930; _Syria_ and _Egypt_ to _Achsjid_, A.C. 935, and now being in great distress, the Caliph of _Bagdad_, A.C. 936, surrendred all the rest of his temporal power to _Mahomet_ the son of _Rajici_, King of _Wasit_ in _Chaldea_, and made him Emperor of Emperors. But _Mahomet_ within two years lost _Bagdad_ to the _Turks_; and thenceforward _Bagdad_ was sometimes in the hands of the _Turks_, and sometimes in the hands of the _Saracens_, till _Togrul-beig_, called also _Togra_, _Dogrissa_, _Tangrolipix_, and _Sadoc_, conquered _Chorasan_ and _Persia_; and A.C. 1055, added _Bagdad_ to his Empire, making it the seat thereof. His successors _Olub-Arflan_ and _Melechschah_, conquered the regions upon _Euphrates_; and these conquests, after the death of _Melechschah_, brake into the kingdoms of _Armenia_, _Mesopotamia_, _Syria_, and _Cappadocia_. The whole time that the Caliphs of the _Saracens_ reigned with a temporal dominion at _Damascus_ and _Bagdad_ together, was 300 years, viz. from the year 637 to the year 936 inclusive. Now locusts live but five months; and therefore, for the decorum of the type, these locusts are said to _hurt men five months and five months_, as if they had lived about five months at _Damascus_, and again about five months at _Bagdad_; in all ten months, or 300 prophetic days, which are years.
The sixth trumpet sounded to the wars, which _Daniel_"s King of the _North_ made against the King above-mentioned, _who did according to his will_. In these wars the King of the _North_, according to _Daniel_, conquered the Empire of the _Greeks_, and also _Judea_, _Egypt_, _Lybia_, and _Ethiopia_: and by these conquests the Empire of the _Turks_ was set up, as may be known by the extent thereof. These wars commenced A.C. 1258, when the four kingdoms of the _Turks_ seated upon _Euphrates_, that of _Armenia major_ seated at _Miyapharekin_, _Megarkin_ or _Martyropolis_, that of _Mesopotamia_ seated at _Mosul_, that of all _Syria_ seated at _Aleppo_, and that of _Cappadocia_ seated at _Iconium_, were invaded by the _Tartars_ under _Hulacu_, and driven into the western parts of _Asia minor_, where they made war upon the _Greeks_, and began to erect the present Empire of the _Turks_. Upon the sounding of the sixth trumpet, [9] _John heard a voice from the four horns of the golden Altar which is before G.o.d, saying to the sixth Angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four Angels which are bound at the great river _Euphrates_. And the four Angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour and a day, and a month and a year, for to slay the third part of men_. By the four horns of the golden Altar, is signified the situation of the head cities of the said four kingdoms, _Miyapharekin_, _Mosul_, _Aleppo_, and _Iconium_, which were in a quadrangle. They slew the third part of men, when they conquered the _Greek_ Empire, and took _Constantinople_, A.C. 1453. and they began to be prepared for this purpose, when _Olub-Arslan_ began to conquer the nations upon _Euphrates_, A.C. 1063. The interval is called an hour and a day, and a month and a year, or 391 prophetic days, which are years. In the first thirty years, _Olub-Arslan_ and _Melechschah_ conquered the nations upon _Euphrates_, and reigned over the whole. _Melechschah_ died A.C. 1092, and was succeeded by a little child; and then this kingdom broke into the four kingdoms above-mentioned.
Notes to Chap. III.
[1] Apoc. ii. 4, &c.
[2] Apoc. ii. 9, 10.
[3] Ver. 14.
[4] Numb. xxv. 1, 2, 18, & xxi. 16.
[5] Apoc. iii. 10, 12.
[6] Apoc. iii. 16, 17.
[7] Apoc. viii. 7, &c.
[8] Apoc. xvi. 5, 6.
[9] Apoc. ix. 13, &c.
_THE END._
_Advertis.e.m.e.nt._
_The last pages of these Observations having been differently drawn up by the Author in another copy of his Work; they are here inserted as they follow in that copy, after the 22d line of the 261st page foregoing._
_And none was found worthy to open the book_ till the Lamb of G.o.d appeared; the great High-Priest represented by a lamb slain at the foot of the Altar in the morning-sacrifice. _And he came, and took the book out of the hand of him that sat upon the throne._ For the High-Priest, in the feast of the seventh month, went into the most holy place, and took the book of the law out of the right side of the Ark, to read it to the people: and in order to read it well, he studied it seven days, that is, upon the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth days, being attended by some of the priests to hear him perform. These seven days are alluded to, by the Lamb"s opening the seven seals successively.
