The Angel relates what shall happen after the Flood, and foretells the Coming of Chrift.

S a Traveller upon a Journey takes fome Reft at Noon, though he be intent on Expedition; fo here the Arch-Angel MICHAEL made a Paufe, betwixt the World deftroy'd and the World restored, to fee whether or no ADAM might not have fome Questions to interpofe; then going forward in his Narration, he began again to Ipeak.

THUS, ADAM, thou haft feen the Beginning and End of one World, and MAN proceeding as from a fecond Stock: There yet remains a great deal more for thee to fee; but I perceive that thy mortal Sight begins to fail thee; nor can it be otherwife, for divine Objects muft needs impair and weary the human Senfes: So that what is to come henceforward, I fhall only relate to thee; do thou therefore be attentive, and give proper Audience to what I fhall fay!

THIS new Race of MEN, before they arrive to large Numbers, and while the Dread of past Judgment remains fresh in their Minds, fhall lead their Lives in the Fear of GoD, with fome Regard to Juftice and what is right; and they fhall multiply apace, manuring and fowing the Earth, and reaping plentiful Crops of Corn, Wine, and Oil; and often from the Herds or Flocks making Sacrifices of Bullocks, Lambs, or Kids, with large Offerings of Wine pour'd out, fhall spend their Days in Joy and facred Feftival,. unblam'd; and dwell for a long Time in Peace, by Families and Tribes, under paternal Rule; 'till one

call'd

call'd NIMROD (a) fhall arife, of proud and ambitious Heart; who, not content with a fair and equal Share, will affume an undeferv'd Dominion over the reft of his Brethren, and quite difpoffefs Concord and the Law of Nature from the Earth; hunting wild Beafts, and not only Beafts, but MEN alfo; fubduing with War, and laying hoftile Snares for fuch as refufe Subjection to his tyrannical Ufurpation: For that Reafon he fhall be call'd a mighty Hunter before the LORD; meaning either in despite of Heaven, or elfe claiming from Heaven the fecond Sovereignty; and though he fhall accufe others of Rebellion, yet from Rebellion he fhall derive his Name, for fuch is the Meaning of the Word NIMROD. He, with a

Crew, join'd to him by like Ambition, or Design of tyrannizing under him, marching from EDEN towards the Weft, fhall find the Plains, in which a black bituminous Slime boils out from under the Ground, as it were the Mouth of Hell. Of that Stuff, and Bricks, they contrive to build a City, and a Tower whofe Top may reach to Heaven; thinking thereby to get themfelves a Name; left, being difpers'd far away in foreign Lands, the Memory of them fhould be loft; not regarding, whether the Fame they acquired was good or evil. But GOD, who oftentimes defcends unfeen to vifit MEN, and paffes among their Habitations to take Notice of their Actions, foon beholding

(a) Nimrod or Belus; Noah's Great-Grandfon, the Father of Ninus, who firft ufurp'd over the Patriarchs, and first took up Arms against the wild Beafts, which were then very numerous, powerful, and mischievous; then he made himself the Head of his Companions; then the King over all the reft, about A. M. 1720. Nimrod; Heb. i. e. A Rebel: For he rebell'd against

God, in building the Tower of Babel; and againft Men, in ufurping Monarchical Government, and overturning the Patri, archal. He is Belus among the Heathens, the Founder of the Affyrian Monarchy, the first Inftance of Idolatry; and was the Bel or Baal (Heb. i. e. Lord) of the Alyrians, Babylonians, and all the World.

beholding them, comes down to fee their City, long before the Tower reach'd up to Heaven; and, in Derifion, confounded their native Language, the HEBREW, (b) and inftead thereof, gave them only Power to make a jangling Noife of Words, not understood by one another. Forthwith a loud and confus'd Talking rifes among the Builders, each calls to the other, and no Body understands; 'till hoarfe and all in a Rage, they storm, thinking themfelves mock'd by each other: The Angels in Heaven looking down, held them in great Derifion, to fee the strange Hubbub, and hear the Din. Thus this ridiculous Building, which they foolishly thought might poffibly reach Heaven, was left; and the Work call'd BA BEL; which being interpreted fignifies Confufion.

