of the mount of Esau Verse 10. For thy Violence against the Brother Jacob shame shall cover thee and thou shalt be cut off for ever And Jer. 49. from ver 7. to v. 23. gives us much the same account of them And as the two forementioned Prophets did treat of the real Esau or Idumea so the Prophet Isaiah dothof the figurative one and also of those wicked Powers that are carrying on the darkness of this World with him And here Isaiah ch 34.4,10 doth fully make out the meaning of St. Peter where he here terms the Powers or Rulers to be the Host of Heaven where in Verse 4. he saith All the Host of Heaven shall be dissolved and the Heavens shall be rolled together as a Scrole and all their Hosts shall fall down as the Leaf falleth from the Vine and as a falling fig from the fig tree Now as to the Host of Heaven his meaning here cannot be because in the 10th Verse of the same Chapter he makes mention of Day and Night and many Generations after these Heavens here spoken of were destroyed But whereas the Prophet mentions the Host of Heaven shall be dissolved his meaning is without doubt that their Power shall be taken from them as Kings do from their Parliaments that are dissolved by them And in the next place he saith the Heavens shall be rolled together as a Scrole or fastened together till they receive their sentence of Judgment After which they fell down as a leaf falleth from the Vine and a falling fig from the fig tree By which methinks there is a suitable Representation of the Soul as the leaf to the fire and the body as the rotten fig to the Dunghil And in the 5th Verse of the same Chapter the Lord saith My Sword shall be bathed in Heaven behold it shall come down upon Idumea and upon the people of my Curse to Judgment Verse 6. The Sword of the Lord is fill'd with Blood and is made fâ—… with fatness and with the Blood of Lambs and Goats with the fat of the Kidneys of Rams for the Lord hath a Sacrifice in Bozrah and a great slaughter in the Land of Idumea Now we may easily tell where this Land of Idumea is which is here mentioned by the Pope's pretension to be the Elder Christian Brother although like Esau he hath forsaken God and his Word and as he did lies in wait to destroy his Christian Brother And this Prophet further declaring their destruction saith in the 7th Verse And the Vnicorns shall come down with them and the Bullocks with the Bulls and their Land shall be soaked with Blood and their dust made fat with fatness for it is the day of the Lord's Vengeance and the year of Recompence for the Controversie of Sion 9. The Streams thereof shall be turned into pitch and the dust thereof into Brimstone and the land thereof shall become burning pitch 10. It shall not be quenched night nor day the smoak thereof shall go up for ever from generation to generation it shall lie waste none shall pass through it for ever and ever 11. But the Cormorant and the Bittern shall possess it the Owl also and the Raven shall dwell in it and he shall stretch out upon the line of confusion and the stones of emptiness 14. The wild beast of the Desert shall also meet with the wild beast of the Island and the Satyr shall cry to his fellow and the Schriech-Owl also shall rest there and find for her self a place of rest 16. Seek ye out of the book of the Lord and read no one of these shall fail none shall want her mate for my mouth it hath commanded and his Spirit it hath gathered them 17. And he hath cast the Lot for them and his band hath divided it unto them by Line they shall possess it for ever from Generation to Generation shall they dwell therein Here you see after these Heavens and Earth here mentioned are destroyed there is day and night and many generations as in the foregoing ver you read of This Idumea before mentioned being the Land of the Figurative Esau whose Land shall be thus accursed but the Land of the Real Esau shall be inhabited as in Obad. 1.19 This Book of the Lord which is here mentioned in the sixteenth Verse the Pope with his Crew has made it Death for the Inhabitants of those Countries to read whereby although they have been exceeding sinful that would have discovered to them their near approaching danger but now it is hid from their Eyes For those signs that God hath sent for fore-warnings of their utter Destruction they have banisht the Knowledge thereof from them by excluding the Word of God and now their Destruction will come suddenly as a Whirlwind when it cometh Isa 47.7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 They discerning not Mount Aetna the meaning of its violent breaking forth of Fire and apprehend not the meaning of those violent Earthquakes which our Lord foretold in Mat. 24.7 should be in divers places to give us notice of his near approach of his coming to judge the World Zeph. 2.8,9,10,11 For although there has been several Earthquakes and very great ones since the world began yet it was but one or so at a time and then many years it may be an Hundred before we hear of another But now there has been divers Earthquakes which have been in several places of the world the which the World before never produc'd the like of those in Sicily and therefore we cannot but have good Reason to believe that these are the Earthquakes spoken of in Rev. 16.18 And there were Voices and Thunderings and Lightnings and there was a great Earthquake such as was not since men were upon the Earth so mighty an Earthquake and so great 19. And the great City was divided into three parts and the Cities of the Nations fell And by these late Earthquakes according to the Word the Cities of the Nations have fallen but they apprehend not the meaning of it Neither that of the Mountain Vesivius which hath cast up so great a quantity of melted Sulphur and Bitumen that both together hath form'd a kind of little River for Three Miles together So that fearing it should diffuse it self the Viceroy of Naples has ordered a Passage to be opened for the Infernal Liquor into the Sea And since this Mountain Vesivius in Naples has sent forth floods of fire as Mount Aetna has done in Sicily by which the Lord with this dreadful River and fiery Mountains doth figure out to us where he intends this his ireful Judgments as part of the Land to become burning Pitch as shall never be quenched night not day and the other part inhabited with those fearful Creatures for ever from generation to generation Now when all these things shall come to pass as to the Judgments threatned both to the Heavens and Earth The Prophet Isaiah c. 34.8 nominates the time and tells
that Jesus Christ is in you except ye be Reprobates Now in the Apostle's time there was a twofold way of Christ's being in the Churches for Christ said to his Disciples The Spirit that dwelleth with you shall be in you John 14.17 because unto them was given the Holy Ghost to be in them which afterward also was but with the Churches But Christ in every true Believer must be so in them as to have the ruling-power in their hearts and affections in that their wills must be brought into subjection unto Christ by a complying frame of spirit to his will And thus Christ dwells in every true Believer For whosoever is in Christ in them is required a mind agreeable to the will of Christ that he thereby may rule in the heart Now the Corinthians having embraced the faith in yielding their consent to be obedient unto Christ and had also received the Spirit of whom St. Paul afterward heard of their disorderly walking therefore he writes to them to examine themselves whether they were in the faith and to prove themselves whether Christ were still thus in them or not for if Christ were not thus in them then they had rebelled from their subjection unto him and thereby grieved the Spirit of God and so become Reprobates But those that had never yielded their obedience to God or Christ cannot properly be said to be Rebels or Reprobates because they did never own themselves as servants to them but did all along yield themselves servants to sin for which they shall receive their punishment tho' not as Rebels or Reprobates But Israel whom God had taken into Covenant with himself they likewise were termed Reprobates for their wilful disobedience for which they were rejected of God Jer. 6.28,30 They are all grievous revolters walking with slanders they are Brass and Iron they are all corrupters Reprobate Silver shall men call them because the Lord hath rejected them Now tho' the Lord saith The Spirit like the Wind bloweth where it listeth but it listeth not to blow on them by whom it is grieved and therefore Israel was rejected Now some of them of Corinth were fallen into great iniquity and also had spoken evil of St. Paul and some other Disciples Therefore he saith in verse 6. But I trust that ye shall know that we are not Reprobates As much as to say ye shall know that we have not rebelled from our great Master and therefore not Reprobates For it is said Every one is his servant To whom they yield themselves to obey his servants they are to whom they obey whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness Rom. 6.16 Chap. XV. The Everlasting Life that is now given the Believer explained JOHN 6.47 Christ saith He that believeth in me hath everlasting life Now we have misapprehended the words of Christ for the everlasting life that is now given the Believer is no otherwise given except to the standing Witness than it was to Adam and Eve in Paradice For when sin in the Soul is pardoned the will changed Christ's Righteousness imputed then it is the everlasting