strong as hee But as vnder the Maccabees new corruption left scant any in faith for Christ his first comming so it will bee for the second that scant faith will bee found in the earth The true Elders complaine not for mens negligence but looke for Christ his second comming vpon the Popes full fall as vpon his first comming the Macedonians had not a foote of ground Of the Worldes end No man can tell when the world shall ende nor when the Pope shall bee vtterly consumed by the spirite of Christ his mouth But that many hundreth yeeres remaine yet we haue many arguments of likely-hood Of the Iewes calling S. Paul sheweth that the Iewes shall first be called Rom. 12. But Christians in name are miraculously bent against that very neere open Atheisme so their calling cannot bee yet when Christian states swear to hinder that Agent Barton moued a Iewe to request an explication of the newe Testament how it is the perfection to the old Two copies of one Epistle from a Rabbi the best learned in the East came to England in a strange Character such as was neuer seene in the West in stile vnlike all Christians veine And in date and particular circumstances so for the writers occasions that all the wittes in the world of the West could not feigne such a Character style and particular matter From England after long viewing these copies were sent to Basill to the partie for whose worke they were written The Epistle is printed and the summe as request was made commeth forth in English Now marke the recompence from a most thankfull nation Libellers the impudentest that euer were in the world that scoffe a Conclusion of their owne auctores allowed sillogisme a most learned worke that brake Gehennean torment the cause is well knowen these raue against him whom the Q. Agent made the Iew belieue to be the ablest of all Christians to handle our Gospell in Hebrew veine And this scoffe from a most vnlearned wight is allowed by the Buyshops Because your armes be the owles you thinke you must bring owles to Athenes and because the Rabbin saluteth you as you feigne you thinke you are the onely Thalmudique of the world The simple people were persuaded that the Epistle was forged thinking that no slaue of Satan durst euer be so impudent as to borrow the princes authority to a slander and seing two impressions of the Libel were soone sold vnder authority they held not as they ought the slanderers to be Anathema Maran Atha but supposed they spake true and ioyned with them to serue Satan Now Christians should haue the first benefite in shewing the Harmony of both Testaments and where Christians hinder their owne good GOD will giue them no honor for Iewes The like prank one of Geneua plaid being aduertised of the Iewes petitiō and being requested to lend Sadaias Arabique Moses kept a coile as though the matter was forged that many marueiled and gaue information of him and when the Senate gaue leaue to printe the Iewes Epistle and answere he by one Grinetus forbad to vse the Senates leaue and bred much coile Thereupon a Greeke oration accusing him of machmadisme is sent to the Senate They call him to his answere Then he saith he thought the Iewes Epistle was forged The Libell from England cited him and hardned him in that And others in Germany kept a stirre that therupon I called his diuinity to accompt and altered Princes from great promisses towards Ebrew opening of the Bibles Harmonie Of our Kinges rare bent to the honor of the Bible Our King vowed to the Bibles honor so that the partie would and might conueniently take the worke in hande 1596. a thousand poundes a yeare after that he reigned in England Satan hindred the workeman by one that made Gehennea torment of going to Paradise in the Creede And blamed the workeman as deceiued vntill he cleared himselfe no modesty would request the Kings pension nor no wisedome grant it The more religious promisses bee made the more circumspection is to be had to the worke of their ground which failing the Promisse is no Promisse Also the BB. would take the Bibles clearing in hand for which worke much of the old purpose began so the workman was cōtent to be freed After questions were cleared a cold letter moueth the king with mention of old bent The King most redily telleth by a Knight of a royall pension to open the Bible against Iewes the offer is accepted a booke is printed chiefe obiections are dissolued and after nobles an high preferred Clerke hath a copy He denieth the Kinges message and said he would stay the King from allowance to Ebrew clearing of the Bible where the King was so willing and a Clerke so crosse A learned man wrot vnto mee that God meaneth not yet to call the Iewes But of duty I haue now 12. yer celebrated the Kinges redy bent and most