Upon the tenth day of the month, a young bullock was offered for a sin-offering for the High-Priest, and a goat for a sin-offering for the people: and lots were cast upon two goats to determine which of them should be G.o.d"s lot for the sin-offering; and the other goat was called _Azazel_, the scape-goat. The High-Priest in his linen garments, took a censer full of burning coals of fire from the Altar, his hand being full of sweet incense beaten small; and went into the most holy place within the veil, and put the incense upon the fire, and sprinkled the blood of the bullock with his finger upon the mercy-seat and before the mercy-seat seven times; and then he killed the goat which fell to G.o.d"s lot, for a sin-offering for the people, and brought his blood within the veil, and sprinkled it also seven times upon the mercy-seat and before the mercy-seat. Then he went out to the Altar, and sprinkled it also seven times with the blood of the bullock, and as often with the blood of the goat. After this _he laid both his hands upon the head of the live goat; and confessed over him all the iniquities of the children of _Israel_, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat; and sent him away into the wilderness by the hands of a fit man: and the goat bore upon him all their iniquities into a land not inhabited_, Levit. chap. iv. & chap. xvi.
While the High-Priest was doing these things in the most holy place and at the Altar, the people continued at their devotion quietly and in silence.
Then the High-Priest went into the holy place, put off his linen garments, and put on other garments; then came out, and sent the bullock and the goat of the sin-offering to be burnt without the camp, with fire taken in a censer from the Altar: and as the people returned home from the Temple, they said to one another, _G.o.d seal you to a good new year_.
In allusion to all this, _when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the s.p.a.ce of half an hour. And an Angel stood at the Altar having a golden Censer, and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all Saints, upon the golden Altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense with the prayers of the Saints ascended up before G.o.d out of the Angel"s hand.
And the Angel took the Censer, and filled it with fire of the Altar, and cast it to the earth_, suppose without the camp, for sacrificing the goat which fell to G.o.d"s lot. For the High-Priest being _Christ_ himself, the bullock is omitted. At this sacrifice _there were voices and thundrings_, of the musick of the Temple, _and lightnings_ of the sacred fire, _and an earthquake_: and synchronal to these things was the sealing of _the 144000 out of all the twelve tribes of the children of _Israel_ with the seal of G.o.d in their foreheads_, while the rest of the twelve tribes received the mark of the Beast, and the Woman fled from the Temple into the wilderness to her place upon this Beast. For this sealing and marking was represented by casting lots upon the two goats, sacrificing G.o.d"s lot on mount _Sion_, and sending the scape-goat into the wilderness loaden with the sins of the people.
Upon the fifteenth day of the month, and the six following days, there were very great sacrifices. And in allusion to the sounding of trumpets, and singing with thundring voices, and pouring out drink-offerings at those sacrifices, _seven trumpets are sounded_, and _seven thunders utter their voices_, and _seven vials of wrath are poured out_. Wherefore the sounding of the _seven trumpets_, the voices of the _seven thunders_, and the pouring out of the _seven vials of wrath_, are synchronal, and relate to one and the same division of the time of the seventh seal following the silence, into seven successive parts. The seven days of this feast were called the feast of Tabernacles; and during these seven days the children of _Israel_ dwelt in booths, and rejoiced with palm-branches in their hands. To this alludes _the mult.i.tude with palms in their hands_, which appeared after the sealing of the 144000, and _came out of the great tribulation_ with triumph at the battle of the great day, to which the seventh trumpet sounds. The visions therefore of the 144000, and of the palm-bearing mult.i.tude, extend to the sounding of the seventh trumpet, and therefore are synchronal to the times of the seventh seal.
When the 144000 _are sealed out of all the twelve tribes of _Israel__, and the rest receive _the mark of the Beast_, and thereby the first temple is destroyed; _John_ is bidden to _measure the temple and altar_, that is, their courts, _and them that worship therein_, that is, the 144000 standing on mount _Sion_ and on the sea of gla.s.s: _but the court that is without the temple_, that is, the peoples court, to _leave out and measure it not, because it is given to the_ Gentiles, those who receive the mark of the Beast; _and the holy city they shall tread under foot forty and two months_, that is, all the time that the Beast acts under the woman _Babylon_: and _the two witnesses prophesy 1260 days_, that is, all the same time, _clothed in sackcloth. These have power_, like _Elijah, to shut heaven that it rain not_, at the sounding of the first trumpet; and, like _Moses, to turn the waters into blood_ at the sounding of the second; _and to smite the earth with all plagues_, those of the trumpets, _as often as they will_. These prophesy at the building of the second temple, like _Haggai_ and _Zechary_. These are _the two Olive-trees_, or Churches, which _supplied the lamps with oil_, _Zech._ iv. These are _the two candlesticks_, or Churches, _standing before the G.o.d of the earth_. Five of the seven Churches of _Asia_, those in prosperity, are found fault with, and exhorted to repent, and threatned to be _removed out of their places_, or _spewed out of _Christ"s_ mouth_, or _punished with the sword of _Christ"s_ mouth, except they repent_: the other two, the Churches of _Smyrna_ and _Philadelphia_, which were under persecution, remain in a state of persecution, to illuminate the second temple. When the primitive Church catholick, represented by _the woman in heaven_, apostatized, and became divided into two corrupt Churches, represented by the _wh.o.r.e of _Babylon__ and the _two-horned Beast_, the 144000 _who were sealed out of all the twelve tribes_, became the _two Witnesses_, in opposition to those two false Churches: and the name of _two Witnesses_ once imposed, remains to the true Church of G.o.d in all times and places to the end of the Prophecy.
