2 Pet ij. 12. in St. Peter's phrafe, as looking for and haftening the day of God's appearance, to the erecting a more glorious Church upon Earth: which 'tis the main drift, and scope of the Prophecies to af fure us of. And as to the time for the ceafing of the State of Purity, and the beginning of that under Antichrift, I dare appeal to the Enquirers into Church Antiquity, how well it fuits with Hiftory. I am fure it exactly agrees with the Opinion of our own Church: which receives the four first ge neral Councils, and thofe only, as deferving of belief and fubfcription to their decrees: the laft of which was at Chalcedon, A.D.451. juft before the conclufion of that first Period; and fo looks upon the State of the Church, as too corrupt for any dependance on her dictates afterwards: and I think that other Proteftant Churches, are not much different from her Opinion herein. And if we confider how long the Idolatrous and Corrupt State of the Church has already lafted, we shall not at all doubt of its future continuance, for those few years yet to come, till A. D. 1716. At which Period we have great reafon to hope from this, and feveral other Prophecies in Scripture,that in Daniel's Phrase, Dan. viij. 14. the Sanctuary fhall be cleanfed, and the unhallowed Gentiles, or Antichriftian Idolaters be caft out of the Temple: and the Purity of the Chriftian Worship be reftor'd again. And if we have good reason to hope, that by these predictions, he Apoc.xxij. 20. that teftifyeth these things faith, furely I come quickly let us all anfwer with one accord, in the next words, Amen. Even so come Lord Jesus. Jud. v. 3. Corollary, 1.The Divinity of our B.Savior;the Government of the Church by Bishops; the Baptifm of Infants; the strictness of Churchdifcipline; and fuch other doctrines and practices as manifeftly and generally obtain'd during the pure State of the Church at first, cannot poffibly be fuppos'd Antichriftian. But are to be efteem'd either Branches of, or at least not disagreeable to that faith which was once deliver'd to the Saints, or to the pure and undefil'd Religion of Chrift Jesus. Corollary, 2. Any Plea from Antiquity, which yet reaches not: earlyer than the beginning of the Corrupt and Antichriftian Times, is of no value in the difputes about Religion: but rather a Sign. and Argument, that thofe Doctrines and Practices, which can be trac'd trac'd no higher are Antichristian and false; or at least fuch as made way by degrees, for what was most certainly of that Cha racter. VISIO N. II. The two Witneffes in Sackcloth. A prophecy a thou and two hundred and shreeffore days, load ND Iwill give power unto my two witnesses, and they fball Apoc. xj. 3. in fackcloth. 4. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks Standing before the God of the earth. 5. And if any man will hurt them fire proceedeth out of their mouths and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them he must in this manner be kill'd. 6. These have power to fbut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy; and have power over the waters to turn them to blood; and to fmite the earth with all plagues as oft as they will. 7. And when they are about to finish their reftimony the beast that afcendeth out of the bottomlefs pit shall make war against them, and fhall overcome them, and kill them. 8. And their dead bodies shall ly in the broad and great city, which Spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt; where alfo our Lord was crucified. 9. And they of the people and kindreds, and tongues, and nations fball fee their dead bodies three days and an half: and shall not fuffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. 10. And they that dwell upon the earth fball rejoyce over them, and make merry; and shall send gifts one to another, because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth. 11. And after three days and an half the spirit of life from God entred into them: and they stood upon their feet: and great fear fell upon them which faw them. 12. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, come up hither; and they afcended up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies beheld them. Cc 2 3. And Piedmont; and fes.. 13. And the fame hour was there a great earthquake: and the tenth part of the city fell. And in the earthquake was flain names of men feven thousand. And the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of Heaven. In this fecond Vifion of the Open Codicil, we have a plain defcription of the two Ancient and Famous Witnesses, against the Idolatry and Corruptions of Antichrift, the Waldenfes and Albigenfes whofe Churches were never wholly enflav'd to the Remarks on the Idolatry and Tyranny of the Church of Rome: as the most Ecclef. Hift. of Learned Dr. Allix has prov'd at large, in two diftinct Treatifes: the Churches of and which are the only Diftinct and Vifible Churches, that of the Albigen- never were fo enflav'd; as is fufficiently known in Hiftory. And therefore thefe are undoubtedly the onlyChurches that can answer this description of prophecying in fackcloth the whole 1260 years of the Reign of the Antichriftian powers. And in truth I cannot but wonder at thofe Expofitors who apply this Prophecy to any others: and efpecially at those who apply it to any, or all of the lately reformed Churches, against fuch direct and exprefs evidence to the contrary. And 'tis certainly no wonder if we see Interpretations and Expectations, fo whol ly without Foundation in the Prophecy, to have fail'd, and been fruftrated in the Event in our Age. But to return. These. two witneffes who ever oppofed the Antichriftian Idolatry, and Tyranny, and discover'd those Characters in the Church of Rome fooneft of all others, were forc'd to