to know his wiles to fight Against this Power of death and darkness so That thou maist give the Devil such a blow That he with his dark Kingdom may lose ground Till they shall fall and never more be found Then for thy further information know The Devil will for ever be thy fo And wil the foe of all men ever be And them beguile with feigned flatterie Do thou resolve his works and him to hate And never bite nor tast the Devils baite But him resist withstand and alwayes be For evermore the Devils enemy If so my soul thou must not think to please Thy fleshly lusts nor think to live at ease But hardness as a Souldier must endure A Souldiers life is such thou must be sure But please thy Captain he that hath thee chosen To be a Souldier thy assections loosen From such affairs as now may hinder thee From serving him whose Souldier thou must be To fight this fight of Faith if thou intend To overcome then hold out to the end For those that overcome the Spirit saith And do his Works continue in the Faith That keep his holy Word his Word of Patience Shall be exalted they shall rule the Nations And he that overcomes the same shall be A Pillar in God's holy Temple he Shall go no more from thence out of the same But Jesus Christ will write on him the Name Of God and of the City that is nam'd The New Jerusalem so greatly fam'd For beauty glory wealth that cometh down From God and out of Heav'n where there are none Can entrance have which doth not overcome Both Sin the World and Satan where 's no room For such for none but them that do prevail Shall cloathed be in white such shall not fail To sit with Christ in glory on his Throne And sing the praise of God the Lord alone And though by fighting none can nothing merit He must orecome that will all things inherit Then now my soul it 's good thou ponder well What is thy work while thou on earth dost dwell Make it thy study how thou maist be found In Faith and Holiness more to abound Behold what beauty is in Christ thy Jesus Him love and prize for he is very precious Solace thy self with love his Love so choice Delight to do his Will to hear his Voice What though in strait and narrow paths he lead He in those paths thy soul doth sweetly feed Thou hast by good experience found and known That in those paths thou walkest not alone But he goes with thee leading by the hand Thee where thou canst not hardly go or stand And makes those strait and narrow wayes to be So pleasant and so easie unto thee That thou canst walk those paths with so much ease That many times they much delight and please Thee so that thou maist say and never cease His wayes are Pleasantness his paths are Peace What though no beauty nor no comliness Be seen in him by wise men ne'retheless Think ne'r the worse of him but love him throughly Though he be black he is exceeding lovely Set thy affections on him so delight In his refreshing Presence day and night That thou communion with him maist maintain And labour in his Fear more of 't to gain Bear thou his Image learn of him to be More humble harmless holy that as he A perfect pattern was so is he still Him follow fully and no doubt he will So entertain thee with such great delights So ravishing thy heart with heav'nly sights Thou wilt be so inflam'd in Love so grow With Heav'n thou 't live no more on Earth below My soul sing praise unto the Lord Declare his mighty Works abroad Praise thou his great and holy Name That men his wondrous Works may know His mighty Acts do thou forth show His Glory Kingdom and his Fame Who though thou wast a poor posthume He kept thee in thy mothers womb And there and then thy life preserv'd He brought thee forth and gave thee breath And oft deliver'd thee from death Though thou hadst nought of him deserv'd When thou hungst on thy mothers breast And on her milk didst richly feast He was thy God and did thee keep He watch'd ore thee and did defend Thee from that fierce infernal Fiend He slumbred not nor did he sleep Thou wast a Child and Parentless Praise thou the Lord his goodness bless He rais'd thee up a faithful Friend That was a Mother unto thee This was his goodness verilie Praise thou the Lord world without end All this the Lord did that he might Open thy eyes and clear thy sight That thou maist understand and see His Goodness Mercy Grace and Truth Which thou beheldst whilst but a youth To him the glory honour be And though thy troubles have been great With which thou hast in this world met They never could make thee to yeeld He never in them thee forsook But on thee did in mercy look And for thee car'd and thee upheld What reason then hast thou to fear Or think he will not for thee care In these thy bonds and captive-state Such good experience thou hast seen Of him from time to time I mean When ere thou wast in any strait What needst thou care for all thy foes There 's none of them but he well knows And knows the way how to prevent Them all from doing thee that harm Which they do threaten when they storm And may be often their intent What though the world against thee rise With tongues of falshood and