the Pope be sitting vpon the Empire by litle and litle And England at 1200. yer would not grant him supremacy Sigibert And good father WICKLIFE now 200. yeares ago preached that if the commune lawes of England might stand the Pope should haue no stroke in England And good Lady Margareth a pearle for a woman the mother to K. Henry the seauenth when she built Christs Colledge S. Iohns in both which I was fellow and owe them this dutie she in those dayes made lawes to aduance knowledge to ruinate the Pope And the valiant Henry VIII trust him out from being head or taile in our Church so the Empire ridden by the Pope stood but a litle while in sundrie places And all the while of the arising the Grecians as Chrysostome Andreas Oecumenius taught that the Romane Empire would be reuiued though in Greek stories Sysimus and the ecclesiasticall Alaricus Giezerichus wrought much harme and there Antichrist should reigne And if the Greeke old Doctores had bene well known the Pope had neuer gotten peny by his Masse Areopagita taketh the worde in the Law sense the token of the body so Eusebius the Image and Symbolon and so elder Origene and later Nazianzene Antitypes and later Theodorit in a full disputation and Macarius the Greeke Monke calleth it Symbolum and full many moo Then the Pope had no auctoritie for turning bread into the body of Christ to make him haue 1000. bodies and to make Religion a stage to Angels and men This long warning of the Popes arising was a warning to all ages that they should not suffer the starr falling to make bitter the waters of the Law nor darken the starrs and in all ages he had gainesayers And both Princes and People who contemned the warning of this book were worthie to be giuen ouer to all force of error And the Beast which was and is not the same is also the eight and one of the seauenth The Pope shall be the eight chaleng place aboue all follow all heathen superstitiō in name staffe apparel of Caesares and Temples setting but a face of Christianity vpon them A plaine description of the Popes comming vp And the tenne hornes which thou sawest are tenne Kings which haue not yet receiued the kingdome but receiue auctoritie as kings one houre with the beast These haue one minde and shall part their power and auctoritie to the Beast These shall make warre with the Lambe and the Lambe shall ouercome them for he is Lord of Lordes and King of Kings and they which are with him are called and chosen and faithfull Steuchus against Valla reckoning the Countries which held of the Pope bringeth them to ten But we must know that ten vsually is a great number about ten fewer or moo These kingdoms vnder the first Caesares were not so parted as when Iulian the Apostata kept at Paris who neuer heard that his Fathers brother the great Emperor Constantine gaue the West to the Pope and if any such matter had bene it could neuer be hid from him But when the Pope of Rome by long begging for S. Peter and so for Monasteries in many Countreies had gotten much wealth and ready good wills in Rome and the West to set vp againe the Empire at Rome He picketh quarrels with the Patriarch of Constantinople for procession of the holy Ghost and Pascha day and supremacy still of old labored to extinguish the Greek tongue and puritie of Latin and weakneth the East Empire that barbarous Gothes reigned whom to ouerthrow Princes gladly ioyne with him and he with them still for great Countreyes that in the end they sweare to helpe him to hold Constantinus donation and to bring the East the Greeke to agree with Rome And after 1000. yea the king of Locustes hath Satans throne in such power that his winges bee chariots and horses to cause kinges to doe what hee will As for Ierusalem warrs to ouerthrow all their kingdomes And in these tymes Satan bare sway that scant any learned were in the West But Monasteries and Collegies were built to fortifie haeresie that Greeke was vnknowen till our age and Ebrew to this houre for skill in the tongue able to hold water and to make a translation of good warrant to all learned iudgements In this blindnesse still some Abates and such fought well by pen and at the last by Martyrs whom the Pope damned and the secular power put to death But in the end Christ by his martyrs roareth like a Lion and seauen thunders tell his anger seauen Angels poure it out and men eate the little booke of Scripture and preach to nations and kinges to bethinke them how they did set vp Rome And hee saith to mee The waters which thou sawest where the Where sitteth are people and folke and nations and tongues The phrase is from Babel Ierem. 