it had not as yet an Ecclesiasticall power And when John writ his Epistles this Babylon was in rising towards his greatnesse but it was not set upon the Throne by the Kings of the Earth as yet But when the Dragon that is Magistracy out of joynt and the Leopard that is a spirit of whoredome pretending love to God but intending to advance it self above God had committed fornication together then they begat this Beast or Ecclesiasticall power to kill and suppresse not men and women simply but the manifest appearance of God in them And then the purity of the Scriptures of the Gospel was corrupted and the practice of it quite altered and the invention of selfe-seeking flesh set up in the room of it and sharp punishing lawes were made to forbid Fishermen Shepheards Husbandmen and Tradesmen for ever preaching of God any more but Schollars bâ—â—d up in humane letters should onely do that work So that the manifest appearance of God in the man Christ Iesus as it was left in writing had a dark veil of humane inferences and selfish conclusions drawn over it and ever after the manifest appearance of God in the Saints was suppressed likewise For the Beast which hath a limited time and power to reigne by God will not suffer God to reigne by him but takes away his liberty and would destroy Gods Being and will not suffer God to reveale himselfe any more in flesh and this is called the time of Gods patience and long-suffering so that the witnesses or the manifestations of God in flesh were slain in that Citie Babylon and lie dead in that street in which also the flesh or body of Iesus Christ was crucified and slain But that slaying was but the history and God leads us as we are able to beare it from carnall knowledge to spirituall and divine knowledge and that crucifying is nothing in respect of the other For to suppresse the appearance of God in flesh is the main businesse the Serpent aimes at for if the Serpent could kill this as he killed the flesh and so hinder the appearance of God in his sons and daughters in these latter dayes according to his ancient promise then hee would prove God a lyar that the seed of the Woman should not bruise the Serpents head and then the Serpent would prove the onely Being which he strives to maintain I but God will make his own counsell good and he will raise up his Witnesses again which the Beast hath killed and supprest and God will make himselfe visible to all men dwelling and ruling himselfe in man and subduing the Serpent under the feet of mankinde according to his promise That the seed of the woman shall bruise the Serpents head But further in that eleventh Revelations and tenth verse it is said That after the witnesses were slain they that dwelt upon the earth rejoyced over them and made merry and sent gifts one to another because these two Prophets tormented them that dwelt off the earth I shall not speak much of this for they that are acquainted with histories or have any experience can tell what rejoycings there have been in all ages of the Beast when the appearance of God in humane flesh by martyrdom or punishment hath been supprest and the wisdome and learning of the Beast which the whole world wonders after is advanced And if men of the earth such as have their hope and comfort in this world only could destroy the appearance of God in such as they call Round-heads among whom there are pretious Saints they would rejoyce mightily but some that are so called are meerly carnall and are but as the Chaffe among the Wheat or Weeds among good Corn For it is the bright appearing of God in the Saints casting down all formes and customes of the Beast which doth torment the world at this very day as the bright shining of the Sun doth mightily offend a weak-sighted eye And indeed if this worshiping of God in Spirit were or could be beaten down and proved an error and if every man were or could be forced to maintain and practice one outward lazie formall customary and tyth-oppressing way of pretended Divine worship which pleases the flesh for it nurses up pride coveteousnesse ignorance oppression and is the mother or harlot rather of all abominations and if men might be freely taught that they shall goe to heaven though they seek it not by faith onely but as it were by the workes of the Law that is by bidding them doe what they are able and Christ will doe the rest and so joyne Christs merits and mens workes together O then cry some it would be a merry world and we should have good times again Ah! But the dayes of the Beast are done and God is putting a stop in the street of Babylon and taking away that limited power and is beginning to raise up his witnesses that is God is beginning to manifest himselfe more abundantly then formerly in the flesh of his Saints the seed of the woman and more plentifully dividing to every one his portion severally as God will according to the measure of the gift of the Anointing even as hee did manifest himselfe to dwell bodily in the Anointed Jesus who is the fulnesse of him that filleth all in all And God doth this that his Saints may worship him not in bare formes of godlinesse and customes of Religion in a self-seeking way of pride and coveteousnesse expressing bitternesse of spirit to others thar differ but that they may in his strength worship him in love sincerity humility and in spirit and truth inwardly rejoycing and glorying continually in God onely At this the Nations of the World will bee mightily angry when it appeares more plentifull and I beleeve it will appeare ere long For saith the Angel in the vision after three dayes and halfe the spirit of life from God entred into them and they stood upon their feet and great fear fell upon them which saw them Now I conceive yea it is cleare to me that these three dayes and halfe are upon the very period and finished point three dayes are compleatly past and the halfe day is â—now in being and this halfe day must be shortned too for the Elects sake so that the time will not bee long before the glory of God that is made known in secret be preached on the house top And they heard a great voyce from Heaven saying Come up hither And they ascended up to Heaven in a Cloud and their enemies beheld them The two Witnesses heard God speake out of Heaven it was a lively voyce it was not the dead voyce of a man speaking out of a Book And what is this Heaven Why truly as the Firmament is called Heaven in the history because the created Sun Moon and Stars those glorious lights are seated there so wheresoever
figurative worship which was a little before the dawning of the new Testament or of Gods being manifest in flesh in the man Christ Jesus For Daniel did prophesie in the first year of Darius which was the full end of seventy years of Israels captivity in Babylon Now from the carrying away into Babylon till Christ came was fourteen generations but 70. years of those fourteen Generations were now expired so that the dawning of the new or better Testament was near at hand in the time of those Prophets And now upon the delivering of Israel after the flesh from that Babylonish captivity God reveals to Daniel in a Vision his Councel and purpose to send his spirituall Israel which are the believing Gentiles into a longer captivity under the power of mysticall Babylon For Daniels Vision reports three things First the nature and power of this mysticall Enemy Secondly How that the house-hold of Faith in the latter dayes shall lie under that Antichristian power for a certain time Thirdly It points out the Saints deliverance from this Captivity and the ruine of that tyrannicall Beast And all the time of this mysticall Captivity it is called by the spirit of God the hour of temptation that shall come upon all the World to try them that dwell upon the Earth Now to Daniel God revealed the Vision more dark and hidden for Daniel himself did not understand the mystery of the Vision for saith Daniel I hear but I understand not then said I O my Lord what shall be the end of these things And he said go thou thy way Daniel for the words are closed and sealed up till the time of the end for thou shalt rest and shalt stand in the lot at the end of the dayes But when Jesus Christ the Lamb of God was come and had shed his blood and was gone to the Father again and was found worthy and able to open the book of the mystery of godliness and of the mystery of iniquities and to loose the seven Seales thereof that is To make known to sinners that by his bloud a sweet harmony and consent was made among the seven attributes of the God-head and so fully declaring their reconciliation to God according to his eternall councell in him Then did God give the full Revelation of all things to this Son that he might reveal them again to his Servants For God doth not speak to us out of his Son but in his Son and by his Son And it shall come to passe that that Soul that will not hear the voice of this great Prophet which God hath sent into the world that we might live through him shall be cut off from among the people And now Jesus Christ being in this last age of the World fully revealed to be the seed of the woman the Messia the holy and just one and by his bloud hath worthily deserved to be King of Saints and King of the World he doth now clearly shew by his spirit the right understanding of all those Books dark sayings of old and Visions that were sealed up to the Prophets Many truths he hath made known already yet I beleeve there are many more truths which are not yet made known to the Sons of men for indeed our weakness is not able to bear all truths at once But at the sound of the seventh Angels Trumpet when the mystery of God is finished and Temple of God is opened in Heaven that is when Christ in spirit is made known to Saints and I believe that the time for this Angell to sound growes very near if not begun already Then the Saints shall see clearly into the mystery of God which they have so long time earnestly desired to attain unto Now among many other truths which God hath promised by his spirit to lead his Saints into which must be made known in the time of the end There is one mystery of God concerning Gods two witnesses spoken of by St. John and what the meaning is as they conceived many dear servants of God have writ very largely which I shall neither contradict nor condemn but only adde what I understand and so cast in my mite into this treasure of God according to the measure of the gift of Christ which I have received Revelations 11. 3. I will give power to my two Witnesses and they shall prophesie a thousand two hundred and threescore dayes cloathed in sackcloth Some by these two Witnesses do understand the Law and Gospel and others conceive them to be Christian Magistrates and Ministers Some understand them to be faithfull Men and Women that have been martyred for the testimony of Jesus And others conceive them to be only the Ministers of the Gospel as the margent notes in the bible shew and others do say they be two particular eminent Saints whom God will raise up towards the end But the Scriptures of truth will not give their harmoniall consent to any of these so laid down neither will they own any of the like terravid and fading subjects absolutely to be those two Witnesses which the spirit in that place speaks of Therefore according to the proportion of faith received in declaring of my perswasion therein I shall endeavour to shew First What the testimony is which these two Witnesses do bear witness unto Secondly to shew you who these two Witnesses are Thirdly to shew you what the meaning is as I conceive of the 1260. dayes which is the time appointed them of God to prophesie in and when they must be slain Fourthly to shew how the two Witnesses are slain and how long they have been dead and how long they are to lie dead before the spirit of life from God enter into them and set them upon their feet Fiftly to shew what falles out in the World upon the slaying of these two Witnesses and why they of the Nations People Tongues and Kinreds will not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves and buried Sixtly What shall follow upon the resurrection of the two Witnesses from the dead And seventhly I shall endeavour to shew what I have given me to understand by those dark words phrases and termes of time which are expressed in that eleventh Chapter of the Revelations under which this mystery of God concerning his two faithfull Witnesses doth lie folded up But I do declare what I conceive of the words and phrases all along this discourse as they necessarily fall in the way CHAP. II. What the Testimony of the two Witnesses is NOw for the first of these to shew what the Testimony of the two Witnesses is I conceive it is to bear witness of the eternall will and Councel of God That the seed of the woman should brusse the Serpents head and that this seed is Jesus Christ his Son a perfect man after the flesh as he was called the Child Jesus or the Sun
