and on the earth beneath; the darkening of the fun and moon, and the falling of the stars from heaven? And fhall we be unconcerned about the figns of the times? It is deferving the most ferious examination, whether the revolution in France be not the beginning of the fulfilment of this prophecy. I fay beginning, for according to the prophecies, if this be the event pointed out by the resurrection of the witneffes, we have as yet feen but the dawn of what is to come, nor fhall we perhaps for fome time. Black and conflicting clouds will darken the hemifphere and obfcure our profpect; but they will spend themselves and vanifh But were we fure that this event is what we conjecture, yet no man could fay how long it would be before the spirit of life from God would, by thofe more excellent operations, and in that larger degree, which we look for, enter into the witnesses for gofpel truth; for they may be quickened with political life, and yet remain fome time with a small share of fpiritual life.

But,

Here the fourth question, which this Inquiry about the witnesses fuggefts, arifes, What are to be the confequences of their refurrection? Although a general idea may be formed of that which is to take place, yet it does not appear poffible to mark out with certainty, what relates to future events, wrapt up in figures like those which follow in this book. But we may conjecture; our part is to compare thofe events which have taken place with the predictions, and judge how far the prophecies are fulfilled, and not pry into futurity with an over-anxious curiofity,

Ver. 11. And after three days and a half the fpirit of life from God entered into them. When their enemies thought them perifhed for ever, then, as under an impulfe from † God, an unexampled zeal

* Thus it is to be with the Jews; for after their polítical refurrection as a people, the great body of them will remain wicked, and therefore experience the heavy judgments of God. Ezek. xx. 33—38.

+ The expreffions, The Spirit of life from God, and a great voice from heaven, are Jewish phrases; for when that people would represent any thing as very great, or out of the common way, they faid it was from the Lord, and from heaven, as, an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him, i. e, a very evil fpirit. The trees of the Lord are full of fap, i. e. the immenfely large cedars of Lebanon. How art thou fallen from heaven! i. c. from what a height of dignity and greats ness!

for liberty and truth, fuddenly actuated them. And they food upon their feet, and great fear fell upon them that faw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven, faying unto them, come up hither. The fupreme power, by abolishing the laws under which they fuffered political death, invited them to quit their ftate of bondage, and affume equal liberty with their fellows. And they afcended up to heaven-to a more dignified ftate. And their enemies beheld them. Their old oppreffors, and their abettors, contemplated the change which was taking place, both with astonishment and malice.

*

T

Ver. 12. And the fame hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth part of the city fell.-Inftantly, on thefe witneffes for civil and religious liberty being stirred up, as by a fupernatural impulse on their minds, to claim and vindicate their imprefcriptible rights, this monarchy, which was one of the ten horns of the papal beast, (and the tenth, as it was that which rofe laft) or one of the ten treets of the antichriftian city, was fo agitated by the conflict between the witneffes for liberty and the fupporters of despotism, that it fell, and its abominable oppreffions iffued in its utter ruin ; and that as in one hour. The progrefs of liberty, in the destruction of established tyrannies, is generally flow; and that which was ages in erecting, is ages allo in pulling down; but, the change of things here, is not according to the common courfe of events; the witneffes awake, the conflict commences, and the tyranny falls, as in one hour.

And in the earthquake were flain of men feven thoufand. Thus it is in our translation, but in the original it is, There were fain

feven

3

Although the French people are actuated by an astonishing zeal for civit and religious liberty, yet their character feems very far from agreeing with what we expect from the witneffes for gofpel truth. In the things of religion they appear to be no farther enlightened at prefent, than to fee the rights of confcience, and the abfurdities and cruel oppreffions of the papal fyftem. This is certainly an important part of truth, and what promifes to pave the way for the triumphs of pure religion; and perhaps, confidering the greatness of that darkness emerged from, it may be as much as could rationally be expected at the beginning of fuch a reformation. But of true godliness there appears but little at prefent; and it is to be feared that they, as well as most other nations, muft endure great fufferings before we fhall fee that repentance which muft precede the happy days promifed in God's word.

न

See Ep. Newton, Dr. Goodwin, Mede, and Lowman, on this paffage.

feven thoufand names of men. The violence of war used to be directed against the perfons of men, but now against their names. Thofe titles and privileges, under the fhield of which they have been wont to commit, with impunity, fo many cruel oppreffions. And the remnant gave glory to the God of heaven. After a violent conflict, for fome time, between the witneffes and their oppofers, the former prevailed, and those who had been rather spectators of the conteft, than actors in it, united themselves to their caufe; and thus, though, at least, many of them might not be actuated by these views, they glorified God in promoting his grand and good defigns in this change of things which he was now effecting, in the overthrow of antichriftian defpotifm and perfecution.-Ye can difcern the face of the fky, but can ye not difcern the figns of the times? Why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right? § Ah! the answer to this question is too obvious.-The Lord forgive them, who, to promote their own defigns, have blinded your eyes and perverted your judgment ! In doing this they haveBut, the Lord reigneth, let the earth rejoice.-Clouds and darkness are round about him; but righteoufnefs and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

Ver. 14. The fecond woe is paft, and behold the third woe cometh quickly. The two former woes refpecting the Saracens and Turks, which are denominated woes on account of the terrible calamities which they occafioned to mankind, being now paffed by, and this internal commotion, in the country where the witnesses first begin to arife, being pretty well fettled, behold a state of things follow, which introduces a scene replete with woe.