life lost by Adam again takes place of which everlasting life nothing can again disinherit them but wilful and presumptuously sinning or negligently and carelesly departing from the ways of God Therefore Christ saith Rev. 3.2,3 Be watchful and strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die for I have not found thy works perfect before God If therefore thou wilt not watch I will come upon thee as a Thief and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee And likewise St. Paul cautions the Church of Corinth fearing lest the Serpent should beguile them as he beguiled Eve 2 Cor. 11.3 For if Adam and Eve had never sinned they had never died Now the Churches thus standing were to take heed lest they should fall and to fight to keep their ground thereby to make their Calling and Election sure 2 Pet. c. 1. v. 10. And St. Paul saith Phil. 2.12,13 It is God that worketh in them both to will and to do according to his own good pleasure That is it was so far the good will and pleasure of God to restore them and renew them by his Spirit and to put them into a capacity of sincere obedience in which capacity they were to use their utmost diligence to work out their salvation with fear and trembling So likewise are we to do the same also For those that received the Talents were to improve that which was given them and he that did not according to his ability improve that which he had received was therefore condemned Matth. 25.15 Chap. XVI A Believer not coming into Condemnation explained CHrist saith John 5.24 He that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death unto life These words of the Lord may admit of a two-fold meaning That is whilst the Believer continues believing that Salvation is to be had according to the promise of the Lord in the Gospel in the way of their love and obedience Whilst he thus believeth he shall never come into condemnation But this which the Lord here saith hath its peculiar reference to his second Coming at which time he cometh to judge the world and restore all things as in verse 22. The Judgment is then committed unto Christ at which time as in verse 23. All men shall honour the Son as they honour the Father The which never yet hath been done for the generality of the Jews hitherto have not honoured the Son as they honour the Father Neither by the Turks is the Son honoured as the Father Therefore this the Lord spake for the time when he again shall come That whosoever he shall then find a true practical Believer shall not come into condemnation For then the everlasting life that is now given the Believer will be secured to their persons for at that time they will be put into a capacity never more to offend For not only the raised Saints but the living Believer will then receive the Crown of Life For when the Lord again cometh the Crown of Righteousness is given to all that love his appearing 2 Tim. 4.8 For when an inherent perfect Righteousness is given and the continuance of it secured to us by the establishing of the now-promised new everlasting Covenant then is Life crowned to the Soul This is the Covenant of Promise which now the Believers with Israel are but Heirs to And if ye be Christ's then are ye Abraham 's seed and Heirs according to the Promise Gal. 3.29 but when the Lord again comes his other Sheep will be brought into that Fold with them that do securely stand For the Lord saith At that time when there is one Fold there shall be but one Shepherd John 10.16 Therefore this will not be till the Lord again comes But we taking all the Promises as
Isa 34.6 The vvhich after he had given an Account of the Day of Vengeance and the year of recompence for the Controversy of Sion he speaks of this Esau's Land vvhich is this root of Bitterness That the streams thereof shall be turned into Pitch and the dust thereof into Brimstone And also in the 14. v. in answer to that of the Teeth of Beasts It is here said It shall be an habitation of Dragons the wild Beast of the Desart shall also meet with the wild Beast of the Island and the Satyr shall cry to his fellow And in Rev. 18.2 it is said that Satyrs shall Dance there Now these Satyrs are generally held to be Devils and Moses here says The Poyson of the Serpents of the Dust Now we know that in Gen. 3. God pronounc'd that Curse to that Serpent which was the Devil That dust should be the Serpents meas therefore I look upon these Serpents of the Dust here spoken of to be Devils Now Moses in the 25. v. begins again to speak of the Afflictions of the Natural Seed of Abraham for this Song is intermixt with the Natural and with the Adopted Seed of Abraham wherein he treats from Israel's first coming into Canaan to the Destruction of the World and their Restoration Now as to the Natural Seed he saith Deut. 23.25 The sword without and Terror within shall destroy both the young man and the Virgin the suckling also with the man of gray hairs 26. I said I would scatter them into corners I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men 27. Were it not that I feared the wrath of the Enemy lest their adversaries should behave themselves strangely and lest they should say our Hand is high and the Lord hath not done all this 28. For they are a Nation void of Council neither is there any understanding in them 29. O that they were wise that they understood this that they would consider their latter end 30. How should one chase a thousand and two put ten thousand to flight except their Rock had sold them and the Lord had shut them up 31. For their Rock is not as our Rock even our Enemies themselves being Judges Now this part we see is altogether spoken of the Natural Seed by the Judgments that have come upon them And from the 31. v. to the 36. v. Moses speaks again of the Adopted Seed of which came that Root of Bitterness of which he saith in Deut. 32.32 For their Vine is the Vine of Sodom and the Fields of Gomorrah Their Grapes are Grapes of Gall their clusters are Bitter 33. Their Wine is the Poyson of Dragons and the cruel Venom of Asps 34. Is not this laid up in store with me and sealed up among my Treasures 35. To me belongeth Vengeance and recompence their foot shall slide in due time for the day of their Calamity is at hand and the things that shall come upon them make haste Now whereas God said Is not this laid up in store with me and Sealed up among my Treasuries whereby we may plainly see there was a secret in these words which was not then to be unfolded And whereas God saith To me belongeth vengeance and recompence That is God will arise to Judgment and then will he render Vengeance and Recompence Then shall those deceivers with the deceived know to whom these threatned Judgments do belong For God saith Their Foot shall slide in due time That is from their height grandeur and greatness For in the next words God saith The Day of their Calamity is at hand and the things that shall come upon them make haste And Moses began again in the 36. v. to speak of the Natural Seed of Abraham which words of his has their Reference towards the time of Israel's Restitution for he saith Deut. 32.36 For the Lord shall judg his People and repent himself for his Servants when he seeth that their power is gone and there is none shâ—… up or left 37. And he shall say where are their Gods their rock in whom they trusted 38. Which did eat the Fat of their Sacrifices and drink the Wine of their Drink-offerings let them rise up and help you and be your Protection 39. See now that I even I am he and there is no God with me I Kill and I make alive I wound and I heal neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand 40. For I lift up my hand to Heaven and say I live for ever 41. v. If I whet my glittering Sword and mine hand take hold of Judgment I will render Vengeance to mine Enemies and will reward them that hate me 42. v. I will make mine Arrows drunk with Blood and my Sword shall devour Flesh and that with the Blood of the slain and of the Captives from the beginning of Revenges upon the Enemy 43. v. Rejoyce O ye Nations with his people for he will avenge the Blood of his Servants and will render vengeance to his Adversaries and will be merciful unto his Land and to his people Now we see that in these Verses are contained the Judgment the which is Gods Revenges upon the Enemy at which time 〈◊〉 other Nations will be received into mercy to rejoyce with his people at that time when the Lord hath mercy on his Land and on his people Therefore we may clearly see that all this is to be fullfill'd at the Restitution of all things For the Land has never been restor'd to Israel since the Captivity Only that Judah had a liberty to build a Temple and to inhabit in that part that belonged to them but notwithstanding they were subject to another Monarchy So we see that all the Scripture doth absolutely agree in one and the same thing That the Wicked 〈◊〉 be destroyed and Israel restored and the promised Elect called in and all this is to be at one and the same time And as you see the natural Seed and the Adopted Seed here joyn'd so they are alike joyn'd throughout the Word where they are spoken of so is the Destruction of the Wicked World all along said to be at the Time of their Restitution In this fore-mentioned Chapter and Song is not only contained the short History of the World from the time that God brought the Children of Israel out of the Land of Egypt to the time that the Lord ariseth to Judgment at which time it is said from the beginning of revenges upon the Enemy he will make his Arrows Drunk with Blood and his Sword shall devour Flesh And as it is said at which time God will have mercy on his Land and on his People and then it is other Nations shall Rejoyce with them Deut. 32.41,42,43 By which we see that this Song does not only reach to the end of this World but it launcheth it self forth into the Glorious time And David being a Prophet and belov'd of God and thereby understanding the secrets of God more than