In the interpretation of this Prophecy, _the woman in heaven clothed with the sun_, before she flies into the wilderness, represents the primitive Church catholick, illuminated with the _seven lamps_ in the _seven golden candlesticks_, which are the _seven Churches_ of _Asia_. The Dragon signifies the same Empire with _Daniel_"s He-goat in the reign of his last horn, that is, the whole _Roman_ Empire, until it became divided into the _Greek_ and _Latin_ Empires; and all the time of that division it signifies the _Greek_ Empire alone: and the Beast is _Daniel_"s fourth Beast, that is, the Empire of the _Latins_. Before the division of the _Roman_ Empire into the _Greek_ and _Latin_ Empires, the Beast is included in the body of the Dragon; and from the time of that division, the Beast is the _Latin_ Empire only. Hence the Dragon and Beast have the same heads and horns; but the heads are crowned upon the Dragon, and the horns upon the Beast. The horns are ten kingdoms, into which the Beast becomes divided presently after his separation from the Dragon, as hath been described above. The heads are seven successive dynasties, or parts, into which the _Roman_ Empire becomes divided by the opening of the seven seals. Before the woman fled into the wilderness, _she being with child_ of a Christian Empire, _cried travelling_, viz. in the ten years persecution of _Dioclesian_, _and pained to be delivered: and the Dragon_, the heathen _Roman_ Empire, _stood before her, to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who_ at length _was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her child was caught up unto G.o.d, and to his throne_ in the Temple, by the victory of _Constantine_ the great over _Maxentius_: _and the woman fled_ from the Temple _into the wilderness_ of _Arabia_ to _Babylon_, _where she hath a place_ of riches and honour and dominion, upon the back of the Beast, _prepared of G.o.d, that they should feed her there 1260 days. And there was war in heaven_, between the heathens under _Maximinus_ and the new Christian Empire; _and the great Dragon was cast out, that old serpent, which deceiveth the whole world_, the spirit of heathen idolatry; _he was cast out_ of the throne _into the earth. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death_.
_And when the Dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child_, stirring up a new persecution against her in the reign of _Licinius_. _And to the woman_, by the building of _Constantinople_ and equalling it to _Rome_, _were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might flee into the wilderness into her place_ upon the back of her Beast, _where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. And the serpent_, upon the death of _Constantine_ the great, _cast out of his mouth water as a flood_, viz.
the _Western_ Empire under _Constantine junior_ and _Constans_, _after the woman: that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth_, the nations of _Asia_ now under _Constantinople_, _helped the woman_; and by conquering the _Western_ Empire, now under _Magnentius_, _swallowed up the flood which the Dragon cast out of his mouth. And the Dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of G.o.d, and have the testimony of _Jesus Christ_, which_ in that war _were sealed out of all the twelve tribes of _Israel__, and remained upon mount _Sion_ with the Lamb, being in number 144000, and having their father"s name written in their foreheads.
When the earth had swallowed up the flood, and the Dragon was gone to make war with the remnant of the woman"s seed, _John stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a Beast rise out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns.
And the Beast was like unto a Leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a Bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a Lion._ _John_ here names _Daniel_"s four Beasts in order, putting his Beast in the room of _Daniel_"s fourth Beast, to shew that they are the same. _And the Dragon gave_ this Beast _his power and his seat and great authority_, by relinquishing the _Western_ Empire to him. _And one of his heads_, the sixth, was _as it were wounded to death_, viz. by the sword of the earth, which swallowed up the waters cast out of the mouth of the Dragon; _and his deadly wound was healed_, by a new division of the Empire between _Valentinian_ and _Valens_, _An._ 364. _John_ saw the Beast rise out of the sea, at the division thereof between _Gratian_ and _Theodosius_, _An._ 379. The Dragon gave the Beast his power, and his seat and great authority, at the death of _Theodosius_, when _Theodosius_ gave the _Western_ Empire to his son _Honorius_. After which the two Empires were no more united: but the _Western_ Empire became presently divided into ten kingdoms, as above; and these kingdoms at length united in religion under the woman, and reign with her _forty and two months_.
