are so ripe and growne to such an head and impudency that they ouercome the patience and long-suffering of our Lord and prouoke and enforce him to descend vnto visible and horrible execution and reuenge For the iust Iudge of the world must needs doe Iustice and bee auenged of his enemies Let vs therefore say Exurgat Deus dissipentur inimici i. Let God arise and let his enemies bee dispersed VIII Reason The Anti-christ doth with all maine and might whatsoeuer the Foxe pretendeth set and oppose himselfe against our Lord Iesus Christ against his Gospell Discipline Church and Members Therefore our Almighty IESVS cannot but confront and confound this his Arch-enemy IX Reason The wailing and lamentation of the Popish Kings Marchants Marriners c. beholding a farre off the burning of Rome and contrary-wise the reioycing of the Prophets and Apostles per prosopopeiam and of the Pastors and Church of God for the desolation of Rome when it is come to passe demonstrate the certainty of this future Iudgement Lastly certaine of the neerest fore-runners of Romes ruine First a suddaine departure of many Christians out of Rome by the instinct of Gods Spirit like wherevnto was that of the godly Iewes departing from Ierusalem a little before the Siege of it Secondly a diuision of the Citie or Cittizens into three parts a figure whereof was the diuision of Tongues when the Tower of Babell was destroyed Lastly a most terrible and ominous Earth-quake Such as there was neuer since men were vpon the earth doe euidence it and will giue the godly the watch-word CHAP. XIII How after the destruction of Rome the Papists and louers of the Whore shall practise by violence vtterly to roote out all Christians but shall bee finally and vtterly ouerthrowne A Second generall Signe of Christs comming not yet begunne to bee fulfilled is the vtmost indeuour and practise of the Romanists that shall suruiue when Rome is burnt to roote out and extinguish by the sword all Christians And this cleerely appeareth out of the 19 chapter of Saint Iohns Reuelation and by the consent of diuers learned and iudicious Interpreters The Beast i. the second beast the Pope and the Popish Kings of the earth and their Armies viz. huge and many gathered themselues together to make warre against him that sate on the Horse i. Christ and Christian Princes his Instruments and against his Army 1. All Protestant Souldiers But behold and wonder at the euent and giue the Lord the glory of the victory The Protestants shall Eate i. destroy the flesh of Popish Kings Captaines Mighty men of horses horse-men bond free great small Then the beast and the false Prophet shall bee taken So perish all thine enemies ô Lord but let them that loue thee bee as the Sunne when it goeth forth in his might So you see that the Papists shall seek by a generall consent to recouer their ruines and regaine their losses but with no successe yea with their fatall ouerthrow It is no striuing against the Lord. CHAP. XIIII A third generall and memorable Signe of the approach of the last iudgement namely the conuersion of the Iewes A Third general and eminent Signe not yet fulfilled is the general Calling and Gathering of the whole Nation of the Iewes vnto the faith and into the Church of Christ And this is pregnantly gathered of Scripture Ioh. 10.16 There must be one Fold of Iewes and Gentiles and one Shepheard Euery Tribe must mourne apart for Christ by them crucified the parents by the Sword of Gods Word at least must thrust through the false Prophet when hee Prophecieth The Prophet shall bee ashamed of his vision i. his false doctrine lay aside his rough garment taken vp by apish imitation of the true Prophets and returne to his former husbandry Then shall wee see in earth The holy Citie new Ierusalem comming downe from God out of heauen prepared as a Bride adorned for her Husband whereof so many glorious things are spoken in Scripture and literally to be vnderstood in many points These vpon the fame and brute of their first conuersion and the report of their purpose to returne into their owne Country neere wherevnto and in the Confines whereof many of them dwell shall bee assaulted by the great Turke the King of the North who with all his forces shall endeuour to extinguish them and kill euery mothers sonne so that there shall bee such a time of trouble to them as neuer was since there was a Nation euen to that same time But then Michaell the great Prince i. The Lord IESVS or his mighty instruments shall Stand vp and finally deliuer them None of all these Prophecies are yet performed therefore they must of necessity be fulfilled in their appointed times The Iewes being once conuerted shall bee a most famous reformed and Exemplary Church of all the world and all Nations shall flow vnto it and it shall bee as it were a visible heauen vpon earth but it shall not perhaps many yeares continue For the further proofe of their further conuersion to omit sundry glorious promises of God in Esay Ezechiel the Psalmes and which are thought hitherto but in small part to be performed I alledge these reasons ensuing I. Reason The Apostle S. Paul inferreth that the Iewes are not vniuersally forsaken because hee being an Israelite and of the Tribe of Beniamin is not forsaken II. Reason The same Apostle saith that there is a Remnant reserued and as it were some seed of election in the