of man Or secondly A perfect man in the unity of faith with all his Saints he being the head and all the City of Zion or number of Saints the Members knit into one spirituall body by the spirit of the Father And this is called the Branch and the Vine Now a Branch or Vine doth not consist of one sprig or rod but of divers and so the seed of the Woman the Anointing or the Son of God doth not consist of one man only after the flesh to wit the man Christ Jesus but also those whom the Father hath chosen and given to Jesus the anointed and writ their names in him the Lambs Book makes up but one Son of God being all partakers of one Spirit And likewise they make up but one feed of the Woman they beâ—ng all partakers of one flâ—sh to wit the flesh of Christ the Saints being bone of Christs bone and flesh of his flesh And this is the 1and of righteousness which all the Children of Zion shall inherâ—t they shall not dwell in Adams corrupt flesh but in Christ pure flesh And because Christs mysticall body springs from the first Adam which is from the earth earthly and corrupt Therefore the Lord takes away the filthy garments from them And purges the iniquity of that Land in one day that is in the day of Christs power and so makes them conformable to the second Adam which is the Lord from Heaven Now this seed of the woman shall break the Serpents head for God the Father hath engaged himself to subdue the Serpents power under the feet of Sâ—â—nts as well as under the feet of Christ he and they being but one body one man one branch one Vine one Son of God being but one in respect of the unity of spirit and one in respect of the unity of flesh after their iniquity is purged as it must be God being Christs God and their God Christs Father and their Father Only here lies the difference Christ hath the full measure of the spirit but God gives to the Saints severally as he will according to the measure of the fulness of Christ Jesus Christ he breaks the Serpents head by the strength of his Father which dwelleth in him And the Saints break the Serpents head by Christs strength in them even the same Anointing and hence it is that Christ the head prayed That his Disciples or body mysticall might be one with him as he and his Father were one and when the Saints are taken up into this spiritual enjoyment and feeles sees and findes by experience that Gods strength which is the anointing dwells in them and is become the Lord their righteousness they henceforth know Christ after the flesh no more And this speaks great comfort to Saints to the poorest members that live alone among the scoffing sons of bondage as well as to the whole City in generall they shall never fall from grace their eternall life is as sure as the eternall life of Jesus Christ their head in whom their life is hid God himself being that life and strength and these being part of that seed which the Father hath said shall break the Serpents head so that the Serpent shall only bruise the heel by his temptings but he shal never blot out one name that is writ in the Lambs Book of life for this compleat man or seed of the woman shall break the Serpents head The head of this mysticall body hath conquered already and is sat down in glory waiting till his body be glorified with him and so all enemies be for ever made his foot-stool And this is the Counsel of God which the two witnesses give testimony of that the Serpents head shall be bruised and sinners reconcil'd to God by no other name or power but only by Jesus Christ the anointed Son of God This anointing being God himself in man God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself not imputing their sins to them But the Lamb Christ Jesus he is the chief and the power of the Faâ—her appeared first in him and after that through him in the Saints to break the Serpents head according to the word of the Father And this is the testimony which these two faithfull witnesses beare witness to for the glory of the Father who is engaged In this was manifested the love of God towards us Because God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him And we have seen and do testifie that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God That is acknowledge that Jesus is that power whereby God will break the Seâ—pents head God dwells in him and he in God And so again who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Jesus the Anointed is the Son of God And this eternall councel and purpose of the Father That the seed of the Woman should break the Serpents head was declared as soon as the devil or red Dragon had deceived the whole world in Adam And this Councel of God is held forth to the world in all the promises in all the Mosayecall types and in all the prophesies of old For minde it the Scriptures point out nothing else to us but this That Jesus Christ is the onely begotten Son and strength of God whereby he will subdue the power of darknes and translate sinners into his owne Kingdome and glory and he is the very righteousnesse of God whereunto the selfeconceited Jewes and Gentiles will not submit And therefore God had need of faithfull witnesses to bear testimony hereof to the world such witnesses as men may say after the vail is taken off their hearts that without doubt their testimony of the Fathers Councell is true Such witnesses as can and will prove their testimony not from the writings and words of others but from their own experienced knowledge of what they have seen and heard and been made acquainted with from God The world is so far from believing this report That the Anointed is the power of God That when Christ appeared as a man in the flesh they reproached him under the name of a Mecannick tradesman a Carpenter and never rested till they had killed him and cast him out And now in these Latter dayes when Christ comes in Spirit ruling and working in the Saints according to the promise of the Father truly the ignorant deceived world denies him still will not own his spirit but jeeres him calling him the Spirit of the Divell and a spirit of errour even as the Jewes told Christ after the flesh that he was a deceiver of the people And this deceived world or corrupt flesh of man endeavours to make lawes and establish â—hem with all possible policy and power to â—ring the
Anointed into bondage and will not allow him a liberty to worke where and upon whom he pleaseth but would restrain him to their scanty measure the principles of the flesh and so though the world allow Christ the name of King Priest and Prophet yet they will act â—hese Offices themselves both over him and over his body the Church Ey but Gods two faithfull witnesses shall not only prove that Christ is King Priest and Prophet in name only but that he is those in â—ule in operation and powre proving it in â—heir own experience which in time the world â—hall see and be ashamed though for the present they will not see nor be ashamed for â—heir envy to Christ and his fellowes And â—hen shall the glory of the Father be advanced â—nd the song of the Saints shall set the Crown of glory upon the head of him that sits upon the Throne and upon the Lamb for evermore For then all Nations shall see the word â—nd councel of the Father fullfilled that the â—erpents head is bruised by the seed of the woman This is their testimony which I lay â—own generall but the witnesses prove their Testimony by particular experiences as hereâ—fter I shall relate some CHAP. III. Who these two Witnesses are that God speaks of to whom he will give power to Prophesie in sackcloth a thousand two hundred and sixty daies NOw the second thing is to shew who these two Witnesses are which God speaks of I will give power to my two witnesses And these are the word of God and the Spirit of God or Christ in flesh and Christ in Spirit or the Anointing in the person of Christ after the flesh or the Anointing in the flesh of Saints And these are but one in respect of nature one Spirit and one flesh one body as I have shewed But they are two in respect of their appearance or manifestation in or to the world The man Christ Jesus who was borne of the Virgin and dyed by the hands of the Jewes at Jerusalem he is the one Witnesse And the body of Saints in whom the Spirit of Jesus Christ dwells who are persecuted for the same testimony that Christ held they are the other witnesse And my understanding herein is built up as followes ☞ There are three that bear witnesse in Heaven The Father the Word and the Spirit and these three are one But one Witnes though three names or denominations By Heaven I understand the Church or the City Zion in whom the Anointiug dwels and in â—hem and to them the witnesses of those three â—n one is satisfaction enough and the Saints â—ife is bound up in that divine manifestation and â—hey live in that life and see light in that light The son of righteousnes the Lamb the Anointng is the light of that City which makes it Heaven The Testimony of men to the Saints is noâ—hing they have no peace nor joy in their hearts till God himself do witnesse to them by â— lovely manifestation of himself taking them â—p into his own rest And this is God in three discoveries which make up but one witnesse both in and to Zion the Church not to the World first but to them first and afterward to the World Then there are three that bear witnes in earth The water bloud and Spirit and these three â—re one but one witnesse though 3 denominaâ—ions making one perfectman Now by Earth understand either the Saints before they have a cleare manifestation before their filthy garments be quite taken off them For then they look upon Christ after the flesh and seek for testimonies of the Fathers love and promise in a â—itterall way and God condescends to the weaknes of their flesh for in the fulnes of time God â—ent his Sonn made of a VVoman made under the Law to redeem them that were under the Law that we might receive the adoption of Sons according to the promise Gen. 3. 15. Or Secondly by Earth I vnderstand mankind all sects and Nations as they are considered one flesh or one earth of which all of us are made even one created humanity And unto this earth God sends water bloud spirit in two appearences to witnesse this his faithfulnesse that what he spake shall come to passâ— That the seed of the woman shall bruise the Serpents head God cals these his two witnesses because they are two discoveries of his own wisdom and power For first By water bloud and spirit I understand to be our Lord Jesus the seed of the woman a perfect man according to the flesh who 〈◊〉 the first faithfull and true witnes the humane â—ody of Christ and the eternall spirit that dwelt â—herin or that power which God gave I wil give power to my two witnesses c. And God gave this is power when the holy Spirit descended like a Dove upon Christ Jesus when he was baptized and came straight-way out of the water This power God gives to both his witnesses but to his humane body first If you look into the Evangelist Iohn you shall find that one of the Souldiers with a spear pierced Christs side and forthwith there came out water and blood now the water and blood declared Jesus Christ to be a true and reall man the seed of the Woman according to the word and Councell of God and so the VVord was made flesh and dwelt among us and we saw the glory thereof as the glory of the onely begotten Son of God full of grace and truth Now Physitians say and it is a truth that the heart of man hath adjoyning to it a bladder or skin of water which cools the heat of the bloud Which they call the Pericardium And the Spear piercing Christ to the heart did break that skin of water and so there came out that water and blood that was in his heart this shews he was a man the seed of the Woman And then for the spirit or power that was in Jesus Christ declares him to be one faithfull witnesse for though hisfufferings were so great that he sweat drops of blood yet there was no sin or murmerings against God found in him but he was still full of the sprrint of humility and patience of love and of faithfulnesse to God his Father who had assigned him that cup to drink And likewise was still full of the spirit of love to poor lost sinners that flood in need of this his death or else they could not have bin reconciled to God and this unbsameable spirit of his gives testimony to Heaven and Earth that Christis the great power of God and so the world to the councel of his Father For indeed no son of man besindes him could be found to suffer the like intolerable burden of wrath and yet beare it with such a patient understanding loving faithful and pittiful spirit towards others as Christ did Now this humane body of
