estate for her great sinnes Namely first for troubling of states secondly for corruption in doctrine with which shee hath poysoned other Nations thirdly for the immoderate riches of her Merchants who sold both iustice and the soules of men Both Prince and people that obey the Gospell of the kingdome shall bring her plagues vpon her at once by embracing and vrging a double doctrine of exhortation and that is it which is contained in my text Of this doctrine first is shewed the place frō whence it commeth to wit the Temple of God and his Christ euen the sincere profession of the Gospel which in this booke in a manner continually is called by the name of Heauen Here then all godly men both Prince and people doe ioyne together in those wholsome admonitions of the Lord. So that those of the spirit of S. Iohn who can well vnderstand the things that are spoken do heare these heauenly doctrines enforced by them And this is the meaning of these words And I heard another voyce from that which Princes decreed for their priuate benefite from heauen say The matter of the exhortation is double first to forsake her euen this popish Babylon and then to pursue her with iust reuenge The doctrine or exhortation to forsake her hath the proposition and the arguments to enforce it The proposition hath the parties admonished and their dutie Their dutie is to flie from this confused and cursed Babylon of poperie in these wordes Goe out of her The parties on whom this heauenly voyce doth vouchsafe to bestow these holy things are no deafe Adders but onlie such which by Gods election doe belong to God and by the couenant which they make and holde and by theyr sufferings for his sake are knowne so to do And therefore the voyce of Iesus Christ the Lord by his seruaunts doth call them from heauen My people The reasons why they should forsake her are two both drawne from manifest perill The first is the perill of contagion and defiling themselues with touching this pitch in these words That ye be not partakers of her sinnes The second is the perill of vengeance to be inflicted vpon her and all her complices in these wordes and that ye receiue not of her plagues This argument of her plagues is further enforced is proued to be heauie and certaine first by the iustice of God that requireth great sinnes to be greeuously punished Wherefore seeing her sinnes exceede it is not possible to hope for sparing The greatnesse of her sinnes is expressed in an vsuall prouerbiall speech of the Scripture when it is said for her sinnes are come vp to heauen The second reason to prooue her plagues to be certaine is the diligence that GOD now vseth in laying together her faults that shee may receiue for euery one of them that which shee hath deserued and that is the purpose of these wordes and God hath remembred her iniquities And thus much of the interpretation of the first doctrine of exhortation to the people of God It remaineth that wee proceede to informe our consciences hereby Doct. 1 I heard another voyce from heauen Heere we see that those of the spirit of S. Iohn Doe heare the voyce that requireth men to separate themselues from Babylon and to reuenge themselues of her to come from heauen By heauen in this booke for the most part is not vnderstood the place whether our Lorde and Sauiour is ascended Acts. 1 11 but the cōgregation of the faithfull professing the Gospell of Christ in his Church where himselfe is in the middest For in the fourth chapter where S. Iohn doth see a throne set vp in heauen about which are 24 seates Cap. 4 2 4 and 24 elders sitting vppon them in the 5 chapter these Eders doe praise Christ Cap. 5.10 that had made them Kinges and Priests vnto God that should raigne on the earth And this is proportionable to the rest of the Scriptures which doe call the Church of Christ heauenly Ierusalem Ephe 2 6 and the kingdome of heauen and those that are conuerted thereto are said to be made to sit together in heauenlie places The meaning is that those of the spirit of Saint Iohn doe heare this heauenly doctrine of God generally taught among them that do sincerely professe the Gospell of Christ Come out of her c. Reward her c. Heerevpon it doth followe that the doctrine of seperation from this popish Babylon and the doctrine of reuenge to be inflicted vpon her which is reduced into lawes by godly Princes conuerted to the Gospell and which is dilligently taught by the Preachers of the word and is put in execution by good and godly subiects whether vnder Magistrats or priuate men is to be acknowledged for none other but a voice from heauen And when it is sayd to be a voice from heauen it appeareth that the doctrine is and ought to bee esteemed as effectuall as if God did immediately speake from heauen So that it is all one whether God from heauen doth commaunde Noah to make and enter the Arke or that an Angell bid Lot get him out of Sodom or Moses importune the people to get them from the tents of Dathan and Abiram or the Prophets Isaiah and Ieremie by their prophecies before hand doe instruct both Prince and people to teach and obey this rule Get out of Babylon or the godly Princes and Preachers exhort the people of God to seperate themselues from the Romane popish beast Euery voice in this kind is of like weight and authoritie We knowe that it is blasphemed