is the Covenant set down that the Lord will make with the House of Israel in Ver. 31,33 After those days saith the Lord I will put my Law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts and I will be their God and they shall be my people v. 34. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour and every man his brother saying know ye the Lord For they shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them saith the Lord For I will forgive their iniquity and will remember their sins no more v. 35. Thus saith the Lord which giveth the Sun for a light by day and the Ordinances of the Moon and of the Stars for a light by night which divideth the Sea when the waves thereof roar the Lord of Hosts is his Name V. 36. If those Ordinances depart from before me saith the Lord then the Seed of Israel also shall cease from being a Nation before me for ever V. 37. Thus saith the Lord if Heaven ahove can be measured and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath I will also cast off all the Seed of Israel for all that they have done saith the Lord. V. 38. Behold the days come saith the Lord and the City shall be built to the Lord from the Tower of Hananiel unto the gate of the Corner V. 40. And the whole valley of the dead Bodies and the Ashes and all the Fields unto the Brook Kidron unto the corner of the Horse-Gate toward the East shall be holy unto the Lord it shall not be plucks up nor thrown down any more for ever Now whereas the Lord saith behold the days come that the City shall be built Now the Lord does not here say the day is come but the days come by which the Lord comprehends the days of two thousand years or thereabouts and then their City shall be built for it is said a thousand year is with the Lord as one day and therefore the Lord speaking in many places of things that are to come as tho they were present Of which Divine Duhartus speaking of God saith that his mighty Voice speaks in the midst of thunder causing the Rocks to Rock and Hills to Tear calling the things that are not as tho they were Now what is spoken of this City of certain is not ment of that which was built at the return out of the Babilonian Captivity First That the dimentions of it is far larger than ever Jerusalem was yet built Secondly That this Jerusalem shall be called Holy unto the Lord. Thirdly It shall not be pluckt up nor thrown down any more for ever And therefore it is to be rebuilt at the restitution of all things At which time all these wonderful promises shall be made good to Israel And the Lord also saith in Jerem. 32.37 Behold I will gather them out of all countries whither I have driven them in mine anger and in my fury and in great wrath and I will bring them again into this place and cause them to dwell safely 38. And they shall be my people and I will be their God 39. And I will give them one heart and one way that they may fear me for ever for the good of them and of their Children after them 40. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them to do them good but I will put my fear into their hearts that they shall not depart from me 41. Yea I will rejoice over them to do them good and I will plant them in this Land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole Soul Jer. 33.14 Behold the days come saith the Lord that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah 15. In those days and at that time I will cause the branch of righteousness to grow up unto David and he shall execute Judgment and righteousness in the Land 16. In those days shall Judah be saved and Jerusalem shall dwell safely Here you see in those forementioned verses is contained Gods everlasting covenant with Israel after they are again re-establish'd they shall never more be cast off Whereby we see they stand with greater security then our first parents did in paradice And therefore the making good of these promises must be at the restitution of all things At which time they shall teach no more every man his neighbour and his brother but that they then shall be all taught of God from the least of them to the greatest of them And God also tells them in Isa 60.21 Thy people shall be all righteous They shall inherit the Land for ever the branch of my planting the work of my hands that I may be glorified 22. A little one shall become a thousand and a small one a strong Nation I the Lord will hasten it in its time And it is said in v. 14. of the same Chap. The Sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee and all they that despise thee shall bow themselves down at the Soles of thy Feet and they shall call thee the City of the Lord the Sion of the holy one of Israel Now whereas God saith in Isa 4.5 And it shall come to pass that he that is left in Sion and he that remaineth in Jerusalem shall be called holy even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem Now by these words it does appear to have its meaning at the coming of the Lord that those that then are found written among the living shall there continue alive and remain in Jerusalem the which will be as it is inhabited with several sorts of people And the words that are in the following verse makes it so out where 't is said v. 4. When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughter of Sion and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the Spirit of Judgment and by the Spirit of burning v. 5. And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of Mount Sion and upon all her assemblies a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night for upon all the glory shall be a defence v. 6. And there shall be a Tabernacle for a shadow in the the day time from the heat and for a place of refuge and for a covert from the storm and from the rain By these following words you see that Jerusalem was not then purged from her filthiness when the Lord said they should be called holy that were written among the living in Jerusalem And also there may then be some Achan in the Camp of Judah the which may be taken off before they come to their glorious settlement as never to be cast out of the favour of God any more over whom God hath promis'd there should be this glory that is before mention'd a Tabernacle
a Month according to the Egyptian Account it doth just amount to one thousand two hundred and sixty days of years at which time the Lord will come and then the Beast shall be taken and cast alive into a Lake burning with Fire and Brimstone and the Devil bound up and then will be the first Resurrection of which St. John speaks in Rev. 20.4 And I saw Thrones and they that sat upon them and judgment was given unto them and I saw the Souls of them that were beheaded for the witnesses of Jesus and for the word of God and which had not worshiped 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 years 5. But the rest of the Dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished this is the first Resurrection V. 6. Blessed and Holy is he that hath part in the first Resurrection on such the second Death hath no Power but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years It is said in Isa 1.26 where God telleth them I will restore thy Judges as at the first and thy Counsellors as at the beginning afterward thou shalt be called the City of Righteousness the Faithful City Pray mark the Words Here the Lord doth not tell them that they should have such Judges as they had at the first and such Counsellors as they had at the beginning but that the Lord would restore them Judges that they had at the first and those Counsellors which were at the beginning Therefore the Lord said unto Daniel in Chap. 12.13 But go thou thy way till the end be for thou shalt rest and stand in thy Lot at the end of the days Now the Lord in the fore part of the Chapter tells him of the end of the world and what shall then happen and also tells him that he shall rest and stand in his Lot at the End of the Days Here the Lord doth not tell him that he shall stand in his Lot at the End of his Days but at the End of the Days after he has rested which is at the Resurrection By this of Daniel it doth further clear to us the first Resurrection on whom the second Death shall have no Power but that they shall be Priests of God and Christ and reign with him a thousand years And Isaiah saith Chap. 24.23 Then the Moon shall be confounded and the Sun ashamed when the Lord of Hosts shall reign in Mount Sion and in Jerusalem and before his Ancients gloriously Not that Christ and his Saints shall reign no longer than the Thousand Years but that the Visible Glory may not so eminently appear among them after Satan is loosed that thereby he may accomplish his final Overthrow when he has deceived his Gog and Magog of which I shall speak more to in another place Whereas the Angel saith Rev. 10.6 That there should be time no longer That is no longer time for this wicked World to have Power and time of Repentance for their time should be no longer But there will be a glorious Time for the People of God in the renewed Heavens and Earrh when the Lord reigneth And as there will be another World so another Generation and another Time Of which times the Lord saith in Esdras 9.6 The Times also of the Highest have plain beginnings in wonders and powerful workings and endings in Effects and Signs The Lord grant that we may be awakened by the Signs of the End which End is now approaching And in John Martha said to the Lord concerning her brother chap. 11.24 Martha said unto him I know that he shall rise again in the Resurrection at the last day The which last Day is the last day of this wicked World and when this World shall be judged For the Saints are raised before the Wicked are condemned Therefore by this last day must be meant the last day of their Time For to take it otherwise it cannot be for it is said when this World is past that Day and Night lasteth for ever and for ever as in Revelations where the Devil receives his Last Judgment he is there said to be cast into Hell to be tormented day and night for ever and for ever The same is said of God That he liveth for ever and for ever Rev. 4.9 And as to what St. Paul saith in 1 Thess 1.5 VVhich is a manifest Token of the Righteous judgment of God that ye may be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God for which ye also suffer Verse 6. Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompence Tribulation to them that trouble you 7. And to you that are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven with his mighty Angels 8. In flaming fire taking Vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ 9. VVho shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his Power 10. VVhen he shall come to be glorified in his Saints and to be admired in all them that believe Now whereas he saith counted worthy of the Kingdom of God for which they did also suffer In answer to which it is said in Rev. 11.15 The Kingdoms of this world are become the Kingdoms of our God and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever Verse 17. 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 Verse 18. 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 fear thy Name small and great and shouldest destroy them which destroy the Earth Now it is at this time when the Lord cometh that the Kingdoms of this World will become the Kingdoms of God and Christ And it is then God will give Rewards to his Servants at which time the wicked Worldlings that are dead in sin will be judged and then shall they be destroyed which destroyed the Earth which Earth is their fellow brethren upon the Earth And also by the words of St. Paul before mentioned it is when the Lord shall be revealed that then to the wicked will be recompensed Tribulation and to the Saints Rest and Consolation And when God and Christ have taken possession of the Kingdom then shall the Saints reign on the Earth as in Rev. 5.10 And hast made us unto God Kings and Priests and we shall reign on the Earth And according to this it is said in Ephes 2.7 And also in 1 Pet. 2.9 Where he mentions those things which are to come as if they were present which way of speaking is often used in
Scripture And the like is in Dan. 7.27 And in 2 Tim. 4.8 It is said The Crowns are given in that day to all them that love his appearing For now it is said in Rev. 6.9 The Souls are under the Altar Now in the next place we are to take notice who are those that do chiefly fall under this everlasting Punishment mentioned by St. Paul in 2 Thess 1.6,8,9 which in especial manner appears to be those rhat were the Afflictors of the the Servants of God as in Verse 6. Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompence Tribulation to them that trouble you By which we see these will be the great sharers of his Wrath when the Lord comes as in verse 8. In flaming fire taking Vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ 9. VVho shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power Now altho he saith this of them that know not God Now those are said not to know God that in works deny him in not obeying the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ Now this word was more particularly directed to them that would not have a practical Knowledg of God and of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ as to be obedient thereunto Now that this Condemnation did not extend to all that had not the knowledg of God and of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is evident for in his words there is not all expressed for he did not say of all them that knew not God and all them that knew not the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ but to them chiefly that knew it and would not obey it for the Lord saith he that knoweth not his Masters Will and doeth it not shall be beaten with fewer stripes For St. Paul also knew that the Jews that neither did know nor obey the Gospel were to be called in at the coming of the Lord is evident by what is said in Rom. 11.25,26 That when the fulness of the Gentiles be come in then all Israel should be saved He saith according as it is written in Isa 59. read there from the V. 14. to the end of the Chapter in which is contained Christ's coming to Judgment and the Redemption of his People and it is at that time when he comes to Mount Sion That he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob. And then will the rest of the promised Elect be gathered in Now when the Lord was upon the Earth he did not in the plain Letter of the Word either bid us pray for Jerusalem or the Conversion of the Jews but in the Second and Third Petitions of that Prayer that he taught us they are both included Where he saith Thy Kingdom come thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven For the Lord knowing that Israels time to be restored would not be until his Second Coming at which Time should be the Restitution of all Things And then will the Kingdoms of this World become the Kingdoms of our God and of his Christ And then will Israel be restored and the promised New Covenant made with them And then will the Will of the Lord be done on Earth as it is done in Heaven and this the Lord would have us to pray for before we ask our daily bread for the Time was not so absolutely determined but that the days may be shortned And the Lord said to Esdras Pray for few days unto you And Christ in Matth. 24.22 saith For the Elect's sake those days shall be shortned And St. Peter speaking of Christ's second coming in Acts 3.19,20,21,22,23 Repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. 20. And he shall send Jesus Christ which before was preached unto you 21. VVhom the Heavens must receive until the times of restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began 22. For Moses truly said to the Fathers a prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren like unto me him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you 23. And it shall come to pass that every Soul which will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed from among the people Here the Apostle absolutely tells us The Lord will again come and then will the Times of Restitution be the which he saith hath been declared by all the Prophets and by them I here prove the same unto you And in 2 Esdras 11.37 And I beheld and lo as it were a roaring lion chased out of the wood And I saw that he sent out a mans voice unto the eagle and said V. 38. Hear thou I will talk with thee and the highest shall say unto thee V. 39. Art not thou it that remaineth of the four beasts whom I made to reign in my world that the end of their times might come through them V. 46. That all the earth may be refreshed and may return being delivered from thy violence and that she may hope for the judgment and mercy of him that made her Now we have all of us been under a very great mistake as to our Lord 's coming to judgment taking his coming to judg the World for that last and final Judgment spoken of in Rev. 20.12 wherein the Dead both small and great shall stand before the Throne of God At which time the Sea and Hell and Death shall deliver up their Dead which are in them But when Christ comes to Judg the World there is mention made of no such thing But whereas St. Paul saith in the 2 Tim. 4.1 That the Lord Jesus Christ shall judg the quick and the dead at his appearing and his Kingdom Here we must not forget whom the Lord calls Dead it is also them that are dead in sin and it is those Dead wirh the living Saints and restored Jews that he will first Judg. And whereas it is said in his Kingdom pray take notice of the word Kingdom which Kingdom would be but of a short continuance were it but for a natural day therefore it is said that he must Reign till he hath put all his Enemies under his feet which is till the last general Judgment when the Sea Hell and Death shall deliver up their Dead Now as to what our Lord saith concerning his coming Matth. 25.31 when the Son of man shall come in his glory and all the holy Angels with him Then shall he sit upon the Throne of his glory V. 32. And before him shall be gathered all Natiions and he shall seperate them one from another as a Shepherd divideth his Sheep from the Goats Now whereas the Lord saith he shall fit upon the Throne of his Glory which words argue a continuance of some considerable time upon his Throne And the Lord here
