Sodom and Egypt Chap. 11.8 That is in Antichrists Kingdoms and Dominions The Woman which thou sawest is that great City which reigneth over the Kings of the Earth Chap. 17.18 She is called Sodom for her filthiness and wickedness and Egypt for her cruelty and oppression Chap. 17.4 The true Servants of God and Members of Jesus Christ that bear witnesse for him against the evils of the Beast and against the evils of the world are here called two witnesses 1. Because of the fewnesse of them 2. Because two is a number sufficient to bear a witness John 8.17 3. Because Antichrists Beasts are called two Chap. 13. 4. They are called witnesses for Six Reasons First Because their work is to bear witness for Christ and his truth against the world the Flesh and the Devill A true believer is to bear a threefold testimony to and for Christ a word-testimony to and for Christ a word-testimony a life-testimony and a blood testimony Heb. 12. John 5.33 Secondly Christs Members are called witnesses because they stand up for Christ to maintaine his name his honour his cause his truth his worship his Glory in the world Dan. 3.16 17 18 and Chap. 6. And ye killed the Prince of life whom God hath raised from the dead whereof we are witnesses Act. 3.15 Be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom ye crucified whom God raised from the dead even by him doth this man stand here before you whole Acts 4.10 11 12. Thirdly The Lambs followers are called witnesses because they keep the testimony of Jesus Christ Rev. 12.17 Chap. 6.9 a testimony to all the Offices works and Kingdom of Jesus Christ as King of Saints and King of Nations Fourthly Gods chosen and precious ones are called witnesses because they doe appear boldly and openly for his truth they own it they love it they love it they publish it they hold it fast and suffer for it who through the teachings of the Spirit in the word and by the power of the same spirit are found in the practise of Christs Appointments they cannot deny the truth which is a Testimony to it Acts 24.14 Fifthly The true VVorshippers of God are called witnesses because they do bear witness against the beast and all the whole mistery of iniquity against the whore of Babylon who hath committed fornication with the Kings of the earth and made her self drunk with the blood of the Saints Rev. 17.6 Christs faithful witnesses bear an eminent Testimony against all her abominations and filthiness and wickedness against the Pope his Government his clergy his Doctrine his worship his Religion and all his abominable proceedings Rev. 19.7 Sixthly Christs redeemed ones are called witnesses because in dying they bear witnesse for him for to dye for the truth is a living standing testimony to it He who for Christs sake loves not his life unto the death dyes a most glorious witnesse of Christ Chap. 12.11 And they loved not their lives unto the death And the beast that came out of the bottomlesse pit made war against him and overcame them and killed them Chap. 11.7.9 Antichrist riseth in a double beast In his civil power and his Ecclesiastical power First In his civil power so he makes up one beast with the ten Kings Chap. 17.12 And this is that Beast that rise up out of the Sea which hath seven heads and ten horns and upon his horns ten Crowns and upon his heads the name of blasphemy And the beast which I saw was like unto a Leaper and his feet was as the feet of a Bear and his mouth as the mouth of a Lyon and the Dragon gave him his Power and his Seat and great Authority Chap. 13.1 2. Secondly In his Ecclesiasticall power so he makes up another beast with the Clergy and this is that beast that rise up out of the Earth He hath two horns like a Lamb and he speaks like a Dragon vers 11. Now these two monstrous beasts Antichrists Magistrates and Ministers slay the faithful witnesses of Jesus Christ and rejoyce over their dead bodies and make merry and send gifts one to another Chap. 11.10 Oh how do graceless faithless Christless men rejoyce at the afflictions and calamities of Gods people saying where is now your God and Christ your King Psal 42.10 As touching the nature of the VVitnesses death we are not to conceive thereof as though the same were to be a corporeall killing or slaying but a civill killing or slaying not so much their bodies as their testimonies deprive and strip them of their Liberty Worship Ordinances Religion and the free exercise of their Gifts suffering not a Servant of Jesus Christs to bear an open testimony against the abominations of the beast nor against their National wickedness but make Laws against them and lye in wait for them stoping their mouths and imprisoning their bodies hating and hunting them up and down afflicting and tormenting them and taking possession of their possessions Killing and slaying them all the day long and account