WHERETO ADA M, difpleas'd at what he faw his Offfpring do, exclaim'd thus: O execrable Son! to afpire fo above his Brethren; affuming to himself a ufurp'd Authority, not given him from GOD: He only gave us an abfolute Dominion over Beast, Fish, and Fowl; that Right we hold by his Donation: But he never made MAN Lord over MEN; that Title he hath referv'd to himself only; for GOD left human Race free from human Dominion. But, this Tyrant and Ufurper ftops not his ambitious Ufurpation upon MAN only; he alfo intended his new Tower, to be a Siege against the GoD of Heaven. Wretched and mistaken MAN! What Food will he convey up thither, to sustain himself and his rafh Army? Where the thin Air above the Clouds will confume his grofs En

(b) Hebrew, the natural Speech of Mankind, from the Creation for 1757 Years; feeing all Languages derive many Words from that, but it from none of them; the Names of Men and Things plainly confirm

trails;

it, and the Learned agree in it. After the Confufion of Tongues it remain'd in Heber's Family, and fo defcended to the Jews, among whom it continued pure to the Babyloni Captivity; in all about 3400 Years.

trails; and if he were provided with Bread, he must die, it being too fine for him to breath in?

To whom MICHAEL reply'd thus: Thou haft a juft Abhorrence of that Son, who brought fuch great Trouble upon the quiet State of MAN, affecting to fubdue reasonable Liberty; yet learn at the fame Time, that fince true Liberty is loft, by reafon of original Sin, (and Liberty always is pair'd with right Reason, and divided from it can have no Being) Reason in MAN being obfcur'd, or not obey'd, immediately inordinate Defires and fudden Paffions catch the Government from it, and reduce the whole MA N to Servitude, who 'till then was free. Therefore, fince he permits unworthy Powers to reign over Freereafon within himself; GoD, in juft Judgment, fubjects it from without to violent Lords, who oftentimes as undefervedly enthrall his outward Freedom. So that there must be such a Thing as Tyranny; though that cannot ferve for any Excufe to him who is a Tyrant: Yet, fometimes Nations will decline fo low from Virtue, (which too is Reafon) that no Wrongs, but Juftice and fome fatal Curfe, deprives them of their outward Liberty, their inward being loft by themfelves; witnefs HAM, (c) the irreverent Son of NOAH, who built the Ark; who, for the Shame done to his Father, had this heavy Curfe pronounc'd on him and his vicious Race; "A SERVANT OF "SERVANTS SHALL HE BE UNTO HIS BRETHREN." Thus will this latter World, as the former did, go on from bad to worse; 'till at laft GoD, wearied with their Iniquities, will draw his Prefence from among them, and turn his Holinefs away from them; from thenceforth refolv'd, to leave them to their own pollu

(e) Ham, the youngest Son of Noah, who was curfed for his Difrefpect and Contempt of his Father, Gen. 9. 24, 25. The

ted

old Carthaginians, Grecians, and Romans, and all the Nations of Europe, made Slaves of the Africans.

ted Ways, and to felect one peculiar Nation from all the reft to be ador'd by; a Nation to fpring from one faithful MAN; that is to fay, from ABRAHAM, (d) yet refiding on this Side the River EuPHRATES, and bred up to worship Idols. ----Canft thou believe it poffible? O that MEN fhould be grown fo ftupid and fenfelefs, while yet the Patriarch NOAH liv'd, who efcap'd the Flood, as to forfake the living GOD, and fall down to worship their own Works in Wood and Stone, and call them Gods! yet the most high GOD vouchfafes to call him by Vision from his Father's House, and from his Kindred and falfe Gods, into a Land which he will fhew him; and from him will raife a mighty Nation, and upon him fhower his Benediction fo, that in his Seed all Nations shall be bless'd: He strait obey's GoD's Call and Promises; firmly believing in them, though he did not know to what Land he was to go. I fee him, (but I know thou canst not) with what Faith he leaves his Gods, all his Friends, and native Country, which is UR (e) of CHALDA; (f) now paffing the River

(d) Abraham. God called him from among the idolatrous Chaldeans, about the Year of the World 2083.

(e) Ur; Heb. i. e. Light; because the Chaldeans worthipped the Sun or Fire. A City of Chaldea, where Abraham was born, about 624 Miles from Jerufalem Eastward; now Orche and Horrea. This was the first Sort of Idolatry, call'd Sebaifm, Gr. from the Heb. i. e. Worshipping the Hofs of Heaven; for Damonolatria, Gr. i. c. WorShipping Demons, Heroes, Beafts, Images, &c. came in long afterwards.

(f) Chaldea: Gr. from the

Heb. i. e. Like Demons, Deftroyers, Robbers: In Scripture it is called Chased, and the People Chafdin, from Kefed, the Son of Nahor, which the Greeks turned into Chaldea. Also Shinar, Heb. i. e. Scattered; because the Builders of that Tower were scattered over the whole Earth, Gen. 10. 10. 11. 28. and now Chaldar and Curaiftan. Chaldea is a large Country of Afia, bordering upon Affyria, Mefopotamia between the Euphrates and Tigris, whereof Babylon was the Metropolis for many Ages; therefore that Coun◄ try was called Babylonia.