of old who is the Lord And as it hath been so it will be his kingdom will rule over all and he shall give the power and dominion to whom he pleaseth for he is God over all blessed for ever Untill the time come that the kingdom of the Lord Christ take place and his dominion and rule begin when he shall take to him his great power and reign and after deliver it to God the father so as God the creator of heaven and earth will be first in kingdom and rule The great Alpha and will be the last in kingdom rule and power the great Omega The middle it will be to the Lord Christ when he takes it on all power in heaven and earth being given unto him and he must reign till the end and then deliver up and God the father be all in all the Alpha and Omega In the kingdom of God Almighty there hath been two great Mediums or two that have been eminent between God and man besides others namely Moses a great Prophet raised up of God of great authority and rule and the Lord Christ sent of the father first to suffer and then to be highly advanced and to reign but I shall forbear to dilate further In the next place we propose that direction of our Lord Christ about prayer Math. 6. from vers 6. to vers 15. which seemeth to speak to the same matter to wit the kingdom of the father and his being all in all after this manner saith our Lord pray ye our father which art in heaven c. thy kingdom come the kingdom of the father we are to pray that it may come implying it was not then come and likewise that it was not that kingdom which had been since the creation then was and now is and also shall be till the kingdom of our Lord Christ takes place but a kingdom that was to come when our Lord Christ shall resign and God the father be all in all and his kingdom shall come and take place and wonderfull shall be the glory of it beyond all conceiving This kingdom we are to pray that it may come I do not here intend the excluding of the kingdom of grace or glory to be comprehended within this desire or prayer the further advance of the kingdom of grace in the increase of the number and the advance of the intrest of God and Christ here may be included in it and likewise the coming of the kingdom of our Lord Christ when he and his kingdom shall appear and come in power and great glory Whatever of God and Christ hath not yet had its time and highest attainer we may pray that it may come as included in this direction of our Lord thy kingdom come But in special as that which was mostly intended by our Lord Christ in this direction was that the kingdom of God the father that it may come being the last and highest in glory when God the father will be all in all in kingdom sovereignty and rule the great Omega This being that it is likely which the voge and spirits of the servants of God in their desires and wishes go out after and that which their dayly expressions are of as the sum of all blessedness to wit heaven and glory and to be with their heavenly father in glory in his kingdom as the uttermost of all their desires The close of our Lords prayer hath much in this his attest for thine is the kingdom the Power and the glory for ever and ever Amen all in all He had in the times and ages of the world delegated and given kingdoms and authorities and powers to others he hath given unto the Lord Christ kingdom power and authority he hath made and appointed him to be king of kings and Lord of Lords 1. Tim. 6. 15 and he shall come and take to him his great power and all nations serve and obey him but when the end of his kingdom is come he will deliver up all unto his father and be subject unto him himself and the father shall take all into his own power and be all in all for thine is the kingdom the power and the glory for ever and ever Amen It will be so in an eminent manner then God the father his will be the kingdom and the power and the glory and all in all Holy Paul hath a like close he having spoken of the rejection of the Jewes and taking on the Gentils and the restoring of the Jewes again by the coming of the deliverer out of Sion when all Israel shall be saved high mysteries which he admired and cryed out O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his Judgements and his ways past finding out Rom. 11. 33. he closes thus in vers 36. for of him and through him or by him and to him are all things to his glory to him be glory for ever Amen for his is the kingdom the power and the glory for ever and he shall be all in all I further propose as worthy our consideration that consolatory speech of our Lord Christ to his disciples in Joh. 14. 1. 2. 3. they being much troubled at the thoughts of his departure from them he saith to them let not your hearts be troubled ye believe in God to wit the father so is the Creed I believe in God the father Almighty c. believe also in me God the son that he spake of God the father the words following show in my fathers house he doth not say in his own house or kingdom but in his fathers house Whether by house here be meant the new heaven and new earth wherein will be several degrees of glory Luk. 19. 15. to 19. 1. Cor. 15. 41 or whether heaven only or whether both together to wit the kingdom of the son and the kingdom of the father so it may seem to be it being a blessed estate they are to be in after Christ at his coming hath received them to himself or whether it be a borrowed way of speaking I shall not determine but leave it to consideration The tendencie is consolatory to the Disciples in my fathers house are many mansion places places of great contentment happy repose and much blessedness I shall not venture to allegorise this saying of our Lord but rather believe it as it is spoken for that our Lord doth attest it saying If it were not so I would have told you There is such provision such blessednes in my fathers house and I go to prepare a place for you A place our Lord tells his disciples he goeth to prepare for them not expressing where it shall be happily in his fathers house very great and spacious like the master of it the great Jehovah I go to prepare a place for you hapily in his own house or kingdom which he is one to receive Luk 19. 12. 15. in the new heaven and the new earth where he will