of lyes In him alone put thou thy trust And though they persecute thee sore And hate thee without cause the more Praise thou the righteous God most just My soul then magnifie the Lord Let all his Saints like praise afford His Praises sing both night and day He hath regard to all the meek He strengthens those that are but weak Let all Saints sing Hallelujah Well now my soul wee 'l leave a while rest And then we will discourse again it 's best I think we should talk next of other matter And forasmuch as it is now the latter Most evil times of which we are forewarn'd By Christ himself 't is good we should be arm'd Against the perils which that time attends Then if the Lord us help and to us lends Assistance we will speak of such a thing As may unto our mind and mem'ry bring What Judgments God intends and hath in store Against that great and Scarlet-coloured Whore And of that glorious blessed holy Day When Christ shall sit upon his Throne for aye Here followeth a brief Discovery Of Romes soul filthy stuff and trumpery Together with the Plagues laid up in store Against the day that God will plague the Whore VVE read in Scripture of a Scarlet Whore That hath opprest the Nations very sore Who with her filthy Cup of Fornication Hath made the people drunk in ev'ry Nation This Harlot sits upon a Scarlet Beast A Beast that
the earth For on the Earth once Davids throne was plac'd And on the Earth it now is quite defac'd And on the Earth his throne shall be again Then Christ shall on the Earth both rule â— reign For on the throne of David he shall sit And ore his Kingdom rule and govern it But here by some it may objected be That Christ doth reign now on the earth and he Exalted is already by his Father And shall not rule nor reign on Earth no other Wise than by his Wisdom Strength and Pow'r He rules his Saints and People ev'ry hour And so the World by 's Might and Providence He govern'd hath ere since he went from hence Small sign it is that Christ on Earth doth reign When few his Laws obey and few refrain Him to blaspheme but ready are to evil What ever they are prompt to by the Devil Doth Christ now reign rule amongst those men That swear and curse and drink roar and then Fall out and quarrel fight and kill and whore Of whom the World doth yeild such mighty store That one would think and may conclude ful well That most are rul'd by Lucifer or Hell Can any one think or imagine how Christ should be said to reign on earth when now His people are most times so much oppressed So persecuted and so much distressed That for his sake they 're made a mock and scorn Whose time is now not to rejoice but mourn For what is done to them is done to him He takes it so and so 't will be all them That persecute his Saints shall find it so When he appears though now they won't it know When Saul with Letters went to Damascus To persecute and spoile the Saints then thus Christ said to him when on the way he smites Him to the ground with those bright shining lights That shone about him and all those that went With him no doubt the High-Priest had them sent Him to assist in this great work of darkness To persecute those men that were so faultless That Christ rebukes him as he on the way Did go and as I said did to him say Saul Saul why dost thee thus me persecute To kick against the pricks it is no boot Then Saul astonisht says Lord who art thou I 'm Jesus whom thou persecutest now For what thou dost to them thou dost to me Thou canst not them afflict but I must be Afflicted with them if thou art their fo I feel the stroke the wound is mine also If Jesus Christ will when he comes accuse All them that do his Saints to help refuse VVhen they in prison were or sick or lame Or naked hungry and will them so blame Because they did not cloath or them relieve Nor unto them would any comfort give Nor visit when in Gaol or sick they were And them refuse to succour and to cheat And takes what 's done to them done to himself When he shall say to them that have much wealth Depart you cursed into scorching flames Eternal burnings hound in fiery Chains Of dreadful darkness now and evermore Prepared for the Devil for before When I was sick you did not visit me That is you did not comfort them that be My little ones when they distressed were No help nor no assistance would you spare For as you did to them you did to me Depart then now for ever cursed be If Christ I say shall take these things as done Unto himself they suffer not alone That are his people but he suffer so In them that this I 'de very gladly know How Christ on earth is said to rule and reign VVhen still on Earth he 's crucifi'd and slain When Christ his father David's throne shal mount He shall all evil works call to account The Heathen shall be his Inheritance VVhen he unto his Kingdom shall advance Then he the utmost parts of th' earth shall have And will his poor despised people save VVhen his Dominions shall extended be Through all the earth and eke from sea to sea And from the Rivers to th' ends of the earth This great Dominion is his right and birth For when