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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	aaron_n	church_n	common_a	14	3	4.5390	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25568	An answer to several remarks upon Dr. Henry More, his expositions of the Apocalypse and Daniel, as also upon his Apology written by S.E. Mennonite, and published in English by the answerer ; whereunto are annexed two small pieces, Arithmetica apocalyptica, and Appendicula apocalyptica ...	S. E., Mennonite.; More, Henry, 1614-1687.	1684 (1684)	Wing A3379; ESTC R10256	245,076	439

even those that are poured on the Sun into the Air or on the River Euphrates they all touch the concern of the Beast that rose out of the Earth as you may see by the Exposition of the Vision And the first Vial poured on the Earth in this sense reacheth them immediately it inflicting so noysome and grievous a sore on those that are the marked slaves of the two-horned Beast especially their Interest being so much concerned in the fall of Babylon and the Rising of the Witnesses Wherefore that Cup of Intoxication and Dementation through Envy Malice Rage and Fury as it is said ch 11. v. 18. upon the Rising of the Witnesses and Doxology of the Elders And the Nations were angry which answers to the effect of the effusion of this first Vial the noysome sore on the marked slaves of the Beast that Cup I say is really the pouring forth of this first Vial which is a grievous plague indeed Impedit ira animum And Quos Iupiter vult perdere eosdem dementat prius So that by the Remarker's leave these are no sorry conceits nor the Expositor's private opinion but the opinion of worthy Interpreters before him b But the Remarker's is a groundless conceit to apply that which belongs to the times preceding the Rising of the Witnesses to the Vials which come after their Rising as is most plain to them that do not wilfully wink against the Truth Wherefore the War of the Hussites c. is such a business as the Albigensian War and if justifiable to be referred to the War betwixt the Beast and the Saints ch 13. v. 7. c Nor has the Remarker any evasion out of this evidence of truth but by an unworthy vilifying of the Protestant Reformation which undoubtedly was the Rising of the Witnesses and most certainly was a very illustrious Atchievement of Providence and quite wiped away that foul face of things which Custome and Law had established before and is described in the Idea of Antichristianism and therefore it is most wretched Ingratitude to undervalue so great a Bounty of the Divine Majesty towards his servants like the murmuring of the Israelites against Moses and Aaron by whose conduct they were delivered from the bondage and Tyranny of Pharaoh Nor was the Pope's Supremacy onely rejected and some gross corruptions here in the Church of England suppose reformed but all gross corruptions nor were there any left that can be a just cause of Separation from our Church But the cavil now forsooth must be because they retain still Political Government for Popish leaven in matters of Religion which is reformed to the pattern of the Times that were symmetral is plainly outed from our Church and continue in the same worldly state and station the terms for Political Government as if all Political Laws and Orders though they were made and managed for the support of the Kingdom of God and the purity of his Worship were worldly How freakish is this But how outragious to make the Reformed Churches merely for this cause to continue Members of the Beast This is such a wild Imagination that it is more becoming those Dreamers St. Iude describes that despise dominion and speak evil of dignities than any sober Christian d And lastly as I remember I noted before the Spirit of life entring into the Witnesses has not a Spiritual sense but Political And the Genius of Prophetick Iconisms and of the Apocalyptick Prophecies is rather to adumbrate the External and visible state of the Church than the Internal There is onely one thing remaining in this Remark at the beginning that I may seem to have slipt over viz. That the effect of the first Vial namely that rankorous sore does not seem to be imputed to the effusion of the Vial but to the Rising of the Witnesses But I answer that it is sufficient that this sore rages in the time of the Vial-Angel For here are seven distinct Times allotted to the seven Vial-Angels as there are seven distinct times allotted to the seven Trumpet-Angels and what happens in the said allotted times is attributed to the Angel to whom the time is alloted whether the Angel contribute any thing to it or no. Nor does any one imagine that the Locusts and Euphratean Horse-men were blown out of the fifth and sixth Angels Trumpets but that those things happened under the times allotted to them And the Rider of the red Horse under the second Seal he is said to take peace from the Earth merely because in his time there were such killing and slaying one another And it is something Idiotical to think otherwise of these things But supposing there must be some real activity in this first Vial-Angel for the inflicting this angry Aegyptian boil there is not the least absurdity in allowing it viz. That as an evil spirit from the Lord haunted Saul when his Melancholy fits came upon him so this first Vial-Angel may commissionate some spirits upon the envy and the anger the Bestians had conceived against the Risen Witnesses to actuate them with more than ordinary rage and madness against them and so infatuate their counsel by this distemper This I hope will take away all scruple touching this first Vial. Vers. 3. The second Vial is made to synchronize and in substance to be the same with the first the first being supposed to be the envious raging at the Reformation by the enemies of it and the second the Reformation it self in rejecting the Pope's Autority c. Ans. This second Remark is a mere calumny For the first Vial does not synchronize with the second because the first viz. that exulcerated Rage of the marked slaves of the Beast began presently upon the Rising of the Witnesses while the Reformation was but fresh young and tender and not so thoroughly established but was capable of quick Reciprocations of affairs as it happened here for example in England Queen Mary so suddenly succeeding King Edward But after this there was a more full settlement and firm establishment of the state of the Risen Witnesses so that through many Provinces Principalities and Kingdoms which are so many Seas the Pontifician party was hopeless and helpless those Seas becoming by the effusion of the second Vial as the bloud of a dead man For they were all dead to the Emissary fisher-men of the pretended successour of St. Peter nor a live Fish to be taken for their game The perfect Revulsion of these great Parts of the Pontifician Iurisdiction from those that his power still did actuate and enliven and the hindering them from reuniting for a due time till they were turned into the congealed bloud as it were of a dead man this was the effusion of the second Vial and plainly distinct from the first and such as to which the first might well contribute For the marked slaves of the Beast being dementated with wrath would necessarily doe such things as would excite the other party to use all possible care and

