strangers to it such as were a far off as such as were enemies to the Temple and would have the Temple ruined and laid wast But note though the difference between Jewes and Gentiles since the daies of the Gospel be taken away and the Gentiles as well as the Jewes may now be of the Church of God if they be built upon the Lord Jesus yet the word Gentiles is heer used to expresse those that were not of the Church nor of the Temple but would have the Temple ruined And as the Babylonians of old had the Temple for a while given unto them So now Jesus Christ gives his spirituall Temple into the hands of these Gentiles the mysticall Babylonians for a while And the holy City This title the holy City we finde in Scripture is first given unto the City of Jerusalem the City wherein the materiall Temple was scituate as appears Matth. 37. 3. where it is said at the death of our Saviour That the graves were opened and many bodies of the Saints which slept arose and came out of the graves after his resurrection and went into the holy City and appeared unto many Which City it is evident was the City of Jerusalem And indeed Jerusalem was then accounted a City more holy then others because it was the place wherein men ought in a more especiall manner to worship God And therefore saies the woman of Samaria Ye say in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship And our Saviour doth not contradict this for indeed it is out of all contradiction that Jerusalem had been the place where men ought to worship for God had placed his name there and there he would be worshiped because the Temple was there wherein was his speciall presence So that in this respect Jerusalem was once a more holy City then others But when the cause was taken away the effect ceased when Jerusalem ceased to be the place where men were enjoined to worship God and God had removed his special presence from the Temple then Jerusalem was no more holy then another place And because that Jerusalem was to cease to be the place of worship and the holy place therefore it is that our Saviour Iohn 4. 21 23. saith The hour commeth when ye shall neither in the mountain of Samaria nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father but the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth for the Father seeketh such to worship him As if he had said Jerusalem shall not be the place of worship men shall not worship God there for if men doe perform Jerusalem worship that is worship with that worship that hath respect to an outward place it shal be accounted as no worship no men shall not worship in Jerusalem but such as worship the Father must worship him with an inward Spiritual worship and in truth that is in the Son in the Spirit and in the Son and such the Father seeks to worship him such he is now a seeking out both of Jews and Gentiles and such worship is most pleasing unto him So that Jerusalem had once the title of the holy City It was once the place wherein God was worshipped but it is now ceased to be so But secondly This title The holy City is given in Scripture unto that City of which that Jerusalem of old was a figure and that is the Saints and people of God who are all citizens of the holy City And therefore Paul writing to the Saints at Ephesus saith he Ephes 2. 19. Ye are no more strangers and forreigners but fellow citizens with the Saints and of the houshold of God And that Jerusalem of old was a figure of this Holy City appears Hebr. 12. 22. and Gal. 4. 26. where the Saints are called by the name of Jerusalem only they are differenced from the material Jerusalem in that they are called The heavenly Jerusalem and Jerusalem which is above Now that this Heavenly Jerusalem which is compacted of Saints and Sanctified ones and therefore must needs be a Holy City I say that this Spirituall Jerusalem hath this title The holy City given to it doth appear Revel 21. 2. And I John saw the holy City new Jerusalem comming down from God out of Heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband Who is the spouse the bride that is adorned for her husband Jesus Christ but his Saints They then are the new and heavenly Jerusalem they are the holy City And the holy City shall they that is the Gentiles fore-spoken of tread under foot To be trouden under foot by an enemy is the highest kinde of insultation of an enemy over a people that possibly can be for what greater contempt and scorn and envy can an enemy expresse then by treading a person or a people under feet And yet this is the condition the Church was put into which is spoken of in the prophesie of Isaiah Chap. 51. 