have been confeft to be found in the Papacy. believe nevertheless, that you will find that Truth better cleared, and made more manifeft, than hitherto it hath been. This Controverfie about Antichrift hath languifht for an hundred years; it hath been unhappily abandon'd, on a politick account, and in obedience to Popish Princes. 'Tis a wicked Complaifance, for which we are punisht, and which hath coft us very dear: for if we had perpetually expofed this Great and important Truth before the Eyes of the Proteftants, that the Papacy is Antichriftianifm; they would not have fallen into that degeneracy and apoftacy, which we fee at present. How could they have refolved withinthemselves to fubmit to Antichrift,and return to his Party! But 'tis fo long fince they heard it fo called, that they have forgot it. They thought it was only a tranfport of zeal in the firt Reformers, from which we were now come off. There was fome thing in that neglect and forgetfullness, which feems to difcover the finger of God: He would that this horrible catastrophe should happen, and to that end permitted that this important Truth should be neglected, and thofe controverfies only which were but acceffory fhould be minded, and that this should be pafl't over, that the Papacy is the Antichriftian Empire: they who for want of giving heed to that Truth are fallen, ought now to think of it, and tremble to confider, that they have voluntarily plung❜d themselves again into that Ba bylon out of which God had fo wonderfully delivered them. In my opinion, this is fo fundamen tala Truth, that without it a man cannot be a true Chriftian: to confound the Kingdom of 7. Chrift with that of Antichrift is an unfufferable Fault: in fome Ages for certain God hath permitted that

Ignorance; but we are not now in those times: we must now declare for one party, and stand our ground. There is no Communion between Chrift and Belial, between the Prince of light, and that Destroyer, who is truly an Angel of Darkness; that Controverfy was fo much stifled and laid afleep, that our Adverfaries believed it dead, and thought that we had renounc't that Principle, and the ground of all our Reformation; for I cannot believe the Reformation to have been on a good foundation, but on this account. Some Proteftants (the reproach and fhame not only of the Reformation but of the Christian name) have contributed to efface these Ideas from the minds of men, by turning to another sense what the H. Ghoft faith of the Antichristian Empire, making fuch Commentaries of the fcripture, as overthrow the defign and meaning of it, forging Hiftories at pleasure, by that means to find the accomplishment of S. Iohn's Prophecies in the firft ages of the Church. At prefent therfore we must revive that Truth, which we had almoft fuffered to dye. This is the Time when we must indeavour to open the Eyes of the Princes and People of the Earth; for behold now is the Time when they ought to eat the flesh of the Beast, and burn it with fire, ftrip naked the whore, and tear off her ornaments, and make a full end of Babylon. Within a little while these great Things must come to pass; 'tis high time then to awaken men in order to it. This is what I attempt in the first part of this work, wherein I discover, after another manner than hath been done hitherto, the true Characters of that Antichriftian Empire. In which I must acknowledg my great obligations to my forementioned Author, fofeph Mede; for no man hath taken pains upon that fubject with fomuch fuccefsas he,

You

You will fee the admirable Type of Antichrift in the famous Antiochus, carried farther than ever it hath been, and the explication of the three years and half, or 1260 days, much clearer than ever hitherto it hath been made. But I muft here advertise, that to comprehend the full force of my Arguments, to prove the Papacy to be the Anti chriftian Empire, to the reading of this work, you muft add that of my Lawful Prejudices against Pope ry; for in that book you will find the proof of all the Characters of the Antichriftian Empire inlarged. I mean not only thofe Chapters, wherein the explication of fome paffages in the Prophecies concerning Antichrift, I apply them to the Pope and his Empire, I fpeak principally of thofe Chapters where I defcribe the Corruption, Covetousness, Pride, Idolatry, Paganifm, the fabulous and lying Spirit of Popery, all characters of Antichriftianifm, as in this work is fhown. I defire all those who have any care of their falvation to Read those two pieces, and I dare be confident that all those who have not a feared Conscience will be fenfibly affected with what they fhall there find, and conceive a juft Horror for that Religion, which hath held the Truth under fo long and cruel a Captivity. That I may render my Lawfull Prejudices the more ufefull to my defign, which is to make the Papacy appear to be the true Antichriftianifm, I am refolved, according to the advice that hath been given me, to abridge it; but instead of making a pure and fimple abridgment, I fhall, in contracting it, change the Prejudices into fo many Characters of Antichriftianifm: and show, that there is no one of thofe Prejudices but is a character of the Antichriftian Empire. If any thing retards this defign, it will be my defire to fee whether Mr. A

Arhand will make good the promise of F. Simon, and reply to that Book. So that when I Abridge that Book, I may at the fame time refute the Sophifms Mr. Arnand is preparing. This first part regards the Time paft.

The fecond part contains the explication of Things Future, or rather of those which we believe are yet to come, there are many things therin which will certainly be furprizing to you, as they were to me; and if you read with any favourable opinion, what I fay upon the 11th, 14th, and 16th. Chapters of the Apocalyps, I cannot believe you will have much different Thoughts from mine. I will not call them Conjectures, let them be fuch to others, I confent; but as to me, there is fomething more; for I think I have difcovered which are the two parts of the Fall of Babylon, wherof one is called the Harvest, the other the Vintage. I believe that I have found the feven viols of the 16th. Chap. to be already poured out, which were supposed to be yet to come, which to me is an argument, that the Reign of Antichrift is near its end. I know not whether others have difcovered any thing of this before me; I pretend not to have perufed all the Modern Commentators on the Apocalyps; on the Contrary I have read very few of them, having experienc't, that the diverfity of Ideas that remain in the mind, ferve but to obfcure the Truth, and cause one to lofe it. Some I confulted before I made this fecond Edition; but I found nothing capable to make me alter my fentiments, or that could furnish me with any new light. Dr. Moore is one of the latest Commentators on the Apocalypfe, and one of the most esteemed. I found, that he follows Mede in every thing, fave in the explication of the Harvest and the Vintage, of the 14th. Chap.

the

the feven viols of the 16 and the death of the two Witnesses of the 11th Chap. that is, that he had followed him in thofe places, wherin he had fucceeded well: 'tis in effect impoffible to differ from him in those places. But in those places where Mr. Mede was not Happy, Dr. Moore is no more fo than he. If any other hath discovered these Truths, he will oblige me that fhall let me know it. Ifhall be rejoyc't to understand, that any other hath made the fame difcoveries: this will confirm me in the perfwafion which I have, that I have found that which I inquired after.

After having proved in this fecond part, that the end of the Reign of Antichrift is at hand, I treat of that which is to follow after that Fall, viz. the famous Reign of Chrift upon Earth, which hath been fo often contradicted fince the Beginning of the Christian Church I have inlarged a little upont, as being one of the most confolatory Truths which is in the whole Scripture, I cannot but aferibe to a fecret providence of God,that Blindness, which moft Chriftians have been under hitherto concerning it, for certain reafons, God would not that they fhould fee that Reign of Chrift in the Prophecies, tho it be there as clearly defcribed as the Coming of the Meffiah, which yet the Jews will not fee to be there, you will therin find one Chapter, for which the Jews are indebted to me; for I re-establish them'in their Rights, and in their Hopes, farther than Chriftians have as yet done. Among the proofs of the Reign of a thousand years, you will find an explication of the Type of the work of Creation, which will not be unpleasant to those who love Mysteries. I have nothing to say in vindication of this book. It muft run the common ifque, it must be left to the Judgment of the pub

A 2

lick