51. O thou which sittest vpon many waters and from Dan. 3. These phrases teach the simple how plaine Gods Law is lightning the eyes to call old matters into minde and to teach by old euents howe other matters will fall out Moreouer this open speach of manie waters to meane people and nations would making a commentarie in the margin vpon many places of the old Testament inlighten much Of the Popes fall And the tenne hornes which thou sawest vpon the Beast these shall hate the Whoore and make her desolate and naked and eate her flesh and shall burne her in the fire The same kingdomes which cleaued to the Pope for profite or deceipt when they see all profit gone and how he by terror of forged purgatorie gate Princes great lands wil alter their minde to hate the Pope Many millions in England hate his keies in Canterburies armes as a mockage to the true keies of knowledge so they hate the title grace in Scotland as doth the learned M. Meluin others hate Leuies Linen Cope Priest and Kneeling at receiuing bread which should bee receiued with most holy iudgement not in the Popes gesture others hate the Leprosie of the Apocrypha books the writers of which shew no more faith in Christ then did Flauius Iosephus nor so much Others hate the Popes forme of prayer patched vp for his vse to content the people not to spend that tyme in requiring of them opening of the Bible And many would haue our Bishops caught in praemunire to loose all Others make great sute to haue their lands Now if in England most reuerend right reuerend fathers so learned as they take vpon them to bee bee so hated for remnant of Papistrie what hatred shall open Popery haue where the Pope dareth excommunicate kinges Thal. Ierusal noteth that the King might not be excommunicated nor any chiefe Ruler But be sagely warned to keepe his house for a time and to saue his honor But the high Sacrificer was whipped with as many stripes as any other for his faultes Ierus in Sanedrin But our Pope will bee excommunicating
locusts if they might haue good maintenance to hold vp better truth and liberall artes that serue trueths honor Of the third woe and last Trumpet The second woe is past behold the third woe commeth And the seuenth Angell sounded the Trumpet and there were great voices in the heauen saying the Kingdomes of the world are now of our God and his Christ And he shall reigne for euer and euer Where the kingdome of the beast Abyssigena bred from the Pit is gone all the Church proclame that CHRIST will haue no more alterations vntill he shew heauen to all his So the speach passeth to the worlds end The Prophets communely passe ouer matters of cōmon state as needlesse to be handled specially and stepp from one thing of plague presently to Messiahs kingdome as notably in Hosea after mention of Israels scattring the kingdom of Messias is ioyned So wen Esay had spoken of Babels fall after Sanecheribs then he steppeth thence to CHRIST his preaching By the voice of a crier in the wildernesse So Daniel telleth of his kingdomes their comming vp their vrging of Idolatrie their chastisement their ouerthrow omitting matters of ordinarie course where the present age would looke to it selfe So Apoca. 6. handleth the prophane Caesares and thence omitteth the Churches sliding away till it come to an absolute fall And then telleth of tyranny and after tyrannies end steppeth to the worldes end The third woe is the plague of the enimies by Kings of good religion continually vnto the end The summe of the Bible Great voices expresse the voice of whole nations and the Kingdome of God Christ the matter of all the Bible Adam had that theme to preach 930. yeares Sem the great by S. Paul and Gamalies likened to the eternal author of iustice peace figured this matter and confirmed Abraham in this 75. year reioyced in Elam troden downe by Abraham And all the large writings breathed by the holy Trinitie teach no other matter but this and punishments for contempt of this and nothing should be suffred in the Church but to this summe In the prayer which our Lord prescribed for a cōmon forme to the whole Congregation this conteyneth all Thy Kingdome come thy will be done on earth as it is in heauen So when Iohn Baptist opened the kingdome of Christ when the Leuiticall policie was to cease and all nations should serue God by Lawes writtē in the heart Rom. 2. Ier. 31. Then the kingdome of heauen is said to come when men humble themselues to receiue the iustice of Christ and to be clothed with the SVN The fulnesse of kingdome cōmeth when the holy soule 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 leaueth this world goeth to God and there reigneth for euer and seeth the Locusts pitt-bred in Haides torment fryed in fire for euer and euer The pitt-bred beasts had sunne and aire much darkened when they knew not whether mans soule ascendeth or descendeth and whither the holy goeth to heauen or to hell This saying Caterchesthaeis haidon is neither more nor lesse then to goe to God when the godly haue a light place of ioye and the godlesse a darke place of torment And this exposition cutteth off at the least fifteene bad opinions direct bad for this article by consequents fifteene score The Kingdome heere spoken off is termed Haides in the Creede and wee may not put Hell for Heauen nor descending for going to God