23. where it was said that those enemies that afflicted the Saints Said to their Souls bow down that we may goe over and their bodies was laid as the ground and as the streets to them that went over And this is the condition which the holy City the Temple of God his precious Saints are here also appointed unto even to be trod under foot to be depressed and greatly persecuted to be bowed down under the feet of their enemies to be made as the ground and as the street to them to goe over Querie But now before I proceed any further the Querie will be What those Gentiles are in particular to whom the Temple and the holy City was to be given and by whom they were to be trodden under foot For as Jerusalem and the Temple of old were given to the Babylonians in particular so the question is now Who the particular enemies are to whom the Temple and the holy City now are delivered For though the holy City hath many enemies yet she is not given to them all Answ I Answer Though in this Chapter there be no other description of them but only this the Gentiles yet we have a large description of them in three severall Chapters of this prophesie which descriptions as they lie I shall here incert The first is Rev. 12. 3. 4. And there appeared another wonder in Heaven and behold a great red Dragon having seaven heads and ten horns and seven Crowns upon his heads and his tail drew a third part of the Stars of Heaven and did cast them to the earth The second place in which the enemies of the Saints to whom they are given for a while are described is Rev. 13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8. verses which is as followes And I stood upon the sand of the Sea and saw a Beast rise up out of the Sea having seven heads and ten horns and upon his horns ten Crowns and upon his head the name of blasphemy And the Beast which I saw was like unto a Leopard and his
the Revelation is called the word of God But I still acknowledge That Jesus Christ is more eminently the word of God he being the originall of it for as God doth all things else by Jesus Christ so he gives out his Word by him and Jesus Christ gives testimony to it which is the next instruction arising from the point and comes now to be spoken of Thirdly Is it so That this Book of the Revelation is the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ Then this may informe us that as this so all the Scriptures doe as truly come from Jesus Christ as from God the Father for he gives testimony to what the Father saies What the Father declares he witnesses and testifieth the same and therefore he is said to be The faithfull witnesse Rev. 1. 5. And it is said of him 1 Cor. 1. 20. For all the promises of God in him are yea and in him amen So much of the first particular the subject matter of this Book I come now to the second which is The reason of the divulgation of this Book and that is contained in these words Which God gave unto Jesus Christ to shew unto his servants From whence arises this Observation Observ 2. That it is the pleasure of God to have his servants acquainted with his secrets and to know what is his minde concerning things to come This we see was the reason of the divulgation of this Book because it was the minde of God to have his servants acquainted with it a sutable place to this is that John 15. 15. Henceforth saith Jesus Christ I call you not servants for the servant knoweth no what his Lord doth but I call you friends for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you and Psalm 25. 14. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him and he will shew them of his covenant So that it is a clear truth That it is the pleasure of God to have his servants acquainted with his secrets and to know his minde concerning things to come It being so in the first place it teaches Saints to admire and magnifie the love of the Father that doth expresse himself so graciously to them as to afford them that honour to be as his friends in râ—vealing his secrets to them It is a remarkable passage Amos 3. 7. Surely the Lord God will doe nothing but he revealeth his secrets unto his Servants the Prophets Oh what a high savour is this that the Lord should engage himself that he will doe nothing but he will reveal it unto his servants As a tender Husband unbosomes himself and discovers his secrets to his beloved Wife and cannot with-hold them from her So the Lord God doth expresse his tender love unto his servants in revealing his secrets to them and he will doe nothing but he will discover it unto them What cause have Saints now to admire and extoll that rich Grace of God that is extended to them herein Secondly Doth the Lord reveal his secrets unto his servants Then ought they to be dilligent observers of what he reveals unto them Revealed things are said to belong unto us and if they belong unto us then it behoves Saints to observe them and to improve them to those ends for which they are discovered to us and if we should come short of it we should demean our selves very unworthily When a man reveals his secret unto his dear friend if his friend should slight him in it and take no notice of what he discovers to him he were a very unkinde and a very unworthy friend But how much more may we be said to carry our selves unkindly and unworthily if we should slight the love of our God in revealing his secrets to us by not being diligent in observing of them Since it pleases the Lord to reveal to his servents things to come it well becomes them to observe them exactly And so much of the second particular The reason of the divulgation of this Book I come now to the third which is the instruments of the divulgation of this Book which is contained in these words Who sent and signified it by his Angel unto his servant John So that the Angel and John