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This great multitude which no man could number, they were the Gentiles that were brought to the faith of the gospel in the time of the apostles commission, which did last a matter of three hundred years, then were all tongues, nations, kindred, and people brought to the faith of Jesus. And these were that great multitude which John saw in the vision, which no man could number. These were those that John saw stand before the throne, and before the Lamb; these were those he saw cloathed in white robes.

Now what these white robes are I have shewed before; not but that there hath, and will be many thousands of the Gentiles, tongues, and nations, since that time, that will be saved. But these that John saw in the vision, it was chiefly those saints in the apostles commission, and it was them that he saw, in verse 10, to cry with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And in verse 11. All the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders, and the four beasts, so that all the holy angels, and the elders, and the four beasts, fell on their faces and worshiped God.

So that the angels, and the elders, and the four beasts had faces, else they could not fall on their faces to worship God. For God hath a face of his own, and those that worship him must have faces also; else they cannot worship God: also they must have a tongue to say, Blessing, and Glory, and wisdom, thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever, Amen. So that angels, elders, and those four beasts had tongues to praise the living God.

Now

Now John being in great amaze in the vision to see such innumerable multitudes which no man could number, to stand before the throne of God, all in white robes, he, in verse 14, asketh one of the elders what these be that are arrayed in white robes? And he said unto John, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Now what is meant by the white robes, and being washed in the blood of the Lamb, I have shewed before, and what is meant by the throne; so that to the end of chap. vii. it is only to signify the glory of the redeemed ones, who were and are washed in their souls here in this life in the blood of Christ. They shall serve him day and night in his temple in heaven, and stand before his throne of glory where he is. Neither shall there be any more hunger, nor thirst, neither shall the heat of persecution light any more upon them; nor the natural sun to offend offend them any more by its extreme heat; for in this kingdom of heaven where the Lamb is, in the midst of the throne, he shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of water; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. This is that glorious and happy condition that all the saints shall have, who have got those white robes of the rightcousness of faith, being washed in the blood of the Lamb. And this will be at the end of time, yet faith doth look upon this condition immediately after the end of this natural life. Therefore said by John, as if the thing was already done and accomplished to him; and to every one that is gone out

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of this world it is so, but to us that are alive, it is not yet accomplished. So much for the interpretation of chap. vii.

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CHAP. XXII.

N chap. viii. 1, it is said, And when he had opened the seventh scal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.

Now I would have the reader to understand, that these seven seals which were opened in heaven, they were those seven seals that were on the back side of the book of life, as 1 shewed before; which were the seven churches of Asia. Likewise it is Christ that doth open the seven seals; and at the opening of every seal John saw some extraordinary sight in heaven, either destruction upon the wicked, and persecution upon the saints, or blessings upon the saints. So that the opening of every seal produced something new to John in his vision. But in the opening of the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. That is, there was a little space of time between the opening of the other six seals, before this seventh seal was opened. So that John had some little space of time before the opening of the seventh seal was shewed unto him, And this is that he calls silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. It might be forty hours for ought we know; but if he saith half an hour, who shall gainsay it? But sure I am, it was a little space of time between the opening of the other six seals, before the seventh seal was opened unto his understanding

standing, for he made no stop in opening the six seals before. And as there was something did follow upon the opening of every one of the six seals, so there doth follow something upon the opening of the seventh seal. For in verse 2, John saw the seven angels which stood before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.

These seven angels which John saw in the vision, I declare they were the ministry of the seven churches of Asia. These being those seven angels which John did write unto, as I said before; for these seven angels which John did write unto in chap. ii. it was to signify those great tribulations and sufferings that the ministry and the churches themselves should undergo.

But in chap. viii. John saw these seven angels, which were the ministers of the seven churches of Asia, in another condition; he saw them now as if they were in a state of glory. And now instead of tribulation for ten days, which ten days were the ten persecutions, which did last a matter of three hundred years as aforesaid. I say, now he saw these seven angels stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets; that is, each of them had trumpets given unto them; so that every one of them might sound forth some plague, and judgment or other upon the earth, where wicked men do dwell, who persecuted the innocent to the death.

And in verse 3, it is said, Another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer, and there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it, with

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prayers of all saints, upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

This angel I declare was Moses, who was to officiate the office of offering up the prayers of all the saints, with the incense upon the golden altar, which was before the throne in the vision, as he did in his commission of the law, when he was here upon earth; so that he is called by John's Revelation, Another angel that came and stood at the altar, &c.

And in verse 4. The smoke of the incense which came with the prayers of the saints ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. And in verse 5. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth, and there were voices, and thunderings and lightnings, and an earthquake.

This is spoken with relation to those offerings, which Moses the angel of the covenant of works, did practice in the time of the law. And as he was the angel that gave forth the law, and so appointed and ordained censers, altars, and offerings to be offered up unto the Lord in that tabernacle, which was but a pattern of the true; so Moses is that angel that is said by John in his vision, to offer up the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar, which was before the throne.

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It is called a golden altar, because it is spiritual and heavenly, and the sacrifice, which is the prayers of saints, is spiritual also, in opposition to that altar and sacrifices Moses had in the time of the law. So that when the angel had offered up the prayers of all the saints and the smoak of the incense, and the

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