many defeathe Papyrij, and in history: ne Proplues.

them in such a manner, that one period should be. Part2..' Egin exactly where another ends; on the contrary, In prophe..

U cies the per . they are always joynted or inlayd, one within ano-riods of the ther. For example, the Roman Monarchy does not rimes are

often in #begin where the Grecian ends ; on the contrary, layd in one

the Roman Monarchy in its longest duration does another. o take in the whole Grecian entirely, yea, it begun

before, the Grecian, When Alexander founded ce the Grecian Empire, the Romans had already be1 gun to make a figure in the World. And Live

in thát part of his History proves, that if Alexane der had marcht into the West, as once he designed,

he had not so easily mastered Rome, as he did the
Eat. Rome had at that time conquered all her
neighbours, fhe had subdued the Æqui , the Volsci,
the Samnites; yea, she had humbled the Gauls by
many defeats given to them. At that time lived :
the Fabij, the Papyrij, and many other Heroe'sg
whose names are so famous in history, The Gity
was at that time 420 years old, and the Prophegii
cies do reckon the destinies of Rome from its -
first beginning, for they mention its feven heads,
iesthesiven Governments under which they docon- Revel.17,
sider it o of which the first was that of their Kings. We
So that the fourıb Monarchy did precede the third, preceded

the third more then 400 years: Bur notwithstanding the more then Raman Menarchy is reckon'd the fourth, because four hun

reöre dred years, it kept its grandeur intire; nay, did much encreased it, a long time after the fall of the Grecian. Thus, ...? the plague of the Sun, 2.e, of the papal Authority, is reckon'd as the faurth, though it began before 2.91 ons the second, because it continued during the second and third plagne , and its reign was lengthned a- boye a bundred years after them both, and the last hundred years ought to be reckan'd, as the period. of the fourth plague

There

Part 2: There is another objection which will seem

stronger, but notwithstanding is more eafily an-
swer'd. According to our exposition, the augmen-
tation of the papal Authority, is accounted (to be)
a calamity upon the Antichristian State; whereas
on the contrary, it is the highest step of its exalta-
tion and perfection. I answer, that the one con-
tradicts not the other : for first, we must remem-
ber the remark already made, viz. that these placues
do not all fall upon the bead of the Anticbria
fian Kingdom: they are heavy judgements of God,
which often touch not the Pope, who is the Instru- .
ment to execute them. The plagues fall on sbém.
that worship the Beaft and his Image, and not on
the Beast himself, and on the falfe Prophet; yea,
this falfe Prophet is an Instrument in the hand of
God to inflict the plagues. Thus in the second and
third plagues, which are the Croisades, the pope is
not the fufferer; 'tis he who makes others suffer, 'tis
he who fends many millions of his subjects to be
murther'd and flain; yea, this very thing proved
great augmentation of his power. In the fameman-
ner, this fourth plague falls upon the Antichriflian
people, and therefore in the following plague the
Spirit faith, that the viol was pour d on the feat.
of the Beast, to signify that the people or fúbjects

of the Beast, should not be thechief sufferersby it. Theabute Ianswer in the second place, that the prodigious of the pa- advancement of the papal Authority, which in truth. pal Autho

y, did brought Antichriftianism unto its perfection, yet tend to its notwithstanding was one step to its ruin. If the.. ruin.

Popes had kept within the bounds, which they did in the preceding ages , if they had not medledo with secular affairs, to dispose absolutely concerning them; perhaps the See of Rome had not been thought to be Antichrift e but then it was

that

that this truth became so fensible, that every one Part 2. perceiv'd it. The abuse of the Ecclefiaftical power in the ninth age, made some perceive that Rome was the mystical Babylon. Thus Gontier Bishop of Colen', and Thetgant Arch-bishop of Triers, nam'd it in the ninth Age. But after the eleventh Age, this truth was so demonstrated, that we of this Age do not speak it more plainly and confidently. We may judge by that excellent parsage of Eberard Bishop of Saltsburg, which we See Aveh

tin. Annal. cited out of Aventin, in the tenth Chapter of the Boior lib.4 first Part of our Prejudg. After that time, there pag. 33%. never wanted those who asserted the same thing.