by these vndutifull Babylonians to be tirrannie in Princes to be affectation of liberty and spoyle in inferior Magistrates to be faction and ignorance and heresie in Ministers and people So doe we also knowe that whatsoeuer the deuill saith in these serpents yet Saint Iohn and those of his spirite doe acknowledge they heare this voice from heauen euen from Iesus Christ teaching and instructing the congregation of all faithfull people out of his holy word in the Church Heere therfore let all Christian Kings Counsailors Bishops and all Magistrates remember the generall Canon of the Apostle Heb 12.25 See that yee dispise not him that speaketh For if they escaped not which refused him that spake on earth much more shal not we escape if wee turne away from him that speaketh from heauen Moreouer seeing this voice is from heauen it followeth that whosoeuer doth teach by writing or preaching or doth aduise in deliberations that any other course is to be held that these popish Babylonians are in some things to be yielded vnto and that some more milde and gentle proceedings towards them would doe better such I say neither can truly nor may iustly be commended that this wisdome descendeth from aboue but it is from belowe Iam 3.15 and is earthly sensuall and diuelish 2 Cor 6.14 c. For they labour to reconcile the things which haue
no agreement as righteousnes with vnrighteousnes light with darknes Christ and Beliall the belieuer with the infidell the temple of God with idols and doe with Saule desire to spare Agag whom God requireth to punnish Againe if the voice be from heauen it shall bee established they that speake otherwise are false Prophets and they that striue against it doe kicke against the pricke Act 5.38.39 Wherefore as Gamaliel faith in another case refraine your selues from opposing it least yee be found fighters against God Doct 2 Come out of her my people Gen. 14.12 Ioshu 2 1.8 Iudg 4.11 17. 1 King 19.7 Heere first we see that among the wicked are the children of God A thing very commonly noted in the Scripture Lot was in Sodom Rahab in Iericho Iaell among the Gentiles Obadiah that feared God greatly and saued an hundreth of the Lords Prophets was the gouernor of Ahabs house and to be short there were Saints of Caesars houshold euen of Nero that cruell monster For good seede and weede growe vp together and corne and chaffe are on the floore together Exod. 6,9 Yea we know that in Egypt were many Israelites that could be cōtented to liue still with the onions and flesh pots of Egypt in Babylon were many Iewes Ezec. 20 32 that said We will be like the heathen and families of the countries Yet were these the redeemed of the Lord Ezec. 36 26 and sanctified by him In this Booke the same is often shewed to be the condition not onely of many godly Christians but also of the most glorious Church For shee flyeth into the wildernes beeing mingled among the Gentiles and such pretended Christians as followed the Antichristian Papacie Out of this doe arise many godly considerations First that such as thinke that it is not possible for Christians to liue vnder the gouernment of vnchristian Gouernors but that they must loose the name of godlie men and their number must not be called a Church doe exceedingly bewray their ignorance both of the Scriptures in generall and of this booke of the Reuelation in particuler The Church of Pergamus was a Church Reue. 2 13 and a golden Candlesticke though shee dwelt where satans throne was Yea that which is more it had them that maintained the doctrine of Balam that taught Balack to put a stumbling blocke before the children of Israell and also those that maintayned the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes And the Church is clothed in the sunne Reue 12 1 c. treadeth the Moone vnder her feete and is crowned with twelue starres a Woman and a glorious Church and holy though she be fled into the wildernes and mingled among the Antichristian Babylonians depriued of publique assembles sacraments discipline as doth appeare by this speech Come out of her my people So that heere I cannot but reproue the Brownists or rather the reuiued Donatists which haue made a seperation from vs and our Church which they cannot blame as guiltie of the sinnes of Pergamus or Sardis or Corinth which notwithstanding are acknowledged to be churches thēselues being our Iudges Much lesse are we guilty of the sins of Antichrist among whō were the people of God notwithstanding Sure their ignorance is much to be lamented and their dissoluing of Christian Cōmunion to be detested therefore to be auoyded Secondly heere we learne to aunswere the Papists that demaund of vs where our Church hath beene for these thousand yeeres It was among them though they were not it as the chyldren of Israell were in Egypt 2 Kings 17 and 24. and Babylon in Goshen in Holah and Habor and in the Citties of the Medes and you were translated into their wonted places as were the Assyrians into the citties of Samaria the seate of the people of GOD. But they say that the Israelies were knowne to be in Goshen during their seruitude in Egypt The scripture that saith also that the Iewes in the captiuity were in Holah Habor in the cities of the Medes doth note the place But as for your Goshen and Holah and Habor they were no where to be seen by