sackcloth-profession of Saints in the dayes of the little horne the Beast and whorish spirit or as I may say Judas spirit of self-love and hypocrisie that must reign in the world for a time Thus we see it is Jesus Christ after the flesh and his spirit ruling in the flesh of Saints which are Gods two Witnesses The spirit of Christ sent down into Saints or rather the Saints taken up into fellowship with that spirit according to the Fathers promise and love to his Sons and Daughters in the latter dayes which must prophesie in sack-cloth one thousand two hundred and sixty dayes and it can be no other but these in whom the power of God dwels and rules And there are divers discoveries of this truth laid down by God himself as a testimony from him that these two are his Witnesses in the four five and six verses of that seventh chapter of the Revelations In the fourth verse These two witnesses are â—aid to be the two Olive Trees and the two Candle-sticks standing before the God of the whole Earth Now I conceive that these two Olive-trees and two Candlesticks can be apâ—lyed to no other but to the two appearances of the Anointing First In the body or flesh of Christ Secondly In the flesh of Saints that is to say Christ and his spirit And marvel not that I say Christ and his spirit are the two Candle-sticks because the Scriptures in other places call Christ and his spirit the lights of God as indeed they are and by Candlesticks are properly meant the Churches or particular societies of Saints as St. John writes But in this place the light that is held forth is this eternal councel of God That Jesus Christ is this Son by whom he will bruise the Serpents head and reconcile sinners to himself and by no other name or power whatsoever So that when Christ was visibly seen upon the earth in the day and hour of his sufferings or time of his sack-cloth prophesying he and his spirit in one person were the Candle-stick in whom this mystery of God and truth of his councel did burn and shine forth to the world and therein they were a certain witnes of the Father But set that day and houre aside and then properly the Churches are called Candlesticks in whom Christ and his Spirit burnes bright and shines gloriously Men or Women Magistrates or Ministers or churches cannot be called these two Candlesticks because the churches ate taken up and moved by Christ and such as were un-willing are made willing to beare the testimony of God by the almighty working of Christ in them that beleeve But now christ and his spirit was never unwilling to bear witness to this purpose of the Father for as soon as ever the Father had declared his will Loe I come saith Christ to doe thy will O God And therefore the Father glories in Christ and makes proclamation to all the World That he will have all men honour the Son as they honour the Father Then again they are called two Olive-Trees and these cannot be Men and Women Magistrates or Ministers but onely Christ and his Spirit If you looke into the fourth chapter of Zechariah there is mention of one Golden Candlestick which I conceive is the generall Church of Christ or the great Congregation as David speaks the mysticall body of Christ the Saints or City Sion And then there is mention of two Olive Trees by the Candlestick one upon the right side of the Bowle and the other upon the left side thereof Now these two Olive-Trees are Iesus Christ ☜ and his Spirit the one being under the other over the Church which are the two Armes of God imbracing the Church in love For first God sent the humane Body of Christ to testifie his love to the Church and to comfort her in all her asslictions Because he was afflicted for them and with them and therofore in that he himself hath suffered being tempted he is able to succour them that are tempted and this is the Olive-Tree upon the left side of the Candlestick Then secondly God sent his Spirit the comforter to testifie his unchangeable love to the Church and to lead her into all truth because he is the Spirit of truth And so in the bodily absence of Christ the Spirit which is the Lord our Righteousnesse ruling as a King in love in them doth counsell comfort sanctifie and remaines with the Church for ever and so doth establish the covenant of Grace to them to be an everlasting Covenant And this is the Olive Tree upon the right side of the Candlestick And further Zechariah goeth on making mention of two Olive Branches which through the two golden pâ—pes empty the golden Oyle out of themselves And the Angel said to Zechariah Knowest thou not what these be And he said No my Lord Then he said These are two Anointed ones that stand before the Lord of the whole earth Now these two Olive Trees and these two Branches that thus empty themselves with constant running and so feed the Church with life and light which is that golden Oyle that they empty out of themselves and which the Angel likewise called the two Anointed ones they cannot be meant of any other but Iesus Christ in his own particular person in the flesh and he spiritually in his Saints For there is none that hath the seven pipes the seven Lamps and the seven eyes which are the seven spiritual power of God in his hand but onely Iesus Christ for the Spirit descended and rested upon him And in him dwelleth the fulnesse of the God-head bodily And then secondly because none stands by the Lord of the whole earth as the Angel told Zechariah but onely Jesus Christ and his eternall Spirit who is both the outward and the inward Lord and King of Saints And this is cleared by Gods own word to Daniel when God shewed to him what was written in the Scriptures of truth There is none saith God holdeth or standeth with me in these things but Michael your Prince that is Iesus Christ in his two-fold discoveries in the flesh of the Man Iesus and in the flesh of Saints by the same Spirit and the great promise of the Gospel for the exalting of Iesus Christ the Anointed and the Anointing is this Sit thou saith God on my right hand or stand by me untill I make thine enemies thy foot-stool Now brethren you know that the Church and Sainrs doe not receive light life grace from any other but from Christ Of his fulnesse we receive grace for grace Therefore these two Olive-trees these two Candlestickes which John speakes of and these two Witnesses which God glories in and calleth His Witnesses must needs be meant Christ and his Spirit or the two appearances of God in Iesus and in his Saints There is one phrase mose in that fourth verse which is this These
he was the Son of God when he was supposed to be about 30 years of age as Luke speaks we read not of any thing that he did till this time that he was baptized and the Spirit descended upon him And from that time till he was crucified as I have gathered by books it was supposed to be about three years a half which is about this account which the Spirit calls 1260 days according to the days of a week it is but about 17 dayes difference The like number of dayes is spoken of Rev. 12. And the woman fled into the Wildernesse where she hath a place prepared of God 1260 dyes This I conceive was the same tearm of dayes according to the number of the dayes in a week that one Saviour did prophesie here in the world among men And this points out unto us the time of the battell that was fought between Michael our Prince the seed of the woman and the Dragon or the power of darknesse ruling in the corrupt posterity of Adam For if the Serpent and his seed could have made Jesus Christ to have sinned by their temptations then the Serpent had conquered him and had broken Gods head But Jesus Christ held out to the end and sinned not as he that saw it bore witnesse and his witnesse is true therefore he broke the Serpents head and became a faithfull witnesse to his Fathers counsell Now all the time of this bettell the church was kept by the power of God at a stand and there Were no voyces heard but silent for the space of halfe an houre that little time of 1260 dayes and God and Angels Saints and Men were spectators of this great battell between the Serpent and Christ But when Christ had finished his testimony he laid down his life and the Serpent and his seed thought they had conquered him and began to rejoyce and make merry as Revel. 11. 10. And then was made manifest in heaven that is in and to the Church by the Father the Spirit of truth That Christ by death had overcome him that had the power of death which was the Devill Then there was heard a loud voyce in heaven in the Kingdome and victory of Christ Now is come Salvation and Strength an◠〈◊〉 Kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ for the accuser of our Brethren is cast down which accused them before God day and night And they the Church overcame him the Serpent by the blood of the Lambâ— the death 〈◊〉 Jesus Christ and by the word of their testimony the Fathers promise That the seed of the Woman should bruise the Serpents head And they loved not their lives unto death They would rather dye as the Martyrs did then they would deny this testimony of Jesus One thing note here That as the silence in heaven for the space of halfe an houre points out the time of tine battell between the Serpent and Christ in the flesh so likewise it points out the spirituall combat between the Spirit of Christ and the flesh or the Serpents power in every beleever For so long as the Flesh and Serpent accuses their consciences before God day and night and every disobedient action that will breake their peace is laid before them they cannot sing praises but mourn bitterly for as yet God hath given them no testimony of his love in pardoning of them and of receiving them into his enjoyment this is the writing time or the halfe houres silence till God give deliverance But when the Anointing sets the poor souls free from these accusations by a satisfying discovery of his love then there arise voices of â—raises and thundrings-forth of thankesgiving â—o God day and night even as the accusation formerly was day and night And truly here is great comfort to every particular member of Zion to know that the wisdome and power of their corrupt flesh which fights against the Anointing and accuses their consciences day and night before God presenting God to be an angry God to them when as indeed he is loving yea and love it selfe to poore sinners I say for them to know that it is conquered and the life and power of it is taken away by Christ the Anoiuted it is comfort And when Christ who is the Lord our righteousnesse is pleased to cast the Serpent out of your flesh and to take possession and dwell in you himselfe then you shall be freed from all those accusations and from the malice of the accuser and be made able to sing by experience Now is come salvation and strength and the Kingdome of our God and the power of his Christ to my soule for the Prince of Darknesse and powers of my flesh that fought in me against the Anointing or Spirit of truth is now cast out For God hath pardoned all my disobediences and taken me into his own rest Therefore honour and glory be to him that sits upon the Throne and to 〈◊〉 Lamb for evermore And now the Dragon being vexed and 〈◊〉 of wrath because he is conquered and câ—st out of heaven even every particular member of Zion he rules strongly still in the children of disobedience or in the Serpents 〈◊〉 in whom he dwels and raises all cruell perâ—â—cutions against the church out of whom he is cast and in whom the Anointing rules And of whom according to the flesh the Lamb Jesus Christ was born And as Paul spake of Isaac and Ismael that he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that Was born after the Sprit even so it is now he or they in whom the Serpent rules persecutes him or them out of whom the Serpent is cast and in whom the Anointing rules who is the Lord our Righteousnesse But saith John unto the woman or church was given two wings of a great Eagle that she might flie into the wildernesse into her prepared place where she is nourished for a time times and halfe a time from the face of the Serpent I conceive that the soule by the wisdome and love of God is carried into a condition of sensible barrennesse both in it selfe and in others in which condition the soule is under Gods protection from the face of the Serpent so that this Wildernesse spoke of is a very safe condition or hiding-place from the Serpent wherein the soul is fed and nourished by God and not by any creature for a lime times and halfe a time that is the Church and every particular member is fed and protected by God all the severall degrees of the dayes of The Beast as hath been shewed And here I shall mind two things First what this Wildernesse is not Secondly what it is First ☞ when men are in a good conceir of their own Wisdome Learning and Strength as the Jewes were that thought they had all knowledge to discerne Truth from Errour and therefore when Christ
