authority of Scripture and such demonstration of the spirit and power going along with them and these great voyces shall have a double effect first they shall minister joy and gladnesse to the Saints and secondly they shall minister terrour to the Popish party for it speakes and works their ruine and third woe that comes upon them The Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever The Kingdoms of this world are become so why were they not so before this seventh Angell sounded or this seventh dispensation Is not the earth the Lords and the fulnesse thereof whose were the Kingdomes of this world but our Lords and his Christs Answer Though it is true they were his yet they were not so visibly the Kingdoms of God and of Christ as they shall then be For they seemed rather to be the Kingdomes of the evill one they were so universally inslaved to the Devill among the Indians and Heathens that professed not Christ and they seemed rather to be inslaved to that man of sin that wicked one that sate in the Temple of God and blasphemed among such as professed Christianity But at this time they shall in a most visible and glorious manner become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ for he shall break down the power of other Kings even of all that will not stoope to him and cast their Crowns at his feet yea he will breake them in peeces as a Potters vessell and that great Papall Beast shall be destroyed with the fire of his wrath and his glory shall be manifested to all people and nations and languages who casting off all other Lords shall willingly be subjected to him and rejoyce in his glorious reign according to that of the Psalmist The Lord * Psal 97. 1. and 96. 10 11 12 13. reigneth and let the earth rejoyce and let the great “ England is one of the great Isles Isles be glad thereof Yea the Kingdomes of this world shall be universally so subjected to our Lord Jesus Christ as they shall all serve and obey him only and other Lords shall not have Dominion over them but they shall have one Lord and his name one in all the earth Thus in a most visible manner shall the Kingdomes of this world become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ * Zach. 14. 9. And he shall reign for ever and ever He having once subjected the Kingdomes of this world unto the obedience of himselfe it shall not be with him as it hath been with all the great and potent Monarchs that have formerly ruled the world that one of them have thrust out and destroyed another and one hath taken the Dominion from another No none shall take the Dominion from him But as Daniel saies His Kingdome shall be an everlasting Kingdom and all Rulers shall serve and obey him So John here saies He shall reigne for ever and ever And the foure and twenty Elders which sate before God on their seats fell upon their faces and worshipped God saying we give thee thanks O Lord God Almighty c. What those foure and twenty Elders are will appeare in the fourth and fifth Chapters of this Prophesie They are first mentioned Chap. 4. 4. where they are thus described And round about the throne were foure and twenty seats and upon the seats I saw foure and twenty Elders sitting cloathed in white rayment and upon their heads were Crownes of Gold Now that we may know what these be we must observe what the Angell saies to John in the first verse of that Chapter in these words Come and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter whence it appeares that these Elders as well as the other things which John saw were representatives of some things that were to be after that time Now Chapter 5. we may see what they were that were to be hereafter which these foure and twenty Elders did represent and that is that they were Saints that were redeemed to God by the bloud of the Lamb out of every kindred and Nation and people as appeares in the 8 9 10. verses of that Chapter Now here in this 11 Chapter these foure and twenty Elders that is these Saints and redeemed ones of Christ do upon the sounding of these voyces that the Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ fall upon their faces that is they lay themselves low before God and worship him being exceedingly affected with this great work of God and with his great grace toward them in bringing them out of their suffering condition to reign with Christ They fell upon their faces and worshipped God saying we give thee thanks O Lord God Almighty which art and wast and art to come because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned The Saints whatever others do herein yet they if their eyes be open to see it they cannot but give thanks yea solemnly lay themselves low before God in thanksgiving for the great and signall manifestations of the Lord God Almighty and eternall his taking to him his great power in ruling and raigning and laying of such as are indeed his enemies in the dust and yet withall at the same time their hearts may be very much affected with this that any godly men should be so deeply engaged with Gods enemies and consequently do partake of their punishments Because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned Because thou hast not suffered thine enemies alwaies to boast and to triumph but hast begun to lay them low before thee and now hast taken to thee thy great power which thou seemedst to have laid aside when thou sufferedst so long the rod of the wicked to rest upon the lot of thy righteous ones but now dost thou take to thee and shew forth thy great power in punishing and bringing down the power of thine enemies for these things we give thee thanks and because that now more generally universally and evidently thou appearest to reign over men in thy just and righteous deciding of Controversies and in justifying them that in the integrity of their hearts give up themselves to glorifie thy great name and to do that which may be for the good of all thy Saints even of every one that feares thy name small and great laying aside all by and selfe respects yea we give thee thanks for that thou now so evidently appearest to reigne over men in condemning and blasting those that pretending other things force themselves against their judgements to contend for some things which are but a seeming ground of that quarrell against others which was primarily occasioned by their selfe ends which selfe-love hath so blinded them as they could not or would not see but shall see and be made to acknowledge them to thee and to thy Saints by thy righteous judgements This and
also of which Paul speaks Heb. 12. 26. And therefore this is called Joel 2. 31. The great and terrible day of the Lord. But who shall live when God doth this When the Heavens and Earth shall shake c. Why it 's answered in the same 16. vers But the Lord shall be the hope of his people and the strength of the children of Israel Of this day also Paul speaks 2 Thes 1. 7 8 9. Where he says that the day is coming when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power Thus doth Paul render this as a most terrible day and as the Prophet Isaiah in the forementioned place says the Lord will then render his anger and his rebukes with flames of fire So Paul here says that the Lord Jesus shall in flaming fire take vengeance on them that know not God c. punishing them with everlasting destruction from his presence But who shall live when God doth this The Apostle tells us that then the Lord Jesus shall come to be glorified in his Saints to be admired in all them that believe in that day v. 10 The Saints shall then live and glorifie him and admire him Of this day also speaks th Prophet Malachi Chap. 4. 1. For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an oven and all the proud yea all that do wickedly shall be stubble and the day that cometh shall burn them up saith the Lord of hosts that it shall leave them neither root nor branch But who shall live when God doth this It follows in vers 2. 3. But unto you that fear my Name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall And ye shall tread down the wicked for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this saith the Lord of hosts Thus in a terrible manner is this day here also represented being a day that shall burn as an Oven Of this day also speaks the Apostle Peter and represents it in the same terrible manner 2 Pet. 3. 7. But the Heavens and the Earth which are now saith he by the same word are kept in store reserved unto fire against the day of judgement and perdition of ungodly men or as Isaiah says the day in which the Lord will plead with all flesh rendering his rebukes with flames of fire But says Peter vers 10. This day will come suddenly upon men as a thief in the night And indeed this numerous Army that shall be gathered together against the Saints shall little dream of such an overflowing scourge as shall overtake them but rather promise themselves a victorious overcoming of the Saints but alas Miserable creatures this day of their destruction and perdition says Peter shall come as a thief in the night in which the Heavens shall pass away with a noise and the Elements shall melt with fervent heat The whole world shall be on fire about their ears on a sudden and there shall be an utter destruction of them and their corrupt and filthy courses shall perish with them The earth also and the works that are therein shall be burnt up And vers 12. The Heavens being on fire shall be dissolved But what might some say shall the Elements melt with fervent heat and the Heavens being on fire be dissolved and the Earth with the works that are therein be burnt up Who shall live when God doth this Peter in the very next words seems to prevent this question and says Nevertheless we according to his promise look for new Heavens and a new Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness As if he had said it is the perdition and destruction of ungodly men onely that I speak of take notice of that And this day that shall burn as an Oven shall burn up onely such as do wickedly but it shall not in the least manner touch nor trouble the Saints But we when these wicked men are burnt up shall have new Heavens and a new Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness It shall be a new time to us when these corrupt men shall be burnt up And this we have a promise for And this promise they had in Isa 65. 17. where this day is spoken of the promise runs thus For behold I create new Heavens and a new Earth and the former shall not be remembred nor come into minde but be you glad and rejoyce for ever in that which I create for I create Jerusalem a rejoycing and her people a joy c. And so he goeth on to declare the happy estate that Saints shall live in in these new Heavens and new a rth But this terrible day to wicked men is again mentioned Isa 33. 14. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire Who amongst us shall dwell with everlasting burnings Here are the same expressions or expressions to the same purpose with those we have already mentioned where Malachi says The day that cometh shall burn as an oven and Paul and Peter speak of the Lords taking vengeance in flaming fire on wicked and ungodly men The Prophet having this in his eye cries out Who shall dwell with devouring fire who shal dwell with everlasting burnings When the Lord comes to render his rebukes with flames of fire who shall dwell in those flames But lest the Saints should be discouraged he presently addes That though the sinners in Zion are afraid and fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites yet verses 15 16 c. he that walketh righteously and speaketh uprightly he that despiseth the gain of oppressions that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes that stoppeth his ears from hearing of bloods and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil he shall dwell on high his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks bread shall be given him his waters shall be sure Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty they shall behold the land afar off c. Thus the righteous upright man that is free from dissimulations is no hypocrite that will not oppress though he may gain much thereby is so far from so doing as he disdains he despises such gain and he that not onely refuses a bribe when it is offered to him but when it 's put into his hand will not keep it shakes his hand from holding of it and he to whom the cruel and corrupt courses of men are irksome even to hear of it or see it and therefore he stops his ears and shuts his eyes from it This man shall hold proof in these times and he shall dwell on high he shall have as sure a defence in these times as the munitions of rocks for he is fixed in the
and thence until the THOUSAND yeers of Christs REIGN begin and of marvelous things therein and afterwards I had made a Collection from the Book of the Revelation and from Daniel and other Scriptures which was appointed to be printed before my Store-house of cases of Conscience was printed in 1650. but some reasons have hitherunto moved me to forbear the publishing thereof but those reasons appear to me now an insufficient ground to forbear longer having afresh considered that pregnant Motive from Rev. 1. 3. before recited and the sweetness of the precious things to come foretold herein as well as therein which should urge us not to be wanting to help others as far as in us is to the sweet and comfortable knowledge of the wonderful great things that our God is about to do for his people shortly as he himself saith Behold I come quickly or speedily Amen Even so COME LORD JESUS Saith the soul of his servant H. J. Reader IT may so be That thou art one of those who are willing to follow the Lamb whither soever he goeth and rejoycest in spirit that the King of Saints doth begin to be terrible to the Kings of the Earth Now if thou staggerest not through unbelief at those exceeding great and precious promises which are recorded in the Scriptures of Truth concerning the fifth kingdom thou shalt in due time behold with a mixture of joy and wonder those other grand Mutations and extraordinary Revolutions which are even at the door and ready to break in upon the Princes and upon the People of the whole earth Indeed many wise men after the flesh have been and now are much offended that a company of illiterate men and silly women should pretend to any skill in dark prophecies and to a foresight of future events which the most learned Rabbies and the most knowing Politicians have not presumed to hope for But after they who are thus offended have perused those Scriptures mentioned in the margint ' * Psal 119. 98 99. 100. they shall do well to observe the fruits of that Faith and fore-sight which dwelt in the hearts and in the minds of the old godly Nonconformists in Queen Elizabeths and King James his days there having been many hundreds of those silly and illiterate ones so called of whom it may be said at this day that they were wiser then their enemies wiser then their teachers wiser then the Ancients Psa 119. 