were employed as instruments in that work From whence the Observation is this Observ 3. That though Jesus Christ could reveal immediately to al his servants all these things revealed in this Book yet it pleased him to chuse rather to doe it by instruments If it had pleased him he might have revealed these things to all his people in all ages since John immediately by his own Spirit but he chuses rather to doe it by the writings of John which he preserves and keeps up in a high esteem in the hearts of all his Saints as his own infallible and unquestionable truth and testimony or else he might have sent a John or some Prophet of his to have revealed these things by mouth unto his people in every age age after age but he chuses rather to doe it by revealing it to John so many hundreds of years agoe and his writings must be the instruments of revealing these things unto his people and he might have revealed those things unto John immediately himself without any other instrument but he chuses to signifie it by his Angel to his servant John So he might teach and edifie and build up his people immediately but he chuses rather to doe it by instruments by Apostles and Prophets and Evangelists and Pastors and Teachers which he hath appointed For the perfecting of the Saints for the edifying of the body of Christ till we all come in the unity of the Faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfectman c. Ephes 4. 11 12 13. So he might likewise have revealed himself immediately to all his people of old but generally it pleased him to make use either of Angels or of his servants the Prophets to be the instruments of revealing his minde unto his people then Now the reasons why it pleaseth God usually to make use of instruments to effect his designs by may be these The first is that which is the reason of all his doings his own will He makes use of instruments because it is his will to make use of instruments for his will is the reason and the rule of all his actions Secondly But a subordinate reason to this may be to shew his soveraignty over al his people therefore he sends them about his work they being all at his royall command As a Prince hath power over all that are in his dominion saying to this man go and he goeth and to another come and he commeth and to another doe this and he doth it So the great King of Kings and Lord of Lords maketh it to appear that he hath all his servants at his beck by sending of them about severall employments Thirdly Another reason why he maketh use of
where it is said That upon the raising of the Witnesses and their having a Spirit of life from God put into them and their standing upon their feet A tenth part of the City fell And it also appears That England being that tenth part of the City is fallen from mysticall Babylon and is no longer a part of it but is overcome by the Lord Jesus hee is now King of it who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords who will keep it for himselfe and will not suffer it to be subjected to the Beast any more The Saints in England are brought out of the bondage of mysticall Babylon and shall return no more to it and therefore they may be confident That none of the Romish power of any of the other nine Kingdomes neither those that are more remote or those that are nearer neighbours to it shall ever be able to prevail over England Thirdly The third ground of my affirming that the Parliament Armie and Witnesses in England shall hence-forth overcome all the enemies that shall rise up against them is evident also in Scripture for it appears also in the Explicatory part of this Discourse That the one thousand two hundred and threescore daies in which it is said in this Scripture That the holy Citie should be troden under foot and that the Witnesses should be in sack-cloth by reason of the Gentiles the spirituall Babylonians tyrannizing over them is one thousand two hundred and threescore yeares and did expire Anno Domini 1645. as appeares by computing the time of the Beast's continuance as it ought to bee computed by the Scripture account And also this one thousand two hundred and threescore yeares of the Beast's continuance appeares to be then expired because it is said That when the Witnesses had finished their prophesie in sack-cloth that then the Beast should make warre with them and overcome them Now the Beast having made warre against them and overcome them and they being raised again and set upon their feet to the feare of their enehemies in the yeare one thousand six hundred fourty and five It is by this evident that that year the one thousand two hundred and threescore yeares wherein the holy City the Saints should be troden under feet by the Beast did expire And now you Witnesses in the Parliament and Parliamentary Armie and Kingdome of England may be confident that all the combined power both of men and devils which shall conspire against you shall never be able to prevail against you for you shall be troden under foot no more the Beast shall prevail over you no more for the time of his prevailing over you is expired and he must hence-forth be troden under foot himselfe and you must henceforth prevail over him and you must reward