1260 dayes but hath shortned the dayes of their captivity for the elects sake And therefore saith God the witnesses shall prophesie 1260 dayes and the Gentiles shall tread under foot the holy City 42 moneths Now these 42 moneths being just 3 single yeares and halfe beare a proportion of time with the 3 dayes and halfe that the witnesses must lie dead but I pray mark we are not to reckon the fourty two moneths nor the three dayes and halfe to point out no longer time then barely three single years and half as some think But I conceive that God by these tearmes of time points at a higher mystery That is points out to us 3 ages and a halfe or 3 degrees of time and a halfe that he hath determined for the Beast to tread the holy City under foot Therefore when the question was asked by one Angel in Daniels Vision How long shall it be to the end of these wonders Another Angel swears by him that liveth for ever That it shall be for a time times and an half and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people all these things shal be fiâ—ished John mentions the samet earms of time So that now mark I conceive these time times and a half are 3 ages and a half which God can and will shorten as he pleases as he hath promised And the 42. months nor the 3 dayes and half doth not hold a proportion of years to the 1260. dayes which was the time of the battel but they point out 3. ages and an half of the Reigne of the Beast As the day and Reign of the Dragon the â—lay and Reign of the Leopard the day â—nd reign of the Beast with two horns which speaks like a Dragon the day and reign of the Image of the Beast which I conceive is the half day And by the names and discriptions of these Beasts and by the 3 dayes and half or the divided time as now it is God points out the different workings of the wisdom of the flesh and how she flies from one shape to another as Christ comes into the heart of his Saints to discover her And that an age of a man is called a day the Scriptures make it plain as our Saviour said Abraham desired to see my day that is the day and reign of Christ so the day of Moses or the age or time while Moses bore rule and so here the day of the Dragon before the Devill took up any other shape If you desire to know the Beast that treads you and the holy City under foot look first into your own hearts for there she sits And after that ye have beheld her confused workings there against Christ then look into the world and you shall see the same confusioin of ignorance pride self-love oppression and vain conversation acted against Christ in States in Assemblies and in some Churches in the world But when Christ comes in his brightnes in glory light and beauty as the Son that shines from East to West enlightning the whole earth then will this beast or wisdom of the flesh be destroyed in all her shapes and disguises First in the flesh and hearts of Saints And afterward through the multitude of Saints and their manifold discoveries from God all her confusion shall be thrown down in the world and she shall reign no more but the Kingdom yea the greatnes of the Kingdom under the whole Heaven shall be given to the Saints of the most high The Beast or this powerfull wisdom of the flesh or rather the Serpent in flesh which reads down the holy City 42. months or 3. layes and half in her first day she is grosse â—nd down right prophane which was the day â—f the Dragon or magistracy out of joynt as â—n the day of Nero when Magistrates and people were all deceived But Satan finding he â—ould not do mischief enough against Christ â—n this age or day He chauges his shape into an Angel of light 〈◊〉 in the day and time of setting up an Univerâ—all Bishop that should rule successively but â—eing discovered by the light of Christ to be â—ery hypocriticall and full of abominations â—his is the Leopard She changes her self into her 3. day into reâ—ormed Episcopacy appears by faire shews â—f pretending peace even more closely hypoâ—riticall But this day of hers likewise being discovered to be a day of darknes by the Lord our righteousnes this is the Lamb with the â—wo hornes c. She changes her self into her half day or Image which is more closely hipocriticall then the former she being now hedged into a narâ—ow compasse by Christ and all her shifts are almost discovered so that every young man of Christ can point the finger at her and say that as she that will not suffer Christ to reign King â—riest and Prophet in his own house but will give him the name but reign her self in those Offices This is she that will not suffer Christ to choose his own Church out of the world but she will chuse for him and Christ must either be content with a whole Parish and a whole Kingdom and so the whole world to bee his Church or else this beastly whorish spirit Will allow him no Church at all This is she that will not suffer Christ to call to gift and to send forth his own Ministers and Servants to work in his Vineyard but she will choose call and gift them for him and he must either be content with such Ministers as she ordaines and counts able Schollers and Orthodox Divines or else he shall have none at all Shepherds and Fishermen or Tradesmen that are unlearned in mens writings she will not allow to preach the Gospel though Christ give them anointing and bid them speak the things which they have seen and heard from him More might be said here but every mans experience can ad some thing but I will speak two words more to them that pretend love to Christ First if there be any that by humane wisdom and policy endeavour to set up the worship of God or that by a humane Law or compulfive power will inforce others to give testimony to the Father that Jesus Christ is his Almighty power Call you these people or this Government what you will I am confident it speaks like the Dragon and it is the Image of the Beast And secondly if there be any that pretend love to Christ and yet in their judgements and practices are part for Christ and part for the flesh And though they do not desire a humane Law to enforce others to walk in their way yet they will not own as Brethren nor with the tender embracings of love will not receive any but such as are of their own way and judgment though the Anointing which knits Christs misticall body
together be manifest in them call you this likewise what you will I am confident it speaks like the Dragon and is of the Image of the Beast and part of the half day But I will speak one work of comfort to the Saints your captivity under the Antichristian power is come to the half day or half time and the Lamb will nourish and feed you before the Throne or under the eye and protecting care of God in this half time as he hath fed the Church with love and watchfull care in the 3 dayes that are past And the power of this blaspheming horne that will not acknowledge Christs testimony nor suffer others to acknowledg him this day of his is and shall be shortned for the elects sake And I believe ere long we shall heare the Angel say it is done her 3 dayes and half or her time times and half time is now accomplished And the stone which is cut 〈…〉 Mountains without hands even 〈…〉 Christ our righteousnes shall destrâ—â—◠〈…〉 workings and Kingdom of darkne◠〈…〉 in the Saints and likewise 〈…〉 power that Satan exercised over 〈…〉 he trod them under foot the 42. 〈…〉 now Christ will reigne himself for 〈…〉 ever for of his Kingdom there shal1 〈…〉 And then the world shall see by experience that word of Solomon to be made good That when the wicked that is the flesh rules the City mournes but when the righteous that is Jesus Christ rules the City Zion rejoyces and there is great shouting for joy among the Saints when they can speak by experience and say O rejoyce rejoyce for the Lord God Omnipotent reignes And now doth the Sonne of righteousnes rise higher in the bright manifestations of himself upon the soules of his Saints And the day of Christ begins to shine more clear even that one day as Zachariah calls it which did appear in the hearts of Saints formerly for Abraham saw it and David saw it and rejoyced to see it And truly this day of Christ this sweet discovery of the Fathers love to poor sinners began to dawne upon the seventh day in course after the Creation of all things for Adam sinned upon the sixth day towards the close of the day or cool of the evening And then the seventh day in course should have been a day of punishment or destruction to Adam for his disobedience I but the Son of our righteousness rises presently and love appeared in this promise that the seed of the woman should bruise the Serpents head and so stopped the breakings forth of wrath and made it a day of joy and gladness unto lost sinners And therefore when the Jews told Christ he was a finner because he had broke the Sabbath-day when he had but cured the lame Man upon that day Why saith Christ my Father worketh hitherto and I work that is All the six dayes was my Fathers time of working and making all things but the seventh day is my day and now I work to bruise the Serpents head and to save that which was lost And therefore I say this one day of Christ did dawn upon the seaventh day from the creation and the Sonne of righteousnes hath rose higher and higher in the discoveries of himself or his Church though the thick and cold clouds of flesh and self-love both in our selves and in the world hath darkened the beames of it from us I but now the Winter is near past the Summer is come the flowers appear in the earth that is the glorious workings of the Anointing in the spirit of Saints The time of the singing of birds is come that is all the Saints begin to sing Halelujah for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth within and begins to reign in the world and the voice of the turtle is heard in our Land that is the voice of the Lord Christ our rightousnes is heard and seen to rule in our flesh And now the Beast or wisdom and power of our corrupt flesh or Serpent within us is wounded to death and she shall reign no more And so by the multitude of divine discoveries self-love and confusion shall be destroyed in the flesh of Saints and their very flesh shall be made that land of righteousnes even the branch or the Lords own planting the Inheâ—â—tance of their Father in whom the King of Righteousnes and the King of Peace shall dwell and rule for ever And by the multitude of these Saints whom Christ will raise up like drops in a shoure of raine for number All the oppression injustiee false shewes and formes of Gods Worship shall all be destroyed in the World and judgement shall run down our streets like a stream and righteousnes like a River And though there be a people still on earth in whom the wisdom and power of the flesh dwells as yet there must be yet the power of it shall be kept under and suppressed by the power of Christ the Anoining in the Saints for a certain terme of years appointed by the Father And then he will let Satan loose again who shall stir up those children of disobedience in whom he dwells to joyn together in one mind and spirit of malice and of fleshly wisdom and force which is Gog and Magog 〈◊〉 destroy the holy City the Saints the body of Christ and house of God But then shall the wrath of the Lamb be made manifest to their destruction and then comes the End That the Son shall deliver up the KINGDOM unto the Father CHAP. V. The Witnesses were to be slain when they had finished their Testimony NOw in the next particular we are to mind the time when the Witnesses are to be slain and that is when they have finished their Testimony as John speaks When they shall have finished their testimony the Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomles pit shall make war against them and shall overcome them and kill them These two Witnesses I conceive may be said to have finished their testimony when by manifest experience they have made it appear that the seed of the Woman hath broken the Serpents head and so have proved the Word of the Father to be true And this they have done for first Jesus Christ in his own person he broke the Serpents head when he trod under his feet all the subâ—â—wit and power of the Serpent and prevailed over all his temptations so that Satan could find nothing in him and so by death overcame him that had the power of death which was the Devil Secondly Jesus Christ breaks the Serpents head in the Saints when he makes them able to speak out of experience I was proud saith the soul now God hath made me humble I was envious now God hath made me love even my enemies I loved and acted injustice now God hath made me to hate injustice and to love truth in my heart and to