constant faith And I see that God stirreth vnlearned scholars to force a calling of them to accompt Now by Ebrew and Greeke Iewes must be taught and Zwitzerland would persuade mee that they knew none by story of my study that way and I thinke some hundred of yeares will passe before another of like paines will arise to call them Of the Popes scholars The Popes scholars in Latin Greeke and Ebrew are terrible to ours as D. Pistorius of Friburge was they so play vpon our errores that they haue turned millions so from vs. Geneueans checking of the Greeke Testament makes Iesuites vse the Latin reiect the Greeke many armies would not so much help them Besides rash termes as Deus agit excitat impellit mouet peccatores These giue Iesuites victorie God leadeth them into temptation to shew his iudgement but in light of cōscience warneth against ill But the wicked rebell against light Againe these asystate stand not together Deus operatur omnia in ominibus in good and bad and Deus non agit in malis Beza hath both And this no better Deus agit in impiis deserendo This trifling of vnlearned disputing increaseth papistry exceedingly So this cānot be denyed God hath set vnto anger all that he calleth not to faith But he furthereth not by inward instinct their destruction He hardeneth by patience or too great affliction This speach he praedestineth men to destructiō is not from God For that terme is vsed in furthering the meanes as in the godly for saluation So one rash terme of a weake schole will turne many away Of Daniel Long did Beza roare in french homilies against the Pope from Daniel Iesuites reply that no syllable there medleth with him so all their powder without pellet is lost till Lemanus-lake-fishers emend their nettes they shall not catch 153. great Fishes and they must launch on the right side Of the poore Indians calling Of loctan Gen. 10. come the East-Indians their names famous in heathen for nationes mountaines and riuers tell that Their
600. and 400. as they would meete are cut off When he corrupted the Riuers and Fountaines of Scriptures the waters from which he that is not borne cannot enter into the kingdome of heauen he made a third part dead in sinne Since the Gospell is preached to the dead they that knowe themselues dead in the flesh but liue to God in Spirite pay the worme-wood-starre for bittering the waters of life and wresting all that is spoken of the true Church into protection for his Synagogue of Satan And all together bee one Angell that poure their cupps into the fountaines to make them blood and to shew that they punish the dead in sinne And I heard the Angell of the waters say lust art thou O Lord who is and who was and the gratious in iudging thus because they shed the blood of the holy and Prophets and thou hast giuen them blood to drink For they are worthy The state that plagueth the Pope prosperously acknowledgeth that the successe commeth from God the vnchangeable who is as he was and alwaies gracious Pharaoh by waters destroyed Israels children innocent blood His waters also God turned to blood and againe to oppresse his blood and his armies So because the Diuelish popish Pope shed the blood of the holy Preachers God gaue thē blood to drinke How died Popes full many by poyson since the Monke poysoned the Emperor by transubstantiating bread into poyson Poyson hath bene still practised still in Rome Queene Mary the bloody sped ill And the bloody French dyed in bleeding God as hee was so he is and will be alwayes iust And I heard an other from the Altar saying euen so O Lord the God of Hostes vpright and iust are thy Iudgements For confirmation of this matter it is repeated from the auctority of Christ the Altar by wordes often vsed in Scripture And the fourth Angell poured his Cup on the Sunne and it was giuen him to burne men in the fire And men were brent with a great burning When the fourth Trumpet sounded the third part of the Sunne was darkened There brightnesse of knowledge in the Church was meaned Heere persecution as Mat. 13. In England this fell out Queene Mary persecuted Priest borne in the Realme finde the same and Papists measure for measure and yet they being scholars cannot see the iust iudgement of God as followeth And they blasphemed the name of GOD which had authoritie ouer these plagues and repented not to giue him glorie The Law in England had perfect iustice of God The Prince is supreame Bishop and defendor of the Faith Hee giueth all leaue to read the holy Hebrew and Greeke text to expound the Hebrew by the Apostles Greeke and the tongue of the New by Greekes the Diuinitie by plaine reason And all must confesse that Gods worke is perfect and the man which will adde sheweth himselfe in the Temple of God as if hee were God