98 99 100. where may be seen the proper reason of this their wisdom For are not those things come to pass which they foresaw and foretold concerning that fatal Catastrophe which hath now befallen the Prelates and their adherents whereas the generality of the Ministers and people of the Land had very little acquaintance with the minde of God in those particulars And surely that eminent instance of the Teachings of the Spirit and that full assurance of Faith bestowed upon those Saints which like Caleb and Joshua followed the Lord fully may suggest such a thought as this That there may be now in this juncture of time some neglected despised reproached Ones both men and women who clearly understand and perceive many precious truths concerning the golden Image the fourth Beast the seven Vials the seventh Trumpet the New Jerusalem the binding of Satan the pouring out of the Spirit the glorious advance of knowledge and Grace the universal Gospel-peace the power and dominion of the Saints c. which not onely the world generally but many of the Saints themselves look upon as well-composed Fables and as the Visions of their own hearts who are the teachers of them The ensuing Discourse treating of some of those things being a Gentlewomans thoughts put into form and order by her self was brought to me to peruse with this desire added That if I judged it meet I would prefix a few words to signifie my judgement concerning the usefulness thereof Two things there are which to me savor very well and I believe will take the hearts of divers Christians The one is the Collection and Collation of so many of those precious promises which concern the times yet to come and the presenting them to the Readers view in words at length and not in figures as the manner of many is The other is her vigilant care to insert here and there as occasion is offered such necessary cautions as tend to the wiping off of those unjust aspersions which Hierom and others would cast upon the Millenaries as they are called For in the Book thou wilt finde her pleading for the advance of holiness in the midst of all that happiness which is prepared for the Saints in that thousand yeers As for her thoughts concerning the little Horn thou wilt say when thou readest they are new and singular therefore be thou the more careful and if thou canst serve the Saints with a more probable Exposition and see the Apology in the 45 and 46 pages Many are running too and fro and knowledge is increasing Dan. 12. 4. But together therewith the Lord be pleased for the Lords sake to advance the power of godliness zeal for the truth and the delight of the Saints in Communion with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ and one with another Do thou Reader say Amen beleevingly with Thy servant for the Lords sake CHRISTOPHER FEAKE Errata PAge 1. l. 5 dele another p. 4. l. 14. for Monarchs r. Monarchies p. 5. l. 3. for Monarch r. Monarchy p. 72. l. 12. for a virgin 1. O virgin p. 75. l. 2 and 4. for Monarchs r. Monarchies ead for Monarch r. Monarchy p. 160. l. 11. for jot r. iota p. 161. l. 10. for wal r. walk p. 170. for of Gospel r. of the Gospel p. 184. l. 6. dele that p. 199. l. 16. for both Jews r. both of the Jews p. 213. l. 3. for then to be their r. then as to their p. 259. l. 7. for how shall Saints r. how Saints shall p. 282. l. 1. for and will r. and they will ead l. 21. for heart more r. heart will more p. 294. l. 2. for take r. execute p. 287. l. 1. for external r. eternal p. 138. l. antepenult for your r. you IMPRIMATUR Joseph Caryl THE LITTLE HORNES DOOM and DOVVNFALL Dan. 7. 24 25 26 27. And another another shall rise after them which shall be divers from the first and he shall subdue three Kings And he shall speak great words against the most high and think to change Times and Laws and they shall be given into his hand untill a time and times and the dividing of time But the Judgement shall fit and they shall take away his Dominion to consume and to destroy it unto the end And the Kingdom and Dominion and the greatnesse of the Kingdome under the whole heaven shall be given unto the people of the Saints of the most High whose Kingdome is an everlasting Kingdom and all Dominions shall serve and obey him THe Coherence of these verses
And that when that time is the Saints must possesse the Kingdome and reigne on earth so Dan. 7. 22 27. and Rev. 5. 10. The first of these passages mentioned in the Revelation is that Chap. 5. 9 10. which runs thus Thou wast slaine and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation and hast made us unto our God Kings and Priests and we shall reigne on the earth These words are a part of a song sung by Saints wherein they praise the Lambe and herein they have in their eye as matter for which their hearts are ingaged to honour and glorifie Christ both that which he had already done for them and also that which he had not yet done but would doe for them That which hee had done for them in these words Thou wast slaine and thou hast redeemed us and thou hast made us unto our God Kings and Priests and that which should bee done for them by Christ in these words and wee shall reigne on the earth this being that which they knew hee would doe hee having declared it by the mouth of all his Prophets therefore they sing it out we shall reigne on the earth The other passage which is Rev. 11. 15 16 17 18. runnes thus And the seventh Angel sounded and there were great voices in Heaven saying the Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reigne for ever and ever and the four and twenty Elders which sate before God on their seates fell upon their faces and worshipped God saying We give thee thankes O Lord God Almighty which art and wast and art to come because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned and the Nations were angry and thy wrath is come and the time of the dead that they should be judged and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the Prophets and to the Saints and them that feare thy name small and great and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth And the Temple of God was opened in Heaven and there was seen in his Temple the Ark of his Testament and there were lightnings and voices and thunderings and an earthquake and great hail This Scripture being so pertinent unto the present purpose and having already in another Treatise opened the former part of this Chapter from the first to the 15 verse I shall therefore be the more copious in opening of this part which is from the 15 verse where I left unto the end of the chapter Verse 15. And the seventh Angel sounded and there were great voices in Heaven saying the kingdoms of this world are become c. The declaration of this truth that the Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of the Lord Christ is here held forth unto us to bee that great and glorious part and portion of the providence and counsell of God that is to be manifested under the sounding of the seventh Trumpet which brings in the seventh and last and greatest judgement of God upon that wicked as the Apostle termes him or that man of sinne That great Saint opposer the Roman Papall Beast and his adherents For by the seven Angels which were to sound the seven Trumpets is to be understood 7 severall remarkeable and great judgements that in so many severall periods of time by so many severall passages of the providence and purpose of God should be brought upon that beast and his associates whereby they should bee gradually ruined The first of them being one degree of bringing them down and the second bringing them lower then the first had done and the third bringing them lower then the two former and the fourth breaking down another part of their greatnesse and glory which was not broken by the three former but the three latter are to bee more terrible and dreadfull unto them then any of the former and therefore they are said to be three great woes which were to come upon that crew Chap. 8. 13. which are there stil'd the inhabitants of the earth for all along in this Prophesie they are cal'd the earth to distinguish them from the Saints who are all along cal'd heaven and as these are said to be woes so they prove woes indeed unto that miserable crew but it is to them and them onely and not to any others As for the Saints all the seven Trumpets produce matter of joy to them because therein Christs enemies and their enemies are from time to time brought low And indeed these seven Trumpets or seven severall judgements of God upon the Beast and his adherents were obtained from God in a great measure by their prayers being offered up by the Lord Jesus their blessed Mediator who perfumed them with the incense of his own righteousnesse and worthinesse in which they are acceptable For upon the offering up of the prayers of Saints with that incense these Judgements were powred out upon the earth that is upon that crew and these angels prepared to sound as appeares Chap. 8. 2 3 4 5 6 c. So that the Saints had cause to rejoyce when these judgements came upon that faction and they indeed did rejoyce and their hearts have been made glad in all these severall Judgements which have come upon them As in that their Doctrines and Doctors Bishops Jesuits and Priests and much of their power and authority which they had over the people have been brought down and laid in the dust in those six severall Trumpres sounding or glorious dispensations already past wherein that party have been troubled perplexed and pained at the heart and now this great and glorious dispensation we are treating of is to bee the seventh and last which is of greatest terror to them and greatest joy to the saints as it followes And the seventh Angel sounded and there were great voices in Heaven saying the kingdoms c. There were great voices in heaven that is there were many in heaven that is in the Church or among the Saints that in the Prophesies of this Book are stiled heaven that did trumpet forth sound forth or clearely hold forth and confidently speake out this truth that the Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever They were voyces it was not only the single voice of one but they are voices it is the voice of many in heaven many among the Saints And they are not the whimsicall notions of unsound and rotten men but they are voices in heaven voyces of reall Saints Great voyces in heaven Being great voices argues first that they are not some poore weak suppositions or may be 's Nor secondly are they some weake faint sayings but they are great that is effectuall convincing and unquestionable speakings such as shall be heard and be received and be beleeved among the Saints they shall be spoken with such
much more is the Saints meaning in these words when they say Wee give thee thankes because thou hast taken to thee c. Wherein they expresse how they are affected with and doe rejoyce in these things Wee know how David expresses himselfe upon such an occasion Psal 98. 7 8 9. Let the Sea roar and the fulnesse thereof the world and they that dwell therein Let the floods clap their hands and let the hils be joyful together before the Lord for he commeth to judge the earth with righteousnesse and to judge the people with equity David is so affected with this great and glorious dispensation when God comes to reigne and even for to judge the earth with righteousnesse and to decide with justice and equity the controversies of the people as that he cannot be content to onely rejoyce and be exceeding glad thereof himselfe but he also excites the whole Creation to rejoyce in this most glorious dispensation And if these that are still of the world so they be not the desperate and implacable enemies of his Saints shall have such cause to rejoyce when the Lord reigneth because they shall not be at all oppressed nor unjustly dealt with as they had bin before but shall have justice done them I say if these and the whole Creation shall rejoyce when the Lord reigneth much more shall Saints when hee shall come to Judge their cause with righteousnesse and destroy the man of sinne and shall lay all his supporters though Kings and Princes notwithstanding whosoever labours to prop or beare them up in the dust And the Nations were angry When God comes to take his great power and to reigne himselfe the Nations are angry because their vaine customes which they have doated upon must bee laid aside and this great man must be brought downe and that King and 'tother darling and favourite of the Nations for opposing of the Lord Jesus Christ and his Saints must bee destroyed even the * Psal 110. heads over many Countries And thy wrath is come When Jesus Christ comes to reigne hee will breake forth in wrath against his and his Saints implacable enemies and this is that which he speakes of when hee speakes of the yeere of recompences for the controversies of Sion And when he saies the day of vengeance is in his heart * Isa 63. 3 4. and the yeere of his redeemed is come having suffered his adversaries a long time to go on unpunished in afflicting and martyring and oppressing his Saints hee will at last have a time to reckon with them and hee will avenge his Saints quarrell for vengeance is his recompencing all the blood and cruelty of their enemies on their owne heads And he will shew that hee hath not been regardlesse of all the sufferings and sad pressures which his people have undergone from the hands of wicked and cruel men but when the yeere of his redeemed is come then will he recompence his enemies for all their controversies with Sion and as it is Jer. 30. 23. His fierce anger shall goe forth as a whirlewinde and shall fall with pain upon the heads of the wicked For thy wrath is come and the time of the dead that they should be judged When Christ thus comes to avenge his people on their enemies he doth therein give judgement for them for in that those enemies have slain and martyred his Saints long before he herein judges his people that they have slaine with righteous judgement when he passes the sentence of condemnation and executes it upon those that have thus destroyed and had a hand in the destroying of so many innocent and so many righteous soules for all the bloud of all the innocent soules from righteous Abel to the bloud of the many innocents lately shed in Ireland and elsewhere must be charged upon the Pope and that Generation * And thus God judgeth the dead Saints cause for so saies the Text Rev. 18. 24. that in them will be found all the bloud of all the Prophets and Saints and of all that were slaine upon earth And that thou shou dst give reward unto thy servants the Prophets and to thy Saints and to them that feare thy name small and great The time of Christs reigning will be the time of Saints rewarding for all their love and all the labour and sufferings of it There is none that ever did any thing for God or that suffered any thing for God but shall be abundantly rewarded for all their doings and sufferings and for all their shame and sufferings shal have a reward of double joy according to that passage Isa 61. 7. For your shame you shal have double and for confusion they shal rejoyce in their portion therefore in their land they shall possesse the double everlasting joy shall be unto them And the reward which Christ will give when he hath thus brought down his enemies shall be universall to all his Saints not only as some have conceived unto those Saints that have been Martyr'd for Christ but to all his Saints which are here exprest under various denominations that so all Saints may see themselves here included and therefore first it is thus exprest That thou shouldst give reward unto thy servants the Prophets by which in generall is meant all Saints for all Saints have in a measure a spirit of Prophesie For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of Prophesie saies the Angell Rev. 19. 10. but more peculiarly by Prophets is ordinarily understood the great preachers and publishers of Gospell-truths those that are gifted and inabled to hold forth publikely to edification exhortation and comfort Gospell truths for this is prophesying as 1 Cor. 14. 3. and now if there had in this place been no other description given of the Saints which should have been rewarded by Christ but only this his servants the Prophets there might have been some question made whether this did include all Saints and it might be taken only for publike officers but it therefore follows and to thy Saints this is a more generall word and herein all saints might be satisfied though they be not so eminently gifted as others are since this word is added and to thy Saints but if any should yet conceive that they are not here included seeing some that are Saints are sometimes under some doubtings of their Saintship therefore it follows And to them that feare thy name so that if they have but a true filiall sonlike feare of God they may hereby be encouraged but yet further that there may not be any discouraged for their weakeness because they are lookt upon as little ones as babes or because they are low in the world it therefore followes and to them that feare thy name small and great all Saints from the most eminent Prophet and Teacher to the meanest and tenderest babe that waites upon and loves and feares the Lord Jesus shall all be rewarded at his comming not that any thing they