and lying wonders in that they say Lord Lord have we not Prophesied in thy name and in thy name cast out Devils and in thy Name done many wonderful works All which does fully make out it is those that makes a profession of Christ but in their Works deny him which are here in a more particular manner shut out And in the Revelations it is said The Vine is first trod in the Wine-press of God's wrath Mat. 25.30 VVhere the Lord in the parable of the three men to whom the Talents were given it was he that improved not his Talent whom the Lord commanded should be cast into outer darkness there shall be weeping and gnashing of Teeth The Lord also saith in Luke 19.12,14,15,27 A certain Nobleman went into a far Countrey to receive for himself a Kingdom and to return 14. But his Citizens hated him and sent a Messenger after him Saying we will not have this man to reign over us 14. And it came to pass when he was returned having received the Kingdom The Lord saith Verse 27. But those mine Enemies which would not that I should reign over them bring hither and slay them before me Now as to whom this Sentence of Condemnation is passed it doth also in a particular manner figure out the Christians to us in that they have the knowledge of the Lord and would not have him to reign over them And the Lord doth not here make mention of the crying sins of the Times for the Scriptures do fully make manifest that they shall have their part in the Lake that burneth with Fire and Brimstone which is the second death Rev. 21.8 But the Lord to undeceive them that think they shall be happy when indeed they shall be miserable Therefore it is said That it is not him that confesseth the Lord with his mouth and in his works deny him and that it is not onely the shuning the doing evil Which so few does now adays But we must also learn to do well for if we Christians are not found ready with grace in our hearts at his coming we shall be shut out like the foolish Virgins from those heavenly nuptials with the Lord the Bridegroom of Souls Now whereas the Lord saith in Mat. 13.34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables and without a parable spake he not unto them 35. That it might be fullfilled which was spoken by the prophet Saying I will open my mouth in parables I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world And in the 36th Verse 't is made mention of the Disciples coming to the Lord saying Declare unto us the parable of the Tares of the field 37. He answered and said unto them He that soweth the good Seed is the Son of Man 38. The Field is the world the good Seed are the Children of the Kingdom but the Tares are the Children of the wicked One. 39. The Enemy that soweth them is the Devil the Harvest is the end of this world the Reapers are the Angels 40. As therefore the Tares are gathered and burnt in the fire so shall it be in the end of this world 41. The Son of Man shall send forth his Angels and they shall gather out of his Kingdom all things that offend and them that do iniquity 42. And cast them into a Furnace of Fire there shall be wailing and gnashing of Teeth 43 Then shall the Righteous shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdom of their Father Now here we see this is the Interpretation of the Parable wherein we are to take notice that the Tares are the Seed of the Wicked One and according to the saying of St. Peter the World that is to be burnt Pray take notice where this Kingdom is from whence all things that offend and do Iniquity is to be pluckt out you see it is here upon this Earth Now by this you may more clearly see which are the Heavens and Earth which are to be destroyed by the fiery indignation of the Lord's Displeasure And we ought to take notice of the Words of the Lord in that he saith he would open his Mouth in Parables and he would utter things that have been kept secret from the Foundation of the World Which is That the Glory of the Righteous shall be when the Wicked World shall be destroyed Whose Executioners are said to be the Angels For although these things were hinted to them in Old Time by the Prophets yet Israel apprehended them not no more than that of Christ coming to suffer And like us that have been ignorant in these great matters as to the Sayings of Christ and his Apostles And whereas the Lord saith The Righteous shall shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdom of his Father he also saith in John 10.30 I and my Father are one Now seeing that Christ and the Father are One the Kingdom that is the Son 's must be the Father 's also And it is said Rev. 11.15 The The Kingdoms of the world are become the Kingdom of our God and of his Christ And in Psal 9.16 The Lord is known by the judgment which he executeth the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands Verse 17. The wicked shall be turned into Hell with all the Nations that forget God Verse 18. For the needy shall not always be forgotten the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever Now Christ by these words Wheat Sheep and Elect thereby leaves himself scope for to take in whom he pleases at his coming the which will be those people which the Prophets have prophesied of with the poor that are said to be fetch'd in at the coming of the Lord. But by what the Lord saith it is evident that there will be something found in them to distinguish them from the Wicked of the World But as for the Christians that forget God they must look to be turned into Hell as it is said Now it is these and the like places that have cast a Veil over our Faces or Apprehensions in taking the Elect which is to be called in at the coming of the Lord for the Saints which attend him from Heaven and for the Witnesses that meet him in the Clouds of Glory the which then will descend from Heaven and is the place which the Lord said he would prepare for them and then come again and receive them to himself Joh 14.3 This being the Tabernacle which the Lord shall pitch and not man 1 Pet. 1.4,5 Of which I shall speak more in another place But as for those that were before mentioned The Lord there saith it is all the Nations that shall be gathered before him And it is evident that the Saints in Henven are not termed the Nations neither the Damned that are in the infernal Regions And also the Wicked is to be gathered out of this Kingdom of his And therefore this Kingdom of his must be upon the Earth
shall inherit the Earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace 12. The wicked plotteth against the just and gnasheth upon him with his Teeth 13. The Lord shall laugh at him for he seeth that his day is coming 22. For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the Earth and they that are cursed of him shall be cut off Therefore it is said He that giveth to the Poor lendeth to the Lord. And the Lord calleth the Poor his Brethren And the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 1.27 God hath chosen the foolish things of the World to confound the Wise and God hath chosen the weak things af the world to confound the things that are mighty 28. And the base things of the World and the things that are despised hath God chosen yea and things which are not to bring to nought things that are You see in these last words of the verse that St. Paul had a reference for the time to come And as the Lord at his first coming did chuse the mean and low things of the Earth So at the Lord's second coming it does appear that he will then chuse them also as part of his Elect when he again comes 29. That no flesh should glory in his presence That is It is not their Wisdom Grandeur or Greatness that made them acceptable with God Of which Hanath Prophesieth in 1 Sam. 2.8 He raised up the Poor out of the dust and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghil to set them among Princes and to make them inherit the Throne of Glory for the Pillars of the Earth are the Lords and he hath set the World upon them 9. He will keep the feet of his Saints and the wicked shall be silent in darkness for by strength shall nâ— man prevail 10. The Adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces out of Heaven shall he thunder upon them the Lord shall judg the ends of the Earth and he shall give strength unto his King and exalt the Horn of his Anointed And therefore he saith in 1 Cor. 1.30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us Wisdom and Righteousness and Sanctification and Redemption 31. That according as it is written he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. And Jeremiah saith Jer. 9.23,24 Thus saith the Lord let not the wise man glory in his wisdom neither let the mighty man glory in his might let not the rich man glory in his riches But let him that glorieth glory in this that he understandeth and knoweth me that I am the Lord which exercise loving Kindness Judgment and Righteousness in the Earth for in these things I delight saith the Lord. This Chapter as well as the forementioned to the Corinthians has a reference to the second Coming of Christ at which time he will exercise Loving Kindness Judgment and Righteousness in the Earth Now it does fully appear by Scripture who are the Elect that will be received into mercy when the Lord again comes That it is the Antient People of God the Jews with part of those people or nations which Isaiah makes mention of in the 60. c. 6. 