that this 2300. dayes doth point out so many full years that the Church partly of the Jews and partly of the Gentiles shall lie under the captivity of the blaspheming horne in his severall shapes And so points out the oppressions of the Church of the Jews the destruction of the City Jerusalem and the destroying of the Temple and all those wastings of the Church both before Christ came among the Jews and since Christ came among the Gentiles and so comprehends the Tyranny both of the Dragon corrupt Magistracy And the Tyranny of the Beast the Antichristian shapes over the holy City from the end of the 70. years captivity in Babylon to the time of the end that the Beast shall reigne no longer And I believe that this 2300. dayes are a full number of years that the Church of the Jews and Gentiles have suffered and must suffer under the Serpents power till the appointed time be finished from the end of the 70. years captivity for when Daniel asked the Angel what should be the end of these things he said go thy way Daniel for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end pointing out to us that the Jews were yet to suffer many things before the Gentiles be called But when God speaks that his Witnesses shall prophesie 1260. dayes and that the holy City or the Host shall be trod under foot 42. months which are one and the same tearm of time as hath been shewed I believe he points out the very direct time of captivity that the Church of the Gentiles shall undergo under mystery Babylon or the blaspheming horn And therefore when the Angel was shewing the vision of these things to John Saith he seale not the sayings of this Prophesie for the time is at hand or the time of the 1260. dayes are upon the beginning and the time of the Jewish Church is come to a period And as God was pleased to shew unto John the beginning of those 1260. dayes captivity so I believe God is pleased to shew his Servants now that these 1260. dayes are very near an end And that the Kingdoms of this world shall become the Kingdoms of Christ and he shall take to him his own power and reign for ever and ever Even so come Lord Iesus I shall now proceed hither to we see who it is that kills Gods two Witnesses Even the wisdom and envious power and policy of corrupt flesh that would be as God and sit in Gods Temple and rule over all that is called God The corrupt wisdom blind zeal and meritorious actings is forcibly pressed upon the Saints by the flesh before the believing in the free grace and love and gift of God yea the flesh honours it self and dishonours God and all that worship God or that live in him yea the flesh rules and strives mightily and hath a great prevailing power to enforce men to attend upon her preparative use of means which she calls means and self-actings to get knowledge comfort life and will not suffer men nay nor the Saints some-times to honour God by waiting upon him and wheresoever you see the flesh active if God be pleased to teach you shall see the flesh both in your self and in others to slight despise and undervalue God though to your present apprehension you think you honour God but truly we dishonour God when we would worship him in the way of the flesh and will not wait upon him in his own way It remaines now to shew how the Beast or flesh doth kill the two Witnesses And this phrase killing is but a fuller declaration of that compleat captivity under the blaspheming horn in his severall shapes for the space of 42. months or three dayes and half or 1260. dayes which are all one and then that God that gave his witnesses into the hands of the Beast to be killed raises them up to life again and as Solomon said the righteous is delivered and the wicked falls into his place for upon their rising the Beast is killed and he dies for ever but the killing of the witnesses is not everlasting neither is their death eternall for God will raise them up from death and of the life and Kingdom of the two witnesses there shall be no end But how are the Witnesses slain why truly when the wisdom and powers of the Beast rules in full strength then the Father hath so determined that the witnesses shall be trod under foot and killed but this killing is but in the eye of the world not in the eye of God and Saints for because I live saith Christ therefore you live and the world sees me no more but you see me And there are three dispositions of the Beast to be considered in killing Gods witnesseâ— First consider the spirit of envy and heart-burning that is in the flesh against Gods Witnesses As first the flesh of every man within in the secret of his own heart doth rise and fret against any truth which doth principally advance God and deny self we cannot bear the truths of God at first hearing nor ever till God make us able I speak in experience my own flesh declared its rebellion against God in this particular Tell a man that he hath no knowledge no faith in God and his heart swels presently and thinks you wrong him tell him him his own humane learning and workings are abomination to the Lord and that he must lay aside his beloved actings and wait onely upon God for knowledge and faith his heart swels and cannot endure to hear of waiting upon God And truly God is more honoured by our waiting then by the multitude of our self-actings Tell a man that God doth and wil give his Spirit to Tradesmen now-a-dayes as he gave himself to husbandmen and Fishermen formerly and that these being taught of God are Ministers which God sends forth and that humane Schollars that are not so taught of God are no Ministers but such as run before God send them though they have the ordination of humane authority his heart presently swels against this and he cries it down for an Error and cannot endure to heare that God should teach any but schollars that any should preach glad tidings from God to sinners but such Schollars Here the flesh within every man labours to kill Gods witnesses for the flesh grudges to give God his liberty to doe with his own what he will and the flesh would have something in it selfe it hath a secret grudging to acknowledge all wisdom faith and life must be given of God and that his actings can get nothing And if there were not an inward root of bitternes in every mans heart against truth there would not be such strivings and wars amongst men as there is the flesh of every man envies the Anointing and would not have God to reign in him but by secret grudgings and swellings
own invention in stead thereof and would not suffer the practicall directions of Jesus Christ to have a Being on earth but turnes the Scriptures that testifie of Christ up-side down advancing the Mysterie of Iniquity that is the Serpent in the flesh in stead of the mystery of godlinesse God manifest in the flesh and hath drawn a dark veil over the free grace of Gods absolute workings as the witnesses testifie God to be all in all and carries sinners back again to a ceremoniall Jewish and legall way of worship to seek salvation not by faith onely but as it were by the workes of the law As for instance in 8. particulars 1. Jesus Christ said Wee should bee all taught of God and that he would send the Spirit of truth to lead us into all truth But the Beast saith we must be taught by men and calls the teachings of God without mens teachings a delusion 2. Jesus Christ sends forth his servants to preach the Kingdome of God that is to speak of what they have heard and seen of the indwelling and in-working of God in themselves and in the man Jesus Christ But the Beast will suffer none to preach though they be taught of God unlesse they come out of her Schools of learning first and so speak what they have seen and heard from Commentaries Books and ancient Authors 3. Jesus Christ commands his servants to love their enemies and pray for such as doe despitefully use them But the Beast though she pretend love to God by outward profession will not onely oppresse and kill despiteful enemies but such as are peaceable men under the name of factious and men of errors if they cannot conform to her principles and practices 4. Iesus Christ calls his Church out of the world makes them to beleeve in God by his own almighty power but the Beast will have a whole Parish a whole kingdome and so the whole world to be his Church in her time or else she wil suffer him to have no church at all 5. Iesus Christ speakes honourably of the Saints and calls them his sheep his little flocke his peculiar ones But the Beast speakes bitterly of them evill intreats them prisons whips oppresses and murders them and thinks she doth God good service in so doing 6. Jesus Christ commends the Communion of Saints such as worship the Father sincerely in spirit truth The Beast commends the communion of bare professors for Saints whose worship lies in forms and customes onely 7. Jesus Christ declares that his Sabbath or day of rest to a Saint is his indwelling in the soul and the souls indwelling in him which is continuall and not an observation of one seventh day in the week after the Jewish type But the Beast being unacquainted with the substance observes one day in seven after the manner of the typicall worship and condemnes the soules continuall resting in Christ and Christ in it for an error 8. And so for Baptiâ—me breaking of Bread and Saints communion Ministers maintenance as Jesus Christ left direction the Beast by her usurped authority and fleshly inferences quite altered and practices clean contrary things of her own invention and hath deceived the whole earth that all the world wonders after the Beast and judges her wayes more wise more holy more orderly and more decent then the Directory of Jesus Christ And thus we see the Beast hath killed one of Gods Witnesses Jesus Christ both in his humane Body and in his testimony and Christ hath lain like a dead body under the power of the Beast three dayes and upwards of the halfe And then for the Saints in whom the same Anointing dwels who are Gods second Witnes for they hold the testimony of Jesus to acknowledg the Lord their God and him onely will serve First the Beast hath killed the bodies of their flesh by martyrdom in several ages of the world by-past in her three dayes that are by-past And so all along since the Beast hath slain them in their actings and testimony and would not suffer them to receive Christ and his testimony And whereas the Anointing teaches them to worship the Lord their God only acknowledge him all in all in binding and loosing the Conscience The Beast hath usurped this power which she got by craft from the Kings of the earth to appoint directories Ordinances and Ecclesiastical Governments to inforce every one upon pain of prisons and death not to deny these but to own them to submit to them as Gods Directories Ordinances and Government to the binding and loosing of Conscience when the plain truth is they are but the thresholds of the Beast laid equal with Gods thresholds and the Posts of the Beasts house set equal with the Posts of Gods house and brought in on purpose to pollute Gods Sanctuary for which God will consume the Beast and all that worship both him and his Image CHAP. VI The Witnesses were slain long agoe have lien dead in the street of the great City three dayes and almost the half and are now upon their rising NOw consider that this slaying of the two Witnesses is past long agoe and they are lying in the street of the great City like dead bodies three dayes and an half but I believe they have lien dead well nigh their full time if not compleat for I believe they are upon their rising But are the Witnesses then slain for certain I answer by the experience that we have of the fulfilling of Johns Vision and Prophesie it appears clear to me that they are slain And that the troubles of the world at this very day is but the Cloud in which the Witnesses doth ascend up to God after that the spirit of life from God was entered into them This is partly seen by some already but for the time and season when God will make this manifest to the view of the world I am silent God hath the times and seasons in his own power yet I have perswasions in me from experimentall grounds of Gods own working that ere long within few years God will make this visible to the world but they shall be filled with great feare and be offended at it A mans own sight and perswasion will not satisfie others therefore I shall add a few things more that lies in my spirit to confirm this grounded upon Johns Vision for the fulfilling of a Prophesie shews the meaning of a Prophesie In Revel. 8. 13. There are three woes denounced to the Inhabitants of the earth the first woe is past already and I have nothing to speak of it but only this That when the bottomlesse pit or corrupt flesh was opened made manifest and had a liberty to act it self it brought forth woe and sorrow to the Inhabitants of the earth that is to such as lived below God meerly in the use of creatures of this world such as lived seemingly