his and their enemies in these words Come out of her my people and reward her even as she hath rewarded you and double unto her double according to her workes in the cup which shee hath filled fill to her double how much she hath glorified her selfe and lived deliciously so much torment and sorrow give her And thus much in answer to this objection Thus have I shewne that the Lambe having raised his Saints hath in part overcome and is going on to overcome the ten Kings in which he will make use of his saints as his instruments And now I am to go on to declare * How the ten Kings shall so imbrace Christ as they shall hate the whore that as the ten Kings or Kingdomes for it is not the Kings alone but the Kingdomes also that hee will overcome shall be subdued by the Lambe and his saints So will he so poure out his spirit upon the people of those Kingdomes as they shall not unwillingly I meane many of them or at least such a part as shall rule the rest in those Kingdomes but willingly yeeld obedience to him that hath subdued them and that in love to him And this appeares in the sixteenth verse * Rev. 17. And the ten hornes which thou sawest upon the Beast these shall hate the whore and make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and shall burne her with fire Thus those that were once one with the Beast when they are overcome by the Lambe shall have such cleer light given to them to discover truth and shall be so freed from the smoake of the bottomlesse pit which is in the Beasts Kingdome and shall have such cleere light given to them as they so cleerly see the delusions and the abominable filthy practises of the Babylonish crew as their hearts shall rise against them and they shall loath and hate them and then shall willingly and freely yeeld obedience to the Lamb that overcame them and ruine that cursed City Rome which is stil'd the Whore the Mother of Harlots and abominations of the Earth Of this destruction of Rome I shall speake more fully in its place But first I must declare what things must precede it for about these daies when the Kings or Kingdomes are thus overcome and also converted and enlightned and before the ruine of Rome the Gospel shall be preached universally unto all Nations and Kindreds and Tongues and People which doubtlesse will bee effectuall to the bringing in of multitudes both Jews and Gentiles the manner of which I should here proceed cleerly and particularly to describe but before I proceed any further therein I shall make a little necessary digression For first I must make it to appear * Jesus Christ in the yeare 1645. began to take his Kingdome that Jesus Christ in the yeare 1645. began to take his Kingdome and this I shall cleare to the end we may the more orderly proceed in describing what is to follow Now that it is so appeares Rev. 11. where it is said that when the witnesses are raised that then the seventh Trumpet was sounded and then it is expresly said that the kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever Thus expresly is it said to be done upon the resurrection of the witnesses and before all his judgements are powred out upon his enemies some of which are mentioned in the following verses And so in this 27. verse of this seventh Chapter of Daniel it is said that when the time times and halfe a time are come to an end and the little Horn is overcome by the Saints that immediately upon this the Kingdome and Dominion and the greatness of the Kingdome under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the Saints of the most High whose Kingdome is an everlasting Kingdome and all Rulers shall serve and obey him But it may be objected how can this be said to be so seeing that we see the great Monarchs of the world or the toes of the 4 Monarchs mentioned Dan. 2. among whom the world is divided do yet possesse most of the severall Dominions under the whole heaven these only of England and Ireland excepted and they do not any of them stoope to the Scepter of Christ nor to his Government but they do exclude it wholly and rule according to their own tyranicall wils and pleasures To this I answer That although we see not yet those many Kingdomes and Dominions of the world subjected unto Christ yet this may be true notwithstanding and will appeare if we consider that the Kingdome of Christ in the beginning of it in the second of Daniel is said to be a stone cut out of the Mountaine without hands that should smite the Image upon his feet and breake them to peeces which stone was to become a glorious Kingdome and fill the whole earth by which it appeares that the beginning of this Kingdome should be so small as it should not appeare whence it came it should be a stone cut out of the Mountaine it should not appeare to be any Mountaine but to be a stone at first but afterwards to become a great Mountain and fill the whole earth Againe at first it should appeare as a stone cut out of the Mountaine without hands it should so miraculously appeare at first as it should seeme to be done without hands without the power or strength or help of the Kings Princes or Monarchs of the world and when the witnesses were first raised what help of the strength and power of the Kings and Monarchs of the world had they What hands assisted them Were they not a company of poore weake despised people in the eyes of the world that were indeed but as a little stone cut out of the Mountaine of the whole world without hands and yet this little stone cut out of the Mountaine without hands must and undoubtedly shall smite the Image upon his feet and break in peeces the Iron and the Clay and the Brass and the silver and the Gold together and not cease untill its selfe become a Mountaine filling the whole earth Jesus Christ having begun to take to him his great power and to reigne will not cease untill he have subjected every Dominion to his Royall Scepter and made them to serve and obey him which he is going on apace to do and will doubtlesse go on swifter yet and the neerer he is to the end of his worke the swifter is his motion like to be Thus have I digrest from what was in hand being to describe the manner of bringing in of multitudes to the obedience of Christ to this end that notice might be taken of this along as I go that what Christ doth herein is in order to the becomming a great mountaine according to the phrase of the Prophet but now to return I was shewing * When the Gospell must
be preached to all nations how that when the Lambe had overcome the ten Kings that then before the ruine of Rome the Gospell should be universally Preached unto all Nations and this is cleer Rev. 14. In the five first verses of that Chapter we have a declaration of Jesus Christ his standing upon mount Sion his appearing for to own his people and of his peoples being gathered unto him which are described to be pure and undefiled and redeemed ones to God and to the Lord Jesus and they are said to be the first fruits and to follow the Lambe wheresoever he goeth implying that they are the first of those that were called to waite upon the Lambe in the services that he hath to do for them in order to the setting up of his Kingdome They were brought in to him before the everlasting Gospel was generally preached and before the fall of Babylon They were the first fruits Now who are these first fruits that now stand upon mount Sion with the Lamb and follow him whithersoever he goeth Doubtlesse those whom he hath now called forth to follow him and those that he will call out of the rest of the ten Kingdomes Well what follows In the 6 7 and 8. verses And I saw an Angell flye in the midst of heaven having the everlasting Gospell to preach unto them that dwell on the earth and to every nation and kindred and tongue and people saying with a loud voice feare God and give glory to him for the houre of his judgement is come and worship him that made heaven and earth and the sea and the fountaines of waters and there followed another Angell saying Babylon is fallen is fallen that great City c. Here we see that before the fall of Babylon and yet after the first fruits are come in to the Lambe the Gospell must be preached to all Nations and doubtlesse glorious and wonderfull will be the proceedings of Jesus Christ in the world now that he hath begun to take the Kingdomes and Dominions thereof into his possession he hath done great things in some Kingdomes already and he will do the like in others shortly and will powre out his spirit withall upon them and so cause the light to appeare unto them as shall effectually discover unto them the basenesse the viciousnesse the filthinesse and the abominablenesse of the cursed Doctrines of the Beast and the whore and cause them to loath them and to publish and manifest their dislike and hatred of them to all the world and with much zeale and fervency of spirit will all such as shall bee enlightened and thereunto qualified preach and publish the cleare truths of the Gospell in opposition to the false Doctrines of Antichrist in all parts of the world and unto all nations discovering also unto them the glad tidings of the Gospell to the saving of their soules and the turning of them from Idols and vanities to serve the true and living God Of the Jews Conversion ANd by this meanes way will be made for the bringing in of the Jewes who are at this day earnestly expecting of and waiting for the comming of the Messias Christ the anointed to bee their King their Saviour and their Prophet But before the ten Kings doe hate the Whore and before they manifest to all the world a detestation of her they cannot come in but then shall the everlasting Gospell be preached to all Nations Jewes and Gentiles and a spirit of zeale for Christ will bee then upon the Saints so as they shall not bee able to withhold from preaching the Gospel more generally in all the world But if now any faithfull and able Minister of the new Covenant which is the Ministration of life and the Ministration of the Spirit should goe and preach Jesus Christ unto the Jewes and publish glad tidings to them and tell them that the Messias is come and that Jesus Christ is he who will bee their King and Lord and Prophet and Saviour and will save them from all their sinnes if they beleeve in him and that he will restore all things to them and do glorious things for them alas they would scarce now say of such Blessed is hee that commeth in the Name of the Lord and why because they cannot beleeve that the Lord Jesus Christ in whom we beleeve and rejoyce and glory and who is our light and life and peace and joy and strength and all in all is indeed the Messias and the Saviour of all the ends of the earth as we know and beleeve he is and why cannot they beleeve it because that great Whore the City of Rome who pretends to have power over all that are called Christians is such a filthy abominable hatefull strumpet such a mother of harlots and abominations * What is the present let of the Iewes cunversion Whereas the Jewes keep close to the Old Testament and to the Law contained therein which is holy just and good And they know and are assured in the Old Testament that when the Messias comes hee will turne away ungodlinesse from Jacob he will cleanse them from all their corruptions and all their waies that are not good and that they that are his shall be a holy people a people taught of God and therefore they cannot beleeve him to be the true Messias whom such polluted openly profane and impudently filthy creatures as the Romanists are professe to bee their Saviour For besides many others there are five things especially which the Jews take offence at in the practises of that cursed crew as First their worshipping of Images and statues and crosses and crucifixes and such like trumpery Secondly their loathsome hatefull and excessive giving up of themselves unto uncleane lusts tolerating and allowing themselves and others in them as in fornication adultery sodomie and beastiality practises which the very heathen abhor and yet these abominable sins the Popes Cardinals Bishops and Priests and others of all ranks are frequent in the practice of granting liberty to all that are under their jurisdictions to live in the practice of them if they do but purchase a pardon with mony from the Pope for them Thirdly frequent murthers teaching it to be no sin to murther an Hereticke and tolerating such as are murtherers Fourthly Their tolerating of drunkenness and oaths Fifthly Their allowing of sorcery and witchcraft most of their Priests being sorcerers For these things especially but for many others also are the Jewes offended and cannot beleeve him to be the true Messias that shall be the Saviour of such prophane persons for they are assured that such persons cannot be the people of God They know that Adulterers and Idolaters and Sorcerers and Murtherers and Swearers and Lyers shall not enter into the Kingdome of God None shall come into his holy * Ps 15. 1 2. and 24. 2 3. Hill saies David but such as have cleane hands and a pure heart and this they know and therefore do