do it in Sackcloth the entire 1260 years of that Tyranny. And he who reads the Hiftories of these poor Chriftians in all the paft Ages, fince the Rife of the Antichriftian Powers, will not need any other Comment on that Expreffion: Affliction, Depreffion, and Misery, the known Interpretations of that Phrafe, having all along been their Lot till this very day. They are also represented by the known Characters of Mofes and Aaron, Elijah and Elisha; Zorobabel and Jeshua, the feveral Leaders of the People of Ifrael, in the Wilderness, and before, and after the Babylonish Captivity respectively: who were ftill dear to God, and had great power with him, when the reft of the People rebel'd,and fo were under his difpleasure. If any man hurt them, they are to be fadly deftroy'd on the Prayers of thefe Witnesses: as the fact is re markable markable of the Waldenfes; who have frequently with very few, almost beyond belief, overcome and deftroy'd their numerous Enemies: and if we look into the Hiftory of the Albigenfes, who were fomewhat more expos'd by their fituation, we fall find that they did no small execution on their Enemies, till the whole Chriftian World, in a manner, confpir'd together to opprefs them. Tho' perhaps the Power afcrib'd to thefe two Witneffes, in the fifth and fixth verfes does rather refer to thofe plagues of the Trumpets and Vials, which the Almighty, on their prayers and cries to Heaven, brought on that Empire which opprefs'd them, and thereby ftill,is it were, pleaded their caufe and aveng'd them on their Enemies. And this latter expofition, is the fooner to be believ'd and relyed on, because the fame word any is here us'd, which is elsewhere meant both of the Trumpets, and of the Vials and which in this Book, when taken abfolutely, feems always to be confin'd to thofe two Syftems of Judg- Apoc. ix. 20. ments, the Trumpets, and the Vials; and because the Intro- & 15. 1. duction to the Trumpets, does plainly reprefent thofe Judg- Apoc. viij. 1. ments as the effects of the prayers of the Saints, who were opprefs'd by Antichrift: of which certainly thefe Witnesses were the most remarkable. These two Witnesses, towards the conclufion of their fackcloth condition, are to be flain; their dead bodies are to ly ἐπὶ τῆς πλατείας πόλεως το μεγάλης in that broad and great City, for fo the words are best rendred; as I cannot but agree with a learned Friend, whofe interpretation it is; which is fpiritually call'd Sodom and Egypt; where alfo our See Nehemiah Lord was crucifyed. i. e. either within the bounds of the vij.4 Septuag. and for the * Roman Empire, and jurifdiction of the City of Rome; with- phrafe John.. vij. 37. * Urbs illa cognomine Magna ROMA eft, fic dicta non tam quantitatis intuitu, quam quod aliarum urbium Regina effet; juxta illud Angeli Cap. 17, ult. Mulier quam vidifti eft URBS illa MAGNA quæ regnum habet fuper reges terræ. Quemadmodum nomine Regis Magni, (quomodo Deus appellatur, Pf. 48. 3. Matt, 5. 35. quique titulus olim peculiariter Regibus Affyriorum & Perfarum competebat,) innuitur Rex Regum, qui in aliosReges poteftatem habet. Unde per totam Apocalypfin quocunque alias nomine Roma appelletur, five Babylonis, five Meretricis, femper hoc titulo Magna infignitur; ut Babylon illa Magna, Meretrix illa Magna. Adde quod in. 16. 18. 19. 21. & xix. 2. in which limits our Lord was crucifi'd; or elfe in that broad See Ifa. i. 9. and great City which is fpiritually called Sodom and Ægypt; where alfo our Lord was crucify'd: i. e. within the compafs of Ferufalem, literally: but myftically of that great City, which was the Head of that Chriftian Apoftacy now, as Jerufalem had frequently been of the Jewish Apoftacy in old times. i. e. in the Parts adjoining or belonging to Rome. [For Jerufalem was not a great City either in it felf, or as the Head of an Empire in St. John's days, nor ever fince has it been fo: and therefore cannot be ultimately refer'd to here; Apoc. xvi. 19. but under it that City which in this Book is fo often and pecu& xvij. 5.18. liarly ftil'd the great City,ought to be enigmatically understood.] & xviij. 2. 10. And the dead bodies of thefe Witneffes were not fuffered to be buryed, by thofe who lov'd them, and hoped for their Refurrection; for three days and an half: at the end of which term they stood upon their feet, or rofe again from the dead, to the great furprize and terror of their Enemies. Now this was fo exactly verifyed in the Vaudois in our own age, that 'tis but giving the Reader a brief Narrative of the facts, and himself will with great cafe make the application. The History in fhort is this. † The Duke of Savoy, the Sovereign of these Vaudois, by an Edict dated Jannuary 31. A.D. 168 N. S. forbad the Exercife of their Religion, on pain of death. And therein order'd their Churches to be demolish'd, and their Minifters to be banish'd. The Edict for their banishment was dated at Turin, April 9. Enrolled the 10 and publish'd in the Valleys the 11th. and an Army fent against them of Savoy, and French Troops; who attacked them on the 22d. in tota Apocalypfi nulli præter ipfam urbi titulus ifte tribuatur, nifi demum poft excidium ejus. Atqui neque Jerufalem Joannis ævo fuit, neque ulla alia Jerufalem præter ipfam unquam futura eft Urbs Magna seu aliarum Orbis Urbium caput & regina. Med. Commentat. Apoc. p. 601. 602. † See Book of the Revelation paraphras'd, with Annotations 40. London 1693. Monfieur Jurieu's Paftoral Letters. Account of the Vaudois Oxford. 1688. Peter Boyer Hiftory of the Vaudois Lond. 1692. Hiftory of the Negotiation beeween the Duke of Savoy, and the Country of Switzerland. Lond. 1690. Lettres fur les Matieres du Temps. Tom. 3. p. 198. Hiftory of the Perfecu tion of the Valleys of Piedmont. 4o. Lond. 1688. of |