little time by mannaging this Ecclesiastical Beast which their Office tyed them too they grew hard-hearted and great oppressors of peaceable
of man Or secondly A perfect man in the unity of faith with all his Saints he being the head and all the City of Zion or number of Saints the Members knit into one spirituall body by the spirit of the Father And this is called the Branch and the Vine Now a Branch or Vine doth not consist of one sprig or rod but of divers and so the seed of the Woman the Anointing or the Son of God doth not consist of one man only after the flesh to wit the man Christ Jesus but also those whom the Father hath chosen and given to Jesus the anointed and writ their names in him the Lambs Book makes up but one Son of God being all partakers of one Spirit And likewise they make up but one feed of the Woman they beâ—ng all partakers of one flâ—sh to wit the flesh of Christ the Saints being bone of Christs bone and flesh of his flesh And this is the 1and of righteousness which all the Children of Zion shall inherâ—t they shall not dwell in Adams corrupt flesh but in Christ pure flesh And because Christs mysticall body springs from the first Adam which is from the earth earthly and corrupt Therefore the Lord takes away the filthy garments from them And purges the iniquity of that Land in one day that is in the day of Christs power and so makes them conformable to the second Adam which is the Lord from Heaven Now this seed of the woman shall break the Serpents head for God the Father hath engaged himself to subdue the Serpents power under the feet of Sâ—â—nts as well as under the feet of Christ he and they being but one body one man one branch one Vine one Son of God being but one in respect of the unity of spirit and one in respect of the unity of flesh after their iniquity is purged as it must be God being Christs God and their God Christs Father and their Father Only here lies the difference Christ hath the full measure of the spirit but God gives to the Saints severally as he will according to the measure of the fulness of Christ Jesus Christ he breaks the Serpents head by the strength of his Father which dwelleth in him And the Saints break the Serpents head by Christs strength in them even the same Anointing and hence it is that Christ the head prayed That his Disciples or body mysticall might be one with him as he and his Father were one and when the Saints are taken up into this spiritual enjoyment and feeles sees and findes by experience that Gods strength which is the anointing dwells in them and is become the Lord their righteousness they henceforth know Christ after the flesh no more And this speaks great comfort to Saints to the poorest members that live alone among the scoffing sons of bondage as well as to the whole City in generall they shall never fall from grace their eternall life is as sure as the eternall life of Jesus Christ their head in whom their life is hid God himself being that life and strength and these being part of that seed which the Father hath said shall break the Serpents head so that the Serpent shall only bruise the heel by his temptings but he shal never blot out one name that is writ in the Lambs Book of life for this compleat man or seed of the woman shall break the Serpents head The head of this mysticall body hath conquered already and is sat down in glory waiting till his body be glorified with him and so all enemies be for ever made his foot-stool And this is the Counsel of God which the two witnesses give testimony of that the Serpents head shall be bruised and sinners reconcil'd to God by no other name or power but only by Jesus Christ the anointed Son of God This anointing being God himself in man God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself not imputing their sins to them But the Lamb Christ Jesus he is the chief and the power of the Faâ—her appeared first in him and after that through him in the Saints to break the Serpents head according to the word of the Father And this is the testimony which these two faithfull witnesses beare witness to for the glory of the Father who is engaged In this was manifested the love of God towards us Because God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him And we have seen and do testifie that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God That is acknowledge that Jesus is that power whereby God will break the Seâ—pents head God dwells in him and he in God And so again who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Jesus the Anointed is the Son of God And this eternall councel and purpose of the Father That the seed of the Woman should break the Serpents head was declared as soon as the devil or red Dragon had deceived the whole world in Adam And this Councel of God is held forth to the world in all the promises in all the Mosayecall types and in all the prophesies of old For minde it the Scriptures point out nothing else to us but this That Jesus Christ is the onely begotten Son and strength of God whereby he will subdue the power of darknes and translate sinners into his owne Kingdome and glory and he is the very righteousnesse of God whereunto the selfeconceited Jewes and Gentiles will not submit And therefore God had need of faithfull witnesses to bear testimony hereof to the world such witnesses as men may say after the vail is taken off their hearts that without doubt their testimony of the Fathers Councell is true Such witnesses as can and will prove their testimony not from the writings and words of others but from their own experienced knowledge of what they have seen and heard and been made acquainted with from God The world is so far from believing this report That the Anointed is the power of God That when Christ appeared as a man in the flesh they reproached him under the name of a Mecannick tradesman a Carpenter and never rested till they had killed him and cast him out And now in these Latter dayes when Christ comes in Spirit ruling and working in the Saints according to the promise of the Father truly the ignorant deceived world denies him still will not own his spirit but jeeres him calling him the Spirit of the Divell and a spirit of errour even as the Jewes told Christ after the flesh that he was a deceiver of the people And this deceived world or corrupt flesh of man endeavours to make lawes and establish â—hem with all possible policy and power to â—ring the