and having salvation and he shall speak peace unto the heathen and his dominion shall be even from sea to sea and from the river even to the ends of the earth And Zech. 8. 21 22 23. The inhabitants of one city shall go to another saying Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts I will go also Yea many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and pray before the Lord. And in those days men shall take hold out of all languages in the nations even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew saying We will go with you for we have heard that God is with you Thus the Spirit of God in Scripture hath cleerly set forth the conversion of the Gentiles together with the Jews in these several Scriptures that I have mentioned And as it is cleer in these Scriptures so there are several other Scriptures wherein it is as cleer but I shall adde onely one more and it 's a Scripture that speaks of the conversion and turning to God of two particular Nations which at this day are yet Idolaters as well as many others and in the state of gross darkness and unbelief and they are the Egyptians and Assyrians Isa 19. the Prophecy hereof begins at vers 18. In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan and swear to the Lord of hosts one shall be called the city of Heres or of the Sun or of shining glory In that day there shall be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord and it shall be for a signe and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors and he shall send them a Saviour and a great one and he shall deliver them and the Lord shall be known to Egypt and the Egyptians shall know the Lord at that day Yea they shall vow a vow unto the Lord and shall perform it and the Lord shall smite Egypt he shall smite and heal it and they shall return unto the Lord and he shall be entreated of them and shall heal them In that day there shall be a high-way out of Egypt to Assyria and the Assyrians shall come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria even a blessing in the midst of the land whom the Lord of hosts shall bless saying Blessed be Egypt my people and Assyria the work of mine hands and Israel mine inheritance In this Prophecy it is very cleer that there is a time to come wherein the Jews shall again be the beloved people of God for never yet was there a time when Israel Egypt and Assyria were all together at one time acknowledged to be the people of God but the time is coming when it shall be so when not onely the Gentiles alone but the Jews also and not onely the Jews alone but the Gentiles also shall be the people of God and when in particular the Egyptians and the Assyrians which are now so deeply involved in darkness and blindness and have no knowledge of God shall be a people blessed of the Lord. For there are in these verses such expressions as do very plainly and cleerly speak the conversion of these Nations As that the Lord shall be known to the Egyptians and the Egyptians shall know the Lord and that they shall engage themselves to the Lord which is expressed under the terms of swearing to the Lord and vowing to the Lord which do cleerly hold forth the engaging of their hearts to the Lord. And again it is said that the Egyptians being oppressed shall cry unto the Lord but they shall not cry in vain for in answer unto their crying he shall send them a Saviour and a great one and he shall deliver them And besides it is said that the Egyptians being smitten of the Lord shall return even to the Lord and he shall be intreated of them and heal them and that the Egyptians being thus converted they shall then and therein be in fellowship with the Assyrians and the Assyrians with them and they both with Israel And thus now is it cleer in these several Scriptures as well as in many others which I forbear to mention to avoid prolixity that the Gentiles shall be plentifully and abundantly brought in to the obedience of Christ whose dominion must be from sea to sea from the rivers unto the ends of the earth and that not onely some Nations but all Nations shall seek after the Lord And that not onely the mean and inferiour sort of the people of the Nations but some of their Kings and Queens and the greatest among them shall come and see the glory of the Lord and become his servants and be supports under him to his people Kings shall be their nursing fathers and Queens their nursing mothers and bring their forces to their support and they not weak ones but many people and strong Nations saith Zechariah in the place forementioned shall come to seek the Lord of Hosts And now having shown that the preaching of the Gospel to all Nations is to follow upon the Lamb his overcoming the ten Kings and that this will probably be the time of the bringing in of Jews and Gentiles because that by the Lord Jesus his so gloriously appearing for his own people and against that scarlet whore Rome and the beast and all that crew way will be made for the coming in of Jews and Gentiles But this by the way I desire may be taken notice of That as many of the Nations as the preaching of the Gospel shall not prevail with to bring them in to the obedience of Christ for multitudes as I have made it evident must come in that way them shall the sword of Justice subdue both before and at and after the ruine of Rome Those whom the grace of the Gospel the tenders of love and the offers of peace win not them vengeance and wrath shall overtake If they will not listen to that voice of the Spirit that says to the Kings of the earth Be wise now therefore O ye Kings and be instructed ye Judges of the earth kiss the Son lest he be angry and ye perish c. then shall he speak unto them in wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure and he shall break them with a rod of Iron and dash them in pieces like a potters vessel Thus he will do with the ten kings and thus he will afterwards do with the other Nations But if any of these ten kings that yet stand out shall be overcome by his love and by receiving the cleer light of the Gospel for there is no question but those his called
destroyed and the manner how it shall be is this When these things we have spoken of shall be thus done viz. When the ten Kings are overcome and do yield obedience to the Lamb and the Gospel is universally preached and Jews and Gentiles are abundantly converted to Christ and Rome is ruined the Pope being then turned out of Rome and he with his Cardinals Bishops and Jesuits being lurking in some other places up and down in the world shall still act like himself and shew himself to be the Beast still retaining his cursed nature continuing in enmity against Christ and his Saints and being so shall resolve not to give all for lost yet though he be thus far prevailed against but shall resolve to make one desperate attempt more against the Saints and to this end shall send abroad his Emissaries unto all the unconverted Kings and great men of the earth whom neither the Gospel of peace nor sword of war hath overcome and shall gather them all together which shall make a very great Army with which they shall think to destroy all the Saints who at this time will be increased to a very great number the Jews and multitudes of the Gentiles being brought in before this last battel but when they are brought in they will meet with opposition from this man of sin and from the rest of the wicked of the world who will not have Christ to raign over them And this Beast I say will gather together all the unconverted Kings of the earth and all their Armies thinking to destroy the Saints Jews and Gentiles but they shall not neither first nor last prevail upon them but they shall be overcome and foiled still so that now at last they shall grow desperate and say as some now do they will now fight for it and they will either win all or lose all for the Beast and the Kings of the earth are gathered together with their Armies of prophane wicked men for none else are with them to make war against Jesus Christ and his Armies of Saints In which last battel wherein the utmost strength of all the enemies of Christ and his Saints shall be united together shall the controversie between the one and the other be decided and the flesh of these Kings and Captains and mighty men of the earth and of all their Armies shall be given to the fowles of the aire and all this more largely appears Rev. 19. 11. 12 c. And I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true and in righteousness he doth judge and make war his eys were as a flame of fire and on his head were many Crowns and he had a name written that no man knew but he himself And he was clothed with a vesture dipt in blood and his name is called the word of God and the Armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses clothed in fine linen white and clean And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword that with it he should smite the Nations and he shall rule them with a rod of Iron and he treadeth the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS And I saw an Angel standing in the Sun and he cryed with a lowd voice saying to all the fowls that flie in the midst of heaven Come and gather your selves together unto the supper of the great God that ye may eat the flesh of Kings and the flesh of Captains and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of them that sit on them and the flesh of all men both of free and bond both small and great And I saw the Beast and the Kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse and against his army And the beast was taken and with him the false Prophet that wrought miracles before him with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the Beast and them that worshipped his image These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sate upon the horse which sword proceeded out of his mouth and all the fowls were filled with their flesh In these words we see is a plain description of two Generals and their Armies and of a battel fought between them and of the success of the battel The description of the great Lord General of the Army of Saints The first General is described by his Name by his Frame and by his Aym. First by his Nanme And he is called faithful and true and his name is called the Word of God and he hath a Name written KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS And this is the Name and Title of the Lord Jesus Christ alone But secondly He is described also by his Frame and posture in which he is thus He sat upon a white horse Which manifests his purity And his eys were as a flame of fire Which shews the piercing discerning nature of them being the searcher of hearts and trier of the reins And on his head are many Crowns Which shews that all the Crowns of all Kingdomes must be put upon his head who is KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS And this is the Frame and posture in which he is But thirdly He is described also by his Aym thus that in righteousness he doth judge and make war He ayms at doing justice making war against the Beast and judging that other Army according to righteousness and that he may so do his Aym is to give them blood to drink and that in righteousness for they are worthy and therefore he is said to be clothed in a vesture dipt in blood and that out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword that with it he should smite the Nations Out of his mouth it goeth that is he commandeth with the word of his mouth a sharp sword to smite the Nations and this justly And his Aym is to rule the nations with a rod of Iron And this in righteousness and to tread the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God And in all this may it be said unto him Righteous art thou O Lord who hast judged thus The Description of his Army But in the next place we have his Army described thus And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses clothed in fine linen white and clean Where first we may observe the place where they were and that is heaven which shews that they are armies of the Church that they are Saints for the Church of God is all along the Prophecy of the Book of the Revelation called Heaven Now these Armies that follow this General are the Armies in Heaven the Armies in the Churches of Christ and out of heaven also
Rock Christ Jesus that cannot be moved and sure provision shall be made for him And he shall see the King in his beauty The Lord Jesus who shall then appear in his glory and his excellent beauty as I shall shew by and by shall this mans eyes behold and these new heavens and new earth that shall then come which in the Prophets days was very far off shall this mans eyes see which land is described vers 20 c. Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation a tabernacle that shall not be taken down not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken and the inhabitant shall not say I am sick and the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity But to proceed Of this terrible day that shall come upon wicked men there is a large description in the whole 24 Chapter of Isaiah but I shall mention but some of the passages of it as vers 1. Behold the Lord maketh the earth empty and maketh it waste and turneth it upside down and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof Here the Prophet shews how the Lord will depopulate the earth making it as it were empty so great will be the slaughter of wicked men and then he shews what changes and mutations he will make in the earth in that he will turn it upside down make it appear no more as it was before but make it a new make new heavens and a new earth But how shall this be done That the world shall be made new and emptied of wicked men Doth the Prophet declare as Peter doth that it shall be done by fire Yes At vers 6. The earth is defiled therefore hath the curse devoured the earth and they that dwell therein are desolate therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned and few men left Thus the Prophet speaks of the destruction of the wicked of the earth by fire There are several other expressions in this Chapter that shew the dreadfulness of this day as vers 19. The earth is utterly broken down the earth is clean dissolved the earth is moved exceedingly As Peter expresses himself Seeing that all these things shall be dissolved what manner of persons c. so doth the Prophet here say The earth is clean dissolved c. But if any should ask the Prophet Why what is the meaning of all these expressions in the declaration of what shall come upon the earth What is to be done Wherefore will the Lord do all these things The Prophet at the first verse tells ye and says That in that day the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high and the kings of the earth upon the earth So that this is the time when he shall wound the Heads over many Countries when he shall strike thorow kings in the day of his wrath when he shall rule them with a rod of iron that will not stoop to the golden scepter of his grace Thus terrible and dreadful will this day be to wicked men And if it should be said to the Prophet Who shall live when God doth this He tells ye in the midst of this declaration of the desolations that are to come upon the inhabitants of the earth vers 16. We have heard songs even glory to the righteous implying that this great day which is the day of wicked mens greatest distress shall be the time of the Saints greatest glory joy and exaltation Now is the time of their singing for joy of heart come But again there is another description of the terribleness of this day in the 50 Psalm which Psalm is a clear Prophesie of this day wherein God will call that wicked crue that have nothing to do to take his Word into their mouthes to an account where the Prophet speaks in the same language with the Prophets and Apostles already mentioned and says vers 4. Our God shall come and shall not keep silence a fire shall devour before him and it shall be very tempestous round about Here also is this day represented to the terrour of wicked men But at the same time the Psalmist says that to him that ordereth his conversation aright he that is the Lord will shew the salvation of God Such a man shall be saved when the wicked shall be devoured Again the terribleness of this day is set out in several other Scriptures But having produced so many already I shall onely mention one more and proceed to what I have further to say and that is Isai 30. 