Purgatorie falleth when Haides hath but two partes Heauen and Hell and with it all Poperie Satan entred into many vnthankefull Caytifes that could not suffer the holy soules going into the kingdome to be most eloquentlie spoken in the Greeke Creede if they descend not to Hell as our Lord did in the Creede they shall ascend vp and before Gods throne haue an hell for euer and euer And the 24. Elders which sate on their thrones before God fell vpon their faces and worshipped God saying Wee praise thee O Eternall who is and who was and who will bee that thou takest vpon thee thy great power and doest reigne As the Nations haue kept a stirre thine anger is come and the tyme of the dead to be iudged and to giue rewardes to thy seruants the Prophetes and to the holy and to such as feare thy name The Elders be the Gouernors of Gods people in all offices specially in sage vsage of Scripture on assembly dayes all learned in the scriptures and able to giue faithfull exhortatiō out of it and all borne in wealth are brought vp amisse that are not gronuded in yong yeares to read with delite in the holy Booke Albion seeth who hath opened that way and faithlesse Iewes cōfesse though Atheā pāches for enuy burst These haue thrones before God not Buyshops and Archbuyshops of Papists But chosen of the holy congregation to teach what God telleth but as Moses gaue no commandement of his owne head nor Christ in the flesh but as he taught in Moses so these speake all frō scripture few wordes by old playne warrant and yet in few lines shake of all poperie all errores In number they be 24. as knowing the XII tribes story how the tribe should not depart from Iudah till his childe came and how the XII Apostles gathered the XII tribes to make them the foundation of the heauenly Ierusalem These are not many but 24. yet a resonable good number Many nobles in Albion and others that liue by their owne reuenues studie the Bible with as good dexterity as any feed-men and know it better then some after 42000. Brabant Gilders charges againe 40000 crownes charges such be humble and know Iehouah who is who was who will bee still the same to rule all ages to one summe of saluation in Christ how in him GOD was manifested in the flesh and taken vp in glory and the saluation of all ages Enosh age the flood Babel Ieroboam felt the price of despising this life And after the great saluation begun by the Lord himselfe to be spoken and confirmed by his hearers with all guiftes of the spirit for contempt the world was soone giuen ouer to Arius Pope and Turke yet God sealed a few and at length placeth them in open kingdomes to be seene though stil the greater part in open policy careth but for this life as in Salomons dayes all were of great shew but soone after his death Ephraim turned all but Iuda to worship calues not God So great Constantinus holpe Christians but few of his men cared for God So heere Popes Idols murder of the saincts cause God to shake him to dust as he shoke the Macedonians after Antiochus Epiphanes persequution That the Iewes receiued their owne kingdome vnder the Maccabees and that meanes the psalmes 97. and 99. and others about them howe the power of Christ breaketh Idoll kingdomes that God should take the protection of all into his owne handes So heere Elders shewe Popes strength cast of that others be so
handled a plaine story for this prophecie Lotharius saxo by persuasion or superstition cast himselfe at the Popes feete as hee tooke the Crowne The Romistes to make this a matter praeiudiciall to other Emperors set vp a picture when Lotharius was gone with this inscription Rex venit ante fores iurans prius vrbis honores Post homo fit Papa sumit quo dante Coronam That is The King before the doores doth come The Cities honors first hee sweares That done the Popes man he is made Of whom he takes the Crowne he weares Frederick the first was angry saying To bee the Popes man was all one as to be his seruant or subiect The Pope once tooke away the Picture but soone after fearing lest the Emperours courage would wholy shake him off thought to bridle him at the first and vpon strife by letters he warned him that he should haue before his eyes how hee had receaued the ensigne of the Imperiall Crowne from him And a stirre rising against this one of the Legates said Romanum imperium à Grecis translatum est ad Alamannos vt Rex Teutonicorum non antequam ab Apostolico coronaretur Imperator vocaretur Ante consecrationem Rex post Imperator Vnde igitur habet imperium nisi a Papa Ex electione suorum principum habet nomen regis ex consecratione Papae habet nomen Imperatoris Augusti Caesaeris Ergo per Papam imperat Recolite antiqua Zacharias promouit Carolum Magnum fecit ei nomen grande vt esset Imperator vt posthac perpetuò rex Teutonicus esset Imperator aduocatus sedis Apostaticae vt Romano Episcopo Apulia per eum pacata esset Subiecta quae Papae cum Vrbe Romanae est non Imperatoris Roma Papae sedes est Imperatoris est