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A09320
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The seaven golden candlestickes Englands honour. The great mysterie of Gods mercie yet to come. With peace to the pure in heart aduising to vnitie among our selues. By Richard Bernard, minister at Batcombe in Somersetshire.
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Bernard, Richard, 1568-1641.
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1621
(1621)
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STC 1963; ESTC S113795
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38,453
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126
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THE SEAVEN GOLDEN CANDLESTICKES Englands Honour THE GREAT MYSTERIE OF GODS MERCIE YET TO COME WITH Peace to the pure in heart aduising to VNITIE among our selues By RICHARD BERNARD Minister at Batcombe in Somersetshire LONDON Printed for Iohn Budge dwelling in Pauls Church-yard at the signe of the Greene Dragon 1621. TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE WILLIAM Lord CAVENDISH Earle of Deuonshire IOHN Lord DARCY Baron of Meinell IOHN Lord HOLLEYS Baron of Houghton his very honourable good Lords heere increase of all true honour and hereafter the fruition of that happines which is in Heauen AND TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFVLL Sir Robert Philips AND Sir Iohn Horner KNIGHTS Iohn Powlet AND Robert Hopton ESQVIRES Iustices of the Peace in the Countie of Somerset louers of their Countrie my worthily honoured good Friends loue and peace be multiplyed internally within themselues externally to one an other with hope of eternall comfort in the end RIGHT HO RIGHT WOR YOur ready condescending at my request to grace my Person with your ioynt testimonie together maketh me now thus bold to craue your fauour and acceptance together to countenance this my labour That which here I offer to your view is first the face of the seuenfold estate of Christs Church typed out in the seuen Churches of Asia vnder the title of the seuen golden Candlestickes In this you may behold what is alreadie past what things are now in present being in which the Papists make themselues merrie but it is their Cygnea cantio before their day of mourning and what the estate hereafter shall be which wee are to exspect and looke for in the appointed time In the second place is added Englands Honour wherein is shewed how highly and that many wayes God hath aduanced this noble Nation to incourage vs still in his seruice against that Antichristion power and Heathenish Superstition In the third place is prooued that great Mysterie of the saluation of that ancient people of God much hindered by that Romish Religion In conclusion is an aduice to Peace and Vnitie at home that wee may bend our strength against our Enemies abroad I humbly craue pardon if herein I haue bin ouer-bold to present your Honours and other so worthy Personages with such small Treatises I know them little in shew but not so in substance The Church is the Spouse of Christ the verie Queene of Heauen heere shee is liuely painted out The glory of our Kingdome is our Crowne and peace with loue the bond of perfection the taste of these things I hope shall not bee vnacceptable neyther the good will of him that offereth the same for no other end verily but to leaue a testimonie to the World of his humble seruice and of his duty in all thankfulnesse who doth and euer will acknowledge himselfe Batcombe March 10. Your Honours and Worships much bounden and to be commanded RICHARD BERNARD THE SEAVEN GOLDEN CANDLESTICKES OR THE SEAVEN FOLD Estate of Gods Church here vpon Earth typed out in the seauen Churches of ASIA IT is not a conceit but an opinion more then probable that the seuen Churches of Asia are Types of the whole Church militant which opinion though it be in a sort onely barely deliuered of some and by some others so set out as thereby many take occasion to reiect it but more out of a sinister respect then of any sollid ground yet if they please to weigh the reasons and to consider well how these and the times doe answere one another they will more easily yeeld vnto the Truth 1. Is it not plainly said in the end of the whole Prophesie that Iesus Christ sent his Angell to testifie these things vnto vs in the Churches to wit in those seuen Churches of Asia for no other are mentioned in the whole Prophesie so as whatsoeuer in the Reuelation was after deliuered the same was represented generally in the fore-said Churches before 2. The number of seuen as in the other places of this Prophesie repeated thirtie seuen times is a number of perfection and is put for all of that whereof the number is giuen as the seuen Starres for all the Angels of the Churches the seuen spirits for the seuen-fold Graces thereof so the seuen Churches for all the Christian Churches or rather the seuen-fold estate of one and the same Church of Christ And seeing there were more Churches in those parts we may well thinke that the number of seuen was taken for further purpose then to note out only the present estate of those seuen Churches to which Iohn wrote 3. Iohn in the end of euery Epistle makes a generall exhortation saying He that hath an eare let him heare what the Spirit saith vnto the Churches yet in the beginning of euery Epistle is hee cōmanded onely to write particularly to the Angell thereof and of such things as touched him and the estate of his Church Therfore when Iohn concludeth so with an exhortation to all the Churches what else doth hee but thereby teach all those Churches whereof that particular Church is a Type or if you will so by one all the seuen and by them all Christian Churches 4. In the Epistles there bee many things which must necessarily perswade to a farther extent then onely to the present estate of euery of those particular Churches as first the maruellous order according to the course and estate of Christs Church both in the gifts and graces with decay of them as also in the creeping vp of Antichrist and the Churches recouery and growing into a better estate euen to the end as shall bee shewed in paralleling of these Churches and the estate of Christs Church from time to time Then some things spoken of the particular Churches which cannot possible bee taken as onely meant of them As of the ten dayes tribulation which Expositours interpret of a persecution longer then can agree by Storie to haue falne vpon Smyrna in Iohns time or after Likewise the great honour which is promised to the Angell of the Church of Philadelphia that the counterfeit Iewes in Smyrna Reuel 2. 9. should fall downe to him Reuel 3. 9. and deliuerance from the tryall which should come vpon all the World Reuel 3. 10. cannot bee vnderstood simply of that Angell Wee finde not in any Historie such renowne to that Angell neither of such perill and gracious deliuerance but these things are spoken with respect to the Churches estate as this should be a Type thereof Againe who can reade the tearmes vsed and the persons named as Iewes Synagogue Balaam and Iesabell with the degrees and proceedings thereof but thereby will be conceiued some other thing intended in those Churches It is maruelous to see how the degrees of euill are set out in the foure first Churches in Ephesus are Sathans Seeds-men false Apostles in Smyrna Sathans Synagogue in Pergamus Sathans Throne in Thiatyra the very Iezabel and Depths of Sathan In the three last no menton of any of these because they doe set out the