30. The Lord shall cause his glorious voice to be heard and shall shew the lighting down of his arm with the indignation of his anger and with the flame of a devouring fire with scattering and tempest and hail-stones Thus the Prophet here sets out the terrour of that day when the Lord shall at last be fully avenged on his enemies he shall then shew the lighting down of his arm it shall then appear to be his arm indeed by which his enemies shall be overcome And he shall cause his glorious voice to be heard and manifest his indignation and anger against the enemies of his people with a flame of a devouring fire with scattering and tempest and hail-stones But who shall live when God doth this The Prophet vers 26 27. tells us that this day shall be the day when the Lord bindeth up the breach of his people and healeth the stroke of their wound and that in it unto them the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold as the light of seven days So that though it shall be terrible to their enemies yet it shall be the most glorious and happie day to his people that ever was since the beginning of the world and because it shall be so it 's said Isai 24. forementioned that they shall lift up their voice they shall sing for the majesty of the Lord they shall glorifie the Lord in the fires even the Name of the Lord God of Israel in the Isles of the Sea And thus I have laid down that description which is given in several Scriptures of this great day of the Lord wherein he will by fire and by his sword and by tempest and hail-stones manifest his indignation and wrath against the enemies of his people so as multitudes multitudes shall be slain So as the earth shall be emptied of them So many shall be slain as there shall be few men left And that when it 's thus the earth shal be turned upside down and there shall be new Heavens and a new Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness For the wicked and the wickedness of the Earth shall be so burnt up as in that respect iâ— shall become a new earth and new heavens wherein righteousness shal remain and flourish And now having thus done I should now proceed to shew that immediately upon this day when
all the enemies of Christ are made his footstool that at this very time shall Jesus Christ appear with his Saints to raign on earth Of the time when the full deliverance of the Jews and Gentiles shall be compleated But first a word or two about the time when it shall be that Jesus Christ will work this full deliverance for his Saints from their enemies when this great day of his appearing shall be Now in general the time when this last great overthrow of wicked men and this wonderful glorious and compleat deliverance of the Saints shall be after the Lamb hath overcome the ten Kings And after the Gospel hath been preached to all Nations for the bringing in of Jews and Gentiles and after Rome is burnt as we have already said But some may say But how many yeers may it be before these things shall be done If it might be we would know the direct time for it may be long before all these things may be done before the ten Kings are overcome and before the Jews may be converted and the Gentiles fulness come in and before Rome is destroyed and long before that great day come and according to reason it will be a very long time if we should judge according to sense but that we know that beyond sense and reason the Lord can make a short work of it and cut it short in righteousness But if the Scripture do give any hint of the time we desire to know it To this I answer first that I believe this is enough to satisfie a Saint and to make his heart joyful to know that the time of the prevailing power of the Saints enemies over them is come to an end and that they shall never overcome them any more but the Lamb is already seen to be come upon mount Sion where he hath called out his called chosen and faithful ones with which he will go on conquering and to conquer and by whom he will ruine Rome and execute upon his enemies the judgement written I say this is matter of joy to a Saint to know that Christ is a doing these things though they do not know when he will finish this or that particuler work But secondly and more particularly For the yeer in which or neer to which this great day shall be wherein the enemies of the Saints both Jews and Gentiles that shall be converted shall be I shall here propose my apprehensions and leave them to the judicious wise and intelligent Christian to judge of them * Dan. 12. 10. And for this I must have recourse to Dan 12. a chapter which speaks plainly and particularly of this great day of the final deliverance of the Saints in general though particularly it mention but the Jews for the one cannot be without the other as in v. 1. At that time shall Michael stand up the great Prince which standeth for the children of thy people and there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a Nation This is that great day we have spoken of wherein there shall be such a dismal terrible time to wicked men in general as never was since the world began But it shall be as I said to wicked men but not to the converted Jews nor Gentiles not to the Saints And therefore it follows in this verse And at that time thy people shall be delivered every one that shall be found written in the book When Michael the Prince i. e. Jesus Christ the great Prince of Israel even of all the Israel of God shall stand up for them in this great day then will he vex their enemies put them to such trouble as there never was the like But all his own people who have given up their names to him who are listed in his book shall be delivered This shall be the work of that great day and that which shall follow immediately upon it follows in v. 2 3. of the chap. whereby it is evident that this chapter speaks of this great day of the deliverance both of Jews and Gentiles Though to Daniel being a Jew there is no mention made of the Gentiles but of his people onely Well this being a prophecy of this great day let us now see what in this chapter is spoken of the time Now I finde that this Chapter speaks of three distinct periods of time in which three distinct remarkable things shall come to pass in order to the deliverance of the Saints And the first time mentioned the 6 and 7 verses speak to and in the 6 verse this question is made How long shall it be to the end of these wonders To which in the 7 verse a double answer is given which is confirmed with a very solemn Oath first that it should be for a time times and a half and secondly that when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people all these things shall be finished Now for the first of these answers because I have had occasion already to open the meaning of it * In my book intituled The Resurrection of the witnesses and have shewed that the same expressions in the Revelation and this here agree in one and point at one and the same thing namely the flourishing time of the Beast the prevailing time of the Beast wherein he shall have power to overcome the Saints and to trample them under foot even fourty two months or a time times and half a time And having cleared this and shewed when that time did expire and that after that time neither the Beast nor the little Horn prevailed any more I say having spoken of these things already I shall refer the Reader thereunto where they shall finde that in 1645 the Beast ceased to prevail against the Saints and the time wherein he should tread the holy Citie under foot then came to an end and neither he nor his associates shall ever prevail more And then this is the effect of the first answer to the question That there should be a time times and an half and then an end should come in which time times and half the Saints should be kept under by enemies but then an end should come and deliverance come And the second branch of the answer makes this clearly to be the meaning of the former which is in these words And when he shall have accomplished to have scattered the power of the holy people all these things shall be finished In which first is clear that there should be a time when the power of the holy people should be scattered the Saints should be destitute of power to oppose an enemy and consequently should be kept under by an enemy Secondly This is clear in these words that there should be a time when this should be accomplished or compleated I mean their power being scattered there should be a time when it should be fully done for then a thing is accomplished when it is fully done as much as
hundred and ninety but to the one thousand three hundred and five and thirty days So then the full and compleat deliverance of the Church when this great day will come when all the enemies of the Church will be subdued will be at the period of the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days Now if to the yeer 0366 there be added 1335 it makes up just 1701 And in this year or neer this yeer one thousand seven hundred and one I am perswaded that day will be having my ground of this perswasion from this Scripture as I have laid it down which I leave to the consideration of prudent Christians I shall now proceed And now I come to speak of those things which are to follow immediately upon this great day of which first a word in general and then I shall descend unto particulars But in general thus Immediately upon the ruining of the enemies of Christ and his Saints in the manner we have spoken of and upon the passing away of the old Heavens and the old earth shall be fulfilled that which is spoken in Rev. 21. 1 2 3. And I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth and the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea And I John saw the holy city new Jerusalem come down from God out of heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband And I heard a great voice from heaven saying Behold the tabernacle of God is with men and he will dwell with them and they shall be his people and God himself shall be with them and be their God c. That which I take notice of in these verses of which to speak a word in general before I descend to particulars is this That the new Jerusalem here is said to come dome down from God out of Heaven This glorious state and condition in which the Saints shall be put after this great day is to be here on Earth and therefore it is said to come come down from God out of Heaven First in that it is said to come down it argues that it is not above but below for it is to come down from above And secondly In that it is said to be from God out of Heaven it speaks plainly that it is not to be taken for that Glory which the Saints shall have in the * By the Heavens above I mean that place which is far above all Heavens to which the Apostle saies Jesus Christ ascended Eph. 4. 10. Of which Heaven the Lord says it is his Throne and the earth his footstool Isa 66. 1. The height and glory of which place the thoughts of men are alas too shallow to apprehend But the Heaven above it is called in respect of the height and transcendency of the glory of it above the earth that now is or above the new Heaven and the new Earth that shall be in the time we are speaking of which shall come down from God out of Heaven from that inaccessible glory and that unapproachable splendor that none eye hath seen or can see in the beholding of which the Angels do veil and cover their faces 1 Tim. 6. 16. Isa 6. 1. Heavens above to all eternity with God but a glorious estate which comes down from God out of Heaven unto them which they are to injoy for a thousand yeers here below in which time the Tabernacle of God shal be with men and they shall be visibly seen to be his people and God himself shall be among them and be their God and the effects therof shal be glorious as appears by what follows But this onely is that in general which I here take notice of that this new-Jerusalem-glory is to be on earth when there shall be a new molding and a new making of the Heaven and of the earth and of the particular mutations and changes that there shall then be I shall now speak Of the personal appearance of CHRIST And Of the Resurrection of his Saints to Raign with him on Earth ANd in the first place I shall speak of the personal appearance of Jesus Christ and the Resurrection of his Saints to raign on earth with him That Christ shall personally appear is a point that is I know much controverted and is very much doubted by many Saints who are eminently godly and whom I do very much honour and reverence who yet are confident that he will very gloriously appear in the treading down his enemies in the ruining of the Beast and the setling of his people in peace and filling of them with his Spirit but they question whether our Lord Jesus shall any otherwise appear then to be their spiritual eyes and then as now for now they spiritually discern him in his present footsteps in the world And it being thus dubious to many I was inclining to be silent in it but that the light shining so clearly to me in the following Scriptures which I shall mention hath such power and force with me as I cannot but hold it forth leaving it to the more serious consideration of intelligent Christians And the Position that I shall lay down is this That our Lord Jesus Christ having subdued his enemies shall personally appear on earth and shall raise up the Saints before departed out of this world to come and reign with him on earth To prove this we have several Scriptures and I shall begin first with that known clear place Revel 20. The description of the total overthrow of the Beast and all the Armies that were gathered together with him to make war against Jesus Christ and his Saints being laid down in the preceding Chapter in this Chapter follows a declaration of what things will succeed it and that which is to this purpose is in the 4 5 6 verses And I saw thrones and they sate upon them and judgement was given unto them And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the Word of God and which had not worshipped the beast neither his image neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand yeers But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand yeers were finished This is the first resurrection Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection 〈◊〉 such the second death hath no power but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand yeers In these verses this is laid down That the Saints of God which had been Martyrs and sufferers under the Beast should be raised from the dead and be advanced to sit upon thrones and judgement should be given unto them and they should live and reign with Christ a thousand yeers But though the Saints should be thus raised that yet this is not the General Resurrection wherein all the just and unjust shall be raised no for