such as were as sharp sighted as the Egyptians or Babylonians To this I answer first that it is no merueile that they see not the godly among them partly because like the deuill they thinke that all is theyr owne and neuer consider Iob Iob 1.8 that is an vpright and a iust man one that feareth God and escheweth euill and partly because of this time that the question is demaunded Saint Iohn doth say that the woman the Church Cap 12.14 was in the Wildernesse nourished from the face or sight of the serpent which for subtiltie and quicke sight whereof this Dragon taketh his name may very neere be compared to the Papists But they say where were their assemblies their sacraments and sermons with other seruices As if there could bee no Iewes in Babylon Amoc 6.10 because according to the prophecie they durst not remember the name of the Lord as it doth also appeare in the booke of Ester wherein the name of the Lord is not once mentioned Were Ester Mordecai and the people that fasted and prayed no people of God Mare 7.6 Or are the godly bound to bewray and betray themselues by casting holy things to dogs and pearles before swine to bring the graces of God in them into contempt and themselues into manifest perrill Secondly wee answere that our Church was among them themselues being our Iudges For when they tell vs with what difficultie they gat the title of supremacie what masculine opposition they found when at Constantinople and in the second counsell of Nice they would erect the worship of the Dragon by the adoration of idols when they tell vs by what arts they wronge themselues from the subiection of Princes when they proclaime bloudie 5 Deer de haeres ad abolendum and blasphemous lawes againse such as teach and beleeue any otherwise then they teach or beleeue for so do they define heretickes when they bragge of the many fiers and warres that they consumed them by and insult of their conquests this way they also tell vs that such as maintained the doctrine of the Apostles and such as worshipped the God of their fathers after the way which they call heresie were among them persecuted for the same doctrines that we differ from them in and therefore by their owne confession our Church was among them which in this place is called the people of God Thirdly heere wee learne that such which doe liue among the Papists though stained with some of their superstitions may be saued but alwaies with limitation First that their sinne be of ignorance not of presumption Num. 15.30 for there remaineth no sacrifice for the sinnes of such And secondly that though they be smitten into the place of Dragons yet must they not forget God Psal 44.17.20 nor deale deceiptfully
by the Popish priests which swarme in the Land Insomuch that it is to be supposed not onely by the wit of man but also by the Word of God that except some speedie voyce come from heauen to commaund the people to come out from her and that the Lord send some mightie North wind to take away these Popish frogs which are the spirits of deuils these trayterous Iesuites and Priestes Cap. 16 13 and violently to cast them into the sea without all question Exod 10.19 many subiects will partake in the traiterous sinnes of this Babylonian tyrannie Their sinne is That as many as will not worship the beast the Pope must be killed For this doctrine Reue 13 15 the spirit of the beast dooth continually inforce by all meanes what euer other pretence hee make Doct. 6 Besides when it is said Least yee be partakers of her sinnes heere it is further shewed that the people of GOD must not communicate with the sinnes of this Antichristian Babylon The rule is generall that the godly must not partake with any sinners as the Apostle saith Ephe 5 1◠Haue no fellowship with the vnfruitfull workes of darknes And againe Come out from among them 2 Cor 6 17 and touch no vncleane thing And againe Iude 23 Hate the garment that is spotted with the flesh To this purpose did Christ admonish his Disciples not to partake with the wicked Clergie of his time saying Take heede of the leuen of the Pharasies and Saduces Mat 16 12 meaning their euill doctrine Woluish conditions And Saint Paul requireth to hold an Angell or Apostle Gala. 1 8 9 or any other man accursed that bringeth in any other doctrine then was at first receiued What meruaile is it then if Saint Iohn in so perrilous and damnable a time as this when the holie Cittie is become an harlot yea a Tyrant and head of the Gentiles proude Babylon Rome a Cittie drunken with the blood of the Saints if I say hee forbid all people to partake in her barbarous blasphemous and couetous sinnes directly contrarie to the saluation of body and soule It seemeth a heauie and grieuous thing to depart from the consent of so many Nations and ages and to be esteemed scismaticall But when the commaundement of God doth require vs not to ioyne hand in hand with the wicked to euill but to come out frō Babylon the commaundement doth minister vnto vs a iust Apologie before men and stablish the conscience before God to be innocent and defensible in this separation What are the sinnes of this popish Babylon is partly to bee gathered out of Daniell Isaiah Ieremiah Ezechiell and other scriptures where mention is made of Babylon For when Rome is heere called Babylon we haue this libertie to impute