himself a kingdom and to come again Luk. 19. 12. There are many virgins that wait with oyl in their lamps for the bridegrooms coming Math. 25. To them that look for him the second time he will appear to their great joy and consolation the spirit and the bride say come O come Lord Jesus come quickly Further in the new covenant spoken of by holy Ieremiah it is said I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sins no more so forgiven and so forgotten as never before no further need of an advocate then in case of sin for that will be fully made good then in Ier 50. 20. In those dayes and at that time the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sins of Iudah and they shall not be found c. Then will be the time when the Church will be presented glorious without spot or blemish or wrinckle or any such thing Ephes. 5. 27. And that true really without imputation Thou art fair thou art fair my love and there is no spot in thee Cant. 4. 1. 7. Lastly in this new covenant or testament as that which makes good all it is said and I will be their God and they shall be my people In a very high and eminent wise it will be so then beyond what before a very great and blessed thing this is still mentioned as the close to have God in a special wise to be their God and for a people to be so related to God as to be his people in a peculiar way is a great thing and that which renders them considerable and happy and blessed indeed Psal 144. 15. Those sealed ones having their fathers name written on their foreheads I conceive comporting in time and being the same with those Rev. 22. 4. His servants shall serve him and see his face and his name shall be in their foreheads He that sitteth on the throne sayeth these words are true and faithful that it relates to that blessed time in order to the high and full fulfilling of it we may minde that in Rev. 21. where the new heaven and the new earth is spoken of as vers 1. Iohn saw a new heaven and a new earth Vers. 2. He saw the new Jerusalem come down from heaven very glorious As he saw so he heard also vers 3. A great voice out of heaven it is with a 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 And as vers 4. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes all sorrow and pain and death it self shall be done away and be no more and all things shall be made new and Iohn is bidden to write for that these sayings are faithful and true vers 5. In Ier. 32. vers 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. The prophet speaketh again of the Lord his gathering of them out of all countryes and bringing them again comporting as to the full fulfilling of it with the Angels gathering the elect from the four windes Math. 24. 31. And making an everlasting covenant with them and doing great things for them and that he will be their God and they shall be his people And that he will plant them in their own land assuredly and do it with his whole heart and soul as before he spake of the fureness of his covenant as sure as the ordinances of heaven their abiding stable to wit the sun and moon and the stars See the places at large I shall adde a few testimonies out of the following prophets that are of the like import and tendency with what hath been held forth before and shall begin with Daniel chap. 12. 1. At that time shall Michael stand up the great prince very likely to be the Lord Christ the prince of peace when he appeareth again great things will take place he will stand for Daniels people the Israelites the seed of Abraham unto whom he came before but they received him not at that time there will be such trouble as never was before and at that time Daniels people shall be delivered they shall be delivered by the great deliverer when he shall come to Sion Rom. 11. 26. As before is mentioned The Lord Christ sball send forth his Angels and they shall gather his elect from the four windes Math. 24. 31. They shall be delivered every one of them not one left behinde of those that shall be found written in the book of life it is like it is meant The lamb the Lord Christ hath a book of life wherein is written the names of his from the foundation of the world Rev. 17. 8. Much comporting with the promise Rev. 3. 5. 12. To those that are overcommers And it shews further what time this relates unto Rev. 22. 3. 4. It will be when there shall be no more curse but the throne of God and of the lamb and his servants shall serve him and see his face and his name shall be in their foreheads when they shall reign for ever vers 5. At that time when the Lord Christ cometh and the dead are raised and the living saints changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye it shall be fully made good and it is likely not before Further in vers 2. of this Dan. 12. He speaketh of the resurrection saying many that sleep in the dust to wit in their graves shall arise some to everlasting life to wit of felicity and enjoying God and Christ c. their names being in the book of life and some to shame and everlasting contempt As it is said elsewhere To everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord into everlasting punishment everlasting there is in order to both according to that of the Apostle 1. Cor. 15. Then will be great glory and happyness to the just and great woe and misery to the wicked The parable of Dives and Lazarus speaks forth this very plainly the righteous will then shine gloriously though now they are made black with reproach Good Daniel was inquisitive about this and the time when it should be he is bidden as in the last verse by the Angel to go his way till the end I conceive of this world as if he should have said then it shall be and in a promissary way it is said thou shalt rest to wit in his grave as in a bed and stand up in thy lot to wit be raised again in the end of the days to enjoy his lot or share of glory then much the same with that in 1. Cor. 15. 23. 24. Every man in his own order first Christ then those that are Christs at his coming The wicked dead in their order or time a thousand years after In the next place take we notice what the prophet Hosea sayth Hosea 1. 7. where the Lord sayeth he will save Iudah not by bow or sword c. but by