extolling himselfe aboue all Religion Now the Priests preach the Pope King of England as Irus was King of Lydia Irus had as good a right to Ithaca with Croesus land as the Pope to any Chimney-smoake in England for a Peter-penny They turne Subiects to refuse the Bible the Church obedience to the King and Papists haue endeauoured by Powder to destroy the King and his House and the Gentry of Parliament a treason so barbarous inhumane diuelish Popish this sheweth that the Pope hath the spirit of the former Beast reuiued in all cruelty and deceit and all this fight is openly against God for Satans throne Campian and other the Popes Martyrs making the wicked Apocrypha part of the holy Bible and destroying faith and policy should not haue blasphemed God but haue repented and giuen God glory for iustice Bishop Tonstall vnder Queene Mary fauoured the Gospell in London and Duresmē and although D. Bancroft let Priest Watson print Popery in his house and receiued foure Priests from Rome yet he repented and sent the Priest to Tiburne and is become a M. R. F. Better should all Papistes come to God the shade And the fift Angell poured his Cup on the throne of the Beast and his kingdome became darkened and they did bite their tongues for paine and they blasphemed the God of Heauen for their panges and boyles but repented not of their workes The fift Angels Trumpet could not stay the Starre of Rome from seeking Supremacy and badnesse but by increase of Locusts he would be a King or a Beast comming out of the Earth and with his keyes of the kingdome of darkenesse he could bring a smoake of heresies that darkened all Sunne and ayre Machmad after Lucian the dogge say well for the whetstone but both those 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are nothing to his spirits As they haue both their portion in the lake burning with fire and brimstone Lucian was not forgiuen in this world so the Popes states shall haue his throne darkened openly in this world by valiant and holy people strengthened by Angels Darknesse is vsuall for a distressed state in Iob and Dauid and Isai Albion with Denmarke is wholy gone from him halfe Zuitzerland Netherland Germany And the poore schole of Geneua said wel to him though it agreeth with him to slander the pure Text of Scripture Where Beza doth say Deus non agit in malis he calleth backe those errors of his and Calvines whereby they seemed to make God auctor of sin The Senates religion as they gaue mee leaue to expresse it I dare defend against Turke and Iew and Pope while my hand can guide the warbling pen. And where Bodinus saith that Calvin should say of the Apocalyps Miror quid tam obscurus scriptor velit it is not credible that one of his iudgement to shake off all the Popes trash would speake so of a booke penned by the Father of light And Bodinus himselfe should haue told the prayse of God for the light of saluation by this booke God told him that they were happy that read and marke the things written heere chap. 1. As Daniel calleth to him all stories heathen for 600. yer so Iohn for 1600. And as Daniel telleth the same things seauen tymes ouer to infinite delite So doth Iohn repeate as pleasantly The Popes Diuines seeing his throne fall and decay they chew their tongues in speach not fitted to matter But snapping at syllables of the learned and aeschrologia godlesse from vncleane spirits and in all this they cannot repent them of fighting against all plaine truth When fight is for popery by the Gospell the Gospell should be answered and not discourses made to Zwinglius Luther P. Martyr Bucer Caluin Beza Many others match the best of them and learning would try the Law by Ebrew the Greek Testament by Greeks and Iewes and so the waters would runne cleere which now the starrworme-wood maketh bitter And the sixt Angell poured his cup vpon the great riuer Euphrates to praepare a way
is a sin most high to crucifie Christ againe and to make him an open shame the Crucifix through all popery sheweth heere that he is Apollyon Pilate knew as Mary that Christ was crucified But that holpe nothing But he could not consider the L. of glorie crucified And the Crucifix cannot expresse that but leaueth only a base obiect Heerein hee is an Apollyon and so in all Pointes A digression to our Prayer booke made from the Popes Our prayer booke was made when Papists were the more in Parliament and allowed by our side for mens infirmitie as Luc. 3. alloweth Cainā a sonne to Arphaxad And Acts. 7. soules 75. for 70. And as S. Paul allowed circumcision for Timothie But Christ should profit the Galathiās nothing if they simply did it allow The whole booke is bent to the Popes veine if there were nothing false in wordes the frame draweth hate with it For weaknesse