a two-fold power and jurisdiction both Civill and Ecclesiasticall not in earth onely but in heaven also what he bindeth in earth is bound in heaven and whom he will he can release from the paines of Purgatorie and place them in heaven Therefore in token of this his power he is armed with two swords which thing was plainely signified by the two Hornes which he had like the Lamb. But though the Beast would be the Lambs equall and resemble him in power yet his voyce bewrayes him to bee but a counterfeit and a dissembling hypocrite he speakes like the Dragon he pretendeth property to that which is not his own and exalteth himselfe against those unto whom he should submit and giue honour Even as the Dragon said of the Kingdomes of the world All these are in my power I giue them to whom I will So likewise saith this Luk. 4. 6. Beast his Vicar the Prelate of Rome The Empire and Kingdomes of the earth are in my power and at my disposition and to me it belongeth to depose and set up Emperours and Kings at my pleasure as shall bee behoofull for the peace of the Church And thus may the Beast in this bee knowne by his voyce likewise in divers other particular blasphemous speeches and divelish doctrines Further it is said of this Beast That he exerciseth all the power of the first Beast before him and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to Vers 12. worship the first Beast whose deadly wound was healed In that this Beast is said to exercise All the power of the first Beast before him thereby was signified That what the first Beast could doe by her motherly authority and power under the usurped title and name of the holy Church the same could this Beast doe by the authority power of his fatherhood under the title pretence of Christs Vicar Peters successor universall Bishop c. But that this Beast may yet further be discerned it is said of him That he caused the earth and those which dwell therein to worship the first Beast c. By causing the earth to worship the first Beast was foreshewed that the Pope would exact of the earth the tenth part of the fruits therof for the maintenance of the holy Church this is indeed to worship For as the paying of Tithes in the time of the Law was a part of the true outward worship of God so this is the worship of the Beast And further by causing the Inhabitants of the earth also to worship the first Beast was shewed that he would carefully see due homage service and obedience to be yeelded and performed to the holy Church so that though the Prelate of Rome as a sonne of perdition did exalt himselfe aboue measure yet still doth he maintaine the power and dignity of the Catholick Church the estimation of her Motherhood must still bee maintained her voyce must still be heard and obeyed not to come when she calls is contumacie and contempt not to be indured they that dare so farre to despise her authoritie as not to obey her Paritors Processe are by her doome to bee accounted cursed children and worthy of no lesse censure and punishment then to be struck with that terrible Thunderbolt of her Excommunication the violence whereof is such as who can indure it Who will not rather ride runne dance attendance crouch kneele pay pray or doe any thing else which Maister Officiall or his Register wil enioyne them then undergoe so heavy a burthen as the censure of Excommunication Thus will the Pope haue the magnificence of this Diana to bee maintained The earth and those which dwell in it must yeeld unto her the Tithe of all their increase as also Mortuaryes Offerings and many other Church duties which she requireth of them for she is a goddesse and must bee worshipped And this diminisheth the Popes glorie never a jot the two estates of the Whoore and false Prophet can well agree and stand together as father and mother in one family and therefore the second Beast as father of all wil haue the first Beast worshiped that is obeyed maintained in glorie as mother of all And further obserue in that the Pope hath executed all authoritie of the Catholike Church thereby is confirmed the truth of the exposition that the first Beast was the Catholike Church and the second Beast the Pope as hath beene before observed And he doth great wonders so that he maketh fire to come downe from Vers 13. heaven on earth in the sight of men First by the wonders which he did was foreshewed what wonderfull things the Prelate of Rome that false Prophet should bring to passe as namely under the title of the servant of the servants of God which indeed all Ministers of the Word and other Church Officers ought to be to creep up and exalt himselfe aboue Emperours and Kings and all other estates in the earth which being considered is indeed a thing wonderfull for first the Prelacie and Clergie in respect of the pretended holines of their Orders were exempted and freed from being subiect to any secular jurisdicton and power the meanest of them might not be produced before any secular ludge for any crime or offence how Vide Consilium Matis Can. 9. 