1260 dayes but hath shortned the dayes of their captivity for the elects sake And therefore saith God the witnesses shall prophesie 1260 dayes and the Gentiles shall tread under foot the holy City 42 moneths Now these 42 moneths being just 3 single yeares and halfe beare a proportion of time with the 3 dayes and halfe that the witnesses must lie dead but I pray mark we are not to reckon the fourty two moneths nor the three dayes and halfe to point out no longer time then barely three single years and half as some think But I conceive that God by these tearmes of time points at a higher mystery That is points out to us 3 ages and a halfe or 3 degrees of time and a halfe that he hath determined for the Beast to tread the holy City under foot Therefore when the question was asked by one Angel in Daniels Vision How long shall it be to the end of these wonders Another Angel swears by him that liveth for ever That it shall be for a time times and an half and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people all these things shal be fiâ—ished John mentions the samet earms of time So that now mark I conceive these time times and a half are 3 ages and a half which God can and will shorten as he pleases as he hath promised And the 42. months nor the 3 dayes and half doth not hold a proportion of years to the 1260. dayes which was the time of the battel but they point out 3. ages and an half of the Reigne of the Beast As the day and Reign of the Dragon the â—lay and Reign of the Leopard the day â—nd reign of the Beast with two horns which speaks like a Dragon the day and reign of the Image of the Beast which I conceive is the half day And by the names and discriptions of these Beasts and by the 3 dayes and half or the divided time as now it is God points out the different workings of the wisdom of the flesh and how she flies from one shape to another as Christ comes into the heart of his Saints to discover her And that an age of a man is called a day the Scriptures make it plain as our Saviour said Abraham desired to see my day that is the day and reign of Christ so the day of Moses or the age or time while Moses bore rule and so here the day of the Dragon before the Devill took up any other shape If you desire to know the Beast that treads you and the holy City under foot look first into your own hearts for there she sits And after that ye have beheld her confused workings there against Christ then look into the world and you shall see the same confusioin of ignorance pride self-love oppression and vain conversation acted against Christ in States in Assemblies and in some Churches in the world But when Christ comes in his brightnes in glory light and beauty as the Son that shines from East to West enlightning the whole earth then will this beast or wisdom of the flesh be destroyed in all her shapes and disguises First in the flesh and hearts of Saints And afterward through the multitude of Saints and their manifold discoveries from God all her confusion shall be thrown down in the world and she shall reign no more but the Kingdom yea the greatnes of the Kingdom under the whole Heaven shall be given to the Saints of the most high The Beast or this powerfull wisdom of the flesh or rather the Serpent in flesh which reads down the holy City 42. months or 3. layes and half in her first day she is grosse â—nd down right prophane which was the day â—f the Dragon or magistracy out of joynt as â—n the day of Nero when Magistrates and people were all deceived But Satan finding he â—ould not do mischief enough against Christ â—n this age or day He chauges his shape into an Angel of light 〈◊〉 in the day and time of setting up an Univerâ—all Bishop that should rule successively but â—eing discovered by the light of Christ to be â—ery hypocriticall and full of abominations â—his is the Leopard She changes her self into her 3. day into reâ—ormed Episcopacy appears by faire shews â—f pretending peace even more closely hypoâ—riticall But this day of hers likewise being discovered to be a day of darknes by the Lord our righteousnes this is the Lamb with the â—wo hornes c. She changes her self into her half day or Image which is more closely hipocriticall then the former she being now hedged into a narâ—ow compasse by Christ and all her shifts are almost discovered so that every young man of Christ can point the finger at her and say that as she that will not suffer Christ to reign King â—riest and Prophet in his own house but will give him the name but reign her self in those Offices This is she that will not suffer Christ to choose his own Church out of the world but she will chuse for him and Christ must either be content with a whole Parish and a whole Kingdom and so the whole world to bee his Church or else this beastly whorish spirit Will allow him no Church at all This is she that will not suffer Christ to call to gift and to send forth his own Ministers and Servants to work in his Vineyard but she will choose call and gift them for him and he must either be content with such Ministers as she ordaines and counts able Schollers and Orthodox Divines or else he shall have none at all Shepherds and Fishermen or Tradesmen that are unlearned in mens writings she will not allow to preach the Gospel though Christ give them anointing and bid them speak the things which they have seen and heard from him More might be said here but every mans experience can ad some thing but I will speak two words more to them that pretend love to Christ First if there be any that by humane wisdom and policy endeavour to set up the worship of God or that by a humane Law or compulfive power will inforce others to give testimony to the Father that Jesus Christ is his Almighty power Call you these people or this Government what you will I am confident it speaks like the Dragon and it is the Image of the Beast And secondly if there be any that pretend love to Christ and yet in their judgements and practices are part for Christ and part for the flesh And though they do not desire a humane Law to enforce others to walk in their way yet they will not own as Brethren nor with the tender embracings of love will not receive any but such as are of their own way and judgment though the Anointing which knits Christs misticall body