had seen him go into Heaven and as Angels then attended him so will Angels much more at his appearing attend him and he shall come with power and great glory Now we know that as the Apostle says of the Resurrection of the body that it 's raised spiritual it 's sown a natural body it 's raised a spiritual body it 's sown in corruption it 's raised in incorruption it 's sown in dishonour it 's raised in glory it 's sown in weakness it 's raised in power So we know was the body of Christ after his resurrection it was not a natural body but a spiritual it was not corruptible but an incorruptible it was not mean nor weak but glorious and powerful and being thus a spiritual body and incorruptible c. it was quick in motion upon a sudden appearing to his Disciples and suddenly gone from them again And it was passable to all places it appears to the Disciples when the dores are shut and asccnds up into the Heavens in their sight These things a natural body cannot do but a spiritual and a glorious can And therefore he is said to come as the lightning that quickly shineth from one end of the Heaven to the other so can the body of Christ when he appeareth quickly pass from one end of the Heaven to another to be visibly seen of all his Saints to their joy but to the terrour of their enemies and so he will come in the clouds and every eye shall see him with power and great glory And as the Scriptures speak thus of Christ in his coming so there are Scriptures which speak of the Saints in their appearing with him As Col. 3. 4. When Christ who is our life shall appear then shall we appear with him in glory Thus the Saints then were fully perswaded of the appearing of Jesus Christ and spake often of it and knew that at his appearing as he should appear in power and great glory so they should appear with him in glory And so again 1 Joh. 3. 2. Beloved now are we the sons of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is And so again Phil. 3. 20 21. For our conversation is in heaven from whence also we look for the Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body according to the working whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself Thus in this manner shall the Saints that come with him appear with him in glory and their bodies being raised shall be fashioned like unto his glorious body And now I shall conclude all that I have said touching this glorious appearing of Christ on earth and the Saints raigning with him on earth with that precious Counsel of our blessed Saviour worthy the dayly observation of all Saints as the use which is to be made of all that which is in Scripture spoken of this appearing and kingdom of Jesus Christ which we have Luke 21. 36. Watch ye therefore and pray always that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and stand before the Son of man Knowing what he hath said Rev. 22. 20. He which testifieth these things saith Surely I come quickly Amen Even so Come Lord Jesus Of the ceasing of wars and the perfect peace and tranquility that shall be enjoyed for a thousand yeers I now proceed in the further description of this new world the new Heavens and the new Earth which is to follow upon that great day we have spoken of And in the next place shall shew how that after this time and during this thousand yeers of the Saints raigning with Christ on earth all wars shall cease All the enemies of the Church being thus gloriously overcome as hath been shewed there shall be no enemy left that shall ever stir so much as to prepare to make war against the Saints any more And this is cleer Micah 4. 3. and Isa 2. 4. Where it is said that in the last days when the mountain of the Lords house shall be established in the top of the mountains that then they shall beat their swords into plow-shares and their spears into pruning-hooks Nation shall not lift up sword against Nation neither shall they learn war any more There shall be such peace and tranquility and this peace so firm and they so certain of the abiding of it as that they shall see that they shall have no need of using swords and spears any more And therefore they shall beat these instruments of war which they shall no more use into instruments of husbandry which they then living in peace shall have occasion to use For they shall sow seed and reap it and plant vineyards and drink the fruit thereof And therefore Micah thus expresses the peace they shall have Mic. 4. 4. They shal sit every man under his vine under his fig-tree and none shall make them afraid They shall have no fear of war none shall make them afraid Such peace shall they have And Isa 33. 20. the Prophet speaking of these peaceful times speaks thus Thine eys shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation a tabernacle that shall not be broken down not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken Which fully manifesteth what security or rather what stability there shall be in these times of peace Again Isa 32. 18. the peace of these times is thus exprest And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation and in sure dwellings and in quiet resting places And Isa 60. 17 18. it is further exprest thus In that day saith the Lord to his Sion I will make thy officers peace and thine exactors righteousness violence shall no more be heard in thy land wasting nor destruction within thy borders thou shalt call thy walls salvation and thy gates praise Thus with full and emphatical expressions is the peace and tranquility of the Church in these times set forth There are many other passages to this purpose but these being sufficient I shall adde no more in this place but proceed Of the binding of Satan for a thousand yeers And the next thing I shall speak of as that which is to be done immediately upon this great day of the overthrow of the Saints enemies and the setling of them in peace shall be this That not onely the external and visible enemies of the Saints shall be subdued and put under the * Mal. 4. feet of Christ and his Saints but that also their internal and invisible enemies shall be chained up for now the Saints wrestle not onely with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers and spiritual wickednesses in high places and now their adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour
shall be seen upon thee And the Gentiles shall come to thy light and kings to the brightness of thy rising And v. 19 20. The sun shall be no more thy light by day neither for brightness shall the moon give light to thee but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light and thy God thy glory Thy sun shall no more go down neither shall thy moon withdraw it self for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light and the days of thy mourning shall be ended How glorious shall the Church be when thus the glory of the Lord shall be seen upon them in such fulness It is true there is in every true Saint and hath been in the darkest times of Popery in the times of their greatest weakness and darkness some true glory But how hath it been besmeared and eclipsed with their weaknesses and corruptions that have appeared in them But now the Spirit shall be poured so abundantly upon them as they shall arise and shine Now the Sun and Moon shall be no more their light those means and appointments wherein formerly they received light and saw some brightness they shall now be no lights comparatively for being compared with those full pourings out of the Spirit that they shall then have and those immediate inlightnings they shall then receive from God they shall be no lights and be of no use unto them because the Lord will be their everlasting light and their God their glory And it being so their Sun shall no more go down nor their Moon withdraw its self and the days of their mourning shall be ended They shall no more have a midnight of Popery overspreading them nor no more be burthened and bowed down by corruptions nor no more be afflicted by their enemies Their mourning dark days are past away and they shall live in joy light and glory for ever But thus having spoken in the general of the happy condition in which the Saints shall be in regard of the fulness of the Spirit which shall be poured out upon them I shall now proceed to the particular effects which the Spirit shall then work in them as the Scripture declares that the Saints in these days shall be filled with the Spirit 1 By which they shall be filled with knowledge 2 By which they shall be in an humble frame 3 By which they shall be filled with love 4 By which they shall be filled with a holy filial fear 5 By which they shall be enabled to worship the Lord acceptably 6 By which they shall be all united 7 By which they shall be enabled to act justly and righteously 8 By which they shall be put into a meek and sweet frame 9 By which the weak shall be made strong 10 By which they shall be enabled to speak a pure language 11 By which their minds and affections shall be raised and made heavenly 12 By which their wills shall be swallowed up in the will of God 13 By which they shall walk in the integrity and singleness of their hearts 14 By which they shall be enabled to mortifie all corruptions 15 By which they shall appear very glorious in the eyes of all 16 By which they shall be enabled to make a holy use of all the creatures And 17 By which they shall abundantly be filled with divine joy I shall begin with the first That the Saints having an abundant measure of the Spirit shall then be filled with knowledg * How Saints shall be fil'd with knowledge And this appears cleerly in that known place Isa 11. 9 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea This whole chapter is a cleer Prophecie of this time when there shall be new Heavens and a new earth and an universal rectitude shall appear in all the world as appears in that chapter Then shall knowledge abound in the world the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord. It is not said With humane knowledge but that knowledge which is infinitely transcendent unto all humane knowledge the knowledge of the Lord yea so full of divine light and knowledge shall they then be as they shall have no cause to complain that they have but little and they want more for if the Sea may be said to want waters then may they complain but they shall have no cause for they shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the Sea in this day when Jesus Christ and his Saints shall gloriously reign on earth And then in a most eminent manner shall that part of the new Covenant be made good which saith they shall no more teach every man his neighbour saying Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least of them to the greatest of them saith the Lord Jer. 31. 34. Though it is true that in a sence this is now made good to the Saints for the least of Saints hath a true knowledge of God though but in a weak degree but then most eminently shall this promise be made good Again Isai 54. 13. in which Chapter the Lord makes many glorious promises of what he will do for his people in this time wherein he will put more glory upon them then ever he hath yet done At the thirteenth verse it's said And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the peace of thy children Thus with an abundant measure of divine knowledge shall Saints be filled in that time But secondly being thus filled with the Spirit they shall be thereby made fully sensible of their own unworthiness and so walk humbly * That Saints shall be in an humble frame in those times before the Lord. For when they shall consider in that time what great and glorious things God hath done for them how he hath magnified his grace to them in giving of them full deliverance and times of peace and joy for all their times of sorrow and doubling their joys for their sorrow as Isai 61. 7. so as they never underwent so many sorrows but they shall partake of double joys and that everlastingly and when they shall consider that all this is from free love and tender mercy to an unworthy people it will put them into a very humble posture And this is clear Ezek. 16. 60 61 c. where the Lord having promised that notwithstanding all the unworthinesses of his people which are there enumerated yet he will do glorious things for them but he tells them that when he doth so for them that then they shall be ashamed of their ways and remember them and be confounded and never open their mouth any more because of their shame when he is pacified toward them The consideration of the grace of God to such as were unworthy shall so melt and humble their hearts before him the Spirit being abundantly in them as they shall never be lifted up in the pride of their hearts