Aquis in Arduenna quae est sylua Galliae Imperator quod habet totum habet à Papa sicut Zacharias transtulit Imperium à Graecis ad Teutonicos Ita Papa potest iam transferre ab Alemannis ad Grecos Ecce in potestate eius est vt det illud cui vult propterea constitutus à Deo super gentes regna vt aedificet destruat plantet euellat That is The Romane Empire was translated from the Greeks to the Almanies that the King of the Germanes should not be called the Emperor before that he was crowned by one Apostolique Before the consecration he was King after Emperor whence then hath he his Empire but from the Pope By the election of his Princes he hath the name of King by the consecration of the Pope he hath the name of Emperor and Augustus and Caesar Therefore by the Pope he rules search antiquities Zachary promoted Charles the Great he gaue him the name of Grande that he might be Emperor and that euer after the German King should bee Emperor and aduocate of the Apostatique sea That Apulia brought to peace by him should be subiect to the Romane Bishop which is the Popes together with the Citie of Rome not the Emperors Rome is the Popes seat The Emperours seat is Aquis in Arduenna which is a wood in France That which the Emperor hath he hath wholy from the Pope as Zachary translated the Empire from the Greekes to the Germans so now the Pope can translate it from the Almaines to the Greekes Lo it is in his power that hee may giue it to whom hee will and for that cause hee is ordeyned by God aboue nations and Kingdomes that he may build and pull downe plant root out This Oration of the Popes Legate maketh a most liuelie commentarie vpon the text following And it was giuen him to giue spirite to the Image of the Beast that the image of the Beast should speake and cause that all who would not worship the Image of the Beast should be kill'd He quickneth the Empire to haue power of life and death against the reiecters of his allowed Emperour till he depose him and set vp others Of subiection in all matters to the Pope And he causeth all both small and great both rich and poore both free and seruants that hee may giue them a marke on their right hande or their forehead and that no man may buy nor sell but he that hath the marke or the name of the beast or the number of his name Marke in the hand is oth of fidelitie and subscribing to his Supremacy When Emperor Henry VII refused to take oth of fidelitie to obey Clement VII he was soone after poysoned in the hoast transsubstantiated from wholesome bread into poyson Because he called great Assemblies and Scribes and answered that this was a new matter and not seene in his praedecessors age That the Prince of princes and Lord of the world should be bound by an oth of fidelitie to the seruant of seruants The vicar of the Dragon who was a murtherer from the beginning shewed all his conscience that pretending to giue Christ our life gaue death After Henries death Clemens being terrible that Emperours should bee redier to sweare vnto fidelitie to the Bridgemaker of Rome putteth foorth the contents of that oth Vt Caesar Ecclesiam Romanam defendat Haereticos exterminet neque cum impijs vllum commercium habeat vt privilegia quondam Romanae Ecclesiae consessa quocunque tempore conseruet in primis ea quae profecta sunt à Constantino Carolo Magno Henrico Othone IIII. Frederico secundo Rodolpho nequid Iuris in illas Ecclesiae Romanae facultates atque possessiones quocunque titulo sibi vendicot vt reliquas etiam vbiuis Eccesias earumque libertatem ac Iura protegat c. in Clementius sub Tit. de Iure That is That Caesar defend the Romane Church expell haeretiques nor haue any commerce with vngodly men that hee should preserue the priuileges once granted to the Romane Church at what tyme soeuer and especially those which proceeded from Constantine Charles the Great Henri Otho 4. Frederik the secund Rodolph and that he chalenge not any right or power vpon any tytle ouer those priuileges and possessions of the Church of Rome That also he defend the rest of the Churches whersoeuer their liberties their lawes c. In Clem. sub Tit. de iure Thus Emperors must defend all Popes Lawes by which all his foes and haeretiques cannot buy nor sell And all must haue auricular confession and all housekeepers must pay a ricks-penny for euery chimney and Priests be the exchequer men Chauncelors for ecclesiasticall praefermēts Buyshoprickes Abbeies c. that Kings and Emperours should haue but small force And the Locusts should haue the Lions teeth to hold fast all that they caught and should be like Horses praepared to warres and should haue Crownes vpon their head thought their King called himselfe the seruant of seruants and bare the face of a milde priuate man the Locusts had winges of Camps and the brest plates of yron to command warre peace as