his Kingdom that we pray for 's come VVhich strongly doth import there is no room Left to conceit he doth already reign And in his Kingdom is for then 't were vain To pray for that which now already is And hath been many hundred years if 't is But two as many now a-dayes do say Let 's tare out then that Pray'r he taught's to pray But when it 's come I was about to tell That all things ev'ry where will go full well For then the Will of God will likewise even Be done on Earth as now 't is done in Heaven There will be then no Ram 'um dam 'um Blades That tare stare fight would with their shades But all his creatures living will him praise Because of those most joyful glorious dayes That Christ shall rule and reign here on the Earth The Scripture plentifully holdeth forth That he that reads impartially may know It is a glorious heav'nly Truth although It is the most esteemed but a fable Yet those that be the born of God are able To see much heav'nly glory in 't they do Receive such comforts from 't and not a few That they are made through Grace nothing to fear What they may suffer for the Glory there But that I may a little further clear This much despised Truth to me so dear And choice and sweet I will some Reason show That Christ the Kingdoms of the Earth shall so Possess as yet he never did but shall One day them have in full possession all First then when Christ shall rule on Earth and reign And Davids Throne shall be set up again There shall be such so great increase of Peace That Quarrels Broils and Wars shall ever cease Then shall there be no envying nor hating No Titles unto this and that debating By Sword and Fire as now is and hath bin And ever will and shall be until then All men shall then so quietly enjoy What they do build and plant none shall anoy Nor them molest they in their habitation Shall then secured be no molestation Nor no disquiet shall e're them come near They shall possess without all kind of fear What is alloted them they 'l be so sure That none shall trouble unto them procure The Nations then though now and heretofore Have learned War they War shall learn no more Of Righteousness there then shall be a stream Shall run through ev'ry street this is no dream Nor fond conceit Justice and Equitie Will flourish then and there no more will be Oppression us'd the cause of him that 's poor Shall not perverted be nor nevermore The Widows cause or Fatherless sha'nt then Be turned back at that time shall no men Hate one another nor no man then shall Imagine ill against his brother all Shall live in such a blessed unity No man
shall do another injury And then that very great antipathy That now between the creatures is shall dy For then the Wolf shall lie down with the Lamb And dwell together sure of this I am The Leopard then shall lie down with the Kid The Calf and Lion young are also rid The one of 's preying nature and the other Can now confide in him as in a brother Nay though the Lion be a Fatling by He 'l not him harm they 'l down together lye So gentle and so tame they will be then A little Child may lead them both and when This time is come the Cow then with the Bear Shall feed their young together lye and there The Lion shall like to an Ox eat straw To prey on flesh he now shall have no maw The deadly great and most destructive nature The Venom which is found now in the creature Their deadly sting shal then be took away When once a sucking-Child shall dare to play On the Asps hole the weaned Child may then Not fear to put his hand upon the den Of that so deadly Cockatrice for there They shal not hurt destroy none shal them fear In Gods most holy Mountain and the Earth Shal filled be with knowledge and with mirth Cover'd with knowledge shal the Earth then be As now we see the Waters do the Sea There 's such a glorious time as this to come Or else the Prophets are mistook not some But all for all of them of this time spoke Foreseeing that there was a heavy yoke That Rome should keep the faithful People in And afterward that cursed Man of Sin Until there come a Rod out of the Stem Of Jesse and a branch spring out of him Out of his Root shall spring that holy Prince That King of kings and Lord of lords from hence It comes that Christ our Lord is said to be Of Davids Off-spring notwithstanding he Is Davids Root and shal possess his Throne In the appointed time as hath been shown But that I might this Truth yet clearer make Then this that follows likewise from me take That Christ shal rule and reign on Earth as King To prove I further do this Reason bring Because the Earth and all that therein is Are by Creation-right all of them his They were made by him and not only so But for him too and then his Right we know It is that one day he should them possess Which were made for him to enjoy and bless With Righteousness with which he 'l judge the poor Reprove the meek with Equity more He with the Rod of 's Wrath wil smite the Earth And slay the wicked also with his breath For Righteousness the girdle of his loins And Faithfulness the girdle of his reins Shall be and then