Ver. 15. Behold the third woe cometh quickly. And the feventh angel founded, and there were great voices in heaven, faying, the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of the Lord, and of his Chrift, and he fhall reign for ever and ever. We are not to understand by this, that, on the founding of the feventh trumpet, the kingdom of righteousness, peace, and univerfal happiness is inftantly to commence; but that that great fcene now opens which is to prepare the way for it. The eighteenth verfe obliges us to interpret it thus: The nations were angry,

+ By feven thousand we are not to fuppofe, that exactly this number is to periih. By a common figure of fpeech, it is a certain number for an uncertain. Or, as a perfect number, it may intend all, i. e. all the titles of men in that Country.

Matth. xvi. 3.

§ Luke xii. 57.

|| Pf. xcvii. 1, 2.

angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead that they should be judged the time when thou wilt avenge the blood which tyrants have fhed, and deftroy them which have deftroyed the earth. The nations will be enraged at this change of things, and unite to oppose it; and great woes are to follow-woes which all defcriptions of men, it is likely, will feel, that they may be brought to repentance; but which will, in their iffue, fall chiefly upon the heads of antichristian oppreffors, the upholders of the papacy. Now the angels begin to pour out the vials of the wrath of God; for, as we have already obferved, this chapter contains a complicated vifion of a long course of events, in miniature, which is afterwards illuftrated by several diftinêt visions on a larger scale.

But before we enter upon the confideration of the vials, permit me to adduce fome authorities, which, efpecially if we confider the time when they were written, more than a hundred years ago, tend very much to strengthen the argument in favor of my hypothefis refpecting the witnefies, their flaying and refurrection. The first I fhall mention is Peter Jurieu, a French Proteftant minister, whose works were publifhed in English in 1687. He fays "The tenth part of the city which here fell, will, at some future time, appear to be the kingdom of France, where a revolution will take place about the year 1785, and a feparation from the papacy follow, when the names of Monks and Nuns, of Carmelites, Auguftines, Dominicans, &c. fhall perish for ever, and all thofe vain titles and armorial bearings, which ferve for ornament and pride, fhall vanish, and brotherly love make all men equal. Not that there fhall be no diftine tions, for it is not a kingdom of anarchy, but government shall then be without pride and infolence, without tyranny and violence, and fubjects fhall obey their governors with an humble fpirit." The time required, according to this author, after the quickening of the witneffes fi. e. from the time of the revolution) to destroy antichrift, will be twenty or twenty-five years; and that it will take about seventy years more for the abolishing of fects and parties among Christians, and for the conversion of the Jews and Heathens.

And all this," he says, "cannot be brought about without confufion and tumult. The popish empire cannot fall, but it muit. caufe blood and a mighty noife.". Thus far Jurieu.

Dr. Goodwin, who wrote a hundred and fifty years fince, in his Expofition upon the Revelation, part I. chap. 7. has a great deal which

is as aftonishing as it is appofite to the prefent argument. He fays, fect. 6. "The faints and churches of France, God has made a wonder to me in all his proceedings towards them, first and last ; and there would feem fome great and fpecial honor reserved for them yet at the laft; for it is certain, that the first light of the gospel, by that first and fecond angel's preaching in chapter the fourteenth (which laid the foundation of antichrift's ruin) was out from among them, and they bore and underwent the great heat of that morn ing of perfecution, which was as great, if not greater, than any fince. And fo, as that kingdom had the first great stroke, fo now it should have the honor of having the last great stroke in the ruin of Rome."

Sect. 5th he says, on Rev. xi. "By the earthquake here is meant a great concuffion or shaking of states, politics or eccle fiaftical. The effect of this earthquake, and fall of this tenth part of the city, is killing feven thoufand of the names of men.-Now, by men of name, in fcripture, is meant men of title, office, and dignity. -As in the cafe of Corah's confpiracy, so here a civil punishment falls upon these. For having killed these witnesses, themselves are to be killed (haply) by being bereft of their names and titles, which are to be rooted out for ever, and condemned to perpetual forgetfulness."

The fingular agreement of present events with what these authors foretold from the prophecies, for many years ago, is a circumftance which merits the serious attention of all wife and confiderate men; for it certainly add's great weight to the conjecture, that what has taken place in France, is the beginning of the final downfal of the papal ufurpations and tyrannies. And if it should be fo, woe be to them who attempt to uphold what God has willed to fall! In the ordinary wars which nations have waged, they have, perhaps, loft one or two hundred thousand lives, and flaughtered as many of their enemies; countries have been laid waste, and taxes incurred, to the oppreffion of the induftrious; but in other refpects they may have fat down much as they were; but, if the present contest be what there is reason to suspect it, not merely a war of man against man, but of God against antichriftian ufurpations and oppreffions, the iffue to those who oppofe his designs, must be different. Though, as was the cafe with the Affyrians, and with