of Iohn These be wholy for contempt of this world and cleane contrarie to the Popes doctrine as his Apocalyps Of Iude. Hee in teaching of Iewes fall by the Rebels in the wildernesse by the Angells that fell and by the vncleane Cities brent from heauen warneth not to bragg that the Church cannot erre And where Iewes thought gouernement a tyranny he sheweth from Talmudique vpon Moses Buriall Midras Rabba Aboth Rabbi Nathan and others that MICHAEL the Archangell could not suffer Satan to speak slander of king Moyses So hee will not suffer Popes to blaspheme Kinges But the Popes vnderstand not so much as Iudes text to know MICHAEL to bee IEHOVA but make him a created Spirit such blinde batts they be And thus all the scripture agreeth as harpes to follow the LAMBE whose doctrine the Pope stayneth by idolatrie that none can vnderstand the drift of the Scripture but the hundred forty and foure thousand These be they which haue not beene defiled by women For they bee Virgins This speach is taken from the song of songes which saith O that he would kisse mee with the kisses of his lippes for thy loue is better then wine Thy name is oynctment poured out therefore the Virgins loue thee Draw mee and wee will runne after thee None may thinke that mariage is a pollution But this speach is a trope for the virginitie of the minde free from Idolatry which is spirituall whoordome These follow the LAMBE which way soeuer hee goeth being the first fruite for God and the Lambe and there is no guile found in their mouth for they are syncere before God and the Lambe They follow the warrant of Gods word for euery thing and bee bought from men the first fruites for God and the Lambe which was a small part of the whole and they hold no haeresie but hold them only happy whose sinne is forgiuen and whose iniquitie is couered as Psal 32. be iust before God in the iustice of Christ The Combat of the 144000. And I saw another Angell fleeing in the sky hauing the aeternall Gospell to preach to them that dwell vpon the earth euery nation and tribe and tongue and people Saying with a great voice Feare God and giue him glory for the houre of his iudgment is come worship him which made the heauen and the earth the sea and the fountaines of water In the seuenth chap Martyrdome was shewed but without telling by whom In chap. XI the Persecuter was told and the persecuted were called two prophets and chap. 12. the Persecuter is double the vpper part of the Dragon and the taile and the persecuted is the woman clothed with the sun but the cause of persecution is not told chap. 13. describeth the Dragon by sure state specially in the Empire reuiued by the Pope and how no man could liue in the Empire without his profession Now that it standeth manifestly in Idolatrie that is heere told and persecution is for preaching that God onely must be worshipped and not the Empire or Pope and Idolls For now God will defend his flock which of long tyme he suffred to be deceiued Now he will iudge and defend their cause The Popes Idolatry is in worship to Mary and creatures called saintes and in prayer to them due only to God creator of all things of whose power creatures put vs in minde and he will not our inuention Now of Idolatry the next Angell telleth how God will reuenge the Citie And another Angell followed saying BABYLON the great City is fallen is fallen Because she hath made all nations drinke of the Wine of the anger of her fornication The old BABYLON now had no auctority to force Idolatrie while it was vnder the Greeke Empire or Turke which hateth Idolls But now Rome beareth sway so shaken from tongue of scripture as old Babylon from Adams tongue which remayned in the house of Heber and farre passed the old Babel in Idolatrie Therefore ruyne is spoken to be sure for it as fell by Isaiah 21. and Ierem. 51. vpon the old Babel And a third Angell followed them saying with a great voice if any worship the beast and his Image that is taketh a marke on his forehead or hand he also shall drinke of the Wine of the anger of God the Wine mixed in the cuppe of his anger and shal be tormented in fire and brimston before the holy Angells and before the Lambe and the smoke of their torment ascendeth for euer and euer And they haue no rest day nor night if any worship the beast and his Image that is if any take the marke of his name Heere is the pacience of the saintes tried heere are they tryed which keepe the commandements of God and the faith of IESVS Patience in this sorte heere and faith of the sainctes was equally spoken of in the profane Caesares dayes heere greater terror is set downe and fit warning against the subtile work of Satan by man of sin to deceiue if it were possible the elect One poinct heere is to be noted that Gehenna is on high no lesse then Paradise as in Leui. cha 26. before the angry face of God So the Iewes in Cether Malcuth folio 11. hold that on high place of torment is no lesse then place of ioy They who thinke that soules descend and that the holy were in Hell and after warning hold this should feare the punishment heere described And the reformed Churches