lastingness no comparison for that shall abide as long as the moon endureth When the Lord Christ reigneth there shall be great honour and subjection given to him by the great ones and it will fare well with the poor vers 12. 13. 14. also vers 2 4 6. of this 72. Psalm then shall that be fulfilled and made good Psal 67. 3. 4. 6. 7. Let the people praise thee O God let all the people praise thee O let the nations be glad and sing for joy for thou shalt judge the people righteously and govern the nations upon earth Let the people praise thee As they will do then they will sing Hallelujans and prayse to the lamb what followeth then then shall the earth yeeld her encrease very fruitful times then and God even our own God shall blesse us and all the ends of the earth shall fear him It will be so eminently then In the next place take we knowledge of that very eminent place Isa 65. It is the prophecy where the new heaven and the new earth are spoken of and promised see what is said in vers 13. Therefore thus sayeth the Lord behold my servants shall eat but ye shall be hungry to wit the wicked and unsaved nations and people behold my servants shall drink but ye shall be thirsty behold all with a behold very observable my servants shall rejoyce but ye shall be ashamed vers 14. Behold my servants shall sing for joy of heart but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart and howl for vexation of spirit vers 15. And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen for the Lord God shall slay thee and call his servants by another a new name a great difference then like that of Dives and Lazarus we see here is eating and drinking then for so did Adam and Eve and so did our Lord Christ in the day of his being here both before his death and after his resurrection Luk. 24. 42. 43. And so very likely will those changed alive then do for they will be men and women It followeth as a reason and that with a behold also vers 17. For behold I create a new heaven and a new earth The old will be done away and forgotten vers 18. They are bidden to rejoyce for the great blessednes and glory Jerusalem will be in God will create them so a rejoycing a praise Vers. 19. The voice of weeping shall no more be heard in her nor the voice of crying It is easy to see to what time and state that belongs this world affords no such exemption from weeping and crying only it will as to the full fulfilling be in the blessed world to come Vers. 21. They shall build houses and inhabit them they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them Vers. 22. They shall not build and another inhabit they shall not plant and another eat it fares so in this world many times but it will not then for as the dayes of a tree which are many so shall be the dayes of Gods people It followeth and mine elect shall long injoy the work of their hands their building and planting c. vers 23. They shall not labour in vain as many do in this world nor bring forth for trouble of which we made mention before For they are the blessed of the Lord and their off-spring with them Vers. 25. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together The same with that in Isa 11. of which before It is not hard to conceive what time this relateth unto it relateth to and is a prophecy of the new earth that God will create when there shall be the restoration of all things When it shall all come to passe and be so as is declared whether we believe it or no. The prophet Jeremiah declareth something to the like effect Ier. 33. 6. 7. 8. 9. I will bring them health I will cause their captivitie to return I will cleanse them from all their iniquitie and it shall be to me a name of joy and praise before all the people of the earth For the great prosperitie God will procure unto it And vers 11. The voice of joy and the voice of gladness the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride c. For he will cause their captivitie to return And so he goeth on in a promisary way of good things to the end of the 16th verse See the prophecy at large I spare to set it down for fear or being over-large And consider to what time it relateth for its full fulfilling at the time of the branch of righteousness growing up to David in the land it will be We may also minde that Ier. 50. 19. 20. When Israels captivitie shall be returned c. and the iniquity of Israel and Judah sought for and not be found for there shall be none we spake of it before Hosea the prophet mentioned by holy Paul Rom. 9. Eyeing the time of their great return and Gods gracious return to them Hos 2. 18. In that day to wit of the restoration I will make a covenant with them and with the beasts of the feild and with the fowls of heaven and with the creeping things of the ground and I will break the bow and the sword and the battel out of the earth I will make them lie down safely It may easily be minded what day this relateth unto it being the same with Isa 11. mentioned before when the hurtful nature of the creature will cease and mans enmitye also and wars cease to the ends of the earth and the restoration of all things and the peaceable kingdom of the Lord Christ takes place then it will be so and it is not like to be before Vers. 19. I will betroth thee to me for ever The marriage of the lamb will be nigh then yea I will betroth thee to me in righteousness c. vers 21. And it shall come to passe in that day I will hear the heavens and they shall hear the earth and the earth shall hear the corn and the wine and the oyl and they shall hear Iezreel and I will sow her to me in the earth to wit the new earth as to the fulfilling of it it is not sayd in heaven but in the earth Further see what the prophet Ioel sayth chap. 3. 18. And it shall come to passe when Ierusalem shall be holy and no stranger passe through her any more as they shall in no wise then Rev. 21. 27. at that day then at that day the mountains shall drop down new wiue and the hills shall flow with milk and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord and shall water the valley of Chittim It will go ill with Egypt then vers 20. But Judah shall dwell for ever and Jerusalem from generation to generation for God will then cleanse so as never before I conceive by changing of