multitude though yet not seene nor discerned III. Reason The calling and conuersion of some Iewes to the Christian Faith in all ages doth conclude that the Iewes are not wholy forsaken but are rather the first fruites of a greater Haruest and the Fore-runners of a greater Conuersion IIII. Reason The First Fruites viz the holy Patriarkes are holy and therefore the Lumpe i. the multitude of them for the time to come is holy The roote Abraham is holy and therefore some Branches V. Reason It was a speciall end of Pauls Ministerie to winne his Country-men the Iewes and it is or ought to bee the scope of our zeale and good example to gaine them But this end and scope being of God cannot be vaine and frustrate VI. Reason The Fulnesse of the Iewes conuerted shall bee the Riches the occasion of knowledge grace of the world and their taking into the Church shall bee life from death the reuiuing and springing againe of the whole world consisting of Iewes and Gentiles VII Reason God can convert them and graft them in againe therefore it is not impossible VIII Reason When the Fulnesse of vs Gentiles is come into the Church id est some remaining Nations as perhaps Spaine Italy Portugall or the like Countries then shall all Israel i. a great or greatest
manner of sinne Charitie is waxen cold yet selfe-loue aboundeth Vsury by the Scriptures all ancient Fathers and Councels condemned to hell and in former generations scarce heard of is now become a common Trade O Legall nay ô Lawlesse theeues Might ouer-ruleth Right the poore is the rich mans booty Idlenesse excessiue pride in apparell blasphemie Saboth-profanation lying yea and drunkennesse abound and are vnpunished These are priuiledged sinnes and seeme to haue some speciall charter and immunity yea impunity But the iudgement of God sleepeth not and one day shall pay for all What should I speak of fraud deceit filthy liuing back-biting malice enuy and going to the Law to feed the greedy Griffins for euery trifle Men in a manner mind nothing but eating drinking buying selling building marrying and giuing in marriage planting setting c. not dreading the last day though neerely approaching much lesse preparing themselues by faith and repentance against the second comming of our Lord Iesus But when they shall say peace peace sudden destruction shall come vpon them as the trauaile vpon a woman with child and they shall in no wise escape Finally there is no truth in mens promises whereas in time past euery mans word was thought as good as an Obligation There seemeth almost no faith left vpon the earth whether we respect God or man Good men decay and euill men abound yea one may with better like and applause liue loosely then Religiously For euery religious man though neuer so discreete shall vsually bee mistermed a Puritane a Precisian a Schismatick a factious and seditious person And alas what ill haue these honest and harmelesse men done or who are these that so exclaime and declaime against them but Libertines Atheists Papists Drunkards Gamesters Epicures and the like whose tongue is no slander What shall wee conclude of all these and the sinnes of all Callings and Trades in Church Family and Common-wealth which would bee too long now to recite All these daily and wonderously encreasing doe presage and euince that the end of all things is at hand and therefore wee should bee sober and watch and pray but aboue all things haue feruent charity amongst our selues For as vlcers and bodily diseases comming thick and members out of ioint are fore-runners of death neere at hand so these common and prodigious offences and scandals euidently argue that the day of the Lord is not farre off It shall bee our wisedome and good for vs in this common pestilence of Manners to get and preserue the Antidotes and Counter-poisons of faith and a good conscience that though wee liue in all euill world which will grow worse and worse yet wee bee not infected by it And it is the greatest tryall yea and the highest commendations for any man to bee godly good and deuout amongst those that are openly wicked For it sheweth that grace in him is more strong to preserue him then wicked and profane men to poison or peruert him The third part of the Booke touching generall Signes yet for to come CHAP. XII Of the vtter ruin sacking and burning of Rome the seate of Anti-christ THE first generall Signe of Christs comming that is yet not begun is the ruin and vtter desolation of the Citie Rome For the Throne of the Beast must grow darke Babylon must fall it must fall and come into remembrance before God at one instant must her plagues come viz famine mourning death it must be burnt with fire and all her pretious things all her Musicall instruments and idoll furniture be wholy consumed and euer after vnto the comming of our Lord Baybilon must be an house of deuils and a Cage of euery hatefull and vncleane Bird Some of the ten Hornes i. one of the last Emperours or some valiant Duke must be the chiefe instrument to execute Gods fore-determined vengeanee vpon her The Romanists and Italians and others that are willed to come out of Babell and to render Double vnto the Whore for that she had done vnto them shal assist the principall instrument That Rome shall literally vnderstood bee vtterly desolated before the end of the world not onely all Protestant Interpreters of the Reuelation hold