them as sheep for the slaughter Rom. 8.33 This is to be broken in the place of Dragons and covered with the shadow of death Psal 44.19 This is to be killed all the day long And upon this account the witnesses are said to be slain And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entred into them and they stood upon their feet and great fear fell upon them that saw them Chap. 11.11 A spirit of boldnesse and courage zeale and undauntednesse and resolution to appear for Christ and his cause against Antichrist and the whole brood Therefore rejoyce all ye Saints and be glad all ye of upright heart though the witnesses be dead they will not alwayes be dead but rise again 3. After the slaying time the true Church is with the Lamb on Mount Sion Chap. 14.1 And I looked and lo a Lamb stood on Mount Sion and with him an hundred forty and four thousand having his fathers name written in their foreheads which notes a fixed state Those which trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Sion which cannot be moved Psal 12.5 before the slaying time the Church is very low but under the slaying time lower but after the slaying time the Church is very high she is rejoycing shining and triumphing on Mount Sion And they sung as it were a new song before the throne and before the four beasts and the Elders and no man could learn that song but the hundred forty and four thousand which were redeemed from the Earth The true Church having gotten the glorious presence of the Lamb in the midst of her and having gotten some victory over the beast they do rejoyce mightily And I heard a voice of Harpers harping with their Harps but this is not till after the resurrection of the witnesses are risen the Church is exceeding joyful This chapter out of which my Text
Truth obey the Truth and hold fast the Truth Now Beloved Let me beseech you for Gods sake and for Christs sake and for your Soules sake keep your selves from false Teachers from false Doctrine from false worship from false Opinions If you will be tasting and siping at Babylons cup you must resolve to receive more or lesse of Babylons plagues XVIII Eighteenthly Be one with every one that is one with Christ Endeavouring to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of peace There is one body and one Spirit even as ye are called in one hope of your Calling One Lord one Faith one Baptisme one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all Ephes 4.3 4 5 6. Every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him By this we know that we love the Children of God when we love God and keep his Commandments 1 Joh. 5.1 2. He that loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen 1 John 4.26 Oh Consider what a dishonour it is to the Gospel that those that professe themselves Sonnes of the same God Members of the same Christ Temples of the same Spirit Heirs of the same Glory should be at a jarring one with another It is strange and unnaturall that Lillies should prove thorns to one another that those who are Saints in profession should be Devils in practise to one another that Gods Diamonds should cut one another For Wolves to devour the Lambs is no wonder but for one Lamb to devour another is a wonder and monstrous Oh that Christians instead of loving one another should hate one another Oh how unlike are we to that God whom we professe to be our God! He is full of love full of goodness and full of mercy and patience Oh but Christians cannot beare and forbear one with another Oh do not wicked men warm themselves at the sparks of our divisions and say it is as we would have it Oh Beloved hath not God made his wrath to smoke against us for the divisions and heart-burnings that have been amongst us Oh that you would lay this to heart and throw away all discord and divisions and heart burnings and labour for a onenesse in love and affection with every one that is one with Christ Oh labour for a healing spirit You cannot love God if you do not love the people of God If any man saith he loveth God and hateth his brother he is a lyer Let brotherly love continue Heb. 13.1 They that feared the Lord spake often one to another Mal. 3.16 Christs Doves should flock together There be many that cannot love a man unlesse he be of their Opinion or a Member of their Church though he be a Member of Christ Every man hath a good opinion of his own opinion But alas Beloved it is not this opinion or that opinion this way or that way will bring a man to Heaven without faith in Christ and he that hath faith in Christ hath a right to all the Ordinances of Christ and Promises of Christ and Priviledges of Christ therefore let me beseech you to love every man that is a godly man let him be of what way and form he will And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul Acts 4.38 XIX Nineteenthly Love Christ with a Love stronger then life who loved us with a love stronger than death Therefore doth my father love me because I lay down my life that I might take it again no man taketh it from me but I lay it down my self I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again John 10.17 18. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation That Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners 1 Tim. 1.15 Christs love to us was stronger then death he dyed for love he laid down his life to save our lives he loves us as the Father loves him John 15.9 As the Father hath loved me so have I loved you continue ye in my love Oh the Scripture hath exceeding high expressions of his affection to us Now Beloved if he died for us and suffered for us and set his heart upon us to love us and delight in us how ought we then to love him again Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind Math. 22.37 38. Whom have I in Heaven but thee and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee Psal 73.25 Vnto you therefore which believe he is precious 1 Pet. 2.7 Oh let our hearts be full of love and affections to Christ Love will breed courage and cast out fear slavish fear before God and carnal fear before men God can keep us from the torments of men but men cannot keep us from the torments of God Whilest we stand by God God hath promised to stand by us Therefore be not afraid of any Authority that stands in opposition to the Authority of Christ None can promise us better than Christ can none can threaten us worse than Christ can Can any man promise us with better then Heaven Can any man threaten us with worse than Hell Heaven is promised to those that love him and Hell is to be the portion of those that hate him Oh my dear Brethren Let us Love Christ with a love stronger then death so did Paul and the rest of the Apostles Who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall tribulation or distresse or persecution or famine or nakednesse or perill or sword Rom. 8.35 Love is stronger than Death many waters cannot quench it neither can the floods drown it Cant. â— 6 7. XX. Twentiethly Be every day as serious in your preparation for death as if it were your last day All the dayes of my appointed time will I wait till my change come Job 14.14 This night thy soule shall be required of thee Luke 12.20 For what is your life it is even a vapour that appeareth a little time and then vanisheth away Jam. 4.14 Behold thou hast made my days as an hand-breadth and mine age is as nothing before thee Verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity Psal 39.5 As no Saint knows when that time and hour shall be so no wicked man knows when it shall not be To live without fear of death is to dye living To labour not to dye is labour in vain Men are afraid to dye in such and such sins but not afraid to live in such and such sins Oh the Hell of horrors and terrors that attend those soules that have their greatest work to do when they come to dye therefore as you would be happy in death and everlastingly blessed after death prepare and fit your selves for death Did Christ dye for us that we might live with him and shall not we desire to dye and be
wicked men and Divels nor the better of wickednesse because wicked men love it and follow it and say It is in vain to serve God and what profit is it that we have kept his Ordinances and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of Hosts Mal. 3.14 But there is a time coming when ungodly men would be glad of some of that holinesse that now they despise but they shall be as far then from obtaining it as they are now from desiring it Let us therfore love holiness and hate wickednesse For without holiness no man shal see the Lord Heb. 12.14 Holinesse is the only way to happiness We must not dresse our selves for another world by the Looking-glasse of this world Thou shalt not follow a multititude to do evil Exod. 23.2 For many walk of whom I have told you often and now tell you even weeping that they are the enemies of the Grosse of Christ whose end is destruction whose god is their belly and whose glory is in their shame who mind earthly things Phil. 3.18.19 The Children of God must be harmlesse in their actings and blamelesse in their walkings XVI Sixteenthly Prize the Word of God by the worth of it that you may never come to prize the Word of God by the want of it How sweet are thy words unto my tast Yea sweeter than honey to my mouth Psal 119 10. It is sweeter than the honey and the honey-comb Psal 19.10 Oh how do I Love thy Law Psal 119.97 I love thy Commandements above Gold yea above fine Gold The Law of thy mouth is better to me than thousands of Gold and Silver Verse 72. As new born babes desire the sincere milk of the Word that they may grow thereby 1 Pet. 1.2 Let the Word of God dwell richly in you