10. havnous soever yet unto this Beast they must be obedient in all things as servants to their Lord upon him they must depend with all observation as children upon their fathers And as for Emperours and Kings and other worldly States it is plaine to bee seene that though they stand highly upon their titles and dignities not to haue them empayred or in any thing diminished which is a thing which they will withstand to the shedding of aboundance of bloud yet to be made such vassals to this Beast as to hold his stirrop to leade his horse by the bridle to kisse his feete they thought it no abasement but an honour And notwithstanding that very many of that beastly ranke haue been notorious wicked men and abominable livers yet haue they the craft so to delude and besot all people of all degrees in the world as to bring them to beleeue that the truth is so infallibly annexed to that seate of the Beast that it is not possible for him to erre in iudgement yea he made the world to beleeue it as an Article of faith that his determination and iudgement of any controversie or point of doctrine is a more indifficient and infallible rule of faith then is the holy Scriptures That these and the like grosse doctrines are beleeved and received are great wonders Further He maketh fire to come downe from heaven on the earth in the sight of men c. By fire in this place was fore-shewed the punishment which should be inflicted on the Saints which was burning with fire And in that the fire was sayd to come from heaven thereby was foreshewed that the Iudges of the earth Who
AN EXPOSITION OF THE 13. CHAPTER OF THE REVELATION OF IESVS CHRIST By Iohn Wilkinson Revelation 14. 9. ANd the 3. Angel followed them saying with a lowd voice If any man worship the beast and his image and receive his marke in his forehead or in his hand V. 10. The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God which is powred out without mixture into the cup of his indignation and he shal be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy Angels and in the presence of the Lamb V. 11. And the smoake of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever Imprinted in the yere 1619. IT was the purpose and desire of the Authour of this Treatise to haue published his Iudgment of the whole booke of the Revelation But through the malice of the Prelates who divers times spoyled him of his goods and kept him many yeres in prison he was prevented of his purpose After his death some of his labours comming to the hands of his friends in scattred and unperfect papers they laboured with the help of others that heard him declare his judgement herein to set forth this little treatise wherin they have not varied from the Authours Iudgement but onely in one opint in the 3. verse which is concerning the wounded head wherein for the clearing of the matter they have added the lines thus marked Which a litle differeth from the Authours understanding of it the which should not haue been altered if the worke had been left perfect AN INTERPRETATION OF THE 13. CHAPTER OF THE REVELATION OF IESVS CHRIST THE Eternall whose power is over all from the beginning hath put enmitie between the Serpent the Gen. 3. 15. Woman and between the seede of the Woman and the seed of the Serpent whereupon it hath come to passe in all ages that the seed of the woman hath laboured to break the serpents head that is to destroy his workes tread him under foot and triumph in victory over him He on the contrarie hath laboured as earnestly to resist God to deceive the Nations and to bring all into condemnation and destruction with himself And amongst the manifold wayes meanes which Satan hath devised and practised to manifest his malice against God and his Saincts none hath been more dangerous nor more availeable to further iniquitie and cause destruction then the Antichristian generation which under the title of the Church and Spowse of Christ and Ministers of the Gospell have corrupted the earth and brought the Nations into miserable bondage and slaverie In this 13. chapter is declared the state policy and proceeding of the Antichristian Dominion and Kingdome as the same was signified and foreshewed to Iohn the servant of Iesus Christ in a threefold forme First by a beast rising up out of the sea having 7. heads 10. hornes verses 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Secondly by a beast coming up out of the earth having two hornes like the lambe but spake like the dragon verses 11. 12. 13. 