prevail

ligion.

therefore probable, that every thing will bend Part 2. under the yoke of their Will when they shall refolve The authority of the to break with Rome: and it feems as if the Pro- Kings of vidence of God was preparing the way unto this France shall thing, by the Clergies Declaration, confirmed by over the that of the King, viz. that Kings depend on none in ruling Reany thing which concerns Temporals; and that 'tis never lawful to deny obedience to them upon a pretext of Religion. For if this be once fixed, when ever it fhall please the Kings of France to forfake the Communion of Rome, (by this Principle of the prefent Bishops) it cannot be allowed that the People fhould rebell againft them. I look on that which is happened in England, as another preparation unto this Event: A King of a Religion contrary to that of the State reigns peaceably; the reafon is that Providence will accuftome the fubjects to pay fubjection to Princes who are enemies of the Ruling Religion.

2

And the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. This is the total converfion and reformation of the tenth part of the City, i.e. of the Kingdom of France, that fhall quickly follow, after the Kings of France fhall have broken with the Bishop of Rome.

13.

V. 14. The fecond Wo is past, and behold she third Wo cometh quickly; namely, the fecond of the three Woes, which had been denounced after the found of the fourth Trumpet. And I heard an Angel Chap. 8. flying through the midst of Heaven, crying with a loud voyce. Wo, wo, wo to the inhabitants of the earth, by reafon of the other voyces of the Trumpet, which are yet to found. The firft of these three woes was the Grashoppers, who came up out of Saracens the bottomless pit with their Head Apollyon, and denoted in Hebrew Abaddon.Thefe Grafhoppers are plain by Gras

ly

hoppers,

Part 2. ly the Saracens, Arabians with their Head Mahomet. The fecond Wo, is the domination of the Turks, who paffed from the other fide of Euphrates at the found of the fixth Trumpet. And the third Wo is the fall of the Antichristan Empire.

Thefe three great events deferve to be diftinguifht from all others; for they have changed, or Thall change the whole face of the world.

And the feventh Angel founded, &c. this which follows, concerns the Kingdom or reign of Iefus Chrift and the Church, and confequently, muft be referved to another place,

CHAP, XIV.

Obfervations upon the 17, 18, 19, Chapters of the Revelation, concerning the fall of Antichrift's Kingdom. A brief Methodizing of the events, which the Holy Ghost had displaced in the vifions.

Ction of Antichriffs He feventeenth Chapter contains fomething

The

Kingdom.

V. 16. And the ten horns which thou faweft upon the beast, thefe shall hate the whore, and make her defolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

V.17. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree and give their Kingdom unto the beaft untill the words of God shall be fulfilled.

There's nothing in this paffage, that hath not been opened, or is obfcure. "Tis clear, that thefe Kings, who through ignorance, or weakness, fuf

fer'd

er'd their power to be ufurped by the Empire of Part 2. the papacy, fhall take it again; they shall eat her flesh, i.e.fhall enrich themselves with her benefices & revenues; and burn her with fire, i.e. fhall abolish the the memory of this Romish Empire, fo that nothing but afhes fhall remain of it.

The 18th Chapter is a long defcription of the ruin of the Antichriftian and Babylonian Empire. I have no need to enter into this Chap. because I find nothing in it of that which I principally feek, which is, thofe certain characters which can inform us of the time of this fall; namely, whether it be nigh at hand, or afar off. There is nothing there concerning it, except that which is general. As to this Chapter, I will fay only. Firft, We must remember the remarque, which hath been often made by us, that Babylon here does not fignify strictly the City of Rome, as moft have imagined. 'Tis the whole Babylonian Empire, as appears from these words, Come out of Babylon my people. I do not think, that any great number of Gods people, hath come out of the City of Rome; hitherto we have not feen it. My fecond remarque is, we muft not (as is ufually done) over much prefs the myftical fenfe of divers merchandifes, which are reckon'd up, and were fold in that City, I do not believe, that there is any ve muft othermystery in this thing than that this Babylonian much feelt Empire being fet forth under the Emblem of a great myfteries City, it was neceffary to reprefent it as a City of ticular great commerce; for that is infeperable from great merchanCities. Not but that these merchandises, and the Babylon. many inftruments of Luxury and pleasures, which are faid to have been in this City, do not very fitly fignify, and according to the defign of the Holy Ghoft, both the Simony and debaucheries of this Corrupted Church in the general. But I believe not

that

not over

in the par

difes of

Part 2. that 'tis neceffary to enquire particularly what is meant (for example) by the filk, the precious ftones, the fine linnen, &c.

bylou must

literally.

The burn- My Third Obfervation upon this 18th Chapter ing of Ba- is, we muft not interpret literally the Metaphors of not be un- burning, fire, blood, and laughter, which the Holy derftood Ghoft fets before us. Certainly, thefe are not the Methods which God makes ufe of to establish his Kingdom. I think indeed, as I have already faid, that God will fuffer Rome to be fackt, as he fuffer'd ferufalem to be: I further believe, that this great change in Religion, will not be made without blood thed, as it hapned in the laft age. But feeing the City, in this Chapter, and generally in the Revelation, takes in the whole Babylonian Empire, we must not imagine that all this great circuit of Countries fhall be laid defolate.

The 19th Chapter is the laft in which mention is made of the deftruction of Antichrifts Kingdom, The ten first Verses of this Chapter must not be difjoyned from the fore-going Chapter, for they are only the continuation of it; The folemn rejoycings of the Elect, after the ruin of Babylon, and the confummation of the Chriftian Church, here below upon Earth.

The eleven laft Verfes of the Chapter, contain a wonderful vifion, wherein fefus Chrift appears fitting upon a white Horfe,having the titles of faithfull, of true, of the word of God, of King of Kings, of Lord of Lords. He gathers his armies together, to fight against the Beast, and against the falfe Prophet. An Angel ftands in the Sun, and calls to all the fowls of Heaven, to come and eat the flesh of thofe men that must be flain in that great battel, which was to be fought. On the other fide,the Beast and

nd the falfe Prophet gather their forces; the battèl Part 2. s fought; the Beast and Kings are overcome; he is aken with his falfe Prophet; both are caft into the take offire and brimstone, together with all thofe who had worshipt the Image of the Beast. All this is magnificent, and the Figures are lofty. But there is nothing new in this; and in my judgement, 'tis nothing but a recapitulation of the fore-going vi fions, concerning the ruin of Antichrists reign, The vision of the eleventh Chapter is an Epitome of the vifions that follow, and this is properly an Epitome of the vifions which went before, therefore I do not judge it neceffary to infift upon it, Efpecially, feeing nothing is found of that which we feek for; namely, the figns and marks by which it may be known when and at what time the reign of Antichrist must end. 'Tis in the 11, 14, and above all in the 16th. Chapter, that we find the Characters of this end, and of the time in which it must come to país. Therefore it was neceffary only, that we should infift upon thofe Chap

ters.

ter and

be unders

I will only make the obfervation upon this The flaugh. Chapter, which I made upon the fore-going. That murthers we must not understand literally the expreffions of in the 19th Chapter, war and deftroying, that are ufed here: for exam- muft not ple, that Iefus Chrift must tread the wine-press of the stood lite wrath of God, that he must give to be eaten by the sally. fowls, the flesh of Kings, of Captains, of mighty men, of Horfes, of free, and bond, &c. These are Metaphors borrowed from war, and must be underftood futably to the nature of this fpiritual war, which Jefus Christ must make against Idolatry, Superftition, Herefies, and Tyranny: his quarrel is with thefe, and not with men. Befides the reasons alledged, we have here a convincing one, that

the