not only with you but in you Col. 3.16 Oh let us with Job esteeme the Word of God above our necessary food Job 23.12 and with David above our Gold and Silver The delight of a Saint in Gods Word over-tops all his creature delights Wicked men can delight in the Creatures of God but not in the Word of God they can delight in the gifts of God but not in the God of gifts Oh let us love the word and prize the word it is the Sun of the Christian world As the Sun is the light of the naturall world and without it the world is but a Chaos and a dungeon full of darkness so is the Word of God the light of the Spiritual world without which a Christian is an eternal night Take away the Scriptures and there will be no certain rule to direct men what is to be done or what is to be believed All false wayes are here discovered all sins are here forbidden all holiness is here commanded Here you may see every action and motion of your Lives as a step to Life or a step to Death as a step Heaven-ward or a step Hell-ward Oh therefore prize the word and obey the Word First It is a plain Word Secondly It is a perfect Word Thirdly It is a sure Word Fourthly It is an uniform Word Fifthly It is a powerful Word it is the savour of life unto life unto them that believe Oh Beloved let us read the Word and abide in the Word If ye continue in my Word then are ye my Disciples Joh. 8.31 The lesse now you hear the more doe you read that little Book of the Revelations and Daniel especially XVII Seventeenthly have a care of the Whore of Babylons golden Cup and sweet Wine And the Woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour and decked with Gold and precious stones and pearls having a golden Cup in her hand sull of abominations and filthinesse of her fornication Rev. 17.4 And the Serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the Woman that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood Rev. 12.15 Let me beseech you to have a care of this and keep your selves from this Be like the Virgin Spouse of Christ which followeth him wheresoever he goeth My Dear Friends keep your selves from four things First From false Teachers The Devil hath his Ministers as well as Christ Beware of false Prophets which come to you in Sheeps cloathing but inwardly they are ravening Wolves Math. 7.15 Yea they are greedy Doggs which can never have enough and they are Shepherds that cannot understand they all look to their own way every own for his gain from his quarter Isa 56.11 Oh false Teachers do not feed the Flock but fleece the Flock they do not convert but pervert they do not season but poison they do not edifie to salvation but edifie to damnation instead of curing souls they kill souls so they have but the peoples goods they care not though the Devil have their soules they are neither rightly called nor rightly qualified nor rightly ordained Their course is evil and therefore is not right Jer. 13.10 They are like Doggs and Wolves combining together to macerate the Flock of Christ Oh therefore keep your selves from Babylons Merchants that make Merchandize of the souls of men Rev. 18.13 Oh the sins of the Teachers are the Teachers of sins Secondly From false Doctrine But there were false Prophets also among the people even as there shall be false Teachers among you who privily shall bring in damrable heresies even denying the Lord that bought them and bring upon themselves swift destruction 2 Pet. 2.1 Be not carried away with divers and strange Doctrines for it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace not with meats which have not profited them that have been occupied therein Hebrews 13.9 I beseech you also in the Lord my Dear Brethren that you doe not carnally comply with nor superstitiously conform to the Inventions of men But stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free Gal. 5.1 Thirdly From false Worship If any man Worship the Beast and his Image and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand the same shall drink of the Wine of the wrath of God which is poured out without mixture into the Cup of his indignation and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy Angels and in the presence of the Lamb Rev. 14.9 10. Ye Worship ye know not what God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in Spirit and in Iruth Joh. 4.23 24. As there be some in the World that worship false Gods so there be others that Worship the true God with false Worship They that worship the Beast worship the Devil Rev. 13. Oh meddle not with false worship with vain worship and will-worship worship God as he teacheth us to worship him Our work is to depend on Christs work our outward working depends on Gods inward working Fourthly From false Opinions from Errour and Sedition Let your hearts be upright your judgements sound and your lives holy Love the