the cruelties other sius of the former Babylon to this In this booke more especially are mentioned these sinnes Reu 9.20 21. Idolatry murther sorcerie fornication theft and these are further explaned in other places of this booke In the tenth chapter her sinne is when Princes haue rored as Lyons Cap. 10 3 4. to keepe the possession of the people and soyle to cry them downe with thundring execrations and excommunications Cap. 11 7 In the 11 to make war with the witnesses of Iesus when they haue finished their testimonie In the thirteene it is said Cap. 13 6 7 that hauing got power to speake and doe what her lift she abuseth her authoritie to blaspheme and to make warre with the Saints euen to kill all that are not of her faction verse 15. All of her sinnes may be reduced to these twoheades The prophanation of the worship of God and the barbarous ouerthrow of all charitable communion among men Whē therefore wee are commaunded not to partake with her sinnes we are forbidden to defile the feare of God with any of her abhominations or to dissolue Christian Communion with any of her cruelties and oppressions A man may partake in sinnes eyther by ioyning in the action or by fauouring them that doe it Wherefore Rom. 1. vit we are heere required neither to ioyne with her in any of her sinnes nor to fauour them that doe Wee haue many in our Country that partake manifestly with this Romish Babylon in her fornications and superstitions as dooth appeare by the many ratles idols beades and such other trumperie that are found cōtinually among them Yea we haue many that haue beene willing to minister the cup of the wine of the wrath of her fornication to Prince and people as appeareth by the manie treasons which are attempted and the correspondence of multitudes with the traytors Yea that which is more there are found in England I had almost saide in London schooles to traine vp Gentlemens chyldren in this impious rebellious religion where the Gouernours disclaime his sacred Maiestie King Iames to be theyr King and professe themselues the Popes subiects But the holy Ghost heere speaketh to them all Bee not partakers with her sinnes Others happily there may be euery way as pestilent who publiquely seeme to fauour the Gospell but couertly and vnderhand fauour and much further this vngodly and pestilent religion playing fast and loose with the state Howe perilous this kinde of persons is may be seene in the story of Constantine the great In his time certaine supposed Arian conuerts abusing the singuler lenitie and credulitie of the Emperour insinuated themselues into the fauour of the Prince Socr. 1 10 18 c. wrought themselues into offices and imployments in the common wealth they openly seemed to maintaine the faith of the Nicaene Creede but keeping their old corruption in theyr harts by all meanes they could collaterally with slaunders and iniustice through the sides of godly men wounded the holy and innocent cause I feare among the Iustices of the Land c. may bee be found very many such euery way as preiuditiall to the Gospell Blessed be his mouth that said hee would remooue them and put better in theyr roomes and blessed be his hand that doth it In the meane space this heauenly voyce dooth speake to such Partake not with her sinnes And heerein it is required wee be the more circumspect because her sinnes are so subtile that they enter in and possesse many a man which dooth seeme to himselfe and to others to hold this filthy Babylon in singular abhomination But it followeth in the next place Doct. 7 And that ye receaue not of her plagues For such as will continue in a place to be destroyed must fcele the smart of the same destruction Lots wife beeing deliuered frō Sodom in compassion would looke back towards her old neighbours and was turned into a piller of salt Remember Lots Wife Luke 17.32 saith Christ As her sinnes are many and foule so are her plagues very many and heauie For the better discouering of her sinnes shee is called the Image of the beast
which was wounded with the sword Cap. 13 14 and did liue as hauing as many sinnes as were found in the Empire whether corrupted by the Arians or in the handes of the heathen Tyrants Her plagues therefore are as many as are the plagues of the enemies of the Gospell mentioned in this Booke In the sixt chapter the contempt of the Word of God by the heathen Reue. 6 8 is punished with sword mortality famine beastes kindes of plagues which haue much afflicted this popish beast Wherefore we must know that when the Land or Cittie is punished with warres or murthers with famine or pestilence or other mortalitie it is for the sinne of such as partake in the Antichristian sinnes of the contempt of the Word of God For instance this Cittie When vpon the death of the late Queene worthy of eternall memorie it became to giue entertainement and rest to such which plotted treasons and drifted the rooting out of the Gospel did lately feele the scourge of pestilence the Pale horse since haue we beene threatned with the shaking of the great sword of him that sitteth on the redde horse Cap. 6 4. And if wee repent not by our more zealous embracing of the Word of GOD which sitteth vpon the white horse Verse 2 and by comming out from among the popish enemies therof we may feare the experience of Famine that sitteth on the black horse In other places of this booke the plagues of this Babylon are wofull by the incursion of fieree strangers by the continuall warres with vnreconcileable mortall enemies by the seuerity of godly Kings by the reprofe of the preachers of the Gospell Cap. 9. 