a little higher and yet below God too in the use of Gods Ordinances but in an outward profession to the flesh living by sense through a meer form and custome and humane These meet with woe sorrow for a literall profession exposed them to the lash but to worship God in spirit carries away the smart when the flesh is let loose it prepares misery to it self and to all that live after the flesh The third woe is yet to come and I have nothing to say of it only I greatly rejoyce in expectation of that universall glory which God will reveal to his Saints and into which they shal be taken up when those dayes come But the middle woe or the second in course is now in being And there are great troubles to be acted in the world but yet for the comfort of the Saints two things are to be noted First that under the sound of the sixth Angel that pronounces the woe The death of the Beast is declared and that his determinate time is quite finished and though he strive mightily like a dying hog for life at the last gaspe yet he shall never reign again in Majesty established by an usurped Law over Christ and his Saints as he hath done for his time times and dividing of a time his 42. months and his three dayes and half are upon the point of expiring And the Lord Christ is beginning nay hath begun to take the Kingdom and to reign of whose Kingdom there shall be no end Secondly note that under the sound of the sixth Angel the Witnesses are to be killed but to arise from death and ascend up to God in the Cloud And their rising is the Inhabitant of the earths woe even to such as have no hope but in this life it will be and it begins to be a time of woe to them for all creature comforts helps and communion shall be taken away and dead to them And I believe we are under that sound oppression and injustice doth so mightily abound in the Kingdoms and Magistracy of the world for when the seventh Angel sounds then Christ or the Anointing â—ho is King of righteousnes and King of Peace shall reign in the Kingdoms and Magiâ—tracy of the world for a certain space or a thousand years as the Scripture speaks which yet generally doth not appear though this Kingdom of Christ doth begin to appear in among the Saints that are scattered abroad The Beast is giving up his last breath and his violent kicking and sprawling troubles the whole world for a little time for the spirit of the Beast is the life of the Inhabitants of the Earth therefore I believe the Witnesses are not in killing but in rising from death and that the world must see ere long which will be a third woe to them when they shall see poor despised Saints whom no man regards to partake of the glory of the City of God and they themselves put by There is one passage of Johns Vision while â—his sixth Angel sounds which gives light hereunto the words are these Loose the four Angels that are bound in the great Riverâ—uphrates And the four Angels were loosed c. These are four evill Angels as I conceive which stir up the four quarters of the Earth to enmity against every appearance of God so that there shall be risings up of much bitternes in the East West North and South among the Sons of men against God though they think not so for they think their cruelty is godlines and they think their malice is zeal and they think their oppressing imprisoning murdering the Saints under the name of erroneous Round-heads doth God good service And it appears they are four evill Angels because they were bound up like prisoners in so bad a place as in the River Euphrates and they were prepared for this time that is For an houre a day a moneth and a year to slay the third part of men It appears they are four evill Angels if we consider first what the great River Euphrates is I believe this Euphrates is the spirit of the Beast or the very Serpent himself which like a great River overflowes every Son and Daughter of the first Adam And this River Euphrates is to be dried up when the sixth Angel powres out his Violl so that the way of the Kings of the Earth might be prepared The meaning to me is this That when this spirit of the Beast is dried up destroyed and subdued then the Kings of the East or such in and upon whom the Son of righteousnes rises first which are the Elect or City Sion they come and take the Kingdom and the Anointing in them who is the Lord our righteousnes reigns in the earth that is in mankind forever and ever The spirit of the Beast or Serpent is called Euphrates because as the River Euphrates in the History overflowed a great part of the Earth So this spirit of darknes overflowes man-kind and drownes them in ignorance pride covetousnes malice disobedience discontent deceived zeale but when this is dryed up as it must be when the seaventh Angel sounds then the Nations appeare for God And the Saints are called Kings of the East for their knowledg and for their faithfulnes to God for as the wise men or Kings of the East found out where Jesus Christ lay when he was born but would not tell Herod who laid wait to kill him but went another way So these spiritual Kings of the East or as Daniel calls them the wise or understanding people They know where the Anointing appears and they know that the Kingdom of Christ is spirituall for the Anointing teaches them all things and they have experience of the love sincerity humility peace and the like which are the Laws and walls of that Kingdom And likewise they know that the spiritual powers of darknes as ignorance pride envy discontent hypocrisie self-love and the like is the Serpent that would destroy Christ or the Anointing for if pride ruled which is the Serpent in the Children of disobedience then humility which is Christ in the Saints must be destroyed And if malice reign then love which is Christ in the Saints must die And so of all the rest And the Saints knowes this therefore in the second place they are called Kings of the East because they do not betray Christ into the hands of Herod the Serpent but they hold forth the power of Christ in faith and patience till God finish his work thereby destroys the enemies Now when pride covetousnes injustice envy self-love and the like is dried up like a River that cannot run Then the way is prepared for these Kings of the East to take the Kingdom and to reign in with Christ and righteousnes for ever and these four Angels were bound up in this River Euphrates and were
not suffered to act in their full strength or appear out of that cursed fountain of darknesses till God pleased to let them loose therefore they were evill because bound up or imprisoned in such an evill stinking River Secondly These four Angels were evil in respect of their nature for I believe they are four spiritual powers of wickednes As first wicked craft and subtilty in the strength of it 2. Hypocrisie in the strength of it 3. Envy in the strength of it And 4. A murdering cruelty in the strength of it Now these four Angels or powers of darknes were bound up within the very body of the Serpent and not suffered to act in that violent universal strength as they do till this sixth Angel sounded And now being let loose they stir up every one in the four quarters of the earth and vex and torment you day and night for men in whom these powers rule they have no rest And men are stirred up in Armies to kill and slay But whom do they slay Not the witnesses though they think so in their heart as it is spoke of Gog and Magog but those men only who have not the Seal of God in their forehead or as it is said before the Inhabitants of the Earth And truly the strong subtil craft unparalleld hypocrisie extream envy and inbred cruelty that is expressed in the four quarters of the land of the world too against the Saints that are branded Sectaries Schismaticks Anabaptists Round-heads doth appear plain to me to be those three powerfull Angels of darknes which are let loose in the spirits of men even in that spirit of darknes that hath overspread the Earth man-kind like the over-flowing River Euphrates therefore they are evil Angels Thirdly consider how doe these Angels slay the third part of men Why truly I believe it is not their killing of their bodies only though it may be in these great troubles many are and doubtles shall be killed in that sense but it points out a worser death then that of the body for they kill the very minds and consciences of men And it is thus These four Angels shall be so powerfull in mens spirits and spread so universally over the earth of man-kind That many that are convinced of a false worship and unjust wayes that are practised generally shall out of slavish fear of men and out of shame to own God his wayes at this time are so contemptible and so generally reproached slandered and hated thaâ— a third part of men shall turn Hypocrites and practice wayes contrary to their knowledg and will say do subscribe and fight laugh scosse reproach and kill the Saints yea do any thing so they may have the flattering word of their carnall Neighbours and not be called Round-heads Anabaptists or Independants these names whereby the Saints are branded are so odious And truly these men are slain for the fearfull and unbelieving shall have their part in the lake which is the second death And every Parish through this Kingdom and the World too at this very day are full of these dead men and women But these four Angels are spiritual powers of darknes which do not appear in apparitions and visions but being let loose in mens spirits they rule and work there And the multitudes of men whom they violently stir up are called Armies of horse-men as you may read which declares their strength and their swiftnes to do hurt pointed out by the strength and swiftnes of horses Now these Armies of horse-men or multitudes of men put upon violent and unreasonable actions by these four evil Angels are the appearing cause that doth hurt and kill weak spirited men and women by over-awing them And out of the mouthes of those Armies thus set on fire there proceeded fire smoak and brimstone by which the third part of men were killed By smoak is betokened false Doctrines threatnings reproaches scoffes oppressions and bitter provocations Brimstone betokens persecution whips plunderings prisons And fire betokens fire and faggot hanging murdering or putting them to death in any kind that do not submit to the wayes of these four Angels And this is further cleared by the 19. vers. The power of this Army whereby they do hurt is in their mouths and in their tails That is they call their own inventions and lies the Doctrines of God and against them that do not submit thereunto First they give out bitter reviling language and threatning speeches to plunder imprison and kill And thereby over-aw men and make them afraid and ashamed to own God and so kill them And if this doth not do then their power is in their tails when by the Authority of the Civil Magistrate whom these four Angels have deceived they over-awe men by punishments whips prisons plunderings and death for this followes the other as the tail follows the head And therefore mind That when threatnings reproaches and bitter language goes before prisons and death followes if they can but deceive the Magistracy which is Gods Ordinance and get an Authority by craft from him so to do And thus the four Angels by their Armies deceive and kill weak men and make them out of slavish fear and bashfull shame to disown God and to say or do any thing to preserve themselves from danger And the rest of the men that were not killed by these plagues repented not That is though these Armies of men in whom these four Angels rule with violence were not themselves over-awed by this slavish fear and bashful shame because they are audacious bold and desperately confident in wicked wayes And though they do see poor weak men over-awed by them and made to do any thing not out of sincerity of heart to God but out of hypocrisie and fear to their usurped power of wickednesse They have neither piety in them to see men so enslaved but rather glorie in it neither do they repent of their own works and false Idolatrous worship which is self-invention neither indeed can they for the four evil Angels being let loose rule in them So that these that repent not of the works of their hands are the master-upholders of the Beast against God such as repent not of their pretended plat-forms and customes of pretended divine worship which have no warrant from God Such as repent not of their covetousnes after silver and gold by rich Tythes nor of their murther in reviling imprisoning and killing the Saints nor of their fornication in loving themselves riches creatures honours more then God But though they do not repent yet they shall not reign alwayes like Lords over Gods Inheritance For God hath and doth proclaim by the voice of the sixth good Angel that time to the Beast shall be no more his dayes are near done And secondly after that the spirit of life from God hath raised up the two Witnesses there were seven thousand slain
