muft ftill have been very much in the dark, as to the State of the Empire in that Age; and perhaps, not yet have been able rightly to understand the meaning of the Prophecy before us.

Corollary 1. One reafon may here defer ve more particularly to be taken notice of, why the last King, or Form of Roman Government, tho' it confifted of the fame number of Governors, as formerly were under the Decemviri, and fo was a revival of an ancient, and not the erecting a new Form of Government, it was of the feven, yet is it diftinguifh'd from them, and ftil'd an eighth alfo; namely, because during the greatest part of the time it was not to have the t Sovereignty of the City with feven Hills, as the ather had; but only the Provinces belonging to it. For as the feven Heads of the Beast are expounded by the Angel, both of the feven Hills, and of the feven Kings, or Forms of Government; sa is it very agreeable to that Unity of the Type, to fuppofe a like Vnity in the things thereby Typify'd, and that thofe feven Kings were all to belong to thofe feven Mountains; and the next King to be therefore call'd an eighth, because tho' the 10 Kings were the fame number of Governors over the fame Roman Empire, as was under the Decemviri; yet they did not long retain the Sovereignty of the fever Hills of Rome, as the former did; and fo might in this fenfe be difinguish'd from them, and be efteem'd an eighth King, or Form of Government after them.

Coroll. 2. Here we may obferve Dr. Creffener's mistake, who makes the difference between the feveral Heads, or Forms of Ro

proxime celebrato Auguftum fe ab exercitu nuncupatum. Recepit ille moftus ac dolens, & univerfos quatuor Imperatores jubet numerari. LactantDe Mortib. Perfecut. p. 62.

That an Head of a Beast must be that Roman power, whofe Authority is owned to be fupreme by the chief Government of the City of Rome, one would think were fufficiently evident by the Interpretation that the Angel himfelf has given of the fignification of the feven Heads. For the fame feven Heads, which he interprets to be feven Kings of the Romans, do alfo fignify the feven Hills of Rome, to which the City of Rome is infeparably ty'd. Which does very plainly fignify that all the feven Kings, are Kings of the feven Hills, or of that City, which thofe Hills do fignify. What could be more closely joined together in a Prophetical Scheme, to fhew them to be infeparable Companions, than to make both Kings and City to be reprefented by the very fame figures. Dr. Cref fener's Demonftrat. p. 147, 148. See the following Pages alfo.

man

man Government to be only the different names of the fupreme Governors, and yet makes the Gothick Kings of Italy the feventh Head, or Form of Government; whereas Kings were the first of thofe Forms, as he does not deny; and by confequence the Gothick Kings could not but be the revival of an old Head, or Form of Gavernment, not the Introduction of a new one. At this rate the various Returns of the Confulary and Dictatorial Power would have made feveral Forms of Roman Government: and then how little their number can be restrain'd to seven, all that are ever fo little acquainted with the Roman Hiftory, will eafily judge. And the like mistake might be obferv'd in his affigning thofe Kings for the feventh Head, which was to continue but a short space, whereas they continu'd near 70 years, as himself confeffes. Now 70 years being compar'd with the middle duration of the rest of these Heads, or Forms of Government will appear rather to be a pretty long space, and fo very unlikely to answer the contrary Character thereto belonging in the Prophecy. And fince, befides the 10 Horns, or 10 Kingdoms, into which the Roman Empire was to be divided, he makes an Head, or great eleventh Horn, this alfo is against the Prophecies here and in Daniel, which speak always of no more than 10 Horns, or 10 Kingdoms therein.

Scholium. If it be here alledg'd with Dr. Creffener, that the Roman Authors themselves, who are the beft Judges, do not reckon their Forms of Government to be chang'd, or different ftom the different Number, but only from the different Name of the Supreme Governors all along: I anfwer, That this does no where appear. For when they barely reckon up the feveral Forms of their Government, (Kings, Confuls, Dictators, De- Tacitus l. 1. cemvirs, Confulary Tribunes, and Cæfars,) in every one of Livy 1.8. which cafes, the Number, as well as Name was chang'd, it cannot thence be determin'd on what account they esteem'd thefe to be different Forms of Government: whether from the bare change of the Name, or whether from the like change of the Number alfo. So that for ought that appears in thefe Roman Authors, they might have the fame Notion of this Matter that I have above propos'd, and fo cannot juftly be alledg'd against me.

Having thus laid down fuch preparatory Propofitions, or Obfervations, as take in the guidance of the Angel's Expofition in the 17th Chapter; I hall proceed to the main bufinefs, The Expolition of the particular Vifions themfelves, by which the Prophecies of this Book are to be apply'd to the Histories, and Events to which they belong. The greateft part of which feem to me to be in the general fo fuitable and clear, that I cannot eafily deny my affent to them; and am fometimes tempted to wonder that fo many of them have been fo long, and fo generally misunderstood, and mifapply'd by Interpreters; and indeed fuppos'd unintelligible by the reft of the Chriftian World hitherto. But ftill before I proceed to the Visions themselves, I fhall premise these two farther Observations.