in other I would allow it vntill I could persuade to better But seeing prayer is our seruice to God the Lords prayer and his Psalmes learnedly chosen for all occasions should serue the turne Tobie is a fable and pēned full of lies of purpose that the reader should hold it no better Yet because Antiquitie saw some vse in the fable ours suffered it till better light came When simple put a Parliament in trust the Parliaments ouersights should be no plague to the simple Al who feare God will stick only to his word vrge no more I haue taught most vnthankfull Buyshopps the Creedes article that soules go vp not downe and the holy to heauen not to hell Archbi Whitgift yeelded by M r Geoffrey King and knew that I cared not for voices of men sure to perish if they stood to their error And thirteen year agoe I knew not of an other liuing of my minde but I was sure I could make them worthy of Ioakims buriall that durst burne my writing and Anathema Maran Atha while they liued and for euer Spedily the best ouer Christendome flocked to my minde although some of Geneua Marpurg Hanaw for rancour deny all helpes for their owne victorie make them selues enimies to God and al good men to make a Gehennean torment of a going to the most happy dead in Abrahams bosome The learned Fath. L. T. Winton hath cleared this cause shewed that neither Westminster nor Rhodanus Alpin through-flowen towne should binde men to their witts Our speach to God is our only cōfort in this world and they who will hinder vs from the best in this kinde shall haue their portion with profane in weeping gnashing of teeth Since the King came to England the Realme might haue had the Bible well translated 5. yeares agoe with euery mans freedom to speak for the best a table for psalmes for all the ordinarie yeare all particular occasions and for reading Law with Prophets Gospel Epistles and both Vniuersities by this day ready in both Testaments But they had rather rent one another thē haue the peace of God to guard their tongues in the eloquence of Gods worde But now let vs returne to our Popes Of Antichrist his Chaldy name Ionathan Ben Vziel a rare Ebrew Doctor elder then S. Pauls Gamaliel expoūdeth Isaich xi When he saith Christ shal consume the wicked with the spirit of his mouth He sheweth what wicked euen wicked RHOMILVS he knew that Balaam made but East Assur West Cittim Grecia Grecia Maior Italy to afflict the holy therfore speaketh vpon a most sure groūd that that wicked was Rhomilus Arias Monta. knew that heere he brake the Popes neck if he came forth truly vnder the Popes grant therfore leaueth out the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Romylus And what be our Papae of Croydon other Parochies that could neuer spie this dealing If the K. Roial vow to the Bibles honor had not bin hindred by Bishops the Ebrew with Massorit the Caldy in true copie had been seene by this day in work But whē Buishopps crossing hindereth the workman what can the Kinges money doe when the dogges neither eat hay nor suffer the oxe yet heere the old Prouerbe taketh place Mendacem memorem esse oportet Boderianus the fellow-laborer in his Chaldie dictionarie he not priuie to the guile citeth the Chaldi perfect But spelleth it subtilly not Romylus which Ionathan expressed most learnedly to any Rabbin but he spelleth it Armilus to make nothing of it but Antichrist or Antideus or by some Gog or Magog But Gamaliels scholar who to the Hebrewes passeth in Talmudiques all Ebrewes that none but by Talmudikes helpe shall euer vnderstand him speciallie in Melchitzedeke liuing still as God whom he describeth in office euen as they who in storie knew to be SEM this Talmudique of Salem Orator of Tarsus borne to be Abba Abba Papa for Rome as Peter for Babell Psal 87. He expoūdeth Isai xi and Ionathan most soundly that when the present gouernour should be taken away 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is any gouernour that restrayneth others 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 then man of sinne should come And although God still plagued Rome by Alaricus Gensericus Thodoricus and Totilas specially yet the Papae still begged land and tooke Imperiall name as Pontifex in Sozimus and by wealth ouermatched Constantinus Popes that whē no punishment made Rome humble but would haue there the Empire againe set vp and cared not for the trueth spirite of deceit should worke to their destruction that would not receyue the loue of the trueth to saluation SO THENCE WAS THE REBELLION TO ARISE MAN OF SIN APOLLYON SONNE OF PERDITION ENIMIE LAVLESSE KING OF LOCVSTS THE NEW ANTIOCHVS EXALTING HIM SELFE ABOVE ALL THAT IS CALLED GOD AND NOT SETTING THE IDOLL OF IVPITER OLIMPIVS IN THE TEMPLE BVT VAVNTING HIMSELFE AS IF