his ways and we will walk in his paths For out of Sion shall go forth the law and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem Here it is evident that he will then clearly discover his will about his Worship to his people and that his people shall purely worship him A parallel place to this we have Zech. 8. 20 21 22. And there shall come people and the inhabitants of many cities and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another saying Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts I will go also Yea many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to pray before the Lord. What is meant by Jerusalem here spoken of Whether it may be mystically or literally taken I will not here dispute but whether it be taken mystically or literally this is cleer that in this time the multitudes of the Saints of God in all Nations shall cleerly know the minde of God about his worship and by the Spirit shall be enabled purely to perform it But here some may question what Ordinances shall be used at that time And how shall Saints then worship God To which in answer I say That what Ordinances there shall then be used is hard to be determined in regard the Scripture speaks not directly and particularly what the Ordinances are that shall then be used but as the practice of some of them is to be referred for those times onely so likewise is the cleer knowledge of them not to be had till those times And for my part I shall not dare not presume to speak any thing about the Ordinances or manner in Worship that shall be in these times but what the Scripture cleerly holdeth forth which is doubtless sufficient for us to know And first to speak of what shall not then be practised I finde it implyed by Paul 1 Cor. 11. 26. * That the Ordinance of the Supper shall then cease that the Ordinance of breaking bread shall not be then practised for he says there that in that Ordinance they do shew forth the Lords death till he come implying that when he cometh and is present with his people it shall not be then practised they shall not need to do that in remembrance of him as now they are commanded to do But whether any other Ordinance shall cease or not the Scripture is silent And the Scripture being silent who dares say that any other shall cease Though on the other hand there be no ground to say that such or such an Ordinance shall continue if the Scripture say it not But secondly This the Scripture cleerly speaks that that part of the worship of God which consisteth in * How God shall then be worshipped in prayer and praises Prayer and Praise shall continue So that it concerns all to beware how they say that it shall cease for that these shall continue is cleer in the forementioned place Zech. 8. 20 21. Where it is said that many people shall go to seek the Lord of hosts and to pray before the Lord. And Isa 12. 1. 45. In that day thou shalt say O Lord I will praise thee and ye shall say Praise the Lord call upon his name declare his doings among the people make mention that his Name is exalted Sing unto the Lord for he hath done excellent things this is known in all the earth Cry out and shout thou inhabitant of Sion for great is the holy One of Israel in the midst of thee And Isa 65. 24. In that day it shall be that before they call I will answer and while they are yet speaking I will hear And Jer. 33. 11. In that day there shall be heard the voyce of them that rejoyce and say Praise the Lord of hosts for the Lord is good for his mercy endureth for ever and of them that shall bring the Sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. Thus is it cleer in these Scriptures that this part of the worship of God which consisteth in Prayer and praise shall then continue But thirdly There are some things about the worship of God that shall be in these times which the Scripture speaks of but not cleerly as that there shall be an observation of * That there shall then be an observation of new Moons and Sabbaths and a keeping a feast of tabernacles wherein God shall be worshipped new Moons and of Sabbaths wherein God shall be worshipped and a keeping of a feast of tabernacles As Isa 66. 23. And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another and from one Sabbathto another shall all flesh come to worship before me saith the Lord. And Zech. 14. 16. And it shall come to pass that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from yeer to yeer to worship the King the Lord of hosts and to keep the feast of tabernacles Here it is expresly said that from one new Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another all flesh shall come to worship before the Lord. But what Sabbaths these shall be and what worship shall be performed on these Sabbaths the Scripture speaks not cleerly of And here it 's said that there shall be an yeerly keeping of the Feast of Tabernacles wherein they shall worship the King the Lord of hosts but what feast of Tabernacles this shal be and for what particular end it shall be observed is doubtful We know that under the Law the Feast of Tabernacles was kept at the ingathering of all the fruits of the fields wherein they were all to rejoyce before the Lord. But this rejoycing Feast that shall then be kept may be for higher things then these but positively to say this or that we may not for the Scripture is therein silent But fourthly The Scripture cleerly declares That in that time they shall have the Lord himself to be to them * That Saints shall then have no need of a Temple no need to be taught by others the Lord shall be in stead of a Temple to them in stead of a Temple As Revel 21. 22. And I saw no Temple in the new Jerusalem for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it The Temple in this place is to be understood as the place where they were wont to resort for knowledge for in the Temple was the Ark of the Testament there the Will of God and the Laws of God were to be understood And therefore David Psal 73. 16 17. professes his ignorance until he went into the Sanctuary and there received knowledge But in this time there shall be no need of a Temple for this For the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it And it follows vers 23. And the city had no need of the sun neither of the moon to shine in it for the glory of God did lighten
people who are in this frame and to none but such whose hearts are thus spiritual and who so little regard these things in comparison of spiritual even to such will God in these times we are speaking of abundantly give not onely these spiritual injoyments and priviledges but all other things shall be added unto them that so their joy may be compleat and nothing may interrupt it And now I come to declare how comfortably and if I may so say how happily the Saints shall live in this new world in respect of outwards Concerning which hear how the Lord expresses himself Isa 60. 15. For I will make thee an eternal excellency the joy of many generations It is a short but a full word for speaking of the external glory that he will confer upon his Church he says that his Sion shall have as much outward glory as ever any people had nay he says not onely so but that they that excel others he will make them an external excellency The outward glory that was conferred upon Solomon the type of our King of peace was very great but this shall excel it and excel all kingdoms that ever were before it for outward things as well as spiritual It shall be an exâ—…rnal excellency and it shall be the joy of many generations such outward glory and such excellency above all others shall be conferred upon it as shall be the joy as shall glad the hearts of all that live in those generations or that shall be brought forth in those times while these thousand yeers shall last And what the outward glories of it shall be is in part exprest in the following words For brass I will bring gold and for iron I will bring silver and for wood brass and for stones iron These are the things wherein the external glory of a land consists and he says withal that they shall suck the milk of the Gentiles and suck the breasts of Kings Which imports that the treasures and outward glory of the Nations and of the Kings and great men of the world shall be all drain'd together and brought in to them they shall suck the sweetness of them and shall injoy them all And thus will the Lord make his Sion an eternal excellency in outward respects as well as in inward or spiritual respects But now more fully to declare what this external glory of this new world shall be thus There shall be no outward thing wanting to the Saints that may make their life outwardly comfortable for what is it that can be desired or that heart can think of that ever at any time maketh the lives of people comfortable but the Lord hath promised that his people shall enjoy it in these times And first * Saints shall then have that outward blessing of long life and a comfortable enjoyment of all their relations until they come to a good old age Doth the enjoyment of neer relations without losing of them make the life comfortable Are children outward blessings in which men take much outward content and delight And is it a very desirable thing to have our children the Lords children to be the blessed of the Lord And is it a bitter thing to lose an onely son a sad thing to lose children and neer relations and is the contrary a desirable mercy And is long life a blessing and an outward favour lawful to be desired According to that Psa 91. 16. With long life will I satisfie him and shew him my salvation Why all these things hath the Lord promised to his people in these days when these new Heavens and new Earth shall be as we finde in these Scriptures Isai 65. 17 18 c. Behold I create new heavens a new earth and then what follows I will rejoyce in Jerusalem and joy in my people and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her nor the voice of crying But if they should lose their children lose their relations before they come to a ful age there would be mourning and weeping for these things usually prove sad afflictions to the best Saints even to Jacobs and Davids But they shall not lose these then for vers 20. it is said There shall be no more thence an infant of days nor an old man that hath not filled his days for the childe shall die an hundred yeers old So that this is clear No infant of days shall die none shall die while they are young all shall come to a good old age They shall not be afflicted for the loss of their children for they shall live till they be an hundred yeers old and not an old man shall die that hath not filled his days Again Zech. 8. 3 4 c. Thus saith the Lord I am returned to Sion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem and Jerusalem shall be called A city of truth and the mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy mountain wherein the Lord will dwell And what follows Thus saith the Lord of hosts There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem and every man with his staff in his hand for multitude of days and the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof Thus shall the Saints in those days enjoy those desirable blessings of children and of long life they shall have a numerous issue The streets shall be full of boys and girls and old men and old women shall live till they come to a good old age till they walk with a staff in their hand for age But me thinks as I am speaking of these outward blessings I cannot too often insert this as a caution by the way That to a holy heart these things are but secondary comforts under-comforts their chief comfort consists in spirituals But I proceed In Jer. 33. the Lord speaks of the great things he will do for his people in that day and vers 9. he says They shall be for a name of joy and praise and honour before the nations which shall hear of the good that he will do unto them And vers 11. There shall be heard among them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness and the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride and the voice of them that shall say Praise the Lord of hosts c. Thus shall they comfortably enjoy children and all relations and praise the Lord. Nay and to make their children which they shall enjoy a complete blessing and mercy to them indeed it is said that they shall be all holy unto God Isa 65. 23. They shall not labour in vain nor bring forth for trouble for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord and their off-spring with them Their children being thus blessed with them shall be a joy unto them whereas otherwise they might be a grief and trouble to them Again to the same purpose is that Isa 54. 13. and Isa
But secondly To answer the ground of the Objection thus I see no reason why any should conclude that mans making use of the creatures in a reasonable and a moderate manner is that bondage of corruption that Paul speaks of For it is cleer that â—t is no burthen to the creatures to be in subjection to man and to serve man when men are not unmerciful to them as we may see by the readiness of some creatures as it were by a natural instinct to serve man willingly But if any thing in or about mans using the creatures may be said to be a part of the bondage of corruption it is in regard of mens unmerciful dealing with many creatures in laying more burthen upon them then they can well bear and putting of them to do more then they can well do but this bondage will then be removed from them But thirdly What most properly may be said to be the bondage of corruption that now is upon the creatures I have already spoken of and that is that enmity which is in many creatures each to other and to mankinde or that hurtfulness that is in them and this they shall be delivered from in that day And that this is the genuine sense and meaning of the Apostle when he says that the creatures shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption in that glorious time of the manifestation of the sons of God is cleer my ground is this Because I finde the Scripture declaring that in that day this enmity and hurtfulness shall be removed from them as appears in those places I have already quoted viz. Isa 11. 6 7 8 9. And Isa 65. 25. And this is the main if not the onely thing in which the Scripture declares that the changed condition of the creatures in that day shall appear and nowhere it is said that the creature shall not then be for the use and service of man but the contrary is cleer But fourthly That some creatures are killed for the use of man what bondage is it for them For what other burthen is it for one creature to be killed then for another creature to die a natural death Is it not a silly thing to conceive that a violent death should be worse to them then another death is because it is so to man seeing these creatures that are not reasonable the thoughts of death are not terrible to them as to man they be for they fear it not nor know not what it is in regard they are not rational Doubtless it were a weak thing to conceive that this kinde of death should be more burdensome to them then a natural death and consequently to think this to be the bondage of corruption spoken of by the Apostle But fifthly As to that of Adam's eating fruit in Innocencie Who can say that Adam in Innocencie did eat onely herbs and fruit For though there be no mention of his eating flesh yet might he not eat flesh though the Scripture be silent in the mentioning of it But if it should be granted that Adam continuing but a little while in innocencie did not feed upon flesh but upon herbs and fruits at that time Doth it therefore follow that if he had continued longer in innocencie that he would not have eaten flesh at any time Was he at all forbidden to eat flesh Would it have been a sin to eat flesh We know that all creatures were made for his use and put in subjection to him and we know that of his two eldest sons the one was a tiller of the ground and the other was a keeper of sheep And why was Abel a keeper of sheep if they were not of use unto them for food as well as the fruit of the ground But doubtless the sheep which Abel kept were of use for food unto them Thus is there nothing of force in that supposition that Adam did eat no flesh in Innocencie Neither may it at all be argued that these creatures shall not be made use of in this time of the restitution of all things But it remains clear as the Scripture declares it that in that time the Saints shall have a comfortable use of all creatures in a more pure mannder then ever And thus much in answer to this Querie And thus having shewn as briefly as I could what the glorious condition of this New Jerusalem shall be both with respect to its internal and external glory which is to continue for a thousand yeers * A declaration of what is to follow after the thousand yeers are expired I shall now come to shew as far as it is revealed unto me from the Scriptures what shall follow after this thousand yeers are finished In which I shall be very brief for the Scripture is but brief in speaking of these things they being things that are very far off But doubtless more may be revealed of them before that time come but for the present thus the Scriptures declares That after these thousand yeers are expired Satan which as we have shewed during this thousand yeers must be bound and shut up in the bottomless pit must be loosed again for a little season and this appears Rev. 20. 