great Babylon as she hath rewarded you the Cup which shee hath filled you must goe on to fill to her double Now in these considerations and from these grounds held forth in the Word of Truth the Scripture and that part of it in this booke of the Revelation which Revelation God gave unto his Sonne Jesus Christ to shew unto his servants Let all the Saints in England be strong and of a good courage and feare not what man can doe unto them Let not the heart of any one Saint be troubled fearing that either Poperie Prelacie or Presbytery shall recover any power in England to Lord it over Gods heritage to tyrannize over the Witnesses of Jesus Christ or to restrain them from walking in that way which appears to them to be according to the minde of God But Saints be you assured it shall never be since you have a Spirit of life from God put upon you and since England is fallen from Babylon and since the time of the Beast's tyrannical power over you is expired therefore cast off all unbeleeving thoughts and all distrustfull feares of these things and be confident That Jesus Christ will by you goe on conquering and to conquer And what though a great Armie should be a preparing to overcome you as there was in July one thousand six hundred and fourty seven Yet as then they were soon blasted so they shall be for the future For you have a Spirit of life and courage from God put into you therefore men shall not prevaile over you And you are no more a part of Babylon therefore you cannot be kept in bondage and the time of your being troden under foot is expired and therefore though all the Malignants in this Kingdome and in Scotland and all those forraign Forces that those factours of Rome that are gone from England into France or else-where can possibly procure were conjoyned together in one body and marching against you yet should not your hearts be troubled nor be affraid but be assured they should be overcome by you And what though you seem to be small in number You know that God hath formerly commanded others to stand for you and can doe so still if it be consonant to his wisdome now also but if it were not so it were an evil in you to distrust his power to whom it is all one to save by few or by many For victory commeth not from the strength of horses or the legs of men but from the Lord of hosts And therefore upon these grounds let all the Witnesses of England be confident of overcomming all that shall rise up against them by the strength of the Lord of hoasts their God And having experience that God hath done thus for them ever hitherto since one thousand six hundred and fourty five let them not be of such unworthy spirits as to be distrustfull for the future Deduction 18. The last particular that I shall hence observe is To stirre up the hearts of Saints to joyfulnesse and praises O Saints considering what God hath done for you seeing hee hath put a Spirit of life upon you and hath made you that lay dead to stand upon your feet And seeing that England is fallen from mysticall Babylon and that now your enemy the Beast shall have no more power over you he that hath troden you under feet a thousand two hundred and threescore yeares shall tread you under foot no more and that now your time of prophesying in sack-cloth is expired Put you now on in stead of your sack-cloth the garments of joy and praise and walk no longer sadly being delivered out of the bondage of spiritual Aegypt and from the oppression of your enemies let your hearts be affected herewith and your souls rejoyce in the apprehension of it For suppose that when you were under that bondage so that you were driven into corners and your enemies hunted after you to make a prey of you and having taken some of you did imprison some and fine others and banish others and pillory others if one should then have come into your meetings and told you as an infallible truth That within one moneth your enemies should be brought down
and tyrannize no longer over you but you should be set at liberty to worship the Lord Jesus in that way which he should discover to you to be most agreeable to his owne minde How would your spirits at the apprehension hereof have been filled with joy Your joy would have been such as would have been beyond expression O let your joy be now no lesse since this is actually done and especially having assurance that you shall be brought under bondage no more but let your hearts leap and sing for joy And in your joy let the high praises of God be in your mouths and let him be exalted in your spirits O be frequent in offering up the Sacrifices of praises in the secrets of your spirits unto your God that hath done such things for you I will extoll thee O Lord saith David for thou hast lifted me up and hast not made my foes to rejoyce over me This is now the case of all the Saints in England The Lord hath lifted them up and doth not suffer their foes to rejoyce over them O that with that sweet singer of Israel they might extoll the Lord their God in it and for it for Praise is comely saith that holy man For the upright Psal 33. 1. And it is a good thing saith he to give thankes unto the Lord and to sing praises unto the name of the most High and to shew forth his loving kindenesse in the morning and his faithfulnesse in the nights Psal 92. 