V. "The fix firft Seals belong to the time while the Roman "Empire continu'd Pagan, and contain Internal Broils, Wars, "and Events. After which, under the fixth of them, the Religion of the Empire is chang'd. After the Empire is become Chriftian, the feventh Seal introduces feven Trumpets,or "Martial Alarms: fix of which gradually deftroy that Empire "after it began to Degenerate into Antichriftian Idolatry and "Tyranny; and contain External Wars, and Invafions. After "which, our Saviour is fuppos'd to have,fo far Conquer'd all his "Enemies, that his own Kingdom is reckon'd to commence. "After the beginning of Chrift's Kingdom, the feventh Trumpet introduces feven Vials, or Cups full of the Wrath of "God to be pour'd out upon the Earth: which Vials, or Plagues "gradually overturn, and deftroy all that remains of his Ene"mies Power, and fo complete his Victory, and the fullness of "his Kingdom in the World. This Obfervation is not to be prov'd in this place, but its Truth will appear all along the Series of the Interpretations, and depends upon it; But was neceffary to be here taken notice of together, and prefented to the Reader at one View, for the better comprehenfion of the feveral Stages and Periods fucceeding quite thro' this SealedBook-Prophecy.

VI. "Because the Sealed-Book-Prophecy, as we have already "observ'd, is obfcure in the Times of its Periods, and rarely " fets down the Duration, and not at all the Connexion of its Vi

"fions,

"fions, as the Open Codicil does; care is taken therein to afford us "other Hints and Intimations to fupply that defect. Thus the first four Seals are wonderfully enlighten'd, and their Dates afcertain'd by deriving them from the Reigns of the Emperors born or advanc'd in the four Quarters of the World, or Roman Empire. The firft in the East, the fecond in the West, the third in the South, and the fourth in the North part of the World, or Roman Empire. For That, I think, is the most happy Conjecture of Mr. Mede, why the fe four Seals, and no other Vifions in this Book are introduc'd by the four Animals, which were the Enfigns of the East, West, South, and North fides of the Camp of Ifrael in the Wildernefs, and of the Scene, or Theater on which these Visions were reprefented to St. John.

For the firft Seal is thus introduc'd, And I saw when the Lamb Apoc.vj. Į. opened the first of the Seals, and I heard, as it were, the noise of Thunder, the FIRST of the four Animals: or the Lion, whose Station was on the East of the Camp of Ifrael, and of the Cherubims, faying, Come, and fee. The second Seal in like manner ver. 3. is introduc'd by the SECOND Animal, or the Ox on the West fide. The third Seal by the THIRD Animal, or the Man on ver. 6. the South fide. And the fourth Seal by the FOURTH Animal, ver. 7. or the Eagle on the North fide. And after thefe four Seals are over, this way of Introduction of Vifions is quite omitted, and ceafes for ever afterwards. What can rationally be fuppos'd to be the Importance of these Animals in this Order introducing the four first Vifions? But that thereby are intended four Chronological Characters of the Contents of thofe four Seals, or grand Periods taken from four Revolutions; or the commencing of the four New and Eminent Families, or Periods in the Government of that Roman Empire, to which thefe Vifions belong'd; and lafting during the continuance of fuch Families or Periods. The Families, or Periods, I mean, are (1.) The Flavian, begun by Vefpatian, in Judaa in the East, and continuing by fucceffion for about 27 years under his Sons Titus and Domitian. (2.) The Alian Family, or Period was begun, to omit the very short Reign of Nerva, by Trajan, who was born in the West, in Spain, and continuing in his Family by Blood or Adoption, for about 95 years, under Adrian, Anto

P. 37, 38. prius.

ninus Pius, Antoninus Philofophus, and Commodus. (3.) The Septimian Family, or Period was begun by Septimius Severus, born in the South, in Africa, and continuing with little or no interruption for about 42 years, under Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus, and Alexander, the Son of Mammaa. (4.) The Maximinian Family, or Period, If I may call that a Family, where only the Father and Son jointly Reign'd for a little while, and where the whole Period is rather to be diftinguish'd by its keeping to no Family at all, but changing the fame almost every Succeffion. However this Period is begun by Maximinus, born in the North, in Thrace; and continu'd for about 50 or 60 years under Philip the Arabian, Decius,Gallus, Valerianus,Gallienus, Claudius, Aurelianus, Tacitus, Probus, and Carus, till the famous Dioclefian himself; to whom, as we shall fee hereafter, the fifth Seal does belong. And altho' any should think the Jewif Tradition of the four Animals ftanding thus in the four Armies of Ifrael infufficient to bear the weight o. fuch Interpretations; yet fince,as we have feen,the fituation of the fame Animals in Ezekiel's Vifion agrees with that ancient Tradition; and there unquestionably the Faces of thefe four Animals were in the Pofitions here fuppos'd, it is not much to the main defign, whether that Pofition be taken from the Camp of Ifrael, or from Eze kiel's Vilion, to which, to be fure,, an Allufion is here made. For on all accounts the number, kinds and pofitiors of these Animals are the fame: and therefore the Interpretation built upon them, will ftill be the fame alfo, and equally hold good on either Suppofition. And then as to the fixth and feventh Seals, they are fo cafily understood, and the Events they relate to, are fo known and obvious in Hiftory, that they naturally place themfelves without any fuch collateral Intimations. And for the Trumpets, they follow fo directly inOrder after the fixth Seal, and fome of them are fo evidently to be apply'd to known Events; the conclufion of the fixth, orrather beginning of the feventh Trumpet is fo certainly and accurately connected with the end of the prevailing tyranny of the Beaft in the OpenCodicil; and the wholeSyftem of the Trumpets, is fo much afcertain'd by the double Prophecy of the State of the Undefil'd running thro' it, and the Open Codicil alfo; that there was little need of

any