7. v. And the poor which have not uncapacitated themselves for Mercy There is also then a Blessing promised to the Meek Psal 37.11 They shall inherit the Earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of Peace which cannot be till the Lord again comes That is those meek that have not had the Opportunity of more knowledg And the Merciful that have shewed mercy to Gods Elect if they have not been guilty of the evils against which the Lord hath pronounc'd that dreadful sentence Rev. 21.8 That they shall have their part in the Lake which burneth with fire and brimstone which is the second Death But I hope God of his infinite mercy hath here caused the true meaning of his Word to break forth to be the means of saving of thousands of poor Papists and Turks And I hope it will awaken thousands of our Nations that are asleep in security before they sleep that sleep of Eternal Death But as for them that are willfully ignorant there remains for them no hopes of Mercy For God saith Prov. 1.24,25,26,27,28 Because I have called and ye refused I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded 25. v. But ye have set at nought all my Counsel and would none of my Reproof 26. v. I will also laugh at your Calamity I will mock when your Fear cometh 27. v. When your Fear cometh as Desolation and your destruction cometh as a Whirlwind when distress and anguish cometh upon you 28. v. Then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me According to the saying of the Lord in St. Luke That they shall then strive to enter in but shall not be able That is as soon as the Lord appeareth they will be seeking to him for Mercy for this Scripture doth particularly relate to the latter Day but then it will be too late Prov. 1.29 For that they hated Knowledge and did not chuse the Fear of the Lord. Whilst the door of Mercy is open to us whereby to make our Calling and Election sure For when the Lord comes to Judgment we must then give an account of our Stewardship and as we are found so will our Sentence be whether for Blessedness or Misery Now the Lord Christ with the Apostles speaks in the same method as God aforetime spake by his Prophets in that they do mention those things which are to come as though they were already done And also in that they mention or joyn those things together which are done or shortly to be done with those things which are of a long continuance before they will be accomplisht And having proved it in several places before I shall here make mention but of Two The first is the foregoing words of the Apostle wherein he makes mention of those call'd in at Christs first coming with the promised Elect which shall be received into mercy at his second coming And also Christ himself mentioneth the destruction of Jerusalem with that of the destruction of the world as tho they were to have been at one and the same time That thereby we might the better understand the writings of the Prophets and Moses as to their joyning things together which admits of great distance of time between For as to the Covenant that God made with Israel the Christians were included therein also As being Ahrahams seed by Christ And therefore when Moses speaks of Israels Land he there speaks of what will become of the Christians Land That is the Land where the pretended head of the Church is who walk with Israel according to the imagination of their own hearts Which woe is pronounced to that Land that it shall become brimstone and salt and burning Also those Prophesies of Christs first coming are joyn'd with his second coming and
Nations that come against Jerusalem 10. v. And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of Grace and Supplications and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his onely Son and shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his first born Here in these verses the Lord tells us that at the restoration of Jerusalem the weak Saint shall be as the house of David and the house of David shall be as God That is as David was King over them so will Christ the Lord who is as God And then shall they see him whom they have pierced As also it is said in Rev. 1.7 Behold he cometh with the Clouds and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him and all the Kindreds of the Earth shall wail because of him Now it will be when the Lord comes in the Clouds of Heaven that they shall see him whom they have pierced And the people shall mourn apart as in Zach. 12.12 The land shall mourn every Family apart the Family of the house of David apart and their wives apart the Family of the house of Nathan apart and their wives apart 13. v. The Family of the house of Levy apart and their wives apart the Family of Shinei apart and their wives apart all the Families that remain every Family apart and their wives apart Here we see there is no mention made of the Mourning of them of Juda which is spoken of in the 7. v. by which it does more plainly appear to be the true Christians they coming in by the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah And it is said in Esdras 5.8 There shall be a confusion also in many places and fire shall be oft sent out again Which Word of the Lord is made good by the often repeated fires that he has lately sent out of Mount Etna and Vesivius And it is now according to what is said in Esdras 5.12 At the same time shall men hope and nothing obtain they shall labour but their ways shall not prosper And also it is said in Esdras 6.24 At that time shall Friends fight one against another like Enemies and the Earth shall stand in fear with those that dwell therein the Springs of the Fountains shall stand still and in three hours they shall not run Now whereas it is said the Earth shall stand in fear with those that dwell therein Which Earth is the Earth of people which stands in fear of those Armies which are amongst them And as for the Springs of the Fountains standing still they did so at Taurmins and thereabouts in the year 1694. And also the Springs of Water were stopt for some time in Jamaica in the great Earthquake This Book of Esdras has been laid aside because they apprehended not the Restoration of the Jews should be at the Judgment of this World and their Glory to be in the Renewed Heaven and Earth at Christ's Second Coming Although it is all along declared to be so both in the Old and New Testament but in some places more veil'd Now this Esdras is the same which is called Ezra in that Book set down in the Bible before Nehemiah For in Ezra 10th chap. the 9 16 and 17. verses is exactly the same with that in the first Book of Esdras the 9th chap. 5 6 16 and 17. verses As to the difference of the Name the Prophets are not in the New Testament named as they are in the Old Testament Now since the Signs are come which the Lord hath given us to prepare our Hearts for him that thereby we may be continually upon our Watch longing and waiting for his coming and that we may be found of him in peace and not of the Tares that are said in the Parible to be bound in bundles and cast into the Fire of Hell I shall now here speak of the new Jerusalem which is spoken of in Rev. 21.1 wherein St. John saith He saw a new Heaven and a new Earth For he tells us that the first Heaven and the first Earth were passed away And in the 6. c. from the 13. v. to the 17. he tells us there of Stars falling the Heavens being rolled together and also every Mountain and Island were moved out of their places and the Kings of the Earth and the great men the Rich Men the chief Captains the mighty men every bound man and every free man hid themselves in Dens and Rocks of the Mountains and said to the Rocks and Mountains fall on us and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the Throne and from the wrath of the Lamb for the great day of his wraâ—h is come and who shall be able to stand I shall not here inlarge upon it because I have already proved it unto you what are the Heavens that will be rolled together whilst the Kings of the Earth for some time remain upon the Earth to be ruled with a rod of Iron till dashed to pieces like a Potters Vessel That is those wicked Kings that have been the Afflictors of the Servants of Christ and so continue without repentance until the Lord comes Here we may see that the writings of this Book by this place and others has been very much misplaced in that they have set down the great day of the Wrath of the Lamb and the destruction of the World before the rice of the Beast And in the 14. chap. from the 15. v. to the 20. it treats of the Earth being Reaped and also the Vine of the Earth being reaped was cast into the Wine-press of the wrath of God which Wine-press was trod without the City Thus the Earth with the Vine of the Earth being reaped are the Heavens and Earth which are said to pass away And in the 20. v. it is said the Wine-press is trod without the City And in Rev. 22.14,15 it is said Blessed are they that do his Commandments that they may have right to the tree of Life and may enter in through the Gates into the City For without are Dogs and sorcerers and Whoremongers and Murderers and Idolaters and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie This City here mentioned being the City spoken of in the 14. c. at the 20. v. Where the Wine-press is said to be trod without the City And the 14. chap. is much misplaced by reason it is set before the Fall of Babilon And also the two last Chapters are misplaced which treats of the New Jerusalem in that they have placed them beyond the final and last Judgment For this New Jerusalem being the City without which the Wine-press was trod And without which were Dogs and Sorcerers Now had this City been after the final Judgment it would not have been said without were whoremongers and Idolaters Sorcerers and the like for such being in Hell have then no such term for then they