1 2. Let Saints therefore be much in this comely good and pleasant worke of praise and improve all opportunities to exercise themselves in this worke Let them sing praises unto the most High in the morning and shew forth his loving kindenesse and faithfulnesse in the nights Though others forget God and he is not in all their thoughts and they doe not remember the great things he doth for his people yet let him be much in the thoughts of his Saints yea much in their thoughts to praise him for his benefits And let them say within themselves Blesse the LORD ô my soul and forget not all his benefits O let them not forget to praise him for what he did for them in the year 1645. but let them register in their hearts the particular acts of the great things he then did for them and let them not forget what hee did doe for them in July 1647. Let them not suffer these things to slip out of their minde but let them call to minde how frequent and importunate they were with God in praier for to obtain these mercies for themselves and for the Kingdom and having now attained them let them be as frequent and as ready to praise him Call upon me saith God in the day of trouble and I will hear thee and thou shalt glorifie me Psal 50. 15. O now you that called upon God in the day of trouble and were heard be you much in that heavenly and angelical work of glorifying God! Let all that love the Lord in England remember that it is the duty as well as the priviledge of those that have got the victory over the Beast to sing a song of praises unto him that fits upon the throne and unto the Lamb for ever and ever Revel 15. 3. And since they are the persons that have now got the victory over the Beast Let them with enlarged hearts sing that new song of praise and let not doubtfull nor distrustfull thoughts of the power and faithfulnes of God for the future in the least measure sad their spirits or keep back their praises but let the voice of joy and praise be heard in the tabernacles of the righteous in England for the right hand of the Lord is exalted the right hand of the Lord hath done valiantly for them and they shall not die but live and declare the works of the LORD Psal 118. 15 16 17. The Postscript IT being so that since my finishing of this Discourse there are some further mutations in these Kingdomes which may seem to give to some some ground to question that which I have here asserted viz. That the Witnesses are slain by the Beast and that according to this Prophesie after they had lain dead three years and an half they are risen and doe stand upon their feet If this be so may some one say then how cometh it to passe that there is such a probability that the enemies of the Saints shall again get ground of them and bring them again into a low condition For Inchiquin in Ireland and Poyer in Wales and a great party in Scotland doe seem to act afresh for the Beast and doe expresly declare against the Witnesses under the titles of Independents and Sectaries c. but if the Witnesses were indeed slain and raised then undoubtedly they should indeed go on conquering and overcoming the Beast and the Beast should no more recover power over them to put them into a distressed condition for then the daies of their prophesying in sack-cloth in sad and sable garments is expired But how can it be said to be so since the Beast seems in a probable way of recovering power over them again Now that this seeming ground of fear may be removed I shall lay down these three considerations First That though the Beast shall no more prevail over the Witnesses to bring them down yet he may and must endeavour to oppose the Witnesses and again to make war against them that they may bring him downe for now that the time of his prevalencie over the Saints is expired he must not long continue in his present station but as he shall not goe higher so he shall go lower yea he shall come down wonderfully and how shall that be but by his opposing the Saints who shall be as a burden some stone and all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in peeces And therefore the more we see that that the accomplices of the Beast do endeavour to oppose the Saints the nearer we may conclude that hee and they are to their ruine and therefore their risings and stirrings should be rather encouragements then discouragements unto the Saints But Secondly That the Witnesses are indeed slain and risen and do stand upon their feet is altogether unquestionable because as appeares by the fore-going Discourse this prophesie of the slaying of the Witnesses and of their rising c. is in every particular iota and tittle of it most exactly accomplished I will not here recapitulate any of the particulars but refer the Reader to the fore-going Discourse but shall here only desire the Reader to consider of this one in a more especiall manner viz. That the holy Ghost expresly declares that the falling of a tenth part of the City should immediately follow the Witnesses standing upon their feet and be in the same hour with it as an effect of it Now that a tenth part of the City particularly the Kingdom of England is fallen