14. Thirdly by an image of the first beast which the second beast caused them that dwelt on the earth to make as in vers 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. As the Dominion of the Medes Persians and Grecians which persecuted Dan. 8. and destroyed the holy people of God the Iewes were signified and foreshewed to Daniel in a vision vnder the formes of severall beasts according to the qualities of those dominions so here the Antichristian dominion which persecuted the Churches and people of Christ was foreshewed to Iohn under the formes of such beasts as are here described whereby we may learne that as reason and judgment is not to be expected in a beast so equitie and right is not to be expected in this dominion but the contrarie Concerning the first of these beasts Iohn sayth That as I stood upon the sea sand I saw a Beast rise up out of the sea having 7. heads and 10. hornes and upon his hornes 10. Crownes and upon his heads the names of Blasphemy And the Beast which I saw was like unto a Leopard and his feet as the feet of a Beare and his mouth as the mouth of a Lyon and the Dragon gave him his power and his seate and great authoritie That by this first Beast was signified and represented some state of people and body politique I presume no reasonable man exercised in the Scriptures will deny because as it hath been sayd it is there to be seene that such States and Dominions as God hath used as rodds and scourges to chastise correct his Church and people withall have been represented by beasts States and Dominions they are of two sorts eyther Ecclesiastical or Civil but of which sort the State here ment is there hath been and is great opposition Many understand it to be the Romane Empire to which I cannot consent because the Romane Empire is ordeyned of God and is therefore a lawfull Dominion But the Dominion here represented is sayd to be from the Dragon that old Serpent the Divell who is sayd to give his power and his throne and great authoritie unto it and therefore unlawfull neither can I conceive it to be any other civil dominion for the same reason But to be short I understand it to be an Ecclesiasticall Sate or Dominion and in particular that dominion which is called The Catholike Church representative consisting of the Prelacy and Preisthood of many Nations as Patriarches Cardinalls Archbishops Bishops with divers other elected persons who being called and gathered into counsells or synodes usually called generall Counsells did usurpe and take on them the office of Christ Iesus in making Lawes and Canons erecting Courts instituting offices and officers in matters of Religion as for the goverment of the Church and for the worship of God to be of all men observed obeyed These generall counsells or as the Catholicks call it the catholike Church representative have challenged and exercised spirituall authoritie and dominion according to the text over all kinreds toungs and Nations By their lawes canons they have guided and governed them as one vniversall or Catholick Church and made them also to observe their decrees and commaundements for doctrine This they have doen both before and also since the Pope was exalted to his dignitie as all histories of the Church doe testify So that it hath been and is a great question among the Catholicks whether the authoritie of the Pope or the Catholick Church in cases of Religion be the greater And whereas it is sayd in the 12. vers that the second Beast exercised all the power of the first Beast before him therby is confirmed the trueth of this exposition For the second Beast being the Pope as hereafter is shewed hath exercised the whole power of the Catholick church or generall counsells and not of any other State or Dominion Further that this is the first beast here presented that which followeth
and being so transubstantiated to offer it vp vnto God a sacrifice propitiatorie both for quick and dead Thus the wounded head of Priesthood was cured and revived and so became the worlds wonder as now it followeth to bee declared according as Iohn here witnesseth And all the world wondred after the Beast That is The people of the Nations hauing this Priesthood set over them and commended unto them to bee of such power and dignitie as that they could make them a visible God not onely to behold with their eyes and looke vpon but also to eate and that their maker and redeemer to their everlasting salvation And being so effectually deluded as that they beleeued these lyes hereupon they wondred and followed the Beast Well might they wonder to see bread and taste bread where was no bread and to see wine and taste wine where was no wine for so were they made to beleeue and to eate flesh and drinke bloud and yet neither to see nor taste flesh nor bloud this was a wonder to wonder at and who would not follow him for a guide that had power to worke such wonders But they did not onely follow the Beast as the Iewes did Christ when they saw his miracles But they worshipped the Dragon which gaue Ver. 4. power vnto the Beast and they worshipped the Beast saying who is like vnto the Beast Who is able to make warre with him To worship is to heare and obey and by worshipping the Dragon was shewed that they wholly addicted themselues to be directed and ruled by the Beast whom the Dragon used as his instrument to worke his will and to whom he had giuen authority and power to that end thus orginally they worshiped the divell Secondly they worshiped the Beast as being the instrument of the divell and they became subiects in all things obedient unto the Beast as being of such holinesse and truth as that it could not erre nor deceiue others and of such power as what they loosed on earth was loosed in heaven and what they bound in earth was bound in heaven therfore such a power as had no match or peere so that they boasted and said of it Who is like unto the Beast As David considering the power Psal 71. 