saith 13. c. 15. v. Let my Soul bless God the great King 16. For Jerusalem shall be built up with Saphires and Emeralds and Precious Stones thy Walls and Towers and Battlements with pure Gold 17. And the streets of Jerusalem shall be Paved with Beril and Carhuucle and Stones of Ophir 18. And all her streets shall say Alleluja and they shall praise him saying blessed be God which hath extolled it for ever Now in this Earthly Jerusalem there is said to be a Temple as in Ezek. 47.1 Where the waters are said to come from under the Threshold Now when the Lord cometh to Judg the world and to deliver Israel then will his Elect be gathered to the Holy Land And it is said in Isa 32.19 When it shall hail coming down on the Forrest the City shall be low in a low place Here the People is term'd the City according to that in Isa 62.12 where Israel is treated A City sought out and not forsaken This Hail is the horrible Tempest spoken of Psal 11.6 Vpon the wicked he shall rain snares fire and brimstone and an horrible tempest shall be the portion of their Cup. Now altho the Wicked are for some time left upon the Earth after the Lord comes to receive the Punishments the Lord has appointed them upon the Earth and to behold the Glory of the Saints as it is said Psal 112.10 The wicked shall see it and be grieved he shall gnash with his Teeth and melt away the desire of the wicked shall perish Thus after the Wicked have received part of their Punishment here this forementioned horrible Tempest will sweep away all the refuge of Lies as in Isa 28.17 and in the 29. c. 20,21 v. It is said The terrible one is brought to nought and the Scorner is consumed and all that watch for iniquity are cut off That make a man aâ— offender for a word and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the Gate and turn aside the just for a thing of naught And it is said Mal. 4.1 For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an Oven all the proud yea and all that do wicked shall he stubble and the day that cometh shall burn them up saith the Lord of Hosts and it shall leave them neither root nor branch 2. But unto them 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 Now in the time of the utter Destruction as I have show'd you then will the City be low in a low place as in Isa 32.19 When it shall Hail coming down on the Forrest and the City shall be low in a low place Which City is the People as I have elsewhere proved to you Now where this place will be the Prophet Zachary tells us Zach. 14.3 Then shall the Lord go forth and Fight against those Nations as when he fought in the day of Battle 4. And his Feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives which is before Jerusalem on the East and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof towards the East and toward the West and there shall be a very great Valley and half of the Mountain shall remove toward the North and half toward the South 5. And ye shall flee to the Valley of the Mountains for the Valley of the Mountains shall reach unto Azal Now here by these words it doth evidently appear that Israel with the rest of the Promised Elect that will be called in at the coming of the Lord which then also will be gathered to the Holy Land and secured from the Judgments that will fall on the wicked before the sweeping Tempest cometh that carrieth them all away For when the Lord descends so far down as his Feet to stand on Monnt Olivet the mountain then cleaves asunder and then it is they fly into the Valley of the mountain For as Noah was secured in the Ark when the world was destroyed by the Flood So it doth appear that the Elect will be secured in this Valley whilst the World is destroyed by the horrible tempest of Hail Fire and Brimstone then as it is said the City shall be low in a low place And as concerning the Destruction of this World Esdras saith 2 Esd 7.29,30,31 The World shall be turned into the old silence seven days like as in the former Judgment so that no man shall remain And after seven days the World that yet awaketh not shall be raised up and that shall die that is corrupt Now whereas it is said that the world shall be turn'd into silence seven days like as the former Judgments by which it doth appear that as by the former judgments of the Rains from Heaven and with the Fountains of the great Deep being broken up from beneath by which the old World became silent and at the Destruction of this World by the words it doth appear that this will remain silent for seven days as the old World did for many more for the Waters did continue upon the Earth for some considerable time Now whereas it is said that no man should remain the which words may be taken in a twofold sence First That no man of this wicked World shall remain The second is That the Elect fleeing into Mount Olivet may there sleep whilst the Earth is destroyed and again renewed to that perfection as it was in the first Creation and Canaan made like to Eden the Garden of God And after the world has lain wast God can renew it by the Eighth and our Sabbath being on the eighth day it doth thereby seem to signify as much and the blessing was not given to the name of the Seventh day but to the Sabbath Day And altho those that are chosen for the Glorious Tabernacle are said to be changed in the twinkling of an Eye and so caught up in the Clouds but Israel and the other Elect have no such sudden Change and therefore it doth likely appear these may have their Earthly infirm Bodies Renewed at that time as the Earth is and their heart so changed as it is said in Esdras to another meaning the which is according to the word of the Lord in Rev. 21.5 And he that sate upon the Throne said behold I make all things new and he said unto me write for these words are true and faithful Here we see that the Lord will make all things New Now as some of the Chapters in Revelations are misplaced So some of the Verses of this Chapter in Esdras do certainly appear to be misplaced because the World is said to be destroyed and the Dead Raised before the most high is said to sit upon the Throne of Judgment Now after this World is thus Renewed and Restored and Jerusalem again Built then as it is said in Zach. 14.11 And men shall dwell in it and there shall be no more utter destruction but
Siria and others that are of this Elder World shall serve the younger of which I have given a more full Account in the foregoing Part. Not only so but the younger sort of them whose Parents are now Enemies to the Church yet their Children that has not been guilty shall be spared and not cut off with the rest of the wicked For in Joel 3. where it speaks of the Judgment of this World the Lord saith in the 8th Verse I will sell your Sous and Daughters into the hand of the Children of Judah and they shall sell them to the Sabeans to a people far off for the Lord hath spoken it Sheba being part of the Elect that will be called in at the coming of the Lord. As it is said in Isaiah 60.6 And also the Lord said 2 Esdras 6.18,19 to 28. Behold the days come that I will begin to draw nigh and to visit them that dwell upon the Earth And I will begin to make inquisition of them what they be that have hurt unjustly with their unrighteousness and when the afflictions of Sion shall be fulfilled And when the world that shall begin to vanish away shall be finished then will I shew these tokens The books shall be opened before the firmament and they shall see altogether And the Children of a year old shall speak with their voices the women with Child shall bring forth untimely Children of three or four months old and they shall live and be raised up And suddenly shall the sound places appear unsound the full store-houses shall suddenly appear empty And the Trumpet shall give a sound which when every man heareth they shall be afraid At that time shall friends fight one against another like enemies and the Earth shall stand in fear with those that dwell therein the Springs of the Fountains shall stand still and in three hours they shall not run Whosoever remaineth from all these that I have told thee shall escape and see my salvation and the end of your world And the men that are received shall see it who have not tasted Death from their Birth and the heart of the inhabitants shall be changed and turned into another meaning For evil shall be put out deceit shall be quenched As for faith it shall flourish corruption shall be overcome and the truth which hath been so long without fruit shall be declared Rom. 9.8 This is the Seed which St. Paul speaks of in V. 8. Where he saith the Children of the promise are counted for the Seed And also the Lord by Esdras has given us to understand that the innocent children shall not be taken away in the Judgment with their parents And the Lord also in V. 9. of this Chap. saith 2 Esdras 6.9 Esau is the end of this world and Jacob the begining of it that followeth Now as to what the Lord said to Rebecca concerning these two brothers before they had done good or evil was no other then that the Elder should serve the younger for God did not then say that he loved Jacob and hated Esau Therefore the Apostle makes a stop and begins again wherein he saith in V. 13. As it is written Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated Which words of the Lord are said in Mal. 2.3 After Esau was wicked and the world with him But these words of the Lord in Mal. hath also a prophetical reference as to the glorious time to come in which time Jacob will appear the beloved and Esau the hated That is the figurative Esau by which is signified the wicked of the world but in more especial manner that Esau which is Term'd the