Thus the dismal abuse of the papal. Anthority was, and is still a sore plague to that Sec : for’tis one of the strong Arguments, by which we prove that it is Antichrist.

Men were scorcht, but they repented not to give glory to God. The Germans cryed out very much against Babylon and Antichrist, but they did not forsake them, or renounce their Idolatry ; on the contrary, they blafphemed the name of God, who had power over these plagues, for those Ages were exs ceeding wicked and corrupt.

v. 1o. And the fifth Angel pour’d out his viol upon the seat of the Beast, and his Kingdom was full of darkness, and they gnawed their tongues for pain. * v.II. And blafphemed the God of Heaven, bea cause of their pains and their fores, and repented not of their deeds.

This is the fifth plague. 'I ask not any favour for my conceptions about it; let them be examined with the utmost rigour; if they are not liked, let them be disregarded ; but for my part, Icannot abandon them, untill the times and events do

undej

Partzi undeceive me ; but those events thall never be

feen. Who can doubt, that by the seat of the Beast is meant Rome? and when was it that the viol of the wrath of God fell upon this seat, i.e. Rome? It was when it lost its Sun, the Sun which is spoken of in the preceding plague ; i.e. its Pope, the papal

Court, that like a gulf or whirle pool drew to it À prophe- all the riches of the Kingdoms of Europe. In the cy of what year 1305. Clement V. left Rome, to go and dwell féll out when the at Avignon. The City that was mistress of the Popes left. World, became desolatega very defert,and a shadow Rime to go to Avignon, of its self during those 94 years, when its Masters

kept their Seat at Avignon. The violfell upon the seat of the Beast, and his Kingdom was full of darkness. 'Tis not only said that his Seat was darkned, but his Kingdom. And indeed; till that time the Kingdom of the Beast, the Authority of the Pope, the Glory of the Holy See (as’tis call'd) had never suffer'd such a strange and terrible an eclipse. This removal of the papal Seat unto Avignon, was the cause of a Schism. At the end of 74 years Gregory XI. compelled by the complaints of the Romans, brought back the Seat to their City. But after his death, the Cardinals (who were almost all French) resolved to have a Pope of their own Nation, the Citizens of Rome fearing left a French Pope should return into Francé, forced the Colledge of Cardinals to chuse an Italian to be Pope, who calld himself Urban VÍ. The Cardinals incensed at the force which was used in the election, contrived to revolt, which they did, and chose another Pope, who call'd himself Clement VII. he held his Seat at Avignon , and his Succeffors for 40 gears, in the mean while, Urban VI. and his Suc. cessors at Rome , had one part of the Church of Rome under their obedience.

At

Schism of

uniry and intuinterrupted succoys its foolith

berhen the Kin againit it, bility from cellion,

At that time, the Sun of the Antichrifian Part 2. World was divided into two; (as it happens to The great the Sun and the Moon, when they are eclipsed) it the Wels was eclipsed and darkned. The Church of Rome was a terrid suffer'd the greatest reproach imaginable. Jesus to the name

ble plague Christ had no less then three or four Spouses at one tichrißian"

Empire. time. This is a piece of History, which confounds popery even at this day; which destroys its foolish pretences unto an uninterrupted succeffion, an uns divided unity and infallibility: from hence wedraw a conclusion againit it, which cannot be avoided. Then the Kingdom of the Beast was darkned; Prine ces despised the Popes, and made themselves their Judges (whereas formerly Popes had judged Kings.) They made them be deposed, they calPd by their own Authority the Council of Constance, where Popes were subjected to Councils, and accounted deposable, as in effect there were three who were there actually deposed. Till that time Censures and Excommunications, had been the frongest beams of the Antichristian Sun, the most efficacious me. thods of his domination. But then men began to despise them. There was nothing but excommunicating of one another; the Western Church was divided into two Obediences, that which obeyed one Pope was excommunicated by the other; and by this means all Europe lay under exe commưnication, which made it contemptible, and the people who once respected the Cenfores with incredible trembling, began to discern that these thunderbolts were vain and empty things. And this brought a confiderable darkness upon the seat of the Beast, and the papal power; for all Enrope groaning under the flavery of the Popes, every one began to think of recovering their liberty. German my refused to submit to Reservations and Expecta