_And I beheld_, saith _John_, _another Beast coming up out of the earth._ When the woman fled from the Dragon into the kingdom of the Beast, and became his Church, this other Beast rose up out of the earth, to represent the Church of the Dragon. For _he had two horns like the Lamb_, such as were the bishop.r.i.c.ks of _Alexandria_ and _Antioch_: _and he spake as the Dragon_ in matters of religion: _and he causeth the earth_, or nations of the Dragon"s kingdom, _to worship the first Beast, whose deadly wound was healed_, that is, to be of his religion. _And he doth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men_; that is, he excommunicateth those who differ from him in point of religion: for in p.r.o.nouncing their excommunications, they used to swing down a lighted torch from above. _And he said to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the Beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live_; that is, that they should call a Council of men of the religion of this Beast. _And he had power to give life unto the image of the Beast, that the image of the Beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the Beast should be killed_, viz.
mystically, by dissolving their Churches. _And he causeth all both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right band or in their foreheads, and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the Beast, or the number of his name_; that is, the mark [Cross], or the name [Greek: LATEINOS], or the number thereof [Greek: chxs], 666. All others were excommunicated.
When the seven Angels had poured out the seven vials of wrath, and _John_ had described them all in the present time, he is called up from the time of the seventh vial to the time of the sixth seal, to take a view of the woman and her Beast, who were to reign in the times of the seventh seal. In respect of the latter part of time of the sixth seal, then considered as present, the Angel tells _John_: _The Beast that thou sawest, was and is not, and shall ascend out of the abyss, and go into perdition_; that is, he was in the reign of _Constans_ and _Magnentius_, until _Constantius_ conquered _Magnentius_, and re-united the _Western_ Empire to the _Eastern_. He is not during the reunion, and he shall ascend out of the abyss or sea at a following division of the Empire. The Angel tells him further: _Here is the mind which hath wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth_; _Rome_ being built upon seven hills, and thence called the seven-hilled city. _Also there are seven Kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short s.p.a.ce: and the Beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition_.
Five are fallen, the times of the five first seals being past; and one is, the time of the sixth seal being considered as present; and another is not yet come, and when he cometh, which will be at the opening of the seventh seal, he must continue a short s.p.a.ce: and the Beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth, by means of the division of the _Roman_ Empire into two collateral Empires; and is of the seven, being one half of the seventh, and shall go into perdition. The words, _five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come_, are usually referred by interpreters to the time of _John_ the Apostle, when the Prophecy was given: but it is to be considered, that in this Prophecy many things are spoken of as present, which were not present when the Prophecy was given, but which would be present with respect to some future time, considered as present in the visions. Thus where it is said upon pouring out the seventh vial of wrath, that _great _Babylon_ came in remembrance before G.o.d, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath_; this relates not to the time of _John_ the Apostle, but to the time of pouring out the seventh vial of wrath. So where it is said, _Babylon is fallen, is fallen_; and _thrust in thy sickle and reap, for the time is come for thee to reap_; and _the time of the dead is come, that they should be judged_; and again, _I saw the dead small and great stand before G.o.d_: these sayings relate not to the days of _John_ the Apostle, but to the latter times considered as present in the visions. In like manner the words, _five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come_, and _the Beast that was and is not, he is the eighth_, are not to be referred to the age of _John_ the Apostle, but relate to the time when the Beast was to be wounded to death with a sword, and shew that this wound was to be given him in his sixth head: and without this reference we are not told in what head the Beast was wounded. _And the ten horns which thou sawest, are ten Kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, but receive power as Kings one hour with the Beast. These have one mind_, being all of the wh.o.r.e"s religion, _and shall give their power and strength unto the Beast. These shall make war with the Lamb_, at the sounding of the seventh trumpet; _and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of Lords and King of Kings; and they that are with him are called and chosen and faithful. And he saith unto me, the waters which thou sawest where the wh.o.r.e sitteth, are peoples and mult.i.tudes and nations and tongues_, composing her Beast. _And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the Beast, these shall hate the wh.o.r.e, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire_, at the end of the 1260 days. _For G.o.d hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree and give their kingdom unto the Beast, until the words of G.o.d shall be fulfilled. And the woman which thou sawest, is that great city which reigneth over the Kings of the earth_, or the great city of the _Latins_, which reigneth over the ten Kings till the end of those days.
_FINIS_.