but also the Sibyllae yea diuers chiefe Papists as namely Vega Ribera Bellarmine the Rhemists and others confesse Touching the yeare and point of time when Rome shall bee destroyed albeit wee dare not as some doe determine of some thirty yeares hence and some more probably of a shorter time yet we are perswaded that it is neere at hand and perhaps much neerer then most imagine For the power of the Pope in forraigne Kingdomes is much lessened his authoritie in ciuill causes euery where falleth to the ground yea in his owne Dominions in Venice Florence Millain c. Many that haue beene by him seduced beginne to kenne and smell him out To speak nothing of England and other Protestant Kingdomes that haue wholy forsaken him Now let vs come vnto some forcible reasons and arguments whereby wee may make strong our assertion I. Reason All Kingdomes and States haue their set Periods and Fatall yeares which being expired they must needs fall and come to naught and lightly in the space of 500 yeares there is seene an alteration in all States and why not in Rome II. Reason All tainted vnsound and putrified bodies hauing the beginning and matter of their destruction in themselues do at length though no man hurt them vanish and die But Rome and Popery is such a tainted vnsound and rotten body yea an old wind-shaken and ruinous house which though the Iesuites and others seeme to prop vp for a reason yet downe it must and fall it will and so let it in Gods name III. Reason Easterne Babell in Chaldaea a figure of this Romish and new Babell is long sithence fallen though in villany cruelty and idolatry nothing comparable to it and therefore it must needes come to desolation The Type and the Arch-type must needs answere and agree Babylon in Chaldaea was laid waste by the Medes and Persians and so shall Rome bee by the Christian Princes IIII. Reason God that is truth it selfe and whose absolute threatnings are alwaies executed hath fore-told a secular ruin of Rome therfore it must needs come to passe V. Reason God is infinite in power and able to bring it to passe therefore it is not impossible though in our weakenesse wee doe and may cast many doubts VI. Reason Romish Babel is already fallen in many Countries Kingdomes Prouinces and States of Europe viz. in Germany Heluetia Polonia Bohemia Hungaria England Scotland Ireland Denmarke in diuers Prouinces of the Lower Germany and in a good part of France c. And why shall it not by the like reason in due time fall in Italy Spaine Portugall c. Parium similis est ratio VII Reason The sinnes treacherie idolatry cruelty pride blaspemy lust and abominations of Rome
world and expect an heauen on earth and an exquisite reformation of all things whereas in so declining a world they shall see the Lord comming in the cloudes sooner then this their dreame come to passe CHAP. XVIII Of the generall and maruellous deadnesse of heart and senselesse benummednesse of the last times A Seuenth generall Signe shall bee a dead slumber spirituall Lethargie and a brutish security in all sorts of people which though it hath bene in the time of Noah not long before the vniuersall Deluge and in the time of iust Lot at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and in other ages of the world yet it shall most apparantly raigne and preuaile in the last age So that no Alarums no thundering iudgements no strange Sightes Monsters Wonders Doctrine Counsell Admonitions Warnings shall bee able to arowse and waken them from this sluggish and deafe security They shall drowne themselues in pleasure and in drunkennesse mind nothing but the world wealth oppression reuenge But the Sonne of man shall come to such in an houre they wot not of and shall finde them sleeping The day of the Lord shall come as a Thiefe in the night For when they shall say peace and safety then sudden destruction shall come vpon them as trauaile vpon a woman with child and they shall not escape Securitas initium calamitatis God giue vs grace to watch and waite for that day and to attend to the sound of the Trumpet that being found watching and wel-doing wee may stand before the Sonne of man and enter into our Lords ioy Amen CHAP. XIX Of the graduall yet sudden darkning of the lights of heauen THE last generall Signe is not onely the wonderfull roaring of the Seas but a graduall yet sensible and strange darkening of the lights of heauen this is the neerest generall Signe and the more to bee heeded when it commeth For presently after shall come our LORD IESVS who by the brightnesse of his comming shall vtterly obscure and hide the light of the Sunne Moone and Starres Neither must this seeme incredible or impossible for the like hath beene seene in time past though not vniuersally ouer the whole world but in some kingdome and particular place of it At mid-day as Saint Paul went to Damascus he saw in the way a light from heauen aboue the brightnesse of the Sunne shine round about him and thē that iourneyed with him If it exceeded the brightnes of Sun then it obscured the Sun and as it were put out the light of it Secondly at the death of Christ the Sunne was darkened and terribly eclypsed And darknesse was vpon all the land of Iudaea from the sixt houre to the ninth i. from noone to three of the clock in the afternoone Thirdly strange and wonderfull sightes and prodigies were fore-runners of the destruction of