in the Earth-quake which are these very master-builders and upholders of the Beast as I shall shew anon Well here is a great Cloud of trouble arises nay it is risen And these four evil Angels subtilty hypocrisie malice and cruelty are very bitter in the spirits of men whom they torment day and night and kill And they have condemned to death all the Saints of God in the Kingdom under the name of Round-heads and they are boldly confident they shall compasse their murther-intent but they shall never do it For the day of the Beast is ended his reign is done and the Saints shall sing that Song in experience Babylon is faln is faln For the spirit of life appears in some already and will appear in more ere long when the showre of hayl falls And God takes up his Saints to himself for the Witnesses are not in killing bnt in rising from death and ascending up to God in this Cloud the Cloud of woe shall not now fall upon them but upon the Inhabitants of the earth who have no other hope or comfort but in this life There are a few words more mentioned in Johns Vision in that eleaventh of the Revelatiticons which being fulfilled declare that the witnesses are not in killing but in rising from death It is said That they of the Nations Kinred Tongues and People shall see their dead bodies lie in the street of the great City three dayes and an half c. These two appearances of God in flesh which testifie of God that is The appearance of God in the man Jesus and the appearance of God in the Saints are said to be dead bodies when they do not act and operate like themselves in the view of them whose names are not written in the Lambs book of life so long as the Beast hath a time to fit in the Temple of God and to shew himself as God no more then the dead bodies of men can do the actions of living men God the Father hath made Christ his Anointing the King Priest and Prophet to bring sinners to God but these Offices of Christ have been trampled upon by the Lawes Canons Acts and Ordinances of the Beast and have not visibly appeared to the world but the anointing of the Father in Jesus and the Saints have been like dead bodies in respect of such operations and have not acted publikely like themselves but have lain all the time of the Beast dead in the eye of the unbelieving world who have rejected them and stumbled at them till the spirit of life from God rayses them up and sets them upon their feet that is till God subdue all enemies under Christs feet the Anointing and give all rule and all authority to him But though the Beast have allowed Christ the name of King Priest and Prophet yet he hath denied Christ both the operation and honour of these three Offices and hath set the Crown of these upon his own head For whiles the Beast declares himself to be so quick-sighted that he can presently discerne what is truth and what is errour and take upon him by his usurped power to punish errours with plundering prisons and death Does he not thereby declare himself to be as God in knowledg knowing good and evil And as God likewise in Majesty by punishing every one that opposes his beastly being and so he declares himself to be an absolute infallible prophet to teach men A King to rule and punish men and a Priest to save men from death by his skil and operation And thus the Beast hath a long time acted these three Offices of Christ as himself pleased and the Anointing in Jesus and the same in the Saints have lain like two dead bodies killed under the hand of the Beast And these two dead bodies were to lie dead three dayes and an half that is the whole reign of the Beast in his three ages and an half As first the time and age of the Dragon which was Majestracy out of joynt that persecuted Christ and his Saints by open violence before the universal Bishop was lifted up by the Dragon and this is the first shape or time or age in which the Serpent appeared to kill the Witnesses Secondly The time and age of the Leopard which is that we call grosse Popery when the universall Bishop bare rule by the authority of the Dragon before there was any Church reformation And this was not so down-right violent but kils the Witnesses by a pretended Law under the names of error for indeed the appearance of God in flesh is far different from the appearance of the Serpent in flesh And the Serpent having a time to act himself and to maintain his being labours to destroy the being of God and calls the appearance of God an errour or deceiver Thirdly The time and age of the Beast with two horns like a Lamb but spake like a Dragon And this is that we call reformed Episcopacy which was of the same nature and had the same authoritive power from the deceived Kings of the earth to make war with Christ his Saints as the former had though a little more hypocritical for it came in sheeps cloathing but it spake like a Dragon for it devoured the sheep by his common Lawes Ecclesiasticall power and high Commission Courts And these two shapes of Popery and Episcopacy are called times because they are two ages or dayes of the Beast maintaining one and the same nature and compulsive and coersive power the one being more grosly abominable the other more hypocritically abominable so that here is time the Dragon and times Popery and Episcopacy faln in the world or three dayes which are visibly past and gone already in this one tenth part of the Citie England c. Here remains in being the dividing of time or halfe day which is called the Image of the Beast because it hath not the Authority of the Beast though it have the Nature and Spirit of the Beast in it And this halfe day or this dividing of time is the age of the Beast under which England Scotland and Ireland doe now groan and it may be a very hot time for the length of it but it will be but short And I have some hopes that God will make this three-fold kingdome being under one Magistracy the tenth part of the City Babylon that shall fall off first from the Beast And this is called the dividing of time because the witnesses are neither under an absolute bondage by Ecclesiasticall Lawes as formerly neither in absolute freedome because the boylings of the foure evill Angels mentioned before in mens spirits both in Magistrates common people and such as they call Ministers are so opposite against them And I beleeve that Gods two witnesses do yet lie dead publickly under the heart-burning power of discontent both of out-side professing
Presbyters and out-side professing Independents but this will not last long for the sincere-hearted that worship God in spirit and truth are reproached thereby and are not much visible in the eye of the world And then again it is called the halfe-day in regard of the shortnesse of it and when it shall end our God onely knowes but there are two things that give me great perswasion that this halfe-day is neer an end First because our Lord Jesus the Anointed told us by his own mouth that these days should be shortned for the elects sake Secondly the rejoycing in hope which God hath put into my heart grounded upon experience of his love which I see in my self and in others of his servants and of his power in shaking Kingdomes and things in the world agreeable to the prophesy of Ezekiel which was fore-told to be in the latter dayes gives me great perswasion that this halfe-day is neer an end Now it is clear to me that the time times or the three dayes which are but one and the same thing are already past and therefore I beleeve that the Witnesses are not in killing but are upon their rising Then further it is said That they of the nations kinreds tongues and people shall see their dead bodies lie in the street of the great City three dayes and a half that is the Saints or Elect that lived â—n all the three ages and dayes of the Beast shall â—ee the appearance of God in the Man Jesus and the appearance of God in the Saints to be suppressed reproached killed and not suffered to act like themselves by the Ecclesiasticall Laws and Canons of the Beast And these three dayes and a halfe cannot be three single dayes nor three single yeares and half according to mens account of dayes and yeares as some think for then the Saints that were scattered in all nations kinreds tongues people could not have seen them lie dead in regard of the shortnesse of time and the great difficulty of travell to see experience But in the three ages and halfe of the Beast all the Saints of God through the whole dominions of the Beast have suffered more or lesse by the Beast and have seen doe see and shall see the captivity end The testimony of God in those two-fold appearances to be suppressed and not suffered to act visibly in the world but to lie like a patient long-sufferer till Christ come and destroy his enemies by the word of his mouth and by the brightnesse of his coming Another thing mind that though these of the nations kinreds tongues and people do see the dead bodies of the two Witnesses so lie in the street yet they will not suffer them to be put in graves that is though the City Babylon look upon the manifestation of God in the flesh of Jesus and in the flesh of the Saints as two dead bodies yet the Saints see them to be living and looks upon them with pretious thoughts And though the City Babylon would have these two witnesses put in graves that is quite buried forgotten and put out of memory by their sharp Lawes to advance the learning of the flesh and to suppresse the teachings of God yet the City of God the Saints will not forget Christ nor put him out of memory For though they cannot acknowledge Christ and his testimony publickly for feâ—r or by restraint of those lawes as the Disciples durst not meet publickly for feare of the Iewes yet they will acknowledge and remember Christ among themselves and speak of him and rejoce in him and so will not suffer these two Witnesses to be put in graves or to be forgotten From hence likewise it appeares that the Witnesses were killed long agoe and in these troublesome daies are upon their rising for they must rife in a cloud And by the great City which is called spiritual Sodom Egypt is meant that wicked Babylon or that Serpent which hath over-spread mankind and keeps it in bondage which God will destroy and cast into the Lake And by the street of the great City it is clear to me to be the limited time wherein God hath determined the Beast to reign would not call him to account but let him doe what he will to advance himselfe and in all this determinate time the Beast walkes up and downe at liberty as a man walkes up and down in a street of a Citie where there is no stop and knowes no sorrow And here is both a time limited to the Beast and the wicked power of the Beast limited in this time For the Beast does not doe his own will but Gods will and that is comfort for the Saints Well all this limited time or the full length of this street or the length of the chain in which the Beast is tied God hath suffered the Beast to walk at liberty up and down Thus long thou shalt reign over my Saints and no longer saith God And all this limited time the two Witnesses are first killed and then lie dead under the Lawes Canons and bastardly Ecclesiasticall power for God never made it though he suffer ir â— or it is the power which the Beast makes use of all his limited time and by this power the Beast keeps the Witnesses under and wil not suffer them to act like living bodies publickly But there is one clause may raise a scruple It is said they lie in the street of the great City where also where also our Lord was slain This implies may some say that Iesus Christ was neither of the two witnesses but that they were to be slain a long time after his departure hence and in the same City where also he was slain I answer when I say that Jesus Christ is one of Gods witnesses I doe not look upon the body of his flesh onely but upon the manifestation of God in that flesh of his And the witnesses If you observe all along I judge them to be these two First the manifestation of God in the man Christ Iesus And secondly the manifestation of God in the flesh of Saints for hereby God makes good his ancient word of promise That the seed of the woman shall breake the Serpents head And therefore though the flesh of Christ was killed in that City Babylon or by the spirit of Babylon which is indeed the meaning yet the manifestation of God in the flesh was not killed by the Dragon and Leopard till divers yeares after Iesus Christ was crucified For the Saints had a liberty to acknowledge and professe God openly and to practice what God in Christ had made known to them for a long time after Christ was departed and their testimony was not suppressed by any humane deceived power for in Pauls time which was after Christ the spirit of Babylon began to work to bring the Saints into bondage but