10 and 11. Cap. 16. In other places are mentioned the plagues of sores of bloodshed by sea land of vnseasonable and distempered ayres of darkning her kingdome c. When these things also come vpō the places where the gospell is professed we must know that it is because of the sins of such as partake in the sins of the Babylontan King Abaddon the great Antichrist I know the brags lies of that Sect They perswade theyr damned Proselytes that in former times before the dayes of Queene Elizabeth vvhose memorie bee alwaies blessed the times were peaceable plentifull holy and of one minde with them Howbeit theyr owne Writers doe make demonstration that all the world besides cannot afford vs so many barbarous tragedies vnspeakeaable dissentions horrible impieties lamentable desolations and terrible iudgements from aboue Insomuch that the earth for giuing power to this Babylonian beast hath frō time to time beene smitten with all manner of plagues Cap. 11 6 Then to deliuer our selues from so many calamities come out of her my people and receaue not of her plagues saith this heauenly voyce Many haue thought it an excellent policie to preuent the euils that may come by barbarous heretickes to come as neere vnto them as they can 2 Reg. 16 2 Chro 28 So is it saide of Ahaz King of Iudah that hee made an altar according to the fashion of that of the Aramites of Damascus drew neere to the religion of the King of Ashur made peace with him and gaue him large rewards But all helped not For when he called to him for ayde hee did not strengthen him but afflicted him Neither found the Iewes any better successe with drawing neer to the religion of the Cananites For then did the Philistims and other Gentiles Reade the book of the Iudges tyrannise ouer them most extreamelie Thankes be to God wee be vtterly departed from this popish Babylon in deede Yet some very small supposed appearances that they thinke wee partake with them in haue caused them to be exceeding confident in their owne religion as it were by our testimonie They detest our differences from them and haue presumed that by one practise or other of wit or force we might easilie be reduced againe full and whole to their subiection Yea they haue beene heereby much exasperated but nothing reconciled notwithstanding their hypocrisies By this it may appeare how perrilous it is as much as in the least seeming to partake with her sinnes But if once all the Princes professing the Gospell being cleane departed from her did ioyne together in that great Hallelu-iah which Dauid prayeth for Psal 67.5 when he sayth let all the people praise thee O God yee let all the people praise thee then should they find the blessing that followeth then shall the earth bring forth her increase and God euen our owne God shall giue vs his blessing For so do the godly sing Hallelu-iah because God hath condemned the great Whore which did corrupt the earth with her fornication Cap 19.2 Now the better to forewarne vs of her plagues he sheweth that they must needes be great Doct. 8 For her sinnes are come vp to heauen There is no sinne so small which doth not come vp to heauen vnto the sight of God euery teare is put in his bottell and all these things are written in his booke How be it the Scripture is not wont to vse this kind of phrase but whereas sinnes doe so exceede that their punnishment cannot be deferred So the cry of the sinnes of Sodom are sayd to come vp to God that is to be exceeding grieuous Gen 18. 20.21 2 Chro 28.9 The sinnes of Israell for which he was captiued were such that their rage is sayd to reach vp to heauen that is to be excessiue not only in the sight of God but also in the sight of men When finnes seeme small by reason of the grosse ignorance that is in the world it is one thing but when by the abundance of knowledge they appeare as they be the case is otherwise as Saint Paule saith Act 17.30 the time of this ignorance God regarded not but now he admonisheth all men euery where to repent So while the daies were darke the grosse smnes of the Antichristian Babylonians seemed very small nay the world did thinke them holy and righteous But now that the maruelous light of the Gospell doth shine her sinnes which haue gotten a wonderfull inctease are manifestly discerned to be heaped vp to heauen Besides her sinnes of crueltie whereby she iustifieth her elder Sister the first Babylon both the law and the Gospell doe prooue her sinnes to be heaped vp to heauen The L'ord in the law doth seuerely condemne the hauing of many Gods but there neuer was Nation vnder the sunne that could be compared to this Antichristian Babylon for multitude of Gods The Lord did alwaies abhorre such kinds of worship as him selfe had not prescribed which yet for the most part consisted in many friuolous obseruances but these haue not only defiled the worshippe of God with abhominable inuentions but also haue translated the true and spirituall worshippe of God to creatures nay to idols Petrus de Natale nay to figments as witnesseth their fable of Saint George