will come that blessed day That he the Root of Jesse will display The Glory of his Rest as on a hill Stand for an Ensign and the Gentiles will Unto it seek his Rest shal glorious be Thrice happy they that shall this Glory see When this is come to pass that Prophecie Spoke by Isaiah will fulfilled be Behold in Righteousness a King shall reign And Princes rule in Judgment shall again As from the wind and tempest which we see A hiding-place a covert there shall be As in a dry and thirsty place and as The shadow of a mighty great Rock is A man shall be as Water Rivers and As such a Rock is in a weary Land The eyes of them that see shall not be dim The ears of them that hear shall hearken then The rash of heart shall knowledge understand Their passions then they shall so well command The tongue of stammerers shall ready be To utter words to talk to speak plainly The Glory of that day shall be so great My pen's too weak that Glory to repeat So great it is my thoughts it doth so fill That here another Reason follow will That Christ shal come the Earth to rule will be Apparant made as 't wil appear for he By right of purchase is become the Lord Of all the Earth and all it doth afford He therefore dy'd reviv'd and rose again That he might this Prerogative obtain To be the Lord both of the quick and dead This may in Pauls Epistle soon be read By his obedience to his Father he Obtained such a glorious dignitie By dying on the Cross that cursed death For which his Father him exalted hath And such a Name hath given unto him Above all names that 's given into them That are in Heav'n in Earth or underneath The Earth to him all which have life and breath At his most glorious Name their knees must bow There 's few but will for truth this sure allow And ev'ry tongue confess that Christ is Lord This Glory they must unto God afford When God the Father rais'd Christ from the grave He then to him this Princely honour gave To sit at his right hand in heav'nly places In recompence of all those foul disgraces That he sustain'd while he was on the Earth Although he was the King thereof by birth So far above all Principalitie All Power Might Dominion Dignity And ev'ry Name that 's nam'd not only whom Is in this world but in that world to come And hath put all things underneath his feet Though all things be'nt subjected to him yet He bore the great iniquities of many Of all indeed he did not leave out any Then with the great a portion he 'l divide And with the strong divide the spoil beside Because he did his soul pour out to death This glory God to Christ now given hath That as the Earth he bought and paid the score That it stood charged with so he 'l restore All things again when he from Heav'n descends To take away what ever in 't offends And then all living shall enjoy and see How glorious Christ's Government will be That which already hinted is well may Give satisfaction unto all if they Be so unbyass'd and be so intent In searching out what all the Prophets meant And Christ and his Apostles for all they Did prophesie and speak of this good day By these and such like sayings as I bring Of which there is a multitude that sing The self-same song as I above have done For sure I am they all with me are one But ne'retheless it still is my intent One Reason more to contribute or hint That Christ shall rule and reign here on the earth Is true because it is his right by birth He Christ the first born is of ev'ry creature And he of all things also is the Maker The first-born is mongst many brethren too The first begotten Son of God and who The brightness of his Fathers glory is The express Image of his person his Gods only Son whom he appointed Heir Of all things that hath been shall be or are In Heav'n above or in the Earth beneath They all are his by birth there 's none that
hath Nor can deprive him of his right it 's sure To him and shall for evermore enoure Saith David in his Psalms The Heathen rage Vain things imagine what doth this presage God sits in Heav'n and hath them in derision And will at length himself make the decision Though they do set against him and 's Anointed And counsel take they shall be disappointed Vnto them all he 'l speak then in his wrath Though he forbears and seems to be so loth Yet will he vex them in his sore displeasure When he shall set his King his only Treasure Upon his holy Hill then the Decree Concerning him will soon declared be Thou art my Son I have begotten thee Then ask my Son ask thou I say of me And I will give thee thine Inheritance Thou shalt upon my Holy Hill advance The Heathen shall be to thee for a portion The Earth I give to thee for thy possession The utmost parts thereof I give and thou Shalt break them with a Rod of Iron now In pieces shalt thou dash them as a Vessel That 's broken a in Morter with a Pestle Again saith David in another place Such is the Majesty of Christ the Grace Of this most mighty Prince and Lord of all That Kings shall stoop and down before him fall And they that in the Wilderness do live Shall bow before him and him honor give His