as Zurick take the wisest order that destroy all the Popes markes and most straitly looke to scholars cariage twise in the yeare and referre all punishments to the Consul and Synedrion such was the Apostles doctrine and the Synagogues of old Great reuenues are now most needfull to breede learned to deale with Papist and Iewes But Simon Magus Buyshopps should haue no place in the Church following the Buy-shopps of Rome As Ananias the painted wall and Eleazar his sonne in Raba caused Ierusalem to bee destroyed So one like may bring an whole nation vnder curse And I heard a voice from heauen saying to mee write Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from this praesent Euen so saith the Spirit to rest from their labours and their workes follow with them Because in tyme of blindnesse none could buy nor sell in Popes Kingdome but of his profession other were killed heere is a sure comfort to strengthen the martyrs God who knoweth all being the speaker from heauen that praesentlie after death they are fully happy which dy for Gods truth or in faith to rest from the labours of this life and their workes follow with them their open profession that God onely is to be worshipped and their carefull life teaching all to consider still as all must dy so praesently followeth iudgement Comparisons of phrases for holy soules departed When the fift seale was opened chapter 6. Iohn saw the soules of them which were killed for the Word
for the Kings from the sun rising The same matter of Machmad and Turke arising from Euphrates and vexing the West was vnder the sixt Angells Trompet Geball All Tarik is a memorie how Machmadistes vexed thence Spaine and Italie But rather for a scourge then to hold long possession of old Euphrates stayed Parthians from the Empire But for Popes Idolatry euen Germanie is troubled by Hagarenes that Virgill might well say of both for Rome Hinc mouet Euphrates illinc Germania bellum On this side Euphrates begins to iarre On that side Germany doth menace warre And for Ciuil warres I may continue the verses following in the Poet for the words following in Iohn Vicinae ruptis inter se legibus vrbes Arma ferunt saeuit toto Mars impius orbe The neighbour Cities hauing broke their lawes Each against other vp in Armes arise And wicked Mars through all coasts of the world Acts mercilesse most cruell Tragedies And I saw that from the mouth of the Dragon and from the mouth of the beast and from the mouth of the false Prophet three vncleane spirits like vnto froggs for they be spirits of Diuels working signes goe foorth vn to the Kings of the earth to gather them into battel of the great day of the God of hostes Behold I come as a thiefe Blessed is he that watcheth and keepeth his garments that hee walke not naked that men see not his shame And hee gathered them into a place called in Ebrew Armageddon The Dracon is the company of the spirits that fell of old the beast the starre that fell from heauen chap 8. 9. and 11. 13. Prophecie is to teach the Gospell chap. 11. So false prophet is the troupe of false teachers three is exceeding many as cha xi two make many thousandes for Zach. chap. 4. Their spirites bee vncleane for doctrine of Diuells from the froggie puddles of slimie doctrine truth resteth in this HE shall bruse the old serpents head Rom. 16. God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 shall tread Satan vnder your feete God in CHRIST destroyeth the workes of the Deuill and the verie Zohar vpon Gen. 3. saith HV HE is the holy and blessed Eternall But the old serpent deceiueth the Woman that sitteth on Rome beast to say that SHEE shall bruse the head of the serpent so their Latin goeth so their translations so their checking of the Hebrew text Thrise hauing the masculine gendre so against all Hebrewes and Greekes so against all prophets and Gospell and Gods creation that the woman should doe more then the man So to make this idle that God should be in Christ reconciling the World vnto himselfe if a woman could doe more then man and God in man Their writings are so plentifull vpon this poinct that they can deny nothing and so they crosse all the Bible which is but a commentarie vpon this place and all popery is a fight with this place and Satan conquering them for this maine castell hath conquered them for all the Bible That they haue against all religion Satans spirit Popes spirit and his Academies seruing the Pope These be the three vncleane spirits going against all holinesse of the Bible most euidently in deifying Creatures and their made sainctes and Bread with Wine which they would make better then all the world A seale of most high matters is most highly to bee estiemed But none without athean madnesse will say the seale is the King the Kings auctority it should haue to bee as himselfe as Tully saith to his brother But none of witt would make it the King him selfe All their doctrine is such that their Temples Masse and dayly profession in all