nounced against Antichrift and his agents, that as they deal with others, they fhall be dealt with themfelves. Then it is added, Here is the patience and the faith of the Saints. Here is the motive of the patience and the faith of the Saints, or the fervants of God in this world. By faith they rely on the promifes of God for the reward of their patience, and leave him to vindicate as he may judge fit, their cause with respect to their perfecutors. Such is the previous inftruction Chrift fends to his fervants, before the dreadful day of perfecution. But as the converted Jews are deftined to ftand foremost in the battle, and to be the first victims of Antichrift's fury, and must therefore set forth a glorious example of fortitude to the other Chriftians, they are provided with an extraordinary fhare of grace, and a peculiar degree of courage and conftancy for their terrible conflict. For thus we hear this fingular favour announced by St. John:

Chap. vii. v. 1. After these things, I faw four Angels ftanding on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that they should not blow*, upon the earth, nor upon the fea, nor on any tree.

V. 2. And I faw another Angel afcending from the rifing of the fun, having the fign of the living God; and he cried with a loud voice to the four Angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the fea,

V. 3. Saying hurt not the earth, the fea, nor the trees, till we fign the fervants of our God in their foreheads.

Here are four angels, ftanding on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, which they are ready to let go, and which are to caufe defolation over the whole globe. By the four winds of the earth are meant the perfecutions, which are going to rife in every part of the earth, and which will form the general perfecution

Tt 2

**In the Greek, tha a wind fhould not blow, c.

of

of Antichrift, as the four winds join to compofe one general wind. But this perfecution is withheld for a while by a Divine command, which is carried by an Angel afcending from the Eaft, as coming from Him who afcended above the Heaven of Heavens to the Eaft, Pfalm lxvii. 34. The wind of perfecution will hurt the earth and the fea, that is, will fall upon the Chriftian people wherever they are, and the trees, or their paftors and clergy. But this alarming difafter is fufpended, till the Angel has marked the fervants of God in their foreheads with the fign of the living God, that is, with the fign of the Crofs of Chrift, who having died upon it rofe again to life. But who thofe fervants of God are, we are told in the next verfe.

V. 4. And I heard the number of them that were figned; an hundred forty four thousand were figned, of every tribe of the children of Ifrael. No fooner almoft have the Jews tafted the comfort of having recovered the favour of their God by embracing Christianity, but behold! 144,000 of them are marked out and destined to be immolated to Chrift by martyrdom, and are therefore figned on the forehead by the minifters of the Church with the fign of the Crofs, or confirmed in faith and fortitude, as the facrament of confirmation is always conferred with making the fign of the Crofs on the forehead. Thus then this great number of converted Jews are prepared to grace Chriftianity by their triumph over torments and death. But as we learn from St. Paul, that all Ifrael will be faved, Rom, xi. 26. it is plain that, confidering the vast body of the Jewish people, the number of martyrs here mentioned muft fall much fhort of the number of converted Jews. The reft therefore will remain to reflect honour on the Chriftian religion by their zeal in promoting it and their exemplary lives. This felect number of 144,000 champions,

or

or twelve times twelve thoufand, is made up by culling twelve thousand out of each tribe, as follows:

V. 5. Of the tribe of Juda were twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Gad, twelve thousand figned.

V. 6. Of the tribe of Afer, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Nepthalia, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Manasses, twelve thousand figned.

V. 7. Of the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Iffachar, twelve thoufand figned.

V.8. Of the tribe of Zabulon, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Jofeph, twelve thousand figned. Of the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand figned.

CHA P. XI.

The Continuation of the Hiftory of the fixth Age. THE Almighty having prepared his faithful fervants for the terrible confli&t he proposes to fubject them to, he announces the great perfe cution and terrible war, and exhibits the states of the Church at the time they begin, in the following manner:

Chap. xi. v. I. And there was given me, fays St. John, a reed like unto a rod: and it was faid to me*: arife, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that adore therein.

V.

2. But the court, which is without the temple, caft out, and measure it not because it is given unto the Gentiles t, and the holy city they shall tread under foot two and forty months. The churches confe crated to the true service of God, at this time,

* In the Greek, and the Angel food, faying.

fo

In the Greek, the punctuation ftands thus; and measure it not, because it is given unto the Gentiles, and the holy city, &c.

fo far diminished in number or fo little, filled, on. account of the general apoftafy and degeneracy of mankind, that all thefe churches are here reprefented to St. John as reduced into one fingle church or temple. The faithful minifters of God are also become fo few, as to be reprefented as officiating at one altar in this Church; and all the good and zealous Chriftians make up fo fmall a number, with refpect to the whole bulk of mankind, that they are fhewn to St. John as collected in this one temple, paying their adoration, to God. There is therefore given to St. John a reed, or a fmall flender measuring rod, as fufficient for the few inconfiderable measures he has to take, and he is, told to measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that adore therein, that the fmall fize of both temple and altar may appear, and the little compass, in which are comprised those who are there adoring God.

But for the court, which is without the temple, that is, the great multitude of those who for want of the spirit of religion, enter not the temple, but stand in the court without the temple, St. John is told not to measure them, but to caft them out, or to banish them from the neighbourhood of the temple, because it, the court, is given to the Gentiles, because God delivers this wicked multitude to be punished and destroyed by the Gentiles, that is, by Antichrift and his cruel and barbarous troops. The execution of this divine judgment commences very foon. For now Antichrift, mad with fury, declares war against the whole world, refolves to be fole mafter, to spare neither those that refift him, nor those who have given him any provocation, or against whom he has conceived an ill-will. Actuated by fatan, he feels no more sense of humanity, and breathes only blood and deftruction. In this fituation he is in fome measure

meafure pictured by Nabuchodonofor, that haughty king of Affyria, who in the pride of his heart proclaimed that his thoughts were to bring all the earth under his empire, Judith ii. 3. and gave orders to the General of his armies: Go out against all the kingdoms of the weft, and against them efpecially that defpifed my commandment. Thy eye shall not spare any kingdom, and the ftrong cities thou shalt bring under my yoke. Ibid. v. 5, 6. This war of Antichrift, the mont bloody of all wars fince the exiftence of the world, as in it are killed the third part of men, Apoc. ix. 15. will last three years and a half, as obferved before from St. John: and power was given him to ·do * two and forty months, xiii. 5.

But furthermore in our prefent text it is added: And the holy city they fhall tread under foot two and· forty months. No fooner has the haughty monarch, Antichrift, declared war against mankind, but with the fame breath he proclaims a general perfecution, which he himself intends to carry on, and difpatches his orders to have the fame executed in every part of the earth. For it is now allowed to him and his bloody agents to tread under foot the holy city, that is, the whole body of the holy Chriftians, for forty two months, or three years and a half. This fpace of time Chrift has fet apart, to purify his Church, and to try his fervants, and for that purpose allows them to fall under the power of this merciless tyrant: And it was given unto him, says St. John, to make war with the Saints, and to overcome them, Apoc. xiii. 7. We are admonished of the fame by the Prophet Daniel: I beheld, fays he, and lo that horn, Antichrift, made war against the Saints, and prevailed over them, vii. 21. And again : And he fball fpeak words against the most High, and fball crush the Saints of the most High.... And they fhall be delivered into his hand until a time, and times, and half a time, ibid. v. 25. The period of the

In the Greek, to make war.

perfecution