Ierusalem and why not likewise of the end of the world Lastly the poore Marriners and Sea-faring men haue particular and lamentable experience of such darkenesse when suddenly the storme ariseth and all their lights are put out and they oftentimes are ouer-whelmed In Saint Pauls voyage to Rome when hee and his company were exceedingly tossed vpon the Seas neither Sunne nor Starres in many daies appeared Let us therefore as the children of the Light and the day put on the Armour of light that this darkenesse when it commeth discomfort vs not much lesse bee a fore-runner of euerlasting darknesse Amen CHAP. XX. Diuers difficult and curious questions soberly handled and religiously resolued I. Question How and with what truth could Saint Paul in his time teach that the ends of the world were come on them and S. Peter write that the end of all things was then at hand seeing that from that time vnto ours haue passed about one thousand sixe hundred yeares and we certainely know not how many yeares remaine to bee accomplished I Answere First from Christs Birth or Death vnto the end of the world is counted but an age or the last though perhaps the longest age of the world Seeing wee are not to haue nor expect any new Christ new Gospell new Sacraments new Scriptures new Apostles new Euangelists new Miracles but content our selues with those that Christ hath vnchangeably left vnto vs. Secondly this last age of the world is not confined and limited to a certaine stint and set number of yeares as the former ages are and were because wee should alwaies bee prepared and in continuall expectation when it should end otherwise men would more delay and post of from time to time their conuersion vnto God Therefore as the last age of a man to wit old age cannot bee determined by a certaine number of yeares as the precedent ages of a man namely child-hood striplings state youth and ripenesse of age can Euen so the last age of the world cannot be determined and defined by certaine and expresse yeares Lastly as wee call the end of the yeare not the last day but the last moneth though containing 30 daies So wee may and doe call the last quarter of the world the end of it though it be of longer extent then any age from the beginning of the world vnto Christ his Incarnation A second Question Whether that this world shall last and continue at least seuen hundred yeares seeing that in the 20 chapter of S. Iohns Reuelation expresse mention is made of two distinct thousands of yeares the former wherof is thought to take his beginning at the raigne of the Emperour Constantine and to end about Wickliefes time Anno 1300 and in all this time the Church declined and the second millenarie or thousand wherein the Church shall bee renewed and flourish beganne onely as it is collected about the yeare of our Lord 1300 so that seuen hundred yeares yet remaine Ans. True it is that mention is made of two thousand yeares and diuers of the ancient Fathers did acknowledge as much but mis-vnderstood and mis-applyed the same being carryed away with the errour of the Millenarij that imagined that the people of God should after the Resurrection liue a thousand yeares in this world in pleasures and ioyes But I answere first that it is not agreed amongst Interpreters when the first thousand should beginne whether when S. Iohn wrote his Apocalipse or rather Anno 300 when Constantine beganne to raigne Secondly for the Elects sake least all flesh should perish these daies shall bee shortned as well as those of the Iewes miserie at the destruction of Ierusalem were abridged For the shortning of the former is a type and figure of the shortning of the latter Now how many yeares or whether certaine hundred of yeares God best knoweth if not onely knoweth and the end and issue will make manifest Thirdly if the end of the world should continue so long and this should be notified and publickly signified to the world they would take occasion to liue
much more licentiously to deferre their repentance yea many would Atheistically inferre that Christ would neuer come to iudgement And therefore the Holy Ghost keepeth vs in suspense and still in the Scripture telleth vs that the Houre draweth neere that the Day is at hand and that the Lord will come quickly to the intent wee should alwaies be ready A third Question Whether that the world shall end in the yeare of Christ two thousand thirty nine that is some foure hundred and fiue and twenty yeares hence seeing that from the beginning of the world to that date are accomplished the 6000 yeares of the worlds full continuance figured as diuers old and new Writers thinke by the sixe daies of the creation Ans. First from the six daies of creation to conclude of sixe thousand yeares of the worlds continuance it is no certaine rule or axiome but onely a coniecture And whereas Saint Peter saith That a thousand yeares with the Lord viz. being compared with His Erernitie is but as one day and one day as a thousand yeares hee neither alludeth to the sixe daies wherein the world was created nor doth determine how long the world shall endure Secondly our confident perswasion is that the world shall be consummate before this long date for the dayes must bee shortned otherwise if the world hold on his hold there should no faith be left or found vpon the earth Thirdly the Wise Virgins that is the holy Professours of