Enemies who will they nill they must Fall down before him and shall lick the dust The Kings of Tarshish and them of the Isles Shall presents bring to him to have his smiles The Kings of Sheba and of Seba too Shall offer gifts to him if that would do Yea all the Nations under Heav'n that are Shall him obey all Kings then shall him fear And David in another Psalm doth say That God his Enemies will drive this day Before him God will then his foes down beat And plague all men he will that do him hate My faithfulness saith God with him shall be My mercy also and his Name I 'le see Shall be exalted I will set his hand Upon the Sea so in the Rivers and He 'l cry Thou art my God my Father then And say the Rock of my Salvation when My first-born I will make whose so by birth Far higher than the Kings are of the Earth But some it may be here will now object And say These Scriptures all have no respect To Christ but Solomon by them is meant And David penn'd these Psalms to that intent To shew he should be set on such a throne That like to him there should be never none So great so rich so mighty as was he If so then all these things fulfilled be I answer That these Scriptures can't be so Receiv'd nor understood for this I know That Solomon was never God's first-born Nor never did God so exalt his Horn To give to him such great and large Dominion To reach from sea to sea in my opinion Nebuchadnezzar was a greater man Then ever was the great King Solomon For Daniel said to him O King it 's thou Art grown so mighty strong and great that now Thy potent greatness reacheth unto Heav'n Such is thy boundless and thy large Dominion It doth extend unto the ends of th' earth God unto thee such glory given hath Though Solomon his glory was so much That in his day there was no King had such Yet consid'ring Nebusshadnezzar he Was great Commander universallie O're all the world it clearly follow will Those Prophesies God did not then fulfil In Solomon because it 's plain that he Had never such a glorious Monarchie I then conclude they meant and rather may The King of Babylon which none will say So universal as the others was Nor yet so great nor universal as Our Lords shall be when he doth come to reign As those fore-cited Scriptures speaketh plain Besides what I before did shew indeed That Christ must be that King of Davids seed These reasons then I end though many more I might produce in Scripture there 's such store But I with these shall well contented be Such satisfaction are they unto me But yet I matter not for th' sake of those That may more doubtful be before I close Bring forth such Scriptures which do more conduce To satisfaction then I here produce That prophesie of Balaam who when He hired was to curse Gods Israel then He prophesi'd and said My eyes shall him Behold but shall not now they are too dim I shall behold him but it won't be nigh Though I the knowledge have of the most High There shall a Star come out of Jacob and A Scepter out of Israel the Land Of Moab shall he smite the corners all The sons of Seth shall be destroy'd and fall And Edom shall because of their transgression So Seir likewise shall be a possession Unto his Enemies but Israel he Shall in those days do then most valiantlie Then out of Jacob will he come that shall Possess and have dominion o'ne them all Balaam then took up his Parable Beheld and saw that day was terrible And said Alas though 't is a day of bliss To Jacob who shall live when God doth this Again good Hannah when the Lord her Womb Had opened that she conceiv'd to whom He gave a Son which when she had brought forth She lent unto the Lord a son of worth He was to her yet for the Lord she 'l spare Her child her only son that was so dear And then to pray and praise the Lord goes she And thus she saith by way of prophesie The Adversaries of the Lord shall be All broke to pieces out of Heaven shall he Thunder upon them then the Lord will judge The Earth and ends thereof this priviledge The Lord shall have and strength he 'l give his King And will the Horn of his Anointed bring To be exalted and he 'l help the feet Of all his Saints though men them ill entreat As for the wicked they shall silent be In darkness when that they this day do see To do these wondrous things God will not fail For know by strength no man shall then prevail Oh what a glorious time this then will be When Saints shal reign with Christ triumphantlie That most transcendent glory and the state Christ shall be in which he 'l participate To them their lot their portion and a shares Because they 're sons they likewise are Joint-heirs With him and in his throne they shall sit down And shall receive a Kingdom and a Crown Not such a corrupt Crown that fades away But such a Crown of Life that won't decay Then fear not little Flock for 't is the pleasure Of God your Father to give you the treasure That 's in a Crown by Grace he will you save And hath thought meet the Kingdom you should have He that is Prince of Kings Kings of the earth Who you so lov'd that you he washed hath From all your sins in his