Bloud of the Lamb so as to be exalted to the Heavenly station of ruling by the Man-child being caught up unto God and his Throne c. and obtained sentence against their Adversary to be cast out c. yet was that sentence executed as before by the War v. 7. Ans. See what head-strong prejudice will doe As if the Remarker shou'd say though this eleventh verse does imply that the War was betwixt the Primitive Christians and their Persecutors yet it was not But it does most certainly demonstrate that the War was betwixt the Primitive Christians and their Persecutors For the words are these For they overcame viz. the red Dragon by the bloud of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony and they loved not their lives unto death What can be a more express description of Martyrdom than this This is not a description of a War of Emperours against Emperours with their armies in the field where they fight upon equal terms but of Martyrs with the word of their testimony passively undergoing for their witnessing to the truth what their cruel Persecutors would inflict upon them Vers. 12. The Dwellers in Heaven are bid to rejoice by reason of the salvation and strength and Kingdom of God and power of his Christ which was to come and therefore surely must signifie them to whom the same came whose particular concern this matter of joy was whereas Angels and Martyrs are no farther concerned in it than in general as they are concerned for the welfare of the Church Nor can those that were exalted by preferments to the Political Heaven of the Empire be concerned in it farther than they were in such a state as to have the coming of salvation and strength and the Kingdom of God fulfilled in them For it onely respects those that are in such a state who are called dwellers in Heaven in respect of the Heavenly station that they were exalted to thereby after the Devil and his Angels were cast out and the autority of Christ established as Prince of the World For then they became the joyfull company with the Lamb on Mount Sion singing the Song of the victory c. who as they are there markt on their foreheads for preservation so they are the worshippers in the Temple and Altar or the two Witnesses meted for the same purpose and are the same that are called dwellers in Heaven Ch. 13.6 and are thus distinguished from those dwellers on Earth against whom the woe is pronounced by reason of the power the Devil will have over them still after he is cast out Ans. The Expositor has taken in both senses of Heaven political and natural they being both sure and consistent one with another and the joy of Angels and Martyrs at the welfare of the Church is too great to be slighted or omitted But to ramble into mystical senses and reach out to the company of the Lamb on Mount Sion is not to interpret by rule but to trifle All Apostolick Christians were concerned in this victory of the Church and most of those in high place in the Empire turned Christian. But the foregoing verse so plainly determining this joy to the victory of the Church in the times of Constantine which shews that the Kingdom of God and power of his Christ was come already and is said to be so v. 10. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. not yet to come it is a strange vagary to ramble from the Antemedial synchronals to the middle synchronals which undoubtedly the company on Mount Sion belong to And for the Remarker's groundless conceit touching the worshippers in the Temple and Thysiasterion the vanity thereof has been above sufficiently shewn And for the dwellers in Heaven Ch. 13. v. 6. we shall consider it when we come at it But for this present place if the Dwellers in Heaven be those in high degree the Dwellers on Earth must naturally signifie those in low degree or common people as the Expositor has interpreted it Vers. 15. Arianism cannot be here intended more than the Catholick doctrine they both running into extremes and each maintaining their cause with like fumous Animosity But by the Serpent's casting out water like a floud seems to be signified the frequent tumultuating of the common people and Magistrates that continued Pagans against the Christians whereby great outrages were oft committed But such Arians and Catholicks may be also included who under a cloak of Religion did violently prosecute each other out of enmity or self-interest to the great reproach and ruine of Religion Ans. The contention betwixt the Arians and Catholicks is most certainly included and is that which History most of all rings of and most highly concerned the Church and therefore could not be omitted in this Opened-book-prophecy which concerns the state of the Church As for any other contests less notable betwixt Christians and Pagans they were such as could not hazard the Woman's being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 her being carried away with the sloud None but a contention betwixt the Christians themselves and such as shaked the very foundation of their Religion could put her in that hazard So that this is a very lank sense which the Remarker gives of this passage Vers. 16. The Earth that helped the woman by swallowing the sloud may signifie the sober stayd sort of people who being either seasoned with principles of Religion or being of peaceable spirits and obedient to authority did endeavour to asswage all such tumults and discountenance and oppose all such furious Animosities and were for composing all differences in a legal orderly and peaceable manner Ans. Undoubtedly that sloud of contention was the hot Contest betwixt the Arians and Catholicks Could therefore the soberer sort of common people Christians or Pagans compose this difference What an absurd conceit is this The Earth that swallows up this sloud does not signifie the common people here though sometimes it is a Symbol of them But the sense is onely this That this floud of contention was swallowed down and dried up by the help of Oecumenical Councils as some rapid Torrent is suck't down by the gaping of the Earth This is enough But farther curiosity might invite a man to fanfie that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is included in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whence Oecumenical comes is alluded to or Earth in general put for clayish Earth which in Daniel is a symbol of the Ecclesiastical Power of which Councils did consist And then it fits obviously and exquisitely Chap. 13. Vers. 1. THE name of Blasphemy if it does intend Idolatry yet it hath a farther signification as All sins and blasphemies shall be forgiven men but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost c. Where the malignant reproach of God's Spirit evidencing it self in the works of our Saviour is said to be unpardonable blasphemy And the like reproaching of the holy Spirit manifesting it self in the Saints is likewise blasphemy though not of so heinous a