forms Customs and oppressions for when the Witnesses are raised the limited power of the Beast is ended and he shall reign no longer and so the seaven thousand or the compleat number of such as mannaged the cause of he Beast have no more work to do And these are said to be slain in a twofold respect First when they shall see the cause of the Beast is destroyed and they are like to have no more gain come in for they have no work to do for they cannot work in Christs Vineyard Now their hearts are filled with anger madnes and vexation to see that inferiour people even the fools of the world but the babes and sucklings of Christ are raised up to speak the deep things of God which those Masters of Art understand not And so the seaven thousand seeing their Trade go down they grow very angry and that beastly spirit in them opens his mouth in balsphemy against God and blasphemeth his Name and his Tabernacle and them that dwell in Heaven calling light darknes and darknes light and calling every truth an error because it is too high for their understanding and in this sense they are flain and their hearts die within them with discontent and vexation and so they lie in hell or under the dispensation of wrath But secondly these or some of these shall be slain in another sense That is they shall even burn their books forsake their private Chambers and Colledges and deny their Ecclesiastical Trade which their Fathers and friends for worldly living sake have bred them too and shall come in and joyn with the Saints to wait upon God and to give glory to him and some shall by the spirit of burning or bright appearing of God in them be thus slain and happy it will be for those among the seaven thousand that shall be thus slain for they have escaped the woe which the other that are disconted and angry lie under And the remnant were affrighted and gave glory to the God of Heaven by remnant are meant the common people that have been deceived by the false Prophet or 7000 that mannaged the cause of the Beast for when they shall see that Husbandmen and Tradesmen in every corner are able to speak in experience of things and truths which they have heard and seen from God their learned Clargy begin to be sleighted in their Office and be ashamed in their own visions though their persons be tender in the eyes of Saints c. Why now the ignorant common people are afraid that all Lawes and Governments shall be thrown aside nay the Beast doth buz them in the head with such a conceit to make the appearance of God odious as if men now should live in sin and error as they list without controle this the Beast pretends but inwardly her fear is she shall be destroyed her self because the Lawes forms directories and customs of the flesh are denyed by the Saints and Mordecaie that loves God will not bow to proud selfish Hamon and this is the remnant shall be afraid of But when God is pleased to put it into the hearts of Governours and Kings of the earth to take their Authority out of the hands of the Beast as our Governours in this tenth part of 〈◊〉 City have done in part and when God is 〈◊〉 sed to shake down all injustice in the civil â—â—istracy and restores that to the beauty and â—â—â—â—ty of justice and tendernes as I am confident 〈◊〉 is about that work then we shall have no â—se to fear or be troubled that we shall have 〈◊〉 Laws and Government for we shall then 〈◊〉 Laws and Governments according to truth 〈◊〉 Magistrates that will tender love and delight to be executing justice for the good and â—â—â—â—ry of the Common-wealth But this is the misery of our age men strive to uphold the usurped Ecclesiastical power which God never made only he determined to 〈◊〉 way it should rise and reign too forty two months over his Witnesses And in upholding of this which God is in throwing down because the time is near expired men are so maâ— and ignorant as the Beast hath deceived them that they will throw down the lawfull poweâ— too even Magistracy which is the higher power God hath ordained and commands every man to be obedient too And they count Magistracy no Government unlesse the Beast reign cheek by chaw by it as formerly in the dayes of ignorance but it must not be so for Magistracy in the Common-wealth must stand its Gods Ordinance But this Ecclesiastical beastly stoleâ— power in and over the Saints shall fall for the seven Angels of God are sent to powre out seaven Viols of wrath to blast curse and destroy all the glory of the Beast And when Christ comes in brightnes and consumes the remnant that is when Christ by his bright appearing burns up and consumes allâ— the ignorance envy discontent unbelief and alâ— the drosse of the flesh in all people and teacheâ— them to knowledge of his will Then this remnant shall give glory to God they shall then falâ— down before God and acknowledg him Lord oâ— Lords and King of Kings they shall acknowledge all Gods Ordinances and forsake the Beast and rejoyce and sing songs of praise because the Lord God omnipotent reigns This Ecclesiastical power hath been a great troubler of Magistracy ever since the deceived Magistracy set it up for when tender hearted Magistrates have sat in the seat of Magistracy it hath been a grief and burden to them witnes Queen Maries dayes as in the book of Martyrs To imprison banish fine and sometimes put to death peaceable quiet men that have no offence laid to their Charge but about the matters of their God as Darius bad Councellers troubled Daniel who indeed were a type of this Ecclesiastical troubler For while the Serpent ruled still in particular persons he was every foot put to his shifts to deceive and stir up new enemies against God and his Saints when the old ones returned to dust therefore he wrought very subtilly to deceive the Kings of the earthâ— that by them might be established this Ecclesiastical troubler to be a standing Law for as Daniel speaks this King of a fierce countenance reigns by a power that is none of his own but by the power of Magistracy out of whose hand the Serpent hath got it by his craft And so though persons die that mannage the cause of this troublesome Beast and others come in their roome yet still the Office and trouble remains And it hath been observed that when some Bishops have first been made Bishops they were tender hearted and zealous but after a little time by mannaging this Ecclesiastical Beast which their Office tyed them too they grew hard-hearted and great oppressors of peaceable
bloud of a dead man that is to corrupt and dye for ever And every living soul within the Sea dyed That is All the strength glory and being of the beast dyed And the place and power fleshly wisdom and actings against Christ and the Saints was seen no more And this suites with the Oath that the Angel swore in Daniels hearing and in Johns hearing likewise That when the beast had accomplished to scatter the holy people all those things in the vision should be finished and time should be no more For when the seventh Angel had powred out his vial upon the Ayre or the element wherein the beast lived which is a humane magisterial power got from the Kings of the Earth when they and she committed spiritual fornication together after that God had limitted the beast a time to reign in Then there came a great voice out of the Temple of Heaven that is from Christ saying it is done And in that day saith God I will make a Covenant of peace for Israel and I will break the bow and the sword and the battel out of the Earth and make them lie down safely And there shall none hurt in all Gods holy mountain any more as the Beast hath done hurt But secondly when these waters are applied to Nations Kinreds Tongues and People as they be for saith John The Waters which thou sawest whereon the Whore sitteth are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues Then they point out unto us those people men and women in whom the flesh rules in all her self-actings and inventions against Christ and in either of these senses that is either the multitude of fleshly inventions arising from the spirit of self-love or the multitude of people in whom the flesh works so powerfully or both these joyned into one body make up the City Babylon And all those phrases as Mystery Babylon Beast Whore and Mother of Harlots and abominations of the earth are to be applyed hereunto And when the waters are thus turned into bloud by the testimony of Gods two Witnesses that is the wisdom inventions and actings of the flesh are now destroyed and proved evil and the men in whom this wisdom appeared against God are ashamed and confounded then it is manifest That the seed of the woman Christ the anointed hath broken the Serpents head I heard the Angel of the waters say Thou art righteous O Lord which art which wast and shall be because thou hast thus judged For they have shed the bloud of Saints and Prophets and thou hast given them bloud to drink for they are worthy And by these phrases thus made manifest it appeares that Jesus Christ in his two-fold appearance in the flesh and in the Spirit as hath been declared are Gods two faithfull Witâ—esses and can be meant of no creature CHAP. IV. What is meant by one thousand two hundred and sixty dayes which is the time given to the two witnesses to prophesie in cloathed in sack-cloth AND now I come to the third particular to be minded that is to shew the meaning of the thousand two hundred and sixty dayes which is the time given them of God to prophesie in and when they must be slain and who it is that slayeth them In handling of this I shall observe three things in prophesie First to prophesie is to fore-tell either in plain or dark language what hereafter shall come to passe And this did God the Father when he said The seed of the woman shall break the Serpents head And this is both a Promise and a prophesie Secondly to prophesie is to make such things plain and easie to the understanding of others which appeared dark and hidden before And this did Jesus Christ when he made the mysteries of the Kingdome of God plain and easie to the understanding of his◠〈◊〉 which were spoken indark sayings 〈◊〉 ther 's and this is Gospel-ministery by the 〈…〉 of truth Thirdly to prophesie is to give testin◠〈◊〉 or proofe of such things to be true by 〈◊〉 Discoveries which God hath 〈◊〉 or fore-told heretofore should 〈◊〉 passe in the latter dayes And this did Jesus Christ when he by his Death and Resurrection did experimentally prove himselfe to be the seed of the Woman that broke the Serpents head And so the Spirit of Christ in the coÌ„version of sinners to God doth provelikewise by many cleare experiences that those sinners so taken up to God are part of that seed of the woman in whom the Serpents head is broken And they shall prophesie in Sack-cloth saith God and so they doe For first all those abusive slanders mockings oppressions and death which was laid wrongfully upon Jesus Christ for his enemies confesse they found no fault in him and yet they would crucifie him doth not all this shew a cause time and houre of mourning or wearing sack-cloth And this was the condition of Christ whilest he was in the world bearing a visible testimony to his Fathers counsell And this is the same condition of his church for as he was in the world so are â—hey The world knew not him neither doth the world know them The world hated him â—nd it hates them Secondly Sack-cloth implies the absence of â—ome friend plenty honour comfort c. And did not our Lord Christ leave his glory in Heaven and came and took upon him the forme â—f a Servant nay took upon him the curse â—ue to sin which is death that he might â—reak the Serpents head and free sinners from the bondage of that power of darknesse And â—oth not his Church goe on weeping carrying â—heir Sheaves with them like Pilgrims and â—â—rangers looking for a dwelling place in God â—nd waiting upon him till he wipe away all ears c. And thus they prophesie in Sack-â—loth Thirdly Jesus Christ prophesieth in Sack-â—loth while his heel is bruised by the Serpent â—nd his seed for in all their afflictions he is â—fflicted with them Therefore it is a time of â—â—ourning to Christ to see such cruelties and â—ppressions to be inflicted upon his Church â—hom he doth so dearly love And it is a Sack-cloth time to his church â—hen they see the Name the Truth end Testiâ—ony of their Lord Christ Whom they love to 〈◊〉 blasphemed rejected and persecuted in the â—orld And now I shall observe the time that God I â—ath given his witnesses to prophesie in and that is 1260 dayes The number of 1260 dayes is to be understood as I conceive in a two-fold sense yet both pointing out the mystery of God the first more Literall the second more Mysticall As first I conceive that these 1260 dayes are reckoned according to the dayes of a Week that our Saviour Christ Jesus did beare witnesse to his Father from the time of his Baptisme and descending of the Spirit upon him to the day that he was crucified For he began his visible testimony that