Presbyters and out-side professing Independents but this will not last long for the sincere-hearted that worship God in spirit and truth are reproached thereby and are not much visible in the eye of the world And then again it is called the halfe-day in regard of the shortnesse of it and when it shall end our God onely knowes but there are two things that give me great perswasion that this halfe-day is neer an end First because our Lord Jesus the Anointed told us by his own mouth that these days should be shortned for the elects sake Secondly the rejoycing in hope which God hath put into my heart grounded upon experience of his love which I see in my self and in others of his servants and of his power in shaking Kingdomes and things in the world agreeable to the prophesy of Ezekiel which was fore-told to be in the latter dayes gives me great perswasion that this halfe-day is neer an end Now it is clear to me that the time times or the three dayes which are but one and the same thing are already past and therefore I beleeve that the Witnesses are not in killing but are upon their rising Then further it is said That they of the nations kinreds tongues and people shall see their dead bodies lie in the street of the great City three dayes and a half that is the Saints or Elect that lived â—n all the three ages and dayes of the Beast shall â—ee the appearance of God in the Man Jesus and the appearance of God in the Saints to be suppressed reproached killed and not suffered to act like themselves by the Ecclesiasticall Laws and Canons of the Beast And these three dayes and a halfe cannot be three single dayes nor three single yeares and half according to mens account of dayes and yeares as some think for then the Saints that were scattered in all nations kinreds tongues people could not have seen them lie dead in regard of the shortnesse of time and the great difficulty of travell to see experience But in the three ages and halfe of the Beast all the Saints of God through the whole dominions of the Beast have suffered more or lesse by the Beast and have seen doe see and shall see the captivity end The testimony of God in those two-fold appearances to be suppressed and not suffered to act visibly in the world but to lie like a patient long-sufferer till Christ come and destroy his enemies by the word of his mouth and by the brightnesse of his coming Another thing mind that though these of the nations kinreds tongues and people do see the dead bodies of the two Witnesses so lie in the street yet they will not suffer them to be put in graves that is though the City Babylon look upon the manifestation of God in the flesh of Jesus and in the flesh of the Saints as two dead bodies yet the Saints see them to be living and looks upon them with pretious thoughts And though the City Babylon would have these two witnesses put in graves that is quite buried forgotten and put out of memory by their sharp Lawes to advance the learning of the flesh and to suppresse the teachings of God yet the City of God the Saints will not forget Christ nor put him out of memory For though they cannot acknowledge Christ and his testimony publickly for feâ—r or by restraint of those lawes as the Disciples durst not meet publickly for feare of the Iewes yet they will acknowledge and remember Christ among themselves and speak of him and rejoce in him and so will not suffer these two Witnesses to be put in graves or to be forgotten From hence likewise it appeares that the Witnesses were killed long agoe and in these troublesome daies are upon their rising for they must rife in a cloud And by the great City which is called spiritual Sodom Egypt is meant that wicked Babylon or that Serpent which hath over-spread mankind and keeps it in bondage which God will destroy and cast into the Lake And by the street of the great City it is clear to me to be the limited time wherein God hath determined the Beast to reign would not call him to account but let him doe what he will to advance himselfe and in all this determinate time the Beast walkes up and downe at liberty as a man walkes up and down in a street of a Citie where there is no stop and knowes no sorrow And here is both a time limited to the Beast and the wicked power of the Beast limited in this time For the Beast does not doe his own will but Gods will and that is comfort for the Saints Well all this limited time or the full length of this street or the length of the chain in which the Beast is tied God hath suffered the Beast to walk at liberty up and down Thus long thou shalt reign over my Saints and no longer saith God And all this limited time the two Witnesses are first killed and then lie dead under the Lawes Canons and bastardly Ecclesiasticall power for God never made it though he suffer ir â— or it is the power which the Beast makes use of all his limited time and by this power the Beast keeps the Witnesses under and wil not suffer them to act like living bodies publickly But there is one clause may raise a scruple It is said they lie in the street of the great City where also where also our Lord was slain This implies may some say that Iesus Christ was neither of the two witnesses but that they were to be slain a long time after his departure hence and in the same City where also he was slain I answer when I say that Jesus Christ is one of Gods witnesses I doe not look upon the body of his flesh onely but upon the manifestation of God in that flesh of his And the witnesses If you observe all along I judge them to be these two First the manifestation of God in the man Christ Iesus And secondly the manifestation of God in the flesh of Saints for hereby God makes good his ancient word of promise That the seed of the woman shall breake the Serpents head And therefore though the flesh of Christ was killed in that City Babylon or by the spirit of Babylon which is indeed the meaning yet the manifestation of God in the flesh was not killed by the Dragon and Leopard till divers yeares after Iesus Christ was crucified For the Saints had a liberty to acknowledge and professe God openly and to practice what God in Christ had made known to them for a long time after Christ was departed and their testimony was not suppressed by any humane deceived power for in Pauls time which was after Christ the spirit of Babylon began to work to bring the Saints into bondage but