2 3. where it is said that he was shut up for a thousand yeers and after that he must be loosed for a little season and being loosed we shall see what work he does in the world vers 8 9. And he shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth Gog and Magog to gather them together to battel the number of whom is as the sand of the sea And they went up on the breadth of the earth and compassed the camp of the Saints about and the beloved citie and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them Thus it is here declared what work Satan is to do after he is loosed viz. He will go up and down again in the world among the Nations that are in the four quarters of the earth that is those of the Nations that are unbelievers that are said to be without the holy City being none of them but being subjected to them and put under them and of these there will be in the whole world at that time a very great number for although all Nations shall be converted to Christ yet all persons in all Nations shall not but many of them shall be those that are said to be without the holy City Rev. 22. 15. For without are dogs and sorcerers and whoremongers and murderers and idolaters and whosoever loveth and maketh a lye And these shall Satan after he is loosed go up and down among and deceive them gathering them together to battel perswading them to joyn all their forces together and once again to make a desperate attempt against the Saints but in so doing says the text he will deceive them for they shall be drawn to their own destruction and such fools will the devil make of
them in deceiving of them as he did Eve that he will it's likely perswade them to believe that they shall by their power overcome the Saints and as he perswaded Eve to believe that in eating the forbidden fruit they should be as gods knowing good and evil so he will perswade these that in making war they shall overcome the Saints though Jesus Christ be with them Thus this old deceiver and lyer shall deceive the unconverted miserable people among the Nations of the world who during all the time of the thousand yeers will be quiet and never dare to attempt any such thing and yet then they shall gather togetner against the Saints and think to overcome them but when they shall attempt to do it the Saints shall then have no need of swords nor spears to defend themselves against that brunt that one assault for the text says Fire shall come down from God out of heaven and devour all these wicked men Thus is declared what will be done after Satan is loosed and what his reward for this work shall be is declared vers 10. And the devil that deceived the nations was cast alive into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night for ever And now comes to be declared what shall follow immediately upon this and that follows in vers 11 12 13 14 15. And I saw a great white throne and him that sate upon it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away and there was found no place for them And I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which is the book of life and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works And the sea gave up the dead which were in it and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them and they were judged every man according to their works and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire This is the second death and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire In these verses is declared that immediately upon the ruining of all the wicked of the Nations the last and general day of judgement is to follow When comes the Resurrection of all both just and unjust I say the last and general day of judgement and resurrection of all for in this twentieth chapter of the Revelation it is cleer that here is a mention made of two Resurrections and the one to be a thousand yeers before the other and the first is treated of in the 4 5 and 6 verses and is there called the FIRST RESURRECTION and the second is laid down in these verses where it is said that the Heavens and the earth are then to be annihilated to flie away at the presence of the Lord who upon his white throne of righteousness after these thousand yeers are finished is to appear and to judge all the dead small and great who are to stand before him being all raised out of the Graves and out of the Sea and all places where the dead have been laid and to be judged righteously according to the Gospel and according to their works and they being so judged it will follow that whosoever is not found written in the book of life shall be cast into a lake of fire And this general day of judgement here treated of is also treated of in several other Scriptures as in Mat. 25. 31 32 c. Where our Saviour thus describes it and says that in that day he shall sit upon the throne of his glory and before him shall be gathered all Nations and he shall separate them one from another as a shepherd divideth his Sheep from the Goats and he shall set the Sheep on his right hand but the Goats on the left Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world for I was c. And then shall he say also unto them on the left hand Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels for c. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment but the righteous into life eternal Thus in this Scripture is this general day of the final judging of all spoken of also wherein to every one is to be rendred according to his works Again another Scripture to this purpose is that in the first of the Corinthians at the fifteenth chapter where Paul more largely discourses of the doctrine of the Resurrection in some particulars of it then it is any where else in Scripture treated of where in the first part of the chapter he makes it his work to prove the certainty of the Resurrection of the body against those Pharisaical spirits that denyed it And having proved the Resurrection by many undenyable and unanswerable Arguments he comes to declare at the twenty third verse and so on in what order the Resurrection shall be he having before said that all shall be raised But says he it shall be every man in his own order Christ the first fruits and afterward they that are Christs at his coming Here is the Order of the Resurrection Christ the first fruits Well Christ was to be raised first in order of time and that was done already Christ was raised when the Apostle writ this Epistle But who are to be raised next The Apostle tells us It must be they that are Christs And when must they be raised The Apostle answers At his coming Afterward they that are Christs at his coming This is the first Resurrection wherein the Saints must at the coming of Christ be raised to reign with him spoken of Revel 20. 4. But then the general Resurrection and the last great day he speaks of in vers 24. 25. and 28. Where he says Then cometh the end when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God even the Father when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power for he must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet the last enemie that shall be destroyed is death And when all things shall be subdued unto him then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him that God may be all in all Here he declares that Jesus Christ being come and having received his kingdome and his Saints being raised at his coming to reign with him that after his coming and reigning and ruling and putting all enemies under his feet and death it self Then cometh the end when he shall deliver up the kingdom to his father and the Son also himself shall be subject unto him that put all things under him that God may be all in all That is there shall be a cessation of the
is their General said to come ver 11. But it is no wonder for he always walks in the midst of his golden Candlesticks his Witnesses his Saints his Churches Rev. 1. 13. But again these Armies in Heaven are said to follow their General upon white horses As he is upon a white horse which shews his purity so also are they upon white horses which shews their purity For he hath put his own Frame and Spirit upon them which further appears in that they are also said to be clothed in fine linen white and clean which also imports purity and undefiledness And thus we have the Description of the Lord General and his Army on the one side On the other side The chief among them is called the Beast which shews his unworthy filthy beastly nature and with him are the Kings of the earth they are not of heaven but of the earth and of the earth they may be said to be in opposition to the heavenly nature of those whom they oppose And for the Armies that are under them they are said to be Their Armies implying that they were earthly corrupt Armies because they did belong to those that were of the earth And this is all the description that we have in this place of the other General and his Army Now these being thus described It is said that the Beast and the Kings of the earth and their Armies were gathered together to make war against him that sat upon the horse and against his Army It seems they have hopes to overcome him and his Army because they gather together against them The event of the Battel But what is the event of the battel The Beast and his Army are overcome and the Beast and the false Prophet is that with him are taken What this false Prophet is is doutful for there is no mention made of him before this at least not under this Title * The false Prophet not in all the book of the Revelation but it may be it is some new sort of deceiver which he will make use of to deceive the Nations by false miracles when he draws them to ingage in this battel But whether so or no whatever he be when this battel is sought the Beast and the false Prophet that wrought miracles before him are both taken and of them is it said That they particularly were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimston and the remnant are slain with the sword and their flesh is given to the fowls of the aire even the flesh of Kings and Captains and mighty men c. And this is the success of this battel or the event of it as far forth as it is in this place spoken of But because the day of the battel is to be such a great and terrible day to wicked men being that great and terrible day of the Lord so much spoken of by all the holy Prophets and Apostles and Saints of God which day is represented unto us in such a dreadful terrible and glorious manner as if it were the General day of judgement but that it is cleered not to be that day by the declarations of the things that must follow it which are laid down in the several Scriptures which speak of this day I say seeing it is represented unto us in a dreadful and wonderful manner and since so many wonders shall be shewn at that that time and so much of the glory and majesty of God shall then be seen and such strange changes shall then be made in the world I say these things being so wonderful and so glorious I shall be the larger in giving the description of this day from several other Scriptures Thus Of the great day of the Lord. This day is that great day which is called the day of the Lords vengeance and the year of recompences for the controversies of Sion Mentioned Isa 34. 8. That day of which he speaks when he says The day of vengeance is in my heart and the yeer of my redeemed is come Isa 63. 4. For though it be true that he hath already begun to take vengeance upon his and his peoples enemies and to plead the cause of his people and though he hath begun to recompence his wrath upon these enemies for the controversies his Sion hath against them yet the compleatment hereof is reserved unto that day which of all days shall be the most terrible to wicked men because it shall utterly overthrow them and they shall not escape nor avoid it for then he will tread them in his anger and trample them in his fury yea they shall be troden in the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God And their blood shall be sprinkled upon his Garments and he will stain all his rayment As Isa 63. 3. But who shall live when God doth this was Balaams expression when he spake of the ruine of several Nations Numb 24. 23. for let all wicked men look to it when this day comes for to them it will be very terrible For this is the day which is spoken of Isa 66. 15. For behold the Lord will come with fire and with Chariots like a whirl-wind to render his anger with fury and his rebukes with flames of fire for by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh and the slain of the Lord shall be many How terrible will this day be when the Lord shall thus plead with all flesh by fire and sword and render his anger with fury and his rebukes with flames of fire Who shall live when God doth this It is answered by the Prophet in the same Chapter that at the same time The hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants and his indignation toward his enemies and their hearts shall rejoyce and their bones shall flourish like an herb They shall be so far from being quailed or discouraged or amated or terrified when this terrible day comes as they shall then flourish most and be most joyful at heart Again this day is spoken of Joel 3. 9 10. where the Lord summons all the Gentiles to gather together and make themselves as strong as they can for war and says that when they are gathered together round about in ver 11. that thither he will cause his mighty ones to come down at v. 12. That there he will sit to judge all the heathen round about then declares that the Sickle shal be put in to cut down this harvest of wicked men for the wickedness is great and that multitudes shall be cut down when the Lord shall thus judge these men and decide the controversies of his people for which cause it shall be called The valley of decision And then vers 16. The Lord shall roar out of Sion and utter his voice from Jerusalem and the heavens and the earth shall shake This is that once more wherein he will shake not the earth onely but the heavens