sincere Religion shall nictare id est nod and slumber though their hearts shall wake and therefore they haue no certaine knowledge of any yeare when the Lord will come to iudgement otherwise they would the more rowse vp themselues Lastly the sixt Angell hath already blowne or sounded with the Trumpet and when the seuenth shall but beginne to blow which time is shortly expected then the Mysterie of God shall bee finished i. the world shall bee ended as hee hath declared to his Seruants the Prophets i. will reueale to the godly learned Pastors and Ministers who no doubt some of them will take speciall notice of it that they may more painefully performe their Office and more preuailingly stirre vp their hearers A fourth Question Whether that the world shall end in the yeare of Christ 1699 or 1700 especially seeing that from the time that the daily Sacrifice shall bee taken away and the abomination of desolation set vp shall bee 1335 daies which some interprete so many yeares beginning the account in the yeare of Christ 367 when the Iewes by the grant of the Emperour Iulian repairing the Temple of Ierusalem were dispersed by fire sent from heauen I Answere that most and almost all Interpreters vnderstand those 1335 daies not for so many yeares but literally for three yeares and an halfe with the addition of 45 daies in the end wherof Antiochus the chiefe enemy of the Iewes should die and being fulfilled in Antiochus why or by what reason should any man extend them further Secondly it is generally held that the doctrine and mention of the last iudgement excepted that Daniels Prophecie endeth either at the death of Christ or at the furthermost with the destruction of Ierusalem Thirdly Maister Napier a learned Scot counting the beginning of these 1335 daies and interpreting them for yeares anno Christi 360 will haue the world to end about the yeare 1695 But Maister Brightman maketh this date the beginning of the generall conuersion and flourishing state of the Iewes which hee holdeth shall continue diuers hundred yeares afterwards Fourthly it was a receiued opinion that the world should end 1588 and the euent descried the vanity of their collection And why may not they erre though they cannot so much erre comming neerer the end of the world likewise that define that the world shall certainely end betweene the yeares 1688 and 1695 Lastly it is not for vs specially that liue not in the very last age of the world to know the times and seasons which the Father hath reserued in his owne power therefore let vs not bee ouer-curious but wise to sobrietie A fift Question Whether as some Phantasticks are reported to hold and defend the world shall end before the yeares of Christ 1630 Ans. First to arguments vnknowne wee cannot giue particular answeres Secondly this opinion is priuate and singular and perhaps onely one man is the Author of it An ille solus sapit who hath told him Thirdly all the remaining Signes not yet begunne to bee accomplished cannot in any probability bee fulfilled in so short a scantling of time or if they can let him assigne the particular yeare of Romes ruin of the Iewes conuersion of the comming of the false Christs if he cannot resolue vs in the smaler point how shall wee credit him in the greatest Lastly when the Iewes are conuerted it is most likely they shall at least continue glorious on the earth for one generation that Gods mercy may more euidently appeare and that all the world may take sufficient notice of their generall calling and herevpon be either conuerted or at least conuicted A sixth and more materiall Question Whether the very age which some reckoning according to the Iubile account restraine to 50 yeares wherein our Lord shall come to iudgement either now is or hereafter may or shal be reuealed to any especially seeing that our Lord speaking of the Signes of the last daies saith That this generation i. the age or time of a mans life shall not passe vntill all these things shall be fulfilled Ans. I answere First that to restraine a generation or age of a man to 50 yeares may seeme too short an account rather 70 or 80 yeares may make a generation Secondly the age wherein Christ shall come may bee knowne because our Lord onely excepteth the day and houre Thirdly the Scripture expressely saith that in that age in which the false Christs and Prophets shall arise all shall bee fulfilled Lastly when the seuenth Angell shall begin to blow the Mysterie of God shall be finished c. CHAP. XXI The wholesome Application and profitable Vses of all these Signes and Fore-runners I. Vse HERE are condemned Aristotle and his followers who imagining that the world had no beginning held that it should neuer end Secondly here are taxed all Atheists and Scorners that either will not beleeue or be perswaded that there shall bee a second comming of Christ and an end of this world or else with those scoffers in Saint Peters time say Where is the promise of his comming These bee like vnto one Manlius who said Non alium vidêre patres aliumùe minores aspicient II. Vse The doctrine of these Signes serueth to check and reproue all Curiosists and rash Spirits that by coniectures Arithmeticall numbers and misapplying and wresting of the holy Scriptures seeke to search out yea to determine the day as Bellarmine by consequence doth For he mis-vnderstanding the Scriptures both of Daniel