77. and wonderfull works of God saith Who is like unto the Lord So doe the Nations boast of this Beast saying Who is like unto the Beast And further they sayd of him Who is able to make warre with him As if they should say This our holy Mother hath power to excommunicate and deliver to Satan all of what estate condition and degree soever they be that will not heare her voyce beare her yoke and be ruled by her Who therefore is able to make warre with her that is make his party good against this our holy Mother Of such admiration was this Beast in the earth thus hath the world thought and spoken of her And moreover there was given unto this Beast a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies and power was given him to make 42. moneths Ver. 5. As the mouth is the meanes and instrument whereby men do declare their mindes so this Beast had a mouth to declare and utter her minde by which mouth was signified a Ministerie of false Prophets and lying Spirits namely Doctors Schoole-men Monkes Frvars and all sorts of their Preachers who teach for doctrines the commandements of the Beast and declare and utter the minde and will of the Beast as being equall to Gods Word this their Canons Lawes Books and Monuments do manifestly witnesse The effect of that which this mouth uttereth is noted to be great things and blasphemies They boast of this Beast that she is the holy Catholick Church Militant the Mother of all true beleevers the chaste Spouse of Christ the Pillar and ground of Truth that it cannot erre c. And that all which will haue God to be their Father must haue her to be their Mother Finally that out of her lap and communion there is no saluation These and many other such great things speaketh the mouth of this Beast which are indeed great things and being so spoken are great blasphemies For is it not great blasphemy to call that Holy which is most abominable To call her the Mother of all true Beleevers which is the Mother of fornications and of all abominations To call that the Pillar and ground of Truth which hath corrupted the earth with her errours and fornications and caused all Nations to drinke of the wine of the wrath thereof To say there is no saluation but in her followship whose end and iudgement is to go to destruction Beware of false Prophets and teachers of lyes for such are the mouth of this Beast And it is further to be minded that it is said of this Beast that the mouth which she had was given her for had this Beast no more to maintaine this mouth then she hath of her own by discent and heritage she could not haue so many to speake for her as she hath But Emperors and Kings Princes Nobles and other great sinners became benefactors to this Beast giving unto her Lands and Tenements rents revenewes to maintaine this mouth to utter great things and blasphemies and more then this Power was given him to act or make two and fortie moneths For the better understanding of this point let this be considered In the Antichristian Kingdome they haue a rule how to proceed in every cause but not given them of God but of their own making which they commonly call the Canon Law concerning vvhich Law here we may learne by vvhom it vvas made how long it was in making These makers usurp the name of the Church of Christ but the true Church is the Kingdom of Christ and being the Kingdom of Christ it hath him onely for lawgiver they therefore which under the title of the Church presume to make lawes are fitly worthily resembled by a Beast For what is more unreasonable then for those whose greatest dignity glory happines consisteth in hearing obeying administring of Gods Word to fall from this and Lucifer-like to exalt oppose themselues against their Maker as though they were vviser iuster then God to adde unto his Testament vvhich is sufficient to instruct us in all vvisedome to make the man of God perfect in every good work and to take from the same 2. Tim. 3. 17. Testament at their pleasure vvhich is not lawfull to do to any mans testament vvithout great offence and injustice as the Apostle sheweth Gal. 3. 15. yet this is the way wherein those great doers the authors of the Canon Law haue vvalked It is said of those Actors that Power was given them c. Where first vve may obserue that of themselues they had not this power for then it could not haue been said to be given them but given them it was it is therefore to be