things is from the vncleane spirite so that no man conuersant in the Bible can abide their Diuinitie For Liberall artes Law and Phisique they hold the principles of nations They should as well for the Bible and the Thalmudiques agreed with Saint Paul but for the incarnation and resurrection And in that the Pope granteth the storie But in all his proper differeth from all men therefore hee must haue a spirite from the vncleane Diuels The threatning of comming as a thiefe in the night is from Obadiah telling of Idumeans destruction suddenly who beeing of Izhaks house yet were close enimies to the truth The commandement of watching was vsed Math. chap. 24. And the apparell of the minde teacheth from care to our bodie what care we should haue to apparell our soule That faith regenerating trimme it The allusion to Armageddon where Barake of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 fought the combats of GOD that Mageddon was a mountaine of men cut in pieces that Iabin King of Chanaan was fully broken there this sheweth extreeme breaking of the enimie And when the world was not worthy of good Iosias GOD would plague Iuda at Mageddon So the name of it is fit to expresse a full ouerthrow by God from heauen Barak and the People did litle but God from heauen by the starres Auctors of weather fought from the storehouse of haile and raine that his mighty hand was Auctor of victorie The next Cupp expoundeth that plainely alluding further to the victorie of Iosuah where haile slew more then the men did And the seauenth Angell poured out his Cup on the aire and there came forth a great voice from heauen saying it is done and there came a great voice from the Temple in heauen from the throne saying it is done and there were voyces and thunders and lightnings and a great earthquake such as had not bene since men were vpon the earth so huge an earthquake so great Haile and fire mixed with blood were Pharaohs open punishments and thunderings and at the Law giuing was thunder lightnings and heauy cloude The Pope to come by supremacy weakning Greece by all meanes and begging landes and hauing Princes helpe to further his forgery of Constantinus donation made such warres and troubles that by Scripture phrase haile and fire was mixed with blood Then Princes thought the Turke getting Grecia should neuer plague them But now that they see him the cause of the Turks greatnesse and by Idolatry as Apoc. 9. told the cause of that successe and whole hinderance to saluation they requit him with taking from him what they gaue him He obscured sun and ayer all kind of learning Ebrew Greeke Latin hee abolished histories hee obscured that none of his applied well Greeks to Daniel the bridge to both Testaments Rhetorique tropes which Sacraments require hee turnes to propriety as in This is my body and This is my blood wherein all Couenants the signe hath the name of the thing signified Logique he turneth to sophistry To patch an whole art and policie ouer mighty kingdomes by sophistry most ridiculously when it is examined Not he but martyrs made the Gospell knowen which stirreth Princes against him that as to ouertrow New Rome or Constantina they gaue their authoritie to old Rome and atchieued their counsell but to their owne great mischiefe
so Princes seeing that the former age by the Pope brought in the Turke to the hazard of the West and see that he knoweth not one letter in the LAW and is blinde in euery part of it and cannot make his owne cause good against the Turke or Iew they forsake him the seruant of seruants as God left the Chananites to bee conquered of Dauid So he is Chanaan they be Dauid and in his warre he shall be Iabin and by Sisera fall at Mageddon and bee no more able to resist And the great Citie became into three partes and the Cities of the nations fell and Babylon the Great was remembred before God to giue her the Cup of the Wine of the heate of his anger and euery Iland fled and the mountaines were not found and great haile talent bigge descended from heauen vpon the men and men blasphemed God for the stroke of the haile because the stroke of it was exceeding great By the Citie meane the policie and by three partes great diuision that it hath but a third part because the policies of nations fall from it and God remembred his anger told chap. 14. and as vnder the Caesares Ilands and Mountaines were moued from their place that is into another policy so heere alteration of policie is meant haile of a talent is great ouerthrowes by Gods hand the allusion being taken from plaguing the Chanaanites Ios chapter 10. where haile killed more then sword So the Spanish fleete hath often had great shipwrake by the extraordinarie hand of GOD specially 1588. And what an infinite masse of money and millions of men hath Netherland consumed to him And lately Venice shewed his weaknesse that he durst not goe forward to warre and specially Iuliaque where Leopoldu◠Emperour Spanie Pope wish they had neuer