his laws, bound the Jewish nation (called the dragon) to his own government. After he had bound him, he cast him into the bottomless pit, and set a seal upon him; that was, he sealed him to his own laws and bound him with the same; so he should deceive the nations no more by his pretended piety. By this we are to understand the dragon was bound by the Roman chain of laws, and deprived of all their former power-so they could not take life without the voice of the Roman authority.

This continued for a season, then the dragon was to be let loose.

At this conclusion, the dragon Israel rose up in rebellion against the Roman authority, and mustered a very great army, determining to recover their former kingdom; which terminated in their being cast into the lake of fire and brimstone in Jerusalem, which was like one vast sea of fire, in which that unhappy

people, called dragon, devil, Satan, death, and hell, burned, which John calls the second death.'

But there were many who escaped that fiery doom. Those who were sealed in their foreheads by the angel who came down from heaven for that purpose, were saved therefrom. By those who were sealed, are intended such as believed the words of Christ, and fled to the mountains in accordance with his dictations, when they saw the signs he pointed out; they were the inhabitants of the New Jerusalem, who sung a 'new song which none others could learn,' because they were not changed into the image of our Redeemer, as the elect were; for they did not believe Moses and the prophets, and had to suffer the condemation of the Mount Sinai law.

Isaiah give us a fair representation of this lake of fire and brimstone.

For it

is the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of recompense for the controversy of Sion.' 'And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone.' These materials, when on fire, composed the lake of fire and brinstone, into which the beast, and the false prophet, and death, and hell, and the devil, were cast. This is represented by John, Rev. xx: 7. 'And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,'-this was when he rose in rebellion against the Roman laws, (the chain which he was bound with, ver. 8,) and shall go out to deceive the nations that are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, (John compares them to the old Assyrian army, Gog and Magog) to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sands of the sea.' multitude was composed of the twelve

This

tribes of the children of Israel; Isaiah speaking of Israel, says their number was as the sands upon the sea shore ;— this company was brought up against the Roman powers, and rebelled against the Roman laws, which laws they had been bound by.

'And they went upon the breadths of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; and fire came down from heaven, and devoured them.' This was the fire which the Lord said that He would kindle in the gates of Jerusalem, and it should devour the palaces; and the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever. Remember this was done in time, where the revolution of day and night passed on; and so they became judged out of the things written

in the books, of the law and prophets. This great army called Gog and Magog, was the backslidden part of Israel which is called the dragon. Isa. xxvii: 1. In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea. This was done with the sword of Esau.

This sword caused a noisome and grievous sore to those who had the mark of the beast; when the first vial was poured out on them, which was done when the first vial was poured on fallen Israel, Vespasian handled the sword of Esau; this was the opening of the first seal. John says, ' And the first that went out poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image. This was