HE WERE GOD to expound scriptures to loose or fasten sin to sett vp or depose States And to haue a people of his owne frame and to burne the true Temple of God The Epilogue for the description of the Pope Fiue Trumpets described the Popes greatnesse how it grew to be a kingdome of Locusts able to sting and to ouerrule in warres his last mischiefes are tolde first how in his high power he bringeth haile of troubles fire mixed with blood when he is made a mountaine of Empire cast into the sea from a starre or Doctor of the Church falling into Idolls worship and soone darkening a third part of the chiefest in quicke processe a smoke of blindnesse darkeneth Sonne and Sunne and Scripture that the Pope is to mightie to bee ouerthrowen As when he sent Princes to warre for Ierusalem and to spend all their strength there since now 600. yeres his might is high Now follow three poinctes Machmads inuasions and martyrs fight and lastly Christians Policies in warre his match Of Machumed or Machmad or Moamed in Piel Hiphil Hophall the participles three are vsed in Arabique Rabbins The
the Pope be sitting vpon the Empire by litle and litle And England at 1200. yer would not grant him supremacy Sigibert And good father WICKLIFE now 200. yeares ago preached that if the commune lawes of England might stand the Pope should haue no stroke in England And good Lady Margareth a pearle for a woman the mother to K. Henry the seauenth when she built Christs Colledge S. Iohns in both which I was fellow and owe them this dutie she in those dayes made lawes to aduance knowledge to ruinate the Pope And the valiant Henry VIII trust him out from being head or taile in our Church so the Empire ridden by the Pope stood but a litle while in sundrie places And all the while of the arising the Grecians as Chrysostome Andreas Oecumenius taught that the Romane Empire would be reuiued though in Greek stories Sysimus and the ecclesiasticall Alaricus Giezerichus wrought much harme and there Antichrist should reigne And if the Greeke old Doctores had bene well known the Pope had neuer gotten peny by his Masse Areopagita taketh the worde in the Law sense the token of the body so Eusebius the Image and Symbolon and so elder Origene and later Nazianzene Antitypes and later Theodorit in a full disputation and Macarius the Greeke Monke calleth it Symbolum and full many moo Then the Pope had no auctoritie for turning bread into the body of Christ to make him haue 1000. bodies and to make Religion a stage to Angels and men This long warning of the Popes arising was a warning to all ages that they should not suffer the starr falling to make bitter the waters of the Law nor darken the starrs and in all ages he had gainesayers And both Princes and People who contemned the warning of this book were worthie to be giuen ouer to all force of error And the Beast which was and is not the same is also the eight and one of the seauenth The Pope shall be the eight chaleng place aboue all follow all heathen superstitiō in name staffe apparel of Caesares and Temples setting but a face of Christianity vpon them A plaine description of the Popes comming vp And the tenne hornes which thou sawest are tenne Kings which haue not yet receiued the kingdome but receiue auctoritie as kings one houre with the beast These haue one minde and shall part their power and auctoritie to the Beast These shall make warre with the Lambe and the Lambe shall ouercome them for he is Lord of Lordes and King of Kings and they which are with him are called and chosen and faithfull Steuchus against Valla reckoning the Countries which held of the Pope bringeth them to ten But we must know that ten vsually is a great number about ten fewer or moo These kingdoms vnder the first Caesares were not so parted as when Iulian the Apostata kept at Paris who neuer heard that his Fathers brother the great Emperor Constantine gaue the West to the Pope and if any such matter had bene it could neuer be hid from him But when the Pope of Rome by long begging for S. Peter and so for Monasteries in many Countreies had gotten much wealth and ready good wills in Rome and the West to set vp againe the Empire at Rome He picketh quarrels with the Patriarch of Constantinople for procession of the holy Ghost and Pascha day and supremacy still of old labored to extinguish the Greek tongue and puritie of Latin and weakneth the East Empire that barbarous Gothes reigned whom to ouerthrow Princes gladly ioyne with him and he with them still for great Countreyes that in the end they sweare to helpe him to hold Constantinus donation and to bring the East the Greeke to agree with Rome And after 1000. yea the king of Locustes hath Satans throne in such power that his winges bee chariots and