begon Touching the quantity of haile in countreies neere the Alpes wee see this speach to keepe neere propriety without a great hyperbole At Zurick my learned friend M. Caspar Wesserus told me of haile lately there that one stone was brought from a field somewhat farre off to the Consull and must melt in cariage yet beeing weighed it peised a wax pound Chanaan and Egypt haue greater haile that trees and beasts be stricken to destruction by it And in all this the Papists repent not but thinke God to fauor the wicked side and so blaspheme and keepe their old Idolatrie and locusts of all professions as before It is hard for men to repent which will not learne from the word of God how their case standeth Their false ground that Peter was the chiefe Apostle and at Rome and the Rocke and that hee had auctoritie to binde and loose more then others and could leaue that to Doctores of the Citie which crucified Christ as though they best deserued that and the fables of their miracles as though they were true these harden them that they cannot come into the Church till the anger of God consumeth the Pharaohs as chap. 15. vers vlt. told CHAPTER XVII Iohn like Daniel And one of the seauen Angels which had the seauen Cupp◠came and spake with mee saying to mee come I will shew thee the Iudgement of the great Whoore which sitteth vpon many waters with whom the Kings of the earth committed fornication and they which dwelt in the earth were drunke by the Wine of her fornication THe wise God maketh the Cloud of his word light to Israel and darke to Pharaoh That the wicked shall not be ouer busie with it he speaketh to them in Visions that they cannot see whither they tend because they know not the ground Besides commorations seeme vnto them new matter and not a commentarie vpon former So to them that be out of the Church all things are in parables But they that know the grounds shall see all easie Ieremiah taught Israel in the playnest propriety of wordes that might bee Ezekiel sweetneth the same with allegories when both are compared together all is plaine Daniel telleth how Iudah should bee afflicted by enemies likened to the proportion of a mans body fist so generally that heathen would not marke the persecuted But the Iewes knew And if at the first they had bene told of great affliction they would haue gone before captiuitie into Countries of Grecia But when they were in Babel and neere returne their enimies are beasts comming out of the sea and terrible but yet reuenged as the image was by strok from a stone so they by fire But the persecuters and persecuted neither be named In a new vision they are expresly named what the Ram and Buck meane and the persequutour aboue all that should goe before him is plainely described And last of all a proper speach expoundeth the Image expoundeth the sea beastes expoundeth the Land beast That no booke was euer plainer then Daniel Iohn is like him He telleth chapter 6. of great plagues to a state but telleth not to what state Then he telleth of a falling away but telleth not by whose occasion Then he describeth the occasioner vnder seauen trumpets but hideth from the profane world what policie hee would haue marked After this he bringeth the old Caesares and Pope with late into one serpent After this he diuideth the serpent into two beasts with resonable plaine notes and sheweth that the former beast cōming out of the sea should be reuiued by that which came vp out of the Land Now that reuiued beast after his particular doings and suffrings is heere to bee seene with the reuiuer The Angell teacheth Iohn in vision the learned men be Angeli Ecclesiae The great whoore is the great Idolatrous City the many waters the harlot sitteth on be people troupes nations and tongues Kings society in Idolatry is the fornication the dwellers on the earth are the Idolous whose 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or cariage is not in heauen And he caried me into the wildernesse in the spirit As the Church was driuen into the wildernesse to haue a policie vnmixed with Rome so Iohn sheweth that they must not be of Romes part that will condemne her but absolute free from her In Aegypt God could not giue lawes for Israel but they must be separated from other policies so God brought them into the wildernesse And when God would teach Iuda that Moyses Ceremonies were but poore elements and to praepare them for the rest of Christ he carieth them into the wildernesse of the heathen And when Iohn Baptist praepared a way for the rest of Christ and calling of the heathen who in the dayes of Dauid and Salomon were not circumcised but baptized Rambam Asure Bia. Per. 13. So we must goe into a wildernesse simply iudge by Gods word not by rumors of antiquity and vniuersality what is to be iudged of Rome And I saw a woman sitting vpon a scarlat beast full of names of blasphemy hauing 7. heades and 10. hornes So Satan being incarnate in the Empire of Rome had seauen heades and tenne