degenerate root by reason the Lord saith he hath laid his mountains and heritage wast for the Dragons of the Wilderness For this curse is only pronounc'd to them that their land shall be inhabited with fearful Creatures And it is the usual way of the Lord to speak of things that are to come as tho they were already done For when these words of the Lord were spoken to Malachy Esau was more flourishing then Jacob. For at that time Israel had displeased the Lord and for his Sins his Mountains were laid wast before those of Esau's And when those Mountains of Esau were laid wast they were not made partâ—kers of those Judgments And St. Paul knowing that those words of the Lord in Malachy had reference for the time that is now to come therefore he here mentions them as treating of that time also And after he had here rehearsed the word of the Lord in saying Rom. 9.14,15 Jacob have I Loved and Esau have I hated He saith in v. 14. What shall we say then is there unrighteousness with God God forbid V. 15. For he saith to Moses I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion The which words were said to Moses by the Lord in the time that the Lord chose Israel to set them above the rest of the Nations At which time he brought them out of the Land of Egypt with signs and wonders to fix them on the midst of the Earth for the Exalting of their Glory and to allure thereby the World that they might be brought into the Knowledg of God Of which the Patriarch Levy said in his last Will and Testament If you should be over-darkned with Error what shall all the Heathen do But Israel falling into sin and error was cast off and the Heathen for a time taken in in their room But for the Oaths sake God made with their Fathers they shall be again taken in and made partakers of that everlasting blessedness promised to them And whereas St. Paul saith in the 16th verse So then it is not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth but of God that sheweth Mercy These words admit of a two sold meaning The one is that we are so far fallen that of our selves we can neither will nor run but it is God that sheweth Mercy in calling us renewing and inlightning us in the knowledg of himself whereby we are put into a Capacity to will and run The which if we so do and continue to do we shall undoubtedly find mercy for it is through our own default if once enlightned we again fall off And therefore St. Paul saith who hath bewitched you that you should not obey the Truth The which can be no other than our own corrupt Affections the subtil Instigations of Satan or pressing Afflictions Against all which we must daily go to God by servent Prayer for his support and assistance and if we so do he hath said I will never leave thee nor forsake thee But as to what was said here in the 16th verse I chiefly apprehend it is spoken of the time when the Lord again comes that then they will be seeking and running to enter into Life but then their willing and running will not be available having neglected the offer
be Chosen before the Foundation of the World Now as I said before there is an absolute Election the which the Lord terms the very Elect. And there is a conditional Election in which we are to labour in to make our calling and Election sure There is also an opportunity or a day of Grace given the which was offered to those Babilonians as in Jer. 51.9 but it was a prize put into the Hands of Fools But you may say that their Destruction was before declared by the Prophet from God and therefore they Repented not To which I Answer God by his all seeing Eye as knowing their Wickedness and foreseeing their Cruelty to Israel Upon which the Prophet did from the Lord foretel their destruction But however God did offer them Mercy and if they had embraced the Opportunity God would have defer'd his Judgments to have been Inflicted upon the miscarriage of their following Generations As for Example God sent the Prophet Jonah Jonah 3.4,5,6,7,8,9 To Nineveh to Proclaim the Destruction of that great City But they believing the word of the Lord and Repenting God staid off the threatned Judgment which Jonah proclaimed should be within 40 days which upon their repentance God made it 40 days of years In which time most of them that was capable of that Repentance were taken off by Death Now as to the lump or clay that Israel came of when the Lord maketh a Vessel of that Clay without any Addition of the renewing of his Spirit it will prove but a Vessel of Dishonour But God saith in Jer. 2.21 That he made Israel a choice Vine and he looked that it should bring forth Grapes and it brought forth wild Grapes Yet I had planted thee a Noble Vine an Holy and Right Seed How then art thou turned into a degenerate plant of a strange Vine unto me By which we see that God had distinguished Israel from the rest of the World and put them all in a Capacity of Obedience but they would not use their utmost endeavour to walk in his ways therefore he gave them up to blindness of Mind and hardness of Heart for they all being put into a Capacity of Obedience in which had they done their utmost endeavour and also lookt to the Promised Messiah for their Justification they should have obtain'd salvation but for want of so doing the generality of them were cut off However from among them God did chuse part of his Special Elect the which were Vessels of Honour of which St. Paul speaks of Rom. 11.5 At this present time also there is a remnant according to the Election of grace The which were so absolutely chosen in Christ that they should not fall away And as to what St. Paul saith in the 9th chap. after he had made mention of the Potter and the Clay In the following Verse which is the 22d he saith What if God willing to shew his wrath and make his Power known endured with much long suffering the Vessels of wrath fitted to destruction That is God is willing to shew his Wrath and make his Power known on them which he hath endured with much long suffering whilst they were fitting themselves for destruction by which way they became the Vessels of his Wrath. Of whom St. Peter also saith in 1 Pet. 2.7 Vnto you therefore which believe he is precious but unto them which be disobedient the stone which the Builders disallowed the same is made the Head of the Corner and a stone of stumbling and a Rock of Offence even to them which stumble at the Word being disobedient whereunto also they were oppointed But you may say What were they from the beginning appointed to be disobedient To which I answer No. God put them into a capacity of Obedience and required Obedience from them but they refused to obey and hardned their Neck and refused to return as almost the whole History of the Bible gives us to understand therefore God left them to blindness of mind and hardness of heart so as to stumble at the stumbling-stone to the which disobedience they were appointed because they had been before very sinful as in Isaiah we are given an account what the Lord had done for them And of their Wickedness before the Prophet from the Lord did denounce this Judgment against them that he would lay in Sion a stumbling-stone And therefore as to what the Lord said he had done for them and of their miscariage before this Judgment was declared against them I will here set down as to what God hath done for his Vineyard As in Isaiah 5.2 c.. He fenced it and gathered out the stones thereof and planted it with the choicest vine and built a Tower in the midst of it and also made a wine-press therein and he looked that it should bring forth grapes and it bronght forth wild grapes 3. And now O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah Judge I pray you betwixt me and my Vineyard 4. What could have been done more to my Vineyard that I have not done in it wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes it brought forth wild grapes 5. Now go to I will tell you what I will do to my Vineyard I will take away the hedge thereof and it shall be eaten up and break down the wall thereof and it shall be trodden down V. 6. And I will lay it wast it shall not be pruned nor hedged but there shall come up briers and thorns I will also command the Clouds that they rain no rain upon it V. 7. For the Vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel and the men of Judah is his pleasant plant and he looked foâ— Judgment and behold oppression for righteousness and behold a cry That is God put them in a Capacity of doing Justice and Judgment the which they might have done but they would not Now as I before told you that the sins of the Natural Seed of Israel and the Adopted Seed are joyned so also the Punishment of the Natural Seed and of the Adopted Seed are joyned together for from 11th v. of the 5th chap. to the 16th v. it doth appear to declare the Punishments of the back-sliding Christians because the next verse speaks of the Lord of Host being exalted in Judgment and that then the Lambs should feed together And in the following part of the Chapter the sins of the Adopted Seed are intermix'd with them of the Natural Seed But by the foregoing verses that are here set down we are given fully to understand wherefore the Anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel the which was in that they did not make a good improvement of the opportunity of Grace put into their Hands but cast away the Law of the Lord and despised his word therefore was the Anger of the Lord kindled against them After which it is said in Isa 8.13 Sanctify the Lord of Hosts himself and let him be your fear and