horses to cause kinges to doe what hee will As for Ierusalem warrs to ouerthrow all their kingdomes And in these tymes Satan bare sway that scant any learned were in the West But Monasteries and Collegies were built to fortifie haeresie that Greeke was vnknowen till our age and Ebrew to this houre for skill in the tongue able to hold water and to make a translation of good warrant to all learned iudgements In this blindnesse still some Abates and such fought well by pen and at the last by Martyrs whom the Pope damned and the secular power put to death But in the end Christ by his martyrs roareth like a Lion and seauen thunders tell his anger seauen Angels poure it out and men eate the little booke of Scripture and preach to nations and kinges to bethinke them how they did set vp Rome And hee saith to mee The waters which thou sawest where the Where sitteth are people and folke and nations and tongues The phrase is from Babel Ierem. 51. O thou which sittest vpon many waters and from Dan. 3. These phrases teach the simple how plaine Gods Law is lightning the eyes to call old matters into minde and to teach by old euents howe other matters will fall out Moreouer this open speach of manie waters to meane people and nations would making a commentarie in the margin vpon many places of the old Testament inlighten much Of the Popes fall And the tenne hornes which thou sawest vpon the Beast these shall hate the Whoore and make her desolate and naked and eate her flesh and shall burne her in the fire The same kingdomes which cleaued to the Pope for profite or deceipt when they see all profit gone and how he by terror of forged purgatorie gate Princes great lands wil alter their minde to hate the Pope Many millions in England hate his keies in Canterburies armes as a mockage to the true keies of knowledge so they hate the title grace in Scotland as doth the learned M. Meluin others hate Leuies Linen Cope Priest and Kneeling at receiuing bread which should bee receiued with most holy iudgement not in the Popes gesture others hate the Leprosie of the Apocrypha books the writers of which shew no more faith in Christ then did Flauius Iosephus nor so much Others hate the Popes forme of prayer patched vp for his vse to content the people not to spend that tyme in requiring of them opening of the Bible And many would haue our Bishops caught in praemunire to loose all Others make great sute to haue their lands Now if in England most reuerend right reuerend fathers so learned as they take vpon them to bee bee so hated for remnant of Papistrie what hatred shall open Popery haue where the Pope dareth excommunicate kinges Thal. Ierusal noteth that the King might not be excommunicated nor any chiefe Ruler But be sagely warned to keepe his house for a time and to saue his honor But the high Sacrificer was whipped with as many stripes as any other for his faultes Ierus in Sanedrin But our Pope will bee excommunicating
hornes and vpon his head seauen Crownes because so many states of Rome afflicted Gods people In chap. 13. Tenne hornes had tenne Crownes to shew that so many kingdoms not seuerall kings as in Daniel for Aegypt and Syria belonged to the Empire And the woman was clothed in Purple and Scarlat and golden in Gold and pretious stones pearles hauing a golden Cup in her hand full of abominations and vncleannesse of her fornication and vpon her forehead a name written A MYSTERIE Babylon the great the mother of fornications and the abominations of the earth Red color is vsuall for blood and Lycurgus or Dracoes lawes and most fit for Romulus towne where hee embrued his handes in the blood of his brother but most of all for the Popes persequution The gold reuiueth Babel and the very phrase is taken from it Isai 14. And the story is in Dan. 3. where the King made an Image of gold sixtie cubites high six cubites broad So they amazed foolish with the cost of the matter but of Christ we are to buy the true gold Apo. 3. and 21. The golden rules of Faith and Trueth and not to esteeme of a crucifix of gold to crucifie Christ againe for the matter So the picture of Mary is in diuers places trimmed with chaines of gold and pretious stones and their Copes wickedly following Aharon bee of cloth of gold So the 3. Kings of Colone that returned from Ierusalem to their countrey and were but Persian sages and no Kinges nor any Persian that would be called Baltasar they are said to be trimmed at solemne times with chaines of great Iewels I would not see it because I would not goe bare-head into their Temple A golden Cup had Babel to make nations drunke with Idols making Gods of their Starres and was ful of lothsome things and vncleane fornications So is Rome manifestlie Colon and Spaine as if Babylon a mystery were written in the forehead As the learning of Daniel could doe no good to Babel but still it would keepe the old Gods till Cyrus tooke their kingdome so Rome is so deepe in Idolatrie that no learning will make men leaue their places Pharaoh Nebuchadnezar were neuer so hardened And these passe all that euer were for crueltie in persecution The profane Caesares did not so strictly hinder all vse of religion They hindred not the reading of Gods word as the Pope doth though they feared lest the Kingdome of Christ should be a bridle to them Romes cruelty told chap. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. is now plainely handled And I saw the woman dronk with the blood of the saincts and with the blood of the martyrs of IESVS And when I saw her I marueiled with great marueile Heere the blinde may see that since the Empire was reuiued in the West the persecutions of them who say Christ freely iustifieth and only heareth prayer and will haue the Idole of him selfe as Plato speaketh of vertue to bee fetched from his word were bloody against the Saintes and Martyrs of Iesus When the Pope contemneth a thousand times better learned then himselfe how can hee looke to escape the wrath of God Iohn marueiled to see a womā dronke with blood therefore the Angel calleth him to consider the chapters afore as especially the thirteenth chapter And the Angell said to mee why doest thou marueile I will tell thee the Mysterie of the woman of the beast which beareth her which hath seauen heades and tenne hornes A more perticular description foloweth then was cha 13. But any may see this to be a commentarie vpon that place as God is a perfect expounder of his owne worde The beast which thou sawest was and is not and hee shall ascend out of the Pit The Empire was and againe is made dead by the remouing to Bizantium and it shall ascend out of the Pit chapt 9. when the locust and their king come out of the pit And shall go to destruction This speach is part of Balaams for Italy Num. 24. which should afflict Heber that is the faithfull and hold on to destruction The same he spake of Amalek that he should go on to destruction that was neere a thousand yeares after Balaam spake that was Amalek was destroyed by Israel As a thousand yeeres are but as one day with God so Satan was tyed 1000. yea before the king of Locusts had the winges of horses and chariots to vexe the Church the true Ierusalem for the Low to the ruyne of the West And they who dwell on the earth will marueile whose names are not written in the booke of life from the beginning of the world when they behold the beast that was and is not and yet is Heere is a meaning that hath wisdome The naturall man obserueth not that when countreyes fall they rise no more Aegypt Aram Assur Paras Graecia that none would thinke Rome beeing once destroyed should raise againe But the taught of God see a plaine reason That the West in the end should afflict first by strength and next by subtiltie in religion that Christ his seruants should be tried both for body and minde and he pay the City that crucified him both with horse as chap. 6. and by the spirit of his mouth and diligent searching of the Prophets So for easier memory of story Christ would haue Rome that crucified the king of glory once to bee plagued through their Emperors and the Empire to be taken away and the Citie to bee destroyed as by Gothes and by Lybians by Giezerichus a new Annibal And then an enemie to God in all trueth to shewe himselfe in the Temple of God as if he were God to be consumed by study about the Bible by the word and sword that commeth from CHRIST his mouth So the beast was againe is not and yet is God speaketh in the praesent tempus for things to come because all things with him are praesent This is a meaning that hath wisedome as Iobs case and Daniels Image Therefore wee should flee to God to be the expounder who openeth what is in darknesse and with whom light doth dwell The seauen heades are seauen mountaines vpon which the woman sitteth also they be seauen Kings fiue are fallen and the principall is the other is not yet come and when he is come he must tary but a litle while The Iewes felt Pompei heauy that made Iuda prouince to Rome M. Crassus was heauy that spoyled the temple of much gold Iulius Caesar was also heany who strengthned Cleopatra ouer Iudea long lost to set vp Herod at the last Brutus and Cassius were also heauy with their army Antonius who married Cleopatra and holpe in Capitolio Herod to be King was also heauy all these came to destruction for medling with Gods people and all their state by Ciuill warres So fiue Kings are fallen and the principall is Augustus and the other is not yet come the Empire reuiued But at 1000. yer will